An excerpt from Edward Pentin's new book: The Coercing of Cardinal Erdö

SB shared this with me which I now share with you.  I had all intentions of ignoring the Synod on the Family this year, but after Father Z's talk at Knight of Divine Mercy I'm going to follow it despite a major case of Synod Fatigue.  You may also have seen that the pope is removing protection for mothers and children against deadbeat dads whom abandon them(aka changing the annulment process).  It may be he's hoping to issue some kind of token gesture to the Germans, or perhaps more of an all out capitulation for what the Germans hope gives them a big cash grab.  Every time a marriage is voided, an angel gets his wings, and a poor kid gets a meal.  Also, the rules for the Synod are being changed, probably to avoid the embarrassment of being so thoroughly exposed last time.  It seems likely that the Synod will not express the will of the synod participants or even the Catholic community at large, but more of a push by the New Modernists, whom don't seek to change "doctrine" (because they lost that battle) but only the "practice."  

I'm purchasing this book, which some day will sit along The Rhine Flows Into The Tiber in a collection on the disastrous influence of the German Catholic Church on the rest of the world(well maybe Pentin doesn't blame the Germans per se, but obviously the Kasper/Marx group continues to exercise a negative influence on marriage).   

 

Bp. Morlino: "Praying for, focusing on unity in the Church"

St. John Lateran

Doing our part to build up unity

Each of us can do our own part by first remaining close to Jesus and united to His Church. And the Catechism reminds us what the bonds of unity are: 1) Charity, which “binds everything together in perfect harmony (Col 3:14),” 2) the profession of one faith received from the Apostles, 3) the common celebration of divine worship, especially the Sacraments, and 4) Apostolic succession.

We build up unity first by attempting, always and everywhere, to put on charity over all things. Love one another, as Christ has loved us! There may be disagreements among us, but we handle them always in a way which seeks the good of the other.

Second, we remain unified by professing the one faith, which has been received from the Apostles and maintained as the Deposit of the Faith. Be mindful of those teachings of the Church which are essential, and even when there is doubt, work to have that “faith seeking understanding,” of which St. Anselm spoke.

Third, we must continue to worship together in a way that fosters unity. This requires that we are constantly mindful of our own failings, and that we seek to find reconciliation through, and for, the worthy reception of the Sacraments.

Finally, we return once again to that theme of Apostolic succession. We recall that no matter how flawed our bishops are (and our priests as their cooperators), that the Sacrament of Holy Orders and the particular gifts promised to the Apostles (and their successors) provide an essential means of maintaining fraternal concord in God’s family. We cannot maintain unity in the Church without remaining united to the bishops, in unity with one another, and the Pope with charity over all, with a firm foundation in the Truths of our faith, and with unity of worship.

So let’s pray for and focus upon unity -- upon oneness of hearts and minds -- and let’s do our part to build up that unity, remaining grounded in the truths of our Faith, in our worship and reception of the Sacraments, in the Apostolic teaching, and -- on top of it all -- in charity.

full article at MadCatHerald

Cdl. Burke: “I did not state that Pope Francis has harmed the Church."

Liberals want Cardinal Burke to the "fall guy."  If they can kill his reputation, they can kill his theological and canonical positions.  Obviously that is really what all this is about.

Quoting Cardinal Burke:

“I did not state that Pope Francis has harmed the Church. Rather, as the now published verbatim interview reveals, I was perfectly clear that it was a lack of clarity about where the Holy Father stands on issues related to marriage and Holy Communion that had caused the harm. It is precisely for this reason that I subsequently said that only a statement from the Holy Father himself could now remove this lack of clarity.”

“Sadly, confusion, such as that generated by this particular interview, has been used to portray those opposed to Cardinal Kasper’s thesis as motivated by a personal animus against the Holy Father. This is just not the case, though it no doubt helps the cause of those with certain ideological axes to grind to make this appear so." 

details at Father Z 

And the 2014 Synod Oscar goes to ...

In today's Crux column by John L. Allen Jr.,

"the synod was also terrifically entertaining. It featured several plot lines worthy of a Hollywood screenplay: Pitched battles between progressives and conservatives, conspiracy theories and accusations of stifling dissent, clashes between larger-than-life personalities, and enough surprising twists to satisfy even the most devoted potboiler fans.

"In that spirit, it’s time to award the Oscars for the 2014 synod, recognizing the best performances from two weeks that shook the Catholic world. As with the real Oscars, the big awards here come in five categories. Unlike the Oscars, there’s no academy to thank in acceptance speeches, since these prizes were determined by a jury of one … i.e., me."

Bp. Callahan op-ed in LaxTrib: "Catholic Church will not abandon its values"

The current Vatican Extraordinary Synod, whose purpose is to study present-day Catholic life in preparation for an Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops to be held in October 2015, has caused stirrings among those who have become sentinels at the gates of religion and culture.

In particular, the midterm report issued on Oct. 13 has given rise to stories that attempt to have us believe that the Catholic Church will be “reinvented” or somehow become “new and improved.”

