Thursday, September 30, 2010

And Now, for Something Completely Different: The Catholic Pickup Line Song

Christopher's Apologies! is one of the relatively few blogs I follow. Tuesday's post is far from the most trenchant, incisive and insightful one I've read.

On the other hand, the video - David Casper and The Catholic Pickup Line Song - embedded in it is a wonderful change of pace from the topic of my last post here.

Enjoy:

Rutgers Suicide, Celebrities, and This Catholic

Recently a talented 18-year-old man had a sexual encounter with another man.

A clever roommate saw to it that the act was broadcast on the Internet.

The young man then stepped off a bridge, hit the water below, and drowned. Almost certainly a case of suicide, since the young man left a suicide note - online.

Today, celebrities are carrying on something fierce about how this "gay youth" was driven to suicide; CBS News has an op-ed piece about a "disturbing trend;" and at least one family is grieving.

Homosexual Suicide, Celebrities, and This Catholic

I'm a practicing Catholic. What this young man did, and what was done to him, touches on a number of my beliefs.

I grieve with the family of the young man who opted to kill himself.

I pray for the eternal repose of the young man's soul.

Does this mean that I think
  • Homosexual acts are okay?
  • Suicide is painless, it brings on many changes, and I can take or leave it if I please?
  • The pope is a poo-poo head?
No, across the board.

That's because I'm a practicing Catholic.

This may sound corny, but we're supposed to love people: "hate the sin and love the sinner." No, really. I've discussed that before, in the context of homosexual behavior. (March 13, 2009)

Suicide is wrong: I've discussed that before, too. (January 28, 2009)

Hating people is wrong, too. So is pressuring someone until that person commits suicide. Good grief, and I've discussed that before. (December 8, 2009)

"Love the sinner." It's not that hard to remember.

Particularly since as a Catholic I believe that I'm a sinner, myself. Which doesn't mean that I'm wracked with pathological guilt - and I've written about that before, too. (September 27, 2010, August 22, 2010)

Related posts:News and views:

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Pew Pop Quiz on Religion: Good Grief

America apparently is a nation of very religious ignoramuses. I'm not all that surprised. Here's an excerpt from today's news:
"Pop Quiz: Survey Tests Americans on Religion"
ABC News (September 28, 2010)

"Atheists and Agnostics Scored the Most Right Answers

"America is one of the most religious nations on Earth, but a new poll finds that many Americans struggle to answer basic questions about faith, even their own.

"The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life released the results of a survey today that tested respondents on 32 questions about a variety of faiths. The questions ranged in complexity from the name of the Islamic holy book to the century that the Mormon religion was founded. Americans, on average, got only 16 answers right.

"Americans Quizzed on Religion

"Here's a few of the questions:

"Can you name the four gospels?

"If you said, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, you're among only 45 percent of Americans who got it right.

"Click here to take the Pew's 'Religious Knowledge Quiz.'

"Another question: Is the Golden Rule one of the Ten Commandments?

"If you said no, you're among 55 percent of Americans who got it right.

"The results of the survey showed that those who knew the most about Christianity were Mormons. They averaged eight correct answers out of the 12 that were asked about the Christian faith. White Evangelicals were second in their knowledge of Christianity according to the study.

"Atheists Knew Most About Religion

"Agnostics and atheists did particularly well on questions about world religions like what religion is the Dalai Lama and the meaning of Ramadan. Overall, atheists and agnostics answered the most questions correctly, an average of 21 right answers...."

Oops: 15 Good Questions; One Embarrassing Mistake

I took the quiz - 15 questions: most of them of the 'an adult really should know this' variety, in my opinion.

The one I got wrong was "What was Joseph Smith's religion?" The options were: Catholic; Jewish; Buddhist; Mormon; Hindu. I must have been asleep when I answered that one: I read "Smith" as "Stalin." Major oops.

Anyway: the questions are, in my opinion, reasonable enough. Like:
  • "In which religion are Vishnu and Shiva central figures?"
    • (Hinduism)
  • "According to rulings by the U.S. Supreme Court, is a public school teacher permitted to lead a class in prayer, or not?""
    • (Not allowed)
  • "According to rulings by the U.S. Supreme Court, is a public school teacher permitted to read from the Bible as an example of literature, or not?"
    • (Permitted)
  • "What was the name of the person whose writings and actions inspired the Protestant Reformation?"
    • Martin Luther
  • "What Is Ramadan…?"
    • The Islamic holy month
That last question, for example, should be obvious to anyone who reads the headlines routinely. Of the groups tracked, only Jews and Atheists/Agnostics got that one right more than 55 percent of the time - at 90 and 75 percent, respectively.

Good grief.

This, by the way, is one reason why I don't mind when relatively few people turn out to vote. I figure that if someone doesn't care, hasn't kept track of the issues, and would rather stay home and relax - we're all better off. And that's another topic.

Some of the low scores could be the result of perception errors, like my "Stalin" for "Smith" - but it's hard to imagine that so many folks would get so many wrong through misreading the questions.

It looks to me like Catholics in America aren't the only ones who have done a miserable job of teaching their children. Whether this is a new development, or something that's more obvious, now that sampling like that Pew survey are done more often? I don't know.

I'm inclined to see this as part of the post-WWII 'happy days' phenomenon, where a combination - in my view - of prosperity, trust in 'experts,' and frequent relocation away from extended families resulted in a succession of colorful decades.

I'd be more nostalgic about the 'good old days' of poodle skirts and making out at the drive-in, if my memory wasn't so good. And if I hadn't lived through the sixties, when the social land mines planted in 'happy days' started going off.

Again, in my opinion.

Never Mind Wringing Our Hands: There's Work to Do

I'm not particularly happy about the Pew results: but I don't see a reason to start moaning about the collapse of America, mom, and apple pie, either.

It's pretty obvious that Americans surveyed are barely literate about religious matters. That's the bad news.

The good news is that we live in an age when information is available to an extent that was - literally - science fiction when I was growing up.

I've listed a (very) few online resources in the Official Catholic Websites section of the Blogroll/Catholic Links page. Both the Holy See and the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) have the Bible and the Catechism of the Catholic Church in text format. Their indexing is less than ideal, though: I generally use Google to search for information there.

The point is, we can learn. Authoritative information is there: not the sort of 'I heard some guy say' stuff you get in the forums, chat rooms, and other social media - not what a sorehead with an axe to grind feels. That's important, since even with reforms going on - I've gotten the strong impression that there are quite a few parishes in America where an alternatively-accurate version of the Gospel according to Newsweek is being preached.

And that's yet another topic.

Related posts:
A tip of the hat to RBLevin, on Twitter, for the heads-up on the Pew survey.

Monday, September 27, 2010

Success, Wealth, Poverty, and Getting a Grip

The Old Testament readings for the last couple Masses have been from Amos. He was - from the establishment point of view - a troublemaker who managed to get himself kicked out of Bethel. That's not so surprising, the way Amos "...denounces the hollow prosperity of the northern kingdom...." (Amos, Introduction, NAB)

So, what does the "prosperous reign of Jeroboam II" have to do with me? A little over 27 centuries have rolled by since Amos poured oil on troubled fires in Israel.

Some things have changed. It's unlikely that many people measure grain by the epha any more.

