Showing posts with label joy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label joy. Show all posts

Sunday, April 24, 2016

Flat Earth, Psalms 150:1 — and Joy


(From N. F. Gier, University of Idaho; adapted from an illustration in the New American Bible: St. Joseph Edition; used w/o permission.)
(A Mesopotamian cosmology, about two dozen centuries back.)

'The Bible says Earth is flat.'

If you live in America, and haven't heard that as a reason for rejecting Christianity: you're not paying attention.

On the other hand, word seems to be getting around that the "dark" ages were anything but.

I've discussed post-Roman Europe, science, and autopsies, before. (January 22, 2016; August 28, 2015; August 15, 2014)

About Earth being flat — I've yet to run into a Christian who says that; although I did meet one who informed me that our sun goes around Earth, not the other way around.

He had a point, given a completely deadpan reading of Joshua 10:12-13. (October 3, 2014)

Interestingly, Sacred Scripture does mention "the pillars of the earth" and "the mighty dome of heaven:"
"...For the pillars of the earth are the LORD'S,
"and he has set the world upon them."
(1 Samuel 2:8)

"He shakes the earth out of its place, and the pillars beneath it tremble.
"He commands the sun, and it rises not; he seals up the stars."
(Job 9:6-7)

"1 Hallelujah! 2 Praise God in his holy sanctuary; give praise in the mighty dome of heaven."
(Psalms 150:1)

"The angel said to me in reply, 'These are the four winds of the heavens, which are coming forth after being reviewed by the LORD of all the earth.' "
(Zechariah 6:5)
So how come I'm not ranting and raving about the evils of science, and why NASA should stop smashing space probes into "the mighty dome:" thereby risking flood and the wrath of a hypersensitive God?

I've been over that before, too. (September 6, 2015; October 16, 2015; October 3, 2014)

Briefly — poetry isn't science, and I'm a Catholic who knows a bit about my faith.

"To Learn the Surpassing Knowledge of Jesus Christ"


Reading the Bible isn't an option.

Since I'm a Catholic, can read, and have access to Sacred Scripture, it's a requirement. That's because "ignorance of the Scriptures is ignorance of Christ," and knowing our Lord is a very high priority:
"More than that, I even consider everything as a loss because of the supreme good of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have accepted the loss of all things and I consider them so much rubbish, that I may gain Christ"
(Philippians 3:8)

"The Church 'forcefully and specifically exhorts all the Christian faithful. . . to learn the surpassing knowledge of Jesus Christ, by frequent reading of the divine Scriptures. Ignorance of the Scriptures is ignorance of Christ.112"
(Catechism of the Catholic Church, 133)
I really do not think accepting "the loss of all things" and considering them rubbish means that I should sell everything my wife and I have, give the proceeds to the nearest charity, and hope we survive the next winter.

Humility and Getting a Grip


For starters, my wife wouldn't like that: and I don't think impoverishing the family is consistent with my duties as a parent. (Catechism, 2221-2233, 2252)

For another, being humble before God doesn't mean being poverty-stricken.

Being poor or rich is okay. What matters is what we do with it. (Catechism, 544, 2445)

We all have equal dignity and rights, which doesn't mean we're all alike: and this is okay, too. (Catechism, 1934-1937)

Humility is accepting reality: acknowledging that God is the author of all good.1

In my case, it's acknowledging that God blessed me with defective hips, freakishly-enhanced language skills, and a probably-inherited predisposition to depression and something on the autism spectrum.

My contribution to the mix is deciding to do something with that quirky took kit. (October 18, 2015; March 29, 2015)

Getting back to whether or not Earth is flat: insisting that the Almighty must conform to a contemporary blind-to-metaphor reading of ancient poetic imagery seems pretty much the opposite of humble. (March 27, 2016; March 29, 2015)

Free Will and Death


I have free will. I can decide what I do, or don't do. (Catechism, 1730-1742)

Deciding wisely would be a lot easier if we hadn't been dealing with consequences of a really bad decision, and that's another topic. (Catechism, 388-390, 396-412)

I try to keep deciding that following our Lord is more important than anything else, even if that means putting up with the occasional inconvenience or frustration.

I don't know how I'd respond if I was in Stephen's position, after he said something that folks didn't want to hear:
"They threw him out of the city, and began to stone him. The witnesses laid down their cloaks at the feet of a young man named Saul.
"As they were stoning Stephen, he called out, 'Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.' 5"
(Acts 7:59)
Keep an eye on young Saul. A bit later, on his way to Damascus, he had an intense interview with our Lord. (Acts 22:6-11)

After that, the narrative calls him Paul. I gather his name wasn't changed. He was a Jew and a Roman citizen, so he had a name for use in both cultures.2

He may have been exaggerating in 1 Corinthians 15:31, saying "every day I face death" — but if so, it wasn't much of an exaggeration. He eventually went to Rome and lost his head: literally.3

"We are Infinitely Loved"


Why would folks like Stephen and Paul let themselves be killed, rather than stop talking about our Lord? Let's see what Paul wrote.
"And I wrote as I did 1 so that when I came I might not be pained by those in whom I should have rejoiced, confident about all of you that my joy is that of all of you."
(2 Corinthians 2:3)

"But, even if I am poured out as a libation 14 upon the sacrificial service of your faith, I rejoice and share my joy with all of you.
"In the same way you also should rejoice and share your joy with me."
(Philippians 2:17-)
Two millennia later, joy is still at the core of being Christian — or should be.
"...Joy is at the heart of Christian experience. ... In a world of sorrow and anxiety, joy is an important witness to the beauty and reliability of the Christian faith...."

"...A yearning for joy lurks within the heart of every man and woman. Far more than immediate and fleeting feelings of satisfaction, our hearts seek a perfect, full and lasting joy capable of giving 'flavour' to our existence...."
("Message for the 27th World Youth Day," Pope Benedict XVI (March 15, 2012))
It's hardly a new idea:
"Sing praise, play music; proclaim all his wondrous deeds!
"Glory in his holy name; rejoice, O hearts that seek the LORD!"
(Psalms 105:2-3)

"In contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness,
"gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law."
(Galatians 5:22-23)
Two millennia after our Lord stopped being dead,4 joy is still important. Or, like I said, it should be. That's joy, not giddiness:
"...A joy ever new, a joy which is shared

"The great danger in today’s world, pervaded as it is by consumerism, is the desolation and anguish born of a complacent yet covetous heart, the feverish pursuit of frivolous pleasures, and a blunted conscience....

