Jesuit priest Thomas Reese on Twitter

I spent about 10 minutes looking at Jesuit priest, Thomas Reese's tweets on Twitter for the month of April. 

It's no surprise this Jesuit, like his counterpart Fr. James Martin, have a Twitter feed packed with liberal, progressive often anti-Catholic tweets promoting/sharing articles in favor of homosexuality, gay marriage, heresy, etc. 

Here are a few from the month of April... 

This article is about a lesbian who says God called her to be a Methodist minister even though the Methodists are still battling within their denomination over homosexual clergy. 

Article quote: "Cullom came out as a lesbian during her senior year at LaGrange College, a United Methodist-affiliated school about 90 miles south of her home in Kennesaw, Ga.  For a time, she was engaged to another woman, but broke it off before seminary and has not had a partner since." 

"After delivering the sermon, she realized: “This is what I’m supposed to do.”
She had moved from “I won’t play in your sandbox” to “Wait a minute. It’s my sandbox. I’m going to play here. You can get out if you don’t like it.”
In her classes, she had learned about Martin Luther, John Wesley, Jarena Lee, Maria Stewart — Christians who pursued their call to preach in spite of the established church."

***

Reese seems to really, really like the potential prospect of a "married" abomination in the White House. He tweets articles about homosexual politician Pete Buttigieg over and over and over again. 

Buttigieg says: "My marriage to Chasten has made me a better man. And yes, Mr. Vice President, it has moved me closer to God. (applause) You may be religious and you may not. But if you are, and you are also queer, and you have come through another side of a period of wishing that you weren’t, then you know that that message, that this idea that there is something wrong with you, is a message that puts you at war not only with yourself but with your Maker. And, speaking only for myself, I can tell you that if me being gay was a choice, it was a choice that was made far far above my pay grade. And that the thing I wish the Mike Pences of the world would understand: that if you have a problem with who I am, your problem is not with me. Your quarrel, sir, is with my Creator."

There is so much wrong with that its hard to know where to begin. But lets start with the obvious, Buttigieg does not have a marriage. What he's got is a big old case of ABOMINATION and he's looking at an eternity in Hell if he doesn't repent and come out of it before his death. He cannot blame God for making him gay, no one is born gay. 

The Word of God is very clear that the only sexual relationship God approves is 1 man + 1 woman= marriage. That's it. 

*** 

Reese then tweets about Holy Communion for divorced and "remarried" couples...giving full credit to Pope Humbleness himself, Francis. God save us from this pope! 

***
Reese then shares an article about the pornographic vulgar show "Game of Thornes". 

Totally ignoring Catholic teaching on the subject of sex and violence on television and other media outlets. 

PONTIFICAL COUNCIL FOR SOCIAL COMMUNICATIONS

PORNOGRAPHY AND VIOLENCE IN THE COMMUNICATIONS MEDIA: A PASTORAL RESPONSE

Here: http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/pontifical_councils/pccs/documents/rc_pc_pccs_doc_07051989_pornography_en.html 

For Reese, note #29: 
"29. THE CHURCH AND RELIGIOUS GROUPS. For the Church, the first responsibility is the constant, clear teaching of the faith and, therefore, of objective moral truth, including the truth about sexual morality. In an era of permissiveness and moral confusion, this requires that the Church be a prophetic voice and, often, a sign of contradiction. The so-called "ethic" of immediate personal gratification is fundamentally opposed to integral human growth and fulfillment. Education for family life and indeed for responsible life in society requires formation in chastity and self-discipline. By contrast, pornography and wanton violence can blind individuals to the divine image in the human person, can weaken marriage and family life and can do serious harm to individuals and to society itself. Wherever possible, the Church must join with other churches, denominations and religious groups in teaching and fostering this message. It must also make the best possible use of its own institutions and personnel to give education and formation concerning the media of social communications and their proper role in individual and social life. Special attention should be given to assisting parents in their efforts.  Thus, media education belongs in Catholic schools and other educational programs, in seminaries,8 in formation programs of religious and secular institutes, in the continuing formation of priests and in parish programs for youth and adults. Priests and Religious in pastoral and educational work should themselves be discrimating consumers of media who give good example in what they read and view."


***

From there Reese pushes a growing trend of people finding their faith in a new "religion" based on the witchcraft books "Harry Potter" and made popular by a podcast that reads the books and looks for spirituality in the fantasy fiction novels.  

Article quote: 
"Just about any text can be treated as sacred, Zoltan said. But, she added, “Harry Potter” is uniquely well suited because of its ubiquity — the book series has launched spinoffs, films, a Broadway play, a theme park, even an entire genre of music called “wizard rock” — and its overarching message of love."

***

Reese also shared "Heretic House"... a welcoming place for heretics to gather. 
(I am wondering when Reese and Fr. James Martin will be checking in.) 👀

***
Then Reese took a shot at Raymond Arroyo and EWTN tweeting this... 

Article quote: "EWTN's iconic host, Raymond Arroyo, no longer even makes any attempt to appear balanced when discussing the church. If his guest is an ally, he displays no inquisitiveness in his interviews. This is not a news program anymore but simply a propaganda arm of the anti-Francis, pro-Trump Catholic brigade. Last week's show was especially bad. 

