Thursday, August 31, 2017
Relics attributed to St. Peter found in a church in Rome
Rome, relics attributed to Peter found in a church in Trastevere - La StampaTORNIELLI: What is certain is that the discovery of Saint Peter’s ancient tomb was located on the Vatican hill where he had suffered martyrdom and where now stands the Basilica that takes after his name. But the fate of his bones has long been wrapped in mystery. Although archaeologist Margherita Guarducci was certain of having found them, and that Paul VI on June 26, 1968 announced that “... even the relics of St. Peter have been identified so that we can feel convincing” the enigma of the relics cannot be called over. A new chapter begins: recently restoration works in the church of Santa Maria in Cappella, in Trastevere, have brought to light, inside a medieval altar, two olle (Roman pots) containing the (alleged) relics of some early popes, including St. Peter. Some Bone-fragments that therefore add up to those preserved in the Vatican underground.
From Brandon Vogt, more tips for talking with atheists
Tips for Talking with Atheists [VIDEO]: In the first video, we looked at the shocking rise of atheism and skepticism. In the second video, we examined the best evidence for God. In this third video, w
e'll learn some new tactics to help you remain cool and calm...
e'll learn some new tactics to help you remain cool and calm...
A lament on the shrinking of summer
A Lament on the Shrinking of Summer - Community in Mission : Community in MissionPOPE: It’s the end of August; not so long ago this was still a lazy time to enjoy the last few days of summer. It used to be that Labor Day marked the unofficial end of summer — not so any more.
The erosion of summer is driven mainly by the start of school. I have watched with sadness as the school year seems to begin earlier and earlier and earlier. In the Washington, D.C. area, some schools have been open for more than a week already. College classes start even earlier, early August in some cases; and new students who need an “orientation” generally arrive on campus even before the general student population.
What’s the big rush? Why are some people in such a big hurry to get back to the grind? Families have so little time to spend time together as it is! I hope that the concerns I express today will be seen as having spiritual components and not just as the complaints of an old curmudgeon.
The erosion of summer is driven mainly by the start of school. I have watched with sadness as the school year seems to begin earlier and earlier and earlier. In the Washington, D.C. area, some schools have been open for more than a week already. College classes start even earlier, early August in some cases; and new students who need an “orientation” generally arrive on campus even before the general student population.
What’s the big rush? Why are some people in such a big hurry to get back to the grind? Families have so little time to spend time together as it is! I hope that the concerns I express today will be seen as having spiritual components and not just as the complaints of an old curmudgeon.
Sally Quinn and her ghosts: A memoir about magic, sex, spirituality and the religion beat
Sally Quinn and her ghosts: A memoir about magic, sex, spirituality and the religion beat — GetReligionMATTINGLY: Now this is what the DC chattering classes desperately needed right now – something to talk about other than President Donald Trump and his wife's controversial choices in footwear.
If you have followed post-1960s life in Washington, D.C., you will not be surprised that the person in the center of this hurricane of whispers is none other than journalist and social maven Sally Quinn. Yes, we're talking about the much-talked-about lover and much-younger wife of the great Washington Post editor Ben Bradlee.
Once the most feared "New Journalism" scribe covering DC social life, Quinn later used her personal charisma and clout to create the "On Faith" blog at the Post – opening a window into the religious beliefs of her corner of the DC establishment. Hint: Mysterious progressive faith is good, traditional forms of religion are bad, bad, bad. Meanwhile, the former atheist became – in her public persona -- a rather visible Episcopalian.
If you have followed post-1960s life in Washington, D.C., you will not be surprised that the person in the center of this hurricane of whispers is none other than journalist and social maven Sally Quinn. Yes, we're talking about the much-talked-about lover and much-younger wife of the great Washington Post editor Ben Bradlee.
Once the most feared "New Journalism" scribe covering DC social life, Quinn later used her personal charisma and clout to create the "On Faith" blog at the Post – opening a window into the religious beliefs of her corner of the DC establishment. Hint: Mysterious progressive faith is good, traditional forms of religion are bad, bad, bad. Meanwhile, the former atheist became – in her public persona -- a rather visible Episcopalian.
Southern Poverty Law Center transfers millions in cash to offshore entities
Southern Poverty Law Center Transfers Millions in Cash to Offshore Entities: The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), a liberal, Alabama-based 501(c)(3) tax-exempt charitable organization that has gained prominence on the left for its "hate group" designations, pushes millions of dollars to offshore entities as part of its business dealings, records show.
Additionally, the nonprofit pays lucrative six-figure salaries to its top directors and key employees while spending little on legal services despite its stated intent of "fighting hate and bigotry" using litigation, education, and other forms of advocacy.
Additionally, the nonprofit pays lucrative six-figure salaries to its top directors and key employees while spending little on legal services despite its stated intent of "fighting hate and bigotry" using litigation, education, and other forms of advocacy.
Pope Francis sends condolences to victims of Hurricane Harvey
Pope Francis sends condolences to victims of Hurricane Harvey :: Catholic News Agency (CNA): On Thursday, Pope Francis voiced his sympathy to those suffering from the effects of Hurricane Harvey, offering prayers for the victims and rescue workers.
In an Aug. 31 letter to Cardinal Daniel DiNardo of Galveston-Houston, president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, the Pope offered his “spiritual closeness and pastoral concern” to all those affected by “the violent hurricane that swept through the states of Texas and Louisiana in these days.”
In an Aug. 31 letter to Cardinal Daniel DiNardo of Galveston-Houston, president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, the Pope offered his “spiritual closeness and pastoral concern” to all those affected by “the violent hurricane that swept through the states of Texas and Louisiana in these days.”
Wednesday, August 30, 2017
Fire destroyed their home during Harvey, but a Virgin Mary statue survived
Virgin Mary statue survives fire during Harvey - CNN: It wasn't just wind and rain that caused damage when Hurricane Harvey blasted through the Texas coast. Fires did their share too.
A family in Robstown, just west of Corpus Christi, lost their homes to a fire just as Harvey was hitting the area. The Rojas family had evacuated their three houses on property they own. They returned to a distressing sight: all three houses destroyed by fire.
But they also found something in the ashes that they say gave them hope -- an intact statue of the Virgin Mary.
A family in Robstown, just west of Corpus Christi, lost their homes to a fire just as Harvey was hitting the area. The Rojas family had evacuated their three houses on property they own. They returned to a distressing sight: all three houses destroyed by fire.
But they also found something in the ashes that they say gave them hope -- an intact statue of the Virgin Mary.
Does catechesis have a place within evangelization?
Does Catechesis have a place within Evangelization? | Knowing Is DoingTORRE: Thirty-eight years ago, St. John Paul II communicated what I believe is an authentic explanation of evangelization, “the definitive aim of catechesis is to put people not only in touch but in communion, in intimacy, with Jesus Christ; only He can lead us to the love of the Father in the Spirit and make us share in the life of the Holy Trinity.” (Catechesis in Our Time, 5) However, some might interpret John Paul’s words to be incomplete as they identify evangelization as the primary vehicle to guide someone into communion and intimacy with Jesus Christ instead of catechesis. A current ministerial trend on the practice of evangelization is that Christ and the Apostles simply evangelized (proclaim the Gospel) and only taught (catechized) when necessary.
Receiving our true names: 21st Sunday in Ordinary Time
Receiving Our True Names: 21st Sunday in Ordinary Time | Catholic Moral TheologyPATRICKCLARK: On our own, we cannot discover who we really are. Our true identity is given to us as a reply to our confession of the identity of another.
That claim seems to run directly counter to the dominant social dynamics of our age. We are charged with the tasks of “finding ourselves” and “expressing ourselves,” and one of the last bastions of consensus on the common good seems to be that individuals should be granted almost absolute immunity from any external constraint upon these tasks. Individual self-discovery and self-expression are sacred activities that must be carefully protected from any outside influence, lest our identity be the result of coercion rather than our own autonomous choice.
That claim seems to run directly counter to the dominant social dynamics of our age. We are charged with the tasks of “finding ourselves” and “expressing ourselves,” and one of the last bastions of consensus on the common good seems to be that individuals should be granted almost absolute immunity from any external constraint upon these tasks. Individual self-discovery and self-expression are sacred activities that must be carefully protected from any outside influence, lest our identity be the result of coercion rather than our own autonomous choice.
Two tragic sins seen in one Gospel passage
Two Tragic Sins Seen in One Gospel Passage - Community in Mission : Community in MissionPOPE: The tragic Gospel passage about the death of St. John Baptist (which we read in daily Mass on Tuesday) is a study in two common sins that afflict most of us. While the results of these sinful tendencies may not always be this dire, the damage wrought is often significant. Let’s take a look at each in turn.
The sin of human respect – This is a sin wherein we fear human beings and their opinions of us more than we fear God and what He thinks of us.
The sin of human respect – This is a sin wherein we fear human beings and their opinions of us more than we fear God and what He thinks of us.
Before-and-after image captures devastating flooding in Houston
Before and After Photos Capture Devastating Flooding in Houston | WIRED: Every time a bad storm hits Houston, Aaron Cohan watches the waters of the Buffalo Bayou rise. He lives on the 25th floor of a high-rise in the Memorial Heights neighborhood just west of downtown, with a prime view of the river snaking through a park below. But nothing beat the flood he woke to Sunday morning after Hurricane Harvey dumped 20 inches of rain in just 48 hours. The entire area transformed into a lake with only the treetops peeking above.
“This is completely different,” Cohan says. “I’ve never seen anything like what’s happening right now.”
“This is completely different,” Cohan says. “I’ve never seen anything like what’s happening right now.”
Beware of the temptation to domesticate Almighty God
Domesticating the divinity - Denver CatholicWEIGEL: Some biblical scholars consider the Book of Deuteronomy to be a collection of sermons: catechetical homilies on the great theme of the Exodus and the fulfillment of that epic adventure in God’s gifts of the Law and the land to the people of Israel. Throughout the book, Israel is told, over and over again, “Remember....” (or, more sharply, “Take heed, lest you forget....”). And what is Israel to remember? What does Israel dare not forget? Israel must remember God’s mighty deeds in leading his people out of that “house of bondage,” Egypt. Israel must remember that Pharaoh’s army was crushed by God’s power, not its own. Israel must remember the manna and the quail in the desert, food from heaven. Israel must remember the gift of the Law, which helps Israel avoid falling back into the bad habits of slaves. And Israel must remember the gift of the land, which, by God’s bounty, gave her a home where she might prosper.
Vatican official visits Texas to investigate mysterious 17th-century bilocation of the ‘Lady in Blue’
Vatican considers 'Lady in Blue' for sainthood: A top Vatican official Monday toured San Angelo’s Concho River, where it’s said an apparition of Maria de Jesus de Agreda — the Lady in Blue — appeared and brought Christianity to the Jumano Indians in the 1600s.
The Rev. Stefano M. Cecchin, OFM, vice postulator of the Friars Minor, is on a weeklong fact-finding mission to determine the validity of the tale of the Lady in Blue and whether she should be considered for sainthood.
The Rev. Stefano M. Cecchin, OFM, vice postulator of the Friars Minor, is on a weeklong fact-finding mission to determine the validity of the tale of the Lady in Blue and whether she should be considered for sainthood.
That's how we rise together: An unforgettable halftime at a pro soccer game
Rise Together: An Unforgettable Halftime at FCC – Catholic TelegraphFINKE: One of the cheers popular in “the Bailey,” the famous, raucous cheering section for Cincinnati’s two-year-old professional soccer team, Football Club Cincinnati or FCC, starts with those words. It goes to the tune of “When the Saints go Marching in.”
There are other cheers, too, and drum patterns, and cadences to clap along to. Denizens of the Bailey (a low-rent, bleacher section of UC’s Nippert Stadium) also pound the side of the cheering section, set off plumes colored smoke, and wave handmade flags. Not always kind to the opposing team, the Bailey generally cheers for almost anyone else on the field, including the children who escort the teams to the pitch, Sprinkles the Dunkin Donuts mascot, and youth soccer players who try to score goal kicks against Sprinkles at halftime.
There are other cheers, too, and drum patterns, and cadences to clap along to. Denizens of the Bailey (a low-rent, bleacher section of UC’s Nippert Stadium) also pound the side of the cheering section, set off plumes colored smoke, and wave handmade flags. Not always kind to the opposing team, the Bailey generally cheers for almost anyone else on the field, including the children who escort the teams to the pitch, Sprinkles the Dunkin Donuts mascot, and youth soccer players who try to score goal kicks against Sprinkles at halftime.
Watch: Hippos attack crocodile that's attacking a wildebeest
New Advent: Watch: Hippos attack crocodile that's attacking a wildebeest: Timing is everything when visiting Kruger...
Catholic parish fined for violating Utah liquor law; volunteer bartenders were sampling the inventory...
Catholic church fined for violating Utah liquor law | WTVR.com: Utah's alcohol control authority has leveled a fine against a Catholic church for violating a state liquor law, according to KSTU.
At its meeting on Tuesday, the Utah Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission voted to punish St. John the Baptist Parish in Draper for an incident during the church's annual Festival of Roses in May. The church was ordered to pay about $600 in fines and fees.
"It appears some of the volunteers had a little alcohol while serving -- while they were volunteering -- which is against state law," DABC spokesman Terry Wood told KSTU.
At its meeting on Tuesday, the Utah Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission voted to punish St. John the Baptist Parish in Draper for an incident during the church's annual Festival of Roses in May. The church was ordered to pay about $600 in fines and fees.
