Today on "Kresta in the Afternoon" - April 24, 2013

Talking about the "things that matter most" on Apr. 24

4:00 – Kresta Comments

4:20 – Tamerlan Tsarnaev and 'A lesson to the inhabitants of the world'
What's in a name? In the case of Tamerlan Tsarnaev, an understanding of the man after whom he is named is essential to grasp to historic forces on whose behalf he allegedly embraced cruel terror, bringing along his kid brother Dzhokhar. The late Boston Marathon bombing suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev, an ethnic Chechen Muslim, has been identified by the FBI as a "strong believer" in Islam, and an adept of jihadism. We talk to Andrew Bostom, author of The Legacy of Jihad

5:00 - Kresta Comments

5:20 – Screaming Babies at Mass and on the Internet
An online debate in the Catholic world has erupted over the last couple days that has generated tens of thousands of page views. It originated with a letter a letter asking why parents with screaming children don’t leave their kids at home. Since our very own Dr. Greg Popcak actually has a chapter on taking your kids to Church in his book “Parenting with Grace,” he is here to weigh in with a few points.

Republican report says Obama, Clinton blew Benghazi response

By Stephen Dinan

 

The Washington Times

Tuesday, April 23, 2013



Hillary Rodham Clinton
  (Associated Press)

 

House Republicans have concluded that the Pentagon and U.S. intelligence agencies bear no blame for failing to halt the terrorist assault on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya, last year, releasing a report Tuesday that said President Obama and the State Department set up the military for failure.

The report also found that plenty of intelligence presaged the attack, but the White House and State Department — including the secretary at the time, Hillary Rodham Clinton — failed to heed the warnings.

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In the most damning conclusion, House Republicans said Mr. Obama’s team lied about the attacks afterward, first by blaming mob violence spawned by an anti-Muslim video, and then wrongly saying it had misled the public because it was trying to protect an FBI investigation.
“This progress report reveals a fundamental lack of understanding at the highest levels of the State Department as to the dangers presented in Benghazi, Libya, as well as a concerted attempt to insulate the Department of State from blame following the terrorist attacks,” the GOP investigation concluded in its 46-page report.
The White House dismissed the report as a rehash of questions the administration has answered, and said it has provided extraordinary cooperation.
The report was released after rank-and-file Republicans feared the pressure to get answers on the Benghazi attacks was subsiding.
Some House Republicans want to create a Watergate-style special committee to investigate the attacks, but leaders have resisted, saying the existing investigative, defense, foreign affairs, intelligence and judiciary committees can handle it. Tuesday’s interim report is the result.
The report also could dog Mrs. Clinton if she returns to politics.
The Sept. 11 attacks on the consulate in Benghazi left four Americans dead, including U.S. Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens.
The GOP report said the White House was responsible for prohibiting the mention of terrorism, and the report said administration officials were trying to shield themselves from criticism that they had been too lax in security.
“It is clear that the State Department expressed concerns — and was backed by the White House — that the information be removed to avoid criticism for ignoring the general threat environment in Benghazi,” the report said.
Democrats on the five committees fired off a letter Tuesday saying they were left out of the report-writing entirely, and that the end result was biased.
“You are sacrificing accuracy in favor of partisanship,” the ranking Democrats on each committee said in a letter to House Speaker John A. Boehner, Ohio Republican.
White House National Security Council spokeswoman Caitlin Hayden said the report goes over old ground and that some of the conclusions conflict with the State Department’s internal review.
“The State Department’s Accountability Review Board — the independent body charged with reviewing the attacks and evaluating the interagency response — released its report which specifically found that the interagency response was ‘timely and appropriate’ and ‘helped save the lives of two severely wounded Americans,’ while also making important recommendations to improve security that we are in the process of implementing,” she said.
She said the administration has cooperated with the House committees’ efforts to investigate.
But House Republicans said the State Department’s review fell short. The GOP report said blame for lax security extended all the way to Mrs. Clinton.
The State Department didn’t comment on the report, but Secretary of State John F. Kerry, who took over for Mrs. Clinton this year, told House lawmakers last week that he would appoint a special liaison to try to dispel lingering questions. Still, he dismissed the core of the GOP’s charge.
“I don’t think anybody lied to anybody,” he said.
The Benghazi attacks played a major role in last year’s presidential campaign, with Republican nominee Mitt Romney arguing Mr. Obama was slow in recognizing it was a terrorist assault.
In a major turning point in the presidential debates, Mr. Obama retorted that he had mentioned terrorism in his first remarks on the attacks in a speech from the White House Rose Garden.

Read more: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/apr/23/house-gop-administration-blew-benghazi-response/#ixzz2RLN9BmO1
Follow us: @washtimes on Twitter

Court Packed with Romeike Supporters

www.hslda.org

At 2:00 p.m. today, the Romeike family appeared before a three-judge panel in the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati seeking asylum under United States law. The courtroom overflowed with homeschooling families who turned out in support of the family, forcing many people to stand in the back. The entire hearing took about 38 minutes, 8 minutes longer than allotted.
“The ultimate issues,” argued HSLDA Chairman and lead counsel Mike Farris, “are about whether our government believes that the freedom to homeschool is something that can be coercively changed and whether Germany’s values should dictate our values.”
Although their entire future is swirling around them, the Romeike family seemed calm, Farris observed. He attributed their peace to a deep trust in God.
He summarized the day by saying, “Tough questions were asked on both sides, and it’s hard to predict the outcome. But I also remember arguing a case before a California court in 2008 and being convinced that we had lost. We ended up winning unanimously. So I know God can intervene.”
Stay tuned for more details on this case.

The U.S. Government wants to deport this homeschool family

You can help keep them here!

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Sign the White House petition to stop
deportation of the Romeikes

Current signatures: 120,683

Reached 100,000 signatures at 12:14 p.m., April 9. The currently top-ranked White House petition has over 350,000 signatures. Let's set a new record! Keep spreading the word!

 

IF ONLY PRIESTS WERE TERRORISTS

 

www.catholicleague.org

 

Bill Donohue comments on reactions to the Boston terrorists:

It is only right that people as diverse as Boston Archbishop Sean O’Malley, Secretary of State John Kerry, and Rep. Keith Ellison call on Americans not to blame all Muslims for the behavior of the two Muslim terrorists who bombed Boston. Others, however, have gone way beyond this call for restraint.

The Wall Street Journal ran a piece yesterday by Michael B. Mukasey titled, “Make No Mistake, It Was Jihad.” His point was well made. Another apt headline, this one from today’s Dallas Morning News, says, “Boston Bombing Suspect Charged; Officials Say Religion Motivated Bombings.” 

Despite the evidence, we are told by Religion Dispatches, “Don’t Blame Religion for Boston Bombings.” Akbar Ahmed from American University is confident that “Islam had nothing to do with it.” The New York Times begs us to distinguish between Al Qaeda and “Muslim extremists.” The Atlantic website ran the headline, “The Boston Bombers Were Muslim: So?” The Southern Poverty Law Center ridicules the idea that radical Muslims had anything to do with the bombings, accusing those who draw attention to this of blaming the “bogeyman.”

It’s too bad the aforementioned don’t think of accused priests the way they do accused Muslims; then we may not have as much priest-bashing as we do. It is hard not to notice that the same people who never go to bat for priests—even when they are uniformly condemned as molesters—are now all jacked up about the role Islamism plays in promoting Muslim terrorism. Indeed, they are in complete denial.

Bill Maher, who typically takes cheap shots at priests, is to be commended for taking aim at a guest who tried to equate Islam with Christianity and Judaism. If Maher gets it, why don’t the others?

