lifesitenews--2020-12-15--How the 1960s reformers treated the liturgy like mechanics putting car parts together

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December 15 , 2020 ( LifeSiteNews ) — The Ember Days are among the most ancient liturgies we possess , predating even the Sundays of Advent ( ! )
, as beloved as those are .
Pope Leo the Great in the fifth century already spoke of them as a firm and fixed tradition carefully kept .
As Michael Foley notes in his excellent article on the subject : The Ember days , which fall on a Wednesday @ @ @ @ @ @ @ same week , occur in conjunction with the four natural seasons of the year .
Autumn brings the September Embertide , also called the Michaelmas Embertide because of their proximity to the Feast of St. Michael on September 29 .
Winter , on the other hand , brings the December Embertide during the third week of Advent , and spring brings the Lenten Embertide after the first Sunday of Lent .
Finally , summer heralds the Whitsun Embertide , which takes place within the Octave of Pentecost .
In the 1962 Missal the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the second class , weekdays of special importance that even supersede certain saints ’ feasts .
Each day has its own proper Mass , all of which are quite old .
One proof of their antiquity is that they are one of the few days ... which has as many as five lessons from the Old Testament in addition to the Epistle reading , an ancient arrangement indeed .
Fasting and partial abstinence during the Ember days were also enjoined on the faithful from time immemorial until the 1960s .
The Saturdays eventually @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ( for example ) the traditional Epistle for the Fourth Sunday of Advent ( 1 Cor .
4:1–5 ) , which speaks of how the “ dispensers of the mysteries of God ” should be found faithful .
The ancient tradition of Ember Days , like so many other traditions , was just wiped away in the 1960s , as part of the “ extreme makeover ” approach of a Vatican committee that suppressed or invented what they thought the world now needed .
It ’ s completely contrary to the way the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an inheritance to be proudly maintained and jealously protected .
How could such a thing have happened ?
A purge of this magnitude arose from the belief that modern man is essentially different from his predecessors , to such an extent that what past generations possessed and made use of can no longer be assumed to be profitable to modern people .
This belief , as false as the day is long , dovetailed with the mania for a system and method characteristic of modern times : with enough taxpayer dollars and enough @ @ @ @ @ @ @ world , or , in this case , a better worship .
There are multiple reasons for the mania , but they converge on one thing : the triumph of rational method and its ( attempted ) application to every domain of human life .
By “ rational method ” I mean the sort of thing one finds in rationalist thinkers such as Descartes , Spinoza , Kant , or Comte : the attempt to dominate reality by a self-contained logical system of axioms , theorems , and corollaries .
In civil society @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a rational “ science of politics ” and a system of human rights so that man ’ s happiness can be procured on Earth and the evils the flesh is heir to can be banished .
Romanticism was a failed response to the rationalist mania , and its failure was all the heavier because it bought the premise of the mania — namely , that system and method are the only ways to be rational .
In reacting against rational method , romanticism thought it had to react against rationality itself .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Bronwen Catherine McShea exemplified how this mania invaded the Church long ago .
To respond to the rise of rationally organized states , the Church adopted the same type of rational organization herself , overriding and overwriting centuries of local , organic traditions .
To be fair , Protestantism had played those traditions to its advantage : get all the local canons to be heretics , and they ’ ll elect a heretical bishop .
Some response , then , was needed .
But in adopting the tactics of modernity , the Church @ @ @ @ @ @ @ system and method are the answer to every problem .
We see that mentality extending to governing structures , seminaries , advice for confession , spiritual manuals , mass-produced artworks , you name it .
The Church imitated the secular state in its absolutism , its legal codes , its proceduralism , and its regimentation .
John Lamont ’ s analysis of the corruption of the concept of obedience ( “ Tyranny and Sexual Abuse in the Catholic Church : A Jesuit Tragedy ” ) fits into this picture as well .
So @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the twentieth century — and there can be no doubt that a crisis had been brewing ever since the First World War , and that the same was intensified by the Second World War — the natural solution seemed to be this : call a huge meeting of all the executives , write a new set of documents and plans , and set things to rights from the top down .
What is usually billed as the moment of the Spirit , the moment of throwing off the shackles of neoscholasticism , was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the mania for system and method .
The ensuing liturgical rationalization , systematization , and standardization at the hands of a memorandum-driven super-committee for top-down “ reform ” was of a piece with that .
Catholics who are steeped in the modern conception of rationality can imagine no other alternative but a nostalgic Romanticism .
Some people think their way along , while others feel their way along .
We can see this false alternative at work whenever people accuse educated traditionalists of “ nostalgia , ” which is regarded as a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ since system and method are the only version of rationality — there ’ s simply no other way of being rational — it follows that being attached to place , to local tradition , to the heritage of the past , etc .
is to be irrational .
Two giants of early modern philosophy , Bacon and Descartes , reject formal and final causality — the principle that answers the question what something is , and the principle that answers why it does what it does .
Scientifically minded people are to look @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the stuff something is made out of and what put it together .
In a similar way , the formal cause of liturgy ( tradition ) and the final cause ( worship of the thrice-holy God ) were neglected , and the “ stuff ” of the liturgy was subjected to manipulation by scholarly architects and engineers , for whom it was seen as raw material ready to be endowed with a new purpose , for the betterment of the human condition .
In other words , the same mechanistic and humanistic worldview @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the Baconian and Cartesian revolution .
In my experience , relatively few Catholics are aware of just how the liturgy was “ reformed.
” ( For a compact treatment , I recommend Yves Chiron ’ s readable account . )
The entire landscape of the liturgy , from the Mass to the other sacraments , from the Divine Office to the papal ceremonies , was partitioned into 45 segments entrusted to as many subcommittees ( coetus , “ group ” in Latin ) , all under the expert management of Annibale Bugnini @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and served as the information conduit between the subcommittees who “ drew up ” rites and reports and the pope who had to approve their work .
Within this bureaucratic juggernaut there were nine groups for the Divine Office and seven groups for the Ordo Missae .
The various groups disassembled the existing rites into their atomic parts and then produced new building plans out of traditional , archaic , imaginary , and novel ingredients .
These were reassembled at plenary meetings , as a car factory has an assembly area for the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was Bugnini ’ s plan from the first moment : “ divide and conquer.
” All he had to do was to make sure that the “ right ” people were put on each subcommittee , and then sit back and orchestrate the agendas and communications .
The tunnel vision of so many simultaneous tracks would ensure that the most avant garde ideas would be pursued and would be given favorable hearing , while no one but Bugnini and a few others had in mind the overall goal they were seeking .
He @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the other radical reformers had in mind would never be approved all at once in a full frontal view ; rather , the car factory model would ensure success .
Now it should be clearer why I have said that approaching liturgy in this mechanistic , industrialized , compartmentalized way betrays a fundamentally Baconian-Cartesian conception of reality .
Bacon ’ s Novum Organum was the methodological template of the Novus Ordo .
The Consilium ’ s workshop was like the laboratory of a chemist or a physicist , rather than the outdoor world @ @ @ @ @ @ @ botanist or zoologist .
The liturgy was regarded and treated not as a mystery that grows with its own inner life principle , like a child in the womb of Holy Mother Church , but rather as a series of lifeless parts that have to be rigged up a certain way to get them to “ function properly.
” The holistic metaphysical vision of Plato and Aristotle , of Augustine and Aquinas , is absent from this atomistic reductionism and technological utilitarianism .
The liturgy was treated like a deluxe set of LEGO @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a wondrous seed imparted by the Lord , planted by the apostles , tended by the Church Fathers , and maintained by centuries of gardeners .
Although the liturgy was affected by the soil , water , and climate in which it lived , those who received it and cared for it had always respected its givenness , its “ otherness ” from us and from any age through which it passed .
Such must still be our attitude today toward the great tradition .
By a kind of miracle , this tradition @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and as the years go on , we can see it thriving once again .

There are multiple reasons for the mania, but they converge on one thing: the triumph of rational method and its (attempted) application to every domain of human life.
LifeSiteNews is facing increasing censorship. Click HERE to sign up to receive emails when we add to our video library.
