As someone who is constantly squawking in favor of the federal government basically guaranteeing you a house, a college education, a 'good" job, and paying your medical bills, all paid for of course with the blood soaked money of the "greedy" rich and corporations, should not Arianna just give all of this to the IRS right now? She could even save the the government some money since voluntarily writing a check for Obama's "stash" would mean no IRS workers need to be paid to extract it from her.
“I urge you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree in what you say, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and in the same purpose.” (1 Cor 1:10)
Every Catholic who faithfully attended Mass this these words from St Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians were part of last Sunday’s readings in Mass. What is it asking us? That we may be one. I think that is the question all non-Catholic Christians have to ask themselves. Why am I not following Christ’s directive? And there should be no doubt that these words are Christ’s because, while they may have been written by St. Paul, he is only echoing what Christ had already prayed for; that we be as one . How can any Christian disobey this and still call themselves truly a follower of Christ?
Below is a audio presentation by Father Gray Bean, a former Baptist, who, unlike many of us, could not deny to his heart what his mind was telling him….that the Catholic Church is the Church founded by Christ and the Church and the only place where all Christians will find unity. I think it is quite compelling and worth a listen.
Brother Sama gives a great homily on Mary. It is impossible for the Christian to understand Mary and her place of honour without understanding the role of the mother in Eastern/Oriental kingdoms. Generally the king's mother, not his wife, is considered the queen. Being easterners, the Twelve Disciples, as they came to understand Jesus as King, would have understood Mary's place as their Queen and Mother. All of her actions and Christ's words about and toward her would have been understood in this sense.
I recently watched a few Youtube videos that highlighted for me the fight we as followers of Christ are in. All across the globe, the evidence shows that Satan is making his final push. He is furious with anyone who attempts to hinder his drive to destroy civilization and, ultimately, our souls. And you can see his anger at in these faces of these "protesters".
"We are opponents on stage but off stage we are great friends. That's really what this is about. Jesus dined with tax collectors and befriended prostitutes. I don't want to be known as the guy who debates Ron[Jeremy], I'd rather be known as the guy who loves Ron."
Did Christ really "befriend" prostitutes and tax collectors? I think that's a stretch. It's true that, unlike the religious leaders of the time, He went to them and called them to come out of their sin. Only then did anyone, fisherman or adulterer, become His friend. Indeed, none of us become His friend until we leave sin behind. This is the personal witness that Christ set as an example for us but that does not allow us to tolerate boastful sin. He expected a change and they went away changed. I wonder if Mr. Gross has explained fully the grave danger that Ron Jeremy has placed his soul? Seems to me he is more interested in debating and putting on a show with Jeremy than a real conversion. But those are just my thoughts. What are yours?
I have been embarrassingly negligent of this blog and the thing I hoped to accomplish (the glorification of Christ and His Church) with it when started it. Well, no more. I am pledging to myself, and any readers still left, that I will write at least one post a day. So while I finish up a post for today, here is the Introit for today's Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.
Introit for the Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time.
Readers in California, please don’t forget that as you attempt to chose a pro-Life candidate for President of the US you are also being called to defend marriage by voting Yes on Proposition 8. Whether they are beloved friends, co-workers or relatives, we all probably all know gays and lesbians that we love and care deeply about; many of them may be in long-term loving relationships. But let’s not fool ourselves, a "marriage" between two people of the same sex is not a marriage in Christ. It is not love in the way Christ called us to love one another and the more we head down this path of destroying the institution of marriage, the further we move down the road to our own destruction as a society.
For proof you need only look at the dying populations of many European nations that have allowed gay “marriage”.There is no doubt you will be persecuted and maligned for your views and actually following you faith, but remember, this is the Truth of Christ and he was persecuted for us.
At the invitation of Tito at Custos Fidei, I will be a contributing to a new blog called American Catholic. We go live on Monday so go take a look and join the conversation.
It needs to rethink its position on the ordination of women and married people, on abortion, on gay clergy and gay unions. "Clearly," she says, "if we can believe in the virgin birth and that the body and blood of Christ are in the eucharist, then we can certainly believe that a woman can be a priest."
These things have worked so well in other churches, right Kathy?
