"Rescue those being led to the slaughter..." (Proverbs 24:11)

Press release from: The Order of Mercy at Gethsemane


In affiliation with the Order of Mercy at Gethsemane (OMG), two rescuers sought to prevent the mass murder that obtains almost daily at the Planned Parenthood extermination camp on Bleecker Street in New York City. The rescue took place on December 12 last year, the feast of our Lady of Guadalupe.

Illegally - since the State has no right to protect crimes against humanity - the Guadalupe rescuers were arrested, and an FBI investigation was able to learn their identities. They were released on their own
recognizance, but on April 27 in a press release lauding Planned Parenthood, the Justice Department saw them convicted of violating the illegal and criminal federal statute known as the FACE act.
The rescuers are subject to six months imprisonment and fines. Their sentencing is scheduled for June 10, whence, if imprisoned as anticipated, they will begin to absorb some small measure of the injustice inflicted on the unborn.
Two women, also affiliated with the order, are in jail for the same reasons in Canada, one of them due to two rescues that took place during Holy Week this year. Last year there were three rescues at the Bleecker St. extermination camp. While these four are in jail, no child will die without a born ally willing to stand with them. The Order of Mercy accordingly commends them, and those with whom they stand, to your daily prayers.

Gay Superculture in Miami Archdiocese

More is coming out about the reason Archbishop John Favalora resigned from Miami eight months early and it's really ugly. Check it out here and here. How many other bishops are running the same kind of scam in their dioceses? Not to mention the Catholic college presidents who are scandalizing their students. Where heresy and dissent reign, can general immorality be far behind?

Who has access to your private information?

This is shocking! How many times have you copied your income tax forms at a local print shop? How many times has your doctor copied your insurance information and your driver's license? How many companies you deal with are copying documents relating to your accounts? Do you think you have any privacy these days?


Watch CBS News Videos Online

Planned Parenthood: Butchering Babies and Enabling Rapists

I recieved a fundraising letter yesterday from Life Legal Defense Foundation (LLDF). They are pursuing a lawsuit against Planned Parenthood because the massive abortion business covered up the statutory rape of a 13-year-old Ohio girl by her 21-year-old soccer coach. When the rapist brought the little girl for an abortion, Planned Parenthood ignored Ohio law that requires mandatory notification of the parents of underage children. They also failed to report the rape to authorities. LLDF needs money to continue to pursue the lawsuit. I'm sending a donation! This is one pro-life legal group you can trust. Besides being endorsed by Fr. Frank Pavone, they have a four star rating from Charity Navigator.

The letter included some interesting facts about the money PP is raking in while up to their necks in the blood of babies. Here's what LLDF reports:

As you know, Planned Parenthood makes a lot of money off abortion.

The Wall Street Journal once dubbed Planned Parenthood as "Abortion Central" (Feb. 1, 1994).

Planned Parenthood pulls in more than $810 Million a year off their abortion and contraception business! According to their Annual Reports...

• Since 1987, they have reported a total of $8.35 Billion worth of income!
• $2.95 Billion came from clinic income (36%)
• $2.71 Billion came from government grants and contracts (32%), and
• $2.24 Billion came from private contributions (27%).

As you can see, baby-killing is a very lucrative business! When you multiply those 227,375 abortions they do every year by the aberage price of $400, it's $91 Million a year!

To make matters worse, Planned Parenthood recieves massive funding from wealthy corporations and tax-exempt foundations -- $228 Million a year!

They even get taxpayer money from the U.S. Government -- about $254 Million a year!

And in Virginia, Planned Parenthood is now receiving money from a "pro-choice" license plate. Governor Bob McDonnell, who claims to be pro-life, could have vetoed the bill requiring the pro-choicers to put their money where their mouth is by directing the fee to adoption or other services that offer women a real choice. Instead, the plate is one more conduit for funneling money to the killers at Planned Parenthood.

Take every opportunity to expose the evil of Planned Parenthood. For ideas, visit Stop Planned Parenthood (STOPP) and sign up for their weekly email notification.

 

Sex Ed: A Plague Inflicted on Children

I received an inquiry today about sex education and how to fight it. (Sigh...) Some things never change. Pro-family folks were fighting sex ed in Fairfax County, VA back in the 70s. Planned Parenthood's brand of sex ed was polluting the middle schools and high schools. Sex games and values clarification programs were undermining parental teaching. The condom on the banana (or the girl putting the condom on the boys finger - even worse!) was going on all over the place. The raping of our children's hearts and minds was in full tilt, and one can see from the state of the culture that it was successful. How many parents saw their grandchildren arrive without the benefit of marriage and the protection of a stable family or the demonic horror of grandchildren murdered before birth?

Yes, sex ed has been successful. As Alan Guttmacher told Planned Parenthood, they would get abortion on demand through sex ed in the schools. And the battle rages on.

Here's what I sent back to the sex ed inquiry, but I've elaborated on it. Perhaps I'm too pessimistic, but my first advice is always: home school if you can! The public schools are so polluted with the culture of death that you endanger your children by putting them there:

Matt Abbott forwarded your email and I am responding. I fought the sex ed program in Fairfax County, VA 25 years ago. To be honest, it is a losing battle, but that doesn't mean it should not be fought. Ultimately, the school system in Fairfax threw everybody out (including pro-life groups) but Planned Parenthood's agenda remained and remains in the system.

The new bullying programs and "safe touch" programs are just sex ed lite and they include "tolerance" for the gay agenda under the guise of protecting vulnerable students being persecuted. Gay-Straight Alliance groups which are increasing dramatically are also about building the gay agenda.

The only group of students who can be persecuted without fear of retaliation from the system are Christians. Even teachers engage in ridicule in many places. Students with offensive T-shirts are tolerated. Students who wear pro-life or Christian T-shirts are disciplined. It is a sad situation and I encourage people to home school. Obviously, though, everyone can't do that and the next best thing is to fight and let your children see you fight. Although sometimes that is a losing battle too as the David Parker situation in Massachusetts shows.

Many school systems are telling parents to butt out. They think they own your children during the school day and you have no right to be informed about anything they do. (My daughter-in-law recently found out about the "day of silence" two weeks after it took place at her daughter's middle school in Austin, TX. The principal was totally unsympathetc to parents' concerns when they objected. I'm happy to say my DIL has decided to home-school her children including her rising 9th grader.)

The sources who are best able to advise on this matter I think are Jim Sedlack at Stopp Planned Parenthood, also Human Life International and American Life League. Another source is Randy Engel who wrote Sex Education, the Final Plague. Sex ed in the public schools is nothing but contraceptive education with abortion as a backup. The programs are anti-child stressing what a nuisance kids are and how they ruin your life. (There is a particularly objectionable program that uses a baby doll that cries at random times. The doll uses the distress cry and of course there is none of the positive feedback mothers get from their children. Many young girls after going through a program like that say they never want children.)

Unless it's an abstinence only program (and even those have problems) sex ed in the classroom is nothing but fornication training with a claim that consequences will be non-existent. Nonsense. Even if they don't address abortion directly the message is clear that there is a solution to "mistakes." And, of course, there are many other consequences as well including sexually transmitted diseases which are rampant among the young.

I hope this is helpful. Parents banding together and fighting is the only way to have an impact, but success will be measured in baby steps. And Planned Parenthood has a lot of money and they are using it to go after the kids big time.