"...I invite all Christians, everywhere, at this very moment, to a renewed personal encounter with Jesus Christ, or at least an openness to letting him encounter them....

"...There are Christians whose lives seem like Lent without Easter. I realize of course that joy is not expressed the same way at all times in life, especially at moments of great difficulty. Joy adapts and changes, but it always endures, even as a flicker of light born of our personal certainty that, when everything is said and done, we are infinitely loved...."
("Evangelii Gaudium," Pope Francis (November 24, 2013))

"Whatever God Wills is Done"


I could be a Christian, following our Lord, if Earth was a flat plate and the sky a dome with water on the other side.

But it's become increasingly obvious that God's creation is not like that.

I don't mind a bit. I see scientific discoveries as invitations to "even greater admiration" of God's greatness. (Catechism, 283)

Besides, we've always known it was big and old.
"1 Think! The heavens, even the highest heavens, belong to the LORD, your God, as well as the earth and everything on it."
(Deuteronomy 10:14)

"The heavens declare the glory of God; the sky proclaims its builder's craft."
(Psalms 19:2)

"4 Indeed, before you the whole universe is as a grain from a balance, or a drop of morning dew come down upon the earth."
(Wisdom 11:22)
Being upset that it's bigger and older than we thought doesn't make sense: not to me.

Even if I did disapprove of the Almighty's creation, it wouldn't make much difference:
"Our God is in heaven; whatever God wills is done."
(Psalms 115:3)

(From NASA, ESA, and the Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA); ESA/Hubble Collaboration; used w/o permission.)

More of my take on God, the universe, and getting a grip:
1 Humility, a Catholic view:
"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)
2 One man, two names; dual names in Roman times:
"Saul, also known as Paul: there is no reason to believe that his name was changed from Saul to Paul upon his conversion. The use of a double name, one Semitic (Saul), the other Greco-Roman (Paul), is well attested (cf ⇒ Acts 1:23 Joseph Justus; ⇒ Acts 12:12, ⇒ 25, John Mark)."
(footnote 5, Acts 13, New American Bible)
3 See:
4 As I've said before, it took a series of meetings to convince the surviving 11 that our Lord was really, no kidding, break-bread, eat-a-fish, put-your-hand-in-my-side, ALIVE. (April 5, 2015)
"And it happened that, while he was with them at table, he took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to them."
"With that their eyes were opened and they recognized him, but he vanished from their sight."
(Luke 24:30-31)

"While they were still incredulous for joy and were amazed, he asked them, 'Have you anything here to eat?'
"They gave him a piece of baked fish;
"he took it and ate it in front of them."
(Luke 24:41-43)

"Now a week later his disciples were again inside and Thomas was with them. Jesus came, although the doors were locked, and stood in their midst and said, 'Peace be with you.'
"Then he said to Thomas, 'Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side, and do not be unbelieving, but believe.' "
(John 20:26-27)
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Sunday, October 5, 2014

Joy and Standing Orders

My father reminded me of this good advice when I was in my teens: "...whatever is true, ... whatever is lovely, ... think about these things." My response was something like '...because they won't last.'

I wasn't happy about saying that at the time. Decades later, I still regret the statement. I can't, of course, undo what was done: and the time for telling my father "I'm sorry" has long since passed. In any case, I said "I'm sorry" too often, and that's almost another topic.

That quote is from today's second reading, Philippians 4:6-9. I'll get back to that.

Today, thanks to very powerful antidepressants and a few other psychoactive prescriptions, I no longer have to fight the controls to make my brain work. I even have moments when I feel good about who I am and what I do.

That's a nice change of pace.

Melancholia was being redefined as depressive reaction while I was growing up, then to depressive neurosis; so maybe it's just as well that my condition wasn't spotted then. In any case, if I'd spent my adolescence and the bulk of my adult life in a different way — I wouldn't be where I am today.

Joy, Zest, and Mud


As it is, I had an opportunity to reason my way out of suicide: and developed a knack for seeing beauty in just about anything.

I seldom felt that emotional rush of wonder and delight at seeing a crescent moon, or noticing symmetries and order in drying mud. But I learned to appreciate the beauty that's built into this universe.

A dictionary says that joy can mean intense happiness: particularly ecstatic or exultant happiness. Ecstasy can mean intense joy or delight, getting so emotionally whipped up that rational thought and self-control are impossible.

I've run into folks who seem to approach faith with a zest and enthusiasm worthy of a homecoming game pep rally. That's okay, but I very much prefer a faith that still works when all the light and color is drained from the world.

Since I'm a Catholic, my faith depends on what I believe: not how I'm feeling. Faith and reason get along: or should. (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 30, 156-159, 274, 1706)

It's not all about cold logic, though. Now and then we get a glimpse of the beatific vision. Most of us, anyway. (Catechism, 163)

The Beatific Vision and Mirrors


The beatific vision is contemplation of God in heavenly glory. I put a definition at the end of this post. I can't tell you what it's like from personal experience: my metaphorical mirror isn't all that shiny.
"At present we see indistinctly, as in a mirror, but then face to face. At present I know partially; then I shall know fully, as I am fully known."
(1 Corinthians 13:12)
That's okay: since, like 2 Corinthians 5:7 says, "we walk by faith, not by sight."

That's not the same as blind faith, or the sort that conscientiously avoids facts and reason. As a Catholic, I must believe that, using reason, we're "...capable of understanding the order of things established by the Creator...;" and that "conscience is a judgment of reason ... a law of the mind...." (Catechism, 1704, 1778)

And that's yet another topic. Topics.

Rejoice!

"Rejoice 4 in the Lord always. I shall say it again: rejoice!
"Have no anxiety at all, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God.

"Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. 6 "
(Philippians 4:4, 6-8)
Some of those verses are from today's readings, the first comes earlier in Philippians 4. Nearly a half-century after my father reminded me about them, I've found that they're pretty good advice.

