Calgary's Bishop Fred Henry is now known as Canada's most outspokenly pro-life and pro-family bishop.
That's a real transformation even regarding pro-life. After all he was one of the six bishops who concelebrated the Mass for the pro-abortion March of Women in 2000.
"six Catholic Bishops participated in a Mass for the feminist march at Notre Dame Cathedral. The bishops included Ottawa Archbishop Marcel Gervais, Calgary Bishop Fred Henry, London Bishop John Sherlock, Moncton's Bishop Ernest Leger, Edmonston NB's Bishop Francois Thibodeau, and Sault Ste Marie's Paul-Andre Durocher."
Tuesday, December 19, 2006
All about New Toronto Archbishop Tom Collins
In addition to the piece over at LifeSite,
there's the fact that he tried to have a Fraternity priest come to Edmonton from Nebraska
also there's this piece of old gold from the WCR
Collins works closely with Legionaries
Group banned in Minneapolis but accepted in Edmonton
Western Catholic Reporter/January 31, 2005
By Ramon Gonzalez
While barred by the archbishop of St. Paul-Minneapolis, the Legionaries of Christ have a close relationship with the archbishop of Edmonton.
Archbishop Thomas Collins says he meets regularly with the Legionaries' lay associate movement, Regnum Christi, and said the group is doing good work in the archdiocese.
"The Regnum Christi people have been most cooperative; very, very cooperative. And they are very zealous, active parishioners and I have great admiration for their work" Collins said in an interview.
Late last year Archbishop Harry Flynn of St. Paul-Minneapolis barred the Legionaries of Christ from his archdiocese saying they were encouraging a "parallel church." He also instructed parish heads to keep Regnum Christi "completely separate from all activities of the parishes and the archdiocese."
Collins called the Legionaries "a religious order very much approved by the holy father." The archdiocese doesn't have any Legionary priests but a few dozen members of Regnum Christi are involved in "various apostolic activities."
"I think they are doing very good work. I've tried to work together very closely with both the Legionaries' representative and also with the local Regnum Christi people to be sure that they are connected into the local Church, the local parish. When that doesn't happen there can be very real problems."
Collins thinks what happened in the St. Paul-Minnesota Archdiocese "is a very real possibility not only for Regnum Christi but any other spiritual group."
"And so in order to avoid that I have had numerous meetings with the leadership and the members of many different spiritual groups, including Regnum Christi, in order to maintain that close contact," he said.
Local Regnum Christi members hold retreats for their members, have a youth association and run catechetical programs.
"I must say they have been very good in letting me know what goes on in terms of their activities in the archdiocese as a whole," Collins said.
He said the Legionary priest responsible for the local Regnum Christi group always asks for his permission before visiting. The priest comes regularly to run retreats and to work with the lay movement in their activities.
Last year Collins met with every member of Regnum Christi and meets regularly with the group's leadership. He also meets regularly with Opus Dei and the charismatic renewal.
"It would be a terrible thing if the most fervent Catholics were all in these separate little groups. But I've found that the local members of Regnum Christi and the charismatic renewal and Opus Dei and all these various other groups have a great desire to work together with the local Church."
Collins would like to have "a great meeting" of the various spiritual organizations operating in the archdiocese "so they get to meet one another and so that they can appreciate what they are all doing and coordinate and work together with the local parish."
He said he has asked several of these groups, including Regnum Christi, to speak to the Council of Priests and perhaps to the Archdiocesan Pastoral Council "so that they are drawn into the life of the archdiocese and the parishes."
A Mexican priest, Father Marcial Maciel Degollado, founded the Legionaries in 1941, and it has grown to include about 500 priests and 2,500 seminarians, who work in more than 20 countries. The Regnum Christi movement has tens of thousands of members around the world, most of them lay men and women.
there's the fact that he tried to have a Fraternity priest come to Edmonton from Nebraska
also there's this piece of old gold from the WCR
Collins works closely with Legionaries
Group banned in Minneapolis but accepted in Edmonton
Western Catholic Reporter/January 31, 2005
By Ramon Gonzalez
While barred by the archbishop of St. Paul-Minneapolis, the Legionaries of Christ have a close relationship with the archbishop of Edmonton.