First up was a segment with the "papal posse" — conservative writer Robert Royal and Fr. Gerald Murray — about the Washington appointment of Archbishop Wilton Gregory. Royal said that this appointment amounts to "Cardinal Wuerl by other means" and said he did not see this shift as a changing of the page. Arroyo said a Washington Catholic said the appointment amounted to "business as usual." Murray said Gregory needed to find out what happened in the McCarrick case, although there is nothing in the Washington archives that would explain how McCarrick came to be appointed to Washington. 

Later in the segment, Arroyo brought up Pope Francis' comments on the death penalty during a press conference on the plane back from Morocco. Murray said: "This is an extremely serious problem, Raymond, the pope does not have the power to change the teaching of the church … that the death penalty is moral in some cases." He said that if Hitler has been executed it would have been a good thing. Note to Murray: When you invoke Nazi analogies, you have almost always lost your argument. Arroyo suggested the death penalty allows people to get their soul in order before death.

Then the posse moved on to criticize the pope because of his defense of migrants, and Royal noted that in Europe, the people are not in agreement with the pope, a criterion never introduced during the pontificate of John Paul II on, say, the issue of contraception. He echoed the kind of nationalistic impulses that we hear from right-wing politicians here in the U.S. and in Europe."[clipped for length]

Personally, I thought this show was great and spot on. I love the "Papal Posse" and look forward to when they are on "The World Over"(EWTN). 

*** 

This last tweet has a gay flag as the centerpiece for a Vatican conference about war and violence and the hope that Francis will write an encyclical on non-violence and social change (I am guessing the flag is the key here- its all about the gays).  

Article quote: VATICAN CITY — Theologians, activists and bishops who took part in a Vatican conference earlier this month on the power of nonviolence to bring about social change are expressing hope that a future papal encyclical or teaching document will reexamine the Catholic Church's teachings on war. Participants in the April 4-5 meeting, co-hosted by Pax Christi International and the Vatican's Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, said the reflections shared by the about 80 attendees provided ample material for Pope Francis to consider for a possible encyclical."

"The April event was the second of its kind, following a 2016 meeting at the Vatican that reevaluated the church's long-held teachings on just war theory, a tradition that uses a series of criteria to evaluate whether use of violence can be considered morally justifiable."

***

I would remind ALL our clergy, you have a duty to the laity. 

In Christ, 

Julie @ Connecticut Catholic Corner 




Sources: 

https://twitter.com/ThomasReeseSJ 

https://religionnews.com/2019/04/17/buttigieg-plays-the-religion-card/

https://religionnews.com/2019/04/26/harry-potter-and-the-sacred-text-creates-spiritual-experience-for-fans-of-secular-series/

https://www.ncronline.org/news/opinion/distinctly-catholic/arroyos-ewtn-show-anti-francis-pro-trump-propaganda

https://religionnews.com/2019/04/23/what-to-do-about-ordination-a-gay-divinity-school-student-ponders-her-future/

I am so happy this guy left the priesthood!

Dan Murtah, formerly Fr. Dan Fitzpatrick ("Fr. Fitz" to most) was a terrible Catholic priest. 

He didn't believe much of what the Catholic Church teaches and led others into false beliefs by his public words and actions. 

I "met" Dan online back in 2013- the year he became a priest. Merely weeks into his priesthood he was not only condoning sin, but encouraging people to put themselves into situations of sin. 

Specifically, the issue was the sin of porn/soft porn and the occasion to lust by watching pornography. That was only the start of much more to come with this wayward heretical priest. 

"Father" Dan saw nothing wrong with "soft" porn and lustful television shows which portrayed graphic sex (and violence etc), he even told me so when I confronted him on it. 

You see "Father" Dan was promoting the television show "Sons of Anarchy" on Twitter, which depicts rape, mutilation, sex, nudity, drugs, etc. 

I wrote about this back in 2013 (Here) sharing with "Father" Dan the official teaching of the Catholic Church on the subject of pornography and specifically a priest's duty to educate people on the harms of viewing pornography and violent television/movies etc.

PORNOGRAPHY AND VIOLENCE IN THE MEDIA 

Pontifical Council for Social Communications
[in part] 

9. Ordinary experience confirmed by studies conducted around the world has recognized the evil effects of pornography and violence in the media.[5] Pornography in the media is understood as a violation, through the use of audio-visual techniques, of the right to privacy of the human body in its male or female nature, a violation which reduces the human person and human body to an anonymous object of misuse for the purpose of gratifying concupiscence; violence in the media may be understood—especially in this context—as a presentation designed to appeal to base human instincts of actions contrary to the dignity of the person and depicting intense physical force exercised in a deeply offensive and often passionate manner.Specialists may disagree among themselves about how and to what degree particular individuals and groups are affected by these phenomena, but the broad outlines of the problem are stark, clear and frightening.

10. While no one can consider himself or herself immune to the corrupting effects of pornography and violence or safe from injury at the hands of those acting under their influence, the young and the immature are especially vulnerable and the most likely to be victimized. Pornography and sadistic violence debase sexuality, corrode human relationships, exploit individuals—especially women and young people—undermine marriage and family life, foster anti-social behavior and weaken the moral fiber of society itself.

11. Thus, one of the clear effects of pornography is sin. Willing participation in the production or dissemination of those noxious products can only be judged a serious moral evil. Likewise, production and dissemination of these materials could not continue if there were not a market for them, so those who use such materials not only do moral harm to themselves, but contribute to the continuation of a nefarious trade.

