Click Here <[link removed]?> to Add Your Gift to the Spiritual Bouquet

<[link removed]>

A Spiritual Bouquet for an Urgent Spiritual Need

Dear Friend,

Although it’s a rare event, the Pope has called all the Cardinals of the Church to convene in Rome to meet with him for two days this month. This meeting is called a Consistory, which simply means “to stand together” in Latin. 

Currently there are 245 Cardinals in the Catholic Church, including 120 of whom are over the age of 80. These cardinals cannot vote in a conclave but they can, if possible, attend meetings of this sort to offer their wisdom to the Pope for the good of the Church. Now, you can add your gift <[link removed]?> to the spiritual bouquet dedicated to this consistory.

Consistory is an unusual term, but we shouldn’t think a meeting of this type is unusual in itself or an indication of some kind of crisis. It is entirely appropriate for a pope at the beginning of his pontificate to call together all of his primary advisors and seek their counsel on matters of importance for the Church. 

The cardinals will “stand together” with the Vicar of Christ for two days of high level meetings and offer their wisdom and perspective on the matters that affect Catholics and the work of evangelization around the world. 

A couple things are relevant to a meeting like this:

- International Perspective: The College of Cardinals is no longer a cohort of Italian or largely European cardinals as it was known to be for many centuries. The pope gets a truly international perspective from Cardinals who now come from every corner of the globe. The “internationalization” of the College of Cardinals really began with Pope John Paul II and has continued in all subsequent pontificates. We can see that as a very positive development for the universal Church. 
- View “From the Ground”:While there are many Cardinals who work in the Vatican itself, most of the Cardinals are actually the heads of important archdioceses throughout the world. The opposite of taking an ivory tower approach, meeting with these pastors of souls give the pope a real-time view of what is happening at the grass roots level of the Church. That is also a positive aspect of such a meeting, in that it widens the range of wisdom that informs church decisions.
- Continuity with Tradition: The cardinals generally ensure a kind of continuity in the Church, since their appointments make them actual members of the clergy of the Diocese of Rome. Every pope has his own style and agenda for the Church, but it is also true that every pope must act in continuity with the Tradition of the Church.

In the last pontificate, I think we witnessed a clear example of this absolutely critical function of sacred Tradition. When churchmen are attentive to the Spirit of Christ, the Catholic Church’s long-standing Tradition of teaching, devotion, and prayer helps to discipline agendas that are foreign to the Spirit of Christ. 

Tradition, represented in an intense way by the cardinals, is that deep-seated discernment of God’s will that is handed down in the hearts of the faithful from the Apostles. Tradition keeps our Church from going off the rails into heresy. No other Church has the guarantee that “the gates of hell will not prevail” against her.

Our Spiritual Bouquet <[link removed]> is therefore of major importance for this meeting. We pray both for the wellbeing of the Cardinals themselves and also for their spiritual discernment of issues and concerns that should be the main focus of the divinely-instituted Catholic mission of bringing Christ’s salvation to the ends of the earth.

Come Holy Spirit and fill the hearts of the Cardinals to discern the Will of God in the upcoming consistory!

Yours in the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary,



Thomas McKenna

Founder and President

Catholic Action For Faith And Family
[link removed]

Follow us on:

X <[link removed]>

Facebook <[link removed]>

Instagram <[link removed]>



-=-=-
Catholic Action For Faith And Family - PO Box 910308, San Diego, CA 92191-0308, United States
This email was sent to [email protected]. To stop receiving emails: [link removed]
-=-=-

Created with NationBuilder - [link removed]