Archbishop Thomas Collins says he meets regularly with the Legionaries' lay associate movement, Regnum Christi, and said the group is doing good work in the archdiocese.
"The Regnum Christi people have been most cooperative; very, very cooperative. And they are very zealous, active parishioners and I have great admiration for their work" Collins said in an interview.
Late last year Archbishop Harry Flynn of St. Paul-Minneapolis barred the Legionaries of Christ from his archdiocese saying they were encouraging a "parallel church." He also instructed parish heads to keep Regnum Christi "completely separate from all activities of the parishes and the archdiocese."
Collins called the Legionaries "a religious order very much approved by the holy father." The archdiocese doesn't have any Legionary priests but a few dozen members of Regnum Christi are involved in "various apostolic activities."
"I think they are doing very good work. I've tried to work together very closely with both the Legionaries' representative and also with the local Regnum Christi people to be sure that they are connected into the local Church, the local parish. When that doesn't happen there can be very real problems."
Collins thinks what happened in the St. Paul-Minnesota Archdiocese "is a very real possibility not only for Regnum Christi but any other spiritual group."
"And so in order to avoid that I have had numerous meetings with the leadership and the members of many different spiritual groups, including Regnum Christi, in order to maintain that close contact," he said.
Local Regnum Christi members hold retreats for their members, have a youth association and run catechetical programs.
"I must say they have been very good in letting me know what goes on in terms of their activities in the archdiocese as a whole," Collins said.
He said the Legionary priest responsible for the local Regnum Christi group always asks for his permission before visiting. The priest comes regularly to run retreats and to work with the lay movement in their activities.
Last year Collins met with every member of Regnum Christi and meets regularly with the group's leadership. He also meets regularly with Opus Dei and the charismatic renewal.
"It would be a terrible thing if the most fervent Catholics were all in these separate little groups. But I've found that the local members of Regnum Christi and the charismatic renewal and Opus Dei and all these various other groups have a great desire to work together with the local Church."
Collins would like to have "a great meeting" of the various spiritual organizations operating in the archdiocese "so they get to meet one another and so that they can appreciate what they are all doing and coordinate and work together with the local parish."
He said he has asked several of these groups, including Regnum Christi, to speak to the Council of Priests and perhaps to the Archdiocesan Pastoral Council "so that they are drawn into the life of the archdiocese and the parishes."
A Mexican priest, Father Marcial Maciel Degollado, founded the Legionaries in 1941, and it has grown to include about 500 priests and 2,500 seminarians, who work in more than 20 countries. The Regnum Christi movement has tens of thousands of members around the world, most of them lay men and women.
Thursday, December 14, 2006
Pronouncement from Pope liberalizing Tridentine Mass coming soon
now this from Amy over at Open Book is very interesting . . .
The publication of the Motu Proprio on the part of the Pope which will liberalise the celebration of the Mass in Latin according to the missal of Saint Pius V is close` Cardinal Jorge Arturo Medina Estevez, member of the Commission Ecclesia Dei which this morning met to discuss the liberalisation of the Mass in Latin confirmed this. ” We have studied the document calmly” the cardinal affirmed. ” We have discussed together for more than four hours and have made some corrections to the text of the Motu Proprio” The next move belongs to Cardinal Dario Castrillon Hoyos ( president of the commission) who will present the text to Benedict XVI. Perhaps, added Medina, there will be another meeting of the Ecclesia Dei commission. Another member of the body, the Cardinal of Lyon, Jean Pierre Ricard did not want to make any comment, emphasising that he is “bound by the pontifical secret”
Cardinal Medina Estevez, the former prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship, is a member of the Ecclesia Dei Commission, which was set up in 1988 to supervise Vatican relations with traditionalist Catholics. He confirmed that the group’s December 12 meeting was dedicated entirely to a discussion of a papal initiative that will allow more liberal use of the Tridentine rite.
The cardinal told the Roman news agency I Media that the results of today’s discussions would be presented to the Holy Father by Cardinal Dario Castrillon Hoyos, the chairman of the Ecclesia Dei commission. He suggested that the Pope might then schedule publication of the document. Cardinal Medina Estevez indicated that he did not anticipate further discussion of the matter by the Ecclesia Dei commission.
