From Boston Archbishop O'Malley Offers Apology to Women for Feminism Comments, Foot-Washing Rite - from TBO.com:
"O'Malley, in a letter published in Friday's edition of The Pilot, the archdiocesan newspaper, praised what he termed 'Christian feminism,' and affirmed his support for the contributions of women in the church.
He also pledged to seek guidance on whether he should wash women's feet when he visits the Vatican in August.
'I am sorry if this controversy has been upsetting to our Catholic women, and I hope that these reflections will help you to understand that I more than value the gifts and contributions that women make to our church and to my own faith life,' he wrote.
The controversy erupted on April 6 when during a homily, O'Malley said of the Baby Boom generation, 'they are heirs to Woodstock, the drug culture, the sexual revolution, feminism, the breakdown of authority, and divorce.'
Two days later, O'Malley washed the feet of 12 men on Holy Thursday, breaking with the tradition of his predecessor, Cardinal Bernard F. Law, who washed the feet of men and women. "
Friday, April 30, 2004
Thursday, April 29, 2004
Cal Thomas on Kerry's Catholic Problem
From Kerry's Catholic problem - The Washington Times: Commentary - April 28, 2004:
"Is the state the issue, or the church? If a Catholic politician, or one of any other faith, sees an injustice and acquires the power to right it, should he then be excused for behaving like Judas and selling his soul for political coinage? Doesn't such a 'faith' lead one to conclude that person might be agnostic, and religion, for him, is merely a tool for hoodwinking the unsophisticated?
Put it another way: Suppose a hospital board decides the hospital should perform abortions. The pro-life administrator and several nurses protest to no avail. Doesn't their belief in the sanctity of life take precedence over their jobs? Would not God, or conscience, require them to resign instead of denying God or conscience and participating in an act they regard as immoral for the sake of a paycheck?
When Mr. Kerry and other Catholic politicians say they accept church teaching but selectively deny it when it comes to abortion, they place the state above the church and man above God. They mortgage their consciences to convenience and principle to pragmatism. Should such a person lead this nation?
"Is the state the issue, or the church? If a Catholic politician, or one of any other faith, sees an injustice and acquires the power to right it, should he then be excused for behaving like Judas and selling his soul for political coinage? Doesn't such a 'faith' lead one to conclude that person might be agnostic, and religion, for him, is merely a tool for hoodwinking the unsophisticated?
Put it another way: Suppose a hospital board decides the hospital should perform abortions. The pro-life administrator and several nurses protest to no avail. Doesn't their belief in the sanctity of life take precedence over their jobs? Would not God, or conscience, require them to resign instead of denying God or conscience and participating in an act they regard as immoral for the sake of a paycheck?
When Mr. Kerry and other Catholic politicians say they accept church teaching but selectively deny it when it comes to abortion, they place the state above the church and man above God. They mortgage their consciences to convenience and principle to pragmatism. Should such a person lead this nation?
Speaker Uninvited for Abortion Comments
A Fort Wayne Story in the Baltimore Sun...
From baltimoresun.com - Speaker Uninvited for Abortion Comments:
"The University of St. Francis has told former ABC News medical correspondent Dr. Nancy Snyderman that it no longer wants her as commencement speaker because of comments she made about abortion seven years ago.
In a letter faxed Tuesday to Snyderman, the Roman Catholic university's president cited comments Snyderman made on ABC's 'Good Morning America' in 1997 as its reason for rescinding her invitation to speak Saturday to the graduating class."
From baltimoresun.com - Speaker Uninvited for Abortion Comments:
"The University of St. Francis has told former ABC News medical correspondent Dr. Nancy Snyderman that it no longer wants her as commencement speaker because of comments she made about abortion seven years ago.
In a letter faxed Tuesday to Snyderman, the Roman Catholic university's president cited comments Snyderman made on ABC's 'Good Morning America' in 1997 as its reason for rescinding her invitation to speak Saturday to the graduating class."
Wednesday, April 28, 2004
50,000 Expected To Greet Medjugordje Visionary in Alabama
From nbc13.com - News - More Than 50,000 Expected At Lunetti Visit:
" A woman who claims to see apparitions of the Virgin Mary and who has attracted thousands of people to a field in Shelby County, is coming back to Alabama.
In previous visits, an estimated 50,000 people turned out to pray with Marija Lunetti off County Road 43. With the Bruno's golf event going on just a few miles away this weekend, many businesses on Highway 280 are anticipating doing banner business.
Lunetti is returning to Caritas of Birmingham for her first public visit there in three years.
'There is an excitement, a joy, an anticipation we didn't feel in '99, so it could be very big,' said Ruth McDonald, of Caritas.
Lunetti claims to be one of six people who started seeing apparitions of the Virgin Mary in Medjugorje, Yugoslavia, more than 20 years ago. She came to Birmingham to donate a kidney to her brother in 1988 and had a vision here. Since then, she's visited every few years, with the largest crowd gathering in 1999.
With six months advance notice of this upcoming visit, Caritas officials have sent out 80,000 packets of information. They believe crowds could top 50,000 this week.
'Right now, we average three to five people on our phones at all times,' McDonald said."
" A woman who claims to see apparitions of the Virgin Mary and who has attracted thousands of people to a field in Shelby County, is coming back to Alabama.
In previous visits, an estimated 50,000 people turned out to pray with Marija Lunetti off County Road 43. With the Bruno's golf event going on just a few miles away this weekend, many businesses on Highway 280 are anticipating doing banner business.
Lunetti is returning to Caritas of Birmingham for her first public visit there in three years.
'There is an excitement, a joy, an anticipation we didn't feel in '99, so it could be very big,' said Ruth McDonald, of Caritas.
Lunetti claims to be one of six people who started seeing apparitions of the Virgin Mary in Medjugorje, Yugoslavia, more than 20 years ago. She came to Birmingham to donate a kidney to her brother in 1988 and had a vision here. Since then, she's visited every few years, with the largest crowd gathering in 1999.
With six months advance notice of this upcoming visit, Caritas officials have sent out 80,000 packets of information. They believe crowds could top 50,000 this week.
'Right now, we average three to five people on our phones at all times,' McDonald said."
Tuesday, April 27, 2004
Amy in The Tennessean
See More books on market set out to debunk 'Da Vinci Code' - Saturday, 04/24/04:
"A Vanderbilt University graduate, Amy Wellborn, has also written De-Coding Da Vinci: The Facts Behind the Fiction of the Da Vinci Code."
"A Vanderbilt University graduate, Amy Wellborn, has also written De-Coding Da Vinci: The Facts Behind the Fiction of the Da Vinci Code."
Dan Brown, Theologian
Amy on Belief.net...Dan Brown, Theologian -- Beliefnet.com: "Dan Brown, Theologian
People who take The Da Vinci Code's claims seriously need to crack open a Good Book. "
People who take The Da Vinci Code's claims seriously need to crack open a Good Book. "
Satanic Worship Involved in Murder of Nun by Priest
The article below specifies "bizarre rituals", CBS news did a story on this last night and reported that it was a "satanic ritual".
FromOhio News Network:
"Authorities say they decided to re-examine the case after a woman accused Roman Catholic priests of sexually abusing her during bizarre rituals.
The 66-year-old Robinson wore a brown jail jumpsuit and stood silently during the hearing, his arms at his sides and hands folded.
A preliminary hearing is set for next Monday. "
FromOhio News Network:
"Authorities say they decided to re-examine the case after a woman accused Roman Catholic priests of sexually abusing her during bizarre rituals.
The 66-year-old Robinson wore a brown jail jumpsuit and stood silently during the hearing, his arms at his sides and hands folded.
A preliminary hearing is set for next Monday. "
Monday, April 26, 2004
Cardinal Speaking for the Pope
I'm in Ohio and they are running Kerry ads almost non-stop.
From Cardinal's Communion ban backed:
"Cardinal Francis Arinze, a top Vatican official who said Friday that Roman Catholic lawmakers who support abortion rights should not receive Holy Communion, was speaking for the pope, local Catholic leaders said yesterday.
'He is the highest-ranking person in the whole chain under the pope with regard to the sacraments,' said the Rev. Joseph Koterski, head of the philosophy department at Fordham University.
Pope John Paul II said virtually the same thing in an encyclical fairly recently, he added.
'You can be confident that he is speaking also for the pope' and about Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., said Jack Healey of Bronxville, the retired director of the Archbishop Hughes Institute for Religion and Culture at Fordham.
'This has been bothering the bishops and it has obviously been bothering the Vatican that Catholic politicians are responding to the 'American situation' and not trying to impose Catholic understanding of abortion and human life. I think it will be a storm in the church,' he said. 'Short-lived.'' "
From Cardinal's Communion ban backed:
"Cardinal Francis Arinze, a top Vatican official who said Friday that Roman Catholic lawmakers who support abortion rights should not receive Holy Communion, was speaking for the pope, local Catholic leaders said yesterday.
'He is the highest-ranking person in the whole chain under the pope with regard to the sacraments,' said the Rev. Joseph Koterski, head of the philosophy department at Fordham University.
Pope John Paul II said virtually the same thing in an encyclical fairly recently, he added.
'You can be confident that he is speaking also for the pope' and about Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., said Jack Healey of Bronxville, the retired director of the Archbishop Hughes Institute for Religion and Culture at Fordham.
'This has been bothering the bishops and it has obviously been bothering the Vatican that Catholic politicians are responding to the 'American situation' and not trying to impose Catholic understanding of abortion and human life. I think it will be a storm in the church,' he said. 'Short-lived.'' "
Sunday, April 25, 2004
Liturgical Abuses
Our parish, not liberal by any means, continued to use a flagon today, as well as a pottery chalice, glass chalices and glass ciboria all of which are prohibited. We'll see how long this continues... The document advises the laity to inform their bishop and then the Vatican if abuses are not stopped--so you and I have a role here.
From CNS STORY: LITURGY-GRAVE Apr-23-2004 (1,580 words) With photos. xxxn:
"-- 'The pouring of the blood of Christ after the consecration from one vessel to another is completely to be avoided, lest anything should happen that would be to the detriment of so great a mystery. Never to be used for containing the blood of the Lord are flagons, bowls or other vessels.' This instruction prohibits the widespread U.S. practice of placing one or more pitchers of wine on the altar before the consecration when Communion is to be distributed under both kinds, and then pouring that wine into chalices before Communion. A related instruction says there is no problem with placing multiple chalices filled with wine on the altar before the consecration, but for the sake of 'sign value' the main chalice should be larger than the others."
From CNS STORY: LITURGY-GRAVE Apr-23-2004 (1,580 words) With photos. xxxn:
"-- 'The pouring of the blood of Christ after the consecration from one vessel to another is completely to be avoided, lest anything should happen that would be to the detriment of so great a mystery. Never to be used for containing the blood of the Lord are flagons, bowls or other vessels.' This instruction prohibits the widespread U.S. practice of placing one or more pitchers of wine on the altar before the consecration when Communion is to be distributed under both kinds, and then pouring that wine into chalices before Communion. A related instruction says there is no problem with placing multiple chalices filled with wine on the altar before the consecration, but for the sake of 'sign value' the main chalice should be larger than the others."
