2021 Formation Programs

Opening Prayer

The Reading (To be read by the Leader)

    Despite the circumstances we find ourselves in nearly a year later, I believe we have much to be grateful for, and much to look forward to as we begin this New Year. Brothers, challenging as 2020 has been, I encourage you to look back at what you have accomplished, as individuals, as families and Councils. I am sure none of us would ever have envisioned the year we have just completed. This past year has been on of thinking outside the box for sure. Because our circumstances have been so unique, we have found unique ways of accomplishing many of the things we have taken for granted in the past. We have been blessed to use more of our brain power and more of our God-given imagination to overcome challenges. The Alberta-Northwest Territories have accomplished unprecedented milestones Order wide. Brothers, we are on track to do great things again this Columbian year despite covid-19.

    I would say that there is a general gratitude for being able to celebrate the Holy Mass publicly. Many of us would never have imagined not being able to receive Holy Communion or going to Mass when and where we wanted. But indeed, for almost three months this was exactly the case. No Mass, no Eucharist. I know there are many of you who are profoundly grateful for once again being able to receive the gift of the Eucharist. Challenging as the protocols are for appropriate reception of the Eucharist. Two things that stand out for me that I give thanks to God for: 1. The people of God, young and old alike who are presently attending Mass have made a discerned, intentional decision that the Church is where they wish to be. This does not diminish those who are not yet ready to return. It does however magnify the thought and prayer that has been part of the process for those who have returned to the physical Church. 2. Because of the protocols in place for reception of Holy Communion, there is truly a great degree of reverence expressed by the faithful as they come forward to receive the Eucharist. The Eucharist is God’s most efficacious and profound gift to us His children, as we continue our pilgrim journey to the Promised Land, (Heaven). The beautiful reverent reception of this gift from the Lord, by the faithful, is very inspiring to me on my own faith journey.

Opening Prayer

Lord, teach us to pray:
    “Our Father…”

The Reading
(To be read by the Leader)

My dear Worthy Brothers in the Lord. I first wish to apologize for not getting a February Formation program out to you. It is a long story, and I am full of good excuses, none of which negate my monthly obligation to my Brothers. I want to speak about a timely topic, Vaccinations. I have heard from a number of Brothers, and some of the faithful in general, that they are concerned about receiving the vaccination for Covid-19. This, for a number of reasons but the area I will focus on will be the moral issue. The reality that some vaccines have been derived from what we know to be the tissue of aborted fetuses. My support material for this writing comes from the Catholic Bishops of Alberta whom I can assure you have done their homework regarding this issue.

So, the Question. Is it okay for a Catholic to be vaccinated against Covid-19? The short answer is “yes, it is.” We know that the death toll is over a million people world-wide. Millions more have been affected in a negative way whether it be spiritually, emotionally, physically, or economically. The moral issue at question with the Covid-19 vaccine stems from the fact that vaccine development and testing often “make use of cell lines derived from either the tissue of aborted fetuses, or destroyed human embryos.” This brings into focus the Churches absolute affirmative stand on the sanctity of life from conception until natural death. To summarize, the dilemma; on the one hand we know that vaccinations have and do save lives. On the other hand, arises the question; does receiving the vaccine make us complicit in the moral evil of abortion?

The reality of our society and medical research is that cell lines stemming from abortion are very widely used in the biopharmaceutical industry. The grim truth is that a vaccine that will be effective against the novel corona virus may not be available from other than vaccines derived from aborted fetal tissue. So, then the question; Is it morally permissible to receive a vaccine that has been produced unethically when an ethical alternative is not readily accessible?

The Church teaches that there are various degrees of cooperation in the evil that constitutes abortion.

1. The most serious affront of course is the actual abortion itself.
2. This is followed by the derivation of cell lines for research purposes.
3. The process of vaccine development using these cell lines.
4. The production of the vaccine and sale of the vaccine.
5. Finally, the use of the vaccine.

