Jesuit Book For Sale

Life of St Ignatius Loyola, by Francis Thompson (here) starting bid was at $10.00

Jesuit On Elements Of Religous Life

Religious warfare, on the other hand, that is to say, the waging of war in defense of the Catholic Faith, of the Catholic Church, and of the innocent,

is a fitting end for which it is possible that a religious Order should be instituted, with this as its proper scope and aim. This is the judgment of St. Thomas Aquinas, and his judgment is confirmed by the practice of the Church. Military Orders, recognized and approved as religious Orders, have for many ages existed in the Church, in fact, from the time of Urban II. The vow of chastity is most excellently adapted to the end of a military Order. The obligations of a husband and father and the burdens of matrimony stand greatly in the way of freedom to expose one s life to the perils of war without solicitude for wife or children.

Supposing celibacy, consecration of chastity to God by vow is itself most well-pleasing to God, and it avails to obtain from Him the protection which is so specially necessary in so perilous a life. The same or similar advantages are to be found in a vow of poverty. In order that a man may truly and from his heart consecrate himself to military service for the sake of God, and seek therein no temporal gain, there cannot be any better disposition than that of his renouncing all temporal things, and laying aside all affection for them. Otherwise there might often be great danger of his fighting rather in order to the increase of his fortune than for the sake of his Maker.

Link (here) to the portion of the book

Go (here) to read this classic work published in 1895 by Fr. William Humphrey, S.J. entitled, Elements of Religious Life

Fouled Out

Two years after receiving a public rebuke from Archbishop Raymond Burke, the basketball coach at a Jesuit university has reiterated his support for legalized abortion and the destruction of human embryos. “It's a great world out there and you should participate in it," said Rick Majerus of St. Louis University. “That's what the essence of Jesuit education is.”

Link (here) to the full story at Catholic Culture.

"The bishop was going to excommunicate me'' two years ago, Majerus said on the show and reaffirmed his positions. "I believe in that,''

Majerus said Monday of the stem-cell issue. "What you need is hope. All religion — I don't care what religion you are — is based on the premise of hope and contrition.'' He said his view on abortion is unchanged, that it should be an individual choice.

"Nobody is for abortion'' he said. "But I'm for a women's choice, I am pro choice.''

Link (here)

The Problem Now Appears In Germany

Several students at one of Germany's most prestigious high schools were sexually abused for many years by their teachers, the school's director said Thursday. Father Klaus Mertes , S.J. says he has sent out 500 letters to alumni of Berlin's private Catholic Canisius Kolleg to determine the extent of the case after seven ex-students recently reported they were abused in the 1970s and 1980s. Canisius Kolleg is one of Germany's pre-eminent schools, alma mater of many politicians, businesspeople and scientists.

Father Mertes said Thursday that the seven, and likely many more, were abused by two ex-teachers who were members of the Jesuit order......... Mertes said the two Jesuit fathers taught at the school for eight years before leaving in the late 1980s. of the Jesuit order,

but after the allegations surfaced earlier this month, they were contacted by its independent counselor for sexual abuse victims......... All the victims were male and most were about 13 when the abuse started, Mertes said. They are around 40 now. He added that he had promised the victims not to make public details of the abuse. Canisius Kolleg was founded as an all-boys school and turned coed in the late 1970s.

Link (here) to the full story.

Photo is of Fr. Klaus Mertes, S.J.

Blind Eye

Fr. Klaus Mertes, S.J. admitted to the fact that Canisius Kollege that there "always been rumors" about abuse. About five years ago he had two victims reported it and also to "absolute discretion" asked. In addition, they would have wanted no contact with the perpetrators.

Whom he had met. "I torture myself with the question of whether I would have responded sooner," added the cleric added literally.

After a meeting would have been born in December and January, five more victims turned to him. This had given him the strength to go after consultation with his superiors in the Order to the public.

In the past week Mertes wrote letters to some 500 students of the "potentially affected" Matura vintages 1975 to 1983. In it, he apologized for a "blind eye" in the teaching staff and order and called on stakeholders to reveal himself.

Mertes said he did not understand his step "as a headlong rush." The interests of victims should have priority over the image of the school.

Link (here) translated with Google translator at Kathweb.

Photo is of Canisius Kollege in Berlin, Germany.

