Taken from Lebanon News source The Daily Star

International Pope warns US against 'radical secularism' January 19, 2012 01:55 PM Pope Benedict XVI. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini) VATICAN CITY: Pope Benedict XVI warned against the grave dangers that "radical secularism" posed to the Catholic Church and society in general during a meeting Thursday with US bishops. The United States was founded "on certain ethical principles" that have "eroded significantly in the face of powerful new cultural currents...," he said. These trends, the pontiff continued, "are not only directly opposed to core moral teachings of the Judeo-Christian tradition, but increasingly hostile to Christianity as such." While acknowledging the legitimacy of the separation of church and state, that did not mean the Roman Catholic Church should remain silent on certain questions, he added. "The Church has a critical role to play in countering cultural currents which, on the basis of an extreme individualism, seek to promote notions of freedom detached from moral truth," the pope said. He noted US bishops' efforts "to maintain contacts with Catholics involved in political life and to help them understand their personal responsibility to offer public witness to their faith...". That was especially important with regard to "the great moral issues of our time: respect for God?s gift of life, the protection of human dignity and the promotion of authentic human rights," he said. The bishops had to ensure that American Catholics had the courage "to counter a reductive secularism which would delegitimize the Church's participation in public debate about the issues which are determining the future of American society." The pope's comments were posted in English on the

Read more: http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/International/2012/Jan-19/160416-pope-warns-us-against-radical-secularism.ashx#ixzz1jw31UM5g
(The Daily Star :: Lebanon News :: http://www.dailystar.com.lb) 

As I am a teacher still...look at these great articles

Look at the great article on feminism as a heresy at Crisis, one of the links on my bloglist. And, I am sure all you out there know to click on the colored links in the posts here for articles. Also, there is an excellent series on the Eastern Catholic Rites, The Other Successors of Peter: The Patriarchs of Antioch, as well as Requiem for the Third See of Christendom and We Are Non-Roman Catholics.. This series is by one of my favorites, Robert Spencer and I am so glad to see Crisis picking up on his work.

Where are the "fighting Irish"?

The Irish Catholic online today reported the contentious Labour position which may endanger all religious, denominational schools in the Republic. Click on the link. Why do the Irish insist on voting Labour, when this type of position, a hardening of anti-Catholic, anti-Christian sentiment is so obvious? I can ask the same question of the Catholics who voted for Obama, the man with the worst pro-life record in the history of the State of Illinois, a follower of Chomsky and other Marxists, and a narcissist. Oo, fighting words, but if you read the post below this one, you will see where POTUS and, indeed, some politicians here in Ireland stand on Christianity and the traditional Western Civ view on individual rights.

The Irish are in a fog about their own government and the country at large. While continuing to give out millions for social programs, the country is sliding into depression, financial and psychological. Many people here, especially the youth, are unhappy. The best leave and get jobs in Canada and Australia, like millions of our ancestors from Europe did in hard times. Those who get jobs where the jobs are need to be encouraged, but they are not. One dad here told me that his wife did not want the boys to emigrate, as she would never see the grandchildren again. That is just plain selfishness, as these young men have a first duty to their wives and children. 

The country of Ireland needs more than selfishness, it needs leaders and people with vision. Obviously, attacking religious schools is not vision but oppression. I wish the old Republican spirit would awaken in the people of Ireland, but it is merely part of the stories said around the pubs and homes, stories from the past and not of the future. Here are a few quotations from the Irish Catholic article this morning.

Aodhán Ó Ríordáin TD, vice-chair of the Oireachtas education committee, told The Irish Catholic ''that religious ethos has no place in the educational system of a modern republic''.

His comments come as senior Church sources have accused the Labour Party of ''bullying'' Catholic schools by falsely accusing them of breaking the law over enrolment policies that admit Catholic children ahead of other children if the school is over-subscribed.

Dr John Murray of Mater Dei Institute of Education said the Labour move amounted to an attempt to ''intimidate'' the schools.

He said: ''I hope this isn't indicative of the attitude of the wider Labour Party to denominational schools because if it is, it is deeply worrying and needs to be strongly resisted.
''It is nothing less than an attack on the religious freedom of denominational schools,'' he said.