Today on "Kresta in the Afternoon" - April 23, 2013

Talking about the "things that matter most" on Apr. 23

4:00 – Chechnya: A Hotbed of Islamic Activity

Chechnya, a Connecticut-sized republic that is part of the Russian federation, has been a hotbed of Islamic extremism since its failed war for independence in the 1990s. It is the first time the Russian conflict has spread to U.S. targets. Chechens, inspired by an ideology which has evolved from nationalistic fervor into transnational Islamic extremism, have staged dozens of terror attacks in Russia since the war began in 1994. We talk to Islam expert Andrew Bieszad about Chechnya, Russia, and the US.

 

4:20 – Angels and Saints at Ephesus

As a follow-up to their chart-topping first release, The Benedictines of Mary unite their voices once more in Angels and Saints at Ephesus. This second album, a year round collection, will entertain and inspire, featuring 17 English and Latin pieces sung a cappella for the feasts of the holy Saints and angels. Recorded once again at their Priory in the heartland of America, this new album is a dynamic yet pure fusion of their contemplative sound. The Sisters call to mind the glory of the future vision of God in the company of all of His angels and Saints. Monica Fitzgibbons, cofounder of De Montfort Music, joins us.

 

4:40 – The Bible and the Church Fathers

As with our natural families, Christians want to know who has preceded us in our family tree. Who are our forebears, and what did they believe and teach? We look at the Bible and the Church Fathers with Rob Corzine of the St. Paul Center or Biblical Theology.  We’ll discuss their times, their culture, and even the heresies and heretics they had to battle. 

 

5:00 - Kresta Comments

 

5:20 – On Heaven and Earth: Pope Francis on Faith, Family, and the Church in the Twenty-First Century

For years Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, archbishop of Argentina, and Rabbi Abraham Skorka, a rabbi and biophysicist, were tenacious promoters of interreligious dialogues on faith and reason. They both sought to build bridges among Catholicism, Judaism, and the world at large. On Heaven and Earth, originally published in Argentina in 2010, and now translated into English, brings together a series of these conversations where both men talked about various theological and worldly issues, including God, fundamentalism, atheism, abortion, homosexuality, euthanasia, same-sex marriage, and globalization. From these personal and accessible talks comes a first-hand view of the man who would become pope to 1.2 billion Catholics. We talk with translator Alejandro Bermudez.

Ior: Cuts to the cardinals’ ”earnings”

 

Cuts to the cardinals’ ”earnings”

After hitting Vatican employees, pope Francis’ "spending review" strikes the five commissioners who oversee the Vatican bank and whose work costs 25 thousand euro per year

GIACOMO GALEAZZI
vatican city



No more bonuses for the Cardinals who watch over the Vatican bank. Each Cardinal already has a "salary" of five thousand euro per month. This money used to be called "piatto cardinalizio” now the name has been modernized to " Cardinals’ cheque." All the cardinals of the Curia receive the same amount. The other cardinals take their pay from the dioceses of which they are bishops. But there is an exception. The five IOR commissioners have so far benefited of an additional allowance of up to 2100€ per month.

The "spending review" of Pope Bergoglio extends also to the College of Cardinals. After cutting the 4,000 Vatican employees’ allowances for the papal election, Francis’ decision to "break with tradition" in the field economic resources’ management has once again been made in the name of austerity. The Pope has decided to cancel the fee that is usually paid to the five cardinals who make up the Board of Supervisors of the IOR. The decision was made to coincide with the meeting of the Committee to approve the 2012 budget. The "cuts" amount to 25,000 euro per annum, per cardinal. Because of the economic crisis, The Holy See is implementing a strategy of "spending reviews" and thrifty resources’ management, in order to prevent the precipitation of budgets further into the red. Speaking of the 2012 accounts, the president of APSA, Calcagno, admitted: "Last year we survived, it could have been much worse."

Meanwhile, in a letter to his former fellow bishops in Argentina who are meeting in plenary session at the shrine of Pilar, Francis apologized for his absence “due to recent commitments that hold me back." In the refectory he sits each time in a different place and at the end of Mass he prays sitting at the back of the chapel. He makes his own coffee and offers it to the Swiss Guards who watch over his room.

The Vatican spokesman, Father Federico Lombardi announced that yesterday Pope Francis had decided that, for his election, instead of giving the traditional bonus to Vatican Employees, he would make" a donation to some charities and charitable organizations, by drawing on the funds available for the Pope’s charity work, as a sign of the Church’s attention to the many people in difficulty”. "In the past - said the priest - to mark the beginning of a pontificate, Vatican employees have been granted a bonus " but, he added, "under the present circumstances, given the difficult economic situation, it did not seem neither possible nor appropriate to burden the balance sheets of Vatican institutions with a considerable and unexpected extra expenditure. "

There are approximately 4,000 Vatican employees; in 2005, for the election of Benedict XVI, they received about 1,500 Euros each. The pope’s current decisions appear in line with the understated style of his papacy. Francis has from the start defined himself as the Bishop of Rome, rather than the pope, and as such he celebrated Mass when taking possession of the basilica of St. John Lateran, the cathedral of Rome and of the world. This epithet can have a positive bearing on ecumenical and inter-religious dialogue. Humble people to serve the last. "Let us never forget that the real power is in the service of others and that even the Pope in order to exercise his power needs to enter more and more into that service that finds its bright summit on the cross," said Francis.
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"Do not fear goodness, do not fear tenderness," urged Francis in his homily at the pontificate’s inaugural Mass. And the tenderness of spirit that inspires the pope’s gestures is something that all the faithful who have already had occasion to meet him have remarked upon.

Ted joined Reds for a day, but changed team forever

Early on during an Aug. 17, 2012 home game for the Cincinnati Reds, guest Reds bat boy Ted

 Kremer went out to retrieve a bat. On the way back to the dugout Ted gave Reds second

baseman Brandon Phillips a high five as Phillips headed to the plate. Phillips was all smiles at bat

as Ted continued on his way to bat rack.

The Enquirer/Jeff Swinger

 

 

 

 

Reds equipment manager Rick Stowe made a deal

with Ted that he could take off his helmet when the

 Reds took the field as Ted hung out in the dugout. /

 The Enquirer/Jeff Swinger

Written by

John Erardi

In a Reds season of mostly sweetness and light, maybe the sweetest and lightest thing of all happened on Aug. 17.

A young man with Down syndrome who really wasn’t supposed to be the batboy – not in the typical sense of the word, anyway – put some spring in the Reds’ steps.
The remarkable thing wasn’t that Teddy Kremer retrieved bats and foul balls and brought baseballs to the home plate umpire, it is that he did it with such aplomb, gusto and unbridled joy.

“They all could tell that Teddy is a guy who never has a bad day. How can you not love a guy like that?”

