Blog Mirror: Uglier Than Sin

Uglier Than Sin

Court declines to lift restrictions on crowds at church services (UPDATED)

Court declines to lift restrictions on crowds at church services (UPDATED)

Our Redeemer Lutheran Church, Glenrock Wyoming

This photograph is a side view of Our Redeemer Lutheran Church in Glenrock, Wyoming.  This Missouri Synod Lutheran Church is obviously of modern architecture but I don't know its date.

Lex Anteinternet: Pandemic

Lex Anteinternet: Pandemic: May 23, 2020


This is Memorial Day weekend, generally an at least somewhat somber event, and this year particularly so.  We start with this news item from This Day In Wyoming's History, for yesterday, May 22, 2020.

2020  Governor Gordon orders flag's at half staff until Sunday, May 24, in honor of the victims of the Coronavirus.  The proclamation read:

Governor orders flags be flown at half staff statewide until May 24

in honor of the victims of the novel coronavirus pandemic

CHEYENNE, Wyo. - Governor Mark Gordon, pursuant to President Donald Trump's Proclamation, has ordered both the U.S. and State of Wyoming flags be flown at half-staff statewide until sunset on Sunday, May 24, 2020 in honor of the victims of the novel coronavirus pandemic.
The Presidential Proclamation follows: 

Our Nation mourns for every life lost to the coronavirus pandemic, and we share in the suffering of all those who endured pain and illness from the outbreak. Through our grief, America stands steadfast and united against the invisible enemy. May God be with the victims of this pandemic and bring aid and comfort to their families and friends. As a mark of solemn respect for the victims of the coronavirus pandemic, by the authority vested in me as President of the United States by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, I hereby order that the flag of the United States shall be flown at half-staff at the White House and upon all public buildings and grounds, at all military posts and naval stations, and on all naval vessels of the Federal Government in the District of Columbia and throughout the United States and its Territories and possessions until sunset, May 24, 2020. I also direct that the flag shall be flown at half-staff for the same length of time at all United States embassies, legations, consular offices, and other facilities abroad, including all military facilities and naval vessels and stations.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-first day of May, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred forty-fourth.


DONALD J. TRUMP

On a related note, the Wyoming Oregon Trail Veterans Cemetery in Evansville, Wyoming, cancelled its traditional Memorial Day event due to the desire to avoid a large crowd and the impossibility of complying with current crowd restrictions.

Cemetery buildings of the Wyoming Oregon Trail Veterans Cemetery.

In the typical American fashion, Memorial Day is also a three day weekend and the traditional beginning of summer for Americans.  It usually features picknics and gatherings.  This year, the public ones have been closed.

Also notable, of course, its nature means its associated with religious services of various kinds. At this point a lot of churches are opening up in disregard of the present orders, although others with large structures are not fully open yet. In any event, President Trump entered the fray on this yesterday and classified churches as "essential" entities and urged Governors to open them back up, threatening to open them by Presidential fiat if they fail, although its doubtful that he has that power.

Lex Anteinternet: May 16, 1920. The Canonization of Joan d'Arc

Lex Anteinternet: May 16, 1920. The Canonization of Joan d'Arc:

May 16, 1920. The Canonization of Joan d'Arc

A doodle of Joan d'Arc by Clément de Fauquembergue on the margin of the protocol of the Parliament of Paris from May 10, 1429, two years prior to her death.  Clément de Fauquembergue was the parliamentary registrar and the news of the her victory at Orleans had just reached Paris.  The doodle is the only know illustration of her done during her lifetime.

On this day in 1920, Pope Benedict XV canonized Joan d'Arc, the 15th Century peasant girl who lead French forces in a revived effort to recapture lost grounds from the English after hearing voices commanding her to act for the French crown.  She ultimately paid for her efforts with her life, being burned at the stake after being falsely convicted of heresy, a charge now universally regarded as absurd and which was itself reversed in 1456.

Even no less of figure as Winston Churchill regarded Joan as a saint.  That the illiterate farm girl was able to gain access first to the French crown and then the army in the field commander was and is proof of her divine mission. With the army, she offered advice to its noble commanders which was frequently taken and French fortunes against the English in fact reversed and their army started to do remarkably well.

She is believed to have been born in 1412 in a region of Lorraine that retained loyalty to the French crown during the Hundred Years War, a contest between the Plantagenets, the Norman rulers of England, and the House of Valois, the rulers of France, over who should rule France. The house she grew up in and the village church there still stand.  As those who have ready Henry V know, the English long maintained that they should rule both kingdoms and they often regarded France as more important than in England.  That contest commenced in 1337 and featured a long running series of campaigns.  Trouble in the French royal family had been taken advantage of by Henry V who had been able to greatly expand the amount of English controlled territory in the 1415 to 1417 period.  By 1429, when Joan commenced her mission, half of France was controlled directly by England or by French duchies that were loyal to England.

The English commenced a a siege of the FRench city of Orleans in 1428, a town that was a holdout in its region for the French king, Charles VII.

Joan began to have visions in 1425, at which time she was 13 years old.  She identified the first figures she saw as St. Michael, St. Catherine and St. Margaret, who told her to drive the English out of France and take the Dauphin to Reims for his consecration.  At age 16 she made demands upon a relative to take her to see the crown which were received with scorn.  Nonetheless she was taken to Vaucouleurs where she demanded an armed escort to the royal court, which was denied. Returning the following year, she secured the support of two soldiers and their urgings and support she was conducted to the court after she reported the results of a distant battle she had not been at two days prior to messengers arriving to report it.  She as then escorted to the court disguised as a male soldier as it involved crossing hostile Burgundian territory.  At that time she was 17 years old and Charles VII 26.