From where I am standing, Catholicism is becoming the minority way of life here.

the only thing that stands between tyranny and what we have today---is us

OK-- I had the last of Classical Education. We studied Locke, de Tocqueville, Montesquieu, the Federalist and Anti-Federalist Papers. We studied Thomas More's Utopia, and learned why such a system was doomed to fail, which is the point of the book. I learned all of this in a Catholic high school and a Catholic undergraduate college. What happened? Infiltration of the left into education happened just as I was going into second year of college--and by graduate school, I knew the enemies of the Church had won the day. My younger siblings did not get this good stuff and now we need a new person to remind us of our Constitutional roots. 

The title of this post is a quotation from Mark Levin. 

I wonder is Mark Levin has been reading the Pope's on socialism? His new book looks great and if anyone wants to send a review here, please do. The problem is the American re-definitions of the individual and society, long decried by every Pope since 1849, which are Marxist. This breaking of the framework of the American Constitution began, as I have tried to teach in the past, under Woodrow Wilson. This re-interpretation of the Constitution was pushed by F.D.R. The present POTUS has carried this destruction of individual liberties to a new extreme.

Levin traces the history of the Constitution in simple terms. Of course, my hero, de Tocqueville prophesied all the problems we have today and Levin mentions him. Levin traces utopianism, condemned by the 19th, 20th and 21st century Popes. Levin is not the first to discuss these problems, note Michael Peters' Postructurialism, Marxism, and Neoliberalism: Between Theory and Politics. What Levin does is make political theory more readable for most people. 


Levin can be seen here in a snippet.


I would suggest a reading of these documents from Rome: Centesimus Annus, Ubi Arcano, Humanum Genus, Immortale Dei, Sapientiae Christianae, Libertas Praestimissimus, Mirare Caritatis, and Testem Benevolentiae ,Quas Primas, Divini Illius Magistri, Casti Connubii, and Divini Redemptoris, Rerum Novarum , Quadragesimo Anno, Notre Charge Apostolique, Ad Beatissimi Apostolorum, Summi Pontificatus, Mater et Magistra, Deus Caritas Est....


I believe it is the duty of Catholics, who have been taught of the evils of the isms for over a century, to right these wrongs. However, those Catholics who are socialists, and many right here in Ireland, have to do their homework. If people want to be treated as numbers, as children, well then...carry on. But, what is at stake is the loss of religious and all other freedoms; watch and see.

Open Letter to Some of My Traditional Seminarian Friends in America and on the Continent of Europe

I write to you in the States and to those on the Continent of Europe. I do not write to those in Great Britain as there is more of an acceptance of individual talents and interests which allows for a healthier seminary experience. But, for those who are upset 24/7, here is some maternal advice.

The reason why you feel emotional about the Latin Mass and cannot be peaceful, is that you are in an adversarial climate.  It is very unhealthy to be in battle mode all the time. In an atmosphere of liberalism and modernism in the Catholic Church in the seminary or even in your parish, it would be too easy to fall into a mind-set of being against and anti-authoritarian all the time. This becomes a habit of mind, which is very unhealthy.

One does not need to be in a mode of defense or even of apologetics all the time. If one is constantly in a "fight or flight" mode, one cannot be creative, cannot learn, and most importantly, cannot love.

Yes, some of us are called to be prophets, like Jeremiah or John the Baptist, but they knew the love, the piercing, cleansing love of God in their lives which kept them grounded. This is what you need, to focus on the Love of Christ and His Mother and less on the evils in the Church. You are called to the Order of Melchizedek, not to the order of prophets. One in a million priests are called to public prophecy. Melchizedek was the King of Salem, the King of Peace.

You will not grow into the loving, kind and prudent gentleman and priest God wants you to be if you are constantly fighting. Even soldiers get battle fatigue and emotional problems because they are on guard against the enemy all the time. I do not mean merely "r and r" , a vacation, but a presence of mind which is positive and living in the grace of God, which always reaches out to those who need Him. The presence of mind is living in the Present Moment of Brother Lawrence, in that simple book, The Practice of the Presence of God. I recommend this.

