Gay mafia goes to Rome

THE NEW YORK TIMES reports ...

Responding to reports that the Vatican may be close to releasing a directive to exclude most gay candidates from entering the priesthood, leaders of Roman Catholic men's religious orders in the United States are planning to travel to Rome to voice their objections in person.

Go HERE for more.

Lavender uprising

We already knew it. But HERE is further evidence of how firm is the homosexual stranglehold on the Church in America.

Heads must roll

If the seminary visitations are going to have any effect at all, heads will need to roll. I hereby nominate Father Charles Bouchard, President of the Aquinas Institute in St. Louis, as the first "casualty." He needs to go. And if he does not, the Vatican seminary inspections are a fraud and we can forget about a true reform of the Church in America.

The WOMEN FOR FAITH AND FAMILY WEBSITE has this to say about the Dominican priest ...

Father Bouchard publicly defends "gay" priests and seminarians. In a May 20, 2002 Newsweek essay, "Gays and the Seminary", he reacted to Bishop Wilton Gregory's comment that "there does exist a homosexual atmosphere or dynamic [in seminaries] that makes heterosexual men think twice. Newsweek reported Bouchard's dismissive quip:

"Such complaints irritate gay clergymen and their defenders. 'I think straight priests and seminarians shouldn't be whining,' says the Rev. Charles Bouchard, president of the Aquinas Institute of Theology in St. Louis. 'I just don't think it's a big deal.'"

See a video news report featuring Father Bouchard HERE.

See what Father Bouchard said about Terri Schiavo HERE.

It's time to say, "Goodbye, bad men," and let's start with the president of the Aquinas Institute, Father Charles Bouchard, O.P.

This is not about homosexuality.

Oh really?

KSDK.com reports ...

Father Charles Bouchard is president of Aquinas Institute of Theology, "Some people do feel homosexuality would disqualify a student. I hope we can provide evidence that should not be the case."

Father Bouchard said the key is celibacy not sexual orientation, "We don't want to make it look like it's just a question if someone is gay or straight. But whether they have the ability to live celibate and be effective ministers."

Father Bouchard, "I think it might be relevant in as much as that it answers some people's question that possibly there is a link between homosexuality and pedophilea. I don't think that link exists, so I'm not afraid of that question."

One look at THIS VIDEO might give some insight as to why Father Bouchard would entertain such queer notions.

Barbara Dorris agreed. She is with the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, or S.N.A.P., "They are mixing apples and oranges. A homosexual is not a pedophile. To make this a homosexual issue is just wrong."

Barabara said half the victims of abuse by priests are females, "A homosexual is no more likely to abuse a child than a heterosexual. This is a smokescreen, a diversion of blame. A way to change the subject. This is not about homosexuality."

Read full report HERE.

Father Charles Bouchard needs to read THIS.

The SNAP lady needs to read THIS.

'Bill (Messenger) had his understanding of the church, I have mine'

These are the words of the new pastor of the University Catholic Center at USC, Father Laurence Seyer. He is speaking about Father William Messenger who served as pastor of the university parish since 1993 until he recently resigned amid accusations of inappropriate conduct. Messenger firmly denies any wrongdoing.

On August 17, in an article published in the USC student newspaper, THE DAILY TROJAN, Steven Chen wrote:

Messenger was placed on administrative leave from the Catholic Center on April 29 because of an allegation that he engaged in inappropriate sexual contact with an adult. But, Messenger said the investigation into the allegation is now over.

That appears to be wishful thinking on Messenger's part in light of the statement that was made last Sunday from the pulpit formerly occupied by the controversial priest. The Archdiocesan spokesman stated that new allegations have surfaced and that the most serious of these dates back to the late 70s. What is more, that particular "complaint" involves an individual who was a minor at the time.

THE DAILY TROJAN continues ...

Messenger said his resignation was not related to the sexual misconduct allegation and was not an admission of guilt.

"The specific reason for my resignation was for the alcohol policy that I implemented at the Catholic Center that allowed students under 21 to drink," he said.

Messenger said authorities thought his policy was irresponsible, but, "I thought that if students were going to drink anyway, why not (drink) in a safe environment."

How Stupid.

According to THE DAILY TROJAN, the new pastor of the center is already bringing about significant changes.

[Father] Seyer said he knew Messenger by name but did not know him personally. Because of the circumstances surrounding his predecessor, Seyer said several new rules and regulations will be implemented at the Catholic Center. These include a change in the operating hours of the center.

Seyer also said the direction of the Catholic center would be steered toward a more mainstream stance.

"Bill (Messenger) had his understanding of the church, I have mine," Seyer said. "I am more mainstream in church politics and politics in general."

