Regina Caeli Conference: Keep My Commandments

Memphis Regina Caeli Latin Mass Community is hosting a conference, "If You Love Me, Keep My Commandments" on September 28 and 29, 2012 (Friday to Saturday).

The speaker is Fr. Chad Ripperger, PhD. Please see brochure for more information and registration.

BROCHURE:  Click HERE or email memphisLatin@gmail.com to request a copy to be emailed to you.

Sisters of the St. Benedict Center and FSSP Father Visit Memphis

There will be a retreat hosted by the Blessed Sacrament Home School Group. It will be a girls' retreat and vocation conference on the weekend of April 2nd, given by the Slaves of the Immaculate Heart of Mary Sisters (from St. Benedict Center in Still River, MA) and Masses said by FSSP Father Pendergraft. To register for the retreat, please click on THIS LINK.

Because Father and Sisters are in Memphis that weekend, the following will occur and is open to anyone who would like to join (regardless of registration for the retreat):

• 9am Latin Mass at St. Michael's on Friday, April 1st (First Friday), said by Fr. Pendergraft.
• Dinner at Newk's with the Sisters on Saturday, April 2nd (see the link above).
• The 8:30am Blessed Sacrament Latin Mass on Sunday, April 3rd will be in honor of Fr. Murphy's 62nd anniversary, said by Fr. Pendergraft. There will be a reception afterward and then talks from the Sisters and Fr. Pendergraft.

"To God Who Giveth Joy To My Youth"

FSSP recently produced a wonderful vocation video:

The Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter is pleased to announce the completion of a 28 minute film entitled “To God Who Giveth Joy To My Youth”.

The title, taken from the opening words of Mass in the Extraordinary Form, captures the essence of the Fraternity's total formation process and life at Our Lady of Guadalupe Seminary.

Intended for generous, young men discerning a priestly vocation, this production provides an visual description of daily life within the walls of Our Lady of Guadalupe Seminary. Thus, this film will prove to be an informative and instrumental tool in their vocational process.

In the Church, the members of the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter's have the unique charism of sanctifying themselves through the celebration of Mass in the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite. Throughout the seminary's intensive seven year program, each of the various aspects and stages of formation has this purpose in mind, the worthy celebration of the Mass.

Explore how this seminary, drawing from the Church's rich tradition of priestly formation, seeks to form zealous priests in various areas including Thomistic philosophy and theology, spiritual direction, Gregorian Chant, manual labor and recreation.

Discover how one seminary receives a man and prepares him for his transformation into an Alter Christus, “Another Christ”.

Media Contact
Father Joseph Lee, FSSP
Our Lady of Guadalupe Seminary
7880 West Denton Road
Denton, Nebraska 68339
phone (402) 570-2707
emailjlee@gmail.com

About the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter
Established in 1988 by Pope John Paul II, the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter is a Society of Apostolic Life of Pontifical Right. The Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter strives to serve the Catholic Church by means of its own particular and specific role or objective, i.e. the sanctification of priests through the faithful celebration of the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite. Through the spiritual riches of the Church’s ancient Roman liturgy, the priests of the Fraternity seek to sanctify those entrusted to their care. The Priestly Fraternity instructs and trains its priests to preserve, promote, and protect the Catholic Church's authentic liturgical and spiritual traditions in over 16 countries worldwide. The Fraternity has over 200 priests and 125 seminarians studying in its two international seminaries in Bavaria, Germany and Denton, Nebraska. For more information, please go to http://www.fssp.org/.

About Our Lady of Guadalupe Seminary
Located in rural Denton, Nebraska, is the English-speaking seminary for the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter. Men from all over the world, come to study for the priesthood in the seminary’s seven year program. A few represented countries include Australia, Hong Kong, the French West Indies and England. For more information, please go to http://www.fsspolgs.org/.

"Is the Old Rite of Mass more Meritorious than the New Rite of Mass?"

Is the old rite of Mass more meritorious than the new rite of Mass? Fr. Chad Ripperger, professor at St. Gregory’s diocesan minor seminary and Our Lady of Guadalupe seminary, both in Nebraska, answers the question.

"[...] since the new rite is valid, as to the intrinsic sacrifice, the agency of the Church and the agency of the priest as a public person, it is the same as the old. Also as mentioned, we cannot pass judgment on the priests or faithful who go to these respective Masses since we do not have access to their interior lives and cannot judge with certitude who is more holy. It is possible to have beautiful decora in the new rite of Mass, even though the decora used by many in the new rite is often lacking. However, when we consider the rituals themselves, it is possible to arrive at which is more meritorious.

