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  French Catholic priest stabbed multiple times, nun injured in church knife attack
Posted by: Stone - 04-25-2022, 06:57 AM - Forum: Anti-Catholic Violence - No Replies

French Catholic priest stabbed multiple times, nun injured in church knife attack
Nice, France, knife attack suspect had no criminal record but was under psychiatric monitoring, French officials say
Fox News | April 24, 2022

A French priest was stabbed multiple times and a nun was also injured in a knife attack Sunday.

The incident happened at Église Saint-Pierre-d'Arène de Nice, a Catholic Church along the French Riviera. French national and municipal police responded to the incident and placed the suspect under arrest.

France’s Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin tweeted that the priest’s injuries were not life-threatening.

Eric Ciotti, a local French politician representing the 1st constituency of Alpes-Maritimes in the National Assembly, said the priest, identified as Father Christophe, was stabbed "several times" inside the church. Firefighters transported him to Hospital Pasteur, the university hospital in Nice, France.

Ciotti also praised the "extraordinary courage" of Sister Marie-Claude, who intervened while the attacker stabbed the priest. She was injured in the forearm while attempting to snatch the knife away.

Speaking with reporters at the scene, Nice Mayor Christian Estrosi described the suspect as a mentally unstable French national who was born in Fréjus, a port town on the Côte d'Azur in southeastern France.

Bernard Gonzalez, the prefect of the Alpes-Maritimes department of southeast France, added that according to the preliminary investigation, the suspect had no criminal record and was unknown to police services.

However, the individual was the subject of psychiatric monitoring with several stays in the Sainte- Marie psychiatric hospital in Nice, Gonzalez added.

Reuters reported that French cable channel BFM TV quoted police as saying the suspect was a 31-year-old French man and there was no suspicion of terror as being the motive. Estrosi said the suspect was known to have purchased the knife several days ago.

"I want to thank the emergency services and the police for their exemplary work, and I send all my thoughts to the faithful of the parish," Estrosi tweeted.

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  Gregorian Propers for Low Sunday [First Sunday after Easter]
Posted by: Stone - 04-24-2022, 07:04 AM - Forum: Easter - No Replies

Gregorian Propers for First Sunday after Easter (Low Sunday)
Taken from here.

[Image: 4669927869_ed29e27c44_b.jpg]


First Sunday after Easter (Low Sunday)

Introit • Score • Quasi modo geniti infantes
1st Alleluia • Score • In die resurrectionis
2nd Alleluia • Score • Post dies octo
Offertory • Score • Angelus Domini
Communion • Score • Mitte manum tuam

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  A Small and Short Catechism
Posted by: Stone - 04-24-2022, 06:35 AM - Forum: Church Doctrine & Teaching - No Replies

A Small Catechism
Taken from here.

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Ten Commandments of God
I am the Lord thy God, who brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt not have strange gods before Me. Thou shalt not make to thyself a graven thing, nor the likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or in the earth beneath, nor of those things that are in the waters under the earth. Thou shalt not adore them, nor serve them.
Thou shalt not take the Name of the Lord thy God in vain.
Remember to keep holy the Lord's Day.
Honor thy father and thy mother.
Thou shalt not murder.
Thou shalt not commit adultery.
Thou shalt not steal.
Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.
Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife.
Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's goods.


Three Eminent Good Works:
Prayer,
Fasting,
Almsgiving.


Seven Spiritual Works of Mercy:
Admonish the sinner,
Counsel the doubtful,
Instruct the ignorant,
Comfort the sorrowful,
Forgive injuries,
Bear wrongs patiently,
Pray for the living and the dead.


Seven Corporal Works of Mercy:
Feed the hungry,
Give drink to the thirsty,
Clothe the naked,
Shelter the homeless,
Visit the sick,
Visit the imprisoned,
Bury the dead.


Seven Sacraments:
Baptism (Mt 28:19.),
Confirmation (Acts 8:17.),
Penance (John 20:23.),
Holy Eucharist (Mt 26:26.),
Holy Orders (Luke 22:19.),
Matrimony (Mt 19:6.),
Extreme Unction (James 5:14.).


Seven Deadly Sins:
Pride ( unrestrained appreciation of our own worth ),
Greed ( immoderate desire for earthly goods ),
Lust ( hankering for impure pleasures ),
Anger ( inordinate desire of revenge ),
Gluttony ( unrestrained use of food and drink ),
Envy ( sorrow over another's good fortune ),
Sloth ( laxity in keeping the Faith and the practice of virtue ).


Seven Opposite Virtues:
Humility ( which opposes Pride ),
Moderation and Liberality ( which opposes Greed and Covetousness ),
Chastity ( which opposes Lust ),
Meekness ( which opposes Anger ),
Moderation and Temperance ( which opposes Gluttony ),
Charity and Brotherly Love ( which opposes Envy ),
Zeal and Diligence ( which opposes Sloth ).


Four Last Things:
Death,
Judgment,
Heaven,
Hell.


Holy Days of Obligation for U.S.A.:
All Sunday,
Christmas ( December 25 ),
Circumcision of Jesus ( January 1 ),
Ascension ( 40 days after Easter ),
Assumption ( August 15 ),
All Saints ( November 1 ),
Immaculate Conception ( December 8 ).


Seven Gifts of the Holy Ghost:
Wisdom,
Understanding,
Counsel,
Knowledge,
Fortitude,
Piety,
Fear of the Lord.


Twelve Fruits of the Holy Ghost:
Charity,
Joy,
Peace,
Patience,
Benignity,
Goodness,
Mildness,
Long-suffering,
Faith,
Modesty,
Continency,
Chastity.


Six Sins Against the Holy Ghost:
Frivolous presumption of salvation,
Despair of salvation,
Resisting defined doctrine,
Envy of another's spiritual good,
Stubbornness in sin,
Final obstinacy in sin.


Four Sins Crying To Heaven For Vengeance:
Murder ( Genesis 4:10 ),
Sodomy ( Genesis 18:20 ),
Oppression of poor ( Exodus 2:23 ),
Defrauding laborers of wages ( James 5:4 ) .


Nine Ways of Sharing Guilt:
Advising another to sin,
Commanding one to sin,
Provoking another to sin,
Consenting to another's sin,
Showing one how to sin,
Praising another's sin,
Concealing, saying or doing nothing to prevent sin,
Taking part in, or enjoying results of another's sin,
Defending another's sin.


How To Baptize In a Time of Need:
Anyone person with the use of reason may baptize another in a time of need. Say,
"I baptize thee in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost" while pouring plain water on the forehead of the person who is being baptized.


Six Precepts of the Church:
To hear Mass on Sundays, and on Holy Days of Obligation,
To fast and abstain on the days appointed,
To confess one's sins at least once a year,
To receive the Holy Eucharist during the Easter season,
To contribute to the support of the Church,
Not to marry non Catholics, or persons who are related to us within the fourth degree of kindred, nor privately without witnesses, nor to solemnize marriage at forbidden times.


The Three Great Catholic Pope Saints:
Pope Saint Gregory the Great,
Pope Saint Leo the Great,
Pope Saint Nicholas the Great.


Three Theological Virtues:
Faith,
Hope,
Charity.


Four Cardinal Virtues:
Prudence,
Justice,
Fortitude,
Temperance.


The Eight Beatitudes ( Matthew 5 ):
Blessed are the poor in spirit; for theirs is the kingdom of Heaven,
Blessed are the meek; for they shall possess the land,
Blessed are they that mourn; for they shall he comforted,
Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after justice, for they shall be filled,
Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy,
Blessed are the clean of heart; for they shall see God,
Blessed are the peacemakers; for they shall be called the children of God,
Blessed are they that suffer persecution for justice' sake; for theirs is the kingdom of Heaven.

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  Reception of Converts and Profession of Faith [1944 Roman Ritual]
Posted by: Stone - 04-24-2022, 06:22 AM - Forum: Church Doctrine & Teaching - No Replies

Reception of Converts and Profession of Faith
Roman Ritual, 1944, Supplement for North America
Taken from here.

(According to the form approved by the Sacred Congregation of the Holy Office, July 20, 1859 and with the New Formula for the abjuration and profession of faith to be made by converts, approved by the Supreme Sacred Congregation of the Holy Office as given in the "Ecclesiastical Review," May, 1942)

In the case of a convert, careful inquiry should first of all be made concerning the validity of their former Baptism. If it be found that there is no Baptism or that the Baptism received was invaid, they must now be baptized unconditionally. If, however, after diligent inquiry reasonable doubt remains concerning the validity of their former Baptism, they are now to be baptized conditionally. If, thirdly, the former Baptism be judged to have been valid, only Abjuration or Profession of Faith should be required. In accordance, therefore, with their condition there are three methods of receiving converts:

I. If never baptized or if the previous Baptism was invalid -- The convert is unconditionally baptized, and neither Abjuration nor absolution follows, since the Sacrament of Regeneration washes away all.

II. If the previous Baptism was doubtful -- The convert is conditionally baptized, the following procedure being observed: 1. Abjuration or Profession of Faith and conditional absolution from censures. 2. Conditional Baptism. 3. Sacramental Confession with conditional absolution.

III. If the previous Baptism was valid -- 1. Abjuration or Profession of Faith. 2. Absolution from censures. 3. Supplying of Ceremonies of Baptism (see form for adults [or of children, according to more recent decrees]) if desired.

The priest vested in surplice and violet sits in front before the middle of the altar or, if the Blessed Sacrament is present, on the Epistle side. The convert kneels before him and with his right hand on the book of the Gospels (or the missal) reads the following: (If the convert cannot read the Priest reads it to him slowly and distinctly, so he may understand and repeat the words.)

PROFESSION OF FAITH

I, N.N., ______ years of age, born outside the Catholic Church, have held and believed errors contrary to her teaching. Now, enlightened by divine grace, I kneel before you, Reverend Father _____________, having before my eyes and touching with my hand the holy Gospels. And with firm faith I believe and profess each and all the articles contained in the Apostles' Creed, that is: I believe in God, the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth; and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord, Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; He descended into hell, the third day He arose again from the dead; He ascended into heaven, and sitteth at the right hand of God, the Father almighty, from thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Ghost; the holy Catholic Church; the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting. Amen.
I admit and embrace most firmly the apostolic and ecclesiastical traditions and all the other constitutions and prescriptions of the Church.
I admit the Sacred Scriptures according to the sense which has been held and is held by Holy Mother Church, whose duty it is to judge the true sense and interpretation of the Sacred Scriptures, and I shall never accept or interpret them except according to the unanimous consent of the Fathers.
I profess that the sacraments of the New Law are, truly and precisely, seven in number, instituted for the salvation of mankind, though all are not necessary for each individual: Baptism, Confirmation, Holy Eucharist, Penance, Extreme Unction, Holy Orders, and Matrimony. I profess that all confer grace, and that of these Baptism, Confirmation, and Holy Orders cannot be repeated without sacrilege.
I also accept and admit the ritual of the Catholic Church in the solemn administration of all the above mentioned Sacraments.
I accept and hold, in each and every part, all that has been defined and declared by the Sacred Council of Trent concerning Original Sin and Justification. I profess that in the Holy Sacrament of the Eucharist is really, truly and substantially the Body and Blood together with the Soul and Divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ, and that there takes place what the Church calls transubstantiation, that is, the change of all the substance of the bread into the Body of Christ and of all the substance of wine into the Blood. I confess also that in receiving under either of these species one receives Jesus Christ, whole and entire.
I firmly hold that Purgatory exists and that the souls detained there can be helped by the prayers of the faithful. Likewise I hold that the saints, who reign with Jesus Christ, should be venerated and invoked, that they offer prayers to God for us and that their relics are to be venerated.
I firmly profess that the images of Jesus Christ and of the Mother of God, ever Virgin, as well as of all the saints, should be given due honor and veneration. I also affirm that Jesus Christ left to the Church the faculty to grant indulgences, and that their use is most salutary to the Christian people. I recognize the Holy, Roman, Catholic, and Apostolic Church as the mother and teacher of all the churches, and I promise and swear true obedience to the Roman Pontiff, successor of St. Peter, Prince of the Apostles and Vicar of Jesus Christ.
Besides I accept, without hesitation, and profess all that has been handed down, defined, and declared by the Sacred Canons and by the general Councils, especially by the Sacred Council of Trent and by the Vatican General Council, and in a special manner concerning the primacy and infallibility of the Roman Pontiff. At the same time I condemn and reprove all that the Church has condemned and reproved. This same Catholic Faith, outside of which nobody can be saved, I now freely profess and to which I truly adhere, the same I promise and swear to maintain and profess with the help of God, entire, inviolate and with firm constancy until the last breath of life; and I shall strive, as far as possible, that this same Faith shall be held, taught, and publicly professed by all who depend on me and by those of whom I shall have charge.
So help me God and these holy Gospels.

The convert remains kneeling, and the priest still seated says the Miserere (Psalm 50) or the De profundis (Psalm 129), adding Gloria Patri at the end.


The priest, standing, now says:

Kyrie eleison. Christe eleison. Kyrie eleison. Pater noster (secreto usque ad)

 
Lord, have mercy on us. Christ, have mercy on us. Lord have mercy on us. Our Father (inaudibly until)

V. Et ne nos inducas in tentationem.
 
V. And lead us not into temptation.


R. Sed libera nos a malo.
 
R. But deliver us from evil.


V. Salvum fac servum tuum (ancillam tuam.)
 
V. Preserve thy servant (handmaid).


R. Deus meus, sperantem in te.
 
R. Who trusts in thee, my God.


V. Domine, exaudi orationem meam.
 
V. O Lord, hear my prayer.


R. Et clamor meus ad te veniat.
 
R. And let my cry come unto thee.


V. Dominus vobiscum.
 
V. The Lord be with thee.


R. Et cum spiritu tuo.
 
R. And with thy spirit.


Oremus.
 
Let us pray.

DEUS, cui proprium est miserere semper et parcere; suscipe deprecationem nostram, ut hunc famulum tuum (hanc famulam tuam) quem (quam) excommunicationis catena constringit, miseratio tuae pietatis clementer absolvat. Per Dominum nostrum Jesum Christum Filium tuum: Qui tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spiritus Sancti Deus, per omnia saecula saeculorum. Amen.
 
O God, Whose nature it is ever to show mercy and to spare, receive our petition, that this thy servant (handmaid) bound by the fetters of excommunication may by thy sweet forgiveness be pardoned. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, forever and ever. Amen.


The priest, seated, pronounces the absolution from excommunication as follows, inserting the word "forsan" ("perchance") if in doubt of its incurrence:

Auctoritate apostolica, qua fungor in hac parte, absolvo te a vinculo excommunicationis quam (forsan) incurristi, et restituo te sacrosanctis Ecclesiae sacramentis, communioni et unitati fidelium. In nomine Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti. Amen.