Remember that tyrants always try to take control of the kids. Those who control the young control the future. Hitler had his Hitler Youth. Mao had his Youth Army. Stalin had his Stalinist Youth Movement. And our own president has his Obama kids program. Parents, protect your children. You are their first and primary educators; you are also the first line of defense. Fathers, you have a particular obligation. Teach the faith!

Susan G. Komen Foundation Lies to Women

Susan G. Komen's Race is coming up again in June so it's a good time to reveiw this organization's problematic relationship to the abortion/contraception industry. They claim to be "racing for the cure" but actually race straight toward the biggest abortion provider in the country, Planned Parenthood. Simultaneously they run in the opposite direction from the multitude of facts linking breast cancer to abortion and contraception. Talk about giving women a raw deal while pretending to be their champions. That's like Playboy magnate Hugh Hefner claiming to respect women for their intelligence.

Komen may be politically correct, but they are morally wrong and they are not helping women when they sweep the truth under the rug. But we're all used to cover ups and those pink ribbons are sooooo cute. Check out the facts here. Run as far away from this organization as you can.

More Persecution of Christians

How many Christians will be thrown out of medicine, counseling, pharmacy, etc. for daring to stand courageously for Christ. Check out this case where a counseling student working toward her masters was told to counsel homosexuals and affirm their behavior. What do you think about this type of discrimination? Do people have a right to conscience? Should doctors be forced to kill babies through abortion? Should pharmacists be forced to fill prescriptions for drugs that kill? Should counsellors be told they must affirm immoral behavior like fornication, sodomy, etc.? Christians are facing more and more persecution. We need to put on the armor of Christ and hold our ground. Pray for this young woman and for all the legal groups fighting for the rights of Christians.

With Tongue in Cheeck - or is he serious?

This gave me the chuckle of the day. Basically it's an "adopt a tax receiver" just like those "adopt a child" programs. Sounds like a winner to me.

O'Connor: Send Your Taxes Straight to the Needy

The 13th Day: the Story of Fatima

I watched The 13th Day last night with DH (shorthand for "dear husband" for the uninitiated). It's a 2009 film about the miracle of Fatima and I think it is superb. I've read Lucia's memoirs and the movie is true to the events. Choosing to shoot primarily in black and white and sepia tones, with color saved for the vision of hell and the miracle of the sun, the cinematographers made a good choice. It gives a sense of the historical period when things happened. Since the newsreel shots of World War I are also in black and white it also provides a consistency that was effective. The technical aspects of the film are fine and well done although the nighttime sky with the moon and stars looks fake as does some of the rain in the miracle sequence. Those are small criticisms in an overwhelmingly effective presentation which was shot mainly on location in Portugal.

One of the things I especially appreciated about the film was the screenplay. Often anachronisms creep into modern films about older events (Check out the ridiculous dialogue in the Richard Burton/Liz Taylor extravaganza Anthony and Cleopatra), but these writers avoided that. All the conversations are stamped with the historical time without being stilted.

The opening scene shows Lucia as an adult and now a nun writing her memoirs at the direction of her superior. She sits at a desk by candlelight telling the story as she writes. Occasionally, she appears again as a third person narrator. The switch between present and past is effectively done.

The children are wonderfully portrayed by the little actors as are the parents, especially Lucia's mother played by Jane Lesley. In her book about the events, Fatima in Lucia's Own Words, Lucia describes how severe her mother was. You see that throughout, but without the woman becoming a stereotyped "mommie dearest." Her mother's gradual softening culminates in a tender scene near the end when Momma tells Lucia she will attend the October 13th apparition and "die" with her. Jacinta and Francisco's father was also well-portrayed. He never doubted the children and the exchange with Lucia's dad about "acting like a father" was played in an understated, not macho, way. I found it touching. In a culture where fatherhood has been so denigrated, it is refreshing to see a man played with quiet strength and dignity. He made me think of St. Joseph.

The only jarring note I found in the film was the scene when the children are taken by the mayor of Ourem and put in the jail cell with the male prisoners. One of the men, the most menacing in fact, dances with Jacinta. I couldn't help thinking about the child sex abuse scandals as he picked her up and held her in his arms. But that is putting a modern interpretation on a past event, one that really happened. Here's how Lucia described it in her first memoir:

Among the prisoners, there was one who played the concertina. To divert our attention, he bgan to play and they all started singing. They asked us if we know how to dance. We said we knew the [fandango] and the [vira]. Jacinta's partner was a poor thief who, finding her so tiny, picked her up and went on dancing with her in his arms! We only hope that Our Lady has had pity on his soul and converted him!

As I watched the film there were several times I noticed a resemblance between my grandson Ryan, who is sweet and tender-hearted, and Francisco, the little shepherd boy. It made me smile and reminded me how similar children can be even separated by generations and an entire way of life.

I reread a portion of Lucia's memoirs after seeing the movie and found lines that were directly incorporated into the script. Obviously, Ian and Dominic Higgins the producers, directors, and scriptwriters for the film, as well as the main catalyst for everything else, had great respect for the story and wanted to portray it accurately. In an interview on The 13th Day website, Ian pointed this out saying:

The 13th Day is a dramatization of actual events and most of the characters that appear in the film actually existed, so research was crucial from that point of view and from day one, everyone on the team was committed to realizing this film in such a way that it kept as true to the actual events as possible. As filmmakers we’re also very big believers in the value of research as inspiration too. We’ve found so many great ideas for a scene, hiding away in the pages of an old book while researching the script. It’s like digging for gold, there are so many fantastic nuggets of information buried away, just waiting to be re-discovered, it’s a really exciting part of the process.

If you have wondered about Fatima and what happened there, you don't want to miss this movie. It would make a great addition to any Catholic familiy's film library giving a glimpse into extraordinary events that occasionally happen to ordinary people. I found it an inspiration to the soul and satisfying proof that it doesn't take big bucks to tell a great story. This was the first feature-length film from this talented pair which gives one great hope for the future. Hollywood no longer has a stranglehold on the industry, praise God. I highly recommend The 13th Day!

Celebrate Strong Women

Women of Yesteryear by Jim Thunder

I liked this article very much. There's something profoundly respectful about celebrating the lives of your ancestors. And I'm jealous of Jim for knowing so much about his past. I know very little about my family beyond my grandparents' generation. My mom was adopted and had a great devotion to her adoptive parents, but she knew nothing about her birth family except that her parents were married and she was adopted at age three.

I wish I'd asked my dad more about his family. My grandfather on his side was raised in Wisconsin. Daddy said when Grandpa was a boy he earned a nickle a cup for pulling potato bugs off the crops. My grandmother was the youngest of thirteen and an amazingly versatile woman. She could do every kind of needlework and produced some absolutely beautiful things. I still have a few. But she also learned to develop her own film and to paint and make ceramics. She taught retarded children and my mom said people whose children she schooled came up to her at Grandma's funeral and said they don't know what they would have done without her. I wish I'd known her better. My grandparents visited infrequently and we moved frequently because of Daddy's job in the Navy. She was stern and I was afraid of her as a little girl. Now as an adult I'm sorry I never got to know her.

Praise God for your own ancestors today, especially the "founding mothers" of your family. I often offer daily Mass for my ancestors, especially those who passed on the faith. And that means I'm praying especially for the first teachers, the moms, who taught their little ones to pray and to think about the things of God.

Jim includes a list of books for those interested in reading about pioneer women. What a great addition for girls after they finish The Little House books. Sounds like a treasure trove for home schoolers.