I still don't "feel" joyful very often, and that's okay. I may never have the "mountaintop experience" folks describe as being overwhelmed, 'knocked down,' by God's presence. That's also okay.

Emotions are part of being human. They're even useful, in their own way. But I've found that reason is a better tool for making decisions. Still more topics. (Catechism, 1763-1770, 1776-1794)

Folks have taken verses like Philippians 4:6, "have no anxiety at all, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God," and run straight off the edge of reality.

Christians, everybody, are wounded people, living in a damaged world. We're going to have trouble, no matter what. (Catechism, 386-390)

The trick is not being anxious about the troubles we face.

I think looking at the big picture helps.

Move Out!


Almost two thousand years back, Jesus, the Son of God, was conceived. He was born, lived, was tortured and finally killed on Golgotha. For anybody else, that would have been the end.

Jesus isn't just anybody. Three days later, Jesus stopped being dead.

If that seems unbelievable, don't feel bad. It took quite a few meetings and at least one working lunch to convince the Apostles that Jesus was, in fact, really — no kidding — not a ghost — sit-down-and-eat-a-baked-fish, alive.
"While they were still incredulous for joy and were amazed, he asked them, 'Have you anything here to eat?'

"They gave him a piece of baked fish;

"he took it and ate it in front of them."
(Luke 24:41-43)
"Now a week later his disciples were again inside and Thomas was with them. Jesus came, although the doors were locked, and stood in their midst and said, 'Peace be with you.'

"Then he said to Thomas, 'Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side, and do not be unbelieving, but believe.' "
(John 20:26-27)
Then my Lord gave us standing orders and a promise. That scene, in Matthew 28:18-20, is one of my favorites. I also enjoy reading what happened next:
"While they were looking intently at the sky as he was going, suddenly two men dressed in white garments stood beside them.

"They said, 'Men of Galilee, why are you standing there looking at the sky? This Jesus who has been taken up from you into heaven will return in the same way as you have seen him going into heaven.' "
(Acts 1:10-11)
Those verses from Acts remind me of a now-cliche scene from old movies, where the commander's inspiring speech is over — and the sergeant says something like 'alright! You got your orders: Move out!

Two millennia later, the standing orders haven't changed: and that's yet again another topic.

Not-entirely-unrelated posts:
A look at the deep end of prayer, by another blogger:
"BEATIFIC VISION: The contemplation of God in heavenly glory, a gift of God which is a constitutive element of the happiness (or beatitude) of heaven (1028, 1720)."
(Catechism, Glossary, B)
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Saturday, December 28, 2013

Joyful, Yes: Giddy, No

My desk is tucked behind a hutch in the north room, which gives me a sort of oversize bulletin board by my left elbow. This poem, written by my father, had been taped to it:
Autumn Yard Work (II)
Bernard I. Gill

Life passing
Leaves falling
Birds flying
Clouds floating
I'm watching
Rejoicing
It fell off Friday, for no apparent reason. I could assume that the slip of paper falling at that particular moment is a sign from God, caused by a ductile fracture in the tape, or both. That reminds me of secondary causes, which is another topic.

Quite a few folks enjoy autumnal colors. Not so many, I suspect, rejoice at reminders of "life passing." We have a few dozen decades in this life, sometimes much less. There's reason to think that we can't live more than about 125 years, even with medical technology that hasn't been invented yet.

So how can any sane person be "rejoicing," while contemplating "life passing?"

Being a Christian, and understanding a little of the big picture, helps.

Joy, Ecstasy, and Victory Celebrations

Joy and ecstasy don't mean quite the same thing, but they're similar ideas.

Joy can mean intense happiness, particularly if it's ecstatic or exultant happiness.

Ecstasy can mean intense joy or delight, being so emotionally whipped up that rational thought and self-control are impossible, or 3,4-methylenedioxy-N-methylamphetamine (MDMA): and that's yet another topic.

A dictionary says that "to rejoice" means "to feel joyful; be delighted."

I've seen folks be wildly emotional in a delighted way: particularly during some victory celebrations. Sometimes folks torch cars and loot stores in the process, sometimes they don't, and that's yet again another topic.

But someone can rejoice without losing self-control or becoming irrational.

I'm about as sure as I can be that my father wasn't out of control when he wrote that poem: or earlier, when he was doing autumn yard work. I've had a few brushes with that sort of joy, too.

"Set Free From Sin"

"The joy of the gospel fills the hearts and lives of all who encounter Jesus. Those who accept his offer of salvation are set free from sin, sorrow, inner emptiness and loneliness. With Christ joy is constantly born anew...."
("Evangelii Gaudium," Pope Francis (November 24, 2013)
I'm not going to try boiling 51,000 words of Evangelii Gaudium down to sound bite size. There's more than enough in those three sentences to keep me busy in this post.

Maybe it's obvious, but "set free from sin" doesn't mean that Christians are perfect people. We're all wounded people, living in a damaged world. (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 386-390)

Jesus took my place, accepting the consequences of sin. That set me free from sin: but doesn't exempt me from trouble here and now. (Matthew 16:24; Catechism, 599-618, 976-983)

Being "set free from sin" doesn't mean that I can't make mistakes, and certainly doesn't mean that I can't make daft decisions.

I have free will and can decide to do something I know is wrong. That's why we have the Sacrament of Reconciliation and Penance. Catholics living in America generally call it 'going to confession.' It's also called the sacrament of conversion and sacrament of forgiveness. (Catechism, 1422-1484)

Being happy is okay, but expecting a life full of giggles and good times is silly. I'm content with the occasional glimpses I have of coming attractions. God willing, at the end of all things I'll join the saints and angels: rejoicing.
"But as it is written: 'What eye has not seen, and ear has not heard, and what has not entered the human heart, what God has prepared for those who love him,' "
(1 Corinthians 2:9)
Related posts:
A very quick look at joy, Catholic style:
"By his death and Resurrection, Jesus Christ has 'opened' heaven to us. The life of the blessed consists in the full and perfect possession of the fruits of the redemption accomplished by Christ. He makes partners in his heavenly glorification those who have believed in him and remained faithful to his will. Heaven is the blessed community of all who are perfectly incorporated into Christ.

