Punditry

It has come to my attention that an organization called the American Catholic Council (ACC) will be holding what they describe as the “North Florida Listening Assembly” in Jacksonville on Saturday, Feb. 19, 2011. Self-described as “seeking to reclaim the promise of the Holy Spirit manifested in Vatican II,” this assembly is billed as “a day of reflection and stimulating dialogue” – all in preparation for a national gathering to be held in Detroit in June of 2011. I want to clearly and unequivocally advise all Catholics that this North Florida Listening Assembly is not conducted under the auspices of the Diocese of St. Augustine, nor is it sanctioned, approved or endorsed by the diocese or any other entity of the Roman Catholic Church.

Although the stated purpose of the ACC is to “reclaim the promise of the Holy Spirit manifested in Vatican II,” in fact, the goals proposed in their literature, as well as the organizations which make up the ACC, are largely in opposition to the teachings of the Second Vatican Council and the Holy Spirit, which inspired that Council.

I commend and embrace all true efforts at Church renewal, but the ACC’s agenda is decidedly not such an effort. Many of the groups which have banded together in the ACC espouse positions which are clearly contrary to Catholic faith and morals, and which engender only alienation and estrangement from the Church.

Accordingly, the Diocese of St. Augustine cautions any Catholic against participating in this North Florida Listening Assembly, as well as the national assembly to be held in June in Detroit. Catholic parishes, schools, and institutions are not to host any meetings, gatherings, or “listening sessions” associated with either event or with the ACC.

Additionally, priests, deacons, and lay ministers are expected to avoid these events, and to strongly urge the faithful not to attend or support them or the ACC in any manner. I ask, rather, that we all pray for the guidance of the Holy Spirit and shun efforts which threaten the unity of the Church for which Christ, himself, so fervently prayed — Bishop Victory Galeone

Archbishop Allen Vigneron had already issues a similar statement in regards to the Detroit meeting.

It is so predictable the names these dissident groups choose. “North Florida Listening Assembly” like I guess Hillary Clintons Listening Tour. They always betray themselves by saying they are listening when really what they have their ears attuned to is the spirit of the age in an act of itchy ear listening. If tons of faithful Catholics went to one of their events – I can guarantee you there would not be much listening going on.

But really if they are so interested in listening than they should listen to Jesus and specifically when he said “He who hears you, hears me.” when addressing the Apostles and giving them teaching authority. In the case of the ACC they have only not listened to the respective bishops, but have defied them. Jesus continued his statement with “and he who rejects you rejects me, and he who rejects me rejects him who sent me.” This perfectly describes the ACC and like groups.

The Rainbow Sash Movement wishes to congratulate Cardinal Wuerl of the Archdiocese of Washington for siding with common sense and reason by allowing “Catholics for Equality” a newly formed Washington DC based Gay Catholic political organization, sponsored by the Human Rights Campaign Fund to host an event to be held at Georgetown University Intercultural Center Auditorium University Wednesday, December 8, 2010 8:30 – 10:00 PM

We are glad to see that Cardinal Wuerl is not taking the same position of Archbishop Timothy Dolan recently elected president of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, but allows for vigorous debate.

…

This story has the slight problem of being a total lie. The Cardinal did not such thing and they know it.

This is the response from the Archdiocesan director of Communications:

“Yes. We were in touch with Georgetown. The group Catholics for Equality has been told by GU it may not sponsor or hold events there. An adjunct faculty member at GU, Rev. Joe Palacios, is the leader of the gay marriage group (he is very involved with Human Rights Campaign). He is on some panel the GU Dems and GU GOP are sponsoring. He is a priest of LA. He does not have faculties in the Archdiocese of Washington. In short Rainbow Sash put out a wholesale lie apparently trying to get attention. Thanks for the heads up. Please feel free to let those you know are concerned the information is completely false.” [source]

If a church is worried that heartless Grinches might steal from its Nativity scene, it can tag the Baby Jesus with a GPS tracker.

BrickHouse Security is providing free GPS trackers to churches and communities across the country.

