Wednesday, May 21, 2014

WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THIS POST BY DIANA?

Got this in a comment:

Tim,

What are your thoughts on this post by Diana?

The following is Diana's post:

Sunday, May 18, 2014 Pope Francis Backs the Neocatechumenal Way Liturgy 
During the Lenten announcement, a letter was read to the communities. Kiko Arguello had written a letter to Pope Francis because some of the things he stated on his February 1st address were taken out of context. The Pope then wrote to Kiko, assuring him that he stands beside him. This event has now been published on May 16, 2014. One can read the full story below: 

Pope Francis Backs the Neocatechumenal Way

According to the news report (the bold is my emphasis). I also underlined Paschal Vigil: 
The Vatican Secretariat of State sent a letter on April 3rd from the Holy Father to Kiko Arguello, initiator of the Neocatechumenal Way, along with Carmen Hernandez, confirming the liturgical praxis of the Way with regards to the Eucharist and the Paschal Vigil.  
In the letter, the Holy Father confirms that "as far as it pertains to the celebrations of the Paschal Vigil and the Sunday Eucharist, [...] articles 12 and 13 [of the Statutes], read in their entirety, constitute therefore the regulatory charter of reference." 
This letter was in response to a letter sent previously by Kiko Arguello in which he told the Pope of his concern about several negative interpretations of the words of the Holy Father addressed to a group of some 12,000 neocatechumens on February 1st, 2014.  
In his response, Pope Francis not only confirmed the full validity of the Statute of the Neocatechumenal Way, but acknowledged "the evangelizing dynamism of the Neocatechumenal way, the experience of authentic conversion of life of so very many faithful, and the fruits of good generated thanks to the presence of the communities all over the world." 
The Pope confirms his "paternal closeness" and sent "loving encouragement to [Arguello] and to all adherents to the Way." The letter concludes assuring the initiator of the Way of the "closeness" and "memory in the Lord" of Pope Francis, while sending "from his heart to you, to the International Team and to all the adherents to the Neocatechumenal Way, his Apostolic Blessing." 
As I have been saying all along..... because the Statutes mentions the Easter Vigil, this is already an indication that the Holy See has allowed us to celebrate the Easter Vigil and that our Easter Vigil is one with the Easter Vigil of the Parish. Yet, those who oppose the Way constantly cite Church law in the GIRM or the Roman Missal, which stated that there is to be only ONE Easter Vigil. 

So, to those who accused the NCW of going against Church law in the GIRM because you state that "there should only be ONE Easter Vigil".......I "RECOMMEND" that you take it up with the Pope who has confirmed our celebration of the Easter Vigil as well as the Eucharist. 

To the brothers in the Way, celebrate!!!! Pope Francis has given us his APOSOLIC BLESSING!!!

****

MY THOUGHTS

First, let us take a look at the actual letter supposedly "from the Holy Father". Here it is
Vatican, April 3rd, 2014 
Most Esteemed Sir 
Mr. Francisco ARGÜELLO, 
With a respectful letter of the past March 15th, you expressed to the Holy Father your grave concern because some people interpreted a quote from the discourse of the past February 1st in a negative way towards the Neocatechumenal Way; there, where His Holiness said that, at times, it would be better to renounce to live in all its details what the itinerary of the Way would demand, in order to ensure unity among the brethren who form the one ecclesial community.   
I have to assure you that Pope Francis has considered carefully what you explained and wishes to confirm, as he has already expressed in the context of the Audience and of His Speech on February 1st, His paternal closeness and His loving encouragement to you and to all adherents to the Way.     
The Holy Father does well know the evangelizing dynamism of the Neocatechumenal Way, the experience of authentic conversion of life of so very many faithful, and the fruits of good generated thanks to the presence of the communities all over the world. His Holiness is convinced that the words above mentioned, which aimed to underline the need to safeguard the precious good of ecclesial communion, do not lend themselves to misunderstandings, above all because they are valid for any form of Christian life. 
Such words do not in any way modify the Statutes, rather they confirm them: as far as it pertains to the celebrations of the Paschal Vigil and the Sunday Eucharist, mentioned by you, articles 12 and 13, read in their entirety, constitute therefore the regulatory charter of reference.           
As the Paschal Solemnities approach, Pope Francis assures His closeness and His memory in the Lord and, while he asks to persevere in prayer for His universal ministry, He sends from His heart to you, to the International Team and to all the adherents to the Neocatechumenal Way, His Apostolic Blessing. 
With feelings of profound esteem and a heartfelt greeting in the Lord.
                                                                                         + Angelo Becciu
                                                                                          Substitute 