Messenger said, however, "I am more liberal than many people might be used to, but that does not place me outside the mainstream."

Actually, Father Bill, if you're in any stream at all, it's downstream.

Additionally, the Catholic Center is working to formulate a new alcohol policy, Seyer said.

Father Seyer sounds like a huge improvement over Messenger who once said:

"My standard homily on Ash Wednesday includes, 'I do not give up Scotch, so bring all your half-empty bottles to me.' " Go HERE.

Our Lady of the Legos Cathedral

Sometimes Legoland looks a lot better than LaLa Land.

Click on the picture to see more of "Our Lady of the Legos Cathedral".

Smarter than your average Buddha

No, this is not Jellystone University.



It's Loyola Marymount, Los Angeles.

And its not Yogi Bear they're talking about.



It's Yoga, Buddha (aka Boo boo), Vishnu, Kali and Krishna. (Be sure to click on each and every name).

I must admit that I have not carefully studied the university catalog, but it would not surprise me at all to find LMU offering a degree major in Paganism with a minor in Catholicism.

If I am not mistaken, Loyola Marymount University was founded and is staffed by the religious order known as THE SOCIETY OF SHIVA, the KALI-fornia province. To visit their website, click HERE.

Go HERE for the new Fall line-up of courses.

L.A. Massive

How was the dancing at Mass in your parish last Sunday?

New allegations against USC's Father Messenger

One of the few nice things about doing this blog is that lots of people -- people whom I do not even know -- send me information and stories about people and events which are of interest to Catholics in L.A. (and beyond).

One of these sources has provided L.A. Catholic with the following BREAKING NEWS regarding former USC chaplain, FATHER WILLIAM MESSENGER ...

In late April of this year, it was revealed that an accusation had been filed against Father William Messenger by an adult student (the L.A. Times reported that the student was male). According to the reports, it is alleged that the priest, known as "Father Bill," had touched the student "inappropriately". Father Messenger vehemently denied the accusation but nonetheless resigned as pastor of Our Savior university parish in early June while the investigation proceeded.

It appears that shortly after the Archdiocese started its inquest, other allegations of "abusive conduct" on the part of Father Messenger surfaced. In an official Archdiocesan statement that was read at the Masses at Our Savior's last Sunday, the Archdiocese acknowledged that the most serious of the new "complaints" dates back to the late 1970's. (Messenger was ordained in 1977).

The statement reads:

"If this complaint is true, the person was a minor at the time of the alleged abuse. Please know that Father Messenger has very firmly denied any incidence of abusive conduct with a minor."

THE TIDINGS offers this brief biographical sketch about Messenger and a list of the parishes at which he has served:

A native Angeleno, he was born in 1950 and attended elementary school at St. John of God, Norwalk. Father Messenger entered the high school seminary and finished his theological studies at St. John's. Before his appointment as pastor of Our Saviour University Church at USC in 1993, he served as associate pastor at All Souls, Alhambra; St. Matthew, Long Beach; and St. Eugene and St. Paul, L.A.

When Messenger was still pastor of Our Savior, the USC Catholic Community website was replete with links to Messenger's homilies and essays which are unashamedly heterodox. Fortunately, these links have finally been removed by the new Catholic chaplain at USC. In one of the essays written in the early 1980's for the NCR, "Father Bill" wrote these eerily prescient words about celibacy and diocesan priests:

"I, for one, did not choose celibacy. I chose priesthood and accepted celibacy because there was no choice. I do not consider myself to have been free. There was simply no other way to be ordained."

"We must face the truth that celibacy in the diocesan clergy is abnormal. As in any abnormal situation, the individual must seek compensation."

Priest hero of 9-11 was gay?

In response to the news (which is hardly news at all) that homosexual men are not suitable candidates for the seminary and the priesthood, syndicated cartoonist Mark Fiore takes the Church to task with THIS cartoon.

Click HERE to see the animated cartoon.

See also this New York Times article which states in words what Fiore expresses with images.

The presupposition is that NYFD chaplain, Father Mychal Judge, who died ministering to injured and dying fire fighters on September 11, 2001, was a homosexual. And since then, militant homosexuals have been praising Judge as a "gay" saint-hero.

A saint he may have been; God alone knows for sure. But was he 'gay'?

According a good friend of the late priest, Father Mychal Judge was simply a "celibate Catholic priest and nothing more." Dennis Lynch sets the record "straight" and argues that homosexual activists, motivated by a purely self-serving agenda, have smeared the good name of a faithful priest.

HERE is the TRUE STORY about Father Mychal Judge.


Father Mychal Judge, O.F.M.

L.A. Masses

Half-time show?

