Maureen Dowd’s Latest Screed

Brethren, Peace and Good to All – including to Maureen Dowd, the house Catholic at The New York Times. Her latest screed was completely predictable, and it follows closely the talking points the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) and their supporters in the mainstream media have conjured and adhere to:

-          Women in the 21^st century are being persecuted for the crime of being women.

-          Republicans want to force women into chastity belts

-          The Vatican is bullying nuns “by the crepuscular, medieval men who run the Catholic Church.”

-          The Holy See’s admonition of the LCWR recalls “is reminiscent of the Inquisition”.

-          The Holy See is more interested in punishing nuns than pederast priests.

-          All the nuns have been doing is God’s work of social justice.

-          Pope Benedict is “God’s Rottweiler”.

Etc. etc. ad nauseam.

Dowd’s screed follows the standard script echoed by so many in the media. It’s not original at all and sometimes, it is somewhat conceited. How about that line that the poor nun’s repression comes from “by the crepuscular, medieval men who run the Catholic Church,” isn’t it absurd and full pathos Dodd is no spring chicken herself either – and most of the men she derides are her own age.

Dowd herself represents the uplifted bow stern of the sinking Titanic of a species of feminism at odds with the Gospel and Christian life. The age of angry girls with unresolved penis envy is rapidly coming to a close in the Church. Dowd’s screed represents the last rays of an illusion, of an ideology that once sought to redefine the nature of the Church and of men and women according to pagan tenets, but that now finds no place in the lives of observant Catholics. Good bye and good riddance!

Our duty as lay Catholics is to sweep the debris the dissidents left behind away from our parishes, hospitals, and centers of education so that we can be Catholic Christians once again, with our eyes and hearts set in the Lord in the service of one another. The dissidents are invited to join – including to Maureen Dowd – and even lead us, but in accordance to the Mind of the Church. Otherwise they should follow, or get out of the way.

The Process of Lectio Divina: Ten words of advice

Source: The Carmelites

1. When you begin a Lectio Divina of the Bible you are not concerned with study; you are not going to read the Bible in order either to increase your knowledge or to prepare for some apostolate. You are not reading the Bible in order to have some extraordinary experience. You are going to read the Word of God in order to listen to what God has to say to you, to know his will and thus ‘to live more deeply in allegiance to Jesus Christ’ (Carmelite Rule: Chapter 2). There must be poverty in you; you must also have the disposition which the old man Eli recommended to Samuel: ‘Speak, Lord, your servant is listening’ (1 Samuel 3:10).

2. Listening to God does not depend on you or on the effort you make. It depends entirely on God, on God’s freely-made decision to come into dialogue with you and to allow you to listen to the voice to God. Thus you need to prepare yourself by asking him to send his Spirit, since without the Spirit of God it is impossible to discover the meaning of the Word which God has prepared for us today (cf. John 14:26; 16:13; Lk 11:13).

3. It is important to create the right surroundings which will facilitate recollection and an attentive listening to the Word of God. For this, you must build your cell within you and around you and you must stay in it (Carmelite Rule: Chapters 6 & 10), all the time of your Lectio Divina. Putting one’s body in the right position helps recollection in the mind.

4. When you open the Bible, you have to be conscious that you are opening a Book which is not yours. It belongs to the community. In your Lectio Divina you are setting foot in the great Tradition of the Church which has come down through the centuries. Your prayerful reading is like the ship which carries down the winding river to the sea. The light shining from the sea has already enlightened the dark night of many generations. In having your own experience of Lectio Divina you are alone. You are united to brothers and sisters who before you succeeded in ‘meditating day and night upon the Law of the Lord and keeping vigil in prayer’ (Carmelite Rule: Chapter 10).

5. An attentive and fruitful reading of the Bible involves three steps. It has to be marked from beginning to end, by three attitudes:

First Step/Attitude – Reading (Lectio): First of all, you have to ask, What does the text say as text? This requires you to be silent. Everything in you must be silent so that nothing stands in the way of your gleaning what the texts say to you (Carmelite Rule: Chapter 21) and so that you do not make the text say what you would like to hear.

Second Step/Attitude – Meditation (Meditatio): You must ask, What does the text say to me or to us? In this second step we enter into dialogue with the text so that its meaning comes across with freshness and penetrates the life of the Carmelite today. Like Mary you will ponder what you have heard and ‘meditate on the Law of the Lord’ (Carmelite Rule: Chapter 10). In this way ‘the Word of God will dwell abundantly on your lips and in your heart (Carmelite Rule: Chapter 19).

Third Step/Attitude – Prayer (Oratio): Furthermore, you have to try to discover What does the text lead me to say to God? This is the moment of prayer, the moment of ‘keeping watch in prayer’ (Carmelite Rule: Chapter 10).

6. The result, the fourth step, the destination of Lectio Divina, is contemplation (contemplatio). Contemplation means having in one’s eyes something of the ‘wisdom which leads to salvation’ (2 Timothy 3:15). We begin to see the world and life through the eyes of the poor, through the eyes of God. We assume our own poverty and eliminate from our way of thinking all that smacks of the powerful. We recognise all the many things which we thought were fidelity to God, to the Gospel, and to the Tradition; in reality they were nothing more than fidelity to ourselves and our own interests. We get a taste, even now, of the love of God which is above all things. We come to see that in our lives true love of God is revealed in love of our neighbour (Carmelite Rule: Chapters 15 & 19). It is like saying always ‘let it be done according to your Word’ (Luke 1:38). Thus ‘all you do will have the Lord’s word for accompaniment’ (Carmelite Rule: Chapter 19).

7. So that your Lectio Divina does not end up being the conclusions of your own feelings, thoughts and caprices, but has the deepest roots, it is important to take account of three demands:

First Demand: Check the result of your reading with the community to which you belong (Carmelite Rule: Chapter 15), with the faith of the living Church. Otherwise it could happen that your effort might lead you nowhere (cf. Galatians 2:2).

Second Demand: Check what you read in the Bible with what is going on in life around you. It was in confronting their faith with the situation existing around them that the people of God created the traditions which up to today are visible in the Bible. The desire to embody the contemplative ideal of the Carmelite Order within the reality of ‘minores’ (the poor of each age) brought the first Carmelite hermits to become mendicants among the people. When the Lectio Divina does not reach its goal in our life, the reason is not always our failure to pray, our lack of attention to the faith of the Church, or our lack of serious study of the text. Oftentimes it is simply our failure to pay attention to the crude and naked reality which surrounds us. The early Christian writer Cassian tells us that anyone who lives superficially – without seeking to go deeper – will not be able to reach the source where the Psalms were born.

