Św. Efremie, wyznawco i pokutniku, uproś nam u Boga tę łaskę, abyśmy poprawili życie swoje. Grzechy nasze ciężkie, złe nałogi, i względy światowe utrudniają nam nawrócenie. Oby łaska boża wzmocniła wolę naszą, i dopomogła do stanowczej odmiany życie. Amen.
The BLOGCORNER Preacher has a take on John Danforth’s recent profile piece in the Washington Post.
The award for best lines goes to the following:
As a mainline Episcopal priest, retired U.S. senator and diplomat, Danforth worships a humbler God and considers the right’s certainty a sin.
The article is, basically, about what a nice fellow John Danforth is, and what knuckle-dragging troglodytes those beastly evangelicals are.
Now, to me, the term “mainline Episcopal priest” could just as easily have been “priest of Satan.”
…and
…it appears that he’s fallen into the trap of politicizing Christianity, which is the crime he accuses us of. How so? Because he urges that we all become “moderate”, and should occupy “the Christian middle.”
Sounds like someone who is embarrassed by the Gospel, in that it might offend some.
The original WaPo article is here…
From an article in the Albany NY Times Union:
Study: Hospital care fails women
Catholic facilities deny access to emergency contraception, health group’s survey finds by Michele Morgan Bolton, Staff writer
ALBANY — Results of a national survey released Thursday say Catholic hospitals in New York routinely deny mandated access to emergency contraception to women, including victims of sexual assault.
The concentrated dose of oral contraceptives or “morning after” pills protect against pregnancy up to 120 hours after intercourse, by inhibiting ovulation and fertilization. It is not to be confused with the abortion pill, RU-486.
The study by Washington, D.C.-based Catholics for A Free Choice, a women’s health care advocacy group, said staff at 94 facilities in New York, California, South Carolina and Washington said no such emergency contraceptive treatment is available at their hospital 35 percent of the time.
Boy, that’s a misnomer… Catholics for A Free Choice is a pro abortion, pro murder, and pro homosexual group. Healthcare is the furthest thing from their mission. For an expose of the organization see The Catholic Leagues primer on the group: The Real Agenda of Catholics For A Free Choice.
While 7 percent in the overall study said emergency contraception is available upon request for all women, another 20 percent of respondents either tried to evade the calls, hung up on the callers or, at times, scolded them, according to the poll.
“The results were mixed at best, and devastating at worst,” said Catholics for a Free Choice president Frances Kissling. “Women of many different religions seek emergency care at Catholic hospitals, in part, because of their reputation for compassionate, quality care. That the Catholic hospitals we surveyed would turn women away in their time of need … is not only a violation of the law, it is a violation of their mission.”
Dennis Poust, a spokesman for the Catholic Conference of New York State, said he was unaware of any sexual assault victims who have come forward and said they’ve been denied services.
“Until they do? I’m not going to take this seriously,” he said. “They’re not a Catholic organization. Their mission is to undermine the church.”
I would agree.
Now, do not get me wrong. My Church has a different attitude toward marriage and the place of procreation in marriage. We see no impediment to the use of non-abortive contraception within the context of marriage.
The real issue here is the finger pointing that will lead to forced compliance with an unjust law. Does anyone, except these fringe groups, want this war?
The simple fact is that Roman Catholic Hospitals are indeed that, Roman Catholic. What do these people expect? These institutions, along with colleges, orphanages, and other social benefit agencies were founded, and still exist, as a major part of the world’s health care and human services milieu.
While some institutions, like some formerly Roman Catholic colleges, might very easily give up their values and teachings in then face of the —Law— or —social trends—, the tendency in the past 5-10 years, to impose legal obligations, contrary to the faith and morals of Roman Catholic institutions, and to impose them on those institution, is completely un-American.
You can see this in the recent Boston scandal concerning Catholic Charities —legal— obligation to provide adoption services to homosexuals. You can see this in New York State laws forcing the provision of health insurance covering contraception on Roman Catholic institutions.
Imposing obligations of this type is completely contrary to American legal tradition. In fact, I look at it as one of those slippery slopes.
