Monday, July 30, 2012

The Status Quo Must Go

I'm back, with the rest of my take on the end of Chapter Three in "Caritas in Veritate." I posted a sort of 'part one' this morning:
I love language: what word mean; what they imply; how they're put together to express thoughts, attitudes, and feelings. I also think communication works better when folks agree on what words mean: or at least understand what others think they mean.

Globalization: It's (what else?) Global

Here's what I think "globalization" means:
  • Growth to a global or worldwide scale
    (Princeton's WordNet)
  • A common term for processes of international integration
    • Arising from
      • Increasing human connectivity
      • Interchange of
        • Worldviews
        • Products
        • Ideas
        • Other aspects of culture
    (Wikipedia)

Back to the Way it Was??

I'll admit to a bias about living in the 21st century. On the whole, I like having artificial hip joints, Internet access, and reason to believe that America's nation-wide drought will result in higher food prices: not mass starvation.

I like living in the Information Age.

I also like being able to live near the center of the North American continent: and meet people all over the world. Some parts of the Internet are a virtual 'bad part of town:' but that has more to do with free will and original sin than the technology. And that's another topic.

Today's world is very different from the one I grew up in: which upsets some folks. I don't think every change since 1962 was a good idea: but I wouldn't turn the clock back a half-century, even if I could.

Getting a Grip About Globalization

Today's emerging global culture is hard to ignore. I've got opinions about it; and about attitudes I see:
  • I do not think
    • Globalization is a
      • Capitalistic plot to colonize the world
      • Commie plot to enslave the world
    • Folks would benefit by being dragged back into the 'good old days'
      • I remember the 'good old days'
      • They weren't
  • I do think globalization
    • Is happening
    • Can hurt folks
      • If done without ethics
    • Can help folks
      • When pursued with
        • Ethical standards
        • Charity

(Not) Dealing with Change

Not all folks who are convinced that some vast conspiracy is making the feel bad yearn for a rose-colored 'good old days;' and not everyone who thinks the world was wonderful until change happened is a conspiracy buff.

But I've run into a fair number of folks who seem to really believe that the world was just fine before 1960, or 1850, or thereabouts: and that every development since then is 'somebody's fault.'

Change isn't always easy to deal with, but change happens. I think it's better to accept and deal with present realities. Nostalgia is fine: but I want to remember the past, not live in it.

Individuals Making a Difference

Like I wrote this morning, I think folks can't, as individuals, force everyone else to do things 'my way.' For starters, there are too many 'my ways:' they tend to cancel each other out.

These days, even established autocrats have trouble with their subjects. I'll get back to that.

I do think that each of us decides what we do: and what we do affects our part of today's global society. Bottom line? Individuals count.

Even if there are about 7,000,000,000 of us alive today.

Maybe particularly since there are about 7,000,000,000 of us alive today. Again, I'll get back to that.

'I Can't Help It?'

In a way, deciding that nothing I do affects present and future events lets me off the hook. If vast, impersonal, world-wide forces determine what happens: I can sit back, relax, and complain about 'globalization,' or whatever bogeyman is popular at the moment.

That'd be convenient, but the 'I'm helpless' attitude doesn't appeal to me. Or make sense.

Maybe strictly deterministic world views are mildly popular because they allow folks to violate ethics: and say 'I can't help it, it's the way things are.' Or maybe not.

Evaluating Globalization: a Human Approach

Back to Benedict XVI and "Caritas in Veritate." The Pope apparently thinks human beings can make decisions, and act on them. I think that's why he says it's a bad idea to use "a deterministic standpoint" for evaluating globalization:
"...As a human reality, it [globalization] is the product of diverse cultural tendencies, which need to be subjected to a process of discernment. The truth of globalization as a process and its fundamental ethical criterion are given by the unity of the human family and its development towards what is good. Hence a sustained commitment is needed so as to promote a person-based and community-oriented cultural process of world-wide integration that is open to transcendence...."
("Caritas in Veritate," 42)

Good News, Bad News, and Globalization

Is Globalization good, or bad? Benedict XVI says 'it depends.' I agree:
"...Despite some of its structural elements, which should neither be denied nor exaggerated, 'globalization, a priori, is neither good nor bad. It will be what people make of it'[104]...."
("Caritas in Veritate," 42) [emphasis mine]
My attitude toward globalization is cautious optimism. A few generations back, many folks depended entirely on whatever food they could raise. With a good harvest, they'd have enough until the next season. With a poor harvest: they didn't, with lethal results for the young, the old, and the ill.

Today, the children and grandchildren of those who survived drought and famine may have access to a global market: if their local, regional, and national leaders cooperate. I don't see the having the option of not starving as a bad thing: even if it does mean changes in lifestyle.

On the downside, greedy folks on various rungs of the economic ladder now have opportunities to swindle and cheat. Ethically-challenged people isn't new: what's changed is the methods we can use, and how many victims get hurt.

But I prefer to look at the benefits: and do what I can to reduce the risks.

"Protagonists, Acting in the Light of Reason..."

"...We should not be its [globalization's] victims, but rather its protagonists, acting in the light of reason, guided by charity and truth. Blind opposition would be a mistaken and prejudiced attitude, incapable of recognizing the positive aspects of the process, with the consequent risk of missing the chance to take advantage of its many opportunities for development...."
("Caritas in Veritate," 42)
'We've never done it that way' isn't, I think, a good reason for not trying some new process. I don't think ideas are good because they're new: but I don't think new ideas are always bad, either.

I think we need new ideas today: because the status quo, 'the way it's always been,' isn't good enough. Encouraging change without direction won't do, either:
"...The processes of globalization, suitably understood and directed, open up the unprecedented possibility of large-scale redistribution of wealth on a world-wide scale; if badly directed, however, they can lead to an increase in poverty and inequality, and could even trigger a global crisis...."
("Caritas in Veritate," 42)

Wealth, Redistribution, and the Big Picture

"Redistribution?!" I'm an American, and spent my teens in the '60s. When I see "redistribution," I think of a workers' paradise: which looked good on paper, but hasn't worked out to well. I think Russia and it's old holdings will eventually recover: and that's not quite another topic.

