Archbishop Nichols: Individuals and Society (Not Families?)
Blogged by James Preece on 12th August 2011
Archbishop Vincent Nichol's on the riots...
“In the face of these difficulties, a forthright common effort is needed to ensure that these times bring out the best in our society and not the worst. I am sure that, as Catholic citizens, we shall play our part with clear principles for living, both as individuals and as a society, with honesty, compassion and prayer.”
[link]
Notice the words he uses... Catholics are "citizens", we will play our part "as individuals and as a society".
But not as families?
Isn't that how we got in to this mess in the first place?
Reader Comments
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Chrysostom said...
The statement of His Grace the Archbishop of Westminster is what one would expect of him. Parts of it are almost meaningless: I have pondered this part and cannot work it out: " for those whose parents are worried about the behaviour of their youngsters." There is a complete abject acceptance of the values of our pagan socialist society and a refusal to face the obvious truth that the main cause is the breakdown of the family. When did anyone hear His Grace talk of fathers? His Grace welcomes pro-abortion speakers at Justice'n'Peace conferences and so how can anyone be surprised that there is no justice on the streets?
Let us hope and, indeed, pray that a red hat should not descend upon this head.
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Salisbury John said...
"The Red Hat" A novel by Ralph McInerny
Ignatius Press. Extract from a review
"The central character Archbishop Lannan is a kind of episcopal 'everyman'
who is paralyzed by his weakness,ambition, and mind numbing commitment to ecclesial politics. He stands at the crux of a dilemma upon which rests the future of the Church in the West...this is a book that should be
read...wherever men have grown cynical about the Bride of Christ."
Sound familiar? VN's comments regarding the riots reflects his obstinate attitude towards the true family as if it were some kind of ideological pathology because frankly it gets in the way of his clericalist authoritarian mindset. God help him. Our Blessed Mother have pity on him.
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epsilon said...
That man is to the Catholic Church what those thugs were to the injured Malaysian boy the other day. If he gets a red hat we'll know for sure the Church has been taken over by an evil force.
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Salisbury John said...
epsilon...as sure as light follows day he will get the red hat...it is inconceivable to the Vatican Secretariat of State not to have the red hat bestowed upon the See of Westminster - it is both an ecclesiastical and geopolitical certainty.
Peter Stanford in his book: "Cardinal Hume and The Changing Face of British Catholicism" quotes a 1943 document from the Foreign Office:
"AT PRESENT THE REQUIREMENT DEMANDED BY THE VATICAN IN THE CASE OF HIGH APPOINTMENTS IN GREAT BRITAIN IS THAT THE CANDIDATE SHOULD BE AN EFFICIENT ADMINISTRATOR OF A RELIGIOUS MINORITY AND NOTHING MORE.THIS DATES BACK TO THE TIME WHEN INDEED NOTHING MORE THAN THIS WAS EXPECTED OF THE ARCHBISHOP OF WESTMINSTER"
I see no evidence of any change whatsoever of the policy of the Vatican towards England. In his Bull of Appointment, the Pope refers to the present incumbent of Westminster as one 'skilled in pastoral affairs' (really? try telling that to the parents of the children attending and wanting to attend the Cardinal Vaughan School)
Let us pray for the Pope for In 1601, Bellarmine was asked by Pope Clement VIII to write On the Primary Duty of the Sovereign Pontiff. The Pope said he wanted the plain unvarnished truth, and he got it. The document said that if the Pope took care to appoint the right kind of bishops then he would be fulfilling his primary duty, but if he neglected this he would have to answer to God for the souls lost in this way.
'This consideration frightens me so much that there is no one in the world I pity more than the Pope,' wrote Bellarmine."
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epsilon said...
Well what's the difference between the scandals of the church in Ireland and the way this vile man is selling the church in England down the river?
Someone needs to speak frankly to the Pope!
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Mike Carroll said...
To be honest I am getting sick to be back teeth of it. A few months ago we had the atheist and openly gay historian David Starkey on Question Time coming to the defence of faith.
And now we have the Anglican Peter Hitchens on a Sky News special. Peter quite clearly said(and was backed up by the inspirational Shaldon Thomas) that events such as these riots have been caused by many factors however, the very foundation underpinning all these factors is the loss of Christianity in Britain.
Arrrrgggggggg!!!!!! When is a single Archbishop or Bishop of England and Wales actually going to start publicly defending something (anything for that matter). I am sick of glib statements from Ecclestone Square. When are these people going to show some back bone and actually tell people in this country that something called Christianity actually exists
*pulls hair out in despair*.
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epsilon said...
Here in Ireland the anti-Catholic jibes aren't against the filthy priests who abused children or the arrogant hierarchy who sheltered them - no they're mocking the Cross and words like "transubstantiation". Not much different from what's happening within the church in England.
You know Catholics rioted in Spanish churches in times past when the faith was being watered down...
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Mike Carroll said...
The Anglican Peter Hitchens did it again today on BBC Radio 4's Any Questions?
