True Love

True love comes from the small garden of a very old lady who is keeping very few strawberries for herself and giving the best ones to her daughter.

The Saint of Buffonery, Fun, and Practical Jokes

Today is the feast of St. Philip Neri. I read a comic book on his life (possibly in the old Treasure Chest comics of the 1940's and 1950's) when I was in grade school. I won't ever forget there was a drawn picture of the saint with half his face shaved and the other half with a beard. In the story, St. Philip Neri explains to the party that he is adopting the new style of the day.

A short excerpt from a biography shows St. Philip Neri must be the patron saint of comedians and practical jokesters--but with the purpose of destroying pride and growing the virtues of patience and humility.

His extravagant behavior cannot be passed over without some explanation. Why, for example, when certain Polish noblemen came to visit him at the Vallicella, seeking edification, did he have read aloud the most ridiculous passages from pastor Arlotto saying that it was his spiritual reading? Why, when invited to the house of one of his penitents, a rich Roman lady who had invited him to meet her worldly relatives, did he arrive with half his beard shaved off? Why, when some scholarly Bishop, little given to jesting, attended his Mass, did he commit every possible error in pronunciation? Why did he sometimes wear a red jersey or a fur coat over his cassock? Why did he walk through the streets carrying a bouquet of flowers in his hand, or perform a burlesque dance before an audience of Cardinals chanting comic verses which he made up as he went along?

I think St. Philip Neri made himself a laughing stock to hide both his brilliance and holiness--and also perhaps to bring an understanding of our childishness to even the highest people. After reading the above paragraph, he apparently still may confuse some people. Frankly, I think this particular saint would be great company!

Eucharistic Family Rosary Crusade -- Kansas City

Last year I participated in the Eucharistic procession from St. Thomas More parish to Avila College in Kansas City. This year, our two Kansas City Bishops (MO and KS) greatly expanded the devotions to publicly adore our Blessed Savior in a Eucharistic procession and Benediction, and to honor His Mother with the recitation of the rosary. The Bishops jointly sponsored a Eucharistic Family Rosary Crusade held this afternoon at Kaufman Stadium, home of the Kansas City Royals.

I was very impressed with the crowd size and especially with the reverence and faith that were displayed by the participants. It was clear that many, many volunteers were required to work, and work efficiently, for the success of the Crusade. Several people that I spoke with were impressed and clearly glad they had come, including a young couple from a suburban Kansas parish who brought their six children.

For the past forty years, I've wondered when (or if) I would ever see even the beginnings of a restoration of the Church in the U.S. This evening, I am rejoicing that Archbishop Joseph Naumann and Bishop Robert Finn have and are instituting a plan to reinvigorate the Church as the great City on the hill. Worshiping our Lord in the Eucharist and asking Mary to help us by reciting her Rosary are clearly the foundation of this plan.

Here are some photos of the Crusade. Hopefully, they convey the great spirit and impact of the event.

Kansas City Catholic Shock!

Wolftracker turned off comments today on "KCC Signs Off" at Kansas City Catholic. Our friend announces that "This blog has ended. Go in peace."

He says:

...blogging takes a certain amount of time. Since the new year, I have had less time to devote to KCC than previously. I think that has been obvious. I have left but three posts on this version of KCC.

So what? Wolftracker seems to have unreasonable expectations that he can always work at close to 100 percent on his blog, even when family and professional duties are paramount. Hopefully as he gets older he will see that working even at 20 percent gets a lot of good done--over time. Yes, daily visits will decrease, but that is mostly a shock to the ego--not an indication of the value of the blog posts.

Looking back in my life, one of my regrets includes totally dropping difficult tasks, whereas I simply should have slowed down or taken a vacation. I'll miss Kansas City Catholic. It's worse than the neighborhood grocery store that closes suddenly with no warning. At least then we knew where to picket. What a loss.

June 2, 2008 ADDENDUM: Wolftracker has contacted me privately and I am ashamed that I challenged his reasons for ending Kansas City Catholic. He states:

....giving it up was/is difficult. But I have not dropped a difficult task because I found it difficult but ... because there are other priorities in my life that have a greater claim on my time and will have greater claim for some time to come.

