I am in the process of implementing a new commenting feature. I'm getting a little fed up with Haloscan, so I am trying to integrate phpwsbb (the forum module of phpwebsite) with my blog module.
I am doing it somewhat manually, and I'm going to be linking blog posts to the forums by hand until I am able to do it automatically.
A nice side effect of this is you'll be able to see if there are any new replies without having to trip down the entire blog to see if the individual comments have been incremented.
Also, you'll be able to start your own "pillow fights" (discussions) in the forum.
If you have any ideas for new forums and you'd be interested in being a moderator, drop me a line via the E-mail Me link.
As usual, if you find any "funkiness" in the application, please contact me via the E-Mail Me link.
Mooooooooo!!!!! This is from one of the coolest sites I've seen in a while. It's called Modesty Zone. It's an entire site devoted to the counter-cultural idea of feminine modesty.
I just thought the cup was too cute. The rest of the features are kind of neat too.
I wonder how many times I've heard that in our Church. I think if every time someone said that they had to put $1 in the collection box, our financial problems would be a thing of the past.
It's mentioned every time someone suggests something somewhat traditional like... say... placing the tabernacle containg our Lord and Savior in a prominent position in the front of the church instead of a side "chapel". Or if someone suggests chanting, or reciting the Kyrie or Agnus Dei in Latin.
There almost seems like an attitude of "going forward" is good, "going backward" is bad.
This got me to thinking of some situations I've been in during travels, when I've wanted to get to a certain destination, and I have come to a sign much like you see here. I have a couple of choices, I can continue to "go forward" ignoring the warning signs, and drive my car into the river. I can try veering off to the left, or the right, and get stuck in the mud, or I can "go backward" until I get to a point where I can safely go forward again. As it turned out, I had to go backward, and my wife didn't rebuke me. She understood the danger of the situation we were in. We went backward, until we could find a detour and then continue on to our final destination.
The journey to Heaven is much like that.
Sometimes in our journey we get traveling down the wrong road, one that will lead to danger. Sometimes as a collective Church, we get traveling down the wrong road, as we have done post-conciliar with those driven by the "spirit" of Vatican II. This is most typical in the case of the Church in the United States.
We have taken the focus away from our sinfulness, and our need for our Savior's intervention in the sacraments of Reconciliation and Eucharist (Confession and Communion for the more traditional types) and aimed it to how cool we are (Summoned by the God who made us, rich in our diversity...).
We have lost the sense of the huge chasm between us and our Creator, bridged by His choosing during Communion, and have turned Jesus into a "drinking buddy".
We have lost the understanding of the difference between our role as lay people, and the role of the priest in the Church. We want to have more and more authority in the Church, and we don't like to be told what to do.
We have become arrogant.
I think it's time to stop this particular bus. It's time to start "going backward" for our own good, lest we drive into the river. Maybe we don't need to ride the bus all the way back to the liturgy of Trent, but we can back up enough to capture the majesty, the mystery and the real presence of God in our midst. If that takes moving the furninshings around in the church, reworking the music, rekindling Catholic devotions, or adding a Latin or Greek (Kyrie) prayer or two, then I think that's what we need to do.
The bridge is out, and I don't believe this particular road leads into a river. It leads to a much warmer place.
Please pray with me this Lent, that we have a conversion in the hearts of the faithful that drives a new liturgical movement back to God.
I have been homechooling my soon to be confirmed daughter in religious ed. She was having a problem with the simple and many times wrong information she was being fed at the official religious ed class. (With all due respect to the teachers. They are all volunteers.) So one of my assignments was a religious ed "field trip" to the local indult mass.
I love the old Latin (Tridentine) rite. The priest celebrated with his back to the people (and facing God, like he should). Only problem was, he wasn't wearing a wireless mic. It was very difficult to hear what he was saying, but there wasn't much concern in hearing what he was saying because he wasn't saying it for our benefit. We were just observers.
We had an organ and choir who responded at all the proper times, but for the most part, the congregation sat like lumps on a log, except when they were required to stand, kneel, genuflect, etc.
Communion was great, there was even an altar rail. We all knelt for communion, but we didn't even have the participation of saying "amen" after the "Corpus Christi". The priest said "amen" for us.
The dress was quote formal, with 75% of the women with their heads covered. There was a great degree of reverence there.
But...
