EXPELLED! in Kansas City/Lawrence/St. Joseph

The movie, Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed, will be showing in the Greater Kansas City area and surrounding towns beginning on Friday, April l8, 2007. Lent is over and this is is an important movie to see at these local theaters:

• Southwind in Lawrence
• Cinemark 20 in Merriam
• Pallazzo 16 in Overland Park
• Westglen 18 in Shawnee
• Studio 30 in Olathe
• Town Center 20 in Leawood
• Independence 20 in Independence
• Eastglen 16 in Lee's Summit
• Barrywoods 24 in Kansas City (north side)
  
• Northglen 14 in Kansas City
• Liberty 12 in Liberty
• Hollywood 10 in St. Joseph

A related announcement:

On the occasion of the release – April 18 - of the Ben Stein movie: Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed, The Intelligent Design Network is presenting a conference: Darwin, Design, & Democracy VII: Banning Intelligence from Science. The Conference starts at 9 AM on Saturday, April 19, at the Colonial Conference Center, 135 and Rosehill Road, in Overland Park. The admission price is either a ticket stub from an April 18 showing of Expelled, or else the cost of a ticket (to see the movie at 7 PM. Jack Cashill will emcee.

For more information, see the Intelligent Design Network. This promises to be a very worthwhile event!

One of our sons commented very well on the basis for the belief in non-intelligent design--atheism.

About 10-15 years ago I realized that belief in atheism was truly a 'belief', a faith. At that time, I began to tell any atheists that I met that I had great respect for their faith, since so much more of it was required to believe as they do, compared to what I believe. That really can spawn the discussion!

But it is so true, and so easy to explain. If you don't want to believe in God, you have to create an absolutely ridiculous belief system to have an alternative. Evolution is just one of many parts of the atheistic system of beliefs.

And, as it is truly a belief, one held close to the very core of a person's spriritual center, it will be fanatically guarded and defended from any 'attack'. It sounds like this is what that movie is about.

Theism and atheism beliefs are selected by persons, not because of what they know or have discerned, but because of what they desire. If they do not desire to be submissive to a God, if they instead want to be God, the center of the universe, they will latch onto atheism. It is the ultimate selfishness.

Church must be Confiscated

The Topeka Capitol-Journal reports that U.S. District Court Judge Richard D. Bennett has placed a lien on the Westboro Baptist church of minister Fred Phelps, Sr. The lien is a preliminary step to sell the Topeka church, with the proceeds being applied toward $5 million in damages Judge Bennett imposed on church members for picketing a military funeral.

The $5 million penalty is the result of a lawsuit filed against three of the church's principals by Albert Snyder, the father of Marine Lance Cpl. Matthew A. Snyder, whose funeral was picketed by church members.

The senior Snyder contended the picketing caused emotional distress and invasion of privacy.

Westboro Baptist members regularly picket funerals of members of the U.S. armed forces, contending the deaths are God's punishment for the country's support of homosexuals.

Ladies and Gentlemen, regardless of what you think about Fred Phelps, you ought to be terribly concerned about the government taking over any church because of the actions of its pastor and members.

Much Better than We Know....

The two Bishops of the Greater Kansas City Area are Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann and Bishop Robert W. Finn, who are moving firmly forward to restore the Church. They will likely be judged in history as outstanding Catholic Bishops--much better than we now know or deserve.

I was particularly impressed by Bishop Finn's remarks given at the Acton Conference on Catholic Education on February 4, 2008. He starts out with:

I believe that our schools have to be so undeniably and unabashedly Catholic that they risk being thought of as almost fanatical. Lukewarm will not be enough.... It is not enough for Catholic schools to offer an occasional all school Mass, two penance services a year, Religion three times a week, and a requirement for Confirmation students to do a service project. It is not enough.

Bishop Finn's presentations can be found here and here.

The weekly letters of Archbishop Naumann also are very good and are published in The Leaven newspaper (which still leaves some things to be desired, although it has gotten better). For example, Archbishop Naumann's letter of March 21, 2007 asks and answers the critical question on suffering "Why do bad things happen to good people?"

All human suffering is in some way the fruit of man's rebellion against God. Sometimes we can see a direct correlation between sin and the suffering it creates in one's own life... My own father was the victim of murder almost 60 years ago. He was in no way responsible for the evil inflicted upon him by his attacker. Nor did my mother have any responsibility for this crime that made her a young widow with the responsibility of raising two young children by herself.

Archbishop Naumann's podcasts of selected talks are found here.

Audio Sancto

What has been the most visible sign of decay in the modern Catholic Church of the past 40 years? The way the priests and nuns dress? Missing religious elements, such as genuflections, Benedictions, certain prayers? What would you say?

My own answer is bad sermons--either poorly prepared, lacking substance, and/or bordering (or crossing the border of) heresy. In the late 50's and early 60's, priests became so busy and distracted and influenced by Modernism that they didn't prepare and preach good sermons. In contrast, the secular media became very good at preaching their religions of secularism, hedonism, and paganism.

Many Protestant pastors continued to prepare and research their sermons--often ones that did not contradict Church truths. I've encountered a number of people who left the Catholic Church because they said they saw more signs of Christ in a Protestant evangelical church. Why did they say this? I believe primarily because of the clear differences in SERMONS!

The days of great Catholic sermons given by the likes of the Cure of Ars, Cardinal Newman, and Archbishop Sheen are not over! A local website, Audio Sancto, publishes great sermons--of the current time! The priests who give the sermons insist on remaining unidentified because they have other primary religious duties. See here.

Listen to a couple of minutes from different sermons to select one or two to download to your Ipod. I suggest you first listen to "Blackfeet Indians and the Black Robes" (part 1 and part 2). To download, rather than play, a sermon, it is necessary to set your browser options to 'save' an .mp3 audio file to your computer Desktop.

Once you have downloaded selected sermons to your desktop, move them to your Ipod or a CD for playing in your car. We waste so much time in cars listening to venal things--instead, listen to these great sermons to invigorate your spiritual life.

Please Congratulate this New Catholic!

YOU must read John C. Wright's Journal to appreciate his and Mark Shea's comments on John becoming a new Catholic! Wright is always hilarious, witty, and delicious as he takes St. Michael's spears of truth to penetrate the hides of the opponents of God and His Church.

Please, please don't forget to log in to Wright's blog and congratulate the newly baptized "John Justin-Martyr Charles Wright".

China's Increasing Christians

Hu Jintao [the engineer] has been reelected Chinese President and also Chairman of the Central Military Commission. I often watch the English language Communist China TV station, and alternatively feel mildly optimistic or somewhat pessimistic about the future of that country. What intrigues me is that China now calls for the advancement of "socialism with Chinese characteristics."--a strange dragon if I've ever seen one. Zenit just published a comprehensive picture of China.

The truth is that China definitely seems to be embracing their ancient heritage and history. The Chinese TV network constantly covers anything in their country that recounts or emphasizes their old traditions and culture.

Today is a day for some optimism due to the March 18, 2008 report by the Wall Street Journal.

Christianity of the unofficial kind is winning Chinese converts in huge numbers. Not only that, it's winning them among every class of Chinese: farmers, urban migrant workers, professionals and intellectuals.

What is the appeal of Christianity to so many Chinese -- or, for that matter, of Buddhism, Taoism, Islam, the old-time peasant religions and the newfangled Falun Gong? In "smashing" organized religion, Mao Zedong also destroyed the traditional institutions of charity and social support that used to provide succor to the lonely and the needy. Now that succor is desperately in demand, and the churches are there to meet it.

