Respondeo Dicendum, Part II

Salutation

In keeping with the Novus Ordo mass, this section has been moved relative to the Tridentine mass to preceed the Penitential Rite.

On the Translation of "Et cum spiritu tuo": Whether or not this will continue to be translated idiomatically as "And also with you" or literally as "And with your spirit" in the next English revision of the Novus Ordo is currently up in the air. As such, I am open to both, especially since this proposed order of mass is attempting to cling close to the Tridentine mass.

As I said before, my rationale for these changes is not to necessarily trying to cling close to the Tridentine mass but restore a greater apparent continuity between the present and earlier forms of the Mass. I think, in general, we should expect more from the faithful; the ICEL translation chucked "And with your spirit" because it was supposedly too difficult to understand. It may cause some initial head-scratching, but Catholics will soon see, with a minimum of thought, that they are speaking of the soul. While one should avoid deliberately obscure translations, spiritual things are still always a little mysterious and special and the Mass should convey that. "And with your spirit" forces you to confront spiritual realities.

The other thing is Catholicism is not a bare-bones religion. I know the Squire is not implying it is; but there is a vast body of beliefs and customs which the faithful are initiated into through the Church. If we retain a few of the little niceties here and there like "et cum spiritu tuo," they will want to know more and better understand their Mother the Church. At the very least, it can be explained by one sentence of catechesis and then it will take on a beautiful and deep meaning every time hence when someone hears it.

Confiteor
(Penitential Rite)

This is the point at which everyone admits they are lowly sinners and go begging all and sundry for forgiveness.

Not to be flip, but, well, we are, and we ought. The old rite may have exaggerated the sinfulness of man to the point of scrupulosity, but we've gone too far the other way to "I'm OK, you're OK."

Kneeling as it is done in a pew has too much pious dignity attatched to it - I much prefer the "stand up and admit it" attitude encouraged by the currently indicated posture. This, though, is a matter of my opinion.

I never specified whether the faithful should kneel or stand. I think they should stand, simply as a matter of practicality--though I have seen whole congregations kneel for a Kyrie during Lent, and during a Novus Ordo mass--but since the priest's gesture is more symbolically important than that of the people, he and the server ought to do more than simply stand.

On the Inclusion of Michael the Archangel, et. al.: This is redundant with the subsequent phrase, "and all the angels and saints," as well as the litany of the Saints. The case for the reintroduction of this minor litany needs further justification.

I've mentioned before that we shouldn't be so eager to go hunting for redundancies, given the original intention of that section of Sacrosanctum Concilium. Admitted, they do not always appear in the earliest forms of the Confiteor, but I think the naming of the saints is important. Their naming gives them a permanent place in the Mass. Their absence from the liturgy (save for the Virgin and the occasional treat of the saint of the day) always puzzled me as a child. It was as if the whole company of saints were some later accretion, faintly chimerical, which had gotten tacked on to the primitive purity of early Christianity. This wasn't the intention of the originators of the 1970 Missal, interested more in historical purity, but that was the effect.

[...]

Aufer a Nobis and Oramus Te

The first seems redundant to the end of the Penitential Rite, so a case for its inclusion must be made.

The Aufer is one of the oldest prayers of preparation we have. It serves to sum up the entire Penitential Rite before we go up to the altar and also, through its language, links the Mass to the earthly temple of Solomon and the heavenly Jerusalem.

As most modern parishes do not include relics in their altar, and as the Priest's sins have just been forgiven in the Penitential Rite, the Oramus Te is also redundant. Again, explaination needs to be given for its inclusion.

First, I have provided a form for kissing an altar without a relic--and my own parish, built in the sixties, has not one but three relics in the altar, so they are not so rare as one might think. Secondly, the latter part of this comment is a legitimate criticism, I think, but, as I have said before, repetition does not always imply redundancy. While one must not become scrupulous (a rare problem these days), it is a healthy thing to ask forgiveness, especially during the Liturgy. The Oramus could be conceivably omitted, if absolutely necessary.

On the Location of the Priest: Many newer and newly renovated churches make use of a basilica-style floor layout with the altar at the center. Other new, smaller chapels are simply an oval of chairs surrounding the altar, ambo, and presider's chair. While both have distinct areas for each of the three areas, such setups do not have a real "right" or "left." Perhaps this type of micromanaging is best left to the national conferences or to the Ordinaries.

This is not so much of a problem as one might think. The priest stands either before (as in an ad orientem arrangement) or behind (as in a versus populum arrangement) and the side his left-hand is on is the left, and so forth. The main reason I specified this is that the Missal has been traditionally placed on the priest's right during the opening of Mass and one would have to read the Introit and Collect from those Missals. This is also intended to prevent the altar boys from being reduced to mobile book-holders. This rubric was continued even in the 1969 Missal with regard to private masses, so it seems well to preserve it. I suppose one could place it in the center without trouble (as in Pastoral Provision masses, like those celebrated at Our Lady of the Atonement in San Antonio) but given that such motion prevents the opening of Mass from turning into a long monologue and seeming more like a rite, it seems useful to retain this distinction.

The Kyrie Eleison

On the Inclusion of the Kyrie in the Penitential Rite: Just because something is old doesn't make it superior (unless, of course, it was instituted by Christ and practiced by his disciples, but that's a different case). Conversely, just because something is relatively new doesn't make it inferior. Why should innovations such as the Oramus Te be left to stand while the third setting for the Penitential Rite (which involves the Kyrie) is demeaned as "unhistorical"?

Yes and no. Tradition, as Chesterton has remarked, is the democracy of the dead. Something usually survives because it works well, or because it is beautiful. I also agree that novelty does not necessarily make something bad. But that sort of logic could be used to defend the Oramus Te as well as the troped Kyrie which serves as one penitential rite.

