Traditional Latin Mass in Maryland

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The Catholic Review has posted an article calling for support for women facing crisis pregnancies . The post describes a document written by the Bishops of the Maryland Catholic Conference called "Set Out in Haste." The Catholic Review story states in part: “Set Out in Haste: Serving Women, Serving Life” was signed by Baltimore Archbishop Edwin F. O’Brien, Washington Archbishop Donald W. Wuerl and Wilmington Bishop W. Francis Malooly, whose dioceses include parts of Maryland. [...] The statement decries a recent campaign by NARAL Pro-Choice Maryland and Planned Parenthood of Maryland to single out pro-life pregnancy resource centers, which provide pregnant women with emotional and material assistance. Since 2008, three proposals have been introduced – one each at the state level, in Baltimore City and in Montgomery County – that would subject pregnancy resource centers to compelled-speech requirements, regulations, and possible fines because they decline to provide or r

The Archdiocese of Baltimore has issued this press release . I just heard a summary of this on a local news channel. Catholics Excused from Attending Mass if Travel is Unsafe 12/19/2009 Archbishop Edwin O'Brien, Archbishop of Baltimore, is reminding Catholics in the Archdiocese that Church law excuses them from fulfilling the Sunday obligation to attend Mass due to a "grave cause," such as unsafe travel due to severe weather conditions. Those who cannot safely attend Mass are encouraged to listen to the Sunday Radio Mass on WBAL-AM (1090) at 9:30 am or watch the TV Mass on EWTN. Check ewtn.com for more information. EWTN's TV schedule for the Fourth Sunday of Advent shows televised Masses at 8 AM (Live) and again rebroadcast at Noon.

Archbishop Edwin F. O'Brien writes a compelling piece today in " The Catholic Review Online " in his " Thoughts on Our Church " column . It is a MUST READ and very topical!

George Matysek has the full story at the Catholic Review : Archbishop Edwin F. O’Brien received 10 Episcopal nuns and an Episcopal priest into the Roman Catholic Church during a Sept. 3 liturgy. The sisters, members of the Society of All Saints’ Sisters of the Poor, were confirmed and renewed their religious vows of poverty, chastity and obedience inside the chapel of their Catonsville convent.... Archdiocesan leaders are working with Vatican officials to establish the sisters as the first “diocesan institute” in the Archdiocese of Baltimore – a religious community that is overseen directly by the bishop. Don't miss the photos and more ! Welcome home, Sisters and Father!

I was advised tonight that the All Saints Convent had posted a letter on its website . The site now contains " A letter from The Reverend Mother Christina to Associates, Fellowship members and friends - June 18, 2009 ." The letter is in PDF format but a portion is reproduced below: [...] After many months spent in discerning God's will for us in the Church, the Community believes that it is called to full communion with the Holy See. God willing, the Archbishop of Baltimore, in the Roman Catholic Church, will receive the All Saints Sisters in a service to be held in our Chapel on 3 September, 2009. Our community will keep these next weeks leading up to the scheduled reception of its Sisters as a period of final discernment and preparation. It will therefore not be possible for us to answer all the questions and concerns which we may receive. Of the 12 Sisters, 10 will be received as of now. Because the service on September 3rd will be an intensely

In his weekly column, " Thoughts on Our Church ," His Exellency Archbishop Edwin F. O'Brien posts his homily from the Ordination of June 13th at which four new priests were ordained for the Archdiocese of Baltimore. The full homily can be found here . Jennifer Williams has a full story on the Ordinations filed June 16th here . Ad multos annos , Fathers!

I am averse to post this before The Catholic Review, but it is now making the rounds on the internet. Shawn Tribe of the New Liturgical Movement is reporting that members of the All Saint's Community of Anglican Nuns will be received into the Catholic Church . Additional information is being reported by the blog, Sub Tuum, which provides additional background . I pray that readers will pray for these Sisters and am delighted that this is apparently going to occur. It has been rumored for a long time or so it seems.

