Original Franciscan "Third Order" -- Confraternity of Penitents
Make Every Day a Path to Holiness
Confraternity of Penitents Newsletter -- October 2024
SPIRITUAL GUARDIAN’S REFLECTION: DOES DIVINE INSPIRATION INHABIT EVERY FAITH?
Fr. Joseph Tuscan, OFM Cap, our Spiritual Guardian, asked that this reflection be shared in his column for the October Newsletter. Printed with permission of the author:
https://www.thecatholicthing.org/2024/09/27/does-divine-inspiration-inhabit-every-faith/
Does ‘Divine Inspiration Inhabit Every Faith’? By Fr. Thomas G. Weinandy, OFM, Cap.
Friday, September 27, 2024
Pope Francis has made three seriously misleading statements recently. On September 13th, prior to leaving Singapore, he spoke to an interreligious group of young people at a Catholic junior college. He stated: “All religions are a path to arrive at God.” He elaborated: “I will use an analogy, they are like different languages that express the divine.”
He encouraged the young people of various religions to dialogue with one another. He noted: “There’s only one God, and each of us has a language to arrive at God. Some are Sikh, Muslim, Hindu, Christian, and they are different paths [to God].” Later, on September 17th, in a video message to an interreligious youth conference in Tirana, Albania, Pope Francis praised religious diversity as “a gift from God.”
More recently, on September 24th, the Vatican released a statement that Pope Francis sent to an interreligious gathering for peace in Paris sponsored by the Sant’Egidio Community. Here he wrote of the importance of divine inspiration. “We need to keep meeting, to weave bonds of fraternity, and to allow ourselves to be guided by the divine inspiration present in every faith.” The Italian renders it as the “divine inspiration [that] inhabits every faith.” Pope Francis wants to be pastoral and ecumenical. Nonetheless, as he is frequently wont to do, his statements are ambiguous, and can easily lead to confusion.
While Vatican II did note, in its Declaration on the Relationship of the Church to Non-Christian Religions (Nostra aetate), that “The Catholic Church rejects nothing of what is true and good in these religions,” the Council did not say that all religions were of equal salvific value. Moreover, except for Christianity and Judaism, other religions are, therefore, not inspired by the Holy Spirit. And thus, they contain error; error that locks those who hold such beliefs in darkness, a darkness from which it is difficult to escape.
Most importantly, to declare in an unnuanced way, that “all religions are a path to God,” and so inspired, is to give voice to the words of the Devil. Such assertions insult the singularity of Jesus as the Son of God incarnate, and that in him alone does one find salvation. The Devil rejoices when Jesus is degraded and demeaned, for he cannot tolerate the truth that Jesus is the universal Savior and definitive Lord.
Importantly, unlike Jesus, the founders of other religions do not save from sin and the curse of death. Nor do they provide an enhanced relationship with God. The founders of other religions, such as Mohammed and Buddha, as “prophets,” simply provide knowledge whereby one can relate to God “properly.” Except for Judaism and Christianity, all other religions are, therefore, gnostic by nature. They dispel ignorance by providing what is thought to be saving knowledge.
In its 2000 Declaration Dominus Iesus, the then-Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, wished to identify flawed misunderstandings and erroneous conceptions of Jesus in relation to other “religious traditions of the world,” which risked compromising “the evangelizing mission of the Church.” Thus, Dominus Iesus professed, in accordance with Sacred Scripture and the Magisterium of the Church, that Jesus, as the Father’s only begotten Son, is alone the fullness of divine revelation who singularly possesses the completeness of divine truth.
Likewise, being the Father’s Spirit-anointed Son, Jesus taught the Gospel of salvation and through his saving passion and sacrificial death reconciled all to his Father. The Father, in the love and power of the Holy Spirit, raised Jesus from the dead, thus liberating mankind from sin’s curse.
These conjoined saving acts on the part of Jesus and of his Father, both of whom acted in the Holy Spirit, established Jesus as the preeminent Savior of all, and the sole Lord of both Heaven and Earth. Consequently, Dominus Iesus declared that “Jesus Christ has a significance and a value for the human race and its history, which is unique and singular, proper to him alone, exclusive, universal, and absolute.”
