TRUTH AT LAST

Kudos Kathryn, this is great
The Egyptian

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November 25, 2009, 0:00 a.m. Providence Provides Patrick Kennedy and His Church. By Kathryn Jean Lopez Patrick Kennedy has a remarkable opportunity. The Democrat, a congressman from Rhode Island and son of the late senator Edward M. Kennedy, is currently embroiled in a scandal of his own making. As it plays out, I’d be delighted to be able to write a profile of his courage. First of all, contrary to the game of telephone sometimes referred to as “journalism,” Patrick Kennedy’s bishop did not seek to publicly reprimand Kennedy. Bishop Thomas Tobin of Providence (no pun intended) was summoned by Kennedy’s public scandal. Tobin has long sought to address, privately, the scandal that is Kennedy’s support for legal abortion. But in the wake of his father’s passing, in the heat of the health-care debate in Washington (considered by many an exercise in tribute to Ted Kennedy), Patrick Kennedy decided to take the opportunity to lecture the Catholic Church about morality, public policy, and abortion. In an interview as the U.S. House of Representatives was about to take up health-care legislation that, unamended, would involve federal funding for abortion, Kennedy complained about the Catholic bishops’ opposition to any federal funding of abortion that might be mandated by health-care “reform” legislation or that might otherwise slip through. Against the largest health-care provider in the United States, a Church whose name he uses to modify his, Kennedy railed: “You mean to tell me the Catholic Church is going to be denying those people life-saving health care? I thought they were pro-life.” He continued: “If the Church is pro-life, then they ought to be for health-care reform, because it’s going to provide health care that are going to keep people alive. So this is an absolute red herring and I don’t think that it does anything but to fan the flames of dissent and discord and I don’t think it’s productive at all.” The problem, of course, is that various iterations of the health-care legislation would allow the denial of some of the most innocent life. And so, when Kennedy gave this interview in October, his bishop really had to respond. This is what a father does. He corrects. Tobin called Kennedy’s statement about life and the Church “irresponsible and ignorant of the facts.” He explained the Church’s position and he called for an apology: “I believe the Congressman owes us an apology for his irresponsible comments. It is my fervent hope and prayer that he will find a way to provide more effective and morally responsible leadership for our state.” After canceling a meeting with Tobin, Kennedy announced that “the fact that I disagree with the hierarchy on some issues does not make me any less of a Catholic.” Kennedy would continue the public discussion as the health-care debate began in the Senate, announcing to a local paper that Tobin had instructed priests not to give him Communion. Once again, Kennedy was making it necessary for Tobin to respond. Tobin released the contents of a letter that he had sent Kennedy in 2007 that asked him not to receive Communion. In the letter, he told Kennedy: “I am writing to you personally and confidentially as a pastor addressing a member of his flock. . . . At the present time I have no need or intention to make this a public issue.” Kennedy wrote back: “I understand your pastoral advice was confidential in nature and given with the best intentions for my personal spiritual welfare.” Well, so much for that. But Kennedy’s obstinacy — born, most likely, out of deep confusion about what it means to be Catholic — offers Catholics a much-needed catechetical opportunity. In the days after Kennedy made his inaccurate announcement about what exactly his bishop had said to him, Pennsylvania Democratic congressman Patrick Murphy — another “Catholic abortion rights supporter,” in the Boston Globe’s words — received a JFK Foundation award from Patrick Kennedy’s cousin, Caroline. Murphy, who voiced support for Kennedy, told the newspaper that he agrees with the Church on “99 percent of the issues.” That may be a convenient answer for a politician who wants to be known as a Catholic. But it’s just not so. As Tobin put it in a public letter to Kennedy after his “any less of a Catholic” declaration this fall: “When someone rejects the teachings of the Church, especially on a grave matter, a life-and-death issue like abortion, it certainly does diminish their ecclesial communion, their unity with the Church.” The sanctity of human life isn’t a footnote, or just another box to check. And “being a Catholic has to mean something,” as Tobin has explained. These realities are being fleshed out in very public ways thanks, as it happens, to Patrick Kennedy. It’s hard not to think of the late Pennsylvania governor Robert Casey, another Catholic Democrat. In a speech at the University of Notre Dame in 1995, he said: “Human life cannot be measured. It is the measure itself. The value of everything else is weighed against it. The abortion debate is not about how we shall live, but who shall live. And more than that, it’s about who we are.” There’s a secular nudge that very much echoes the opportunity Tobin presents Kennedy: “It’s not too late for you to repair your relationship with the Church, redeem your public image, and emerge as an authentic ‘profile in courage,’ especially by defending the sanctity of human life for all people, including unborn children.” At his funeral, Ted Kennedy was hailed as a “beacon of social justice.” If his son heeded the guidance of his bishop and the words of the late governor and became a brave pro-life Democratic leader, the Kennedy name could rightfully be just that. — Copyright 2009, Kathryn Jean Lopez. Distributed by Newspaper Enterprise Association. — Kathryn Jean Lopez is editor of National Review Online.

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National Review Online - http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=NTFiZGU0MDIxNTJhN2Y2NmFlNzcwZGY4YmJiMWJiNmI=

eewwww thats bad

For your viewing enjoyment I give you the ineffable blog Bad Vestments the pictures are bad enough but the commentary is a scream, you'll have to go there to read the commentary

The Egyptian

some recent pictures

JOHNSON'S GRAND UNIFIED THEORY OF INAPPROPRIATE LITURGICAL CLOTHING

FLOWER POWER

ORRIS?

KATHARINE JEFFERTS SCHORI GOES TO THE RENAISSANCE FESTIVAL!!

Timespace Liturgy

From Smaller Manhattans Thanks
this is the best description of the Mass I have read, what a CCD teacher, she deserves an award, no touchy feely happy clappy crap, just the mystery that is so lacking in our worship, The Latin Mass so captures this where the Novus Ordo meal falls flat, enjoy
The Egyptian


One of the key concepts in 6th grade Wednesday Sunday School is that our worship at Mass connects directly, physically to the unceasing worship that goes on in Heaven. I use the term 'Holy Tornado' along with some blackboard sketching to show a temporary timespace continuum between Heaven and Earth. (see Trou de Ver) Our prayers go up, zhhhhhpp! Jesus comes down, shhhhhhp! Then after a few minutes, bzhht! the connection is broken until the next Mass. The kids dig the science-fiction-movie sounds.

I use this line from Eucharistic Prayer I to reinforce the point:

“Almighty God, we pray that your angel may take this sacrifice to your altar in Heaven.” Until now I've always drawn this concept on the board. From now on I also have some art to show.

Look at that great image I stumbled upon recently at Tiber Jumper's blog. It differs from similar Mass pictures I've seen since my pre-Vatican 2 childhood. In addition to the crucified Christ made present, it shows an angel ascending to heaven in the midst of the Mass. I imagine the painting is directly inspired by that line from the Eucharistic Prayer, which itself must be partially inspired by descriptions in Revelations of activities around the altar in heaven, e.g., 8:3-4 which is covered in class:

"And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne. And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel's hand."

