Archbishop Chaput: Maybe not the first to realize, but one of the few to say so.

Legitimizing homosexual behavior.
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'Laws permitting same-sex civil unions are directly aimed at legitimizing homosexual behavior, not advancing human rights, wrote Archbishop Charles J. Chaput of Denver this week.  “The civil unions debate is not about ensuring the basic rights of homosexual persons,” the archbishop wrote in his latest column for the Denver Catholic Register. “The civil unions debate is finally about securing legitimacy for social arrangements and personal behaviors that most societies and religious traditions have found problematic from long experience.”' - Source
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I knew that.

What if it was all just one big conspiracy?

For instance, what's the difference between Garabandal and Medjugorje?
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There are similarities in both apparition sites and their messages.  One may argue that point as to details, but they are pretty close in kind.  One is favored by the more charismatic believer, while the other is favored by the more traditional believer.  Both have holy men and women who are said to have believed in the events and messages at one place or another.  The Bishops of both places have said at one time or another that there is no evidence that anything supernatural occurred at these sites.  Not a few of the faithful have more or less decided otherwise, and some even use belief in these events as a sort of litmus test of orthodoxy, or fidelity to Catholic teaching.
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Can something start out true and end in error?  Can a person be converted only to fall away later?  Can something like faith and devotion be faked?  Even for a long period of time?  Are there really people who have the form of religion but are something else all together?  Are there really 'impious people who have no faith?'   Can our charity admit to that?  
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'The table of sinners.'
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At his Wednesday audience, the Holy Father pointed to the doctrine of love discovered by the little St. Therese of the Child Jesus and the Holy Face as an example to all, even intellectuals, and none more so than theologians.  "Little Therese," he said, "never failed to help the most simple souls, the little ones, the poor and the suffering who prayed to her, but she also illuminated all the Church with her profound spiritual doctrine."
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Speaking to her witness of heroic faith amidst suffering, the Holy Father said: 'The faith she showed through this great suffering was "faith at its most heroic, as the light in the shadows that invade the soul," observed the Pope. "In this context of suffering, living the greatest love in the littlest things of daily life, the saint realized her vocation of becoming the love at the heart of the Church."'
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One of the sayings I most love from St. Therese is her assertion, "I prefer not to see."  She preferred to live by faith alone, even if that meant dining at the table of sinners - participating in their faithlessness, as it were, in her dark night of faith.  In this manner, little Therese associated herself with the unbelievers and the skeptics, the lowly and afflicted.  Nevertheless, in some mysterious sense, the heroic charity of Therese motivated her to  'bear all things, believe all things, hope all things, endure all things' - without seeing, devoid of consolation.  How many of us can sometimes find ourselves at the same table?  Struggling to believe all things, hope all things, endure all things?  Gratefully, we have St. Therese to help us.
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"To lead astray, even the elect, if that were possible." - Mt. 24:24
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As a nun, Therese and her community had been deceived by the conversion story of Diana Vaughan, an impostor whose true persona was the anti-Catholic con-artist Leo Taxil... The realization of which led to Therese writing in her memoirs, "I was unable to believe there were really impious people who had no faith... [but] Jesus made me feel that there were really souls who have no faith, and who, through the abuse of grace, lost this precious treasure, the source of the only real and pure joy."
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Leo Taxil of course was a contemporary of St. Therese of Lisieux, who for a time had been taken in by his scam. Taxil had stunned European society with his conversion from Free-Masonry to Catholicism, and subsequent pamphlets detailing the evil Satanic sect within Masonry. (Read more.) Later he invented a persona named Dianah Vaughan, whom he claimed also converted, with startling details of the diabolic cult. Taxil, an anti-clerical free-thinker from the start, delighted in deceiving and mocking the Catholic Church; the Lisieux Carmel and as I mentioned, St. Therese just happened to be amongst those duped.  Yet it did not disturb her peace, rather it lead her to an even deeper understanding of her vocation. 
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Needless to say, the deception neither did harm to the Carmel or the Catholic Church, although in a way, it demonstrates to some extent how even the elect can be fooled - if possible, and only for a time.  One thinks of the founder of the Legion, Marcel Maciel, and his double life; an elaborate pretense which fooled even the Pope.  Unlike Taxil, it doesn't appear that Maciel was attempting to mock or destroy the Church, nor did he ever declare himself an enemy of the Church; despite that, his motivation and actions remain somewhat unexplainable.
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It is said Leo Taxil also deceived a Pope: Leo XIII:
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Suddenly, after fifteen years of rude work spent paddling in the mire of a swampy but lucrative literature, the impious pamphleteer, soaked to the waist, finds a new calling. He renounces Satan and his base works: once so proud, he burns all that he has adored and adores all that he once burned: in short, he makes honorable public amends, confesses, attends mass, takes communion, and throws himself at the feet of the Sovereign Pontiff. "My son," the Pope asks him, "what do you want?" - "Holy Father, to die at your feet, there, at this moment... It would be my greatest joy!" responds the prostate penitent. "Not to die," answers Léo XIII with a benevolent smile, "your life is still very useful for the struggles of faith."
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This alleged conversion of Mr. Léo Taxil’s, which justly touched the Catholic world and the Free Thinking world, was but the prologue of a comedy, of an enormous farce in many acts, conceived and constructed by a hoaxer more inventive than concerned about his own dignity. Here is the scenario very briefly outlined:
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Act One: Simulations of repentance and of penitence, pious practices proper to edifying the clergy and to capture it’s full confidence. Diffusion of small books directed against FreeMasonry.
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Act Two: Invention of Palladism or High Luciferian Masonry, divulging of secret rites of lodges and back-lodges of the entire world, vowed to the cult of Lucifer.
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Act Three: Entrance of Miss. Diana Vaughan, so called ex-luciferian of high mark, converted to Catholicism, who reveals in her "Memoires" the diabolic mysteries of this damned sect, receives pontifical benediction and maintains a continuous correspondence with the most eminent members of the clergy.
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Act Four and final scene: Evening of April 19th 1897, organized in Paris in the room of the Geographic Society, and announced with great fanfare. The announced programme includes: 1st: The raffle of a writing machine offered by Miss. Diana Vaughan;
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2nd: A lecture entitled "Twelve years under the banner of the Church" by Mr. Léo Taxil.
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3rd: Palladism exposed, a conference accompanied by light show projections by Miss. Diana Vaughan. 
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The writing machine is raffled and is won by a young journalist. The evening begins... but, to the great disappointment of the public, wisely composed of a mix of priests, avowed catholics and free thinkers (the organizer later admitted to having selected the audience), the most impatiently awaited person, the mysterious, the extraordinary heroine whose problematic existence would dispel much speculation, and whom some sceptics had dared to treat as a myth, having stayed until then in the corridors-Miss Diana Vaughan does not appear. Mr. Léo Taxil, in correct evening dress, occupies the stage, alone. With serene impudence, in even tones, he denounces his own imposture, completely empties his bag of malice, explains complacently how, for twelve years, he has betrayed and duped the clergy and has made fun of everyone. "Ladies and Gentlemen," he cried out in a peremptory manner, "I am admitting my crime. I committed infanticide: Palladism, now, is dead, very dead. Its father has just killed it." - A Hoax  (Warning:  This is a Masonic site.)
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"Be clever as serpents and innocent as doves." - Mt. 10: 16
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These days, as Sr. Lucia of Fatima once wrote, diabolic delusion has swept the world, and we have witnessed over and over again how many can be easily deceived and seduced.  We need to be prayerfully vigilant.
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“Holy Spirit, inspire me.
Love of God consume me.
Along the true road, lead me.
Mary, my good mother, look down upon me.
With Jesus, bless me.
From all evil, all illusion, all danger, preserve me.”

