And the survey says...

In the original game show "Family Fued", the genial host, the late Richard Dawson, would dramatically announce, "And the survey says..." The top answer would appear in a flourish.

Now, some 30 years removed from "Family Feud", we once again face another survey with an even more dramatic flourish, the Preparatory Document for the upcoming Synod on the Pastoral Challenges to the Family in the New Evangelization. 

The Main Stream Media (MSM) has really blown this whole issue out of proportion with a string of inaccuracies which make me wonder just from where some of these reporters earned their Journalism degrees.  Nowhere in this document does the Holy See ask the bishops, priests or lay Catholics what they would like to change about the Church. This is not a survey about popular opinion akin to what Dawson used to use on "Family Feud." It is far from it.

The survey seeks to take stock of what the Church has been doing (or not) in the areas of Faith and Evangelization as they affect the family.   Some of the questions are difficult for the average lay person to answer.  I spoke to a priest friend of mine and he said that even some of his brother priests found the document to be challenging.  A few did not even know what Local and Particular Churches meant.  The "Local Church" is the diocese and the "Particular Church" is the parish.

The first question off the gate is a particularly painful one to answer and it reminds me of a conversation I had with Archbishop Gerhard Muller, the Prefect for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith when I met him in Houston back in February.  

1. The Diffusion of the Teachings on the Family in Sacred Scripture and the Church's Magisterium
(a) Describe how the Catholic Church's teachings on the value of the family contained in the Bible, Gaudiam et spes,  Familiaris consortio and other documents of the post-conciliar Magisterium is understood by people today? What formation is given to our people on the Church's teaching on family life?

Had the Holy See simply kept this as the sole question, it would have been enough.  The answer, in my opinion, pretty affects every other matter addressed in this survey.  I can only speak for my little corner of South Texas when I say that the answer is that we have not done much in the way of catechizing the faithful.  If we cannot get Catholics to even read Sacred Scripture and the Catechism, how can we even get them to read the post-conciliar documents?  Catechesis for adults is sorely lacking and this is showing rather painfully.

As I observed to Archbishop Muller, most lay Catholics down here know more about the platform of one particular political party than they do about Church teaching.  This weekend, I learned, much to my chagrin, that not a few of these lay Catholics know more about the message preached by megachurch minister Joel Osteen than they do about the Faith of the Church.  Sadly, quite a few of my fellow Catholics joined a packed house to hear Osteen preach this past Friday.  Ironically enough, Friday was the feast of St. Nicholas, who was known for his knockdown, drag down bouts with heretics.  When I charitably called out some of my fellow Catholics for showing up to this event, one woman who professed to be a "strong Catholic"(who teaches CCD and prepares young ladies for their Quince Anos celebrations) berated me for being judgmental.  I told her that what I was simply doing was offering fraternal charity.  I even quoted from Dominus Iesus in my attempts to explain to her why going to such events was not proper for a Catholic to do.  Her prompt response was one of ridicule. She claimed to have read the document, but, she never addressed it.  Instead, she focused on how strong a Catholic she was because she attended conferences.  

The next part of the question, in my opinion, seeks to take a hard, honest look at what we are doing to catechize the family at the national, diocesan and parochial level:

(c) How widespread is the Church's teaching in pastoral programs at the national, diocesan and parish levels? What catechesis has been done on the family?

Nothing substantial has really occurred here.  If catechists are out there singing the praises of Osteen and his false gospel of prosperity, how can they accurately transmit the Faith to the parishes they serve? While the Christian Family Movement certainly helps reach out to families, nothing else has occurred.  The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has not done much to help out.  Rather than focus on political issues such as immigration reform and affordable healthcare, I would rather the USCCB spend its energy on shoring up catechesis for adults and children.  I would rather they encourage and promote adult catechetical formation.  If parents are supposed to be the first teachers of their children in the faith, then the national conferences and the Local and Particular Churches need to do their part to give these folks the tools they need to educate their offspring.  How can we expect our children to learn their faith if the parents do know even know it themselves? 

