Posted on 12/27/2019 4:31:57 PM PST by ebb tide
ROME (ChurchMilitant) - The rise of Catholic traditionalism in Latin America, rooted in the Latin Mass, is rapidly reversing the long march of progressivism and Protestantism.
"We see that traditionally oriented churches and seminaries are increasingly full, especially with young people, while those of progressive orientation, increasingly empty," Juan Migel Montes, director of Tradition, Family and Property (TFP), Rome, told Church Militant.
"Catholic traditionalism is back in fashion," an upbeat Montes said. "This explains the defeat the Left is suffering in ballot boxes everywhere as the social, political and cultural realities linked to a traditional idea of Catholicism are multiplying everywhere."
"In Rome, as in the main South American dioceses of Rio, São Paolo, Buenos Aires, Bogota, Lima and Santiago, Masses in the Vetus Ordo [Old Rite] are mushrooming," he said. "They are teeming with boys and girls and young families. They do not come across to me as sour people or, according to a certain caricature." Montes was alluding to Pope Francis' Christmas address to the Curia, in which many believed he decried traditionalist Catholics as "rigid" and "unbalanced."
Traditionally oriented churches are increasingly full, especially with young people, while those of progressive orientation are increasingly empty.Tweet
"On the contrary, I see them as very enthusiastic and very eager to expand their range of influence among their peers. In fact, I continually see new faces in religious ceremonies. This motivates me to hope well for the future," Montes added.
The Rome bureau chief of TFP, an organization founded by Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira in Brazil in 1960, attributed the leftists' political defeats and some resulting violence and unlawfulness — as has occurred in Venezuela — to the "undoubted growth of traditionalist Catholicism in South America, especially among young people."
A Tridentine rite parish in Belem, Brazil
In a frontpage article with the Italian newspaper Il Giornale, Montes elaborated on the spurt in the Catholic traditionalist movement:
Right-leaning blogs are multiplying, animated by young and very young people, with millions of followers. New political and cultural groups of conservative orientation are arising. Online conferences of traditionalist orientation are gaining notoriety. Stores of modest clothing are spreading, in open contrast to today's immoral or extravagant fashions. After decades of virtual cultural monopoly of the Left, more and more books are being published and more and more conferences in the center-right area are being held. Sometimes the phenomenon can even be dazzling. For example, polls show 37% of Brazilians in favor of the restoration of the Brazilian monarchy.
Church Militant asked if the Amazon Synod might actually provoke an even greater growth of traditional Catholicism. Montes said that, ironically, the advance of progressivism in the Church — as seen in the so-called "Indian theology" that bears a marxist footprint and undergirded veneration of Pachamama idols — is serving to open the eyes of many people to the depth of the crisis in the Church.
Montes, in fact, attributes the ascendancy of Protestantism to a long history of "preaching from the pulpits, with different accents, of liberation theology. The re-emergence of traditionalism among the faithful," he said, is likely the "result of the 'unintended consequences of intentional actions,' which ordinary people mock with the expression 'the devil makes pots but not lids.'"
Montes also noted that in one of Pope Benedict XVI's trips to Brazil, the pontiff explicitly identified the sociological turn of preaching in the Catholic Church — specifically liberation theology — as the reason why countless Catholics defected to neo-Protestantism. Montes quoted TIME magazine: "The Catholic Church has made the option for the poor, and the poor have made the option for the evangelicals and the pentecostals."
This phenomenon does not occur in traditionalist Catholic circles, where evangelization adheres to the precept of Our Lord to "seek first the kingdom of Heaven and all these things shall be granted unto you," Montes explained. Despite having differing "liturgical sensitivity," he said numerous groups within the Church today "move decisively toward the search for tradition" in every field of life:
Procession with the Blessed Sacrament
[In] the life of piety they practice traditional devotions, especially the Marian one, and are not afraid of introducing themselves for what they are, conservative Catholics, even in the way they dress. In politics, they are increasingly demanding from candidates ... the non-negotiable principles preached by Benedict XVI, that is, the defense of life from conception to natural death, the family founded on the union of two people of different sex and the inviolable right of parents to choose education for their children.
Faithful Catholics can correct the drift occurring within the Church, Montes emphasized, through "forms of devotion, prayer and Catholic witness, in harmony with the traditional Magisterium of the Church — forms that were gradually abandoned and sometimes explicitly denied."
In September, Bp. José Luis Azcona, bishop emeritus of the Marajó Prelature in the Amazon area of Belém do Pará, Brazil, sounded the alarm: "The Amazon, at least the Brazilian part of it, is no longer Catholic," because it has a Pentecostal majority that, in some regions, "reaches 80%."
