This is why our daily lives must be rooted in fasting/prayer with monthly Confession and frequent Holy Mass/Holy Communion. The Spiritual Blindness is so dark and disturbing these days! False lights are deceptions of darkness! Isaiah 50: Who among you fears the Lord and obeys the voice of his servant, who walks in darkness and has no light, yet trusts in the name of the Lord and relies upon his God? 11 Behold, all you who kindle a fire, who set brands alight! Walk by the light of your fire, and by the brands which you have kindled! This shall you have from my hand: you shall lie down in torment.
I read an exorcist who said that these days we should say the Creed very often as it places us on the Rock of who and what we are and what we believe. Sounds like good sense
It's ironic that the most ideological of all Popes is worried about "ideology" His lack of self introspection in this regard is simply staggering.
I pray for him I really do. I am not of the opinion that he is evil I believe he is gravely in error in his mindset, a political pope, an ideological pope. A Pope trapped in a modernist mindset of the 1960s incapable of breaking free. He genuinely believes what he is doing is correct. How strange that I a real sinner an ordinary simple layman is forced to a position of explaining the rationale behind the thinking of the successor of St Peter. This pontificate has forced me into a corner where I do not want to go. All I can do is to continue to pray the rosary and pray for the pope with charity in my heart and also with a sense of shock at where this is all going.
Bobby you speak so clearly yet eloquently of our dilemma as lay people. I remember saying to someone when he first assumed the throne of Peter--" remember he is South American and Jesuit. A very different mindset." Since then I have careened back and forth trying to find my footing. Constant pontifical whiplash.. This most recent call for the novena to St Joseph struck just the right chord with me. I am doing it. I have immense trust in St Joseph as protector of the Church. May he rescue the faithful from the Herods within her walls. And win for PF true repentance and true faith. St Joseph terror of demons pray for us!
I am so sad to hear this. For your own spiritual peace, perhaps going to another church for weekend Mass might be a good idea. If this priest, and the Bishop are on the same page there is not much you can do but pray for them.
Me too. It makes me very uncomfortable to hear Pope Francis announce there will be secrecy surrounding the Synod. Pray, pray, pray.
It’s good that you mentioned this. I have found myself saying the Creed out of the clear blue- fairly often. I was perplexed until I read your post.
...and if we say the Rosary, we say the Creed. I can see now why it is right at the start. Of course at Easter we say the Creed when we are renouncing the devil and all his works. Saying the Creed is a kind nd of mini exorcism. Exorcists actually say the Sacrament of Confession is far more powerful than Exorcism because Exorcism is a sacramental whereas Confession is a Sacrament.
Pope Francis meets to discuss Strickland resignation THE PILLAR September 11, 2023 . At a meeting Saturday, Pope Francis discussed with Vatican officials the prospect of requesting the resignation of Bishop Joseph Strickland of the Diocese of Tyler, Texas, The Pillar has learned. The pope met Sept. 9 with Archbishop Robert Prevost, OSA, head of the Dicastery for Bishops, and Archbishop Christophe Pierre, apostolic nuncio to the United States - both cardinals-elect. Several sources close to the dicastery told The Pillar ahead of the meeting that the prelates would present the pope with the results of an apostolic visitation of Stickland’s diocese, conducted earlier this year, as well as subsequent public actions by the bishop, who has emerged as an outspoken critic of the Holy Father. “The situation of Bishop Strickland is the agenda,” one senior official close to the dicastery told The Pillar, “and the expectation is that the Holy Father will be requesting his resignation — that will certainly be the recommendation put to him.” While noting that the papal audience did not exclusively concern the Bishop of Tyler, who has previously accused the pope of having a “program [for] undermining the Deposit of Faith,” the official said that Strickland’s case was set to be the “primary point of discussion.” “There are two aspects,” the official said, “there is the matter of the public scandal from all these comments about the pope and the synod, but there are also real problems in the diocese. Those were the focus of the visitation; there are concerns in the diocese about governance, about financial matters, about basic prudence.” The official predicted that the pope was unlikely to decide to depose Strickland as bishop of his diocese, a canonically rare act, but told The Pillar that Pope Francis would be advised to encourage the bishop to resign. “The consensus in the dicastery is that he will be asked to consider resigning,” the official said. “That has been the substance of discussion among the members.” “Depending on how the bishop responds, the strength of that encouragement could be increased,” the official said, and cited the case of Bishop Richard Stika who announced his resignation as Bishop of Knoxville, Tenn., earlier this year after being informed he no longer had the confidence of either the Holy See or his own clergy. Prevost, who has been prefect of the Vatican dicastery since April, leads the department responsible for recommending candidates for episcopal appointments to the pope. The department also oversees disciplinary investigations and processes concerning bishops’ acts of governance under the norms of Vos estis lux mundi and Come una madre amorevole, laws brought in by Pope Francis to enhance accountability among the episcopate. Prevost, a member of the Augustinian order and a Chicago native, is one of three American members of the dicastery, the others being Cardinal Blase Cupich of Chicago and Cardinal Joseph Tobin of Newark. If Strickland is encouraged to resign, it is not clear how he would respond to such an invitation. “I think that I went through this because I’ve been bold enough, and loved the Lord enough and his Church, simply preaching the truth,” Strickland said in July. The Vatican probe was confirmed by The Pillar June 24, after rumors surfaced on social media, and the visitation was reported on the Church Militant website. The apostolic visitation, an official review of diocesan leadership and governance, was conducted by Bishop Gerald Kicanas, emeritus of Tucson, and Bishop Dennis Sullivan of Camden, who filed a report with the