Europe's Complex Heritage

I stopped using the term "Caucasian" several years ago. I've discussed the "Anglo-Teutonic" race, Neanderthals, and getting a grip, before. (September 25, 2015; October 31, 2014)

Turns out, folks from the Caucasus moved into Europe at least once — along with many other folks.

1. Georgian DNA, Homebodies, and Wanderers
   • DNA: Still Learning
   • Genes, Norwegians, and Steppe Pastoralists
   • Humanity on the Move
2. Basque Background

We're still learning more about humanity's family history. It's a lot more complicated than we thought. (July 11, 2014)

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Thinking is Not a Sin

If you've read my 'science' posts before, you know why I think the universe is billions, not thousands, of years old; Earth isn't flat; Adam and Eve weren't German; poetry isn't science; and thinking is not a sin.

Briefly, I think the universe follows knowable rules: which means we can learn how it works. This is okay. We're supposed to study this universe, and use what we learn. (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 32; 339, 2292, 2295)

Scientific discoveries invite us "to even greater admiration for the greatness of the Creator."(Catechism, 283)

I also think that this world is changing, in a state of journeying — in statu viae — toward an ultimate perfection. (Catechism, 302-305)

Humility is accepting reality — including scientific discoveries — also remembering that God's God, I'm not.¹ (Catechism, 283, 2540, 2559)

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1. Georgian DNA, Homebodies, and Wanderers

(From Eppie Jones, via BBC News, used w/o permission.)
("DNA was retrieved from this 10,000-year-old skeleton in Western Georgia"
(BBC News))

"Europe's fourth ancestral 'tribe' uncovered"
(November 16, 2015)

"Geneticists have detected a fourth ancestral 'tribe' which contributed to the modern European gene pool.

"Research shows Europeans are a mixture of three major ancestral populations - indigenous hunters, Middle Eastern farmers and a population that arrived from the east in the Bronze Age.

"DNA from ancient remains in the Caucasus has now revealed a fourth population that fed into the mix...."

The photo's caption says "Western Georgia," which could mean somewhere near the Apalachicola River — but doesn't.

This Georgia is on the east side of the Black Sea, north of where Urartu used to be. "Georgia" is my culture's name for the country. Folks who live there call their land საქართველო, Sakartvelo — I think.

Greeks and Romans called the folks living there Colchians and Iberians, depending on whether they were in the western or eastern part. I'll stick with "Georgia," and figure that you know what area I'm talking about.

Anyway, Eppie Jones and other scientists have been studying DNA from two men who lived in western Georgia 13,300 and 9,700 years back, three centuries shy of "10,000 years;" and another man who died about 13,700 years ago, where Switzerland is now.

Comparing their DNA with folks living in western Eurasia, the scientists found that today's Georgian DNA is a lot like the samples they have from a dozen millennia back.

They also discovered that folks living throughout Europe — particularly northern Europe — are genetically similar to the early Georgians.

My fairly-recent ancestors are from southern Norway and the northern British Isles: so it looks like I'm related to the Georgian subjects of this study.

DNA: Still Learning

(From Eppie Jones, via BBC News, used w/o permission.)
("A view from the Satsurblia cave in Western Georgia, where a human bone dating from over 13,000 years ago was discovered."
(BBC News))

We've learned a lot since 1928, when Frederick Griffith's experiment suggested that DNA carried genetic information; and 1944, when the Avery-MacLeod-McCarty experiment showed that DNA, not proteins, carries genetic information in bacteria.

More recently, research like the Human Genome Project has mapped the human genome. We've mapped the billions of DNA base pairs in our chromosomes — but we don't know what many of them do.

Not yet.

Scientists have developed new ways to recover DNA from increasingly old burials. Back in the 1990s, it looked like we could extract DNA from insects caught in amber: and an 80,000,000-year-old dinosaur.

Scientists double-check results: with disappointing results in this case. Early research hadn't taken environmental contamination and DNA's chemical stability into account. The "dinosaur DNA," for example, was from a human Y chromosome.

These days, it's rare for researchers to identify DNA that's more than several hundred thousand years old. (Wikipedia)

Quite a bit's happened in the last 200,000 years, though. That's when anatomically modern humans showed up. That's what scientists call folks who look pretty much like us.

For one thing, we're learning that today's genetic patterns aren't much like they were in the past. That's hardly surprising. As I've said before, humans travel. (July 11, 2014)

In a way, I'm a bit surprised that so many of the folks who lived in the Caucasus a dozen millennia back stayed where they were.

More recently, about 5,000 years ago, another group — herders we call the Yamna or Yamnaya — formed when hunter-gatherers from the Caucasus and eastern Europe moved into land north of the Caucasus: joining folks from the Mal'ta-Buret' culture.

Genes, Norwegians, and Steppe Pastoralists

(From Joostik, via Wikimedia Commons, used w/o permission.)

"...The Yamnaya transformed the gene pools of northern and central Europe, such that some populations, like Norwegians, owe around 50% of their ancestry to these Steppe pastoralists.

"But the Yamnaya were themselves a mixed population. Around half of their ancestry came from a sister group to the hunter-gatherers who inhabited Europe before farming, while the other half appears to be from a population related to - but noticeably different from - the Middle Eastern migrants who introduced farming.

"Researchers have now analysed genomes from two hunter-gatherers from Georgia that are 13,300 and 9,700 years old. The results show that these Caucasus hunters were probably the source of the farmer-like DNA in the Yamnaya...."
(BBC News)

It looks like Yamnaya brought the early version of most European languages with them when they moved west into my ancestral homelands, about 5,000 years ago. Wikipedia has a pretty good write-up on Proto-Indo-European language.

They also brought horses, metal-working tech, and plague. We've found plague DNA in Yamnaya burials: and Europe's population dropped after they arrived. (BBC News (October 23, 2015))

We recovered, though.

People may be "allergic to change," but for the last 2,000,000 or so years, humans have been coping with a changing world. And that's another topic. (February 20, 2015; July 11, 2014)

Humanity on the Move

(From Wikimedia Commons, used w/o permission.)
(Map of Georgia, Abkhazia, Ajara, and South Ossetia; showing Dmanisi, a townlet and archaeological site in the Kvemo Kartli region.)

Folks have been living in cities like Faiyum and Jericho for millennia. Sorting out exactly how long isn't easy, since inhabited cities keep getting rebuilt. Excavations for an embassy in Londinium, for example, unearthed 10,000-year-old tools. (June 6, 2014; April 4, 2014)

Getting back to the Caucasus region, the Homo erectus version of humanity was living there 1,800,000 years ago. We look different now, but folks still move around.

I'm an anatomically modern human, descended from folks who left Africa more than six dozen millennia back. My ancestors reached central North America recently.

I'm prone to sunburn, thanks to an ancestral stopover in northwestern Europe, I'm related by marriage to folks who came here after heading east across Asia — and that's yet more topics.

