I do see your point However when I think of Cardinal Burke I have some anxiety over why he has not acted He is in a position to actually do something We cannot
That is the risk of sticking your neck out. Speaking as one who has said loads and loads in his time that he should not. But if I were God I'd give a pat on the back to the man who took the risks on my behalf and blundered and the back of my hand to the one who sat saying nothing out of fear he might offend. Tortoises may not get hurt in their shells but they don't walk too far. .
Thanks for your posts! You indeed have your finger on the pulse of what is going on and how to deal with it. I think you and I are of the same mind as to the fact that we must try to keep our statements reserved to some extent, not exceed our authority, and act in charity. At the same time it is understandable how many find it hard to hold their tongues. It is like watching The Lord being scourged. Our Lady looked on humbly as Our Lord's Passion took place knowing it was the Will of God to allow it. Most of us are not anywhere near her degree of perfection so we are apt to cry out when she did not. Still we must constantly realign ourselves so we do not stray too far off the path of charity.
At this stage I wonder at the motive behind his more orthodox statements. Given how he surrounds himself with people who are at the very least borderline heretics and has given cover for heretical practices with his ambiguous apostolic exhortation and raising to authentic Magisterial level the equally ambiguous Argentinian guidelines on top of some of his own questionable statements and bad example, the orthodox statements can serve two purposes: (1) it affirms the ultramontanists in their borderline papolatry, and (2) it prevents him being condemned in the future as a formal heretic. I suppose it is possible that some of his more orthodox statements reflect what he actually believes but he is just as likely to say or do something tomorrow indicative of totally contrary beliefs, using some kind of "grey area" reference to fudge the issue. Now that I've finished reading that book, I'm inclined to agree with you that it is a bit of a hatchet job although it could have been worse. The author seems to have left room for just enough doubt to make it look like he was trying his best to come across as fair and balanced. I could be way wide of the mark but I get the impression that it was written by a Catholic journalist who is sickened by what he has learned from friends and trusted sources about the real Pope Francis as opposed to the saccharine sweet, holy, pious, humble Papa Francesco depicted in the anti-Catholic and cafeteria Catholic (often Jesuit influenced or controlled) media. Short of having unrestricted access to Vatican and other records, I don't see how he can produce irrefutable evidence. Nevertheless, there's enough to raise concerns such as the case of Pope Francis restoring priestly faculties to a laicised paedophile only to remove them again after the man was found guilty in a civil court. Obviously there is something seriously amiss in the Vatican. The open warfare started way back with the Jesuit led opposition to Humane Vitae, descended to bitchy name calling with Cardinal Ratzinger being dubbed the Pope's Rottweiler and reared its ugly head again when people close to the Pope launched their vicious campaign against the four dubia Cardinals. It looks like some people have had enough and decided to fight fire with fire. Malachi Martin's fiction is looking tame in comparison with the facts. None of this dog fighting reflects well on the Church. The Pope's latest rant clearly aimed at Cardinal Muller is a bit rich considering how he ascended to the papacy. Turning the other cheek clearly isn't his style. Most likely there are good and bad people in both camps. When all's said and done, what matters is the Deposit of Faith. Thus far, one side appears to be attempting to defend the Deposit of Faith and the other side is out of line with the Council of Trent and previous Popes. I'm still waiting for someone to explain to me how the Holy Spirit was guiding Cardinal Kasper's campaign while at the same time guiding the two Popes who rejected it and the same Holy Spirit is now guiding Pope Francis to implement it. Has Pope Francis discovered a new Holy Spirit?
Thank you for your wise words of caution. Circumstances can easily cause me to over-step the mark. A car with an accelerator and no brake is lethal. Please, if you can, post more often to keep us on an even keel. May God bless and guide us all.
Do not forget the sin of omission “Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin” (James 4:17). “But if any provide not for his own, and especially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel” (1 Timothy 5:8).
Yes, upon reflection, it can be very easy to cross the line, a great advice to be very cautious and at the same time stand up for the truth and,
Yes. I second that. Someone posted recently that Mary watched all the outrages against Her Son and said nothing. Even beneath the Cross. She trusted God with an intensity of faith that defies descriptive words. I first and foremost do not want to offend God. I can increase my prayers and sacrifices and obedience to the TRUE magisterium but I don’t think I can weigh in in on PF. I keep asking myself “what would Our Mother do?” So I am trying to stand beneath this Cross as best I can. That being said some of her children are called to speak —anointed to speak just as St Catherine of Siena and St Athanasius. We have some wonderful faith filled discerners on this forum and I say God bless them! I hope they won’t keep silent when warnings are in order. I mean to be their prayer back up just as I mean to keep praying for PF and our beautiful Church.
