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The Remnant Speaks

Letters to the Editor: Th.e. .Re.m.n.a.n.t. .Sp.e.a.k.s. .P...O... .B.o.x. .1.1.1.7.,. .F.o.r.e.s.t. .L.a.k.e.,. . .M.N. .5.5.0.2.5.,. . Editor@RemnantNewspaper.com On Jimmy Fallon and the Need to Pray for Pope Francis

Editor, The Remnant :. .A.s. .I. .r.e.a.d. .

your article entitled, "I’m With Jimmy F.a.l.l.o.n. .O.n. .Th.i.s. .O.n.e.,.". .I. .w.a.s. .r.e.m.i.n.d.e.d. .

of comments my parents made to me i.n. .t.h.e. .1.9.8.0.s. .r.e.ga.r.d.i.n.g .t.h.e. .d.i.f.f.e.r.e.n.c.e.s. .

be.t.w.e.e.n. .t.h.e. .Tr.a.d.i.t.i.o.n.a.l. .L.a.t.i.n. .M.a.s.s. .

(TL.M.). .a.n.d. .t.h.e. .N.o.vu.s. .O.r.d.o. .M.a.s.s. .w.h.i.c.h.,. . l.i.k.e. .e.ve.r.y. .o.t.h.e.r. .p.a.r.i.s.h.,. .w.a.s. .i.n.t.r.o.d.u.c.e.d. .

i.n.t.o. .o.u.r. .c.h.u.r.c.h. .i.n. .1.9.6.9. .w.h.e.n. .I. .w.a.s. .i.n. .

fir.s.t. .gr.a.d.e...

M.y. .p.a.r.e.n.t.s.,. .w.h.o. .gr.e.w. .u.p. .i.n. .I.r.e.l.a.n.d. .

a.n.d. .e.m.i.gr.a.t.e.d. .t.o. .A.m.e.r.i.c.a. .i.n. .t.h.e. .1.9.5.0.s.,. .

t.o.l.d. .m.e. .t.h.a.t. .t.h.e. .TL.M. .w.a.s. .a. .m.o.r.e. .

"serious form of worship" than the N.o.vu.s. .O.r.d.o... . . .Th.e.y. .w.e.r.e. .p.a.r.t.i.c.u.l.a.r.l.y. .

d.i.s.m.a.y.e.d. .t.h.a.t. .t.h.e. .t.a.be.r.n.a.c.l.e. .w.a.s. .m.o.ve.d. .

from its central position to an obscure corner, that the faithful received the Blessed Sacrament standing instead of k.n.e.e.l.i.n.g .a.n.d. .t.h.a.t. .p.r.i.e.s.t.s. .w.e.r.e. .f.a.c.i.n.g .t.h.e. .

p.e.o.p.l.e... . .

I. .w.a.s. .a. .t.e.e.n.a.ge.r. .w.h.e.n. .t.h.e.s.e. .

c.o.m.m.e.n.t.s. .w.e.r.e. .m.a.d.e. .t.o. .m.e.,. .a.n.d. .f.r.a.n.k.l.y.,. . t.h.e.s.e. .w.o.r.d.s. .h.a.d. .n.o. .i.m.p.a.c.t. .o.n. .m.e. .

w.h.a.t.s.o.e.ve.r... . .Wh.i.l.e. .n.o.t. .be.i.n.g .i.n.c.l.i.n.e.d. .t.o. .

f.u.s.s. .o.ve.r. .f.o.r.m.s. .o.f. .w.o.r.s.h.i.p. .a.t. .t.h.a.t. .a.ge.,. .I. .

a.l.s.o. .h.a.d. .n.o. .m.e.m.o.r.y. .o.f. .t.h.e. .TL.M... . .

Like Jimmy Fallon, I became an altar boy and made some money serving a.t. .w.e.d.d.i.n.gs. .a.n.d. .f.u.n.e.r.a.l.s... . .I. .r.a.n.g .t.h.e. .

be.l.l.s. .i.m.m.e.d.i.a.t.e.l.y. .a.f.t.e.r. .t.h.e. .w.o.r.d.s. .o.f. .

consecration and I held the communion p.l.a.t.e. .u.n.d.e.r. .t.h.e. .c.h.i.n.s. .o.f. .c.o.m.m.u.n.i.c.a.n.t.s... . .