Now there are new Catholic blogs in KC....they deserve a chance....In the meantime, I have to finish this novel that I am writing . . . I can work on that privately and at a pace without the daily 'deadline' of a blog. Having that done will make any new blog (of mine) all the better when the time comes.

Msgr. Mejak, Five Months Later

After a long winter, the grave of Msgr. Heliodore Mejak now has a nice tombstone and people have brought flowers since his death on last Christmas Eve. I've meant to add some additional information that has come up since then, and this seems an appropriate time.

If you remember, this very old priest (age 98) was active until the last week of his life as pastor of Holy Family Church in Kansas City, KS. After being in the hospital for several days, Msgr. Mejak was recovering and told visitors he wanted to come back to say Christmas Mass--a favorite feast. But another priest, Fr. Peter Jaramillo (now the administrator of Holy Family Parish), came to offer the Mass on Christmas morning.

One woman in the choir, Kathy R, told an interesting story at Msgr's wake. She and the other choir members were unaware that Msgr. Mejak had died during the night and were looking at their music books to prepare to sing the next Christmas hymn. Kathy said she then heard Msgr. Mejak saying the Mass prayers together with Fr. Jaramillo. She said she looked up, but only Fr. Jaramillo was there. It was only later that the choir and the parish was informed that Msgr. Mejak had died.

A couple of other stories include the woman who was overheard at the wake to say that she wished she was audacious enough to reach out to the casket and take a clip of his hair. Another person reported that Msgr. Mejak had chosen his own Mass readings for his funeral. Humbly, he had chosen the story of St. Dismas for the Gospel, even though he was much more than a simple parish priest. It seems that few knew he had completed all of coursework necessary for a doctorate in Sacred Theology at Catholic University of America.

Archbishop Naumann, God Bless!

The Kansas City Star (here and here) is furious that Archbishop Joseph Naumann, a big man with an even bigger heart, continues to try to persuade Kansas governor Kathleen Sebelius that she cannot be a good Catholic and still receive Holy Communion when she promotes abortion. The Archbishop is kind but firm:

Since becoming archbishop, I have met with Governor Sebelius several times over many months to discuss with her the grave spiritual and moral consequences of her public actions by which she has cooperated in the procurement of abortions performed in Kansas. My concern has been, as a pastor, both for the spiritual well-being of the governor but also for those who have been misled -- scandalized -- by her very public support for legalized abortion.

I have not made lightly this request of Governor Sebelius, but only after much prayer and reflection. The spiritually lethal message, communicated by our governor, as well as many other high profile Catholics in public life, has been in effect: “The church’s teaching on abortion is optional!”

I reissue my request of the faithful of the archdiocese to pray for Governor Sebelius. I hope that my request of the governor, not to present herself for holy Communion, will provoke her to reconsider the serious spiritual and moral consequences of her past and present actions. At the same time, I pray this pastoral action on my part will help alert other Catholics to the moral gravity of participating in and/or cooperating with the performance of abortions.

The Archbishop's comments address a number of other critical and interesting issues. Please read his full, but not lengthy, statement.

St. Meinrad's and Ferdinand Community

We stopped at Ferdinand, Indiana as we traveled east because the "Sisters of St. Benedict" brochure obtained at a rest stop advertised their beautiful monastery church of the Immaculate Conception. The magnificent edifice took nine years to build--from 1915 to 1924. It is truly a testament to the faith of the people of that time who funded, designed, and constructed the church.

From one picture in the brochure (we saw no nuns during our visit), the community members no longer wear their habits. We also saw a "no-nuclear" sign as we entered the grounds. Their web site advertises "centering prayer," Sr. Joan Chittister's books, and other "liberal" stuff. I concluded that the monastery is populated mostly by nuns who would not be comfortable with their founders' lives and beliefs.