"It appears some of the volunteers had a little alcohol while serving -- while they were volunteering -- which is against state law," DABC spokesman Terry Wood told KSTU.
Archbishop Gómez is a living rebuttal of seeing bishops as 'partisan' on immigration
Gomez a living rebuttal of seeing bishops as 'partisan' on immigrationALLEN: For watchers of the American Catholic scene, Archbishop José Gómez of Los Angeles is an ever more fascinating figure for many reasons, but perhaps the most compelling is that he’s a living, breathing reductio ad absurdum on the notion that bishops are somehow in bed with either the political left or the right when they take positions on matters of public policy.
Gómez, 65, has been in charge in Los Angeles since he took over from retired Cardinal Roger Mahony, and, at the time, the transition was perceived as having an ideological edge. Now 81, Mahony had been in L.A. since 1985, and for much of that span was seen as a leading progressive force in the church, embodying a “Vatican II” vision of things.
Gómez, 65, has been in charge in Los Angeles since he took over from retired Cardinal Roger Mahony, and, at the time, the transition was perceived as having an ideological edge. Now 81, Mahony had been in L.A. since 1985, and for much of that span was seen as a leading progressive force in the church, embodying a “Vatican II” vision of things.
Pope's Wednesday Audience: “Don't listen to the ‘elderly’ of heart who suffocate youthful euphoria”
A little bit of 'youthful euphoria' is healthy for Christian life, Pope says :: Catholic News Agency (CNA): On Wednesday Pope Francis told pilgrims to ignore gloomy people that drag others down, and stressed the need to maintain a healthy dose of the joy experienced in our first encounter with Christ, which he said must serve as a constant motivation to spread the good news.
“Do not listen to deluded and unhappy people; don't listen to those who cynically recommend not to cultivate hope in life,” the Pope said Aug. 30.
“Let us not entrust ourselves to those who extinguish every enthusiasm saying that no business is worth the sacrifice of an entire life, don't listen to the ‘elderly’ of heart who suffocate youthful euphoria,” he said.
“Do not listen to deluded and unhappy people; don't listen to those who cynically recommend not to cultivate hope in life,” the Pope said Aug. 30.
“Let us not entrust ourselves to those who extinguish every enthusiasm saying that no business is worth the sacrifice of an entire life, don't listen to the ‘elderly’ of heart who suffocate youthful euphoria,” he said.
Tuesday, August 29, 2017
As Harvey batters the Gulf Coast, it’s all hands on deck
Whispers in the Loggia: In Harvey's Wake, All Hands on DeckPALMO: Before anything else, to all our folks on the Texas Gulf Coast, you're in more prayers over these days than you know – hope you're hanging in there, and as things allow, please send word on how you're getting through and how it's looking on your end.
For the rest of us, meanwhile, with the weekend storm now on record as the worst single rainfall ever to hit the continental US – 40 to 50 inches across tens of thousands of square miles – and making a second land hit later tonight into Louisiana, it's time to do what the Church does best: reach out, and pitch in.
For the rest of us, meanwhile, with the weekend storm now on record as the worst single rainfall ever to hit the continental US – 40 to 50 inches across tens of thousands of square miles – and making a second land hit later tonight into Louisiana, it's time to do what the Church does best: reach out, and pitch in.
Bishop apologizes for procession of Hindu deity in a Catholic church
Bishop apologizes for procession of Hindu deity in a Catholic churchSANMARTIN: After the Vicar General of a Catholic diocese in a Spanish territory in North Africa welcomed a Hindu religious procession involving the deity Ganesh into the local cathedral, with Catholics singing a Marian hymn while looking at the image, the local bishop has apologized, saying the Church has to be "faithful to our Christian tradition," and the priest has resigned.
Why the National Weather Service issued an ‘unprecedented’ forecast
Why the National Weather Service Issued an 'Unprecedented' Forecast - The Atlantic: On Sunday morning, David Novak woke up and looked at the news. The evening before, Hurricane Harvey had stalled out over Houston; now it sent one band of rain after another smacking into the city. Streams were entering flood stage, interstates were underwater, and images of biblical flooding had begun to stream out of the country’s fourth-largest city.
Since 2014, Novak has been the director of the Weather Prediction Center at the National Weather Service. He had been following the storm for several days. And he knew it would get worse.
Since 2014, Novak has been the director of the Weather Prediction Center at the National Weather Service. He had been following the storm for several days. And he knew it would get worse.
Is anger always a sin?
Is Anger Always a Sin? - Community in Mission : Community in MissionPOPE: In the Gospel for Wednesday of the 21st week of the year, we see Jesus make some pretty angry denunciations of the religious leaders of His day. In fact, throughout the Gospels Jesus manifests quite a lot of anger and issues many denunciations, often accompanied by the phrase, “Woe to you!” In this way, He spoke in much the same way as did all the prophets before Him.
We live in a culture that tends to be shocked by anger; it is almost reflexively rejected as counterproductive and usually sinful. But is anger always a sin?
We live in a culture that tends to be shocked by anger; it is almost reflexively rejected as counterproductive and usually sinful. But is anger always a sin?
How Pope Francis is diminishing the modern papacy—and why that's a good thing
Pope Francis -- Papacy Diminished | National ReviewDOUGHERTY: Sometimes I think Pope Francis is a gift to the Catholic Church, especially when he says something silly, clumsy, or even stupid. He allows serious Catholics to take the papal cult less seriously than they have been doing for generations. Overall, that’s a good thing.
It began almost gently, as a matter of style, with the way Pope Francis offered pungent insults in his homilies and interviews. He called out archetypes. He slammed what he called “airport bishops.” He characterized Christians who complain too much as “Mr. and Mrs. Whiner.” He belittled certain types of nuns as “old maids.” Suddenly, the almost Olympian dignity of the papacy was replaced by something else.
It began almost gently, as a matter of style, with the way Pope Francis offered pungent insults in his homilies and interviews. He called out archetypes. He slammed what he called “airport bishops.” He characterized Christians who complain too much as “Mr. and Mrs. Whiner.” He belittled certain types of nuns as “old maids.” Suddenly, the almost Olympian dignity of the papacy was replaced by something else.
Taylor Swift’s blame game has echoes beyond Kanye or Beyoncé
Taylor Swift, Kanye, Beyonce and Eve - AleteiaNOBLE: Ever since she was a fresh-faced country singer who wore sundresses and strummed a guitar, I have been paying close attention to Taylor Swift’s career. Daughters of Saint Paul often pray for media influencers, so I added her to my prayer list a long time ago. But that’s not the only reason. I’m also a fan; not because she is the best vocalist or performer around, but because she so effectively harnesses the power of storytelling.
Though she is fairly private with the press, Swift writes revealing lyrics like a confessional poet. In virtually every one of her songs, she discloses gut-wrenching details of her life. Otherwise fairly tight-lipped about her romances, scandals, and broken relationships, Swift waits, sometimes months or years, to tell her fans in her albums what she’s really been thinking. And maybe that’s why people love her so much. Swift pours her heart out to her fans and no one else. Never mind if the whole world overhears.
Though she is fairly private with the press, Swift writes revealing lyrics like a confessional poet. In virtually every one of her songs, she discloses gut-wrenching details of her life. Otherwise fairly tight-lipped about her romances, scandals, and broken relationships, Swift waits, sometimes months or years, to tell her fans in her albums what she’s really been thinking. And maybe that’s why people love her so much. Swift pours her heart out to her fans and no one else. Never mind if the whole world overhears.
Floored by the ceiling of a Chicago church
Bringing God’s Designs Back to Life in America’s Churches | ncregister.comBEATTIE: When David Riccio started working at John Canning Studios in Cheshire, Connecticut, 20 years ago, he could expect one or two church projects per year. The bulk of the studio’s work was carried out at secular sites such as theaters, libraries and state capitols. Around 15 years ago, however, the number of church projects began to grow, necessitating a special division at Canning. Riccio now heads that division — called Canning Liturgical Arts — and he works on 20 or more ecclesiastical projects per year.
Some projects are simply a matter of cleaning and painting already existing churches, but most are more extensive. They involve the delicate uncovering and restoration of hidden or neglected artwork, such as sanctuary murals. Other, even more extensive projects involve the designing and installation of new artwork in old or new church buildings.
Some projects are simply a matter of cleaning and painting already existing churches, but most are more extensive. They involve the delicate uncovering and restoration of hidden or neglected artwork, such as sanctuary murals. Other, even more extensive projects involve the designing and installation of new artwork in old or new church buildings.
I ditched my smartphone 5 months ago. Here's how it's going so far...
Smartphone detox update: 5 months in – Mama Needs CoffeeUEBBING: So, remember that impassioned resolution to ditch the tiny supercomputer in my pocket?
Surprisingly, so do I.
I am the queen of failed resolve and best intentions cast aside in a moment of stress or adversity, so I’m as surprised as anyone that this little self challenge has “stuck,” though perhaps not in the exact way I’d envisioned it initially.
If you’ve been reading along this year, you know that back in the spring, I grew dissatisfied with the way I’d been using the internet and social media (more to the point, the way I was allowing it to use me); particularly the endless vortex of time suck that was the smartphone in my hand at any given moment of the day.
Surprisingly, so do I.
I am the queen of failed resolve and best intentions cast aside in a moment of stress or adversity, so I’m as surprised as anyone that this little self challenge has “stuck,” though perhaps not in the exact way I’d envisioned it initially.
If you’ve been reading along this year, you know that back in the spring, I grew dissatisfied with the way I’d been using the internet and social media (more to the point, the way I was allowing it to use me); particularly the endless vortex of time suck that was the smartphone in my hand at any given moment of the day.
Why those floating fire ant colonies in Texas are such bad news
Why Those Floating Fire Ant Colonies in Texas Are Such Bad News | WIRED: Ants didn't take over the world by being stupid and cowardly. Case in point: Rafts of fire ants have been spotted floating around floodwaters in Houston, Texas, colonies banding together to weather super-storm Harvey.
If your first thought was Please, no, you’re human, and that’s fine. Fire ants are an invasive species―they arrived in Texas in the 1950s to menace crops and native species alike. And floods like this have a habit of spreading the ants around even faster than their legs can carry them. But if you can, put aside for a moment your terror at the prospect of self-assembling arks of stinging ants and dive into this fascinating manifestation of problem solving in social insects.
If your first thought was Please, no, you’re human, and that’s fine. Fire ants are an invasive species―they arrived in Texas in the 1950s to menace crops and native species alike. And floods like this have a habit of spreading the ants around even faster than their legs can carry them. But if you can, put aside for a moment your terror at the prospect of self-assembling arks of stinging ants and dive into this fascinating manifestation of problem solving in social insects.
It is long past time to start doing something constructive about immigration
Moving forward on immigration | AngelusGOMEZ: As members of Congress return to Washington from their August recess, once more the air is filled with rumors and tensions over immigration. A Sept. 5 deadline looms. That is when the attorneys general of 10 states have promised to file suit against President Trump if he does not cancel the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program (DACA), enacted five years ago by President Obama.
DACA protects from deportation 800,000 people who were brought into this country illegally when they were children; it also allows them to get work permits.
DACA protects from deportation 800,000 people who were brought into this country illegally when they were children; it also allows them to get work permits.
A break from the total eclipse of America's heart
Eclipse, Social Media & Culture -- America’s Heart | National ReviewLOPEZ: The solar eclipse this August was a marvel. After all, people were looking up and not at screens! There was a widespread sense of wonder at creation at a time when it’s far from a given that we are creations of a Creator. People were even talking on New York City street corners! Neighbors and co-workers and strangers who happened to have picked up protective glasses or made paper contraptions were in a sharing mood. And goodness, for once people weren’t gawking at Donald Trump and Washington company, waiting for the next person to quit or be fired or bullied into submission
Gerhard Cardinal Müller on the Christian understanding of the human person
The Christian Understanding of the Human Person – PrinciplesMUELLER: With the Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World Gaudium et Spes, the Second Vatican Council formulated the “Magna Carta” for integral human development. The Church sees herself as a part of humanity, intimately connected to the “joys and the hopes, the sadness and the anguish of the human person today” (GS 1). By no means can you separate “questions about the current trend of the world, about the place and role of man in the Universe, about the meaning of individual and collective strivings, and about the ultimate destiny of reality and humanity” (3).
Macho men aren't real men. They're just immature braggarts...
Beyond Machismo to Manhood: The Challenge of Real Masculinity - The Imaginative ConservativePEARCE: Once upon a time, when I was a boy, I recall watching a Western on TV with my father. At one point the hero, played by John Wayne, walks into a saloon, heads to the bar and orders himself a beer. The bartender pours the beer and sets it before our hero. The hero takes one sip, delivers his line to the villain with appropriate macho brevity and walks out of the saloon, his nearly full pint of beer still on the bar. “And he calls himself a man,” says my father, alluding to the undrunk beverage. The lesson was learned. A real man doesn’t order a drink he doesn’t finish.
Protestants make a pilgrimage to the Marian Shrine of Walsingham
A Protestant Pilgrimage to the Marian Shrine of Walsingham | ncregister.comTURLEY: In the east of England lies its National Marian Shrine, Walsingham. From the Middle Ages it was a place of pilgrimage until Henry VIII suppressed the shrine. Forgotten for centuries, it was restored in the 20th Century. Today, it is a place of pilgrimage for Catholics, Anglicans and Orthodox Christians.
