Where are their habits?

I was just on the website of the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration. You'd be hard-pressed to see anything that makes them spouses of Christ. They are engaged in all the liberal, "progressive" social justice ministries and new age nonsense without one word about the major moral issues of our times: abortion, euthanasia, embryonic stem cell research, and advancing the homosexual agenda. They link to many liberal organizations whose policies and programs conflict with Church teaching. They also kicked out one young man who was an associate in their prayer partners program with a weekly hour of adoration. His story is very revealing.

And how can a religious order that is focused by name on "perpetual adoration" of our risen Lord disobey Holy Mother Church by ditching the habit? Notice in the video below that our Eucharistic Lord isn't mentioned much. His name comes up only once in the context of water massage. (I am not kidding!) This group sound like a bunch of liberal ladies, very nice probably, but, in view of their website, gone off the deep end. I can just hear them discussing God as she and altering the language of scripture to make it gender neutral. Here's a sample from their page on ecological advocacy (my comments in red):

We celebrate God’s presence in all of creation by:

•Honoring relationships with and promoting earth as sacred. No, ladies, the earth is not "sacred." God proclaimed it "good" and we have a duty to be faithful stewards, but the pagans were the ones who believed in earth-gods. Earth worship (we worship what is "sacred") is heretical.

•Devoting spiritual energies and economic resources to the care of God’s creation. How about caring for babies waiting to be born? They are the "pearls of great price," but your "social justice" program ignores them.

•Nurturing and increasing cosmic awareness and social consciousness. What the heck is "cosmic awareness?" Is this the heresy of the "cosmic Christ" spouted by the likes of Matthew Fox? In view of your new agey website and your support for Reiki, I must assume so.

•Educating members to advocacy: political involvement, social change, sustainability and healthy lifestyles. Ah...here we have it. The christian life is about protecting the earth from global warming, saving the wetlands, and banning Big Macs. Note the word "sustainability" which is the same language used by the population controllers to justify abortion and birth control in the third world.

In this section of our website, presents FSPA’s sustainability efforts, partnerships in conservation and personal reflections.

The sisters in La Crosse are clearly off base. Pray for them, but stay clear, very clear of their influence. You don't want to be standing next to a house built on sand during a hurricane.

Are 12-year-olds mature enought to consent to risky vaccines?

Calif. bill draws fire for letting children consent to STD vaccines

Some people think parents are completely irrelevant. They're the same folks (often politicians or government bureaucrats) who want to give kids birth control and abortions without parental consent. If kids are injured from these things, hospital emergency rooms won't treat them without Mom or Dad's consent (and their insurance card). But when it comes to decisions about having sex and dealing with its consequences...well...parents can just buzz off and bug out!

What do you think? I a 12-year-old mature enough to consent to the Gardisil vaccine? And if she is, does this effectively lower the age of consent to 12? And if it does, does that mean kids at age 12 can legally consent to sex with an adult with no consequences for the adult?

The culture is moving in that direction and this is one more step toward the total corruption of children and the decriminalization of abuse. What could be more abusive than injecting kids, without their parents knowledge or consent, with a serious drug that can leave them permanently damaged or dead?

Anticipation

We have a three-year-old grandchild with us today and the plan is to go to the Shenandoah County Fair. She is so excited she can hardly eat her breakfast. What a great gift anticipation is. It extends the joy of an event and sometimes is more exciting than the event anticipated. One of our children and her family are going to Disney World in the fall. Her four children are already talking about it and excited even though it's two months away. They visited for four days last week and what fun it was to see their excited anticipation.

And we can share in it. We are taking a cross country camping trip soon visiting 17 or 18 states most of which we've never set a toe in before. What anticipation! We'll be visiting the Shrine of Our Lady of Help in Wisconsin, the only approved apparition site in the United States.

Since we like to go to daily Mass we'll be meeting Jesus in many places we've never been, celebrating the unity of our Catholic faith with people all over the country, strangers in a worldly sense but, nevertheless, brothers and sisters in the faith. My heart is as full of anticipation as my little grandchildren. How I love this great country of ours from the blue ridge in the east which we greet every morning from our deck to the purple mountain majesties of the west with their snowcapped peaks -- mountains I've mostly just seen in photos.

I'll be blogging about the trip at my Gramma blog, The View from Camp Kreitzer, starting next week.

Despite so much bad news in our culture, there are still enough blessings to fill an ocean. God is so good and He loves us so much; He pours blessings into our laps like water over a falls during flood season. Do you look forward to them? It's easy to keep our faces turned to the bad news and despair. Don't do it! Despite everything, God wants us to to rejoice in all things and to be ready, as St. Peter says, to give "a reason for this hope of yours." (1 Peter 3:15)

What sends a thrill of anticipation up your spine?

Is it an Accident or an Agenda?

This trailer for a documentary is interesting. I've read that the communists didn't disappear, they just adopted the green movement. In view of the tyranny of the environmentalists, I believe it.

Transhumanism? Double Yikes!

My husband and I have been watching old re-runs of the X-Files. Last night a scientist was working on crossing the DNA of terminally ill volunteers with the DNA of aliens. When I saw this video today I thought -- Wow! The writers were more on target than they knew. How long will the Lord put up with our attempts to play God. When the speaker in the video below talks about the possibility of a cataclysmic event, I was nodding my head. After all, if we can bring diseases into our bodies from bestiality, will wicked experiments by mad scientists splicing animal DNA into humans not open us to even worse (unintended) consequences? The fruit of playing God is always rotten.

Yikes!

You may think this doesn't matter because you still have a job and can afford the good things of life. Wait until hyper-inflation hits and your salary will buy only 50% of what it could in the past. The writing is on the wall, folks. Government can't fix the problem; it is the problem. Vote for those who want to limit government.

Sunday Meditation: Hope in the Lord

I'm reflecting today on the virtue of hope. We need it desperately in view of the collapse of moral values, the increasing hostilities around the world, the flash mobs threatening our cities and towns, natural disasters, and the growing persecution of Christians. I find myself identifying more and more with the "weeping prophet" Jeremiah. His lament was today's first reading. "All the day I am an object of laughter; everyone mocks me. Whenever I speak, I must cry out, violence and outrage is my message; the word of the Lord has brought me derision and reproach all the day." Despite the persecution, being thrown in the dry cistern, being banished, etc. Jeremiah hung on until his persecutors finally killed him.

Many Christians today can identify with Jeremiah. Some have lost jobs for refusing to do or assist in abortions, others for daring to criticize the homosexual agenda. Christianity is under continuous attack from groups wanting to eliminate it from the public square. Whether it's removing the words "under God" from the pledge or nativity scenes from town squares, or crosses from everywhere, the assault on Christianity is relentless.

Praise God! We can identify, at least a little, with our brothers and sisters from the past -- the persecuted Christians of the first century and those from every century since. They rejoiced to be found worthy to suffer for the cross of Christ.

Talk about hope! They had one foot in heaven and no earthly threat could shake them. "Viva Cristo Rey!" cried the Mexican martyrs as they were shot. Let's pray to be like them not fearing those who can kill the body but not the soul.

Memorize the Act of Hope and say it often to keep your eyes firmly fixed on what's coming for those who finish the race.

O my God, relying on Your almighty power

and infinite mercy and promises,

I hope to obtainpardon for my sins,

the help of Your grace, and life everlasting,

through the merits of Jesus Christ,

my Lord and Redeemer.

 Amen.