The party also helped destroy traditional morality in the name of an ideology it has itself largely abandoned. To a degree that alarms even Chinese rulers, morality and ideology have been replaced by corruption, opportunism and widespread indifference to life's ordinary decencies. Religion offers a corrective to this, too, as it does to the quandaries of 21st century existence.

...Just as remarkable is how all this is slipping beyond Beijing's grip. The repression of Tibetan Buddhists and the Falun Gong has been severe, mainly because both dared to challenge the Party directly. Most Christians pose no such obvious challenge, particularly Protestants who belong to no formal organization, have no connections to outsiders, and do not openly question government policy. Some party leaders even see Christians as model citizens, patriotic even if they are not members of a "patriotic association."

Yet precisely because the party's captains and engineers tend to assess threats and opportunities in purely utilitarian terms, they tend to miss the real threat that a religious revival poses to their power. As French essayist Guy Sorman notes in his brilliant book "Empire of Lies," religion operates "in the realm of beliefs and conscience, where the party has no control." Mr. Sorman, who spent the year of the rooster (2005) traveling the length and breadth of China, recalls that one religious uprising, the 19th-century Taiping rebellion, destabilized the Manchu Dynasty, which in turn was succeeded by the Republic of Sun Yat-Sen, a Christian.

Might the same happen again in China?

I'll be even more optimistic when the Hammer and Sickle Red Flag of China is replaced with a flag showing a beautiful Chinese peony. Better yet, a cross!

Bella and the Second Crucifix

Here's a short story I put on the Collegium Scriptorum Catholicae, a site devoted to encouragement of science fiction and fantasy writing by Traditional Catholics attached to the Latin Mass. Bella and the Second Crucifix is meant to be the first chapter of Adventures in Heaven that will utilize some ideas on Heaven from a previous post.

Bella and the Second Crucifix
Bella talked to Michael who talked to Mary who talked to her Son. Somehow they decided I should write the story of my life. Bella is the best place to start.

Bella is the one I continue to thank. She was the only one who always loved and didn’t criticize. Of course, I always deserved criticism and punishment and I got it in every way possible. My parents, teachers, jailers, and everyone else were all at fault, or so I thought so at the time.

The first time I saw Bella was when I stole her from the pet shop, one of my many crimes, but probably the least of them. She still has the body of a Shih Tzu, but now her intelligence and goodness are so much clearer.

My companions and I loved dog fighting because of it being a blood sport. I stole Bella because I wanted a little dog to let loose inside a pen of fighting pit bulls. The dogs fight much better with an early kill. The bloody tearing apart of live animal flesh never ceased to release the rage inside me.

But sitting on the seat beside me in the car was a little Shih Tzu with an inquisitive face. Her eyes watched me intently and I had a hard time looking at the road to drive. It wasn’t until the accident that I began to appreciate her. She suddenly barked and then I saw the truck. As the 18-wheeler grazed me, I was certain that the little dog had tried to warn me. ME--A lousy, dumb, hating jackass of a criminal who planned to kill her!

My way of life was hard, very hard. I hated everyone and everthing because I had lost all faith, hope, and charity. Get mine first, last, and foremost was my motto. No virtues grew in me—I couldn’t be honest, tell the truth or help a person or work hard if my life depended on it. Of course, I paid all the penalties—mental, social, health, and even was jailed for almost 15 years.

That was when I really became bad. When I got out, I found that dog fighting offered a good substitute for knocking people around. That’s when I found Bella, or better yet, she found me. God let her live for only 8 months with me, until I was shot in an attempted robbery of a rival dealer.

I cried out in pain and Bella was there and put her small furry body next to me. The bleeding wouldn’t stop and the dog’s warmth made me feel just how cold I was becoming. At first, the dog’s barking annoyed me. Why is she barking? Does she know I’m dying?

The barking attracted no curiosity seekers, because the neighborhood was dangerous and shots had been fired. No one wanted to come and help, and I was angry, afraid, and hopeless. My dog suddenly jumped away to bark in the middle of the street. The approaching car hesitated, then stopped. A young man with a heavy black beard got out and saw how bad I was.

He asked if I had been baptized, and I said that my Aunt Bea had once told me she had baptized me when I was a kid and she thought I was choking to death. I should have died then and not caused nearly so much evil.

The man asked if I wanted to go to heaven. I replied, “What’s the use? Not even Satan wants me.” I started to laugh, but the blood rose in my throat so that I began to choke.

Bella stood quietly beside the man. She seemed to be looking at him, even imploring him. The man looked at me with solemn and sad eyes and asked, “Do you feel betrayed by the world? Even by Satan?”

“Yes, by everyone.” All except Bella.

“The man pulled small two crucifixes from his pocket. Both were hooked to a chain. I had never seen two different kinds of crucifixes before, although I had once grabbed one off a wall to throw at my Mother when she was drunk.

“Hold onto this one,” said the man, “It’s helped me many times.” And he began to pray while holding the other crucifix. “You have the cross of St. Dismas, son. Do you know who he was?”

I swore, “Never even heard of the name!” Then begged, “Get me a doctor!”

“I don’t think a doctor is going to help you, my friend,” said the man. And I knew it was true because my bloody choking became worse.

The man continued to talk, and I heard the short story of the crucified St. Dismas as he hung on the cross besides Jesus, “Lord, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” Then came the softly spoken words of the dying Jesus, “This day you shall be with me in Paradise.”

The black man continued to kneel and pray for me. Prayed for me—the baddest guy in the entire world. But the second crucifix wouldn’t let go of my hand. Bella licked my hand and then the Dismas crucifix. What a cruel joke for God to promise such an undeserved reward for such a terrible life.

“I can’t believe,” I said between bloody gasps.

“Your dog loves you, doesn’t she?” asked the man. “Isn’t God greater than your dog?”

Bella looked sorrowful, as if mourning my passing. I thought, How can I live without her sleeping at the foot of my bed, and creeping up slowly in the night to put her head next to my arm.

“Don’t give up, friend. If the dog can see a little good in you, so can God. Aren’t you sorry for the way you’ve lived?”

Remorse covered my soul in grief, as I realized God's love. I cried out with the foreign words of my grandmother, “Ntra. Sra del Perpetuo Socorro.”

I died, and saw the terrible Light of the Transfiguration. Everyone who dies—the good, the unrepentant, and the repentant—sees the Light of God’s presence. Unrepentant sinners see the Light to know what they will miss in Hell. The tremendous regret at not being able to continue to enjoy the Beatific Vision is the worst punishment of all. Through Hell’s Gate, I saw the red fires and smelled the awful stench.

I was so ashamed when I saw the Light, I cast myself down to Purgatory. Painful and long suffering was my lot. The blue fire held me tightly in its grasp, but I actually felt being cleansed, like burning soot off a pan or oven. And I had hope—no more despair. I knew I was going Home someday!

That’s how I got to Heaven—in the very bottom place. And that’s the reason the angel Bella talked to Mary to ask her Son, Jesus, to allow this story to be told. I know God intends to share this story, and I am writing it to please him. In His great and glorious mercy, He has told all of us that He will allow this single story to be told to the remaining Christians so that they do not lose heart in this worst and last time on earth.