The publication of the Motu Proprio on the part of the Pope which will liberalise the celebration of the Mass in Latin according to the missal of Saint Pius V is close` Cardinal Jorge Arturo Medina Estevez, member of the Commission Ecclesia Dei which this morning met to discuss the liberalisation of the Mass in Latin confirmed this. ” We have studied the document calmly” the cardinal affirmed. ” We have discussed together for more than four hours and have made some corrections to the text of the Motu Proprio” The next move belongs to Cardinal Dario Castrillon Hoyos ( president of the commission) who will present the text to Benedict XVI. Perhaps, added Medina, there will be another meeting of the Ecclesia Dei commission. Another member of the body, the Cardinal of Lyon, Jean Pierre Ricard did not want to make any comment, emphasising that he is “bound by the pontifical secret”
Cardinal Medina Estevez, the former prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship, is a member of the Ecclesia Dei Commission, which was set up in 1988 to supervise Vatican relations with traditionalist Catholics. He confirmed that the group’s December 12 meeting was dedicated entirely to a discussion of a papal initiative that will allow more liberal use of the Tridentine rite.
The cardinal told the Roman news agency I Media that the results of today’s discussions would be presented to the Holy Father by Cardinal Dario Castrillon Hoyos, the chairman of the Ecclesia Dei commission. He suggested that the Pope might then schedule publication of the document. Cardinal Medina Estevez indicated that he did not anticipate further discussion of the matter by the Ecclesia Dei commission.
Wednesday, December 6, 2006
The best letter to the editor I have read in some time
by Colin Burke in the December issue of Catholic Insight magazine:
re: posture during worship
I have a practical suggestion for resolving whether Catholics should kneel or stand during the Consecration at Mass and achieving the 'unity in posture' much desired by the clergy: the clergy should direct that those parishioners in any given church who believe in chastity ought to kneel and those who believe in contraception ouhgt to stand, and all should debate that issue in the parish hall at least once a week until everyone is either kneeling or standing. Otherwise, the clergy should openly admit that 'unity' in mere externals is more important to them than our being really one in faith and morals.
The Nativity Story Film Denies the Truth of the Virgin Birth of Christ
As this LifeSite story points out, since the film portrays Mary giving natural, painful birth to Christ it denies a central teaching of the Catholic Church.
Here is the reference in the current Catechism on the dogma of Christ’s miraculous birth . . .
499 The deepening of faith in the virginal motherhood led the Church to confess Mary's real and perpetual virginity even in the act of giving birth to the Son of God made man.154 In fact, Christ's birth "did not diminish his mother's virginal integrity but sanctified it." And so the liturgy of the Church celebrates Mary as Aeiparthenos, the "Ever-virgin".
The ‘miraculous birth’ so to speak is a dogmatic teaching of the church since it is an integral part of the dogma of Mary’s perpetual virginity. But rather than have my word on it, here it is from Pope John Paul II:
Pope John Paul II, on May 24, 1992 at the conclusion of the International Study Conference that commemorated the 16th Centenary of the Plenary Council of Capua which considered Mary's Perpetual Virginity, commented: "... some Church Fathers set up a significant parallel between the begetting of Christ ex intacta Virgine (from the intact Virgin) and His resurrection ex intacto sepulchro (from the intact tomb).. . the Church proclaims as factually true that Mary... truly and virginally gave birth to her Son, for Whom she remained a virgin after birth; a virgin—according to the holy Fathers and Councils which expressly dealt with the question . . . also in everything which concerns the integrity of the flesh . . . ." (L'Osservatore Romano (English edition), June 10, 1992, page 14).
For a more complete treatment of the issue here is the esteemed Msgr. Charles M. Mangan, an official of the Vatican Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life.
Tuesday, December 5, 2006
VOX CLARA COMMITTEE PRESS RELEASE December 5 , 2006
VOX CLARA COMMITTEENotice the refernce to 'Pro Multis' below
PRESS RELEASE
December 5 , 2006
The Vox Clara Committee met for the twelfth time from December 4-5, 2006 in the offices of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments in Rome. This Committee of senior Bishops from Episcopal Conferences throughout the English-speaking world was formed by the Congregation on July 19, 2001 in order to provide advice to the Holy See concerning English-language liturgical books and to strengthen effective cooperation with the Conferences of Bishops in this regard.