Feast Day for Faithful Mothers

Today is St. Monica's feast day. St. Augustine's mom had plenty to pray for as she sought the conversion of her rebellious son. She constantly exhorted him to change his way of life. What a challenge to parents today who often prefer silence lest they anger their sinful children. And then they wonder why their children persist in mortal sin.

St. Monica offers both hope and a challenge to parents who see their children wandering far from the altar of the Lord. They need to first imitate her in prayer and then constantly challenge their children in love. One might describe Monica as a "holy nag." Augustine ran away and she followed him, even across the sea. But it all began with prayer, fasting, and suffering.

Here's what St. Augustine says about his faithful mother in his Confessions:

O God, my hope from my youth, where were You all this time, where had You gone? ... I walked thorugh dark and slippery places, and I went out of myself in the search for You and did not find the God of my heart. I had come into the depths of the sea and I had lost faith and all hope of discovering the truth. By this time my mother had come to me, following me over the sea and land with the courage of piety and relying upon You in all perils.... She found me in a perilous state through my deep despair of ever discovering the truth. But even when I told her that if I was not yet a Catholic Christian, I was no longer a Manichean, she was not greatly exultant as at some unlooked-for good news, because she had already received assurance upon that part of my misery; she bewailed me as one dead certainly, but certainly to be raised again by You.... So her heart was not shaken with any tumult of exultation at hearing that what daily she had begged of You with tears had in so large part happened: for I was at least rescued from heresy, even if I had not yet attained the truth. In fact, because she was certain that You would give her what remained since You had promised her all, she answered me serenely and with a heart full of confidence that in Christ she believed that she would see me a faithful Catholic before she died. So much she said to me. But to You, O fount of mercy, she multiplied her prayers and her tears that You should hasten Your help and enlighten my darkness: and she hasted to churh more zelously than ever.

Oh, that all those in deadly sin should have such a mother to zealously pursue them for the Lord!

St. Monica, pray for us and for our family and friends who wander from the fold. Ask the Lord to give us wisdom and zeal to pursue our children with love and never rest in silent acceptance of their grievous sins. Lord Jesus, bring us all to the eternal bliss of your heavenly kingdom. Amen.

What Makes You Smile?

Here's our new grandbaby. Can't help smiling over God's precious gift. What makes you smile? And what do you think is making her smile? Did her guardian angel tell her a funny story?

Prayers Against Storms

As Hurricane Irene bears down on the east coast, let us pray for those in her path.

Prayer for Hurricane Season

O God, Master of this passing world, hear the humble voices of your children. The Sea of Galilee obeyed your order and returned to its former quietude; you are still the Master of land and sea. We live in the shadow of a danger over which we have no control. The Gulf, like a provoked and angry giant, can awake from its seeming lethargy, overstep its conventional boundaries, invade our land and spread chaos and disaster. During this hurricane season, we turn to You, O loving Father. Spare us from past tragedies whose memories are still so vivid and whose wounds seem to refuse to heal with the passing of time. O Virgin, Star of the Sea, Our Beloved Mother, we ask you to plead with your Son in our behalf, so that spared from the calamities common to this area and animated with a true spirit of gratitude, we will walk in the footsteps of your Divine Son to reach the heavenly Jerusalem where a storm-less eternity awaits us. Amen.
Originally dedicated to the victims of Hurricane Audrey in 1957. - Fr. Al Volpe, Cameron Parish, LA


Prayer for Protection against Storms and Hurricanes
Our Father in Heaven through the intercession of Our Lady of Prompt Succor, spare us during this Hurricane season from all harm. Protect us and our homes from all disasters of nature. Our Lady of Prompt Succor, hasten to help us. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Prayer to Avert Storms and Hurricanes

Father, all the elements of nature obey your command. Calm the storms and hurricanes that threaten us and turn our fear of your power into praise of your goodness. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

First-hand report from pedophile conference

Summary of the pedophile meeting in Baltimore:

"We’re talking NAMBLA (North American Man-Boy Love Association) with a PhD and a marketing plan."

See:
Firsthand Report on B4U-ACT Conference for ‘Minor-Attracted Persons’ — Aims at Normalizing Pedophilia

Why are those promoting evil so zealous, while so many "good" people are so passive? It reminds me of Yeats' poem, The Second Coming:

The best lack all conviction, while the worst



Are full of passionate intensity.

As Yeats said, "The center cannot hold." We are coming apart at the seams. Only a return to God can save us from the coming cataclysm. The warnings are all there in Matthew 24. Read the signs of the times and fight for the true, the good, and the beautiful.

Pedophilia Next?

Now that all barriers to adult buggery have been eliminated, the sex-fixated  move on to dismantle the next obstacle to total depravity -- approving adult sex with children. The pedophile conference earlier this month announced to mainstream America that more evil is on the way. Was anyone paying attention?

Now that same sex perversion has been proclaimed a societal good, child pornography and adults having sex with children must be approved next. None of this is accidental. There is a history that shows the inexorable, step-by-step movement toward the goal -- complete sexual license even claiming "consent" by children to rape and abuse. Alfred Kinsey led the vanguard with his "experiments" using sex abusers to claim that children are "sexual beings" and that they actually enjoy being abused. Kinsey's pedophiles would masturbate children, even babies, to the point of seizure. This monster, like his spiritual twin Margaret Sanger, is heralded for his "research." In reality, he was a deeply disturbed man, perhaps possessed, who was a leading figure in establishing the culture of death.

A 1998 article warned of what was coming. Here's an excerpt:

In 1990, the Journal of Homosexuality produced a special double issue devoted to adult-child sex, which was entitled "Male Intergenerational Intimacy" (1). One article said many pedophiles believe they are "born that way and cannot change" (p. 133). Another writer said a man who counseled troubled teenage boys could achieve "miracles... not by preaching to them, but by sleeping with them." The loving pedophile can offer a "companionship, security and protection" which neither peers nor parents can provide (p. l62). Parents should look upon the pedophile who loves their son "not as a rival or competitor, not as a thief of their property, but as a partner in the boy's upbringing, someone to be welcomed into their home..." (p. 164).


A British university professor wrote: "Boys want sex with men, boys seduce adult men, the experience is very common and much enjoyed" (p. 323). A professor of social science at the State University of New York says he looks forward to the day when Americans will "get over their hysteria about child abuse" (p. 325) and child pornography....

The authors' conclusion? That childhood sexual abuse is on average, only slightly associated with psychological harm--and that the harm may not be due to the sexual experience, but to the negative family factors in the children's backgrounds. When the sexual contact is not coerced, especially when it is experienced by a boy and is remembered positively, it may not be harmful at all.

The authors of the article propose that psychologists stop using judgmental terms like "child abuse," "molestation," and "victims," using instead neutral, value-free terms like "adult-child sex." Similarly, they say we should not talk about the "the severity of the abuse," but instead refer to "the level of sexual intimacy."

The authors conclude that behavior which psychotherapists commonly term "abuse" may only constitute a violation of social norms. And science, they say, should separate itself from social-moral terminology. Religion and society, these writers argue, are free to judge behavior as they wish...but psychiatry should evaluate behavior by its own set of standards.

In fact, the authors of the Psychological Bulletin article propose what they consider may be a better way of understanding pedophilia: that it may only be "abuse" if the child feels bad about the relationship. They are in effect suggesting a repetition of the steps by which homosexuality was normalized. In its first step toward removing homosexuality from the Diagnostic Manual, the A.P.A. said the condition was normal as long as the person did not feel bad about it.  (See more.)

