Sadly, Fr. Rosica can't let it go

Fr. Rosica has again had another outburst against bloggers. He's taken his message on the road, this time to Rome, at the plenary assembly of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications.

He made some good points about how the media tends to exhibit a moral bias. He also accurately pointed out how the media tends to "dumb down" the message and how form often becomes more important than substance.  People have lost intellectual rigor and are unwilling to pay attention for more than 15 seconds unless you flash some spectacular picture on the tube.

But he couldn't resist attacking bloggers - again.  Here's the relevant excerpt:

"On the Internet there is no accountability, no code of ethics, and no responsibility for one’s words and actions. [...]

"One of the challenges for the Church is that the Internet can destroy or confuse the hierarchy of information-providing that church agencies have worked so hard to establish. Web sites and blogs tend to concentrate on negative messages."

The result, Father Rosica contended, is that "Christians are known as the people who are against everything."

There is truth in his statements. The Internet is certainly open to everybody and accountability works only indirectly, through peer pressure and reputation.  But this freedom is also one of its great strengths, in that bloggers can't be fired or shut down if the powers that be don't agree with their message.

Honestly, I'm not too sure that "old" media has much accountability or responsibility either.  Radio,

Exclusive: Father Rosica approval rating under 20%

Many of you are aware of the Father Rosica scandal that erupted over the past month.  You can read about it here.

Catholic Dialogue was interested in getting a broader sense of how Internet-literate Catholics were reacting to Fr. Rosica's unexplainable outburst.  To do this, we conducted extensive research on the Internet in order to see which way the wind was blowing.  Today, we are presenting these exclusive results.

Clearly, Fr. Rosica is facing serious headwinds in the court of public opinion.

The research revealed that 80.5% of all the articles that expressed an opinion on the controversy were opposed to Fr. Rosica's position, while only 19.5% supported him.  The methodology encompasses all online articles published on the Fr. Rosica controversy, but excludes "comments" posted on blogs, since these can easily be manipulated.

In case you're wondering, articles by LifeSiteNews represented a very small fraction of the articles published on this issue.  Excluding articles from LifeSiteNews, the disapproval rating for Fr. Rosica is still 79.8%.  

The disapproval of Fr. Rosica is widespread and broad-based.  It includes both men and women, laity and clergy.  They quote Church documents and Doctors of the Church.  They refer to authoritative statements by Vatican officials.  By all accounts, these are educated Catholics, well-versed in Scripture and the Catechism.  They do not seek personal glory or satisfaction.  They do not have any axe to grind.  They are merely seeking to denounce errors and injustices so that the Church in Canada may once again submit to Rome's authority.    

In theological terms, we'd say that the sensus fidelium is enabling the faithful to participate in Christ's prophetic office by denouncing error.  In layman's terms, we'd say that Fr. Rosica's behaviour doesn't pass the sniff test.

This doesn't bode well for Salt and Light's ratings.  But it is certainly good news in the battle for the soul of the Church, since the Internet reaches such a broader audience than a satellite cable network.  

The winds of change are blowing.  There is a growing sense that too many clergymen are lukewarm or outright dissenters.  The discontent among the faithful will be a powerful instrument to help the Church return to authentic Magisterial teaching in union with the Vatican.

Please pray for Fr. Rosica and all clergy. 

The Catholic Church's Salvation: Tell it Like it Is

A great article by Suzanne Fortin highlighting the core of the problem with the Catholic Church in Canada and our bishops. Here is a key excerpt:

But the modernistic dissent doesn’t end at abortion. The weak response on the pro-life issue is symptomatic of the widespread reluctance to abide by and preach rudimentary Catholic philosophical beliefs, such as:

  • The ends do not justify the means.
  • The order of creation (e.g. men and women are complementary).
  • The hierarchy of truths.
  • The principal of non-contradiction.
  • Natural Truth can be known by reason alone.
  • The intrinsic evil of certain acts, and how they must always be rejected.

This has resulted in church elites distorting Catholic moral doctrine and sanctioning things like:

  • Inductions for post-viability fetuses who are terminally ill.
  • Legal recognition for same-sex unions.
  • Leaving the issue of contraception up to “one’s own conscience.”
  • Treating issues like the environment and poverty as equally important
    to fetal rights.

Read the whole article here.

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Novena for the conversion of Fr. Rosica: Day 1

Today is the first day of our novena for the conversion of Fr. Rosica.  Please join us.

Follow up on Fr. Rosica's claims

Something bothered me about Fr. Rosica's most recent lambasting of pro-lifers on Catholic Channel of Sirius Radio.  Let me quote from the transcript:

"I had many people wishing my death, my demise, destruction and everything else. And I said to myself “And you are talking about life.” It has been a real lesson for all of us. We were floored at the hundreds of messages that breathed hate and wished death and also people delighting that Senator Kennedy would be in hell. I think that says something about we have more education to do."

First of all, if there really were people out there threatening Fr. Rosica or his staff, you should smarten up and repent!.  That type of behaviour is despicable and totally unacceptable.  No matter how profound our disagreement with Fr. Rosica, violence is not a solution.

