February 2005 Archives

An interesting interview with Budziszewski, a well-known protestant who just came home to the Catholic Church. One interesting point (I know at least one here who might object ;-) ):

The first push was the discovery that Anglicanism was dying and all but dead. When my wife and I resumed Christian worship, we assumed that the reason the congregation recited the Nicene Creed together was that they all believed it. After years of self-imposed exile, this was indescribably wonderful. The "cloud of witnesses" of which St. Paul speaks was almost palpable; we felt that you could reach out and touch those millions of Christians from bygone generations.

Then came the day when the college chaplain, who happened to be giving the homily that day, announced to the congregation that he "was no longer able" to believe in the Resurrection. I wanted to ask, "What happened to your vows?" and "How dare you continue to call yourself a priest?" But I merely asked, "I see you every week, reciting the Nicene Creed like the rest of us. If you don’t believe it, how can you?"

He responded, "I do it as an act of solidarity with the community." In other words, it meant nothing at all. I came to realize that this was true for a great many Episcopal priests. The principle of doctrinal education in our parish was "anything goes"–that is, anything but historic Christian doctrine. If you stood up for Holy Scripture and Apostolic Tradition you would quickly find yourself on the outs.

The question we faced was whether it would be more pleasing to God to get out of the Episcopal communion altogether, or stay behind as a "faithful remnant."

But why did he become Catholic?

But the ongoing collapse of the Episcopal enterprise forced us to ask deeper questions about the nature of the Church. Our ecclesiology was very nearly Catholic, long before we actually joined the Catholic Church. This fact made our picture of ourselves as part of a "faithful remnant" inside the Anglican communion harder and harder to believe in. After all, if what the Catholic Church teaches about her nature and authority is true, then how can you justify not becoming part of her?

Although we continued to disagree with a number of Catholic dogmas, we suffered a growing suspicion that where we disagreed, it was we who were wrong, not the Church.

Not all converts come into the fold in the same way. For some people on the way into the Catholic Church, the ecclesiastical objection is the last one to be overcome. First they become convinced about doctrine A, doctrine B, and doctrine C, and then at last they becoming convinced that the Church has authority to teach about these matters. For me it was the other way around. First I became convinced that the Church has authority to teach. That didn’t mean that my various difficulties about doctrine A, doctrine B, and doctrine C disappeared, but it converted my "objections" into "obstacles."

After several years of wrestling, becoming convinced on one point after another, I finally found myself able to say with respect to the remaining issues, "I am ready to obey." That turned out to be crucial. As Augustine said, we believe in order to know. There are some things you have to understand before you can accept them–but there are others you have to accept before you can understand them.

That is different from my experience, but I think he probably went about it the right way. You have to start with authority, ultimately. The question is, "Who has the authority to teach truth?" I believe the answer has to begin with a Church that can trace it's history back to the apostles (we all agree that they had the authority). It seems simple, but of course it is difficult.

Continue seeking truth . . . it will set you free.

God bless,
Jay

The darkness is now descending on a human life deemed too worthless to live. At 1:00 PM Michael Schiavo will begin starving the woman he once committed his life to in sickness and in health - apparently he’s decided her mysterious sickness isn’t included.

What really bothers me about this is that Terri’s parents have been trying for years to get Michael to simply give Terri to them. No strings attached. No commitment from Michael. But he is determined to kill his wife for an inexplicable reason. The courts have basically determined that Michael has the ability to starve his wife to death, because she is physically disabled. This is similar to the court decision that allowed the murder of unborn babies, since we aren’t actually human (apparently) until we are born.

I think these two issues, abortion and euthanasia, are inextricably tied together in an unholy net that defined what the Pope means when he says, “Culture of Death.” Our culture misunderstands the basic philosophical argument that Life is valuable in itself. Without this understanding our children, our elders, and those weak or disabled among us are in a very real danger. I recommend everyone look into the Netherlands where doctors can now kill sick children without their parents permission. Do you think it can’t happen here? Take another look at the Terri Schiavo case.

And pray for her. Stop right now and pray, God knows she needs it.

God bless,
Jay

UPDATE: For a more complete history, see Operation Rescue's Information. They also include several ways to help.

At first glance, we have a wide variety of topics in this week’s Catholic Carnival. However, as I read back over the posts, it occurred to me that they all fell in one of two categories: thoughts and prayers (sometimes both). Ultimately I think this is one of the aspects of Lent that is truly beautiful – the Catholic community becomes more and more united in their thought as they individually focus on the coming Crucifixion of Christ. This isn’t a “Vulcan Mind Meld” (for lack of a better term), but it is the unity of the Eucharist elevating all of us to the cross of Christ where we are purified.