"This mystery of blessed communion with God and all who are in Christ is beyond all understanding and description. Scripture speaks of it in images: life, light, peace, wedding feast, wine of the kingdom, the Father's house, the heavenly Jerusalem, paradise: 'no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man conceived, what God has prepared for those who love him.'603

"Because of his transcendence, God cannot be seen as he is, unless he himself opens up his mystery to man's immediate contemplation and gives him the capacity for it. The Church calls this contemplation of God in his heavenly glory 'the beatific vision':
"How great will your glory and happiness be, to be allowed to see God, to be honored with sharing the joy of salvation and eternal light with Christ your Lord and God, . . . to delight in the joy of immortality in the Kingdom of heaven with the righteous and God's friends.604
"In the glory of heaven the blessed continue joyfully to fulfill God's will in relation to other men and to all creation. Already they reign with Christ; with him 'they shall reign for ever and ever.'605"
(Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1026-1029)

"The New Testament uses several expressions to characterize the beatitude to which God calls man:

"- the coming of the Kingdom of God;16 - the vision of God: 'Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God'17

"- entering into the joy of the Lord;18

"- entering into God's rest:19
"There we shall rest and see, we shall see and love, we shall love and praise. Behold what will be at the end without end. For what other end do we have, if not to reach the kingdom which has no end?20
(Catechism, 1720)

"Human virtues are firm attitudes, stable dispositions, habitual perfections of intellect and will that govern our actions, order our passions, and guide our conduct according to reason and faith. They make possible ease, self-mastery, and joy in leading a morally good life. The virtuous man is he who freely practices the good.

"There are many passions. The most fundamental passion is love, aroused by the attraction of the good. Love causes a desire for the absent good and the hope of obtaining it; this movement finds completion in the pleasure and joy of the good possessed. The apprehension of evil causes hatred, aversion, and fear of the impending evil; this movement ends in sadness at some present evil, or in the anger that resists it."
(Catechism, 1765)

"The moral virtues are acquired by human effort. They are the fruit and seed of morally good acts; they dispose all the powers of the human being for communion with divine love. "
(Catechism, 1804)
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Sunday, May 19, 2013

Seeing the Horizon

Quite a few Catholics smile now and then, some of us occasionally seem cheerful, and Catholic fundraisers are notorious for their acceptance of gambling: Bingo, usually.

By some standards, we're not very 'religious.'

Setting the Tone

I grew up where quite a few folks were 'Christian' at the top of their lungs. Many seemed dedicated to proving that religion was a psychiatric condition, and some were downright grim.

On the 'up' side, their goofy version of spirituality started me on a search that led to my becoming a Catholic.

Even Americans who don't commit evangelization with a blunt Bible often assume that being grim and being Christian go together. Evangelization, by the way, is part of our job: and that's another topic. (October 7, 2012)

The 'oh woe all ye faithful' part of America's version of religion and spirituality goes back a long time.
"Puritanism: The haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy."
H. L. Mencken, The Quotations Page
Puritans weren't the only ones with a somewhat strict approach to their faith, and that's yet another topic:

Pickled Peppers

Happily, being a Catholic means that I'm allowed to be happy.
"Pope: Sad Christian faces are like pickled peppers"
CNA/EWTN News (May 10, 2013)

"Pope Francis underscored the importance of being joyful by contrasting sad Christian faces - which are more like 'pickled peppers' - with the testimony of a beautiful life.

" 'Sometimes these melancholic Christians' faces have more in common with pickled peppers than the joy of having a beautiful life,' Pope Francis said May 10....
Looks like "melancholic Christians," aren't limited to America. Maybe it's part of human nature, maybe it's connected with the vein of dualism that runs through Western civilization:
Perennial pessimism might make sense for someone who didn't see much hope for the present or future. For someone who takes Jesus seriously - and that's still another topic. (January 13, 2011)

I've put excerpts from another news item about what the Pope said at the end of this post, one that includes more of what Pope Francis said.1

Fun is Good: Joy is Better

"...'If we keep this joy to ourselves it will make us sick in the end, our hearts will grow old and wrinkled and our faces will no longer transmit that great joy, only nostalgia and melancholy which is not healthy,' he added....

"...The pontiff told them Christians should not keep joy 'bottled up' for themselves because they risk becoming nostalgic.

"Christian joy is not like 'having fun, which is good,' he explained, rather it 'is more, it is something else.'

" 'If we want to have fun all the time, in the end it becomes shallow, superficial, and also leads us to that state where we lack Christian wisdom, it makes us a little bit stupid, naive, no?' Pope Francis said...."
(CNA/EWTN News)
I like that: Having fun is okay, but it's possible to have too much of a good thing.

About happiness, it isn't the same as giggling all the time. Being who we are supposed to be is closer to the mark:
"HAPPINESS: Joy and beatitude over receiving the fulfillment of our vocation as creatures: a sharing in the divine nature and the vision of God. God put us into the world to know, love, and serve him, and so come to the happiness of paradise (1720)." (Glossary, Catechism of the Catholic Church)
Complete, unmixed, full-bore joy won't come in this world, but we get a sort of preview now and then. (Catechism, 1803, 1804, 1820-1832)

Eyes on the Horizon

"...'Joy is something that does not come from short term economic reasons, from momentary reasons, it is something deeper, it is a gift,'...

"...The pontiff described joy as 'a gift from God' that 'fills us from within' and 'cannot be held at heel, it must be let go.'

" 'It is a virtue of the great, of those great ones who rise above the little things in life, above human pettiness,' said Pope Francis.

"He explained that it is a virtue 'of those who will not allow themselves to be dragged into those little things within the community, within the Church' and that 'they always look to the horizon.'..."
(CNA/EWTN News)
I don't always see the horizon, but I'm learning to keep my eyes on the horizon: and what lies beyond.