"Under the pretext of 'intercultural dialogue,' Catholic missionaries no longer evangelize or baptize," he lamented. "However, evangelicals do evangelize and work very hard indeed. While Catholic missionaries talk to Indians about 'deforestation,' 'climate change' and 'integral ecology,' Protestant pastors visit their communities with Bible in hand."
Gabriel Klautau Miléo, creator of the Salve Roma website, confirms the recoveries made by Catholic traditionalism. On Twitter, he posts pictures of Latin Mass churches filled with young people.
"All the photos ... were taken in Belém do Pará, one of the main urban centers of the Amazon region," he writes. "Several friends of mine and their families have returned to Catholicism by [re-]discovering the traditional rite of the Church."
"This is what the Amazon really needs," he notes. "We already have the apostolate of the Tridentine Mass in the two main urban centers of the Brazilian Amazon [Belém and Manaus] and in a city in the interior of the state of Pará [Santarém]."
Archbishop Alberto Taveira Correa, who heads the archdiocese of Belém do Pará, confirms that in his 10 years as archbishop, he can testify to the "growth in vocations" in his own diocese and others.
The Amazon, at least the Brazilian part of it, is no longer Catholic because it has a Pentecostal majority that, in some regions, reaches 80%. Tweet
Brazil's traditionalist Catholic Instituto Bom Pastor (Good Shepherd Institute) is also reporting a boom in vocations, as its "members want to exercise the priesthood in the doctrinal and liturgical Tradition of the Holy Roman Catholic Church, faithful to the infallible Magisterium of the Church with the exclusive use of the Gregorian liturgy in the worthy celebration of the Holy Mysteries."
Montes agrees it is impossible to predict the immediate future. "However, the rise of a mighty movement in traditional Catholic public opinion allows us to have many hopes," he affirms. "These hopes are also based on the promises of Our Lady who, in Fatima, proclaimed the triumph of her Immaculate Heart, after a period of tribulation."
Are you using the Law to justify yourself?
That is a roadmap straight to Lourdes and relics of Baby Jesus’s first haircut. It’s a one way road to disaster.
I'm merely pointing out the inconsistencies of those who claim to believe that they are saved by Scripture alone but who also select those practices put in place by the Catholic Church which suit them (while at the same time deriding that same Catholic Church).
The opposite.
Christ Himself kept the Jewish Sabbath; He had multiple run-ins with the Scribes and Pharisees on this day, who took issue with His performing miracles on that day. Despite having had ample opportunity, He never once stated that the Sabbath was no longer binding
Christ came to fulfill prophecy as a Jew, born under the Law. To be the perfect sacrifice and to pay the sins of others, He couldn't have sin of His own.
Of course, Christ kept the Sabbath, Jews were commanded as part of the covenant to keep the Sabbath.
If our interpretation of Scripture allows us to reach a conclusion by considering what it doesn't say, we could all read the Bible and come up with a million different understandings of what it actually meant.
Let's turn to the Apostles and see what they told Gentiles (non-Jews) about keeping the Law...
Acts 1515 Some men came down from Judea and began teaching the brethren, “Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.” 2 And when Paul and Barnabas had [a]great dissension and debate with them, the brethren determined that Paul and Barnabas and some others of them should go up to Jerusalem to the apostles and elders concerning this issue. 3 Therefore, being sent on their way by the church, they were passing through both Phoenicia and Samaria, describing in detail the conversion of the Gentiles, and were bringing great joy to all the brethren. 4 When they arrived at Jerusalem, they were received by the church and the apostles and the elders, and they reported all that God had done with them. 5 But some of the sect of the Pharisees who had believed stood up, saying, “It is necessary to circumcise them and to direct them to observe the Law of Moses.”
6 The apostles and the elders came together to [b]look into this [c]matter. 7 After there had been much debate, Peter stood up and said to them, “Brethren, you know that [d]in the early days God made a choice among you, that by my mouth the Gentiles would hear the word of the gospel and believe. 8 And God, who knows the heart, testified to them giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He also did to us; 9 and He made no distinction between us and them, cleansing their hearts by faith. 10 Now therefore why do you put God to the test by placing upon the neck of the disciples a yoke which neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear? 11 But we believe that we are saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, in the same way as they also are.”
12 All the people kept silent, and they were listening to Barnabas and Paul as they were relating what signs and wonders God had done through them among the Gentiles.
13 After they had stopped speaking, [e]James answered, saying, “Brethren, listen to me. 14 Simeon has related how God first concerned Himself about taking from among the Gentiles a people for His name. 15 With this the words of the Prophets agree, just as it is written,
16 ‘After these things I will return, And I will rebuild the [f]tabernacle of David which has fallen, And I will rebuild its ruins, And I will restore it, 17 So that the rest of [g]mankind may seek the Lord, And all the Gentiles [h]who are called by My name,’ 18 Says the Lord, who [i]makes these things known from long ago.