Now on to the Carnival:

Thoughts
+ My Domestic Church offers her thoughts on being a “Titus 2 woman” in The Sirach/Titus 2 Solution. Also for men, she covers both taking and receiving advice.

+ HMS Blog explains how Lent helps Jesus bring us to the Promised Land in With Christ. An excellent analysis of Scripture and our mass readings this week.

+ Scattershot examines the neuro-biological underpinnings for belief in God in ”The Grey Matter Handprint”. Interesting discussion on a topic not often brought to the forefront of faith.

+ The Anchoress offers a superb post on the value of life in The Church of Good Health: Body, Mind Spirit? Body . . . Body . . . Body? Take a moment to read this one.

+ A Penitent Blogger offers a short reflection that is part “Thoughts” and part “Prayers” in Thin Lines. How do we respond in a complex world to our Lord’s call to be merciful?

+ HerbEly uses Sunday’s reading from Genesis as an example for making ethical choices at work in Abraham did the “Next Right Thing”. Includes an interesting point about using poetry and myth in discernment.

+ The Paragraph Farmer explores the mindset that Catholics should be cultivating in Your mission, should you choose to accept it . . . . He makes an interesting point about faith, reason, and what is knowable – take a minute to read it.

+ Santificarnos posts another Thoughts and Prayers post with Juan the Milkman. I’ll only say it concerns Saint Josemaria Escriva – read the rest yourself (you’ll be glad you did).

+ Here at Deo Omnis Gloria, we offer our thoughts on the Culture of Life in Terri Schiavo, Million-Dollar Baby, and the future.

Prayers
+ The Blog from the Core starts our Prayers section with a Novena for Michael Schiavo. He makes an excellent point: Michael’s conversion would save Terri Schiavo’s life. I recommend we all take a few seconds to pray this . . . repeatedly.

+ Quenta Nârwenion offers a birthday post for Venerable John Henry Newman in All together now . . .. The post includes a prayer for his canonization and links to some of his other materials (including an interesting letter written by Newman).

+ Living Catholicism concludes the Catholic Carnival with a call for prayers in US Supreme Court to Consider Petition to Reverse Abortion Law Roe v Wade on February 18. Yes, the date is past, but God can transcend time, so your prayers can still help (they announce the decision today).

Conclusion
Hope you enjoyed this week’s Catholic Carnival! I certainly enjoyed working on it. If you’re a Catholic blogger who is interested in participating, email Jay at LivingCatholicism.com to receive each week’s Call for Submissions.

Thanks to all who participated.

God bless,
Jay

Many fellow Christians (Protestants) and members of other religious cults (Jehovah Witnesses, Seventh Day Adventists, etc) often attempt to us certain biblical passages as "proof" that the Catholic teaching on Mary's Perpetual Virginity is untrue and contradicted by the Bible. The first part of this series, Linguistic Issues Regarding the Perpetual Virginity of Mary, dealt with the word "brothers." Inspired by the following comment, I decided it was time to clear up one more commonly misunderstood word used by those attempting to prove that Mary did not remain a virgin after the birth of Christ.

I don’t mean to blow your cover on your site but I don’t think most people today even think of Mary as “ever-virgin” and the first chapter of the New Testament explains why. It speaks of Joseph and Mary at Matthew 1:25 “But he had no intercourse with her UNTIL she gave birth to a son; and he called his name Jesus.”

So let us begin by looking at this passage:

When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took his wife, but knew her not until she had borne a son; and he called hsi name Jesus. - Matt 1:24-25

And at this point all non-Catholics jump for joy shouting "See, see! There it is, clear as day! It says Joseph knew Mary after she gave birth to Jesus!" But in reality, that is not what the verse states nor does it necessarily mean that Joseph ever knew Mary. In the Navarre Bible commentary we find the following:

Following the Greek text strictly, the New Vulgate version says: "et non cognoscebat eam, donec peperit filium." The literal English translation is: "and he knew her not until she had borne a son". The word donec (until) of itself does not direct our attention to what happened afterwards; it simply points out what has happened up to that moment, that is, the virginal conception of Jesus Christ by a unique intervention of God. We find the same word in John 9:18, where it says that the Pharisees did not believe in the miraculous cure of the man blind from birth "until" (donec) they called his parents. However, neither did they believe afterwards. Consequently, the word "until" does not refer to what happens later.
- The Navarre Bible: St. Matthew, Texts and Commentaries; pg. 32

Clearly this understanding would explain why we find so many of the Early Church Fathers proclaiming Mary to be the "Ever-Virgin". So once again a common argument is shown to have no foundation. Mary's perpetual virginity is both valid and in harmony with Sacred Scripture.