13. It has been said that there can be a psychological link between pornography and sadistic violence, and some pornography is itself overtly violent in theme and content. Those who view or read such material run the risk of carrying over such attitudes and behavior into their own relationships and can come to lack reverence or respect for others as precious children of God and as brothers and sisters in the same human family. Such a link between pornography and sadistic violence has particular implications for those suffering from certain forms of mental illness.

14. Even so-called "soft-core" pornography can have a progressively desensitizing effect, gradually rendering individuals morally numb and personally insensitive to the rights and dignity of others.Exposure to pornography can also be—like exposure to narcotics—habit-forming and can lead individuals to seek increasingly "hard-core" and perverse material. The likelihood of anti-social behavior can grow as this process continues.

15. Pornography can foster unhealthy preoccupations in fantasy and behavior. It can interfere with personal moral growth and the development of healthy and mature relationships, especially in marriage and family life, where mutual trust, openness and personal moral integrity in thought and in action are so important.

16. Indeed, pornography can militate against the family character of true human sexual expression. The more sexual activity is considered as a continuing frenzied search for personal gratification rather than as an expression of enduring love in marriage, the more pornography can be considered as a factor contributing to the undermining of wholesome family life.

17. In the worst cases, pornography can act as an inciting or reinforcing agent, a kind of accomplice, in the behavior of dangerous sex offenders - child molesters, rapists and killers.

18. A fundamental message of pornography and violence is disdain, the consideration of others as objects rather than as persons. Thus, pornography and violence can eat away at tenderness and compassion and can foster insensitivity and even brutality.

29. The Church And Religious Groups: For the Church, the first responsibility is the constant, clear teaching of the Faith, and therefore, of objective moral truth, including the truth about sexual morality. In an era of permissiveness and moral confusion, this requires that the Church be a prophetic voice and often a sign of contradiction.The so-called "ethic" of immediate personal gratification is fundamentally opposed to integral human growth and fulfillment.
Education for family life and indeed for responsible life in society requires formation in chastity and self-discipline. By contrast, pornography and wanton violence can blind individuals to the divine image in the human person, can weaken marriage and family life, and can do serious harm to individuals and to society itself.
Whenever possible, the Church must join with other churches, denominations and religious groups in teaching and fostering this message. It must also make the best possible use of its own institutions and personnel to give education and formation concerning the media of social communications and their proper role in individual and social life. Special attention should be given to assisting parents in their efforts.Thus, media education belongs in Catholic schools and other educational programs, in seminaries[8], in formation programs of religious and secular institutes, in the continuing formation of priests and in parish programs for youth and adults. Priests and Religious in pastoral and educational work should themselves be discriminating consumers of media who give good example in what they read and view.
32. This document is intended to address the widely expressed concerns of families and of the shepherds of the Church and to invite even more general reflection of an ethical and practical nature on the problem of pornography and violence in the communications media. It is also intended to encourage all to follow the injunction of St. Paul: "Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good" (Romans 12:21).

Source:  Pontifical Council for Social Communications, Vatican City, May 7, 1989, 23rd World Communications Day.
Archbishop John P. Foley, PresidentMonsignor Pierfranco Pastore, SecretaryLink: http://www.ewtn.com/library/curia/pcscporn.htm

"Father" Dan promptly blocked me from his Twitter account and Facebook. 

Guess you can't confront some priests with Catholic teachings- go figure. 

"Father" Dan popped back up on my radar in 2015 when he first threatened to sue a Catholic blogger and then celebrated gay marriage. 

So many red flags that even the laity could see, yet somehow this man made it thru seminary and into the priesthood!  How? 

At that time I wrote on my blog: 

"This priest simply will NOT tolerate ANYONE who dares to rebuke him or question him about anything!
Fr. Dan has got to be disciplined by the Church and PROPERLY taught the official teachings of the Church!  Catholics do NOT need this sort of intolerant bad example priest leading them into sin and heresy.  We don't need priests who teach their personal opinions- we can get that in any protestant community.  We need and must have priests who teach official Church doctrine- ALWAYS.
HOW did this guy become a priest in the first place??
Pray to God that Fr. Dan either changes his ways or is REMOVED from his position before he does any more damage. And pray for the souls of all the people who might be or have been, led astray by this and other wayward priests."

Well praise the Lord, "Father" Dan left the priesthood. 

Not because he was corrected by his Bishop...nope. "Father" Dan began dating a divorced Catholic woman in secret and "fell in love" with her. 

He left the priesthood, changed his name to Dan Murtah, gave up celibacy to have sex with this divorced woman whom he has not yet married, and is doing stand up comedy.  

Quote: "We became friends over the following months and I began to fall in love, which needless to say isn’t allowed if you are a priest. Well, it is – but you shouldn’t do anything about it, apart from suppress it and go to confession, of course. You definitely shouldn’t take them to the cinema and sit on the back row (oops).
Then, in a scene resembling an episode of Ballykissangel but without anyone dying, she also fell in love with me. It was at this point that I had to make the most important decision of my life. I wanted to be a priest – I believed it was my calling and I knew that I was good at it – but I also wanted to be with her. My parents were very supportive; however, the decision would cost me my home, my job and a lot of friends. And yet in 2015, at the age of 29, I took off my dog collar for the final time and walked away from the Catholic priesthood.
Pope Francis had ignored my request for guidance: the letter I got back from a Vatican secretary told me to speak to my bishop. So I did. And after many meetings, I finally told him I was choosing love over the church. He was adamant that it wouldn’t last and I would come crawling back within a year.
I was under a lot of pressure from the church to abandon her. I was told I was “destined for great things” if I stayed – because Jesus did say success is everything (he didn’t actually). I was told that ordinary life was boring – that’s right, you ordinary lay people (yawn). I was also told that I could not break my vow of celibacy – but it turns out that it was as easy as making it. Breaking the vow didn’t upset me or make me fearful, and ultimately it made me happy. Of course it did: being with a partner is a natural part of being human.
I am currently barred from marrying my fiancee in a Catholic church; they still see me as a priest, so I would need consent from the pope. He’s recently been putting women and priests with homosexual tendencies in their place, so God knows what he’d think of me having sex. Just in case I change my mind, I’m told he won’t grant permission until after I’m 40 (that’s in a decade). So I can’t marry. Actually I can – in a registry office, on a beach, even in an Anglican church, thank you Henry VIII. Although we have yet to make a decision." [end quote]

