Mrs. Don-o's Letter to Archbp Charles Chaput (Philadelphia): Speak Our Clearly, Pay Up Personally

Sensus Fidelium | May 25, 2018 | Mrs Don-o

[Mrs. Don-o]

Archbishop Charles Chaput
222 North 17th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103

Dear Archbishop Chaput,

I just read your First Things essay "What Happens in Germany",which was forwarded to me by Fr. Thomas Weinandy. It certainly justified his recommendation: very clear, very much on-target, very important. Thank you for writing this.

I have been on my parish RCIA teaching team for over 15 years, and I sincerely strive to “adhere with religious submission of will and intellect” to everything Christ authoritatively teaches through His Church. This is how I raised my sons, how I teach my students, and how I live my life.

I am too old and too stubborn to change. I have bet my life on this.

During my first decade as a RCIA teacher, I always encouraged my students to subscribe to Catholic periodicals and keep up with Church-related news. But no more. This has changed. In recent years, I find I have to warn them away from Church news in order to shield them from the slow-motion demolition of Catholic doctrine, which is not being done, as it were, "in a corner", and which hits us in bold headlines on every media platform.

Our spiritual leaders (even at the top) give us doctrinal interpretations which no canonized saint and no previous pope would ever have accepted. Can ultimate realities --- Death, Judgment, Heaven, and Hell --- really be redefined? Can doctrine really be decentralized? Can there be one way to understand and to "do" Marriage, Penance, and Eucharist in Chicago, another in Philadelphia? (What happened to "One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church"?) All the nuts and bolts, joints and welds of the structure of the Church are visibly loosening.

We are sick unto death of the bafflegab. We are desperate for Spiritual Fathers who will speak up clearly and pay up personally.

I don't despair. God's got this. But we absolutely need you and your still-Catholic fellow Bishops to keep admonishing those who are in error, and confirming us in the Holy Faith. Speak up. You've got our attention. We're listening. God's listening. And as St. Thomas More said, "Not a bad public, that."

I ask you, please, for your blessing.

Sincerely in Our Lord,

[Signed]

`

`

[Mrs. Don-o]

This letter is in response to Chaput's fine article in First Things, "What Happens in Germany." It was already posted in the Free Republic Religion Forum here (LINK)

I am preparing a version of this to send to my own Bishop.

I am convinced, and I would argue, that it is now very much up to us to petition our own bishops for the defense of doctrine which Pope Francis is either unwilling or unable to do.

Our duty.

Every one of us.

Your thoughts?

[Cicero]

Just going out for dinner at my daughter’s house after a long a difficult day, so I can’t say anything much, but God bless! He’s one of our few remaining good bishops!

[Architect of Avalon]

Good work.

[M Kehoe]

Bttt.

5.56mm

[avenir]

Excellent letter!

[Mrs. Don-o]

Please write your bishop. Or better yet, camp out at his door.

Please also forward this to any who might be interested.

[heterosupremacist]

Excellent. Please post his reply to you.

[STJPII]

Well written letter; strong, succinct and candid in a manner which is desperately needed today. I suspect your soul yearns for a Catherine of Sienna for our time.

[G Larry]

2 Thessalonians 2:11-12 Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (RSVCE)
“11 Therefore God sends upon them a strong delusion, to make them believe what is false, 12 so that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.”

CCC 677 The Church’s ultimate trial

The Church will enter the glory of the kingdom only through this final Passover, when she will follow her Lord in his death and Resurrection.578

The kingdom will be fulfilled, then, not by a historic triumph of the Church through a progressive ascendancy*,

but only by God’s victory over the final unleashing of evil, which will cause his Bride to come down from heaven.579 God’s triumph over the revolt of evil will take the form of the Last Judgment after the final cosmic upheaval of this passing world.580

progressive ascendancy* (examples)

Remarried receiving the Eucharist

Homosexuality embraced

Population Control

False Ecumenism

Abortion not condemned

Mercy Killing embraced

[livius]

Good for you for writing to him. I was impressed by his article in First Things. Occasionally, at the beginning, he was inclined to be a little too complaisant with Francis’ buffoonery, mostly I think because he didn’t want to attract the attention of Francis who no doubt already hated him for being orthodox. But he’s emerging as a strong voice now, and I am very thankful for this!

[unixfox]

You did good.

[sitetest]

I’ve found the archbishop to be a personable correspondent. I’d be interested in any reply.

[Steve_Seattle]

I guess it varies from place to place, but I recently received my quarterly magazine from my old Catholic high school (I graduated in 1968). The magazine seemed to have moved - somewhat abruptly - into a post-Catholic, secular SJW, pro-gay, frame of mind.

My 50th anniversary is coming up this summer, and I'm thinking of not going. Why pay homage to something that is no longer what it was intended to be?

[ebb tide]

Great letter. Thank-you for your tireless efforts.

[Cincinnatus.45-70]

Thanks!

[faithhopecharity]

thanks.
looks good.
i have two issues with the current Poope...
1. some of the changes he’s trying to make are directly anti-Biblical, imho
and
2. some of the ways he appears to go about his desired changes... seem, well, of questionable validity themselves.

one example....

Homosexual conduct is expressly prohibited by The Boss, several times in the Bible. Indeed, it calls for the death penalty ... certainly we are all human and can err...but the Poope needs to teach the holy writ and certainly not just make lovey-dovey platitudinous statements WHILE LEAVING OUT any call for repentance or effort at overcoming. What Poope Francis has done is both anti-Biblical AND, imho, an improper way of proceeding to even discuss the topic
(as it leaves the parishioners thinking that they have the church’s blessing to just keep, well, bumping and grinding

the sacraments for divorcees issue....
I don’t personally get myself too involved in this one, but....the church has had the same position on this for many years. centuries. IF the Poope thinks that position should be changed, he COULD simply cite the Matthew verses (5:32, Sermon on the Mount no less) over the Mark/Luke ones. Jesus allowed for the more-or-less then- mainstream Jewish law exceptions permitting divorce in, yes still limited circucmstances. A layperson like Yours Truly could write a quite respectable epistle arguing that the Church should move to Jesus’ teaching in Matthew on this subject. So, why couldn’t Poope. ({Please nobody flame me, I am NOT advocating any change in RCC doctrine! I am merely trying to point out that the Poope had a legitimate way to advance his position honestly, based on a direct statement of Jesus....but instead he’s been dodging around causing tons of unnecessary confusion, apparently intentionally. The church is not supposed to be confusion, 1 Cor. 14:33
and certainly the poope should not be creating and pulmugating confusion, imho.

but then again, i have no say in any of this. I get the sense tho, that your letter is very helpful. thanks

[advertising guy]

Off topic but how is your soldier son doing ?

[EDINVA]

I would encourage you to go and to speak with your contemporaries about what they see happening, and what, if anything, they would like to see done about the changes that have taken place and what they might be willing to do about it.

[G Larry]

Does this mean AB Chaput won’t be among the forthcoming 15 Cardinals to be announced?

[ebb tide]

I doubt it. And I also doubt Bishop Athanasius Schneider will be elevated to the college of cardinals. They’re both too “Catholic” for Bergoglio.