(Above and below) Cardinal Zen during his visit to New York (February 15, 2020)

Please pray for Cardinal Zen, on trial now in Hong Kong. He was our guest in New York just 2 1/2 years ago.

Our annual pilgrimage to Auriesville, New York – this year, unavoidably, in advance of the official “Pilgrimage for the Restoration.” The weather was glorious, but very few visitors or pilgrims were about. Often, however, the grounds of the shrine are most impressive, the experience most spritual, when visited in silence. The shrine in the best condition I have seen in years – the current management is a vast improvement over the Jesuits.

Formerly the Church of St. Thomas the Apostle, The Harlem Parish is now an entertaiment venue. Currently it’s the location for a flamenco show:

This passionate, traditional Spanish flamenco performance is heading to NYC this month starting Friday, September 9th, and it was just released that the show will take place at The Harlem Parish, located at 258 West 118th Street.

Over 100 years old, the Harlem Parish was built in 1897 and is one of the most grand spaces in NYC. It has hosted a number of events with well-known brands including Spotify, SoulCycle, and BET, and all events hosted at the Harlem Parish are catered by Harlem-based restaurants with 10% of all proceeds donated to Harlem-based organizations.

 For more on the building see:

The Harlem Parish (with many more photos of the interior)

The Church of St. Thomas the Apostle

Andrea Picciotti-Bayer has just published a piece in the Wall Street Journal announcing the new Institute for Human Ecology (IHE) at Catholic University. She is a lawyer and the new institute’s director of strategy. The institute’s initial foray into major media was aggressive and confrontational: “Counterfeit Catholicism, Left and Right,” The Wall Street Journal, 9/23/2022.

Picciotti-Bayer adopts a pose beloved over the decades by the Catholic hierarchy, the Catholic administrative establishment and conservative Catholics in general: they declare themselves the golden mean between extremes of the left and right. On the one hand “prominent Catholic politicians” like Biden and Pelosi have “unequivocally abandoned the church is teaching on the dignity of human life.” On the right “a group of Catholic hardliners in the Academy and media have written off American institutions as hopelessly compromised.” She is referring to the integralists. According to Picciotti-Bayer, neither “offering” is distinctly Catholic. She asks: what are so-called “ordinary Catholics” to do? We need, she says, a framework for faith in public life that rejects both “secularism and sectarianism.” 

This all sounds like a revival the First Things/ National Review/ Richard Neuhaus school of conservative Catholicism going back to the 1970s. More specifically it is a subgenre of conservative Catholicism which proposes to “solve the problems” of the world in politics, economics and culture by utilizing Catholic principles. This brand of “apologetics,” of course, dates back to well before Vatican II – one thinks of distributism. Of interest is the IHE linking to a publication The Lamp which (at least initially) was also an advocate of a conservative, centrist Catholicism.

How can we even begin to respond to all this?  My basic observation is that Picciotti-Bayer’s enterprise is founded on ignoring reality. The two “extremes” within which the IHE seeks to locate itself are in no way equal. First, the adversaries on the left have controlling positions in government, the economy, the academy, the media and all other secular institutions in the United States. The enemy on the right is just a handful of intellectuals. Second, these same progressive tendencies also dominate the Catholic institutions. For have not Pope Francis and the Cardinal Archbishop of Washington gone out of their way to demonstrate their friendship with the aforementioned Pelosi and Biden?  The integralists enjoy no such positions of power in the Church. The author refers favorably to Archbishop Gomez of Los Angeles, but hasn’t he been given – repeatedly – the cold shoulder by Pope Francis? Third, as a matter of principle I would not equate advocating or even imposing a regime of abortion – and all the other associated anti-Christian social policies of the West today – with the integralists’ visions of papal supremacy that exist only in some alternative universe.

There is talk in this article of “non-negotiable” positions. These seem to be not the Catholic faith as such, but the statements of Dignitatis Humanae on human freedom and various political objectives like strengthening the family. The author criticizes integralists for contending that contemporary American culture is actively corrosive to Catholic teaching, practice and virtue but is that not exactly what she herself says (quoting Archbishop Gomez) about “progressive ideologies” that are “profoundly atheistic”? And is not their (and her) assertion obviously correct? I have major differences of my own with the integralists’ proposed course of action, but not so much with their factual starting point. And I don’t think such issues of principle can be resolved by making dogmatic assertions about the values of American society. The adversarial relationship between Christianity and current American culture been not been eliminated by great victories within the existing system such the repeal of Roe v. Wade. I believe that event had a rather cool reception in the governing American establishment and in some quarters of the Church (such as the Vatican) as well.

