Canon 915 Applies

A small group of Catholics protested peacefully on Sunday outside the Catholic Church where Hillary Clinton’s vice presidential running mate attends.

Tim Kaine, Clinton’s vice presidential pick and a U.S. Senator for Virginia, often says he is a Catholic and “personally pro-life,” but his actions show otherwise. Kaine has a 100-percent pro-abortion voting record from Planned Parenthood so far in 2016.
WTVR 6 reports about a dozen people held signs on the sidewalk outside St. Elizabeth’s Catholic Church in Richmond, Virginia, where Kaine has attended for about 30 years. Among other things, the protesters said they were there to expose Kaine’s pro-abortion position, which is contrary to Catholic Church teachings.
 
One protester’s sign read “You can’t be Catholic and pro-abortion,” while another described him as a “CINO,” or Catholic in name only.
Kaine’s church reportedly gave him a standing ovation after Clinton officially nominated him as her vice presidential running mate. Despite evidence to the contrary, Kaine’s priest, the Rev. Jim Arsenault, told NPR that Kaine is “personally pro-life.”

 However, the Virginia politician is on record as trying to have it both ways — saying he is both a “traditional Catholic” and a strong supporter of abortion. As LifeNews previously reported, Kaine said he is a “strong supporter of Roe v. Wade.”

Father Arsenault needs to rethink his position.

 

The Passion of John the Baptist, August 29

Because this is one of my favorite things on YouTube:

Mass Emojis!

The Vatican announced today that Pope Francis has approved a new emoji translation of the Mass to help young adults more actively follow along during church services.
“We’ve found that most young adults can no longer read complete sentences or even complete words,” said Vatican spokesman Ronaldo Bernini, going to say that the minority of young adults that can read, cannot do so fast enough to keep up with the blistering pace of the Mass.(HA!) “We still have some work to do before the final version comes out. We’ve hired over one hundred teenagers to look over the new missal and to see whether, for instance, our choice of a clover is the best emoji for the word consubstantial.”
Bernini said that he hopes the new missal will not only help young adults better understand the Mass, but that it might also help parents learn how to tell their children that they love and miss them without having to “navigate the treacherous waters of actually having to talk.”

Islamic Outreach, Part XCIII

From an earlier post on this blog:

Pope Francis spoke to the diplomatic corps and amongst other things, said, "Hence it is important to intensify dialogue among the various religions, and I am thinking particularly of dialogue with Islam."

Meanwhile...

An ISIS suicide bomber today attacked a Catholic priest with an axe as he tried to blow up hundreds of worshippers at a church during Sunday Mass.  

Priest Albert Pandiangan, 60, was holding the holy ceremony at the altar when the 18-year-old fanatic rushed towards him with a backpack bomb and tried to blow himself up.

But the bomb burned without setting off the explosives, so the jihadi pulled an axe from his bag and slashed the priest's arm at St Yoseph Church in Medan, the capital of North Sumatra in Indonesia.

Father Albert Pandiangan

The congregation then stepped in and managed to wrestle the axe from his grasp, detaining him until the police arrived.

As officers marched the suspect to the car, pictures show his white trousers soaked in blood. Police found his ID card and a hand-drawn picture of the ISIS flag.

How Many?

 

How many Orthodox Christians does it take to change a light bulb? No one knows. They haven't changed anything in 2,000 years.

Cry havoc and Let Slip the Dogs of War

 From Pew Research:


Half of Americans who have left their church no longer believe in God, leading a surge of nearly one quarter of the nation who have no affiliation with any religion, according to a new survey.
Pew Research Center said Wednesday that 49 percent of what they term "nones" left their church and religion because they "don't believe." Another 20 percent said they don't like organized religion. Other reasons included "common sense" and a lack of belief in miracles.
The survey is the latest from Pew that demonstrates a growing trend in America: more and more people are junking religion and many are giving up on God.

