Ageism, Rome and the “New Media”

NOTE: I FIRST POSTED THIS LAST YEAR, BUT I AM EVEN A BIT OLDER NOW AND FEEL IT BEARS REPEATING FOR MANY REASONS.  THE PEOPLE INVOLVED AND I HAVE LONG SINCE MADE PEACE WITH ONE ANOTHER, BUT I THINK THE HURT OF THIS STILL GOES ON FOR MANY WITHIN THE CHURCH. 

WE HAVE DONE GREAT THINGS WITHIN THE CHURCH FOR THE YOUTH, BUT SOME OF US IN MIDDLE YEARS AND SINGLE ARE LITERALLY, AS TIM  LA HAYE MIGHT PUT IT, “LEFT BEHIND.”
PLEASE READ–AND COMMENT.  I THINK THIS IS AN IMPORTANT AND OFT-NEGLECTED TOPIC, BUT ONE OF GREAT IMPORTANCE.  TO ME IT CERTAINLY IS.

Pope Benedictus XVI (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Old people tend to weary me.  And I think I am not the only one to feel that way.  First let me clarify that I do not mean chronologically old necessarily.  I think that is what often and ever fools people.  To me someone becomes “old” when they no longer think, pray, study, grow or expand their horizons.  Blessed Mother Teresa was not old—not ever.  Neither was Blessed John Paul II nor is Pope Benedict XVI.  Each of them was or are vital, engaged people who are respected and revered nearly universally by young and old alike.

When I think of “old” I think of a person set in her or her ways, someone who spends more time talking about his afflictions or counting grandchildren rather than taking an interest in the world around him or beyond, or who alternatively just gives up and hits the casinos to spend money that she or he does not have, and that his children will never see.  For the record if any of the above things ever happen to me, I hereby give collective permission to just inject me lethally and have it done with.  That is not how I intend to go out!

When I was a child, I used to go visit people in the nursing home a block from where I grew up. I was maybe 10 or 11, and had a weekly routine of people to see each time I went. It never even occurred to me that this was not “normal” behavior for a boy of that age group.  But a local pastor who often visited there too actually contacted my mother and told her I was doing the “unheard of” by caring for the forgotten and forgetful!  I, on the other hand, just needed some friends and found it to be a treasure trove of them.  I also learned huge things from people whose grandparents were in the Civil War, who themselves had lived through World War I, and who knew our little town when it was truly little.   Thanks to those visits I still know the name of the town doctor from the 1920s and even the house where he lived.  I also became acquainted with the town “slut” from those roaring years—she too lived there and was on my visit list!  And no she did not try to seduce me either. It was definitely a rich and varied education for a young boy coming up in the later 1960s/early 70s and undoubtedly influenced both my ministry and calling to the health care field later on.  I did not do it to be charitable. I truly had a blast with it.

A few weeks back I was told by someone who I had “befriended” on Face Book that one of the reasons he hesitated to consider me an actual “friend” was my age.  Distance and common interests were the others. He is nearly 30 and is in reality an extremely nice person, with a deeply passionate love for God and others.  But the generational hang-up was and is real to him. Without knowing me other than on a surface level he had already to some extent written me off, at least initially. We did work it through but the hurt of that conversation is still very real to me and I very nearly left Face Book as a result.  Perhaps when that young man is 40 or maybe 50 he will rethink his position on us “old folks “or find to his dismay that he, too, is judged more by an additional 20 lbs, a sprinkling of grey hair (or perhaps the lack of hair altogether) rather than by his convictions, intelligence and interest in others who may be different than he is on some level.  By that time however I will be at least retirement age or maybe not even on this earth.  It will most likely be well beyond late for us to connect at some point in the unknown future.  The time is now or not.

A similar situation arose with someone else at nearly the same time.  This person took it upon himself to suggest that I join the Knights of Columbus or some other Catholic men’s association “in my area” of the geographical world rather than look to him for friendship, even though earlier on in our online contacts he appeared very interested in at least the occasional interaction with me. Besides looking terrible in a helmet, I as mentioned work 2 jobs and am taking a Church history class to boot.  I am as well in process of exploring lay Dominican life, so my time is actually farther stretched than some much younger folks in the college scene. All to say I do not need more parish involvement presently.