No, that's Cardinal Mahony seated behind the liturgical dancing girls at a Religious Education Congress Mass in Anaheim earlier this year.

How was Mass this Sunday in your parish?

Do you have strong dislike for Mother Angelica?

It's no secret that Cardinal Mahony does. And although he failed to put the feisty nun out of business, as hard as he tried, there is now at least an alternative for the L.A. Cardinal and for Catholics of the CTA, LCWR, LGBT, NCR, NCEA and USCCB variety.
The Masterful CURT JESTER presents ...

P.W.T.N.

Check it out HERE.

Good to the last drop

This is what I call baptism, Hollywood style. The priest is Jesuit Father Michael J. Mandala, pastor of Blessed Sacrament Church in Hollywood. Here he is performing a baptism during the 2005 Easter Vigil extravaganza. You can almost hear him exclaim with a certain panache, "voilà," as he empties the contents of the iced tea pitcher onto the slightly traumatized convert. To his credit, though, Father Mandala resists the temptation to jump into the baptismal pool along with the young woman. That maneuver must be just a Paulist thing.

'Really fantastic' Jesus

TIDINGS photo
The new Italian hand-carved crucifix rests above the sanctuary at Holy Redeemer Church

Cardinal Mahony congratulated the parishioners for their "really fantastic" [newly renovated] worship space. He failed to mention the "really fantastic" crucifix with Jesus coming down from the cross.

Read the full TIDINGS report HERE.

More on Mahony's XXX Files

THE MERCURY NEWS reports ...

Lawyers for the archdiocese and the plaintiffs blame the impasse on the insurers, which have sued to gain documents about the alleged sexual abuse by priests.

"We are not able to get anywhere near the levels of sincere participation from our carriers," said archdiocese attorney J. Michael Hennigan.

It would appear that Hennigan's statement contradicts what was reported in THE TIDINGS on September 9, 2005. The unsigned editorial stated:

In the first place, according to Cardinal Roger Mahony, the Archdiocese of Los Angeles will not declare bankruptcy. The Archdiocese is adequately insured to deal with all of the cases against it.

It has been estimated that the claims against Mahony's Archdiocese could amount to around 1 billion dollars.

Maybe it's time for another pow-wow at Fort Mahony.

See my previous posts: L.A. Law and Mahony's XXX Files.

'The Wardlaws' (not to be confused with 'The Waltons')

William Wardlaw, the chair of the California Clinton-Gore campaigns (both 1992 and 1996), has been chosen by the Archbishop of Los Angeles to receive the "Cardinal's Award."

Find out more about the Wardlaws HERE.

See L.A. Catholics previous posts on Mahony's rich and powerful crony HERE and HERE.

L.A. Law

Cardinal Bernard Law, former Archbishop of Boston, was ultimately forced to resign his post following damning evidence that he had failed to deal adequately with priests who had sexually abused minors. First the conviction of Father John Geoghan in January of 2002 and then the release in April of the same year of the sordid record of the notorious abuser Father Paul Shanley set in motion the events that finally led to Law's resignation.

Cardinal Mahony could well be following in the footsteps of the disgraced Boston prelate if clergy abuse trials begin and/or priest abusers' files are finally made public. It has been said, "When Los Angeles bursts, it will make Boston look like an altar boy picnic."

THE LOS ANGELES TIMES reports ...

Lawyers asked a judge Friday to order nine clergy-abuse cases against the Los Angeles Archdiocese to trial within the next nine months.

Attorneys for Cardinal Roger M. Mahony and for their opponents, who represent more than 560 people suing the archdiocese for allegedly failing to protect them from predatory priests, teamed in the request, saying efforts to settle the lawsuits had stalled.

For 2½ years, Mahony has fought turning over the files to Los Angeles County prosecutors. And individual priests recently won a court victory barring the archdiocese from releasing its summaries of the files.

If the cases are set for trial, plaintiffs' attorneys will begin discovery by issuing subpoenas for the files and by questioning church officials under oath. Attorneys for the archdiocese, in turn, will interview alleged victims and further investigate their claims.

Boucher asked the court to allow him to begin discovery on 25 cases that he and Hennigan would hand-pick. Of those, nine would be selected for trial.

Click HERE for my recent post, Mahony's XXX files. For another related post, go HERE.

The 'Terminator' on parental notification initiative

WORLD NET DAILY reports ...

Addressing a California ballot initiative, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said he would "kill" anyone who took one of his daughters to have an abortion without notifying him.

Schwarzenegger said he's not sure whether he'll endorse the measure on the special election ballot Nov. 8, explaining he already is pushing four initiatives and may not want to divert attention from those.

