Articles

From the Pastor: 50 Year Anniversary of Novus Ordo!
Bulletin article, December 1

Fifty years ago, on the First Sunday of Advent in 1969, everything changed. It was on that fateful day when the New Order of Mass (Novus Ordo in Latin) was mandated to be celebrated throughout the world. In the Church, as in the world, we like to celebrate anniversaries. 50 years is always considered a very special anniversary. But I don’t see any celebrations, large or small, for the Novus Ordo Mass. There has been no special promulgation, no encyclical written, no apostolic letter sent out, nor even diocesan luncheons. There has been nothing but silence. Why? Why would the Church leaders remain close-mouthed about something that greatly affected every single Catholic and indirectly, at least, every non-Catholic? Why, when the Novus Ordo Mass is constantly promoted as the greatest thing since sliced bread, aren’t we witnessing great processions through the streets of Rome, huge diocesan...

Roe v. Wade, which marks its 40th anniversary this week, created a host of new conflicts for life and conscience and did nothing to resolve cultural and political debates around the issue—including debates around the funding of abortion.

Each year, the federal government entangles taxpayers in the abortion business, and under Obamacare even more funds—private as well as public—will flow to abortion services.

Federal Funding of Planned Parenthood

Even though the organization boasts the title of the nation’s largest abortion provider, Planned Parenthood has ridden the waves of taxpayer funding to millions of dollars in annual surpluses. In 2011 alone, Planned Parenthood received over $542 million in taxpayer funding while performing a record 333,964 abortions. According to analysis by the...

“I was deeply offended by the [Clinton team] emails, which are some of the worst bigotry by a political machine I have seen.  [A] Church has an absolute right to protect itself when under attack as a faith and Church by civil political forces. That certainly applies here . . .

 “Over the last eight years there has been strong evidence that the current administration, with which these people share values, has been very hostile to religious organizations.  Now there is clear proof that this approach is deliberate and will accelerate if these actors have any continuing, let alone louder, say in government.  

Note that Bishop Lynch does not say that “some Christians” or “some Catholics” target homosexuals for hate, but specifically that “it is religion, including our own..” that does so, which in this context can only mean the Catholic Church. Thus a bishop of the Catholic Church accuses his own religion of targeting homosexuals in such a way as to breed contempt for such people, which can lead to such violence.

Some people will claim that they are not for abortion…they are merely for “choice”. Let’s bring more clarity to the term “Pro-choice”. It is used because it implies an association with freedom and liberty. But it is a smoke-screen. It means “pro-abortion”. Now, someone could say, “No it doesn’t. It simply means that I do not think it is right to take away a woman’s right to choose what to do with her pregnancy”. Two things about that. First, the “what to do” only has to do with killing her baby. The “choice” is between allowing the baby to live and actively taking steps to end the child’s life. Second, “what to do with her pregnancy” is another misleading phrase. It implies that she is the only person involved. It entirely neglects the fact that this also involves the life of an innocent child.

The Catholic thing – the concrete historical reality of Catholicism – is the richest cultural tradition in the world. It was born from Judaism and, through that spiritual parentage, even reaches back into the great ancient civilizations of Egypt and Mesopotamia. In its early days, it confronted, absorbed, and redirected what was then the most sophisticated society in existence, Greco-Roman culture. When that culture fell, Catholicism preserved what it could and rebuilt the rest over centuries, incorporating new influences from Northern Europe and, during the great age of exploration, from the entire globe. Today, it numbers over a billion souls on every continent. Despite its all-too-human imperfections, there is simply nothing like it.

Connor Betts, the Dayton, Ohio mass shooter, was a self-described “leftist,” who wrote that he would happily vote for Democrat Elizabeth Warren, praised Satan, was upset about the 2016 presidential election results, and added, “I want socialism, and i’ll not wait for the idiots to finally come round to understanding.”

Information gathered by TBT raises questions as to whether commissioner-connected political operative, Anthony Pedicini, played a secretive role in drawing maps submitted in the county’s redistricting process.

There are at least two email addresses published on the internet for Anthony Pedicini. The first—which is an older email address—is anthony@imagemgmt.com, and the other is anthony@simwins.com. "Simwins" refers to Pendicini’s political consulting firm, Strategic Image Management. 

A Florida appeals court reversed a ruling that declared a 24-hour waiting period for abortion unconstitutional, handing pro-life advocates a partial victory. 

