Today's Boston Globe included in its "VoxOp" (a feature that gives us snippets from blogs and web sites on various issues) the following quote from one Jon O'Brien from Forbes.com:
"Clearly, the great majority of US Catholics are thinking, believing, and acting in a different way than the hierarchy. That does not make us bad Catholics, we do take our faith seriously, but we also live in the real world."
Huh?
Could somebody send a memo to Mr. O'Brien explaining the not-too-subtle fact that, if one is a Catholic, then the "real world" is the one promised to us by Jesus Christ, founder of said Church, which, not incidentally, is an apostolic Church, which means that the hierarchy consists of successors to the Apostles whom, by the way, were hand picked by none other than Jesus Christ?
What, exactly, does Mr. O'Brien believe is the "real world?" And how the bleep does he (and his compatriots, noting that he uses the plural pronoun) figure that by "thinking, believing, and acting" in opposition (never mind "differently" — that's a soft word for "in opposition") to the hierarchy makes him and them "serious" Catholics?
They can't be serious!
Incidentally, the Globe, uh, forgot to credit pundit O'Brien with his, uh, full credentials, which Forbes.com thoughtfully provides:
Jon O'Brien is "President of Catholics for Choice."
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Monday, April 21, 2008
Kelly plays Katchup...and miracles!
Hey folks!
It's been a while and I've got some really good excu -- er, reasons for my absence, but first:
Praise God!!!
You can read Michael Paulson's whole story about five abuse victims of the Boston Archdiocese meeting with the Holy Father starting here.
But the absolute best part is toward the end of the three page story:
[Abuse victim Olan] Horne asked [Father John] Connolly to hear his confession. It was the first time, Horne said, that he had been to confession in 30 years.
Can you imagine the partying going on in Heaven???
Now about me...
I'm not using my computer on accounta my hard drive crashed. Now that wouldn't be so bad except that it chose to crash at the precise time my automatic back-up maker was in use. Result? All my data -- all of it -- may be gone. We're using some sort of doo-dad called "Disk Warrior" (you Mac geeks might be familiar with it) to retrieve the stuff, but so far, nada.
Which explains why the Catholic Crossword Puzzle folks got zilch this weekend, among other things.
If the data is irretrievable (although why it should be is puzzling...I did ask for Saint Anthony's help, after all) I might ask you folks to email me, so I can get your addresses. Like I said, as of now, everything is lost. But we'll wait a bit on that.
In other news, my broken foot is still broken. Two more weeks in a cast and then some therapy is in the offing. Those of you blessed enough to receive Communion daily, please be grateful! (I know you are, actually.)
Anyway, that's the story. I plan to access this computer as often as I can...and to try not to pester Saint Anthony too much.
Thanks for reading!
It's been a while and I've got some really good excu -- er, reasons for my absence, but first:
Praise God!!!
You can read Michael Paulson's whole story about five abuse victims of the Boston Archdiocese meeting with the Holy Father starting here.
But the absolute best part is toward the end of the three page story:
[Abuse victim Olan] Horne asked [Father John] Connolly to hear his confession. It was the first time, Horne said, that he had been to confession in 30 years.
Can you imagine the partying going on in Heaven???
Now about me...
I'm not using my computer on accounta my hard drive crashed. Now that wouldn't be so bad except that it chose to crash at the precise time my automatic back-up maker was in use. Result? All my data -- all of it -- may be gone. We're using some sort of doo-dad called "Disk Warrior" (you Mac geeks might be familiar with it) to retrieve the stuff, but so far, nada.
Which explains why the Catholic Crossword Puzzle folks got zilch this weekend, among other things.
If the data is irretrievable (although why it should be is puzzling...I did ask for Saint Anthony's help, after all) I might ask you folks to email me, so I can get your addresses. Like I said, as of now, everything is lost. But we'll wait a bit on that.
In other news, my broken foot is still broken. Two more weeks in a cast and then some therapy is in the offing. Those of you blessed enough to receive Communion daily, please be grateful! (I know you are, actually.)
Anyway, that's the story. I plan to access this computer as often as I can...and to try not to pester Saint Anthony too much.
Thanks for reading!
Monday, April 14, 2008
Pope should discuss abuse prevention through PROGRAMS? Come on.
Disappointing quote from Cardinal O'Malley today in the Globe:
O'Malley said he would like to hear the pope "express sorrow and regret to those who have suffered and to their families," and also to hear the pope discuss the church's efforts to prevent further abuse through programs.
Programs.
How about a little something about holiness? About reverence for the Blessed Sacrament, for the liturgy, for the Church, for all of our brothers in Christ?
Here's the thing.
If we, all of us, simply follow the dictates of Christ, both scripturally and those handed down via Tradition through the Holy Catholic Church, we don't need any bleeping programs!
What we need is to listen to the Holy Father when he tells us to be holy. As Jesus tells us.
Programs. Sheesh.
O'Malley said he would like to hear the pope "express sorrow and regret to those who have suffered and to their families," and also to hear the pope discuss the church's efforts to prevent further abuse through programs.
Programs.
How about a little something about holiness? About reverence for the Blessed Sacrament, for the liturgy, for the Church, for all of our brothers in Christ?
Here's the thing.
If we, all of us, simply follow the dictates of Christ, both scripturally and those handed down via Tradition through the Holy Catholic Church, we don't need any bleeping programs!
What we need is to listen to the Holy Father when he tells us to be holy. As Jesus tells us.
Programs. Sheesh.
Sunday, April 13, 2008
I'm no doctor, but men can't get pregnant
Jeff Jacoby's column on the oohs and aahs of the lady-who-thinks-she's-a-guy Tracy LaGondino's pregnancy is worth the read.
But particularly so is this parenthetical comment:
(Why, come to think of it, do the people who insist gender is fluid and subjective so often argue the opposite when it comes to race?)
Why indeed? There's no logic in this insistence. There may be a "feel good thing goin' on thing" to it...but no logic.
But particularly so is this parenthetical comment:
(Why, come to think of it, do the people who insist gender is fluid and subjective so often argue the opposite when it comes to race?)
Why indeed? There's no logic in this insistence. There may be a "feel good thing goin' on thing" to it...but no logic.
Saturday, April 12, 2008
And the odd headline of the week belongs to...
"Gift gags?"
I thought the Archdiocese of Washington was "anti-gag"...I mean, they pushed like heck to have that bobble-head Metro ad (which I thought was actually very good, except for the costuming of the doll) pulled.
Well, we all make mistakes. :-)
I thought the Archdiocese of Washington was "anti-gag"...I mean, they pushed like heck to have that bobble-head Metro ad (which I thought was actually very good, except for the costuming of the doll) pulled.
Well, we all make mistakes. :-)
Monday, April 07, 2008
Not probably the best reason to go to a Papal Mass
What saddens me most about this poor guy is his self-description (other than that of a writer):
Scott D. Pomfret is the author of Since My Last Confession, a Gay Catholic Memoir, and a lector and eucharistic minister at the gay-friendly Saint Anthony Shrine, Boston MA.
Really sad. Don't email him. Pray for him. And pray for Saint Anthony's Shrine. And for the Franciscan friars who believe they run it.
Thank you.
Scott D. Pomfret is the author of Since My Last Confession, a Gay Catholic Memoir, and a lector and eucharistic minister at the gay-friendly Saint Anthony Shrine, Boston MA.
Really sad. Don't email him. Pray for him. And pray for Saint Anthony's Shrine. And for the Franciscan friars who believe they run it.
Thank you.
Sunday, April 06, 2008
Bishop Fulton Sheen...
...not only cracks me up but makes me glad to actually have a television set in my temporary "quarters."
Actually, I owe a great big Deo Gratias to EWTN. Now that's something worth watching!
Oh, well, I know I'm no doubt preaching to the choir but to tell you the truth I've never been all that big on any TV in recent years (no doubt an explanation for my tears on the aforementioned "Leave it to Beaver" episode.
But being pretty much stuck in a room where there alternative is reading or trying not to notice that (a) nature is calling again or (b) the skin inside your cast itches, the tube (and many thanks to my buddy Alden for bringing it down for me) suddenly doesn't look all that awful.
Yesterday, I watched a Bible study course on Exodus — particularly on the plagues of Egypt. Fascinating stuff! Today — after receiving the Blessed Sacrament from said good friend Alden — I was able to watch a number of Masses and Holy Hours. One Mass was great...it included, during Communion, an audio Act of Desire!
God is good.
Actually, I owe a great big Deo Gratias to EWTN. Now that's something worth watching!
Oh, well, I know I'm no doubt preaching to the choir but to tell you the truth I've never been all that big on any TV in recent years (no doubt an explanation for my tears on the aforementioned "Leave it to Beaver" episode.
But being pretty much stuck in a room where there alternative is reading or trying not to notice that (a) nature is calling again or (b) the skin inside your cast itches, the tube (and many thanks to my buddy Alden for bringing it down for me) suddenly doesn't look all that awful.
Yesterday, I watched a Bible study course on Exodus — particularly on the plagues of Egypt. Fascinating stuff! Today — after receiving the Blessed Sacrament from said good friend Alden — I was able to watch a number of Masses and Holy Hours. One Mass was great...it included, during Communion, an audio Act of Desire!
God is good.
Friday, April 04, 2008
Getting "the weepies" sheesh.
Okay, something's definitely wrong here.
Granted, I've got a broken foot.
Sure, I'm pretty much stuck in a makeshift room on the ground level (with permission to hobble out when nature calls and no permission to sneak a peak at email, etc. but I try to do it once a day anyway).
But there is simply no excuse for what I allowed to happen today:
I broke into sobs at a Leave It To Beaver episode!
Good grief.
Granted, I've got a broken foot.
Sure, I'm pretty much stuck in a makeshift room on the ground level (with permission to hobble out when nature calls and no permission to sneak a peak at email, etc. but I try to do it once a day anyway).
But there is simply no excuse for what I allowed to happen today:
I broke into sobs at a Leave It To Beaver episode!
Good grief.
Wednesday, April 02, 2008
Pray for us, Papa!
Photo courtesy pbs.orgRemembering Servant of God John Paul II on the third anniversary of his departure from this world.
Monday, March 24, 2008
Happy Easter!
Light blogging, perhaps, for a few days...unfortunately I broke my foot on Easter Sunday, sheesh.
