All at the table

incompatible views of "inclusiveness" - the first is from the women's ordination movement, the second, well, you ought to get the point.






If the first image offends you, you do well.
If the second image offends you,
don't let the door hit you on the way out.

Just cause...

standard, power, and beauty; Standard, Power, and Beauty

With war, politics, and conflict with evil all around us, here is the standard for the One which will overcome; it is easy to forget;

Finally, brethren, be strengthened in the Lord and in the might of his power.

Put you on the armour of God, that you may be able to stand against the deceits of the devil.

For our wrestling is not against flesh and blood; but against principalities and powers, against the rulers of the world of this darkness, against the spirits of wickedness in the high places. Ep 6:10-12



Yesterday morning here is what I saw at the chapter house in preparation for installing a power line!





At the close of a beautiful day, Anita captured these shots of the glorious evening we were treated to, from the Owyhees, clear and present in the evening, to a beautiful sunset which filled the entire sky.

Mathetes

When I first saw this word, Mathetes, I read it as "Mathletes," but apparently it is not a recognition of my (previously unknown to me) prowess in math! All things considered, it was kind of Athanasius contra mundum to drop this upon me, and I will pass the credit up and the award on.

Mathetes is the Greek word for disciple, and the role of the disciple (per the Great Commission) it to make more disciples. I'd like to take the opportunity to award five other bloggers with this award and badge for acting in the role of a disciple of Christ. These five all share the message in their own creative ways, and I admire them all for what they do.

In the spirit of this award, the rules are simple. Winners of this award must pick five other "disciples" to pass it on to. As you pass it on, I just ask that you mention and provide links for (1)this post as the originator of the award (Dan King of management by God), (2) the person that awarded it to you, and then (3) name and sites of the five that you believe are fulfilling the role of a disciple of Christ. If you know of other deserving recipients of this award, and would like to start a new string, then please post a link to where you've started in in the comments to this post. I would love for many deserving bloggers to be blessed with this recognition.

For He who has made us disciples, has adopted us as sons. That in and of itself is a reality before which we fall down on our knees and give thanks for such an unwarranted and undeserved gift. Yet, there you have it, and there it is. In particular, I'd like to pass it on to some of the young men who are responding to the call to vocation, may God continue to give you strength to persevere in living out the vocation of love and may He give you spiritual children by the thousands!

With particular gratitude, Obi wan,
who is not blogging, he can be found on the DCF forum

Next, to Zach



and Viking, who is discerning a vocation


Then there are the not so young who are not headed for orders, but have giving their life in service to our Lord.

in particular, Mike and family at Idaho Hicks in Austria



and following the greatest disciple of them all, Aussie Coffee Shop (who has already received the Mathete), and the others on the DCF Ladies web blog ring, especially Lowdenclear, because you have to love a blogger who can come up with this!

A couple of things

From the General Instruction of the Liturgy of the Hours:

The Apex and Souce of Pastoral Activity

18. Those then who take part in the Liturgy of the Hours bring growth to God's people in a hidden but fruitful apostolate (VII, Perfectae caritatis, 7), for the work of the apostolate is directed to this end, "that all who are made sons of God through faith and baptism may come together in unity, parise God in the midst of the Church, share in the sacrifice and eat the supper of the Lord"(VII, Sacrosanctum Concilium, 10).

Hermeneutic interpretations of Vatican Council II
by Agostino Marchetto

The Magisterium has now clearly indicated the correct way to interpret Vatican Council. For this we are profoundly grateful to the Lord, and to the pope.

Hermeneutic interpretations of Vatican Council II
by Agostino Marchetto

The Magisterium has now clearly indicated the correct way to interpret Vatican Council. For this we are profoundly grateful to the Lord, and to the pope.

Archbp Ranjith: opposition to Summorum Pontificum “beneath the dignity of a shepherd”

Again Archbp Ranjith: opposition to Summorum Pontificum “beneath the dignity of a shepherd”

Mons. Ranjith criticizes the insubbordination of bishops over Latin

"No to dances, ditties and sermons of a socio-political nature"
Rome 16 Nov. (Apcom) –

Read Fr. Z's translation and commentary at What does the prayer really say?

"we may not play roulette with a human life"

Even in trying times, we can't cast aside innocent life
E-Column by Bishop Robert Vasa

BEND Some weeks are easier to select topics for consideration than others and I must admit that recent events make this duty a bit more challenging this week than many others. I have already mentioned the death of my mother and though this continues to affect me I do not wish to make this personal event the subject of another consideration. Instead I think it is important to address another of the life issues, namely that of emergency contraception or Plan B.