Some of the things that make me shake my head:
The ‘duh’ factor. How do the finger pointers and lawmakers expect these institutions to act? In compliance with laws that are gravely against their teachings and values? How about a law that forces everyone to eat pork on Friday night?
Legislators with agendas will quickly find that their methods, when adopted by people opposed to their point of view, will bring greater harm to themselves and the greater public good.
State governments and indeed the United States as a whole cannot provide adequate education for children, adequate nutrition, adequate health care, and other basic needs. Sure legislators struggle with this and many desire what is best. Isn’t it then counterintuitive to push those doing the work, walking the walk, into dilemmas. It adds to the prevailing antagonism in society.
Maybe lawmakers first question should be – can we fund an across-the-board replacement of services provided by Roman Catholic institutions? I think not.
From my point-of-view, if nominal Roman Catholic institutions wish to be secular, ok, get rid of the name, wash out the tradition, and convert yourselves to a secular agency. Follow the —Law—. On the other hand, those Roman Catholic organizations and Religious Orders that run institutions, hospitals, and colleges should get in line with the Church’s teaching and make a stand.
Standing in the face of injustice and nut case organizations like CFFC will do more to protect everyone (including the rights of CFFC) than a go along to get along attitude.
Prosimy Cię wszechmogący Boże o te łaskę, abyśmy za wstawieniem św. Błażeja biskupa, wolnymi byli od wszelkich chorób ciała, i od różnorakich złych myśli i zachceń czystymi pozostali. Amen.
I highly recommend you read the interview with Chris J. Davis over at the Godbit Project (Theology + Technology).
Mr. Davis is a full-on contributor to the WordPress project and co-designer of the WordPress K2 theme along with Michael Heilemann.
Mr. Davis discusses not only design but the God granted gifts behind being a designer. He notes that he is a member of the American Orthodox Church (see comments) and testifies to his faith.
Mr. Davis has a new book coming out, Blog Design Solutions, that he collaborated on and has his own blog at Sillyness Spelled Wrong Intentionally.
Good reading all the way around.
Yes, he is coming, says the LORD of hosts.
But who will endure the day of his coming?
And who can stand when he appears?
Faith —“ pure, simple, faith.
My dear people,
Do you have faith? Do I have faith? I would say that it is nearly impossible to know if someone has faith. Sure, they might appear to be holy, good, committed to the Church. But do they have faith? Do outward signs reveal something about what is inside?
It is a difficult question. Even when we examine ourselves we may be left wondering. Do I have the faith God asks me to have?
Did the prophet Malachi have faith?
The people of Israel had returned from exile in Babylon. Malachi looked around and saw that the Jewish people had very quickly given up on being thankful, on being faithful. Malachi was actually a pen name. His prophecy was so strong and critical of the priests, rulers, and people of the time that he had to hide his identity. Malachi criticized everyone’s religious indifference.
Malachi’s time was much like ours. The people had stopped being thankful for God’s love. For all that God sets before us; the beauty of the world and the dignity of every life. The people took pagans as wives and turned from the Law. They turned from God to what they thought was rational and critical thinking. They thought they could reason everything out. God became someone they could challenge and question, rather than God whom they should worship and adore.
Does that sound familiar? Hasn’t the world given up being thankful to God? Do we mix with and accept those who do not accept Christ —“ and do so on their terms. Do we pray and work for their conversion? Do we place our faith in reason rather than revelation?
Did Malachi have faith? Indeed, and he proclaimed it:
Lo, I am sending my messenger
to prepare the way before me;
And suddenly there will come to the temple
the LORD whom you seek,
And the messenger of the covenant whom you desire.
He believed and proclaimed what the Lord told him. He lived it.
A Orthodox Priest, Fr. Stephen Freeman, recently wrote, —…the simple prayers and, yes, experience, of someone who doesn’t do all that we attempt in theology, but actually prays, is simply closer to God.—
On this Solemnity of the Presentation we ethnic Poles, as well as many of the Catholic faithful have candles blessed. They are referred to in Polish as —gromnica— or the thunder candle.
This candle is a sacramental. Something symbolic and holy that helps us to focus our thoughts on God, on our faith. The sacramentals prepare us to receive God’s grace
Boiling it down, the simple faith found in the use of this candle, of having this candle in your home and using it, is one of those seeds of faith. It is a means by which we show our faith and proclaim our faith.