I didn't feel like I was worshipping God communally as the Holy Mass is supposed to be. I felt like all the people at mass were worshipping God in their own way. It almost seemed like Eucharistic adoration than the Holy Mass.
There were not a lot of distractions, but there was a decided lack of community. As I said before, Mass is communal prayer, where we join with Catholics the world 'round as one body to praise the God of the universe.
I can really understand why the Tridentine Mass is offered under indult of the local Ordinary. There is a distinct "splitting" of the community at this parish. There are the "Latin Mass people", and the "other people" and never the twain shall meet.
But meet it must.
The Catholic Church, and especially single parishes need to be one community, praying to God in one voice. We do not to break into neo-Protestant factions of the Catholic church each wanting to do things our own way (and lest you think that "new" = "Protestant", the SSPX is one of the most Protestant of all, splitting off from the main Body of Christ because they don't like the way things are going).
I would love to see a renewal of the Sacred Liturgy. I'd love to see a renewed sense of respect, and piety toward the real presence of Jesus in the Eucharist. I would like to see more music that supports real communal prayer and worship and which is doctrinally correct (not necessarily accompanied by an organ, or sung in Latin, or over 100 years old).
I would like to see a mandate of everyone taking communion on their tongue. This would prevent the desecrations of the Body of Christ that we've seen in the past as in the example of people taking communion back to the seats, breaking it, and re-distributing it to those who are not in communion with the Catholic church.
I would like to see the priest once again face the tabernacle, and incumbent in this, I'd like to see all tabernacles once again front and center behind the Altar of Sacrifice. I'd like to see these things enforced, those not toeing the line warned, disciplined and defrocked if need be.
I think if these things happened, I could look at my Tridentine-loving brothers and sisters and say: "Grow up".
But as long as the Holy Mass is corrupted by things like clown makeup, dancing girls and pita bread for the host, I can't in good conscience do that.
Also, should the Tridentine rite become the de-facto Mass once again, I would happily attend, knowing deep in my heart that where "two or more are gathered, so will I (Jesus) be".
I would love my daughter to write her thoughts on this, and if she does, I'll do an update and link it.
Catholic Pillow Fight was not nominated for any Catholic Blog Awards categories, probably because there were so many better blogs than mine out there. But I am placing my wimpy political clout behind Al Kimmel of Pontifications.
He placed a notice on his site, asking for your support.
Voting continues for the 2006 Catholic Blog Awards. Pontifications has been nominated under four categories:
Most Insightful Blog
Best Apologetics Blog
Most Intellectual Blog
Most Theological Blog
The voting booth will be open through noon on Tuesday. You do not need to be Catholic to vote.
You are permitted to vote in all categories every 24 hours. I did not realize this until today.
One of my favorite wacky radical feminists is Echidne of the Snakes. She mostly rails against the conspiracy of the patriarchy, and every so often takes a pot shot at the Catholic Church. I have been asked by her, kindly I might add, not to post in her comment boxes any more (it seems I've been disturbing the purity of the liberal echo chamber), but I can't let this sort of misinformation slide.
I'm listening to Jerry Springer (too lazy to turn the radio off) and he is discussing this assertion in the context of protecting people against AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases. I haven't been listening carefully, but I guess it is someone in the Catholic church that finds condoms immoral. Because they interfere with God's fertilization plans.
Well, they are indicative of an attitude toward thwarting God's will. And it isn't "someone" in the Catholic Church that deems the use of artificial birth control (ABC) as sinful. It's the Pope and the living Magesterium. This teaching had been a part of the compendium of Church teaching for over a millennium. (The "sexual revolution", on the other hand, is only about 50 years old.)
The short answer to the question whether using condoms might be immoral is to point out that it is a lot more immoral to let people die of preventable sexually transmitted diseases.
The actual answer is that nobody lets people die of preventable sexually transmitted diseases. People infect themselves with sexually transmited diseases (or those who are raped are infected with sexually transmitted diseases against their will, but how many rapists use condoms anyway).
If people followed the Church teaching on chastity, they would never catch sexually transmitted diseases.
I always find this argument disengenous because how many people have you ever met that regularly fornicate, but do not use a condom because it's sinful?
But slightly off the topic, I have never been able to understand why the rhythm method is not regarded as immoral by the Catholic church. It aims at stopping the divine fertilization plans, doesn't it? How does it differ from using a condom? Other than by allowing for the spread of sexually transmitted diseases?
