Vernacular Catholic

Why Does Santa Wear White Gloves?

2011-12-22T09:34:00.000-05:00

A friend posted that her kid asked the question "Why does Santa wear white gloves?"
That got me thinking it must have to do with St Nicholas being a bishop. Then I found this:

Liturgical gloves (chirothecœ, called also at an earlier date manicœ, wanti,) are a liturgical adornment reserved for bishops and cardinals. Other ecclesiastics, including abbots, cannot use them without a special papal privilege. They are worn only at a pontifical Mass, never at any other function, and then only to the washing of the hands before the Sacrifice.

The colour of the gloves must correspond with the liturgical colour of the feast or day in the services of which they are worn; episcopal gloves, however, are never black, as they are not used on Good Friday nor at the celebration of Masses for the dead.

Awesome! And now you know how to answer that question if your kid asks. :)

Top 7 Myths about Christmas

2011-12-19T08:52:00.000-05:00

All info per Jimmy Akin. Pay particular attention to the Christmas trees and pagan holiday myths.

It is unfortunate that Christmas--the commemoration of our Savior's birth--is marred by so much misinformation and misunderstanding. Too often our ideas about Christmas are influenced more by images from Christmas cards or even from sources hostile to Christianity. Here are seven ideas about Christmas which range from the unsubstantiated to the flat out false.

	Jesus Was Born in a Barn People often infer this from the fact that Luke 2:7 says that Mary laid the baby Jesus in a manger. In our culture we find mangers in stables or barns, and people make the inference from that. But at the time animals were often sheltered in caves, and there is a very strong tradition that dates at least to the 100s, that Jesus was born in a cave. Today the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem is built over such a cave, which is next to the one that the biblical scholar St. Jerome dwelt in during the 300s. In his writings, Jerome points to evidence that the cave under the Church of the Nativity was, in fact, where Jesus was born.

	There Were Three Wise Men The account of the wise men, or magi (who were not kings, by the way), is recorded in Matthew 2, but it does not say anywhere that there were three wise men. This number is probably inferred from the fact that three gifts are mentioned: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. But we really don't know much about the size or composition of the magi's caravan. The odds are that, for such rich and visiting dignitaries, the caravan was more than three people and, in addition to the magi, included quite a number of other people, including servants and guards.

	The Wise Men Arrived the Same Night Again, the images on Christmas cards haunt us by depicting the magi arriving on the night of Jesus' birth. We know that they associated the rising of the star of Bethlehem with Jesus' birth, and the trip from their distant homeland would have been too long to make in a single night. Matthew 2:10 records that by this point the holy family was living in a house (although it could have been a house combined with the grotto of the Nativity, for homes were often combined with caves). Most fundamentally, Matthew 2:16 indicates that Herod sought to kill all the boys two years old and under, based on the time he learned from the magi, so they may have showed up as much as two years later (although Herod may also have padded the figure just to be "safe").

	December 25th Can't Be the Birth of Christ Because Sheep Aren't Pastured in the Winter It is often argued that Jesus couldn't have been born December 25th because Luke 2:8 records that there were shepherds pasturing their flocks, and this doesn't happen in the area in winter. But it does. Bethlehem is below the snow line, sheep have fleece to keep them warm, and even today sheep are pastured in the Shepherds' Field near Bethlehem at this very time of year.

	Christmas Trees Are Forbidden by the Old Testament Some Fundamentalists argue that Jeremiah 10 condemns having Christmas trees as a pagan practice. This would be odd, since Jeremiah wrote centuries before the birth of Christ and thus before the celebration of Christmas. A careful reading of the passage, though, shows that Jeremiah isn't talking about ornamented holiday trees at all. He's talking about idols. That's why he points out that after a tree is cut down and a workman goes to work on it that it cannot speak, that it cannot move on its own and must be carried, that we should not be afraid of it, and that it has power to do neither evil or good to us. Jeremiah is pointing out the limitations of dead idols, not Christmas trees.

	Christmas Is Based on a Pagan Holiday Sometimes Fundamentalists, secularists, and pagans argue that Christmas is just a pagan holiday that has been "baptized" by the Church. Accounts differ as to which one. Sometimes it is claimed that Christmas is based on Saturnalia or the birth of Sol Invictus ("the unconquerable sun"). But Saturnalia wasn't celebrated on December 25th. It ran from December 17th to the 23rd. It was over and done with before the 25th. We do have records that suggest some pagans celebrated the birth of Sol Invictus on December 25th, but the first such record dates from the year A.D. 354 (on what is known as the Calendar of Filocalus or the Chronology of 354). The trouble is, even this source isn't fully explicit. It just says that December 25 was celebrated as the Natalis Invicti or the "Birthday of the Unconquerable One," without saying who that is. We also know that some Christians had been identifying December 25th as Jesus' birthday at least a century and a half before this time. Around A.D. 206, St. Hippolytus of Rome wrote in his Commentary on Daniel that: "The first coming of our Lord, that in the flesh, in which he was born at Bethlehem, took place eight days before the kalends of January." In ancient Roman time reckoning, the kalends was the first day of the month, and if you count back eight days from January 1, you arrive at December 25. It's true that we don't know for sure when Jesus was born, and early Christian writers proposed a variety of dates for his birth, including December 25th. But what is remarkable, in light of modern claims, is that when they write about Christ's birth they never say things like, "Let's schedule his birthday here so that we can convert a bunch of pagans" or "Let's put it here so that we can subvert this pagan holiday." When they propose dates for his birth, they use arguments to support their view, and they honestly believe that he was born on the dates they propose.

	It Would Matter If Christmas Were Connected with a Pagan Holiday Even if early Christians had scheduled the commemoration of Christ's birth to subvert a pagan holiday, so what? How does that taint the celebration of Christmas today--by people who have never even heard of these pagan holidays? Aren't they honestly celebrating Christ's birth, regardless of the precise day on which it happened? Further, isn't subverting a pagan holiday a good thing? Don't many Protestant groups celebrate October 31 not as Halloween (which they wrongly perceive as pagan) but as "Reformation Day" or "Harvest Festival"? Helping people wean themselves off of pagan practices by providing a wholesome, alternative celebration would seem to be a good thing rather than a bad thing. Still, there's no evidence that this is what early Christians were doing with Christmas, and in fact the evidence is against it.

Unions

2011-03-03T12:12:00.000-05:00

They can be and have done great good for the underprivileged and disadvantaged worker.
But there's a caveat:

Just efforts to secure the rights of workers who are united by the same profession should always take into account the limitations imposed by the general economic situation of the country. Union demands cannot be turned into a... kind of group or class ‘egoism,’ although they can and should also aim at correcting — with a... view to the common good of the whole of society — everything defective in the system of ownership of the means of production or in the way these are managed. Social and socioeconomic life is certainly like a system of ‘connected vessels,’ and every social activity directed towards safeguarding the rights of particular groups should adapt itself to this system.

In this sense, union activity undoubtedly enters the field of politics, understood as prudent concern for the common good. However, the role of unions is not to ‘play politics’ in the sense that the expression is commonly understood today. Unions do not have the character of political parties struggling for power; they should not be subjected to the decision of political parties or have too close links with them. In fact, in such a situation they easily lose contact with their specific role, which is to secure the just rights of workers within the framework of the common good of the whole of society; instead they become an instrument used for other purposes. - John Paul II, Laborem exercens
(emphasis added)

Planned Parenthood's Bunnies

2011-03-03T11:27:00.000-05:00

English school bans 13 year old from wearing crucifix

2010-10-11T08:31:00.000-04:00

Another example of religious discrimination against Catholics while allowing other religions to do as they wish.

See the full article here.

Teachers demanded Samantha Devine remove her chain and tiny crucifix despite allowing Muslim and Sikh pupils to wear symbols of their religion.
Her family have vowed to fight the decision "all the way" claiming it discriminates against Christians.

The school apparently allows people of other faiths to wear religious items and even lets kids get away with non-religious items.

In the latest clash, 13-year-old Samantha was left in tears after her form teacher told her she must remove her tiny half-inch crucifix and chain.
But her furious family yesterday pointed out the school - Robert Napier in Gillingham, Kent - allows Muslim pupils to wear headscarves and Sikh students to come to lessons with turbans and bangles.
Samantha even claims staff routinely fail to crack down on youngsters wearing non-religious jewelery, including large necklaces and earrings.

It seems a double standard is in place.

The 13-year-old, who wants to be a vet and has been getting A and B grades in her exams, added: "Other religions can show their beliefs by wearing bracelets or turbans, so why can I not wear a cross to show my devotion to God?

But Mr Devine said: "I have seen other religous pupils at the school who are not part of the Christian fath, but they are allowed to wear their religious garments and symbols without being questioned.
"So why should my daughter be told to remove a cross which means a lot to her from around her neck?"
"People in this country are too scared to say anything against other faiths because they don't want to be accused of discrimination. But it's acceptable to discriminate against Catholics.