The truth is, Penitential Rite C ("You came to heal the contrite, Lord have mercy, etc.) is unhistorical. It is derived, I will admit, in part from the far more elaborate and effervescent troped Kyries of the Middle Ages, but those were not associated with the Confiteor per se. (Also, those tropes were more poetic). The Kyrie has never been exclusively associated with the Penitential Rite; it comes after it and was sometimes sung over it during High Mass, but the present semi-exclusive association between the two (and the Asperges) is an entirely new thing. It always followed the priest's blessing at the Indulgentiam and the Oramus Te which ended the preparatory prayers. Since the Kyrie has a long history as an independent part of the Mass with great dignity (and it may have begun actually as a form of the Prayers of the Faithful rather than as an act of penitence) it ought to be treated as such and not grafted into the Penitential Rite, the Confiteor of which has a far longer history exclusively as an act of penitence.

The Gloria

On Language: "You Who..." is archaic. Even the form of the Gloria found in the current English draft of the missal removes the word "who."

It expresses Qui tollis well; anyway, it is easy enough to understand, archaic or no. It seems ordinary enough to me.

On the Deacon Bowing or Kneeling While Recieving the Priest's Blessing [at the Gospel]: While, for a healthy person, a profound bow (from the waist) is not a problem, I can see where some older Deacons might have difficulties maintaining such a position. For those who cannot make a profound bow, an allowance for kneeling should probably be made. However, those who can make a profound bow probably should.

As someone who has been profoundly bowing during the Creed for a long time, and who considers himself fairly healthy, I find it a very unpleasant exercise if carried out for a long time, especially if one actually does a proper profound bow. All the blood goes to one's head. More importantly, it is a gesture with less meaning in modern culture than kneeling. One kneels when one's about to propose to one's wife, for example. One doesn't profoundly bow unless one is Japanese. Anyway, if the priest is sitting when the deacon bows, the result is essentially the deacon's head is shoved in the priest's face, which looks rather ungracious.

On the Use of the Biretta [during the homily]: Matthew states that the "Biretta is a sign of authority." A sign to whom? To my pious, late grandmother, possibly. To my other grandparents and parents, an outside chance. To myself and most other Catholics of my generation, not at all. I didn't even know that it existed until a couple years ago, and have never seen one in person. Suddenly donning the things again during mass will not have the intended effect; instead, it'll merely look as if the Church is intentionally regressing. What's next, the maniple?

Funny you should say that, since Cardinal Arinze, the current head of the Congregation of Divine Worship, has indicated that the maniple was never formally abolished and can be used by priests during Mass.

If one argues that one particular vestment ceases to be prima faciae symbolic, without recourse to the appropriate explanatory section of the missal to explain it to the faithful, you might as well abolish all of them. Vestments gain their meaning from historic use and accumulated symbolism, which requires a passing-on of information to explain that symbolism. If after that explanation is obtained they still remain opaque, that's a problem, and perhaps those are the things to be dispensed with, but only then. We shouldn't expect the faithful to immediately, instantaneously understand what every symbol means, not abolish all symbols which don't immediately make sense. That lowers the Mass, the most sublime act on earth, which has inspired some of the finest works of art, music and architecture to the lowest common denominator.

Regarding the biretta, headgear connotes authority in general--bishop's mitres, policemen's hats, firefighter's helmets, etc. Anyway, the biretta does not have to be used; it would be optional. It still is permitted for use during Mass.

Birettas, maniples, amices, all that, they're inconvenient. But their inconvenience has important value. Liturgy isn't just something you slip into like sweatpants.

Respondeo Dicendum, Part I

The Squire has been good enough to critique my proposed Ordo in a thorough and detailed manner. Here are some of my own thoughts in response to his criticisms. I'll post more when I have time.

Matthew at Shrine of the Holy Whapping has, all by himself, proposed a revision of the Order of the Mass. Reguardless of the fact that he did not wait for the third edition of the Novus Ordo missal to be finalized and published...

I admit there is something perhaps mildly comic about a lone layman taking upon himself to redesign the Mass, as Fr. Brian Harrison himself remarked on his proposal in his excellent essay, "Postconciliar Eucharistic Liturgy" in Fr. Thomas Kocik's The Reform of the Reform? That being said, it was exactly these sorts of proposals, advocated by men like Jungmann and Reinhold, which shaped the changes of the 1960s and 1970s. So, while I am no Joseph Jungmann or nor was meant to be, one has to get the ball rolling somehow.

(which, from what I've seen of it, may already be the step backwards in ecumenicalism and clarity of language he desires)

"Clarity" is perhaps misleading. I would like language which accurately conveys the original Latin, which is much more hierarchical than the current ICEL translation. The Squire, though, later commented that he has now a better sense of the logic behind the Vox Clara draft.

On the title: I'll admit my Latin is a bit rusty. Even so, shouldn't it be, properly, the Ordo Carolus or some inflection thereof? This, though, may cause confusion with Carolus Magnus, the first Holy Roman Emperor, so perhaps Ordo Johannes Paulus Secundus or somesuch would be more appropriate.

As far as I know, the grammar is acceptable. The Tridentine Rite is called the Ordo Pianus, from Pius V. The K is to distinguish Karol from Carol; though perhaps it would be best to call it the Johanno-Pauline Ordo would be more suitable. It's not as catchy, though.

Before proceeding further, it should be noted that a new order of mass is typically promulgated in Latin before being translated into the various vernacular languages. Since the Ordo Karolingianus was created without apparent recourse to the various forms of the Roman Missal in their original language, it was effectively created de novo.