 
I read that article after having just read this one from Msgr. Charles Pope:

There is a growing consternation among some Catholics that the Church, at least in her leadership, is living in the past. It seems there is no awareness that we are at war and that Catholics need to be summoned to sobriety, increasing separation from the wider culture, courageous witness and increasing martyrdom.
It is long past dark in our culture, but in most parishes and dioceses it is business as usual and there is anything but the sober alarm that is really necessary in times like these.
Scripture says, Blessed be the Lord, my rock, who trains my hands for war, and my fingers for battle (Psalm 144:1). Preparing people for war — a moral and spiritual war, not a shooting war — should include a clear setting forth of the errors of our time, and a clear and loving application of the truth to error and light to darkness.

AMEN to this:
 
And what of us? The Church cannot even seem to ask people to attend Mass on a Holy Day if it is on a Monday or a Saturday. It is apparently too much to ask people to come to Mass two days in a row. If that be the case, who will summon them to withstand and vigorously protest unjust and evil laws, even if it means financial penalties or even jail? And blood martyrdom? It hardly seems likely that most clergy today would counsel readiness for such a thing or even be close to being ready ourselves. Bishops or priests who do so can expect to be called reckless and imprudent in shy and soft times like these. The cry will surely go up, “It is not yet the time for such things!”
But if not now, when?

It Could Be Worse...They Could be a Jesuit School

Was it “appalling and disgraceful” that Sacred Heart University, a Catholic institution, recently allowed Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump to hold a campaign rally on campus?
It can be difficult to cut through the blatant opportunism of both anti-Trump critics and Sacred Heart’s president, whose defense of the event (but not Trump) only thinly disguises his university’s play for media attention and the prestige of hosting a presidential candidate. Both sides claim concern for Sacred Heart’s Catholic identity.

The Fairfield, Connecticut university has come under fire from a number of angry commenters, especially on the university’s Facebook page, expressing outrage that Sacred Heart has betrayed its Catholic identity and mission by hosting Trump. The wealthy developer has been accused of nastiness, bigotry, inciting violence and “the promotion of evil.” Trump would obviously deny any of this and claim he was misunderstood. But he does hold some positions that are clearly contrary to Catholic teaching, such as his support for abortion in certain cases.

Let's take a look around at the Sacred Heart University website....hey! An LGBTQ Resource Center!

Here at the Sacred Heart University Counseling Center, we embrace a positive view of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning (LGBTQ) identities and relationships by producing a safe space where people are free to express who they are without fear of reprisal.

On the Sacred Heart University campus, you will find a welcoming GSA (Gay Straight Alliance) and off-campus you can find resources at Norwalk Triangle Community Center. Visit http://www.ctgay.org/

How about their newsletter to employees?

■ If you want to avoid pregnancy, always use birth control. 

■■

■ Use protection that will prevent the spreading of communicable disease, such as condoms. Birth control pills will usually prevent pregnancy, but have no effect on sexually transmitted diseases

  

And at their women's center site, a link to the National Organization of Women and it's support of abortion and Hillary Clinton!

You were saying something about "Catholic identity"?

■■

Pray for the Monks

A powerful earthquake devastated a string of mountainous towns in central Italy on Wednesday, trapping residents under piles of rubble, killing at least 38 people and leaving thousands homeless.
The quake struck in the early hours of the morning when most residents were asleep, razing homes and buckling roads in a cluster of communities some 140 km (85 miles) east of Rome.

 The town of Norcia is near the epicenter, which is the birthplace of St. Benedict and the home to the Monastery of Monks of Norcia. They send this:

Dear Friends,
Many of you have by now heard of the earthquake that struck us during the night. The quake was a powerful one with a magnitude of 6.2. We’ve taken the past few hours to assess the situation.
First: We are OK. We are alive, and there are no serious injuries to report. Sadly, there are many injuries to report among the people of the region, especially those in small mountain villages. Please pray for them. We monks will do what we can to contribute here on the ground, but we’ll need your spiritual support in a special way during this period.
Second: We, as many others in Norcia and surrounding areas, suffered a lot of damage to our buildings and especially to our basilica. It will take some time to assess the extent of the damage, but it is very sad to see the many beautiful restorations we’ve made to St. Benedict’s birthplace reduced, in a moment, to disrepair.
Third: What can you do? Please, pray for us, for those who have lost their lives, who have lost someone they love, who have lost their homes and livelihoods. We will need your help, as always but now in a special way, to start the project of rebuilding. Please consider making a gift to help us get started.

