Episode Transcript
Speaker 0 00:01 Saint Joseph Kfar. So who was born in 1811 near Turin, Italy of peasant parents died in 1860 is a patron saint, a prison chaplains and prisoners. Besides his work with prisoners, he's probably most well known for having been the mentor of Saint John Bosco. Here's a short excerpt from his biography. Quote, Saint Joseph <inaudible> Fossa visited each prison his area at least once a week and some of them once a day. There is no case on record in which he failed to convert even the most hardened sinners among them. He singled out for special kindness criminals contend to death. He visited all these frequently, instructed them and prepared them for death. He accompanied them all to the scaffold. 57 from Trinh prisons and seven others from other towns. He succeeded in getting all these to go to the sacraments. He was not satisfied with merely converting them, but endeavored to make them saints.
Speaker 0 01:09 He exhorted them to accept capital punishment, reddit with resignation, and told them if they did so with perfect dispositions. They weren't est to go directly to heaven without passing through purgatory, provide dying a violent and dishonorable death. They're performing the heaviest pennants that could be imposed on anyone in this world. He even gave them a commission to execute when they went to heaven, which was to kneel before the throne of Mary and intercede for him. Close quote now both St Joseph a Faso as well as Saint John Bosco. We're confident these men, men who had been sentenced to death for heinous crimes and suffered capitalist punishment, they were confident these men had indeed gone straight to heaven and delivered the messages to our lady, and we shouldn't be a bit surprised at that. Sent off fonts explains, and because this has immense practical consequences for each of us, please listen carefully.
Speaker 0 02:10 A Pearl, no one gets out alive. Saint Alphonsus quote, he who in health makes an act of perfect conformity to will of God. We preserve not only from hell, but also from purgatory. Though he might've committed all possible sins. The reason is the bike accepting death with perfect resignation. The soul obtains a merit equal to that of the holy martyrs who willingly sacrificed their lives for Christ. St Thomas says that it is truly to be a martyr. When a person suffers death for practicing an act of virtue. From this, we must end further to man acquires the merit of martyrdom, not when he gives us life for the faith by the hand of an executioner, but also when he accepts death, to Renner himself, conformable to the will of God and to please him. This is the highest act of virtue man can, can perform, make an entire thing, offering himself to the divine love as regards the kind of death, we must be convinced that the death which God has decreed for us is the one which is best for us.
Speaker 0 03:28 Therefore, as often as we think of death, we should say, Lord, let me die as it pleases. The only let me obtain eternal salvation. Also, with regard to the time of our death, we must be entirely resigned to the will of God. This earth is nothing more than a prison in which we must suffer and in which we are every moment liable to lose God. Therefore, the royal psalmist King David Exclaim in Psalm one 41 eight bring my soul out of the prison penetrated by the same sentiment Saint Teresa of Avila, long for death and on hearing the clock strike rejoice that one more hour of her life had passed away and with it one more hour of the danger of losing God. According to Saint John of Avila and other doctor, the church, everyone who was only moderately well prepared for death should wish for it. As we all live in great danger of forfeiting the grace of God by a happy death, we obtained certainty.
Speaker 0 04:30 They wish you'll never lose the grace of God. How could there be anything more precious, more desirable than this certainty? Therefore, also the seats yearned unceasingly for their heavenly home precisely because they were inflamed with the love of God. See, Thomas teaches at the highest degree of love, which is soul contain. This life consists in the ardent desire of heaven, dare to be United with God and to possess him. Close quotes, Saint Alphonsus really important point. He went, health makes an act of perfect conformity to the will of God. We preserve not only from hell, but also from purgatory, even though he might've committed at all possible since the reason his basic accepting death with perfect resignation, the soul obtains and merit equal to that of holy martyrs who willingly sacrificed their lives for Christ.
Speaker 0 05:29 It's really not so hard to become a saint. After all, if murders and criminals on death row can become sane, then why can't we? Of course, the problem is, although it's not that hard to become a saint, it's also not that hard to go to hell either. That's the whole drama of life. But today is the feast of All Saints. We're selling celebrating this feet in honor of all our big brothers and sisters in the church triumphant, and that would include all those converted criminals from Turin. So what is the same? Well, we use the word sane in a variety of ways. We may use it as we will hear it in just in a few minutes in the creed to refer to someone belonging to the communion of saints in this case is a 1913 Catholic encyclopedia explains, we mean the members of the mystical body of Christ.