- Blessed Mary of Jesus Crucified, OCD

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Art:  Allegory - Falshood

Sheehan speaks out on cohabiting couples.

Good stuff too!
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Read more here and here.
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What?

The Lord is gracious and merciful. Ps. 145

A beautiful meditation on Our Lord's fidelity to his priests.
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My Heart is moved to compassion by the sufferings of my priests,

by those that they inflict upon themselves
and by those that they inflict on each other.
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The sins of my priests cause me an immense sorrow.

I grieve over my priests
with a tender and sorrowful love.
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I want them to understand

that every trial, every suffering, every humiliation is,
for them, an occasion to turn to me with confidence
and to discover the depth and the height and the breadth
of my merciful love,
of my Divine Friendship for them. - Read more here.
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Happy Birthday Pier Giorgio.

“To live without faith, without a patrimony to defend, without a steady struggle for truth, that is not living, but existing.” - Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati.  April 6, 1901 - July 4, 1925

Program for the Beatification of John Paul II Announced.

On Tuesday the Vatican released the program for the beatification of John Paul II.  The Holy Father will be beatified Divine Mercy Sunday, May 1.  I'm very much looking forward to the event and want to spiritually prepare in some way.  The Holy Father's coffin will be transferred upstairs and placed before the Altar of Confession in the Basilica for the ceremony, and later placed in its new space in the Chapel of St. Sebastian in the Basilica.
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Link to Vatican Information Service for more details.
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Art:  The best icon I've seen of John Paul II, by local iconographer, Nicholas Markell.

I've decided to start doing dance/trance/jump-style instructional videos instead of painting.

Holy Crap! Mexican Bishop Raul Vera Lopez: “We want to erase homophobia from peoples’ hearts.”