Global Warming Meeting

Thank God that scientists and other researchers are beginning to challenge the deceits associated with Global Warming. Especially give credit to the Heartland Institute that organized the 2008 International Conference on Climate Change held on March 2-4 in New York City.

More than 500 people attended, and 100 speakers delivered keynote addresses or participated in panel discussions. Addresses by the Hon. Vaclav Klaus, president of the Czech Republic, John Stossel of ABC News, and leading scientists received thundering standing ovations from a capacity audience. Press coverage was extensive...

The keynote speech by Joseph Bast is here. He notes that the conference addresses four questions overlooked by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change:

• how reliable are the data used to document the recent warming trend?

• how much of the modern warming is natural, and how much is likely the result of human activities?

• how reliable are the computer models used to forecast future climate conditions? and

• is reducing emissions the best or only response to possible climate change?

I recently wrote a post of why I think 'Global Warming' is mostly scientific crackpot. Now the founder of the Weather Channel is proposing to sue Al Gore over "Global Warming."

John Coleman, who founded the cable network in 1982, suggests suing for fraud proponents of global warming, including Al Gore, and companies that sell carbon credits.

"Is he committing financial fraud? That is the question," Coleman said.

"Since we can't get a debate, I thought perhaps if we had a legal challenge and went into a court of law, where it was our scientists and their scientists, and all the legal proceedings with the discovery and all their documents from both sides and scientific testimony from both sides, we could finally get a good solid debate on the issue," Coleman said. "I'm confident that the advocates of 'no significant effect from carbon dioxide' would win the case."

False Gods and Nuclear Power

Several weeks ago on a beautiful winter day, I stopped to take photos of the LaCygne fossil fuel power plant located about 50 miles south of Kansas City. You can't see it in this photo which shows mostly steam, but the two stacks visibly release a continuous stream of hazardous particles that spread out downwind in long clouds that sometimes stretch to the horizon.

Interestingly, the Wolf Creek nuclear power plant about 90 miles southwest of Kansas City and the Callaway nuclear plant 100 miles west of St. Louis are much cleaner facilities. They don't burn coal or oil to release either hazardous particles or dangerous gases. Moreover, both plants use U.S.-produced uranium that costs less than 1/4 that of fossil fuels.

I have supported nuclear power for over 40 years--ever since hearing Dr. Petr Beckmann, professor emeritus at Colorado University, speak of the many advantages of clean nuclear power. Beckmann was a well-known engineer/mathematician who wrote several good books, including "A History of Pi" (still being published long after his death), and "Health Hazards of Not Going Nuclear."

Dr. Beckmann told the story of how a god appeared in Washington, D.C. in the late 19th century asking our country to make a deal in exchange for sacrificial bodies of humans. The god promised to give the U.S. a great gift if it would give 40,000 human lives to him each year. The spectacular and miraculous gift would help people live better lives, move about much more freely, bring distant families closer together, enlarge the number of jobs, build up the nation, etc.--a wealth of benefits. Most certainly if the nation had been permitted to vote, the god's proposal would clearly have been rejected.

Beckman pointed out the gift was the automobile, and the sacrificial gift is the over 40,000 lives lost each year due to auto accidents in the U.S. [According to the World Health Organization about 3,000 people die in crashes each day worldwide.] We know that automobiles cause many accidents but we choose to drive anyway--KNOWING AND ACCEPTING the comparative risks and rewards.

It's much the same with risks of nuclear power as compared to fossil fuel power. We choose to continue to live with fossil-fueled generating stations that cause almost 1,000 premature deaths a year in the U.S. due to people inhaling hazardous emissions. Most people seem not to acknowledge this fact and that coal ash is more radioactive than nuclear waste.

Huh! Did I just say coal ash is more radioactive than nuclear waste? How so? Take at look at this recent Scientific American article to understand why fly ash—a by-product from burning coal for power—contains up to 100 times more radiation than nuclear waste.

BTW, what happens to radioactive fly ash after it is removed? Construction and non-construction industries both use fly ash (e.g., concrete), but most fly ash from coal fired power stations is disposed of as a dilute or dense slurry in evaporative ponds, to be later buried with soil. Here's one typical illustration of current disposal of radioactive and hazardous fly ash.

Currently, there are 103 operating commercial nuclear reactors producing electricity in the United States located at 64 sites in 31 states. Unfortunately, no new nuclear reactor in the U.S. has been ordered since 1978, even though no direct deaths are attributable to accidents releasing radioactivity at nuclear power plants in the U.S. during the past 40 years.

In comparison, many other countries in the world have built and continue to construct many new nuclear plants, including Japan. What? Japan should hate nuclear power because they were the only nation that has been nuclear bombed. But here are descriptions of Japan's 53 operating nuclear power plants, including the new nuclear facilities now being constructed.

The Three Mile Island and Chernobyl nuclear accidents were caused by faulty designs, operation, and maintenance. Did you know that Chernobyl Unit IV, during its short life of 27 months, saved more lives from coal pollution than it took by radiation (or will take in the future, for coal has delayed deaths, too). See here.

New nuclear power plants (if we would be smart enough to build them) are designed to prevent the possibility of any meltdown. A PBS documentary of about 7-10 years ago showed congressmen and other visitors becoming agitated as a demo plant funded by government research began to reach meltdown and all the warning sirens activated. But the fission process automatically stopped and nothing happened--because the new nuclear plant design is inherently safe.

Even former "super-environmentalists" such as Stewart Brand (creator of the Whole Earth Catalogue), Patrick Moore (former Greenpeace activist), Christine Todd Whitman (former EPA chief), and Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger now support the building of new nuclear plants because they recognize the futility of obtaining sufficient amounts of power from solar, wind, thermal, and other sources of energy. Only nuclear energy can meet the federal Energy Information Administration estimate of U.S. power requirements that are expected to climb 40 percent by 2030. Many environmentalists also are beginning to recognize that solar cell manufacturing releases really hazardous materials, wind turbines kill eagles and cause noise pollution, and other sources of 'natural' energy cause grave environmental problems exceeding that of nuclear energy.

Possible terrorism at nuclear power plants? Oh, yes, let's answer that one too. Take a look at an example of what Wolf Creek Nuclear Power Plant is doing to prevent such an occurrence. Kansas legislators must believe more nuclear power is necessary because they have enacted a 10-year tax break for any developer willing to invest in a new unit at Wolf Creek.

It's too bad that politicians listened to super-environmentalists rather than scientists and engineers for the past 30 years. Our country should have built at least three times as many nuclear plants as we now have. Compare our current 103 nuclear plants to the Atomic Energy Commission's prediction in 1959 of more than 1,000 U.S. nuclear plants by the turn of the century. If we had done what we should have done, we now would have no good reason to be in Iraq trying to insure a reliable supply of oil.

Pregnant Governor of Alaska

Radical Catholic Mom congratulates Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska who is pregnant with her fifth child at age 44. The Governor's office announces:

“Todd and I are five times blessed and couldn’t be happier,” Governor Palin said. “We look forward to welcoming our new addition in May.”

Gov. Palin's biography recently appeared in Alaska Magazine (my husband's favorite!). I found out that this very attractive woman with a lot of common sense (who is strongly pro-life) is being touted on a large number of sites and blogs as a premier vice-presidential candidate.

The Draft Palin for VP website reports the McCain-Palin button is outselling all other possible McCain-VP combinations. The Republican governor is enjoying one of the highest popularity ratings of any sitting state executive in the country--about 90 percent. No wonder Alaskans are beaming.