The Fact That I Die As A Martyr For The St. Ignatius Of Loyola, Is Truly A Joke

The C in the CDU has its origins in the common opposition of Catholics and Protestants against National Socialism. The resisters discovered that their confessional differences were overcome in the prison of Tegel. They said therefore, that these differences should be overcome after the war ended in German politics. Helmuth James Graf von Moltke wrote after his conviction by the People's Court: "The fact that I die as a martyr for the St. Ignatius of Loyola, is truly a joke, and I already tremble before the wrath of Dad, who was so anti-Catholic."

Link (here) to the full op-ed piece by Fr. Klaus Mertes, S.J. in the German language newspaper Der Taggespiegel (The Daily Mirror)

It's Clear There Are More

"There are at least 100 cases in Montana against the Jesuits, but we also found evidence that will lead to suits against the dioceses in Great Falls and Helena," said (photo on the right) Tim Kosnoff.

"There will also be additional cases against the U.S. government for things that happened in Bureau of Indian Affairs schools." In the bankruptcy case, Kosnoff said the Jesuit order will take some time to "absorb the information, and their insurance carrier will start examining the claims and assessing their exposure."

Kosnoff said he and other attorneys will examine the assets of the Jesuit order, but they won't limit their scrutiny to just the Oregon province.

"They are part of the larger, worldwide Jesuit order, and there significant assets,""But you never find out fully what the assets are. They claim poverty, but before it's over, the money appears." Kosnoff said.

The judge has also appointed a mediator who will eventually start meeting with all the principals in hopes of hammering out an agreement short of the case going to trial. Kosnoff said the time frame for resolution is extremely uncertain, but the attorneys will press for expediency. "We have a lot of clients who are elderly, so we're going to be pressing to get a resolution for them," he said. Kosnoff said while that the effort to find victims was successful, it's clear there are more.

Link (here) to the full story.

The Pied Piper Of Social Justice

And then (go to the bottom of the page left side>) Rev. Paul Carrier, S.J. (photo) comes to mind. The kids call him Pere Paul. Carrier devoted himself to the Project. He traveled to Haiti once a month, he spoke on the phone with Doug several times each day, he focused his campus ministry on the Project, he preached constantly about the good work being done here (by Doug) and raised money at every opportunity. In fact, Carrier exercised almost complete control of the Haiti Fund, Inc., the non-profit entity he created.

Carrier was the Haiti Fund’s first and only board Chairman. Donations to the Haiti Fund were received at a Fairfield University mailing address on North Benson Road. Carrier saw to it that Perlitz was awarded an honorary degree by the University, was a keynote speaker at a commencement ceremony and was regularly featured in University publications.

As a result of my recent immersion experience in Haiti and my personal encounters with the pain and suffering of the victims, it is fair for me to ask Father Carrier to explain what he knew about the sexual abuse of children by Perlitz and when he first became aware that it was happening. Carrier knew.

I could sense the anger in the Project’s senior staff member who told me that Carrier did not speak to him for three years in the aftermath of the staff member’s confrontation with Doug about his abuse of the kids. We should all be angry. The staff member made a heroic attempt to stop children from being abused and the Haiti Fund’s Chairman of the Board won’t speak to him anymore? Carrier, the pied piper of social justice, must be held accountable.

Link (here) to the full and lengthy article by Paul Kendrick

Fr. Joseph Fessio, S.J. To Speak On Anglican - Catholic Unity

The Institute of Catholic Culture will host "The Pope, The Anglicans and the Mass," a discussion of Anglicanorum Coetibus by Fr. Joseph Fessio, SJ. No reservations necessary. Free admission.

Location:
St. Ambrose Catholic Church
3829 Woodburn Rd.
Annandale, VA 22003

Date and Time: Sunday, Feb. 21, 2010 at 7:30pm

For more information, go to the website of the Institute of Catholic Culture (http://www.InstituteofCatholicCulture.org) or call (703) 504-8733.

Direct link to the flyer in PDF format: http://instituteofcatholicculture.org/docs/benedict.pdf.

Link (here) the blog entitled the Anglican Use of the Roman Rite

Chevron And Jesuit Investor Relations

Human Rights - Develop & Adopt Policies 2010 – Chevron Corp.

