Traditiones Custodes is less about Liturgy and more about Legacy

Yesterday I happened upon a social media post from the great lay theologian, Catholic thinker, and Catholic Work Farm manager Dr. Larry Chapp. Dr. Chapp-who, like many of us, has lamented the promulgation of Traditiones Custodes-linked to an article in which I found the larger conclusions somewhat troubling, but nevertheless true. The article is by Shaun Blanchard in Church Life Journal, which is the premiere ecclesiastical publication of the University of Notre Dame. 

I'm not going to rehash Blanchard's article, but in order to understand the context of this post, readers really do need to click on the article as linked in the text and read it. Blanchard is correct that there is a group within the Church that is reacting to Traditiones Custodes with very uncharitable glee, even celebration. However, the rest of the people who really care about this issue are reacting in three other ways. Some very good liturgists and theologians see the Motu proprio as a matter of unfortunate necessity. A great many practicing Catholics find themselves in the place where I am, which is the posture of "mourn and move on" as Blanchard puts it, especially those of us who are priests and deacons. We don't have to like this Motu proprio and we can believe that it is a very big mistake (I believe it is a historical example of a Papal heavy hand being used to deal with a relatively small problem where the universal Church is concerned, which has happened before), but we are duty bound to obey. This is especially true since we understand that the Pope has ultimate authority over the Church's liturgy. For many observant and practicing Catholics, finding a way to deal with the new situation in light of Traditiones Custodes is something that they understand that they have very little choice but to do, especially when we consider that many Bishops are making (often generous) provisions for those in their dioceses attached to the Tridentine Mass. The fourth posture Blanchard says that we often see now in response to Traditiones Custodes is "refuse and resist." This is most often the posture that we find in many places on Catholic Social Media today, and those who take this posture don't do anything but confirm those who support Traditiones Custodes in the idea that the Holy Father was correct to issue it.

Traditiones Custodes is only about liturgy on the surface, as Blanchard points out in his article, and it's certainly not about Latin. What Traditiones Custodes is really about is the power of the Pope to control the narrative and the legacy of the Second Vatican Council, and every post-conciliar Pope since St. Paul VI has been preoccupied with affirming the Second Vatican Council and controlling the narrative surrounding it. That is not unusual historically, it tends to happen for decades and even centuries after all ecumenical councils, and controlling the narrative and legacy is exactly what Pope Francis is attempting to do.

I also think that it's unfortunate that the analysis of where the camps are is largely correct (and mind you, I think the world of Raymond Cardinal Burke, and he's one of the best canon lawyers if not the best canon lawyer in the Church today. I cannot help but note, however, that in his argument that the Holy Father doesn't have the authority to issue Traditiones Custodes, which I have read, I do not recall one single instance where he actually quotes previous canon law or liturgical law to prove his argument. I can only conclude that this is because canon law does not support his argument and he believes that this is deeper than a canonical argument, he thinks that it is a moral one.)
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I would like to believe Cardinal Burke's argument myself, but I understand that the Pope is the chief liturgist in the Church, especially in the Latin Rite. There is no question that he had the authority to do what he did (CIC 331-333), even if I believe that it was a very dangerous act where unity is concerned.
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There is also the reality that this is largely a First World Problem, with the majority of parishes offering the Tridentine Mass existing in five countries (the United States, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, France, and Germany). When one adds in the parishes that offer the Usus Antiquior in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Ireland, one sees that the matter of the Usus Antiquior, while not exclusively confined to the First World, is dominated by it, and within the First World is largely dominated by the Anglosphere. As Blanchard cites, 40% of all parishes which offer the Usus Antiquior are located in one country, the United States, which only has about 4% of the world's Catholics. The Usus Antiquior is going to become even more of a First World issue as we see Traditiones Custodes implemented. There are large swathes of the world where the Tridentine Mass is largely unknown, as Shaun Blanchard hints at. I don't think that reality has ever helped advocates of the Old Rite, especially as practical power in the Church is increasingly moving away from the First World. The reality is that the Catholic faith on a worldwide level is the faith of the Third World, and in many of those places the allowances of Summorum Pontificum have never been at the top of the Church's priority list.
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I will say that I don't think that the Usus Antiquior is going away, and I believe that it will continue to grow in the Developed World. I do not think that Traditiones Custodes is going to kill it, despite the intentions to do so, and it will likely continue to grow in the places where it is already more available. I don't think the Tridentine Mass is going away... But I also don't think that it's going to expand far beyond the parts of the world where it already is more widely available.
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I suspect that a future Pope will loosen many of the restrictions in Traditiones Custodes, but we will likely never return to the days of Summorum Pontificum.