But if you know Ted – that’s what he likes being called, even though everybody calls him Teddy – it wasn’t remarkable at all.
Teddy was just being himself.
When Cheryl gave birth to Teddy, she was told the next day by the doctor that her son would likely never smile, probably wouldn’t talk, might not walk, and would never have more than a 40 IQ.
Those were tough words to hear, but Cheryl and her husband, Dave, were both in education, and they weren’t about to let what somebody said turn into a self-fulfilling prophecy.
By two weeks old, Teddy got occupational therapy at the pediatrician’s office so that he wouldn’t be floppy-legged. By five weeks, he was exposed to music at the Breyer School in Colerain Township, to which he clapped his hands, and looked in the mirror and was taught to look up, to strengthen his neck muscles.
By 13 months, he was in speech therapy, and soon he was matching colors and being taught to play with toys. Shortly after that, a teacher told the Kremers to “take him out, because Down syndrome kids mimic what they see, and if they don’t see it, they aren’t going to progress.”
By age 3, he was included in the regular classes at Mercy Montessori in East Walnut Hills, and he began swimming. And, oh, did Teddy Kremer progress. He walked, he talked, he smiled broadly. His personality began to emerge. By 7 he was swimming for the Mercy team.
At 16, he enrolled at Colerain High – again, in classes right along with the other kids, math and science and social studies and home economics and keyboarding at the vocational program – and competed on the swim team (“freestyle and backstroke,” he recalls, proudly) and was named student-coach on the teams for baseball and football, including the state grid champions in 2004. He rides horses on Monday nights, plays softball on Tuesday nights, does ballroom dancing on Wednesday nights, swims on Saturdays.
“I’ve always been around athletes my whole life,” he says.
He does clerical work three days a week at Hillcrest School in Springfield Township. He reads The Enquirer, follows closely the local sports team, knows as much if not more about them than anybody. He’s a diehard, easily reduced to sobs by an ill-timed loss.
So, when his parents attended a fundraiser last March at Mercy Montessori where the children of Phil Castellini, the Reds chief operations officer, attended, and they saw that one of the silent auction items was a night as a Reds batboy, they couldn’t resist.
Yes, the opportunity was listed for “age 15 to 19.” They asked Castellini if Teddy might be considered.
“He’s 29, but he acts like he’s 15 sometimes,” Cheryl explained.
“Put in your bid, and if it wins,” Phil promised Cheryl, “we’ll make it happen.”

'How can you not love a guy like that?'

On Aug. 5, the Kremers were asked to come to Great American Ball Park so that Ted could meet Phil Castellini and Reds equipment manager Rick Stowe.
Before that, Stowe had met with Castellini’s executive assistant, Diana Busam.
Stowe is a warm, effervescent, fun-loving guy, but he’s also steeped in the rituals of the clubhouse and dugout, and he wondered aloud about the wisdom of injecting anything offbeat into it. The Reds had done honorary batboys before games, but rarely during it, maybe once or twice a year tops, he told The Enquirer.
“C’mon, Diana, we’re not going to start a three-ring circus out there, are we?” asked Stowe. “We’re in a pennant race.”
“Let’s just see first,” Busam replied. “Let’s meet him and see where we are.”
Luke Stowe – Rick’s son and the team’s regular batboy – gave Ted a tour of the stadium. They happened upon one of the Reds broadcasters.
“Oh my God – Jim Kelch!” blurted out Ted, giving Kelch a hug.
Ted also met Marty Brennaman.
“You look pretty good without hair,” Ted told him.
Ted walked by the Reds’ video room and saw a familiar face inside.
“Hey, Brook Jacoby!” Ted exclaimed, giving him a hug.
Luke gave Reds officials – including his dad – the big thumbs-up on Ted as batboy.
Meanwhile, the Reds players wanted to know, hey, who’s the new kid on the block?
“Teddy already knew everybody, apparently from what he’d read and seen on TV,” Rick Stowe said. “Drew Stubbs fell in love with him. Todd Frazier, Brandon (Phillips), Wilson Valdez, Heisey, Bruce, Votto, Dusty (Baker). Everybody. They all could tell that Teddy is a guy who never has a bad day. How can you not love a guy like that?”
Ted was outside the Reds clubhouse talking to Phil Castellini when another man approached. Cheryl Kremer didn’t recognize him.
“Mr. Castellini!” Ted exclaimed, holding out his hand and introducing himself to Bob Castellini, the Reds chief executive officer.
“You’re doing a great job with the ballclub,” Ted told the Reds owner.

Enjoy life, be yourself and play hard

On the night of Aug. 17, the Kremers returned to the ballpark. Dave and Cheryl didn’t know quite what to expect.
Ted had a few questions.
“Mr. Stowe, do I have to wear this helmet?”
Rick Stowe: “How about this, Teddy? I’ll make you a deal. You wear that helmet when we’re up to bat. When the other team’s batting, you can sit on the bench with the players, and you don’t have to wear the helmet.”
During the national anthem, Dave and Cheryl stood with hands over thumping hearts as Teddy stood between Reds manager Dusty Baker and outfielder Chris Heisey outside the Reds dugout. The Kremers watched as Ted mistakenly removed his Reds cap with his left hand and held the cap over his heart.
“The other hand,” Heisey said softly, as Ted picked up the cue and moved his right hand to the cap, and repositioned it over his heart.
On his right arm was a black wristband, a gift from Todd Frazier.
When it came time to go out for the pregame meeting to exchange lineups, Dusty Baker didn’t tell Teddy what was up.
All he said was, “Bring these four balls to the umpire, Teddy.”
And that is how Ted found himself at home plate, with Baker’s arm around him and Baker introducing him to the umpires, shaking their hands one-by-one, a big grin on his face. Ted’s parents looked on in wonder.
Early in the game, Ted went out to retrieve a bat. Who should pass Ted on the way back to the dugout than No. 4, Brandon Phillips, on his way to the plate. Ted gave him a hard high five, causing Phillips to look back with a grin as Ted continued on his way to the bat rack.
Whose bat was it, Ted? Ted mentally flipped through the Reds batting order that night, which was the order so many nights when Votto was out with a knee injury.
“Let’s see,” he pondered. “Cozart ... Stubbs ... Phillips. It was Stubbs’ bat, the second hitter.”
Later, Phillips explained his delight over Ted’s exuberance.
“People are blessed in their own way,” said the Reds second baseman. “Teddy came in here and blessed us with his energy and his presence that day: Enjoy life, be yourself, go out and play hard. Give it all you got. That’s Teddy. He’s a reminder to us all.”
When Frazier hit a towering home run in the fourth inning to score Bruce, Frazier circled the bases and, upon entering the Reds’ dugout, bellowed, “C’mon, Teddy, give it to me!” And player and batboy exchanged a big hug.
Reds pitcher Mike Leake came down to the clubhouse to get something during the game and ran into Stowe.
“I’ve only got a second,” Leake told Stowe. “I gotta get back to Teddy.”
With two outs to go in the top of the ninth and the Reds leading 7-3, Teddy began to applaud at the prospect of certain victory. Joey Votto, in uniform but out of action with a knee injury, sat down next to Teddy.
“We wait until we get three outs before we count this one as a win,” said Votto, gently.
Teddy took the hint and waited for the final out.
And what did Votto tell you then, Teddy?
“He said, ‘I love you, Ted. Thank you for everything.’ ”

Powerade and bubblegum

Years from now, Reds players will remember the Cuban Missile emerging as their closer, rookies Todd Frazier and Zack Cozart having their coming-out parties and the Reds’ five starting pitchers somehow miraculously not missing a turn. The player will also remember a 22-3 stretch, much of it while Votto was out.
But they’ll remember something else, too. They’ll remember the night they met Teddy Kremer.
“He’s always smiling, always joking, always having fun,” Heisey says. “Everybody likes being around somebody like that. He’s cool. I wish he’d come back more.”
The Reds, who were down 3-1 going into the fourth inning, went ahead 6-3 on home runs by Ryan Ludwick and Frazier, and back-to-back extra-base hits by Cozart and Stubbs. Jay Bruce added an insurance homer in the fifth. Jose Arredondo, Jonathan Broxton and Aroldis Chapman closed out the quality start by Bronson Arroyo.
Teddy knuckle-rapped with manager Baker, who pulled the lineup card from the dugout wall – the card by which Baker manages the comings and goings of both teams’ players – and signed it, “To our good luck charm, Teddy Kremer. – Dusty Baker,” and handed it to Teddy.
Teddy was exhausted. All those steps up and out of the dugout to retrieve bats and balls had taken their toll.
And three weeks later, the experience was clear.
“The players,” he answered, when asked what was his favorite memory.
Anything surprise you?
“The fans cheering me on.”
Favorite thing in the dugout besides the players?
“The Powerade and the bubblegum.”
When Ted’s parents got home from the ballpark that night, they noticed their necks were quite sore. All from trying to keep up with Teddy’s moves.
“Nerve-wracking,” recalls Cheryl. “We didn’t know he was going to be doing any of that. It was amazing what the Reds let him do.”
And, yet, Teddy had been relaxed as could be – well, at least after the national anthem. After the anthem, it was like being back on the Colerain sidelines with Coach Kerry Coombs.
From the end of that night, Teddy remembers one final exchange.
“Mr. Stowe, I want to thank you very much for having me down here. I had a great time.”
“I guess you did, Teddy, I guess you did,” responded Rick Stowe.
“But not as great a time as we had.”