WHEREAS: Corporations face serious risks to reputation and shareholder value when they are seen as responsible for, or complicit in, human rights violations while operating in countries with weak rule of law, endemic corruption, civil conflict, poor labor and environmental standards. This is particularly true for the extractive sector which has the greatest number and most grievous human rights abuses (John Ruggie, UN Special Representative, Business and Human Rights www.umn.edu/humanrts /business/RuggieReport2006.html). Chevron operates in over 180 countries, many with critically high rates of human rights allegations including Burma, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Nigeria, Angola and Bangladesh (www.foreignpolicy.com/failedstates). Promising future energy reserves are increasingly found in weak governance zones, which often requires joint ventures with state-controlled national oil companies representing governments with marginal concern for or capacity to protect human rights.

Link (here) to the full resolution and list of signers

• Loyola University Chicago, Elaine Lehman
• Society of Jesus -- Wisconsin Province, John Sealey
• Rockhurst University, Guy Swanson
• Marquette University High School, Warren Sazama, S.J.
• Society of Jesus - Upper Canada Province, Rev. James Webb, S.J.
• Society of Jesus - China Province, Sun Jou-yuan, S.J.
• Society of Jesus -- New Orleans Province, Mary Baudouin
• Society of Jesus -- New England Province, Fr. Michael Linden, S.J.
• Society of Jesus -- Missouri Province, Sean Agniel
• University of Scranton, John McNamara
• Society of Jesus -- New York Province, Mark Hallinan, SJ
• Society of Jesus -- Maryland Province, Mark Hallinan, SJ
• Creighton University, Leroy "Lee" A. Galles
• Society of Jesus -- California Province, Mark Potter
• Society of Jesus -- Detroit Province, Carrie Nantais
• Society of Jesus -- Chicago Province, Carrie Nantais
• University of Detroit Mercy
• University of San Francisco, Stacy Lewis
• Regis University, Lawrence Heller

Photo of Chevron Richmond Oil Refinery

Archbishop Lawrence Burke, S.J. "Rest In Peace"

ARCHBISHOP Lawrence Burke, S.J., first archbishop of the Bahamas, died in Kingston, Jamaica, at 7 o'clock last night after a long battle with cancer.

Archbishop Burke, 77, died in the retirement home for Catholic priests in the Kingston Archdiocese. He had retired in 2008, four years after being transferred from the Bahamas to take over the archdiocese of his native Kingston.

Archbishop Burke, born in Kingston on October 27, 1932, entered the Society of Jesus on August 14, 1951 at Lenox, Massachusetts and was ordained a priest on June 16, 1964 at Holy Trinity Cathedral, Kingston.

He taught at St. George's College, Jamaica, from 1958 to 1969, when he was named Rector of the College. In 1973 he was appointed Regional Superior of the Jesuits in Jamaica, the first and only Jamaican to be appointed to that post, which he held until 1979. He returned to St George's College in 1980 as Acting Principal.

He was appointed Bishop of Nassau by Pope John Paul II on July 17, 1981 and on June 22, 1999, was named the first Archbishop of the newly erected Archdiocese of Nassau.

It was under Archbishop Burke that the new St Francis Xavier's Cathedral was planned and built.

On February 9, 2004 Archbishop Burke was appointed the fourth Archbishop of Kingston and was installed on May 2, 2004, at the Holy Trinity Cathedral in Kingston.

Link (here)

Jesuit Was The First To Unravel The Treachory Of Countess Elizabeth Bathory

Born in 1560 in Hungary, the Countess Elizabeth Bathory was one of the most controversial of her time, thanks to its peculiar habits when it came to treating her maids. Advanced in education she was fluent in German, Slovak and Greek at a time when few people could read or write in their own native language, she had strong temperament and personality as to repel a Turkish invasion of (Picture >) their property in Csejthe ( Cachticz or Cachtice ). But her fame is mainly due to the fact that she had the strange habit of cruelly torturing her victims.

Different accounts ascribe to it the atrocities, cruel even by the standards of the time, real motives are mysterious; torture ranging from pure sadism to an aesthetic obsession, which is supposed to have taken to bathing in the blood of her nearly 300 victims in order to remain forever young.