Opening Prayer

Lord, teach us to pray:
    “Our Father…”

The Reading
(To be read by the Leader)

   My Brothers, by the time you read this, I pray that many of you have already been vaccinated. You are men of faith, but you need to remain healthy in order to continue to be the Catholic witnesses that God has called to be those men they call Knights. Last month we spoke about the fact that it is morally justifiable to be vaccinated against the Covid-19 virus. We came to understand that it is “morally permissible given the remoteness of the recipient from the original act of abortion, the scarcity of ethical alternatives, and the grave threat that Covid-19 poses to public health.” The Catholic Bishops Conference of England and Wales stated: Each of us has a duty to protect others from infection with its danger of serious illness, and for some, death. A vaccine is the most effective way to achieve this, unless one decides too self-isolate.”Further they noted: “Catholics may in good conscience, refuse a particular vaccine but continue to have a duty to protect others from infection.”

   For the purpose of information, the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines are both Messenger RNA vaccines in which molecules are chemically synthesized. The Oxford and AstraZeneca vaccines are sourced from cell lines that were originally abortion-derived. This according to the Lozier Institute, a pro-life institute based in the U.S., which have studied a number of vaccines under development. Dr. Moira McQueen, the executive director of the Canadian Catholic Bioethics Institute has been a key advisor to the Catholic Bishops, regarding the morality of the vaccine. Dr. McQueen states the following: “The official teaching is saying then, if ethical (synthetic) vaccines are not truly available, then take this vaccine…The level of moral cooperation by people in 2020 is what the Church would call remote. Here we are talking about a pandemic. The idea is because of two factors, lack of personal responsibility for an original action, yet facing serious illness and needing to protect yourselves and your children. They will not say the action is right in the fullest sense, but they do say it is justified. If an ethical vaccine comes along, you have to choose to use that one.”

   Catholic teaching on the “common good”needs also be a factor in our thought and conscience process when making vaccination decisions. It may seem to be acceptable to refuse a vaccination, providing that the individual plans to stay at home and continuously self-isolate. Certainly, this would not seem a very viable alternative.

   Catholic teaching on the “common good”needs also be a factor in our thought and conscience process when making vaccination decisions. It may seem to be acceptable to refuse a vaccination, providing that the individual plans to stay at home and continuously self-isolate. Certainly, this would not seem a very viable alternative. Alternately it would seem unreasonable to not vaccinate and go out into society when one does not know if they are a carrier or not. “There is very much the reality of an individual conscience decision, which should always be respected. But that person always has to be thinking about her or his responsibility to everybody else.” Hence the importance of the common good principal. When I consider the average age of my Brother Knights, and the potential severity of the outcomes, should they become ill with the Covid-19 virus; I would not wish to be sitting at a meeting with them not knowing if I was a potential source of life and death infection for them.

Opening Prayer

Lord, teach us to pray:
    “Our Father…”

The Reading
(To be read by the Leader)

My dear Brothers in the Lord, as I write this, (Friday Sept 03, 2021), masks are now again mandatory inside public buildings within the city of Edmonton. I am sure that you are aware, the County of Strathcona has followed suit, allowing us until September 10, to don our masks at all indoor public buildings. The exception in both situations, is when one is eating or drinking. Though other jurisdictions have not followed this lead yet, I feel safe writing in specifics because I am sure we will all be masked up sooner or later.

Brothers, I expect that it is not so much the challenge of wearing a mask that causes us the unsettledness that many are likely feeling. We, for the most part, have become semi-comfortable with carrying a mask, asking if masks are required, and of course wearing one in public situations. I can tell you in all honesty that your “rednecked, bull collared” State Chaplain, at one time, was of the mind that I would never buy into wearing masks as a common part of my daily life. Well apparently, all things are indeed possible with God. Yes, that is an understatement. Of course, all things are possible with God, including the overcoming of foolish (I think I know better) pride. Most of us have come to know and understand that masks are an effective mode of minimizing the spread of the airborne respiratory virus that we refer to as Covid. Over the course of many months, we have come to a degree of comfort with the concept of a mask as a necessary part of our daily lives. For me, this once again amplifies just how resilient, flexible, and adaptable, our God-given bodies, minds and spirits are. We have accepted and implemented much change into our daily lives in the past eighteen months and we have adapted well. I am not sure what the long term effects of this major glitch, on the radar screen of our lives will have on humanity, but short-term we have adapted well.

