Video: This Puerto Rican Can Sing

Folks, meet Carlos Aponte, 24. I happened to be watching, quite by accident, the NBC show America's Got Talent and I was impressed. Judge by yourselves. I wish him blessings and success.

A Story About A Desert Father: Abba Agathon

Abba Peter, the disciple of Abba Lot, said, One day when I was in Abba Agathon's cell a brother came in and said to him, "I want to live with the brethren; tell me how to dwell with them." The old man answered him, "All the days of your life keep the frame of mind of the stranger which you have on the first day you join them, so as not to become too familiar with them." The Abba Macarius asked, "And what does this familiarity produce?" the old man replied, "It is like a strong, burning wind, each time it arises everything flies swept before it, and it destroys the fruit of the trees." So Abba Macarius said, "Is speaking too freely really as bad as all that?" Abba Agathon said, "No passion is as worse than an uncontrolled tongue, because it is the mother of all the passions." Accordingly the good workman should not use it, even as he is living as a solitary in the cell. I know a brother who spent a long time in his cell using a small bed who said, "I should have left my cell without making use of that small bed if no one had told me it was there." It is the hard-working Monk who is a warrior.

The brethren also asked Abba Agathon "Amongst all good works, which is the virtue which requires the greatest effort?" He answered "Forgive me, but I think there is no labour greater than that of prayer to God. For every time a man wants to pray, his enemies, the demons, want to prevent him. For they know that it is only by turning him from prayer that they can hinder his journey. What ever good work a man undertakes, if he perseveres in it, he will attain rest. But prayer is warfare to the last breath.

The same Abba said "a man who is angry, even if he were to raise the dead, is not acceptable to God"

Source: Benedictine Monastery of Christ in the Desert

Today we observe the Feast of Sts. Peter and Paul

Today's my name day!

From today's Office of Readings, from a sermon of St Augustine

The martyrs had seen what they proclaimed

This day has been consecrated for us by the martyrdom of the blessed apostles Peter and Paul. It is not some obscure martyrs we are talking about. Their sound has gone out into all the earth, and their words to the ends of the world. These martyrs had seen what they proclaimed, they pursued justice by confessing the truth, by dying for the truth.

The blessed Peter, the first of the Apostles, the ardent lover of Christ, who was found worthy to hear, And I say to you, that you are Peter. He himself, you see, had just said, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God. Christ said to him, And I say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church. Upon this rock I will build the faith you have just confessed. Upon your words, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God, I will build my Church; because you are Peter. Peter comes from petra, meaning a rock. Peter, “Rocky”, from “rock”; not “rock” from “Rocky”. Peter comes from the word for a rock in exactly the same way as the name Christian comes from Christ.

Before his passion the Lord Jesus, as you know, chose those disciples of his whom he called apostles. Among these it was only Peter who almost everywhere was given the privilege of representing the whole Church. It was in the person of the whole Church, which he alone represented, that he was privileged to hear, To you will I give the keys of the kingdom of heaven. After all, it is not just one man that received these keys, but the Church in its unity. So this is the reason for Peter’s acknowledged pre-eminence, that he stood for the Church’s universality and unity, when he was told, To you I am entrusting, what has in fact been entrusted to all. To show you that it is the Church which has received the keys of the kingdom of heaven, listen to what the Lord says in another place to all his apostles: Receive the Holy Spirit; and immediately afterwards, Whose sins you forgive, they will be forgiven them; whose sins you retain, they will be retained.

Quite rightly, too, did the Lord after his resurrection entrust his sheep to Peter to be fed. It is not, you see, that he alone among the disciples was fit to feed the Lord’s sheep; but when Christ speaks to one man, unity is being commended to us. And he first speaks to Peter, because Peter is the first among the apostles. Do not be sad, Apostle. Answer once, answer again, answer a third time. Let confession conquer three times with love, because self-assurance was conquered three times by fear. What you had bound three times must be loosed three times. Loose through love what you had bound through fear. And for all that, the Lord once, and again, and a third time, entrusted his sheep to Peter.

There is one day for the passion of two apostles. But these two also were as one; although they suffered on different days, they were as one. Peter went first, Paul followed. We are celebrating a feast day, consecrated for us by the blood of the apostles. Let us love their faith, their lives, their labours, their sufferings, their confession of faith, their preaching.

- Source: Universalis.com

The Church in the Hispanic World And Why She Matters to Us

Folks, I urge you to read these articles by Alejandro Bermúdez,  editor-in-chief of the Catholic News Agency and ACI Prensa, the largest and most-visited online Catholic news provider in Spanish and Portuguese. His columns focus on the Church in Latin America, as well as the growth and impact of the Hispanic population within the Catholic Church in the United States. His latest piece, Why Latin America's Deep Catholic Roots Matter, is pretty insightful. In today’s divisive immigration debate, Latin American Catholics are looked upon with great suspicion. In fact, a certain conservative radio blabber once accused the US Church of taking advantage of illegal immigrants in order to refill her depleted ranks following the clergy sexual abuse scandal. The dominant narrative is that with the ignorant hordes of Hispanics overflowing the border, superstition, ignorance, and poverty will follow under the gleeful eye of mitred personages. It is an old prejudice, if you ask me. Mr. Bermúdez is out to dispel these and other notions. Here’s a list of his columns:

• A Catholic Mirror for the Empire
• A Peruvian Pessimism in the Catholic Church?
• Democracy in (Central) America
• Please, Cry for Me, Argentina
• Hope for Latin America
• Hispanics: The New Irish for the U.S. Catholic Church?
• How Political Correctness Could Sink Haiti's Future
• How 'Timoteo Tibou' Made It South of the Rio Grande
• A Game-Changer in Cuba
• Hispanics, the American Dream and Secularism
• Lost in Translation: What Archbishop Gomez Can Bring to the Immigration Debate
• 'Scandal and Outrage' in Latin America?
• The Church and Cuba
• Spain's Turmoil
• Beyond Mexico: Why Latin America Is Important for U.S. Policy Makers and the Catholic Church
• Why Latin America's Deep Catholic Roots Matter

Book Review: “Theophilos” by Michael O’Brien

Another work of art by Michael D. O’Brien. Yes, Theophilos, by Canadian author and painter Michael O’Brien is a multi-layered, erudite, yet very human story reaching back to the First Century. It is a literary exploration of the oral traditions – and of the Tradition – that gave rise to the Gospel According to St. Luke in particular and the New Testament in general.

Theophilos is different from O’Brien’s standard fare. He has written a lot about Christianity at the end times, but this book is about the very beginning of the Church.

In this Gospel “according to Theophilos,” O’Brien presents to us a wide panorama extending from Crete, into Greece, and then into Judea, to Nazareth and Jerusalem, of an investigation into the person and character of a certain “Yeshua,” acclaimed as “Mashiach” or “Christos “by some, and ridiculed and rejected by others. But no one was left unaffected by Him.

In this story, “Theophilos”– to whom St. Luke dedicated his Gospel and Acts of the Apostles – is “Loukas’” uncle, stepfather, and the one who taught the medicinal arts to the evangelist. Theophilos engages in his own exploration of the Nazarene, conducts interviews, and in the process we get to know him, as well as his life, family, friends, dreams and aspirations. We get an insight into Theophilos’ highly rational intellect, not unlike that of modern man and yet, placed in the context of his age without anachronisms. We also get a sweet profile of Loukas, the physician-evangelist who described Yeshua at the most humane.

We also find a Church that was Catholic, and very charismatic, and I mean charismatic in the sense of Pentecostal, filled with the Holy Spirit, brimming with charismata, liturgical, centered on the Eucharist, and proto-Marian. It was also a Church with dissenters, gossips, people who meant evil, and people who meant well but did or said silly things. In many ways, pretty much like today’s Church.