"In California, a young girl under the age of 18 can't get a flu shot or an aspirin from the school nurse without a parent being notified," Paul Laubacher, a Sacramento nurse and the official ballot proponent of the Proposition 73 initiative, told the Bee. "But a doctor can perform an abortion without notifying a parent or guardian."

Protect Our Daughters ... Vote YES on Proposition 73

Daughter of LA's 'Catholic' mayor to 'wed' in mansion

DAILY NEWS photo

According to the DAILY NEWS, the daughter of occasional communicant (when he goes to Mass) and always pro-abortion L.A. mayor, Antonio Villaraigosa, will be wed in the Getty Mansion which serves as the official residence of the city's mayor. It is not known if Prisila Villar, 27, the eldest daughter of the mayor, is a nominal Catholic like her dad or just an honest pagan. In the Daily News report, no information was given about the wedding ceremony itself, only the all-important details about the bride's dress and the menu.

Last May, Cardinal Mahony gave a warm welcome to the newly elected mayor at his cathedral where an inter-faith prayer service was held for Villaraigosa.

Honored guest at S.B. bishop's consecration

Click HERE.

Latin Mass survey in San Bernardino

Tip to THE DEVOUT LIFE for this one.

On the website of the Diocese of San Bernardino, which incidentally is at the forefront of staffing parishes with "lay directors," is found an astonishing survey showing not so astonishing results.

The survey asks: Should Latin Tridentine Masses be available? The results so far?

1675 say YES.
203 say NO, LITTLE INTEREST

See for yourself HERE.

Mahony's XXX files

LA TIMES reports ...

A state appeals court on Thursday barred the Los Angeles Archdiocese from relerasing summaries of its clergy sexual abuse files, but said nothing in the opinion would stop the church from opening the actual files to the public ...

Los Angeles Cardinal Roger M. Mahony has fought for 2 1/2 years against releasing the underlying files, which critics say would reveal whether he and other church officials covered up for abusive priests by moving them from parish to parish instead of reporting them to parishioners and police.

Attorney J. Michael Hennigan, who represents the church, said he still intends to make information about accused priests public but did not offer a timeline. "I don't call this a loss," he said.

Raymond P. Boucher, court-appointed liaison counsel for those suing the church, said he will appeal.

The church, he said, promised to make the information public as part of the deal when entering mediation more than two years ago.

He wants the public to see them.

"The church has a moral and legal obligation to release all of the information contained in the proffers," Boucher said. "Anything less would be utter bad faith on the part of the archdiocese."

For the full story, click HERE.

If I understand this correctly, the attorney for the accused priests wants all of the information about his clients released. Mahony and his lawyers want a redacted version released. Does somone have something to hide?

Peddling poison to children

Father Richard (just call me Dick) Sparks

To learn more about the horrendous sex education programs that are used in Catholic schools (!), go to Clayton Emmer's podcast, SEX EDUCATION IN THE CATHOLIC SCHOOLS. This podcast talks about two curricula, Valuing Values and Growing in Love. Paulist Father and "sexologist" Richard Sparks is one of the authors of Growing in Love.

"Dr. Alfred Kinsey would be very pleased with the Growing in Love curriculum," states expert Barb Anderson, who describes this program which is used in elementary Catholic schools as outright "pornographic".

Parents who assume that their children are "safe" in Catholic schools had better inform themselves about what is often euphemistically called a "Family Life" curriculum. Most of these programs are beyond a doubt both spiritually and pyschologically devastating for children and could harm them for life.

Clayton's blog, THE WEIGHT OF GLORY, features excellent podcasts on the theme of "the family and the new evangelization" at DOXAPOD AUDIO.

There outta be a law against an award for Wardlaw

There is.

USCCB statement, June 2004

"The Catholic community and Catholic institutions should not honor those who act in defiance of our fundamental moral principles. They should not be given awards, honors or platforms which would suggest support for their actions."

Tell Cardinal Mahony to rescind his decision to give a 2006 Cardinal Award to California Clinton-Gore campaign chair (1992, 1996), William Wardlaw.

New bishop for San Bernardino

The Diocese of San Bernardino website reports ...

The Episcopal Ordination of The Most Reverend Rutilio del Riego, Titular Bishop of Daimlaig, and third Auxiliary Bishop of San Bernardino, took place Tuesday, September 20, 2005, 3:00 p.m., at St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church, 14085 Peyton Drive, Chino Hills.

The Most Reverend Gerald R. Barnes was the principal consecrator in the presence of His Eminence Roger Cardinal Mahony. Co-consecrators at the celebration were The Most Reverend Cipriano Calderón Polo, D.L.P., Emeritus Vice President of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America and The Most Reverend Ricardo Ramirez, C.S.B., Bishop of Las Cruces, New Mexico.

