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9/19/2014
WRONG ATTITUDE
Just today the Pope gave us a very deep answer to all these
nitpickers on the liturgy of the Neocatechumenal Way. Admittedly these people
are a very minuscule minority but they are so annoying. They are like these irksome mosquitos that
keep buzzing around someone trying to catch some sleep. And perhaps that is
their intention!
Let us listen to the freshness of Pope Francis. "In
front of many pastoral needs, in front of so many requests of men and women, we
run the risk of turning in on ourselves in an attitude of fear and defense. And
from there comes the temptation of sufficiency and clericalism that encode
faith in rules and instructions, as did the scribes, the Pharisees and the scribes
of the time of Jesus. "
Instead of discussing ways of how to reach the un-churched we
lose our time squabbling about sitting and dancing and prostrating and
kneeling… Obviously without
referring to the theme that is being aired here in Guam by this microscopic
minority as if it is the biggest problem
in the Pacific (!!!), the Pope is saying, ‘open up, look at the essentials’. He is speaking of an attitude that he feels
should govern all our discussions. If we close ourselves in the
hypocritical bitterness of codes and regulations, we risk not listening to the
cries of those who are suffering and who may discover in the Church a haven for
their wounds..
Speaking to the
participants of the International Meeting 'The pastoral plan of Evangelii
Gaudium' organized by the Pontifical Council for Promoting the New
Evangelization,
the Pope continued, “I said already a few times before that the Church
seems to me to be a field hospital: many people asking us to heal their wounds,
asking us what they asked of Jesus: nearness, closeness. But with this attitude
of the scribes, the doctors of the law and the Pharisees, we never give a
testimony of closeness. … How much poverty and loneliness unfortunately we see
in today's world! How many people live in great suffering and ask from the
Church to be a sign of closeness, kindness, solidarity and mercy of the Lord
... ".
Moreover, days ago, in Santa Martha, Pope Francis had
already answered to a recurrent objection: "Some of you may say: 'But,
Father, don’t Christians have the law?' Yes! Jesus said: 'I did not come to
abolish the law but to bring it to fulfillment.’ And the fulfillment of the
law, for example, are the Beatitudes, the law of love, total love, as He -
Jesus - has loved us. And when Jesus rebukes these doctors of the law, he scolds
them for having made of the law so many petty slave laws of numerous minor
things one must do. "
It is so sad that instead of rejoicing that so many people
are coming back to the Church also through the Neocatechumenal Way, some
protest and condemn. But on reflecting, what is the big surprise? Jesus
predicted this in the parable of the Prodigal Son. The elder brother when he
returns from the fields gets so angry because his Father made a feast for his
brother who has returned from his profligate lifestyle, that he refused to
enter into the house and party. “Now we must celebrate and rejoice, because your brother was
dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.’” Let us have a look again at Luke 15.
ReplyDeleteThe account in the following comment is why we need to record at every opportunity. Record every homily from these guys. This is the kind of thing that has to be sent to the Nuncio so he can hear for himself the grave abuse from the pulpit.
AnonymousSeptember 20, 2014 at 1:16 PM
...the preacher man talked about the DEVIL! "The devil is present today. Just look at what is happening our diocese. Just look at ISIS!" Was he comparing the problems of our diocese to ISIS? I think so! Talk about beheading....who is beheading whom...preacher man?
So WHAT is happening in our diocese? Here's what's happening in our diocese. People, long abused by this archbishop, are standing up and saying ENOUGH IS ENOUGH. The office of the bishop does not give him the authority to cheat, lie, slander and malign. And people have had enough.
Obviously the "preacher man" is trying to whip up a frenzy by comparing our opposition to what is happening in Iraq and Syria. That is truly pathetic and a grave abuse of both pulpit and people. Real persecution is occurring in the Middle East.
The only "persecution" happening here is the "arduous and painful closure" to his own assignment that the Archbishop has brought onto himself. We have only had to expose his own words and actions. So to compare the Archbishop's self-imposed troubles to the real suffering in the Middle East???? VOMIT!
