THE OLD CATHOLIC MISSION IN SUSSEX

An African Christian registers with horror the Anti-Christian climate in Europe and is astonished with what passivity European Christians accept that. From Europe for Christ

"In Western Europe, there has been a storm of critique on Christianity for a long time, an Anti-Christian trend. To have faith is seen as a pitiful situation. To say it gently, the majority of Christians waits helplessly and inactively for the total destruction of already wounded Christianity. I am not worried that the Church would not survive difficult situations (Mt 16:18) or that Christ would abandon his Church (Mt 28:20). But I worry about the degree of carelessness and apathy that Christians in Europe show in this difficult situation.

Christians meet the increasing wave of Anti-Christianity with total passivity. Because of the media, daily newspapers, magazines, TV and radio, people are on a daily basis confronted with ideologies that only deep faith and clear discernment can withstand. The question is: How do Christians react to this? What did they do until now?

I read daily newspapers and I am bewildered because of the eagerness with which journalists and editors make arbitrary statements, leap to illogical conclusions and criticize the Church in a hostile way. The passivity with which Christians react on these assaults is alarming.

Why do you observe instead of argue, defend and proclaim the truth from a rational point of view? Why not react on negative developments, especially when they turn into a dangerous ideology?

Now it is time to wake up, everyone in their way and in their environment! Let’s write! Let’s speak loudly! We have to prepare ourselves, because as Christ has already warned us: “...for the sons of this age are more shrewd in relation to their own kind than the sons of light...” (Lk 16:8)

It is not enough to wait for a miracle! We could not impede this development by waiting for a wonder from God. Why should He perform a miracle, when he already gave us the ability to act through faith and common sense?

Prayer is undeniably the first step that we have to make, but it is not enough. We have to act. We owe that to our descendants. People leave the church because they receive wrong answers to their questions. And they get these wrong answers from the wrong people.

An average Europeans who read daily newspapers probably will tend to lose their faith than remain a believer. It is time to let Christ lead us. Let everyone around you notice that there is a Christian. Where are you? What do you see? What do you hear? What do you know? Speak aloud! Our silence is our pain."

Kizito Chinedu Nweke

Nweke Kizito Chinedu is a seminarian originally from Nigeria and currently studying at the Pontifical University Heiligenkreuz near Vienna.

St. Bruno Priest & Confessor

St. Bruno, born in Cologne about 1030, was the founder of a religious Order, the Carthusians. His mother was St. Matilda, patroness of Maude, widow of King Henry I. Excepting St. Norbert, he is the only German having that honor. His contemporaries called him the light of the Church, the flower of the clergy, the glory of Germany and France. Early in life he was a canon at Cologne and Rheims. The persecution by the simoniacal archbishop of Rheims, Manasses, hastened his resolve to enter a life of solitude (1084). Legend puts it this way. A famous professor had died. While the Office of the Dead was being chanted at his funeral, he suddenly raised himself up from the coffin and said: "By the just judgment of God have I been accused, judged, damned." Thereupon Bruno renounced the world. He received from Hugo, bishop of Grenoble, a site called Chartreuse (from the color of the surrounding hills) as a place of residence.

The Order founded by Bruno is one of the strictest in the Church. Carthusians follow the Rule of St. Benedict, but accord it a most austere interpretation; there is perpetual silence and complete abstinence from flesh meat (only bread, legumes, and water are taken for nourishment). Bruno sought to revive the ancient eremitical way of life. His Order enjoys the distinction of never becoming unfaithful to the spirit of its founder, never needing a reform. Six years after initiating the foundation, Bruno was called to Rome by Pope Urban II as personal counselor. He complied with a heavy heart. However, when the Pope was forced to flee to Campania because of Emperor Henry IV, Bruno found a wilderness similar to that of Chartreuse at La Torre; there he made a second foundation, which blossomed into a flourishing community. Here in September, 1101, he became severely ill. Having called together his followers, Bruno made a public confession and died on October 6, 1101, at the age of seventy-one.

Excerpted from The Church's Year of Grace, Pius Parsch.

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

8:44am Thursday 24th September 2009

On the wall of Barry Higgins’s living-room are framed photographs of a young nun.

Barry was a Roman Catholic priest when he met Jean, the nun in the photograph, who had left her order after 20 years.

The couple moved in together weeks after Barry left the priesthood. He says life as a priest left him isolated and craving companionship, and he firmly believes Catholic priests should be allowed to marry.

Barry, 70, has written a book, Scattered Shepherds, about his experiences. “I’m ready for the controversy,” he says. “I’ve had a triple heart bypass, prostate cancer, coeliac disease. Now I’m ready for the biggest fight of my life. Priests who leave often fade into the wallpaper. Not me.”

Barry is sitting in his Oakenshaw home, leafing through photographs of himself as a priest, at an audience with Pope Paul VI at the Vatican, and on his wedding day to his beloved Jean, who died of cancer three years ago.

Brought up a Catholic, his churchgoing lapsed until he went to see Biblical epic Ben Hur at the cinema.

“Something happened to me during the Crucifixion scene,” says Barry. “I started going to church, and went to Lourdes. Someone asked if I’d considered becoming a priest. The more I thought about it, the more I knew it was what I wanted. I was working at an engineering firm, and I remember thinking, ‘I won’t be happy until I’m in the priesthood’.”

In 1966, aged 26, Barry went to Campion House in Middlesex to train to be a priest. He later studied at Beda College, Rome, and in March, 1972, was ordained at St Columbus’s Church, Bradford.

His first appointment was St Joseph’s Church, Keighley, before moving to a church in Leeds. While Barry knew “without question” that he wanted to be a priest, he was unsettled by the hierarchy within the priesthood.

“Bishops talked to bishops, priests talked to priests, nobody talked to curates. As a curate I felt lonely,” he says. “There was no support, no friendship. Whether we be bishop or curate, between us there should be no divisive barriers, only brotherly love. Jesus said, ‘The world will know that you are my disciples by your love for one another’.”

Barry became the priest at St Joseph’s Church, Bradford. Visiting elderly people at a residential home in Little Horton, he met Jean, who worked there.

“She’d been a nun since the age of 18, but, like me, became unhappy,” says Barry. “A platonic friendship developed. I wouldn’t say it was instant physical attraction, but there was a bond.”

Despite becoming close to Jean, Barry says he didn’t leave the priesthood to marry. “It was the basic structure of the church,” he says. “My parishioners meant the world to me, but I found it a lonely, empty, institutional life.

“Parish priests kept themselves to themselves, some with a high opinion of themselves. I lived in a house with other priests. These men were meant to be my ‘brothers’, but there was no companionship. When I raised concerns, I was told, ‘pull yourself together’.”

Barry left the priesthood in the autumn of 1977 and married Jean that December.

“I found the love and companionship I hadn’t found as a priest,” he says. “We were surprised at the support from parishioners, although not everyone was supportive.”

They married in a civil ceremony, with a church blessing 18 months later. “We had to wait because the Pope withheld dispensation for former priests to marry in the Catholic church,” says Barry.

The couple lived in Burley-in-Wharfedale and Baildon, among other places, running shops and a guest house, before settling in Oakenshaw. They were together 29 years until Jean died of cancer three years ago. “She died here at home. I was saying Mass in the kitchen, as I do every morning, and went to her. She died seconds later,” says Barry.

He’d like to return to the priesthood, and feels his experience of marriage would make him stronger. “I can empathise in a way someone who’s never married can’t. A neighbour’s husband died, I found her one day in tears and was able to comfort her because I knew that sorrow.

“The priesthood never leaves you. There was once a terrible road accident near my house; a man was dying and I gave him the Last Rites.”

Barry called his book Scattered Shepherds after the priests who’ve left active ministry. He says the issue needs to be addressed for the Church to move forward.

“There are fewer priests coming through, churches are closing. If the Church is to flourish, its structure needs to change. The origins of the vow of celibacy is vague, through the centuries the institution has gathered dust. If priests wish to marry, they should be allowed.

“I would go back into the priesthood, on my terms. Because of ill-health my active ministry would be limited, but valuable. I’ve had no response from the Church. There is no welcome back for this Prodigal Son.”

Scattered Shepherds, by Barry Higgins, is published by AuthorHouse UK Ltd (0800 1974150).

The Carmelite Martyrs of Compiegne

On this day in 1794 all the nuns of the Carmelite monastery of Compiegne were guillotined by the revolutionary French republicans. They offered their lives for France and her liberation from the terror. They were the last executed under that regime and the terror soon ended.

Their story has been retold in many forms. Dialogue des Carmélites, a Poulenc opera based on a film scenario by Georges Bernanos, is perhaps the most well-known treatment. That in turn was based upon Gertrude von le Fort's novel, The Song at the Scaffold.

ICS has published an extensive history of the Carmelite martyrs, To Quell the Terror.

The most complete recounting of their story on the web is probably here. That site contains the heart of a booklet written a few years ago by Terry Newkirk, herself a Carmelite Secular. A short excerpt:

"An ironic sidelight: the one nun of royal blood, Marie of the Incarnation, happened to be away at the time of the arrest and thus escaped execution; one of only three survivors of her community, she became the martyrs' first historian, collecting eyewitness accounts of the nuns deaths. Reverend Mother Émilienne, Superior General of the Sisters of Charity of Nevers, wrote in a letter:

" 'I learned from a person who was a witness to their martyrdom that the youngest of these good Carmelites was called first and that she went to kneel before her venerable Superior, asked her blessing and permission to die. She then mounted the scaffold singing Laudate Dominum omnes gentes. She then went to place herself beneath the blade not allowing the executioner to touch her. All the others did the same. The Venerable Mother was the last sacrificed. During the whole time, there was not a single drum-roll; but there reigned a profound silence.'

"Sister Charlotte of the Resurrection, seventy-eight and an invalid, having been thrown roughly to the pavement from the tumbrel, was heard to speak words of forgiveness and encouragement to her tormentor. Sister Julie had an extreme horror of the guillotine; yet she refused to leave her sisters even when her family sent for her, saying, 'We are victims of the age, and we must sacrifice ourselves for its reconciliation with God.' Another witness said of the nuns, 'They looked like they were going to their weddings.'