Maybe you've seen enough about Dmanisi, Upper Palaeolithic genomes, and all that. if not, there's more at the end of this post.²

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2. Basque Background

(From AFP/Getty Images, via BBC News, used w/o permission.)
("Two men saw a tree trunk with a 'tronza' (traditional Basque saw) during a rural sports championship"
(BBC News))

"Ancient DNA cracks puzzle of Basque origins"
(September 7, 2015)

"DNA from ancient remains seems to have solved the puzzle of one of Europe's most enigmatic people: the Basques.

"The distinct language and genetic make-up of the Basque people in northern Spain and southern France has puzzled anthropologists for decades.

"One theory proposed that they were an unmixed pocket of indigenous hunters...."

Basque Country is between Spain, France, and Andorra.² It's a mountainous place, tucked into the southeast corner of Europe's Bay of Biscay. Quite a bit of traffic goes through the Port of Bilbao, but Basque valleys aren't particularly on the way to anywhere.

Folks have been living there for at least 32,000 years. Today's Basques have a unique language, Euskera, and unique customs.

The BBC News article says Euskera "is unrelated to any other spoken in Europe, or indeed the world."

That's possible, although Basques may have picked up bits and pieces of Iberian and other Indo-European languages as the millennia rolled by.²

Torsten Günther and other scientists filled in a few pages of the Basque story recently: showing that ancestors of today's Basques were local hunters, plus farmers who moved in between 3,500 and 5,500 back. The farmers had been living in around the Atapuerca Mountains.²

Folks have been living in the Atapuerca region for 430,000 years, give or take. We haven't changed much, sadly. (June 5, 2015)

More from me, accepting reality:

• "New Species, Old Burial Site"
  (September 18, 2015)
  Particularly
  • Ancestry and "Flickerings"
  • "Even Greater Admiration"
  • The Last 555,000,000 Years: Briefly
  • Origins
  • Homo Naledi
• "Dogs, Stone Tools, and Newly-Discovered Ancestors"
  (May 29, 2015)
  Particularly
  • Musings of a "Naked Ape"
  • Hominini: "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner" Through the Ages
  • Newly-Discovered Ancestors
  • Earliest Known Stone Tools: So Far
• "Mutant Cows, Mass Migrations, and a Brain Gene"
  (March 6, 2015)
  Particularly
  • Science, Competence, and Ethics
  • Yamnaya, Yamna; and 'There Goes the Neighborhood,' 4,500 Years Back
    • Learning About Indo-European Languages
  • Another Uniquely-Human 'Brain' Gene
• "Homo Erectus Engraving, Long-Lost Relatives"
  (December 12, 2014)
  Particularly
  • "Little Less than a God"
  • Facing Our Desires and Responsibilities
  • Homo Erectus, and Not Missing the 'Good Old Days'
  • 'The Kids are Okay'
  • An Engraved Shell: Half a Million Years Old
• "Cave Men, Sea Monsters, Dead Scorpions, and Theoretical Physics"
  (January 31, 2014)
  Particularly
  • Faith and Reason
  • Bombardier Beetles
  • Modular Design and the Bombardier Beetle's Butt
  • Neanderthal Heritage
  • A Swarthy Swede, Sort of

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¹ More about humility and thinking:

"CONSCIENCE: The interior voice of a human being, within whose heart the inner law of God is inscribed. Moral conscience is a judgment of practical reason about the moral quality of a human action. It moves a person at the appropriate moment to do good and to avoid evil (1777–1778). An examination of conscience is recommended as a preparation for the reception of the Sacrament of Penance (1454)."
(Catechism of the Catholic Church, Glossary, C)

"HUMILITY: The virtue by which a Christian acknowledges that God is the author of all good. Humility avoids inordinate ambition or pride, and provides the foundation for turning to God in prayer (2559). Voluntary humility can be described as 'poverty of spirit' (2546)."
(Catechism of the Catholic Church, Glossary, H)

"SIN: An offense against God as well as a fault against reason, truth, and right conscience. Sin is a deliberate thought, word, deed, or omission contrary to the eternal law of God. In judging the gravity of sin, it is customary to distinguish between mortal and venial sins (1849, 1853, 1854)."
(Catechism of the Catholic Church, Glossary, S)

² More than you may wan to know about:

• Wikipedia
  • Andorra
  • Atapuerca Mountains
    • Sima de los Huesos (1983-)
  • Basque Country (autonomous community)
  • Basque Country (greater region)
  • Basques
  • Basque language
    • History and classification
  • History of the Basques
  • Dmanisi
    • Archaeological site
  • Early human migrations
    • Early humans (before Homo sapiens)
    • Homo sapiens migrations
  • Homo erectus
    • Homo erectus georgicus
  • Yamna culture
• "Upper Palaeolithic genomes reveal deep roots of modern Eurasians"
  Eppie R. Jones, Gloria Gonzalez-Fortes, Sarah Connell, Veronika Siska, Anders Eriksson, Rui Martiniano, Russell L. McLaughlin, Marcos Gallego Llorente, Lara M. Cassidy, Cristina Gamba, Tengiz Meshveliani, Ofer Bar-Yosef, Werner Müller, Anna Belfer-Cohen, Zinovi Matskevich, Nino Jakeli, Thomas F. G. Higham, Mathias Currat, David Lordkipanidze, Michael Hofreiter et al.; Nature Communications (Received 20 July 20, 2015; Accepted October 15, 2015; Published November 16, 2015)
• "Satsurblia: New Insights of Human Response and Survival across the Last Glacial Maximum in the Southern Caucasus"
  Ron Pinhasi, Tengiz Meshveliani, Zinovi Matskevich, Guy Bar-Oz, Lior Weissbrod, Christopher E. Miller, Keith Wilkinson, David Lordkipanidze, Nino Jakeli, Eliso Kvavadze, Thomas F. G. Higham, Anna Belfer-Cohen; PLOS ONE (October 29, 2014)
• "Ancient genomes link early farmers from Atapuerca in Spain to modern-day Basques"
  Torsten Günthera, Cristina Valdioseraa, Helena Malmströma, Irene Ureñac, Ricardo Rodriguez-Varelac, Óddny Osk Sverrisdóttira, Evangelia A. Daskalakia, Pontus Skoglunda, Thijessen Naidooa, Emma M. Svenssona, José María Bermúdez de Castroh, Eudald Carbonelli, Michael Dunnj, Jan Storåe, Eneko Iriartek, Juan Luis Arsuagac, José-Miguel Carreteroc, Anders Götherströme, Mattias Jakobssona; PNAS (received for review May 21, 2015; approved July 29, 2015)

Attacks in Paris: People Matter

(From BBC News, used w/o permission.)
("The names of victims have started to emerge. Top left to right: Nohemi Gonzalez, Marie Mosser, Djamila Houd. Middle left to right: Juan Alberto Gonzalez, Guillaume Decherf, Nick Alexander. Bottom left to right: Mathieu Hoche, Thomas Ayed, Valentin Ribet"
(BBC News))

"Paris attacks: Who were the victims?"
(November 16, 2015)
"Information about the 129 Paris terror victims has been emerging over the last two days, with France saying more than 103 bodies have now been identified.