I didn't get the same disturbed feeling when we visited St. Meinrad's ArchAbbey and Seminary that lies several miles south of the Benedictine nuns. We actually saw two men dressed in black cassocks! This large seminary has been used by the Archbishop of Kansas City, KS to train future priests. Again we saw a magnificent structure built by our forefathers in faith.

Roof Grass

I'm wandering around the U.S. and use the time in the car to think of crazy ideas. Several years ago along the southeast coast near the Gulf of Mexico, I saw mile after mile of swamp with cypress trees. As far as I know, the only purposes of the tree are to defend against storm surge and hurricanes, and to use as shredded garden mulch.

I mused at the time that if if the cypress tree could produce marketable timber, harvesting selected trees in the flat water and leaving the rest would be easy and economically viable. So it seemed that all that is necessary is to genetically create a cypress tree with the right characteristics to make it marketable. Plant geneticists should be able to accomplish that, and easily make a sterile new tree species.

On another trip to Texas, I was stung by a fire ant--not a pleasant experience as the injected acid leaves a sore that lasts for a couple of weeks. Yard grass in the south is mostly St. Augustine. What if a similar grass were genetically developed to have roots with a garlic odor? I'll bet that many families with small children playing in the backyard of southern homes would love to have this kind of 'fire ant prevention' garlic grass to eliminate spraying their yard with hazardous chemicals every six to eight weeks.

On the current trip, 'roof grass' would not be genetically derived. Roof grass would be manufactured of multiwall carbon nanotubes and 'planted' on the roof of a house to catch the wind. Baffles on the roof would disturb air currents to create small vortices and other turbulence to keep the 'grass' in constant movement.

As the grass flexes, electricity should be produced because bending the structures creates a charge separation – positive on one side and negative on the other. The connection between bending and charge creation can be used to create nanogenerators that produce measurable electrical currents when the grass is bent and then released. Moreover, solar energy hitting the carbon nanotubes also produces electricity.

Lead storage batteries would be avoided by using the electrical current to run a water electrolysis system and small compressor for the hydrogen fuel that would be produced. Hydrogen fuel is the cleanest energy possible--and very safe for stationary applications, such as for individual houses.

So what would happen if the weather brought hail? No problem--carbon nanotubes are extremely strong and extraordinarily flexible. Their elasticity is so good that nanotubes almost perfectly regain their form when the load is removed. What about lightning? I must admit I don't know the answer to that one! Perhaps the grass also would drain electricity from the storm, but I don't know.

Porn Addiction

I've seen the devastation of pornography. Many years ago a good Catholic woman told me that her husband insisted that she go with him to the burlesque show. She asked me if she had to obey her husband and said, "I feel like I'm committing a mortal sin." She added, "I'm not beautiful like those women on the stage whom he really likes." Just listening to her inconsolable sorrow made me want to cry, especially because her husband was considered a Catholic pillar of his parish. Until her death, this wife remained faithful to her husband, but she was very unhappy and insecure because she thought she could never satisfy him.

In another family, the 13-year old daughter found porn material used by her father. She could never respect her father again, and it also affects how she views all men, including a possible husband.

I know a family man who was fired from his very good job because of his insatiable lust for viewing porn on the internet. I saw the almost 8-inch stack of printouts of visits he made to "Ladies of xxx" and other sites. Even AFTER he had been warned he would be dismissed, he could not stop. The young family then experienced financial problems before he could find another job--and not in the best place or what he really wanted to do!

Archbishop Chaput of Denver has noticed the good work of our two Kansas City Bishops. I can't improve on the Archbishop's observations:

In recent months, two Catholic bishops have begun some extraordinary work against pornography in their Midwest dioceses: Bishop Robert Finn of Kansas City-St. Joseph, Mo., and Archbishop Joseph Naumann of Kansas City, Kan.

Bishop Finn’s excellent pastoral letter, Blessed Are the Pure in Heart: "The Dignity of the Human Person and the Dangers of Pornography” has a wealth of good information about the scope of pornography, the damage it does and many practical tips to fighting it in our homes.

Archbishop Naumann’s anti-pornography initiative, “As for Me and My House, We Will Serve the Lord,” includes a DVD and workbook with valuable resources for fighting pornography, teaching chastity and wholesome sexuality, and helping others who have been hurt by pornography addiction.