Moment of Decision
The case of Catholic politician John Kerry and his active stance for abortion is thrusting the issue of what exactly does it mean to be a Catholic into the public sphere. This issue is akin to a mafia boss being denied communion because of the noteriety of the persons criminal life. Whether the bishops will speak in a unified voice or will offer a variety of options leading congregants to believe that it doesn't really matter is going to say a lot about the future of the Catholic Church as a "light" for all to see or a "light" hidden under a basket. A bishop said to me recently that he feared that the bishops as a whole had become rather hoarse when it came to speaking out on what is right and wrong...fearing being labeled hypocrites over the abuse problems. So be it, fearing how they would appear before people is what created that horrible crisis and fearing how they will appear before others now will decide whether they are ready to be martyred for the faith or co-opted by those who use it for the faith to acheive their own ends in this life.
Saturday, April 24, 2004
De-Coding Da Vinci: The Facts Behind the Fiction of The Da Vinci Code
Update at 6:00 p.m. now its #60!!!
#90, a top 100 seller!
Barnes?&?Noble.com - De-Coding Da Vinci: The Facts Behind the Fiction of The Da Vinci Code: "Product Details:
ISBN: 1592761011
Format: Paperback
Pub. Date: April 2004Publisher: Our Sunday Visitor, Publishing Division
Barnes & Noble Sales Rank: 90"
#90, a top 100 seller!
Barnes?&?Noble.com - De-Coding Da Vinci: The Facts Behind the Fiction of The Da Vinci Code: "Product Details:
ISBN: 1592761011
Format: Paperback
Pub. Date: April 2004Publisher: Our Sunday Visitor, Publishing Division
Barnes & Noble Sales Rank: 90"
Kerry & Kennedy Shrug Off Vatican
From New York Daily News - News & Views - Kerry snub for Vatican on choice:
"Kerry and fellow Massachusetts Democratic Sen. Edward Kennedy both signaled they won't change how they worship as Catholics.
'This is an opinion by one member in the Vatican circle ... but he's not speaking for the Pope. That's a major difference,' Kennedy said.
Priests at the Paulist Center on Boston's Beacon Hill, where Kerry often worships, have said they won't deny the senator Communion, but didn't immediately comment on the statement from Rome.
The pro-life Bush camp accused Kerry of being out of touch with mainstream America on issues like partial-birth abortion. But one pro-choice GOP source noted the late John Cardinal O'Connor took on former GOP Rep. Susan Molinari in the 1990s over her pro-choice stance, but later backed off. "
"Kerry and fellow Massachusetts Democratic Sen. Edward Kennedy both signaled they won't change how they worship as Catholics.
'This is an opinion by one member in the Vatican circle ... but he's not speaking for the Pope. That's a major difference,' Kennedy said.
Priests at the Paulist Center on Boston's Beacon Hill, where Kerry often worships, have said they won't deny the senator Communion, but didn't immediately comment on the statement from Rome.
The pro-life Bush camp accused Kerry of being out of touch with mainstream America on issues like partial-birth abortion. But one pro-choice GOP source noted the late John Cardinal O'Connor took on former GOP Rep. Susan Molinari in the 1990s over her pro-choice stance, but later backed off. "
Kerry & Kennedy Shrug Off Vatican
From New York Daily News - News & Views - Kerry snub for Vatican on choice:
"Kerry and fellow Massachusetts Democratic Sen. Edward Kennedy both signaled they won't change how they worship as Catholics.
'This is an opinion by one member in the Vatican circle ... but he's not speaking for the Pope. That's a major difference,' Kennedy said.
Priests at the Paulist Center on Boston's Beacon Hill, where Kerry often worships, have said they won't deny the senator Communion, but didn't immediately comment on the statement from Rome.
The pro-life Bush camp accused Kerry of being out of touch with mainstream America on issues like partial-birth abortion. But one pro-choice GOP source noted the late John Cardinal O'Connor took on former GOP Rep. Susan Molinari in the 1990s over her pro-choice stance, but later backed off. "
"Kerry and fellow Massachusetts Democratic Sen. Edward Kennedy both signaled they won't change how they worship as Catholics.
'This is an opinion by one member in the Vatican circle ... but he's not speaking for the Pope. That's a major difference,' Kennedy said.
Priests at the Paulist Center on Boston's Beacon Hill, where Kerry often worships, have said they won't deny the senator Communion, but didn't immediately comment on the statement from Rome.
The pro-life Bush camp accused Kerry of being out of touch with mainstream America on issues like partial-birth abortion. But one pro-choice GOP source noted the late John Cardinal O'Connor took on former GOP Rep. Susan Molinari in the 1990s over her pro-choice stance, but later backed off. "
Friday, April 23, 2004
NFL Player Killed in Action in Afghanistan
From NFL.com - NFL News:
"Former Arizona Cardinals safety Pat Tillman, who gave up an NFL contract to join the Army Rangers, reportedly has been killed in Afghanistan.
In the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in 2001, Tillman turned down a three-year contract with the Cardinals to enlist in the Army.
Tillman was a member of the 75th Ranger Regiment, and the Army refers to them as an 'elite combat unit.' Candidates must pass a stringent orientation course, where they are challenged physically and mentally, before they can even be selected. The Rangers are an infantry force trained to fight against any threat. Their creed: 'Rangers lead the way!' "
"Former Arizona Cardinals safety Pat Tillman, who gave up an NFL contract to join the Army Rangers, reportedly has been killed in Afghanistan.
In the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in 2001, Tillman turned down a three-year contract with the Cardinals to enlist in the Army.
Tillman was a member of the 75th Ranger Regiment, and the Army refers to them as an 'elite combat unit.' Candidates must pass a stringent orientation course, where they are challenged physically and mentally, before they can even be selected. The Rangers are an infantry force trained to fight against any threat. Their creed: 'Rangers lead the way!' "
Key Phrase in the Document of Abuses
Para 59 affirms: "The reprobated practice by which Priests, Deacons or the faithful here and there alter or vary at will the texts of the Sacred Liturgy that they are charged to pronounce, must cease. For in doing thus, they render the celebration of the Sacred Liturgy unstable, and not infrequently distort the authentic meaning of the Liturgy."
New Vatican Document on Abuses of the Eucharist Released
From Instruction Redemptionis Sacramentum:
"[169.] Whenever an abuse is committed in the celebration of the sacred Liturgy, it is to be seen as a real falsification of Catholic Liturgy. St Thomas wrote, "the vice of falsehood is perpetrated by anyone who offers worship to God on behalf of the Church in a manner contrary to that which is established by the Church with divine authority, and to which the Church is accustomed".[278]
[170.] In order that a remedy may be applied to such abuses, "there is a pressing need for the biblical and liturgical formation of the people of God, both pastors and faithful",[279] so that the Church's faith and discipline concerning the sacred Liturgy may be accurately presented and understood. Where abuses persist, however, proceedings should be undertaken for safeguarding the spiritual patrimony and rights of the Church in accordance with the law, employing all legitimate means.
[171.] Among the various abuses there are some which are objectively graviora delicta or otherwise constitute grave matters, as well as others which are nonetheless to be carefully avoided and corrected. Bearing in mind everything that is treated especially in Chapter I of this Instruction, attention should be paid to what follows."
Grave Abuses:
a) taking away or retaining the consecrated species for sacrilegious ends, or the throwing them away;[281]
b) the attempted celebration of the liturgical action of the Eucharistic Sacrifice or the simulation of the same;[282]
c) the forbidden concelebration of the Eucharistic Sacrifice with ministers of Ecclesial Communities that do not have the apostolic succession nor acknowledge the sacramental dignity of priestly Ordination;[283]
d) the consecration for sacrilegious ends of one matter without the other in the celebration of the Eucharist or even of both outside the celebration of the Eucharist.[284]
"[169.] Whenever an abuse is committed in the celebration of the sacred Liturgy, it is to be seen as a real falsification of Catholic Liturgy. St Thomas wrote, "the vice of falsehood is perpetrated by anyone who offers worship to God on behalf of the Church in a manner contrary to that which is established by the Church with divine authority, and to which the Church is accustomed".[278]
[170.] In order that a remedy may be applied to such abuses, "there is a pressing need for the biblical and liturgical formation of the people of God, both pastors and faithful",[279] so that the Church's faith and discipline concerning the sacred Liturgy may be accurately presented and understood. Where abuses persist, however, proceedings should be undertaken for safeguarding the spiritual patrimony and rights of the Church in accordance with the law, employing all legitimate means.
[171.] Among the various abuses there are some which are objectively graviora delicta or otherwise constitute grave matters, as well as others which are nonetheless to be carefully avoided and corrected. Bearing in mind everything that is treated especially in Chapter I of this Instruction, attention should be paid to what follows."
Grave Abuses:
a) taking away or retaining the consecrated species for sacrilegious ends, or the throwing them away;[281]
b) the attempted celebration of the liturgical action of the Eucharistic Sacrifice or the simulation of the same;[282]
c) the forbidden concelebration of the Eucharistic Sacrifice with ministers of Ecclesial Communities that do not have the apostolic succession nor acknowledge the sacramental dignity of priestly Ordination;[283]
d) the consecration for sacrilegious ends of one matter without the other in the celebration of the Eucharist or even of both outside the celebration of the Eucharist.[284]
Thursday, April 22, 2004
The Passion and Its Enemies
Here is a snipet, but the whole column is a must read...
From The Passion and Its Enemies:
"What is the attachment of columnists in 2004 to a high priest of the first century A.D.? Why the Caiaphas Defense Fund? Is it not possible to accept that after Jesus berated the scribes and Pharisees in front of the people they might want to kill him? Is it not possible that the high priest would plot the death of so charismatic and threatening a figure?
What these writers are saying is that it is fine to say Pilate ordered the crucifixion, and the Romans did it, but anti-Semitic to say Caiaphas was the prime mover in the Passover plot. Yet, for Caiaphas to be innocent, the Gospels must be myths or lies. My film is anti-Semitic only if the Gospels are anti-Semitic, says Gibson.
Exactly the point, says Stanley Kauffmann of the New Republic: “‘The Passion’ is anti-Semitic, because the Gospels themselves are anti-Semitic—in the sense of fixing Jewish responsibility for the Crucifixion.” Abe Foxman agrees: “the Gospels, if taken literally, can be very damaging.” But what if the Gospels “taken literally” are true?
To Boston University’s Paula Fredriksen, an apostate Catholic and convert to Judaism, “anti-Semitism has been integral to Christianity.” In the Toronto Globe & Mail, Donald Akinson writes, “To film a literal version of the Gospel of John is like filming a faithful version of The Protocols of the Elders of Zion.”
With folks who believe this, dialogue seems pointless. For they are saying that Christianity is anti-Semitic at its root and either we rewrite the Gospels to eradicate any “perfidy” by the Jewish authorities who delivered Christ to Pilate, or we are colluding in anti-Semitism and responsible for its consequences. If being faithful to the Christian imperative to tell the Gospel truth about the suffering, death, and resurrection of Christ is, to non-Christians and post-C"
From The Passion and Its Enemies:
"What is the attachment of columnists in 2004 to a high priest of the first century A.D.? Why the Caiaphas Defense Fund? Is it not possible to accept that after Jesus berated the scribes and Pharisees in front of the people they might want to kill him? Is it not possible that the high priest would plot the death of so charismatic and threatening a figure?