These allegations were never proven, yet the Countess was sentenced to spend the rest of his life imprisoned in a room of her castle, where she died three years later, in 1614. After her death, her name was declared prohibited throughout Hungary by King Mathias d'Habsburg, and this went on for over a hundred years until, in 1744, Fr. Laszlo Turoczi ( Ladislaus Turoczi ) the Jesuit, went on to write the history of the kings of Hungary entitled Ungaria suis cum regibus compendio data , devoting an entire chapter to the life of the "Tigress of Csejthe", removing it from the darkness of time.

Link (here) to the original post written by Alexandre Heredia translated with Google translation from the original Portuguese blog entitled, Gardenal com Fanta Uva

You can purchase a copy of Father Turoczi's original book (here) with a brief biography for 900 euros.

Jesuit On Catholics In Congress

First Things editor Jody Bottum recently pointed to:

“As my friend Paul Mankowski, S.J., once remarked, the Catholic Church’s moral agenda would be much advanced if every Catholic in Congress was replaced with a Mormon or a Muslim.”

When I first read that, I thought it was somewhat overstated, but the longer I think about it the more true it appears.

Link (here)

Jesuits Bring The Devotion Of Our Lady Of Guadalupe To Northern Italy

The devotion to the Madonna of Guadalupe, to whom the inhabitants of Santo Stefano have erected a statue on the nearby Mount Maggiorasca, has had a great historical and religious relevance for centuries. In 1531 the Virgin appeared at Guadalupe, a small town near the City of Mexico to a religious native, and successive appearances gave the story credibility.

The devotion of the Madonna quickly spread, not only in Mexico and South America, but also in Spain and subsequently in Italy. In 1802, an image of Our Lady of Guadalupe was exhibited in the church of S. Pietro, Piacenza by some Jesuit priests. An inhabitant of Santo Stefano, Antonio Domenico Rossi, who was in Piacenza at the time, brought a sacred image of the Virgin back to Val d'Aveto.

The devotion spread to the d'Aveto population and became celebrated among the faithful. In 1811, Cardinal Giuseppe Doria donated the beautiful picture (go here >) (that is still venerated today) to his church and parish of Santo Stefano. The painting depicts the Virgin with dark hair with her face leaning towards her right shoulder, standing with her hands joined in prayer. The King of Spain had donated the icon to Andrea Doria. Before becoming property of the Doria Palace in Genoa, it was said to have been carried aboard a galley during the battle of Lepanto.

Link (here) to the original PDF located on the upper left hand quarter of page 31

19th Century Jesuits And Crainiotomy

A German medical journal recently opened the topic anew, and declared that (in depth bio here>) Fr. Augustine Lehmkuhl, S.J. advocates the practice of craniotomy in certain cases. The article was reported in the (the original article here>) Medical Record of New York, and (awesome piece here >) Fr. Aloysio Sabetti , S.J. took occasion to answer, or rather to correct the grossly erroneous assumption that Catholic theologians, much less the Church, were tolerant of the practice of craniotomy.

Link (here) to The American Ecclesiastical Review published in 1895

800 Belen Jesuit Students Sing The Salve Regina In Latin

The young choir was fantastic and the rest of the student body sang like never before. This in particular was most impressive because after years of being at Belen, the one thing that you can never get our kids to do is sing at mass.

Yet there they were, signing like nightingales, razing the Roca roof with their song. And the best part, the most impressive, the hair-raising moment of the whole experience, was when they all sang the Salve Regina.

Do you know what that is? Almost 800 Belen students singing a song to Mary in Latin! I was in a prayerful daze, elevated to the heavens, feeling as if I were being cuddled by the Virgin herself.....

Link (here) to the weblog of Fr. Guillermo "Willie" M. Garcia-Tunon, S.J.
Hat Tip to Fr. Z (here)
Our Lady of Belen (here) patroness of Jeronymites

Jesuit Canon Law Book From 1692 For Sale

1692 Society of Jesus Plettenberg Canon Law Book
INTRODUCTIO AD JUS CANONICUM

Hunoldi Plettenbergi Title details: Hunoldi Plettenbergi E Sociatate JESU INTRODUCTIO AD JUS CANONICUM Published: Hildesii, 1692 Language: Latin

For Sale on Ebay (here) or (here) starting bid $25.00, 6 days left on auction

English Ladies Called Jesuitesses

Mary Ward was a Yorkshire woman who, at a time of severe repression of Roman Catholics in England,

felt called by God to found a congregation of religious sisters (Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary) on the model of the Jesuits (Society of Jesus). Her vision was for a non-enclosed order of religious sisters who might serve their faith actively as educators and missionaries across Europe,

set free from the restrictions of monastic enclosure. In an era when women were considered intellectually and morally incapable of doing good for themselves, Mary soon came into conflict with the Papal authorities. Having founded a community of sisters in St Omer in Flanders in 1609, Mary was initially allowed to open schools across Europe without restriction and continued to secretly assist persecuted Catholics in Protestant England.