I am not advocating false, nicey nicey love or a false tolerance of evil. No, I am talking about you finding that still center of your soul where you can work out of peace instead of turmoil and the adversarial mode. One must live and work in peace and not in turmoil.

All of this is in the Will. If you decide to follow peace, the emotions will follow.

I have learned not to live in this mindset and here are some tips from my experience, which is like others.

Number one, be absolutely honest with yourself and others at all times. Never allow deceit of any kind into your life. If you are clear, you will avoid turmoil. Deceit divides. Honesty unites. 

Number two, look for the common ground even with your "opponents". There is always some place where we can start a discussion rather than have an argument if we can find that common ground. If this seems totally impossible, we pray for insight.

Number three, respect yourself, me, others, all men and women, even if they seem like they do not deserve respect. All of us are sinners and all men and women have the dignity as sons and daughters of God, even if we cannot see this. St. Paul's admonition that we have all fallen short of the glory of God should be in our minds constantly.

Number four, pray to see the suffering Christ in those who oppose the Latin Mass. Christ is suffering in that person who hates the Mass, either through serious sin, bad teaching, ignorance, or corruption of mind. Pray and fast. Do not judge.

Number five, realize that the adversarial mode is unhealthy not only for you but for your opponents. You make them more obstinate if you pursue Truth without Love. Love and Truth, even tough love, go together. Tough love is real love, love with honesty. If someone starts an argument, defuse the situation gently but firmly. 

Number six, pray about your role in the Church. Very few priests are called to hard prophecy. I think that is the role of the laity. John the Baptist was not called to be a priest. A priest is called to minister to those whom God loves, His People. If you have a vocation to the priesthood, do not follow the way of the prophet at this time during your studies, but be more humble and wait. Prudence is knowing when and where to speak a truth, even about the Latin Mass.

Number seven, focus on what you are supposed to be doing now, your duty. I think you must actively and strenuously pursue your vocation. Do not get sidetracked. Go back to Latin studies, read the Doctors of the Church and the Early Church Fathers. You have many years of preparation and that is what your focus should be. Learn to learn on your own and not rely on false teaching. Make sure you match everything up to the glorious teaching of the Catholic Church. Rejoice in the beauty of these teachings. Say your Office, say your rosary. Live in the now.

Number eight, pick your battles. Wisdom is knowing when to speak and when to be silent. We do not have to be seen as being "right" all the time. That is intellectual pride. If something is important enough to fight, fine, but this should be the exception rather than the rule. 

Number nine, learn boundaries. Your generation does not know psychological boundaries because of the public sharing of information and because of the lack of manners. Not everyone has to know everything about you and your life. Boundaries protect your soul and mind, and create healthy relationships.

Number ten, remember your First Love. The reason why you are pursuing the priesthood is because God has called you and you have answered "yes". You are in a relationship with the Living God, who is your First Love. All else flows from that.

Number eleven, be patient. I know that it is in the nature of youth to be impatient for change. Learn patience.

Number twelve, be more patient. 

God bless you.

Thoughts on Beauty and the Tridentine Mass

Scholars argue, even today, on Thomas Aquinas' idea of Beauty as an Attribute of God. It depends on whether one sees him as primarily Platonic, Aristotelian or Dionysian, or a combination of these, in his approach to beauty. I am not going to get into those philosophical divisions at this point, but as an Aristotelian by nature, I would be inclined to come down on the side of the form and sense of beauty starting in the perception of what is pleasing around us, rather than an ideal which is mostly super-sensible. That is not the topic of this post.

What is the topic is the idea of Beauty Himself, as God is Beauty, as He is Truth, Love, the Good. The motto of my undergraduate college was Beauty, Truth, Goodness, as in the pursuit of through study. This is a good Benedictine approach to learning, as one becomes closer to God through study. The purification of the intellect, heart and will can happen through study and prayer aimed at Beauty, Truth and Goodness, that is God Himself.