This is an easy one. It's all in using one's body for the purpose it was intended. Eating is designed for nutrition. Sex is designed for procreation. Both have their pleasurable aspects in addition to their primary purposes.
Using artificial birth control denies an integral part of you to your spouse when by the very act of marital conjugation you are saying "I give my whole being to you". What you actually are saying is: "I give my whole being to you... well... except for that pesky fertility... We'll just block that giving you exactly the same fertility as a... well... blow up doll."
To continue the eating analogy. Taking the fertility out of sex is like taking the nutrition out of eating rendering a sterile sexual act as disordered as bulemia.
And it's all in the attitude. If you would be angry if the Natural Family Planning you were using "failed", it would just as sinful as using a condom. It's all in the attitude and the aquiescence to God's will.
One answer I've been given is that it's easier for God to fertilize people when there is no artificial prevention. But this seems just silly to me: Either God is powerful enough to drill through a condom and other artificial contraceptions or He is not. And if He is not that powerful, is He powerful enough to mess up women's monthly cycles?
Sure, but that interferes with the pesky "free will" thing. God allows us to choose to do things that are harmful to us, and most of the time we reap the consequences of our actions. God tries to tell us the right way to live, but if we don't listen to Him, oh well... He tried.
One of the disadvantages of condoms is that there is a number of STDs that condoms simply do not stop. One of those is HPV (human papillomavirus) which is responsible for 80% of cervical cancer in women). This is transferred from skin to skin contact between mid belly and mid thigh. Sometimes it shows genital warts. Most of the time it doesn't show anything. They did a survey. 46% of high school girls who had had only one sexual partner were infected with HPV. This lie that condoms "protect" you is just that... A lie.
I don't think that condoms are immoral. They are latex things with no opinions on morals. You can also fill them with water while on a break during the school and then get caught dragging about fifty quarts of water in a balloon behind you. Don't ask how I know this.
You're right. They're just a tool. But they're a tool that can hurt people even when used consistently and correctly. Much like a gun that one out of six times shoots the guy holding the gun. Let me ask you something...
Would you go target shooting with a gun like that?
I believe one of the problems we have in the modern Catholic church (at least in the United States) is that we've lost the demarcation between God's space (the sanctuary) and the people's space (the rest of the church).
At one time, the altar rail marked that line in which the people were not allowed to cross. It was where the holy of holies resided. Consecrated hands (priest) and innocent hands (altar boys) were the only ones allowed there. The Eucharist was shrouded in mystery. The priest faced east (ad orientem) with the people (a side effect was that his back was to the people, but in reality, he was facing his God).
Vatican II, Paul VI and the New Order (Novus Ordo) took care of that. In a symbolic gesture almost reminiscent of the tearing down of the Berlin Wall, the altar rails came tumbling down. The priest faced the people more like a stand up comic facing his audience, and he turned his back figuratively on God. The mass became an audience participation performance, rather than a solemn celebration of our Lord's sacrifice on the cross, which purchased salvation for us undeserving wretches.
As the mass became more of a performance, music took a more and more central role in attracting and keeping an "audience". The songs were written with more of a pop (short for popular) flavor to try and attract and keep parishioners. Homilies were "sanitized" of any whiff of the discussion of sin. Catholics became more of an "I'm Ok, You're Ok" kind of people, rather than "I'm broken, and only you can heal me, Lord" kind of people. Confession became a quaint relic for little old men and ladies who weren't able to throw off the trappings of the "old church" and get with the times. After all, if "all are welcome", and we never hear of sin, what is the need for repentance?
EMEs (Extraordinary Ministers of the Eucharist) now line up in some churches in the holy of holies, behind the priest during the fractioning rite. They receive the Body of Christ in their hands, and like co-priests, receive at the same time. The line between priest and congregate has blurred to the point that some EMEs dress in pseudo-priestly robes, and lay people are giving the homily (though they call it a presentation or some such) even though it's against the rules.
People come to communion like the drive-up window at McDonald's looking for their weekly serving of bread, many times forgetting (or never knowing, or truly understanding and believing) that the "bread" they are taking into their unconsecrated hands is the real and true Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of the Creator of the universe who breathed everything into existence out of nothing with a Word. The Word that was made flesh for them that day and they now receive into their bodies.
