No Room At The… Seminary

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Bishop Bernard Fellay, Brother Alexis Bugnolo, Dr. Francisco José Díaz Marcilla, Mr. Matteo Scozia, Society of St. Pius X, SSPX, St. Thomas Aquinas Seminary Winona Minnesota, The Scholasticum

Dear faithful readers, I bring you more good news from the Restoration fronts.

First I would like to draw your attention to a new project has been launched on the 5th of October 2015. The project is the work of a friend of the Deus Ex Machina blog and author of the From Rome blog (see here), Brother Alexis Bugnolo. Br. Alexis along with Dr. Francisco José Díaz Marcilla and Mr. Matteo Scozia are the founders of this project that bears the name The Scholasticum.

The aim of the founders is the “establishment of a new institute of medieval studies dedicated to reviving the study of Scholastic Theology and Philosophy”. The mission of The Scholasticum is one that is near and dear to my heart, i.e. “the formation of a new generation of faithful Catholic theologians and philosophers according to the method of study employed by Sts. Thomas Aquinas and St. Bonaventure”.

If there is one thought that I would like to impart upon you, dear reader about the need for such an institution to arise, it is this: the greatest damage done to the Catholic Faith has been through the Modernist’s ability to drive a wedge between the two sources of our Faith.

If you recall from our post titled Discernment Guide for Dummies (see here), our Faith comes not only through “divine revelation (the written Word), but also through the “natural light of human reason from the things that are made”. In academic circles, this second source of our Faith is usually known as the “scientific” method. In the “science of theology”, since “science” it is, the scientific method goes by a different name, i.e. Scholasticism. And it was the successful suppression of Scholasticism through the suppression of Thomism from the seminaries and from the post-Modernist Catholic theology departments that has basically reduced the Catholic faith to something akin to pop-psychology in a New Age wrapper with “Dawkins-ian invisible little friend” at its center.

And the results are there for all who have eyes, to see.

Which brings me to the second bit of good and related Restoration news. I would like to draw your attention to the present situation at the SSPX’s St. Thomas Aquinas Seminary. For those not familiar with the SSPX, their seminaries are the bedrock of Scholastic (Thomist) priestly formations in the Catholic Church today.

I have mentioned the situation of the SSPX’s burgeoning vocations in two recent posts titled Tluste Lata for Catholicism in Poland (see here) and Years of Plenty for SSPX Continue (see here). In the later post, I asked for my readers to go over to the SSPX seminary website (see here) and help in this historical Restoration effort.

Today I would like to draw your attention to the situation at St. Thomas Aquinas Seminary in Winona Minnesota. The post below, titled Thirty-five new vocations. (see here) explains how the situation looks on the ground. I re-post for the record: (emphasis added).

Thirty-five new vocations

On October 2nd the Seminary welcomed thirty new seminarians and five new brother postulants for the inception of the academic year.  This almost unprecedented accession brought the total number of seminarians to eighty-three, and that of the Brothers to thirteen.  With the ten seminary professors, this entails a community of over one hundred members—which is more than the Seminary building can even accommodate.

To cope with the copious increase, a brave group of six seminarians and two brothers was dispatched to found a new colony in the “Farm House,” which is located on Seminary property several hundred yards from the main building.  The encroaching winter will test the mettle of the settlers, as they will have to fight their way through sleet and snow several times a day to be present for prayer, classes, and other community activities.

In past years the refectory had five to six tables vacant. Now all of its nineteen tables are filled save for one.  A new row of mailboxes has been installed underneath others which, in past years, had been considered extra.  The “Music Room,” which had served as the primary classroom for the Humanities students, has been reassigned to other purposes, because it is too small to fit the new class of thirty.  In a word, the reinforcements have made sure that their presence is felt.  Even the parishioners have an interest in the matter, since the burgeoning Seminary community has found it necessary to claim more of the scanty pew-space reserved for the faithful.

The inconveniences entailed by this increase are, of course, far outweighed by the joy of seeing so many who aspire to work in the Lord’s vineyard.  Let us thank the Lord of the harvest, who is providing more laborers for the great work of the salvation of souls.  Adveniat regnum tuum.

How does one do justice commenting on such a joyous occasion?

