Yes, I Am A Keyboard Warrior

Hates the keyboard warriors…

Francis has once again barked against the keyboard warriors.

Don’t be a keyboard warrior, says Frankie. They displease him too much.

Frankie would want to go on peddling his environ-mental cum social justice fake gospel of globalism, without any fear of being outed, every day, as the pathetic clown he is.

Ridiculed at every step, exposed as peddler of catholic fake news, constantly reminded of what he should actually do as a job, Frankie must hate us with all the rage his failing health still allows him.

The very claim is contradictory. If being a keyboard warrior is bad, why does he invite the press on his trips? Are they not supposed to do exactly the same as the people Francis criticises?

Oh wait, the journalists are supposed to actually act as his propaganda outlet. They are not bad. Proper Catholics are!

I really wish that this boor had a bit of I don’t say class – he’ll never get there – but at least sense about it. We anger you, Frankie? At least be smart and don’t show it so openly! But no, the bitching must go on, because it makes him feel good on the moment, and who cares if he looks even dumber than everyone thought at the end of the rant.

Unscripted Francis then proceeds to shoot himself in the foot again, criticising us for defending what “has always been done this way”. That’s exactly the problem, Sherlock.

The keyboard warriors would not criticise him, if he defended Church tradition. They criticise him because he sabotages it, or at least tries, in that quite arrogant, unbearable, stupid way of his.

I am a proud Keyboard Warrior. Thousands, like me, fight their little fight for Catholicism with a keyboard, helping to confirm fellow Catholics in the faith – and, with God’s grace, perhaps even help the one or other getting nearer to it – and exposing, as well as they are able to, all the lies of the circus tools like Francis and his bunch of sycophants, heretics, and faggots. Francis certainly wishes we would limit our protests to friends and family.

Not happening, Bozo.

I really wonder now: is this man really so thick that he still has not understood that his little game is up, and has been for many years? Or, rather, he knows that everybody understands that the keyboard warriors are the Catholics, and he is the problem?

Whilst I think the man obtuse, he is not outright dumb. I can well imagine he knows perfectly well that the keyboard warriors have made him look a clown for many years now. Fact is, the guy just can’t deny himself the petty satisfaction of a petty rant.

Now with one foot in the grave, there is no sign whatsoever that this man is, in the very last stretch of a disgraceful existence, approaching anything remotely resembling conversion. He seems intentioned to die just as he has lived: hating us all, with a passion.

Go on this way, Frankie boy. Your day cannot be too far away now.

Methinks, on that day you will hate us all even more, and for all eternity.

Old Hags

Never felt the need for “societal change”…

So, it appears that, if you are Catholic and woman, the younger, the more conservative.

Ouch!

The article has some insights concerning this phenomenon, but I would like to say more.

The generation of those who in the US are called “boomers” is, in Italy, better known as “sessantottini”, that is: the generation that was giving trouble in their youth, troubles which started in 1968. In my experience, this is the most toxic generation of all those I have seen.

The Sixty Eighters are those who demolished a societal system that was actually working very well. They thought they knew better than all the generations before them. Apparently, they have become old, but not one bit less stupid. Of course, that society wasn’t perfect. No society is. In fact, one needs to be stupid to think otherwise.

This was, in Europe, the first generation of mass superior education. They thought they really knew better. The arrogance of the stupid and young was met by old people in awe at the “education” of their children, and without the proper instruments to defend values they knew to be right. We know how that went.

I have often written that, in order for things to improve, we need this generation of old people (and old hags) to die, as there is clearly no redemption for them. You need to consider that, in Europe, the wokeism phenomenon and extreme madness of gender theory is still mentioned, mostly, to make a mockery of it. Those who push it are, once again, largely older politicians who grew up with revolutionary ideas of “destroying in order to rebuild”. Plenty of those in the generation from, say, 1947 to 1962, that is, the generation of many people wielding power now.

These people will, in God’s appointed time, go to their judgment. Those they leave behind will be those who had to live and grow up with the mess their parents left them. They will, in far greater number, choose sanity.

Mind: I am talking about Europe. It seems to me that in the US the situation is far more serious, more polarised, and certainly more insane. Those the other side of the Pond might have to wait a little longer for sanity to come back, as a new generation of AOCs promises to wreak havoc with absolutely everything for decades to come.

Still: time is kind to logic and, at some point, sanity will come back.

Just tell grandma blathering about female priests to shut up already, because you know more than her, and it will be all fine.

Sacrifices

Today is the first Friday of Lent, a day of fasting. I wonder how many Catholics will be fasting today. Heck, I wonder how many Catholics even know – or remember from their church going days, if any – that, today, they are supposed to fast.

It’s not a big sacrifice and, in fact, even the Baltimore Catechism rendition of “fast” isn’t anything to write home about. I am pretty sure that, in past times, many people went above and beyond what was required. Still, the rules required, and requires, a small sacrifice.

People don’t do this stuff anymore. I see around me a society bent on instant gratification in everything. Grandma probably still said that eating between meals makes you fat. Mother grew up aware of it, but she never really conveyed the message to her daughter. Daughter is now heavily overweight, will snack every time she feels like it without even thinking, and don’t you dare to tell her one word, you oppressive Fascist White Male!

People grew unable to make small sacrifices. As a result, they cannot make the big ones. Divorces are more and more frequent, and the offspring of the pre-divorce couple grows in a culture where divorce is, if not expected, very common and totally normalised. Being sons of divorce, they will grew more likely to divorce themselves. What the Church thinks of this will then become either an irrelevance or an occasion for rebellion as it will be seen as unrealistically harsh.

The West needs to train its children to make sacrifices again. The habit of small sacrifices will create a fertile ground for bigger ones. When one is willing to make sacrifices, the Church call becomes a call to sanctification instead of an occasion of rebellion.

Fast diligently today. Tell your children why you do it. Train them now to the sacrifices (big and small) they will have to make in life. Explain to them that the ability to make sacrifices is very important in the development of that most important trait of a Catholic: the obedience to uncomfortable rules. Explain to them, finally, that the ability to better obey the rules will make them, in the long run, both happier in this life and much better equipped to become supernaturally happy in the next one.

Of Broken Clocks, Bears, And Vicious Attack Dogs

Every now and then, life surprises you, big time.

For example, there is a guy known all over the planet for having an impressive ability to say something wrong, or stupid, or outright heretical every time he open his mouth, which is far too often.

Still, this guy has recently managed to say something that, in fact, makes perfect sense: if you go on poking the bear, don’t be surprised if the bear attacks you.

Broken clocks come to mind.

The particular bear our broken clock is talking about has been constantly poked for the last thirty years; but it was, at the beginning, a weak, fat, incapable, actually drunk bear, and it could not do much to prevent the poking.

In time, the bear got stronger, and more assured of his now growing ability to react to bullying, harassment, and encirclement. 2007 came, and the bear, for the first time, let the world know, from a wonderful city called Munich, that the time of the poking had now come to an end.

The warning was not heeded, because the bear was thought to have the attributes of a kitten. Soon later, in 2008, the bear roared, and the world should, at that point, have paid attention.

But the world – or, better said, those who have appointed themselves its Only True Anointed Representatives – did not listen, and kept poking. When, in 2014, the poking took the form of a shameless, open coup d’etat against the bear’s extremely strategic neighbour, the Bear reacted fairly strongly, sending an unmistakeable signal that, unless the poking goes to an end, someone will get seriously hurt. As a result, the Little Friends of the bear were systematically targeted. Fourteen thousand of them were killed in 8 years. The bear was very, very angry.

You would think, at this point, the Only True Anointed Representatives would listen. They did not. Instead, they started to train an attack dog to harass and intimidate the bear.

The attack dog was vicious, but quite dumb. He had grievances against the Bear, and it was whispered in his ear that, if he kept harassing the bear, the Only True Anointed Representatives would appoint him Very Important Dog, line his dog house with fine paper and, in general, allow him to eat classy dog food forever. Vicious Attack Dog also loved the Svastika, but this was conveniently ignored.

Being dumb, Vicious Attack Dog did not understand that it was being merely used by the Only True Appointed Representatives: if he kept the bear intimidated and silent, so much the better. If not, the expendable dog would be torn to pieces, hopefully after inflicting mortal or, at least, serious wounds to the Bear. This would only cost, to said OTAR, dog training and dog food. The massacring would be, instead, suffered by Vicious Attack Dog.

And this is, my dear friends, exactly how it went, with Vicious Attack Dog currently being literally torn to pieces, whilst the OTAR incite him to keep fighting until total annihilation and physical dismemberment.

This is, meanwhile, so evident, that even broken clocks manage to indicate it.

Fairy Lands And Potato Fields

Simple goodness…

There is a well-publicised article on the “American Thinker” mentioning that almost 40% of the 20 to 38 years old “identify as” alphabet people; that is, perverts of some sort or other.

First of all, an obvious clarification: these are, most of all, not perverts. Not real ones, at least. What they are, is unbelievably naive and astonishingly stupid people who “identify” as a gesture of “solidarity”, in order to feel good with themselves and kow-tow to their “ghei” friends.

It truly is a North Korean pressure to societal conformism without the concentration camp. These cretins, who really think they are helping someone else than Satan, can’t wait to show just how brainwashed they are; and mind, the poll was likely skewed and made to look in a “certain way”, but the gravity of the situation remains.

In part, this is clearly due to the loss of Christian values. It’s easier for the MSM to spout their propaganda, and for the groups of assorted perverts to push their perverted ideas, and for the dumb sheep to be brainwashed and made to bend the knee, if there is no Christian culture pushing against it; because then, the dominant religion will be pleasing your friends, being part of the group, and feeling good with yourself.

