As the battle rages over the Neocatechumenal Way, it is necessary again to separate the leadership from the majority of the members. The majority of the members have entered the Neocatechumenal Way with the sincerest of intentions, and it is not them whom we address when we question the beliefs and practices of the Neocatechumenal Way.
They are only doing what they are taught, and if anyone should be criticized, it is the clergy who neglected the normal catechetical formation of adults that should have been happening long before the Neo showed up. In fact, it is because of this lack of formation that the Neo has had such an easy time of it.
But beyond this sad neglect there is the real issue that the Neocatechumenal leadership is advancing a form of the faith that is in flagrant contradiction to the magisterial Church both in doctrine and in practice.
We have demonstrated this multiple times and we will continue to do so. We have also demonstrated that this is not just a local phenomenon. The actions and warnings of bishops around the world, specifically in Japan, the Philippines, and Israel, and also the recent reprimand of Pope Francis to "respect" other cultures and the desires of individuals, is evidence of the conflict posed by the teachings and practice of the leaders Neocatechumenal Way.
Kiko teaches (4th day of the initial catechesis), "Of those who go to Mass on Sunday, say the statistics, only 1.5% are adult Christians."
ReplyDeleteSo if there are 300 people in attendance at Mass, then only 4 or 5 are "adult Christians?" Oh really? So the faith that brought the Chamorros through WWII and the Japanese occupation must not have been an adult faith, right?
No wonder the NCW does not respect other cultures and individuals. We are all infants in their sight.
Yeah of course Kiko would only say this about Guam. It's all about Guam. And only Guam.
DeleteBaloney. Kiko didn't say about Guam only. He said it in vol. I of his Gidelines for teams of catechists. It is his worldview.
DeleteSir chuck. The NCW is not a respecter of either persons or culture. Archbishop, and his two brothers on the hill, do not respect Filipinos .
ReplyDelete"WOE TO THOSE WHO, LIKE IMPENETRABLE ROCKS, ARE A REASON FOR DIVISION!"
ReplyDeleterevelaciones marianas MARCH 3, 2014
http://www.revelacionesmarianas.com/english.htm
It is getting interesting at Diana's blog that I made a test run on. I asked a list of questions that I have already known the answers from reliable sources. Diana is apparently evading to answer any of these questions honestly. She is not straightforward, denying everything and she is apparently not telling the truth! But these questions are so easy to confirm! Here is the list.
ReplyDeletePlease, tell me, which information is incorrect:
- Don't you have "monitions" before readings in the mass?
- Don't you make personal reflections or echos after readings?
- Do you give sign of peace before the offertory and not after the Lord's Prayer?
- Don't you take Eucharist under 2 species?
- Don't you receive the Host while remaining at your seats?
- Don't you have your masses 2.5-3 hours long?
- Are you guys using the missalette during a mass at the neo-catechumenary?
- Don't you have public personal reflections/ echos during the mass?
- Are you using the name of the Nazorean in these reflections/ echos?
- Who can talk correctly about the Bible? Everyone or only an ordained priest/ presbyter?
- Don't you guys talk during the mass about what you did in the preceding week, do you?
- Do you use anything else beyond "I-sentences"? Or is everything about "I, me mine"?
- Do you sing any song at the mass that was not composed by your Leader in Rome?
- Don't you call the Virgin Mary an eagle in your songs, or any other inappropriate name?
- How do you call her?
- Are your songs or teaching available online? If yes, where? If not, why the secrecy?
- Don't you have your "peace" before the offertory?
- Don't you round-kiss everybody in the room as a "peace"?
Come on guys, you have to be honest with these answers!
1. Monitions(admonitions) are done before the readings/gospel, these are just short introductions the each reading. This is not unique to the NCW it is allowed in every Mass.
Delete2. The echoes are approved in the Statutes and are not to be confused with a Homily.
3. The sign of Peace is moved before the Offertory as approved in the Statutes.
4. Communion is distributed under both species, body and blood.
5. Communion is received while standing in place. Not sitting.
6. Mass is indeed longer than what most are used to.
7. Missalettes are worship aides and not particularly a required item.
8.Again, ECHOES are done before the Homily.
