Sisters of St. Francis Oldenburg, Indiana

It is with regret that I have discerned the need to withdraw my endorsement and support of the Sisters of St. Francis Oldenburg, Indiana. Regretfully, I can no longer support or encourage involvement in this organization.

Pace e Bene!

T

U.S. Bishops: Reiki Is Dangerous, Superstitious

- In a document released March 25, the Committee on Doctrine of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops blasted Reiki, a practice developed in Japan in the late nineteenth century that has gained acceptance in some Catholic retreat centers and other institutions.

After distinguishing between natural medicine and supernatural healing effected by Christ, the bishops conclude:

Reiki therapy finds no support either in the findings of natural science or in Christian belief. For a Catholic to believe in Reiki therapy presents insoluble problems. In terms of caring for one's physical health or the physical health of others, to employ a technique that has no scientific support (or even plausibility) is generally not prudent.

In terms of caring for one's spiritual health, there are important dangers. To use Reiki one would have to accept at least in an implicit way central elements of the worldview that undergirds Reiki theory, elements that belong neither to Christian faith nor to natural science.

Without justification either from Christian faith or natural science, however, a Catholic who puts his or her trust in Reiki would be operating in the realm of superstition, the no-man's-land that is neither faith nor science. Superstition corrupts one's worship of God by turning one's religious feeling and practice in a false direction. While sometimes people fall into superstition through ignorance, it is the responsibility of all who teach in the name of the Church to eliminate such ignorance as much as possible.

Since Reiki therapy is not compatible with either Christian teaching or scientific evidence, it would be inappropriate for Catholic institutions, such as Catholic health care facilities and retreat centers, or persons representing the Church, such as Catholic chaplains, to promote or to provide support for Reiki therapy. The bishops add, “Some forms of Reiki teach of a need to appeal for the assistance of angelic beings or ‘Reiki spirit guides.’ This introduces the further danger of exposure to malevolent forces or powers.”

Rev. Roy Bourgeois, the Fort Benning protester, faces excommunication by Vatican

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

The Rev. Roy Bourgeois, the Maryknoll brother who has led protests down at Fort Benning for decades, has let it be known that he stands to be excommunicated by the Vatican for his support of the ordination of women.

Blog for Democracy gets the hat tip. And here’s the article from the National Catholic Reporter.

Bourgeois, now 70, began his protests against the School of the Americas, an Army training school he blamed for human rights abuses in Latin America, in 1989. The institution was closed. In its place, the Pentagon opened the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security and Cooperation in 2001.

Bourgeois has continued his opposition. The last major demonstration occurred two years ago, attracting an estimated 10,000 protesters.

Having Zeal For Prayer And The Divine Office

St. Francis was devout and reverent at prayer and the Divine Office that whenever he was at prayer or reciting the Divine Office he would never lean against a wall or support. He always stood upright and bareheaded, although he sometimes knelt. Indeed, he devoted the greater part of the day and night to prayer, and even when he was travelling around on foot, he would always halt when he wished to say the Hours.

Saint Francis of Assisi
Mirror of Perfection - 94

Bishop Gracida's Reaction to Fr. Newman's Letter "is one of admiration and awe"

Bishop Gracida's Reaction to Fr. Newman's Letter "is one of admiration and awe"

Fr. Newman's comments on those who voted for Obama have drawn some positive & some negative reactions. Basically, I think all Fr. Newman did was remind people of what the Church teaches. It is up to each of us to examine our own conscience. But, when a Bishop actually says to a person that he or she can't & they still try to, then it is time to be sure that Canon Law is upheld.


Bishops React to Priest who Told Obama-Supporting Catholics to Confess before Receiving Communion

By Kathleen Gilbert

GREENVILLE, South Carolina, November 14, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - A South Carolina Catholic priest who advised Obama supporters in his flock not to receive Communion before going to confession elicited polarized responses from the Catholic community - ranging from outrage at a misuse of authority to warm praise for championing Church teaching on abortion. Today LifeSiteNews.com spoke with bishops Gracida, Vasa, and Chaput, all known for their outspokenness on political issues, about the priest’s actions.

Following Obama's election, Fr. Jay Scott Newman wrote a letter to parishioners stating, "Voting for a pro-abortion politician when a plausible pro-life alternative exits constitutes material cooperation with intrinsic evil."