THE PRESS-ENTERPRISE adds the following details ...

Tuesday's ceremony underscored the diocese's cultural diversity. It opened with an American Indian blessing as three men circled the altar, using eagle feathers to fan wisps of smoldering sage during a prayer.

Tongan, black and Mexican dancers joined other performers who surrounded the dais during an uplifting hymn. The congregation heard gospel readings and songs in English, Spanish and Vietnamese.

To see photos of the event, go HERE.

Sparks should fly

Father Richard Sparks is no stranger to American bishops. He is a frequent speaker in diocesan conferences on morality and education. He is also one of the principal advisors to the religious education text Growing in Love (Harcourt, 2000) which has been widely criticized for attempting to normalize homosexual lifestyles.

Sparks is also a favorite at Cardinal Mahony's Religious Education Congress in Anaheim. It was there in 2001 that the Paulist priest shocked even the generally latitudinarian assemblage of catechists when he said, speaking of the relationship between the Blessed Virgin Mary and St. Joseph:

[Warning: The following remarks are patently offensive and sacrilegious and therefore I have hidden the text. In order to read the remarks, the reader must highlight the text with the curser.]

The text begins here:

"But if somebody says, 'do you think Joseph ever wanted to jump her bones?' Do you think Joseph ever thought, 'God, why can't we consummate this thing? ... Now all I'm saying is -- even if they didn't have sex, did they ever neck? Or did they maybe cuddle and snuggle? Did he ever sort of fondle his wife? Did she ever kind of fondle him?" At the same conference, Sparks commented on the size of his genitals. "It's a little bigger than Mel Gibson's, but the bigger the better I say," he said.

Now SAN FRANCISCO FAITH reports about the recent "Pride Mass" presided over by Sparks at Holy Spirit University Parish in Berkeley, where the priest serves as pastor. The "Pride Mass" is evidently a tradition at Holy Spirit which for 17 years has also had a LGBT (lesbian, gay, bi-sexual and transgendered) support group. At this annual event, a man and a woman, both avowed homosexuals, gave "testimonies" during the Liturgy of the Word. Bartholomew James of SF Faith writes:

The woman, Catherine Cunningham, related the story of how she met her current same-sex partner at a retreat and how the relationship grew to its present state of contentment. One got the impression that the committed relationship was not celibate, which dove-tailed neatly with Sparks' own writings on the subject of homosexuality. Sparks asserts that theological support is growing for the qualified or full acceptance position, where "homosexual genital actions would be moral only within the context of a committed, monogamous, covenant relationship, akin to a childless marriage," according to his book, Contemporary Christian Morality. (See "Bless the Lord, for We Are Good," January 2003 Mission.)

What is more, after the consecration of the Mass, Father Sparks announced that everyone was invited to receive communion ...

... even if they weren't Catholic. He said that Protestants, Buddhists, and anyone else was welcome to receive the sacrament. Most of those present accepted the invitation.

For the full story, click HERE.

Holy Spirit University parish is under the jurisdiction of Bishop Allen Vigneron, bishop of Oakland. Ultimately, the Paulists are in the diocese at the behest of the ordinary. By all accounts, Vigneron is orthodox and one would think that he would be fuming about what is going on at Holy Spirit and with Father Sparks in particular. What would keep a good bishop from acting immediately and decisively about a matter so critical as this? One can only wonder.

Bad bishops

Another one of the U.S. Bishops' key operatives shows his true colors.

Matt C. Abbott writes ...

First there was the report that Teresa Kettlecamp, who works for the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops' Office of Child and Youth Protection, "serves on the advisory board of the pro-abortion Feminist Majority Foundation's National Center for Women and Policing." Now there is controversy over another USCCB official ...

Who this time? Dr. Eugene Fisher, Associate Director of the USCCB Secretariat for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs and a consultant to the Vatican's Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews. In a USCCB press release, Dr. Fisher praises the late Rabbi Balfour Brickner as one of the greatest American religious figures of the second half of the 20th century. Fact is, Brickner was not a great man or even a good man. Why? Click HERE for the answer.

Bad sex

FOX NEWS - Risky sexual behavior among Americans is putting the public's health At risk, according to a new CDC study.

Researchers found that the rates of early death and disability attributed to sexual behavior in the U.S. are triple those of any other industrialized country, and women bar the brunt of this public health burden.

For full story, go HERE.

I'm glad the Queen of the Blogdom isn't pope

Vatican, Sep. 19 (CWNews.com) - Pope Benedict XVI (bio - news) has given his approval to a new Vatican policy document indicating that men with homosexual tendencies should not be ordained as Catholic priests.