In his weekly column, " Thoughts on Our Church ," Archbishop Edwin O'Brien reviews the course of events by which Catholic politicians were able to be support abortion while claiming to be Catholic . Here is a portion of his column: In a first-rate address to more than a hundred bishops gathered last February for a workshop conducted by the National Catholic Bioethics Center, Carl Anderson, Supreme Knight of the Knights of Columbus, referred to a Wall Street Journal opinion piece of January 7 of this year. Titled “How Support for Abortion Became Kennedy Dogma,” the article goes a long way in explaining how so many Catholic politicians, once pro-life, arrived at a deplorable compromise, abandoned their pro-life convictions, and even became, in too many instances, ardent “pro-choice” proponents. In 1964, Robert Kennedy was seeking a New York Senate seat and brother Ted was running for re-election to the United States Senate from Massachusetts. Liberal, well-funded pro-abort

The Catholic Review contains two stories which touch on the conscience rights of physicians that are in jeopardy. George P. Matysek, Jr. covers the symposium on conscience rights that took place May 9th at St. Joseph Medical Center in Towson . This was the first symposium of what may become an annual event to be sponsored by Archbishop Edwin O'Brien. Dr. Janet Smith of Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit gave the keynote address: In the keynote address, Dr. Janet Smith, Father Michael J. McGivney Chair of Life Ethics at Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit, outlined the church’s teachings on conscience – emphasizing that conscience isn’t an opinion about what’s right and wrong; it is “listening to the voice of God within.” “There is an erroneous view of conscience that says individuals independently are faced with their own truth,” Dr. Smith said. Addressing the church’s teachings on sexuality, Dr. Smith said the sexual act “should express a willingness to have a lifetime

In his weekly column, " Thoughts on Our Church ," Archbishop Edwin F. O'Brien recounts a brief lesson in Maryland history : The seeds were probably sown centuries ago in a hostile atmosphere for Catholics in the New World. In 1633, as the earliest colonists were about to set sail for “Mary Land”, Cecil Calvert, the second Lord Baltimore, instructed “his said Governor and Commissioners” that while sailing and upon arrival at their destination “they instruct all the Roman Catholics to be silent on all occasions of discourse concerning matters of religion...” His Excellency then goes on in his thoughtful essay to demonstrate the modern results of this mindset: From those days and even to the present, many Catholics have too often felt that we have still to prove ourselves as truly American. Nothing has seemed capable of persuading the Protestant majority that Catholicism could be compatible with American democracy. It has been said that Catholics’ participation in World Wars

Catholic Review Online >> Archbishop to host health care symposium (Paul McMullen; first annual event is scheduled for May 9th) WDTPRS >> QUAERITUR: going to another diocese for traditional Confirmation WDTPRS >> St. Coleman’s, Cobh, Ireland: Easter Monday TLM

In his weekly column in the Catholic Review , "Thoughts on Our Church," Archbishop O'Brien offers a meditation on the Eucharist . Some days ago, I treated myself to a day of prayer centered on the sacrifice of the Mass and the Holy Eucharist. In particular, I have over the years been struck by the profundity of recent papal meditations on this Mystery of Faith. This Holy Thursday I would like to offer you, without scholarly references, a sample of the sublimity of those meditations in the hope and prayer that this Lord’s Supper and every Mass in your future will draw you more deeply into this greatest mystery of all mysteries of God’s love. In a much overlooked letter to all the bishops of the world, Pope John Paul II noted that, “Beginning with the Upper Room and Holy Thursday, the celebration of the Eucharist has a long history, a history as long as that of the Church … in the course of this history … there has been no change in ‘mysteries’ instituted by the Redeemer o