But I'm also a Catholic, and realize that there's more to the world that American during the Woodstock era.

"Redistribution" doesn't necessarily involve turning the streets red with the blood of bloated capitalists. Given the radically unequal current distribution of wealth, I don't see an acceptable alternative to changing the status quo. (June 4, 2012)

"Correct the Malfunctions"

Globalization can be a good thing: giving more people in more places a measure of prosperity.

For example, I think we have opportunities to make droughts an inconvenience, not a lethal threat. But we also have opportunities to make life even harder for people.
The status quo, the way things are today, must change. Justice, if not charity, demand that. But we'll need to be careful about the changes.

Here's my last excerpt for today. I've put an even longer version at the end of the post.1:
"...It is necessary to correct the malfunctions, some of them serious, that cause new divisions between peoples and within peoples, and also to ensure that the redistribution of wealth does not come about through the redistribution or increase of poverty: a real danger if the present situation were to be badly managed. For a long time it was thought that poor peoples should remain at a fixed stage of development, and should be content to receive assistance from the philanthropy of developed peoples. Paul VI strongly opposed this mentality in Populorum Progressio. ... The world-wide diffusion of forms of prosperity should not therefore be held up by projects that are self-centred, protectionist or at the service of private interests. Indeed the involvement of emerging or developing countries allows us to manage the crisis better today. ... Globalization is a multifaceted and complex phenomenon which must be grasped in the diversity and unity of all its different dimensions, including the theological dimension. In this way it will be possible to experience and to steer the globalization of humanity in relational terms, in terms of communion and the sharing of goods."
("Caritas in Veritate," 42)

Hope, People, and Information Technology

Back in my 'good old days,' Americans got news from newspapers, magazines, and three television networks: four, counting PBS. Through a combination of deadline pressure, culture, and time zones, newspaper editors tended to look at what The New York Times editors had decided was "new" that day: and that's what Americans read.

Then along came cheap long-distance telephone connections, fax machines, communications satellites, and Twitter. Today, Americans can share information with folks all over the world: not just those whose opinions and social connections make their ideas acceptable to the elite of a small coastal subculture.

America has a sometime-grudging tolerance of ideas and people who aren't of 'the right sort,' which I think has helped my native land slide into the Information Age: instead of being thrown in.

Places like Tunisia, Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, and Syria, aren't finding the transition quite so easy: putting it mildly.

Today, anyone with access to the Internet can:
  • Share ideas
  • Broadcast information
  • Dscuss problems
  • Suggest solutions
In my youth, only a few well-positioned people had that sort of 'voice.' Sure, quite a bit of what's online is silly. But I think many folks have a great deal more common sense than 'the masses' are imagined to have: and that's still another topic.
More posts about "Caritas in Veritate" (Charity in Truth)
"Caritas in Veritate"

Related posts:
More:

1 Excerpt from "Caritas in Veritat:"
"...It is necessary to correct the malfunctions, some of them serious, that cause new divisions between peoples and within peoples, and also to ensure that the redistribution of wealth does not come about through the redistribution or increase of poverty: a real danger if the present situation were to be badly managed. For a long time it was thought that poor peoples should remain at a fixed stage of development, and should be content to receive assistance from the philanthropy of developed peoples. Paul VI strongly opposed this mentality in Populorum Progressio. day the material resources available for rescuing these peoples from poverty are potentially greater than before, but they have ended up largely in the hands of people from developed countries, who have benefited more from the liberalization that has occurred in the mobility of capital and labour. The world-wide diffusion of forms of prosperity should not therefore be held up by projects that are self-centred, protectionist or at the service of private interests. Indeed the involvement of emerging or developing countries allows us to manage the crisis better today. The transition inherent in the process of globalization presents great difficulties and dangers that can only be overcome if we are able to appropriate the underlying anthropological and ethical spirit that drives globalization towards the humanizing goal of solidarity. Unfortunately this spirit is often overwhelmed or suppressed by ethical and cultural considerations of an individualistic and utilitarian nature. Globalization is a multifaceted and complex phenomenon which must be grasped in the diversity and unity of all its different dimensions, including the theological dimension. In this way it will be possible to experience and to steer the globalization of humanity in relational terms, in terms of communion and the sharing of goods."
("Caritas in Veritate," 42)

"The Breaking-Down of Borders"


More posts about "Caritas in Veritate" (Charity in Truth)
"Caritas in Veritate"

This is the fourth day of the 17-day 2012 Olympics. Once again, I'm not writing about the global games get-together. Quit a few folks are, though:
"Caritas in Veritate," 42, is the end of Chapter Three. It starts by noting a fairly common assumption:
"Sometimes globalization is viewed in fatalistic terms, as if the dynamics involved were the product of anonymous impersonal forces or structures independent of the human will[102]...."
("Caritas in Veritate," 42)
'You can't fight city hall' is a fairly common attitude. It's easy to assume that there's nothing that an individual can do to influence the "anonymous impersonal forces" that seem to run the world.

Back to what Benedict XVI was saying:
...In this regard it is useful to remember that while globalization should certainly be understood as a socio-economic process, this is not its only dimension. Underneath the more visible process, humanity itself is becoming increasingly interconnected; it is made up of individuals and peoples to whom this process should offer benefits and development[103], as they assume their respective responsibilities, singly and collectively. The breaking-down of borders is not simply a material fact: it is also a cultural event both in its causes and its effects...."
("Caritas in Veritate," 42)
A key point here is that a "cultural event" involves people. I think that we're influenced by what's around us: but I'm certain that we can decide what we do.

As I pointed out yesterday, people are:
  • Rational and therefore like God
    • Made in the image and likeness of God
    (Catechism, 1700-1706)
  • Created with free will
  • Master over our actions
    (Catechism, 1730)
I can't, as about 1/7,000,000,000th of the world's people, decide how I want global economics and social structures to develop: and make everybody else act the way I want. But I can decide what I do, and how I react to that tiny fraction of the world that I deal with each day.