The author writes that we must:

[R}efamiliarize ourselves with the works and voices that have helped form our nation. That includes such deep thinkers as Augustine and Aquinas. But it also includes profound Catholic witnesses who worked in healthcare…social services… and education...”

Now it is very helpful to be aware of such influences and contributions, but I think it would be a stretch to claim that the Catholic thinkers and “voices” the author lists “helped form our nation.” For in fact, for better or for worse, the United States was formed by other forces which although they may have had a remote Catholic ancestry, were, in the best case, merely indifferent to the Church. 

Continuing these reflections, we note that the author does not cite the current pronouncements and actions of the Church, except for Dignitatis Humanae and Archbishop Gomez. There is a good reason for that:  the actual practice of the Catholic Church in the last several decades has been an unending series of scandals, abuse of power, dishonesty, administrative incompetence, institutional decline and even outright criminality. All these ills have of course reached a high point under Pope Francis whose regime actively contradicts Picciotti-Bayer’s “non-negotiable” principles. The author, for example, mentions subsidiarity yet Francis has been the greatest violator of that principle. The author quotes approvingly “the Second Vatican Council’s mighty declaration on religious liberty,” that “man is obliged to follow his conscience in order that he may come to God.” Yet Pope Francis has launched a worldwide persecution of traditional Catholics (with very concrete consequences in the immediate vicinity of Catholic University). 

Thus, the current state of the “really existing’ (as they say in German) Catholic Church in no way is a “role model” for secular society.  Indeed, repeated interventions of the secular media and government (however corrupt they may be) have been necessary to straighten out the affairs of the Catholic Church – not the other way around.  Any project to educate Catholics in America about their role in public life must start from this reality and acknowledge that, in both theory and practice, the institutional Church – and the majority of the remaining Catholic faithful as well – do not agree with the IHE’s principles.

On a more profound level, I see the IHE sharing with both the integralists and the progressives – both so forecefully criticized by Picciotti-Bayer – the same fundamental defect. All are primarily advocating courses of political and legal action, seeking to arrange the affairs of the world in the manner that appears best to them.  But seems to me what the Catholic Church (and of the United States) needs is the rediscovery of the faith by the Catholic clergy and faithful. Once the faith is reborn, a political role and influence of the Church will naturally arise, because the Catholic faith is incarnational and social and necessarily has a political dimension.  That rebirth comes about not through political action, but through prayer, reawakened spirituality, and above all the liturgy. And the first steps of such a spiritual renewal must be the purification of the Church, not secular society. You cannot advocate Catholic social policy to the world if there is no Catholic faith.  Otherwise, I fear the IHE will become just one more establishment academic forum for conferences, colloquia and addresses, at peace with the World and the Church establishment but remote from the life of the faithful or of society.

In 2020, we reviewed the initial issue of The Lamp. At the time we applauded the editors’ intentions but felt that the result fell far short of their ambitions. There was too much verbiage about topics like gabbing with Jesuits over wine spritzers in Vienna and too little attention paid to the actual crises racking the Church. I am happy to say that based on some recent articles that can be found online, The Lamp is now beginning to honestly confront the concrete and emotional crises of our day. These are today, first and foremost, the outrageous actions of Pope Francis and his allies in the hierarchy, culminating in the persecution of traditional Catholics throughout the world.

The transformation of this magazine has not been total, of course. Father Ambrose Dobroszi does attempt to address the hot issue of the scope of papal authority but falls into the ultramontane rhetoric of several of the contributors to the first issue – and even gives it radical new expression:

Yet nonetheless, even the mistakes of the pope must be carried out…This is an uncomfortable truth, but it is clearly correct when we examine history…

We even see that papal mistakes do not necessarily detract from the holiness of the pope. I think all of us would rather the Church have taken a harsh punitive strategy earlier on in the abuse crisis, but Saint John Paul II’s decision to distrust accusations against clerics—an error in judgment—is not necessarily a sin. His evident holiness did not guarantee that he made all of the right decisions, nor did his mistakes—or even sins—prevent his canonization. Our Lord willed to construct the Church in such a way that this successor of Saint Peter could grievously misjudge cases of abuse, have the authority to definitively establish a strategy of dealing with abuse cases that has proved disastrous, all while being one of the most apparent and clear examples of sainthood in our times. The pope has the authority to be tragically wrong, whether he is holy or not, and the Church on earth must obey.

In other words, a pope may be a saint regardless of what he does, and the Church must obey him regardless of what he commands. Preposterous formulations like this will not raise the image of Catholicism among outsiders or fallen-away Catholics.

