The Reign of Mary, Issue No. 196, Spring 2025

 
Letter from the Editor
by Rev. Fr. Benedict Hughes, CMRI

The Popes and the Liturgy
by Rev. Fr. Benedict Hughes, CMRI
Our most fundamental duty is to give worship to our Creator. Not only do we as individuals owe adoration to God, we also have a collective duty as members of society to worship the Creator and Preserver of the human race. It is through their neglect of this duty that men bring down upon themselves the just wrath of God, who deserves all our love and obedience.
It seems — to this author at least — that modernism, that mortal cancer that undermined the faith in the 20th century and brought about the great apostasy, beginning with the Second Vatican Council, showed itself especially in the areas of scriptural exegesis and the liturgy. In these two areas, perhaps more than others, modernism was hard at work. As faithful shepherds, the sovereign pontiffs sought to defeat their efforts..

St. Hilary of Poitiers: The Athanasius of the West
by Rev. Mr. Anthony Alley
Christians of today possess a knowledge of the Faith that is hitherto unparalleled. Through the centuries, the Church has produced countless saints who, enlightened by their close union with God and constant labor, have made Catholic doctrine exceedingly clear. This brings to mind what St. Paul said about the Incarnation. Christ’s coming truly brought the world into “the fullness of time” and with it was brought a fullness of Truth. Indeed, as the Catholic Church and her saints have advanced in their understanding of Christ’s teaching, the “fullness” only seems to become fuller with the passing years. This is not strange. Naturally, ages would have to pass for man to fathom the profundity of Divine truth. And yet, he has hardly scratched the surface....
 

Excommunicated! The Life and Thoughts of Rev. Fr. Joaquin Sáenz
Part X: Excommunication
by Antonio Rius Facius, Translated by Rev. Fr. Ephrem Cordova, CMRI
Don Joaquín was not calm and indolent after seeing his book in print. The edition spread quickly, and it was almost sold out before the publicity flow that brought the decree of excommunication broke out. Without taking a break, Father Sáenz undertook the writing of a new work with the title Schism or Faith? But given the reprisals received when La Nueva Iglesia Montiniana (The New Montinian Church) appeared, he added the subtitle: “Why Did They Excommunicate Me?”... He begins by referring to the attacks that have appeared in the press, and goes back to mentioning the changes, the theological aberrations of the new economy of the Gospel. He speaks of the last Synod in Rome and its implications for the life of the Church and of society.

Who Came Up with the Idea that Christ’s Church ‘Subsists in’ the Catholic Church, as Vatican II Teaches?
Reprinted with permission from NovusOrdoWatch.org
Many readers of this blog will be familiar with the controversy concerning the teaching of the Second Vatican Council (1962-65) that the Church founded by Jesus Christ “subsists in” (Latin: subsistit in) the Roman Catholic Church, as taught in its 1964 dogmatic constitution on the Church, as follows: "This Church constituted and organized in the world as a society, subsists in the Catholic Church, which is governed by the successor of Peter and by the bishops in communion with him, although many elements of sanctification and of truth are found outside of its visible structure. These elements, as gifts belonging to the Church of Christ, are forces impelling toward catholic unity."...

Modesty, Our Guardian in Life
by Rev. Fr. Joseph Appelhanz
We are about to begin the summer months. The devil is already deploying one of his greatest weapons – immodest dress. Regarding immodesty, Pope Pius XII said on the occasion of the canonization of St. Maria Goretti: “During the past 50 years, coupled with what was often a weak reaction on the part of decent people, there has been a conspiracy of evil practices, propagating themselves in books and illustrations, in theaters and radio programs, in styles and clubs and on the beaches, trying to work their way into the heart of the family and society, and doing their worst damage among the youth, even among those of the tenderest years, in whom the possession of virtue is a natural inheritance.”...

American Heroes of the Faith: The Martyrs of the 20th Century
by Rev. Fr. Benedict Hughes, CMRI
In our last installment we covered the American Foreign Mission Society, commonly known as Maryknoll. The foundation of Maryknoll was part of a broader effort on the part of the Church in the United States to promote the Faith in mission territories. The missionary spirit has always been a part of Catholic practice, ever since the age of the apostles, who were commissioned by Jesus Christ to spread the Gospel to “every creature.” At the same time, this zeal in spreading the true faith in foreign lands has inevitably led to martyrdom for many missionaries, including priests and religious from the United States of America....

Short Sermon on the Blessed Virgin Mary
by St. Bernard of Clairvaux
What is it that shines star-like in the generation of Mary? Clearly, she was born of a kingly line; she was of the seed of Abraham, a descendant of the family of David. Should this seem to be too little, add to this fact another. She is known to be God’s gift to that particular house for its holiness; that she had been heaven-promised long before her fathers were born; foreshadowed by mystic figures; foretold by the words of the prophets. She had been symbolized by the priestly rod which blossomed without root, by Gideon’s fleece moist in the midst of the dry threshing floor; by the Eastern gate in the vision of Ezechiel, which had never swung open to anyone...

World Watch:
DOJ Investigating New Anti-Catholic Washington State Law
Catholic Group Calls Out Apple TV for Sacrilegious TV Show
Remains of St. Teresa Found “Perfectly Preserved”
FBI’s Surveillance of Traditional Catholics More Widespread Than Previously Reported
President Honors Pentecost as Birthday of the Church
Lone Survivor of Air India Crash Tells His Tale
Statues of Jesus and Mary Desecrated in Texas
Company Displays Massive Sacred Heart Flag
Vatican Dealing with Another Abuse Scandal