By the authority of the Holy See which I exercise here, I absolve thee from the bond of excommunication which (perchance) thou hast incurred, and I restore thee to the holy Sacraments of the Church, to the communion and unity of the faithful. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.


Lastly, the priest imposes some salutary penance, such as prayers or a visit to a church.

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  EU Reaches Deal On Digital Services Act, "make the internet safer" ... with more policing
Posted by: Stone - 04-23-2022, 07:10 AM - Forum: Global News - No Replies

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  Simple Refutations of "Benedict XVI is still the Pope"
Posted by: Stone - 04-23-2022, 06:27 AM - Forum: Sedevacantism - No Replies

The following posts found here show some very simple and straightforward explanations as to why Benedict cannot be considered the current reigning Pope.  The posts are in the form of rebuttals. 

Let us keep in mind that while the Conciliar popes have been seemingly never-ending sources of scandal, beginning with the 'hell on earth' unleashed by Pope Paul VI under whose pontificate nearly every Sacrament was changed, the Holy Mass was changed, etc., Archbishop Lefebvre, who arguably lived under the worst of these days, did not dare to assume the authority to declare Paul VI or JPII (with his profanations of Assisi I and II) not to be the popes. He humbly and wisely left that up to the Church to decide, which echoes what St. Francis de Sales said regarding a bad pope, "the Church must either deprive him or, as some say, declare him deprived, of his Apostolic See..."

Please too, keep in mind these words of Archbishop Lefebvre as you read the posts linked above:

Quote:The Liberalism of Paul VI, recognized by his friend, Cardinal Daniélou, is thus sufficient to explain the disasters of his pontificate. Pope Pius IX, in particular, spoke often of the Liberal Catholic, whom he considered a destroyer of the Church. The Liberal Catholic is a two-sided being, living in a world of continual self-contradiction. While he would like to remain Catholic, he is possessed by a thirst to appease the world. He affirms his faith weakly, fearing to appear too dogmatic, and as a result, his actions are similar to those of the enemies of the Catholic Faith.

Can a Pope be Liberal and remain Pope? The Church has always severely reprimanded Liberal Catholics, but she has not always excommunicated them. Here, too, we must continue in the spirit of the Church. We must refuse Liberalism from whatever source it comes because the Church has always condemned it. She has done so because it is contrary, in the social realm especially, to the Kingship of Our Lord.

Does not the exclusion of the cardinals of over eighty years of ages, and the secret meetings which preceded and prepared the last two Conclaves, render them invalid? Invalid: no, that is saying too much. Doubtful at the time: perhaps. But in any case, the subsequent unanimous acceptance of the election by the Cardinals and the Roman clergy suffices to validate it. That is the teaching of the theologians.

The visibility of the Church is too necessary to its existence for it to be possible that God would allow that visibility to disappear for decades. The reasoning of those who deny that we have a Pope puts the Church in an inextricable situation. Who will tell us who the future Pope is to be? How, as there are no Cardinals, is he to be chosen? This spirit is a schismatical one for at least the majority of those who attach themselves to certainly schismatical sects like Palmar de Troya, the Eglise Latine de Toulouse, and others.

Our Fraternity (the old SSPX) absolutely refuses to enter into such reasonings.

We wish to remain attached to Rome and to the Successor of Peter, while refusing his Liberalism through fidelity to his predecessors. We are not afraid to speak to him, respectfully but firmly, as did St. Paul with St. Peter.

And so, far from refusing to pray for the Pope, we redouble our prayers and supplications that the Holy Ghost will grant him light and strength in his affirmations and defense of the Faith.

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  Baptism of Desire and of Blood
Posted by: Stone - 04-23-2022, 06:12 AM - Forum: Church Doctrine & Teaching - Replies (1)

Baptism of Desire and of Blood
Taken from here.

From the teachings of the Popes, the Council of Trent, the 1917 Code of Canon Law,
the Roman Martyrology, Church Fathers, Doctors and Theologians of the Church



1. Council of Trent 1545-1563

Canons on the Sacraments in General: - (Canon 4):
"If anyone shall say that the sacraments of the New Law are not necessary for salvation, but are superfluous, and that although all are not necessary for every individual, without them or without the desire of them (sine eis aut eorum voto), through faith alone men obtain from God the grace of justification; let him be anathema."

Decree on Justification - (Session 6, Chapter 4):
"In these words a description of the justification of a sinner is given as being a translation from that state in which man is born a child of the first Adam to the state of grace and of the 'adoption of the Sons' (Rom. 8:15) of God through the second Adam, Jesus Christ, our Savior and this translation after the promulgation of the Gospel cannot be effected except through the laver of regeneration or a desire for it, (sine lavacro regenerationis aut eius voto) as it is written: "Unless a man be born again of water and the Holy Spirit, he cannot enter in the kingdom of God" (John 3:5).


2. St. Alphonsus Liguori 1691-1787

Moral Theology - (Bk. 6):
"But baptism of desire is perfect conversion to God by contrition or love of God above all things accompanied by an explicit or implicit desire for true Baptism of water, the place of which it takes as to the remission of guilt, but not as to the impression of the [baptismal] character or as to the removal of all debt of punishment. It is called 'of wind' ['flaminis'] because it takes place by the impulse of the Holy Ghost Who is called a wind ['flamen']. Now it is de fide that men are also saved by Baptism of desire, by virtue of the Canon 'Apostolicam De Presbytero Non Baptizato' and the Council of Trent, Session 6, Chapter 4, where it is said that no one can be saved 'without the laver of regeneration or the desire for it.'"


3. 1917 Code of Canon Law

On Ecclesiastical Burial - (Canon 1239. 2)
"Catechumens who, through no fault of their own, die without Baptism, are to be treated as baptized."

The Sacred Canons by Rev. John A. Abbo. St.T.L., J.C.D., and Rev. Jerome D. Hannan, A.M., LL.B., S.T.D., J.C.D.
Commentary on the Code:
"The reason for this rule is that they are justly supposed to have met death united to Christ through Baptism of Desire."


4. Pope Innocent III

Apostolicam:
To your inquiry we respond thus: We assert without hesitation (on the authority of the holy Fathers Augustine and Ambrose) that the priest whom you indicated (in your letter) had died without the water of baptism, because he persevered in the faith of Holy Mother the Church and in the confession of the name of Christ, was freed from original sin and attained the joy of the heavenly fatherland. Read (brother) in the eighth book of Augustine's City of God where among other things it is written, "Baptism is ministered invisibly to one whom not contempt of religion but death excludes." Read again the book also of the blessed Ambrose concerning the death of Valentinian where he says the same thing. Therefore, to questions concerning the dead, you should hold the opinions of the learned Fathers, and in your church you should join in prayers and you should have sacrifices offered to God for the priest mentioned. (Denzinger 388)

Debitum pastoralis officii, August 28, 1206:
You have, to be sure, intimated that a certain Jew, when at the point of death, since he lived only among Jews, immersed himself in water while saying: "I baptize myself in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen."
We respond that, since there should be a distinction between the one baptizing and the one baptized, as is clearly gathered from the words of the Lord, when He says to the Apostles: "Go baptize all nations in the name etc." (cf. Matt. 28:19), the Jew mentioned must be baptized again by another, that it may be shown that he who is baptized is one person, and he who baptizes another... If, however, such a one had died immediately, he would have rushed off to his heavenly home without delay because of the faith of the sacrament, although not because of the sacrament of faith. (Denzinger 413)


5. Pope St. Pius V 1566-1572

Ex omnibus afflictionibus, October 1, 1567:
Condemned the following erroneous propositions of Michael du Bay:
  • Perfect and sincere charity, which is from a "pure heart and good conscience and a faith not feigned" (1 Tim. 1:5) can be in catechumens as well as in penitents without the remission of sins.
  • That charity which is the fullness of the law is not always connected with the remission of sins.
  • A catechumen lives justly and rightly and holily, and observes the commandments of God, and fulfills the law through charity, which is only received in the laver of Baptism, before the remission of sins has been obtained.


6. St. Ambrose

"I hear you express grief because he [Valentinian] did not receive the Sacrament of Baptism. Tell me, what else is there in us except the will and petition? But he had long desired to be initiated... and expressed his intention to be baptized... Surely, he received [it] because he asked [for it]."


7. St. Augustine

City of God
"I do not hesitate to place the Catholic catechumen, who is burning with the love of God, before the baptized heretic... The centurion Cornelius, before Baptism, was better than Simon [Magus], who had been baptized. For Cornelius, even before Baptism, was filled with the Holy Ghost, while Simon, after Baptism, was puffed up with an unclean spirit" (De Bapt. C. Donat., IV 21).

"Baptism is administered invisibly to one whom not contempt of religion but death excludes." (Denzinger 388)


8. St. Thomas Aquinas

Summa, Article 1, Part III, Q. 68:
"I answer that, the sacrament of Baptism may be wanting to someone in two ways. First, both in reality and in desire; as is the case with those who neither are baptized, nor wished to be baptized: which clearly indicates contempt of the sacrament, in regard to those who have the use of the free will. Consequently those to whom Baptism is wanting thus, cannot obtain salvation: since neither sacramentally nor mentally are they incorporated in Christ, through Whom alone can salvation be obtained.

"Secondly, the sacrament of Baptism may be wanting to anyone in reality but not in desire: for instance, when a man wishes to be baptized, but by some ill-chance he is forestalled by death before receiving Baptism. And such a man can obtain salvation without being actually baptized, on account of his desire for Baptism, which desire is the outcome of faith that worketh by charity, whereby God, Whose power is not yet tied to visible sacraments, sanctifies man inwardly. Hence Ambrose says of Valentinian, who died while yet a catechumen: 'I lost him whom I was to regenerate: but he did not lose the graces he prayed for.'"


9. St. Robert Bellarmine, Doctor of the Church 1542-1621

Liber II, Caput XXX:
"Boni Catehecumeni sunt de Ecclesia, interna unione tantum, non autem externa" (Good catechumens are of the Church, by internal union only, not however, by external union).


10. Pope Pius IX 1846-1878

Singulari Quadam, 1854:
174. "It must, of course, be held as a matter of faith that outside the apostolic Roman Church no one can be saved, that the Church is the only ark of salvation, and that whoever does not enter it will perish in the flood. On the other hand, it must likewise be held as certain that those who are affected by ignorance of the true religion, if it is invincible ignorance, are not subject to any guilt in this matter before the eyes of the Lord. Now, then, who could presume in himself an ability to set the boundaries of such ignorance, taking into consideration the natural differences of peoples, lands, native talents, and so many other factors? Only when we have been released from the bonds of this body and see God just as He is (see John 3:2) shall we really understand how close and beautiful a bond joins Divine mercy with Divine justice."

Quanto Conficiamur Moerore, 1863:
"...We all know that those who are afflicted with invincible ignorance with regard to our holy religion, if they carefully keep the precepts of the natural law that have been written by God in the hearts of men, if they are prepared to obey God, and if they lead a virtuous and dutiful life, can attain eternal life by the power of divine light and grace."


11. Pope Pius XII 1939-1958

Mystical Body of Christ, June 29, 1943:
"As you know, Venerable Brethren, from the very beginning of Our Pontificate We have committed to the protection and guidance of heaven those who do not belong to the visible organization of the Catholic Church, solemnly declaring that after the example of the Good Shepherd We desire nothing more ardently than that they may have life and have it more abundantly... For even though unsuspectingly they are related to the Mystical Body of the Redeemer in desire and resolution, they still remain deprived of so many precious gifts and helps from heaven, which one can only enjoy in the Catholic Church."


12. Fr. A. Tanquery

Dogmatic Brevior, ART.IV, Section I,II - 1945 (1024-1)
The Baptism of Desire. Contrition, or perfect charity, with at least an implicit desire for Baptism, supplies in adults the place of the baptism of water as respects the forgiveness of sins.

This is certain.

Explanation: a) An implicit desire for Baptism, that is, one that is included in a general purpose of keeping all the commandments of God is, as all agree, sufficient in one who is invincibly ignorant of the law of Baptism; likewise, according to the more common opinion, in one who knows the necessity of Baptism.

b) Perfect charity, with a desire for Baptism, forgives original sin and actual sins, and therefore infuses sanctifying grace; but it does not imprint the Baptismal character and does not of itself remit the whole temporal punishment due for sin; whence, when the opportunity offers, the obligation remains on one who was sanctified in this manner of receiving the Baptism of water.


13. Fr. Dominic Prummer, O.P.

Moral Theology, 1949:
· "Baptism of Desire which is a perfect act of charity that includes at least implicitly the desire of Baptism by water";
· "Baptism of Blood which signifies martyrdom endured for Christ prior to the reception of Baptism by water";
· "Regarding the effects of Baptism of Blood and Baptism of Desire... both cause sanctifying grace. ...Baptism of Blood usually remits all venial and temporal punishment..."


14. Fr. Francis O'Connell

Outlines of Moral Theology - 1953:
"Baptism of Desire ... is an act of divine charity or perfect contrition..."

"These means (i.e. Baptism of Blood & Desire) presuppose in the recipient at least the implicit will to receive the sacrament."

"...Even if an infant can gain the benefit of the Baptism of Blood if he is put to death by a person actuated by hatred for the Christian faith..."


15. Mgr. J. H. Hervé

Manuale Theologiae Dogmaticae (Vol. III: chap. IV) - 1931
II. On those for whom Baptism of water can be supplied:
"The various baptisms: from the Council of Trent itself and from the things stated, it stands firm that Baptism is necessary, yet in fact or in desire; therefore in an extraordinary case it can be supplied. Further, according to the Catholic doctrine, there are two things by which the sacrament of Baptism can be supplied, namely an act of perfect charity with the desire of Baptism and the death as martyr. Since these two are a compensation for Baptism of water, they themselves are called Baptism, too, in order that they may be comprehended with it under one as it were generic name; so the act of love with desire for Baptism is called Baptismus flaminis (Baptism of the Spirit) and the martyrium (Baptism of Blood)."


16. Fr. H. Noldin, S.J. - Fr. A. Schmit, S.J.

Summa theologiae moralis (Vol. III de Sacramentis); Bk 2 Quaestio prima - 1929:
"Baptism of spirit (flaminis) is perfect charity or contrition, in which the desire in fact to receive the sacrament of Baptism is included; perfect charity and perfect contrition however have the power to confer sanctifying grace."