Approval of child abuse is on the radar screen and moving this way. Parents who aren't alarmed by this are asleep. The first weapons in the fight-back arsenal are prayer and fasting. The next is education of friends and neighbors. Pass this post on. What else can you do? Write letters to the editor. Fight the sexualization of children in the public schools (and even Catholic schools) which grooms them, not only to engage in sex with one another, but to be victims of adults. Remember to do everything with charity. Hate the sin, but love the sinner. They are the lost sheep who need a savior. But fight -- your children and grandchildren are worth it.

A Joy Shared...

There's a saying that a sorrow shared is halved and a joy shared is doubled. Well, we are joyful today -- celebrating the birth of our 20th grandchild who arrived yesterday at 7:14 a.m. I was coming home from adoration at 2:15 a.m. when the phone call came that our daughter was in labor. I headed over to spend the night with the "big sister." Later on we drove over to the hospital for a visit with baby and parents.

My husband, who likes to watch Good Morning, America, said we should post a video message to their Saturday morning This week in three words segment. His suggestion? "Grandbaby Number 20." If you want to see the new arrival go here and leave her a message. We rejoice in the addition of a crown jewel to our family treasure, the only treasure that lasts -- eternally. Thank you to our five children who have given us all these precious jewels! (Photo taken in early August. Two not in photo -- one who was taking a nap and Baby B whose birth-day was still a few weeks away.)

Did the Earthquake Get Your Attention?

I live about two hours form the epicenter of today's Virginia earthquake which occured about thirty miles northwest of Richmond. We didn't even feel it here in Woodstock. But one of my northern Virginia children said it shook their house pretty vigorously.  It's amazing how many people far away felt it. I read a geologist's assessment about the shake being felt in New Jersey. He said, the rock formations between here and there are pretty strong and unbroken so the tremors travel without breaking up. Where there are lots of small faults and the rocks are broken, the tremors are more localized. Sounds reasonable.

How about you? If you live in the east did you feel it where you are?

When Faith and Science Meet: Doctors who pray for their patients

Fr. Z has an interesting short post today about the power of intercessory prayer, specifically, a doctor who hires two people to pray for his patients, his staff, and for himself. I was so intrigued that I did a little internet research on doctors who pray for and with their patients. My GYN, Dr. John Bruchalski, is one of those. There is no conflict between faith and science and it is good to see secular sources beginning to recognize it. So when you are going to see the doctor, don't forget that important adjunct to your treatment is prayer! Don't go to the hospital or the doctor's office without it.

Watch the full episode. See more Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly.

And here's more:
Does God Answer Prayer? Researcher Says 'Yes'

Continuous Chest Compression Can Save a Life

Many of us haven't been certified to perform traditional CPR, but here's a technique anyone can do in an emergency. I'm going to watch this video several times and ask my guardian angel to remind me of it if I'm ever in the position to save somebody who suffers cardiac arrest.

Michael Voris addresses the CNA Article

I haven't mentioned the Catholic News Service Article attacking Real Catholic TV because I was waiting for the "rest of the story." I thought the paperwork aspect of the article was ridiculous. Les Femmes is incorporated and I file an annual report with the state that is pro-forma. The more serious issue about the inappropriate video game created by Simon Rafe needed addressing.

Michael Voris covers both both these issues in a recent video response available here. He does it well. I believe RealCatholicTV is being targeted because they have guts and don't mind taking the heat. I wouldn't be a bit surprise if many of the bushwhackers wear roman collars or work in the Church bureaucracy at either the national or diocesan level. The fact that they are engaging in a smear campaign just proves how effective Mike Voris and his little band of soldiers are.

Let's face it, the real war is in the Church as it has always been. Jesus' worst enemies were the scribes and pharisees of His own faith. The same is true today. Some of the worst enemies of the Church participate in papal conclaves and lead dioceses. It is actually a proof that the Holy Spirit leads the Church that it has survived evil clerics for over 2000 years including wicked popes.

As for Mike Voris -- a big thanks for his clear and no-nonsense response. And I'll be sure to renew my priority membership to RealCatholicTV when it's due.

The New CCHD Strategy

I've noticed during the past few weeks that our bulletin listing of upcoming collections for the rest of the year omits the traditional CCHD (Catholic Campaign for Human Development) collection usually taken up in November the Sunday before Thanksgiving. Regular readers of this blog know CCHD is notorious for funding groups with links to abortion, same-sex marriage, and the election of liberal politicians I'd like to think the Diocese of Arlington is opting out of the CCHD collection, but that is too much to hope for. What's more likely is implementation of strategies cropping up around the country in some dioceses: bait and switch or the bob and weave. In some places the collection is being rolled into other collections, or the date is being changed, or it is being taken up different weekends at parishes in the same diocese. It appears that, rather than correct the problems with CCHD, many bishops are gaming the collection. Hey, if nobody knows when the collection will occur or if it's hidden under another name, opponents will have a hard time organizing a boycott.

In the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C., as reported by Restore D.C. Catholicism, this year's collection was switched to August and combined with the Catholic Communications Campaign. The diocese retitled it the Catholic Communications and Human Development Campaign. The Diocese of Superior lists the CCHD campaigns on its calendar for June in 2012 and 2013. Is this a change for them? I don't know. I couldn't find anything on previous years. See here for a number of articles on this year's collection in D.C.

According to friends around the country, fellow members of the Catholic Media Coalition, similar things are happening in their own dioceses. To me it seems just one more indictment of CCHD. No other national collection gets disguised with another collection or gets the date-changing bob and weave treatment. But CCHD is a special case and last year, under increasing scrutiny, they brought out the big guns to go after the enemy, their critics, who must be isolated, and discredited. Unfortunately for CCHD, it's an impossible job when there is so much evidence that indicates serious problems. All you have to do is look at the list of the 2010-2011 grantees on the USCCB website to see that community organizing groups are still among CCHD's main "charities."

To be fair, the devious strategies being used to disguise the collection are not universal. Some dioceses clearly identify when CCHD will be collected. The Diocese of Davenport for example announces it on their website. And some, like the Diocese of Kansas City, MO, announced last year that they were dropping all the community organizing groups from their local grants. A handful of bishops in the past few years have declined to take up the collection at all or took it up, but distributed it locally or to organizations outside the CCHD national grant system.

The problems with CCHD continue and are systemic. They are symptomatic of the problems with the entire social justice arm of the Catholic Church. Many of the professionals working for social justice "charities" are liberal cafeteria Catholics who support abortion, same-sex marriage, and other issues that violate Church teaching. They sit on boards of pro-abortion groups; contribute to liberal pro-abortion, pro-homosexual politicians; and often publicly dissent from Church teaching. Their approach to social justice is to forever demand increased government funding "for the poor" which often goes instead to the bureaucracies who claim to work for the poor but actually work to advance the liberal agenda. In view of government's "charity" to Planned Parenthood and other evil organizations that work for population control to eliminate the poor, the idea that somehow government is the solution is flawed to say the least.

Watch ALL's report from last year about CCHD. And be alert to "special collections" and where they are really going. Last year over seven million was collected and distributed by the national CCHD office. That's  I wonder how much of that money really went to help the poor and how much went to promoting philosophies that undermine Catholic teaching. Seven million buys a lot of grease for the liberal skids.

Pope Benedict's Parting Words to Youth

"So do not keep Christ to yourselves! Share with others the joy of your faith."

Translation: Get to work bringing your generation to Christ.

