Non Tasarmi, Fratello!

“Wherever the Catholic sun doth shine, There’s always laughter and good red wine. At least I’ve always found it so. Benedicamus Domino!” Hillaire Belloc

Saturday, February 28, 2009

Catholics for Obama, Part XII

From the Archbishop of Denver, Father Charles Chaput, words of extreme wisdom:

"We need to remember that tolerance is not a Christian virtue. Charity, justice, mercy, prudence, honesty -- these are Christian virtues. And obviously, in a diverse community, tolerance is an important working principle. But it's never an end itself. In fact, tolerating grave evil within a society is itself a form of serious evil. Likewise, democratic pluralism does not mean that Catholics should be quiet in public about serious moral issues because of some misguided sense of good manners. A healthy democracy requires vigorous moral debate to survive. Real pluralism demands that people of strong beliefs will advance their convictions in the public square -- peacefully, legally and respectfully, but energetically and without embarrassment. Anything less is bad citizenship and a form of theft from the public conversation."

53% of Catholics voted for Obama.

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God Help Us All

I don't think liturgical abuses like these can be laid at the feet of Pope Paul VI, but still...

There's plenty of blame to go around. The priests who allow such liturgical abuse. The bishops who look the other way.

But most of all, the Catholics who allow these shenanigans to continue.

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Catholics for Obama, Part XI

From the LA Times:

"Taking another step into the abortion debate, the Obama administration today will move to rescind a controversial rule that allows healthcare workers to deny abortion counseling or other family planning services if doing so would violate their moral beliefs, according to administration officials."

Says the Anchoress:

"If we are going to be a nation that supports the “freedom to choose,” then it seems to me that has to go both ways. Professional health workers should be “free to choose” whether or not they will participate in what they find to be morally objectionable."

53% of Catholics voted for Obama.

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Friday, February 27, 2009

Super Soaker, Part 2

 
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It Would Be Funny, if it Wasn't So Sad

 


At a Mass in Rochester, NY a Jesuit priest in tie-dyed vestments used a Super Soaker to spray Holy Water on the congregation.

Said one attendee:

"It was actually worse than the pictures make it out to be. He processed into mass behind the cross wearing the Mickey Mouse hat and a gold masquerade mask. Once the singing stopped, the first thing he did was blow a kazoo and say, "Happy Mardi Gras."

I can't believe anyone stayed for the Mass...
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Thursday, February 26, 2009

United States Conference of Catholic Bishops

The USCCB has provided us with some most excellent resources to help us on our Lenten journey.

You can find them here.

Why Are More People Going to Church?

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Monday, February 23, 2009

St. Michael's Abbey




This is an interesting story about the Norbertine Abbey in California. If you are an architect and would like to help go to their website here.

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Catholics for Obama, Part X

 
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Cicero said:

“When politicians, enthusiastic to pose as the people’s friends, bring forward bills providing for the distribution of property, they intend that the existing owners shall be driven from their homes. Or they propose to excuse borrowers from paying back their debts.

“Men with those views undermine the very foundations on which our commonwealth depends. In the first place, they are shattering the harmony between one element in the State and another, a relationship which cannot possibly survive if debtors are excused from paying their creditor back the sums of money he is entitled to. Furthermore, all politicians who harbour such intentions are aiming a fatal blow at the whole principle of justice; for once rights of property are infringed, this principle is totally undermined.”

53% of Catholics voted for Obama.

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Saturday, February 21, 2009

Father Damien

 



Last week we talked about the lepers mentioned in the readings from Leviticus and the Gospel, and I mentioned Blessed Father Damien of Molokai. I also said that I THOUGHT he had been elevated to sainthood, but wasn't sure.

Turns out he will be.

It also turns out that there are only 25 lepers (leprosy is now called Hansen's Disease) left on the island, all over the age of 70. Once they die, what will happen to the island?
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Lenten Advice




Sister Mary Martha says:

"Here's a good rule of thumb: If the thing you want to give up has an "and besides" behind it, perhaps it's not the thing to give up, as in "I'm going to give up butter for Lent because I slather everything with butter....besides, it will help my cholesterol levels."
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Friday, February 20, 2009

Catholics for Obama, Part IX

 



From LifeNews:

"While House officials say President Barack Obama will name pro-abortion Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, who has been criticized for refusing to limit late-term abortions, as the Secretary of the Health and Human Services Department.

Once official, her selection would add to Obama's growing pro-abortion record as president."

From CWNews:
" Archbishop Joseph Naumann of Kansas City has announced that Governor Kathleen Sebelius should not receive Communion because of her support for legal abortion.

In a column appearing on May 9 in the archdiocesan newspaper, The Leaven, the archbishop said that Governor Sebelius has sent a "spiritually lethal message" by implying that she could remain a Catholic in good standing while supporting abortion on demand.

.... He reported that he had met with her "several times over many months to discuss with her the grave spiritual and moral consequences of her public actions." Because the governor has now rejected his pleas and her public stand constitutes a scandal to the faithful, the archbishop said that he has now directed her to refrain from receiving Communion."

53% of Catholics voted for Obama.
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Thursday, February 19, 2009

Feast of St. Odran, February 19

 



St. Odran was St. Patrick's chariot driver. He was martyred when he switched positions with St. Patrick just before they were ambushed by a bunch of hoodlum pagans.

By the 1960's, most pagan babies had been adopted by Catholic school children.
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Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Feast of St. Colman of Lindesfarne

 


The Catholic Online says:

"When King Oswy introduced the Roman rites, Colman refused to accept the decision and led a group of Irish and English monks to the Isle of Inishbofin".