All of us do that: and that makes a difference.

There's a whole lot more to "Caritas in Veritate," 42. I may get back to it later today: or, not.

Vaguely-related posts:
More:

Sunday, July 29, 2012

Natural Family Planning and Future Generations

This is the third day of the 17-day 2012 Olympics. This post isn't about those events. I figure other folks are doing a fine job of covering the world's big sports fest:
Instead, I'm going to write about NFP.

Those three letters, "NFP," stand for for National Financial Partners Corporation, and Nurse Family Partnership, but "National NFP Awareness Week" is about Natural Family Planning. The 'awareness week' ends today, so I'm getting involved at the last minute: and that's another topic.

Natural Family Planning, or NFP, is sort of like 'Vatican Roulette;' except that NFP:
  • Is being used
  • Works

"Vatican Roulette?"

The idea that Catholics have babies because we're too stupid to know any better has been a cherished part of American culture for a long time. You may have run into someone who is American, a Catholic, and apparently clueless about where babies come from. But that individual doesn't represent the Catholic Church.

Neither do I, for that matter. I'm "some guy with a blog," and one of more than a billion of the world's living Catholics. We're a diverse lot:
Getting back to sex, Catholic style, and where babies come from.

Humans: Two Basic Models

I'm a practicing Catholic, so I believe that human beings come in two basic models: male and female. The physical union of male and female is how we get new human beings: and this is a good thing. (Genesis 1:26-27)

Don't get the wrong idea from that reference to Genesis. I'm Catholic, so I take God's creation 'as is.' I think that "...the things of the world and the things of faith derive from the same God..."
(Catechism of the Catholic Church, 159) I've been over this sort of thing before:

"Rational and Therefore like God"

Maybe acknowledging that human beings are sexual creatures, and that babies get started when the parents physically unite, doesn't seem very 'spiritual.' I've been over that before, too. (March 5, 2012)

The Catholic Church says that human beings are:
  • Animals
    • A special sort of animal
      • Endowed with reason
      • Capable of
        • Understanding
        • Discernment
      (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1951)
  • People
    • Rational and therefore like God
      • Made in the image and likeness of God
      (Catechism, 1700-1706)
    • Created with free will
    • Master over our actions
      (Catechism, 1730)
    (August 31, 2011)
I think that human sexuality is okay: and that human beings are rational creatures, capable of deciding what we do. More the point, that's what the Church says. (Catechism, 369, 1700-1706, 1730, 1951)

Working With Our Bodies

Here's a pretty good overview of Natural Family Planning:
  • NFP is a way of following God’s plan for achieving and/or avoiding pregnancy. It consists of ways to achieve or to avoid pregnancy using the physical means that God has built into human nature.
  • NFP consists of two distinct forms:
    1. Ecological breastfeeding. This is a form of child care that normally spaces babies about two years apart on the average.
    2. Systematic NFP. This is a system that uses a woman's signs of fertility to determine the fertile and infertile times of her cycle.
      (NFP: Natural Family Planning)
  • Couples seeking to avoid pregnancy practice chaste abstinence during the fertile time of her cycle.
I think NFP/Natural Family Planning is a good idea. I also think it works: and it's the method my wife and I use to regulate the size of our family.

Decisions, Children, and Motives

"Regulating" doesn't necessarily mean "limiting." It's possible to use NFP to keep from having children: or make the most of a couple's fertility.

For some folks, depriving themselves of children might be a dire necessity. Others might believe they must limit their family to one or none 'for the environment.'

I don't know if 'saving the environment' by having one or no kids is still popular. That fashion doesn't make sense to me, and that's yet another topic.

My wife and I have four surviving children. That's not a 'mistake.' We like having children. I also think that having children is a blessing: not a 'burden:' on parents, or on the world.

Population Crisis 2012

I still run into warnings about overpopulation, overcrowding, and how awful it is that so many folk live in poverty.

I agree: about poverty. The rest, not so much. Particularly since pictures intended to stir emotions about overpopulation generally show folks with distinctly more melanin in their skins that I have.

My ancestors came from northwestern Europe, and I have no problem with that. But I also do not think that the world would be a better place if folks who don't look quite like me stopped having 'too many' babies.

That's because I take what the Church says seriously: Love God; love your neighbor; everybody's your neighbor. (Matthew 22:36-40; Matthew 5:43-44Mark 12:28-31; Luke 10:25-30; Catechism, 1825)

Besides, now that we're into the second decade of the 21st century, a remarkable number of folks have noticed a 'downside' to not having kids: one that should have been obvious. And that is yet again another topic.

Related posts:

Friday, July 27, 2012

Blind Mice; Heroism During the 'Batman' Killings

The London 2012 Olympics start today: but instead of analyzing the significance of a South Korean flag being displayed with a North Korean athlete, I'm going to write about some formerly-blind mice; heroism in Aurora, and living in a big world:
  1. Blind No More: Sight Restored (for Mice)
  2. Under Fire in Aurora: Stress Test
  3. Police are People, Too
  4. Aurora, Zanzibar, and the World
What happened at a Batman movie in Aurora, Colorado, last week is still a major news item: and a common op-ed topic.

High-profile, emotion-drenched, tragic situations are a sort of Rorschach test: particularly for opinion pieces. I think what's written tells more about the writer, than about the incident. I'm no exception.

In my opinion, we still don't know why James Holmes killed a dozen people. On the other hand, I'm quite sure that:
  • The Tea Party wasn't controlling Mr. Holmes
  • The killings aren't a government plot
  • Shape-shifting, space-alien lizard men are not involved

Seriously? Prayer Helps

I am also quite sure that a lot of folks are hurting, and that prayer is a good idea:

Lizard Men?!

The lizard-men, by the way, are my somewhat snarky contribution to a growing number of conspiracy theories. They're quite fictional.