Joanna L. Stratton, Pioneer Women: Voices from the Kansas Frontier
Harriet Fish Backus, Tomboy Bride
Margaret A. Frink, Covered Wagon Women: Diaries & Letters from the Western Trails
Conrad Richter's trilogy, The Trees, The Fields and The Town
Jane Jacobs, editor, A Schoolteacher in Old Alaska: The Story of Hannah Breece
Virginia Cornell, Doc Susie: The True Story of a Country Physician in the Colorado Rockies
Carol Crawford McManus, Ida: Her Labor of Love
Agnes Morley Cleaveland, No Life for a Lady (Women of the West).

The Dream Goes On

In January, Susan Boyle sang at a benefit concert for Haitian Relief in Copenhagen. Her Britain's Got Talent  appearance was the most watched YouTube video of 2009. What a fairy tale story. Pray that Susan retains her small-town realness.

Your Government at Work

While economy crumbled, top financial watchdogs at SEC surfed for porn on Internet:

"The shocking findings [of a study of the SEC] include Securities and Exchange Commission senior staffers using government computers to browse for booty and an accountant who tried to access the raunchy sites 16,000 times in one month."

"Seventeen of the randy employees were 'at a senior level' earning salaries of up to $222,418."

Your government tax dollars at work. Makes you feel all warm and fuzzy inside to know government bureaucrats are finding comfort on the job.

When Will Fr. Pfleger Be Disciplined, Cardinal George?

We're Called to Be the Church Militant, Not the Church Picnic

This Is Art?

Cleaning off my desk this morning I came across an article I saved about an exhibit at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. Let me be honest. I have a love-hate relationship with the National Gallery. The west wing is one of my favorite places in the city. The religious paintings by Fra Angelico, Millet, Rembrandt, El Greco, the engravings of Albrecht Durer, even the nasty little demons of Hieronymus Bosch -- all invite one to a serious reflection on the most important things in life.

When I was home schooling I would take my children to meet their cousins at the gallery for scavenger hunts. "Find a painting with an angel kneeling. Find David standing over the head of Goliath holding the giant's sword. Find a painting with an insect. (I included this because there's a portrait of a Churchman with a fly on his cassock. I wish I could remember the artist. I always wondered if he included the fly because it was bothering both him and his subject.) Find a sculpture of an unusual animal." The scavenger hunt was a fun way to introduce children to the great masters, and we spent many happy hours exploring  the exhibit halls of the west wing.

And then there's the east wing which houses the modern art collection. Don't get me wrong. I like some modern art. I particularly enjoy the colorful works of Marc Chagall. But much of modern art is simply nonsense. I remember an exhibit in the east wing years ago which supposedly depicted the stations of the cross (I only knew that from the title.) It consisted of fourteen white canvases sporting lines positioned in different places illustrating each station. I'm serious. I stood in the middle of the room and said, "The Emperor has no clothes." It's the same way I feel about Andy Warhol and his Campbell's Soup can. This, along with Mark Rothko's black paintings, demonstrates the con man at work. Perhaps that's where the term "con artist" comes from. Warhol always seemed to be wearing a cheshire cat grin. I wonder if he was thinking that there's a sucker born every minute to keep charlatans in business.

Which brings me to the current exhibition in the east wing tower running through January next year. It reflects the dark side of the museum - literally. A special exhibit of Mark Rothko (The museum has lots of his work.), it consists of seven large canvases in various shades of black.

Last month, Blake Gopnik wrote a gushing review in The Washington Post. By the time I got to the end of the article I thought he couldn't possibly be serious. He must be putting the reader on. More's the pity if he was actually serious. Let me give you a sample of what he wrote. Here's how he describes the paintings:

Close looking at these seven pictures - they repay hour after hour of attentive contemplation--made me realize...that they are so rich in their own particularities. They aren't just black on black.... They are every color of black against every other tone and hue and shade of it. Those distinctions, rather than their common gloom are what really come to matter about them. After an hour or two of looking, some of the paintings in this dispaly can end up seeming almost colorful, as though all that shared blackness cancels itself out.... To get anything at all from them beyond the poorest paraphrase of them as merely "black" -- you have to keep moving around them, from near to far and side-to-side, catching at the way different lightings and angles of view reveal different things about them..... Looking at the "dour" blackness in these pictures, it turns out, is all about the joyous light it takes to make that looking possible at all -- it's a kind of paradox, and like most brainteasers, it's full of restless energy. It is literally a lighthearted affair. As you look at these fiendishly complex paintings, you also become aware of the tremendously energetic artist who brought them into being....

Uh...yeah. Could anyone really spend an hour or two looking at those things? I'm getting the same feeling I had about the "Stations of the Cross" exhibit. If this is art, my one-year-old grandaughter's scribblings are masterpieces. As for the reviewer, well, there's no accounting for taste. If he wants to consider different hues of black as art, I might suggest he do a review of the paint sample wall at Lowes.

Gopnik began his article with a fanciful notion (not the artist's) about the paintings being "flesh-colored." He admits that, "Of course when Mark Rothko painted these works in 1964, he didn't have the skin of African Americans in mind. I'm' suggesting that we might want to as we look today." Again, could he possibly be serious or was this his idea of an early April fool's joke?

He then pooh-poohed those who might be tempted to describe the work as moody or dark and relate it to Rothko's suicide in 1970. But why is that interpretation any less accurate than his claim that the paintings are "light-hearted"?

I've been longing to take the trek into D.C. to visit the National Gallery again. If I do, I may just drop in at the east wing for my chuckle (or sigh) of the day. The disintegration of art forms to the banal and ridiculous is typical of a culture in decline. Can anyone deny that the United States in in decline? This is just one more sad example.

We often hear the Middle Ages described as "dark," an irony when one considers the soaring cathedrals, stained glass windows, and illuminated manuscripts. No, it is much more accurate to call our age dark. And if you want to see what that means literally, immerse yourself in modern art like the Rothko exhibit. If you can find there the "joie de vivre" described by Blake Gopnik, I recommend you see an eye doctor.

Favalora Resignation Good News: Good-Bye, Bad Bishop!

Orthodoxy vindicated: the real reason Archbishop Favalora of Miami was made to resign

The Best Way to Celebrate Earth Day - A Child!

Bob McDonnell is a Big Disappointment!

I'm posting this email from Virginians for Life (VFL) because I'm really disgusted with Governor Bob McDonnell. He promised on Laura Ingraham's radio show to defund Planned Parenthood, the biggest killer of Virginia's tiniest citizens. He didn't do it and he's playing politics to hide his actions. Read the message from VFL and I hope you'll call the governor's office and tell him you're not only disappointed, but think he missed an opportunity to act like a real Catholic defending the most defenseless.

Virginians for Life April 22, 2010

Tell Bob McDonnell to apologize for breaking his promise

Planned Parenthood has just claimed VICTORY because our gutless Governor refused to defund them.

In a clever sell out last week, Governor McDonnell managed to provide evidence that he was cutting money for abortion, while INCREASING the amount of Virginia dollars flowing into Planned Parenthood.

There is nothing we can do for the babies until next year, but we can press on in the fight to defund Planned Parenthood by making our outrage at Governor McDonnell's sell-out to baby killers heard from the roof tops.

Here are the facts:

Remember, a few years ago the General Assembly removed Planned Parenthood as a line item in the budget. This way, each year legislators could say, "I never voted for Planned Parenthood funding," while the money continued to flow to Planned Parenthood out of a non-specific "general fund."