What these writers are saying is that it is fine to say Pilate ordered the crucifixion, and the Romans did it, but anti-Semitic to say Caiaphas was the prime mover in the Passover plot. Yet, for Caiaphas to be innocent, the Gospels must be myths or lies. My film is anti-Semitic only if the Gospels are anti-Semitic, says Gibson.
Exactly the point, says Stanley Kauffmann of the New Republic: “‘The Passion’ is anti-Semitic, because the Gospels themselves are anti-Semitic—in the sense of fixing Jewish responsibility for the Crucifixion.” Abe Foxman agrees: “the Gospels, if taken literally, can be very damaging.” But what if the Gospels “taken literally” are true?
To Boston University’s Paula Fredriksen, an apostate Catholic and convert to Judaism, “anti-Semitism has been integral to Christianity.” In the Toronto Globe & Mail, Donald Akinson writes, “To film a literal version of the Gospel of John is like filming a faithful version of The Protocols of the Elders of Zion.”
With folks who believe this, dialogue seems pointless. For they are saying that Christianity is anti-Semitic at its root and either we rewrite the Gospels to eradicate any “perfidy” by the Jewish authorities who delivered Christ to Pilate, or we are colluding in anti-Semitism and responsible for its consequences. If being faithful to the Christian imperative to tell the Gospel truth about the suffering, death, and resurrection of Christ is, to non-Christians and post-C"
What's Your Addiction?
Remember there are no chemical solutions to spiritual problems.
From CNN.com - Study:Chocolate, BBQ addiction may be real - Apr 21, 2004:
"People who say they are addicted to chocolate or pizza may not be exaggerating, U.S.-based scientists said Tuesday.
A brain scan study of normal, hungry people showed their brains lit up when they saw and smelled their favorite foods in much the same way as the brains of cocaine addicts when they think about their next snort.
'Food presentation significantly increased metabolism in the whole brain (by 24 percent) and these changes were largest in superior temporal, anterior insula, and orbitofrontal cortices,' they wrote.
These areas are associated with addiction.
An estimated 30 percent of Americans are obese, meaning they have a body mass index of more than 30. This ratio of height to weight usually works out to being about 30 pounds overweight for a woman and 35 to 40 pounds overweight for a man."
From CNN.com - Study:Chocolate, BBQ addiction may be real - Apr 21, 2004:
"People who say they are addicted to chocolate or pizza may not be exaggerating, U.S.-based scientists said Tuesday.
A brain scan study of normal, hungry people showed their brains lit up when they saw and smelled their favorite foods in much the same way as the brains of cocaine addicts when they think about their next snort.
'Food presentation significantly increased metabolism in the whole brain (by 24 percent) and these changes were largest in superior temporal, anterior insula, and orbitofrontal cortices,' they wrote.
These areas are associated with addiction.
An estimated 30 percent of Americans are obese, meaning they have a body mass index of more than 30. This ratio of height to weight usually works out to being about 30 pounds overweight for a woman and 35 to 40 pounds overweight for a man."
Wednesday, April 21, 2004
Friars Petition Mel Gibson to Make Francis Film
If he did it, something tells me it wouldn't be anything like "Brother Sun, Sister Moon"...
Father Groeschel's community...
From BBC NEWS | Entertainment | Franciscan friars petition Gibson:
"The Franciscan Friars of the Renewal have posted a letter to Gibson on their website, along with an online petition.
It praises the director for his 'work of sacred art' and asks him 'to produce a sequel about a man many acclaim to be the Church's greatest saint'.
St Francis is the patron saint of animals and the environment.
In the letter to Gibson, the friars say they believe the film, if made, 'would show the world what happens when a person totally and unequivocally responds to the Passion of the Christ.'
It goes on to suggest Gibson could call the film Man of the Passion. "
Father Groeschel's community...
From BBC NEWS | Entertainment | Franciscan friars petition Gibson:
"The Franciscan Friars of the Renewal have posted a letter to Gibson on their website, along with an online petition.
It praises the director for his 'work of sacred art' and asks him 'to produce a sequel about a man many acclaim to be the Church's greatest saint'.
St Francis is the patron saint of animals and the environment.
In the letter to Gibson, the friars say they believe the film, if made, 'would show the world what happens when a person totally and unequivocally responds to the Passion of the Christ.'
It goes on to suggest Gibson could call the film Man of the Passion. "
Tuesday, April 20, 2004
Great Review of New Book
God's Little Hobo touches the soul, April 15, 2004
Reviewer: Theresa Campbell from Leesburg, FL United States
She had every reason to be bitter towards life and angry at God. Yet, Virginia Cyr never was. She embraced the Lord through hundreds of letters to her "mother" -- Blessed Mother Mary, while plaqued with unbearable pain and confined to a wheelchair. As much as she wanted to be a nun, it wasn't meant to be. Instead, she took the vows privately, vowing to serve those who invite her into their homes. I was among the fortunate ones to have known Virginia. Even though I was just a child, she touched me deeply with her laughter and infectious smile. I adored being around her, and to this day, I marvel how as a 5-year-old she would giggle and wiggle out of her wheechair to obliged to my requests for wheelchair rides. I truly believe she is continuing her mission to serve those who invite her into their lives. Whether you knew Virginia or not, once reading God's Little Hobo, you're bound to come away admiring Virginia's incredible faith and marvel over the depth and beauty of her writings. Her words are her voice. This is a book one can read over and over again and you'll find another passage that touches the heart. It's a book that can change your life. Many of Virginia's friends now believe they were in the presence of a saint, and after reading this book, I feel the same. Maybe you will, too.
Virginia Cyr, God's Little Hobo
Reviewer: Theresa Campbell from Leesburg, FL United States
She had every reason to be bitter towards life and angry at God. Yet, Virginia Cyr never was. She embraced the Lord through hundreds of letters to her "mother" -- Blessed Mother Mary, while plaqued with unbearable pain and confined to a wheelchair. As much as she wanted to be a nun, it wasn't meant to be. Instead, she took the vows privately, vowing to serve those who invite her into their homes. I was among the fortunate ones to have known Virginia. Even though I was just a child, she touched me deeply with her laughter and infectious smile. I adored being around her, and to this day, I marvel how as a 5-year-old she would giggle and wiggle out of her wheechair to obliged to my requests for wheelchair rides. I truly believe she is continuing her mission to serve those who invite her into their lives. Whether you knew Virginia or not, once reading God's Little Hobo, you're bound to come away admiring Virginia's incredible faith and marvel over the depth and beauty of her writings. Her words are her voice. This is a book one can read over and over again and you'll find another passage that touches the heart. It's a book that can change your life. Many of Virginia's friends now believe they were in the presence of a saint, and after reading this book, I feel the same. Maybe you will, too.
Virginia Cyr, God's Little Hobo
Power of Prayer and Jack McKeon
The weird thing about this piece is I dreamed about it last night--interviewing Jack McKeon, talked about doing a collection of such interviews with a co-worker this morning and then I pick up the USA Today and here is a piece on Jack McKeon...talk about vision.
From USATODAY.com - McKeon's divine outlook pays off:
"McKeon firmly believes he was put in this job 'to help these young guys, physically, mentally and spiritually to reach their potential.'
Pausing a moment, he adds, 'And I really believe they brought me back to be a messenger for senior citizens. I can't tell you the number of letters and calls and the people who've come up to me saying I gave them hope that they can contribute to society at an advanced age.'
McKeon goes to Mass every morning and, yes, he sometimes asks for help for his Marlins.
'I'll pray, 'Whatever's in your plan is OK with me, but if you can find a way ... see if this guy won't boot a ball for us once in awhile. We'll accept any help we can get, but if it's not to be, we'll understand,' ' he says with a laugh. 'Seriously, I have a strong belief in the power of prayer. That's the only reason I'm here today. Before I got this job, I said to the Good Lord, I'd like to have one more chance. I prayed for that for about a year, and out of the blue comes Jeffrey Loria, and here I am.' "
From USATODAY.com - McKeon's divine outlook pays off:
"McKeon firmly believes he was put in this job 'to help these young guys, physically, mentally and spiritually to reach their potential.'
Pausing a moment, he adds, 'And I really believe they brought me back to be a messenger for senior citizens. I can't tell you the number of letters and calls and the people who've come up to me saying I gave them hope that they can contribute to society at an advanced age.'
McKeon goes to Mass every morning and, yes, he sometimes asks for help for his Marlins.
'I'll pray, 'Whatever's in your plan is OK with me, but if you can find a way ... see if this guy won't boot a ball for us once in awhile. We'll accept any help we can get, but if it's not to be, we'll understand,' ' he says with a laugh. 'Seriously, I have a strong belief in the power of prayer. That's the only reason I'm here today. Before I got this job, I said to the Good Lord, I'd like to have one more chance. I prayed for that for about a year, and out of the blue comes Jeffrey Loria, and here I am.' "
Why These Men are Heretics
I've made this argument before on this blog..the way the church should be dealing with these men is treating them as heretics, i.e. because they are teaching heresy. This lastest account is a perfect example.
From ABC 7 News - Priest Sentenced on Molestation Charge:
"A priest accused of molesting a teenage boy has pleaded no contest in the case, but argues that he committed the acts in question for spiritual reasons and not sexual gratification, his lawyer said Sunday.
Anthony Jablonowski, 69, was sentenced Thursday to between 15 months and seven years in prison for one count of taking indecent, immodest or immoral liberties with a minor, his attorney Dallas Laird said. The amount of time he serves will depend on his behavior in prison.
The victim, now in his late 30s, stepped forward recently with allegations that Jablonowski had molested him at least once in the early 1980s at St. Anthony Catholic Church in Guernsey, about 100 miles north of Cheyenne. He was 17 at the time.
During an investigation, authorities learned that Jablonowski regularly took men to the church basement, asking them to strip naked before they were gagged, blindfolded and hung upside down from the ceiling, Platte County prosecutor Eric Alden told The Denver Post in Sunday's editions.
According to Alden, the men's genitals were manipulated to induce pain while they prayed. He could not be reached for comment Sunday. "
From ABC 7 News - Priest Sentenced on Molestation Charge:
"A priest accused of molesting a teenage boy has pleaded no contest in the case, but argues that he committed the acts in question for spiritual reasons and not sexual gratification, his lawyer said Sunday.
Anthony Jablonowski, 69, was sentenced Thursday to between 15 months and seven years in prison for one count of taking indecent, immodest or immoral liberties with a minor, his attorney Dallas Laird said. The amount of time he serves will depend on his behavior in prison.
The victim, now in his late 30s, stepped forward recently with allegations that Jablonowski had molested him at least once in the early 1980s at St. Anthony Catholic Church in Guernsey, about 100 miles north of Cheyenne. He was 17 at the time.
During an investigation, authorities learned that Jablonowski regularly took men to the church basement, asking them to strip naked before they were gagged, blindfolded and hung upside down from the ceiling, Platte County prosecutor Eric Alden told The Denver Post in Sunday's editions.
According to Alden, the men's genitals were manipulated to induce pain while they prayed. He could not be reached for comment Sunday. "
Monday, April 19, 2004
New Search Engine
Searches web sites, books and keeps a history of your search for you to reference later. Uses Amazon...
A9.com > Search Technologies
A9.com > Search Technologies
Where a fallen bishop goes to heal
From Where a fallen bishop goes to heal:
"The entrance to Mepkin Abbey is a long, private driveway lined with ancient live-oak trees, scenically draped in Spanish moss. Go straight, and you reach a beautiful, terraced garden sewn with azaleas and camellias, overlooking a calm, lonely stretch of the Cooper River.