Well, one effective way that I have found, is to use the words of someone from the other side of the barricades. So today’s commentary comes from the the UK’s Daily Telegraph, a paper at the forefront of promoting the HOMO AGENDA. One of their journalists, when commenting on the end of the Stealth Sex Synod™ of 2015 made the following observations about the two sides of the conflict, which I am reproducing below:

Could not have said it better myself.

On an aside, it boggles one’s mind that a journalist who writes something as rational and prescient as the passage above, then can go and say that aberrant sexual behavior is not INTRINSICALLY DISORDERED. But I digress…

I guess it must be that the family needs to eat…

Years of Plenty For SSPX Continue

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In yesterday’s post titled “Tłuste Lata” For Catholicism in Poland (see here) we chronicled the advance that Catholicism is making in the Polish Church. The advance can be seen in the growing numbers of men who are presently studying for the priesthood in Catholic seminaries.

Today, we turn our focus to the Catholic Church’s FIRST RELIGIOUS SOCIETY AMONG EQUALS, the Fraternal Priestly Society of St. Pius X. On the SSPX’s US website, (see here) via the DICI website, we are informed that a total of 53 new entrants have commenced their first year of study at SSPX seminaries. Furthermore, another 49 men have entered the pre-seminary phase who will take courses in the humanities before beginning their specialized seminary studies.

To provide context, since context is everything, I would like to draw your attention to the situation at the Seminary of Our Lady Co-Redemptrix in La Reja Argentina. La Reja is approximately 30 miles west of Buenos Aires. (see here) Just this year, 9 new entrants will begin their first year of spirituality and a further 14 will begin the pre-seminary phase. That is a total of 23 men just this year. When added to the 30+ seminarians (will confirm once I have exact figure but there are 49 seminarians in La Reja and Goulburn collectively), the total comes out to no less than 53.

While at the same time, over at the diocesan seminary of Buenos Aires, the number of seminarians is less than 30. (Once again, see here) And for further context, here is a comment from a friend of this blog, Mr Richard Malcomb who writes:

“Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio in his last year as the Archbishop of Buenos Aires had in his seminary a grand total of 28 seminarians.”
…which was a two thirds dropoff from what he inherited in 1997.

Before I go to the post, I would just like to remind all my readers that the SSPX’s Seminary Project in Virginia is underway. (see here) Last time we checked in, the slate roof was being installed. (see here) If you would be so kind as to venture over to their website and even kinder and contribute to this noble cause, your humble blogger would be most grateful.

On an aside, at this rate, it would appear that this new seminary will be needed just to handle the overflow from St. Thomas Aquinas Seminiary in Winona.

Deo Gratias!

Archbishop Lefebvre, ora pro nobis!

And now, I am reproducing the post below…

FOR THE RECORD

From DICI we offer this joyful news about this academic year’s number of entrants to the SSPX’s seminaries, as well as the total of postulants to the brotherhood.

---

The Society of St. Pius X is admitting a total of 53 young men to their first year of spirituality in its different seminaries for the current academic year 2015-2016.

In the Northern Hemisphere, the Seminary of the Holy Cure of Ars in Flavigny (France) is welcoming 14 new seminarians (4 Frenchmen, 4 Swiss, 2 Gabonese, 2 Italian, 1 Nigerian and 1 Pole) and 2 postulant brothers (1 French and 1 Canadian), as well as a pre-seminarian.

Sacred Heart Seminary in Zaitzkofen (Germany) is welcoming 10 new seminarians (2 Germans, 2 Czechs, 1 Austrian, 1 Frenchman, 1 Lithuanian, 1 Pole, 1 Russian and 1 South African).

St. Thomas Aquinas Seminary in Winona, Minnesota (U.S.A.) is welcoming 12 new seminarians and 5 postulant brothers (all Americans), as well as 30 pre-seminarians who will take courses in the humanities before beginning their specialized seminary studies. [Read at STAS.ORG: 35 new vocations]

In the Southern Hemisphere the beginning of the new academic year in March 2015 saw the arrival at the Seminary of Our Lady Co-Redemptrix in La Reja (Argentina) of 9 new seminarians (5 Argentines, 2 Brazilians, 1 Chilean and 1 Guatemalan) and 3 postulant brothers (1 American, 1 Brazilian and 1 Dominican), and of 14 pre-seminarians as well.

