The Bishops Left Baltimore; Did They Leave Us Behind as Well?

Things are a mess these days. The culture is a mess, the political landscape is a mess, the schools are a mess, the family is a mess. 

Francis didn't need to tell everyone to "make a mess" because the mess has been in the making for decades with one pope after another telling us that all faiths lead to God as they advance syncretism and undermine the reality that there is one true faith and one true Savior. 

The Church, which should be the main housekeeper cleaning up the mess, has, in many ways, become the messiest of all. The German Church allows gay masses, a vampire mass; anything edgy and bizarre makes the cut. The CDF (Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith), which is supposed to defend the faith, is run by a cardinal who wrote a sexually explicit book on kissing and, from all evidence, may have deep-sixed his own faith years ago. Sodomy champion Jesuit Fr. James Martin is welcomed at the Vatican while those who dare to embrace the traditions of our forefathers are ridiculed and despised. Yes, indeed, things are a mess.

Spy Wednesday: The Betrayal of Judas Continues Today

Constantin Meunier c. 1860

Editor's comment: Spy Wednesday commemorates the day Judas betrayed Jesus to the pharisees for 30 pieces of silver. He already committed the sin before he planted that hypocritical kiss on Jesus' face. We have many Judases today among our shepherds, hirelings and even wolves in sheep's clothing. The history of the Cardinal McCarrick coverup doesn't shock anyone these days. We are too accustomed to the betrayal by powerful men in miters and tailored clerical suits and French cuffs. After all the empty talk about transparency, we continue to be deluged with lies and pompous pandering. The reaction of the bishops to the administration cutting off their gravy train is one more example of their dishonesty and self-serving hypocrisy. Fr. Gomulka has catalogued their abuse. Let us pray for their conversion and pray especially hard for the faithful bishops cancelled and/or disrespected by the pope and their woke brothers.

Victim Advocate’s Open Letter To U.S. Bishops

April 11, 2025 TagsSexual Abuse from Complicit Clergy by Gene Thomas Gomulka

Dear cardinals, archbishops, and bishops,

Too Darn Sadly True!

I can testify to the consequences to the laity. I've been blacklisted from the diocesan newspaper for twenty years. Before that I wrote occasional articles and frequent letters to the editor. But, hey, there are other places to write. And this blog and the Les Femmes newsletter, The Truth, plug away defending the faith and evangelizing. We're called to do it and so we do. Thanks be to God for the grace of fortitude. May the Lord pour out a triple dose on our faithful priests!

The New Evangelization Begins with Repentance -- From the Top Down!

THE OBFUSCATION OF THE NEW EVANGELIZATION

by Fr. Tom Collins

If the bugle gives an indistinct sound, who will get ready for battle? I Cor 14:8

A few weeks ago, an elderly man who had lapsed from the practice of the Catholic Faith, summarized his reason for leaving by saying, “Father, let me know when the Catholic bishops finally decide what the Church really teaches”. He had earlier expressed dismay at how quickly Church leaders sought to appease dissidents and how slowly they sought to please God. He gave the example of how quickly the USCCB was willing to change the words of institution from “for all men” to “for all”, in order to appease radical feminists. In contrast, it took over four decades for them to concede that pro multis means “for many”, not “for all”. He went on to point out that The Roman Catechism specifically addressed this issue over four hundred years ago. Yet the Vatican chose to ignore this clearly delineated teaching in order to approve translations of liturgical texts that tended to prioritize relevance over Revelation.

The man also pointed out his consternation over the current HHS-USCCB controversy.

Pray for the Bishops; they need it!

More here.

This Lady Should be Advising the Bishops

The Bishops are being Played Like Cheap Fiddles

"Withdrawing health insurance (like Franciscan University at Steubenville, Ohio), shutting down schools, closing adoption agencies, soup kitchens or ANYTHING ELSE in "protest" of ObamaCare and the HHS "mandates" is EXACTLY, PRECISELY, TOTALLY and COMPLETELY what the Obama regime wants.... Every bishop is given a crosier upon his ordination to the episcopacy. A crosier is a shepherd's staff. It is a six to seven foot long staff that a shepherd uses to beat the crap out of wolves. That's your job. Beating the crap out of the wolves - not killing all of the sheep yourself so that there is nothing left for the wolves to eat."

