The Oxford Movement Continues...

Okay, so I was going to try and not follow the trend of Catholic bloggers talking about this issue, but this is so major to our time and place in Catholic history and I've seen some absolutely retarded comments. So here I go ... where I will stop, only God knows.

I always have to laugh when I think about the Anglicans. Let's face it. Anglicanism was founded by a guy whose wife wasn't having a son. Anglicanism was founded because a guy wanted a son and therefore wanted to divorce his wife and marry someone else to try and have a son (of course, the poor guy couldn't have known at the time, but biologists know now that it's the man who determines the sex of his children --- not by choice of course). And people wonder why Anglicanism is falling apart at the seams. I'm surprised it's lasted as long as it has. I mean really! What on earth would anyone expect to happen? I mean ... schism because of disagreement on doctrine at least makes some amount of sense (even if it is also terribly sinful) ... but schism on account of desire for a divorce is absolutely repulsive.

Following the beginnings of the Oxford Movement in Britain in the 1800s, John Henry Newman entered the Church, and after that, the Second Spring has been upon England. The dark times of the stronghold of the Anglican heresy were coming to an end. Cardinal Newman (soon to be beatified by the Holy Father) was one of the first of a flood of converts from Anglicanism to Catholicism. People swimming not only the Tiber, but the English Channel as well: not only towards Rome, but as far as possible away from Canterbury. Among the important converts that followed in the wake of Cardinal Newman were Oscar Wilde. Then in the early twentieth century, the stage was set. Enter G.K. Chesterton. Witty, intelligent, insightful, and rather jolly, Chesterton continued to spur the conversion of many souls (for those who don't know Chesterton was the mediate cause of Lewis's conversion to Christianity). Catholicism was gaining ground in England. Finally, the prayers given to Our Lady of Walsingham were being answered. Now, the next major step ... and quite possibly the most important decision of our day, the Vatican and many orthodox Anglicans (both clergy and laity) have reached an agreement. Expect the Tiber River to be full of Anglicans entering the Promised Land: the New Jerusalem: Holy Mother Church.

Having gotten through all of my rejoicing (incidentally, please continue to pray through the intercession of Our Lady of Walsingham for the conversion of the Anglicans and especially for the conversion of the Queen), I would like to correct a few misunderstandings. The people coming into Rome will have to assent to every dogma of the faith, including that of the Petrine Supremacy. It is not something where they get to maintain all of their old doctrines and dogmas, even those in direct contradiction to the Catholic faith. Second (and really this should not be an issue at all, but many including CNN seem to be fixated on it): Just because the Vatican is allowing married men to become priests and married men in seminary to become priests in this situation, does not mean that the discipline is changing. These are special exceptions, and, in the future, all of the priests in this Anglican-use "rite" will be celibates. But even if the pope were to allow for this to be some sort of distinctive feature of the Anglican-use rite, this would not change anything. The Eastern Rites have always allowed married men to be priests. The Latin Rite has a different discipline, and it is a good discipline. I may discourse on it at a later date.

As for now, I tip my hat to the Holy Father, the CDF, TAC, and to the approaching converts. Welcome Home to Rome, O ye from Canterbury and may Our Lady of Walsingham cradle you and your motherland in her arms and convert the heretics to the true faith. Amen.

Mariae et Jesu Semper Servus Sum,
Joe