A Swiss Miss

I just came across an article in The Christian Science Monitor that provides information about the recently approved ban of new construction of minarets, towers that are typcially attached to a mosque.  The Swiss are concerned about the "Islamicization" of their society.  What the Swiss fail to realize is that the spread of Islam in Switzerland is possible due to the "hole" that has grown as society has become less religious.  Rather than fear Islam, the Swiss should do everything possible to encourage people to practice their faith.  Banning minarets in Switzerland will do nothing to help the many people that sense that there has to be something more to life.  People should be encouraged in their quest to discover what that "something more" is.  This is a fitting reminder to all of us as we begin Advent.

Sacraments By Fire

We have all heard "baptism by fire".  How about "ordination by fire".  Earlier this year, Archbishop Paulos Rahho of Mosul (Iraq) was kidnapped during an attack that killed several of his assistants.  The archbishop's body was found a few weeks later.  The See of Mosul had been vacant until the election of Archbishop Emil Nono was confirmed on November 13 (a Friday, the 13th).  According to a ZENIT report, a bomb destroyed the Catholic Church of St. Ephrem and an adjoining motherhouse of Domican sisters on Thursday.  There are no reports (yet) about deaths or injuries. 

According to the report, 40 Christians have been killed in Mosul in the past year and 12,000 Christians have fled - as Vatican diplomats predicted when trying to urge the Bush administration to not attack Iraq.

Poor Archbishop Nono.  He is a young man (42 years old) facing significant challenges.  Let's hope he will live to be an old man.

No Dublin The Fun

On Thursday, a significant amount of information related to sexual abuse by clergy in Ireland was released.  In many cases, such information is released begrudingly and under some type of court order.  To his credit, Archbishop Diarmuid Martin of Dublin proactively released the information and even went so far to warn people that the information would bring shame on priests, religious and bishops in Ireland.  In an interview on Irish television, Archbishop Martin appears to be visibly upset by the fact that such abuse was allowed to continue by so many church leaders.  It will be interesting to see the fallout from the release of the information, both in Ireland and in the Vatican.

It Is Not Yet Winter

...but one would not know from the temperature.  This morning, my beloved canine sidekick and I were able to walk across some small frozen puddles.  It certainly feels like winter to me. 

However, not everyone agrees with my assessment of climate.  On the way back from an errand a few minutes ago, a drove behind a shiny Volkswagen Beetle....with its top down.

Holiday Arrivals

One new baby arrived last week and another new baby arrived on Tuesday evening.

Baby #1:  Zander was born to my nephew (by marriage) and his wife.  This marks the beginning of a new generation for our family.  Now that there are four generations, I realize that I am inching closer to the generation that is "on the clock" when it comes to additional life expectancy.

Baby #2:  The grand piano arrived at church on Tuesday evening.  This arrival was made possible by several donations, including a fairly significant donation in memory of my mother.  I felt somewhat responsible, as I was the one that convinced our pastor that our parish really needed a "real" piano, rather than one of those electronic gizmos.  So, I attended Mass on Thanksgiving Day to make sure I could hear the new baby.  Our music director is a very skilled pianist (M.A. in Piano Performance).  The difference is simply amazing.  One can now enjoy dynamics and expression coming from the keyboard.  No longer is there some type of electronic sound being piped through the amplification system. 

Thanksgiving Inaction

For the first time since we were married over ten years ago, my wife and I will be spending Thanksgiving at our own home.  In past years, we always went to visit my parents or her relatives.  Now that both of my parents have passed away and her relatives are "getting up there" in age, we really don't have a Thanksgiving to go to.  It is somewhat of a different, but pleasant feeling.  Our plan is to stay home, watch some football and have a different type of Thanksgiving meal.  We are going to prepare the traditional side dishes - stuffing, green bean casserole, pumpkin pie, etc.  However, we are both "going solo" when it comes to the main dish.  I am going to have pizza and she is going to have shrimp.

As we enjoy the day, I will give thanks that both of my parents had the opportunity to live long, fruitful and relatively healthy lives.  Many people don't have the opportunity to have both parents around for so long. 

Give To Camelot What Belongs To Camelot

Poor Bishop Thomas Tobin.  The leader of the Diocese of Providence is really taking it on the chin for asking U.S. Rep. Patrick Kennedy to refrain from presenting himself for Communion due to his public pro-choice position.  The other day, I saw Chris Matthews going after Bishop Tobin on "Hardball".  Now, according to an article I just read, anti-clergy abuse protesters are active outside of Bishop Tobin's office.

I will be the first to express concern when a bishop refuses Communion to anyone, including a Catholic pro-choice politician.  However, I think the people targeting Bishop Tobin have it wrong.  First, as far as I know, he has not denied or ordered any ministers to deny Communion to anyone.  A few years ago, Bishop Tobin privately requested that Rep. Kennedy refrain from presenting himself for Communion due to his public pro-choice position.  Appropriately so, Bishop Tobin placed the onus on Rep. Kennedy.  Also, Rep. Kennedy is the one that made the request public after he bashed the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops for expressing concern about the possibility of publicly funded abortions being included in health care reform.

Those that think that Bishop Tobin targeted Rep. Kennedy for political reasons are making a big stretch.  Given the timing, it seems to me that the anti-clergy abuse protests against Bishop Tobin are more for political reasons than for justice for abuse victims.

Is this how the two party system works?!?!

No Afterglow Party

Everybody has to write a book, former papal spokesman, Joaquin Navarro-Valls, included (interesting to note that he is a psychiatrist, as well as a journalist).  One might think that Dr. Navarro-Valls would have plenty of "Vatican stuff" about which to talk at news conferences for his new book.  However, Dr. Navarro-Valls took the time to talk about how both U.S. political parties are having a negative impact on not just the U.S., but on the entire world.  Catholic News Service recently published a related article.  His words are spot on.

