God’s life line or Salvation from Vatican II
I was born in 1953 and am a product of Catholic education from 1959 to 1975. I grew up first hand to witness the true Catholic faith slowly being ripped apart by the fruits of Vatican II. Grade School at St. Isaac Jogues in Niles Illinois we still had the old school nuns who did not mix words when it came to the faith. I remember one religion class Sister Ester was asked a question, “Sister, can a divorced man become a priest”. Sisters answer was clear, concise, and to the point. “There is no such thing as divorce!” she told him. Meat and potatoes Catholicism pure and simple.
From then it was on to Notre Dame High School in Niles, Illinois. Holy cross fathers were in control then. This was the transition period between the real Catholic church and that thing Bergoglio has going for him. On one hand we had old school priests like Fr. Buenger my Algebra teacher. They gave out report cards at Fathers club meetings so my dad usually had to do a stint standing in line at Fathers classroom to find out why my algebra grades were so horrible. Fr. Buenger was old school to nines. He taught class in his cassock and a biretta. One day one of the guys said, “Father Buenger…..Sir.” To that Father Buenger immediately interrupted him with, “DON’T CALL ME SIR, ITS A DISRESPECT TO THE PRIESTHOOD!” Again this instilled in us the real essence of Catholicism. On the other hand we had Fr. Fitzgerald fresh out of the the University of Notre Dame. He taught class in a golf shirt and dockers. In class someone asked, “Father if you did not have to say mass on Sunday would you go?” He replied with a soft spoken “no”. This pretty much way laying out the path of where I was headed.
One of the many problems of Vatican II was to attend mass on a Saturday night to fulfill your Sunday obligation. That opened the door for me, if Father “Fitz” did not want to go to mass than why should I. So on Saturday night I would go out carousing with the guys. We made a quick stop in the first Novus Ordo parish we came to just to pick up a bulletin and head right out. The bulletin was a “get out of jail free card” to try to convince mom I actually went to mass. Looking back I doubt if she believed it.
Next, college, another Catholic school, Benedictine in Atchison Kansas. Its where the place kicker Harrison Butker gave that stirring meat and potatoes Catholic commencement speech to that graduating class. I applaud them for where they are, in my days there is was just another small Catholic college trying to survive and comply with Vatican II at the same time. It afforded me to become fully apostate. I had no problems with abortion, who needs a priest for confession, I’ll just take my sins directly to God, all religions are equal etc. Same BS Bergoglio is pushing today.
In college I lost any semblance of Catholicism. In those days Kansas liquor laws allowed 3.2 beer only in bars and the legal age was 18. So Saturdays it was drinking beer and shooting pool at the college hang out the wharf, then sleep in Sunday. Mass? Whats a Mass? Just a side note. Bars closed at midnight and for some reason Eric Clapton’s Layla would always play on the jukebox at 11:55pm.
Then came parents weekend freshman year, my mom was coming so shoot I had to suffer thru mass again. That weekend was different, the monks got special permission to read a Latin mass. Not just a low mass but a full blown solemn high mass with all the bells and whistles. 3 priests in traditional vestments, an army of altar boys and the most beautiful music this side of heaven, Schuburts mass in C to this day I get goose bumps and even a tear in the eye thinking about it.
This was God’s life line. They call him the hound of heaven for a reason. For some reason unknown to me he felt pity on my poor soul.
Now a bigger question. If the church is serious about leading souls to Christ why are they so determined on destroying the traditional mass, traditional church as well for that matter. It saved me and no doubt the wider use of it if not the exclusive use of it would save many souls. Typical age demographics bear that out. The TLM largely younger people with very large families. However as Pope Paul VI (no saint to me) said, the smoke of Satan has entered the sanctuary.