Thursday, October 24, 2019

Instrumentum Laboris, Amazon Synod 2019, Married Priests



Part III, Chapter IV, on suggestion to discuss married priests among proven men (viri probati):
Affirming that celibacy is a gift for the Church, it is requested that, for the most remote areas of the region, the possibility be studied for the priestly ordination of elderly people, preferably indigenous ones, respected and accepted by their community, even if they already have an established and stable family, in order to ensure the [availability of the] Sacraments that accompany and sustain the Christian life.

Pope Says Exception Possible But No Change to Latin Celibacy: Synod Cardinal Mark Ouellet's Skepticism of Married Latin Priests

Source: https://www.catholicworldreport.com/2019/10/02/cardinal-ouellet-defends-priestly-celibacy-ahead-of-amazon-synod/
(10/3/19)

Excerpt:
“I am not against the fact that there is a debate, but I think at this time of history and of the Church there is a need of reflection…” he said. “And so, my intervention is to substantiate the debate, to give something substantial to aid discernment.”

“I remain skeptical out of convictions and knowledge of the Catholic tradition in the Latin rite, so I think this has to be very much taken care of in the debate,” he continued, adding that he remains open to what will happen during the synod.

Ouellet also noted he knows Pope Francis has mentioned having no intention to change Church practice on priestly celibacy in the Latin rite, but that he has not excluded the possibility of an exception.


Friday, August 30, 2019

Church Can "Regulate & Govern" Discipline of Celibacy: Dragani

Source: https://east2west.org/articles/mandatory_clerical_celibacy/
Accessed: 8/30/2019

The direct quote follows here:

Thus, clerical celibacy is clearly a discipline that the Church has the authority to regulate and govern. This fact bears witness against it being a tradition “demanded by the apostles.”[68] So is clerical celibacy “really necessary and indispensable to the priesthood?”[69] The answer is a resounding no.

This article originally appeared in Eastern Churches Journal.



Friday, August 23, 2019

French Archbishop Wintzer: Married Men "Still Continuing" Jobs, Family & Professional Life While Serving as Married Priests...

 ..like married permanent deacons.  

This model means that like married deacons, married priests would continue professional careers, and married priests would need to be financially self-sufficent.  

This model addresses concerns that married priests would need higher salaries in that the model is that of married permanent deacons that are not paid a salary by the Church.  A married priest with a professional career would be like a married deacon with a professional career already in progress or retired.

Here is a direct quote from the La Croix article citing Archbishop Wintzer:

"But I think that, as in the Eastern Churches, married men could be called to be priests, while still continuing in their jobs," he added.

They will still be able to maintain "their family and professional lives," Wintzer said.

"On Sundays, they will preside over the liturgical assembly, will lead prayer and preach the Gospel," he explained.

Source: https://international.la-croix.com/news/french-bishop-backs-ordination-of-married-men/9670 


Sunday, March 17, 2019

St. Patrick, Son of a Deacon, and Grandson of Clergyman

According to https://www.biography.com/people/st-patrick-9434729, St. Patrick's dad was a deacon and his grandfather was a member of the clergy.  Here is an except:



"His father, Calphurnius, was a deacon from a Roman family of high social standing. Patrick's mother, Conchessa, was a close relative of the great patron St. Martin of Tours. Patrick's grandfather, Pontius, was also a member of the clergy." 

Saturday, March 2, 2019

Maria Valtorta's Private Revelation on Peter's Wife Being Alive During at Least the Wedding at Cana [& Separate, Non-Confirmable, Side Comment on Possible Name of Peter's Wife (Porferia) & Comment on Possible Adopted Son (Javis)]

This was taken from a comment in response to an Aleteia article on Peter's mother-in-law in Feb. 2019.  

A cursory online review of the name, Maria Valtorta, revealed that a handful of bishops granted the imprimatur.  My source is from this website HERE with this paragraph and this photo of a list of bishops:

"Incidentally, as with Maria Valtora, Saint Faustina’s writings were initially placed under the Index by Pope John XXIII. There is life after death, as Buckley observed. Much of Valtorta’s work has already seen this new life. Her writings have already received the Nihil Obstat and Imprimatur of a few Catholic bishops, including Bishop Roman Danylak, attesting to the orthodoxy of morals and doctrine within her revelations. Bishop Danylak, additionally provided an interesting explanation as to why works like Saint Faustina’s and Maria Valtorta’s were placed on the Index in the first place. “Theologians and bishops have problems with supernatural phenomena,” he pointed out, recognizing the taboo-nature of the subject in many ecclesial circles." 