Yet despite the hundreds of times I performed these duties, I did not c.o.m.e. .a.w.a.y. .w.i.t.h. .a. .s.t.r.o.n.g .s.e.n.s.e. .o.f. .t.h.e. .

Re.a.l. .P.r.e.s.e.n.c.e. .o.f. .Ch.r.i.s.t... . .Th.i.s. .w.a.s. .

undoubtedly due to the disrespectful r.u.br.i.c.s. .o.f. .t.h.e. .N.o.vu.s. .O.r.d.o... . .O.n.e. .w.h.i.c.h. .

s.t.o.o.d. .o.u.t. .f.o.r. .m.e. .w.a.s. .t.h.a.t. .t.h.e. .p.r.i.e.s.t.s. .

i.n. .o.u.r. .c.h.u.r.c.h. .w.e.r.e. .r.e.q.u.i.r.e.d. .t.o. .t.a.k.e. .a. .

l.o.n.g .w.a.l.k. .t.o. .t.h.e. .s.i.d.e. .o.f. .t.h.e. .c.h.u.r.c.h.,. .

next to exit doors, to retrieve the hidden Ch.r.i.s.t... . . .Th.i.s. .p.r.a.c.t.i.c.e. .u.p.s.e.t. .m.a.n.y. .p.e.o.p.l.e. . a.n.d. .w.a.s. .f.o.r. .m.e. .t.h.e. .fir.s.t. .i.n.k.l.i.n.g .t.h.a.t. .

something about the Novus Ordo Mass w.a.s.n.'.t. .r.i.gh.t... . .Ho.w.e.ve.r.,. .l.i.k.e. .m.a.n.y. .o.t.h.e.r. .

aspects of life that gave me pause at t.h.a.t. .t.i.m.e.,. .I. .w.a.s. .t.o.o. .f.o.c.u.s.e.d. .o.n. .be.i.n.g .a. .

t.e.e.n.a.ge.r. .t.o. .w.o.r.r.y. .a.bo.u.t. .t.h.e. .q.u.a.l.i.t.y. .o.f. .

w.o.r.s.h.i.p. .a.t. .M.a.s.s...

B.y. .t.h.e. .t.i.m.e. .I. .w.a.s. .a.t.t.e.n.d.i.n.g .h.i.gh. .

s.c.h.o.o.l.,. .m.o.s.t. .o.f. .m.y. .c.l.a.s.s.m.a.t.e.s. .w.e.r.e. .n.o. .

longer altar boys and no longer attending M.a.s.s... . .To.d.a.y.,. .t.h.e.y. .a.r.e. .a.l.l. .o.ve.r. .t.h.e. .p.l.a.c.e. .

w.h.e.n. .i.t. .c.o.m.e.s. .t.o. .G.o.d... . .So.m.e. .a.t.t.e.n.d. .

Protestant churches; some don’t believe t.h.a.t. .G.o.d. .e.x.i.s.t.s. .a.t. .a.l.l... . .St.i.l.l. .o.t.h.e.r.s. .c.a.l.l. .

t.h.e.m.s.e.l.ve.s. .Ca.t.h.o.l.i.c. .a.n.d. .t.h.i.n.k. .t.h.a.t. .w.i.t.h. .

P.o.p.e. .F.r.a.n.c.i.s.,. .t.h.e. .Ch.u.r.c.h. .w.i.l.l. .fin.a.l.l.y. .

"ge.t. .w.i.t.h. .i.t.". .a.n.d. .a.d.a.p.t. .i.t.s.e.l.f. .t.o. .t.h.e. .

m.o.d.e.r.n. .w.o.r.l.d... . .I. .d.o. .n.o.t. .c.o.n.s.i.d.e.r. .t.h.e.m. .

a.s. .ba.d. .p.e.o.p.l.e... . .M.i.c.h.a.e.l.,. .t.h.e.y. .a.r.e.,. .a.s. .y.o.u. . d.e.s.c.r.i.be.,. .c.a.s.u.a.l.t.i.e.s. .o.f. .a. .w.a.t.e.r.e.d. .d.o.w.n. .

f.a.i.t.h... . . . .