The 'government conspiracy' and 'Tea Party plot' have been presented as 'real,' or at least 'likely.' ABC and the BBC seem to realize that they goofed about the Tea Party being involved, but I'm pretty sure that some Americans will remain convinced that 'the truth' is being suppressed.

Conspiracy Theories

Conspiracy theories pop up like mushrooms whenever a particularly upsetting even happens. I've discussed a possible explanation in another blog:

Judging Acts, Not Persons

Whatever reason Mr. Holmes had for killing a dozen innocent people, it was a bad thing to do. I realize that may seem harsh, even 'judgmental:' but murder is not right, and we shouldn't do it:
  • Human life is precious
    • Sacred
      (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2258)
  • It's wrong to
    • Deliberately kill an innocent person
      (Catechism, 2258-2262, 2268-2269)
    • Want vengeance
      (Catechism, 2262)
Not wanting vengeance isn't the same as ignoring justice. Justice is one of the cardinal virtues, and that's another topic. (Catechism, 1807)

Before discussing how folks responded to being attacked at a movie theater, there's a difference between recognizing evil actions, and judging another person:
"...although we can judge that an act is in itself a grave offense, we must entrust judgment of persons to the justice and mercy of God."
(Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1861)

1. Blind No More: Sight Restored (for Mice)

"Chemical Helps Blind Mice See Again"
Dave Mosher, Biotech, Wired (July 26, 2012)

"Injections of a recently discovered chemical into the eyes of blind lab mice has restored at least part of the rodents' vision.

"The chemical, called AAQ - short for acrylamide-azobenzene-quaternary ammonium - was not tested in humans, nor is it a cure for blindness. But researchers who treated mice with the molecule, a type of light-sensitive 'photoswitch,' think their method represents an advance in the quest to help the blind see.

" 'The photoswitch is injected into the vitreous cavity of the eye, but unlike the other strategies, it does not require highly invasive surgical interventions and its actions are reversible,' the authors of a new study about AAQ wrote July 26...."
What's important about acrylamide-azobenzene-quaternary ammonium (try saying that fast) and a seriously uncomfortable medical procedure isn't restoring vision to some rodents: or, rather, that's not the most important point in these experiments.

This sort of thing could - probably - be done with folks who are blind: letting them see again. And, although we're supposed to treat animals humanely: people are more important than animals. (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2415-2418)

Humans in Medical Experiments: Sometimes Okay, Sometimes Not

There's more in the article, including how the researchers determined whether the mice could see or not. If they'd used humans in the experiment, they could have asked 'can you see?' You can't do that with mice.

Well, actually, you can: but the mice won't talk.

The Catholic Church says that using human beings for medical experiments is okay: provided that the risks aren't too great. Incidents like the Tuskegee experiments, what got sorted out in the Nürnberg trials, and the Cincinnati radiation experiments, are not okay. Not even if the people 'volunteer.' (Catechism, 2292-2295) I've been over that before. (August 30, 2010)

Blindness Cured: But There's a 'Down' Side

One more excerpt from that Wired article, explaining how the eye works: and why this sort of treatment may not be a good idea for people:
"...In a healthy eye, light strikes rod- and cone-shaped photoreceptor cells lining the retina, which transmit the signal into a network of nerves below them. Those nerves ultimately usher visual information to the brain.

"Retinitis pigmentosa and age-related macular degeneration kill off the rods and cones, eventually causing blindness, but the network of nerves behind often remains intact.

"By taking advantage of the intact nerves, a few biomedical tricks can already partially restore vision. Electronic sensors implanted in a retina, for example, can stimulate the nerves to send visual information when struck by light. Likewise, engineered viruses can implant genes into retinal nerve cells that make them react to light.

"But these and other techniques are irreversible and can trigger immune responses that destroy the rest of an eye...."
(Dave Mosher, Biotech, Wired)
Scientific research is a good idea, provided that it's done in an ethical way. (Catechism, 2292-2295) Practical applications of the research are okay too: although again, ethics are important. For example:
"Organ transplants are in conformity with the moral law if the physical and psychological dangers and risks to the donor are proportionate to the good that is sought for the recipient. Organ donation after death is a noble and meritorous act and is to be encouraged as an expression of generous solidarity. It is not morally acceptable if the donor or his proxy has not given explicit consent. Moreover, it is not morally admissible directly to bring about the disabling mutilation or death of a human being, even in order to delay the death of other persons."
(Catechism, 2296)
In other words, donating a kidney is a good thing to do: provided that the benefit/risk ratio is right. Donating organs after death "is a noble and meritorous act and is to be encouraged...." But killing someone, breaking the body down for parts, and using one of the pieces to save another person's life? That isn't right. It's like the fellow said:
" 'An evil action cannot be justified by reference to a good intention' (cf. St. Thomas Aquinas, Dec. praec. 6). The end does not justify the means."
(Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1759)

2. Under Fire in Aurora: Stress Test

Last week quite a few folks had an opportunity to act - or not. Many showed that we still have heroes.
"Archbishop Aquila praises heroic actions during theater shooting"
Michelle Bauman, CNA/EWTN News (July 25, 2012)

" Those who offered their lives to save their loved ones in the recent Colorado theater shooting exemplified the Christian virtues of courageous sacrifice and selfless love, said Archbishop Samuel J. Aquila of Denver.

"Such acts of courage testify to 'the natural goodness that is present within the human person,' he told CNA on the evening of July 24.

"Stories of heroism are beginning to emerge from the Century 16 Theater in Aurora, Colo. where one of the deadliest mass shootings in U.S. history took place early on July 20...."
Quite a bit of attention is focused on Mr. Holmes. That's understandable. I think it's important to look at what others did, too.

Killed While Protecting Another: Jon Blunk; Matt McQuinn; Alex Teves; John Larimer

"...Reports have emerged that four of the victims were young men who died while shielding their girlfriends from bullets.

"Jon Blunk, Matt McQuinn, Alex Teves and John Larimer all gave their lives to protect their girlfriends - Jansen Young, Samantha Yowler, Amanda Lindgren and Julia Vojtsek, respectively - from the gunfire in the theater.