Turn before that, and you will reach the riverside monastery itself, where 27 Trappist monks live, following a regimen that has its roots in the 11th century. They pray communally seven times a day, and if you arrive at the right time, you will hear the church bells toll. The monks will be found in their white, hooded robes, manning their prayer stalls, singing and chanting the Psalms.
These days, you also will see a guest, not robed but in civilian dress, sitting among them. He is Bishop Anthony J. O'Connell, who resigned as head of the Palm Beach Diocese 25 months ago after confessing to sexual improprieties. He has lived here ever since in the seclusion of this Catholic monastery."
"The entrance to Mepkin Abbey is a long, private driveway lined with ancient live-oak trees, scenically draped in Spanish moss. Go straight, and you reach a beautiful, terraced garden sewn with azaleas and camellias, overlooking a calm, lonely stretch of the Cooper River.
Turn before that, and you will reach the riverside monastery itself, where 27 Trappist monks live, following a regimen that has its roots in the 11th century. They pray communally seven times a day, and if you arrive at the right time, you will hear the church bells toll. The monks will be found in their white, hooded robes, manning their prayer stalls, singing and chanting the Psalms.
These days, you also will see a guest, not robed but in civilian dress, sitting among them. He is Bishop Anthony J. O'Connell, who resigned as head of the Palm Beach Diocese 25 months ago after confessing to sexual improprieties. He has lived here ever since in the seclusion of this Catholic monastery."
Heroic Virtue of New Yorker Recognized
From Vatican Information Service:
Servant of God Mary Anne Barbara Cope, known as "Mother Marianne of Molokai," German, religious of the Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis of Syracuse, New York (1838-1918).
Servant of God Mary Anne Barbara Cope, known as "Mother Marianne of Molokai," German, religious of the Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis of Syracuse, New York (1838-1918).
Eucharist Instruction to be Released on Friday
From the Vatican Information Service:
On Friday, April 23 at 11:30 in the Holy See Press Office there will be the presentation of the Instruction of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of Sacraments "'Redemptionis Sacramentum', on several things that must be observed and avoided regarding the Most Holy Eucharist."
Presenting the document will be Cardinal Francis Arinze, and Archbishop Domenico Sorrentino, respectively prefect and secretary of the congregation, and Archbishop Angelo Amato, secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Also present will be Cardinal Julian Herranz, president of the Pontifical Council for Legislative texts.
On Friday, April 23 at 11:30 in the Holy See Press Office there will be the presentation of the Instruction of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of Sacraments "'Redemptionis Sacramentum', on several things that must be observed and avoided regarding the Most Holy Eucharist."
Presenting the document will be Cardinal Francis Arinze, and Archbishop Domenico Sorrentino, respectively prefect and secretary of the congregation, and Archbishop Angelo Amato, secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Also present will be Cardinal Julian Herranz, president of the Pontifical Council for Legislative texts.
Sunday, April 18, 2004
Feast of Divine Mercy
From the Diary of St. Faustina:
"Yes, the first Sunday after Easter is the Feast of Mercy, but there must also be deeds of mercy, which are to arise out of love for Me. You are to show mercy to our neighbors always and everywhere. You must not shrink from this or try to absolve yourself from it. (Diary 742)"
"Yes, the first Sunday after Easter is the Feast of Mercy, but there must also be deeds of mercy, which are to arise out of love for Me. You are to show mercy to our neighbors always and everywhere. You must not shrink from this or try to absolve yourself from it. (Diary 742)"
Catholic Kerry Watch
The great thing about blogs is that one will arise to meet every need.
Catholic Kerry Watch:
"Chronicling Democratic presidential frontrunner John Kerry's desparate attempts to maintain his status as 'a Catholic in good standing' while publicly flouting the moral teachings of the Catholic Church. "
Catholic Kerry Watch:
"Chronicling Democratic presidential frontrunner John Kerry's desparate attempts to maintain his status as 'a Catholic in good standing' while publicly flouting the moral teachings of the Catholic Church. "
Saturday, April 17, 2004
Vatican Envoy's Assessment of Iraq
From EWTN News Story:
"'The Americans are no longer in command of the situation, and I don't know whether they will be successful in regaining control.' That is the assessment of Archbishop Fernando Filoni, the papal nuncio in Iraq.
Speaking to the Italian daily Il Giornale, Archbishop Filoni offered a critical appraisal of American policy in Iraq, one year after the beginning of war there. He also condemned the Iraqis who have taken Western hostages, saying that they have 'lost all sense of proportion' in their approach.
'In Washington, they still don't understand that they will never be loved, and that the people of Iraq will not tolerate the occupation,' the papal nuncio said. He recommended that American leaders should 'have the courage to transfer power immediately.' The people of Iraq 'need a leader who can speak their language,' the Italian prelate continued. He observed that the top American official in Iraq, Paul Bremer, does not understand the situation as native Iraqis see it. 'If the governor would leave his bunker, and walk around through the city, he would realize that things are not going well,' the archbishop said. "
"'The Americans are no longer in command of the situation, and I don't know whether they will be successful in regaining control.' That is the assessment of Archbishop Fernando Filoni, the papal nuncio in Iraq.
Speaking to the Italian daily Il Giornale, Archbishop Filoni offered a critical appraisal of American policy in Iraq, one year after the beginning of war there. He also condemned the Iraqis who have taken Western hostages, saying that they have 'lost all sense of proportion' in their approach.
'In Washington, they still don't understand that they will never be loved, and that the people of Iraq will not tolerate the occupation,' the papal nuncio said. He recommended that American leaders should 'have the courage to transfer power immediately.' The people of Iraq 'need a leader who can speak their language,' the Italian prelate continued. He observed that the top American official in Iraq, Paul Bremer, does not understand the situation as native Iraqis see it. 'If the governor would leave his bunker, and walk around through the city, he would realize that things are not going well,' the archbishop said. "
An Invitation from Father Benedict Groeschel...
When we run into difficult situation, we often find that family and friends come to our assistance, and that can be a most consoling thing. The brothers and sisters of our community, together with my own family and friends, have made this difficult experience much more bearable. I will always be grateful to them. There are, however, the times when you are alone. As I look around the nursing home where I am recovering at the moment, I see so many elderly people and even those in their late sixties and early seventies with illnesses, who appear to be terribly alone. It seems tragic. Wouldn't it be wonderful in our society if it became a custom among Christians to visit one sick person, one lonely person, in a nursing home or hospital every week? It would turn Sunday morning after Mass into a time of great blessedness. In my present situation I am aware that there are so many good people who for one reason or another have no one to support them. Jesus says in St. Matthew's Gospel: "I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me." It's a good resolution to make.
Friday, April 16, 2004
Review of Virginia Cyr: God's Little Hobo
Great review...this is a book that everyone should read!
From Villages Daily Sun:
"She had every reason to be bitter toward life and angry with God.
Many people probably would have been.
But not Virginia Cyr.
Abandoned at age 4 after her mother discovered Virginia was afflicted with cerebral palsy, the wheelchair-bound youngster was placed in one foster home after another, followed by an orphanage and later, a nursing home.
Yet, Virginia was full of love, joy and deep faith despite her many moments of unbearable pain, fatigue and muscle spasms. In her quietest of times, she pored out her heart in daily "letters to Mary," the mother of Jesus. "...
To order your copy...
Virginia Cyr, God's Little Hobo
From Villages Daily Sun:
"She had every reason to be bitter toward life and angry with God.
Many people probably would have been.
But not Virginia Cyr.
Abandoned at age 4 after her mother discovered Virginia was afflicted with cerebral palsy, the wheelchair-bound youngster was placed in one foster home after another, followed by an orphanage and later, a nursing home.
Yet, Virginia was full of love, joy and deep faith despite her many moments of unbearable pain, fatigue and muscle spasms. In her quietest of times, she pored out her heart in daily "letters to Mary," the mother of Jesus. "...
To order your copy...
Virginia Cyr, God's Little Hobo
Catholic Music Director Accused of Murdering "Ex-Lover"
You have to read through a significant part of the story before you are told that the lover was another man...I wonder if part of the defense will be having to sing "I will raise him up..." over and over and believing that he could do it?
From Music director expected to post bail:
"Bond was set Wednesday at $100,000 for a former employee at St. Peter Catholic Church accused of slaying his ex-lover in New York, authorities said.
Michael Pavone, 58, of West Chicago, has pleaded innocent to murder and other offenses for allegedly stabbing and beating his former roommate nearly five years ago and then dumping the body in a Buffalo, N.Y., nature preserve.
Pavone, the former music director at the Geneva parish, was arrested Monday in New York, about one week after authorities said new evidence surfaced linking him to the crime."
From Music director expected to post bail:
"Bond was set Wednesday at $100,000 for a former employee at St. Peter Catholic Church accused of slaying his ex-lover in New York, authorities said.
Michael Pavone, 58, of West Chicago, has pleaded innocent to murder and other offenses for allegedly stabbing and beating his former roommate nearly five years ago and then dumping the body in a Buffalo, N.Y., nature preserve.
Pavone, the former music director at the Geneva parish, was arrested Monday in New York, about one week after authorities said new evidence surfaced linking him to the crime."
Thursday, April 15, 2004
New Book by Father Benedict
It is now public...will be available May 13th.
"There Are No Accidents: In All Things Trust in God"
To pre-order a copy
click here
"There Are No Accidents: In All Things Trust in God"
To pre-order a copy
click here
Catholic Bestseller's List for This Month
#5 for Amy and I and #10 for Amy alone...
From CBPA Catholic Book Publishers Association:
"Paperback
1. A Guide to the Passion 100 Questions About Mel Gibson¹s The Passion of The Christ
Pinto, D¹Ambrosio, Shea, Thigpen, Allen, Ascension Press (193264542X)
2. Catechism of the Catholic Church
Doubleday (0385479670)
Our Sunday Visitor (0879739762)
USCCB Publishing (1574551108)
3. The Life You Save May Be Your Own
Paul Elie, Farrar, Straus & Giroux (0374529213)
4. Return of the Prodigal Son
Henri J. M. Nouwen, Doubleday (0385473079)
5. Praying the Rosary
Dubruiel & Welborn, Our Sunday Visitor (1592760376)
6. The Cathedral
Michael Downey, Liturgical Press (0814628923)
7. Life of the Beloved
Henri J. M. Nouwen, Crossroad (0824519868)
8. Amazing Grace for the Catholic Heart
Cavins, Pinto, Armstrong, Ascension Press (0965922871)
9. Not By Bread Alone
Peter Feldmeier, Liturgical Press (0814627528)
10. De-coding DaVinci
Amy Welborn, Our Sunday Visitor (1592761011)"
To order your own copy of either book...