Wh.e.n. .t.h.e. .M.a.s.s. .i.s. .w.a.t.e.r.e.d. .d.o.w.n.,. .

t.h.e. .s.e.r.m.o.n.s. .a.r.e. .w.a.t.e.r.e.d.-d.o.w.n. .a.n.d. .

the standards of dress and behavior at M.a.s.s. .a.r.e. .a.l.s.o. .w.a.t.e.r.e.d.-d.o.w.n... . .Wi.t.h. .t.h.e. .

N.o.vu.s. .O.r.d.o.,. .M.a.s.s. .w.a.s. .t.r.a.n.s.f.o.r.m.e.d. .

from the highest form of prayer into an e.ve.n.t. .t.h.a.t. .w.a.s. .n.o.t. .t.a.k.e.n. .s.e.r.i.o.u.s.l.y... . .M.y. .

generation rarely heard serious themes in church like those of Father D.e.n.i.s. .F.a.h.e.y. .w.h.o. .s.a.i.d.,. ."t.h.e. .w.o.r.l.d. .m.u.s.t. .

c.o.n.f.o.r.m. .t.o. .O.u.r. .L.o.r.d.,. .n.o.t. .He. .t.o. .i.t...". . .

Tw.o. .y.e.a.r.s. .a.go.,. .by. .t.h.e. .gr.a.c.e. .o.f. .

G.o.d.,. .I. .a.t.t.e.n.d.e.d. .t.h.e. .TL.M. .f.o.r. .t.h.e. .fir.s.t. .

t.i.m.e. .s.i.n.c.e. .I. .w.a.s. .a. .t.o.d.d.l.e.r... . .A.f.t.e.r. .M.a.s.s.,. .

a.s. .I. .w.a.l.k.e.d. .o.u.t. .o.f. .t.h.e. .c.h.a.p.e.l.,. .m.y. .fir.s.t. .

t.h.o.u.gh.t. .w.a.s. .t.h.a.t. .m.o.m. .a.n.d. .d.a.d. .w.e.r.e. .

r.i.gh.t... . .Th.i.s. .M.a.s.s. .i.s. .s.e.r.i.o.u.s. .w.o.r.s.h.i.p.! . .

Mass M.a.s.s... . .N.o. .h.o.l.d.i.n.g .h.a.n.d.s.,. .n.o. .

t.e.x.t.i.n.g,. .n.o. .w.a.vi.n.g.. . .Eve.r.y.o.n.e. .i.n. .

attendance is completely focused on the Blessed Sacrament situated front and c.e.n.t.e.r. .o.n. .t.h.e. .a.l.t.a.r... .Th.e. .e.m.p.h.a.s.i.s. .i.s. .o.n. .

Ch.r.i.s.t.'.s. .Re.a.l. .P.r.e.s.e.n.c.e. .a.n.d. .Hi.s. .s.a.c.r.i.fic.e... . . I. .f.e.e.l. .d.r.a.w.n. .t.o. .Ch.r.i.s.t. .o.n. .t.h.e. .a.l.t.a.r. .a.n.d. .I. .

w.a.n.t. .t.o. .p.a.y. .a.t.t.e.n.t.i.o.n... . .Th.e. .N.o.vu.s. .O.r.d.o. .

M.a.s.s.,. .a.l.l. .t.o.o. .o.f.t.e.n.,. .d.o.e.s. .t.h.e. .o.p.p.o.s.i.t.e... . .I.t. . directs people to the exits because Christ i.s. .n.o.t. .i.t.s. .c.e.n.t.r.a.l. .f.o.c.u.s... . .

M.i.c.h.a.e.l.,. .m.a.y. .I. .s.u.gge.s.t. .t.h.a.t. .w.e. .a.l.l. .

pray the Rosary and the Seven Fatima Prayers, particularly during Lent, for Pope Francis and for the cardinals, bishops, priests, religious and laity of the Ro.m.a.n. .Ca.t.h.o.l.i.c. .Ch.u.r.c.h. .w.h.o. .a.r.e. .u.n.d.e.r. .

t.h.e. .s.p.e.l.l. .o.f. .d.i.a.bo.l.i.c. .d.i.s.o.r.i.e.n.t.a.t.i.o.n... . .M.a.y. . G.o.d. .gi.ve. .t.h.e. .Ch.u.r.c.h. .s.e.r.i.o.u.s. .m.e.n. .l.i.k.e. .

F.a.t.h.e.r. .F.a.h.e.y...

Thomas Carolan N.e.w. .Yo.r.k.,. .N.Y Keep Moving & 70 Is NOT Old!

