Archbishop Dolan refers to God as "him", "her" or "whatever you want"

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You know, perhaps you all can comment, but recently I was actually at a Novus Ordo mass, and the woman behind me wouldn’t say “He” or “His” for any of the prayers/responds, even when the priest was saying so, but instead she spoke only the word “God” over what the others were saying.
This is a very important point you are making. Radical feminists will not say He.
This is a movement within the Church that has led to a great deal of confusion and that is why
vocabulary is so important.
What is up with that? Is that another practice that you all see commonly? My parish is FSSP, so were are certainly not standing!

Have others here seen this? Perhaps I should start another thread…
I have not seen this personally but I have heard about it. It was proposed to me as a way of protesting a Catholic school closing. We were told to stand reverently during the Consecration as a means of protesting the pastor’s decisions. Thank God, we were Catholic enough not to do this. One cannot stand reverently during the Consecration- except in extreme circumstances where there may not be enough room to kneel - and of course excepting those who cannot kneel for medical reasons.
 
Only Jesus Christ had a sex because He became man. God is pure spirit and as such is of no sex. Calling him Father is a convention. God is as much a mother as a father.

You are presuming that those who attend Novus Ordo Masses go to various parishes to do so and can answer your question. Do folks who attend Tridentine Masses go to enough parishes to note how different parishioners worship? No, in either case.

You are being smug about this. Either Mass is valid; you take your choice. Here in North Little Rock, one parish offers both Masses, the Tridentine being offered by the FSSP. Though I was raised in the older Mass, I personally prefer the Novus Ordo, though I occasionally attend the former.
I’m quite sorry and perplexed that you interpreted my comments as being either presumptuous or smug, because I did not intend them to be either. I made no comments on the validity of either Mass, and nor did I presume anything about people “going to various parishes.” I’m not ever sure how you were able to extrapolate that idea from what I wrote, as I was simply asking what the experience is of those people reading who do indeed attend NO Masses. Nowhere in anything that I wrote did I suggest–or as you claim, “presume”–that people would be more or less likely to “go to various parishes” or anything along those lines. I was simply asking a question as to the observations of other’s concerning what is happening at NO Masses regarding standing during the consecration and people saying “God” instead of “He.” What’s wrong with asking that? Having seen this only recently, I admittedly do not have the knowledge to determine its frequency or commonality, hence, I defer to the experience of others on this board, which I requested through the addition of their comments.

Furthermore, because a Mass is valid does not mean that abuses cannot occur: there are plenty of ways abuses can happen in either form of the Mass. This is what I am asking about, but apparently you are not getting my message, which is quite alright. But please don’t accuse me of being “smug” and presumptuous, because either is unwarranted.

Finally, as for my first comment which you quoted, I did not mention anything about sex or gender, I simply stated Catholic dogma that God is the Holy Trinity, and that the proper English pronoun for “Father” or “Son” is “He,” not “She” and not “It.” I highly doubt that you make the Sign of the Cross as “In the name of Mother and of the Son…”, or that your priest opens the Mass with such a phrase. It is a matter of fact that Baptisms are only valid when done in a certain form, and that form in “Father” and “Son” (and Holy Ghost), not “Mother” and “Son.” So, you obviously must agree with this simple observation on consistency. Obviously, God is beyond the categorizations of His creatures, because He is the Creator. But we are the Creatures, and God Himself told us to call Him “Father,” so in obedience, we shall. Furthermore worth nothing, we Catholics use the title “Mother” generally to refer to our Lady (“Mother of God”), or the Church (“Holy Mother Church”). It is not only a matter of “convention,” as you say, but a matter of Tradition (particularly as I mentioned in regard to the form of Sacraments).

You must have gotten up on the wrong side of the bed or something today, because you’ve misinterpreted each of the quotes of mine to which you’ve replied. Either that, or I was unclear. But that’s okay either way, as I probably should have started another thread on the topic and perhaps I will now. 🙂
 
I have not seen this personally but I have heard about it. It was proposed to me as a way of protesting a Catholic school closing. We were told to stand reverently during the Consecration as a means of protesting the pastor’s decisions. Thank God, we were Catholic enough not to do this. One cannot stand reverently during the Consecration- except in extreme circumstances where there may not be enough room to kneel - and of course excepting those who cannot kneel for medical reasons.
Wow! That is very interesting, Truism. I think I will start another thread, if possible, to discuss this. That is just horrible that people would use the consecrations as a moment to protest!
 
