Archive for May, 2014

C.S. Lewis saw the Harvard Black Mass Coming

Posted: May 9, 2014 by datechguy in catholic, culture, News/opinion
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I’m slightly embarrassed that Ed Morrissey thought of Screwtape #7 before me

“I have great hopes that we shall learn in due time how to emotionalise and mythologise their science to such an extent that what is, in effect, a belief in us (though not under that name) will creep in while the human mind remains closed to belief in the Enemy. The ‘Life Force’, the worship of sex, and some aspects of Psychoanalysis, may here prove useful. If once we can produce our perfect work— the Materialist Magician, the man, not using, but veritably worshipping, what he vaguely calls ‘Forces’ while denying the existence of ‘spirits’— then the end of the war will be in sight.”

A correspondent of the Anchoress has a more modern Boston Centric  take:

“Dear Wormwood,

I congratulate you on the success of your latest efforts at Harvard University. I must say, dear nephew, that you have hit the baseball ball over Fenway Park’s “Green Monster” (what a delightful name) with this one. These mortals, especially the ones who claim to not believe in anything supernatural, have fallen once again into the trap. Since they are convinced we do not exist (what a wonderful lie that is!), they convince themselves that they need not worry about invoking our master’s name in anyway, let alone worshipping him. To them, it is all a little harmless fun, and their celebration of a black mass is meant only “as an expression of personal independence from overwhelming cultural influences!” How utterly delightful!”

with Elizabeth adding the ending.

“once emancipated from all that overwhelming light, there will be so much more room for us to encroach and overtake with our blessed darkness.”

But if you want a more professional take on the subject of the Devil who better to ask than Time Magazine’s Man of the Year Pope Francis:

We too are tempted, we too are the target of attacks by the devil because the spirit of Evil does not want our holiness, he does not want our Christian witness, he does not want us to be disciples of Christ. And what does the Spirit of Evil do, through his temptations, to distance us from the path of Jesus? The temptation of the devil has three characteristics and we need to learn about them in order not to fall into the trap. What does Satan do to distance us from the path of Jesus? Firstly, his temptation begins gradually but grows and is always growing. Secondly, it grows and infects another person, it spreads to another and seeks to be part of the community. And in the end, in order to calm the soul, it justifies itself. It grows, it spreads and it justifies itself.

furthermore

“We are all tempted because the law of our spiritual life, our Christian life is a struggle: a struggle. That’s because the Prince of this world, Satan, doesn’t want our holiness, he doesn’t want us to follow Christ. Maybe some of you might say: ‘But Father, how old fashioned you are to speak about the devil in the 21st century!’ But look out because the devil is present! The devil is here… even in the 21st century! And we mustn’t be naïve, right? We must learn from the Gospel how to fight against Satan.”

And that’s why the Black Mass can’t be ignored and the Holy Hour to fight it is so important.

Update:  Moonbattery (ross posted at Right Wing News) nails it

With each generation, our liberal ruling class becomes less subtle about where it is coming from, morally and spiritually speaking.

Church Again Insists Catholic Nuns be…..Catholic

Posted: May 6, 2014 by datechguy in catholic

The media is shocked SHOCKED that the Catholic Church under Pope Francis still expects American Nuns to act, well, Catholic:

“The Holy See believes that the charismatic vitality of religious life can only flourish within the ecclesial faith of the church,” Cardinal Gerhard Mueller, head of the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, told four members of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious.

This has been a problem for some time, over a decade and if American Catholic nuns didn’t understand it was a problem when they were put under a Bishop in 2012 and that decision was confirmed by Pope Francis last year Cardinal Mueller is not leaving any room for doubt where this stands:

Mueller said the LCWR — which represents about 80 percent of the more than 50,000 Catholic nuns in the U.S. — is dependent on the Vatican for its bona fides as a church body. He indicated that the group’s status, and the Catholic faith of the sisters, was at risk if they did not heed Rome’s directives.

“Canonical status and ecclesial vision go hand in hand,” Mueller said, “and at this phase … we are looking for a clearer expression of that ecclesial vision and more substantive signs of collaboration.”

Leftist anger aside (just read those titles)  the would go the way of NCAN as Fr Z noted in 2012

Consider if you will the group NCAN, an even more radical splinter group of the LCWR, which has fulfilled Sr. Joan’s dream of being without canonical structure.  Their site is HERE, though it has not been updated since 2009 when they gave their coveted Margaret Ellen Traxler Award to Sr. Louise Lears, SC, whom then-Archbishop Raymond Burke of St. Louis placed under interdict for her support of the ordination of women and her attending a fake “ordination”. These days the NCAN types are reduced to holding chat sessions in gated communities for three cats and a tumbleweed rather than in hotels for hundreds of sisters. For example, HERE is the flyer for a May 2012 meeting with the pro-choice Sr. Donna Quinn.  (See my post NUNS GONE WILD!)

That’s why while the media will hem & haw and object it will go no farther.  The media and the nuns know that they aren’t in a position to take on Francis and win, anyways the LCWR knows the moment they leave the church and lose their structure,  their influence, newsworthiness and most importantly their ability to successfully fundraise from faithful is done.

Update:  Father Z has  the statement in full, the speaker stuff is bad but this is worse:

Again, I apologize if this seems blunt, but what I must say is too important to dress up in flowery language. The fundamental theses of Conscious Evolution are opposed to Christian Revelation and, when taken unreflectively, lead almost necessarily to fundamental errors regarding the omnipotence of God, the Incarnation of Christ, the reality of Original Sin, the necessity of salvation and the definitive nature of the salvific action of Christ in the Paschal Mystery.

My concern is whether such an intense focus on new ideas such as Conscious Evolution has robbed religious of the ability truly to sentire cum Ecclesia. To phrase it as a question, do the many religious listening to addresses on this topic or reading expositions of it even hear the divergences from the Christian faith present?

Cripes this isn’t post Catholic it’s post Christian!

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