The Vatican doctors approve the miracle to make Wojtyla a saint

Pope Wojtyla

The medical council has recognized one healing as inexplicable If the theologians' OK were to arrive, John Paul would become a Saint only eight years after his death

Andrea Tornielli
Vatican City
Vatican Insider

 "A saint now!" The canonisation of Wojtyla is getting closer quickly and it could be celebrated next October. In fact, in the past few days, the medical council of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints has recognized as inexplicable one healing attributed to the blessed John Paul II. A supposed "miracle" that, if it is also approved by theologians and the cardinals (as it is very likely), will bring the Polish Pope, who died in 2005, the halo of sainthood in record time, just eight years after his death.

It all happened in great secrecy, with maximum confidentiality. In January, the postulator of the cause, Mgr. Slawomir Oder, submitted a presumed miraculous healing to the Vatican Congregation for the Saints for a preliminary opinion. As it is known, after the approval of a miracle for the proclamation of a blessed, the canonical procedures include the recognition of a second miracle that must have occurred after the beatification ceremony.

Two doctors of the Vatican council had previously examined this new case, and both gave a favourable opinion. The dossier with the medical records and the testimonies was then officially presented to the Congregation, which immediately included the examination in its agenda. In the past few days it was discussed by a committee of seven doctors, the council (presided over by Dr. Patrick Polisca, Pope John Paul II's cardiologist), Pope Benedict XVI's personal physicians and now Pope Francis's. The medical council also gave a favourable opinion, the first official go-ahead by the Vatican, by defining as inexplicable the healing attributed to the intercession of the blessed Karol Wojtyla.

This is the overcoming of the first fundamental hurdle, given that the alleged miracle must now be approved by theologians and then by the cardinals and bishops of the Congregation, before being subjected to the Pope for the definitive "yes". In any case, the approval of the council is considered the most important step; in fact, neither the theologians nor the cardinals are involved in the clinical evaluations concerning the case.
From the steps taken, the desire of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints to work quickly is evident, as it had already happened for the beatification of Pope John Paul II, celebrated by his successor Benedict XVI the 1st of May, 2011. This fast lane that continues to be open for Wojtyla indicates that even Pope Francis is in favour of the canonisation of the Polish Pope.
It is still premature to talk about dates for the canonization, but the rapidity with which the examination of the miracle process is happening still leaves open the possibility of celebrating it on Sunday October 20th, very close to the liturgical holiday assigned to the blessed Wojtyla, which is on October 22nd.

On the Problem of False Dichotomies Advanced by Those who Oppose the Faith

MSGR. CHARLES POPE

One of the more common issues faced today in proclaiming the faith is the problem that many, who reject some truth of the faith, set up false dichotomies.

CERC
A false dichotomy is when one argues that there are only two possible and mutually exclusive alternatives, when in fact there are other alternatives, or the categories are not in fact mutually exclusive.

What makes false dichotomies particularly problematic when it comes to faith is that orthodoxy often requires careful balance and distinction. Since we are dealing with mysteries that often go beyond merely worldly categories, we must be careful in insisting that everything fit into worldly categories and boxes. Orthodoxy quite often says "both" whereas heresy chooses one apparently exclusive truth over and against the the other in order to resolve the tension between them. Orthodoxy also makes distinctions which false dichotomies fail to respect and holds the tension that is often required in two balancing truths.
A few examples of common false dichotomies that are directed against the biblical orthodox faith are:

1. The false dichotomy between Law and Love. In this mode of thinking, somehow law, or rules, or boundaries of any sort are a kind of anti-type to love.
   
   Thus when the Church proposes any sort of limits to behaviors, teaches that certain acts or attitudes are sins, and so forth, the answer is often forthcoming that "God is Love" and that this somehow means that He doesn't really care that I am doing what you, with all your rules, say is wrong.
   
   A mitigated form of this, is to admit that perhaps a certain behavior is clearly described as wrong in Scripture but that since "God is Love" he therefore "understands" and won't really care all that much.
   
   But of course to oppose law and love is a false dichotomy. In fact all God's commandments can be understood to flow quite beautifully from his love for us. The truth sets us free. In commanding us God seeks to preserve us from harmful behaviors that may harm or even destroy us and/or others. Because God loves, he commands.
   
   
2. The False dichotomy between Law and Freedom. In this mode of thinking somehow law exists only to limit my freedom. And therefore God, commandments and law belief are an assault on human freedom and exist only to limit and enslave human beings.
   
   

   In commanding us God seeks to preserve us from harmful behaviors that may harm or even destroy us and/or others.

   But of course law does not only limit freedom, it also enhances it. Since we humans are contingent and limited beings freedom can neither be absolute nor can it be a mere abstraction. Freedom must exist in a context wherein certain freedoms are limited to enhance others.
   
   For example, I am free to write and you to read this post only if we both couch these words and letters within the limits of the rules of grammar and spelling. If you try to insist that you are free to read this post as a German language post, you are not going to really be free to read it. Without the limiting context of rules, the capacity to act stalls, and freedom breaks down. You and I are not free to drive, unless we also accept the limits that traffic law insists upon.
   
   Hence Law and Freedom go together to a significant degree and are not directly opposed. They are not per se a false dichotomy. God gives us his law, not to destroy our freedom but to enhance and enable it. His laws are not prison walls, they are defending walls. The Catechism teaches: The more one does what is good, the freer one becomes. There is no true freedom except in the service of what is good and just. The choice to disobey and do evil is an abuse of freedom and leads to "the slavery of sin" (# 1733)
   
   
3. The false dichotomy between Love and punishment. In this mode of thinking, that God might punish us is wholly dismissed as inconsistent with the fact that he loves us. Hence any mention by the Church that punishment might be due for sin, or any move by the Church to apply punitive measures is is called unloving and something Jesus would never do.
   
   But here too is a false dichotomy since love and punishment are not utterly opposed. Any parent who truly loves a child will punish the child when necessary. Surely love will ameliorate unnecessary severity, but to fail to punish or discipline at all is the opposite of love. Punishment exists to help an offender experience in a lesser way the consequences of sin so that they do not experience something worse. To fail to apply proper punishment when necessary is unloving.
   
   Scripture says,
   
   My son, do not make light of the Lord's discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you,because the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son. Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his sons. For what children are not disciplined by their father? If you are not disciplined — and everyone undergoes discipline — then you are not legitimate children, but bastards. Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of spirits and live! They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. (Heb 12:5-11)
   
   
4. The False dichotomy between Love and Hell. In this mode of thinking the cry goes up, "How can an all loving and merciful God send anyone to Hell? — He would not!"
   
   But here too is a false dichotomy between love and Hell. For in fact love requires Hell since love first requires freedom. Without freedom there can be no love. And if somehow God could force a solution and require our presence in his heavenly kingdom no matter our final disposition to his kingship and sovereignty, then God is not a lover, He is a slave owner.
   
   Hell is ultimately God's respect of our freedom and of his loving refusal to force his will or law upon us.
   
   

   Hell is ultimately God's respect of our freedom and of his loving refusal to force his will or law upon us.

   That Hell is eternal is mysterious, but seems rooted in the fact that our decision for or against God and his Kingdom's values (such as mercy, love of enemies, chastity, forgiveness, etc) at some point becomes final and forever fixed.
   