"More than 20 foreigners from a number of countries were killed.

"Desperate for any news, relatives and friends of the missing have turned to Twitter to search for their loved ones...."

Another article tells about efforts to find folks who are still missing: either dead, or hospitalized and not able to say who they are. I'll get back to that.

This article gives Djamila Houd's age, and where she was from, but no other details. Marie and Manu's employer had given their personal names, but not their surnames.

A few names from that BBC News article —

"Dado," the nickname of a man killed at the Bataclan. Hugo Sarrade, Cedric Mauduit, Mathieu Hoche, Quentin Boulanger, Guillaume B Decherf, Marie Lausch, Mathias Dymarski, and Lola Salines, had been at the Bataclan, too.

No pressure, and this is just a suggestion: but praying for everyone involved couldn't hurt.

Missing

(From Getty Images, via BBC News, used w/o permission.)
("More than 250 people are seriously wounded and not all have been identified"
(BBC News))

"Paris attacks: Search goes on for missing"
BBC News (November 16, 2015)
"Among the many arresting images from Paris since the Friday attacks was that of the distraught father pleading with French Prime Minister Manuel Valls for news of his missing daughter, Nathalie Jardin.

" 'I don't know where my daughter is,' said Patrick Jardin. 'I don't know if she's still alive or in which hospital she might be.' His daughter had been working at the Bataclan concert hall as a lighting director.

"Confirmation of her death emerged on Monday but the search goes on for several others missing since Islamists opened fire on the Bataclan and several other sites in Paris on Friday night....

"...Hospitals in Paris said in a statement on Monday that of the 80 people admitted in a critical condition, 29 remained in intensive care. Another 49 are still being treated but are no longer in a critical condition.

"One nurse posted a message on Sunday saying that some patients who were not in a critical condition had not been identified and were labelled as 'X'...."

(From Twitter, via BBC News, used w/o permission.)
("People took to Twitter to appeal for the search for Lola Ouzounian to continue" (top left)
"Venezuelans have also been tweeting appeals for Sven Alejander Silva" (Top right)
"For days, appeals have been put out to no avail in search of 17-year-old Remi Suquate" (Bottom left)
"One of the missing was named as Jean-Michel Ovide, the father of a friend" (Bottom center)
"Friends took to Facebook and Twitter to appeal for information about Franck Pitiot" (Bottom right)
(BBC News))

Most folks killed in Paris last Friday were French. Many were young. The BBC News article gave ages for 18 victims: nine in their 20s, five in their 30s, three in their 40s, and a man in his 60s. Many were among the 89 killed at the Bataclan concert hall.

Many folks killed at the Garissa University College in Garissa last April were young, too. It may be easier to feel bad when someone with most of life still ahead dies, and that's another topic.

I think it's wrong to kill folks because they're at a restaurant or rock concert. As I keep saying, murder is wrong. (September 27, 2015; September 6, 2015; April 12, 2015)

Life and Love

Murder is wrong because human beings are people: all human beings. Genesis 1:27 says¹ we're made "in the divine image."

We are rational and therefore like God, made in the image and likeness of God. We have free will. We can decide to act, or not act. (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1730-1825)

All humans are people, with equal dignity: no matter where we are, who we are, or how we act. (Catechism, 360, 1700-1706, 1932-1933, 1935)

Deliberately killing an innocent person, is wrong because human life is sacred. Everyone's life is precious. (Catechism, 2258, 2268-2283)

By "everyone," I mean everyone: including the folks who murdered innocent people in Paris.

My faith says that I mus love God, love my neighbors, see everyone as my neighbor, and treat others as I'd like to be treated. (Matthew 5:43-44, 7:12, 22:36-40, Mark 12:28-31; Luke 6:31 10:25-27, 29-37; Catechism, 1789)

At the moment, I don't feel all warm and fuzzy about ISIS leaders and many American governors — I'll get back to that — but I must love them.

That does not mean that I think France should stop acting against ISIS.

Governments are obliged to protect their citizens, citizens have a responsibility to cooperate with their country in its defense — and governments must let citizens who are pacifists serve their country in other ways. (Catechism, 2310-2317)

My faith doesn't require me to let someone kill me. My life is important, too. Interestingly, the rules for individual defense and national defense are very similar: and nowhere near 'I thought he was going to kill me, so I killed him first.' (2263-2267, 2307-2317)

"Love toward oneself remains a fundamental principle of morality. Therefore it is legitimate to insist on respect for one's own right to life. Someone who defends his life is not guilty of murder even if he is forced to deal his aggressor a lethal blow:

If a man in self-defense uses more than necessary violence, it will be unlawful: whereas if he repels force with moderation, his defense will be lawful. . . . Nor is it necessary for salvation that a man omit the act of moderate self-defense to avoid killing the other man, since one is bound to take more care of one's own life than of another's.⁶⁶"

(Catechism, 2264)

The basics are simple: I must love God, my neighbor, and myself. Applying those simple principles gets complicated: or difficult, at any rate:

• " 'All are Equal Before God' — Rights of Humanity and a Right of the Aggressor"
  (August 24, 2014)
  Particularly
  • Terrorism and Options
  • Stopping an Unjust Aggressor

It Could Be Worse

(Screen capture from BBC News video, used w/o permission.)
("Many US states say they will no longer welcome Syrian refugees"
(BBC News))

"Paris attacks: US states halt taking Syrian refugees"
BBC News (November 16, 2015 (November 17 in UK))

"More than a dozen US states say Syrian refugees are no longer welcome due to security fears after the Paris attacks.

"Governor Rick Snyder of Michigan said he was suspending the acceptance of new arrivals until after a review.

"Alabama, Texas and several other states issued similar statements but a State Department spokesman said the legality of this action was still unclear...."

Since a poll showed that 52% of Americans felt 'less safe' with Syrian refugees coming into the United States, I can see why state governors might want to keep those particular foreigners out. There's a major election coming up next year.

Only 17 state leaders had jumped on this bandwagon when the BBC News article came out:

• Alabama
• Arizona
• Arkansas
• Florida
• Georgia
• Illinois
• Indiana
• Iowa
• Louisiana
• Massachusetts
• Michigan
• Mississippi
• New Hampshire
• North Carolina
• Ohio
• Texas
• Wisconsin
  (source: BBC News)

A few hour later, more than half the states were saying 'no' to Syrians seeking refuge here:

• States whose governors oppose Syrian refugees moving in
  
  • Alabama
  • Arizona
  • Arkansas
  • Florida
  • Georgia
  • Idaho
  • Illinois
  • Indiana
  • Iowa
  • Kansas
  • Louisiana
  • Maine
  • Massachusetts
  • Michigan
  • Mississippi
  • Nebraska
  • New Hampshire
  • New Jersey
  • New Mexico
  • North Carolina
  • Ohio
  • Oklahoma
  • South Carolina
  • Tennessee
  • Texas
  • Wisconsin
• States whose governors say they will accept refugees
  • Colorado
  • Connecticut
  • Delaware
  • Hawaii
  • Pennsylvania
  • Vermont
  • Washington
    (Source: CNN)

I draw a measure of relief that governors of my two 'home' states, North Dakota and Minnesota, have had the common decency to keep quiet about this. I am not among the 52% who would feel 'safer,' knowing that my political leaders were refusing sanctuary to folks — based on national origin.