The new rite is “streamlined” in the sense that those who wrote it sought to simplify the ritual. This resulted in less pomp, so in this respect we may say the old rite is more meritorious than the new. We have mentioned in a prior article (56) that the old rite excels the newer rituals with regard to the virtues. Specifically, the old rite proceeds more from charity than the new insofar as the old rite is more ordered to God and less ordered toward the people. This is manifest not only in altar orientation(the new rite can be said oriented) but also in the fact that references to the upernatural virtues were reduced in the propers. Also, the new calendar reduces the glory of the saints. Since charity is love of neighbor for the sake of God, it is hard to see how charity could govern a reduction of the glory of God through the saints. The readings are said toward the people in the new rite, rather than as something offered back to God by facing God the Son Who shall rise in the east. In the old rite, the epistle and the Gospel are read facing God as in the form of a sacrifice offered back to Him. Many parts of the new rite are said facing the people (such as the introductory and penitential rites) rather than to God, as in the prayers at the foot of the altar in the old rite. In these and in other ways, the new rite is less ordered to God and therefore does not manifest the virtue of charity as well.

Some parts of the new rite are the same as the old. It is possible, provided the manners and gestures associated with these parts remain the same, that the new and the old rite can have the same merit in respect to these. Yet most of the parts that remained the same in the new rite (here we are thinking at least about the Latin versions of the prayers) had the gestures changed from the old rite. The Gloria in the old rite contains gestures that were dropped in the new rite, and the Gloria is not said facing God externally since the prayer is not said oriented. The first Eucharistic canon, which is in large part taken from the canon in the old rite, has had a vast majority of its gestures stripped away. These gestures constitute an additional merit, such as the gestures of the signs of the Cross made over the oblata and things of this kind.

The new rite, as a form of prayer, is hard to pray mentally since there are more things said out loud, and the general tenor of Vatican documents on the subject encourages a form of active participation that requires more things occurring on the side of the laity. The old Mass, since it is less activist on the side of the laity, tends to make it easier for them to pray the Mass. While the old rite stresses a more interior active participation, the new rite, with a lack of periods of silence as exist in the old rite, makes the ritual less meditative. In fact, the periods of meditation in the new rite are somewhat artificial and are not integral to the ritual as such but serve to stop the ritual rather than being a part of it. In other words, the priest stops the rite so the people can meditate, rather than having the people meditate while the ritual is in progress, as is the case in the old rite. As a result, in the new rite it is harder for people to lift their minds and hearts to God. The requirement of attention as part of prayer is more difficult and so, in that respect, the new rite is less meritorious than the old because God is more pleased with those things that easily draw us to Him.

We have already noted elsewhere (57) that the old rite fosters greater humility than the newer rituals. This means that the newer ritual as a prayer has less of one of the conditions that make prayer efficacious. In this respect the old rite is more meritorious than the new. We have also mentioned elsewhere (58) that the old rite manifests the Faith more clearly. In this respect the old rite is more meritorious than the new, since prayer has an efficacy based upon how the Faith is manifested in the prayer itself. In connection to the clarity of faith, we have also seen (59) that the old rite is more beautiful than the new. The more beautiful a thing is, the more it pleases God. The more beautiful it is, the greater glory it gives to God. Because the old rite is more beautiful than the new, it is more meritorious than the new. In effect, the prayers of the old rite of Mass better express the desires and intentions of an authentic Catholic faith, since they contain the faith in a clearer fashion. The prayers of the old rite of Mass foster a greater sense of our unworthiness and need for humility and sorrow for our sins. The prayers are more ordered toward God and suit Him better since they contain a proper supernatural dimension.

Conclusion

It is safe to say that, objectively speaking, with respect to the ritual itself the old rite of Mass has an ability to merit more than the new rite of Mass. While this merit is accidental, since the essential or intrinsic merit of the Mass, which is the Sacrifice of Christ, is the same in both rites, it is nevertheless something serious. Since the faithful are the beneficiaries of the fruits derived from this aspect of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, we have a grave obligation to consider the impact that this factor may be having on the life of the Church. While it is not our intention to denigrate the new rite, we must recognize that the ritual of Mass used in the old rite is more meritorious and therefore more beneficial for the people who assist at it and for the priests who offer it."

For the full reading of Fr. Ripperger's article, click on"Merit of A Mass."

Press release from the Fraternity of Saint Peter

From the Fr. Demets' Blog: Press release from the Fraternity of Saint Peter. Fr. Laurent Demets is a FSSP priest in Cherokee Village, Arkansas, United States.

Watch a Solemn High Tridentine Mass Broadcast Live on EWTN

DENTON, Nebraska (13 November 2009) On Saturday, 21 November 2009, the Feast of the Presentation of Our Lady, Father Laurent Demets, a member of the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter, will celebrate a Solemn High Mass in the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite. To be televised live on EWTN at 7:00AM (CST), this special Mass will take place at the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament in Hanceville, Alabama.

About the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter

Established in 1988 by Pope John Paul II, the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter is a Society of Apostolic Life of Pontifical Right. The Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter serves the Catholic Church by means of its own particular objective, i.e. the sanctification of priests through the faithful celebration of the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite. Through the spiritual riches of the Church’s ancient Roman liturgy, the priests of the Fraternity seek to sanctify those entrusted to their care. The Priestly Fraternity instructs and trains priests to preserve, promote, and protect the Church's authentic liturgical and spiritual traditions. The Fraternity has over 200 priests worldwide. Over 125 seminarians study in its two international seminaries in Bavaria, Germany and Denton, Nebraska.