One document that could actually help, one that was not even mentioned in the survey, is Dominus Iesus.  Promulgated by the former Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger as Prefect for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith on August 6, 2000, and confirmed and ratified by Blessed Pope John Paul II, the declaration defines the "Unicity and Salvific Universality of Jesus Christ and the Church".  In other words, it declares that the one Church of Christ subsists in the Catholic Church.  This is a fact that is lost on not a few Catholic families. This could help clear up a lot of misunderstandings about just who the Church is and who we are as her children.

The subsequent questions are somewhat difficult to answer because they assume that the responders know statistical data on the numbers of those families that are in irregular situations and about ministry to divorced and remarried Catholics. It also raises the question of what policies are in place to care for children who are in these irregular situations (i.e., when those in same sex unions ask for baptism for children in that setting).  These issues are more for bishops and priests to answer than the average lay Catholic.

What I found interesting was the absence of the liturgy in this survey.  If the sacred liturgy is supposed to be the source and summit of our life as the Church, how is it that the Mass has no place in the questionnaire?  Does it not concern the authors of the survey that, in some cases, Mass attendance is dwindling and this affects the family? At the local level, some families only show up when it is time for sacramental preparation; however, when the last sacrament of initiation is imparted (Confirmation), some families will not return until it is time for marriage or, in the Hispanic culture, the Quince Anos celebration. The survey talks about receiving Holy Communion; however, the sacrament of the Eucharist does not exist in a vacuum as one should assist at Mass in order to receive Our Lord. 

The survey, on the whole, raises more questions than it will, perhaps, receive answers.  To what end will this help the Synod?  I suspect that the Synod Fathers may be in for quite an opener, especially when they examine the questions and look at what "the survey says."

Let Us Give Thanks to the Lord, our God

In the United States of America on the fourth Thursday in November, we celebrate a unique national holiday, Thanksgiving Day!   Although the festivities have deteriorated somewhat into an orgy of food, football and now frenzied shopping.

However, for the Church, thanksgiving is not a new concept.  In fact, we have been celebrating it for over 2,000 years. The word "Eucharist", taken from the Greek word "eucharistia", literally means "thanksgiving".  The Church celebrates the Eucharist on a daily basis, "from the rising of the sun to its setting", as both Eucharistic Prayer III and the Prophet Malachi remind us.

Here is what Malachi notes:

For from the rising of the sun to its setting my name is great among the nation, and in every place incense is offered to my name, and a pure offering.

That pure offering of thanksgiving is the Holy Eucharist.  Along with being the manifestation of the Paschal Mystery, the Eucharist is also the fulfillment of the thanksgiving sacrifice of Ancient Israel, which was an offering of grain and wine, the Toda sacrifice.  For the Church, she daily offers this sacrifice in praise and thanksgiving.  It is her supreme act of worship to the Lord.

Thus, it is most fitting that on the day that our nation sets aside to render thanks, we, as Catholics, assist at the sacred liturgy, to offer God our thanksgiving sacrifice of praise, the Eucharist.  Just as Ancient Israel gathered as a family around the Passover Lamb, the Church invites her children to gather around the altar of the Eucharist, exhorting us to, as St. Paul notes, "give thanks under all circumstances."

As we leave our particular Church after Mass on Thanksgiving Day, and move on to our domestic church (family home), let us remember the Prayer over the Offerings from today's liturgy:

God our Father,
from whose hand we have received generous gifts
so that we might learn to share your blessings in gratitude,
accept these gifts of bread and wine,
and let the perfect sacrifice of Jesus
draw us closer to all our brothers and sisters in the human family.
Through Christ our Lord.

May you and yours have a blessed Thanksgiving!