Most Catholics, even those who wrongly maintain that artificial contraception is not immoral, usually recognize the necessity to respect and preserve newly conceived human life. This becomes the central question in evaluating the moral acceptability of emergency contraception in the case of sexual assault. Catholic principles do allow for the treatment of victims of assault, including treatment with those mechanisms required to impede the progress of sperm or the process of ovulation in order to preclude the conception of a child. Once conception has occurred then the duty to protect and preserve new innocent human life is exactly the same as that duty to protect and preserve new innocent human life conceived in the context of a mutually consensual relationship. This is necessary because otherwise we would be changing the value of the life of a child depending upon the circumstances in which a child was conceived. Once the existence of a new human being has been established then the life of that human being must be absolutely respected. Thus the use of a mechanism which is exclusively contraceptive presents no dilemma for emergency rooms including those in Catholic hospitals. In fact, there would be no difficulty or controversy at all if there were a mechanism which could be employed which was, in fact, exclusively contraceptive. Unfortunately I am not aware of any such mechanism and I believe that I am unaware of any such mechanism because such a mechanism does not exist.

Since there is no procedure or medication which can be given which does not simultaneously impede ovum, sperm or conception and the implantation of the newly conceived human being great care must be taken to determine the presence of an innocent human being, even one not yet attached to the womb of his or her mother, before the administration of the "contraceptive." It is here that clarity of language is so very important. While the mechanism is described as "emergency contraception," clearly indicating that preventing conception as a result of sexual assault is the goal, the truth is that "Emergency Contraception" prevents a lot more than "conception" understood as the union of ovum and sperm. This product, if used subsequent to conception and prior to implantation, impedes or even prevents the newly conceived child from making that first of essential attachments in its mother's womb. Using a bit of verbal engineering allows the proponents to assure us that the product prevents "conception" and does not disrupt "pregnancy." A closer look reveals that when proponents of Plan B use terms like conception or pregnancy they almost always mean an already implanted, growing baby in the womb of his or her mother. Most proponents of Plan B would maintain that pregnancy begins at implantation whereas it is much more honest to affirm that pregnancy begins at conception. Thus, though the language is the language of protecting a woman from a pregnancy as a result of sexual assault the truth is that the desire to protect a woman from such a pregnancy extends even to destroying the newly conceived child if necessary.

Nothing is to be done which impedes the natural progress of a child already conceived. This principle, at least in the ideal, is understood and practiced in Catholic hospitals. There is a huge difficulty with Plan B. If a pregnancy is confirmed by way of a standard pregnancy test then Plan B is neither warranted nor needed since such a readily identified pregnancy would not be the result of a very recent sexual assault. If the standard pregnancy test returns a negative for pregnancy then this only proves that the woman was not pregnant prior to the assault. The critical question, which must be answered with very great care, is whether the assaulted woman has already conceived a child as a result of the assault.

The answer to this question may not be able to be given with certainty and I maintain that it must be given with certainty in order to proceed with Plan B. The utilization of Plan B without this certainty runs the unjustifiable risk of destroying new life while ostensibly intending to prevent the assault from engendering that life. It turns an uncaring eye to the new life which may have already begun.

Some would maintain that since the intention is to prevent a pregnancy which may result from the unjust aggression of the assault it is legitimate to use Plan B even if the remote possibility of a pregnancy has not been absolutely eliminated. They suggest that a lesser degree of certainty of absence of pregnancy suffices. They suggest that even if a pregnancy does in fact exist the lack of knowledge about that pregnancy and the sole intention to prevent a pregnancy and not destroy one eliminates moral wrongdoing. They fail to recognize that we may not play this kind of roulette with the existence of a human life. It is illegitimate, even with good motives, to directly cause the death of a pre-born child. Intervention with Plan B without ascertaining with certainty the absence of an existing pregnancy is a direct attack on the life of that child and this is morally illegitimate.

There is no doubt that the intention of trauma treatment is to protect the woman who has suffered an assault but this must not extend to the destruction of an innocent child.

There is certainly a lack of respect in our country for pre-born human life but we in the Catholic community and our Catholic health care facilities must not in any way condone or cooperate in that promotion of the culture of death.

Book of Daniel and the "white hot furnace"

In the Liturgy of the Hours we have recently read of the three young men thrown by an irate monarch into the flames:

3:20. And he commanded the strongest men that were in his
army, to bind the feet of Sidrach, Misach, and Abdenago, and
to cast them into the furnace of burning fire.

3:21. And immediately these men were bound, and were cast
into the furnace of burning fire, with their coats, and
their caps, and their shoes, and their garments.