In any case I have not found that being involved in parish activities meets the needs in my life to simply chat and get to know others. Perhaps if I was married, had 10 grand-babies or loved football, it might. Or possibly if I was not so busy running from job to job that I nap many evenings and wake up at 2 AM it could also. The social life for us who are busy, single and permanently celibate can be close to nil sometimes.  That is not meant as a complaint but rather simply a fact of life. His suggestion betrayed to me a very polite way of saying “f—k off” please and very honestly felt somewhere between condescending and downright demeaning.  As an aside one of the parishes I am a part of (I currently attend two) has an “over 50” group.  That too should theoretically be “ideal” for me, at least one would think so. However they meet during daytime hours just once a month and on a weekday! I would actually have to miss work to attend.  Again good intentions but my age group and demographic was very unintentionally passed by.

Image via Wikipedia

I am neither JP2 nor Mother Teresa.  But I think my perspectives are often spot on, and if not I am willing to grow and listen to new and fresh thoughts and re-think my opinions. I have changed greatly both in my religious and political preferences in the last 6 years. Being around younger people is what frankly keeps me from feeling deceased before my time. I believe in this generation and am drawn towards the energy and zeal that I see in them.  I understand the huge investment that the Church needs to make in future generations—something that was sorely missing when I was growing up.  Blessed John Paul II saw this need and created World Youth Day as a result.  And he incidentally did so while a senior citizen! So I get that part. They are the future and I am rapidly becoming the past.

Another aspect of this is that my four children (in heaven via miscarriages) are almost exactly the age of some of those who I tend to befriend on here or other online venues, and I am sure that sense of the paternal figures in to some extent.  Being allowed to occasionally be a “father figure” to someone is a great gift to me, and hopefully to them as well. But the two persons I mentioned earlier do not know any of this about me and pointedly expressed their preferences to keep me at a safe distance, so they do not and will not probably ever see those other sides of who I am.  Nor will either of them most likely read this article for that matter, even though both have been invited to this blog even since the events which occurred between us. I am “old” in their eyes so, to some extent anyway, I am invisible. Then again perhaps, in reality, it may be they who have lost their sight.  It is hard to say since I after all wear the bifocals in this case.

Many people have expressed to me that the story of my return to the Church is “inspiring” and have often told me so, including the two persons I am writing about. But that falls short of wishing to connect with me on any personal level. I for instance happened to notice a photo of a beautiful Black Lab on the FB page of one of them.  He has no idea how much I too love dogs.  Or what music I like.  Or if some other part of my own journey to the Faith might help him out. His assumption that we have no common interests is an unwarranted and quite possibly inaccurate one besides. Age does actually bring wisdom on occasion and we can all acquire knowledge from others. It is unlikely that we will ever meet in person, but that does not make me less “real” or diminish my importance. In short I am more than a name or white bearded profile picture on a blog or FB page, or for that matter even an intriguing story to tell while warming by the online cyber-campfires! In short I am human and have something to offer.

In 2005 I met a young man in his 20s in the Catholic area of Yahoo Chat (that was when people still used Yahoo).  We found out that we both were named Richard, and both of us  were preparing to be confirmed into the Catholic Church on the same night,  Easter of 2006, although in different states—he in Michigan and myself here in MN.  I never was privileged to meet Richard, but when he was diagnosed with stomach cancer 2 years later we spent many, many hours, often late at night, on the phone, just talking about anything and everything and often praying together.  My own crucifix, a small gift to him, was used on the casket at his funeral.  And I know he now prays for me from his place on the other side.  I will forever be a better person for having known him, and am glad he did not say to me or me to him “well you live too far away for us to pursue a friendship.” His bravery at the end of his life gave me courage I will likely one day draw upon when my time comes. I pray so anyway.

Rich did not give a damn that I was 25 years his senior. He didn’t care.  I did not mind that he lived across the country and probably had different views on some issues than me.  We connected as humans and brothers—no more and no less.  And I think it is a sad sign of the times that people find such connections more and more difficult, ironically at a time when technology allows them in such an unprecedented way. We often miss the boat even when it sails directly past us.