Christine O'Donnell

2010-09-20T09:01:00.000-04:00

The media is really playing up some comments from newly appointed Republican nominee for Senator of Delaware, Christine O'Donnell, about masturbation. She thinks it's a sin. What this has to do with her ability to be an effective senator or her platform, I don't know. Actually, I do know - It has nothing to do with it but it sure is a great way to get the public to think she is one of those crazy religious freaks like us Catholics.

But guess what - she's right. Sex is about love and procreation!

Under "Offenses against chastity," the church's Catechism says this:

By masturbation is to be understood the deliberate stimulation of the genital organs in order to derive sexual pleasure. "Both the Magisterium of the Church, in the course of a constant tradition, and the moral sense of the faithful have been in no doubt and have firmly maintained that masturbation is an intrinsically and gravely disordered action." "The deliberate use of the sexual faculty, for whatever reason, outside of marriage is essentially contrary to its purpose." For here sexual pleasure is sought outside of "the sexual relationship which is demanded by the moral order and in which the total meaning of mutual self-giving and human procreation in the context of true love is achieved."

The church's Declaration on Certain Questions Concerning Sexual Ethics adds that

masturbation is an intrinsically and seriously disordered act. The main reason is that, whatever the motive for acting this way, the deliberate use of the sexual faculty outside normal conjugal relations essentially contradicts the finality of the faculty. For it lacks the sexual relationship called for by the moral order, namely the relationship which realizes "the full sense of mutual self-giving and human procreation in the context of true love." All deliberate exercise of sexuality must be reserved to this regular relationship.

This Is War

2010-08-13T09:03:00.000-04:00

Found this great song by a great artist, Dustin Kensrue, who is apparently Christian (he's also the lead singer for post-hardcore band Thrice). This video is for his song "This Is War" off of his Christmas album. There's an intro by Dustin followed by the music video. The video has a WWII theme and is just a little violent. Here are the lyrics:

"This is war like you ain't seen.
This winter's long, it's cold and mean.
With hangdog hearts we stood condemned,
But the tide turns now at Bethlehem.

This is war and born tonight,
The Word as flesh, the Lord of Light,
The Son of God, the low-born king;
Who demons fear, of whom angels sing.

This is war on sin and death;
The dark will take it's final breath.
It shakes the earth, confounds all plans;
The mystery of God as man."

Ender's Shadow

2010-07-12T20:56:00.000-04:00

Well, here's a book I didn't think I'd end up saying anything about on here because it's not Catholic, not written by a Catholic, written a decade ago, and a mainstream sci-fi novel, but it surprised me. Ender's Shadow is a companion novel by Orson Scott Card to his best-selling and widely acclaimed Ender's Game, that is to say it takes place at the same time. Let me start by saying Ender's Game is brilliant and I highly recommend it but while reading it I didn't get smacked in the proverbial face by the religious imagery and references like I did with Ender's Shadow. I love finding these kinds of things in unexpected places (like in science fiction novels) rather than in books that are obviously about religious topics or take place in a real time in history where we have a reference point for what is happening with the Church and the world.

As I said before, Ender's Shadow occurs at the same time as the events in Ender's Game and you could read either one first. Ender is the title character in Game and his "shadow" is a very brilliant and very young boy named Bean. Both books take place in the future after a failed invasion by an alien species. Earth is preparing for a second invasion by rounding up all the world's best young minds to train them to fight and lead the forthcoming battle.

It's in this setting that young Bean is cast as a destitute toddler in the seedy streets of Rotterdam. Without giving too much away he is eventually discovered and recruited by none other than a Catholic nun, Sister Carlotta. And we have a very positive impression of her! She exudes compassion, love, and concern. No knuckle rapping with rulers at all! Here's my favorite exchange from her (Carlotta speaks first):

"Do you know why Satan is so angry all the time? Because whenever he works a particularly clever bit of mischief, God uses it to serve his own righteous purposes."

"So God uses wicked people as his tools."

"God gives us the freedom to do great evil, if we choose. Then he uses his own freedom to create goodness out of that evil, for that is what he chooses."

"So in the long run, God always wins."

"Yes."

"In the short run, though, it can be uncomfortable."

Throughout the book are subtle (and not so subtle) moral questions that arise, some of which include cloning, the rights of parents, the role of the state, limiting the number of children a family can have, war, abortion, the good of the few versus the good of the many, and whether we should be morally concerned about the possible eradication of an alien species.

Card even sprinkles Scripture throughout the book. Not always quoting it, but referring to it and to the stories in it. But my favorite instance is when Bean is about to make a very tough and horrible decision. He paraphrases 2 Samuel 19:1 which reads, "My son Absalom! My son, my son Absalom! If only I had died instead of you, Absalom, my son, my son!" (NAB). There's a lot of good context there, too, so don't read too much of that Bible passage if you want to avoid some spoilers in Ender's Shadow.

Card himself is not Catholic (he is a practicing Mormon), but the content in this novel is great. I love the story and the moral questions and I applaud the use of Scripture and the characterization of a Catholic nun who is actually Christ-like. Nowadays we see all to often the Church being the scapegoat for evil, a wolf in sheep's clothing. It goes to show that sometimes you find God in the most unexpected places.

The Mountain Goats - Romans 10:9

2010-06-23T09:57:00.000-04:00

Jail Time For Going To Church?

2010-02-16T14:00:00.003-05:00

Wow...A Catholic dad going through a divorce from his Jewish wife is facing jail time for taking their daughter to mass and having her baptized.

Video here.

This is a must watch.
My favorite quote from the Dad: "I'm taking her to hear the teachings of perhaps the most prominent rabbi in history." (That would be Jesus.)

Contraception: Why Not?

2010-02-16T08:12:00.003-05:00

I recently received a free copy of Dr Janet Smith's talk Contraception: Why Not on CD, available here. I encourage anyone to get a copy of this and listen to it - after all, it's free!

The talk outlines how contraception has hurt and is hurting our society and our marriages, provides some great statistics and logical arguments, and explanations of the teachings of the Catholic Church on the matter.

While society touted contraception as the next great thing for society and marriages, the Catholic Church and specifically Pope Paul VI in his encyclical Humanae Vitae, predicted it would be devastating. Well, guess who was right? Paul VI's predictions are now very obvious and Dr Smith outlines them neatly (and so much more) in this 1 hour talk.

First Prophecy. The Pope noted that the widespread use of contraception would "lead to conjugal infidelity and the general lowering of morality."
Second Prophecy. Pope Paul VI also feared that the man who grew accustomed to the use of contraceptive practices might ultimately lose "respect for the woman," and "no longer caring for her physical and psychological equilibrium" might come to consider her as an "instrument of selfish enjoyment, and no longer as his respected and beloved companion."
Third Prophecy. Pope Paul VI also observed that the widespread acceptance of contraception would place a "dangerous weapon... in the hands of those public authorities who take no heed of moral exigencies." (government family planning and forced abortions, etc.)
Fourth Prophecy. The final warning Pope Paul VI gave about contraception is that it would lead men and women to think that they had limitless dominion over their own bodies and functions. (A rise in sterilization, test tube babies, euthanasia, abortion, etc.)

http://www.usccb.org/prolife/programs/rlp/HVProphetic88.pdf

So much more can be found at One More Soul and anyone interested in NFP should contact their local diocesan representative or the Couple to Couple League.

A Star Curiously Singing

2010-01-26T08:21:00.011-05:00

It's hard to find good fiction. And by good I mean good. There is a disturbing lack of Christian fiction these days. What happened to the days of Tolkien and Lewis? My preferred genres are fantasy and science-fiction. Good luck trying to find something that is both fantasy/sci-fi and Christian! Oh, wait - I did.

Marcher Lord is a small Christian publishing company specializing in Christian speculative fiction. Recently I read the debut novel from author Kerry Nietz entitled A Star Curiously Singing. When the book arrived I really didn't expect much. Some small publishing company I've never heard of, an author I've never heard of, and Christian sci-fi. What kind of sappy drivel was I going to read? My expectations were, needless to say, low.

The cover was the first thing that hooked me - I know what they say. I knew nothing about the book when I got it, but the cover started to give me an idea. I immediately started browsing through it and started in on the first couple of pages - then I never stopped. I put down Ender's Shadow for this book.

Nietz has done a wonderful job creating a compelling and richly realized new world. Set in a technologically advanced future ruled by sharia law, A Star Curiously Singing sets the mood early on and it is bleak. Slavery, behavior control, a wide division between rich and poor, a strict caste system, and an overbearing sense of hopelessness and apathy. Just what you'd expect in a place ruled by extremists but with robots.