The Vox Clara Committee is chaired by Cardinal George Pell, Sydney (Australia). The participants in the meeting were Archbishop Oscar Lipscomb, Mobile (USA), who serves as First Vice-Chairman; Archbishop Oswald Gracias, Bombay (India), who serves as Second Vice-Chairman; Cardinal Justin Rigali, Philadelphia (USA), who serves as Treasurer; Archbishop Alfred Hughes, New Orleans (USA); Archbishop Terrence Prendergast, S.J., Halifax (Canada); Archbishop Peter Kwasi Sarpong, Kumasi (Ghana); and Archbishop Kelvin Felix, Castries (Saint Lucia). Bishop David McGough was present as a pro-tempore representative of Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor, Westminster (England), who serves as Secretary. Also members of the Committee, though not present at the meeting, were Cardinal Francis George, O.M.I., Chicago (USA) and Bishop Philip Boyce, O.C.D., Raphoe (Ireland).
The members were assisted in their work by the following Advisors: Monsignor Gerard McKay (Rome), Abbot Cuthbert Johnson, O.S.B. (England), Reverend Jeremy Driscoll, O.S.B. (USA), Reverend Dennis McManus (USA), and Monsignor James P. Moroney (USA). Administrative support was provided by Reverend Robert Keighron (USA). The customary support and assistance of officials of the Congregation was also appreciated by the members.
The Committee’s work at this meeting consisted primarily of a review of the most recent ICEL Green Book translation of the first half of the Proper of the Saints. The members of the Committee were again grateful for the quality of the work and noted the significant progress which the mixed commission continues to make in the translation of the Roman Missal. At the same time, a number of suggestions were offered to the Congregation concerning ways in which the translation could be improved.
At the request of the Congregation, the Committee continues its review of the approvals of the Order of Mass which have been submitted by various Conferences of Bishops. In the light of the Congregation’s intention to proceed to the recognitio of this first “white book” of the Roman Missal in a timely fashion, the Committee hopes to complete its review of this text at its next meeting.
During the meeting, the members and advisors met with Cardinal Francis Arinze and Archbishop Malcolm Ranjith, Prefect and Secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments. The Cardinal Prefect once again expressed the gratitude of the Congregation and renewed the expression of his hope that the progress of the work will result in a fulfillment of the Holy Father’s desire for a timely completion of the Roman Missal.
Cardinal Arinze also recalled the most recent decision of Pope Benedict XVI that a more precise translation of pro multis be included in the translation of the Order of Mass. He emphasized the importance of a common English-language rendering of this text, noting that it remains to be seen whether the translation will eventually be formulated as “for many” or “for the many.”
Finally, the members heard a report on recent initiatives by several Conferences of Bishops to develop formational materials to assist Bishops in introducing the new Roman Missal. The members were gratified by this development.
The Committee will meet again in March, 2007 at the offices of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments in Rome.
ht whispers
Monday, December 4, 2006
Pope: "Hasten the last coming" of Christ by "prayer and good works"
In the Vatican Basilica at 5 p.m. Saturday, the Pope presided at the celebration of the first Vespers of the first Sunday of Advent.
In his homily, the Holy Father indicated how "at the beginning of a new annual cycle, the liturgy invites the Church to renew her announcement to all people, encapsulating it in these words, 'God is coming'."
"The one true God, 'the God of Abraham, of Isaac and of Jacob,' is not a God Who remains in heaven, disinterested in our history," said the Pope. "He is the God-Who-comes. He is a Father Who never ceases to think of us and, in absolute respect for our freedom, wishes to meet us and visit us; He wants to come, to dwell among us, to stay with us. His 'coming' arises from His will to free us from evil and from death, from everything that prevents our true freedom. God comes to save us."
With "prayer and good works," said the Holy Father, the Christian community "can hasten the last coming, helping humanity to go out towards the Lord Who comes". In this context, Advent must be lived "in communion with all those people - and thanks be to God, they are many - who hope for a more just and fraternal world.
"Let us then," he concluded, "begin this new Advent - a time given to us by the Lord of time - by reawakening in our hearts the expectation of the God-Who-comes, and the hope that His Name be hallowed, that His Kingdom of justice and peace may come, that His will be done, on earth as in heaven."
(with files from Vatican Information Service)
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