As to my new “online acquaintances,” particularly the first one I wrote about, I think we may yet find, in time, that we do have things to share with one another. I truly hope so. To his absolute credit he spent a fair amount of his valuable time discussing it with me via email and I think well of him both for his candor and his efforts. My belief is that we both grew from the situation.  And, if not, I cannot fundamentally change another’s overall feelings or views,  so sulking about it or dropping my FB account is likely an overreaction and ironically denying myself the pleasure of so many others who do not view me as he obviously did or possibly still does.  But to say it didn’t sting—and hard—would be a lie. And, of the two of us, I might dare suggest perhaps that he, not me, was the one acting “old.”

Image by Rosie O’Beirne via Flickr

And old people really do make me weary.

Related articles

• Cardinal Burke on the essence of the New Evangelization (insightscoop.typepad.com)
• Blogging, Arabia, Dark Shadows and Heaven… (catholicboyrichard.wordpress.com)

Anatomy of a Confession—A Lenten Reflection

Window at Parish Church of St Peter, Frampton Cotterell, England (Photo credit: DanieVDM)

What exactly is a good confession? I think first of all the basics of sincerity, willingness to turn from sin, and admission of the particular faults or issues at hand. Second with that, but no less important, would be to speak, courageously and out loud to another human, specifically to the priest, the sins committed as best can be remembered, and to receive absolution from our Lord Jesus Christ through his ministry as a confessor.  One of the first acts of the resurrected Jesus was to give this power to the Apostles and, by succession, to the priests of the Church:

^{19 †} On the evening of that first day of the week, when the doors were locked, where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, “Peace be with you.”

²⁰ When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.

²¹ (Jesus) said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.”

²² And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.

²³ Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.”^[1]

John 20: 19-23, NABRE (New American Bible, Revised Edition)

The purpose of this post will not be to so much to explain the nitty-gritty details or nuts and bolts of this Sacrament and how it operates, although at the end I will link to some articles that further explain that aspect as well, but rather to share an experience I had just this week in the confessional.  My biggest fear (and I think many readers likely share this same sense of dread regarding the Sacrament of Reconciliation/Confession) was in bringing to Christ through the priest the fullness of my own struggles.

By this I mean it is one thing to quickly say “Father I was sort of bad last week forgive me” and quite another to say “I committed adultery 4 times in 2 days with 3 different women.”  And no, that was not my particular topic of concern, so lest any rumors begin to fly due to this article you can safely lay that one aside and now.  Let it rest, folks, I am not telling my specifics here!!! They are in any case beside the point.

I did have some pressing issues, though, and knew I could wait no longer to speak the sinfulness of my heart out loud and with clarity.  So I sat in the confession row for 45 minutes yesterday afternoon and I was far from the last sinner in that line! Long confession lines, I would thankfully add, would be one of the signs of a spiritually thriving parish. And our lovely Cathedral/National Shrine of St Paul is definitely that.

Dome of the Cathedral of Saint Paul in St. Paul, Minnesota, USA. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

As I view it now, I am not really sure that my “sin list” was particularly much worse than certain other times for that matter.  But there was one significant difference. Last week I posted in regard to a 2 day period in which I very nearly said “no” to the Church. Not a “no” to Jesus, at least not purposefully so, but a “no” to the outer trappings of Rome and her leadership in my life.  But for those of us who are Catholic Christians it becomes the same thing. Jesus did not separate the Church from Himself nor should we attempt to do so.

In any event, especially after rehearsing my “list” for 45 minutes, I was pretty clear by the time I entered the “Tribunal Booth” what needed to be said—word for word in fact.  I often go face-to-face but not this time—and the Church in her mercy does allow us to confess either way. This time, though, anonymous “hiding” was just fine with me. One area of sin, already alluded to, and this one I will tell you about, was undoubtedly that whole area of submission to Church authority. As mentioned, last week, after a long time of not even having such thoughts enter my mind, I went through around 48 hours or so where I had to search my heart and sift through layers of doubt about even remaining Catholic.  I wrote more in detail about this if you are interested (again the link is below) but besides confessing it to the whole blogosphere I needed some absolution from a priest to really “seal the deal.”  But it meant, once again, facing the dissident musical notes of my life and formally committing myself to Rome all over again—and all during what was supposed to be the “best Lent ever.” I felt, and still do, that the very act of so seriously doubting my Faith again, after all the Lord has truly done for me over these last 6 years since my return,  was somewhere between ungrateful and truly wretched. The astounding and good news however is that God loves “wretches like me” as the song Amazing Grace tells us so eloquently.