She secured permission to travel with the army, which was granted.  Everything she used in the mission was donated to her, including the banner that she used.  She never used any weapons in battle but rode under her banner. She did, however, gain access to councils of war and was listened to. As noted, the fortunes of the French reversed in this period.  The siege of Orleans was broken by the French and Reims taken. The Dauphin was crowned as a result in Reims.

After a brief truce between the English and the French she was captured in battle in 1430 and put on trial for heresy.  Heresy being a religious offense, she was tried by English and Burgundian clerics, but the English officers oversaw the trial.  The trial was irregular and conducted without religious authority and without the individual commissioned to find evidence against her being able to find any.  Her conviction hinged on her having worn male clothing when under escort across hostile Burgundian soil.  She was convicted by this tribunal of heresy and burned at the stake in May 31, 1431.  Her executioner later greatly feared that his service in this role would result in his damnation.

In spite of her death, the dramatic reversal in French fortunes continued on and by 1450 the English had been pushed off the continent.  In fact, French borders surpassed their current ones, as France's resulting borders included what is now part of Belgium, a not surprising result given that Belgium is a multiethnic state.

A regular canonical trial to examine the first one's propriety was convened in 1455 and reversed the conviction in 1456.

She's been a popular figure ever since her death and in any age the nature of her mission is hard to deny.  Illiterate and born in a region separated from the retreating French royal lands, she nonetheless managed to convince the French crown and the chivalric leaders of its army that she had a divine mission, something that was aided by her knowledge of things that she could not have known but for her commission.  Under her, in spite of the fact that she was a teenage girl with no experience in military matters, French military fortunes permanently reversed.

It's no doubt her youth and gender that have caused her popularity to remain outside of France, but she is a saint whose nature should cause moderns to pause.

MKTH photograph of the statue of St. Joan d'Arc in Notre Dame de Paris.

She was not, as some no doubt imagine her, as some sort of proto feminist teenage leader in an age of male patrimony and would not have seen things that way.  She was singularly devout and saw her mission as a religious one.  She was known to be opposed to the heresies of her era and Islam. She was intensely Catholic and caused the army she lead to be adherent to the faith.  The war for control of France changed from a contest between two royal families to a war with religious overtones and even, as viewed from a modern eye, as one involving nationalism in an early form.  Her modern fans would do well to take note of her mission and the fact that its impossible to imagine it without crediting the divine voices that she attributed it to.

And indeed, her mission did have impacts on the religious map of Europe in ways that would not be possible to appreciate at the time of her execution at age 19 in May, 1430.  England was pushed off the continent in 1450 by which time Henry VI was king. That same year he was forced to put down a rebellion against the crown in England.  In 1533, a mere 83 years later during a period of time in which events often moved slowly, King Henry VIII would take the formerly devout England away from the Church and marry his pregnant mistress Anne Boleyn, bringing the Reformation to England in a personal effort to generate a male successor through a fertile female. The following acts would result in crown licensed theft of church property, murder and decades of strife and war.  While France would fall to secularism in 1790, its position up until that time remained stalwart.

Communion and the State. Wyoming dictates how the faithful will receive and what that reveals about what people understand and don't understand.

St. Mary's Cathedral in Cheyenne, Wyoming.

We've been unusually active here in an unusual way, for this blog, since the COVID 19 Pandemic struck.  The reason is obvious.  Churches, like every other institution, have been greatly impacted by the Pandemic.

Well, not like every other institution.  While its seemingly easy for some to forget, including civil authorities, a church isn't like a restaurant or a bar or something, and particularly depending upon a person's faith, the closure of religious services, and services mean more than just a Sunday gathering, can not only be problematic, but traumatic, and even dire, in their consequences.

This is particularly so for the Apostolic Churches, those being, for those who might not be familiar with the term, the Catholic and Orthodox Churches.  The Apostolic Churches have a relationship with their clergy that Protestant Christians do not.  Members of the Apostolic faiths depending upon the clergy for administration of the sacraments.  Nobody but an ordained cleric, and more specifically in terms of the Apostolic faiths, a cleric who can trace his ordination through a Bishop who was one of the Apostles, can deliver the sacraments.  We've gone into this elsewhere and will forgo doing so here, but we'd note that the closure of Catholic and Orthodox Churches during the pandemic is, therefore, uniquely problematic for Apostolic Christians.

Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church, Casper Wyoming.

Those closures are not, contrary to what has been repeatedly claimed during this crisis, fully unparallelled.  Churches were in fact closed during the 1918-1919 Influenza Pandemic, although I do not know for how long.  A review of period newspapers demonstrates this to be the case.  Therefore, those numerous, mostly heavily Traditional, voices that claim "Catholics have never been denied the sacraments" aren't fully correct when they mean that church doors have not been closed due to disease before.  Moreover, while I haven't researched it, I'm fairly confident, just from having run across references here and there, that churches of all types have been closed before due to local pandemics.  Indeed, something we've forgotten, as we always view our own times as fully analogous to the past, is that epidemics were once quite common.

