Virginians, Be Informed! Vote NO on all three Constitutional Amendments!

Does God Have a Sense of Humor? Two priests leave the SSPX; Two Diocesan Priests Affiliate

I think all faithful Catholics lament the serious problems we're facing these days in the Church. But sometimes I can't help but laugh and shake my head over current events. The Vatican often seems clueless about what's happening. I watched jounalist Diane Montagna's talk at the Catholic Identity Conference livestream yesterday and the panel following with fellow Vatican journalist Edward Pentin. They give a balanced view of both the good and bad happening in Rome. If you want trustworthy sources check out their substacks. I've hotlinked on their names.

Starting Advent Early with St. Alphonsus Liguori

I'm a big fan of St. Alphonsus Liguori, Bishop and Doctor of the Church. What a prolific writer he was. Every Catholic could benefit from having him for a friend and intercessor. His statement, "By the grace of God I have never confessed having acted from passion," gives me a twinge. Would that I could say that. But I have a friend in heaven to ask for help! I have no doubt he will respond to my request because he had such zeal to save souls. 

Is the Underground Church in China in Schism? Are It's Newly Consecrated Bishops Excommunicated?

In September, the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association (CCPA), the official church in China, ordained its 18th bishop under the secret Sino-Vatican agreement signed in 2018 and renewed several times including for four more years in 2024. Pope Leo approved the move. 

At the same time, Chinese expert Anthony Clark revealed a contact from an underground Chinese prelate that the underground church has ordained ten new bishops. The Catholic Herald's Michael Haynes reported on it last month:

Welcome Gen Z! May You Help Renew the Face of the. Earth!

Gen Z (those born between 1997 and 2012) is getting a lot of attention these days because they are a big blip on the Return to the Catholic Church graph. I recently read an article that said the primary attraction to the Church for Gen Z-ers is miracles - not the Traditional Latin Mass or the smells and bells, or the reverence or fellowship, etc., but the miracles. 

People of Good Will Can Respectfully Disagree! The Church Crisis Continues

This is a sincere and thoughtful podcast, and I appreciate Mother Miriam's views However,  I strongly disagree with her conclusion that the SSPX consecrations should not have taken place. The pope is not only in conflict with Church doctrine, but with most of the pre-Vatican II popes. There certainly is a crisis in the Church which becomes ever more obvious on a daily basis. People can differ on the response to the crisis. It would be a blessing if everyone would assume the good will of others, especially their desire to do God's will in all things. I don't doubt Mother Miriam's sincere conscience disagreement with the SSPX decision. I would greatly appreciate her recognition of the sincere conscience disagreement of the laity, the bishops, and the priests of the Society who believe the severe crisis in the Church necessitated the consecrations.

When the Storm Seems to Overcome Us by its Violence

Something happened a few days ago that put me in a real funk. (Does anyone use that word today?) At any rate, it disturbed my sleep, raised my blood pressure, and continues to consume my thoughts. The irony is that it fits into those things I pray for in the Humility Prayer. So now I'm in the almost laughable situation of thanking God for something I absolutely hate because I basically asked for it -- funny, but not in a humorous way. At least I can't laugh yet, maybe later I will laugh at myself and move on. I can almost hear the Lord say, "Why are you taking this so seriously, foolish one. Take it up with your guardian angel. All will be well."

The first thing I did when it happened was to call the Poor Clare Sisters and ask for their prayers. It's always helpful to have allies on the field of battle. And, let's face it, the most difficult battles are within our own souls. St. Paul talks about it, the interior struggle against evil that makes us "groan and suffer." It threatens to capsize my little boat. "Wake up, Jesus, I need your help!" And His response is the same as he said to the apostles, basically, "Where is your faith?" Help my disbelief, Lord, my flesh is weak! And so I reflect on St. Paul:

The Road to Happiness: Have You Found It?

I've been re-reading the Masterful Monk series by Owen Francis Dudley which explores the "problem of human happiness." Interesting phrase isn't it; human happiness described as "a problem." But isn't it? Our founding fathers included the "pursuit of happiness" among mankind's unalienable rights in the Declaration of Independence:

Sunday Meditation: Everyone Has a Heart to Love With

My spiritual reading yesterday kept leading me to the "heart" of the matter starting with the daily devotional from the SSPX which examined "purity of intention." A good question for each of us is this. Does my action come from a heart filled with love for God or other lesser motives? People can perform the same external actions with very different results in the eyes of God:

We can go to Mass out of routine or out of obligation, or else simply to see a particular person. We can also go to Mass out of love of God. Externally, the actions are the same, but in the eyes of God they are each very different. The same external act will be meritorious for some, not for others, depending on the purity of their intention. It is the same for our duty of state. We can set to work out of obligation, out of pleasure or out of love of God. The same action is meritorious for some and not for others. [Source]

I'm Curious: How Do You Deal with Trolls?

Anyone on the internet blogging or using social media deals with trolls. Facebook? It's filled with creatures from Grimm's Fairy Tales! 

Usually trolls are anonymous and cast their aspersion from underneath a rock or hiding behind a silly fake name. Often their comments are personal attacks along with name-calling and sometimes profanity. I have a few trolls and my way of dealing with them nowadays is to delete their comments as soon as I recognize the source. That usually takes reading about ten words then into the circular file they go.