The Dispatch: More from CWR...

Extra, extra! News and views for March 29, 2023

Here are some articles, essays, and editorials that caught our attention this past week or so.*

Detail from "Adam and Eve" (1533) by Lucas Cranach the Elder (Image: WikiArt.org)

A Falsely Happy Story – “Adam and Eve after the Pill, Revisited, closes a body of work that’s occupied a lot of my attention for the past fifteen years.” Giving New Heart to the Wounded (The Catholic Thing)

A Matter of Justice – “Don’t lie. A few moral precepts that cluster around this Commandment are: don’t gossip; don’t unjustly reveal natural secrets (detraction); and don’t slander.” Honest Tenacity; Tenacious Honesty (Catholic Culture)

Accusations Against Architecture Scholar – Dr. Denis McNamara, “well-known in many Catholic circles, is the author of several popular Catholic books on Church architecture, and is a prominent speaker on the relationship between the Church’s theology and her architectural traditions.” Popular Church architecture scholar accused of ‘sexually inappropriate’ conduct with seminarians (The Pillar)

Gender Dysphoria – “There are more than 100 pediatric gender clinics across the U.S. I worked at one. What’s happening to children is morally and medically appalling.” I Thought I Was Saving Trans Kids. Now I’m Blowing the Whistle. (The Free Press)

A Nation of Subjects – “When Alexis de Tocqueville published Democracy in America, he warned against the typically democratic doctrine of ‘individualism.'” The Art of Being Dependent (The American Mind)

Sources of Joy – “The service of the consecrated contemplative is above all one of prayer for the Church, a life dedicated exclusively to intercession for God’s holy people, that they might truly be holy and live their own baptismal consecration in their particular vocations in life.” The Contemplative Vocation: A Life of Service to the Church (Archdiocese of San Francisco)

A Global Double Down – “An epic disaster like the COVID response, one might suppose, should inspire some humility and rethinking on how public health could have gone so wrong.” Bill Gates Plots a Global Pandemic Prison State (The Epoch Times)

An Infamous Tweet – “Homosexuality is invading the Church. Evangelicals no longer see the severity of this b/c they’re busy apologising for their apparently barbaric homophobia, whether or not it’s true. This *is* a ‘Gospel issue’, by the way. If sin is no longer sin, we no longer need a Saviour” I’ve just been dismissed by a Christian college for tweets on homosexuality – if I wasn’t safe, no one is (Premier Christianity)

Synodality and Collegiality – Now is the time to once again return to the actual conciliar texts, and those of Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI, in order to expose the capitulation to the spirit of the age. Revisiting the ‘Spirit of Vatican II’ (National Catholic Register)

San Jose’s Calvary Chapel – “Santa Clara County, California, imposed some of the harshest Covid restrictions in America. A church and its members defied them — and became the targets of an unprecedented surveillance operation” When a Renegade Church and a Zealous County Health Department Collide (Silent Lunch, The David Zweig Newsletter)

The Eternal World – “If we are tempted to think there is nothing in this world that can still our hunger, Eliot’s poems tell us we are correct.” T. S. Eliot’s still point (The New Criterion)

The Cult of Woke – It has become relatively obvious that what goes by the term “Woke” refers to having been initiated into a cult. Wokeness and the Structure of Cults (New Discourses)

Mortis Adductor – “A powerful moment in the Rite of Exorcism is the litany of the titles of Satan. They are a series of damning (literally) list of accusations describing the Evil One and the fruits of sin.” Exorcist Diary: Satan – Bringer Of Death (SpiritualDirection.com)

(*The posting of any particular news item or essay is not an endorsement of the content and perspective of said news item or essay.)


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13 Comments

  1. @ Synodality and Collegiality, we read: “For example, the wonderful theological teachings of Pope John Paul II on moral theology and women’s ordination are not so much explicitly opposed as they are just summarily ignored…”

    The officious Cardinal Hollerich recently opined that St. John Paul II’s Ordinatio Sacerdotalis (1994) might not be infallible, and therefore can be subject to reversal in “time.” In the Sacred Tradition, if it’s not officially declared as infallible, then it’s up for grabs! Isn’t this the same attitude of the office lecher who can’t control his hands near the xerox machine because the unsuspecting ladies (or Holy Mother Church!) never explicitly said “no”?

    But on that point, here is St. John Paul II’s explicit instruction: “Wherefore, in order that all doubt may be removed regarding a matter of great importance, a matter which pertains to the Church’s divine constitution itself, in virtue of my ministry of confirming the brethren (cf. Lk 22:32) I declare that the Church has no authority whatsoever to confer priestly ordination on women and that this judgment is to be definitively held by all the Church’s faithful.”