From CBPA Catholic Book Publishers Association:
"Paperback
1. A Guide to the Passion 100 Questions About Mel Gibson¹s The Passion of The Christ
Pinto, D¹Ambrosio, Shea, Thigpen, Allen, Ascension Press (193264542X)
2. Catechism of the Catholic Church
Doubleday (0385479670)
Our Sunday Visitor (0879739762)
USCCB Publishing (1574551108)
3. The Life You Save May Be Your Own
Paul Elie, Farrar, Straus & Giroux (0374529213)
4. Return of the Prodigal Son
Henri J. M. Nouwen, Doubleday (0385473079)
5. Praying the Rosary
Dubruiel & Welborn, Our Sunday Visitor (1592760376)
6. The Cathedral
Michael Downey, Liturgical Press (0814628923)
7. Life of the Beloved
Henri J. M. Nouwen, Crossroad (0824519868)
8. Amazing Grace for the Catholic Heart
Cavins, Pinto, Armstrong, Ascension Press (0965922871)
9. Not By Bread Alone
Peter Feldmeier, Liturgical Press (0814627528)
10. De-coding DaVinci
Amy Welborn, Our Sunday Visitor (1592761011)"
To order your own copy of either book...
Passion Success Good for Therese Movie
From Leonardo Defilippis on Thérèse on National Review Online:
"The making of the movie has a story behind it just as interesting as The Passion's. In the four years since we started production, we've raised a multimillion-dollar budget from the donations of individuals. From substantial grants to flower sales organized by school children, from one family's donation of $25,000 in retirement savings to a widow's gift of $10,000 from her late husband's estate, there are hundreds of stories of ordinary people sacrificing to see this story told. Pope John Paul II himself saw Thérèse last summer, and has given his blessing not just to the film, but also to all who view it. The popularity of the film's website, www.theresemovie.com reflects the huge anticipation by followers of the saint for the release of Thérèse.
Why is Thérèse so popular, and why the flood of support for a film on her life? Thérèse Martin's short life as a 19th-century French nun might have been buried in obscurity if she hadn't written down her story and her spiritual philosophy before her premature death from tuberculosis at age 24. Her sister, who was also the mother superior of the monastery, asked her to write down her childhood reminiscences, and out of obedience Therese complied. What followed was not just a charming story of her early life, but also a clear explanation of her 'little way' to get to Heaven. This little book spread like wildfire throughout the world, because of the simple ideas that Saint Thérèse presented: how ordinary people can grow close to God through the day-to-day tasks in their lives. After her death in 1897, miracles attributed to the young nun's intercession began to be documented almost immediately, and the Carmelite nun was put on the fast track to sainthood and canonized in 1925. "
"The making of the movie has a story behind it just as interesting as The Passion's. In the four years since we started production, we've raised a multimillion-dollar budget from the donations of individuals. From substantial grants to flower sales organized by school children, from one family's donation of $25,000 in retirement savings to a widow's gift of $10,000 from her late husband's estate, there are hundreds of stories of ordinary people sacrificing to see this story told. Pope John Paul II himself saw Thérèse last summer, and has given his blessing not just to the film, but also to all who view it. The popularity of the film's website, www.theresemovie.com reflects the huge anticipation by followers of the saint for the release of Thérèse.
Why is Thérèse so popular, and why the flood of support for a film on her life? Thérèse Martin's short life as a 19th-century French nun might have been buried in obscurity if she hadn't written down her story and her spiritual philosophy before her premature death from tuberculosis at age 24. Her sister, who was also the mother superior of the monastery, asked her to write down her childhood reminiscences, and out of obedience Therese complied. What followed was not just a charming story of her early life, but also a clear explanation of her 'little way' to get to Heaven. This little book spread like wildfire throughout the world, because of the simple ideas that Saint Thérèse presented: how ordinary people can grow close to God through the day-to-day tasks in their lives. After her death in 1897, miracles attributed to the young nun's intercession began to be documented almost immediately, and the Carmelite nun was put on the fast track to sainthood and canonized in 1925. "
Patriarch Accepts Pope's Apology
Christus Resurrexit! Alleluia
From Patriarch accepts pope's apology over Constantinople:
"Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, the spiritual leader of the world's Orthodox Christians, has accepted an apology from Pope John Paul II for Roman Catholic involvement in the sacking of Constantinople 800 years ago.
During a visit to Greece in 2001, John Paul apologized for the attack on the city, today's Istanbul, which was looted by Catholic Crusaders. The apology had long been sought by Orthodox.
In a speech Tuesday - the 800th anniversary of the city's capture - Bartholomew formally accepted the apology.
'The spirit of reconciliation is stronger than hatred,' Bartholomew said during a liturgy, attended by Philippe Barbarin, the Archbishop of Lyon, France. 'We receive with gratitude and respect your cordial gesture for the tragic events of the Fourth Crusade.' "
From Patriarch accepts pope's apology over Constantinople:
"Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, the spiritual leader of the world's Orthodox Christians, has accepted an apology from Pope John Paul II for Roman Catholic involvement in the sacking of Constantinople 800 years ago.
During a visit to Greece in 2001, John Paul apologized for the attack on the city, today's Istanbul, which was looted by Catholic Crusaders. The apology had long been sought by Orthodox.
In a speech Tuesday - the 800th anniversary of the city's capture - Bartholomew formally accepted the apology.
'The spirit of reconciliation is stronger than hatred,' Bartholomew said during a liturgy, attended by Philippe Barbarin, the Archbishop of Lyon, France. 'We receive with gratitude and respect your cordial gesture for the tragic events of the Fourth Crusade.' "
Wednesday, April 14, 2004
Frances Kissling Agrees That Abortion is an Abominable Crime
I saw the latter part of this interview on Scarborough Country on Monday night but missed this part of it...
From MSNBC - 'Scarborough Country' for April 12:
"KISSLING: Oh, I thought we were going to talk about whether we were going to burn Kerry at the stake, never mind whether he should have received communion.
DONAHUE: Well, you have survived, haven't you? They didn't burn you yet.
BUCHANAN: Here it is, Francis from Vatican II: "Life must be protected with the utmost care from the moment of conception. Abortion is an abominable crime."
KISSLING: Right.
From MSNBC - 'Scarborough Country' for April 12:
"KISSLING: Oh, I thought we were going to talk about whether we were going to burn Kerry at the stake, never mind whether he should have received communion.
DONAHUE: Well, you have survived, haven't you? They didn't burn you yet.
BUCHANAN: Here it is, Francis from Vatican II: "Life must be protected with the utmost care from the moment of conception. Abortion is an abominable crime."
KISSLING: Right.
Taxes
Bush paid $268,719, Kerry paid $90,575...no wonder Bush wants to cut taxes and Kerry thinks the rich aren't paying enough...he obviously has a better accountant!
Malachi Martin’s Status as Life Long Priest
One of the best manuscripts that I have ever read and had to reject for fear of the lawsuits it would spur was a book written by a good bishop who exposed Malachi Martin's deceptions from first hand knowledge. Something of this account appeared yesterday and makes reference to the "accusation" that actually was leveled by the husband of the woman that then Jesuit Father Martin was accused of being involved with...the bishop who was not a Jesuit but like Martin was priest in Rome at the time made a very convincing case for the reality of the accusation.
Now as to whether Martin was ever laicized, I do not know and if he didn't want to be, he probably wasn't and what the Jesuit is claiming is no doubt the truth but I don't think this exonerates him from the other charges.
Personnally, I always enjoyed his views but at the same time thought he was a little crazy, but then I think that about a lot of people.
From High Ranking Jesuit Confirms Malachi Martin’s Status as Life Long Priest by William H. Kennedy:
"In a stunning reversal of past policy Father Vincent O’Keefe SJ, former Vicar General of the Society of Jesus and a past President of Fordham University, affirmed that Malachi Martin was in fact granted a dispensation from all his vows in the Jesuit order except for chastity. This dispels decades of rumors that Father Martin was defrocked for having had an affair with the wife of a famous journalist. This was the false lie spread by past Jesuits to discredit Father Martin. Martin requested and received a special dispensation by Pope Paul VI to remain a Catholic priest and say Mass in private.
Ever since Father Martin’s scathing review of his former order The Jesuits: The Society of Jesus and the Betrayal of the Roman Catholic Church (1988) rumors were spread by members of this order claiming Martin was defrocked and expelled from the Church of Rome. Martin denied this charge until his death in 1999. Father Mitchell Pacwa – chief spokesman at the Catholic run EWTN would regularly hang up on callers who inquired about Martin on his live call in show. "
Now as to whether Martin was ever laicized, I do not know and if he didn't want to be, he probably wasn't and what the Jesuit is claiming is no doubt the truth but I don't think this exonerates him from the other charges.
Personnally, I always enjoyed his views but at the same time thought he was a little crazy, but then I think that about a lot of people.
From High Ranking Jesuit Confirms Malachi Martin’s Status as Life Long Priest by William H. Kennedy:
"In a stunning reversal of past policy Father Vincent O’Keefe SJ, former Vicar General of the Society of Jesus and a past President of Fordham University, affirmed that Malachi Martin was in fact granted a dispensation from all his vows in the Jesuit order except for chastity. This dispels decades of rumors that Father Martin was defrocked for having had an affair with the wife of a famous journalist. This was the false lie spread by past Jesuits to discredit Father Martin. Martin requested and received a special dispensation by Pope Paul VI to remain a Catholic priest and say Mass in private.
Ever since Father Martin’s scathing review of his former order The Jesuits: The Society of Jesus and the Betrayal of the Roman Catholic Church (1988) rumors were spread by members of this order claiming Martin was defrocked and expelled from the Church of Rome. Martin denied this charge until his death in 1999. Father Mitchell Pacwa – chief spokesman at the Catholic run EWTN would regularly hang up on callers who inquired about Martin on his live call in show. "
Pope Doesn't Read Address Today
Understandable after the grueling schedule he has kept over the past two weeks. It would tire a young man. let alone a man in his 80's suffering from Parkinson's disease.
From Channelnewsasia.com:
"On the advice of his doctor, Pope John Paul II will not read out his prepared speech at his weekly audience, the Vatican's spokesman said.
'He accepted the advice of his personal doctor after his punishing schedule during Easter week and will not today personally read the text of his speech for the weekly audience,' spokesman Joaquin Naravrro-Valles told reporters at the Vatican on Wednesday."
From Channelnewsasia.com:
"On the advice of his doctor, Pope John Paul II will not read out his prepared speech at his weekly audience, the Vatican's spokesman said.
'He accepted the advice of his personal doctor after his punishing schedule during Easter week and will not today personally read the text of his speech for the weekly audience,' spokesman Joaquin Naravrro-Valles told reporters at the Vatican on Wednesday."
Tuesday, April 13, 2004
New Face Found on Turin Shroud
From The Telegraph:
Hidden beneath a piece of Holland cloth that was sewn by nuns in 1534, after a fire had blackened parts of it, the reverse side of the shroud was fully scrutinised for the first time in 2002, when the 14ft linen was unstitched from the Holland cloth. The back surface of the shroud was photographed in detail.
"When I saw the pictures, I was caught by the perception of a faint image on the back surface of the shroud. I thought that perhaps there was more that wasn't visible to the naked eye," said Prof Fanti.
"Though the image is very faint, features such as nose, eyes, hair, beard and moustache are visible."
However, the enhancing procedure did not uncover the full body image as it appears on the front side.
Hidden beneath a piece of Holland cloth that was sewn by nuns in 1534, after a fire had blackened parts of it, the reverse side of the shroud was fully scrutinised for the first time in 2002, when the 14ft linen was unstitched from the Holland cloth. The back surface of the shroud was photographed in detail.
"When I saw the pictures, I was caught by the perception of a faint image on the back surface of the shroud. I thought that perhaps there was more that wasn't visible to the naked eye," said Prof Fanti.