17. Fr. Arthur Vermeersch, S.J.

Theologiae moralis (Vol. III, Tractatus II) - 1948:
"The Baptism of spirit (flaminis) is an act of perfect charity or contrition, in so far as it contains at least a tacit desire of the Sacrament. Therefore it can be had only in adults. It does not imprint a character; ...but it takes away all mortal sin together with the sentence of eternal penalty, according to: 'He who loves me, is loved by my Father.' (John 14:21)"


18. Fr. Ludovico Billot, S.J.

De Ecclesiae Sacramentis (Vol. I); Quaestio LXVI; Thesis XXIV - 1931:
"Baptism of spirit (flaminis), which is also called of repentance or of desire is nothing else than an act of charity or perfect contrition includeing a desire of the Sacrament, according to what has been said above, namely that, the heart of everyone is moved by the Holy Ghost to believe, and to love God, and to be sorry for his sins."


19. Fr. Eduardus Genicot, S.J.

Theologiae Moralis Institutiones (Vol II); Tractatus XII - 1902:
"Baptism of the Spirit (flaminis) consists in an act of perfect charity or contrition, with which there is always an infusion of sanctifying grace connected... Both are called 'of desire' (in voto)...; perfect charity, because it has always connected the desire, at least the implicit one of receiving this sacrament, absolutely necessary for salvation."


20. Fr. Aloysia Sabetti, S.J. Fr. Timotheo Barrett, S.J.

Compendium Theologiae Moralis; Tractatus XII De Baptismo (Chap. 1) - 1926:
"Baptism, the gate and foundation of the Sacraments in fact or at least in desire, is necessary for all unto salvation...

From the Baptism of water, which is called of river (Baptismus fluminis), is from Baptism of the Spirit (Baptismus flaminis) and Baptism of Blood, by which Baptism properly speaking can be supplied, if this be impossible. The first one is a full conversion to God through perfect contrition or charity, in so far as it contains an either explicit or at least implicit will to receive Baptism of water ... Baptism of Spirit (flaminis) and Baptism of Blood are called Baptism of desire (in voto).


21. Roman Martyrology

January 23: At Rome, St. Emerentiana, Virgin and Martyr, who was stoned by the heathen while still a catechumen, when she was praying at the tomb of St. Agnes, whose foster-sister she was.

April 12: At Braga, in Portugal, St. Victor, Martyr, who, while still yet a catechumen, refused to worship an idol, and confessed Christ Jesus with great constancy, and so after many torments, he merited to be baptized in his own blood, his head being cut off.

August 25: At Arles in France, another Blessed Genesius, who undertook the office copyist, when he refused to transcribe the impious edicts whereby the Christians were ordered to be punished and, casting away his registers, in public he proclaimed himself a Christian, was arrested and beheaded and received the glory of martyrdom, being baptized in his own blood.




Catechisms that teach Baptism of Desire


1. A Catechism for Inquirers by Rev. Joseph I. Malloy, C.S.P.
Reference page 28.
New York: Paulist Press, 1927.
Permissu Superiorum: Joseph McSorely, C.S.P., Superior General.
Nihil Obstat: Arthur J. Scalan, S.T.D., Censor Librorum.
Imprimatur: Patrick Cardinal Hayes, Archbishop of New York.

2. A Catholic Catechism for the Parochial Schools and Sunday Schools of the United States. By Rev. James Groenings, S.J., translated by the Very Rev. James Rockliff, S.J.
Reference page 101.
New York, Cincinnati, Chicago: Benziger Brothers, 1900.
With the Approbation of the Most Rev. Archbishop of New York and of Religious Superiors.
Nihil Obstat: Theodore Van Rossum, S.J., Censor Deputatus.
Imprimatur: Michael Augustine, Archbishop of New York.

3. A Complete Catechism of the Catholic Religion. Translated from the German of Rev. Joseph Deharbe, S.J., by the Rev. John Fander. Preceded by A Short History of Revealed Religion, from the Creation to the Present Time. 6th American Edition. Edited by the Rev. James J. Fox, D.D. and the Rev. Thomas McMillan, C.S.P.
Reference page 257.
New York: Schwartz, Kirwin & Fauss, 1912.
Nihil Obstat: Very Rev. Edmund T. Shanahan, D.D., Censor Deputatus.
Imprimatur: John M. Farley, Archbishop of New York.

4. A Catechism Moral and Controversial, Proper for such as are already advanced to some Knowledge of Christian Doctrine by Thomas Miles Burke, O.P.
Reference page 87.
Permissu Superiorum.
Lisbon, 1752.

5. A Catechism of Catholic Doctrine.
Reference page 80.
Dublin, 1951.
Approved by the Archbishops and Bishops of Ireland.
Imprimatur: Joannes Carolus, Archiepiscopus Dublinensis, Hiberniae Primas.

6. A Catechism of Christian Doctrine Prescribed for Use in the Diocese of Victoria, 2nd Ed.
Reference page 36.
Imprimatur: Alexander MacDonald, Bishop of Victoria.
From the Preface:
The writer is indebted to the Archbishop of Toronto for much, if not all, of what is best in this book. It has been already done into Spanish, and is used in South America.
Toronto: Madigan & Moylan, 1920.

7. A Dogmatic Catechism. From the Italian of Frassinetti. Revised and Edited by the Oblate Fathers of St. Charles.
Reference page 188.
London: R. Washbourne, 1872.
Recommended by Henry Edward, Archbishop of Westminster.

8. An Advanced Catechism of Catholic Faith and Practice, Based Upon the Third Plenary Council Catechism, for Use in the Higher Grades of Catholic Schools. Complied by Rev. Thomas J. O’Brien, Inspector of Parochial Schools in the Diocese of Brooklyn.
Reference page 82.
Akron: D. H. McBride & Company, 1901.
Nihil Obstat: Rev. M. G. Flannery, Censor Librorum
Imprimatur: Ign. F. Horstmann, Bishop of Cleveland.

9. An Explanation of the Baltimore Catechism of Christian Doctrine: For the Use of Sunday-School Teachers and Advanced Classes. By the Rev. Thomas L. Kinkead.
Reference page 164.
New York, Cincinnati, Chicago: Benziger Brothers, 1891.
Received approbations from:
His Eminence Cardinal Gibbons.
Most Rev. M. A. Corrigan, D.D., Archbishop of New York.
Most Rev. William Henry Elder, D.D., Archbishop of Cincinnati.
Most Rev. Thomas L. Grace, D.D., Archbishop of Siunia.
Most Rev. P.J. Ryan, D.D., Archbishop of Philadelphia.
Most Rev. William J. Walsh, D.D., Archbishop OP Dublin, Primate of Ireland.
Right Rev. D. M. Bradley. D.D., Bishop of Manchester.
Right Rev. Thomas F. Brennan, D.D., Bishop of Dallas.
Right Rev. M. F. Burke, D.D., Bishop of Cheyenne.
Right Rev. L. De Goesbriand, D.D., Bishop of Burlington.
Right Rev. John Foley, D.D., Bishop of Detroit.
Right Rev. H. Gabriels, D.D., Bishop-elect of Ogdensburg.
Right Rev. N. A. Gallagher, D.D., Bishop of Galveston.
Right Rev. Leo Haid, O.S.B., D.D., Vicar Apostolic of North Carolina.
Right Rev. John J. Hennessy, D.D., Bishop of Wichita.
Right Rev. Junger, D.D., Bishop of Nesqually.
Right Rev. John J. Keane, D.D., Rector of the Catholic University, Washington.
Right Rev. W. G. McCloskey, D.D., Bishop of Louisville.
Right Rev. James Mcgolrick, D.D., Bishop of Duluth.
Right Rev. Camillus P. Maes, D.D., Bishop of Covington.
Right Rev. C. E. McDonnell, D.D., Bishop-elect of Brooklyn.
Right Rev. P. Manogue, D.D., Bishop of Sacramento.
Right Rev. Tobias Mullen, D.D., Bishop of Eric.
Right Rev. H. P. Northrop, D.D., Bishop of Charleston.
Right Rev. Henry Joseph Richter. D.D., Bishop of Grand Rapids.
Right Rev. S. V. Ryan, D.D., Bishop of Buffalo.
Right Rev. L. Scanlan, D.D., Bishop of Salt Lake.

10. Anecdotes and Examples Illustrating the Catholic Catechism. Selected and Arranged by Rev. Francis Spirago, Professor of Theology. Supplemented, Adapted to the Baltimore Catechism, and Edited by Rev. James J. Baxter, D.D.
Reference page 166.
New York, Cincinnati, Chicago: Benziger Brothers, 1904.
Nihil Obstat: Remigius Lafort, S.T.L., Censor Librorum.
Imprimatur: John M. Farley, D.D., Archbishop of New York.

11. Biblical Treasury of the Catechism, 3rd Ed. Complied and Arranged by Rev. Thomas E. Cox.
Reference page 182.
New York: William H. Young & Company, 1900.
Nihil Obstat: T. L. Spalding.
Imprimatur: Patrick A. Feehan, D.D., Archbishop of Chicago.

12. Catechism Made Easy, Being a Familiar Explanation of the Catechism of Christian Doctrine, Vol III. by Rev. Henry Gibson, Late Catholic Chaplain to the Kirkdale Gaoland Kirkdale Industrial Schools.
Reference pages 15 and 38.
London: R Washbourne, 1877.
Nihil Obstat: Carolus Canonicus Teebay.
Imprimatur: Bernardus, Episcupus Liverpolitanus.

13. Catechism: Doctrinal, Moral, Historical, and Liturgical with Answers to the Objections Drawn from the Sciences Against Religion, Vol. III., 8th Ed. by the Rev. Patrick Power.
Reference page 177.
London: Burns and Oates, 1905.
With Episcopal Approbation.

14. Catechism of the Diocese of Paris. Translated from the French by M. J. Piercy.
Reference page 221.
London: Richardson and Son, 1850.
Approbations:
Haying carefully perused the following Translation of an excellent and copious Catechism, published by order of the late saintly Archbishop of Paris, we hesitate not to recommend the same to the English reader, as an elaborate and complete exposition of Catholic doctrine and practice; suitable, from its peculiar plan, as well for the elementary instruction of young persons, as for the edification and benefit of those of riper age.

William, Bishop of Ariopolis, Vicar Apostolic of the Eastern District.
George, Bishop of Tloa, Vicar Apostolic of the Lancashire District.
Bishop Eton.
William, Bishop of Samosata.
Robert Hogarth, G.V.—Y. D.

15. Catechism of the ''Summa Theologica" of Saint Thomas Aquinas for the Use of the Faithful. By R. P. Thomas Pègues, O.P., Master in Theology. Adapted from the French and done into English by Aelred Whitacre, O.P.
Reference page 249.
London: Burns Oates and Washbourne Limited, 1922.
Received the approbation of Pope Benedict XV.

16. The Catechumen: An Aid to the Intelligent Knowledge of the Catechism. By J. G. Wenham, Canon of Southwark, and Diocesan Inspector of Schools.
Reference page 293.
London: Burns and Oates, 1888.
Nihil Obstat: Thomas Can. Lalor, Censor Deputatus.

17. The Catechism Explained: An Exhaustive Exposition of the Christian Religion, With Special Reference to the Present State of Society and the Spirit of the Age. A Practical Manual for the Use of the Preacher, the Catechist, the Teacher, and the Family. Eighth Edition. From the Original of Rev. Francis Spirago, Professor of Theology. Edited by Rev. Richard F. Clarke, S.J.
Reference page 580.
New York, Cincinnati, Chicago: Benziger Brothers, 1899.

18. The Catechism, or, Christian Doctrine, by Way of Question and Answer, Drawn Chiefly from the Express Word of God, and Other Pure Sources. 3rd Ed. by the Rev. Andrew Donlevy, LL.D.
Reference page 229.
Dublin: James Duffy, 1848.
Approbations:
I do hereby testify to have attentively read and examined the Irish and English Catechism, compiled by M. Andrew Donlevy, Director of the Irish Community at Paris, which, in all points, is very conformable to both Scripture and Tradition, and very useful to all those who are charged with the instruction of the Faithful in the kingdom of Ireland, as clearly containing the Articles of Faith and Purity of Christian Morality. At Paris, the eighteenth of April, 1741.
Michael O’Gara, Archbishop of Tuam.
Similar Approbations were given at the same time by—
James Gallagher, Bishop of Kildare.
Patrick Macdonogh, Bishop of Killaloe.
F. B. Kelly, O.S.F., Doctor of Sorbonne.
Patrick Corr, Doctor of Sorbonne and Provisor of the Irish College.
Mathew Mackenna, Doctor of Sorbonne and Provisor of the Irish College.
Richard Hennessy, Licentiate of Sorbonne.
F. J. Duany, O.E.S.A., Doctor of Sorbonne.
Francis Devereux, Principal of the Irish College.

19. The Catechism of Rodez Explained in Form of Sermons: A Work Equally Useful to the Clergy, Religious Communities, and Faithful. By the Abbe Luche.
Reference page 395.
St. Louis: B. Herder, 1898.
Recommended by Rt. Rev. Ign. F. Horstmann, D.D., Bishop of Cleveland.
Received the approbation of Louis-August, Bishop of Rodez.

20. The Catechism in Examples by the Rev. D. Chisholm, Vol. IV. 3rd Ed.
Reference page 59.
London: Burns Oates & Washbourne LTD., 1918.
Nihil Obstat: Franciscus M. Wyndham, Censor Deputatus.
Imprimatur: Gulielmus, Episcopus Arindelensis, Vicarius Generalis.
From the preface to the Second Edition:

The unprecedented success which attended the publication of the First Edition of " The Catechism in Examples," and the demand which is now being constantly made for the book, has induced the author to undertake the publication of an entirely new edition, in which, while adhering to the original plan, he has not only thoroughly revised, but also considerably developed, the contents of the work.
The book in its first form found its way literally into every part of the world, and demands for a reissue have recently reached the author from almost every country in the Continent of Europe, as well as from America, Australia, Africa, North and South; Ireland especially has been most zealous in its propagation in the past, and in present demands for its reappearance.
His late Holiness, Leo XIII., not only gave the book his special approbation and blessing, when brought to his notice by two Archbishops, but asked the author to furnish a copy of it for the Papal Library (see Tablet, February 25, 1888, p. 300). Many members of the Hierarchy have also given it their approbation and commendation, and the teaching Orders of the Church, as well as the clergy in charge of schools, have distributed it in profusion among the prizes they gave to the children under their care; and in many a Catholic home it is the favourite book for pious reading in the family.

21. The Catechism of the Ecclesiastical Provinces of Quebec, Montreal, Ottawa.
Reference page 30.
Quebec: Printing Establishment of A. Cote & Co., 1888.
Approved by the Archbishops and Bishops of those Provinces and Published at Their Order.
Imprimatur: E. A. Card. Taschereau, Archpus Quebecen.

22. The Catechism of Saint Pius X.
Reference page 52.
Approved of by Pope St. Pius X.

23. Teacher’s Handbook to the Catechism: A Practical Explanation of Catholic Doctrine for School and Pulpit. With Special Regard and Minute Directions for the Catechizing of Children, Vol. III. by the Rev. A. Urban.
Reference page 35.
New York: Joseph H. Wagner, 1904.
Nihil Obstat: Remigius Lafort, S.T.L., Censor Librorum
Imprimatur: Joannes M. Farley, D.D., Archiepiscopus.