    • Well, given that with Francis and Kasper there has been a revival of process theology where even God can change His mind, anything can be seen as “up for grabs.” I long for a willing Padre Pio voice in the Church who will put aside fraternal correction long enough to call a jackass a jackass.

  2. @ A Matter of Justice.
    A priest might assess as a more favorable reality than what exists, convincing others to believe it, convincing himself he’s simply improving the truth. Frequently regarding conditions within the Church. A lie. Or he may tell a man at the door intent on murder that he hasn’t seen the person sought, although the person is hiding behind the door to the rectory. Not a lie.
    A lie is conditioned by the malice of intent. Truth is conditioned by benevolence. For the former physical circumstances do not determine good or evil. Truth is served by justice, not physical facts. A malicious intent such as intent to murder does not warrant the facts. If I say I haven’t seen him may be understood as not having seen someone who should be murdered. Similar to the monastery doorkeeper who tells the Gestapo he hasn’t seen the Jews he told to hide in the well.
    Similarly, withholding facts regarding what’s formally confessed is an increasing challenge in a Godless culture. Attorneys general are attempting to elicit facts from priests’ confessions. A seal that is inviolable under any circumstances. A person may ask a priest if he knows whether their spouse has had relations, even ordinary friendship relations such as dinner, lunch, or attending the theater [Fr Pokorsky’s don’t unjustly reveal natural secrets]. On sexual relations, even outside of the confessional he is obliged not to convey that which would injure the third party, or a suspected other. The same would hold for more seemingly innocent relations such as lunch or dinner. He cannot make himself a conduit [which falls within the spectrum of gossip] for what would damage others. Much, or all of this holds true for laity. A common sin.
    Otherwise, there are situations when simply withholding the truth can be benevolent, when divulging what actually exists would seriously impact the other. Similarly there are instances when that truth must be told. That decision is a matter of prudence. A heart open to God’s gracious benevolence is the guide in making these decisions.

  3. We are pro-life… all life. How can the church and the Republican Congress remain relatively silent when children are being murdered almost weekly? Most of these killings involved the “weapon-of-choice” the military-style, high-capacity AR15, a successor to my US Army M16. The 28-year-old murderer subject at Covenant School in Nashville Tn had 2 LEGALLY gotten AR15s. Yesterday, The Congress Barry Black senate Chaplain said before the congress that “we need to go beyond giving our hearts and prayers…

    Some instances of recent school murders…

    April 16, 2007. Virginia Tech shooting: 23-year-old student Seung-Hui Cho killed thirty-two students and faculty members

    December 14, 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting: 20-year-old Adam Lanza killed twenty-seven people and himself.

    May 24, 2022 Uvalde, Texas where Twenty-one people were killed by Salvador Ramos: 19 students between the ages of 7 and 10, and two teachers.

    February 14, 2018, Stoneman Douglas High School shooting. 17 people were killed, and 17 others were injured.

    And the latest, the murders of three 9 students and three adults), at the Covenant School in Nashville Tn. The killer had in her possession 2 AR15s legally obtained.

    Sensible gun control? The House passed President Bidden’s bill for sensible gun control, however, the Republican Senate say they will not. Their issue is with the 2nd Amendment “taking ALL guns away from honest gunowners. That is false! and an irrational and sinful position!

    God help our democracy and our grandchildren will survive this massacre.

    • Morgan, I think the question is how do emotionally ill and mentally disturbed people get ahold of firearms in the first place and why do our health privacy laws continue to enable that?

      • mrscracker. Mentally ill gunners?
        I forgot a vitally important issue. Regardless of the state of mind of the killer who needs help, a ploy often used by the infected members of the NRA gun lobby, now the National Republican Army, the mental impact on the children who survived and who witnessed the killing of their fellow students will live forever with the horror of the killings. Since schools are the frequent target of shootings, do you feel comfortable sending your traumatized children off to school? Some are afraid to leave home.

    • Guns aren’t the issue or the problem here. You are just presenting progressive talking points. A sick culture, a sick and decaying society, produces school shooters. Confiscating guns won’t fix that. The culture needs to repent and be restored to spiritual health and strength. Fix the culture and you address the issues effectively.

