Thursday, March 28, AD 2024 11:29am

PopeWatch: The Era of Boors and Bullies

Father Hunwicke comments on the call by the Youth Synod closing document for the certification of Catholic websites:

 

“The Synod hopes that in the Church appropriate official bodies for digital culture and evangelisation are established at appropriate levels … Among their functions … [could be] certification systems of Catholic sites, to counter the spread of fake news …”

I very much dislike the look of this. It is no secret that some members of the CBCEW were, for years, very nervous about bloggers and especially clerical bloggers. The disgraceful episcopal suppression of one famous diaconal blog became quite a cause celebre. Management had lost a significant control. It is only a year or two since my friend Fr Ray Blake bravely put on the public record that he had found tanks parked on his lawn: tanks in the shape of his Bishop passing on the cheerful news that “The Cardinal doesn’t like …”.

We seem to have come a long way from those broad sunlit uplands when Benedict XVI (remember him? The ‘Rat’, the ‘Inquisitor’, the ‘Panzer Cardinal’? Yes, that one) encouraged blogging, and especially clerical bloggers. Now, the era of the boors and the bullies.

Shall we, in a few years’ time, discover that we have Diocesan, National, and Worldwide systems for closing down free discussion in the Church? After all, the Synod will have “called for it”, won’t it?

“Synodality” sounds so democratic, modern, open and free. What’s not to like? And this Synod has concluded with the usual flurry of synthetic Bergoglian rhetoric about the Holy Spirit. In such liberated and happy times, don’t you need to be paranoid to be suspicious?

Don’t you believe it. Bullies are bullies are bullies.

Go here to read the rest.  Catholic Leftists are always in favor of let a thousand flowers bloom within the Church until some of those blooms turn out to be orthodox and/or conservative.  Then they call in for an Agent Orange drop.

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Mary De Voe
Wednesday, October 31, AD 2018 5:33am

How would this Synod recognize “catholic”. This is their agenda and a deflection from defrocking “uncle ted”

Philip Nachazel
Philip Nachazel
Wednesday, October 31, AD 2018 1:25pm

One antidote to agent orange is Saint Maximillian Kolbe.
One if his titles is patron for those in media.
Catholic bloggers may easily call upon him for help in this difficult century.
His radio broadcasts spoke truth in the face of Nazi rule..no fear..not even when his ultimate sacrifice for a family man resulted in starvation for himself. The power of God in Maximilian Kolbe’s love for neighbor. Catholic bloggers have a co-host like none other in Kolbe. When he was found to still be alive after many days without food or water, they injected acid into his veins to finally kill him off.
This on the vigil of the Assumption of Mary 1941. Ground into dust for the Immaculata. He once stated that he would be willing to have his whole life ground into dust to advance the kingdom of the Sacred Heart in the hearts of all men and the sooner the better. His ashes spreading over the fence of Auschwitz on the early morning hours of August 15th was an answer to his prayer. That red crown of martyrdom fully earned and as beautiful as the white crown of purity which was shown him when he was ten years old. Both now in his possession. Happy All Holy..all hallowed eve to TAC.

(I never tire of telling his story. If I’ve tired you I apologise.)

Mark
Mark
Wednesday, October 31, AD 2018 1:41pm

This pope never says the word “Catholic”, always Church.
This pope rarely says the word “Jesus”, preferring God or Holy Spirit.
Church and God can be generic. Likely, he wants it that way.

Clinton
Clinton
Wednesday, October 31, AD 2018 7:47pm

It’s interesting that Rome under Francis has little interest in the (lack
of) orthodoxy of our “catholic” colleges, religious orders, etc.
Heterodox publications like the egregious National Catholic
Reporter
aren’t similarly targeted for “certification” the way this
pontificate desires to “certify” Catholic digital culture. Why do you
suppose that is?

I believe it’s because our decadent formerly-Catholic religious
congregations, theology faculties, hospitals, colleges and other
institutions are exactly as Francis would wish. Catholic digital
digital culture, on the other hand, distresses our betters in Rome
because it’s readily available to the “wrong sort” of people– folks
critical of the fundamental transformation of the Church envisioned
by this pontificate. Too many sites have inconvenienced our betters
by shining unwelcome light on what’s happening in the Church these
days.

I can’t imagine how Francis and his cronies think they could make a
certification system for Catholic digital culture stick, when the hierarchy
long ago abandoned any effective oversight of so much of our other
(formerly) Catholic infrastructure– and is perfectly fine with those sad
results. The self-serving nature of these prelates’ “concern” is too
obvious.

Nonetheless, Catholic digital culture has now drawn the attention of
the Baleful Eye of Sauron…

Mary De Voe
Thursday, November 1, AD 2018 2:50am

Philip. I have never tired of reading your story of Father Kolbe. Poetry of a real Catholic.

Mary De Voe
Thursday, November 1, AD 2018 2:57am

I am still stunned by Francis’ claim to be the “successor of Christ”, not a follower but a “successor”, as though Christ is not infinite and Jesus Christ will be succeeded by the next sovereign person appointed to succeed Him. The devil succeeded to the throne of God. “Successor of Christ” is a Freudian slip, the likes of which really shows the religion of Francis.

Steve Phoenix
Steve Phoenix
Thursday, November 1, AD 2018 3:10am

Actually “official certification” of so-called ‘Catholic’ blog sites could be a boon: it would totally backfire on the Synod Sisters: Certified Catholic blog sites would be a signal to the critical reader to disregard their appropriately sanitized content.

(The SS could provide them a stamp of certification. Let us suggest “Pravda.”)

Philip Nachazel
Philip Nachazel
Thursday, November 1, AD 2018 8:56am

Mary De Voe.

His life, Kolbe, was a poem. Maria Valtorta had her classic, Poem of the Man-God, which is volumes long and beautiful writing. I love the hidden revealed in her text. I know that it is not to be read as Gospel so to speak, but even if it is fictional it still inspires.

Kolbe’s life of non-fiction is marvelous in it’s entirety. The mystical in his early vision. The effects thereof. He became serious after the encounter with the Mother of God. His life changed. His mother testifies to this fact and her doubts of his vision must of evaporated as he became studious and his goals became honorable. He was called!

One of his favorite stories of conversion was that of the Alphonse Ratisbonne; http://www.tfp.org/the-conversion-of-alphonse-ratisbonne/

As Knights of the Immaculata we continually hand out blessed Miraculous Medals as the Spirit moves us to do so.

My parents, God rest their souls, had a large crystal bowl filled with the blessed sacramentals stationed at the front door on a table. As guests were preparing to leave their house my parents insisted on them leaving with multiple medals to give away to whomever as the Spirit moves them.

These are the treats that last a lifetime.. and then some.

Expect a miracle!
Again.. thanks Mary for your kindness’s.
Have a great All Saints day!

Howard
Howard
Thursday, November 1, AD 2018 10:00am

The Vatican controls the national domain name .va and (apparently — http://www.catholicnews.com/services/englishnews/2012/vatican-set-to-control-new-catholic-internet-domain-cns-1202478.cfm) the domain name .catholic. Control of who is allowed to use the domain names is about the only certification likely to take place. Well, the bishops could require a website like the-american-catholic.com to change its name, as they forced Voris to change his site name from realcatholictv.com to churchmilitant.tv; fat lot of good it did them, too.

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