Wednesday, November 30th, 2011
CMR reports that Raymond Card. Burke has harsh words for DHHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius: “To the degree to which (Sebelius) proclaims herself to be a practicing Catholic, she is very wrong,” said Cardinal Burke. He sees it as “simply incomprehensible” for a Catholic to “support the kind of measures that she is supporting.” Burke’s comments […]
Monday, November 28th, 2011
With perfect timing, today’s gospel reading is the story of the centurion: When Jesus entered Capernaum,a centurion approached him and appealed to him, saying,”Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, suffering dreadfully.”He said to him, “I will come and cure him.”The centurion said in reply,”Lord, I am not worthy to have you enter under […]
Saturday, November 26th, 2011
This is the day that the critics have dreaded—the day when their doomsaying is proved wrong. In my parish, we have spent the last month adding parts from the new translation gradually, and everyone has kept calm and carried on. On Thanksgiving, with the house half full, we had a dry run of sorts with […]
Wednesday, November 23rd, 2011
On this day before thanksgiving, we give thanks for St. Clement, fourth Pope and third successor of St. Peter. Let’s read today’s collect in the corrected translation, as we’ll hear it a year hence: “Almighty ever-living God, who are wonderful in the virtue of all your Saints, grant us joy in the yearly commemoration of […]
Tuesday, November 22nd, 2011
Last month, I had my say about the decisions by Bishops Olmsted (Phoenix) and Morlino (Madison-Wisconsin) to restrict the distribution of the chalice to the laity. I thought it was an unfortunate move. Well, +Olmsted has reversed course, which is good; unfortunately, the Arizona Republic‘s report is problematic. Let’s dig straight in, with my emphases and […]
Saturday, November 12th, 2011
A 1977 article urging communion in the hand on the basis (inter alia) that it is “dignified” made me think about the dignity of the Eucharist. I thought about how very dignified Peter must have felt as Jesus washed his feet, and how dignified Jesus must have felt as he washed Judas’ feet. I thought […]
Thursday, November 10th, 2011
At a recent class on the corrected translation, there was some discussion of whether altar bells would make a comeback; my parish doesn’t use them, and while some people are very happy about that, there are others who would prefer, often with equal passion, to have them back. I am firmly on the side of […]
Tuesday, November 1st, 2011
St. Paul’s first letter to the Thessalonians is the oldest writing of the New Testament, predating the gospels by decades and the canon of the New Testament by centuries. It is thus interesting to encounter, as we do in Sunday’s second reading: [I] give thanks to God unceasingly, that, in receiving the word of God […]