Pope Benedict's Address to the American Bishops

A group of American bishops is meeting this week on their ad limina visit to meet with Pope Benedict. In his address today he made it clear that Catholics have an obligation to involve themselves in the market place, including politics. He also stressed that radical secularism (and the Obama presidency is the epitome of radical secualrism) destroys Christian culture. Here is a segment of the pope's address with my comments in red:

The Church’s witness, then, is of its nature public [Catholics, don't just sit behind locked doors in the Church praying, but evangelize and act in the market place]: she seeks to convince by proposing rational arguments in the public square [Note the word "rational." Catholic truth is based on reason and appeals to those seeking truth. Those who don't care about truth will not listen, but truth-seekers will.] The legitimate separation of Church and State cannot be taken to mean that the Church must be silent on certain issues, nor that the State may choose not to engage, or be engaged by, the voices of committed believers in determining the values which will shape the future of the nation. [Don't let the State cow you into silence with the false separation argument. Fight it as the bigotry it is.]

In the light of these considerations, it is imperative that the entire Catholic community in the United States come to realize the grave threats to the Church’s public moral witness presented by a radical secularism which finds increasing expression in the political and cultural spheres. [The greatest threat to the Church in America today is the Obama administration. He wants to suppress the rights of Catholics and Christians to practice their faith in the public square. Fight despite the growing persecution.] The seriousness of these threats needs to be clearly appreciated at every level of ecclesial life. Of particular concern are certain attempts being made to limit that most cherished of American freedoms, the freedom of religion. Many of you have pointed out that concerted efforts have been made to deny the right of conscientious objection on the part of Catholic individuals and institutions with regard to cooperation in intrinsically evil practices. Others have spoken to me of a worrying tendency to reduce religious freedom to mere freedom of worship without guarantees of respect for freedom of conscience. [Catholics are being squeezed out of many occupations, especially health care. Even wedding photographers and caterers face the hobnailed boot of the Obama/Clinton/Sebelius tyranny.] 

Here once more we see the need for an engaged, articulate and well-formed Catholic laity endowed with a strong critical sense vis-à-vis the dominant culture and with the courage to counter a reductive secularism which would delegitimize the Church’s participation in public debate about the issues which are determining the future of American society. [Orthodox Catholic bloggers, take heart. You are part of the "articulate and well-formed Catholic laity" countering the "reductive secularism."] The preparation of committed lay leaders and the presentation of a convincing articulation of the Christian vision of man and society remain a primary task of the Church in your country; as essential components of the new evangelization, these concerns must shape the vision and goals of catechetical programs at every level. [Get rid of the marshmallow fluff and teach doctrine!] 

In this regard, I would mention with appreciation your efforts to maintain contacts with Catholics involved in political life and to help them understand their personal responsibility to offer public witness to their faith, especially with regard to the great moral issues of our time: respect for God’s gift of life, the protection of human dignity and the promotion of authentic human rights. [Keep the pressure on those pro-abort Catholics!] As the Council noted, and I wished to reiterate during my Pastoral Visit, respect for the just autonomy of the secular sphere must also take into consideration the truth that there is no realm of worldly affairs which can be withdrawn from the Creator and his dominion (cf. Gaudium et Spes, 36). [Obey God over man.] There can be no doubt that a more consistent witness on the part of America’s Catholics to their deepest convictions would make a major contribution to the renewal of society as a whole. [So all you dissident Catholics get with the program. Are you listening, Doug Kmiec et al?]

God save us from bad bishops...

Here's a website that shows the ticking clocks on a number of bad bishops in the United States. Every bishop on this page deserves his designation as a "bad bishop." And we can all look forward to the day we can say good-bye to them and pray their places are filled with holy men like Charles Borromeo whose feast day we celebrated yesterday.

On the other hand, wouldn't it be wonderful to have these men experience a conversion of heart and become zealous for the faith. Evidence of that could be shown by their implementation of canon law 915 refusing Holy Communion to pro-abort politicians. Imagine the impact of Archbishop George Niederauer putting his spiritual daughter, Nancy Pelosi, under interdict until she ceases her pro-abortion scandal. Ditto for Archbishop Wuerl and all the pro-abort Catholic politicians receiving Communion in Washington, D.C. during the legislative session.

I know, you're thinking, "It'll never happen," but miracles can come about through prayer. So in this year of the priest don't forget to pray really hard for bad bishops. And when you visit this page, contemplate the quote of St. John Eudes. How many of our bishops and priests "practice the cruelty of ravening wolves rather than the charity and affection of devoted shepherds"?

Holy Saints of God, Pray for Us!

Today is the feast day of St. Thomas More, layman and martyr, husband and father, patron of lawyers, and friend to all. The good nature of Thomas More was well-known during his life. He enjoyed filling his home with books and artifacts that entertained and enlightened his friends and family. But when his conscience forced him to relinquish his post as Lord High Chancellor of England and disappear into ignominy and poverty, he let it all go without rancor. He knew personally what St. Paul speaks of in Philippians 4:12. "I have learned how to cope with every circumstance -- how to eat well or go hungry, to be well provided for or do without. In him who is the source of my strength I have strength for everything." Even martyrdom. The man who asked, "Is this the stuff of which martyrs are made?" in A Man for All Seasons, proved the answer was a resounding yes! What an example he is for our cowardly and apostate age.