The singularity of Jesus Christ, as the Father’s Son, is also made manifest in another way. Only in being personally united to Jesus, as the risen Savior and universal Lord, do men and women share in his holiness, the very life of the Holy Spirit, and so come to live in communion with his Father as the Father’s children.
Thus, not only does the death and the resurrection make Jesus unique in his manner of existence as Savior and Lord, but it also allows men and women to live, in a singular manner, in communion with him as their Savior and Lord. There is no relationship similar to the relationship between Christ and the believer. It is unique.
This mystery revealed by God the Father, both as to the uniqueness of Jesus his Son and as to mankind’s invitation to live in communion with Him, is therefore singularly Christian and distinguishes Christianity from all other religious traditions, which are not divinely inspired. The Father did not will all religions, nor did he inspire them. What He willed is the Incarnation of His Son, Jesus Christ, so that all might be saved through Him.
By saying that all religions are Spirit-inspired paths to God, Pope Francis not only insulted Jesus in whose name alone is found salvation, but he also contradicted St. Paul’s proclamation. God the Father has “bestowed on him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Philippians 2:9-11)
CONFRATERNITY PHOTO ALBUM: RETREAT PHOTO WITH BISHOP KEVIN C. RHOADES
Bishop Kevin Carl Rhoades was present to offer Mass for the Blessed Solanus Casey Society at the St. Felix Catholic Center, on the Saturday that coincided with the CFP Retreat. The Bishop blessed the newly created Stations of the Cross garden and agreed to have his photo taken with the CFP Retreatants. Left to right: First Row, Sandi Wilde, CFP Postulant, Marianna Esposito, CFP Novice, Melissa Kukla, CFP Novice, Lucy Fernandez, CFP. Second Row: Karen Hopersburger, CFP, Jim Nugent, CFP, Bishop Kevin Rhoades, Madeline Nugent, CFP, Joy Ashley, CFP Novice, Harry Hill, CFP Postulant, Eric Lipscomb, CFP Novice, Kristen Rinaldo, CFP, Ben Rinaldo, CFP. Missing: Shannon Wable, CFP Affiliate, Jackie Stevens, CFP, Fr. Joseph Tuscan, OFM Cap, Retreat Master and CFP Spiritual Guardian.
HUMOR
I think I may need professional help. A butler, a maid, and a chef should do it.
As I get older and remember all the people I’ve lost along the way, I think that maybe a career as tour guide was not for me.
There is an ancient legend that says, “If you can’t sleep at night, it is because you are awake.”
9 out of 10 times when I lose something, it’s because I put it in a safe place.
FROM THE ALESSANDRO PRISON MINISTRY: GROWTH IN UNEXPECTED PLACES
We had a week of artic lows and a ton of lake effect snow. However, we have this fire door off our main day room in the unit. On the exterior of the building, two walls meet at this door, with a little slab in front of the door. In the crack between the wall and the slab, in the midst of frozen temperatures, is a dandelion in full bloom. It must draw heat from the building and its plumbing.
As I pondered where I have been sown in life and how I have reacted, I am struck that this flower and I are brothers in a lot of ways. I know both of us are called to fruitfulness. And it would seem dicey at best that either of us – me or the flower – would be fruitful. Then again, who would have foreseen either of us growing out of season? And we both have been planted by the same Master Gardener. So we will find out what fruit comes, won’t we? – Robert Messer, Alessandro Prison Ministry, CfP Novice 1
NO GREATER LOVE: UNITY OF THE CHURCH
The unity of the future Church is a very prominent theme in the Lord’s High Priestly Prayer (Jn 17). In Volume 2 of Jesus of Nazareth, Pope Benedict explains the meaning of this theme. Another major theme of the high-priestly prayer is the future unity of Jesus' disciples. Uniquely in the Gospels, Jesus' gaze now moves beyond the current community of disciples and is directed toward all those who "believe in me through their word" (Jn 17:20). The vast horizon of the community of believers in times to come opens up across the generations: the Church of the future is included in Jesus' prayer. He pleads for unity for his future disciples.
The Lord repeats this plea four times. Twice the purpose of this unity is indicated as being that the world may believe, that it may "recognize" that Jesus has been sent by the Father: "Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one" (Jn 17:11). "That they may all be one; even as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me" (Jn 17:21). "That they may be one even as we are one ... that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you have sent me" (Jn 17:22-23).