That being said, I question the authenticity of Fr. Rosica's claim.  You see, he didn't provide any evidence.  He said there were "hundreds of messages".  Surely he could publish a few to illustrate his point?  I would be the first to condemn any threats against him.  In fact, the police could use IP addresses to track down these people and prosecute them for death threats, which is a serious crime.  But Fr. Rosica presents no evidence.  (John Pacheco and LifeSite always present concrete evidence before they make any claims).


Also, during the same interview on the Catholic Channel, he said this about LifeSite:

"I will say very publicly to those listening - it is not credible, it does not speak for the Church, it is not ethical, it is not honest... For the 1/10 of kernel of truth that they purport to uncover (and there is truth in what they do) 9/10 is exaggeration." 

That's a very personal attack.  Yet once again, he presents no evidence.  If 90% of the LifeSite coverage is exaggeration and is not honest, surely he could find plenty of examples, right?  So where's the evidence, Father?

Lack of evidence... Hmmm... Those words sound familiar...  Ah yes, we witnessed the same chronic illness this summer with the CCCB's denials of the Development and Peace (D&P) scandal.  The bishops' report just stated that they were innocent, without addressing a single item of the mountain of evidence presented against D&P's partners. That doesn't make for a very convincing argument. Without evidence, it's just a lot of hot air.

In fact, making such bold accusations against LifeSite, without any facts to back it up, could very well constitute defamation and libel. Father Rosica is lucky that LifeSite will not engage in a lawsuit against another member of the Church, out of obedience to the wise advice of St. Paul to avoid taking Church disputes before secular authorites (see1 Cor 6: 1-11).

Lastly, Fr. Rosica accuses LifeSite of doing the work of Satan.  LifeSite has good company, because that's what the scribes and Pharisees used to say of Jesus:  

"But some of them said, 'He casts out demons by Beelzebul, the prince of the demons.'" (Luke 11:15)

Jesus had a good comeback for the scribes:  

"If I cast out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your children cast them out? Therefore will they be your judges."  (Luke 11:19)

To paraphrase:  If LifeSite is doing the work of Satan, then what is Salt and Light doing?

That settles it.  Let me pull out my cheque book and make a donation to LifeSite right away.


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Novena for the conversion of Fr. Rosica

"As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that they turn from their ways and live." (Ez 33:11)

As I explained in an earlier post, Fr. Rosica has deviated from sound Catholic teaching.  I would like to start a novena for him on Saturday, September 26, the feast of the Canadian martyrs.  The novena will run until Sunday, October 4, the feast of St. Francis of Assisi.  The Lord said to St. Francis:  "Rebuild my Church, which you see is falling into ruin."  That's exactly what we're hoping to do with this novena.

Please join me in saying one Our Father, one Hail Mary and one Glory Be for the next nine days for the conversion of Fr. Rosica.  He is a very gifted man.  We need him to be fully on the side of Truth if we are to bring about a Culture of Life in Canada. I want to see him in Heaven some day, assuming that I get in.

The Father Rosica controversy

Rather Thomas Rosica, who heads the TV network Salt and Light, has recently caused quite a stir in the pro-life community.  Here is a brief summary of what happened.

Following the funeral of Ted Kennedy, in which the former senator was portrayed as a hero and a faithful Catholic despite his pro-abortion and anti-family views, many pro-lifers felt outraged that such an ardent promoter of the culture of death would receive such a glorious public Catholic funeral.  Some people (unwisely) contacted Salt and Light asking them to provide negative coverage of the event.
Instead, they got a series of aggressive and vitriolic attacks from Fr. Rosica against the pro-life movement in general and LifeSiteNews.com in particular. Father Rosica took exception to the idea that pro-life Catholics could use strong language to criticize other Catholics. Father Rosica presented these criticisms as being uncharitable, divisive, unmerciful and non-Christian.

To illustrate, I've compiled the insults that have been hurled at pro-lifers by Father Rosica in person or through his website.  Note: these criticisms are not solely addressed to LifeSite; the vast majority are directed towards the pro-life movement in general.

• [LifeSite] is doing "the work of Satan" 
• "something is terribly wrong in the pro-life movement." 
• "Civility, charity, mercy and politeness seem to have dropped out of the pro-life lexicon."
• "Their words and actions vitiate their efforts in favor of life." 
• "not agents of life, but of division, destruction, hatred, vitriol, judgment and violence." 
• "I question whether or not they belong to the Catholic Church. Are such people Catholic?"
  