Oriented Toward Power

I don't know if this is the answer many U.S. Roman Catholic bishops were looking for.  After the sexual assualt crisis broke, part of the response of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) was to spend $2 million to commission a study to get a better idea of the root causes of sexual assaults by clergy.  An Associated Press article provides a summary report of the study findings as they were presented to USCCB member bishops at their meeting in Baltimore.  The authors reported that the study shows that homosexuality is NOT a predictor of sexual assaults by priests - gay priests are no more likely than heterosexual priest to molest children.* Virtually anyone with even the slightest knowledge of the issue knows that sexual assault is a crime based on power, not a crime based on sexual desire or sexual orientation.  I could have told the bishops that for the cost of a plane trip to and from Baltimore and a nice meal.

*Whenever I write about this issue, I remind readers that priests that commit sexual assaults represent an incredibly small percentage of all priests. 

The Party's Over!

The millions of long time readers of this blog should recognize that when it comes to partisan politics, I am a moderate.  I hardly ever vote straight-ticket.  When I do, it is a coincidence - and I have have coincidentally voted straight-ticket for both parties.

I have argued with many people that neither party is inherently more moral than the other.  Of course, my Rebublican friends always argue that they are the pro-life party - just look at their platform.  What these politically naive friends don't realize is that party platforms are just ads to get people elected - they are not promises of how they will govern.  I have been involved in many campaigns where Republicans have quietly told me, "I am really pro-choice, but I have to say I am pro-life to get elected".  I have also had experience with Democrats that have confided that they are pro-life, but had to state they were pro-choice in order to get elected. 

I came across recent articles that provide further evidence that neither party is more moral than the other, even on the issue of abortion!  Click here for article from politico.com.  Click here for AP article.

"Turn out the lights.  The party's over".

Milwaukee? Geronimo!

Let me be one of the first to report Bishop Jerome Listecki, Bishop of La Crosse, WI, has been appointed Archbishbop of Milwaukee.  For those of you that understand Italian, click here.

By Jove, I Think They've Got It

Last week, TIME magazine published an article about some pre-eminent Roman Catholic prelates publicly disagreeing with each other on how to handle pro-choice politicians.  For years, we have seen a steady stream of bishops that spend a fair amount of their resources denouncing pro-choice politicians.  I can understand the necessity of bishops to publicly remind pro-choice politicians of Catholic teachings.  However, the impact of this "piecemeal" approach can be debated.

I would argue that it is much more effective for bishops to devote more resources to a strong and somewhat "under-the-radar" lobbying approach.  I applaud the bishops for the significant role they played in shaping the health care reform proposal that recently passed the House - AP article.  I have always been impressed with the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops staff that work on pro-life issues, especially Richard Doerflinger. 

"The whole is greater than the sum of the individual parts".

How Not To Toe The Line

Oh, the little things we take for granted.  Earlier this morning, I missed the final step on my way to the lower level of our house.  Here is the result:

Yes, a broken toe.  It looks worse than it feels.  However, I do notice it.  I am not able to walk as I normally do.  I found out that it is difficult to run, ride a bike or swim with a broken big toe.  I can no longer achieve my goal of being an internationally famous foot model.

This is a reminder to not take anything or more importantly, anyone, for granted.  We should be far more grateful for the many graces and gifts we have in our lives.  Things can and do always change.

The Big Change

No, not menopause - either male or female.  As evidence that I lead a happily mundane life, I watched the health care reform debate on C-SPAN.  I don't watch C-SPAN too often since it is sometimes too boring for even me.  However, the health care reform debate was pretty interesting.  During the debate, it became clear that the House Democrats did not have enough votes to pass the legislation without the 20 or so pro-life Democrats.  Thus, the pro-life Democrats were allowed to introduce a big change - an amendment that would prohibit federal funds from being used to pay for abortions.  I am certain a deal was struck where this amendment was put forward and approved with the understanding that there will be an effort to remove it when the legislation goes to the Senate.  Nevertheless, the debate on the amendment was what it should be - a discussion of issues:  Should abortion be covered in the bill?  If not, can states provide funding to cover abortions?  Should federal funding in any way be used to pay for abortions?  It was one of the few good debates I have seen on C-SPAN.

The "Curse" of the Cubs

What does the manager of the New York Yankees do a few hours after his team wins the World Series?  Click here to find out.  I think this may have more to do with Joe Girardi being a former Chicago Cub than with him being the current manager of the World Series champion New York Yankees.

Seeking a Presidential Pardon

On the drive to work recently, I noticed several law enforcement vehicles.  I assumed that they may have been part of a speed limit enforcement effort (aka:  speed trap).  As I kept driving, I noticed an increasing number of law enforcement officers and vehicles - perhaps up to 50.  I also noticed numerous barricades along the side of the highway.

A few hours after arriving at work, I had the "aha" expereince.  I noticed that traffic on one of the lanes of the highway in front of my office disappeared.  I then saw several police motorcycles drive by.  Then I saw it - the Presidential limosine.  Since it drove by on the far lane of the highway, I could not make out who the occupants were.  However, when they came by in the other direction a couple of hours later (I was prepared and waiting closer to the highway), I was able to spot President Obama in the back seat of one of the limosines.  This was the first time that I have seen a sitting (no pun intended) U.S. President.  I had always hoped that I would have had the opportunity to see a current U.S. President.  That hope was realized.

When President Obama drove by, I prayed that all elected officials clearly recognize the difference between being elected and serving the people.  So many politicians see the former as their goal and disregard the latter.