It was also a Jewish-Church, but one already opened to the gentiles in equality of membership. You see, like I like to say, Yeshua had torn down everything that separated men from the God of Israel. He had erased the boundaries. The election was Israel’s became now the heritage of every man who believed in Yeshua as God, Savior, and Messiah.

The novel is also a tour-de-force into classical studies in the context of the First Century Roman Empire. Several Greek myths are explored as well as the art of ancient medicine. Dark magical arts are also explored, but more in the context of the psyches that gave them birth, not the arts themselves. Also, Theophilos/O’Brien gives us a report on the state of mathematics, astronomy, navigation, weather prediction, wardrobes, and even cuisine in the First Century Levant. Types of cursive handwriting are also mentioned and, did you know there were seven qualities of papyri for sale in ancient stationery stores? I didn’t until I read this novel.

I highly recommend Theophilos. I don’t know any other way to say it! Like all his works, it’s full of light, wisdom, and peace. Read it, and become Theophilos yourself as He who is the Way, the Truth, and Life, comes to your encounter.

Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Today’s Mass Readings:

• First Reading: 1 Kings 19:16, 19-21
• Psalm: Psalm 16:1-2, 5, 7-11
• Second Reading: Galatians 5:1, 13-18
• Gospel: Luke 9:51-62

Video – Obama’s Counterfeit Catholics

Folks, the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. Watch it Sunday, June 27 at 6:00 PM at http://www.RealCatholicTv.com

“We have to renounce iconoclasm”

We have to renounce iconoclasm. In so doing, we inherently set ourselves against certain forces within modernity. The truth is eschatological, that is, it lies in the future, but we also believe that this eschatological reality was incarnate in Christ, the Beginning and the End, the Alpha and the Omega. We do not oppose the future in embracing the Tradition we have received. We embrace the future that is coming in Truth, rather than the false utopias of modern man’s imagination. – Fr. Stephen

I hereby expressly state my renunciation of iconoclasm in all its manifold forms; I reject all its insidious manifestations in every theology, philosophy, or materialistic doubt. I believe in Jesus Christ, the Word of God incarnate, who may be visually represented and his image venerated as a means to ascend in mind and spirit to Him. I receive with perfect faith what the Catholic Church teaches about the veneration of icons and images.

Exorcisms and Abuses

Rev. Thomas J. Euteneuer
President, Human Life International

One of the three commands that Jesus gave to the disciples was to "drive out demons" (Mk 16:17) in His Name. "Heal the sick" and "preach the good news" (Lk 10:9) are regular ministries of the Church, but the ministry of exorcising demons has received less attention. It is my view that the next decade will force the Church-and priests in particular-to embrace this ministry of casting out demons with professionalism and zeal as we will have to deal with the nuclear fallout of the pervasive and increasing occultism in our society. In order to do that, however, the Church needs to give people a proper understanding of spiritual warfare against the devil and his minions.

Unfortunately, many false and illusory images of fighting the Evil One define people's thinking about exorcism and demonic possession. The only correct view of the power of evil comes from faith, not the culture. Popular movies like The Exorcist (1973) and The Exorcism of Emily Rose (2005), while containing some truthful elements, create the picture that even when the Church "wins" an exorcism battle, the Church is somehow damaged and the devil gets his hour of glory. Hollywood would have us believe that Christ's Church cowers before the power of the devil-nothing could be further from the truth!

I am also concerned about real abuses that happen in spiritual warfare when people are trying to deal with evil without the protection of the Church. They may have a legitimate desire to be free from demonic forces but they can unwittingly get caught up in the very evil they are trying to quell. Some recent reports of "exorcisms" or allegations of possession are listed below but only for the purposes of indicating what happens when exorcisms are attempted without the shield of the spiritual authority that Christ gave to His Church. These have all occurred within the past couple of years and are not exorcisms-they are abuses-but it is easy to see how the devil might use these distortions to further his purpose of leading people away from authentic faith:

• In 2007 there was a disturbed man in Phoenix, Arizona trying to violently "exorcise" his three-year-old granddaughter while the girl's unclad mother participated in the bizarre and bloody ritual. The girl was injured and traumatized and the perpetrators went to jail;
• A 58-year-old central Iowa man set his couch on fire and burned down his house, according to him, as a way to get rid of demons in the home.
• In New Zealand, a 22-year-old woman was killed by drowning in a native Maori "makutu-lifting" ritual after having her eyes gouged out because, it was said, that the devil could be seen in her eyes. Forty family members watched the killing and then attempted to do the same to her 14-year old niece.
• A 70-year-old Tunisian grandmother was killed in a mental hospital in France by her daughter and a friend who suffocated her with a plastic bag trying to "trap the devil" inside of her.
• A 44-year-old Haitian man in Florida thought his girlfriend was possessed and hit her in the head with an iron in order to "release the demons that were inside her." When his mother tried to fend off the attack, he bit off her fingertip and started to actually pull out his own teeth. As he fought with police he was chanting "Jesus, Jesus, Jesus," and praying in Creole.
• A 33-year-old Washington DC woman killed her four teenage and pre-adolescent daughters with blunt force trauma, strangulation and stabbing claiming that all four of them were possessed. She stored their bodies for four months in her house until they were discovered by police in a badly decomposed state.
• The videos of "exorcisms" that are available on the Internet are utterly dehumanizing and abominable, but the "entertainment" value of such postings, in the modern mind, is immense for a faithless age.

Due to the mysterious nature of evil, possession and exorcism will never be entirely removed from popular distortions, but the Church has an obligation to give a correct understanding of what is a legitimate pastoral ministry and a Gospel imperative of the Church. A correct understanding of exorcism can also divest many of an unholy and dangerous fascination with the occult. No sane person who truly understood the nature of demons would be fascinated with them!

If you have not had the chance to purchase my new book, Exorcism and the Church Militant, please do so today! You can find it at www.exorcismbook.com and make sure to buy its companion edition called Demonic Abortion where I explain the satanic nature of the abortion industry. Hopefully it will build your faith and lead you a greater awareness of the power of Christ operative through His Church!

All-out media campaign against defenders of marriage

Folks, how do you the title of this news piece?

Supreme Court deals setback to gay rights foes in ballot case

By LES BLUMENTHAL

McClatchy Newspapers

WASHINGTON -- Despite a near unanimous Supreme Court decision Thursday that Washington state can release the names of the 138,000 people who signed ballot petitions to overturn a same-sex domestic partnership law, the case is far from over.

Religious conservatives who sought to block release of the signatures, and who fear harassment and retaliation if the names are made public, will return to federal court in Tacoma, Wash., to ask for a specific exemption to the state's Public Records Act.

Courts have allowed such exemptions on a case-by-case basis, and the high court said its ruling doesn't "foreclose success" in a narrower challenge.

In a 13-page page decision by Chief Justice John Roberts Jr., the court found that the Public Records Act covered the names of those who sign initiative and referendum petitions. Roberts said the disclosure of the names wouldn't as a "general matter" violate the First Amendment,

However, the court held open the possibility that the names could be withheld under certain circumstances.

Roberts wrote that the state has a responsibility to promote "transparency and accountability" in the electoral process, adding that the release of the names of petition signers would help "root out fraud" and "ferret out" invalid signatures that could result from simple mistakes.

The ruling noted that just because the court rejected a broad challenge to the disclosure law, it didn't block a narrower challenge that could be successful if it shows a "reasonable probability" that people will be subject to "threats, harassment, or reprisals from either government officials or private parties" if their names are released.

The 8-1 decision wasn't unexpected, as justices from the right and the left seemed skeptical during oral arguments in late April about the broad effort to exempt petition signers from the state disclosure act. The lone dissenting justice was Clarence Thomas, though others who agreed with Roberts wrote their own concurring opinions.

Protect Marriage Washington, a group opposed to the law, which voters narrowly upheld, had sought to keep the signatures secret because it feared retaliation from gay rights supporters. The state argued that the Public Records Act required the release of those signing initiative and referenda petitions.