About EWTN

Founded by Mother Angelica, the EWTN Global Catholic Network, in its 28th year, is available in more than 150 million television households in 144 countries and territories. EWTN is the largest religious media network in the world.

Watch The Mass Live Online!
www.ewtn.com/audiovideo

Media Contact
Father Joseph Lee, FSSP
Our Lady of Guadalupe Seminary
7880 West Denton RoadDenton, Nebraska 68339
402-570-2707
emailjlee@gmail.com

Sacred Tradition Conference

Fr. Chad Ripperger, FSSP, PhD returns to Memphis on Friday and Saturday, November 13 - 14, 2009. The topic of the conference will be "Sacred Tradition: Be thou vigilant". To register and/or RSVP for the dinner, please refer to the brochure by clicking here.

The schedule is as follows:

Pre-Conference:
Friday, November 13th
Feast day of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, V (traditional)
6:15 a.m. Holy Sacrifice of the Mass
4:30 p.m. Sacrament of Penance
5:30 p.m. Holy Sacrifice of the Mass
6:15 p.m. **Reception and Dinner with Father Ripperger (Must RSVP by Monday Nov 9)

Conference:
Saturday November 14th
Feast Day of St. Josaphat, BM (traditional)
7:00 a.m Holy Sacrifice of the Mass
7:30 a.m. **Continental Breakfast (Gym)
8:00 a.m. **Conference Begins
11:30 a.m. **Conference closes—Fr. Ripperger available for blessing of articles and brief meet and greet (Gym)

**For adults only, with the exception of nursing infants and older teens (15 & older)
Note: There will NOT be 3:15pm Mass at Blessed Sacrament on Friday, Nov 13.

Pope desires FSSP to be given full pastoral care of faithful

From the New Liturgical Movement:

Fr. John Berg recently celebrated a Solemn Mass for the German congress, Freude am Glauben (Joy in the Faith). He went on to celebrate another Solemn Mass for the annual meeting of the German Pro Missa Tridentina association in Wiesbaden this 19 September. At this conference, Fr. Berg mentioned some interesting details of his audience with His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI in July (cf. FSSP Superior General and Benedict XVI). According to Fr. Engelbert Recktenwald FSSP,

"Pope Benedict XVI wishes that the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter be entrusted, beyond the celebration of Holy Mass in the Extraordinary Form, at as many places as possible, with the cura animarum, i.e. the full pastoral care. This was reported by Fr. John Berg, Superior General of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter, at the Annual Meeting of Pro Tridentine Missa, which was held today in Wiesbaden. Fr. Berg had on 6 July, a private audience with the Pope, during which he was able to speak for fifteen minutes with him at his desk in the papal library. The Holy Father was very interested in whether the Fraternity was able to exercise its apostolate without obstacles, as intended. He inquired whether its priests, where they operate, could really work pastorally for the souls."

Catholic Marriage Conference

Fr. Ripperger, FSSP Returns to Memphis!

Adam and Eve: Call of the Original Order

The Regina Caeli Latin Mass Community will be hosting Fr. Chad Ripperger of the Fraternal Society of St. Peter to speak on Catholic Marriage March 7th at Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church (and a Teen Talk at St. Michael's Catholic Church on March 6th).

Please click here for the brochure or contact Crowell7@msn.com for more information.

To have the brochure emailed to you, please contact memphisLatin@gmail.com

Spiritual Warfare Conference

Memphis to Host Seminary Professor

The Regina Caeli Latin Mass Community will be hosting Fr. Chad Ripperger of the Fraternal Society of St. Peter to speak on spiritual warfare issues–particularly angels and the demonic—Nov. 7th & 8th at St. Louis Catholic Church.

Fr. Ripperger brings an extraordinarily strong background to the subject of intelligent spirits. Having studied at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross in Rome where he received his doctorate in philosophy, Fr. Ripperger taught seminarians Dogmatic and Moral Theology and Philosophy, as well as demonology, at Our Lady of Guadalupe Seminary in Denton, Nebraska.

Strongly urging the use of sacramentals, particularly the St. Benedict Medal and the scapular, Fr. Ripperger will explain how the Church's use of sacramentals remains an ever important practice, and what Catholics can do to protect themselves from the spiritual Enemy. The conference is FREE. For more information, one may contact gloriapatri@bigriver.net, or click here to download the flier.

FSSP Silent Contemplative Retreat

The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius Loyola
The First Week

A Silent Contemplative Retreat

For Men – June 12 – 15, 2008
For Women – June 19 – 22, 2008

Retreatmaster - Fr. James B. Buckley, F. S. S. P.

Our Lady of Guadalupe Seminary
7880 West Denton Road
Denton, Nebraska 68339
402-797-7700

Link to Schedule

Link to Application

Limit is 30 participants.
Please check with Geoffrey Coleman at the seminary for availability before applying.