"Throughout France a vaunted new age of spiritual maturity, free from the bonds of sectarian religion, was underway. On June 20, 1794, a Feast of the Supreme Being" was celebrated in Compiègne. In November of the previous year, the worship of Reason was officially proclaimed: the church of Saint-Jacques in Compiégne became the Temple of Reason. The church of Saint- Antoine became a public meeting hall and fodder storehouse. In December, the Mayor of Paris had announced in the Temple of Reason that the Declaration of the Rights of Man would henceforth be the catechism of the French, and that the Constitution would be their Gospel. The prevailing mood of the times is reflected in a letter of July 17, 1794, from municipal officials of Compiègne to the Comité du Sureté Nationale:

" 'The citizens of the Commune of Compiègne and of the District celebrated a civic festival on the 26 of this month (Messidor) in memory of the taking of the Bastille and in rejoicing for the recent victories of our armies. The minutes of the Municipalites attest that everywhere people were animated by the same spirit. The festival was concluded with dances and patriotic banquets.'

"Yet there must have been a growing public unease not evident in this letter. Something in the sight of the nuns being executed seems to have affected even the hardened Parisian crowd, accustomed to cheering loudly each fall of the guillotine blade. Within ten days, by July 27, 1794, Robespierre and the provisional revolutionary government were finished."

The Catholic Encyclopaedia lists all of the 16 martyrs:

"Madeleine-Claudine Ledoine (Mother Teresa of St. Augustine), prioress, b. in Paris, 22 Sept., 1752, professed 16 or 17 May, 1775;

"Marie-Anne (or Antoinette) Brideau (Mother St. Louis), sub-prioress, b. at Belfort, 7 Dec., 1752, professed 3 Sept, 1771;

"Marie-Anne Piedcourt (Sister of Jesus Crucified), choir-nun, b. 1715, professed 1737; on mounting the scaffold she said "I forgive you as heartily as I wish God to forgive me";

"Anne-Marie-Madeleine Thouret (Sister Charlotte of the Resurrection), sacristan, b. at Mouy, 16 Sept., 1715, professed 19 Aug., 1740, twice sub-prioress in 1764 and 1778. Her portrait is reproduced opposite p. 2 of Miss Willson's work cited below;

"Marie-Antoniette or Anne Hanisset (Sister Teresa of the Holy Heart of Mary), b. at Rheims in 1740 or 1742, professed in 1764;

"Marie-Françoise Gabrielle de Croissy (Mother Henriette of Jesus), b. in Paris, 18 June, 1745, professed 22 Feb., 1764, prioress from 1779 to 1785;

"Marie-Gabrielle Trézel (Sister Teresa of St. Ignatius), choir-nun, b. at Compiègne, 4 April, 1743, professed 12 Dec., 1771;

"Rose-Chrétien de la Neuville, widow, choir-nun (Sister Julia Louisa of Jesus), b. at Loreau (or Evreux), in 1741, professed probably in 1777;

"Anne Petras (Sister Mary Henrietta of Providence), choir-nun, b. at Cajarc (Lot), 17 June, 1760, professed 22 Oct., 1786.

"Concerning Sister Euphrasia of the Immaculate Conception accounts vary. Miss Willson says that her name was Marie Claude Cyprienne Brard, and that she was born 12 May, 1736; Pierre, that her name was Catherine Charlotte Brard, and that she was born 7 Sept., 1736. She was born at Bourth, and professed in 1757;

"Marie-Geneviève Meunier (Sister Constance), novice, b. 28 May, 1765, or 1766, at St. Denis, received the habit 16 Dec., 1788. She mounted the scaffold singing "Laudate Dominum". In addition to the above, three lay sisters suffered and two tourières.

"The lay sisters are:

"Angélique Roussel (Sister Mary of the Holy Ghost), lay sister, b. at Fresnes, 4 August, 1742, professed 14 May, 1769;

"Marie Dufour (Sister St. Martha), lay sister, b. at Beaune, 1 or 2 Oct., 1742, entered the community in 1772;

"Julie or Juliette Vérolot (Sister St. Francis Xavier), lay sister, b. at Laignes or Lignières, 11 Jan., 1764, professed 12 Jan., 1789.

"The two tourières, who were not Carmelites at all, but maidservants of the nunnery were: Catherine and Teresa Soiron, b. respectively on 2 Feb., 1742 and 23 Jan., 1748 at Compiègne, both of whom had been in the service of the community since 1772."

Saint Teresa of Jesus of Los Andes

The young woman who is today glorified by the Church with the title of Saint, is a prophet of God for the men and women of today. By the example of her life, TERESA OF JESUS OF LOS ANDES shows us Christ's Gospel lived down to the last detail.

She is irrefutable proof that Christ's call to be Saints is indeed real, it happens in our time, and can be answered. She is presented to us to demonstrate that the total dedication that following Christ involves, is the one and only thing that is worth this effort and that gives us true happiness.

Teresa of Los Andes with the language of her ardent life, confirms for us that God exists, that God is love and happiness, and that he is our fulfilment.

She was born in Santiago de Chile on 13 July 1900. At the font she was christened Juana Enriqueta Josefina of the Sacred Hearts Fernandez Solar. Those who knew her closely called her Juanita, the name by which she is widely known today.

She had a normal upbringing surrounded by her family: her parents Miguel Fernandez and Lucia Solar, three brothers and two sisters, her maternal grandfather, uncles, aunts and cousins.

Her family were well-off and were faithful to their Christian faith, living it with faith and constancy.

Juana was educated in the college of the French nuns of the Sacred Heart. Her brief but intense life unfolded within her family and at college. When she was fourteen, under God's inspiration, she decided to consecrate herself to him as a religious in the Discalced Carmelite Nuns.

This desire of hers was realized on 7 May 1919, when she entered the tiny monastery of the Holy Spirit in the township of Los Andes, some 90 kilometers from Santiago.

She was clothed with the Carmelite habit 14 October the same year and began her novitiate with the name of Teresa of Jesus. She knew a long time before that she would die young. Moreover the Lord revealed this to her. A month before she was to depart this life, she related this to her confessor.

She accepted all this with happiness, serenity and confidence. She was certain that her mission to make God known and loved would continue in eternity.

After many interior trials and indescribable physical suffering caused by a violent attack of typhus that cut short her life, she passed from this world to her heavenly Father on the evening of 12 April 1920. She received the last sacraments with the utmost fervour, and on 7 April, because of danger of death, she made her religious profession. She was three months short of her 20th birthday, and had yet 6 months to complete her canonical novitiate and to be legally able to make her religious profession. She died as a Discalced Carmelite novice.

Externally this is all there is to this young girl from Santiago de Chile. It is all rather disconcerting and a great question arises in us, "What was accomplished?" The answer to such a question is equally disconcerting: living, believing, loving.

When the disciples asked Jesus what they must do to carry out God's work, he replied, "This is carrying out God's work: you must believe in the one he has sent." (Jn 6, 28-29). For this reason, in order to recognize the value of Juanita's fife, it is necessary to examine the substance within, where the Kingdom of God is to be found.

She wakened to the life of grace while still quite young. She affirms that God drew her at the age of six to begin to spare no effort in directing her capacity to love totally towards him. "It was shortly after the 1906 earthquake that Jesus began to claim my heart for himself." (Diary n. 3, p. 26).

Juanita possessed an enormous capacity to love and to be loved joined with an extraordinary intelligence. God allowed her to experience his presence. With this knowledge he purified her and made her his own through what it entails to take up the cross. Knowing him, she loved him; and loving him, she bound herself totally to him.

Once this child understood that love demonstrates itself in deeds rather than words, the result was that she expressed her love through every action of her life. She examined herself sincerely and wisely and understood that in order to belong to God it was necessary to die to herself in all that did not belong to him.

Her natural inclinations were completely contrary to the demands of the Gospel. She was proud, self-centred, stubborn, with all the defects that these things suppose, as is the common lot. But where she differed from the general run, was to carry out continual warfare on every impulse that did not arise from love.

At the age of ten she became a new person. What lay immediately behind this was the fact that she was going to make her first Communion. Understanding that nobody less that God was going to dwell within her, she set about acquiring all the virtues that would make her less unworthy of this grace. In the shortest possible time she managed to transform her character completely.

In making her first Communion she received from God the mystical grace of interior locutions, which from then on supported her throughout her fife. God took over her natural inclinations, transforming them from that day into friendship and a fife of prayer.

Four years later she received an interior revelation that shaped the direction of her life. Jesus told her that she would be a Carmelite and that holiness must be her goal.

With God's abundant grace and the generosity of a young girl in love, she gave herself over to prayer, to the acquiring of virtue and the practice of a life in accord with the Gospel. Such were her efforts that in a few short years she reached a high degree of union with God.

Christ was the one and only ideal she had. She was in love with him and ready each moment to crucify herself for him. A bridal love pervaded her with the result that she desired to unite herself fully to him who had captivated her. As a result, at the age of fifteen she made a vow of virginity for 9 days, continually renewing it from then on.

The holiness of her life shone out in the everyday occurrences, wherever she found herself: at home, in college, with friends, the people she stayed with on holidays. To all, with apostolic zeal, she spoke of God and gave assistance. She was young like her friends, but they knew she was different. They took her as a model, seeking her support and advice. All the pains that are part of living, Juanita felt keenly, and the happiness she enjoyed deeply, all in God.

She was cheerful, happy, sympathetic, attractive, communicative and involved in sport. During her adolescence she reached perfect psychic and spiritual equilibrium. These were the fruit of her asceticism and prayer. The serenity of her face was a reflection of the divine guest within. Her life as a nun, from 7 May 1919, was the last rung on the ladder to holiness. Only eleven months were necessary to bring to an end the process of making her life totally Christ-like.