Enjoy this glorious season!
Enjoy this glorious season!
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Alleluia, Queen of Heaven!
Queen of Heaven
V. Queen of Heaven, rejoice, alleluia.
R. For He whom you did merit to bear, alleluia.
V. Has risen, as he said, alleluia.
R. Pray for us to God, alleluia.
V. Rejoice and be glad, O Virgin Mary, alleluia.
R. For the Lord has truly risen, alleluia.
Let us pray. O God, who gave joy to the world through the resurrection of Thy Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, grant we beseech Thee, that through the intercession of the Virgin Mary, His Mother, we may obtain the joys of everlasting life. Through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.
Friday, March 21, 2008
The Fourteenth Station
Jesus is Laid in the Tomb
Lord Jesus,
Good Friday is the day of darkness,
the day of blind hatred,
the day when the Just One was put to death!
But Good Friday is not the final word:
the final word is Easter,
the triumph of Life,
the victory of Good over Evil.
Lord Jesus,
Holy Saturday is the day of emptiness,
the day of bewilderment and dread,
the day when everything seems over!
But Holy Saturday is not the final day,
the final day is Easter,
the Light that is kindled anew,
the Love that conquers all hatred.
Lord Jesus,
whenever we experience our own Good Friday,
and we feel the anguish of Holy Saturday,
give us Mary’s unwavering faith,
so that we can believe in the reality of Easter;
give us her clear-sighted gaze
so that we can see the brilliant dawn
that announces the final day of history:
“new heavens and a new earth”
already present in you,
Jesus, Crucified and Risen. Amen!
© Copyright 2006 - Libreria Editrice Vaticana
whenever we experience our own Good Friday,
and we feel the anguish of Holy Saturday,
give us Mary’s unwavering faith,
so that we can believe in the reality of Easter;
give us her clear-sighted gaze
so that we can see the brilliant dawn
that announces the final day of history:
“new heavens and a new earth”
already present in you,
Jesus, Crucified and Risen. Amen!
© Copyright 2006 - Libreria Editrice Vaticana
Thursday, March 20, 2008
Gorbachev: "closet" Christian comes out!
Mikhail Gorbachev, the last Soviet Communist leader, has acknowledged his Christian faith for the first time in a surprise visit to the tomb of St Francis of Assisi.
Story here. Or pretty much anywhere you want to google it. (Just be prepared to read, on the blogs, the usual sweating about the small stuff when the point is...well, the point is to rejoice.)
A blessed Triduum to you!
Story here. Or pretty much anywhere you want to google it. (Just be prepared to read, on the blogs, the usual sweating about the small stuff when the point is...well, the point is to rejoice.)
A blessed Triduum to you!
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Spy Wednesday and despair...and Mary
Traditionally today, the Wednesday before Easter, is called "Spy Wednesday," recalling that today Judas Iscariot sold out his Friend...the One he truly believed was his Savior.
At the Office of Tenebrae service at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross, I reflected on many things. From the opening—"God, come to my assistance!"—through the nocturns of vigils, the Lamentations, through the homily, intercessions, and the terrible, wonderful, horrifying Strepitus, I wondered at how many times I've sold out my Savior this year.
And I thought, too, about how much I had in common with the apostle Judas.
Despair is an ugly thing invented by Satan.
Last Sunday I lost my temper. I'd just confessed to exactly the same sin some two or three days earlier. While knowing that the Sacrament of Reconciliation would be offered that evening during a Holy Hour, my initial inclination was to bag it. "I'll only commit this sin again and again and again," I remember thinking.
God intervened my erroneous thinking...or maybe it was Mary.
In any case, while facing the monstrance with the tiny round wafer in which Jesus disguised Himself, I found myself moving, almost against my will at first, to the priest in the confessional. Once again, I was saved from myself.
At a Passion Play in Germany, many years ago...
Father Greg Staab, visiting priest at Saint Francis Chapel, related a story earlier today. It seems that, when the actor playing Judas was about to hang himself, a little girl cried out:
"Why doesn't he go to Mary???? He should go to Mary!!!"
Indeed.
Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ is a movie I've seen only once but most of the lines are etched in my memory. One now particularly stands out in my mind. Peter, a wreck after denying Jesus, runs to Mary and says "I've denied Him, Mother!" And that confession to the Mother of God led him to seek mercy and salvation from Him Who is Mercy.
There is still time to seek reconciliation before Easter. I beg you, if you are in need of it, to repent and confess. There is no sin—no matter what the father of lies tries to tell you—that Jesus will not forgive.
Don't take my word for it...ask His Mother, and ours.
May you be blessed abundantly this Holy Week and always.
Lord, have mercy on us.
At the Office of Tenebrae service at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross, I reflected on many things. From the opening—"God, come to my assistance!"—through the nocturns of vigils, the Lamentations, through the homily, intercessions, and the terrible, wonderful, horrifying Strepitus, I wondered at how many times I've sold out my Savior this year.
And I thought, too, about how much I had in common with the apostle Judas.
Despair is an ugly thing invented by Satan.
Last Sunday I lost my temper. I'd just confessed to exactly the same sin some two or three days earlier. While knowing that the Sacrament of Reconciliation would be offered that evening during a Holy Hour, my initial inclination was to bag it. "I'll only commit this sin again and again and again," I remember thinking.
God intervened my erroneous thinking...or maybe it was Mary.
In any case, while facing the monstrance with the tiny round wafer in which Jesus disguised Himself, I found myself moving, almost against my will at first, to the priest in the confessional. Once again, I was saved from myself.
At a Passion Play in Germany, many years ago...
Father Greg Staab, visiting priest at Saint Francis Chapel, related a story earlier today. It seems that, when the actor playing Judas was about to hang himself, a little girl cried out:
"Why doesn't he go to Mary???? He should go to Mary!!!"
Indeed.
Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ is a movie I've seen only once but most of the lines are etched in my memory. One now particularly stands out in my mind. Peter, a wreck after denying Jesus, runs to Mary and says "I've denied Him, Mother!" And that confession to the Mother of God led him to seek mercy and salvation from Him Who is Mercy.
There is still time to seek reconciliation before Easter. I beg you, if you are in need of it, to repent and confess. There is no sin—no matter what the father of lies tries to tell you—that Jesus will not forgive.
Don't take my word for it...ask His Mother, and ours.
May you be blessed abundantly this Holy Week and always.
Lord, have mercy on us.
Monday, March 17, 2008
Boston's "Saint Patrick's Day Breakfast:" maybe it's time to call for the tab and end it
On the Sunday before Saint Patrick's feast day, Boston pols get together and basically make idiots out of themselves at a publicized breakfast. I don't know why. But it's really getting old. What especially seems unnerving to me is that this year, the pols -- many of them Catholic -- didn't seem to care that their antics took place on Palm Sunday of the Lord's Passion. Give it up, folks. Yes, Patrick is the patron of Boston, but this stuff has little to do with sainthood.
Photo credit: Aram Boghosian for The Boston Globe
Saturday, March 15, 2008
First Mass at Qatari church
DOHA (AFP) — Thousands of Christians took part on Saturday in the first mass at Muslim Qatar's only church, opened this week despite threats from Islamists.
Vatican envoy Cardinal Ivan Dias presided over the eucharist attended by around 15,000 worshippers at Our Lady of the Rosary Roman Catholic church in Doha, thanking "God and Qatar for this great gift".
Friday, March 14, 2008
Okay, another Catholic trivia question (although I'd like to use a word other than "trivia" for this stuff)
The name: Thomas a Kempis.
His most famous book is?
Is he a canonized saint?
His most famous book is?
Is he a canonized saint?
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Frankly, another trivia question
Who is the first recorded "Francis" in history?
What was his original name?
Why was his name changed to "Francis?"
Okay this is probably an easy one, but go for it.
(Got a trivia question to share? Use the "email Kelly" button on the left and I'll blog it. If references are needed, please supply them, and let me know if you want your identity revealed.)
What was his original name?
Why was his name changed to "Francis?"
Okay this is probably an easy one, but go for it.
(Got a trivia question to share? Use the "email Kelly" button on the left and I'll blog it. If references are needed, please supply them, and let me know if you want your identity revealed.)
Monday, March 10, 2008
Abortion is a deadly sin! (More at eleven.)
Drug pushers, the obscenely rich, environmental polluters and “manipulative” genetic scientists beware – you may be in danger of losing your mortal soul unless you repent.
("Mortal" soul?)
Another rather idiotic article from our good friends at the MSM—this time from the UK—is festooned with silliness like this.
Accompanied by the usual comments which are best viewed after much prayer and fasting.
("Mortal" soul?)
Another rather idiotic article from our good friends at the MSM—this time from the UK—is festooned with silliness like this.
Accompanied by the usual comments which are best viewed after much prayer and fasting.
Sunday, March 09, 2008
Catholic Trivia Time!
Okay, here we go.
The italicized paragraph describing what happened at, let's say, a Roman Catholic church in Omaha, reveals and/or contains a number of errors. Identify them.
Following the distribution of Holy Communion at Mass last Sunday, the lay Eucharistic Minsters proceded to the sacrarium in the sacristy, into which they reverently disposed of the unused wine. Then they purified the sacred vessels. This done, they returned to their seats in the sanctuary.
Remember:
The italicized paragraph describing what happened at, let's say, a Roman Catholic church in Omaha, reveals and/or contains a number of errors. Identify them.
Following the distribution of Holy Communion at Mass last Sunday, the lay Eucharistic Minsters proceded to the sacrarium in the sacristy, into which they reverently disposed of the unused wine. Then they purified the sacred vessels. This done, they returned to their seats in the sanctuary.
Remember:
- Spelling counts!
- References aren't necessary, but they may boost your score.
- I count 5 errors. Am I right? Tell me.
- Use the comment boxes, rather than emailing me your answers.
Saturday, March 08, 2008
Set your clock ahead ONE HOUR! DO IT NOW or you'll FORGET!!! NOW! DON'T WAIT!!!
This is a public service announcement from the ever-so-gentle Lady in the Pew.
Thursday, March 06, 2008
Saint Joseph Novena reminder
Kristen reminds us that the Feast of Saint Joseph has been moved to March 15, because of Holy Week. See her beautiful post here. (By the way, her blog is pretty cool!)