3:22. For the king's commandment was urgent, and the furnace
was heated exceedingly. And the flame of the fire slew those
men that had cast in Sidrach, Misach, and Abdenago.

3:23. But these three men, that is, Sidrach, Misach, and
Abdenago, fell down bound in the midst of the furnace of
burning fire.

3:24. And they walked in the midst of the flame, praising
God, and blessing the Lord.

I spoke with a young man who is in the Nat. Guard and had served with the 116th in Iraq in 2005. He told of visiting the site of the white hot furnace, a holy site for Christians, Jews, and Muslims near Kirkuk. I was surprised by the existance of this site, but shouldn't have been. Here are some pictures I found on the net.







Hat tip to the Virtual Tourist

On not enjoying prayer

An old post from the English Dominican Studentate blog, GODOGZ

Bede Jarrett OP writes about 'unattractive prayer':

There is some incompatibility in the inner life between sensible devotion and the depth of love. It is suggested to us that only when the sensible devotion has died down, gone out, will the real spiritual life come into its proper relationship to the whole man. Man, therefore, needs the fusing into one of his whole being. So long as he retains his devotional fervour in its physical sense, he has little chance of being able to hold to the Spirit. His upper surfaces are too engaging for him to be able to realize his lack. All goes so well with him that he does not see how ill it all is. There is the danger of mere externalism, the child's spirit of prayer that cannot hold out against the pressure of life and its stings ...

We accept it, then, as a principle of the life of the soul that it is expedient when the merely emotional side of religion gives way to something deeper, because only with the dying down of the emotional side can the other be liberated - the advent of the Holy Spirit. That this should be so in the world of the spirit is natural enough, for here above all we need to guard against the intrusion of self and of self-complacency. Now, it is abundantly clear that, if we did enjoy prayer always, we should be with difficulty persuaded from praying always, and yet our motive in so doing might very easily be not supernatural or unselfish but human and selfish. We might easily give ourselves to prayer because we enjoyed it. That would be a poor motive, for we would be seeking not God but self.

One can see the parallel between prayer and marriage; when the sensible attraction goes, do we continue or quit? This is to teach us about ourselves; must we get something in return, as a hired hand, or, are we willing to truly love, which means the will to give with no expectation of anything in return?

Fr. Later, God rest his soul, used to say he never married anyone who was truly in love (rather, they suffered from a homonal disorder), but he'd blessed many at their 50th anniversary who were truly in love.

On faith

FAITH - REJECTING ARTICLE OF.

"To reject any article of the faith is to reject the faith itself. This is like pulling one stone out of an arch; it is like putting one hole in the hull of a ship. The whole arch tumbles down; the whole ship sinks. A man who has the faith, accepts God's word. Now, God's word has been set up the Church as man's infallible teacher and guide. If a man, therefore, rejects one article of the faith, and says that he believes all the other articles, he believes this by his own choice and opinion, not by faith. Rejecting one article of the faith, he rejects the whole authority of the Church, and he rejects the authority of God which has set up and authorize the Church to teach truth. Hence, it is entirely incorrect to say that a man may have lifeless or formless fith in some articles of the Creed while he rejects others; such a man has not the faith at all, living or lifeless.
Thomas Aquinas, Summa, IIa IIae, Qq 5

Outdoor Stations of the Cross

received an email with pictures of an outdoor Stations of the Cross, reportedly near Amarillo Tx.; rather remarkable!



Hat tip to Kathleen Schuck OPL

Archbishop Chaput on Citizenship and Evangelization

A must read...

"We're Better Americans by Being More Truly Catholic"

NEW YORK, NOV. 5, 2007 (Zenit) - Here is the address Archbishop Charles Chaput of Denver delivered Oct. 26 at St. John's University School of Law in Queens, New York. The talked is titled "Church and State Today: What Belongs to Caesar, and What Doesn't."

read the rest here

hat tip to Doc

Submission to the Church by Faith.

A SYSTEMATIC STUDY of the CATHOLIC RELIGION
BY REV. CHARLES COPPENS, S. J. IMPRIMATUR. S. Ludovici, die 19. Aug. 1903.
†JOANNES J. GLENNON, Coadj. Adm. Dioceseos S. Ludovici.

CHAPTER VIII.

Submission to the Church by Faith.

117. According to all that has been explained and proved so far, the Catholic Church claims and makes good her claim, to be the Church that Christ has established, the continuation of the Apostolic body that Christ commissioned, saying: “Going therefore teach ye all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost; teaching them to observe all things whatever I have commanded you. And behold I am with you all days, even to the consummation of the world” (Matt. last verses); “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, and he that believeth not shall be condemned” (Mark XVI, 16). Every one to whom this claim of the Catholic Church is properly presented is obliged in conscience to accept her teaching (n. 73), with the alternative that, if he do not, he shall be condemned.