An excellent sermon delivered during the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass in the Usus Antiquior by Father David Carter, Pastor of the Basilica of Sts. Peter and Paul in Chattanooga, Tennessee. This was delivered the Sunday following the release of Traditiones Custodes.

The thing that the Holy Father gets very right.

Nearly all of the talk in the world of Catholic social media and Catholic discussion over the last week has centered around the latest Apostolic Letter issued Motu proprio by Pope Francis. That letter, Traditiones Custodes, effectively reverses the provisions of the Apostolic Letter Summorum Pontificum issued by his predecessor Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI. Francis places restrictions on the celebration of the Tridentine Mass which many people believe border on the draconian, and which some commentators believe are designed to eventually eradicate the old Latin Mass from the face of the Earth. Reading the Motu proprio, it is very easy to see why some people would get that impression.

Lots of people have engaged in personal commentary on this document, but I have refrained from posting about it until now, partly so that I could read some educated commentary about it, rather than merely the impassioned views of a few from Facebook and Twitter. I also refrained because I have no desire to appear in any way to disparage or disrespect the Holy Father, I wanted to reserve what comment I do have on this until my own passions could subside enough that I could speak with both clarity and charity. The reality is that some people who fancy themselves to be traditional Catholics have spent an awful lot of time since 2013 saying many bad things about our current Pope in public forums, and in this day and age when even the Vatican monitors social media, that reality is likely one of the things that has brought us to this present situation.

It doesn't matter whether you disagree with the Holy Father on this thing or that. It's not going to change the fact that he is the Pope and he has the authority of the Pope. I have increasingly learned that when it comes to the Church it does me little good to worry about the things that are out of my control, but does much spiritual good to concern myself with the things which are in my control.

As for my personal opinion of Traditiones Custodes, I dearly wish that the Holy Father had not issued it, and I pray that he would reconsider some of its harsher provisions. I share the concern of good men of God like Monsignor Charles Pope that this document is taking into consideration the words and views of extremists (many to be found on social media), but that the overwhelming majority of people who attend Mass in the Extraordinary Form are there for the right reasons and they need spiritual care. Perhaps the most harsh provision of Traditiones Custodes is that when the Mass of Trent is celebrated, the Holy Father does not want it to take place in ordinary parish churches. It can take place in chapels and oratories and parishes specifically designated for that purpose, such as parishes staffed by the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter (FSSP) or The Institute of Christ The King Sovereign Priest (ICKSP). 

However, those places make up a very small percentage of places where the old Latin Mass is celebrated. Most places where it is celebrated are ordinary diocesan parishes, and it is offered by everyday diocesan priests. That is why in the Diocese of Knoxville, Bishop Richard Stika has invoked Canon 87 Sec. 1 of the Code of Canon Law in our diocese and dispensed from this requirement, at least temporarily, the priests and the faithful of this diocese. What this means is that the schedule of Latin Masses will continue as normal in East Tennessee for the time being. It is almost certain that there will be some changes to that at some point in the future, but I am equally as certain that the celebration of the Extraordinary Form will not go away in the Diocese of Knoxville.

It would be easy for us to spend time lamenting that the Holy Father has issued Traditiones Custodes, but he has done so and he is the Vicar of Christ. Hence, we are obligated as best we can to give heed to what he has told us, and the clergy are obligated to act in obedience as best we possibly can. In such a time as this, we can also be reminded that "all things work together for good to those who love God and are called according to his purpose..." (cf. Romans 8:28). One way that we can see that all things work together for good is that the Holy Father at least seems to see one of the major reasons why people are initially drawn to the Tridentine Mass, liturgical innovation which can lead to banality in our worship, and even liturgical abuse. In the introductory letter which accompanies Traditiones Custodes, the Holy Father writes:

"At the same time, I am saddened by abuses in the celebration of the liturgy on all sides. In common with Benedict XVI, I deplore the fact that 'in many places the prescriptions of the new Missal are not observed in celebration, but indeed come to be interpreted as an authorization for or even a requirement of creativity, which leads to almost unbearable distortions.'"