"Though the image is very faint, features such as nose, eyes, hair, beard and moustache are visible."
However, the enhancing procedure did not uncover the full body image as it appears on the front side.
Monday, April 12, 2004
A Great Testimonial to a Great Book for Spiritual Reading
A book that will change your life! Here is what Queenie Cleaver has written about Virginia Cyr and the new book:
Something wonderful has happened. Our Indiana friends, the O'Neills, sent us a book just published: GOD'S LITTLE HOBO, the Life of Virginia Cyr. Virginia had cerebral palsy and her mother couldn’t bear to be near her, so she abandoned Virginia and her brother Jimmy when they were very young. The CP began to manifest itself when she was 4 years old. She lived a tragic life, by many's standards, but not hers. She died at their home on Feb. 3, 1967, at the age of 24.
She was full of joy, yet lived with unbearable pain. She is the only person I’ve felt so sure was a Saint, with a capital S. Because Virginia had no mother (to speak of) she claimed Mother Mary as her mother, and wrote almost daily to her. This collection of letters makes up the book. It is truly beautiful, and will move your soul.
Virginia wanted so desperately to join the convent, ANY convent! But none would take her because of her handicap. She finally gave her life as a co-missionary for Fr. Keith Hosey, hence our connection. Keith used to bring her to Elwood for visits from Kokomo where she was living. She loved being in our Charles de Foucauld Fraternity meetings, though she had a hard time talking. Her body jerked with spasms, and she couldn't lie down. She sat propped up in a corner of the room (wherever she was) or in her wheelchair, and slept in a recliner, though she slept very little because of the pain.
We met Virginia through Keith, and had her at our home many times for short 2 or 3 day visits. Dave was two years old at that time, and Virginia wanted so badly to hug him. But if she got a hold of him she couldn't control her arms and would end up squeezing him in a spasm so tightly that he would scream to get free. This broke her heart, and ours, too.
Anyway, she went often to the Benedictine Monastery at St. Meinrad, and there met Brother Quentin, who put this book together. The monks there were so good to her, and made her little pine coffin that she wanted, and brought it to Ted and Ruth's for her to see and approve.
Virginia never had a "home". She was God's little hobo, and went wherever someone took her. She had great joy in her wracked little body, and we always had a great time when we had her with us. If she got to laughing too hard, she would go into a terrible muscle spasm and scare us to death.
She was in Mercy Hospital in 1966, seriously ill, and Ted and Ruth offered her a home. She was fading away and only had a few months. She had a room downstairs, and many visitors. A little altar was at the foot of her bed, where many priests said Mass. There is a sweet picture in the book of Ruth and Fr. Keith with Virginia during those last months. The Kiefer family was very good to her, and she loved being there in all that confusion and noise.
As Brother Quentin said, when Virginia died he did not pray for the repose of her soul. He prayed TO her. That's the way all of us felt. I have no idea if Virginia will ever be formally canonized by the church, nor is it important. Those of us who knew her, knew we were being touched by an Angel, and our lives were changed forever.
I read the first few pages in bed last night to Dick, and cried so hard I couldn't go on. I think it's her sweetness that gets you, and my memories of her being with me, and sharing in our life. And her total abandonment to God's will. How wonderful for Keith that he has such a patron saint. Reading Virginia's life in her own words is beautiful.
And if you're wondering how anyone so totally disabled could write lengthy letters, she did them on a typewriter that was rigged specially for her. I can't even imagine how long
it would have taken her to type a letter, but of course, 'time' for Virginia was different. She was in control of nothing, owned nothing, was able to do nothing but sit and lean, but she gave herself to God 100%, and to whatever His plan was for her.
You'll enjoy this book.
Virginia Cyr, God's Little Hobo
Something wonderful has happened. Our Indiana friends, the O'Neills, sent us a book just published: GOD'S LITTLE HOBO, the Life of Virginia Cyr. Virginia had cerebral palsy and her mother couldn’t bear to be near her, so she abandoned Virginia and her brother Jimmy when they were very young. The CP began to manifest itself when she was 4 years old. She lived a tragic life, by many's standards, but not hers. She died at their home on Feb. 3, 1967, at the age of 24.
She was full of joy, yet lived with unbearable pain. She is the only person I’ve felt so sure was a Saint, with a capital S. Because Virginia had no mother (to speak of) she claimed Mother Mary as her mother, and wrote almost daily to her. This collection of letters makes up the book. It is truly beautiful, and will move your soul.
Virginia wanted so desperately to join the convent, ANY convent! But none would take her because of her handicap. She finally gave her life as a co-missionary for Fr. Keith Hosey, hence our connection. Keith used to bring her to Elwood for visits from Kokomo where she was living. She loved being in our Charles de Foucauld Fraternity meetings, though she had a hard time talking. Her body jerked with spasms, and she couldn't lie down. She sat propped up in a corner of the room (wherever she was) or in her wheelchair, and slept in a recliner, though she slept very little because of the pain.
We met Virginia through Keith, and had her at our home many times for short 2 or 3 day visits. Dave was two years old at that time, and Virginia wanted so badly to hug him. But if she got a hold of him she couldn't control her arms and would end up squeezing him in a spasm so tightly that he would scream to get free. This broke her heart, and ours, too.
Anyway, she went often to the Benedictine Monastery at St. Meinrad, and there met Brother Quentin, who put this book together. The monks there were so good to her, and made her little pine coffin that she wanted, and brought it to Ted and Ruth's for her to see and approve.
Virginia never had a "home". She was God's little hobo, and went wherever someone took her. She had great joy in her wracked little body, and we always had a great time when we had her with us. If she got to laughing too hard, she would go into a terrible muscle spasm and scare us to death.
She was in Mercy Hospital in 1966, seriously ill, and Ted and Ruth offered her a home. She was fading away and only had a few months. She had a room downstairs, and many visitors. A little altar was at the foot of her bed, where many priests said Mass. There is a sweet picture in the book of Ruth and Fr. Keith with Virginia during those last months. The Kiefer family was very good to her, and she loved being there in all that confusion and noise.
As Brother Quentin said, when Virginia died he did not pray for the repose of her soul. He prayed TO her. That's the way all of us felt. I have no idea if Virginia will ever be formally canonized by the church, nor is it important. Those of us who knew her, knew we were being touched by an Angel, and our lives were changed forever.
I read the first few pages in bed last night to Dick, and cried so hard I couldn't go on. I think it's her sweetness that gets you, and my memories of her being with me, and sharing in our life. And her total abandonment to God's will. How wonderful for Keith that he has such a patron saint. Reading Virginia's life in her own words is beautiful.
And if you're wondering how anyone so totally disabled could write lengthy letters, she did them on a typewriter that was rigged specially for her. I can't even imagine how long
it would have taken her to type a letter, but of course, 'time' for Virginia was different. She was in control of nothing, owned nothing, was able to do nothing but sit and lean, but she gave herself to God 100%, and to whatever His plan was for her.
You'll enjoy this book.
Virginia Cyr, God's Little Hobo
Kerry Ignores Reproaches of Some Bishops
The description of the Church is the New York Times take, but it is interesting that they describe it as "a kind of New Age church"...
From The New York Times > Washington > Campaign 2004 > Kerry Ignores Reproaches of Some Bishops:
"Rejecting the admonitions of several national Roman Catholic leaders, Senator John Kerry received communion at Easter services today at the Paulist Center here, a kind of New Age church that describes itself as 'a worship community of Christians in the Roman Catholic tradition' and that attracts people drawn to its dedication to 'family religious education and social justice.'
Mr. Kerry's decision to receive communion represented a challenge to several prominent Catholic bishops, who have become increasingly exasperated with politicians who are Catholic but who deviate from Catholic teaching."
From The New York Times > Washington > Campaign 2004 > Kerry Ignores Reproaches of Some Bishops:
"Rejecting the admonitions of several national Roman Catholic leaders, Senator John Kerry received communion at Easter services today at the Paulist Center here, a kind of New Age church that describes itself as 'a worship community of Christians in the Roman Catholic tradition' and that attracts people drawn to its dedication to 'family religious education and social justice.'
Mr. Kerry's decision to receive communion represented a challenge to several prominent Catholic bishops, who have become increasingly exasperated with politicians who are Catholic but who deviate from Catholic teaching."
Sunday, April 11, 2004
Have a Happy and Blessed Easter!
Saint Peter Chrysologus "golden-worded" was known for his clear and simple style of preaching. About the Resurrection of Christ and the angel's appearance at the tomb he preached:
"Pray that the angel would descend now and roll away all the hardness of our hearts and open up our closed senses and declare to our minds that Christ has risen, for just as the heart in which Christ lives and reigns is heaven, so also in the heart in which Christ remains dead and buried is a grave."
"Pray that the angel would descend now and roll away all the hardness of our hearts and open up our closed senses and declare to our minds that Christ has risen, for just as the heart in which Christ lives and reigns is heaven, so also in the heart in which Christ remains dead and buried is a grave."
Saturday, April 10, 2004
Lexington Bishop Cleans House
From Lexington bishop dismisses 5 top officials:
"Lexington Bishop Ronald Gainer is dismissing five high-ranking Catholic officials, four of them women, as part of a 'departmental reconfiguration.'
The director of pastoral services, Sister Helen Garvey; the parish leadership director, Sister Elizabeth Wendeln; educational ministries secretary Margaret Ralph; the director of ministry formation, Sister Iris Ann Ledden; and chief financial officer Stuart E. Duba are losing their jobs.
The firings stunned some of the diocese's 46,000 Catholics.
'I guess my first reaction was total shock and a deep, deep sadness,' said Sister Robbie Pentecost, executive director of the Catholic Committee of Appalachia. 'I know people are just heartsick all over the diocese.'
The dismissals are part of a reorganization that will be completed by July 1, the diocese said in a statement.
Gainer, Lexington's bishop since February 2003, announced the dismissals Friday in a letter to diocesan staff. "
"Lexington Bishop Ronald Gainer is dismissing five high-ranking Catholic officials, four of them women, as part of a 'departmental reconfiguration.'
The director of pastoral services, Sister Helen Garvey; the parish leadership director, Sister Elizabeth Wendeln; educational ministries secretary Margaret Ralph; the director of ministry formation, Sister Iris Ann Ledden; and chief financial officer Stuart E. Duba are losing their jobs.
The firings stunned some of the diocese's 46,000 Catholics.
'I guess my first reaction was total shock and a deep, deep sadness,' said Sister Robbie Pentecost, executive director of the Catholic Committee of Appalachia. 'I know people are just heartsick all over the diocese.'
The dismissals are part of a reorganization that will be completed by July 1, the diocese said in a statement.
Gainer, Lexington's bishop since February 2003, announced the dismissals Friday in a letter to diocesan staff. "
You Did What?
I'm always reminded of people's horror stories of confessing to a priest who was hard of hearing, not that the pope is hard of hearing but that was the image that came to mind.
From MSNBC - Pope John Paul hearsGood Friday confessions:
"At the Vatican, the frail 83-year-old pontiff was wheeled into the basilica by aides and into a mahogany confessional booth near the main altar. He spent about an hour there, hearing the confessions of five men and six women of various nationalities.
In a taxing Holy Week schedule, John Paul, dressed in red vestments, presided over a late afternoon service in the basilica. The service commemorated the passion and death of Christ."