Hey Danny Boy...worry about what God thinks of you having sex with a divorced woman outside of marriage. In case they didn't teach it to you in seminary, it's called FORNICATION and ADULTERY. 

Catholic catechism: #2353 Fornication is carnal union between an unmarried man and an unmarried woman. It is gravely contrary to the dignity of persons and of human sexuality which is naturally ordered to the good of spouses and the generation and education of children. Moreover, it is a grave scandal when there is corruption of the young.  

#2380 Adultery refers to marital infidelity. When two partners, of whom at least one is married to another party, have sexual relations - even transient ones - they commit adultery. Christ condemns even adultery of mere desire. 171 The sixth commandment and the New Testament forbid adultery absolutely. 172 The prophets denounce the gravity of adultery; they see it as an image of the sin of idolatry. 173

So now Dan is a stand up comedian making fun of the priesthood, a religious educator (God help them!) and writes for the Huffington Post UK edition. 

Quote:  "I am currently using the knowledge I gained to teach religious affairs and I am managing to find humour in my former life in the standup comedy I do."

A huge red flag that the Church should have picked up on... 

Dan's distaste for authentic Catholicism. This Catholic priest was never even Catholic! He opposed basic Catholicism! 

Quote: "I first encountered conservative Catholicism during my time in the seminary and was shocked at the beliefs then. Those that followed it believed every doctrine of the Catholic church should be obeyed and that it was their job to make sure everyone else is doing the same.
I wanted to be a priest because I believed the Christian message could help those who were looking for meaning and purpose in life. The conservative catholic message, like its stance on women priests, cohabitation, and even priestly celibacy, never seemed to accommodate the real lives that ordinary Catholics are living every day.
I remember airing my concerns with a priest friend before I entered the seminary and he reassured me that if the Catholic Church was going to change then it could only come from within. I was convinced that I had to be working from inside as a priest." [end quote] 

So there you have it...these men are not in the Church because they actually believe and practice the Faith. Nope. They are becoming priests to CHANGE the Faith. 

In one of his Huffington Post UK article's Dan opines why in the world he ever prayed outside abortion centers... 

Quote: "Six years ago when I was training to be a priest in the U.K. I would borrow the seminary car and - with some of the lads in my year group - we would travel across the city to pray outside an abortion clinic. We gathered on the path near the main gates for an hour every week and prayed out loud. We asked God to help the young girls we saw sat on the back seats of cars entering the carpark, the staff inside and what we believed to be the unborn life. We wanted our religious beliefs to impact those women’s lives and that was the problem.I am not sure why I thought standing outside on those cold afternoons was appropriate. Maybe I thought it would actually make a positive difference. I’m now certain it didn’t. No woman arriving to have an abortion was comforted by our presence. Why would they have been when we obviously felt their actions were so bad that praying quietly at church wasn’t enough - we had to gather outside and pray aloud for all to see and hear us. I now realise the unnecessary guilt and shame our presence may have caused and this is something I deeply regret."

[and] "Religious belief is only that - an assumption that something is true even if scientific evidence is lacking. There is no evidence that life begins at conception, however because there is a lack of scientific consensus religion is inclined to plug the gap with belief. Before the theory of evolution religion told us it was God who created humans, before the discovery of gravity it was angels who spun the world on its axis, and before the big bang theory God placed the heavenly bodies into space. Currently the belief that life begins at conception is plugging the scientific gap of consensus. I don’t think scientists know if they will ever find the answer to when life begins. Nonetheless it is the nature of science to look for evidence and not muddy the waters with belief.
Religious beliefs have influenced many people to do good in the world, but when religious beliefs harm other people then a line has been crossed. I support freedom of religion, but I also support freedom from religion." [end quote]

Dan is so far off the reservation here it is truly incredible to me that he managed to finish seminary and be ordained! No one noticed he held these beliefs? No one saw the red flags? This man never should have been able to become a priest. 

Dan tweets about the part Huffington Post UK cut out of the article, he wants to make sure you all read it: 

Dear Lord save us from such 'priests'. 

On the bright side of things, praise our Lord that Dan is no longer a priest, and please continue to pray for the students he "educates" in religious studies.  They are being fed heresy!

And may God expose these other men in the priesthood who do not believe Catholic teachings. They are heretics working devilish evil inside the Church. 