24. The Douay Catechism of 1649: An Abridgment of the Christian Doctrine. With Proofs of Scripture on Points Controverted by Way of Question and Answer. By Henry Tuberville, D.D.
Reference page 80.
New York: John P. Kennedy, 1833.
Approved and Recommended for His Diocese, by the Right Rev. Benedict, Bishop of Boston.

25. The Poor Man's Catechism; or, the Christian Doctrine Explained with Short Admonitions. By John Mannock, O.S.B.
Reference page 156.
Dublin: Richard Coyne, 1825.

26. The Real Principles of Catholics; Or, a Catechism by Way of General Instruction Explaining the Principle Points of the Doctrine & Ceremonies of the Catholic Church, 4th Ed. by the Right Rev. Dr. Hornihold, titular Bishop of Phiomelia and Vicar Apostolic of the Midland District, England.
Reference page 211.
Dublin: Richard Coyne, 1821.
Approbations:
The following Approbations will it is trusted appear decisive as to the Merits of this Work.
We approve highly of Doctor Hornihold’s book, “The Real Principles of Catholics, &c.” and we recommend it highly for perusal to Roman Catholics of this Archdiocese.
Thomas Troy, D.D. &c.
Daniel Murray, D.D.
M. H. Hamill, D.D.

27. A Full Course of Instructions for the Use of Catechists; Being An Explanation of the Catechism Entitled "An Abridgment Of Christian Doctrine." By the Rev. John Perry.
Reference page 271.
New York: D. & J. Sadlier & Co., 1860.
Approbations:
Approbation of the Most Rev. John Hughes, D.D., Archbishop of New York:
The publication of “Perry's Instructions on the Catechism,” by Messrs. Sadlier & Co., has my entire approval.
Recommendation of the Right Rev. Bishop Bayley, Bishop of Newark:
I am glad to hear that you intend to republish "Perry's Instructions on the Catechism." It is an excellent little book. As a manual for catechists, or as a book of instruction, developing and explaining the Catechism, it is the best work of the sort I am acquainted with.
Approbation of the English Edition by the Right Rev, Dr. Wareing Bishop of Ariopolis, Vicar Apostolic of the Eastern District:
Having attentively perused the work of the Rev. John Perry…I have great pleasure in recommending the same, as an orthodox and useful exposition of Catholic doctrine, and well calculated to assist as well those who seek for instruction as those who are employed in giving catechetical discourses.

28. Dogmatic and Scriptural Foundation for Catechists: Notes on Baltimore Catechism No. 3 by Rev. Francis J. Connell, C.SS.R., S.T.D., LL.D, L.H.D.
Reference page 48.
New Jersey: Confraternity Publications, 1955.
Imprimi Potest: Very Rev. James Connolly, C.SS.R., Provincial of the Baltimore Province of  the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer.
Nihil Obstat: Bede Babo, O.S.B., Censor librorum.
Imprimatur:  James A. Mcnulty, Bishop of Paterson.

29. The Baltimore Catechism No. 3 Prepared and Enjoined by Order of the Third Plenary Council of Baltimore (In Accordance with the New Canon Law).
Reference page 53.
New York, Boston, Cincinnati, Chicago, San Francisco: Benziger Brothers, 1885.
Approbation from James Gibbons, Archbishop of Baltimore, Apostolic Delegate:
The Catechism ordered by the Third Plenary Council of Baltimore, having been diligently compiled and examined, is hereby approved.
Imprimatur: John Cardinal McCloskey, Archbishop of New York.
Nihil Obstat: Rev. Remigius Lafort, S.T.L., Censor Librorum.
Imprimatur: Michael Augustine, Archbishop of New York.
Nihil Obstat: Arthur J. Scanlan, S.T.D., Censor Librorum.
Imprimatur: Patrick J. Hayes, D.D., Archbishop of New York.

30. The Catechism of the Council of Trent.
Reference page 159.
Ordered by the Council of Trent
Edited by St. Charles Borromeo and approved of by St. Pope Pius V.
Approbations for the Catechism of the Council of Trent taken from the book, A Parochial Course of Doctrinal Instructions for All Sundays and Holydays of the Year Based on the Teachings of the Catechism of the Council of Trent and Harmonized with the Gospels and Epistles of the Sundays and Feasts, Vol I. Prepared and Arranged by the Rev. Charles J. Callan, O.P., and the Rev. John A. McHugh, O.P. Professors in the Theological Faculty of Maryknoll Seminary, Ossining N. Y. With an Introduction by the Most Rev. Patrick Hayes, D.D., Archbishop of New York:

In April, 1545, only a few months after the opening of the Council of Trent, it was decided by the Bishops and theologians of that illustrious assembly that an official book should be prepared for the guidance of pastors and all those charged with preaching and with the instruction of the faithful. It was plain that an explanation of the truths of revelation was always necessary; but at that time, more than ever in preceding ages, it seemed imperative that the faithful should be thoroughly instructed in all the doctrines of faith, because the so-called Reformers had their false teachers and false prophets everywhere abroad, spreading their pernicious errors and endeavoring by all means in their power to turn souls from the way of truth. The need of a complete, popular, and authoritative manual was further heightened by the lack in many of the pre-Reformation clergy of a systematic knowledge and method of explaining the truths of faith, and a consequent neglect of instruction and lack of religious knowledge on the part of the faithful.

For some years the Council was occupied with other matters which demanded more immediate attention; but in February, 1562, after having defined and re-approved all the leading doctrines and teachings of the Church, the Fathers of the Council resolved that an official Catechism should be written which would treat, in a manner suited for parochial use, all those truths of Christian doctrine with which the faithful ought to be familiar, and upon which they are supposed to be instructed in particular on all Sundays and Feasts of obligation. Furthermore, it was the wish of the Fathers and authors of this great work, and of the Sovereign Pontiffs and Councils that subsequently approved it, that its contents should be so treated as to harmonize with the Gospels and Epistles of the Sundays and Feasts throughout the year. Thus the faithful, while being kept ever in touch with the person and life-giving words of Christ, would at the same time be constantly and thoroughly instructed in all the principal doctrines of that revelation which the Saviour has given to the world for man's salvation.

After several years of careful labor and numerous revisions, on the part of many Bishops and eminent theologians, the Catechism was brought to completion and issued for the use of parish priests by command of Pope Pius V, toward the end of the year 1566. Translations into the vernacular of every nation were ordered by the Council. No such complete and practical summary of Christian doctrine had appeared since the days of the Apostles. Bishops at once recommended it everywhere and urged their priests so constantly to use and study it for their preaching that its whole contents would at length be committed to memory. It was repeatedly recommended by Pope St. Pius V., and in five Councils held at Milan under St. Charles Borromeo it received the highest praise and commendation. Similar eulogy and commendation were given it by Gregory XIII, the successor of Pius V, by Clement XIII, and in our own times by Leo XIII and Pius X. In short, from the time of its publication down to the present time many Pontiffs and Bishops, and a great number of provincial and diocesan synods in various countries, have vied with one another in celebrating the praises of the Catechism of Trent, and in commanding its use. A few of many testimonies may be useful here.

Speaking of the Catechism, Cardinal Valerius, the friend of St. Charles Borromeo, wrote: “This work contains all that is needful for the instruction of the faithful; and its matter is given with such order, clearness, and majesty that through it we seem to hear the Church herself, taught by the Holy Ghost, speaking to us. ... It was composed by order of the Fathers of Trent through the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, and was edited by order of the Vicar of Christ.”

In an Encyclical Letter to the Bishops and clergy of France, of Sept. 8, 1889, Pope Leo XIII recommended two books which all Seminarians should possess, and constantly read and study, namely, the Summa of St. Thomas and the Roman Catechism. Regarding the latter he said: “This work is remarkable at once for the richness and exactness of its doctrine, and for the elegance of its style; it is a precious summary of all theology, both dogmatic and moral. He who understands it well, will have always at his service those aids by which a priest is enabled to preach with fruit, to acquit himself worthily of the important ministry of the confessional and of the direction of souls, and will be in a position to refute the objections of unbelievers.”

Salmanticenses, the great Carmelite commentators on St. Thomas, paid the following high tribute to the Catechism: “The authority of this Catechism has always been of the greatest in the Church, because it was composed by the command of the Council of Trent, because its authors were men of highest learning, and because it was approved after the severest scrutiny by popes Pius V and Gregory XIII, and has been recommended in nearly all the Councils that have been held since the Council of Trent.”

Antonio Possevinus, an illustrious Jesuit, and the professor of St. Francis de Sales, said: “The Catechism of the Council of Trent was inspired by the Holy Ghost.”

In his immortal Apologia Cardinal Newman writes: “The Catechism of the Council of Trent was drawn up for the express purpose of providing preachers with subjects for their sermons; and, as my whole work has been a defence of myself, I may here say that I rarely preach a sermon but I go to this beautiful and complete Catechism to get both my matter and my doctrine.”

“Its merits,” says Dr. Donovan, who first translated the Catechism into English, “have been recognized by the universal Church. The first rank which has been awarded the ‘Imitation’ among spiritual books, has been unanimously given to the Roman Catechism as a compendium of Catholic theology. It was the result of the aggregate labors of the most distinguished of the Fathers of Trent, . . . and is therefore stamped with the impress of superior worth.”

Dr. John Hagan, Vice-Rector of the Irish College in Rome, says: “The Roman Catechism is a work of exceptional authority. At the very least it has the same authority as a dogmatic Encyclical, it is an authoritative exposition of Catholic doctrine given forth, and guaranteed to be orthodox by the Catholic Church and her supreme head on earth. The compilation of it was the work of various individuals; but the result of their combined labors was accepted by the Church as a precious abridgment of dogmatic and moral theology. Official documents have occasionally been issued by Popes to explain certain points of Catholic teaching to individuals, or to local Christian communities; whereas the Roman Catechism comprises practically the whole body of Christian doctrine, and is addressed to the whole Church. Its teaching is not infallible; but it holds a place between approved catechisms and what is de fide.”

31. Divine Grace: A Series of Instructions Arranged According to the Baltimore Catechism: An Aid to Teachers and Preachers. Edited by Rev. Edmund J. Wirth, Ph.D., D.D., Professor at St. Bernard's Seminary, Rochester, N.Y.
Reference page 91.
New York, Cincinnati, Chicago: Benziger Brothers, 1903.
Nihil Obstat: Remigius Lafort, Censor Librorum.
Imprimatur: JNO. M. Farley, Archbishop of New York.

32. Familiar Explanation of Christian Doctrine, Adapted for the Family and More Advanced Students in Catholic Schools and Colleges, No. III. By Fr. Michael Müller, C.S.S.R.
Reference page 295.
New York: Catholic Publication Society, 1875.
Approbations:
Nihil Obstat: Joseph Helmpraecht, C.SS.R.
Imprimatur: J. Roosevelt Bayley, Archiep. Baltimorensis.

33. Instructions on the Doctrines, Duties, and Resources of the Catholic Religion. Translated from La Doctrine Chrétienne par Lhomond. 2nd American, from the 8th English Ed. by the Rev. James Appleton.
Reference page 217.
Philadelphia: Michael Kelly, 1841.
Approbations:
We approve of the republication of the “Instructions on the Doctrines, Duties, and Resources, of the Catholic Religion, translated from the French of Lhomond, by the Rev. James Appleton.” Given under our hand, at Philadelphia, this 3rd day of May, 1841.
Francis Patrick Kenrick, Bp. Arath and Coadj. of Bp. of Philadelphia.

34. Works of the Right Rev. Bishop Hay of Edinburgh in Five Volumes, Vol. V: The Pious Christian. A new edition edited under the supervision of the Right Rev. Bishop Strain.
Reference page 87.
Edinburgh: William Blackwood and Sons, 1871.
Please remember Edmund in your prayers for his contribution.
35. The Converts Catechism of Christian Doctrine by Rev. Peter Geiermann, C.SS.R.
Reference page 70.
B. Herder Book Co., 1930.
Approbations:
Imprimi Potest: Francis F. Fagan, C.SS.R., Provincial.
Nihil Obstat: M. J. Bresnahan, Censor Librorum.
Imprimatur: Joannes J. Glennon, S.T.D., Archiepiscopus.

36. A Catechisme; Or, Christian Doctrine by Lawrence Vaux, B.D., Canon Regular and Sub-prior of St. Martin's Monastery, Louvain, Sometime Warden of the Collegiate Church, Manchester. Reprinted from an Edition of 1583.
Reference page 53. Manchester: Charles E. Simms, 1885.

37. Doctrinal and Scriptural Catechism; Or, Instructions on the Principal Truths of the Christian Religion. By Rev. P. Collot, Doctor of the Sorbonne. Translated from the French by Mrs. J. Sadlier.
Reference page 154.
New York: D. & J. Sadlier & Co., 1862.
With the approbation of the Most Rev. John Hughes, D.D., Archbishop of New York.

38. The Catholic Christian Instructed in the Sacraments, Sacrifice, Ceremonies, and Observances of the Church, by Way of Question and Answer. By the Rt. Rev. Dr. Challoner.
Reference page 33.
Baltimore: John Murphy & Co, 1852.

39. Historical Catechism; Containing a Summary of Sacred History and Christian Doctrine. By Monsieur Fleury, Abbot of Loc-Deiu, late Sub-preceptor to the King of Spain, the Duke of Burgundy, and the Duke of Berry, 5th Ed.
Reference page 210.
Dublin: Richard Coyne, 1834.

40. The Catechism of the Christian Religion; Being, with Some Small Changes, a Compendium of the Catechism of Montpellier, in which, by the Light of Scripture and Tradition, are Explained the History, Dogmas, Morality, Sacraments, Prayers, Ceremonies and Usages of the Church of Christ. By Rev. Stephen Keenan.
Reference page 287.
Boston: Patrick Donohoe, 1852.
Published with the approval of the Rt. Rev. John B. Fitzgerald, Bishop of Boston.

41. Catechism of Perseverance: An Historical, Doctrinal, Moral and Liturgical Exposition of the Catholic Religion, translated from the French of Abbé Gaume by the Rev. F. B. Jamison. Fiftieth edition, revised and enlarged.
Reference page 209.
Boston: Thomas B. Noonan & Co, 1850.
Approbations:
Published with the approbation of the Most Rev. Archbishop of Baltimore.
We cheerfully recommend to the patronage of the Catholic community the Catechism of Perseverance, translated from the “Petit Catechisme de Perseverance” of the Abbe Gaume, as a work well calculated to impart solid historical, liturgical, moral, and doctrinal instruction in an agreeable format, and being particularly well suited for the purpose of higher religious instruction in Catholic schools and academies.
Martin J., Bishop of Louisville.
Michael, Bishop of Mobile.
Anthony, Bishop of New Orleans.
John, Bishop of Galveston.