Here's a map of the situation, as of last night:


(From CNN, used w/o permission.)

It could be worse.

The President could be signing an order to round up American citizens with Syrian ancestry.

Something like that happened before.

On February 19, 1942, during World War II, Franklin Delano Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066.

Folks whose crime was having 'un-American' ancestors were rounded up and herded into internment camps. Many had their property confiscated. About two thirds of the Japanese were American citizens, many others had lived here for decades. German-Americans and Italian-Americans were blacklisted, too.

The good news is that the roughly 120,000 men, women, and children whose ancestors were Japanese were not killed. Eventually, after wartime hysteria cooled down, they were released.

Decades later, in 1988, Public Law 100-383 even acknowledged that the Roosevelt administration might have made a mistake.

Still later, the Department of Justice got around to looking for the folks whose property was legally stolen — "Justice Department Announces Potential Eligibility of Japanese Americans Who Lived in Phoenix Area for Redress Payments."

The Department of Justice announcement was dated August 3, 1994 — 52 years after the roundup was okayed.

Exodus 20:15 and Deuteronomy 5:19 say the same thing: "you shall not steal." Respect for legitimate authority is part of my faith: but that does not mean that someone who has political or economic power can ignore rules that apply to 'ordinary' people. Stealing is stealing: even if the President rewrote part of the Decalogue. (Catechism, 1897-1917, 2401, 2408-2409)

And that's yet another topic.

'A Stranger, and You Slammed the Door in my Face'

There's a somewhat-corny poem associated with a statue in New York Harbor:

"...A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles....

"...'Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!'..."
("The New Colossus," Emma Lazarus, via Wikipedia)²

That's a nice sentiment, and as a Euro-American I'm in no position to argue against letting foreigners into 'my' country.

More the point, I'm a Catholic, so I must think that "alleviating the miseries of refugees" is important. (Catechism, 1911)

"The more prosperous nations are obliged, to the extent they are able, to welcome the foreigner in search of the security and the means of livelihood which he cannot find in his country of origin. Public authorities should see to it that the natural right is respected that places a guest under the protection of those who receive him.

"Political authorities, for the sake of the common good for which they are responsible, may make the exercise of the right to immigrate subject to various juridical conditions, especially with regard to the immigrants' duties toward their country of adoption. Immigrants are obliged to respect with gratitude the material and spiritual heritage of the country that receives them, to obey its laws and to assist in carrying civic burdens."

(Catechism, 2241)

The last I checked, the United States is still one of "the more prosperous nations." With a population of around 322,000,000, I think we can handle the economic burden of reviewing entry requests for around 10,000 refugees from Syria.

I also think careful background checks make sense. A few of those Syrians might be terrorists. So might folks coming from France, Belgium, or any other nation.

But — governors appealing to nativism or fear notwithstanding — I am pretty sure that most of those Syrians are fleeing terrorists: and hope that the United States and countries in Europe give them a chance to live.

I'll admit to a bias. Many of my ancestors were "of low type," and regarded as a threat to America. (September 25, 2015; September 18, 2015; June 21, 2015)

A few words about strangers and getting a grip, and I'm done for today.

"⁵ Had not the men of my tent exclaimed, 'Who has not been fed with his meat!'

"Because no stranger lodged in the street, but I opened my door to wayfarers -...."
(Job 31:31-32)

"The LORD protects the stranger, sustains the orphan and the widow, but thwarts the way of the wicked."
(Psalms 146:9)

"Then the king will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.

"For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me,

"naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me, in prison and you visited me.' "
(Matthew 25:34-36)

Background:

• Wikipedia
  • Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant
    • Worldwide caliphate aims
    • Goals
    • Ideology and beliefs
  • Designation as a terrorist organisation
  • Human rights abuse and war crime findings
  • Criticism
    • Islamic criticism
    • International criticism
  • November 2015 Paris attacks
  • Syria
    • Human rights
• BBC News
  • "Paris attacks: What happened on the night"
    (November 16, 2015)
  • "Paris attacks: Impact on border and refugee policy"
    Gavin Hewitt, BBC News (November 15, 2015)
• Reuters
  • "France, Russia strike Islamic State; Hollande, Putin to meet"
    Chine Labbé, Crispian Balmer (November 17, 2015)
  • "Europe's populist right targets migration after Paris attacks"
    Paul Taylor (November 14, 2015)

More of my take on living in a big world:

• "Paris, Evil, and Love"
  (November 15, 2015)
  Particularly
  • Death and Assumptions
  • Love
• "Death and Decisions in Oregon"
  (October 4, 2015)
  Particularly
  • Being Christian
  • Politics
  • Sin and Love
  • Prayer
• "Remembering the Armenian Genocide, Looking Ahead"
  (April 26, 2015)
  Particularly
  • "We Are Not Guilty!"
  • 'I was Only Following Orders'
  • Authority, Love, and Genocide
  • Humanity's Sad Heritage: and a Good Idea
• "Death at Garissa University, Sin, and Consequences"
  (April 12, 2015)
  Particularly
  • Hellfire and Hypocrisy
  • Sin and Sense
  • Justice, Mercy, and Freedom
  • Doing Something Constructive — or Not
• "Strangers and Standing Orders"
  (July 6, 2014)
  Particularly
  • The Irish and Other 'Threats'
  • Immigrants and the Greatest Commandment
  • "... A Stranger and You Welcomed Me...."

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¹ I must take the Bible, Sacred Scripture, seriously. (Catechism, 101-133)

But I must not pick a few verses I like and warp them around my personal preferences.

• "Synod 14: What I Expect, and What I Don't"
  (October 12, 2014)
  Particularly
  • What Not to Expect
• "Vengeance, Anger, and Looking Ahead"
  (July 13, 2014)
  Particularly
  • "Avenger of Blood," "Forgive ... Injustice" — the Bible and Getting a Grip

² As a descendant of the "wretched refuse," I think this is a good idea:

Population Explosion, Birth Dearth, and a Changing World

'The population explosion' was a popular crisis in my youth. It almost made sense. Particularly since the 'Baby Boom' after World War II was quite real, and folks don't seem to remember that change happens. Even what's changing changes.

The impending death of humanity from overcrowding was 'obvious, to someone who took a few data points from around the middle of the 20th century, and then did a straight-line or exponential extrapolation from them.

That sort of thing can be an interesting exercise in mathematics. The 'overpopulation' panic wasn't, in my considered opinion, sensible. But it was all the rage for a remarkably long time.