Her community was quick to discover the hand of God in her past life. The young novice found in the Carmelite way of life the full and efficient channel for spreading the torrent of life that she wanted to give to the Church of Christ. It was a way of life that, in her own way, she had lived amongst her own and for which she was born. The Order of the Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel fulfilled the desires of Juanita. It was proof to her that God's mother, whom she had loved from infancy, had drawn her to be part of it.

She was beatified by Pope John Paul II in Santiago de Chile on 3 April 1987. Her remains are venerated in the Sanctuary of Auco-Rinconada of Los Andes by the thousands of pilgrims who seek in her and find guidance, light and a direct way to God.

SAINT TERESA OF JESUS OF LOS ANDES is the first Chilean to be declared a Saint. She is the first Discalced Carmelite Nun to become a Saint outside the boundaries of Europe and the fourth Saint Teresa in Carmel together with Saints Teresa of Avila, of Florence and of Lisieux.

Saint John Gualbert,

Abbot.

Born in Florence, Tuscany, Italy, c. 993; died at Passignano (near Florence) in 1073; canonized in 1193. Because of his birth into the noble Visdomini family, John Gualbert had no more thought of following a life of austerity and humility than did his noble Florentine friends and companions. Bred to be a soldier, he spent his time in worldly amusements. Indeed, so far from intending to follow the precepts of Our Lord, his one over-riding ambition was to avenge the murder of his elder brother, Hugh. To him this was a matter of justice and, more importantly, a matter of honor.

It happened that one Good Friday as he was riding through a narrow pass on his way to Florence, Gualbert came face to face with the man he had been seeking. The man was alone and there was no means of escape. Gualbert drew his sword and moved forward, but at his approach the murderer, in a gesture not so much of supplication as of despair, fell to his knees, threw out his arms and commended his soul to God.

Gualbert hesitated, and as he looked down on his victim he was suddenly reminded of the image of Christ suffering on the Cross and of the forgiveness which Our Lord had asked for those who murdered him. Sheathing his sword, he embraced and forgave the man. Having pardoned his brother's murderer, he saw the image of the crucifix miraculously bow its head in acknowledgement of Gualbert's good action and they separated in peace.

Continuing his journey, Gualbert went to the monastery of San Miniato del Monte in Florence where, as he prayed before the crucifix, he was filled with divine grace. He asked the abbot for permission to be admitted. But the abbot delayed, fearing the anger and resentment of Gualbert's parents. To demonstrate the seriousness of his call, Gualbert shaved his head himself and put on a habit that he had borrowed.

For the next few years he remained at San Miniato, leading the life of a penitent and hoping to end his days there; but when the abbot died and the new one bribed his way to office, he left in disgust. (Other sources say that he left with a companion to find solitude when it looked likely that he would be appointed abbot.) He wanted to find a life untouched by the current abuses in the Church: clerical concubinage, nepotism, and simony. For a while he stayed with the Camaldolesi at Saint Romuald's abbey, but then decided to make an entirely new foundation.

The abbess of Sant'Ellero gave him some land in the Vallis Umbrosa (Vallombrosa), about 20 miles east of Florence near Fiesole; and there, with the help of a few companions, he built a small and unpretentious monastery of timber. The monks followed the austere rule of Saint Benedict to the letter, except for a special provision admitting conversi, or lay- brothers who could take on the manual labor and free the choir monks for contemplation and more prayer.

He was dedicated to poverty and humility. He never became a priest, in fact, he declined even to receive minor orders. Vallombrosa inspired other communities with its hospices for the poor and sick. These became part of his new order under John's rule, in spite of rival claims to jurisdiction. In this and other ways John became involved in the reform movement in the Church, for which he was commended by popes.

Other monasteries were established, but in all cases Gualbert insisted that the buildings should be constructed as modestly and cheaply as possible and that the money saved should be given to the poor. Indeed, his zeal for charity was such that he often gave away all the monastery's supplies to the poor who came to its gates. The area in which the first monastery was located was wild and barren, but the monks planted fir and pine trees and transformed it into a parkland.

Gualbert was known for his wisdom, miracles, and prophecies. Pope Saint Leo IX, travelled specially to Passignano to speak with him, as did Stephen X. Pope Alexander II attributed the eradication of simony in his country to him. Though respected and visited by popes, Gualbert retained his humility. He died aged about 80. The congregation of Vallombrosan Benedictines that he founded spread chiefly throughout Tuscany and Lombardy, but it still exists today and includes more than six monasteries

The Martyrs Of Gorcum

Today, when many Catholics seem to regard the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist as inconsequential (they wouldn't mind if the bread were just bread, really), and when many seem to regard the Pope's headship of the universal Church as a kind of embarrassing error (they wouldn't mind if the Pontiff were just a Chairperson, really) - at such a moment it may be good for us to recall the careers of a group of Catholics who realized, when asked to disavow the Eucharist and the papacy, that they minded very much. They minded so much that the threat of death - and the promise of life, if they would acquiesce could not move them.

The year 1572, Luther and Calvin had already wrested from the Church a great part of Europe. The iconoclastic storm had swept through the Netherlands, and was followed by a struggle between Lutheranism and Calvinism in which the latter was victorious. In 1571 the Calvinists held their first synod, at Embden. On 1 April of the next year the Watergeuzen (Sea-beggars) conquered Briel and later Vlissingen and other places. In June, Dortrecht and Gorkum fell into their hands and at Gorkum they captured nine Franciscans. These were: Nicholas Pieck, guardian of Gorkum, Hieronymns of Weert, vicar, Theodorus van der Eem, of Amersfoort, Nicasius Janssen, of Heeze, Willehad of Denmark, Godefried of Mervel, Antonius of Weert, Antonius of Hoornaer, and Franciseus de Roye, of Brussels. To these were added two lay brothers from the same monastery, Petrus of Assche and Cornelius of Wyk near Duurstede. Almost at the same time the Calvinists laid their hands on the learned parish priest of Gorkum, Leonardus Vechel of Bois-le-Duc, who had made distinguished studies in Louvain, and also has assistant Nicolaas Janssen, surnamed Poppel, of Welde in Belgium. With the above, were also imprisoned Godefried van Duynsen, of Gorkum who was active as a priest in his native city, and Joannes Lenartz of Oisterwljk, an Augustinian and director of the convent of Augustinian nuns in Gorkum. To these fifteen, who from the very first underwent all the sufferings and torments of the persecution, were later added four more companions: Joannes van Hoornaer, a Dominican of the Cologne province and parish priest not far from Gorkum, who, when apprised of the incarceration of the clergy of Gorkum, hastened to the city in order to administer the sacraments to them and was seized and imprisoned with the rest, Jacobus Lacops of Oudenaar, a Norbertine, who after leading a frivolous life, being disobedient to his order, and neglectful of his religious duties, reformed, became a curate in Monster, Holland and was imprisoned in 1572; Adrianus Janssen of Hilvarenbeek, at one time a Premonstratensian and parish priest in Monster, who was sent to Brielle with Jacobus Lacops; and lastly Andreas Wouters of Heynoord, whose conduct was not edifying up to the time of his arrest, but who made ample amends by his martyrdom.

After enduring much suffering and abuse in the prison at Gorkum (26 June-6 July) the first fifteen martyrs were transferred to Brielle. On their way to Dortrecht they were exhibited for money to the curious and arrived at Brielle 13 July. On the following day, Lumey, the commander of the Watergeuzen, caused the martyrs to be interrogated and ordered a sort of disputation. In the meantime the four other martyrs also arrived. It was exacted of each that he abandon his belief in the Blessed Sacrament and in papal supremacy. All remained firm in their faith. Meanwhile there came a letter from William of Orange which enjoined all those in authority to leave priests and religious unmolested. Nevertheless Lumey caused the martyrs to be hanged in the night of 9 July, in a turfshed amid cruel mutilations. Their beatification took place on 14 Nov., 1675, and their canonization on 29 June, 1865. For many years the place of their martyrdom in Brielle has been the scene of numerous pilgrimages and processions. Their relics are enshrined in the Church of St.Nicholas in Brussels Belgium.

St Lutgarde of Aywiers

A pretty girl with a fondness for clothes and no apparent religious vocation, Lutgardis was sent to the Black Benedictine convent near Saint Trond at age 12 because her dowry had been lost in a failed business venture, and there was thus little chance for a life as a normal, married lay woman. In her late teens she received a vision of Christ showing her his wounds, and at age 20 she became a Benedictine nun with a true vocation. She had visions of Christ while in prayer, experienced ecstasies, levitated, and dripped blood from forehead and hair when enraptured in the Passion. She repeatedly refused to be chosen abbess of her house. She was one of the first to practice the devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

The Benedictine order was not strict enough for Lutgardis, and on the advice of her friend Saint Christina the Astonishing she joined the Cistercians at Aywieres (in modern Belgium) where she lived for her remaining 30 years. Displayed the gifts of healing, prophecy, spiritual wisdom, and was an inspired teacher on the Gospels. Blind for the last eleven years of her life, she treated the affliction as a gift - it reduced the distraction of the outside world. In one of her last visions, Christ told her when she was to die; she spent the time remaining praying for the conversion of sinners.

Born: 1182 at Tongres, Limburg, Nederlands

Died: 16 June 1246 at Aywieres, just as night office began on the Saturday night following Feast of the Holy Trinity

1.Whosoever will be saved, before all things it is necessary that he hold the catholic faith;

2. Which faith except every one do keep whole and undefiled, without doubt he shall perish everlastingly.

3. And the catholic faith is this: That we worship one God in Trinity, and Trinity in Unity;

4. Neither confounding the persons nor dividing the substance.

5. For there is one person of the Father, another of the Son, and another of the Holy Spirit.

6. But the Godhead of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit is all one, the glory equal, the majesty coeternal.