While I don't know the situation in the Orthodox Churches, closures have been controversial, as noted, in some Catholic quarters and have resulted in petitions to Bishops to open things back up. At least for the most part those petitions have not resulted in changes, but churches are now actually beginning to open up.  Some Protestant churches that closed early on have actually reopened in slight defiance, as they're usually only a little bit ahead of changes in local orders, to state quarantine commands.  I think I've read of one Catholic one doing so, and I saw a reference, but didn't follow up on it, to at least one SSPX chapel doing so, although as Catholics know or should know the relationship between the SSPX and the Church is problematic.  At least one diocese in New Mexico did reopen public Masses, and while there was concern, it was not in defiance of a closure order.

Which brings us to Wyoming, which is providing an interesting example of how things may develop and how that could be really odd, if not problematic, for Catholics and Orthodox Christians.

The Catholic and Orthodox Churches recognize seven sacraments, those being baptism, Communion (receiving the Holy Eucharist), confirmation, reconciliation (confession of sins), anointing of the sick, marriage and holy orders. 

The Seven Sacraments, altarpiece, 1450.  Sacraments are depicted being administered, from left to right, are baptism, confirmation, confession, Communion (center panel), holy orders, marriage and anointing of the sick.

The way the sacraments are administered and received is fairly poorly understood by non Catholics as well as Catholics.  Baptism, for example, is a sacrament which the Catholic Church recognizes can be conferred by non Catholics upon non Catholics and which remains perfectly valid.*  A Christian baptized in another church is never "rebaptized" if the person later becomes Catholic and even laymen can validly baptize a person although the baptism is illicit unless done in a dire emergency.

Somewhat similarly, it requires a priest to perform a valid marriage if one of the parties being married is a Catholic, but due to Canon Law, not due to the nature of marriage. The Church didn't always routinely witness marriages but came to do so to protect the parties, particularly the female party.  Now all marriages involving Catholics, with some exceptions, must be performed by a priest, but not all marriages are sacramental, as both parties must be baptized Christians in order for that to occur.

Confirmation in the Latin Rite of the Catholic Church is normally performed by a Bishop, but for the Orthodox and the Eastern Rite its normally administered contemporaneously at baptism by the priest.  Confessions can only be heard by a priest.  Anointing of the sick can likewise only be done by a priest.  Holy Orders, i.e., ordaining of priests and deacons, can only be done by Bishops.

And consecration of the Eucharist can only be done by a priest in the Apostolic Churches.  The same position is taken by those churches closely based on the Apostolic Churches, such as the churches in the Anglican Communion and the Lutheran Church.

Communion in the desert during World War Two. This is likely an Anglican priest, give as these are British soldiers.

All of these churches have a very distinct view of what the Eucharist is, and they believe it is the real body and blood of Christ, not a symbol. They don't all agree on what exactly the nature of Host is, as there's at least a difference in understanding between the Apostolic Churches and the Lutheran Church, and determining what various churches in the Anglican Communion believe is a bit difficult at times, but by and large they all agree that only a priest or pastor can consecrate a Host.

What various Protestant dominions, outside the ones we just mentioned, believe about their communions, and most of them have one, varies, but quite a few simply view it as a symbol.  Many of these have communion only occasionally as a result, with a much different understanding of what is occuring. And, for that matter, the Apostolic Churches and those closely based on it would regard those other churches as unable to validly consecrate a Host in any event, and therefore likewise agree that in those churches, as opposed to in their church, it is a symbol.

Depiction of a Protestant Communion.

Which brings us to the recent order by the Governor of the State of Wyoming.

Wyoming is opening up its churches, with restrictions.  Those provisions are here:

Those are, of course, all the provisions.  The one that brings in our post here is 4(g), which states:

Communion shall be served in individual containers.

The really remarkable thing here is that a state order purports to direct how Communion will be received. 

I'm not a Canon Lawyer, but this provision strikes me as impossible for the Apostolic Churches to comply with.

Indeed, as should be evident by the discussion set out above, Communion, while it happens in every Mass, is a major matter for Apostolic Churches.  Apostolic Churches that aren't in communion with each other have rules about the reception of Communion by members of the other churches.  I.e., Catholic Churches will allow Orthodox Christians to receive Communion in a Catholic Church, but in most places its discouraged so as to not offend the Orthodox. The Orthodox, in contrast, are very reluctant to allow Catholics to receive Communion in their churches and in some cases simply won't allow it.  Neither the Catholic Churches or the Orthodox will allow those outside of the Catholic and Orthodox churches to receive Communion except under specific circumstances.  

Recipients of Communion must not be bearing unforgiven mortal sins.  

At least Catholics are obligated to receive Communion at least once a year, although most receive it much more frequently than that, and some daily.  Most adherent Orthodox are like most Catholics and receive it weekly.

The method of reception of the Holy Eucharist is very prescribed and actually subject to debate among Catholics.  For most of recent history Latin Rite Catholics, and those Protestants whose faiths are closely based on the Latin Rite, received Communion on the tongue, delivered by the priest.  Up until the 1960s, this usually meant that they received it kneeling at an alter rail with a Communion Plate held below the receiving person to catch the consecrated Host if it was dropped.  Following Vatican II, this was changed as alter rails came out of many churches, a sad development in that many were beautiful works of art, and the communicants then received on the tongue by going up to the priest, receiving standing as a rule.  Starting at some time in the 70s or 80s, actually as an act of odd disobedience to the rubics, Catholics in many places, including the United States, started receiving in the hand, which has become a matter or heated Trad debate.  It is perfectly valid, and as its defenders will note, was the method often used in the early Church, something Trads typically ignore.

Also in the 80s the Latin Rite in North America reintroduced the reception by the parishioners of the consecrated wine, the Precious Blood, although a Catholic is not obligated to receive both forms.  Most do.