The story is told through some very interesting and different literary devices for this genre. A Star Curiously Singing is told in the first person present. I'll give you a minute to pull out your high school text book. The main character is telling the story as it happens. Not only this but he occasionally speaks directly to the reader. This creates a real sense of urgency and involvement on the part of the reader and it works very well.

Sandfly is a debugger, a person with an implant in his brain that allows him to interact with the nanotechnology of the time and with the stream, something akin to the internet. Debuggers are basically paid slaves of their "abdul" masters. Sandfly is chosen for a task in which he must solve the mystery of what happened to the servbot that accompanied the crew of an experimental deep space flight to a distant star. The robot picked up a transmission and promptly tore itself apart.

Now none of this may sound very Christian and that's exactly what I was thinking as I read it. However, this is the first in a series and at the end of the novel you get the first real sense of the Christianity in this story ("He stoops!"). A Star Curiously Singing is a quick and easy read, yet a compelling and intriguing novel. I look forward to future novels in the Dark Trench Saga as well as other books from Marcher Lord.

I know I haven't said too much about the plot, but that's because I don't want to spoil this deceptively simple novel. I highly recommend it.

Thanks to Karin Beery. Her blog got me a copy of the book and she has an interview with Kerry Nietz.

Leave Your Bats and Follow Me

2010-01-23T08:34:00.003-05:00

Yahoo has the story about 23 year old future baseball star, Grant Desme, who quits to follow his calling to be a Catholic priest.

Susan Slusser has more on Desme's decision to leave playing against the Padres and Cardinals so he can start praying with other padres and cardinals at a Catholic seminary in Orange County. He said the news came as bit of a shock to Billy Beane, but that the Oakland GM and entire A's system have been supportive of his decision.

Here's what Desme himself says about it:

"I'm doing well in baseball. But I had to get down to the bottom of things, to what was good in my life, what I wanted to do with my life. Baseball is a good thing, but that felt selfish of me when I felt that God was calling me more. It took awhile to trust that and open up to it and aim full steam toward him ... I love the game, but I'm going to aspire to higher things."

Exactly the kind of role model we need for our kids. In an age where most athletes seem to be striving for mega-paychecks, craving fame, and brandishing handguns in the locker room here's a young man who is instead seeking eternal rewards. Pray for him and all our priests and seminarians and for an increase in vocations among our young people.

Have you encouraged your sons to be priests lately?

Virtual March For Life

2010-01-22T10:09:00.001-05:00

For those of us who aren't at the actual march right now:

Join the Virtual March For Life!

http://www.virtualmarchforlife.com/

Pat Robertson and the Bible

2010-01-18T10:10:00.003-05:00

Maybe he should read his Bible before he claims that God sends earthquakes to destroy people.

Jeremiah 31:27-32
The days are coming, says the LORD, when I will seed the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of man and the seed of beast.
As I once watched over them to uproot and pull down, to destroy, to ruin, and to harm, so I will watch over them to build and to plant, says the LORD.
In those days they shall no longer say, "The fathers ate unripe grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge,"
but through his own fault only shall anyone die: the teeth of him who eats the unripe grapes shall be set on edge.
The days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah.
It will not be like the covenant I made with their fathers the day I took them by the hand to lead them forth from the land of Egypt; for they broke my covenant and I had to show myself their master, says the LORD.

Thank God for the New and Everlasting Covenant! God won't destroy us or punish us for the sins of our ancestors. Whew!

Please pray for all those affected by the earthquake in Haiti.

Vatican Paper Reviews Avatar

2010-01-13T09:18:00.003-05:00

Yahoo Movies has the story of the Vatican newspaper, L'Osservatore Romano, review of Avatar.

L'Osservatore said the film "gets bogged down by a spiritualism linked to the worship of nature." Similarly, Vatican Radio said it "cleverly winks at all those pseudo-doctrines that turn ecology into the religion of the millennium."
"Nature is no longer a creation to defend, but a divinity to worship," the radio said.

Pope Benedict XVI has been very outspoken regarding our stewardship of the earth but obviously warns about some kind of neo-paganism. We don't want to go around worshiping it.

In a recent World Day of Peace message, the pontiff warned against any notions that equate human beings with other living things in the name of a "supposedly egalitarian vision." He said such notions "open the way to a new pantheism tinged with neo-paganism, which would see the source of man's salvation in nature alone, understood in purely naturalistic terms."

The pope explained in the message that while many experience tranquility and peace when coming into contact with nature, a correct relationship between man and the environment should not lead to "absolutizing nature" or "considering it more important than the human person."

Overall, the review says basically what I've heard a lot: great effects and little substance to the plot and characters. Many conservative bloggers have been speaking about how this movie is thinly veiled criticism of U.S. imperialism, greed, and the Iraq war along with the themes of environmentalism.

Necco Wafers!

2010-01-07T08:28:00.003-05:00

The catechists favorite First Communion practice wafer, Necco, is now all natural!

The revamped product is now using red beet juice, purple cabbage, cocoa powder, paprika and turmeric to replace the artificial ingredients that had been flavoring and coloring the wafers for years.

Mmmmm...beet juice and purple cabbage! I am very disappointed that the green wafers didn't make the cut. However, I am intrigued by the wider variety of chocolate flavors (dark, milk, mocha and white).

Book of Eli

2009-12-28T10:11:00.003-05:00

So, a new Denzel Washington movie is set to release in January 2010. The Book of Eli is a post-apocalyptic action film. The year is 2043 and Washington's character (Eli) is traveling through the remains of civilization with a book that contains knowledge that could redeem society.
Now, from the trailer and what people have been buzzing about, this book appears to be the Bible. Lots of explosions and Washington killing and maiming people.

My questions are what happened to end civilization and why wouldn't people know what the Bible is? Might be interested to see how the Hughes brothers (directors) answer this. I wonder if he's got all 73 books in that Bible. Is Eli a reference to Elijah?

Find My Family

2009-12-16T12:07:00.004-05:00

Here's a clip from ABC's new show Find My Family. The basis of the show is to reunite families that have been separated for various reasons. Monday's episode was about a woman who gave her daughter up for adoption.

In this clip the mom talks about entrusting the safety of her daughter to St. Jude and giving her a medal that the daughter has kept with her her whole life. In a letter to her birth-mother the daughter writes "thank you for giving me life."

Later in the episode when the mom and daughter meet, the daughter says "thank you for giving me life" and the mother's response? "It wasn't my life to take from you."

That statement pretty much sums it up. These are lives we are talking about. No matter what kind of semantics you try to get into the fact of the matter remains that a fetus is a human life. An innocent baby. Separate and distinct from the mother. We don't have the right to take that life.

Robin Hood is Catholic of course

2009-12-15T12:30:00.005-05:00

Check out the new trailer for Ridley Scott's Robin Hood starring Russell Crowe.
Towards the end, Robin kneels beside a fallen soldier and makes the sign of the cross.

I'm interested to see how the movie portrays the Church. In the movie, Robin has just returned from fighting in the 3rd Crusade. Of course there's King Richard and Friar Tuck as well.

Babies!

2009-12-15T12:13:00.002-05:00

We all know babies are cute. Well, now they have their own movie!

Babies is a documentary film by Thomas Balmes, depicting the early lives of four infants growing up in Mongolia, Namibia, San Francisco and Tokyo, respectively. The film is scheduled to be released in the United States by Focus Features on April 16, 2010.

Thanks to Gretchen at SimonPeters.org for the video.

Update: Legal Religious Discrimination

2009-12-01T08:07:00.001-05:00

Here's an update on an earlier post.

From the Associated Press:

PORTLAND, Ore. – An Oregon legislative leader plans to introduce a bill to repeal a 1923 state law that bans teachers from wearing religious garb.

House Speaker Dave Hunt, D-Gladstone, said he will push to "allow teachers to have the same religious free exercise rights as every other Oregonian" when legislators meet in February.

Labor Commissioner Brad Avakian and state schools Superintendent Susan Castillo, who recently sent letters to every lawmaker asking them to drop the ban, also support such a proposal.

The Legislature passed a law this year allowing all workers except teachers to wear religious dress at work in most instances. Its passage led to questions about why the law remains on the books, given that Oregon is one of only three states with such a ban.

The law, which was aimed at keeping Catholics out of public schools, has not been tested in court since the Eugene School District won a 1986 Oregon Supreme Court case that upheld its firing of a Sikh teacher for wearing a turban.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Oregon, which has long supported the ban, said the Legislature should not end it without enacting additional protections for Oregon students. The Oregon Education Association has not taken a position on the issue, a spokeswoman said.

Official Narnia: Dawn Treader pics

2009-11-30T14:28:00.003-05:00

See here at Facebook!
And become a fan of Vernacular Catholic while you're at it.