How can you not fall to your knees?
But I am loathe to criticize those armies of poorly catechized Catholics. Whose post-Vatican II understanding of God in the Eucharist was taught by those who had never experienced the awe, mystery and majesty of Body of Christ approached with the guileless belief of a child.
I think this is the ultimate point. The pinnacle of our faith. That which brings us to a greater appreciation of the mystery of the Eucharist, and into a closer communion with God is beneficial.
Changes need to be made, but like any cancer, the tumors on the Body of Christ, need to be carefully excised. You can't go hacking and slashing with no regard to pastoral concerns. It's taken us 40 years to get here, and it make take 40 years for us to get back. I may see it in my lifetime.
I have been taking steps to deal with the problems personally. My way is not to find another church, or moan and complain about it (though I've done my share of that in the past), but I'm trying to help institute changes in my parish such are rosary once a week on Sunday evening (hopefully soon to be added Benediction once a month if we can get our pastor to do it). We need to pray... hard. We need to call on those such as St. Michael the Archangel to help us. He kicked Satan's ass once, and he can do it again. We need to call on the Mother of God to help us be gentle and understanding.
Last weekend, I went to confession for the first time in 7 years. I approached that small room (yes, in the mall, Gerald) with fear and trembling, and when I walked out, it was with the infinite mercy of Almighty God who promises us: “See, I make all things new”. I have purchased the book of Christian prayer (a small, one volume version of the Liturgy of the Hours which contains morning and evening prayers). I am trying to recite both morning and evening prayers every day, and have found that both prayers take a little over a half hour. Jeff Miller at The Curt Jester e-mailed me with a podcast of the morning and evening prayers recited by Father Roderick Vonhogen. You can subscribe to the “praystation portable” podcast here: http://feeds.feedburner.com/praystationportable. Thanks so much, Jeff. I am approaching my Lord in the Eucharist on the weekends (and some times during the week) accepting with gratitude the gift He gives us with no strings attached.
I am enjoying this journey.
My thanks to those like Jeff, the Anchoress and even Gerald for sharing their faith, explaining their concept of God in ways my heart can understand. This medium of the internet is an amazingly powerful tool for evangelization, but it can also turn off those seekers who stumble across our little places on the net. I am trying to be more careful in my admonitions and more lavish in my praise. I trip and fall, but how can anyone travel any distance without a stubbed toe or two.
During this holiday which Hallmark has co-opted, we do well to remember one of the Saints Valentine for whom this day is named.
Claudius II Gothicus is also known to history for his execution of a little-known Christian monk named Saint Valentine, who secretly married Claudius' soldiers in defiance of an order from him that professional soldiers were not to marry. This execution is said to have taken place on February 14, 269 (269: more facts about this subject) , and when Valentine was later sainted, February 14 became his feast day.
So let's take a moment today to remember the Saint, in addition to our loved ones.
My wife and I are back from our World Marriage Day mass in Syracuse. It was absolutely fabulous. The longest married couple has been married 69 years, and we hope to see them back next year. This was a tribute to the lifegiving aspect of The Promise ™ when you say "yes" to the spouse that God provides for you (be it God himself, an earthly spouse, or a consecrated single life).
And interesting side topic was on Saturday, my wife and I went to the Carousel Mall in Syracuse. This is a huge mall with the standard assortment of Hot Topic, Victoria's Secret, Gap and Ambercrombie and Fitch. We were looking for a dollar store that we had seen on the mall directory, when at the end of the lowest level aisle, was a place named The Franciscan Place.
At first I thought it was a restaurant. There have been a couple with the "friar" motif, but as I got closer, it looked like a little Catholic shop. They had very basic rosaries for sale, some medals, scapulars and pretty pictures. They even had pet ID tags with "God bless my pet" on them (St. Francis is, after all, the patron saint of animals).
But I read a notice on the wall saying: "Confession for Thursday afternoon must be canceled due to staffing problems". Confession? There? So I asked the nun (around 90 years old, in full habit) if they had confession there. She said: "Yes we do, let me get you a schedule". So I looked, and confession was available Saturday from 11:00am to 2:00pm (they had confession times every day of the week except Sunday if I remember correctly). It was 1:10pm, and it had been a awful long time since my last confession, so I asked the sister "what do I do?" She led me to the back room that opened up to a fabulous little chapel, with a tabernacle holding the real presence of our Lord and Savior in the Eucharist, and a small room to one side with a padded bench to get in line. There was a bank of votive candles to the side, with 30 or more of them lit. In the midst of profanity (worldliness) existed an oasis of holiness.