The evidence of this obligation is so strong that, to an unprejudiced mind, a fully sufficient motive is thus presented for yielding assent. Such assent is therefore highly reasonable, and the refusal to yield it is a refusal to accept the properly accredited messenger of God. When a messenger comes from an earthly sovereign, even though some doubt should rest on the genuineness of his credentials, it is not the part of wisdom to begin by rejecting him, and refuse him entrance into a city or state: the presumption is in his favor; and he is to be treated with honor, while everything is done that is possible to remove the doubt. Thus also, if any reasonable doubt remain in the mind of an earnest inquirer concerning the claim of the Catholic Church to be the Heaven-appointed teacher of religion, it is his duty--in this case an all-important duty--to pray for light, and seriously to investigate the matter till all reason of doubt be removed. To wait till the evidence of the claim become of its own power so overwhelming as to compel assent, is like asking for a special miracle, or Divine manifestation, as the Jews and as Herod did of Christ, and did in vain (Matt. XII; Luke XXIII, 8). Faith is a free assent; else it were not meritorious; it does not require sight, as Christ declared to St. Thomas, “Blessed are they that have not seen and have believed” (Jo. XX, 29). It is much to be feared that many to-day, in our own land, are repeating the mistake made by the Jews in the days when Christ was upon earth; they wait for special signs, and refuse to accept those given to all the world (Matt. XII, 39).

118. “Without faith it is impossible to please God” (Hebr. XI, 6): All forms of Christianity agree in recognizing the supreme importance of faith; but they differ very much, one from another, in the explanations that they give upon the matter (n. 361, I, II).

The English word “faith”, representing almost invariably the Greek πιστος and the Latin fides, occurs very frequently in the New Testament. The meaning of these words and of their derivatives is constant, and is equivalent to “certain judgment”, either in general, or, more specially, “certain belief on the testimony of another”; when this other is God, we have Divine Faith. It is an act of the intellect, not excluding the influence of the will. The Vatican Council says: “Faith is a supernatural virtue, through which, by the influence and with the aid of the grace of God, we believe that the things which He has revealed are true,--not because of their intrinsic truth seen by the light of reason, but on the authority of God Himself, who has given the revelation, who cannot be deceived nor deceive”.

A variety of erroneous meanings have been attached to the word “faith” or “belief”; many Protestants confound it with “confidence”, especially in connection with their doctrine on justification. True it seems we might substitute “confidence” for “faith” in some texts, as in St. Matthew XV, 28, “O woman, great is thy faith”; for her confidence was the outcome of her belief in Christ's goodness and power. But in other texts the meaning of confidence is wholly out of place; for instance in the words of St. Paul: “If thou confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and believe in thy heart that God has raised Him up from the dead, thou shalt be saved” (Rom. X. 9).

119. Since faith is a supernatural virtue (n. 118), an act of faith requires the aid of Divine grace, both to give further light to our intellect and strength to our will, and also to raise the act to a supernatural dignity, capable of attaining a supernatural end. But all men receive, either proximately or remotely, the grace necessary to attain their end, and therefore the grace to believe. When this is obtained and complied with, the act of faith is commanded by the will and elicited by the judgment, both will and judgment being elevated by grace. “I believe, because I will to believe; and I will to believe, because I have realized that it is reasonable and right to believe.” Inquiry as to the motive can go back no farther.

After the act of faith is duly elicited, there results the certainty of faith. This certainty is much greater than would naturally result from the motives of credibility that were considered before the assent was given; for it is strengthened by the Divine light of grace, which enables us to accept the formal motive of faith, the authority of God speaking to us. The certainty of faith is the greatest that man can have in this life; in the next life it will be changed into vision. Nor is it necessary that the motives of credibility possess in themselves great logical force; the grace of God can supply the want of evidence. The nature and weight of these motives will vary infinitely with the variety of ability and attainments of different men. Whatever one sees to be sufficient to remove prudent misgivings from his mind is enough for him; it makes the matter credible. The rude and simple, and the young readily believe what is told them by those whom they trust.

When doubts occur regarding the faith, the Catholic, on his own principles, is not at liberty to suspend his belief, even provisionally, in order to institute an inquiry; for he can see no solid reasons for doing so. But one who is not a Catholic is bound to inquire when he sees reasons to doubt; and even to embrace a new doctrine, when he understands that this is the safer course.