Walsingham boasts not one shrine but two – Catholic and Anglican. Despite ecumenical relations, each shrine, needless to say, attracts different pilgrims. It is the Anglican presence, however, which attracts the most vociferous opposition. A number come each year to protest. They must do so; after all, they are Protestants.
Walsingham boasts not one shrine but two – Catholic and Anglican. Despite ecumenical relations, each shrine, needless to say, attracts different pilgrims. It is the Anglican presence, however, which attracts the most vociferous opposition. A number come each year to protest. They must do so; after all, they are Protestants.
How Jesus' Golden Rule perfects Aristotle’s Golden Mean
BIG C CATHOLICS: Jesus' Golden Rule Perfects Aristotle’s Golden Mean: The brilliant Greek philosopher Aristotle (384-322 BC) in his treatise on ethical conduct, Nicomachean Ethics, discusses the "Golden Mean." It is a way of acting that enables us to live according to our ideal nature, improve our character, and deal effectively with life's hardships while striving for the good of all. The golden mean is the desired middle between two extremes, one of excess and the other of deficiency. For example, to Aristotle, courage is a virtue, which if taken to its extreme is recklessness, and, in absence or insufficiency, is cowardice.
Aristotle's ethics is practical and decidedly teleological. He believed the end of human life is happiness (Greek: eudaimonia). Today, happiness is understood as the emotional state of joy, contentment, and bliss. Such happiness is ephemeral. Aristotle's conception of happiness is a state of virtue resulting from the habitual practice of right action, unrelated to our feelings or personal fortunes. Therefore, it is possible for one to be happy (virtuous) even amid tremendous suffering and difficulty. Aristotle's golden mean is a seminal development in ethics, synthesizing Greek notions of moderation with a defined understanding of personal morality.
Aristotle's ethics is practical and decidedly teleological. He believed the end of human life is happiness (Greek: eudaimonia). Today, happiness is understood as the emotional state of joy, contentment, and bliss. Such happiness is ephemeral. Aristotle's conception of happiness is a state of virtue resulting from the habitual practice of right action, unrelated to our feelings or personal fortunes. Therefore, it is possible for one to be happy (virtuous) even amid tremendous suffering and difficulty. Aristotle's golden mean is a seminal development in ethics, synthesizing Greek notions of moderation with a defined understanding of personal morality.
Houston cardinal on prayer amid Harvey: 'We have to wake up Jesus in the boat!'
Houston cardinal on prayer amid Harvey: 'We have to wake up Jesus in the boat!': Although Cardinal Daniel DiNardo of Galveston-Houston says the people of his sprawling archdiocese are long accustomed to strong rainfall, nothing has prepared them for the beating the city is taking from Hurricane Harvey, the impact of which he described as “cosmic.”
“The church is coping, but the situation for the people is a total disaster,” DiNardo said Monday.
“The flooding is not here or there, it’s everywhere. In addition, along the Brazos River, in a county called Fort Bend County, the river is overflowing. They’ve had to have immediate evacuations of up to 50,000, 60,000 people down there in those communities,” he said.
“The church is coping, but the situation for the people is a total disaster,” DiNardo said Monday.
“The flooding is not here or there, it’s everywhere. In addition, along the Brazos River, in a county called Fort Bend County, the river is overflowing. They’ve had to have immediate evacuations of up to 50,000, 60,000 people down there in those communities,” he said.
Monday, August 28, 2017
Venezuelan political exile proposes to girlfriend in front of Pope
VIDEO: Venezuelan Political Exile Proposes to Girlfriend In Front of Pope | ncregister.comPENTIN: When the regime of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro forced local councillor Dario Ramirez to flee the country three years ago, Ramirez never imagined that three years later he would find himself in front of the Holy Father and proposing to his girlfriend.
But that’s what happened on Sunday when, as part of a delegation of 80 politicians from around the world, human rights defender Ramirez was received by Pope Francis with his unsuspecting future fiancée, Maryangel Espinal.
“When we were introduced to the Holy Father, I explained the situation in Venezuela and the situation facing political prisoners,” Ramirez told the Register. “The Holy Father said he was praying a lot about it and doing all that he could to help.”
But that’s what happened on Sunday when, as part of a delegation of 80 politicians from around the world, human rights defender Ramirez was received by Pope Francis with his unsuspecting future fiancée, Maryangel Espinal.
“When we were introduced to the Holy Father, I explained the situation in Venezuela and the situation facing political prisoners,” Ramirez told the Register. “The Holy Father said he was praying a lot about it and doing all that he could to help.”
Janet Charchuk explains what it's really like to have Down syndrome
Janet Charchuk explains what it's really like to have Down syndrome - Home | Tapestry with Mary Hynes | CBC Radio: Janet Charchuk has spoken at the United Nations, she's won a gold medal in snowshoeing, she's fought for supportive and affordable housing, and she is an in-demand motivational speaker.
Janet also has Down syndrome.
"Down Syndrome is only a little part of who I am but that does not define me. It's just something extra there, it's just an extra building block," she says.
At 34 years old, Janet has an impressive resume and insists that Down syndrome doesn't get in the way of her helping others.
Janet also has Down syndrome.
"Down Syndrome is only a little part of who I am but that does not define me. It's just something extra there, it's just an extra building block," she says.
At 34 years old, Janet has an impressive resume and insists that Down syndrome doesn't get in the way of her helping others.
Christian child forced into Muslim foster care in UK
Christian child forced into Muslim foster care | News | The Times & The Sunday Times: A white Christian child was taken from her family and forced to live with a niqab-wearing foster carer in a home where she was allegedly encouraged to learn Arabic.
The five-year-old girl, a native English speaker, has spent the past six months in the care of two Muslim households in London. The foster placements were made, against the wishes of the girl’s family, by the scandal-ridden borough of Tower Hamlets.
The five-year-old girl, a native English speaker, has spent the past six months in the care of two Muslim households in London. The foster placements were made, against the wishes of the girl’s family, by the scandal-ridden borough of Tower Hamlets.
We’re on an LDS migration route, and it’s kind of awesome
We’re on an LDS migration route, and it’s kind of awesome – SIMCHA FISHERFISHER: Our house seems to be on an LDS migration route, and it’s kind of awesome.
Someone apparently gave our name to them as a joke, and now the missionaries just keep coming. These poor gals knock on our door with the papal flag decal, enter past the window on which hangs two kitschy Greek orthodox suncatchers of Mary and Jesus (with sparkly beard!), and take a seat at our table, the Rublev Trinity to their left, a torn poster of Mother Teresa to their right, a Daniel Mitsui print of the resurrection behind them, and of course, front and center, a crucifix hanging from a thumbtack.
Someone apparently gave our name to them as a joke, and now the missionaries just keep coming. These poor gals knock on our door with the papal flag decal, enter past the window on which hangs two kitschy Greek orthodox suncatchers of Mary and Jesus (with sparkly beard!), and take a seat at our table, the Rublev Trinity to their left, a torn poster of Mother Teresa to their right, a Daniel Mitsui print of the resurrection behind them, and of course, front and center, a crucifix hanging from a thumbtack.
Recovering the Gospel from the notion of merely “happy” or “good” news
Recovering the Gospel from the Notion of Merely “Happy” or “Good” News - Community in Mission : Community in MissionPOPE: We live in thin-skinned times. St. John the Baptist broke all the modern rules about effective evangelization (and so did Jesus). But note that crowds were going out into the desert to listen to him, while we, despite all our “niceness,” are seeing our churches grow emptier. Merely inviting people to a “welcoming community” isn’t going to get us very far. The local bar, lodge, and bowling league are also “welcoming communities.” Some of them do a better job of welcoming than we do. What we are supposed to do is to summon people to repentance and announce the soul-saving message of Jesus, who through word and sacrament is the only one who can save us from this present evil age and from the day of judgment.
You can't be both pro-choice and anti-racist
You Can’t Be Both Pro-Choice and Anti-Racist | ncregister.comGRESS: It is a well-known fact that slavery lasted as long as it did because the Southern economy was deeply reliant upon its free labor. While some slave owners may have appreciated the idea of freeing their slaves, there was little motivation for them to do so, both because slavery was legal, but also because freeing slaves was very expensive. The cost included not just adding wages for labor, but losing the initial investment of the slave purchase. It was just simply too convenient for slave owners to continue the infernal practice. While it is easy to point fingers at those who owned slaves, few connect the dots between it and the modern-day parallel of abortion. In the ruling of Roe v. Wade (1973), much like the Dred Scot v. Sanford (1857) decision more than a century before, the Supreme Court confirmed that people can be reduced to property.
Underwater metropolis: Photos of Houston before and after historic flooding
Underwater metropolis: Photos of Houston before and after historic flooding: More than 30,000 residents of the nation's fourth-largest city were expected to be left temporarily homeless by Hurricane Harvey, which became the most powerful hurricane to strike Texas in more than 50 years when it came ashore on Friday.
Roughly 280,000 customers remain without power along the Texas's coast and in the Houston area on Monday, according to reported outages by the state's investor-owned utilities.
With the Bayou Bayou river surging, floodwaters rose a dozen feet or more in some places near downtown Houston.
Roughly 280,000 customers remain without power along the Texas's coast and in the Houston area on Monday, according to reported outages by the state's investor-owned utilities.
With the Bayou Bayou river surging, floodwaters rose a dozen feet or more in some places near downtown Houston.
Police searching for hit-and-run driver who killed a nun in Alma, Michigan
Police are searching for driver who killed a nun in hit and run accident | WEYI: A plea from the loved ones of a mid-Michigan nun who was killed in a hit and run accident for the driver to come forward.
Sister Joseph Marie was doing something she loved to do on Thursday when she was hit by a vehicle and killed in Gratiot County.
Now people close to her and police are searching for whoever hit Sister Joseph.
Sister Joseph Marie was doing something she loved to do on Thursday when she was hit by a vehicle and killed in Gratiot County.
Now people close to her and police are searching for whoever hit Sister Joseph.
No need for a Virgil: On adults reading children’s literature
No Need for a Virgil: On Adults Reading Children’s Lit | One Thousand Words a WeekBECKER: When I was finishing up my nursing degree, I took a children’s literature course to fill an elective requirement. My colleagues chose more practical electives – medical Spanish, for instance, or healthcare informatics – but I signed up for kids’ lit precisely because it was decidedly impractical. As a nursing student, so much of my energy was taken up with acquiring important new skills and knowledge – in classroom, in clinical – that I relished the excuse to make time for escapist distraction.
Wonder of wonders, the class turned out even better than I’d hoped, for it was truly devoted to reading children’s books – not reading about them. Professor Brenner’s syllabus was blissfully free of juvenile literary theory, and there were no signs that we’d be subjected to ponderous academic speculation about hidden themes and archetypes. Instead, we got a reading list that included Lois Lenski and the Brothers Grimm, C.S. Lewis and J.K. Rowling – and we dove in. Class meetings were glorious oases when we’d come together, share our thoughts and insights about what we’d read the week before, and deepen our mutual appreciation for the genre’s uncanny magic. It was my favorite class during nursing school, and especially since it was so easy to study at home. All I had to do was open an assigned text, welcome one of my young ones into my lap, and read aloud.
Wonder of wonders, the class turned out even better than I’d hoped, for it was truly devoted to reading children’s books – not reading about them. Professor Brenner’s syllabus was blissfully free of juvenile literary theory, and there were no signs that we’d be subjected to ponderous academic speculation about hidden themes and archetypes. Instead, we got a reading list that included Lois Lenski and the Brothers Grimm, C.S. Lewis and J.K. Rowling – and we dove in. Class meetings were glorious oases when we’d come together, share our thoughts and insights about what we’d read the week before, and deepen our mutual appreciation for the genre’s uncanny magic. It was my favorite class during nursing school, and especially since it was so easy to study at home. All I had to do was open an assigned text, welcome one of my young ones into my lap, and read aloud.
Black-clad antifa members attack peaceful right-wing demonstrators in Berkeley
Black-clad antifa members attack peaceful right-wing demonstrators in Berkeley - The Washington Post: Their faces hidden behind black bandannas and hoodies, about 100 anarchists and antifa— “anti-fascist” — members barreled into a protest Sunday afternoon in Berkeley’s Martin Luther King Jr. Civic Center Park.
Jumping over plastic and concrete barriers, the group melted into a larger crowd of around 2,000 that had marched peacefully throughout the sunny afternoon for a “Rally Against Hate” gathering.
Jumping over plastic and concrete barriers, the group melted into a larger crowd of around 2,000 that had marched peacefully throughout the sunny afternoon for a “Rally Against Hate” gathering.
Actor Mickey Rourke sends his ailing priest Sunday dinner every week
Mickey Rourke sends his ailing priest Sunday dinner every week | Page Six: It’s hard to picture Mickey Rourke as an angel of mercy, but the “Barfly” actor has been a saint to his favorite priest, Father Pete Colapietro.
The Roman Catholic minister has been absent for months from St. Malachy’s on West 49th Street — the Actors’ Chapel where Rudolph Valentino and Tennessee Williams had their funerals — with health issues.
After a stint in the hospital, he’s been recuperating at the Dumont Center for Rehabilitation & Nursing Care in New Rochelle, NY, where the food was far from the fare at Elaine’s, one of the Rev. Pete’s favorite haunts.