At Holy Cross Seminary in Goulburn (Australia), 8 new seminarians had entered as first-year students (2 Australians, 2 Filipinos, 1 American, 1 Indian, 1 Kenyan, and 1 Ugandan), as well as one postulant brother and 4 pre-seminarians.

That makes for this calendar year 2015 a total of 53 first-year seminarians and 10 entering as postulants to become brothers. There were 51 new seminarians in 2014, 43 in 2013, 50 in 2012, 57 in 2011, and 48 in 2010.

(Source: FSSPX/MG—DICI no. 323, 10-19-2015)

Like the old saying claims: You can’t argue with success!

 

“Tłuste Lata” For Catholicism in Poland

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I interrupt the chronicling of the Synod of Filth to bring some good news. Below is a translation of two posts, one from the SSPX Polish website and the other from the  UnaCum.pl post (Polish Una Voce) pertaining to seminarians studying in SSPX and Ecclesia Dei Seminaries.

As you can see dear reader, the Poles are experiencing “Tłuste Lata”, which translates roughly into a “Years of plenty”.

First, the SSPX since they have pride of place and are first among equals on your humble blogger’s even humbler blog. On the back of the 39 seminarians that took their cassocks at the SSPX’s seminaries that we chronicled in the post titled Vaches Grasses (see here) and had to quickly update it, which we did with the post titled Make That 39!, (see here) all in February of this year. Well the new year has started and it promises to be another  “Tłuste Lato”. We have a further 10 taking their cassock at the SSPX’s Zaitzkfen International Seminary alone, being reported by the SSPX’s Polish website.  Here is the translated post: (original see here)

This year, to the international seminary belonging to the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X, the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Zaitzkofen Bavaria, knocked the next ten young men who want to study and take formation to serve the Church as priests. Candidates for the priesthood come from eight countries: among them two Germans and two Czechs and one candidate from Austria, France, Lithuanian, Poland, South Africa and Russia – the latter does not appear in the photo, because it is still waiting for a visa to enter the EU .

And from co-religionists and brothers in Christ, fighting the good fight inside the pro-conciliar church structures, over at at the UnaCum.pl website the following can be read: (original see here)

Poles in traditional seminars UnaCum.pl

As every year, we publish the joyous news about Poles who are preparing for the priesthood in the priestly pontifical institutes of the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei. These seminarians are asking for prayers, for their priestly vocations.

In the European seminary of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter (FSSP) in Wigratzbad in Bavaria, studying theology are Mr James who comes from the Diocese of Torun and Mr Michael who is from the Archdiocese of Warsaw. Studying philosophy in Bavaria are two Poles: Mr Peter of the Archdiocese of Lodz and Mr Wojciech from the diocese of Bielsko-Zywiec. In the US seminary of the FSSP in Denton studying theology is Mr Krzysztof who comes from the diocese of Bielsko – Zywiec.

The seminary of the Institute of the Good Shepherd (IBP) in Courtalain in France, the following individuals are preparing for the priesthood: Mr Wojciech from the Diocese of Torun, Mr Michael of the Archdiocese of Warsaw, Mr. Rafal from the Diocese of Radom, Mr. Peter of the Archdiocese of Gniezno, Mr.. Przemysław from the Archdiocese Warsaw and Mr.George of the Archdiocese of Warsaw.

On 1 November 2012, the Superior of Institute of St. Philip Neri (ISPN), headquartered in Berlin, the Academy was established by Card. Baronius. The Academy educates future priests for the Institute, but the classes are open to all. The course of studies at the Academy last 6 years and is consistent with the Roman guidelines for training priests in philosophy and theology. In this academic year, continuing his studies at the Academy is Mr. Martin who is from the Diocese of Rzeszow.

Sancte Gabriel Possenti, ora pro eis!

And just to give you a point of reference as to how big this news is, please recall that Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio in his last year as the Archbishop of Buenos Aires had in his seminary a grand total of 28 seminarians. (see here)

A big DEO GRATIAS and please keep these young men, all the other young men who are attending traditional seminaries as well as seminaries that teach traditional Catholicism in your prayers.

Archbishop Lefebvre, ora pro nobis!

PS Brick by brick!