“Jesus Christ welcomed sinners and cast out the Pharisees, which shows that excluding others is not Christian, we want to erase homophobia from peoples’ hearts.” - Bishop Raul
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With all due respect to his office, I think the Bishop is mistaken.  A little homophobia never hurt anyone - it's especially good for those Catholics who just might be thinking it is an acceptable=equal lifestyle.  I'm talking about this in the sense of a healthy 'fear of sin'.  The Church clearly teaches that homosexual behavior, homosexual acts, is sinful.  The Christian should fear falling into sin, the Christian should fear the contagion of sin, therefore if 'they' call that 'homophobia' - so be it.  One has to get the 'politics' out of Church teaching.
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What I find so astonishing is the double-speak coming from this Bishop's diocese - he claims he is supporting 'gay rights' for humanitarian reasons.  While insisting he is supporting Church teaching, he also supports the position of the American priest whose apostolate to gay people appears to be more liberal in the pastoral care of the homosexual person.  As Fr. Coogan, the founder of the San Eledro gay-community tells it, “you need to go beyond the Catechism.”  Really?  Strikes me as a little 'holier than the Church'.
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I expect this is going to be the trend going forward - unless as the American Bishop Tobin tells it, "We need our people to understand that this is a serious issue.  Our greatest danger as a Catholic community is apathy."  That said, Catholic groups in the Mexican Diocese of Saltillo have mobilized to urge Bishop Lopez to end the ministry as it exists. 
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From Catholic News Agency:
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Saltillo, Mexico, Apr 5, 2011 / 02:49 am (CNA).- Catholic family groups in the Mexican Diocese of Saltillo are urging Bishop Raul Vera Lopez to withdraw his support for a group that they say undermines Church teaching on homosexuality.
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“A pastoral commitment to homosexual persons is necessary and welcomed, but not at the expense of the family and a solid pastoral plan for marriage and family, which is unfortunately being neglected in the diocese,” said Natalia Niño, president of Familias Mundi, which is based in the diocese in northeastern Mexico.
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Niño criticized the diocese’s support for the San Elredo Community, which she said “publicly promotes an openly homosexual lifestyle, gay ‘marriage’ and gay adoptions.”
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Bishop Vera Lopez, in the audio interview on his website, called the criticism of the event “agenda-driven.”
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"Jesus Christ welcomed sinners and cast out the Pharisees, which shows that excluding others is not Christian,” he said. “We want to erase homophobia from peoples’ hearts.”
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But Familias Mundi leader Niño denied allegations of “homophobia.”
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“Our criticism has nothing to do with individual persons, their dignity and their rights. This is about doctrines that are opposed to the Church’s teachings and that have grave negative effects in our society,” she told CNA.
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In his interview on the diocesan website, Bishop Vera Lopez also stressed the need to defend homosexual rights.

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He affirmed his support for state recognition of civil unions among homosexuals. At the same time, the bishop said this does not mean he supports homosexual marriage, because marriage “is only between a man and a woman.”
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Fr. Coogan, who worked as a publicist and a volunteer at rehabilitation centers in New York before being ordained a priest in Saltillo, said that God makes men and women to be homosexual.
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“What God creates is a blessing for the world. Homosexuals are a blessing for the world. The world could not exist without homosexuals, it could not exist. God in his wisdom created diversity,” he told CNA.
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San Elredo believes homosexuality is “a permanent orientation,” he added.
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“It begins at a very young age and is permanent, like being right-handed or left-handed. It is something innate in people,” he said.
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He raised questions about the Church’s teachings that homosexual acts are sinful and that persons with a homosexual orientation must live chaste lives.
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“Moral culpability, in the oldest tradition of the Church, is affected by the freedom of the person … if there is no freedom, there is no culpability. The child who fires a gun is not guilty. And so if there are people who are subject to the wrath of society, how much freedom do they have? If they are afraid to tell their parents about their orientation, how much freedom do they have in their lives?”
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He added: “How can a person with same-sex attraction have a fulfilling life? And the only answer the Catechism gives is to tell them to be celibate, and that is not enough.” - CNA
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This thinking by Bishop Lopez, shared by a few other churchmen in Latin America and the Philippines, is probably shared by not a few other ecclesiastics in a chancery closet near you.
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Art:  "Dead Bishops" - Fernando Botero

An outspoken, popular Roman Catholic preacher: Accused of anti-Semitism.

St. Vincent Ferrer, O.P.
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Today is the memorial of one of the most popular Dominican preachers in Church history.  The Spanish Dominican, St. Vincent was a fiery preacher of great fame, preparing his generation for the Last Judgement.  The Saint even proclaimed that he himself represented the angel of the Book of Revelation - in fact, in Spanish Colonial art he is often shown with angel wings.  I think that is why I developed a devotion to him from an early age.  Ferrer involved himself in the politics of his day and is also known to have converted numerous Jews to the faith - although some sources say many of them were forced conversions.  Likewise the Saint is believed to have encouraged the social separation of Jews from gentiles, as well as other anti-Semitic city ordinances discriminating against Jews.  In addition, he is credited with converting a synagogue or two into Catholic churches.  That was then and this is now.  It doesn't make him a bad saint.  It is said he had the gift of tongues since he preached throughout Europe.  (That would be the real charism - not the popularized charismatic type.)  Despite his fame and popularity his success as an evangelist never went to his head, as one biographer notes:  "Popular acclaim, however, did not distract him from a life of asceticism and poverty."

