In our previous defense of the Catholic Faith, we defend the nature of God that we Catholics believed. Defending our faith also teaches others including the next generation. Today we defend other topics that the protestants usually criticized about us Catholics.
Defending the Catholic Faith is a duty that we must fulfill including the priest and those who serve in the church. It is not only defending our soul from our persecutors but also strengthens the faith of those who listen during the defense, including our loved ones. Previously, we shared three topics about the Catholic Faith that we answered to defend it. Now we would like to share more:
Catholicism is not just another religion in the world, but the religion that only Christ built upon St. Peter the apostle. But since this is the church that our Lord created, the devil will do anything to destroy it. Not just outside the church, but also from within. They will attack our Catholic faith and those who had a lack of knowledge which has a possibility to weaken its faith, either they will leave the church or chose not to believe in God. Many us are not knowledgeable about our Catholic faith, mostly to our generation today because of lack of Catechism that most churches are not providing anymore since Vatican II. We must defend our faith not just from other religion such as the Protestants, but also from our fellow Catholics whom are influenced by the Protestants and Modernist. As Catholics, our faith is important. This defense is not just for our own soul but also to others including our loved ones. In this article, we will provide things in our Catholic faith that we must defend.
Have you gone to Japan and tried their authentic Ramen? Or went to the United Kingdom and try their Beef Wellington? Or have you tried the Puto Calasiao in Pangasinan, Philippines? This is one of the Traditional Foods that is very authentic of these places. But what if someone will say, the way of cooking of Ramen is too old, let's change it. He removed the usual ramen ingredients and replace it with something new. Then when you taste it, it tastes like a cup noodle with less salty flavor. Or someone will say let’s remove the breading on the beef wellington to look more appealing. Then when you introduce this to the British. They will say to you that "This is not beef Wellington". This is the taste and appearance that we are now experiencing today when the Second Vatican Council decides to change or remove some important ingredients of our Catholic Faith, and this is by removing some of the Sacred Traditions. The Second Vatican Council teaches that the tradition does not work in modern times today. So, what are those sacred traditions that do not fit today?
Now that the word about the Traditional Latin Mass or the Tridentine Mass has spread all over the world including the internet. There are questions that were frequently asked about these two Holy Mass, the Traditional Latin and the Novus Ordo Mass. Many were confused because of the information that was posted on the social media. As the Traditionalist such as Taylor Marshall and Archbishop Schneider explained the errors of the New Mass, the modernist such as the Vatican and some of the Priests defend the Novus Ordo Mass and criticized the Traditional Mass. We've been posting articles about the Traditional Latin Mass to educate our readers, but let's look at the point of view of some Traditionalist, modernist about these two Holy Mass and what is our view.
On July 16, 2023 during the Memorial of our Lady of Mt. Carmel, Archbishop Victor Bendico of CBCP and also archbishop of Capiz, released circular no. 2023-03 on the question as whether the faithful are allowed to hold or raise hands during the Lord's prayer in the Mass. He indicates Pope Francis' catechesis last March 14, 2017 that everyone can do the raise hand gesture and to hold hands of Our Father. In recent years, some churches stop using Orans to the faithful, but because of this statement of the CBCP, it brings confusion for some of the faithful who don't know if they will use this gesture or not. Is the Pope and CBCP correct about this matter? Before we answer that, let's take a look of the origin of the Orans.
In the Holy Mass, there is a long history of debate between the Catholics and the Protestants on where the priest has to face during the Holy Mass. Before the Vatican II council, the Priest always faces to the altar during the Holy Mass. This orientation is called "Ad Orientem". Then changes occurred on Pope Paul VI's Mass (Novus Ordo Mass) in 1969 where the Priest is now facing the congregation. This orientation is called "Versus Populum". The Traditional Catholics societies such as the Society of Pope Pius X (SSPX) and the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter (FSSP) still using the Ad Orientem as they celebrated the Traditional Latin Mass. Now, the debate is now between the Traditionalist and the Modernist. The question is, which is better? The Ad Orientem or the Versus Populum? Before we answer. Let's take a look of their history.
There's a recent news that more than 500 thousand of Germany's Catholics left the church. One of the main reasons is the attitude of the church towards sexual abuse which they seek justice. Second, they want a bigger role for women in the church. Third, acceptance of the LGBT and lastly, allowing divorce in the Church. These reasons are not only happening in Germany but also in other parts of the world. Many faithful wish to have another reform for these matters. But, is it right that we leave the church because of these scandals, crimes which involve some priest and then no actions were taken? Or we leave the church because it does not do what we wanted such as same-sex marriage and women clergy. Here is why we should not leave the church.
Traditional Catholic societies have suffered in the past because of their brethren in the Church. They condemned the movement of these societies because they believe that the traditional way of life is not fitting in with the modern world, just like the Vatican II taught. Though many Catholics, including those who did not experience the Tridentine Rite, treat the Novus Ordo Mass as the Traditional one. Even though the Novus Ordo Mass started out as solemn, it has gradually introduced more Protestant gestures that remove the holy sacrifice of the Mass.
The Tridentine Mass or the Traditional Latin Mass is still restricted and can only be attended by the parishes or churches that are under the Traditional Catholic Societies or communities. Since the SSPX (Society of St. Pius X) has its bishops unlike other Traditional societies, they slowly built churches in every part of the world where some people discover the beauty of the Traditional Latin Mass. And since many Traditional Societies have been formed in the past years after the promulgation of the Novus Ordo Mass, followers of the Traditional societies are spreading the word of the importance and truth about the Sacred Tradition and the Sacred Rite of the Holy Mass.