Now, let us contrast the actual letter with the Zenit report. Zenit is a known in-the-tank Kiko news organ. And they aren't even good at hiding it. The Zenit report starts off:
 "The Vatican Secretariat of State sent a letter on April 3rd from the Holy Father to Kiko Arguello…
The allusion is that Pope Francis sat down and wrote a personal note to Kiko which was then forwarded by the Vatican Secretariat of State. 

However, the actual letter says something quite different. First of all the letter is NOT from the pope. It is not even from the Vatican Secretary of State. It is from Cardinal Becciu, whose office is that of Substitute for General Affairs to the Secretary of State. And it is exactly as it sounds: "general affairs", basically "to do" matters that do not rise to a level requiring the specific attention of the actual Secretary of State and can be handled at a lower level, thus: "general affairs." 

So we go from a mere politely worded note assembled in the office of "general affairs" by an underling to the Secretary of State to, in Kiko's version, a personal letter from Pope Francis himself, written in his own hand, to the much persecuted and suffering Kiko Arguello, a letter read to all the communities, and transformed into the personal backing of Pope Francis for all things Kiko!

Now notice how in the first paragraph of the actual letter, not Zenit's reporting of it, Kiko is reminded that the intent of the pope's address was to ensure ecclesial communion, even if it means renouncing the Way:
His Holiness said that, at times, it would be better to renounce to live in all its details what the itinerary of the Way would demand, in order to ensure unity among the brethren who form the one ecclesial community.
Notice, that Zenit makes no mention of these words in its own story EVEN THOUGH 1) it was the primary intent of the pope's address, and 2) they are repeated right off the bat in the response to Kiko. 

The next two paragraphs of the actual letter simply reaffirm the good things that have come from the Way, and like a good father, the pope expresses his "paternal closeness" and his "loving encouragement". Wonderful. But to whom DOESN'T the pope express the same sentiments?? As pope, it is his duty and desire to be paternally close to all of us and to lovingly encourage us all. So for members of the Way to see this as some sort of singular papal validation of themselves is both the height of narcissism and evidence of a severe identity crisis.

Now note the last half of the third paragraph of the actual letter where it says:
His Holiness is convinced that the words above mentioned, which aimed to underline the need to safeguard the precious good of ecclesial communion, do not lend themselves to misunderstandings, above all because they are valid for any form of Christian life. 
Note that Kiko's original letter to the pope was a complaint about how the pope's words were "taken out of context." And note here, in the actual letter, that Kiko is told that the pope's words were NOT taken out of context but that: "His Holiness is convinced that the words…do not lend themselves to misunderstandings…." 

Let's repeat, Pope Francis is saying that he meant what he said and there can be no misunderstanding, that there is no "out of context"!! It actually borders on the satanic that Kiko can take this clear message and turn it into a papal validation of his complaint. But then, he knows he can. No one questions Kiko.

The fourth paragraph of the actual letter says something curious. It references the Paschal Vigil and the Sunday Eucharist "as mentioned by you". That's strange. The pope's Feb. 1 address said nothing about either the Vigil or the Eucharist, yet Kiko for some reason ("mentioned by you") apparently includes them in his list of complaints to the pope. In any event, the pope takes the occasion to remind Kiko that the liturgical celebrations of the Way are licit only insofar as they conform to the Statute, particularly articles 12 and 13, which (and this is a very strong way of saying it) CONSTITUTE THEREFORE THE REGULATORY CHARTER OF REFERENCE. 