Great post over at Hallowed Ground. Here's an excerpt:
Homosexuals want their sin to be exempt, they want us to say their sin is not sin. They want us to call evil good. They have organized themselves, and are forcing Society to go along with it. Why don’t all pick-pockets get organized, and campaign against “anti-Thieve” sentiments. Create something called “Theiveaphobia”, and lambast all who disagree as biogots, hate-mongers, etc. We’ll have an annual ”Thief Pride Parade” down 5th Avenue!
And you thought gay bishops and ordained women was as bad as it gets with the Episcopal church. Now they give you "gangsta baptisms"
"One son was blessed at St. Mary's Episcopal Church in Morningside Heights four years ago during a quasi-religious ceremony. "It's like a christening," he said. "The priest holds the baby and we say our prayer at the same time. We have to have the window open and the baby pointed toward the sun."
The more I grow in understanding and embrace of my Catholic faith, the more clearly I see the return to paganism and the need for intense evangelizing. The culture of death has our society in...well... a death grip. With the collapse over the past 40 years of traditional morals, mores, and institutions, so much of our culture mirrors the pagans world that the Apostles and early Christians encountered in the Near East, North Africa, and especially Europe. Thus we must pray and evangelize stronger than ever before. Social scientists will see this child gangsta issue as one to be fixed with more government sponsored social programs and education. While those are in important, as with abortion, euthanasia and other sins and immorality, this won't be solved without the conversion of peoples hearts.
So grab your rosaries people and don't be afraid to talk about and live your Catholic faith!
“Let us then go down and there confuse their language, so that one will not understand what another says." Thus the LORD scattered them from there all over the earth, and they stopped building the city.” --Genesis 11: 7-9
From Father Tim Finigan at the The Hermeneutic of Continuity we get this wonderful video from Lourdes of a Traditional Mass complete with adorable school children from France. As Fr. Finigan mentions, this is a true multi-cultural Mass. Men, women and children from all over the world speaking many languages and having many cultures, can come to together and worship as one in the Body of Christ.
Unfortunately, this is so unlike what many of us see in our local parishes. At my own parish, where sometimes up to three languages are used during the liturgy (outside of the Greek of the Kyrie), I often feel like one of the inhabitants of Babel. During this years Stations of the Cross on Good Friday I was often lost trying to keep up with the Spanish and Creole used in the prayers and hymns. In my opinion this attempt to show how “multi-cultural” and “inclusive” we are does not bring unity but causes a rupture, not only with our Catholic and Christian heritage, but with one another as well. As I wait for the 11:00 AM Spanish Mass to end before our Noon English Mass starts, I look at those leaving the church and think to myself, “It’s almost as if we are in different churches.” How wonderful if we all, Spanish, English, Creole, Vietnamese, or Korean speakers, could sill worship together. How moving would it be to truly feel as one During the Stations, as well as beautiful, by praying and singing in Latin? Instead of three or four different Sunday Masses for each language spoken among the parishioners, we could have one (although I think we would need more Mass times as the pews, in my opinion, would fill up with the returning faithful of all cultures)and be truly unified.
God scattered those building the Tower of Babel because they were uplifting themselves instead of Him. They, much like Adam and Eve, strove to “be like gods. “ But God in his infinite wisdom and mercy brought us together again not to glorify ourselves but to build His city; to erect His Civitate Dei through the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church. Even though we all continued to speak a multitude of languages, one not understanding the other, He bestowed on His Church the Latin language so that those disunited after Babel may be unified again to worship Him.
Sadly, the last forty years have seen us scattered and confused again. Unlike the story in Genesis, this time it is man scattering us, confusing our understanding and dividing those who should be one in Christ. And what have we gained? Can we not see that the glorious tower constructed over the last 2000 years has begun to crumble and fall apart much like the Tower of Babel?
It is time to return Latin the pride of place it deserves in the Mass and restore the unity that it brought to the Church.
"Strive to enter by the narrow gate: for many, I say to you, shall seek to enter and shall not be able.” (Luke 13:24)
AVE MARIA
AVE MARIA, gratia plena, Dominus tecum. Benedicta tu in mulieribus, et benedictus fructus ventris tui, Iesus. Sancta Maria, Mater Dei, ora pro nobis peccatoribus, nunc, et in hora mortis nostrae. Amen.
Holy Father
That thou art Peter; and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. (Matthew 16:18)