"Several of these women spoke to the media after the shooting, crying as they told how their boyfriends - who were all in their 20s - used their bodies to block them from harm, knowing that they were risking their lives....
(Michelle Bauman, CNA/EWTN News)
Like I've said before: we still have heroes.

Courage Under Fire: Stephanie Davies

Stephanie Davis is 21. She and her friend Allie Young were at the theater when someone started shooting at the audience.

Young was hit, a neck wound, but remained conscious. She urged Davies to run and hide. Instead, Davies pulled Young into an aisle and applied pressure to stop the bleeding.
(Michelle Bauman, CNA/EWTN News)

Knowing how to treat a bullet wound is one thing. Having the presence of mind, while under fire, to apply that knowledge: That's impressive.

Then there's the sort of considered courage it takes to forgive an attacker.

Forgiving a Killer: Pierce O'Farrill

Pierce O'Farrill has little reason to like Mr. Holmes. O'Farrill is alive, despite being shot three times.

"...Shortly after emerging from surgery, O'Farrill was interviewed by radio host Todd Schnitt. Asked what he would say to James Holmes, the alleged shooter, he responded, 'I'm truly blessed to have forgiveness in my heart, and I do forgive him completely for what he’s done.'

" 'I honestly would like to see him. I would like to talk to him. I'm a man of deeply devoted faith,' O'Farrill explained. 'Jesus is my world, and Jesus is how I get through every single day, and that’s how I got through this ordeal.'

"O'Farrill said that he has been praying for Holmes, and if he had the chance to speak with him, 'the first words that I would say are, "I forgive you, James." '...

"...The archbishop encouraged continued prayer during the coming weeks and months that God may bring comfort and peace to the victims of the shooting and their families.

" 'The Holy Spirit is present,' he said."
"Forgiveness" isn't "stupidity." As a Catholic, I'm expected to forgive others - and myself. But I'm also expected to clean up the mess that sin leaves. (Catechism, 1459-1460)

I think Mr. O'Farrill was quite sensible, forgiving his attacker. I also think that justice demands that Mr. Holmes face some sort of sanctions. That doesn't mean that I think he should be killed.

Killing a murderer might be 'just,' and impending death can have a wonderfully focusing effect on one's thoughts: but I think Mr. Holmes might benefit from having a long time to reconsider what he's done with his life, and how he's affected others.

I'm not 'absolutely' against capital punishment, and that's another topic:

3. Police are People, Too

"Chaplain says faith can help officers cope with Aurora shooting"
Michelle Bauman, CNA/EWTN News (July 24, 2012)

"A strong faith in God can play an important role for law enforcement officers struggling to deal with the aftermath of the recent mass shooting in Aurora, Colo., said a chaplain who has experience ministering to those involved in tragic killings.

" 'There is a kind of spiritual journey that takes place,' said Gino Geraci, who serves as a chaplain for the Denver division of the FBI....

"...Geraci spoke with CNA on July 20, shortly after returning from the Century 16 Theater in Aurora, Colo., where one of the deadliest mass shootings in U.S. history took place....
Police officers are trained to deal with trauma and tragedy. But that training doesn't stop them from being human beings. Police in Aurora, Colorado have been dealing with quite a bit:
  • Aftereffects of a dozen lives abruptly ended
  • Contact with the person who killed those folks
  • Knowledge that the killer intended to kill others with a booby-trapped apartment:
As Gino Geraci said, it's important to remember that police officers are human beings: people whose jobs sometimes put them in extremely stressful situations.
"...While officers 'are trained to deal with tragedy and trauma,' the gravity of a situation like the recent rampage can be overwhelming, he explained.

"For many officers, the events of July 20 may be 'one of the most difficult experiences' they will ever face, he said, adding that the experience of trauma can also be 'cumulative.'

" It's impossible to not have it affect you,' he said, and these effects can be physical, spiritual and emotional...."
(Michelle Bauman, CNA/EWTN News)


4. Aurora, Zanzibar, and the World

"Pope Promises Prayers for Denver Victims"
"Also Remembers Those Killed in Ferry Accident Near Zanzibar
Zenit.org (July 23, 2012)

"Benedict XVI promised prayers for the victims of a shooting that took place in the early hours of Friday morning at a movie theater in Denver.

"Sunday after praying the midday Angelus with crowds gathered at the papal summer residence, the Pope said he was 'deeply shocked by the senseless violence which took place in Aurora, Denver.'..."
"...Aurora, Denver?"

Ideally, Benedict XVI would have known that Aurora is a municipality near Denver, Colorado. If he was running for office, he might have added a few words about next month's road work on Havana Street.

The Pope is spiritual leader to more than a billion people. He's also a human being: with the capacity for misstatement we all share.

I'm impressed that he noted the Aurora killings, along with the nearly-80 people killed in a ferry accident. About that: the death toll has gone up, with many of the folks who were traveling between Tanzania and Zanzibar 'missing and presumed dead.'

Prayer for folks affected by the Aurora killings is, I think, a good idea. So is prayer for those who lost family and friends when the MV Skagit/Kalama went down:

Related posts:

Wednesday, July 25, 2012

New on the Blogroll: Never Give Up

Earlier today, I linked to a post in John Janaro's blog:
  • Never Give Up
    • "An ordinary man engages the circumstances of daily life, seeking to draw closer to the Mystery who gives meaning to everything."
Professor Janaro's blog is in the blogroll now, under - what else? - Blogs.

"Professor?!"

Here's what I found in Never Give Up's sidebar:
"John Janaro is Associate Professor Emeritus of Theology at Christendom College. He is a Catholic theologian, and a writer, researcher, and lecturer on issues in religion and culture. His most recent book is NEVER GIVE UP: MY LIFE AND GOD'S MERCY. He is married to Eileen Janaro and has five children."
(About Me, Never Give Up)
John Janaro's post discusses an assumption I've run into fairly often:
The short answer to that question is 'no.'