Coed Dorms Fuel Sex and Drinking

2009-11-17T12:32:00.002-05:00

Duh! Who would have thought this was a good idea? Ever?

No Surprise: Coed Dorms Fuel Sex and Drinking

By LiveScience Staff

posted: 17 November 2009 08:21 am ET

It's no secret to students that coed dorms are more fun than same-sex dorms. But they can also fuel very unhealthy behavior that might otherwise be moderated.

A new study finds university students in coed housing are 2.5 times more likely to binge drink every week. And no surprise, they're also likely to have more sexual partners, the study found. Also, pornography use was higher among students in coed dorms.

Some 90 percent of U.S. college dorms are now coed.

More than 500 students from five college campuses around the country participated in the study. Among the results:

42 percent of students in coed housing reported binge drinking on a weekly basis.
18 percent of students in gender-specific housing reported binge drinking weekly.

While that doesn't put coed housing on par with fraternity and sorority houses, the researchers note that binge drinking isn't exclusively a "Greek problem."

"In a time when college administrators and counselors pay a lot of attention to alcohol-related problems on their campuses, this is a call to more fully examine the influence of housing environment on student behavior," said Jason Carroll, a study coauthor and professor of family life at Brigham Young University. BYU was not one of the participating campuses.

The findings are detailed in the Journal of American College Health.

A separate study in 2007 found that college exacerbates the innate predisposition of some young adults to become heavy alcohol users. In effect, going to college can fuel alcoholism.

In light of the finding, the natural question is whether a selection effect is in play. For example, do partiers and teetotalers sort themselves out in the housing application process?

That doesn't appear to be the case, the researchers said in a statement today. College housing offices generally assume students prefer coed housing and give them the option to "opt out" if single-gender housing is available. Very few exercise that option.

"Most of the students who live in gender-specific housing did not request to be there; they were placed there by the university," said Brian Willoughby, lead author of the study. Willoughby recently earned a Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota and returned to BYU as a visiting professor.

A wealth of information on the study participants allowed the researchers to examine other factors that could predict binge drinking. Their statistical analysis took into account the effects of age, gender, religiosity, personality and relationship status.

"When we first identified these differences with binge drinking, we felt certain that they would be explained by selection effects," Willoughby said. "But as we examined the data further we found that the differences remained."

The participating campuses included two public universities in the Midwest and another on the West Coast, as well as a liberal arts college and a religious university on the East Coast.

Atheist Actor - Religious Films

2009-11-13T08:54:00.005-05:00

I saw awhile back that atheist actor Paul Bettany was doing a film about Darwin called Creation and I also noticed he is in an upcoming movie called Legion about a biblical apocalypse and angels battling demons for mankind and control of earth and a woman pregnant with the new messiah, yadda, yadda, yadda. Now I see that he is doing the movie adaptation of a graphic novel called Priest about a priest who disobeys the Church to hunt down the vampires who kidnapped his niece.

Seems like the theme for Legion has to do with God abandoning humanity or outright destroying it, Priest is about a rogue priest out for vengeance. Creation sets up Darwin's crisis of faith juxtaposed with his wife's devout Christianity. According to wikipedia, "Darwin explains her refuge in religion as her reaction to [their daughter's] death."

These movies aren't due out until 2010, and the commentary by me here is speculation, but you can find trailers for Legion and Creation. My guess is that these are the anti-religious, or specifically anti-Christian, drivel that one would expect but I'm waiting to read some reviews closer to a release date. I am holding out hope for Creation to have a redeeming end since it was produced by Mel Gibson's Icon Productions. We'll see. Overall I just find it very interesting that this atheist actor is tackling so much religious content, albeit seemingly from a negative viewpoint. Seems like Hollywood just might still hate us.

1 lb Baby Born - Health Care Bill

2009-11-12T09:41:00.007-05:00

Just noticed this story, courtesy of Good Morning America, a couple of days ago.

Gabriella Gil entered this world four months early and weighed just over a pound. Doctors gave her a 15 percent chance of surviving.

Now, at eight months and 12 lbs, she's come a long way for such a little girl.
"It's hard to believe but Gabby actually weighed less than a can of soda," her mother Maruja told Good Morning America. "It's kind of shocking but at the same time there's hope, there's a life, there's a soul in this little baby."

Current medical technology keeps pushing back the age of viability outside of the womb. And I love the mother's quote, "there's a life,...a soul in this little baby." Exactly! That's the point! These babies are alive, they have a soul. It cannot be legal any longer to kill them.

Gabby isn't the first baby to defy the odds. In 2006, Amillia Taylor, another Miami baby, was born at just 10 ounces, a world record. Today she is three years old and thriving.
In 2005 Sapphire Davis weighed 15 ounces, the size of a small cell phone. Today she's happy and healthy at 37 pounds.

Pro-abortion advocates always seem to say something like "it's just a clump of cells" and refuse to see that these babies look a lot like babies much sooner than they think. Regardless, that "clump of cells" is a distinct and separate entity with its own DNA and is a life - the same way that all human life starts - at conception. This "clump of cells" isn't going to turn out to be a giraffe - it's human.

Radical feminists need to realize this isn't about them, it's not about a woman or her body, it's about babies, about human life. It's ridiculous to think that this should be seen as health care. Abortion is not health care because killing is not health care. Congratulations to the USCCB for standing up for what's right and fighting to keep abortion out of the health care bill.

V - Is The Pope An Alien?

2009-11-04T08:57:00.005-05:00

There's a new show on ABC (that's a remake of an old show) called V. V is for visitors; that's what they call the aliens. It premiered last night and one of the main characters is a priest! Basically the plot is a bunch of alien spaceships arrive over 29 major cities in the world. They say they come in peace. But some people think they're lying!

Father Jack is a young(er) priest at St. Josephine's a small parish along with an older priest. Apparently their parishioners include only a couple of homeless people and a guy in a wheelchair who later takes advantage of the visitors' medical technology and universal (literally) health care. After the visitors arrive, though, the church is packed.

So far ABC seems to be doing an alright job with their portrayal. Although there does seem to be a vestment issue in the premiere (where's your chasuble, Fr. Jack!?). Very early on they let us know that the Vatican's answer to the existence of aliens is basically "we are all God's creatures." Fr. Jack appears to have some doubts about reconciling the existence of aliens with the existence of God as he has known Him. The elderly priest at St Josephine's takes the "don't question the Vatican" stance and sees the visitors as benign. Fr Jack is suspicious of them and preaches about it in his homily (sans chasuble).

Later we find out that the visitors aren't what they appear to be and that many of them have been here for years and infiltrated the important positions of authority in government, military, and yes - religion! So we'll see where this goes, but my bet is that the elderly priest may be an undercover visitor and if the pope turns out to be one I'm gonna flip - channels that is. Also, we'll need to see if ABC can resist the temptation for the relationship between the very attractive single mother FBI agent (played by Lost's Elizabeth Mitchell) and Fr Jack goes anywhere further than co-conspirators.

My message to ABC - we're watching you, so if you want us to watch, then watch how you portray our faith.

You can see video here.

LOLsaints

2009-10-30T08:10:00.004-04:00

For those fans of LOLcats this should look familiar. LOLsaints uses images of saints with funny captions just like LOLcats uses photos of cats. However, LOLsaints has some reverence with their sometimes irreverent humor (this image is titled "Lazer Wounds"). Along with each image is some information about the saint or the scene depicted. You can comment on the images, rate them, discuss with other Catholics, and most of all laugh.

Law & Order: Anti Abortion?

2009-10-26T09:04:00.003-04:00

I saw last week's Law & Order episode based on the Tiller murder and was amazingly surprised on how pro-life it was. Many main characters admitted to being pro-life, admitted most of America is pro-life, or had a change of opinion from pro-abortion to pro-life. I kept waiting for the big twist that would reveal that they really thought all these pro-lifers were extremists crazies, but it never came. I couldn't find the full episode online but while looking for it ran across Jill Stanek's post on it - so I'll just link to her since she pretty much said what I was going to say anyway! It includes a clip from the episode. Click here!

Pro-Life Day of Silent Solidarity

2009-10-20T11:02:00.002-04:00

Here's some great work by what looks like a great organization.
This is happening today!
So if you see someone with red duct tape on show them some support.

Katie Holmes' Daughter in Catholic Preschool

2009-10-16T09:53:00.003-04:00

This report comes via American Papist who cites UK Daily Mail.

Katie Holmes has won a battle with her Scientologist husband Tom Cruise to enrol their daughter Suri in a Catholic pre-school.

The Church of Scientology has always been a bone of contention between the couple and Tom wanted three-year-old Suri to be raised a Scientologist.

But last week Katie enrolled the toddler at the Catholic Charities Yawkey Centre For Early Education And Learning in Boston, Massachusetts.

