I was thinking of going to 11am Mass in Clonard today but the thought of facing covidiots with masks when receiving communion and the possibility of an awful sermon put me off. I hope God does not mind but I would have been so distracted by the shenanigans.
Your attendance would achieve what end in light of such a charade? Curiosity coupled with discouragement? Doesn't sound like a worthwhile combo! But then, one might offer up their reception of Holy Communion in reparation. Just trying. O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee!
I'll tell you a funny thing about all this and the only way I can describe this is cats and dogs. When a cat sees a dog in the street it goes into overdrive, when a dog sees a cat same thing. It is like it is in their DNA, they just KNOW one another. They might not necessarily chase each other or fight, but they KNOW. I'll give you a couple of extreme examples of this KNOWING. When I was in Medugorje years ago one of the folks in our company was a young country priest I did not know from Adam. All I knew was his name, certainly nothing bad. Not even a rumour. Anyway I was at Mass in St James Church and there was concelebrated Mass with I suppose about 30 priests including this young priest I will call, 'Joe'. At the end of the Mass Fr Joe rushed up to me in a state of total, I can only describe it as funk. Terror. He wanted to know why I was staring at him all through the Mass. He also wanted to know how , 'You know all about me!'. In fact I was not , needless to say, staring at him . Nor did I, 'know things', about him. But as it turned out his Bishop had forbidden him to say Mass because he was under investigation by the police, but he went ahead and did it anyway. He later got five years in jail for rape. But I knew none of this at the time. You see what I mean by cat and dog thing. Another example was in Clonard Monastery years and years ago. I went into Mass. Now there were loads of people coming into Mass and Clonard is quite a huge Church. But all the way from the top of the Church until I took my seat a young guy, I would say about 16 turned right round in his seat and stared at me all the way up the aisle. When I say stare I mean like a cat with a mouse, there was a huge sense of hostility , of a violent hatred. Like a cat and dog. But I 'd never met this young fellow in my life before. However it became evident going through the Mass by his behaviour that he was oppressed or possessed by the devil . I had tied my dog, a German Shepherd up outside Church. He was perfectly healthy , he died a week or tow later of advanced cancer. I am convinced there was a connection. But you see what I mean about cats and dogs. When I am at the Clonard Novena I get the sense I am the only cat , however cool a cat, amongst many dogs. It is a, tip toe, watch yourself, kind of feeling. For cats usually know dogs but on the other hand dogs know cats too. Hair raising. I know them, but I more than suspect some of them know me. We don't have to have it spelt out to each other. We just know. Like cats and dogs.
The Holy Spirit used to be more commonly known as The Holy Ghost. Obviously, Padraig, when you use the term that is now in more common usage, you mean exactly the same thing, as do most people, in other words Holy Spirit = Holy Ghost. However, 'spirit' is a wee bit intangible a word, not so easy to define, while 'ghost' is a straightforward, concrete (well, maybe inconcrete) term for a being. The term 'holy spirit' and the word 'spirit' have been hijacked by the heretics and apostates. Many of them claim that the Holy Spirit is talking to them, telling them exactly what they would wish to hear; they refer to the 'spirit of Vatican II, a phenomenon which has nothing to do with the actual published words of the Council; they often describe themselves as "spiritual, but not religious". 'Spirit' can mean whatever they want it to mean. It's a typical Marxist tactic, to abuse language. We see how they have ruined the perfectly respectable word 'gay'. They are also abusing the weakness of the English language in that it expects the word 'love' to carry too much, mendaciously ascribing the same meaning to sodomy as the mutual self-giving of child-aspiring married couples.
Sometimes I still say "Holy Ghost" in my prayers--the Sign of the Cross, the Apostles Creed etc. I've been doing it for quite awhile. For comfort i suppose. The prayers of my childhood. Ghost in Shakespeare's time was not just spirit but soul. Romeo calls Friar Laurence his "ghostly father". What was wrong with Holy Ghost anyway? Why did it have to change?"Come Holy Ghost Creator blest and in our hearts take up Thy rest..."
I've heard Taylor Marshall say he likes to use "Holy Ghost" because it leaves no doubt as to Who one is invoking, i.e. The Second Person of the Most Holy Trinity. Whereas, as DeGaulle says, the spirit could be the spirit of the age etc.
I disagree. Note the following link: https://biblehub.com/revelation/22-17.htm Without exception, translations all say spirit, including the Douay Rheims; Marshall rightly takes a cautionary position, but goes too far in his campaign. Taken to its logical conclusion he would have to critique the Bible!
I think most people hear the word ghost and think of a haunted house. It is of course an old English word most likely of germanic/saxon origin. The Latin spiritus is I suppose its direct equivalent when it comes to Catholic theology etc.
I'll make a concession, Ann just for you. I'll always sing the following as is (apart from the 3rd stanza): https://www.google.com/search?clien...#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:1f13e010,vid:_RKl0EwRikE In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen!
Will you go 'way or that! You know the ones that go on and on about it. The Sinods are supposed to be virtual Pentecosts. Most use of the term is just the same as referring to the Holy Ghost, who was the quiet one of the Trinity for two millenia and more. Lately, He's become the life of the party, if we're to believe some.
In fairness, there's nothing wrong with a spirit like a good brandy or whiskey. As Mario said, "In the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost".
Ah, yes. As I said most people mean the very same thing with the term 'Holy Spirit', as with 'Holy Ghost'. I just get exasperated by those who go on and on about the Holy Spirit as a justification for their attempts to introduce new doctrine. There's no point in throwing out the baby with the bath water, although I would be tempted to throw out those who declare 'I'm spiritual, but not religious' and then throw the bathwater right over them.
4th Day at the Novena at Clonard. Despite not having slept at all well the night before and despite deep dark thoughts about giving it all up I went to the Novena today and was swept by feeling of deep , deep joy and happiness during the Novena Mass. A little Christmas in the gloom. Why does the Holy Ghost (not Ghost, not Spirit) sometimes surprise us all like this? John 3:8 The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.” I think He loves to come when we are defeated. The more defeated the better. To teach us that any victory comes not of ourselves but of God. I even got to confession after Mass. In a little porta cabin outside. What joy! He was a young priest. From Indonesia. Like all Modernist Religious Orders the Redemptorists in Ireland cannot get any vocations. Why would they? What young person wants to live their dreams of some kinda 1960's Love in, touchy feelly, Revolution. The World has moved on. No young person is that stupid. As I stared in the young priests eyes I got the uneasy impression he was frightened of me. Like a rabbit in the headlights. Perhaps he had reason too. I felt sorry for him and held back.
