www.byzcath.org Forums General Discussions Town Hall Should I change my screen name?

I disagree with Dr. John that Latin Traditionalists consider the Seventh Ecumenical Council (Nicea II in 787 � which is the most recent ecumenical council) to be a travesty. But maybe he is referring to the Vatican II Council, which is the most recent Western Council?

LatinTrad, you are certainly free to keep your screen name. The Forum rules only require that in choosing a name that you choose one that is not over controversial and that your choice be one that is charitable towards other participants.

I understand Dr. John�s concern about the �LatinTrad� name. In the past we have had a few participants who were either hard core SSPX types or who had poorly formed understanding of the Church based on the old �the Latin Church is superior to the rest of the Catholic Churches�. Identifying yourself as a part of a subgroup that uses the term �traditionalist� will possibly give people who see your posts an incorrect understanding of the position you are coming from. Since you have noticed that the use of the identifier �LatinTrad� adds a polemical character to your posts you may wish to choose a pseudonym that better reflects who you are. Maybe you would consider something like �Latin Servant�? The term �Latin� would indicate your adherence to the traditions of the Latin Catholic Church and the term �Servant� would indicate your fidelity to Christ and the Catholic Church and with Pope John Paul II in particular (he uses the term �servant�).

Dear Latin Trad,
Don't change it. You've done nothing wrong. Dr. John, this is obviously a nice individual who happens to love the Latin Mass and is also - if you read his post above - drawn to Melkite liturgy. I do not recommend the screen name "LatinTradMelkitophile" however much it may reflect the truth.
Dr. John, please do not be concerned regarding this issue in this case. I think our poor LatinTrad friend was just trying to be overly solicitous, and you unfortunately took him up on it.
Carry on, LatinTrad! Happy posting!
Communion of Saints

I just posted my reply only to find that our Admin has also spoken ... I wrote my post while the Admin had just posted the one above. H'm - looks as if you're being told to act on that solicitous nature of yours after all! It appears the suggestion is you can keep it but due to possible misperceptions, perhaps you should change it. I personally don't agree, but I guess the best I can do in this case is think of a 'cool' alternative now to "LatinTradMelkitophile,' huh?
Oh, well!
C of S

Dear LatinTrad,

I guess Dr John assumes that there is nothing traditional about what Vatican II had to say . . .

And if you think that by choosing a Byzantine name you will avoid getting into trouble - have a look above at the thread where I've dissed off a whole series of my Ukie confreres when I merely suggested that a fixation with ROCOR flies in the face of Ukie Cath'lic loyalties.

And now I'm not going to hear the end of it.

And you know what? I can't help it! If saying what's in our heart sincerely is wrong, then this Forum, as excellent as it is, doesn't deserve to have such wonderful and sincere people as you and I!

Alex

My Dear Latin friend:

Your screen name may tell Byzantines that don't know you that you are a triumphalist Latin who longs for the days of Trent, and the old ecclesiology of using Eastern Catholics to bring the Orthodox into the communion with the Church of Rome.

The "old" speech community of the Latin Church and sometimes the Greek Catholic Churches, that developed before the Second Vatican Council, was anything but "traditional" or correct in regard to how we should view each other, both Catholic and Orthodox, in light of ecumenism and patristic Eastern theology. The rhetoric that the fulness of Orthodoxy lies in Communion with the See of Peter, regardless of its so-called authoritative historical voice, is utter nonsense and rather naive. A Church's Orthodoxy does not lie in who it is in Communion with, but whether it keeps the Orthodox FAITH of Christ and maintians Grace-filled Mysteries. Rome can err and has erred, so has Antioch, Constantinople et al. The Orthodox Catholic Faith which we share with the Eastern Churches, who are not in formal juridicial communion with us, is the Faith of the Early Church, but it is quit clear from the Canons of the Seven Ecumenical Councils that the Orthodoxy of a Church claiming to be Orthodox must be verified not only with having Grace-filled Mysteries, but also preserving inviolate the Most Holy Orthodox Faith. If a Church has lost it's Orthodoxy then only an Orthodox Church which has retained Orthodoxy can restore the Church that may have departed from the True Faith and lost Grace or who's Grace is doubtful or lacking.

As Greek Catholic Churches our Orthodoxy is either there or it isn't. That is the question Orthodox have. See, they cannot verify that we have remained Orthodox because we had left communion with them. So in their eyes in order for us to use the word Orthodox ecclesially we must be reconciled by a canonical Orthodox Church or by a consensus be declared Orthodox by the canonical Orthodox bodies. Now being that I am a Greek Catholic I obviously believe that I am Orthodox and that we did not lose our Orthodoxy or our Grace upon entering Communion with the Church of Rome; and I also believe that the Latin Church is also Orthodox and has the Grace of God in it's Mysteries.

