AS I WAS SAYING FORTY YEARS AGO.................
A report in the Catholic Herald of a survey from the Benedictines at St Mary's Twickenham shows just how much the Church has failed over the past 40 years. Despite our Catholic Schools many ex pupils do not even see themselves as Catholic. We make practically no converts from those who do not believe in God. And whereas the over 64 age group is steadfast the greatest non attendance is between the 40 to 64 age group who were catechised at the time of deceit and dishonesty. But catechises has improved and there are more under 40's attending thats the 40 to 60 age group.
This is observable by any catholic attending Mass over the 40 year period. My own experience is from protesting about the lack of devotion to the Eucharist and the lack of Adoration to seeing in my parish Adoration on a regular basis, from protesting at an attempt to exclude the Hail Mary from the bidding prayers to devotions where we now turn to the statue of Mary and sing the Salve Regina, from protesting about abuses in the Liturgy and one example is where it was decided that when Jesus said "take this and eat it" he actually meant chew. It was of course an attack on devotion. But hosts were provided that crumbled in the hands of those who received for these were the hosts you could chew. Today all of this has gone although there will never be complete reference while people are made to stand and receive in the hand and the people being given an option to kneel is ignored.
Unfortunately many of these changes are made by priests who have to fight the gang that was appointed forty years ago to fight them if they dared to become too Catholic. As they maintain 'This is our parish with our traditions' and when they say 'our' they are excluding the majority of the parishioners. At one time the gang tried to call themselves 'elders' and had the backing of a priest. What is the reality is that while such people who voice their own gospel rather than the Gospel of the Catholic Church and impose it on others through the RCIA, while such people attend meetings to attack Catholic teaching on Mary and the infallibility of the Church, and use their influence to attack the Church we still have a long fight ahead. But we, the faithful Catholics, are fighting back and we are winning.
This is observable by any catholic attending Mass over the 40 year period. My own experience is from protesting about the lack of devotion to the Eucharist and the lack of Adoration to seeing in my parish Adoration on a regular basis, from protesting at an attempt to exclude the Hail Mary from the bidding prayers to devotions where we now turn to the statue of Mary and sing the Salve Regina, from protesting about abuses in the Liturgy and one example is where it was decided that when Jesus said "take this and eat it" he actually meant chew. It was of course an attack on devotion. But hosts were provided that crumbled in the hands of those who received for these were the hosts you could chew. Today all of this has gone although there will never be complete reference while people are made to stand and receive in the hand and the people being given an option to kneel is ignored.
Unfortunately many of these changes are made by priests who have to fight the gang that was appointed forty years ago to fight them if they dared to become too Catholic. As they maintain 'This is our parish with our traditions' and when they say 'our' they are excluding the majority of the parishioners. At one time the gang tried to call themselves 'elders' and had the backing of a priest. What is the reality is that while such people who voice their own gospel rather than the Gospel of the Catholic Church and impose it on others through the RCIA, while such people attend meetings to attack Catholic teaching on Mary and the infallibility of the Church, and use their influence to attack the Church we still have a long fight ahead. But we, the faithful Catholics, are fighting back and we are winning.
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