   That Hell is unpleasant is certainly taught. But to refuse the end for which we were intended leads to unpleasant results. Yet that unpleasantness seems self inflicted, rather than merely a punitive measure of God who respectfully permits (I would suppose with reluctance — for He does wish to save us) those who reject him to live apart from Him.
   
   And, while Scripture does speak allegorically of the suffering in Hell, we ought not claim to know precisely the nature and degree of that unhappiness which remains mysterious to us to a large degree, despite the glimpses Scripture gives us.
   

For now allow these examples to begin a discussion on the false dichotomies that we often face in the world today as we seek to teach the faith. Men and women in the modern and Western world are often poorly trained not only in the faith, but also in philosophy and logic. It will also be noted that many of these dichotomies are rooted in the ego-centrism of our times that somehow eschews any notion that God would in anyway inconvenience, punish, or demand any sort of accounting from us.

I am interested in having some of you list some of the false dichotomies you encounter as well. There are many of them. I have only listed a few generic ones here. See others here.

---

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
Monsignor Charles Pope. "On the Problem of False Dichotomies Advanced by those who oppose the Faith." Archdiocese of Washington (April 9, 2013).
Reprinted with permission from Monsignor Charles Pope.
THE AUTHOR
Monsignor Charles Pope is the pastor of Holy Comforter-St. Cyprian, a vibrant parish community in Washington, DC. A native of Chicago with a bachelor degree in computer science, his interest in the priesthood stemmed from his experience as a church musician. He attended Mount Saint Mary's Seminary and was ordained in 1989. A pastor since 2000, he also has led Bible studies in the U.S. Congress and at the White House in past years.Copyright © 2013 Monsignor Charles Pope

Cartoon of the Day - Choices

Today on "Kresta in the Afternoon" - April 22, 2013

Talking about the "things that matter most" on Apr. 22

4:00 – Kresta Comments

4:20 – Boy Scouts Resolution Caves To Outside Pressures
The Boy Scouts of America’s executive committee has made a proposal that the BSA would no longer deny membership to youth on the basis of sexual orientation but would maintain its ban on openly gay adult leaders. The proposal is expected to be presented to the Boy Scouts' voting members at its May meeting in Dallas. If the policy is approved, it will take effect January 1. The proposed resolution also continues to leave scouting units who decline to allow open homosexuality vulnerable to attacks by lawsuits and runs of the principles and convictions of most of the major faith denominations comprising 70 percent of the chartering partner units in Scouting. We talk to John Stemberger, Eagle Scout and Founder of OnMyHonor.net

4:40 – Black Church Leads Effort to Picket the NAACP
Levon Yuille, Pastor of the Ypsilanti Bible Church and National Director of the National Black Pro-Life Congress. He has said, “I’ve been grappling with the fact that the NAACP is in bed with the very organization that has brought black genocide to our community.” He joins us to share his plans for the NAACP annual convention coming to Detroit.

5:00 – Muslim Ties to Boston Bombing Continue to Grow and Grow
Last week in the U.S., Europe, and the Caucasus, people are asking how the terrorists got to Europe and then into the United States. Why didn't they have problems when moving into these countries, while ordinary citizens encounter enormous problems trying to enter these countries even on tourist visas. Just a week before the infamous acts of terrorism in Boston, Robert Spencer began to study the way in which a hypothetical terrorist could conceivably enter legally into the United States. He says he is not arguing that this happened in the case of the Boston Bombers, but it is a fact that this route is accessible to terrorists. And it does not require any special knowledge or financial costs. Robert joins us to look at all of the latest in the terrorist ties.

Euthanasia Ad to Begin Airing April 24

 

Pro-Life Action Ministries (Brian Gibson) reports that this ad will
begin airing in select markets on April 24.
 

 

Obama directly asked about Gosnell on Today Show: dances around topic

by Jill Stanek, www.LifeSiteNews.com, Wed Apr 17, 2013 09:57 EST

In a Today Show interview taped earlier in the week but airing today, President Obama was (thankfully) asked about Kermit Gosnell.

Transcript:

Savannah Guthrie: Have you been watching the Gosnell trial. It’s a Philadelphia abortion doctor accused of gruesome crimes. Are you following it, and do you think it animates a larger debate about abortion in this country?
President Obama: I am familiar with it. I can’t comment on it because it’s an active trial.
What I can say is this. I think President Clinton said it pretty well when he said, “Abortion should be safe, legal and rare.”
If an individual carrying out an abortion, operating a clinic, or doing anything else is violating medical ethics, violating the law, then they should be prosecuted.

Well, duh on that last sentence. Was there a question? Guess Obama had to clarify. And, of course, Obama has had no trouble discussing Trayvon Martin, despite the fact his is an open case.
In a follow-up interview Obama needs first to be asked why he thinks abortion should be rare. The word “rare” has been removed from the Democrat platform, because it obviously implies there is something wrong or bad about abortion. In fact, Kate Michelman, former president of NARAL, recently wrote she thinks abortion should be the opposite –“common.”
Another question: Does Obama still believe, as he did in 2002, that all abortionists are to be trusted? In a post the other day I included the written transcript of Obama’s opposition on the Illinois State Senate floor to a bill forcing abortionists to provide medical care to abortion survivors. Here is the audio, pretty chilling:


Yet another question: Does Obama still oppose a law, as he did as state senator, protecting abortion survivors against infanticide?
Interesting that NBC Philadelphia, where Gosnell is being tried, made this section of Obama’s Today Show interview into a lead story, using the photos at the top of this post.
There would be no curiosity about Obama’s position on Gosnell did not everyone know Obama supports infanticide.
Reprinted with permission from JillStanek.com.

Franciscan University of Steubenville Announces

Fr. Sean O. Sheridan, TOR

Father Sean Sheridan, TOR, Appointed Sixth President of Franciscan University of Steubenville

 

 

Father Sheridan succeeds Father Terence Henry, TOR, who has served as president since 2000.

 

Franciscan University of Steubenville

STEUBENVILLE, OHIO—On April 19, the Board of Trustees of Franciscan University of Steubenville announced the appointment of Father Sean O. Sheridan, TOR, as the school’s sixth president. He succeeds Father Terence Henry, TOR, who has served as president since 2000.

“Father Sean brings an excellent blend of academic, pastoral, legal, and business experience to Franciscan University. He has also demonstrated a strong care and concern for the good of the University’s educational and spiritual mission. Together, these qualifications will uniquely equip him to lead Franciscan University according to the ‘heart of the Church,’” said Father Nicholas Polichnowski, TOR, chairman of the Board of Trustees and minister provincial of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus Province of the Third Order Regular of St. Francis of Penance.

Father Sheridan served as assistant professor in the School of Canon Law at The Catholic University of America from 2009 until he joined Franciscan University’s Theology Department as a professor in fall 2012, teaching graduate and undergraduate courses. A member of the Board of Trustees of Saint Francis University in Loretto, Pennsylvania, since 2010, he also held a position on the Franciscan University Board of Trustees from 2007-2012, working on the Student Life Committee and the Academic Affairs Committee, which he chaired from 2011-2012.

Before he entered the Franciscan Third Order Regular, he graduated in 1985 with a bachelor of science in pharmacy from the University of Pittsburgh School of Pharmacy, working as a pharmacy training manager from 1984-1990. In 1990, he earned his juris doctor from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law and spent the next 10 years as a practicing attorney in Sacramento and Pittsburgh, focusing on healthcare litigation, primarily with the representation of hospitals and physicians.

The Cresson, Pennsylvania, native entered the Franciscan Third Order Regular in 2000 and made his solemn profession of vows in 2005. He was ordained to the priesthood in December 2006.