Related posts:
Background:
1 Excerpt from the news:
"Pope at Mass: Christian joy far from simple fun"
Vatican Radio, via News.va (May 10, 2013)

"(Vatican Radio) Christian joy is a pilgrim joy that we cannot keep ‘bottled up’ for ourselves, or we risk becoming a 'melancholy' and 'nostalgic' community. Moreover, Christian joy is far from simple fun. It is something deeper than fleeting happiness, because it is rooted in our certainty that Jesus Christ is with God and with us.

"This is the lesson that Pope Francis drew from the Acts of the Apostles at Friday morning Mass as he described the disciples joy in the days between our Lord's Ascension and Pentecost and what we can learn from them....

"...'A Christian is a man and a woman of joy. Jesus teaches us this, the Church teaches us this, in a special way in this [liturgical]time. What is this joy? Is it having fun? No: it is not the same. Fun is good, eh? Having fun is good. But joy is more, it is something else. It is something that does not come from short term economic reasons, from momentary reasons : it is something deeper. It is a gift. Fun, if we want to have fun all the time, in the end becomes shallow, superficial, and also leads us to that state where we lack Christian wisdom, it makes us a little bit stupid, naive, no?, Everything is fun ... no. Joy is another thing. Joy is a gift from God. It fills us from within. It is like an anointing of the Spirit. And this joy is the certainty that Jesus is with us and with the Father'.

"A man of joy, the Pope continued, is a confident man. Sure that 'Jesus is with us, that Jesus is with the Father.' He asked: Can we 'bottle up' this joy in order to always have it with us?

" 'No, because if we keep this joy to ourselves it will make us sick in the end, our hearts will grow old and wrinkled and our faces will no longer transmit that great joy only nostalgia, melancholy which is not healthy. Sometimes these melancholy Christians faces have more in common with pickled peppers than the joy of having a beautiful life. Joy cannot be held at heel: it must be let go. Joy is a pilgrim virtue. It is a gift that walks, walks on the path of life, that walks with Jesus: preaching, proclaiming Jesus, proclaiming joy, lengthens and widens that path. It is a virtue of the Great, of those Great ones who rise above the little things in life, above human pettiness, of those who will not allow themselves to be dragged into those little things within the community, within the Church: they always look to the horizon'.

"...Joy is a 'pilgrim,' Pope Francis reiterated. 'The Christian sings with joy, and walks, and carries this joy.' It is a virtue of the path, actually more than a virtue it is a gift:

" 'It is the gift that brings us to the virtue of magnanimity. The Christian is magnanimous, he or she cannot be timorous: the Christian is magnanimous. And magnanimity is the virtue of breath, the virtue of always going forward, but with a spirit full of the Holy Spirit. Joy is a grace that we ask of the Lord. These days in a special way, because the Church is invited, the Church invites us to ask for the joy and also desire: that which propels the Christian's life forward is desire. The greater your desire, the greater your joy will be. The Christian is a man, is a woman of desire: always desire more on the path of life. We ask the Lord for this grace, this gift of the Spirit: Christian joy. Far from sorrow, far from simple fun ... it is something else. It is a grace we must seek'...."
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Tuesday, December 25, 2012

Christmas: a Miniature Helicopter; Joy; and Hope

We've been having a nice Christmas get-together in my house. My son-in-law is testing the airworthiness of a miniature helicopter in the other room, my wife is napping upstairs, and I'm taking a break at my desk.

There's more to this season than relatives renewing their bonds and unwrapping gifts:
"...Joy is the true gift of Christmas, not expensive presents that demand time and money.

"We can transmit this joy simply: with a smile, with a kind gesture, with some small help, with forgiveness...."
("Visit to the Roman Parish of Santa Maria Consolatrice," Benedict XVI (December 18, 2005))
(quoted on the USCCB website (2012))
This joy comes, in part, from knowing why we're celebrating. About two thousand years ago, God stepped into the world, getting personally involved:
"10 In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth,

"to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin's name was Mary."
(Luke 1:26-27)
"And the Word became flesh 9 and made his dwelling among us, and we saw his glory, the glory as of the Father's only Son, full of grace and truth."
(John 1:14)
Mary's baby grew up; broke the power of sin and death; then left, giving us instructions and a promise:
"11 Then Jesus approached and said to them, 'All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me.

"Go, therefore, 12 and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit,

"teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. 13 And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.' "
(Matthew 28:18-20)
And that's another topic.

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Sunday, June 3, 2012

Fasting, Penance: and Infinite Depths of Joy

I follow the Man:
  • Who said
    • "...take courage, I have conquered the world."
      (John 16:33)
    • "Amen, amen, I say to you, before Abraham came to be, I AM."
      (John 8:58)
    • And made it stick
  • Who was killed
  • Who gave his followers orders
    • Which we are still carrying out
      • Two millennia later
I hope for an unending life of joy and peace with my Lord. Following Jesus isn't always fun: but even now there's an echo of the "glorious joy" that, God willing, is ahead.

Despondency isn't a Virtue?

I've heard "Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee" sung as if it's a funeral dirge; and met folks whose theme seems to be "oh woe, all ye faithful."

There seems to be a confusion of despondency with virtue in some American subcultures. I think it's partly connected with this country's cultural history. Some of the folks who set the spiritual tone for America managed to present Christianity as a rather grim affair:
"Puritanism: The haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy."
H. L. Mencken, The Quotations Page
Long before Mencken, Puritans, and the Mayflower, some folks got the idea that tangible, physical, things are evil. The idea caught on, and has been repackaged quite a few times over the centuries. Millennia, actually.

Knowing Stuff; Being 'Spiritual;' and Icky, Sticky, Physical Things

I can see an appeal to believing that knowing stuff, and being really 'spiritual,' is good - not like icky, sticky, physical things. I like knowing stuff, and learning more.

But believing that what can be seen, touched, tasted, are bad because they're physical? That would force me to assume that God is a klutz, and doesn't know good from bad:
"Then God said, 'Let there be light,' and there was light.

"God saw how good the light was. God then separated the light from the darkness."
(Genesis 1:3-4)
"God called the dry land 'the earth,' and the basin of the water he called 'the sea.' God saw how good it was. "
(Genesis 1:10)
I think the idea that there are two eternal, balanced, equally-matched, principles locked in an unending struggle between Good and Evil, could make a really good story. But I don't think it's true.