Page 53 in Olney Hymns, the verses that would become known as "Amazing Grace" (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Here then is where the Holy Spirit, speaking through the words of a carefully listening (both to me and to God) priest, became shining soap suds of cleansing to my otherwise filthy soul. After I clumsily spurted my way through all of this, trying hard to be succinct but on the other hand attempting to leave out nothing of import, he gave me a few short minutes of counsel. I told him I felt genuinely that I had failed the Lord so much this Lent, and he said simply “Lent never made a saint out of anyone—it just shows us that we are not saints.”  Those were “amazing grace” words to me, and ones I do not ever remember hearing whether in a confessional or even during a Lenten retreat for that matter. Too often we go into Lent striving to be more holy, more disciplined, and godlier as a result. Then Easter Sunday comes, we break our fasts and eat our meal consisting primarily of Virginia spiraled ham and home-made peanut butter chocolate Easter eggs, and then sit back to watch a good movie or take a nap. Then back to life “as usual” for the rest of the year. But his view was that, at least in my case, and for most of us, Lent should be a mirror of the areas we will need to work on long past Lent’s end.

Slovak easter food (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

And of course he was and is right.  He was in no way suggesting that we make no special efforts during Lent.  We should and there is still time to do so thankfully. But he was saying that we, if we do seek God, may quite unexpectedly find ourselves face to face with our very weakest areas. It is only then however that we can begin fighting them with any consistency.  I am by no means leaving the Church, and by God’s grace never will. But knowing that I could even still think in those terms both humbled and frightened me, and rightly still does. I think I have a small sense of why St. Peter, who insisted he would never deny the Lord, “wept bitterly” when a few short hours later he did so, not once but 3 times. I am beginning to relate all too well to our first Pope. Perhaps an upside-down crucifixion will be in my future as well.

Yet even the weaknesses we have, whatever they may be, can be used to help our walks with God. I have always assumed my weak areas to be a hindrance primarily, and to a very real extent of course they are.  But he suggested letting those same weaknesses remind us of who we are and how much we need God—in short to allow our weaknesses become our strengths.   And to always be reminded that we can indeed fall again, so we must fortify in areas we know are difficult for us.  And most of us know what those areas may be on a personal level, even though mine may differ from yours in the specifics.

Maybe this Lent will indeed be the “best Lent ever” for me after all. Some of that spiritual reading I planned or novenas or other prayers which I should have prayed already can still be done after Easter, once the ham and candy eggs have digested and been forgotten. Lent should be all year-long anyway. And if you are like me, it needs to be—desperately.  Lent serves little purpose otherwise.

---

^[1] Confraternity of Christian Doctrine. Board of Trustees, Catholic Church. National Conference of Catholic Bishops, & United States Catholic Conference. Administrative Board. (1996). The New American Bible: Translated from the original languages with critical use of all the ancient sources and the revised New Testament (Jn 20:19–23). Confraternity of Christian Doctrine.

Related articles

• Why do Catholics confess their sins to a priest? (arecatholicschristian.wordpress.com)
• Climbing the Banks of the Tiber: The Sacrament of Reconciliation (bythepen.me)
• The Long Strange Journey of Lent is Almost Over – John Leech (godspace.wordpress.com)
• PriestHood (npitapete.wordpress.com)
• http://catholicboyrichard.wordpress.com/2012/03/22/hopeful-despair-a-lenten-reflection-of-combat-then-clarity/

“REMOTE-VIEWING” JESUS??? Seeing Heaven through Divine Mercy

DISCLAIMER:  This post is in NO way meant to endorse the New Age belief of “remote viewing.” I merely use it as an example of what prayer can do in our lives if we let it. Read on…

One of the many supposedly psychic phenomena quite in vogue today is the concept of “remote viewing.” The idea is, with certain mind control techniques carefully (and expensively, I might add) taught, one could learn to potentially see into the past, the future, and to view other parts of the world in present tense besides.  For example you might live in Idaho and see your mother in Oklahoma doing her laundry, cooking dinner—or robbing the local bank, depending on your mother’s particular moral character obviously!

