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A Young Irishman Smiles at Traditionis CustodesI popped into my parish church today. I haven’t been there in quite some time; nearly a decade in fact.The church has a specific meaning to me; it’s where my family are buried, it’s where I was baptized and received the sacraments. Above the door stands a stone commemorating my great, great, great grandfather who, in 1818 paid for its construction; the first church where we could worship after the two centuries-long persecution of the Reformation.Advertisement - Continue Reading BelowFamily tradition says that he was awarded the honour of ringing the Angelus bell for...

What if the Pre-Vatican II Popes Were Actually Right? Whether we think of him as an anti-pope or merely one of the the worst popes in history, the fact remains that Francis has arrogated to himself a power that no pope can ever have: to reshape the Holy Catholic Church to fit the anti-Catholic objectives of the globalists. Even if we consider him to be far worse than his immediate predecessors, though, we have to look back to the pre-Vatican II popes if we want to find Successors of Peter who assiduously defended the Mystical Body of Christ. And...

First Week in Ordinary Time Mark 1:14-20 Friends, our Gospel today is Jesus’ inaugural address, setting the tone for the whole of his preaching. Mark tells us that he was proclaiming the Good News of God, and that this was “the time of fulfillment.” Something was being brought to completion. What was it? It was everything that the Old Testament had spoken of. Jesus gathered up in his person everything that Israel was about—and this is why his presence was so compelling and why following him was of paramount importance. This is why he says, “Repent, and believe in the...

“What the Fathers and Saints valued and defended, we also feel called to value and defend”: Interview with Dr. Joseph Shaw The following interview first appeared in the pages of the latest issue (no. 15, Winter 2021) of Calx Mariae, a beautiful journal published by Voice of the Family. Rorate Caeli is grateful for VOTF's permission to republish it here for the benefit of our readers, whom I would encourage to subscribe to the print publication. Calx Mariae: Congratulations on your election as President of the Una Voce Federation. For people who don’t know about the Federation how would...

Crusade: Our Response to Traditionis CustodesIn the history of the crusading movement we can observe certain factors which contributed to success or failure, whether in the early crusades of the so-called “Byzantine Empire,” or in the Reconquista, the Eastern Crusades and the Northern Crusades of Western Christendom.[1] One of these factors is rootedness about which I spoke last week.The other critical factor is freedom from earthly attachments. In the various crusading movements, those crusaders which were truly free from worldly attachments succeeded in their war against the enemies of Holy Church. But those that fell into fighting flesh and blood,...

Iowa diocese publishes deacon’s pro-LGBT story about gender-confused son ‘Lexi’ The deacon cited his formation in the diaconate as having provided him with some of the principles that led him to accept his son’s lifestyle. Mon Jan 3, 2022 - 1:27 pm ESTMon Jan 3, 2022 - 2:29 pm EST DAVENPORT, Iowa (LifeSiteNews) – A Catholic diocesan newspaper has been promoting transgenderism in the Church. The Catholic Messenger, the newspaper for the Diocese of Davenport, Iowa, displayed the sexual transformation of a St. Petersburg, Florida deacon’s son in the second of a series of articles seeking to illustrate “A Pastoral...

Dear Cardinal Cupich: At least obey the rubrics of the Novus Ordo Mass Dear Cardinal Cupich:I write to you as a Catholic priest on the feast of St. Thomas Becket, who is commemorated in the Octave of Christmas. St. Thomas Becket was certainly a complex man, but in the end—and the end is ultimately important to us all-- how he died so violently in the Cathedral at Canterbury at the hands of assassins driven to that terrible deed by King Henry II, made him a saint, not by a proclamation from Rome, but rather because of the “common” Catholics...

Moscow Patriarchate Signs Death Certificate for Conciliar Ecumenism The number two of the Russian Orthodox Church reacted, on December 12, 2021, on the Rossiya-24 channel, to the remarks made, on December 6, by Pope Francis on the plane back from Greece to Rome.The Sovereign Pontiff then declared: “I am ready to go to Moscow… My meeting with Patriarch Kirill is on the horizon.”Without confirming or denying the prospect of a meeting at the highest level between the Successor of Peter and the head of the Russian Church - which would be the second in the current pontificate - Metropolitan...

[Catholic Caucus] Cardinal Blase Cupich publishes policy implementing Traditionis custodesShortly after the Congregation for Divine Worship responded to questions regarding Pope Francis' Motu propio, Cardinal Cupich implements a policy that goes into effect 25 January -- an opportunity to express the unity of the Church and to offer a 'concrete manifestation of the acceptance of the Council's teaching'.by Sr Bernadette Mary Reis, fspJust two days after Christmas, on the Feast of St John the Evangelist, Cardinal Blase Cupich of Chicago, has issued a policy governing the celebration of the pre-Vatican rites in that Archdiocese. This policy follows the 18 December...

[Catholic Caucus] Archbishop Roche on ‘Traditionis Custodes’ and Its Guidelines: ‘The Liturgical Possibilities Are in Place’The prefect for the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments discussed the implementation of the guidelines regarding the July apostolic letter on the Traditional Latin Mass.VATICAN CITY — The promotion of the traditional liturgy has been “curtailed but does not characterize discrimination,” Archbishop Arthur Roche has said in Dec. 22 comments to the Register. “What is important to realize now is that the Holy Father has spoken,” the prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments...