The family are living in the city while Tom, 47, films his new movie, the spy comedy thriller Wichita. Katie’s mother also flew in for her granddaughter’s first week at the pre-school.

‘Katie has been listening to her parents who are devout Catholics,’ I’m told.

‘She is not convinced by Scientology and has told Tom that she wants Suri to be educated as a Catholic – as she was.

‘They had been having huge problems agreeing on her school. To say they were having arguments is putting it mildly – but Tom came around to the idea in the end.’

Holmes, 30, has not been seen at the Church of Scientology for more than
five months.

But Cruise, who was also raised Catholic but converted to Scientology in 1990, remains an ardent follower.

However, the decision does not seem to have upset the couple's relationship.

Good for her!

Mel Gibson's Edge of Darkness

2009-10-15T12:13:00.002-04:00

Looks like crazy Catholic actor, Mel Gibson, is going back to some of his acting roots as a tough revenge-seeking detective in his new movie Edge of Darkness. Yahoo Movies has the trailer.

Love the last line in a Bostonian accent, "You had better decide if you're hangin' on the cross or bangin' in the nails."

Mother Teresa vs President Obama on Peace

2009-10-11T20:44:00.004-04:00

President Obama would do well to heed the words of the late great Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta from her Nobel Lecture when she won in 1979.

… I feel the greatest destroyer of peace today is abortion, because it is a direct war, a direct killing

President Obama recently won the Nobel Peace Prize, but there are those out there who say peace begins in the womb.

Respect Life Sunday

2009-10-05T08:57:00.002-04:00

Sunday October 4th, 2009 was Respect Life Sunday. The Church reiterated that abortion and euthanasia are intrinsically evil and always wrong. Our priest added the very appropriate reminder that our morality comes from God and not from the government. Just because something is legal does not mean it is right. It kinda reminded me of something else...

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life...

Seems like the founders of our country had the right idea! Our rights come from God and chief among those rights is the right to life. What happened, America?

The Dawn Treader!

2009-10-01T09:38:00.003-04:00

Pics of the Dawn Treader from the next Chronicles of Narnia movie!
Looks pretty cool. More pics can be found at Narniafans.com here.

Pope Impervious to Spiders!

2009-09-29T07:45:00.003-04:00

The Pontiff recently visited Prague, Czech Republic, where he gave a speech. The AP reports that

A large arachnid appeared on the pope's white robes as he addressed politicians and diplomats in Prague on Saturday afternoon. The pope didn't seem to notice at first — but journalists following the speech on a large screen flinched as the spider inched toward Benedict's neck.
It disappeared from view for a moment, but then could be seen crawling up the right side of the 82-year-old pontiff's face.

When it reached his ear, Benedict gave it a swat.

Apparently the spider was telling the Pope that he didn't agree with the upcoming revisions to the GIRM.

But it didn't go away — it reappeared on the pope's left shoulder and scampered down his robe.

As the pope left the medieval Prague Castle's ornate Spanish Hall, the spider could be seen hanging from a piece of web.

Ooooh, ominous. Kinda like those people who like guitar masses and liturgical dancing.

Middle East Synod in 2010

2009-09-21T09:10:00.001-04:00

Yahoo news has the story.

VATICAN CITY – Pope Benedict XVI has announced a special meeting of bishops next year to discuss Middle East peace efforts and the role of the Catholic Church in the region.

Addressing bishops and patriarchs from Eastern rite churches, Benedict said Saturday that the meeting will take place Oct. 10-24, 2010, and will be titled "The Catholic Church in the Middle East: communion and testimony."

The meeting of bishops, called a synod, will gather church leaders from the Middle East and around the world.

The pope and the Vatican have long been active on the Middle East diplomatic front, seeking to protect Christians in the Holy Land and elsewhere in the region while supporting efforts to solve the Israel-Palestinian dispute.

Could this have anything to do with this post?

Dan Brown And The Masons

2009-09-18T09:29:00.002-04:00

Dan Brown, notorious anti-Catholic and author of The Davinci Code, has a new book coming out about the Masons called The Lost Symbol. Bill Donahue of The Catholic League has his take on it here:

Dan Brown may loathe Catholics, but he just adores the Masons. “Brown goes out of his way in ‘The Lost Symbol’ to present the lodge as essentially benign and misunderstood,” says an AP story today. The Catholic Church, of course, is seen by Brown as essentially wicked and misunderstood only by its followers. “Masons are praised for their religious tolerance,” the article says. Somehow Catholics failed to notice: so abhorrent were Masons in their thrashing of Catholicism that the 1917 Code of Canon Law provided for automatic excommunication to any Catholic who joined a lodge. The current stricture in the Church, following the 1983 revisions to the Code, doesn’t mention Masons by name, but does retain excommunication for those who join anti-Catholic organizations.
In his new book, Brown defends the Masons against “unfair” portrayals. So kind of him. In real life Brown says he has “enormous respect for the Masons.” Must be their historic anti-Catholicism that won him over. Showing nothing but sweetness and light, the man who has made millions dumping on the Catholic Church says of his new work, “It’s a reverent look at their philosophy. I’m more interested in what they believe than all their rituals and conspiracy theories about them.” Now if only Brown had cut Catholics the same break.

EWTN has an article by Fr. William Saunders about the history of Freemasonry's anti-Catholic heritage here.

And here's a link to Top 10 Reasons Catholics Cannot Be Masons.

The Stoning of Soraya M.

2009-09-16T08:24:00.004-04:00

I saw the trailer for this movie awhile ago and it's apparently showing now in limited theatres. I saw that Jim Caviezel starred with the always amazing Academy Award nominee Shohreh Aghdashloo (you'll recognize her when you see her), but had no idea that the producer, Stephen McEveety, is a devout Catholic who has also been involved with the movies Braveheart, We Were Soldiers, The Passion of the Christ, and Bella. The Archdiocese of Milwaukee's Catholic Herald has an article here.

The film, based on the book of the same name and inspired by events that took place in 1986 during the reign of Ayatollah Khomenini, tells the story of Soraya, a woman who lived with a womanizing, abusive husband for 20 years.

In his quest to leave her for a 14-year-old girl, the husband turns her two sons against her and ignores his daughters as if they do not exist. When she refuses to divorce him, he falsely accuses her of adultery. She is tried and convicted. The villagers in the small Iranian town bind her arms and legs, bury her up to her waist and bombard her with rocks for hours until she bleeds to death.

Only her aunt, Zahra, is brave enough to stand up for her and speaks out against this atrocity. She unexpectedly meets up with a passing journalist played by Jim Caviezel (“The Passion of the Christ”) when he stops in the village to get his car repaired.

After weaving him through the story, which he puts on tape, she unravels the political components that combined to make this tragedy happen the day before he arrived.

What McEveety really wants to do with this film is have it "serve as a mirror for victimizers, who regularly abuse women or children all over the world,” he said. “I think that certainly someone in an abusive relationship will take one thing from the film that no one else would take – especially about the role of victims, particularly women as victims. For some reason, this movie gives them some kind of meaning to their experience.”

The Church, Gender Roles, and Feminism

2009-09-15T12:11:00.006-04:00

Many people will attack the Church on the idea that she is an archaic and out-dated old relic of a time-gone-by whose chief offense is being anti-woman. This charge is far from the truth. It's not like we're advocating the requirement of wearing veils or wives walking ten paces behind their husbands or not speaking unless spoken to! If the Church is so anti-woman, then why is Mary so highly venerated as first among saints? The Church celebrates women frequently. The problem that opponents of the Church have is that they aren't looking at women the same way.

Let's face it. Women and men are different. God created Man and Woman, separate and distinct, but both human and both capable of the love and salvation of Christ. Some of these differences are (obviously) physiological, some emotional and mental. But those differences lend themselves to complementariness! What one lacks the other has in spades. Granted there is a wide spectrum and much overlap, but you get the point. Someone has to harvest the wheat and someone has to thresh it or no one's going to eat.

In the second creation narrative, through the symbolism of the woman's creation from the man's rib, Scripture shows that humanity is not complete until woman is created (cf Gen 2:18-24). . . . . "Created together, man and woman are willed by God one for the other" (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 371). Woman's presentation as a "help similar to him" (Gen 2:18) does not mean that woman is man's servant — "help" does not equal "servant"; the Psalmist says to God: "You are my help" (Ps 70:6; cf 115:9-11; 118:7; 146:5). Rather, the expression means that woman is worthy of collaborating with man because she is his perfect correspondence. Woman is another type of "I" in a common humanity, constituted in perfect equality of dignity by man and woman. — Pope John Paul II, General Audience, "Woman as Masterpiece of God's Creation," November 24, 1999

The Church celebrates femininity. John Paul II wrote much about it (see in particular Evangelium Vitae). Radical Feminists celebrate women being masculine. See the difference? Radical Feminists want women and men to be the same, and in so doing, deride what is feminine. Now I'm not talking about social justice here. Obviously equal pay for equal work and suffrage and the like are commendable and necessary. But this radical feminism scoffs at child-birth, breastfeeding, stay-at-home moms, being a loving wife, modesty, sexual fidelity, etc.