Dicastery for Bishops. The visitation included questions about the governance of a diocesan high school, considerable staff turnover in the diocesan curia, the bishop’s welcome of a controversial former religious sister as a high school employee, and the bishop’s support for “Veritatis Splendor” — a planned Catholic residential community in the diocese, which has struggled with controversy involving its leadership’s financial administration and personal conduct. Sources familiar with the investigation have previously told The Pillar that diocesan officials and clergy interviewed as part of the process were asked about the possibility of Bishop Strickland stepping down and canvassed for their views about suitable possible successors. The bishop has long been celebrated by many leaders in the pro-life movement, for his outspoken defense of human life, and opposition to abortion. The bishop is a frequent user of Twitter, with more than 135,000 followers. In recent years, Strickland has been critical of Pope Francis, and was outspoken in his criticism of the Holy See’s approach to vaccines during the coronavirus pandemic, urging a more stringent position than the Vatican’s on ethical questions surrounding vaccine testing and embryonic cell lines. In May, Strickland tweeted that he “rejects” Pope Francis’ “program undermining the Deposit of Faith” and he has built an increasingly national profile and following on a number of issues. In June, Strickland left the U.S. bishops’ conference meeting in Orlando, FL., to lead a rally outside the stadium of the Los Angeles Dodgers baseball club, part of a wider public pushback against the team’s decision to honor the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, an LGBT activist group specializing in Catholic-themed drag acts. Although both the USCCB and the Los Angeles archdiocese called for prayers and acts of spiritual reparation for the baseball event, the archdiocese also told Catholics that it had not given its “backing or approval” to a prayer rally organized by conservative groups, some of which have a controversial place in the American Catholic landscape. USCCB president Archbishop Timothy Broglio also distanced himself from the prayer rally headlined by Strickland, telling The Pillar in June that he questioned such a demonstration’s effectiveness and said it posed a risk of potential physical confrontation. In July, following the apostolic visitation, Strickland released a pastoral letter to his diocese in August in which he warned Catholics about “the evil and false message that has invaded the Church, Christ’s Bride.” “In this time of great turmoil in the Church and in the world, I must speak to you from a father’s heart in order to warn you of the evils that threaten us, and to assure you of the joy and hope that we have always in our Lord Jesus Christ,” Strickland wrote, before enumerating several points of Church teaching which he said would be debated at the upcoming session of the Synod of Bishops in Rome. Senior sources close to the Tyler diocese told The Pillar that the tone of the letter had surprised many senior clergy of the diocese. Several figures in the diocese confronted Strickland over the tone of the letter, The Pillar was told, and warned the bishop his position was becoming untenable. “People were deeply alarmed” by the letter, one senior source close to the diocese told The Pillar, “but the bishop was having none of it. He was absolutely firm that he was saying what needs to be said and that he wouldn’t be silenced by anyone.” Some sources in the diocese have told The Pillar that Strickland claims he has been directed by the Blessed Virgin Mary to continue his outspoken engagement on global Church affairs. However, despite Strickland’s reportedly bullish response to concerns within the diocese, he released on Sept. 5 a second letter, which he called “a more in depth consideration of point number one as expressed in the Pastoral Letter I issued on August 22,” and in which he treated several of the same points but in less emphatic terms. Since the apostolic visitation in Tyler, there has been considerable debate and commentary on the subject among U.S. Catholics. Some Catholics — among them both Strickland’s supporters and detractors — have said the bishop’s outspoken commentary on Church issues has likely put him in the spotlight of Vatican officials. Some of Strickland’s supporters have said the visitation in Tyler seems to them like a political move. Addressing the possibility that the visitation could lead to his being asked to resign, Strickland vowed in July that no matter the outcome, he expects to continue his public role in the Church’s life. “They won’t stop me,” Strickland said. “When we’re speaking the truth of Jesus Christ, there is no politically correct. And the world can try to shut us down, but it won’t work.”
I have noticed subtle changes already at mass and its becoming very troubling. For the past few weeks, I have noticed that the general intercessions are having some very woke prayers in them. I know this isn't coming from my parish because Father had mentioned last week that he added a prayer in this week that didn't come from the Bishop. One prayer this week actually asked us to pray for those to feel welcomed and loved in our church despite their race, gender or sexual preference. Sure they didn't come right out and say it but the tone made it sound like the church is fastly moving towards changes toward sexual preferences and how it will be viewed in the church. I am sorry but the moment they would allow for practicing sex acts that go against what God has told us, I won't be able to go into that church anymore and will have to find another somehow but don't see how we will be able to escape it from any church in a diocese.
The sheep are heading one way and the goats in quite another. Perhaps this is a good thing. It ends the confusion.
I'm afraid they would have to destroy Bishop Strickland if he does not give in to their wishes, just like what they did to Cardinal Pell...
It just figures that Bishop Strickland is going to be driven from Tyler right as I'm moving into it. I should be moving into my new house finally by the end of this month. I was so looking forward to being a part of Bishop Strickland's flock. I can only imagine the kind of bishop they'll try to replace him with.
But these people are extremely politically astute no matter what else they are. Making Bishop Strickland a martyr would not be in their interests. Better by far if he appeared to be admitting wrong doing by peacefully going. On the other hand he is doing them extreme damage. I hope he doesn't resign but forces them to put the knife fully in.