From a PREVIOUS POST ...

The annointed Queen of the Catholic blogdom has it wrong on this very crucial question.

Ipsissima Verba Christi has it right.

Father Hensy and hottie in hot tub?

Not exactly. This is Father Pat Hensy, Paulist, of the UCC at UCLA, literally in the baptismal "pool" with a young woman. The UCC website explains that Hensy is "seen here performing a baptism."

It occurred to me that the Paulists could use this photograph very effectively in their vocation recruitment, unless of course they are looking for men with SSA. After all, what normal guy wouldn't enjoy a baptism like that?

To see what else the Paulists in L.A. are up to, go HERE, HERE and HERE.

Recipe for disaster

1. Defrost bread according to the instructions above the microwave
2. Place loaves on plate - 3 or 4 at 10:30 AM & 7 PM, 1 or 2 at 9 PM
3. Put wine in the decanter

The above is from the "ministry guidelines" for sacristans at the Paulist run UCLA Newman Center.

Loaves? As in invalid matter? Decanter? As in "they are never to be used as containers for the Precious Blood?"

I think the folks at UCC need to read Redemptionis Sacramentum for Dummies (and Dissidents).

There is just no end to the liturgical madness in Mahony's L.A.

How long, O Lord?

L.A. rules

The following is from the Paulist run University Catholic Center at UCLA. It is not uncommon to see the same or similar "liturgical" guidelines followed in parishes throughout the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. The italicized text are my comments. RS refers to Redemptionis Sacramentum.

Instructions for Eucharistic Ministers (sic).

The correct term is extraordinary minister of Holy Communion. The name "Minister of the Eucharist" belongs exclusively to a validly ordained priest (RS, 154-155). I am prescinding from the very important question of whether in the context of Mass at St. Mark's extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion are even warranted (RS, 157-158)

Before Mass:

Go to the altar right after you give the Sign of Peace to those around you. As you go, stop by the credence table in the hallway to pick up the extra plates, chalices and purificators. The person with the plates should walk towards the side of the altar closest to the ambo (lectern). The person with the chalices should walk towards the side of the altar closest to the music group. This same person pours wine (sic) into the chalices, and places the pitcher on the presider's table. The others divide, two to a plate, to help break the Eucharistic Bread into bite size pieces. Then, take a step back from the altar along with the presider. Join in proclaiming, "Lord, I am not worthy..."

First, it isn't wine, it's the Precious Blood of Christ! Second, Redemptionis Sacramentum expressly forbids the pouring of the Precious Blood. Third, pitchers, flagons, decanters and other such containers are never to be used (RS, 106).

Go to your communion station. If you don't know where to stand, ask the MC before Mass. If you are holding a chalice, please stand as far back from the person with the plate as possible, so that a line may form. As you administer the bread and wine, you may say the person's name if you know it. "N, the Body of Christ." "N, the Blood of Christ."

Give blessings to anyone one comes forward with a hand over their heart or shoulder. Also give a blessing to any small child who is coming forward with or carried by a parent. Place your hand on their shoulder or head, and pronounce a short inclusive (some of them may not be Catholic or Christian) blessing. For example, "May the Lord bless you and strengthen you and give you Wisdom." or similar words.

There is no provision in the liturgical books for giving of a blessing, inclusive or otherwise, to a non-communicant during the communion rite. Nor is there any proscription of it, although some have argued, somewhat forcefully, that this practice, which has become commonplace, should be discontinued.

Gather with the presider behind the altar after all have received. All receive the bread at the same time. Chew for a while and then offer the cup to one another.

The priest is to communicate before the distribution of communion to the faithful and not after everyone else has received (RS, 97). If there are extraordinary ministers of communion, they are to receive Holy Communion directly from the priest. They are not to distribute communion to one another(RS, 94).

Clear the altar. After all have received, the person who placed the pitcher on the presider's table should retrieve it along with one of the chalices. The others carry the left-over bread (sic), chalices, purificators, and corporal back to the sacristry as reverently as possible. Light a small tea candle next to the sacred elements, and HURRY BACK TO THE ASSEMBLY! We wait for you before we continue.

Once the distribution of Communion has been completed, the remaining consecrated hosts should be placed in the tabernacle by the priest or deacon and the Precious Blood should be immediately consumed by the priest or other minister (RS, 107).

After Mass:

Gather in the sacristy, and consume any remaining consecrated bread and wine. If there is a lot, Please recruit other members of the community to assist you. Rinse the vessels with a little water and then consume it. Wash and then rinse the vessels, dry them, and return them to their proper places.