When Grandma heard a storm coming or the power went out, when someone was ill or in trouble, she brought out the gromnica, and placing it in the window, lit it. She then sat down and prayed.
It was an act of simple faith. God will protect us. The Blessed Virgin, Matka Boska Gromnica, will watch over us and intercede for us.
My brothers and sisters,
As a child watching this I learned, not intellectually, but by faith-filled example. I learned the reality of complete faith and complete trust in God. There is nothing to fear, God is with us.
I learned that nothing can withstand the prayer of the people and the blessing of the Church. Not sickness or death, not storms or darkness. God’s light penetrates all.
This is how we learned our faith. I pray that every family teach their children by example. Knowledge, the theology that edifies faith will come in time.
I call on you, here and now, make your life a life of faith. Do it in words, by example, and in your studies. Be a person of faith in the home and at work.
That is the key to faith. The key is living it.
When you come to this church, when you genuflect, bow, come forward for Holy Communion, when you take ashes on your forehead and get your throats blessed, when you kneel at the consecration of this awesome sacrifice —“ what are you doing? If you have no faith you are a fool and a clown. If this be not the Christ, if this be not God, what are you doing?
Be faith-filled in everything you do and every moment of your life. Remember to live your faith. If you do these things, do them with true faith. Do them with complete love, trust, and worship of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Simeon and Anna waited. They waited in faith and prayer. They waited for the promise of God, a promise Malachi proclaimed 500 years before their time, a long wait and a long time to persevere in faith. A lot of water went under the bridge before the fulfillment of all our longing and hope.
And Simeon, on seeing the Christ, proclaimed in the Temple:
Now dismiss Thy servant, O Lord,
In peace, according to Thy word:
For mine own eyes hath seen Thy salvation,
Which Thou hast prepared in the sight of all the peoples,
A light to reveal Thee to the nations
And the glory of Thy people Israel.
He died in faith. By faith you will endure the day of His coming and stand when He appears.
Amen.
Boże, któryś błg. Agnieszkę i jej towarzyski podwójną ozdobił koroną, panieństwa i męczeństwa, użycz nam tej łaski abyśmy za ich wstawiennictwem ochotnie znosili krzyże i dolegliwości życia, i zasłużyli sobie za zbawienie wieczne. Amen.
The EC-USA —“ Diocese of Washington has voted to begin the process of making Thurgood Marshall, former Supreme Court Justice, a saint. Yes this is real and is posted at the Diocese of Washington website.
WASHINGTON , D.C. —“ Deputies to the Episcopal Diocese of Washington’s 111 th annual convention voted Friday to ask the 2006 General Convention of the Episcopal Church to include the late Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall in the church’s book of Lesser Feasts and Fasts.
From the Marshall wiki:
His most frequent ally on the Court (indeed, the pair rarely voted at odds) was Justice William Brennan, who consistently joined him in supporting abortion…
Indeed, Marshall concurred with the majority in Roe v. Wade.
As soon as Gene Robinson is added to the list of saints the temple will be complete.
Think the Book of Daniel was not amoral enough? This time NBC will mock Jesus Crucified as well.
Britney Spears is set to appear in NBC’s Will & Grace. She will portray a Christian conservative sidekick to Jack on his show on —Out TV— – “Jack Talk”
The plot (yeah right) involves the sale of “Out TV” to a Christian Television Network, and Spears is brought on to be Jack’s new religious co-host (like that would happen —“ I would think Jack would be but a distant bad memory).
Allegedly Will and Jack loosen her up —“ hey it’s easy to throw out Christian convictions in the face of homosexual “””truth””” —“ right?
Spears brings her own additions to the talk show when she decides to do a cooking segment called “Cruci-fixin’s.”
O św. Ignacy, biskupie i męczenniku, któryś przesz ulubionego ucznia Chrystusa, św. Jana apostoła, do wielkiej miłości Zbawiciela zachęconym został, uproś nam u Boga tę łaskę, abyśmy Chrystusa również gorąco kochali i według jego przykazań żyli. Amen.