120. In thus submitting to the teaching of the infallible Church, we do no injury to our reason. On the contrary, reason itself has helped us to find the Heaven-appointed guide, who is commissioned to instruct us further. By believing, we only acknowledge the limitation of our reason, and our need of God's aid to refuse to do so would be the sin of pride. Such refusal is indeed against the dictate of reason. For even in natural matters, all men habitually guide their conduct by their faith in mysteries, which neither they nor their fellows understand; for instance, no man on earth can explain fully how a message is carried by electricity; how much less can we understand the hidden things of God? All students of natural sciences accept the teachings of their professors, while some of them disdain to receive the teachings of the infallible representative of God. Faith assists reason by supplying it with many safe points of departure, useful in its study of natural knowledge; and reason assists faith by investigating the “motives of credibility”, and clearing up cases of apparent conflict between revealed and naturally acquired knowledge.

Moving is progressing!

I've been in the new place for a week, and have continued to reduce the rubble-pile in the middle of the main room...



I may even have a fully functioning kitchen by the end of the week, although, with a coffee maker, electric skillet, rice pot, and frig, I'm not doing bad at all!

A SYSTEMATIC STUDY of the CATHOLIC RELIGION

A SYSTEMATIC STUDY of the CATHOLIC RELIGION
BY REV. CHARLES COPPENS, S. J. IMPRIMATUR. S. Ludovici, die 19. Aug. 1903.
†JOANNES J. GLENNON, Coadj. Adm. Dioceseos S. Ludovici.

72. Yet this importance attached to the true doctrine by Christ, by the Apostles, and by their successors throughout all ages, would be unintelligible and unreasonable if we had no certain means of knowing what the true doctrine is. Now we cannot have such means unless the Church be endowed with infallibility in her teaching (n. 99). Therefore she must be infallible. For no one can pretend that the Scriptures are so clear as to decide all doubts concerning the faith, even on matters of the gravest importance; for instance, on the necessity of Baptism for infants, or on the meaning of the words, “Amen, amen, I say to you; Except you eat the Flesh of the Son of man, and drink His Blood, you, shall not have life in you” (Jo. VI, 54). And who is to decide for certain what is and what is not of importance? Is every one to judge for himself? If so, why the words of St. Peter warning us that in the Epistles of St. Paul there are “certain things hard to be understood, which the unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other Scriptures, to their own destruction” (2 Pet. III, 16)? The fact is, those who pretend to draw their faith from the Scriptures are divided into more than three hundred sects, and in each sect there is much difference of opinion;--some members of the English Church call that holy which others in the same Church call an abomination. All this shows that the Scriptures are not sufficient to guarantee the truth of doctrine. Some Protestants suppose that the Holy Ghost teaches each pious reader of the Bible the true meaning of the inspired pages. If this were so, not two such readers would disagree; their faith would be concordant, which is not the case.

Besides, we have shown most clearly that the provision made by Christ for the perpetuity of His true doctrine is the institution of His Church (nn. 44-46). Therefore she must teach without error. Let us briefly sum up the proofs of her infallibility.

1. God could not bid us hear the Church if she could decide against the truth; and yet He bids us hear her (Matt. XVIII, 17).

2. He could not condemn a man for refusing to believe a false doctrine; and yet He says, “He that believeth not shall be condemned” (Mark XVI, 16). Therefore the doctrine which we are to believe cannot be false.

3. Christ promised to be with His Church till the end of time. Now this expression “to be with” occurs in ninety places in the Scriptures, and uniformly means “to give success;” but for a teaching body to err in doctrine would not be success but failure.

4. The Spirit of truth is to teach her all the truth and to abide with her forever (Jo. XIV, 16; XVI, 13).

5. “The gates of hell shall not prevail against her” (Matt. XVI, 18). If she erred, the gates of hell would prevail.

6. St. Paul calls her, “The Church of the living God, the pillar and ground of truth” (1. Tim. III, 15).

7. The Church has claimed infallibility from the beginning; for the Council of Jerusalem issued its decree as proceeding from the Holy Spirit: “It has seemed good to the Holy Ghost and to us” (Acts XV, 28). Nor should it be supposed that this claim was made in the name of the Apostles only; for it is distinctly stated that the decree proceeded from the Apostles and the “Ancients” (πρεσβυτεροι), which name designated the bishops and priests.

8. It has ever been the practice of the Church to separate from her communion all who refused to believe her doctrine; and this separation has always been considered as the greatest evil, so that St. Augustine said “A Christian ought to fear nothing so much as to be separated from the Church of Christ; for if he be separated from the Church of Christ, he is not a member of Christ.” All this certainly supposes that the Church cannot teach a false doctrine, and this is meant by saying she is infallible (n. 99).