If you'd like to hear what she has to say, go here.

China--Optimism Superceded by Pessimism

"Many optimistic observers of China, often mollified by their close relations with the Communist regime, bet on a soft transition from despotism toward an open society, but recent events don’t support such a benign interpretation. Since the beginning of this year, repression of human rights activists, lawyers, and bloggers has been harsher than ever.

...Chen, a blind peasant and self-taught lawyer, had protested in 2005 against the kidnapping of some 3000 women in his hometown of Linyi. The women were sterilized or forced into having abortions in order to stabilize the population increase in the region. As this extreme violence violates Chinese law, Chen petitioned the central government – the only legally recognized form of protest in China. When carrying his petition to Beijing, escorted by a tiny group of lawyers, Chen was accused of disrupting traffic on the city’s clogged roads and condemned to four years in jail."

For more on the reality check on China and the 2008 Olympics, read this.

Unwed Mothers--Causes and Solutions

The National Center of Health Statistics has released preliminary 2006 statistics of births to unwed mothers in the U.S., and the news is hard to take because of its ruinous impact on our civilization.

The number of babies born to unwed mothers rose nearly 8 percent to a new record high in 2006 --a 20 percent increase since 2002. The percentage of all U.S. births to unmarried mothers increased from 36.9 percent in 2005 to 38.5 percent in 2006. That means almost two out of every five babies were born to illegitimate moms.

Compare this recent data to historical data with a minimal 3.5 percent of births to unwed mothers in the 1940s. By 1960, the figure had crept up to slightly more than 5 percent. As late as 1970, 89 percent of children were born to married women. But by the 1990s the numbers of children born to unwed mothers had dramatically jumped to the 32-33 per cent range. And the numbers increased to 38.5 percent of all births in 2006. Moreover, half of all births to unwed mothers were second and later children.

What caused the tragic growth in the number of babies conceived and born outside the bond of matrimony? I've looked high and low on the web to find a good scientific paper on the reasons for the dramatic increase and have yet to find one that adequately discusses the issues. So let this old granny take a crack at answering the question.

There are three major reasons that people avoid evil. First, if they believe in God, heaven, and hell, they either want to please Him and earn heaven, or at least want to avoid His wrath. Second, people don't err if they understand their peers will dislike them and disapprove of their bad actions. Third, most people won't do bad things if they know they will be punished by government policy or nature.

Sadly, the above reasons are all being violated in today's world. While most people say they believe in God, they reject God's punishment in hell. Go to any funeral and listen to the preacher or priest say the deceased is now in heaven. Belief in hell as taught by Jesus Christ has been abandoned, so people don't believe they will be punished for their sins. God is all good, they say, and he doesn't punish people. This belief contradicts traditional Christian teaching, "Mercy in this world, justice in the next."

The second reason deals with peer pressure. Most people avoid doing something that causes a friend, neighbor, or relative to look at them with disgust or irritation or disapproval. In parts of U.S. society today, families and friends expect and even approve of unwed motherhood, exactly the opposite of civilized societies which rightfully display indignation, shame, and sorrow over a baby that will not enjoy a lifetime of two parents.

What about government? What has it done to discourage unwed motherhood? For the past 40+ years, government has rewarded unwed motherhood with free money, free health benefits, free food, and other resources. No one seems to remember the old adage, "Actions that are rewarded will be multiplied."

If a girl or woman also believes there are few if any natural penalties for having children outside of wedlock, then why not get pregnant? Yet the natural effects from illegitimate pregnancies and child raising include poverty, inadequate care and training of children, bad behavior, crime, academic problems, bad example for the next generation, etc. The list goes on and on.

The solutions to unwed motherhood are easy to see by reading the above four paragraphs. Families, churches, neighbors, schools, and government all have roles to play in returning parenthood to exclusive married relationships.

ADDENDUM (3/30/2008)

A reader, Mary Jane, has commented: "I'm interested in your article. What are your sources for your statistics?" Here is the reply that was emailed to her.


The statistics describing births to unwed mothers are documented by the underlined references embedded in the above post. The statistics on the disadvantages and problems associated with single-parent families are sprinkled across many thousands of pages of the Internet. For example, see the Princeton-Brookings website.

If you ask for statistics to buttress my opinions on the causes and solutions of unwed motherhood, then perhaps taking the observations one at a time might be profitable.

I believe the first reason for the increase in unwed motherhood is the decreasing fear of displeasing God and the absence of belief in the possibility of being punished in hell. To look for statistics on changing religious viewpoints in the U.S., try the Pew Forum or the Barna Group. The latter group noted in 2003 that even though 73 percent of Americans believe in hell, "just one-half of 1% expect to go to Hell upon their death."

People have always embraced excuses for their bad choices, but now very few peers exist who have the fortitude to criticize their family and friends for undesirable behavior. The second reason for the increasing number of children born out of wedlock is that Americans are superbly trained by our over-tolerant culture never to say anything that offends anyone. In fact, that concept has been embodied in anti-harassment laws.

The lack of good peer pressure means girls are often proud they are pregnant and about to have a baby with their boyfriend. Unwed mothers wear the badge of single-motherhood as a badge of honor, whereas in the bad old days they had to wear a scarlet letter. Murphy Brown was defiantly proud of being an "unwed mother." She assumed the role of an independent woman, the do-it-all woman; so why should we be surprised that others have emulated her?

The appearance of rewards constitutes the third reason for increased rates of out-of-wedlock children. What are the rewards? Some of the governmental rewards include (see 2008 report of state expenditures on replacement programs for Aid to Dependent Children in Connecticut):

1. Temporary Family Assistance(cash assistance)
2. Child Care Subsidies
3. Transitionary and other Rental Assistance Programs
4. Transition to Employment Independence Program
5. School-Based Health Centers
6. Medicaid-funded health insurance for children and adult caretaker relatives
7. Helping unwed mothers obtain financial and medical support from boyfriends
8. Safety Net Services, including clothing, food, employment assistance and case management
9. Etc.

Mary Jane, Thank you for your question.

Intelligence is Expelled....The Aftermath

"Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed" is a movie about scientists who dare to question Darwin's theories, and who are subsequently shunned, persecuted, and virtually expelled from the scientific community, with no more opportunity for publishing their work. The movie features Ben Stein as the scientific journal editor who has the audacity to publish Dr. Steven C. Meyer's extensive review essay on the rationale and biological data for inferring intelligent design.

WorldNetDaily's Joseph Farah reviews and gives more information on the movie. Bill O'Reilly interviews Ben Stein here on "Expelled." The trailer/preview also is quite interesting and gives a peek into the plot. I definitely plan to see "Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed" that opens April 18, 2008.

The movie focuses on the publishing of Dr. Meyer's paper on August 4th, 2004 in the Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington (volume 117, no. 2, pp. 213-239), a peer-reviewed biology journal published at the National Museum of Natural History at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington D.C. Meyer's article is entitled, “The Origin of Biological Information and the Higher Taxonomic Categories”, [If you're interested in science and evolution, do read Meyer's seminal essay on the scientific basis for intelligent design of biological systems.]