If remote viewing actually worked with any kind of consistency, it would likely be taught in all of our schools from kindergarten to post-grad, certainly to government intelligence agents on every level, and issues or questions such as “where is that darn gold hidden” or “when is the next terrorist attack” could actually become things of the past.  The TSA screenings we argue so much about too would be eliminated, because the machines would no longer be needed to discover illegal substances or items being secretly whisked into airplanes. One might also shudder a bit when realizing how little good it would do to get dressed, even modestly, in the morning, since nothing would be virtually “hidden” to those adept at these techniques. For some of us that prospect alone is nearly as frightening as a terrorist or two. Tracking back to the original point, however…

Aside from being unrestricted geographically, it has become yet another form of divination (foretelling the future) or ESP (Extra Sensory Perception), and those who claim to have this working in their lives often attempt to predict events as well as describe past ones which they have no normal access to.  In other words it is seemingly omnipresent and works outside of the element of time. Starting to sound familiar?

Saint Faustina Polski: Św. Faustyna Kowalska (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Well I am here to tell you that it works—but in ways that you may never have thought of.  A wonderful gift was given to the Church in this last century by a now-canonized Saint—Sister Faustina Kowalska of Poland.  Besides actually having such experiences that actually did take her out of the limited realms of time and space, at times seeing Jesus on the Cross and other times in His glorified state, just for starters, and living to tell about it and write down her experiences with the help of a godly priest who was her spiritual director, she was given from Jesus a set of prayers now called the Chaplet of the Divine Mercy.

Divine Mercy Shrine (Photo credit: justDONQUE.images)

What I love about this prayer is that it is a wonderful gateway to the Holy Rosary, a long-held Tradition in the Church for over 1000 years and counting.  It is prayed in fact on ordinary rosary beads, and, other than one initial “Hail Mary” at the beginning, is totally and directly centered on the Passion of Christ.  Because of its simplicity, it can easily be learned by anyone, and because of its potential depth, it can keep a person occupied for many hours if so desired.  The Marians of the Immaculate Conception (MIC), a Catholic religious order who are the keepers of this Apostolate and who established the National Shrine of the Divine Mercy here in the United States, have given clear instructions on how to pray this prayer on their website, so rather than repeating those here I will refer you to a link which gives the “nuts and bolts (or “crucifix, beads and chains” if you prefer!) of the method used to pray this Eucharist—inspired set of prayers. The link is directly below:

http://thedivinemercy.org/message/devotions/praythechaplet.php

The chaplet is often recited on beads as a rosary-based prayer (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

AND here are some videos of this beautiful prayer as seen on EWTN (Eternal Word Television Network):

SPECIAL NOTE: Although the first video below is labeled as “part 3″ please watch it before viewing parts 1 and 2 as it is an absolutely BEAUTIFUL explanation of the DIVINE MERCY (starting at around 1:00 and onward). Then observe the actual CHAPLET OF THE DIVINE MERCY–and pray along if you like, with parts 1 and 2.

Finally come back to the very beginning of ”part 3″ for the last minute of the actual Chaplet prayer, directly before the explanation just mentioned. For some reason the YouTube provider did these slightly out-of-order but it is all still there. Make sense? Hey I never said “remote viewing” was perfect…

AND for another version of this lovely prayer, also via EWTN, watch below:

video.php?id=3

But I would take this discussion one or perhaps two steps further.  Because of its direct centeredness on the Passion and Cross, it can be in good conscience prayed by any Christian, Catholic or Protestant, and is thus a prayer of amazing unity with the entire Christian world each time it is uttered with sincerity.  If you have the slightest discomfort in praying the one Hail Mary, you might easily substitute it with a simple prayer to the Trinity such as the “Glory Be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit” instead.  The prayer will go to the same place, and I promise you that the Blessed Mother will not be offended.