From MSNBC - Pope John Paul hearsGood Friday confessions:
"At the Vatican, the frail 83-year-old pontiff was wheeled into the basilica by aides and into a mahogany confessional booth near the main altar. He spent about an hour there, hearing the confessions of five men and six women of various nationalities.
In a taxing Holy Week schedule, John Paul, dressed in red vestments, presided over a late afternoon service in the basilica. The service commemorated the passion and death of Christ."
Friday, April 9, 2004
Father Benedict's Good Friday Thought
From Letter 4/9/04:
"'Behold the wood of the cross.' All around you people are experiencing their personal Calvary. But when you think of it, this is true in any neighborhood, any family, any place where human beings gather. Even working in a business office there are people going through their personal Calvary or, unfortunately, their personal hell. And this is why the great message of Good Friday is charity. God so loved the world that He sent His Son, and His Son brought us salvation and the hope of eternal life. Even the criminals and sadists who led Christ to Calvary were included in His prayer: 'Father, forgive them.'"
"'Behold the wood of the cross.' All around you people are experiencing their personal Calvary. But when you think of it, this is true in any neighborhood, any family, any place where human beings gather. Even working in a business office there are people going through their personal Calvary or, unfortunately, their personal hell. And this is why the great message of Good Friday is charity. God so loved the world that He sent His Son, and His Son brought us salvation and the hope of eternal life. Even the criminals and sadists who led Christ to Calvary were included in His prayer: 'Father, forgive them.'"
Eucharist Necessary to Remain Attached to The Vine--Jesus
From Pope John Paul II's Holy Thursday Homily:
To remain faithful to this request, to remain in him as shoots united to the vine, to love as he loved, it is necessary to nourish oneself with his Body and Blood. Saying to the apostles: "Do this in memory of me," the Lord has united the Church to the living memorial of his Pasch. Although he is the unique Priest of the New Covenant, he wished to have men, consecrated by the Holy Spirit, act in profound union with his Person in distributing the food of life.
To remain faithful to this request, to remain in him as shoots united to the vine, to love as he loved, it is necessary to nourish oneself with his Body and Blood. Saying to the apostles: "Do this in memory of me," the Lord has united the Church to the living memorial of his Pasch. Although he is the unique Priest of the New Covenant, he wished to have men, consecrated by the Holy Spirit, act in profound union with his Person in distributing the food of life.
Flights Banned Over Vatican
From Bloomberg.com: Europe:
"Italy has imposed a no-fly zone over Rome and boosted security against a possible terrorist attack as tens of thousands of pilgrims and tourists arrive in the Vatican City for Easter, Corriere della Sera reported, citing police.
Non-commercial flights will be banned from taking off or landing around Rome on Easter Sunday and Monday, the paper said. Streets around the Vatican City and St. Peter's square will be closed to traffic.
About 12,000 police and 4,000 military are being deployed through Monday, including snipers placed in strategic points and surveillance helicopters, Il Messaggero reported yesterday. Pope John Paul II will conduct Easter Mass on Sunday to a crowd of tens of thousands in St. Peter's square. "
"Italy has imposed a no-fly zone over Rome and boosted security against a possible terrorist attack as tens of thousands of pilgrims and tourists arrive in the Vatican City for Easter, Corriere della Sera reported, citing police.
Non-commercial flights will be banned from taking off or landing around Rome on Easter Sunday and Monday, the paper said. Streets around the Vatican City and St. Peter's square will be closed to traffic.
About 12,000 police and 4,000 military are being deployed through Monday, including snipers placed in strategic points and surveillance helicopters, Il Messaggero reported yesterday. Pope John Paul II will conduct Easter Mass on Sunday to a crowd of tens of thousands in St. Peter's square. "
Thursday, April 8, 2004
Last Days of My Lenten Meditations
They can be accessed by clicking on the gate to the right. These have been a rough draft of a book that I am working on that will be available before next Lent. The last posting will be on Easter Sunday.
No Travel Time Credit For Bishop O'Brien
From KPHO Phoenix - No Travel Time Credit For Bishop O'Brien:
"No break from the Judge for retired Bishop Thomas O'Brien regarding his probation!
You'll remember the Bishop was convicted and sentenced to a thousand hours of community service in the run and run death of pedestrian Jim Reed last year.
We told you Monday O'Brien requested that his travel time be included in his community service requirement.
Late Wednesday night the Judge ruled O'Brien will receive NO credit for the time he must travel to his counseling appointments."
"No break from the Judge for retired Bishop Thomas O'Brien regarding his probation!
You'll remember the Bishop was convicted and sentenced to a thousand hours of community service in the run and run death of pedestrian Jim Reed last year.
We told you Monday O'Brien requested that his travel time be included in his community service requirement.
Late Wednesday night the Judge ruled O'Brien will receive NO credit for the time he must travel to his counseling appointments."
De-Coding Da Vinci--Amy's Zenit Interview
From Zenit News Agency - The World Seen From Rome:
Q: What are the most important assertions about Christian origins that author Dan Brown makes in this novel? What seems to be disturbing people the most?
Welborn: Brown makes several assertions, none of which would be taken seriously by real, as opposed to fictional scholars.
The basis of the book is that Jesus, a mortal teacher of wisdom, was intent on reintroducing the notion of the "sacred feminine" back into human consciousness and experience. He drew followers, and was married to Mary Magdalene, whom he designated as the leader of his movement.
This was opposed by another party -- the "Peter party" -- which worked to suppress the truth, which was ultimately achieved through the actions of Emperor Constantine who "divinized" Jesus at the Council of Nicaea in 325.
It is this suggestion that the Christian Church has been engaged in a destructive cover-up of the truth that has disturbed readers, as well as the idea -- propped up by Brown's assertions that "historians believe" -- that Jesus was not experienced as divine by his earliest followers.
de-Coding Da Vinci: The Facts Behind the Fiction of the Da Vinci Code
Q: What are the most important assertions about Christian origins that author Dan Brown makes in this novel? What seems to be disturbing people the most?
Welborn: Brown makes several assertions, none of which would be taken seriously by real, as opposed to fictional scholars.
The basis of the book is that Jesus, a mortal teacher of wisdom, was intent on reintroducing the notion of the "sacred feminine" back into human consciousness and experience. He drew followers, and was married to Mary Magdalene, whom he designated as the leader of his movement.
This was opposed by another party -- the "Peter party" -- which worked to suppress the truth, which was ultimately achieved through the actions of Emperor Constantine who "divinized" Jesus at the Council of Nicaea in 325.
It is this suggestion that the Christian Church has been engaged in a destructive cover-up of the truth that has disturbed readers, as well as the idea -- propped up by Brown's assertions that "historians believe" -- that Jesus was not experienced as divine by his earliest followers.
de-Coding Da Vinci: The Facts Behind the Fiction of the Da Vinci Code
Wednesday, April 7, 2004
Maybe the Pope was Right about Iraq!
Sad that we probably will lose a pro-life president because he surrounded himself with horrible advisors.
Albany Priest's Death Ruled Suicide
From The Record:
"After more than three months of examination, autopsy results reveal that Minkler did commit suicide just days after allegations surfaced that he wrote a 1995 letter to the late Cardinal John O'Conner condemning Albany Bishop Howard Hubbard and other priests for having alleged homosexual relations.
Coroner Herman Thomas confirmed Tuesday by telephone from his home that it was a suicide, but made no official statement on the case. "
"After more than three months of examination, autopsy results reveal that Minkler did commit suicide just days after allegations surfaced that he wrote a 1995 letter to the late Cardinal John O'Conner condemning Albany Bishop Howard Hubbard and other priests for having alleged homosexual relations.
Coroner Herman Thomas confirmed Tuesday by telephone from his home that it was a suicide, but made no official statement on the case. "
If Your Eye Offends You...
I remember Father Dick Teal telling the story of a University of Florida student doing the same thing (over twenty years ago)...
Amy, there is good Flannerish story to be told here.
WorldNetDaily: Man plucks out own eye, quotes Bible:
"A murder suspect in Grayson County, Texas, quoted a Bible verse after using his hand to pluck out his own right eye.
According to the Sherman Herald Democrat, confessed killer Andre Thomas was in a county jail cell directly across from the book-in station Friday when he turned his back on the jail staff. After hearing a scream, personnel saw Thomas turn around with his eyeball in his hand.
Thomas is no stranger to mutilation. Police say he killed his wife, son and wife's daughter in the woman's apartment, mutilating each victim. According to the report, Thomas turned himself into police the day the bodies were discovered, having cut himself with a knife. After undergoing surgery, Thomas was transferred to the Grayson County Jail and placed on 'suicide watch.' "
Amy, there is good Flannerish story to be told here.
WorldNetDaily: Man plucks out own eye, quotes Bible:
"A murder suspect in Grayson County, Texas, quoted a Bible verse after using his hand to pluck out his own right eye.
According to the Sherman Herald Democrat, confessed killer Andre Thomas was in a county jail cell directly across from the book-in station Friday when he turned his back on the jail staff. After hearing a scream, personnel saw Thomas turn around with his eyeball in his hand.
Thomas is no stranger to mutilation. Police say he killed his wife, son and wife's daughter in the woman's apartment, mutilating each victim. According to the report, Thomas turned himself into police the day the bodies were discovered, having cut himself with a knife. After undergoing surgery, Thomas was transferred to the Grayson County Jail and placed on 'suicide watch.' "
O'Malley--U.S. Like Babylon
And of course since we now occupy the historical Babylon as well, i.e. Iraq.
From TheBostonChannel.com - News - O'Malley: America Hostile To Catholics:
"Archbishop Sean P. O'Malley said American culture is inhospitable to Roman Catholic teaching, and likened preaching to Americans to a form of martyrdom.
'Today, our challenge is simple: to resist the temptation to conform to the culture of death, to consumerism, hedonism, individualism,' O'Malley told about 500 priests and 600 parishioners on Tuesday during Chrism Mass at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross. The Mass, which included the blessing of sacred oils, was part of Holy Week, which culminates with Easter Sunday.
O'Malley compared the Catholic Church in the United States to 'exiles in the midst of Babylon.' He said Catholics 'find themselves in a hostile, alien environment where the overriding temptation is to assimilate, the cultural pull is to conform to a dominant cultural influence that is incongruous with our faith and our destiny.'
A Franciscan Capuchin friar, O'Malley spoke at length about the importance of preaching, which was a major preoccupation of St. Francis."
From TheBostonChannel.com - News - O'Malley: America Hostile To Catholics:
"Archbishop Sean P. O'Malley said American culture is inhospitable to Roman Catholic teaching, and likened preaching to Americans to a form of martyrdom.
'Today, our challenge is simple: to resist the temptation to conform to the culture of death, to consumerism, hedonism, individualism,' O'Malley told about 500 priests and 600 parishioners on Tuesday during Chrism Mass at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross. The Mass, which included the blessing of sacred oils, was part of Holy Week, which culminates with Easter Sunday.
O'Malley compared the Catholic Church in the United States to 'exiles in the midst of Babylon.' He said Catholics 'find themselves in a hostile, alien environment where the overriding temptation is to assimilate, the cultural pull is to conform to a dominant cultural influence that is incongruous with our faith and our destiny.'