People, on the other hand, don't seem to be all that different. Here's what we heard from Amos, Sunday before last:
"Hear this, you who trample upon the needy and destroy the poor of the land! 1 'When will the new moon be over,' you ask, 'that we may sell our grain, and the sabbath, that we may display the wheat? We will diminish the ephah, add to the shekel, and fix our scales for cheating! We will buy the lowly man for silver, and the poor man for a pair of sandals; even the refuse of the wheat we will sell!' 2 The LORD has sworn by the pride of Jacob: Never will I forget a thing they have done!"
(Amos 8:4-7)

And the Catholic Church is Supposed to be Conservative?!

Amos doesn't have much good to say for the complacent fat cats of his day.

It's possible to read selections from Amos and other parts of the Bible and come up with the idea that poverty is virtue, and wealth vice.

Or that it's okay to kill capitalist oppressors and take what they've got for redistribution.

Take other parts of the Bible, and you can tell a tale about God being a sort of money machine for the faithful.

I've mentioned liberation theology and the prosperity gospel before: and they're both really bad ideas.

About equating poverty and virtue? I think it's more accurate to say that we're allowed to be poor - or wealthy - and what matters is what we do with what we've got. (February 4, 2010)

Catholic teaching also includes the idea that God doesn't approve of powerful people taking advantage of those in a weak position. As I've written before, Catholicism doesn't fit into either of contemporary America's two major sociopolitical philosophies. (November 3, 2008)

But Isn't Wealth Evil Or Something?

I've gotten the impression, growing up in America, that there's a sort of bias against wealth and wealthy people. There's the feeling that people don't get wealthy unless they cheat.

Or something like that.

Sure, some folks probably get wealthy by bribing officials, cooking the books, cheating their customers, and ripping off their partners. But I rather doubt that everybody who earns a fortune - didn't earn it.

There's the story about the fox and the grapes - and avaricious and envious - and that's getting into a related topic.

I think the 'having money is bad' notion came from quite a few things: including greed, envy, and that 'Biblical' quote, "money is the root of all evil."

Reality check. That's:
"For the love of money is the root of all evils, and some people in their desire for it have strayed from the faith and have pierced themselves with many pains."
(1 Timothy 6:10)

It's Okay to be Wealthy?

I've never had to let my family go hungry - which is probably more than many of my ancestors could have claimed. Somewhere I ran into the assertion that for much of history, "wealthy" meant having more than one day's supply of food on hand.

By that standard, my household is rolling in wealth: thanks to ancestors who moved to this country, a freezer in the back entry, canned goods on the shelf, and a well-stocked refrigerator. Also a wife who has a habit of keeping a few day's supply of ready-to-eat meals on hand.

The latter came in very handy after that pipe burst in the laundry room. (September 24, 2010)

I can handle being where I am on the American continuum of wealth - but I don't assume that folks whose annual income is a few orders of magnitude over anything I've ever made are dishonest.

But, like I said, that's not a universal assumption.

Which may account for something I ran into the other day. One of those online profiles, where people describe themselves in a few more-or-less well-chosen words, included this phrase: "...I am a successful Christian that is living proof that you can live a sin free life and be successful...."

Maybe "a sin free life," in that person's mind, is one in which no felonies are committed: maybe even no blatantly dishonest business practices. I've no problem with someone deciding to live that sort of life. At all. I think it's a good idea.

On the other hand, I'm not at all convinced that many people, 'successful' or not, live a completely sin-free life. We're supposed to try, but there are passages like this:
"If we say, 'We are without sin,' we deceive ourselves, 3 and the truth is not in us. If we acknowledge our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from every wrongdoing. If we say, 'We have not sinned,' we make him a liar, and his word is not in us."
(1 John 1:8-10)
Me? I haven't been brought to trial on felony charges, and started driving sensibly several decades ago. And I make a point of going to "confession" - as the Sacrament of Reconciliation is called in America.

Is that because I'm wracked with guilt and anguish, hopelessly trying to achieve unattainable goals of perfection?

Hardly.

I'm something of a perfectionist - but that quirk in me would tend to keep me away from the confessional. I really, really, don't like admitting my shortcomings.

But I participate in the Sacrament of Reconciliation because I'm a Catholic, and we've got rules about "confession." I also think it's a good idea. Which is yet another topic. (August 22, 2010)

Sort-of-related posts:

Sunday, September 26, 2010

26th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Readings for September 26, 2010, 26th Sunday in Ordinary Time 2010:

26th Sunday in Ordinary Time

By Deacon Lawrence N. Kaas
September 26, 2010

What's in a Name? Maybe more than we realize, especially in the Bible. Most Israelite names had a readily understandable meaning. David means "beloved of God." Nathaniel means "God has given this child." Ezekiel means "may God strengthen this child." Ichabod mean "the glory has departed." Caleb means "dog." Deborah means "bee." Jonah means "dove" In all the parables Jesus told, only one character is named. He is the beggar in today's parable, Lazarus, which means "God helps."

For generations many readers of this parable have thought the rich man was named Dives. "Dives," which appeared in the Latin Vulgate, is not a name but the Latin word for "rich." This man was very rich, and lived in great luxury. Like kings and queens he ware a purple robe, which involved a rare and expensive dye. His inner garment was most likely of fine linen, probably from Egypt. His meals were elaborate banquets. Here was someone living a life that was far beyond the average person's imagination.

The rich man and Lazarus represented opposite ends of the economic spectrum. That Lazarus lay at the rich man's gate says something about his plight. He may have been crippled and probably suffered from a variety of diseases, including malnutrition. Bread served as a napkin in those days. After it was used it was thrown aside, and this is likely what kept Lazarus alive. He was so weak and helpless that he could not fend off the dogs that roamed the streets and licked his sores. A dog was considered an unclean animal. The lowest of the low gives what little comfort it could to Lazarus, so low on the human scale that the rich man could care less that he was begging at his gate.

Lazarus dies! Many of the Jews of that time believed that angels carried the dead to their eternal destination, Lazarus' place at the heavenly banquet is right next to Abraham, the place of honor. The rich man dies. In eternity he finds that things are very different from what they were in life. Before, he was in the lap of luxury, while Lazarus was on the outside looking in. Now, the rich man is the outsider. A great reversal has taken place. In the world he had everything he wanted, while letting an impoverished beggar die at his gate. His life had been a closed circle in which everything was for him alone. The circle that kept out the beggar also kept out God.

The rich man, now in desperate need of help, petitions Abraham. As he did so often in life, he gives an order: "Father Abraham, send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue." Abraham explains that there is a great chasm separating them, a gulf so wide that no one can cross from one side to the other. The rich man suggests another errand for Lazarus, "Send him to warn my brothers, lest they come to this place of torment." Abraham says, "They have Moses and the prophets, let them hear them." The rich man says, "But if someone comes back from the dead, they will repent." Abraham says, "If they won't believe the scriptures, they won't be convinced if someone rises from the dead."

This exchange between the rich man and Abraham helps to relieve our offended sensibilities. How is it possible for such inhumanity to exist among humans made in the image of God? Who will answer for the injustice of one person overindulging continuously within view of another person who is dying from poverty, hunger and neglect? If such disparities are reconciled in eternity, that is at least some consolation.

Is it enough that in eternity the inequities of life in this world will be balance out? Is it enough that those who suffer great cruelty and endure terrible suffering in this life will be healed and made whole in the life to come? Could the most blissful heaven imaginable compensate for the suffering of one little child? Can eternity pay back the millions who died, or had loved ones who died, in POW camps, and concentration camps? What heavenly promise can ever make cancer acceptable, or war, or child abuse?

