Father Michael Rodriguez put on sabbatical November 11, 2014
Posted by Tantumblogo in Basics, disaster, episcopate, General Catholic, Holy suffering, Latin Mass, manhood, martyrdom, persecution, priests, sadness, scandals, secularism, Tradition, true leadership, Virtue.trackback
I have to be very careful what I say, so bear with me. As of yesterday Monday Nov. 10 2014, Father Michael Rodriguez is no longer in active public ministry. He is on sabbatical. Sunday was his last Mass in Shafter. The several dozen souls in the desolate expanses of far West Texas who had prayed so fervently for so many years that they would finally have a good and holy traditional priest sent to them after many decades of being without one (within hundreds of miles) have been left spiritually fatherless again. As to how this sabbatical came about, I don’t think this is something Father asked for. Here is the information I have on the matter (I add some emphasis and comments):
As of yesterday, November 10, 2014, Fr. Michael Rodríguez, is no longer the Administrator of Sacred Heart Mission in Shafter, TX. He has been given a six-month sabbatical in order to discern God’s Will for the future. Fr. Rodríguez remains a priest in good-standing of the Diocese of El Paso. He will most likely be looking at options for priestly ministry beyond the Diocese of El Paso. Fr. Rodríguez has been offering the Traditional Latin Mass exclusively for the past three years, and this has led to increasing difficulties for him with the local hierarchy. Fr. Rodríguez asks for your prayers, and he especially asks you to pray for the small group of faithful (about 50) of the Presidio-Shafter area who are heartbroken over the loss of the Traditional Latin Mass and parish life based on the Traditional Latin Mass. [Once one becomes accustomed to the great Traditional Latin Mass and the whole traditional practice of the Faith, it is impossible to go back to what is offered in the vast majority of parishes today. This extends to an entire parish life that existed throughout the world as recently as 50 years ago but is now available only in precious, scattered pockets. Shafter was one of those. No more. I do not know how I would react should the TLM suddenly be revoked/removed from Dallas]
Admittedly, Fr. Rodríguez is in a very difficult situation. On the one hand, he intends to do his best to be obedient to his bishop. On the other hand, Fr. Rodríguez is convinced that God is calling him – through the Church – to dedicate his priesthood and all his energy and strength to promote the Church’s greatest treasures: her timeless liturgy and doctrine. Both Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI have acknowledged that the Church is suffering through a terrible crisis of Faith in the post-Vatican II era, and Fr. Rodríguez, as a loyal priest and son of the Church, cannot stand idly by in the face of such widespread disparagement and abandonment of the Catholic Faith.
In making any decisions for the future, Fr. Rodríguez is begging God to purify his motives, so that he may act, first and foremost, out of love and fidelity to Jesus Christ and His holy Church, and for the salvation of souls. As a loyal son of Holy Mother Church, Fr. Rodríguez is 100% committed to following, teaching, promoting, and defending her Traditional Mass (holy liturgy) and her unchangeable truths (holy doctrine), e.g. the sacredness of marriage, the indissolubility of marriage, the grave sin and intrinsic evil of homosexual acts.
In closing, Fr. Rodríguez asks that efforts be redoubled to pray for the Holy Father so that he will consecrate Russia to the Immaculate Heart of Mary as requested by Our Lady of Fatima. May the reign of Christ the King come through the triumph of the Immaculate Heart of His Mother!
In a few days a number of us will begin a continuous series of nine-day novenas imploring the intercession of Our Lady and the saints on Fr. Rodríguez’s behalf. I will email more information on that in a few days. Moreover, we will pray a 54-Day Rosary Novena on his behalf from Dec 10 – Feb 1, that is between the Marian feasts of the Immaculate Conception and the Purification of Our Lady, (also the feast of Our Lady of Good Success). We invite all to join us in offering these prayers. Thank you very much for your prayers and support.
————End Quote————
Please pray for Father Rodriguez. He is in a very difficult position. It may become more difficult. He will need immense spiritual support. I pray for him daily. Please, in your charity, try to keep him in your prayers, as well. Also pray for Bishop Seitz, who certainly has a great deal to say in this process, that he may have a great generosity for the kind of ministry Fr. Rodriguez offers and for the souls who crave it.
In addition, I will try to post reminders when these Novenas are distributed and scheduled to begin.
In light of this sad news, I re-post below JMJHF Productions latest video of Father’s Mass from Trinity Sunday:
The glory seen below in Shafter will be no more.
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A Blog for Dallas Area Catholics 
Sounds like perhaps he should join the FSSP? I know of others who have done this successfully.
That would be great, but I’m not sure it’s likely to happen. I’m really vague on many details, but I think there is some impediment there.
I hope to have more to share later. There are a few other options, as well, but not many.
Please pray for him. That is what he needs most.
He would be safer in the SSPX….unfortunately some good priests in the FSSP have been “crushed” or “swayed” be the “establishment”. I’ve seen it first hand.
I know another priest about in the same position and who does not have a current assignment. He also loved the TLM and when he offered the Novus Ordo, he did not have the army of ladies as ‘Eucharistic Ministers’, etc. He did not allow the laity to have total access to the tabernacle and many people got very upset about this. He was the best homilist and confessor in town and so gifted with the young people. None of that seems to matter in the end because of the hatred for the TLM and those who embrace and live all the true teachings and traditions of holy mother Church.
Perhaps one does not embrace TLM because priests and those attending TLM do not embrace “other Catholics who like the regular mass.” 50 people attending his mass. Ok but there are 2,000 attending regular masses where I live.
Those 50 people are attending mass in some obscure out of the way parish because the 2000 people attending the Novus Ordo will not tolerate a Latin Mass in their Church.
Even with Summorum Pontificum, Bishops and it seems laity will not allow a priest to switch one of the Sunday liturgies or perhaps a few during the week to the old rite form. Bishops set up Latin Mass’s to fail and then say “look people don’t want it.”
And in my diocese, those 2000 people attending the Novus Ordo are all middle age or elderly, because all the youth my age left the faith once they moved out of the home. The only place I see more than a single person my own age on a regular basis is at the traditional Divine Liturgy at the Byzantine Rite parish I go to now.
Excellent points. All your comments, very good, thank you.
Numbers do not prove Truth. God is weeding out the chaff.
What nonsense……it is if anything, the other way around. The trads that I have encountered do not “not embrace”
“other Catholics who like the ‘regular’ mass”(the Novus Ordo is a most irregular. Mass, but that’s another discussion). We simply must cling to Tradition and do our best to keep our children free of the contamination that we grew up with. The Novus Ordo and , most especially, the culture that engulfs it are a clear and present danger to Faith. It has nothing to do with individual people, it has to do with doing what we must do to preserve our and our childrens’ Faith. We love all of our brethren but we cannot do what they are doing at the present time.
My personal experience with family and friends that attend the Novus Ordo is that they not only do not embrace us but some outright shun us.
I agree, Tim. I’m the only “traditional” Catholic within an all-Catholic workplace. Lovely people, all of them, and we’re all like a big family. But I also know that they look a little sideways at me when it comes to anything specific about the Faith or the Mass. We’re just simply on entirely different pages.
Yes, we must literally cling to Tradition and protect our children. I don’t have children but I cling for myself. I have to attend Novus Ordo Masses nowadays and it feels like I’m in danger of being infected. At the very least, that Mass and the overall Parish life is simply draining of my Faith.
Reblogged this on mariaangelagrow.
It is ironic that you would make the comment you did about no TLM here in Dallas. I was thinking of that happening this morning. What would we do?
Freak out?
C’est chic!