To answer objections against the holiness of the Church, we must remember that an institution is to be judged by the effects of its action on those members who are imbued with its spirit, not on those who are impervious to its influence. (88)

November Chapter meeting day is moving.

After 10 years of meeting on the third Sunday of each month, the Bl. Margaret of Castello Chapter of the Third Order of St. Dominic will meet on the third Saturday, November 17, 2007 (at Our Lady of the Valley, Caldwell). This one time change will be made permanent if it works well for members.

(and I'd be posting more, but I'm moving too...)

A SYSTEMATIC STUDY of the CATHOLIC RELIGION

I have finished reading Whittaker Chambers' "Witness" and have started reading a book which has been on my list for a while; it has a lot of really good points from perspectives I haven't heard articulated before; for example, in the quote that follows, I have heard the Sabbath and Canon arguments (Nos 5 & 6) before, but not the others.

A SYSTEMATIC STUDY of the CATHOLIC RELIGION
BY REV. CHARLES COPPENS, S. J.
IMPRIMATUR.
S. Ludovici, die 19. Aug. 1903.
†JOANNES J. GLENNON,
Coadj.
Adm. Dioceseos S. Ludovici.

65. Though Protestants put the Scripture as the rule of faith, as a matter of fact they receive the tenets of their belief from their preachers and parents. Hence it has come to pass that many doctrines are accepted by most of them which are not capable of proof from the Scripture alone. Such are the following:

1. Infant Baptism, which however is so very important (n. 239).

2. The discarding of the washing of feet as a sacred rite essential to salvation, and yet Christ washed the feet of His disciples and said to St. Peter, “If I wash thee not, thou shalt have no part with Me,” and He added, “You ought also to wash one another's feet” (Jo. XIII, 8, 14).

3. The lawfulness of eating blood; and yet this practice was strictly forbidden to the Jews (Dent. XII, 23); and the Apostles in a circular letter insisted on the prohibition (Acts XV, 20).

4. The lawfulness of swearing; though Christ said, “I say to you not to swear at all” (Matt. V, 34); and St. James, “Above all things swear not” (V, 12).

5. The substitution of the Lord's day, the first day of the week, for the Sabbath, the last day. All that the Scriptures say is that some Christians met for worship on the first day, not that this was a substitute for the Sabbath.

6. The very canon of the Scripture itself is nowhere found in the Scripture; it can only be accepted on some authority other than that of the Scripture.

Evening and Night Prayer at Sacred Heart tomorrow night

You are cordially invited to come to the chapel at Sacred Heart tomorrow from 8:00 to 9:00. Evening and Night Prayer will be sung/recited during the final hour of adoration. This is Evening Prayer I for All Saints' Day. Mark, Anita and I plan to be singing.

Pax et fides,
-- Mike Turner OPL

Dominican Bishop stands up for Social Justice

Feminists don’t speak for women, says Dominican cardinal in blistering reply

Santo Domingo, Oct 26, 2007 / 11:14 am (CNA).- Cardinal Nicolas de Jesus Lopez Rodriguez of Santo Domingo, responded to criticism by radical feminists this week who accused him of pressuring the country’s legislature not to legalize abortion, saying these groups do not represent the interests of women.
“Women have always had all of my respect,” the cardinal said, “but I have never agreed, nor will I ever agree, with feminists of the bad kind, who are given over to everything except helping women.”

According to the cardinal, feminists, together with the United Nations, are the ones pressuring the governments of the world to legalize abortion.

Feminist groups, he explained, do not fight for the dignity of women, but rather they bring women down with the help of some sectors of society. “Only an imbecile, a moron, someone ignorant of everything, could defend that position,” he said.

Hat tip to Fr. Z at What Does The Prayer Really Say?

Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner

I hope it can be seen how in this last Sunday's scripture, the humility and repentance tax collector's prayer is the example of how we should live out the previous Sunday's lesson of the unjust judge and the woman seeking justice. Although we are tempted by cultural conditioning to read the word "justice" and think in terms of the aims of "Social Justice" and activism when we hear Jesus say in scripture: "I tell you, he will see to it that justice is done for them speedily," we are immediately given the example of the tax collector's humble prayer, and hear the fullfillment of the promise that links these two reading: "I tell you, the latter went home justified"

Justice properly sought (leads to) Justification received

The key here is that God's mercy is strictly speaking completely gratuitous, and yet as the Fathers teach us, God has chosen to bind himself to us in this way, and the justice asked, is given speedily as justification, a "due good."

The simple communitative justice which hearts of good will are drawn to seek, because it is a dim reflection of the goodness of God, has not been promised in this life; rather, we are admonished to be just, but to bear injustice with calm equanimity.

