Traditional Latin Mass in Maryland

George P. Matysek, Jr. of the Catholic Review gives a biosketch of the three transitional deacons to be be ordained at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Baltimore on May 10th . Two of the three seminarians, Gonzalo Cadavid-Rivera, 35, and Hector H. Mateus-Ariza, 36, are Spanish-speaking natives of Colombia, while Marc L. Lanoue, 42, hails from Massachusetts. As transitional deacons, Mr. Cadavid, Mr. Mateus-Ariza and Mr. Lanoue will be able to proclaim the Gospel during Mass, perform baptisms, witness marriages, perform vigil services and bring Communion to the sick. Ordination to the priesthood normally happens a year after ordination to the transitional diaconate. Read the full story here . Deo gratias! Ad multos annos!

Renee Newberry has posted a Special Report to the Catholic Review dated May 3rd . Here is a snippet: Monsignor Joseph S. Lizor Jr., St. Luke pastor, called this “a way of recognizing great people and giving them special attention.” An army chaplain for 22 years, Father Lizor said he “spent a good many years overseas.” Don't miss it . And, my deepest thanks to all of those in the Military who are serving or who have served our country!

The Catholic Review Online carries a story dated today by George P. Matysek, Jr. on the return of the TLM to Saint Bartholomew's Parish in Manchester, MD . This blog has mentioned that Mass several times. Here is a short snippet from his article: Monsignor Robert Jaskot, chancellor of the Archdiocese of Baltimore, called the regional celebration of the extraordinary form of the Mass a “first step” for the Baltimore archdiocese. The rite is celebrated every week at the Shrine of St. Alphonsus in Baltimore. “It’s the intention of the archbishop to make this extraordinary form available,” he said. “We want to make sure we do things correctly and we do them well.” Monsignor Jaskot noted that it takes special training to make sure priests are prepared to celebrate the liturgy properly. Not only is the rite said in Latin, it also involves particular gestures and rubrics that must be learned. Archbishop Edwin F. O’Brien is looking at how the extraordinary rite can be made more availab

Archbishop Edwin O'Brien posts his weekly article in the Catholic Review in "Thoughts on Our Church" to the Catholic faithful of the Archdiocese. His Excellency recalls his experiences with the Holy Father during the Papal visit. Here is a short snippet: And in the relatively few major addresses, the Holy Father proclaimed that message unmistakably to Catholics and non-Catholics alike, ever sensitive to the beliefs of others in his audiences. So densely packed with theological and spiritual insights, his addresses will have to be re-read and studied in the weeks ahead in order to mine their rich content. Equally important and meaningful as were his words, was his very presence and the intangible magnetism which drew millions to see and listen in person or through the media which offered generous coverage. Not only did we flock to see him, but he reached out with the Good Shepherd’s concern to those who might otherwise be overlooked: the victims of clergy sexual abuse,

George P. Matysek, Jr. of Catholic Review Online has posted a great story on a new vocations website initiated by the Archdiocese of Baltimore . Here is a snippet of the article: The majority of men who contact the Archdiocese of Baltimore for information about the priesthood do it through e-mail. So it made sense for the archdiocese to have a top-notch Web site to be more proactive in reaching out to future priests through the World Wide Web, according to Father Gerard Francik, vocations director. The archdiocese has just launched a new Web site, www.becomeapriest.org , devoted to providing information about discernment, the priestly life and applying for the priesthood. The site replaces an older one that was much less interactive, Father Francik said. The new site features profiles of current seminarians, resources for discernment, advice for parents, prayers, links to men’s and women’s religious communities and video of seminarians talking about their vocation. Four seminarians –