December 15, 2020 (LifeSiteNews) — The Ember Days are among the most ancient liturgies we possess, predating even the Sundays of Advent (!), as beloved as those are. Pope Leo the Great in the fifth century already spoke of them as a firm and fixed tradition carefully kept. As Michael Foley notes in his excellent article on the subject:
The Ember days, which fall on a Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday of the same week, occur in conjunction with the four natural seasons of the year. Autumn brings the September Embertide, also called the Michaelmas Embertide because of their proximity to the Feast of St. Michael on September 29. Winter, on the other hand, brings the December Embertide during the third week of Advent, and spring brings the Lenten Embertide after the first Sunday of Lent. Finally, summer heralds the Whitsun Embertide, which takes place within the Octave of Pentecost. In the 1962 Missal the Ember days are ranked as ferias of the second class, weekdays of special importance that even supersede certain saints’ feasts. Each day has its own proper Mass, all of which are quite old. One proof of their antiquity is that they are one of the few days … which has as many as five lessons from the Old Testament in addition to the Epistle reading, an ancient arrangement indeed. Fasting and partial abstinence during the Ember days were also enjoined on the faithful from time immemorial until the 1960s.
The Saturdays eventually became days of ordinations, which explains (for example) the traditional Epistle for the Fourth Sunday of Advent (1 Cor. 4:1–5), which speaks of how the “dispensers of the mysteries of God” should be found faithful.
The ancient tradition of Ember Days, like so many other traditions, was just wiped away in the 1960s, as part of the “extreme makeover” approach of a Vatican committee that suppressed or invented what they thought the world now needed. It’s completely contrary to the way the liturgy has always been treated: as an inheritance to be proudly maintained and jealously protected. How could such a thing have happened?
A purge of this magnitude arose from the belief that modern man is essentially different from his predecessors, to such an extent that what past generations possessed and made use of can no longer be assumed to be profitable to modern people. This belief, as false as the day is long, dovetailed with the mania for a system and method characteristic of modern times: with enough taxpayer dollars and enough committees, we can build a better world, or, in this case, a better worship.
There are multiple reasons for the mania, but they converge on one thing: the triumph of rational method and its (attempted) application to every domain of human life. By “rational method” I mean the sort of thing one finds in rationalist thinkers such as Descartes, Spinoza, Kant, or Comte: the attempt to dominate reality by a self-contained logical system of axioms, theorems, and corollaries. In civil society, this becomes the attempt to create a rational “science of politics” and a system of human rights so that man’s happiness can be procured on Earth and the evils the flesh is heir to can be banished. Romanticism was a failed response to the rationalist mania, and its failure was all the heavier because it bought the premise of the mania — namely, that system and method are the only ways to be rational. In reacting against rational method, romanticism thought it had to react against rationality itself.
The groundbreaking essay “Bishops Unbound“ by Bronwen Catherine McShea exemplified how this mania invaded the Church long ago. To respond to the rise of rationally organized states, the Church adopted the same type of rational organization herself, overriding and overwriting centuries of local, organic traditions. To be fair, Protestantism had played those traditions to its advantage: get all the local canons to be heretics, and they’ll elect a heretical bishop. Some response, then, was needed. But in adopting the tactics of modernity, the Church began to drink in the view that system and method are the answer to every problem. We see that mentality extending to governing structures, seminaries, advice for confession, spiritual manuals, mass-produced artworks, you name it. The Church imitated the secular state in its absolutism, its legal codes, its proceduralism, and its regimentation. John Lamont’s analysis of the corruption of the concept of obedience (“Tyranny and Sexual Abuse in the Catholic Church: A Jesuit Tragedy”) fits into this picture as well.
— Article continues below Petition — URGENT PETITION: Tell the Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade Show Petition Text 61375 have signed the petition. Let's get to 70000 ! Thank you for signing this petition! Add your signature: Show Petition Text Country... State... Sign this Petition PETITION UPDATE (9/26/2020): With President Trump's nomination of Amy Coney Barrett to fill the vacancy on the Supreme Court left by the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, we are closer than we have been in decades to seeing Roe vs. Wade overturned. We now encourage the Senate to confirm Barrett as the next Associate Justice of the Supreme Court. Judge Barrett has a fantastic track recond on sanctity of life issues, has seven children, and is a devout believer. She is the perfect remedy for Ruth Bader Ginsburg's radical pro-abortionism. Please READ the full story here: 'BREAKING: Trump nominates Catholic mom of 7 Judge Amy Coney Barrett to Supreme Court' And then, please SIGN this petition telling the High Court that it's now time to end the activist Roe vs. Wade judgment. Thank you! __________________________________________________________________ PETITION UPDATE (6/29/2020): In a decision which has imperiled more abortion-minded women, sentenced more preborn to death, and upset pro-lifers across the nation,the United States Supreme Court decided 5-4 to strike down a Louisiana law requiring basic medical precautions in the event of abortion complications, with Chief Justice John Roberts reversing his own past decision to uphold a similar Texas law. Liberal Justice Stephen Breyer wrote the majority opinion, which held that the Louisiana law was unconstitutional for the simple fact that it was “almost word-for-word identical” to the Texas one the court already struck down in 2016. In his concurring opinion, Chief Justice Roberts acknowledged that he had “joined the dissent in Whole Woman’s Health and continue to believe that the case was wrongly decided. The question today however is not whether Whole Woman’s Health was right or wrong, but whether to adhere to it in deciding the present case.” We call on the Supreme Court to stop supporting the culture of death and overturn Roe vs Wade, now. PETITION UPDATE (1/20/2020): Hundreds of thousands of people will gather in Washington, D.C., this coming Friday, January 24th, for the March for Life. They will be praying for an end to Roe vs Wade, as the Supreme Court will hear a crucial, abortion-related case later this year in March. United our voices can change the course of history. Sign this petition TODAY! (LEARN MORE BELOW) PETITION UPDATE (1/3/2020): In advance of the Supreme Court's hearing arguments in an important abortion case later this year in March, 207 U.S. Senators and Representatives have signed amicus briefs supporting a Louisiana law requiring abortionists to have admitting privileges at a hospital nearby an abortion center. Some of these supporting briefs also suggest that now is the time to reconsider Roe vs Wade as sound law. Please SIGN this petition, calling on the U.S. Supreme Court to strike down Roe vs Wade. _____________________________________________________________________________ More than 60 million Americans have been slaughtered in their mother's wombs as a result of Roe v. Wade. This activist, unconstitutional ruling in 1973 has left countless women emotionally and psychologically scarred. It was believed by many that Roe would be overturned in 1992 with Planned Parenthood v. Casey. Despite having eight Republican-appointed judges at the time, the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 to uphold it. Since then, major gains have been made in the fight for life, and many lives have been saved. However, Roe v. Wade remains the law of the land, leaving millions of defenseless pre-born children vulnerable to murder. According to a 2016 study conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 35% of aborted babies are African American, despite black women only making up six percent of the U.S. population. 19% of aborted babies are Hispanic. We thus again call on the court to do everything they can to end Roe vs Wade. Now is the time for pro-lifers to join together and ensure that all of God's children have a right to life. Roe v. Wade must come to an end! FOR MORE INFORMATION: https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/supreme-court-strikes-down-louisiana-abortion-regulations https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/over-200-congressmen-as-us-supreme-court-to-reconsider-roe-v-wade https://www.foxnews.com/politics/congress-members-file-competing-legal-briefs-in-key-scotus-abortion-case Hide Petition Text Sign this Petition
So when the Church faced a crisis in the twentieth century — and there can be no doubt that a crisis had been brewing ever since the First World War, and that the same was intensified by the Second World War — the natural solution seemed to be this: call a huge meeting of all the executives, write a new set of documents and plans, and set things to rights from the top down. What is usually billed as the moment of the Spirit, the moment of throwing off the shackles of neoscholasticism, was in its very conception one huge exercise in the mania for system and method. The ensuing liturgical rationalization, systematization, and standardization at the hands of a memorandum-driven super-committee for top-down “reform” was of a piece with that.
Catholics who are steeped in the modern conception of rationality can imagine no other alternative but a nostalgic Romanticism. Some people think their way along, while others feel their way along. We can see this false alternative at work whenever people accuse educated traditionalists of “nostalgia,” which is regarded as a sort of weakness of the brain: since system and method are the only version of rationality — there’s simply no other way of being rational — it follows that being attached to place, to local tradition, to the heritage of the past, etc. is to be irrational.