Speaker 0 06:21 I quote, the community of saints is the spiritual solidarity which binds together the faith on earth, the souls in purgatory, and the saints in Heaven, in the organic unity of the same mystical body under Christ its head and in a constant interchange of supernatural offices, close quote. So sometimes we mean by it, members of the community of saints, we may use it in referring to someone who is still alive, who's union with Christ is so deep and palpable that becomes obvious even during their life because of their life and acts and prayers. A clear example would be the case of pottery. Po was riling guard as a saint, and rightly so for many decades before his death. We may use it in referring simply to a member of the church triumphant. Anyone is in heaven. That would be the case of Saint Joseph <inaudible> death row. Penitents we just heard about, and of course we frequently use it and perhaps most commonly in referring to canonized saints.
Speaker 0 07:23 So what is a canonized sane? The 1913 Catholic encyclopedia explains canonization quote canonization, generally speaking, is it a decree regarding the public, ecclesiastical veneration of an individual? If the decree binds, the whole church is the degree to Cree of canonization, if it only permits such worship. But now with regard to the whole church is a degree of beatification close quote. Okay. So when the pope canonize is someone, he's expressing a judgment that a particular person may now be publicly venerated and honored as a saint by the faithful throughout the whole world, someone who's been canonized, we call saint like Saint Joseph's <inaudible> Saint John Bosco, for example, a beatification permits such a veneration, but not throughout the whole world, typically only in the diocese or the region in which that person lived or worked. Okay. And someone has to be beatified. We call blessing like bless Blessitt, Botello Longo or bless it, call Hapsburg.
Speaker 0 08:30 Again, when the pop canonized to someone, then that person may be publicly venerated and honored as a saint throughout the world by the faithful and we call him a saint. He's beatified. He may be publicly venerated, honored as a blessing by public Max's, his honor for example, but not throughout the whole world, typically only in the diocese of the region in which he lived to work. Okay. Next question is such a decision and fallible to answer this question. First we're going to briefly discuss what we mean by infallibility in general terms and then we'll see if and how that would apply to a canonisation. As we've already said at a later date, we're going to carefully explore in some detail church teaching regarding payable prerogatives including papal infallibility to net rolling can consider it insofar as it relates to canonization, so what isn't fell ability.
Speaker 0 09:20 We'll rely on the work of the late great frank sheet to get a good overview of the question. There are trues about which it is vital. That certainly should be possible since this certainly cannot be provided by man God sees to it. That is the whole point of the doctrine of infallibility. It is important to be clear on this. God made his church infallible. In one sense it is surprising to see how little this means it, how totally effective this little is when we see the church isn't fallible. We mean the bishops for there in the fullest sense successors of the apostles and then fallibility means simply this, that whatever is taught as to the revelation of Christ by the bishops of the church cannot be wrong. God will not allow it. This does not mean that each individual bishop is prevented by God from teaching error.
Speaker 0 10:18 As we will know what that particular groups of bishops in this or that place might not teach here as we will know, but then when any teachings so widely given by the bishops in the church and we're talking about through time, not just any particular time, but we're talking about from the beginning on forward. When a teach you so widely given by the bishops in the church that we can say it's the teaching of the episcopate done. We know that the teaching is true if they teach it. Something is so it is so they teach that somebody is false. It is false and this is not by their power, but we God's power had a situation might arise in which will be difficult to tell with certainty what the common teaching episcopate throughout the world actually is. Might be a matter of some problem with theology newly posed into urgent to be left to the sieve of theological discussion one way or another.
Speaker 0 11:04 The occasion might arise where a definite statement of truth, a statement which is certainly true is needed and there's dispute or doubt as to what the piss quits throughout the world teaches upon the matter. That is the normal ground of action for them. Fell below the pope just as the apostles had their successors, the bishops, so Peter as a successor, the Bishop of Rome for Rome was Peter Zone C and the pope is endowed with that same infallibility with which God is endowed. The church. Notice it is the one in same infallibility whereby God safeguards the bishops as a body and the bishop of Rome as the head of the body from teaching heir to his church. There's no question of inspiration. God does not promised the Pope some special message or illumination. The pope must learn his doctrine like anyone else. No hidden source of doctrines available to him that is not available to any other systems citizen of the kingdom.
Speaker 0 12:00 But God sees to it that when the pope gives the whole church a definition of faith, morals, bearing upon the revelation of Christ, there will be no air in it if the pope defines it. A thing is so it is so, it defines it. It's false. It is false. Close quote, Frank Sheet and analogy made elsewhere by sheet himself might help to make this more clear. Although it's clearly ridiculous pros that each one of us had to take a trigonometry test here tonight and then suppose one of us, just one of us, like that ultra boy right there was somehow infallible with respect to trigonometry. Okay, so we all take the trigonometry tryst. Each one of us could either get the answer right, get the answer wrong or leave it Bryant, but against supposing the ridiculous, if he was infallible in trigonometry, he did to get the answers right or we'd leave them blank.