As to how this fits with “remote viewing,” there is but one earthly event that took place—ever—beyond the realms of time and space and yet within them at the very same time.  That of course was the sacrifice of Jesus our Lord on the ripped and rugged cross of Calvary.  In the Divine Mercy chaplet, most of the prayer time spent is invoking that very sacrifice for the good of your loved ones and the souls of the entire world. The Chaplet can be prayed for the salvation of souls in general, for any given individual who comes to mind on each bead, for the dying, or just as a worshipful act of adoration to God for His Holy Sacrifice for you and me.  And if you are one of those concerned with “vain repetitions” fear not.  Every time you go to Mass or other worship services you in reality repeat many prayers, whether during worship choruses, times of individual prayer where you simply say again the name “Jesus” softly or loudly, and even when you utter an “Amen.”  All or most of these are repeated numerous times at most Christian churches every Sunday and most Wednesday nights. It is not the repetition that is vain—it becomes vanity only when done with half-heartedness or while holding sin within your heart. And I guarantee that it is at least difficult to meditate on the Lord and His Passion, Death, and Resurrection while hanging on to wrongdoing.  So the simple cadence of repetition on each bead, “For the sake of His Sorrowful Passion, have mercy on us and on the whole world,” brings you to Calvary and Calvary to you.  No time, space, or other barriers in sight.  Literal remote viewing of His gift of salvation and invoking the Mercy from His Throne in Glory for those you love and care for.  Powerful words and a potent prayer which connects us with eternity.

You might not have specific requests to offer God at the moment when you are praying the Chaplet and that too is okay. The very act of meditating on what Jesus did for each of humankind has the strong tendency to move us into an unexpected level of praise and thanksgiving—and bring equally unexpected answers to hitherto unplanned entreaties in the process. One MIC priest, Father Donald Calloway, who has done both extensive writing and produced CDs/DVDs on the topic of this devotion, has suggested that we take each “decade” (each set of 10 beads) and use it to imagine ourselves literally inside one of Christ’s five wounds.  Obviously to do this you may need to slow it down a bit. Think of yourself literally in His wounded but healed hand, kissing and anointing His beautiful feet like the woman of old, or similar to St Thomas placing your fingers into the huge but healed wound on His holy side.  Like Thomas you may find yourself saying, “My Lord and My God.”  And again, note that you can, outside of time and space, vicariously experience some aspect of His earthly life as well as his Resurrection and even possibly peer towards His Glorified Body in heaven with Isaiah or maybe St John while he experienced his Revelation of that which “was, is, and is to be.”

http://www.fathercalloway.com/

We hear much today about the concept of Eucharistic Adoration, an ancient and time-tested form of worship which to be sure has had a Renaissance in the last 20 years or so.  The notion is both simple and profound in that you sit, or kneel, in front of a consecrated (blessed by a Catholic or Orthodox priest) Host of the Holy Eucharist and adore the Jesus who shows Himself to you through it.  But you may not be able to do this for one reason or another, perhaps due to time constraints, or possibly you are not sure of the validity of this practice.  No worries—the Chaplet allows you to do so in a spiritual way without the deadly fear some non-Catholic Christians may have of “bread worship.” The purpose of both is identical—to adore, implore, and store in one’s heart the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of Christ the Lord within us. The Chaplet allows you to do so remotely, though, and connects you with every other person in the entire world at any given moment who is also worshipping Jesus in this manner.

“Remote viewing” is alive and well—and exists within the Catholic Church (and beyond) and a simple set of rosary beads as divine binoculars.  Why not try using them and see how far into heaven you can glimpse? I promise Jesus will NOT be “remote.” You will see Him clearly.