More to the point, the Church says that's not how it works.
"...Still others have affirmed the existence of two eternal principles, Good and Evil, Light and Darkness, locked in permanent conflict (Dualism, Manichaeism). According to some of these conceptions, the world (at least the physical world) is evil, the product of a fall, and is thus to be rejected or left behind (Gnosticism)...."
(Catechism of the Catholic Church, 285)

"The truth about creation is so important for all of human life that God in his tenderness wanted to reveal to his People everything that is salutary to know on the subject. Beyond the natural knowledge that every man can have of the Creator,124 God progressively revealed to Israel the mystery of creation. He who chose the patriarchs, who brought Israel out of Egypt, and who by choosing Israel created and formed it, this same God reveals himself as the One to whom belong all the peoples of the earth, and the whole earth itself; he is the One who alone 'made heaven and earth.' 125"
(Catechism, 287)

Genesis and Getting a Grip

America's cultural assumptions about Genesis, the Bible, science, and psychiatric disorders being what they are, I'd better explain that I'm a practicing Catholic.

I don't have to hate science, or believe that the Bible was written by Americans: Or by folks who were as poetically-challenged and literalistic as some of my fellow-citizens.

I take the Bible, Sacred Scripture, very seriously. But I don't refer to the Bible when trouble-shooting my computer, and it's not a science textbook:

Emotions, Faith, and Something Indescribable

Fasting, Confession, penance, and other serious matters, are part of being a Catholic. So is joy. I don't mean a sort of Giggle Gospel, encouraging folks to 'get high on Jesus.'

Not that emotions are bad: but I can't and won't rely on a 'feel-good faith,' and that's another topic. (March 3, 2009)

"Joy" can be a noun or a verb:
  • Noun
    • The emotion of great happiness
    • Something or someone that provides a source of happiness
  • Verb
    • Feel happiness or joy
    • Make glad or happy
    (Princeton's WordNet)
"Joy" is "the emotion of great happiness:" so if I stop feeling "great happiness," I've lost my faith? No, I really don't think so. I've posted about the "dark night of the soul" before. (April 22, 2010)

If this "joy" thing that Christians are supposed to experience isn't just an emotional buzz, how would I describe it? Part of the answer is in the first chapter of Peter:
"Although you have not seen him you love him; even though you do not see him now yet believe in him, you rejoice with an indescribable and glorious joy,

"as you attain the goal of (your) faith, the salvation of your souls."
(Peter 1:8-9)
Knowing that it's "an indescribable and glorious joy" doesn't give me the sort of definite answer I might want: but I've gotten used to the idea that God's God, and I'm not. I don't expect to have all the answers. Not now, anyway.

Joy and Jesus

I converted to Catholicism because it made sense: but there's more to it than that.

I've followed Jesus for as long as I can remember. After I found out who held the authority that my Lord gave Peter, I only had one viable option. (Matthew 16:13-19, John 6:68)

For two millennia, the Catholic Church has been telling folks about Jesus:
"The transmission of the Christian faith consists primarily in proclaiming Jesus Christ in order to lead others to faith in him. From the beginning, the first disciples burned with the desire to proclaim Christ: 'We cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard.'11 And they invite people of every era to enter into the joy of their communion with Christ:
"That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon and touched with our hands, concerning the word of life-the life was made manifest, and we saw it, and testify to it, and proclaim to you the eternal life which was with the Father and was made manifest to us-that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you may have fellowship with us; and our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. And we are writing this that our joy may be complete.12"
(Catechism of the Catholic Church, 425)

What About All Those Rules?

There's something to the stereotype that the Catholic Church has lots of rules. The Vatican's "Secret Archives," a sort of office library for the Holy See, has about 85 kilometers of shelving now.

The basic principles are simple: Love God, love your neighbor; everybody's your neighbor. (Matthew 5:43-44; Matthew 22:36-40; Mark 12:29-31; Luke 10:25-27, 29-37; and Catechism of the Catholic Church 1822, 1825)

I think the proliferation of rules and explanations is partly the result of two millennia of folks trying to weasel out of the basic principles, simply stated. (September 26, 2011)

There's an attractive notion that all a person has to do is 'really believe' in Jesus. Yes, belief is important. But so is doing something about it. (James 2:18-20) I never could see the point in believing something: and not acting as if that belief mattered.

This gets me to morality - which sounds an awful lot like what those grim 'oh woe, all ye faithful' folks are so grimly sanctimonious about.

Like I've said before, "morality" isn't just about "morality." Ethical behavior includes what we do about our sexuality: but there's a lot more to being human than sex.

Where was I? Joy, Jesus, rules: right.

"Sing for Joy to the Living God"

By cherry picking in the Catechism, and elsewhere, I could find 'proof' that the Catholic Church only accepts perfect people. We're supposed to work at perfection: but it's a goal, not an entrance requirement.

There's a sort of 'payoff' to being perfect, apparently:
"Moral perfection consists in man's being moved to the good not by his will alone, but also by his sensitive appetite, as in the words of the psalm: 'My heart and flesh sing for joy to the living God.' 46"
(Catechism, 1770)
Somehow, I don't think I'll find out what that sort of "moral perfection" feels like this week. Or this month, or year - but it's still a good goal.

Meanwhile, I can work at developing virtues: human and otherwise.
"Human virtues are firm attitudes, stable dispositions, habitual perfections of intellect and will that govern our actions, order our passions, and guide our conduct according to reason and faith. They make possible ease, self-mastery, and joy in leading a morally good life. The virtuous man is he who freely practices the good.

"The moral virtues are acquired by human effort. They are the fruit and seed of morally good acts; they dispose all the powers of the human being for communion with divine love."
(Catechism, 1804)
The human virtues are rooted in the theological virtues: faith, hope, and charity. (Catechism, 1812-1829)

Joy: Short-Term and Long-Term

My long-term goal is the joy of Heaven. In the short term, I realize that there's no guarantee that I'll have a worry-free life. I follow Jesus: and my Lord went through some rough terrain:
"1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us rid ourselves of every burden and sin that clings to us 2 and persevere in running the race that lies before us

"while keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus, the leader and perfecter of faith. For the sake of the joy that lay before him he endured the cross, despising its shame, and has taken his seat at the right of the throne of God."
(Hebrews 12:1-2)
I'd just as soon not be tortured and executed for my faith: and don't think it's likely that I will face that.

