On the Persecution of the Three Professors – “And it should be noted too that these men are only a handful from among a much larger body of scholars known for their longtime loyalty to the Church and its Magisterium who were deeply troubled by aspects of Pope Francis’s pontificate.” Edward Feser on X.com
Creedal Catholicism – “The first aim of twenty-first-century Catholic theology must be to engage intellectually with the creed. We must talk about the intelligibility of the creed in the public square, for all comers.” The Future of Catholic Theology (First Things)
Jihadist Violence – “Brussels officials are never lost for words on Gaza or the war in Ukraine. But critics say it is another matter entirely when it comes to the persecution of foreign Christians, especially by Islamists.” EU Accused of Silence Over Islamist Violence Against Christians (European Conservative)
Syria Religious Identity – “Pope Leo XIV turned the world’s attention to the Eastern Churches—not only to honor their sacred past but to demand a reckoning with their precarious future.” Never Without His Rosary or His Pistol: The Legacy of Syriac Christian Paul Bedari (Providence)
Liar, Lunatic, or Lord – “Those who admire Jesus as merely a ‘great moral teacher’ note that Jesus never said the words, “I am God!” But these literalists miss the forest for the trees.” Jesus Is God! (The Catholic Thing)
Persecuted Christians – “‘We cannot sit on the sidelines as Christians around the world are being persecuted for declaring Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior,’ Hawley said” GOP lawmakers advocate for US condemnation of persecution against Christians in Muslim-majority nations (Fox News)
FBI’s Richmond Field Office – “The FBI began surveilling a Catholic priest in 2023 after the clergyman refused to divulge details about a recently arrested parishioner who was converting to Catholicism and seeking spiritual guidance.” FBI Spied on Catholic Priest for Refusing to Divulge Details of Conversations with Parishioner (National Review)
A Barstool Fantasy – “During a recent work trip to Dublin, I was reminded of what a homogeneous—and dangerous—progressive echo chamber the modern academy has become.” Exterminate the Brutes (The American Mind)
Communion Isn’t Confession – “The (Order of Christian Initiation for Adults) instructor said normal weekly Eucharist counts as a ‘confession,’ and reception counts as ‘absolution.’ She said in most cases, most people ‘don’t need to bother’ the priest with their sins, and only need to go to an actual confession once a year or if they’ve done something particularly wrong.” Does reception of the Eucharist replace confession? (Our Sunday Visitor)
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#33 Jihadist Violence
EU and so-called mainstream media generally pussyfoot around the subject of Islamist violence. Religion of peace and all that.
Cleo, you can add the hierarchy of our Church to that grouping.
#1 On the Persecution of the Three Professors
Able defence of three (and more) loyal defenders of the faith.
” FBI Spied on Catholic Priest for Refusing to Divulge Details of Conversations with Parishioner (National Review)
“It’s unclear why the parishioner initially attracted the FBI’s attention. The report does not include any information about the parishioner’s criminal history.”
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It doesn’t seem much of a mystery why he got the FBI’s attention. The SSPX parishoner had been busted earlier for slashing the tires of folks who held opposing political views & he was busy making Molotov cocktails & stockpiling weapons. He was an Hispanic young man who identified as a white supremacist. His arrest was covered pretty well in the VA newspapers at the time.
It’s no reason for the FBI to harass traditionally minded Catholics or SSPX priests but this young man seems clearly unwell & he posed a potential danger beyond tire slashing.
@ On the Persecution of the Three Professors
“We can have good hope”, suggests fair-minded Feser. Although he adeptly paints a visible picture of deleterious heterodoxy in the words and actions of Francis I. Feser’s hope is drawn from the benevolent posture of the kindly, soft spoken Leo XIV. Although Leo, an avowed disciple of Francis I, a credentialed canon lawyer, intelligent, well acquainted with the doctrine of Francis – how can we assume he isn’t aware of the danger, the damage already done?
Unity, the alleged major premise of Leo pontificate is a challenge extraordinaire if we examine details: a two headed creature one orthodox the other heterodox. Either we form a compromise unity in which both orthodoxy and heterodoxy are permitted to live together, a false unity since either are diametrically opposed to the other – or we obliterate one or the other. To date shaping a policy for unity has included the appointment or retention of heterodox clergy to major dicasteries and archdioceses. Nor has Leo addressed the Rupnik matter or the TLM. The tone is not dissimilar to the previous pontificate except for personal demeanor.
And that’s the nub of it!
@ Communion Isn’t Confession
Very simple. Jenna Cooper reveals the simple truth that’s denied by Amoris Laetitia, that reception of the Holy Eucharist when saddled with mortal sin is not at all a remedy.
Editor La Civiltà Cattolica, consiglieri to former Pope Francis Fr Antonio Spadaro SJ was speaking ‘from the heart’ as is said when he complained “they”, that is, faithful clergy deny them the very thing they need. The Holy Eucharist. The premise refers to Amoris and the rationale to permit divorced and remarried, those in irregular unions [homosexuals, adulterers] should be allowed the Eucharist as a remedy.
Speaking from the heart refers to sentiment. Not a bad thing, though mortally fateful when sentiment replaces our obligation to speak the truth. That Christianity requires effort, the willingness to suffer pain, surrender pleasure for sake of identification with Christ and our salvation.
For the Eucharistic to be remedial there must be the manifest intent to reform one’s life in compliance with what Christ and his Apostles taught.So basic. So requisite.
The the quote in the side headline in the Free Press Article “What are you going to build a life on if not God” caught my attention. Really isn’t that the purpose of our life that a lot of us sadly forget. It goes back to our earliest catechism lesson– we are to know love and serve God.
@ A Barstool Fantasy
‘Exterminate the Brutes’ may be more than author Martin Lockerd’s barstool fantasy. The conservative Catholic prof’s chance barroom chat with his perfect nemesis, an unaware radical Left female grad student spurting hate and violence toward Republicans.
There exists a threat of collective violence fomenting among liberals becoming increasingly desperate, entrapped in a self imposed political vacuum, unable to find any viable cause that doesn’t replicate what the Right supports as its agenda. Desperation leads to the irrational response of violence. Their viable option is to cooperate with the Right and form their own approach to the same goals as held by the Right.