No word yet on the condition of their brewery.

Religion of Peace?

From Crisis magazine. Follow the links for more!

The Apostles’ Creed (updated version):

I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Holy Catholic Church, the communion of Saints, the forgiveness of sins, and the peaceful nature of Islam. Amen.

Or, anyway, that’s how it ought to read according to Monsignor Stuart Swetland, President of Donnelly College in Kansas City. No, Msgr. Swetland didn’t actually propose a revision to the Apostles’ Creed, but he does seem to be saying that Catholics have a religious obligation to affirm that Islam is a religion of peace.
In a long statement following up on a radio debate with Robert Spencer on Relevant Radio’s Drew Mariani Show, Swetland, according to Spencer, “contends that the statements of recent Popes to the effect that Islam is a religion of peace fall into the category of teachings to which Catholics must give ‘religious assent.’”
Swetland writes: “My main purpose in having a discussion with Robert Spencer, a Catholic, on a Catholic radio network was to show clearly that his positions on Islam were at odds with Catholic teaching.” He goes on to give a sample of magisterial teachings on Islam, starting with Nostra Aetate and including statements and exhortations from Paul VI, John Paul II, Benedict XVI, and Francis. He then observes:

Robert Spencer’s positions seem to be at odds with the magisterial teachings on what authentic Islam is and what Catholics are called to do about it (accept immigrants, avoid hateful generalizations, show esteem and respect, etc.). At least in the area of morals, Robert seems to be a dissenter from the papal magisterium.

And Fr. Swetland is a dissenter from common sense. 

You're a peaceful guy, aren't you screaming jihad guy?

No.

That's Only $1.166 Million Each! I'm In!

For sale: Long-term residence. Room for family of six. Prime Soho location with quiet neighbors. Must be dead.
The Basilica of St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral plans to open its 200-year-old crypt to the public for the first time — selling a six-person family vault in the catacombs for $7 million.
The boneyard is beneath the Mulberry Street church, hidden behind tall wooden doors and 4-foot-thick stone walls.

Whoever buys the prime spot “can be buried with the people that set the Catholic faith in motion in New York,” said crypt keeper Frank Alfieri, the director of the centuries-old basilica’s cemetery and columbaria, which hold ashes from cremation.
Maybe they’ll have a better shot at getting into heaven, with the resting place near that of the first bishop of New York, John Connolly, who has been at rest in the basilica since 1825.
For an extra push through purgatory, offered spot will also be near many other religious figures buried in a clerical vault.

And the lawn will be taken care of...

His Mother Made Him Do It

Keanu Reeves

They Kept the Barbarians Out, Didn't They?

The new archbishop of Tijuana, Mexico, visited the US-Mexican border on August 11, leaned on the border fence, and said, “We need to build bridges, and tear down walls.”
Archbishop Francisco Moreno Barrón also said that he hoped that US presidential candidate Donald Trump “will always have people near him who will help him make a profound reflection that would allow him to re-orient his convictions ... for the benefit of the entire human community beyond the interests of one single country,” the San Diego Union-Tribune reported.
Father Patrick Murphy, who operates a shelter on the border, said that the archbishop has “worked in Michoacan, where a lot of deportees are from, and where a lot of people are coming from to ask for political asylum. He knows the reality.”

 Pope Francis was unavailable for comment.

And the Invasion Continues

Muslims are converting a former Roman Catholic church into mosque. The plan, approved by US Conference of Catholic Bishops, Syracuse Landmark Preservation Board, is funded by U.S. tax dollars.
Syracuse is the new Dearborn and there are many others forming. Refugees have been pouring into the U.S. and they are 75% Muslim. Some countries will only take Christians. We do the reverse.
An historic Catholic Church, Holy Trinity, was purchased by a Muslim and is being renovated by the Muslim community with tax dollars.