Related articles

• Chaplet of Divine Mercy – Diary (catholicglasses.com)
• 40 Reasons Why It’s Cool to be Catholic #24 The Rosary and Other “Catholic” Prayers (deaconcast.com)
• www.remoteviewing.com

Activists Sue U.S. Evangelical Pastor Over Gay Rights Grievances–A Reblog and Some Added Reflections

FIRST MY OWN THOUGHTS:

Image via Wikipedia

I WOULD LIKE TO ADD HERE THAT, WHILE I STRONGLY DISAGREE WITH MUCH OF THE CURRENT SO-CALLED “GAY AGENDA,” I AM EQUALLY CONCERNED WHEN CHRISTIANS REMAIN SILENT ON THE INJUSTICE OF SITUATIONS SUCH AS THIS IN UGANDA BUT INSTEAD DEFEND THEIR ASSOCIATIONS WITH THE CORRUPT LEADERSHIP WHO ATTEMPT TO PASS SUCH LAWS.

I DO NOT IN ANY WAY SUPPORT THE REDEFINITION OF MARRIAGE, AND HAVE IN FACT POSTED EXTENSIVELY ON THIS ALREADY (I WILL PLACE A LINK TO ONE OR TWO ARTICLES I HAVE WRITTEN ON THE TOPIC AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS PAGE) BUT NEITHER DO I SUPPORT ANY PASTOR OR RELIGIOUS GROUP WHO WOULD “GET INTO BED,” QUITE LITERALLY, WITH LEADERS OF A NATION THAT HAS NO PROBLEM WITH HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES AGAINST ACTIVELY LGBT PERSONS OR ANY OTHER GROUPS FOR THAT MATTER, AND PARTICULARLY IN THE NAME OF RELIGION.

THE BALANCE WITHIN THE CATHOLIC APPROACH IS THAT BOTH ARE WRONG. QUOTING OUR OWN CATECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH AND WHAT OUR ATTITUDE TOWARDS HOMOSEXUALITY AND LGBT BROTHERS AND SISTERS SHOULD BE IS SUMMED UP BELOW:

2358 The number of men and women who have deep-seated homosexual tendencies is not negligible. This inclination, which is objectively disordered, constitutes for most of them a trial. They must be accepted with respect, compassion, and sensitivity. Every sign of unjust discrimination in their regard should be avoided (EMPHASIS MINE).These persons are called to fulfill God’s will in their lives and, if they are Christians, to unite to the sacrifice of the Lord’s Cross the difficulties they may encounter from their condition.

(Courtesy of Vatican Website)

IN A TIME WHEN WE ALREADY HAVE SUCH SEVERE TENSION BETWEEN ACTIVISTS ON THE LEFT AND THE CHURCH, PEOPLE SUCH AS THIS PASTOR HAVE ONLY AGGRAVATED THE ISSUE AND ADDED TO WHAT IS ALREADY A SADLY TENSE RELATIONSHIP. WE SHOULD BE MORE CONCERNED ABOUT WINNING SINNERS TO CHRIST THAN HANGING THEM FOR GOD’S SAKE–LITERALLY!!!  WE ONLY NEED TO LOOK TO THE EXAMPLE OF JESUS AND THE WOMAN CAUGHT IN ADULTERY. THEY WISHED TO STONE HER AND IT WAS WITHIN THEIR LEGAL RIGHT TO DO SO TECHNICALLY. SEE JOHN 8: 2-11

(Courtesy USCCB website):

2 But early in the morning he arrived again in the temple area, and all the people started coming to him, and he sat down and taught them.3 Then the scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery and made her stand in the middle.4 They said to him, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery.5 Now in the law, Moses commanded us to stone such women.^* So what do you say?”^b6 They said this to test him, so that they could have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and began to write on the ground with his finger.^*7^* But when they continued asking him, he straightened up and said to them,^c “Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.”8 Again he bent down and wrote on the ground.9 And in response, they went away one by one, beginning with the elders. So he was left alone with the woman before him.10 Then Jesus straightened up and said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?”^d11 She replied, “No one, sir.” Then Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you. Go, [and] from now on do not sin any more.”]^e

 From The New American Bible, Revised Edition (NABRE)

Image via Wikipedia

 OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST NEITHER CONDEMNED HER NOR APPROVED OF HER LIFESTYLE, AND LED HER TO SOMETHING BETTER. WHY CANNOT HIS FOLLOWERS DO THE SAME?  GOD HELP US ALL. THIS MIGHT HAVE BEEN ME. OR YOU.