In Christ, 


Julie @ Connecticut Catholic Corner 




Previous posts on "Father" Dan: 

http://connecticutcatholiccorner.blogspot.com/2013/08/the-priesthood-pornography-and-violence.html

http://connecticutcatholiccorner.blogspot.com/2015/05/fr-dan-strikes-again.html


Other links: 
http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/author/dan-murtah

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/jan/13/a-moment-that-changed-me-leaving-catholic-priest

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/dan-murtah/priesthood-love_b_15328486.html?utm_hp_ref=uk&

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/dan-murtah/abortion-rights_b_14724976.html

Dan on Twitter: https://twitter.com/DanMurtah?lang=eu

https://twitter.com/DanMurtah/status/841752711251001346/photo/1

https://twitter.com/DanMurtah/status/672470163023921152 

Tridentine Mass vs Novus Ordo

This makes me angry and incredibly sad...

...I feel ripped off by the Church. We had such beauty, reverence, holiness of worship in the Tridentine Mass.  We were fed the fullness of all Christ had given us in the Mass.

Now we are fed the crumbs from the floor. 

We are starving, some of us so spiritually anorexic we are dying from it- walking into Hell and still the Church turns a blind eye to our hunger. 


God have mercy on us! 


In Christ, 

Julie @ Connecticut Catholic Corner 

The unofficial jubilee of women priests gathered in the shadow of St. Peter's dome

They just won't stop. 

They refuse to accept official Catholic teaching that women cannot now or ever be Roman Catholic priests.  They even believe that Christ's Holy Catholic Church has previously had female bishops and the talk of bringing back deaconesses has emboldened them.

quote: "All across the Mediterranean, early Christian frescoes and bas reliefs carry the names of women deacons and even bishops — such as Phoebe, Helaria, Ausonia, Euphemia and Theodora.
Yet in 1994, Pope John Paul II not only decreed that women are definitively excluded from the priesthood, he even banned all discussion of the topic.
Pope Francis broke that taboo last month when he announced he would create a commission to study whether women can serve as deacons as they did in early Christianity.
Seizing this new sign of openness, supporters of a female priesthood converged on Rome this week, to coincide with the Vatican's Jubilee for the all-male clergy."  

Can't happen.  But you can't tell tell these people, they refuse to listen or they are just too ignorant to grasp the reality of the Catholic faith. 

The "new sign of openness" is not about female priests, but rather deacons. Of course this can of worms translates as "stepping stone" to these people.

quote: "Panelist Jamie Manson, columnist and book editor at the National Catholic Reporter, said a female priesthood would be an important signal in a world where women suffer disproportionately from violence, poverty, lack of education and trafficking.
"Imagine if a church of one billion people, with this charismatic, rock star pope, suddenly said to the world, that women are equal to men," Manson said. "Imagine the power that would have over cultures across the world, where this patriarchal idea of women's subservience to men is at the root of all that women suffer globally."

Female priests wouldn't make any different at all to the "suffering" women in the world any more than female queens or presidents have. We live in a suffering world because evil is spreading its hatred and lies and ignorant people lap it up like dogs to vomit.  If these women truly wanted to help the suffering in the world they would devoutly practice the AUTHENTIC Catholic faith and spread that around the world as Jesus Christ commanded. 

But of course, some "Vatican official" received these heretics furthering their grand delusions, rather than correcting them of their heretical beliefs. 

quote: "There are some 150 women worldwide who function as priests, in defiance of the Catholic Church. They perform baptisms and weddings and celebrate mass in house churches.
But after Pope Benedict issued a decree in 2010, all those women were automatically excommunicated from the church.
Some of those pioneering women priests also came to Rome this week, and they scored another first.
Janice Sevré-Duszynska, who was ordained by a bishop in Kentucky in 2008, says she and another woman were received by an official in the Secretariat of State, one of the Vatican's top departments.
"We talked to a wonderful priest, we were able to give our letter to Pope Francis, our petition to lift our excommunciations and stop all punishments against our supporters as well as begin a dialogue with women priests," she said."

God give us authentic clergy who correct heretics in their error and spread the true Holy Catholic Faith to the world.


In Christ,


Julie @ Connecticut Catholic Corner


Source: http://www.kunc.org/post/seizing-popes-remarks-women-meet-rome-discuss-female-priesthood#stream/0

http://womensordinationworldwide.org/a-jubilee-for-women-priests/

EWTN Press Release: Global Rosary Relay for Priests

EWTN: Pray with Millions from across the Globe on June 12 for the sixth annual “Global Rosary Relay for Priests”!

Physical & spiritual #healings continue to occur in this French town. Guest Host Fr. Joseph Mary Wolfe welcomes The International #Pastoral Ministry Sanctuary of #Lourdes President Msgr. Xavier d’Arodes de Peyriague to discuss the Basilica of Our Lady of Lourdes and the thousands of pilgrims that come seeking her intercession. “EWTN Live” airs 8 p.m. ET, Wednesday, June 10—exclusively on ‪#‎EWTN! Find EWTN at www.ewtn.com/channelfinder.

The U.S. Conference of ‪#‎Catholic Bishops’ (‪#‎USCCB) 2015 Spring General Assembly is here! Find out what the Bishops will be discussing June 10-12 when ‪#‎EWTN takes you live to ‪#‎StLouis, Missouri. The meeting begins with the Morning Session at 10:00 a.m. ET, Wednesday, the Afternoon Session at 12:30 p.m. ET, followed by the Thursday Morning Session at 10 a.m. ET. Find EWTN at www.ewtn.com/channelfinder. For more information on the 2015 Spring General Assembly, click http://bit.ly/1xdjpQy

Porn poses both a cultural and spiritual threat. Professor of Systematic and Philosophical Theology Dr. Reinhard Hütter joins Host Michael Herndon to discuss the moral dilemma of pornography. Don’t miss “Franciscan University Presents”! Airs 5 a.m. ET, Thursday, June 11—exclusively on EWTN! Find EWTN at www.ewtn.com/channelfinder.