This passage means that, at the very least, Pope Francis understands one of the most critical realities that has driven many people- especially younger people - into the embrace of local Latin Mass communities is the reality that in many parishes today, there is a whole lot of liturgical innovation going on, much of it in the name of trying to make the Mass somehow more appealing or participatory than the rubrics, the texts, or the Church documents themselves do. When this is done, what ends up happening instead is that the Liturgy can become a kind of personal entertainment, whether that is the intent or not. What's more, in some cases if people actually bring up this problem they are told that the Second Vatican Council authorized a lot of this innovation. The Council authorized texts and liturgical activity in the vernacular, it didn't authorize people to turn the Liturgy into some form of contemporary schtick. 

If the end result of Traditiones Custodes is that the Missal of St. Paul VI as modified by St. John Paul II (and released in the English speaking world at Advent of 2011) becomes in fact as well as in law "the unique expression of the lex orandi of the Roman Rite," (Traditiones Custodes Art. 1) then we should revisit afresh the ultimate liturgical document which governs this rite, Sacrosanctum Concilium, the Second Vatican Council's Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy. SC 36 tells us that:

36. 1. Particular law remaining in force, the use of the Latin language is to be preserved in the Latin rites.

2. But since the use of the mother tongue, whether in the Mass, the administration of the sacraments, or other parts of the liturgy, frequently may be of great advantage to the people, the limits of its employment may be extended. This will apply in the first place to the readings and directives, and to some of the prayers and chants, according to the regulations on this matter to be laid down separately in subsequent chapters.

3. These norms being observed, it is for the competent territorial ecclesiastical authority mentioned in Art. 22, 2, to decide whether, and to what extent, the vernacular language is to be used; their decrees are to be approved, that is, confirmed, by the Apostolic See. And, whenever it seems to be called for, this authority is to consult with bishops of neighboring regions which have the same language.

4. Translations from the Latin text into the mother tongue intended for use in the liturgy must be approved by the competent territorial ecclesiastical authority mentioned above.

In other words, yes the liturgical texts may be translated into the vernacular language and used, but this doesn't do away with the Church's patrimony of Latin. We in the Western Church are part of the Latin Rite. Parts (or even conceivably all) of a Mass in the Rite of St. Paul VI could be said or sung in Latin. Realistically, the parts most likely to be in Latin would likely be major chants such as the Sanctus, the Agnus Dei, and perhaps even the Gloria, especially for major feast days. Related to this is what Sacrosanctum Concilium said with regard to the use of Gregorian chant:

116. The Church acknowledges Gregorian chant as specially suited to the Roman liturgy: therefore, other things being equal, it should be given pride of place in liturgical services.

But other kinds of sacred music, especially polyphony, are by no means excluded from liturgical celebrations, so long as they accord with the spirit of the liturgical action, as laid down in Art. 30.

Gregorian chant should be given pride of place in our liturgy? In many parishes today, you wouldn't even know that the document said this, you'll be hard-pressed to find chant in many places, even though there are beautiful anglicized versions of Psalmody and musical chants in the Gregorian style for the Mass. Yes, they can be had, some parishes use them. Many do not. 

The section I mentioned above mentions Article 30. That article talks about the full and conscious and active participation of the people, but what exactly does it say?

30. To promote active participation, the people should be encouraged to take part by means of acclamations, responses, psalmody, antiphons, and songs, as well as by actions, gestures, and bodily attitudes. And at the proper times all should observe a reverent silence. [Emphasis mine]

Many of our parishes in the Diocese of Knoxville clearly get this part of the message of Sacrosanctum Concilium. If you come before Mass you can find the naves of many of our parishes observing an appropriate level of silence. However, I have visited many parishes over the years in many places in various States and localities, and there are plenty of parishes where the period immediately before and immediately after the liturgy becomes Social Hour in the presence of the Tabernacle. I have written about this particular problem before. I'm a big believer in parish fellowship and in the communio of brothers and sisters in the Lord Jesus. But the nave of a church and the area near the sanctuary is not a place of conversation, God's House is a House of prayer. Most Parish grounds have plenty of places where people can go to carry on fellowship, conversation, and enjoyment of each other in the Lord. We should make better use of those places more often.