Religious institutions and nonprofits can enroll in a program to get a free Spark Nano GPS tracker to install inside a Baby Jesus statue or attach to a Menorah.

That way if a thief makes off with a cherished treasure, the church, synagogue, or other group can log on via computer or mobile phone to track the missing items. [Source]

Some might remember my prophetic parody from years ago:

Find Jesus

Do you know where you Baby Jesus in your Nativity set is? With the rash of Baby Jesus thefts across the country whether it be public or private land how can you be sure? Do your check your lawn often fearing some Nativity scene napper with who know what nefarious scheme? Or perchance that it will be stolen only to be returned later with glued on devil horns as happened recently in Norwalk, Connecticut. Have you considered even resorting to using a chain attached to the leg of the Baby Jesus regardless of the atheistic of this act? If so you might consider our new product – Find Jesus®! Our plastic Baby Jesus plastic doll product Find Jesus® comes with and embedded GPS transmitter, external antenna, and combined with our unique receiver you will know where it is at all time. You won’t be omnipresence, but you will know where Jesus is at all time. No more late night worries or concerns will plague you. This GPS loop transmitting antenna cleverly disguised as a halo will ensure that you can track your Baby Jesus no matter where it is taken The provided GPS receiver will help you track down your property if it does come up missing. This small compact unit will give you an exact location at every moment. If it detects that it has been moved from the preset position an alarm is sounded immediately. Simply follow the onscreen and audible instructions to retrieve your Baby Jesus or to provide the police with its location. Jesus tells the parable of the lost sheep which he was willing to go look for and find. Return the favor and Find Jesus®. You might wonder how we can offer such compact and beyond state of the art technology? We have developed a new process called Niño Technology. Niño Technology provides very small programmed machines that operate the receiver and transmitter. So do you know where your Baby Jesus is? You will if you have Find Jesus®

Dawn Eden sent me the following information.

A high-school textbook used for the AP (Advanced Placement) European History exam equates the Sacraments of the Eucharist and Penance with “high magic” and says that, to combat witchcraft in the 13th century, “the Church declared its magic to be the only true magic.”

The Western Heritage Since 1300 (10th Edition, AP Edition, is published by Pearson Education Inc., publishing as Prentice Hall) is written by Donald Kagan of Yale University, Stephen Ozment of Harvard University, and Frank M. Turner of Yale Unversity.

Attached as a PDF file are the relevant portions of the textbook, which were given to me by a teacher at a Catholic high school that uses the textbook. The teacher, who does not teach history, learned about it from a student who asked her if its account of “Church magic” was true.

An actual AP European History study sheet featuring material from the book. The study sheet is available as a download from http://teacherweb.com/ . The download link is http://teacherweb.com/CA/SantiagoHighSchool/Krueger/AP-Euro-Chapter-14-Student-Notes-Pages.doc .

Sample quote from the book’s Chapter 14, p. 438, under the section title “Influence of the Clergy”:

Had ordinary people not believed that “gifted persons” could help or harm by magical means, and had they not been willing to accuse them, the hunts would never have occured; however, the contribution of Christian theologians was equally great. When the church expanded into areas where its power and influence were small, it encountered semipagan cultures rich in folkloric beliefs that predated Christianity. There, it clashed with the cunning men and women, who were respected spiritual authorities in their local communities, the folk equivalents of Christian priests. The Christian clergy also practiced high magic. They could transform bread and wine into the body and blood of Christ (the sacrament of the Eucharist) and eternal penalties for sin into temporal ones (the sacrament of Penance or Confession). The also claimed the power to cast out demons who possessed the faithful.

In the late thirteenth century, the Church declared its magic to be the only true magic. Since such powers were not innate to humans, the theologians reasoned, they must come either from God or from the devil. Those from God were properly exercised within and by the church. Any who practiced magic outside and against the church did so on behalf of the devil.

And a sample quote from the attached study sheet:

1.