Therefore, as Fr. Newman writes, "Persons in this condition should not receive Holy Communion until and unless they are reconciled to God in the Sacrament of Penance, lest they eat and drink their own condemnation."

Fr. Newman, pastor of St. Mary's Catholic Church in Greenville, explained to local news that he will not refuse Communion to individual parishioners, as Church law would require in the case of a pro-abortion Catholic politician or other well-known public figure. Instead the priest is simply exhorting all Catholics who supported Obama's pro-abortion ticket not to approach the altar.

St. Mary's is considered the mother church for upstate South Carolina Roman Catholics, with 7,500 registered members.

“Personally, I think it is valuable to have this discussion in the secular media because, many times, many Catholics don’t go to Mass, and so they come at this issue from a secular viewpoint,” said diocesan spokesman Steve Gajdosik to the Greenville News.

“I think to Father Newman’s credit, he isn’t afraid to tackle tough issues. And sometimes there is a lot of pressure to conform and just be nice and go along.”

Fr. Newman's sentiments aligned with those of Msgr. Martin Laughlin, the diocese's administrator.

"We must not be guided by the so called 'lesser of two evils' or attempt to justify the acceptance of intrinsic evil for some greater good. We may never embrace evil," Msgr. Laughlin had written in an October letter, in which he called abortion "an affront to human dignity."

Archbishop Burke, formerly archbishop of St. Louis, MO and the current Prefect of the Apostolic Signatura, had said in an interview just before election day that for a citizen to not "support and vote for the candidate who most supports the inalienable dignity of innocent and defenseless life" is "to participate, in some way, in the culture of death which pervades the life of the nation and has led to so much violence.”

Bishop Emeritus Rene Henry Gracida of Corpus Christi, TX, told LifeSiteNews.com (LSN) his reaction to Fr. Newman's letter "is one of admiration and awe. I find nothing in what he has written that is at variance with the Magisterium of the Church. He is to be congratulated."

Bishop Vasa of Baker, OR told LSN that, while Fr. Newman was correct to say that voting for Obama constitutes a material offense against moral teaching, it would nonetheless be impossible to "to ascertain with any degree of certainty the sinfulness of the action of any particular voter" as many voters may or may not have been aware of Obama’s extreme stance on abortion.

In a further statement, Fr. Newman appears to agree with Bishop Vasa. Newman said his statement on the "enormously complex subject" could be easily distorted when taken out of the context of his fidelity to normative Church doctrine. Within this context, he said, "no one could conclude that a vote for Senator Obama is in itself or by itself a mortal sin.

"But from that same teaching, though, we must conclude that a vote for a pro-abortion candidate can be a mortal sin if the intent is to support abortion, that abortion is not merely one issue among other important issues, and that no Catholic should endorse a pro-abortion politician if a plausible pro-life alternative is available."

Bishop Chaput, one of the most outspoken bishops on political matters, declined to comment on Fr. Newman's letter, stating only that Charleston diocesan administration had authority to speak on the matter.

"Praise God for priests with mettle enough to put what's right and good for their flocks before what is politically expedient," said Jim Sedlack, Vice President of the American Life League. "We pray more men like Fr. Newman will stand up and enforce Canon 915." Canon 915 deals with the subject of the distribution of Communion to those who are obstinately persisting in grave sin.

Numerous U.S. bishops issued a sustained volley of statements throughout the months prior to the presidential election condemning Catholics who supported pro-abortion candidates; these statements often contained thinly veiled references to Obama, considered by many to be poised to become the most pro-abortion president in history.

Prior to his election to the pontificate, Cardinal Ratzinger had written to U.S. bishops saying that Catholics indiscriminately receiving communion without discerning their worthiness "is an abuse that must be corrected," and that voting for a pro-abortion candidate without proportionate reason incurred moral guilt that disqualified a Catholic from receiving communion (See: http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2005/apr/050419a.html).
See related LifeSiteNews.com articles:

Can Catholics Who Vote for Obama Still Receive Communion?http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2008/jun/08061208.html

Special Report: Worthiness to Receive Holy Communion, General Principles
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2005/apr/050419a.html

Woe To Those Who Applaud Themselves

Woe to those who applaud themselves for the mere appearance of the religious life; they will grow numb with sloth and they will not be able to resist steadfastly the temptations permitted as a trial for the elect; for only those who have been tried will receive the crown of life, those whom meanwhile the malice of the wicked has put to the test.