Let's Hear it for "Kidnapping" - from Social Services

I'm laughing out loud over this article! Thank God for a country like Poland where real men still live. One of them, Krzysztof Rutkowski, is a polish private eye who's making news for "kidnapping" kids from social services in Sweden and returning them to their parents. In one case a child was taken because the parents were home schooling. Here's an excerpt from the article: 

A Polish private investigator, dubbed "Rambo" by fans, has found a solution to the problems created when social services workers in the Nordic countries take custody of children against the wishes of family members: Simply "kidnap" the kids and give them back to the parents.

It's happened at least twice in Norway and is a stunning development for families there and in countries like Sweden, where social services workers, as WND has reported, have virtually absolute control over children once they are taken into government custody....

[Ruby] Harrold-Claeson [president of the Nordic Committee for Human Rights]  called the strategy that reunited the 9-year-old with her parents "an excellent piece of work."

"Polish radio, TV and newspapers have publicized the child's rescue and expressed severe criticism against Norway. ... Children who are taken hostages by the Nordic welfare states must be rescued, because there is no justice in the system," she said.

"According to the law, the parents are entitled to court hearings in order to obtain the release of their children, but once the system gets its claws into a child, they never let go. I have helped many of my clients in their desperate but futile battle to regain custody of their children," said Harrold-Claeson.

Social services' abuse of parents and uwarranted snatching of their kids is happening in many countries including the U.S. There's is a big financial incentive to get kids into protective services. The bureaucracy gets money for every child placed in foster care. The irony is that often kids are returned to truly abusive homes, while parents whose only "crime" is home schooling, or having a dispute with a vindictive neighbor, or some other politically incorrect situation (like being a Christian) lose their children for years. Sometimes kids are removed from the family based on no more than an anonymous accusation.

Phyllis Schlafly reported last fall (See here.) on a study that showed how ineffective state child protective services are and called for them to be shut down. There are plenty of horror stories some of which are documented in Brenda Scott's book, Out of Control: Who's Watching Our Child Protection Agencies? You don't have to look to the Nordic countries to see social services run amuck. It's right here on our own doorstep.

Laugh of the Day from Fr. Z

Sunday is a great day for praying -- and laughing. I'm not sure what precipitated Fr. Z's "Litany for the Conversion of Internet Thugs" but it is, as he says, "For private use only, when truly irritated, and when the alternative is foul language."

So when your blog or website is visited by trolls, orcs, and uglies, you now have an antidote to prevent you from an uncharitable response and revenge through word bombs. Here is my personal favorite section of the Litany which needs no commentary from me.

From faceless Facebook admin drones, spare us O Lord.
From tweeting Twitter idiots, spare us O Lord.
From from heart-hardened spammers, spare us O Lord.
From liberal nut-case smear-blogging hacks, spare us O Lord.
From thread-dominating combox trolls, spare us, O Lord.
From sophomoric drive-by commentators, spare us, O Lord.

Thanks, Fr. Z, for a Sunday laugh and a reminder not to take the "internet thugs" too seriously.

Bishops' Adviser Adresses Pedophile Conference

Did you hear about the pedophile conference that took place in Baltimore on August 17th? Sponsored by a group called B4U-ACT, the conference is promoting changes to the American Psychological Association's (APA) classification of pedophilia. According to LifeSite News:

B4U-ACT classifies pedophilia as simply another sexual orientation and decries the “stigma” attached to pedophilia, observing: “No one chooses to be emotionally and sexually attracted to children or adolescents. The cause is unknown; in fact, the development of attraction to adults is not understood.” The group says that it does not advocate treatment to change feelings of attraction to children or adolescents.

Of course not. This is a crusade to topple another barrier against sexual deviance, to foster acceptance of any and all "sexual orientations" as normal and good. What the pedophile community wants is the elimination of laws regarding child pornography and the age of consent. The crusade begins with bogus "research" and the demand to de-stigmatize the behavior.

B4U-ACT currently wants a change to the definition of pedophilia in the APA's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) which, according to Dr. Judith Reisman, an international expert on human sexuality, has already been watered down making it almost meaningless. She points out that the effort to normalize pedophilia has been going since the 70s.

This entire scenario is deja vu. If you recall, the homosexual community led by gay activist Franklyn Komeny, used the identical tactic to normalize same sex perversion with all its disgusting practices. First they lobbied the APA to remove the DSM designation of homosexuality as a mental disorder, then declare it normal, then shove it down the throat of mainstream America.

Well, the homosexuals are well on the way to universal same-sex marriage, so it's time for the next barrier to go. Watch as they take laws against child pornography and child rape to the chopping block. After all, as the North American Man-Boy Love Association (NAMBLA) says, "Sex before eight or else it's too late." And they insist that minors no matter how young can engage in consensual sex.

One of the most sickening thing about this conference is its link to the USCCB through their "expert" adviser Dr. Fred Berlin an abuser enabler par excellence. It was Berlin and his cohorts who advised the bishops that abusers could be treated and returned to ministry. Dr. Reisman has suggested that the bishops should have sued their "experts."

I'll address Berlin and his associates in a later post. For now, let me just provide one quote from the USCCB "expert:"

“Just as has been the case historically with homosexuality,” writes Berlin on the B4U-ACT website, “society is currently addressing the matter of pedophilia with a balance that is far more heavily weighted on the side of criminal justice solutions than on the side of mental health solutions.”

Well, we know what the "mental health solution" was for homosexuality. Define it as normal, promote tolerance, then acceptance, then define it as a positive good equal to any other "sexual orientation." We are moving in that direction on an entire smorgasbord of sexual disorders including pedophilia, polyamory. and polygamy. Watch for articles telling how good the attention is for children.

The Sexualization of Little Girls -- A Pedophile's Dream

What are the parents thinking of? How could any dad fail to protect his little daughter by allowing her to be a sex object for pedophiles getting their jollies on the internet? How could any mom stand by and set her baby up to be a body worshipper with all the associated eating disorders and self esteem problems? The millstones are ready for the judgment.

Bertie and Jeeves: The Madcap Duo

I love P.G. Wodehouse and his madcap stories of Bertie Wooster and his "man" Jeeves! It amazes me when people tell me they just can't read his stuff. Well, I can't either -- in public that is -- because it is laugh-out-loud looney. Bertie is the three stooges rolled into one, only with class and style (Thanks to Jeeves!) and a sense of loyalty and friendship that lands him in the most ridiculous scrapes and adventures. Jeeves is the perfect foil, educated, brilliant, and always ready to get Bertie and his buddies out of the soup.

Fr. James Schall, S.J., who teaches at Georgetown, wrote a delightful article (See here.) about a 1951 Wodehouse collection called Weekend Wodehouse. It brought a smile to my face and an eagerness to pull a sample from my Wodehouse shelf and reread. Here's an excerpt from from Father's article, but really, you must read it in its entirety:

In my early years, after discovering him – a notable event in the life of any man – I used to say that Wodehouse is to be read with a dictionary. But on finishing Weekend Wodehouse, I think I was wrong. Wodehouse does stretch one’s vocabulary. But it is not the meaning of the words that is novel or unknown. It is their placement.



For instance, I did not count the number of times the word “looney” came up. It is a marvelous word. It appears in the first story – “even with an uncle within a short jump of the looney bin….” Looney uncles, looney friends populate Wodehouse. The word comes either from a wobbly bird or from the moon, a kind of pleasant madness. No one would want to live in a world in which no looney characters were encountered.