In the Eastern Rite and the Orthodox the consecrated bread and wine are mixed and then served, with a tiny spoon that is turned to provide the reception, on the communicants tongue.

There's no earthly way to do this with individual containers.

Indeed, individual containers will strike members of Apostolic Churches as the oddest thought.  It even suggest that the reception  might be taken home, which the Apostolic Churches strictly forbid except in rare specific circumstances.  

So effectively, the Governor of Wyoming has forbid Communion.

I don't know what religion Governor Gordon is.  He want to an Episcopal boarding school while young, but that may mean less than it at first seems. The assumption that a person going to a denomination's school means they are members is a common one, but its never a completely safe assumption.  He and his first wife were married in a Congregationalist Church, which is a church with substantially different theology than the Episcopal Church.  I don't know if that means that he became a member of that church, or if he's a non defined Protestant, something that's very common these days, or if he was and remains an Episcopalian.  

If he is an Episcopalian, his order certainly creates a problem for the traditional branch of his co-religious.  Maybe that doesn't matter to Gordon, who might figure that safety first dictates this approach.  Or maybe he doesn't grasp the religious nature of the topic the way that Catholics and Orthodox will.  Or maybe he's just signing an order, one of a seemingly endless series these days, that come across his desk addressing a lot of topics in a time of crisis.

In any event, it presents an interesting example of how various Christians don't understand each others faiths, and beyond that, it makes Communion impossible for a body of Christians that takes its Sunday obligation extremely seriously.

Church, Mills Wyoming

This is a church Mills Wyoming.  Other than that it's a church, I'm afraid that I don't know anything else about it.

College Heights Baptist Church/Christ Reformed Church, Casper Wyoming

I'll admit to a lot of confusion on this one regarding what this church currently is.

The church was built as College Heights Baptist Church in 1963, at which time it would have been on the edge of Casper.  Signs on the church still identify it as College Heights Baptist, but signs leading up to it point people towards the large old elementary school nearby, which College Heights bought a decade or more ago. The same signs indicate that this church is now Christ Reformed Church.

Reading between the lines and reading the signs, what I think I take from that, although I'm frankly not certain, is that College Heights Baptist has moved into the very large school and uses it for everything and it is now letting Christ Reformed occupy its old church.  Having said that, I'm not really sure.  Christ Reformed is a member of the branch of the Protestant "Reformed" churches of which the Dutch Reformed are best known in the United States.

Blog Mirror. Catholic Stuff You Should Know: The Sacrifice of the Mass.

An interesting podcast episode of the always interesting Catholic Stuff You Should Know, related to the Coronavirus Pandemic:

THE SACRIFICE OF THE MASS

Diocese of Cheyenne partial opening up.

Lex Anteinternet: Pandemic:May 5, 2020

I noted the item from the Catholic Diocese of Cheyenne above, here's its actual letter:

Statement from Bishop Steven Biegler, Roman Catholic Diocese of Cheyenne 

These past weeks since COVID-19 descended upon us have been difficult, and the suspension of public Masses has been deeply painful. As Governor Gordon lifts restrictions on some businesses, it is natural for Catholics to have a sense of hope that we can return to a somewhat normal parish life. Nonetheless, the need to protect the elderly and those with underlying conditions continues to be a high priority. Keeping in mind that numerous parishioners, as well as many priests, are at-risk for serious health complications if they contracted COVID-19, the Diocese of Cheyenne will continue to suspend public Masses.  

Beginning May 1, the Sacrament of Reconciliation will be celebrated by appointment using six feet of distance and masks, and the Anointing of the Sick will be celebrated for serious illness or pending surgery.  

The Diocese of Cheyenne is making tentative plans to resume public Masses, Baptisms, Matrimony and funerals for a maximum of ten (10) people on May 15, then on June 1 to expand participation based on the size of the church, while observing six feet of distance between individuals or households. These plans are subject to change.  

Re-opening the churches for public Masses will happen in phases, with health guidelines to follow for the protection of the common good and to minimize the continued spread of COVID-19. The obligatory guidelines include limited attendance, physical distancing and wearing masks. Because there still is a health risk for those who attend any public gathering, the general dispensation from the Sunday obligation will remain in effect.  

As we move forward, we will continue to follow state guidelines and adjust as needed. While we move through incremental steps through the three phases of reopening, I ask for your patience and prayers. Peace in Christ,

3rd Sunday of Easter April 26th, 2020. Cathedral of St. Mary, Cheyenne, Wyoming

Third Sunday of Easter Sunday Mass - 4.26.2020 - St. Patrick's Catholic Church, Casper Wyoming.

Divine Liturgy of St. Thomas 4/26/2020. Holy Apostles Orthodox Church, Cheyenne Wyoming.

Second Sunday of Easter Sunday Mass - 4.19.2020 - St. Patrick's Catholic Church, Casper Wyoming.

Holy Apostles Orthodox Church, Cheyenne Wyoming: Resurrection Matins and Liturgy

Lex Anteinternet: Easter 2020

Lex Anteinternet: Easter 2020:

Easter 2020

For those on the Gregorian Liturgical Calendar, which is most of the world outside of the Orthodox Churches that retain the "Old Calendar", and in various places not all of them do, this is Easter Sunday for 2020.  For those on the Old Calendar, next Sunday, April 19, is Easter.

This is a sad and strange Easter for Christians.  Many will not attend services. Some will watch them on television or make other observances, but it just isn't the same in all sorts of ways.



This is because, of course, of the Coronavirus Pandemic.