...pornography poisons the human heart, imagination and soul just as steel mills once poisoned our air and water, only worse.

Pornography is never “innocent entertainment,” no matter how private it might seem. It turns human beings into objects. It coarsens our appetites. It darkens our ability to see real human beauty. It creates impossible expectations about sexual intimacy. It kills enduring romance and friendship between the sexes. And ultimately it’s a lie and a cheat. Pornography is a cheap, quick, empty copy of the real thing — the real joy of sexual intimacy shared by a man and woman who have joined their lives in a loving marriage.

Too Frequent Communions

The Church recommends frequent sacramental Communion for many reasons. Yet, for forty years I have been distressed when I saw (see) virtually all Mass attendees process to the front of the church to receive Holy Communion. I conclude that few parishioners accept the truth that they can and do commit serious sins and are then unworthy to receive the body and blood of Jesus Christ. Great sacrileges are being committed because of lack of faith in the true presence of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, and because of loss of sanctifying grace due to committing mortal sins and then not confessing them to a priest to be forgiven.

How do I know these great sacrileges are common at Sunday Novus Ordo Masses? The statistics on Catholic belief in the U.S. are absolutely shattering, including the very low frequency of sacramental penance (reconciliation). According to CARA at Georgetown, 38 percent of frequent Mass attendees never or almost never confess their sins. The Pew Forum compares beliefs of Catholics and other groups and finds that there are often few major differences. Fr. John McCloskey notes from another survey of lay religious teachers in Catholic schools--which should be an exemplary group:

Only 10 percent of lay religious teachers accept Church teaching on contraception; 53 percent believe a Catholic woman can get an abortion and remain a good Catholic; 65 percent say that Catholics have a right to divorce and remarry; and, in the late nineties in a New York Times poll, 70 percent of Catholics aged 18-54 said they believed the Holy Eucharist was but a “symbolic reminder” of Jesus.

On some occasions, I personally choose to stay behind and not receive the precious Body and Blood of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist. Perhaps too many venial sins have piled up and I haven't yet confessed my sins to the priest, or perhaps I have been inattentive and not prepared myself well for Holy Communion.

This temporary absence, when not continued, seems to make my heart grow fonder of and to more appreciate the gift of the body and blood of Jesus. A more balanced and truthful assessment of my spiritual status can be achieved by an occasional deliberate holding back from receiving our Lord in Holy Communion. It's important to remember Jesus' parable from Luke 18:

9 And to some who trusted in themselves as just, and despised others, he spoke also this parable: 10 Two men went up into the temple to pray: the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. 11 The Pharisee standing, prayed thus with himself: O God, I give thee thanks that I am not as the rest of men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, as also is this publican. 12 I fast twice in a week: I give tithes of all that I possess. 13 And the publican, standing afar off, would not so much as lift up his eyes towards heaven; but struck his breast, saying: O god, be merciful to me a sinner. 14 I say to you, this man went down into his house justified rather that the other: because every one that exalteth himself, shall be humbled: and he that humbleth himself, shall be exalted.

Good reasons on why we should continue to receive Holy Communion frequently are found here. Yet, Biblical references on "not worthy" keep the issue in perspective. I believe denying oneself Holy Communion once in a while is useful not only for our own souls, but also serves as an example to others who may feel they are obligated to receive Holy Communion simply because they attend Mass. It's important to demonstrate that FREQUENT COMMUNION DOES NOT MEAN ALL THE TIME.

Winged Marshdonut Fly

A son-in-law and one of our grandsons baked and decorated a cake for a cub scout contest. One of our family asked:
"Is that a butterfly being squashed?"

The response of our daughter was:
"Actually, that is the now extinct red-licorice winged marshdonut fly!"

Needless to say, their creation won the funniest cake design.

This post is just to show I'm still alive, but am too busy and tired to write anything else....