So who is really in favor of femininity? Sociologically making women into men hurts women. It objectifies them. The sexual revolution has done more to hurt women than any other movement in civilized society before it because it essentially advocates the objectification of women into sexual objects instead of people who are mothers and daughters who deserve to be respected and whose image and dignity protected.

In transforming the culture so that it supports life, women occupy a place, in thought and action, which is unique and decisive. It depends on them to promote a ‘new feminism’ which rejects the temptation of imitating models of ‘male domination’, in order to acknowledge and affirm the true genius of women in every aspect of the life of society, and overcome all discrimination, violence and exploitation. — Pope John Paul II, Evangelium Vitae, par. 99 (1997)

RIP Patrick Swayze

2009-09-15T09:12:00.003-04:00

Apparently he was born and raised Catholic. I didn't know this. His movies ran the gamut and some of them were awesome! Red Dawn was one of my favorite movies in the 80s. Let's face it, this guy was iconic, even if most will recognize him for some pretty cheesy movies.

Until the age of twenty, Swayze lived in the Oak Forest neighborhood of Houston, where he attended St. Rose of Lima Catholic School

I was wondering if he was Catholic and it wasn't until I saw this on Wikipedia that I saw any mention of it. It's my understanding that he struggled with alcohol abuse at points in his life and that he also had some association with Buddhism and Scientology. It is a familiar story that fame, money, celebrity culture, and Hollywood corrupts individuals. But many times we've also seen people's struggles bring them back to the One True Faith. We can only hope and pray that during his courageous battle with a horrible cancer that Mr. Swayze came to realize the love and comfort of Christ and had the time to confess and receive Anointing. Let us pray for the repose of his soul.

Poverty Breeds Violence

2009-09-14T10:30:00.003-04:00

Yahoo News reports:

VATICAN CITY – The Vatican has invited Muslims to work together to end poverty and the violence and extremism that are often its result.

The Vatican office in charge of interreligious dialogue issued a message to Muslims Friday to mark the end of the holy month of Ramadan.

In the note, Cardinal Jean Louis Tauran said poverty has the power to humiliate people and is a source of isolation, anger and revenge. Since extremism and violence are also the result, he said it is important to tackle poverty at its root.

The Vatican has sought to mend relations with Muslims that were strained after Pope Benedict XVI in 2006 quoted a medieval text depicting Islam's Prophet Muhammad as violent. Benedict apologized and said the text didn't reflect his views.

I find it curious that Yahoo reports this as trying to mend relations with Muslims. I would think the real motive is to help people in horrible living conditions and to stem the flow of violence created by extremists who prey on the poor in order to bolster their ranks of terrorists and suicide bombers.

But in all honesty, Muslims and Christians need to mend relations. The two largest faiths in the world who, at the non-extremist level, have very similar ideals and goals (monotheism, alms-giving, prayer, resisting moral secularization). It's just a tough sell when most Muslim nations are militant theocracies that destroy religious freedom (as well as freedom in general). And it's this general freedom that leads to economic freedom which leads to economic prosperity which leads to fewer poor and extremists and terrorists. Of course, religious freedom will help the Church protect those who are persecuted by these regimes which will in turn help the Church grow and spread within these regions. So it's a win-win!

Bringing Up Geeks

2009-09-11T14:13:00.004-04:00

This is a great little book being featured in some women's groups lately. It gives good advice to raising your kids to be polite, respectful, cooperative, engaged, and not easily distracted by today's secular appeal. Fantastic commentary on the sexualization of girls and the lure of technology and its effect of turning kids off to interaction with family and others. One negative is that the author tends to draw predominately from her own experience and children which gives the reader a sense of "this lady's kids are perfect and annoying." However, the valuable (if somewhat obvious) information contained within more than makes up for any distraction.

You can purchase the book here at the Vernacular Catholic store.

Catholic Artists: ModHMary

2009-09-11T08:50:00.002-04:00

I thought every so often I'd feature a Catholic artist's website that I like. Something not quite as big as EWTN or a famous speaker, but the local, small business, mom-and-pop type Catholic shops online. Those of you out there making hand-made rosaries or print art or writing.
So, this is the inaugural post!

How cool is this!? I want to see a whole comic book done.
Check out more great stuff from ModHMary here.

Live Matt Maher Video

2009-09-10T16:07:00.002-04:00

Alive Again gets better every time I hear it.
Here's a great live acoustic version from K-Love radio.

President Obama Prayed In School

2009-09-08T16:23:00.003-04:00

I found it interesting that President Obama ended his speech to American students today with "God bless you" and "God bless America."
I thought we had a separation of Church and State.
I thought prayer wasn't allowed in public school.
Uh-oh! :)

Pope: religion should build peace, fight racism

2009-09-08T08:59:00.005-04:00

Well, duh!
From Yahoo news:

VITERBO, Italy – Pope Benedict XVI marked the 70th anniversary of the start of World War II on Sunday by saying religion should promote peace and fight racism and totalitarianism.

The German-born Benedict said the memory of one of the worst conflicts in history should serve as a warning to never repeat such a "barbarity" as the Holocaust and the extermination of millions of innocents.

"The contribution that religion can and must make is particularly important in promoting forgiveness and reconciliation against violence, racism, totalitarianism and extremism, which defile the image of the Creator in man," he said.

Benedict spoke during his traditional Sunday blessing while visiting Viterbo, a city north of Rome that once rivaled Rome as the residence for popes. Viterbo also was the site of five papal elections, or conclaves, and is affectionately known as the "city of popes."

The 82-year-old Benedict has spoken out frequently about the horrors of World War II. The pontiff was forced to serve in the Hitler Youth corps and later in the army before deserting near the end of the war.

This week, European leaders gathered in Gdansk, Poland to mark the 70th anniversary of the opening salvo of the war, when a German battleship shelled a Polish military outpost.

A lot of people make the argument that religion causes wars and killing. Well, that's just wrong. Mankind causes war and killing. Greed and vengeance cause war and killing. If mankind stopped defiling "the image of the Creator in man," and started acting more Christ-like, living the way the Church teaches us to, then we'd be just fine, wouldn't we?

Boondock Saints 2: All Saints Day

2009-09-03T14:58:00.004-04:00

The long-awaited sequel to the very violent and obscenity-ridden Boondock Saints released 10 years ago. Boondock Saints is about a pair of Irish-American Catholic brothers who turn to vigilantism for a variety of reasons I won't spoil. While not suitable for family viewing, many Catholics really like this movie and it's become quite the cult classic.
Here's the recently released trailer for the sequel. Needless to say, the more sensitive among you may want to skip this due to lots of people getting shot and cussing!

Legal Religious Discrimination

2009-09-03T10:36:00.004-04:00

According to this article from the Associated Press, Oregon has a law that forbids public school teachers from wearing religious clothing. A law that was backed by the Ku Klux Klan to keep Catholics out of schools.

Oregon's law, originally aimed at priest collars and nun habits, survived a legal challenge in the 1980s by a Sikh convert who wanted to wear her turban in the classroom and was recently upheld by the state's Legislature.

Now, Oregon is supposed to be all liberal and progressive, but apparently not when it comes to the religious. Oh, that's right, progressive means getting rid of that old out-dated belief in God. Nonetheless, Gov. Kulongoski did sign the Workplace Religious Freedom Act in July that allows workers to wear religious clothing on the job. So what gives? Well, bet you can guess who is behind this:

the did law did not change the ban for teachers enacted in the 1920s, after that portion was opposed by the Oregon chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union on the grounds that impressionable children should not feel indoctrinated by their teachers.

Congratulations, ACLU, you agree with the KKK! Apparently the ACLU is only interested in protecting the civil liberties of certain Americans in this case, namely the irreligious. And what liberty is that, exactly? The liberty to not look at the way someone dresses?

Mona Elgindy, a Muslim law student at Loyola University in Chicago (A Jesuit Catholic school) and a former teacher, wrote a paper on the issue of religious clothing laws. She points out that it's not the students or parents that invoke the laws but that "the recent legal history has been created by teachers trying to keep their jobs after administrators confronted them."

Rajdeep Singh Jolly, legal director for the Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund, has asked the Justice Department to investigate. He suggests "the best way to deal with any problem involving religion in classrooms is to discipline teachers if they try to proselytize students or advocate favoring a particular religion, not for the way they dress."