Fallout From "The Population Bomb"

Ehrlich's book, "The Population Bomb," convinced quite a few folks that having babies would destroy us all. Today, a half-century later, some countries are discovering why letting folks feel okay about having babies is a good idea.

Basically, an individual human being won't last much more that a century, if that. If you're going to keep a culture going: someone's going to have to keep providing new human beings.

Don't get me wrong: I think there's more to life than utilitarian considerations, and I've been over that before. (October 7, 2011, February 2, 2009)

Japan's Population Crisis, 2012

Today's Japan has a population crisis, but it's not Ehrlich's 'bomb:'

"Lack of babies could mean the extinction of the Japanese people"
FoxNews.com (May 11, 2012)

"Japan has a problem, a lack of children, and it seems likely there will be even fewer in the future.

"Japanese researchers have now warned of a doomsday scenario if it carries on this way with the last child to be born there in 3011 and the Japanese people potentially disappearing a few generations later.

"Academics from the city of Sendai, which was hit hard by last year's tsunami, calculate there are now 16.6 million children under the age of 14 now in Japan.

"And they say that number is shrinking at a disturbing rate of one every 100 seconds.

"So if you do the mathematics, as they did, then the country will have no children within a millennium...."

I think a 'birth dearth,' a comparative lack of children, is a problem for Japan, and some other countries. But I think it's a problem for today, and maybe for the next century.

After that? Quite a lot can happen in a thousand years. My guess is that more folks in Japan and elsewhere will rediscover the advantages of having a family: at least, I hope so.

Change Happens

Norway is one of my ancestral homelands, so last year's mass-murder there held my attention rather strongly. I posted about the perpetrator's trial last month:

• Change, Love, and Mass Murder"
  (May 30, 2012)
  Particularly
  • Coping with Change, Decisions, and Mass Murder
  • Neighbors and Rules
  • America, Norway, Ethnicity, and Statistics

There isn't a good excuse for deciding to be a xenophobic mass-murderer. On the other hand, I think I can see what may have gotten Anders Behring Breivik upset about changes in Norway.

Population, Migration, and All That

Here's another comparison of Norway and America:

• Norway (2007 estimate)
  • Ethnic groups
    • Norwegian 94.4%
      • Includes Sami, about 60,000
    • Other European 3.6%
    • Other 2%
  • Population
    • Growth rate 0.327% (2012 est.)
    • Net migration rate: 1.69 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2012 est.)
    • Total fertility rate 1.77 children born/woman (2012 est.)
• United States (2007 estimate)
  • Ethnic groups
    • White 79.96%
    • Hispanic about 15.1%
    • Black 12.85%
    • Asian 4.43%
    • Amerindian and Alaska native 0.97%
    • Native Hawaiian and other Pacific islander 0.18%
    • Two or more races 1.61%
  • Population
    • Growth rate 0.899% (2012 est.)
    • Net migration rate: 3.62 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2012 est.)
    • Total fertility rate 2.06 children born/woman (2012 est.)
  (source: Norway, "CIA World Factbook" (last updated May 29, 2012)),
  "United States" (last updated May 9, 2012), CIA World Factbook)

You probably noticed that the percentages for ethnicity in the United states add up to substantially over 100%. That's partly because the U.S. Census uses cultural norms as the basis for defining Hispanic, among other groups: and there's a great deal of overlap. Moving on

Norway's population is growing - slowly, but it's 'positive growth.' That's quite impressive, for a country where each woman only has on average about 1.77 children during her life. That's well under the two-point-something needed to replace folks who die. My guess is that Norway's growth is due to immigrants: those folks whose presence Breivik couldn't stand.

More Statistics - or - The Incredible Shrinking Countries

I think Japan's declining birth rate is a real concern: particularly for folks living in Japan. But that country, and Norway, don't make the 'bottom 10' when it comes to either growth rate or fertility rate.

I'm not sure if this could quite be called a listing of 'winners' and 'losers.' But eventually, a country with fewer citizens each year will face some serious issues: like who pays the taxes.

Another point is that death happens to everybody. Countries whose people aren't raising enough children must either depend on immigration to fill roles left vacant as folks reach the end of their lives.

I'll just call the lists "Population Growth Rate," and "Total Fertility Rate:"

Population Growth Rate

Bottom 10
Cook Islands	-3.136%
Northern Mariana Islands	-2.449%
Moldova	-1.014%
Saint Pierre and Miquelon	-0.978%
Jordan	-0.965%
Syria	-0.797%
Bulgaria	-0.796%
Estonia	-0.65%
Montenegro	-0.633%
Ukraine	-0.625%
Top 10
United Arab Emirates	3.055%
Burkina Faso	3.073%
Burundi	3.104%
Gaza Strip	3.108%
Turks and Caicos Islands	3.17%
Ethiopia	3.179%
Uganda	3.582%
Niger	3.63%
Zimbabwe	4.357%
Qatar	4.93%

(2012 estimates, source: Population growth rate, "CIA World Factbook" (2012))

Total Fertility Rate

Bottom 10
Singapore	0.78 children born/woman
Macau	0.92 children born/woman
Hong Kong	1.09 children born/woman
Taiwan	1.16 children born/woman
British Virgin Islands	1.22 children born/woman
Korea, South	1.23 children born/woman
Belarus	1.27 children born/woman
Czech Republic	1.27 children born/woman
Lithuania	1.27 children born/woman
Montserrat	1.27 children born/woman
Top 10
Congo, Republic of the	5.59 children born/woman
Afghanistan	5.64 children born/woman
Zambia	5.9 children born/woman
Ethiopia	5.97 children born/woman
Burkina Faso	6.07 children born/woman
Burundi	6.08 children born/woman
Somalia	6.26 children born/woman
Mali	6.35 children born/woman
Uganda	6.65 children born/woman
Niger	7.52 children born/woman

(2012 estimates, source: Total fertility rate, "CIA World Factbook" (2012))

Europe: It Could be Worse

I haven't run into a discussion of this, but the European Union European Union has more than economic woes.

Folks in the EU aren't even close to raising enough children to be the next generations of Europeans. The EU's fertility rate is 1.58 children born/woman. The good news is that EU population is growing: slowly. The EU population annual growth rate is 0.212% (Population growth rate, "CIA World Factbook" (2012))

I took a quick look at some countries in the European Union:

• France 2.08 children born/woman
  • Growth rate 0.497%
• Netherlands 1.78 children born/woman
  • Growth rate 0.452%
• Luxembourg 1.77 children born/woman
  • Growth rate 1.135%
• Denmark 1.74 children born/woman
  • Growth rate 0.239%
• Sweden 1.67 children born/woman
  • Growth rate 0.168%
• Belgium 1.65 children born/woman
  • Growth rate 0.061%
• Portugal 1.51 children born/woman
  • Growth rate 0.181%
• Germany 1.41 children born/woman
  • Growth rate -0.2%
• Austria 1.41 children born/woman
  • Growth rate 0.026%
• Italy 1.4 children born/woman
  • Growth rate 0.38%
• Greece 1.39 children born/woman
  • Growth rate 0.06%
(2012 estimates, source: Total fertility rate, "CIA World Factbook" (2012))

The only shrinking country in that list, with 'negative growth,' is Germany. The others are growing - but not having enough children to keep up with the death rate. Not even close.