Eucharistic Prayer: what's with omitting the intercession for clergy (and the add-ons, by the way)?
The most common, in my experience, Eucharistic Prayer used is Number 2. (My preference is the Roman Canon but my preference isn't, nor should it be, pertinent to this post, anyway.)
In most cases, it's "by the book," so to speak, but I've noticed—and have been distracted by—the ad libbing of certain celebrants, particularly in the intercessory part of the prayer.
For example:
In Eucharistic Prayer Number 2, the missal reads:
Lord, remember your Church throughout the world; make us grow in love, together with [Benedict] our Pope, [Sean] our bishop, and all the clergy.
However, about once a week I hear:
Lord, remember your Church throughout the world; make us grow in love, together with Benedict our Pope, Sean our bishop, and all your holy people.
Or some such variation.
I've got a two-fold problem with this:
1.) It's vital that we pray for the clergy! And, of course...
2.) What about us folk who aren't exactly "holy people?"
What gives with this, I wonder? And why muck around with the Eucharistic Prayer in the first place?
In most cases, it's "by the book," so to speak, but I've noticed—and have been distracted by—the ad libbing of certain celebrants, particularly in the intercessory part of the prayer.
For example:
In Eucharistic Prayer Number 2, the missal reads:
Lord, remember your Church throughout the world; make us grow in love, together with [Benedict] our Pope, [Sean] our bishop, and all the clergy.
However, about once a week I hear:
Lord, remember your Church throughout the world; make us grow in love, together with Benedict our Pope, Sean our bishop, and all your holy people.
Or some such variation.
I've got a two-fold problem with this:
1.) It's vital that we pray for the clergy! And, of course...
2.) What about us folk who aren't exactly "holy people?"
What gives with this, I wonder? And why muck around with the Eucharistic Prayer in the first place?
Tuesday, March 04, 2008
Monday, March 03, 2008
Those Bloggin' Bettinellis...
...both waiting for the birth of Sophia.
Pray for them. Thanks!
Mama Bettinelli's blog:
Papa Bettinelli' blog:
Isabella and the unborn Sophia have no blogs...yet!
Pray for them. Thanks!
Mama Bettinelli's blog:
Papa Bettinelli' blog:
Isabella and the unborn Sophia have no blogs...yet!
Planned Parenthood caught in its own racism by UCLA pro-life student group
From L.A. Catholic:
Congratulations to the UCLA pro-life student group Live Action for their latest caper. Maybe you've heard about it.
They arranged for an actor to call Planned Parenthood "development centers" in seven states and pretend to be a donor asking that his donation go specifically to aborting black babies to reduce the black population.
Sure enough, the Planned Parenthood staffers didn't bat an eye at the caller's sickening, overt racism; they were happy to process his donation. One PP staffer in Idaho even called a racist statement "understandable."
This all makes perfect sense to anyone who knows that Planned Parenthood plants most of its abortion chambers in minority neighborhoods. PP thinks the way to get rid of poverty is to get rid of poor babies. They aborted more than 264,000 babies in their most recent reported year.
L.A. Catholic links to Live Action, which in turn links to its latest video.
Congratulations to the UCLA pro-life student group Live Action for their latest caper. Maybe you've heard about it.
They arranged for an actor to call Planned Parenthood "development centers" in seven states and pretend to be a donor asking that his donation go specifically to aborting black babies to reduce the black population.
Sure enough, the Planned Parenthood staffers didn't bat an eye at the caller's sickening, overt racism; they were happy to process his donation. One PP staffer in Idaho even called a racist statement "understandable."
This all makes perfect sense to anyone who knows that Planned Parenthood plants most of its abortion chambers in minority neighborhoods. PP thinks the way to get rid of poverty is to get rid of poor babies. They aborted more than 264,000 babies in their most recent reported year.
L.A. Catholic links to Live Action, which in turn links to its latest video.
Sunday, March 02, 2008
Pray for Monsignor Paulos Faraj Rahho...
...and for those who were killed as he was kidnapped.
Pray too, for those who murdered and kidnapped.
Story here.
Pray too, for those who murdered and kidnapped.
Story here.
Friday, February 29, 2008
Father Frank Pavone on "sitting out" the election
What’s this I hear from some people that they might “sit out” the Presidential election because they aren’t comfortable with the likely choice of candidates?
Since when are elections supposed to make us “comfortable?” Since when do we exercise that right to vote, for which people fought and died, only when it’s easy and clear-cut, and our choices are just the way we want them to be?
At Mass we pray, “I confess to Almighty God…that I have sinned…in my thoughts and in my words, in what I have done, and in what I have failed to do…”
What we fail to do can make us just as guilty as what we do. A sin is a wrong choice, and to decide not to do something is just as much of a choice as to decide to do something.
A sin of omission is still a sin - and we are still responsible for the results.
Read the whole blog here...it might not make you "comfortable," but more important than that, it'll give you solid, Catholic reasons not to "sit this one out."(H/T to Michele Peate of Unborn Word of the Day.)
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Catholics and the Komen "Race for the Cure"...and Lent
First, here's a link to why the Diocese of Little Rock, Arkansas discourages Catholics from participating in the Susan G. Komen "Race for the Cure" fund raiser. In a nutshell:
The international organization raises millions annually for the detection, treatment and research of breast cancer. A portion of the money nationally is given to Planned Parenthood for breast cancer screenings. Planned Parenthood is also the largest provider of abortions in the United States.
But do read the whole thing. It'll prepare you, perhaps for the amazing amount of lion-tossing found in the com boxes of this blog:
It's Lent, of course.
Still, truth is important to me and this line from the blogger perplexes me:
In some places, not Arkansas, Planned Parenthood is an abortion provider.
Really?
Then what does this mean?
Lies. Still, it's Lent. Offer it up, I guess.
The international organization raises millions annually for the detection, treatment and research of breast cancer. A portion of the money nationally is given to Planned Parenthood for breast cancer screenings. Planned Parenthood is also the largest provider of abortions in the United States.
But do read the whole thing. It'll prepare you, perhaps for the amazing amount of lion-tossing found in the com boxes of this blog:
It's Lent, of course.
Still, truth is important to me and this line from the blogger perplexes me:
In some places, not Arkansas, Planned Parenthood is an abortion provider.
Really?
Then what does this mean?
Lies. Still, it's Lent. Offer it up, I guess.
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
"What have you done for your marriage today?"
I heard an ad on the radio today and would've sworn it was one of those rather good commercials created by the Church of Latter Day Saints.
It wasn't. The sponsor of the ad was the Catholic Communications Campaign and gave this website.
It's actually quite good! The videos are fun, the tips are cute, and the search feature—as a test, I entered "contraception"—seems to offer no-nonsense, straight-to-the-point info.
It wasn't. The sponsor of the ad was the Catholic Communications Campaign and gave this website.
It's actually quite good! The videos are fun, the tips are cute, and the search feature—as a test, I entered "contraception"—seems to offer no-nonsense, straight-to-the-point info.
Monday, February 25, 2008
Pray for priests...pray for MORE priests!
Back in January, Zenit ran an article stressing the need to pray for priests, especially women.
Spiritual mothers
“Regardless of age and marital status, all women can become spiritual mothers for a priest,” he explained. He [ Cardinal Hummes, prefect for the Congregation for Clergy] said the commitment implies praying “for a specific priest and thus accompanying him for life,” usually anonymously.
I think this is great. But I'm asking for more...
More priests! More good priests!
When Lent began, I started asking God for the following:
Heavenly, Most Adorable, and All Loving Father, please send more good priests to work in the vineyard of Your Son. I know you hear my prayer. I trust that you will answer it, because I ask you this favor through Jesus Christ, Who with You and the Holy Spirit, lives and reigns forever and ever. Amen.
Since beginning this prayer, the following has happened in chronological order.
1.) A local priest died.
2.) A priest in residence at my parish...left the parish.
3.) An Archdiocesan priest left the priesthood, and today I learned that...
4.) A former rector of Saint Francis Chapel in Boston drowned in a boating accident last Saturday.
I still know that God my Father hears my prayers. I still trust that He will answer them.
I'm asking you to join me.
Thank you.
P.S. Please, too, pray for the souls of Father Jim Nibler, his brother Lawrence and their friend Curtis Heuer, and for the consolation of their families. Thanks.
Spiritual mothers
“Regardless of age and marital status, all women can become spiritual mothers for a priest,” he explained. He [ Cardinal Hummes, prefect for the Congregation for Clergy] said the commitment implies praying “for a specific priest and thus accompanying him for life,” usually anonymously.
I think this is great. But I'm asking for more...
More priests! More good priests!
When Lent began, I started asking God for the following:
Heavenly, Most Adorable, and All Loving Father, please send more good priests to work in the vineyard of Your Son. I know you hear my prayer. I trust that you will answer it, because I ask you this favor through Jesus Christ, Who with You and the Holy Spirit, lives and reigns forever and ever. Amen.
Since beginning this prayer, the following has happened in chronological order.
1.) A local priest died.
2.) A priest in residence at my parish...left the parish.
3.) An Archdiocesan priest left the priesthood, and today I learned that...
4.) A former rector of Saint Francis Chapel in Boston drowned in a boating accident last Saturday.
I still know that God my Father hears my prayers. I still trust that He will answer them.
I'm asking you to join me.
Thank you.
P.S. Please, too, pray for the souls of Father Jim Nibler, his brother Lawrence and their friend Curtis Heuer, and for the consolation of their families. Thanks.
Friday, February 22, 2008
And for those of you who wonder why anyone would vote for Obama...the definitive answer!
He's got the right message and the right delivery at the right time. I mean,
everytime I hear him speak, i have this guilty suspicion that i'm getting
suckered...but I just don't care.
"Yes we can't! Yes we can't! Yes we can't!
everytime I hear him speak, i have this guilty suspicion that i'm getting
suckered...but I just don't care.
"Yes we can't! Yes we can't! Yes we can't!
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Lazarus, the rich man, and the unborn
Today's Gospel is the familiar parable of Lazarus and the rich man.
Fully expecting a homily that—and rightly so—would instruct the congregation on the necessity of noticing and feeding the hungry, I heard instead a no-holds-barred condemnation of the modern day "rich man"...those who ignore the plight of the unborn.