Third Demand: Check the conclusions of your reading with the results of biblical studies which have shown the literal meaning of the words. Lectio divina, it has to be said, cannot remain chained to the letter. The Spirit’s meaning has to be sought (2 Corinthians 3:6). However, any effort to identify the Spirit’s meaning without basing it in the written word would be like trying to build a castle on sand (St. Augustine). That would be a way of falling into the trap of fundamentalism. In this day and age, when so many ideas are flying about, common sense is a most important quality. Common sense will be nourished by critical study of the written word. So that we will not go astray on this point, the Carmelite Rule tells us to follow the example of the Apostle Paul (Carmelite Rule: Chapter 24).

8. The Apostle Paul gives various bits of advice on how to read the Bible. He himself was an excellent interpreter. Here are some of the norms and attitudes which he taught and followed:

When you set yourself to read the Bible...

(a) Look upon yourself as the one to whom the word is addressed, since everything was written for our instruction (1 Corinthians 10:11; Roman 15:4). The Bible is our book.

(b) Keep faith in Jesus Christ in your eyes, since it is only through faith in Jesus Christ that the veil is removed and the Scripture reveals its meaning and tells of that wisdom which leads to salvation (2 Corinthians 3:16; 2 Timothy 3:15; Romans 15:4).

(c) Remember how Paul spoke of ‘Jesus Christ Crucified’ (2 Corinthians 2:2), a ‘stumbling block for some and foolishness for others’. It was this Jesus who opened Paul’s eyes to see how, among the poor on the outskirts of Corinth, the foolishness and the stumbling block of the cross was confounding the wise, the strong, and those who believed themselves to be something in this world (1 Corinthians 1:21-31).

(d) Unite ‘I’ and ‘We’: It is never a question of ‘I’ alone or ‘We’ alone. The Apostle Paul also united the two. He received his mission from the community of Antioch and spoke from that background (Acts 13:1-3).

(e) Keep life’s problems in mind, that is, all that is happening in the Carmelite Family, in the communities, in the Church, and among the people to which you belong and whom you serve. Paul began from what was going on in the communities which he founded (1 Corinthians 10:1-13).

9. When you read the Bible, be always aware that the text of the Bible is not only a fact. It is also a symbol (Hebrews 11:19). It is both a window through which you see what happened to others in the past and a mirror in which you can see what is happening to you today (1 Corinthians 10:6-10). A prayerful reading is like a gentle flood which, little by little, waters the earth and makes it fruitful (Isaiah 55:10-11). In beginning to dialogue with God in Lectio Divina, you grow like a tree planted near streams of water (Psalm 1:3). You cannot see the growth but you can see its results in your encounter with yourself, with God, and with others. The song says: ‘Like a flood that washes clean, like a fire that devours, so is your Word, leaving its mark upon me each time it passes’.

10. One final point to be born in mind: When you do a Lectio Divina, the principal object is not to interpret the Bible, nor to get to know its content, nor to increase your knowledge of the history of the people of God, nor to experience extraordinary things, but rather to discover, with the help of the written Word, the living Word which God speaks to you today, in your life, in our lives, in the life of the people, in the world in which we live (Psalm 97:5). The purpose is to grow in faith, like the prophet Elijah, and to experience more and more that ‘the Lord lives, and I stand in his presence’ (1 Kings 17:1; 18:15).

My Walks Around the Neighborhood

Part of my every morning is to take a 2.3. mile walk around the neighborhood for exercise, it's more of a combination jogging and walking. I used to walk around my workplace every year and stop walking when summer came as it gets to hot to bear. That was only a 2-mile walk. I started walking as suggested by my doctor, she said I needed to exercise to keep my blood pressure down. Once I started I have not stopped, I truly enjoy walking and only miss a day here or there but for the most part I am committed to my walk.

Of course walking is always more enjoyable when the sights are like this:

The community I live in has a series of lakes and most homes have a lake front view. However these are really not lakes but actually they are "treatment cells" complete with "working fish". So this is in fact a Natural Water Treatment System consisting of 21 separate lakes or "cells"  covering 72 acres with the purpose of creating aquatic wildlife habitat and a water purification system.

So as you can imagine visually it is a very beautiful and well planned community and it's easy to get used to the surrounding. Bird sanctuaries, ducks all over the place, plenty of fish in the lakes, a jogging or running track around every lake, every back yard has easy access to the lake and the running tracks and just around the corner a complete shopping plaza with plenty of stores, restaurants, movie theaters, and parks.

Having an association really sucks but at the same time it makes complete sense to have it as the landscaping around the neighborhood is always we ll kept and very clean. Yes they are tought but in the end it is for our best interest if we want to live in a beautiful community.

So here are some pics I took during one of my recent walks, hope you like them.

 

 

Helpful Books for Praying the Liturgy of the Hours

Brethren, Peace and Good to you.

As you all know, I am one of the increasing number of Catholics and other Christians who pray the Liturgy of the Hours (also known as The Divine Office and the Breviary), the official set of daily prayers prescribed by the Church to be recited at specific times by the clergy, religious orders, and the willing laity. The Liturgy of the Hours consists primarily of psalms supplemented by hymns and readings and along with the Mass it constitutes the official public prayer life of the Church.

I’ve argued in a previous post that praying the Liturgy of the Hours is an appropriate exercise of the common priesthood of the baptized and that the Liturgy of the Hours is a prayer discipline second only to attending Mass and that takes precedence to  praying the Holy Rosary – which I also pray – and any other form of devotional prayer. This is so because when one prays the Liturgy of the Hours, we pray with the Church of the whole world, at all times and in every place, while participating fully of the public worship of the Church.

I haven't changed my mind about it.

Throughout my years of engaging in this prayer discipline I’ve had the opportunity to know the Psalter while I pray and become acquainted with many of the writings of the Fathers and Doctors of the Church, saints, popes, and ecumenical councils. The experience has been spiritually very fruitful and intellectually too.

I’ve been fortunate to rely for help along the way with a number of books whose titles I wish to share with you know, so that you may profit fully from praying the Liturgy of the Hours. These are:

·         The Liturgy of the Hours, by Father Dominic F. Scott, TOR. In this book, Fr. Dominic charts the history and development of the Liturgy of the Hours down the ages, from its Jewish origins to our time. Surveying the relevant documents, he also explains how the Popes of the 20^th century progressively guided the Church towards the full participation of the laity in the Liturgy of the Hours, restoring along the way the Church’s primitive discipline.

·         The Divine Office for Dodos: A Step-By-Step Guide to Praying the Liturgy of the Hours, by Madeline Pecora Nugent. This book is the most detailed, step-by-step explanation on how to pray the Liturgy of the Hours at the designate hours, every day, every season of the liturgical year. She explores all the variations one encounters as one progresses into the prayer. Written in very simple language with lots of patience, this is the book you want if you are a beginner and a dodo when it comes to praying the Hours. Follow the instructions here and very soon you’ll be an expert, ready to teach others.