Several other contributions, however, confront directly the tragic and terrible losses caused by Traditionis Custodes and the subsequent banning of the traditional mass in various Catholic dioceses – especially Washington DC. Christopher McCaffrey writes of his parish of St. Francis de Sales and its history. Harry Scherer describes the final Latin Mass at St. Anthony of Padua:

What the archdiocese effectively said to the people of Saint Anthony was Your work is not wanted here… The Sunday traditional Latin mass at Saint Anthony’s was unique because it was primarily driven and coordinated by students at the Catholic University of America down the street… 

Yes, the congregants were aware that the Mass was in some sense historic, an occasion they will recall to their grandchildren at a Sunday brunch after a Solemn High Mass decades from now. The sounds from the choir loft were majestic, the smell of incense intoxicating, and the fellowship of friends in worship re-assuring. But the moment was rooted in something deeper than the continuing history of the traditionalist movement, such as it is: the worship of Almighty God through the unbloody sacrifice of Calvary offered in a form of worship handed down to them by their ancestors.  That the old women, solitary men and women, zealous students, and bright-eyed couples will no longer gather at Saint Anthony’s is a sorry shame. That the priest’s mellifluous voice will not pronounce the hallowed formulas of this ancient liturgy is cause for grief indeed. Those who came together for the “Final Latin Mass” did not come by their sorrows cheaply—they’re paying for their emotion. Until the next Votive Mass of Thanksgiving to the Most Holy Trinity is offered at Saint Anthony’s, they can rest assured that their rejection of decadent cynicism was their way of keeping to the narrow path.

Most impressively of all, Matthew Walther, the editor of The Lamp, raises explicitly an issue in the mind of so many: Why Benedict Should Speak. To the extent there is still some nimbus of papal status remining about him, it would seem incumbent upon him, regardless of his debility, to take some action, to say something. For Walther points out that Pope Francis and his minions are characterizing Summorum Pontificum in a way that directly contradicts Benedict’s own careful teaching on the subject – in other words, they are lying. 

Which is why, with further restrictions upon the traditional Mass rumored for Ash Wednesday, I repeat my central contention that Benedict must speak about his intentions, and that he must do so unequivocally, without regard for the consequences of doing so. Such a clarification from him might not be enough to prevent the enemies of the old Mass from carrying out their plans. And it would certainly not have any obvious juridical force, even if it would expose the central premise of the other side as a preposterous fiction. But it would also be a moment of sublime clarity, and the last desperate fulfillment of that continuing paternal responsibility to which he has alluded.

In this way, The Lamp, perhaps compelled by circimstances, is now squarely facing the tragic and concrete situation of the Church today. Do I even need to mention the other storms raging in and outside of the Church such as the synodal path developments? There is so much to deal with – and so much of it is dismaying! It isn’t as pleasant as writing about a conservative Catholic fantasyland.  But it has the merit of being real and true. And after all, it is out of such confrontations that good writing emerges. 

I first encountered Daniel J. Mahoney when I reviewed his 2018 book The Idol of Our Age.  There he expressed guarded criticism of Pope Francis but still felt the need to “balance” his negative comments. In an article written for National Review two years later Mahoney was far more direct in his characterization of Francis. Today Mahoney is speaking out loud. After cataloguing with prophetic urgency the Vatican’s misdeeds in theory and practice,  he concludes:

 Today, papalotry is not an option for faithful Catholics. To fundamentally “change the Church,” as Francis surely intends, is to undermine her authority and her very raison d’être. The Catholic faith is not the religion of humanity, and the Holy Spirit is not an agent of the Historical Process, no matter what some Catholic progressives think. As with the Arian crisis of the fourth century, when most bishops succumbed to heresy, the task of Catholics is to defend the truth unalloyed. We owe the papal office filial respect. But no pope is an oriental potentate. His “private judgment” cannot take precedence over the moral law, the apostolic inheritance, and the unchanging teachings of the Church. Today, alas, unthinking papalotry reinforces theological and moral subversion. Self-deception of this kind only lead to the abyss. At this critical moment, Catholics have an obligation to see things clearly.

Mahoney, Daniel J., The Church over the Abyss. (Americanmind.org 9/20/2022)

Now Daniel Mahoney has done significant scholarly work on the legacy of Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn for whom he professes great admiration. Pope Francis and Solzhenitsyn – these are mutually exclusive personalities:

“either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other.”