The case had attracted national attention not only because it involved gay rights but also because it could serve as a precedent for other states that have tough public disclosure laws.

The names still haven't been released...

Read more at http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/06/24/1699082/supreme-court-deals-setback-to.html#ixzz0rojtfYTP

Commentary. Interesting. Not “pro-family activitists” or “defenders of traditional marriage” but “gay rights foes”. The newswriter definitely shows his bias. To be a “gay rights foe” is a loaded term, aiming to rise alarm and the feeling of "how dare they” deny someone their rights. It’s a short-circuit to ordered thought about the nature of human rights and of human beings themselves and about the right sources of positive law. It’s the complete reduction of moral discourse to mere esthetic sentiments.

The title is unsurprising, and it is part of an all-out media effort at glamorizing the gay lifestyle, demonizing pro-marriage defenders,  and influencing Washington to grant homosexualists as many special rights as possible ahead of the November election.

Now, regarding the Supreme Court decision, my opinion is this: any one who harasses pro-family, pro-traditional marriage defenders and attacks their persons or property, or recur to terroristic tactics aimed at silencing or intimidating us as a result of publicly available petitions lists or from other sources, should be charged with hate-crimes. Let’s fight fire with fire, let’s show the world where the true hatred really lies.

We will not be Kristallnacht-ed.

A pointed letter to President Obama

Folks, normally I pay little attention to what the glitterati have to say about politics. Sean Pean, Dann Glover, the Dixie Chicks, Ricky Martin, Calle 13, and many others, the way they parrot their secularist, reflexively anti-American opinions is enough for me to place them in the dark box of eternal forgetfulness. But the open letter actor John Voight addressed to President Obama stands apart, if anything because Mr. Voight is usually very well-spoken and can argue his viewpoints coherently, if not dispassionately. This is what he wrote yesterday in The Washington Times:

June 22, 2010

President Obama:

You will be the first American president that lied to the Jewish people, and the American people as well, when you said that you would defend Israel, the only Democratic state in the Middle East, against all their enemies. You have done just the opposite. You have propagandized Israel, until they look like they are everyone's enemy — and it has resonated throughout the world. You are putting Israel in harm's way, and you have promoted anti-Semitism throughout the world.

You have brought this to a people who have given the world the Ten Commandments and most laws we live by today. The Jewish people have given the world our greatest scientists and philosophers, and the cures for many diseases, and now you play a very dangerous game so you can look like a true martyr to what you see and say are the underdogs. But the underdogs you defend are murderers and criminals who want Israel eradicated.

You have brought to Arizona a civil war, once again defending the criminals and illegals, creating a meltdown for good, loyal, law-abiding citizens. Your destruction of this country may never be remedied, and we may never recover. I pray to God you stop, and I hope the people in this great country realize your agenda is not for the betterment of mankind, but for the betterment of your politics.

With heartfelt and deep concern for America and Israel,

Jon Voight

Though the situation in Arizona and not only in Arizona, but throughout the Southwest Border is of grave concern, I don’t think it ascends to the status of “civil war” and  therefore, somewhat of a hyperbole. Voight does score points on Israel. As I’ve explained elsewhere, although I don’t give unconditional support to the Israeli government in every action they take or fail to take – heck, I don’t even grant that privilege to the U.S. Government – I do believe in the right of Israel to exist, right where it is, within secure borders, at peace with itself and with its neighbors. Whatever other strategic consideration that make us allies, the fact remains, in my mind, that the Jewish State’s right to exist is absolute and inalienable.

Despite being a separate ethnicity and culture, the Palestinians have not earned, in my opinion, enough moral high ground to gain statehood. Every homicidal, suicide bombing, assassination, decapitation, and celebration of global terrorism – as when many Palestinians danced in the streets to celebrate the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 – undermines, in my view, the righteousness of their cause and their claim to immediate, unconditional sovereign independence. In this day and age, self-determination is not to be achieved over a pile of corpses, whether in the Holy Land (Israel + Palestine), Sudan, Sri Lanka, Kashimir, Northern Ireland, or even in my Puerto Rico.

These facts strengthen Mr. Voight’s letter and undermine Mr. Obama’s attempts to uplift the Muslim street at Israel’s expense. I’m sure also that hardcore Islamic regimes will simply ignore the President’s overtures while expanding their operations against Israel with a freer hand. This reveals the Obama Administration’s fundamental naiveté about the Muslim street that informs the President’s foreign policy and its tacit abandonment of Israel.

The Muslim street, as well as the Muslim intelligentsia, can and must be engaged constructively. But not at the expense of our allies, not at the expense of Israel. Mr. Voight is right in pointing this out and for this I applaud him.

Words to Live By

"People are unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered. Love them anyway. If you do good, people may accuse you of selfish motives. Do good anyway. If you are successful, you may win false friends and true enemies. Succeed anyway. The good you do today may be forgotten tomorrow. Do good anyway. Honesty and transparency make you vulnerable. Be honest and transparent anyway. What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight. Build anyway. People who really want help may attack you if you help them. Help them anyway. Give the world the best you have and you may get hurt. Give the world your best anyway."
- Mother Teresa

Has mass abortion and contraception limited Puerto Rico’s political choices?

Folks, my colleague Phillip Pennance thinks so, in this amazing piece entitled On the Demographic Impossibility of Puerto Rican Independence. Placed in the context of the demographic free-fall experienced throughout the developed world, Phil argues that Puerto Rico’s demographic implosion, fed by years of aggressive contraceptive policy and indifference from the tenured classes would be unable to replace the work force and in the end, pay for already scarce resources in a population-depleted, independent Puerto Rico. A must read for everyone interested not only in Puerto Rico-U.S. relations, but also about the unintended – and ignored - effects of the contraception-abortion genocide visited upon our peoples by population-control fanatics.

- Read On the Demographic Impossibility of Puerto Rican Independence.

Who’s going to take care of your pets after The Rapture?

Folks, this is no joke – they sound serious:

If The Rapture Happened Right Now, What Would Happen To Your Pets?

Register Your Pets With The Post-Rapture Pet Care Registry

Dear Fellow Christian:

As the Apostle Paul describes in Thessalonians as quoted above, at some point in the future Jesus will come in the air, catch up the Church from the earth, and then return to heaven with the Church. This is known as the Rapture and it will be glorious. But what of our pets? Who will take care of our pets when we're gone?

I'm Sharon Moss, and I'd like to help answer that question. First, let me tell you a story.

The After The Rapture Pet Care Story

The idea came from seeing someone else’s joke. An atheist created a site in England that said she’d take care of Christian-owned pets after the Rapture, and asked for 70 pounds as a "donation." She promoted it as a joke, and it virally made the rounds amongst non-believers who enjoy making fun of Christians. My husband saw it (he’s an Internet geek) and told me about it. Admittedly, it seemed funny. I told my friend, Carol, who is not a Christian, and she brought up a question: “Hey, if you get raptured, what happens to Petey?” It was an excellent question, and I didn’t have an answer.

A couple weeks later Carol came back and suggested we start After The Rapture Pet Care together. She said she had asked several Christian friends the same question she’d asked me, and every one of them would pay for a service to ensure the care of their pets after the Rapture. I had also asked some fellow Christians their thoughts. In every case they wished there was a way to prepare for their pets’ survival…

If you wish, continue reading here.

Commentary. Other than to say that the so-called rapture teaching is all bunk, I wonder if they’ll hire Catholics as pet advocates…

- Hat tip to Father Z.

- Read Will Catholics Be Left Behind: A Critique of the Rapture and Today's Prophecy Preachers, by Carl Olson

Here and now

Folks, this is another great post by Father Stephen over at Glory to God for All Things. Here’s how it starts:

Strangely enough, the one place that most of us avoid is here and now.