Seriously, Woody, I do not know what I would do, but freak out would definitely be part of the process. I don’t think it very likely but who thought a year ago a Synod of bishops meeting under the authority of the Pope would issue statements – even preliminary – that spoke of perverse “gifts” and by practice turning Christ into a liar regarding marriage? So who knows what would happen.
I cannot honestly say what I would do. Much would depend on the specific circumstances. It would depend on how the priests reacted. Some have described apostolates like those conducted in Elizabethan England for the faithful who remained in that tormented land.
I want to move to Texas – on cold Chicago mornings like this very badly — but I would so miss St. John Cantius and the Canons Regular which Fr. Frank Phillips founded. When I look at our bulletin each Sunday I feel guilty that we have 7 priests at our parish alone and have staffed two other parishes with our priests. But perhaps the time will soon come that other cities and states will benefit from the Canons Regular.
Fr. Phillips is a true son of the Church and made it through his own set of persecutions by the moderns. Now our parish is thriving with those of all ages.
Hi there, fellow Chicagoan. Let’s pray the new Bishop, Cupich, doesn’t mess with St. John Cantius or the Institute of Christ the King.
Not from Chicago, but have been to both. We have also attended the SSPX in Chicago. You are blessed with 3 options. I hope your new bishop leaves the ICK and St.John Cantius alone, but he can’t mess with the SSPX chapel.
The persecution of the Faithful is growing under Francis.
To the Author of this blog from pablo the Mexican, Our Lady’s Resistance: please call me as soon as possible regarding a place for Padre Rodriquez.
He is welcome here among his brothers. (602)-469-4469.
Él, que, por su bien fue clavado en la cruz, por todos los medios ser impresa en su corazón.
Confío esta materia entera en las manos del corazón Inmaculado de Maria, “Madre del Sacerdote por excelencia, de nuestro Señor Jesús Cristo, y a través de él, de todos los Sacerdotes en quienes ella forme a su Hijo”.
¡Ave María Purísima!
¡Viva Cristo Rey!
*
Go join the Byzantines at St. Basil the Great in Irving. They’re in communion with Rome. While a very different tradition, it holds the same reverence and vertical relationship as the TLM.
Go to the Byzantine Divine Liturgy or move. Many that I know have exercised these options. Folks will not even think twice about moving across the country to get a job, isn’t your soul and spiritual sanity more valuable than a means to make money? My family will not attend the Novus Ordo except in the case of a funeral and perhaps a wedding (then you have to consider the abominable immodesty that one encounters at nearly every Catholic wedding). We travel quite a bit and found that if you do your homework you will find a Traditional Mass or Byzantine Divine Liturgy nearly anywhere in the U.S. if you are willing to do some driving and put personal convenience aside for the sake of your and your family’s souls.
There is much to recommend in the Byzantine Liturgy. I’ve only been once but it’s obviously another treasure from the early Church.
You will likely always have the authentic liturgy available in the DFW area.
I hope so. Yet, the times are such that one thinks “Is it possible that it might not be?” Also, why are there so many priests, including bishops, that loathe the TLM?
Woody, I think the average TLM priest makes many of them who loathe look really really bad. They’re envious. They do not like hierarchy. The TLM is about as anti-egalitarian as you can get!
Oh you. Great name! Hilarious.
Please keep in mind that it is more common for a priest to take a sabbatical than people think. I believe every 10 or so years a priest can request to take one. Some do this to write, others have taken one for education, and some have done so to explore other ministries.
Others have taken sabbatical to help out an aging parent.
It is possible that Fr. Rodriguez could return to the Diocese of El Paso when his sabbatical is over. I don’t know if Fr. Rodriguez could incardinate into another diocese (i.e. such as Lincoln or Madison – I have known a few priests who left certain religious orders and were incardinated into a diocese), but he sounds like a priest who would make an excellent seminary rector or someone on a seminary staff. i could also see him as a C.P.M. priest (i.e. Fr. Casey and Fr. Menezes order) or even as a Canons Regular in Chicago.
Let’s also pray for Bishop Seitz.
I believe that if we read the explanation, there is nothing “voluntary” about this. A man like Fr. Rodriguez is not about to take a “voluntary” sabbatical and strand three people, let alone a whole group of people, in novus ordo wasteland.
By all means, pray for Bishop Seitz.
The real question is why are there so many bishops and priests who support the Novus Ordo to the hilt?
Almost universally throughout the Church, Mass attendance plummeted as soon as the Novus Ordo replaced the Traditional Roman Mass.
Sunday Mass attendance within the Dallas Diocese has fallen to about 17 percent.
The New York Archdiocese announced two weeks ago that their Sunday Mass Attendance stands today at just 12 percent.
The Archdiocese of Boston’s Sunday Mass attendance stand today at just 14 percent.
Sunday Mass attendance ranges from the single digits to about 15 percent at best in one European nation after another.
The Latin Church’s horrific collapse continues daily throughout Mexico, Central and South America.
Regardless, Popes Francis, Benedict XVI, John Paul II and Paul VI (who knows about John Paul I) remained attached unwaveringly to the Novus Ordo.
Why?
Different religion.
Bingo!
Don’t forgot, in the Boston archdiocese, where I got a nightmarish bad catechism they have been “combining” parishes and asking folks to “give generously” to keep them afloat.
Where I got married, in Lincoln Massachusetts, it’s now combined with a parish an hour away.
Strangely (at no doubt, the behest of cardinal omally), the one TLM community in still river, is literally busting at the seams with big families and smiling faces (although supposedly if we were to pay attention to a bishop in. A far away land, these are bats, neopalagian, self absorbed Promethean… I wonder if God doesn’t live then either?
Maybe someone better informed than I can argue this issue much better, but I propose that Vatican II was not the biggest cause of western decline but more a symptom, including the introduction of the pill. I think I’ve heard Gerry Matatics argue the contrary. NATO has been fat and happy for decades, ladies and gentlemen. That doesn’t conduce to piety.
My husband makes portable altars – if there was a way you could contact Fr. Rodriguez, we would love to donate one to him, complete with a small altar stone inset into the mensa. You don’t need to post this comment – we just want to help him in whatever way we can. Sincerely – Molly Murphey, St. Joseph’s Apprentice
There isn’t any getting around the fact that the lion’s share of the blame for the collapse of the Western Church is linked to liturgy.
Cardinal Ratzinger, for example, declared that the collapse of the Church is due in large part to the manner in which the liturgical reform (Novus Ordo Mass) was implemented.
Note that he refused to blame the Novus Ordo per se for the collapse of the post-Vatican II Church.
Rather, he blamed the manner in which the Novus Ordo reform had been implemented. That is, the abrupt manner in which the Novus Ordo had replaced the Traditional Roman Mass.
Cardinal Ratzinger argued that the Traditional Roman Mass, which had been viewed by the Church as a priceless holy and spiritual treasure, had suddenly become a thing to be despised and all but outlawed.
That led to the notion that a new Church had been born during the 1960s. Everything about the Church that had preceded the Novus Ordo and Vatican II was bad and obsolete.
Certain Catholics pin the collapse of the Church upon the Novus Ordo itself. Cardinal Ratzinger (Pope Benedict XVI) and his ilk pin the collapse to the manner in which the liturgical reforms were implemented by Rome.
Either way, the collapse of the Church (at least Western Church) will continue as the Roman Liturgy remains in shambles.
Pope Francis has shown scant interest publicly in regard to having addressed the collapse of the Roman Liturgy.
Steve, I believe you are right on the money. Lex orandi, lex credendi. These men may not believe in Catholicism, but they darn well know this to be a fact. None of what we see before us is a “mistake” from their perspective. The sooner we stop regarding these men as “misguided Catholics,” the sooner we can understand and address the fundamental problems.