It is clear the that the Lord wanted the future community of believers, the Church, to be united. Why? As Pope Benedict tells us, it is so that the world may believe that Jesus was sent by the Father. The Gospel, the good news that Jesus was sent by the Father, must be one message, not many different and even contradictory messages. In the early Middle Ages, the Church was one united Church mostly in Europe. However, much of the world never heard the Gospel or had lost it through the rise of Islam. With the discovery of the New World starting with Columbus in 1492, the opportunities to spread the Gospel greatly increased. However, this was also the time of the Protestant Reformation which shattered the unity of the Church. This was followed by the Enlightenment which replaced Christianity with various “horizontal” theologies, especially among the rich, educated class in Europe. The preaching of the Gospel to the world has been greatly hindered by the divisions, schisms, and falling away that has occurred for the last two thousand years. Yet the Lord predicted this when He spoke of the end times. “And then many will fall away, and betray one another, and hate one another. And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. And because wickedness is multiplied, most men’s love will grow cold. But he who endures to the end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world, as a testimony to all nations; and then the end will come” (Mt 24:10-14) It seems that the Lord wants the whole world to have the Gospel truly preached to them so that they can accept it or reject it.
Pope Benedict stresses that the unity of the Church must be a visible unity. Protestants have to admit that their churches are not united. They would say that the “true church” consists of all true believers in Jesus Christ regardless of the denomination to which they belong. Thus, the “true church” is “‘invisible.” However, how can the world see an “invisible” unity? How can they believe in Christ Jesus if they do not know what to believe? How can one who is a Christian know that they are in the “true church” of invisible believers? It is quite easy for persons to consider themselves to be a “true believer” whereas those who believe differently are not. What is the criterion for being a “true believer”? This is why there are creeds such as the Apostles’ Creed or the Nicene Creed. They are needed to preserve the unity of the Church, However, there are those who say that creeds, doctrine, and commandments produce disunity and conflict. We need to get rid of these things and just follow Christ. With such conflicting opinions, how does one choose what to believe?
As Catholics, our faith is based on the witness of the Apostles as recorded in the New Testament. This faith begins with God, the God of the Old Testament, the God who revealed Himself first to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. This God sent Jesus Christ to Israel. When Jesus began his ministry when He was about thirty years old, He was quickly recognized by the masses as a prophet. (Mt 16:13-14) However, Peter, speaking for the Apostles, knew that He was more than a prophet. “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” (Mt 16:16) To this day Muslims consider Jesus to be a prophet. Why should we choose the faith of Peter and the Apostles over the opinion of the masses?
The Apostles believed that Jesus was sent by the Father because His teachings were not His own, but that of His Father, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Why did they believe Him? They heard Him speaking, they saw His miracles, and above all, His Mission from the Father was validated by His Death, Resurrection, and Ascension into Heaven. The Apostles certainly had to put their faith in the Lord to the extent that most of them and huge numbers after them died for Him. However, their faith was not blind. The Lord gave them many reasons to believe in Him. After the Apostle Philip asked Jesus to “show us the Father and we shall be satisfied”, (Jn 14:8) the Lord answers “The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority; but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or else believe me for the sake of the works themselves.” (Jn 14:10-11) The “works” that Jesus did (signs or miracles) validated for the Apostles His Mission from the Father.
The Father sent Jesus to earth for a time. In turn, Jesus sent his Apostle to carry on His Mission to the whole world. After the Resurrection, the Lord tells the Apostles “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me even so I send you.” (Jn 20:21) Just as Jesus did not speak on His own authority but was sent by the Father, so the Apostles were not to speak on their own authority but on the authority of the One who sent them. “If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” (Jn 20:22-23) Earlier, a paralytic had been brought to Jesus in the hope that Jesus would heal him. Before He healed him, Jesus said to the paralytic, “Take heart my son; your sins are forgiven.” (Mt 9:2) However, some of the scribes who heard Him say this thought, “This man is blaspheming.” (Mt 9:3) Jesus then showed the scribes His Authority to forgive sins by healing the paralytic. (Mt (9:4-8) Jesus really had the Authority to forgive sins, and he gave this authority to His Apostles.