Many people have made their way to the Latin Mass because they are desperately looking for the reverence and awe in the worship of a Holy God that they should be able to find at their parish of residence. Sadly, I have known priests over the years who have faced great persecution from parishioners and even people in authority for attempting to do nothing more than the things that Sacrosanctum Concilium encourages us to do in our worship.

The Church has the liturgical and musical heritage to be able to give parishioners who have become attached to the Latin Mass-and to all of God's people-the reverence and awe of worshiping the Thrice Holy God within the Ordinary Form of the Mass itself. Nowhere in the documents of the Second Vatican Council is it even suggested that traditional behavior such as sacred silence in the presence of the Tabernacle, Communion rails, kneeling, chalice palls or chalice veils, fine vessels for the elements of the Eucharist, Sanctus bells, or Gregorian chant should be done away with. Some of the things on that list are more required than others, but all of them bespeak an atmosphere of reverence and holy worship for Our Lord.

In addition, both clergy and the People of God at large should comport themselves appropriately for Divine Worship. The hymns used ought to be more traditional in their composition, not simply because they are old (for we know that things that are old are not always necessarily good), but because more traditional hymnody often reinforces essential Christian doctrine in the lyrics, and we all know that for some people, often through no fault of their own, the Liturgy will be the only Christian education they get this week. Psalmody should be simple, preferably in some mode of chant (remember that bit about pride of place). [For more about the Church's teaching on the use of music in liturgy, it is helpful to read the Church document from the Second Vatican Council Musicam Sacram given to us by Pope Saint Paul VI.]

 The clergy ought to wear beautiful and reverent vestments as their Parish can best afford, because this is for Jesus, and that's Him on the altar. A Byzantine Catholic priest friend of mine wisely says that our vestments should be seen as a form of sacred iconography. They should not look like something out of That 70's Show. Yes, use Latin from time to time at points in the liturgy, and we should teach the people some of the simple Latin chants so that they know and understand what they mean, such as the Sanctus, the Agnus Dei, and even the Gloria. Sometimes Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion are necessary in the Mass, but the number should never be a great many because deacons ought be prepared to make themselves available to distribute Holy Communion if needed, and priests should never be afraid to use their deacons, that is why we are here. If your parish has a Communion rail, use it.

Priests and deacons should be unafraid to preach the Word of God, and even to wax theological or doctrinal in their sermons/homilies. The people of God can take the Truth, and if they can't, they need to examine their consciences, and yes, brother clergy, that includes us as well, sometimes we need to be preaching to ourselves. To that end, increased time should be made for confessions on the part of priests, and priests and deacons should figure out how to schedule more time for Eucharistic adoration and Benediction. 

These are just a few of the things that we can do to make the Ordinary Form of the Liturgy in the Latin Rite something that is filled with reverence, beauty, Truth, and the fear of God. There is much more that can be done, but I am convinced that if some of the things I have mentioned here were actually carried out with care and love of God, we might see some of those young people with families in our diocese who prefer the Extraordinary Form for the reasons of reverence be able to feel more at home in a regular Parish Ordinary Form setting. 

We should be able to go to Mass and truly feel an otherworldly experience, because it is otherworldly, it is meant to be a type of Heaven on Earth.


NOTE: It should be noted, as His Eminence Raymond Cardinal Burke and others have pointed out, Traditiones Custodes has apparently been prepared in such haste that a Latin typical edition of the document has yet to be prepared, and there are translation differences between the Italian and English documents that may prove significant. I myself note that the document does not even appear to be properly numerically divided, which is why I did not cite its sections in the way that I normally would any other Church document.

In making this weblog post, I feel compelled to point out that I am asserting my canonical rights under Canon 212 §2-3 of the Code of Canon Law.

Thoughts on Pope Francis

I knew the moment that Pope Francis stepped out on the loggia that there was something I really liked about him. I was first struck by the way he appeared on the balcony, and asked that before he imposed the Apostolic Blessing, the people should pray for him. He led people in an Our Father, a Hail Mary, and a Glory Be for him and for Benedict XVI. For awhile he bowed his head in silent prayer-the massive rain-soaked crowd was silent. His entire first appearance to the world was centered on prayer.