The "preacher man" and his ilk know that the archbishop is a bully and a liar, but they must prop him up. Without him they don't have power. Without him they would be wiped away and they know it. So they are desperate to turn the people against our efforts to hold the Archbishop accountable.
So record, record, record. We must expose these charlatans who use our pulpits to spread their invective and try to turn the good people of Guam on each other.
But speaking of the "devil in our diocese", now would be a good time to show Archbishop Apuron's true legacy, a legacy of letting the devil in. After thirty years of his reign, here's what Guam has come to:
Guam has the most liberal abortion laws in the nation which allow for the termination of nearly one out of ten pregnancies with more than 60% being Chamorro. (2013 Guam Medical Records)
Guam has the highest divorce rate in the world (4.7 divorces per 1000 population, 2010 Guam Statistical Yearbook vs Russia 4.5 per 1000, 2011 United Nations Demographic Yearbook)
Guam has the 14th highest suicide rate in the world and a rate 1.2 times the national average. (2011 World Health Organization and A Profile of Suicide on Guam, September 2011)
Guam has a 20% higher out of wedlock birth rate (60%) compared to the rest of the nation. (40.8%, CDC 2010) Note: Guam stopped reporting “illegitimate” births in 2005. 60% is based on the average between 2000 and 2005)
Guam has double the teen birthrate compared to the rest of the nation. (Guam PDN, Editorial, 6/25/13)
Guam’s rape rate is 94.4 per 100,000 (2011 Yearbook: 151 reported rapes). This is nearly triple the national average of 29.8. (U.S. Census Bureau, Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2013, Table 314)
AND WORST OF ALL: Guam abuses and neglects its children at nearly double the national average . (Guam child maltreatment rate of 76.81 per 1000 children based on 2012 CPS report and 2010 census vs 41.2 per 1000 children national average as per Table 3-2, Child Maltreatment 2011, Children’s Bureau, U.S. DPHHS)
And all this while he jets around the world singing "no one can get me" and hobnobbing with the Kiko's...as he is even now.
Meanwhile, everyone else, record, record, record.
Dear Anonymous at 8:37 am,
DeleteWhy do you copy from the jungle and paste it here??
So, you prefer that people desecrate the Mass by spying? This is a desecration of the Mass. Do you even understand what the priest is saying when he said that the Devil is present today? The Devil is indeed present today!!! He is the one tempting people to sin. Do you not believe that?? The division in our Church is indeed caused by the Devil because it is the Devil who tempts the members to sin. The priest is not saying that YOU are the Devil or that Tim Rohr is the Devil. The fact that you THINK the priest is saying that you are the Devil says more about yourself. Why would anyone think that he/she is the Devil unless they feel guilty for acting like one?
When the priest said "Look at ISIS!", we can see that the Devil tempts ISIS into doing the things they are doing. If you think the priest is comparing you to ISIS, then perhaps you need to look deeper into yourself and ask how you came to that conclusion. Or is it simply Tim Rohr brainwashing you into making you think that way.
When I was a child, my mother would tell me that there is an angel in my right and a devil on my left. The devil on my left would whisper things to me in trying to get me into doing the wrong things while my angel on the right would consistently tell me not to listen to the devil. When I end up doing the wrong things, that does NOT mean that I am the Devil incarnate.
Even Pope Francis speaks clearly of the devil. “We are all tempted because the law of our spiritual life, our Christian life is a struggle: a struggle. That’s because the Prince of this world, Satan, doesn’t want our holiness, he doesn’t want us to follow Christ. Maybe some of you might say: ‘But Father, how old fashioned you are to speak about the devil in the 21st century!’ But look out because the devil is present! The devil is here… even in the 21st century! And we mustn’t be naïve, right? We must learn from the Gospel how to fight against Satan.” Pope Francis in his homily at the Mass celebrated on Friday, April 11th, 2014 in the Santa Marta residence, Rome
DeleteRecord, record, record… We got nothing to hide. Truth is never afraid of being uncovered!