Christ came into the real world of human joys and sorrows, trials and triumphs, pain and suffering. In a short span of time He impacted the world as no other person has, before or since. Relatively few people actually saw Him or heard Him speak. Fewer still had their lives transformed by His inclusive love and healing touch. His disciples were commissioned to extend His ministry and proclaim His gospel to the ends of the earth. Christ promised to be with those who bear His name, to strengthen and inspire them to do the same work He had done among the needy of the world. "God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself," wrote Paul, "and has committed to us the ministry of reconciliation." God helps - through us.

Do you remember the movie, "Oh God?" Denver challenged God, played by George Burns, with the question: "Why do you allow so much evil in the world? God responds by reminding Denver that we have a free will: therefore it is not God who allows evil but that we do by the misuse of our free will.

Among the most memorable expressions of this truth are the words of St. Teresa of Avila: "Christ has no body on earth but ours, no hands but ours, no feet but ours. Ours are the eyes through which the compassion of Christ looks out upon the world, ours are the feet with which he goes about doing good, ours are the hands with which He blesses His people."
'Thank you' to Deacon Kaas, for letting me post his reflection here.
More reflections: Related posts:

Saturday, September 25, 2010

London: "Quite Catholic For a Day"

I read a fine post this evening: one paragraph, one photo:This sentence jumped out at me: "...London became quite Catholic for a day...."

It's good to see someone with a positive view of the Papal visit to the United Kingdom. No hand-wringing, no focus on the predictable nonsense from folks who haven't a clue what Catholicism is about: just appreciating a London that became "quite Catholic for a day."

I think it's good to remember that our Lord has already won. (1 Corinthians 15:54, Romans 6:1-4, Catechism of the Catholic Church, 632-635) And that Catholics are part of the outfit that Jesus set up. (Peter 16:18)

We've got a job to do:
"...the Church's mission is not an addition to that of Christ and the Holy Spirit, but is its sacrament: in her whole being and in all her members, the Church is sent to announce, bear witness, make present, and spread the mystery of the communion of the Holy Trinity..."
(Catechism, 738)
Or, as my Lord put it, after he'd been tortured to death - and came back, alive:
"11 Then Jesus approached and said to them, 'All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, 12 and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. 13 And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.' "
(19-20)
Sort-of-related posts:

Friday, September 24, 2010

Providence, God's Tender Kindness, and Training a Mule

You've probably heard this one before:

There's a story about two fellows who were talking about how to train a mule. One of them said that he'd found that the best approach involved treating the mule with kindness, patience and tenderness. To demonstrate his method he picked up a stout plank, walked up to a mule, hauled off and staggered the mule with a blow to its head.

The other, shocked, asked: "what are you doing?! I thought you used kindness, patience, and tenderness to train mules?" "I do," the mule trainer said. "But first, I have to get their attention."

Kindness, Patience, Tenderness, and Getting Our Attention

Providence, God's involvement in the unfolding of this world, can seem like good news or bad news.

For example, after someone had a narrow escape from danger, the neighbors might have said something like 'it was Providence that saved Silas from that fire.' These days, it'd probably be 'Silas was sure lucky.' Or someone might have said that his guardian angel saved him. There's been some renewed interest in angels lately - and that's another topic.

Then there are the stories involving 19th-century folks whose self-righteousness was matched only by their lack of sympathy, who opined that it was Providence that burned down the tavern. They may have been right, at that.

Then there are the stories about lightning rods and churches - and I'm getting off-topic again.

'Providence' is an old-fashioned sounding word, expressing an even older idea:
"Creation has its own goodness and proper perfection, but it did not spring forth complete from the hands of the Creator. The universe was created 'in a state of journeying' (in statu viae) toward an ultimate perfection yet to be attained, to which God has destined it. We call 'divine providence' the dispositions by which God guides his creation toward this perfection:
"By his providence God protects and governs all things which he has made, 'reaching mightily from one end of the earth to the other, and ordering all things well.' For 'all are open and laid bare to his eyes,' even those things which are yet to come into existence through the free action of creatures.161
"The witness of Scripture is unanimous that the solicitude of divine providence is concrete and immediate; God cares for all, from the least things to the great events of the world and its history. The sacred books powerfully affirm God's absolute sovereignty over the course of events: 'Our God is in the heavens; he does whatever he pleases.'162 And so it is with Christ, 'who opens and no one shall shut, who shuts and no one opens.'163 As the book of Proverbs states: 'Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will be established.'164"
(Catechism of the Catholic Church, 302, 303)
The way I've put the idea sometimes is that "God is large and in charge."

One thing that Providence is not is a sort of divine bodyguard, keeping unpleasant things from happening to good church-going folks. Think about the Book of Job.

Which reminds me:

Satan's Real, But Only a Creature

I've heard "creature" used as a synonym for 'critter' - some sort of animal. Animals are a sort of creature, true enough, but the term isn't necessarily that specific:
Creature:
  1. A created thing, whether animate or inanimate.
  2. Anything created or not self-existent.
  3. A living being that moves of its own volition.
  4. An animal or human.
  5. A being subservient to or dependent upon another.
(ALLWords.com)
Since I'm a Catholic, for me a "creature" is anything that isn't God. Which covers quite a lot of ground. One of the mistakes folks can make is to assume that any creature that's more powerful than themselves is equivalent to God. That's a big mistake.
"The power of Satan is, nonetheless, not infinite. He is only a creature, powerful from the fact that he is pure spirit, but still a creature. He cannot prevent the building up of God's reign. Although Satan may act in the world out of hatred for God and his kingdom in Christ Jesus, and although his action may cause grave injuries—of a spiritual nature and, indirectly, even of a physical nature—to each man and to society, the action is permitted by divine providence which with strength and gentleness guides human and cosmic history. It is a great mystery that providence should permit diabolical activity, but 'we know that in everything God works for good with those who love him.'275"
(Catechism, 395)

God, Satan, and a Busted Pipe in Central Minnesota

A week ago, sometime after midnight, a pipe burst in my laundry room. I was up at the time, but it was maybe an hour before I realized that I wasn't hearing the washing machine go through its cycles.

We've got the house and contents of the basement wrung out now, for the most part, and the damage could have been a whole lot worse. Still, there's a quite human tendency to want to blame someone. I've got a few choices:
  1. Me
    • I could have
      • Noticed the leak sooner
      • Had preventive maintenance done, and replaced the pipe
  2. Satan
    • 'The Devil done me wrong?'
  3. God
    • God flooded my house?!
I'm none too happy about the damage that's been done, but my best guess is that #3 is closest to the mark.

That's not just pious philosophizing. If that water hadn't made a mess, this house might have caught fire in the foreseeable future. While the laundry room and part of the basement was being taken apart and dried out, we've found - so far - a part of the drier vent that had entirely too much lint in it, and a wire near the breaker panel downstairs with defective insulation.

Maybe we'd have noticed those maintenance issues anyway. Or maybe not. God knows, I don't - and I don't expect to know what might have been.

Still, there are some fairly concrete, 'practical' benefits that came from that flooding. Which was relatively minor, since I was up at a ridiculously late hour, and (finally) noticed what was happening.

God, Stuff, and Trust

Aside from some home-safety issues, I've wondered if this minor flooding may have been a sort of reminder about what's reliable, and what's not. Nothing new in the following ideas, but some old ideas are still quite valid.

Look at it this way: thousands of years ago, folks thought that hitting a stone with your foot wasn't a good idea. (Psalms 91:11-12) I suspect that a few folks still think it's not a good thing - or at least that it'd hurt.