Speaker 0 12:53 Okay. It's a negative protection. It protects him from being wrong, but that doesn't mean he'll be right. He just can't be wrong. Okay, so in this case, because canonization is have to do with something that pertains to faith and morals for the whole church, the pope, it has has something to do with it. Let's ask the question. Are candidates <inaudible> infallible under the heading and fallibility? The 1913 Catholic and cyclopedia states quote, it is commonly and rightly held that the church is infallible in the canonization of saints. That is to say when canonisation takes place according to the psalm process that has been followed since the ninth century, mere beatification, however, as distinguished from canonization, is not held to be infallible. And in Canada zation itself. The only fact that is infallibly determined is that the soul of the canonized saint departed in the state of grace and already enjoys the beatific vision.
Speaker 0 13:57 Close quote in article on beautification canonization the 1913 Catholic encyclopedia further states quote, what is the object of this infallible judgement of the pope? Does he define that the person canonized is in heaven or or only that he's practiced Christian virtues in heroic degree, the form of the used in active canonisation has nothing more than this in honor of blank, the Saint we decree and define that blessing blank is a saint and we inscribed his name in the catalog saints in order there's memory by, it'd be developing posse celebrated yearly on such and such day his feast. Okay. There is no question I'm continuing with the, with the encyclopedia. There's no question if he wrote virtue in this formula. On other hand, sanctity does not necessarily imply the exercise of heroic virtue. It's one who had not heathered to practice heroic virtue would by the one transcend heroic act which yielded up his life to Christ, have justly deserve to be considered a saint parenthetical remark.
Speaker 0 15:02 This would certainly be the case of many monitors mentioned in the grown martyrology like we see the case. If you read the martyrology everyday where soldiers are taking these Catholics off to, he massacred and all of a sudden they're moved by a movement of grace to say I'm a Christian. They jump in and get killed there. Well, it wasn't as if they were living heroic virtue up until then they were heathens, but they got that great grace right then and there saints and we can say mass in honor of them. It's also the case of, of the uh, of the death row criminals we just heard about. They sure they sure wouldn't have been practicing rogue virtue to land on death row in those days. Okay. Back to the encyclopedia. This view seems all the more certain, if we reflected all the arguments of theologians for papal infallibility in the canonization of saints are based on the fact that on such occasions the pulps themselves believe and assert the decision which they publish is infallible.
Speaker 0 15:52 Pretty good clue. The general agreement of theologians is to papal infallibility. Canonisation must not be extended to be edification, close quote. So let's go over that real quick. Canonization is held to be infallible. Beatification is not held to be infallible and canonization. The only fact that is infallibly determined is one, the solar candidates, State Department, State of grace, and two, he is now enjoying the beatific vision. Furthermore, in the decree used by the pope's, when canonizing a saint, there's no question of heroic virtue and it's essential to recognize that sanctity does not necessarily imply the exercise of heroic virtue as you can see in the lives of certain martyrs or in the case of the death row inmates. So if people beatifications are not infallible acts of the pope, does that mean that someone can maintain that a blessing? Someone who had been formally beatified by the pope himself?
Speaker 0 16:47 Can sell them, maintain that this beatification was erroneous. The great father favor addresses that very question in a brilliant essay written on beatification and canonization. He wrote it in 1847 he's relying in it on the teaching of Saint Thomas, the Great Nellcor, Kansas, Saint Robert Bell and marine, and Pope Benedict, the 14th father favor quote, a man who should maintain it to be edification was erroneous and an approved reverence of the either the beatus approved reverence. Wrong would not be guilty of heresy, but if scandal and temerity closed quote. So the point is, if someone were to maintain a formal beatification by the pope himself was erroneous, he's not a heretic. He is however, guilty of scan on temerity, which objectively speaking or serious mortal sins. Okay. Then given that Kennedy's nations are in fell, blacks, the pope, if someone were to maintain the saint where erroneous, but somehow it like it was but solemnly canonized by the pope, what would he be guilty of?