"Who are the Lazarus' of today? The unborn who are murdered brutally on a daily basis!" The words of the soft-spoken homilist, Father Gregory Staab, temporarily pitch-hitting at Saint Francis Chapel, ripped through the hushed worship space.
And those emulating the rich man?
Father Greg spoke of an abortion debate at Boston College he attended back maybe 15 years ago. The pro-life debater and the audience waited and waited for the pro-choice counterpart to show up. He never did.
After an hour or so, the pro-life speaker told the gathering that such was often the case.
When it came to slogans and signs and rhetoric, you could always count on a pro-choicer to be visible and loud. But call for a logical analysis of the issue and the pro-choice advocate tends to eschew the opportunity.
And this was over a decade ago.
Today, as Father Greg pointed out, it is scientifically impossible to deny that abortion snuffs out a human life. Which is why we don't hear these days much about "abortion rights" but more stuff like keeping abortion "safe" and "rare" and, of course...legal.
Upon reflection, I am thinking that the modern day "rich man" is not so much limited to the dedicated pro-choicer...but also includes those of us, including myself, who, while in complete comprehension of the atrocity which is abortion, have grown weary of the fight.
This weariness must not be allowed to overtake us. Because if it does, Satan will laugh, Jesus will cry, and we will ultimately end up not in the bosom of Christ but in the eternal death of Hell.
Fully expecting a homily that—and rightly so—would instruct the congregation on the necessity of noticing and feeding the hungry, I heard instead a no-holds-barred condemnation of the modern day "rich man"...those who ignore the plight of the unborn.
"Who are the Lazarus' of today? The unborn who are murdered brutally on a daily basis!" The words of the soft-spoken homilist, Father Gregory Staab, temporarily pitch-hitting at Saint Francis Chapel, ripped through the hushed worship space.
And those emulating the rich man?
Father Greg spoke of an abortion debate at Boston College he attended back maybe 15 years ago. The pro-life debater and the audience waited and waited for the pro-choice counterpart to show up. He never did.
After an hour or so, the pro-life speaker told the gathering that such was often the case.
When it came to slogans and signs and rhetoric, you could always count on a pro-choicer to be visible and loud. But call for a logical analysis of the issue and the pro-choice advocate tends to eschew the opportunity.
And this was over a decade ago.
Today, as Father Greg pointed out, it is scientifically impossible to deny that abortion snuffs out a human life. Which is why we don't hear these days much about "abortion rights" but more stuff like keeping abortion "safe" and "rare" and, of course...legal.
Upon reflection, I am thinking that the modern day "rich man" is not so much limited to the dedicated pro-choicer...but also includes those of us, including myself, who, while in complete comprehension of the atrocity which is abortion, have grown weary of the fight.
This weariness must not be allowed to overtake us. Because if it does, Satan will laugh, Jesus will cry, and we will ultimately end up not in the bosom of Christ but in the eternal death of Hell.
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Tonight's lunar eclipse...
This isn't my picture...I was too enthralled to hold my camera steady.
Lord, how great Thou art!
Photo courtesy Mirror.co.uk
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
On the other hand, speaking of Obama the man...
I don't think slack need be cut for the Senator who just won Wisconsin. In listening to his speech in Texas, it is clear to me that this guy shouldn't have been elected dog catcher.
"At no time has change been more necessary in the United States."
No kidding? You mean that we need change in this country now, more than, say, when blacks were slaves?
That we need more change now, than when women were denied the right to vote?
"Every American child needs to be nurtured," I just heard the Senator say. Do tell. How about a "change" in a country that allows untold numbers of children to be brutally murdered every day?
Senator?
Pray for this fellow. But cut him no slack.
(Give his wife break, though.)
"At no time has change been more necessary in the United States."
No kidding? You mean that we need change in this country now, more than, say, when blacks were slaves?
That we need more change now, than when women were denied the right to vote?
"Every American child needs to be nurtured," I just heard the Senator say. Do tell. How about a "change" in a country that allows untold numbers of children to be brutally murdered every day?
Senator?
Pray for this fellow. But cut him no slack.
(Give his wife break, though.)
Michelle Obama and cutting slack time
Look, there are so many reasons not to vote for Obama but his wife's inane (and in my mind, unthinking) comment— "...for the first time in my adult life I am really proud of my country...—simply isn't one of them.
Yes, it was a stupid thing to say.
(And yes, one might find many stupid things people have said...explore this blog, for example.)
But cut the lady some slack on this one. Please.
Just don't vote for her husband.
Yes, it was a stupid thing to say.
(And yes, one might find many stupid things people have said...explore this blog, for example.)
But cut the lady some slack on this one. Please.
Just don't vote for her husband.
Monday, February 18, 2008
James Carroll nails it in his first paragraph...
As the priest began his sermon, he had trouble with the sound system, and muttered, "There's something wrong with this microphone." To which the congregation automatically replied, "And also with you."
Exactly! The banal, rote, and incidentally redundant and absurdly inelegant response requires no thought, no prayer, no...holiness.
Unfortunately Carroll loses it in the second.
That joke, told to me by a priest, takes off from the ritual exchange between priest and Mass-goers: "The Lord be with you," answered by "And also with you." It assumes a certain level of communication between clergy and congregation - the use of a common language.
It assumes nothing of the kind. It assumes, rather, a robotic response that has nothing to do with prayer, or even common courtesy.
The column is, unsurprisingly, still another dreary rant against the Magisterium...this time another hack job at the Tridentine Mass. The errors in the column are startling, even to me.
For example:
But the Latin Mass published by the Vatican last year resuscitated the conversion insult, praying on Good Friday that God "lift the veil" from "Jewish blindness."
Uh...correct me if I'm wrong but no Mass is celebrated on Good Friday.
The second most important change to take place in the Catholic Church in my lifetime was the substitution of vernacular tongues for Latin in the Mass. When it is the whole people saying, "And also with you," instead of a solitary altar boy reciting "Et cum spiritu tuo," nothing less than the democratic principle is being affirmed.
Mr. Carroll's chauvinism is showing. He is assuming that the English "translation" of the Mass is the one-and-only.
Not true, Mr. Carroll. If you'd ever, for example, participated in a Spanish language Mass, you would discover that the congregation responds to the celebrant in the very same way you deplore: And with your spirit.
The "Jewish insult" thing is, perhaps, something to be taken up in another post. (But frankly I'm tired of the whining.)
I love people. I'm bound to, as commanded by my Heavenly Father and His Son. Therefore it is only natural to give my hearty "Amen" to this prayer:
"Almighty and eternal God, long ago You gave your promise to Abraham and his posterity. Listen to Your Church as we pray that the people you first made your own may arrive at the fullness of redemption. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen."
Or however the Holy Father wants to put it.
You know, I'm sorry if people are "insulted" by prayers on their behalf, but there's more important things to worry about...salvation for all comes immediately to mind.
Exactly! The banal, rote, and incidentally redundant and absurdly inelegant response requires no thought, no prayer, no...holiness.
Unfortunately Carroll loses it in the second.
That joke, told to me by a priest, takes off from the ritual exchange between priest and Mass-goers: "The Lord be with you," answered by "And also with you." It assumes a certain level of communication between clergy and congregation - the use of a common language.
It assumes nothing of the kind. It assumes, rather, a robotic response that has nothing to do with prayer, or even common courtesy.
The column is, unsurprisingly, still another dreary rant against the Magisterium...this time another hack job at the Tridentine Mass. The errors in the column are startling, even to me.
For example:
But the Latin Mass published by the Vatican last year resuscitated the conversion insult, praying on Good Friday that God "lift the veil" from "Jewish blindness."
Uh...correct me if I'm wrong but no Mass is celebrated on Good Friday.
The second most important change to take place in the Catholic Church in my lifetime was the substitution of vernacular tongues for Latin in the Mass. When it is the whole people saying, "And also with you," instead of a solitary altar boy reciting "Et cum spiritu tuo," nothing less than the democratic principle is being affirmed.
Mr. Carroll's chauvinism is showing. He is assuming that the English "translation" of the Mass is the one-and-only.
Not true, Mr. Carroll. If you'd ever, for example, participated in a Spanish language Mass, you would discover that the congregation responds to the celebrant in the very same way you deplore: And with your spirit.
The "Jewish insult" thing is, perhaps, something to be taken up in another post. (But frankly I'm tired of the whining.)
I love people. I'm bound to, as commanded by my Heavenly Father and His Son. Therefore it is only natural to give my hearty "Amen" to this prayer:
"Almighty and eternal God, long ago You gave your promise to Abraham and his posterity. Listen to Your Church as we pray that the people you first made your own may arrive at the fullness of redemption. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen."
Or however the Holy Father wants to put it.
You know, I'm sorry if people are "insulted" by prayers on their behalf, but there's more important things to worry about...salvation for all comes immediately to mind.
Saturday, February 16, 2008
Peter Phillips can't be king, on accounta he's marrying a Catholic
When the Princess Royal's son, Peter Phillips, marries his Canadian fiancee, Autumn Kelly, at St George's chapel in Windsor in May, he will give up any hope of being crowned king of England...
Her Majesty's eldest grandson, who is 11th in line to the throne, has been forced to make the decision because Autumn was baptised a Catholic. It is a provision of the 1701 Act of Settlement, which enshrined the Protestant ascendancy, that monarchs and their heirs are forbidden to become or even marry Catholics.
In cases like these—you know, abdicating rights to thrones and all that—I always choose to look at the bright side. Like, you gotta know that the wedding will be a blast!
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Father Edward McDonough, R.I.P.
Father Edward McDonough, CSSR, died. Perhaps appropriately, he died on the 150th anniversary of Our Lady's first appearance at Lourdes. I know him. In many ways, he was an instrument God used to change my life.
Requiescat in pace, dearest man. See here and here and please pray for his soul. Thank you.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Hope for Judeo-Christian unity?
The Archdiocese of Boston and the Anti-Defamation League are partnering to teach Jews about Christianity. According to The Boston Globe's Michael Paulson:
...interest in Christianity among Jewish educators has been growing in part for one simple reason: the high rate of interfaith marriages. Many Jewish educators now teach children who have a Christian parent or grandparents.
I'd like to think it's more than that.