More than 10,000 crosses were painted over inside  and six on the outside were cut down. These are historic crosses.
The new owners are erasing, not only crosses, but the historic and rich history of the Italians and Germans who once worshipped there. All trace will soon be gone from this historic church.
No pictures or video of the crosses being removed were allowed to be taken but the crosses have to be stored somewhere on site.
Throughout Europe, thousands of churches have closed and they too are becoming Mosques and we now see them in Brooklyn, Long Island and in many towns and cities in America.
The Muslim community in Syracuse has largely grown because of Catholic Charities which has become a paid conduit for the refugees.
About a thousand refugees a year pile into this poor area with substantial sums going to the Catholic Church. They received a $3 million dollar grant last year.

I Am Actually Starting To Come Around To This View

 I'm not 100% in, but if Pope Benedict XVI says it....


In the 2016 Presidential election, both vice-presidential candidates are Catholic. In circles of faithful Catholics, both have been referred to as “Catholics in Name Only.” One journalist has labeled them both “Catholic-ish.” Pundits in the Catholic media say that Mike Pence is an “ex-Catholic,” and remind us that Tim Kaine can’t really be Catholic and also be pro-choice.
It’s obvious that Mike Pence and Tim Kaine have strained relationships with the Catholic Church. Pence, who worships at an evangelical church and professes an evangelical’s faith, seems to have rejected the authority of the Church’s Magisterium. Kaine, who supports abortion rights and the redefinition of marriage, might believe that the Church has authority, but he has obviously chosen to defy that authority. 

Mike Pence

 The communion of the Catholic Church is a communion of faith, sacraments, and governance. Both vice-presidential candidates seem, at least, to have rejected that communion.
But there really is no such thing as an “ex-Catholic.” Catholicism is not a congregationalist religion. Membership is not a self-defining proposition. Grace—the grace of baptism—makes one a Catholic. The Church teaches that “by baptism, one is incorporated into the Church of Christ and is constituted a person in it.” 

Tim Kaine

Catholics believe that baptism has certain objective and unalterable consequences. That Catholic identity is not the subject of self-definition. Nor is it the consequence of proper Catholic behavior, or assent to the Church’s teachings, or even obedience to the Magisterium.
In 2009, Pope Benedict affirmed that Catholicism comes without an escape clause: Once a person is baptized or received into the Church, there is no getting out.

Shoot. I Missed It.

The Vatican newspaper gave prominent front-page coverage in its August 9 edition to “Earth Overshoot Day”—the day on which, according to the Global Footprint Network, “humanity will have used up nature’s budget for the entire year.”
“We emit more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere than the oceans and forests are capable of absorbing,” L’Osservatore Romano stated. Paraphrasing the Global Footprint Network’s CEO, the newspaper emphasized that people must choose between “collapse or stability".

Don't tell the Global Footprint Network we have a new Pope!

Well, if the Global Footprint Network says it, it must me true! They are the MSNBC of the global footprint crowd!


WHAT WE DO   |   We are an international think tank that provides Ecological Footprint accounting tools to drive informed policy decisions in a resource-constrained world. We work with local and national governments, investors, and opinion leaders to ensure all people live well, within the means of one planet. 

Suspended...not Fired

This report from Catholic World News didn't make much sense to me at first...
 
A Catholic school board has suspended a teacher at St. Catherine of Siena School in Mississauga, Ontario, following remarks she reportedly made at a Quds Day protest in Toronto.
Iran founded Quds Day in 1979 to call for an end to Israel’s existence and its rule of Jerusalem as well as to express solidarity with Palestinians.
Calling upon fellow protesters to “support the resistance (against Israel) in any form,” Nadia Shoufani reportedly said, “Palestine will be liberated with your efforts. Glory to the martyrs. Victory, freedom to the prisoners and liberation for the Palestinians, all Palestinians from the river [Jordan River] to the sea [Mediterranean Sea] Palestine will be free.”

But upon further review....
  