A Minister of our Joy

This past Saturday, I had the joy of attending the ordination of one of our seminarians to the transitional diaconate.  Jose, who is currently in formation at the Pontifical College Josephinum in Columbus, Ohio, made his vows before the Church to faithfully serve Christ and his Bride.

For me, this was a particularly profound experience.  Jose literally grew up before my eyes.  I met him when he was a fresh-faced young man, a teenager who was attending the minor seminary.  He was always willing to help us out with the many, many weddings we would have at the Cathedral.  He was just as much at home in the sacristy as he was with his own family. At such a young age, he lived and breathed the Church.

Now, some 13 years removed, young Deacon Jose still lives and breathes the Church.  Saturday’s liturgy, which he helped plan, was also indicative that he and his fellow seminarians are making their mark as the Benedictine generation.  For all of my previous rants about the state of music in Youth Masses, Deacon Jose gave me much hope.  The music he chose bore a sacred quality that was conducive to the Rites and to the Mystery celebrated.  It embodied the vision that Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI laid out in Sacramentum Caritatis No. 42.  I hope that those priests in attendance were able to appreciate that.

Deacon Jose and his classmates displayed an immense joy, something that was both profound and infectious.  In his book, “Milestones”, the former Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger talked about the joy he experienced at his presbyteral ordination. He said that on the day of his ordination, a lark had flown into the cathedral, loudly singing.  The young Joseph Ratzinger took this as a sign that he was headed in the right direction.  He was doing the will of the Father and he was doing so joyfully.  While it was too cold for any larks to have flown  into our Cathedral, I do believe that the warmth of the Holy Spirit certainly permeated throughout the building as Deacon Jose lay prostrate before our bishop.  I pray that this divine warmth, which enflamed the first deacon, St. Stephen, will remain with Deacon Jose and his brother seminarians, for the rest of their lives, carrying them as they fulfill their vocations as priests of God and ministers of our joy.

Road tested? Tires or Mass?

H/T to Grumpy Orthodox Cat, who is usually on target.

A few days ago, I wrote of the frustrations not a few of us are experiencing with the Spirit and Song Collection published by OCP.  The response that I received from the publishing house's Spirit and Song division really did not address very much and left me with more questions than answers. As of this writing, OCP has not responded to my follow up email.

This afternoon, while assisting at Mass at my parish, I found a little booklet that raised up not a few alarms.  Published by OCP's Spirit and Song division, the pistachio-colored collection, called "Essential Songs: A Road-Tested Resource for Youth Ministry", features music taken from Spirit and Song and other resources.  Lamentably, this kind of music, designed for youth ministry, tends to creep its way into the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. Titles such as "Pharaoh, Pharaoh", "Here I am to Worship", "Awesome God" and "I am Yours" lack the sacred character of what is proper for the Mass.  The lyrics alone in the song "Every Move I Make" sound more like something that could haven been lifted from the Police's mega secular hit, "Every Breath You Take".

As I observed in a previous post, this particular collection seems, in my opinion, to be the kind of music that concerned the Fathers of the 2005 Synod on the Eucharist:

(S)ome lamented the poor quality of translations of liturgical texts and many musical texts in current languages, maintaining that they lacked beauty and were sometimes theologically unclear, thereby contributing to a weakening of Church teaching and to a misunderstanding of prayer. A few responses made particular mention of music and singing at Youth Masses. In this regard, it is important to avoid musical forms which, because of their profane use, are not conducive to prayer. Some responses note a certain eagerness in composing new songs, to the point of almost yielding to a consumer mentality, showing little concern for the quality of the music and text, and easily overlooking the artistic patrimony which has been theologically and musically effective in the Church’s liturgy.

This observation seemingly continues to be lost on OCP, especially its Spirit and Song and Flor y Canto divisions.  The lyrics to "Pharaoh, Pharaoh" sound like something that could have appeared in the South Park episode wherein the character Cartman tries to form a Christian rock band.  He reasons that all he has to do is add the "Jesus" to a secular song and that will make it a Praise and Worship anthem.