Who was Frank Duff? Learn about this extraordinary Irishman who founded The #LegionofMary, a worldwide organization for #Catholic laity that today has over 3 million active members and 7 million praying members. The impact of the Legion in the service of the Church has been immense and Duff is now a candidate for sainthood. You won’t want to miss “Frank Duff: A Model of Catholic Laity”! Airs 6:30 p.m. ET, Thursday, June 11—exclusively on EWTN! Find EWTN at www.ewtn.com/channelfinder.

He takes you on another “Great #Bible Adventure”! Author and Speaker Jeff Cavins joins Co-Hosts Jim & Joy Pinto, to discuss passages from the Bible that reveal how praising God helps us overcome difficult situations and, ultimately, leads us to a deeper trust in Him. “At Home with Jim & Joy” airs 2 p.m. ET, Thursday, June 11—exclusively on ‪#‎EWTN! Find EWTN at www.ewtn.com/channelfinder.

#SaintFrancisdeSales called it “the greatest method of praying”. Join us for the sixth annual “Global Rosary Relay for Priests.” The event involves 80 shrines from around the world, praying a particular mystery of the rosary at a certain hour of the day. Don't miss EWTN's live portion of the relay from Our Lady of the Angels Chapel in Irondale, Alabama. Pray the Joyful Mysteries of the Rosary for priests at 9:30 a.m. ET, Friday, June 12—exclusively on ‪#‎EWTN! Find EWTN at www.ewtn.com/channelfinder.

She is known for her blog ‘Hell Burns’. Media nun Sr. Helena Burns, FSP, joins Co-Hosts Fr. Mark Mary & Doug Barry to talk about how you can help young people know, love and serve Christ on a daily basis. “Life on the Rock” airs 8 p.m. ET, Friday, June 12—exclusively on ‪#‎EWTN! Find EWTN at www.ewtn.com/channelfinder.

He was a walking miracle. Learn about #SaintPadrePio, whose spiritual gifts made him a powerful witness for #Christ and a profound spiritual director for 21st Century society. Don’t miss Part 2 of this two-part miniseries, “Padre Pio: Between Heaven & Earth”! Airs 8 p.m. ET, Saturday, June 13--exclusively on #EWTN. Find EWTN at www.ewtn.com/channelfinder.


Bob and Penny Lord brought #pilgrimage sites to your home until Penny’s death in 2014. On this special edition of “EWTN Bookmark”, Bob Lord joins Host Doug Keck to talk about his beloved wife.  Airs 9:30 a.m. ET, Sunday, June 14—exclusively on ‪#‎EWTN! Find EWTN at www.ewtn.com/channelfinder.  

Parish life in 2014...dismal at best

I’m not a cradle Catholic.  I fell in love with the Catholic faith because of its immense beauty.  Beauty that I found in its Sacraments, writings, architecture, stained glass windows, Gregorian chant, complete Sacred Scripture, Sacred Tradition, Catholic hymns, incense, rites, ornate altars and vestments, Holy Water/Oil, sacramentals, devotions, feast days and the order and reverence of the Mass.  All the big and little things that set the Catholic faith apart from any other Christian faith.  

It was all the things that made the Catholic Church catholic that drew me in.  I wanted it.  I wanted to BE a part of the only Church Jesus Christ created on earth and I wanted all the things that made it Catholic.  Even before I was officially Catholic I set about immersing myself in all things Catholic.  I bought hundreds (literally) of Catholic books.  I bought Catholic statues, Holy cards, incense, crucifixes, rosaries and candles.  I transformed my home into a Catholic home complete with a home altar and kneeler.  

As a convert to the Faith, there was a great deal I was ignorant about.  I’m not talking about the Dogma’s and doctrines- I studied those intently before becoming Catholic and I know that is an ongoing education.  I am talking about being totally ignorant of parish life.  

I thought, one Catholic parish was as good as another because the readings would be the same, the Rubrics in place (I assumed all priests naturally followed them), all Masses would be the same- that is what I ignorantly thought.  

In reading hundreds of books about the Catholic Faith, not once did I read about Catholic parishes that didn’t seem Catholic.  Not once.  

When I joined RCIA back in 2006, I had already spent years educating myself in the Catholic Faith.  I read the catechism, books on Saints, Papal encyclicals, Papal Bulls, the Vatican II documents and anything else I could get my hands on.  I talked to priests and nuns and other converts and educated Catholics.  I contacted EWTN and they answered my questions in email and on television shows like The Journey Home.  I wanted to know what the Church was all about BEFORE I joined RCIA. 

Because I had educated myself, I knew right away there was something very wrong with the RCIA program in my parish.  I should mention, that at the time my town had ONE Catholic parish- so I didn’t have a variety to pick from and it probably wouldn’t have occurred to me to “shop around” for a Catholic parish- I thought that was a protestant thing and again, I believed all Catholic parishes were the same.  

I joined the local Catholic parish for three reasons 1) I thought they were all the same, 2) I wanted a Catholic parish where my children would attend religious education with their school friends and 3) I wanted a close local parish where I could easily volunteer and participate in activities (I had always been active in my Baptist community and wanted to do the same as a Catholic).  