Now, in Aquinas, God is so beyond what we see as Beautiful, as He Himself created all that is beautiful, that we must refer to Him as "super-beautiful". The Second Person of the Blessed Trinity, existing from all time, was revealed to us at a particular time in history, but His Beauty is beyond time.

Before I switched degrees, I was pursuing "fine art" as a degree. I write poetry and I paint. In college, my strengths in painting were nature scenes, such as water, trees, flowers, in oils , acrylics, or water color. Surprising even to myself, I actually had some talent in this small area of the fine arts. I gave up the art degree for others, such as philosophy and theology, history and English, etc. However, as with others in my immediate family, a sense of the Beautiful haunted me.

In 2009, I began to paint again after many, many years of setting this aside. I had cancer and needed some creativity other than writing prose and poetry. What I found was the same connection to Beauty Himself in the pursuit of art, which can be all-consuming, all attention being needed for at least a period of time. The pursuit of Beauty is lost in our world. Art has become political or cultural statement art. It reveals the ugly and the individualistic, rather than the sublime. A young woman being interviewed a few years ago at the Toronto Art Expo stated that all art was based on how an individual felt on a certain day and expressed that individual feeling. Yuck, stuff and nonsense. She said that, and I wish I were making this up, if she took mud and smeared in on a board, that was art.

No, dear, it is not. Art has rules and is a discipline. It has order. Mimesis, the imitation of the great work of the Creator, God Himself, who gives us this gift, has Order, the Order of the Universe. And, this Order is Love. Like Julian of Norwich's who saw all creation cared for by God and sustained by God, God is the Center of all that is, and He invites us into that creativity, by the fact that we are made in His Image and Likeness.

And in þis he shewed me a lytil thyng þe quantite of a hasyl nott. lyeng in þe pawme of my hand as it had semed. and it was as rownde as eny ball. I loked þer upon wt þe eye of my vnderstondyng. and I þought what may þis be. and it was answered generally thus. It is all þat is made. I merueled howe it myght laste. for me þought it myght sodenly haue fall to nought for lytyllhed. & I was answered in my vnderstondyng. It lastyth & euer shall for god louyth it. and so hath all thyng his begynning by þe loue of god. In this lytyll thyng I sawe thre propertees. The fyrst is. þt god made it. þe secunde is þet god louyth it. & þe þrid is. þat god kepith it.

I believe it is the duty of the Catholic to reintroduce Beauty to the world before it is lost forever to barbarism. Of course, the most beautiful thing in the world is the Tridentine Mass. There is a start in the re-education of men and women to the sensibility of the acceptance of Beauty Himself. We only need to fall in love with Love Himself to perceive the Beauty which is around us. And, the Tridentine Mass opens our hearts and our minds to this Beauty.

Late have I loved you, O Beauty ever ancient, ever new, late have I loved you!  You were within me, but I was outside, and it was there that I searched for you.  In my unloveliness I plunged into the lovely things which you created.  You were with me, but I was not with you.  Created things kept me from you; yet if they had not been in you they would not have been at all.  You called, you shouted, and you broke through my deafness.  You flashed, you shone, and you dispelled my blindness.  You breathed your fragrance on me; I drew in breath and now I pant for you.  I have tasted you, now I hunger and thirst for more.  You touched me, and I burned for your peace.

                      St. Augustine, The Confessions

A Counter-Terrorist Named Barbie

Now, a disclaimer. I never played with Barbie and her friends. I had twenty-two dolls, (I was the only girl), and I duly baptized them all with the tap water, (and, I must admit, with holy water), and named them such late 1950s names as Cynthia, Daphne, MaryRose, Katy-Jane, Kimberley, Karen, Donna, and so on, unless they had names, like Shirley Temple, and my pre-Disney story-book dolls, Snow White, Rose Red, Sleeping Beauty, etc.

Barbie was not my thing. However, Barbie may become the iconic counter-terrorist for this site. Again, according to the keen Robert Spencer, she has been banned in Tehran. This is at least the second time Barbie has been made into an infidel doll. I can understand her appeal to very young ladies--the fake American dream of too-perfect figure, blond hair and trendy clothes-- the princess doll syndrome.