7. Such as the Father is, such is the Son, and such is the Holy Spirit.

8. The Father uncreated, the Son uncreated, and the Holy Spirit uncreated.

9. The Father incomprehensible, the Son incomprehensible, and the Holy Spirit incomprehensible.

10. The Father eternal, the Son eternal, and the Holy Spirit eternal.

11. And yet they are not three eternals but one eternal.

12. As also there are not three uncreated nor three incomprehensible, but one uncreated and one incomprehensible.

13. So likewise the Father is almighty, the Son almighty, and the Holy Spirit almighty.

14. And yet they are not three almighties, but one almighty.

15. So the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God;

16. And yet they are not three Gods, but one God.

17. So likewise the Father is Lord, the Son Lord, and the Holy Spirit Lord;

18. And yet they are not three Lords but one Lord.

19. For like as we are compelled by the Christian verity to acknowledge every Person by himself to be God and Lord;

20. So are we forbidden by the catholic religion to say; There are three Gods or three Lords.

21. The Father is made of none, neither created nor begotten.

22. The Son is of the Father alone; not made nor created, but begotten.

23. The Holy Spirit is of the Father and of the Son; neither made, nor created, nor begotten, but proceeding.

24. So there is one Father, not three Fathers; one Son, not three Sons; one Holy Spirit, not three Holy Spirits.

25. And in this Trinity none is afore or after another; none is greater or less than another.

26. But the whole three persons are coeternal, and coequal.

27. So that in all things, as aforesaid, the Unity in Trinity and the Trinity in Unity is to be worshipped.

28. He therefore that will be saved must thus think of the Trinity.

29. Furthermore it is necessary to everlasting salvation that he also believe rightly the incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ.

30. For the right faith is that we believe and confess that our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is God and man.

31. God of the substance of the Father, begotten before the worlds; and man of substance of His mother, born in the world.

32. Perfect God and perfect man, of a reasonable soul and human flesh subsisting.

33. Equal to the Father as touching His Godhead, and inferior to the Father as touching His manhood.

34. Who, although He is God and man, yet He is not two, but one Christ.

35. One, not by conversion of the Godhead into flesh, but by taking of that manhood into God.

36. One altogether, not by confusion of substance, but by unity of person.

37. For as the reasonable soul and flesh is one man, so God and man is one Christ;

38. Who suffered for our salvation, descended into hell, rose again the third day from the dead;

39. He ascended into heaven, He sits on the right hand of the Father, God, Almighty;

40. From thence He shall come to judge the quick and the dead.

41. At whose coming all men shall rise again with their bodies;

42. and shall give account of their own works.

43. And they that have done good shall go into life everlasting and they that have done evil into everlasting fire.

44. This is the catholic faith, which except a man believe faithfully he cannot be saved.

Special Report Promising vocations news from Asia, Africa, and Oceania.

by Jeff Ziegler | July 2008 | CWR

The Church worldwide has been blessed since 1978 with a surge in the number of seminarians. According to data published in L’Osservatore Romano and the Vatican’s statistical yearbook (the Secretariat of State’s Annuarium Statisticum Ecclesiae),there were 63,882 diocesan and religious major seminarians when JohnPaul II began his pontificate in 1978; by the end of 2005, that numberhad grown to 114,439—a remarkable increase of 79.1 percent. During thesame time period, the number of Catholics worldwide grew 47.4 percentfrom 756,533,000 to 1,114,966,000, while world population increased48.8 percent, from 4.302 billion to 6.4 billion. Mostof the growth in the number of candidates for the priesthood took placein Africa, where seminarians more than quadrupled from 5,636 to 23,580,and in Asia, where the number nearly tripled from 11,536 to 30,066. TheAmericas, too, saw a growth in the number of seminarians, from 22,011to 36,891, as did Australia and Oceania, whose numbers rose slightlyfrom 784 to 944. The number of European seminarians, on the other hand,declined from 23,915 to 22,958.

While these continental trends manifest the vitality of the Churchin Africa and Asia during the past three decades, they do not addressthe question of which countries are currently the most successful inattracting priestly vocations. To answer this question, CWRhas calculated the ratio of seminarians to Catholics in each of theworld’s nations and territories based on data in the 2005 edition ofthe Annuarium Statisticum Ecclesiae, which was published in 2007 by Libreria Editrice Vaticana. The Annuariumpresents a year-end statistical overview of the Church—the 2005 editionoffers data as of December 31, 2005—and does not publish any statisticsfor two nations: China and North Korea.

The ratio of seminariansto Catholics presents a more accurate picture of how vocation-rich anation is than does the absolute number of seminarians. While theUnited States, for example, has more seminarians than Eritrea does(4,736 vs. 289), an Eritrean Catholic is 26 times more likely to enterthe seminary than an American Catholic is. Likewise, Macedonia is 37times more vocation-rich than Canada, and an Indian Catholic is 75times more likely to become a seminarian than is a Catholic inLuxembourg.

ASIA

Worldwide,there is one seminarian for every 9,743 Catholics. In Asia, the mostvocation-rich continent, there is one seminarian for every 3,877Catholics.

Fifteen of the world’s three dozen most vocation-rich nations arelocated in Asia, and over 45 percent of Asian seminarians are Indian.India has more seminarians—13,754—than any other nation in the world,even though it ranks only 16th in the world in Catholic population.India has more seminarians than all of the nations of North America andCentral America combined. Nearly a quarter of Catholics inIndia are Eastern Catholics, and the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church,which has 25 Indian eparchies (dioceses), traces its origin to thepreaching of St. Thomas the Apostle. Father Antony Kollannur,chancellor of the Syro-Malabar Church’s major archiepiscopal curia,told CWR that India has so many seminarians because of “thelong-standing tradition of around 2,000 years of Christian living,which is nourished by daily family prayers, frequent attendance at theliturgical celebrations, even on weekdays, and the great care taken toimpart Christian teachings to the young children through thewell-organized regular Sunday catechism classes.”

Father GeorgeMadathi Parampil, vicar general of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Diocese ofChicago, says several factors contribute to India’s success:

• “Veryexemplary Christian family life” with “no divorces”; “faith is anintegral part of life,” manifested in Mass attendance and thecatechesis of children;
• “The influence of Catholic schools and colleges, where the Catholic atmosphere is still very much alive”;
• “The good examples given by the priests and their active involvement in the lives of the people”;
• “The interest the Christian community shows in bettering the lives of the economically depressed people”;
• TheChurch’s “active voice, never keeping silence when secular forces tryto denigrate the moral and religious values of the people”; “Daily family prayer and Rosary at home”;
• “Thefaith tradition of ‘St. Thomas Catholics’ of [the southwestern Indianstate of] Kerala, which traces its faith-heritage to the preaching ofSt. Thomas the Apostle and which has the greatest number of vocations.”

Kerala is not a predominantly Catholic state: overhalf of its residents are Hindu, and a quarter are Muslim. FatherGregory Arby, a Latin Rite priest and dogmatic theology professor atSt. Joseph’s Pontifical Seminary in Kerala, says that while “the mediaare very much critical of us,” the “faith remains very strong.” FatherArby also points to vocation-promotion programs for high schoolstudents and the strong social status of priests as keys to attractingseminarians. Observing that “many of the vocations we now have are fromthe poor families,” he concedes that the “financial security” ofpriestly ministry may also play a role in India’s success in producingpriestly vocations.

That success has had ramifications inneighboring Nepal, the world’s second most vocation-rich nation, with26 seminarians for only 7,000 Catholics. “Almost all the religiousworking in Nepal today are Indians,” says Chirendra Satyal, secretaryof the nation’s Catholic Media Commission. Father Bill Robins, aCanadian Jesuit at St. Xavier School in Kathmandu, also told CWR thatmost of Nepal’s seminarians are Indians. Satyal says that Protestantismis spreading rapidly across the Hindu nation and predicts that, withthe collapse of the Hindu monarchy, Catholicism will soon follow suit:

Theoverall Christian population in Nepal has grown from a few thousand in1990 to an estimated half a million now…. The ratio of seminarians toCatholics will decrease in the future, as I feel many people will nowbe becoming Catholics as the freedom to preach or openly evangelize isnow there for the first time. You can now promote vocations intoreligious life openly, but still the number of lay people will growmore rapidly.

Bishop Anthony Sharma, SJ, the vicarapostolic of Nepal, has led the Church in his native land since 1984.He told CWR that the number of native seminarians has increased toseven because of an emphasis on pastoral work with youth. In additionto annual youth retreats and parish-based youth movements like theLegion of Mary, Bishop Sharma emphasizes the importance of “having afacility like what we call apostolic school, where village boys whogive indications of intellectual ability and/or desire for the priestlyor religious way of life are given the opportunity to continue theirhigh school education and helped to deepen their knowledge of faith.The boys who join apostolic school are usually 12 to 15 years old.”

Anactive program of youth vocation recruitment also plays a role inThailand’s success in attracting seminarians (the country is ranked11th). A spokesman for the nation’s episcopal conference told CWR that“there is an annual campaign in every diocese every year,” and“recruitment is made when they are still young.” One major program is“vocational camping for the youth during summer vacation every year.”

Two of Asia’s most vocation-rich nations—Myanmar (16th) and Vietnam(29th)—were among 11 nations cited by the US Commission onInternational Religious Freedom for grave violations of religiousfreedom on May 2. Bishop Pierre Trân Ðinh Tu of Phú Cuong told theSynod of Bishops in 2005 that Eucharistic devotion is bearing muchfruit in the Church in Vietnam:

VietnameseCatholics are practicing. For them, the Eucharistic celebration is ofspecial importance. About 80 percent attend Mass on Sundays, and 15percent during weekdays. On important feasts, such as Christmas andEaster, the number may reach 96 percent. If one wishes to find out thecause, one can find this out in the catechetical formation and infamily education…. The lay faithful are made aware and invited to studythe documents of the Magisterium of the Church on the Eucharist.… Theepiscopal conference organized a Eucharistic Congress at the CentreMarial National de Lavang, and there were 500,000 participants.

Parishesare invited to build adoration halls outside the church and to organizepermanent adoration or several hours of adoration in the day …Eucharistic worship in Vietnam has brought healthy effects: religiouslife has increased, community activities are more animated, fraternalcommunion is more sensitive, and mutual aid among families has becomemore natural and numerous. 