The Roman Catholic minister has been absent for months from St. Malachy’s on West 49th Street — the Actors’ Chapel where Rudolph Valentino and Tennessee Williams had their funerals — with health issues.
After a stint in the hospital, he’s been recuperating at the Dumont Center for Rehabilitation & Nursing Care in New Rochelle, NY, where the food was far from the fare at Elaine’s, one of the Rev. Pete’s favorite haunts.
Silence of CDF notable under Francis; doctrinal oversight role ‘pared down in dramatic ways’
Silence of Vatican's doctrinal congregation notable under Francis | National Catholic Reporter: Irish Redemptorist Fr. Tony Flannery has been prohibited from publicly celebrating Mass for nearly six years. The Vatican's doctrinal congregation suspended him from ministry in February 2012 after he refused to revise some views he had expressed in a religious magazine run by his order.
In mid-January, Flannery turned 70. He announced he would violate his suspension for the first time in order to celebrate a public Mass of thanksgiving for those who had offered him support through the last few years.
In mid-January, Flannery turned 70. He announced he would violate his suspension for the first time in order to celebrate a public Mass of thanksgiving for those who had offered him support through the last few years.
Catholic dioceses, apostolates mobilize to help Hurricane Harvey victims
Catholic groups are mobilizing to help in Hurricane Harvey's aftermath: Catholic dioceses and charities are quickly organizing to help in the aftermath of a Category 4 hurricane that made landfall with heavy rains and winds of 130 miles per hour late August 25 into the Rockport, Texas area, northeast of Corpus Christi. The National Weather Service said in a tweet Aug. 27 that the rainfall expected after the hurricane and storm are over “are beyond anything experienced before.”
Watch: Houston priest kayaks in floodwaters, shares faith with live TV reporter
Home - Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston: After spending Saturday night in his truck on the highway due to rising floodwaters on the I-610 South Loop near Telephone Road, Father David Bergeron, CC, took to his kayak to explore the flooded streets around the neighborhood and try to get wine to celebrate Sunday Mass.
Sitting atop his red kayak, the Companion of the Cross priest told an ABC13-KTRK reporter on a live broadcast that he was trying to get back home to celebrate Mass after visiting Galveston for a kayak trip the previous day.
“I tried to go back home for Mass and I guess I didn’t make it,” Father Bergeron said, holding paddles bearing the image of the Texas flag. He is a priest at the Catholic Charismatic Center in East Houston.
Sitting atop his red kayak, the Companion of the Cross priest told an ABC13-KTRK reporter on a live broadcast that he was trying to get back home to celebrate Mass after visiting Galveston for a kayak trip the previous day.
“I tried to go back home for Mass and I guess I didn’t make it,” Father Bergeron said, holding paddles bearing the image of the Texas flag. He is a priest at the Catholic Charismatic Center in East Houston.
The day President Reagan comforted a black family targeted by William Aitcheson (now an Arlington priest)
The day President Reagan comforted a black family who had a KKK cross burned on its lawn - The Washington Post: President Reagan read the story about the cross burning in his morning Washington Post. A black family in College Park, Md., had just won a civil suit against a young Ku Klux Klan leader who had been convicted of terrorizing the family five years earlier.
Reagan’s deputy press secretary, Larry Speakes, said the president was jarred by what had happened to Phillip and Barbara Butler. “That was the first thing on his mind this morning,” Speakes told The Post on May 3, 1982. White House Chief of Staff James Baker and Deputy Chief of Staff Michael Deaver walked into the Oval Office, and the first thing he said to them was, “ ‘I’ve read this story. I’d like to go see these people.’ ”
Reagan’s deputy press secretary, Larry Speakes, said the president was jarred by what had happened to Phillip and Barbara Butler. “That was the first thing on his mind this morning,” Speakes told The Post on May 3, 1982. White House Chief of Staff James Baker and Deputy Chief of Staff Michael Deaver walked into the Oval Office, and the first thing he said to them was, “ ‘I’ve read this story. I’d like to go see these people.’ ”
Sunday, August 27, 2017
Lost Latin commentary on the Gospels rediscovered after 1,500 years thanks to digital technology
Lost Latin commentary on the Gospels rediscovered after 1,500 years thanks to digital technology: The earliest Latin commentary on the Gospels, lost for more than 1,500 years, has been rediscovered and made available in English for the first time. The extraordinary find, a work written by a bishop in northern Italy, Fortunatianus of Aquileia, dates back to the middle of the fourth century.
The biblical text of the manuscript is of particular significance, as it predates the standard Latin version known as the Vulgate and provides new evidence about the earliest form of the Gospels in Latin.
Despite references to this commentary in other ancient works, no copy was known to survive until Dr Lukas Dorfbauer, a researcher from the University of Salzburg, identified Fortunatianus’ text in an anonymous manuscript copied around the year 800 and held in Cologne Cathedral Library.
The biblical text of the manuscript is of particular significance, as it predates the standard Latin version known as the Vulgate and provides new evidence about the earliest form of the Gospels in Latin.
Despite references to this commentary in other ancient works, no copy was known to survive until Dr Lukas Dorfbauer, a researcher from the University of Salzburg, identified Fortunatianus’ text in an anonymous manuscript copied around the year 800 and held in Cologne Cathedral Library.
Whirlwind art tourists: Greed, idolatry and vanity all rolled together
The Whirlwind Art Tourist - The Imaginative ConservativeLONGENECKER: It was with mixed emotions that I anticipated a few days in Florence this summer. I had first visited the city thirty years ago on a hitchhiking pilgrimage from England to Jerusalem, so I was looking forward to seeing once again Fra Angelico’s frescoes at San Marco, Michelangelo’s monumental sculptures and the paintings in the Uffizi. However, some friends had told me that Florence in the summer was shoulder-to-shoulder with tourists, and they were not all as well-behaved, well-dressed, and well-spoken as the English ladies and gentleman in A Room With a View.
I was an unwed teen and had to tell my pastor father. What happened next was an incredible shock...
I was an unwed teen and had to tell my pastor father. What happened next was an incredible shock | Fox News: Pregnant and unwed teenager Maddi Runkles was the subject of countless news reports earlier this year after the administration at her private Christian high school refused to allow her to walk in its graduation ceremonies in order to “teach a lesson regarding her immorality.”
While I understand the school’s desire to teach their students lessons about the consequences of sin, I also think the events in Maddi’s life could have provided students with a lesson about grace -- the grace that caused Jesus to tell a woman living in sin “neither do I condemn you -- go and sin no more.”
While I understand the school’s desire to teach their students lessons about the consequences of sin, I also think the events in Maddi’s life could have provided students with a lesson about grace -- the grace that caused Jesus to tell a woman living in sin “neither do I condemn you -- go and sin no more.”
Pope’s Sunday Angelus: ‘No stone is useless’ in the building of the Church
Pope Francis at Angelus: all have role in building Church - Vatican Radio: Ahead of the traditional prayer of Marian devotion, the Holy Father reflected on the day’s reading from the Holy Gospel according to St. Matthew, in which the Lord asks the disciples, “Who do you say that I am?” and Peter responds, “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God.”
Jesus said to Peter in reply, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father. And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven;
and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”
Jesus said to Peter in reply, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father. And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven;
and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”
Let's take a closer look at the Office of St. Peter
Of Peter and the Papacy – A Homily for the 21st Sunday of the Year - Community in Mission : Community in MissionPOPE: The Gospel today sets forth the biblical basis for the Office of Peter, the Office of the Papacy, for Peter’s successors are the Popes. The word “pope” is simply an English version (via Anglo-Saxon and Germanic tongues) of the word “papa.” The Pope is affectionately called “Papa” in Italian and Spanish as an affectionate indication that he is the father of the family, the Church.
Let’s look at the basic establishment of the Office of Peter in three steps.
Let’s look at the basic establishment of the Office of Peter in three steps.
On popes and the problem with preemptive resignation
On popes and the problem with preemptive resignationALLEN: Following confirmation this week that Pope Paul VI wrote resignation letters in advance in case he was struck by a disabling condition, debate is likely to revive about whether such a preemptive resignation would be valid under Church law. Until that's resolved, we're sort of like people driving around without car insurance – gambling the worst won't happen, but always knowing it could.
Saturday, August 26, 2017
European basilicas amp up security after recent terror attacks
European basilicas amp up security after recent terror attacks :: Catholic News Agency (CNA): From Spain's revered Sagrada Familia basilica to Germany and even the Vatican, churches across Europe are taking measures to increase security following several acts of terrorism in recent weeks.
Churches and other highly symbolic Christian landmarks have been a prime target for radical Islamist militants, and with the number of vehicle attacks increasing, many churches throughout Europe are taking new measures to ensure their area is protected.
Although so far neither Italy nor the Vatican have been hit by terrorism, Swiss Guard Commander Christoph Graf said last week that “it may only be a matter of time before such an attack occurs in Rome.”
He spoke during the Guard's 27th general assembly in Solothurn, Switzerland, which was held Aug. 19-20 and drew the participation of some 450 Swiss Guards and their relatives.
Churches and other highly symbolic Christian landmarks have been a prime target for radical Islamist militants, and with the number of vehicle attacks increasing, many churches throughout Europe are taking new measures to ensure their area is protected.
Although so far neither Italy nor the Vatican have been hit by terrorism, Swiss Guard Commander Christoph Graf said last week that “it may only be a matter of time before such an attack occurs in Rome.”
He spoke during the Guard's 27th general assembly in Solothurn, Switzerland, which was held Aug. 19-20 and drew the participation of some 450 Swiss Guards and their relatives.
How far will atheists go to deny the Christian birth of science?
How far will atheists go to deny the Christian birth of science? – Catholic World ReportTRASANCOS: In a recent critical essay, Richard Carrier, a world-renowned author and speaker, professional historian with a Ph.D. from Columbia University in ancient history, and prominent defender of the American freethought movement, has taken issue with my use of the phrase “stillbirth of science” in ancient Greece. Several years ago, I wrote a series of essays on the stillbirths in an effort to pass on the teaching of the late Fr. Stanley L. Jaki, who coined the phrase.
“Stillbirth” describes ancient cultures that came close to a birth of science but failed to produce science as a universal, systematic, and self-sustaining discipline of physical laws. Carrier says the stillbirth of science in ancient Greece is a myth and that the complementary claim that science was born of Christianity in the Middle Ages is a delusion.
“Stillbirth” describes ancient cultures that came close to a birth of science but failed to produce science as a universal, systematic, and self-sustaining discipline of physical laws. Carrier says the stillbirth of science in ancient Greece is a myth and that the complementary claim that science was born of Christianity in the Middle Ages is a delusion.
Friday, August 25, 2017
The Polish doctors who used science to outwit the Nazis
The Polish Doctors Who Used Science to Outwit the Nazis | Mental Floss: The young man wanted to cut off his arm. Maybe it would kill him. Or perhaps it would save his life—and his family.
It was 1941. The man was 35 years old, and after enduring months of forced labor in a German factory, he had just received good news: He had been permitted a temporary leave of two weeks.
It was 1941. The man was 35 years old, and after enduring months of forced labor in a German factory, he had just received good news: He had been permitted a temporary leave of two weeks.
Vatican reality check: It may not be partisan, but it's definitely political
Vatican reality check: It may not be partisan, but it's definitely politicalALLEN: While he was in Russia this week, the Vatican's top diplomat said the Holy See is not identified with any "particular political position" — ironically, one day after Pope Francis took a position on citizenship by birth with clear political relevance in Italy right now. In truth, when Vatican officials say they're not "political," what they really mean is that they're not "partisan." Italian Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican’s Secretary of State, was in Moscow this week for meetings with both government officials and leaders of the Russian Orthodox Church. He held a news conference Tuesday after seeing Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, discussing areas where the two sides agree (i.e., persecution of Christians in the Middle East) and where they don’t (e.g., Ukraine).
“Houston’s perfect storm is coming,” warns 2016 newspaper article
Hell and High Water (Full Text) - ProPublica: It is not if, but when Houston’s perfect storm will hit.
They called Ike “the monster hurricane.”
Hundreds of miles wide. Winds at more than 100 mph. And — deadliest of all — the power to push a massive wall of water into the upper Texas coast, killing thousands and shutting down a major international port and industrial hub.
That was what scientists, public officials, economists and weather forecasters thought they were dealing with on Sept. 11, 2008, as Hurricane Ike barreled toward Houston, the fourth-largest city in the United States and home to its largest refining and petrochemical complex. And so at 8:19 p.m., the National Weather Service issued an unusually dire warning.
They called Ike “the monster hurricane.”
Hundreds of miles wide. Winds at more than 100 mph. And — deadliest of all — the power to push a massive wall of water into the upper Texas coast, killing thousands and shutting down a major international port and industrial hub.
That was what scientists, public officials, economists and weather forecasters thought they were dealing with on Sept. 11, 2008, as Hurricane Ike barreled toward Houston, the fourth-largest city in the United States and home to its largest refining and petrochemical complex. And so at 8:19 p.m., the National Weather Service issued an unusually dire warning.
California Catholic school under fire for removing ‘alienating’ religious statues
California Catholic school under fire for removing and relocating 'alienating' religious statues | Fox News: A California Catholic school is facing a backlash from parents after officials took down some religious statues -- including one of Mary and baby Jesus -- over concerns that they were “alienating” prospective students.