42. A Manual of the Catholic Religion for Catechists, Teachers and Self-Instruction, 6th Ed. By the Rev. F. X. Weninger, D.D., S.J.
Reference page 248.
Cincinnati: John P. Walsh, 1867.
Approbations:
I have read and examined the “Manual of the Catholic Doctrine,” by Rev. F. X. Weninger, S.J., with a great deal of pleasure and delight. I know of no work more clear and explicit, or that better meets the exigencies of the times than this; hence, I would exceedingly like to see it translated into English, and freely circulated within the diocese.
John Henry Luers, Bishop of Fort Wayne.

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  "Pandemic Treaty" Will Hand WHO Keys To Global Government
Posted by: Stone - 04-23-2022, 05:56 AM - Forum: Socialism & Communism - Replies (2)

"Pandemic Treaty" Will Hand WHO Keys To Global Government

[Image: adobe-stock-global-government-2000x900.j...k=FgRNhMYD]

ZH | APR 22, 2022 - 09:00 PM
Authored by Kit Knightly via Off-Guardian.org,

The first public hearings on the proposed “Pandemic Treaty” are closed, with the next round due to start in mid-June.

We’ve been trying to keep this issue on our front page, entirely because the mainstream is so keen to ignore it and keep churning out partisan war porn and propaganda.

When we – and others – linked to the public submissions page, there was such a response that the WHO’s website actually briefly crashed, or they pretended it crashed so people would stop sending them letters.

Either way, it’s a win. Hopefully one we can replicate in the summer.

Until then, the signs are that what scant press coverage there is, mostly across the metaphorical back-pages of the internet, will be focused on making the treaty “strong enough” and ensuring national governments can be “held accountable”.

An article in the UK’s Telegraph from April 12th headlines:
Quote:Real risk a pandemic treaty could be ‘too watered down’ to stop new outbreaks

It focuses on a report from the Panel for a Global Public Health Convention (GPHC), and quotes one of the report’s authors Dame Barbara Stocking:
Quote:Our biggest fear […] is it’s too easy to think that accountability doesn’t matter. To have a treaty that does not have compliance in it, well frankly then there’s no point in having a treaty,”

The GPHC report goes on to say that the current International Health Regulations are “too weak”, and calls for the creation of a new “independent” international body to “assess government preparedness” and “publicly rebuke or praise countries, depending on their compliance with a set of agreed requirements”.

Another article, published by the London School of Economics and co-written by members of the German Alliance on Climate Change and Health (KLUG), also pushes the idea of “accountability” and “compliance” pretty hard:
Quote:For this treaty to have teeth, the organisation that governs it needs to have the power – either political or legal – to enforce compliance.

It also echoes the UN report from May 2021 in calling for more powers for the WHO:
Quote:In its current form, the WHO does not possess such powers […]

To move on with the treaty, WHO therefore needs to be empowered — financially, and politically.

It recommends the involvement of “non-state actors” such as the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, World Trade Organisation and International Labour Organisation in the negotiations, and suggests the treaty offer financial incentives for the early reporting of “health emergencies” [emphasis added]:
Quote:In case of a declared health emergency, resources need to flow to countries in which the emergency is occurring, triggering response elements such as financing and technical support. These are especially relevant for LMICs, and could be used to encourage and enhance the timely sharing of information by states, reassuring them that they will not be subject to arbitrary trade and travel sanctions for reporting, but instead be provided with the necessary financial and technical resources they require to effectively respond to the outbreak.

It doesn’t stop there, however. They also raise the question of countries being punished for “non-compliance”:
Quote:[The treaty should possess] An adaptable incentive regime, [including] sanctions such as public reprimands, economic sanctions, or denial of benefits.

To translate these suggestions from bureaucrat into English:
  • If you report “disease outbreaks” in a “timely manner”, you will get “financial resources” to deal with them.
  • If you don’t report disease outbreaks, or don’t follow the WHO’s directions, you will lose out on international aid and face trade embargoes and sanctions.

In combination, these proposed rules would literally incentivize reporting possible “disease outbreaks”. Far from preventing “future pandemics”, they would actively encourage them.

National governments who refuse to play ball being punished, and those who play along getting paid off is not new. We have already seen that with Covid.

Two African countries – Burundi and Tanzania – had Presidents who banned the WHO from their borders, and refused to go along with the Pandemic narrative. Both Presidents died unexpectedly within months of that decision, only to be replaced by new Presidents who instantly reversed their predecessor’s covid policies.

Less than a week after the death of President Pierre Nkurunziza, the IMF agreed to forgive almost 25 million dollars of Burundi’s national debt in order to help combat the Covid19 “crisis”.

Just five months after the death of President John Magufuli, the new government of Tanzania received 600 million dollars from the IMF to “address the covid19 pandemic”.

It’s pretty clear what happened here, isn’t it?

Globalists backed coups and rewarded the perpetrators with “international aid”. The proposals for the Pandemic treaty would simply legitimise this process, moving it from covert back channels to overt official ones.

Now, before we discuss the implications of new powers, let’s remind ourselves of the power the WHO already possesses:

The World Health Organization is the only institution in the world empowered to declare a “pandemic” or Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC).

The Director-General of the WHO – an unelected position – is the only individual who controls that power.

We have already seen the WHO abuse these powers in order to create a fake pandemic out of thin air…and I’m not talking about covid.

Prior to 2008, the WHO could only declare an influenza pandemic if there were “enormous numbers of deaths and illness” AND there was a new and distinct subtype. In 2008 the WHO loosened the definition of “influenza pandemic” to remove these two conditions.

As a 2010 letter to the British Medical Journal pointed out, these changes meant “many seasonal flu viruses could be classified as pandemic influenza.”

If the WHO had not made those changes, the 2009 “Swine flu” outbreak could never have been called a pandemic, and would likely have passed without notice.

Instead, dozens of countries spent millions upon millions of dollars on swine flu vaccines they did not need and did not work, to fight a “pandemic” that resulted in fewer than 20,000 deaths. Many of those responsible for advising the WHO to declare swine flu a public health emergency were later shown to have financial ties to vaccine manufacturers.

Despite this historical example of blatant corruption, one proposed clause of the Pandemic Treaty would make it even easier to declare a PHEIC. According to the May 2021 report “Covid19: Make it the Last Pandemic” [emphasis added]:
Quote:Future declarations of a PHEIC by the WHO Director-General should be based on the precautionary principle where warranted

Yes, the proposed treaty could allow the DG of the WHO to declare a state of global emergency to prevent a potential pandemic, not in response to one. A kind of pandemic pre-crime.

If you combine this with the proposed “financial aid” for developing nations reporting “potential health emergencies”, you can see what they’re building – essentially bribing third world governments to give the WHO a pretext for declaring a state of emergency.

We already know the other key points likely to be included in a pandemic treaty.

They will almost certainly try to introduce international vaccine passports, and pour funding into big Pharma’s pockets to produce “vaccines” ever faster and with even less safety testing.

But all of that could pale in comparison to the legal powers potentially being handed to the director-general of the WHO (or whatever new “independent” body they may decide to create) to punish, rebuke or reward national governments.

A “Pandemic Treaty” that overrides or overrules national or local governments would hand supranational powers to an unelected bureaucrat or “expert”, who could exercise them entirely at his own discretion and on completely subjective criteria.

This is the very definition of technocratic globalism.

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  RI bill would force vaccination under threat of doubled income tax, monthly penalties
Posted by: Stone - 04-22-2022, 11:51 AM - Forum: Socialism & Communism - No Replies

Rhode Island bill would force vaccination under threat of doubled income tax, monthly penalties
Recently proposed legislation would force all Rhode Islanders to get jabbed or pay monthly penalties of $50 as well as double their normal income tax.

Thu Apr 21, 2022
(LifeSiteNews) – Rhode Island state Senator Samuel W. Bell has introduced a bill that would force adults and children alike to get jabbed for COVID-19 under the threat of doubled income taxes and fines that could amount to thousands of dollars.

S2552 would require all who live or work in Rhode Island, including eligible minors under age 16, “to be immunized against COVID-19, including with “any additional” COVID jabs that may become available and deemed “in the interest of public health.”

The bill further demands that exemption petitions “must be for medical reasons,” and must list no less than three notarized signatures by licensed physicians declaring the person unfit for “vaccination.” Minors 10 years of age and older must also sign the exemption form.

All the unjabbed lacking exemptions would be “required to pay a monthly civil penalty of fifty dollars,” and would “owe twice the amount of personal income taxes as would otherwise be assessed.”

Employers must also provide “proof of compliance” for each Rhode Island employee, which they can waive for “purely remote work.” Employers would be required to pay a monthly penalty of $5,000 “for every violation.”

Bell said he introduced the legislation because there is “a crisis with the pandemic,” citing the deaths of “thousands of Rhode Islanders” and “painful calls from constituents who can’t go to the store because they’re immuno-compromised,” The Boston Globe reported.

On Monday, the young Rhode Island Democrat pointed to a survey which he said shows that “Rhode Islanders still strongly support a vaccine mandate.” The poll, which was conducted by the COVID-19 Consortium for Understanding the Public’s Policy Preferences Across States, reportedly “found 64 percent of residents believe everyone should be required to get the vaccine.”

One Twitter user has pointed out, however, that Dan McGowan, the reporter who shared the survey via The Boston Globe, did not share that the survey of 391 respondents was, by its own admission, “non-probability,” meaning the sampling was not random and is not intended to reflect responses of the general population.

State Senator Jessica de la Cruz, a North Smithfield Republican, is fighting the legislation through an email campaign, in which she has provided constituents with a template to sign and send to Bell and the bill’s co-sponsors, The Boston Globe shared.

“I hear my constituents and others around the state loud and clear – this is dangerous legislation and sends the message that our government doesn’t trust you to make the right choice for you and your family. This is an unconscionable overreach of legislative powers,” de la Cruz wrote in an email to voters.

In protest of Bell’s portrayal of the bill’s opponents as “anti-vax,” one social media user remarked, “You can support vaccination without mandating, coercion, and threats of financial hardship. Literally no other place on earth has gone this far with vaccine mandates.”

As of April 8, there have been 2,096,166 reports of vaccine adverse events, including 26,976 reported deaths, according to OpenVAERS. While causation is not explicitly confirmed through the VAERS reporting system, neither can it be presumed that all side effects are reported. Indeed, one study in 2010 found that “fewer than 1% of vaccine injuries” are reported to VAERS, suggesting the actual numbers of deaths and injuries are significantly higher.

Coronavirus vaccine trials have never produced evidence that the vaccines stop infection or transmission. They do not even claim to reduce hospitalization, but the measurement of success is in preventing severe symptoms of COVID-19 disease. Moreover, there is strong evidence that the “vaccinated” are just as <likely to carry and transmit the virus as the unvaccinated.

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  CT House passes bill to make state an abortion sanctuary, allow non-doctors to abort
Posted by: Stone - 04-22-2022, 11:29 AM - Forum: Abortion - No Replies

Connecticut House passes bill to make state an abortion sanctuary, allow non-doctors to abort
Abortion allies are bracing for a potential Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade.


Thu Apr 21, 2022
HARTFORD, Connecticut (LifeSiteNews) — The Connecticut House voted 87-60 on Thursday to advance legislation allowing more non-physicians to perform abortions and shield abortionists from potential lawsuits for violating the pro-life laws of other states.

HB 5414 would establish that the governor can only extradite Connecticut residents for violating other states’ laws if those violations are also illegal in Connecticut (while placing similar limits on courts, public agencies, and health providers), allows abortionists sued by out-of-staters for violating those states’ abortion laws to counter-sue to recover certain costs, and empowers allows advanced practice registered nurses, nurse-midwives, and physician assistants to commit first-trimester aspiration abortions as well as dispense abortion-inducing drugs.

Supporters of the measure, which has been endorsed by Democrat Gov. Ned Lamont, framed it as making Connecticut into a “sanctuary” for abortion in anticipation of upcoming Supreme Court rulings that could potentially impact the judicial “right” to abortion-on-demand asserted by Roe v. Wade, by broadening the range of permissible abortion regulations or even overturning the infamous 1973 precedent and fully restoring states’ ability to set their own abortion laws.

“That right is under threat like never before,” claimed Democrat state Rep. Matthew Blumenthal, the Hartford Courant reported.

House Republican leader Vincent Candelora, meanwhile, criticized the bill for “essentially impos[ing] Connecticut laws on all 50 states.”

“If you’re in Louisiana and they have a parental consent provision for an abortion, and a 13-year-old gets an abortion without parental consent, that 13-year-old sues the doctor and gets a money judgment against the doctor for violating her rights,” he argued. “The doctor can come to Connecticut and sue the 13-year-old in Connecticut to recoup the money that he lost out because Connecticut doesn’t have parental consent.”

“We honor each other’s laws. We’re the United States of America,” Candelora added, an apparent reference to the Full Faith & Credit Clause of the U.S. Constitution that requires that “Full Faith and Credit shall be given in each State to the public Acts, Records, and judicial Proceedings of every other State.”

Peter Wolfgang of the Family Institute of Connecticut noted that pro-life activists won a victory when HB 5414 was amended to only apply to abortions that take place in Connecticut, whereas an earlier version of the bill “would have protected an abortionist who breaks the law in Texas and flees to Connecticut to escape enforcement.”

Pro-lifers argue that laws allowing non-physicians to commit abortions not only increase the number of innocent lives lost to abortion but also put the women seeking abortions in greater danger by subjecting them to abortionists with less training or experience.

The danger was most dramatically illustrated by the case of infamous Philadelphia abortionist Kermit Gosnell, who delegated parts of the abortion process, such as administering anesthesia, to non-physician employees, one of whom was only 15 years old. In 2015, Gosnell was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter in the overdose death of one patient, and of first-degree murder of three born-alive infants.

Even when abortions are committed by fully-licensed physicians, they are frequently anything but safe for the mother, as evidenced by the records of numerous abortion facilities across the country, including chains embraced by abortion allies as leaders for their cause.

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  New social credit app to reward Italian citizens for ‘virtuous behavior’
Posted by: Stone - 04-22-2022, 09:48 AM - Forum: Socialism & Communism - No Replies

New social credit app to reward Italian citizens for ‘virtuous behavior’
Citizens using the app will be rewarded for things such as recycling, using public transports, managing energy well, and not getting fined.


Wed Apr 20, 2022
BOLOGNA, Italy (LifeSiteNews) – A new app recently released in Italy presents striking similarities with China’s social credit system by rewarding some citizens for their behavior through a point system. 