Even the prosperousAsian nations of South Korea (27th) and Japan (32nd) have been able toattract seminarians, though controversy has surrounded theNeocatechumenal Way seminary in the Diocese of Takamatsu, Japan. Threetimes between December 2007 and April 2008, delegations of Japanesebishops visited Rome to discuss the seminary’s potential closure.Asia-based UCA News quoted Tokyo Archbishop Peter Okada as saying, “Wehave here a serious problem. In the small Catholic Church of Japan, thepowerful sect-like activity of Way members is divisive andconfrontational. It has caused sharp, painful division and strifewithin the Church. We are struggling with all our strength to overcomethe problem.” In April, the Japanese bishops secured Rome’s approval toclose the seminary.

Technically, the world’s most vocation-richnation, based on official statistics, is Mongolia. Father PierrotKasemuana Kitengie, CICM, a Congo-born missionary and superior of hisreligious community in Mongolia, explains the anomaly: “We do not havea single seminarian here … [the three seminarians] were young membersof different religious congregations working in Mongolia … before beingordained priests. Actually this is the only kind of seminarian we havehere, from time to time.”

Not every Asian nation isvocation-rich: Middle Eastern Muslim nations such as Saudi Arabia arehosting increasingly large numbers of Catholic guest workers, but maynot have a single parish, let alone a seminary.

THE HOLY LAND

Christiansalso face grave difficulties in vocation-rich Israel and thePalestinian Territories (13th); among these difficulties, says recentlyretired Jerusalem Auxiliary Bishop Kamal H. Bathish, are “the very hardtimes that have always troubled this area because of the manysuccessive wars, the consequent and permanent hard conditions of life,and emigration of Christian faithful.” The political situation led tothe closure of a seminary for a year, and at it has been physicallyimpossible for some young men to attend seminary. In addition, “socialconditions (style of life, mentality, some aspects of civilization,etc.) imported from foreign European or American countries easily had anegative influence, reducing or almost suppressing the number ofvocations to the priesthood and religious life in some parts.”Nonetheless, Israel and the Holy Land remain vocation-rich, says BishopBathish, for several reasons:

Wemust acknowledge that in the Middle East our people still conserve thesense and the importance of family life. This has been minimized insome parts of the diocese but, generally speaking, marriage and familyare held in great respect, esteem, and importance. It is very frequent,after a generation that had easily five, six, or seven children, to seefamilies even today with three, four, and even more children….

OurCatholic population usually lives around and close to the parish centerand to the pastor, making relations with the Church easy and frequent.Where the pastor and the sisters frequently visit the families, theidea of becoming a priest or a nun remains alive within the people.

Theparish school, usually run by either the pastor or the nearby sistersor even by some lay person belonging to the community and under thesupervision of the pastor, is one of the most important elements thathelp to promote vocations, either to priesthood or to religious lifefor men or women. The parish school, financed by the Church, tries toreceive as much as possible all the children of the community….

Weare so privileged that our seminary has never known any vocationscrisis (neither a students’ nor professors’ crisis), as it happened inEuropean and American countries…. One difference [now] is that some“late vocations” (around 20-28 years of age) have been introduced. 

Father Humam Khzouz, chancellor of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, concurs; he told CWRthat “we still have strong family relations … we still have ourCatholic schools, where our parishioners receive their spiritualeducation, Catholic values, and catechism. The link between the priestsand the families is strong; there are visits to the families, theblessing of houses. We still have [a] religious atmosphere.”

Msgr.William Shomali, rector of the Latin patriarchate’s major seminary,believes that the ratio of seminarians to Catholics is actually closerto one seminarian per 3,000 Catholics. Few seminarians, he says, comefrom the state of Israel, for “the quality of life in Israel is likethe USA and Europe: very materialistic. The religious practice and thenumber of children per family are lower” than those of Palestinians andJordanians.

AFRICA

With oneseminarian for every 6,508 Catholics, Africa is the second mostvocation-rich continent. The Coptic and Ethiopian Christian culturesthat arose from the preaching of St. Mark in Alexandria remain fertile:modern-day Eritrea (5th), Egypt (15th), and Ethiopia (24th) are amongthe world’s most vocation-rich nations.

Eritrea —“one of theworld’s most repressive countries,” according to Paris-based Reporterswithout Borders—is the home of three Eastern Catholic eparchies of theEthiopian Catholic Church. Father Ghebriel Woldai, who ministers toEritrean Catholics at St. Joseph the Worker Church in Berkeley,California, says that many Eritrean Catholics become seminariansbecause of the “good faith of the people and support of each family tothe seminarians. And the faithful, by practicing their faith, alsoinspire the seminarians to see priesthood and a religious life as aperfect life for them. Most of the families of seminarians encouragetheir sons to become priests.”

Egypt ’s Coptic Catholic Church,like the Ethiopian Catholic Church, uses the Alexandrian Rite. BishopKyrillos William Samaan, the Coptic Catholic bishop of Assiut, told CWRthat the principal reasons for the Church in Egypt’s success inattracting seminarians are cultural (“We are a traditional, religiouspeople”), economic (“To be priest is a promotion for many people”), andapostolic (“We are doing intensive vocational pastoral work forrecruiting vocations”).

Two of Africa’s most vocation-richnations— Algeria (3rd) and Niger (11th)—are almost entirely Muslim. IvoMukoudi Lobe, the Algerian contact for the Charles de FoucauldFraternity, says that since September 11, 2001, Algeria has experiencedfewer tensions between Christians and Muslims than many other nations.The spirituality of Blessed Charles de Foucauld, says Lobe, “has beenvery helpful in fighting against poverty in many disadvantaged areas ofthe world” and has also “been helpful for those Christians in minorityliving in Muslim countries,” perhaps “further explaining thephenomenon” of seminarians in Algeria, whether foreign or native.

Niger, one of the world’s poorest nations, has an average life expectancy of44. Father Callistus Baalaboore, SMA, who ministers in Zinder, thenation’s second-largest city, discounted the importance of thevocations statistics. “The Christian population in Niger is so low thatwhen you divide the number of seminarians into it the ratio is high,”he says. “The Church in Niger is still in the primary [stages] ofevangelization, and more than 97 percent of the population is Muslim …Niger is still lacking pastoral agents at all the levels.”

Besidesthe nations where the Alexandrian Rite Eastern Catholic Churches havetaken root, West Africa is the most vocation-rich area of thecontinent. Nigeria (39th) has 5,631 seminarians, more than any otherAfrican nation; other West African countries that have a strong trackrecord of attracting seminarians are Mali (38th), Cameroon (41st),Burkina Faso (42nd), Benin (43rd), Ghana (46th), Senegal (48th), andTogo (49th). Zimbabwe (36th) and Swaziland (40th) also attract aproportionally high number of seminarians.

OCEANIA

Oceania, with one seminarian for every 9,214 Catholics, has nations andterritories that are among both the most vocation-rich and the mostvocation-poor in the world. While Australia’s 252 seminarians ranksecond numerically within Oceania to Papua New Guinea’s 427, the nationhosting the 2008 World Youth Day is vocation-poor (154th), as is NewZealand (144th).

Other Pacific Island cultures, however, havebeen remarkably succes

sful in producing candidates for the priesthood.Tonga (6th), the Cook Islands (7th), Tokelau (10th), Fiji (17th), theSolomon Islands (19th), Vanuatu (31st), American Samoa (35th), andSamoa (37th) are among the world’s most vocation-rich nations andterritories.

Emily MacGruder, a Catholic Peace Corps volunteerin Tonga’s capital of Nuku’alofa, offered CWR an American’s perspectiveon Catholic life in Tonga:

Thereason that the Church in Tonga has attracted so many seminarians hasmore to do with Tonga’s culture than anything else. Tonga is anincredibly Christian society in practice. On Sundays, the entirecountry shuts down except for the bread stores. Every family attends achurch each week, often multiple services.… Religious leaders here aregiven a great deal of respect and, to an extent, power. This is thereason I believe that the Catholic Church in Tonga has so manyseminarians.… Working for the Church is one of just a few ways to gainprestige in this society that still has a political and social systemwith kings and nobles.…

Thelarge majority of Tongans desire to get abroad. The priesthood is a wayto do that. All seminarians are sent to Fiji and many appear to havefurther opportunities to work or study abroad.… I hope that answerdoesn’t sound too cynical. It’s the way I see it here.… That said, allof the priests I’ve met in Tonga have struck me as extremely committed,discerning, curious, and intelligent. 

BillFalekaono, the Diocese of Tonga’s communications secretary, himself aformer seminarian, traces the growth in Tongan vocations to the 1970opening of a regional seminary in Fiji; previously, seminarians wereeducated in Australia or New Zealand. Falekaono also says that thecloseness between Tongan priests and laity has helped to fosterpriestly vocations. “Because there are more and more local priestsbeing ordained, people often know these young men, and they visit, andthe priest becomes an ordinary person—not isolated and [not] leftlonely in a presbytery,” Faledaono says. In addition, “people arewillingly and genuinely offering their sons and daughters to the workof the Church,” for families have “a sense of pride” when one of theirfamily members “serves in the life of priesthood or nunnery.”Materialistic motives cannot be discounted in some cases, he says; the“clergy lifestyle is an attractive one” in slow economic times.

LikeFalekaono, Bishop Stuart O’Connell, SM, of the Cook Islands’ capital ofRarotonga, attributes his diocese’s success in attracting seminariansto Catholic family life. “While every vocation is a gift of God,” hetold CWR, “I would see the foundation of wholesome familylife as being an important ingredient. The vocations in the CookIslands (both of priests and sisters) have come from families living onouter islands and atolls. In these smaller communities, family life iscentered around Church life and activity.… Unless a young person isgrounded in a strong faith, vocations will not come. I am filled withadmiration for the wonderful faith of many of these families who haveto struggle for everything they have. Yet challenges are a breedingground for strong faith.”