Gary Gately reports today that Baltimore buses, various print ads, radio spots and TV ads will have the message that the "light is on for you ." The light referred to is the one over the confessional. To quote His Excellency, Archbishop O'Brien: Archbishop Edwin F. O’Brien says too many Catholics have gotten away from regular Confession, and he’s using the Lenten media campaign season to try to get them to return. “We have to make use of the media for important things in our lives if we want to get the message across,” Archbishop O’Brien said, “and this sacrament of reconciliation is an essential of our faith that is too often overlooked by people or not utilized as often as it should be.” The campaign is patterned after a similar effort launched two years ago by the Archdiocese of Washington. Not so long ago, Archbishop O’Brien noted, Catholics went to confession regularly. “These traditions have fallen by the wayside,” he said. “We’ve just not given the stress and th

The Catholic Review is the Archdiocesan newspaper for the Archdiocese of Baltimore. Three stories just happened to catch my eye this week and may be of interest to you. Longtime associate publisher of Catholic Review resigns Education meetings begin with sobering statistics Seminarians serve as sports chaplains at Mount St. Mary’s His Excellency, Archbishop O'Brien, has a further update on COURAGE .

In a story dated January 14, 2009, the Catholic News Service released the final report of the Apostolic Visitation team of U.S. seminaries . The final report is found here in this PDF file and is of importance for all Catholic s . Some issues--such as the importance of the presence of the Rector, increase in the study of Latin, and needed emphasis on Catholic Moral Theology--are areas which appeared in this report. The news story and PDF file are worthy of detailed reading and analysis. Need I suggest we pray for Bishops and priests daily?

In an article dated today, His Excellency, Archbishop Edwin O'Brien discusses "Courage" in his weekly column, "Thoughts on Our Church ." To cite just a part of this column: With Father John Harvey, O.S.F.S., and Benedict Groeschel, C.F.R., I was involved in the founding of Courage, a support group for Catholics with same-sex attractions who seek to live chaste lives. Off to a small start in 1980, Courage now has branches in 95 U.S. dioceses as well as in 12 other countries. The strength it continues to lend individuals and their families is a sure sign of God’s grace at work. At present, we have EnCourage, a group that meets regularly in our Archdiocese. I wrote about it in this column in March after celebrating Mass for its members. EnCourage supports relatives and loved ones of individuals who are involved in same-sex relationships. These EnCourage members are often parents who have homosexually active children and see the sad gap between them and our Churc

Rocco Palmo has another exclusive on a story which will appear in the Catholic Review, the official newspaper of the Archdiocese of Baltimore. The author of the article is His Excellency, Archbishop Edwin O'Brien, and the article deals with the Freedom of Choice Act. Read this important article here . Here is just a snippet: A threat to all life, this legislation would also have a terrible impact on Catholic and other pro-life healthcare providers. Of particular note: FOCA trumps state laws that protect rights of providers (e.g. Catholic hospitals, pharmacists, etc.) to conscientiously object to performing abortions if such state laws are seen to in any way “interfere” with a woman’s decision to have an abortion. FOCA undermines the freedom of religion upon which our country was founded. I pledge that we will join with other all law-abiding religious and public interest groups in taking every action necessary to resist this blatant attempt to stifle the consciences of those w

Last week, H.E. Archbishop Edwin O'Brien posted a column in " Thoughts on Our Church " entitled "Shall We Dance ." One poignant segment stated: Most in our culture, including Catholics, see laws as threatening their freedom, limiting rightful options, interfering with their privacy. No dancing in the street here! Our theology, on the other hand, sees man wounded by sin and in need of salvation. Divine help comes to us in Christ through the law that guides us and the grace that sustains us. This week, Archbishop O'Brien, after citing the previous column on the role that law plays in our lives, discusses Humanae Vitae and its implications for today in a column entitled, "Work Ardently and Incessantly ." He writes, And there is more. The dissent which followed Humanae Vitae has itself spawned a generation of Catholic thinkers and theologians who have claimed that not only was the Church wrong about the Pill, it is wrong about sterilization, wro

Paul McMullen posted an article in the Catholic Review Online yesterday concerning a continuing dialogue between H.E. Archbishop O'Brien and the Legionaries of Christ. The full article can be found here .