Intelligent Design--A Discussion

A couple of posts back, one of our sons contributed viewpoints on the movie, Expelled. Another son has gone into more depth on the Catholic Church's position on science, evolution, and intelligent design, as shown below. I'm sure he would welcome comments.

The Catholic Church does not try to determine scientific questions, but being the guardians and defenders of the Truth, it obviously sets boundaries when scientific "answers" try to say that theories conflict with faith. As was noted on a recent Catholic Answers Live question I heard in the last week or so, those boundaries include the following:

• God create the universe (First Cause), keeps it in existence, create the physical laws that govern it. Unlike what the Deists believe, he did not create it and leave; he keeps in existence.
  
• Most critically, Pope Pius XII clearly stated in his encyclical in 1950 (Humanus Generis) that two human beings (male and female) are the parents of all human beings, and that God created them in his image and likeness -- creating them a soul whose creation cannot be explained by physical laws or cannot be passed off with a materialistic explanation.
• Those two parents committed a sin that caused them to lose their preternatural gifts, saw a loss of innocence, a promise of a Redeemer, and a concupiscence to sin.

When evolution claims multiple first parents, for instance, it is not true. When science claims that the universe has always been in existence, again, it strays into untruth.

Beyond that, though, explaining the origin of species is left up to science to explain -- the Church does not try to. Whether evolution is bad science or not, I don't believe that I'm qualified to give an opinion. There have been many instances where evolutionary theory (Piltdown Man being a great example) goes off the deep end and is totally disproved as a fake and a hoax.

Yet, on the other hand, while offering proof that cellular structures could not evolve so quickly in the time frame envisioned by most scientists needs to be pointed out, an alternate theory needs to be provided other than "intelligent design." Throwing out intelligent design when asked to provide a theory of how something happened when discussing processes of science is unsatisfying and does not fit well into the Church's long stance of supporting the development of science. That to me has been my biggest concern of throwing out intelligent science as an alternative -- "they" who offer need to offer something intellectually satisfying.

For instance, a Big Bang event (which is now generally accepted science) certainly coincides with the thought of a universal beginning. In addition, cellular and mitochondrial examination has started to explain that we all come from a common mother. That is the kind of science that fits in with the Church's boundaries and, yet, provides scientific knowledge.

Ultimately, science is not going to be able to explain everything, but on the other hand, trying to shut down inquiry by saying "intelligent design" and not providing an alternate scientific theory is not an answer.

I will certainly look forward to seeing the movie. Am I opposed to a science teacher saying that the Church is wrong on insisting on his boundaries? Most definitely. That is not the realm of science, and if that happens, the perpetrators need to be called out. Good science, Faith, and Reason can coexist, and there is much been said and written by our current pontiff on this very topic -- Regensburg being one of the more famous examples.

My own humble opinion, [Your son]

Children, Dogs, Saints, and Angels

A reviewer, Marc Joseph, questions a necessary detail of my story of Bella, the dog animated by an angel who helps save a man from going to hell:

I am curious as to the ontological character of the dog. Hmmmm....?

Before addressing the question, I must admit I have mixed feelings about dogs, cats, and other pets who live kingly lives. They are sheltered, admired, loved, and even spoiled by owners who give them the best seats and beds in the house. My husband, an ex-farmer, has an even greater problem with such animals. When he hears that an animal has been given a human name, he often cringes because he suspects the animal may be treated as a substitute human being.

Both of us see that many dogs and cats are substitute 'children' for deliberately barren 'parents' in a contraceptive society. Many people tell me about their Mikey, or Annabelle, or Ernie who solve a craving of their owners to feel loved. Eventually, the dogs and cats become as important as real people, and sometimes lead persons into isolation from other human beings. The person may prefer to live with their animals who will never criticize them. All of us know people who put animals on a par with their spouse, parents, and children. After death, these people even leave their estates to animals, rather than to relatives or poor people.

Yet I remember St. Francis of Assisi is the patron saint of animals--from the ravaging wolf of Gubbio to the small birds who listened to Francis' sermons. [Did the wolf have two angels, and was the bad one kicked out by St. Francis?] I also see many older people who must live alone, rather than in the close presence of their family. Their pets have become natural friends and are proven to help keep people mentally healthy and even to help them physically.