In the observations of Fr. Meletios Webber, we prefer either the past or the future. The past is marked by the thoughts of “if only,” the future with thoughts of “what if.” These thoughts are the voice of the logismoi, the constant barrage of thoughts and feelings that distract us from ourselves and from the world as it simply is. They also stand between us and knowledge of the heart.

This is part of the classical teaching of the Orthodox faith – particularly as found in the works of monastic fathers. It is drawn both from the teachings of Scripture and the long experience of faithful men and women who have found their way to the Kingdom of God…

Please, continue reading here.

Read also St. John Chrysostom on the Jesus Prayer over at Orthocath’s Blog

Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Today’s Mass Readings:

First Reading: Zechariah 12:10-11; 13:1

Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 63:2-6,8-9

Second Reading: Galatians 3:26-29

Gospel: Luke 9:18-24

• Listen to the Mass Readings
• Today's Reflection on the Mass
• My Daily Eucharist

The Fourth Commandment And The Duties of Children Toward Their Parents

Folks, we continue our overview of the Fourth Commandment as expounded in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, this day before the day that business and commerce have seen fit to dedicate to fathers in this country. In this installment, we will review the duties that the Fourth Commandment imposes upon children:

 
2214 The divine fatherhood is the source of human fatherhood;¹⁶ this is the foundation of the honor owed to parents. the respect of children, whether minors or adults, for their father and mother¹⁷ is nourished by the natural affection born of the bond uniting them. It is required by God's commandment.¹⁸

2215 Respect for parents (filial piety) derives from gratitude toward those who, by the gift of life, their love and their work, have brought their children into the world and enabled them to grow in stature, wisdom, and grace. "With all your heart honor your father, and do not forget the birth pangs of your mother. Remember that through your parents you were born; what can you give back to them that equals their gift to you?"¹⁹

2216 Filial respect is shown by true docility and obedience. "My son, keep your father's commandment, and forsake not your mother's teaching.... When you walk, they will lead you; when you lie down, they will watch over you; and when you awake, they will talk with you."²⁰ "A wise son hears his father's instruction, but a scoffer does not listen to rebuke."²¹

2217 As long as a child lives at home with his parents, the child should obey his parents in all that they ask of him when it is for his good or that of the family. "Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord."²² Children should also obey the reasonable directions of their teachers and all to whom their parents have entrusted them. But if a child is convinced in conscience that it would be morally wrong to obey a particular order, he must not do so.

As they grow up, children should continue to respect their parents. They should anticipate their wishes, willingly seek their advice, and accept their just admonitions. Obedience toward parents ceases with the emancipation of the children; not so respect, which is always owed to them. This respect has its roots in the fear of God, one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit.

2218 The fourth commandment reminds grown children of their responsibilities toward their parents. As much as they can, they must give them material and moral support in old age and in times of illness, loneliness, or distress. Jesus recalls this duty of gratitude.²³

For the Lord honored the father above the children, and he confirmed the right of the mother over her sons. Whoever honors his father atones for sins, and whoever glorifies his mother is like one who lays up treasure. Whoever honors his father will be gladdened by his own children, and when he prays he will be heard. Whoever glorifies his father will have long life, and whoever obeys the Lord will refresh his mother.²⁴

O son, help your father in his old age, and do not grieve him as long as he lives; even if he is lacking in understanding, show forbearance; in all your strength do not despise him.... Whoever forsakes his father is like a blasphemer, and whoever angers his mother is cursed by the Lord.²⁵

2219 Filial respect promotes harmony in all of family life; it also concerns relationships between brothers and sisters. Respect toward parents fills the home with light and warmth. "Grandchildren are the crown of the aged."²⁶ "With all humility and meekness, with patience, [support] one another in charity."²⁷

2220 For Christians a special gratitude is due to those from whom they have received the gift of faith, the grace of Baptism, and life in the Church. These may include parents, grandparents, other members of the family, pastors, catechists, and other teachers or friends. "I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, dwells in you."²⁸

Continue reading about the Duties of Parents here.

“For when I am weak, then I am strong”

Folks, today’s scriptural reading for morning prayer (Friday of the III Week) spoke directly to me. I wanted to share it with you:

⁷To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. ⁸Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. ⁹But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. ¹⁰That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong. (2 Corinthians 12:7-10 [New International Version])

Thank you all for your prayers! Have a blessed day!

Act Now to Stop Congress From Limiting Political Speech

Folks, I received this from the National Organization for Marriage (NOM) today. Please, act now:

Please read below and take action right now. Congress will likely be voting today on a bill that would force NOM and other 501(c)(4) to publicly disclose our donors and satisfy onerous new reporting requirements.

The bill is being pushed by Congressional Democrats hoping to silence groups like NOM before this November's election.

Our opponents know that we have a powerful message -- a message about marriage that resonates with the American people.  So instead of debating marriage, they try to silence us instead.

They have failed time and time again. Just yesterday, the New Hampshire Attorney General dismissed a complaint seeking to ban NOM from running our TV ad campaign in New Hampshire.

But now Congress is considering a bill that has potential to silence NOM's work throughout the entire country.

Our opponents want to use donor disclosure as one of their most powerful weapons to stop our message.

After the Prop 8 campaign in California, we got a taste of what happens when marriage supporters are publicly identified . . . Radical gay marriage activists target them individually -- threatening their businesses, their employment, their property and in some cases even their lives. In California, individuals who had donated as little as $100 lost their jobs after protesters targeted their employers with an ongoing harassment campaign.

Just a few weeks ago, the DISCLOSE Act was considered dead . . . unlikely to move in Congress due to opposition from powerful advocacy organizations. But on Monday, House Democrats made a backroom deal with the NRA, the most influential of the lobbying organizations opposed to the bill, exempting the NRA from the bill's donor disclosure requirements in exchange for the NRA's agreement to drop its opposition to the bill.

This sort of unseemly quid pro quo has even the liberal supporters of the bill crying foul. And yet, with the NRA now neutral on the bill, the House leadership hopes to hold enough Democratic votes for passage, despite strong opposition from Republicans and a number of moderate Democrats, some of whom are involved in close reelection races.

Last year, NOM filed lawsuits in California and Maine, seeking to protect our donors from harassment and strike down unconstitutional state campaign finance regulations similar to the disclosure provisions in the federal DISCLOSE Act.

Americans have a core civil right to participate in the political process without fear of violence or intimidation. We need your help to protect that right today. Take action now! Click here to help stop the DISCLOSE Act today!

Let me add my personal comment that the NRA’s maneuver to stand neutral on this bill has been particularly hideous and corrosive of the right to free speech of its own members, many of whom support traditional marriage against its many cultural enemies. I hope their membership take note of the NRA’s betrayal of free speech rights for the rest of us.

Rules for Married Dialog – I

Father Nicolas Schwizer

For dialog to be enriching and fruitful, certain requirements must take place. Each couple, once they achieve their own identity, will have to find their special way. There are, nevertheless, certain basic rules. Which are these rules for married dialog? They can be summed up in this way: for married dialog to be effective and creative, it must be: humble, patient and pleasant.

1. Humble. The first quality for dialog is humility. One must not approach the other all puffed up with his/her own perfection, sure of the certainty of his/her reasons. The ideal spouse does not exist, and neither is anyone the owner of the whole truth. Such an attitude makes exchange impossible from the beginning.

The danger for all married dialog is that, frequently, it becomes an accusation: there is torture, attack, and mutual accusation. One leaves this situation further apart than ever. Therefore, it is better that the spouses, when they begin the dialog, have the prudence to exercise self-criticism.

It is something basic. One must be very careful – at the exchange of recriminations, criticisms, embarrassing questions – to examine oneself and verify to what point one can be the subject of censure. It is not so rare that one projects his/her failings and limitations in the other person. With an attitude of humility and self-criticism, the conversation will develop in an atmosphere of clarity, calm and understanding.