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Another popular Dominican, in many ways very much like St. Vincent, was Girolamo Savonarola, who was born  some 30 years after the death of St. Vincent.  His influence was largely in Italy - but he preached pretty much along the same lines as St. Vincent.  Both Dominicans felt the end of all things was imminent.  Savonarola may have overstepped his bounds a bit as regards the politics, economics and morals of the day, even inciting his followers to riot and provoke a civil rebellion of sorts.  The outcry against him finally reached the Pope, who had him excommunicated and burned at the stake.  His reputation wasn't damaged too severely, since not a few Dominicans and others would like to see him canonized one day.  Much like St. Vincent, he led a life of strict asceticism and poverty and shunned celebrity and vanity.  In fact he invented the bonfire of the vanities.
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One would think these two men might make excellent examples for the evangelists of today: What to do, and what not to do in the new evangelization, and how not to over do...
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Art: St. Vincent H/T Western Confucian
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Bonfire of the Vanities...

wigs, make-up, jewelry, tights, mirrors, hair dye, shavers, DVD's, gym equipment, spandex, drugs, massage tables - up in flames!

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What?

       

The Anchoress confronts the mob...

Elizabeth Scalia tells it like it is.
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She's a very smart lady and has just about the best perspective possible on the Fr. Corapi phenomenon.  Scalia pretty much articulates all of what I have been thinking regarding the scandal, especially as it concerns Corapi's defenders - who have been acting like agents of the Inquisition.  The Anchoress sums it up beautifully here:  The Corapi Story; Devil's Delight 
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Photo:  The "Anonymous Commenter".

Great quote.

*Repost.

Regarding the failure of leadership by bishops and other Catholic leaders, Fr. Corapi, states, "I sympathize with anybody's dilemma who is in authority - but I only sympathize with it to a point." He explains, "If you don't have a backbone, you can't stand up straight. And if you can't stand, you're apt to fall for anything." - Source
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FYI:  I'm actually beginning to think that Corapi is most likely innocent of the charges against him - whatever those entail.  But as far as I'm concerned, this little upset to the 'brand' is certainly good for the soul.
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*Originally published October 9, 2009

Transgender equality advocate.

"The last frontier of equality."
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I looked at Sunday's paper and there was this photo and I laughed out loud.  Then I read the article which confirmed my first thought that this was a man dressed as a woman.  Her name is Vanessa Sheridan and she is a business consultant who seeks to rid the workplace of transgender bias.  I stopped laughing at that point.  She's got herself a job, that's for sure, and big corporations obviously have enough money to pay her for her services.  Fine.
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The world is nuts, therefore this stuff seems almost normal when it's all dressed up in a wig and a business suit.  In the meantime, all of this gender-identity-mental-confusion-poltically-correctness is quietly foisted upon  Americans, from pre-school to corporate employee handbooks.  I'm not saying these people should be discriminated against or pilloried in the public square, but is all behavior to be protected and given special protections?
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What disturbs me about this story is that in reality, Vanessa actually leads a double life.  She's out to the corporate HR speaker circuit, but she goes to church as a man.  How is that well adjusted?  She's a part-time cross-dresser. 
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Tillotson writes:
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"For all her transgender advocacy and workplace assertiveness, Sheridan leads a life in which she keeps much private, including her legal, male name. She said she is in a long-term romantic relationship, but does not identify with whom. Nor does she name the church she attends, because she does so as a man. However, she doesn't see herself as having two identities."
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"I don't become another human being, I'm just accessing more of myself," she said. "Quite a few people in my life know, and I've never lost a friend over it." - Strib
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This is nonsense.  It's like an Emperor's New Clothes rewrite.  One of the things Sheridan seeks is insurance coverage for the hormones needed by transgendered employees to keep up the appearance of the gender they identity as. 
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"On a recent Friday at Best Buy headquarters in Richfield, Sheridan was part of a panel advising representatives of 11 prominent area employers, including Land O' Lakes, Thomson Reuters and Blue Cross Blue Shield, on how to address transgender issues in the workplace and adapt health-care coverage.  "The session, which included vivid, real-life situations along with pointed and educational dialogue, was a way for attendees to sharpen their LGBT cultural competency skills," said Best Buy spokesperson Susan Busch." - Strib article
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The article also mentions that Obama appointed a transgender woman as an advisor and reported there are lobbyists currently on Capitol Hill working for transgender rights.  Somebody is making a lot of money on these 'civil rights' issues.
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Photo credit: Kyndell Harkness, Star Tribune

Of Gods and Men

The Trappist Martyrs of Atlas
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The murder and martyrdom of Westerners and Christians taking place throughout parts of the Muslim world are always deeply disconcerting, especially when one considers how the recent flare ups have been provoked by fundamentalist Christian zealots who commit provocative acts in the name of Christ.  In contempt for the religious convictions of non-Christians they desecrate that which the others reverence.  Both sides seem to have their share of misguided extremists.
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These days I have been thinking much about the Trappist martyrs of Atlas, the monks who were beheaded by terrorists in Algeria in the 1990's.  It is expected that these martyrs can act as special patrons to the Church in these days of bloody persecution, yet they also can be models and examples to individuals on how one ought to conduct oneself in the dark night of terrorism. 
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I was delighted to find that Idle Speculations posted on the martyrs, linking to a Cistercian site containing the last testament by Dom Christian de Cherge, the superior of the group.  I will reprint Fr. Christian's testament here.
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Last Testament of Christian de Cherge.