______________________________________________________________________________

PRIVATE REVELATION

According to Maria Valtorta, who is a favorite of TLM Catholics and who received the Nihil Obstat & Imprimatur, Peter's wife was alive during at least the Wedding at Cana (go to vision on Oct. 17, 1944, in this source: https://sites.google.com/site/poemvaltorta/home).  
We saved a PDF of this link in case it is removed or lost.


The Maria Valtorta Research Centre,  Fireworks, Sunrise of Truth Encyclopedia. Vol. 1. Kolbe's Publications: Louvain, 1996.

 

Vision: Jesus Invited to the Wedding at Cana

17th October 1944.

I see the kitchen in Peter's house. In addition to Jesus, there are Peter and his wife, James and John. I think they have just finished eating their supper. They are talking, and Jesus takes an interest in fishing.

Andrew enters and says: 'Master, here is the man in whose house You are living, together with another man who says he is Your cousin."

Jesus gets up and goes towards the door saying: "Let them come in." And when He sees Judas Thaddeus [not to be confused with Judas Iscariot] in the light of the oil lamp and of the fireplace, He exclaims: "You, Judas?!"

"Yes, Jesus." They kiss each other.

Judas Thaddeus is a handsome man, in the fullness of his virile manhood. He is tall, although not quite so tall as Jesus, well built and strong, of a dark brown-olive complexion, like saint Joseph when young, but not sallow: his eyes have something in common with those of Jesus, because they are blue, verging on periwinkle. His brown beard is squarely cut, his hair wavy, but not so curly as Jesus', and is the same hue as his beard.

"I have come from Capernaum, I went there by boat and I have come here in the same boat to gain time. Your Mother sends me; She says: 'Susanna is getting married tomorrow; please come to the wedding'. Mary will be there, and also my mother and brothers. All the relatives have been invited. You would be the only one absent, and they ask You to come and make the young couple happy."

Jesus bows lightly stretching out His arms and says: "A wish of My Mother is a law for Me. But I will come also for Susanna's and our relatives' sake. Only... I am sorry for you..." and He looks at Peter and the others. "They are My friends" He explains to His cousin. And then He mentions their names, beginning with Peter's. He then adds: "And this is John" with a special expression that causes Judas Thaddeus to look at him more carefully while the beloved disciple blushes. He ends the introductions stating: "My friends, this is Judas, son of Alphaeus, My cousin according to the custom of the world, because he is the son of the brother of My Mother's spouse. A very good friend of Mine, and a companion both in life and in work."

"My house is open to you as it is to the Master. Sit down" and then addressing Jesus, Peter says: "So? Are we no longer going to Jerusalem with You?"

"Of course you will come. I will go after the wedding feast. The only difference is that I will not stop at Nazareth any longer."

"Quite right, Jesus, because Your Mother is my guest for a few days. That is what we intend to do. She also will come there after the wedding." It is the man from Capernaum who speaks thus.

"This is what we will do. I will now go in Judas' boat to Tiberias and from there to Cana. With the same boat I will come back to Capernaum with My Mother, and with you. You will come the day after the next Sabbath, Simon, if you still wish to come, and we will go to Jerusalem for Passover."

"Of course I want to come! Nay, I will come on the Sabbath to hear You in the synagogue."

"Are You already teaching, Jesus?" asks Thaddeus.

"Yes, My cousin."

"And you should hear His words! Ah! no one else speaks like Him!" exclaims Peter.

Judas [Thaddeus] sighs. With his head resting on his hand, his elbow on his knee, he looks at Jesus and sighs. He seems anxious to speak but does not dare.

Jesus encourages him: "What is the matter, Judas? Why do you look at Me and sigh?"

"Nothing."

"No. It must be something. Am I no longer the Jesus of Whom you were fond? From Whom you had no secrets?"

"Of course You are! And how I miss You, You the Master of Your older cousin..."

"Well, then! Speak."