T -114: The Lefebvrists

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It has been a very busy two weeks for your humble blogger so the postings have been a bit sparse. A big Mea Maxima Culpa from yours truly. Furthermore, we all know that it is under 100 days to the start of the Stealth Sex Synod of 2015. Right? So today we will continue one of yesterday’s minor themes, i.e. the inevitability of TRUTH prevailing. Remember, we hear this in the Credo at every mass. (see here)

The idea for today’s post actually came from reading the comment section of Fr. Z’s blog, where many of his reader desperately need some good cheer right about now. (see here) And they have found this good cheer in of all places, an interview that Bishop Fellay, the Superior General of the Society of St. Pius X gave recently. So therefore, this Bud’s post’s for you.

“O’ yea of little faith” comes to mind! But I digress…

With respect to the good news of the inevitability of TRUTH prevailing, we can observe this with our senses. One quick example is that 2+2 will always equal 4. Another example of this inevitability we can observe in the process that is underway presently in the Catholic Church, that I refer to as the “restoring all things in Christ”.

As we are probably familiar with by now, the need for this “restoration of all things in Christ” was brought about by the destruction caused by that which we call the “new springtime of the spirit of Vatican II” and the neo-modernist “pastoral” novelties that it introduced into the Catholic Church. These novelties were likewise introduced into the Sacred Liturgy. (see here) The culmination of the liturgical crisis can be dated to the promulgation of the revised rite of Mass with the Apostolic Constitution Missale Romanum of 3 April 1969 by Pope Paul VI. However, the revised Missal itself was not published until the following year of 1970 and the full vernacular translations appeared much later. Therefore, the culmination of the liturgical crisis and the promulgation of the Novus Ordo Missae (banning of the Immemorial Mass of All Ages) can effectively be dated to 1970.

This “restoration” process to combat the liturgical crisis likewise commenced in 1970 when Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre founded the SSPX in the diocese of Fribourg, Switzerland. The SSPX was and is an “international priestly society of common life without vows, whose purpose is to train, support, and encourage holy priests so that they may effectively spread the Catholic faith throughout the world”. (see here) Since those fateful days of 1970, the SSPX has grown to over 600 priests and offers the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass according to the 1962 Missale Romanum exclusively.

Given the above, I think the case can not only be made, but can also be won, that through the SSPX, the continuity of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass has been preserved since the original Mass on Holy Thursday offered by Our Lord. And if this is the case, then any priest, bishop, cardinal or pope presently offering the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass according to the 1962 Missale Romanum or earlier is defacto a “Lefebvrist”. Hence the title of this post.

Pure logic, yes?

So now for the good news.

Since we are coming to the end of ordination season, I thought it fitting to do a short summary of the SSPX ordinations and some of the other “Lefebvrist” orders and dioceses ordinations this year.

First we start with the SSPX where we learn that 4 new priests were ordained at their seminary in Winona Minnesota (see here), 2 new priests in the seminary in Zaitzkofen Germany (see here) and 7 new priests at the seminary in Econe Switzerland (see here).

And now for the SSPX breakaway orders/societies.

The Fraternal Society of St. Peter ordinations that took place in Lincoln Nebraska. Bishop Conley ordained 6 new priests on the 16th of June 2015. (see here). A further 2 new priests were ordained in Quebec Canada and 6 new priests were ordained outside the Wigratzbad seminary in Germany. (see here)

Another SSPX breakaway order is the Transalpine Redemptorists, where one deacon was elevated to the Sacred Priesthood in New Zealand on the 11th of April 2015 at the St. Mary’s Pro-Cathedral in Christchurch. This was the first ordination according to the proper (non-Bugniniite) rite in decades. (see here)

Next we go to the SSPX breakaway order of the Institute of the Good Shepard where 2 deacons were elevated to the Holy Priesthood in Bordeaux France on the 27th of June 2015. (see here)

Moving on to the SSPX inspired orders.

At the seminary of the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest outside of Florence, ordination week is scheduled for 27 June to 6 July 2015. Cardinal Burke will be conferring the sacrament of Holy Orders like last year. Today, 11 deacons will be elevated to the priesthood as per the FB page of the ICK. Furthermore, on the ICK FB page, information about 7 more priests being ordained by Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone on the 1st of July.

Next we move on to the SSPX inspired diocese.