Editor, The Remnant :. .I. .w.a.s. .a.p.p.a.l.l.e.d. . by. .K.a.t.e. .L.a.r.s.o.n.'.s. .d.i.s.p.a.r.a.gi.n.g .c.o.m.m.e.n.t. .

in her article, "Eat for Yourself" about t.h.e. .7.0.-y.e.a.r.-o.l.d. .w.o.m.a.n.'.s. .a.t.t.e.m.p.t. .t.o. .t.r.a.i.n. . f.o.r. .a. .m.a.r.a.t.h.o.n.:. ."I. .f.o.u.n.d. .t.h.i.s. .w.o.m.a.n.'.s. .

attempt to cling to the physical strength of youth almost sickening in its denial of h.u.m.a.n. .m.o.r.t.a.l.i.t.y...".

I. .d.o.n.'.t. .m.e.a.n. .t.o. .be. .u.n.k.i.n.d. .t.o. .M.s... .

L.a.r.s.o.n.,. .bu.t. .p.o.n.t.i.fic.a.t.i.n.g .s.o. .s.t.r.o.n.gl.y. .

a.bo.u.t. .s.o.m.e.t.h.i.n.g .s.h.e. .k.n.o.w.s. .l.i.t.t.l.e. .a.bo.u.t. .

m.a.k.e.s. .h.e.r. .a.p.p.e.a.r. .f.o.o.l.i.s.h... .O.l.d. .p.e.o.p.l.e. .

w.h.o. .t.r.y. .t.o. ."c.l.i.n.g .t.o. .t.h.e. .p.h.y.s.i.c.a.l. .s.t.r.e.n.gt.h. . of youth" are not in denial about the time they have left, nor are they trying to o.u.t.s.m.a.r.t. .t.h.e. .G.r.i.m. .Re.a.p.e.r... .Th.e.y. .a.r.e. .j.u.s.t. .

t.r.y.i.n.g .t.o. .m.a.n.a.ge. .r.e.a.l.i.t.y...

A.ge. .7.0. .i.s. .n.o.t. ."o.l.d...". .Th.e. .l.i.f.e.s.p.a.n. .h.a.s. . increased by 30 years in the past century, giving more people "bonus years" to e.n.d.u.r.e. .o.r. .e.n.j.o.y... .I.n. .m.a.n.y. .c.a.s.e.s.,. .w.h.e.t.h.e.r. .

life in the older years is a matter of grim endurance or enjoyment is determined by personal effort, not the passage of t.i.m.e...

I.'.m. .8.5.; .I. .e.x.e.r.c.i.s.e. .d.a.i.l.y. .a.n.d. .h.a.ve. .

done so for years and the payoff is that not only am I independent, but I am able t.o. .h.e.l.p. .c.a.r.e. .f.o.r. .o.t.h.e.r.s. .w.h.o. .n.e.e.d. .h.e.l.p... .

Part of my regimen includes pumping s.o.m.e. .i.r.o.n... .I. .h.o.p.e. .t.h.a.t. .a.d.m.i.s.s.i.o.n. .d.o.e.s. .

n.o.t. .s.i.c.k.e.n. .M.s... .L.a.r.s.o.n...

What passes for "health care" w.i.l.l. .be. .s.k.e.t.c.h.y. .i.n. .t.h.e. .n.e.a.r. .f.u.t.u.r.e... .

Th.o.s.e. .m.i.d.l.i.f.e. .a.n.d. .o.l.d. .p.e.o.p.l.e. .w.h.o. .

make an effort to avoid the system by exercising and eating a nutritious diet a.s. .M.s... .L.a.r.s.o.n. .r.e.c.o.m.m.e.n.d.s.,. .a.n.d. .

educating themselves about supplements w.i.l.l. .n.o.t. .be. .w.a.i.t.i.n.g .i.n. .l.i.n.e. .f.o.r. .c.a.r.e. .a.s. .

l.o.n.g .a.s. .t.h.o.s.e. .w.h.o. .d.i.d.n.'.t. .bo.t.h.e.r. .t.o. .

t.a.k.e. .c.a.r.e. .o.f. .t.h.e.m.s.e.l.ve.s... .Ju.s.t. .a.s. .i.t.'.s. .

be.n.e.fic.i.a.l. .t.o. .o.f.f.e.r. .u.p. .p.a.i.n. .a.n.d. .s.u.f.f.e.r.i.n.g .

in reparation for our sins, enjoying good health is an opportunity to give thanks and express gratitude for having been gi.ve.n. .t.h.e. .w.i.s.d.o.m. .t.o. .va.l.u.e. .l.i.f.e. .a.n.d. .o.f.f.e.r. .

i.t. .i.n. .s.e.r.vi.c.e. .t.o. .o.t.h.e.r.s...