God, Rain, and Me

On the other hand, I don't expect following Jesus to result in fame, fortune, and a rollicking good time. Although my life has been pretty good.

I've been blessed with good parents, and a mind that's thirsty for knowledge. My wife stood by me through some very rough times. Four of our six children survived birth, and are as wonderfully varied a new generation as I could have hoped for.

Some of what I've experienced isn't obviously good news. I've:
  • Been used as a sort of lab rat
    • Without my parents' knowledge
  • Lived for decades with
    • Undiagnosed
      • Major depression
      • ADHD-inattentive or
        • Asperger syndrome
        • Something else
    • Pain in my hip joints
      • Until getting them swapped out
        • In my '50s
  • Lost a dear friend to suicide
  • Lost two of six children
    • Nearly lost my wife when the second died
I think God's given me lots of opportunities to practice patience and other virtues. Which is just as well, since I'm not a very patient man. Actually, I need improvement in all the virtues.

As nearly as I can tell, God loves all of us. He showers blessings on everyone, pouring sunshine and rain "on the just and the unjust." (Matthew 5:45)

Joy: "At the Heart of the Christian Experience"

Earlier this year, Pope Benedict XVI discussed joy, and reasons for rejoicing:
"...Joy is at the heart of Christian experience. At each World Youth Day we experience immense joy, the joy of communion, the joy of being Christian, the joy of faith. This is one of the marks of these gatherings. We can see the great attraction that joy exercises. In a world of sorrow and anxiety, joy is an important witness to the beauty and reliability of the Christian faith...."

"...A yearning for joy lurks within the heart of every man and woman. Far more than immediate and fleeting feelings of satisfaction, our hearts seek a perfect, full and lasting joy capable of giving 'flavour' to our existence...."
("Message for the 27th World Youth Day," Pope Benedict XVI (March 15, 2012))
There's quite a bit more: I strongly recommend following that link and reading the rest.

Jesus, Joy, and Standing Orders

Here's why my Lord endured torture and death:
"1 2 When Jesus had said this, he raised his eyes to heaven and said, 'Father, the hour has come. Give glory to your son, so that your son may glorify you,
...
"But now I am coming to you. I speak this in the world so that they may share my joy completely.

"I gave them your word, and the world hated them, because they do not belong to the world any more than I belong to the world.
...
"Consecrate them in the truth. Your word is truth.

"As you sent me into the world, so I sent them into the world.
...
"I made known to them your name and I will make it known, 8 that the love with which you loved me may be in them and I in them.' "
(John 17:1, 13-14, 17-18, 26)
Later, after Jesus stopped being dead, my Lord gave His disciples the standing orders that we're still carrying out:
"11 Then Jesus approached and said to them, 'All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me.

"Go, therefore, 12 and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit,

"teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. 13 And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.' "
(Matthew 28:18-20)

"Infinite Joy"

I've had a few unpleasant experiences: a stubbed toe; the death of a baby; hurting one way when I moved, and another when I didn't.

But I'm convinced that it is all overwhelmed, lost in an infinite ocean of joy: if I keep my wits about me, remember to look at the 'big picture,' and accept the love of God.

One more excerpt, and I'm done:
"...Whatever brings us true joy, whether the small joys of each day or the greatest joys in life, has its source in God, even if this does not seem immediately obvious. This is because God is a communion of eternal love, he is infinite joy that does not remain closed in on itself, but expands to embrace all whom God loves and who love him...."
("Message for the 27th World Youth Day," Pope Benedict XVI (March 15, 2012))
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Friday, January 13, 2012

My Take on the News: Jeanne d'Arc/Joan of Arc; Joy and Children of God; Mourning a Baby

About a half-millennia ago, a young French woman repelled an invasion of her country. Then she was burned as a witch. Compared to that, America's presidential politics are almost civil.

Saint Joan of Arc, and how Rick Santorum mourned the death of his young son, are my first and third items today. Pope Benedict XVI said a few things about joy and being children of God, which is number two in this list:
  1. Saint Joan of Arc
  2. Joy and Children of God
  3. Mourning a Baby

1. Saint Joan of Arc

A tip of the hat to @news_va_en, on Twitter, for the heads-up on this item:
"Joan of Arc six centuries on..." Vatican Radio (January 9, 2012)

"On Wednesday, 26 January 2011, the Holy Father focused his attention on the figure of Joan of Arc, canonised by one of his predecessors to the See of Peter, Benedict XV back in 1920.

"While Veronica Scarisbrick brings you Benedict XVI's words in English focusing on this French saint who was born six hundred years ago, in a few moments she'll also be sharing with you an English programme production of the story focusing on this witness to the faith.

"A programme which is part of a series by the title 'Witness', written and presented by Jill Bevilacqua and produced by Sean-Patrick Lovett...."

"...the full English text of Pope Benedict's words to the faithful in the Paul VI Audience Hall, originally delivered in Italian.

"Today I would like to talk to you about Joan of Arc, a young Saint who lived at the end of the Middle Ages who died at the age of 19, in 1431. This French Saint, mentioned several times in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, is particularly close to St Catherine of Siena, Patroness of Italy and of Europe, of whom I spoke in a recent Catechesis. They were in fact two young women of the people, lay women consecrated in virginity, two committed mystics, not in the cloister, but in the midst of the most dramatic reality of the Church and the world of their time. They are perhaps the most representative of those 'strong women' who, at the end of the Middle Ages, fearlessly bore the great light of the Gospel in the complex events of history. We could liken them to the holy women who stayed on Calvary, close to the Crucified Jesus and to Mary his Mother, while the Apostles had fled and Peter himself had denied him three times...."
I don't know where Joan of Arc stands in American culture these days. When I was growing up, she was either a vague historical figure: or a raving lunatic warmonger who heard voices and did what they said. I'm exaggerating, but not by all that much.