WOW!!!! REGULATORY CHARTER OF REFERENCE! Did you get that, Diana? Do you know what that is? The Statute of the Neocatechumenal Way is your REGULATORY CHARTER OF REFERENCE. This means that the Way has no validity outside of what is provided for it in its Statute, its REGULATORY CHARTER OF REFERENCE. It is your CHARTER. It is your "By Laws". The life of the Way is inextricably linked to its charter. Outside that charter the Way is DEAD. 

This is why, for years now, we have been aghast at how easily you violate it, how easily you discard its provisions and strictures, and how the Archbishop, the one person tasked by his holy office to see to your compliance with this charter, actually joins you in violating the only thing that guarantees your authentication! And when we call this to your attention, you tell us "SO WHAT!" 

Now, Diana, let's look at your comments:

As I have been saying all along..... because the Statutes mentions the Easter Vigil, this is already an indication that the Holy See has allowed us to celebrate the Easter Vigil and that our Easter Vigil is one with the Easter Vigil of the Parish. Yet, those who oppose the Way constantly cite Church law in the GIRM or the Roman Missal, which stated that there is to be only ONE Easter Vigil.  
So, to those who accused the NCW of going against Church law in the GIRM because you state that "there should only be ONE Easter Vigil".......I "RECOMMEND" that you take it up with the Pope who has confirmed our celebration of the Easter Vigil as well as the Eucharist. 

Diana, have you ever even read your Statute? Have you read Articles 12 and 13? Let's look at Article 12, Diana, the place where the Easter Vigil is "mentioned". Here it is:

§ 1. Axis and source of Christian life is the paschal mystery, lived and celebrated in a preeminent way in the Sacred Triduum,42 whose brilliance fills the whole liturgical year with light.43 For this reason, it constitutes the fulcrum of the Neocatechumenate, since this is a rediscovery of Christian initiation.
§ 2. “The Paschal Vigil, focal point of the Christian liturgy, and its baptismal spirituality inspire all Catechesis.”44 It is for this reason that during the itinerary, the neocatechumens are initiated gradually45 into an ever more perfect participation in all that the holy night signifies, celebrates and realizes. 
§ 3. In this way, the Neocatechumenate will stimulate the parish to have a richer celebration of the Paschal Vigil.46

Diana, please show me and everybody else, where in this statute is the papal permission to celebrate your own vigil apart from the parish. In fact, § 3 instructs the Neocatechumenate to "stimulate the parish" to a "richer celebration of the Paschal Vigil. And lest there be a question about what that means, note the footnote number 46. Footnote 46 references the letter from the Congregation for Divine Worship entitled Paschalis Sollemnitatis. You may want to read the letter, Diana. See paragraph 94 of the letter. Here is what it says:

The celebration of the Easter Vigil for special groups is not to be encouraged since, above all in this Vigil, the faithful should come together as one and should experience a sense of ecclesial community. 

But now, Diana, I am going to give you a break. I am going to give you a break because I do believe that the Neocatechumenal Way has at least one thing right about the Vigil, and that is that it should be a Vigil. In fact, Paschalis Sollemnitatis instructs clearly on this. The Vigil is not to be another Saturday night Mass of convenience that sadly almost all Saturday night Masses have become. It is not supposed to be a quickie liturgy so we can still make it to Kings before midnight. It is supposed to be a Vigil. And I am happy to say that where I celebrated the Vigil with my family, the time of the Vigil spanned from after nightfall and into the early morning hours of Easter Sunday. 

However, I am well aware that most parishes do not do this. Nor were they required. The norms issued by the chancery did not specify a time, other than to begin after sundown and end before daybreak. In fact, we do not need the Neocatechumenal Way to show us this. Since Rome issued the norms in Paschalis Sollemnitatis, the bishop has both the authority and the responsibility to see to it that the Easter Vigil in his diocese conforms to the norms issued in the letter.

