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The Curt Jester

"It is the test of a good religion whether you can joke about it." GKC

Book Review

Heart of the World

by Jeffrey Miller September 20, 2008
written by Jeffrey Miller

Since coming into the Church I have heard references to Hans Urs von Balthasar, but had never read any of his works. I knew he was quite admired by many including Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI. Well I just read his Heart of the World due to a recommendation from one of Sr. Julia Darrenkamp YouTube videos she does for book recommendations. I must say I am stunned at how good this book is. Mostly it is a prolonged mediation on Jesus as the heart of the world that is mostly written from the viewpoint of Jesus. Usually books written in the first person of Jesus (or should that be 2nd person considering he is the 2nd person of the Trinity?) turn me off. But Hans Urs von Balthasar pulls it off that soon I was not thinking about a person trying to write as Jesus. This is just a wonderful book that I can recommend for all. Originally Sr. Julia had it as a Lent suggestion and while that is a good time to read this book, Advent or Ordinary time is fine as well. So now I will be definitely looking into reading more of his books.

September 20, 2008 10 comments
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Pro-life

Sleazy

by Jeffrey Miller September 19, 2008
written by Jeffrey Miller

I was wondering how Sen. Obama would respond to abortion survivor Gianna Jessen’s ad for BornAliveTruth.org ad. I certainly did not project that he would run an ad that showed a picture from the video along with pictures from other ads and calling it “sleazy” and calling her ad a “despicable lie” and “taken out of context.”

Well I guess Obama should know about despicable lies. The truth is that he voted against Illinois’ Born Alive Infant Protection Act four times and the last time he voted against a bill identical in wording to the Federal version. What is out of context? His ad quotes a Chicago Tribune article saying “None of those who voted against SB1082 favored infanticide.” Well all of those who voted against the bill allowed infanticide and thought a dead baby is a better conclusion than challenging abortion in any way. They made a political calculation that a dead baby was better than any chance no matter how slim that it would affect abortion even if the bill specifically excluded that. For Obama infanticide is alright and truth is “sleazy.” Of course Obama also called the NRLC liars for proving that he did vote against the bill identical to the Federal version which was passed 98-0.

Via Jill Stanek come these two statements along with coverage of this.

Mr. Obama is clearly blinded by political ambition given his attack on me this week. All I asked of him was to do the right thing: support medical care and protection for babies who survive abortion – as I did 31 years ago. He voted against such protection and care four times even though the U.S. Senate voted 98-0 in favor of a bill identical to the one Obama opposed. In the words of his own false and misleading ad, his position is downright vile. Mr. Obama said at the recent Saddleback Forum that the question of when babies should get human rights was above his pay grade. Such vacillation and cowardice would have left me to die if his policies were in place when I was born. Thank God they were not.

Jill Stanek: It is despicable, repulsive and beneath contempt that Barack Obama would attack Gianna Jessen. She is a courageous abortion survivor and living miracle who would not be with us today if Obama’s policies had been in place when she was born. Mr. Obama continues to mislead the American people on this issue, he voted four times against medical care and protection for babies who survive abortions in the Illinois State Senate, while the U.S. Senate was voting 98-0 to pass an identical bill. Mr. Obama needs to come forward and tell the American people that he understands people like Gianna Jessen, and that he will support and enforce Born Alive Infant protections — that these are living, breathing human beings who have come into our world and deserve protection in the law and should receive medical care at health care facilities. These babies have the same rights as the rest of us.

The one good thing about Obama’s “sleazy” ad is that it will keep this issue in the news. The more people know about this the better.

September 19, 2008 11 comments
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Pro-life

Catholic Vote Supression

by Jeffrey Miller September 17, 2008
written by Jeffrey Miller

The above video put out by CatholicVote.com has been seen on many blogs and it was done by the wonderful Grassroots Films for Fidelis which runs the site. I knew when I first saw it that progressive Catholics would be quite upset about it.

Catholic blogs such as Cosmos-Liturgy-Sex and Bettnet and no doubt others have received the same “comment” by someone named Kathy that includes the following.

If you forward this video or link to the website in your official capacity you may be in violation of IRS regulations and Church policy. You will also be distributing materials that contradict Church teaching.

It then goes on to say that their are “other intrinsic evils” involved this campaign season such as racism (I didn’t know anyone was running on a pro-racism platform). Ironic since I thought that lying and making false claims was also evil, though maybe the person is just woefully ignorant about blogs and the IRS along with Church teaching.

David at C-L-S does a good refutation of the claims made in the “comment” which are typical progressive boilerplate for why you should vote for Obama. Dom at Bettnet also has his own comments.

September 17, 2008 24 comments
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Pro-life

Seek cloning ban?

by Jeffrey Miller September 17, 2008
written by Jeffrey Miller

Deal Hudson reports

In response to a questionnaire submitted by ScienceDebat2008, the McCain campaign indicated a McCain administration would continue the present limitations on research instituted by President Bush and would seek to outlaw somatic cell transfer completely.

Deal credits McCain adviser Sen. Brownback for this. The above statement pretty much matches what the campaign site says in regards to McCain not supporting creation of human embryos. I guess he needs to let his spokesman Brian Rogers in on this. Now we just need a congress that would actually seek to ban all aspects of human cloning completely.