1. Influence of the Clergy

– When the church expanded into rural areas, it: ____________

– There the church clashed with the “cunning folk” who were respected in their communities

– The Christian clergy also performed “magic” by turning bread: __________________

– In the 13th century, the church declared its magic to be the only true magic

– The church argued that: ______________________________________________

– Therefore, magic either: ______________________________________________

– Those powers from God were good and were practiced w/in the church

– Those who practiced magic outside the church: ___________________________

– Attacking these so-called witches was a way for the church to extend its spiritual control

– The princes of the day who wanted: ____________________________________

– Witch trials became a way for the church and princes to realize their power goals

N.B. One of the book’s co-authors, Frank M. Turner, who died last month, also wrote a book on Blessed John Henry Cardinal Newman that, according to its publisher, “portrays Newman as a disruptive and confused schismatic conducting a radical religious experiment” and “demonstrates that Newman’s passage to Rome largely resulted from family quarrels, thwarted university ambitions, the inability to control his followers, and his desire to live in a community of celibate males.”

I use to complain when history textbooks pretty much had a hole the size of the Catholic Church in them regarding the Church’s contributions to Western Civilization. But this textbook is a textbook example of anti-Catholicism.

Often actors can do a brilliant job at a role and yet not understand the role at all. The latest example is Liam Neeson who does the voice of Aslan in the Narnia films.

Neeson said: “Aslan symbolises a Christlike figure, but he also symbolises for me Mohammed, Buddha and all the great spiritual leaders and prophets over the centuries. [Source]

Wow what an insightful comment in the all religions are alike mode. For example:

Both Mohammed and Buddha laid down their life for others like Jesus. Oh wait.

Both Mohammed and Buddh a claimed to be God sent by the Father to redeem the sins of the world, just like Buddha except he didn’t believe in sin and just like Mohammed. Oh wait.

Jesus invaded towns and had child brides just like Mohammed. Plus Jesus taught you could lie to an enemy and break a treaty with an unbeliever just like Mohammed. Oh wait.

Jesus taught how man could escape suffering through loss of desire and personality. He held that every person must find his own path to nirvana, or the extinction of self. He also preached the untenable nature of existence and the means to escape suffering. Buddhism denies the ultimate existence of sin and the necessity of grace just like Buddha. Oh wait. But Aslan shows that the world is just CGI, kinda like Buddha.

Plus C.S. Lewis was an apologist for all paths lead to Heaven and talked equally about Christ/Buddha/Mohammed. In fact C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien use to have arguments about the use of allegory and did not like the obvious allegory of Christ/Buddah/Mohammed to Jesus. Oh wait.

Christ/Buddah/Mohammed all have names which start with a letter of the alphabet – hey maybe Liam Neeson is on to something.

Sometimes it is so annoying so much of the symbols and ideas relating to Advent and Christmas are taken and bent to secular aims.  No this is not just another rant against the materialism of the season leading up to Christmas.  One of the things that has been adopted to secular purposes is the Advent Calendar.  It is very common now that such calendars leading up to Christmas are used to promote just about anything and usually with a materialist purpose.  They seem to be popping up everywhere with each day in the calendar promoting something else.

The latest example of this is:

For those not in the know this is from the latest version of the game Angry Birds which just released a new version.  Oh well I can pull the Catholic both/and and both prepare for Christmas on each day of Advent and play Angry Birds.

Originally an Angry Birds Halloween app was released and now it has been updated for Christmas.  This is a very popular game first introduced on the iPhone/iPad/iPod Touch iOS platform and the original game was also later released on Android.  Angry Birds is very addictive as I well know and it took me a while to get three stars on all levels and versions of this game.

One nice thing about the new version is that the new levels only become available as the calendar date arrives.  This is quite good news for me that I am limited to only trying to get three stars on one level per day which gives me time to play Cut the Rope pray.

Over the Thanksgiving weekend an app on the Apple iTunes App Store was pulled. This was the app for the Manhattan Declaration. The Manhattan Declaration is a document in support of human life and marriage signed by close to half million Christians across the spectrum from Catholics, Orthodox, Protestants, etc. The app had the text of the declaration along with a short survey section.