Her order of ‘English Ladies’ considered itself directly answerable to the Pope without other intervening male authority. But when Mary traveled to Rome to seek Papal recognition for her congregation of so-called (go here>) ‘Jesuitesses’,

Pope Urban VIII ruled against her refusal of enclosure and imprisoned her as a heretic. Despite centuries of struggle in a Church and a world unprepared for Mary Ward’s pioneering vision, her sisters today are fulfilling her dream of apostolic service and opportunities for women all over the world. The cause for Mary Ward’s canonization was opened in 1929. The historical research was accepted by the Congregation for the Causes of Saints in 1995. Theologians completed their investigations in 2009 and recommended unanimously that her cause should go forward.

Link (here) to the full article.

Jesuit On Cyberspace

In his message for the Roman Catholic Church's World Day of Communication, Pope Benedict said "Priests are thus challenged to proclaim the Gospel by employing the latest generation of audiovisual resources -- images, videos, animated features, blogs, Web sites...

" That's not to say that priests aren't already on the Web. "If people live in cyberspace then the Church ought to be in cyberspace" says Father Brian Paulson S.J. a Jesuit priest in Chicago.

Paulson will soon head up a community of about 80 priests and seminarians, some of whom blog, and one of his concerns with the Pope's mandate is quality.

Link (here) to ultra-lefty NCR

Jesuit Leading Talks On Business Ethics

On February 9th, 2010

The Making of an Ethical Executive — The Catholic and Dominican Institute at Mount Saint Mary College, Aquinas Hall, 4 p.m. Free and open to the public. Aimed at undergraduate and graduate business students. Presented by the Rev. William J. Byron, S.J.. For more information call 569-3176.

The Relationship of Catholic Social Teaching to Politics and the World of Work — The Catholic and Dominican Institute at Mount Saint Mary College, Aquinas Hall, 7:15 p.m. Free and open to the public. Aimed at graduate students and community business leaders. Presented by Rev. William J. Byron, S.J. For more information call 569-3176.

Link (here)

Jesuit On Johnny Cash

I remember paging through a book of collected photographs and articles about Johnny Cash which Rolling Stone issued shortly after the country music icon died in 2003.

One of the authors described how we shall never have another Johnny Cash because the cultural conditions that could create a Johnny Cash

—hand-picking cotton in the Southern sun, cross-country train rides, rugged stone prisons—no longer exist.

Link (here) to the full post by Vincent L. Strand, S.J. entitled Cotton Fields and Latin Manuals at Whosoever Desires

The Superior General Was Priest's Theology Teacher In The Philippines

My theology lecturer in Manila, Fr. Adolfo Nicolas, S.J. did his doctoral dissertation on Hans Urs von Balthazar; I recall in a chat with Fr. Nicolas over breakfast saying, "I found Balthazar painfully verbose."

Link (here) to Fr. John George's post at True Catholic

Two Scientific Patents Assigned To The Cailfornia Province

5054310	Test object and method of measurement of an ultrasonic beam A test object for use in determining the accuracy of and to calibrate ultrasonic scanning equipment is disclosed. The test object provides for the determination of elevational resolution. Additionally, the test object provides for the determination of the...	10/08/1991
4970907	Transducer holder A transducer holder that is mountable to a test object includes a pair of clamping members and clamp closing members to instantaneously tighten the clamping members on the transducer and hold it in optimum position for obtaining elevational resolution Link (here)

Team Rubicon On The Roof Of The Jesuit Noviciate In Port-au-Prince

The blog Blackfive has announced the launch of a collaborative rapid medical response operation of Jesuits and US Marine veterans to quickly get medical personnel and supplies into Port au Prince.

Jake Wood, a remarkable young US Marine military blooger (milblogger) and former University of Wisconsin Badgers football player, has established Team Rubicon for a joint medical relief operation with Jesuits in Port au Prince.

