Deo Gratias!

Remember where you were when you learned that Notre-Dame was in flames? 

Since then, a massive reconstruction project has been underway and is apparently on schedule. The head of the construction site, ex-general Jean-Louis Georgelin, sees great progress in construction:

"Thanks to strict planning, we are confident and determined to make the Paris cathedral open to worship and the public again in December 2024."

Examinations of the building's infrastructure have shown that the cathedral's walls have remained stable despite the major fire, as have most of the vaults. The stained glass windows and the large organ, which were spared by the fire, have been thoroughly cleaned, according to Georgelin, and the restoration of the interior is now set to begin. The famous bells of Notre-Dame were also spared by the fire and remain in the bells towers. They were rung on the one-year anniversary of the fire. 

Notre-Dame de Paris is the traditional starting point for the annual 3-day, 72-mile pilgrimage to Notre-Dame de Chartres, organized by the group Notre-Dame de Chrétienté. Since the fire, pilgrims have begun their journey from Saint-Sulpice, the second-largest church in Paris. Saint-Sulpice, however, can barely accommodate a fraction of the pilgrims during the Traditional Latin Mass which kicks off the march, and this year's Chartres Pilgrimage will be the largest ever, with some 44,000 feet registered to walk the road to Chartres.

While in Paris for the 2022 Chartres Pilgrimage, Michael Matt, who for 30 years has been the U.S. Coordinator for Notre-Dame de Chrétienté, discovered a brand new monument in Notre-Dame Square: a statue of Our Lady of Victory. (See Michael's real-time reaction to this discovery here) 

The new statue, erected in 2021, of Our Lady of Victory (right) in Notre-Dame square

Michael asked a nearby police officer why it had been placed there, and the officer responded:

"She was placed here to ensure that prayers will continue for the total and complete restoration of the cathedral."

True to her role as protectoress of the cathedral, Our Lady of Victory now watches over the reconstruction. 

Notre-Dame-des-Victoires, pray for us! 

Since the beginning of his 30-year association with the French pilgrimage, Michael Matt has maintained this message: The event is not a place to promote individual apostolates, but rather acts as a promotion of the worldwide Catholic Restoration movement as a whole. It is no exaggeration to say that hundreds of clans from all over the world unite every year on the road to Chartres for this very purpose; Catholic restoration, Catholic counterrevolution in action. 

Apart from the fact that some of the best bishops, abbots, and priests in France are Chartres pilgrim veterans–many having walked it every year since they were children–evidence of the Traditional Catholic revival in France–politically as well as spiritually–is not hard to find. Most recently, for example, there is a movement across France to rebuild wayside shrines (so-called "calvaries", oratories, and chapels): 

The missionary spirit of young people in France is being rekindled by the surprising success of an association that is restoring wayside crucifixes across the country — and attracting considerable media attention in the process.

SOS Calvaires was founded in 1987 in the Maine-et-Loire department in western France. It sought to bring together people dedicated to preserving the calvaries, oratories, and chapels that dot the French landscape.

The association gained momentum in 2015 when a group of young Catholics, who openly declared themselves “proud of their religion and heritage,” took up the mission under the leadership of Paul Ramé, who runs a carpentry business. The team — whose members are all under 35 years of age — was recently challenged to restore one calvary a month in their region, instead of one or two per year. 

But the association’s grand designs do not stop there. It is also moving into education, offering instruction in schools. It sees this as a way to prepare new generations to keep alive the flame of faith and Catholic tradition in France.

In other words, the Catholic restoration of France is moving full steam ahead, with even political figures having been inspired to fight for Catholic France as they walk the road to Chartres. 

Whether you can travel to France or not, if you are a traditional Catholic today anywhere in the world, this should resonate with you as a sign of great hope. Join the Catholic clans in spirit this Pentecost weekend, where the theme will be: I will be with you always, even unto the consummation of the world. Along the road to Chartres, this becomes, not just a verse from the Bible, but a statement of the obvious. 

Related from RTV — Guardian of Tradition

In a meeting with Jesuits in Hungary on April 29 (the contents of which were published May 9), Pope Francis took aim once again at those whom he calls "restorationists," those who suffer from "indietrismo" (backwardness)—a "nostalgic disease"—and who resist the changes in the Church since Vatican II.

Giorgia Meloni, leading the conservative Brothers of Italy party, won the Italian national election on Sunday and is expected to form a coalition government with the right-leaning Forza Italia party led by Silvio Berlusconi and the League party led by Matteo Salvini.