Now, back to my RCIA experience.  The RCIA at the time (it has now changed DRAMATICALLY for the better with new leadership), had a “group team” of RCIA teachers (about a dozen) who all taught RCIA together as a group effort.  Not a single RCIA instructor in that group had read the Bible or knew the Scriptures.  They even admitted that to me.  

The RCIA director told me I “scared the hell out of her” when I joined because I could quote Scripture and knew where it was in the Bible without having to look it up (something every Baptist child has instilled in them throughout their childhood).  During RCIA, when a question came up about something in Scripture I had to find it for them and not one of them could tell the Catholic interpretation of it.  This was extremely disappointing to me because I had/have a great love of the Scriptures.  So from the beginning, Sacred Scriptures was basically off the table for RCIA class.  But the worst was still to come.  Apparently, I knew more about the Catholic faith than any of the dozen teachers I had.  Each one of them attempted to teach me that 1) women would one day become priests, 2) birth control was a personal choice to be made with your own conscience and 3) absolutely NO discussion on abortion, morning after pill (hot topic at the time here in CT) or how a Catholic should vote politically on these issues was EVER to be allowed in any RCIA discussion.   

The liberal RCIA instructors would simply not allow the Church’s official teaching on these things to be taught.  I was only a few months into the RCIA program when I had my first fight with all twelve RCIA instructors over women priests.  At first, they gave me that sympathetic look that said “ignorant convert-to-be just doesn’t understand yet”.  They even gave me a condescending smile that said “just you wait; you’ll see women priests one day”.  But God intervened in that class. 

While I was sharing with them what the catechism said and what Pope John Paul II had written on the subject, our parish priest walked in.  The RCIA director (sure she was correct and I was wrong) waved Father over and said something like “Father, we’ve had a discussion come up that we’d like you to clear up for us.  We were discussing the possibility of women one day becoming priests.  I’m sure Julie would like it if you could clear this up for her.”  And she sat back fully expecting me to be put in my place for daring to argue with the entire RCIA staff.  I smiled to myself because I knew what was coming. I knew this priest was an orthodox priest- I'd already had a LONG detailed meeting with him about the Faith. This priest was new to the parish, he had only been there a month before I walked in the door asking to become Catholic, so the RCIA team were not familiar with him yet.  

Father said something along the lines of: “Women can never be Catholic priests; this is not something that can change.  The Church does not have the authority to ever ordain a woman a priest.  Jesus Christ created a priesthood of men…” and he went on to talk about the typology of the Levitical priesthood, the twelve Apostles and some quotes I can’t recall anymore.  

That RCIA director was furious.  I could nearly see steam coming off her head.  You see, she has a brother who is a priest (liberal priest) who for decades taught her these errors and many others like consecrating Wonder Bread at family dinners to the delight of the RCIA director (this was the story she shared on the subject of the Eucharist- bread is bread).  As soon as Father left the room, this [now retired] RCIA director said “Father is just giving his opinion; women WILL one day be priests”.  She refused to be corrected by anyone – even her own priest.  This woman was the RCIA director in my parish for nearly thirty years teaching these liberal things to everyone who walked through those parish doors.  So it’s no wonder my parish is as it is today.  And that is what I want to talk about.

When my family and I began attending our parish, we attended the Saturday Vigil Mass (this was familiar to me because as a child I attended the Vigil Mass with my paternal Catholic grandparents at least monthly even though I was raised Baptist).  The Saturday Vigil Mass was (to me) affectionately called the “old people’s Mass” because it was very reverent, had organ music and we sang beautiful Catholic hymns.  

The Sunday Mass’s had/have bongo drums, a Grand piano, sometimes guitars etc, and never any organ music and rarely old Catholic hymns.  It’s more like a rock concert complete with people swaying and tapping their feet in the pews. 

I avoided the Sunday Mass the best I could for years. 

Then a few years ago, my parish was “yoked” to a parish in another town, and our beloved devout priests were moved to other parishes.  Now we have one new priest for our two yoked parishes, no Vigil Mass at my parish, no confession at my parish and he’s added “the children’s liturgy” -where just before the readings he calls up all the children ages 3 to 8 for a blessing then sends them down stairs for their own liturgy.  The kids climb over people trying to get out of the pews, race up to the altar where they are blessed then they race down stairs where they laugh, make loud music and talk loud enough that those of us upstairs hear all they are doing down stairs.  Then DURING the Consecration, while we are on our knees looking at the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity being held up by the priest, the children come racing back upstairs and begin climbing over kneeling people trying to get to their parents while waving in the air the pictures they colored during their 'children's liturgy'. 

Chaos.  

The reverence is nearly non-existent now.  The Holiness of the moment is broken as all eyes stop looking at Jesus and turn to the children.  The moment is lost.  It’s all very disruptive, yet in our parish bulletin I noticed this week it said the “children’s liturgy has been very successful”.  For the life of me, I can’t imagine what anyone could find “successful” about that chaos and loss of reverence.  And I wonder WHO has determined its success and what standards were used to come to that conclusion?

But it’s not all the fault of the newly instituted “children’s liturgy”.  As I’ve mentioned above for years now I have failed to find reverence at the Sunday Mass.  The ushers talk before and during Mass- during the Consecration and after Communion when people are kneeling and praying.  They jingle the change in their pants pockets, talk about sports and the weather all through Mass.  They are clueless to what is going on at Mass and they don’t seem to care at all if they bother the people trying to worship at Mass.  If you look at them [the ushers] and catch their eye to say “hey, I’m praying here” they look at you WHILE they continue talking.  No reverence, no respect and no basic common courtesy for others.  They’re a void.