The head of the San Domenico School in San Anselmo said parents of some prospective students who visited the campus – which was founded in 1850 and serves 671 students grades K-12 -- expressed concern about the religious figures, according to the Marin Independent Journal.
“If you walk on the campus and the first thing you confront is three or four statues of St. Dominic or St. Francis, it could be alienating for that other religion, and we didn’t want to further that feeling,” Amy Skewes-Cox, who chairs the school's board of trustees.
The head of the San Domenico School in San Anselmo said parents of some prospective students who visited the campus – which was founded in 1850 and serves 671 students grades K-12 -- expressed concern about the religious figures, according to the Marin Independent Journal.
“If you walk on the campus and the first thing you confront is three or four statues of St. Dominic or St. Francis, it could be alienating for that other religion, and we didn’t want to further that feeling,” Amy Skewes-Cox, who chairs the school's board of trustees.
How I discovered my childhood priest had been in the Ku Klux Klan
How I discovered my childhood priest was in the Ku Klux Klan - The Washington Post: The Rev. William M. Aitcheson was my childhood priest and my history teacher. A fervent advocate of the Confederacy, he used to joke about “Saint Robert E. Lee” in his homilies at church. When I was in middle school in the early 2000s, he taught a Civil War history class for the home-school group at my church in the small Shenandoah County town of Woodstock, Va.
Corpus Christi bishop: Remember those who can't flee Hurricane Harvey
Corpus Christi bishop: remember those who can't flee Hurricane Harvey :: Catholic News Agency (CNA): As Hurricane Harvey approached, the Bishop of Corpus Christi was preparing to ride out the storm. He urged the country to remember that many people are forced to stay, especially the poorest.
“We have among us those who are not able to leave the city. That’s one of the reasons I wanted to stay as well: to be here present,” Bishop Michael Mulvey told CNA Aug. 25, encouraging everyone to help them as much as possible.
Ahead of the hurricane’s landfall, he reported the Friday morning winds were gradually strengthening and the storm surge was already approaching the nearby pier.
“The tide is rising. It’s pretty eerie. But the full effect is not here yet, of course,” the bishop reported.
The hurricane is expected to make landfall near Corpus Christi early Saturday as a Category 3 hurricane or stronger. The National Weather Service predicts sustained winds of at least 110 miles per hour.
“We have among us those who are not able to leave the city. That’s one of the reasons I wanted to stay as well: to be here present,” Bishop Michael Mulvey told CNA Aug. 25, encouraging everyone to help them as much as possible.
Ahead of the hurricane’s landfall, he reported the Friday morning winds were gradually strengthening and the storm surge was already approaching the nearby pier.
“The tide is rising. It’s pretty eerie. But the full effect is not here yet, of course,” the bishop reported.
The hurricane is expected to make landfall near Corpus Christi early Saturday as a Category 3 hurricane or stronger. The National Weather Service predicts sustained winds of at least 110 miles per hour.
Charlottesville and America’s original sin
Charlottesville and America’s Original Sin | Word On FireBARRON: I vividly remember my first visit to Charlottesville, Virginia.� It was about twenty years ago, and I was on vacation with a good friend, who shared with me a passion for American history and for Thomas Jefferson in particular. We had toured a number of Civil War battlefields in Maryland and Virginia and then had made our way to Jefferson’s University of Virginia in Charlottesville. Finally, we ventured outside the city to the little hilltop home that the great founder had designed and built for himself, Monticello. It was a glorious summer day, and the elegant manse shone in all of its Palladian splendor. We took in its classical lines, its distinctive red and white coloration, the understated beauty of its dome, its overall symmetry, balance, and harmony. On the inside, we saw all of Jefferson’s quirky genius on display: scientific instruments, inventions, books galore. Just outside the house was the simple, unpretentious grave of Jefferson, the tombstone naming him as the author of the Declaration of Independence. There was no question that the very best of the American spirit was on display in that place.
Some notes on terminology usually associated with the Church’s teaching office
Some notes on terminology usually associated with the Church’s teaching office | In the Light of the LawEDPETERS: Some years ago I stated: “The liturgical renewal movement that preceded the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965) has been repeatedly and authoritatively recognized as a movement of the Holy Spirit in the Church.”* What catches my eye about Pope Francis’ recent remarks to an Italian liturgical conference is not, therefore, his strong endorsement of liturgical renewal, but rather some of the language he used to make that endorsement, language that one often associates with the exercise of the Church’s teaching office.
In phrases typically associated with formal, even infallible, teaching exercises, Francis purported to invoke his “magisterial authority” to “affirm with certainty” that the process of liturgical reform was “irreversible”. Such terminology, I suggest, coming from such a figure, predictably occasions questions about, among other things, whether such authority extends to declaring formally something
In phrases typically associated with formal, even infallible, teaching exercises, Francis purported to invoke his “magisterial authority” to “affirm with certainty” that the process of liturgical reform was “irreversible”. Such terminology, I suggest, coming from such a figure, predictably occasions questions about, among other things, whether such authority extends to declaring formally something
Swiss Guard commander: ‘Perhaps only a question of time’ before terrorist attack, ‘but we are ready for this’
Swiss Guards chief: we’re ready for a terror attack | CatholicHerald.co.uk: The head of the Swiss Guards has said the elite corps that protects the Pope and the Vatican is ready to confront any terror attacks.
His remarks came after renewed threats against Rome by supporters of the Islamic State group following the Barcelona attack.
Commander Christoph Graf told Swiss Catholic website cath.ch this week that “perhaps it is only a question of time before an attack like that happens in Rome. But we are ready also for this.”
Authorities have long considered the Vatican a potential target, and security around the city-state has been increased significantly since the Year of Mercy launched in November 2015. The main road leading up to St Peter’s Square has been closed to traffic and uniformed police are out in greater numbers.
His remarks came after renewed threats against Rome by supporters of the Islamic State group following the Barcelona attack.
Commander Christoph Graf told Swiss Catholic website cath.ch this week that “perhaps it is only a question of time before an attack like that happens in Rome. But we are ready also for this.”
Authorities have long considered the Vatican a potential target, and security around the city-state has been increased significantly since the Year of Mercy launched in November 2015. The main road leading up to St Peter’s Square has been closed to traffic and uniformed police are out in greater numbers.
Thursday, August 24, 2017
The Iron Lung and Mother Mary
The Iron Lung and Mother Mary - One Billion StoriesDEMOOR: It was 1949, in Denver Colorado, during the Polio epidemic when Mary Jane was stricken with bulbar polio, at that time a deadly disease. She was placed in a large machine called an “iron lung” that helped her breath and stay alive during her younger years. Despite the doctors best efforts, the iron lung was shut off on August the 15th, and she was pronounced dead.
A history seminar from the year 2117
A History Seminar, Anno Domini 2117 – Catholic World ReportESOLEN: First student: “There’s a lot about this period I don’t understand, Professor. It isn’t that we don’t have primary sources. We have billions of those. Yet I find them totally baffling. It’s easier for me to get a hold on the ancient Germanic war-bands. The Celts painted their bellies blue – all right, I see that. But these people confuse me.”
Professor: “Well, they were a confusing bunch. What in particular are you thinking of?”
First student: “All right. These people were first-class germophobes. They kept their homes sanitized and they wrapped up their small children in plastic bubbles. It ended up causing public health problems the world had never seen before, like the deadly peanut allergy. They nearly ruined antibiotics by overusing them. But these same people when it came to sex promoted a thing – you know. They promoted something they knew perfectly well was associated with really dreadful and lethal diseases.”
Professor: “Well, they were a confusing bunch. What in particular are you thinking of?”
First student: “All right. These people were first-class germophobes. They kept their homes sanitized and they wrapped up their small children in plastic bubbles. It ended up causing public health problems the world had never seen before, like the deadly peanut allergy. They nearly ruined antibiotics by overusing them. But these same people when it came to sex promoted a thing – you know. They promoted something they knew perfectly well was associated with really dreadful and lethal diseases.”
Some advice from Mother Church, as pictured in the Book of Ruth
Some Advice from Mother Church, as Pictured in the Book of Ruth - Community in Mission : Community in MissionPOPE: Given our brief sampling of the Book of Ruth in daily Mass, perhaps a reflection is in order.
The detailed background to the text is too lengthy to go into here, but a few points will help. The story features three main characters: Boaz, Ruth, and Naomi. Boaz is clearly a picture (or “type”) of Christ. He was born and lives in Bethlehem; he ultimately acts as Ruth’s “kinsman-redeemer” by rescuing her from poverty and paying the price so as to cancel her debt. This, of course, is just what Christ does for us: He redeems us by His blood, canceling our poverty and debt. Ruth is a picture of the individual soul in need of Christ’s redemption and mercy. Naomi plays several roles in the book, but in the passage we will consider here she is a picture of the Church; she advises Ruth in what to do and draws her to Boaz, her redeemer.
The detailed background to the text is too lengthy to go into here, but a few points will help. The story features three main characters: Boaz, Ruth, and Naomi. Boaz is clearly a picture (or “type”) of Christ. He was born and lives in Bethlehem; he ultimately acts as Ruth’s “kinsman-redeemer” by rescuing her from poverty and paying the price so as to cancel her debt. This, of course, is just what Christ does for us: He redeems us by His blood, canceling our poverty and debt. Ruth is a picture of the individual soul in need of Christ’s redemption and mercy. Naomi plays several roles in the book, but in the passage we will consider here she is a picture of the Church; she advises Ruth in what to do and draws her to Boaz, her redeemer.
Why, yes, missing Mass on Sunday actually is a mortal sin
Missing Mass on Sunday is a Sin - AleteiaFERNANDEZ: “Missing Mass is NOT a mortal sin!” Every time I write on the topic of not going to Mass I invariably see that response, or something similar. In comments and emails, Catholics insist that missing Mass is not a mortal sin. The frequency with which this happens is heartbreaking. It’s tragic that even one Catholic believes this, but it’s utterly devastating that — according to the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA) at Georgetown — only 23 percent of Catholics regularly attend Mass once a week. That means that most weeks, a whopping 77 percent of Catholics do not attend Sunday Mass.
Groups: Justice court filings defy Trump promises on religious freedom
Groups: Justice court filings defy Trump promises on religious freedom | TheHill: With national television cameras rolling, President Trump surrounded himself in the Rose Garden this spring with faith leaders as he signed an executive order protecting Catholic employers from ObamaCare’s birth control mandate and protecting clergy from IRS punishment if they gave political speeches from the pulpit.
“We will not allow people of faith to be targeted, bullied or silenced anymore,” the beaming president declared May 9 as he delivered on one of his seminal campaign promises.
“We will not allow people of faith to be targeted, bullied or silenced anymore,” the beaming president declared May 9 as he delivered on one of his seminal campaign promises.
The Holy Eucharist should shape your way of life
The Eucharist Should Shape Your Way of Life - Those Catholic MenSTAUDT: We can fall into a routine reception of the Eucharist. Receiving our Lord’s Body can remain an isolated moment in our life—meaningful, but not central to our identity or how we live. God does not want the Eucharist to remain hidden at Mass or a secret in our lives. Rather, the Eucharist stands at the center of Christian culture, our communal and social way of life.
John Senior asks the question: “What is Christian Culture?,” and provides an answer: “It is essentially the Mass.” In the Restoration of Christian Culture, he describes how in the Middle Ages “all architecture, art, political and social forms, economics, the way people live and feel and think, music, literature—all these things when they are right, are ways of fostering and protecting the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass” (17). The focus on the Mass even shows the purpose of work, “not profit but prayer . . . that we live for Him and not for ourselves.”
John Senior asks the question: “What is Christian Culture?,” and provides an answer: “It is essentially the Mass.” In the Restoration of Christian Culture, he describes how in the Middle Ages “all architecture, art, political and social forms, economics, the way people live and feel and think, music, literature—all these things when they are right, are ways of fostering and protecting the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass” (17). The focus on the Mass even shows the purpose of work, “not profit but prayer . . . that we live for Him and not for ourselves.”
USA Today offers old news on Catholic priests and sexual abuse, missing some newer angles
USA Today offers old news on Catholic priests and sexual abuse, missing some newer angles — GetReligionMATTINGLY: When you hear the term "breaking news," what do you think of?
I think news consumers, at this point, are pretty skeptical about this term. They know, of course, that there really is such a thing as breaking news. Major decisions by the U.S. Supreme Court are breaking news. The attack on the GOP softball team was breaking news. Another van mowing down citizens on London Bridge would be breaking news.
Also, there are @POTUS tweets that justify the "breaking news" label. There are, in my opinion, many more that do not. And have we reached the point where "Game of Thrones" developments are truly "breaking news"? If not, I'm sure that's just around the corner.
I think news consumers, at this point, are pretty skeptical about this term. They know, of course, that there really is such a thing as breaking news. Major decisions by the U.S. Supreme Court are breaking news. The attack on the GOP softball team was breaking news. Another van mowing down citizens on London Bridge would be breaking news.
Also, there are @POTUS tweets that justify the "breaking news" label. There are, in my opinion, many more that do not. And have we reached the point where "Game of Thrones" developments are truly "breaking news"? If not, I'm sure that's just around the corner.
On the appearance of the Pope’s ‘Buenos Aires’ letter on the Vatican website
On the appearance of the pope’s ‘Buenos Aires’ letter on the Vatican website | In the Light of the LawEDPETERS: Part of the turmoil engendered by Pope Francis’ exhortation Amoris laetitia regarding whether divorced-and-remarried Catholics (living in the manner of married couples) may be admitted to holy Communion turns on what authority should be accorded a private letter the pope sent to the bishops of Buenos Aires endorsing, supposedly as definitive, their interpretation of Amoris in regard to this crucial question.