·         Praying the Psalms: A Commentary , by Fr. Stanley Jaki. I purchased this book because I wanted to understand the Psalms better and penetrate their spirit. To do that, I wanted to get into the “Psalmist’s Praying the Psalms: A Commentaryhead” and Fr. Jaki’s book was a great step in that direction. He comments on every single Psalm, although some of his commentaries take a decidedly contemporary bent.

·         On the Book of Psalms: Exploring the Prayers of Ancient Israel, by Dr. Nahum Sarna, a principal scholar of Hebrew and contributor to the TANAKH or Hebrew Holy Scriptures translation published by the Jewish Publication Society. Dr. Sarna explores in his book nine representative psalms and not only did he succeed, in my opinion, to understand the mind of the psalmist, but also by placing these representative psalms in the larger context of the Hebrew Scriptures.

I urge you, brothers and sisters, to pray the Liturgy of the Hours, to pray without ceasing with the timeless prayer of the Church, and to get into its life and spirit for your own good, and the good of all the Church.

LCWR and Mainstream Media (MSM) Colluding, Expert Says

Brethren, Peace and Good to all of you.

This, according to LifeSite.net:

ROME, April 25, 2012 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Despite few in the western world having seen any in the last four decades, the image of the nun as the sweet, selfless and courageous “bride of Christ” is remarkably enduring. And according to U.S. Catholic author, researcher and expert on Catholic religious life in the U.S. Donna Steichen, this “classic” and noble image is now being used knowingly by the LCWR sisters and their supporters as a means of generating public sympathy in their fight with the Vatican.

Last week the media and the “progressive” end of the Catholic Church reacted with outrage to the announcement by the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith that the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) is to be reformed after a doctrinal investigation found that their focus had turned more towards radical feminist politics than their Catholic religious foundations.

The picture being manufactured by sympathetic media, including the Washington Post, Huffington Post, and Independent, closely following the lead of the National Catholic Reporter and America, the two main organs of the extreme Catholic left in the U.S., is that of an epic struggle between a tyrannical, overbearing, “out of touch,” Vatican, and a group of plucky, underdog sisters, fighting a guerilla battle for intellectual and moral liberty: a theme one Catholic blogging wag has described as an endless recap of the plot to Star Wars.

That this shopworn theme is a deliberate falsehood, Steichen says, is what Catholics should first understand when reading either the secular mainstream coverage of the affair or the sisters’ own comments.

Please, continue reading here.

Commentary. I must agree with Donna Steichen's analysis. A simple survey of the themes dominating MSM reporting and commentary make me suspect of a coordinated information campaign with specific talking points to mantain a unified message. Not one of the sympathetic reports disseminated via the MSM even bothers to analyze and discuss the Holy See's doctrinal objections to the LCWR. All MSM reporting emphasizes in different ways the "manhandling" of the LCWR by those mean, celibate, "patriarchal men" hiding in the Vatican who "fear strong women". A complete crock, if you ask me, but that's the spin the LCWR defenders are giving throughout the many sympathetic MSM outlets.

Let us pray for the Archbishop of Seattle (himself facing a rebellion in his archdiocese) who will lead the reform of the LCWR, that he may receive the graces necessary to lead this holy endeavor, and for the LCWR-affiliated sisters themselves, that this painful moment be a true ocassion for faith and renewal.

Looking Forward to It

We just seem to have fun everytime we are out and with the always readily and available camera we capture many of these moments for us to remember later on. Not that the memories fade right away or anything but pictures do speak a thousand words.

I think I am at a stage in my life where I really enjoy every minute we are out visiting places. Weather it's a first time or a repeat I tend to always find something new to see. Traveling on a budget makes it more interesting and makes me focus on the visuals more than on physical souverniers which in many cases can set you back a few dollars. And as I always say thanks to the new technology in digital cameras we can bring a lot of pictures, all treasured "free" souverniers.

It's apparent that Abby and I will be doing as many of these day road trips as we can. In most cases all it requires is a tankfull of gas and the inner drive to actually get out of the house and hit the road. Of course I am taking into consideration that in our case it will be very easy as we don't have little ones to haul around. So far we have been to Sedona, Jerome, Cave Creek, and Wikenburg in Arizona and to Sonoma and Santa Barbara in California. I am loving it.

To add excitement into the mix we will probably be alternating the cars and the bike. We will have the choice of top down or bike ride, and when the Phoenix weather hits the dreaded triple digits we can put those tops up and crank the AC.

As Abby and I prepare to share our lives as a unit it has been very exciting finding out how much we enjoy similar thngs. To find out that we share the same passion for things will only make things easier when the time comes to choose things to do.

I for one really am looking forward to it.

Yes, there has been a "subversion of Vatican II" but, where does it lie?

Brethren, the following is my reply to an article published in the Huffington Point, titled, The Subversion of Vatican II, by Brother Louis DeThomasis, FSC.

Well, Brother Louis, "yes and no". First let me state that I was born after Vatican II concluded and that throughout my life I've attended Mass, mostly in the "ordinary form", and ocassionally, the "extraordinary form" or even in an Eastern Rite. I'm a mature Catholic of the John Paul II generation, with a B.A. in Theology from a Catholic University. I'm also a Catholic blogger. I fully receive Vatican II.

I've never felt that I lack the "space" to doubt or question, or grow in my faith. On the contrary, what I've found is that my space for being "devout" and even "docile" has been shrinking quite rapidly, constrained by other loud voices that have been eroding the Gospel as received and transmitted by the Catholic Church, and entrusted to her pastors. You are correct in pointing out that there has been a "corruption of Vatican II" but this corruption comes from those who erect their own personal or group "magisterium" over and above the real one, replacing with their opinions those which we have to receive with divine, Catholic faith.

The "spirit of Vatican II" has been used by a choir of thousand of voices to sing their dissent. What's worse, they think their cacophony is somehow "beautiful" and "liberating" when it really isn't.

Brother Louis you are correct, too,in observing that our public discourse is suffering. I don't justify, but I do observe that a sizeable number of Catholics are tired of a theological discourse that seeks to minimize core truths of Christianity as lived in Catholicism, and replace these with "social justice", "feminism" and and the mere cultivation of ethical behavior lived only with a nominal connection to the truths that should enliven these actions. These Catholics are very angry and disappointed also at being dismissed as somehoe defective for being "devoted" and "compliant." They will often say uncharitable things - I myself have fallen in that - but even when they don't, they're condenmed.

Perhaps you should give us more credit and attempt to understand us better by the time you write your next essay.

- Read The Subversion of Vatican II, by Brother Louis DeThomasis, FSC.

Full text of Bishop Jenky's homily at men's march and Mass

Brethren, Peace and Good to all.

This is the full text of Bishop Jenky's (of Peoria) homily at men's march and Mass which I believe you should read or listen to here. Evil is striking back. Let us pray for this courageous shepherd.