No, not in the sacristy after Mass (RS, 107).

Isn't it wonderful that there are no liturgical abuses in L.A.

L.A. campus ministry

This photo is from the "A Garden of Eatin' Dinner Auction" held at St. Mark's University Parish (Goleta, CA). The caption to the photo reads: "How would you like to bid on the opportunity to celebrate Clay's birthday?"

This is really creepy.

St. Mark's is staffed by the Paulist Fathers. The Paulists in Boston made headlines last year by not refusing communion to pro-abortion presidential candidate John Kerry.

POSTSCRIPT

As the photo below shows, this unseemly event was held in the newly renovated "worship space" at St. Mark's, adding insult to injury (to put it mildly).


TIDINGS photo by Sr. Nancy Munro, CSJ

L.A. Masses

L.A. Religious Education Congress "Youth Liturgy"

So how was Mass in your parish this weekend?

For more exciting photos from the Los Angeles Religious Education Congress, click HERE.

Rainbow 'sashay' movement wants dialogue about 'gay' priests

From the Rainbow 'Sasháy' movement WEBSITE ...

"The Rainbow Sash Movement (Gay Catholics) is calling for the National Council of Catholic Bishops to open up the conversation on Gay Priests."

Last June, DIOGENES wrote:

" ... the question of whether gays should be ordained cannot be addressed without first addressing a considerably more explosive question: the number of bishop-disputants who are themselves gay and have a profound personal interest that there be no public examination of the connections between their sexual appetites, their convictions, and their conduct of office."

DIOGENES lists the bishops who are publicly known to be 'gay' HERE.

Seminarians with same-sex attraction?

The annointed Queen of the Catholic blogdom has it wrong on this very crucial question.

Ipsissima Verba Christi has it right.

Mother vs. Goliath

EWTN's Raymond Arroyo's new book on Mother Angelica tells about the famous feud between Cardinal Mahony and the Alabaman nun.

"I couldn't walk into that chapel and face the Lord if I gave in just because he's a cardinal. I can't."

Michael J. Gaynor reviews the book HERE.

'Blusters in the Loggia'

Papabile writes:

"Well, our friend Rocco has attacked Dom Bettinelli.

"I have a lot of respect for what Rocco does. He's well-connected. (Believe me, we have talked.) However, his analysis is off base on this one, and it comes off as hard-hearted, spiteful, and uncharitable."

So what else is new?

I proudly confess that I am not one of Rocco's 1500 daily readers. One read of Blusters was enough for me.

The dictionary defines "bluster" as:

1. A violent, gusty wind.
2. Turbulence or noisy confusion.
3. Loud, arrogant speech, often full of empty threats.

Now tell me the shoe doesn't fit.

Why there should be no award for Wardlaw

USCCB statement, June 2004

"The Catholic community and Catholic institutions should not honor those who act in defiance of our fundamental moral principles. They should not be given awards, honors or platforms which would suggest support for their actions."

See my previous post HERE.

A catastrophe worse than Katrina

As many as 18,000 people dead. More than $250 billion in damages. Hundreds of thousands of people left homeless. That's not the latest estimate of Hurricane Katrina's toll on the Gulf Coast. That's a worst-case scenario if a major earthquake were to hit Los Angeles.

Houses of worship

For three and a half years, Robert Berger was on a photographical safari --- right here in Los Angeles.

A third generation Angeleno and an architectural photographer for more than 20 years, Berger scoured through the community, discovering "neighborhoods I had never seen before," says the Venice resident. "But I also got to go into places that I have driven past so many times but had never entered."

The subject of Berger's expedition? Houses of worship, churches, synagogues and temples that represent Los Angeles' rich spiritual history.

Go HERE for the story from THE TIDINGS.

Mother of Sorrows

On this memorial of Our Lady of Sorrows I heartily recommend the meditation that Clayton Emmer of THE WEIGHT OF GLORY composed after he viewed Mel Gibson's epic motion picture "The Passion of the Christ."

Clinton campaign chair to receive 'Cardinal's Award'

Click HERE for TIDINGS photo.

Cardinal Roger Mahony has announced the names of the 5 recipients of the 2006 'Cardinal's Award.' According to THE TIDINGS, these individuals will be honored for their "long and distinguished service" to the Catholic community of Los Angeles.

One of the honorees is William Wardlaw. THE TIDINGS tells us that Wardlaw, a parishioner of Holy Family Church in South Pasadena, is "an attorney and business executive who has served on numerous school and organization boards in the archdiocese including Catholic Charities." He is also a Knight of Malta.

What we are not told is that Wardlaw is a major power broker among state and local Democrat party operatives and successfully chaired the 1992 and 1996 Clinton-Gore campaigns in California. For more information about Wardlaw, click HERE.