19 Therefore it is my judgment that we do not trouble those who are turning to God from among the Gentiles, 20 but that we write to them that they abstain from [j]things contaminated by idols and from fornication and from what is strangled and from blood. 21 For Moses from ancient generations has in every city those who preach him, since [k]he is read in the synagogues every Sabbath.” 22 Then it seemed good to the apostles and the elders, with the whole church, to choose men from among them to send to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas—Judas called Barsabbas, and Silas, leading men among the brethren, 23 and they [l]sent this letter by them,
“The apostles and the brethren who are elders, to the brethren in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia who are from the Gentiles, greetings. 24 “Since we have heard that some [m]of our number to whom we gave no instruction have disturbed you with their words, unsettling your souls, 25 it seemed good to us, having [n]become of one mind, to select men to send to you with our beloved Barnabas and Paul, 26 men who have [o]risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. 27 “Therefore we have sent Judas and Silas, who themselves will also report the same things by word of mouth. 28 “For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to lay upon you no greater burden than these essentials: 29 that you abstain from things sacrificed to idols and from blood and from things strangled and from fornication; [p]if you keep yourselves free from such things, you will do well. Farewell.”30 So when they were sent away, they went down to Antioch; and having gathered the [q]congregation together, they delivered the letter. 31 When they had read it, they rejoiced because of its [r]encouragement. 32 Judas and Silas, also being prophets themselves, [s]encouraged and strengthened the brethren with a lengthy message. 33 After they had spent time there, they were sent away from the brethren in peace to those who had sent them out. 34 [[t]But it seemed good to Silas to remain there.] 35 But Paul and Barnabas stayed in Antioch, teaching and preaching with many others also, the word of the Lord.
Scripture tells us Gentile believers were not bound by Moses' teachings of the Law - It was the Holy Spirit and the Apostles who sent this message.
That said, there is nothing about any pronouncement of the roman church that is binding on any believer. There is no authority at Rome over believers. For these reasons and the previous Scripture I cited, your argument about the Sabbath falls flat once you leave the walls of Rome.
best
“ those who claim to believe that they are saved by Scripture alone”
No one claims that captn
Show me a statement where any one of the Apostles states that they are no longer obliged to rest on the seventh day.
(And don't pull the Protestant stunt of citing a broad quote from Scripture that doesn't mention the actual subject matter.)
You are not telling the truth or you weren’t listening. EVERY Catholic Mass has the Gospel read and a New Testament reading and and Old Testament reading and a Psalms sung.
Give me a break! You are not aware all Christianity was Catholic in Paul’s day.
Not a single one of those is a presentation of the Gospel Message that saves.
"It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all." (I Timothy 1:15)
The Gospel Message is the plan of Salvation.
I did not say no scripture is read. I did not say a passage from Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John was read.
Catholicism began when people departed from truth and incorporated pagan practices and beliefs - later than 150AD
It’s because too many self righteous like you tear down the Catholic Church instead of being tolerant of Catholicism. We have to waste time defending it. .
Acts 15 is not vague. It is clear. Gentile believers were not under the Law. Peter, Paul and the other Apostles stated that this message was from the Holy Spirit and from them.
You are very misinformed and need to try a Catholic mass sometime to hear the readings. Someone misinformed you an out works and grace in the Catholic Church.
It is the opposite for every believer, myself included.
We have no self-righteousness at all.
It is why we need a Savior.
Catholics need to be saved as well, or Christ came for no purpose.
Instead of defending catholicism, why not embrace Christ and salvation??
I beg to differ sister. We read it Every Mass and the priests homily talks about it.
I can’t believe you would judge Catholics like that. You apparently don’t have tolerance of another Christian religion.
I find your story hard to believe. In the 80s Mass had the Liturgy of the Word
The Gospel is the main reading at every Catholic Mass as well as OT and NT and Psalms. Quit spreading false information about Catholics. You’re never going to convert Catholics on threads so stop trying to be high and mighty on these threads
Yes, you already said that, and I already pointed out that I was not talking about reading books of the Bible. I'm guessing you have no idea what the plan of salvation - The Gospel - is, or you would not make this mistake.
Quit spreading false information about Catholics.
I told the truth. You simply don't like it. Noted.
You’re never going to convert Catholics on threads so stop trying to be high and mighty on these threads
Only God can open hearts - especially of the religious, who are closed to truth. All we can do is be faithful to speak.
You can take Acts 15 to justify anything. ("Well, the old law no longer applies and the Apostles never said you can't kill somebody, so it's all good, as long as you believe that you're "saved".). /s)
You are confused then because we Catholics have a Gospel reading from MATTHEW, MARK, LUKE, or JOHN
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