"I think it's perfectly reasonable to expect that teachers will not talk about their religion in the classroom," Jolly said.
But when it comes to a Sikh turban or other clothing, he asked: "Why should I have to surrender something that is such an integral part of my life in order to pursue a career? It just doesn't make sense."

But that's exactly what proponents of these laws want the religious to do - give up their religious beliefs for secularism.

Penn and Teller Talk Bullsh*t

2009-09-02T14:10:00.004-04:00

Penn and Teller's program, Bullsh*t, on Showtime (owned by CBS), spent its season finale blatantly spewing ignorance, bigotry, and outright lies about the Catholic Church. Catholic League president Bill Donohue has this to say:

Go to our website at www.catholicleague.org and click on the Penn & Teller video. There you will be able to see in its entirety the vile August 27 episode of their Showtime program. The mass mailing of the DVD to religious and lay leaders across the United States begins today and will continue until completed.

It is important that CBS, which owns Showtime, hears from you about this unprecedented attack. I spoke to a high-ranking CBS official on Monday about this, and though he was genuinely concerned and very professional in his response, it is still important that all CBS officials be sent the message: Enough is Enough—show Penn & Teller the gate.

Contact CBS rep Nancy Tellem at nancy.tellem@tvc.cbs.com.

-Or-

Mr. Leslie Moonves

Chairman of CBS

7800 Beverly Blvd., Rm. 23
Los Angeles, CA 90036-2112

Just imagine what would happen in the media and in the public if this were any group other than Catholics.

You Have To Be A Real Man If You Want To Become A Priest

2009-09-02T08:55:00.006-04:00

The quote from the title is by John Cardinal O'Connor, and he couldn't be more right. In today's society it seems that the definition of what a man is or should be is in direct conflict with what God wants men to be. Real men know sacrifice and humility and devotion and kindness and respect. This is the year of the priest. Let's pray for our priests and pray for our young men to discern their vocation, to listen for the call, and answer it if it comes.
Here's a great video for nypriest.com created by Grassroots Films (the company behind the fantastic Fishers Of Men).

Abortion Documentary

2009-09-02T08:49:00.001-04:00

A new documentary entitled Blood Money attempts to expose the motivation in this country behind legalized abortion. As the title implies, a lot of it has to do with making money (surprised?)! Also featured are Roe V. Wade, Planned Parenthood, the scientific fact that life begins at conception, and how abortion affects women who have had one. Lifesite News has an article here.
Watch the trailer:

A Word on Senator Kennedy and American Catholics

2009-08-28T13:38:00.001-04:00

We all struggle with sin. The difference is when someone consistently and obstinately, with a full consent of the will, advocates those things that are directly contradictory to the Magisterium of the Catholic Church. Not only that, but when one uses one's status in society to advocate that which is in direct opposition to the Church's message. Many American Catholics find themselves in a situation similar to Senator Kennedy, namely that they do not believe all that the Church teaches. Let me be the first to say "that's okay" on some things. But there are other things that cannot, will not, and should not change. They're just not up for discussion because they are inherently evil and the Bride of Christ just isn't into Evil.

Abortion and embryonic stem-cell research are, of course, the front runners in the list of evils I'm talking about here. This isn't about a woman's right or privacy. This is about killing. Whether you think women should be priests or nuns should wear habits or the priest should face versus populum are not issues of life and death. None of the excuses that "pro-choice" advocates give for allowing abortion trump the fact that an innocent human being dies in the process (and a second human being is put in danger).

The most tragic thing about Senator Kennedy's death is not the grief of his loved ones at his passing but the fact that he never publicly denounced his previous positions on abortion and embryonic stem-cell research. Thousands of American Catholics can point to him, and others like him in positions of power who call themselves Catholics and advocate otherwise, as a justification for their own beliefs. This is a great disservice not only to the Church but to those individuals who use pro-choice Catholic politicians to prop up their own misguided opinions.

Kennedy advocated for signature Catholic causes, such as help for the poor, health care and immigration reform, and opposition to the Iraq war. Working at social justice is very admirable but is ultimately not enough. In these issues he did much good but left much to be desired in his work for the justice of the weakest and most innocent among us. So let us pray for this man, let us pray for each other and for the Church, but we should not exalt him like some modern-day martyr. Let us grieve for the pain his family must be feeling, but most importantly let us use his death as a talking point on these contradictions between his Faith and his politics to illustrate why his politics were wrong. Let us hope that on his death-bed he remembered his words from 1971 (before Roe V. Wade and before his political party was influenced more by NARAL and "Feminist" organizations instead of pro-life Southerners and pro-life Catholics) in his letter to Catholic League member Tom Dennelly:

While the deep concern of a woman bearing an unwanted child merits consideration and sympathy, it is my personal feeling that the legalization of abortion on demand is not in accordance with the value which our civilization places on human life. Wanted or unwanted, I believe that human life, even at its earliest stages, has certain rights which must be recognized—the right to be born, the right to love, the right to grow old.
...[O]nce life has begun, no matter at what stage of growth, it is my belief that termination should not be decided merely by desire.

When history looks back to this era it should recognize this generation as one which cared about human beings enough to halt the practice of war, to provide a decent living for every family, and to fulfill its responsibility to its children from the very moment of conception.

Mickey Rourke Thanks God and Catholic Faith

2009-08-27T08:18:00.003-04:00

The extremely talented and extremely foul-mouthed actor was on the verge of suicide but credits his Catholic faith for saving his life and God for giving him a second chance.

Catholic News Agency has the story.

A Good Kind of Change

2009-08-24T11:24:00.006-04:00

The Church has been working, for some time now, on perfecting the imperfect translation of our English-language mass from the original Latin. Other countries, with mass in their vernacular language, have a more exact translation. The English version is woefully out of synch! So here is a link on the upcoming changes, present vs new.

http://www.usccb.org/romanmissal/examples.shtml

Changes are in bold. This is kind of exciting! I bet there are going to be people screaming about it, though! Some people will see this as more "Traditionalism" crammed down their throats. But really, let's just think of it as a more correct version.

example:

Priest: The peace of the Lord
be with you always.
People: And also with you.

Priest: The peace of the Lord
be with you always.
People: And with your spirit.

See how much cooler that sounds!?

Kourtney Kardashian Keeps Kid

2009-08-20T11:48:00.005-04:00

While not much the Kardashians do is even worth talking about, let alone posting on a Catholic blog, it looks like Kourtney made a great decision to not get an abortion.

Though these days she couldn't be happier about her mother-to-be status, Kourtney Kardashian admits to People magazine that she initially had mixed feelings about her pregnancy and seriously considered terminating it.

"I definitely thought about it long and hard, about if I wanted to keep the baby or not, and I wasn't thinking about adoption," Kardashian reveals.

While Kardashian's baby daddy, Scott Disick, told her, "I really want you to keep it, but I will support you whatever you decide to do," Kardashian eventually turned to a close pal to discuss her dilemma.

"I called my best friend crying, and I was like, 'I don't know what to do,'" Kardashian says. "She said, 'Call your doctor, and at least find out the risks and stuff.'"

Well, looks like the "risks and stuff" along with a thorough search of the interwebs weren't the only thing that factored into her decision! And it's nice to see the father actually weighed in on the debate - and he wanted to keep the baby!

After consulting with her doc, Kardashian did some research on the Internet.

"I looked online, and I was sitting on the bed hysterically crying, reading these stories of people who felt so guilty from having an abortion," Kourtney recalls. "I was reading these things of how many people are traumatized by it afterwards...I was just sitting there crying, thinking, 'I can't do that.' And I felt in my body, this is meant to be. God does things for a reason, and I just felt like it was the right thing that was happening in my life."

Kourtney says she is still pro-choice but does admit that too many women these days are just going out and getting abortions without thinking about the consequences or long-term effects.

"I do think every woman should have the right to do what they want, but I don't think it's talked through enough" Kardashian says. "I can't even tell you how many people just say, 'Oh, get an abortion.' Like it's not a big deal."

Well, it certainly is a big deal - it's a human life! Maybe those years at an all-girl Catholic school did her some good afterall.

original here.

Catholic Church's Woes In Asia

2009-08-17T11:57:00.006-04:00

Looks like Asia is actually having similar issues as America. Most notably inter-faith marriages, the secularization of society, fewer children, and materialistic tendencies.

MANILA (AFP) – Mixed marriages, dwindling entrants to the priesthood and violence against its members are among problems facing the Catholic church in Asia, bishops said at a conference here Saturday.
Inter-religious marriages have helped the number of Catholics to fall even further, Philippine Archbishop Orlando Quevedo told a meeting of the Federation of Asian Bishops Conferences (FABC) being held Manila this weekend.

Catholics who marry outside the church in countries where they were part of a minority often converted to their spouse's religion, said Quevedo, secretary-general of the FABC.

Many bishops also said there was difficulty attracting young men to the priesthood because of poverty and the secularisation of society.