However, it is too much that Barbie is again labelled as a symbol of Western decadence. Well, maybe, in a strange way, she is, but I know lovely women in convents, traditional Catholic women, who were not as counter-cultural at the age of eight as I was, who loved their Barbies. Sigh, the only thing I really wanted for MaryRose and Karen was the pink vintage Barbie Austin Healey, but my dolls, all baptized and full of doll grace, would probably have not wanted to be caught dead in a Barbie car....

Daphne was rescued by one of my brothers from a pretend high-rise fire on my dad's recliner by a very large metal firetruck. She rode away perched on top of the ladder as my brother saved her, but that is not quite the same thing as moving in style in a pink vintage Austin Healey. Maybe this is what Tehran fears...women driving sports cars.

St. Anthony Abbot, pray for the Christians in Egypt

We know that the term "sectarian violence", when used to lie about the persecution of Christians by certain non-Christian religions, is the politically correct term used by the media. This ugly lie hides the massacre of men, women and children going to or leaving Sunday Mass, standing in front of their humble houses, or walking to work. Today is the feast of the great St. Anthony, Abbot, the Father of Monasticism. He was called into Egypt by the Holy Spirit, followed by men and women who wanted not only to dedicate their lives to the Almighty Triune God, but to renew the culture through prayer and good works. His native language was Coptic. May he intercede for us all, now and especially our brothers and sisters in the Coptic Church.

APOSTOLICAM ACTUOSITATEM and the dumbing down of lay expectations

Decree on the Apostolate of the Laity  click here

On another blog, there is a discussion on the laity. Fr. Blake has started an important conversation about those who know the Faith and those who perhaps do not. I have a great memory of the document on the laity which came out in 1965 and challenged an entire generation of us youth to look at ourselves in a new and exciting manner. Pope Paul VI taught us lay people not only our responsibilities in the Church, but challenged us to meet those, not as clericized lay people, but as people who are to bring the Gospel into the world. I have written on this earlier here on this blog and in the past. The laity of 2012 in too many places have accepted no responsibility for their own growth in the Faith and have not grown up to take ownership of their own consciences.

To blame priests, or bishops for not leading is a lame excuse for not being a saint. See my post almost two weeks ago on this point. What has arisen on Fr. Blake's blog is the question of maybe a two-tiered Church, of those who know or are in the know and those who are not.

We have only ourselves to blame for a lack of knowledge. And the document clearly sets forth the idea that we all have different talents to use within the Church, which we know from St. Paul's great letter, First Corinthians, Chapter 12. The problem is not a recognition of gifts, but an acceptance of responsibility.

Look at one of the sections of this document, which I studied in high school and college, and which my parents studied in an adult faith formation group in their parish in the middle to late 1960s.


Since Christ, sent by the Father, is the source and origin of the whole apostolate of the Church, the success of the lay apostolate depends upon the laity's living union with Christ, in keeping with the Lord's words, "He who abides in me, and I in him, bears much fruit, for without me you can do nothing" (John 15:5). This life of intimate union with Christ in the Church is nourished by spiritual aids which are common to all the faithful, especially active participation in the sacred liturgy.(5) These are to be used by the laity in such a way that while correctly fulfilling their secular duties in the ordinary conditions of life, they do not separate union with Christ from their life but rather performing their work according to God's will they grow in that union. In this way the laity must make progress in holiness in a happy and ready spirit, trying prudently and patiently to overcome difficulties.(6) Neither family concerns nor other secular affairs should be irrelevant to their spiritual life, in keeping with the words of the Apostle, "What-ever you do in word or work, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, giving thanks to God the Father through Him" (Col. 3:17).
Such a life requires a continual exercise of faith, hope, and charity. Only by the light of faith and by meditation on the word of God can one always and everywhere recognize God in Whom "we live, and move, and have our being" ( Acts 17:28), seek His will in every event, see Christ in everyone whether he be a relative or a stranger, and make correct judgments about the true meaning and value of temporal things both in themselves and in their relation to man's final goal.


Read the entire link above, as this is a great motivational document. Now, what happened? How is it that this clarion call was not heeded except by a few?