Two giants of early modern philosophy, Bacon and Descartes, reject formal and final causality — the principle that answers the question what something is, and the principle that answers why it does what it does. Scientifically minded people are to look instead to material and efficient causality — the stuff something is made out of and what put it together. In a similar way, the formal cause of liturgy (tradition) and the final cause (worship of the thrice-holy God) were neglected, and the “stuff” of the liturgy was subjected to manipulation by scholarly architects and engineers, for whom it was seen as raw material ready to be endowed with a new purpose, for the betterment of the human condition. In other words, the same mechanistic and humanistic worldview is operative in the liturgical reform as in the Baconian and Cartesian revolution.
In my experience, relatively few Catholics are aware of just how the liturgy was “reformed.” (For a compact treatment, I recommend Yves Chiron’s readable account.) The entire landscape of the liturgy, from the Mass to the other sacraments, from the Divine Office to the papal ceremonies, was partitioned into 45 segments entrusted to as many subcommittees (coetus, “group” in Latin), all under the expert management of Annibale Bugnini, who reported directly to Paul VI and served as the information conduit between the subcommittees who “drew up” rites and reports and the pope who had to approve their work. Within this bureaucratic juggernaut there were nine groups for the Divine Office and seven groups for the Ordo Missae.
The various groups disassembled the existing rites into their atomic parts and then produced new building plans out of traditional, archaic, imaginary, and novel ingredients. These were reassembled at plenary meetings, as a car factory has an assembly area for the parts fashioned in separate departments. This was Bugnini’s plan from the first moment: “divide and conquer.” All he had to do was to make sure that the “right” people were put on each subcommittee, and then sit back and orchestrate the agendas and communications. The tunnel vision of so many simultaneous tracks would ensure that the most avant garde ideas would be pursued and would be given favorable hearing, while no one but Bugnini and a few others had in mind the overall goal they were seeking. He knew that the monumental changes he and the other radical reformers had in mind would never be approved all at once in a full frontal view; rather, the car factory model would ensure success.
Now it should be clearer why I have said that approaching liturgy in this mechanistic, industrialized, compartmentalized way betrays a fundamentally Baconian-Cartesian conception of reality. Bacon’s Novum Organum was the methodological template of the Novus Ordo. The Consilium’s workshop was like the laboratory of a chemist or a physicist, rather than the outdoor world of real organic beings studied by the botanist or zoologist. The liturgy was regarded and treated not as a mystery that grows with its own inner life principle, like a child in the womb of Holy Mother Church, but rather as a series of lifeless parts that have to be rigged up a certain way to get them to “function properly.” The holistic metaphysical vision of Plato and Aristotle, of Augustine and Aquinas, is absent from this atomistic reductionism and technological utilitarianism. The liturgy was treated like a deluxe set of LEGO bricks or a DIY project instead of a wondrous seed imparted by the Lord, planted by the apostles, tended by the Church Fathers, and maintained by centuries of gardeners.
Although the liturgy was affected by the soil, water, and climate in which it lived, those who received it and cared for it had always respected its givenness, its “otherness” from us and from any age through which it passed. Such must still be our attitude today toward the great tradition. By a kind of miracle, this tradition survived alongside its attempted modern replacement, and as the years go on, we can see it thriving once again.
Peter Kwasniewski, Thomistic theologian, liturgical scholar, and choral composer, is a graduate of Thomas Aquinas College in California (B.A. Liberal Arts) and The Catholic University of America in Washington, DC (M.A. and Ph.D. in Philosophy). He taught at the International Theological Institute in Austria and the Franciscan University of Steubenville’s Austria Program, then helped establish Wyoming Catholic College in 2006. There he taught theology, philosophy, music, and art history and directed the choirs until leaving in 2018 to devote himself full-time to writing and lecturing. Today he contributes regularly to many websites and publications, including New Liturgical Movement, OnePeterFive, LifeSiteNews, Rorate Caeli, The Remnant, and Catholic Family News, and has published thirteen books, including four on traditional Catholicism: Resurgent in the Midst of Crisis (Angelico, 2014, also available in Czech, Polish, German, Portuguese, Spanish, and Belarusian), Noble Beauty, Transcendent Holiness (Angelico, 2017), Tradition and Sanity (Angelico, 2018), and Reclaiming Our Roman Catholic Birthright: The Genius and Timeliness of the Traditional Latin Mass (Angelico, 2020). His work has been translated into at least eighteen languages. Kwasniewski is a scholar of The Aquinas Institute in Green Bay, which is publishing the Opera Omnia of the Angelic Doctor, a Fellow of the Albertus Magnus Center for Scholastic Studies, and a Senior Fellow of the St. Paul Center. He has published over a thousand articles on Thomistic thought, sacramental and liturgical theology, the history and aesthetics of music, and the social doctrine of the Church. For news, information, article links, sacred music, and the home of Os Justi Press, visit his personal website, www.peterkwasniewski.com.
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lifesitenews--2020-12-15--Transgender tyranny is getting chaotic, like the French Revolution

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December 15 , 2020 ( LifeSiteNews ) — The debate about transgender persons has been transformed in the U.K. by a ruling of the High Court that children of 13 or less are very unlikely to be capable to giving consent to “ puberty-blocker ” drugs , and consent from older children is also fraught with difficulty .
As the homosexual newspaper Pink News put it : Since the ruling , the consensus that puberty-blockers are “ safe @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has vanished like snow on the desert .
The U.K. ’ s National Health Service , and also the BBC , has systematically removed links to the radical transgender-affirming charity Mermaids , which represents the view condemned by the High Court .
The two entities have also edited out the suggestion that the extremely powerful drugs used to prevent puberty taking place can be reversed ; as a matter of fact , the scant research done on the subject suggests the opposite .
Even more significantly , they have removed emotive references to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ suicide that is the basis for the claim that interventions with the aim of gender transitioning can be “ medically necessary.
” More fundamentally , though , the NHS has been removing descriptions of “ gender ” in terms of crude stereotypes and claims that people can change sex .
I have discussed the question of stereotypes and the attempt to destroy the concept of biological sex on LifeSite here .
In a parallel move , the left-wing weekly newspaper The Observer , the sister title to The Guardian whose staff forced the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Suzanne Moore only a few weeks ago , published an editorial welcoming the Bell judgement , saying : “ It will ensure that children will now receive the protection to which they are legally entitled.
” Protection from what ?
From doctors and their allies in the worlds of education and social work , who have been pushing some of the most vulnerable people in society down a pathway to treatment which takes years of their lives away from normal emotional and physical development and leads to irreversible infertility .
It is interesting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ phenomenon I have noted in relation to under-age consent : that the courts are more concerned about outcomes , while social workers , doctors , and teachers can be dazzled by the idea that children should be allowed to consent , whatever this may lead to , despite the fact that consent is not really possible in the circumstances .
The Bell judgment is not going to put a stop to people “ transitioning , ” but it , and the reaction to it , is a hugely significant development .
It is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the turning of the tide , although there are other indications that we may have passed “ peak trans , ” such as the growing reaction against letting males compete in women ’ s sports ( this has now reached the organizers of the Olympics ) .
What we can see right away , in the meantime , is the fragility of the trans-affirming consensus Pink News referred to .
It has been obvious for some time that there are many people in the medical profession , as well as elsewhere , who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ but they have been shouted down and hounded from their jobs .
What was always obvious was that many of the people going along with the mob attacking dissent against transgender ideology , do not actually believe the ideology themselves .
In many cases , they are terrified of the consequences of opposing ; in other cases , they may be motivated with hatred against whoever the victim happens to be this time , or by a more general desire to prove their virtue .
This desire on the part of so many @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has created a situation in a tiny number of aggressive true believers find that they can lead a lynch mob in almost any direction .
It is a scary situation , reminiscent of the French Revolution , and also very unstable .
As the list of victims grows ever longer , and the ideological contortions necessary to prove oneself part on the virtuous elite ever more demanding , ordinary people swept along by this ideology have started to look for a way out .
This is what happens in a “ purity spiral @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lifespan .
After a while , given half a chance , a lot of people long to turn around and attack their erstwhile leaders .
This is what has happened here .
Perhaps there ’ ll be a couple more reversals before we are finished , but the dynamic has changed .