We live in times that are so serious and downright depressing that you need a good bellylaugh now and then to maintain your balance. And that's the gift of Wodehouse - pure unadulterated fun. Whether Bertie is trying to cop a constable's helmet, save a maiden in distress, lift a silver cow pitcher, get out of an unfortunate engagement, etc. his adventures tickle your funnybone. But Wodehouse isn't exclusively about Bertie and Jeeves. I recently read a collection of his golf stories that feature the "Oldest Member" of a country club telling hilarious golf stories. They are vintage Wodehouse. What a great gift for the golfer in your life, especially one who takes the game too seriously!

If you've never read Wodehouse, or if you've tried and don't like the stories, give the BBC TV series with Hugh Laurie as Bertie a try. I think the second season is the best. I laughed out loud watching it, especially when Bertie gets the "Alex look" which reminds me of one of my grandchildren. But do read the books. As Hillaire Belloc wrote in the introduction to Weekend Wodehouse:

“For the English people, more than any other, have created in their literature living men and women rather than types and Mr. Wodehouse has created Jeeves. He has created others, but in his creation of Jeeves he has done something which may respectfully be compared to the work of the Almighty in Michelangelo’s painting. He has formed a man filled with the breath of life.”

Wodehouse's characters inhabit a past that has disappeared from England, but it lives on in the imaginations of those who love and read Wodehouse. May they be many.

More on Flash Mob Violence

EXCLUSIVE: Media Conceal True Nature of “Flash Mob” Racial Violence

The Ultimate Maternity Shirt!

A friend on a board I belong to posted this wonderful maternity T-shirt photo. Participating in the creation of new life really is the greatest super power of all! Congrats to all you expectant moms waiting for your babies to be born.

Be sure to sing those little ones lullabyes at bedtime. Might help them settle down after birth when they get their days and nights mixed up.

Of pot stirring and the 8th Commandment

This morning I'm reflecting on pot stirrers. I'm sure you know some. They enjoy creating drama in the lives of those around them by stirring up relationships. They throw a few bitter herbs into the pot and whisk it around, no matter if their witches' brew poisons those around them. Let me illustrate.

I was talking to a friend recently, I'll call her Jane, about a relationship problem in her life. It began with a "friend," Sally, who repeated something she said about a mutual friend, Ann. There was no malice in Jane's comment, but Sally told Ann and created a serious problem. Unfortunately, Ann listened to pot stirrer Sally and never called Jane to ask, "What gives?" If she had, the situation might have been resolved and blown over quickly instead of becoming a big deal. If Sally only did this one time, it would be an unfortunate mistake, but Sally is an experienced pot stirrer who seems to relish the commotion of stirring a bubbling pot and watching it boil.

As Christians, we recite the ten Commandments and think we keep them because we don't kill, cheat on our spouses, rob banks, or lie under oath. But other lesser sins sometimes fly under our radar screens, particularly with the eighth commandment that rules the tongue. Calumny and slander (lying and ruining another's good name) and detraction (telling negative truths without necessity that damage others) are common sins against this commandment and can be seriously wrong, i.e. mortally wrong. And the pot stirrer is a champion of detraction. If challenged she is likely to say, "Well, it was true after all." as if that excuses the damage caused.

I've known many pot stirrers in my life. They will inflate a puff of air into a cyclone and enjoy watching the commotion. What a sense of power! It seems to be a particular temptation of women (sorry, ladies). Perhaps the pot stirrer has a subliminal desire to cause a rift between mutual friends so she can be the "bestest" friend of all. When I taught fourth grade, pot stirring created a daily drama among the girls that usually resulted in one or two crying during recess. The pot stirrer, I think, is stuck in middle school adolescence.

There's an antitdote to pot stirring. I made a resolution years ago to repeat every praise I hear about others and never repeat a negative. If someone tells me how kind Jane was when she did so and so, I will be sure to tell Jane about how much her act was appreciated. If, on the other hand someone tells me something negative about Ann, I will promptly drop it down the memory hole. Life is hard enough without creating more problems for people.

I have no doubt that everybody has pot stirrers in their lives. Some are as close as family, others are among a group of friends. A good strategy is to call the pot stirrer out with the question, "Why are you telling me this?" If she can't get you stirred up, she may just drop her spoon.

God bless Bishop Aquila!

Pro-Life Nursing Student Stands Up for Conscience Rights

The Demonic Nature of "Choice"

Pro-abortionists typically demonize the pro-life movement. Not surprising -- how could they live with themselves if they recognized that those working for life are kind, generous, and quick to help with nothing to gain for themselves? And why do these pro-lifers, often mothers, do it? Because abortion is demonic and takes the lives of little ones who are no different from their own children. That's what turned me from a non-confrontational young mom into a rescue activist and sidewalk counselor. As I held my little ones, I couldn't help thinking about their peers who would never be held or cuddled or loved. Someone needed to love them enough to try to save them from the butcher's knife. And what a joy it is to hold a little one whose mother chose life at the last minute! Those moments I will never forget.

But so many babies still die. And, as legal abortion continues into the second generation, its demonic nature becomes more and more obvious even to many secularists. The New York Times recently ran an article on mothers who selectively abort one of a set of twins for no reason other than they want a "singleton." Talk about "random selection!" It is chilling to think of a woman going through all kinds of fertility treatments to secure a baby only to kill one. Set her action alongside the other insanities: sex selection abortion and late term abortion/infanticide. Although it is clearly evil to kill a baby at any stage, those abortions that show clear deliberation and full knowledge and consent by the mothers are particularly horrific. Is it any wonder women who kill one of their twins conceal it and are even advised by their doctors to hide their dirty little secret? They say no one will understand and they are right. No one will "understand" because it confounds the nature of motherhood to choose one of your children and hire a hit man to kill him. That "doctors" consent to perform the murder reflects their moral bankruptcy.

It is the modern "Sophie's choice" without the coercion of a Nazi soldier forcing the mother to target one of her children for death. She does it herself willingly, perhaps with a sigh, but killing nonetheless. Fear of "not being able to cope" cannot legitimize the act. How many of us on our graduation or wedding day don't fear the unknowns in the future?

But these mothers probably don't realize they are also choosing the unknown horror of living each day with the knowledge and memory of killing their babies' siblings. They don't yet realize the pain of loss they will experience every time they look at their newborns -- or the curiosity of, "What would he or she be like?" As their children grow, how many losses will they experience at every milestone? A little ghost will haunt every birthday celebration, every holiday, every graduation, every swim meet and soccer game. How many of these moms will one day say to that solitary surviving twin in an unguarded moment of anger, "I should have killed you and not your twin!" Or will they just think it?

And what of the children? What does it do to the development of a baby to lie in the protection of his mother's womb and experience the invasion of the deadly needle that punctures the heart of his bosom companion? Can this really be an innocuous event? There are many stories of twins preserving and protecting the lives of their siblings. In England recently, doctors diagnosed a fraternal twin with a heart defect and a leaky amniotic sack at 20 weeks. The doctors predicted a sure death. The baby's twin positioned herself at the opening of the uterus creating a plug that allowed another ten weeks of growth and development. Both babies were born healthy and strong. In another case a set of twins were born and the weaker baby girl was in danger of death. Against hospital policy, a wise nurse put the little ones together in the same incubator and the stronger twin put her arm around her sister. The sick baby stablized and survived and the "rescuing hug" story went viral on the internet. The strong bond between twins is well known; what is not known is the long term impact of a twin experiencing the violent murder of a sibling in utero.