DeleteDiana - If you didn't want to entertain something that was brought over from Jungle Watch, why did you even respond?
DeleteDear Anonymous at 12:01 pm,
DeleteI responded because I chose to publish it. It turned out to be a prudent choice.
Anon @ 9:52 AM: You are so right! If there is nothing to hide and there is only truth in what is being said, there shouldn't be any fear of being recorded.
DeleteDear Anonymous at 9:52 am,
DeleteExcept that it becomes a desecration of the Mass. A person is supposed to attend Mass for God, not as a spy so they can give recordings to Tim Rohr for his sole purpose of mocking the homily.
Is this you, Tim? It definitely looks as if it comes from Jungle Watch!
ReplyDelete“They dispute not in order to find or even to seek Truth, but for victory, and to appear the more learned and strenuous upholders of a contrary opinion. Such persons should be avoided by all who have not a good breastplate of patience.” This quote from Giordano Bruno, a Dominican priest who finished off badly, summarizes well the attitude of these people who want to bash Archbishop at all costs and at every moment. Shame on you.
ReplyDeleteDon't record makes Jucatan more nervous!!
ReplyDeleteDiana, you may delete what I am saying as much as you wish. But you know, it is an Ancient truth that words ever written down do not die out, they'll come back to haunt you.
ReplyDeleteDear voice of faith,
DeleteThe reason I did not publish one of your comments was because of your name-calling. In your comment, you called me "heartless", which is uncalled for. I have deleted so many comments from my blog because of insults, name-calling, derogatory and vulgar language, and other things I find unacceptable.
If you can't win an argument, shout them down, call them names. This is an old trick of the trade – the company of Tim Rohr and voice-of-faith (!!!!!)) are experts in it.
Deletevoice-of-faith September 21, 2014 at 10:12 AM
Deleteancient truth? We speak in the reality of the "living" truth that never....NEVER DIES.
if we don't understand...we don't understand. We can ask God for mercy for those things we don't understand. voice of faith? yeah right.
Here is a question for , dear Diana. Tim Rohr claims that if any of his kids would ask permission to join the NeoCat, he would deny it until the kid is living in his house. In other words to say it, the kid would need to leave and be separated from her/his family in case the kids would like to join. What would you recommend to the kid? Should she/he be obedient to Tim, stay home and stay away from the NeoCat, or should the kid move out, live apart her/his famil, apart from the influence of Tim and join your kind of Christianity, the NeoCat? What would you say? What would the NeoCat say?
ReplyDeleteDear voice of faith,
DeleteThis is my opinion on this issue. If the child is a minor, he/she should be obedient to his/her parents. So if Tim does not want his child (who is a minor) to enter the Way, he/she must obey his/her father.
On the other hand, if his son or daughter is not a minor, he/she should not even be living with mom and dad. They should have left the nest and be on their own. If he/she wants to join the Way, he/she can join the Way. And they should also ask their father his forgiveness. If the adult child is living with mom and dad; and the adult child joins the Way, they are welcome in the Way. As an adult, he can make that decision. But he/she must still ask his/her parents for forgiveness since they are against that decision.
"if his son or daughter is not a minor, he/she should not even be living with mom and dad. They should have left the nest and be on their own."
DeleteYour statement shows that you definitely are not a local, born & raised on Guam woman.
Dear Anonymous at 12:07 pm,
DeleteIt is prejudice to stereotype all Chamorros as having their adult children living under their roof.
So you demand kids of age 18 or older to leave the house of their father and mother in order to join the NeoCat? How could you say that? Then you would be the kid's mother and father and true family in the NeoCat, right? What a preposterous idea. You would not know how to take care of the needs of a young man or woman... Only the true parents know! Now, do you understand why people say NeoCat destroys the families?!