It seems to me that our church is crumbling before our eyes,In my part of the world, the good traditional priests are being removed,sent on sabbatical,given nothing to do,put out to graze, while the gay liberals are increasingly taking over.They stick together have the best parishes, and destroy what was once a beautiful church.
PADRE
PERPLEXES
Rodriguez the Padre
Son of Our Madre
Spoke the Truth down in Texas.
The Bishop got mad
For the sinners were sad
Because true priests can give them complexes.
So the Bishop said, “No!
You’ll just have to go –
You’ve no right to confuse confused sexes!”
So he sent him away
For he knew he’d obey
But men of good-will made the nexus –
Such Bishops expose
Their long growing nose
Like witches they try to put hexes…
But Christ knows which witch
Is digging his ditch –
To be a corpse in the deep heart of Texas!
Longskirts, that is just great. I hope you do not mind my spreading it around.
You forgot to address
The Padre’s disobedience
And what of the plans
He had for the campaign
Though intentions were good
And their Church it would improve
He still hid it from the Bishop
While his brother took the reigns
The Padre did warn
For no scenes to take form
But mid Mass his flock
Walked out on the Bishop!
The FSSP
Won’t take him you see
For obedience
Is higher than form
The SSPX
Is illegal and Protestant
Yet the Padre’s followers
Have been there since he left
We will pay for this priest
For he too is a man you see
And like all humans
Makes mistakes and sins
His followers forget
They think they’re perfect
And don’t recognize
Where they came from
NO or TLM
No, it’s not quite the same
But you can’t harp
On those who don’t know yet
You won’t win someone’s heart
While your bashing their head
But true love?
No one can resist that
There is no truth without charity
And no love without truth
But it all goes back
To Jesus
Pride goeth before the fall
And to the Padre’s little flock out there
Be aware
Of what pride entails
You don’t want to be left alone
Because you forgot what Jesus told
Let he who had no sin
Cast the first stone.
1) What disobedience?
2) What plans did he have for the campaign?
3) Hid from the Bishop?
4) How do you know the FFSP “won’t take him”?
5) Again, what disobedience?
6) How could the SSPX be Protestant?
7) How could the SSPX be “illegal” when Catholics have been told by Rome that we may attend Sunday Masses at SSPX chapels?
I’m stopping there, less than halfway through, and will await your answers.
You won’t get any answers from this type. They have their little pet neo-con talking points and that is their religion. The SSPX is not protestant, illegal or disobedient…..they are simply……CATHOLIC. This type of person seems to practice papalotry and obediencalotry. FAITH is higher than obedience. How this person could say such things about such a fine priest is beyond reason.
You obviously have some knowledge of the situation, some of which is semi-public but you also make allegations which are not. I may have to delete this, sorry.
With hope and faith there is no need to be concerned-the Padre is a Priest Forever and this cannot be nullified. A priest will go on sabbatical and a priest will return from sabbatical. He will do what is right in the eyes of God. Peter had a set to with the Church Head in Jerusalem-here’s how that turned out:
From the Book of Acts:
13When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus. 14 But since they could see the man who had been healed standing there with them, there was nothing they could say. 15 So they ordered them to withdraw from the Sanhedrin and then conferred together. 16 “What are we going to do with these men?” they asked. “Everyone living in Jerusalem knows they have performed a notable sign, and we cannot deny it. 17 But to stop this thing from spreading any further among the people, we must warn them to speak no longer to anyone in this name.”
18 Then they called them in again and commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. 19 But Peter and John replied, “Which is right in God’s eyes: to listen to you, or to him? You be the judges! 20 As for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.”
21 After further threats they let them go. They could not decide how to punish them, because all the people were praising God for what had happened.
I will pray for Fr. Rodriquez. We must believe that God works all things out for His greater glory. BUT I do have one problem with the blog. The HOLY SACRIFICE OF THE MASS, whether the Novus Ordo MASS (Ordinary Form) or the Tridentine MASS (Extraordinary Form) is the re-presentation of the passion, suffering, and death of Christ! PERIOD! I find it sad that the author would make this comment “Once one becomes accustomed to the great Traditional Latin Mass and the whole traditional practice of the Faith, it is impossible to go back to what is offered in the vast majority of parishes today.”
Are we worshipping Jesus Christ our Savior or are we worshipping the FORM of the Mass? I go to the Tridentine Mass several times a year. I prefer the Novus Ordo Mass. Of course, it must be celebrated properly and that goes without saying.
These two Forms are NOT in competition with each other. They are both the RE-PRESENTATION. To pretend one is superior is to tell Jesus that His re-presentation in one, i.e his passion, suffering, and death, is someone deficient!
Let us be glad that we have both Forms along with the beautiful Eastern Rite Divine Liturgies. We are blessed. Let us not ruin it by acting like one is better. Each should go to whichever Form they feel that they can better worship the Lord. May God bless us and keep us as one.
One is better, my dear. And it’s said in Latin. In fact, if the clergy followed Vatican II, the Novus Ordo would be said in Latin with the priest and people all facing the same way. You’ve been deceived. Like all of us.
Once you begin regularly attending the Extraordinary Form of the Mass, the Novus Ordo feels like the Reader’s Digest condensed version. I accept that it is valid, but it is also “a fabrication, a banal product.” It has been about as successful as New Coke, only our leadership won’t go back to the original, proven formula.
Good comparison.
The Latin Mass is better. Even though I have to attend the NO, I would prefer the Latin Mass. Even if I don’t know Latin, I can read the prayers in English and they are beautiful. When I go to the NO Mass, I have to pray before hand not to get distracted with the horrible hymns, the man centerness of it all, etc.
Regarding the Novus Ordo….done in Latin (mostly) facing orientem east (with an altar and altar rail, not a Cranmer table) with plenty of chant?. Technically, here also the NO is a “Latin mass”, no??
This correctly-done NO has been called the “mass of Paul VI” same as laid out in Sanctosactrum Concillium (sp.) from the second Vatican council. This is the correctly “reverent” way of the new mass. The only place I can think of that does this is the Mission of Divine Mercy in New Braunfels TX (MDM).
However, MDM ALSO allows the faithful to assist at the Traditional Latin mass /Extraordinary form / TLM… emphasis on the “T” for traditional, since, as stated, the novus ordo (when done in the language of the Roman Rite (Latin) can, and should always be our bonding common liturgical language.
Much like Mr. Tantumblogo…. as soon as I assisted at the TLM (1962 rubric s) for several Sundays in a row, I find it difficult now to assist for the Novus Ordo… even when done reverantly as Paul VI likely intended, with Gregorian chant taking pride of place, ars oriented, with an altar instead of a protestant Cranmer table, closing off the worship in a horizontal manner, with a flock of “extraordinary ministers” and communion under both forms (that last one comes straight from Martin Luther the heretic himself!
So, in my opinion (and father Richard Simon gets credit for naming #3-).. currently the western/Roman/Latin rite of the Church has THREE forms. Although #3 should NEVER have been allowed.
1. The TLM (extraordinary form 1962 – and virtually since Trent and beyond)
2. The Mass of Paul VI (1970 – sancrosanctum concillium (sp.)) Exceedingly rare. I’ve only seen it regularly done at one place – MDM – New braunfels texas
3. The Mass of Rembert Weakland (1970). Coined by Fr. Richard Simon. This mass takes advantage of the vague language of the document of the divine liturgy (Vatican II). This mass is all about “active participation” so decried for in the council. Ranges from “clown mass” to “creepy/scary witchcraft “mass” at the los Angeles Religious Education Conference (REC) with Wiccan dancers, cauldron, etc..
