Greetings!

I went to Mass Saturday evening for the Vigil for Sunday. I was watching carefully to be sure that all the vessels on the altar containing the bread and wine to be offered were beneath the priest's hands as he performed the Transubstantiation.

I believe I saw that, after Father transubstantiated the bread and wine in the vessels before him, Deacon P went into the Tabernacle, removed two gold bowls and placed them among the others on the altar. Their contents were then part of what was offered to those receiving The Holy Eucharist.

My question is this: Does the bread remain in the "Form" (of Our Lord) even though it may be unused for a particular Mass and brought out at a later time or need it be transubstantiated for each Mass?

JM

In reference to what appears to be the preference of offering communion at Mass mostly from hosts which are in reserve in the Tabernacle...

I was drawn to a document called "Liturgical Norms Of the Diocese of Charlotte" and as I read the document I was surprised to learn the following:


This addresses the issue but works around the central question of the consecrated status of the 'reserved hosts'...

If hosts are to be consecrated during the Sacrifice of the Mass wherein they are to be consumed, why so many "reserved hosts'? (2) Have they been consecrated at some previous Mass? Shouldn't by now any Parish could make informed and practical estimates on how many would be needed at a particular Mass and thus avoid the "unless needed" and confusing issue of bringing out and offering unconsecrated hosts?

JM

Good Morning, dear Family, Thank you for your updates. Blessings and good wishes to you during Holy Week.

What JM has experienced [See posting of March 16th above] in his church seems to be quite common for other churches in that diocese, in spite of what's stated in the diocesan norms. I visit a half dozen or so Charlotte churches on a regular basis, and have seen Communion distributed exclusively from the reserved hosts, and have also observed how these many hosts have been questionably (in my mind) consecrated (1) during the Sunday Mass, because of so many vessels on the altar and these so distanced from the priest's extended hands during the Eucharistic prayers.

Even during daily Mass, when the consecration appears to be done properly, the reserved hosts are often still withdrawn and distributed by the Eucharistic minister, which leaves half of those present who may not be receiving the true Body and Blood.

I was just feeling sad about this after the Mass attended for Palm Sunday when I saw the above mentioned posting. I was planning to begin a Novena today to the Blessed Mother in advance of the Annunciation, so I think that I will pray that the Bishop will somehow enforce the norms that are published for this diocese regarding the Holy Eucharist.

I'm running out of options as to where to attend Mass in this area, but I am sure our situation is not exclusive... and I will follow your recommendations for this week and future, so as to not offend God any further and to receive the benefits and graces that Jesus wished us to have when He left us His Gifts.

KH

The Epiphany on the Feast of the Epiphany ...should you want a title to my letter.

As I had some time to spare during my recent visit to New York City, I decided to visit St. Patrick's Cathedral - where I had been baptized and where I was a parishioner. Approaching the Cathedral I passed a very famous world class jeweler, Cartier. In addition to holiday season decor in their windows, they had a sound system piping Christmas Carols to the street.

When I passed it played - not Christmas carols - but rather the theme to the film The Exorcist ('Tubular Bells'). No joke. I was rather taken aback and stopped to listen - it was for real.

We discussed the Cathedral security. It is worse than I described before: some 12-15 security men were all around the inside of the building, eying me suspiciously. Yet a mere handful of tourists were inside (30 in a building seating 3000). I felt I was being watched... and I was. By them and by more security cameras than I could count. All over the place. I was filmed more in those 30 minutes then in all my life!

This was mid-morning on a sunny day, yet the building was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. In contrast to previous years when it would bustle with tourists whom you would have to push past to get to a pew.

The overall impression of the interior was dark, somber, tomb-like. Reminding me more of a museum. The interior is white and brightly lit by the stained glass alone. It appeared and "felt".... dark. The phrase/concept "Hollywood stage set' flashed into my mind. All was its usual very clean and well maintained state, yet something was now different. Even from a few years ago.

Rather then the former experience of it being a house of prayer weighed down by lovely works of art and excessive candle/statue veneration... now it had been transformed (spiritually, not by physical changes) into a a house of money, framed as a 'religious stage set'. The comic idea of pushing it over as it was made of cardboard came to mind. A stage set for the liturgy as a 'performance art' for the consumption for the disoriented sheep. Run by the 'wolves' you have alluded to... all carefully calculated.

All that was missing in this regard were the mechanically operated idols of ancient pagan temples which would move, belch forth smoke, 'speak', etc... to keep the 'believers' believing, and enriching the temple priests.

