Posted on 02/28/2004 5:03:12 AM PST by NYer
A layman told of a priest who addressed his congregation before Mass started, saying, “How many people believe that what we’re going to do today will bring God out of Heaven?” There was a show of hands, and the priest replied, “Well, it’s not going to happen.”
“After that incident, people stopped toing to Masses that priest was scheduled to celebrate and when the parish stopped printing the times of the Masses he would celebrate, people called up because they didn’t want to go to his Masses. When the parish wouldn’t give out that information, people just stopped going to Mass,”, siad the layman.
“I told a Cardinal in Rome about this incident,” the layman continued, “and he just sat there with an expression of unbelievable horror on his face. “How can he say Mass?” the Cardinal asked. “I said, ‘It’s simple. His whole reason for being a priest is to destroy faith’.” The layman asked that his name be withheld, saying the “Bishop would destroy me>”
The use of invalid altar breads has been a problem in the Diocese of Albany since the Installation Mass of Bishop Hubbard in 1977; that Mass used invalid altar breads. That fact caused such an uproar in the diocese that the scandal even broke into the secular newspapers and was debated in letter to the editor for some time after.
The bread at the Installation Mass contained, in addition to wheat flour and water, honey and baking soda, as admitted by a now deceased staff member of the Diocese Office of Religious Education. Her defense in a secular newspaper of the recipe utilized left many believing that it was the “unofficial” reply of the diocese.
Two months after the Sacred Congregation for the Sacraments and Divine Worship published Inaestimabile Donum (April 1980), which described unnecessary outdoor celebrations of the Eucharist as a serious abuse, Bishop Hubbard celebrated a Polka Mass on the Fonda Fair Grounds for Amsterdam’s Annual Polka Fest ‘80.
The noon mass at the fairgrounds was celebrated barely 500 feet from St. Cecilia’s Church, in the open sided shed of a picnic grove, with the congregation sitting at picnic tables.
There have been ecumenical services where Protestants and Catholics receive Communion, services which are advertised as “a valid mass for Catholics while retaining th emeaning of Holy Communion for participating Protestants.” There have been Masses concelebrated with protestant ministers who receive Communion with the priest.
“The radicals think they have a mandate to do whatever they want, “said one priest, “and you can’t tell me this isn’t allowed to destroy the Church.” In his view, Bishop Hubbard’s support for women priests stems from a drive to humiliate his priests.
The priest told of “an event held in the cathedral where the Bishop was in the sanctuary, completely surrounded by women who helped him ‘concelebrate Mass,’ and then distributed Communion. Packing the first four pews were diocesan priests, reduced to spectators.”
In 1976, the Diocese of Albany began an effort to bring altar girls into every parish. Fr. Richard Vosko, then director of the Diocesan Liturgy Center (now a priest that operates his own architecture firm), told the Times Union that, while altar girls were a problem in some areas of the US, “it’s not a real issue with us” in the Albany Diocese. In 1976, he also said that the American Bishops had petitiioned Rome to allow them to use altar girls.
In 1978, women were being trained as acolytes as a preliminary to Confirmation in the Albny Diocese. The liturgical norm that women may not serve at the altar was interpreted by Fr. Cotugno as meaning “women may not wash the hands of the priest.”
In 1980, Inaestimabile Donum stated that girls may not perform the roles of altar boys, and may not be candle bearers, cross bearers, incense bearers and the like.
In 1989, the Albany Diocese stated that the issue of altar girls is still being studied by the Vatican, but that parishes that employ altr girls have the Albany Dioicese’s blessing. Chancellor Fr. F explained: “The question of whether girls officially can be altar servers is still under study by the Vatican. And so the debate goes on. Yes you can, because the Vatican hasn’t said no, or no you can’t, because the Vatican hasn’t said yes. And it depends on which side of the question you want to come down on.”
In 1991, Chancellor Fr. P, attempting to deflect criticism that Bishop Hubbard wasn’t loyal to Rome on the specific issue of altar girls, replied that the local Bishop has the right to decide whether girls may be altar servers. “In his push for the ordination of women, the feminization of the liturgy was a primary goal,” a layman said, “and that’s why altar girls are so important.”
In May 1987 Capital Region magazine published an article “The Boy Bishop Comes of Age” by Jeremy Bloom, marking the 10th anniversary of the Bishop’s installation. One of the bishop’s favored priests was introduced and quoted by Bloom:
“Hogan, who has known Bishop Hubbard since their days together at St. Joseph’s Seminary in Dunwoodie on LI, articulates a theme with which Hubbard and most of the American Bishops would probably agree. ‘I’m very loyal and affectionate toward the Pope,’ he says. ‘I’m not terribly loyal to the Vatican State and its bureaucracy. That has very little to do with the dying and rising of Jesus, the Eucharist, and love; it has to do with power, and like all bureaucracies, it tends toward evil’.” That view, say catholics in Albany, epitomizes the chancery view of Roman liturgical directives.