Maybe this gives people time to pause and think a bit.  Quite a few people who know that Easter means something give it no more attention than going to church once a year, or maybe twice if they also observe Christmas, and otherwise get tied up in a secular celebration involving a big meal and the like.



Easter is a feast, but it's a feast because of what it is, not what it is because of a feast.  In a season, now, of isolation, perhaps that's more apparent.

Easter Sunday Mass - 4.12.2020 - St. Patrick's Catholic Church

Easter Vigil 2020

Easter Vigil, April 11, 2020.

Good Friday

St Patrick's Catholic Church Live Stream

Lex Anteinternet: Pandemic. Governor Gordon proclaims April 10 Day of Prayer

Lex Anteinternet: Pandemic: Governor Gordon proclaims April 10 Day of Prayer  

CHEYENNE, Wyo. – Governor Mark Gordon will sign a proclamation tomorrow declaring Friday, April 10, 2020 a Day of Prayer in Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic. The day of prayer is cross-denominational with the intent to unify people of many faiths during the crisis. 

“Across all faiths and beliefs, we can all come together at this time of year to find a sense of peace and purpose,” Governor Gordon said. “I invite our leaders and citizens to pray that the present pandemic may be controlled, caregivers protected, our soldiers and their families watched over, the economy strengthened and life normalized.” 

April 10 is Good Friday and is observed by many denominations as a day of prayer and fasting. Joining the Governor in this effort is the National Association of Evangelicals and the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. People of all faiths are welcome to participate. 

St Patrick's Catholic Church Live Stream

HolyThursday 2020. Holy Thursday. Our Lady of Fatima, Casper Wyoming

April 9 Refleccion en Espanol. St. Anthony's Catholic Church, Casper Wyoming

Mountain View Baptist Church, Mills Wyoming

This is the Mountain View Baptist Church in Mills, Wyoming.

The Baptist denomination is the largest single Protestant denomination in the United States and is particularly well represented in the American South. As this recent series of photographs shows, however, its well represented in the West as well.

Latter Day Saints, West Casper Wyoming

This LDS building is in west Casper. I'm uncertain of the date, but I'd put it roughly in the 1990s.

Palm Sunday Mass - 4.5.2020 - St. Patrick's Catholic Church

Our Lady Of Fatima 4 4 2020- Palm Sunday

St. Patrick's Catholic Church - Mass - Fifth Sunday of Lent - 3.29.2020

St. Patrick's Catholic Church - Mass - Fourth Sunday of Lent - 3.22.2020

Churches of the West: The Church and Pandemic.

Last Sunday I published this:

Churches of the West: The Church and Pandemic.: St. Mary's Cathedral, Diocese of Cheyenne Wyoming. When this particular blog was started back in 2011 its stated purposes was...

Was it a case of publishing too soon?

It might have been.

I still think the blanket cancellation of Confessions with no easily available alternatives was the wrong thing to do. And it's continuance remains the wrong thing to do. But, at least locally, it looks like the individual Parishes are rallying to the times and going on line in helpful ways.  At least two of the three Parishes now have some sort of Youtube presence or plan on having it soon.  Maybe all three do.

And that's a positive development.

 

Bethel Baptist Church, Casper Wyoming

The Bethel Baptist Church in Casper, Wyoming is located in the Sunrise area indicating that it was likely built during the 1960s.  It features modern architecture.

Latter Day Saints, East Casper, Wyoming

And this is a second Latter Day Saints building in east Casper.  This is a very recently built building dating from the 2010s and featuring the architectural style common for LDS buildings.

The Church and Pandemic.

St. Mary's Cathedral, Diocese of Cheyenne Wyoming.

When this particular blog was started back in 2011 its stated purposes was simply to depict churches and not to otherwise comment.  And, during the time this blog has been up, that's largely what it has done. Indeed, at this point it not only depicts the architecture of numerous churches around the west, but also religious houses belonging to several other religions.  So, it's pretty much stuck to its task.

Perhaps inevitably, however, it strays from time to time with comments.  Indeed, a blog on religious structures is going to have, at some point, a hard time not commenting on something with a religious theme.  When we've done that, we have tried not to make proselytizing arguments of any kind, but rather comment on issues where issues appear. Frankly, in at least one case, we pulled back on one such draft item and never posted it as it had the appearance of going perhaps where it should  not, if it was going to remain consistent with the theme of the blog.

Be that as it may, there are items from time to time that are commented upon as comments.  And often they involve Catholic themes when they do, as we are Catholics.  Indeed, the original about section of the blog, where it now states;

This blog is a collection of photographs of churches, and sometimes a bit more, that we find interesting. It isn't an attempt to catalog all the churches in any one town, or even of any one area in a town. The selection of churches featured is simply our own choice, based on churches we find architecturally or historically interesting for one reason or another.

it once stated:

This blog is a collection of photographs of churches, mostly Catholic, and sometimes a bit more, that we find interesting. It isn't an attempt to catalog all the churches in any one town, or even of any one area in a town. The selection of churches featured is simply our own choice, based on churches we find architecturally or historically interesting for one reason or another.

That turned out never to be true, actually as the very first 2011 set of photographs included more Protestant churches than Catholic ones.

Anyhow, quite often when we may have been tempted to comment on a supposed controversy it was as controversy that wasn't.  A lot of the common comments a person hears on religious topics in general and Catholic ones in particular are wildly wrong as a rule.  The often repeated story about the rise of the "None's", for example, is grossly misreported and actually doesn't amount to anywhere near as much of a story as its made out to be.  Tales of Catholic dissention are typically fairly off the mark itself and indeed the concepts surrounding it are often not at all understood by the leadership of the Church within the Church, as perhaps best exemplified by the leadership of the German church which is strangely stuck in the liberal 1970s rather than the increasingly conservative 2020s.