In Christ,
Joe

I think the best way to explain our culture is simply saying, “We misunderstand the value of Life.” This year we are getting front-row seats to the rise of a new way of valuing our lives: our productivity.

In the past, life was valued as an immensely important reality – Thomas Jefferson wrote that we all have the freedom to live. But now his beliefs are being destroyed by a society that only values production, not life. In Terri Schiavo’s case, a judge has decided she should die, although there is (a) no evidence she wants to die, and (b) no precedent that suicide is a “right” or an acceptable form of behavior. In the past, a doctor would be indicted for killing a patient and violating the Hippocratic Oath. In today’s world, a judge can order a doctor to do just that and not even a government can step in to stop it.

What stuns me is that we ignore the witness of other countries. Look to the Netherlands for the results of legalized euthanasia: the end-game is the ability of a doctor to determine whether you should live or die. In that country a doctor can now kill a sick child without the parent’s assent; Is this the America you want to live in?

And yet, we have Clint Eastwood standing up for those would kill Terri Schiavo in Million-Dollar, Baby. To make it worse, Clint Eastwood dresses up characters as Christians and insinuates that the loving thing to do is kill those who cannot produce; like Nietzsche, he is redefining “good” to suit his evil ends. And, shamefully, he is pretending like those who are good would agree with him (and he is deceptively advertising his movie, but that’s another post).

Right now a court battle surrounds Terri Schiavo’s right to live. But the national media ignores it. To date bloggers have worked voraciously to stop mistruth and injustice in other cases; how much more should we be doing to stop an innocent woman’s death? A woman whose only crime is a disability – does this make her less worth fighting for?

If we fight for Terri Schiavo we must also work to change a culture the values life in terms of productivity – a materialistic bent that can literally destroy you or your children in the future. This is a tragic situation, but more that just the life of one woman, we are watching a judicial system hellbent on destroying us all.

Pray for Terri Schiavo. Pray for our country. And then do something.

God bless,
Jay

Please take time to read the following article. I ask all of you to take time today to pray for our Supreme Court justices in their considerations of reversing this evil law. This article was taken from LifeSiteNews.com:

US Supreme Court to Consider Petition to Reverse Abortion Law Roe v Wade on February 18

WASHINGTON, February 15, 2005 (LifeSiteNews.com) - On Friday, the US Supreme Court is currently docketed to have an internal, private discussion conference on how to handle a petition to reverse Roe v. Wade. Operation Outcry, the group which launched the petition, is comprised of Norma McCorvey, the former Roe of Roe v. Wade and Sandra Cano, the former Doe of Doe v. Bolton, and the staff of The Justice Foundation, the attorneys representing both of them and the post-abortive witnesses of Operation Outcry: Silent No More.

On January 14, the petition to reverse Roe v. Wade was filed with the United States Supreme Court. It was received by the United States Supreme Court on January 19. On January 17, Martin Luther King's birthday, Norma McCorvey and Allan Parker appeared on Hannity & Colmes to announce the filing. On January 18, a press conference with Norma, Sandra, and the ladies of Operation Outcry: Silent No More, and the lawyers, was held on the steps of the United States Supreme Court.

Operation Outcry has called on pro-lifers to pray for a positive outcome from the court's deliberations.

The petition to reverse Roe has been set for a Supreme Court discussion conference on February 18 with results to be public on February 22.

In Christ,
Joe

The Catholic Church offers us the truth (1 Tim 3:15) in a way we can learn and understand easily. This enables each one of us to grow spiritually as God intended. However, we have an obligation to spend time studying our faith in order to better understand it and better apply it to our lives.

To assist in this growth, I thought I would add a post recommending resources – both books and websites – that will allow you to learn more about Catholicism. I’ll break it up into various sections that speak to specific types of those interested.

Catholic resources for non-Catholics
Just want to learn more about what the Catholic Church teaches? Start with these resources (of course, you can search DeoOmnisGloria.com as well!):

• The Catholic Catechism. This is clearly the best place to start, since it is the official teachings of the Catholic Church. For $8, this book contains exactly what Catholics believe and why (includes lots of Biblical citations). And it’s fairly easy to read.
  