The Vatican and Goings-On at some Diocesan HQs has become nothing but a big DISTRACTION that confuses and upsets The Faithful. Take James' Advice in the above and see to the Faith & Needs of yourself, your family (& Parish-n-neighborhood) .............. Pray for the "Bigs" but concentrate on all the small important matters that will pay future "dividends" to you/yours!! GOD SAVE ALL HERE!!
“The approach a Pope takes is not what destroys the Church” Maria Voce Pubblicato il 23/12/2017 ANDRÉS BELTRAMO ÁLVAREZ VATICAN CITY Maria Voce is an Italian lawyer, a kindly person with a ready smile. Since 2008, Emmaus (as those in the Focolare know her) has been guiding the destiny of one of the largest Catholic Movements in the world. In an interview with Vatican Insider, she addressed key issues in the life of the Church today. Her attitude was realistic but always optimistic. Pope Francis has called for a great reform in the Church, above all a spiritual reform and has identified new priorities. Has his message put you into crisis? “It is not that he has put us into crisis, because we always feel a great harmony with the Pope. We feel he expresses what we too feel in all that he has done and every word he says. However, he is always calling for a more truly gospel life, a more moderate life, one more in tune with the charism that Chiara, Chiara Lubich, handed on to us. In this sense, it is surely a positive crisis, constantly appealing to us to be what we should be; to be what the charism asks us to be; not something new, but what the charism asks. With greater integrity. At the time of Pope John Paul II, the ecclesial movements were booming, but they also wanted to do things in a big way. Instead, Pope Francis is calling us back to what is essential. Is it time to stop holding big events and abandon triumphalism? Do you see it like this? “Yes, I do, but I am not surprised. I am happy because I say that perhaps the time has come when it is not so much a question of spreading more widely but of going into depth. I believe that going into depth is key to a new type of spreading. The Pope is urging us to do this.” Pope Francis emphasises the role of the laity in the Church, but he also warns them against becoming “clericalised” or confused about their mission. To what extent have these bad habits taken hold? “That is a difficult question. I feel the Pope is very concerned about relationships. When he appreciates what the laity do, he is not diminishing the clergy, because he sees that the Church is made up of clergy and laity, each respecting the roles of the others. I think what matters to him is that lay people be lay people, that they don’t become the “factotums” [people who do everything] in the Church. He wants the clergy to go on being clergy, true pastors and ministers who serve the people of God, but who can enable others to feel as much part of the Church as they are.” It seems that when the Pope speaks about the clergy he wants to thump some and justify others. You are sure it is not like that. Why then is there this perception? “I don’t know. I think it is right that the media focus on what the Pope does or says, because he is an authority who should be listened to by everyone. Sometimes, however, the media exaggerate by taking these things as if they were completely new. They present the history of the Church in terms of we used to do things like that and now we are not doing it like that anymore. It is true in some ways. Some things are not being done as they were before. Why is that? Because society has changed, the human resources the Church is there to serve have changed. Therefore, the Pope of our day addresses the needs and challenges of humanity today. It is right to emphasise this, but it is equally right to say the Church is journeying through history.” Are you aware of concerns in people who hear these messages and worry, even though later on they realise that they are not necessarily true? “It can happen. However, I cannot say I have heard concerns about what the Pope does or says from the people I know. Quite the opposite, I have always noticed deep appreciation and great openness to what he is saying.” Pope Francis’ election caused shock waves in the Church. What is your view? “I think the shock is about going to back to the times of the early Church. The Church as an institution and people too might feel this shock. However, it is healthy. Many people thank God for it, except in a few cases where they are too deeply rooted in their own situation to be ready for something new. We cannot hide the fact that there is something new here. But it is about going back, in our own day, to the origins of the Church. Newness can make people feel afraid, or troubled.” How do you see Pope Francis’ thoughts on the role of women in the Church? “As I said before the Pope highlights relationships. He does not highlight women in order to diminish men. Both are important in the Church because they are important in God’s plan. This complementarity is what the Pope has most at heart. That is why he recognises that without