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Bishop Strickland: “Building a Staircase” – ‘It is Clear That Archbishop Lefebvre Walked an Apostle’s Path’ – Brown Pelican Society of Lousiana

Bishop Strickland: “Building a Staircase” – ‘It is Clear That Archbishop Lefebvre Walked an Apostle’s Path’

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Abp. Marcel Lefebvre (third from right). Spiritains. Wikimedia Commons. CC BY-SA 4.0

It is clear that Archbishop Lefebvre walked an apostle’s path and was led to establish a safe place, a refuge, where could be found the Mass of the ages in its pure form, a place where the Deposit of Faith would be protected, and the staircase preserved intact, even while the ape of the Church was pulling off boards and throwing out all that is most precious.

(LifeSiteNews) — Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

At this time of year, as we wait for Our Lord, I want to draw our attention for a moment to St. Joseph, a mostly silent but very important person in the Advent of Our Lord. We know St. Joseph as a carpenter because St. Matthew and St. Mark used the Greek term tekton to describe his work which is a common term for a worker in wood, a builder, a “joiner” – one whose woodworking skills include “joining” pieces of wood together. The Latin fathers interpreted this word as “carpenter.”

The word “joiner” is an apt word for St. Joseph because in so many ways he was called to be a builder of staircases that provided steps for heaven to “join” earth, and earth to “join” heaven. The Blessed Virgin Mary was called to be the Mother of God, and St. Joseph built a staircase by offering her marriage and a home where the Christ Child could live on earth. Jesus Christ dwelled in the house St. Joseph provided, and although a house and any steps St. Joseph built would have been made of earthly materials, heaven walked upon them, so it could be said that he built a staircase that connected heaven to earth.

As we think of staircases, and things that “join” heaven and earth, we think naturally of Christ’s Church, for as Catholics, we stand on a staircase, or a bridge, built by Christ that connects earth to heaven. The steps on this staircase are the sacraments which bridge the abyss that separates the Creator from the created, and the Deposit of Faith is the framework. As long as we stand securely on this staircase, then we, like Mary holding the infant Christ, can gaze into the face of God. For in His Church, Christ truly meets us on earth, as in His Church He is truly present. The sacraments are efficacious signs for they truly bring to earth (and join) what they symbolize. In order for this to happen, as we know, it must be “symbolized” correctly (the staircase must be constructed of the right materials) both in “form” and in “matter.” If either is changed, the form (the words spoken) or the matter (the physical part of the Sacrament), then the validity is destroyed. Therefore, every board of this staircase is an integral part of the whole. …