My supposition is that that the reason these localized mask bylaws seem like such a downer, is that implicitly we appear to be taking a step backwards on our journey to the pre-Covid freedom that most of us simply took for granted. Well, the numbers are up, dramatically, hospitalizations are up and ICU beds are filling up. We needed to do something to stem the spread of this very challenging virus. The experts tell us that vaccination is the key overcoming this scourge we call Covid. The other side of the coin is that just because almost eighty percent of Albertans have at least one shot, this does not preclude me from spreading the virus to someone else. We know that once I am fully vaccinated, my contact with the virus will not likely result in severe outcomes for me. However,

My supposition is that that the reason these localized mask bylaws seem like such a downer, is that implicitly we appear to be taking a step backwards on our journey to the pre-Covid freedom that most of us simply took for granted. Well, the numbers are up, dramatically, hospitalizations are up and ICU beds are filling up. We needed to do something to stem the spread of this very challenging virus. The experts tell us that vaccination is the key overcoming this scourge we call Covid. The other side of the coin is that just because almost eighty percent of Albertans have at least one shot, this does not preclude me from spreading the virus to someone else. We know that once I am fully vaccinated, my contact with the virus will not likely result in severe outcomes for me. However, it does not mean I am unable to transmit the virus to others. And for those others, severe outcomes are still a very real possibility. There is a good reason that prudence is a hard fought virtue. Sometimes it is challenging to do or not do the right thing.

Opening Prayer

Lord, teach us to pray:
    “Our Father…”

The Reading
(To be read by the Leader)

Happy Fall 2021 my dear Brothers. The recent morning coolness reminds me that it is only a matter of time, until we see some of that hard water stuck to our windshields as we go out the door in the mornings. Yikes.

I know that we are all aware of the challenges facing Alberta’s health care system presently, and of course of the new restrictions that have been mandated by our Provincial Government. Some may think too much (to hot), some too little, (to cold) and perhaps there are even a few of us who think the restrictions are (just right). OOOPs, forgive me, I slipped into the Goldilocks and the three bears fairy tale. With the mandated restrictions, there has also been presented what is referred to as a “restriction exemption”. Basically the “restriction exemption” states that for non-essential services, to be exempt from the one third code capacity limits, every one entering the facility, needs to present proof that they have received the double jab Covid vaccination. There is a significant number of the faithful who have chosen not to be vaccinated and this is for several reasons. Most prominent among these is a lack of evidence on the long term effects of the vaccine. The other is the moral objection to the sourcing of these vaccines and their distant though real connection to the sin of abortion. I am sure there are others as well, but those are the concerns I have been hearing about.

So, the implicit message presented by businesses, cities, organizations, who are implementing the “restrictions exemption” is that if you wish to participate in what they have to offer, recreation, movies, funerals, I must be able to show proof of double vaccination. This may well appear to some to be an assault on our freedom of conscience that the Catholic Church upholds as an elementary and pivotal right. The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that a person: “has the right to act in conscience and in freedom so as personally to make moral decisions. He/she must not be forced to act contrary to his/her conscience. Nor must he/she be prevented from acting according to his/her conscience, especially in religious matters, (1782 CCC)”.

The caveat or preamble to this statement is that there is a presumption that the person’s conscience is well formed, in the light of God’s Word, assisted by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Guided by the light of reason, and the authoritative teaching from legitimate sources of specific expertise. God gave us great rational intelligence and we need to use these gifts to form our conscience and perspective on many different elements of our society. The formation of our conscience is really a lifelong endeavor, as more and more learning comes into the light of understanding. We all have an obligation to understand the morality, the good or the bad of any act or event in which we anticipate participating in, or not. We must remain diligent in forming our conscience lest the “moral conscience remains in ignorance and makes erroneous judgements about acts to be performed or already committed, (CCC 1790).” Let’s face it, a well-formed conscience is essential to our journeys of faith, and it is the vehicle to a successful and joyful culmination of our earthly journeys to the Promised Land.