Saint Francis of Assisi
Celano, Second Life
CHAPTER CXVI - 157

Lead By Example And Not By Fear

If through my exhortations and my example I can neither surpress nor correct the brothers, I do not wish to become an executioner who punishes and flogs, as the worldly leaders do.

Saint Francis of Assisi
Legend of Perugia - 76

Oldenburg Sisters: Daughters And Handmaids Of The Most High King

Since by divine inspiration you have made yourselves daughters and handmaids of the Most High King, the Father of Heaven, and have embraced the Holy Spirit as your spouce, choosing to live according to the perfection of the Holy Gospel, I resolve and promise that personally and through my brothers I will always have the same special care and solicitude for you as I have for them.

Saint Clare of Assisi
Rule of St. Clare
CHAPTER VI

St. Clare's Image In The Mirror: To My Sisters In Oldenburg

Because the vision of Christ is the splendor of eternal glory, the radiance of eternal light and the mirror without stain, look upon that mirror each day, O queen and spouce of Jesus Christ, and continually study your countenance within it, so that you may clothe yourself inside and out with beautiful robes to cover yourself with the flowers and garments of all the virtues, as becomes the daughter and most chaste bride of the Most High King. Indeed, blessed poverty, holy humility, and ineffable charity are reflected in that mirror, and, with the grace of God, you can contemplate them throughout the entire mirror.

Saint Clare of Assisi
Fourth Letter of St. Clare to Blessed Agens of Prague, 14-19

My God And My All!

Looking up to Heaven and raising his hands, St. Francis prayed with intense fervor and devotion, saying: "My God and my all!" And he sobbed out these words with so many tears and kept repeating them with such devout persistence that until matins he said nothing but "My God and my all!"

Saint Francis of Assisi
Little Flowers of St. Francis - 2

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Feast Of St. Francis Of Assisi, October 4, 2008

Dear Sisters and Associates,

As we near the feast of St. Francis, my thoughts return to the lovely hillside town of Assisi that I was privileged to visit on a pilgrimage some years ago. I truly wish every Sister and Associate could have the opportunity to walk the streets of Assisi, and to absorb the sense of Francis' presence that pervades the town even today.

Francis loved his home town, and prayed frequently for its people and their needs. Jesus, too, wept and prayed over his beloved Jerusalem. Our towns and cities and their inhabitants have so many needs these days. What are the special needs of your civic community these days? It would be very Christian and very Franciscan to make a special effort to keep them in our prayers, especialy during this election time.

During his lifetime, Francis' relationship with God and ministry went through various stages. There was the young and enthusiastic Francis, eager to be about the work which the Lord called him. We see the Francis whose love of his Creator led him to a greater love for and kinship with all creation. We have the penitent Francis, so aware of this failings and full of appreciation for the mercy of his God ("Who are you, God, and who am I?"). We might identify withe the sick and suffering Francis, whose eyesight failed him and whose body kept him from doing all he might want to do for the Lord. Perhaps we resonate with the Francs who had to come to terms with the fact that he had to relinquish control of the order he founded, and that it was changing from his ideal even while he lived. Francis, too, was a man for all seasons, especially for the seasons of life. Where in your journey do you particularly meet him today?

As we celebrate the love and dedication and vision of Francs this year, may we find strength and courage, peace and joy in the life of our spiritual father, and know that the God who loved and sustained Francis will do the same for us.

May God give you peace,
Sister Miriam
for the General Council

Woe To ThoseWho Maintain Only An Outward Show And Pretence Of Religious Life

Blessed Francis used to say, 'The time is coming when this Order, so dear to God, will be brought into such disrepute by the bad example of evil friars that its members will be ashamed to appear in public. But those who come to receive the habit of the Order in those days will be guided solely by the workings of the Holy Spirit: flesh and blood will not contaminate them, and they will be truly blessed by God. And although no noble works will be done by them because the love that enables the Saints to labour so fervently will have grown cold, they will be assailed by tremendous temptations. But those who are found worthy in those days will be better than their predecessors.

'But woe to those who maintain only an outward show and pretence of the Religious Life, who congradulate themselves, trusting in their own cleverness and knowledge, and are shown to be good for nothing.'

Saint Francis of Assisi
Mirror of Perfection - 70

Interesting. But what about those after Vatican II who removed their habits and threw them into the dung heap?

Franciscans Beware!