Sure, we've got rules: but they're not 'oppressive,' and - we get help.
"... We are not just burdened with a bunch of rules, and then left alone. People are afraid to embrace the demands of Christian morality because they think they have to do it themselves. But this is not what Christianity proposes. We are not 'by ourselves' and we are not left in the hands of our own power.

"People need to hear and see this witness...."
(Never Give Up (July 23, 2012))
I'm looking forward to reading more in Never Give Up.

Vaguely-related posts in A Catholic Citizen in America:

Battling Sin, Living in Hope

"Original sin" means different things, depending on who you listen to. I'm a Catholic, so my take on it isn't what quite a few Americans believe. I'll get back to ideas like 'God doesn't make junk' after plugging another person's blog.

I ran into this today:
"Is Christianity an Oppressive Imposition of Rules?"
John Janaro, Never Give Up (July 23, 2012)

" Too many people (even Catholics) think that the essence of Christianity consists in a series of moral demands, most of which are impossible to keep, and which therefore result in making us feel guilty and making our lives gloomy. People even tend to think of doctrine not so much as the expression of God's revelation as the 'stuff that we are required to believe even though it doesn't make any sense.'

"An external, oppressive imposition of rules. No wonder so many people abandon Christianity.

"But this is not the Gospel...."
I recommend reading the rest of that post. Mr. Janaro 'gets it.' Christianity - Catholicism, anyway - is about hope. Also faith and charity.

'Oh Woe, All Ye Faithful?'

I've explained why I became a Catholic. When I got around to studying what the Church actually said, not the stuff I read in magazines, I discovered an outfit with a faith that makes sense. I had been taking a hard look at major religions, including Christianity, because much of what I'd been hearing was silly: at best.

The "Christianity" I heard on the radio was often a weird mixture of numerology, fortune-telling, and Bible trivia: mixed with hatred of commies, rock music, and anything learned since about 1800. Those folks seemed dedicated to "...making us feel guilty and making our lives gloomy...."

'Happy Time Gospel:' Not a New Notion

At another end of the emotional spectrum from those grim disciples of malignant virtue, there's the lot I'll call the 'happy time gospel glee club.' The 'prosperity gospel' is one iteration of this approach to faith: and a mistake. (January 27, 2009)

In a way, I sympathize with folks who want to believe that:
  • Nobody goes to Hell
  • Everybody has a future of eternal groovyness
  • God
    • Doles out happiness
    • Is a sort of benevolent and senile grandfather
That's not the way things are, but it feels a lot better than the 'you're damned if you disagree with me' theology I've heard elsewhere. I've written about Hell and hope before:

'Do-It-Yourself Virtue:' An Old Idea

The idea that people don't need the grace of God, that we can be 'really good people' and get into Heaven on our own, isn't new:
"Pelagianism:
"the theological doctrine put forward by Pelagius which denied original sin and affirmed the ability of humans to be righteous; condemned as heresy by the Council of Ephesus in 431"
(Princeton's WordNet)
The Church said Pleagius was wrong. But the Church didn't say that God had made a race of utterly vile creatures, either. 'God doesn't make junk,' and I've been over that before.

'God is Unnecessary;' 'Virtue is Impossible;' and Getting a Grip

If you think the following outline doesn't entirely capture the nuances of Pelagianism and the 'doom disciples:' I agree entirely. All I'm trying to do is sketch out the general outline of these beliefs:
  • Pelagius
    • People can lead a morally good life
      • By using our free will
      • Without God's help
    • Adam's sin was a 'bad example'
      • Nothing more
  • Early Protestant reformers
    • Said the sin inherited by each of us
      • Is the tendency to evil
        • (Concupiscentia)
      • Insurmountable
    (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 406)

Born With a Wounded Nature; Battling Sin: And Hope

What the Catholic Church teaches is 'none of the above.' (Catechism, 386-412) This outline doesn't capture every detail, either:

Each one of us:
  • Has a wounded nature
    (Catechism, 407)
  • Experiences the consequences of sin
    (Catechism, 408)
  • Battles evil
    (Catechism, 409)
  • Has not been abandoned by God
    (Catechism, 410)
About two thousand years back, Jesus won the war against sin. (Catechism, 411)

So, why didn't God override Adam's free will, or wave a magic wand and make everything better after that serpent incident? That's another topic, for another time.

Related posts:

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Still Waiting for a "Caritas in Veritate" Post? Me, Too

Monday morning, I posted this:Then I spent most of Monday in St. Cloud, about 45 miles down the road, learning how to control my diabetes. That was time well spent, but it didn't get me any further ahead on the "Caritas in Veritate" post.

I got home, got overwhelmed at the length of "Caritas in Veritate," 42. It's the end of a chapter: and consists of two paragraphs, one of them quite long.

That's "quite long," compared to the average acreage in "Caritas in Veritate."

Some of the time I could have spent on my scheduled post got used in writing about the 'Batman' killings in Aurora:The point of that post is that, looking past the usual conspiracy theories and emotion-drenched calls for 'eye-ear-nose-and-throat for an eye' vengeance: flags are at half mast, folks are mourning, and many - crazies and otherwise - apparently still realize that the death of innocent people isn't right.

It hurts, but as my father-in-law says, 'pain lets you know you're alive.'

Now I'm reminded that there's another scheduled non-writing block of time this afternoon.

I may get that "Caritas in Veritate" post written this week: it's started, but nowhere near ready for posting.

More likely, I'll get to it later, and have it ready for next Monday.

Maybe next week will be a bit quieter. Or, not.

Monday, July 23, 2012

Mourning Aurora's Dead: Good News, of a Sort

It's been several days since someone killed a dozen folks at a 'Batman' movie in Aurora, Colorado.

I'm impressed at how many people are upset about this tragedy. When I drove across part of central Minnesota today, most flags were at half mast.

A cynical person might expect folks in this country to take the shooting of a dozen movie-goers in stride. Mass murders have happened in America before, including:
In a way, it's encouraging to see this level of sadness over a relatively small number of casualties. Many Americans apparently care about what happens to others.

