Extras: The Society of St. Pius X

Traditionalist leader talks about his movement, Rome

Aprés Chartres

I returned this afternoon after the Paris Chartres Pilgrimage. The Irish Chapter of St. Patrick had 25 members this year.  We also had three priests Fr Michael Cahill, Meath Diocese. Fr de La Brosse, Institute of Christ the King and of course myself. As usual with the Irish Chapter there was a great range of ages.
We were near the front for the first two days so the pace was rather quick, especially on Saturday. High Mass was celebrated in Notre Dame de Paris. This led to us leaving at a later time so the first day seem more like a marathon than a pilgrimage. Sunday and Monday the weather was again sunny and hot. Sunday we walked through a lot of forest which gave some respite from the burning heat.
Having led the pilgrimage the first two days the Irish went to the back of the queue on Monday. There was a wonderful breeze that day which again helped in the sun.
Unfortunately Chartres Cathedral is undergoing extensive renovation so the whole Sanctuary and Choir area was screened  off.
 When I find the connection for my camera to the PC I will upload some photo's. Before the Pilgrimage I brought my car to France and visited Bayeux, Caen, Tours and Orleans.
I took some photo's with the phone.

These are of Caen Cathedral.

PLC welcomes fall in abortion rate for tenth consecutive year.

The Pro Life Campaign has welcomed the latest Irish abortion figures released today by the British Department of Health,* which show that the number of Irish women travelling to Britain for abortions has decreased for the tenth consecutive year. 
In 2011, 4,149 Irish women travelled to Britain for abortions, down from 4,402 in 2010 and 4,422 in 2009.  The 2011 figures show a marked decrease over previous years. 2011 is the tenth consecutive year that Irish abortions have declined and represents a 38% decline since the high of 6,673 Irish abortions in 2001.  
The release of these figures follows the recent report ** from the HSE/Crisis Pregnancy Programme showing an increase in the number of women expressing abortion regret. In that study, 44 per cent of women expressed varying degrees of regret about their abortions up from 33 per cent in a similar HSE study in 2003. 
In a statement welcoming the continuing reduction in the number of Irish women travelling to Britain for abortion, Cora Sherlock of the Pro Life Campaign said: 
“While it is too early to draw firm conclusions, the fact that the abortion figures are decreasing while the number of women expressing regret after abortion is increasing, shows the need for a much closer examination of women’s experiences of abortion, including abortion regret." 
She said: “There has been a refusal on the part of those campaigning for abortion in Ireland to take on board the research indicating the negative consequen ces of abortion for women. This does a tremendous disservice to women. The claims by some groups that the reduced figures can be explained by the fact that women are travelling to other countries is not backed by the evidence."  
*Summary Abortion Statistics, England and Wales: 2011 (29/05/12)  
** Irish Contraception and Crisis Pregnancy Study 2010 (ICCP 2010), published in May 2012 (HSE/CPP)
Read more on their  website

I.E.C. and the Extraordinary form.

The  Latin Mass Chaplaincy Dublin are participating in the International Eucharistic Congress.
Below is the schedule for the Congress.

The evening talks look very good, I am especially glad to see a talk on Fr Willie Doyle by Patrick Kenny of fatherdoyle.com 
Dom Kirby of the new Benedictine  monastery in Co Meath is scheduled to give a talk, as is Fr. de Malleray of the Fraternity of St. Peter.  I look forward to hearing Fr. Deighan speaking on  “The Mass as Sacrifice: Old Testament Perspectives”

Sunday 10^th June: 2^nd Sunday after Pentecost
10.30 a.m. High Mass (Music by St Kevin’s Schola)
3.30 p.m. Blessed Sacrament Procession and Solemn Benediction
Monday 11^th June: St Barnabas
9.30 a.m. Solemn Pontifical Mass. Celebrant: The Most Rev. Terrence Prendergast, Archbishop of Ottawa
(The Lassus Scholars will sing Palestrina’s Missa Papae Marcelli)
7.30 p.m. Evening Devotions: Rosary, Novena to Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, and Benediction.
8.15 p.m. Talk in the Parish Hall: “Apostle of the Trenches: The Life and Spirituality of Fr William Doyle, SJ”
Speaker: Mr Patrick Kenny, Editor of fatherdoyle.com
Tuesday 12^th June: St John of San Facundo
8.00 a.m. & 8.30 a.m. Low Masses
11.30 a.m. Conference in the Parish Hall: “The Presence of Christ in the Eucharist”
Speaker: Fr Armand de Malleray, FSSP
7.00 p.m. High Mass. Celebrant: Fr Armand de Malleray, FSSP
(The Lassus Scholars will sing Palestrina’s Missa Brevis)
8.15 p.m. Talk in the Parish Hall: “Prayers and Religious Folktales from the Irish Oral Tradition”
Speaker: Dr Pádraig de Paor, Dept. of Irish and Celtic Languages, Trinity College Dublin.
Wednesday 13^th June: St Anthony of Padua
8.00 a.m. & 8.30 a.m. Low Masses
11.30 a.m. Conference in the Parish Hall: “Understanding Transubstantiation”
Speaker: Fr Armand de Malleray, FSSP
[7.30 p.m. In the RDS: Blessed Sacrament Procession]
Thursday 14^th June: St Basil the Great
8.00 a.m. & 8.30 a.m. Low Masses
[10.00 a.m. In the RDS: Confessions]
7.00 p.m. High Mass. Celebrant: Fr Gerard Deighan, Adm., Chaplain to the Dublin Latin Mass Community
(The Lassus Scholars will sing Victoria’s Missa O Quam Gloriosum)
8.15 p.m. Talk in Parish Hall: “Beauty and the Sacred” Speaker: Dr Mark Dooley, Philosopher and Author
Friday 15^th June: Sacred Heart of Jesus
8.00 a.m. & 8.30 a.m. Low Masses
11.30 a.m. Conference in the Parish Hall: “The Mass as Sacrifice: Old Testament Perspectives”
Speaker: Fr Gerard Deighan, LSS
7.00 p.m. High Mass and Solemn Benediction. Celebrant: Dom Mark Kirby, OSB, Prior of Silverstream Priory, Stamullen
(Music by St Kevin’s Schola)
8.15 p.m. Talk in Parish Hall: “Eucharistic Spirituality”. Speaker: Dom Mark Kirby, OSB
Saturday 16^th June: Saturday of Our Lady
 9.00 a.m. Low Mass (Confessions before/during Mass)
10.30 a.m. – 5.45 p.m. Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament
4.45 p.m. – 5.45 p.m. Holy Hour and Solemn Benediction with Confessions throughout the hour
(Music by Piccolo Lasso)
Sunday 17^th June: 3^rd Sunday after Pentecost
10.30 a.m. High Mass
(The Lassus Scholars will sing Lassus’ Missa Bell’ Amfitrit’ altera)
[2.00 p.m. In Croke Park: Statio Orbis]