And check out the upper half of the image....the angel is being caught up (raptured!) by the swirling timespace winds of the Holy Tornado! Who knew?!

If anything beats catechizing 6th grade I want to know what it is.

Batshit Crazy, Polyester Nightmare of a NUN or The Visitation can't come fast enough, part two

This pagan has not changed her ways or ever intends to, so stop defiling my Church and please leave, don't let the convent door hit your ass on the way out.
Makes me wonder about the rest of the "sisters" in her group (definitely not an order), are they all pagan turd worshipers or just run of the mill Vat 2, anything goes, we have moved beyond Christ and are entering the cosmos of awareness, this is the dawning of the age of..........oh hell you get the drift. Don't believe me, read the blue highlight below

The Egyptian


Nun decides to suspend activism for abortion rights after a rebuke by her order
For decades, Sister Donna Quinn has championed the rights of women to use contraception, seek ordination and end unwanted pregnancies

By Manya A. Brachear

Tribune reporter

November 4, 2009

For decades, Sister Donna Quinn has championed the rights of women to use contraception, seek ordination and end unwanted pregnancies.

The Dominican nun has picketed for abortion rights in Washington, petitioned the pope for a female archbishop and escorted women into abortion clinics.

But as the Vatican turns up scrutiny of the nation's nuns and U.S. Roman Catholic bishops refuse to support universal health care if it covers abortion, Quinn has put her crusade on hold.

"I want to be clear that this is my decision," she said in a statement Tuesday, saying she would suspend her role as a peacekeeper outside the ACU Health Clinic in Hinsdale. "Respect for women's moral agency is of critical importance to me, and I look forward to continuing to dialogue with our congregation on these matters as a way of informing my actions as well as educating the community."

Oh for the love of Pete, more damn dialogue

On Tuesday, the Wisconsin-based Sinsinawa Dominican order announced that Quinn had been reprimanded for escorting patients into a Hinsdale clinic that provides abortions.

"After investigating the allegation, congregation leaders have informed Sister Donna that her actions are in violation of her profession," Sister Patricia Mulcahey, head of the Sinsinawa Dominicans, said in a statement. "They regret that her actions have created controversy."

Quinn said the order's announcement only served to stir more controversy. A private meeting to discuss her position had been set for later this month, she said.

"I am disappointed that the process agreed upon was circumvented," she said. "As a peacekeeper, my goal is to enable women to enter a reproductive health clinic in dignity and without fear of being physically assaulted. ... I am very worried that the publicity around my presence will lead to violations of every woman's right to privacy and expose them to further violence."

The sudden rebuke highlights the tension in America's women's religious communities, now targeted by two sweeping Vatican investigations. Quinn's activism was no secret. But in years past, Dominican leaders have come to her defense.

The primary example was in 1984 when the Vatican instructed religious orders to dismiss nuns who refused to retract their claim that Catholics held a range of opinions on abortion rights. Instead, the leaders talked to Vatican officials and resolved the issue with no ousters of nuns.

But that was a different era, said Sister Beth Rindler, co-coordinator of the National Coalition of American Nuns, a group of nuns who push for women's ordination, gay rights, abortion rights and an end to war.

"We're standing with her very much. We consider her one of our prophets," said Rindler, a Franciscan Sister of the Poor. "She's standing with women who she believes can make good moral decisions."

A prophet!!!!, OK start your own religion, you already have your own prophet

But Mary-Louise Kurey, director of the Chicago archdiocese's Respect Life Office, said Quinn's efforts to shield women from abortion opponents at clinics pose harm. "I feel really sad because these are individuals who are trying to help women and those actions are profoundly misguided," Kurey said.

Quinn showed no signs of changing her ways Tuesday.

"I take this opportunity to urge those demonstrating against women who are patients at the Hinsdale Clinic, whom I have seen emotionally as well as physically threaten women, to cease those activities," she said. "I would never have had to serve as a peacekeeper had not they created a war against women."

mbrachear@tribune.com

Copyright © 2009, Chicago Tribune

A New Template for the U.S. Bishops

Anyone who reads this pray for our Bishops and if possible drop Bishop Tobin a line and thank him for his clarity, either care of his diocese newspaper www.theRICatholic.com and his editor blowney@thericatholic.com or the bishops snail mail is

The Most Rev. Thomas J. Tobin

Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence

Office of the Bishop

One Cathedral Square

Providence, RI 02903

Representative Patrick Kennedy and Bishop Thomas Tobin

REJECTING CHURCH TEACHING
IS MORE THAN MERE "HUMAN WEAKNESS"
An Open Letter to Congressman Patrick Kennedy from Bishop Thomas Tobin

11/12/09

Dear Congressman Kennedy:

“The fact that I disagree with the hierarchy on some issues does not make me any less of a Catholic.” (Congressman Patrick Kennedy)

Since our recent correspondence has been rather public, I hope you don’t mind if I share a few reflections about your practice of the faith in this public forum. I usually wouldn’t do that – that is speak about someone’s faith in a public setting – but in our well-documented exchange of letters about health care and abortion, it has emerged as an issue. I also share these words publicly with the thought that they might be instructive to other Catholics, including those in prominent positions of leadership.

For the moment I’d like to set aside the discussion of health care reform, as important and relevant as it is, and focus on one statement contained in your letter of October 29, 2009, in which you write, “The fact that I disagree with the hierarchy on some issues does not make me any less of a Catholic.” That sentence certainly caught my attention and deserves a public response, lest it go unchallenged and lead others to believe it’s true. And it raises an important question: What does it mean to be a Catholic?

“The fact that I disagree with the hierarchy on some issues does not make me any less of a Catholic.” Well, in fact, Congressman, in a way it does. Although I wouldn’t choose those particular words, when someone rejects the teachings of the Church, especially on a grave matter, a life-and-death issue like abortion, it certainly does diminish their ecclesial communion, their unity with the Church. This principle is based on the Sacred Scripture and Tradition of the Church and is made more explicit in recent documents.

For example, the “Code of Canon Law” says, “Lay persons are bound by an obligation and possess the right to acquire a knowledge of Christian doctrine adapted to their capacity and condition so that they can live in accord with that doctrine.” (Canon 229, #1)

The “Catechism of the Catholic Church” says this: “Mindful of Christ’s words to his apostles, ‘He who hears you, hears me,’ the faithful receive with docility the teaching and directives that their pastors give them in different forms.” (#87)

Or consider this statement of the Church: “It would be a mistake to confuse the proper autonomy exercised by Catholics in political life with the claim of a principle that prescinds from the moral and social teaching of the Church.” (Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, 2002)

There’s lots of canonical and theological verbiage there, Congressman, but what it means is that if you don’t accept the teachings of the Church your communion with the Church is flawed, or in your own words, makes you “less of a Catholic.”

But let’s get down to a more practical question; let’s approach it this way: What does it mean, really, to be a Catholic? After all, being a Catholic has to mean something, right?