A Franciscan Capuchin friar, O'Malley spoke at length about the importance of preaching, which was a major preoccupation of St. Francis."
Tuesday, April 6, 2004
'Jesus and Paul'
I watched about ten minutes of this an it made my head spin. Christian hard rock music and constant flashing between art images and scenes from the modern middle east made it unwatchable in my estimation.
From Charlotte Allen on the ABC special, 'Jesus and Paul' -- Beliefnet.com:
"In 2000, ABC's Peter Jennings gave us 'The Search for Jesus,' a television special in which for the most part channeled the Jesus Seminar—that coven of iconoclastic New Testament scholars who contend that Jesus of Nazareth didn't say or do many of the things reported in the Gospels. Jenning's new 'Jesus and Paul: The Word and the Witness,' shows Jesus and Paul, but also a Jennings chastened perhaps by the criticism he got four years ago for leaning so heavily on skeptics: 'Jesus and Paul' is far more balanced, and more respectful of traditional beliefs, about the man whom Christians call savior."
From Charlotte Allen on the ABC special, 'Jesus and Paul' -- Beliefnet.com:
"In 2000, ABC's Peter Jennings gave us 'The Search for Jesus,' a television special in which for the most part channeled the Jesus Seminar—that coven of iconoclastic New Testament scholars who contend that Jesus of Nazareth didn't say or do many of the things reported in the Gospels. Jenning's new 'Jesus and Paul: The Word and the Witness,' shows Jesus and Paul, but also a Jennings chastened perhaps by the criticism he got four years ago for leaning so heavily on skeptics: 'Jesus and Paul' is far more balanced, and more respectful of traditional beliefs, about the man whom Christians call savior."
Monday, April 5, 2004
Kerry Presents Himself for Communion
At an AME church...
They should have refused him, because he isn't in "communion" with them--but I think it shows what he thinks of anyone's religious tradition.
From Politics News Article | Reuters.com:
"After surgery to repair a torn tendon in his right shoulder, Democrat John Kerry eased back onto the campaign trail Sunday, shaking hands at first with his left arm but forgoing the political traditions of back-slapping and baby-hoisting.
Despite his doctor's estimate that it would be 'a week or two' until he could shake hands in the normal fashion, Kerry appeared to be in no pain as he used his right arm later to greet churchgoers in Boston's Roxbury neighborhood.
A Catholic, Kerry marked Palm Sunday and the start of Easter week at the Charles Street African Methodist Episcopal Church where he was given a hero's welcome.
'We're thankful that there's going to be a revolution in this country ... a new movement,' declared pastor Gregory Groover. '
And we say, God, bring him on, the next president of the United States.'
Kerry, who has worshiped at the predominantly black church at least twice before, and his wife Teresa both took communion. "
For more on this issue, see my previous post on plans by the Kerry campaign to find a priest who'll refuse him--read the comments if you are with the Kerry campaign, Father Brian has posted his contact info (including confession times)!
They should have refused him, because he isn't in "communion" with them--but I think it shows what he thinks of anyone's religious tradition.
From Politics News Article | Reuters.com:
"After surgery to repair a torn tendon in his right shoulder, Democrat John Kerry eased back onto the campaign trail Sunday, shaking hands at first with his left arm but forgoing the political traditions of back-slapping and baby-hoisting.
Despite his doctor's estimate that it would be 'a week or two' until he could shake hands in the normal fashion, Kerry appeared to be in no pain as he used his right arm later to greet churchgoers in Boston's Roxbury neighborhood.
A Catholic, Kerry marked Palm Sunday and the start of Easter week at the Charles Street African Methodist Episcopal Church where he was given a hero's welcome.
'We're thankful that there's going to be a revolution in this country ... a new movement,' declared pastor Gregory Groover. '
And we say, God, bring him on, the next president of the United States.'
Kerry, who has worshiped at the predominantly black church at least twice before, and his wife Teresa both took communion. "
For more on this issue, see my previous post on plans by the Kerry campaign to find a priest who'll refuse him--read the comments if you are with the Kerry campaign, Father Brian has posted his contact info (including confession times)!
Sunday, April 4, 2004
deja vue
Shortly after our arrival at the hotel in Cincinnati the power went out. A couple of hours this time and in not in the middle of the summer. In fact the forecast for last night and today is for snow.
Saturday, April 3, 2004
Friday, April 2, 2004
"Moment of Difficulty is a Time of Hope"
Pope's Address to the American Bishops
From the Vatican Information Service:
"Our meetings," the Pope said, "are taking place at a difficult time in the history of the Church in the United States. Many of you have already spoken to me of the pain caused by the sexual abuse scandal of the past two years and the urgent need for rebuilding confidence and promoting healing between Bishops, priests and the laity in your country. I am confident that the willingness which you have shown in acknowledging and addressing past mistakes and failures, while at the same time seeking to learn from them, will contribute greatly to this work of reconciliation and renewal."
He added that "the history of the Church demonstrates that there can be no effective reform without interior renewal" for individuals, groups and institutions. For a bishop, "the challenge of interior renewal must involve an integral understanding of his service as 'pastor gregis'." To be effective, the Bishop's "apostolic authority must be seen first and foremost as a religious witness to the Risen Lord, to the truth of the Gospel and to the mystery of salvation present and at work in the Church. ... The renewal of the Church is thus closely linked to the renewal of the episcopal office. The Bishop ... must be the first to conform his life to Christ in holiness and constant conversion."
"Dear Brothers," continued John Paul, "I wish to reaffirm my confidence in the Church in America, my appreciation of the deep faith of America's Catholics and my gratitude for their many contributions to American society and to the life of the Church throughout the world. Viewed with the eyes of faith, the present moment of difficulty is also a moment of hope, that hope which 'does not disappoint' (Rom 5:5), because it is rooted in the Holy Spirit, who constantly raises up new energies, callings and missions within the Body of Christ."
"The Special Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, celebrated in the wake of the epochal events of September 11, 2001, rightly noted that the Bishop is called to be a prophet, witness and servant of hope to the world ... because he makes that hope present through his pastoral ministry, centered as it is on the three 'munera' of sanctifying, teaching and governing. The exercise of this prophetic witness in contemporary American society has, as many of you have pointed out, been made increasingly difficult by the aftermath of the recent scandal and the outspoken hostility to the Gospel in certain sectors of public opinion, yet it cannot be evaded or delegated to others. Precisely because American society is confronted by a disturbing loss of the sense of the transcendent and the affirmation of a culture of the material and the ephemeral, it desperately needs such a witness of hope."
"For this reason," the Holy Father concluded, "I pray that our meetings will not only strengthen the hierarchical communion which unites the Successor of Peter with his Brother Bishops in the United States, but will bear abundant fruit for the growth of your own local Churches in unity and in missionary zeal for the spread of the Gospel."
From the Vatican Information Service:
"Our meetings," the Pope said, "are taking place at a difficult time in the history of the Church in the United States. Many of you have already spoken to me of the pain caused by the sexual abuse scandal of the past two years and the urgent need for rebuilding confidence and promoting healing between Bishops, priests and the laity in your country. I am confident that the willingness which you have shown in acknowledging and addressing past mistakes and failures, while at the same time seeking to learn from them, will contribute greatly to this work of reconciliation and renewal."
He added that "the history of the Church demonstrates that there can be no effective reform without interior renewal" for individuals, groups and institutions. For a bishop, "the challenge of interior renewal must involve an integral understanding of his service as 'pastor gregis'." To be effective, the Bishop's "apostolic authority must be seen first and foremost as a religious witness to the Risen Lord, to the truth of the Gospel and to the mystery of salvation present and at work in the Church. ... The renewal of the Church is thus closely linked to the renewal of the episcopal office. The Bishop ... must be the first to conform his life to Christ in holiness and constant conversion."
"Dear Brothers," continued John Paul, "I wish to reaffirm my confidence in the Church in America, my appreciation of the deep faith of America's Catholics and my gratitude for their many contributions to American society and to the life of the Church throughout the world. Viewed with the eyes of faith, the present moment of difficulty is also a moment of hope, that hope which 'does not disappoint' (Rom 5:5), because it is rooted in the Holy Spirit, who constantly raises up new energies, callings and missions within the Body of Christ."
"The Special Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, celebrated in the wake of the epochal events of September 11, 2001, rightly noted that the Bishop is called to be a prophet, witness and servant of hope to the world ... because he makes that hope present through his pastoral ministry, centered as it is on the three 'munera' of sanctifying, teaching and governing. The exercise of this prophetic witness in contemporary American society has, as many of you have pointed out, been made increasingly difficult by the aftermath of the recent scandal and the outspoken hostility to the Gospel in certain sectors of public opinion, yet it cannot be evaded or delegated to others. Precisely because American society is confronted by a disturbing loss of the sense of the transcendent and the affirmation of a culture of the material and the ephemeral, it desperately needs such a witness of hope."
"For this reason," the Holy Father concluded, "I pray that our meetings will not only strengthen the hierarchical communion which unites the Successor of Peter with his Brother Bishops in the United States, but will bear abundant fruit for the growth of your own local Churches in unity and in missionary zeal for the spread of the Gospel."
Kerry to Bait Priest into Refusing Him Communion
Quite frankly, I fail to see how this would win him any support from those who don't support him presently. The pro-life crowd would love the priest and applaud the action as heroic, those who don't know about Kerry's position would be made aware of it and there could be some who don't even know that he's Catholic.
From The American Spectator:
"The Kerry campaign was said to be surprised at the coverage their candidate received for attending Mass while on vacation in Idaho. 'You saw conservatives all up in arms that he was receiving communion, when most American Catholics do the same thing and live a life very similar to the senator's: divorced, pro-choice, etcetera,' says the Kerry adviser. 'It just highlights how out of touch the right wing is with America, and we can play to that.'
To that end, according to other sources inside the Kerry camp, aides are attempting to identify a Catholic diocese, and perhaps even a specific priest and church, where Kerry could attend a Mass with reporters present, and be turned away at the altar attempting to receive communion. "
From The American Spectator:
"The Kerry campaign was said to be surprised at the coverage their candidate received for attending Mass while on vacation in Idaho. 'You saw conservatives all up in arms that he was receiving communion, when most American Catholics do the same thing and live a life very similar to the senator's: divorced, pro-choice, etcetera,' says the Kerry adviser. 'It just highlights how out of touch the right wing is with America, and we can play to that.'
To that end, according to other sources inside the Kerry camp, aides are attempting to identify a Catholic diocese, and perhaps even a specific priest and church, where Kerry could attend a Mass with reporters present, and be turned away at the altar attempting to receive communion. "
Thursday, April 1, 2004
Update on Father Groeschel
From Letter 3/31/04:
"Fr. Benedict is recovering slowly but surely. He's taken 28 steps on one occasion. For a short time he had to return to the hospital from the nursing home for what could have been a dangerous situation. Thank God that the test produced that his functioning was of a healthy body. In this regard he asked for your continued prayer especially in the next few weeks, his walking and movement will be determined. Of course he continues to ask for our prayers."
"Fr. Benedict is recovering slowly but surely. He's taken 28 steps on one occasion. For a short time he had to return to the hospital from the nursing home for what could have been a dangerous situation. Thank God that the test produced that his functioning was of a healthy body. In this regard he asked for your continued prayer especially in the next few weeks, his walking and movement will be determined. Of course he continues to ask for our prayers."
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