The world's largest faith is often mentioned in Jewish schools largely in negative contexts - the Crusades and the Holocaust. But the advocates of the New Directions program are arguing that Jewish teachers should be able to answer questions about Christianity accurately and respectfully both for moral reasons - because it's the right thing to do - and practical ones - because many children in Jewish schools have Christian relatives, and most live in predominantly Christian communities.
I'd like to think "because it's the right thing to do" trumps the "practical" considerations. Or that maybe the "practical" considerations are God's tool in bringing this effort about.
The story is both hopeful and frustrating to me. Mostly hopeful, thank God.
"What has struck me, and I include myself in this, is how little Jews know about Christianity," said Diane Rosenbaum, the senior associate director of the Anti-Defamation League's New England region. "As Jewish educators, it is important to know about other traditions so you can teach about them with the same respect you want Judaism taught with."
Amen.
The blithe comment about "the Crusades and the Holocaust" is disturbing, of course. But perhaps this effort will enable a deeper understanding of the misunderstandings so entrenched in these events.
Catholic educator Celia Sirois co-runs the program with her Jewish counterpart, Naomi Towvin. The story notes that Sirois spent 45 minutes answering a question about The Trinity.
Don't even try, Celia! :-)
Pray that this effort bears much fruit.
And may the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob bless us all abundantly during this holy season, and always.
...interest in Christianity among Jewish educators has been growing in part for one simple reason: the high rate of interfaith marriages. Many Jewish educators now teach children who have a Christian parent or grandparents.
I'd like to think it's more than that.
The world's largest faith is often mentioned in Jewish schools largely in negative contexts - the Crusades and the Holocaust. But the advocates of the New Directions program are arguing that Jewish teachers should be able to answer questions about Christianity accurately and respectfully both for moral reasons - because it's the right thing to do - and practical ones - because many children in Jewish schools have Christian relatives, and most live in predominantly Christian communities.
I'd like to think "because it's the right thing to do" trumps the "practical" considerations. Or that maybe the "practical" considerations are God's tool in bringing this effort about.
The story is both hopeful and frustrating to me. Mostly hopeful, thank God.
"What has struck me, and I include myself in this, is how little Jews know about Christianity," said Diane Rosenbaum, the senior associate director of the Anti-Defamation League's New England region. "As Jewish educators, it is important to know about other traditions so you can teach about them with the same respect you want Judaism taught with."
Amen.
The blithe comment about "the Crusades and the Holocaust" is disturbing, of course. But perhaps this effort will enable a deeper understanding of the misunderstandings so entrenched in these events.
Catholic educator Celia Sirois co-runs the program with her Jewish counterpart, Naomi Towvin. The story notes that Sirois spent 45 minutes answering a question about The Trinity.
Don't even try, Celia! :-)
Pray that this effort bears much fruit.
And may the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob bless us all abundantly during this holy season, and always.
Monday, February 11, 2008
Mary: isn't it about time to recognize Her for Who She is?
No, my Protestant friends. I am not suggesting in the least that the Mother of God is a "goddess."
And yet I agree wholeheartedly with the cardinals who are pleading with our Holy Father to recognize Mary as "the Spiritual Mother of All Humanity, the co-redemptrix with Jesus the redeemer, mediatrix of all graces with Jesus the one mediator, and advocate with Jesus Christ on behalf of the human race."
I agree and pray that our Vicar of Christ makes this truth known and believed for only one reason: it's the truth!
And yet I agree wholeheartedly with the cardinals who are pleading with our Holy Father to recognize Mary as "the Spiritual Mother of All Humanity, the co-redemptrix with Jesus the redeemer, mediatrix of all graces with Jesus the one mediator, and advocate with Jesus Christ on behalf of the human race."
I agree and pray that our Vicar of Christ makes this truth known and believed for only one reason: it's the truth!
150th anniversary of Our Lady of Lourdes
"While I extend my cordial greetings to all sick people and to all those who take care of them in various ways, I invite the diocesan and parish communities to celebrate the next World Day of the Sick by appreciating to the full the happy coinciding of the one hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the apparitions of Our Lady at Lourdes with the International Eucharistic Congress. May it be an occasion to emphasise the importance of the Holy Mass, of the Adoration of the Eucharist and of the cult of the Eucharist, so that chapels in our health-care centres become a beating heart in which Jesus offers himself unceasingly to the Father for the life of humanity! The distribution of the Eucharist to the sick as well, done with decorum and in a spirit of prayer, is true comfort for those who suffer, afflicted by all forms of infirmity."
Pope Benedict XVI, Message for World Day of the Sick 2008
Our Lady of Lourdes, pray for us!
Friday, February 08, 2008
Yeah but see, Ray...she's pro abortion. Doesn't that make a difference?
I'm sorry, but I just don't understand "loyalty" as defined by Ray Flynn.
“Sure, I’ll tell you who I voted for,” Ray said. “Hillary Clinton. I could give you plenty of reasons why, too, but the first one is the most important: Her husband gave me a job. And a pretty good one.
And for those of you who think this doesn't really matter, it being after all, a primary, not a "real" election:
If, in the end, loyalty is not enough to propel his candidate to the Democratic nomination, Flynn said he would have no trouble supporting Barack Obama. “We’ve got to get back to old-fashioned politics,” Flynn said, “when people tried to get past their differences and work with each other. It’s time. The country can’t take anymore of what’s been happening these past eight years. Democrats are in a good place this year. The country needs someone who’ll listen to their heart and trust their feelings and value old-school things like loyalty.”
Loyalty. The unborn might want a bit of that too, Ray.
Sometimes I just don't get politics.
Even if I were a Democrat, I can't imagine voting for someone so blatantly pro-abortion. I'd change to independent status, I guess. In any case, were I one of the most visible pro-life, pro-family personalities in the Bay State, I can't imagine bragging, for bleep's sake, about supporting anybody who so obviously is fighting on the other side.
“Look, I wish with all my heart she was pro-life,” he said, “but back when I worked for her husband, she was well aware of why my opinions were on the pro-life/ pro-choice debate and both of them respected that."
What feasts we make of crumbs.
Source: The Boston Herald
“Sure, I’ll tell you who I voted for,” Ray said. “Hillary Clinton. I could give you plenty of reasons why, too, but the first one is the most important: Her husband gave me a job. And a pretty good one.
“Look, I happen to come from the old school,” he said proudly, “and that happens to be a place where loyalty means everything."
Yeah, but...loyalty to whom, Ray?And for those of you who think this doesn't really matter, it being after all, a primary, not a "real" election:
If, in the end, loyalty is not enough to propel his candidate to the Democratic nomination, Flynn said he would have no trouble supporting Barack Obama. “We’ve got to get back to old-fashioned politics,” Flynn said, “when people tried to get past their differences and work with each other. It’s time. The country can’t take anymore of what’s been happening these past eight years. Democrats are in a good place this year. The country needs someone who’ll listen to their heart and trust their feelings and value old-school things like loyalty.”
Loyalty. The unborn might want a bit of that too, Ray.
Sometimes I just don't get politics.
Even if I were a Democrat, I can't imagine voting for someone so blatantly pro-abortion. I'd change to independent status, I guess. In any case, were I one of the most visible pro-life, pro-family personalities in the Bay State, I can't imagine bragging, for bleep's sake, about supporting anybody who so obviously is fighting on the other side.
“Look, I wish with all my heart she was pro-life,” he said, “but back when I worked for her husband, she was well aware of why my opinions were on the pro-life/ pro-choice debate and both of them respected that."
What feasts we make of crumbs.
Source: The Boston Herald
On Satan and Christ's victory by Father Cantalamessa
From Father Raniero Cantalamessa's First Sunday of Lent commentary:
Demons, Satanism and other related phenomena are quite topical today, and they disturb a great part of our society.
Many intellectuals do not believe in demons in the first sense. But it must be noted that many great writers, such as Goethe and Dostoyevsky, took Satan's existence very seriously. Baudelaire, who was certainly no angel, said that "the demon's greatest trick is to make people believe that he does not exist."
Brilliant! Both in the demon's strategy and in Baudelaire's recognition of it.
Yet the most important thing that the Christian faith has to tell us is not that demons exist, but that Christ has defeated them...Satan, said an ancient Father of the Church, after Christ's coming, is like a dog chained up in the barnyard: He can bark and lunge as much as he wants, but if we don't go near him, he cannot harm us.
The key, of course, is to stay away from Satan, and close to Christ.
Here's the whole sermon.
Demons, Satanism and other related phenomena are quite topical today, and they disturb a great part of our society.
Our technological and industrialized world is filled with magicians, wizards, occultism, spiritualism, fortune tellers, spell trafficking, amulets, as well as very real Satanic sects. Chased away from the door, the devil has come in through the window. Chased away by the faith, he has returned by way of superstition.
"Do demons really exist?"Many intellectuals do not believe in demons in the first sense. But it must be noted that many great writers, such as Goethe and Dostoyevsky, took Satan's existence very seriously. Baudelaire, who was certainly no angel, said that "the demon's greatest trick is to make people believe that he does not exist."
Brilliant! Both in the demon's strategy and in Baudelaire's recognition of it.
Yet the most important thing that the Christian faith has to tell us is not that demons exist, but that Christ has defeated them...Satan, said an ancient Father of the Church, after Christ's coming, is like a dog chained up in the barnyard: He can bark and lunge as much as he wants, but if we don't go near him, he cannot harm us.
The key, of course, is to stay away from Satan, and close to Christ.
Here's the whole sermon.
Tuesday, February 05, 2008
Lenten thoughts by Cody
Cody at "Taking Back Vatican II" has a good post on Lent, along with some great ideas on penance during this holy season.
The purpose of Lent, however, is to bring us back to Christ. The word actually comes from the Anglo-Saxon word "lente" meaning "springtime". We are to have a new springtime (=rebirth) to Christ. An American Protestant might wonder why Catholics never have revivals. Well, we actually have two every year. They are known as the penitential seasons of Lent and Advent. Let's make this year a true revival of both our own spiritual life and of the universal Church!
Read the post here.
The purpose of Lent, however, is to bring us back to Christ. The word actually comes from the Anglo-Saxon word "lente" meaning "springtime". We are to have a new springtime (=rebirth) to Christ. An American Protestant might wonder why Catholics never have revivals. Well, we actually have two every year. They are known as the penitential seasons of Lent and Advent. Let's make this year a true revival of both our own spiritual life and of the universal Church!