Well, in simple terms – and here I refer only to those more visible, structural elements of Church membership – being a Catholic means that you’re part of a faith community that possesses a clearly defined authority and doctrine, obligations and expectations. It means that you believe and accept the teachings of the Church, especially on essential matters of faith and morals; that you belong to a local Catholic community, a parish; that you attend Mass on Sundays and receive the sacraments regularly; that you support the Church, personally, publicly, spiritually and financially.

Congressman, I’m not sure whether or not you fulfill the basic requirements of being a Catholic, so let me ask: Do you accept the teachings of the Church on essential matters of faith and morals, including our stance on abortion? Do you belong to a local Catholic community, a parish? Do you attend Mass on Sundays and receive the sacraments regularly? Do you support the Church, personally, publicly, spiritually and financially?

In your letter you say that you “embrace your faith.” Terrific. But if you don’t fulfill the basic requirements of membership, what is it exactly that makes you a Catholic? Your baptism as an infant? Your family ties? Your cultural heritage?

Your letter also says that your faith “acknowledges the existence of an imperfect humanity.” Absolutely true. But in confronting your rejection of the Church’s teaching, we’re not dealing just with “an imperfect humanity” – as we do when we wrestle with sins such as anger, pride, greed, impurity or dishonesty. We all struggle with those things, and often fail.

Your rejection of the Church’s teaching on abortion falls into a different category – it’s a deliberate and obstinate act of the will; a conscious decision that you’ve re-affirmed on many occasions. Sorry, you can’t chalk it up to an “imperfect humanity.” Your position is unacceptable to the Church and scandalous to many of our members. It absolutely diminishes your communion with the Church.

Congressman Kennedy, I write these words not to embarrass you or to judge the state of your conscience or soul. That’s ultimately between you and God. But your description of your relationship with the Church is now a matter of public record, and it needs to be challenged. I invite you, as your bishop and brother in Christ, to enter into a sincere process of discernment, conversion and repentance. It’s not too late for you to repair your relationship with the Church, redeem your public image, and emerge as an authentic “profile in courage,” especially by defending the sanctity of human life for all people, including unborn children. And if I can ever be of assistance as you travel the road of faith, I would be honored and happy to do so.

Sincerely yours,

Thomas J. Tobin

Bishop of Providence

EVIL, VAIN CONCEITED, EVIL

THIS IS BEYOND THE PALE, A NEW LOW, VANITY IS AN EVIL, RIGHT. Heaven help us all

The Egyptian

From the gateway pundit

Sick. Skincare Company Now Using Aborted Fetal Tissue in Anti-Aging Cream

Wednesday, October 28, 2009, 12:11 PM

Jim Hoft

How sick. This is just gruesome.
A skincare company has started using aborted fetal tissue in its anti-aging skincare cream.
Christian News Wire reported:

Children of God for Life announced today that Neocutis, a bio-pharmaceutical company focused on dermatology and skin care is using aborted fetal cell lines to produce several of their anti-aging skin creams.

“It is absolutely deplorable that Neocutis would resort to exploiting the remains of a deliberately slaughtered baby for nothing other than pure vanity and financial gain,” stated Executive Director Debi Vinnedge. “There is simply no moral justification for this.”

For years Children of God for Life has been a watchdog on pharmaceutical companies using aborted fetal cell lines in medical products and they have received thousands of inquiries from the public on the use of aborted fetal material in cosmetics.

Until now, this was the first time they have encountered any company bold enough to put the information right on their own website and product literature. A quick investigation into the science behind the products revealed the shameless data.

Neocutis’ key ingredient known as “Processed Skin Proteins” was developed at the University of Luasanne from the skin tissue of a 14-week gestation electively-aborted male baby donated by the University Hospital in Switzerland. Subsequently, a working cell bank was established, containing several billion cultured skin cells to produce the human growth factor needed to restore aging skin. The list of products using the cell line include: Bio-Gel, Journee, Bio-Serum, Prevedem, Bio Restorative Skin Cream and Lumiere. But Vinnedge is calling for a full boycott of all Neocutis products, regardless of their source.

“There is absolutely no reason to use aborted babies for such selfish motives,” Vinnedge said. “It is anti-life, anti-woman and counter-productive as Neocutis is about to find out!”

Sure enough.
Neocutis describes their Processed Skin Cell Proteins (PCP) used in their anti-aging creams on their website:

From the website:

Through years of research, physicians discovered fetal skin has a unique ability to heal wounds without scarring. Inspired by this, medical researchers at the University Hospital of Lausanne, Switzerland created a biotechnology process to extract the rich proteins responsible for scarless wound healing from cultured fetal skin cells. A small biopsy of fetal skin was donated following a one-time medical termination and a dedicated cell bank was established for developing new skin treatments.

on the lighter side

Zoinks!!

Coming to a bookstore near you, just in time for the Christmas season! A new exciting mystery featuring Scooby Doo and the gang!
Fred, Daphne, Velma, Shaggy and the world's most famous canine sleuth visit Velma's Aunt Veronica and soon become embroiled in a cryptic case of canonical chaos. Aunt Veronica's church has been invaded by a screeching spectre, The Spirit of Vatican 2, soon after she requested to have the Extraordinary Form of the Mass held there. Now the more-traditional minded parishoners are being driven away from the frightful fiend and its ghastly guitar of Haugen Hymns.

Does the pastor, Fr Fencesitter, have something to do with this haunting? Or perhaps the overbearing Pastoral Associate, Sister Dee Sentyr, is behind the fiendish plot? Maybe the musical director Miss Claphappy is responsible. Or maybe...just maybe it's the Smoke of Satan....

Regardless, Scooby Doo might need divine intervention along with his Scooby Snax, if he and the gang are to successfully help Velma's aunt! Collect the clues as you read along, and see if you can solve the mystery before they do....the mystery of The Spirit of Vatican 2!
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snicker- giggle- snort LOL love it

The Egyptian

Saints at Work

Thursday, October 22, 2009

Anglican Bishop Confirms St. Therese is Behind Anglican Ordinariate

Yesterday we conveyed the suspicion of former Episcopal and now Kansas City Catholic priest, Father Ernie Davis, that the intercession of St. Therese of Lisieux was behind the Vatican’s move to provide a structure to welcome Anglicans into full communion. Now, the Anglican Catholic Bishop of Canada strongly confirms that thought.

Father Davis, who leads St. Therese Little Flower parish in Kansas City which hosts an Anglican Use community, wrote of the news from the Vatican:

Anglicans and Catholics flocked to visit the relics of Saint Therese of Lisieux as they made a very recent pilgrimage to England. Her relics rested on her 2009 feast day at York Minster, the Cathedral of the Anglican Archbishop of York. When I read about that, I told the people here at St. Therese Little Flower that she was working on something big. In other words, preparations for this Apostolic Constitution have been in process for 170 years, and some of the preparations have been made at levels that are higher than popes.