Similarly, Archbishop Adrian Smith,SM, of the Solomon Islands’ capital of Honiara, says that “many parentsseem happy that their sons want to be priests. The place of the priestis important in our village communities.… Families are large here inSolomon Islands, and so giving a son to the priesthood is moreacceptable.” Other factors, he believes, contribute to his nation’ssuccess in producing seminarians:

• “Having our seminary in Solomon Islands has made a difference; young men feel confident about giving it a try”;
• “People in Solomon Islands are a very spiritual people; God plays a big part in their lives”;
• “Atthe end of secondary education, there are not many job opportunitiesavailable to young people; searching for something to do with theirlives is very real to them”;
• “The Church is young inSolomon Islands, and there is a lot of excitement when a young man isordained—that must spark off ideas in the minds of other young men.”

Unlikemost of Pacific Island lands, the French territory of New Caledonia(170th) has faced particular difficulties in attracting seminarians.Father François Grossin, SM, a French missionary who serves as vicar ofthe cathedral of the Archdiocese of Nouméa, says that the decision toclose New Caledonia’s seminary when the regional seminary opened inFiji proved disastrous; while it eventually reopened, most seminariansare still sent to Fiji. Also harmful to priestly vocations was “theFrench 1968 cultural revolution and its side effects on the youth andalso on the young priests of New Caledonia,” a significant number ofwhom left the priesthood at that time, including the seminary’s lastdirector before its closing. Finally, the “nickel boom” of the 1970sbrought prosperity to the territory but transformed it into a“secularized and materialistic” society, says Father Grossin.

Ingeneral, though, Oceania—excepting Australia and New Zealand—is one ofthe world’s most vocation-rich areas. “Who can fathom the mind of God?”asks Archbishop Smith. “Perhaps, it being evening time for themissionaries, it is morning time for the local Church.”

URBIS ET ORBIS

D E C R E T U M

Dono Sacrarum Indulgentiarum ditantur peculiaria spiritalia incepta per Sacerdotalem Annum, in honorem Sancti Ioannis Mariae Vianney indictum, peragenda.

Instat dies qua centum et quinquaginta anni revoluti commemorabuntur a pio transitu in caelum Sancti Ioannis Mariae Vianney, Parochi oppidi Arsensis, qui fuit hic in terris mirum exemplar veri Pastoris facti servi gregis Christi.

Cum ergo eius exemplum natum sit excitare fideles, et praeprimis sacerdotes ad eius imitandas virtutes, Summus Pontifex Benedictus XVI censuit maxime convenire, hac occasione sumpta, ut a die XIX Iunii MMIX ad diem XIX Iunii MMX, peculiaris celebretur in tota Ecclesia Annus Sacerdotalis, quo durante meditationibus piis, aliis actionibus sacris et aliis opportunis inceptis, magis ac magis confirmentur sacerdotes in fidelitate erga Christum.

Quae quidem sacra periodus initium sumet in sollemnitate Sacr.mi Cordis Iesu, electa nimirum in diem sanctificationis sacerdotalis, cum Summus Pontifex vesperas celebrabit praesentibus sacris exuviis Sancti Ioannis Mariae Vianney ab Exc.mo Episcopo Bellicensi-Arsensi Romam allatis. Ipse Beatissimus Pater Annum Sacerdotalem concludet in foro petriano adstantibus ex toto orbe terrarum sacerdotibus, fidelitatem erga Christum et vinculum propriae fraternitatis renovantibus.

Sacerdotes igitur orationibus et bonis operibus a Summo et Aeterno Sacerdote Christo satagant obtinere ut Fide, Spe, Caritate aliisque virtutibus colluceant et consuetudine vitae exterioreque quoque habitu indicentur esse plene bono spiritali populi dediti; quod quidem cordi Ecclesiae maxime semper fuit.

Huic valde desiderato fini consequendo, apprime iuvabit donum Sacrarum Indulgentiarum, quod Apostolica Paenitentiaria, per praesens Decretum iuxta ipsius Augusti Pontificis mentem editum, durante Sacerdotali Anno benigne dilargitur:

A.- Sacerdotibus vere paenitentibus, qui quovis die saltem Laudes matutinas vel Vesperas coram Ss.mo Sacramento, sive publicae adorationi exposito sive in tabernaculo adservato, devote recitaverint et, prompto et generoso animo, celebrationi sacramentorum, praesertim Paenitentiae, exemplum Sancti Ioannis Mariae Vianney imitati, sese praebeant, plenaria misericorditer in Domino impertitur Indulgentia, quam etiam confratribus defunctis per modum suffragii applicare possint, si, iuxta normam iuris, praeterea sacramentalem confessionem instituerint, ad eucharisticum Convivium accesserint et ad mentem Summi Pontificis oraverint.

Sacerdotibus, insuper, partialis conceditur Indulgentia, etiam confratribus defunctis applicabilis, quoties ad vitam sancte ducendam et ad sacra munera, sibi commissa, sancte persolvenda, preces rite adprobatas devote recitaverint.

B.- Omnibus christifidelibus vere paenitentibus, qui in ecclesia aut oratorio, et divino Missae Sacrificio devote astiterint et pro Ecclesiae sacerdotibus obtulerint Iesu Christo, Summo et Aeterno Sacerdoti orationes et quaecumque opera bona illa die peracta ut ipsos sanctificet et faciat secundum Cor suum, plenaria conceditur Indulgentia, dummodo peccata sua sacramentali paenitentia expiaverint et ad mentem Summi Pontificis preces fuderint: diebus, quibus aperietur et claudetur Annus Sacerdotalis, die CL anniversario pii transitus Sancti Ioannis Mariae Vianney, prima feria quinta cuiuslibet mensis aliisve quibusdam diebus a locorum Ordinariis pro fidelium utilitate determinandis.

Summe convenit ut, in cathedralibus atque paroecialibus templis, sacerdotes, cura pastorali fungentes, haec pietatis exercitia publice dirigant, Sanctam Missam celebrent fideliumque confessiones excipiant.

Senibus, infirmis, omnibusque qui legitima causa domo exire nequeunt, concepta detestatione cuiusque peccati et intentione praestandi, ubi primum licuerit, tres consuetas condiciones, in propria domo seu ubi impedimentum eos detinet, plenaria pariter conceditur indulgentia, si diebus supra signatis, preces pro sacerdotum sanctificatione recitaverint et aegritudines vel incommoda propriae vitae Deo per Mariam, Reginam Apostolorum, fiducialiter obtulerint.

Omnibus fidelibus, denique, partialis conceditur Indulgentia, quoties ad sacerdotum conservationem in puritate et sanctitate vitae impetrandam, quinquies Pater, Ave et Gloria in honorem Sacr.mi Cordis Iesu devote recitaverint vel aliam ad hoc approbatam precem.

Praesenti durante Anno Sacerdotali valituro. Quibuscumque in contrarium facientibus non obstantibus.

Datum Romae, ex aedibus Paenitentiariae Apostolicae, die XXV mensis Aprilis, in festo S. Marci, Ev., anno Dominicae Incarnationis MMIX.

Iacobus Franciscus S. R .E. Card. Stafford

Paenitentiarius Maior

† Ioannes Franciscus Girotti, O. F. M. Conv.

Ep. Tit. Metensis, Regens

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The Vatican has decreed a plenary indulgence for the Year of Priests, which will begin on June 19, 2009: the feast of the Sacred Heart. In a decree made public on May 12, and signed by Cardinal James Stafford, the head of the Apostolic Penitentiary, the Vatican announced that the plenary indulgence will be available to all priests and faithful Catholics under the usual conditions. The decree stated that the indulgence will be granted to:

(A) All truly penitent priests who, on any day, devotedly pray Lauds or Vespers before the Blessed Sacrament exposed to public adoration or in the tabernacle, and ... offer themselves with a ready and generous heart for the celebration of the Sacraments, especially the Sacrament of Penance, will be granted Plenary Indulgence, which they can also apply to their deceased confreres, if in accordance with current norms they take Sacramental Confession and the Eucharist and pray in accordance with the intentions of the Supreme Pontiff. Priests are furthermore granted Partial Indulgence, also applicable to deceased confreres, every time they devotedly recite the prayers duly approved to lead a saintly life and to carry out the duties entrusted to them.

(B) All truly penitent Christian faithful who, in church or oratory, devotedly attend Holy Mass and offer prayers to Jesus Christ, supreme and eternal Priest, for the priests of the Church, or perform any good work to sanctify and mould them to His Heart, are granted Plenary Indulgence, on the condition that they have expiated their sins through Sacramental Confession and prayed in accordance with the intentions of the Supreme Pontiff. This may be done on the opening and closing days of the Year of Priests, on the 150th anniversary of the death of St. Jean Marie Vianney, on the first Thursday of the month, or on any other day established by the ordinaries of particular places for the good of the faithful.

The elderly, the sick and all those who for any legitimate reason are unable to leave their homes, may still obtain Plenary Indulgence if, with the soul completely removed from attachment to any form of sin and with the intention of observing, as soon as they can, the usual three conditions, "on the days concerned, they pray for the sanctification of priests and offer their sickness and suffering to God through Mary, Queen of the Apostles."

Partial Indulgence is offered to all faithful each time they pray five Our Father, Ave Maria and Gloria Patri, or any other duly approved prayer "in honor of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, to ask that priests maintain purity and sanctity of life."

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Reviewers at the Vatican's newspaper have passedjudgment on "Angels & Demons," finding the religious thrillercommercial and inaccurate, but concluding it is "harmless"entertainment and not a danger to the church.

L'OsservatoreRomano ran a review and an editorial in Wednesday's edition, critiquingthe movie based on the Dan Brown best-selling novel of the same name.

"Angels& Demons" had its world premiere Monday in Rome, after director RonHoward charged that the Vatican interfered with getting film permits toshoot scenes in the city — a contention the Vatican said was apublicity stunt.

The newspaper wrote that the movie was "agigantic and smart commercial operation" filled with "stereotypedcharacters." The paper suggested moviegoers could make a game out offinding the many historical inaccuracies in the plot.

However,L'Osservatore praised Howard's "dynamic direction" and the"magnificent" reconstruction of locations like St. Peter's Basilica andthe Sistine Chapel. Much of the film was shot on sets thatpainstakingly recreated church landmarks.

