That is an interesting discussion.

It seems to me that smoking cigarettes is seem as a bad habit and would make the priest appear mundane and frivolous, while a priest smoking a cigar would be seen as a luxury loving man.

Now, a priest smoking a pipe would look like some sort of very intelligent and intellectual cleric.

Exactly right.  There are in fact some things that are culturally relativist.  So, for instance, going back toward the beginning of the Church, in Rome, men who wore beards were considered boorish and barbaric.  In fact, the term for barbarian is related to the Latin word for beard.  Meanwhile, in the East, men who didn't have beards were considered effeminate.

Similarly, the perception of smoking has changed in Western culture.  If you recall, there were commercials back in the day that made smoking seem sophisticated for the ladies (with the longer, more slender cigarettes) and manly for men (Malboro man).  After decades of government anti-smoking campaigns, smoking is now considered vulgar ... except, as you point out, in the case of smoking a pipe.

I recall a pre-Vatican II joke about the Jesuits, where a Jesuit was asking his superior if it was OK to smoke while he prayed.  He was told that it's not appropriate.  So then the Jesuit tried again, asking if it would be OK if he prayed while he smoked.  To which his superior replied, "Of course, as we are told to pray always."

You’re struggling…and sinking.

Can you imagine what Lefebvre would have said about rollercoasting priests?

Would Pagliarani have even dared to ask his permission (the thought alone makes one blush).

If you can’t distinguish a qualitative difference between rollercoasting priests at theme parks, and soccer on seminary grounds, I’m certain I can’t help you.

And you’re even willing to dismiss St. Pius X to defend this nonsense.  Wow.

I don't like to imagine things like you. There is nothing immoral or sinful about this, and it's not even their 'common' type of recreation. if one were to misread St. Pius X like you did, then any form of sports would be out of the question.

I don't like to imagine things like you. There is nothing immoral or sinful about this, and it's not even their 'common' type of recreation. if one were to misread St. Pius X like you did, then any form of sports would be out of the question.

Fanboy-

Are these words of St. Pius X below consistent with the pics which follow?


"A composed and dignified exterior is a powerful eloquence which wins souls in a much more efficacious manner than persuasive sermons. Nothing inspires greater confidence than an ecclesiastic who, never forgetting the dignity of his state, demonstrates in every situation that gravity which attracts and wins universal homage.

“If, on the contrary, he forgets the holiness of the sacred character which he bears indelibly impressed and engraved on his soul, and if he fails to show in his outward conduct a gravity superior to that of certain men of the world, then he causes his ministry and religion itself to be despised. For when gravity is wanting in its leaders, the people lose respect and veneration for them.”

In the case of an airplane, it was not the priest's choice to place himself in such a situation.

In the case of amusement parks, he does choose to place himself in such a situation (as well as foregoing becomming gravity and degrading the priestly dignity of which M. Johnson is speaking).

I was only going by Sean's logic. Does playing sports like football or ice hockey show gravity?

What I  don’t understand is why take a photo and publish it.  Anyone who has been to Sanford or one of the SSPX missions in Florida will tell you that it’s all about the money.

Yes, because the concern is to remain out of the public gaze, whereas these priests were the butt of the joke of every 14 year-old giggling girl at the theme park, degrading themselves and the priesthood by their folly.

Seriously, bro, you are defending the indefensible, and making a fool of yourself.

I'll leave you to it.

This ☝️☝️☝️☝️

Not that you are as old as I, but the younger members of this forum, and many young trads in general, have been so indoctrinated with the modern world that they can’t grasp what you are trying to convey.

Idiotic.  It has nothing to do with purpose, but an admixture of the sacred (priesthood) with the profane, regardless of what their "purpose" was.  Let's go ahead and put a Monstrance up with the Blessed Sacrament in the picnic area of Sea World next, eh?  It's about "degrading ... the priesthood", as Sean pointed out.

That's a stretch of your imagination. If you folks have picnic in the picnic area (duh!!!) of Sea World, it's not a sin either. Period. 

I don't see it as sinful for SSPX priests to go to Sea World. It seems Puritanistic to assume that it's sinful. Recreation is not an unreasonable thing for Catholic priests to engage in.

It reminds me of my ancestor, Stephen Hopkins, who sailed on the Mayflower in 1620 along with a lot of Puritans. He was Anglican. Well, he actually opened an alehouse right there in their little town of Plymouth, much to the horror of the Puritans there. He had owned an alehouse back in England. He got into trouble a few times with the Puritans, who accused him of selling alcohol on a Sunday. Such is the Puritan mentality.