The Traditional Anglican Communion Bishop of Canada saw the claim and sent an email today to Father Davis with remarkable details of St. Therese’ intercession. Here’s the email:

Dear Father Davis,

Your story about the Anglican Ordinariate and St Therese (which came to me via England this morning) is very interesting. And I can tell you another connexion with her.

I am the Anglican Catholic Bishop of Canada in the TAC. I was present at the Synod of TAC Bishops in Portsmouth England in October 2007 which voted unanimously to ask for full communion, and signed the Catechism of the Catholic Church. The first full day of the Synod was October 1st, the 'new' date of St Therese's feast, and the actual vote to ask for full communion was taken on October 3rd 'old' date of her feast.

I also accompanied the Primate and Bishop Robert Mercer CR to deliver the Letter to the CDF where we had been directed by the Holy Father. My friend Mother Teresa of the Carmel in Edmonton had given me some holy cards with a piece of cloth touched to her relics. Each of us carried one of these cards, and we asked St Therese's prayers on our venture. We also had similar cards from Poland of the Servant of God John Paul II.

I have continued 'to bother her' about a favourable response to our request, and now thanks to the generosity and love of the Holy Father who has taken a personal interest in us for many years, and the prayers of St Therese, something wonderful has come about.

God bless you,

+Peter Wilkinson, OSG
Bishop Ordinary
Anglican Catholic Church of Canada
TAC

Father Davis has posted the letter at his blog, which is also on our blog roll. He's been quiet for a while, working on a book, but I'll bet it'll be worth checking in there as things progress.

Welcome Home Prodical Sons

Joint Statement of Archbps. Nichols (Catholic) and Williams (Anglican)

Fr. John Zuhlsdorf @ 8:02 am

The doors to the Church are always open to those wishing to enter. Now there is not only a door open to Anglicans, but also a house full of furniture.

The Holy Father will establish ordinariates for Anglicans who wish to enter fuller manifest unity with the Catholic Church.

To that end, the Catholic Archbishop of Westminster and the Anglican Archbishop of Canterbury issued a joint statement.

Let’s have a look with my emphases and comments.

JOINT STATEMENT BY THE ARCHBISHOP OF WESTMINSTER AND THE ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY

Today’s announcement of the Apostolic Constitution is a response by Pope Benedict XVI to a number of requests over the past few years to the Holy See from groups of Anglicans who wish to enter into full visible communion with the Roman Catholic Church, and are willing to declare that they share a common Catholic faith and accept the Petrine ministry as willed by Christ for his Church. [Christ established His Church with certain necessary elements. Among them are not only apostolic succession, or bishops (and Anglicans except some version of that) but also the ministry of Peter and his successor, the Bishop of Rome, the Pope.]

Pope Benedict XVI has approved, within the Apostolic Constitution, a canonical structure that provides for Personal Ordinariates, which will allow former Anglicans to enter full communion with the Catholic Church while preserving elements of distinctive Anglican spiritual patrimony.

The announcement of this Apostolic Constitution brings to an end a period of uncertainty for such groups who have nurtured hopes of new ways of embracing unity with the Catholic Church. It will now be up to those who have made requests to the Holy See to respond to the Apostolic Constitution.

The Apostolic Constitution is further recognition of the substantial overlap in faith, doctrine and spirituality between the Catholic Church and the Anglican tradition. Without the dialogues of the past forty years, this recognition would not have been possible, nor would hopes for full visible unity have been nurtured. In this sense, this Apostolic Constitution is one consequence of ecumenical dialogue between the Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion. [This is a joint statement, remember? This statement (i.e., by Williams) seems very positive about what is happening.]

The on-going official dialogue between the Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion provides the basis for our continuing cooperation. [The talks continue!] The Anglican Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC) and International Anglican Roman Catholic Commission for Unity and Mission (IARCCUM) agreements make clear the path we will follow together. [Don’t hold your breath about an ordinariate for Anglicans who want homosexual marriage or women priests. Just don’t.]

With God’s grace and prayer we are determined that our on-going mutual commitment and consultation on these and other matters should continue to be strengthened. Locally, in the spirit of IARCCUM, we look forward to building on the pattern of shared meetings between the Catholic Bishops Conference of England and Wales and the Church of England’s House of Bishops with a focus on our common mission. Joint days of reflection and prayer were begun in Leeds in 2006 and continued in Lambeth in 2008, and further meetings are in preparation. This close cooperation will continue as we grow together in unity and mission, in witness to the Gospel in our country, and in the Church at large.

London, 20 October 2009

+ Vincent Gerard Nichols

+ Rowan Williams

As I read this I had the sense that Archbp. Williams has leaned very much in favor of union with Rome. It is a joint statement, after all.

But really… what is the alternative for Anglicans who really believe in God as God and who accept that Scripture contains the truth not subject to man’s whims or fads?

Batshit Crazy, Polyester Nighmare of a NUN or The Visitation can't come fast enough

found the link to this on the Lair of the Catholic Cavemen.
Most of the bloggers there are retired military and law enforcement, God Bless you guys.

And People are UPSET about an apostolic visitation!!!!!!! How about a good old burning at the stake I'll get the catholic matches, for the love of God this witch thinks she is helping, helping what, women to commit a mortal sin and risk their immortal soul, not to mention to kill the very least of us. Talk about SOCIAL JUSTICE

The Egyptian

P.S. compare this to my previous post, how far have Sisters fallen!

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Nun Volunteering as Abortion Clinic Escort in Illinois

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Sr. Quinn's prioress said in an email response to LSN that the nun sees her volunteer activity as "accompanying women who are verbally abused by protesters."

isn't that rich, sheesch

E
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By Kathleen Gilbert

HINSDALE, Illinois, October 23, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) - A Dominican nun has been seen frequenting an abortion facility in Illinois recently - but not, as one might expect, to pray for an end to abortion or to counsel women seeking abortions, but to volunteer as a clinic escort.

Local pro-life activists say that they recognized the escort at the ACU Health Center as Sr. Donna Quinn, a nun outspokenly in favor of legalized abortion, after seeing her photo in a Chicago Tribune article.

"I've called her sister several times, and she never responded," local pro-lifer John Bray told LifeSiteNews.com (LSN). "But it's her."

Amy Keane, a pro-life witness for 11 years, says Quinn has acted as escort for "six years, at least." Keane described one incident in which Quinn began shouting at the pro-lifers as they spoke to a woman about to enter the abortion facility.

"[Quinn] was so angry, and burst out very loudly so everyone could hear: 'Look at these men, telling these women what to do with their bodies!'" said Keane. "She was so angry, that it really took all of us aback." Keane says that the group was peaceful, and that the men present were not among those engaging the woman.

"For those of us who are Catholic, to have a member of a religious order so blatantly - it is so disheartening. It really is," said Keane. "She's participating actively in abortion. That is what is so disturbing for us."

Sr. Donna Quinn, OP, is renowned in the Chicago area as an advocate for legalized abortion and other liberal issues.