For the reasons I suggested here*, however, the pope’s letter to the Buenos Aires bishops does not “settle” anything about the application of Amoris in this area, if for no other reason than that the Buenos Aires directives themselves, amid their copious platitudes and euphemisms, manage to avoid, if perhaps more narrowly than does Amoris, directly answering the key question raised by Amoris in this area.
For the reasons I suggested here*, however, the pope’s letter to the Buenos Aires bishops does not “settle” anything about the application of Amoris in this area, if for no other reason than that the Buenos Aires directives themselves, amid their copious platitudes and euphemisms, manage to avoid, if perhaps more narrowly than does Amoris, directly answering the key question raised by Amoris in this area.
What does Pope Francis mean by ‘irreversible’ liturgical reform?
What does Pope Francis mean by ‘irreversible’ liturgical reform? | Catholic CultureLAWLER: Liturgical reform is “irreversible,” Pope Francis says. If he means that history cannot be undone—we can’t rewind the tape—his point is beyond dispute. But surely he does not mean that we are stuck forever with the status quo.
It is noteworthy that in speaking on the liturgical reform, Pope Francis invoked his magisterial authority: something that he has been reluctant to do when he speaks on doctrinal matters. But it is also profoundly confusing. What does it mean to speak with magisterial authority about a process?
Insofar as he is saying that the Church is committed to the process that began with Vatican II (or actually, as he rightly observes, began much earlier and reached a watershed at the Council), he is only reinforcing what Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI taught us. The only real questions involve whether, and how, the process should continue.
It is noteworthy that in speaking on the liturgical reform, Pope Francis invoked his magisterial authority: something that he has been reluctant to do when he speaks on doctrinal matters. But it is also profoundly confusing. What does it mean to speak with magisterial authority about a process?
Insofar as he is saying that the Church is committed to the process that began with Vatican II (or actually, as he rightly observes, began much earlier and reached a watershed at the Council), he is only reinforcing what Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI taught us. The only real questions involve whether, and how, the process should continue.
In newly released video, ISIS calls jihadists to Philippines, threatens Pope Francis
ISIS Calls Jihadists to Philippines, Threatens Pope Francis: As the Islamic State loses caliphate territory in Iraq and Syria, a new video released by the terror group touts the growth of operations in the Philippines and the destruction jihadists unleashed on a Catholic church in Marawi.
Muslim fighters loyal to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi began clashing with government forces in the city on Mindanao in the southern Philippines in May, eager to carve out a province for ISIS. The "Inside the Khilafah" video brags about how jihadists freed inmates from the local jail and attacked local churches, and called Marawi "a reward for holding firmly to the rope of Allah."
The English-speaking narrator with an American accent, who has narrated other videos for ISIS' Al-Hayat Media Center, said the occupation took root in Marawi because the Philippine government tried to "subjugate the Muslims" and "expel them from the land." Like ISIS recruitment and operations in their shrinking home-base caliphate, the video also shows child soldiers fighting with the jihadists.
Muslim fighters loyal to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi began clashing with government forces in the city on Mindanao in the southern Philippines in May, eager to carve out a province for ISIS. The "Inside the Khilafah" video brags about how jihadists freed inmates from the local jail and attacked local churches, and called Marawi "a reward for holding firmly to the rope of Allah."
The English-speaking narrator with an American accent, who has narrated other videos for ISIS' Al-Hayat Media Center, said the occupation took root in Marawi because the Philippine government tried to "subjugate the Muslims" and "expel them from the land." Like ISIS recruitment and operations in their shrinking home-base caliphate, the video also shows child soldiers fighting with the jihadists.
Nepal to ban evangelization and religious conversion
Nepal to ban evangelisation and religious conversion | CatholicHerald.co.uk: The Nepalese president is expected to approve a bill that will outlaw any attempt to convert someone to a different faith, alongside the “hurting of religious sentiment”.
The country’s parliament passed the law, which will effectively ban evangelisation, on 8 August as fears grow of a crackdown on religious minorities, especially the country’s small Catholic population.
Anyone convicted under the new law, including foreign visitors, could face up to 5 years in prison for seeking to convert a person or “undermine the religion, faith or belief that any caste, ethnic group or community has been observing since sanatan [eternal] times.”
The country’s parliament passed the law, which will effectively ban evangelisation, on 8 August as fears grow of a crackdown on religious minorities, especially the country’s small Catholic population.
Anyone convicted under the new law, including foreign visitors, could face up to 5 years in prison for seeking to convert a person or “undermine the religion, faith or belief that any caste, ethnic group or community has been observing since sanatan [eternal] times.”
We’re a culture addicted to anger. But there is a cure...
ARCHBISHOP CHAPUT’S WEEKLY COLUMN: THE EPIDEMIC AND ITS CURE – Archdiocese of PhiladelphiaCHAPUT: I’ve always loved the movies, and one of the scariest films in recent memory is 28 Days Later, released in 2002. The plot is simple. Animal-rights activists break into an experimental disease lab in Britain. They free a group of innocent test monkeys from their cages. That’s the good news.
The bad news is that the monkeys are infected with a weaponized, fiercely communicable rage virus. The monkeys attack their liberators. The humans immediately catch the virus. They then attack each other and anyone else they can grab. The virus spreads geometrically. It burns through the population like a gasoline fire. A month later, civilization in the United Kingdom has collapsed. The few remaining healthy humans struggle to survive while eluding the infected.
The bad news is that the monkeys are infected with a weaponized, fiercely communicable rage virus. The monkeys attack their liberators. The humans immediately catch the virus. They then attack each other and anyone else they can grab. The virus spreads geometrically. It burns through the population like a gasoline fire. A month later, civilization in the United Kingdom has collapsed. The few remaining healthy humans struggle to survive while eluding the infected.
Pope invokes 'magisterial authority' to declare liturgy changes 'irreversible'
Pope invokes 'magisterial authority' to declare liturgy changes 'irreversible'SANMARTIN: Addressing a group of liturgical experts on Thursday, Pope Francis said that after the teaching of the Second Vatican Council (1962-65) and a long path of experience, “We can affirm with certainty and magisterial authority that the liturgical reform is irreversible.”
The declaration came in a speech on Thursday to Italy’s “Center of Liturgical Action,” which sponsors an annual National Liturgical Week.
By “liturgical reform,” Pope Francis meant the changes in Catholic rituals and modes of worship which followed from Vatican II, the most immediately visible elements of which included Mass facing the congregation, the use of vernacular languages, and a stronger emphasis on the “full, conscious and active” participation of the people.
The declaration came in a speech on Thursday to Italy’s “Center of Liturgical Action,” which sponsors an annual National Liturgical Week.
By “liturgical reform,” Pope Francis meant the changes in Catholic rituals and modes of worship which followed from Vatican II, the most immediately visible elements of which included Mass facing the congregation, the use of vernacular languages, and a stronger emphasis on the “full, conscious and active” participation of the people.
Memo to Catholics everywhere: Amatrice still needs our help
Memo to Catholics everywhere: Amatrice still needs our helpALLEN: Most people feel a natural spark of compassion whenever they hear about tragedy or misery, wherever it strikes. How long that spark endures usually depends on how close the tragedy hits to home, and how well they know the people involved.
Thus it was that when a 6.0 magnitude earthquake struck central Italy on this date last year, leaving 299 people dead and essentially wiping out the small town of Amatrice, that one stayed with me and still does, because I’ve known and cherished the place for the better part of 20 years.
It’s not just that it was a picturesque Italian village, although it was and hopefully will be again, nor is it just that it’s the birthplace of my favorite dish on the face of the planet, pasta all’amatriciana, though it certainly is that too. Once in a while I’ve popped down to Amatrice over the years for its annual amatriciana festival, where free samples of various versions of the dish were served up, and found both the people and the food absolutely priceless.
Thus it was that when a 6.0 magnitude earthquake struck central Italy on this date last year, leaving 299 people dead and essentially wiping out the small town of Amatrice, that one stayed with me and still does, because I’ve known and cherished the place for the better part of 20 years.
It’s not just that it was a picturesque Italian village, although it was and hopefully will be again, nor is it just that it’s the birthplace of my favorite dish on the face of the planet, pasta all’amatriciana, though it certainly is that too. Once in a while I’ve popped down to Amatrice over the years for its annual amatriciana festival, where free samples of various versions of the dish were served up, and found both the people and the food absolutely priceless.
Wednesday, August 23, 2017
4 marks of the oppressiveness of our times
The Oppressiveness of Our Times - Community in Mission : Community in MissionPOPE: A reading from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah was featured this week in the Office of Readings of the Liturgy of the Hours. I couldn’t help but be struck by the fact that the ancient diagnosis of Israel applies to our times as well. These are indeed contentious times—so contentious that we cannot seem to have honest debates or disagreements; we just yell at one another. On college campuses, students shout down speakers with differing views and accuse them of hate. Demonstrations both on campuses and elsewhere often devolve into a kind of mob violence, which has included vandalism, setting cars afire, breaking windows, looting, and even murder.
Clarifying what we can
Clarifying what we can | In the Light of the LawEDPETERS: According to Archbishop Víctor Manuel Fernández, or perhaps Austen Ivereigh who was reporting on the prelate’s position: “In the case of norms forbidding killing and stealing, for example, the norms are absolute, admitting of no exceptions; yet it is questionable … whether taking life in self-defense is killing, or taking food to feed a hungry child is stealing.”
However such confused formulations of moral principles came to be offered as examples of critical thinking in the Church, one can’t respond to every misstatement of Church teaching floating around these days and so I limit myself to commenting only on some assertions made by Fernández/Ivereigh about what canon law supposedly held and holds in regard to divorce, remarriage, and admission to the sacraments and sacramentals.
However such confused formulations of moral principles came to be offered as examples of critical thinking in the Church, one can’t respond to every misstatement of Church teaching floating around these days and so I limit myself to commenting only on some assertions made by Fernández/Ivereigh about what canon law supposedly held and holds in regard to divorce, remarriage, and admission to the sacraments and sacramentals.
Of Serbs, salvation, and sunburns
Of Serbs, Salvation, and Sunburns | ncregister.comBECKER: It was a full summer weekend. A wedding on Friday, Lake Michigan and the beach on Saturday, and then off to see the South Bend Cubs take on the Bowling Green Hot Rods on Sunday afternoon.
As we were making our way to Four Winds Field, conversation in the van gravitated to our beach adventure the previous day. We talked about the ungainly crowds, the hot sand, the frigid lake water, and the ride home, which included a detour past Sts. Peter and Paul, South Bend’s Serbian Orthodox church.
“Serb Fest was in full swing,” I told my wife, who hadn’t made the trip to the beach. “The cars were lined up down the street. Remember when we went to Serb Fest that one time?”
As we were making our way to Four Winds Field, conversation in the van gravitated to our beach adventure the previous day. We talked about the ungainly crowds, the hot sand, the frigid lake water, and the ride home, which included a detour past Sts. Peter and Paul, South Bend’s Serbian Orthodox church.
“Serb Fest was in full swing,” I told my wife, who hadn’t made the trip to the beach. “The cars were lined up down the street. Remember when we went to Serb Fest that one time?”
Let’s stop pretending and just admit that something DID go wrong after Vatican II
Let’s stop pretending: something DID go wrong after Vatican II | Catholic CultureLAWLER: Something went wrong—seriously wrong—in the Catholic Church in the years after Vatican II. Can we all agree on that much? Leave aside, for now, the familiar debate about the causes of the problem; let’s begin with the agreement that there is, or at least certainly was, a problem.
Eric Sammons makes the point in a provocative essay that appeared in Crisis last week:
If an entirely objective social scientist were to study the Catholic Church in the second half of the twentieth century, he would see one fact staring him straight in the face: the Church experienced a precipitous decline in the Western world during that time.
The problem (whatever it is) is compounded, Sammons remarks, by a general refusal to acknowledge the reality of our post-conciliar difficulties: what he terms a “soft censorship” of unpleasant news. Bishops and pastors, diocesan newspapers and parish bulletins have bombarded us for years with reports that the Church is “vibrant,” that programs are booming, that the liturgy is beautiful, that religious education is robust. Never is heard a discouraging word. Yet we know better. We know about the shortage of priests; we see the news of parish closing; we notice the empty pews on Sundays. Something is wrong; we know that.
Eric Sammons makes the point in a provocative essay that appeared in Crisis last week:
If an entirely objective social scientist were to study the Catholic Church in the second half of the twentieth century, he would see one fact staring him straight in the face: the Church experienced a precipitous decline in the Western world during that time.
The problem (whatever it is) is compounded, Sammons remarks, by a general refusal to acknowledge the reality of our post-conciliar difficulties: what he terms a “soft censorship” of unpleasant news. Bishops and pastors, diocesan newspapers and parish bulletins have bombarded us for years with reports that the Church is “vibrant,” that programs are booming, that the liturgy is beautiful, that religious education is robust. Never is heard a discouraging word. Yet we know better. We know about the shortage of priests; we see the news of parish closing; we notice the empty pews on Sundays. Something is wrong; we know that.