Anyhow, if there's a lesson here it's that crises come and go, and often they go without having amounted to anywhere near as much as they were thought to be at the time of their onset.

All of which argues for not posting this comment here.  But, as the saying goes, fools rush in . . . 

The crises this time is a real crisis, although even right now the full dimensions and parameters of it are not known and they will not be until the crisis is over.  And that crisis is, of course, the Coronavirus Pandemic of 2020.

All around the United States, as the serious nature of the spread of COVID 19 became apparent, things have been shutting down as state and local governments shut them down.  The Federal Government has been less clear about its desires and goals in regards to this, and has generally followed the states.  Be that as it may, generally, most states went from warnings to be careful to orders to shut things down.  In my own state, this occurred in a series of events that took place over about a three week period and it will now extend to the end of April.  Our state isn't shut down completely, but most public gathering places, including churches, are now subject to orders that basically require them to close for the stated public emergency duration.

Switching from the general to the particular, I'm going to only address this in the context of the Catholic Church and explain my reasoning for doing so. All around the country churches have been adjusting to this change, with difficulty.  A lot of churches of all denominations (and I'll bet this is true of non Christian religions as well) have gone to televised and Youtube services.  Indeed, I visited with several friends, Catholic and non Catholic, who have experienced this with mixed results.  But departing from that, for members of the Apostolic Churches this is a particularly difficult time for a variety of reasons all of which is based on the fact that they're understanding of the sacraments varies from the Protestant churches and even varies from those Protestant churches that are very closely based on the Catholic Church.  The simple reason for that is that members of the Apostolic Churches are deprived of the core of their faith if they can't receive direct communication with their clerics.

When this crisis arrived here, the first thing that was done was the suspension of the "greeting", that being the handshake that was introduced into the Latin Rite after Vatican Two, borrowed from the practice of a greeting that is found in the Eastern Rites of the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Churches (interestingly those Protestant churches closely based on the Catholic Church followed suit and introduced it at the same time in some instances).  I frankly don't like shaking hands and wouldn't care of that practice disappeared forever, so I sure didn't miss that.  At the same time, Communion from the cup was suspended in the Latin Rite.  I don't know about the Eastern Rite of the Catholic Church or the Orthodox, but I'd note that at least the Eastern Orthodox in Rome, Italy, at about the same time refused to alter the Eastern practice in which the Host is served from the chalice with a small spoon, a very intimate and distinct practice in the East.  I frankly don't even know if there's a way that, in the East, that could be validly altered.

Next, however, came the end of Public Masses. 

And following this, has been controversy.

The suspension of Public Masses in our Diocese was thought to be limited, at first, to just that, and indeed that's exactly how the Parish Priest presented it.  Public gatherings, he noted, would be stopped, including the Mass, during the emergency period noted by the Bishop, but everything else would go on.  He'd do the Stations of the Cross and if people were there, so be it. He'd continue to hear Confessions as well.

This contrasted with the neighboring Diocese of Salt Lake, where by that time everything, including Confessions, had been stopped.

Cathedral of the Madeline, Salt Lake City Utah.

I found the thought of the Diocese of Salt Lake halting Confessions to be shocking, but the Diocese of Wyoming soon clarified and made it clear that its Priests were to do the same.

Now, prior to that clarification there were a few days of confusion.  It was clear that everything had been stopped at one parish and not another as different Pastors no doubt interpreted the order in accordance with its spirit or letter.  The Diocese soon made it clear, apparently, what was meant.

So all the sacraments (maybe) have been ceased, and not just here, but in most places.  Maybe everywhere.

No Baptisms, no marriages, no Last Rights (apparently, but I'm not really sure, and apparently not everywhere), no Masses, and no Confessions (save perhaps by appointment).

But was that the right thing to do?

I really wondered right from the onset.  I get it, and I particularly get it about the Public Masses.  But I don't think this was done well, and frankly, in looking at it, I think there were real mistakes made in this approach.

I'm apparently note the only one as a real debate has broken out among deep thinking Catholics on these topics including those in the Catholic pundit class, the Canon Law class, and the laymen class.  I've heard arguments on both sides, and frankly I'm in the camp that thinks the Bishops made real errors in their approach.  Not only do I think that, but this is another area where the current American Bishops are really not measuring up.  And there, it's yet another area where the lay members of the Church appear to be ahead of their Bishops in some things. 

Interestingly, while I don't follow it, apparently the same debate and criticism is going on in Anglican circles. At least one critic who jointly follows Anglican and Catholic issues (which must make him an Anglo Catholic type of Anglican) is very much doing the same.

Phil Lawler, who writes at Catholic Culture, perhaps can be viewed as summarizing the loyal but critical laymen class.  He's written at least two articles on the topic, including one entitled When Our Churches Open Up Again.  In that article he addresses a variety of topics, starting off with this one:

Why did you forbid the administration of the sacraments? For reasons of public health— and in many cases, because of emergency government regulations— you were forced to curtail public ceremonies. But were you forced to issue a blanket prohibition? Weren’t there ways to allow some acts of public worship, with appropriate safeguards? Did you explore those possibilities thoroughly? 

Just a few months ago, at the Amazon Synod, we heard pleas for the ordination of married men, based on the argument that the faithful must have access to the sacraments. 