2. Patient. Understanding the spouse will not be achieved in only one day. As everything, the life of the two together requires a long period of learning, a permanent education.

All education rests upon patience. We know that it consists of, first of all, in untiring repetition, in beginning without ceasing all over again. That is how it occurs between husband and wife. Sometimes, it might be necessary to repeat the same observation throughout the entire life…..to pose the same petition.

It is not that the spouse has ill-will; it simply happens that he/she forgets or does not form the habit which only comes about through repetition. Important is knowing when to repeat patiently which, in addition, is an attribute of fortitude. In the case of married life, patience is even more important since most of the time only details are at play; but these unimportant petty things can multiply and become very irritating. Impatience grows and threatens to show up in moments of conversation. That is what has to be avoided. Patience will give the dialog a climate of calmness, serenity…..without tensions and irritation.

3. Pleasant. For married dialog to be a means for growing closer, it should not take place with aggressiveness, on the contrary, in the most pleasant way possible. Otherwise, the only thing they can do is defend themselves and attack anew.

At the moment in which the two meet face to face to begin an analysis of the married life situation, it is very important to feel loved.

The inevitable frictions of life in common create, as they multiply, a repressed antipathy which sooner or later will explode. If the antipathy triumphs over the affection, the climate for the dialog will become dense and may lead to suffocation. Then the spouses immediately close up, they become introverted or they become irritated. Conversation then becomes impossible, useless. In such conditions, a strange dialog for the hearing impaired takes place in which no one wants to listen to anyone. Only the affection present at each moment assures a fruitful exchange.

Questions for reflection

1. Do I answer before the other finishes speaking?

2. Do I become impatient when others are speaking?

3. With others, do I have a dialog for the hearing impaired?

The Fourth Commandment

Folks, with the proximity of the day that business and commerce have decided to dedicated to fathers, and past the one dedicated to mothers, I wish to share with you the introductory section to the Fourth Commandment as presented in the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land which the Lord your God gives you.4

He was obedient to them.⁵

The Lord Jesus himself recalled the force of this "commandment of God."⁶ The Apostle teaches: "Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. 'Honor your father and mother,' (This is the first commandment with a promise.) 'that it may be well with you and that you may live long on the earth."'⁷

2197 The fourth commandment opens the second table of the Decalogue. It shows us the order of charity. God has willed that, after him, we should honor our parents to whom we owe life and who have handed on to us the knowledge of God. We are obliged to honor and respect all those whom God, for our good, has vested with his authority.

2198 This commandment is expressed in positive terms of duties to be fulfilled. It introduces the subsequent commandments which are concerned with particular respect for life, marriage, earthly goods, and speech. It constitutes one of the foundations of the social doctrine of the Church.

2199 The fourth commandment is addressed expressly to children in their relationship to their father and mother, because this relationship is the most universal. It likewise concerns the ties of kinship between members of the extended family. It requires honor, affection, and gratitude toward elders and ancestors. Finally, it extends to the duties of pupils to teachers, employees to employers, subordinates to leaders, citizens to their country, and to those who administer or govern it. This commandment includes and presupposes the duties of parents, instructors, teachers, leaders, magistrates, those who govern, all who exercise authority over others or over a community of persons.

2200 Observing the fourth commandment brings its reward: "Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land which the LORD your God gives you."8 Respecting this commandment provides, along with spiritual fruits, temporal fruits of peace and prosperity. Conversely, failure to observe it brings great harm to communities and to individuals.

Please, continue reading the continuing entry in the Catechism here.

The Ostrich-Shaped Universe

Folks, according to ancient Hindu cosmology, the Earth was believed to rest in a hierarchical structure on the heads of four elephants (in the four directions), which in turn rested on the back of a giant turtle, which rested on the head of a divine cobra (Source). Without going into the merits or demerits of that idea, or studying its symbolism, or reducing it to modern categories, I’ll say that the Hindus were on to something. Modern cosmologies can be constructed in terms of animal symbolism. Let me explain.

I watched with interest the first installment of The Science Channel’s Through the Wormhole, hosted by Morgan Freeman, who incidentally played “God” in both “Bruce” and “Evan Almighty” movies. A respectable host, bridging lectures given by various subject matter experts, lends an authoritative aura to the thing. The series “explores the deepest mysteries of existence - alien life, black holes, dark matter and lots more” as billed by its website.

I do have several bones to pick about many of the things said in the different segments, but today I will focus on this one, Your Second Life, in which a computational physicist suggest that the universe behaves as one large computer simulation and that we, in fact, may be living in one, running in a supercomputer programmed by “our future selves.” Now, the idea that the universe is, or shares a lot of the characteristics of a computer program isn’t new. I read about it for the first time in Frank Tipler’s 1997 book, Physics of Immortality:Modern Cosmology, God & the Resurrection of the Dead, in which Tipler, a cosmologist, argued precisely that point except from an opposite direction. Tipler argued that we’re not living in the simulation but that our remote descendants will create the simulation and revive us in a restored, newly created universe inside a supercomputer. His argument, as I remember, was intricate, but different from the CalTech’s physicist quoted in Through the Wormhole (“Rich T-something”, I couldn’t catch the name in the online video) who says that we are in fact living in the simulation because, he asserts, “who can say we aren’t” or words to that effect. Those of you who are fans of the movie trilogy, “The Matrix” or play The SIMs, are already halfway into the practical conceptualizations of such paradigms.

A whole site is dedicated to the question Are You Living In a Computer Simulation? Check it out and you’ll catch on the serious philosophical brain power being devoted to the question.

Anyway, this is where the cosmological animal representation comes in. As the scientist in Through the Wormhole would have it, we live in our simulation in which we – or someone – meaning, some advanced human descendant is looking at ourselves. So the animal that comes to mind is an ostrich with its head up its rear-end (like the photo above, click it to enlarge it). The ostrich looks up its business end and beholds an entire universe, with planets populated by ostriches themselves with their heads up their butts, contemplating their own universes, with planets populated by ostriches…ad infinitum.

OK, so mine is an argument ad ridiculum. I’m poking fun at what I saw on TV because, although entertaining, no cogent argument was ever made. Our scientist’s one argument? “Who is not say that we are not living in the simulation already”? An argument from silence is not probative, but it can give rise to a fairly long yarn.

There’s no empirical proof that we live in a computer simulation. All such proof must come from outside “the system” but the outside of the system would be always beyond us because we are an integral part of some advanced circuitry that, as soon as it turned off, leads to our unceremonious extinction. We can’t transcend the system, not even to probe it. Therefore, there’s no way to empirically demonstrate these notions. They are mere speculations as evanescent as the Enterprise-D’s holodeck. There’s little science but lots of science-fiction here.

It’s more likely that the universe is ostrich-shaped as described, or the least we could say is that both the universe-as-computer simulation and ostrich-shaped have the same statistical likelihood of being true to the facts.

Think about that next time you look up at the stars.

Book Review: The Practical Neuroscience of Buddha’s Brain

A book with a bottom line very deep down. I suppose that any work with the word “neuroscience” in it is bound to be complex sooner or later, but I wasn’t expecting exactly this. Not that I’m completely displeased. Despite some flaws, Buddha's Brain: The Practical Neuroscience of Happiness, Love, and Wisdom is a good book. Let me explain.

Authors Drs. Rick Hanson and Richard Mendius present us with a tour de force of evolutionary neurophysiology, psychology, and sociology, matched each with descriptions of how each evolutionary development impacted the way we perceive, process, and “feel” data. Many sentences consist of existential statements followed by detailed word maps of illuminated neuropaths. E.g., “Suffering cascades through your body via the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPAA) of the endocrine (hormonal) system.” The word chain conjured old images of my 6^th and 7^th grade anatomy classes out of my memory, no doubt residing in long unused neurons.

I don’t want to fault the authors too much. Making the nook-and-crannies of the nervous system intelligible to the lay person is a tough call, but I think they should’ve made a better effort at it, to a avoid that their book, intended to relief suffering and its causes, actually became the causes of one.