As I've said before: prayer couldn't hurt. No pressure, of course: but a whole lot of folks are hurting right now.

Clueless Advertising, Conspiracy Theories

A tip of the hat to Christie Ramsey, on Google+, for the heads-up on this item:
"The most astonishingly tactless tweet of the day."
Happy Place (July 20, 2012)
"#Aurora is trending, clearly about our Kim K insired #Aurora dress;) Shop; [url redacted]"
"In times of unthinkable, horrifying tragedy, it's easy to slip into a downward spiral of petty political arguments and blame. But one thing we can all agree on is that Celeb Boutique has officially said the most astonishingly inappropriate thing any of us will hear today.

"UPDATE: After leaving the disastrous tweet up for an hour, Celeb Boutique finally pulled it down, and followed it with this incredibly awkward and equally tactless series of apologies. We're so glad to hear this senseless violence hasn't dampened their Fabulous Friday...."
Celeb Botique's blunder may be forgotten soon: for their sake, I hope it is.

Notions that 'they' are behind what happened at Aurora will probably be around for a long time. The last I heard, some folks are still convinced that the CIA blew up the World Trade Center.

I haven't run down a source for the assertion that the Tea Party arranged for the murder of 12 people in Aurora. I did find this, however:
"Was Colorado Shooting Staged By The Government?"
Mike Adams, The Western Center for Journalism (July 21, 2012)

"James Holmes, the Aurora, Colorado shooter who reportedly opened fire at a Batman movie premiere, was a medical student at the University of Colorado, pursuing...

"According to news reports, this sudden violent rampage was completely out of character for James Holmes, who was described as 'shy.'

"The New York Times is now reporting:The New York Times is now reporting:
"Billy Kromka, a pre-med student at the University of Colorado, Boulder, worked with Mr. Holmes for three months last summer as a research assistant in a lab of at the Anschutz Medical Campus. Mr. Kromka said he was surprised to learn Mr. Holmes was the shooting suspect. 'It was just shocking, because there was no way I thought he could have the capacity to do commit an atrocity like this,' he said.
"...There is already conjecture that James Holmes may have been involved in mind-altering neuroscience research and ended up becoming involved at a depth he never anticipated....

"...His behavior doesn't add up

"His behavior already reveals stark inconsistencies that question the mainstream explanation of events. For example, he opened fire on innocent people but then calmly surrendered to police without resistance. This is not consistent with the idea of 'killing everyone.'..."
I might take the 'government conspiracy' a little more seriously, if it wasn't the sort of thing that gets trotted out after most gut-wrenching tragedies. Who knows? This time 'the boy who cried wolf' might be right. But I don't think so.

I also don't think that shape-shifting, space-alien lizard men are using the University of Colorado as a cover. Although if this were a story, lizard men could have infiltrated the Anschutz Medical Campus and used mind-control technology to turn Mr. Holmes into a killer cyberzombie.

Lizard men? They're the ones who 'really' rule the world: according to one of the more colorful conspiracy theories I've read about. (Another War-on-Terror Blog (January 14, 2009))

Seriously: Prayer Couldn't Hurt

Again, lots of folks are hurting as a result of those murders. Prayer couldn't hurt.

Somewhat-related posts:

Oops: Why There's No "Caritas in Veritate" Post This Morning

I had hoped to have another post about "Caritas in Veritate" ready for this morning.

Instead, my family and I got called up to North Dakota, to help with my son-in-law's Spiral Light Candle Corporation. We also had a good 'family get-together' over the weekend.

I'm glad we went, stuff got done: but that "Caritas in Veritate" post didn't get written. Today's schedule won't let me get much writing done, either: so at best the post will be ready this evening. More likely, it'll be done some time tomorrow.

The last few "Caritas in Veritate" posts:

Sunday, July 22, 2012

"The World is On Fire" - Again: Saint Teresa of Avila and the New Evangelization

Information Age technology, like almost everything else, is 'good news/bad news'.

First, the good news.

Just about anyone with Internet access can share ideas, opinions, and viewpoints.

It's a wonderful way to learn how others see the world, and let others discover your point of view.

Now, the bad news.

The same technology can broadcast emotional outbursts. These rants might prompt sympathy from friends, or simply be ignored by the person's friends and acquaintances. Even if they don't share the person's views, they probably understand why their friend is upset, and can 'make allowances.'

For someone who's not part of the person's 'in' group, that fervent statement is likely to look like a lot of crazy talk. A kernel of truth, if present, gets buried in a pile of feelings and assumptions.

That's why I try to be careful about what I post. Enough folks already think the Catholic Church is obsolete and irrelevant, without me reinforcing that notion.

St. Teresa of Avila:
Reform, Yes; "Going Back," No

I think anxiety comes easily in times when society is in upheaval: new technologies changing how folks live; people turning away from the faith their parents took for granted; and upstart nations challenging established powers.

I'm cautiously optimistic, though, about the future.

That's partly because I know a bit about history. That 'society in upheaval' was Europe in the 1500s. Benedict XVI talked about that era, how one woman's actions made a difference then: and how Teresa of Avila can be a role model for Catholics today.
"Pope presents St. Teresa of Avila as model for evangelization"
David Kerr, CNA/EWTN News (July 16, 2012)

"Pope Benedict XVI believes that 16th-century Saint Teresa of Avila is a model for current efforts to launch the New Evangelization.

" 'The ultimate goal of Teresa's reform and the creation of new monasteries in a world lacking spiritual values was to protect apostolic work with prayer,' the Pope said July 16.

" 'Today too, as in the sixteenth century, in the midst of rapid transformation, it is important that trusting prayer be the heart of the apostolate, so that the redeeming message of Jesus Christ may sound out clearly and dynamically,' he added...."
Teresa of Avila started her Carmelite reform 450 years ago, when she founded the Monastery of St. Joseph. The CNA/EWTN News article has more about what the Pope said, including:

"The World is On Fire"

"...In promoting a 'radical return' to a more austere form of Carmelite life, St. Teresa sought 'to create a form of life which favored a personal encounter with the Lord,' the Pope explained.