There is something to be frightened of in supporting extreme trans ideology now , as well as in opposing it .

LifeSiteNews is facing increasing censorship. Click HERE to sign up to receive emails when we add to our video library.
December 15, 2020 (LifeSiteNews) — The debate about transgender persons has been transformed in the U.K. by a ruling of the High Court that children of 13 or less are very unlikely to be capable to giving consent to “puberty-blocker” drugs, and consent from older children is also fraught with difficulty. As the homosexual newspaper Pink News put it:
Puberty blockers are widely deemed safe, reversible and medically necessary, lawyers for the Tavistock [medical clinic] maintained. Lawyers for [plaintiffs] Bell and Mrs A argued that trans teens should have to go before a court before being able to access the medication.
Since the ruling, the consensus that puberty-blockers are “safe, reversible, and medically necessary” has vanished like snow on the desert. The U.K.’s National Health Service, and also the BBC, has systematically removed links to the radical transgender-affirming charity Mermaids, which represents the view condemned by the High Court. The two entities have also edited out the suggestion that the extremely powerful drugs used to prevent puberty taking place can be reversed; as a matter of fact, the scant research done on the subject suggests the opposite. Even more significantly, they have removed emotive references to suicide. It is the link to suicide that is the basis for the claim that interventions with the aim of gender transitioning can be “medically necessary.”
— Article continues below Petition — PETITION: Dump Twitter and Big Tech for threatening our democracy and freedom of speech! Show Petition Text 15628 have signed the petition. Let's get to 17500 ! Thank you for signing this petition! Add your signature: Show Petition Text Country... State... Sign this Petition Twitter just deplatformed President Trump premanently! And, other conservatives, including General Flynn and Sidney Powell, were also deplatformed. Conservatives, Christians and freedom-loving Americans of all political persuasions must now take a decision to preserve their free speech AND their ability to peaceably assemble by dumping Twitter and Big Tech, and by finding other good alternatives to communicate with each other and share their opinions. Please SIGN our petition-pledge to Dump Twitter and Big Tech, and take back your freedom of speech and privacy. [CLICK HERE for our "Goodbye Google" resources page to find good alternatives to Google!] When you use Twitter or Facebook to communicate, or Google to search for something online, these companies can stifle your ability to share your thoughts and opinions and manipulate your search results, threatening your privacy, your freedom of speech, and even our democracy. Evidence suggests that Twitter and Facebook's 'community guidelines' are selectively enforced against conservatives and Christians, while Google rigs their search algorithms to direct traffic away from conservative and Christian websites, effectively choking traffic to those sites. Simply put, Twitter, Facebook and Google (who owns YouTube) appear to be actively suppressing access to pro-freedom, pro-family and pro-life news and opinion. Don't contribute to this assault on democracy: Stop using Twitter, Facebook and Google as your default social media platforms and search engine! [CLICK HERE to find a good alternative to Google.] To repeat: a few liberal and completely unaccountable computer programmers in Silicon Valley are dictating what we do and do not see in our Twitter and Facebook feeds, and in our Google searches. We, here, at LifeSite, also recently had our Twitter account suspended by the company over "misgendering" a man who claims to be a woman. LifeSite has also experienced a fall-off in Google search-related traffic since the company updated its search algorithms at the beginning of May. And, since the November election, Twitter and Big Tech appear to have dramatically INCREASED their censorship of conservatives and Christians as the President Trump disputed the results of the election and when evidence of election fraud began to mount. Now, it seems likely that they are trying to cut-off conservative leaders (like President Trump) from conservatives on the ground, and effectively exclude us from the national conversation. But, this tactic will not work. Because Twitter, Facebook and Google are not the only game in town! There are a good number of excellent alternatives which we list in our 'Goodbye Google' Resources page. The great irony is that, while Twitter, Facebook and Google executives talk a lot about maintaining freedom of speech and diversity, in fact, these hypocrites are ATTACKING free speech point-blank! This kind of manipulation poses a lethal threat to our democracy, but as we see so clearly now, Twitter and Big Tech have shown no hesitation in excluding conservatives and Christians from the public square. So, at this point, the only way to stop Twitter, Facebook and Google is to quit using their platform. Please SIGN and SHARE this petition to pledge to stop using Twitter and Big Tech. Then, please CLICK HERE to find alternative search engines and social media platforms. Thank you! FOR MORE INFORMATION: Ready to say "Goodbye Google"? Find alternatives for search engines, browsers, email, and more: https://lifesite.kartra.com/page/gbgresources 'BREAKING: Twitter permanently bans President Trump from platform' - https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/breaking-twitter-permanently-bans-president-trump-from-platform WATCH LifeSite's exclusive series - 'Big Tech vs Free Speech' - of interviews with experts on how Big Tech censorship is killing free speech: https://www.lifesitenews.com/bigtech/ From YouTube to social media and beyond, online censorship is rampant. Read the latest articles covering this ongoing struggle: https://lifesite.kartra.com/page/censorship Hide Petition Text Sign this Petition
More fundamentally, though, the NHS has been removing descriptions of “gender” in terms of crude stereotypes and claims that people can change sex. I have discussed the question of stereotypes and the attempt to destroy the concept of biological sex on LifeSite here.
In a parallel move, the left-wing weekly newspaper The Observer, the sister title to The Guardian whose staff forced the resignation of “gender critical” feminist Suzanne Moore only a few weeks ago, published an editorial welcoming the Bell judgement, saying: “It will ensure that children will now receive the protection to which they are legally entitled.” Protection from what? From doctors and their allies in the worlds of education and social work, who have been pushing some of the most vulnerable people in society down a pathway to treatment which takes years of their lives away from normal emotional and physical development and leads to irreversible infertility.
It is interesting to see in the trans debate a phenomenon I have noted in relation to under-age consent: that the courts are more concerned about outcomes, while social workers, doctors, and teachers can be dazzled by the idea that children should be allowed to consent, whatever this may lead to, despite the fact that consent is not really possible in the circumstances.
The Bell judgment is not going to put a stop to people “transitioning,” but it, and the reaction to it, is a hugely significant development. It is too soon to say that it represents the turning of the tide, although there are other indications that we may have passed “peak trans,” such as the growing reaction against letting males compete in women’s sports (this has now reached the organizers of the Olympics). What we can see right away, in the meantime, is the fragility of the trans-affirming consensus Pink News referred to.
It has been obvious for some time that there are many people in the medical profession, as well as elsewhere, who are deeply worried about the issue, but they have been shouted down and hounded from their jobs. What was always obvious was that many of the people going along with the mob attacking dissent against transgender ideology, do not actually believe the ideology themselves. In many cases, they are terrified of the consequences of opposing; in other cases, they may be motivated with hatred against whoever the victim happens to be this time, or by a more general desire to prove their virtue. This desire on the part of so many people to go along with the majority has created a situation in a tiny number of aggressive true believers find that they can lead a lynch mob in almost any direction. It is a scary situation, reminiscent of the French Revolution, and also very unstable. As the list of victims grows ever longer, and the ideological contortions necessary to prove oneself part on the virtuous elite ever more demanding, ordinary people swept along by this ideology have started to look for a way out. This is what happens in a “purity spiral”: these things have a limited lifespan. After a while, given half a chance, a lot of people long to turn around and attack their erstwhile leaders.
This is what has happened here. Perhaps there’ll be a couple more reversals before we are finished, but the dynamic has changed. There is something to be frightened of in supporting extreme trans ideology now, as well as in opposing it.
Follow Joseph Dr Joseph Shaw has a Doctorate in Philosophy from Oxford University, where he also gained a first degree in Politics and Philosophy and a graduate Diploma in Theology. He has published on Ethics and Philosophy of Religion and is the editor of The Case for Liturgical Restoration: Una Voce Position Papers on the Extraordinary Form (Angelico Press). He is the Chairman of the Latin Mass Society of England and Wales and Secretary of Una Voce International. He teaches Philosophy in Oxford University and lives nearby with his wife and nine children.
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lifesitenews--2020-12-15--Republican legislators keep fighting for election integrity, enraging Democrats

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December 14 , 2020 ( FRC Action ) — For the tens of thousands of people who made the trip to the National Mall this weekend , there was some solace in the crowds .
They came , Ohio 's Melissa Regan said , to fight for their freedom .