Sorry for such a long post, but if one studies the TLM, and the theology behind its genious (prayers at the foot of the altar, offertory, confetior by priest then altar servers, then the faithful, the reasoning behind the rubrics, the mystery of the language and the silence as the priest prays, and the people pray also in the same direction, the altar rail separating the Holy of Holies.. there is just too much to squeeze in here!
“Once one becomes accustomed to the great Traditional Latin Mass and the whole traditional practice of the Faith, it is impossible to go back to what is offered in the vast majority of parishes today.” ****** I’m in total agreement with this statement. There really is no comparison between the two Masses, and by extension, the parish’s practice of the Faith. I find it all but impossible to attend Novus Ordo Masses, even at relatively conservative parishes. The Mass drains me; threatens my Faith, frankly.
And yes, of course the Novus Ordo is licit and valid. Yes, it is the re-presentation of Christ’s sacrifice. But the Traditional Latin Mass is most certainly superior. No doubt about it. Our beloved previous Pope would even agree with that statement and all but did when he described the Novus Ordo as a banal, on-the-spot creation.
You are perhaps taking offense because you are a Novus Ordo devotee. Fine. You like that Mass? Continue with it. But they’re simply not the same.
I have recently discovered that the new mass and the old are absolutely not the same. And the more I study up on the issue, I’m not 100% certain that the new mass is even licit. I just do not understand how Pope Paul VI could disobey the Council of Trent and not only change the Mass, but create a completely new one — with just a few of the old elements left in place.
I have never heard any true Catholic theology taught in the new mass that I have attended for 10 years. They are simply not the same Mass and, I’m beginning to believe, not even the same religion.
I’ll agree with you about it seeming like a different religion! So true.
The Novus Ordo seems like an Anglican liturgy. If you read any of Michael Davies works on the Anglican Book of Prayer and Bishop Cranmer, all of the changes in the Novus Ordo are essentially identical to the protestant reforms to the liturgy during the English Reformation.
Google “The Merit of the Mass” and the first result you get should be an article of the same name by Fr. Ripperger FSSP.
The two forms of the mass are not the same at all. Worshiping God is not about “how you feel,” it’s about giving God what he wants in the best way you can.
The Novus Ordo is a valid liturgy, and can even be said reverently, and for many it is our only option. But if given the choice I would go with the Latin Mass without question. And not just because of some personal preference, but because the Latin Mass for very objective reasons is more efficacious in conforming us to God. Please give the above mentioned article a read.
You said this better than any statement I have ever read comparing the forms of the mass. I have attended the Tridentine Mass and I love it, but the Novus Ordo Mass in my parish is reverent and breathtaking in its beauty.
I am totally put off by the attitude some people adopt regarding the Tridentine Mass. I am seeking Jesus in the Eucharist, not looking to become a member of an exclusive club who looks down on fellow Catholics.
Again, thank you for your excellent comment.
” but the Novus Ordo Mass in my parish is reverent and breathtaking in its beauty.”
Your experience is at variance with the vast majority of other Catholics. You find a reverent and breathtaking NO the equivalent of the TLM, great, but if others feel the TLM benefits them more or perhaps even objectively superior in many regards their opinion is somehow invalid? Funny how that works.
And you would be one of a bare handful of individuals I have met who have truly given the TLM a considered chance and did not come away feeling there were marked differences between the two. My family and I were blessed to assist at one of the most reverent and orthodox NO Masses, in Latin, in the country but there is for me no comparison. And there are very solid theological reasons for this preference, as well, it is not just the base snobbery you uncharitably attribute to others.
Frankly, I’m a little put off by the attitude many devotees of the Novus Ordo Mass adopt regarding those who adhere to Tradition and the Traditional Latin Mass! Where are you reading, anywhere here, that we look down on you? Sheesh.
Maryanne: I too go to both forms of the Roman liturgy, but not because I have the choice to attend only one of them on a daily basis. Do you not find it unjust that priests worldwide can ignore the fact there are TWO forms of the Roman rite (supposedly), but they can neglect the more ancient form? If they do that, does anyone, especially a bishop, give a hoot? No. Of course not.
BUT, if a priest decides he is going to offer ONLY and exclusively the Traditional Roman rite, then he gets the attention of his bishop. Is this not unjust in spades?
So very sad. I am not from that area but I download his sermons and listen to them on the drive to work, it’s increasingly difficult to hear TRUE Catholic sermons anymore. I will keep him in my prayers. We need more good and faithful men like him in the Church. So sad this hatred for our patrimony, Catholics should stand up they are being denied a wonderful gift in the traditions of the Church. Sadly, many Catholics don’t even know what is that they are losing because they nothing about this beautiful form of the Mass.
I will keep Father Rodriguez in my prayers. I was thinking he should go to the FSSP. Can priests change dioceses?
As one who attends the Extraordinary Form, but also as a trained psychotherapist, I’d say that there is a lack of balance in Fr. Rodriguez. One you get into the issue of the consecration of Russia (denying what John Paul II and Benedict have said about that, and Sister Lucia) you easily descend into New World Order/Freemasonic conspiracy theories. Had Fr. Rodriquez been less extreme, he might have had no problem. And he’d probably have more parishioners – That video Mass congregation looks pretty sparse.
Oh my gosh! Seriously? You presume to make a public diagnosis of someone you’ve never met? I find it hard to believe that you are actually a “trained psychotherapist”. Licensed and practicing? Seems to me that you’ve just disobeyed professional ethics; common sense, at least.
Gimme’ a break. I’m a physician. So what? You know not of what you speak, sir, nor do you know of whom you speak.
Hear, Hear.
Perhaps you’re not familiar with the population of West Texas, which , except for El Paso, is pretty sparse everywhere…
Russia HAS NOT been consecrated. Where’s the PEACE??? You blasphemy God by implying that His Blessed Mother is a liar. As far as NWO/Freemasonic conspiracy theories….Novus Ordo is latin for NEW ORDER. Also study the writings of Fr. Luigi Villa, especially his conversations with Padre Pio.
Sparse numbers? Who cares? Since when is Truth determined by numbers….most people in this country voted for Obozo twice including over 50% of “Catholics”….CASE CLOSED.
Maryanne Michele…
Archbishop Chaput declared on June 30, 2010 A.D., during an interview with First Things magazine, that compared to the Traditional Roman Mass, the Novus Ordo offers a “much richer expression of worship”.
He also declared during that interview that he is not interested in the TLM.
He had spoken on behalf of countless Churchmen who have made it clear that the Novus Ordo, compared to the TLM, is the superior Mass.
They believe, as Archbishop Chaput declared, that the Novus Ordo, compared to the Traditional Latin Mass, better expresses the Faith and offers the Faithful an overall superior liturgical experience.
That, of course, is the very reason why Pope Blessed Paul VI overthrew the Traditional Roman Mass in favor of the Novus Ordo.
One Cardinal, bishop and priest after another is determined to suppress the Traditional Roman Mass as they believe the Novus Ordo better serves the Faithful.
Conversely, are the Faithful attached to the Traditional Roman Mass not permitted the right to believe that the TLM, compared to the Novus Ordo, offers a much richer expression of worship?
Yeah the NO Mass is so superior that you have to bribe your kids to attend. My son used to fall asleep and has fallen because he thinks Mass is boring. Maybe if he heard beautiful music and the smell of incense, it would have kept his interest. I’m not making excuses for him but I know a lot of people that fell from the Catholic church when the new Mass was introduced.
If it’s not young boys playing game boy in the pews, most Novus Ordo parishes around me are basically old age communities.
I would disagree and so would Fr. Ripperger.