“Smart Citizen Wallet” was presented at a March 29 press conference on digital innovation in Bologna, where mayor Matteo Lepore, and Massimo Bugani, director of the city’s “Digital Agenda,” discussed the project. 

According to local newspaper  Corriere di Bologna, which described the concept as “similar to a supermarket points collection,” the app is already active in Rome, where it’s currently in its experimental stages. It is set to be launched in Bologna this fall.

Citizens using the app will be rewarded for things such as recycling, using public transports, managing energy well, and not getting fined.

So-called “virtuous behaviors” will allow citizens to improve their score and win points that they will be able to “spend” on various awards such as discounts and free cultural activities.

Discussing the project at the March 29 conference, Bugani explained that the app was part of a wider effort by the city of Bologna to invest in digital innovation.

“What we call a new ‘water system’ for the city is being built,” he said. 

“In the coming years many services will go digital in Italy; we have an ambitious project here is built on solid foundations.” 

Bugani stated that the new smart citizen wallet app will be made available to the citizens of Bologna after this summer.

“Obviously no one will be forced to participate,” he said.

“Those who want to will be able to give consent when downloading and using the app.” 

He believes, however, that “many people will want to participate.”

“We want to make them understand that they are not ‘losers,’ but that their behavior is rewarded,” Bugnani explained. 

Some journalists, writers, and bloggers in Italy, France, and Germany have pointed out that the concept behind the app bears striking similarities with China’s social credit system. This, too, rewards citizens according to a system of points.

This was not lost on many users of social media, either. Twitter user Nat described the project as “terrifying.”



Others have pointed to similarities with other digital projects such as the Digital ID Wallet by Thales, and have warned that such projects could allow government to usher in a social credit system like China’s in the West. 



Privacy Network, an Italian tech company that specializes in digital privacy, issued a statement on their website that warns about the legal, ethical, and social implications of such apps.

“These practices, if poorly developed or used, can lead to serious limitations on, and violations of, citizens’ rights and freedoms, as well as discriminatory practices, which are also achieved through technological means, such as ‘social credit’ systems (or social scoring),” the statement read. 

“Our concern is increased by the fact that similar systems have already been introduced in other Italian cities as well; first of all, in Rome, where the Smart Citizen Wallet is already being tested.” 

Privacy Network said that it had sent a legal request for information about the methods and characteristics of any processing of personal data used by the app, the methods of using artificial intelligence or automated systems, as well as the names of the suppliers and third parties involved in the implementation of the project.

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  History of Devotion to the Passion of Christ
Posted by: Stone - 04-22-2022, 08:56 AM - Forum: Resources Online - No Replies

History of Devotion to the Passion of Christ
Taken from here.

The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume XI, pp. 527-530
Nihil Obstat, February 1, 1911. Remy Lafort, S.T.D., Censor
Imprimatur. +John Cardinal Farley, Archbishop of New York


[Image: ?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.vvprints.com%2Fvvp%2...f=1&nofb=1]

The sufferings of Our Lord, which culminated in His death upon the cross, seem to have been conceived of as one inseparable whole from a very early period. Even in the Acts of the Apostles (i, 3) St. Luke speaks of those to whom Christ "shewed himself alive after his passion" (μετα το παθειν αυτου). In the Vulgate this has been rendered post passionem suam, and not only the Reims Testament but the Anglican Authorized and Revised Versions, as well as the medieval English translation attributed to Wyclif, have retained the word "passion" in English. Passio also meets us in the same sense in other early writings (e.g. Tertullian, "Adv. Marcion.", IV, 40) and the word was clearly in common use in the middle of the third century, as in Cyprian, Novatian, and Commodian. The last named writes:

"Hoc Deus hortatur, hoc lex, hoc passio Christi
Ut resurrecturos nos credamus in novo sæclo
."

St. Paul declared, and we require no further evidence to convince us that he spoke truly, that Christ crucified was "unto the Jews indeed a stumbling-block, and unto the Gentiles foolishness" (I Cor., i, 23). The shock to Pagan feeling, caused by the ignominy of Christ's Passion and the seeming incompatibility of the Divine nature with a felon's death, seems not to have been without its effect upon the thought of Christians themselves. Hence, no doubt, arose that prolific growth of heretical Gnostic or Docetic sects, which denied the reality of the man Jesus Christ or of His sufferings. Hence also came the tendency in the early Christian centuries to depict the countenance of the Saviour as youthful, fair, and radiant, the very antithesis of the vir dolorum familiar to a later age (cf. Weis Libersdorf, "Christus-und Apostel-bilder", 31 sq.) and to dwell by preference not upon His sufferings but upon His works of mercifulness, as in the Good Shepherd motive, or upon His works of power, as in the raising of Lazarus or in the resurrection figured by the history of Jonas.

But while the existence of such a tendency to draw a veil over the physical side of the Passion may readily be admitted, it would be easy to exaggerate the effect produced upon Christian feeling in the early centuries by Pagan ways of thought. Harnack goes too far when he declares that the Death and Passion of Christ were regarded by the majority of the Greeks as too sacred a mystery to be made the subject of contemplation or speculation, and when he declares that the feeling of the early Greek Church is accurately represented in the following passage of Goethe: "We draw a veil over the sufferings of Christ, simply because we revere them so deeply. We hold if to be reprehensible presumption to play, and trifle with, and embellish those profound mysteries in which the Divine depths of suffering lie hidden, never to rest until even the noblest seems mean and tasteless" (Harnack, "History Of Dogma", tr., III, 306; cf. J. Reil, "Die frühchristlichen Darstellungen der Kreuzigung Christi", 5). On the other hand, while Harnack speaks with caution and restraint, other more popular writers give themselves to reckless generalizations such as may be illustrated by the following passage from Archdeacon Farrar: "The aspect", he says, "in which the early Christians viewed the cross was that of triumph and exultation, never that of moaning and misery. It was the emblem of victory and of rapture, not of blood or of anguish." (See "The Month", May, 1895, 89.) Of course it is true that down to the fifth century the specimens of Christian art that have been preserved to us in the catacombs and elsewhere, exhibit no traces of any sort of representation of the crucifixion. Even the simple cross is rarely found before the time of Constantine (see CROSS), and when the figure of the Divine Victim comes to be indicated, it at first appears most commonly under some symbolical form, e.g. that of a lamb, and there is no attempt as a rule to represent the crucifixion realistically. Again, the Christian literature which has survived, whether Greek or Latin, does not dwell upon the details of the Passion or very frequently fall back upon the motive of our Saviour's sufferings. The tragedy known as "Christus Patiens", which is printed with the works of St. Gregory Nazianzus and was formerly attributed to him, is almost certainly a work of much later date, probably not earlier than the eleventh century (see Krumbacher, "Byz. Lit.", 746).

In spite of all this it would be rash to infer that the Passion was not a favourite subject of contemplation for Christian ascetics. To begin with, the Apostolical writings preserved in the New Testament are far from leaving the sufferings of Christ in the background as a motive of Christian endeavour; take, for instance, the words of St. Peter (I Pet., ii, 19, 21, 23): "For this is thankworthy, if for conscience towards God, a man endure sorrows, suffering wrongfully"; "For unto this are you called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving you an example that you should follow his steps"; "Who, when he was reviled, did not revile", etc.; or again: "Christ therefore having suffered in the flesh, be you also armed with the same thought" (ibid., iv, 1). So St. Paul (Gal., ii, 19): "with Christ I am nailed to the cross. And I live, now not I; but Christ liveth in me"; and (ibid., v, 24): "they that are Christ's, have crucified their flesh, with the vices and concupiscences" (cf. Col., i, 24); and perhaps most strikingly of all (Gal., vi, 14): "God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ; by whom the world is crucified to me, and I to the world." Seeing the great influence that the New Testament exercised from a very early period upon the leaders of Christian thought, it is impossible to believe that such passages did not leave their mark upon the devotional practice of the West, though it is easy to discover plausible reasons why this spirit should not have displayed itself more conspicuously in literature. It certainly manifested itself in the devotion of the martyrs who died in imitation of their Master, and in the spirit of martyrdom that characterized the early Church.

Further, we do actually find in such an Apostolic Father as St. Ignatius of Antioch, who, though a Syrian by birth, wrote in Greek and was in touch with Greek culture, a very continuous and practical remembrance of the Passion. After expressing in his letter to the Romans (cc. iv, ix) his desire to be martyred, and by enduring many forms of suffering to prove himself the true disciple of Jesus Christ, the saint continues: "Him I seek who dies on our behalf; Him I desire who rose again for our sake. The pangs of a new birth are upon me. Suffer me to receive the pure light. When I am come thither then shall I be a man. Permit me to be an imitator of the Passion of my God. If any man hath Him within himself, let him understand what I desire, and let him have fellow-feeling with me, for he knoweth the things which straiten me." And again he says in his letter to the Smyrnæans (c. iv): "near to the sword, near to God (i.e. Jesus Christ), in company with wild beasts, in company with God. Only let it be in the name of Jesus Christ. So that we may suffer together with Him" (εις το συμπαθειν αυτω).

Moreover, taking the Syrian Church in general – and rich as it was in the traditions of Jerusalem it was far from being an uninfluential part of Christendom – we do find a pronounced and even emotional form of devotion to the Passion established at an early period. Already in the second century a fragment preserved to us of St. Melito of Sardis speaks as Father Faber might have spoken in modern times. Apostrophising the people of Israel, he says: "Thou slewest thy Lord and He was lifted up upon a tree and a tablet was fixed up to denote who He was that was put to death – And who was this? – Listen while ye tremble: – He on whose account the earth quaked; He that suspended the earth was hanged up; He that fixed the heavens was fixed with nails; He that supported the earth was supported upon a tree; the Lord was exposed to ignominy with a naked body; God put to death; the King of Israel slain by an Israelitish right hand. Ah! the fresh wickedness of the fresh murder! The Lord was exposed with a naked body, He was not deemed worthy even of covering, but in order that He might not be seen, the lights were turned away, and the day became dark because they were slaying God, who was naked upon the tree" (Cureton, "Spicilegium Syriacum", 55).

No doubt the Syrian and Jewish temperament was an emotional temperament, and the tone of their literature may often remind us of the Celtic. But in any case it is certain that a most realistic presentation of Our Lord's sufferings found favour with the Fathers of the Syrian Church apparently from the beginning. It would be easy to make long quotations of this kind from the works of St. Ephraem, St. Isaac of Antioch, and St. James of Sarugh. Zingerle in the "Theologische Quartalschrift" (1870 and 1871) has collected many of the most striking passages from the last two writers. In all this literature we find a rather turgid Oriental imagination embroidering almost every detail of the history of the Passion. Christ's elevation upon the cross is likened by Isaac of Antioch to the action of the stork, which builds its nest upon the treetops to be safe from the insidious approach of the snake; while the crown of thorns suggests to him a wall with which the safe asylum of that nest is surrounded, protecting all the children of God who are gathered in the nest from the talons of the hawk or other winged foes (Zingerle, ibid., 1870, 108). Moreover St. Ephraem who wrote in the last quarter of the fourth century, is earlier in date and even more copious and realistic in his minute study of the physical details of the Passion. It is difficult to convey in a short quotation any true impression of the effect produced by the long-sustained note of lamentation, in which the orator and poet follows up his theme. In the Hymns on the Passion (Ephraem, "Syri, Hymni et Sermones," ed. Lamy, I) the writer moves like a devout pilgrim from scene to scene, and from object to object, finding everywhere new motives for tenderness and compassion, while the seven "Sermons for Holy Week" might both for their spirit and treatment have been penned by any medieval mystic. "Glory be to Him, how much he suffered!" is an exclamation which bursts from the preacher's lips from time to time. To illustrate the general tone, the following passage from a description of the scourging must suffice:

"After many vehement outcries against Pilate, the all-mighty One was scourged like the meanest criminal. Surely there must have been commotion and horror at the sight. Let the heavens and earth stand awestruck to behold Him who swayeth the rod of fire, Himself smitten with scourges, to behold Him who spread over the earth the veil of the skies and who set fast the foundations of the mountains, who poised the earth over the waters and sent down the blazing lightning-flash, now beaten by infamous wretches over a stone pillar that His own word had created. They, indeed, stretched out His limbs and outraged Him with mockeries. A man whom He had formed wielded the scourge. He who sustains all creatures with His might submitted His back to their stripes; He who is the Father's right arm yielded His own arms to be extended. The pillar of ignominy was embraced by Him who bears up and sustains the heaven and the earth in all their splendour" (Lamy, I, 511 sq.). The same strain is continued over several pages, and amongst other quaint fancies St. Ephraem remarks: "The very column must have quivered as if it were alive, the cold stone must have felt that the Master was bound to it who had given it its being. The column shuddered knowing that the Lord of all creatures was being scourged". And he adds, as a marvel, witnessed even in his own day, that the "column had contracted with fear beneath the Body of Christ".

In the devotional atmosphere represented by such contemplations as these, it is easy to comprehend the scenes of touching emotion depicted by the pilgrim lady of Galicia who visited Jerusalem (if Dr. Meester's protest may be safely neglected) towards the end of the fourth century. At Gethsemane she describes how "that passage of the Gospel is read where the Lord was apprehended, and when this passage has been read there is such a moaning and groaning of all the people, with weeping that the groans can be hear almost at the city. While during the three hours' ceremony on Good Friday from midday onwards we are told: "At the several lections and prayers there is such emotion displayed and lamentation of all the people as is wonderful to hear. For there is no one, great or small, who does not weep on that day during those three hours, in a way that cannot be imagined, that the Lord should have suffered such things for us" (Peregrinatio Sylviæ in "Itinera Hierosolymitana", ed. Geyer, 87, 89). It is difficult not to suppose that this example of the manner of honouring Our Saviour's Passion, which was traditional in the very scenes of those sufferings, did not produce a notable impression upon Western Europe. The lady from Galicia, whether we call her Sylvia, Ætheria, or Egeria, was but one of the vast crowd of pilgrims who streamed to Jerusalem from all parts of the world. The tone of St. Jerome (see for instance the letters of Paula and Eustochium to Marcella in A.D. 386; P.L., XXII, 491) is similar, and St. Jerome's words penetrated wherever the Latin language was spoken. An early Christian prayer, reproduced by Wessely (Les plus anciens mon. de Chris., 206), shows the same spirit.