The film offers "morethan two hours of harmless entertainment, which hardly affects thegenius and mystery of Christianity," L'Osservatore's reviewer wrote.It's "a videogame that first of all sparks curiosity and is also,maybe, a bit of fun."

"Angels & Demons" features Harvardsymbologist Robert Langdon of "The Da Vinci Code" fame, played by TomHanks. In the film, the Vatican turns to Langdon after an ancientsecret brotherhood called the Illuminati kidnap four cardinalsconsidered front-runners to be the next pope, and threaten to kill onean hour and then explode a bomb at the Vatican.

On Sunday, Howardsaid the Vatican had interfered with his efforts to get permits toshoot some scenes. A Vatican spokesman said the statement was designedpurely to drum up publicity for the film.

Top church officialsstrongly objected to "The Da Vinci Code" because it was based on theidea that Jesus married and fathered children and depicted theconservative Catholic movement, Opus Dei, as a murderous cult.

Cardinal John Newman poised for beatification...

The Vatican has cleared the way for the beatification of John Henry Newman, the English Roman Catholic Cardinal.

By Simon Caldwell

A panel of theological consultors agreed unanimously that the inexplicable healing of an American man who was "bent double" by a severe spinal disorder came as a result of praying to Newman for a miracle, according to sources. Their decision was the final hurdle before Pope Benedict XVI can declare him "Blessed".

The Pope, who is known to be keen to make Newman a saint and who asks about the progress of his cause on a regular basis, was informed of the panel's decision straight away.

The vote means that the Pope can now beatify Newman at a date of his choosing. A second miracle will be required before Newman can be declared a saint.

The move was welcomed by Oxford University theologian Father Ian Ker, the author of the definitive biography of Cardinal Newman.

Father Ker said: "Newman was definitely a saint and he was a very English saint. He had a great sense of humour like St Thomas More.

"He also had a great gift for friendship which has been lost in the modern age." The priest said Newman was a significant figure to Catholics worldwide because he pre-empted the reforms of the Second Vatican Council of the 1960s that modernised the Church.

Father Ker added: "As soon as he is canonised he will definitely be made a theological "doctor of the Church" and he will be seen as a doctor of this period we are living in.

"He would thoroughly agree with Pope John Paul II's and Benedict's understanding of the reforms of the council. While Newman was open to new ideas he was extremely loyal to the authority and the tradition of the Church."

A formal announcement by the Vatican on Newman's beatification is expected within the next two months.

He could be beatified as early as the autumn but it is more likely to go ahead next year.

When Gordon Brown visited the Vatican in February he invited Pope Benedict to Britain to perform the ceremony in person, possibly at Wembley Stadium.

But there have also been suggestions that the beatification should take place in St Peter's Square, Rome, because of Newman's international significance as a modern theologian.

The breakthrough concludes the work of the theological consultors who spent six months examining doctrinal issues surrounding the healing of Jack Sullivan, 69, a deacon from Marshfield, Massachusetts.

A panel of medical experts had earlier concluded there was no scientific explanation for the healing.

All that remains for the beatification to go ahead is the miracle to be rubber-stamped by the cardinals of the Vatican's Congregation for the Causes of Sainthood and the Pope's signature.

Benedict XVI has been an admirer of the writings of Cardinal Newman since the 1940s, especially his "theology of conscience".

He learned about this from a German scholar called Theodor Haecker, who translated Newman's works from English into German, and who was close to the White Rose, a German resistance movement in the Second World War.

It was revealed last month that German academics have discovered that Newman's writings on conscience were a key inspiration of the White Rose – in particular of Sophie Scholl, a student beheaded in 1943 at the age of 21 for distributing leaflets urging students at Munich University to rise up against "Nazi terror".

Newman was born in the City of London in 1801. He became a Church of England vicar and led the "Oxford movement" in the 1830s to draw Anglicans to their Catholic roots.

He converted to the Catholic faith at the age of 44 after a succession of clashes with Anglican bishops made him a virtual outcast from the Church of England.

He continually clashed with both Anglicans angry about his conversion and Catholics who suspected him of being "half-Protestant" but his brilliant mind combined with his care for the poor won him his cardinal's red hat from Pope Leo XIII in 1879.

He died in his room at Oratory House, Birmingham, at the age of 89 years and more than 15,000 lined the streets for his funeral a week later. His cause for sainthood was opened in 1958.

Last October undertakers attempted to exhume his body from a grave in Rednal, Worcestershire, but found that it had completely decomposed.

If Newman's cause progresses swiftly he could become the first English saint since 1970 when Pope Paul VI canonised 40 martyrs of the Protestant Reformation.

The last British saint was St John Ogilvie, a Scottish Jesuit martyr, canonised by Pope Paul VI in 1976.

From Lifesite News:  SADLY THIS IS NOT A HOAX...

My comments in bold maroon type...

From the website of the Archdiocese of Westminster

His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI has today appointed the Most Reverend Vincent Nichols, who has been Archbishop of Birmingham since March 2000, as the next Archbishop of Westminster. Pope Benedict XVI has accepted the resignation of Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O?Connor as Archbishop of Westminster. The Cardinal will now become the Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Westminster until Archbishop Nichols is installed at Westminster Cathedral on Thursday, 21 May 2009.

Archbishop Vincent Nichols said: ?As the Cardinal so graciously says, it is for me something of a return. I spent 16 very happy years here in Westminster, eight of them as General Secretary of the Bishops? Conference and eight of them as an Auxiliary Bishop to Cardinal Hume in North London. I learnt a great deal from him, not least about the demands of the office of the Archbishop of Westminster and I am daunted by the task that lies ahead.? ?It?s sad departing from the Diocese of Birmingham which I have learnt to appreciate, cherish and love. I will miss the priests and the people of Birmingham very much indeed.?

?I would like to thank Cardinal Cormac, who has been an outstanding Archbishop of Westminster. He knows what it?s like to live through really hard times and he has come through them with great dignity and strength. He has been an outstanding public leader of the Catholic community in this country today and I know I speak for many when I express our steadfast admiration and thanks to him for all that he has done.?

?I feel a real need to acknowledge my openness to and dependence on God above all else. But in this I am not unique. Everyone who seeks to follow the ways of God learns to depend on the truth, love and compassion of God more than on their own strength. I know that as I prepare to take on this new office in the Church many people will pray to the Lord that I will be strengthened for this task ? and that is what I definitely need.?

?We often hear of the challenges facing our country in finding cohesion in the face of great diversity. Our churches are places where people are from a wide variety of different racial, ethnic and cultural backgrounds. They come together, work together and contribute together to the wider good of our society. The Church in this country has a great deal to offer and I hope to do my best to contribute to that project in this new role.?

Police arrest underground Zhengding bishop Jia Zhiguo
by Bernardo Cervellera

He was taken from his home by 5 police officers. For weeks, he had been under surveillance 24 hours a day, to prevent him from meeting with the official bishop, with whom he had reconciled on instructions from the Vatican. A blow to the Holy See's strategy of unifying the Chinese Church, while the meeting of the Plenary Commission on the Church in China continues at the Vatican. Bishop Jia Zhiguo was also taunted by the police.

Rome (AsiaNews) - Bishop Julius Jia Zhiguo, the underground bishop of Zhengding (Hebei), was arrested yesterday by police and taken away to an undisclosed location. The arrest took place in conjunction with the meeting at the Vatican of the Plenary Commission on the Church in China.

Birretta Tip to Fr Ray Blake

By Father Paul A. Duffner, O.P.

On the front cover of TIME magazine, April 8, 1966, there appeared in large bold type three words: "Is God Dead?" The question referred, among other things, to the apparent lack of any impact that religion seemed to have on the lives of so many people today.

Has this season made any difference in your mode of living? With all the mitigation of the Lenten mortifications in recent years, and the apparent lack of impact on the lives of so many Catholics, one might be tempted to ask: "Is Lent Dead?"

Many of us can remember the time when Lent was truly a time set aside for mortification: when we tried to cut down on the sweets, the smokes, the drinks, the movies, etc. And before the advent of television, giving up the movies was for some no small sacrifice. Has this former concept of mortification and penance become outdated?

It is not Lent with its mortification that is outdated or dead, it is man’s sense of the need of it that has been deadened. The constant bombardment of a materialistic and worldly viewpoint - through the TV, the movies, the newspapers and magazines, the schools, etc. has done much to confuse and obscure the minds of Catholics, so that the moral conscience of many has been clouded. As Pope John Paul II declared in his Apostolic Exhortation on Penance and Reconciliation (4), "when the conscience has been weakened the sense of God is also obscured, and as a result . . . the sense of sin is lost." And where there is lost the abiding conviction that we are sinners, there is lost the sense of the need of mortification. Let us examine briefly how this subtle deadening of our sense of sin and of the need of mortification can come about.

THE SPIRIT OF THE WORLD

St. John wrote in his first Epistle (2:25), "love not the world, nor the things of which are in the world. If any man love the world, the charity of the Father is not in him." What is this "world" which we are forbidden to love?

The first book of the Bible tells us that the world and all the goods it contains are God’s creatures, and that everything God made is good. So the fault lies not in the world, but in man, who because of his wounded nature easily becomes overly attached to the world’s goods and pleasures, and seeks them excessively. The world need not be an obstacle to sanctity. Many saints lived in it, came in contact with its allurements, but through a life of prayer and self-discipline, remained detached from its attractions. They lived "in the world," but were not of the world. They were not contaminated by the spirit of the world, because they were so filled with the spirit of Christ. These two things are mutually exclusive of each other, so that the more one grows in the heart of man, the more the other is excluded.

Each of us, as the result of the three-fold concupiscence of our fallen nature (avarice, lust, pride), has deeply rooted in him the "seeds of worldliness." In the measure that these seeds and inclinations grow and dominate us, in that measure they block the growth of grace; while on the contrary, as grace grows, this deep inclination to seek excessively the world’s pleasures is gradually diminished.