Curious – I had just reacquainted myself with how another thinker, Thomas Molnar, had in 1980 been inspired by Solzhenitsyn (as opposed to any of the representatives of the official Catholic Church) in formulating his thoughts on the relationship of Church and State. Rod Dreher too has moved from the self-satisfied, quietist Benedict Option (2018) to a Solzhenitsyn-inspired assault on the current apocalyptic state of the West as exemplified by Live not by Lies: a Manual for Christian Dissidents (2020). That transformation includes increasingly savage attacks on Pope Francis – for whom, by the way, Dreher had initially expressed admiration. For Dreher’s current views see, for example, “Pope Francis, McCarrick and Maciel” (The American Conservative, 5/29/2022). The prophetic voice of the great Russian writer lives on!

This past Saturday, Sept. 17, between 250 and 300 Catholics prayerfully marched five miles from the Cathedral of St. Thomas More in Arlington, VA, to the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle in Washington D.C. as part of the first-ever National Summorum Pontificum Pilgrimage for the Restoration of the Traditional Latin Mass. This march was organized in little over a month in response to the harsh restrictions to the Traditional Mass enacted in the the Dioceses of Washington and Arlington. The march was filled with young couples and families, parishioners of local parishioners as well as pilgrims who had come down from the New York area and from other states. Noah Peters, march organizer, gave a stirring speech on the steps of St. Matthew Cathedral. Excerpts of his speech and scenes from the march can be viewed on this video. See also our photos of the march below.

Today is the feast of Saint Januarius, bishop of Naples and martyr, who
died for the faith in the persecution of the Emperor Diocletian in the first
years of the third century. But his significance goes far beyond that of
one of the martyrs of the Church. He is much more well known by his
Neapolitan name, San Gennaro, which name I am blessed to carry as my
middle name. Many of us who live close to New York City associate his
name with the big festival in his honor on this date in what is called
Little Italy, a place that hardly exists anymore, for the Italian immigrants
who lived in this enclave of Manhattan are long gone and their
descendants have moved to the greener pastures of Long Island and New
Jersey. The only Italians who still live in Little Italy are those who run
the countless Italian restaurants there, serving food whose origins are
from Campania, the most famous being pizza from Naples.

But this is not why San Gennaro is so venerated even today in the
Church. One of the great occasions in Naples every year, with a few
exceptions, is the liquefication of the blood of San Gennaro on his feast
day and two other days in the year. The blood, usually in powder form,
is kept in two vials in the Cathedral of the Assumption in Naples, said to
have been collected by a Christian woman at the time of his martyrdom.
Today, at the Mass celebrated in the cathedral at 9 am, the Cardinal of
Naples showed to the people the two vials that had indeed liquefied into
blood. And this made them personally very happy, for those times when
the miracle has not occurred has presaged a calamity for that part of
Italy, not the least of which comes from living at the base of a volcano
that has destroyed the area several times through the centuries.
The Cardinal said to the people at the Mass: “Today the sign of Bishop
Januarius’ bloodshed for the sake of Christ and his brethren tells us that
goodness, beauty and righteousness are and always will be
victorious….Here is the meaning of this blood which, united with the
blood shed by Christ and that of all martyrs of every place and time, is a
living testimony that love always wins.” He went on to caution against
the veneration of San Gennaro as a mere superstition. “It matters little, my brothers and sisters, whether the blood liquefies or not; let us never
reduce this celebration to an oracle to be consulted.”

For those of you who have been to Naples you know the beauty of the
city. But as the bishop pointed out, to live in that city is made terribly
difficult by the city’s mafia culture. He said: “the cancerous evil of the
Camorra and mafia culture, educational poverty and unemployment are
like a plague, especially for our young people.” He ended his sermon
with these words: “People of Naples, what makes you magnificent is
your ability to love, what can make you so even more is to draw from
the source of love which is Christ himself; do not be afraid to follow him
and magnify the Lord for what he will work in you”.

In a reverie of romanticism I wish that we had something like the
miracle of the blood of San Gennaro here in this country of ours. But
that is not necessary. What is needed at this time in our own society, a
time of great unrest, of great division, of violence that is becoming
normal, of the secularization even of the Catholic Church: what is
needed is for those who call themselves followers of Jesus Christ to be
examples of what love means –within our families, within our culture,
within our society. And we need bishops today like St. Januarius who
understand that sacrifice is at the heart of what it means to follow Jesus
Christ and preach that to their people, no matter what the cost.

Fr. Donald Kloster has scheduled the following Masses at St. Marguerite Bourgeoys Church in Brookfield, CT.

Wednesday September 21, 7 am, Feast of St. Matthew, Low Mass

Thursday September 29, 6 pm, Michaelmas, Solemn High followed by a Convivium with Fr. Kloster’s famous chili and potluck in the St. Marguerite Parish Hall.