Here you go:
Click to access Merit%20of%20the%20Mass%20(Fr.%20Ripperger,%20F.S.S.P.).pdf
I am not a theologian or a liturgist. I’m a convert and housewife. My strong-willed liberal protestant mother always attended the novus ordo with me. As soon as we discovered the TLM and began attending that, she flat out refused to ever attend it with me again, after haranguing me for 3 hours about it. She was TICKED off at everything – the reverence, silence, families, authority of the priest, solemn presentation of the Faith, etc, etc, And for the record, I NEVER took her to an irreverent Novus Ordo. When that happened, I could never look back. They are not the same.
I miss the silence, the reverence, the beautiful hymns of the old Mass. The NO Mass is very Protestant so no surprise your mother liked it.
This priest is a REAL priest, not some emasculated priest like Dolan. He ios a real saint walking amongst us… He will suffer like Padre Pio…Lord protect him and keep him…
And protect us from psychotherapists
Hahahaha! Thank you for making me laugh.
Ditto.
Bill Russell…
In regard to Father Rodriguez and conspiracy theories…
Pope Francis last year referenced a Masonic “lobby” that existed within the Church.
The Church has for centuries noted the existence of and taught against the Masonic “conspiracy” that exists to destroy the Church.
The Church noted the existence of and taught against the Communist “conspiracy” that worked to destroy the Church.
A cabal among homosexuals exist within the Church.
A cabal among pedophiles exists within the Church.
Did not more than a few bishops conspire for decades to provide cover for the above-mentioned cabals?
A proven cabal to overthrow Holy Tradition operated during Vatican II.
Following Vatican II, prominent men from said cabal boasted publicly that they had conspired to introduce ambiguities into Vatican II documents.
The men in question boasted publicly that they had conspired to trick bishops into believing that they had approved one thing, only to have discovered that following the Council, what the bishops had approved had been overthrown.
Cardinals and bishops at the recent Extraordinary Synod complained that a behind-the-scenes manipulation of the Synod had taken place.
A cabal at said Synod had beyond question composed parts of the relation prior to the Synod.
That is a fact.
The bottom line is that the Church has long noted and taught against the undeniable existence of anti-Catholic conspiracies and cabalists.
If Father Rodriguez believed as you claimed, then he simply heeded the warnings of teachings of Holy Mother Church.
Of course, as a foreigner and not knowing all circumstances, I would like to suggest one more option for Fr. Rodriguez, how to use this sabbatical (despite the fact that it was not his choice). We should pray for him and even more fervently for the cause that he is asking for (consecration of Russia), yet he could do a great act of faith by making the pilgrimage (on foot) to Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico. Sorry, if it sounds ridiculous.
Father Rodriguez is a marathon runner and has led a number of pilgrimages to Mexico, Peru, Colombia, etc.
So, strangely enough, what you say is not out of the question for him, personally.
Dismas.
Agreed. Our Churchmen are not misguided. They grasp lex orandi, lex credendi.
Yessir. My soul is warmed every time I see that a person actually gets this. One of the most fundamental errors we make is attributing all of this stuff to the misguided thinking of erstwhile faithful Catholic hierarchy.
This caught my attention; And probably explains why this Priest is being sent on mandatory sabbatical…
“In closing, Fr. Rodríguez asks that efforts be redoubled to pray for the Holy Father so that he will consecrate Russia to the Immaculate Heart of Mary as requested by Our Lady of Fatima. May the reign of Christ the King come through the triumph of the Immaculate Heart of His Mother! ”
This is code for SSPX claims and falsely accuses successful Popes of not honoring our Lady’s wishes.
This has already been done by the Following Popes on the following dates..
October 31, 1942 Pope Pius XII consecrates the world to the Immaculate Heart.
July 7, 1952 Pope Pius XII consecrates the Russian people to the Immaculate Heart
November 21, 1964 Pope Paul VI renews, in the presence of the Fathers of the Vatican Council but without their participation, the consecration of Russia to the Immaculate Heart.
May 13, 1982 Pope John Paul II invites the bishops of the world to join him in consecrating the world and with it Russia to the Immaculate Heart. Many do not receive the invitation in time for the Pope’s trip to Fatima, where he accomplishes the consecration. Sr. Lucia later says it did not fulfill the conditions.
October 1983 Pope John Paul II, at the Synod of Bishops, renews the 1982 Consecration
March 25, 1984 Pope John Paul II, “united with all the pastors of the Church in a particular bond whereby we constitute a body and a college,” consecrates “the whole world, especially the peoples for which by reason of their situation you have particular love and solicitude.” Both the Pope and Sr. Lucia initially seemed uncertain that the consecration has been fulfilled, but shortly thereafter Sr. Lucia tells the papal nuncio to Portugal that the Consecration is fulfilled.
August 29, 1989 Sr. Lucia affirms in correspondence that the consecration “has been accomplished” and that “God will keep His word.”
Father Rodriguez has been constantly obedient to his bishop. This sabbatical is an act of obedience. Please do not calumniate him with false and unsubstantiated allegations, simply because he is one of many, many Catholics who are dubious that Our Lady’s command with regard to Russia has been fulfilled. Father Rodriguez remains a priest in good standing in the Diocese of El Paso.
Do your homework, son.
That’s nice for you that you’re completely comfortable with this litany. Countless are not. And you’re out of line to be attributing anything questionable or suspicious to this good priest. If this issue concerns you so much, perhaps you might do a little more research before you start slinging mud at Fr. Rodriguez.
Or, perhaps, even pay a bit of equal attention to the many reliable sources that put the “party line” into question and give it an ounce of discernment. What could that hurt?
Indeed.
Just earlier today I read about Russian tanks, artillery, and anti-air vehicles moving into the Ukraine. Iraq and Syria are still unstable with ISIS still running free. In Africa Muslim terror groups sold off young girls they kidnapped. In the Sudan recently military forces raped 200 women and school girls from Friday night going into the next day.
Our Lady promised peace in the world if her wishes were fulfilled. How can Russia have been consecrated when our world is filled with more war than ever, and seems to be getting worse? How can Russia have been consecrated when they did not mention Russia explicitly out of fear of offending the Orthodox Church?
My job is to fulfill my current state in life and so this is not a matter that I trouble my conscience with. But I cannot see in any way how the consecration took place.
Our Lady asked for all the bishops of the world to consecrate Russia to her Immaculate Heart. Do not let your Latin Catholic Hubris hide the fact that the orthodox byzantine Bishops are recognized by Bl Mary and the Church as part of the Apostolic Tradition. Would Mary leave out her semi schismatic sons? Get your heads of the the sands and see that due to man’s frailties it has not been a perfect consecration. Any Bishop can consecrate Russia as BL Mary has asked he does not need to offer a mass to do so. Just get up in the morning and pray and bless a map of Russia to Bl Mary. It will suffice. Bl Mary did not ask any of the Laity to be there just the Bishops and the Pope. Do you think our Mothet would expect it to be done publicly? I see no mention of her asking for this. Look at her words and think with grace instead of with pride.
I posted on Facebook how we have started a Latin Mass association here in Kansas with the help of a Priest of The Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter and got a good size group of people who want the Latin Mass they are spread out over our Diocese we belong to; Salina; we made a insert for our November newsletter with the info about Father Michael. Is there a way to contact him and tell him we are looking for priests who offer the Latin Mass; we already have one who will help us, just advertising for more; even seminarians to tell them they have a place as well. https://www.facebook.com/TLMNorthwestKansas?fref=nf This will take you to our Facebook Page.
Oh Madam please tell me there will be one near Hays, Plainville, Phillipsburg, Smith Center, somewhere in that region! I own a farm outside Phillipsburg. We always drive home on Saturday now so I don’t miss Mass at our TLM parish. I would love to be able to assist at daily TLM and so stay longer at the farm.