However, I agree with the author of the article, that this is a typical issue that comes up when people have too much comfort and security.

For three decades now, my suggestion to those who spoke to me about their mental issues and unresolved conflicts has been to work 12 hours a day in a potato field, for six months at least, and then reassess the situation. This, I have done because of the personal observation that people who actually have to work hard for a living and to take care of their families seem to never have unresolved mother issues, which their well-paid shrink somehow never seem to solve, though he will constantly say that the patient is “making progress”; patient who is, invariably, enough well off that either he or his papa can afford said shrink, and whose days affords him plenty of hours to think about himself, himself and, obviously, himself. If you ever had a friend or acquaintance like that, you know exactly what I am talking about.

I feel that I can easily recommend the same approach to everybody who has come to the point of “identifying” himself as a pervert.

Twelve hours a day in a potato field, under the merciless sun. No tractor and no automation. No food without work. In bed with the hen, awake with the cock. No TV, no books beside a Bible, and most of all no shrink. Ideally, one slap in the face every time he starts talking about himself, but I’ll have the get this green lighted by the Legal Department.

It would work miracles. At some point, the percentage of perverts would be the one Satan always had, perhaps half a percent. All others would be, well, just normal.

We are getting to the point when it is a relief to know that someone is normal.

But then look at who is pope and realise we live in very prosperous, but quite disquieting times.

Long Live Inequality

Never, ever, complained about inequality.

I can’t tell you how much it grates me that there should be politicians, actually now in the US more often than in Europe, whining about inequality.

The complaining about inequality is illogical, tyrannical, and Unchristian.

Humans have been made by their Creator with vast differences in, inter alia, intelligence, inventiveness, ability to work hard, ability to overcome difficulties, and many traits more. It is perfectly logical that this, alone, would create vast differences in people’s wealth.

But it is much, much more than that. How do you want to fight inequality? There is only one way: ferocious taxation of both earnings in life and inheritance after death. This is one of the most tyrannical ideas ever devised – which is why Communists specialise in it – as it deprives the human activity of that natural impulse to do better for ourselves and transmit the fruits of our labour to our children. It is difficult to imagine a worse compulsion and limitation of basic freedoms, short of North Korea.

Most of all, inequality is God-given and God-willed. The one is born the son of a penniless peasant. The other is born the son of a King. The social mobility the Church has always encouraged (many Popes of the past had quite humble origins, something that did not happened in secular government) and of which we see Old Testament examples (think of David) does not negate the premise: God wants some to be born rich, or powerful, or intelligent, or strong, or beautiful, and others poor, not powerful at all, dumb, ugly, or weak.

God does so, of course, in order to execute His Providential plan, giving all of us those special graces that are good for us, and asking us after death whether we have used those graces wisely or have squandered them away.

Of course, we need a fair society, which makes it impossible or extremely difficult for someone to enrich himself with devious, criminal, or fraudulent means; something in which, again, Communist Countries excel. And no, corruption and criminality are not given to us by God, they are merely allowed, like any other evil.

If all goes well and you have a well-ordered, corruption-free, efficient society which tries to give opportunities to those who deserve them, what do you get? You get huge inequality, as the emergence of the Rockefellers and Vanderbilts, of the Henry Fordses, of the Jeff Bezoses and of the Elon Musks of the world will be, in fact, encouraged. This is not only legitimate. It is wonderful. It is God-given inventiveness, innovation, resilience, patience, genius, and sheer determination at work. Are these people perfect? Of course not. But neither you nor I are, and still no one asks whether we should be allowed to exist or have money.

Believe me I know what poverty is. Believe me I never had the privileges of the US underprivileged. I never bought $200 training shoes. I went to school with broken shoes. I know what it is not having the money to ask a girl out. I know what it is is to be scared about the future. And you know what? I think it was all God-given and providentially arranged, every bit of it.

Inequality is a toy , or rather a weapon, for people who want to become privileged themselves, profiting from the envy and the mediocrity of the lazy and dumb.

Embrace inequality. Embrace Christ.

Meet The Vocation Terminator

“Go away, you and your vocation!”

And it came to pass that Francis abandoned himself to reminiscences about the time when he was an important person, perhaps the decisive one, in the decision of whom to admit to the Jesuit seminary.

It really is scary to think about.

A man who entered the seminary lying to his own widowed mother, who made sacrifices and sent money to a faraway son telling her he was studying medicine, cannot possibly have any affinity for honest, straight-shooting, good people actually accustomed to tell the truth. In fact, Francis must have seen these people as positively dangerous to him, as honest people tend to react unfavourably when being confronted with falseness and lies and might, who knows, blow the whistle on ten or twelve of his most alarming character traits. No, it was certainly better, for Francis, to promote the acceptance in the seminary of people like him, lying scoundrels with no shame, no dignity and no faith. In fact, such a one as Francis would have an interest in promoting people with a skeleton in the cellar (say: homosexuals, and even outright sodomites) , so that his own mediocrity, faithlessness, and who knows what else could not be denounced by anybody without his own skeleton coming out in the open.

Then there is the problem (for Francis) of vocations. A man who clearly had no more vocation in him than a badly behaved Dobermann, Francis must have been horrified at the sight of people showing him what faith really is, and what a strong vocation means for a person. Again, the contrast with these “rigid” Catholics could not have been most striking and, unavoidably, would have caused him an awful lot of trouble down the line. Strong, zealous, purely pre-Vatican II priests would have readily recognised the stench emanating by Bergoglio, and they would have acted accordingly.

No, the thing to do for the man was to be only one: admit people who are just as bad as he is, possibly worse, ideally much worse. I think this thinking (plus sheer sodomy) explains a lot of what has been going on with Jesuits at large in the last decades.

Bergoglio has certainly contributed to the loss of dozen, possibly hundreds of good future friars and priest, and to the infestation of his order with a great number of, well, Jesuits as we now know them.

Add this to the long list of deeds for which he will, hopefully soon, be called to answer.

[REBLOG]: Little Vademecum for Those Anglicans Thinking of Conversion

In occasion of the now widely publicised conversions celebrated today in Westminster Cathedral, I allow myself to give my little piece of advice to those thinking of conversion.

This little advice is given in charity (the real one. Fake charity is for whinos, and Anglicans…). Charity requires that one tells the truth out of love. Calls of “who are you to judge” don’t have any effect with true Catholics. Catholics deal with Truth, not false compassion. Anglicans need to be told the Truth without any fear that they might be “hurt”. They’re heretics, of course they will! It’s not a walk in the park, it’s two systems of values clashing, and they can’t be both right.

Charity requires the Truth, and the Truth said whole. Those who aren’t ready to undergo a painful process to reach the Truth can avoid wasting time reading this. If only one reads and understands, the time will not have been spent in vain.

Please, have a chamomile tea first 😉

————————————————————————————-

1) There is only One Church, and it is not the Anglican one.

2) Christians are divided into: a) Catholics; b) Schismatics; c) Heretics.

3) Anglicans of whatever orientations belong to c) above: Heretics. Every one of them, however they may call themselves.

4) Anglican so-called orders are invalid. Anglican clergy are, for Catholics, laymen. This is Catholic teaching. No amount of self-delusion will ever change an iota in this.

5) There is nothing like a “something-Catholic”. You can’t be Anglo-Catholic more than you can be Methodist-Catholic. You are Catholic, or Schismatic, or Heretic. Are you Anglican? You’re Heretic.

6) This has been repeated (not stated, or invented, or decided; repeated) by Leo XIII in 1897, with Apostolicae Curae. He who can read, let him read.

7) The decision to convert is the decision to leave the Lie and embrace the Truth. Ego investments, personal preferences, how nice the Vicar is & Co. have no role to play in this. This side, or that side.

8 ) Every “converted” former Anglican who still claims to believe Anglican heresy (from the validity of the ordination of Anglican clergy; to Anglo-Catholics being “Catholics”; to whatever else) is a fake convert, sacrilegious and heretical. Better to remain a heretic from outside until one is ready for a real conversion, than to try to be a heretic from within the Church. Heretics are, by definition, outside of the Church anyway. Cheating one’s way to a club card leads to nothing and, possibly, to perdition.

9) Truth cannot be embraced in half. You either embrace Truth, or you cling to the lie. Tertium non datur.

10) Anglican doublethink doesn’t work the other side of the Tiber. “Two and two is four, but also five and we respect those who think it is six and will dialogue in chariteeee with those who think it is seven and a half” works only before the (notoriously lethargic) Vatican steamroller starts to move, but it leads to tears and excommunications when it invariably does. Those who think that they can export their doublethink and “tolerance” past the Tiber are in for a very late, but very rude awakening.

11) Catholicism works differently. To say “I’m hurt” will not make you right. To say “you’re uncharitable” will not make you less wrong. To say “you must adjust your doctrine to accommodate my feelings” doesn’t exist at all. You’ll have to eat the same fare as Padre Pio and St. Philip Neri, St. Francis and St. Dominic. No Anglican preservatives, and no choice of toppings. What a blessing.

12) The decision to embrace the Truth is difficult. It requires the acknowledgment that one (and one’s old soi-disant “church”) was wrong all the time. That one’s ancestors were wrong all the time. That one’s former organisation had no Catholic being or legitimation whatsoever. Nothing less is required. If you can’t say this to yourself with a sense of elation and Truth finally found, you are still a Heretic.

13) Truth will make you free. The decision to discard the lie and embrace the Truth in its totality is the healthiest and most productive single decision in one’s man existence. So healthy and so beautiful, because so difficult. If it wasn’t difficult, there would be no beauty and no merit in it.