Read the post here.
Monday, February 04, 2008
About Ash Wednesday...think before you come
From the novel "The Rabbi" by Noah Gordan:
[Lemme set it up. The young rabbi is happy because his temple is filled with his congregation on the high holidays. In the neighborhood, an elderly Catholic priest is a bit worried about the new building his congregation is constructing.]
The high holidays came and the temple overflowed with people who remembered suddenly that they were Jews and that it was time to fill up with enough repentance to last another year. The sight of the crowded scanctuary excited him and filled him with new hope and firm resolve that he would not fail to win them over in the end.
He determined to make another try while the Yom Kippur sermon was fresh in their minds. One of his former professors, Dr. Hugo Nachamann, was spending some time at the Los Angeles branch of the rabbinical institute. Dr. Nachmann was an expert on the period the the Dead Sea Scrolls. Michael invited him to San Francisco to lecture at the temple.
Eighteen people attended the lecture. Michael recognized fewer than half of them as temple members. Two of them turned out to be science reporters there to interview Dr. Naqchmann on archeological aspects of the discovery of the scrolls.
Dr. Nachmann made things easy for the Kinds. "This isn't at all unusual, as you know," he said. "People are simply not interested in lecturers on certain nights. Now, if you had offered them a dinner dance...!
The next morning, leaning on the fence overlooking the half completed church, Michael found himself telling Father Campanelli about it. "I keep failing," he said. "Nothing I do will get them inside the temple."
The priest fingered the mark on his face. "On many a morning I give thanks for the Days of Obligation," he said quietly.
Sigh. Ash Wednesday isn't a "Day of Obligation."
Yet, for as long as I can remember, it's a day that fills every church and chapel I can recall. Why? I don't know.
Here's the thing.
If you come to church this Wednesday, hurray! I'm glad!
Just don't be a stranger, okay?
[Lemme set it up. The young rabbi is happy because his temple is filled with his congregation on the high holidays. In the neighborhood, an elderly Catholic priest is a bit worried about the new building his congregation is constructing.]
The high holidays came and the temple overflowed with people who remembered suddenly that they were Jews and that it was time to fill up with enough repentance to last another year. The sight of the crowded scanctuary excited him and filled him with new hope and firm resolve that he would not fail to win them over in the end.
He determined to make another try while the Yom Kippur sermon was fresh in their minds. One of his former professors, Dr. Hugo Nachamann, was spending some time at the Los Angeles branch of the rabbinical institute. Dr. Nachmann was an expert on the period the the Dead Sea Scrolls. Michael invited him to San Francisco to lecture at the temple.
Eighteen people attended the lecture. Michael recognized fewer than half of them as temple members. Two of them turned out to be science reporters there to interview Dr. Naqchmann on archeological aspects of the discovery of the scrolls.
Dr. Nachmann made things easy for the Kinds. "This isn't at all unusual, as you know," he said. "People are simply not interested in lecturers on certain nights. Now, if you had offered them a dinner dance...!
The next morning, leaning on the fence overlooking the half completed church, Michael found himself telling Father Campanelli about it. "I keep failing," he said. "Nothing I do will get them inside the temple."
The priest fingered the mark on his face. "On many a morning I give thanks for the Days of Obligation," he said quietly.
Sigh. Ash Wednesday isn't a "Day of Obligation."
Yet, for as long as I can remember, it's a day that fills every church and chapel I can recall. Why? I don't know.
Here's the thing.
If you come to church this Wednesday, hurray! I'm glad!
Just don't be a stranger, okay?
Congratulations to those New York Giants.
It was a great game. Both teams played well. The Giants played better.
Friday, February 01, 2008
It takes a nun, I guess: why the Equinox "Fitness" ad is really stupid
A couple of days ago I lost it while blogging my outrage of Equinox "Fitness" club's ad featuring heavily made up "nuns" and a buffed up naked male body. I ended up deleting the blog.
Sister Julie of A Nun's Life helped me see where I made my mistake. While spending my time plotzing about the disrespect shown to the "poor nuns" I missed the crucial point.
The ad is absurd. The ad agency did a disservice to their client and the advertiser, a disservice to itself.
But Sister Julie puts it far better:
...I want to say that this ad has nothing to do with appreciating the human body or the human person. While I agree wholeheartedly with the Paulist Sisters who are taking the high road, I’ve got to take one little detour off that road to say that the ad is just bad. Bad taste. Bad spirit. Even bad advertising. ”Work out at our gym so you can get a killer body which will attract nuns.” Is that really the message you want to send, Equinox?
The money spent in a stupid ad by Equinox? Thousands.
Sister Julie's commentary? Priceless.
Read the whole thing here.
Sister Julie of A Nun's Life helped me see where I made my mistake. While spending my time plotzing about the disrespect shown to the "poor nuns" I missed the crucial point.
The ad is absurd. The ad agency did a disservice to their client and the advertiser, a disservice to itself.
But Sister Julie puts it far better:
...I want to say that this ad has nothing to do with appreciating the human body or the human person. While I agree wholeheartedly with the Paulist Sisters who are taking the high road, I’ve got to take one little detour off that road to say that the ad is just bad. Bad taste. Bad spirit. Even bad advertising. ”Work out at our gym so you can get a killer body which will attract nuns.” Is that really the message you want to send, Equinox?
The money spent in a stupid ad by Equinox? Thousands.
Sister Julie's commentary? Priceless.
Read the whole thing here.
"Finding Faithful Spouses for Our Children"
From Catholic Exchange, my friend Leila Miller writes about a project dear to her heart — and that of her cohort, Lisa Graas.
Their kids and their concern over their vocation of marriage.
The idea for this apostolate is simple, and it grew naturally over some time. A few years ago, I started to notice an epidemic of unhappy marriages and the ripple effect that spread a couple's misery to children, extended family, and even friends. It then occurred to me that many parents are working hard to ensure their children's academic and career success, but few are sweating and sacrificing to ensure that their children are marriageable. This is a grave cultural mistake. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to see that the single biggest factor in one's happiness is the state of one's marriage. And a happy marriage cannot be realized unless a parent teaches a child, by word and example, how to be a good husband or wife. We expect our children to find a spouse of worthy character, but do we make sure that our own children are themselves a "catch"?
Self-described "frustrated yenta" Leila and our mutual friend Lisa tackle this question via the Internet...in a unique site called "Catholic Moms Matchmaking."
Read the article here.
Their kids and their concern over their vocation of marriage.
The idea for this apostolate is simple, and it grew naturally over some time. A few years ago, I started to notice an epidemic of unhappy marriages and the ripple effect that spread a couple's misery to children, extended family, and even friends. It then occurred to me that many parents are working hard to ensure their children's academic and career success, but few are sweating and sacrificing to ensure that their children are marriageable. This is a grave cultural mistake. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to see that the single biggest factor in one's happiness is the state of one's marriage. And a happy marriage cannot be realized unless a parent teaches a child, by word and example, how to be a good husband or wife. We expect our children to find a spouse of worthy character, but do we make sure that our own children are themselves a "catch"?
Self-described "frustrated yenta" Leila and our mutual friend Lisa tackle this question via the Internet...in a unique site called "Catholic Moms Matchmaking."
Read the article here.
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Father Dan Kennedy. A loss for us...but just for now
Rev. Daniel J. Kennedy, 34, of Needham and Winthrop, died of a heart attack Sunday, January 27, 2008 at Saint Francis Hospital in Hartford, Connecticut.
Here's Father Dan's reflections on his ordination, less than two years ago. It's really worth the read.
Requiescat in pace, Father Daniel.
(In lieu of flowers, the Kennedy family requests that donations be made in memory of Father Daniel J. Kennedy to Catholic Memorial School, 235 Baker Street, West Roxbury, MA 02132 or to Saint Joseph School Endowment Fund, 90 Pickering Street, Needham, MA 02492.)
Here's Father Dan's reflections on his ordination, less than two years ago. It's really worth the read.
Requiescat in pace, Father Daniel.
(In lieu of flowers, the Kennedy family requests that donations be made in memory of Father Daniel J. Kennedy to Catholic Memorial School, 235 Baker Street, West Roxbury, MA 02132 or to Saint Joseph School Endowment Fund, 90 Pickering Street, Needham, MA 02492.)
Friday, January 25, 2008
Jerry Springer and the conversion of Saint Paul
Okay, call me a wimp.
(Hey...I didn't mean that literally, sheesh!)
But here's the thing.
Christians have been persecuted from the get-go.
Today we celebrated the Feast of Saint Paul's Conversion. Prior to getting knocked off his high horse (yes I know the Bible never recorded Paul-then-Saul being on a horse) the guy was an observant Jew, albeit in the only way he thought acceptable...in a lousy way.
It included, by his own admission, brutally hunting down men, women, and kids who followed Christ and throwing them into prison or worse.
Christ Himself intervened and converted Saul. Why?
I don't know, really. But I strongly suspect — as did some fathers of the Church — that prayers had something to do with it.
Take Stephen, for example.
In a Christ-like manner, the martyred Christian prayed for those who killed him. Were it not for the prayers of Stephen, would Jesus have taken steps?
"Kelly...what's your point here?"
Oh. Sorry. Well, there's this wacky "opera" slated for Carnegie Hall, New York, called Jerry Springer: The Opera. The main point of it is to entertain folks by slaying Christian beliefs...not unlike those blood-lusting folk of ancient Rome.
Now don't get me wrong!
I truly admire Bill Donohue, the American TFP, and others for blasting this monstrosity and urging action. Go for it! Defend the Faith!
But do remember Saint Stephen and his example. Pray for those who continue to try to persecute Jesus and us. Ask Jesus to intervene once again and convert those who want our Faith dead. Poor souls...they don't quite get the fact that Jesus already won forever.
Personally, I'd rather see the creators and participants of this silly "opera" seeing the light than merely closing a tacky piece of "show biz."
(Hey...I didn't mean that literally, sheesh!)
But here's the thing.
Christians have been persecuted from the get-go.
Today we celebrated the Feast of Saint Paul's Conversion. Prior to getting knocked off his high horse (yes I know the Bible never recorded Paul-then-Saul being on a horse) the guy was an observant Jew, albeit in the only way he thought acceptable...in a lousy way.