But again that does not mean that in our history as a Church we did not loose much of our rich Eastern patrimony and take on some Latin Church language and praxis, but that still did not negate our Orthodoxy. The Eastern triumphalistic view that only the Eastern forms have retained the Orthodox Faith has been demonstrated by the Western Orthodox (Antiochian Archdiocese et al) to be sheer nonsense. The Orthodox Faith can be retained in both the Roman Rite of Worship and the Byzantine Rite of Worshiping the Thrice Holy Trinity. The Issue is have we retained the Orthodox handed down to us from the Apostles and canonized by the Fathers and have we retained Grace-Filled Sacramental Mysteries. Both of which we have. Now since we are a kind of via media, not in the manner of the Anglican Church mind you, we have the special task of not only uniting the Churches of East and West, but also witnessing to our unique identity as a Church who has been formed and developed by the Holy Spirit.

I went off a little bit, but I think you get the picture. If you are a Latin who is out of the school of Trent and is ultra-montane politically then by all means be true to you and use LATINTRAD, but if you are well rounded and "fair and balanced" to use a FOXNews tagline then maybe you could choose a screen name like : LATINFORTRADITION, or PATRISTICLATIN, or LATINFORUNITY, or FRIENDLYLATIN:), or BYZANTINEOPHILELATIN, or any screen name that identifies your true party position in the Church or maybe just your name like I have done.

Good luck, sorry for giving you the long shpeal.

Blessings!

Robert Horvath

Dear Robert,

I thought you were a triumphalist Greek Catholic . . .

Alex

Alex you are so good to me

Blessings,


Robert

Actually, I have not told LT to make a change at all. He noted himself that his use of the identifier �LatinTrad� adds a polemical character to his posts. I simply acknowledged that I agree with his assessment and offered a suggestion for a new title if he decides to make a change.

AMDG
As long as I can keep my avatar.
Pisteu�n,
LatinTradMelkitophileGuyWhoLikesEasternStuffEvenThoughHeIsAWesternTraditionalUnaVoceIndultTypeGuyMostOfTheTime

Dear LatinTrad,

Yes, I think most here are agreed on the matter that you should keep it!

Alex

AMDG
Thanks, everyone--I guess I'll keep it, with all due apologies to those who advised otherwise. If anything, this thread might have clarified that I am not an SSPX type (although for reasons some here might disagree with--I DO think orthodoxy has something to do with who you're in communion with, since Christ intended His Church to be one, as well as holy).
Hagia Maria, M�t�r tou Theou, proseuchou huper h�m�n t�n hamartol�n, nun kai en t�(i) hora(i) tou thanatou h�m�n, Am�n.
LatinTrad (GreekTrad)

LatinTrad,

I guess we can be Latin compadres , you have'nt brought up Bill Buckner .

james aka jacobi

Not at all!

I guess sometimes the "name" precedes the "introduction". I once met a guy, a Catholic, whose first name was Luther. (I thought to myself, what WERE his folks thinking?!?!)

So too, LatinTrad signifies something that may or may not be relevant to your postings. But it just gave me an impression - one that made me nervous. I was afraid that we would once again be assailed by Pope-bashing and Council-rejecting commentary. And Byzantines don't cotton to that too well since this Pope has been especially good to us, and the Council told us to rediscover who we are. So, from my perspective, the name should really be more or less irrelvant, but it is the content of the posting that is important, and the content should not drive wedges between groups in the Roman community. (Youse guys already have enough problems to deal with - just like us.)

Oh yeah, by the way, no more NY Yankee chicanery, either!! Imagine, New Yorkers calling themselves "Yankees". The arrogance of it all.

Blessings!

Sheesh! I go to respond and work on a text and in the interim about a million posts show up. So my: "Not at all" is just hanging out there.

It's the middle of the work-day, for heaven's sake! Five minutes in lieu of a coffee break, but do we all have to do it at the same time?!?!

And to the Administrator, if one looks at the published (Latin language) protocols from Vatican II, they are from the Concilium Oecumenicum Vaticanum II. They think it's an ecumenical council. We know better, but let's humor them. It'll be our little secret.

Blessings!

As with some others, I'd have to say that the word LatinTrad would give me some apprehension (only because of some unfortunate encounters), even though I have always considered myself a traditional Latin too!

But I must say you break the stereotypes for sure.

Your decision to keep the name bespeaks who you, and most traditional Latins, really are.

So more power to you!

Pax
Michael, that sinner