The Blessed Sacrament was in the Lady's Chapel, as it has been for many years now. Only two other souls were there with me, praying. Yet I was being observed by at least 2 security guards and 3 cameras (or more....) in this small chapel. It had been recently and elegantly restored. A very lovely 'stage set' was what came to mind.

While I cannot put into words what I felt, the impression of the Tabernacle as "casa vacia" (empty house) was perceived. A lovely, but empty, work of art, completing the 'stage set' of spiritual deception (as you have alluded to in reference the now organized and universal deception of passing out mostly unconsecrated hosts as "real").

Being aware of rather oppressive 'eyes' (like unseen yet very real red, glowing eyes of salivating wolves observing prey while hidden in a forest) observing me, I made a Spiritual Communion.

Making my way out, I made a point of observing all of the many side altars and chapels (while being eyed and possibly followed). Most had been well and expensively restored, via the gifts of OD, Knights of Malta, et al, servitors of Mammon, as the donor plaques noted. Two of them had been rebuilt as new shrines for the veneration of statues, using pieces of altars ripped out of two of the churches demolished by Cardinal Egan. They were a hodgepodge of mismatched architectural salvage pieces assembled by someone with no depth perception. Showy external 'piety' intended to fool fools, concocted by someone reading the "Cliff Notes" version of "Traditionalism for Dummies". Shallow beyond belief.

One, in the former Baptistery, was a shrine to St. Jude - the patron of lost causes. No comment... The other was a shrine to Polish saints, in the former side altar of St. Casimir. Now including St. Faustina and many 'others' then I could count, including their Relics. It was visual, artistic and spiritual confusion - with the seeming true point of focus being the candle donation box. Ironically these, along with the Gift Shop are what you first see, on opposite side aisles, as you enter. All that was missing was a slot machine.....

At the back, where there formerly had been statues of Sts. Peter and Paul, there were now portraits of Benedict/Ratzinger and Archbishop Timothy Dolan. Enshrined as a Wal-Mart would have a portrait of its founder, Sam Walton. Quite befitting a temple of Mammon, masquerading as a house of God.

I left, passing Cartier's again..... and their sound system played the "Exorcist" theme again.

Very appropriate.

CB

Let's make sure that we know who we are praying to....

If I am your friend, and well known to you personally, you might ask me for my help in some matter, or to "put in a good word" for you.

That is the basis of intercessory prayer with the saints. Key to this is the concept that we are not "praying to..." a saint, but rather requesting that they pray for us. Mary always made this clear.

Many Catholics mistake the saint as the object of prayer, instead of a helper and friend.

Asking the intercession of any saint is certainly proper, just as is asking for the intercessory prayers of the souls in Purgatory (as well as praying for them!).

Now, the thorny question is: What is the result of 'asking the intercession of' (or praying to) a soul which is neither in Heaven nor Purgatory?

The Devil 'hath power to assume a pleasing form'; and to grant favors or even 'miracles' as if they were of God. All of this is to deceive the unwary. (1)

But how would any Catholic fall into this trap?

First, let us look at the recent changes in the beatification/canonization processes.


The answer is: Many Catholics simply do not know any better, as they are blindly accepting every new 'Beati' or 'Saint' as 100% unquestionably legitimate. This goes hand in hand with the conditioned response to 'blanket Infallibility' (3) upon which such Beatification and Canonizations rest... ...like the proverbial 'house built on sand'.

We mortals have no right to judge the eternal destiny of a soul. Yet at the same time, we are being asked to turn off our intuitive faculties as well as our spiritual discernment (which is guided by the Holy Spirit of God).

Some questions are in order:


Items #3 and 4 above have one meaning if the cleric who does such is ignorant of the reality, while they have quite another meaning if done knowingly (even if only by a select few...), nonetheless, both have the same net effect - the glorification of evil.

This could be equated with the global scam of distributing un-consecrated hosts for 'Holy Communion'. It could also be done by both the knowing and the ignorant priest - nonetheless, both have the same net effect: The next-to-the-ultimate deception to the Faithful who unknowingly is receiving a false-host and not receiving the true-host - the Living Christ.

Perhaps some of this is what Mary referred to in La Salette:


The spiritual effects of items #'s 3 and 4 may have something to do with what I have 'felt' and sensed in certain churches and prominent Cathedrals. When this is combined with what may either be the continual or periodic absence of the Real Presence in the tabernacles of these churches - a "different spirit' may be present in its stead.

CB