`` I 'm a mom and a proud American , '' New York 's Lisa Morin told a photographer on an unusually warm December day .
`` And @ @ @ @ @ @ @ happening in this country . ''
It 's not just about exposing the truth of the election , she insisted .
It 's about exposing the truth , period .
Like so many of the president 's supporters , they could only shake their head in frustration at the latest setback to that truth .
Hours earlier , seven justices of the U.S. Supreme Court announced they would not hear the 18-state lawsuit against Georgia , Wisconsin , Pennsylvania , and Michigan for their gross violation of election law .
In a brief @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that the attorneys general lacked the standing to sue .
`` Texas has not demonstrated a judicially cognizable interest in the manner in which another state conducts its elections . ''
Although Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas did n't necessarily disagree , they did make a point of releasing a separate statement saying they would have at least heard the case .
The justices blamed standing , Margot Cleveland wrote , `` ' a judicially cognizable interest . '
But how can the state of Texas not have a judicially cognizable interest @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the compact they entered when they entered the Union ? ''
Part of the lawsuit might have been a stretch , she agreed , but `` by failing to mention Texas 's constitutional claims , and by not providing any reasoning for its decision — omissions likely needed for the court to maintain its near-unanimous agreement — the Supreme Court created the appearance that it does not care about constitutional violations . ''
Let 's hope , she went on , that their decision was rooted in the Constitution and not their concern @ @ @ @ @ @ @ now , the media is having a field day with the 126 House Republicans who urged the Supreme Court to take the case .
Fellow Rep. Maxine Waters ( D-Calif. ) said she was `` disgusted '' that the members weighed in , even though they had a very real stake in ensuring their states ' votes counted .
If Georgia , Wisconsin , Pennsylvania , and Michigan violated their election laws , then guess what !
They 're breaching the entire contract on which our country is based .
All the states @ @ @ @ @ @ @ argued , `` are interdependent .
Our nation 's operational principle is E Pluribus Unum .
Each state has a duty to other states to abide by this ... '' This is n't an infringement on other states ' sovereignty , the group insisted .
`` Each state depends on other states to adhere to minimum constitutional standards in areas where their sovereignty is ceded to the union .
And if those standards are not met , then the responsibility to enforce those standards falls to this Court . ''
Not only did @ @ @ @ @ @ @ file this lawsuit , under the contract of the Constitution , they had an obligation to file this lawsuit .
Liberals , of course , who 've never wanted to be governed by anything but their own radical agenda , do n't care what our guiding document says .
In fact , they 're so incensed that any Republican would exhaust these legal options that they 've floated the idea of punishing them in the new Congress !
Rep. Rep. Bill Pascrell ( D-N.J. ) , in a letter to Speaker Nancy Pelosi @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are `` traitors '' `` who would seek to destroy the Union . ''
These are , in his words , `` unbecoming acts that reflect poorly on our chamber . ''
House leaders , he insists , can not agree to seat them .
What House Republicans did may be a fireable offense in the eyes of lawless Democrats , but that 's what makes it so commendable .
Standing up for the rule of law takes courage in a ruthless environment like this one .
And when the media and liberal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ you to just `` let it go , '' ( and by `` it '' they mean our constitutional process ) , it was all the more heroic that these conservatives stepped in and stood up for integrity .
At the end of the day , Rep. Mike Johnson ( R-La . )
reminded everyone , `` Duty is ours , results are God 's . ''
Doug Masriano ( R ) , a Pennsylvania state senator who hosted the first public hearing on election integrity he 's heard from `` thousands of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at every level .
These are real problems in our system , he insisted .
That 's why he 's not quitting — and neither , Masriano said , should Republicans .
`` We 're on the side of righteousness — and we need to fight forward politically [ to clean up the process ] , not just roll over . ''
Courage is rising , he said .
`` And it 's not too late .
It 's never too late . ''

PETITION UPDATE (1/15/2021) -
The events of the past month, and especially the past 10 days, have shaken the faith Americans have in their elected and appoint officials.
We continue to call for investigations to be made into allegations of election fraud. Texas is in the process of prosecuting one political operative for illegal ballot harvesting, and multiple state legislatures have called for investigations, too.
However, the judiciary has severely let down the American electorate.
As we have said all along, the integrity of the election is much bigger than President Trump. Election integrity is at the heart of republican democracy, and if we don't have it, we no longer have a functioning republic.
Therefore, we continue to seek the truth for the election outcome. Perhaps that will only be known in the future when state or federal commissions are established to investigate the instances of election fraud which were witnessed and sworn to, by thousands of Americans of all political persuasions.
In the meantime, you may still sign this petition. Thank you!
___________________________________________________________________
PETITION UPDATE (12/10/20) -
On Wednesday, President Trump tweeted: "We will be INTERVENING in the Texas (plus many other states) case. This is the big one. Our Country needs a victory!"
He is referring to the lawsuit which the state of Texas has filed against Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Georgia in the Supreme Court over changes those states made to their election rules, claiming they violated the U.S. Constitution in the process.
Here is the central part of the argument: if Texas were to allow possible voter fraud to go unchecked in Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Georgia, it would be akin to committing fraud upon the people of Texas, who cast their ballots within the framework of the law.
Indeed, this would apply equally to all citizens who voted within the framework of the law across the United States!
President Trump also tweeted that this case is, "very strong...ALL CRITERIA MET."
Please continue to SIGN and SHARE this urgent petition, now.
____________________________________________________________________
PETITION UPDATE (12/7/20) - Since this petition was launched, President Trump's legal team, as well as other concerned citizens, have discovered what appears to be irrefutable evidence of voter fraud in several of the key battleground states, and have initiated legal challenges in six states.
While the situation continues to evolve, this remains a hugely important petition which we encourage you to SIGN and SHARE.
Below, please WATCH and READ about the mounting evidence of voter fraud and how the mainstream media seem determined to ignore even the most egregious instances of vote tampering. Then, please SIGN and SHARE this petition.
'Trump: ‘Our election system is now under assault and siege’ and as president I must defend it'
'Tens of thousands 2020 election votes illegally scanned in Detroit, says Dominion IT contractor'
'Trump campaign files lawsuit demanding ‘a new statewide election for president’ in Georgia'
'Experts flag over 500k ballots in PA with new evidence of major 2020 election voter fraud'
''Smoking gun'? Pennsylvania vote fraud hearing gets gasps from audience'
'FBI and Justice Department have dragged their feet investigating 2020 vote fraud'
''CNN top brass in leaked tape: We won't give Trump 'too much of a platform on his not conceding'
'Twitter censored Trump 63 times over Thanksgiving holiday, Biden untouched'
LifeSite supports President Trump with this petition because we believe he is trying to defend the Constitution, ensuring that electoral fraud does not taint the result of the 2020 general election.
But, since starting this petition, we have launched a separate petition related to the disputed election outcome, calling on the Department of Justice to 'do their job' and engage in meaningful investigations of the mounting evidence of voter fraud.
We believe that conducting forensic audits of ballots and voting machines, as well as issuing subpoenas to collect more evidence, would be a good start.
Thankfully, some of the state started to demand investigations independent of federal agencies. But we still believe that the DoJ needs to use its enormous fact-finding resources to help resolve allegations of election fraud.
Thank you for continuing to SIGN and SHARE all our election-related petitions.
_____________________________________________________________________
Please SIGN and SHARE this urgent petition which calls on all Americans to Stand With President Trump as he uses every legitimate means to find out if voter fraud played any role in the election outcome.
Amid allegations of voter fraud, and at a time when the situation with COVID has been used by many of the states to facilitate the use of mail-in ballots on a massive scale, we need to be very careful in dismissing the possibility of voter fraud.
The fact is, the possibility of wide-spread fraud with mail-in ballots is significant.
But, this is not about Donald Trump or Joe Biden! This about whether or not the sanctity of the ballot box has been tampered with!
Please Stand With President Trump as he attempts to defend the integrity of this election, as well as well as the right to vote itself!
Indeed, this is so important, not so much because one election hangs in the balance, but because our democracy, itself, hangs in the balance.
Americans not only have a right to know, but should demand that every legitimate means be used to discover the truth about these elections!
Please SIGN this petition and Stand With President Trump to ensure that these elections were conducted freely and fairly!