Another disconcerting fact from theTimes article is the connection it makes between immoral fertility treatments and abortion. As one mother says:

If I had conceived these twins naturally, I wouldn't have reduced this pregnancy, because you feel like if there is a natural order, then you don't want to disturb it. But we created this child in such an artificial manner -- in a test tube, choosing an egg donor, having the embryo placed in me -- and somehow, making a decision about how many to carry seemed to be just another choice. The pregnancy was all so consumerish to begin with, and this became yet another thing we could control. 

Another mother openly acknowledged that she and her husband (and the doctor) were playing God:

It was very difficult for both of us. I still wonder, Did we choose the right one? — even though I wasn’t the one who chose. That idea, that one’s gone and one’s here, it’s almost like playing God. I mean, who are we to choose? Even as it was happening, I wondered what the future would have been if the doctor had put the needle into the other one.

Once a person usurps God's dominion over life and death ("We created this child." "Did we choose [to kill] the right one?"), he makes himself "like unto God" with the power to decide who lives and who dies. The baby, then, becomes a "consumer" object to be valued or trashed at will. It is diabolical.
 
God created us in His image and likeness and gave us the gift of participating in the creation of new human souls for heaven. Only man, in his arrogance, throws the gift back in God's face and says, "I'll create my own heaven through my own choice." Sadly, that is a prescription for hell on earth and many of these mothers will no doubt experience it unless they repent and seek forgiveness.
 
One of the greatest gifts we can receive on earth is to cooperate with God in the act of creation and to experience the dignity of being trusted with rearing souls for Him. One of the devil's greatest deceptions is to convince parents to spurn that role, kill their children, and rejoice in their "control." The ultimate question is whether we will choose life or death. To be pro-life or "pro-choice" is as different as the choice between heaven and hell. May each of us choose life so that, as Deuteronomy 30 promises, "[we] and [our] children may live" - eternally with God in heaven.

Pro-Abortion Propaganda

The Two-Minus-One Pregnancy

Government Tyranny Over Children

As a parent you probably think you have the right to make  important decisions for your minor children. Think again. In California, the 9th Circuit Court ruled that parents have no right to opt their children out of state mandated curricula no matter how objectionable. As the court ruled

“[p]arents…have no constitutional right…to prevent public schools from providing its students with whatever information it wishes to provide, sexual or otherwise, when and as the school determines that it is appropriate to do so.”

If they want to teach your children that homosexual behavior is normal and you object -- tough. If they want to teach kids how to: put condoms on bananas, where to get the pill or an abortion, that they have a right to choose their own values and reject their parents -- well it's just too bad. The only control you have as a parent once you get into some school systems is to opt out altogether by private home schooling. Do you think that's why so many politicians opt their kids out of public schools?
 
Watch the trailer below and wake up, parents. Big Daddy government and his nannies in the school system and social services will be making decisions for your family. Fight now...while you still can!



For more see Whatever Schools Teach, Parents Have No Rights

Hey, It's Just Flash Mob Welfare, Dude!

When our kids were little at least two walked out of stores with small items. Once it was a spool of thread from a fabric store. There was certainly no malice involved, but I explained that taking what didn't belong to you was stealing and we needed to return it and apologize to the storekeeper. 

Apparently, the kids in this video never got the "do not steal" lesson and have no problem taking what doesn't belong to them while treating their reprehensible actions like a big joke. Wonder how much of a joke it would have been if the clerk objected and someone slashed him with a knife or pulled a gun. And what business will be hit next? Or will it be someone's home?

The Philadelphia video I posted a few days ago showed a group of kids (blacks again) attacking a man in a suit walking down the street only a few blocks from Independence Hall in broad daylight. They knocked him down, kicked him in the head and he ended up in the hospital. This is likely to get very ugly as it spreads around the country. You can't tell from the Philly video whether the man is white, but I wouldn't be surprised. The race warfare that has been stirred up by the Obamas and their buddies (like Jeremiah Wright) is bearing fruit. And sad to say, the greatest losers in this will be the morally upright black kids who are tarred with the same brush as the black hoodlums.

On the Feast of the Assumption - A Garland for Mary

Chicago's Rosary in the Sky  No doubt Mary was looking down with baby Jesus and smiling. "See the beautiful gift for me from the little ones?" How much Jesus must love children since He came as one. Say a Hail Mary of thanks for these young witnesses to life and love for the faith. What a gift for Mary on her feast day!

Kiss Girl Scouts Good-Bye!

If you are still eating Thin Mints and Samoas, it's time to switch. Girl Scouts may not be poisoning the cookies, but they are poisoning the minds and hearts of little girls, something far worse. If your parish has a Girl Scout troop show them this information and suggest they switch to Little Flowers.

The cookie crumbles: American girls abandoning Girl Scouts

It's a Horrible Life: Children in Hollywood

I don't know anything about the actors in the article below, but I am convinced that putting your children in show biz is a disaster.

Actor Corey Feldman Says Pedophilia No. 1 Problem for Child Stars, Contributed to Demise of Corey Haim

Chronicles ran several articles about child stars a few issues ago and it confirms the negative impact of celebrity for most kids who don't travel the Hollywood maze without getting lost. I wrote a commentary on the Chronicles articles one of which mentioned the rocky relationship between Tatum O'Neal and her dad who never seems to have grown up. I happened to catch the two of them on Good Morning, America talking about a program they were doing together. Tatum's body language with her father was interesting. She sat about as far from him as possible on the couch. Once they held hands, but most of the interview she looked like a wound up spring with both her legs and arms crossed as though she were protecting herself. Clearly, there was no trust for dad who has publicly attacked her in the past in words that I won't print. But they have reconciled so they say, and it will be interesting to watch the end of the story. It is always a tragedy when family members feud and a few prayers for Hollywoods's youngest casualties would be an act of charity.

As for Hollywood pedophiles, it doesn't take much imagination to believe that.

Sunday thoughts on the economy

The economy is on most people's minds these days. But some things never change. Here are some famous voices from ancient history. What do you think they would say about the U.S. economy?

The arrogance of officialdom should be tempered and controlled, and the assistance to foreign lands should be curtailed lest Rome become bankrupt. [Does this make you think of anyone in particular?]

Cicero - 106 - 43 B.C.

Economy is too late when you are at the bottom of your purse. [Perhaps this explains why the administration continues to spend like a drunken sailor. Heck...it's too late anyway. Why stop now?]

Seneca - 4 B.C. to 65 A.D.

How great, my friends, is the virtue of living upon a little! [We are all likely to experience this in the days ahead! So put your trust in God instead of in your pocketbook.]


Horace 65-8 B.C.

And here's one modern voice of common sense who sums it up pretty well.

We might come closer to balancing the Budget if all of us lived closer to the Commandments and the Golden Rule. [Amen!]

Ronald Reagan 1911-2004

Take away their cell phones!

Philadelphia mayor talks tough to black teenagers after ‘flash mobs’

Shed a tear - Obamacare's in Trouble

Betsy McCaughey: Court Ruling 'Slams the Brakes' on Obamacare

Linda Gibbons is Back in Jail!

Linda Gibbons, the Canadian pro-lifer who has spent eight of the last seventeen years in prison, is back in jail. She violated an injunction by walking on the sidewalk within the "bubble zone" at an abortion mill run by infamous abortionist Henry Morgentaler. This petite grandmother is relentless in her determination to love the babies by standing with them where they are being murdered and offering assistance to their mothers. Would that we all had the zeal of this courageous hero of the unborn. It is amazing to me to watch the parade of police surrounding and arresting Linda "who opened not her mouth." Pray and fast for an end to abortion and won't you please go, at least occasionally, to our modern-day Calvary where Jesus is being crucified in his least ones? For past posts on Linda go here.