"I wanted to tell You... Jesus... be careful... You have a Mother... She has but You... You want to be a 'rabbi' different from the others and You know, better than I do, that... that the powerful classes do not allow anything which may differ from the customary laws they have laid down. I know Your way of thinking... it is a holy one... But the world is not holy... and it oppresses saints... Jesus... You know the fate of Your cousin the Baptist... He is in jail, and if he is not yet dead, it is because that evil Tetrarch is afraid of the crowds and of the wrath of God. As evil and superstitious as cruel and lustful... You... what are You going to do? To what fate are You going to expose Yourself?"

"Judas, you are so familiar with My way of thinking, and that is what you ask Me? Are you speaking on your own initiative? No, don't lie! You have been sent, certainly not by My Mother, to tell Me such things..."

Judas lowers his head and becomes silent.

"Speak, cousin."

"My father... and Joseph and Simon with him... You know, for Your sake, because they are fond of You and Mary... do not look favourably on what You intend doing... and... and they would like You to think of Your Mother..."

"And what do you think?"

"I... I... "

"You are drawn in opposite directions by the voices coming from High Above and those coming from the world. I am not saying from below. I say from the world. The same applies to James, even more so. But I tell you that above the world there is Heaven, and above the interest of the world there is the cause of God. You must change your ways of thinking. When you learn to do that, you will be perfect.

"But... and Your Mother?"

"Judas, She is the only one who, according to the way of thinking of the world, should be entitled to recall Me to My duty as a son: that is to My duty to work for Her, and provide for Her material needs, to My duty to assist and comfort Her with My presence. But She does not ask for any of these things. Since She had Me, She knew She would lose Me, to find Me once again in a much wider manner than the small family circle... And since then She has prepared Herself for that.

"Her unreserved voluntary donation of Herself to God is nothing new. Her mother offered Her in the Temple before She even smiled at life. And - as She told Me the innumerable times She spoke to Me of Her holy childhood, holding Me close to Her heart in the long winter evenings or in the clear starry summer nights - She gave Herself to God since the dawn of Her life in this world. And She gave Herself even more when She had Me, that She might be where I am, fulfilling the Mission given to Me by God. Everybody will abandon Me at a certain moment, perhaps only for a few minutes, but everyone will be overcome by cowardice, and you will think that it would have been better, for your own safety, if you had never known Me. But She, Who understood and knows, She will always be with Me. And you will become Mine, once again, through Her. With the power of Her unshaken, loving faith, She will draw you to Herself and

will thus bring you to Me, because I am in My Mother, and She is in Me, and We are in God.

"I would like you all to understand that, both you who are My relatives according to the world, and you, friends and children in a supernatural way. Neither you, nor anyone else know Who My Mother is. But if you knew, you would not criticise Her in your hearts stating She is not capable of keeping Me subject to Her, but you would venerate Her as the closest friend of God, the Mighty Woman Who can obtain all graces from the heart of the Eternal Father and from Her beloved Son. I will certainly come to Cana. I want to make Her happy. You will understand better after the wedding." Jesus is majestic and persuasive.

Judas gazes at Him. He is thinking. He then says: "And I will certainly come with You, with these friends, if You want me... because I feel that what You say is right. Forgive my blindness and my brothers'. You are so much holier than we are!..."

"I bear no grudge against those who do not know Me. I am also without ill-feeling towards those who hate Me. But I feel sorry for them, because of the harm they do themselves. What have you got in that satchel?"

"The tunic Your Mother sent You. It is a big feast tomorrow. She thinks that Her Jesus will need it, so that He may not look out of place amongst all the guests. She worked from early morning till late night every day, to have it ready for You. But She did not finish the mantle. Its fringes are not yet ready and She is very sorry about it."

"It does not matter. I will wear this one, and I will keep that one for Jerusalem. The Temple is much more important than a wedding feast."

"She will be so happy."

"If you want to be on the way to Cana at dawn, you ought to leave at once. The moon is rising and it will be a pleasant crossing", says Peter.

"Let us go, then. Come, John. I am taking you with Me. Goodbye, Simon Peter, James, Andrew. I will see you on the Sabbath evening at Capernaum. Goodbye, woman. Peace be with you and your house."

Jesus goes out with Judas and John. Peter follows them as far as the lake and helps them cast off.

And the vision ends.

[Jesus says to Maria Valtorta:] "When it is time to arrange the work in order, insert the vision of the wedding at Cana here. Put it in the date (16th January 1944)."