HERE IS THE ARTICLE REPOST:

A new development today on a story “Nightline” first covered back in 2010, when we traveled to Uganda to investigate a pending law in a far-away land that had ignited a firestorm of criticism here in the United States.   Dubbed the “Kill the Gays” bill…

via Activists Sue U.S. Evangelical Pastor Over Gay Rights Grievances.

Related articles

• Lawsuit: U.S. pastor Scott Lively runs anti-gay effort in Uganda (with video interview) (miamiherald.typepad.com)
• Gay activists sue U.S. Evangelical pastor for opposing homosexuality in Africa… (abcnews.go.com)
• Deportation to Anti-Gay Uganda | Past and Future of Gay Detainee Joseph Bukombe (oblogdeeoblogda.wordpress.com)
• Ugandan LGBT Rights Group Sues Anti-Gay Evangelist Scott Lively (towleroad.com)
• http://catholicboyrichard.wordpress.com/2012/02/09/celibate-but-not-chaste-chaste-but-not-celibate-a-quick-catholic-snapshot-of-ssa-theology/
• http://catholicboyrichard.wordpress.com/2011/11/11/sashers-and-social-justice/

Sunday is for Pancakes

Reblogged from The Edmonton Tourist:

• 

You know that feeling when you are doing a regular, not out of the ordinary chore and you are suddenly transported by memory to another place in time? Is it just me this happens to? I highly doubt that, liars…

Today is Pancake Day! Yes I know its lent but I didn’t give up eggs and dairy, just wine and turtles.

Read more… 494 more words

Next Sunday morning, at the Cathedral of St Paul in St Paul, MN (my parish) we will be having our annual St Patrick's Pancake Breakfast...I cannot help but hope that each reader can somehow get there, even if it is from Canada to the USA (MN borders Canada anyway!!!).

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Image via Wikipedia"][/caption]

But whether you can or not, this is one of the nicest Sunday articles I have seen in a long time. Pancakes were also what we annually made at the community Supper to raise money for band each year when I was growing up. And those pancakes, as well as the Cathedral ones, were and are the best ever made somehow. In my hometown of Princeton,MN it brought pretty much the entire town out, and in both cases you could have all you wanted.

Somehow I think the writer's "big Grandma E" is someone who most of us had, in some form or another, in our lives. It isn't really about the pancakes (well partly it is!) but the memories. Enjoy this nice post.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="492" caption="Image via Wikipedia"][/caption]

Related articles

• What is Pancake Day? (livingoverseasandlovingit.wordpress.com)
• Banana Buttermilk Pancakes - for Pancake Tuesday (kitchenkemistry.wordpress.com)
• Sunday is for Pancakes (ragrobyn.wordpress.com)
• Simple Pancakes (jojianna.wordpress.com)

~The River~

~The River~.

River (Photo credit: macieklew)

This is a new online blogger friend of mine…kind enough to “like” some of my posts and add me to his follower list.

While not directly from a religious perspective, he seems to see deeply inside himself and others. That is a tremendous gift. St Thomas Aquinas reminded us as a Church that we can find truth from many sources, and it is still a gift of God whether directly “Christian” or not.

Image via Wikipedia

That is what my new friend Jeremiah shows as well.

As he writes about the river, the heart, and so many other basic things we tend to take for granted, I think taking that second and “fresh look” serves us well. But it takes slowing down, taking time, smelling the roses and sometimes pulling the thorns from our lives.

For me personally, rivers too have a significance. On more than one occasion, staring into a moving river has been a window to my soul, and God has used it to speak to me about my own life or direction that I needed at that particular time. Perhaps it is partly because a river does indeed have a sense of eternity within it–a clear example of the circle of life.

Jeremiah thank you so much for enriching your readers with this. Read and enjoy!

Related articles

• On This Day in History: St Thomas Aquinas Enters into Eternal Glory (biltrix.com)
• Glistening River (writingwithoutahelmet.com)
• A Prayer for Sunday (Thomas Aquinas) (marccortez.com)