The Second Atomic Bomb Has Exploded: CDW Issues Directives Banning Traditional Confirmations and Ordinations, Decrees the End of Ecclesia Dei CommunitiesCFN will hold a LIVE Q&A Session on this topic tonight, December 18, at 8:00 PM Eastern Time. Join us with your questions!The predicted document of the Congregation for Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments (CDW) extending the totalitarian measures against the Traditional Latin Mass has been published. It takes the form of a letter from Archbishop Arthur Roche, the Congregation’s Prefect, and a series of responses to dubia (questions) it says are a consolidation of questions submitted by...

Pope Francis’ new foundation appears to have more in common with French Revolution than with CatholicismReferences to God, the Holy Trinity, Our Lord Jesus Christ, and His Beloved Mother are totally absent from this catalogue of the new foundation's politically correct 'values,' among which environmentalist concerns and 'fraternity between believers and non-believers are, of course, paramount. VATICAN CITY (LifeSiteNews) — A “Fratelli tutti Foundation” attached to Saint Peter’s Basilica in Rome was launched on Wednesday by Pope Francis who signed a decree that officially established the new entity. It aims at encouraging “fraternity and dialogue” among pilgrims and tourists visiting...

[Catholic Caucus] Archbishop Roche and Cardinal Braz de Aviz Refuse to Be Drawn on ‘Traditionis Custodes’ Application Document o try to get authoritative confirmation on the rumoured instruction about the application of Pope Francis’ motu proprio Traditionis Custodes, today I contacted the heads of two dicasteries most likely involved in issuing the document — Archbishop Arthur Roche, prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, and Cardinal Joao Braz de Aviz, prefect of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life.As they both had declined to respond to questions I had...

[Catholic Caucus] Traditionis InimicosCan we not see here the utter breakdown of the hyper-papalism that makes the pope a mortal god, a divine oracle, who gets to rewrite liturgy, theology, morals, and even the record of history in pursuit of ideology? Only twice before have I contrived an editorial title in my dilettantish Latin, both of which concerned the liturgy. The first was the October 2010 sub-title: "Weapon of Mass Destruction: Missa bugniniensis delenda est"(Buginini’s Mass must be destroyed). Those were the days when the Novus Ordo had a monopoly on the WMD moniker — before the Papacy of Mass...

[Catholic Caucus] URGENT - EXCLUSIVE - “The Roche Christmas Massacre”: CDW Instruction on Traditionis Custodes to be issued next week RORATE has learned, and can confirm, that the instruction of the Congregation for Divine Worship (Prefect: Archbishop Arthur Roche) on the application of the motu proprio Traditionis Custodes is to be published next week. (Unless some extraordinary measure prevents the publication of the already approved text.)The instruction will try (among other things) to impose over the global Church, by violent and illegitimate will of the legislator, the blueprint established for the Diocese of Rome by its Cardinal Vicar months...

[Catholic Caucus] Traditional Catholics Sound Alarm As Rome Suppresses Most Old Rite SacramentsThey contend the Oct. 7 pastoral instruction forbidding six of the seven sacraments celebrated according to the extraordinary form is a violation of canon law and will cause spiritual harm.ROME — Canon lawyers and experts in the traditional liturgy have warned that a pastoral instruction issued by the Diocese of Rome that bans traditional communities and priests from celebrating all the sacraments with the exception of the Eucharist according to the traditional form of the Roman Rite is unlawful and will harm souls if allowed to continue.The guidelines,...

[Catholic Caucus] Why We Should Not Support Altar GirlsFor hundreds of years, the ability to serve at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass has brought about countless priestly vocations for the young men privileged to serve. In the words of the Archbishop of Westminster, Bernard Cardinal Griffen:“To serve at the altar, as to sing in the choir, is next to the priesthood the highest privilege which a human can enjoy. He represents the faithful and takes a most intimate part in the rich treasures of the Church’s liturgy and ceremonial. Those sacred ceremonies should be carried out with devotion, dignity,...

Don’t be afraid to doubt your faith: Pope to young peopleWe are Christians not out of duty, but out of beauty, says Pope FrancisIn Pope Francis’ last speech during his trip to Cyprus and Greece, the Holy Father addressed the concerns of young people. He responded to their testimonies, speaking on issues such as social media use, and the courage to dream in a complex world with uncertain futures.He also gave advice on what to do when doubts against faith arise, or are recurring.“I want to say to you and to everyone here: don’t be afraid of doubts, because they...

The Predictably Putrid Fruits of Francis’s Ecumenism A Pew Research Center survey of 6,485 U.S. adults from September 20-26, 2021 (Few Americans Blame God or Say Faith Has Been Shaken Amid Pandemic, Other Tragedies) yielded further evidence that the fruits of Vatican II’s ecumenical experiment have been putrid. The headline findings from the survey included the following:Catholics twice as likely as Protestants to say people who don’t believe in God can go to heaven Most Catholics, but not most Protestants, say some non-Christian religions can lead to eternal lifeDetails of the survey indicate that only 16% of Catholics surveyed...

[Catholic Caucus] As a cardinal, Pope Benedict reportedly called Marcel Lefebvre ‘the most important bishop of the 20th century’LifeSiteNews was able to obtain a written recollection of these words by the German cardinal from one of the two priests present at that meeting in the Palazzo di San Uffizio. VATICAN CITY (LifeSiteNews) — In the summer of 2003, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, the future Pope Benedict XVI, reportedly told two priests in a private audience that he considered Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, the founder of the priestly Society of St. Pius X, to be “the most important bishop of the 20th century...