Poverty meant that many parents found it "a big sacrifice to give up their young son" to a seminary, Pakistani Archbishop John Saldanha said.

"More girls are joining the convents now than the boys entering the seminaries," he added.

"The number of vocations is going down. The Christian families have fewer children and the reason is secularisation of the society," Cardinal Oswald Gracias of India said.

Hong Kong Bishop John Tong said "materialistic tendencies" were also an obstacle, but remarked that there had been an increase in the territory's seminarians, to 15 this year from 10 last year.

Sources who asked not to be identified also said that the bishops discussed the issue of Asian governments who did not do enough to protect Christian minorities under attack in their countries.

Quevedo said the FABC was preparing a document that "will mention endemic corruption in countries in Asia, not just the Philippines but corruption in most of the governments of Asia."

The FABC represents dioceses from across Asia, including Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Japan, Kazakhstan, Korea, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, Myanmar, Pakistan, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.

Let's not forget the outright hostility that many Asian governments hold towards Christianity in general and Catholicism specifically. Attacks in these countries don't just come from non-Christian citizens, it comes from the State itself. Whether the atheistic government of China or the blasphemy laws in Pakistan.

Original link here.

Nuns Help Catch Armed Burglar

2009-08-14T08:19:00.005-04:00

Now, this is just cool.

INDEPENDENCE, Mo. -- A man who robbed a house and ran near an Independence convent was chased from the building by one of the nuns Thursday morning, police said.Police said the man took a shotgun and other items form a house and then ran near the Sisters of St. Francis convent. Sisters Connie and Catarina said they saw a suspicious man walking in a bean field behind the convent.At first the sisters thought he may have been a hunter, which they said is illegal. The two nuns said they approached the man and saw that he had a shotgun in one hand, boxing gloves and other items in the other hand. They said when they began to question the man, he ran into a nearby wooded area.Sister Catarina chased the man when he started to run until police arrived.

Yes, that's right. A 50 year old nun in full habit chased him!

"Knowing Sister Catarina, I thought she might have caught him and tackled him," Sister Connie said."I reacted because that was our property," Sister Catarina said. "We want to know who's coming here, why he is here."

Congratulations, Sisters of St Francis! See, people, there are no excuses not to wear habits. You can even run through a field after a suspected criminal. Something most of us wouldn't do in a track suit, this sister does in a habit and flip-flops.

Original link here.

The Pendulum Swing

2009-08-11T12:59:00.012-04:00

The Catholic League recently referred to a study by Georgetown's Center for Applied Research that noted :

that men and women entering the priesthood and joining an order of nuns are more likely to be non-white and conservative than their predecessors. Asians, Pacific Islanders, Latinos and Africans make up an increasing share of the new recruits. Also, young women joining an order of religious are twice as likely to join an order where wearing a habit is expected than not.

What a beautiful and diverse Church we have! This is a trend I've been noticing, that younger Catholics and converts are tending to be more conservative and nostalgic for our ancient traditions, many of which have been pushed out or to the side by liberals that dominated much of the (particularly American) Church in the zeitgeist of the 1960s and '70s.

Sister Mary Bendyna, who authored the study, explained why women wanting to become a nun don't choose to join those orders which are dying out: "Volunteering, social work, working for the poor - they can do that elsewhere."

Exactly. Some watered-down Catholic girls-club is not appealing to religious today. Young people thirst for a genuine vocation and dedication to Christ. A way out of all the secular noise and distraction and pressures and into a life committed to something entirely other-worldly. Hopefully whites, both American and European (where we need the most help), can follow suit and more of them return to a true culture of following the Church's thousands of years old teachings.

Answered Prayer

2009-08-11T09:53:00.008-04:00

I think this prayer, from The Catholic Youth Prayer Book, is a great lesson for people of all ages:

I asked God for strength, that I might achieve;
I was made weak, that I might learn humbly to obey.
I asked for health, that I might do great things;
I was given sickness, that I might do better things.
I asked for riches, that I might be happy;
I was given poverty, that I might be wise.
I asked for power, that I might have the praise of men;
I was given weakness, that I might feel the need for God.
I asked for all things, that I might enjoy life;
I was given life, that I might enjoy all things.
I received nothing I asked for - but everything I hoped for.
Almost despite myself, my unspoken prayer was answered;
I am, among all men, most richly blessed.
(Unknown Confederate Soldier)

This is a great reminder that what we want is not always what we need and that God provides for us in even the most unexpected ways.

Dear, God, We Changed Our Minds!

2009-08-06T13:49:00.008-04:00

GENEVA – Villagers from deeply Roman Catholic south Switzerland have for centuries offered a sacred vow to God to protect them from the advancing ice mass of the Great Aletsch glacier.

Global warming is making them want to reverse their prayers, and the Alpine faithful are seeking the permission of the pope.

Since the vow was established in 1678, the deal was simple: the citizens of the isolated mountain hamlets of Fiesch and Fieschertal would pledge to lead virtuous lives. In exchange, God would spare their homes and livelihoods from being swallowed by Europe's largest glacier as it expanded toward the valley with heavy winter snows.

Times have changed, and the once-fearsome Aletsch is melting amid temperatures that are 0.7 degrees Celsius (1.3 Fahrenheit) warmer than in the 19th century. The pastor at the Ernerwald Chapel has warned his flock that a new danger threatens.

"We all know — and the Holy Father reminded us in his Easter message — that an unprecedented change in the climate is taking place," Rev. Pascal Venetz said in his sermon to 100 people at the chapel, where until modern times pious women were prohibited from wearing colored underwear for fear of provoking the glacier.

"Glacier is ice, ice is water and water is life," Venetz said to the villagers from the Valais region, which has sent its sons to protect the Vatican as Swiss Guards since the 16th century. "Without the glacier the springs run dry and the brooks evaporate. Men and women face great danger. Alps and pastures vanish and towns die out."

The Aletsch was once seen as a threat because it could encroach on inhabited areas. These days, the glacier is more of a threat because of its melting ice, which risks worsening floods in the valley and, eventually, a loss of water supply. Experts say the glacier will continue to shrink — even if temperatures stay at current levels — because the warming of the last few decades has yet to take full effect.

In a telephone interview with The Associated Press, Venetz said many townsfolk have begun questioning the ancient vow that has been commemorated every year since 1862 in a procession to the chapel on July 31, St. Ignatius' feast day.

The idea to alter the vow came from Fiesch Mayor Herbert Volken, but the concern was not driven by worldly or secular impulses. Instead, the villages "were seeing nature change all around them," and realized the glacier might soon need saving, Venetz said.

Conservation body Pro Natura says the glacier base is receding up the mountain by about 100 feet (30 meters) a year. University of Zurich geographer Hanspeter Holzhauser estimates the river of ice has retreated 2.1 miles (3.4 kilometers) since peaking in 1860 at a length of 14 miles (23 kilometers). Nearly half of the shrinkage has happened since 1950.

Venetz said there were "countless, horrible natural catastrophes" in his parish from the 17th to the 19th centuries as the glacier expanded. "These led to the big volumes of water with floods that brought great damage and calamity in our villages," he said.

Villagers should continue with the vow, but the request for divine assistance should be adjusted to conform with the changing reality of nature, the pastor said.

"Praying should of course continue, because our villages should be spared from natural catastrophes," Venetz said in his sermon. "We should at the same time pray that our glacier does not melt any further, but instead grows, and that the most important thing in life — water — remains well preserved."

He said he would ask the local bishop to seek Pope Benedict XVI's permission to change the vow, and a statement from the cantonal (state) government of Valais said a papal audience was planned for September or October.

"At our next procession, we might just be able to pray against climate change, global warming and the receding of the glacier," Venetz said. -Yahoo

Matt Maher is "Alive Again!"

2009-08-05T14:49:00.002-04:00

Eminent Catholic musician, Matt Maher, has a new album coming out in September. The new single, Alive Again, was just released yesterday and can be found on iTunes. However, you can hear it now at Matt's website!
Maher's lyrics are frequently very Catholic. He has songs about the Eucharist and uses phrases and words right out of the liturgy. No wishy-washy pseudo-Christian vagueness here. Also - some songs even have Latin in them!
I've liked just about everything I've heard from him and after a somewhat disappointing last album (Empty and Beautiful) because it included many re-releases, I'm excited to check out the new album in its entirety. If this first single is any indication, it should be great.

The Prisoner

2009-08-05T14:29:00.001-04:00

Catholic actor and Jesus stand-in, Jim Caviezel, stars in the upcoming new reimagining of the 1960s classic television series, The Prisoner. A nine minute trailer/preview premiered at Comic Con recently. I for one am really excited about seeing this. Looks very much an opportunity for a study in nihilism, etc.!

Check it out here and let's discuss!