• A Biblical Defense of Catholicism. This book is especially helpful for non-Catholics since it explains in detail the Scriptural foundations of Catholic teaching. It starts with the Bible and works from there, which is what most protestants prefer.
  
• Scriptural Roots of Catholic Teaching. Similar to the book above, this one is slightly more theologically-oriented than the first one. Both are excellent resources.
  
• What Catholics Really Believe. This is a quick read that goes over exactly what Catholics believe in just 155 pages. Most non-Catholics are surprised at exactly what the Church teaches, since many of these teachings are explained incorrectly much of the time. This is a good, concise book on what we believe.
  
• For specific questions, take a look at Catholic Answers or ask in our Suggestion Box. Catholic Answers contains many short articles answering common questions about the Catholic faith.
  

Catholic resources for Catholics
Just want to know more about your faith? Again, I would start with the Catechism (being able to look up any topic and instantly know what the Church teaches is invaluable). Other suggestions:

• The Church on Earth. This is a good book that offers a higher level overview of why the Church exists, what the functions of the Church are, and why we should be members. It’s a great way to begin understanding God’s plan for us.
  
• The Essential Catholic Handbook. This is another book that attempts to explain what Catholics believe, but it does it in a different manner than the Catechism. It’s easily accessible and perfect for Catholics seeking a better understanding of their faith.
  
• Suffering: The Catholic Answer. In my experience, suffering is something that Catholics need to understand, especially as it pertains to Catholicism. This book does an excellent job of explaining the how and why of suffering.
  
• The Vatican website also contains the Catechism, the Code of Canon Law, the 2nd Vatican Council, and some of the Pope's books online. All are searchable and easy to read or print out. This is a perfect resource.
  
• The entire Catholic Encylopedia is also online for your use at no cost. It offers great information on specific doctrines, Saints, and more. Fully searchable, so information is easy to find.
  

More Advanced Resources for Catholics
Know the basics but looking for some more depth in your spiritual understanding? This is a list of additional books that highlight a specific area of Catholic faith – all are important for our lives:

• Theology of the Body for Beginners. Although the title suggests this is a book for novices, Christopher West presents a fairly comprehensive overview of the Pope’s Theology of the Body. In our time, Catholics need to understand this in order to understand what is happening in our society. You’ll enjoy every word.
  
• Splendor in the Ordinary. For most of our lives, we are living in “ordinary time” – the ho-hum reality of life. This book explains how to become holy in ordinary life with a specific focus on family life. Perfect for those looking to improve their spiritual life.
  
• Getting Free. The Christian life is a constant struggle to overcome sin. In this short book, Bert Ghezzi helps us to locate the sin in our lives and develop strategies to overcome temptation and avoid sin.
  
• The Everyday Apostle. Last, but not least, I would recommend taking a look at this book on how to become an apostle for Christ. It’s an excellent synopsis on how to share your Faith and use words, if necessary.
  
• Dave Armstrong, the author of A Biblical Defense of Catholicism also has a blog called Cor ad cor loquitur where he discusses apologetics with protestant evangelists. It's a another (besides this blog) way of getting involved in apologetics.
  

I think all of the books listed above are good references on Catholic life and I hope you take a look at the ones that interest you most.

God bless,
Jay

Lent is upon us and faithful Catholics everywhere are sacrificing the unnecessary "goods" of life in order to focus on the greater good of God coming in the form of Christ to be crucified. Along those lines, the newest Catholic Carnival: Spiritual Nourishment during Lent is now online. There are several good articles included - take a look and fill up!

God bless,
Jay

The following was a response written by one of our commentors under the Entry: DeoOmnisGloria.com Suggestion Box. It is an excellent response to this "important" doctrine held by Jehovah Witnesses. Enjoy!

I could not help but focus in on your third question in regards to the Book of Revelation and the elect 144,000, a passage that your religion holds to the letter. First of all, there are three facts about the elect 144,000 that Jehovah Witnesses are always silent about and to which I would like to bring into the light. The first of these is Revelation 7: 4-8,

“I heard the number of those who had been marked with the seal, one hundred and forty-four thousand marked from every tribe of the Israelites: twelve thousand were marked from the tribe of Judah, twelve thousand from the tribe of Reuben, twelve thousand from the tribe of Gad, twelve thousand from the tribe of Asher, twelve thousand from the tribe of Naphtali, twelve thousand from the tribe of Manasseh, twelve thousand from the tribe of Levi, twelve thousand from the tribe of Issachar, twelve thousand from the tribe of Zebulun, twelve thousand from the tribe of Joseph, and twelve thousand were marked from the tribe of Benjamin.”