Since his election yesterday, I've learned quite a lot about Pope Francis. I've learned that as Archbishop of Buenos Aries, he was offered a permanent post in the Roman Curia by Blessed John Paul II, but he politely and respectfully turned it down. Instead, he remained Archbishop of the Argentine capital, and eschewed the well-appointed episcopal residence for a sparse apartment. He turned down the car and driver which the Archdiocese provided for him and took the bus and the subway instead. One person from Buenos Aries said in a news interview that if you wanted to have an audience with Cardinal Brogolio, you just needed to know which train or bus he was taking. Oh, and in addition to his ecclesiastical duties, he apparently cared for a fellow Jesuit priest with a disability who stayed with him at his little apartment. I identify with the Holy Father, because when I was a single man, I lived in the city and I took the bus everywhere-I had to because of my own disability (the Holy Father obviously identifies with disabled people since he was close friends with and cared for a disabled person).


He apparently turned down his official Vatican car and decided instead to take the bus with the cardinals back to Casa Santa Martha. He took the Vatican's equivalent of a taxi to the Basilica of St. Mary Major this morning, and celebrated the Mass to close the conclave at the Sistine Chapel where he said in his homily “we can build so many things but if we don’t confess Jesus Christ, then something is wrong. We will become a pitiful NGO [non-governmental organization], but not the Church, spouse of Christ.”


In formation, we are taught about the meaning of diakonia, from which we get the word "deacon." That word, in the Greek, means "servant" or "slave." One of the most obvious uses of the word is to be found in Philippians 2:7-8, where we are told that Jesus "emptied himself, taking the form of a servant [diakonia], being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross."


In his homily today, Pope Francis talked a lot about the cross and the need for believers to take it up. In fact, he said that to claim Christ but be unwilling to take up his cross doesn't make us believers at all. It has struck me that we talk a lot about diakonia and servanthood, and with good reason, because that is part of the calling of a deacon. In Pope Francis, it seems that we have a living example to the whole world of what diakonia is really all about.

Smokewatch 2013 Live!

When I saw that Vatican Television is live streaming the scene in St. Peter's Square, I couldn't help but think that I should insert that here.





Thank you CTV/Vatican Television for providing such an incredibly useful and historic service.

UPDATE: (2:17pm) If you are watching this, you know that HABEMUS PAPAM! We're waiting on the Holy Father's name to be announced.

Conclave first ballot-Non habemus papam

Keep those prayer vigils, rosaries, and holy hours going folks. I don't think anyone realistically expected a new pope on the first ballot.

Sede vacante

Benedict XVI is now the Supreme Pontiff Emeritus. I just watched the closing of the doors and the changing of the guard at Castel Gandolfo as the clock struck eight in Rome. It is certainly a day of what I would call mixed emotions. I know he's "Pope Emeritus," I know that the College of Cardinals will elect a new Pontiff regnant, I know that this person will be the Vicar of Christ, and I know and believe that Holy Mother Church will go on and on. It is hard, however, not to call Benedict Holy Father. Maybe I'll just call him "Holy Father Benedict" or just "Papa Bene." I don't want to speak of Benedict in a way that appears to diminish the respect we all need to have for the new Holy Father, especially since Benedict already pledged his loyalty and support to that as-yet unnamed man earlier today.

Despite the personal feelings I might have with regard to Benedict's decision and today's events, it has become increasingly clear to me in recent days that what is happening is the Lord's will. This past Sunday, Papa Emeritus said that he felt that the Gospel passage on the Transfiguration was aimed directly at him, and he has talked this week about how he had asked the Lord to help him lighten his physical load. When I heard Holy Father Benedict speak of this, I could certainly identify in a very personal way with what he was saying. I am not sure what the nature of his conversation with God was like, but I believe that the Holy Spirit let him know that he has done all that has been required of him, and it was time for a new Supreme Pontiff.

Benedict has said that it is time for him to "climb the mountain" and be with God in a more intimate way in prayer more fully, as he able to devote the remainder of his earthly life to contemplation and prayer. I must admit to a kind of "holy envy" of this new status of Benedict, if there can possibly be such a thing. There are many times when I feel that my prayer time isn't quite good enough and I just want to  "climb the mountain" and spend a lot more time with God. However, I have responsibilities-and ministry-which keeps me from the fullness of such a contemplative life at this point (not to mention a wonderful wife who expects I will be around a good long time!). The Holy Spirit did not call me to a full time contemplative life, and I trust the Holy Spirit's wisdom in that regard, but there are times when I wish I had more time each day for a far more contemplative and prayer-filled existence. Yes, I pray every day...I want to pray even more, and I want to enter the presence of God in prayer even more-even as I grow close to him, I long to be even closer. Hence, for this reason I have a certain envy, because now Benedict will have all the time in the world to grow closer to Christ and to the Father before he leaves this passing world.