---

There is only one basic reason why Christianity exists and that is the fact that Jesus Christ truly rose from the grave.

The disciples never expected the resurrection. The unanimous testimony of all four Gospels is that the terrible death of Jesus on the cross entirely dashed all their hopes about Jesus and about his message. He was dead, and that was the end of it. They looked for nothing more, and they expected nothing more.

So as much as they had loved him, in their eyes Jesus was a failed messiah. His dying seemed to entirely rob both his teaching and even his miracles of any lasting significance.

And they were clearly terrified that his awful fate, at the hands of the Sanhedrin and the Romans, could easily become their awful fate. So they hid, trembling with terror, behind shuttered windows and locked doors.

When the Risen Christ suddenly appeared in their midst, their reaction was shocked incredulity. They simply could not believe their own eyes.

Reality only very slowly began to penetrate their consciousness when Jesus offers proof of his resurrection. He shows them the wounds on his hands, his feet, and his side. Jesus even allowed them to touch him. He breaks bread with them and eats with them. And only then could they admit to themselves what had seemed absolutely impossible – the one who had truly died had truly risen! The Crucified now stood before them as their Risen, glorious, triumphant Lord.

His rising from the grave was every bit as real as his dying on the cross. The resurrection was the manifest proof of the invincible power of Almighty God. The inescapable fact of the resurrection confirmed every word Jesus had ever spoken and every work Jesus had ever done.

The Gospel was the truth. Jesus was the Christ, the promised Messiah of Israel. Jesus was the Savior of the world. Jesus was the very Son of God.

There is no other explanation for Christianity. It should have died out and entirely disappeared when Christ died and was buried, except for the fact that Christ was truly risen, and that during the 40 days before his Ascension, he interacted with his Apostles and disciples, and on one occasion even with hundreds of his followers.

Today’s appointed Gospel reading for this Saturday in the Octave of Easter is taken from the 16th Chapter of Mark. It concludes with a command from the lips of Jesus, given to his disciples, given to the whole Church, given to you and me assembled here today: “Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature.”

We heard in today’s Second Reading from the Acts of the Apostles that the same Sanhedrin that had condemned Jesus was amazed at the boldness of Peter and John. Perceiving them to be uneducated, ordinary men, they recognized them as companions of Jesus. They warned them never again to teach, or speak to anyone, in the name of Jesus.

But the elders and the scribes might as well have tried to turn back the tide, or hold back an avalanche. Peter and John had seen the Risen Christ with their own eyes. Peter and John were filled with the Holy Spirit. They asked whether it is right “in the sight of God for us to obey you rather than God. It is impossible for us not to speak about what we have seen and heard.”

And Peter and John and all the Apostles, starting first in Jerusalem in Judea and Galilee and then to the very ends of the earth, announced the Resurrection and the Good News to everyone they encountered.
According to the clear testimony of the Scriptures, these Apostles had once been rather ordinary men – like you and me. Their faith hadn’t always been strong. They made mistakes. They committed sins. They were often afraid and confused.

But meeting the Risen Lord had changed everything about these first disciples, and knowing the Risen Lord should also change everything about us.

You know, it has never been easy to be a Christian and it’s not supposed to be easy! The world, the flesh, and the devil will always love their own, and will always hate us. As Jesus once predicted, they hated me, they will certainly hate you.

But our Faith, when it is fully lived, is a fighting faith and a fearless faith. Grounded in the power of the resurrection, there is nothing in this world, and nothing in hell, that can ultimately defeat God’s one, true, holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church.

For 2,000 years the enemies of Christ have certainly tried their best. But think about it. The Church survived and even flourished during centuries of terrible persecution, during the days of the Roman Empire.

The Church survived barbarian invasions. The Church survived wave after wave of Jihads. The Church survived the age of revolution. The Church survived Nazism and Communism.

And in the power of the resurrection, the Church will survive the hatred of Hollywood, the malice of the media, and the mendacious wickedness of the abortion industry.

The Church will survive the entrenched corruption and sheer incompetence of our Illinois state government, and even the calculated disdain of the President of the United States, his appointed bureaucrats in HHS, and of the current majority of the federal Senate.

May God have mercy on the souls of those politicians who pretend to be Catholic in church, but in their public lives, rather like Judas Iscariot, betray Jesus Christ by how they vote and how they willingly cooperate with intrinsic evil.

As Christians we must love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us, but as Christians we must also stand up for what we believe and always be ready to fight for the Faith. The days in which we live now require heroic Catholicism, not casual Catholicism. We can no longer be Catholics by accident, but instead be Catholics by conviction.

In our own families, in our parishes, where we live and where we work – like that very first apostolic generation – we must be bold witnesses to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. We must be a fearless army of Catholic men, ready to give everything we have for the Lord, who gave everything for our salvation.
Remember that in past history other governments have tried to force Christians to huddle and hide only within the confines of their churches like the first disciples locked up in the Upper Room.

In the late 19th century, Bismarck waged his “Kulturkampf,” a Culture War, against the Roman Catholic Church, closing down every Catholic school and hospital, convent and monastery in Imperial Germany.
Clemenceau, nicknamed “the priest eater,” tried the same thing in France in the first decade of the 20th Century.

Hitler and Stalin, at their better moments, would just barely tolerate some churches remaining open, but would not tolerate any competition with the state in education, social services, and health care.
In clear violation of our First Amendment rights, Barack Obama – with his radical, pro abortion and extreme secularist agenda, now seems intent on following a similar path.

Now things have come to such a pass in America that this is a battle that we could lose, but before the awesome judgement seat of Almighty God this is not a war where any believing Catholic may remain neutral.

This fall, every practicing Catholic must vote, and must vote their Catholic consciences, or by the following fall our Catholic schools, our Catholic hospitals, our Catholic Newman Centers, all our public ministries -- only excepting our church buildings – could easily be shut down. Because no Catholic institution, under any circumstance, can ever cooperate with the instrinsic evil of killing innocent human life in the womb.

No Catholic ministry – and yes, Mr. President, for Catholics our schools and hospitals are ministries – can remain faithful to the Lordship of the Risen Christ and to his glorious Gospel of Life if they are forced to pay for abortions.

Now remember what was the life-changing experience that utterly transformed those fearful and quaking disciples into fearless, heroic apostles. They encountered the Risen Christ. They reverenced his sacred wounds. They ate and drank with him.

Is that not what we do here together, this morning at this annual men’s march Mass?

This is the Saturday of the Octave of Easter, a solemnity so great and central to our Catholic faith that Easter Day is celebrated for eight full days, and the Easter season is joyously observed as the Great 50 Days of Easter. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, Christ – risen from the grave – is in our midst. His Holy Word teaches us the truth. His Sacred Body and Blood becomes our food and drink.

