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Nevertheless, the Magisterium has gone even further in its shake-up of ICEL, by setting up the committee Vox Clara, which will ensure that all future translations are in accord with Church Doctrine and Church guidelines.
Father Erlich does not like
this new committee very much at all,
for his editorial maintains that it will
assist it (the Congregation) in achieving its ends. J
All real Catholics certainly hope this last statement of Father Erlich's is correct, even if nothing else he says can be taken for granted.
Bishops' Conferences and ICEL
One point I would like to comment on is Father Erlich's claim that Bishops' Conferences happily received and overwhelmingly approved ICEL's good works.
If this be true, then he is claiming that the Bishops' Conferences are just as much at fault as ICEL!
However, I understand - and Father confirms this in his editorial - that liturgical translations take considerable time and effort, as well as theological professionalism and expertise. He states for example, that the Congregation received the progress reports …. in 1988, 1990 and 1992 … on ICEL's work, indicating an prolonged ongoing effort. Apparently ICEL began the work on the Sacramentary (The Roman Missal) in 1982 and that this work was carried out in the normal ICEL manner, still using this document called Comme le provoit as its guideline! (Refer page 6 of Liturgy News 32-2)
Now, if the Bishops' Conferences commissioned ICEL to do this work, and the work was carried out over decades by people who are expected, and proclaimed by many to be, experts in their own field, then the Conferences would be greatly influenced, prodded and even pressured into accepting the nonsense that ICEL has been dishing out for thirty years, possibly without extensive checking on reports submitted!
That, of course, is no excuse for any Conference. However, The Universal Church, in the same thirty years, has been burdened with some poor quality Bishops. This sad fact, combined with treacherous theologians, must have influenced some, but probably all, English speaking Conferences of Bishops.
Happily, the Bishops' Conferences are being strengthened with new and quality Bishops while some of their number have stood down.
I do not hesitate to repeat
that each and every Bishops' Conference
in every nation in the world,
will support Cardinal Estevez and his Congregation;
that they will support Vox Clara.
AND, they will do so, firmly convinced that the Congregation has carried out its duties excellently and with great faithfulness to The Universal Church and Her Doctrines.
The following statement is a stab in the dark, but I have an inkling that
the Conferences will be relieved
to have ICEL off their collective backs
and that, at last, Church liturgy
can proceed to do
what it is supposed to do.
REJECT!
REJECT! is the title of the editorial of Father Erlich.
He repeats this idea when he constantly uses the word rejection.
Let us hope, then, that he
and all ICEL people
and their supporters
get this message
loud and clear.
Their destructive foray into Catholicism is at an end.
It is rejected.
(Liturgy News, in the same issue 32-2 reports that The Executive secretary of ICEL, Dr. John Page, has resigned … and that his resignation is a direct result of events set in train in October, 1999 by Cardinal Estevez.
According to this would-be-Catholic newsletter, Page has been demonised!
But I thought modernists
no longer believe
in devils and demons? )
Mary and The Mercy of God
The marvels of God's Will are ever astonishing and absolutely delightful.
Ponder, for example, on The Justice of God.
All of the human race from Adam and Eve to the baby born this second, are subjected to original sin and the awful, horrific results of sin.
One might rightfully say, then, that the human race, facing the Justice of God, had failed.
If the human race had failed, it is subjected to this divine Justice and to condemnation.
That is to say, humanity had lost the right to Heaven - it was destined for limbo or hell.
On the contrary.
By the gracious Will of God we find that Mercy has overtaken Justice; Mercy has overshadowed Justice!
This was made possible by God's wonderful creation of that incredible thing called time. Because of time, mankind is able to offend his Creator today and repent tomorrow.
However, while man is able to do this, he remained incapable of repairing the incision caused by his sinfulness; an incision that caused an unbridgeable separation between Creator and creature.
To overcome this total separation without removing the freewill of man, reducing him to a robot and no longer fit to be heir to the heavenly Kingdom, God proposed creation of a perfect creature who would remain sinless and ever faithful.
Of course, that creature is Mary, The Immaculate Conception.
Mary, the only sinless creature, would draw from God the means to overcome the great incision. Mary's immaculateness would drew to herself the Holy Spirit of God Who would, with her consent, overshadow her and place in her pure womb, The Christ.
Mary's sinlessness and faithfulness made it quite impossible that she should be condemned to limbo, never to reach the Eternal Kingdom.
God's Justice demanded nothing less.
But, if Mary was to be brought across the great incision, then that would produce the possibility also, for the rest of mankind to do the same, to follow her.
Thus does Mercy enter into the relationship between God and Man - ordained from all eternity.
Otherwise, there would be no need for mankind to remain a part of God's universe - the battle for his salvation would have been lost with Adam and Eve.
God's Justice
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