B.a.r.ba.r.a. .M.o.r.r.i.s.,. .R.. .P.h... . Escondido, CA

Editor’s Note: As a man in his late 40s w.h.o. .fin.i.s.h.e.d. .a. .5.0.K. .c.r.o.s.s.-c.o.u.n.t.r.y. .s.k.i. .

r.a.c.e. .l.a.s.t. .w.e.e.k.e.n.d.,. .I. .t.e.n.d. .t.o. .a.gr.e.e. .w.i.t.h. .

y.o.u... .I.f. .n.o.t.h.i.n.g .e.l.s.e.,. .I. .h.a.ve. .s.e.ve.n. .k.i.d.s. .

t.o. .r.a.i.s.e. .a.n.d. .t.h.a.t. .t.a.k.e.s. .w.o.r.k... . .O.f. .c.o.u.r.s.e. .I. .

take full responsibility for neglecting to edit Miss Larson’s youthful indiscretion, a.n.d. .I.'.m. .s.u.r.e. .s.h.e. .w.i.l.l. .s.e.e. .y.o.u.r. .p.o.i.n.t. .

r.e.a.d.i.l.y. .w.h.e.n. .s.h.e. .r.e.a.d.s. .y.o.u.r. .l.e.t.t.e.r... .I. .

do think traditional Catholics tend to overlook the importance of healthy l.i.vi.n.g .a.n.d. .s.t.a.y.i.n.g .i.n. .s.h.a.p.e... .Th.i.s. .i.s. .go.i.n.g . t.o. .be. .a. .l.o.n.g .w.a.r.,. .i.t. .s.e.e.m.s.,. .a.n.d. .w.e. .w.a.n.t. .

t.o. .be. .t.h.e.r.e. .f.o.r. .t.h.e. .vi.c.t.o.r.y. .p.a.r.a.d.e... .Ri.gh.t.?. .

Thanks for your gentle reminder, and k.e.e.p. .i.t. .u.p... . MJM To Obey or Not to Obey—That is the Question.

Editor, The Remnant :. .I.t. .i.s. .o.bvi.o.u.s. .

that the Church is divided and is a m.i.x.t.u.r.e. .o.f. .m.a.n.y. .d.i.f.f.e.r.i.n.g .vi.e.w.p.o.i.n.t.s. .

a.l.l. .c.l.a.i.m.i.n.g .t.o. .be. .a.u.t.h.e.n.t.i.c.a.l.l.y. .Ca.t.h.o.l.i.c... . Ho.w. .c.a.n. .t.h.i.s. .be. .j.u.s.t.i.fie.d. .w.h.e.n. .t.h.e. .m.a.r.k.s. . o.f. .t.h.e. .Ch.u.r.c.h. .a.r.e.:. . .O.n.e.,. .Ho.l.y.,. .Ca.t.h.o.l.i.c. .

and Apostolic? That the modern Church w.e.l.c.o.m.e.s. .d.i.ve.r.s.i.t.y. .a.n.d. .s.o.m.e.t.h.i.n.g .

for everyone (except pre-Vatican II Ca.t.h.o.l.i.c.s.).,. .s.h.o.u.l.d. .be. .a. .w.a.r.n.i.n.g .s.i.gn. .o.f. .

s.o.m.e.t.h.i.n.g .a.m.i.s.s... . .Tr.u.t.h. .i.s. .n.o.t. .s.u.bj.e.c.t. .

to, or preserved by, a variety of s.u.bj.e.c.t.i.ve. .c.h.o.i.c.e.s.,. .gu.i.d.e.d. .by. .e.m.o.t.i.o.n...