If you're interested in science and evolution, do read Meyer's seminal essay on the scientific basis for the intelligent design of biological systems. Here are a few paragraphs for you to get a feel for a few of Meyer's arguments:

The “Cambrian explosion” refers to the geologically sudden appearance of many new animal body plans about 530 million years ago. At this time, at least nineteen, and perhaps as many as thirty-five phyla of forty total (Meyer et al. 2003), made their first appearance on earth within a narrow five- to ten-million-year window of geologic time (Bowring et al. 1993, 1998a:1, 1998b:40; Kerr 1993; Monastersky 1993; Aris-Brosou & Yang 2003). Many new subphyla, between 32 and 48 of 56 total (Meyer et al. 2003), and classes of animals also arose at this time with representatives of these new higher taxa manifesting significant morphological innovations. The Cambrian explosion thus marked a major episode of morphogenesis in which many new and disparate organismal forms arose in a geologically brief period of time.

....analyze whether the neo-Darwinian process of mutation and selection, or other processes of evolutionary change, can generate the form and information necessary to produce the animals that arise in the Cambrian.


For neo-Darwinism, new functional genes either arise from non-coding sections in the genome or from preexisting genes. Both scenarios are problematic.

In the first scenario, neo-Darwinists envision new genetic information arising from those sections of the genetic text that can presumably vary freely without consequence to the organism. According to this scenario, non-coding sections of the genome, or duplicated sections of coding regions, can experience a protracted period of “neutral evolution” (Kimura 1983) during which alterations in nucleotide sequences have no discernible effect on the function of the organism. Eventually, however, a new gene sequence will arise that can code for a novel protein. At that point, natural selection can favor the new gene and its functional protein product, thus securing the preservation and heritability of both.

This scenario has the advantage of allowing the genome to vary through many generations, as mutations “search” the space of possible base sequences. The scenario has an overriding problem, however: the size of the combinatorial space (i.e., the number of possible amino acid sequences) and the extreme rarity and isolation of the functional sequences within that space of possibilities. Since natural selection can do nothing to help generate new functional sequences, but rather can only preserve such sequences once they have arisen, chance alone--random variation--must do the work of information generation--that is, of finding the exceedingly rare functional sequences within the set of combinatorial possibilities. Yet the probability of randomly assembling (or “finding,” in the previous sense) a functional sequence is extremely small.

Best Catholic Blog in Kansas City

It's been at least two years since I started reading the Kansas City Catholic, and it keeps getting better and better--as over 200,000 visitors have already determined. I am amazed that this father of several very young children has the energy to write so many in-depth and imaginative posts. His story about inheriting a new peach orchard illustrates the man's excellent writing ability, his 'blossoming' imagination, and the credibility of his convictions.

Pro-life Political Blog--The Kansas Meadowlark

The Kansas Meadowlark wrote me a note today and asked me to look at his blog. I did and I highly recommend it for its great information on politics in Kansas--especially detailed items on abortionists and abortion supporters , such as Dr. Tiller (nicknamed 'the Killer') and Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, who celebrated her 59th birthday speaking at a Planned Parenthood fundraiser. Take a quick look because the blogger uses some nice techniques to put a lot of important news on the first page.

Lazarus Saturday

Mr. P told me today that his Mother died in his Eastern European birthplace. It was a sad discussion, especially because her death was unexpected. Even though he had spoken with her on the phone for almost two hours the day before her death, he expressed regrets over not being able to see and talk with her one last time. I repeated several times that the end of this life was a birth into another life-- heaven, for those who die well. He seemed not to have heard the term, "die well," and we discussed what it meant.

I asked myself how this woman, whom I had met during her visits to the U.S., could ever believe in and embrace a God she had never known in her life under Communism. What a spiritual robbery it is to grow up and be schooled in a militantly atheistic society! Even though we spoke different languages, she seemed to acknowledge God when she visited our house and pointed with a smile to our little shrine with the statue of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

Only God can give the gift of Faith. Only He knows the disposition of her soul at the moment of death. I pray that she finally was given the gift of knowing God through His Son, Jesus, and then asked Him the same request of the good thief Dismas.

And one of those robbers who were hanged, blasphemed him, saying: If thou be Christ, save thyself and us. But the other answering, rebuked him, saying: Neither dost thou fear God, seeing thou art condemned under the same condemnation? And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this man hath done no evil. And he said to Jesus: Lord, remember me when thou shalt come into thy kingdom. And Jesus said to him: Amen I say to thee, this day thou shalt be with me in paradise. Luke 23:39-43

I encouraged Mr. P to believe in eternal life beyond this one, but he didn't seem to respond. He did say that he had placed a picture of the Virgin Mary I had given him on the wall of his bedroom.

This evening, I searched for an Orthodox prayer for the dead to put on the back of a holy Icon card obtained from The Printery House in Conception, MO. I'll add the name and dates of birth/death of Mr. P's Mother and give him several holy cards as a remembrance of his mother and a reminder of our resurrection from the dead.

My selection for the Icon card is part of the great Hymn of St Romanos the Melodist that focuses on the raising of Lazarus when Jesus tended to the 'tears of Mary and Martha'—a moving reflection upon Christ's gift of new life to His friend and to all the faithful. Here is part of the 6th century hymn used on Lazarus Saturday--the Orthodox feast celebrated this year on April 19.

In order that He might bring an end
To the mourning of Martha,
The Savior of all spoke to her and addressed
These divine words to her:
"I exist as the Light of the world
And the resurrection of all from the dead;
It was for this end that I appeared
In order to resurrect Adam
And the descendants of Adam
And on the fourth day to resurrect Lazarus
Taking pity, as a Merciful One, on
The tears of Mary and Martha."

Are you Tired of Winter?

I can't get on (or off) the phone these days without someone saying how long this winter is lasting. As of February 22, 2008, we have had 26 snow days in Kansas City. Not only snow--but cold temperatures will stay in the area for at least the next week. Always in the past, I have enjoyed the last week of February because there were always at least one or two days of weather above 60 degrees. I don't have high hopes this year.

So is another part of the globe receiving a warmer and shorter winter than we are? Not on the other side of the world! China has experienced the worst weather in five decades, resulting in freezing a third of their vegetable crops, that will be in short supply during the spring.

Perhaps Afghanistan is getting warmer weather? No, Afghanistan is the coldest it's been in the past 10 years, and more than 650 deaths are blamed on the cold weather.

What about Greece and Turkey? It's colder there too, and snow fell on the island of Crete early on Monday; even parts of Turkey’s Mediterranean coast experienced rare snowfall.

I've found it--the place which is warmer than usual this winter! England just had the fourth warmest January on record! Perhaps that is why Prince Charles of England has delivered an apocalyptic warning that the world faces a catastrophe without a "revolutionary" approach to global warming. His solution is to stop using common sources of energy that supply most of our power.

It's a shame that politicians and princes don't understand global warming (or perhaps they do and are using threats of catastrophe for other purposes). Michael Crichton's novel, "State of Fear," does a good job showing how and why science has capitulated to fiction and politics many, many times in the past--and is doing so today with "Global Warming."

Do you want to bet a lot of people can't (or won't take the time to) understand some simple calculations on global climate forcing? Or the long history of climate from ice cores? Do politicians know that the sun is much more important to climate forcing than man-caused CO2? Do they know that humidity (water vapor) is a far more powerful greenhouse promoter than CO2?

Another perspective on the "problem" of global warming considers the effects on our economy and society from reducing CO2. The U.S. Energy Information Administration determined in a 1998 study that U.S. compliance with Kyoto would mean a loss of 4.2 percent in Gross Domestic Product (or $437 billion). As many as 3.2 million Americans could lose their jobs.