There are some really beautiful churches around Hays. Many would be so suitable for the TLM.
I will relay your contact info to Father forthwith. God bless you and thank you.
Fear not for I am with you till the end days ! Christ promised us He will never leave us ..we may see a split from the Roman Catholic Church ,but if that happens the church will be smaller but stronger! Have an informed conscience and you will stay true to church teaching.
[…] the blog Veneremur cernui there is an update. I pulled out the main part with his inserted comments, and I add my […]
Father Rodriguez has obliquely contradicted the Church and her popes by insinuating that the consecration of Russia has not been done. This definitely sounds like the dissident code language of the SSPX. For that alone he should be given a time for rest and reflection
Yes quite the period of world peace we have been experiencing lately.
Ah! Oh my! Contradict the pope! SSPX! “Lions and tigers and bears, oh my!”
You’re funny 🙂
He about 2000 other priests, then, huh. Most FSSP priests I know certainly don’t think it’s been done, or at least not done right.
“Dissident code”….news flash….the dissidents occupy the Vatican currently. Show me ONE article of Faith that the SSPX denies….I wish you luck finding one.
I recently left the religious order I was in, the Capuchin Franciscans,
the topic of the Extraordinary form and the Novus Ordo was a topic the friars and I commonly engaged in.
It would be wise, before saying that one form is better to, or equal to each other that you investigate the beginnings of our liturgies. in doing so you will notice that while customs and some traditions and evolved and changed over time ( and i do mean traditions and not Apostolic Tradition.)
Since the liturgy is a living organism and not merely a set of norms and rubrics; the liturgy of the Church is constantly evolving and growing, if it were not it would be dead.
To suggest that a priest, feeling called to celebrate the Holy Mass ONLY in the Extraordinary form, who receives opposition should excommunicate themselves from our Holy Mother Church and join the SSPX (Who is still considered a schismatic group) is to put your very self in opposition to the Church who, being guided by the Holy Spirit, is alwawys leading the Church into the fullness of the Truth.
The Extraordinary form Mass is definitely superior to the new Mass. Both are valid and licit. There is a clarity, consistency and comprehensiveness to the Old Mass that is lacking in the New. The fact of the Real Presence is remembered and shown in every part of it. This fosters belief in the Eucharist and thus more fruit is born.
I just love this unsubstantiated stuff thrown around. Heaven protect us from study-at-home theologians and Church historians.
Careful how you reply. I assume you are speaking to someone else but the way it shows up makes it seem like you are starting a new comment in response to the post itself.
I do not believe I called for Father to join the SSPX.
Sorry. You are correct and I did not notice that until it already posted. I was replying to Travis.
[…] Father Michael Rodriguez […]
“Once one becomes accustomed to the great Traditional Latin Mass and the whole traditional practice of the Faith, it is impossible to go back to what is offered in the vast majority of parishes today.” Impossible? Not really. I love the Traditional Latin Mass, but one is not offered anywhere close to where I live. Am I supposed to not go to Mass because it is impossible to do so? Christ lives where His people gather.
I’m going out on a limb here by speaking for the author of this statement and will say that he probably didn’t mean that quite as literally as you seem to be taking it. Uh, no, I don’t think he’s telling you and me that we’re not supposed to go to a Novus Ordo Mass, or that it’s literally impossible, as in physically impossible, for a person who loves the Traditional Mass to attend anything but the Traditional Mass. Are you being serious here? Perhaps a second reading of the post might be in order.
I was not being serious. I just wanted to point out that the lack of access to the Traditional Mass is not the end of the world. I try to be content in whatever Mass I attend.
I see, sorry 🙂 Sometimes it can be hard to pick up on the nuances with this type of communication.
Lack of access to the Traditional Mass IS rather a big deal to me, but I guess that’s a matter of opinion. I’m happy for you that you’re able to be content at any Mass. That’s the way it should be; but it’s not for me, sadly.
Hey, I speak for myself. And it was a rhetorical point, not a solemn definition.
Sorry for speaking for you!
Oh no I was replying to Eric. After so many comments the threading starts to break down, sorry.
I have been a Priest for 33 years. Priests are supposed to be obedient to their Bishop. If Fr. Rodriguez is celebrating the Latin Mass exclusively and only 50 people are upset about him being on sabbatical I wonder about the rest of the people in his parish and beyond who are without a Priest because he refused to celebrate Mass according to the Roman Missal published just two years ago.
All Masses are traditional. Mass isn’t something we can demand to be done “our way” or “no way”. Mass is God’s gift to us. It is the Sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the altar in front of us. Whether the Priest is wearing a short or long chasuble, whether he is speaking Latin or German, whether he makes three signs of the cross over the bread and wine for Consecration, whether he has his back to the east or to the west, whether he demands that everyone be on their knees to receive Holy Communion on the tongue or allows people to stand is not our business. We can prefer one or the other, but when God gives us Himself, under the appearance of bread and wine, we should not complain that He comes to us differently than we demand.
Respectfully, there are far more than 50 people who are upset. Actually, 50 faithful Catholics that have benefited by Father’s ministering to them in Shafter, TX, is quite a lot given that the population of Shafter, TX is a whopping 11 people.
All Masses are traditional? I’m wondering what you mean by that. Rather than my feeble attempt to speak on this eloquently, I’ll insert a quotation from Pope Benedict XVI. You’ve probably heard it before:
“What happened after the Council was something else entirely: in the place of liturgy as the fruit of development came fabricated liturgy. We abandoned the organic, living process of growth and development over the centuries, and replaced it–as in a manufacturing process–with a fabrication, a banal on- the-spot product.”
I think the Catholics of Shafter or Presidio, TX, as well as myself and countless other Catholics around the country who benefit by Fr. Rodriguez’s ministry, are not “demanding” anything. We’re Catholics and wish to recover our Catholic Patrimony.
Father Higgins, how is it that “all masses are traditional” as you say? That does not make sense. The Mass existed for many hundreds of years and changes happened only very slowly and organically.The new mass was put together by a committee and thrust upon the Catholic population literally overnight.
Catholics did not have any choice — they could either accept this “new traditional mass” or leave the Church. They have often been refused Communion on the tongue and/or kneeling. Much (if not most) of the ancient Mass was completely removed from the new Mass. For example:
Why were so many of the prayers removed or completely changed?
Why are not the saints named in the new mass?
Why don’t we genuflect during the Creed when we say, “by thy power of the Holy Spirit he was born of the Virgin Mary and became man?”
What happened to the unchangeable Canon?
Why don’t priests hold their thumb and forefinger together after handling the Sacred Host so as not to lose a crumb of the True Body of Christ. Is it okay now to flick those little specks of Jesus’ Body away like so much annoying dust?
What does it mean that the Council of Trent declared that the Mass could not be changed, yet modern churchmen changed it anyway? Was that not serious disobedience?
I could continue for many paragraphs. (Why can I not find a priest to give my father his Last Rites as they were always given until 1974 when the Vatican mandated the new rites which are just a short prayer for healing?)
The longing some of us have for the ancient, Traditional ways has nothing to do with simple preference. It’s a matter of the soul.
Yes, all Masses are traditional. I’m not talking about lace albs and great incense, nor am I talking about Latin and the Prayer to St. Michael at the end of Mass. I’m not talking about moving the book of Sacred Scripture from one side of the altar to the other. I’m talking about the great tradition of the liturgy of the Word and the liturgy of the Eucharist, where the Word of God is proclaimed and the Word made Flesh is made presence by the power of the Holy Spirit and the ministry of the Priest.
Those are the traditions that do not, will not, cannot change.