To try to combat the progressive itinerary in the modern Church, many gr.o.u.p.s. .h.a.ve. .be.e.n. .f.o.r.m.e.d... . .M.o.s.t. .

claim to be traditional – yet even they are not united, differing m.a.i.n.l.y. .o.n. .p.e.r.c.e.i.ve.d. .s.t.a.t.u.s. .a.n.d. .o.n. .w.h.o.m. .

t.o. .o.be.y... . .Wh.o. .i.s. .o.f.fic.i.a.l.l.y. .i.n. .t.h.e. .r.i.gh.t. .

p.o.s.i.t.i.o.n.,. .o.r. .w.h.o. .i.s. .o.f.fic.i.a.l.l.y. .w.r.o.n.g,. .

frequently seems to get more attention t.h.a.n. .c.o.n.c.e.r.n. .f.o.r. .s.o.u.l.s... . .I.t. .w.o.u.l.d. .s.e.e.m. .

that excessive emphasis on the rule of t.h.e. .l.a.w. .c.a.n. .o.bs.c.u.r.e. .t.h.e. .i.n.t.e.n.t. .o.f. .t.h.e. .l.a.w... . Obviously obedience is necessary, but surely it is contrary to reason to give blind obedience to a higher a.u.t.h.o.r.i.t.y. .w.i.t.h. .w.h.o.m. .t.h.e.r.e. .i.s. .

d.i.s.a.gr.e.e.m.e.n.t. .o.n. .f.u.n.d.a.m.e.n.t.a.l. .i.s.s.u.e.s... . .

Ho.w.e.ve.r.,. .t.h.a.t. .i.s. .t.h.e. .d.i.l.e.m.m.a. .o.f. .m.a.n.y. .

traditionalists in the modern Church – to obey human authority or adhere to the F.a.i.t.h... . . . . .

Truth and moral teachings have been p.r.e.s.e.r.ve.d. .by. .t.h.e. .Ch.u.r.c.h. .f.o.r. .c.e.n.t.u.r.i.e.s... . .

Ho.w.e.ve.r.,. .i.t. .i.s. .c.l.e.a.r. .t.h.a.t. .t.h.e.r.e. .a.r.e. .t.h.o.s.e. .

w.h.o. .w.i.s.h. .t.o. ."u.p.d.a.t.e.". .t.h.o.s.e. .t.e.a.c.h.i.n.gs. .by. .

means of progressive methodology in the n.a.m.e. .o.f. .t.h.e. .s.p.i.r.i.t. .o.f. .V.a.t.i.c.a.n. .I.I... . .To. .be. .

u.n.d.e.r. .o.be.d.i.e.n.c.e. .t.o. .s.u.c.h. .p.e.r.s.o.n.s. .w.h.i.l.e. .

struggling to preserve true teachings is

Letters to the Editor

C P

an unreasonable situation. It would seem that at least the Society of St. Pius X is in a favorable position to teach truths and nourish souls, in spite of unfair treatment from modern church officials. Evidence suggests that deliberate persecution takes place mainly because the Society is seen as a threat to the agenda of Modernism.

In contrast, many officials who toy with faith and morals, remain in good standing. Thegoodpriestsinthe Society are carrying the heaviest cross for the traditional Faith, including those who are struggling to function within the modern church.

It can be reasonably assumed that if the Society had not stood firm under the leadership of Archbishop Lefebvre and also today, there would be no official recognition of the traditional rites, and traditional priests would have noreliableshepherd. Itwouldbejust if this were more widely realized and appreciated.

Oh that we will once again be of one mind in Truth and one heart in Charity! Alas, both are absent in too many areas of the Church today. It is obvious that when truth is compromised and charity sidelined, humility disappears, opening the door to more and more hyphenated "Catholics" formed in the fashion of Protestantism. May God have mercy on us all!

Mary Strangward Internet

Kenny Chesney and the New Mass

Editor, The Remnant : On the drive home today my son said that he had gone to Mass and it had ruined his day. Until this year he has not had the opportunity to participate consistently in anything but the Mass promulgated by Pope St. Pius V in 1570. I told him to offer it up, and make atonement.

During the sermon, the deacon pulled out his cell phone and played a Kenny Chesney song for the congregation to make the point more effectively. This same deacon prayed at halftime of a previous soccer game that God would "open up a can of whoop-ass" so the team would be victorious. The team lost badly.