While most all Americans believe in playing by the rules, we also know that some very devious, politically-motivated operatives have been trying to harm the Trump administration from before he even took the oath of office.
This fact should lead us to question how some allegations of voter fraud can be so easily dismissed by state election authorities.
We demand to know the truth, and, for the sake of our democracy, we demand that President Trump keep fighting to learn the truth.
Thank you for SIGNING and SHARING this petition today!
**Photo Credit: Shealah Craighead / White House / Flickr


lifesitenews--2020-12-15--DC archdiocese sues mayor over ‘unfair’ COVID restrictions on worship

December 14 , 2020 ( FRC Action ) — The D.C. mayor 's office is only a half-mile from the National Archives .
If Muriel Bowser ( D ) ever made that trek , she might have a better grasp on the U.S. Constitution .
It 's right there for everyone to read , including the First Amendment , which warns leaders like her against infringing on the free exercise of religion — something her COVID rules have done to every believer in the nation 's capital .
Now , one of the holiest days of the year approaching , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ treatment .
And they 're taking her to court to prove it .
The Catholic Archdiocese of Washington , like a lot of churches , watched what the Supreme Court did in New York City , blowing away Governor Andrew Cuomo 's ( D ) rules and opening the doors to in-person services .
Now , with Christmas around the corner , they think it 's time that D.C. did the same .
In a lawsuit against Mayor Bowser , the diocese points out that they 've tried to be cooperative — even @ @ @ @ @ @ @ They 've `` demonstrated that people can worship God in a safe , responsible , and cooperative way , '' their attorneys at Becket argue in the filing .
`` This has led to an exemplary safety record : thousands of masses , with zero known COVID outbreaks linked to the Mass .
Yet as Christmas fast approaches , the District has imposed arbitrary 50-person caps on mass attendance — even for masked , socially-distant services , and even when those services are held in churches that can in normal times host over @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cap is ridiculous , the diocese argues , when you consider that `` public libraries , laundromats , retail stores , restaurants , tattoo parlors , nail salons , fitness centers , and many other establishments '' are only limited based on their capacity .
That 's a slap in the face of local churches , they argue , especially when there are more than 650,000 D.C.-area Catholics who `` at the end of this most difficult year — now face the chilling prospect of being told that there is no room for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ '' `` We here in the Archdiocese of Washington have received no [ COVID ] cases — at least none that we know of , where people are infected for attending church ... We just think we should not be treated any differently and certainly not unfairly in comparison to other public places for attendance , Archbishop of Washington Cardinal Wilton Gregory insisted .
A federal judge has already put Mayor Bowser in her place once for these attacks on religious freedom .
Her decision to stop Capitol Hill Baptist Church from meeting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ local congregation — one that led Trump-appointee Trevor McFadden to quote Hebrews 10:25 .
`` It is for the church , not the District or this court , to define for itself the meaning of 'not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together , ' '' he insisted .
Now that the Supreme Court has spoken to the matter , the ripple effect is only getting bigger .
Let 's hope that includes the nation 's capital , where the Constitution 's freedoms should have a safe and permanent home .
LifeSiteNews has produced @ @ @ @ @ @ @ View it here .

UPDATE (5/21/2020) -
The Catholic bishops of Minnesota along with state’s Lutheran leaders have informed their governor that they will defy his continued lockdown order for houses of worship and will begin public religious services in time for Pentecost.
The order allows malls, shops, and other retailers to open their doors at fifty percent capacity, and allows businesses—from pet-grooming services to medical cannabis operations—to resume in-person operations...but explicitly leaves in place bans on in-person worship services for more than ten people.
The bold move was announced in separate letters sent simultaneously to Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison from Most Rev. Bernard A. Hebda, Archbishop of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis; from the presidents of the two Lutheran Church Minnesota districts; and from the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, the attorney group working on behalf of the reopening churches.
The religious leaders chose to act in defiance of the governor after he revealed his plan last week to reopen commerce in the state while keeping in place the limit for church services to ten people or less. Weeks of dialogue with the governor aimed at achieving equal treatment for houses of worship had reportedly gone nowhere.
And, although there are more than 85 archdioceses in North America, this is a good start.
Archbishop Hebda is to be commended for his courage and action in the face of discrimination by the state government.
While the "Mall of America" and casinos were allowed to reopen by the state at 50% capacity, churches were held to just 10 people per service.
And, thus, the Archbishop rightly judged the policy to discriminate against houses of worship.
Please READ THE FULL STORY by clicking on this link.
And if you haven't already, please SIGN this petition, which ask ALL the bishops of the Church to be courageous in restoring the sacraments to their flocks.
____________________________________________________________________________
UPDATE (4/15/2020) -
In the first instance of reinstating the sacraments to the faithful in the U.S., the bishop of Las Cruces, New Mexico has lifted a diocesan ban on public Masses, stating in a letter to his priests that “depriving the faithful of the nourishment offered through the Eucharist” cannot “become the ‘status quo’ for the foreseeable future.”
Bishop Peter Baldacchino advised his priests in the April 15 letter obtained by the Catholic News Agency that they can resume offering the sacraments as long as they abide by state-order health directives.
Bishop Baldacchino stated: "While it is true that we need to take every reasonable precaution to reduce the spread of Coronavirus, it is equally true that we offer the greatest ‘essential service’ to our people."
Let us congratulate Bishop Baldacchino for this courageous step! And, let us also encourage his brother bishops to follow his example.
Thank you for continuing to SIGN this urgent and crucial petition.
_____________________________________________________________________________
Please SIGN this petition, asking our bishops to work tirelessly to find creative and safe ways to restore, to us, their flock, the sacraments through which our Blessed Lord's sanctifying graces flow.
We read in the Holy Bible: "As a shepherd tends his flock when he finds himself among his scattered sheep, so will I tend My sheep. I will rescue them from every place where they were scattered when it was cloudy and dark ... the injured I will bind up, the sick I will heal (but the sleek and the strong I will destroy) shepherding them rightly." Ezekiel 34
During the first years of his reign, one of Pope Francis' most oft-repeated words was "accompaniment."
In Evangelium Gaudii, the word was used nine times, in Amoris Laetitia, five times. In many cases, the word was used in a challenging tone and in the general context of ambiguity that has come to define the Francis pontificate. Almost always, the word was meant to challenge the traditions of the Catholic Church.
But the tradition of Holy Mother Church is one of radical accompaniment, like that of a mother who would never allow herself to be separated from her child.
Now, more than ever, immersed as we are in a world threatened by the spiritual plague of secularism and the physical plague of the Chinese coronavirus, we need our shepherds to protect and feed their flock.
Please SIGN this petition, encouraging our bishops to be fearless and creative in their administration of the sacraments.
One need not be a medical doctor or a doctor of theology to know that if outdoor physical recreation and grocery shopping is essential and can be accomplished safely during this pandemic, so, too, can the exercise of religious services.
There is a battle raging all around us in which the secular world is seeking to eliminate all signs of Christ's presence among us.
The current pandemic, like all times of crisis, can be an opportunity to be the light of the world. But make no mistake about it, the enemy of God will use a time of crisis as well. He will use it to separate men from each other and from God.
SIGN this petition to implore the bishops to use all available safe and creative means to restore the sacraments to the faithful.
Thank you!
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
'WATCH: Sick woman in hospital begs priests to courageously minister to sick, dying': https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/watch-sick-woman-in-hospital-begs-priests-to-courageously-minister-to-sick-dying
'UK Catholic bishops suggest priests shouldn’t attend to dying faithful due to coronavirus': https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/uk-catholic-bishops-suggest-priests-shouldnt-attend-to-dying-faithful-due-to-coronavirus
'Expert says it could be 18 months before church services resume: Live COVID-19 updates': https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/police-state-grows-expert-warns-america-it-could-be-18-months-before-church-services-resume
'WATCH: Priest in Italy bravely processes with Eucharist to bless coronavirus-stricken country': https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/watch-priest-in-italy-bravely-processes-with-eucharist-to-bless-coronavirus-stricken-country
'Spanish police shut down Palm Sunday Mass on church rooftop': https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/spanish-police-shut-down-palm-sunday-mass-on-church-rooftop
'Police fine priest and quarantine him for carrying crucifix through the streets': https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/police-fine-priest-and-quarantine-him-for-carrying-crucifix-through-the-streets
**Photo: Fr. Tomaso Jozef Jochemczyk processes with the Blessed Sacrament in Italy, March 20, 2020. Taken by: Sister Marie


lifesitenews--2020-12-16--Canada Liberals’ anti-‘conversion therapy’ bill just got much worse

December 15 , 2020 ( Campaign Life Coalition ) — If you thought Bill C-6 was bad as it was , take another look .