Quite a lot of stuff that I like was in the basement. Including a large number of record albums that my father had owned. There's a good chance that I can salvage them, but I've also had an opportunity to think about what's permanent, and what's not - what I can rely on for the long haul, and what I can't.
"The Lord grieves over the rich, because they find their consolation in the abundance of goods.341 'Let the proud seek and love earthly kingdoms, but blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.'342 Abandonment to the providence of the Father in heaven frees us from anxiety about tomorrow.343 Trust in God is a preparation for the blessedness of the poor. They shall see God."
(Catechism, 2547)
I'm not rich - but I do have possessions, and maybe it was time for me to get reminded that they're part of an impermanent world.

Or maybe I was being given a chance to practice patience and calmness.

I really don't know: and that's okay.

Related posts:

An article on the ZENIT website got me started on the line of thought that produced this post. It's about a milestone in the Catholic Church's history, about a century and a half back now. Here's an excerpt:
"Was it the best of times or the worst of times? As Rome celebrated Monday its 140th anniversary as the capital of Italy, the Church and the city came together to forget old wounds and look to an ever brighter future.

"On Sept. 20, 1870, the forces of the Risorgimento, the movement to unify the Italian states, were bombarding the northeastern gate of Rome, the Porta Pia. Inside the walls, the papal forces defended what had been the realm of the pontiff for over 1,000 years. As king of Rome, the pope had beautified the city, given it aqueducts, trains, museums, and hospitals, and had made the Eternal City one of the great sites of the world.

"But the papal kingdom was only a small part of the mosaic of the Italian peninsula. The Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, the republic of Venice and many other unstable pieces formed the political landscape of Italy. France and Austria claimed large pieces of Northern Italy while the southern region was under control of the Spain Bourbon kings. In the middle of these superpowers stood the Papal States.

"Italians, weary of foreign rule, began to reclaim their peninsula. Region by region, Italians reconquered their own land and history, until 1866 when the only territory remaining outside the Italian fold was Rome...."

"...The Italian army arrived at the gates of Rome, on Sept. 19, 1870, and began the siege. On Sept. 20, three hours of cannon fire tore open the Porta Pia, the elegant gate designed by Michelangelo for Pope Pius IV in 1565, and the Italian army entered the city. Pope Pius IX's orders were to lay down arms as soon as the city was breached, so as to protect the population of Rome. He escaped, smuggled out of the Quirinal palace into the Vatican walls where he died eight years later.

"But this sad day opened another new era of the Church, always aware that her 'kingdom was not of this world.' All the Church needed was, in the words of St. Francis, 'enough body to keep the soul together.' Seventy-nine years later, papal sovereignty over the Vatican area was recognized and Italy and the Holy See made peace.

"No longer responsible for upkeep, administration and protection of the city, the papacy could turn more completely to its role as universal pastor...."
(ZENIT.org)

Thursday, September 23, 2010

God's Creation: He Seems to Think Big

Writing a post in another blog (Apathetic Lemming of the North) had me researching flint tools and current estimates for the age of the universe. The post itself will show up tomorrow morning, and deals with an Air Force captain who says that space aliens are turning off our nuclear weapons and the government is covering it up.

I don't take his claims all that seriously: not because I think space aliens are Satanic, or the government can do no wrong. I have trouble buying the idea that people who travel between stars (minimum - 'they' could be from another space-time continuum) would be interested in shutting down our nuclear weapons.

That's where my research into flint came in.

Come to think of it, if the space aliens were meddlesome missionaries who were out to help us whether we wanted it or not - and that's another topic.

Checking out the age of the universe and some related matters, I had to wade through quite a lot of what's called 'creation science.' Some of it quite imaginative.

I Prefer Living in the Real World

Well, maybe Bishop Ussher was right.

Maybe God looks like Charleton Heston in the role of Moses.

Maybe we're living inside that "dome in the middle of the waters" and NASA is a Satanic plot to deceive the faithful. All that talk about orbits and landing on other planets. There's nothing about Olympus Mons in the Bible! That proves that NASA is lying!1 (If a person pushes the 'it's gotta be in the Bible' assumption to include phenomena some Bible-thumpers have accepted.)

I doubt it: but then, I also assume that airline pilots aren't agents of Satan. The flight paths some of them take would be hard to explain, if ancient Semitic cosmogony was spot-on literally accurate.

Still, it could be done. People can be very imaginative.

Besides, I'm a Catholic, and it's 'well known' how Catholics don't believe the right things and aren't allowed to read the Bible and stuff like that. (See "If Catholics aren't Supposed to Read the Bible, How Come We're Told to Read the Bible?" (May 31, 2010))

Why do I accept the idea that
  • Gregor Mendel and Copernicus weren't lying through their teeth?
  • Earth is roughly spherical?
  • Things change?
It's not because I don't think God exists.

God; the Universe; and Bayonne, New Jersey

It's because I think God exists, and that He created a world that is orderly. (Genesis 1:1-Genesis 2:4)

Sure: Genesis doesn't mention the alpha constant. It doesn't mention Bayonne, New Jersey, either. Or the continent that New Jersey is on.

That doesn't mean that North America doesn't exist.

The way I see it, God made us - and knows that we are able to work out some things on our own. Like how to make automobile engines and how rapidly objects fall.

I've Got a Brain: Maybe I'm Supposed to Use It

Do I think it's wrong to be interested in God's creation? No.

Do I think it's wrong to use our minds to study God's creation? No.

I also think it's not wrong to use our legs to move from one place to another: although God could, I'm sure, move us around if He wanted to. But He gave us legs: I don't think it's a great stretch of the imagination to think that He expects us to use them.

God Thinks Big: I'm Okay With That

Could I worship God if I lived in a dome that kept the waters from flooding the comparatively small patch of real estate I lived on? Sure. No problem.

There's a huge body of evidence indicating that the world isn't quite like that. Can I worship God in the world as we have reason to think it is today? Sure. No problem.

I might not have made creation quite this big, or this old: but I'm not God.

It looks like He's decided to make a world that is almost unimaginably vast. I am not going to tell the Lord of Hosts that He can't do that.

Related posts:

1 There's nothing about Olympus Mons in the Bible! True enough, but the 'it's not true if it's not in the Bible' argument isn't used all that much these days, or applied consistently.

For good reason: that line of reasoning, consistently applied, would require devout residents of New Jersey to believe that they live in a place that doesn't exist.

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Art Of Serenity: A Journey Of Faith

It's late, so this is going to be short. I intend to get back to Oasis Productions's new documentary on death & dying in a few days.

The trailer for "Art Of Serenity: A Journey Of Faith" has been on YouTube since February, and may be a better introduction to the video than this post. It's late, I'm tired, and it's been a big week.

On the other hand, I watched the (almost) finished product this evening, and want to post my reactions to it while it's fairly fresh in my mind.

"Art Of Serenity: A Journey Of Faith" has taken about three years to make. Not that my son-in-law has been working at it full time during that interval.

I Know 2/3 of These People

Disclosure time: I know the producer, Aaron McWilliams. He married one of my daughters, who shows up in the video. The documentary's mostly about his first wife, how she handled dying of cancer, how he handled her illness and death, and what's happened since.

The situation isn't as macabre as it sounds.

Aaron McWilliams spent a large part of his first year of marriage to my daughter finishing this documentary - not a typical way to start a marriage, but it's not a typical documentary, either.

Schmaltz, Hearts and Flowers, Sweet Remembrance: Not!

If you're looking for a documentary chock-full of greeting card sentiments, just oozing sweetness: keep looking. That's not "Art of Serenity."