Why wasn’t the same imperative felt during the pandemic: the need to take special measures to ensure that the sacraments were available?

That really hits the nail right on the head.

The problem is that there's really no good reason for the way that this was done in some instances.  Catholics were simply told that their Church was not going to provide sacraments.  Any sacraments.

The degree to which this is a serious matter cannot be overstated.  The sacramental life of the Church is very broad and not limited to Sunday "services". This provides the essence of the vast gulf between most Protestant denominations and the Apostolic faiths.  Apostolic Christians can get by without Sunday Masses or Divine Liturgy (in the East), but they don't hold that things can generally be done by laymen and their understanding of Ordination is vastly different than that of Protestants.  

Apostolic Christians hold the sacraments to be divinely ordained and only capable of being bestowed by a Priest.  Baptism, for Catholics and the Orthodox, isn't a ceremony, it's a sacrament that changes the subjects relationship with God.  Catholics and Orthodox baptize at birth due to the danger of death, to ensure that should that disaster fall upon an infant, they're sinless soul will go on to enjoy the full benefits of the next life.  Catholics generally hold that an unbaptized infant is of course sinless and trust in the Mercy of God to provide for the departed child, but there's no definitive teaching on exactly what that means.

There is one on what dying in a state of mortal sin means, however, and unlike some Protestants there's no view that a person can just get right with God once, or perhaps again and again, and it'll be okay.  Apostolic Christians don't believe that once a person is saved, their salvation is guaranteed, it can be lost, and they therefore take very seriously Christ's commission that his Apostolic ministers could bind and loose, forgive and not forgive.  Hence the institution of Confession.

Many would point out, and have in other context beyond that, that a Catholic can make an act of "Perfect Contrition", and the Pope has pointed this out in this crisis. But, while my view may be a hard one, an act of "Perfect Contrition", in which a person prays their guilt and is perfectly sorrowful and repentant of it, is not easy to do.  Indeed, the Church does not require Perfect Contrition for Confession.  Merely being concerned about the impact of sin in the next world is regarded as sufficient for a Catholic to receive absolution in Confession.  Perfect Contrition is obviously much better, but it's not regarded as necessary.  To receive remission of a person's sins when Confession is not available, Perfect Contrition is required.

The suggestion of Pope Francis in regard to this is nice and pastoral, but it frankly will be taken by many as an adoption of the Protestant view.  "Well, I said I was sorry so God forgives me and that's good enough".  Not hardly, in the Catholic view.  Indeed, most Confessors will relate that certain sins are confessed extraordinarily frequently in spite of their serious nature, and some seriously religious Catholics confess the same ones again and again.  Simply saying we'll all get through this and get back to normal doesn't acknowledge that what we are going through is extraordinary and some people are going right to the grave with their sins unconfessed.

Indeed, suggestion that a person simply adopt an attitude of Perfect Confession reduces the seriousness of sin in the way that secularized Christians take it, which is the polar opposite of how the Apostolic Churches view it.  Contrary to fundamentalist Protestant Christians, Apostolic Christians do not hold that there's a vast number of rules (although they're frequently criticized by Protestants who don't grasp what Apostolic Christians believe), but they do hold that there are sins that are very serious.  Unlike at least one local Protestant minister who takes the view that St. Paul's admonitions are mere suggestions, Apostolic Christians don't.

A suggestion that achieving forgiveness is really easy all on your own, while not intended, ignores that Apostolic Christians have always strongly held that achieving forgiveness of sins is easy, but it usually requires a Priest.  Now some will accidentally assume the opposite, and beyond that, in at least much of the U.S., there are no scheduled Confessions as it is.

There's still resort to scheduled private Confessions but people are likely to be hesitant to take that step, particularly in the Latin Rite where not having to do a face to face Confession is protected by Canon Law.  Beyond that, there's a large number of basically observant Catholics who are in the practice of confessing once a year, prior to Easter.  Indeed, when I was a kid, the common belief was that a person had to Confess during the Easter season.

At least Dr. Edward Peters believes that its not possible for a Priest's right to hear Confessions to be suspended, which is not the same, I'd note, about cancelling regularly schedule Confessions.  He notes:

1. Some bishops think they can suspend the celebration of Confession in their diocese or otherwise forbid their priests from hearing confession and granting absolution because of the pandemic. I think this is wrong. 

All pastors have “faculties” (i.e., necessary but, in all respects relevant here, sufficient authorization) for Confession by law (c. 968) and most other priests (e.g., associates) have faculties by formal grant of their bishop (c. 969); once acquired, moreover, such faculties remain effective unless, say, the pastor is removed from office (c. 975, which assumes the process for pastor removal outlined in cc. 1740-1747 has been applied) or the bishop has revoked the grant to a specific priest “for a grave cause” (c. 974, which assumes that “pandemic” satisfies as ‘grave cause’ to strip priests of their faculties for Confession, a claim for which I find zero evidence in the literature).

In our Diocese I believe private Confessions, i.e., ones scheduled with the Priest privately, can still be done.  This would suggest that Last Rights would likewise be available here, as those are always done just that way.

A lot of this could have been easily addressed by the Bishops by providing, when they dismissed their parishioners for that last Public Mass, that the presiding Priest was authorized to give a General Absolution.  Regarding General Absolution, Lawler noted:

If the precepts of the Church are important, why didn’t you address them in your public statements? Catholics are under a solemn obligation to attend Mass on Sunday. When you made it impossible to fulfill that norm, did you assure the faithful that they were dispensed? A diocesan bishop has the authority to allow for general absolution. When you forbade sacramental confessions, did you encourage your priests to offer general absolution?