One example of this phenomenon is the diocese of Madison Wisconsin. I consider this diocese in the Catholic (SSPX) camp since all of its priests are proficient in offering the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass according to the 1962 Missale Romanum. 6 new priests will be ordained on the 26th of July 2015. Fr. Z has the scoop. (see here)

And closing, a post on Fr. Z’s blog reports of a first Immemorial Mass of All Ages in Knoxville Tennessee. (see here) Here is the relevant passage that should create as warm and as fuzzy of a feeling as any neo-modernist could possibly experience:

Following his June 27 ordination in Knoxville (TN) by Bishop Richard F. Stika (Knoxville, TN), Fr. Michael Hendershott celebrated on June 28 at Knoxville’s Holy Ghost Church his first solemn high Mass in the extraordinary form, accompanied by the Knoxville Latin Mass Schola singing Mozart’s Missa Brevis in G. His first EF Mass was an especially significant event in the life of the Knoxville Latin Mass Community–as a high school student back in 2005, he was an altar server for our first Knoxville TLM under the indult granted by (then) Bishop Joseph E. Kurtz, now Archbishop of Louisville and President of the USCCB.

So all in all, another bountiful year. I count no less than 55 new “Lefebvrist” priests were added to the sacred priesthood in anno domini 2015.

On an aside, I wonder how many more “crypto-Lefebvrists” were ordained this year?

And these ordinations are only for the Northern Hemisphere, so we have the Southern Hemisphere coming up in December.

Closing, I would just like to remind you dear reader of something that Archbishop Victor Fernandez, Francis’ ghost writer mentioned in a recent interview that we posted in the The Loose Canon post, something that we should all take to heart (see here):

“The pope goes slow because he wants to be sure that the changes have a deep impact. The slow pace is necessary to ensure the effectiveness of the changes. He knows there are those hoping that the next pope will be turn everything back around. If you go slowly it’s more difficult to turn things back. He makes this clear when he says ‘time is greater than space.’”

So remember, it is important to “initiate processes” and not so much “occupy spaces”. But the Lefebvrists are occupying more and more spaces too. 🙂

And on this pleasant note, I will leave off for today.

T -241: “Vaches grasses”!

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FOR THE RECORD: 31 SEMINARIANS TAKE CASSOCK IN THE UNITED STATES AND FRANCE

St. Cure d’Ars Seminary in Flavigny-sur-Ozerain, France

First from France:

The picture above is from the SSPX seminary in Flavigny-sur-Ozerain, France. The below is that passage form the SSPX website:

At St. Cure d’Ars Seminary located in the quaint French medieval town of Flavigny-sur-Ozerain, it was Bishop Bernard Tissier de Mallerais (currently stationed at the Chicago priory) who vested 19 seminarians in the soutane and gave the tonsure. The Flavingy seminary was pleased to host over 50 priests and religious and 500 faithful.

Next from the United States

And here is the photo from Winona, Minnesota:

St. Thomas Aquinas Seminary, Winona Minnesota

 

Here is the relevant passage:

At St. Thomas Aquinas Seminary in Winona, in addition to the 12 men who received the habit, Bishop Bernard Fellay also administered the tonsure to another 8 seminarians thus initiating them into the clerical state.

Link here.

Nota bene:

Vocation shortage?  What vocation shortage?

I would also like to draw your attention to the fact that the SSPX seminary in Flavigny vested more seminarians than the seminary in Winona. Deo gratias!

Furthermore, with 8 seminarians tonsured, this give us a grand total of 40 more in the pipeline!

And now two for the “Vaches grasses? Ah Non!” category:

For some background and for comparison purposes, here is an old Rorate Caeli post pertaining to the situation with respect to vocations in France from March 2012. (see here)

For a present day snap shot, the situation in the Netherlands from Rorate Caeli. (see here)

And finally, please pray for these young men.

One more thing. As we head towards the Synod of Bishops of 2015, this blog will be posting more of these side by side comparisons over the next 241 days. It is of critical importance that this “objective information” reaches the public domain and is distributed far and wide. The more one becomes familiar with the present situation in the Church, especially with respect to vocations, the more one realizes that the problems at the “field hospital” are either “self inflicted” or caused by medical malpractice. Either way, this needs to be stamped out.

We all need to be aware of this fact!

St. Michael Archangel, ora pro nobis.

Archbishop Lefebvre, ora pro nobis.