All four gospels relate Jesus choosing some of his followers to have the special authority as His Apostles. (Mt 4:18-22, Mt 9:9-13, Mk 1:16-20, Mk 2:13-17, Lk 5:1-11, Lk 5:27-32, Jn 1:35-53) He was setting up the hierarchy of the Church. While all could be believers, some were given a special authority to transmit the faith. Of course, this authority did not die with the death of the twelve Apostles. As the Church grew, others were “ordained” to continue to spread the faith. (Acts 13:1-3) This practice is mirrored in the Old Covenant. God chose the brother of Moses, Aaron, to be a priest to offer sacrifice to God. The sons of Aaron continued the priestly office of Aaron after he died. Likewise, only members of the tribe of Levi could serve the priests in the Tent of Meeting and the Jerusalem Temple. The office of the priests and Levites continued until the Jerusalem Temple was destroyed in 70 AD. In the New Covenant, it is not the blood line, but the call of the Holy Spirit which transmits the special authority of the hierarchy. This is called Apostolic Succession where the authority of the first Apostles is transmitted down to the bishops of the present time. The authority to forgive sins (Jn 20:22-23) and “bind and loose” (Mt 16:19) is possessed to this day by validly ordained bishops and their agents, priests.
Apostolic succession is therefore crucial for the unity of the Church which the Lord desired. Of course, other things are also necessary to maintain the unity of the Church. Sacred Scripture which also is necessary for unity. There were many other “Gospels” which appeared in the early centuries of the Church claiming to record the Life and Mission of Jesus Christ. The Catholic Church had to decide which of these were authentic witnesses of Apostolic Tradition. Only the Gospels of Mathew, Mark, Luke and John were accepted as authentic. It is strange that Protestants which reject the authority of the Catholic Church accept the authority of the Gospels whose authenticity was determined by the Catholic Church.
Another thing necessary for unity is the “rule of faith” or creeds. In the early centuries of the Church the Arian Heresy arose which denied the Divinity of Jesus Christ. Even many bishops accepted Arianism since it made Christianity more acceptable to many people. The Church realized that the faith could not continue with some people accepting the Divinity of Christ and others not. In 325 AD the Council of Nicaea released the Nicene Creed which defined the Church position on Christ’s Divinity. Later Councils defined further the Church position on this and other issues where divisions had arisen. Creeds help to assure the visible unity of the Church so that the world can see it. – Jim Nugent, CfP
OUR WAY OF LIFE: A PENITENT’S RESPONSE TO INTERESTING TIMES
There is an ancient Chinese curse: “May you live in interesting times.” The times we are living in right now certainly are interesting.
Let’s start with the Pope. Just a few weeks ago, Pope Francis did something that’s totally unprecedented, to my knowledge: He chose to intervene in a U.S. election. Neither Donald Trump nor Kamala Harris, the two candidates in this year’s presidential election, are pro-life, he said. So just vote for the lesser of two evils.
Roman Pontiffs have historically avoided commenting on U.S. elections because the U.S. has been, and in many areas still is, an anti-Catholic country. Like American anti-Jewishness, it’s not always out there, but it’s always under the surface.
We’ve had two attempted assassination attempts on one of the candidates in a little over one month. In the entire history of our Republic, only nine sitting presidents have been the target of an assassination plot. Until now, you had to get elected before someone took a shot at you. Surprisingly, although both attempts were aimed at the Republican presidential nominee, no Republican has called for curbs on some guns and rifles. It’s enough to make one wonder if at least some Republicans secretly wish Donald Trump dead.
And now liberal Democrats are embracing guns. Not just Tim Walz, the Democratic vice-presidential nominee from Nebraska, but also Kamala Harris, the presidential nominee from California, who told Oprah, “If somebody breaks into my house, they’re getting shot.”
The Federal Reserve made a big point of cutting interest rates by 50 basis points (50 basis points equals 0.005%), and a lot of media promptly said the economy was going to going into overdrive. Not quite yet: Someone with a $10,000 credit card balance will see their monthly payment go down about $2 a month, analysts said.
As for mortgages, interest rates did come down before the announcement. But once the Fed acted, the yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury note, on which mortgage interest rates are based, rose to 3.73% from 3.64%. Mortgage rates typically are about 3 percentage points to 4 points higher than the 10-year Treasury note.