In 1974 she co-founded the organization Chicago Catholic Women, which lobbied the USCCB on a feminist platform before it dissolved in 2000. She is now a coordinator of the radically liberal National Coalition of American Nuns (NCAN), which stands in opposition against the Catholic Church's position on abortion, homosexuality, contraception, and the male priesthood.

While LifeSiteNews.com (LSN) was unable to reach Sr. Quinn for comment, NCAN's Sr. Beth Rindler confirmed to LSN that Quinn is still a member of their group, which favors unrestricted legalized abortion and disagrees with the teaching that abortion is intrinsically evil. "We respect women, and believe that they make moral decision, and so we respect their decisions," Rindler explained.

In a 2002 address to the Women's Studies in Religion Program at Harvard Divinity School, Sr. Quinn described how she came to view the teachings of her Church as "immoral": "I used to say: 'This is my Church, and I will work to change it, because I love it,'" she said. "Then later I said, 'This church is immoral, and if I am to identify with it I'd better work to change it.' More recently, I am saying, 'All organized religions are immoral in their gender discriminations.'"

Quinn called gender discrimination "the root cause of evil in the Church, and thus in the world," and said she remained in the Dominican community simply for "the sisterhood."

Sr. Patricia Mulcahey, OP, Quinn's Prioress at the Sinsinawa Dominican community, said in an email response to LSN that the nun sees her volunteer activity as "accompanying women who are verbally abused by protesters. Her stance is that if the protesters were not abusive, she would not be there."

Though Sr. Mulcahey claimed that her sisters "support the teachings of the Catholic Church," she declined to comment on Quinn's public protest of Catholic Church teaching.

Joe Scheidler of the Pro-Life Action League says Quinn came in contact with his own office in 1982, when she and a group of other pro-aborts picketed his building on the anniversary of Roe v. Wade.

"She figures it's part of her religion to take these women in and protect them, and get them abortions," said Scheidler of Quinn's recent activity. "Something dreadful has happened to make a Catholic nun become an escort at an abortion clinic - that's the lowest form you can reach, where you escort a woman with a living child in her into a place to have the child killed, and to ruin that woman's soul."

"If I didn't even believe in the humanity of the child - which of course would be crazy - even if I didn't, I would fight abortion for the sake of the women," Scheidler added. "They miss that baby, and they can't get it back. They never can."

Nice Picture

More from the Catholic Telegraph
Grandfather of a friend of mine, he was very talented with his hands and it seems to carry on through the next several generations.

The Egyptian

P.S. Isn't it nice to at least SEE a picture of a Sister in a habit instead of a polyester nightmare, the Sisters used to mean so much and now they have made themselves disappear into irrelevance
E

Statue Donated

1963: “Statue of St. Joseph the Worker, carved from wood by Frank Dahlinghaus of St. Joseph's parish, Egypt, has been donated to the Sisters of the Precious Blood at the new Maria Stein Retreat House. With the statue here are Mother Mary Nathalia of the retreat house and Dahlinghaus. The sculptor, who owns and operates a poultry farm at Minster, Route 1, describes himself as a "whittler." Besides the contemporary-style statue of St. Joseph, he has carved several other statues and a wide variety of intricate objects. One of these is a wooden bird perched inside a wooden cage, all carved from a single block. In making the statue of St. Joseph, Dahlinghaus included a carpenter's box containing a variety of carved small wooden tools. (The Catholic Telegraph, August 9, 1963)

Carthagena, St Charles Seminary

Joyfully picked from the The Catholic Telegraph Photography Project,
This is what I mean, this chapel was beautiful but the "wreckovation" turn it into a cold sterile empty hall with no beauty whatsoever. ( personally I think it is butt ugly) Wonder if there are any photos of it in color, the art work must have been incredible. Fr Troust was a great artist and the idea of his work being destroyed just angers me.

The Egyptian

click on pictures to enlarge

Jubilee at Carthagena

1961: “The seeds of religious vocations, nurtured at St. Charles’ Seminary, Carthagena, have produced more than 700 priests over the past 100 years. This month, as the Precious Blood Fathers’ major seminary observes its centenary, it can point to its ‘graduates’ at work in 21 states and in South America. To meet the demands of a growing religious society, St. Charles’ Seminary recently completed a construction program.

“Before and after pictures show the chapel as it was before its renovation, above, and after its renovation. The ornate decorations in [the top] picture were the work of a seminary rector, Father Paulinus Trost, a talented painter. He drew his own image on a mural depicting Purgatory on the sanctuary walls. The renovated chapel [below] stresses the theme, "Blood of Jesus—Center of Earthly and Heavenly Liturgy." The figure of Christ dominates the mosaic behind the altar, which emphasizes the theme of the Precious Blood in the life of the Mystical Body. The chapel also has an imposing stained glass window honoring the Assumption. The new organ, placed in the sanctuary, contains 1,600 pipes, arranged in a series, from 16 feet high down to the size of a pencil.” (See The Catholic Telegraph-Register, October 6, 1961)

Pelosi’s Continuing Dissent from Catholic Church Teaching

Isn't it about time for the heave ho, this witch has defied her Bishop, and lied through her teeth. excommunication is automatic in these circumstances but obviously she hasn't gotten the memo

The Egyptian

By James Todd
Pewsitter.com

Speaker Pelosi continues to dissent from Church teaching, since her meeting in February with Archbishop Niederauer.

October 13, 2009 - Late last year Speaker Pelosi made a couple of rather outrageous statements about the teachings of the Church with regard to abortion and when life begins. Several bishops responded to correct Pelosi’s false statements. There was sufficient outrage among faithful Catholics to prompt Pelosi’s bishop, Archbishop Niederauer of San Francisco, to meet with her in February of this year. The result of that meeting? Pelosi’s spokesman confirmed that a meeting had taken place and that Pelosi was not about to change her position on abortion.

Since that February meeting Pelosi continues to dissent from Church teaching as evidenced by both her public statements and actions. Here is a small sampling of activities by Pelosi since she met with Archbishop Niederauer in February:

On Embryonic Stem Cell Research (April of 2009)
U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi dismissed critics of federal funding of life-destroying embryonic stem-cell research with this argument: “We’ve had a situation where it’s faith or science — take your pick,”

Regarding Same-Sex Marriage in California (May)
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) deemed the California Supreme Court's decision today to uphold Proposition 8 as "deeply disappointing" in its stripping of marriage rights from same-sex couples.

Taxpayer Funding of Abortion Thru NFPA (June 2009)
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Tuesday that taxpayers should be forced to fund the UNFPA even though it has been shown to work closely with Chinese population control officials who subject women to forced abortions and involuntary sterilizations.

TaxPayer Funded Abortions in Washington DC (July)
Representatives on Thursday approved a bill that includes language overturning the longstanding ban on forcing taxpayers to fund abortions in the nation's capital. The vote on the bill came after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi manipulated a vote on rules prohibiting an amendment to stop it.

On Health Care Reform (August)
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has subjected herself to criticism for authoring an editorial in USA Today in which she calls Americans who oppose the pro-abortion health care plan before Congress "un-American."