Somehow, "I say, Pharaoh, Pharaoh, O baby won't you let my people go.  Yeah, yeah, yeah" seriously lack the sacred nature of "Attende Domine" or even "Where Charity and Love Prevail."  Even the secular song, "All You Zombies" by the Hooters (which references the same subject matter as the piece in question) seems to have a little more of a somber, serious tone. 

OCP touts its little booklet as road-tested.  My question is this:  is this the kind of road we want our youth to travel?  Why are we dumbing down the mysteries of our faith, using music that really does not do much and something that the kids will grow out of in a short time?  "Road-tested" seems to me a more appropriate phrase for the Michelin man than for liturgy.  At some point, the wheels are going to fall off the bus and the very youth that this music is geared towards will either be thrown under that bus or try to get off it.

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like...NO!!!

I am not anti-Christmas by any means.  We celebrate the sublime mystery of the birth of the Son of God.  As the Book of Wisdom so eloquently points out:

For while gentle silence enveloped all things, and night in its swift course was now half gone, 15 thy all-powerful word leaped from heaven, from the royal throne, into the midst of the land that was doomed, a stern warrior 16 carrying the sharp sword of thy authentic command, and stood and filled all things with death, and touched heaven while standing on the earth. 17 

This august mystery we remember with beauty and solemnity on the night of December 24th and carry it through for eight days and then, depending on the liturgical calendar, for nearly two weeks.

Unfortunately, the secular world jumps the proverbial gun, celebrating one of the most sacred times of the year several weeks, if not months, too early. A friend of mine lamented on Facebook that one of the radio stations in California has already begun playing Christmas carols.  Sirius XM's Holly Channel is already blaring out Christmas music.  Our local NBC affiliate hosted a live broadcast welcoming Santa's arrival in front of Macy's.  

Now, I understand that retailers need to generate a huge buzz so that they can make the sales.  My father was a retailer for nearly 30 years. Retail put food on our table, gave us a roof over our heads and paid for my Catholic school education.  But, even as a child, I remember that the "holiday buying season" did not begin until the day AFTER Thanksgiving.  Christmas decorations went up at that time.  Now, it seems that Christmas, at least from the secular standpoint, competes for real estate with Halloween.  Thanksgiving isn't even on people's radar screens, insofar as decorations and marketing are concerned.  

Sadly, this secular cultural aspect has even infiltrated the Church.  A dear priest friend of mine throws, in the words of the great Fr. John Zuhlsdorf, a "spittle feckled nutty" every time he hears Christmas music played on the local Catholic radio station during Advent. Brides planning their weddings during Advent ask the parish priest if the Christmas tree will be up, not realizing that such decorations are not proper to the liturgical season.  Sadly, there have been a couple of parishes that, on the first weekend of Advent, already have the Christmas trees lit up, completely dwarfing the Advent wreath.  It's enough to transform me into a liturgical Grumpy Cat and cough up a few hairballs.

The Church is supposed to transform the culture, not be transformed by it. In the midst of the tempest that is the holiday shopping season, the Barque of St. Peter, through a proper celebration of the season of Advent, is supposed to give us a safe harbor from all of the madness at the malls and shopping centers.  Advent is a time of joyful, yet penitent, reflection as we prepare for the two-fold coming of Christ, first as infant and then as just Judge.  Yet, it is hard to get that sense of the beauty of the Advent season when one walks into a parish that looks like Charlie Brown's worst commercialized Christmas nightmare.

I am not saying that we should parade around with perpetual frowns like Grumpy Liturgical Cats.  However, we should do our best to give witness to the real meanings of the seasons of Advent and Christmas. Parents need to talk to their children about Advent and teach them that while the Malls and the media claim it's Christmas time, it really is not.  We cannot and should not let secular culture dictate to us when we should celebrate our sacred liturgical seasons. 