There is a contract between the world and the brothers: the world must provide for their needs. When they break faith and withdraw their good example, the world will withdraw its hand in just censure.

Saint Francis of Assisi
Celano, Second Life
CHAPTER XL : 70

Franciscan Associates Meeting July 19th

The monthly meeting of the Richmond Catholic Community Franciscan Associates will be this Saturday, July 19th at 11:30 in the basement of Seton West.

Everyone is invited to attend!

St. Francis of Assisi 800 Years Later

What is it, 800 years after the death of St. Francis of Assisi, that continues to draw followers into his Franciscan Movement?

Just ask Evy Christopher, Mary Jane Dolehanty, John Fitch, Georgianna Gibson or Joe Santillo, who will make their vows on April 6, 2008 as Associates of the Sisters of St. Francis in Oldenburg, Indiana. Or simply ask Beverly Pardiek, who is being honored as a 15 year associate. They will tell you that as Seculars in the Franciscan order they desire to share in the basic charisms (gifts) of the Franciscan family in terms of the example of holy and integrated lives given by Saints Francis and Clare, and spiritual identity as articulated in the Rule. They are encouraged to be people of poverty, minority, joy, contemplation and ongoing conversion and to find a way to live these charisms in a vibrant and real way in their secular state.

Have you ever just wanted to get away from it all or said to yourself, "Enough is enough?" Are you sick and tired of being sick and tired? Then perhaps you can understand why these men and women, living within secular society, have said to themselves that there has to be something more to life than being caught up in a society driven by materialism, hedonism and malevolence. They have chosen instead to lead lives of "Simplicity."

Their formation can be viewed as a process by which sisters and brothers become people who love God, love their neighbors, are conscious of and work to address their sinful natures, have an appreciation and hunger for the sacraments, and who produce "worthy fruits of penance." In a word, formation asks them to become "people of mercy" and to be actively and conscientiously involved with growing in holiness at every level of their lives, that is, they accept a specific "Franciscan" direction and spiritual outlook as their own.

We can only experience humility and charity in relationship with one another as brothers and sisters. Francis always said, "And the Lord gave me brothers." Within the context of brotherhood and sisterhood, Franciscan men and women strive to follow the poor and crucified Christ by living the Gospel. At the time of Francis of Assisi, many religious orders and movements grounded their lives in the experience of the early Christian community in Acts 2. Francis teaches Franciscan men and women to live the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Gospel is best heard and lived within brotherhood and sisterhood. "Join the brotherhood" is an invitation to live the Gospel in community as together we follow the poor and crucified Christ. The message is there, it's stong, it speaks for itself. Can you hear it?

Anyone wishing to find out more about the Lay Franciscans here in the Richmond Catholic Community are encouraged to attend one of our monthly meetings in the Father Minton Meeting Room at Seton West or by contacting Jill Hillman at 912-933-6457 or by e-mailing her at jhillman@oldenburgosf.com

Catholic Cardinal: Global Warming a 'New Religion'

Catholic Cardinal: Global Warming Hysteria a ‘New Religion’

A cardinal in the Catholic Church says the hysteria over man-made climate change is akin to a “new religion” and a symptom of “pagan emptiness.”

Cardinal George Pell of Sydney, Australia, has been the target of criticism in his country for expressing doubts about the validity of man-made global warming.

In an interview that appeared in The Catholic World Report, he said: “Right now, the mass media, politicians, many church figures, and the public generally seem to have embraced even the wilder claims about man-made climate change as if they constituted a new religion.

“These days, for any public figure to question the basis of what amounts to green fundamentalist faith is tantamount to heresy.”

Cardinal Pell called long-term weather forecasting “notoriously imprecise,” and pointed to predictions in the 1970s that the planet was about to enter a new ice age because of global cooling.

He said some of the more “hysterical and extreme” claims about impending climate change “appear symptomatic of a pagan emptiness, of a Western fear when confronted by the immense and basically uncontrollable forces of nature…

“It’s almost as though people without religion, who don’t belong to any of the great religious traditions, have got to be frightened of something. Perhaps they’re looking for a cause that is almost a substitute for religion.”

As for Al Gore’s message of doom about climate change, Cardinal Pell noted that there are “significant errors” in his film “An Inconvenient Truth,” and added: “Few of us have the scientific knowledge to question the wild claims Gore has made — other than some grains of common sense.”