14) Truth is like a diamond: extremely beautiful, but extremely hard. Are you ready for the beauty (and the hardness) of the diamond? Or do you want to continue to believe that the synthetic version is a diamond too? Choose the true diamond. Accept no substitutes. You’ll discover that its beauty is beyond your hope.

15) True Catholics will stand in awe in front of real, serious converts. You are in our prayers and we know that many of you will become extremely orthodox, wonderful Catholics. But true Catholics will attack without mercy those who attempt to import the heresy within the Barque of Peter. This is an unprecedented experiment, but will not be a door open to “Catholicism a’ la carte”. Again: forget the old Anglican ways, this is not going to work that way.

16) Pray Blessed Cardinal Newman that he may guide you. He knows all your troubles, went through the same pains as yours, sees all the obstacles in front of you. It took him years of reflection and prayer before deciding himself to the step. But once he took it, what a wonderful march he started! So take your time and be assured of our prayers and of the assistance of the Holy Ghost, your Guardian Angel and the Blessed Virgin. Take your time and prepare yourself carefully for the impact and the beauty of the Truth. It is better to carefully invest some years of sound investment leading to a copious yield, than to waste everything in a fake conversion leading nearer to Hell.

17) Best wishes and good luck to you.

Mundabor

[REBLOG] Little Vademecum for Those Anglicans Thinking of Conversion

In occasion of the now widely publicised conversions celebrated today in Westminster Cathedral, I allow myself to give my little piece of advice to those thinking of conversion.

This little advice is given in charity (the real one. Fake charity is for whinos, and Anglicans…). Charity requires that one tells the truth out of love. Calls of “who are you to judge” don’t have any effect with true Catholics. Catholics deal with Truth, not false compassion. Anglicans need to be told the Truth without any fear that they might be “hurt”. They’re heretics, of course they will! It’s not a walk in the park, it’s two systems of values clashing, and they can’t be both right.

Charity requires the Truth, and the Truth said whole. Those who aren’t ready to undergo a painful process to reach the Truth can avoid wasting time reading this. If only one reads and understands, the time will not have been spent in vain.

Please, have a chamomile tea first 😉

————————————————————————————-

1) There is only One Church, and it is not the Anglican one.

2) Christians are divided into: a) Catholics; b) Schismatics; c) Heretics.

3) Anglicans of whatever orientations belong to c) above: Heretics. Every one of them, however they may call themselves.

4) Anglican so-called orders are invalid. Anglican clergy are, for Catholics, laymen. This is Catholic teaching. No amount of self-delusion will ever change an iota in this.

5) There is nothing like a “something-Catholic”. You can’t be Anglo-Catholic more than you can be Methodist-Catholic. You are Catholic, or Schismatic, or Heretic. Are you Anglican? You’re Heretic.

6) This has been repeated (not stated, or invented, or decided; repeated) by Leo XIII in 1897, with Apostolicae Curae. He who can read, let him read.

7) The decision to convert is the decision to leave the Lie and embrace the Truth. Ego investments, personal preferences, how nice the Vicar is & Co. have no role to play in this. This side, or that side.

8 ) Every “converted” former Anglican who still claims to believe Anglican heresy (from the validity of the ordination of Anglican clergy; to Anglo-Catholics being “Catholics”; to whatever else) is a fake convert, sacrilegious and heretical. Better to remain a heretic from outside until one is ready for a real conversion, than to try to be a heretic from within the Church. Heretics are, by definition, outside of the Church anyway. Cheating one’s way to a club card leads to nothing and, possibly, to perdition.

9) Truth cannot be embraced in half. You either embrace Truth, or you cling to the lie. Tertium non datur.

10) Anglican doublethink doesn’t work the other side of the Tiber. “Two and two is four, but also five and we respect those who think it is six and will dialogue in chariteeee with those who think it is seven and a half” works only before the (notoriously lethargic) Vatican steamroller starts to move, but it leads to tears and excommunications when it invariably does. Those who think that they can export their doublethink and “tolerance” past the Tiber are in for a very late, but very rude awakening.

11) Catholicism works differently. To say “I’m hurt” will not make you right. To say “you’re uncharitable” will not make you less wrong. To say “you must adjust your doctrine to accommodate my feelings” doesn’t exist at all. You’ll have to eat the same fare as Padre Pio and St. Philip Neri, St. Francis and St. Dominic. No Anglican preservatives, and no choice of toppings. What a blessing.

12) The decision to embrace the Truth is difficult. It requires the acknowledgment that one (and one’s old soi-disant “church”) was wrong all the time. That one’s ancestors were wrong all the time. That one’s former organisation had no Catholic being or legitimation whatsoever. Nothing less is required. If you can’t say this to yourself with a sense of elation and Truth finally found, you are still a Heretic.

13) Truth will make you free. The decision to discard the lie and embrace the Truth in its totality is the healthiest and most productive single decision in one’s man existence. So healthy and so beautiful, because so difficult. If it wasn’t difficult, there would be no beauty and no merit in it.

14) Truth is like a diamond: extremely beautiful, but extremely hard. Are you ready for the beauty (and the hardness) of the diamond? Or do you want to continue to believe that the synthetic version is a diamond too? Choose the true diamond. Accept no substitutes. You’ll discover that its beauty is beyond your hope.

15) True Catholics will stand in awe in front of real, serious converts. You are in our prayers and we know that many of you will become extremely orthodox, wonderful Catholics. But true Catholics will attack without mercy those who attempt to import the heresy within the Barque of Peter. This is an unprecedented experiment, but will not be a door open to “Catholicism a’ la carte”. Again: forget the old Anglican ways, this is not going to work that way.

16) Pray Blessed Cardinal Newman that he may guide you. He knows all your troubles, went through the same pains as yours, sees all the obstacles in front of you. It took him years of reflection and prayer before deciding himself to the step. But once he took it, what a wonderful march he started! So take your time and be assured of our prayers and of the assistance of the Holy Ghost, your Guardian Angel and the Blessed Virgin. Take your time and prepare yourself carefully for the impact and the beauty of the Truth. It is better to carefully invest some years of sound investment leading to a copious yield, than to waste everything in a fake conversion leading nearer to Hell.

17) Best wishes and good luck to you.

Mundabor

[REBLOG] Jesus Was No Girlie

Another excellent blog post from the “man with no uncertain trumpet”, Monsignor Pope of the Archdiocese of Washington.

This time, Monsignor Pope’s attention is focused on the image of Jesus that was smuggled around in the Seventies, and that still influences the Sixty-Eighters and other pot-smokers today. In those years – and whilst I was a child, I got my share of those years – Jesus was generally portrayed as a kind of a whimp, a girly boy unable to exert or project any form of manliness, a mixture of hare “krishna” follower and Gandhi with, later, the addition of a dollop of Nelson Mandela. Victimised, but as meek as a sheep; bullied, but always answering with a smile, and unable to threat or harm, this is the Jesus we had brought to us as an example. “Peeaace” and “luuuuv” were everywhere, and not a whip in sight.

Well, one only needs to read the Gospel to get a completely different picture of Jesus; a man who never said things half, and never minced words; a man able to openly defy his opponents in public, in times when conflicts were carried out rather less nicely than today, and “being hurt” had a different meaning than today; a man whose followers went around armed with swords, certainly not for aesthetic reasons; a man able to free himself from the grasp of multitudes desirous to apprehend him, which can’t have been accomplished without a towering presence and an extremely commanding, charismatic, utterly manly attitude; a man able, alone, to throw away from the temple an undefined, but certainly not little number of moneychangers out of the sheer fury of his action, and the might of his whip. On this occasion, the contrast between the calm preparation of the whip and the explosion of irresistible physical power gives a wonderful example of the manliness of Jesus’ behaviour.

No, this was no pink-shirted, manicured, anti-wrinkle-lotioned, tubular-jeans-wearing metrosexual; this was a real man, oozing masculinity in everything he did. Try to imagine the scene of St. Matthew’s conversion and tell me whether it is compatible with anything else than the most commanding authority. Then try to imagine how Gandhi or Deepak Chopra would have tried to achieve the same result, and you’ll know the difference.

You see this everywhere in the Gospels, as the words and gestures of Jesus are always accompanied by an undercurrent of sheer authority, a commanding stance, the attitude of one who knows that he will be obeyed everytime he wants. Even scourged almost to death, Jesus talks to Pilate from a position of utter power, and leaves him in no doubt as to who is boss. Make no mistake, this is no Gandhi.

Thankfully, the gently whispering Jesus of my younger years is now slowly being substituted for an image more attuned to the Gospel image, largely – I think – because of the excellent “passion of the Christ” and James Caviezel’s very manly rendition of the Lord. It will take time, though, before the Birkenstock-sandalled, tofu-eating, Cosmo-reading and Oprah-watching Jesus is replaced by, well….. Jesus.

Mundabor

REBLOG: Communion: On The Tongue Or “Magic Trick”?

I have already explained in my post about the Catholic Onion that when the bishop acts correctly, his priests feel encouraged in going the right way even if this may result unpopular and conversely, if the Bishop doesn’t care for properly transmitted Catholic values this mentality will end up informing the behaviour of many of the priests in his diocese.

A beautiful example here, courtesy of Father Z.

You will remember Bishop Olmsted, the rather decisive bishop who recently excommunicated Sister Margaret McBride and deprived the Hospital of St. Joseph of the right to call itself “Catholic”.

It will now please you to read that when a good example is given from the top, it becomes both easier and more easily acceptable for the priests of the diocese to follow the lead and take the necessary steps towards the recovery of reverent liturgical customs. In Bishop Olmsted’s diocese itself, Fr John Lankeit is actively working towards a gradual elimination of communion in the hand.

