Watch out for the lunch Nazis!

Mom "Lunch Shamed" for Sending Oreos

Mind your own darn business! The public schools are doing a horrible job teaching the three Rs. so what are they doing instead? Monitoring lunches, teaching sex and drug ed, banning dodge ball, and interfering in families' lives at every level. (Did you hear about the dad who got hell from the school because he and his wife took their third grade twins out of school for a long weekend (three days!) for the Boston marathon and to do the Freedom trail? Good grief!)

BUTT OUT!

Unfortunately, monitoring lunches isn't the worst these folks are doing. They think it's okay to dispense contraceptives and chemical abortion pills to youngsters without parental consent and even take kids to abortion mills. In New York City, schools give kids contraceptives without parental consent. It is an opt out program, but how many parents are even aware of it? Of course, if their daughters end up in the emergency room, the schools won't be the ones taking responsibility for the damage.

More and more public policies usurp the authority of parents and place it in the hands of teachers and administrators, some of whom don't even know the kids. In 2014, a report out of Georgetown University (!) recommended explicit sex education to minors as young as 10 while their opinions are still "malleable." The attitude toward parents in this report is insulting and sickening! It's the schools and the experts who should discuss sensitive issues with children; parents are ill equipped and need to be bypassed.

Every time I read something like this, I am more and more convinced that parents who are able would be well-advised to home school. If you don't want your children trained in lust and groupthink before they can even reach the second shelf in your kitchen cabinet, keep them at home.

We Need More Tough Love Like This

Thank God for this mom who loved her son enough to go down and drag him off the street and home! Where's Dad? Statistically, the kid is likely being raised by a single mom. Liberals have destroyed the black family with their sick policies replacing dads with Uncle Sugar Daddy. Well, if you don't have a dad to box your ears and keep you in line, a tough momma is the next best thing! This kid will not be likely to end up on a slab in the morgue - at least this time. Let's pray for this mom and her son and other children if she has any.

Yup, Bob McDonnell Goes to Jail for Accepting about $200,000

....Hillary gets millions and the media cover for her.

Does "Social Justice" Justify Sin? by Fr. Tom Collins

My friend, Fr. Tom Collins, hits another one out of the ball park! I know many Catholics with a false notion of "social justice" who act exactly as Father describes labeling all those who disagree as intolerant and hateful. What times we live in when those who call for social "justice" act so unjustly toward their brothers and sisters!

------------------------------ 

It is painful to acknowledge the fact that we have witnessed a serious degradation of many of the Church's sacred disciplines over the past half century. One of the most glaring examples has been the development of unwritten, but de facto policies, which not only passively ignore, but also pro-actively laud and reward the immoral practices of certain political and civic leaders. Provided such practices are allegedly done for the sake of promoting a "social justice" agenda, they apparently are only to be meekly tolerated, but not carefully critiqued, much less vigorously condemned.

Among the immoral practices routinely embraced by many proponents of the" social justice" agenda are slander, deception, voting fraud, abuse of power, political cronyism, denial of accountability, violation of solemn oaths, the lax enforcement of our laws against the illegal infiltration of our nation (thereby enriching drug cartels and human traffickers for decades), the destruction of pre-born children by abortion, the degradation of our posterity by amoral "family life education" programs and by imposing on them an ever-increasing obscenely onerous burden of debt slavery and unfunded mandates. Sadly, in spite of all these abuses, those who routinely practice them are all too often praised by Church leaders, organizations and institutions as champions of justice.

Sick of....

Blogging,

Smart phones that track your every move,

Family crises and health problems,

Rudeness everywhere,

Riots for any reason,

Bad news in the media,

Media ignoring anything moral (like the March for Marriage),

Cold spring weather (Send me some global warming!),

(Sigh!)

Thankful for another day in the vale of tears offering it all up for family and friends. God bless you today!

Who are the Haters? The Hate-Filled Homosexuals!

Let's see.... If a customer came to a bakery run by a Muslim and asked for a cake depicting an insult to Mohammed would the owner be within his rights to refuse to decorate it? Suppose someone wanted a disgusting sexual message on a cake for a bachelor party or a cake insulting mothers for Mothers Day? Could the owner say no? What about a misogynist message? How about a cake celebrating 9/11? Are there no limits on what a customer wants?  Does the baker have to make and decorate the cake in all these circumstances? I'd say the answer is a no-brainer. Of course he doesn't!

But if a Christian

New Spa-Like Abortion Mill Tries to Destigmatize Ripping Babies Apart

Spa-like abortion mill in D.C.

They can dress it up all they want, print stickers that say "abortion on demand without apology," show glamorous women bragging about killing their babies.... In the end, it won't work. Because mothers know they aren't carrying a turnip or a cantaloupe. You can't fool Mother Nature. It's a baby that's ripped from the mom's womb or chemically killed. You can dress it up, but, as they say, a sow's ear will never be a silk purse. Abortion is a bloody, murderous act and, no matter how lovely the setting where the murder takes place, it's still murder and the victim is just as dead. Pray for the women who choose it and those who make a living killing babies.

Yesterday was a Great Day for the Kreitzers!

We welcomed a new baby, our twenty-third grandchild. Fr. Paul Marx always said if you want to do something pro-life, have another baby. I'm not sure who said the best gift you can give your children are brothers and sisters.

Well, our children are generous in the life-giving department and we are ecstatic over the new little flower in Gramma's garden.

Take a look at him. I think he is a marigold fresh from the Blessed Mother's treasury.

Real Nuns Speak with their Feet

Young nuns taking courses at the Dominican House of Studies.

Unlike the "sisters on the bus" who advocate for immorality, these sisters took action to defend the faith.