I sat down on the padded bench and waited. While I was waiting two other people got in line after me. When I was finished, there were more people waiting.
I stuck around for rosary in the chapel, and I left refreshed. As it says on the Franciscan East's website:
The four friar priests speak with a special poignancy and sensitivity of their ministry with the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Men and women estranged from the church for forty and fifty years arrive with fear and confusion; they leave reconciled to the Lord and with courage and joy in their hearts.
I definitely can attest to that.
What a neat ministry. There should be one in every mall.
This weekend, I will be traveling to Syracuse with my lovely bride to have our bishop renew our marriage vows on Sunday with oodles of other couples. We will have been married 21 years in April.
This gets me back to thinking of The Promise™. You know, "I promise to love, honor and cherish you in good times and bad, for richer and poorer, in sickness and in health, forsaking all others, 'till death do us part."
The first part is interesting, and has taken me a while to fully understand. It doesn't say: "Do you promise to feel love?", or "do you promise to engender a feeling of love in your spouse?"
The promise is "I promise to love". The rest is commentary. Love means seeking out the greater good for your beloved, sometimes denying yourself. Love is a choice. You can love even when you don't feel particular loving. Sometimes that is the hardest to do, but it pays the best benefits.
My wife is easy to love.
I have never been one of these guys who has found it easy to talk about his feelings. I am much better at writing them down (Marriage Encounter taught me that, but that's another story).
My wife completes me. If she's away, I feel bad. I can't wait to get home to her. God has blessed me abundantly, and sometimes I wonder what I did to deserve her, so I strive to do as St. Paul entreats.
"Love your wife as Christ loves his church".
I watched "The Passion". I hope I can live up to that.
So this weekend, when the Bishop asks:
"Do you promise to love...", my answer will be the same as it has every day of my life for the past 20+ years.
SECRET discussions between the Roman Catholic Church and Michael Jackson to put the prayers of Pope John Paul II to music appeared to be in disarray last night after the singer fled members of the press who had got wind of the project.
Pope John Paul, who died last April, wrote 24 religious prayers and chants and Church officials now want to set them to music.
Jackson, recently cleared of child sex abuse charges in California, is seen as a prime candidate because of his worldwide celebrity status.
So what'll it be? "On Eagle's Wings", or "Thriller" :)
Planned Parenthood and the other sex merchants in our country are selling our young people a bill of goods. They are claiming that wearing a condom will prevent STDs. Well, they are technically correct. A condom, when used properly will prevent some STDs but what they are not telling you is that it will not prevent all STDs.
Human Papilloma Virus is the most prevalent STD in the world. It can cause:
Abnormal Pap smear results
Cancers of the cervix, vulva, vagina, anus, or penis.
Genital warts.
Health experts estimate there are more cases of genital HPV infection than any other STI in the United States. According to the American Social Health Association, approximately 5.5 million new cases of sexually transmitted HPV infections are reported every year. At least 20 million people in this country are already infected.
In many cases, (almost all men, and most women) no obvious symptoms are shown, and listen closely...
Human Papillomavirus is not stopped by a condom. Ever.
That's right. A virus that causes many different kinds of cancer, including cervical cancer, cannot be stopped by a condom. It is spread by skin to skin contact. So unless you have a body-condom (like the one on the "Extra Virgin Mary" in America Magazine), some skin is going to be touching some skin during sex.
You can also get genital warts in your throat. Guess how those are spread? More importantly:
HPV has no known cure. There are treatments for genital warts, though they often disappear even without treatment. There is no way to predict whether the warts will grow or disappear. Therefore, if you suspect you have genital warts, you should be examined and treated, if necessary.
So if you have sex with multiple partners, you could have HPV and not know it. You could have spread it to other people and so on, and so on. And if you don't already know.
Human Papillomavirus is not stopped by a condom. Ever.
There is one foolproof way to prevent HPV, and every other STD known to man. This also has the added bonus of preventing unwanted pregnancy, avoiding a lot of heartache and self loathing, and making Jesus and his Blessed Mother very happy.
Remain a virgin until you are married, and marry a virgin.