A fair criticism, since the organic development of the liturgy is a major concern of the conservative and traditionalist critique of the Novus Ordo. That being said, I did study the Latin text to the best of my abilities when considering word choice. Since many of the issues surrounding the present mass are ones of translation, it seemed sensible to issue the text in English, and easier to work in it. However, I think while its creation is in a sense de novo, it nonetheless could serve as a guideline for a future, more organic reform of the Mass.

On "Of Concelebrants": Beyond the prohibition against concelebrants performing "servile tasks," this is merely a summary of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops document Guidelines for the Concelebration of the Eucharist. Would it be more profitable to include this (or a direct reference to it) in the text, as it covers more eventualities?

This is intended merely as a sketch of a much larger rubrical issue; furthermore, I was attempting deliberately to limit the number of opportunities for concelebration as, while it is not without precedent in the ancient Church, seems to cause a number of practical and rubrical problems when implemented on a large scale. For one thing, there are fewer masses celebrated when there are more concelebrants, while the primacy of the old trinity of priest, deacon and subdeacon (there seems to be a fairly early consensus--I think it may go back even to Patristic times--that the minimum number of ministers needed at a mass are three) seems to be obscured by large numbers of concelebrants. Concelebrants also make it harder to distinguish the graded hierarchy which has always been a characteristic of liturgy.

Also, on the prohibition, it seems unneccessary to require an instituted Acolyte for "servile tasks" for situations where, for instance, the entire congregation is made up of ordained ministers.

I think this could easily be solved by a priest attending in choro as a server, vesting in alb or cassock and surplice. My main point was to avoid the sight of one vested priest assisting another in a servile manner. It sends the wrong symbolic message.

The Fore-Mass
(Introductory Rites)

Before getting nit-picky on this section, Matthew deserves credit for swapping out all the "thous" for "yous" in his proposed order.

On the inclusion of Psalm 42: Matthew leaves no footnotes to explain why he has added the Psalm back to the order of mass. While I, unfortunately, am no schollar of church history, I would hazard to guess that no references to this section of the Tridentine Mass could be found prior to the Middle Ages. I would like to see Matthew's rationale for its re-inclusion.

This is my fault; I have a longer commentary I am writing, and I swapped out most of the footnotes and put them there. Here's a digest of my rationale for the return of this private prayer to the altar. Note, of course, that the priest may recite this silently while a hymn is sung, so the processional aspect is not lost.

Here, from the unfinished Exposition of the Ordo Karolingianus, are my thoughts on the return of Psalm 42 to the altar:

The Preparatory prayers were the subject of contentious debate among liturgists leading up to the Second Vatican Council. Before the Council of Trent, some form of the Prayers at the Foot of the Altar were said either in the sacristy or on the way to the altar, though they varied substantially from one diocese to the next. [...] At Trent both the preparatory prayers and the Confiteor were given increased dignity and importance in the rite by being given a standard form and being moved out of the sacristy and to the sanctuary. [...]

In order to increase the active participation of the faithful, the dialogue mass [of the 1940s] endeavored to open up the formerly private Preparatory prayers to the whole congregation. This, however, caused some difficulties as it competed with the introit appointed for the day. Furthermore, until the dialogue mass, the “Roman rite never began with a public and corporate act of confession and repentance by the congregation” [...].

The unexpected result [of the excision of Psalm 42] was a removal of a sense of degree and preparation from the rite by the immediate ascent of the altar. By placing the ascent to the altar before the priest’s declaration of sin and symbolic cleansing, the necessity of sorrow for sin as a preparation before worship was confused.

The Opening Rite of the current Mass, however, remains unsuitable in several ways. While the Confiteor is acceptable in its present place, the removal of Psalm 42, [...] is unfortunate [and] opens up a liturgical and pastoral gap in the Mass. There is, as mentioned above, a loss of the sense of approach to the altar and silent, prayerful preparation apart from the Confiteor. The single Confiteor, while not problematic in and of itself, collapses the priest’s and people’s preparation into one, unintentionally downplaying a sense of his separate and distinct mission. If it were preceded by private prayer (visible to the faithful), this would be less of a difficulty.

The camaraderie of priest and servers is utterly removed since no longer are they needed to respond to his private prayers; especially with the Collect removed from the altar and the server required to hold the Missal open, they become reduced to peripatetic lecterns and glorified candle-holders. The result is that serving becomes a far less specialized activity requiring less training and less knowledge, a fact that I believe has affected the decline in interest in the priesthood among servers. While historically, the congregation has had its part, the servers have also had their part to say as well. While it would be unfeasible and probably unfortunate at this present date to return many of the parts formerly reserved to the server from their congregational role, the private prayers fill this gap with dignified ease. [...]

It is important that [the preparatory prayers] occurs in the open, in front of the congregation rather than in the sacristy, as a more archaeologically correct reform might have done, because it recognizes more clearly the distinct dignity of the priesthood and ministers without requiring an extensive revision to the current form of the Penitential rite. The congregation now understands that it is not always the focus of the Priest’s attention.

The Squire goes on to say:

Also, Matthew doesn't use the New American Bible as the source for his text. The NAB is the translation currently approved for liturgical use in the United States. This, I believe, is an instance where a return to the source text (and direct translations thereof) would be more faithful to sacred scripture than to filter scripture through an additional language.

At present, there are quite a few alterations from the NAB text in the lectionary that have come in over the years. This hardly seems a problem.

On the Inclusion of the Gloria Patri (Glory Be): First, as all other mentions of Jesus Christ in the mass merit only a head bow, why should the Gloria Patri?

The Gloria has been said or sung in the Office and in other rites of the Church, with a full bow. I don't see why it should be different here.