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If it should happen one day - and it could be today -

that I become a victim of the terrorism which now seems ready to engulf

all the foreigners living in Algeria,

I would like my community, my Church and my family

to remember that my life was GIVEN to God and to this country.

I ask them to accept the fact that the One Master of all life

was not a stranger to this brutal departure.

I would ask them to pray for me:

for how could I be found worthy of such an offering?

I ask them to associate this death with so many other equally violent ones

which are forgotten through indifference or anonymity.

My life has no more value than any other.

Nor any less value.

In any case, it has not the innocence of childhood.

I have lived long enough to know that I am an accomplice in the evil

which seems to prevail so terribly in the world,

even in the evil which might blindly strike me down.

I should like, when the time comes, to have a moment of spiritual clarity

which would allow me to beg forgiveness of God

and of my fellow human beings,

and at the same time forgive with all my heart the one who would strike me down.

I could not desire such a death.

It seems to me important to state this.

I do not see, in fact, how I could rejoice

if the people I love were indiscriminately accused of my murder.

It would be too high a price to pay

for what will perhaps be called, the "grace of martyrdom"

to owe it to an Algerian, whoever he might be,

especially if he says he is acting in fidelity to what he believes to be Islam.

I am aware of the scorn which can be heaped on the Algerians indiscriminately.

I am also aware of the caricatures of Islam which a certain Islamism fosters.

It is too easy to soothe one's conscience

by identifying this religious way with the fundamentalist ideology of its extremists.

For me, Algeria and Islam are something different: it is a body and a soul.

I have proclaimed this often enough, I think, in the light of what I have received from it.

I so often find there that true strand of the Gospel

which I learned at my mother's knee, my very first Church,

precisely in Algeria, and already inspired with respect for Muslim believers.

Obviously, my death will appear to confirm

those who hastily judged me naïve or idealistic:

"Let him tell us now what he thinks of his ideals!"

But these persons should know that finally my most avid curiosity will be set free.

This is what I shall be able to do, God willing:

immerse my gaze in that of the Father

to contemplate with him His children of Islam

just as He sees them, all shining with the glory of Christ,

the fruit of His Passion, filled with the Gift of the Spirit

whose secret joy will always be to establish communion

and restore the likeness, playing with the differences.

For this life lost, totally mine and totally theirs,

I thank God, who seems to have willed it entirely

for the sake of that JOY in everything and in spite of everything.

In this THANK YOU, which is said for everything in my life from now on,

I certainly include you, friends of yesterday and today,

and you, my friends of this place,

along with my mother and father, my sisters and brothers and their families,

You are the hundredfold granted as was promised!

And also you, my last-minute friend, who will not have known what you were doing:

Yes, I want this THANK YOU and this GOODBYE to be a "GOD-BLESS" for you, too,

because in God's face I see yours.

May we meet again as happy thieves in Paradise, if it please God, the Father of us both.

AMEN ! INCHALLAH !

Algiers, 1st December 1993

Tibhirine, 1st January 1994

Christian + 

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The humble gird on strength...
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Friends have asked me to see the film Of God's and Men, but it is Lent and I can wait for the DVD.  I have also read the book, How Far To Follow, an account of the Atlas martyrs.  I try to keep the message in my heart, but it is sometimes difficult when I think of the sufferings of those continually facing similar death sentences, and most especially after the recent killings in Afghanistan.  I don't believe I'm afraid of death or terrorism for myself, I actually look forward to dying one day.  What I fear the most is mortal sin and living in a state of sin - devoid of compassion and charity.
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The Lord is my light and my help;

whom shall I fear?

The Lord is the stronghold of my life;

before whom shall I shrink? - Ps. 27

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Photo:  Grave of Fr. Christian.  About 10 years ago now, a Trappist friend, Fr. Tom sent me sand from the martyr's graves.

St. Anthony of Padua: Exortation to priests.