In 2007, Father Sheridan graduated from Washington Theological Union with his master of divinity. He obtained a doctorate in canon law from The Catholic University of America School of Canon Law in 2009. His dissertation, “Ex corde Ecclesiae: A Canonical Commentary on Catholic Universities ‘From the Heart of the Church’ to Catholic Universities,” addresses seven challenges to the implementation of Pope John Paul II’s Apostolic Constitution on Catholic Universities and suggests solutions to those issues.

“I am honored to serve as the next president of Franciscan University. It is inspiring and truly humbling for me to be here at Franciscan University with the students who are pouring their hearts into their education and their prayer life, falling in love with God and the Church, and striving to become saints,” Father Sheridan said.

“The University has grown in every area under Father Terence’s leadership and increased its reputation for excellent academics and faithful Catholicism. I will build on that strong foundation, always with a view to serving the Church and the new evangelization,” Father Sheridan said. “I look forward to working with Father Terence, the Board of Trustees, and the entire faculty and staff as we continue to seek God’s will in advancing Franciscan University’s educational and spiritual mission.”

Father Henry, credited with strengthening the University mission through a new core curriculum, public stands for religious freedom, entry into NCAA D-III athletics, and a $31 million capital campaign, will remain at Franciscan University to help the new president with his transition.

“I have the utmost respect for Father Sean, and I have deeply valued his opinion, especially on Church issues, over the years,” Father Henry said. “I’m happy to be leaving the University to his leadership, and I am certain he will continue to raise the bar of excellence. I will be glad to introduce him to friends and alumni, and to help him with the transition into his new position.”

Since 2009, Father Sheridan has served on the Editorial Board and since 2011, as book review editor for The Jurist (CUA Press), the only canon law journal published in the United States. His scholarly articles have been published in The Jurist, Journal of Catholic Higher Education, and other academic journals. He has given presentations at The Catholic University of America School of Canon Law, and in June 2012, he addressed Catholic bishops at a symposium offered by a committee of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. He advises religious communities and Catholic universities as a canonical consultant and began serving as judge of the Diocesan Tribunal for the Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown, Pennsylvania, in 2012.

Father Sheridan’s pastoral experience includes Franciscan University summer conferences, parish ministerial duties, RCIA, pastoral care at hospitals, campus ministry, and residence hall chaplaincy. He also serves within the Sacred Heart Province in many other capacities.

Father Sheridan will assume the duties of president June 1, the start of the new fiscal year for Franciscan University. He will be formally installed as the president during the inauguration ceremony on October 10, 2013.

 

Franciscan University of Steubenville, founded in 1946 by friars of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus Province of the Third Order Regular of St. Francis of Penance, integrates excellent academic programs with a dynamic faith environment to serve over 2,400 students from all 50 states and 15 countries. Franciscan offers more than 40 undergraduate and seven graduate degree programs, the most popular of which include theology, catechetics, nursing, education, and business. Franciscan University has received a top-tier placement for 12 consecutive years in U.S. News & World Report’s list of America’s Best Colleges. It is also featured in The Newman Guide to Choosing a Catholic College and Kiplinger Personal Finance Magazine’s top 100 “best values” in private higher education.

Today on "Kresta in the Afternoon" - April 19, 2013

Talking about the "things that matter most" on Apr. 19

4:00 – Kresta Comments: Boston, Islam and The Church

4:20 – Understanding Chechnya, jihad, and the region’s deep ties with al Qaeda
The news out of Boston is coming fast, and some of it will certainly turn out to be inaccurate. Right now, two men are believed to be the perpetrators of the Boston Marathon terrorist attack on April 15, 2013 that killed three and injured over a hundred. The brothers, Tamerlan Tsarnaev (26) and his brother Dzokhar (19), are both residents of Boston and have been for some years. Reporting indicates that they are originally from Chechnya, a restive, Muslim-dominated region of Russia. Are they simply disgruntled young men? Chechen jihadists? On a mission for al Qaeda? No one knows for certain, though it is clear that they maintain links with their family’s homeland, posting on Russian social media sites. More details are to come, but in the meantime, some answers from AEI’s lead Russia scholar, Leon Aron and Hudson Institute Counter-terrorism scholar Richard Weitz

5:00 – Boston Manhunt for Chechnyan Bomber
It has now been revealed that the Boston Marathon bombers were two Muslims from southern Russia near Chechnya: Tamerlan Tsarnaev, who was killed in a firefight with Massachusetts police early this morning, and his brother Dzhokhar, who as of this writing is still at large. Robert Spencer says as more and more material comes to light about the pair, their motivations become clear. He joins us.

 

Cartoon of the Day - Logic

Boston jihad bomber Tsarnaev's social media page shows his interest in Islam and bombs

The page is here for now.

Note the two Islam links under "Noteworthy Pages" and the bomb underneath "send a gift."

A strange case of invalid sacramental "confirmations" in Herzegovina {Updated}

Sunday, April 7, 2013, Te Deum Laudamus

Today, Divine Mercy Sunday, some invalid "confirmations" were set to take place near Medjugorje.

{Update: April 8, 2013: On this Solemnity of the Annunciation, the Croatian daily, Večernji List, reports that 50 youngsters received First Communion; and 150 were "confirmed" by the ex-Francisan, and suspended Petar (formerly "fra Bonifacije") Barbarić. One reason there are likely so many is that they have often included young people lower than 8th grade, which is not done in most dioceses of the Latin Rite, including those in Herzegovina. Of course all of these sacraments [the confirmations] are invalid. And, it is an offense against the Holy Spirit to perform fake "confirmations." Read below and please make acts of reparation for these most serious offenses. One has to wonder how thousands of invalid sacraments can take place since 1997, including those yesterday, in such close proximity to Medjugorje, and Lady of Medjugorje says nothing. Astonishing, really.}

An alert reader sent me something that had just appeared on the Diocese of Mostar-Duvno's website: His Excellency, Bishop Ratko Perić, responded to an invitation by a woman at a parish for Confirmations, usurped in the 1990's by some rogue Franciscans, since expelled and suspended.

I've known about these suspended priests for many years now and they have significant followings. They have been performing invalid sacraments all these years, and when it comes to getting the children of the parish Confirmed, they find themselves in pickle. The former Franciscans, who have yet to give up their habits, have tried various ways to deal with it, as you will see, if you read the context I provide below the official English translation of the document in focus, embedded here (and now available on the diocesan website.)

---

On Thursday, 4 April 2013, the Diocesan Chancery office in Mostar received an e-mail message written in capital letters, sent from the e-mail address of Zdenko Vego, but signed by Marijana Vego. Marijana’s precise message follows in full, along with the Bishop’s response:

LETTER TO BISHOP RATKO PERIĆ

DEAR BISHOP RATKO,

I’M ADDRESSING YOU IN THE NAME OF ALL CATHOLIC MOTHERS WHO ARE PREPARING THEIR CHILDREN FOR THE SACRAMENT OF HOLY CONFIRMATION ON SUNDAY.

THE CONFIRMATION WILL BE ON 7 APRIL 2013, IN THE PARISH CHURCH OF ST. FRANCIS IN ČAPLJINA. (WHITE SUNDAY OR DIVINE MERCY SUNDAY).

MAY GOD BLESS YOU BY THE MODEL OF DIVINE MERCY AND MAY YOU ACCEPT THIS INVITATION SO THAT OUR CHILDREN CAN, WITHOUT ANY DUALISM, RECEIVE THIS HOLY SACRAMENT IN PEACE AND HUMILITY - I INVITE YOU IN THE NAME OF JESUS AND HIS LAWS OF LOVE WHICH SHOULD NOT SUBSIDE IN OUR UNIVERSAL CATHOLIC WORLD. FOR IF WE ACCEPT THE HOLY GOSPEL, THEN IT’S CLEAR THAT WE WILL BE JUDGED BY LOVE.