Immigration can be a fine thing. I think it's one reason that America has managed as well as we have. So far, we're still having new folks move in, with fresh ideas and the get-up-and-go it takes to move from one country to another.

I'm not sure how folks in Europe, the "European" ones, are going to react as more realize what's happening. At this rate, most Danes, Swedes, and Austrians won't look the way Danes, Swedes, and Austrians did before the 21st century.

The Attitude of This 'Hyphenated American'

I don't mind today's America 'looking different' from the one I grew up in. It's the way things work here: and anyway: I'm a mixed lot of Norwegian, Irish, and Scots, who married a German-Dutch-American woman.

I suppose our kids are 'Norwegian-German-Dutch-Irish-Scots-German-Dutch-Americans.' Some of us look a bit like Celts now; my wife and #3 daughter are learning Soo Bahk Do, a Korean martial art; and that's another topic. Topics

Living in a Big World

By today's standards, I'm not 'of mixed race.' But just a few generations back, one of my ancestors was appalled at what was sniffing around her daughter. My paternal grandmother married the smooth-talking Irishman anyway. (November 13, 2008)

By now, my extended family has roots in ancient North America and the Philippines, as well as Europe. "Diversity" isn't a priority: but it's not something we avoid, either.

When I became a Catholic, I had to change some of my beliefs and attitudes. What didn't change was how I felt about being part of a catholic outfit - an association that's literally καθολικός, universal:

• "Diversity in Unity: Two Millennia and Counting"
  (April 18, 2012)

I've almost finished the last post in this quartet: "Taking Life a Thousand Years at a Time," but won't post it until tomorrow morning.

Finally, as I've said before, what the Catholic Church teaches is simple:

• 'Love God, love your neighbor.'
  
  • Bible
    • Matthew 22:36-40
    • Mark 12:29-31
    • Luke 10:25-27
  • Catechism of the Catholic Church
    • 1822
• Everybody's our neighbor
  • Bible
    • Matthew 5:43-44
    • Luke 10:29-37
  • Catechism
    • 1825

That sounds simple, and it is. What's hard is embracing those principles, and living a life that reflects love of God, and of neighbors: all neighbors.

This post is the third in a series of four:

1. "The World isn't Flat"
   (June 9, 2012)
2. "Catholics, Families, and Hope"
   (June 9, 2012)
3. "Population Explosion, Birth Dearth, and a Changing World"
   (June 9, 2012)
4. "Taking Life a Thousand Years at a Time"
   (June 10, 2012)

Other related posts:

• Science and sense
  • "Earth Day, 2012: This Catholic's View"
    (April 22, 2012)
  • "Upset Applecarts: A Hopeful Sign"
    (March 5, 2012)
    Particularly
    • Science, Technology, and Rules
    Economic and Technological Progress: It's Not Enough
  • " 'Inevitable Progress;' 'We're All Gonna Die;' and Getting a Grip"
    (January 16, 2012)
  • "7,000,000,000 People, More or Less: Why I'm Not Alarmed"
    (October 31, 2011)
  • "Climate Changes: So What Else is New?"
    (May 16, 2011)
• Living in a big world
  • "Building the World of Tomorrow - Make that Worlds"
    (May 28, 2012)
  • " 'Deeds Without Knowledge are Blind' "
    (April 23, 2012)
  • "Zambia, America, and Two Millennia of Weaseling"
    (September 26, 2011)
  • "Sudan, Darfur: My Take"
    (January 8, 2011)
    Particularly
    • Civilized Foreigners, Natives, and Getting a Grip
  • "Sustainable African Development: And Swift's Modest Proposal"
    (May 6, 2010)

The Pope; Vatileaks; Seven Gifts; and Looking Beyond the End of Time

Everybody has a vocation, a "calling or destiny we have in this life and hereafter." (Catechism, Glossary) Mine is being a married man, part of the laity. Besides being husbands, fathers, wives, mothers, and children, the laity are:

"...in the Church and in the world, their own assignment in the mission of the whole People of God.' ³⁸⁷ Finally, 'from both groups [hierarchy and laity] there exist Christian faithful who are consecrated to God in their own special manner and serve the salvific mission of the Church through the profession of the evangelical counsels.'³⁸⁸..."
(Catechism of the Catholic Church, 873)

Maybe that sounds highfalutin. I've been around long enough to know that fancy-sounding titles and important positions generally include work. Lots of work.

The New Evanglization and Me

One of the 'new' jobs for the laity is the 'new evangelization.' (April 12, 2012) It's not, really, all that new: just the latest wrinkle in the millennia-spanning "call for laypeople to publicly witness to their faith." (www.catholicvoicesusa.org)

I live too far away from America's major metropolitan areas to join the formal parts of this country's new evangelization. But that doesn't let me off the hook. Thanks to Information Age technology, I can share what I'm learning about my faith, and why it matters. Which is where this blog comes in. And my weekly 'my take on the news' post.

A Long, Hard Path: Surrounded by Beauty and Wonder

This week's news includes opportunities for me to get distressed, distracted, and dismayed. I could indulge in hand wringing: maybe even make it seem very 'spiritual.'

On the whole, though, I don't see the percentage in doing that. Particularly since I realize that if I lift my eyes from the path and look around: I'm surrounded by vistas of wonder. And the best is still ahead. (June 3, 2012)

Here's my take on this week's news:

1. World Meeting of Families, 2015
   • The Pope's Choice, Plans, and Hope
   • Milan, Attendance, and Statistics
2. Vatileaks - The Butler Did It
   • Not Organized: Just Like-Minded?
   • No, Really: The Butler Did It
   • Correspondence, Clarification, and Getting a Grip
3. Called to Great Things
   • Spiritual Mountain Climbing
   • Forgiveness and Decisions
   • "In Days to Come - - - "

---

1. World Meeting of Families, 2015

CNA (Catholic News Agency) ran an article that's mostly about the next scheduled World Meeting of Families and Benedict XVI's plans for that get-together.

Since Philadelphia and Catholics are involved, Americans who follow the news are likely to remember a the recurring story of the pedophile priests. I might as well get that out of the way first:

"...The Philadelphia archdiocese faces continuing fallout from sex abuse scandals and has been forced to close dozens of Catholic schools because of a lack of financial resources...."
(CNA)

I've posted about what some priests did during the last half-century:

• "Pedophile Priests, Ephebophilia, and Facing Facts "
  Link list

Moving on.

The Pope's Choice, Plans, and Hope

"Pope to attend World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia"
Kevin J. Jones, CNA (Catholic News Agency) (June 6, 2012)

"Pope Benedict XVI personally chose Philadelphia as the site for the next World Meeting of Families and, health permitting, will attend the 2015 event, Philadelphia Archbishop Charles J. Chaput said.