This continued dissent must be placed in a historical context. Mrs. Pelosi was first elected to Congress in 1987. Precisely when her first Congressional vote on an issue that placed her in opposition to Church occurred is unclear. What we do know is that as far back as 1993 her dissent from Church teaching was on public display when she voted against the Hyde Amendment. Three years later congressional voting records show she voted against the Defense of Marriage Act in 1996. It is clear the Mrs. Pelosi record of dissent goes back at least 16 years, and possibly further. Voting records prior to 1993 are readily available.

Catholics understand and support the behind-the-scenes dialogue and diplomacy that was undertaken by Archbishop Niederauer earlier this year when he met with Pelosi. Most Catholics would prefer to have such issues resolved in this way and not to air our dirty laundry in public. However, when public dissent by prominent Catholics continues not just for years but decades – as is the case with Speaker Pelosi - in spite of the actions and activities that have been undertaken by the current and most likely past archbishops, a line must be drawn in the sand.

The key word in the above paragraph is “public”. If Pelosi’s dissent were behind closed doors or private, it could be dealt with in private. But Pelosi’s very public dissent has created a public scandal – and the only way to rectify a public scandal is to address it publicly.

Bishops who do not withhold communion or institute some other serious, public disciplinary action against such prominent Catholics that obstinately persevere in manifest grave sin, leave the impression such actions are condoned, or at least tolerated, and thereby perpetuate this scandal.

With Pelosi – as well as with many other Catholic politicians - the line in the sand has not only been reached but breached.

We attempted to contact Archbishop Niederauer’s spokesman, Maurice Healy and his assistant - both by phone and email - to ask about the Archbishop’s next step with Speaker Pelosi. There was no response.

Many faithful Catholics see a double scandal here. There is the scandal of a prominent Catholic in public life dissenting from Church teaching and continuing to receive communion. And there is a second scandal which is the unwillingness of Catholic Bishops to address the first scandal in any meaningful, concrete fashion. It appears that Archbishop Niederauer and other bishops have made the judgment that the public scandal to millions of Catholics is LESSER IMPORTANCE than avoiding a public confrontation with ONE or a handful of prominent dissenting Catholics whose actions continue to cause grave spiritual damage.

Missouri bishop blames ‘mentality of sterility’ for crisis in family life

Finally some one with the hangy down things to come out and say it in plain english.
Good work Bishop,
God Bless
the Egyptian

Bishop of Springfield-Cape Girardeau James V. Johnston

St. Louis, Mo., Oct 8, 2009 / 03:25 am (CNA).- A Missouri bishop has decried a “mentality of sterility,” naming it as a main factor in the present crisis of family life. He predicted that the renewal of the family and the Church would take place only when Catholics rediscover their “call to fruitfulness.”

Speaking at a Sept. 26 workshop for the assembly of the Missouri Catholic Conference, Bishop of Springfield-Cape Girardeau James V. Johnston said that all love “tends toward an incarnation” and requires the “daily cultivation of the soul” in holiness.

“It is a call that we must respond to anew each day to God’s question, ‘Where are you?’”

According to the St. Louis Review, the bishop said family life is now in crisis because it is formed in a mentality of sterility. He compared contraception within marriage as the “sacrament” of this attitude.

Family life, the culture and the Church will only be renewed when the “domestic church” rediscovers “its call to fruitfulness at every level.”

In comments after his speech, Bishop Johnston said the Church can save the world by starting with the family. True love, freely given and unconditional, faithful to the end and fruitful, is revealed by Jesus on the Cross.

The bishop noted that in many dioceses the number of sacramental marriages is decreasing even as the numbers of Catholics increase.

But marriage and family is where a Christian “learns the discipleship of Christ and learns to say yes to God.”

Other topics at the Conference assembly included workshops on poverty, school choice, immigration, social networking, saving Catholic schools, pro-life legislators and Missouri’s response to the economic downturn, the St. Louis Review reports.

The assembly also honored five Missourians for promoting the common good. They included Cindy Finney of Mary Queen of Peace Parish in Webster Groves, a founder of First Friends of Immigrants and Refugees. She was given the Citizen Recognition Award for her work helping immigrants and refugees.

Copyright @ CNA
(http://www.catholicnewsagency.com)

Advice for Obama's Point Man at Notre Dame

copied from Veritatis,
do you think that Fr Jenkins will hear or care, or is he indeed a wolf in "shepherds" clothing
The Egyptian



Dr. Charles Rice: Devout Catholic, Ardent Defender of the Defenseless, Renowned Legal Scholar & Authority on the Natural Law, Notre Dame Professor Emeritus & Alumnus



Fr. John Jenkins: Wolf in Shepherd's Clothing

Yesterday, one of my Catholic, pro-life heroes, Dr. Charles Rice, issued an open letter to Fr. John Jenkins, president of the University of Notre Dame. Dr. Rice has put into words what many pro-life advocates would like to tell Jenkins ourselves. Some of those words follow, beginning with reference to the appalling charges still pending against eighty-eight pro-lifers:

This is not an ordinary case of trespass to land such as would occur if a commuter walks across your lawn and flower bed as a short-cut to the train station. Notre Dame is ordinarily an open campus. Those 88 persons, 82 of whom are represented by Tom Dixon, ND ’84, ND Law School ’93, were arrested not because they were there, but because of who they were, why they were there and what they were saying. Other persons with pro-Obama signs were there but were not arrested and not disturbed. Serious legal and constitutional questions are involved, arising especially from the symbiotic relationship between the Notre Dame Security Police, who made the arrests, and the County Police. This letter is not a legal brief. Rather I merely note that it is disingenuous for Notre Dame to pretend that this is merely a routine trespass case.

Elsewhere in his letter, Dr. Rice alludes to Jenkins' pride, hypocrisy and contempt for the faithful:

Please permit me to speak bluntly about your announced purpose to participate in the March for Life and to “invite other members of the Notre Dame Family to join me.” Notre Dame should have had an official presence at every March for Life since 1973. But until now it never has. Notre Dame students, with the encouragement of Campus Ministry, participate in the March but the University, as such, has not done so. To put it candidly, it would be a mockery for you to present yourself now at the March, even at the invitation of Notre Dame students, as a pro-life advocate while, in practical effect, you continue to be the jailer, as common criminals, of those persons who were authentic pro-life witnesses at Notre Dame. When the pictures of Fr. Weslin’s humiliation and arrest by your campus police was flashed around the world it did an incalculable damage to Notre Dame that can be partially undone only by your public and insistent request, as President of Notre Dame, that the charges be dropped. In my opinion your attachment to the March for Life, including your offering of a Mass for Life, could give scandal in the absence, at least, of such an insistent request to dismiss those charges. Your decision to present an official Notre Dame presence at the March could be beneficial, but not in the context of an unrelenting criminalization by Notre Dame of sincere and peaceful friends of Notre Dame whose offense was their desire to pray, on the campus, for the University and all concerned including yourself. If you appear at the March as the continuing criminalizer of those pro-life witnesses, you predictably will earn not approbation but scorn—a scorn which will surely be directed toward Notre Dame as well. As long as you pursue the criminalization of those pro-life witnesses, your newest pro-life statements will be regarded reasonably as a cosmetic covering of the institutional anatomy in the wake of the continuing backlash arising from your conferral of Notre Dame’s highest honor on the most relentlessly pro-abortion public official in the world.