Opening Prayer

Lord, teach us to pray:
    “Our Father…”

The Reading
(To be read by the Leader)

In October we stated that the formation of one’s conscience is an ongoing part of our successful journey to the Promised Land. My comments this day refer to, but are not limited to the present dilemma, a not insignificant number of the faithful find themselves dealing with. Well-formed conscience is essential to each and every one of God’s children, regardless of what side of the particular discussion they find themselves. In the case of our present-day question, to vaccinate or not to vaccinate, the Alberta Bishops have noted several considerations that should be part of all our process of conscience formation and decision making.

In the case of whether to be vaccinated or not, have I read the most recent and relevant medical data and scientific information offered by the medical experts in their field of expertise? It is important that I explore both sides of the discussion objectively. If I read only material that I agree with, (that experts have written), this is not an objective formation of conscience exercise. Are my sources ethical, accurate and above reproach in their truthfulness? Brothers, the internet is a very scary place. Anybody can post anything and there is no process in place to empirically verify that the information presented has truth and integrity to it. From a moral perspective, this is why it is important to trust what our Bishops offer. They are our shepherds, and their sole purpose is to assist us in getting to heaven. They have access to a far greater array of expertise than you or I do in most areas that concern us.

What gives me peace in following the leadership and direction of our Bishops is that it is very much their own salvation that is part of this process. “Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were put around his neck and he were thrown into the sea, (Mk. 9, 42).” Our Bishops have absolutely nothing to gain and everything to lose by misleading the faithful in the area of conscience and morality. As previously stated, they also have the ways and means to a far greater and more competent panel of advisors and expertise than we as everyday faithful parishioners have access to.

Opening Prayer

Lord, teach us to pray:
    “Our Father…”

The Reading
(To be read by the Leader)

Brothers, about six weeks ago we celebrated Thanksgiving weekend, hopefully with family and those we love. Certainly, we were prone to a more rigid protocol once again, regarding gatherings in general. We are now in the process of preparing to celebrate the Nativity of the Lord. This experience and a recent Gospel got me thinking about the reality of how God made us, and who He made us to be. It also allowed me to reflect on how this time of Covid has had such a negative/divisive effect upon our ability to live our lives as God made us, in relationship with one another. The Gospel I am referring to is (Luke 11, 15-26). In this Scripture Jesus had cast out a demon from an individual, and He was immediately accused of casting the demon out by Beelzebul, “the ruler of the demons.” Jesus rebuts their accusations by noting that “Every kingdom divided against itself becomes a desert, and house falls on house” Jesus says, if Satan is divided how will his kingdom stand?

That statement and the commentary by Bishop Baron got me thinking about how the evil one goes about his daily business here in the world, and how Covid has provided a wonderful opening for the evil one to flourish in his activities. One of the many detrimental effects that Covid has imposed on our society, and the Knights are a case in point, is the concept and reality of isolation. We, in so many ways have been restricted in our natural God-given desire to be in relationship with one another. This is how God made us. “It is not good that humanity should be alone (Gen. 2, 18).” We need one another in order to give life meaning and value. I know that you are all aware of this basic human principal and Thanksgiving/Christmas with or without your loved ones and extended family, certainly reinforces this reality.

My point this day, is that the way the devil succeeds is when he can divide us, have us work against one another. Divide and conquer is a real thing my Brothers. “The demonic power is always one of scattering. It breaks up communion. But Jesus, as always, is the voice of communion, of one bringing things back together, (Barron).” Covid has provided a very apt tool for isolating and scattering us, even from our own families. We are very blessed in our parish community’s for many many reasons. First and foremost, we for the most part, have been able to remain a Church of communion.

The Reflection
(To be read by the Leader)

There is no question that there are varying opinions within our community/councils, about steps taken and not taken. About things like masks, vaccinations, social distancing, grouping sizes, limitations on worship like funerals and weddings. There is no end to the variety of topical issues. Clergy abuse, residential schools, Covid protocols. What do they all have in common? They all have the potential to divide us. First, in our opinions, and then literally physically from one another. Did you ever think you would see the day when you worshipped your God in your Church, and that you would become uncomfortable if someone sat closer to you than six feet away? Yikes. We come together as family, as friends, and as a community of faith, to give thanks to God for the many blessings that are part of our daily lives. Yet….