CHURCH FATHER
Clement of Alexandria said that Peter's wife died a martyr.  See, for example, this source: https://godwords.org/was-peters-wife-martyred/

Excerpt:

The Bible doesn’t mention that Peter’s wife was martyred. After doing a bit of looking, it appears that Clement of Alexandria wrote the following:

They say, accordingly, that the blessed Peter, on seeing his wife led to death, rejoiced on account of her call and conveyance home, and called very encouragingly and comfortingly, addressing her by name, “Remember thou the Lord.” Such was the marriage of the blessed and their perfect disposition towards those dearest to them.

This comes from Clement’s The Stromata, or Miscellanies: Book VII.




Icon by Eileen McCabe


_______________________________________________________________________
SIDE NOTE:

Citing Maria Valtorta on St. Peter's wife and adopted son, the comment that appeared on Aleteia is here.


No, St Peter's wife name is Porferia and she was there inside the house when Jesus came in with the Apostles and she actually the one leading them where her mother laying down on a small bed with high fever. They did not have any kids. The reason when they have found/rescued an orphan kid name Javis, St Peter asked Mother Mary to ask the Lord to give the child to him, so that his wife Porferia will not be alone when they go out preaching. This kid was the kid with fish and 5 loaves of bread and Jesus multiply them to feed 5,000 people. Another time this kid was also present at the miracle of pool at Bethsaida where a lame guy been there near the pool but could not get into the pool as soon as the water is stirred by the Angel bringing the healing miracle. This kid was Javis-became Marjiam, became Mirjiam and finally our Lord change his name into Marshall, after a child who was killed by insurectos because of their hate to the Master, that child Marshall was killed brutally and was placed at Lazarus fence. Javis now became Marshall ; was prophesied by our Lord that He will be a Priest of the Lord when he grow up. But as a child back then he will preach to the little children about the Lord. 
During the crucifixion of our Lord, Javis was with Porferia in Gallilee, in obedience to The Lord not to come until the greatest miracle will happen (resurrection) for a child who loves so much his master will not able to handle the horrible event that took place during the crucifixion.
During the time when St Peter had to leave for Rome, he was at ease to leave Porferia by herself and her mother having a kid that can help milk a goat and gather firewood etc... Porferia was also very delighted having to have a son. Javis love St Peter and Porferia instantly. 
This revelation was given to Jesus secretary: Maria Valtorta in 1940's the books of our Lord titled: Poem of Man-God, now change to "The Gospel as it was revealed to me" the new testament widen and expounded scope by our Lord's perspective.

Saturday, February 23, 2019

De Souza: Missionary Failure?

http://m.ncregister.com/daily-news/married-priests-and-missionary-failure

Focusing on the failure of missionary efforts in the Amazon, Fr. de Sousa wrote:
"What’s new in the viri probati proposal is that married men, always Catholics of the Latin rite, could be ordained not only deacons, but priests. It would be a substantial change and a novelty, but not a complete novelty.
It is a novelty as a response to the lack of clergy in a large mission territory. Those familiar with the history of the Church in the United States and Canada would recognize the situation of the Amazon as similar to the early years of the Church in North America, where the few missionary clergy from France and Spain had immense territories to cover. Those historical accounts can be read in the Jesuit Relations or in the letters of the Spanish missions or the first bishops of Quebec. Willa Cather’s acclaimed novel Death Comes for the Archbishop gives that same history dramatic treatment in the setting of New Mexico.
The problem of pastoral care of the Amazon is, therefore, not a new problem. The viri probati solution is new. It argues that the local population is, for whatever reason, unable to provide priestly vocations and that missionary vocations are not to be had. By default, therefore, a relaxation of priestly celibacy is in order.
The viri probati proposal, therefore, is not advanced as a good in itself, but, rather, as a concession to a sustained missionary failure. This constitutes two failures, actually: a failure of evangelization, in that the local Catholic population seems incapable of producing priestly vocations, and a failure of the surrounding countries to provide missionary priests to serve the people.
The latter problem is acute. Latin America, even 500 years after the arrival of the early missionaries, still does not produce priestly vocations in the numbers that have been seen in Europe and North America. Hence, it has few missionary priests to send even in its own lands, to say nothing of going abroad. The Church in Brazil, for example, most proximate to the Amazon, has nothing compared to the clerical strength of numbers that permitted Irish, French and Spanish missionary priests to come to the New World, or even current priests from India and Nigeria who serve abroad.
Modifications of priestly celibacy in the Latin rite have come largely in response to the desire for Christian unity and out of respect for the Eastern tradition of married deacons and priests. A modification in response to pastoral failure within the Latin rite would be a new step."