The video shows a young woman dealing with a terminal illness; a Catholic couple packing as much of the six decades they'd hoped to have into the short time they actually got; a widower grieving, moving on with his life, and remarrying.

Although "Art of Serenity" deals with the spiritual issues of dying, death, and the hope of Heaven - I hesitate to say that it's a 'spiritual' documentary. I tend to associate 'being spiritual' with hackneyed recitations of slogans that may have been quite meaningful in the 19th century - but lost something through generations of overuse.

I think "Art of Serenity" is a very human, very Catholic, look at how a person can choose to live and die. And well worth the hour it takes to view.

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

God Flooded My House?!

A water pipe broke in the wee hours of Friday morning. I was up, finishing a bit of writing, and (eventually) realized that the sound of running water was not coming from the washing machine. I've been chronicling the cleanup, and left a new post in my personal blog today.

God Wills It, God Permits It: Not Quite the Same Thing

I'm a Catholic, so I believe that God not only made the universe: He upholds it. (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 301)

It's quite easy to believe that, when the day is bright and clear and the day has gone well.

At 4:30 in the morning, with water trickling through the ground floor into the basement, believing that gets a little trickier.

I knew at the time that, even in a worst-case scenario, things could be a lot worse. When it comes to 'how bad can it get,' try what many folks in Haiti experienced earlier this year.

Still, this is my house and my family: so a bit of flooding in the house was a good opportunity for me to do some thinking.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church discusses providence, secondary causes, and the scandal of evil. (Catechism, 302-314) Not that I'd call a broken water pipe in a central Minnesota house "evil." Like I said, it could be a lot worse.

That section ends with this observation:
"We firmly believe that God is master of the world and of its history. But the ways of his providence are often unknown to us. Only at the end, when our partial knowledge ceases, when we see God 'face to face,'184 will we fully know the ways by which—even through the dramas of evil and sin—God has guided his creation to that definitive sabbath rest185 for which he created heaven and earth."
(Catechism, 314)
Still: I'm not a particularly bad person. Why would God let that water pipe burst?

For that matter, why not?

Another idea: A person causing something to happen isn't the same as a person letting something happen.

Here's part of what a Pope had to say about wisdom, evil, and good:
"...Sacred Scripture assures us that: 'against wisdom evil does not prevail' (Wis 7:30). This strengthens our conviction that in the Creator's providential plan in regard to the world, in the last analysis evil is subordinated to good. Moreover, in the context of the integral truth about divine Providence, one is helped to better understand the two statements: 'God does not will evil as such' and 'God permits evil.' In regard to the first it is opportune to recall the words of the Book of Wisdom: 'God did not make death, and he does not delight in the death of the living. For he created all things that they may exist' (Wis 1:13-14). As regards the permission of evil in the physical order, e.g., the fact that material beings (among them also the human body) are corruptible and undergo death, it must be said that this belongs to the very structure of the being of these creatures. In the present state of the material world, it would be difficult to think of the unlimited existence of every individual corporeal being. We can therefore understand that, if 'God did not make death,' as the Book of Wisdom states, he nonetheless permitted it in view of the overall good of the material cosmos...."
("The Presence of Evil and Suffering in the World," Pope John Paul II, General Audience (June 4, 1986))

Having All the Answers? Not Gonna Happen

Maybe that water pipe broke when it did, so that I'd have an opportunity to meditate on the transitory nature of the present world.

Maybe it happened so that we'd take a hard look at that part of the house, and get some repairs done.

Maybe my household's belongings were soaked and our lives temporarily disrupted for some mystical reason that my finite mind couldn't retain: even if God gave me full knowledge of His will in the matter.

I - really - don't - know.

And that's okay. After nearly 2,000 years of effort, there are things that the Catholic Church doesn't know. (May 3, 2010) That's okay, too. A little frustrating, maybe: but okay.

I don't expect to find all the answers in this world.

But that won't keep me from looking.

Sort-of-related posts:More:

Monday, September 20, 2010

Watches, Time, and Ugali


"In America, you have watches: Here, we have time."
(Father Bernard, Kenya)

"A Taste of Africa," last Saturday after Mass, was more of a crash course in Kenyan table etiquette and culture than a chance to establish personal connections with David and Benina, the folks who were visiting from Kenya.

Which is okay by me.

I'd have considered it time well spent, if all I'd walked away with was that quote.

I'm a Catholic - but I'm also an American. I grew up in this country, and absorbed much of the culture. Although I'm all too aware of details that need to be changed, on the whole I think that America, and the way we get things done, is okay.

On the other hand, I also know that folks in many parts of the world aren't nearly as time-conscious and twitchy as we are. And I think that's okay, too. (August 26, 2010)

Getting Together With Folks From Another Parish


David, someone from this parish, and Benina, and the pulpit in Our Lady of the Angels. September 18, 2010.

I'm glad I went. I now know what ugali tastes like (delicious), know that the maize paste reminds me of something from childhood, and took a few photos. A tip of the hat to Erik Rivers, who took this picture: I'm the bald guy in the center of the picture, and am used to being on the other side of the lens.


Benina and folks from the parish in Our Lady of the Angels basement. September 18, 2010.

(That photo shows a very uniform, homogeneous group of people. We're all Catholic.)


Ugali. Maize paste and greens. Delicious. Our Lady of the Angels basement. September 18, 2010.

I don't know how much Saturday's get-together will count in the particular judgment of each of us. It's a little hard to imagine that what happened in the basement of that central Minnesota parish church will have all that much impact: either on this world, or on the world to come.

But I think it was worth spending time from a few minutes after six to about 7:40 p.m. or so (we ran longer than planned). I've learned a bit more about how my fellow-Catholics live, in their parish in western Kenya. And I've got a prayer opportunity: but that's a topic for another post.

Related posts:

Sunday, September 19, 2010

Ugali, Kenya, and Sauk Centre, Minnesota

That last post took the time I could have used to discuss ugali, Kenya, and some visitors to our diocese and parish.

I'll get to that. Tomorrow, I hope.

It's been an - interesting? - weekend.

The super-condensed version of what I'll get back to later - Monday, maybe? - is that Our Lady of the Angels and St. Paul's parishes here in Sauk Centre, Minnesota, are getting connected with another Catholic parish.

There's a program or two involved that's doing some good - at both ends - but mainly what we're doing is a "sharing of our Catholic faith, ideas, culture, prayer and friendship," as one of the folks involved put it. (July 19, 2009)

Last night's get-together helped me remember that I'm part of a church that's quite literally universal.

About ugali: it's a sort of corn meal (maize meal, everywhere except the United States) paste. If that sounds like hominy or grits: it should. My guess is that it's one of those staple foods that shows up around the world. Like lefse - that's what Norwegians call a really thin potato flatbread.

It's getting late, I have a full day tomorrow: the rest will have to wait.

Related posts:

A Busted Pipe, Amos, and Prudent Use of Material Goods

Today's readings at Mass were Amos 8:4-7, Timothy 2:1-8, and Luke 16:1-13.

Father Statz's homily was, among other things, on the idea of balance: and the imbalance of notions like thinking we deserve everything because we're a 'King's kid,' and stealing from rich people because we don't have as much as they do. I've mentioned liberation theology and the prosperity gospel before.

Amos, Social Justice, and Getting a Grip

Amos seems to have had a burr under his saddle about what we'd call 'social justice issues' today. And some folks think the Catholic Church, with its insistence on reading the Bible is conservative?! I've written about that before, too. (November 3, 2008)

Praise For - A Dishonest Steward?!