We can hardly doubt that soon after the relics of the True Cross had been carried by devout worshippers into all Christian lands (we know the fact not only from the statement of St. Cyril of Jerusalem himself but also from inscriptions found in North Africa only a little later in date) that some ceremonial analogous to our modern "adoration" of the Cross upon Good Friday was introduced, in imitation of the similar veneration paid to the relic of the True Cross at Jerusalem. It was at this time too that the figure of the Crucified began to be depicted in Christian art, though for many centuries any attempt at a realistic presentment of the sufferings of Christ was almost unknown. Even in Gregory of Tours (De Gloria Mart.) a picture of Christ upon the cross seems to be treated as something of a novelty. Still such hymns as the "Pange lingua gloriosi prælium certaminis", and the "Vexilla regis", both by Venantius Fortunatus (c. 570), clearly mark a growing tendency to dwell upon the Passion as a separate object of contemplation. The more or less dramatic recital of the Passion by three deacons representing the "Chronista", "Christus", and "Synagoga", in the Office of Holy Week probably originated at the same period, and not many centuries later we begin to find the narratives of the Passion in the Four Evangelists copied separately into books of devotion. This, for example, is the case in the ninth-century English collection known as "the Book of Cerne". An eighth century collection of devotions (MS. Harley 2965) contains pages connected with the incidents of the Passion. In the tenth century the Cursus of the Holy Cross was added to the monastic Office (see Bishop, "Origin of the Prymer", p. xxvii, n.).

Still more striking in its revelation of the developments of devotional imagination is the existence of such a vernacular poem as Cynewulf's "Dream of the Rood", in which the tree of the cross is conceived of as telling its own story. A portion of this Anglo-Saxon poem still stands engraved in runic letters upon the celebrated Ruthwell Cross in Dumfriesshire, Scotland. The italicized lines in the following represent portions of the poem which can still be read upon the stone:

I had power all
his foes to fell,
but yet I stood fast.
Then the young hero prepared himself,
That was Almighty God,
Strong and firm of mood,
he mounted the lofty cross
courageously in the sight of many,
when he willed to redeem mankind.
I trembled when the hero embraced me,
yet dared I not bow down to earth,
fall to the bosom of the ground,
but I was compelled to stand fast,
a cross was I reared,
I raised the powerful King
The lord of the heavens,
I dared not fall down.
They pierced me with dark nails,
on me are the wounds visible.

Still it was not until the time of St. Bernard and St. Francis of Assisi that the full developments of Christian devotion to the Passion were reached. It seems highly probable that this was an indirect result of the preaching of the Crusades, and the consequent awakening of the minds of the faithful to a deeper realization of all the sacred memories represented by Calvary and the Holy Sepulchre. When Jerusalem was recaptured by the Saracens in 1187, worthy Abbot Samson of Bury St. Edmunds was so deeply moved that he put on haircloth and renounced flesh meat from that day forth – and this was not a solitary case, as the enthusiasm evoked by the Crusades conclusively shows.

Under any circumstances it is noteworthy that the first recorded instance of stigmata (if we leave out of account the doubtful case of St. Paul) was that of St. Francis of Assisi. Since his time there have been over 320 similar manifestations which have reasonable claims to be considered genuine (Poulain, "Graces of Interior Prayer", tr., 175). Whether we regard these as being wholly supernatural or partly natural in their origin, the comparative frequency of the phenomenon seems to point to a new attitude of Catholic mysticism in regard to the Passion of Christ, which has only established itself since the beginning of the thirteenth century. The testimony of art points to a similar conclusion. It was only at about this same period that realistic and sometimes extravagantly contorted crucifixes met with any general favour. The people, of course, lagged far behind the mystics and the religious orders, but they followed in their wake; and in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries we have innumerable illustrations of the adoption by the laity of new practices of piety to honour Our Lord's Passion. One of the most fruitful and practical was that type of spiritual pilgrimage to the Holy Places of Jerusalem, which eventually crystalized into what is now known to us as the "Way of the Cross". The "Seven Falls" and the "Seven Bloodsheddings" of Christ may be regarded as variants of this form of devotion. How truly genuine was the piety evoked in an actual pilgrimage to the Holy Land is made very clear, among other documents, by the narrative of the journeys of the Dominican Felix Fabri at the close of the fifteenth century, and the immense labour taken to obtain exact measurements shows how deeply men's hearts were stirred by even a counterfeit pilgrimage. Equally to this period belong both the popularity of the Little Offices of the Cross and "De Passione", which are found in so many of the Horæ, manuscript and printed, and also the introduction of new Masses in honour of the Passion, such for example as those which are now almost universally celebrated upon the Fridays of Lent. Lastly, an inspection of the prayer-books compiled towards the close of the Middle Ages for the use of the laity, such as the "Horæ Beatæ Mariæ Virginis", the "Hortulus Animæ", the "Paradisus Animæ" etc., shows the existence of an immense number of prayers either connected with incidents in the Passion or addressed to Jesus Christ upon the Cross. The best known of these perhaps were the fifteen prayers attributed to St. Bridget, and described most commonly in English as "the Fifteen O's", from the exclamation with which each began.

In modern times a vast literature, and also a hymnology, has grown up relating directly to the Passion of Christ. Many of the innumerable works produced in the sixteenth, seventeenth, and eighteenth centuries have now been completely forgotten, though some books like the medieval "Life of Christ" by the Carthusian Ludolphus of Saxony, the "Sufferings of Christ" by Father Thomas of Jesus, the Carmelite Guevara's "Mount of Calvary", or "The Passion of Our Lord" by Father de La Palma, S.J., are still read. Though such writers as Justus Lipsius and Father Gretser, S.J., at the end of the sixteenth century, and Dom Calmet, O.S.B., in the eighteenth, did much to illustrate the history of the Passion from historical sources, the general tendency of all devotional literature was to ignore such means of information as were provided by archæology and science, and to turn rather to the revelations of the mystics to supplement the Gospel records.

Amongst these, the Revelations of St. Bridget of Sweden, of Maria Agreda, of Marina de Escobar and, in comparatively recent times, of Anne Catherine Emmerich are the most famous. Within the last fifty years, however, there has been a reaction against this procedure, a reaction due probably to the fact that so many of these revelations plainly contradict each other, for example on the question whether the right or left shoulder of Our Lord was wounded by the weight of the cross, or whether Our Saviour was nailed to the cross standing or lying. In the best modern lives of Our Saviour, such as those of Didon, Fouard, and Le Camus, every use is made of subsidiary sources of information, not neglecting even the Talmud. The work of Père Ollivier, "The Passion" (tr., 1905), follows the same course, but in many widely-read devotional works upon this subject, for example: Faber, "The Foot of the Cross"; Gallwey, "The Watches of the Passion"; Coleridge, "Passiontide" etc.; Groenings, "Hist. of the Passion" (Eng. tr); Belser, D'Gesch. d. Leidens d. Hernn; Grimm, "Leidengeschichte Christi", the writers seem to have judged that historical or critical research was inconsistent with the ascetical purpose of their works.

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  Several very large food processing plants in the US have blown up/burned down recently
Posted by: Stone - 04-21-2022, 10:24 AM - Forum: General Commentary - Replies (2)

Several very large food processing plants in the US have blown up/burned down recently:

1) 4/19/22 - Fire destroyed Azure Standard headquarters in Oregon, the largest independent food distributor in the US
2) 4/14/22 - Taylor Farms packaging building in Salinas, CA deemed a total loss
3) 4/13/22 - Plane crashes into Idaho potato and food processing plant
4) 4/11/22 - Crews battled fire for 16 hours at East Conway Beef and Pork, New Hampshire
5) 3/31/22 - Massive warehouse fire at large fresh onion packing facility Rio Fresh in south Texas
6) 3/24/22 - Massive Potato Processing Plant Fire Burns In Belfast, Maine
7) 3/19/22 - Fire destroys Walmart distribution center, Plainfield Indiana
8) 3/19/22 - 50,000 lb of food destroyed after fire ripped through Maricopa, AZ Food Pantry
9) 2/22/22 - 7 Injured in Explosion as Fire Engulfs Shearer's Food Plant, Hermiston Oregon
10) 2/16/22 - Louis Dreyfus reports fire at largest U.S. soy processing plant, Claypool Indiana
11) 1/14/22 - Explosion and Fire Reported at Cargill-Nutrena Feed Mill, Lecompte, LA

Other:
a) 4/18/22 - Union Pacific significantly cuts fertilizer shipments during spring planting season
b) 27 million chickens and turkeys - and counting - are being culled because of bird flu

Sources in comments.


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  Fr. Goffine's Devout Instruction: Explanation of the Sacraments
Posted by: Stone - 04-21-2022, 10:19 AM - Forum: Church Doctrine & Teaching - No Replies

Explanation of the Sacraments
Goffine's Devout Instructions, 1896, Part Third, pp. 466-478

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In the celebration of her worship the Catholic Church makes use: 1, of speech; 2, of those visible acts and symbols known as ceremonies. These ceremonies have been ordained in order that we may more easily lift up our heart to God and the contemplation of heavenly things.

How do the ceremonies help us to raise our minds to God and heavenly things?
They help us: 1. By making the worship of the Church impressive and solemn, thereby fixing our attention, and directing it from things of this earth to God. 2. By placing before us visible symbols of invisible mysteries, thus enabling us more easily to reflect and meditate upon them.

Have all the ceremonies of the Church a peculiar sense and meaning?
Certainly; every ceremony which the Church, inspired by the Holy Ghost, uses in the celebration of her worship has a mysterious significance, and should awaken holy thoughts in our breasts.

Are not these ceremonies idle observances?
By no means, since: 1. God Himself in the Old Law prescribed for the Jews many ceremonies, with heavy penalties for their non-observance. 2. Christ our Lord made use of various ceremonies, as, for instance, when He fell flat on the ground, and prayed (Mark 14:35); when He spat on the ground, and making clay of the spittle, spread the clay upon the eyes of the blind man, who thereupon recovered his sight (John 9:6,7.); when He touched the ear of the servant of the high priest and healed him (Luke 22:50, 51).


THE SACRAMENTS

A sacrament is a visible sign instituted by Jesus Christ through which invisible grace and sanctification are communicated to us. Christ instituted seven sacraments: Baptism, Confirmation, Holy Eucharist, Penance, Extreme Unction, Holy Orders, Matrimony.

Whence do we derive the ceremonies which, with the signs instituted by Christ, are used in administering the sacraments?
From the Church which, with the assistance of the Holy Ghost, has ordained these ceremonies to increase our reverence and respect.


Baptism

BAPTISM is a sacrament in which by water and the word of God we are cleansed from all sin, and regenerated and sanctified in Christ to life everlasting.

What are the different ceremonies of Baptism?
1. The preparatory ceremony. 2. The Baptism proper. 3. The concluding ceremonies.

The preparatory ceremonies at the church door during the first period of instruction, namely the period of hearing, are as follows: 1. The candidate remains outside the church, since he can enter the Church only by Baptism. 2. He is given a saint's name so that he may have an advocate before God, and an example after whom to model his own life. 3. He is asked if he desires Baptism, and through it eternal life. 4. The priest breathes upon him three times, saying: "Depart from him, thou unclean spirit, and make way for the Holy Ghost, the Comforter" (John 20:22). 5. He makes the sign of the cross upon his forehead and breast as a sign that he belongs to the crucified Saviour, Whose teachings he must cherish in his heart and openly proclaim. 6. He places blessed salt in his mouth, with the words: "Receive the salt of wisdom; it will be a propitiation for thee unto eternal life." Salt is a symbol of Christian wisdom) and protection from the foulness of sin. 7. Through repeated exorcisms the power of Satan, who "has the power of death" (neb. ii. 14), is ~ broken in the name of the Triune God. 8. For the second time, the priest makes the sign of the cross on the forehead of the person to be baptized, saying: "Defile not, accursed spirit, this sign of the cross which we place upon his brow." 9. The priest by the imposition of hands symbolizes the protection of God, and the stole placed upon the candidate as he is led into the church is a sign of the Church's power by virtue of which the priest receives him into its fold.

The ceremonies at the second period, namely, for the supplicants, are performed within the church. They are: 1. Since Baptism is the sacrament of faith, the Apostles' Creed and the Lord's Prayer are recited while entering the church. 2. The priest, after the example of Jesus (Mark 7:33), touches the ears and nose of the person to be baptized with spittle, saying, "Ephpheta," which means, "Be thou opened." This signifies that man's spiritual sense through the grace of Baptism is opened for the reception of instruction in heavenly truths. 3. The person being baptized must renounce Satan with all his works and pomps; for without this renunciation no man can follow Christ. By the words Satan and his works we mean sin, and by his pomps the spirit and vanities of this world by which Satan dazzles the eyes of men and leads them into sin. (Matthew 4:8,9) Here follows the profession of faith, in the recital of the Apostles' Creed. 4. Next comes the anointing of the shoulders and breast with holy oil, since from now on the newly-baptized person must be a soldier of Christ in the battle against the world and the devil.

How is the actual Baptism performed?
The person baptizing pours water upon the head of the person to be baptized, at the same time saying these words: "I baptize thee in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost."

What ceremonies follow Baptism?
1. Anointing the head with chrism, because the person baptized is now a Christian, one of God's anointed. 2. The presentation of a white cloth, and 3, a lighted candle. 4. Dismissal, with a blessing.

Of what are we admonished by the white cloth which we receive at Baptism?
That we should preserve our innocence, throughout our whole life, pure and unspotted. At its presentation, therefore, the priest says: "Take hence the white garment and bear it unstained before the judgment-seat of Jesus Christ our Lord, that thou mayest reach everlasting life."

What is the meaning of the lighted candle which the person just baptized must hold in his hand?
That the Christian by his virtuous life should be a guide to all the world. "So let your light shine before men that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father Who is in heaven." (Matthew 5:16) On presenting the candle the priest says: "Receive this burning light; keep thy Baptism without stain; obey the commandments of God, that when the Lord shall come to the nuptial feast thou mayest go forth to meet Him with all the saints of heaven, and mayest have life everlasting and live forever and ever. Amen."

Why has the Church ordained the presence of sponsors?
1. That they may make the vows and promises in the name of the child to be baptized. 2. In the event of the death of the parents to see that it is brought up a Christian. The sponsors, who should be good Catholics, are the spiritual parents of the child baptized. They become spiritually related both to child and parents, and cannot marry with either. In order that this relationship and consequent impediment to marriage might not extend too far, the Church has ordained that there shall be at most two sponsors, one of each sex.

Besides Baptism by water, there is also a Baptism of desire and a Baptism of blood, which may take the place of the Baptism of water when that cannot be obtained.
  • Baptism of desire is an earnest wish to obtain Baptism, joined to perfect contrition and love for God. In such a case those conditions are present that are necessary to a valid reception; for if the possibility do not exist God regards the good will, and takes the will for the deed.
  • Baptism of blood is a voluntary martyr's death for the sake of Christ. The constancy which gives up life itself includes faith, charity, desire, and contrition.


Confirmation

CONFIRMATION is a sacrament in which, through the laying on of the bishop's hands, prayer, and anointing, those who have been baptized are strengthened by the Holy Ghost so that they may firmly profess their faith and sincerely live up to it.