Secondly, this part of the mass seems to be redundant the Gloria, which is why I am not bothered by its removal. A better case needs to be made for its inclusion.

The Gloria Patri is retained here, restoring a time-honored Catholic prayer to a more permanent home in the new liturgy and also serving to underline the connection between liturgical and devotional life considering how often this appears in private prayer. I grew up somewhat mystified by the apparent lack of correlation between much private prayer and the ceremonies of the Mass.

Before we go on, I think it is important to consider the nature of "redundancy" in the Mass. Sacrosanctum Concilium states that "the rites should be distinguished by a noble simplicity; they should be short, clear, and unencumbered by useless repetitions [...]." If one reviews the history of the Liturgical Movement this has less to do with the repetition of specific phrases (then we should have to get rid of the triple Agnus Dei, the Kyries, and all litanies, but more with the curious custom of the priest reading in secreto the Epistle and Gospel readings at the Altar, the Gloria, the Kyrie, the Creed, etc., as other ministers sung or read them elsewhere. This is certainly a repetition which can surely be removed.

Other things which entered High Mass through the influence of the Low Mass, like the Priest reciting the deacon's prayer Jube Dom(i)ne before the Gospel in addition to his own preparation, could be considered to fall under this heading. However, there is no call for the removal of every and all repetition, considering that ritual repetition is an act deep at the heart of the nature of ceremonial.

In order to act in a way consistent with previous liturgical reforms (such as the work of codification done at Trent and continued by Pius XII whose liturgical reforms are careful and sophisticated, and even to a great degree in the 1965 Missal), Liturgy should be carefully pruned; whole limbs ought not to be lopped off wholesale. Until the present, the need to show the burden of proof has always fallen on those who want to remove an aspect of the liturgy rather than those who wish to preserve it. As a consequence, the Ordo Karolingianus is not seeking to 'cling' to the Tridentine Rite but restore a greater sense of continuity between the old and new rites.

Anyway, I'm hungry and need to go eat, so I'll continue with the Squire's comments tomorrow. Thanks again for your thoughts, Squire.

The Mass of St. Gregory. Adriaen Isenbrandt (c.1490-1551).

Ordo Karolingianus Update

Last time I wrote about the Ordo Karolingianus, my project seeking to envision what a "reform of the reform" of the Mass would be like, my gentle readers expressed great interest in obtaining a copy of the revised draft. While I hope eventually to write a full-length commentary explaining the general principles of my hypothetical reform, I have decided to make the actual text of the Ordo available in PDF format via the Shrine. Most of my sources and the logic behind the choices I've made are mentioned in the footnotes. Feedback would be much-appreciated, certainly, as I've always been impressed by the quality and intelligence of my readership.

For those unfamiliar with the Ordo Karolingianus, it is a proposed draft of a Mass, named in honor of Pope John Paul II (Karol Wojtyla) and striving to unite the best aspects of the Tridentine and Novus Ordo masses in a dignified and practical vernacular. The Ordo has several purposes: 1) To "re-run" the reforms of 1970 in a manner which is truer to the substance of Sacrosanctum Concilium and possessed of the hindsight accumulated in the last thirty years. 2) To imagine a form of the Mass, which, while familiar to those who have grown up with the Novus Ordo, would nonetheless provide a more potent link with organic liturgical tradition. 3) To prove that in order to fulfill the aspirations of the Fathers of Vatican II, the Tridentine Mass could have been reformed less drastically, with greater subtlety, and with less trauma to the faithful; and most importantly, 3) to provide a common liturgy derived in substance from the historic Roman Rite behind which, it is hoped, both traditionalists and conservative reformists could unite.

This last point is very important as while the liberals do not need a united front to obsfuscate the maintenance of the Church's liturgical heritage, it is clear to me that in order to reform the Novus Ordo that the bickering between various liturgically conservative and traditionalist groups must give way to a greater sense of mutual trust, a realistic, prudent program for reform and more mutual and specific proposals. In proposing this draft Mass, I have read the writings of the twentieth-century Liturgical Movement, with proposals both radical and traditional, Vatican II, modern traditionalists and modern conservative reformists of all stripes, and also many works of liturgical history. As I have said before, I hope the Ordo Karolingianus will provide a model for how to go about achieving such a goal. I'm only just one man, but my ideas are out there in the marketplace for anyone who's buying.

Read the Ordo Karolingianus in PDF form.

In a move unexpected by either side, it seems that the Florida Department of Children and Families will intervene on Terri's behalf.

This could be the miracle we're looking for.

Just Swim the Flippin' Tiber, already!

Apparently, North American Episcopal Church leaders have been asked not to attend an upcoming Anglican council because of their stance on ordaining homosexuals. They will, however, be asked to send representatives to a hearing at the council in order to explain their position.

It seems to be the nature of Prostestantism to come apart at the seams just when one needs it most.

Pope Back in Hospital

More on Terri Schiavo - Not an update, but a petition to save her life that will be delivered to the Governor today is available online here. I don't know about the background of the group delivering it. They seem to be fundamentalist Protestant, and something about them doesn't quite sit well with me--but if you feel you're called to sign (after careful review), do so. And pray. And email the Governor on your own!

This Just In...

Fr. Rob reports that Terri Schiavo has been given a reprieve until 5:00 EST today. The Schindlers have a hearing at 2:45.

Pray hard.

"Aslan is on the move."

Get Religion posts on the new Chronicles of Narnia film, set to release Dec. 9:
link via Fr. Tucker

Comments by Disney veteran Martin Kaplan, director of the Norman Lear Center of the University of Southern California, cut to the heart of the matter.