His words are sincere and alarming: “What I witness troubles me. And I’m not alone” writes Fr Lankeit. You immediately understand that here is one not likely to throw M&Ms at the faithful during Mass.

Fr Lankeit puts the extent of the problem in clear terms:

While my main objective in encouraging reception on the tongue is to deepen appreciation for the Eucharist, I also have a pastoral responsibility to eliminate abuses common to receiving in the hand.

Notice here the double whammy: a) reception on the tongue is the best way in itself; b) reception in the hand causes abuses.

It follows a list of examples, seen “all too frequently”, which I hope will not disturb your sleep:

• Blessing oneself with the host before consuming it. (The act of blessing with the Eucharist is called “Benediction” and is reserved to clergy).

• Receiving the host in the palm of the hand, contorting that same hand until the host is controlled by the fingers, then consuming it (resembling a one-handed “watch-the-coin-disappear” magic trick)

• Popping the host into the mouth like a piece of popcorn.

• Attempting to receive with only one hand.

• Attempting to receive with other items in the hands, like a dirty Kleenex or a Rosary.

• Receiving the host with dirty hands.

• Receiving the host, closing the hand around it, then letting the hand fall to the side (as if carrying a suitcase) while walking away and/or blessing oneself with the other hand.

• Walking away without consuming the host.

• Giving the host to someone else after receiving…yes, it happens!

Some of these I had already imagined; others go beyond my ability to figure out how they happen (the “magic trick”, say); other still can only be defined as astonishing (the dirty hands, the rosary, the kleenex, the “blessing oneself” (??) and the walking away with the host as if it were a piece of luggage).

I am certainly wrong here, but I can’t avoid always seeing in the receiving on the hand an element of “I am the priest of myself” that, at some level, must be buried within the consciousness of the communicant. I just can’t avoid seeing the placing of the communion wafer on the tongue as a priestly function and besides, how one can come to the idea of receiving God the same way as he eats bread and salami is just beyond my understanding.

Father Lankeit doesn’t express himself in such terms of course, but one can clearly see the liturgical zeal and sincere desire to lead his parishioners to better understand the importance of Communion and of acting accordingly. He writes about this four weeks in a row. This is another who, like his Bishop, will be heard. More like him and his Bishop and the beauty and reverence of the Mass will be speedily restored everywhere.

Mundabor

REBLOG: The Feast Of The Chair Of St. Peter

Tomorrow 22nd February is the feast of the Chair of St. Peter. Whilst St. Peter’s feast day is the 29th June, the feast of the 22nd February is more directly aimed at celebrating the Petrine Office. This feast is, therefore, as Catholic as they come.

This feast day might be an occasion to explain to some non-Catholic in your circle of acquaintances why you are Catholic. When requested, I proceed more or less in this way:

1) And I say to thee: that Thou are Peter…. Jesus doesn’t say to Simon that he is a nice chap; or that he is very perceptive; or that he himself is surprised that among the apostles Simon was the only one to give the right answer to his question “Who do people say that I am?”. No, he changes his name and calls him a rock.

2) and upon this rock I will build my Church…. Jesus doesn’t say “I will build my first church”, nor does he say “I will build my provisional church”. Jesus picks a rock, and builds upon him One (1, Una, Eine, Une) Church.

3) and the gates of Hell shall not previal against it….. It, that is: the very same Church built on Peter, the “rock”. That one, and no other. Jesus doesn’t say “the Gates of hell shall, in around fifteen centuries, prevail against the Church I built on you”, nor does he say “the Gates of Hell shall prevail against the Church built on you but hey, let us be happy with a generic term of “church” so it can work even when yours goes astray”. He is very specific: he builds one Church upon one man and gives his promise of indefectibility to this – and no other – organisation.

4) And I will give to thee the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven….. This is also dumb-proof: keys are a very obvious symbol of power and authority and it is clear here that Jesus is speaking with extreme solemnity. He doesn’t say to Peter: “Peter, you keep the key for the moment” or “look mate, gotta go; keep the keys until I find you or yours unworthy, will ya?”. No, this is a solemn promise evidently made for all times, as his just pronounced promise about indefectibility must make clear to the dumbest intellect.

5)  ….and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth it shall be bound also in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth, it shall be loosed also in heaven. For those who should at this point still not have gotten what is going on, Jesus becomes even more explicit: Peter has the keys, and the keys mean authority upon the faithful now and forever; an authority given in the most emphatic terms possible. 

The meaning of these phrases; the clear solemnity Jesus gives to his words; the crescendo of emphatic declarations of such a broad and clear scope do not leave room for any possible doubt and as a result, Protestants have nowhere to hide. Whoever reads Jesus’ words with a minimum of intellectual honesty cannot avoid to recognise that the Only Church of Peter’s time (and of the following fifteen centuries) is the Only Church of today and that as a result whatever grievance against the men who run the Church does not change a iota concerning the position of authority of the Church. As to the complaint that some Popes were oh-so-bad (not much worse than many a tv-preacher I’d say, but laissons tomber….), Peter wasn’t immaculate either, but his shortcomings didn’t prevent Jesus from promoting him to rock of His Church.

To believe anything different from the fact that the Only Church founded by Jesus is.. the Only Church means to believe one or more of the following:

1) that Jesus made a mistake in founding His Church on Peter;

2) that Jesus was mistakenly persuaded that Peter’s successors would be good chaps, but  had his toy ruined by the baddies who  succeeded Peter;

3) that Jesus couldn’t count;

4) that Jesus’ words had a sell-by date, or

5) that Jesus made his promise of indefectibility without taking it seriously.

Or perhaps one could decide to read and understand the only possible meaning of such emphatically worded statements, as Jesus repeatedly made.

There is only One Church, folks. It’s the only one founded by Jesus. Simple, really.

Mundabor

Reblog: Ten Reasons For The Anonymity Of Catholic Bloggers

In the last days, objections have been made to the fact that many of those who write about Catholic matters do so anonymously. As always, there is no scarcity of people who indulge in easy accusations of what they don’t like, and can’t control. Let us examine what this is all about and the many valid reasons for anonymity on the internet.

1) Anonymity is freedom. Unless one lives on Planet Pollyanna, there is no denying (not even by its detractors) that the protection afforded by anonymity allows information to be exchanged and discussed that otherwise would have never reached a wider public. This makes our societies (and more specifically the religious discussion) more free. This is important, as freedom of expression is an extremely important pillar of every democratic society.

2) Anonymity encourages criticisms of what doesn’t work within the Church. As Catholics, we have the duty to react to scandals and abuses we see around us, but we don’t have the duty to seek martyrdom (I mean here in a broader sense, as persecution or discrimination because of our convictions) if we don’t have to. Anonymity on the internet makes therefore not only democratic societies more free, but provides a better system of control for the abuses within the Church. If a Bishop tells you that he feels scrutinised by the anonymous internet bloggers, it’s because he is. This is good for Catholicism, and potentially vital for the salvation of the relevant Bishop’s soul.

3) The accusations of it being “coward” to hide behind anonymity are the most cowardly acts themselves. Repressive political systems are those who try to repress anonymity the hardest. The people asking bloggers to reveal their identity are not much different than, say, Saddam Hussein calling his opponents cowards because they stay hidden. There’s a reason why people hide behind anonymity and only stupid people, or people in utter bad faith, pretend not to understand them.

4) If you look attentively, you noticed that anonymity is one of the most powerful engines of progress. Whistleblowing sites could never exist without the protection afforded by anonymity, and they are a most powerful engine of correct behaviour and have now possibly become the most implacable weapon against criminal behaviour within corporations and public bodies. Why anonymity would be acceptable for them but unacceptable for misbehaviour within the Church (which, notabene, can include child abuse and the like) is beyond me.

5) The accusation of it being very easy to slander people from behind anonymity does not really stand scrutiny. It being very easy to slander from behind a wall of anonymity, the relevant information is heavily discounted. People have always written anonymously on walls, but this has never made what they wrote believed just because it was written. On the contrary, an accusation made from an anonymous person will need to be substantiated to even begin to carry any real credibility. This is exactly what happens on the Internet. Criticism of clergy is accompanied with facts and evidence, or it is easily discarded. This is another of the beauties of the Internet. If, say, a Bishop gives scandal by participating to the “ordination” of a “bishopess” or some Protestant ecclesial community, the information will be there with the facts: day, people present, photos, videos, the whole enchilada. It is obvious to the meanest intelligence what counts here is the fact, the provenance being fully irrelevant in the economy of the scandal.

6) It is undeniable, though, that insisted, repeated slander may – even if unsubstantiated – have some effect in the long-term on the person affected. Voltaire used to say something on the lines of “keep on slandering: something will stick”. There you are, you will say, but the best protection against such slander is, once again, anonymity! Every non addetto ai lavori (as journalist, or priest) who willingly renounces to his own anonymity when he writes on the internet is allowing his ego to play him the most dangerous of tricks. Be assured that there will be a price to pay, as recently seen in the case of a “commenterer” known to many of us.

7) It has always been known to people with some salt in their brains – a minority, I sometimes think – that a wise man picks up his own fights. It is utterly illogical (nay: it is outright stupid) to think that what we write will not have an impact on our future – allowing for countless forms of covert discrimination, never to be proved and impossible to trace or fight against – for decades to come. It is the very freedom of our societies which makes this unavoidable.

This may not be a problem for a journalist (who makes of it his profession, and for whom his own name is a brand and professional tool), but can be a huge problem for everyone else. A wise man will prudently decide himself if and when and under which conditions to face a conflict because of his religious convictions, but a moron will gladly expose himself to every kind of retaliation of which he might even never become aware (lost work opportunities, or business opportunities, or both).