We must be aware of the battle that is necessary to insure this growth. As we have already stated, as one comes under the influence of the "world" with its false maxims and attractions, his spiritual perception tends to be dulled. If there is not a constant struggle to live our life according to the spirit of Christ, it is being shaped by an environment that is hostile to Christ. Living in a materialistic culture, and constantly being bombarded with its ideas, unless there is a conscious effort to seek the guiding norms of the Gospel, we slowly and imperceptibly tend to accept the world’s evaluation of things.

THE NEED OF SELF-DISCIPLINE

That the world contains many attractions that are in themselves sinful (if deliberately sought) few will deny. But these are not the main snares that most of us have to guard against. For many persons, the main stumbling blocks are things which are in themselves lawful (hence so easy to justify), but which are so attractive and satisfying that it is difficult to seek them in moderation.

A few examples will clarify what we mean: There is nothing wrong with enjoying food, but how easy it is to over-eat. It is not wrong to drink an alcoholic beverage, but how many get themselves in trouble because of the lack of moderation. It is not wrong to watch television - it can be very educational and wholesomely entertaining, - but because of the general content of a good portion of its programs, and of its ability to captivate the mind and monopolize our time, and because of its accessibility, it can and does pose some real problems. It is not wrong to play cards, even with a little money on the table; but how easy it is to get involved over one’s head. There is nothing wrong with wanting nice clothes, or enjoying nice things of various sorts; but how easy it is to be extravagant with the resources that God has entrusted to our care, and unmindful of others in want, etc. As St. Paul warns, there are many things that are lawful, but which are not expedient. (I Cor. 10:22)

WE CAN’T SERVE BOTH GOD AND MAMMON

It should be clear then, that a good portion of the excesses for which people will have to answer to God. involve things that are good in themselves, but which through lack of self-discipline and moderation, were sought excessively. The more satisfying a good thing is, the more difficult it is to use or seek it with moderation; and therefore the greater the need of occasional self-denial.

As we know from our own experience, our mind cannot fully attend to two things at the same time. In the measure that our attention is absorbed by one thing, to that extent it is incapable of giving full attention to something else. In a similar way, our heart cannot fully cling to two diverse things at the same time. In the measure that man’s heart is held captive by created goods (lawful though they may be), in that measure he is incapable of serving and giving his heart to the Creator of those goods, that is, of "loving God with our whole heart, our whole soul, our whole mind," as we have been commanded to do. (Mt. 22:37) We cannot serve both God and mammon. (Mt. 6:24)

As Fr. Van Zeller puts it, "it isn’t strictly the extent to which a man is in water that cause’s drowning; it is the extent to which water is in him." So it is not how much a person (through the duties of his life) is surrounded by the distractions and allurements of the world that causes his downfall, but how much these dominate his heart.

THE FULL MEANING OF PENANCE:

The notion that many persons have of penance is quite superficial, extending merely to acts of self-denial. These are part of Christian penance, but the true notion of that virtue must go deeper than that.

Pope John Paul II, in his "Apostolic Exhortation on Reconciliation and Penance" pointed out that the concept of penance is complex, for it involves an inner change of heart, and an exterior "changing of one’s life in harmony with the change of heart." (4)

The INTERIOR ASPECT has to do with sorrow for sin, and with a firm resolve to amend one’s life and offer satisfaction for the sins committed; the EXTERIOR ASPECT has to do with the self-denial, the good works, the sacrifices - made in correcting one’s faults and in expiation for them, and seen as a necessary means of overcoming the selfish tendencies that lead us to sin. The need of this exterior discipline is clear if we recall the weakness of human nature due to original sin, for "the flesh lusts against the spirit, and the spirit against me flesh; the two are directly opposed." (Gal. 5:17) As Pope John Paul II explained:

"Doing penance is something authentic and effective only if it is translated into deeds and acts of penance. In this sense penance means, in the Christian theological and spiritual vocabulary, asceticism, that is to say, the concrete daily effort of a person, supported by grace, to lose his or her own life for Christ as the only means of gaining it (Mt. 16:25) . . . an effort to overcome in oneself what is of the flesh in order that what is spiritual may prevail; a continual effort to rise from the things of here below to the things where Christ is (Col. 3:1). Penance is therefore a conversion that passes from the heart to deeds and then to the Christian’s whole life." (ibid.)

This is in accord with the notion of penance the Mother of God asked of the three young children at Fatima. As Sr. Lucia explained, the penance our Lady asked includes not only individual personal sacrifices and self denial, but also and especially the sacrifices and effort involved in keeping God’s commandments, and in fulfilling the God-given duties of one’s state in life.

POPE JOHN XXIII AND PENANCE

After Pope John XXIII issued his Apostolic Constitution "Paenitentiam Agere," officially proclaiming the second Ecumenical Vatican Council, he urged the faithful to make a worthy spiritual preparation for that great event by means of"prayer . . . and voluntary mortification." (2)

Pope John stressed both the interior and the exterior aspects of penance mentioned above. Speaking of interior repentance, he said:

"Our first need is for internal repentance; the detestation of sin, and the determination to make amends for it. This is the repentance shown by those who make a good Confession, take part in the Eucharistic Sacrifice and receive Holy Communion. The faithful should be specially encouraged to do this . . . for external acts of penance are quite obviously useless unless accompanied by a clear conscience and the detestation of sin . . ." (28).

As to outward acts of penance, the Holy Father continued:

"But the faithful must also be encouraged to do outward acts of penance, both to keep their bodies under the strict control of reason and faith, and to make amends for their own and other people’s sins. St. Paul was caught up to the third heaven - he reached to summit of holiness - and yet he had no hesitation in saying of himself: 'I chastise my body and bring it into subjection. . .' (29).

". . . External penance includes particularly the acceptance from God in a spirit of resignation and trust all of life’s sorrows and hardships, and of everything that involves inconvenience and annoyance in the conscientious performance of the obligations of our daily life and work and the practice of Christian virtue . . . (30).

". . . But besides bearing in a Christian spirit the inescapable annoyances and sufferings of this life, the faithful ought also to take the initiative in doing voluntary acts of penance and offering them to God . . ." (31).

THE CONFLICT WITHIN MAN

There is within every Christian, then, a battle between two opposing forces for the domination of his heart. Within him are the roots of worldliness - rooted in his fallen nature, which make him inclined to accept the MAXIMS OF THE WORLD, which unduly exalt pleasure, comfort, riches, independence, renown, power, etc., and to fix his heart on them to the neglect of God and the detriment of his soul. There is also in him the grace of Christ, which brings with it at least a minimum of knowledge and acceptance of the MAXIMS OF CHRIST - in direct opposition to those of the world. Unfortunately, man possesses these divine gifts imperfectly, and understands them obscurely. The grace of baptism, which brings a sharing in the life of Christ, does not suppress the roots of worldliness, yet it goes give the power to struggle against them. Hence the conflict within us between the spirit of the world and the spirit of Christ.

How difficult is victory in this battle we all know; yet there is room for perfect confidence that the grace of Christ will win out, if we but do what we can, namely: 1) bring self-discipline to bear on the obvious points of weakness, and 2) make frequent and fervent use of the means of grace, especially prayer, the sacraments, and works of mercy. These means of grace are as indispensable as the self-discipline, for triumph over worldliness and the weaknesses of the flesh will never be accomplished alone. It will be accomplished in the measure that we grow in grace, for in that measure we will share in the strength and triumph of Him who said: "Take courage, I have overcome the world." (Jn. 16:33)

One rule for one, and one for another.... by Fr Ross Northing SSC

Being incredibly busy of late has not given me much time to engage in blogging, which perhaps is no bad thing. However, there have been many matters in the news that I felt a blog coming on about - not least the antics of the sex-craved media types and male politico's who think that condoms are the answer to every sexually transmitted disease.

The approach taken by such people seems to be to be totally disingenuous for a number of reasons. Firstly, they seem to use this as a reason to blame the Holy Father for the deaths of countless people in Africa through HIV and Aids - this is a poor argument as countless men refuse to use them anyway and so abstinence has to be advised in such a situation. This is barely disguised anti-Roman Catholic sentiment, and a cheap-shot to boot, which takes little account of nuanced arguments put forward by the Holy See.

A Government Minister (can't remember whether he was in the Cabinet or not) claimed some few weeks ago on BBC Television news that "everyone has a right to a fulfilling sexual life" REALLY? A RIGHT? How do such ignorant people get into positions of power and influence. Any sexual relationship is a gift, not a right - would that "minister" care to say what he said to the poor victims of rape? "Everyone?" - including paedophiles?

I sometimes think that we are led by men who are using the force of law to enable themselves to legitimise any form of sexual behaviour that they wish to indulge in - and what surprises me even more is that in an age when women's rights have, we are told, been advanced we see women being compliant in allowing men, to use women for their own gratification with very little consequence. It seems that condoms are OK for people in Africa, but ladies in this country don't have to worry as they can always have an abortion, thus making sure the male gets heightened pleasure and at the same time doesn't have to worry about the consequences. Oh yes, we recommend condoms to prevent the spread of sexually transmitted diseases in this land, but it really does seem that the original intention of them, i.e. birth control has been replaced by treating abortion as the main form of preventing the birth of a child.

On the one hand the Government seeks to promote the use of condoms and on the other encourages high-risk sexual behaviour at ever younger ages. How long before we see a move to lowering the age of consent to 14 as in some European nations? Already, the age of consent is 15 in Poland, 14 in Portugal and 13 (with some restrictions) in Spain - and there are those who advocate such moves in this land too. If we go down this route then we run the risk of pandering to the base desires of those men who seek to use others for their gratification rather than seeing sexual relationships as a gift from God best expressed in the Sacrament of Marriage, where commitment and the promise of fidelity bring safety and assurance to both man and woman.

Who is wiser - the man who says use a condom and have as many partners as you like, or the man who says abstain until you are married to the man or woman that you love? Politicians may argue that human nature tends towards multiple partners, but in previous ages we asked men to reign in their baser instincts and to respect women, and we taught women not to be fooled by predatory men. Have we really progressed? I think not.