The shocking rise of atheism in the United States
The Shocking Rise of Atheism [VIDEO]VOGT: In the last seven years, the population of atheists in the U.S. has doubled. You likely have friends or family members who fit into that group—whether they call themselves atheists, or skeptics, or agnostics. They might not check the ‘atheist’ box on a survey, but they still live their lives as if God doesn't exist. Think about it for a second... can you think of someone in your life, or perhaps several people in your life, who think like this?
Why two introverts decided to move to another parish
To Be Known – WE'RE LATE FOR CHURCHGERD: Recently, my husband and I officially changed parishes. We had been on the books at a very large church, which someone informed me was so large it actually classified as a mega-church. Several years back, we signed our kids up for the school and once we registered as parishioners, I set to the business of trying to make connections and build community.
My faith history as a post-Vatican II baby, growing up in the 70’s and 80’s groomed me to have extremely low expectations from my neighborhood parish. As a kid, it was the place we went to celebrate mass. The word celebrate here is even a stretch as there was never much exuberance at all. But we went to mass. And that was literally it. Not even a donut Sunday in sight. I say this with certainty because I remember there was no actual place to gather- short of a very cold, (this was Cleveland after all) impersonal hallway that led to the sanctuary. There was no narthex.
My faith history as a post-Vatican II baby, growing up in the 70’s and 80’s groomed me to have extremely low expectations from my neighborhood parish. As a kid, it was the place we went to celebrate mass. The word celebrate here is even a stretch as there was never much exuberance at all. But we went to mass. And that was literally it. Not even a donut Sunday in sight. I say this with certainty because I remember there was no actual place to gather- short of a very cold, (this was Cleveland after all) impersonal hallway that led to the sanctuary. There was no narthex.
We live in an age of mindless iconoclasm
The Mindless Iconoclasm of Our Age - Crisis MagazineRUTLER: Galla Placida, the regent for her young son, the emperor Theodosius III, was shocked when Saint Augustine died in 430 on August 28, three months into the siege of his city Hippo by the Vandals. He may have died of malnutrition, if not stress, because the wheat crop had not been harvested. As destroyers go, the Vandals were not as bad as some of the other sackers of Roman civilization, and when they burned Hippo they preserved Augustine’s cathedral and library, but they certainly were energetic: in a short space they had made their way from home in southern Scandinavia all the way to North Africa. Physically, they fascinated the sultrier races and, a bit like Pope Gregory who called the fair Angles angels, the sixth century Byzantine chronicler Procopius said that the Vandals “all have white bodies and fair hair, and are tall and handsome to look upon.” Vandalism has come to be an unflattering sobriquet, much like the customs of the Thugs of India and the Buggers of Bulgaria. The three of them combined would resemble the platform of some contemporary progressives.
The culture war must be fought. And the Church must be the one to lead the fight...
It’s a culture war, stupid - Denver CatholicWEIGEL: Canada’s vulnerability to the culture of death is exacerbated by Canada’s single-payer, i.e., state-funded and state-run, health care system. And the brutal fact is that it‘s more “cost effective” to euthanize patients than to treat secondary conditions that could turn lethal (like H’s infection) or to provide palliative end-of-life care. Last year, when I asked a leading Canadian Catholic opponent of euthanasia why a rich country like the “True North strong and free” couldn’t provide palliative end-of-life care for all those with terminal illnesses, relieving the fear of agonized and protracted dying that’s one incentive for euthanasia, he told me that only 30% of Canadians had access to such care.
Americans’ declining interest in history is hitting museums like Colonial Williamsburg hard
Declining Interest In History Hits Museums Like Colonial Williamsburg Hard: One of the country’s most well-known tributes to the Revolutionary era is on the brink of financial ruin. Mitchell Reiss, the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation’s president and CEO, released an open letter at the end of June revealing that Colonial Williamsburg, which markets itself as “the world’s largest living history museum,” is in dire financial straits.
Reiss wrote that in 2016, Colonial Williamsburg lost an average of $148,000 every day. The debt burden of the Foundation stood at a staggering $317 million at the end of last year. A big part of this burden, Reiss noted, resulted from heavy borrowing to construct a new visitor center and make other hospitality-related improvements around the time of Jamestown’s 400th anniversary in 2007.
Reiss wrote that in 2016, Colonial Williamsburg lost an average of $148,000 every day. The debt burden of the Foundation stood at a staggering $317 million at the end of last year. A big part of this burden, Reiss noted, resulted from heavy borrowing to construct a new visitor center and make other hospitality-related improvements around the time of Jamestown’s 400th anniversary in 2007.
Here’s the entire U.S. Navy fleet in one chart
Here’s the Entire U.S. Navy Fleet in One Chart: The United States Navy is a powerhouse. The fleet consists of roughly 430 ships in active service or reserve. The vessels run the gamut from the massive Nimitz-class aircraft carrier, which stretches more than 1,000 feet, to the Los Angeles-class submarine that slithers 900 feet below the ocean surface.
This map from @Naval_Graphics on Twitter shows all the commissioned and noncommissioned ships of every size as of April 2015. The ships are organized by size, from the humongous aircraft carriers at the top to the smaller ships at the bottom.
This map from @Naval_Graphics on Twitter shows all the commissioned and noncommissioned ships of every size as of April 2015. The ships are organized by size, from the humongous aircraft carriers at the top to the smaller ships at the bottom.
Troubled Nigerian diocese urged to ‘put grievances aside’ and accept bishop
Troubled Nigerian diocese urged to 'put grievances aside,' accept bishop: Archbishop Ignatius Kaigama, president of the Nigerian bishops’ conference, is urging priests in his country's Ahaira diocese to accept a bishop appointed by Benedict XVI and confirmed by Francis, even though he comes from outside the diocese's majority ethnic and linguistic group. While some priests say they're ready to comply with whatever the pope decides, that doesn't mean the underlying grievances are resolved.
These daily habits will make you happier, says Catholic psychiatrist
These Daily Habits Will Make You Happier, Says Catholic Psychiatrist | ncregister.com: We live in a society in which people feel increasingly socially isolated. The breakdown of marriage and weakening of family ties have disproportionately affected those with lower socioeconomic status, who are already more vulnerable. Self-reported loneliness has doubled from 20% to 40% of Americans, who now say they don’t have a person in their life who can help support them in a difficult time, or with whom they can discuss important matters. If Americans have the right to pursue happiness, that cannot happen in a social vacuum. We need a society where solidarity is lived, and where social connections that contribute to human flourishing are facilitated.
Why do some of the Psalms seem boastful?
Why Do Some of the Psalms Seem Boastful? - Community in Mission : Community in MissionPOPE: To anyone who regularly reads the Liturgy of the Hours, some of the psalms seem downright boastful. They sound too much like the Pharisee who went to pray and said, God, I thank you that I am not like other people — robbers, evildoers, adulterers — or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get (Luke 18:11-12). In the very next verse, Jesus recommends a briefer prayer for us: God, have mercy on me, a sinner (Luke 18:13).
How, then, are we to understand some of the psalms that seem to take up a rather boastful and presumptuous tone? Consider these three passages
How, then, are we to understand some of the psalms that seem to take up a rather boastful and presumptuous tone? Consider these three passages
Pope’s Wednesday Audience: To be a Christian “means a new perspective, a gaze full of hope”
For Christians, life always has meaning – even when it's hard, Pope says :: Catholic News Agency (CNA): On Wednesday, Pope Francis said going through life downcast as if it has no meaning is not the attitude of a Christian, who has the assurance that even when things look grim, there is always new hope found in Christ.
“It is not Christian to walk with your gaze turned down, without raising your eyes to the horizon. As if our entire path expires here, in the palm of a few meters of the journey,” the Pope said Aug. 23.
To live “as if in our lives there was not destination and no landing, place, and we were forced to an eternal wandering, without any reason for our many labors; this is not Christian,” he said.
Rather, as Christians “we believe and we know that death and hatred are not the final words pronounced in the parable of human existence,” he said, adding that to be a Christian “means a new perspective: a gaze full of hope.”
“It is not Christian to walk with your gaze turned down, without raising your eyes to the horizon. As if our entire path expires here, in the palm of a few meters of the journey,” the Pope said Aug. 23.
To live “as if in our lives there was not destination and no landing, place, and we were forced to an eternal wandering, without any reason for our many labors; this is not Christian,” he said.
Rather, as Christians “we believe and we know that death and hatred are not the final words pronounced in the parable of human existence,” he said, adding that to be a Christian “means a new perspective: a gaze full of hope.”
Tuesday, August 22, 2017
After the ‘dark ages’ of the 1970s, a new generation of architects is building churches that look like churches
Bringing God’s Designs Back to Life in America’s Churches | ncregister.comBEATTIE: When David Riccio started working at John Canning Studios in Cheshire, Connecticut, 20 years ago, he could expect one or two church projects per year. The bulk of the studio’s work was carried out at secular sites such as theaters, libraries and state capitols. Around 15 years ago, however, the number of church projects began to grow, necessitating a special division at Canning. Riccio now heads that division — called Canning Liturgical Arts — and he works on 20 or more ecclesiastical projects per year.
An introvert's guide to evangelization
An Introvert's Guide to Evangelization: When you think of someone sharing the Gospel, what kind of person comes to mind? For most of us, we think of someone who is comfortable in a crowd. We may think of someone who doesn’t know a stranger and is chock full of intelligent yet accessible responses to questions about the faith.
The person who may come to mind when we think of an evangelist is someone with an extroverted personality. But if you’re more of an introvert, this image of a missionary can seem a little intimating. Can introverts still evangelize, even with an aversion to big crowds?
The person who may come to mind when we think of an evangelist is someone with an extroverted personality. But if you’re more of an introvert, this image of a missionary can seem a little intimating. Can introverts still evangelize, even with an aversion to big crowds?
Two Popish Plot martyrs were made on August 22 in 1679
Two Popish Plot Martyrs on August 22 in 1679 | ncregister.comMANN: Far from London, where the Popish Plot was still in the full fury of investigation, accusation, trials, and execution, two Catholic priests, John Wall and John Kemble, suffered and died in Wales. Neither was a Jesuit, the focus of Titus Oates’ fictitious plot: Wall was a Franciscan and Kemble did not belong to any religious order. They had been found not guilty of any involvement in a plot to murder King Charles II and bring his Catholic brother, James the Duke of York, to the throne. They were found guilty of being Catholic priests in England after serving their underground flocks for a long time.
Chile’s constitutional court approves abortion bill
Chile’s constitutional court approves abortion bill | CatholicHerald.co.uk: Chile’s constitutional court has ruled that a law liberalising the country’s abortion regulations is not unconstitutional.
In March last year, Chile’s lower house of Congress approved a bill that allows abortion in cases of rape, when there is a health risk for the mother or when the child is not viable. The bill was later approved by the Senate, but opponents challenged it in the Constitutional Court.
A coalition of opposition parties went to the court arguing that the law violates Article 19 of the Chilean constitution, which guarantees the right to life of the unborn child.
In March last year, Chile’s lower house of Congress approved a bill that allows abortion in cases of rape, when there is a health risk for the mother or when the child is not viable. The bill was later approved by the Senate, but opponents challenged it in the Constitutional Court.
A coalition of opposition parties went to the court arguing that the law violates Article 19 of the Chilean constitution, which guarantees the right to life of the unborn child.
Sunday, August 20, 2017
The Great Eclipse of 2017
A Total Solar Eclipse Feels Really Really Weird | WIRED: Have you ever witnessed a total solar eclipse? Usually when I give a lecture, only a couple of people in an audience of several hundred people raise their hands when I ask that question. A few others respond tentatively, saying, “I think I saw one.” That’s like a woman saying, “I think I once gave birth.”
James Fenimore Cooper’s eyewitness account of the 1806 eclipse
The Eclipse: The eclipse of the sun, which you have requested me to describe, occurred in the summer of 1806, on Monday, the 16th of June. Its greatest depth of shadow fell upon the American continent, somewhere about the latitude of 42 deg. I was then on a visit to my parents, at the home of my family, among the Highlands of Otsego, in that part of the country where the eclipse was most impressive. My recollections of the great event, and the incidents of the day, are as vivid as if they had occurred but yesterday.
Faith, hate and details that mattered in Charlottesville
Your depressing 'think' podcast: Faith, hate and details that mattered in Charlottesville — GetReligionMATTINGLY: Warning: This post is going to be rather depressing, especially for (a) old-school journalists, (b) religious believers seeking racial reconciliation and (c) consistent, even radical, defenders of the First Amendment.
I really struggled as host Todd Wilken and I recorded this week's Crossroads podcast (click here to tune that in) and I think you'll be able to hear that in my voice. From my perspective, the media coverage of the tragic events in Charlottesville, Va., descended into chaos and shouting and the public ended up with more heat that light, in terms of basic information.
The key question, of course, is what did these demonstrations/riots have to do with religion?
I really struggled as host Todd Wilken and I recorded this week's Crossroads podcast (click here to tune that in) and I think you'll be able to hear that in my voice. From my perspective, the media coverage of the tragic events in Charlottesville, Va., descended into chaos and shouting and the public ended up with more heat that light, in terms of basic information.
The key question, of course, is what did these demonstrations/riots have to do with religion?
Life aboard the longest train ride through India
Life Aboard the Longest Train Ride Through India: Beneath the relentless churn of steel, wood, and dust, the Indian railway is made entirely of stories. For more than a century, it has witnessed the infinite expression of the human condition, borne the incalculable weight of separations, and gently rocked the world-weary into oblivion.