“We might feel like we’re uncomfortable voting for a particular person even if we know it’s the better of the two choices,” said Pavone, the national director of Priests for Life. “Voting is not about what’s good for me. It’s about the common good.”

“A vote is not about liking the person. … A vote is a transfer of power,” he said. “And we transfer the power to best of the viable alternatives.”

“People should never think that by not voting at all they escape responsibility for the outcome,” said Pavone, noting that Catholics at the beginning of Mass ask for forgiveness for “what I have done and what I have failed to do.”

Clinton revealed that she wouldn’t support a federal limit on abortion “at any state of pregnancy” in the name of a “woman’s right to choose.” 

Because, as Fr. James Martin knows full well, the inmates are largely running the asylum.

And such inmates all have Fr. Martin’s back.

When God matters, all life is sacred. That makes every moment sacred. Every life from conception to natural death matters. Marriage matters. Family matters. Our God-given gender and DNA matters. Doing an honest day's work matters. Living every day with a focus on eternity matters. Being vigilant matters.

Marijuana is the most commonly used illegal drug in the United States, with 22.2 million users. But the types of marijuana available today are more potent than before and come in many forms, including oils that can be vaped, and edibles, from brownies and candy to sodas. This leaves many with a lot of questions about marijuana use and its health effects.

New Web pages, published this month by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), provide more information about the health effects of marijuana use and answer some of the commonly asked public health questions in the discussion about marijuana in the United States.

The recent full-page advertisement in the Star Tribune, paid for by a national group calling themselves “Catholics for Choice,” woefully misrepresents the noble Catholic social justice tradition. By calling for public funding of abortion, “Catholics for Choice” disregards the need to defend vulnerable human life in all its stages—a principle at the core of authentic social justice. 
 
If there is a desire to help a woman in need who is facing an unplanned pregnancy, the solution as a society is to provide her with the resources and support she needs to care for her child—not help her dispose of it. Pope Francis has repeatedly condemned such a mentality as part of the throwaway culture that attacks the dignity of the weak and vulnerable because they seem inconvenient and make a claim upon our care and resources. 

The Ohio gunman described himself on social media as a pro-Satan “leftist” who wanted Joe Biden’s generation to die off, hated President Trump and law enforcement, and hoped to vote for Sen. Elizabeth Warren for president.

Action plan: Over the next few years, we’re going recruit and train candidates to make gains in the Florida state Senate and win the Florida governorship.

If priests cannot be chaste in celibacy, how can we expect our young men to grow in chastity as they prepare for marriage?

For example, when priests live their celibacy with confidence, they provide an example to young men who are required to be chaste in their own celibate state before they marry. Clerical violations of celibacy not only encourage secular commentators like Rush Limbaugh to question its value for priests, they undermine the resolve of men struggling to overcome addictions to pornography.

In my parish, I have been methodical in my strategy in dealing with the doctrinal ambiguities of the Vatican.  The pope’s picture hangs in the church vestibule to remind the faithful to pray for him.  But it is safer as a matter of clarity never to quote the Holy Father. 

The misguided campaign of the so-called “Catholics for Choice” organization misrepresents the moral guidance of our Church. The Bishops of the United States, in accord with our Holy Father, Pope Francis, have been unequivocal in proclaiming the dignity of unborn human life. Millions of Catholics in Texas actively live out this teaching in our pro-life ministries and advocacy.

This is the fourth consecutive year the president has recognized National Sanctity of Human Life Day in January. January 22 is the 48th anniversary of the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling, which declared abortion a national right.

In the proclamation, Trump called the ruling "flawed" and praised those who are leading "a powerful movement to awaken America's conscience and restore the belief that every life is worthy of respect, protection, and care."

Unsafe details horrific abortion facility conditions, documenting that 227 facilities in 32 states were cited for more than 1,400 health and safety deficiencies between 2008 and 2016, including hundreds of significant violations of state laws regulating abortion facilities.

Did you hear this in the news?  Andrew Warren's office allowed Hansen to be released. 

Hanson had been sentenced to life in prison for a 2002 bank robbery in Tampa. He was released from prison last month after the Hillsborough County State Attorney’s Office used Hanson as a material witness in another murder case.

The less we are willing even to wrestle with God, the more de-humanized we become.

It was revealed this week that, for the first time in its history, Harvard University, which had been founded for religious purposes and named for a minister of the Gospel, has admitted a freshman class in which atheists and agnostics outnumber professed Christians and Jews. Also this week, the House and the Senate of California passed a provision that allows for physician assisted suicide in the Golden State.