Some day in Covington...

Wonderful news!

Effective October 7, 2009, the feast of Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary, His Excellency Ronald W. Gainer, Bishop of Lexington, enacted the Statutes of the Regina Pacis Community of the Diocese of Lexington, creating a chaplaincy under which members of the Community may register in lieu of a parish. The chaplain of the Community serves as the pastor of its faithful under Canon Law.

Lexington Latin Mass

The formal establishment of the Regina Pacis Community has been prayerfully awaited by its members and is an occasion of great joy and thanksgiving for all in the Diocese of Lexington who value the traditional sacramental rites of the Church. We are exceedingly grateful to Bishop Gainer and ask the prayers of all that this Community may thrive and provide spiritual benefits to all the faithful as part of the broader community of the Diocese.

St. Peter Roman Catholic Church
153 Barr Street Lexington, Kentucky


Laudetur Jesus Christus! Welcome to the Regina Pacis Community!


Sunday Mass 4pm
Daily Mass Monday through Saturday 7am
Confessions heard before all Masses

Will be missed....snif

Nashville, TN: “Priests receive training in celebrating Tridentine rite”
I found this article from the other day(work hasn't allowed me to peruse blogs much this week). While it is great to see this diocese benefit from Father William Fitzgerald's knowledge, it brought the realization he won't be with us much longer. His kind words and amazing homilies(he can pack more meaning and meat in a brief homily than one could imagine) have been instrumental to our family(and diocese). I hope he leaves here with some knowledge of the lives he has changed. When I was at a very dark time, spiritually, I often would weep during and after Mass at the Cathedral in Covington. Not because he has some great power, but because I could truly feel God working through him to touch those of us who needed a voice of calm and reason in this crazy diocese. I apologize for getting emotional but thoughts of where I was(spiritually) over a year ago are difficult to "stir up". Anyway, he will be missed, dearly. I know there are others whose lives have been touched by this man of faith and truth, as well. He made sense when nothing else in my life made sense. And for that I will be forever grateful. I am happy that others will benefit(in California) from his example, wisdom and faith.

EF Mass for Christmas, St. Bernard Church

For the locals, or those who will be visiting family in Cincinnati or Covington, the Traditional Latin Mass/Extraordinary Form will be at 11 am Christmas Morning at St. Bernard in Dayton, Kentucky. I'm sure it will be glorious! Here is the parish website if you need directions:
St. Bernard

Standing for truth

Wow.

Wisconsin Bishop Breaks from Conference and Opposes Emergency Contraception in Catholic Hospitals

From the article:

Bishops conferences which have permitted the morning after pill in Catholic hospitals for rape victims are basing their decisions on an interpretation of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops document: Ethical and Religious Directives (E.R.D.) for Catholic Health Care Services which states at no. 36 with regard to a woman who has been raped: "If after appropriate testing, there is no evidence that conception has occurred already, she may be treated with medications that would prevent ovulation, sperm capacitation the process by which spermatozoa in the ampullary portion of a uterine tube become capable of going through the acrosome reaction and fertilizing an oocyte." However, the document adds: "It is not permissible, however, to initiate or to recommend treatments that have as their purpose or direct effect the removal, destruction, or interference with the implantation of a fertilized ovum." (see the document: http://www.usccb.org/bishops/directives.shtml ; )

This document, wrongly interpreted, has had a dismal effect on Catholic hospitals. We are dealing with this same issue in Kentucky. I am hopeful that Archbishop Kurtz may be able to have an hand in reversing the stance made by the Kentucky Catholic Conference of Bishops. It has polarized our church here and put us in a position where we, as lay Catholics, have to defend a bad decision. Plan B and other such abortifacients have no place in Catholic hospitals. This is truly a black and white issue. Bishop Morlino is to be commended for his brave and loyal stance that is in line with the Vatican document from 2000. I pray that we may also have a "breaking away" from Catholic Conference of Kentucky Bishops here in Covington. What this message sends to women is that Plan B is contraceptive in nature and not the abortifacient, life-ending monster that it truly is. It is NOT emergency contraception. It is continuing the business of the fetal holocaust with our Catholic hospitals as the death camps. Sorry to be graphic and harsh but I am growing weary of the excuses. Follow the Vatican, do the right thing and stand for the truth. Doggonit.

Hard to get excited.

So this is the beginning of the big week. I'm reading all over the Internet how diocese all over the country are having a special Mass to celebrate Summorum Pontificum and all the celebrations as well. You want to know what is on the itinerary for our area? Let's see, it will be getting a bit cooler so the grass may finally grow with the coming rains. Yep, while many of you will be basking in the return of the sacred, we here in Cincinnati and Covington will be watching the grass grow, literally. Neat, huh? The hierarchy in our Church starts with the Holy Father. Yes, even for the bishops here in the US. I, for one, think it is such a joyous occasion to be able to watch the grass grow in Cincinnati.

While one bishop puts out loopholes galore on one side of the river and the other makes a generic statement early on and then says nothing in our diocesan newspaper further since then(other than the magic 100 # and some other nonsensical norms that I'm not sure where they came from exactly), yeah it seems to be catching here. If there is going to be fidelity to the Holy Father, I hope we start seeing signs soon. Right now it's looking dismal. I will still read the stories about the celebrations, the processions, the Masses that take place this week with joy. Because, thankfully, the Catholic Church does not begin and end in the Ohio Valley region. I have prayed so much in the past year that we could call a parish home and it looks like that home may not be here. I'm tired of fighting. Tired of politics that don't belong in the Church. I'm done. I don't want to be a downer for those excited about what is to come in their area or parish.