It included, by his own admission, brutally hunting down men, women, and kids who followed Christ and throwing them into prison or worse.
Christ Himself intervened and converted Saul. Why?
I don't know, really. But I strongly suspect — as did some fathers of the Church — that prayers had something to do with it.
Take Stephen, for example.
In a Christ-like manner, the martyred Christian prayed for those who killed him. Were it not for the prayers of Stephen, would Jesus have taken steps?
"Kelly...what's your point here?"
Oh. Sorry. Well, there's this wacky "opera" slated for Carnegie Hall, New York, called Jerry Springer: The Opera. The main point of it is to entertain folks by slaying Christian beliefs...not unlike those blood-lusting folk of ancient Rome.
Now don't get me wrong!
I truly admire Bill Donohue, the American TFP, and others for blasting this monstrosity and urging action. Go for it! Defend the Faith!
But do remember Saint Stephen and his example. Pray for those who continue to try to persecute Jesus and us. Ask Jesus to intervene once again and convert those who want our Faith dead. Poor souls...they don't quite get the fact that Jesus already won forever.
Personally, I'd rather see the creators and participants of this silly "opera" seeing the light than merely closing a tacky piece of "show biz."
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Bernard Cardinal Law: the myths about his resignation
A little over five years ago, my pastor and friend, Bernard Cardinal Law, resigned from his position of Archbishop of Boston after a year of near hell for everyone concerned, including me.
National Catholic Reporter made this event its cover story, which is fine...this article by John Allen is not a bad one...particularly given the publication. (John Allen generally does good work.)
But another article, written five years ago by George Weigel, bears re-reading...or reading if you've never done so.
It exposes two myths. Please read the whole article...I'm quoting a few snippets.
Myth #1: Cardinal Law was forced from office by the Vatican in response to irresistible pressures from Boston clerical and lay activists.
In brief, the chief factor in Cardinal Law's resignation was...Cardinal Law. Whatever you hear to the contrary from Voice of the Faithful*, the Boston Priests' Forum*, Newsweek or the Boston Globe is myth-making, usually agenda-driven.
Myth #2: Rome's decision was heavily influenced by the public letter signed by 58 Boston-area priests, asking Cardinal Law to resign.
The first thing officials in Rome likely noticed was that there are some 1,650 religious and diocesan priests in the Archdiocese of Boston; thus the signatories represented about 3.5 percent of the Boston presbyterate. Not exactly a landslide, that.
And although I correspond with him on occasion, I miss him.
*These are groups you may not be familiar with. Five years ago, they were considered by themselves and by the mainstream media as Big Deals. Today they are dead.
National Catholic Reporter made this event its cover story, which is fine...this article by John Allen is not a bad one...particularly given the publication. (John Allen generally does good work.)
But another article, written five years ago by George Weigel, bears re-reading...or reading if you've never done so.
It exposes two myths. Please read the whole article...I'm quoting a few snippets.
Myth #1: Cardinal Law was forced from office by the Vatican in response to irresistible pressures from Boston clerical and lay activists.
In brief, the chief factor in Cardinal Law's resignation was...Cardinal Law. Whatever you hear to the contrary from Voice of the Faithful*, the Boston Priests' Forum*, Newsweek or the Boston Globe is myth-making, usually agenda-driven.
Myth #2: Rome's decision was heavily influenced by the public letter signed by 58 Boston-area priests, asking Cardinal Law to resign.
The first thing officials in Rome likely noticed was that there are some 1,650 religious and diocesan priests in the Archdiocese of Boston; thus the signatories represented about 3.5 percent of the Boston presbyterate. Not exactly a landslide, that.
The second thing to be noticed and pondered were the names on the list. However slow it has sometimes been to measure accurately the breadth and depth of the crisis in the American Church, the Vatican is not clueless. Officials in Rome could see that the signatories included priests who had never truly accepted Cardinal Law's authority; their request for him to lay down an authority they had rarely acknowledged rang rather hollow...
The third thing no one in Rome could have missed was the text of the priests' letter itself. It praised Cardinal Law for his ecumenical and inter-religious initiatives, his work for immigrants and the homeless, and his opposition to capital punishment. But what was blatantly and (it could only be assumed) deliberately missing was any reference to Cardinal Law's major public policy concern for 18 years - his defense of the right-to-life of the unborn.
Bernard Cardinal Law, perhaps unlike the pundits and the critics, made mistakes. I can relate...I've made them myself.And although I correspond with him on occasion, I miss him.
*These are groups you may not be familiar with. Five years ago, they were considered by themselves and by the mainstream media as Big Deals. Today they are dead.
Monday, January 21, 2008
Comment test
For some reason I can't seem to comment on my own blog.
This might well be a wise decision from those who control these things! But nevertheless...
Can a few of you do me the favor of using the Halo Scan doo-dad (I know there's another name for it but it escapes me) and post a comment? And furthermore, check the little box that says that you will be notified by email if someone comments on your comment?
(Cripes...how do these people manage this???)
I'd appreciate it. Thanks!
This might well be a wise decision from those who control these things! But nevertheless...
Can a few of you do me the favor of using the Halo Scan doo-dad (I know there's another name for it but it escapes me) and post a comment? And furthermore, check the little box that says that you will be notified by email if someone comments on your comment?
(Cripes...how do these people manage this???)
I'd appreciate it. Thanks!
Reflections on Martin Luther King and Roe v. Wade
Alveda King, niece of Martin Luther King and pro-life advocate
I know the big news is the March on Washington, but I thought you'd be interested in what went on in San Francisco last Saturday.
I've had the privilege of meeting both abortion survivor Gianna Jessen in Washington many years ago...and the opportunity to hear Alveda King speak with then Boston Cardinal Archbishop Bernard Law at my parish rectory some years later. These women's words are etched in my mind.
It is, to me, not coincidental that the anniversary of Roe v. Wade and the celebration of the birth of one of America's greatest civil rights leaders are so closely spaced in time.
Not when you consider the fact that the nation's leading provider of abortion was founded to "exterminate the Negro population."
Please God, that the dream, which isn't really a dream but what we call justice, prevails in our time. Amen.
Sunday, January 20, 2008
Pope imparts learning to Italian profs...will they receive it?
Amid shouts of "Long live the Pope," Benedict XVI recounted how his visit to the 700-year-old university, the largest in Europe, had been postponed. "Unfortunately, as is known, the climate that was created rendered my presence at the ceremony inopportune."
"I love the search for truth," the Holy Father added, "the comparison, the frank and respectful dialogue between reciprocal positions of the university environment, which for many years was my world. All of that is also the mission of the Church, committed to faithfully following Jesus, master of life, truth and love."
Source: Zenit
"I love the search for truth," the Holy Father added, "the comparison, the frank and respectful dialogue between reciprocal positions of the university environment, which for many years was my world. All of that is also the mission of the Church, committed to faithfully following Jesus, master of life, truth and love."
Source: Zenit
Saturday, January 19, 2008
Can we PLEASE drop the "Eucharistic Minister" title?
I know it was a slip and I revere my Cardinal Archbishop but sheesh...to describe Dr. Mary Grassa O'Neill, the new secretary of education and superintendent of schools in the Archdiocese of Boston a "eucharistic minister" of her Milton parish is just plain wrong. (You'll have to scroll down a bit to see it, and I realize it's not that big of a deal and the blog is worth reading, but still...)
Folks. Please. READ Redemptionis Sacramentum if you don't believe me. Use your "find" button and search for either 154 or Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion.
Update: My Cardinal Archbishop's blog now refers to Dr. O'Neill as an extraordinary minister of Holy Communion. I knew it was just a slip!
Folks. Please. READ Redemptionis Sacramentum if you don't believe me. Use your "find" button and search for either 154 or Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion.
Update: My Cardinal Archbishop's blog now refers to Dr. O'Neill as an extraordinary minister of Holy Communion. I knew it was just a slip!
Father Adolfo Nicolas new Jesuit leader
Pope Benedict XVI gave his consent on Saturday to the election of the Spanish Jesuit Adolfo Nicolás as the new Superior General of the Society of Jesus.
Please pray for Father Nicolás and for all Jesuits.
Source: Catholic News Agency
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Sapienza "scientists" and students shoot their own feet. Jewish professor demonstrates common sense.
VATICAN CITY, JAN. 15, 2008 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI canceled his visit to Rome's Sapienza University amid protests from professors and students regarding the Church's role in science.
The visit was planned for Thursday, but a group of professors and students signed a letter protesting the visit by a Pope whom they claimed is "hostile to science."
Today, the protesters occupied the rector's offices in protest.
The Vatican press office reported today that "it has been considered opportune to postpone the event," which had been planned "by invitation of the major rector."
The Holy Father will nevertheless send the discourse he had prepared, the Vatican statement added.
The Holy Father is acting far holier than I'd be acting.The protesters' letter mentioned a 1990 speech at Sapienza University that then Cardinal Ratzinger gave about the Church's 17th-century condemnation of Galileo. The signatories of the protest letter mentioned that the future Pope quoted an Austrian philosopher who said the trial was "rational and just." The protesters did not mention that Cardinal Ratzinger went on to say that he was not in agreement with the philosopher.
Duh.
Giorgio Israel, a Jewish mathematician and professor at the university, noted in L'Osservatore Romano that the 1990 speech actually defended Galileo.
Cardinal Ratzinger said at that time, "Faith does not grow from a resentment and refusal of rationalism, but from its basic affirmation."
Israel lamented the contradiction of those who have opposed Benedict XVI's visit, who are purportedly defending the secularism of science, but are also negating the freedom of speech.Money quote:
"It is surprising," the mathematician said, "that those who have chosen as a motto Voltaire's famous phrase, 'I don’t agree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it,' oppose themselves to the Pope pronouncing a discourse at the university of Rome."
Monday, January 14, 2008
And all this time I thought scientists...thought.
[yawn]
Wasn't this discussed EONS ago? What's with the "scientists" and their hurt "feelings?" It's...unscientific!
Wasn't this discussed EONS ago? What's with the "scientists" and their hurt "feelings?" It's...unscientific!