A writer I very much respect and admire, Henry Karlson, wrote an excellent post on St. Anthony of Padua and the Saint's concern for the moral quality of the priests of his time.  I think what Henry had to say is important enough to share here.  I think it not only applies to priests and bishops, but to all serious Christians.
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Follow Christ, not worldly glory.
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"If one reads through the writings of St Anthony, one of his concerns was the moral quality of the priests of his time. He found them to be lacking the stature expected for clergy, with so many falling for worldly gain (fame, wealth, an easy life) instead of being representatives of Christ in the world. His criticism drew the ire of many, because he was trying to break up the ties between worldly success and the priestly life that so many had taken for granted; on the other hand, for the poor, the needy, for those who sought spiritual guidance and strength, St Anthony’s declarations were welcomed exhortations for true godly living. Here, we see Anthony talking to priests, talking about the characteristics of the just man. Why priests? Because so many failed to live out their priestly calling, having sold their services out to the wealthy of the world. Christ came as a poor man, living with the poor, speaking on behalf of the poor; how can Christ’s representatives, the priests, seek after worldly prosperity when Christ himself denounced it in the desert? Safety is in Christ; losing one’s status in the world will mean little to the one who truly has put themselves into service for Christ; the unjust man will speak up and strike out against those who makes claims against their worldly possessions: they will speak after their own reputation and how it is ruined instead of fleeing to Christ, looking for Christ’s aid in times of trouble; the just priest, while they will suffer, will suffer in and under Christ, they will suffer with Christ. They will know their innocence and that will suffice; they will put their trust in God and let God’s will be done – even if it means they will be seen as guilty by the world, they will not care, they will not be moved. They do not look for the approval of the world, but of Christ; they will not look for earthly rewards, for fame, for they know their prize is Christ, and to live is Christ and to die is to gain. Yes, they will speak to their innocence, if they are falsely charged of some wrong doing, but they will then leave it up to God’s providence to determine what happens next. They will not be focused on themselves, for they know their focus should always be to do the work of Christ, and nothing else.
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Anthony puts forward a picture of a godly preacher who follows God’s prompting and properly fulfills their vocation. They are merciful and kind, humble and wise, full of charity and patience. They do not look for glory; like Christ, they put off their glory for the sake of those they are called to help. They do not need worldly glory, for they have Christ. They fear no attacks, because they know themselves, they know who they are in God, and they know they have God alone to please." - Henry Karlson, Priests Are To Follow Christ, Not Worldly Glory

Defenders of Fr. Corapi attack EWTN.

Biting the hand that feeds the many.
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EWTN is a rare commodity in media - the network offers good Catholic programming, yet some Catholics in this country like to paint the network as utterly given over to Modernism.  There is nothing wrong with critiquing a network and its programming, but to condemn and attack it as they do many of the more non-Traditional bishops, priests and various liturgical abuse seen in the Church, seems to me to be like biting the hand that feeds many Catholics who are otherwise not exposed to sound Catholic teaching.
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Currently it appears most of the attacks are coming from the devoted fans of Fr. Corapi, based upon the fact the network has seen fit to cancel Corapi's programs for the duration of the investigation into the allegations leveled against the popular preacher.  The network is acting out of deference to Church authority.
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“A priest, has no right to public ministry in the Church on his own. He cannot function publicly without the express permission of his bishop or religious superior. That is the discipline of the Church.” - Michael Warsaw
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The Eternal Word Television Network said its decision to halt programming by the popular speaker Fr. John Corapi followed the lead of legitimate Church authority.
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“EWTN has an obligation to uphold the discipline and teachings of the Church,” president Michael Warsaw said on April 1. “In the network’s thirty years of existence, our practice has always been to discontinue airing programs featuring any cleric whose priestly faculties have been suspended, even if temporarily,” Warsaw said.
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EWTN pulled Fr. Corapi’s programs following the priest’s announcement on Ash Wednesday that he has been publicly accused of drug abuse and sexual relationships with several women. Fr. Corapi has denied the allegations.
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In the weeks since then, EWTN has come under intense criticism for its decision.
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In his statement, Warsaw said that much of that criticism has been “shrill and uncharitable.” He said that many people have threatened to withhold donations and have made personal remarks attacking the network’s employees.
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“When I see messages and web postings that malign the character and intentions of people who have served this mission for years, often at great personal sacrifice, I cannot allow those assertions to stand unanswered,” he said. - Finish reading here.
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In the end, 'all will be well' - good will come from this.
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Perhaps one more good reason for the interruption of the Fr. Corapi business - regardless of his guilt or innocence - may be the opportunity to call into question  the personality cult which appears to have developed around him over the years.  
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(I wonder if the same thinking was behind the HLI decision to pull Fr. Euteneuer's book?)

USCCB Pro-Homosexual?

Is that why stats 'appear' to be showing that American Catholics are open to same-sex marriage?
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I had the creepiest dream just as I was returning to the Church/Sacraments in my early 20's.  It took place in a large Gothic church during High Mass, many priests and bishops were celebrating, their backs to the congregation.  At communion time, emerging from a cloud of incense, the presiding bishop dressed in layers of ornate Gothic vestments and lace, turned and approached the communion rail, accompanied by numerous deacons and servers carrying candles.  As the entourage moved forward to give me the sacrament, I noticed the bishop and his assistants were wearing heavy make-up, and the fingernails on their bejeweled hands were long and polished.  Smiling salaciously, looking into my eyes, the bishop opened his cope to reveal a fetus, obviously to be consumed as communion.  I pulled back in horror.  That was a bad dream, but I think of that dream every time I read stories such as the following.
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The USCCB and New Ways Ministry.
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In his classic work New Lies For Old — The Communist Strategy of Deception and Disinformation, ex-KGB Soviet defector Anatoliy Golitsyn defines "strategic disinformation" as "a systematic effort to disseminate false information and to distort or withhold information so as to misrepresent the real situation, in, and policies of, the communist world and thereby to confuse, deceive, and influence the noncommunist world, to jeopardize its policies, and to induce Western adversaries to contribute unwittingly to the achievement of communist objectives." [1]
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Over the last 40 years, a similar program of strategic disinformation and deception has been waged against faithful Catholics in America by the National Conference of Catholic Bishops/U.S. Catholic Conference (NCCB/USCC), known today as the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB).