the contribution of the “feminine genius” in the Church something is missing, just as something would be missing if the “masculine genius” were missing. However, the “masculine genius” is not missing; it is predominant and has always been predominant in the Church. It is the “feminine genius” that has been lacking even if it was never completely absent because there have always been women saints, and women who advised the Popes, but the contribution of “feminine genius” was not sufficiently appreciated.” Public opinion wants to see visible signs. Without specific roles, it is as though they are not appreciated. How can this revaluation come about without undermining the original plan for the Church? “Specific roles are needed too. I am not saying that women do not need to have specific roles to be better appreciated.” How healthy is the Focolare Movement today? “I would like to say, ‘Everything is fine thanks!’ This is true even though we are aware of a kind of crisis, we might say. There is a kind of tiredness that comes in after a while, realising that the people who started the movement are no longer young and that even though there is generational change, it is not enough from the point of view of numbers. However, this has not affected the deep health of the Movement. Its spirituality continues to spread and we find it has reached places we did not expect. We see that despite the problems and conflicts in the world, people in the Movement do all they can to remain united in love and mutual respect beyond differences of opinion. They do all they can to remain in deep and true unity, founded on faith in God and on being brothers and sisters, which is God the Father’s gift to us. This is the most important thing.” What challenges have you identified? The most important challenge is to keep going ahead, being faithful to the charism that Chiara (Lubich, the founder) left us. It is a charism of unity as a response to all the divisions in the world. These are not the same as they were in 1943, which is why it is essential to incarnate this charism, which must become more and more a concrete response to what people want today and to the needs of society and the Church. We think that in future there will be a great development in the dialogues at all levels, not only ecumenical and interreligious dialogue but also dialogue with contemporary culture and dialogue between generations.” Which parts of the world are you concentrating on now? “At the moment, and for the first time, we are studying a kind of “geopolitics” of our Movement. We are trying to identify places where there is a great need of fraternity, like the Middle East, but not only there. The Pope has convened a Synod on Amazonia and we have an evangelisation project in some villages near the river. We are also thinking of India but the whole of Asia represents a challenge. Our presence can be permanent or temporary.” The Church is proclaiming its message but the world is going in another direction. It seems as though the faithful who are immersed in this reality end up falling into a kind of “double life”. How can we resolve this paradox? “It is a huge problem. In past times, values were much more widespread, because they were part of family and parish life; now we don’t hear them anymore. I perceive that there is a huge emptiness in humanity, a lack of meaning, and this can be seen from the results: increasing violence, more suicides, young people who slip into vices we did not know of before.” A bleak outlook... “I would prefer to see it as an opportunity rather than a problem. This emptiness calls for a serious message. Christians must be vigilant in taking this situation seriously and giving a message that has been experienced, not just words. Unfortunately, sometimes it seems as though we have to make compromises. Why is that? To stay in our job, to further our career… These are not Christian motives, so we cannot make compromises. The radical nature of Gospel life that the Pope is continually calling us to is a clear message that can influence a world that does not have any clear message to give. There is an emptiness. Seeing this absence of meaning, those who have a clear message and who know how to convey it through the integrity of their life, can often find fertile ground. So I would rather see this emptiness as a time that God is giving us to say, “Christians, wake up!” The Christian message has not lost its value. Rather, it is we Christians who don’t live the Christian message authentically. So we must convert ourselves. I think it is a call to conversion. http://www.lastampa.it/2017/12/23/v...the-church-6Fuj9bpkX7PoTKwomNPdEL/pagina.html
I highly second DeGaulle's recommendation to post more often if you can An Guilbneach. Everyone here is more than welcoming of a "fraternal correction" once in a while We are riding a see-saw and we need to keep recalibrating ourselves lest we lose equilibrium and tilt too far to one side or the other. A mixture of temperaments helps greatly in this. David Healy is another sage voice in the current confusion.