“… the great tradition of the liturgy of the Word and the liturgy of the Eucharist,…” Isn’t that somewhat new and only found in the Mass that was created (fabricated) in the late 1960s? For hundreds and hundreds of years, the Mass consisted of the Mass of the Catechumens (first part), then the catechumens leave and the Mass of the Faithful proceeds. And from what I’ve read, it’s not simply a matter of semantics. The current Liturgy of the Word is not the same thing, not the same prayers nor the same intent and theology as the Mass of the Catechumens, etc.
It’s really fascinating to study the traditional Mass in all its beauty. When I discovered it, it led me to learn the Faith, to learn all that has been taken from us. It made me angry, frankly, all that was taken from us. But thanks be to God, the Traditional Mass has always had the power to bring Catholics home, and to assist us as we strive for Heaven.
there are no substantive differences between the ordinary form and the extraordinary form of the Mass.
it is completely a matter of personal preference and it is shameful to make these personal preferences a source of discontent and division within Christ’s Mystical Body.
There are absolutely substantive differences, and you just accused the former pontiff of discontent and division. He noted those differences at great length and directly stated that the NO was a “banal, manufactured on the spot product.”
eddie too
You’re correct.
If it is simply a matter of personal preference, then why even create the Novus Ordo in the first place? It is at least just as shameful to create an entirely new Mass for the sake of personal preference.
Remind me again of the divisiveness of the NO? How any priests and nuns quit? How many Catholics left the Church?
Which Form has recently experienced a boom in vocations?
It’s the time-tested vertically based Holy Sacrifice of the Mass vs. the new, kitschy, horizontal Mass of identity politics (youth Mass with guitars, Hispanic Mass, English Mass with folk songs, English Mass with traditional choir, etc.). Heck, some of the most common hymns are heretical!
You must have missed the Mass then. Have you compared the missals of the two Masses?
6 month sabbatical = bishop trying to deprogram a good traditional priest. My prayers are that Fr. Rodriguez keeps the strength to persevere.
Tantumblogo… eddie too is using St. Thomas Aquinas’ meaning of “substantive”, not the current meaning. The substance of the Holy Scripture and the substance of the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist are present in both liturgies. The differences are not in the substance of the Mass, but in the accidents of the Mass.
You are may be correct, I cannot say I have read the dozens of comments I’ve received today carefully, I am not accustomed to nearly so many. I would still say, on further reflection, that this point is arguable and has been argued.
Right. And no difference between a Jaguar and a Yugo. They are both cars.
Regarding the whole of the situation, Father, perhaps you should reserve comment if you are unaware of the dynamics of it. Your original comment betrays this fact.
[…] post on Father Michael Rodriguez’ involuntary sabbatical has attracted a great deal of attention, some of it from individuals who are either new to my blog […]
God has never made a mistake. Prayers for disobedience to superiors? I think not. Absolutely not.
There are way more than just a mere 50 of us that are upset. Count me as one of them.
I used to attend Mass at San Juan Bautista in El Paso, TX.
I remember Fr. Rodriguez as being a very holy priest.
He is a saint. He speaks out against evil. All he wants to do is help people get to Heaven. He is a humble living saint.
Thank you for the clarification.
You are quite correct, Mr. Larsen. Interestingly, when Father Rodriguez was assigned to Presidio (Shafter) the Texas Highway Department road sign officially designated Shafter a “ghost town” Depending on how and who you count, there were anywhere from 11-20 people actually living there, and that never changed much except for a couple of religious hermits who moved there to be close to this authentic Catholic revival.
Soon after Father was transferred there that sign came down. Now of course someone can offer an alternate and legitimate explanation for why that might be so, but the fact is noteworthy.
Actually I was at the last Mass there and there were maybe 80-100 people in the church. Not bad for a ghost town. So these uninformed comments about “only 50 people being upset” are embarrassing and laughable.
Over those roughly three years hundreds and maybe thousands of trips were made from El Paso – over 400 miles roundtrip. And that does not speak for the great people of that area who got their taste of authentic Catholicism and became our friends and brothers. Nor does it speak for some of the vocations that show some signs of budding there. Nor does it speak for people who would come from all across that part of Texas and literally from all parts of the country. Nor does it speak for the priests (in “full” communion) who would go there just to be on retreat.
This is the sort of thing that this new religion just cannot abide. We must understand that they have no choice other than to stomp it out or try to keep it under wraps on a reservation. World Youth Day? Right on! Authentic Catholicism? Oil and water. Go ahead and tell us how these two religions are both the same and how both of these liturgies are “traditional.” Many of us quit buying all of that sloppy sophism a long time ago.
Show me a saint who “went along to get along.” Sure, lots of them were not forced to humbly reject unjust demands of their bishops, because they had bishops who held the authentic Catholic Faith. But if you want to offer me ten bucks a pop, I’ll start compiling a list of all those saints who “disobeyed” perfidious bishops. Or you can save a whole lot of money and do it on your own.
History shows us no people more vicious than liberals. Recent history clearly demonstrates for us that no one is as destructive to the authentic Faith as modernists.
No expert here. The Law of Love would allow for both the Traditional Latin Mass & Approved Natural Language Mass. Faith comes by hearing the Word of God which includes in a very Sacred Way, Holy Scripture.
With all of the irreverence in the guise of ‘freedom’ that was high jacked from true justice assertions of the sixties, it is not proper to associate the tremendous decline in Church attendance in recent decades to the Natural Language Mass. The decline most likely would have been greater without it.
The rise of ‘progressivism’ and its alluring false mercantilism which claims humankind is progressing toward greater and greater perfection since ‘the enlightenment’ of the Middle Ages has more and more seduced the West and world for that matter. God has allowed this for a reason, but The Light, Jesus Christ shines in the darkness.
I’m not certain of proportionally speaking because of plagues, famine, and war in previous historical times, but in astronomical numbers we live in the most murderous time in history. And by an immense number the majority are tiny little helpless boys and girls in the womb. (The last I heard are 1.7 billion worldwide in a mere 40 years and no one knows the agony of the conscious soul made created by God before the womb ‘His Workmanship created for good works in Christ which are created beforehand that we should walk in them.’ Ref. Eph. 2:10. Most fathers and mothers are in great ignorance since ultrasounds and unborn child heartbeat bring about change of heart and mind of the majority of the parents.
Pope John Paul II and the USA Bishops in 1995 put great emphasis on promoting the Culture of Life along with the Gospel in tangible ways, including demonstrations.
Why go off on this tangent? Yes, expressing the Beauty of The Mass is important as is Apologetics. But there is a severe lack of promoting shining a light on the hillside and giving to the least among us. The Church is allowed by USA law i.e.(freedom of religious expression and freedom of speech) to express in times of election from the pulpit voting for Christian morality and the disparity of voting for the culture of death as opposed to voting on other issues. In 2012, when the vote was not only on the culture of life vs. the culture of death, but also religious expression, I attended 4 or 5 Masses at different Churches. Not a peep. When asking, they blamed the Bishops. I was so heart broken after the Sunday Mass before that election. With heavy heart I proceeded to my car rather slowly. All of a sudden I remembered a sign I used at 40 Days for Life and during the year in my trunk. I ran and held it outside the door of the Church. Most people glanced at my way, some with unmistakable expressions of disapproval. One or two thanked me and said, ‘he (the Priest) didn’t say anything. That’s not quite true. He made a non-committal comment on the election, and said I’m Father SoAndSo and I approve this message. Sadness filled my heart while many laughed when such solemn issues were and still are at hand. I like Cardinal Timothy Dolan of NY. But I think John Cardanal O’Conner was much better. The Latter would not have been smiling with a evil promoter like Obama at the Al Smith dinner. Nor give a tame exhortation of voting before the election. Cardinal Dolan just wrote pray before you vote without exhortating Christian morality at all.