A petition was created by Michael Rogers on the liberal activist site change.org. Michael Rogers joined Change.org on November 11, and has created 3 petitions relating to “gay rights” including one against Dr. Laura Schlessinger. Whether Michael Rogers is the same homosexual activist named Michael Rogers best know for outing closeted homosexual politicians. The petition received a total of 7,727 signatures.

Please remove anti-LGBT, anti-women application from iTunes Store

Mr. Jobs:

I am joining with thousands of others in signing this letter to ask you to remove the Marriage Declaration application from the iTunes Store.

…

“Marriage Declaration” application? So Apple removed an app from a group that wasn’t smart enough to get the name of the Manhattan Declaration right?

This is of course the typical tactic to label opposition to same-sex marriage as “hateful and divisive language.” Any opposition however mild is hateful. But I guess they want to have apps that disagree with their worldview to be closeted, just as they want to closet any opinions contrary to to their worldview. Plus the whole idea of wanting to remove something because it was divisive is beyond silly. What subject is not divisive. The things everyone agree on is pretty limited. The problem is that truth is divisive and it will always be so.

Apple’s policy regarding the App store has always been rather nebulous and many apps have been pulled for reasons hard to discern with little or no explanation forthcoming. I certainly applaud Steve Jobs decision to not allow pornography in the app store and there are certainly apps that should not be approved. If someone really did write an app that encouraged violence against homosexuals or any other group, then such an app should never get approved. Previously Mark Fiore a political cartoonist had his app rejected, though later Apple relented. The removal of the Manhattan Declaration app for political reasons if some squeaky wheel activist group complains is a serious problem. Certainly Apple is a left leaning company from the top down, but do they really want to go down the road of censoring Christians?

Turnabout is fair play and there is a petition on the Manhattan Declaration site which already has 27166 signatures – 4 times as many as the change.org one. You can sign it here.

You can also email Steve Jobs directly at stevejobs@apple.com, which I did.

Reasonable since 1963? Yeah you didn’t want to deal with American Atheists before that date when they were unreasonable.

Now I like the Catholic Leagues response billboard, but it could have been better.  I would have addressed the topic of reason.

Jesus is the Reason for the Season and you can KNOW him via REASON.

The atheist’s thrust of celebrating reason and almost making an idol of it is that the atheistic worldview can not even account for reason or knowledge. To reduce the world to only the material and our actions to material processes and our thoughts the result of electrochemical processes utterly fails in relating to reality. Many atheists even deny free will and then will argue with you to change your mind in a failure to see the irony. The world is intelligible because there was an intelligence behind it. Reason if anything is evidence for the existence of God.

This atheistic worldview which denies the possibility that believers are using reason to come to their view is what causes them to create sneering billboards with the smarmy attitude “We use reason!!!” Theology as “faith seeking understanding” does not fit their universe of believers and stereotype of “blind faith.”

I found this question on Slashdot to be sad commentary on the acceptance of porn.

“I have a nephew who is very young, but who has the techie gene — he found the Gruffalo on youtube before anyone knew he could spell. Now he’s almost 4, and I was thinking of giving him my netbook (Acer running XP), which i hardly use any more. So of course I will be deleting all the porn, but what should I load up on it? Are there tools/apps that I can load up on it to protect it and him from things he shouldn’t see until college? Also, what apps or games could I load on it that a 4 year old will get some use out of?”

First there is the nonchalant “get my porn off” and then the concern to keep his Nephew from porn, at least until college. Reading some tech blogs and listening to some tech podcasts there seems to be a great openness to porn even among techie women where the subject is always seen as something almost humorous. Or that porn is just something age appropriate and that viewing it before a certain age should be stopped, but that after that age it is something just fine. I was introduced to forms of porn and dirty jokes at a young age by my father and it was quite damaging to me and certainly not something that became acceptable when I became an adult. The damage by porn is something that is becoming quite well researched in its effects, yet it is now something that our society just accepts or jokes about.