Speaker 0 17:52 Objectively speaking, Father Faber quote, all we can do is it conclude practically with that great doctor, the church, Saint Bonaventure, that it would be the most incredible and most horrible thing to doubt, or the true beatitude of anyone on the Church has canonized nail cure. Canis states that a man who did so would be 10 or Arius impudent and near religious pope benedict the 14th teaches that he'd be rash. Give scandal to the church. Dishonor to the saints favor the Herrick Tuques who deny the authority of Church and canonization would himself saver of heresy as preparing the way for infills to derive the faithful that the man would be an assert or of an erroneous opinion. It obnoxious to the heaviest penalties. Who should dare to affirm that the sovereign pontiff had aired and this and that candidate nation or this or that. Sand St canonized by him was not to be reverenced with the honor due to him.
Speaker 0 18:47 And finally, as of Dominican father, Bill Art teaches that whoever should deny that anyone canonized by the church was a saint and in glory would not be a formal heretic, would be first. Tim <inaudible>. Secondly, scandalous. Thirdly, impious and fourthly would saver of heresy. Close quote, father favor and goat regards this very question. Father favor has some other points well worth pondering. Father Favor. Canonization is a public testimony of the church to the true sanctity and glory of some one of the faithful departed. This testimony is issued in the form of a judgment to crane to the person in question to honors due to those who are enjoying the beatific vision and reigning with God by this degree, he's inscribed in the catalog of the saints. He's invoked in the public prayers of the church. Churches are dedicated to God and memory of him. Mass offered the canonical hours recited and his fees kept and finally his pitchers allowed to be painted with rays and Nimbus's denoting the glory that he has with God and public honor is paid to his relics like the relics up there that I'm incensing.
Speaker 0 20:01 Those are canonize saints, the apostles and so forth. Okay, father, favor continues. Given all that, can anything be imagined more awful than the idea that all this may be false and that the church may possibly air in the whole matter? Could there be a more complete triumph for the gates of hell than this to have one who's perhaps a reprobate in the dungeons of hell burning with hatred of God and venerated on the altars of the universal church, the pillar and ground of the truth in the church to St Thomas Aquinas, there can be no downable air, but this would be a downable air if you are venerated as saint who is in reality a sinner, it is of great importance is milk your kindness to the morals of the church that you should note to whom you ought to pay the the reverence of religion. Wherefore, if the church could air in these matters, it might make a grievous slip and morals for, there's very little difference between reverence to a devil and doing it to a damned person.
Speaker 0 21:01 Close quotes. Father Favor. Okay. Now because of the changes in the procedures and canonization beatification canonization with the removal of the devil's advocate, for example, there's more change with just that one. The devil's advocate among other things was to uh, block any causes that might cause surprise or scandal or shocked. The faithful worry, the faith will because it's certain things that person did and so they would block things. For example, the vulnerable Mary have a grader who had all kinds of miracles. I mean, as you know, she, by located here in New Mexico, 500 sometimes all these miracles, she was blocked because of a translation into French of her works that the University of Paris got so excited about that the advocate could stop it. So the whole idea was they will always block them so nobody could throw any dirt at us. It wasn't, it's not a question of whether she's in heaven or not.
Speaker 0 21:51 Okay. That office is not, that doesn't happen anymore, but we don't have time to get it all at. But there is a lot of confusion among the faithful. For example, we are asked about the upcoming canonization of, bless John Paul to father. There are a lot of questions swirling around in my head. How can we be canonize? Cause he kissed the Qur'an and he prayed with the Pagans in Africa and there was a cc one and a cc two, et Cetera, et cetera. Don't let any of that confuse you at all. We have all the principals here, grant all that and worse just for the sake of the argument and keeping in mind what we've already learned about the decree of canonization than canonization. The only fact that's infallibly determined is number one, the person, the soldier. Can I say to part of this life, the state of grace and number two, he's now enjoying the beatific vision than just stand back and ask yourself if I have reasonable hopes of becoming a saint and I hope everyone here does, that should be why you're here because that's the gold.
Speaker 0 22:51 Other options not acceptable. If I have reasonable hopes becoming a saint, if men on death row can be reasonably supposed to have gone straight to heaven, then why should I be the slightest bit of maize? The Pope John Paul two is in heaven. He died a good death with the benefit of that sacraments and had roughly a billion people give or take a couple million praying for him when he died. Look, if he's not in heaven, then we all got something really, really serious to worry about. Okay, we've all got problems. Be at peace. Ignore those kinds of questions there. They're posed either by the enemy you're trying to confuse you or something, or by people that don't have a clear lock on the teaching of the church and what a degree of canonization actually signifies. Let's keep our eye on the goal to join our big brothers and sisters and the church triumphant after all, it's not really that hard to become a sane.
