No, thanks
What People are Commenting
donate Books CDs HOME updates search contact

Two Lucys, Lepanto & Dining with a Bishop



Woke WYD

Dear TIA,

Re: WYD / Examination of conscience

Brilliant exposé of blasphemous "confession" at Woke Young Demon coven.

     L.M.

______________________



Message from the Servants of the Holy Family


TIA Note:

We received from the Servants of the Holy Family the following message.

The links provided in the photocopy below are:
  • Link to the comments by Dr. Marian Horvat on the Two Lucys, here;
  • To their comparative study – photo regression/progression of the Two Lucys, here;
  • To the comments by Mr. Atila Guimarães on the Servants’ study, here;
  • To their website, here.
     The Editor

Servants of the Holy Family message on Sister Lucy


______________________



Inspiring Song of Lepanto


Dear TIA,

A friend recently showed this music video to me, a very inspiring song about Lepanto adapted from G.K. Chesterton's poem of the same name.

In the description they dedicated the song to the Blessed Virgin and remind us of the battle we all have to fight.

     Regards,

     T.L.

______________________



Chinese Bishops Abandon Synod


Dear TIA,

Well the only news I’ve found on the Silent Synod on Synodality is that the two Chinese Bishops the Vatican wooed to come are leaving early.

Bishop Antonio Yao Shun of Jining and Bishop Joseph Yang Yongqiang of Zhoucun will return to China this week “without completing the synod process,” whatever that means.

The Chinese bishops only participated in the first 12 days of the Synod assembly, following a nearly identical pattern to the two Chinese bishops who took part in the 2018 Synod on Youth.

When asked at a synod press conference why the Chinese bishops are leaving early, Ruffini said that their departure is due to “pastoral needs” in their diocese that require their presence.

Make of it what you will, but I do not think as much as they wanted is going on there.

Read more here.

     M.G.

Chinese bishops

______________________



Dinner with a Bishop in a Restaurant


Dear TIA,

Grace to you and peace be accomplished in the knowledge of God and of Christ Jesus our Lord.

At a recent charity auction, I won an "evening family meal at a local fine dining restaurant with our bishop."

I beg your highly competent advice in planning for this joyous grace.

I have many more questions than I'll list here, but I'm most interested in how you'd prepare, act and behave given this opportunity.

A few of my questions: How specifically would you greet His Excellency as a family in a public restaurant? How would you address His Excellency at table? What would you bring (a gift from the children?) What topics of conversation are appropriate? (i.e. would it be appropriate to express my prayerful desire for His Excellency to allow for exceptions to his predecessors' intact rule prohibiting the sacrament of confirmation prior to the 15th birthday?)

For context, I am a married layman with 4 children--three of them school-aged and trained in etiquette; One toddler. We belong to an FSSP parish and our hope is to treat our bishop with utmost courtesy and respect, reflecting well upon our parish family.

This will be our first time dining with a bishop.

Thank you for your help. Ave Maria!

     Peace & joy,

     E.A.
______________________


TIA responds:

Dear E.A.,

Thank you for your kind words of support. We compliment you for desiring to act appropriately in social situations.

We will address the different fields of protocol involved in this situation:

Regarding dressing: To show proper respect for the Bishop, you and your family should dress formally, as you would for attending Mass. So, men should wear suits and ties and women should be tastefully attired in modest dresses or skirts.

Regarding greeting: In answer to how to greet the Bishop, you and your wife should kiss his ring, which will serve as a public testimony to the Catholic faith. The way this is done – as well as a few other particulars for interacting with the Bishop – is described in American Catholic Etiquette:

"A Catholic formally greets a bishop by kissing the ring which is one of his marks of office. When one is greeting a bishop within the diocese of which he is the head, one kneels to kiss his ring. …

“It is never wrong, either from a religious or social point of view, to greet a bishop by kissing his ring. It is done at weddings, funerals, ordinations, any entertaining at which the bishop is the host, or meetings of Catholic organizations. . . No layman, religious, or cleric below the rank of bishop sits in the presence of a bishop until he requests one to do so. If seated, one rises when a bishop approaches to address one and remains standing until he invites one to be seated. At a social gathering, the hostess or chairman says to the bishop, before any other present, "Please be seated, Your Excellency" and indicates a seat on her (his) right. If the bishop arrives after the other guests, all rise when he enters and remain standing until he is seated."

If the bishop is a progressivist, he will remove his hand when you take it to kiss it. Then, do not kneel and just ignore these rules of kissing and kneeling.

Regarding treatment: The direct address for a bishop is “Your Excellency,” or simply “Bishop Kelly”. Therefore, if you are introduced you might say, “Good evening Your Excellency, it is a pleasure to meet you,” or say simply, “Good Evening, Your Excellency,” or Good evening, Bishop Kelly.”

You could then proceed to introduce your wife and children: “Bishop Kelly, I would like to introduce my wife Margaret, and my sons Thomas and George, and my daughters, Anne Theresa and Bernadette. Your older children should be prepared to also greet the Bishop, each one politely saying, “Good evening, Your Excellency.” Your wife should kiss his ring, but it is not necessary for the children to do so since this could be awkward for both him and them. After that, the children should not speak unless spoken to, as the old rule went.

If he is a progressivist, he will tell you to leave off the formalities, but call him Bishop Bob, or just Bob, following the example of the Pope who told a layman: “Call me Jorge.”

Regarding gifts: You should not bring a gift to him since the gathering is in a public restaurant. If you were invited to the Bishop’s residence, then a small gift would be advisable: a box of chocolates, a box of some special tea or coffee, or something equivalent.

Regarding conversation: Since it is a public gathering that presupposes a convivial atmosphere, you should refrain from bringing up controversial or polemical topics. The topics should be about light subjects – trips that he made, foods that he likes, books that he read etc. – unless he takes the initiative to address some hot topic. In this case, you should express your opinion without passion, keeping a cordial atmosphere.

We hope this answers your questions, and that you and your family will have a pleasant evening at this social event.

     Cordially,

     TIA correspondence desk


Posted October 17 2023

Share

Blason de Charlemagne
Follow us










______________________


The opinions expressed in this section - What People Are Commenting - do not necessarily express those of TIA

Related Works of Interest


A_civility.gif - 33439 Bytes A_courtesy.gif - 29910 Bytes A_family.gif - 22354 Bytes