George Matysek, Jr. of the Catholic Review Online follows up his story on the Bicentennial of the Archdiocese of Baltimore with a list of the special events to take place . A special display of historical documents will be unveiled in Laubacher Hall at St. Mary’s Seminary and University, Roland Park, on April 12 at 2 p.m. The exhibit will be open from 4 to 6 p.m. Monday-Friday from April 14 through May 14. [...] A series of 7 p.m. lectures named in honor of America’s founding archbishop, John Carroll, will be launched April 22 at the Baltimore Basilica. Archbishop Timothy Dolan of Milwaukee will deliver the first lecture April 22, speaking about John Carroll. George Weigel, a Baltimore native and biographer of Pope John Paul II, who serves as a distinguished senior fellow with the Ethics and Public Policy Center in Washington, D.C., will speak May 12. His topic will be “Popes, power and world politics: from Leo XIII to Benedict XVI.” Colleen Carroll Campbell, author of “The New Fait

The Catholic Review is the Archdiocesan newspaper of the Archdiocese of Baltimore. The online edition carries two stories of interest : Cindy Wooden reports that the liberalization of the Tridentine Mass is bearing fruit . The story deals with the interview of Cardinal Castrillon-Hoyos to L'Osservatore Romano widely reported on traditional blogs. George P. Matysek, Jr. reports on a tour by Archbishop O'Brien through the Carroll County area . His Excellency praised the Eucharistic Adoration that is prominent at some parishes such as Saint John's in Westminster and called for an increase in religious vocations.

The Chrism Mass was held Monday, March 17th in our Archdiocese at the Cathedral of Mary Our Queen in Baltimore . Today, His Excellency Archbishop Edwin O'Brien in his column, " Thoughts on Our Church " writes a beautiful column for his brother priests and for all of us . Th e last several years, as each very special Chrism Mass approaches, I have found food for the soul in a 2002 Chrism Mass homily offered by Baltimore’s proud native son Bishop Victor Galeone of St. Augustine. I thought I should share it with you and am grateful to my good friend, the Bishop of St. Augustine, for permission to do so: "I’d like you to come back with me to the spring of 1974 – back to the town of Andahuaylas, high in the Andes Mountains. At the time, I was serving as a missionary in Peru. This particular Sunday afternoon, I was visiting our sick parishioners in the town hospital. In the men’s ward, I came across Oswaldo – a Lutheran minister who was visiting from Lima. He had taken i

Archbishop Edwin O'Brien posts his weekly column in the Catholic Review Online called " Thoughts on Our Church " on the subject of "A Consistent Culture of Life. " His Excellency discusses the subject of capital punishment in Maryland and in Society as a whole. Here is a part of this essay: Pope John Paul II said, “Man’s life comes from God. It is His gift, His image and imprint, a sharing in His breadth of life. God, therefore, is the sole Lord of this life. Man cannot do with it as he wills.” In the hearing before a Senate committee last week, representatives of the Church testified that our Church recognizes the right of legitimate government to resort to the death penalty, but it directly challenges the appropriateness of government’s doing so in a society that is capable of ensuring the public safety. If non-lethal means are sufficient to protect people’s safety from an aggressor, we believe that public authority should limit itself to such means, beca

George P. Matysek Jr. files this important story in the Catholic Review Online . Monsignor Robert J. Jaskot is stepping down as Chancellor of the Archdiocese and has been appointed as Director of the Archdiocesan Office of Worship by Archbishop Edwin O'Brien . As the story explains: The new office will provide support and education to parishes in the area of liturgy and worship. Monsignor Jaskot expects to have the office up and running by September after completing his licentiate in canon law at The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. In addition to heading the office of worship, Monsignor Jaskot will serve as an adjunct faculty member and teach an introductory sacraments class at St. Mary’s Seminary, Roland Park. [...] Monsignor Jaskot said liturgy has always been one of his passions. He holds a licentiate in sacred theology in dogmatic theology specializing in sacraments from the Pontifical Athenaeum of St. Anselm in Rome. His bachelor’s degree in sacred theol