8 ) Even anti-discrimination legislation wisely chooses the same way as Internet bloggers. Information about health, age, religion cannot be asked by a potential employer. There is a reason why, and it is that such information opens huge doors to discrimination. How stupid would it be to legislate against such form of discrimination, whilst demanding that bloggers voluntarily expose themselves to it, irrevocably, for all time to come. Make no mistake, religion is – and always will be – the biggest cause of hatred and conflict. It’s just the way it is and he who doesn’t see it is in serious need of waking up.

9) Stupid commenters were never considered less stupid because they are not anonymous. Intelligent commenters were never considered less intelligent because they are. I – and everyone else – will pick my sites and blogs according to the validity of their content, not according to the degree of anonymity of their writers. Just to make an example, “Splintered Sunrise” is an excellent blog. Is anyone concerned that it is anonymous? Not I.

10) We have recently had another example of how beautiful anonymity is. I do not know whether priests are allowed to blog anonymously (albeit, by definition if they really wanted they’d be able to do it anyway), but had Fr. Mildew written an anonymous blog, he’d have been much more relaxed against the bullying of Mgr. Basil Loftus. His blog is now closed. QED.

This is of course not meant to be a justification of my being strictly anonymous, for which there is no need. Rather a caveat to all those who still haven’t understood the potentially devastating influence of a sustained, prolonged Internet presence with their own names, particularly when the subject matter is not neutral (like photography, dogs, or gardening) but serious, highly emotional issues like politics and, most importantly, religion.

Wake up to the reality of the Internet. The immense freedom it harbours also hides dangers for your own professional future; dangers the more devastating because subtle and able to damage you whilst keeping you fully unaware of what is happening. And if you think that this problem only concerns people with extreme views or roaming the internet with illegal purposes ask everyone who works for reference checking firms, and think again.

Mundabor

Why I Am A Catholic, Part I

 

 

As there is such a discussion around, I have decided to inflict my own take on you.

I am a Catholic by God's Grace. A good Lord disposed that I be born in a still seriously – at least at the cultural level – Catholic country. I lapsed, like countless others, out of my own fault, and out of despise for a clergy unable or unwilling – as I see very clearly now, most likely unwilling – to teach the faith, and chiefly worried of showing you that they were your “friends” instead of old, stuffy people resembling your grandma. They were pathetic, cowardly, mostly unmanly figures unable to attract the respect of ordinary people, much less of young boys looking for manly guidance.

I lapsed. No, it wasn't a grace. It was a big disgrace. It was wrong, sinful, and stupid. There can be mitigating circumstances for lapsing, and I was certainly unaware of the significance of the decision, nor was I helped by my environment. But a sin it still remains.

I went back to the fold – meaning, to the Sacramental life; I never ceased to consider myself a Catholic, as millions of other non-practising Italians – after moving to the UK and finding a Country in which Christianity was merely an option, and rather an embarrassment. As so often, when something you always took for granted – a Christian Weltanschauung – is not there, you start to become more curious, because you now more or less unconsciously start to appreciate it more, and feel its absence. It was easy, and mainstream, in Italy you tell yourself a Catholic without practicing. Not only millions did, but no priest hammered into you the difference. Everyone was so modern, you see; but still, all shared an awful lot of values, and there was a strong basis of shared values among Italians.

I started to put my nose into the matter. Slowly but surely, a new awareness began to grow. The Internet, and the London Oratorians, made the rest. “Seek and you shall find”. The Internet opened to me a world so different from the Italian bookstores of old! Instead of the cheap V II, populist, kindergarten, diabetes-inducing rubbish – easily recognisable as fake even when you do not really know what is authentic – I found an endless well of old-fashioned Catholic wisdom. This wisdom was not only so beautiful, but so inexorably logical, coherent, complete, universal and still absolutely monolithic, that it immediately fascinated a man acquainted with philosophy, and (in his own stupid way) in love with Christianity. It was a block of granite, smashing the stale, sugary molasses of Vatican II into non-existence.

Reality itself was staring at me, because Catholicism is the only way to understand reality, and until you manage to grasp Catholicism life itself will remain outside of your grasp. My (always strong) thirst for knowledge of Truth and for God – a thirst that I could never quench with the babbling idiots of my youth – was now satisfied. I could drink at a well so clear, so fresh, so true, that it was a world of wonder. The Truth I always sought was just there, in the very fabric of the society in which I was born, in the very religion that still shaped so much of it. It was in the robust wisdom our grandmothers had often imperfectly, but always faithfully formulated. It was, in the end, all there. But because of my fault, and arrogance, I wasn't able to look below the thick layer of V II mud and recover the old religion of exactly those grandmothers; a religion which, if I had been determined to rediscover it, would have disclosed itself to me, in time, by God's grace, without decades of lapsed Catholicism; because God can never, ever want that you stop living the sacramental life, much less send this to you as a grace.

By my most grievous fault I decided, certainly before I was 14, perhaps before I was 13, that the Church wasn't worth my attendance; and ended up two decades later spending hours on my collections of several Bibles – I had no less than seven different texts – and comparing bible passages, for hours, like a thirsty madman, or reading around in a confused way; always thirsting, always toiling, never satisfied, never knowing whom to turn to, the German priests of my adulthood even worse than the Italian ones of my youth.

When I discovered Catholic wisdom, I felt elated and very stupid at the same time. It was all there, all the time. The most wonderful gourmet meal, already prepared for me by countless saints as God's exquisite chefs. All there for the asking, and reading, and praying. All there, most importantly of all, for my own salvation, if God's grace assist me and I cooperate with it.

The Catholic Church was right. Is right. Always was, always will. The Catholic Church has all the Truth, and she is the only Truth. The Catholic Church is right even when your priest is an idiot. The Catholic Church is right especially when your priest is an idiot, because then Her immutable Truth shines the more in contrast with the sugary blabbering of her unworthy minister. And then, you love Her more. And when an Evil Clown is Pope, you love Her most.

Scratch away the layer of mud, my friend. What you will find below is better than the purest gold.

M

 

 

Sister Act

If you peruse the National Schismatic Reporter today – we all do it every now and then; it keeps you informed about Satan's latest moves – you'll find a piece about the conclave from a female called Maureen Fiedler. Her bio says a lot of fluffy things about her (radio work, “social justice” activism, “gender equality” activism, “peace” activism, PhD in Applied Idiocy (or “Government”; one of the two) and it also informs us that, lesbian or not, she is supposed to be nun (though from the photo you'd never imagine it, of course).

Today, sister reinvents Christianity for the exclusive benefit of her more or less enlightened readers from the Liberal madhouse.

We are, first, informed the Church is not democratic. This shocking revelation, of which she was possibly not aware when she tools her vows of fidelity to… social justice, pacifism and sexual perversion, clearly forces all of us to confront Jesus' shocking lack of democratic sensitivity. It would have been so easy to let the Five Thousand democratically elect their own representatives; but no, Jesus had to decide all by himself, appointing twelve leaders without even the shred of a public consultation. I mean, really? Who does He thinks he is, God?

The Chap (He can't have been God, after all; God is democratic; everyone knows that…) even gave a shameless display of atrocious sex discrimination, appointing – would you believe that – only males for the office! Not even a lesbian among them, let alone a real woman! Really, what was He thinking?!

It gets worse than this. I mean, we can understand Jesus might have wanted to pander to His Roman Masters, who in those times didn't “do” democracy anymore; he might have been afraid (we knew he was often afraid, particularly when he saw “sister's” female ancestors walking around) of the Jewish establishment and thus timorous to appoint lesbians (or even real women) to his Board Of Directresses… But seriously, not even a mention that His Church was supposed to have democratic elections, Wymyn quota and at least one good dozen LGBT members among the Cardinalettes? Seriously? What an amateur…

Thankfully, we are now in 2013, and Sister got it right. We are therefore going to eliminate the construction faults of the Catholic edifice by inserting democracy, pacifism, socialism and sexual perversion into the structure of an obsolete behemoth not even really improved by Vatican II.

Then, and only then, Catholicism will be really authentic, as shown by the champions of Catholic authenticity, those from whom “Sister” says we should learn.

To wit: The Protestants.

Mundabor

 

Conclave: BBC Incompetent Beyond Belief

One struggles to believe the BBC was once considered a professional broadcaster. 

This rubbish has been online since the 28 February, so it has been online for now 8 days undisturbed. It truly beggars belief. 

It is difficult to pick where to start, but let us select some of the most outlandish observations: 

1) “Two-Pope Problem”. 

I though it was Two Popes, but I am not a mother tongue. Still, at the moment there is no Pope, and when one is elected there will be one Pope.

One. Then zero. Then one. Not difficult. 

When a BBC Director-General resigns, the BBC does not write any article titled “the Two-General-Director Problem”. 

2)   “Antipope” 

Cue the outlandish “Antipope” theory; not read anywhere else, not picked up by anyone, not taken seriously even by my cat; but apparently good enough for some BBC hack. “Antipope” must sounds good; one of those words of which few people really know the meaning, but of which many more love to hear the sound; like “Antichrist”.

3) “Exploit such ambiguities”.

This confused chap says he is a papal historian, but again he sounds more like an incompetent hack asked to write some rubbish before lunchtime for £25 and a McDonald voucher. The idea there are “ambiguities” as to who is the Pope is just as stupid as the idea the new Pope might introduce such innovations on – how do you get this wrong? – “the role of the women” as to cause some people to, ahem… do what exactly?

In addition, notice the suave “there are those in the Church”. It matches well the “two theologians”, of which one isn’t mentioned. I though this was a professionally run site, paid by the British people with a compulsory licence, with professional  writers and professional editors.  