The book is divided into and introduction and four parts, titled each “The Causes of Suffering,” “Happiness,” “Love” and “wisdom”. The first part is the one most heavy on the neuroscientific lingo. It tends to slim down in the next three parts thankfully but by them the authors probably assume that the reader has the necessary basics to make the connections between human neurology and meditation. Uh, no.

I would’ve written this book differently, but then again, I am not a brain researcher. Nevertheless, I would’ve thrown in the neurological nitty-gritty into an appendix and textually linked obscure terms to the appendix or to a glossary, full with diagrams. My emphasis would’ve been on Buddhist meditation and its neurological effects rather than a tour-de-force of multidisciplinary evolutionary science embedded in a book about Buddhism. What that means is that Part I was the least effective, except maybe for evolution-enthusiasts and anatomists who want a spiritual validation to their scientific quests. Also, I would’ve avoided the inline sourcing (Author, Page) and simply end noted the reference. This kind of footnoting is very distracting outside of scholarly works where one expects them, but they are less effective in a work for the general public.

Bottom line: a good book, but not one to take as light reading. What did I learn? I learned more about the standard Buddhist teaching on suffering, its causes, and its relief, and how all these affect brain chemistry and general wellbeing. Throw in an appendix on a well-brain diet and the book is completed, and so is this review.

• Purchase Buddha's Brain: The Practical Neuroscience of Happiness, Love, and Wisdom at Amazon.

The Problem of Goodness

Great piece by Father Stephen at Glory to God in All Things, entitled, The Problem of Goodness. Here is how he starts:

From my first class in Philosophy 101 in college, the so-called “Problem of Evil” has been tossed up as the “clincher” in arguments against the existence of God. How can a good God allow innocent people to suffer? The most devastating case ever made on the subject was in Dostoevsky’s Brothers Karamazov. Ivan Karamazov, in the chapter entitled “Rebellion,” which is the chapter preceding the famous “Grand Inquisitor,” makes the details of his argument known. He is at an inn with his religious brother, Alyosha. A brief summary would be to say the suffering of innocent children is not worth anything good that God might do.

It’s a very strong argument – so strong, in fact – that Dostoevsky, a Christian believer, feared he had made the case too strong and did not succeed in refuting it in the novel. I disagree with his gloomy assessment.

My argument is somewhat the opposite. It is the problem of Good. Why with the world as dysfunctional as it is do we encounter transcendent goodness in the lives of some people? No one on the basis of nature and nurture can really answer it. Given the world and its headlines, why are not all people largely stockaded in their homes, armed to the teeth?

Why does a stranger volunteer to donate bone marrow to another perfect stranger? The procedure involves pain.

Why does Mother Teresa gather up over 40,000 dying children from the streets of Calcutta in her lifetime and treat them with love and dignity – when everyone around her is just walking past the problem? Or why does one man lay down his life for others in the death camps of the Nazi’s like the Catholic priest, St. Maximillian Kolbe?

Please, continue reading here.

This Flag

Click on it to enlarge it!

Judging Pope John Paul the Great

Folks, I was reading this sharp piece by Joseph Bottum over at First Things, entitled The Cost of Father Maciel. I have nothing against the piece itself. I thought it was sharp and though angry, it was not without reason. However, the commentary string has devolved into an open judgment of the virtue and character of the late Pope John Paul the Great. I just left the following comment there and hereby share it with you for your own information.

The tragedy of the sex-abuse scandal and its mishandling has brought the worst from many among us: from complacent bishops, strident "reform" activists, and profiteering lawyers. It has also brought the worst on those who mince no words in judging and condemning the Servant of God, Pope John Paul the Great. Their words come perilously close to judging the late Pope's soul. This is unacceptable.

Lack of lapses of judgment - if there were any - or proceeding into courses of actions with little or no evidence are not prerequisites for canonization. Please, show me a canonized saint that has done neither and I'll show you a fraud.

Doug Sirman lacks competence in judging the merits and demerits of the holiness of Pope John Paul the Great, as well as all the critics because of their emotion or their agendas. The Vatican has been "making saints" for centuries now and they know what and what not to do. Let the process continue and the virtue of the late Pope show for the shining example that it was. The critics should heed the commandment "Do not judge, for as you judge others you yourself shall be judged" and stop trying to stuff their unique "wisdom" down our throats.

Articles Defending Icons

Source: Al’s Web Niche

● Is Venerating Icons Idolatry? - By Timothy Copple.

● The Iconic and Symbolic in Orthodox Iconography: An Introduction - By Bishop Auxentios of Photiki.

● A Discourse in Iconography - By Saint John of San Francisco. The alarming emergence of certain "Orthodox" icons from within various convert groups—ones painted with a rather Rockwellian "pastel cuteness" and sensuality that trivializes the faith, or that introduce theological aberrations—has necessitated the appearance of this fine essay. However, an inquirer into Orthodoxy will also find many helpful insights into how we view icons.

● In Defense of Icons - The classic work by St. John of Damascus (730 AD).

● Documents of the Seventh Ecumenical Synod in Nicea (787 A.D.) - This synod was the climax of all the centuries of Christological disputes. By this synod the meaning of the Incarnation of Christ was given full expression, for she worked out the theological basis for the veneration of icons from the dogma of the Person of Christ. The presuppositions of the iconoclasts were Monophysite, and the defenders of Orthodoxy, chiefly St. John of Damascus and St. Theodore of Studios, answered the heretics with Christological arguments. Do  Protestant readers understand this interrelation between the Incarnation and icons?

● Windows Into Heaven - By Iconographer Tom Tsagalakis. Icons are reminders of the spiritual world. They are windows into eternity; a holy space depicting sacred reality in the course of humanity.”

●T he Icon FAQ: Frequently Asked Questions About Icons - By Father John Whiteford, St. Jonah of Manchuria Orthodox Mission (ROCOR), Conroe, TX.

● The Value of Icons in the Christian Life

USCCB: Orthodox-Catholic Consultation Examines Steps to Unity

WASHINGTON—The North American Orthodox-Catholic Theological Consultation continued work on a new agreed statement during its meeting at Hellenic College/Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology in Brookline, Massachusetts, June 1-3. The meeting was co-chaired by Metropolitan Maximos of Pittsburgh and Archbishop Gregory M. Aymond of New Orleans.

The title of the draft statement is “Steps Towards a United Church: A Sketch of an Orthodox-Catholic Vision for the Future.” The document briefly outlines the history of divergences between Catholics and Orthodox, especially with regard to the role of the Bishop of Rome in the Church. It also outlines all that the two churches share and notes that overcoming differences has become a matter of urgency. The text also reflects on what a reunited Catholic and Orthodox Church might would look like, the ecclesial structures needed to facilitate such unity, and the questions that remain to be answered if such a reconciliation is to take place. Work on this text will continue at the next meeting.

Members also continued their study of primacies and conciliarity in the Church with emphasis on the theological significance of the Orthodox autocephalous churches. Dr. Robert Haddad, Sophia Smith Professor Emeritus of History at Smith College in Northampton, MA, presented a study entitled, “Constantinople Over Antioch, 1516-1724: Patriarchal Politics in the Ottoman Era.” Father John Erickson, former Dean and professor of canon law and church history at Saint Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary in Crestwood, NY, presented a paper, “The Autocephalous Church.” A Catholic reaction to these two studies was provided by Father Joseph Komonchak, professor emeritus of religious studies at The Catholic University of America in Washington, DC. 