But something tells me that even if this were the case, even if the bishop did institute the norms already put forth by Rome, that the neo communities would still celebrate in their own way apart from the rest of us, wouldn't they?

34 comments:

  1. Any letter from the higher up should be written on paper with the proper letterhead and signed. Apparently this letter had neither. Is Cardinal Becciu and Kiko Arguello on the buddy system that this letter looks like it was informally written?

    Lawyers, Doctors, the Archdiocese of Agana, Churches, Schools, etc. have letterheads and are definitely signed. I am sure that the Vatican has the same. Strange!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  2. This reminds me of Guiseppe Gennarini's spin on Cardinal Arinze's letter years ago. Only this seems worse. This time Kiko's attempts will hurt him more than help him.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I saw Pope Francis celebrating in Chapel of Santa Marta. There was a paschal candle there different from Saint Peters . Where did THAT come from? A different Vigil? Huh?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Where there are multiple churches or chapels in the vicinity of a main church, such as is the case at St. Peter's, multiple Easter candles may be blessed at the Easter Vigil and then later distributed to those chapels. This is also the case for mission chapels and cluster parishes. See USCCB, Eighteen Questions of the Paschal Triduum, No. 14. Joy!

      Delete
  4. Diana: you pick and choose which passages to use and re-interpret them to fit your assertions. The sola scriptura crowd called and want their process back.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Good one....sola scripture LUTHER!

      Delete
  5. Janet B - MangilaoMay 21, 2014 at 9:24 AM

    Diana, who is most assuredly a high Chancery official (Fr A. C.), did not dream up "her" blog on her own. She/he is not smart enough for that type of spin-doctoring. This is a world wide phenomenon spun by the top echelon of kiko-dom. Thank you Tim for your tenacity to dig through all the BS and exhibit the real story in bold clarity!
    Imagine all the kikos and even the good NCWs looking at Diana's blog and similar/exact duplicates worldwide...they have a false feeling of acceptance that is so cleverly crafted, it even had me going before Tim stepped in. The way they use quotations is stunning.
    This analysis is so very revealing as to why the kikos and NCWs are so thoroughly brain washed. As my Nana used to say: if you are constantly fed crap, soon that is all that can come from your brain. In her case she was complaining about the military school system after the war, but it sure seems to apply here as well.
    I hope all you good NCWs see the reality of what is going on. The same must be true with all the information you are given. The truth is not important. What is important is that you believe whatever they want you to believe.
    Since I have sworn to show more respect to the Archbishop, here is today's dose.
    I am happy to say that in this case the Archbishop is not complicit in the spreading of a big lie. As far as the NCW is concerned, he is merely one of the "Adherents". He couldn't be complicit because he is not high up enough on the ladder to be involved. To that we can be thankful.
    However, dear Archbishop, should this twisted version of Diana's spin make it to the U Matuna then you are guilty of spreading the big lie. Why not run an article instead on what the Pope's rep actually said, then call together your liturgical group and do an honest review of the Easter Vigil practice and make a ruling for next year. That would be a good start on your road to leadership.
    My prayers and blessings to you, Archbishop Anthony.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. She says she is not male! She says she is not Jackie T! When you type Jennifer Dulla on her blog.....NO RESPOSE! What does that say?

      She,probably gets,some kind of input before writing on her blog. It takes time to do research. She is an advocate and avid writer for the Neocats in the Umatuna si Yu'us.

      Delete
    2. Diana is not fr. Adrian and I'm not Diana we don't know who diana is and by the way the Pope does approve the way you might just be writing it up to just scare people I pray for you and those who persecute the way and peace be with you

      Delete
    3. Another seminarian?

      Because Diana wants to stay anonymous (such a poor Christian witness) we get to believe whatever we want about her. If we want to believe she is Father Adrian, we can. If we want to believe she is the Archbishop, we can. This is the price of anonymity.