Later, I learned about Jeanne d'Arc - the real Maid of Orleans, not the propaganda construct I'd been exposed to. I can think of several possible explanations for the make-believe Joan of Arc:
  • The 20th-century (pop) psychiatry fad
    • Psychoanalysis of famous dead people and all that
  • Devout secularists
  • America's position as a former English colony
    • With most of our culture and history filtered through English-language media
Maybe 'all of the above,' plus other factors.

I don't think Joan of Arc's armed resistance to an English invasion of France helped her reputation on this side of the Atlantic.

Interestingly, French leaders didn't treat her all that well, after she'd defended their country. After the war she was imprisoned by French - and English - authorities, and eventually burned. The charge was witchcraft. Also wearing the wrong kind of clothes. That was in 1431. I put links to some biographies under "Background," at the end of this post.

Maybe contemporary American politics aren't all that bad, after all. Or not unusually so, anyway.

Jeanne d'Arc was canonized in 1920 by Pope Benedict XV.

2. Joy and Children of God

"Pope Benedict: Renew your joy as a child of God" David Kerr, CNA (Catholic News Agency) (January 8, 2012)

"Pope Benedict XVI used his Sunday Angelus address to remind Christians of the joy of being 'children of God,' courtesy of baptism.

" 'God is the origin of the existence of every creature, and the Father in a unique way of every human being: he has a unique, personal relationship with him or her,' said the Pope from the window of his apostolic palace overlooking St. Peter's Square Jan 8....

"...[The Pope] observed that being a child is 'the fundamental condition that binds us together,' for while 'not all of us are parents,' we are all children.

" 'Coming into the world is never a choice; we are not asked first if we want to be born,' he said.

"During life, though, we can develop an attitude toward life itself so that we 'welcome it as a gift and, in a sense, "become" what we already are: we become children.'

"The development of this attitude marks 'a maturity in our souls and our relationships with our parents, which is filled with gratitude.'

"It is this attitude that makes people capable of being parents themselves 'not biologically, but morally.'..."
Pope Benedict XVI said more, some of which is in the CNA article, translated into English. There's a transcript and video on the Vatican's website, linked from the "Latest Publications" page, but as of earlier this week those resources are in Italian.

Joy gets mentioned fairly often in the Catechism's discussion of virtues (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1803-1832), and in the Glossary, under Happiness:
"HAPPINESS: Joy and beatitude over receiving the fulfillment of our vocation as creatures: a sharing in the divine nature and the vision of God. God put us into the world to know, love, and serve him, and so come to the happiness of paradise (1720)." ("Glossary," Catechism)
I like to be reminded that Christianity is about joy. Also hope. I've posted about that before, including: Then there's the idea of being childlike: not childish. We can be childish rather easily: being selfish, petty, or sulking because we didn't get our way. Being childlike: accepting the gift of existence, loving God because it's the right thing to do? That can take some doing. But I think it's worth the effort.

3. Mourning a Baby

This isn't a 'political' blog, in the sense that I uncritically praise one candidate or party: and heap ridicule on anyone who doesn't agree. I've posted about citizenship and why I try not to be 'too heavenly-minded to be any earthly good' before:America has a presidential election coming up this November, so I need to wade through more 'political' news than I might like. Like this:
"Santorum defends mourning loss of newborn son" Michelle Bauman, CNA (Catholic News Agency) (January 2, 2012)

"Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum said that only those who 'don't recognize the dignity of all human life' might think that he is 'somehow weird' for how he dealt with the loss of his son in 1996.

"To those who think a baby is merely 'a blob of tissue that should be discarded and disposed of,' recognition of a dead baby's humanity is something that 'should be subject to ridicule,' the former Pennsylvania senator said at a campaign event in Iowa on Jan. 2.

"Santorum was recently criticized by political commentators for his actions following the death of his premature son Gabriel, who died just two hours after he was born.

"In a Fox News interview, Santorum explained that he and his wife, Karen, decided to take their son home 'to have a funeral at home and then to bury him later that day.'

"They also showed the child to his siblings, so they could get a chance to see their baby brother....

"...On a Fox News segment on Jan. 2, political commentator Alan Colmes criticized Santorum for 'some of the crazy things he’s said and done, like taking his two-hour-old baby who died right after childbirth home and played with it for a couple hours, so his other children would know the child was real.'

"In a Jan. 5 interview with MSNBC's Rachel Maddow, Washington Post columnist Eugene Robinson also ridiculed Santorum and his wife for taking their son home 'to kind of sleep with it, introduce it to the rest of the family.'

" 'He's not a little weird,' said Robinson, 'he's really weird.'..."
The youngest member of the Santorum family is a "he," not an "it." Maybe calling the dead baby an "it" was just 'a cultural thing:' an unconsidered part of the regional mindset. American culture tends to refer to infants as "it." I'm not entirely sure why, since a human being's sex is determined at conception - and patently obvious at birth in all but a handful of cases.

Harrumph! I Certainly Didn't Do That!

My youngest daughter died shortly before birth. We nearly lost my wife, too: and that's almost another topic.

My wife and I didn't take our daughter home when she died. We were almost 50 miles away from home by then, and my attention was focused on supporting my wife. If it had been a practical possibility, would I have taken Elizabeth's body home? Probably not.

Do I think everybody should be like me? No.

I've been around long enough to know that not all cultures have the same customs regarding death. Much less all families. I'm not going to criticize the Santorums because they're not just like me.

I'm glad to see that attitudes toward death and mourning have changed in America. Or are changing. What follows is not what I would have expected to see, just a few decades back. Not from 'experts:'
"...The American Pregnancy Association advises parents of stillborn children that they 'can find comfort in looking at, touching, and talking to your baby,' and that they may wish to allow their other children to see the baby as well.

"Making memories can also be a natural part of the grieving process, the association said on its website, explaining that this can be done by bathing and clothing the baby, or even reading or singing to the child.

"[A senior fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, Peter] Wehner decried the 'particular delight and glee' with which the political commentators showed a 'casual cruelty' towards Santorum...." (CNA)
I don't know whether I would vote for Mr. Santorum or not. I'll be learning more, as needed, before election day. But I do not think that he is "weird" because he isn't just like me, or because he sees his children as people: even when they're small, or dead.

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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.