It just got so much worse !
Last Friday , the federal Justice Committee completed its “ review ” of Bill C-6 ( the “ conversion therapy ban ” ) .
However , instead of listening to the serious concerns brought forth by scores of qualified medical experts , church leaders , ex-LGBT representatives , and parental rights groups , the Liberal majority shut their ears and hardened their hearts .
Nothing would move them @ @ @ @ @ @ @ their plan to punish those who share a traditional , Christian view on sexuality and gender !
Liberal Committee members ignored the legal opinion that Campaign Life Coalition delivered with the help of a top Canadian constitutional lawyer .
Liberals ignored over 16,000 signatures from the petition we delivered at our “ Stop the Ban ” Rally on December 4th in Ottawa .
They ignored warnings from the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada , representing millions of Evangelical Canadians .
They ignored the warnings from the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops , representing millions @ @ @ @ @ @ @ personal stories of ex-LGBTs who overcame their unwanted same-sex attraction or gender confusion with the help of counselling .
Instead , Liberal Committee members not only recommended that Bill C-6 move forward hastily to a final vote , but they made five new additions to expand and strengthen this totalitarian legislation .
Rather than work across party-lines and listen to all sides , they manipulated the parliamentary review process to push through even more of their one-sided , radical LGBT agenda !
The nebulous term “ gender expression ” was added to Bill @ @ @ @ @ @ @ conversion therapy ” to include the repression or reduction of “ non-cisgender gender expression ” ( e.g .
criticizing cross-dressing and trans pronouns ) .
In other words , not only will it be a crime for parents to try to stop their children from medically “ transitioning ” to the opposite sex , it will be a crime for parents to control how their children wish to dress , what make-up they want to use , or however they might choose to express their “ identity ” .
If little six-year-old Jane @ @ @ @ @ @ @ says that she is now a “ he ” , and her name is now “ John ” , mom and dad will be completely helpless .
If they don ’ t go along with this fantasy , they could lose their child and go to jail .
Bill C-6 , as amended , literally transfers parental authority over to the LGBT activists , taking away every right to object to even the most obscene , harmful , immoral , and foolhardy sexual practices and gender expressions being promoted .
Our precious children @ @ @ @ @ @ @ allowed to express themselves according to any non-conforming gender identity they hear about at school or see online .
( And there are literally dozens of possible “ genders ” to choose from ! )
Can you imagine the chaos ?
All the while , parents may do nothing but “ affirm ” their kids like slavish yes-men — or else face five years in jail !
This Bill C-6 might best be called the “ parental prosecution bill ” !
Liberal Committee members also opted to extend the censorship provisions in Bill @ @ @ @ @ @ @ crime not only to “ advertise ” , but also to “ promote ” , any offer to provide counselling for unwanted same-sex attraction or gender dysphoria .
This will ensure that any public messages , articles , pamphlets , books , web pages , websites , or YouTube videos espousing a traditional view of sexuality or gender can be “ seized ” or “ deleted ” .
This includes : “ any material — including a photographic , film , video , audio or other recording , made by any means , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” This will no doubt include portions of the Bible , like 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 .
It may even prohibit the Bible itself , which is , after all , a Book all about “ conversion ” !
There are no religious exemptions in Bill C-6 .
Above : “ Un-German ” books and literature being “ seized ” and “ deleted ” in 1930s Nazi Germany .
Liberal Committee members also lowered the threshold for police to bring charges against “ violators ” of Bill C-6 .
Under the original Bill , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ adult if it was “ against a person ’ s will ” , meaning that the onus was on the adult hearer to object to the counselling or advice given .
Now the onus is on those offering the counsel or advice to first obtain “ consent ” from any adult before ever speaking a word !
That means that we dare not say anything from the traditional perspective on sexuality or gender without fear of being charged for not first obtaining consent !
Bill C-6 is a draconian proposal .
Here we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ speech — telling us what to say and how to think !
The Trudeau Liberals are claiming there is only on sexuality and gender — the radical LGBT lobby ’ s viewpoint .
As for everyone else — we must either shut up or go to jail .
In particular , parents must be silenced if the government is to capture the minds of the next generation .
It is an age-old strategy — the modus operandi of tyrants and dictators .
I am reminded of George Orwell ’ s prophetic work , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Every record has been destroyed or falsified , every book rewritten , every picture has been repainted , every statue and street building has been renamed , every date has been altered .
And the process is continuing day by day and minute by minute .
History has stopped .
Nothing exists except an endless present in which the Party is always right.
” In the case of Bill C-6 , Trudeau ’ s Liberal Party must always be right .
Above : Justin Trudeau marches with children in an erotic “ Gay @ @ @ @ @ @ @ alt .
CC BY 2.0 I would ask you to consider reaching out to your Member of Parliament over Christmas not only to wish him or her the greetings of the season , but also to state your opposition to Bill C-6 ( the “ conversion therapy ban ” ) .
We have created a tool to make this as easy as possible , providing you with pre-scripted messages and contact information for your local MP .
You can access our tool at our “ Stop the Ban ” website .
Our efforts @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not be possible if not for your sacrificial giving .
With your financial support , we were able to launch the “ Stop the Ban ” website , featuring professionally produced video testimonials and a complete analysis of Bill C-6 .
We were also able to set up the contact-your-MP tool , organize our “ Stop the Ban ” rally , and pay the legal fees to a top constitutional lawyer who helped with our written submission to the Justice Committee .
If you are able , please consider donating towards our ongoing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ initiatives designed to undermine our traditional values and abrogate our God-given rights and freedoms .
Published with permission from the Campaign Life Coalition .

PETITION UPDATE (12/11/2020)
Right before Thanksgiving, YouTube deleted a LifeSite video of a distinguished Canadian physician protesting the "unfounded public hysteria" over COVID-19 and accused us of spreading "medical misinformation."
Our account was suspended, and we were prohibited from posting videos on our YouTube channel for one week. And, while that may not seem like a big deal, it's a huge deal for a news organization like LifeSite.
Then, earlier this week, YouTube again suspended our account – this time for two weeks – over an episode of The Bishop Strickland Show wherein Bishop Strickland said he would not take an unethical COVID-19 vaccine.
We were able to appeal the suspension, and our request was granted.
This means that in YouTube's three-strikes-and-you're-out content-policing, idea-cleansing scheme, we are back down to one strike. But, we still face the threat of losing our account permanently.
And, we're not the only ones.
In a recent turn of events, YouTube just announced that it will remove videos alleging widespread voter fraud in the 2020 presidential election.
But, what is YouTube afraid of? The truth???
Thankfully, however, there is a one, big bright spot on the horizon: 48 states filed suit against Facebook just this week.
And, although this seems like a step in the right direction, the draconian measures which YouTube just rolled out, which are already wielded by Twitter, are an assault against free speech.
So, the fight for freedom of speech against Big Tech goes on. And, we must do everything we can to protect it!
Please SIGN and SHARE this petition today!
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/breaking-youtube-reverses-ban-on-lifesitenews?
https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/youtube-bans-lifesite-over-video-of-bp-strickland-refusing-to-take-corona-vaccine
https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/lifesites-channel-was-suspended-by-youtube-heres-how-you-can-still-watch-our-videos
https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/youtube-starts-removing-videos-that-contain-allegations-of-mass-voter-fraud
https://tennesseestar.com/2020/12/10/facebook-sued-by-48-states-federal-trade-commission-over-allegations-of-monopolistic-practices/
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PETITION UPDATE (11/18/2020)
Everyone thought the censorship by Big Tech corporations would decrease after the 2020 election, but the truth is that censorship is being felt just as much as it was before the election.
And, given the election outcome, perhaps Big Tech censorship now is even more consequential than it was before the election!
The two biggest social media platforms, Facebook and Twitter, and other Big Tech companies, are still censoring and suppressing stories and posts favorable to conservatives, and especially anything that has to do with election fraud.
