N.O. Abuses & Expiatory Victim

Mesdames et Messieurs,

I encounter so many disturbing things at the local parish church (part of the Diocese of Wilmington, DE) where I have been parishioner since 2010. Because there is no nearby traditional Mass, I attend Mass at this church every week, because I believe this to be better than sitting at home. Because Our Lord condescends to be made present on the altar here, I want to receive Him there and if possible make reparation to him for the disrespect found at places in this Mass. I went into this with the attitude that I know what to be on guard against.

But when I hear sermons (and our parish is by no means the most progressive I've encountered) that teach that Our Lord was not really sure of His mission at the point where He was petitioned by the Syro-phoenician woman, or that He was abandoned by ALL of his disciples including St John the Beloved Disciple (making the evangelists into liars), where do I turn? Do I write the priests a note and point out the problems?

I recently asked the Music Director why we sing so many protestant hymns, what does it mean? He didn't have any answer except to say that the Bishops had examined them and found nothing in them contrary to Catholic teaching. But what does one say about the infamous "Canticle of the Sun" with the chilling refrain: "Come dance in the forest, come play in the fields"? To whom can I protest when the pastor and the Music Director approve of this? All I can do is remain silent when this hymn is sung, and pray that God will soon rescue His Church from the bonds in which she is held by people who despise her. If you have other ideas, I would be glad to hear them, and would act on them if possible.

And there is the question of my responsibility as a Catholic for larger problems in the Church. In a publication I receive that gives the Mass readings with commentaries for each day, I recently saw an article on the coming canonization of Kateri Tekakwitha, which informs us that Pope John Paul II said that many unverified miracles equal one verified one. And it showed a photo of someone "smudging" with sage while saying a "prayer for the Four Winds" before Mass in some unidentified parish. As if this would honor Kateri!

Can you recommend a chain of command in which I can protest when I see these things and feel the Holy Spirit (through my conscience) prodding me not to keep quiet?

     Thank you for your fearless website,

     K.M.


TIA responds:

K.M.,

It is good that you are opening your eyes to see the abuses in the typical Novus Ordo Mass. These abuses are predictable consequences of the spirit of adaptation to the modern world and local cultures, preached and implemented by Vatican II.

As far as we can see, there is no one that can put an halt to these abuses, since this process has been going on for more than four decades, encouraged by the conciliar Popes.

The best thing to do is to stop going to these Masses and look for some traditional Catholic Mass. You still can find them in some of the Eastern Catholic Rites and in the Tridentine Masses said in different branches of the Catholic Traditionalist movement.

We hope this can help your problem of conscience.

     Cordially,

     TIA correspondence desk

Dear Dr. Horvat,

Recently I viewed a video on Our Lady of Good Success and was very impressed. Since then, I have bought some books and holy cards and would like to spread devotion to Our Lady under this title. Do you have the address of the convent in Quito? Also do you know if it is possible to buy the books and holy cards in Korean?

May God bless you for all the wonderful work you do.

     Sincerely,

     A.O., Australia


Dr. Horvat responds:

Dear A.O.,

Thank you for your kind words about our work.

The address of the Sisters is:

Monasterio de Concepcion,
Mejia 526,
Quito, Ecuador

We do not carry the books in Korean, and do not know of any place that does.

     Cordially,

     Marian T. Horvat

Dear TIA,

Vatican II has done very little if anything to help the Church, in fact I dare say it has done absolutely nothing but harm her.

I pray that this is resolved soon. Our Lady's assistance is so needed.

May all Saints intercede for us.

     In Our Lady,

     P.J.

TIA,

I’ve been trying to get a satisfactory answer to this question for a while. I even e-mailed the Inquisition, but they never responded.

In John 15:13 Our Divine Lord said, “Greater love has no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.” Beyond the obvious reference to His Divine Mission, I see a holy and virtuous directive to all men. As a man, I have an obligation to defend the honor, dignity, life, and virtue of my wife even unto death. This has always been the obligation of men throughout recorded time.

If, for example, someone would attempt to attack my wife with a knife, my duty would be to place myself between her and the assailant, without regard for the danger that I would be risking in her stead, even unto my own death.

My question is this: Since we know that life does not end at physical death, am I not still obligated, by Our Lord’s example and directive, to act likewise on my wife’s behalf in the next stage of life? To the point: Is there anything counter to Catholic teaching or what we know of Divine Justice that forbids me to make an appeal to God to request that I assume the punishment owed to my wife for the temporal punishment for the sins that have already been forgiven her, no matter what the cost, even unto death?

I understand that we are each responsible for our own salvation, but as long far any punishment due, would it not be obligatory upon me as a man and a Christian to suffer in her place?

     S.B.


TIA responds:

S.B.,

There are some nuances that need to be established in your presupposition and question in order to give you an answer according to the Catholic mind.

1. You are correct when you say that you should defend your wife from moral and physical attacks. Something, however, is missing in this presupposition. You say: “If, for example, someone would attempt to attack my wife with a knife, my duty would be to place myself between her and the assailant.”

Here, your obligation is not necessarily to receive the blow personally and die as a victim, but rather to stop the assailant from perpetrating the act. This would be accomplished better by counter-attacking the assailant, reducing him to inaction and handing him over to the police so that due measures could be taken to prevent him not only from hurting your wife or you, but also from hurting anybody else. So, for you to receive the assailant’s blow, as is insinuated in your letter, is not the best solution for the problem you presented.

2. The proposal to die or suffer in the place of your wife for the punishments she deserves is very noble. We do not believe that there is any impediment that prevents you from offering yourself to God as an expiatory victim for this intention, as long as you place yourself entirely in God’s hands. That is, insofar as you are completely conformed to His will should He not accept your offer.

In the formulation of your question, you use some ambiguous words: is there anything “that forbids me to make an appeal to God to request that I assume the punishment owed to my wife…?”

Here we need to distinguish two possible intentions for “appeal” and “request.” If you are using these words with the intent to be in entire conformity with God’s will, you can make that offering. If, however, you are directing yourself to God with tones of command, demand or a claim of rights in this “appeal” and this “request,” then you should not make it, because you would be pretending to know better than God what the best thing to do is.

We hope this answers your question.

     Cordially,

     TIA correspondence desk