Well, we disagree there.
By Diogenes
Jan. 01 (CWR) - (The document that follows has not been approved (or even discussed) by the US Conference of Catholic Bishops. But it might profitably be compared with their Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People, adopted at the US bishops' meeting in Dallas last year.)
PREAMBLE
The Church in the United States is experiencing a crisis without precedent in our times. The abuse of the Sacred Liturgy by some priests and bishops, and the ways in which we bishops addressed these crimes and sins, have caused enormous pain, anger, and confusion. Innocent victims and their families have suffered terribly. In the past, secrecy has created an atmosphere that has inhibited the healing process and, in some cases, enabled liturgically abusive behavior to be repeated. As bishops, we acknowledge our mistakes and our role in that suffering, and we apologize and take responsibility for too often failing victims and our people in the past. We also take responsibility for dealing with this problem strongly, consistently, and effectively in the future. From the depths of our hearts, we bishops express great sorrow and profound regret for what the Catholic people are enduring.
We, who have been given the responsibility of shepherding God's people, will, with God's help and in full collaboration with our people, continue to work to restore the bonds of trust that unite us. Words alone cannot accomplish this goal. It will begin with the actions we take here in our General Assembly and at home in our dioceses/eparchies.
The damage caused by the abuse of the Mass is devastating and long-lasting. We reach out to those who suffer, but especially to the victims of liturgical abuse and their families. We apologize to them for the grave harm that has been inflicted upon them, and we offer them our help for the future. In the light of so much suffering, healing and reconciliation are beyond human capacity alone. Only God's grace, mercy, and forgiveness can lead us forward, trusting Christ's promise: "For God all things are possible." (Mt 19:26) Let there now be no doubt or confusion on anyone's part: For us, your bishops, our obligation to protect the Sacred Liturgy and to prevent liturgical abuse flows from the mission and example given to us by Jesus Christ himself, in whose name we serve.
POLICY NORMS
1. Dioceses/eparchies will reach out to victims/survivors and their families and demonstrate a sincere commitment to their spiritual and emotional well-being.
2. Dioceses/eparchies will have mechanisms in place to respond promptly to any allegation where there is reason to believe that liturgical abuse has occurred.
3. When liturgical abuse by a priest or a deacon is admitted or is established after an appropriate process in accord with canon law, the offending priest or deacon will be permanently removed from ministry, not excluding dismissal from the clerical state, if the case so warrants.
4. While the priestly commitment to the Liturgy is well known, there will be clear and well-publicized diocesan/eparchial standards of ministerial behavior and appropriate boundaries for clergy and for any other church personnel.
5. Dioceses/eparchies will evaluate the background of all diocesan/eparchial and parish personnel who have regular contact with the Sacred Liturgy.
CONCLUSION
In the midst of this terrible crisis of liturgical abuse by priests and bishops and how it has been dealt with by bishops, many other issues have been raised. In this Charter we focus specifically on the painful issue at hand. However, in this matter, we do wish to affirm our concern, especially with regard to issues related to effective consultation of the laity and the participation of God's people in decision-making that affects their well-being.
We must increase our vigilance to prevent those few who might exploit the priesthood for their own immoral and criminal purposes from doing so. At the same time, we know that the liturgical abuse is not a problem inherent in the priesthood, nor are priests the only ones guilty of it.
An essential means of dealing with the crisis is prayer for healing and reconciliation, and acts of reparation for the grave offense to God and the deep wound inflicted upon his holy people. Closely connected to prayer and acts of reparation is the call to holiness of life and the care of the diocesan/eparchial bishop to ensure that he and his priests avail themselves of the proven ways of avoiding sin and growing in holiness of life.
This charter is published for the dioceses/eparchies of the United States, and we bishops commit ourselves to its immediate implementation
I pray fervently that this ban be enforced...Was at a recent Mass where the degree of their appearance was more important than the fact that their vision should have been raised to a level of service to God. Girls should be encouraged to join CHOIRS, where true love of Jesus, through singing, would be manifested....Women, I strongly believe, belong in the pews and not behind the altar rail....We must encourage our young men to serve as altar boys for there lies our future priests.
Research? And what would that be? Keep in mind that these threads are extracts from a journalistic report done in 1991.
Finding my way on the road to Damascus?
It is not surprising that some bad places have evolved from the "Altar of Sacrifice" to a "banquet table" and now to a "buffet table".
But, do not despair. We must stay in to fight (the smart way I'd prefer), it's the effort that counts in the eyes of the Lord. Comes Judgement Day, St. Paul will also greet us when we finished the good fight.
It makes no sense to throw the baby out with the bath water. The Babe Incarnate is of infinite value. Hang in there. Take no substitutes or imitations.