Here are a few recent examples:
Women for America First organized the March for Trump on November 14, which was shut down by Facebook, MailChimp and Eventbrite. Despite Big Tech’s best efforts to cancel the event, the march went on and gathered a huge crowd.
Twitter has been suppressing a large number of President Trump’s Tweets. Most of his Tweets have been flagged arbitrarily with a warning stating: “This claim about election fraud is disputed."
Please READ this recent article about Big Tech's attempt to choke information conerning the recent Million MAGA March in Washington, DC: '5 things mainstream media won’t tell you about massive DC ‘Stop the Steal’ rally'
Then, please SIGN and SHARE this urgent petition, which calls on the Congress, the president, and governors to defend freedom of speech as Big Tech continues their rampant censorship.
PETITION UPDATE (10/15/2020)
In a remarkable development, Republican Senators Ted Cruz and Lindsey Graham have announced that the Senate Judiciary Committee will be issuing subpoenas to Twitter's Jack Dorsey and Facebook's Mark Zuckerburg for their company's suppression of two critical expose news stories about how Hunter Biden and the Biden Family allegedly profited from business deals made because of Joe Biden's position as Vice President.
Please WATCH LifeSite's exclusive video of the announcement by Senator Ted Cruz below.
According to the Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Senator Lindsey Graham, the subpoenas will be issued next Tuesday, for hearings to be held on Friday of next week.
This is a MASSIVE development, and should be welcomed by those who champion freedom of speech.
Again, this is all happening because Twitter and Facebook refuse to allow their members to share stories which would be favorable to conservatives.
Here's the timeline:
Yesterday, Twitter and Facebook suppressed a NY Post story about how Hunter Biden allegedly profited from introducing a Ukrainian businessman to his then-Vice President father, Joe Biden. The story also alleges that Vice President Biden then subsequently pressured Ukrainian authorities to fire a prosecutor who was investigating the businessman's company.
And, just this morning, Twitter suppressed another expose by the NY Post alleging that the Biden Family improperly profitted from deals made with one of the largest Chinese energy companies because of Vice President Biden's position in government.
But, right after the story broke, Senator Cruz tried to share the latest story on Twitter and was blocked. Twitter says that they are blocking the stories because they claim that the information was obtained illegally. However, Twitter showed no problem allowing illegally obtained information about President Trump's tax returns to be shared.
Please SIGN and SHARE this urgent petition, which calls on the Congress, the president, and governors to defend freedom of speech as Big Tech continues their rampant censorship.
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
'GOP senators decry Big Tech censorship of NY Post story exposing Biden corruption' - https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/gop-senators-decry-big-tech-censorship-of-ny-post-story-exposing-biden-corruption
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PETITION UPDATE (9/17/2020)
Big Tech is out to kill free speech. LifeSite is out to protect it!
LifeSite has been digging deep into the many claims of liberal bias and selective censorship of pro-life, pro-family, and conservative voices on social media.
And, we are now launching our new series 'Uncensored: Big Tech vs. Free Speech', which will unpack how the actions of Big Tech censors actually affect conservative and Christian organization and individuals.
Please WATCH the first video in our series featuring Brigitte Gabriel, the Founder of ACT For America, one of the nation's premier national security grassroots organizations.
Ms. Gabriel's organization, ACT For America, has been targeted by Big Tech especially in the manipulation of search results.
Big Tech “think[s] they are God and they are exercising their godly power over everybody else,” Gabriel explained. "Because in today's world, anytime you want to find out any information about somebody, what do you do? Google. You go to the internet to find out some information about them. When you research anything about somebody, the first thing that comes up [in the search results] is the Southern Poverty Law Center’s labeling of ‘hate groups.’”
“And who are the ‘hate groups’? Family Research Council is a hate group because they are pro-family. American Family Radio is a hate group…LifeSiteNews is a hate group. My organization is a hate group because we sound the alarm about terrorism and protecting our constitutional freedom. And so they try to character assassinate you. And they control the language.”
LifeSite's research shows that Facebook, Google, YouTube, Twitter, and others have become far too dangerous for democracy.
They can and do sway elections and public opinion in whatever direction they want, primarily by manipulating search results, tracking our online behavior, and by blocking truthful content from their platforms.
Today, LifeSite is starting to fight back, with facts and with stories of conservatives and Christians who are being negatively impacted by Big Tech's liberal bias.
Please continue to follow our 'Big Tech vs. Free Speech' series which aims to launch a new video each week for the next eight weeks.
And, please sign our petition demanding that Big Tech monopolies are broken up. Thank you!
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ORIGINAL PETITION BACKGROUND TEXT:
The outrageous erasing of the White Coat Summit from the internet is only the latest in a long series of brazen acts of censorship against conservatives and all those who support legitimate free speech.
You may agree or disagree with the efficacy of Hydroxychloroquine against the coronavirus, but everyone should agree on this point:
No Big Tech company should have the power to erase from the internet the medical opinions of licensed practicing doctors simply because they do not like what they have to say about the coronavirus or their experience treating it. Americans and other free peoples do not need leftist computer programmers deciding what the best course of medical treatment is for them.
Google/Youtube, Facebook, Twitter, Apple and their Big Tech friends want to control what you see, what you read, what you think, and ultimately, how you vote. Not only do they spend hundreds of millions of dollars on lobbying congress and buttering up big Washington DC think tanks, but now they brazenly and directly censor any content they don't want you to see.
Big Tech, like other interest groups, aggressively lobby to help their businesses thrive, but increasingly, Big Tech is using blatant internet censorship to impose its radical world view over those they consider to be "deplorables."
This must stop, but it won't unless we demand it as forcefully as legally possible. We believe that we have reached the point were Big Tech must be broken up if legitimate free speech is going to survive and continue to thrive on the internet.
Please sign our petition to demand real consequences for Big Tech's suppression of legitimate free speech.
In 2016, emails revealed by Fox News' Tucker Carlson proved that Google tried to influence the election by affecting voter turnout. Thankfully they failed. But they didn't give up. Instead, they have been preparing and testing how to manipulate information to continue to abuse their monopolistic power.
In 2018, Google/Youtube et. al. succeeded in manipulating the Irish abortion referendum by blacklisting pro-life videos, manipulating pro-life search terms and results and intentionally withholding pro-life information. Again, this is not an opinion or a conspiracy theory, Project Veritas obtained first hand information proving the intentional censorship by Big Tech.
And the Coronavirus has just made things worse. You see, scared people are more easily manipulated into giving up their freedom of speech. Children are being kept from going to school, tens of millions of Americans are out of work, and rioting has broken out in most major American cities.
Now, more than ever, freedom of speech is necessary to secure all of our freedoms. Freedom of speech is crucial to truly exercise the freedom to vote for the person that best represents one's own views, or the freedom to decide what course of medical treatment to accept - especially the decision to control what vaccines are administered to our children.
Some experts, like Dr. Robert Epstein, a behavioral psychologist who has testified before congress against Big Tech believes that we may already be too late to control Big Tech's tyrannical control over information.
President Trump took a step in the right direction with his Executive Order calling for increased regulation of Big Tech. But much more can be done and needs to be done right now.
In an era where almost everything is polarized, there is an overwhelming support for breaking up the Big Tech monopolies. A recent Pew poll found that 75% of Americans believe that Big Tech companies have too much influence.
It is time to bring serious accountability to Big Tech for their attempts to use their monopolies to kill free speech.
It is time to break up Big Tech.
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Google, Facebook, Twitter shut down ‘frontline’ US doctors who promote ‘cure for COVID’ - https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/google-facebook-twitter-shut-down-frontline-us-doctors-who-promote-cure-for-covid?utm_source=featured&utm_campaign=standard
Americans overwhelmingly agree Big Tech has too much power: Pew poll - https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/americans-overwhelmingly-agree-big-tech-has-too-much-power-pew-poll
Leaked Google employee's email reveals effort to boost Latino vote, surprise that some voted for Trump - https://www.foxnews.com/tech/leaked-google-employees-email-reveals-effort-to-boost-latino-vote-surprise-that-some-voted-for-trump
Undercover video proves Google interfered in Irish abortion referendum - https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/americans-overwhelmingly-agree-big-tech-has-too-much-power-pew-poll