"Rather than harking back to the past, however, St. Teresa presented 'a new way of being Carmelite' to 'a world which was also new,' Pope Benedict observed. He quoted the Spanish saint's own writings to her religious sisters in which she summed up the 'difficult times' in which they lived.

" 'The world is on fire,' wrote St. Teresa of post-Reformation Europe. 'Men try to condemn Christ once again. They would raze His Church to the ground. No, my sisters, this is no time to treat with God for things of little importance.'

" 'Does this luminous and engaging call, written more than four centuries ago by the mystic saint, not sound familiar in our own times?' asked Pope Benedict in response...."
(David Kerr, CNA/EWTN News)
"The world is on fire" sounds like something written today, or any time since about World War I. The last century hasn't been 'just like' 16th century Europe's experience: but I think there are some parallels.

New technology, from flush toilets and bottled beer to the Mercator map projection was upsetting the serenity of folks in the 16th century. On the political and social front, northern princes embraced Protestant theology. I suspect that 'liberation' from southern Europe's economic and political control was a big factor there.

These days, we've gone from zeppelins and neon lights to the Internet and industrial robots in a few generations. At the same time, European empires were dissolving while shrill secularists and Bible-thumping Luddites agreed that science and religion were completely incompatible. More about that later.

More about new technology in 'recent' centuries:

"The 'Exhilarating Task' of the New Evangelization"

The Catholic Church is old: ancient. For two millennia, we've had the same basic message: love God, love your neighbor (Matthew 5:43-44; Mark 12:28-31; Luke 10:25-30; Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1825); and everybody's your neighbor (Matthew 5:43-44; Mark 12:28-31; Luke 10:25-30; Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1825).

'Ancient' and 'consistent' isn't the same as 'decrepit' and 'outdated.'

As a Catholic, I'm expected to love God, love my neighbor, and see everyone as my neighbor. But I'm not expected to stubbornly cling to the way folks did things in 'the good old days.'

Benedict XVI says we're supposed to use "...methods free from inertia...." That doesn't sound like a strident call to start using quill pens and 19th-century elocution:
"...In the 'exhilarating task' of the New Evangelization, he said, the example of St. Teresa should inspire all Christians because she 'evangelized unhesitatingly, showing tireless ardor, employing methods free from inertia and using expressions bathed in light.'

" 'This remains important in the current time,' said the Pope, 'when there is a pressing need for the baptized to renew their hearts through individual prayer in which, following the guidance of St. Teresa, they also focus on contemplation of Christ's blessed humanity as the only way to reach the glory of God.'"
(David Kerr, CNA/EWTN News)

Living in a Mission Territory

Say 'mission territory,' and many Americans will think of some far-off, exotic place. New York's Cardinal Dolan pointed out that I live in a mission territory: America.

That didn't surprise me as much as it might have. I grew up in a sincerely anti-Catholic area: an experience that led me to become a Catholic. The malignant virtue that drove me to a study of major religions - and eventually to the Catholic Church - may have driven others away from Christianity, or any religion. And that's not quite another topic.

Here's an excerpt from Cardinal Dolan's post. I recommend reading the whole thing:
"Mission Territories"
Cardinal Dolan, The Gospel in the Digital Age (July 17, 2012)

"...Maybe, we have gotten way too smug. We have taken our Catholic faith for granted. As Archbishop Chaput observed, the big problem is a dullness that has 'seeped into church life, and the cynicism and resentment that naturally follow it . . .These problems kill a Christian love . . . they choke off a real life of faith..'

"...No more taking our Catholic faith for granted!

"No more relaxing in the great things the church has accomplished in the past!

"Cynicism is replaced by confidence . . .

"Hand-wringing by hand-folding . . .

"Dullness by dare . . ....

"...Keeping our faith to ourselves to letting it shine to others!

"This is the New Evangelization!..."

Accepting Creation 'As Is'

I think it's sensible to assume that God is:
  • Smarter than I am
  • Capable of making decisions without my help
  • Honest
That's why I think it's:
  • Prudent to take God's creation 'as is'
  • Possible to learn about the universe
  • Okay to use the brains God gave us
I posted about this Friday:
I can understand why dedicated secularists want to believe that faith and reason are incompatible, and that someone can't be religious and accept the world as it really is. Folks who are loudly religious making the same claims? That, to me, doesn't make so much sense.



An excerpt from the USCCB Blog, overlapping the one I used in Friday's post:
"Faith, Science and a Grownup's God"
USCCB Blog (July 17, 2012)

"...To better understand these points about faith, science and the nature of existence, it's helpful to look at another infamous faith/science flash point: evolution. Like the discovery of the Higgs particle, evolution involved scientific discovery seemingly stepping into territory reserved for God in the Genesis creation accounts. And as the ensuing culture wars have played out from the Scopes Monkey Trial of the 1920s down to the various Intelligent Design-themed skirmishes on school boards, one suspiciously absent player has been the Catholic Church...."

"...In both the origins of the universe and the species, the Catholic Church affirms the important work of science and, implicitly, calls on everyone, Catholic or not, to a more mature understanding of who God is and how God works. It's easy for physicists (and just about anyone, for that matter) to write off religion as somewhere between outdated and laughable when its adherents insist on presenting God, in the words of singer-songwriter Regina Spektor, 'like a genie who does magic like Houdini or grants wishes like Jiminy Cricket and Santa Claus.'

"With this perception, there is nothing surprising about a lopsided commentary that couples an advanced grasp of science with an elementary grasp of God. It should challenge believers to approach their faith in such a way that, the next time something as tiny as a subatomic particle has universe-defining implications, no one will be able to say, in the the words of the Anglican scholar J.B. Phillips: 'Your God is too small.' "
I see no reason to ignore the wonders that God has designed into every part of creation: or to assume that it's wrong to be interested in my Lord's handiwork. More about that in 'Related posts - Science and religion.'

Related posts:

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.