The possibility of the church — whose task it is to serve the mission of Jesus Christ with charity, mercy and justice — considering the situations of contemporary humanity in terms of differing cultural ideas regarding such bedrock Catholic doctrines as marriage, intimate and interpersonal relationships, and family structures, is not a clear indicator that the church seeks to abandon her teaching in these areas.

Quite the contrary. The mission of the church is precisely to examine the life and times of men and women and speak truth with love to everyone.

continue at La Crosse Tribune

Cdl Burke: Relatio causes parents to ask "“Why are we trying so hard to encourage our sons and daughters to live the Gospel?"

via FatherZ

UPDATE 16 Oct: 1454 GMT
Apparently, Card. Pell was the first one to rise up against Card. Baldisseri. When Baldisseri made the announcement, Card. Pell took the floor and said that the reports had to be published and that they were tired of the manipulation.

From that point, the bishops also rose up. When Baldisseri repeated his position, he was effectively shouted down.

At that point, Card. Baldisseri turned to the Pope and got the nod to publish.

UPDATE 16 Oct: 1530 GMT:
The reports of the Circuli Minores are available on the Vatican website. HERE

Card. Burke’s would be in Anglicus A. Sample:

For example, where the Relatio appeared to be suggesting that sex outside of marriage may be permissible, or that cohabitation may be permissible, we have attempted to show why such lifestyles do not lead to human fulfillment. At the same time, we want to acknowledge that there are seeds of truth and goodness found in the persons involved, and through dedicated pastoral care these can be appreciated and developed. We believe that if we imply that certain life-styles are acceptable, then concerned and worried parents could very easily say “Why are we trying so hard to encourage our sons and daughters to live the Gospel and embrace Church teaching?”

Photo

Married life is better with NFP says couple at synod

Catholic couples who ignore Church teaching on contraception "don't know what they are missing," said a U.S. couple invited to address the extraordinary Synod of Bishops on the family.

Alice and Jeff Heinzen, family life leaders in the Diocese of La Crosse, spoke at the synod October 7, urging efforts to find new ways to share its teaching about the beauty of family life.

Natural Family Planning

Although the couple has practiced Natural Family Planning (NFP) for 27 years and taught NFP -- Alice is a member of the NFP advisory board for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops -- they did not speak specifically about family planning in their presentation to the synod.

continue at Madison Catholic Herald

Cdl Dolan CNS video on African Church, Beautiful!

Jaw dropping how stunning and beautiful this is.


It appears to have been published prior to the vicious +Kasper comment.

Wis. Synod presenters meet Pope Francis

Alice and Jeffrey Heinzen of La Crosse greet Pope Francis Oct. 10

Via Catholic News Agency

Fanatic Friday: Head Full of Doubt edition

You: Avett much?
Me: Yep


Lyrics

A nice photo

U.S. Cardinal Raymond L. Burke, prefect of the Supreme Court of the Apostolic Signature, walks with Alice and Jeff Heinzen of Menomonie, Wis., as they leave the morning session of the extraordinary Synod of Bishops on the family at the Vatican Oct. 9. The couple are auditors at the synod. (CNS photo/Paul Haring)

via The Catholic Sun

As Josh posted earlier, here's the text of their address.

A nice photo, but .... very strange to place this photo with the article linked(entitled "Speakers ask pope, synod to clear up ‘confusion’ on contraception").  No where are either +Burke or the Heinzens mentioned(they were not the "speakers" mentioned in the article)...  Unfortunately with the air of suspicion and doubt over the Synod, ulterior motives of pinning contraception to +Burke come to mind.

Wisconsin natives to make presentation at Synod on the Family

MENOMONIE – Alice and Jeff Heinzen will not only be serving as auditors for the upcoming Extraordinary Synod on the Family that Pope Francis has called for Oct. 5-19 at the Vatican, they will also make a presentation before the general assembly at the historic event.

In their main role as one of 14 married couples from around the world selected to serve as auditors for the synod, the Heinzens will observe all of the general assembly sessions, and participate in group discussions with the English-speaking delegates.

“During the general assemblies, we will be listening and observing,” said Alice Heinzen. “We may only speak during these sessions if requested. Our input will mainly be shared during the small discussion groups.”

In July, Alice Heinzen replaced her husband as director of the Office for Marriage & Family Life of the Diocese of La Crosse, when he became president of McDonell Catholic Schools, Chippewa Falls. Her previous position was as diocesan Natural Family Planning coordinator.

continue at The Catholic Times

Someone emailed me and asked if I knew what the Heinzen's think of the "Kasper Proposal" and the answer is I have no idea.  But really the proposal is more of a Canon Law question I guess anyway. The Heizens will be blogging about their experience so I assume you could post a comment there to ask.

Follow on the Web
Jeff and Alice Heinzen will be blogging about their experiences at the Synod for Families beginning Sept. 30. You can follow along at diolc.org/synod/.