My One Mass with Pope Benedict - It Brought Me into the Catholic Church!

Canterbury Tales ^ | February 28, 2013 | Dr. Taylor Marshall

[NYer]

A photo from the Mass I attend with Pope Benedict

In 2006, when I was still an Episcopalian priest, Joy and I visited Rome. Intellectually we were coming to recognize that the Catholic Church was the true Church, but we needed the emotional push to bring the decision to fulfillment.

In Rome, we were able to take the Scavi tour underneath Saint Peter's Basilica. At the end of the tour, we saw the bones of Saint Peter. I prayed earnestly that I would soon enter into full communion with Saint Peter and his successor on earth, Pope Benedict XVI.

After the tour, the Belgian priest, who had been our tour guide, stayed behind and struck up a conversation with us. We had been so excited and impressed by the tour. When I told him that we were not Catholics, but that I was an Episcopalian priest, his face lit up. He was writing his dissertation in Rome on some ecumenical matter. 

Then he surprised us with a question: “Would you like to attend Holy Mass with the Pope this evening?” The answer to that question was obvious. The Belgian priest was pleased to make arrangements. We walked from the Scavi entrance on the south side of Saint Peter’s, across Saint Peter’s Square, and then up a staircase to the north. At the top were two Swiss Guards with pikes. The Belgian priest told us to wait there. He mumbled some Italian to the guards and disappeared.

A few minutes later he returned with two orange tickets, which were marked with that evening’s date and were issued by the Palazzo Apostolico Vaticano. The Belgian priest told us to return to Saint Peter’s an hour before the Mass with those tickets. We had a nice chat, and the priest went about his business. To my shame, I don’t know his name. (Father, if you're out there, let me know!)

That evening, my wife and I attended the Holy Mass of the Purification with Pope Benedict. At this particular Holy Mass the Holy Father recognized the various religious orders of the world. We were in line with hundreds of nuns, friars, and monks. We were clearly out of place—a married Episcopalian priest in a cassock with a pregnant wife. My dear! I hope we did not scandalize all those nuns.

The Holy Mass was glorious. It began in total darkness. Pope Benedict XVI entered the back doors with only a candle. From this candle was lit all the candles of the nuns, monks, and friars. For the whole Mass, we were near the bronze statue of Saint Peter. I could see the Holy Father clearly. I knew that His Holiness was the true successor of the Fisherman, and recalling that just that morning I had been deep underneath that altar at the bones of Saint Peter, the connection between the ministry of Saint Peter the First Pope and that of Benedict XVI the present Pope was made manifest right before my eyes.

When it came time for Holy Communion, I knew that I could not go forward to receive. Although the Basilica was now lit with glorious light and joy, my soul remained in the darkness.

I was not a Catholic. I was not in communion with the Holy Father. I was in schism. It was a sickening feeling. I was out of communion with the Vicar of Christ, and I knew in that moment that my relationship with Christ was impaired. I also knew what I had to do. I had to resign the Episcopalian priesthood and become a Catholic.

That Mass was one of the most important events in my life. When we got back from Rome, the process began. When I think of Pope Benedict, I'll always recall that Holy Mass on February 2, 2006 - a Holy Mass that changed my life forever. Viva Il Papa!

[delchiante]

I like to meditate on this...

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

[delchiante]

But take heart NYer, I don’t believe in the Good Friday death described by man. The misunderstanding and ignorance of the Jewish feasts of the Lord and the appointed times has the churches forcing it onto Friday...Wednesday pm would follow Leviticus and keep the three days and three nights in line with Jesus’ own words. But again, I am no bible scholar. Just a sinner saved by His grace.
May God bless you more!

[ELS]

It’s a good thing then that Catholics don’t worship Mary. There are countless other FR threads where you can find detailed information about that fact, if you are interested.

[Old Yeller]

Answer: The adversary isn’t called the Great Deceiver for nothing.

[Boogieman]

Maybe you want to go back and reread my comment, because I didn’t raise any issue with that title, but rather with the practice of praying to someone other than God, and communicating with the spirits of those who have passed from this world, both of which are clearly forbidden by the Bible.

[Campion]

The only thing biblical about praying to someone other than God, or communicating with the spirits of those who have passed on, are the biblical condemnations and prohibitions against the practice.

Yeah, and that bad example Jesus gave us of talking with Moses and Elijah at the Transfiguration. What was he thinking?!?