  4. @ Gender Dysphoria
    Therapist Jamie Reed, a woman who acknowledges her far Left proclivities, herself as queer, seems more credible because of it in her devastating description of the Trans clinic where she worked. A true charnel house for the kids who enter and are abruptly transgendered with little more than an interview. If this is the real picture, physicians are in it for the money.
    Description of the emotional, physical trauma, soul killing procedures and aftermath leading many to depression and suicide. Sweden and Finland are rightly concerned with follow up studies pulling back. America forging ahead.
    We’re in a culture in which the Left, the Woke are in control of politics, the Justice Department, and the LGBT movement. LGBT has political clout because they’re manipulated by the Left to bring down the ordered society of the straight White man [unless of course you’re a white man living in Martha’s Vineyard or some other elitist Left community].
    It’s no anomaly that the moral disorder infecting our Church finds parallel in what’s occurring here. This moral spiritual disorder affecting both Church and nation has one source. The daemonic.

    • Ms Reid also found discrepancies in medical care, many patients young boys with what could be called psycho social adjustment issues diagnosed as suffering gender dysphoria. After this trend She noted a sudden increase in teenage girls arriving in groups some from the same HS.
      These peculiarities indicate psycho social issues are more a factor than gender dysphoria. That what drives many is a fad. An adopted behavior choice. Govt and medicine are exploiting this phenomenon Govt for increase of power medicine for financial profit. Our Church, bishops, and especially the Vatican should target this immoral phenomenon rather than focus entirely on acceptance.
      Related, Cardinal Hollerich SJ, has no justification acting as Synod relator and should be removed, brought before an ecclesial court along with Card McElroy for their heresy.

  5. The Heart of the Matter

    I am passionately pro choice,
    Yet in my heart, a tiny voice.
    Keep Jesus out of my womb,
    My choice if it is to be a tomb.
    I have a right to privacy,
    Why can’t you just let me be?
    My body, my control,
    I believe that in my soul.
    Every child a wanted child,
    Pro life people drive me wild.
    Yet a gentle whisper I seem to hear,
    Always accompanied by a tear.
    My heart seems to run red,
    When I think of my child waking up dead.
    I must admit there may be strife,
    And I’m thankful my mom chose life.
    Afraid to have an ultrasound,
    I’ll see a beating heart and be bound.
    Maybe it’s time to give up the fight,
    Follow my heart, do what is right.

  6. A Matter of Justice
    Is it a lie for child abusers to not confess their crimes to civil Prosecutors, Judges and Juries? Even if they get their crimes against children regularly absolved in the confessional? This Catholic clergy abuse scandal is really pulling the Body of Christ’s Church into hell, Matthew 18:6-12. Could Pope Francis, as a Catholic court Church official, officially ask all child molesters, absolved or not, to tell civil Prosecutors, Judges and Juries of their crimes against children?

  7. @ Sources of Joy
    Shameful acts are always performed in darkness (Archbishop Cordileone). He refers to a species of crime, disordered sexual acts, marital betrayals, treachery. At the institution of the Eucharist Judas ran from the Light of Christ into the darkness. Sr Dolorosa entered the eternal light of Christ during the Archbishop’s Mass.
    Selection of the 5th Sunday and the man born blind was a fine choice. Assumption was that a man born blind could never be healed. That somewhere somehow he suffered darkness because of a forebear’s sin, or his own. “You who are steeped in sin lecture to us!”. Pharisaical in response blind to their own sinfulness. Christ alone, the Son of man had the power to do what was thought impossible. “How could someone perform such a miracle unless he were from God?”. Still the man born blind thrown out the door.
    A great peace emanates from the divine light. It draws persons into a life of contemplation of the Light. Love’s richness flows into the soul, the intellect filled with light. As Cordileone alludes to intercessory prayers, sacrifices are made for the faithful in the ‘world’.
    Most haven’t a sense of the reality of the transaction between God and lowly man, that the infinitely powerful God, is also infinitely good. Compassionate beyond our full knowledge. Although Sr Dolorosa knows the amazing reality of the transaction, how lives can change for the good. She already realized that when she chose this unique vocation with the Sisters of Perpetual Adoration.

  8. It is always taught that the story of the Great Deluge was borrowed from the Sumerian and Babylonian Flood stories. However, Dr. William H. Shea’s article that is on the Internet (Geoscience link), titled “The Antediluvians,” presents the intriguing evidence that Adam, and Cain, and other antediluvian personages have their precise equivalents in Sumerian and Babylonian mythology. Dr. Shea follows a trail of linguistic laws and pre-Flood history that is simply profound in its reach. Dr. Shea, who held a medical degree and was an instructor of Old Testamen, was a student of the famous biblical archeologist, Dr. David Noel Freedman. I had a cordial acquaintance with Dr. Freedman for three years, and my wife and I once heard him lecture. Be sure to check out Dr. Shea’s article to discover an amazing recovered segment of lost ancient history.

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