How does the bishop administer Confirmation?
1. He extends his hands over those to be confirmed, and prays the Holy Ghost to descend upon them with His sevenfold gifts. 2. He then lays his hand upon each one, and anoints him with holy chrism. 3. He gives him a slight blow on the cheek, saying, "Peace be with you." 4. He concludes by giving them all the episcopal benediction.

What does the imposition of hands signify?
It signifies the descent of the Holy Spirit, and particularly the protection of God under which the Christian is henceforth to remain.

How does the bishop anoint those to be confirmed?
He makes the sign of the cross with chrism on the forehead of each one, saying at the same time: "I sign thee with the sign of the cross, and I confirm thee with the chrism of salvation, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen."

Of what does the chrism consist?
The chrism, which every year on Holy Thursday is blessed by the bishop with great solemnity, consists of the oil of olives and balsam.

What does the oil signify?
The oil signifies inward strength for the struggle against the enemies of our salvation. Oil was formerly used by soldiers and athletes to make their limbs supple and strong. As oil strengthens the limbs of the body, so does the Holy Spirit strengthen our souls for combat with sin.

Why is fragrant balsam mixed with the oil?
To signify that he who is confirmed receives grace to keep himself pure from the corruption of the world, and by a pious life give forth the sweet odor of virtue. Balsam serves to preserve wounds from corruption, and gives forth a pleasing and fragrant odor.

Why does the bishop make the sign of the cross upon the forehead of the one to be confirmed?
To signify that a Christian should never be ashamed of the cross, but confess without fear his faith in Christ crucified. "For I am not ashamed of the Gospel. For it is the power of God unto salvation for everyone that believeth" (Romans 1:16).

Why does the bishop after anointing him give him a slight blow on the cheek?
To remind him that, as he is now strong and accountable, he should be ready to suffer patiently any humiliation for Jesus' sake.

Why does he at the same time say, "Peace be with you"?
Because, having now received the fulness of divine grace and heavenly peace, he should carefully guard it as a consolation in every sorrow.
A priest thereupon dries with a piece of cotton the brow of the person being confirmed, in order to prevent the sacred chrism from being desecrated in any way.

What are the words of the benediction given by the bishop after Confirmation?
May the Lord bless you out of Sion, that you may see the goods of Jerusalem all the days of your life, and have life everlasting. Amen.

Why are sponsors also ordained for Confirmation?
That they may first see that the person is confirmed, and then by deed and word aid him in the spiritual combat to which by this sacrament he has been dedicated. The sponsor binds himself to the fulfilment of this duty by laying his hand. on the right shoulder of the person being confirmed. He thus becomes his spiritual parent and guardian for the preservation of the grace of Confirmation. The same spiritual relationship and impediments of marriage exist as with sponsors in Baptism.

What does the Church require of sponsors in Confirmation?
They must be Catholics; they must be confirmed and old enough to be able to fulfil their duties as sponsor. Parents cannot be sponsors for their children; nor can the same person be sponsor both at Baptism and Confirmation.


The Holy Eucharist

THE HOLY EUCHARIST is the true body and blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ, Who is really and substantially present under the appearances of bread and wine for the nourishment of our souls.

When do we receive the Holy Eucharist as a nourishment for our souls?
At holy communion, when we actually partake of the body and blood of Jesus Christ. Communion means "union with". We also speak of receiving the Holy Eucharist, the Lord's supper, and the heavenly banquet.

When and where is Communion given?
For those who are well Communion is given in the church either during Mass after the priest has received, or it may be given when no Mass is being celebrated. Those who are sick can receive in their homes at any time.

How is Communion administered in church?
1. The server or acolyte repeats the Confiteor, or general confession of sin. 2. Turning to the people, the priest. recites two prayers imploring the remission of sin. 3. He exposes the consecrated Host with the words: "Behold the Lamb of God, Who taketh away the sins of the world." He then repeats three times: "Lord, I am not worthy that Thou shouldst enter under my roof; say but the word and my soul shall be healed." 4. He places the consecrated Host upon the tongue of the communicant, saying: "May the body of Our Lord Jesus Christ preserve thy soul unto life everlasting. Amen." 5. Returning to the altar, the priest recites the communion prayer of the Church, and then gives the benediction.
When the attendant recites the Confiteor, he does so in the name of those who are about to receive. The following are the prayers of supplication at the end of the Confiteor: "May the Almighty God have mercy on you, forgive you your sins, and lead you unto life everlasting. Amen." "May the almighty and merciful Lord grant you pardon, absolution, and full remission of all your sins. Amen."

How is Holy Communion given to the sick?
A bell is first rung, then the Sacred Host is borne in procession to the house of the sick person, placed upon a table prepared for it, a prayer is said, and the place and those present are sprinkled with holy water. The priest then gives communion the same as in the church, except when the sick person receives it as viaticum; at such times the priest presents the consecrated Host, saying: "Brother (or, sister), receive as a holy viaticum the body of Our Lord Jesus Christ; may it protect thee from the evil spirit, and lead thee to eternal life. Amen." When the communion is not given as viaticum, the priest repeats the same formula as is used in the church. The table on which the consecrated Host is placed must be covered with a clean white cloth, a cross, two lighted wax candles, and a vessel with holy water must also be provided. In this country the Blessed Sacrament is, of necessity, carried privately, with all out-door ceremonies omitted.

Why is the Holy Communion sometimes called Viaticum?
Because it is given to the sick person as food and sustenance for the last dangerous road to eternity.

For what other purpose besides being given in Communion is the Holy Eucharist kept in the Tabernacle?
In order that on appointed days and particular occasions it may be exposed to the devotion of the faithful, and bestow blessings upon them. At least six lighted candles must be used at the exposition of the Blessed Sacrament. For this ceremony the ciborium may be used; or when it is desired to give it more solemnity, an elegant receptacle called the monstrance, in which the consecrated Host may be seen. Benediction is given both with the ciborium and monstrance; when the latter is used it is called solemn benediction.

Why does the Church give this Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament?
Because in the Blessed Sacrament Jesus Christ is actually present and still blesses His followers, as when on earth He blessed the people and His disciples.

How is the Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament given?
A hymn in honor of the Blessed Sacrament is sung, and the priest makes the sign of the cross over the people with the sacred Host, because every blessing comes from Christ's death upon the cross. During the Benediction proper, as a mark of reverence the priest covers his shoulders and hands with a white silken cloth called the veil. During the exposition and benediction incense is offered up to the Blessed Sacrament as a sign of adoration.

Why do we have processions of the Blessed Sacrament?
That we may in a solemn manner present our adoration to the Saviour in the Sacred Host, and openly profess our belief in His Real Presence.
On Corpus Christi we have the most solemn and imposing ceremonial for the exposition, benediction, and procession of the Blessed Sacrament.

What is the meaning of the perpetual light that is kept burning before the altar on which the Blessed Sacrament is placed?
The perpetual light which must be kept burning continuously signifies: 1. The continued presence of Jesus Christ in the Blessed Sacrament. 2. The reverence and worship which are constantly due to Him. 3. That Jesus Christ is the light of the world.


The Sacrament of Penance

PENANCE is a sacrament in which the priest, as the representative of God, forgives sins when the sinner is heartily sorry for them, confesses them sincerely, and is determined to do penance for them.

Where is the Sacrament of Penance administered?
In the church, where confessionals are erected. The sick and those who are deaf may make their confession in some other suitable place.

What vestments does the priest wear when hearing confession?
In addition to the cassock, the usual priestly garment, he wears a violet stole and the surplice. The priest is seated, as a sign of his judicial power; the penitent, however, kneels, as a sign of reverence and humility.

How is the Sacrament of Penance administered?
1. The priest gives the penitent his blessing, and prays that God may give him grace to confess his sins fully and with contrite heart. 2. The penitent confesses his sins. 3. The priest gives him fatherly advice and warning, imposes the penance, and then, if worthy, gives him absolution.

What are the words of absolution?
"I absolve thee from thy sins, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen." As he pronounces these words, the priest makes the sign of the cross over the penitent. Before and after absolution the priest repeats other short prayers, and finally dismisses the penitent with the words, "Go in peace, and pray for me," or some other suitable formula.

Indulgences

What punishment is remitted in the Sacrament of Penance?
The eternal punishment is remitted in full; the temporal only in part. What remains, however, can be expiated by indulgences.

What is an indulgence?
It is a remission made, outside the Sacrament of Penance, of the temporal punishment still due for our sins already forgiven, and which punishment must be undergone here or in purgatory.

How does the Church remit the punishment due to sin?
The Church satisfies the divine justice out of the inexhaustible treasury of the merits of Christ and His saints.
The virtue and efficacy of indulgences flow from the spiritual treasury of the Church, which consists of the infinite merits of Christ and His saints. This treasury is to be considered the common property of the faithful which the Church administers and from which, by virtue of the communion of saints, making us all members of one body, the abundance of one supplies the want of the other (2nd Corinthians 8:14).

How many kinds of indulgences are there?
Two: plenary indulgences, which remit all the temporal punishment due to sin, and partial indulgences by which a portion of the punishment is remitted.

What do you understand by an indulgence of forty days, seven years, etc.?
A remission of so much temporal punishment as would have been remitted to him who under the ancient law of the Church did penance for forty days or for seven years. An indulgence of forty days is also called a quarantine.

What is the indulgence for the dying?
A plenary indulgence which the Church gives to the dying at the hour of death, after receiving the Viaticum. This is likewise called a general absolution. There is no fixed formula for bestowing indulgences; they may be gained by fulfilling the conditions prescribed at the time. The Church has a fixed formula only for the indulgence given to the dying. The assertion that the Church by indulgences pardons past or future sins, or that she dispenses indulgences for money, is a slander. True, the Church in bestowing indulgences sometimes prescribes, in addition to sincere repentance, that alms be given for worthy objects, as for example to build a church or found a hospital. This custom, praiseworthy in the beginning, in time became subject to abuse. All abuses were discontinued by order of the Council of Trent; the same council declared, however, that "the custom of granting indulgences to Christian people is exceedingly beneficial, and is confirmed by the authority of the holy council."


The Sacrament of Extreme Unction

EXTREME UNCTION is a sacrament in which, through the anointing with holy oil and the prayer of the priest, the grace of God is imparted to the sick in danger of death, for the welfare of the soul, and often also for that of the body. This sacrament is called Extreme Unction, because it is usually the last sacred anointing administered by the Church.

How is Extreme Unction administered?
1. The priest, having presented to the sick person a crucifix to kiss, sprinkles him, others who are present, and the place itself with holy water, and then recites a series of prayers. 2. The Confiteor, or general confession, is then said in the usual manner. 3. The priest, making the sign of the cross three times, prays that through the imposition of his hands, and the intercession of the angels and saints, all power of the evil spirit may be extinguished in the sick person. 4. He anoints the five senses with holy oil in the form of the cross, repeating this prayer at each anointing: "Through this holy unction and His most tender mercy, may the Lord forgive thee whatever sins thou hast committed by thy sight, by thy hearing," etc. 5. The priest then prays for the spiritual and temporal welfare of the sick man, and gives him his blessing.

Why is oil used in this sacrament?
Because oil softens, strengthens, and helps, and is strikingly significant of the effects of the sacrament.

Why are the five senses anointed?
The five senses are anointed because, being the instruments of sin, their anointing signifies that our soul is cleansed from guilt. Extreme Unction is usually given immediately after the Viaticum. Penance, the Holy Viaticum, and Extreme Unction are sometimes called "the sacraments of the dying", or "the last sacraments".

How does the Church show her loving solicitude for the dying?
By ordaining special prayers and litanies to be offered up for them by the priest to obtain the grace of a happy death. These prayers are sometimes called the recommendation of a soul departing.


Holy Orders

What are Holy Orders?
A sacrament in which the priestly power is conferred on the candidate, together with a special grace to discharge its sacred functions.

What is the outward sign of this sacrament?
The laying on of hands and the prayer of the bishop, and the presentation of the chalice with bread and wine, together with the verbal communication of authority to change the bread and wine into the body and blood of Christ, and to remit and retain sins.

When did Christ institute this sacrament?
At the Last Supper, when, after changing the bread into His true body, and the wine into His true blood, He said to His apostles, "Do this for a commemoration of Me" (Luke xxii. 19).

Are Holy Orders reckoned a Sacrament by the Apostles?
Yes; for St. Paul admonishes His disciple Timothy to stir up the grace of God received by the imposition of his hands. Hereby St. Paul teaches expressly that by the imposition of the hands of the apostles, or of the bishops, who are their successors, the grace of God is imparted to priests, in which consists the substance of the sacrament. Pray, then, for the priests; asking fervently of God, particularly on ember-days, to give His Church faithful pastors. Jesus Himself commands it, saying, "The harvest indeed is great, but the laborers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest that He send laborers into His harvest" (Luke x. 2).


The Sacrament of Matrimony

MATRIMONY is a sacrament in which a single man and a single woman are united in marriage, and receive grace from God to fulfil the duties of their state faithfully until death. This sacrament imposes on the married couple the duty to live together in peace and love and conjugal fidelity, to bring up as Christians the children God may send them, and cheerfully share one another's joys and sorrows. The free consent of both parties to the sacrament is absolutely essential.

How is the Sacrament of Matrimony received?
The bridal pair declare before their pastor and two witnesses that they take one another as husband and wife, whereupon the priest blesses their union. A priest other than the pastor can officiate at this sacrament only when he has the permission of the pastor or bishop.

What is the ceremonial of this sacrament?
1. The bridal pair emphasize their consent by giving each other their right hand. 2. The priest with a blessing confirms their union in these words: "I join you in matrimony in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen." In some places the priest winds the stole about the hands of the newly-married couple as a sign that this confirmation and ratification is done in God's name. 3. He blesses the wedding ring, which is a symbol of their indissoluble union, and the love and fidelity of the married pair. 4. The bridal pair then receive the special and solemn matrimonial blessing. This is given during the bridal Mass, immediately after the Pater Noster 4. . When the bride is a widow, or when the marriage takes place at a prohibited time, this special blessing is not given, since a second marriage does not truly represent the union of Christ with the Church.

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  The Definition of Emeritus
Posted by: Stone - 04-21-2022, 09:48 AM - Forum: Sedevacantism - No Replies

The Definition of Emeritus
Adapted from here.


As you can all see, emeritus is not a new office, nor is it an office. It is an honorific to someone who once held an office.

So, my brothers and sisters, it does not prove in the slightest that anyone still holds that he office they are the Emeritus of.

This is why English is important, and why we should learn what words mean, lest we be led astray by lying, tax evading, schismatic frauds. ?

e·mer·i·tus
/əˈmerədəs/

adjective - (of the former holder of an office, especially a college professor) having retired but allowed to retain their title as an honor.

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