A fellow student distributed Holy Communion today, and my son did not like that either. He really wants to talk to the headmaster about allowing him to opt out on future attendance. In the last three weeks I have attended 10 deaths and have visited several others who died within 24 hours of my visit. I have spoken with patients nearly 100 years old afraid to die... Very afraid. When push comes to shove human beings want hope. Hope does not lie in a "can of whoop-ass." Nor does it lie in the lyrics of a Kenny Chesney song. The baptized deserve better.

Jim Grumblatt Hermeneutic of Continuity? Heck, Yeah!

Editor, The Remnant : Nate Metzger has given to his article "The Hermeneutic of Continuity" the subtitle "Or, Adventures in Bluffing" ( The Remnant , 2/20/14, pp. 10-11). Permit me to say that this is a classic case of the pot calling the kettle black; for his own essay strikes me as one big adventure in bluffing. Mr. Metzger attacks those who advocate a ‘hermeneutic of continuity’ for Vatican II – that is, those who follow Benedict XVI and all recent popes in holding that disputed passages in the conciliar documents can and should be interpreted in continuity, not contradiction, with traditional Catholic doctrine. Again and again your columnist claims that such defenders of the Council always merely "ritually assert" (or "cite") the existence of such continuity, but without ever explaining how it exists, or addressing arguments that it does not exist. This is what he means by their "bluff": their alleged attempt to browbeat Catholics by constantly and confidently repeating a bald assertion without backing it up by evidence and reasoned argument.

But this is exactly what Mr. Metzger himself is doing! For there is in fact a huge body of scholarly books and journal articles out there from the last 50 years that not only assert, but present detailed argumentation for, the doctrinal continuity between the tenets of Vatican II and those of the earlier magisterium.

Thus, by confidently and repeatedly assuring Remnant readers that no such explanatory literature exists, he is using exactly the same kind of bluff which he sweepingly and wrongly ascribes to his opponents. (Even your photo on p.

11 is unfair: over the caption "Blatant Discontinuity" we see female liturgical dancers performing at a Novus Ordo Mass; but readers aren’t told this is an abuse forbidden by Rome.) There is obviously no space in a letter to the editor to give a bibliography of the extensive "hermenetic-ofcontinuity" literature. Interested readers could start with the 462-page volume, Vatican II: Renewal Within Tradition,

edited by Matthew L. Lamb & Matthew Levering (Oxford University Press, 2008), which devotes at least one scholarly article to each of the sixteen conciliar documents. The French Benedictine monk Dom Basile Valuet (member of a Traditional Mass abbey) has published a massive six-volume work meticulously explaining the continuity between Dignitatis Humanae and Tradition: La liberté religieuse et la tradition catholique (Abbaye Sainte-Madeleine du Barroux, 1998). I too have written a lot on that issue, my latest effort being a book debate with atheist Arnold T. Guminski, in which I argue in detail for doctrinal continuity: Religious Freedom: Did Vatican II Contradict Traditional Catholic Doctrine? A Debate (South Bend, Indiana: St. Augustine's Press, 2013). As regards the doctrinal (though not disciplinary) continuity between Pius XI's Mortalium Animos and Vatican II’s Decree on Ecumenism, see my essay, "Is Ecumenism a Heresy?" in This Rock, January 2009, pp. 26-29.

Assuming Mr. Metzger eventually gets round to studying some of this pro-continuity argumentation, it will of course be another question as to whether he personally finds it convincing or not.

But please, let’s have no more of his blustering bluff to the effect that there simply is no such argumentation out there, only bare assertion.

Fr. Brian Harrison, O.S. St. Louis, Missouri FFI and Cardinal Muller: What’s the Connection?

Editor, the Remnant : I am writing to comment on two recent events: 1) the suppression of the Franciscans of the Immaculate, and 2) Cardinal Muller’s declaration that the SSPX is "schismatic." Let me briefly recap these events for those not familiar with them.

The Franciscans of the Immaculate (F.I.) is a conservative order that introduced the TLM to its ranks under Pope Benedict’s Summorum Pontificum .

A band of malcontents within the order protested the introduction of the TLM to Rome. This past summer, Pope Francis issued an edict in response banning the TLM from the order. As disappointing as this was, it should have been the end of the affair. However, in what can only be described as a Stalinesque purge, the Holy Father, through his apparent commissar Msgr. Volpi, removed all of the F.I.'s duly elected superiors from their posts, put one of the order's founders, Fr. S.M. Manelli, under virtual house arrest, confiscated the order’s assets, closed its seminary, sent the remaining seminarians to an outside seminary for apparent "re-education," shut down the order's press Casa Mariana Editrice , and I could go on.