Now for my answer to Marc Joseph: [BTW, 'ontological' refers to the nature of being of the dog, Bella.] All animals are created by God for the benefit of man (Genesis). When Bella dies, her physical life ends. Bella has no spiritual life--it was never created. However, the design of the dog (not the being) continues to exist and could be used again by God in Heaven (Paradise)--known to be a place to accept our resurrected physical bodies.

The Bible identifies nine classes or orders of Angels: Archangels, Angels, Princedoms, Powers, Virtues, Dominations, Thrones, Seraphims, and Cherubims. According to Aquinas, the angelic order, Virtues, has power over corporeal nature in the working of miracles; they rule the physical universe and possess the bodies of animals and physical things to achieve God's will. Likewise the old Catholic Encyclopedia concludes that the practically unanimous view of the Fathers is that the angels put into execution God's law regarding the physical world.

When the ram replaced Isaac for the sacrifice of Abraham, who made the ram get caught in the bush? Who opened the spring to flow when Moses struck the rock? Who makes the wind rustle in the trees? [(2 Samuel 5:23, 24; 1 Chronicles 14:14, 15)] I suspect God uses his angels far more than we know to love us and assist us in reaching heaven. So is Bella the dog with a guardian angel a reasonable story character--I think so.

Msgr. James Conley--New Bishop!

Here's a very welcome and encouraging announcement from the Archdiocese of Denver, Colorado website!

Pope Benedict XVI has appointed the Right Reverend James D. Conley as auxiliary bishop for the Archdiocese of Denver. The Holy See made the announcement today at noontime in Rome, 4 a.m. in Denver. Archbishop Charles J. Chaput will hold a press conference today at 9 a.m., at the John Paul II Center, to introduce the new auxiliary bishop. To read the official announcement, click here. A special web page for Bishop-Elect Conley will be available after the 9 a.m. press conference.

Bishop-elect Conley, 53, is a native of Overland Park, Kan., a suburb of Kansas City, and a convert to Catholicism. Currently pastor of Blessed Sacrament Parish in the Diocese of Wichita, Kan., he previously served the Holy Father for 10 years as an official in the Vatican Congregation for Bishops in Rome. He has been a Catholic for 33 years and a priest for 23 years.

An interview with Msgr. Conley reveals him to be just what the Church needs at this time. Another interview is here. His biography can be found here, including information about his past Kansas City life:

In 1973, Bishop-elect Conley graduated from Shawnee Mission West high school in Overland Park and enrolled in the fall as a freshman at University of Kansas. He graduated in 1977 from University of Kansas with a bachelor’s degree in English Literature.

While in college, he studied in the University of Kansas’s Integrated Humanities Program, a well-known classical great books program. During his junior year, he converted to the Catholic Church on Dec. 6, 1975. His mentor and teacher in the Integrated Humanities Program, Professor John Senior, was his godfather.

Also see Fr. Z's blog where he quotes from a Kansas priest who calls the appointment of Msgr. Conley "huge!"

I am sure that you have heard about the new bishops named early this morning. [I sure have!]

Msgr. Conley, currently of the Diocese of Wichita and formerly in the Congregation for Bishops and graduate of the famous KU humanities program and now appointed to be auxiliary bishop of Denver, is to my knowledge the first bishop appointed recently who had regularly celebrated the TLM as part of his priestly service (not merely an occasional Mass here and there). [And that must have been a consideration, frankly. There is no way that it wasn’t.] I believe that he and another priest alternated celebrating the 8 AM Sunday TLM in Wichita, the only such Mass in the Diocese of Wichita. This is huge! Maybe second to Summorum Pontificum. [That would be a "YES" vote!] Now we have a bishop who is not only a friend of the Extraordinary Use of the Mass, like Arch. Burke, but one for whom the EU was an important part of his ministry. The EU is part of new bishop(s). It is part of the mainstream of the church. This is great news for fans of Tradition.

Father Brian Klingele
Archdiocese of Kansas City in KS

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!