DeleteDear voice of faith,
DeleteAn 18 year old who joins the military leaves home, and I do not hear any complaints from you. Are you going to tell me that this 18 year old who decides to join the military should stay at home because only mom and dad decides WHEN he should leave? An adult should be able to make his/her own decisions. There is something seriously wrong if only mommy and daddy makes all the decisions for an adult. Either mom and dad is extremely controlling or the adult child is so severely mentally handicap that he is incapable of making any decisions for himself.
Also, if the adult child living at home decides to join the Way, the Way will welcome him/her. But we would not tell him/her to leave the home in order to join the Way. If the parents kick him/her out of the home because of joining the Way, that is the choice of the parents. Do not blame it on the Way..
Delete"Instead of discussing ways of how to reach the un-churched"
ReplyDeleteThat's one of the problems with the NCW. They come into the Catholic churches to recruit the "churched".
Dear Anonymous at 12:19 pm,
DeleteHave you not been reading the comments from anonymous posters on this blog who say they are Catholic? There is Isaias Ginson who cannot answer a simple question when I asked him if he believes if Jesus is God. He even implies that we are wrong in calling Jesus our Lord and King. Then there is Voice of faith who thinks that Jesus is Christian with a Christian spirit. If these are the Catholics who go to the regular mass, then it appears that they are "unchurched" despite that they attend church.
Ginson cannot answer the question. He is 7th Day Adventist. It just goes to show that the Protestants are now beginning to take interest in the falling out of the Catholic Church here on Guam. So Sad!
DeleteShame on the priests who aren't doing their jobs and need the NCW to come to their rescue to teach "the way" to the "churched". What a slap in the face Diana!!
DeleteDear Anonymous at 8:54 pm,
DeleteWhat makes you think I am blaming the priests? Have you seen the behavior of some people in the regular mass? I have actually seen a man reading the Umatuna DURING Mass!!! And then look at where most people are sitting. Very few of them sit in the front. Most pews in the back are full. In fact, people fill up the back pews closer to the door rather than the front pews closer to the altar and the priest. The problem is found in the attitude of many people.
Diana -- You are indirectly blaming the priests when you come into the church and try to recruit people to join the NCW.
DeleteDear Anonymous at 8:01 am,
DeleteIt was the priest who allowed us to enter his parish in the first place because it was the priest who sees that his flock needs help.
Diana dear, just because i talk more about the humanity of Jesus doesn't mean i deny his divinity. Wherever you got that impression you are wrong. I am a believer.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, Auxiliary Bishop Peter was a classmate of mine at RMS Newark. He is a good, humble man and i will not be surprise that he maybe the next Diocesan Bishop of Florida.
Isias this is a head scratcher why go against the WAY? When you and your mother are on it and you interest with Tim's motive. WTH? What is your objective and what sort of plot in your mind?
DeleteI am edified how you Diana manage to keep the conversation always civil and respectful. And this despite all the provocations. Respect is a biblical principle that is becoming increasingly rare in our world today. 1 Thessalonians 5:12-13 We ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Be at peace among yourselves.
ReplyDeleteAlthough you think "she" is civil and respectful, Diana's responses do not always answer the questions and sometimes doesn't make sense. "She" evades the question by throwing you off on another subject as shown in many of her responses.
DeleteDear Anonymous at 7:54 am,
DeleteI do respond to their questions, and I certainly do not evade the questions. They just do not like my responses.
I have a question Diana. Why does the Neocatechumenal Way use a Jewish menorah on the table during the Eucharist?
DeleteDear Anonymous at 11:39 am,
DeleteWe do not use the menorah during the Eucharist. We use it during the Easter Vigil. The Eastern Catholics (who are in union with the Pope) as well as the Eastern Orthodox Christians also use the Jewish menorah in their altar. The menorah symbolizes the tree of life and the gifts of the Holy Spirit.
Dear Diana, I understand you use a nine-branched "menorah". How does this relate to the gifts of the Holy Spirit?
DeleteDear Anonymous at 11:25 pm,
DeleteIf it is a nine branch menorah, it symbolized the tree of life. If it s the seven-branch, it symbolized the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Some communities use a seven-branch menorah.