The operation is able to move more swiftly than larger, established aid organizations because it is privately-funded and overcomes three critical blocks in the flow of aid: security, lack of water, and organizational cumbersomeness.

Wood blogged his recent combat experience in Iraq and Afghanistan as Badger Jake at Jake's Life, which has now become the home of Team Rubicon. He also served as a volunteer in the aftermath of hurricane Katrina.

About the impact on him of Haiti's devastating earthquake he says, “My first reaction was, ‘Jake, you're not in the Marines any more, but you have a special set of skills. You would be ashamed of yourself if you didn't try to use them to help people.'
“Security is a critical issue in the aid effort that has not drawn much attention in the mainstream media." Team Rubicon immediately identified the need and are meeting it with veteran volunteers who are "security personnel who can sub as medics and medics who can sub as security personnel."

Wood recruited some of the members of the advance team from posting on Facebook. The advance team consists of another Marine combat veteran, two firemen from Milwaukee, and an interpreter from Haiti, Corinne Joachim-Sanon. She had been studying at the Wharton School of Economics at the University of Pennsylvania when she learned that her home in Haiti had been destroyed.

Team Rubicon will marshal its medical aid convoys in the Dominican Republic and will provide security for them as they move to the Jesuit Volunteer Services compound in Port au Prince, which is reported to have basically collapsed.

The Jesuits have the most essential thing whose lack is hampering all relief efforts: water, which they get from a well on their property. Team Rubicon will establish its base of operations there.

The advance team is due to arrive in Port au Prince on Sunday to assess security and prepare the way for the first convoy of medical supplies and medical personnel from Chicago.

Jesuit Brother Jim Boyton, a former teacher at the University of Detroit Jesuit High School and Academy, will guide the team to the Jesuit Volunteer Service compound in Port au Prince.

Blackfive writes, “The Jesuits are telling us that they need this medical team NOW.

Brother Boynton stated, “At this point I will have no way to pay the teachers, and our Jesuit community has very little cash on hand, the only real currency now. The other thing is that people are now leaving Port au Prince in droves, and by the accounts, they are headed our way. "

Team Rubicon is a totally privately-funded and volunteer-staffed operation of medical and military professionals working with one of the Church's most effective education and assistance organizations, Jesuit Volunteer Services. With additional funding from private citizens they will be able to do far more and respond much more quickly than larger organizations that are still gearing up.

Since Team Rubicon is working in collaboration with Jesuits, they deserve the support of Catholics everywhere and particularly those who are veterans and those grateful for the service of wonderful young men and women in the military in countries around the world.

Of the name of Team Rubicon, Jake Wood writes, “What's with the name? Simple. The Rubicon was a small stream that separated Gaul (France) and ancient Rome. On January 11th, Caesar crossed the Rubicon, and it marked the point of no return. “This Sunday, January 17th, our 4 man team will cross the Artibonite River, separating the Dominican Republic and Haiti, carrying crucial medicine and supplies to the people of Haiti. Once across, we will be irrevocably committed to our task.”
Our prayers go with Team Rubicon, Jesuits in Port au Prince, and the suffering people of Haiti.

Link (here)
More with video (here)

Jesuit On Terrorism

Terrorists are such effective geography teachers! Who could have located Yemen quickly without Google Earth until the Christmas Day bomb attempt on United Airlines? And who even knew of the existence of the Cabinda Enclave until the Togolese soccer team was attacked on its border?

In the Detroit attempt it was probably a faction of Al Qaeda that succeeded in boosting its terror status. In Cabinda a small separatist outfit, the Front for the Liberation of the Enclave of Cabinda, (FLEC) succeeded brilliantly in putting itself and its cause on the map. The score? Two nil to the terrorists.

Against a global backdrop of war, famine and grinding poverty that struggles to make the headlines, the incident over Detroit was a farce and Cabinda a minor event. But if you buy the definition of terrorism as an intelligently scripted 'theatre of violence', both operations were highly successful.

For an entire week the BBC kept the failed Detroit attempt on its number one news spot. There was political fallout too. It was extraordinary to see the most powerful man in the world having to keep explaining what he was going to do about men who put bombs in their underpants, even dud ones! Not a bad day's work for a small bunch of focussed fanatics.