Interestingly, a recent trip to Science City, Union Station, in Kansas City showed an exhibit with Fox 4 Chief Meteorologist, Mike Thompson, who says he is uncomfortable with claims that global warming is caused by man. He's probably familiar with the science presented here and here that discuss the question, "If Global Warming is Real, What Could Be Causing It?"

A new scientific paper with the most comprehensive information (132 references) on global warming is found here and concludes:

There are no experimental data to support the hypothesis that increases in human hydrocarbon use or in atmospheric carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases are causing or can be expected to cause unfavorable changes in global temperatures, weather, or landscape. There is no reason to limit human production of CO2, CH4, and other minor greenhouse gases as has been proposed (82,83,97,123).

We also need not worry about environmental calamities even if the current natural warming trend continues. The Earth has been much warmer during the past 3,000 years without catastrophic effects. Warmer weather extends growing seasons and generally improves the habitability of colder regions.

Disneyland Running out of Children

Disneyland in Japan is running out of kids! So what is Disney substituting for children?

The New and Disloyal Jesuit Commander

I'm very disheartened by Fr. Adolfo Nicolás being elected the new commander of the Jesuit religious order (Society of Jesus), which is supposed to represent the Pope's front-line troops to defend the Church. Even after the liberal cafeteria of rules and beliefs in the runaway post-Vatican Church, Superior General Nicolás still believes the Church represents a

"complicated system of controls and regulations that make the Gospel somehow distant from people."

Nicolás proposes undefined and obscure alternatives to Catholic doctrine:

"more liberating ways of religious wisdom and the experiences, impossible to systematize, of radical emptiness, non-dualism and transcendence."

The new Jesuit Superior General describes his rejections of Catholic beliefs in a 2005 article in the international theological journal, Concilium [widely known for its dissimulation of heresy and apostasy]. Please read Nicolás' article as if you are reviewing a contract to buy a used car!

Orthodox Catholic theology is described by S.G. Nicolás as:

"a language in tension, in conflict, in disharmony with other religious languages, images, perceptions, symbols and expressions that have given direction, as well as sense and hope to millions [of non-Christians]. "

It's even harder to see how Nicolás can claim to be a loyal Catholic with some of his other ["hold your nose"] statements in his Concilium article:

"The real spiritual Masters of all ages are more keen in teaching the way to God, than in giving answers to questions about God. Asia has produced an incredible wealth of such 'Ways'."

"...we Christians have to think and reconsider our Christian practices, from simple devotions to Sacramental celebrations. "

"Asia can never understand how a 'humble' Church can so easily dismiss 'other ways of salvation' or put them down as 'lesser than ours'. Asia, with its Saints and Mystics, its Witnesses and heroic Faithful, will never comprehend how a Church born out of the Gospel and led by the Spirit of Jesus Christ can practically ignore the religious wealth of other Religions and the real and actual salvation they have brought to a thousand generations."

More unorthodox or questionable statements from S.G. Nicolás are quoted at Wikipedia.

Two hundred and twenty-five leading Jesuits are meeting in their General Congregation in Rome. The Congregation, led by newly elected S.G. Nicolás, plans to issue four or five decrees at the end of the deliberations. I can assume there also will have been discussions on how best to thwart any possible attempts by Pope Benedict XVI to deal with the firmly entrenched apostasy of the Jesuits and their new Superior General.

Frankly, the only promising way to deal with the lengthy Jesuit betrayal of the Catholic faith is at the grass roots level. No Catholic should contribute money, manpower, or students to any Jesuit institution--including Rockhurst University, Rockhurst High School, and the "fish church" in Kansas City. The Jesuit contingent here is well-known as containing key elements that oppose the apostolic work of good Bishop Finn.

Personally, I don't know of any good and faithful Catholic who came out of faith-destructing Jesuit institutions in the past 35 years. The few good Jesuit-educated men I know graduated many more years ago. Finding any faithful modern Jesuits would clearly mean scavenging through a cesspool of Satan! -----Sorry, but I'm beginning to sound like the irrascible Curmudgeon of Kansas City--who, unfortunately, seems to have ceased regular publication.

A Dutch Lent

Can you see the way the world has gone when Dutch Catholics advertise Lent as a type of Ramadan? Only 10 percent of the four million Dutch Roman Catholics attend Mass every week, and only a few tens of thousands fast during Lent.

Morning Offering

I've learned several Morning Offering prayers, and others are listed here. The first prayer was this rhyme taught by my Mother:

Each thought, each word, each deed of mine,
Shall be an act of love Divine.
And everything that I shall do,
Shall be, my God, for love of You.

The second Morning Offering I learned from our pastor of almost 60 years ago, who often came to our grade school classroom to see how well we kids were learning our religion. Once, Father asked us to say the Morning Offering--to see if we had memorized the prayer. None of us knew it (but we did know a short prayer that noted how all our actions were to be according to God's will).

Sister's face drooped like a wilted flower as she saw her students fail this question from the pastor. Father then taught us the importance of the Morning Offering prayer. Finally, he turned sternly to Sister and said he would give her a printed copy of the prayer. He would check on our memorization the next time he returned to our classroom. The Morning Offering my pastor gave us students to memorize is reprinted below:

O Jesus,
through the Immaculate Heart of Mary,
I offer You my prayers, works,
joys and sufferings
of this day for all the intentions
of Your Sacred Heart,
in union with the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass
throughout the world,
in reparation for my sins,
for the intentions of all my relatives and friends,
and in particular
for the intentions of the Holy Father. Amen.

After we were married, my husband taught me this third Morning Offering Prayer. It's a good, quick prayer to say anytime during the day.

Everything we do today
Is for the honor and glory and love of God.
O Lord, be with us today and all the days of our lives,
That we may dwell in the house of the Lord forever and ever.

The shortest Morning Offering is:

SERVIAM! [I serve (the Lord God)]

Choices of Periodicals

This post is meant to encourage others to consider subscribing to these magazines and newspapers. No order or ranking is implied, other than is indicated in my comments.

THE REMNANT: I've subscribed to this small Catholic newspaper for almost 40 years, and when it was published by Walter Matt and featured Michael Davies as its premier columnist, no other periodical best matched my own views. Walter retired and his young son took over as editor, but it seemed there was an occasional unwise selection of columnists and stories. Fortunately, Michael Matt now has matured into an editor who exemplifies the best of his father. Poor columnists and stories no longer appear, and I highly recommend this traditional Catholic newspaper. The Remnant website is excellent, especially because of its many links to current Catholic news.

THE PHYLLIS SCHLAFLY REPORT: I started subscribing in about 1970 to this small politically conservative publication that arrives monthly in a #10 envelope. Phyllis advertises her monthly report as containing more information per page than any other publication, and I agree. Current and past reports are available online at Eagle Forum. I could speak for an hour on the work that the 81-year old Mrs. Schlafly has accomplished over the years--leading the effort to defeat the Equal Rights Amendment, stopping pro-aborts in the Republican Party, giving one of the first examples of homeschooling, and exemplifying the best of an active Catholic mother of six children, etc. Her daily rosary is said in thanksgiving to God for the defeat of the ERA.

THE WANDERER: Finally The Wanderer has a website! I've subscribed to this Catholic newspaper since about 1967 when my spiritual Godmother gave me a trial subscription. Totally supportive of the Pope, it criticized actions of liberal bishops which contributed greatly to my understanding of how the Church's current problems resulted from the top down, not from the bottom up. The newspaper continues to be a key source of information on Catholic events in the U.S. and world. Father Z is a columnist, as are Pat Buchanan and other conservative Catholics.