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Pope baptizes babies: wacky headlines and news clips react
Pope turns away from congregation
Pope Benedict turns his back on new rituals
Pope turns back on congregation in old mass ritual
In a departure from tradition, Benedict did not celebrate the Mass at a small altar set up to face the congregation. Instead, he celebrated it with his back to the congregation, which included the children's parents, godparents, grandparents and siblings.
In fact, the Holy Father celebrated the Novus Ordo in the Sistine Chapel using the real altar, and lovingly claimed thirteen blessed children for God.
Alleluia!
Pope Benedict turns his back on new rituals
Pope turns back on congregation in old mass ritual
In a departure from tradition, Benedict did not celebrate the Mass at a small altar set up to face the congregation. Instead, he celebrated it with his back to the congregation, which included the children's parents, godparents, grandparents and siblings.
In fact, the Holy Father celebrated the Novus Ordo in the Sistine Chapel using the real altar, and lovingly claimed thirteen blessed children for God.
Alleluia!
Saturday, January 12, 2008
Friday, January 11, 2008
Clinics? In pharmacies??? How awful (according to His Honor, Mayor Menino)
Drugstores such as CVS and Walgreen's plan to run "mini-clinics" in their stores, offering limited but actually important, in my opinion (and in the opinion, I might add, of any thinking person) diagnoses of minor ailments including pink eye, swimmer's ear, poison ivy, and the like, and then prescribe medication to treat them.
This is really not all that different from what your neighborhood pharmacist would do anyway, isn't it?
But the Mayor has a problem with it.
“Allowing retailers to make money off of sick people is wrong,” said Menino, as he called on city health commissioners to help him block the so-called mini-clinics from coming to Boston.
Huh? What about allowing doctors and hospitals and insurance companies to "make money off of sick people?" Is that somehow "different?"
Pharmacists are among the most noble people I know. The mayor outta get to know them.
(H/T to Dom, whose daughter might just possibly be on the point of becoming potty trained!)
This is really not all that different from what your neighborhood pharmacist would do anyway, isn't it?
But the Mayor has a problem with it.
“Allowing retailers to make money off of sick people is wrong,” said Menino, as he called on city health commissioners to help him block the so-called mini-clinics from coming to Boston.
Huh? What about allowing doctors and hospitals and insurance companies to "make money off of sick people?" Is that somehow "different?"
Pharmacists are among the most noble people I know. The mayor outta get to know them.
(H/T to Dom, whose daughter might just possibly be on the point of becoming potty trained!)
Tuesday, January 08, 2008
Odd question on the priesthood and celibacy
A woman whose husband would like to be considered for the Catholic priesthood asks:
With all due respect, how in the hell can celibate unmarried (or never married) people possibly give adequate marriage counseling? Ridiculous. While the Catholic Church bemoans the modern divorce rates, I see them doing little to remedy this glaring oversight.
I find this question, or rather stance, rather odd.
One might, using this reasoning, may also ask:
How can oncologists who have never had cancer possibly treat cancer patients?
How can an obstetrician who has never given birth possibly deliver a baby?
How can a CPA, who has never owned a business, advise a business owner?
How can a woman (or man), who has never participated in armed conflict, possibly become President of the United States which means being Commander-in-Chief of armed forces?
Weird.
With all due respect, how in the hell can celibate unmarried (or never married) people possibly give adequate marriage counseling? Ridiculous. While the Catholic Church bemoans the modern divorce rates, I see them doing little to remedy this glaring oversight.
I find this question, or rather stance, rather odd.
One might, using this reasoning, may also ask:
How can oncologists who have never had cancer possibly treat cancer patients?
How can an obstetrician who has never given birth possibly deliver a baby?
How can a CPA, who has never owned a business, advise a business owner?
How can a woman (or man), who has never participated in armed conflict, possibly become President of the United States which means being Commander-in-Chief of armed forces?
Weird.
Monday, January 07, 2008
Proclamation of Easter on Epiphany Sunday, 2008
Dear brothers and sisters,
the glory of the Lord has shone upon us,
and shall ever be manifest among us,
until the day of his return.
Through the rhythms of times and seasons
let us celebrate the mysteries of salvation.
Let us recall the year’s culmination, the Easter Triduum of the Lord:
his last supper, his crucifixion, his burial, and his rising,
celebrated between the evening of the twentieth of March
and the evening of the twenty-third of March.
Each Easter—as on each Sunday—
the Holy Church makes present the great and saving deed
by which Christ has for ever conquered sin and death.
From Easter are reckoned all the days we keep holy.
Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent,
will occur on the sixth of February.
The Ascension of the Lord will be commemorated
on the fourth of May.
Pentecost, the joyful conclusion of the season of Easter,
will be celebrated on the eleventh of May.
And this year the First Sunday of Advent
will be on the thirtieth of November.
Likewise the pilgrim Church proclaims the Passover of Christ
in the feasts of the holy Mother of God,
in the feasts of the Apostles and Saints,
and in the commemoration of the faithful departed.
To Jesus Christ, who was, who is, and who is to come,
Lord of time and history,
be endless praise, for ever and ever.
Amen.
the glory of the Lord has shone upon us,
and shall ever be manifest among us,
until the day of his return.
Through the rhythms of times and seasons
let us celebrate the mysteries of salvation.
Let us recall the year’s culmination, the Easter Triduum of the Lord:
his last supper, his crucifixion, his burial, and his rising,
celebrated between the evening of the twentieth of March
and the evening of the twenty-third of March.
Each Easter—as on each Sunday—
the Holy Church makes present the great and saving deed
by which Christ has for ever conquered sin and death.
From Easter are reckoned all the days we keep holy.
Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent,
will occur on the sixth of February.
The Ascension of the Lord will be commemorated
on the fourth of May.
Pentecost, the joyful conclusion of the season of Easter,
will be celebrated on the eleventh of May.
And this year the First Sunday of Advent
will be on the thirtieth of November.
Likewise the pilgrim Church proclaims the Passover of Christ
in the feasts of the holy Mother of God,
in the feasts of the Apostles and Saints,
and in the commemoration of the faithful departed.
To Jesus Christ, who was, who is, and who is to come,
Lord of time and history,
be endless praise, for ever and ever.
Amen.
It's continuing to look a lot like Christmas!
And I, for one, approve!
I'm not sure what it's like where you live, but here in Boston, I haven't seen a single tree dumped unceremoniously in the trash the day after New Year's. Mine's still up -- but of course I only put it up and all Christmas decorations on Christmas Eve -- and so are many in the neighborhood. Tromping around the streets, I can joyously still see sparkling lights, Nativity scenes...everything. It's wonderful, of course, but I wonder why the change? Seems to me that not so long ago -- like maybe last year or the year before -- the Christmas Season was abysmally short.
Anyway, it's great.
I'm not sure what it's like where you live, but here in Boston, I haven't seen a single tree dumped unceremoniously in the trash the day after New Year's. Mine's still up -- but of course I only put it up and all Christmas decorations on Christmas Eve -- and so are many in the neighborhood. Tromping around the streets, I can joyously still see sparkling lights, Nativity scenes...everything. It's wonderful, of course, but I wonder why the change? Seems to me that not so long ago -- like maybe last year or the year before -- the Christmas Season was abysmally short.
Anyway, it's great.
Sunday, January 06, 2008
Jesus is God! Yes!
Oh, well, I know that you know that...but I think we all need a reminder and that's why God invented Epiphany.
Friday, January 04, 2008
New Year's resolutions...for all those others.
Face it, shall we? New Year's resolutions for ourselves tend to last about as long as the flavor of chewing gum does...if that long.
But hey, that doesn't mean we can't create resolutions for All Those Other People Whose Lives Need Improving!
So let it rip. Here are some of mine...er, for others:
But hey, that doesn't mean we can't create resolutions for All Those Other People Whose Lives Need Improving!
So let it rip. Here are some of mine...er, for others:
- I will strive to forgo umbrellas in busy city areas. Repeat to self: Umbrellas Are Evil. They have the potential of knocking out the eyeballs of people.
- I will not ever again open my driver's side door while parked on a busy street, because this is a royal pain to oncoming traffic.
- If I must talk to someone on a cell phone on a crowded bus, I will keep the discussion brief and incidentally won't regale the whole crowd with intimate details of last night's date.
- I WILL TURN OFF MY CELL PHONE IN CHURCH!!!
- As a driver, I will stop at all crosswalks.
- As a pedestrian, I will not leap out at a crosswalk, assuming it's my God-given right to cause a coronary to unsuspecting drivers.
Ellen Goodman's miffed at Hollywood. Why?
Too many heroines aren't aborting their babies.
...we are in the midst of an entire wave of movies about unexpectedly pregnant women - from "Knocked Up" to "Waitress" to "Bella" - all deciding to have their babies and all wrapped up in nice, neat bows.
Horrors!
...we are in the midst of an entire wave of movies about unexpectedly pregnant women - from "Knocked Up" to "Waitress" to "Bella" - all deciding to have their babies and all wrapped up in nice, neat bows.
Horrors!
Thursday, January 03, 2008
Catholic Media Review: new blog
In the mailbox:
In response to the controversy surrounding the USCCB's withdrawn review of "The Golden Compass," as well as Harry Forbe's review of "Brokeback Mountain," five Catholic bloggers have created a group blog called, "Catholic Media Review."
CMR which attempts to create a reliable site for those who wish to evaluate various forms of media in the light of the Magisterial teaching of the Church, and with special regard for parent's needs to protect the innocence of their children.
May God bless their work. And may He shower His bishops with the graces to make such an effort unnecessary!
In response to the controversy surrounding the USCCB's withdrawn review of "The Golden Compass," as well as Harry Forbe's review of "Brokeback Mountain," five Catholic bloggers have created a group blog called, "Catholic Media Review."
CMR which attempts to create a reliable site for those who wish to evaluate various forms of media in the light of the Magisterial teaching of the Church, and with special regard for parent's needs to protect the innocence of their children.
May God bless their work. And may He shower His bishops with the graces to make such an effort unnecessary!
Tuesday, January 01, 2008
Oh please, add your prayer to this Litany of Our Mother!
Our Lady, Mother of God, pray for us.
Our Lady, Health of the Sick, pray for us.
Our Lady, Mother of God, pray for us.
Please add!
Our Lady, Health of the Sick, pray for us.
Our Lady, Mother of God, pray for us.
Please add!
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