The first thirteen verses of Luke 2 are the parable of the dishonest steward. #1 daughter and I went to Mass yesterday afternoon, so that there'd be someone here this morning. A pipe broke in my house on Friday, which affected routines a bit. I've written a little about that in my personal blog.

Anyway, we'd heard the parable of the dishonest steward - complete with that "dishonest wealth" phrase in verse 9. I've written about wealth before, too. Bottom line: it's okay to be wealthy; it's okay to be poor; it's idolizing wealthy that's a problem.

I didn't know exactly what "dishonest wealth" meant in this context, so when #1 daughter said that she didn't understand why a dishonest steward was being praised - and what was wrong with wealth - I took a look to see if there were footnotes for that chapter. There are. The first in the online NAB Bible got placed before the first word of the first verse:
"[1-8a] The parable of the dishonest steward has to be understood in the light of the Palestinian custom of agents acting on behalf of their masters and the usurious practices common to such agents. The dishonesty of the steward consisted in the squandering of his master's property (Luke 16:1) and not in any subsequent graft. The master commends the dishonest steward who has forgone his own usurious commission on the business transaction by having the debtors write new notes that reflected only the real amount owed the master (i.e., minus the steward's profit). The dishonest steward acts in this way in order to ingratiate himself with the debtors because he knows he is being dismissed from his position (Luke 16:3). The parable, then, teaches the prudent use of one's material goods in light of an imminent crisis."
(footnote 1 of Luke 16)
Human nature may not have changed in the last 2,000 years: but we've seen a few cultural shifts. For starters, Palestine didn't have dishonest car salesmen, and we don't have 'stewards' quite the same way folks did back then. I think out-of-control CEOs might be a vague equivalent.

There's more in the footnotes, including a definition of the outdated measures cited. Basically, the steward wasn't dealing with chicken feed when he cooked the books.

"Dishonest Wealth," "Mammon of Iniquity," and "That in Which One Trusts"

I finally found something about "dishonest wealth" in the sixth footnote:
"[9] Dishonest wealth: literally, 'mammon of iniquity.' Mammon is the Greek transliteration of a Hebrew or Aramaic word that is usually explained as meaning 'that in which one trusts.' The characterization of this wealth as dishonest expresses a tendency of wealth to lead one to dishonesty. Eternal dwellings: or, 'eternal tents,' i.e., heaven."
(footnote 6 of Luke 16)

Long-Term Planning and This Catholic

Even with water having gotten into the structure of my house and some of my treasured belongings: I'm doing okay. I'll probably even be able to keep some of those records that my father had. He had pretty good taste in music - and that's another topic.

The point is, I'm doing okay. My household will have to get parts of our floors torn up and replaced - and almost certainly tear out parts of the walls. But we can handle that. And there's no reason to think that we can't keep this house. Good thing, too, since it keeps us relatively comfortable during a normal Minnesota year (temperatures ranging from about -2°F to 80°F) - even the -40°F to 104°F we've been known to experience. And there's no reason to think that we'll not be able to keep it.

Like I said: I'm doing okay, when it comes to material goods. Which is why this household was able to pitch in a little when the diocese passed the hat for Haiti. Quite a few folks pitched in "a little," it seems: this central Minnesota diocese was able to send about a quarter-million dollars to Haiti. (February 22, 2010) Even these days, that's a noticeable amount of cash.

I'm not all that wealthy - by America standards - but I've been careful about tithing. No bragging there: I'm just following orders: and that 'tenth part' rule is one that's pretty straightforward. (August 28, 2010)

So, I'm some kind of altruist? Hardly. I've wondered if altruism is possible for someone who understands Catholic teaching. I can't possibly work my way into heaven. On the other hand, my faith is pretty much useless unless I do something about it:
"...most of Article 12 [of the Catechism of the Catholic Church] is rather sobering. I'm very glad that my Lord made it possible (1026) for me to enter 'the ultimate end and fulfillment of the deepest human longings' - I rely on my Lord's death and resurrection for entry into God's kingdom: and I'm expected to do something about what I say that I believe. (1021, 1032, 1039, for starters)

"I can't say that I'm looking forward to giving an accounting of what I've done with the life I was given. Still, like it or not: that's the way it works...."
(August 8, 2010)
If I kicking in a little to help out folks now and again - without expecting to get a dollar-for-dollar return on my 'investment' - I'm being 'altruistic' in one sense. I'm passing along some of the worldly goods I received, without expecting a short-term benefit.

Big whoop. I'm aware that there may be consequences further down the road if I don't do something to help my neighbors: and that there may be rewards if I do. Further down the road.

Altruist? Ha! I'm just making some long-term investments: of a "spiritual" sort. Which bothers me a little - since I'm supposed to give 'without thought of reward.' Oh, well: I have to do what I can, and trust God to sort it all out.

Vaguely-related posts:

Saturday, September 18, 2010

Twitter, Gallbladders, the Catholic Church, and Me

I was a little put out (as in 'troubled') yesterday evening, while on my Twitter account. Over there I use the screen name Aluwir, by the way. There's a story behind that - and that's another topic.

Anyway, yesterday evening I noticed that one of the folks I follow on Twitter had a short list of newcomers to Twitter: said that they were nice people, and asked others to follow them. It was a very short list: just a handful of people; and I was already following all but one of them.

The other one, I discovered, had blocked me from following her.

I was a little troubled when I discovered that I'd been blocked. But it's okay. That's the other person's prerogative.

Besides, over the decades I've noticed that I have that sort of effect on some folks. I make an effort to (at the least) avoid alienating others: but, like I say, I have that sort of effect on some folks.

Why, I don't know: and can't find out, since one way or another communication is cut off. Which is okay. Like I said, that's the other person's prerogative.

There's Nice and Normal - And There's Me

I've never been able to do 'conventional' all that well, which probably doesn't help.

Does this mean there's something wrong with me? Probably. I was finally diagnosed with major depression - and am being evaluated for Aspergers, among other things. I've written about that before. (September 3, 2010, March 4, 2010)

Even if I'd been firing on all cylinders, though: I rather doubt that I'd have made a nice, normal, average, bland fellow.

A Church That's For Nice People - And Everybody Else

Happily, I don't have to like a certain sort of music, or have a particular set of table manners, or have the 'right' personality to be a Catholic.

Not everybody's alike: including the 1,000,000,000-plus Catholics living today.

We don't have to all have the same preferences or personalities. In fact, we work better as members of the Body of Christ when we aren't all alike. (August 26, 2010)

Look at it this way: the gallbladder is an important part of the body, but what good would a body be that was all gallbladder?

Not-entirely-unrelated posts:

Friday, September 17, 2010

Science, Religion, and the Pope

I didn't convert to Catholicism just because we've got a patron saint of scientists. On the other hand, I like belonging to a Church where I don't have to put my frontal cortex in 'sleep' mode every Sunday.1

Science, Religion, and What 'Everybody Knows'

Don't I know that religion is bitterly opposed to science?

No, I don't. And neither did Gregor Mendel and Copernicus.

I do know that there are folks who feel that science is anti-Christian, and that Christianity is anti-science.

There are folks who apparently believe that shape-shifting space-alien lizard people really run the world's nations. (I'm not making that up.) They may be very sincere: that doesn't mean they're right.

Sound Bites and the Careful Catholic

Pope Benedict XVI's remarks on science and ethics could be reduced to a sound bite.

That's okay for the evening news and other applications, but ultra-short quotes can skip important details.