It goes without saying that Jenkins has effectively abandoned his vocation, forfeiting any moral authority he might once have possessed. The proof is in the pudding: When a lone pro-lifer called out to Barack Obama, "Stop killing our children," Jenkins' graduates shouted him down with "Yes, we can. Yes, we can. Yes, we can..."

The full text of Dr. Rice's letter is a must-read for anyone concerned with anti-Catholic, anti-life dissent within the Church. It's available at http://insightscoop.typepad.com/2004/2009/09/open-letter-from-dr-charles-e-rice-to-fr-john-i-jenkins.html

Disco Priests

How awe inspiring, yuck, disco is dead

The Egyptian

"Mass" at Plobsheim, France, Pentecost 2009 from Donald Jenkins on Vimeo.

Father Roman Polanski ?

What would the artsy fartsy community say if he was Father Polanski ?

Just askin

The Egyptian

Toys"R"Us Spokeswoman Defends Child Rape

Toys"R"Us spokesperson on Roman Polanski forcibly raping a 13 year-old girl,
"I don't think it was rape-rape."

Toys"R"Us spokeswoman Whoopi Goldberg

Toys"R"Us spokesperson Whoopi Goldberg used her fame to defend child rape this week.
FOX News reported:

Hollywood moguls are pressuring California lawmakers to do what they can to stop the extradition of Roman Polanski, aiming to prevent the Oscar-winning director from being forcibly returned to the U.S. to do time for raping a 13-year-old girl in the 1970s.

The only problem — the government isn't interested.

Actors and actresses from Harrison Ford to Debra Winger have reportedly joined the growing throng of liberal celebrities calling for Polanski to be released following his arrest in Switzerland last week...

Whoopi Goldberg used her spot on ABC's "The View" to try to clear up the record regarding the crime to which Polanski pleaded guilty in 1978.

"I know it wasn't 'rape' rape. I think it was something else, but I don't believe it was 'rape' rape," said Goldberg, dismissing the possibility that Polanski had forced himself on anyone.

Actually, Polansky's crime is worse than people know.

More... It appears Whoopi Goldberg is facing a fierce backlash after saying that film director Roman Polanski didn't commit "rape-rape" when he had unlawful sex with a 13-year-old girl.

the Antichrist ??

To Obama we Pray??? We are witnessing the birth of a new cult, have we met the Antichrist ???
This is down right scary, and we are supposed to act ecumenical to these devils

The Egyptian

no comment

says it all

The Ex Sisters got the gold mine and the Church got the shaft

And we wonder WHY an Apostolic visitation is need, these nit wits are a good reason. Moving beyond Christ INDEED, some of you vat 2 sisters are asses, there I said it, get over it, smell the coffee and GROW UP

The Egyptian

from the Catholic Key Blog

http://catholickey.blogspot.com/2009/09/how-to-leave-church-and-keep-deed.html

In 2006, two long-serving Benedictine Sisters from Wisconsin renounced their vows and left their order. The Vatican concurred in releasing them.

Nothing surprising there - Religious leave their orders all the time. What is unique about this case is that the two women figured out how to take all of their former order’s assets with them. In October, a group of leaders from men’s and women’s religious orders will learn how to do the same.

Here’s the background. In 2007, Sinsinawa Dominican Sister Laurie Brink gave the keynote address at the annual convention of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious held in Kansas City. Titled, "A Marginal Life: Pursuing Holiness in the 21st Century"(pdf), her talk looked at different ways various communities of women religious were dealing with decline and evolving. One possible way was to be a “sojourner”:

Sojourners have left the religious home of their fathers and mothers and are traveling in a foreign land, mapping their way as they go. They are courageous women among us. And very well may provide a glimpse into the new thing that God is bringing about in our midst. Who’s to say that the movement beyond Christ is not, in reality, a movement into the very heart of God? A movement the ecclesiastical system would not recognize. A wholly new way of being holy that is integrative, non-dominating, and inclusive. But a whole new way that is also not Catholic Religious Life. The Benedictine Women of Madison are the most current example I can name. Their commitment to ecumenism lead them beyond the exclusivity of the Catholic Church into a new inclusivity, where all manner of seeking God is welcomed. They are certainly religious women, but they are no longer women religious as it is defined by the Roman Catholic Church. They choose as a congregation to step outside the Church in order to step into a greater sense of holiness.

One problem with sojourning “beyond Christ” in a way “the ecclesiastical system would not recognize” is that you have to leave behind the good will of being a Catholic religious sister and begin anew. When you leave the Church, you also leave behind the trappings of the Church – the monastery, the land, the endowment. All of these things were entrusted for an ecclesial purpose and you have chosen to no longer serve that purpose. If you quit the convent, you have to find a new roof.

But the two Benedictine sisters in Wisconsin who wanted to leave their order were in a unique position. They were the last two active members of their community. They had no one to return the keys to. So they took them.

According to the National Catholic Reporter, Benedictine Sisters Mary David Walgenbach and Joanne Kollasch started thinking about leaving the Catholic religious life and starting a way of life the Church would not recognize in 1992. In 2006, they were officially released from their vows.

Between 1992 and 2006, they had a lot of work to do. According to public records, in 1998, they set up a Non-Stock Corporation headed by themselves called the Benedictine Women of Madison, Inc. The new corporation was non-canonical, ie., not connected to or bound by any of the laws of the Church.

In late 2000, the two sisters signed over the deeds for the various parcels of land belonging to their canonical, ecclesial religious order to the non-ecclesial corporation run by themselves. A separate, non-ecclesial foundation was also set up for the benefit of the new Benedictine Women of Madison, Inc.

When the two sisters finally were released from their vows in 2006, they had already transferred the ecclesial property of their order essentially to themselves. They took new vows to their non-Church related order and now run the Holy Wisdom Monastery on the property of their old order’s former high school.

Holy Wisdom Monastery has one other professed member, a Presbyterian minister. They are open to accepting “sisters” of other faiths, but so far no takers. Madison Bishop Robert Morlino has forbidden priests from offering Mass at the monastery, but in late August, they began “sharing the Bread of Life around a common table” at a weekly, inclusive, ecumenical Eucharist at their just-constructed $8 million eco-friendly monastery.

Are there any other religious orders contemplating quitting the Church and taking the Church’s patrimony with them? The Resource Center for Religious Institutes must think so.

RCRI is an organization formed by the merger of two religious resource groups sponsored by the Leadership Conference of Women Religious and the Conference of Major Superiors of Men. At their National Conference on October 23, participating religious leaders will have the opportunity to attend a workshop called “Going Non-Canonical”. It will be led by the former sister from Wisconsin, Mary David Walgenbach, and Benedictine Father Dan Ward, the canon lawyer who helped the Benedictines of Madison quit the Church. Here’s the description, my emphases:

The story of a small Benedictine community’s journey of becoming non-canonical. The content includes their ecumenical ministry, visioning process, development of an ecumenical board, relationship with the Federation of St. Gertrude and canonical and civil procedures for the transfer of assets.