Although we are nearing the end of the Year of Faith, that does not mean that our evangelization efforts should cease.  It means, rather, that we must continue to evangelize, even if it means starting with our own.  Only then, can we reclaim both Advent and Christmas.

Prayers for a President

This Friday, November 22nd, marks the 50th anniversary of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.  Much has been written about the life and times of the late President, including his flaws (moral and otherwise) and achievements.

However, as many will engage in various events commemorating the sad occasion of Kennedy's death, I believe that, as a Catholic, the most appropriate way to remember him is to pray for the repose of his soul.

In the Second Book of Maccabees, we read the account of Judas who, finding out that those men who had been helping him in battle died because they wore pagan amulets:

On the next day, as by that time it had become necessary, Judas and his men went to take up the bodies of the fallen and to bring them back to lie with their kinsmen in the sepulchres of their fathers. 40 Then under the tunic of every one of the dead they found sacred tokens of the idols of Jamnia, which the law forbids the Jews to wear. And it became clear to all that this was why these men had fallen. 41  

So they all blessed the ways of the Lord, the righteous Judge, who reveals the things that are hidden; 42 and they turned to prayer, beseeching that the sin which had been committed might be wholly blotted out. And the noble Judas exhorted the people to keep themselves free from sin, for they had seen with their own eyes what had happened because of the sin of those who had fallen. 43  

He also took up a collection, man by man, to the amount of two thousand drachmas of silver, and sent it to Jerusalem to provide for a sin offering. In doing this he acted very well and honorably, taking account of the resurrection. 44 For if he were not expecting that those who had fallen would rise again, it would have been superfluous and foolish to pray for the dead. 45 But if he was looking to the splendid reward that is laid up for those who fall asleep in godliness, it was a holy and pious thought. Therefore he made atonement for the dead, that they might be delivered from their sin.

Every November, each council of the Knights of Columbus has a Memorial Mass wherein the members pray for the repose of the souls of their deceased brethren.  The ritual, which takes place prior to the Post-Communion Prayer, features an empty chair on which the names of the deceased Knights are placed.   A member reads of the name of each deceased Knight while another one answers aloud, "Present."  The last name read at each ritual is that of John F. Kennedy. For all of his foibles, faults and issues, Kennedy died a member of the Knights of Columbus. He was the first Catholic and the first Knight to hold the office of President of the United States. Even after a half a century, the Knights throughout the United States of America still pray for the repose of Kennedy's soul.

We cannot and should not stand in judgment over the fate of Kennedy's soul.  Only God can do that.   We can call out bad behavior and questionable moral conduct. We cannot judge a person.  Christ judged the conduct of the Samaritan woman at the well, Zaccheus and the woman who was about to be stoned to death; however, He also had much love for them. Judas Maccabees lamented over the evil that his warriors had committed.  However, he had faith in God and he believed in the resurrection of the dead.  If he made atonement for the sake of his dead soldiers, how much more can we do than to offer up the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass for one of our own?

I challenge my fellow Catholics to stop and say a prayer this coming Friday for the repose of the soul of President John F. Kennedy, whether at Mass or when engaging in whatever daily prayer regimen one has. It is a holy and pious thing to do and it is one of the spiritual acts of mercy.

The Rights of the Faithful Departed

Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger blesses the grave of Blessed John Paul II (photo from St. Peter's Basilica)

Redemptionis Sacramentum reminds us that the faithful have the right to a properly celebrated liturgy.  I believe that this right to the Rite also extends to the faithful departed.

Having gone through funeral preparations first-hand (my mother's, my paternal grandmother's and my maternal aunt's), I know that this is one of the hardest things for a family member or a close friend to do.  Funeral directors who are well-versed in the Rites of the Church can be (and are) very helpful.  Lamentably, it has been my sad experience that those who should be the most knowledgeable, the clergy themselves, wind up causing the most harm.