Participants also considered recent events in the lives of the two churches with particular emphasis on the Assembly of Orthodox Bishops of North and Central America that had taken place in New York, May 26-27. Given that the new Assembly of Bishops will replace the Standing Conference of Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas (SCOBA), it is anticipated that the new Assembly will become the official Orthodox sponsor of the North American Consultation.
In addition to the co-chairs, the Consultation includes Orthodox representatives Father Thomas FitzGerald (Secretary), Dean, Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology, Brookline, MA; Father Nicholas Apostola, Pastor, St. Nicholas Romanian Orthodox Church in Shrewsbury, MA; Father John Erickson, Susan Ashbrook Harvey, Ph.D., Willard Prescott and Annie McClelland Smith Professor and Chair of Religious Studies, Brown University,  Providence, Rhode Island; Father James Dutko, pastor of St. Michael’s Carpatho-Russian Orthodox Church in Binghamton, NY; Paul Meyendorff, Ph.D., Alexander Schmemann Professor of Liturgical Theology and Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary, Crestwood, NY; Father Alexander Golitzin, Professor of Theology at Marquette University, Milwaukee; Robert Haddad, Ph.D., Father Robert Stephanopoulos, Pastor Emeritus of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocesan Cathedral of the Holy Trinity, New York;  Father Theodore Pulcini, Associate Professor of Religion at Dickinson College, Carlisle, Pennsylvania; and Father Mark Arey, Greek Orthodox Archdiocese, New York, (staff).

Additional Catholic members are Jesuit Father Brian Daley (Secretary), Catherine F. Huisking Professor of Theology at the University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana; Thomas Bird, Ph.D., associate professor of Slavic Languages and Literatures, Queens College, City University of New York, Flushing, NY; Sylvain Destrempes, Ph.D., faculty of the Grand Seminaire in Montreal; Father Peter Galadza, Kule Family Professor of Liturgy at the Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky Institute of Eastern Christian Studies, Ottawa; Chorbishop John D. Faris, Pastor of St. Louis Gonzaga Maronite Church, Utica, New York; Father John Galvin, Professor of Systematic Theology, The Catholic University of America, Washington; Father Sidney Griffith, Professor in the Department of Semitic and Egyptian Languages and Literatures,  Catholic University; Father Joseph Komonchak, Monsignor Paul McPartlan, Carl J. Peter Professor of Systematic Theology and Ecumenism at Catholic University; Father David Petras,  Spiritual Director and Professor of Liturgy at the Byzantine Catholic Seminary of Sts. Cyril and Methodius, Pittsburgh; Sister of Charity of Leavenworth Susan K. Wood, Professor and Chair of the Department of Theology at Marquette; Vito Nicastro, Ph.D., Associate Director of the Office for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs, Archdiocese of Boston; and Paulist Father Ronald Roberson, Associate Director of the USCCB Secretariat for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs, staff.

Since its establishment in 1965, the North American Consultation has now issued 23 agreed statements on various topics. All these texts are now available on the USCCB Website at http://www.usccb.org/seia/orthodox_index.shtml and the SCOBA Website at http://www.scoba.us/resources/orthodox-catholic.html

Today's the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus

What the Heart of Jesus Teaches Us
He showed them his hands, and his side.
St. John 20: 20

Videte manus et pedes...; et ostendit eis latus. See and read in this book of life what I have done for you, says our Lord, look at the many lessons I have taught you. See My Feet, My Hands, and My Side. Behold this open book of My Wounds, this book of the new Testament. My fives Wounds are like the five books of Moses. You read therein what I have done for you, and what you should do for Me in return.

It is not enough, dear Brothers, to read these touching words of our Lord, we should carefully consider what is written in His five Wounds. The Wound of the Side, that is to say, the Wound of the Heart, teaches us how great is the tender love of Jesus Christ. This love has imparted unspeakable radiancy and incomparable sweetness to all that He has said and done and suffered for us. The love of Jesus is very fervent and very deep. It is poured out on all men, even on those who are ungrateful and are His enemies; and this love has chosen the Wound of the Sacred Heart for its dwelling. No one was able to take away our Lord's life, but love conquered Him and constrained Him to deliver Himself up to death for us. Yet even death could not make His love to cease. Why indeed was His Heart opened with a spear after death, if not to point out to us this love, which determined Him to endure so many pains and such deep suffering for our sake?

And after His Resurrection, did Jesus say to His Apostles: Go and avenge Me? No, He said: Go ye, preach to every creature, and to those that believe, baptize. Baptize them with the Water which issued from My Side, which flowed from My Heart! Therefore, dear Brothers, when your mind is filled with dangerous thoughts and evil inclinations, when you sigh under the weight of trouble, sadness and affliction, take refuge in the Wounds of Jesus, above all in that which opens to you the door of His Heart. Hide yourself in His Heart, cast yourself into It, cling to It; and the remembrance of so much loving kindness will make you forget your sorrows and your sufferings. If you would prove the efficacy of the divine remedy which I recommend, try for yourselves, and you will not regret it.

Lanspergius
Carthusian of Cologne.
Born in 1489, died in 1539.

Video: Empire State Building LLC Snubs Mother Teresa, Insults Catholics Worldwide

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Commentary. A shame that the Empire State Building LLC refuses to honor Mother Teresa despite honoring other religious icons in the past, and recently honoring the founding of the People's Republic of China - an active persecutor of religious believers, btw. Sure, it's their building and they can pick and choose, but they should keep it consistent, them dafts. Guess where we’re not going to visit next time my family goes to NYC.

 

Haiku: Pull me out from the waters!

Heal me Lord Jesus,
Pull me out from the waters
and strengthen my faith!

Real, Present, and Urgent Threats to the Communion of the U.S. Catholic Church

Folks, this morning I received a circular e-mail from former U.S. Senator Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania, on behalf of the Cardinal Newman Society, with the subject, Catholic Colleges Are Undermining the Bishops. I want to extract a few of the facts Mr. Santorum mentions on his e-memo and re-present them as a list of real and present threats to the Communion of the Church. These are, in my humble opinion, much more important and urgent than the threats posed by some Catholic bloggers, as described by a concerned U.S. bishop.

● President Obama's latest addition to the powerful Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is a same-sex marriage advocate whose concept of "sexual liberty" would trump our religious liberty. And what were the credentials by which she was selected for this honor?  Since 1991, she has been a celebrated professor at Georgetown Law Center—at a Jesuit Catholic university. This person is Chai Feldblum, the recent Georgetown law professor who is now at the EEOC, and who helped author the "Employment Non-Discrimination Act " (ENDA) which is before Congress.  This bill could cripple Catholic schools, hospitals and other charities by forcing them to provide benefits to same-sex couples.

● Cardinal Daniel DiNardo recently said that Catholics who lobbied for the health care reform law—ignoring the Bishops' warnings about abortion funding and weak conscience protections—had caused "confusion and a wound to Catholic unity." He had in mind an influential group of 25 leading "theologians"—11 of them citing Catholic college credentials—that lobbied Congress to reject concerns about the recently enacted health reform bill.  That gave legislators cover to vote for the bill with a "clear conscience."

● According to the Associated Press, the University of Notre Dame's president emeritus Father Theodore Hesburgh helped House Speaker Nancy Pelosi convince a pro-life congressman to switch his vote in support of the health care bill. Soon after the health care law was signed, Georgetown welcomed "special guest" Nancy Pelosi to a university celebration despite her firm opposition to any pro-life compromise in the law.

Since Canon 212, ss3, of the 1983 Code of Canon Law recognizes the right [of Christ’s faithful], indeed at times the duty, in keeping with their knowledge, competence and position, to manifest to the sacred Pastors their views on matters which concern the good of the Church and also the right … to make their views known to others of Christ's faithful, to the integrity of faith and morals, reverence to our Pastors, and as a Catholic Christian concerned with the common good and the dignity of individuals I ask with due respect:

Where is the USCCB-directed Catholic media campaign, activity, or function, aimed at sharing forcefully the Church’s stance on faith and morals in the public arena, and informing Catholic politicians, officials  and intellectuals that they are confusing the faithful and wounding Catholic unity? 