      And yes, the Pope does approve the NCW and that approval is codified and promulgated in your Statute, which as the Pope says "constitutes therefore your regulatory charter of reference." And so long as the NCW conforms to its regulatory charter, then we approve it too.

      But then that's the PROBLEM, isn't it!

      Delete
  6. Glad to be Back to Holy Mother ChurchMay 21, 2014 at 9:44 AM

    When I was walking, I often felt like some of the info they were passing on to us was either faked or re-interpreted. But they do such a good job in spinning everything to their way it was hard to resist flowing with the NCW tide. This pro-Neo blog by Diana is quite revealing as to their methods. I would imagine that the Holy Father would be more than displeased at how his comments and desires were totally re-crafted or taken completely out of context. How many times will Rome allow this to happen before finally saying enough is enough.
    I hope they are accumulating a dossier on all this activity!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Yeah, go ahead spin it Diana, sooner or later you're going to get really dizzy. The ecclesial communion of the church is of utmost importance,
    Otherwise their would be no need for instructions on liturgy and various other matters! The requiring of only one mass in a parish confirms this
    communion. But you people by having your own celebration and Paschal candle, are declaring yourselves a separate "parish", no matter how you slice it...
    As you people like to say... JOY!

    ReplyDelete
  8. I sent Diana's post to Tim because it just seemed phony to me, but I knew Tim could give intelligent thought on the letter. It is my opinion that Diana is just not an intelligent person at all. As much as she/he makes my stomach turn, this person helps us to better understand the tricks of the Way and gives us a stronger sense of conviction to push on in our fight to win back our church. God bless to all

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Even stupid people can have their own blog.

      Delete
  9. no substance, all spin. it is the state of the world in the end of times. the father of all lies was given 100 years to destroy The Bride of Christ. the weapon he chose was 'WORDS'. interesting, right?! Always, always ask for the source, & author, of what someone told you. & THEN make discovery of who OWNS the source!!

    ~ that would be: "Innovative Media Inc.,the publisher of ZENIT in all its language-editions, is a non-profit organization based in New York. It is registered in various states of the United States and currently has its offices in Georgia.
    There is, however, no real home base for the ZENIT team. ZENIT's office is the Internet."
    "ZENIT is an independent, professional news agency that does not represent nor belong to the Vatican. " http://www.zenit.org/en/about/2003

    ~ "One report appearing in the progressive Commonweal magazine alleges that Innovative Media is a "front" for the Legion of Christ." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zenit_News_Agency
    ~ now go here, the LoC scandal @ Zenit: "It is never easy for Catholic agencies to find a middle ground that is able to please both agency owners (which are often religious institutes) and those who work and write in these agencies. Colina’s dismissal is an open wound within the Legion, still afflicted by internal divisions following the scandal which put Marcial Maciel Degollado under the spotlight. ( Fr. Marcial Maciel, the Legion’s founder, "was accused of leading a double life. He was a priest but also a father and a child molester." ) Now the information service providing news about the Pope and the Catholic Church, will be directly managed by the editor of Zenit (the religious order of the Legion of Christ) through the executive board’s President, the Legionary priest, Óscar Náder, the man who wanted Colina to be sacked." http://vaticaninsider.lastampa.it/en/inquiries-and-interviews/detail/articolo/legionari-legion-of-christ-legionarios-agenzia-di-stampa-press-agency-agencia-de-prensa-zenit/

    in short: "Do not let these people into your parish!" http://charismatic-heresy.blogspot.com/2007/02/neocatechumenal-way.html

    ReplyDelete
  10. Thank you Tim. This is is an honest and true evaluation of what happened with the zenit article. Congratulations.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Dear Mr. Rohr:

    I recommend you send your analysis to the Holy Father, so that he can see how his bishops, priests, and flock are interpreting and implementing his words and directives. Perhaps the Vatican is reading your blog now but there is no harm in communicating with the Holy Father directly, and if he does read it, then even better.