That is what we have been led to believe. However, we must wait for the release of the final document to know for certain. The service of young men at the altar of God has always been recognized as a stepping stone of sorts for a possible calling to the priesthood. Current law allows a bishop to determine if females are allowed to serve, although each individual priest may elect to use only males at Masses in which he celebrates.
It seems to me to have been a grave mistake, prudentially, to permit females to serve at the altar. Perhaps those with a certain clarity of mind will prevail and this mistake will be correctedin the near future.
Archbishop Raymond Burke blamed society's "hedonistic culture" as the most significant cause of sexual abuse within the church, while discussing two national reports released Friday that examine the scope and nature of the problem.
the most significant cause of sexual abuse within the church.....
I watched Archbishop Burke on EWTN and I did not hear him say this specifically although he did mention it - nor did he indicate this in the St Louis Review article he wrote...From what I could gather he wants to spend more time reviewing the report. He did say that he thought some primary reasons for these problems is failure to teach doctrinal truths and a lack of a proper ascetical prayer life. So it seem to me the above sentence and implication may be out of line....But then again, consider the source, the STL Post-Dispatch, that stalwart defender of truth.
The use of invalid altar breads has been a problem in the Diocese of Albany since the Installation Mass of Bishop Hubbard in 1977; that Mass used invalid altar breads. That fact caused such an uproar in the diocese that the scandal even broke into the secular newspapers and was debated in letter to the editor for some time after.The bread at the Installation Mass contained, in addition to wheat flour and water, honey and baking soda, as admitted by a now deceased staff member of the Diocese Office of Religious Education. Her defense in a secular newspaper of the recipe utilized left many believing that it was the “unofficial” reply of the diocese.
Two months after the Sacred Congregation for the Sacraments and Divine Worship published Inaestimabile Donum (April 1980), which described unnecessary outdoor celebrations of the Eucharist as a serious abuse, Bishop Hubbard celebrated a Polka Mass on the Fonda Fair Grounds for Amsterdam’s Annual Polka Fest ‘80.
The noon mass at the fairgrounds was celebrated barely 500 feet from St. Cecilia’s Church, in the open sided shed of a picnic grove, with the congregation sitting at picnic tables.
There have been ecumenical services where Protestants and Catholics receive Communion, services which are advertised as “a valid mass for Catholics while retaining the meaning of Holy Communion for participating Protestants.” There have been Masses concelebrated with protestant ministers who receive Communion with the priest.
“The radicals think they have a mandate to do whatever they want, “said one priest, “and you can’t tell me this isn’t allowed to destroy the Church.” In his view, Bishop Hubbard’s support for women priests stems from a drive to humiliate his priests.
The priest told of “an event held in the cathedral where the Bishop was in the sanctuary, completely surrounded by women who helped him ‘concelebrate Mass,’ and then distributed Communion. Packing the first four pews were diocesan priests, reduced to spectators.”
Please, let the modernists defend this Satanic mockery. Can they? Will they?
The use of invalid altar breads has been a problem in the Diocese of Albany since the Installation Mass of Bishop Hubbard in 1977; that Mass used invalid altar breads. That fact caused such an uproar in the diocese that the scandal even broke into the secular newspapers and was debated in letter to the editor for some time after.The bread at the Installation Mass contained, in addition to wheat flour and water, honey and baking soda, as admitted by a now deceased staff member of the Diocese Office of Religious Education. Her defense in a secular newspaper of the recipe utilized left many believing that it was the “unofficial” reply of the diocese.
Two months after the Sacred Congregation for the Sacraments and Divine Worship published Inaestimabile Donum (April 1980), which described unnecessary outdoor celebrations of the Eucharist as a serious abuse, Bishop Hubbard celebrated a Polka Mass on the Fonda Fair Grounds for Amsterdam’s Annual Polka Fest ‘80.
The noon mass at the fairgrounds was celebrated barely 500 feet from St. Cecilia’s Church, in the open sided shed of a picnic grove, with the congregation sitting at picnic tables.
There have been ecumenical services where Protestants and Catholics receive Communion, services which are advertised as “a valid mass for Catholics while retaining the meaning of Holy Communion for participating Protestants.” There have been Masses concelebrated with protestant ministers who receive Communion with the priest.
“The radicals think they have a mandate to do whatever they want, “said one priest, “and you can’t tell me this isn’t allowed to destroy the Church.” In his view, Bishop Hubbard’s support for women priests stems from a drive to humiliate his priests.
The priest told of “an event held in the cathedral where the Bishop was in the sanctuary, completely surrounded by women who helped him ‘concelebrate Mass,’ and then distributed Communion. Packing the first four pews were diocesan priests, reduced to spectators.”
Please, let the modernists defend this Satanic mockery. Can they? Will they?
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