Of Lewis's work, Mr. Kaplan said: "There's enough story and traditional emotion in the 'Narnia' books that they can let the Christian mysticism in it either be a subtext or not a part of it at all. I suspect you can portray resurrection in the same way that E.T. comes back to life, and that practically every fairy tale has a hero or heroine who seems to be gone forever but nevertheless manages to come back."

That sound you hear is C.S. Lewis devotees (and scholars) screaming.

I think the key word that sets me on edge here is "Disney." I read that and think, "Please, anyone but them." I mean, any company that is capable of twisting The Hunchback of Notre Dame into a children's musical with a happy ending will certainly have no compunctions about tweaking C.S. Lewis to make it more P.C., or whatever they think will make them the most money. Of course they know that if they do that, they'll have devoted fans, young and old, screaming bloody murder at them, but will that be enough? I mean, said fans will still buy tickets to see the movie either way, and money talks louder than fan forums.

Where have you gone, Pete Jackson? Lord of the Rings wasn't perfect, but it was about as good as one could expect, considering all the factors involved (the necessity of making the movies less than 20 hours long, for example). LotR sacrificed several plot elements in the interest of conciseness, but in the end I think it managed to capture the spirit of the books in a way few movies do. On the other hand, with TCoN, I can very easily see them creating a movie which keeps the plot intact, and misses the point entirely.

Another problem TCoN will face is that the spiritual elements are even more overt than in LotR. Although there are Catholic themes running throughout his works, Tolkien repeatedly insisted that they were not allegories. Rather, they spring out of his concept of the truth about human nature, condition, and telos, and as such can't help but be Catholic. Had Lewis tried to assert the same about the genre of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, however, he would have been laughed at. It is almost insulting to the reader for me to write here that LWW is an allegory for the Passion. Since this is so evident throughout the work however, it stands alot stronger chance of being axed. This can't be written off as vague 'spirituality' by a director and writers. This is, without a doubt, Christianity, and all the uncomfortable baggage that goes with it.

In our favor, of course, is The Passion. It doesn't get much more uncomfortable than that, but it certainly didn't suffer in the box office. One hopes that producers will look towards that success and be more open towards Christian elements in their films.

I still keep coming back to that word, though: "Disney." *shudder*

WorldNetDaily: The wonderful world of legal murder

As you read this, Terri Schiavo might be processing. That's the au courant word to use these days. It means dying.

If you're reading this anytime after 1pm EST today, to be precise; unless an emergency stay is issued.

Is this the face of a brain-dead woman? Nobody in their right mind could think so; but if something isn't done, it may be the face of a dead woman.

When I first heard about the Terri Schiavo case, I assumed she was in a coma: a "vegetable," as we so charmingly term such cases today. I still thought that her husband's attempt to pull out her feeding tube was completely wrong, but now that I know more--and know how much has been kept from us by the media--the whole affair takes on a lurid tinge which passes far beyond the merely grotesque. It's also an urgent matter--Terri may have her feeding tube pulled this week. Tomorrow, in fact. (Rumors about a possible stay to bar her husband's action turn out to be baseless, sadly.)

I don't usually do things like this, but I just emailed the governor about the matter. He has expressed great interest in the case and has saved Terri's life at least once before and hopefully he will intervene again. While perhaps my individual voice will not be heard, certainly it will swell the thousands of others who have sent him their pleas on this subject.

I received an email forwarded by my mother from Catholic Answers which sums up this utterly horrific situation:

A woman is about to be murdered, and you probably already know her name--Terri Schiavo.

Please help us rescue Terri from a horrible death by starvation! The moment her feeding tube is removed, Terri will begin a long, slow, painful death by starvation and dehydration.

We need your help NOW to rescue Terri from her cruel executioners. They've already tried to kill her once before, and she fought to stay alive. But this may be the last chance Terri gets. Will you help save her life?

MEDIA LIES

If you've heard about Terri only through the news media, you've probably been led to believe things like this:

* Terri is brain dead.
* She is in a coma.
* She's a vegetable.
* Extraordinary means are being used to keep her alive.
* She wants to die but her parents stubbornly won't let it happen.

None of these things are true!

Terri is NOT brain dead. She is NOT in a coma. She is NOT in a "persistent vegetative state." And she is not on ANY life-support system.

THE FACTS THE MEDIA HIDES FROM YOU

When her parents visit her, Terri laughs, she cries, she moves, and she makes child-like attempts at speech with her mother and father. Sometimes she will say "Mom" or "Dad" or "yeah" when they ask her a question. And when they kiss her hello or goodbye, she looks at them and "puckers up" her lips.

She's able to sit in a chair, she loves to listen to her favorite music, and she recognizes her brother and sister when they come to visit.

Board-certified neurologist Dr. Jacob Green of Jacksonville, Florida, who examined Terri, said unequivocally: "She is not in a vegetative state." When asked if it would be ethical to remove her feeding tube, he said, "I'd call it murder."

Terri receives food and liquid through a feeding tube because she can't swallow. In other words, Terri depends on food and water to stay alive-just like everybody else!

But her husband, Michael, wants to disconnect her only means of food so that she will slowly starve to death.

Medical experts all agree that death by starvation and dehydration is perhaps the most painful, the most tortuous, and the most agonizing way to die.

Yes, Terri's injury left her disabled. But there are tens of thousands of disabled people who depend on gastro feeding tubes every day, and they live otherwise normal lives.

Terri can breathe for herself. She is not on a ventilator. Her vital organs are working fine, which means she is not hooked up to a machine. Furthermore, she is NOT dying or being "kept alive" by artificial means. She does not have a terminal disease, and she will be able to feel pain if she is starved to death.

And that could start to happen in the next few days.

THE IMMEDIATE CRISIS

Time is running out for Terri. Her feeding tube could be removed THIS WEEK!!!