In response to my own post, I must point out that Cardinal Maradiaga has responded powerfully to his critics: Cardinal Maradiaga responds to allegations of corruption Cardinal Oscar Andrés Rodríguez Maradiaga. Credit Bohumil Petrik / ACI Prensa By Andrea Gagliarducci Tegucigalpa, Honduras, Dec 22, 2017 / 12:05 pm (CNA).- Cardinal Oscar Andrés Rodriguez Maradiaga has rejected accusations of financial mismanagement, and offered an explanation for allegations that he has received an excessive salary for a largely ceremonial role at the Catholic University of Honduras. In an email interview with CNA, Cardinal Maradiaga explained that “a little more than one year ago, we had to fire a manager of the university because he was stealing,” and “shortly after, an anonymous defamatory paper was spread, filled with a series of calumnies of the kind published this week.” Cardinal Maradiaga was referring to a report by Italian outlet L’Espresso. According to the report, Cardinal Maradiaga received $600,000 from the University of Tegucigalpa in 2015, as a sort of “salary” for being the chancellor of the University. The cardinal was also accused of losing nearly $1.2 million of Church funds through investments in some London financial companies. The accusations were not new, since the website ConfidencialHn had reported on them in Aug. 2016. Cardinal Maradiaga said that the archdiocese has begun a legal action to defend itself, but this has “had no effect in clarifying the truth.” Cardinal Maradiaga explained that the Catholic University of Honduras is “owned by archdiocese.” The cardinal stressed that, during his term as archbishop, and chancellor of the university, the college has grown to 11 campuses spread across Honduras. The cardinal added that “the university is aimed at assisting the pastoral works of the Archdiocese,” and to support that work, he said the archdiocese, not the cardinal personally, received monthly payments that were “more or less” the amount of money described in reports – approximately $41,400 monthly. This money, he added, was delivered to “pay the seminarians’ tuition, to fund the building and renovations of churches and to provide economic assistance to priests in rural parishes or to priests who have no livelihood.” Cardinal Maradiaga stressed that “funds are not transferred in my name, but in the name of the archdiocese,” and this can be witnessed by priests. He underscored that “with these funds, we also help a lot of poor people that seek help everyday.” Fr. Carlos Rubio of the Archdiocese of Tegucigalpa told ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner, that the Catholic University of Honduras financially supports “all the bishops [of Honduras], not just the cardinal, to help the dioceses. Remember that the university is Catholic and under the auspices of the Church.” “All the bishops receive support for their dioceses, not for personal use,” Rubio said. The money “is support from the Catholic university for the mission of the diocese.” Cardinal Maradiaga confirmed that there was an apostolic visit to Bishop Juan José Pineda, auxiliary Bishop of Tegucigalpa, but he stressed that the bishop himself to “asked the Holy Father for an apostolic visit, in order to clear his name.” Pineda has long been the subject of accusations of financial mismanagement, and rumors that he financially supports a male companion using archdiocesan funds. Some have alleged that he had an apartment built on the campus of the Catholic University of Honduras, in order to house this companion. A Catholic missionary working in Honduras told ACI Prensa that Pineda’s situation is a source of scandal in the Honduran Church. The bishop “lives with an ‘aide,’ without any explanation by anyone,” the missionary said. “Bishop Pinedo has bought him a downtown apartment and a car. The car, we fear, comes from the coffers of the university or the diocese. We have reported this unseemly relationship to the Vatican. The pope knows everything,” the missionary added. Cardinal Maradiaga said that the Archdiocese does not yet know the results of the apostolic visit, but he also asked “how these results eventually got” to L’Espresso. He said that the L’Espresso report “says half truths, that are in the end the worse lies.” The cardinal denied that the Finance Council of the Archdiocese have ever authorized “any investment” similar to those reported by L’Espresso. Cardinal Maradiaga concluded: “Why have accusations that were published and dismissed one year ago been published now, only 8 days before I present my resignation to Pope Francis, since I will have reached the age limit of 75?” In Maradiaga’s view, attacking him is a way to try to jeopardize Pope Francis’ reforms. And he said: “I will keep serving [those reforms] as long as the Holy Father wishes so.” https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/...a-responds-to-allegations-of-corruption-48097 Perhaps I need to be more wary of "fake news". There are so many lies, half-truths and examples of 'spin' out there that it is really very difficult to know what is really happening. Note the irony that even in this report, which seems to be from an impeccable outlet, there are allegations from anonymous sources about Bishop Pineda. I think I'll start keeping my head down and let God sort them all out.
Thanks for posting a correction, or at least a possible different explanation for what happened. I think this is important to do in fairness and charity to the parties concerned.