Yes, it is Certain that Jesus stays with us through the Mass and Eucharist. How many are saved by Grace who through no fault of their own they do not know this? God judges those outside the Church and Jesus said that those who sin in ignorance will receive less stripes though they deserve more. And Jesus sternly exhorted at the end of Chapt. 25 of the Gospel According to Matthew that it is required to help the helpless. I could hear Him say, I was in danger of being murdered in the womb and you came to me to those who do.
Yes, yes, yes, promote the expressions of The Mass, by all means. The world would most likely quickly fade to deeper darkness without it. But one of the largest problems in the Church is expressing Jesus in the form of justice. There was a Bishop in Iowa, I think who required the priests in his Bishopcate to read a letter prior to the election in 2012. Fr. Pavane, Msrg. Riley, and others have been expressing these things for decades. Proportionally speaking, the most in need are largely ignored. Since WWII, during and after The Cold War, even before satan has unleashed an immense propaganda war, with the vast majority of those participating in The Crucifiction being helpless in the womb. The poorest of the poor. Bishops with Impimatures have asked for prayers of these children’s Spiritual Baptisms and Jesus promised anything asked in His Name is answered. Along with Apostle John and Blessed Virgin Mary at the Cross, with our prayers for these children, we need to be like the early Christians saving helpless infants left in the elements to die in much greater numbers, and we need much greater sustained exhortations at the pulpits.
This would be a good expression of bring Jesus given in the Mass to those most in need, and it does bring changes of hearts and minds, even Conversions.
Being born again, and a true relationship with Christ is more than religion.
[…] All of this has gotten me to thinking about Fr. Michael Rodriguez, the diocesan priest in Shafter, Texas (the Diocese of El Paso) who was just put on sabbatical for no greater crime, it appears, than because he celebrates the Traditional Latin Mass exclusively in his parish. From A Blog for Dallas Area Catholics: […]
The Latin Mass, or more correctly called the “Extraordinary form of the Mass” has never been condemned by the Church. The problem becomes when the preference of a “priest” or even a community could take over his “vocation” to the ordained ministry as an assistant of the Bishop and his mission in the Diocese itself. The Latin Mass should not be forbidden but at the same time, the priest “CANNOT” and “SHOULD NOT” refuse to celebrate the ordinary form of the Mass as well. Canon Law is very explicity about the promise of obedience in regards to disciplinary matters, as it is the Bishop, the head of the Diocese and who is responsible for the guidance of the souls entrusted to his care. Why doesn’t Fr. Rodriguez celebrates the ordinary form too? perhaps because there is a theological incogruency as well as that of many faithful of regarding the external elements of the liturgy as more important than the substantial “presence of the Lord in the Eucharist”. Many people tend to think that either is better than the other one, which is not true. The Liturgy has developed organically, and yes, after Vatican II there were liturgical abuses but the “vernacular usage of the language” and adaptation of liturgy to the different cultures was definitly not one of them. If Fr. Rodriguez feels greatly called to celebrate Exclusivly the Extraordinary form of the Mas, he could join the “Fraternity of St. Peter” which is in union with the Church and whose charism is precisely that, but he should not be opposed to a pastoral request from his ordinary.
The term “Extraordinary Form” isn’t the correct term. It’s a term that Pope Benedict XVI came up with when he bestowed upon us the Motu Proprio. There isn’t a so-called correct term; there’s many terms, i.e., Tridentine Mass, Gregorian Mass, Latin Mass, Traditional Mass, Traditional Latin Mass, TLM. Whew! But the “Extraordinary Form of the Mass” is a brand spanking new designation that the Pope came up with, I suppose in order to differentiate it from the Novus Ordo (Ordinary, as in Regular) Mass.
Now that aside, we have no idea if Father refuses to say the Novus Ordo. Do you? Why doesn’t he celebrate it? I think I heard him speaking on that once and I seem to remember something about feeling very strongly that the N.O. is so deficient in praise, sacrifice, reverence, Catholic belief, etc., that he couldn’t in good conscience continue in the same manner as before he discovered our traditional Mass and the depths of the priesthood that he’d never been taught. Also which led him to delve deeper into learning our Faith that he’d never been exposed to in the seminary. But I guess you’d really have to ask him yourself.
“Many people tend to think that either is better than the other one, which is not true.”
—–Well, no, but I think we can just leave it as that’s apparently a matter of opinion. As far as I’m concerned, of course the Traditional Latin Mass is superior.
“The Liturgy has developed organically, and yes, after Vatican II there were liturgical abuses but the “vernacular usage of the language” and adaptation of liturgy to the different cultures was definitly not one of them.”
—–The liturgy developed organically over the centuries, yes indeed. The first time in Church history that it DIDN’T develop organically was the creation of the Novus Ordo after Vatican II! The Novus Ordo Mass itself is a protestantized, created version of the Roman Rite, with the express purpose of tamping down or eliminating all the parts that were too Catholic, in order to draw Protestants to us. Can you believe that? They created the Mass, the Novus Ordo, to be less Catholic so the Protestants might think, “Hey, cool.” Unfortunately, what happened is a massive falling away of Catholics and…….zero Protestants deciding to convert to Catholicism. Imagine that.
I suggest, charitably, that you do some research into the history of our beautiful heritage, the Mass of all the Saints, the Traditional Mass. Also perhaps some reading into how the Novus Ordo came to be. If you’re interested, everything you might want to know can be found in a great book called “Iota Unum” by Romano Amerio. It’s big but very easy to read and quite fascinating. And disturbing.
Thank you so much, Elizabeth. Your suggestions are indeed charitable. Let us hope your words find some fertile ground.
I hope I was charitable. It’s good practice for my Irish blood to try to remember when I too was at the place of not knowing how much I didn’t know! If that makes sense. And “Iota Unum” was such a treasure; an eye-opener. That seemed like a good place to start. Any other good book suggestions?
Of course Elizabeth! Most of us have worked our way through all of this to arrive at our current understanding and we still need to work and study. So if there are folks still trapped in the sort of mindset created by the novusordinarians it is our duty to be patient and respectful.
There is, however, a point at which we dust off our feet and just keep moving.
It is helpful to demystify all of this. Yes, Catholicism is full of beautiful mystery, but what we are talking about here is NOT Catholicism. This is not some sort of bold statement. If I deny one single Catholic truth I am not speaking Catholicism.
Careful! I’m not saying these men are not Catholics. I don’t need to get all wrapped up in those decisions because they are not in my purview. But almost all of us can tell when whatever someone is espousing is not Catholicism.
No…we are not discussing Catholicism here, we are discussing revolution. Nobody needs to listen to me, and no one should. If people are truly interested in grasping what is going on in Holy Mother Church, then why not turn to those men who we do recognize speaking unadulterated Catholicism?
This is not rocket science and one does not need a doctorate in theology to get this stuff. It has been done for you, for gosh sakes, if you will just avail yourselves of it.
IMHO, the book you mention – Iota Unum – is essential to understanding all of this.
Turn to the great encyclicals, people. Start with that masterful encyclical Pascendi Domini Gregis. In that encyclical Saint Pope Pius X describes for us the very days in which we live 100 years ago. It is as though he has opened up the modernist playbook for us. It qualifies as prophetic.
Elizabeth, I’ll list some books in a separate posting, because I don’t want this to go on and on.
We don’t write these things for everyone because everyone is just not going to get it. So be it. It is worth writing this stuff for that 1% or that 5% of people who will shake off this neo-protestant “born-again” “we gotta’ be obedient to heretics” miasma and embrace unadulterated Catholicism.