“Remember, man, that thou art dust, and unto dust, thou shalt return.” I’m old enough to remember the priest murmuring that as he smeared ashes on my forehead, conveniently bared of my perpetual bangs by my Catholic school beanie. The words seared. I remembered them all year and waited for them the following year. Then…
It could perhaps have been predicted that the mandatory global shutdown of the Church’s liturgical life and the slow reawakening of it here and there as policies loosen up would bring with it a bumper crop of new problems mingled with old ones. While it is true that the opportunity for private Masses has led…
Epistle: 1 Peter 4:7-11 Gospel: John 15:26-27; 16:1-4 Almighty and everlasting God, make us ever bear a devout affection toward Thee, and with a sincere heart to serve Thy majesty. – From the Collect for the Sunday after the Ascension We have now entered into Ascensiontide, that time of waiting between Our Lord’s Ascension and…
This is the second of two related articles on whether doctrine can change. In the second, we explore doctrine in the broad sense, as “Church teaching.” Can doctrine change? Depending on whom you ask, you will get a different answer. Though some are mistaken, many are simply using different definitions. They could be speaking about…
Oxford-educated archaeologist Sir William Ramsay, embarking on a journey to investigate the historicity of the Gospel records and Acts, was skeptical. Taught by liberals and having adopted prevalent errors on the alleged late origin and supposed non-historicity of the Gospels and Acts, Sir William fully expected his own work to corroborate those liberal theories. Instead,…
Epistle: James 1:22-27 Gospel: John 16:23-30 O God, from Whom all good things do come, grant unto us, Thy suppliant people, that by Thine inspiration, we may think what is right, and under Thy guidance perform the same. – From the Collect for Fifth Sunday after Easter In the Traditional Latin Mass, the Epistle often…
This is the first of two related articles on whether doctrine can change. In the first, we examine doctrine from the strict point of view, side by side with dogma. What does the Church really teach? Since Pope John Paul II, media and laity alike have been interested in and sometimes confused by the pope’s…
Epistle: 1 Peter 2:11-19 Gospel: John 16:16-22 O God, Who makest the faithful to be of one mind and will: grant to Thy people to love that which Thou dost command and to desire that which Thou dost promise, that amid the changes of the world,our hearts may there be fixed where true joys are…
Epistle: 1 Peter 2:11-19 Gospel: John 16:16-22 O God, who to those that go astray dost show the light of Thy truth, that they may return to the path of justice: grant that all who are enrolled in the Christian faith, may both reject all that is hostile to that name, and follow after what…
Epistle: 1 Peter 2:21-25 Gospel: John 10:11-16 O God, Who, by the humility of Thy Son didst lift up a fallen world, grant unending happiness to Thy faithful: that those whom Thou hast snatched from the perils of endless death, Thou mayest cause to rejoice in everlasting joys. – From the Collect for Second Sunday…
We have heard it all before. “The Second Vatican Council was not the problem; the problem was the ‘Spirit of Vatican II.’ The documents themselves are not that bad. Modernists hijacked the confusion after the Council, Traditionalists who bash Vatican II probably don’t even know anything about the documents. Archbishop Lefebvre even signed most of…