This passage with utmost clarity attests that the 144,000 are all Jews. Therefore, this first detail alone of the elect 144,000 found in Revelation raises serious questions in regards to your religion, since, I would venture to guess, most Jehovah Witnesses are not former Jews. If taken literally, Revelation 7: 4-8 clearly excludes the majority, if not all Jehovah Witnesses from being included among the elect 144,000. Why would anyone who only accepts Revelation 7: 4-8 in a literal sense want to be a Jehovah Witness if they are guaranteed to be excluded from that very same 144,000? Instead, why wouldn’t they flock to Judaism or become Jews for Jesus?

I may be slightly behind the times, but wanted to point out today's story about Dawn Eden being fired by the New York Post. Dawn Eden, known by me for her blog The Dawn Patrol, posted about the article here.

Basically, Dawn Eden was a copy-editor for the times. When a story that was factually incorrect came across her desk, she corrected it:

According to Ms. Eden, she was repelled by what she interpreted as a "cavalier" attitude about the embryos in Ms. Edelman’s story: "Treating them as a manufactured commodity that don’t have significance as human life," Ms. Eden said. (Ms. Edelman declined to comment when reached by The Observer.)

"I got choked up," Ms. Eden said. "How are people going to ever understand the complex issues involved here, if the story they’re reading reduces it to ‘Oh, isn’t this nice? We can just make lots of embryos and not worry about whether they live or die.’"

Ms. Eden read a line in the draft of the story: "Experts have ethical qualms about this ‘Russian roulette’ path to parenthood." She saw her opportunity: She added a phrase: " … which, when in-vitro fertilization is involved, routinely results in the destruction of embryos." And where Ms. Edelman had written that one woman had three embryos implanted "and two took," Ms. Eden changed that to read: "One died. Two took."

Ms. Eden said she thought she was performing a service for the reader, since she believed that the Post had been "notoriously oblivious" to the nuances involving embryonic life.

The article also includes background information about Dawn Eden, which is fascinating, particularly her religious past and how she learned about Christianity (not many can say a rock band started them down the path).

Take a minute and read it. Our culture is breeding a new world where faithful Christians aren't accepted or wanted. It's a sickness that even The Post isn't as interested in Truth as they are in spin.

God bless,
Jay

PS - Hat tip to Relapsed Catholic for the article.

I wanted to point out this excellent article in the New Atlantis which explains why embryos are humans using various philosophical arguments. It's an indepth piece, but as part of the culture of Life, we should know the arguments. One interesting quote:

Sandel’s claim that human embryos are not human beings, or not “full human beings,” or merely “potential human life,” simply cannot be squared with the facts of human embryogenesis and developmental biology. Briefly, modern embryology shows the following: (1) The embryo is from the start distinct from any cell of the mother or the father, for it is growing in its own distinct direction and its growth is internally directed to its own survival and maturation. (2) The embryo is human, since it has the genetic constitution and epigenetic primordia characteristic of human beings. (3) Most importantly, the embryo is a complete or whole organism, though immature. From conception onward, the human embryo is fully programmed, and has the active disposition, to develop himself or herself to the next mature stage of a human being. And unless prevented by disease, violence, or a hostile environment, the embryo will actually do so, despite possibly significant variation in its circumstances (i.e., in the mother’s womb). None of the changes that occur to the embryo after fertilization, for as long as he or she survives, generates a new direction of growth. Rather, all of the changes (for example those involving nutrition and environment) either facilitate or retard the internally directed growth of this persisting individual.

The entire article is very good and provides a strong basis for beginning the discussion of embryonic stem cell research. Hat tip to A Saintly Salmagundi.

God bless,
Jay

For more information on and about Lent, take a look at this week's Catholic Carnival. It's focused on Lent and how Catholics prepare for Easter; definitely a worthwhile read.

God bless,
Jay

Recently a reader emailed us a question about the Inquisition and how it relates to the Catholic teaching of infallibility. The answer is simple....it doesn't. As we have said many times on this blog, the Catholic teaching of infallibility is defined as follows:

INFALLIBILITY: The gift of the Holy Spirit to the Church whereby the pastors of the Church, the pope and those bishops in union with him, can definitively proclaim a doctrine of faith or morals for the belief of the faithful (para. 891). This gift is related to the inability of the whole body of the faithful to err in matters of faith and morals (para. 92). - taken from the glossary of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2nd Ed., pg. 883

With that said (again), I would like to focus on a topic that we haven't really covered on this blog - the Inquisition.