9. Using the Name of Jesus in echos, why not?
10. ECHOES are personal and reflect how the readings have spoken to each person in their daily life experiences. The Priest/Deacon is the only one allowed to Preach or to give a Homily and of course one could expect that through them is where the church doctrines are in light of the readings are placed forth.
11. Because the ECHOES are personal, it may include the life of an individual for that day/week/month or even year.
12. ECHOES are personal and must not be confused with preaching or a homily so therefore, the use of I, Me, mine etc. is best suited. If a person uses You, We, Them etc. it becomes more of preaching.
13.All songs are composed by Kiko and are all scripture itself or based on scripture.
14.The Virgin Mary is not referred to in any inappropriate way.
15. She is the Mother of Our Lord, our Mother.
16. The songs are available online, google it. Refer to the NCW website for the Statutes.
17.refer to answer #3.
18.If you are referring to the Kiss of Peace, that speaks for itself, its a Kiss of Peace. This is extended to as many as possible, if you are able to get to everyone in a room, then beautiful.
Okay, so I answered your questions honestly. I am not Diana. Peace be with you the Lenten Season.
Well said. You appear to be more informed than the rest. I have often noted those practices which are permitted by the Statute, which you note here as well. Perhaps you can tell us where the permission comes for those practices which are not permitted by the Statute.
DeleteAs you know, other than what is permitted in the Statute, all other norms as per the "liturgical books" apply. Thus GIRM 161 requiring immediate consumption of the consecrated host applies. The priest is also required to communicate himself before distributing communion. Neither of these norms are followed.
As you probably also know, in defense of these practices we have heard just about every possible twist, from redefining the communicants to "concelebrants" to taking the "as soon as" in GIRM 161 to mean "as soon as" ALL have received. I do hope that you will be able to do better than that.
One final request, the Statute requires your Eucharist to be "open to the other faithful". However, the "other faithful" do not know the locations and times of these celebrations. Would you be willing to at least post the location and time of your community's weekly celebration of the Eucharist, and any more that you know of? Thank you.
At 2:02AM. Waiting. You appeared to have all the answers for Oleg. No answers for me?
Delete"Brief" monitions, the sign of peace before the offertory and communion under both kinds are allowed by the statute. But that's it.
ReplyDeleteI deliberately mixed permitted and not permitted practices that the neo-catechumenary employs in their curious masses. Diana got mad, I guess, and totally messed up her answers. She is denying everything, even the permitted practices. This blanket denial is a clear sign of positive confirmation of all the things I have already known before from my sources. The point is that there are serious reasons why their masses are so unbearable and inordinately long.
ReplyDeleteFrom reading this blog and trying to piece things together, all I have knowledge of is the fact on the liturgy and how it is or is not conforming to whatever, plus over empowerment of the so called NCW.
ReplyDeleteSo far, the only thing that I can get out of this, is that the NCW follow a statute approved by Rome, but somehow others say that they don't.
Strangely enough I have not yet to read a post on how they teach the Catholic Catechism. Is the teaching solely on the scriptures, psalms, and so forth. Is there such teachings of the fruits of the Holy Spirit, the contrary virtues, the theological virtues, etc. etc, ect. They seem to only take quotes from the Bible.
I bet that they do not know what contrary virtues are! They are the virtues that are contrary to the Seven deadly sins. Do they know what the seven deadly sins are?
It seems to me that the teachings are based solely on quotes taken from the Bible. Before one can even understand the Bible, there better be a solid foundation of what it is to have faith and really believe in the Catholic Church.
Growing up with the old Baltimore Catechism is embedded in me. I guess what is taught in religion in a catholic school is good enough for me. In all honesty, I refuse to have my children confirmed here. Two of the have taken a crash course in Manila and confirmed there. Why did I do this, well we were required to attend a talk about the Way, and I didn't need for my 11th grader to hear about the marital problem of the speakers. I guess I was expecting the speakers to focus on what the true meaning of defending the faith was.
The final words were, we found the "support group" that helped us and that "support group" is through the NCW. Through the Way, you will truly see the salvation of The Lord.
Actually 8:02PM, if it was "solely on the scriptures, psalms, and so forth" that would be a good thing. Unfortunately Kiko's "Catechism" is the primary source for all catechesis and biblical understanding. The revised version of Kiko's Catechism" was amended to include references to the actual Catechism of the Catholic Church. This is the version that Rome approved in 2011. However, we have no evidence that the revised version is used. Copies are not publicly available. Secrets, secrets, secrets.