My parish is small.  We have small stained glass window inserts in large clear windows.  My parish is made of concrete blocks painted off white.  There are some statues and a few paintings a parishioner painted years ago that hang on the wall.  The altar is wood- the original marble altar lost years ago during renovations (no one can answer how the altar was “lost” or where the relic that was inside it went).  We have no relic in our altar now.  The Tabernacle is simple and plain- I hardly think it does justice to the One it contains. 

There isn’t much in my parish that says “This IS a Catholic parish”.  As a matter of fact, it could easily be mistaken for any number of non-Catholic communities if it weren’t for the Sacraments themselves.  Just looking at or seeing the Mass said in this parish, has nothing to distinguish it from so many others- not with the bongo drums, folk music, “children’s liturgy” and complete lack of reverence for the Eucharist.  The “catholic” in this Catholic parish is sadly lacking. 

You might wonder why I don’t leave. 

That’s a good question and one I’ve asked myself nearly every week in 2014.

Why do I stay?

The Sacraments are valid. 

It’s local. 

It’s where my children were Baptized and Confirmed and where we all entered the Catholic Church together.  We’ve got history here and good memories and people we love attend here. 

I teach RCIA and some years CCD in this parish.  The new RCIA director who knows I’ve been considering leaving has asked me to stay and continue teaching RCIA because I am the only other instructor she has. 

And because of my own personal history in RCIA, I feel compelled to teach, to make sure NO ONE else is taught the errors that for years had previously been taught at this parish by other [now gone] RCIA instructors.  If I stay, maybe I can make a difference. 

I’ve taught 7^th grade CCD for a few years and those children and sadly their parents knew almost NOTHING of their Faith.  They didn’t know how many Sacraments the Church has or what they are.  They honestly thought the ONLY time a person should or needs to go to Confession is during Lent.  They believed you just saved up all your sins till Lent to confess them.  They didn’t know what Purgatory was and most of them couldn’t name a single Saint besides the Virgin Mary and the Apostles.  Most couldn’t remember basic Catholic prayers- hadn’t even heard of the Hail Holy Queen and didn't pray daily.  These were children who had been going to CCD for YEARS and would soon be preparing for Confirmation and they were clueless because no one had properly taught them their Catholic Faith.  I remember my youngest daughter in CCD class playing HANGMAN on the chalkboard for class- they had to use Catholic words like “Sacrament” or “Holy Eucharist”, but it was still hangman.  THAT is how the children were taught their Catholic faith the year of their First Holy Communion- is it any wonder this parish is falling apart? 

So do I leave and parish hop till I find (IF I can find) a parish that has more reverence or do I stay and attempt to make a difference? 

My personality (if you haven’t noticed from reading my blog) is I am a fighter.  Years ago, before I created this blog, I was defending and fighting for the Faith on other Christian and Catholic forums.  On one of them, I was dubbed the dreaded “Catholic Pitbull” because I wouldn't back down or give up defending my Catholic beliefs and the name stuck for years.  I don’t like backing off a fight – especially when it’s over my Catholic Faith.  I can’t honestly remember the last time I “gave up” and moved on from something important.  I’m just not wired that way.  And I actually LIKE to fight.  Some people hate it, I like it.  I’m not talking about fighting with family or co-workers, I mean fighting for or about my Catholic faith to defend it and my beliefs.  I like confronting error and I’ve got no problem telling someone “You’re wrong and here’s why…” 

I have a huge problem knowing someone is wrong about the Faith and not doing or saying something about it – like my old RCIA director attempting to teach me and everyone else in that RCIA classroom years ago her liberal views.  I didn’t care that I was a Baptist on the way to becoming Catholic and she was a cradle Catholic who had been teaching RCIA for decades.  She was wrong and I wasn’t going to shut up about it even though I “caused a scene” during class because I wouldn’t accept what she and the other instructors were teaching us.  I don’t think it’s in me to EVER walk away from that sort of situation.  

I can’t change the priest and his love of folk music, bongo drums, children’s liturgies, telling jokes at Mass and giving homilies while walking among the pews like a televangelist on TV.  He’s a different breed of priest – and I don’t like it one bit. My heart aches for an orthodox priest who will TEACH the people to BE Catholic and to embrace our Catholic Faith rather than trying to make it more protestant like. 

What I can do is pray for my priest and parish to change. 

I can stay and share the Catholic Faith as I KNOW it to be.  The beauty of the Faith- of all of it; the parts that have been lost in my parish that the parishioners don’t even know they are missing.  I know and it bugs the heck out of me each and every time I attend Mass in my own parish.  We are being ripped off.  There is so much more God and His Holy Catholic Church have for us and these liberal priests are robbing us of it.  It infuriates me. 

So do I leave or do I stay and fight? 

For now… I stay and fight - but I honestly don't know how long I will last if things don't improve. 

I don’t know what 2015 will bring, but I am praying, sacrificing and offering Masses for a change in my parish.  It’s time the Catholic laity take back their Faith and DEMAND our clergy stop denying us the fullness of our Faith and the beauty of our Faith. 

In my personal experience and opinion, 2014 has been a TERRIBLE year in my parish, but I am hopeful that 2015 will bring answered prayers from God and amazing changes in my parish and our priest.  I hope good things will happen in your parishes too.

May God bless us all in 2015.

In Christ,

Julie @ Connecticut Catholic Corner