That is why Virginian's for Life specifically asked Governor McDonnell to refer to Planned Parenthood in the budget amendments and ban them from receiving funds.

Instead, Governor McDonnell borrowed from the bureaucratic play book and, while he stipulated that no funds be used for "providing abortion services," he simply failed to mention Planned Parenthood. This means that Governor McDonnell is continuing to allow tax dollars from the "general fund" to flow to Planned Parenthood.

To make matters worse, Governor McDonnell approved a new form of revenue for Planned Parenthood. He signed a separate law, creating a "Trust Women/Respect Choice" specialty license plate in Virginia. Proceeds from these new Virginia license plates will also go to Planned Parenthood.

Earlier in the legislative session, some TRUE pro-life lawmakers amended this bill to redirect funds to Virginia's Crisis Pregnancy Centers, but their amendment was killed in the senate.

Governor McDonnell could have used the Governor's veto pen to kill the bill or reinstate that amendment and allow the money to go to Crisis Pregnancy Centers.

Instead, Governor McDonnell did amend the bill slightly. He threw another meaningless bone to pro-lifers by stipulating that the money cannot be used to "provide abortion services." Then, Governor McDonnell signed the bill into law, sending all the proceeds to Virginia's largest abortion provider: Planned Parenthood.

While they are not tax dollars per-say, Virginia government employees will still be the ones distributing Virginia license plates, and processing money through Virginia's government offices before it is sent to Planned Parenthood. Rather than give Planned Parenthood tax dollars directly, the state is helping them to raise money through the sale of state license plates.

Since this is not a budget item, it doesn't have to be renewed year after year. This is an entirely NEW and PERMANENT source of Virginia funding for Planned Parenthood, signed into law by our own, "pro-life" Governor Bob McDonnell.

Planned Parenthood sent out an update hailing this as a "VICTORY," and well they should.
Every time you see a "Trust Women/Respect Choice" license plate as you are driving down Virginia's roads, remember that Planned Parenthood is thanking "pro-life" Governor Bob McDonnell for that new source of Virginia revenue.

Bob McDonnell is a typical politician trying to please both sides of the aisle and hopes that you and I are naive enough to buy it.
Do you buy it?
I pray that you do not.

We need a Governor with guts and integrity.

Please call Bob McDonnell at 804-786-2211 and let him know how disgusted you are and that you expect him to fulfill his promise next year.

For the babies,

Marnie Deaton

Communication Director

You can donate at http://www.virginiansforlife.org/

Virginians for Life
PO Box 1620
Front Royal, VA 22630

Little Martyr of the Eucharist

Thanks to Jane for sending this story which inspired Fulton Sheen's vow to make a holy hour before the Blessed Sacrament every day for the rest of his life. He kept it.
"The Catholic Church, in her 2000-year history, is never wanting in awe-inspiring stories of heroism and martyrdom.

"From the persecutions of ancient Rome to the Communist atrocities of the 20th century, the Church always had faithful sons and daughters who exhibited extraordinary courage and resolve in face of the most extremes of adversities. One little known story though no less edifying is that of a little Chinese girl-martyr at the time when China had just been run over by the Communists. It is the poignant tale of a little girl’s faith, zeal and keen Catholic sense overcoming fear and oppression.

"The narrative that follows is an adaptation of the English translation of an unnamed priest’s first hand account of the events that happened during the Communist takeover in China (presumably around 1949.) The story was extracted from a collection of beautiful Eucharistic stories and miracles compiled by Fr. Karl Maria Harrer and published originally in German (Die schönsten Eucharistischen Wunder.)":

Uncertain times

When the Communists first came into town, the parish priest started to feel uneasy about his fate not knowing how the intruders would act. During each day that passed, he paid keen attention to every din or commotion that transpired outside the church as he knelt in prayer inside. He was on edge expecting to be executed at any moment.

Just a day after the unwelcome band of soldiers arrived, someone paid him a visit. Thinking it was the police, he was struck with terror. Could this be his end? But contrary to his worst fears, the man at the door turned out to be cordial. As they conversed in Chinese, he was told to proceed with his daily routine. As they parted, his guest accepted a cigar, bowed and eventually left seemingly contented.

Days, weeks and months passed without any untoward incident. He would run into soldiers in the streets but they would only look at him with a straight, cold face but not without a dose of curiosity. Once, he felt perturbed when a certain inspector dropped by to see him.

Turning the tables

One beautiful summer’s day, just when things seemed to be settling down, the dreadful gang of communists finally descended on the town to turn things upside-down. Four soldiers and the inspector unceremoniously barged into the priest’s school house.

The inspector announced to the shocked schoolchildren that sweeping and drastic changes would be implemented from then on. In one fell swoop, the fearsome commander and his cohorts began tearing down the crucifix, holy pictures, blackboards and statues from the walls and laid them on the desks.

In a stentorian voice, he barked orders at the terrified children to put the articles in a box and to take them to the toilet while he threatened them with his handgun. In spite of the harsh treatment, the children resisted but eventually complied reluctantly.

An icon of resistance

But deep back in the room, sat a little girl in her desk; unmoving, with hands folded, and lips tightly shut. As the inspector caught sight of her, he immediately rushed in her direction and shouted curses at her. Mad as hell, he threatened her, “Take this!” But the girl only looked down and hardly flinched thus sending the rest of the terrorized children to gawk with bated breath.

Amidst the ghastly silence, a shot rang out shattering glass and driving the children into tears and screams. The violent disturbance attracted curious townsfolk to gather in front of the school.

The inspector kept on shouting furiously. And yet the little girl remained silent, still frozen like a statue, a big tear rolling off her cheek. At the point of losing composure at the girl’s staunch yet quiet defiance, he turned his ire at the crowd and snapped, “Go find this girl’s father and bring the townspeople here in the church!”

Desecration of the Hosts

As the church filled with people, the little girl’s father was ushered in with hands bound behind his back and placed to the right of the communion rail. Immediately, the girl was forcefully shoved into the communion rail.

The inspector spoke to the crowd and mocked the people’s belief in the Real Presence. And in a malicious and sarcastic tone, he announced that they were tricked into believing that God is present in the tabernacle. In fact, he told them he and his gang of soldiers would stamp on the Hosts with their boots to show nothing would happen.

Then the soldiers rushed on to the tabernacle and forced it opened with their revolvers. The tense crowd watched in silent disbelief. The inspector seized the ciborium, took the lid off and scattered the Hosts on the sanctuary floor.

Egging on his soldiers, he ordered them to go and step on the Hosts. And without hesitation they carried out the dastardly act. Not content with that, he taunted the crowd, “Do you still believe in those fairytales your priest told you?”

Turning to the child’s father he asked him if he still believed. No sooner did the father say yes did the inspector order him to be hauled away.

Dispersal

A non-commissioned officer then entered the scene who spoke with the inspector. They reached an agreement and the inspector submitted to higher authority. The crowd was told to disperse leaving the little girl alone in the communion rail.

The soldiers incarcerated the priest in the church’s coal bin where a small opening allowed him to see the area of the sanctuary where the Hosts lay strewn on the floor as well as the little girl who was leaning on the wall.

A beautiful lady

While peering through the opening, the priest saw a lovely young woman clad in beautiful garments enter and smile. As she hugged her, she said, "Poor child! Poor little one, what have these men done to you? Come with me. Will you?" The child broke into sobs and sought comfort in the woman’s arm and they left.