Moving

After 22 years in my home, I am moving; Kids are gone, and I can no longer afford or need the same accomodations. Still, its not an easy break to make! I spent the weekend at Homedale, where I enjoyed the warmth of off grid living, and the good cooking and charming company of certain members of the chapter (see picture), as well as the opportunity to say the office in community, a rare event for me...



The Blessed Margaret of Castello Chapter, after ten years of of meeting on the third Sunday of each month, is facing the decision to move to the third Saturday. This will have the advantage of being able to incorporate the Saturday evening mass and confession as part of the regular meeting. Did I say ten years old? Sounds like a celebration is due! It's been a time of deepening old friendships and the joys of new ones, uniting and growing in faith, hope, and charity, and helping each other share the good news of Jesus Christ in a world that has ears and does not hear, eyes and does not see...

Get thee to the preacher

Yesterday was the anniversary of the first time I sought out a priest, and the reason was the reading from St. Augustine in the daily office; in memory of that momentous day in which I received not what I thought I wanted, but rather received what the Lord knew I needed, with undying gratitude:

we don't know what it is right to pray for.

Professions

At the last Chapter Meeting we held professions and installed officers. Here are some pictures.


Novices making their temporary profession; Maria, Katie, Anita, Stacia, and in the background, Crystl...



...and receiving their Dominican cross.



Dorothy making her perpetual profession:



We installed the newly elected officers, and passed on the bell from Kathleen to Les, who is the new Sgt. at Arms (guardian of "Park it" and "stay focused, folks!).




Then on to celebration...



Sub-prioress Stephanie had this lovely cake made

UNITED NATIONS, SOCIAL JUSTICE, ABORTION

Abortion is the Focus of First Day of UN Conference on Maternal Mortality

By Susan Yoshihara, Ph.D. (NEW YORK — C-FAM) The United Nation's second in command announced today that the United Nations must make “sexual and reproductive health a priority in order to improve development.” Dr. Asha-Rose Magiro, Deputy Secretary General of the United Nations, speaking at the Women Deliver conference in London, said that to reduce maternal mortality, “We know what needs to be done. Access to sexual and reproductive health services, family planning, skilled care, emergency care, and trained midwives.”

Following Magiro’s remarks, Francisco Songare, MD, Director of the UN’s Partnership for Maternal and Newborn Health, said that the first priority in reducing maternal mortality “must be sexual and reproductive health – abortion – and without taboos!” Second to abortion, Songare said, was the need for skilled birth attendants and emergency obstetric care. The Partnership for Maternal and Newborn Health is a UN initiative chaired by UN Children’s Fund’s (UNICEF) Deputy Executive Director. Funding sexual and reproductive rights is a primary focus of the conference. At the beginning of the conference, the UK announced it would give an additional 200 million pounds [$400 million] to UNFPA over the next five years to “give women real contraceptive services.” Thoraya Obaid, Executive Director of the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) said later, “The UK funding commitment has been negotiated for two years, but it was because of this conference that they felt pressure to make some announcement today.”

Nafis Sadik, Special Advisor to the UN Secretary General for HIV/AIDS said that linking sexual and reproductive health to AIDS is critical because government support for sexual and reproductive health has fallen while enthusiasm and funding for AIDS has risen since the 1990s. Steve Sinding, Senior Fellow at the Guttmacher Institute echoed this, saying that the way to solve the reproductive health funding problem is to tie it to “the current preoccupation of development leaders” by showing that fertility decline is necessary for achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and to link family planning to HIV/AIDS programs and funding.

Another focus of the conference is on linking maternal mortality to international human rights obligations. Mary Robinson, former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and president of the non-governmental organization Realizing Rights, said that, “We need passion and collective anger…we must center sexual and reproductive health now. It must be prioritized to reach the Millennium Development Goals, especially goal five [on maternal mortality].” Robinson’s home country of Ireland has the world’s lowest maternal mortality rate according to a UN report released just this week, and Ireland has some of the most protective pro-life laws in the world.

Dr. Robert Walley, ObGyn, Executive Director of MaterCare International told the Friday Fax, “It is ridiculous to address abortion and contraception at a conference about maternal mortality. By definition, a maternal mortality involves a pregnant woman, not a pregnancy that has been avoided or aborted. We have known for many years how to help prevent a woman’s death by emergency obstetrics and skilled birth attendants. It is a shame that these leaders want to divert attention from the real needs of women -- giving her the best of obstetrical care based on life, hope, and the dignity of motherhood.”