I blame the same educational dumbing down which happened in all the schools as connected to this phenomenon of the laity not taking responsibility for learning the Faith and acting out that Faith in the market place. When expectations for learning were destroyed by a false egalitarianism, when no one was allowed to be better than anyone else in the classroom, when mediocrity won the day (my famous story of all the kindergarten children-all-getting awards on award day so that no one would feel left out), when the kids' baseball team stopped having try-outs, when tracking in schools was stopped so that no one would be hurt by being in the lower tracks, and so on, the laity got used to being lazy about the Faith. The message of one of my favorite plays which I used to teach, Amadeus, is that mediocrity wins over excellence in these times. The Salieris have killed the Mozarts.

As a teacher and a lay person I can say that the most rewarding times I have had in catechesis have been when I have taught the Mystagogia, or Mystagogy classes after the RCIA first or second year, which were absolutely not required but attended by those who wanted to grow in the Faith. What a fantastic experience it was to teach those who wanted to learn more about the Mysteries of the Faith. All the laity should want to do this, and it was free!

So, why are people "too busy", "too tired", "too stressed" to take advantage of Adult Faith Formation when offered? Is it offered everywhere? As I have noted elsewhere, Bishop Finn in the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph has a wonderful program. This type of thing could be happening everywhere.

One of the problems is the emphasis by some on experiential religion alone. We are in an Age of Anti-Intellectualism, see below again....I personally blame the over-emphasis on feeling (see Picard below) and the seeking of comforts from God-wanting the lollipops and not the meat. St. Paul in the same epistle mentioned above states that he wants to give meat to the people but they can only take milk and milk is baby food. Adult Catholics must decide to start eating meat and give up the bottle. This is our responsibility and not the priest's. If there is a two-tiered system of Catholics, we have only ourselves to blame.

Wow, from Rorate Caeli today--direct quote and see side link

For the first time in decades, a cerimoniere pontificio - Monsignor Marco Agostini, an official in the State Secretariat who has also been since June 2009 in the staff of the Office for the Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff, headed by Mgr. Guido Marini - celebrated the Traditional Mass publicly. It took place yesterday in the Personal Parish of Santissima Trinità dei Pellegrini, the parish entrusted to the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter (FSSP) in the Diocese of Rome.

[Source & tip: Osservatore Vaticano blog]

An Unusual, Controversial Catholic Subject-Celibacy in Marriage

Now, I am not married, but I live a celibate life-style. However, I have an increasing number of friends, traditional Catholics, who have opted for celibacy in their marriages. This is not a new ideal in the Church, and although Christ wants most married couples to be fruitful and multiply, that is, to have the wonderful children God desires them to have, there have been and are couples, who for the sake of the kingdom, have chosen a different way. Of course, the norm, having children as God gives, creates saints, such as Blessed Louis and  Blessed Zelie Martin, Blessed Karl and Empress Zita, SS. Joachim and Anna, SS. Isidore and Maria (who vowed abstinence later in their marriage), and so on. This is not an exhaustive list.

However, the emphasis on celibacy should be rare, but seen as a call within a call. I also think there has to be good reason for not having children. The grand example are two of my favorite Catholics, Jacques and Raissa Maritain, who on the Isle of Wight, as Benedictine Oblates, took a vow of celibacy "for the sake of the Kingdom". Raissa writes in her diary, which I practically have memorized, that it was difficult for her, but she could see that Jacques was called to be in the world and she was his prayer backup, companion in holiness, and confidant, as well as best-friend. They shared philosophy, theology, and the dedication to bringing the Gospel into the workplace in the extreme. God called them to this.

I first met celibate married couples about twenty-five years ago. The first couple I met were in their forties and had a close relationship with the Church and the priest who was the pastor. They were very active in the Church, but did not have normal marital relations. They had chosen that way and had married later in life. The man had been in the Jesuit seminary for years, but left, as he did not think he had a priestly vocation. He found a wife who would support him in his spiritual walk. The second couple I met were in their early sixties. They had decided that past child-bearing age, they would make a celibate commitment. Since then, I have met another couple who have decided the same thing. Their "extra" time is spent in good works, praying and fasting. Obviously, these couples have spiritual directors. This call within a call is, also, obviously, by mutual consent.