George P. Matysek Jr. of the Catholic Review Online files this story : Calling it the “main preoccupation” of the seminary to “create priests after the heart of Christ,” Archbishop Edwin F. O’Brien celebrated Mass with the board of trustees, seminarians, administrators and members of the St. Mary’s Seminary community in Roland Park, March 3. The archbishop held up the example of the royal official in the Gospel of John who sought Jesus and asked for a cure for his son. Christ told the man to return home, and on the journey the son was cured. “What confidence in Christ he showed as he turned on his heels and headed back,” said Archbishop O’Brien. Believers today must show that same kind of confident faith, the archbishop said. They must not be like the Pharisees who witnessed what Jesus did but did not know who Jesus was, he said. “We think we know Christ – but how deeply?” Archbishop O’Brien said. “We think we want to do his will, but how full are our prayers of ourselves and our will

Archbishop Edwin O'Brien writes a weekly column for the Archdiocesan paper, The Catholic Review . This week's column concerns a support group called "EnCouragement." It is a moving essay and is well worth reading. EnCourage is an offshoot of “Courage,” founded in 1980 and now worldwide, to present and promote faithfully the Church’s teaching on homosexuality and to give every support to Catholics seeking to live up to those teachings. Recently, I was pleased to celebrate Mass for a group of EnCourage members who meet monthly in the Archdiocese of Baltimore under the guidance of one of our priests. Most of the members of EnCourage are parents who have homosexually active children. I sat in on their discussion which followed the Mass, and I came away deeply impressed by the strength of their faith. All the participants are making every effort to maintain a strong, loving relationship with their children. They are committed to the Church’s consistent teaching that h

The Catholic Review Online carries a story by Chaz Muth on the Latin Novus Ordo ( Ordinary Form ) Mass celebrated each Sunday at the National Shrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in downtown Baltimore: If more Catholics knew this particular service was not the old style of the Tridentine Mass but a new-style Mass said in both Latin and English, they might be more willing to give it a chance, said Father Jeffrey S. Dauses, the new rector of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. As it stands now, fewer than 100 worshipers sit in the pews of the nation’s first Catholic Cathedral during the Latin Mass, and Father Dauses believes the congregation will grow if the faithful understand more about the service. “We have a participation booklet that outlines the service in both English and Latin so you can follow the liturgy,” he said. “The readings and homily are all in English, so the word of God is accessible.” The Latin Mass has

The Catholic Review , the official newspaper of the Archdiocese of Baltimore, carries a story on Maryland Senate Bill 690, and House of Delegates Bill 1146 . These bills have been introduced into the Maryland State Legislature. The article was written by George P. Matysek, Jr. and was posted yesterday in the online version. Here is a snippet from the article: [...] The legislation seems to have been sparked by a recent “investigation” by the NARAL Pro-choice Maryland asserting that crisis pregnancy centers give out inaccurate or misleading information to clients. The study was based on the reports of NARAL volunteers who posed as pregnant women and visited 11 crisis pregnancy centers. They claimed that crisis pregnancy center volunteers gave them medically inaccurate information and tried to pressure them not to have abortions. Nancy Paltell, associate director for the respect for life office of the Maryland Catholic Conference, said the report is part of a coordinated smear campa

Archbishop Edwin O'Brien posts an article on Confession in The Catholic Review online for this week, February 15th . [...] Through the centuries, the form in which the Church exercised this commission of the Lord has evolved, as has the practice of the faithful in celebrating this unique gift from Christ; older generations will recall the day that individuals would receive Holy Communion on Sunday only if he or she had gone to confession the Saturday before. How the pendulum has swung! It comes as news to no one that there has been a serious decline in individuals going to confession. Is there little urgency to confess, because there is confusion or even denial in some quarters on the very existence of mortal sin as well as the existence of hell? Unfortunately, yes. The Catechism is so very valuable in clarifying Church teaching in matters such as this and should be studied at home, taught in schools and preached from our pulpits. All the faithful who are aware of serious sins com