Witnessing a marvel from his cell

As time went by, the priest lost track of hours and days while imprisoned in the coal bin. He endured the stillness of the surroundings and at times he heard sounds he wasn’t used to. One morning, he heard the door open quietly. Through the little opening, the priest saw the little Chinese girl sneaking ever so carefully into the sanctuary, kneeling and bowing in homage. As she lowered her head, she took a desecrated Host with her tongue. She raised her head, folded her hands, closed her eyes and prayed in silence. Several moments later, she arose and departed.

Every morning the priest witnessed the uplifting scene that became a source of comfort inside the dark and somber environs of his makeshift prison cell. There he eagerly waited the break of dawn expecting to see the sweet, enchanting, little girl receive and adore the Host. Though it occurred many times, he couldn’t recall how often times she came to practice the soul-stirring daily ritual.

A Heroic Death

But alas, the day of final reckoning arrived. As the little heroine went through her daily pious exercise one morning; knees bent, hands folded and absorbed in deep prayer, the church door behind her burst open. Tumultuous screams stirred the air and a shot rang out.
As the priest hurriedly looked through his peephole, he saw the pallid little girl crawl agonizingly along the floor as she reached a Host to receive Holy Communion. When the soldier drew near to check on her, she tried in vain to pull herself up and to fold her hands. Instead she fell on her back and hit her head on the floor with a thud. The little Chinese girl-martyr lay dead motionless on the floor. For a moment, the soldier stood hesitant not knowing what to make of his deed and its fatal outcome. Finally, he turned around and stormed out of the church.
Set free

The moving yet harrowing scene left the priest in a state of shock. While he pondered on that painful experience, his prison door opened and the same soldier went in to announce that he was free to go.

Without any hesitation, he scampered towards the sanctuary to see the lifeless little girl. As he knelt besides her, the soldier approached him and uttered, “Sir, if in every town there was such a little girl, no soldier would ever fight for the Communists!”

Fortunately, the priest still had time to give the little martyr a decent burial. As he left the cemetery and walked along the road, a man approached and invited him into his car. He dropped him off at the border.

Edifying example

The story above moved Archbishop Fulton Sheen to make a vow to pray a holy hour in front of the Blessed Sacrament for the rest of his life. But who wouldn’t be? Indeed, the little Chinese girl’s zeal to receive and adore the desecrated Hosts on the sanctuary floor is really worth emulating much more in our days when lukewarm Catholics take for granted the Real Presence in the church tabernacle. Her acts of reverence put to shame those who present themselves before the Blessed Sacrament in questionable attire or those who fail to show respect by observing silence. May this little Chinese girl-martyr be a shining and glorious example for all of us. May she spur us to make a firm resolve the next time we visit a church to thank Our Lord Jesus Christ for the privilege and opportunity to adore Him FREELY in the Blessed Sacrament!
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References/resources

1. HARRER, Karl Maria, Die schönsten Eucharistischen Wunder, Heft 1-5 (je 48 Seiten) Miriam Verlag, The Little Chinese Girl-Martyr of the Holy Eucharist, http://www.frpaulnewton.com/alittlechinesegirlmartyr.html
2. LUCIA, Rev. Martin, Let the Son Shine Out, http://www.cardinalkungfoundation.org/ar/LetTheSonShineOut.php

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Pray for the Soul of Archbishop William Borders

Reading my diocesan paper, The Arlington Catholic Herald, is almost always a head-shaking exercise. Most of the articles are from Catholic News Service, a less than orthodox source. Dissenting Catholics often get a glowing report or there's an article promoting a local group well known for undermining the faith. It's sad to say the least.

Today there was a CNS obituary piece on Archbishop William Borders, the 13th Bishop of Baltimore who served from 1974-1989. He died on April 19th at the age of 96. The sub-headline of the obit said he was "known for social justice and [a] pastoral approach to leadership." I couldn't hold back a derisive snort when I read that. My dad, career navy, made his last home in the Baltimore Archdiocese when he bought a home in Elkridge in 1964. He and my mom became very active in their local parish, St. Augustine's, where Dad was a volunteer organist for a number of years and Mom was the pro-life chairman and organized buses for the March for Life. She was still doing the March in her 80s pushing a walker because of her bad knees. My parents had first-hand experience of Borders' record of "social justice" and "pastoral" leadership since they served the Archdiocese longer than he did.

Archbishop Borders almost drove my dad out of the Church after he appeared with radically pro-abortion Jesuit Fr. Robert Drinan on a talking heads program. I don't remember the specifics but that may have been the year the priest was selected to keynote the archdiocese's social ministries convocation (1982). The archdiocese was notorious for the dissenters approved by Borders during those years. Among the annual speakers for the convocation were Monika Hellwig, Fr. Richard Rohr, and Fr. Richard Fragomeni. Yes, Borders was an expert at advancing those who used "social justice" as a platform for undermining the faith. His work with the Campaign for Human Development (CHD - later Catholic Campaign for Human Development) set the roots in place for the on-going scandal that still exists today. The first speaker for his convocation was Msgr. Jack Egan who helped Saul Alinsky get his hand in the collection basket in the first place.

I can certainly understand my dad's frustration with the Archbishop that made him angry enough to want to leave. I've felt that way myself. (As they say, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.) Fortunately for my dad, my mom shrugged over the archbishop's betrayal and, like St. Peter, said, "Where will we go?" And, not surprising for two cradle Catholics who raised their ten children in the faith, they both died in the heart of the Church consoled by the sacraments and surrounded by their children and grandchildren. No thanks, I might add, to Archbishop Borders.

Daddy died in 1985 and Mom died in 2002. I'm asking them both to intercede for Archbishop Borders who did all he could to advance dissent during his tenure in Baltimore. May God have mercy on his soul.

A Song for Times of Trouble

My daughter put me onto this song and the Christian group that sings it. Give this to a young person who needs inspiration. (And maybe to a not too young person as well.) "The voice of truth tells me not to be afraid." I'm also adding Facing the Giants to my netflix list. It looks like one for the family.

Hans Kung Hates the Light!

It's no surprise with the media attacking the pope that all the usual Judases within the Church would join in the fun. On April 16th the Irish Times published an open letter by Fr. Hans Kung (yes he's a priest although you wouldn't know it either by his clothing or his actions). Kung, a self-serving hypocrite who has spent most of his theological career undermining the faith of our fathers claims, to be "motivated by... profound concern for our church, which now finds itself in the worst credibility crisis since the Reformation." 

What a laugh! Exactly what church is Kung concerned about? Certainly not the Catholic Church since he hates most of her doctrines. Because of his heresies, "theologian" Kung has been banned from teaching at Catholic universities since 1979. Reading his open letter you can see how much he opposes Catholic doctrine.

 The late Fr. John Hardon, well known and respected Jesuit theologian (a REAL theologian) described Kung as a "charlatan": 

Sinners by definition are opposed to the truth. Why? Because they dread it, they fear that their works will be made known. Quote John, “Whoever does evil hates the light.” How often over the years I have consoled myself, for example; it is almost ten years now that several television stations in Chicago have been trying to engage a debate, they call it dialogue, between yours truly and the notorious Hans Küng. Hans Küng hates the light. He has consistently refused, he knows he’s a charlatan pretending to be a Catholic.

The pope met with Kung in 2005 (Kung says he requested the meeting). The media used the event to speculate that Kung was being brought back into the fold. How could he be since he continues to defy the Church? but it was a nice photo op for the heretic. As Fr. Hardon said, the man is a charlatan like so many other betrayers. But even more than that, he is an adder striking at the heart of Holy Mother Church. Pray for his conversion before he is crushed by Christ's heel. At 82 he doesn't have much time left to repent.