But the Lord also extracted from Joseph Ratzinger a very full life of service to his Church and his Kingdom before calling him to this new ministry of prayer, and I also remind myself of that, even as I pray for our Pontiff Emeritus, and for the Church in the days ahead.

Bless us one last time, Holy Father Benedict!

A thank you for Benedict and a prayer for the conclave

Do you remember when you heard the news that Benedict XVI had been elected?





I was actually watching everything streaming over the internet on EWTN at the time. I remember feeling a sense of great joy when it was clear that the smoke was white and there would be a new pope. I was relieved that the conclave had been so short, because I thought a long conclave might lead to the secular media having a speculation field day in ways that go beyond the normal. I was then, as I am now, ready to embrace whoever was ultimately chosen, but I did have a favorite at the time-someone who I felt led by the Holy Spirit to pray for especially. His name was Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, and he was the prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. I was praying specifically for him-I had a feeling in the depth of my soul that he should be pope and that he would be pope.

When his name was announced I was ecstatic-I did not know whether to laugh or shout or cry with glee. I understood beyond the shadow of any doubt in my mind that God's will had been done that day, I felt the presence of the Holy Spirit about the whole business, even though I was watching on a computer screen thousands of miles away from Rome. I still believe that today-Benedict has been a wonderful shepherd.

When I heard the news that he would abdicate the Chair of Peter this Thursday early in the morning on Monday, February 11th, I had the inevitable reaction of shock, sadness, and a degree of disappointment. I love the Holy Father. I love his writings, and I have a deep appreciation for what his work has meant for the Church over many, many years of faithful service. His theological opus has reached people of all faiths and has won many converts to the Church, most of whom never met him. Then I listened to and read his statement, and the words he has spoken about his decision since that day, and I believe that as the Holy Spirit brought him to the See of Peter, the Holy Spirit has let him know that the time is right for another to take his place.

This time around, there are two or three of the cardinals who I think might make a fine Pontiff, but now it is purely a matter of personal opinion on my part. I don't have the strong feeling and the leading from the Holy Spirit that I felt preceding the last conclave that one of the men ought to and would likely be elected, and Cardinal N. is that person-now I simply feel a need to pray for all of the cardinal-electors with some fervor.

One thing that seems to be occurring at a very unhealthy level is that there seems to be more media pressure and speculation than there was last time and-if some Catholic sources are to be believed-perhaps more than has ever been. The amount of speculative media frenzy has become so ridiculous that even the Vatican has openly condemned it as disgraceful. We are all entitled as Catholics to our own opinions of who we might like to see elected or not (that is human nature to a degree), but we all have to respect that not only is the conclave to be kept secret (and should forever be), but it is to be kept secret in order to preserve the integrity and the legitimacy of the papal election itself. Furthermore, whoever is elected deserves our respect, affection, support, and will have great need of our prayers.

As for Holy Father Benedict, I am thankful for his ministry, and I believe the Church and the cause of the Gospel are better served today because Joseph Ratzinger devoted his life to the service of the Church and we have been blessed to have him in the Chair of St. Peter. Let us pray for him as he prays for us.

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Let us also pray for the Cardinals who will vote in this upcoming conclave. I have a little prayer I came up with for them-it isn't much, just the thoughts of my heart, and I invite you to pray with me or to pray a prayer for them from your own heart.

Almighty Ever-living God, may your guiding hand and the power of your holy presence be among the Cardinal-electors, as they gather at the threshold of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul to choose a new successor to fill the shoes of the Fisherman. May they be so disposed to choose a man after your own heart, who delights in your laws and meditates upon you day and night. 

Through the intercession of Mary, Mother of God and Mother of the Church, may he pilot the barque of your Church through the stormy spiritual seas of our skeptical age, that we may reach in triumph the glory of your everlasting Kingdom.

We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God forever and ever. Amen.