The Risen Christ is our Eternal Lord; the Head of his Body, the Church; our High Priest; our Teacher; our Captain in the well-fought fight.

We have nothing to fear, but we have a world to win for him. We have nothing to fear, for we have an eternal destiny in heaven. We have nothing to fear, though the earth may quake, kingdoms may rise and fall, demons may rage, but St. Michael the Archangel, and all the hosts of heaven, fight on our behalf.
No matter what happens in this passing moment, at the end of time and history, our God is God and Jesus is Lord, forever and ever.

Christus vincit! Christus regnat! Christus imperat!

Christ wins! Christ reigns! Christ commands!

(Source)

Fabulous Fords Forever 2012

I've been interested in Mustangs since my uncle was given a dilapidated 66 fast back that got resurrected and eventually stolen never to be found. As a teenager I got to drive it everyday to school for a whole year and I knew then I would some day own one.

Then in 1990 I purchased a used but well kept 93 convertible which I still own to this day. The fox body is showing it's age so I decided to purchase another used Mustang, this one a 2007 coupe. I enjoy and love both my ponies and actually really drive them alot.


The interior of my 07. Gotta have the comforts to make those trips more enjoyable.

 I know a lot of people that buy this cars only to put them in their garage and used them occasionally on a weekend drive, but not me. I am of the belief that it's a machine and it has to be used and enjoyed, otherwise what is the point?

So at least eight years out of the thirteen that I have owned my fox body I have made the treck to California for the yearly Fabulous Fords Forever car show at Knott's Berry Farm and to me it just does not get old. This year was not the exception. The trip was nice, the weather was the best for the show in all the years I have attended, it was slightly cloudy and the sun only briefly broke through just before the show was over. So it wasn't hot at all as compared to previous years.



There she is, capturing little video pegs during at the show.

 Another plus is that Abby actually enjoys coming to the car shows with me and totally gets into the spirit of things. She likes having the souvenier t-shirts and is good at taking pictures too. Now if I could only get her to like lowered cars. She claims they do not look good lowered which is crazy thinking if you know what I mean.

My dream pick up truck is an old Ford F-100 and when I showed her one I liked at the show she agreed with me 100%, yep, I say she is definitely a keeper.

At nearly 2000 cars on display it is hard to keep track of which aisles we had walked and which one we hadn't but overall I think we pretty much covered most of the show. The Capri section brought her memories as my lil sister's first car was a Capri and they used to probably ditch school and go cruising in it. She says no, but I am sure they did. She had to take a couple of pictures of one and texted it to her.

My little sister's first car was a Capri just like this one.

To many cars are only transportation but to some of us they are an extension of our individuality and many of us have memories from days gone by which were brought but a particular vehicle. Many firsts happen in a car and also many bad memories too. Bottom line, getting from point A to point B is always better and more enjoyable if you like your car.

Too bad she still doesn't know how to drive a stick shift. Not! she drives faster than I.

As usual I took too many pictures from the show so here are some I liked, I hope you enjoy them too.

Awesome station wagon.

This Galaxy was fully restored and very pristine.

Loved this vintage pedal Mustang.

Abby really liked these T-birds.

A woody!



Fully restored tow truck.



Can I have one of each or all of the above?

Mazeltov! or something...

Typing this on my iPad in a hotel room in Tucson, I will be brief because this keyboard is too small for really articulate expression. it also changes words very stubbornly. I tried to say I miss Chica my dog and it turned out Chicago! I am on my way to CA for my son's wedding! never thought that would happen. Drove up with a British couple who are flying home. A great choice of traveling companions, they kept me amused and shortened the trip even tho we had to crawl through Hermosillo. I would upload a photo of Chica who I miss so much but I haven't figured out yet how to do that on an iPad. so little time, so much to learn...

Father Z on Nuns Gone Wild

Brethren, Peace and Good to all of you in Jesus' Name.

Fr. John Zuhlsdorf over at his blog reminds us of the track record of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) through the years. It is a good read and also a stark reminder as to why the Holy See's assessment was so necessary.

I invite you to read his post here.

LCWR-supporters in the media are spinning the Holy See's intervention as a "we don't like the LCWR's work among the poor and downtrodden and we'll rather have you toe orthodoxy". That's a bold-faced lie. Again, take up Fr. Z's invitation to take a trip  down memory lane if you need more proof.

Mainstream Media Bias Shows in LCWR’s Doctrinal Assessment Coverage

Brethren, Peace and Good to all of you in the Messiah, Jesus.

As soon as the Holy See published its Doctrinal Assessment of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR; see the full document here) I knew the Mainstream Media were going to have a field day with it, and that their sympathies would fall right behind the dissenting sisters.

I was not disappointed.

Nevertheless, I will leave further analysis to the media professionals themselves, such as this one from the Get Religion site, which I invite you to read. Here’s an excerpt:

As the media fallout continues from the Vatican’s decision to rein in the Leadership Conference of Women Religious … I have been especially interested in the degree to which journalists are certain that this action was rooted in tensions caused by recent debates over health care, abortion and homosexuality.

The key word that interests me is “recent.”

I say this because, long ago, during my days in Denver, I covered quite a few events related to the work of liberal nuns, events that had to be creating files of complaints in somebody’s Vatican file cabinets. Nuns and feminism? Sure. Nuns and watered down forms of Wicca and neopaganism? Sure. Nuns and abortion rights? Sure.

In one memorable event, the famous duo of Sister Jeannine Gramick and Father Robert Nugent came to town for a New Ways Ministry mini-conference on fighting homophobia in the church. I registered as a reporter and took my tape recorder to the main sessions.

Big idea No. 1: Homophobia is a sin because it believes x, y and z. Big idea No. 2: Pope John Paul II needed to repent — the word “repent” was used — because he was clearly teaching doctrines x, y and z.

Thus, I wrote a story for the Rocky Mountain News stating that the conference leaders had said the pope was a homophobic sinner who needed to repent of teaching x, y and z. I backed this with lots of direct quotes.

The sister and the priest flipped out and told my editor they wanted a correction. They had not, you see, called the pope a “sinner.”

I played my tape for my editor who, in more colorful language, said something like this: That’s nuts. Of course they called the pope a sinner. Why did they say all that in public if they didn’t want to be quoted saying it?

To some degree, this anecdote captures what I think this whole breaking story is about (click here for MZ’s major post on the topic). For several decades now, all kinds of progressive nuns have been standing at podiums saying all kinds of interesting and/or unorthodox things and complaints have been stacking up in file cabinets at the Vatican. The key is that these events received very little attention in the mainstream press.

Please, continue reading here. Read also this one, and while you are at it, this one. Good stuff, all of it.

You all know where I stand on this issue. The smiley nun on the right confirms the necessity of the Holy See’s assessment of the LCWR, and strengthens my support for it.