During this year of the priest why not spiritually adopt a heretic like Hans Kung. Where there's life, there's hope. No one alive is beyond God's grace.

Where Was the New York Times When This Hate Crime Occurred?

A couple leaving a Republican fundraiser in New Orleans on April 9th were attacked and beaten by thugs carrying signs and picketing the dinner. This hate crime was not covered in the paper of record or, apparently, any of the other mainstream media outlets. If the couple had been lesbians or illegal immigrants it would have been all over TV, the papers, etc. But some hate crimes are more equal than others and this one passed under the liberal radar screen. Surprised? Read the story here....

FDA Pulls Infant Vaccine Contaminated with Pig Virus DNA

Parents need to be very careful about vaccines today. Check out the news on Rotarix Vaccine. Watch out for live virus vaccines. Listen to the video below. A lab in California examined 8 live virus vaccines. Three were contaminated with animal viruses. Ask about the vaccines before you let them inject your children. Avoid live viruses if there is an alternative. Follow Dr. Mercola on vaccine safety. Here's some good advice from his website:

Whatever you do, please do your homework before subjecting your children to any vaccine. A great way to get started is to simply use the Search Feature at the top of each of my Web pages and search my site as it contains a litany of research on vaccine safety, and the lack thereof.

Fr. Pfleger Advertises he's a Liar and a Hypocrite. Surprised?

Fr. Pfleger, the Chicago torchthrowing priest has admitted on Facebook that he's a liar and a hypocrite. When will the Archdiocese of Chicago do something about this renegade who regularly defies the Church and agitates against doctrine? His admission that he's a liar casts into doubt his statement that when he urged a crowd to "snuff out" a legitimate business owner who sells guns, that he didn't know the term meant to kill him. Yeah, right. But he's non-violent. He also mentioned "dragging" the guy out of his establishment like a rat. But we can expect he wanted the folks he was inciting to snuff the guy out with hugs and kisses.

Cardinal George, when will you remove this embarrassment to the Church? He hates you and all the Church leadership and holds you in abject contempt. And yet you honored him. Can you please explain? Read about this latest fiasco here and be sure to check out the other articles linked at the bottom.

Oh, and if you have a minute send an email to the Archdiocese to complain. Fr. Pfleger is anointed by God to bring people to Christ, but his behavior is narcissistic and evil, leading people to hold the Church in contempt. He acts like a clown, but is actually the ringmaster turning the Archdiocese of Chicago into an X-rated circus with Cardinal George in  the role of the trained monkey. Wake up, Your Eminence. This man hates the Church. Why do you enable him?

Meanwhile, my friend and brother in Christ, Fr. James Haley,  remains in limbo - thrown out of the priesthood for daring to tell Bishop Loverde about homosexual priests in the Diocese of Arlington - priests with extensive porn collections, some of whom were embezzling from their parishes. Which leads me to ask: What's in Fr. Pfleger's closet and on his computer?

God help us!

Psychiatrist Confirms Cardinal Bertone's Statement

Dr. Richard Fitzgibbons, a psychiatrist with extensive experience treating priest-abusers confirmed Cardinal Bertone's statement linking homosexuality with abuse. The cardinal's remarks have brough a tsunami of criticism from the politically correct mainstream media and the homosexual activist community.  A Catholic News Agency article covered Fitzgibbon's remarks. In part, the article reads:

A U.S. psychiatrist with experience in treating priests with pedophilia disagrees that there is no link between homosexuality and sexual abuse of children. “Cardinal Bertone's comments are supported completely by the John Jay study report and by clinical experience,” Dr. Richard Fitzgibbons told CNA. “In fact, every priest whom I treated who was involved with children sexually had previously been involved in adult homosexual relationships.”

Fitzgibbons, who has been the director of Comprehensive Counseling Center in West Conshohocken, Penn. since 1988, has worked extensively with individuals suffering from same sex attraction (SSA) and priests accused of pedophilia. He also presently serves as a consultant to the Congregation for the Clergy at the Holy See....

In his 2002 “Letter to Catholic Bishops,” Fitzgibbons identified priests prone to sexual abuse as having suffered “profound emotional pain” during childhood due to loneliness, problems in their relationships with their fathers, rejection by their peers, lack of male confidence, and poor self image or body image. Fitzgibbons said that these experiences lead priests especially to direct their sadness and anger towards the Church, her teachings on sexual morality, and the Magisterium.

He also noted that priests who have engaged in sexual misconduct with minors suffer from a “denial of sin in their lives.” “They consistently refused to examine their consciences, to accept the Church's teachings on moral issues as a guide for their personal actions, or regularly avail themselves of the sacrament of reconciliation. These priests either refused to seek spiritual direction or choose (sic) a spiritual director or confessor who openly rebelled against Church teachings on sexuality,” the letter said.   (Complete article here... )

Fitzgibbons also mentions the prevalence of narcissism in the West and its impact on priests. All anyone has to do to confirm that problem is spend a few minutes on Facebook where young people (and not so young people) post hundreds of photos of themselves often in provocative and immodest poses, not to mention posting updates on the minutiae of their lives.

The media attack on Cardinal Bertone is no surprise. It is part of the broader agenda to undermine the Church. It will continue until Jesus returns. The fact that so many members of the hierarchy have fueled the attack through their irresponsibility and, sometimes, downright evil actions, is no surprise either. Jesus had his Judas and there are plenty of Judases in the Church today.

Remember to keep praying for priests in this Year of the Priest, especially the priests wearing mitres and carrying the shepherd's crook.

Live Action Does it Again: Another Undercover Video

Planned Parenthood "counsels" women with lies to try to get them to buy their abortions. Spread the word about this evil organization. Work to defund Planned Parenthood in your state!

The Left Talks about Tolerance: Is This an Example?

For more, including some disgusting pictures I'd rather not post, visit Mass Resistance.

I did find the picture below very interesting because it's the same slogan used against pro-lifers. Anyone who's ever attended a pro-life rescue or march has heard the chant, "Racist, sexist, anti-gay; born again bigots, go away." What does that tell us, boys and girls? These folks are apparently the same gang recycling their trite message. They certainly aren't very original, or truthful for that matter. I always wondered why a racist bigot would risk arrest and ridicule to rescue black and other minority babies from the butchers at abortion mills. 

What will end abortion?

I've said it before and I'm absolutely convinced that the most important element in ending abortion will be aborted women themselves. I'm even more convinced after listening to a CD by Jane Brennan, a regional director of Silent No More, who shared her story of conversion from radical feminist to repentant Catholic revert.

Jane Brennan's story, she says, is hard to tell and hard to hear. She was molested by her grandfather, another relative, and a stranger as a little girl. At a very young age she began trying to drown the hurt with alcohol. By the time she was in high school she was using alcohol, drugs, and sex to try to numb the pain. Twice she became pregnant and aborted her children believing those who told her "It's just a clump of cells."

She bought the lie of the feminist movement as well and became an activist with NOW, NARAL, and Planned Parenthood attracted by their message of "empowerment" and control over the body. And yet, she said, she never felt empowered, and her life was obviously spinning out of control.

The beginning of her conversion was reading the book, Who Stole Feminism by Christina Hoff-Sommers.