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From day one, with malice and forethought, the NCCB/USCC, a creature of the Second Vatican Council (although its roots go back to the pre-Conciliar era), has been systematically attacking and undermining Catholic dogma, faith, and morals, thereby creating a climate of confusion, deception, and apostasy among rank and file Catholics.

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And there is no area in which the USCCB's disinformation program has been more successful than in the realm of Catholic sexual morality as it applies to homosexuality and pederasty — the main driving forces behind the clerical sex abuse scandal in AmChurch today. [2] - Finish reading here.
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My comments:
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This particular report depicts Cardinals and Bishops apparently in collusion with New Ways over the years, since its founding.  It also demonstrates the sleight-of-hand in switching of religious orders the two founders of New Ways, Jeanne Grammick and Robert Nugent, performed to remain active in gay ministries.  Is it credible?  I don't know, although as for the religious order shell game, it is not unknown that religious congregations and abbeys have frequently been a place of refuge for the homosexually inclined. 
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While the Bishops have spoken out against New Ways, evidently they aren't saying enough, as the author notes regarding Cardinal George's statement earlier this February:  "Cardinal George's February news release issued by the USCCB Media Department was prompted by New Ways' attack on the Catholic Church for its opposition, limited as it was, to homosexual and lesbian "marriages."  It was a masterpiece of deception and disinformation." (ibid)  Engel comes close to calling the Cardinal a liar. 
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That said, the article was written by Randy Engel. I honestly do not know who she is, but I noticed that she is the author of a book called The Rite of Sodomy.  Evidently in her book - as in this article, she makes some very provocative claims against some American Bishops. 

Marijuana use approved for Caenacle Retreat Centers.

Who knew?
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"Contemporary life is just too stressful for the average contemplative," stated Sr. Mary Jane Hemp.  Sr. Hemp explained that limited use of marijuana seems to help in centering a retreatant's focus.  "Our community promotes Catering Prayer made simple through drugs.  Ideally peyote is our first drug of choice, but we are not a native American community and therefore are not authorized  for its use.  Since medical marijuana is widely available for use, we've selected it to spiritually medicate and relaz - err, relax our retreatants.  The community enjoys it as well" 
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As the interview continued, Sr. Hemp appeared to be disinterested in discussing marijuana use for meditation.  When asked to further explain the benefits of the practice, Sr. looked puzzled, giggled and then replied,  "What?"
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The interview ended abruptly.
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Editor's note:  Caenacle retreat centers are staffed by a new contemplative religious community of 'hermits' of Diocesan right, known as the Sisters and Brothers of the Higher Power.  The community was originally founded as a nursing order (see photo), but later decided to go completely contemplative.  They now operate for profit religious retreat centers in undisclosed remote areas in the Arizona/California desert regions.  They also offer Oriental healing and massage, as well as yoga - in addition to hair styling make-overs.  Catering Prayer seems to be the most popular however.  The community refers to it as Catering Prayer due to the fact that the religious serve snacks during meditation.  The rather corpulent Sr. Santa Marta Basuco, procurator for the communtity explained, "You see, marijuana tends to increase the user's appetite."
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Brother Founder

Terry Jones or Wayne Sapp? The preacher(s) who burned the Quran - and set ablaze Muslim anger.

Arrogance and misplaced zeal.

Editor's note:  The first report I read and linked to below, names Wayne Sapp as the actual Quran burner, but now it seems Terry Jones is taking the credit for this act of idiocy, since he's the so-called head of the Dove Outreach Center, and seems to be calling the shots.  Fanatics are hard to follow.
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On Sunday "Rev." Wayne Sapp, a member of the Dove World Outreach Center, torched a copy of Qur'an claiming that the holy book had been found "guilty" of crimes in the course of an eight-month trial and was therefore "executed." - Source
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Fanatics call unto fanatics.
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MAZAR-I-SHARIF, Afghanistan (Reuters) – At least eight foreign U.N. workers were killed, two of them beheaded, on Friday in the northern Afghan city of Mazar-i-Sharif after a demonstration against the burning of Korans by a U.S. preacher, a regional police spokesman said.

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"Eight foreigners were killed and two were beheaded," said Lal Mohammad Ahmadzai, a police spokesman for the northern region.
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Over a thousand protesters had flooded into the streets of the normally peaceful city after Friday prayers, and after two or three hours violence broke out. - Source
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People will condemn the Muslim extremists for this - and rightly so.  But over zealous fanatics like Sapp seem to me to be just as quilty.  I wonder if he is self-righteously pleased by all of this?   
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Photo:  "Minister" Sapp.  I'm confused - Sapp burned the Quran, but Terry Jones presided over it?  So they are both to blame, right?  But Terry Jones is shouldering it?  They are both false prophets.  I have to wonder what Sarah Palin thinks.