Dog and Cat of the Week: Cherie and Sugar

This is Cherie, looks like a white lab, six years old and living with a family in Guaymas, but neighbors are threatening to hurt her (it's kind of a rough neighborhood). We've had to tell them that the Center is full up. I'd take her in a hot second if I could, but she's an outdoor dog, doesn't even like to go in the house, and I don't really have an "outdoors."

Here's a young white mama cat with her litter of three (one was off-camera somewhere) stashed in a woman's garage while waiting for a new home. They all need their shots, probably worming, and when they're weaned the mama needs to be spayed. I'll call her Sugar.

Sorry for lucifer?

Brethren, Peace and Good to you in Jesus' name.

Over at Crisis Magazine there's an article you ought to read. It is titled Sympathy for the Devil and Mercy for the Damned. Here's an excerpt:

And Lucifer approached the Throne, and from across the abyss there came a clamor, a wailing bereft of beauty, tone, and voice, as though a malignant choir had become suddenly awash in boiling oil.

“Oh Great One,” he began, he who had been known throughout history as the Tempter, but who could tempt no more, “Oh Great One, we, the damned, have one last boon to bid of you.”

To a soul, the Saved looked on and listened in silent awe. This same swine had harangued them, each and all, their lives long, full of sweet contempt for God and the things of God. Like the Gadarene herd he had filled them with hate and falsehood whenever he could. In the panorama that had just ended – the Judgment – they had seen and heard his every overture to every human creature, unceasing through every moment in human history. They had heard his lies. Nothing but lies. He now slimed and slithered before the Divine Throne.

Could it be possible that he was now telling the truth?

“Oh Great One,” he snarled (for his voice had been reduced to ash, leaden tones eternally bereft of love or loveliness of any sort, no longer disguised as on earth with the lovely lilt of lying), “we the damned beg You to grant us one last wish. We beseech You, do not cast us eternally into the pit of fire.”

What? Reverse Divine Judgment? The souls of the Saved murmured in bewilderment: “How dare he!”

“Damn us, yes,” writhed the groveling husk of a fallen angel. (The Saved relaxed somewhat, but wondered still). “But allow for us that damnation will not be endless. Give us Hope, Oh Almighty One, that we will one day, perhaps long hence, cease to be. That our being, that our natures, that our suffering will not be eternal.

“We know we have merited damnation. Damn us, then, damn us to the Hellfire, damn us moaning, weeping, and gnashing our teeth. But do not damn us forever. Annihilate us. Evaporate us. Will us undone.

Please, continue reading here.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:E Pittsburgh St,Greensburg,United States

Where's that copy editor?

I couldn't resist sharing this head-scratcher in today's LA Times about a man found burned to death:

"It was unclear whether he was alive at the time of his death, said Lt. Matt Burson."

Video: Seven years ago today...

Brethren, do you remember this? That was seven years ago today.

Video: Catholic News Roundup

LCWR "Stunned" by Holy See's Doctrinal Assessment

Brethren, Peace and Good to all.

The dership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR)'s Presidency indicated through a press release they found "stunning" the Holy See's Doctrinal Assessment of their association released yesterday by the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF).

Well, if they were "stunned" they were the only ones that were. Almost everyone else following the issue were not. The malaise infecting the LCWR-affiliatedcongregations is well-known. The facts described by the CDF were substantiated, and the LCWR objections to the Apostolic Visitation that resulted in the CDF's assessment were very public and recalcitrant. Perhaps they weren't expecting the sudden "sunshine" brought upon them by the also very public release of this assessment. What is good for the goose, is good for the gander I always say.

Let us pray that the Holy Spirit be the one who leads the renewal of the LCWR congregations through those pastors and witnesses designated by the Holy Father, and that the crisis in LCWR and affiliated congregations be brought to a happy end, and their membership may again enjoy a fully authentic legitimate Catholic religious life in conformity with the Church's normative doctrine.

* Access the Doctrinal Assessment of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious.

* Access the statement by Cardinal William Levada, Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith on this matter.

Holy See to reform US women's religious conference

Brethren: Peace and Good to all.

This is significant. According to the Catholic News Agency:

Washington D.C., Apr 18, 2012 / 01:19 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- The Vatican called for reform amid a doctrinal “crisis” within the U.S.'s Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR), appointing Archbishop J. Peter Sartain of Seattle to lead renewal efforts.

The appointment was made as the Vatican Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith revealed the findings of its multi-year doctrinal assessment of the women's conference, which has more than 1,500 members throughout the country.

The assessment document explained, “it is clear that greater emphasis needs to be placed both on the relationship of the LCWR with the Conference of Bishops, and on the need to provide a sound doctrinal foundation in the faith of the Church.”

Initiated by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in 2008, the assessment was carried out by Bishop Leonard P. Blair of Toledo, Ohio, a member of the U.S. bishops’ doctrine committee.

Among the key findings of the assessment were serious theological and doctrinal errors in presentations at the conference's annual assemblies in recent years.

Several of the addresses depicted a vision of religious life that is incompatible with the faith of the Church, the assessment said. Some attempted to justify dissent from Church doctrine and showed “scant regard for the role of the Magisterium.”

Please, continue reading here.

Commentary. This is great news! I hope the Holy See moves fast to clean up the LCWR house, and with courage and determination take the necessary measures to call the dissenters to repentance, or else.

This is much overdue. Vocations to religious life in LCWR-affiliated congregations have been decreasing steadily for several years now. Many of these congregations will disappear unless a full renewal of their original vocation takes place within the Church, and not outside of her. I applaud and support the Holy See's initiative and look forward to its prompt implementation in the near future.

* Hat-tip to A Catholic View.

* Access the Doctrinal Assessment of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious.

* Access the statement by Cardinal William Levada, Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith on this matter.

SSPX Approves Modified Doctrinal Preamble

Brethren: Peace and Good to all of you.

These news according to Vatican Insider:

The Society of St. Pius X has replied to the Vatican and the answer is a positive one. Vatican Insider has learnt that the Superior of the Lefebrvians, Bishop Bernard Fellay, has signed the Doctrinal Preamble which the Holy See had presented last September as a condition for the Society to enter into full communion with the Catholic Church and secure canonical regularization.

An official confirmation of the reply should be released in the next few hours. Apparently the text of the Preamble sent by Fellay includes some non-substantial changes compared to the version originally drafted by the Vatican Authorities. Readers may recall that the Ecclesia Dei commission did not want to make the document (two closely written pages) public because they wanted to leave open the possibility for small changes that would not alter the meaning of the Preamble.

Please, continue reading here.