Conservative Lay British Catholics Favor Married Priests

Source: https://catholicherald.co.uk/issues/november-17th-2017/the-unlikely-champions-of-married-priests

The retired Conservative politician Ann Widdecombe is no one’s idea of a liberation theologian. But she supports married priests. “In this country, hundreds of Anglican priests have crossed over to Rome and stayed married, whereas a Catholic priest must choose between marrying and his vocation,” she told me. “But I don’t think we should lift the celibacy rule wholesale. That would cause a lot of division. What the Pope should do, rather, is leave it to the archbishops and let it be decided on a case-by-case basis.”

Damian Thompson, editor-in-chief of the Catholic Herald, agrees. “A vocation to celibacy isn’t the same thing as a vocation to the priesthood,” he observes. “We already recognise that by ordaining married men who belong to Eastern Rite churches or were previously Anglican clergy.”

He hopes that married priests would solve more problems than just the vocations crisis.

“This is a delicate point,” Thompson says, “but I think the ban on marriage lies behind the dramatic over-representation of gay priests in parts of the West. Although most of these men lead faithful celibate lives, and I’m horrified by attempts to exclude gay men from seminaries, shouldn’t we address this imbalance?”

Then there are pastoral concerns.

“This is my main point,” says Thompson. “I know married Catholic men who would make outstanding priests. Ending compulsory celibacy would be a radical step but ultimately a far safer one than allowing women deacons, which would inevitably lead to schism.”

Lord Alton of Liverpool, one of Britain’s foremost Catholic laymen, also cites the Eastern Churches, most of which have never required their priests to remain celibate. “I have travelled in many jurisdictions where, for centuries, Greek Catholic and other Rites, in full communion with Rome, have married priests who faithfully serve their communities,” says the leading pro-life champion. “So, Pope Francis is acting in accordance with precedent and current practice in suggesting that diocesan bishops may base their decision on pastoral needs.”

Clement of Alexandria; Stromata


Clement of Alexandria

Or do they (the 'false' Gnostics) also scorn the apostles? Peter and Philip had children, and Philip gave his daughters in marriage. Even Paul did not hesitate in one letter to address his 'consort'. The only reason why he did not take her about with him was that it would have been an inconvenience for his ministry. Accordingly he says in a letter: "Have we not a right to take about with us a wife that is a sister like the other apostles?" (1 Corinthians 9:5) But the latter, in accordance with their particular ministry, devoted themselves to preaching without any distraction, and took their wives with them not as women with whom they had marriage relations, but as 'sisters', that they might be their fellow-ministers in dealing with housewives. It was through them that the Lord's teaching penetrated also the women's quarters without any scandal being aroused. We also know the directions about women deacons which are given by the noble Paul in his second letter to Timothy. Furthermore, the selfsame man cried aloud that "the kingdom of God does not consist in food and drink," not indeed in abstinence from wine and meat, "but in righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit." (Romans 14:17) Which of them goes about like Elijah clad in a sheepskin and a leather girdle? Which of them goes about like Isaiah, naked except for a piece of sacking and without shoes? Or clothed merely in a linen loincloth like Jeremiah? Which of them will imitate John's gnostic way of life? The blessed prophets also lived in this manner and were thankful to the Creator.

Stromata, Book III, 6

They say, accordingly, that the blessed Peter, on seeing his wife led to death, rejoiced on account of her call and conveyance home, and called very encouragingly and comfortingly, addressing her by name, "Remember the Lord." Such was the marriage of the blessed and their perfect disposition towards those dearest to them. 
Thus also the Apostle says, "that he who marries should be as though he married not," (cf. 1 Corinthians 7:29) and deem his marriage free of inordinate affection, and inseparable from love to the Lord; to which the true husband exhorted his wife to cling on her departure out of this life to the Lord.

Was not then faith in the hope after death conspicuous in the case of those who gave thanks to God even in the very extremities of their punishments? For firm, in my opinion, was the faith they possessed, which was followed by works of faith.


Stromata, Book VII, 11