THE LEAVEN and THE CATHOLIC KEY: What can I say??? I used to read these periodicals of the Kansas City, KS and the Kansas City, MO dioceses to find out what the enemy inside the Catholic Church was doing. Now both Bishops write excellent commentaries that show how the Church is being and must be restored. I highly recommend the editorials written by both Bishops.

CATALYST: Give Bill Donohue the credit for making significant headway against the social and political assaults on Catholicism. This Journal of the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights describes the many instances of anti-Catholicism and shows how the Catholic League is responding with intelligence and force. A true example of good Catholic militancy!

AFA Journal: The American Family Association publishes a good periodical of Christian activism to lead the fight against those who opposes traditional values. These Protestants are the ones who have done the most to expose homosexuality in the media, and they were among the first to recommend that all computers connected to the internet have filters to protect children. Their current boycott is against Ford Motor Co. for supporting groups that want homosexual marriage. The February 2008 issue of the AFA Journal features "Looming Confrontation: Can Apathetic Christianity Withstand the Challenge of a Radical and Agressive Form of Islam?."

FINANCIAL TIMES: I recommend this 6 times/week UK newspaper with a U.S. edition because it is so full of in-depth international as well as national news. Recent multi-page sections have focused on China and the Internet. A most informative newspaper on the secular world.

What if? The Good Friday Prayer for the Jews

My post is inspired by a long email received from two handsome young traditional Catholics who are members of SSPX communities. They are quite upset with Pope Benedict's announcement that the Good Friday prayer for the Jews will be modified in the Missale Romanum of 1962 which is used for the offering of the old Latin Mass. Rorate Coeli has received at least 178 comments on the Papal announcement, including "this is part of Benedict's way of proclaiming the traditional Faith in somewhat more positive terms (i.e. 'enlightening their hearts' vs. 'removing the veil').

My young friends state that while "the new prayer is decent," the change is a "capitulation and a continuation of the destruction of the Roman Rite." I beg them to consider what would have happened if conservatives had been able to control Vatican Council II. What if the schemas prepared by the Central Preparatory Commission (CC) had not been abandoned? I think this would be a interesting exercise in historical speculation and would make a fine story.

To briefly recap events, Pope John XXII stunned the world on January 25, 1959 with his announcement of Vatican Council II. He then appointed an Antepreparatory Commission to begin preparation of the Council. On June 7, 1960, the Pope appointed 25 members to a larger Central Preparatory Commission, to be led by Secretary General, Archbishop Pericle Felici, who also had led the Antepreparatory Commission. Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, founder of the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX), was a member of the 25-member CC.

The CC prepared significant material for consideration and debate by Vatican Council II, but these schemas were considerably thinned out by late 1962. A new agenda was developed by liberal bishops that resulted in different and more liberal documents, and a longer council. The remaining conservative material prepared in advance of the Council by the CC came under continued attack in 1963. Consequently Vatican Council II abandoned most of the conservative material prepared by the CC under the command of Pope John XXIII.

The abandoned preparatory work of the CC is discussed only briefly in Ralph Wiltgen's The Rhine Flows into the Tiber, and in the new 5-volume History of Vatican II edited by Giuseppe Alberigo. The earlier volume is preferred, but the latter books contain more data. The latter volumes exhibit a preference for the positions of the "progressives" who ultimately were able to take control of Vatican Council II and to substitute their own liberal schemas for the ones prepared earlier by the conservative CC.

I've not found any book or documents (maybe I haven't looked far enough) that give samples of the preparatory work of the CC. What would the documents of Vatican II have looked like if Council had actually used the schemas developed by the CC?

What could the Church have looked like in the 21st century had the 1960-1962 preliminary schemas have survived for Council deliberation? My own view is that it is likely that organic changes to practices in the Church would have taken place--but not radical assaults on traditional Catholic beliefs. [Remember that the Holy Spirit remains the protector of the Church--regardless of the Pope and the Councils.]

I believe Pope Benedict XVI is trying to do the kind of thing the CC intended--make small organic changes. By modifying the old Good Friday prayer for the Jews, the Pope continues to reflect the same intention as before, but now roots the new prayer in the New Testament and with a more obvious charity.

Going Steady

When I was young, I would have greatly resisted the idea of my parents telling me who to date or who should be my husband. They only told me not to date until I was 16 years old and not to date steadily until I was serious about marriage. I followed their rules and am very glad I did.

This post deals with "going steady" and the grave sins it frequently causes, perhaps including murder. My other posts on courtship and marriage have included:

• Marriage preparation in the Catholic Church
  
• How spouses were courted in the old culture of Bosnia-Herzegovina
• Matchmaking
• How my grandmother and grandfather were alone for the first time in a wagon while going to City Hall in Kansas City to obtain their marriage license
• How Church "Defenders of the Bond" of marriage have not done their job during the past 40 years
• Whether it's possible for the elderly to marry secretly to save their pensions
• On the advantages of separating religious and civil marriages
• The effect of Dignitas Connubi on Annulments
• The current State of the Union of Marriage in the US

The murder of the young mother and her baby girl in Kansas City, Kansas is a tragic ending to a failed marriage that began with the meeting of young Andrew Guerrero and Nicolette Lyons while attending a local Catholic high school. A newspaper reported that the "2002 yearbook described the two as 'star-crossed lovers.'" I take the report to mean that the teenagers dated steadily while in high school.

The couple married in 2003 after the young man had joined the Army Reserve, and the young wife filed for divorce three years later. Now the young husband and father has been accused of murdering his wife and a child she had by another military man. What a sad story and what could have been done about it?

I suspect that young people today are never counseled about the dangers of going steady. Yet the Church's combat against steady dating in high school continued at least until 1963 when TIME magazine reported that Fr. James A. Carey mandated that any student "dating one person to the exclusion of all others shall be expelled." By 1964, it was reported in the social literature that "going steady is becoming increasingly common....There seems to be a growing tendency of daters to 'pair off' very early and for extended periods."

My generation was taught that going steady was reserved for persons who were able and ready for marriage. We were told that if we weren't mature, couldn't provide for a spouse, or had no intention of marrying in the near future, then we shouldn't go steady.

So what did I do? In high school and college, I dated guys for only two or three times, at max! At the time it was called "playing the field!" That extended the number of guys I dated before settling on my husband, and reduced the opportunities for intimacy that would have developed had I steadily dated a single guy. In other words, spiritual and physical problems were avoided.

Dating twenty, thirty, and even up to 100+ guys (a sister!) for short durations from age 16 to the time when marriage is possible can be quite helpful in choosing a spouse. You learn about the different characteristics (good and bad) of potential spouses. You learn what you like and what you don't. Most importantly, you don't make commitments or promises because you are not ready to make them. [Although there may be the problem of someone waiting forever for the "perfect spouse!"]

Catholic schools must again discourage "going steady" while students are in grade and high school. Social research proves that having a steady boyfriend or girlfriend as a young teenager significantly increases the odds of having sex. [Fr. Carey already knew this back in 1963--a good priest always hears a lot of sorrowful confessions.]

Right now, the Bishops are mostly concerned about those "living together outside the bond of marriage." Frankly, that sin--fornication-- is a primary effect of "going steady" when one is not ready or able to contract a good marriage.