4) SSPX 

The astonished Catholic learns from this supposed “papal historian” the SSPX are “schismatics” and “out of the Church”, which suggests Mr Walsh may smoke very strange substances in the morning. We are also informed the SSPX “have been long on the verge of declaring a sede vacante“, a circumstance of which the SSPX should be informed immediately, or in alternative whatever Mr Walsh is smoking should be taken away from him at once.

The SSPX is also now a “separate church, yet another division within Christianity”. When you stop laughing about the “separate church”, consider the “papal historian” is insinuating the baddy baddy Christians are oh so much divided.

5)  “Muddling the waters”, “quasi alternative Pope”.

This man is clearly not a Catholic; still, even a Protestant or an atheist should know better than that. Not even illiterate peasants will be in any doubt as to who is Pope, or will consider the waters “muddled”, or will even imagine the existence of a “quasi alternative Pope”. The BBC’s “papal historian” apparently will. Oh well… 

6) “Confusion gets worse” because of Gaenswein.     

 This is as stupid as the rest, but even more naive. How there should be any “confusion” because Gaenswein remains Benedict’s secretary is beyond me. The new Pope will decide who is his private secretary, and if and what other task he will have. End of.

Wake up, Mr Walsh. 

7) “Pope Benedicts was always happier with books (and cats) than with people”. 

First blow below the belt line. We are here informed Benedict doesn’t like immortal souls. He prefers cats instead. This airy comment, this miserable hack dares to make about a man called Holy Father the world over, whose very name (Papa) reminds of his function of spiritual father of all of us, seeing in all of us his sons. This remark from our historian hack is, simply, despicable.

8) Pride

Second blow below the belt line. I have not heard anyone accusing the former Pontiff of “pride” because of the title he has kept. Even Mr Walsh should get – on a good day – that in this case he would not have resigned. 

Thankfully, this astonishing pack of lies, deceitful hints and veiled accusations at this point comes to an end.

Again: this is a professional site, fed by public money. Don’t they have editors? How can it be that rubbish like that is cleared for publication? Who authorised this? Is there one single person at the BBC who knows something about Catholicism? 

The BBC’s  incompetence is only equaled by their arrogance. The sooner they get shut down, the better. 

I am afraid we’ll need another couple of scandals for that, though, as Jimmy Savile apparently wasn’t enough. 

Mundabor 

  

Conclave: End Of The Beauty Contest

The interview circus – or should I say “beauty contest” – abruptly came to a halt today, with several interviews from prominent Cardinals, mainly American ones, even cancelled after scheduling.

It was very sad to see Princes of the Church behave like children when a TV camera is around, or like reality TV starlettes exploiting the limelight for all it’s worth. Instead of dedicating themselves to their institutional duties or to prayer, many of them have tried to consolidate their “star” status (like Ouellet, I am afraid, or Turkson, or Pell), or get some popularity whilst they may (like Sandri, possibly the most shameless of them all), or play “progressive” for who knows which obscure reason (O’Brien) or talk to journalists because the limelight to them is simply oxygen (Dolan) and they can’t imagine living without. Not pretty.

All this was stopped today, and the interview embargo lets all those Cardinals all too ready to grant interviews (including Ouellet) deservedly appear immature.

The Church is not supposed to care for the opinion and the support of the world, and a Prince of the Church is supposed to, literally, incarnate this principle. What has happened in the last weeks is another indication of the deterioration of the quality of religious personnel precipitated by 50 years of Vatican II-induced collusion with the world.

I am glad this has now stopped. Let the thousands of journalists now converging on Rome play fantasy conclave as much as they like; the Bride Of Christ does not seek the approval of the mob, and those who do are unworthy of the tunic.

Mundabor

What Is Wrong With Amazon?

It is very recent news that Amazon, together with other worldwide operating companies like Google, have issued a public endorsement of so-called same sex marriage in the vigil of the decision of the Supreme Court of the United States concerning the Defence of Marriage Act.

At the same time, we are informed from Father Z’s blog that his affiliate program with Amazon was terminated without warning or explanation.

I might be a tad paranoid here, but apart from the obvious disgust at Amazon’s unspeakable behaviour I cannot avoid wondering whether the two above mentioned events might not be related, that is: Amazon is targeting those opposed to their homosexualist agenda and quietly eliminating them from their affiliate program to please their own internal Gaystapo.

Again, I might be too suspicious here, and in a normal world one would suppose Amazon is interested in selling books and related products first; but we don’t live in a normal world, and there is no saying whether the Gaystapo at Amazon might not manage to pursue their perverted agenda at the expense of their shareholders.

Perhaps the one or other of the readers, ideally who have shares of the company, might plant a question on the site and enquire whether Christian sites are being specifically targeted.

As for myself, I will seriously consider switching to a different system (say, Sony) when the time comes, and plan to use my Kindle exclusively for free books.

Which, I thinks, serves the faggots right.

Mundabor

“Vatileaks” Report To Remain Confidential

We are sorry, Your Eminence. This is not for you after all. Unless you are the next Pope, that is…

I have this from Reuters and I cannot imagine this is a misunderstanding or an unchecked news. The famous explosive report is then destined to remain under key, and for the eyes of the next Pope only. Clearly there is the fear that the most interesting details may be (cough: will be) leaked.

Personally, I think it would have been much better that the Cardinal had been able to have access to the document before the Conclave, and I cannot see the damage from leaking as so big as the damage from not letting the Cardinal know what’s going on before taking such an important decision like the election of a new Pope. As they say, at some point oportet ut scandala eveniant.

In any case, I always thought it wise to think carefully before taking an important decision and then stick to it.

Mundabor

Pope Benedict Defends His Abdication

During his last Sunday as a Pope, the Holy Father has indirectly – but clearly enough – defended his decision to abdicate. Once again, he has said he cannot do his job properly any more, and a life of prayer is now both more fitted to him and – which I am sure was the paramount consideration in his decision – more salutary for the Church and faithful.

There are around voices that say this was a mistake (sometimes, a big or catastrophical one) and the Holy Father should have done strange things, like allowing the Church to remain without an effective guide, permit that internal strife of all kind tears the shop apart (a frequent result of weak leadership, as the Vatican itself now more than eloquently shows) and in general see the detetioration of the Church in the West continue.

In the immortal novel I Promessi Sposi, Alessandro Manzoni puts in the mouth of Don Abbondio (the weak and cowardly priest who had consented not to celebrate a marriage because of pressure from a local warlord, animated by the most scandalous motives) the unforgettable words: “Il coraggio, uno non se lo puo’ dare”. It is difficult to translate into a foreign language the particular way Italians stress a point, but a fair translation might be “with courage it is so, that one can’t give it to oneself”; whereas probably the beauty and drama of the original are lost, but the basic message remains.

Don Abbondio has become in Italy the epitome of the weak, self-centred, cowardly priest interested more in living a quiet and -in those times – comfortable and privileged life than in fighting for Christ as a good priest, at the cost of his life if needs be. His words express a simple concept, well clear to us soft and understanding Italians: you can’t ask from people that they just become who they are not. Don Abbondio must choose between a defiance of power that (he thinks, being cowardly) might mean death, and a compliance allowing him to go on – or so he thinks – with his quiet life of comfort and privilege.

Now, whilst I do not want to draw too near a comparison between Pope Benedict and Don Abbondio, it is clear that neither of them is a Horseman of the Apocalypse. Old, peaceful, not cut for war, and unable – like everyone else – to completely change what he is, it simply cannot be asked of Pope Benedict that he jumps over 86 years of his life and starts to live and act according to a freely chosen new persona. It just does not work that way.

With courage – or with the will to be a strong, energetic, willful Pope, leading the Church with a firm hand and expecting to be obeyed – it is so, that one cannot give it to oneself.

Courage, the Holy Father has gathered enough – very probably more than he ever could in his life – when he has decided to abdicate, full knowing the fans of the “dying Pope circus” (so popular only a few years ago, and so beloved by the media, and so obscenely convenient for heterodox Cardinals and Bishops) would be incensed at him depriving them of another year-long media show.

Not only he had courage, but if you ask me he took what is – with Summorum Pontificum – the smartest decision of his reign.

A Pope is, in fact, there to reign, not simply to talk. His duty is to give orders, make unpleasant decisions, displease an awful lot of people and upset many more, defy secular powers whenever necessary, and defy the stupidity of the world every single day. It takes energy and courage to do so. Pope Benedict never had the second, and is rapidly losing the first. Nor could anyone expect of him that he suddenly transforms himself into a different person overnight. God can cause such tranformations, of course, but they are very rare. Normally, weak people won’t be able to give themselves the courage they lack.

Don Abbondio tries to get away with his weakness, and is in serious trouble when his behaviour comes to the ears of his superiors. Pope Benedict, far braver and more honest, realises he can’t be any good for the Church as an even weaker Pope, and draws the consequences. From a weak Pope you can really not expect more than this.

Not only, therefore, I think that His Holiness’ decision should be respected, but I think that the courage necessary for such a step should be recognised and duly appreciated.

The alternative would have been another year-long power vacuum. But as power, like nature, has horror vacui, this vacuum would have been filled by people who have never been elected Pope, and taking all decisions with very little of the (earthly) responsibility.

A Pope is a King, not an exposition item for the joy of the TV channels. We need him strong, alert, and full of energy. Weak Popes of the “harmless great-uncle”-type only benefits the local hierarchies and the Vatican power groups, particularly if they aren’t orthodox.

With courage it is so, that one cannot give it to oneself.

Mundabor

Marriage: Ann Widdecombe Is On Fire

Courtesy of the “Coalition for Marriage”, the full video of Ann Widdecombe’s speech at the “fringe conference” of the Conservative Party.

