Priest sees deluge of support against Harvard ‘black mass’

Catholic News Agency ^ | No byline

[sitetest]

Boston, Mass., May 8, 2014 / 05:09 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- A Harvard chaplain says a student group's plans to re-enact a satanic black mass on campus has elicited a strong response, and he is encouraging the Catholic community to engage in prayer and witness.

Fr. Michael Drea, senior chaplain at the Harvard Catholic Student Association, told CNA on May 8 that he has seen “a huge groundswell from Catholics on campus, as well as alumni” protesting the black mass re-enactment, which the priest characterized as “absolutely ludicrous” and extremely offensive.

~ snip ~

With this aim in mind, the Catholic community is planning a Holy Hour at 8 p.m. May 12, to coincide with the black mass. The Holy Hour will take place at St. Paul’s Church, the university parish and Catholic campus ministry center on the edge of campus where Fr. Drea serves as pastor.

[sitetest]

The Harvard Catholic community will respond to this event via prayer at St. Paul's on Monday evening, during the time of the cultural studies re-enactment.

[sitetest]

Dear Admin Moderator,

On third glance, I see I missed the byline. Would it be possible to correct that? The writer of the article is Michelle Bauman.

Thanks,

sitetest

[sitetest]

Ping to some of those who seemed to have some interest in this.

[melsec]

We all know the devil doesn’t see this as a cultural studies re-enactment - some times playing around with this stuff will scare people straight to God. I remember reading about “The Exorcist” when I was a young teen - it scared the living daylights out of me but gave me the realization that if this stuff is real then God is real and I think I better listen to what He says!

Mel

[sitetest]

I searched and didn’t otherwise see this article posted. If it’s a repeat, my apologies.

[Faith65]

It would probably be a good idea generally for folks to try and remember to pray about this Monday evening no matter where they are.

Thanks for the info.

[xzins]

One such letter was sent to university president Drew G. Faust from Harvard graduate Father Roger Landry, who now serves as national chaplain for Catholic Voices USA. He said in the letter that this is “the first time in my life I’m really embarrassed to be associated with Harvard.”

Harvard would never associate itself with an independent student organization that was re-enacting a Koran burning or “the lynchings of African Americans or homophobic attacks or violence against women,” he charged, and neither should it permit a sacrilegious and desecrating ceremony mocking the Catholic faith.

This chaplain thoughts coincide with my own, that Harvard University would not permit this "freedom to explore" when it attacks other groups.

In my gut, I knew that would be right.

They'd have the police, the National Guard, and the Bureau of Land Mangement arresting anyone who attempted a Koran burning under the same guise of academic freedom.

But, it's ok to denigrate Catholic Christians at Harvard University.

[Oratam]

It seems the black mass is largely the work of fiction writers, mostly French, over the last century-and-a-half. I appears to have "come to life" only since the 1960s.

In any event, it's meant to be a provocation so Harvard's involvement should rightly be regarded as a shot across the bow of Catholicism.

"If you had been of the world, the world would love its own: but because you are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you."

[sitetest]

Dear xzins,

First, Fr. Landry isn't a Harvard chaplain, but is with another group.

“Harvard would never associate itself with an independent student organization...”

The question is whether Harvard is associated with this group. There's a reason such a group is called independent. The group wishes to associate itself with Harvard, but it doesn't look to me like the love goes both ways. If Harvard provides support to this group, it should cease. However, I've searched, and there is no indication that Harvard supports, or even recognizes the group. It isn't listed among the publicly-listed student groups recognized by the Harvard Extension School.

Student groups recognized by the university can easily request and receive permission to use space for free (and even negligible amounts of resources) even if not funded by the university. My son wanted to try out cross-country skiing. He helped set up a club for it. The university more or less recognizes it and gives it a negligible amount of resources. If they want to have a meeting, they just ask to use a room on campus, and provided there are no conflicts, they get to use the room. Free. That's for whether they want to have a small meeting of their own little group, or a larger meeting, open to all, to try to attract new members.