The Law of Unintended Consequences: Michelle's Attack on Childhood Obesity

Michelle Obama reminds me of Hollywood actress/traitor turned exercise guru, Jane Fonda. Just like Jane and her body worship, Michelle loves showing off her biceps in sleeveless dresses. And we all know she serves her hubby arugula when he isn't chowing down on barbecue and gourmet pizza.

But if you were a fat kid, how would Michelle's attack on childhood obesity play out in real life? Peggy Howell of the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance paints a grim picture of the consequences of attacking obesity instead of urging all children to focus on a healthier diet and lifestyle. Considering the reality of eating disorders and obsession with body image, especially in girls, Howell makes a cogent point. Stop talking about fat kids and instead go swimming or take a hike.

More on Wisconsin Recall: Unions Lose Big!

Unions lose big in Wisconsin: "The people" were supposed to be on the side of the unions who protested at the state capitol when Walker's bill passed, limiting the unions' collective bargaining privileges against taxpayers and school districts. But it turns out that "the people" had other ideas. In the end, even a massive infusion of cash and union volunteers was not enough to deliver the three state Senate recall races the unions needed, despite the fact that President Obama carried all six of the seats in question in 2008.

Pray for more Democrat defeats in the August 16th recall.

Our Lady of Good Help, pray for us.

Pro-Lifers Hold on in Wisconsin Recall Elections

Pro-aborts outspent pro-lifers two to one, but they still lost four of the six Republican recall elections on August 8th. And two strongly pro-abortion Democrats face recalls on Auguest 16, the day after Our Lady's Feast of the Assumption. Please begin a novena of rosaries today asking her intercession for the defeat of these death dealing politicians. Wisconsin Right to Life Pac has endorsed the two Republicans.

Pro-Life Candidates Win Victories in Wisconsin Recall Race

The Obama Strategy: Taking a Crisis and Making it an Unmitigated Disaster

The Obama strategy for the first two years of his administration has been demonizing George Bush ( who certainly deserved plenty of criticism). The strategy now is blame Republicans, or the "rich," or the Tea Party, or anyone but himself and his disastrous policies. Look for recession and massive inflation on the horizon. Stock up! Here's an excerpt from a Washington Times editorial. Read the complete column here. As for Obama he is Jimmy Carter cubed:

The president refuses to admit that he is part of the problem. “There will always be economic factors that we can’t control,” he said. “Earthquakes, spikes in oil prices, slowdowns in other parts of the world,” seemingly arguing that these factors have something to do with the current crisis, which they do not. He chose not to mention his limitless appetite for spreading around borrowed money. Federal non-defense spending as a percentage of gross domestic product averaged 15.6 percent from 1975 to the advent of the Obama presidency. Since then it has zoomed to an average of 19.6 percent and is headed up. Even the prospective future budget “cuts” in the debt ceiling agreement still institutionalize $7 trillion in spending beyond the government’s means over the next ten years. This is the problem, not earthquakes....

 Given Mr. Obama’s insistence on increasing the number of costly government regulation, his blame-the-rich approach to economics, and burdensome, job-killing health care plan, no president has done more damage to [the American] spirit of enterprise. Mr. Obama said that “this is the United States of America… We always have been and always will be a Triple-A country.” If only we had a Triple-A leader.

Another Reason to Respect Ken Cuccinelli

Ken Cuccinelli really believes the law is about justice, so when new DNA evidence showed another man committed the crime that jailed Thomas Haynesworth, he went to bat for the imprisoned man. Read the excerpt from the Washington Times article below and click on the headline for the full story. It's well worth your time.

Keene: Justice delayed shouldn’t be justice denied
Exoneration of the innocent is a paramount act of conscience

Last week, the mid-Atlantic Innocence Project (exonerate.org) hosted a lunch to honor two very different men. One is black. The other is white. One has served 27 years in Virginia prisons for crimes he didn’t commit. The other is Virginia’s chief law enforcement official.

Their story began one evening in 1984, when 18-year-old Thomas Haynesworth went to a Richmond store to buy sweet potatoes for his mother. He’d never been in trouble, but as he left the store, a rape victim spotted him, called the police and mistakenly identified him as her attacker. Mr. Haynesworth was quickly arrested, jailed, tried, convicted of raping three women, sentenced to 84 years, hustled off to a state penitentiary and promptly forgotten....


Fortunately for Mr. Haynesworth, Mr. Cuccinelli is one attorney general who believes that while our criminal justice system works pretty well most of the time, it isn’t perfect. “We have to remember” he told his audience last week, “it was designed by human beings and is staffed by human beings, who sometimes make mistakes.” This simple and obvious fact, he argues, means those working within the system have an obligation to keep in mind the possibility that mistakes might be made and do all they can to rectify them when they occur.

Background Story on one of my favorite politicians, Ken Cuccinelli

Honesty and integrity aren't adjectives that come to mind with most politicians. But there are a few and Ken Cuccinelli, Attorney General of Virginia, is one of them. Father of seven and husband of home schooling mom, Teiro, Ken brings hope for positive change, unlike those who talk about change and bring destruction. Here's a great snapshot of Ken from the "ultimate insider," his wife Teiro.

Dear Friends,  

For the first few years of our marriage, Ken was politically active every year, helping Republican candidates throughout the state in any way he could.

My little window into the world of politics (from before we were married) had a rather negative perspective at the time, so I wanted to keep everything political at arms length. I am ashamed to say that I went so far as to tell Ken, "You can help other candidates, but don't ever think about running for office, because I have no interest in being a political wife!"

Sunday Thoughts: The Old and the Young

At present our home (nicknamed Camp Kreitzer by our kids) resounds with happy chaos. We have three of our five children and their families visiting and an extra grandchild, which adds up to a grand total of fifteen children and eight adults all under the same roof. I will not say it is always harmonious, but it is mostly so and never dull

Larry and I went to 8:00 a.m. Mass this morning with five of the oldest grandchildren who all wanted to go to the nursing home where I take Communion to five of the residents. Two of our Houston girls have gone with us regularly during their visit and wanted to say good-bye to their new friends.

How happy the residents and staff were to see all the children and get "morning hugs," a Camp Kreitzer tradition. We had our own little choir and sang Immaculate Mary several times in different rooms in honor of the upcoming feast of Our Lady. We also imitated the von Trapp family singers with a rousing double chorus of Doe a Deer.   

We watched several residents literally light up seeing and listening to the children. No wonder, since the young bring the Kingdom of God with them wherever they go. "Jesus called for the children, saying: 'Let the little children come to me. Do not shut them off. The reign of God belongs to such as these.' Trust me when I tell you that whoever does not accept the kingdom of God as a child will not enter into it." (Luke 18:16-17)

This morning the children met and visited with the child-like and heart spoke to heart. It was smiles all around. Many forget the sick and elderly in nursing home, but I believe they are among God's favorites.

If you want to be close to Jesus, go visit those who are most ignored in our Culture of Death. Go to an abortion mill. You will be at the foot of the cross when you defend God's babies in danger of death. And when you visit a nursing home, you will sit with Mary and Martha watching over their sick brother Lazarus praying for Jesus to come.  The beginning and end of life draw our attention to what really matters -- loving God with our whole hearts, minds, and souls and loving our neighbors as ourselves. You will find many needy neighbors at the abortion mills and the nursing homes. Remember them, at least in prayer, but also with a visit if you can. Jesus is waiting for you there.