Commentary. It is not secret that in the past I have been very skeptical and harshly critical of the SSPX doctrinal maneuvering and lack of remorse for being in schism for over 20 years. I also said that I believe in miracles. Let's discern if this is such a one. I'll be watching closely for any manifestations of "mental reservations" and Anti-Semitism by the SSPX as they approach full communion with the Church.

Raining cats and dogs

Did I mention that we have started another dog rescue center here in San Carlos? Officially we opened in February, with a rented lot and a casita for our caretaker Juanita, and with some fixtures from the old refuge (which closed abruptly last year) and a lot of donated materials (concrete, fencing, gravel) we have created a new reality for dogs that need a safe place while they're waiting for new homes. We call it the San Carlos Pet Adoption Center.

We immediately were filled up to capacity with dogs, as you might expect, and now when we get word of even more dogs people want to bring us, we are having to turn them away. Besides the fact we're running out of space, we recently found mange on some of our charges, and don't want to take in more only to see them get it. Today we got together and bathed 12 dogs with a mite-killing shampoo, followed by a skin-healing soap and a hot-spot spray. Quite a job, but the dogs were all patient with us.

Perky looks less than perky at the moment because she's just been spayed

A young pit bull mix named Perky is tied up in a yard behind a furniture store while we try to decide who's going to rescue her. Her owner took off for California and left her here, under the illusion that she was going to be taken care of. Someone stops by to feed her, but she has no comfortable crate to sleep and feel safe in. The Capt doesn't want her here, concerned that we'd never be able to leave Perky alone at home with our dog Chica and our cat Fé.

Meanwhile, a woman named Cathy found a young mama cat with three nursing kittens in her yard, and she's worried because she has company coming, with their dog. We'd like at least to get the kittens wormed and vaccinated and when they're weaned, to have the mother spayed. But where do they go in the meantime? Everyone I've called has said they couldn't take her, but they'll call their friends. I took what hope I can from that and asked Cathy if she could set up a temporary space in her garage for the kitties.

We're learning a lot through this process. We found a vet who not only was willing to come from Guaymas to the Center to vaccinate dogs, but only charged us $300 pesos which comes to less than $30 US. That's the kind of support that keeps us going.

Cardinal Aponte Martínez Laid to Rest

Brethren, Peace and Good to all of you in Jesus' name.

The earthly remains of the Archbishop Emeritus of San Juan, Luis Cardinal Aponte Martínez, were laid to rest in a crypt at San Juan's Metropolitan Cathedral yesterday, at 5 PM local. Previously, the Cardinal's remains had been taken to his native town of Lajas, to my native town of Ponce where he once was bishop, and back to San Juan so that the Puerto Rican Catholic faithful could say good-bye and "see you later".

Cardinal Aponte Martínez carved himself a huge place in the hearts and minds of Puerto Ricans and in our history. He was the first Puerto Rican-born bishop consecrated since the 19th century when he was made co-adjutor Bishop of my native city of Ponce, and then the first Puerto Rican Archbishop of San Juan. In 1973, Pope Paul VI made him a Cardinal.

His Emminence was beloved by the Catholic faithful of Puerto Rico, and well-respected by many non-Catholic Christians. He set an example of love for God and for His Church that others should follow. He spent his life sowing seeds that have grown through many generations of Puerto Ricans who have followed his example of humility, hard work, and dignity.

Cardinal Aponte Martínez is not really gone, for in the Lord there is no such thing as "absence." We'll see you later, Padrecito. We'll meet again, I'm sure.

The Good Shepherd

Fr. Nicolas Schwizer

The foundation of every religion constitutes the image, the idea it forms of its God. Each man has in his heart a personal idea about God – especially we who are Christians. Our Christian life, our vital and profound faith depend decisively on the image of God we have.

We long for a pastor. It is a very well known image of God and alive since the earliest days of Christianity. We find it frequently in the catacombs. But also today, we all know these images of the Good Shepherd amidst his flock or with the lamb on his shoulders. It seems that to all Christians from all ages, this person of the Good Shepherd impressed them profoundly.

Where does this hidden longing come from, this fondness between us and the Good Shepherd? I believe it is because his face promises us love and surrender, protection and security. Because we often feel alone, abandoned, isolated and because we often feel like lost sheep, the weight of our weaknesses, our sufferings, and our limitations cause us grief and mortify us.

We want to be with Jesus, our Pastor who watches over us, leads us and looks for us. He knows each one of us by name. He calls us, and if necessary, risks his life by defending us from the enemy.

Pastor: solitude and incomprehension

The life of Jesus was a great sacrifice for his mission: a sacrifice of solitude and incomprehension by others. Not even his Mother understood him when we recall the episode when he was twelve years old: “ Did you not know that I must be about my Father’s business?” (LK 2, 49)

Also, the conduct of the apostles when dealing with Him indicates that they did not understand Him or his mission. Thus, one day, Jesus says to them: “I have been with you for so long and you still do not know me.” And the people understand him less than his disciples do.

So, in the end, Jesus remains alone with his mission. And the culmination of his solitude is realized in his sacrifice on the cross. He is truly the Good Shepherd “who risks his life for his sheep;” he surrenders it for love of his own. Only the greatest sacrifice suffices to manifest his infinite love.

This is one of the laws of the Kingdom of God: If you want to be loved, love! If you want to be loved by others, then you have to show them your love, sacrificing yourself for them. And God employs this law in a singularly beautiful and profoundly efficacious way. He wants our love and, therefore, He loves us with a tangible and overflowing love.

To feel loved…..the beginning of santity

All the saints began to climb the heights of sanctity when they felt they were the object of the eternal and infinite love of God. When I believe and feel I am loved by God, then the response to love is awakened in me. While we are convinced that there is someone who loves us, our love is secure. No matter what happens, the profound conviction must never abandon us: He loves me.

And if we ask ourselves why we are so little on fire for God and for what is divine, then we know the answer: we do not feel nor do we understand that abundant love of God. We live as if Jesus would not have died for us on the cross.

We must accompany our priests and religious prayerfully so they may be true pastors of souls, filled with unselfish love, authentic reflections of Jesus Christ, our Good and Eternal Shepherd.

Questions for reflection

1. Do I feel loved by God?

2. Do I pray for priests?

To Love Jesus Christ

Fr. Nicolas Schwizer

The human saga is an impressive search for love accompanied by marvelous successes and great failures. The most profound longing in the heart of man is the desire to love and to be loved. He has been created by love and for love, and only in love can he develop and be fruitful.

It is, surely, also one of our experiences: Love is what is essential and foremost in our human life. And we also know the other side of the coin: Who lives without love is sterile; only the egoist fails in life.

In the life of the Christian, love has to manifest itself in two dimensions: toward God and toward the brothers and sisters. And it is in the person of Jesus Christ that they unite, it is in Jesus Christ that these two dimensions of love cross each other. He is the Man-God. In Him we recognize and find – at the same time – God and man. Therefore, when we love Jesus, they blend into one thing, the love for God and the love for mankind. Thus, the fundamental attachment, the original love of the Christian must lead to Jesus Christ.