We’ve grown accustomed to the idea that our personal data entered via our cellphones probably will become public, but Hezbollah had an unpleasant surprise when thousands of its pagers went off across Lebanon. The next day, a second wave of explosions went off across Lebanon, this time Hezbollah walkie-talkies.
President Biden tried to calm the Mideast with talk, forgetting that Israel had an elected prime minster and president. Unsurprisingly, Biden’s efforts failed because he announced every proposal, repeatedly claiming the latest U.S. proposal was certain to succeed. What he forgot was that the Israeli and Hamas leaders had their own constituencies and needed to be seen as doing something, not simply agreeing to an American proposal. Experienced mediators and negotiators never discuss the progress of negotiations.
Here are the top five shows America is watching on TV and the internet, according to Verizon:
No. 1 The Crow: Soulmates are brutally murdered when demons of their dark past catch up with them.
No. 2 Show Trap: A man and daughter are at the center of a dark and sinister event.
No. 3 Friday the 13th: Hockey masked killer with machete terrorizes students.
No. 4 Here After: A girl is revived from a death experience but brings back demonic forces within her.
No. 5: The Unborn: With the help of a spiritualist, a woman uncovers a family curse dating back to Nazi Germany, involving a demonic girl with powers to inhabit anyone or anything.
Interesting times, indeed. Dangerous times, too. When it appears that there is nothing that anyone can do, it’s time to remember the Prayer of St. Francis: “Make me a channel of your peace.” And to pray as we do at least seven times a day, “God, come to my assistance! Lord, make haste to help me!”
When someone bemoans the state of the world, perhaps we should gently suggest they, too, should join in prayer, fasting and acts of charity – and to offer the Confraternity as a way to perfect their skill in doing so. – Joel Whitaker, CfP
NEW BLESSED CARLO ACUTIS ITEMS FROM CFP HOLY ANGELS GIFT SHOP
These and many more Carlo Acutis items including prayer cards, novena, and medal, are available from the CFP Holy Angels Gift Shop art www.cfpholyangels.com All proceeds benefit the Confraternity of Penitents
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Can a penitent engage in Yoga?
Answer: The Church has no teaching specifically about Yoga. The Church does teach that Christians should not be engaged in Eastern spiritual practice. That being said, prudence would tell us that Yoga is gravely suspect and can cause great spiritual harm. Here is a good article explaining this: https://www.catholic.com/magazine/online-edition/should-catholics-practice-yoga
Is a penitent allowed to eat meat on Saturday evening in anticipation of Sunday? Is that correct? I researched the history of allowing Saturday Mass for meeting Sunday obligation. In regards to our rule abstaining from meat on Saturdays, I don’t remember differentiating morning from evening. Meat or no meat on Saturday evening??? After Mass??
Answer: In the Divine Office, there is no Evening Prayer for Saturday. There is Evening Prayer 1 of Sunday (prayed Saturday evening) and Evening Prayer 2 of Sunday (prayed Sunday evening). Liturgically, Sunday begins following Evening Prayer 1 for Sunday, which is prayed Saturday evening. Therefore, once Evening Prayer is prayed, the day liturgically becomes Sunday. However, in common usage, it’s still Saturday until midnight when Sunday begins.
So, if penitents pray Evening Prayer I on Saturday evening, are they allowed to eat meat after that because, liturgically, it is now Sunday?
Eating meat Saturday evening does not seem to be the intention of the original Rule, the Rule of 1221, which is the Rule that the CFP follows. The penitential way to proceed is to abstain from meat all of Saturday evening according to our Rule with exceptions being allowed on special occasions by one’s spiritual director. Such exceptions should be requested beforehand. For example, at CFP Retreat 2024, a quantity of sausage was left over from Thursday. Since retreatants leave Sunday morning after 7 am Mass, there would be no way to consume the meat on Sunday. The local soup kitchen was closed on Sunday. Retreatants had distances to travel and no way to refrigerate the meat to take it home to consume later. Consultation with the CFP Spiritual Guardian determined that we would pray Evening Prayer and then follow the liturgical tradition that Sunday had begun and the meat could be consumed rather than thrown away. This was a special circumstance and not a practice to follow every Saturday evening.