This is no "drill" – It really happened!

When I first read of this purge, I said to myself, "Watch for Rome to re-excommunicate the SSPX." Sure enough, on December 24, 2013 an interview with Cardinal Muller appeared in Catholic World News in which His Eminence clarified Rome's position vis-à-vis the SSPX using the "S" word: Schismatic. This is the first time Rome has used "schismatic" to describe the Society since the 2009 lifting of the excommunications, and it is an omen of things to come.

Second only to the disappointment of these events, has been recent attempts by certain Remnant commentators who should, and usually do, know better to flatter the current pontiff with kind (albeit vacuous) words in the hopes that the Bishop of Rome will reciprocate with kindness toward traditionalists and the TLM. How's that working out for you? Now, in charity, even the best analysts are wrong from time-to-time.

So, in charity, let’s just chalk up their recent miscalculations to "one of those times" and move on to a more hardnosed analysis of recent events.

First, the suppression of the F.I., with its obvious over-kill, was no random event. It was coldly calculated to send a message. It was meant to strike terror into the hearts of traditionalists inside the Church: "Govern your tongues, or else!" Though I have no contacts inside any of the canonical traditionalist societies, like the Fraternity of St. Peter, my guess is that they are right now issuing a flurry of memos to their priests saying things like, "Don't criticize the Pope/the Council/ the Novus Ordo , etc." This is precisely the chilling effect that the humble, nonjudgmental, peace-loving Pope Francis

intends to have. Second, Cardinal Muller’s recent declaration that the SSPX is in fact "schismatic" is just the beginning. It too is calculated to send a message, this time to the Society: "Our patience is up!" Sometime before, or in coordination with, the April 14 canonizations of John Paul II and John XXIII, look for Rome to issue an ultimatum to the SSPX: "Submit to Rome, or else!" The Society will refuse, and they will be re-excommunicated. It should be noted that the ultimatum is likely tocontain a condition so unreasonable that neither the SSPX, nor St. Pius X himself, could agree to. (As a former blood-sucking attorney, that's what I'd do!) You cannot understand this pope unless you understand that the last thing he wants is a rapprochement with the SSPX. This pope, like Obama, has a radical agenda to implement. In order to implement it, he needs enemies, not friends. He thinks he’s found that enemy in "crypto-Lefevbrians," aka You: Traditionalists.

This pope is likely to justify all he does as combating "crypto-Lefevbrian elements" within the Church, like Obama justifies everything he does by combating "Tea-Party Republicans." It has been the way of the left since Stalin first combated "neo-Trotskyite deviationists." Third, it should be noted that an excommunication of the SSPX will be slightly different this time. Last time only the Bishops were excommunicated.

This time the whole society will be.

This might be a distinction without a difference. Then again, we don't really know.

Finally, the suppression of the F.I.

and the declaration of "schism" against the Society are not unrelated events.

They are the coordinated spear-heads of a new wave of persecution against traditionalists and the Tridentine Mass.

The point is that this is war! The war is being prosecuted from "the top." And any attempt to excuse the prosecutor is tantamount to surrender, or worse! Let us traditionalists put away our childish thinking about this papacy, and stop deluding ourselves with lullabies about how this is just another "traditional political pontificate!" Vincent LaVigna, J.D., M.A. Austin, TX

W iti f S

With just a few weeks left before final payment is due on this year's Remnant Pilgrimage to France, we have a few young people who are still waiting to be sponsored. The young ladies are doing very well, but, alas, two of the young men, Nicholas Rao and Michael Rubinhavealongwaytogo. Young pilgrims will walk the pilgrimage in the name of their sponsors. As in years past, the names of sponsors and their special intentions will also be carried to Chartres and read aloud each day on the Pilgrimage. Tax-exempt donation are much appreciated and can be sent to the addresss below. MJM

Remnant Tours’ Youth Fund

PO Box 1117 Forest Lake, MN 55025

Alexander Kunkel, Ohio ($1500) Olivia Rao, New York (Sponsored) William Bischel, Ohio (Sponsored) Michael Rubin, Catholic University ($500) Alyssa Brandon, Indiana ($2000) Nicholas Rao, New York ($0)

Waiting for Sponsors