Jane's journey illustrates how damaged many women in the feminist camp really are. They need prayer and sacrifice to water the hard ground of their hearts and make it softer so the seeds of faith can take root and grow. Reading the conversion stories of post-aborted women offers a message of hope. It is not only the hope of forgiveness and healing, but the hope that their witness will spare other women from making the same mistake. Jane shares her story in a book called Motherhood Interrupted which includes the testimonies of sixteen post aborted women. It is a work of hope.

Jane also has a blog which is well worth a visit. She and other post-aborted women are the voices of millions of women damaged physically and emotionally by abortion who have found healing in Jesus Christ. I believe their voices will grow louder and louder until the world echoes with their message from east to west. Pray for the Lord to use their witness powerfully.

What impact do you think repentant post aborted women (and repentant fathers) will have on abortion in this country?

Talk About Hate Speech!

It's an interesting phenomenon that when you speak the hard truth you are likely to be accused of hate speech. But those who actually are filled with hate, for example, against the pope and the Catholic Church, see themselves as champions and protectors of human rights. So homosexuals accuse Christians of hate speech for telling the truth about the disordered nature of same sex relationships and feminists accuse pro-lifers of hating women for trying to protect both women and their unorn babies.

But lately the most exteme hatred and vitriol is reserved for the Catholic Church, specifically Pope Benedict XVI. It's sobering to see it during the Easter season when we hear the Acts of the Apostles read from the pulpit. This week the pharisees, stung to the quick by Stephen's revelation of their malice, drag him out of the holy city of Jerusalem and stone him to death. The apostles are dragged before the Sanhedrin and warned never to mention the name of Jesus again. Acts describes them being flogged and imprisoned. 

The evils that have been committed and covered up by clerics in the Church are horrible. But the over-the-top hateful rhetoric has been selective on the part of the media and reserved for the Catholic Church and the pope. Its scattershot nature indicates that the sex abuse crisis is just the excuse for a concerted effort against the world's greatest enemy of moral relativism and the culture of death. They practically foan at the mouth as they spout their venom.

Here's what an ABC Australia columnist blogged after comparing the pope to Osama bin Laden, "Why not bomb the Vatican, and riddle the Pope with bullets as he staggers out of the flames?"

Christopher Hitchens, an atheist who hates the Church and has attacked Mother Teresa (calling her "a fanatic, a fundamentalist, and a fraud" in a piece titled Mommie Dearest) recently wrote an attack piece on the pope where he says, "Ratzinger himself may be banal, but his whole career has the stench of evil—a clinging and systematic evil that is beyond the power of exorcism to dispel." The letter he mentions in the article is completely misrepresented. And, in fact, Hitchens hatred for the Church oozes out of every critique he writes.

Then there is the on-going attack by the New York Times. Catholics know the "paper of record" is so biased that nothing in its pages can be trusted. The Vatican has protested its slanted reporting, but NYT has a long term history of slandering the Church, pro-lifers, conservatives, Christians, anyone, in fact, who stands in opposition to their liberalism.

Expect the attacks to continue. It's not primarily about the sex abuse crisis, but about the mainstream media's hatred and contemp for people of faith. Their bias is one of the reasons mainstream media outlets are laying off workers and closing offices in major cities. In the meantime they can still do a lot of damage to the reputations of anyone connected to the Church no matter how unfounded their assault.

It's no surprise. Read Acts of the Apostles.

Cardinal Bertone Gets it Right!

Cardinal Bertone is taking a lot of heat for daring to tell the truth about the sex abuse scandals. (See Catholic World News.) It was NEVER about celibacy as the cardinal pointed out. It was AMOST ALWAYS ( over 80% of the time according to the John Jay study commissioned by the bishops) about homosexuality. If it were about celibacy other religions that allow clergy to marry would not have abuse problem. But that is not the case. The Episcopal Church which allows homosexual clergy and even bishops has a worse problem than the Catholic Church - the same with other segments of society, like the public schools.

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to realize that a way of life that has an entire vocabulary to describe older men (chicken hawks) going after young men (chickens) has a problem with targeting adolescent boys for abuse. Of course homosexuals don't consider it abuse. They consider it initiating the youngsters into the joys of homosexual sex: like fisting, golden showers, sodomy and fellatio. If you don't know what those terms mean, I didn't either until I was expecting my third child. I learned about it at a pro-life convention in the 70s hosted by Fr. Paul Marx. Already the gays were linking up with the feminists (a lesbian movement) to legitimize their depraved lifestyle which is all about using the body in any way one desires. That's the connection betwen abortion ("control" of the body allows one to kill the child) and homosexuality ("control" of the body allows one to abuse and molest the child).

But homosexuals aren't alone in their depravity. Planned Parenthood, founded by a depraved heterosexual woman, Margaret Sanger, sings the same song - Anything Goes if it gives pleasure. The perverts at PP believe in teaching kids how to diddle from the cradle. Just ask the Girl Scouts who helped distribute Planned Parenthood's brochure at the U.N. called "Healthy, Happy, and Hot." Makes you really eager to put your girls in those green uniforms. Also makes you wonder what's in the cookies.

Cardinal Bertone has become the latest target of the homosexual-friendly mainstream media, but he was absolutely correct in what he said. And every Catholic on the planet with any sense should be defending him. The media plays a game when it calls the clergy sex abuse "pedophilia." For the most part, it was not. Pedophiles go after children who haven't yet reached puberty. And they go for either sex. Homosexual ephebophiles go after adolescent boys. They want that developing male body not the undeveloped body of little children. And the lion's share of clergy abuse was perpetrated by homosexual ephebophiles.

The claim that there is no link between homosexuality and abuse is just plain wrong. And the statistics on child sex abuse demonstrate it. Brian Clowes and David Sonnier have researched this issue and provide impressive data showing the link between homosexuality and child sex abuse.

A little historical perspective is in order here. The mainstream media played a major role in legalizing abortion by hopping in bed with the abortion lobby. They are doing the same thing now with the homosexual lobby. They aren't journalists but propagandists with the integrity of snake oil salesmen. Notice that whenever the media report a crime involving a homosexual as a victim, his inclinations are revealed and a hate crime is claimed. On the other hand, when a homosexual is the criminal, particularly when it involves a sexual assault, his inclination is hidden. When you consider the number of homosexuals in the media it isn't surprising. Just consider one outlet, The New York Times. Richard Berke, NYT's national political correspondent addressed the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association in 2000 and said three-quarters of the those who make decisions about the front page articles are "not so closeted homosexuals." Is it any surprise that the media is attacking Cardinal Bertone? Or was it inevitable.

Pray that Cardinal Bertone sticks to his guns and refuses to back down from these panderers of poison. Unfortunately, the Vatican already seems to be back peddling. L'Osservatore Romano ignored the Cardinal's statement on homosexuality in their report on the press conference.

New York Times Covers Up Homosexuality of Abusers

The media hypocrisy is staggering. While attacking the Church and the pope, the New York Times is doing everything possible to hide the homosexual nature of the abuse. Check it out here. These folks want to take down the Church while protecting their homosexual friends. Considering how many there are in show biz (and isn't that what network news is these days?) it's not really surprising.

More Scandal at Notre Dame

Homosexual promotion week at Notre Dame began today under the guise of  "tolerance." They're calling it "Stand Against Hate Week" and are including a day of silence. This is supposed to represent the fact that "gays" aren't permitted to be who they are. (Are you using your crying towel?)

