Baptizing Aliens & Concerns about Censures

TIA,

More on the Vatican and aliens news scene.

Jesuit Fr. Guy Consolmagno, the new president of the Vatican Observatory Foundation, further discussed possibility of alien life forms in a video published Sept. 19, 2014.

He matter of factly tells us it is only a matter of time before alien life forms are discovered. I wonder what he knows that we don’t know?!

And he notes that this discovery will raise questions about God's relationship to intelligent beings outside our planet. But we shouldn’t get upset, he tells us, because the discovery of alien life will not prove or disprove the existence of God. The only questions it will raise is how salvation relates to aliens, or other “intelligent species.”

In short, instead of warning us about the danger of these aliens as devils, which is what the evidence leads Catholics to believe, we are being told to not be afraid and accept them as something “ordinary,” just another intelligent species.

This would echo the words of Pope Francis who also mentioned alien life forms in one of his sermons, and suggested that even Martians, should they visit Earth, would be welcomed to be baptized.

Consolmagno is set to be awarded the Carl Sagan Medal from the Division of Planetary Sciences of the American Astronomical Society in November for his work in communicating planetary science to the general public.

The new Vatican Observatory president is also planning to lead a faith and astronomy workshop for clergy, religious and laypeople in January in Tucson, Arizona.

     Can it get any crazier?

     M.G.

TIA,

I have just been listening to an inspirational talk on Our Lady of Good Success. My question is was Freemasonry around at the time of the apparitions? I thought it was founded later.

     Thank you,

     P.T.

TIA responds

P.T.,

We responded to this question here.

     Cordially

     TIA correspondence desk

To the team of Tradition in Action,

Just having made the acquaintance of wonderful St. Joseph of Cupertino, San Guiseppe de Cupertino, and discovered your article about him, I would very much like to get into contact with a center enabling me to get some pictures or further material honoring him.

Maybe the email-address of the Basilica/Italy (which I couldn't find) might be a further step forward.

With thanks and wholehearted wishes for you and for your country where I have spent several years long, long time ago...

     M.I., Germany



TIA responds

M.I.,

We are glad you have discovered St. Joseph of Cupertino.

You may access the site of the Basilica of St. Joseph of Cupertino in English here,

The official site of S. Giuseppe da Copertino in Italian is here. In this site, a special page of photos is accessible here.

We hope this will be of some help to you.

Thank you for your kind wishes for TIA and the United States.

     Cordially

     TIA correspondence desk

Hi,

First, I would like to thank you for your wonderful website. I feel comfortable to have a website I can turn to.

About a year ago, I sent an email to Today's Catholic World, forgot about it, and somehow they are just responding to it. What they have sent is very confusing to say the least about censure. I will print the part concerning this so you may help me understand this. I am not sure about that website and what they teach, so I am turning to you to help me understand what this is about. Here is their response. Please help me.

     Thanks

      J.P


Today's Catholic World wrote:

Dear J.P.

May Christ our Lord and our Lady bless you!

Thank you for your email.

We are so pleased, J.P., that you want the True Sacraments from Truly ordained priests who are in union with the True Catholic Church in Exile, and therefore have jurisdiction.

We are living in very difficult times to say the least! Many of us, around the world, are praying our daily rosaries (Joyful, Sorrowful, and Glorious mysteries) and waiting on God. Just like you. Here is what Cardinal Manning wrote about the underground Church.

The takeover by the masons has been devastating to Holy Mother Church, and her children's salvation is in peril.

The cruel reality of the masonic takeover from 1958 to this present day is that, because of this stealthy attack on the Church, almost ALL have incurred censures by participating in non-Catholic worship - and need to have any censures [excommunications] removed.

What is a censure?

When we do something, or participate in something, that goes against the Laws of Holy Mother Church, we bring excommunication to ourselves. This is what a censure is.

Remember, sin has an objective aspect as well as a subjective aspect. So even people of good will, who knew no better, incurred censures by going, for example, to the novus ordo.

All of us, usually, need to ask to have our censures removed (lifted) by the True Hierarchy. And, thank God that we can!

Please see this link.

(This is a post on how to have ipso facto penalties of censure (such as automatically incurred for participation in non-Catholic worship [N.O. sect & their sspx, sedevacantist] services, even in "good faith") officially removed by the Holy See in exile - so one can share in the Church's treasure of heavenly graces.)

Once any censures have been lifted, J.P., you will be in full communion with Holy Mother Church.



TIA responds

Hello J.P.,

You forgot to tell us whether you want to know about censure from a theoretical view or you have fear that you personally have incurred censure. Since you did not include your question, we are obliged to infer it from the answer that TCW gave you. So, we will first define what censure is and, then, apply it to what we believe is your case.

Doctrine

The Diccionário de Teología Moral (Barcelona: Editorial Liturgica Española, 1960), under the responsibility of the Cardinal Francesco Roberti, defines censure in this way:

“Censure is the moral penalty that deprives a baptized person who is guilty of a crime with contumacy of certain spiritual benefits until he repents and is absolved.”

It stresses that censure is a spiritual punishment since its effects are spiritual and it proceeds from the spiritual authority. It is obviously a medicinal punishment since it is turned toward obtaining the healing of a guilty person.

Then it says: “It supposes contumacy, that is, formal disobedience to the constituted authorities.”

There are three types of censures: Excommunication, interdiction and suspension. Excommunication and interdiction apply indiscriminately to ecclesiastics and laymen. While excommunication does not rely on territorial jurisdiction, interdiction does; it is limited to a certain territory. Suspension applies only to ecclesiastics.

Regarding the motive and conditions, the Dictionary specifies: “The motive that justifies censure is an external, grave and consummated crime ... The condition for its efficacy is contumacy, that is, a formal scorn for the penalty and its threat…”

When the censure is issued by a superior, it is called ferenda sententiae; when it is automatic, it is called lata sententiae. The censured person can appeal to a superior to be absolved from censures that are ferendae sententiae. Some censures are called “reserved” to signify that they can only be absolved by a Bishop or the Pope, according to the case. When there is no specification, the normal confessor can absolve them. In the case of near death, the “reserve” is set aside, and any confessor can give absolution for the crime.

This is a quick overview about censure as a spiritual punishment in the Catholic Church.

Application to attendees of Novus Ordo Masses

By the context of the answer TCW gave to you, it seems that you asked their members whether or not you incurred excommunication for having attended Novus Ordo Masses. They answered: Yes, you did. Therefore, you need to repent and be absolved, perhaps only by one of their bishops.

If this was your concern, we believe this answer is not sound, because when you attended those new Masses, you most probably did not do so with the knowledge that they were bad; you did not have the intention to communicate with heretics. Instead, most likely you attended those Masses in order to fulfill your Sunday obligation. If this was the case, you did not have contumacy, which is, as shown above, the necessary condition for a person to incur censure.

Further, today we have had five Popes in a row plus all the Bishops in the world telling the faithful to go to the Novus Ordo Mass. The least we can say is that those who follow their orientation are not going against the Hierarchy, which is another condition to incur those three types of censure.

There are already enough complications to be faithful in this sad post-Vatican II period. We do not need a group of scrupulous investigators to overburden with unnecessary weight the shoulders of the few who resist the general apostasy.

This is what we have to say for the moment about censure and whether or not it applies to those who have attended Novus Ordo Masses.

     Cordially,

      Br. Theodore Roriz, O.C.
      for TIA correspondence desk