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?!?!