For that reason, Jesus asks Peter three times about his love for Him: “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” A vital love, profound and personal for his Master, is what is most important and decisive in this moment in which Jesus calls Peter to be the leader of the apostles and the Church.

But it seems to me that this question which Jesus aks Peter is not only for Peter, but also for all of us. Each one of us, in the depth of his heart must respond to Him. Each one of us should examine ourselves, our attitude, our fidelity, our love towards Jesus Christ.

Then we are left with the question: What can we do so that our love for Christ may grow and deepen? For me it seems that two aspects are especially important:

First. We must do battle against self-centeredness, which is very deep within ourselves. None of us, if we want to be a true Christian, can desist from this daily battle.

Only this renunciation of selfish love makes man free, open and generous to truly love Christ and others.

Second. To be able to love a person, we have to know the person, we have to take interest in the person. To be able to love Jesus, we have to know Him by looking at his life and listening to his teachings.

If we do not know Him, if we know nothing of his generosity nor of his unselfish surrender, nor of his abundant love for us, then we will never be able to respond to his love.

Therefore, we have to dedicate time to Him….. read his Gospel….. talk to Him…..get to know Him and meditate on his life so that we may stay in his presence.

What we said about Jesus Christ, we can also say about his Mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary. To grow in our attachment and love for Her, we have to know Her more…..approach Her….. speak to Her….. share our life, desires, and concerns with Her.

Let us ask Jesus and Mary to take from us that selfishness which is so penetrating and which leaves our life infertile, and to set our hearts afire with love which makes our existence authentic and great.

Questions for reflection

1. How do I strive against selfishness?

2. How much time per day do I spend thinking of Jesus?

3. How is my relationship with the Virgin Mary?

The Lighthouse

I am reading:

The Lighthouse by PD James

So far this year I have read:

The Broker by John Grisham
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
In The Name of Honor by Richard North Patterson
Timeline by Michael Crichton
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Catching Fire (The Second Book of the Hunger Games) by Suzanne Collins
Mockingjay (The Final Book of the Hunger Games) by Suzanne Collins

Now that I have finished the Hunger Games trilogy I am ready to move on to other books. I must say of the three books I enjoyed the first one the most, "Catching Fire" was not too bad either but "Mockinjay" gave me the feeling that she was stretching the story and failed to make me want to finish it right away. I did notice something tho, Panem was going through some sort of a rebellion/war and killing, suffering, and hunger were an everyday thing for many and in no time during the three books religion is ever mentioned. Which kindda proves that a world with no religion will be a world in chaos.

So, while in California at the beginning of last month we were at the hospital and I had finished reading Timeline so I was left withot a book to read so we went to the gift store and noticed that they had a bunch of books there soft and hard covers ranging from $.50 to $2.00 wow, good books too. So some of the ones they had I had already read but Abby recommended and bought for me "The Lighthouse" by PD James. I never heard of this writer but I'm into page eight and it is picking up really nice. It's a mystery and apparently she has a series of books with the main character of this book Adam Dalgliesh.

Happy reading fellow readers!

What are you reading these days, are your kindles on fire? Me, I still read regular paper books were I actually can turn the page and fold the top as a marker when I put it down.

Dissent, disobedience, and arrogance now rampant in Austrian Catholic Church

Brethren, Peace and Good to all of you in Jesus Christ, Our Risen Lord.

These news courtesy of Vatican Insider:

Peter Paul Kaspar, chaplain of the Academy and the artists of Linz and one of the leaders of the “Pfarrer Initiative” has written an open letter to the Cardinal of Vienna Cristoph Schönborn, referring to the case of the young gay man who was elected to the pastoral council of Stützenhofen. He presented this case as an example of “disobedience”, or rather of obedience to his own conscience rather than to “Roman law”.

Readers will recall that during the Chrism mass on Holy Thursday morning, Benedict XVI unexpectedly spoke about the “Appeal to Disobedience” signed by 400 Austrian parish priests. Those who signed the appeal are asking for drastic reforms, including the abolition of priestly celibacy and the ordination of women. In response to this, the Pope said that disobedience is not the right path towards the reformation of the Church, because it risks transforming it “according to our wishes and ideas.”

The Pope’s words were welcomed in a positive manner by the Archbishop of Vienna, Cardinal Cristoph Schönborn, but were also appreciated by the leader of the “Pfarrer Initiative”. Although the latter he said did not agree with the Pope’s decision to declare the ordination of women priests impossible, he saw the reference to it in the homily as a move towards dialogue.

Now, Fr. Kaspar has sent an open letter to Schönborn, after the cardinal criticised dissident priests for launching an “Appeal of Disobedience” during Pentecost 2011. “The fact that you have asked us to reconsider the title of the appeal, instead of discussing its content, says a lot about your understanding of authority: you speak of the obedience we owe God, to his teaching and to our conscience rather than looking at yourself and your own role.”

Read the full report here.

Commentary. A large segment of the Austrian Catholic Church is in a state of de facto schism and, if the Holy Father's concern reaches its logical conclusion, soon the schism will be de iure. The situation is delicate, because the Gospel directs the Church's shepherds to bring back the lost sheep, but these particular sheep are resisting, believing themselves fully qualified to be pastors themselves. The situation is eerily similar to that described by George Orwell in Animal Farm, where the farm animals took up the farm and banished the farmer, whereas in Austria the sheep want to become shepherds.

Personally, I dislike, disapprove, and censure the open defiance and disobedience rampant in the Church in Austria. I hope they repent and change their ways soon, or risk being cut from the life-giving Vine.

Fabulous Fords Forever 2012

Oh I would love if my baby looked this good, after owning it for 12 years and being a daily driver my pony is slowly but surely starting to disintegrate. But still when I wash it and take it out for a drive it still gets many thumbs up and people always ask me if I want to sell it. The truth is this car has been and is still to this day a looker and I hope to once again make it look good in the future.

Fabulous Fords Forever, a yearly car show at Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park, California is coming un in two weeks and I will be there. I won't be taking the convertible though, I will be driving the 07 instead.

This will be the 27th Annual Fabulous Fords Forever car show and the eighth time I will be participating. It will take place on Sunday, April 22 and it's certainly the most gigantic car show I attend. About 2000 entries are expected on some 52 classes of nothing but pure Ford beauty.

Can you guess what car dominates the show by far. If you guessed the Mustang you were right. I say more than 50% of the car entries are Mustangs. The Mustang is an icon and has been continuously built every year since 1964 and hands down beats any other model.

Still, there is plenty to see besides Mustangs and for a free show it espectators it is totally worth it.

So, to all my California peeps, see you soon.

A window reflection of my pony.