On Papal Authority: Did Pope Paul VI Renouncing the Tiara have more than a Symbolic Meaning?

The last papal tiara, renounced by Pope Paul VI at the conclusion of Vatican II

Fr. Tom Collins and I have been having an interesting exchange about the crisis in the Church. He recently sent me the comment below about papal authority and the "tiara." I found it thought-provoking. Many seem to think that Pope Paul VI shunning the papal tiara was a good idea. Who needs all that pomp and circumstance anyway? When the pope placed it on the altar he called it the, “renunciation of human glory and power” and “the new spirit of the Church purified.” 

Reflecting on the Blessing of Death

Raymond John Schneider
1917-1985

During my morning prayer time, I reflected on death. Today is the 38th anniversary of my dad's passing into eternal life. We had just sent my mom off with my aunt and uncle to have dinner. She had hardly left the house during my dad's final battle with terminal cancer and we thought she needed to get away for even a few minutes respite. Daddy died almost immediately after they left, but we decided not to call right away. Let her have a quiet dinner.

They say the dying often wait until their nearest and dearest leave before giving up the ghost. That's what my dad did. It was my sister and I who were with him. He was sitting in a chair next to the bed resting his head on the mattress. We were gently rubbing his back and chatting quietly when I realized that he didn't seem to be breathing. We lifted him and already the blood was pooling at the pressure spot on his forehead. We got him back into bed, called the hospice nurse who came quickly and helped arrange his body, and gathered my local siblings to pray the rosary. Daddy had been anointed and I can't remember now whether the parish priest was with us or not. I'm inclined to think he was. When Mom returned we were all there to offer comfort in her great grief.

France, the Eldest Daughter of the Church, is in Flames! And Churches are Being Handed Over to the Devil.

As persecution against religion increases, will we respond like the early Christian martyrs?

Can anyone with eyes not see the crisis in the Church? And can anyone doubt that when there is a crisis in the Church, there's a crisis in the secular world? What come first: the crisis in the Church or the crisis in the world. I think Pope Pius V (+1572) put it correctly. "All the evils of the world are due to lukewarm Catholics." What did Jesus say about the lukewarm? He promised to "vomit them out of my mouth." 

On this day we celebrate freedom, help free children from the demonic activity of sex trafficking!

We went to see Sound of Freedom last night. What an eye-opener to the horror of sex trafficking, especially the trafficking of children. Go see the movie. It isn't graphic or exploitive. But you see the horror and grief in the face of Jim Caviezel who plays Tim Ballard the agent who quit his job with Homeland Security to rescue children. God bless all who worked to make this movie. 

Does Your Marriage Need Help? Psychologist Ray Guarendi May Have the Answer

Among his many books is this one describing what he's learned from his children

Dr. Ray Guarendi is a Catholic psychologist with ten adopted children and host of EWTN's 
program, The Doctor is In. He's written a book, Simple Steps to a Stronger Marriage. I suspect most of us married folk could use a little advice and assistance from time to time. In a National Catholic Register interview with Joseph Pronechen, Dr. Ray had this to say:

Why did you see the need to write this book?

Baddest Sheriff in the Whole Darn Town...State...Country - Maybe World

Bad, bad Sheriff Grady fighting for good against evil, making order out of chaos.

WARNING FOR VIOLENT CRIMINALS: 

Don't move to Polk County, Florida and make trouble 

or you might be shot "graveyard dead".

 

"Neocons are the Dylan Mulvaneys of American politics"

The pimps of war past and present. 

Lew Rockwell has a great article outlining The Real U.S. Goal in Ukraine written by Karen Kwiatkowski, a retired USAF Lieutenant Colonel and political activist. I know Karen casually. She lives in my neck of the woods and, for a time, I was active in the same Republican women's group with her. She's a firebrand, smart and dedicated. 

The LGBTQ Extremists Boiled the Water Too Soon!

What happens when you throw a frog into a pot of boiling water? The critter leaps out lickety split. No thank you! Not for me, babe!

Now, the LGBTQ agenda for a long time hid exactly what they had in mind. "Oh, it's all about love," they told us. "Our same sex love is no different than heterosexual love." And, "Hey, we don't want to pervert your children. We only call them chickens because they remind us of sweet baby chicks, not because they're fresh meat."

The Sedevacantist Position Summarized and Opposed

Sedevacantism has never made any sense to me. But it certainly generates incredible fights between Catholics who presumably all want the reign of Christ the King and the salvation of souls. Because of arguments on the blog, I've been doing more research and I am even more secure in my rejection of the sedevacantist position. While I admire the zeal of these folks, I don't think their answer is viable. Once again, I'm going to shut off comments on this post. Anyone who wants to jump off the barque of Peter and swim around in the sedevacantist pool, there are plenty of websites out there for you to check out. As for me, I recommend the resources below. A little catechism on sedevacantism This was apparently written during the papacy of Pope John Paul II. While his errors were not as numerous or egregious as Pope Francis, they were still serious, particularly the Assisi meetings that promoted syncretism, the belief that all religions are paths to heaven on an equal footing. (For more go here and here (first of four parts, excellent historical background)

Give Me an Honest Atheist Any Day Over a Lying Liberal Catholic!

While I was looking for a post I wrote on After the Ball a few years ago, (The book by Kirk and Madsen outlining the strategy to normalize homosexuality and demonize those against it), I came across an old post that I thought was worth repeating. Its title? Give me an Honest Atheist Any Day Over a Lying, Liberal Catholic I wrote it in 2013, but could have written it this morning. I think you'll agree. Sad to say, I know many "lying, liberal Catholics" and some lying, liberal former Catholics. Some of them are so steeped in self delusion that I don't think they realize they are lying to themselves as well as others. That might be the most dangerous form of lying. Steeped in propaganda (They've swallowed the camel.), they seem to be true believers even about things that are obviously absurd -- like believing a man can give birth. Only real women and faux men, i.e., biological women playing dress up, can give birth.  But among liberals the degree of self delusion also known as insanity is endless!