The fact that these folks had to rent out commercial space on campus is telling. It tells me that Harvard doesn't recognize these folks, and before this, may have only been vaguely aware of their existence.

But we'll see how it plays out. I'll repeat - if the university provides material support to this group, it should withdraw that support.

sitetest

[miss marmelstein]

A very well known writer once witnessed a black mass. The “priest” was conjuring up the devil. Although he was a proponent of “white magic” and owned over 2,000 books on witchcraft, he was frightened out of his wits by the display. He knew that the “priest” was a lunatic but he couldn’t get over the feeling that the devil was about to appear. I believe the “mass” ended up being called off.

For non-believers and sceptics, I know this is hard to imagine. There are just some things beyond our ken...

[sitetest]

Dear Oratam,

By “Harvard,” I'm guessing you don't mean, “a bunch of night school students who seem to want publicity and notoriety for their event,” which they've gotten in spades.

I'm guessing you mean “the President and Fellows of Harvard College,” which is the formal name of the entity that governs Harvard University.

If that is so, then let me ask you, what IS Harvard's involvement? I haven't been able to fully determine that, myself, but at this point, I have no evidence of any involvement.

sitetest

[miss marmelstein]

Certainly the conjuring of the devil is a very old practice. The conjuring of him occurs during a black mass. I’ve taken out some books on the subject (it was for research) and I see a woodcut of it from the 15th century. Unfortunately, my condensed version of The Golden Bough focuses on non-European devil worship and witchcraft. Damn.

I have several texts of “black masses” or the creation of the Magic Circle which is sort of the same thing. It is full of insults towards Jews and Christians. Unfortunately, these books are buried under heaps of other books and I can’t give you the dates from when they were written. They manage to be creepy and ludicrous at the same time.

Evangelicals shouldn’t think that they are left out of some bashing during these procedures, lol.

[Opinionated Blowhard]

This may be one of the best things that happened to religion on the Harvard campus. Sometimes it takes evil going too far to get people to think about what they believe.

[sitetest]

Dear Opinionated Blowhard,

I hope you're right. At least from the Catholic perspective, there are many Catholics on campus, even who identify and associate as Catholics. There's a fairly sizable Catholic student association that is moderately active.

But regrettably, even among those who identify and actively associate as Catholic, it seems that many Catholics at Harvard are perhaps a little half-hearted in the practice of their faith.

If he has the time, I'm sure my son will be at Monday evening's events at St. Paul's. I hope he's joined by many of the Catholics of this community

sitetest

[xzins]

The real question is this: Would Harvard University permit a Koran burning on campus?

From the article: Harvard Extension School said May 7 that it “does not endorse the views or activities of any independent student organization. But we do support the rights of our students and faculty to speak and assemble freely.”

Do they support the rights of one of their CLUBS to conduct a "re-enactment" of a Koran burning ON CAMPUS?

How do we find out? What do you think they'll say?

[only1percent]

There’s an important difference.

Burning the Koran is an act of political and theological aggression with real-world consequence, because there are people in the real world who hate Muslims and Islam.

Holding a “Black Mass” is a joke. Satanism is not religion or ideology of actual significance, and a Black Mass represents no threat to Catholicism or Catholics. Catholicism is threatened by aggressive secularists who probably regard Satanism as even more ridiculous than they view Catholicism.

[xzins]

I disagree.

There is a direct parallel.

Both are objects of religious devotion and would be seen by those religions as attacks upon their beliefs.

The identity of the participants in the desecrations are irrelevant.

[xzins]

I disagree.

There is a direct parallel.

Both are objects of religious devotion and would be seen by those religions as attacks upon their beliefs.

The identities of the participants in the desecrations are irrelevant.

[Bigg Red]

You expressed exactly what I was thinking — and hoping.

Prayers up.

[milagro]

There is nothing "funny", or worth joking about, in invoking--or calling forth the presence--of the Devil.

Unfortunately, Satan's most clever "work" in this world is to convince people that neither he--nor God--exist.

And over the past several centuries, THAT is a work in which he has been VERY successful!