The Last General Absolution of the Munsters. This famous painting depicts a real event during World War One in which a Catholic Chaplain gave General Absolution to an Irish unit from Munster, many of whom were killed in the battle occuring minutes afterwards. 

General Absolution is a long established practice in which a Catholic Priest can forgive sins, often to a collection of people, immediately prior to some event for a grave reason.  The penitent is obligated to confess the sins they would have confessed next time they go to Confession, but the forgiveness is real and should the person pass before that next Confession occurs, it's a good and valid Confession.

General Absolutions are really common in warfare but they can be authorized for other reasons.  For some reason, it didn't occur to the Bishops to authorize their Priests to given General Absolution for those who were at Mass that last Sunday.  They no doubt thought that things would be opened back up in a couple of weeks.

When they weren't, they should have authorized the Pastors to give General Absolutions even if it meant violating the Governor's orders.  

Being called to be a Priest is called, no matter what a person might think, to a certain type of heroism.  Indeed, it's worth noting that right now an Antiochian Orthodox Priest is being considered for the heroic deed of hearing Confession during the 1918-1919 Spanish Flu Epidemic even thought that ultimately cost him his life.  Another example would be St. Damien De Veuster, the Belgian priest who died ministering to lepers who became afflicted with the disease himself in the course of doing that.

St. Damien De Veuster shortly prior to his death.

That may sound harsh, and the point isn't that Priests should go out and get killed in the epidemic. . .but Christ did provide that we were to minister to the sick and that entails risk.

Right now, in contrasts, Pastors are responding differently and in a confusing manner.  One local Priest immediately started a Youtube channel which is excellent, with his Sunday Mass going up Saturday night, no doubt recorded at his Saturday Mass of anticipation.  It's excellent. The Diocese has its televised Mass which it has had for years, but which compares poorly, but at least is there. The two other local Parishes are silent so far, including one that was clearly being turned into a Parish with a dedicated Hispanic ministry. What do those Parishioners do now?

A lot more need to be done, if even only to have all the Parishes on Youtube.  But its more than that which is cried for, and part of that is providing the sacraments that would normally be provided, save except for the Public Masses.  If that entails risk and heroism, well being a Priest isn't a normal job.

The Bishops, who are Priests, should know that.  American Bishops haven't looked all that great in recent years and few have looked heroic (although some have).  This was an opportunity for them to really rise to the occasion. So far, few have.

A few have even suspended the Lenten obligation of meatless Fridays. This is really going a bridge too far.  Latin Rite Catholics once had meatless Fridays all year long, imposed as a law of the Church during that period during which that amounted to a real penitential sacrifice.  Suspending what little remains of this when it entails sacrifice once again suggests that we really shouldn't have to suffer at all for our Faith. 

Indeed, right now, the Faithful are, but because of duties being suspended, not the reverse.  And the Church has looked as if it has sort of checked out during the crisis, much like movie theaters that are closed for our safety.  

Some of this is necessary.  Not all of it is. This wasn't well done.

It was Cardinal John Henry Newman who observed that "to know history is to be Catholic".   While no doubt some would dispute that, there's a large element of truth to it.  Unfortunately, the Church here seems to have forgotten its own history.  The history of Apostolic Priests who endured sickness to minister to their flocks is a strong tradition of the Church which seems to have been suspended during the COVID 19 crisis.  It's certainly a legal action by the Bishops, but the history of such prior actions should give a person pause. As theologian Dr. Edward Peters has observed, the Papal suspension of sacraments during the early Reformation spawned crisis in England was also legal, but the action did not bear fruit and arguably the opposite was the case.

Of course, all of this was done just a couple of weeks ago.  There's time to adjust course.   And with it looking like much of the country will be shut down longer than originally thought, this would be a good time to do that.

Latter Day Saints, East Casper, Wyoming

This very unusual looking Latter Day Saints building is in East Casper.  I don't know the vintage of the building, but almost all of the buildings in this part of Casper were built during the 1960s.

Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, Casper Wyoming

This is another Lutheran Church, this one from a different branch of the Lutheran faith, in east Casper, Wyoming.  The church is a modern architectural structure.  I'm unaware of when it was built, but it was likely in the 1960s.

Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, Casper Wyoming.

This is Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Casper, Wyoming which is a North American Lutheran Church member.  This church is fairly modern, although I don't know the date of its construction.  Occupying a hill in east Casper, the church has an attractive external appearance.

First Church of the Nazarene, Casper Wyoming

This church is one of a couple of protestant churches located in the Allendale region of Casper, Wyoming.  I'm not sure of its vintage, but by appearance it likely was built in the 1950s, about the same time that Allendale expanded as what was originally an unincorporated portion of Casper.

The Church of the Nazarene is an offshoot of Methodism.

Sunrise Baptist Church, Casper Wyoming

This small Baptist Church in south Casper has a location that gives a good view of Casper Mountain, although its unconventional shape doesn't have any windows.

Other than its denomination, and its unconventional architecture, I don't know anything else about this particular Casper church.

The Diocese of Cheyenne suspends public Masses due to the Coronavirus

Yesterday we reported on some regional actions by Catholic churches to address the Coronavirus.  Since we made that post, the Diocese of Cheyenne has suspended public Masses due to the virus, effective as of the Masses today.

It's now known when they'll resume.  Confessions remain unaltered for the time being and the directive does not extend to other Catholic observances.