    ReplyDelete
  12. During the announcement for Easter the catechists for Guam spoke about the letter and spun it just as Zenit did. They said the Pope reaffirm his love for the Way and in fact according to Kiko he said he was very uncomfortable turning his back to the Pope and apparently the Pope told him that angels have no back. The spinning that goes on in the Way is really bad.

    In fact they bashed Pope Benedict for trying to change them, but said Pope Francis is an ally and that the Way can continue because he loves them.

    The catechists called Kiko a prophet and that he announces the Good News and the time is coming for a great change and the Way will be in charge of it.

    ReplyDelete
  13. There is no doubt that the Vatican stated that there is no room for misunderstanding what the Pope said. He meant what he said, and the negative impressions that resulted from his words, which Kiko is so worried about, was the desired effect. The Pope's words were meant to teach and to remind us that ecclesial communion is paramount and trumps any ritual that the NCW practices. He is telling the NCW to conform or adjust or amend or modify anything that you are doing or practicing to preserve UNITY in a parish and diocese. Even more, the Vatican letter made it clear that this directive applies to all, and not just to the NCW. To my NCW brothers and sisters: please listen to the Pope and please be acutely conscious of ecclesial communion. Kiko may want his way only, but Kiko is not the Pope. Courage!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. the Unity in my parish is finished; the Kiko infiltration completed; the scorning of well established Priests accomplished; & most of the Parishioners are simply scratching their heads. They KNOW something isn't right but can't put their fingers on it.

      Delete
  14. "participation in all that the holy night signifies"

    I don't know, Holy Night for me is Christmas time, not the Easter Vigil! Do you have the same strange feeling here as I have? It is like a sneaky attempt to redefine the language of Christianity. In the long run, this strange language would erode, invalidate and replace all of our learning about Christ himself! Just think about the novel "presbyter" language replacing the good ole' priests we are familiar with. Or the "celebration of Eucharist" replaces mass and devotion. "Echos" are replacing the sermon. The plain flower table is replacing the altar. The church hall replaces the church building. Kiko's songs are replacing all sacred music. Kiko's paintings replace Catholic art. His "spiritual" rants are replacing the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Even spiritual retreats are replaced by "connivense" or what... Do you see what I mean??

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dear ANON 1:47 PM:

      I think you are right, but to be exact, the word "presbyter" is an ancient word and can be found in the Acts, but it was used interchangeably in the Acts to mean priest, bishop, and deacon. The Church refined the definition to be exact; hence, the terms priest, bishop, and deacon are for specific offices. I think Kiko's preference for the term presbyter is to slowly imbibe the notion that neo communities are being led by presbyters which do not have to be priests! If you think about it, his celebration of the Eucharist, in how he interprets it, does not need a priest to preside.

      Delete
    2. Yes. Kiko has no regard for priests. They will be discarded in his new order:

      "This was the idea of the past catechesis: the necessity of
      giving the signs of faith: Love in the dimension of the cross
      and Unity. These are the signs the pagan world is waiting for
      because the other signs (the temple, the Mass, the priest, the
      bishop) are not strong enough signs for it; in fact, they
      presuppose faith. These signs are no longer valid in a
      secularized world like ours to call an atheist to faith. It's
      necessary to give new signs." - Kiko Arguello, Catechetical Directory, Vol 1., pg 36

      Delete
    3. Like the world was never secular before!

      Delete
    4. Perhaps there won't be any priests in Kiko's New Order. Sending them in close quarters and such familiarity with young mothers of the way on missions, there will soon be infidelities. Only human nature. Not prudent idea.

      Delete
    5. The new order limits the role of the priest and his function within the community. That is why they changed the language.

      Delete
    6. His theology of priesthood is really alarming. For kiko it is a numbers game this is why seminarians are pushed fast through r,m s. however, the theology of the priesthood is weakened down.

      Delete
  15. Tim,

    I admire what you do on this blog and thank you for sticking your neck out while others like myself choose to stay anonymous on this blog. I was wondering, if the Pope decided that the future of the church was the NCW and all it's practices, would you follow?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Good question. I will answer it in a post.