Wardlaw's wife, the Honorable Kim McLane Wardlaw, was appointed judge to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals by Clinton and served on the Clinton-Gore Presidential Transition Team. According to the UCLA Law School alumni page, the National Organization of Women awarded her "The Buddy" in recognition for her work. Both Mr. and Mrs. Wardlaw are members of the elite F.O.B., Friends of Bill (Clinton), having been guests of the Clintons in the Lincoln bedroom.

Given that Mr. Wardlaw is such a major player in the party of abortion and considering his close association with and his strong and loyal support for the "abortion President," William Jefferson Clinton, Mahony's decision to bestow the "Cardinal's Award" upon this individual is sickening and shameful. Cardinal Mahony knows "Bill" Wardlaw very well and he is well aware of what he stands for. This makes the decision to honor him all the more odious.

L.A. Catholics should act immediately and call upon the Cardinal to rescind his decision to grant the "Cardinal's Award" to Wardlaw.

In June 2004, the US Bishops in their statement, Catholics in Political Life, decreed:

The Catholic community and Catholic institutions should not honor those who act in defiance of our fundamental moral principles. They should not be given awards, honors or platforms which would suggest support for their actions.

Pope Benedict to lift 'ban' on Tridentine Mass

IRISH INDEPENDENT NEWS reports ...

POPE Benedict XVI will soon begin to put his Stamp on the Papacy by lifting the near total Ban on the Old Mass as well as trying to restore "a sense of the sacred" to the New Mass, a Church expert says.

The report cites a prediction made by Cambridge scholar Eamon Duffy, author of the highly acclaimed book, Stripping of the Altars. Professor Duffy stated that it is "extremely likely that Pope Benedict will lift the restrictions on the celebration of the Tridentine liturgy".

Go HERE for the IRISH INDEPENDENT NEWS report (registration required).

Tod love you!

Orange Counter Register photo

Click HERE for Bishop Tod Brown's stats. He will turn 69 years of age in November which means, whether in Orange or in San Francisco, he will face retirement in 6 years. By the way, Bishop Brown's principal consecrator was THIS GUY.

See my previous post: Please God, not Tod!

Please God, not Tod!

A church goer hugs Bishop Tod D. Brown after Mass on the first Sunday after announcing the largest church abuse settlement in the nation, at Holy Family Cathedral Church in Orange, Calif., Sunday, Dec. 5, 2004. The Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange and 87 plaintiffs agreed to a record-breaking $100 million settlement. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)

No irreverence intended! That was a heartfelt and plaintive prayer! Please God, not Tod!

Vaticanisti is suggesting that Levada may be jockeying for his Maui vacation buddy, Orange bishop Tod Brown, to become the Archbishop of San Francisco. This would not be good.

Bishop Brown is cut from the same polyester cloth as Mahony. He is the quintessential bureaucrat in bishop's clothes and, from what I can tell, not generally well liked in Orange. He evidently has an aversion to tabernacles in churches since he issued a decree, "Liturgical Norm 1999/05', which requires tabernacles to be placed in separate chapels in all new and renovated 'parish worship spaces." [source]

Under new management

Meet Father Lawrence Sayer, the newly appointed pastor of Our Savior Parish which serves the Catholic Community at the University of Southern California. Sayer succeeds the controversial Father "Bill" Messenger who resigned his post last June in the wake of an allegation that he touched a male, adult student in an inappropriate way. Messenger has denied any wrongdoing and the matter is still under investigation.

It is encouraging to see that somebody -- Sayer himself or someone of higher rank? -- had the sense to remove from the USC Catholic Community website Messenger's embarrassingly inane and outrageously unorthodox homilies and other writings. However, in a brief historical sketch of the Catholic presence at USC, Messenger is lauded nonetheless, however obliquely, when it says: "The Center has grown dramatically in student involvement and programming opportunities over the last decade." Messenger served as pastor of the University Catholic center for nearly 12 years.

No doubt, Father Sayer has his hands full as he launches into full time ministry to USC Catholics while simultaneously conducting delicate damage control in the wake of Messenger's sudden departure from the university chaplaincy post. Even the most dedicated and faithful priest would need some time to put things aright after so many years of chaos and confusion. We can only hope that Father Sayer will lead his unique parish along the path of greater fidelity to Church teaching and practice. He needs our prayers especially since it is still not clear exactly what direction the USC Catholic Center will be taking under its new pastoral leadership.

Red flags:

• On the center's website, the links page has been modified somewhat and no longer includes a link to the anti-Opus Dei group ODAN. This is a good sign since Opus Dei, w