Catholics must explain the disadvantages of steady dating and explain why the alternative of short-duration dates with different persons (group dating, too) is much more interesting and has better results.

Here are reasons not to have an exclusive relationship with the opposite sex while in pre-teen and even teenage years:

1. You are much more likely to commit the sin of fornication (and possibly become pregnant with a baby)
   
2. Steady dating is a proven high-risk behavior for catching sexually-transmitted diseases
   
3. You will commit yourself to always explaining who you are with, why you didn't answer the phone, where you are going, how much money you have, etc.
4. You will not improve your social abilities in new situations with others
   
5. You will be obligated to spend most of your free time with the other party
6. The two of you will likely withdraw to your own world and you will miss out on important times with friends
   
7. Steady dating restricts you from responding to new social opportunities and developing an improved self-esteem
   
8. Steady dating, without the ability to commit to marry within a short time period, leaves the girlfriend or the boyfriend fearful that the other will eventually leave them for another
   
9. There are lots of repercussions when a romance is over that are similar to those of a marital break-up.

Music, War, Culture, and Religion

World War II was being fought when I was quite young. My Father was away in the Army and my Mother, siblings, and I saw military airplanes fly overhead after being manufactured at the local "Bomber Plant." I remember the radio and movies were always full of War--stories, news--AND MUSIC. My young world heard lots of martial sounds that made me want to march energetically in rhythm--even by myself!

Once while sitting on a grassy bank in Kansas City, I watched a high-stepping military parade march down the street. When the parade of soldiers and their band ended, I was very disappointed and begged Mother to let me to see more military parades and hear more martial music. It was the first time I experienced how powerfully attractive music could be.

In the 1950's at the beginning of rock music era, an invited lecturer at the University where I was a student gave a talk I have never forgotten. This Ph.D. physicist (biologist?) claimed that musical tones, volume, and beats initiated sympathetic vibrations in several different parts of the body. He claimed that specific beats could make the heart beat faster or slower, with less energy or more. Music was described as akin to other sounds that affected the body and emotions--like laughter and crying, or fingernail scratches on a blackboard.

Later in the 1970's, I read a book distributed by the Conservative Book Club of America that described the manipulation of societies through music to cause anger, fear, militaristic pride, and other adverse emotions. Alternately, music inspires hope, faith, cheerfulness, happiness, sympathy, love, and altruism.

Does music have a power over us? How we feel? How we think? How we act? Yes, Yes, Yes, and Yes! Music is the art form that inspires, excites, calms, deceives, heals, or disturbs us. Music transmits ideas and images with emotional environments: relaxation, action, inspiration, imagination--even holiness in Church. Alternatively, much of modern music corrupts civilization.

A Wagnerian march produces different physical effects than does a Mother's lullaby. Ferde Grofé's Grand Canyon Suite (a favorite composition of mine) that evokes a desert sunrise, donkeys clomping down a rock trail, and a powerful thunderstorm. In contrast, rock, rap, hip-hop, and punk music jar the senses, create rebellion, and disturb natural emotions, and their cultural effects are noted in many academic papers.

I've just listened to a recent 6-part talk on "Music and Culture" given by Michael Matt, editor of the Remnant Newspaper. About 40 years ago, I met Michael's father, Walter Matt, but have never seen or heard the younger Matt. Yet I've read his many articles in the Remnant on the effects of rock music on young people.

Michael Matt, a former member of a rock band, calls modern music a "meat hammer" that makes the current revolution against family and morality possible. Take a look at Matt's YouTube sequence (e.g., Part 3 of 6) to understand why and how modern popular and "sacred" music destroys our culture and Church.

KANSAS Presidential Caucuses

My Kansas correspondent reminds me that the Kansas Republican Party caucuses will be held on February 9, and the Democratic Party caucuses will be held on February 5. See http://www.ksgopcaucus.org/ and http://www.ksdp.org/supertuesday for more information. The basic requirement is that a Kansas citizen be a registered Republican to vote in a Republican Caucus, and a registered Democrat to vote in a Democratic Caucus.

I was asked today which Presidential candidate is most pro-life. Obviously that candidate is NOT a Democrat. Among the Republicans, Huckabee is the most pro-life candidate. He actively opposed abortion while Governor of Arkansas, led a pro-life rally in Georgia on January 22, and supports a Human Life Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

Rep. Ron Paul is the only candidate who came to the March for Life in Washington DC on January 22 and gave a supporting address. He believes abortion is a crime to be regulated by the States--if they choose to do so.

Governor Romney's position was examined by pro-life Senator Brownback who concluded Romney is anti-Roe, but not pro-life. During his unsuccessful 1994 bid for the Senate and during his run for Governor of Massachusetts, he courted pro-abortionists by touting his pro-choice positions. Catholic Fire notes that Romney's health care plan in Massachusetts provides for abortions at government expense.

Senator John McCain says he is a life-long friend of Right to Life. He has voted to restrict or regulate the practice of abortion and says Roe v. Wade should be overturned. However, he is not a great pro-life leader in the U.S. Senate as is Senator Brownback.

So what's the answer?

1. Take a look at American Family Association's list of candidate positions"on support for a Human Life Amendment, Traditional Marriage, Gay Pride and requiring businesses to favor homosexuality, the Iraq War, and Moral Education.
2. Also see "Will the Republican Nominee respect Us in the Morning" published by the Republican Coalition for Life.
3. Next, review the American Life League's Voter Guide.
4. Then pray that God will enlighten you on the Presidential candidate to support.
   

I am Fascinated and Encouraged....

by Sheriff Joe of Maricopa County (Phoenix), the most famous sheriff in the country.

What is he doing for Super Bowl Sunday? See here.

Reminder about Cultivation of Fields

My sister sent me this very short but powerful discussion by Saint Caesarius of Arles (470-543), monk and Bishop. [Sermons, no. 6; CCL 103,32 (SC 175)

Brethren, there are two kinds of field: the first is God’s field, the second is man’s. You have your property; God has his, too. Your own property is your land; God’s property is your soul. Is it right that you should cultivate your property and leave God’s lying fallow?

If you cultivate your land but fail to cultivate your soul, is this because you want to set your own property in order but leave God’s fallow? Is that right? Does God deserve that we should neglect the soul he holds so dear?

You are delighted when you see your property well cultivated; why don’t you weep when you see your soul lying fallow? We cause the fields on our property to come alive for a few days in this world; caring for our souls will enable us to live forever in heaven…

God has deigned to entrust our souls to us as his property; so let us set to work with all our might, by his help, so that when he comes to visit his property he will find it well cultivated and in perfect order.

May he find a harvest and not thorns; may he find wine and not vinegar, corn rather than chaff. If he finds everything in it that can be pleasing in his eyes, he will give us an eternal reward in exchange, but thorns will be committed to the fire.

Handy Little Warming Bag

As I get older and the weather seems to feel colder, my favorite companion is this sock bag. It's filled with cheap dry beans and is heated in my 20+ year old microwave for about a minute to become toasty warm!

In the daytime, the bean bag warms my hands and the cold chair bottom before I start typing this blog. At night, I love to feel the bag's warmth on my feet under the covers at the end of the bed. [Even though my husband's feet are usually warmer than mine, I am reluctant to place my cold feet on his!]

The warmth of a heated bean bag endures for at least 30 min. And I've been using the same beans for at least a month.

Another way I try to get warm is a cup of hot tea! Especially Constant Comment Green Tea flavored with orange and spices. Splenda works great to sweeten the tea.