There is one last court procedure that is being tried to save Terri's life, but if it fails her feeding tube could be removed Wednesday.

If that happens then only thing that may save her might be action by Florida Governor Jeb Bush.

Governor Bush has already fought to save Terri's life. The last time her feeding tube was removed he stepped in and snatched her back from the brink of death. The Florida legislature even passed a special law--"Terri's Law"--to give him the authority to keep her alive.

But then the law was struck down by a judge, putting Terri's life on the line once again.

If the courts continue their anti-life crusade against Terri and others like her, the only thing that may save her would be action by Governor Bush.

WHERE YOU COME IN

The attorneys who are fighting for Terri's life have a few more possible ways to prevent Terri's murder. But these are last-ditch efforts that may or may not work. The courts are decidedly on Michael's side--not Terri's.

So that means we have to come to Terri's aid-especially through the amazing power of prayer and sacrifice--but also by sharing this story with everybody you know, and encouraging Governor Jeb Bush to do everything he can to rescue Terri once again.

Here's what you can do...

1.) First, PRAY for Terri--harder than ever before! Not enough people are praying for Terri right now. And she needs our prayers now more than ever.

2.) Second, FAST along with Terri if and when her feeding tube gets removed--and then offer up your sacrifices for her.

3.) Third, please ENCOURAGE Governor Bush to do everything he can to rescue Terri. Since time is of the essence, we recommend that you send him an e-mail at jeb.bush@myflorida.com.

Or, if you prefer, you can call his office at the Florida State Capitol
at (850) 488-4441.

4.) And finally, please FORWARD this e-mail to everyone on your e-mail list. The more people who know the true story about Terri Schiavo and how she is in imminent danger of being murdered, the greater our chances of achieving a victory in this life-or-death struggle between good and evil.

It's hard to believe, but there are many hard-hearted people out there who believe that, due to Terri's condition, she is "better off dead." Words cannot describe the pain and anger such sentiments cause Terri's family.

This is their daughter, their little girl. And even in her disabled condition, she still has the right to life and the right to be loved and cared for by her family.

Terri doesn't have to die. If you'll carry out the steps above, we can win this battle and save Terri's life.

Please do your part--immediately--because tomorrow may be too late.

Sincerely,

Catholic Answers

As a Catholic and a Floridian, I implore you to pass this information onto all your friends.

Also, see this website for further details. And pray. Please pray.

COMING EUCHARISTIC PROCESSION AT NOTRE DAME

Children of Mary and Knights of the Immaculata have always been dedicated to the Eucharist.

For this reason, we will be working to hold a EUCHARISTIC PROCESSION with Campus Ministry in the afternoon of Saturday, April 16, 2005.

In order to hold this procession, we will first need 250 people to confirm that they will attend. If you can attend, send your confirmation to mary@nd.edu, subjectline "PROCESSION."

A Eucharistic Procession is a procession with the Blessed Sacrament in a monstrance throughout the campus. As we process, we will sing hymns and songs. We would stop at four places along the way to hold benediction. This is a long Church tradition of honoring the Blessed Sacrament and witnessing the beauty of our Catholic Faith to the Campus Community.

Please help us give this gift to Our Lord!!

For more information, go to http://www.nd.edu/~mary/eucharist.html.

Romanis Civis Sum, or Something Like That

The School of Architecture here at Our Lady's university recently had its yearly Expo Roma, where senior arkies (such as yours truly) invite their parents up to see exhibits of their projects from their year abroad in Rome, slide shows of their adventures around the Italian boot and hob-nob with their professors. I was one of the people running the Foyer Decorations Committee, and so helped with the design of the big backdrops which we hung up in the lobby representing, variously, a Roman cafe, and also the piazza in front of S. Maria della Pace near Piazza Navona. I did the preparatory drawings for the backdrops and some of the detail work of the actual painting, including the scale figures in the cafe. Some examples of the work, taken by my lovely and talented mother.



The author and his father in front of a quintessentially Roman cafe. Note the painting in the background by the author of the (also quintessentially Roman) sleazy carabineri.



Santa Maria della Pace. (Compare with the original!)

I find THIS even MORE amusing

The term Protestant resulted from the summit at Augsburg between the Lutherans, the Catholics, and the Emperor. The Lutherans protested some of the proceedings, and henceforth the term "protestant" was born.

This site, however, informs me that, in addition to being big fans of the Rosary, Lutherans are not Protestant.

"Lutherans have retained the historic liturgy and doctrines of the church catholic (i.e. the "universal" church), maintain the holy sacraments as means of grace (including the Real Presence of Christ in Holy Communion), profess the ancient creeds, and follow the church year. At the same time Lutherans profess the gospel of justification by faith and the firm belief in the scriptures as the sole measure of our knowledge of God and His plan for our salvation. For these reasons Lutherans can be said to be both Protestant and Catholic and yet neither Protestant nor Catholic. This is the nature of a middle way between the two."

Never mind that, since at least either the Protestants or the Catholics are wrong, drawing a middle path between them is a compromise with error at best, and a mishmash of two erroneous systems at worst.

I Find this Trend Amusing

It seems that the Vatican has decided that bishops who make a big stir with very controversial Cathedral renovations will pay the price in their ecclesial after-life.

The trend, as far as I know, started with Archbishop Weakland's replacement by the epitomy of the very "smiling conservatives" the Milwaukee chancery informed the press they would never accept -- Archbishop Dolan.

Now it seems that Archbishop Flores, who cause a very significant uproar in his renovation of San Antonio's cathedral (formerly the oldest continually-operating sanctuary in the United States, but that title has probably been lost now that the actual sanctuary no longer houses the altar), has been replaced by Archbishop Gomez. According to NCR, Gomez is associated with Opus Dei, and is already a (long-shot) candidate for cardinal. More information on Gomez can be found here.