Be not afraid

Yesterday was one of those days when I needed the readings that were presented, and I believe the Holy Spirit spoke to me through them in a special way. As you might have figured out by reading my posts, there have times when I have struggled with my own worthiness to be in formation. I have questioned, as I am sure many men have on the road to the deaconate, my own worthiness to be there. There are times when I have thought "I am not as holy as others, Lord, why choose me," or even (in honesty) "I am a cripple, Lord, what can I do to minister to others in your name that brings the Church to them." I have struggled with this at times with a full understanding that no small part of this comes from the devil, who delights at bringing discouragement to us. Even knowing that, however, it helps to be reminded that God's ways are not our ways, and that he doesn't work in the same way that we do, not even remotely-though he often uses human agents to do his work.

I thought of those times I have been discouraged about my own ministry when I heard the readings yesterday, and the thought of God's goodness overwhelmed me nearly to the point of tears as I listened to the vision of the Prophet Isaiah in Isaiah 6:6-8:

Then I said, “Woe is me, I am doomed! For I am a man of unclean lips, living among a people of unclean lips; yet my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!” Then one of the seraphim flew to me, holding an ember that he had taken with tongs from the altar. He touched my mouth with it, and said, “See, now that this has touched your lips, your wickedness is removed, your sin purged.” Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? Who will go for us?” “Here I am,” I said; “send me!”

The real a-ha moment came in the second reading, when St. Paul described his own unworthiness to exercise his special calling as an apostle when, unlike the other apostles, he didn't walk and talk with the Lord when he was personally present, and he persecuted the Church in his zeal, but he told the Corinthians in 1st Corinthians 15:8-11 that God put him in his office entirely because of his mercy and grace:

Last of all, as to one born abnormally, he appeared to me. For I am the least of the apostles, not fit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me has not been ineffective. Indeed, I have toiled harder than all of them; not I, however, but the grace of God that is with me. Therefore, whether it be I or they, so we preach and so you believed.

At this point, I felt like the Lord was hitting me over the head with a proverbial frying pan, as if to say: "Is this clear enough for you?" He was telling me that his concept of worthiness and mine might be quite different, even as I struggle with whether I am humble enough to be a deacon-but Paul struggled with humility too, and he was an apostle-far more important than I ever want to be. Then there was the Gospel, and the part that struck me was Peter and the Lord's words to him in Luke 5:5-11:

“Master, we have worked hard all night and have caught nothing, but at your command I will lower the nets.” When they had done this, they caught a great number of fish and their nets were tearing. They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come to help them. They came and filled both boats so that the boats were in danger of sinking. When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at the knees of Jesus and said, “Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man.” For astonishment at the catch of fish they had made seized him and all those with him, and likewise James and John, the sons of Zebedee, who were partners of Simon. Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.” When they brought their boats to the shore, they left everything and followed him.

In Peter's words I could hear myself saying that very thing to Jesus "depart from me, for I am a sinful man." I could also hear Jesus' words in reply back to me "do not be afraid..." That may have been the most important thing Jesus said to Peter...it might have been the most important thing I heard in the readings yesterday, something that the Lord knew I needed to hear.

I woke up this morning to the news that the Holy Father will resign, effective February 28th. Perhaps that is one of the many reasons why I needed to hear "be not afraid" yesterday, because today my first thought after hearing the news was "Lord, what are we going to do now?" Yes, I know the canonical procedure quite well, I know we'll have a conclave and a new Pope, and the Church will role on. It doesn't make the situation any easier for those of us who love and appreciate Pope Benedict XVI, but I am open to the reality that the Holy Spirit may be doing something new. The Holy Father has, I believe, acted under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and we should continue to pray that the Holy Spirit guides the Church through this time and that the College of Cardinals meets with the power of the Holy Spirit very active among them under the protection and intercession of Mary, Mother of the Church.


Finally, I have a request for those of you who are regular readers of this blog. As you may be able to see, I've placed a clock on the left hand sidebar of this blog. I'll have more to say about the clock and why it is there in a special entry I am composing for Ash Wednesday, but the clock used in the widget is not my first choice of a clock. There are a couple of other clock widgets I would prefer (one is from Clocklink), and I could insert one of them by incerting the HTML code in the proper place-but blogger has changed its HTML code since I have worked with it, and I can't figure out where in the code the sidebar is located! I need a hand with this. Feel free to e-mail me if you can be of assistance.