I will not waste your time pointing out to this or that beautiful phrase, because there are too many of them. This is one quarter of an hour which will really put you in front of the absurdity of the political correct nightmare the stupidity of a minority and the cowardly acquiescence of the majority has plunged the country into.

Widdecombe is witty but sensible, and poses a number of very intelligent questions. Her attack on Cameron is frontal and very effective, and the long applause from an extremely well frequented “fringe” event should make Cameron shudder and think.

Her portrayal of the many ways in which Britain is transforming itself in a totalitarian faggot state is extremely well put, and should make everyone who still does not blog anonymously seriously think of how long he will be allowed to have one without endangering work and freedom.

Cameron is a cancer, and I am being nice. He must be taken down, and with him this entire perversion mania. They must be ridiculed and forgotten like the madness of “man-made global warming”, a national craze in 2006-2008, and now you would have trouble in finding people admitting they believed it.

I think we are slowing getting there in this case too, but it will be a much longer and harder battle.

For now, thank God for the Widdecombes of the world, in a country where the Archbishop of Westminster limits himself to almost inaudible ex officio meowing, and the duty of leading the charge has fallen on the shoulder of the brave Lord Carey, who in the end is a pensioner whilst those in active duty sleep or look the other side.

Mundabor

Cardinals Dolan And Wuerl About Obama’s “Outing”

Cardinal Dolan:

President Obama’s comments today in support of the redefinition of marriage are deeply saddening. As I stated in my public letter to the President on September 20, 2011, the Catholic Bishops stand ready to affirm every positive measure taken by the President and the Administration to strengthen marriage and the family. However, we cannot be silent in the face of words or actions that would undermine the institution of marriage, the very cornerstone of our society. The people of this country, especially our children, deserve better. Unfortunately, President Obama’s words today are not surprising since they follow upon various actions already taken by his Administration that erode or ignore the unique meaning of marriage. I pray for the President every day, and will continue to pray that he and his Administration act justly to uphold and protect marriage as the union of one man and one woman. May we all work to promote and protect marriage and by so doing serve the true good of all persons.

Cardinal Wuerl

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Mundabor

Cardinal Dolan on Vatican II

That's a biggie, Cardinal.

This is what Cardinal Dolan has to say about the reason why the Church has lost teeth in the last decades and can’t transmit Catholic values as she used to do (emphases mine):

For this he faults the church leadership. “We have gotten gun-shy . . . in speaking with any amount of cogency on chastity and sexual morality.” He dates this diffidence to “the mid- and late ’60s, when the whole world seemed to be caving in, and where Catholics in general got the impression that what the Second Vatican Council taught, first and foremost, is that we should be chums with the world, and that the best thing the church can do is become more and more like everybody else.”

Very lucidly spoken, one would say. Cardinal Dolan is showing in these last weeks that he is, at least in certain circumstances, not really “gun-shy”.

Still, I would like to add a couple of observations:

1) Cardinal Dolan’s words would carry more weight if he stopped the unspeakable shame of the so-called gay masses in his own diocese.  He was certainly more aggressive than our own home disgrace, Vincent “Quisling” Nichols, but the masses are still there, so he still hasn’t delivered. I call this “caving in”.

2) One notices it is so difficult to take V II out of a generation grown in the middle of it, when one reads that the Cardinal comments the problems about conveying the Catholic message about sexuality saying: “that’s a biggie”. That’s a…. what? Does this not give exactly the impression the Cardinal wants to “be chums with the world”?

I am not accusing the cardinal of hypocrisy, as I am sure he is sincere in his work, as the last months abundantly prove. What I am saying is that he himself, like so much of nowadays’ Church, is so imbued with the forma mentis of the post V II generation that he falls – out of habit, probably – in some of the same traps he rightly recognises in  V II itself:  the desire to appear “connected” and “with it”, and in some – important – occasions the lack of the guts to say the unpleasant things straight.

Again, if cardinal Dolan had acted in an exemplary manner concerning the gay masses in his own diocese some time ago, his word would have carried more weight now, and his opponents in Washington might even have decided to cave in themselves at the first signs of serious conflict rather than allow things to get at this point.

By not acting in the question of the so-called gay masses, Cardinal Dolan has missed a beautiful – if, in itself, sad – occasion to show that he is not one to be trifled with; as a result, Obama & Co. did, in fact, think he could be trifled with. Chum with the world, and all that. They were, apparently, wrong, but this way Dolan has to have his baptism of fire in a confrontation with the President. If he had kept his shop in order before and had not been, well, gun-shy in matters of sexual morality (a “biggie”, as we are told), this might have not been necessary.

Let us hope this battle experience will be the first one of many, and in future the Cardinal will not be so eager to show he is “like everybody else”.

Mundabor

What Non-Catholics Do Not Get

Try to explain this to a champagne liberal...

We have been all bored to death in the last days with the fantasy tale about the 98% of the Catholic women apparently using contraceptives. We have, also, been amused by the strange theories according to which this, provided it was true, would be proof that the Church is wrong on the matter.

Theology by democracy. Very funny. What’s next? Elective bishops? Priestesses? Communion to dogs? Homo marriages?

But really, as a person raised up in a Catholic country and then moved here in Blighty, I can clearly see the differences between Catholic and… wrong thinking on this and many other matters.

In Catholic Countries, it is not that people do not behave wrongly. Of course they do. The big difference is that in those Countries people know they are sinning and are intelligent enough not to try to persuade themselves they aren’t.This creates the well-known phenomenon of the Anglo-Saxon speechless at how Southern Europeans get along with their sins, which leads them to believe they just do not care. They do care, my dear boy/girl/transgender Proddie. They care, very probably, much more than you’ll ever do on your saintliest day! They simply accept that they will never stop sinning more than the sun will stop shining. It’s not about being more sinful; its about being wiser.

Different is, it seems to me, the traditional approach in Protestant countries. Here, strong veins of puritanism run through the country, even among those who don’t really care for religion. Sin is, actually, not accepted in the sense that it must be obliterated. Therefore, the puritanical oriented will ruin their lives in the vain – nay, childish – attempt to overcome their sinfulness through a straight jacket of extremely severe prohibition, and general severity of demeanour. The others – nowadays, the vast majority – will solve the problem obliterating the sin, and deciding the Holy Ghost has now told them pretty much everything goes, provided you love Jesus and don’t kick the cat.

The ones likes the others can simply not live with the simple, human, Catholic concept of just knowing that by all our effort we will never stop sinning, because sinfulness is attached to us like breath and the one will only cease when the other does. The first will try to kill their sinfulness killing joy of life and common humanity in the process; the second will act after the motto: If you can’t win it, abolish it.

This being the mentality, it is not entirely surprising – though not less stupid – there should be people around thinking if Catholic women use contraception, it means they think it is right to do so. Please!

The reality is, of course, the opposite of this funny theory. Whilst many Catholic will not be entirely aware of the sinfulness of contraception,  vast numbers of them will be aware of it at some level, a level which – due to their dismal catechesis – never becomes more than a discomfort at knowing oneself at variance with the Church, but seldom becomes rebellion because the Church is at variance with them.

We are all sinners, and we are all weak. We continue to do what we know we should not do, and this we do because we are wretched sinners. As we become better instructed, a life of prayer slowly induces us to look with horror today at our failings of yesteryear; but it is a very gradual process, and a process which generally starts in earnest only when people go back to regular Mass attendance and generally ends only at death. Outside of this circle, disobedience to Church teaching is seen with no more than discomfort readily set aside and not really worrying, like the child who steals the marmalade and knows stealing is wrong, but still refuses to see himself as dishonest, and to recognise his act as theft.

Still, most children will say to you it is “somewhat” wrong to steal marmalade, and only a very small minority of Catholics will dare to tell you they are better judges of Catholic rules than the Church.

The Proddies don’t get this, and the liberals don’t get pretty much anything else so I am not surprised. In their world, one can’t be a wretched sinner: either they stop being sinners or the sin must stop being a sin; not in the theological sense of course, but in the way they approach the problem in everyday life. Thus, the abortionist “bishopesses” (Episcopalians), the homo bishops, and the catalogue of assorted madnesses, next in line the so-called homosexual marriages and one day, who knows, euthanasia.

The liberals do not even have the cultural means to understand the Catholic thinking. They apply to Catholic thinking their own utterly flawed reasoning patterns. They can’t conceive someone admitting himself guilty, when they themselves obviously never are. They know nothing of wanting to be strong enough, and failing to do it. They cannot even conceive that a person might do what is wrong, and know it is wrong. Hey, if put in the same situation they would just decide it is not wrong anymore! So there, Catholics think the Church should change Her rules on contraception!

Mundabor

Newt Gingrich Says It Straight

Refreshingly blunt: Newt Gingrich

 

 

The CNA has an interesting article about some remarks of the 2012 presidential candidate Newt Gingrich.

First, there is this interesting remark:

“Any leader should seek God’s guidance,” he said. “The teachings of the Church inform my thinking about solving earthly problems.”

I do not know to what extent Gingrich practices what he preaches, but I can’t say he is preaching badly. The idea that a Catholic could be allowed to forget his faith when voting or taking political decisions is certainly being challenged more and more often.

Please also note that Gingrich correctly says “the Church” instead of, say, “my Church”.

The most interesting part is, though, the following one:

Gingrich said that he would “listen” to the concerns of those who feel threatened by his views and values.

“In many cases better communications and clarification will eliminate their worries,” he said.

“In some cases they are right to feel threatened because we have incompatible values and fundamentally different visions of the future.”

It is the first time that I read of a Presidential candidate saying to the anti-Christians fraction such open words, “you are right to feel threatened”. They are right to feel threatened because they are a threat to Christianity and their right to damage Christianity would therefore be taken away.