Take this hypothetical example:
"In the United Kingdom, the Pope warned students in all Catholic schools about science: 'a scientific outlook becomes dangerously narrow'."
The quote is accurately copied from Pope Benedict XVI's statement. The sound bite-size quote does not, however, tell the whole story.

By the way, no news service boiled down the Pope's statements quite that way. On the other hand, doesn't that 'warning' sound quite a bit like what you see in the news, about 'those religious people?' I've written about that before. (May 20, 2010)

Science, Religion, and Seeing the Big Picture

Here's an excerpt from a somewhat-more-complete report of Pope Benedict XVI's remarks:
"Pope: Science becomes 'dangerously narrow' when religion, ethics ignored"
Catholic News Agency (September 17 2010)

"Benedict XVI stressed the need for open minds in science on Friday, adding that researchers must be ready to consider religious and ethical perspectives. His words came as the U.K. prepares to pass provisions protecting sex changes next month.

"The Holy Father told students in a live broadcast that reached every Catholic school in the U.K. that they must 'always remember' to maintain sight of the 'bigger picture' in their studies. 'Never allow yourselves to become narrow,' he told them.

" 'The world needs good scientists, but a scientific outlook becomes dangerously narrow if it ignores the religious and ethical dimension of life, just as religion becomes narrow if it rejects the legitimate contribution of science to our understanding.'

"Ethics, especially sexual ethics, have been on Catholics' minds lately as the U.K.'s Equality Act will enact new provisions on Oct. 1. Among other proposals that seek to protect the disabled and breastfeeding mothers are others concerning sexual themes...."
About that phrase, "especially sexual ethics?" Don't I know about the pedophile priests?! Yes, I do. I've written about that matter before, too. Quite often. Moving on.

I'm strongly inclined to agree with both halves of what the Pope said:
"...'...a scientific outlook becomes dangerously narrow if it ignores the religious and ethical dimension of life, just as religion becomes narrow if it rejects the legitimate contribution of science to our understanding.'..."
(Pope Benedict XVI, via Catholic News Agency (September 17 2010)
Science without ethics isn't, sadly, limited to B-movie mad scientists. That's something I take personally - and, again, have written about before. (February 3, 2009)

Religion that won't see what's been learned about this astounding creation, also sadly, is also very real.
God Thinks Big: Works For Me
Me? I'm okay with the idea that God is smarter than I am, and apparently made a creation that's a whole lot older and a great deal bigger than some folks thought, a few thousand years back. I'm even willing to think that this creation hasn't always been exactly the way it is now.

And that it's changed a bit since Egypt had pharaohs. No contemporary pharaohs, for one thing.

I'm not going to tell God that He couldn't have made a world where things never change. But it's fairly obvious that we're in one that does.

The way I see it, it's God's creation, God's rules, God's call. Even if I didn't like it, what higher authority would I complain to?

Related posts:
1 The frontal cortex is where we do a lot of our thinking. And it turns out there's a physiological connection to why emotions and reason don't play well together:

Thursday, September 16, 2010

Murder and Suicide at Johns Hopkins: My Take

This has not been a good day at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland.

You've probably read about the shootings in the news. If not, Here's a short recap: A doctor at Johns Hopkns, orthopedic surgeon David B. Cohen, told a fellow named Paul Warren Pardus, 50, about the condition of Pardus' mother.

Mr. Pardus then shot the doctor in the stomach, shot and killed his mother and finally shot and killed himself.

At the end of the day, the score was three perforated bodies: two dead, one expected to live. So, as we say in Minnesota, 'it could be worse.'

Dealing With Bad News

Mr. Pardus isn't available for comment at this time, but his brother speculated about why Paul Pardus killed their mother and himself:
"...'I guess because he thought my mom was suffering because the surgery wasn't successful and she probably wouldn't be able to walk again,' he said about a possible reason for Pardus' actions. 'She was a dear, sweet lady.'..."
Associated Press, via FOXNews (September 16, 2010)
Apparently surgery last week hadn't helped her arthritis and rheumatism.

There's some good news coming from this: I haven't run into the euphemism "mercy killing" yet, or a 'compassionate' discussion about how much nicer it would be to simply kill old people who can't run around like they once did. Maybe I didn't look in the 'right' places.

Experiences: Unpleasant and Otherwise

I think the late Mr. Pardus' actions are - understandable. Not right, not proper, not correct: but understandable.
Parents Getting Old: What a Bummer
Both my parents died last year.

In my mother's case, it was the end of a process that started in the sixties, so I'd had plenty of time to get used to the idea that she wasn't firing on all cylinders any more. My father's health took a rather sharper turn for the worse, and I'll admit to being a bit shocked when I saw him once. He'd lost a lot of weight, and his arms weren't as robust as they'd been a year before.

So, yes: I think I understand how upsetting it can be, having a parent who's not the strong, lively person one remembers.
'Quality Lifestyle' - a Matter of Attitude
Back in my - teens, I think it was - a compelling argument for killing people who didn't measure up was that they wouldn't live a 'quality lifestyle.' You know: being able to run and jump and stuff like that.

If I thought that it was 'quality lifestyle' or nothing, I'd have killed myself a long, long time ago.

I've been blessed with congenital hip dysplasia - a five-dollar phrase meaning that my hips weren't formed correctly. I've written about that before. (February 3, 2009)

The point is that, by the time I was 13, an x-ray of my left hip looked like late-stage arthritis, and my right hip was nothing to brag about either. A 'medical expert' said I'd be completely, totally unable to walk - at all - by the time I was 16. I finally got replacement parts in my fifties.

I can't remember ever waking up and saying to myself, 'whoopee! Every step I take, lurching around today, will hurt! Ain't that great?!' On the other hand, I've never thought that I'd rather be dead than crippled.

If I'd spent the years since 1951 being dead, I'd have missed out on a lot: including getting to know my wife and our four surviving kids. Our kids would have missed out on everything - and I'm wandering off-topic.

Not by much, though. I think it's important to remember that people who are alive can make choices, and can do things. Dead, our options are somewhat limited.
Meditating on Waikiki, Fred Astaire, and a Zit
Sure: I'll never surf the waves off Waikiki; climb Everest; or tap dance. But, much as I'd like to have emulated Fred Astaire: On the whole I don't mind having been alive.

I could have decided that life wasn't worth living because of what I couldn't do. But the angsty 'I've got a zit, I could just die!' attitude never really made sense to me.

I've felt self-pity. I've felt lots of things: but I also make an effort to feel with my endocrine system and think with my brain, not the other way around.

I decided that life without tap dancing was not only endurable: it could be fun. Being interested in just about everything helped. That, and being able to read.

Back to Johns Hopkins Hospital, and a Murder-Suicide

I hope and pray that the surgeon who was shot will recover, that everyone involved who is still alive will get the help they need, and I pray for the repose of the soul of the fellow who shot his mother - and, of course, the "dear, sweet lady" whose son murdered her.

What?! Praying for the killer?! And a suicide, to boot?!

Yes. I've written about this before. (January 28, 2009) Bottom line: murder is wrong and we shouldn't do it. Murdering oneself is really wrong, because by ending one's own life, a person drastically limits his or her options for repentance.

But - although the Catholic Church teaches that suicide is wrong, we can't give up hope for people like Paul Warren Pardus.
"We should not despair of the eternal salvation of persons who have taken their own lives. By ways known to him alone, God can provide the opportunity for salutary repentance. The Church prays for persons who have taken their own lives." (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2283)
Related posts:In the news:

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Kids Don't Learn Faith: They Catch It

Quite a few years ago, I heard someone say that kids don't learn religious faith from their parents: they catch it.