👍
I’m quite sorry and perplexed that you interpreted my comments as being either presumptuous or smug, because I did not intend them to be either. I made no comments on the validity of either Mass, and nor did I presume anything about people “going to various parishes.” I’m not ever sure how you were able to extrapolate that idea from what I wrote, as I was simply asking what the experience is of those people reading who do indeed attend NO Masses. Nowhere in anything that I wrote did I suggest–or as you claim, “presume”–that people would be more or less likely to “go to various parishes” or anything along those lines. I was simply asking a question as to the observations of other’s concerning what is happening at NO Masses regarding standing during the consecration and people saying “God” instead of “He.” What’s wrong with asking that? Having seen this only recently, I admittedly do not have the knowledge to determine its frequency or commonality, hence, I defer to the experience of others on this board, which I requested through the addition of their comments.

Furthermore, because a Mass is valid does not mean that abuses cannot occur: there are plenty of ways abuses can happen in either form of the Mass. This is what I am asking about, but apparently you are not getting my message, which is quite alright. But please don’t accuse me of being “smug” and presumptuous, because either is unwarranted.

Finally, as for my first comment which you quoted, I did not mention anything about sex or gender, I simply stated Catholic dogma that God is the Holy Trinity, and that the proper English pronoun for “Father” or “Son” is “He,” not “She” and not “It.” I highly doubt that you make the Sign of the Cross as “In the name of Mother and of the Son…”, or that your priest opens the Mass with such a phrase. It is a matter of fact that Baptisms are only valid when done in a certain form, and that form in “Father” and “Son” (and Holy Ghost), not “Mother” and “Son.” So, you obviously must agree with this simple observation on consistency. Obviously, God is beyond the categorizations of His creatures, because He is the Creator. But we are the Creatures, and God Himself told us to call Him “Father,” so in obedience, we shall. Furthermore worth nothing, we Catholics use the title “Mother” generally to refer to our Lady (“Mother of God”), or the Church (“Holy Mother Church”). It is not only a matter of “convention,” as you say, but a matter of Tradition (particularly as I mentioned in regard to the form of Sacraments).

You must have gotten up on the wrong side of the bed or something today, because you’ve misinterpreted each of the quotes of mine to which you’ve replied. Either that, or I was unclear. But that’s okay either way, as I probably should have started another thread on the topic and perhaps I will now. 🙂
 
Yes, as I said, and as the Church teaches, Christ is both God and man.

What the Church is saying is that God transcends humanity. God is not male or female. God is pure spirit. We should not make God in our image. God transcends our image. From the Catechism:
370 In no way is God in man’s image. He is neither man nor woman. God is pure spirit in which there is no place for the difference between the sexes. But the respective “perfections” of man and woman reflect something of the infinite perfection of God: those of a mother and those of a father and husband.

In any case, what the good Bishop said was definately in line with Church teaching about the nature of God. And what has been the Church teaching for a very, very, very long time.
Unfortunately, the “whatever you want” isn’t part of Catholic teaching…and I think it is this kind of statement that makes people scratch their heads. Catholic bishops shouldn’t be making it seem as if it’s okay to call God whatever you want. I sense that this statement is the result of false ecumenism. Then again, our Pope is making it seem its okay to use condoms these days. When does this stop?
 
Silly question time. Did anyone write to the Archbishop (more than likely his office) and ask about this?
 
His office wasd called numerous times. No reply was given. The same was true with the St. Francis Xavier fiasco.
 
Unfortunately, the “whatever you want” isn’t part of Catholic teaching…and I think it is this kind of statement that makes people scratch their heads. Catholic bishops shouldn’t be making it seem as if it’s okay to call God whatever you want. I sense that this statement is the result of false ecumenism. Then again, our Pope is making it seem its okay to use condoms these days. When does this stop?
Abp Dolan a false ecumenist? Bushwah.

I would follow the Archbishop and the Pope over ANY anonymous poster on this Forum. Sorry.
 
ThOne cannot stand reverently during the Consecration- except in extreme circumstances where there may not be enough room to kneel - and of course excepting those who cannot kneel for medical reasons.
This point has nothing to do with the Archbishop, but for the sake of avoiding scandalizing other posters who may not know, it’s important to clarify this.

Standing during the Eucharistic Prayer is not the norm in the Roman Rite, except from some religious orders of men that have never knelt. When kneeling was introduced, it did not apply to them. They stood or sat. Standing was more common. Until the Council of Trent, the mass, in the Roman Church, did not have uniform rubrics. There were many postures. Rubrics resulted from the Council. But they only bound the secular clergy and the laity only in the Roman Church. The other Catholic Churches were allowed to use their own customs. Some do stand during the anaphora. Religious orders of men that had standing were allowed to keep that custom. The laity that visits them are given the choice of standing. The Post-Vatican II religious communities are bound to kneeling, because they are not “grandfathered” by antiquity. They must follow the GIRM and so must all communities that did not have standing in their customs.

To say that it is wrong or less Catholic to stand is incorrect and offensive to those who have stood for centuries. It is more appropriate to say that it is out of compliance with the GIRM if the mass is a parish mass for Roman Catholic laymen. Granted, this is a very large group. Nevertheless, it is not the entire Church.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF 🙂
 
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