He is basically saying that there will no namby pamby slogans about everyone not having anything to fear, and a Christian society being able to be Christian and at the same time accommodate everyone’s whims, like, say, your British bishop would do.This kind of open talk is very, very rare in Europe and is probable to have one accused of being an extremist.

If a conservative President is elected, a march toward the curtailing of legal right will be set in motion, either through direct presidential action or through legislative action – if the President disposes of the necessary majorities in Senate and Congress, which I consider rather probable – or more long-term with the attempt to appoint decent Supreme Court judges instead of, say, left-wing lesbians.

It is good and honest that these things are said loud and clear, and become an integral part of the electoral campaign. It is also refreshing that Gingrich doesn’t try to use the usual European tactics of “do not worry, we’ll make everyone happy anyway” and says instead that, legislatively speaking at least, there will be blood.

How refreshing.

Please do not use the combox to write your opinion about Mr Gingrich as a candidate, as I think that such discussion belong elsewhere – I might make a poll in future about this -. The matter here is, as I see it, not whether Mr Gingrich is a good candidate or even a good man, but whether the debate is going to go in the direction of frontal assault to anti-Christian legislation. If anyone could provide a parallel statement of other candidates, this could be very interesting.

Mundabor

 

 

 

 

2012 Elections: Family and Economy

Would he have punished his mother with himself?

“values voters see big government and deficit spending as the result of policies that arise “when the natural family is looked down upon” and thereby foster dependency”.

This very intelligent reflection comes from a speech of Mr Tony Perkins, president of Family Research Council, about the electoral voters of Us-American Evangelicals.

Evangelical voters, he says, tend to link the economic and the social issues that will – hopefully, for the seconds – dominate the 2012 campaign, and the line above is an example.

As an Italian, I can resonate with the phrase chosen by Mr Perkins, as in those societies where the welfare state is rather weak – in Italy it is very weak if you consider it as “welfare state proper”, that is: entitlement – the family is very strong and conversely, you can afford to have an almost non-existent welfare state and survive as a politician only because the family is so strong.

I do not use the word “natural family” because in Italy the absurdities and perversions of the US have not yet gained a foot in the social and legal framework of the country. Long may it last.

I do agree with the statement, particularly after having lived in Germany and the UK and having seen the result of the mentality prevailing in those countries.

Still, I wonder what resonance it would find among the US Catholic voters, as this would seem to be a more specifically Evangelicals-related phenomenon.

Mundabor

Planned Parenthood Engulfed In Scandal, Under Investigation For Cover-Up Of Child Abuse And Assisting Child Sex Traffickers

Planned Holocaust

“The Committee has questions about the policies in place and actions undertaken by PPFA and its affiliates relating to its use of federal funding and its compliance with federal restrictions on the funding of abortion,” said Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-Fla.), chairman of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, in a Sept. 15 letter to Planned Parenthood president Cecile Richards.

The letter requested details on the amount of money received by Planned Parenthood under different federal funding programs, as well as documentation of policies and procedures to ensure that federal money received by Planned Parenthood “is not being used to impermissibly subsidize abortion.”

The House committee also asked for information about the organization’s policies in place to prevent improper billing and overbilling.

Furthermore, it requested documentation of Planned Parenthood’s policies and procedures to ensure that criminal conduct, including sex trafficking and sexual abuse, are reported to the proper authorities.

Planned Parenthood’s business practices were placed in the spotlight after the pro-life group Live Action released undercover videos that showed several Planned Parenthood workers and managers appearing to assist child sex traffickers and cover up cases of sexual abuse of minors.

Oh well, it appears something has the suspicion that Planned Parenthood not only doesn’t care for the killing of children, but once they’re born they don’t care much for them, either.

A vulgar smear, say the liberals. All made up by those baddies, the Republicans, to destroy such a humanitarian institution; a killing wonder, a well-oiled genocidal machine that the likes of Hitler and Goebbels would be proud to call their own!

We shall see how this ends. I register with satisfaction that Catholic institutions are not the only ones to get this kind of attention. I trust that justice will, in the end, prevail.

In the meantime, I invite everyone to forward the news to as many people as they can, and please take note of the blog post title to add some spice (utterly truthful, by the way).
You see, if the liberals do not lose any occasion to link the Catholic Church and the accusations against her priests, I can’t see why we shouldn’t care that people be informed that Planned Parenthood is in the middle of a rather big scandal – and under an investigation of the US House of Representative – because accused of assisting child sex traffickers and covering up cases of sexual abuses of minors.

The last accusation must ring, to the ears of liberal champagne-drinkers, strangely familiar…

Mundabor

The New Undeserving Poor

 

... but hey, no obligation to mass attendance.....

 

 

One really doesn’t know how to start when such things happen.

A drug addict is arrested and given the choice: one year of jail or the participation to a rehab program from a Catholic charity. It doesn’t cost a dime, but you must apply and know what it is about. The lady writes a letter stating that she is aware of the religious nature of the course, and that she wants to change her life through God and spiritual growth.

She is accepted, which incidentally means that she avoids jail.

Not good enough, apparently. Her helper – no, let me rephrase it: those who help her to live drug-free, at the expense of their donors and of the taxpayer, and to stay out of jail – are oppressive fanatics who let her do unbelievable things like….. praying. She is so upset that she goes away crying not one, but – would you believe it – three times. The lady says she is discriminated, and victimised.
She loses, as even the ninth US Circuit of appeals finds that this is too much even for a liberal mind.

Than there is the man who is periodic guest in a Catholic shelter. He is a Mormon and they encourage him – not force, sadly; encourage – to go to Mass. They also tell him that Mormonism is a “sect”, which must surely rank just before water boarding in Guantanamo’s interrogation methods list. He thinks he has a right to live under other people’s roof without having to abide to the rules of the people under whose roofs he lives. One starts to understand why he is in need of a roof. By the way, the shelter receives no government funding.

One of the clearest sign of a corrupted society is when help is not received with gratitude, but with the arrogance of the one who thinks that everything is due to him, and he must have everything according to his wishes.

Mundabor

“God forgives so many things for a work of mercy!”

Everyone has twenty-two seconds.

Dio Perdona tante cose per un’opera di Misericordia

“God forgives (so) many things for a work of mercy!”. With these words, the simple but pure peasant girl Lucia addresses her mighty kidnapper, a man so powerful that the Spanish power is a joke to him, and so corrupt as to be willing to have a girl kidnapped and consigned to her raper for a matter of prestige and reputation among his peers. A man, though, not mighty enough to escape the patient, silent work of the Holy Ghost, and whom the sight of such helpless, desperate purity will move to the point of causing the explosion of a looming crisis; a crisis that will see him, after a terrible and liberating night, see the dawn of a new life.

Millions of Italians know these words, who have become – like so many expressions from this wonderful novel – part of the everyday language in Italy. They are particularly fortunate because – like many other expression of the Promessi Sposi, written by a man very fit in Catholic doctrine – they give to the reader beautiful snippets of Catholic wisdom, a wisdom that will, hopefully, came back to them in moments of crisis even after they have – like most of those who know these words – stopped attending Church.

Like millions of other Italians, the one or other phrase from this immortal novel comes back to me from time to time, and makes me think. It seems to me that one of the greatest strenghts of Catholicism is in its attention to the little things, in the quiet knowledge that God doesn’t abandon those who don’t forget him in the little things, and helps them to stay – or to return to – the straight and narrow even when they stray in the bigger ones. The attitude of your typical Italian Catholic of one-two generations ago – before the “everyone’s a saint” era that has, to an extent, polluted Italy as well as the rest of Catholicism – was exactly this idea that when one does his part, and even not such a big one, the Provvidenza – a concept Manzoni comes back to again and again – takes care that the sheep finds his way, in due time, to the fold.

This is in my eyes the reason why the Countries that are more traditionally Catholic are also the ones with, I am sorry to have to say so, the happiest people. Not for us the life-quenching rigidity of old Presbyterians, the tortured morality of old Puritans, the virtue that kills joy. A stream of quiet optimism runs through the veins of Catholics, the idea that salvation doesn’t come without doing anything to deserve it, but that deserving it is well within the reach of sinners like you and I.

God forgives so many things for a work of mercy.

This is the reason why I do not stop boring you with my insistence on the Rosary, as I am fully persuaded that – besides Mass attendance – no other weapon in the Catholic armoury is so powerful in its effects, or so easy in its use.

As, though, God forgives so many things for a work of mercy, I have thought to flank my link to the Rosary with a smaller, less demanding link to a short prayer also linked to by Father Z, the Daily Offering to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. This short prayer will take you, literally, twenty-two seconds, but exactly because of its non-demanding nature can become a habit everytime you visit this site.

In case you understand or enjoy Italian – how silly of me: the two are one and the same….. 😉 – below is the scene I was talking about, the beautiful and extremely accurate – with the text used as script; basically, it is the excerpt of an audiobook with images – 1967, Sandro Bolchi rendition of I Promessi Sposi , featuring a beautiful and very moving Paola Pitagora as Lucia and the – as usual – stellar Salvo Randone as the Innominato.
The scene begins at 7:10.

APPEAL: Archbishop Nienstedt on the Threat to Religious Freedom

Please forward.

I read this article on Father Z’s blog, and his invitation to echo it. I am all to glad to help.

Whilst this is more specifically American, the issues at hand are relevant for everyone of us.

If you are American , please consider following the link leading you to a letter template for your member of Congress. In the comment box you will find suggestions now collected about wording and sites to collect electronic petitions if you don’t want to write. I doubt that writing to Sebelius will lead to any result but hey, it’s your adrenaline…..

The deadline is the end of September.

If you have a blog, you may want to echo this.

Mundabor