Link (here) to Fr. Chris Chatteris, S.J. the full article at the website of The Jesuit Institute in South Africa

Fr. Mitch Pacwa, S.J. Will Be In Colorado

KPIO 1570 AM is proud to present Fr. Mitch Pacwa, S.J., who will be giving a spiritual conference titled “Discerning God’s Will” on January 30th at Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church in Northglenn, CO.

Don’t miss this opportunity to prepare for the season of Lent (Ash Wednesday is February 17, 2010!) and to hear several inspiring and informative talks by Father Mitch Pacwa.

Father Mitch will be celebrating Mass and giving a series of talks about how you can better discern God’s Will in your life.

Link (here)

Photo (here) is the Shrine of The Immaculate Heart of Mary at the parish of the same name

Tyrannicide: Rösch, Delp And Wehrle

Fr Hermann Josef Wehrle had merely heard the confession of a German cavalry officer, Major Ludwig Freiherr (Baron) von Leonrod, who was not even part of the 20th July plot to overthrow Hitler. He had declined to get involved. Baron Leonrod was nevertheless condemned to death for not revealing what he knew about the July 20th plot, which was, in any case, very little. Fr Wehrle knew even less but Baron Leonrod came to him for spiritual counsel and confession.

Fr Wehrle gave him him open spiritual counsel and told him that tyrannicide was moral if the tyrant had no legal right to be leader.

Outspoken opposition to the Nazis by individual Jesuits resulted in harsh response from government officials, including imprisonment of priests in concentration camps. The government takeover of church property, "Klostersturm", resulted in the loss of valuable properties such as that of Stimmen der Zeit, teh Jesuti newspaper, and limited the work of the Jesuits in Germany. The Jesuit provincial, Rev Fr Augustin Rösch S.J., Father Afred Delp's superior in Munich, became active in the underground resistance to Hitler.

Link (here) to the blog entitled Roman Christendom and read the full story.

Photo of German Headquarter after the assassination attempt on Adolf Hitler on July 20th, 1944

A Jesuit Map Of New France

Link (here)

Monumenta Historica Societatis Iesu

A few years ago, over lunch in an Indian restaurant near Harvard Square, I learned that one of the best examples of organizational agility was founded in 1540 through a papal bull issued by Pope Paul III. My lunch companion was Father John W. O’Malley, (pictured left) a leading historian of the Renaissance church, member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and a Jesuit priest.

O’Malley spent years researching the early decades of the Society of Jesus, often refered to as the Jesuits, poring over the Monumenta Historica Societatis Iesu, a 157 volume record of the early years of the Jesuit order including letters from the founding members, rules and directives, and quarterly reports on the state of the order. O’Malley’s research resulted in The First Jesuits, the definitive study of the first quarter century of the order, which won the American Philosophical Society’s prize for the best cultural history published that year. O’Malley’s book strips away many of the stereotypes and misconceptions that have surrounded the Jesuits over the centuries, and presents an unvarnished account of the foundation and early decades of the order.

Link (here) to Don Sull's blog at the Financial Times

The Transcript Of The St. Robert Bellermine's Inquisition Of Galileo

For Sale a vellum bound transcript of the

Jesuit Saint Robert Bellarmine's

of his Inquisition of Galileo dated 1589.
Link (here) to the eBay auction for $750.00
or (here) $3,500.00

.

1589 Jesuit Cardinal Robert Bellarmine of Galileo Inquisition

Rare & Valuable Vellum Bound Collection of Controversial Writ

This is a wonderful and rare offering of the following work written in Latin

Main author: Bellarmino, Roberto Francesco Romolo, Saint, 1542-1621.

Title details: Disputationes Roberti Bellarmini Politiani Societatis Iesu…

Published: Ingolstadii : Ex typographia Davidis Sartorii, 1589

Subject: Catholic Church

Apologetic works

Counter-Reformation

Church and state

Language: Latin

This is a wonderful volume with fantastic contents and would make a great addition to any collection. I have recently been so pleased by hearing how much my books have been delightful gifts for others. Therefore, I encourage you to think ahead…Anniversary, Birthday, Father’s Day, Mother’s Day, or any other special occasion! As a book lover there is not much I would rather receive as a gift. This is one of several such works I am listing, so be sure to check out my other listings. I have included a biography at the end of the listing for those interested. Wear: wear as seen in the photos; see photos Binding: tight and secure vellum binding Pages: complete with all 155+373+171 pages; plus indexes, preface, and such; the first 15 pages or so have some discoloration; uncertain if there is supposed to be more title pages; there are three distinct sections of the book; one section with a formal title page and 2 sections with half titles