Those with a worldly mindset and even some good Catholics may find this call repelling or unnatural. I would say that this call is rare, but not unnatural. I think that those who decide to live in the world, or are called so by God to remain among the laity, can exhibit a variety of calls "for the sake of the Kingdom". And, to be in a relationship which is celibate may be a sign of contradiction to the world as well as giving two people the necessary, daily support a brother and sister in Christ may give to each other. Intimacy has many faces, and the physical side of intimacy is only one aspect of relationship. I have written this to support my friends who have chosen this way and to encourage those who feel the need for companionship without sex to be comforted in that they are not alone. We are all called to be saints, and there are many ways, in Christ, through Mary, to be saints.

In addition, God did not intend people to live all alone. The fact that there are so many single, lonely individuals needs to be addressed by the Church. Those who for whatever reason cannot be a priest or nun or sister, have some options, but loneliness should not be the norm. Church communities have failed, especially in America, to support their singles. Many Catholics are singles for many reasons. There exists a judgmental attitude, which excludes those singles from the larger interaction in the Church. And, for those who desire celibacy in the world, that is an option, but it does not have to equal loneliness. I am very fortunate, as I do not experience the gnawing type of loneliness some do. I may miss my dear friends when apart from them, but that is different than the vague experience of loneliness many feel. We all need to reach out to those who feel this need, pray for them, and include them in our busy lives. To do otherwise is not to be Christian.

Among new friends in Dublin...

archived photo of St. Kevin's

I spent a lovely morning at the Tridentine Mass at St. Kevin's in Dublin and then had coffee and such with some of the regular traddies. What a warm and friendly group this is, and I would recommend anyone in the area to check out the beautiful Mass and community there. The conversation over coffee at the hotel coffee shop shifted from politics (and as an Iowan I can match any Dubliner talking politics), to the Latin Mass, to Modernist heresies, to Freemasonry, to the lack of catechesis among adults, to the beauty of Shakespeare. I was in traddie heaven. Sadly, I shall not be able to go for a long time, as the buses do not connect from my village that early and my ride was a one-off. However, one is comforted by the fact that there are wonderful, educated (mostly self-educated), happy, traditional Catholics scattered throughout Europe. I also was "in" a much smaller, but equally good-willed, happy, educated and dedicated group in Malta, but there, without the regular Mass, which here is offered at this exquisite church daily. Plus, the choir was "heavenly". And, the sermon superb (about real marriage, the brave priest mentioning that same-sex unions were not marriages-yippie) and the congregation well-trained in responses and customary rubrics. Sigh, wish I could go every day to such a Mass, or even a low TLM. Join me in prayer, please, that I could be part of a parish like this for the rest of my life...traddie heaven.

Narcissism and the Costa Concordia

Men did not make room for women and children  Click here for eyewitness report.

Check this out. Chivalry is dead. Some of us have known this for a long time. Men did not make room for women and children.

Men are no longer men, but boys. This is the triumph of narcissism. It does not matter whether they were fathers not wanting to leave their wives and children. Sacrifice is asked of the mature and the brave. The West is dead...if chivalry and sacrifice are no longer automatic responses to crises.

Illiteracy and religion, plus one of my favorite books

I have been doing a mini-study for an article on illiteracy in 2012. I noticed something very interesting...Note the countries with the lowest literacy rates in the world and, you tell me what they have in common? Does Christianity help education and one's standard of living? Good Socratic Method involves asking questions. Data is from the CIA World Factbook.

1 Niger 84.3%

2 Burkina Faso 77.%

3 Afghanistan 63.7%

4 Sierra Leone 63.7%

5 Gambia 63.5%

6 Guinea-Bissau 62.7%

7 Senegal 62.7%

8 Benin 62.5%

9 Ethiopia 61.3%

10 Mauritania 60.1%

The following book should be read by every Catholic educator and all homeschooling moms and dads.

This book, along with the ideas of Maria Montessori, literally, changed my life.