      Delete
  16. Months ago someone wrote on the comments talking about the old order and the new order. The new Jerusalem. Sure you remember these comments. Remember thinking what a strange way to think and write. But now I see kiko and this group does have a new order which is their new Jerusalem, which they want to each. What is even greater concern to me is the Mac thinking on purgatory. It is strange and causing upset in people. Of cors we all want to,go,direct to heaven and believe our loved ones are there. Kiko is appealing in his teaching of direct entrance to the new Jerusaleem, the new order. It sounds good charismatic. But it's not catholic teaching. So we stand between asking do we follow the old order the church,mor the new order kiko. Our conscience tells us follow the old order the church. Even if it's dull compared to kiko's thought remain loyal to the church.

    ReplyDelete
  17. There’s no question in my mind that the use of “presbyter” by Kiko is intended to diminish the role of the priest. Catholics generally hold that Christ fulfilled the office of priest when He offered Himself as a sacrifice in expiation for our sins. It is difficult to attack the role of priests as men specially charged with celebrating the Paschal sacrifice when this role is modelled after Christ’s own priestly conduct. Recall, however, that Kiko does not believe that Christ’s death was a Paschal sacrifice; and that it was only after the Church intervened that the NCW was forced, against its wishes, to recite the Agnus Dei at Mass. Thus, Christ’s death, in the view of Kiko, does not provide a model for and does not support this unique and most important role which normal Catholics ascribe to priests, i.e., to go before the altar and celebrate the Paschal mystery. Thus, Kiko (in his mind) is free to strip this role from priests.

    In addition, Kiko does not like temples and altars. He thinks that these are vestiges of inborn dumb religiosity. Rather than build upon man’s natural inclination toward the divine – as prescribed by the Church – Kiko believes that natural religiosity is an impediment to one’s spiritual journey and should be discarded in favor of a more mature religiosity. So, Kiko replaces the altar, which in his view is an apparatus of primitive religiosity, with a banquet table. Of course, altars are where priests carry out the most important aspect of their priestly office: the sacrifice of the Mass. Thus, altars are inextricably bound up in the special sacerdotal powers accorded to priests. Kiko’s disdain for altars is just part and parcel of his disdain for the special sacerdotal powers accorded exclusively to priests. Recall that Diana states that at Neo Masses all of the congregants, not just the priest, concelebrate the Mass.

    So, Kiko wants to strip priests of their unique sacerdotal powers. Protestants wanted to do the same thing. That’s exactly why they substituted the words “presbyter” or “elder” for “priest” when they broke from the Church. (Presbyter, of course, derives from the Greek word for elder). Yes, presbyter was used by the early Church as a name for priests; but the powers specially accorded to these presbyters outstripped the traditional meaning of presbyter. That’s why English speaking Catholics use the word priest rather than presbyter or elder; and why Protestants use the words presbyter or elder rather than priest. Put another way, regular Catholics and Protestants know the difference in meaning between priest and presbyter; and they know that the difference is huge. "Priest" accords special sacerdotal powers, while "elder" strips the bearer of that name of any special sacerdotal powers.

    I also think that it is important to note that the intent behind this substitution of presbyter for priest is made even clearer when you look at Kiko’s native language, Spanish. There “presbitero” replaces “sacerdote.”

    ReplyDelete
  18. Hello again all!
    What seems to be missed here is the apparentness that no matter who comes on here anonymously to defend the NCW, light can only be shed on one
    truth. "My Catechists said so, therefore it has to be true!" The proponents of the NCW will profess it in this manner no matter what the Holy Father says. I just love the nitpicking of what is to be proclaimed as well. Sounds like the Bible Verse armed JW's that walk our villages and try to proclaim their version of the Bible. The NCW does the same thing when they go out 2 by 2. Here we go folks, another religion in the making. Like Luther, I will eat up the pieces I want and spit out the pieces I don't like.

    The phrase of the day is "JOY"

    Kenneth G. San Agustin

    ReplyDelete