From the playbook of Bl. Pope John XXIII

This is from Bl. Pope John XXIII's opening speech to the Second Vatican Council.  These two paragraphs are under the heading of How to Repress Errors.  I would add:  with Charity.

At the outset of the Second Vatican Council, it is evident, as always, that the truth of the Lord will remain forever. We see, in fact, as one age succeeds another, that the opinions of men follow one another and exclude each other. And often errors vanish as quickly as they arise, like fog before the sun. The Church has always opposed these errors. Frequently she has condemned them with the greatest severity. Nowadays however, the Spouse of Christ prefers to make use of the medicine of mercy rather than that of severity. She considers that she meets the needs of the present day by demonstrating the validity of her teaching rather than by condemnations.

Not, certainly, that there is a lack of fallacious teaching, opinions, and dangerous concepts to be guarded against an dissipated. But these are so obviously in contrast with the right norm of honesty, and have produced such lethal fruits that by now it would seem that men of themselves are inclined to condemn them, particularly those ways of life which despise God and His law or place excessive confidence in technical progress and a well-being based exclusively on the comforts of life. They are ever more deeply convinced of the paramount dignity of the human person and of his perfection as well as of the duties which that implies. Even more important, experience has taught men that violence inflicted on others, the might of arms, and political domination, are of no help at all in finding a happy solution to the grave problems which afflict them.

That being so, the Catholic Church, raising the torch of religious truth by means of this Ecumenical Council, desires to show herself to be the loving mother of all, benign, patient, full of mercy and goodness toward the brethren who are separated from her. To mankind, oppressed by so many difficulties, the Church says, as Peter said to the poor who begged alms from him: "I have neither gold nor silver, but what I have I give you; in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise and walk" (Acts 3:6). In other words, the Church does not offer to the men of today riches that pass, nor does she promise them merely earthly happiness. But she distributes to them the goods of divine grace which, raising men to the dignity of sons of God, are the most efficacious safeguards and aids toward a more human life. She opens the fountain of her life-giving doctrine which allows men, enlightened by the light of Christ, to understand well what they really are, what their lofty dignity and their purpose are, and, finally, through her children, she spreads everywhere the fullness of Christian charity, than which nothing is more effective in eradicating the seeds of discord, nothing more efficacious in promoting concord, just peace, and the brotherly unity of all.

Now, Bl. Pope John XXIII was not addressing liturgical mistakes here, but I think the principles apply to such issues.

Bl. John XXIII on St. John Vianney

Fifty years ago, Pope John XXIII wrote an encyclical about St. John Vianney.  Back in June, Pope Benedict XVI began the Year for Priests and drew attention to this priest-saint, whom he named the patron saint of all priests.

Bl. Pope John XXIII's encyclical was Sacerdotii Nostri Primordia, and I recommend it if you'd like a papal "biography" of St. John Vianney and an explanation of why he is such a model for priests.

Three-part Series on Vatican II

Over the next three Mondays, I will be attending a three-part series on Vatican II at a nearby parish one diocese over:

Focusing on the Second Vatican Council

Monday, May 4, 2009 – “Opening the Windows” This first session will explore the context in which the Second Vatican Council was conceived, announced, and planned. We will explore and discuss the world situation, the election of Pope John XXIII, the trends in Catholic Theology, the pastoral situation, and the ideas and forces that preceded the announcement of the Council.

Monday, May 11, 2009 – “Word and Sacrament” This session will present and discuss the Constitutions on Divine Revelation (Dei Verbum) and on the Sacred Liturgy (Sacrosanctum Concilium). By exploring the background and the main themes of each, it is hoped that participants will come to a greater appreciation of God’s Word (Bible) in their everyday lives and their call to “full, conscious, and active participation” in the Liturgy of the Church.

Monday, May 18, 2009 – “The People of God in the Modern World” Crisis Intervention: Danger and Opportunity. This final session will present and discuss the two main documents on the Church: The Dogmatic Constitution on the Church (Lumen Gentium), and The Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World (Gaudium et Spes) with additional focus on connected ideas such as Religious Liberty and Ecumenism (Christian Unity).

Presenter: Marty Arsenault, Director, Office of Catechesis. Time: 7:30 pm at The Church of St. Ann, Lawrenceville. This series is free. Light refreshments and conversation begin at 6:30 pm. Call 609-882-6491 - push zero and let the receptionist know you are coming. All registered participants will receive a Vatican II Resource Packet.

I've put together some reading prep for this first session: a 23-page booklet (129 K) of the documents of Pope John XXIII which make reference to the Council. It's folio-sized, so if you print it as a booklet, make sure you tell your printer the document-size is "folio". (Please note: the copy of Humanae Salutis in the Word document is an automatic English translation of an Italian dcument, so it's full of bizarre grammar, typoes, and is probably not particularly faithful to the original Latin!)