 Toronto teacher calls a terrorist who killed a 4 year old Israeli girl a “hero”

The "P" is Silent

The team behind Fox's The Exorcist reboot really did their research.

During the development process, the executive producers of the new drama starring Geena Davis reached out to the Catholic church in an effort to hear from real-life exorcists. But it turns out the church wasn't eager to talk with the producers.

"We were kind of met with a stony silence," executive producer and director Rupert Wyatt revealed at a Television Critics Association summer press tour panel Monday.

But word eventually got around that the writers were looking for someone with whom they could consult, and they were contacted by a Catholic priest in Chicago who was willing to meet with them. When they got together in person, the man had an explanation for the church's radio silence.

"He made it clear that it wasn't necessarily a lack of willing[ness] to talk to us...but it really comes down to protecting the exorcists," Wyatt explained. "They don't like to show their faces; they don't like to break their cover, and that comes from the fact that there are many, many potential cases than have nothing to do with what is ostensibly possession."

Anybody want to bet that the "Catholic priest in Chicago" WASN'T this...person? 

"Father" Pfleger

The Bishops Were Just Glad It Didn't Cause Global Warming

 Planned Parenthood and the ACLU have welcomed changes to the Illinois Health Care Right of Conscience Act that were signed into law by Gov. Bruce Rauner.
Under the changes, health-care workers who object to procedures such as abortion will be required to provide information to patients about where they can obtain the procedure.The Catholic Conference of Illinois was neutral on the bill-- neither supporting it nor opposing it-- while state pro-life groups opposed it.
“As originally proposed, Senate Bill 1564 would have gutted the Illinois Health Care Right of Conscience Act,” the Conference stated. “Although the original bill had sufficient support for passage in the legislature, the Catholic Conference of Illinois was successful in negotiating removal of the more problematic provisions of the bill.”

  The Conference added:

What will be "new" is an information protocol that says when a conscience objection is invoked, the patient's condition, prognosis and treatment options will be discussed. This is already standard medical practice at Catholic healthcare facilities. If the patient insists on a morally objectionable service, a list of healthcare providers without specific reference to any particular service will be given to the patient to seek out different medical consultations. In our opinion, this list does not constitute a direct referral nor does it guarantee an outcome … considering the current realities of politics in our state, we believe that refusing everything but the status quo was going to lead to a much worse result.

Point - Counterpoint

 From a previous post...

 Point:

Asked about the slaying of an 85-year-old priest in a Normandy church on Tuesday, Francis replied: "the real word is war...yes, it's war. This holy priest died at the very moment he was offering a prayer for all the church."

He went on: "I only want to clarify, when I speak of war, I am really speaking of war ... a war of interests, for money, resources. ... I am not speaking of a war of religions, religions don't want war. The others want war."

Counterpoint:

 Islamic State has denounced Pope Francis for stating that the war being waged on the West by Islamic State terrorists is not a "religious war".
The terror group, also known as Daesh, says the acts of terrorism it carries out are most certainly religiously motivated and even bear the blessing of Allah as testified in the Koran.
It says Pope Francis and others who argue that Islam is a peaceful religion are delivering a "false narrative".
The chilling religious propaganda behind IS is spelled out in the latest issue of Dabiq, reproduced in a "safe" format by the Clarion counter-extremism project, IS warns there will be no let up in the terror. It condemns Christianity as a "religion of polytheism". 
The magazine is titled: "Break the Cross." It contains a feature of the same name, and another headlined: "Why we hate you and why we fight you."
It says the recent Orlando shooting was "most definitely" an act of terror: "Muslims have been commanded to terrorise the disbelieving enemies of Allah."

Islamic Outreach, Part XCII

From an earlier post on this blog:

Pope Francis spoke to the diplomatic corps and amongst other things, said, "Hence it is important to intensify dialogue among the various religions, and I am thinking particularly of dialogue with Islam."

Meanwhile...