I think there's something to that.

Even though I was raised in a nice, normal, mainstream Protestant household: and converted to Catholicism. I wasn't abandoning my parents' faith so much as tracing it back to its source. And that's another topic.

I've heard and read those sad tales of children who abandoned the church their parents had dedicated themselves to. Each of us has free will, and people have shown a capacity for making some really daft decisions as the ages rolled along.

'They were Such Good Church People'

Then there's the 'good Christian' couple who team up to run their church's Bible study. Nothing wrong with that, of course. Reading and understanding the Bible is important.

These aren't any particular people, by the way. I'm merging quite a few stories I've heard and read into one hypothetical couple.

They're well-known for their selfless community service. Each of them does volunteer work four nights out of each week, they're on every church committee, and each election year they're out campaigning for the candidate of their choice: all this while operating the neighborhood recycling program.

When their child goes to college, drops out, leaves the parents' church and moves across the country, they're shocked and saddened.

Maybe the kid made a bad decision.

Maybe the parents should have reviewed their priorities.

Like I said, we've all got free will.

Kids Catch More Than They Learn

I'm going out on a limb here, but I've suspected that children 'catch' more from their parents than they learn.

Putting that another way: a mother and father can talk till they're blue in the face about how important honesty is. Their kids will hear what they have to say: kids, I think, pay a lot more attention to their parents than they let on.

If the parents practice honesty, well and good. If the kids notice that their folks are practicing 'creative accounting' at tax time - and the kids will notice - they'll see the disconnect between what mom and dad say, and what they do.

Odds are that what the parents do will trump anything they say. My opinion.

Maybe that's an extreme example.

Acting As If God Matters

If 'religion' is something Mom and/or Dad do for an hour a week on Sunday - unless there's something good on television - the kids will notice.

If belonging to the 'right' church is more important than being in a church that's right - the kids will notice.

If parents say that the golden rule is treating others the way you'd like others to treat you, and act as if it's 'the one with the gold makes the rules' - the kids will notice.

Have you heard all this before? Probably.

You've probably heard that a cloudless, dust-free sky is blue, too: but that doesn't make it any less true.

Me, a Practically Perfect Parent? HA!

I've made an effort, over the decades, to have time blocked out for the kids: and to make what I say I believe match how I act. I'm no male Mary Poppins, though: 'practically perfect in every way.'

My oldest daughter's creating a comic, Mary Quite Contrary, based on her experiences while growing up in this family. Her November 30, 2009 strip shows you a bit of what sort of father I can be. What can I say? The family's provided her with a great deal of material to work with.

Perfect? No. Hardly. The kids know that, so does my wife: and I've been aware of my lack of perfection for as long as I can remember. We're pretty much on the same page with that idea.

A committed parent? Yes. My kids know that I can't stop loving them: it's in the rules. Sometimes I may not like them all that much - and more often I'm not too crazy about what they're doing. But I am their father, and some responsibilities come with that position. (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1655-1658, for starters)

That may sound cold and rigid. It's not. Or, rather, it's the sort of solid bedrock that gives us the assurance that, no matter what, we're a family. And allows us to enjoy the 'extras.'

Like reading some Garfield comics tonight with my son. It's a routine we have.

God willing: between reading Garfield; watching me learn about my faith and pass along what I pick up; and good decisions on their part; my children will continue to work at conforming themselves to what God wants them to be.
I was going to get into how important it is to read - and study and understand - the Bible, but this post is getting over-long as it is. Besides, I've written about that before.
Related posts:
A tip of the hat to JeffCavins, on Twitter, for a remark that reminded me of that 'kids catch faith' remark.

Like it? Pin it, Plus it, - - -

Pinterest: My Stuff, and More

Advertisement

Unique, innovative candles


Visit us online:
Spiral Light CandleFind a Retailer
Spiral Light Candle Store

Popular Posts

Label Cloud

1277 abortion ADD ADHD-Inattentive Adoration Chapel Advent Afghanistan Africa America Amoris Laetitia angels animals annulment Annunciation anti-catholicism Antichrist apocalyptic ideas apparitions archaeology architecture Arianism art Asperger syndrome assumptions asteroid astronomy Australia authority balance and moderation baptism being Catholic beliefs bias Bible Bible and Catechism bioethics biology blogs brain Brazil business Canada capital punishment Caritas in Veritate Catechism Catholic Church Catholic counter-culture Catholicism change happens charisms charity Chile China Christianity Christmas citizenship climate change climatology cloning comets common good common sense Communion community compassion confirmation conscience conversion Corpus Christi cosmology creation credibility crime crucifix Crucifixion Cuba culture dance dark night of the soul death depression designer babies despair detachment devotion discipline disease diversity divination Divine Mercy divorce Docetism domestic church dualism duty Easter economics education elections emotions England entertainment environmental issues Epiphany Establishment Clause ethics ethnicity Eucharist eugenics Europe evangelizing evolution exobiology exoplanets exorcism extremophiles faith faith and works family Father's Day Faust Faustus fear of the Lord fiction Final Judgment First Amendment forgiveness Fortnight For Freedom free will freedom fun genetics genocide geoengineering geology getting a grip global Gnosticism God God's will good judgment government gratitude great commission guest post guilt Haiti Halloween happiness hate health Heaven Hell HHS hierarchy history holidays Holy Family Holy See Holy Spirit holy water home schooling hope humility humor hypocrisy idolatry image of God images Immaculate Conception immigrants in the news Incarnation Independence Day India information technology Internet Iraq Ireland Israel Italy Japan Jesus John Paul II joy just war justice Kansas Kenya Knights of Columbus knowledge Korea language Last Judgment last things law learning Lent Lenten Chaplet life issues love magi magic Magisterium Manichaeism marriage martyrs Mary Mass materialism media medicine meditation Memorial Day mercy meteor meteorology Mexico Minnesota miracles Missouri moderation modesty Monophysitism Mother Teresa of Calcutta Mother's Day movies music Muslims myth natural law neighbor Nestorianism New Year's Eve New Zealand news Nietzsche obedience Oceania organization original sin paleontology parish Parousia penance penitence Pentecost Philippines physical disability physics pilgrimage politics Pope Pope in Germany 2011 population growth positive law poverty prayer predestination presumption pride priests prophets prostitution Providence Purgatory purpose quantum entanglement quotes reason redemption reflections relics religion religious freedom repentance Resurrection robots Roman Missal Third Edition rosaries rules sacramentals Sacraments Saints salvation schools science secondary causes SETI sex shrines sin slavery social justice solar planets soul South Sudan space aliens space exploration Spain spirituality stem cell research stereotypes stewardship stories storm Sudan suicide Sunday obligation superstition symbols technology temptation terraforming the establishment the human condition tolerance Tradition traffic Transfiguration Transubstantiation travel Trinity trust truth uncertainty United Kingdom universal destination of goods vacation Vatican Vatican II veneration vengeance Veterans Day videos virtue vlog vocations voting war warp drive theory wealth weather wisdom within reason work worship writing

Marian Apparition: Champion, Wisconsin

Background:Posts in this blog: In the news:

What's That Doing in a Nice Catholic Blog?

From time to time, a service that I use will display links to - odd - services and retailers.

I block a few of the more obvious dubious advertisers.

For example: psychic anything, numerology, mediums, and related practices are on the no-no list for Catholics. It has to do with the Church's stand on divination. I try to block those ads.

Sometime regrettable advertisements get through, anyway.

Bottom line? What that service displays reflects the local culture's norms, - not Catholic teaching.