Are the "Dominicans at the United Nations" involved? Is this issue a priority for those called to protect the weakest among us--the ideal of social justice?

PROFESSIONS: YOU ARE INVITED

This Sunday, October 21, 1007, at Our Lady of the Valley Church, Caldwell, Idaho, new inquirers, novices, and candidates for profession will receive their respective reception or profession into the Order of Preachers. The ceremony is beautiful and will be held at our meeting. The meeting commences at 11:00 a.m., Sunday, October 21, 2007 with the Rosary, light potluck, and meeting, then the professions at the Church. Please join us. You will love it and learn much. Also, we will handing out notebooks to introduce all interested in the Order of Preachers.

Please join us. If you have a question, call me. God bless your day.

John Keenan, O.P.L.

Formation Director

(208)375-2532

Is the real Vatican II starting to stand up?

here is an encouraging article by Sandro Magister.

A New Musical Season Opens at the Vatican – And Here's the Program

[at] Benedict XVI's visit to the Pontifical Institute of Sacred Music, on the morning of Saturday, October 13.

To the professors and students of this institute – which is the liturgical-musical "conservatory" of the Holy See, the one that trains Church musicians from all over the world – the pope cited Vatican Council II, where it says that "as sacred song united to the words, it forms a necessary or integral part of the solemn liturgy" (Sancrosanctum Concilium, 112).

He also confirmed that "three characteristics distinguish sacred liturgical music: sanctity, true art, and universality, meaning its ability to be used regardless of the nature or nationality of the assembly."

"Precisely in view of this, ecclesiastical authorities must devote themselves to guiding wisely the development of such a demanding genre of music, not by sealing off its repository[got that, Pirates of Vatican II?], but by seeking to insert into the heritage of the past the legitimate additions of the present, in order to arrive at a synthesis worthy of the high mission reserved to it in the divine service. I am certain that the Pontifical Institute of Sacred Music, in harmonious agreement with the congregation for divine worship, will not fail to offer its contribution for an 'updating', adapted to our time, of the abundant and valuable traditions found in sacred music."

Touch with a 10-foot pole? Gandolf: "Run, you fools"

An odd post by Fr. Z,

SSPX Bp. Williamson opposed to female “Doctors of the Church”: are his reasons good?

Some of the comments are actually rather good, to a discussion that sometimes is rather odd. On the other hand, who would be so bold as to assert that the world today is more in conformance with God's will than at any other time? hum?

Here's a couple thoughts from Isaiah:

3:12. As for my people, their oppressors have stripped
them, and women have ruled over them. O my people, they
that call thee blessed, the same deceive thee, and destroy
the way of thy steps.

27:11. [Israel's] harvest shall be destroyed with drought, women
shall come and teach it: for it is not a wise people,
therefore he that made it, shall not have mercy on it: and
he that formed it, shall not spare it.

We were born into the world left us by our progenitors, and on balance, are leaving this world for our children in a state much worse than we received it. May God have mercy on us.

Way to go vs. don't go that way; says Who?

Interestinly, I just read in Whittaker Chamber's "WITNESS" that he crossed a Rubicon of sorts when he came to the realization that instead of attacking the evil, he should promote the good. Perhaps he presaged Vatican II...

The Church's job has always been two-fold; apostolic preaching (for conversion) and governance/teaching (for perseverance to the end); the goal of both being the salvation of souls. The conscious decision to point the road and effectively ignore the wrong roads is a failure of charity, even if it makes one more popular.

One can not show the way to go without simultaneously showing the way not to go.

A number of times I have been chastized for saying what the Church teaches, and told "The Church isn't God" or something to that effect. I always found this a perplexing comment for a Catholic to make, and now I realize that those who offered it, invariably did so by way of dismissing what the Church has to say, so that they could go their own way untroubled by their conscience. To each who offered such advice, my tongue "cleaveth to the roof of my mouth," as the Lord told Ezechiel, and I was struck dumb. Only now do I realize that the answer is so incredibly profound, involving the mystery of the incarnation, that God would join Himself to sinful flesh, and endow a body till the end of time to speak with the authority of God.

The doctrine of the mystical body of Christ is of an order sublime and difficult to grasp as is that of the Immaculate Conception, the Incarnation, and the Trinity. Before such mystery the pride of man has and always will rise in rebellion, while the humble of heart will bow trembling and say "my Lord and my God."

What REALLY happens during an abortion: One surgeon finally tells the truth

What REALLY happens during an abortion:
One surgeon finally tells the truth




British TV on Oct 17, looking at what happens during an abortion. read the article; hope the show makes it to YouTube...

hat tip to Mac at Mulier Fortis, who posted a spoiler