• "make the Church and our efforts for life look ridiculous and terribly anti-Christian."
• "deep-seated anger and hostility"
• "Through vicious attacks launched on blogs, a new form of self-righteousness, condemnation and gnosticism reveals authors who behave as little children bullying one another around in schoolyards- casting stones, calling names, and wreaking havoc in the Church today!"
• "Sowing seeds of hatred and division are not the work of those who wish to build a culture of life."
• "contribute to the misery and division within the world and the Church"
• "destroy and kill others along the way."
• "very strong, antagonist approach"
• "hostility towards women who would choose abortion"
• "pushing their ideals onto the rest of society"
• "judgmental instead of helpful and supportive"
• "radical" 
• "cruel and hateful individuals"
• "so shrill, so angry and judgmental"
• "ugly and threatening" 
• "this is how the devil triumphs"
• "character assassination"
• "[LifeSite] is not credible, it does not speak for the Church, it is not ethical, it is not honest"
• "wreaking division and havoc"
• [LifeSite] is not an authentic instrument at the service of unity and at the service of the Church. It is causing division. For the 1/10 of kernel of truth that they purport to uncover (and there is truth in what they do) 9/10 is exaggeration."
• "[LifeSite] is bombastic, it is derisive and it is divisive."
• "pit people against each other"
• "wanting to set up a parallel Church"
• "cast aspersions or to dismiss or discredit what the bishops are trying to do" 

I feel so despised, disdained and derided.

Read here for the Vatican's view of how the Kennedy funeral should have been handled.  You'll see that it confirms everything that pro-lifers have been saying and contradicts what Fr. Rosica has been saying.

The oddest thing about this episode, is that Father Rosica did exactly what he was reproaching pro-lifers:  he openly criticized his fellow Catholics and he used such seething and inflammatory language as I have never seen used against pro-lifers, not even by the pro-abortion lobby.

This proves an important point:  his criticism of criticism is a hoax, a smoke-screen.  He himself realizes that constructive criticism is an integral part of Catholicism.  It's technically called "admonishing the sinner" and it is essential for the salvation of souls that have gone astray.

Unfortunately, Fr. Rosica has a distorted view of Catholicism.  But you will rarely hear him saying something overtly anti-Catholic.  He has a history of saying the right things (e.g. "I am pro-life"), but he tends to be unwilling to "take up his cross" by putting his reputation on the line in defending Church teachings.  For example, when he interviewed Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty, an infamous pro-abortion "Catholic", he remained silent while McGuinty expressed his disagreement with Church teaching on same-sex marriage. All this was broadcast on Salt and Light TV.  Is that Fr. Rosica's idea of good Catholic programming?  Contrast this to the beautiful witness of John Pacheco and David MacDonald who, in the last two elections, ran against Dalton McGuinty and publicly rebuked him for his anti-family positions.  Now that's heroic virtue.

To read more about the Fr. Rosica controversy, please visit Socon or Bust here and here. 

I agree with Fr. Rosica on one important point:  the Church is indeed divided.  The fracture is between those who want to follow the Vatican and those who have invented a lovey-dovey Catholicism (such as Fr. Rosica) where the primary goal is to never contradict anybody, even if they're dead wrong and rotting in mortal sin. Passivity can lead to complacency, which is often abused by ill-willed politicians and others.

This isn't about pro-lifers being self-righteous.  Just open up the Bible or the Catechism, or listen to the Vatican's statements.  We're simply trying to obey the Truth as it was handed down over the centuries, not invent our own path.

Please pray for Fr. Rosica. 

Fearing for our freedom of speech

As you know, Father Rosica has spent the better part of the last two weeks doing a tour of Catholic media outlets in order to criticize pro-lifers and discredit Internet news sources and blogs. I don't claim to know what he or the CCCB are thinking. Nor will I attempt to make a judgment of their intentions. However, I am entitled to express my feelings.

I feel scared. Very scared. And you should too. I feel that our freedom of expression is at risk.

We've just learned that the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) has hired two former MPs and two communications experts in order to revamp their communications strategy. At the same time, we've learned that the plenary assembly of the CCCB, which will take place in October, includes a session to discuss Internet news services and blogs. All this comes on the heels of the Development and Peace (D&P) scandal, which was a source of great embarrassment for the bishops and in which Internet news services and blogs played a pivotal role in revealing D&P’s support for about 40 pro-abortion groups throughout the developing world.

Are you seeing a connection?

While Father Rosica was vehemently criticizing us bloggers, I felt rejected. I felt as though our presence was not wanted. I felt most unwelcome to express any views that opposed the actions or statements of the bishops or of Father Rosica himself. I felt like I was something despised or base.

Justifiable outrage

In recent weeks, Father Thomas Rosica, Director of Salt&Light TV, has been pointing his guns in the wrong direction.  He has been aggressively attacking pro-lifers for using language that he deems to be too strong.  He advocates a soft, wishy-washy, lovey-dovey Christianity who's first commandment is "Thou shalt not ruffle any feathers".  (I'll have more info on Fr. Rosica in another post). 

Well, Fr. Rosica, I encourage you to watch the video posted here.  Once you've seen who we're up against, I hope you'll excuse us if sometimes we get a little upset.  In fact, we must get upset, as we read in St. Thomas Aquinas' Summa Theologica (quotes were ascribed to St. John Chrysostom):

"He who is not angry, whereas he has cause to be, sins. For unreasonable patience is the hotbed of many vices, it fosters negligence, and incites not only the wicked but the good to do wrong." 

"He that is angry without cause, shall be in danger; but he that is angry with cause, shall not be in danger: for without anger, teaching will be useless, judgments unstable, crimes unchecked."  Therefore to be angry is not always an evil.  (Source)