She is Italy's first female Prime Minister. Ecstatic Romans tore down the European Union flag at the EU's headquarters in Rome and replaced it with the Italian standard. Conservatism has won BIG in Italy.

This Friday morning, on the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus (to Whom the month of June is dedicated—NOT to LGBT Pride) SCOTUS overturned Roe v. Wade, ending recognition of a constitutional "right to abortion" and giving individual states the power to allow, limit, or ban the practice altogether.

This Christmas, let's showcase the real faces of the minority group that Pope Francis discriminates against.  

Francis wants to stop THIS… why?

Apparently these kids are fostering “disunity”…

Does Francis hate this woman so much he has to take away her Mass?

It seems that only the devil could hate this, right?

These are the ones so loathed by the Vatican. The little people, simply Catholic. They are young, old, frail, healthy. They come from all walks of life. They are cops, dentists, accountants, teachers, techs, nurses, doctors, mothers, fathers, students, children.  They worship Our Lord in the most pristine, simple, yet elevated way. This is their Mass. In God’s name, why are they hated for it?

These Catholics deserve their Mass. They deserve traditional sacraments, too, because there is nothing wrong with any of it. Here’s hoping God will raise up the heroes we need, and sustain the ones we already have, to save His Church.

Gloria in Excelsis Deo!

President Jair Bolsonaro of Brazil has pushed back against much of the mainstream COVID agenda. Most recently he blasted the vaccine passport system being proposed in his country, saying it will eventually lead to population control. 

Always up for some boat-rocking, Pope Francis has appointed a woman as under-secretary to the Synod of Bishops.

This will be the first time a woman will have voting rights within the Synod body.

Is there a single issue on which Francis comes down on the Catholic side anymore?  If you want to be a conservative, a patriot, a traditionalist, a regular guy—just do the exact opposite of what this little, diminutive man does. (Yes, despite what you may have seen from the Vatican glamor shot photographer, Francis is actually just over 5’7”, which explains a lot.)

So, when it came to handling COVID, what did the great big man do? Closed down the churches and immediately started talking about the desperate need for a new worldwide post-COVID economy (read “GREAT RESET”).

While the US heads toward civil war and the rest of the world decides whether to keep up the COVID charade or let it fizzle, the Head of the Catholic Church makes one more Extremely Important and Highly Relevant Contribution:

(AmericaMagazine.org): Pope Francis told a group of parents of L.G.B.T. children yesterday that “God loves your children as they are” and “the church loves your children as they are because they are children of God.” He did so in a brief encounter with some 40 Italian parents (both mothers and fathers) of L.G.B.T. children after the public audience in the Renaissance courtyard of San Damaso in the Vatican.

The parents are members of an Italian association, Tenda di Gionata (“Jonathan’s Tent”), which welcomes and provides information and formation to L.G.B.T. Christians, their families and pastoral workers.

As he bade them farewell, the association gave the pope a rainbow-colored T-shirt with the words “In love there is no fear” emblazoned on it.

__________

That was His Holiness, friends, solving just one more of the world’s most critical issues.

One might think that in the current climate, a pope would want to address the violent riots in our cities, or the fact that—on month 7 of the 15 days to slow the spread—many chapels and parishes remain closed and their faithful without sacraments. Maybe a pope would even consider reminding the 76 million Catholics in the United States of the necessity of voting for a pro-life candidate.

You might think that, but that’d be silly. Pope Francis realizes a time like this is a time to make sure the world knows the Church’s moral compass is so far off base there’s no point in referencing it anymore.

The Church loves LGBT children just the way they are…

Fine words, Your Holiness. Would you like to resign yet?

Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts has had enough of the COVID nonsense. At a news conference yesterday, Gov. Ricketts stated he will end nearly all of his state’s social-distancing restrictions on Monday, September 14.

Small businesses such as bars, restaurants, churches, gyms and hair salons will be allowed to operate with no formal restrictions, while large gathering venues are raised to 75% capacity, up from 50%.

None of the remaining COVID guidelines will be enforceable.

Mainstream news outlets immediately began attacking Nebraska and surrounding states for “spiking numbers of COVID cases!” To which those with functioning brains in their heads should respond, “Testing shows that Nebraska and surrounding states have achieved herd immunity!”

May Gov. Ricketts inspire a few more governors to ease up on the nonsensical COVID restrictions.

And, God help us, may America never suffer another case-demic again.