His contemporary, Bishop St. John Fisher, shares this feast day. St. John was the only English bishop with the courage to stand up to the king and was beheaded for it. While thousands of priests and laymen went to gruesome deaths for no other "crime" than refusing to give up the Holy Mass, most of the English bishops held their tongues and kept their heads on their necks while selling out English Catholics. How like our own day except that there is no threat of bloody martyrdom for today's cowardly bishops, only ridicule and loss of human respect.

John Fisher's head was impaled on a pike on London Bridge, but its lifelike appearance and ruddy complexion inspired so much comment it was quickly removed and thrown into the Thames. A short while later, St. Thomas More's head took its place.

Let us rejoice at the examples of these two brave men and resolve to follow them in courage, kindness, and zeal.

And as a postscript I wish my brother John, named after St. John Fisher, a very Happy Birthday!

Bishops Weigh in on Notre Dame Invite to Obama

Notre Dame's invitation to President Obama to speak at the commencement ceremony in May and receive an honorary law degree has been criticized by a number of bishops around the country. The response? Unprintable. Pray that the heat will become as hot as the fiery furnace in today's first reading. Notre Dame sure can't expect help from the heavenly messenger like Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego who walked unscathed through the white-hot furnace. Let's hope that President Jenkins comes to his senses and does the right thing. Otherwise the Blessed Mother standing atop the golden dome might as well be replaced by Molloch in honor of a man who believes in sacrificing babies on the altar of choice.

Archbishop Nienstedt protests ‘egregious’ invite of Obama to Notre Dame

From the article:

“It is a travesty that the University of Notre Dame, considered by many to be a Catholic University, should give its public support to such an anti-Catholic politician,” the archbishop wrote, asking President Jenkins to reconsider the decision.

If the decision is not reconsidered, the archbishop said, “please do not expect me to support your University in the future.”


Bishop D’Arcy will not attend Notre Dame commencement featuring Obama

From the bishop's statement:

President Obama has recently reaffirmed, and has now placed in public policy, his long-stated unwillingness to hold human life as sacred. While claiming to separate politics from science, he has in fact separated science from ethics and has brought the American government, for the first time in history, into supporting direct destruction of innocent human life.

This will be the 25th Notre Dame graduation during my time as bishop. After much prayer, I have decided not to attend the graduation. I wish no disrespect to our president, I pray for him and wish him well. I have always revered the Office of the Presidency. But a bishop must teach the Catholic faith "in season and out of season," and he teaches not only by his words — but by his actions.

Bishop Olmsted: Notre Dame's Obama Honor "Public Act of Disobedience to U.S. Bishops"

From the article:

"It is a public act of disobedience to the Bishops of the United States," said the bishop, who cited the U.S. bishops' 2004 directive that pro-abortion politicians "should not be given awards, honors or platforms which would suggest support for their actions."

"I pray that you come to see the grave mistake of your decision, and the way that it undercuts the Church's proclamation of the Gospel of Life in our day," Olmsted concluded.

Oklahoma bishops criticize Notre Dame honor for Obama

From Bishop Slattery's letter quoted in the news brief:

For President Obama to be honored by Notre Dame is more than a disappointment, it is a scandal-- especially to young adults. His being honored by Notre Dame will make it easier for a woman who contemplates abortion to actually submit herself to this cruel and deadly procedure. At the same time, the University of Notre Dame will have distanced itself from the Bishops of the country who unanimously have asked that no politician promoting abortion be honored by any of our institutions.

On the other hand, your cancellation of the president’s visit will be noted and remembered as an affirmation of the intrinsic value of human life, a courageous example of prophetic witness worthy of a Catholic institution.


Notre Dame draws Texas fire from Cardinal DiNardo

From the article:

“I find the invitation very disappointing,” Cardinal DiNardo writes.

"Though I can understand the desire by a university to have the prestige of a commencement address by the President of the United States, the fundamental moral issue of the inestimable worth of the human person from conception to natural death is a principle that soaks all our lives as Catholics, and all our efforts at formation, especially education at Catholic places of higher learning."

According to Cardinal DiNardo, “the President has made clear by word and deed that he will promote abortion and will remove even those limited sanctions that control this act of violence against the human person. The Bishops of the United States published a document a few years ago asking all Catholic universities to avoid giving a platform or an award to those politicians or public figures who promote the taking of unborn human life. Even given the dignity of Office of the President, this offer is still providing a platform and an award for a public figure who has been candid on his pro-abortion views."

"Particularly troubling, he continues, is the Honorary Law Degree since it recognizes that the person is a 'Teacher,' in this case of the Law. I think that this decision requires charitable but vigorous critique.