"...He said he hoped to be there, but he reminded me he's 85 years old and he'd be 88 at that time, and God willing he will be with us,' Archbishop Chaput said. 'He's a man who trusts God's providence, and I do too.'

"The World Meeting of Families, sponsored by the Pontifical Council for the Family, takes place every three years. It brings together hundreds of thousands of people to pray, celebrate and study marriage and family life. Archbishop Chaput and Pope Benedict attended the 2012 event in Milan...."
(CNA)

I hope that Benedict XVI will be with us for the 2012 World Meeting of Families. But if he's not, I'm about as sure as I can be that the authority held by the 265th successor to Peter will have been passed along - and that the Pope will be there.

"Hope" hasn't been fashionable for much of my lifetime. That's understandable, given the silly optimism about the "inevitability of progress" that came before.

I was cautiously hopeful before I became a Catholic. I'd noticed that, although there were setbacks on a scale of years, decades, and sometimes centuries: from millennium to millennium, on average, people learned more effective ways to:

• Grow and distribute food
• Deal with injuries and disease
• Cooperate

After my conversion, I learned a bit more about why this has been happening, and that's another topic.

I've posted about hope, progress, and getting a grip, before:

• " 'Come Ride the Steel Dinosaur:' or, not"
  (April 16, 2012)
• "A Little Look at the Big Picture"
  (February 13, 2012)
• "Hope, Joy, and Working for a Better World"
  (September 13, 2011)
• "We Won: Quite a While Ago"
  (January 13, 2011)

Milan, Attendance, and Statistics

"...Archbishop Chaput attended the final Mass with a military family from South Carolina who represented the United States.

" 'Surprisingly, the six of them and myself were invited to lunch, and not only to lunch, but to the same table as the Pope,' he said.

"The archbishop said a 'large number of people' usually attend the World Meeting of Families, and typically the Pope visits for the final days of the event. The closing Mass for the 2012 gathering in Milan was attended by 1 million people...."
(CNA)

Even by American standards, a get-together with 1,000,000 attendees is pretty big. But I suppose someone could draw attention that only about 1/1,000 of the world's living Catholics attended that Mass: and express either anguish or triumph, depending on personal outlook.

I think it's a fairly good turnout for this sort of an event. More topics.

The Pope's view of the Milan World Meeting of Families:

• "Pope recalls the 'inspiring witness' of Milan family gathering"
  David Kerr, CNA (Catholic News Agency) (June 6, 2012)

---

2. Vatileaks - The Butler Did It

"Cardinal Bertone speaks of 'ferocious' Vatileaks attack on Pope"
David Kerr, CNA (Catholic News Agency) (June 6, 2012)

"The Vatican's Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, believes the continued leaking of confidential papal information to the media is 'ferocious, biting and organized.'

" 'Attacks have always existed, in all times' he told Italian television station RAI on June 4.

" 'This time, however, it seems that the attacks are more targeted, sometimes also ferocious, biting and organized.'...

I remember the trailing edge of McCarthyism. I grew up in an area where radio preachers were almost as enthusiastic about the communist menace as they were about the latest End Times Bible prophecy. With my background, someone expressing the idea that 'it's a plot' tends to make me dubious.

Still, the Vatican's Secretary of State has almost certainly been paying more attention to Vatileaks than I have: and has sources of information that I don't.Maybe there actually is an organized media attack on the Catholic Church. It's quite possible.

It's also possible that the Vatican's Secretary of State has slipped a cog, and will shortly be claiming that the Pope's being controlled by radio waves from outer space. Possible: but not likely. At all. My opinion.

Not Organized: Just Like-Minded?

I think it's possible for what appears to be an organized media campaign to happen, without being organized. my take on news, bias, and unconsidered assumptions, posted yesterday:

• "Vatileaks: Organized? Maybe, Maybe Not"
  (June 7, 2012)
  Particularly
  • Values, Assumptions, and Deadlines
  • Old-School Editors in the Information Age
  • What 'Everybody Knows'

Basically, when a relatively small number of people who share very nearly the same assumptions and biases get the same information at about the same time: I'm not surprised that they all tend to report it pretty much the same way.

Vatileaks may be one of those unintended consequences of old-school assumptions colliding with Information Age technology. Sort of like the 'flash crash' of 2010. Or, not. Here's a pretty good analysis of what went wrong:

• "Nasdaq: Here’s Our Timeline of the Flash Crash"
  Matt Phillips, MarketBeat, WSJ Blogs, Wall Street Journal (May 11, 2010)

No, Really: The Butler Did It

"...This is the first time Cardinal Bertone has commented publicly on the so-called 'Vatileaks' scandal that has rumbled on since January 2012.

"So far, the only person charged by Vatican police as part of the ongoing investigation is the Pope's butler, Paolo Gabriele. The Secretary of State's statement that the leaks are "organized" seems to suggest that he believes Gabriele was not acting alone....

"...The latest batch of leaked papal documents appeared in the Italian newspaper La Repubblica over the June 2-3 weekend. They included a confidential letter written by the American Cardinal Raymond Burke to Pope Benedict in January 2012...."
(CNA)

What interests me more than business-as-usual in news media is Cardinal Raymond Burke's letter, and related correspondence.

Correspondence, Clarification, and Getting a Grip

It's not that I enjoy reading other people's mail: this is an opportunity to see how the Catholic Church works.

"...In his correspondence, Cardinal Burke expressed surprise and dismay after receiving an invitation to an event that seemed to be celebrating the Vatican's approval for the liturgies used by the new movement, the Neocatechumenatal Way.

"He explained to the Pope that he did 'not recall having heard a consultation regarding a particular liturgy for this ecclesial movement' and that 'such liturgical innovations' do not seem 'coherent with the liturgical magisterium of the pope.'

"After reading the letter, Pope Benedict attached a handwritten note agreeing with Cardinal Burke's sentiments with the instruction that they should be passed onto the Congregation for Divine Worship.

"After the cardinal's letter was sent it emerged that the Vatican's approval only applied to non-liturgical prayers within the Neocatechumenatal Way's catechesis and not to the Mass or other liturgies of the Church."
(CNA)

I'm not shocked and horrified that a Cardinal wrote the Pope, expressing concern over the Vatican's apparent approval of an offbeat liturgy. Given screwball antics done 'in the spirit of Vatican II' in this country: I'd be concerned if a Cardinal didn't ask Rome what was going on.

This isn't 'dissension,' or 'chaos.' This is how a two-millennia-old outfit works: asking questions and getting answers. Or, in this case, a clarification.

By the way, I'm also not shocked and horrified that the Pope didn't rant about Satanic heretics who would go to Hell because they had new ideas. I've been over this before, too:

• "Catholics aren't Calvinists"
  (May 7, 2012)

---

3. Called to Great Things

"Pope to Youth: God Calls You to Great Things Today"
ZENIT.org (June 4, 2012)
"Explains Holy Spirit's Gifts to Those to Be Confirmed"

"During his trip to Milan for the 7th World Meeting of Families, Benedict XVI reminded youth that God is calling them each day to something great. He exhorted them to have high ideals and to strive to be saints, saying sanctity is for everyone, also for the young.