Before a century had passed, you had supposed "Christians" scrawling on the tombs of martyrs "Pray for us".

Before AD 250 (note: 150 years before the canonization of the NT, and 50 years before Constantine), you have the prayer "Sub tuum praesidium" to Mary, the oldest extant Marian prayer.

All because of that bad example Jesus gave us. (NOT.)

[mtg]

The adversary isn’t called the Great Deceiver for nothing.

And the Great Deceiver has been trying to destroy the Church every since Jesus began building it. And what he himself can never accomplish, he influences man to try to accomplish for him. That is why he is called the Great Deceiver.

[Mrs. Don-o]

Some people have made the unwarranted assumption that the words "pray to" and "adore" are synonymous.

They are not. "Pray" means "entreat," and can be used in relation to any person, although the usage is now in the US associated only with trial proceedings ("Plaintiff prays this honorable court," etc.)and, of course, Shakespeare ("I pray you, tarry. Pause a day or two")

When we so entreat any fellow creature, whether Mary, an angel or archangel, or a saint, we are entreating their intercessory prayers.

That's it.

If you don't have a problem with intercessory payers, it shouldn't surprise you that those who love us in heaven, do not cease to pray for us.

If I may ask: pray for me.

[Mrs. Don-o]

Every time somebody in the Bible converses with an angel, they are communicating with a spirit. It happens multiple times in Scripture, and is never condemned.

[Mrs. Don-o]

You ought not to repeat falsehoods, although I believe you have done so innocently and inadvertently. Catholics do not worship Mary. We honor her, as we are commanded, in Scripture, to give "honor to whom honor is due."

And if Jesus honored Mary -- He durely did, for He followed the ocmmandment to "honor your father and your mother" --- then He will not condemn us if we do the same.

Mary herself, simple creature, mortal human being, and handmaid though she was, said "All generations will call me blessed."

We do. We are the fulfillment of this prophecy.

Tagline for you.

[Mrs. Don-o]

Very true,very true

Very true,very true

Very true,very true

Very true,very true

Very true,very true

Very true,very true

Very true,very true

Very true,very true

Very true,very true

.

And we can come to Jesus through others. "The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” .

You can come to Jesus through Andrew; you can definitely come to Him throuh Mary. Especially when her advice, while brief, is good:

"Do whatever He tells you."

[delchiante]

Immaculate Heart of Mary, refuge of sinners. I beg of you by the infinite merits of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and by the graces God has granted to you since your Immaculate Conception, the grace of never going astray again, Mother, keep me. A sinner constantly bathed in the light of your Immaculate Heart.

Immaculate Heart of Mary, in union with your brothers and sisters throughout the world, I freely consecrate myself to your heart, immaculate and pure. Please accept this personal consecration as an act of reparation and for conversion of sinners.

Immaculate Heart of Mary, I love you! And wait patiently for the day your immaculate heart will triumph.

Humbly lay my soul in the light of your purity! Immaculate Heart of Mary, be my refuge, and the way to The eternal light of Jesus, our God. Amen.

???????????????

[delchiante]

And I haven’t even gotten into the Fatima AVE..
14.. Hail Refuge of Sinners! Hail, Star of the Sea. Hail, Queen of Creation! Our hope is in thee! AVE

WTFrick? And there are 14 other Aves in this booklet...

My Catholic friends, ugh...

[delchiante]

And this doozy- from Sister Lucy of Fatima speaking on the Rosary- ‘With the Holy Rosary, we will save ourselves, we will sanctify ourselves , we will console our Lord and obtain the salvation of many souls.”
Maybe she misspoke or misquoted..
I mean it is only in the little instruction manual given with the rosary...

That certainly is a different Gospel than in my Geneva Bible...

[SuziQ]

The Rosary is not part of the Doctrine or Dogma of the Catholic Church, but one of its important 'externals'. If you look at the Mysteries of the Rosary, all of them are signposts pointing toward Jesus. When the Rosary is prayed, Jesus's conception, birth, public ministry, torture, Death and Resurrection are contemplated. It is one of the great prayers we have, when approached reverently and with an openness to understanding the Life of Jesus.

Most consider the Rosary a Marian Devotion, but it is truly a devotion turned toward Jesus.

[Coleus]

Our Lady revealed to St. Dominic and Blessed Alan de la Roche additional benefits for those who devoutly pray the Rosary. >>

You either believe it or you don’t. And what made you ask this question?