Impact of the Debt Deal -- No Good News!

According to the NY Times:
Disapproval Rate for Congress at Record 82% After Debt Talks

U.S. loses our AAA rating:
US Rating Cut by S&P for First Time on Deficit Reduction Pact

The Public isn't buying cut promises:
62% Think Congress Unlikely to Cut Spending As Promised by One Trillion Dollars Over Next 10 Years

This monster is insatiable:
U.S. eats up most of debt limit in one day

Many people have given up hope of getting a job:
Unemployment Report August 5, 2011: Discouraging


A country that has traded the lives of its children for "stuff" shouldn't be surprised that it is being punished economically. You can blame Congress or the White House, but the indifference and practical acceptance of child-killing by the people is the real cause of our woes. Sin is the cause of all unhappiness. But just like liberals promise we can spend our way out of debt, some believe compounding sin by approving same-sex marriage will bring us utopia. Maybe they need to interview the citizens of Sodom and Gomorrah.

How to Recognize a Diabolical "Christian" Church

"God delivered them up in their lusts to unclean practices; they engaged in the mutual degradation of their bodies....Their women exchanged natural intercourse for unnatural, and the men gave up natural intercourse with women and burned with lust for one another....One sees in them men without conscience, without loyalty, without affection, without pity. They know God's just decree that all who do such things deserve death; yet they not only do them but approve them in others." (Romans 1:24-32)

Jesus, Mary and ... Josephine? It's lesbian Nativity at church:
'A slap in the face to the Holy Family and Christians around the world'

Oblates of St. Francis de Sales Pay Big Settlement

Religious order pays $24.8 million to settle Delaware priest abuse lawsuits

Our two sons attended an Oblate high school in Virginia in the late 80s and early 90s, Bishop Ireton (BI)  in Alexandria. What a waste of money for parents whose primary concern was learning the faith! I used to fight with the principal over goings on like inviting pro-abortion speakers to the school and indoctrinating the kids in liberal politics during government class. The government teacher worked in the Carter administration and made no bones about his support for a local pol, Jim Moran, a pro-abortion Catholic. I'm not sure if Moran still attends a Catholic parish or switched to a Protestant church. In any case his beliefs have nothing to do with those of Jesus no matter what he calls himself and he continues to advance the liberal pro-abort, pro-homosexual agenda in Congress. Unfortunately, BI was more interested in hob-nobbing with power than teaching the faith.

The Debt Disaster

The debt agreement this week guaranteed that the deficit will rise. It may, in fact, make default inevitable. When your baseline government spending rises, you can't call it a reduction. As the article says, the U.S. has a mortal wound and the bandaid just ain't going to stop the bleeding artery.

The debt ceiling agreement: a fiscal band-aid on mortal wounds

Homosexual Priests and the Abuse of the Mass

Whenever I see a showman priest prancing around the altar, I always have a nagging feeling that he is probably a homosexual. The article below explains why.

The liturgical impact of homosexuality in the priesthood

Jesuits: The Order of the Lie

The lead article from the Spring issue of The Truth focuses on the sad reality of the Jesuits: they have become the "Order of the Lie." To read our in-depth article on the sad situation of these former champions of the Church go here.

Aspartame, the Pill, and Love of Money

I was reading an article this morning about the dangers of aspartame which has been linked to brain tumors. Here's an excerpt:

Dr. Adrian Gross, the FDA's toxicologist who examined the aspartame research initially presented to the FDA by G.D. Searle, was "absolutely shocked" at the evidence according to Dr. Russell Blaylock, a retired neurosurgeon, showing "an enormous increase in tumors, particularly brain tumors."

"And of course that's exactly what we're seeing now is this tremendous increase in brain tumors in this country. Which is completely unexplained by the neurological profession," continues Dr. Blaylock.

Abortifacient Birth Control Mandated by HHS

US: private insurers must offer free contraception under new mandate

Excerpt:

Beginning in August 2012, all private insurers must provide women with coverage for FDA-approved contraception--including sterilization and contraceptives that have an abortifacient effect--under a mandate announced on August 1 by the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)....

“Group health plans sponsored by certain religious employers, and group health insurance coverage in connection with such plans, are exempt from the requirement to cover contraceptive services,” according to an amendment to the mandate. However, that exception is narrowly defined: “A religious employer is one that: (1) has the inculcation of religious values as its purpose; (2) primarily employs persons who share its religious tenets; (3) primarily serves persons who share its religious tenets; and (4) is a non-profit organization.”

Under the mandate Catholic social services, schools, etc. would be forced to provide contraception including abortifacient drugs approved by the FDA. The bishops' pro-life office asks,  "Could the federal government possibly intend to pressure Catholic institutions to cease providing health care, education and charitable services to the general public?” Certainly seems so doesn't it?

The government is using homosexual activism to force the Church out of adoption. Is this new regulation intended to widen the purge? And when Catholics are all forced back behind the doors of our churches what then? Burn them down? Anyone who can't see the expanding persecution is blind.

The Church Militant was never more needed.

This is Victory?

According to one political commentator, the deal guarantees Obama's reelection. Let's hope she's wrong.: 

The president’s top priorities have been to avoid a default this week and to make sure the debt ceiling is raised high enough to get through the 2012 election. Assuming the not-so-grand bargain makes it through Congress, those missions are accomplished, and they are not small. Read more here...

Boehner, McConnell Agree to Let Obama Borrow Another $2.4 Trillion

$2.4 Trillion Would Be Largest Debt-Limit Increase in U.S. History

More Bad News About Chemical Birth Control

From the Population Research Institute Blog:

According to the most recent report of the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, published in 2009, close to 50% of all newly acquired Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)-1 infections across the globe now occur in women of reproductive age. Only a decade before, in 1998, only roughly 36% of reported cases concerned women of all ages. Why this vast increase? Why, when treatment for HIV has become more accessible and the overall death toll has slowly been decreasing, are more and more women being infected? And why is the increase concentrated in women in their childbearing years?


Heterosexual intercourse is the point of transmission for the majority of these newly infected women. No surprise here. But sex is not just sex these days. Heavily funded population control programs have promoted, and even imposed, powerful, steroid-based contraceptive drugs on tens of millions of Third World women. What they trumpet as “greater global access to family planning methods” has in fact given the HIV virus greater access to women's bodies by altering women's local and systemic immunities, cervico-vaginal responses and protective vaginal flora—all in directions that make infection more likely.

Statistics gathered over the past 20 years reveal a parallel between an increase in contraceptive drug use and an increase in HIV-1 infections in women. Several epidemiological studies over the same period also seem to demonstrate a link. These studies were conducted with various cohorts of women from married mothers to single adolescents to “sex workers”, and were carried out, for the most part, among the populations of users of African family planning clinics. A link between the use of contraceptive drugs and HIV-1 disease acquisition and progression seemed evident, although most of the studies—for whatever reason—failed to draw any consistent or strong conclusions about this link. And none suggested that family planning programs ought to be modified or scaled back as a result. Read more here...

Judge's Ruling Threatens Free Speech for Pro-Lifers!

Blast a politician? It could mean jail:
Obama judge's ruling says defamation claim lurks for those criticizing ballot candidates
 
"This ruling means that anybody criticizing a candidate is in danger of a defamation claim."