It's Friday. A bit on the "legacy" of Bishop Hughes.

I have had to do minimal blogging this week to catch up on business issues. I'm trying to keep hope as my children wind down the school year and it's getting more difficult everyday. We are still without a priest assignment and that has everything to do with whether or not I and many others will stay at the parish so we are all in limbo. Oddly enough, I have prayed that the choice be obvious so there will be no grey matter hindering our decision. We truly have some excellent and holy priests in our diocese and so I am praying that by some miracle we have a priest who can save our poor parish. It has been one of the roughest years, spiritually, of my entire life. To go from being an integral part of a parish and participating in so much of the parish life to be forced out by liturgical abuse-palooza and decisions that put our parish in the same genre as every other liberal parish in the diocese was harsh and difficult to live through. I pray that we do not have an unprecedented situation where a priest, less than a year ordained runs our rather large parish. He is a good man but he needs much help.

So now I and many others sit in limbo wondering if we will be looking for a new school and parish for the coming year as I cannot stay somewhere were it becomes an occasion of sin on a daily basis and where Catholic truth can no longer be found. One thing I have found in the last year is the beauty of the Tridentine Mass. If things weren't so bad and heretical(on some occasions)I may never have ventured that far. All things happen for a reason. My children love going to the Tridentine and as bad as things are in some parishes here, I am so thankful we have an indult Mass. Many dioceses do not and for this I have some comfort. I have come to learn that all things, even when difficult happen for the greater good and so I have hope in this. I pray that someday the vice grip Bishop Hughes had many years ago on this diocese will finally be gone. Everything was liberal, very little was orthodox and the ripple effect can still be felt today. For history on Bishop Hughes(for those that are not locals), you can read up on his "legacy"(if you can call it that) Continuing the Bishop Hughes Legacy
. Here is a brief excerpt:

Bishop Hughes’ pontificate was marred by a succession of scandals as he sought to mold the priests and people of his diocese into his own anti-Roman image. Often at public odds with the Pope, Cardinals O’Connor and Ratzinger, his pro-active support of abortion, the homosexual lifestyle, distributing condoms to children; his mishandling of pedophile priests; his promotion of dissenting clergymen and dismissal of orthodox priests; all characterize the Bishop Hughes presence in northern Kentucky.

Trust me, his "legacy" continues. While we have a few positive signs of change(the indult being huge), dealing with rampant liturgical abuses and end-of-life/pro-life issues continues to be a prominent problem. With so many good priests, it is hard to understand the measure by which one gets promoted to monsignor(as honorary) in this diocese. Some are excellent and give such honor to the priesthood. Others are known to be card carrying members of the Lavender Mafia or promote social issues in conflict with Catholic teaching. It is hard to stay positive except in knowing that God sees all.

I truly hope the next year will be less stressful regarding my faith. I'm tired of hearing the pseudo-protestant mantra "God is community" and all the lovey-huggy stuff that has nothing to do with leading a life pleasing to God and getting to heaven. I worry that just in a year's time, our parishioners believe that they will get to heaven because they are part of a "community" and not because they have loved much and stayed true to God's commandments(among others things like sin and grace that have not been mentioned). We will not ride the coattails of any "community" on our way to heaven, it is truly every man for himself and we will be judged according to our heart, works and faithfulness. The community is a made-up fantasy that makes everyone feel happy and mushy. We are the Body of Christ through our baptism. That is a totally different concept that is not what we have been force-fed in the last year. Can you sense my frustration?

So today I work and while I work I will pray that God will allow this tired and stressed-out mother to have more support in teaching my children the truth of the Catholic faith. I know I cannot handle another year like this last one. In Christ's name, I pray for truth and sound teaching for my children. Amen.

Cathedral Basilica in Covington

Here is a photo of the basilica where I attend Mass some times. It is very beautiful and has a wonderful history.
Here is a link to the website:
Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption

More trouble for Covington KY diocese and our Catholic hospital

We have a pot that is about to boil over in our diocese with a merger of our Catholic and non-Catholic hospitals(it will form a monopoly, there are only 2 in our area). St. Elizabeth Medical Center, part of the Diocese of Covington, currently allows emergency contraception in cases of rape but ONLY if the woman is not pregnant. The Catholic Conference of Kentucky, the lobbying group for the state's four Catholic bishops, approved the use of emergency contraception in Catholic hospitals for this reason of "rape"(which any woman can say she was raped to get it).
The other problem is St. Elizabeth has a policy of withdrawing food and water from some patients and this violates Catholic teaching(which the linked article below clearly points out). On the St. Elizabeth website, there is a link to fill out a living will which if you are admitted to this hospital, God forbid, you run the risk of having food and water taken from you and very well may starve to death as Terry Schiavo did.
Death Without Dignity: Starvation and Dehydration
An amazing article written by Robert C. Cetrulo that outlines the clear teachings of Holy Mother Church on end-of-life moral obligations.

So now, with the merger, our Catholic hospital may plunge even further into the culture of death with the details of the merger unknown. Regardless, death is not just from the wages of sin but also the lot of those of us who have no alternative hospital in Northern Kentucky. While this is being worked out on paper, our bishop has remained silent on the matter.
Allowing such things to happen at a Catholic hospital is intrinsically evil. As Catholics, we must be pro-life from conception until natural death and not starve our weakest citizens and chemically kill them before they implant in their mother's womb.
For more information on this saga you can go to Northern Kentucky Right to Life website HERE.