September 17, 2008 7 comments
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HumorPro-life

Campaign Merchandise

by Jeffrey Miller September 16, 2008
written by Jeffrey Miller

These are some of the new faith focused Obama merch and it looks like Catholics got singled out first, but there is suppose to be gear for other denominations coming.

The kind soul that I am I thought I would give Obama a hand to get out his message to some specific groups.

Oddly Obama has no gear of Atheists and no site called nofaith.barackobama.com for them. Plus where is Wiccans for Obama08 or Pagans for Obama08?

I have been waiting for some merchandise from the McCain website to come out and it is finally here.

Sen. McCain has been long known to poke the right in the eye (he is more dangerous than a Daisy Red Ryder BB Gun). And no doubt he will continue to do it, especially if he becomes president. Pro-lifers got an eye poke when the McCain campaign recently ran an ad in support of stem-cells that made no distinction between embryonic and adult stem cells and he has yet to run one pro-life ad. McCain supports the evil of ESCR in the form of using the lives of human embryos created from IVF for research and he does not support creating embryos for research. But an ad such as this makes this murky and that the intrinsic evil he supports might be broader than what his campaign site says. So the McCain Poke Guard will really come in handy and I am ordering a set and I hope the lenses are very strong.

September 16, 2008 14 comments
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News

Why am I ..

by Jeffrey Miller September 16, 2008
written by Jeffrey Miller

not surprised

September 16, 2008 0 comment
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Liturgy

Clap Trap

by Jeffrey Miller September 15, 2008
written by Jeffrey Miller

Rich Leornardi has video/photographs of Bishop Clark’s “installation” Mass at Our Lady of Lourdes parish for his newly appointed pastoral administrator and supporter of women’s ordination Sr. Joan Sobala.

The first video of the Bishop clapping along in beat to the “hymn” reminds me of the invention I am working on. It is called a “Clap Trap” and its purpose will be to trap any clapping going on during Mass. Whether it is in beat to a so-called hymn or applause for something it would emit a counter frequency to null out the clapping. In parishes I sometimes visit I find that clapping is trending up and I encounter it more and more.

As then-Cardinal Ratzinger wrote in The Spirit of the Liturgy:

“Wherever applause breaks out in the liturgy because of some human achievement, it is a sure sign that the essence of liturgy has totally disappeared and been replaced by a kind of religious entertainment.”

September 15, 2008 35 comments
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Pro-life

"If Barack Obama had his way I would not be here."

by Jeffrey Miller September 15, 2008
written by Jeffrey Miller

BornAliveTruth.org is a 527 political organization whose mission is to educate the public on the IL Born Alive Infants Protection Act and Senator Obama’s record opposing this act.

September 15, 2008 3 comments
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Pro-life

Ethic prizes for the unethical

by Jeffrey Miller September 15, 2008
written by Jeffrey Miller

Manassas, Va. – In a brash move defying the U.S Bishops’ speakers policy, Fordham University’s Stein Center for Law and Ethics announced that proabortion Supreme Court Justice Stephen G. Breyer is the 2008 recipient of the Fordham-Stein Ethics Prize. Breyer infamously wrote the majority opinion in Stenberg v. Carhart, which struck down state laws banning the barbaric practice of partial-birth abortion.

The Fordham-Stein Ethics Prize is scheduled to be bestowed upon Justice Breyer at a dinner in New York on October 29, 2008.

Three weeks ago The Cardinal Newman Society President Patrick J. Reilly wrote to inform Rev. Joseph McShane, S.J., President of Fordham University, of Justice Breyer’s record. Reilly urged him to rescind the offer of the Fordham-Stein Ethics Prize to Breyer. No response was given.

“This amounts to nothing less than Fordham University thumbing its nose at the US Bishops, whose opposition to such honors is clear.” said Reilly.

September 15, 2008 4 comments
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Vocations

Top U.S. Catholic seminary sees spike in enrollment

by Jeffrey Miller September 13, 2008
written by Jeffrey Miller

The Rome seminary considered the West Point for U.S. priests has its largest incoming class in 40 years.

The Pontifical North American College is welcoming 61 seminarians in its fall classes beginning in mid-October, according to Catholic News Service.

The school, on a hill overlooking the Vatican, opened in 1954 with room for more than 200 students, but has not been full in recent years.

Monsignor Robert Gruss, vice rector for student life, told CNS that the college, which is sponsored by the U.S. bishops, will have 208 seminarians total this year.

September 13, 2008 6 comments
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About Me

Jeff Miller is a former atheist who after spending forty years in the wilderness finds himself with both astonishment and joy a member of the Catholic Church. This award-winning blog presents my hopefully humorous and sometimes serious take on things religious, political, and whatever else crosses my mind.

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About Me

Jeff Miller is a former atheist who after spending forty years in the wilderness finds himself with both astonishment and joy a member of the Catholic Church. This award winning blog presents my hopefully humorous and sometimes serious take on things religious, political, and whatever else crosses my mind.
My conversion story
  • The Curt Jester: Disturbingly Funny --Mark Shea
  • EX-cellent blog --Jimmy Akin
  • One wag has even posted a list of the Top Ten signs that someone is in the grip of "motu-mania," -- John Allen Jr.
  • Brilliance abounds --Victor Lams
  • The Curt Jester is a blog of wise-ass musings on the media, politics, and things "Papist." The Revealer

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I also blog at Happy Catholic Bookshelf Twitter
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