I just wonder if liturgical design consultants will start including "future cessation of diocese to conservative bishop" under their list of "project costs..."


This is the current status of San Antonio's Cathedral


This is the pre-renovation Cathdral; less nice art, more traditional lay-out


This, however, was the original plan which ticked off so many conservatives and likely caused the controversy which sent a flurry of angry letters to the Vatican -- and, I posit, resulted in the choice of Gomez

Successor of... St. Paul?

Following on the heels of the announcement of the discovery of St. Paul's Tomb in Rome (more info here), I can't help but wonder whether the Popes should make a bigger deal over the fact that they are both successor of Peter AND Paul.

Certainly, John Paul II has rivalled Paul's missionary journeys. He has, in fact, in references that I'm not going to spend the time to look up now but have read, openly compared his travels to the legacy of St. Paul which he inherits as the bishop of Rome.

This is not without earlier precedent. For example, in decreeing the feast of Corpus Christi (the Bull Transiturus), Pope Urban IV spoke "in the authority of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul."

Interdict!

Now there's a word we haven't heard in far, far, too long.

From a friend:

Perhaps you have heard about this, but I was told by a friend that the woman involved in Roe vs. Wade is trying to get the decision in her "favor" reversed. The Supreme Court is supposed to decide whether to hear her request tomorrow, that is, the 18th of February. He asked several of us to pray, fast, sacrifice that this first step might be successful.

I don't know if this is just a rumor or something bigger, but certainly a little prayer wouldn't hurt in this case.

"I am the Koala Master! Wombat henchmen attack!"

--my friend Rich suddenly summons to life the least likely supervillain ever created.

James II and VII Stuart, who started this whole mess.

Cardinal O'Brien calls for the end of the pro-Protestant Act of Settlement, which bans Catholics from the British throne. As a Jacobite, I can't help agreeing. As we legitimists all know, the true English king of England descends from the line of Stuart, who were thrown out by a bunch of foreign usurping Germans at the turn of the eighteenth century.

(Checks geneological trees, rustling of paper) Which means that the present ruler of England...mmmmm...take a left through the Savoy family...is...Franz, Duke of Bavaria.

A very old and very foreign German guy.

Never mind.

If you want to get nitpicky, very few of the rulers of that delightfully weird little island have been really English. Prince Charles is half Greek through his father (who was really Danish-cum-German, anyway, don't ask); the Stuarts were Scotsmen, the Tudors were Welsh, the Plantagenets (Peter O'Toole and Katharine Hepburn) were from Hollywood, and I'll let you connect the dots on where William of Normandy was from.

Incidentally, if Franz was king, that would mean his successor would be his niece Sophie, who is married to the hereditary prince of Liechtenstein, the heir apparent to supposedly one of the most Catholic dynasties of Europe. Here's a pic of the happy and handsome couple. As you can see, the Wittelsbach family from which she derives has been very lucky avoiding any apparent visible side-effects of centuries of inbreeding (see, for example, Charles II of Spain, the Bewitched, who couldn't chew his own food). They just tend to go, very romantically, and very tragically, crazy, which makes for much more interesting reading. Considering hubby Prince Alois used to be an accountant, I think the Liechtensteins could use a little romantic insanity in the family.

This is Funny

The Onion often is.

Point/CounterPoint: English grad student meets Physics grad student

"I would give you the moon and the stars."
"Giving me the moon and the stars would have a disasterous effect on our galaxy."

Catholic Comic
From Drew, a 16-year-old blogger in San Diego. I wish I would have thought to have a blog when I was 16, but then again they didn't really start the whole "blogging" thing until 4 years ago.

Here it is!

CNS: Vatican official says Sash wearers disqualified from Communion

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The Vatican's top liturgy official said Rainbow Sash wearers disqualify themselves from receiving Holy Communion because they are demonstrating their opposition to church teaching on homosexuality.

Cardinal Francis Arinze, head of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments, made the comment in a written response to Catholic News Service in early February.

I suppose it would be too much to hope that the bishops will get on board and present a united, orthodox response to this...

(Story via But I Digress)

Oh, that's a Great Idea

"There's been K Street chatter, our colleague Jeffrey H. Birnbaum tells us, that Lieberman could be on an administration list to replace Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld in the next year or so."

This isn't a poltical blog, but I had to comment. It's awkward enough that all the terrorists which we've identified are Muslim. It does give opportunity for people to have the impression that we are waging war on Islam; obviously, we're not -- some brands of militant Islam are waging war on us. But the appearance is, none the less, awkward and demands tact and precision, so that we don't give the impression that Islam itself is the problem or the target. Unnecesary or wrongfully polarizing actions really need to be avoided. So, tell me... where's the wisdom in appointing the nation's most prominant Jewish leader to head the war against Islamic terrorism?

Sr. Lucia Dies

"The last surviving witness to whom the Virgin Mary is said to have appeared in a series of apparitions in Portugal in 1917 has died aged 97. Sister Lucia de Jesus dos Santos died at the convent where she had been living since the 1940s, the Roman Catholic Church said. She was one of three shepherd children who claimed they spoke to the Virgin Mary near Fatima town over six months."

Two thoughts:
- For some reason, the end of the world somehow seems 10% more likely.
- Considering the beatified status of Francisco Marto & Jacinta, how many others have been so certain to be canonized?

More here...

Scary Lenten Zubarán POD-ness over at Basia me, Catholica Sum!