Pro Life Campaign Update

A comprehensive study showing that 44 per cent of women expressed varying degrees of regret about their abortions “must be urgently considered by the Minister for Health”, the Pro Life Campaign (PLC) has said.

They were responding to the Irish Contraception and Crisis Pregnancy Study 2010 (ICCP 2010), produced by the HSE's Crisis Pregnancy Programme (CPP).

The study showed that 31pc of women who had abort ion experienced "some regrets", with 13pc reporting that they experienced “a lot of regrets”. This represents an increase from 2003, when 22pc reported experiencing some regret, with 11pc saying they had a lot of regrets.

Spokesperson for the PLC, Dr Ruth Cullen, said the figures showed that the abortion debate “needed to make room for the voices of the increasing number of women who regret their abortion”.

She said: "While there has been considerable media focus on the stories of women who wished to see abortion legal in Ireland, the same cannot be said for the stories of women who regret their abortions. This has to change.

She said: “Even organisations like the National Women's Council of I reland, which are supposed to represent all women, dismiss organisations that seek to express the pain of women hurt by abortion.

Dr Cullen also said that Minister James Reilly needs to take into account the experiences of women who regretted their abortion and ensure that counselling services also acknowledge this reality.

She expressed surprise that the CPP had not conducted research into the mental health impact of abortion, given the fact that there were now a number of studies showing that abortion presented a considerable risk to the mental health of women.

Dr. Cullen said: “A number of peer reviewed studies have now shown that women who have abortions are up to 30pc more likely to experience subsequent mental health problems. This is even after those studies controlled for women with pre-existing mental health conditions.

“One might have expected a comprehensive study on crisis pregnancy to have examined this area.”

Dr Cullen also noted that the study's findings on attitudes to abortion were compromised by the question asked.

According to the survey, 45 per cent of adults believed abortion should be permissible in all circumstances, down from over 50 per cent in a similar study in 2003. And 44 per cent said it should be available under certain circumstances, up from 39 per cent in 2003.

However, Dr Cullen said, the survey's question relating to abortion when there is a risk to the woman's life “failed to make the distinction between medical interventions in pregnancy to save the mother's life and induced abortion, the sole aim of which is to end the life of the baby.

She said that this shortcoming in the research made the findings on attitudes to abortion “effectively irrelevant”.

Read this on the PLC website here

Download HSE/CPP study here

Communique on the Society of St. Pius X

Vatican City, 16 May 2012 (VIS) - Early this afternoon, the Holy See Press Office issued the following communique regarding the Society of St. Pius X:

"As reported by news agencies, today, 16 May 2012, an Ordinary Session of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith met to discuss the question of the Society of St. Pius X.

In particular, the text of the response of Bishop Bernard Fellay, received on 17 April, 2012, was examined and some observations, which will be considered in further discussions between the Holy See and the Society of St. Pius X, were formulated.

Regarding the positions taken by the other three bishops of the Society of St. Pius X, their situations will have to be dealt with separately and singularly".



Update. Here is an interview with the American superior of the  SSPX

Colleen Carroll Campbell: Catholic bishops and the nuns

Colleen Carroll Campbell: Catholic bishops and the nuns

Ultra-Orthodox Shun Their Own for Reporting Child Sexual Abuse

Here is an interesting article from the New York Times.
What amazes me is the courtesy shown to the Ultra Orthodox Jews by the N.Y.Times. Just imagine if this was a Catholic community

Minister Reilly preparing the way for abortion legislation?

A message from the Pro Life Campaign:
Dear Friend,

During the recent Dáil debate on abortion the Minister for Health, Dr James Reilly strongly implied that the Government is committed to introducing some form of abortion legislation in the very near future. This is an extremely serious development.

Before the last General Election, Fine Gael gave a strong pro-life commitment.  We must now hold them to that.

We are asking you to send a newly-printed postcard to each Fine Gael member of the Oireachtas in your constituency.   E-cards are very effective but we also feel that it is important that politicians receive physical postcards at this time.
A sample of the Postcard is s et out below.   It is vital that Fine Gael TDs and Senators hear from as many people as possible.  
Please call or text (086) 2195 317 to leave your details and postcards will be posted to you within 24 hours free of charge.   Alternatively you can email mail@prolifecampaign.ie to place an order for cards.  
This is a crucial time.  Please share this message with as many pro-life people as possible.
Yours sincerely
Cora Sherlock


Front of Postcard

Back of Postcard