Sackings in Detroit; Hyperpapalism Blues; Doctor Newman; 4 Years of Prison Guards; Ratzinger on Lefebvre; Liturgical Lessons; Philosophical Ponderings; Political Pronunciamentos; and more
What a wealth of articles and commentary after your very grueling trip ~ thank you. I loved your assessment: “ Hyperpapalism is a mental disease.” So very true. I’m glad you pointed out the Fairfield Carmelites. I love what they are doing and I follow their progress. I think the great Madre herself would feel quite comfortable in their convent.
Although I haven't given up hope, and won't be enticed by the grass-is-greener snares that are besetting traditional Roman Catholics, I can't deny that I had, perhaps naively, placed more faith in a renewal in the Church given Pope Francis has now gone to his Maker and reward. Presently I can see only the wains of the progressive Church, continue their downhill trundle towards the cliff, without even a check in its pace.
Let's not forget that 100 days (Leo's pontificate thus far) is as nothing and less than nothing in the scope of Church history. It has often taken 100 years or more for any serious reform to get going. I know that's poor consolation to mortals who are only here for a few short decades. But at the same time, one key act of a pope can have immediate and significant ripple effects, as Summorum Pontificum did in 2007. Yet even this document was prepared already over 20 years earlier when the essence of it was drafted by a commission of cardinals that included Ratzinger. The wheels move very slowly, yet they do move. Meanwhile, our role is to do the best we can with the situation we have, and never to stop asking the Lord to intervene, as the persistent widow in the Gospel parable does.
All very true. I should know this even by reading the Bible, like Kings 1-4. Generations of rebelliousness, generations of resistance, internecine and kin strife. Betrayal. Idolatry. Repeatedly so.
Dr. K., I would like to comment on the paragraph regarding the Israeli War against Hamas. I would have sent a commentary to the magazine and not here, but they are closed to further comments. I understand that this is not the forum for discussion of the war and so I will restrict my comments solely to the Crisis Magazine article since you provided a link for it and added your own opinion.
The article is absolutely disjointed, sensational, and loaded with misinformation. Here’s how: It’s true that Holy Family Church was recently hit by Israeli shell’s but it was done so accidentally. The proof is that the building is still standing and the damage appears as strays. This is not to dismiss the tragedy of three people killed and 12 injured. We pray for all. The Israeli Prime Minister called Pope Leo XIV as soon as he learned of it.
The church of St. Porphyrius was also described as being bombed October 19, 2023 by Israel. A fact check by the AP (Associated Press), “A Medieval Church in Gaza was not razed by Israeli Bombing, Contrary to Online Posts,” is easily accessible.
Lastly, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, has a history of maligning Israel either directly or indirectly in just about everything in my opinion. Here in this article he is quoted describing a sniper fire incident December 16, 2023 killing two women civilians, “shot in cold blood in the premises of the parish, where there are no belligerents.” Another person said a missile fell directly on a convent there, completely destroying it. The real story (as far as I can gather) is that a rocket launcher was at the parish site. Hamas is well-known to embed itself among civilians, shoot, and then run. Stressing that the IDF “does not target civilians, no matter their religion,” the army told AFP that it had on Saturday been contacted by church representatives about an incident in the Holy Family Parish, but “no reports of a hit on the church, nor civilians being injured or killed, were raised.” (Times of Israel).
Finally, the article was basically an anti-Jewish, anti-Israel screed without any balance whatsoever and serves only to promote hostility toward the Jewish people.
It is very difficult for me, for any of us, to know what news sources and politicians to trust. I have seen too much lying on both sides to feel confident anymore.
My attitude could be summed up as "A pox on both your houses!"
What a wealth of articles and commentary after your very grueling trip ~ thank you. I loved your assessment: “ Hyperpapalism is a mental disease.” So very true. I’m glad you pointed out the Fairfield Carmelites. I love what they are doing and I follow their progress. I think the great Madre herself would feel quite comfortable in their convent.
Excellent, and so helpful! Thanks Dr K, and welcome back from La Madre Patria.
I just dropped my Substack on soft liberalism and the Detroit and Tulsa dismisalls. Soft liberalism is not the friend of the Catholic tradition.
Could you share a link to your Substack post?
Although I haven't given up hope, and won't be enticed by the grass-is-greener snares that are besetting traditional Roman Catholics, I can't deny that I had, perhaps naively, placed more faith in a renewal in the Church given Pope Francis has now gone to his Maker and reward. Presently I can see only the wains of the progressive Church, continue their downhill trundle towards the cliff, without even a check in its pace.
Let's not forget that 100 days (Leo's pontificate thus far) is as nothing and less than nothing in the scope of Church history. It has often taken 100 years or more for any serious reform to get going. I know that's poor consolation to mortals who are only here for a few short decades. But at the same time, one key act of a pope can have immediate and significant ripple effects, as Summorum Pontificum did in 2007. Yet even this document was prepared already over 20 years earlier when the essence of it was drafted by a commission of cardinals that included Ratzinger. The wheels move very slowly, yet they do move. Meanwhile, our role is to do the best we can with the situation we have, and never to stop asking the Lord to intervene, as the persistent widow in the Gospel parable does.
All very true. I should know this even by reading the Bible, like Kings 1-4. Generations of rebelliousness, generations of resistance, internecine and kin strife. Betrayal. Idolatry. Repeatedly so.
Nothing new under the sun.
Dr. K., I would like to comment on the paragraph regarding the Israeli War against Hamas. I would have sent a commentary to the magazine and not here, but they are closed to further comments. I understand that this is not the forum for discussion of the war and so I will restrict my comments solely to the Crisis Magazine article since you provided a link for it and added your own opinion.
The article is absolutely disjointed, sensational, and loaded with misinformation. Here’s how: It’s true that Holy Family Church was recently hit by Israeli shell’s but it was done so accidentally. The proof is that the building is still standing and the damage appears as strays. This is not to dismiss the tragedy of three people killed and 12 injured. We pray for all. The Israeli Prime Minister called Pope Leo XIV as soon as he learned of it.
The church of St. Porphyrius was also described as being bombed October 19, 2023 by Israel. A fact check by the AP (Associated Press), “A Medieval Church in Gaza was not razed by Israeli Bombing, Contrary to Online Posts,” is easily accessible.
Lastly, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, has a history of maligning Israel either directly or indirectly in just about everything in my opinion. Here in this article he is quoted describing a sniper fire incident December 16, 2023 killing two women civilians, “shot in cold blood in the premises of the parish, where there are no belligerents.” Another person said a missile fell directly on a convent there, completely destroying it. The real story (as far as I can gather) is that a rocket launcher was at the parish site. Hamas is well-known to embed itself among civilians, shoot, and then run. Stressing that the IDF “does not target civilians, no matter their religion,” the army told AFP that it had on Saturday been contacted by church representatives about an incident in the Holy Family Parish, but “no reports of a hit on the church, nor civilians being injured or killed, were raised.” (Times of Israel).
Finally, the article was basically an anti-Jewish, anti-Israel screed without any balance whatsoever and serves only to promote hostility toward the Jewish people.
Thank you, Steve, for sharing this information.
It is very difficult for me, for any of us, to know what news sources and politicians to trust. I have seen too much lying on both sides to feel confident anymore.
My attitude could be summed up as "A pox on both your houses!"
You are absolutely right about who to trust anymore. Still, balance brings us closer to truth. We just have to read both sides!