"The Pope said this Saturday in an address to young people who are about to receive the sacrament of confirmation, or have recently been confirmed.

"His address centered on a brief explanation of each of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit....

ZENIT has what Benedict XVI said, full text, English, online:

• "Papal Address to Confirmandi"
  Benedict XVI, via ZENIT.org (June 4, 2012)
  " 'Learn to Converse With the Lord"'

The seven gifts of the Holy Spirit:

• Wisdom
• Understanding
• Counsel
• Fortitude
• Knowledge
• Piety
• Fear of the Lord
  (Catechism, 1830-1832)

Spiritual Mountain Climbing

"...'The Spirit's gifts are wondrous realities that allow you to form yourselves as Christians, to live the Gospel and to be active members of the community,' he told them.

"The Holy Father compared the whole of the Christian life to a journey, saying it is 'like climbing a path that leads up a mountain - and so it is not always easy, but climbing a mountain is something beautiful - together with Jesus; with these precious gifts your friendship with him will become still more real and intimate.'

"The Pontiff encouraged the youth to take advantage of Sunday Mass and the sacrament of confession, as well as daily prayer. Regarding confession, he said it is 'a meeting with Jesus who forgives our sins and helps us to do the good; receiving this gift, beginning again, is a great gift in life, knowing that I am free, that I can start over, that all is forgiven.'..."

I like that image of climbing a path up a mountain. I've seen mountains: the ones separating my part of North America from the west coast. Being partway up a mountain is "something beautiful," even when using a car instead of walking.

Forgiveness and Decisions

I also like " '...knowing that I am free, that I can start over, that all is forgiven.'..." In the 60 years since my birth, I've had to start over: fairly often. Happily, Catholics aren't expected to be perfect people. We're 'just' expected to work toward that goal. (Catechism, 309-314, 519-521, 1693, 1698)

I believe in "one baptism for the forgiveness of sin." But I also accept the idea that, even though I was baptized, I'm not likely "to escape every wound of sin." (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 977-980)

Happily, there is no offense that the Church cannot forgive. (Catechism, 976-983) I can chose to turn away from from the Church, reject God: but that would be my decision, not an action by God or the Church. (Catechism, 1993) Telling God to leave me alone would also be an abysmally daft move.

"In Days to Come - - - "

'Climbing a mountain' is hardly a new way to look at moving toward God:

"² In days to come, The mountain of the LORD'S house shall be established as the highest mountain and raised above the hills. All nations shall stream toward it;

"³ many peoples shall come and say: 'Come, let us climb the LORD'S mountain, to the house of the God of Jacob, That he may instruct us in his ways, and we may walk in his paths.' For from Zion shall go forth instruction, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.

"He shall judge between the nations, and impose terms on many peoples. They shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks; One nation shall not raise the sword against another, nor shall they train for war again."
(Isaiah 2:2-4)

It's been a long climb, since the days of Isaiah. Today, we're more than two dozen centuries closer to "in days to come:" but my guess is that we still have a lot more climbing ahead.

God willing, I'll spend the rest of my life climbing: and enjoying the view. Then it's particular judgment for me: and others will keep climbing toward a city with "no more death or mourning, wailing or pain."¹

More, about Abraham, mountains, and an eternal covenant:

• "The Church Is Universal by Nature"
  Pope John Paul II, General Audience (November 13, 1991)

Related posts:

• Family
  • " 'Without Children there is no Future' "
    (February 19, 2012)
  • "Sunday Obligation, Kids, and Consistency"
    (July 16, 2011)
  • "Family Values: Addams and Otherwise"
    (July 12, 2011)
  • "The Family, the Church, and Defending Human Dignity"
    (June 2, 2011)
  • "Home Schooling and This Catholic Family"
    (February 26, 2011)
• Pope
  • "Wow! Nobody Attacked the Pope This Year!"
    (December 25, 2010)
  • "Pedophile Priests, Those 'Confused' Catholics, and the 'Tolerant' Press"
    (April 1, 2010)
  • "Oddly, Not Everybody Reviles and Despises the Pope"
    (April 13, 2010)
  • "Pope Attacked at Christmas Eve Mass: And What He Said"
    (December 24, 2009)
  • Recurring story #1: condoms
    • "The Pope and Condoms: It Made a Good Story"
      (November 22, 2010)
    • "Sex, Condoms, AIDS, an 'Immoral' Pope, and What Everybody Knows"
      (March 17, 2009)
  • Recurring story #2: pedophile priests
    • "Benedict XVI in Germany, My Take: Scandal, Abuse, and the Cross"
      (September 28, 2011)
      Particularly
      • Reality and the News - or - PEDOPHILE PRIESTS!!!!!!
• Holy Spirit
  • "The Man Who is Truth"
    (May 26, 2012)
  • "Speaking in Tongues and Getting a Grip"
    (June 1, 2011)
  • "Listening to the Holy Spirit"
    (May 29, 2011)
  • "I Don't Understand the Trinity: No Surprise There"
    (May 6, 2011)
  • "Pentecost Sunday, 2009: A Reflection"
    (May 31, 2009)
• Forgiveness
  • "Loving Neighbors: Even the One Who Stole Our Gospel Book"
    (September 4, 2011)
  • "'Vengeance is Mine, I will Repay, Says the Lord" - Works for Me"
    (September 11, 2010)
  • "Sandra Cantu Killer Confesses: And Lots of Folks are Hurting"
    (May 10, 2010)
  • "Feeling Forgiven: My Faith and Emotional Perks"
    (November 24, 2009)
  • "Dead British Teen, Daft Letter, School Prom, and Forgiveness"
    (March 25, 2009)

---

¹ You've probably run into this before:

"I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, 'Behold, God's dwelling is with the human race. He will dwell with them and they will be his people ⁴ and God himself will always be with them (as their God).

"He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there shall be no more death or mourning, wailing or pain, (for) the old order has passed away.' "
(Revelation 21:3-4)

I'm pretty sure that the "unfamiliar and extravagant symbolism" in The Apocalypse, or Revelation to John will make sense: when we get together after the Last Judgment. (Catechism, 1038-1041) Until then, I'm quite willing to let God handle the details.

I'm also pretty sure that the end of time and the new universe is coming "soon" - from God's point of view. Judging from the awesome scale of this creation, my guess is that God's "soon" could be a long, long way off by human standards.

I've posted about God, the universe, and size, before:

• "The Beauty of the Universe, God, and Respect"
  (March 21, 2012)
• "God, Science, and Getting a Grip"
  (March 5, 2012)
• "Mephistopheles, Cosmology, and Doctor Faustus"
  (November 7, 2011)
  Particularly
  • 'Bible Astronomy' and Getting a Grip
• "God's Creation: He Seems to Think Big"
  (September 23, 2010)

More:

• The Hope of the New Heaven and the New Earth
  (Catechism, 1042-1050)