I could not have said it better; thanks Mr. Voris, for the charity and clarity. Pray.

Do we know longer believe in
tough love, that is, love which is real it based on Truth and not on feel-good nicety-nicety? Pray for the bishops, priests, seminarians that they all follow the Teaching of the Holy Catholic Church.

More power to POTUS? I am Spartacus...

Is Congress going to give Obama more power?   Where is the rebellion?

Link above. This is scary. Why give POTUS more power for anything before Congress knows exactly what he is going to do with it?

Have we become completely lost to a historical perspective? This is how tyrants of old, even in the 20th Century, gained power, by seeming to be streamlining bureaucracy, but in reality, creating a top-heavy system. The Constitution limits the power of the president and that political philosophy should remain strong and clear and in place. Americans impatient for change only have to vote accordingly in November.

New, not so revolutionary or reactionary, order at Maynooth

St. Patrick's College, Maynooth has a few new items of order which will help the seminarians have an identity separate from the rest of the college. Now, I taught in a seminary which was in the middle of nowhere in the United States, which many, but not all, are. This move to help the sems have their own space and create more of a community among themselves is a good thing. One wonders why it was not more obvious until now. Here is the rest of the story: Changes

Outgoing Ambassador Makes Statement RE: Ireland's Lack of Presence in Rome

Ambassador Tim Fischer noted in the press today here in Ireland that the lack of a diplomat in Rome is a problem. Here is part of his statement: "The Vatican is not entirely a closed shop, but you have to know where to look, which conferences to attend, which contacts to pursue.  And if you’re only flying in for four times a year from Dublin or from the Hague or from Geneva, then that becomes very difficult to do in a comprehensive and professional way,” he explained in an interview with CNA.

He added that, being so close to the Vatican allows governments to tap into an unparalleled diplomatic network. "

“It is the oldest organisation in the world, and it does have a huge network,” he said.  In fact, “as recently as the Balkans War, some of the best information as to what was really happening on the ground was not held by the CIA or the KGB but, in fact, right here in Rome by the Holy See.”

Rest of article here

As most know, the Irish government pulled its Embassy staff from Rome last year. Fischer also stated that is was the opinion of most diplomatic staffs that the Irish move was political and not budgetary. Are we surprised?

The Hammer of the Heretics

Today is the Feast of St. Hilary, Doctor of the Church, and Hammer of the Heretics. He was not afraid to excommunicate the Arians, possibly the largest group of heretics, until modern times, who were publicly against him and the Church.. He was, for four years, exiled  by the Arian supporters in the government. Not only did he write doctrinal treatises, but apologetics against the Arians. He encouraged the setting up of at least one monastery by Martin of Tours, whom he baptized (picture), and, although none of his works are extant, wrote Latin hymns for liturgical use.

Hmmm...where are the Hammers of the Heretics? We have a few.

What people forget is that heretics are in the Church, not outside it. Heretics are Catholics who are not in obedience to Rome on a subject, such as those errors leading to liturgical abuse. We have developed in the Church a laxity toward heresy to the point where it is hardly noticed in some places. This laxity has come from poor catechesis and an emphasis on the experiential rather than the doctrinal. St. Hilary would be working hard writing and preaching today against Modernism and liturgical abuses.

I always liked this day as it was the traditional starting of the new term-at Oxford and at Dublin. Hilary's Term was based on an earlier legal system from England, the courts running from January to April. January is a special month in my family, as four of us have birthdays and my parent's have their anniversary in this month. St. Hilary's Day adds to the festive character of January.

St. Hilary, send us new and strong bishops to lead our Church in these heretical times. Here is a selection from the TLM reading from Timothy:

..preach the word: be instant in season , out of season: reprove, entreat, rebuke in all patience and doctrine. For there shall be a time when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires they will heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears, and will indeed turn away from hearing the truth, but will be turned unto fables.

Homeland Security and You and Me

Big Brother

See the above link to Drudge Report and an article from The Atlantic Wire.

Not only is this a waste of taxpayers' money, but an invasion of privacy never seen before on this scale. Isn't one of the symptoms of Narcissism paranoia?