As Father Josiah Trenham prepared to read the Gospel, several parishioners discreetly scooped up their babies, retreated up the aisles of St. Andrew Orthodox Church and out into the spring air, so as not to allow the crying of little ones to disturb the divine liturgy.
The time-honored tradition was shattered when a car passed by the Riverside, Calif., church, slowing down as the front passenger leaned out of his window and bellowed menacingly through a bullhorn, according to witnesses.
“Allahu Akbar!” the unidentified man repeated several times as the unnerved parents drew their infants close and exchanged worried glances.

Witnesses were able to give Riverside police a description of the green Honda Civic, but not of the three occupants. Some told police they believed one or more of the men may have been taking photographs, according to Officer Ryan Railsback. Although Trenham insisted multiple congregants heard the Arabic phrase, Railsback noted no mention of it was in the police report.
Whatever the case, no law was broken – even if an unmistakable message was sent and received.
“Be calm and to keep a special vigilance over the property and our children while we are at church,” Trenham wrote in an email to parishioners in which he recounted the disturbing event. “Pray that these provocative young men might repent of their intimidation and be saved.”

 Of course, as the Pope points out, you are just as bad as the Muslims:

I don’t like to speak of Islamic violence, because every day, when I browse the newspapers, I see violence, here in Italy . . . this one who has murdered his girlfriend, another who has murdered the mother-in-law . . . and these are baptized Catholics! There are violent Catholics! If I speak of Islamic violence, I must speak of Catholic violence. The pope of the Roman Catholic Church, asked about Islamic terror and the slitting of the throat of a Roman Catholic priest by Islamic terrorists, responds that there is also Catholic terror — that a man who was baptized Catholic who “murdered his girlfriend” is the moral and religious equivalent of Muslims engaged in mass murder in the name of Islam.

Celestron NexStar 6 SE Telescope Feasst of St. Dominic, August 8

 Patron of Astronomers; astronomy; Dominican Republic; falsely accused people; Santo Domingo Pueblo, Valletta, Birgu (Malta), Managua

Memorial:  8 August - Born 1170 - Died: 6 August 1221
Canonized: 13 July 1234 by Pope Gregory IX
St. Dominic was born of wealthy Spanish nobility, the son of Blessed Joan of Aza and Felix Guzman.  When she was pregnant with him, his mother had a vision that her unborn child was a dog who would set the world on fire with the Word of God, symbolized by a torch it carried in its mouth.  A dog with a torch in its mouth became a symbol for the order which he founded, the Dominicans. At Dominic's baptism, Blessed Joan saw a star shining from his chest, which became another of his symbols in art, and led to his patronage of astronomy.

• Student of Philosophy and Theology; University of Palencia.
• Catholic Priest
• Canon of the Cathedral of Osma
• Member of the Augustinian Order
• Clerical reformist with lifelong apostolate among heretics
• Friend and contemporary of Blessed Peter of Castelnau
• Founder of the Order of Friars Preachers (Dominicans) in 1215, a group who live a simple, austere life, and an order of nuns dedicated to the care of young girls

A t one point Dominic became discouraged at the progress of his mission.  No matter how much he worked, heresies remained.  But he received a vision from Our Lady who showed him a wreath of roses, representing the rosary. She instructed him to say the rosary daily, teach it to all who would listen, and eventually the true Faith would win out. Dominic is often associated with the introduction of the rosary.  It actually pre-dates him, but he certainly promoted its devotion, and he used it to strengthen his own spiritual life.
Legend says that Dominic received a vision of a beggar who, like Dominic, would do great things for the Faith.  Dominic met the beggar the next day.  He embraced him and said, "You are my companion and must walk with me.  If we hold together, no earthly power can withstand us."  The beggar was Saint Francis of Assisi.

Knights of Columbus Golf Scramble

And to Think I saw It On Mulberry Street!

 SOHO is short for south of Houston Street, which is pronounced HOW-stun.

SOHO (WABC) --

You might be used to seeing farm animals in New York City, particularly if you head to the Bronx or Central Park zoos. But you might be surprised to find a trio of sheep taking up residence in Nolita.

And they're just as useful as they are cute.

"These are the friendliest sheep in New York," said Frank Alfieri, of St. Patrick's Old Cathedral.