Many believe that the Inquisition was a direct activity of the Church that involved the torture and execution of any individual who wasn't Catholic during those "dark" Middle Ages. Nothing could be farther from the truth.

I think in order to best understand the Inquisition we must analyze the century in which it occurred. The 16th century was a brutal time for any individual found quilty of any crime, lest of all treason. In "Protestant" England capital punishment took on its most horrific form - individuals would be hung, cut down while still alive, disembowelled, and then cut into four pieces; hence the phrase "hanged, drawn, and quartered. In France, individuals were boiled alive. And as we know from those stories about the Inquisition, Spain was known to burn guilty individuals at the stake. Extreme punishments for various crimes existed in Muslim, African, New World, and Eastern countries as well but our focus needs to be on "Christian" nations for the sake of this discussion. It was also a time of strong religious and national identity. For the most part, countries in Europe were either Catholic or Protestant. We don't find multiple denominations agreeing to live in harmony, even among different Protestant denominations. Yet certain countries, like Spain, had to deal with the presence of the Moors (Muslims) on their native land due to invasion. In most countries, Jews were also present and for the most part distrusted because they were often believed to be power and money hungry. As sad as this is, it was the nature of those cultures during those centuries.

So what brought on the Inquisition?

Lent is upon us. Starting with Ash Wednesday, Catholics begin celebrating the Liturgical Season of Lent during which we prepare ourselves for salvation, in effect. During Lent we choose suffering to mortify our bodies and focus our thoughts on God as He suffered for us at the first Easter. The verse that always comes to mind for me is:

Col 1:24-25. Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I complete what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church, of which I became a minister according to the divine office which was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known.

The pillars of Lent (as I wrote last year) are fasting, prayer, and almsgiving. Not only for Lent, these are the pillars we need to form a good life, a holy soul, so we pay special attention to them during this time. For example, fasting is a form of suffering we take on to mortify our bodies. Each of us have opportunities every day to “take up our crosses” and follow Christ. The Christian life is a long experience in suffering, which prepares us for the next world (and prevents us from liking this one too much).

I think suffering is the one Christian concept that only the Catholic Church understands. In fact, I have yet to read a reasonable explanation of the verse above from a non-Catholic, since protestants discount the notion that our suffering can sanctify us and work toward our salvation. During Lent, we underline that value by choosing suffering in order to follow Christ.

Luke 9:23-25. And He said to all, "If any man would come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow Me. For whoever would save his life will lose it; and whoever loses his life for My sake, he will save it. For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself?"

Any Christian can choose to try this and I challenge you to try it at least once. Just choose suffering in some way – give up something you enjoy that does not improve your spiritual life. These aren’t bad things (although sins should be the first thing given up), but they can be bad if they distract us from a greater good: God. You’ll be surprised at how much you focus on God when choosing this suffering – it gives you an eager anticipation of the coming Resurrection. This is the power of suffering (a message our world desperately needs).

God bless,
Jay

Click here to vote on your favorite Catholic blogs. Thanks to all who nominated Deo Omnis Gloria! We appreciate the nod.

Now go vote - just pick your favorites from a list.

God bless,
Jay

PS - You don't have to be Catholic to vote and you can just vote in one Category. Apologetics, for example. ;-)

At this point, there are not enough young workers to keep Social Security alive for long. Pretty much everyone agrees - Greenspan has been screaming about this problem for years. But ultimately, all President Bush can really do is treat the effects of a completely different issue.

Regular readers probably know exactly where I'm going: if protestant churches had not abandoned Christian (and Biblical) morality we would not be in this situation. Until 1920's every Christian church agreed that contraception was gravely sinful. Once they abandoned the high ground to acquiesce to popular sin, they paved the road to legalized abortion. Since then our society has been decimated by the lack of lives caused by both issues. Thus, we do not have enough workers to support those who are retiring.

Our sin has pushed us into a corner and now we must change Social Security as if it were the real problem. The real problem is our lack of morality.

God bless,
Jay

The newest Catholic Carnival is now Online. It has 13 great posts from various points of view and is organized around the different forms of prayer. Take a look - you'll be glad you did.

God bless,
Jay