Bishop Aquila: Sound teaching.

Don't go to strangers...
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Avoid self-appointed prophets and visionaries.  At last the Church in the U.S. is getting  courageous and outspoken bishops defending the Truth of Catholic doctrine.  From Bishop Aquila:
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"Bishops and priests should not apologize or make excuses for the teachings of Christ and the Church, Bishop Aquila exhorted. Rather, they should teach with “charity and unhesitating truth.”

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The exercise of Church authority faces challenges because secular culture “makes man into god” and undermines any authority attributed to God. Bishops and priests should turn to Jesus Christ to learn how to exercise their authority in governing the Church, the Fargo bishop said.
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Jesus was “direct” in calling people to conversion and to change their way of acting and thinking, he pointed out.
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“This directness makes many of us uncomfortable today.
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“We should follow his example and language, even if we do not use his precise words. His language is good to contemplate and definitely should challenge us to look at how we correct the faithful, including priests and bishops, and speak the truth especially with those who say they are with Christ and the Church but do not accept the teaching of Jesus and the Church.”
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Jesus’ “forceful” language towards the Pharisees and Scribes “would never be tolerated today” but the Gospel writers did not hesitate to pass down his words, Bishop Aquila said.
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“In love Jesus makes these direct statements to open the eyes of those whose hearts and minds are hardened. His straight talk, given in love for the person, desires the conversion and holiness of the person to the ways of God,” the bishop explained.
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“(T)oo many people understand correction or punishment as not loving the other or as dominion over the other, and this is the work of ‘the father of lies.’ A reluctance or hesitancy to correct and properly punish does not invite the other into the truth that frees and ultimately fails in true charity.
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“As servants of truth, of Christ, we will correct those who sin for their own good and for the love of the other, even if it leads to our own persecution and rejection,” Bishop Aquila said. - CNA

Presidents and Demons.

"The devil made him do it" and modern day prophets and their excuses...

It just ain't conservative Catholics and Fundamentalists who fear Obama may be infected with evil. Louis Farrakhan seems to thinks so too.
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"Warning that destruction could be on America's doorstep because it oppresses “God's chosen people,” Minister Louis Farrakhan, the controversial Nation of Islam leader, defended Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi today, calling the U.S. action in Libya hypocrisy.
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Speaking from the pulpit of Chicago's Mosque Maryam, the Nation of Islam's international headquarters, purchased 40 years ago with a $3 million loan from Gadhafi, Farrakhan blamed demons for altering President Barack Obama's moral conscience and driving the assault on Gadhafi, who he calls a brother.

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“It is a terrible thing for me to hear my brother called all these ugly and filthy names when I can't recognize him as that,” Farrakhan said to the crowd assembled at the mosque on Chicago's South Side. “Even though the current tide is moving against him … how can I refuse to raise my voice in his defense? Why would I back down from those who have given so much?”

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On Thursday, Farrakhan said scenes from an earthquake- and tsunami-ravaged Japan inspired him to warn the American people about an impending natural disaster that will punish them for their arrogance.

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“A major earthquake is on the way to you and me and us,” he said. “Death and destruction is at the door of all of us, and we are worse prepared than the Japanese.” - Source
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Wow!  He sounds just like Christina Gallagher and so many other visionaries warning America!
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Seriously, this is what "we" sound like to others when we blame the devil for everything, or call  our opponents Nazis and Commies all of the time.  Men have free will and are capable of making their own choices, plans, and agendas.

So far the best thing about the Fr. Corapi story:

Some questions regarding his business and religious life have been answered.
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1) Fr. Corapi was given freedom to conduct his ministry more or less independently of SOLT.
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2) Though wearing a habit of a mendicant for a time, it appears he was permitted to have his own private company and residence.  A report from the National Catholic Register:
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"He made Santa Cruz Media a for-profit company, he told his superiors, in order to have the proper freedom to proclaim the Gospel without any fear of raising issues that might threaten the company’s tax-exempt status.  He said he would pay his taxes and proclaim the Gospel fearlessly. Father Flanagan allowed him to manage his own funds. No one knew it would become so big.
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Nevertheless, the vice president of operations of Santa Cruz Media, Inc. described Corapi's for-profit production company as a “secular corporation and not affiliated with the Catholic Church in any way. As such, we are not under the jurisdiction of any bishop or other official in the Catholic Church.” - Fr. Corapi's Superior offers a look into the SOLT's relationship with the priest.  
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Then to whom is Fr. Corapi accountable?  I noted on another site that he does not have faculties in the diocese in which he lives.  I'm aware that his superiors are investigating the allegations against him, but he seemed to be acting as a free agent up until now.       
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"There is great gain in religion..."
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Link:
Assessing the Fr. Corapi Case  Be sure and read the comments.

Marriage Prep.

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Quick, report this one to Bill Donohue too.