How this priest restored tradition and orthodoxy — and vibrancy — to a struggling San Francisco parish
Countercultural San Francisco parish attracts growing congregation: On the solemnity of the Annunciation this past spring, San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore J. Cordileone dedicated the Star of the Sea Church’s renovated St. Joseph Adoration Chapel, calling it “a pivotal moment in the history of the parish.”
“We want to base the renewal of our parish around the holy Eucharist,” said Father Joseph Illo. “Our mission statement is to evangelize God’s people beginning with the gift of the holy Eucharist. That means putting a lot of energy into our music, our preaching, our Sunday Mass.”
Three years after Illo was appointed parish administrator in August 2014, bringing his powerful commitment to traditional Catholic practices to the famously progressive city, Mass attendance and number of parishioners registered have increased about 10 percent each year.
“We want to base the renewal of our parish around the holy Eucharist,” said Father Joseph Illo. “Our mission statement is to evangelize God’s people beginning with the gift of the holy Eucharist. That means putting a lot of energy into our music, our preaching, our Sunday Mass.”
Three years after Illo was appointed parish administrator in August 2014, bringing his powerful commitment to traditional Catholic practices to the famously progressive city, Mass attendance and number of parishioners registered have increased about 10 percent each year.
Thousands of South Sudanese find refuge in cathedral
Thousands of South Sudanese find refuge in Cathedral :: Catholic News Agency (CNA): As the civil war in South Sudan heightens, millions are fleeing their homes for safer ground, which many have found at St. Mary Help of Christian's Cathedral in Wau, the country's second largest city.
“Those who flee believe that even rebels still fear God and would not slaughter civilians in the backyard of a church,” said Fr. Moses Peter, a priest at St. Mary's, according to IRIN News.
“Many other churches have also taken in hundreds of people,” he said...
“Those who flee believe that even rebels still fear God and would not slaughter civilians in the backyard of a church,” said Fr. Moses Peter, a priest at St. Mary's, according to IRIN News.
“Many other churches have also taken in hundreds of people,” he said...
Saturday, August 19, 2017
What is the meaning of Michelangelo's ‘David’?
What is the Meaning of Michelangelo's "David"? - The Imaginative ConservativeLONGENECKER: Last week I was in Florence, and while jostling with other sightseers to get a glimpse of Michelangelo’s David, I recalled an anecdote I’d heard years before. A man was standing with his eight-year-old son gazing up at Michelangelo’s amazing monument, and the boy said, “But Daddy! I thought you said David was a little boy!”
Indeed. David is not a little boy, but a magnificent young man, and standing at fourteen feet, the little boy who slew the giant has become a giant. No doubt much more handsome than the Philistine brute, still the boy David has become Goliath.
Indeed. David is not a little boy, but a magnificent young man, and standing at fourteen feet, the little boy who slew the giant has become a giant. No doubt much more handsome than the Philistine brute, still the boy David has become Goliath.
Getting open: There's more to becoming one of the NFL's elite route runners than you realize
There Is More to Becoming an Elite Route Runner Than Meets the Eye - The Ringer: Getting open is football’s most relatable skill, and also one of its most complex. So we asked the experts: What distinguishes the NFL’s best route runners from its novices?
Take a guide tour through St. Teresa of Ávila’s ‘Way of Prayer’
A Practical Commentary on St. Teresa’s Wisdom | ncregister.comLILLES: With her own energetic style, St. Teresa of Avila wrote the Way of Perfection for contemplatives.
Although her teaching is brilliant, sometimes a less-experienced reader can find himself lost as the great saint meanders on important tangents. Although these eventually come together as a whole, without a good guide, one can sometimes lose the outline of her argument and the overall purpose of the work.
This is why recourse to a good teacher is sometimes useful, and Father Gabriel is just such a guide. The Carmelite ideal that he proposes in this commentary is drawn right from St. Teresa’s wisdom. In this way,
Father Gabriel skillfully contextualizes the mendicant note of St. Teresa’s wisdom: It is teaching not merely for contemplatives, but apostolic contemplatives, people of prayer given over to the mission of the Church. Father Gabriel is right to see a warrior’s note to her text. Mendicant spirituality, after all, rose during the “Age of Chivalry,” and St. Teresa is writing at the end of this age.
Although her teaching is brilliant, sometimes a less-experienced reader can find himself lost as the great saint meanders on important tangents. Although these eventually come together as a whole, without a good guide, one can sometimes lose the outline of her argument and the overall purpose of the work.
This is why recourse to a good teacher is sometimes useful, and Father Gabriel is just such a guide. The Carmelite ideal that he proposes in this commentary is drawn right from St. Teresa’s wisdom. In this way,
Father Gabriel skillfully contextualizes the mendicant note of St. Teresa’s wisdom: It is teaching not merely for contemplatives, but apostolic contemplatives, people of prayer given over to the mission of the Church. Father Gabriel is right to see a warrior’s note to her text. Mendicant spirituality, after all, rose during the “Age of Chivalry,” and St. Teresa is writing at the end of this age.
Vatican delegate: Every indication Medjugorje will be recognized, perhaps later this year
Vatican delegate: Every indication Medjugorje will be recognized, perhaps later this year: A Polish archbishop appointed by Pope Francis to study the pastoral situation surrounding Medjugorje says the apparitions in the Bosnian town could be recognized by the Vatican later this year.
Archbishop Henryk Hoser was appointed by the pope in February to study the pastoral care given to the town’s residents and visiting pilgrims.
The city is a pilgrimage hub because of the reported apparitions, with millions arriving each year to climb the Mount Podbrdro, a steep and rock-strewn path that ascends to the actual location where the Virgin allegedly first appeared, and at times is believed to continue to do so.
Archbishop Henryk Hoser was appointed by the pope in February to study the pastoral care given to the town’s residents and visiting pilgrims.
The city is a pilgrimage hub because of the reported apparitions, with millions arriving each year to climb the Mount Podbrdro, a steep and rock-strewn path that ascends to the actual location where the Virgin allegedly first appeared, and at times is believed to continue to do so.
Explaining papal calm on security, plus a note on the convert debate
Explaining papal calm on security, plus a note on the convert debateALLEN: Europe is again reeling from violence, as incidents in Barcelona and Cambrils in Spain on Thursday marked the sixth and seventh times, respectively, in just over a year that a vehicle has been used by Islamic jihadists to inflict casualties on a European city. Meanwhile, a stabbing spree in Finland on Friday left two people dead. Police say they now see it as a terrorist attack, and have arrested an 18-year-old Moroccan asylum-seeker and four others so far. The incident prompted increased vigilance at airports and train stations, and a heightened police presence in places where people congregate.
On Fr. Aidan Nichols’ recent remarks
On Fr. Nichols’ recent remarks | In the Light of the LawEDPETERS: Dominican theologian Fr. Aidan Nichols needs no introduction to readers of this blog and it suffices to say that, when a priest of Nichols’ credentials urges development of a canonical procedure to correct popes who—how exactly to put this?—leave confusion in their wake, people are going to take notice. I have seen only news reports of Nichols’ address (not the speech itself), but a few comments occur to me that won’t come as a surprise to Nichols but that might help inform others’ reactions to them.
While on others thou art calling, do not pass me by: Msgr. Pope's homily for the 20th Sunday of the Year
While on Others Thou Art Calling, Do Not Pass Me By – A Homily for the 20th Sunday of the Year - Community in Mission : Community in Mission: The Gospel this Sunday teaches us to pray always and not to lose heart. It is about being tenacious in prayer, continuing to beseech the Lord even when the results are discouraging. It is also about the Lord’s will to extend the Gospel to all the nations and to make the Church truly catholic.
Let’s look at this Gospel in five stages.
Let’s look at this Gospel in five stages.
A reflection on the removal of controversial statues
A Reflection on the Removal of Controversial Statues | ncregister.comPOPE: Understanding our story is a critical aspect of the life of every Christian. We all have a story, a narrative of how God brought us to birth and has interacted with us. It is filled with successes and struggles, virtues and vices. Knowing that story is crucial to testifying and being a witness to others of God’s grace, mercy, and truth. On a collective level, Israel, the Church and nations have stories of how God has interacted with and led them. Just as with those of individuals, the histories of these collectives are also marked with both wondrous and horrifying moments.
Anti-statue frenzy spreads to New Orleans as vandals hit St. Joan of Arc monument
Joan of Arc statue in French Quarter tagged with 'Tear It Down' graffiti | NOLA.com: The phrase "Tear it Down" was hastily sprayed in black paint across the base of the golden Joan of Arc statue on Decatur Street in the French Quarter sometime earlier this week. It has since been removed, with only the vaguest traces of the paint remaining.
The "Tear it Down" tag would seem to relate to the debate surrounding the city's ongoing removal of four Confederate monuments. But the statue of Joan of Arc, a 15th-century military leader, martyr and Catholic saint, hasn't been mentioned in the controversy to this point.
The "Tear it Down" tag would seem to relate to the debate surrounding the city's ongoing removal of four Confederate monuments. But the statue of Joan of Arc, a 15th-century military leader, martyr and Catholic saint, hasn't been mentioned in the controversy to this point.
Anti-statue frenzy spreads to California as vandals hit St. Junípero Serra monument
St. Junipero Serra Statue Vandalized in Southern California | ChurchPOP: A statue of St. Junípero Serra in Mission Hills, CA was recently vandalized, with red paint put on the saint’s face and the word “murder” written down the front in white.
The photo began circulating around Facebook in the last few days, so CBS Los Angeles sent a reporter to the statue, who confirmed there was still some paint left on the statue. It appeared someone had tried unsuccessfully to clean it off after the photo had been taken.
St. Junípero Serra, an 18th century Franciscan who set up missions in California for the evangelization of Native Americans, was canonized by Pope Francis in 2015 amid controversy that the saint had aided the oppression of Native Americans.
The photo began circulating around Facebook in the last few days, so CBS Los Angeles sent a reporter to the statue, who confirmed there was still some paint left on the statue. It appeared someone had tried unsuccessfully to clean it off after the photo had been taken.
St. Junípero Serra, an 18th century Franciscan who set up missions in California for the evangelization of Native Americans, was canonized by Pope Francis in 2015 amid controversy that the saint had aided the oppression of Native Americans.
State funeral for Sr. Ruth Pfau, ‘Pakistan's Mother Teresa’
State funeral for Catholic nun, Pakistan's Mother Teresa - Vatican Radio: Pakistan on Saturday laid to rest its famous angel of mercy, German-born Catholic nun Ruth Pfau, credited with eradicating leprosy or Hansen’s disease from Pakistan. The Daughter of the Heart of Mary Sister was accorded full state honours, including a 19-gun salute, for her priceless service. State-run television broadcast live footage of her flag-draped coffin being solemnly carried by Pakistani soldiers in the southern city of Karachi.
Friday, August 18, 2017
‘Detroit’ (RT 83%) has a story to tell, but what story is it?
SDG Reviews ‘Detroit’ | ncregister.comGREYDANUS: Kathryn Bigelow’s Detroit has an important story to tell, but what story is it?
An animated prologue, with intertitles over images from African-American expressionist Jacob Lawrence’s Migration Series paintings, evokes the story of the Great Migration of African-Americans in the decades after the First World War from the rural South to cities of the North.
Early scenes depict antagonistic interactions between heavy-handed officers and resentful locals, precipitating what would become the deadliest, most destructive urban riot in postwar history and the terrible climax of the race riots of the “Long Hot Summer” of 1967. Over the course of five days, there were 43 deaths, thousands of injuries and arrests, and hundreds of homes and buildings destroyed.
An animated prologue, with intertitles over images from African-American expressionist Jacob Lawrence’s Migration Series paintings, evokes the story of the Great Migration of African-Americans in the decades after the First World War from the rural South to cities of the North.
Early scenes depict antagonistic interactions between heavy-handed officers and resentful locals, precipitating what would become the deadliest, most destructive urban riot in postwar history and the terrible climax of the race riots of the “Long Hot Summer” of 1967. Over the course of five days, there were 43 deaths, thousands of injuries and arrests, and hundreds of homes and buildings destroyed.
Change canon law to correct papal errors, says theologian Fr. Aidan Nichols
Leading theologian: change canon law to correct papal errors | CatholicHerald.co.uk: A prominent theologian has proposed reforming canon law to allow a pope’s doctrinal errors to be established.
Fr Aidan Nichols, a prolific author who has lectured at Oxford and Cambridge as well as the Angelicum in Rome, said that Pope Francis’s exhortation Amoris Laetitia had led to an “extremely grave” situation.
Fr Nichols proposed that, given the Pope’s statements on issues including marriage and the moral law, the Church may need “a procedure for calling to order a pope who teaches error”.
The Dominican theologian said that this procedure might be less “conflictual” if it took place during a future pontificate, rather as Pope Honorius was only condemned for error after he had ceased to occupy the chair of Peter.
Fr Aidan Nichols, a prolific author who has lectured at Oxford and Cambridge as well as the Angelicum in Rome, said that Pope Francis’s exhortation Amoris Laetitia had led to an “extremely grave” situation.
Fr Nichols proposed that, given the Pope’s statements on issues including marriage and the moral law, the Church may need “a procedure for calling to order a pope who teaches error”.
The Dominican theologian said that this procedure might be less “conflictual” if it took place during a future pontificate, rather as Pope Honorius was only condemned for error after he had ceased to occupy the chair of Peter.
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