Again, I respectfully point out – again - that the threats represented by Catholics who use their identity to undermine the Church’s teaching on conscience, faith, and morals, even the Church’s koinonia, are more urgent, important, and corrosive than the one presented by a few caustic Catholic bloggers. I humbly posit that it is the former, and not so much the latter, should be the immediate object of salutary canonical discipline.

I also take this opportunity to plug-in my support for the Cardinal Newman Society, and invite you to support the Society’s essential work in universities and colleges nationwide. I’ve also added a Cardinal Newman Society hyperlinked tile to the “Campaigns and Activism” section on the right sidebar.

Pennsylvania Visions

 

Those two dolls down there? Two of my grandsons, walking away from us, so big and all grown up

We don't know where the trail will eventually lead yet we still must take it.

At times beauty is her own reward.

Coming home brings joy to my heart and the hope of a good landing – one I can walk away from. The ‘Burgh!

USCCB Media Blog: Bishop Zavala Criticizes Catholic Bloggers

If in Command, Command; if a Shepherd, Shepherd

Folks, the USCCB Media Blog published this talk by His Excellency Bishop Gabino Zavala, auxiliary bishop of Los Angeles and Chairman of the U.S. Bishops' Communications Committee, on what it means to be a faithful Catholic media organization today. In it, Bishop Zavala singled out Catholic bloggers for particularly criticism:

As I talked with brother bishops in preparation for this presentation, there was consistent agreement that one aspect that is most alarming to us about media is when it becomes unchristian and hurtful to individuals. For example, we are particularly concerned about blogs that engage in attacks and hurtful, judgmental language. We are very troubled by blogs and other elements of media that assume the role of Magisterium and judge others in the Church. Such actions shatter the communion of the Church that we hold so precious.

First, let me say that the talk was well-balanced, particularly when he spoke about Catholic media in general. However, singling out Catholic blogs for particular criticism bothers me a little. Not because what His Excellency says isn’t true – we can find examples of hurtful attacks, judgmental language, and magisterial pretensions in plenty of blogs. There are no lack of examples and to my own chagrin, I may have engaged on occasion on the behavior Bishop Zavala decries. I have no pretense at wearing fig leaves.

There is, of course, another side of this coin which the good bishop and all likely-minded hierarchs would do well remembering. I am not ordering, I am suggesting, I filially ask my Shepherds to consider that if they fail in their witness to face the Culture of Death, in disciplining public sinners – politicians in particular, but also religious and even priests – when these dividers openly defy the communion of the Church by screeching their particular opinions as exceptions to the Catholic rule; if the bishops fail to call these to repentance using the healing and restorative tools at their disposal, and if they turn a blind eye to liturgical innovations and abuses, then the less qualified will pick up their slack. Please, don’t come complaining when we do because ours in not all the blame. You Elected Ones have to do your jobs too.

Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz use to say: “When in command, command.” I call it the Nimitz Axiom. There’s a corollary applicable to Catholic Bishops: if you are a shepherd, shepherd.

With all due respect, I disagree with Bishop Zavala. Despite our exuberance and occasional missteps, Catholic bloggers are not a threat to the Church’s communion. These threats are to be found not only in those who have brought grave scandal to the Church, be it by embracing the Culture of Death, defying the Church’s teaching publicly, or damage our Novus Ordo liturgy by wanton experimentation and lackadaisical celebrations,  but also by bishops who look the other way and are unwilling to bring the miscreants to heel. The sexual abuse scandal and the noxious environments that sustained it – and that still persists in many places – stand on a category of their own. Many from among us would not be so shrill – and here I do take distance from them – if the bishops had been doing their jobs right in the first place.

Most mainstream Catholic bloggers are respectful and obedient to the magisterium of our bishops. The extremists will go their own way and besides, they tend to self-destruct rather quickly. Ours should be a symbiotic relationship. But in the light of the sex abuse crisis and the often timid episcopal response to other clear challenges bloggers and bishops are often not in sync. This is not the bloggers’s fault either.

Bishop Zavala has rightly pointed out what’s wrong with many Catholic bloggers. I hope that in the future he could single us out for what we do right. May that then serve as a new beginning as we Catholic bloggers place our talents at the service of Christ and His Church.

Prophetic Priesthood of Christ and the Eucharist

VATICAN CITY, 3 JUN 2010 (VIS) - At 7 p.m. last Thursday, Solemnity of Corpus Christi, Benedict XVI celebrated Mass in the Roman basilica of St. John Lateran. The celebration was followed by Eucharistic adoration in the same basilica, while the traditional Eucharistic procession to the basilica of St. Mary Major was suspended due to the inclement weather.

In his homily the Pope invited the faithful to "meditate upon the relationship between the Eucharist and the priesthood of Christ", in the light of Sacred Scripture.

"The first thing we must always bear in mind is that Jesus was not a priest after the Jewish tradition", said Benedict XVI. "He did not belong to the line of Aaron but to that of Judah, and thus the path of priesthood was legally closed to Him. The person and activity of Jesus of Nazareth did not follow in the wake of the ancient priests, but in that of the prophets. Thus Jesus distanced Himself from a ritualistic conception of religion, criticising the approach that attributed value to human precepts associated with ritual purity rather than to the observance of God's commandments; that is, to love for God and for neighbour, which 'is much more important than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices'. ... Even His death, which we Christians rightly call 'sacrifice', was completely unlike the ancient sacrifices, it was quite the opposite: the execution of a death sentence of the most humiliating kind: crucifixion outside the walls of Jerusalem.

"In what sense, then, is Jesus a priest?" the Pope asked. In this context he explained how the Letter to the Hebrews presents Christ's passion "as a prayer and an offering. Jesus meets the 'hour' which leads Him to death on the cross immersed in deep prayer, a prayer which consists in uniting His will to that of the Father. This dual yet single will is a will of love. Lived in the context of this prayer, the tragic trial Jesus has to face is transformed into an offering, a living sacrifice".

Jesus, "having obeyed to the extent of dying on the cross, became a 'cause of salvation' for everyone who obeys Him. In other words, he became the High Priest for having taken upon Himself all the sin of the world as the 'Lamb of God'. It is the Father Who conferred this priesthood at the very moment in which Jesus passed through His death and resurrection, This is not a priesthood after the order of Mosaic Law, but 'after the order of Melchizedek', after a prophetic order, dependent only on His unique relationship with God".

"The priesthood of Christ involves suffering. Jesus truly suffered and He did so for us. He was the Son and had no need to learn obedience, but we do, we needed it and we will always need it. Thus the Son assumed our humanity and, for us, allowed Himself to be 'educated' in the crucible of suffering, he allowed himself to be transformed by suffering, like the seed which to bring forth fruit must die in the earth. Through this process Jesus was 'made perfect', He underwent 'teleiotheis', ... a term which in the Greek version of the Pentateuch ... is always used to indicate the consecration of the ancient priests. This is a very important discovery, because it tells us that, for Jesus, the passion was like a priestly consecration".

And so, the Pope continued his explanation, in the Eucharist "Jesus anticipated His sacrifice; not a ritual but a personal sacrifice. At the Last Supper His acts were moved by that 'eternal spirit' with which He would subsequently give Himself up to the cross. Giving thanks and blessing, Jesus transformed the bread and wine. It is divine love that transforms: the love with which Jesus accepted in advance to give Himself for us. This love is the Holy Spirit, the Sprit of the Father and of the Son, which consecrates the bread and wine and alters their substance into the Body and Blood of the Lord, making present in the Sacrament the sacrifice which would be cruelly realised on the cross".

"It is divine power, the same power that created the incarnation of the Word, that transforms extreme violence and extreme injustice into a supreme act of love and justice", the Pope concluded. "This is the work of the priesthood of Christ, which the Church has inherited and extends through history, in the dual form of the common priesthood of the baptised and the ordained priesthood of ministers, so as to transform the world with the love of God".