He once again defended faith/church and the family in forthright terms!!!!
Come on Vincent Nicols this is beginning to get embarrassing. Once again the UK Catholic Church is being bailed out by an Anglican!
Many of us are trying to be witnesses to the faith whilst Vincent Nicols (the man at the top) is refusing to engage with society and proclaim the Truth. What hope have we got if our leader refuses to do his job?
If you do not believe me then do a google news search for Vincent Nicols. You will soon find only 10 articles none of which are in national newspapers or from the BBC/Sky. All but two are in pretty much small scale Catholic web/news papers
I hate having to 'bad mouth' our Cardinal in waiting, I try at all costs not to be disobedient but, this really is trying my patience now. Am I the only one to think this or am I being unreasonable? If I am will some one please tell me.
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Amanda Peter said...
I sincerely hope the Pope discovers what a whimp our Archbishop VN is in defending the Faith and the TRUTH. He should speak for Christ and all moral issues raging in the debate and be a strong voice for Catholic thought which is the fullness of the Truth.People can choose to reject it but then they reject Christ. Please God he never gets a Cardinal hat unless he converts first. Look how great the soon to be Cardinal Archbishop of New York +Timothy Dolan speaks the Truth- our +VN is silent. I wish +VN would take a leaf out of +TD's book and get some courage.
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Sarah said...
Not unreasonable at all, Mike, though I have now come to the view that +VN is doing his job very well. He is advancing the NuChurch of all the catholicisms with great aplomb. St John Fisher pray for us.
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Mike Carroll said...
Thanks for that post. Excellent way of putting it! The NuChurch of all the catholicisms. In other words Anglicanism.
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Petrus said...
no no no certainly not Anglicanism..... the NuChurch paradigm has a valid priesthood and sacraments.... thats the whole point... the Freemasons dont want to destroy the Catholic Church they just need to co opt it to their agenda for the New World Order
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mockery of the Sacraments said...
Freemasonry & the New World Order! Spill the beans Petrus, don't be shy. I can't see anything else on the subject on this blog. Let us make sure that nothing is swept under the carpet.
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Sarah said...
Petrus is right, what we are seeing is not Anglicanism. It's like a slight of hand, it looks like Catholicism, tastes like Catholicism, I can't believe it's not Catholicism? Oh wait a minute, it's Utterly Catholicism! and there's room for everyone in this big colourful tent
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Sarah said...
everyone... traddies, orthodox, happy clappies, liberals, Quest, Cafod, Catholics for a free choice, NFP... all there and everything is just lovely, come on in the water's lukewarm!
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mater mari said...
'Cardinal in waiting'?? Am I alone in hoping that this doesn't happen until certain things happen in the Archdiocese of Westminster - or more accurately, stop happening? Because all the previous Archbishops of Westminster have received their red hats, is it inevitable? Only asking!
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Petrus said...
yes mater mari it is highly ineviatble and MotS you can do your own homework on the influence of Freemasonry in the Catholic Church.... do you think I came down in the last rain shower???? here's a couple of snippets for you though
Cardinal Heenan agreed to meet the Grandmaster of the UK Lodge because the latter had complained that the Masons were gettng an unfair press amongst Catholics
At the end of the meeting Heenan showed him the famous portrait in the Throne room of Archbishop's House Westminster of one of Cardinal Manning's last gatherings which depicts the late Lord Ripon who converted to Catholicism in 1874 having been Grand Master of the English Lodge himself from 1870. Heenan asked the Masonic visitor if he knew who Ripon was in the picture saying ¨"Ripon had to renounce his membership of Freemasonry you know but of course that is not necessary these days" (or words to that effect) Why did Heenan say such a thing? Because the former Apostolic Nuncio to Scandanavia had managed to persuade the Scandanavian Bishops to issue a statement sayiing that any converts to Catholicism who were Freemasons did not have to relinquish membership despite the Church's condemnation of membership of secret societies. And who was this Nuncio? The same Archbishop Bruno Heim who was transferred from Scandnavia to Gt Britain. Heenan assured his Masonic visitor that they would meet to discuss things often which they did until 1968 when Heenan told him that because of Humanae Vitae things had blown up in Rome and he was too busy etc.... Thank God for the courage of Paul VI and defending the non separation of the procreative from the unitive....the one thing that high ranking Freemasons and their cohorts despise.
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Mockery of the Sacraments said...
Thank you Petrus. I shall acknowledge the suggestion of Masonic influence in future discussion here.
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Petrus said...
MotS why do I suspect you are not all that you seem.... quick to advertise yourself as a product of 12 years of Catholic education (apparently a non believer) but seemingly fascinated by this blog and its honesty about the Nuchurch paradgim. ??
sorry mate but you sound more like an Opus Dei stooge to me... a hang over from the blogs last year which fearlessley defended the Birmingham Three and then the Birmingham One (aka Fr Dermot Fenlon) but who still find the likes of Preece and his commentators vexing for more than just the superficial reasons you provide for cover... do your own homework... go away until you have something really useful to conribute
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