By the way, tomorrow is St. Cyril and St. Methodius's Day, a celebration of great importance to those of Eastern European heritage. Though nobody seems to remember that here in the U.S. The fact that it (used) to be St. Valentine's is largely a coincidence, though I have a pet idea about combining the two events. You could buy a dozen red roses for your favorite Bulgarian girl. I don't know any, don't look at me. Or, if you know any women from Kiev (once again, I do not), you could also try singing them the only Soviet-themed surfer-rock song known to modern man, "Back in the U.S.S.R." Ahem:

Well, those Ukraine girls really knock me out.
They leave the West behind.
And Moscow girls make me sing and shout
That Georgia’s always on my mind, mind, mind.

Yes, that was in very bad taste. So is everything else around here.

Incidentally, my idea to attempt to cash in on the Apostles to the Slavs by selling tee-shirts saying "Kiss Me, I'm Croatian," died an unfortunate death somewhere along the line. Why should the Irish have all the fun? Everyone is Slavonic on St. Cyril's day!

Winter Makes You Do Crazy Things

Here, at the Shrine, we do not of course encourage in dangerous college-student pranks such as, for example, setting couches on fire and pushing them through the window, which seems to have been about the only thing P.J. O'Rourke did that was worthwhile during his years at Miami of Ohio. (Incidentally, googling "P.J. O'Rourke couch Miami" produces very little of use). Sure, there's the peculiar rituals associated with Zahm Residence Hall, such as the mid-week procession of all the former and present inhabitants of one particular room who march around the building chanting the phone number, or the report alleged by my friend Andy that my dorm's inhabitants went over and mooed repeatedly at his dorm at the beginning of his freshman year. Make of that, semioticians, what you will. I've also heard rumors of people climbing up the geodesic dome of the ugliest building on campus, the Stepan Center. Note that the Stepan Center website does not have a functioning image gallery. Hopefully it never will.

From personal experience, I can mention there was that brief period when my friend Steve and I considered and rejected an April Fools' prank revolving around the idea of placing forged documents in the Mediaeval Institute in order to substantiate a claim that the Holy Grail was hidden on the (inaccessible) third floor of the library. The Ark of the Covenant may well be there, too, like in the last scene of Indiana Jones.

But we have never ever even thought of blowing up a microwave, much less doing it like our translatlantic friend Andrew Cusack recently did. By the way, doesn't "Country Life (Blowing Up Microwave)" sound like the title of a song? Maybe the Sanctus Belles (the mythical all-girl Tridentine punk rock band which surfaces from time to time on this blog) can do a cover of it.

I'm too holy for my hat...

... and other... odd... photos from a calendar that purports to picture, well, 12 months of Roman seminarians?

(thanks, I think, to Fr. Guido Sarducci for the link)

VOTE!

And, well, vote for us! We're close to winning "Best Group Blog," but those priests at Ragemonkey are just a little too far ahead.

Vote for us!

How otherwise can we call ourselves "the Elect" without committing the sin of presumption?

I'd just like to thank husband-and-wife Catholic blogging titans Michael Dubruiel and Amy Welborn for the delightful conversation (and free books, if we succeed in prying them out of Em's hot little hands) during their visit to the Notre Dame campus bookstore yesterday. It was a real pleasure for all of us at The Shrine to chat with you and your family and we hope for all the best with regards to your new book Here. Now. Next time you're in the neighborhood, drop in for our Saturday morning solemn Mass!

Museum of Purgatory

When the Shrine visited Rome last year, we made certain to visit the modest-yet-fascinating "Museum of Purgatory," a collection of various artifacts burned by the Holy Souls as they visited earth to request prayers and suffrages. While Googling images for my Ash Wednesday post, I happed across this picture of the Museum, and thought I'd share.

"New Catholic University"?

Has anyone else heard of this?

www.newcatholicuniversity.com

"Vision: To create a university that equips its graduates both with the skills and confidence to build and participate in sustainable businesses, and with a dynamic orthodoxy of faith for passionate practice in the work place and marketplace."

"Mission and Core Purpose: NCU will shape innovators, leaders and entrepreneurs at the intersections of business, technology and communications media, guided by the spiritual, moral and social teachings of Jesus Christ."

An official-looking draft translation of the Mass from the Editio Typica Tertia of the Missal, recently shown to the English-speaking Bishops of the world. Extremely promising.

Incidentally, I have not forgotten about the Ordo Karolingianus, those of you who requested a copy. I'm currently still editing up some parts of it (it has been significantly tidied-up since its first appearance on the blog), and also working on a written exposition explaining the logic behind my suggested changes and their relationship to the Missals of 1962, 1965 and 1970. Discovering this new (and rather lovely) translation may also makes me want to undertake a few revisions to my own proposal.

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

It's the most wonderful time of the year
With the kids’ foreheads ashen
And Gibson’s “The Passion”
For your sins you will fear!
It's the most wonderful time of the year.

It's the hap-happiest season of all
With those holy day Masses
To Confession he dashes
When sin come to call
It's the hap-happiest season of all.

There'll be prayers against boasting
Whatever envy we’re hosting
And penances out in the snow
There'll be stunning saints’ stories
And tales of the glories
Of Christians long, long ago.

It's the most wonderful time of the year
There be much satisfy-ing
Our hearts will be dying
To sins we hold dear!
It's the most wonderful time of the year, ooh ah.

Woah, there'll be prayers the roasting
Those Holy Souls toasting
In penance for sins long ago.
There'll be scary ghost stories
And tales of the glories
Of sinners long, long ago.

It's the most wonderful time of the year
There be much satisfy-ing
And hearts will be burn-ing
In hopes that Christ will be near
It's the most wonderful time

It's the most wonderful time
It's the most wonderful time of the year
Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh.

(image credit: here)

Posted by: Andrew / 10:09 AM
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