012 :
04 Jul 2009

Wither Liturgical Reform & Renewal in 2009? Part 2 In this second-part of his commentary on liturgical renewal, Fr Patrick Collins, outlines a series of developments which he believes will help make the liturgy more accessible to the ordinary church goer and which also take us closer to what the prime objectives are in our conducting liturgies. Driving his own thinking are the thoughts of Thomas Merton. [more]

011 :
03 Jul 2009

Wither Liturgical Reform & Renewal in 2009? Part 1 In this two-part commentary Dr Patrick Collins , who is a great apostle for the thinking of Thomas Merton, explores where the Church is heading in the area of liturgical renewal. Part 1 of the commentary looks at Merton's changing attitudes towards the liturgical reforms which were made at the Second Vatican Council and Dr Collins offers his own thoughts on where the present leadership seem to be now heading in this realm. In the second part, which we will publish tomorrow, Dr Collins, puts forward proposals which might form the basis for a way forward again at some point in the future when the present "reform of the reform" has driven everybody out of the pews except the remnant. [more]

128 :
02 Jul 2009

Questioning the direction in which our leaders are taking us... One of the things that seems to characterise the community that has gathered here at Catholica is a collective memory of a time when there was excitement within Catholicism. We were fired up following the Second Vatican Council — re-invigorated and anxious to get out and share our excitement about what Jesus and our institution had to offer the world. That excitement and hope seems to have been dissipated by a leadership that is timid and trying to pacify only the insecure and those who see their faith as some security blanket of certitudes. Our present leader, Pope Benedict, speaks of a "smaller, purer Church". Today Dr Andrew Kania questions both the leadership and ourselves as to where we are going. Are we a Church trying to perpetually prove we are the only one's with access to Truth or should we see ourselves as the institution leading and encouraging the world in unearthing what the ultimate truths are? This is a powerful commentary coming from a writer often perceived to have a more conservative disposition. [more]

083 :
01 Jul 2009

Tom's Apologia #1 A big topic over the coming year is going to be the subject of priesthood. Pope Benedict in part acknowledges this in calling for a Year of the Priest to try and rescue the tarnished image of priesthood. Others though are suggesting it is not time for any more pr exercises but for a frank re-examination of the entire notion of priesthood and what role the priest plays in modern society. Tom McMahon is one of them. Today he begins a new series. [more]