I BELIEVE THAT THIS INVITATION WILL NOT BE REFUSED, BUT ON THE CONTRARY, BE ACCEPTED - BECAUSE WE ARE ALL GOD’S CHILDREN MADE IN HIS IMAGE.

DEAR MONS. RATKO, I BELIEVE THAT THE FEELING OF LOVE WILL ALSO PREVAIL IN YOU TOWARDS OUR YOUTH WHO ARE AT VARIOUS TURNING POINTS IN THEIR LIVES. HENCE, LET’S NOT ALLOW THIS KIND OF UNIVERSAL CONFUSION TO ALSO REIGN IN THE CATHOLIC CHURCH, THAT MAY MAKE THEM GO ASTRAY FOR WE KNOW THAT EVERY HUMAN ORDER WITHOUT GOD IS AN AWFUL ERROR WHOSE INSTIGATOR IS THE PRINCE OF DARKNESS.

MAY THE LIGHT OF THE RISEN JESUS CHRIST SHINE UPON YOU WITH A CLEAR BRIGHTNESS – WISHING YOU A HAPPY AND BLESSED EASTER FROM THE PARISH OF ST. FRANCIS, ČAPLJINA.

MARIJANA VEGO

*******

THE BISHOP’S RESPONSE TO MARIJANA VEGO, ČAPLJINA

Dear Marijana!

Thank you for the Easter wishes that you sent to me yesterday by e-mail.

I agree with you that we have to do whatever we can to deter young believers from universal confusion that can lead them astray. If we agree on this, I think we will then agree about these other points that follow.

1 – The Lord Jesus instituted the Church and entrusted it to the care of the Apostles with Peter as its head. Their successors, the bishops, in communion with the Pope, lead the Catholic Church. Since in this world we are imperfect, the Church therefore, besides love requires laws and a canonical order. According to the teachings and Canon Law of the Catholic Church “A parish is a certain community of the Christian faithful stably constituted in a particular church, whose pastoral care is entrusted to a pastor (parochus) as its proper pastor (pastor) under the authority of the diocesan bishop (Can. 515 §1).

2 – The parish of St. Francis in Čapljina, as a community of faithful in the diocese of Mostar-Duvno, has a temporary parish office and liturgical space in the city of Čapljina, located on G. Šušak Street, in the part of the city called Peline. It also has an official parish priest, Father Ivan Kordić, who is assisted by Father Dragan Filipović. At the beginning of this school year about 50 pupils in the 8^th grade presented themselves to the parish priest, Fr. Ivan, to be confirmed this year. In our dioceses in Herzegovina, we do not encourage confirmation in the lower grades. Upon the invitation of the parish priest, I agreed that with God’s help, I will confer the Sacrament of Confirmation in that parish on Sunday, 16 June 2013, (Službeni vjesnik, 3/2012., str. 278; http://www.cbismo.com/files/file/Vjesnik_2012_3.pdf).

3 – Unfortunately, the parish church of St. Francis, the parish house and rectory in Čapljina are still being unlawfully usurped by three suspended priests, who have been dismissed by Franciscan Order due to their disobedience. They and the community that gathers around them are not in communion with the particular or the universal Church, commonly known as Catholic. We have invited those suspended priests to resolve their priestly status and placed the Chancery Office at their disposal in order to mediate in this matter (Vrhbosna, 2/2004., pp. 180-181), and that the parish rectory and property be handed over to the legitimate parish priest, thereby putting an end to the division that exists in Čapljina. They have however, remained obstinate in their disobedience.

4 – In the Catholic community we wish to develop, it is the right and the duty of parents to register their children as candidates for holy Confirmation with the parish priest. It is the right and duty of the parish priest to teach those candidates properly. It is the right and duty of the parents and godparents to guarantee that their children are ready to take on the obligations regarding their Christian life and to grow in maturity. It is the right and duty of the bishop to make sure that those children receive the Sacrament of Confirmation.

5 – If you accept this, then it is obvious that Christian mothers, individually or in a group; or the suspended priests in the parish of Čapljina, cannot schedule any celebration of the Sacrament of Confirmation. Therefore, I invite you and the other mothers in whose name you are writing, to contact your parish priest, Father Ivan Kordić. The preparation for this sacrament as a rule, usually takes a full school year. However, if we all make an effort, with God’s assistance, why not celebrate a lawful and valid Confirmation this year of all those in the 8^th grade on 16 June as has already been officially scheduled?

6 – As your bishop I ask and beg you, by the Divine Mercy of the Father in Heaven: do not call upon the Holy Gospel to say that we are acting against the Gospel of Christ the Lord and his Church – which is one, holy, catholic and apostolic! It is precisely this that creates a “dualism” and takes away “peace and humility” from us!

In the name of the Crucified One, who Died, and has Risen and who will judge us, please do not organize an unlawful and invalid rite of “confirmation” in Čapljina on 7 April or at any other time.

I plead with you by the gifts of the Holy Spirit which the candidates receive in a lawful and valid Confirmation, that you not support the ecclesiastical disorder in Čapljina, especially because you are aware that: “every human order without God is a awful error whose instigator is the Prince of Darkness.” If this is the case with “human order”, how will it be then when dealing with church disorder?

By the love of St. Francis of Assisi, the patron of the parish of Čapljina, please do not take part in this kind of unlawful and invalid “confirmation”, nor invite or expect me to bless this scandalous and schismatic situation.

Thank you for your message which has helped us once again to explain this tragic “dualism”, intolerable “confusion” and schismatic “situation”, so that the people cannot justify themselves by saying that they did not know.

To you and to the other Catholic mothers in Čapljina, I wish and I pray to God, that you all be enlightened with the light of the Risen Christ and that the Spirit kindle in you love for peace and unity in the Church!

Mostar, 5 April 2013

+ Ratko Perić, Bishop

---

It seems apparent that the woman knows the "confirmations" that will be given by these suspended priests will not be valid. Why else would she ask the bishop to come?


*An interesting side note: Fr. José Rodríguez Carballo, OFM, has been appointed by Pope Francis as the Secretary of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life. He has been the Minister General of the OFM since 2003. He signed the 2009 document announcing the laicization of Tomislav Vlasic, and was involved when the list of sanctions came down against him in 2008 as he was being investigated "in the context of Medjugorje." As someone else just pointed out to me in Facebook, he is likely well familiar with all that is going on in Herzegovina and can bring Pope Francis right up to speed.


Some Context

The Diocese of Mostar-Duvno might be most well known for the popular town of Medjugorje, seen highlighted in the map of that region of Herzegovina above, along with Mostar, Grude, and Čapljina - places that will be discussed in this post. Note the close proximity of Čapljina to Medjugorje, about 8 miles, and Grude just over 20.

Most of you reading this post probably live in a diocese which has parishes run by diocesan priests, sometimes referred to as secular priests (in contrast to a religious order priest). Many dioceses have a few parishes that are in the hands of religious order priests, such as Franciscans or others. Here in the Archdiocese of Detroit, I can probably count on one or two hands the number of parishes run by religious order priests (and those parishes still fall under the responsibility of the local bishop).

Missionary territory, on the other hand, can have a higher number of religious order priests - especially from orders known to do missionary work, such as the Franciscans. Once an area is settled and stable, a diocese is erected and diocesan priests take over. I may be over-simplifying it, but that's generally how it has worked for centuries.


Rebellion in Habit in Herzegovina

In this part of Herzegovina, there developed a unique case where most of the parishes were in Franciscan control. In 1975, Pope Paul VI issued the decree Romanis Pontificibus (full text now available in English) ordering a redistribution of parishes, to include more in the control of diocesan priests (the document itself is somewhat catechetical, and worth reading for that alone).