Actually the people being silenced all over the world are Christians who dare to cite the biblical standards against sodomy and same sex lust. In Canada, quote the Bible and face a jail term. That Notre Dame would participate in this pathetic shilling for homosexuality and its depraved practices is pathetic!

You can protest this event by clicking here and sending a message to Notre Dame. Let Fr. Jenkins and the morally bankrupt board of directors of Notre Dame know what you think of this.

Why would any parent these days spend the kind of money for tuition at Notre Dame so their children can be scandalized? I sure wouldn't. Visit some of the great Catholic colleges listed on the sidebar.

Divine Mercy Sunday - Take Advantage of It!

God's mercy is infinite and we ought to be humbled and grateful for that. Who could be saved if God hadn't sent his own Son to save us from our sins? And yet how many will miss the opportunity today to immerse themselves in His ocean of mercy?

I know many people who don't think they need God's mercy. "I'm a good person" is the mantra of the worldly. They don't murder anybody and who can avoid a little innocent hatred toward the neighbor who lets his dog defecate on the lawn? They don't cheat on their spouse, and the subscription to Playboy is all about the articles. It's unrealistic to expect people to avoid looking at those in-your-face ads from "Holly" or "Patti" or "Sheila" that pop up on the internet? And, after all, it isn't really being unfaithful is it?

Today, a woman I know, asked me about her marriage. Her husband left her and after remaining single for over 20 years she remarried even though her first husband was still alive. She asked me if it was wrong. I told her the Catholic Church teaches the indissolubility of marriage and that the Church recognizes the validity of marriages between two baptized persons contracted before a minister in a Protestant Church. I reminded her of Jesus' response to the pharisees about Moses allowing divorce because of the "hardness of your hearts."

But I also told her it was Divine Mercy Sunday and that none of us could be saved without the mercy of God. I'll see her next week and give her a rosary and booklet on how to pray the chaplet of Divine Mercy. Living up to the demands of the Ten Commandments and the Beatitudes is impossible without God's grace and even with it how often we fail? I thank God I'm a Catholic and have the blessing of Confession. I always listen carefully to the words of absolution and thank God for them.

Pray for God's mercy on everyone you know today, especially those living in objective serious sin. How easy it is to get ourselves in situations that put us between a rock and a hard place. This dear woman is obviously troubled by her situation. I can't tell her breaking promises is good, but I can remind her of God's infinite mercy and the need to try to conform our wills to His.

St. Faustina, pray for us.

Cardinal Ratzinger's Letter: The Smoking Gun Fires a Blank

The 1985 letter from Cardinal Ratzinger is being hyped by the media as proof that the Cardinal was soft on sex abuse. When I read the letter I sort of scratched my head. This is the smoking gun that proves the Church was soft on sex abuse?

Fr. Joseph Fessio puts this in perspective. (Read the complete column here.) Here's a portion of what he writes:

When John Paul II was elevated to the papacy in the Fall of 1978, he immediately changed the policy on priestly dispensations. I don't have the exact dates and numbers at hand, but I remember at the time that many of us were amazed that the hundreds of dispensations per year (and it may have been thousands) under John Paul II's predecessor, Paul VI, suddenly were reduced to almost zero. It was almost impossible to get a dispensation in 1980.

What was John Paul's intent? To restore the integrity of the priesthood and of marriage. These commitments are permanent. A priest may be removed from ministry, but he will not be given a dispensation to marry. Priests are to be made to take their commitments with utmost seriousness. They will be an example to married couples to take theirs seriously also. When a priest makes a promise of celibacy, it's forever; when a couple make vows of marriage, it's forever.

This is the decisive context of Cardinal Ratzinger's letter to Bishop Cummins. It is not a smoking gun. It did not mean that Ratzinger was not taking the priest's sins seriously. (He called the accusations "very serious" [gravis momenti].) It meant that he, following the policy of John Paul II, was taking the priesthood and its commitments very seriously.

And again, this entire affair had nothing to do with preventing further abuse by this priest. That had already been done, or should have been done, by the local bishop.

I think the media will have to come up with something more substantive than this before they string up Pope Benedict. But have no fear, they will keep trying.

It is certainly interesting how little attention the media gives to cleaning up the abuse in the public schools where children can be sent off to abortion mills without telling their parents, and where teachers and coaches in large numbers have abused kids. Somehow the media isn't particularly interested in that story. In fact they aid and abet the psychological and emotional molesting of children by gay activists.

The American College of Pediatricians recently warned about the damage to children from pro-gay promotion of gender confusion. But don't hold your breath waiting for the mainstream media to report that story. The kids are just collateral damage in the homosexual war against straight America.

The EPA is the Church's Friend?

I have to admit that when I see the Environmental Protection Agency posing as a friend of religious congregations, my suspicious mind begins whirring as all the neurons, or whatever they are, start looking for connections.

Energy Star for Congregations is a program of the EPA and the Department of Energy. Consider that both of these  departments are unconstitutional. Exactly how are they going to help us? Well...there's a big effort to force the "greening of America" on us which is really about forcing us to do all the things the government says are good for us. Just as the Cap and Tax legislation has all kinds of draconian clean energy proposals in it including the energy home inspector coming to check your appliances before you can sell your home, I expect the Energy Star program is really about changing the ways congregations think and enlisting them in the government's environmental scam.

I did a search on the Energy Star website on "global warming" and came up with 1800 hits. What do you think this is really all about?

As Ronald Reagan often said, the most frightening words in the English language are, "I'm from the government and I'm here to help you."

Right!

In the new world order I fully expect to see morality defined as using low water toilets, coiled mercury lightbulbs, smart cars, and of course, aborting all those unwanted babies so we can save the planet for the wolves, polar bears, snail darters, and beetles...oh, and of course, old growth forests.

Thanks to Catherine of Siena at Threshing Grain for the heads up.

Laugh of the Day from the Hypocrisy Department

A U.N. judge has said the pope should be prosecuted by an International Criminal Court.

Oh really?

This comes from the paragons of virtue at the U.N. who never saw a poor third world woman without wanting to abort her child and sterilize her so she wouldn't bring any more of "those" people into our world?

Is this the same institution that wants to take away parents' rights over the education and upbringing of their children so the nannies in blue berets can tell us all how to care for the young ones who manage to survive the U.N. murder machine?

I'm not surprised that voices at the U.N. attack the pope. After all, the only significant opposition to their plans for Utopia (or dystopia if you've read Brave New World which looks a lot like a culture modeled on U.N. policies) is the Catholic Church. What better way to attack the Church than to strike the shepherd as Jesus said.

Pope Benedict is a sinner like the rest of us. I have my own concerns about his failure to publicly address the homosexual problem more vigorously and to accept the early resignations of good bishops like Joseph Martino and the recently resigned Canadian bishop, James Wingle. The bad guys never seem to go out early.

But he has done more to restore the sacred liturgy and begin to move the Church away from the lunacy of the post Vatican II age of insanity than anyone. So it is not surprising to see the attack on him coming from all directions. I just pray that the vision of Sr. Lucy of a pope lying dead will not be fulfilled during his papacy. I've never been quite convinced that the shooting of John Paul II was the fulfillment of that vision.

So please pray for the Holy Father every day. And for the restoration of the faith around the world. There are too many enemies of Christ living in bishops' mansions undermining the faith from within. Can you imagine being Pope in these times when so many of your brothers despise you and oppose every move toward restoration? Jesus only had one betrayer our of twelve. I wonder what Pope Benedict's percentage is.