Why would any leader of a religious community need to learn that?

We have all known this person, now he's in the White House

Don't Save This Drowning Man

I feel as if I know the President. Like I have met him before.

Some years back I worked with a man who I will call Drew. Drew was the epitome of the Peter principle. Promoted to a level of gross incompetence, in this case a Vice President in a large international firm, Drew was in way over his head. Drew was tall and extroverted to the Nth degree giving him the illusion of command and competence. He spoke real fast and had command of litany of buzzwords that could make your head spin. I suppose this is part of what helped him make it to his position.

I remember when I first met him (he had recently been promoted) he wanted me to get something done for him quickly that had been ignored by him and his staff for some time. Drew was already in way over his head and he knew it and his tail was on the line and he needed me to help him save it. But rather that asking me to do help him out in a pinch and acknowledging the lateness of his request he decided to threaten me while dropping the fact that he was a vice president at least five times in a three minute conversation. When I told him I had my own problems he decided to go above my head. Unfortunately for Drew, the CFO of the company at that time was patient and listened to facts. He chastised Drew for his tardiness and threatening behavior and asked me to see what I could do to help.

That is the way it is with charismatic demagogues particularly when they are in way over their heads. They live in perpetual fear of being found out and they constantly feel the need to double down when they are already out of chips.

So it is with the President. I write this on the eve of the President's speech to congress attempting to save his reputation and his troubled healthcare reform. The President, in over his head and too clever by half, tried to force this health care bill down our throats quickly and by using Congress as cover insulate himself from any criticism. That manifestly did not work. The public outcry against the liberal wishlist of ideas is like nothing that has been seen in this country in recent memory. But rather than reassess his approach and his plans, all indications are that the President intends to double down and force a vote - public option and all. If he does he may succeed in destroying his own party.

Back to Drew for a moment. His general incompetence at last made manifest, Drew was given notice that his contract would not be extended and they allowed him to work for a few months before showing him the door. But Drew, so fearful of admitting his own shortcomings spent those final months tirelessly trying to ruin the reputations of all with whom he was associated. Blaming anyone and everyone else for his own failures. Eventually, they asked Drew not to come to work anymore.

This is the way it works folks. Like the drowning man, the exposed charismatic demagogue will take all around him down with him rather than ever admit he cannot swim. The Democrats in Congress should be wary of trying to save this drowning man lest they be dragged to the bottom as well.

Total Faith In GOD

forgot where I got this but the bravery and FAITH of the priests in WWII is beyond compare, really people are so soft today

The Egyptian

Once there was a time...

I told this story at dinner the other night. The family liked it, and Puff told me I should write it out on the blog. Like most of my best stories, it isn't my story at all, but my father's, and like many of his best stories, it's from the war.

Dad was at or near the front lines in Italy one day when an officer came down the line. "Any Catholics here," he began. "There's a priest about to say Mass in the next field." Dad took his helmet and rifle and headed over to the next field, as did several other Catholics.

He was appalled when he arrived. The field was wide open, easily visible from the Germans, and exposed to any kind of enemy fire. The men immediately looked for a hill, a shell hole, a rock, a furrow- anything that might give them any sort of cover. Meanwhile, in the middle of the field stood the priest, carefully setting up his Mass kit on a big rock, taking his time and doing it properly, appearing as if he had no concern in the world other than this, and going about it as if he were in a parish back home, and there was no war to trouble anyone or anything.

If there was ever a time for a Tridentine speed Mass, this could have been it. But, to Dad's horror, (and he knew, because he used to be an altar boy at a Cathedral) the priest said the Mass slowly and carefully, doing every movement as prescribed, omitting no prayer, while gunfire raged around them.

At last the priest turned, holding the consecrated host. "Come to Communion!" he shouted out to the men hiding in the field. "I grant you all full absolution. Come!"

Dad's reaction was: "He's got to be kidding." But then he saw it: the soldiers making their way forward to receive communion. Granted, they approached the priest at a dead run, and left at a dead run as soon as it was received. But still they came. Dad, emboldened by the other men, came forward himself, received, thanked God, and raced away.

He stayed in his furrow watching as the priest put away his Mass kit as properly as he set it out, and, when finished and having said his final prayers, the priest snapped his case shut and walked away.

That's the story. Not the best punch line, but the family liked it. I like it for it reminds of a good man I once knew and shall never see again in the flesh. It reminds me that there were other good men like him, once upon a time. Men who believed there were things to stand for, things to fight for, things that were worth risking your life for. And on that list of things worth risking your life over was Mass, and the chance for Communion.

liberal sacrimentals

This combined with the high amount of hormones in our water, (where do you think all that goes after our bodies digest it, pee, and water treatment does not remove it), but the pill is the holy grail of liberals, so get used to more

Did you know the World Health Organization ranks The Pill as a Group I carcinogen?

by intern Anne Marie

Perhaps the best-kept secret of modern medicine is the link between oral contraceptives and increased breast cancer risk.

While combined oral contraceptives, better known as The Pill, rank as Group I carcinogens according to a 2005 report released by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, an arm of the World Health Organization, doctors continue to routinely prescribe the pill for a variety of conditions, ranging from acne to birth control (American Cancer Society, 2008)....

Combined oral contraceptives are composed of estrogen and progesterone or progestin, a synthetic form of progesterone. Estrogen and progesterone are female sex hormones; estrogen thickens the lining of the uterus, and progesterone/progestin prepares the endometrium for implantation of the egg. (National Cancer Institute, 2006).

The reasoning behind a combination of estrogen and progesterone/progestin is that estrogen given on its own increases the risk of uterine cancer. Taking a combination of the 2 confers protection from uterine cancer but increases breast cancer risk.

In short, the science behind the increased breast cancer risk stems from 2 primary mechanisms. In both instances, progesterone/progestin becomes a double-edged sword, as it confers protection from increased uterine cancer risk but "gives permission" for estrogen to negatively affect breast DNA.

First, the combination of estrogen plus progesterone/progestin functions as a genotoxin, meaning it directly damages DNA in the breast. Several estrogen metabolites, or breakdown products, including 4-hydroxy-catechol-estrogen quinine, have been proven to function in this manner (Lanfranchi, 2007).

Second, estrogen functions as a mitogen, or cancer promoter, and estrogen promotes cancer in 2 ways. As seen in the graph, it stimulates an explosion of rapid proliferation of cells in breast lobules, causing a greater likelihood of mutations with the increased rate of division.

Additionally, estrogen promotes speedier development of any already-cancerous cells in the breast (Lanfranchi, 2007).

Why doesn't the American public know about the increased risk? Why is the teenage girl on the pill for acne unaware of the health risks involved? Women deserve better.