One of the saddest instances is a lack of availability on the part of some of the clergy.  In the document Ecclesia de Mysterio, the Church specifically states that:

In the present circumstances of growing dechristianization and of abandonment of religious practice, death and the time of obsequies can be one of the most opportune pastoral moments in which the ordained minister can meet with the non-practicing members of the faithful. 

It is thus desirable that Priests and Deacons, even at some sacrifice to themselves, should preside personally at funeral rites in accordance with local custom, so as to pray for the dead and be close to their families, thus availing of an opportunity for appropriate evangelization.

In my own area, on not a few occasions, pastors send the laity to conduct the Vigil for the Deceased or the final rites at the cemetery.  While Ecclesia de Mysterio does make some provisions for the laity to be involved in these particular rites, it should only happen when there is a "true absence of sacred ministers."  This means that such involvement of the laity could certainly be useful in outlying missionary territories (or even outlying areas such as Alaska and rural parts of Canada) where a priest is only able to make limited visits to impart the sacraments; however, I do not believe that such a provision is meant for urban areas where both deacons and priests are readily available. Even in those cases when the laity are involved, Ecclesia de Mysterio requires that these individuals be properly trained.  Unfortunately, even in these instances, those laity who are involved in either the Vigil or at the cemetery, tend to misrepresent the Church's teaching, either almost canonizing the deceased or offering a reflection that is not necessarily in step with the Faith.  

Death is the time when the faithful most need their parish priests and/or their deacons.  Even those of us who are properly formed in the Faith need the consolation of the clergy.  I know that when my own mother died, I was blessed to have my parochial vicar from my parish in Austin support me through the process.  The pain was very deep.  This is also a time to also evangelize those in mourning who have left the Church. Pope Francis encourages pastors to be close to their flocks, even to the point of knowing the name of the family pet.  Certainly, the death of a family member can afford clergy the tine to offer consolation, through the Rites of the Church, to those families in need as well as prayers and supplications for the person who has died.  At one funeral I attended, I saw the disappointment in the family when an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion showed up for the final Rite at the Cemetery.  They had expected the priest to be there and he did not come.  This is not the first time this has happened. 

Another stickling point centers around the music used at these particular liturgies.  Some clergy, as I have experienced, seem to have a misguided pastoral sense, allowing everything and anything to be played and sung at the funeral Mass.  Down here, one musician includes "Heaven Must Have Needed an Angel" as his repertoire.  The song's bad theology and equally horrid musicality conflict with the sacred nature of the Eucharist.  On a few occasions, Mariachis have been used for funeral Masses.  This particular genre is ill-suited for the Mass and seems to stand in opposition to the Rites. Other funeral Masses have featured the use of recorded music.  This violates the Church's liturgical practices and is not allowed.

The Church is not inflexible when it comes to these kinds of liturgies.  The families are free to select appropriate readings from the Lectionary.  Unfortunately, even at that, there are some clergy who will not even give the family that opportunity.  The readings are pre-selected by the parish and not much wiggle room is given to the family, even though the relatives do have that legitimate option. Ironically, parishes like this tend to not be as vigilant over the music. Nonetheless, insofar as that is concerned, ideally, through proper guidance, families can also select fitting music for the funeral Mass.  

The final issue centers around the "eulogy".  According to the Order of Catholic Funerals, "there is never to be a eulogy at the funeral Mass."  Inasmuch as the celebrant may allow a relative or a friend to say a few brief words about the deceased at the concluding rite, such remarks might best be made after the Vigil or after the rite of committal.  This is not a moment of canonization of the deceased.  This is a moment of prayer for the soul of the departed.  We also tend to misunderstand what a funeral liturgy is. It is not a celebration of the deceased's life.  The Funeral Mass offers supplication for the deceased and comfort to the survivors. 

One of the corporal works of mercy is to bury the dead. One of the spiritual works of mercy is to pray for the living and the dead.   If we hold true to Redemptionis Sacramentum, than part and parcel of both of these works of mercy is to ensure that the dead rightfully receive the proper Rites.