Cool name, Inishbofin. Turns out it's an Irish island originally called Inis Bo Finne, or Isle of the White Cow. It's the home of the endangered corncrake (see photo). You can go there and still see Cromwell's Barracks where he held Catholic Priests after the English Statute of 1585 declared them guilty of high treason.
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Has It Been A While Since You Went To Confession?



Here's a handy primer.

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Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Feast of St. Evermod, February 17

 


Evermod was the abbott of the monastery shown in Magdeburg, Germany. He was a Premonstratensian. What?

Premonstratensians are also called Norbertines, a religious order of canons regular. What?

Canons Regular are like monks, but without the cloisters. They actively and publicly minister the liturgy and the sacraments to those who visit their church. Unlike the Clerks Regular (like the Jesuits), the White Canons (as the Norbertines are called) are members of a particular community in a particular place.


You can read more here.

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Catholics for Obama, Part VIII

 


No wonder! He's Christ-like!

This picture caught my eye because I recognized the church in the photo. It's the Cathedral of the Good Shepard in Singapore. I've been to Mass there several times.

53% of Catholics voted for Obama.
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Saturday, February 14, 2009

St. Valentine's Day

 



The Church recognizes THREE St. Valentines...all martyrs.

This relic is one of them, I guess. You can see it in Rome at the Santa Maria in Cosmedin Church.

Let's see what our Muslim friends are thinking. Here are Egyptian cleric Hazem Shumen's thoughts:

"Imagine that the Prophet Muhammad is standing before you, and so are the Jews and the Christians. The more you celebrate Valentine’s Day, the more the Jews and Christians are happy, and the more the Prophet Muhammad is sad. The more you do this, the more the Jews and the Christians gloat at us, while tears flow from the Prophet’s eyes. Do you want to make the Prophet sad and the Jews and Christians happy?!"

That's a tough one.
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Thursday, February 12, 2009

Catholics for Obama, Part VII

"With Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg recovering from surgery for pancreatic cancer, speculation is ramped up about who President Barack Obama may choose as a potential replacement. One of the names on the short list political observers have pieced together is pro-abortion Judge Diane Wood." (LifeNews)


53% of Catholics voted for Obama.

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Feast of St. Buonfiglio Monaldo, February 12

One of the Seven Founders of the Confraternity of the Blessed Virgin - the Servites. I realize that we should honor him for his holy works and all, but is that a cool name OR WHAT?

One of the other founders was Ricovero Ugucchioni, and their spiritual leader was James of Poggibonsi.

Another famous Servite? Blessed Ubald of Borgo Sansepolcro!

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Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Catholics for Obama, Part VI

 



Interestingly, cats are not mentioned in the Bible. Dogs are mentioned 14 times.

Mohammed had a cat, which supposedly resides with him in Islamic paradise.

So why does the President hate them so much (cats, not Muslims)?

53% of Catholics voted for Obama.
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Bishop Fulton Sheen says....

 
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“Hearing nuns' confessions is like being stoned to death with popcorn.”

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Monday, February 09, 2009

Feast of St. Apollonia, February 9

 


The account of St. Apollonia's life was written by St. Dionysius, one of her contemporaries. When she refused to renounce her faith, they knocked out her teeth; when they threatened to throw her into a fire she jumped in voluntarily.

St. Apollonia is the patron saint of those who suffer dental diseases - so next time you have a toothache....

Notice the fire in the background of the picture above, and that she is holding a tooth in a set of tongs.

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Saturday, February 07, 2009

Catholics for Obama, Part V

From the Washington Times:

"President Obama on Thursday gave lawmakers his "guarantee" he will sign an executive order overturning President Bush's embryonic stem cell research policy."

53% of Catholics voted for Obama.

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Friday, February 06, 2009

Feast of St. Mel AND St Mun, February 6

 


Two Irish guys.

St. Mel was St. Patrick's cousin and seems to have been a missionary in Ireland. For a while, he lived with his Aunt Lupait. Scandalous rumors spread about the two, so St. Patrick showed up to investigate. According to www.catholic.org, "Mel was plowing when he arrived, but he cleared himself of the charge by miraculously picking up a live fish from the ground as if from a net. Lupait established her innocence by carrying glowing coals without burning herself or her clothing. St. Patrick was satisfied, but he told his nephew in the future, to do his fishing in the water and his plowing on the land, and he moreover enjoined them to avoid scandal by separating; living and praying far apart."


St. Mun was an Irish hermit who was St. Patrick's nephew.


St. Patrick sure has an interesting family tree.
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Thursday, February 05, 2009

Catholics for Obama, Part IV

 




President Obama wants Congress to pass a "Stimulus" bill that will cost American taxpayers ONE TRILLION ($1,000,000,000,000) dollars.

As Mitch McConnell (R, Kentucky) points out, that is more than ONE MILLION ($1,000,000,00) per day since the birth of Christ.

53% of Catholics voted for Obama.
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Wednesday, February 04, 2009

Feast of St. Blaise, February 3

 



This guy took the confirmation name of Blaise and hasn't choked on a fish bone in over 30 years!
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Candlemas, February 2

 



We really don't need a groundhog when we have a perfectly serviceable day to celebrate without it. February 2nd is Candlemas, or the Feast of the Purification, or the Feast of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple. In those days, a woman who had given birth would go to the temple 40 days later for a purification ceremony and to receive a redemption of the first born son - not redemption like cashing in, but rather, redemption in the sense that a Kohen (direct descendant of Aaron) released the boy from having to serve in the temple.

It's also the day that the beeswax candles used in the chuch are blessed using an aspergillum. You know...that thing that Father uses to sprinkle everyone with holy water.
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