They are the only sheep south of Houston Street, and they are named after the streets that border their temporary home. There's Mulberry, Elizabeth and Mott.

"It's become almost something that's expected when people come here," Alfieri said. "And when they leave, people are upset."

They are temporary residents of the church cemetery, where they have become very much a part of this community. Even the locksmith pitches in.

"He alarmed their pen, put cameras that we monitor all the time," Alfieri said. "We've got a virtual shepard."

Alfierie says this is actually the second set of ewes to pass through, after a similar troupe called the graveyard home last fall.

"The people who tend to the property said, 'Oh what if we retire, what would you do?'" Alfieri said. "Pastor, Monsignor Sakano said, 'Oh, I'll get sheep.'"

And sheep there were, making the lawn mower obsolete. Their arrival coincided with the Feast of San Gennaro and the restoration of the church, and when the trio showed up about two months ago, the grass was about 10 inches high.

They've been busy.

"They love it," Alfieri said. "I think they're not going to be too happy when they leave."

Their departure date is July 10, when they'll head back to the upstate farm they came from. But maybe, just maybe, come September, a new set of lambs will appear.

Formerly Catholic University Honors formerly Catholic Politician

 From First Things:


Tim Kaine is a Harvard Law graduate, but he and other pro-choice Catholic politicians owe much to Notre Dame. As Matthew Franck has observed in First Things, Mario Cuomo’s 1984 “personally opposed but won’t impose” speech at the university was a “watershed moment” for pro-choice apologists. Notre Dame’s gift to Cuomo of a high-visibility platform and an enthusiastic audience seemed to stamp “nihil obstat” on his argument. (Despite, as Dr. Franck explained, the “crashing ineptitude” of Cuomo’s rationale.) 

Then a couple of months ago, just in time for Senator Kaine’s campaign on a ticket with the most radical pro-abortion platform in history, Notre Dame gave a boost to the Cuomo model of dissenting-but-faithful Catholic politician. At its Commencement, the University awarded the Laetare Medal, which it describes as “The Most Prestigious Award Given to American Catholics,” to Vice President Joe Biden and Speaker John Boehner. The award is given for “outstanding service to Church and society.” 

Like Senator Kaine, Biden is resolutely pro-choice; and like Kaine, Biden supports same-sex marriage. Biden endorses the Obamacare contraception mandate’s incursion on religious liberty, and Kaine has just co-sponsored a bill aimed at crushing with heavy fines the consciences of pharmacists who don’t want to sell contraceptives.
Notre Dame honored Biden despite the strong opposition of its bishop, the Most Rev. Kevin C. Rhoades. The award, Bishop Rhoades said, would scandalize the faithful—a blindingly obvious and important concern at a school charged with the moral formation of young Catholics. If Notre Dame thinks that a person with Biden’s extensive record of major dissent deserves this extraordinary tribute, then cafeteria Catholicism ought to do for everyone else.
Further, Bishop Rhoades deplored this breach in the relationship that should obtain between a Catholic university and its bishop. He could have noted that this was a third strike for Notre Dame’s president, the Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C.

Theological Question of the Day

 

 "How many Unitarians does it take to screw in a lightbulb? Well, first: what's your definition of "lightbulb"?

 

Micah

Anyway, on to the real extremists on abortion — Democrats. Specifically, Hillary Clinton. Multiple times in past months, she has admitted a child — “hours before birth” — has no Constitutional rights. A full term, 40-week unborn baby could survive on it’s own outside the womb for close to 20 weeks before birth — that’s four months. Premature babies have survived as young as 21 weeks — so I guess if we’re going to have to allow legal abortions — isn’t it only natural to close that legality at the time of viability? I’d rather not compromise life for any child at any stage, but if pro-choicers were going to the slightest bit reasonable, it seems like 20 weeks would be a great starting point. I’m guessing that’s where the 20-week abortion ban comes from. It’s around that time that those little guys and girls could make if their moms went into labor early. Little guys like Micah, featured it his ad from Susan B. Anthony List:

Read more at: http://www.nationalreview.com/corner

The Sound of Bishop Crickets

WASHINGTON, D.C., August 2, 2016 (LifeSiteNews) – Vice President Joe Biden has performed his first wedding ceremony – presiding over the “marriage” of two men.
Biden performed the ceremony at 4 p.m. yesterday inside the vice president’s residence, located at the U.S. Naval Observatory.
Biden reportedly obtained a license from the District of Columbia before officiating the service for Brian Mosteller, the director of Oval Office operations, and Joe Mahshie, a trip coordinator for Michelle Obama.
He then tweeted out a picture of the two men holding hands as he looked on approvingly.

 Canon lawyer Ed Peters observes:

Now, setting aside a very few 915 cases that could be decided on the spot, before being visited with the consequences of Canon 915, a Catholic should be formally confronted by the competent ecclesiastical authority about why holy Communion is going to be henceforth withheld and the steps required for readmission to the Sacrament explained.  I am not aware, however, of any Catholic official with canonical-pastoral authority over Biden who has ever made such contact with him. Still, whatever pastoral failing that past lack of formal contact might represent, it does not preclude their discussing his situation with him now.
And Joseph Biden, I would say, stands in obvious need of such outreach.

I Guess It's Funny...

 From the Wall Street Journal, Fr. Robert Sirico of the Acton Institute says,:

Has the U.S. accepted Catholics, or has it merely accepted Catholics who, when their progressive politics conflict with church doctrine, simply subordinate their religious beliefs? This is the key question for modern Catholic engagement in civic life. Unfortunately, it seems that many Catholics have abandoned the distinctive contributions they bring, in favor of blending in with modern progressivism....

Key doctrinal and moral rules apply to all Catholics in all contexts—in business, at home, or in elective office. One cannot “personally” oppose something while making a living advocating it....

There was an old joke that made the rounds in seminaries some years ago: What’s the difference between a dissenting Catholic and a Protestant? The Protestant has integrity......

PLEASE...Keep Him Out of Airplanes!

Pope Francis denied that Islam is tied to terrorist violence, during an in-flight press conference on his return trip from Poland.
“If I speak of Islamic violence, I must speak of Catholic violence,” the Pope said, observing that there is violent in Catholic countries like Italy. “I believe that in pretty much every religion there is always a small group of fundamentalists,” he continued. “We have them.”

Bugsy Siegal and Meyer Lansky were Jewish! But not Frankie Costello, Vito Genovese, Lucky Luciano - Catholics

Clinton Versus Trump Redux

 David French, in National Review:

Hillary Clinton’s nomination speech at the Democratic National Convention put a capstone on perhaps the worst political week for religious conservatives in living memory. It began a week ago at Republican convention, where one featured speaker mocked the “fake culture wars” and the thrice-married GOP nominee didn’t even deign to mention abortion and confined his support of religious liberty to the right of pastors to politic from the pulpit — hardly the most burning issue of our time. The hits kept coming as the Libertarian party’s Gary Johnson foreclosed the possibility of a meaningful protest vote by breaking with decades of libertarian orthodoxy to declare that religious freedom “as a category” is a “black hole.” His extended remarks are, in fact, mind-boggling: I mean under the guise of religious freedom, anybody can do anything. Back to Mormonism. Why shouldn’t somebody be able to shoot somebody else because their freedom of religion says that God has spoken to them and that they can shoot somebody dead?

There’s a word for this — idiotic. That’s the kind of reasoning one hears from freshman campus radicals, not from two-term former governors, and it betrays not only a complete history of centuries of religious-liberty jurisprudence but also a hostility to people of faith that’s simply breathtaking.

He concludes:

 

Honestly, it’s pitiful. Is the Christian conservative movement so weak and so insecure that it will throw away its vote so easily? A vote for Trump is a declaration of irrelevance, a declaration that Christian support is unconditional so long as one can argue that the other side is marginally worse. The cultural Left shows no such weakness. Not coincidentally, it is winning. The Christian Right would do well to learn from its opponents’ resolve.