In the late 1990's, a number of parishes were usurped, some forcibly, by rebellious Franciscans. When it comes time for Sacramental Confirmation, it presents a problem when they don't have a bishop; and the diocesan bishop cannot go to usurped parishes lest he legitimize their disobedience and sacrilegious acts. In 1997, one of the priests acted as a bishop coming from "a far away land" using a fake mitre, and visited one of the other seized parishes. Bishop Perić, in a document updated in 2007 details more of the chaos:

They forcefully occupy at least five parishes, all the while continuing with all priestly functions. They invalidly perform marriages, hear confessions without canonical faculties, some of them invalidly confirm youngsters, and in 2001 they invited an old-Catholic deacon who falsely presented himself as a bishop to “confirm” about eight hundred young people in three parishes. Two of these expelled Franciscans even went as far as asking the Swiss old-Catholic bishop, Hans Gerny, to ordain them as bishops, yet they did not succeed.

In his 2001 homily in Medjugorje, Bishop Perić went into more detail on that deacon from the old-Catholic Church:

[The fake bishop stated] "Our aim is to make the Pope revoke the Romanis Pontificibus decree through these confirmations… the Franciscans and I believe in Mary's apparitions in Medjugorje". Regarding celibacy he said: "when it is abolished, priests will be able to marry. This is what we want". Being a non-catholic he also said: "the impeccability of the Pope cannot regard dogmas" (statement: 23 May 2001). He was probably referring to the Pope's infallibility in faith and morals. These are the beliefs of the person that was invited to three parishes of this diocese: Grude, Čapljina and Tepčići, to illegitimately "confirm" 779 candidates. What is at hand here are not only invalid confirmations and a sacrilege against the Holy Spirit but invalid masses also, which this non-priest acted out before the faithful who were led astray by a hireling, like sheep without a pastor (Jn 10).

Stepping back to 1999. After years of work between a representative of the Holy See, the Vicar General of the OFM, and Bishop Perić, we find a document stating that, despite the chaos in a few parishes, Romanis Pontificibus was "definitively implemented," It discusses the extent to which the friars and followers went to seize parishes:

2.It is painful to note that it has not been possible to transfer the parishes mentioned in the Decree from the Franciscans to the Diocesan Clergy on 21 February 1999, as previously agreed, notwithstanding the good will of the Co-executors, for the following reasons: acts of organised physical resistance, serious written and verbal threats, occupation of parochial Churches and houses, removal of parish registers and stamps

Among other things, the grave situation in Čapljina, where the parish of St. Francis was actually bricked-up when it was taken over, was addressed:

5.In regard to the current situation in Čapljina, the Co-executors draw attention, particularly to the Faithful, that the priests Bonifacije Barbarić and Bože Rados, were dismissed from the Order of Friars Minor, on 28 February 1998. The Holy See confirmed their dismissal on 23 March 1998. Consequently, they may no longer use the Franciscan habit. On 17 December 1998 they were suspended "a divinis" by the Holy See, such suspension being applied by the Diocesan Bishop on 30 December 1998; they are thus forbidden to celebrate all the sacraments. The process for the dismissal from the Order of the third disobedient priest residing in Capljina, Br Mile Vlacic is under way. The sacraments of Confession and Matrimony, administered by the three above named persons are invalid.

6.Similar canonical sanctions will be taken against those other Franciscans who do not adhere to the directives of the Holy See and the Minister General with his Definitory. In cases of extreme necessity, ecclesiastical law allows the local Bishop to place under inderdict Churches that have been occupied illegally.

A visit to the website for the unlawfully held parish of St. Francis was enough to make my hair stand on end. As a Catholic, it's shocking, chilling, and deeply saddening to read some of what is there.

On a page which is dismissive of canon law, we see how bitter one of the suspended priests is. Here is just one snippet translated for me. You can put the link into an auto-translator to get the idea (if you use Google Chrome it asks if you want it translated, automatically)

"It is significant that Bishop Perić has constantly suppressed Christ in his claims about the value of sacraments of Christian faith in the disputed parishes, and in canons on which he bases his claims. And who is Bishop Perić without Christ in the sacramental world? A sorcerer What can he do without Christ? Just sorcery."

One passage of Scripture came to mind when I read that: If you are insulted for the name of Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. (1 Peter 4:14)

Theological oddity for discernment of spirits?

One thought I have turns to the alleged apparitions of Medjugorje. When you read the background provided above and see the extent of the sacrilege and blasphemous acts taking place there, you should be shaking your head in amazement that there is no mention in any Medjugorje "messages." If you do not find that astonishing, then you do not understand the seriousness of the offenses committed by the priests, and by those who know it is wrong, yet follow them. We aren't talking about the Franciscans in Medjugorje themselves, or other faithful priests in the same province. Rather, we are talking about the objectively grave matter - sins and sacrilege being committed - in the immediate vicinity of Medjugorje, - sometimes mentioning "apparitions," yet the "gospa" is silent?!?!?

Bishop Perić has pointed out this theological oddity many times. Here is what he said in 2004:

If the "seers" with their "visions" tolerate such schismatic scandals, without in any way admonishing those involved, and likewise those who support the "seers" and act as their public relations men, without ever distancing themselves from or condemning such local schisms, then in the name of the Mother of God, the Queen of Peace, yea, in the name of the Holy Trinity, one God, might that not be a sign that those involved in propagandizing in support of the supposed credibility of such "visions" do not have the Divine will at the forefront of their thoughts?

A group of Franciscans (nine living, one deceased) who have been expelled from their Order for their notorious disobedience to the decisions both of their own superiors and of the Holy See with regard to matters of ecclesiastical administration in the diocese, have forcibly taken over a number of parishes in which for some years now they have been administering invalid confessions, and officiating at invalid marriages, some even carrying out invalid confirmations, and generally carrying on in defiance of Canon Law, all in the immediate or general neighbourhood of Medjugorje, as the place where tens of thousands of "visions" have occurred.

It is indeed astonishing that the "apparition", which has passed on messages to thousands of the curious, even including American President Ronald Reagan, and Soviet Premier Mikhail Gorbachev, and its supporters, have not yet expressed concern, whether about the blasphemy perpetrated against Christ's sacraments, or the damage to the unity of the Church in the diocese of Mostar-Duvno. It is certainly remarkable that people come from all over the world to make their confessions in Medjugorje, but the expelled Franciscans and a few others who are in a state of disobedience to the Holy See, their Order and the local Church authorities, give thousands of invalid absolutions in the very neighbourhood of Medjugorje.

What must St. Francis think about Franciscans who are so attached to specific parishes that they seize them, even unto violence, against the explicit will of the Holy See itself? As if that is not enough, they engage in lying to the people, and to give people invalid sacraments?

Pray for everyone involved. God have mercy on them.


As if you haven't read enough background, there is more.

• If you put this link into a translator, you will find more details on what the suspended priests did.
• My recent post with some thoughts on Pope Francis and Medjugorje (because people kept asking)

**I should have mentioned that the first chapter of Donal Foley's book, MEDJUGORJE REVISTED: 30 Years of Visions or Religious Fraud? looks closely at the conflict often referred to on pro-Medjugorje sites as "the rift between the Bishop and the Franciscans" or similar. He goes back to the 14th & 15th centuries and walks us up to present day, showing the efforts the Holy See has made to get that area of Herzegovina out of a kind of "missionary status." Many Medjugorje enthusiasts, frequenting those websites, are left with the impression that this is a "Bishop vs. Franciscan" disagreement, often creating contempt for the local bishop. In reality, it is the Franciscans vs. the Holy See. A more detailed reading of the conflict, and looking closely at the 1975 Decree, Romanis Pontificibus, reveals a different story than painted on those sites.

*Text added 10:15 PM 4/7/2013
**Text added 8:15 AM 4/10/2013