DeleteVery sad that you were required to attend a talk on the Way in order to get your children confirmed. Please put that in a letter form and address it to the Apostolic Nuncio (see tab above). And you are very right not to want your young children to be exposed to personal rants about adulterous spouses.
I was confirmed in Asan in 2000 and the requirement was to attend catechism lessons through the Way. Fr. Manny was the priest and at one meeting, we each had to reveal a "deep" hidden secret (scrutiny?). Being only 17 at the time, I was pretty much sheltered and did not have any devasting life experience like the previous guy who went before me about beating his wife and drug abuse. I told Fr, "no there is nothing...I don't have any secrets", but he kept pressuring and wouldn't move on to the next person. Finally, after 20 minutes, just to get him off my back, i lied and Fr.then replied "a-ha..there it is! " as if he won a prize about my "confession".
DeleteThe whole experience of my Confirmation year left me with mixed emotions and I left the Church for sometime and have never set foot in Asan again.
This was a long time ago so maybe things are different now, but I don't blame parents for flying their children off to the NMI or the P.I for confirmation. I would not subject my son to the same that I went through.
Someone else I know going through RCIA in Barrigada was required to attend the talks and the weekend retreat.
I believe our Archdiocese requires all Confirmation candidates to attend a retreat as a condition of receiving the sacrament.
I see nothing wrong with retreats. What I do no like is making it mandatory for confirmation candidates, parents and godparents to attend/listen to a talk by the NCW members who talk publicly about the problems of their private lives. It becomes a recruiting message like the military!
DeleteAll parents, before turning over their children to any program or sending them on any retreat, need to require a copy of the curriculum and/or program that will be employed in the instruction or direction of their child. We also need to inquire as to the credentials of the person who will be instructing or directing.
DeleteThe subject matter is dead serious. What is taught or not taught could determine the eternal fate of your child's soul, a fate for which you, as the parent, will be held accountable by heaven.
This is why you should never turn the religious education of your children over to anyone or any program in the first place. Instead, send yourself to get educated. Make sure it's the Catechism of the Catholic Church you are learning from or an approved derivative such as the U.S. Catholic Catechism for Adults. Then educate your own children as the bible and the Church demands that you do (Deut 6:7).
Can't find an adult education program that uses the Catechism? Then do it yourself, or better yet, do it with your children. Get a catechism and learn together.
No one can deny you or your child access to the sacraments of Holy Communion or Confirmation so long as you fulfill the prescripts of Canon Law. And there are now several lay advocacy groups that are willing to take a law suit all the way to Rome (where they have been won) should your child be denied.
Here is an example:
Q: Several girls around 10 years of age, on their own initiative, have asked parents to take them to receive the sacrament of confirmation. They know their catechism and when asked why they wished to be confirmed, responded that they wanted the graces of Confirmation and the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit so that they might use them to be holier. The parents made two unsuccessful attempts, through different avenues, to get their daughters into a confirmation ceremony of the local ordinary. A pastor denied confirmation through a parish ceremony, saying that the girls are too young (despite the parents' informing the pastor of the canons which grant the right to the sacrament at the age of reason). And a school official denied confirmation through a school ceremony, saying that the girls are not enrolled nor the relative of an enrolled student. What should the parents do? -- V.F., New England
Read more at: http://www.zenit.org/en/articles/when-youngsters-request-confirmation
Here is the key ruling showing that universal Church Law always trumps local legislation:
"Consequently, when a member of the faithful wishes to receive this Sacrament, even though not satisfying one or more elements of the local legislation (for example, being younger than the designated age …), these elements must give way to the fundamental right of the faithful to receive the Sacraments. Indeed, the longer the conferral of the Sacrament is delayed after the age of reason, the greater the number of candidates who are prepared for its reception but are deprived of its grace for a considerable period of time."
Agree Tim. Would not send any child into a conformation class on Guam today until parents approved the class. The data being taught, it is catholic, or is it NCW theology. Those teaching need to be evaluated. Are they educated to teach the catholic faith to our young people. If the answer is no then other options are available for children to be confirmed. One day conferences in off island schools and joining confirmations in off island parishes is now possible.
ReplyDelete