[Mrs. Don-o]

Dear delchiante, I think there are usually two areas that need more reflection -- one Biblical, and the other cultural --- in order for us to make sense of the queenly role which we see in Mary, the mother of our King.

First, the Biblical: one must carefully consider the unique position of the queen-mother in the Kingdom of Judah, which provides the foreshadowing, type and model for Mary in all those various queenly titles.

The major queenly figure in a Jewish royal court was not the king's wife (because he may have had many) but his mother (because he only had one.) To see this illustrated, you might want to look at how Solomon related to his mother, Bathsheba:

1 Kings 2:19
"When Bathsheba went to King Solomon to speak to him for Adonijah, the king stood up to meet her, bowed down to her and sat down on his throne. He had a throne brought for the king’s mother, and she sat down at his right hand."

We should be well aware that when a king actually bows to another, and graciously grants that person to be enthroned at his right hand, this indicates a place of unique honor and of powerful advocacy.

If you were to get a concordance and write down all he queenly references in the OT --- especially in the Psalms --- you would find the source all the titles and honors applied to Mary, since she is the fulfillment of all the royal-queenly imagery in the OT, just as Jesus her Son is the fulfillment of the royal-Kingly imagery.

Do not make the mistake of thinking this puts Mary on an equal footing with her Son. She is human, a creature, a handmaid; He is the Lord God Almighty. But as it is His pleasure to exalt the humble, all the glory redounds to Him, since as Mary said, "He has regarded the lowliness of his handmaid," and "He who is mighty has done great things for me."

The second consideration, the cultural: We, 21st Century Americans, have almost no exposure to, or natural affinity for, the kind of court-language which was natural to the Jews of Biblical times, as well as to our own European ancestors. Courtly language is foreign to us; it strikes us as strange because it is no longer part of our world.

However our ancestors, in their great artist and poetic expressions of the Kingship of Jesus, liked to portray His royal court with all kinds of devotional attention. This is perfectly valid because Jesus applied all the attributes of Judaean kingship to Himself, in accordance with all the expectations fond in OT precedent and prophecy.

It seems strange at first: but we should be careful to appreciate a culture diferent from our own, one with a far more elaborate and in-depth understanding of kingship and the relationships of royal persons.

[PJ-Comix]

I truly believe the next Pope will be the last Pope.

Didn't Edgar Cayce also predict that?

[Sioux-san]

I never heard of Edgar Cayce, but thank goodness for google. Verrrrrry Interrrrresting! My prediction is based on nothing nearly as cool.

[johngrace]

It is late where I am but I understand your style of questioning. I once left the Catholic Church and came back. I talked to my mother at the time when she was alive almost the same things you bring up. I do not have the time right now to go into all of it. But I do appreciate your honest words.

One of the basics you have to remember is the Word "Pray" confuses people about Catholics. The word first meant and always means a "beseeching."

Popular culture( meaning as time progressed through the centuries) has brought to it to think of only to use in a sense towards God only. When you realize this is not true that is where the "scales" will fall.

It is first and foremost a "beseeching" to an individual man or Deity. The Dictionary will define two basic meanings.

pray 1. to offer devout petition, praise, thanks, etc., to (God or an object of worship).

2. to offer (a prayer).

3. to bring, put, etc., by praying: to pray a soul into heaven. 4.

to make earnest petition to (a person).

5. to make petition or entreaty for; crave: She prayed his forgiveness.

World English Dictionary

pray (preɪ)

— vb (when intr, often foll by for; when tr, usually takes a clause as object )

1. to utter prayers (to God or other object of worship): we prayed to God for the sick child

2. ( when tr, usually takes a clause as object or an infinitive ) to make an earnest entreaty (to or for); beg or implore: she prayed to be allowed to go ; leave, I pray you

3. rare ( tr ) to accomplish or bring by praying: to pray a soul into the kingdom

— interj 4. archaic I beg you; please: pray, leave us alone

[C13: from Old French preier, from Latin precārī to implore, from prex an entreaty; related to Old English fricgan, Old High German frāgēn to ask, Old Norse fregna to enquire]

When we pray to Mary we are beseeching her for pray to God for us just like if we ask a relative or neighbor. Then when we believe we had answer we will declare to the person. Thank you for "saving me."

It does not mean they did it except by his or her intercession. Meaning as person/soul praying by asking God we got an answer.