Publisher: Ingolstadii : Ex typographia Davidis Sartorii, 1589
Unique features: rare and excellent contents; ~ 7in X 4.5in (17cm x 11.5cm)

Jesuit Response To The Crisis In Haiti

By now we are all well aware of the tragedy unfolding in Haiti. Many of you know that Brother Jim Boynton is now working in Haiti at a school in a town called Ouanaminthe which is located in the Northeast of the country. His region felt the quake and had minimal damage but the damage to the Capital Porte-au-Prince has been devastating. Brother Boynton has said that the Jesuit schools in Haiti serve the very poor and right now these families need just about everything. To help with the relief effort, the Detroit Province of the Jesuits will be sending money to the Jesuits in Haiti which will go to help the families and the schools we serve. Brother asks that we be as generous as we are able.

Send all Donations to:
The Jesuits (put "Haiti Relief" on the check)
Detroit Province of the Society of Jesus
7303 W. Seven Mile Detroit, MI 48221

Link (here)

17th Century Jesuits And Their Dealings With Witchcraft

The Jesuits of the time were anxious about the effect of the Adam Tanner, S.J. book, (Universa theologica scholastica, speculativa, practiaa ad methodum sancti Thomae) for great difficulties were likely to arise on account of the way in which Fredrich Spee von Langenfeld, S.J. had attacked judges and princes.

It is known that some of the jurists even before the publication of this work had demanded the expulsion of the order from Germany, for protecting the witches. Of the princes who were most zealous in the witch-persecution, not a few were protectors and benefactors of Jesuit colleges.

The Society had to expect their wrath if a member of the order censured them so severely. Yet the expected results did not follow and "the Society may point to his work as a full off-set for the deplorable blunders committed by Martin Anton Delrio and Gregory de Valentia." Two other Jesuits, George Scherer and Jeremias Drexelius, took the opposite side and urged the secular authorities to persecute witches. . . .

Scherer (1583) brings demoniacal possession into close connection with witchcraft, and gives an example of the exorcising of a possessed girl whose grandmother was a witch. The statements of the witch at the questioning and on the rack, are for Scherer conclusive evidence of her guilt. He advises the magistrate of Vienna to proceed against all sorceresses with suitable punishment.

This exhortation to the persecution of witches did not meet with the approval of the General of the Society, Claudius Aquaviva, who wrote to the provinces of the Society as follows:

'' Even if it is allowable to give the general advice as to the adoption of measures against poisoning which in that district is said to be widespread, and also to admonish witches, that they are in duty bound when interrogated, to name their accomplices, nevertheless the Fathers must not mix themselves in the witch-trials and must not insist on the punishment of witches; they must have nothing to do with exorcising them, to prevent them recanting their statements; for these things do not concern us."

Drexelius treats of witchcraft in a work on Almsgiving, published in 1637, in which he gives as a reason for bestowing alms the fact that it protects from witchcraft. He writes,

"who could dare accuse of error and injustice the judges, who, with fire and sword, proceed against this pest (witchcraft) ? Yet there are Christians unworthy of the name, who oppose with might and main the extirpation of this vice, lest perhaps, they say, the innocent might suffer. 0, ye enemies of the Divine honor! Does not the law of God command, 'You shall not suffer wizards to live?' And I cry out as loud as I can, at the divine bidding, to bishops, princes and kings; you shall not suffer witches to live. Extirpate this pest with fire and sword."

In the annual reports of the Jesuits there is frequent mention of trials of witches, and sorceresses and of the spiritual consolation which the Fathers administered to the victims; frequent instances are cited of how they led back into the right way women or men who, under demoniacal influence, had committed dreadful crimes; but there is not a single instance of their having brought anyone before the court, or given any encouragement to witch burning.

Link (here) to this portion contained in the book entitled, The Attitude of the Catholic Church Towards Witchcraft and the Allied Practices of Sorcery and Magic, by Sr. Antoinette Marie Pratt, A.M. of the Sisters of Notre Dame of Namur, Belgium.

Old print of the Witch Trials of Trier is found (here)