God bless the Dominican Sisters of Mary Mother of the Eucharist!

Nuns walk out of San Francisco Catholic school as students push gay activist campaign

Homosexuals in the Military is Such a Good Idea, Eh?

Defense Secretary: 10,400 Male Troops Subjected to 'Unwanted Sexual Contact' Last Year

"Defense Secretary Ashton Carter told a group of ROTC cadets on Wednesday that sexual assault is a 'particular challenge and a particular disgrace' to the U.S. military.
He noted that last year, far more men (10,400) than women (8,500) 'experienced unwanted sexual contact.'"

Is anyone really surprised?

The Enemies of Archbishop Cordileone Raise the Stakes with Open Letter to Pope Francis

San Francisco dissenters have raised the stakes in the attack on Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone with an open letter to Pope Francis in the San Francisco Chronicle. One of their beefs is his support for Star of the Sea pastor, Fr. Joseph Illo. One of the signers of the ad admitted he didn't contribute to its cost and doesn't know who paid for it. (Source.) It would be interesting to be able to follow the money on this highly orchestrated attack on the Archbishop.

One strategy of these dissenters is to link the archbishop with the Star of the Sea flap over Fr. Joseph Illo's decision to have only boys serve at the altar which is a legitimate prerogative of a pastor. The dishonesty in the portrayal of his action as a tragedy and unmitigated disaster illustrates the lengths to which liberals are willing to go in advancing their agenda.

Interestingly,

Pray the Rosary and then Pray it Again!

The Rosary will defeat Boko Haram!

Nigerian Bishop Oliver Dashe Doeme describes his vision:

“Towards the end of last year I was in my chapel before the Blessed Sacrament… praying the rosary, and then suddenly the Lord appeared,” Bishop Dashe told CNA April 18. 

In the vision, the prelate said, Jesus didn’t say anything at first, but extended a sword toward him, and he in turn reached out for it. 

Now if we would just treat babies in the womb like chimpanzees...

...They would have their day in court.

Judge Gives Legal Rights to Research Chimps

Archbishop Cordileone isn't the only one under fire in San Francisco....

Remember Fr. Joseph Illo of Star of the Sea parish who had the media and some parishioners after him for changing the policy of his parish to allow only altar boys? He has been under attack ever since.

Well, faithful Catholics are coming to his support with what they are calling a "Mass Mob Miracle."

This coming Saturday, April 25th they invite everyone in the Bay area to join them at the 4:30 vigil Mass to pray for the priests of Star of the Sea, Fr. Joseph Illo and Fr. Patrick Driscoll,and for Archbishop Cordileone. If you are able please help make this a successful event by attending and inviting your family and friends. Mass will be followed by a reception.

See more here and at Facebook.

And We Should Give to Catholic Relief Services...Why?

Vice President of Catholic Relief Services is legally "married" to same-sex partner.

Pray for the Lord to increase your faith, because with this kind of scandal, many (those who put their trust in men in Roman collars) will abandon the Church.

The failure of our shepherds is why faithful Catholics have an obligation to speak out. Clerics who fail to exercise their authority to watch over Holy Mother Church and the flock are derelict in their duty and they will answer for it.

Think of it -- Christians are losing their secular livelihood for refusing to cooperate in the evil of sodomite relationships masquerading as marriage. Meanwhile, Church leaders, who know the truth, exercise so little oversight that they provide high level jobs in the Church to those who actively scandalize and lead many into the sin of calling what is intrinsically evil a moral good.

Go figure!

And while you're figuring, boycott CRS and every other Church special collection. You cannot trust the bishops to exercise moral oversight of your money to be sure it is going to advance good rather than buying condoms and promoting birth control and sex ed in the third world. It's shameful, but don't let it shake your faith.

Church Mice Roar to Defend Archbishop Cordileone from the Dissenters' Snare!

The Church Mouse That Roared!

The "progressive" Catholic elite who hate Church doctrine might want to get their claws into Archbishop Cordileone, but their efforts appear to be backfiring. While 100 prominent, dissenting Catholics signed a full page ad in the San Francisco Chronicle stabbing the archbishop with their long knives and calling for his removal, a poll at SFGate found 86% supporting the archbishop. (The number of voters isn't revealed.)

VOTE NOW TO SUPPORT THE ARCHBISHOP!

What's particularly exciting is that faithful Catholics are organizing an Archbishop Cordileone Support Day Family Picnic at a popular park. The Missionaries of Charity are providing games for the children. There will be a mariachi band, a puppet show, and a bounce house. Attendees are urged to wear blue (for the Blessed Mother?) as a sign of solidarity. The group is providing drinks and asking families to bring their own picnic lunch. Videographers will be on hand to record messages of support for the archbishop or families can pen written messages instead.

What an exciting event! Makes me (almost) wish I lived on the West Coast.

Thank God for the wonderful Catholics who used evil to create an opportunity for good (just like our Blessed Lord does).

Pray for the success of this event and please sign their support petition!

Remember the fable about the mouse and the lion? The lion releases the little mouse when he begs for mercy and the mouse promises to help the lion sometime in the future? The lion laughs. What could a mouse possibly do for a lion? But when the lion is caught in the hunter's net, it is the little mouse who comes to the rescue gnawing the cords that ensnare the lion. Well...the mice are gnawing the snare set by the dissenters. Let us pray that the park is so full of "mice" on May 16th that the whole world hears their roar!

DON'T FORGET TO SIGN THE SUPPORT PETITION!

Thought for the Day: Who Do You Trust?

"Put not your trust in princes, in man, in whom there is no salvation. When his spirit departs he returns to his earth; on that day his plans perish."  Psalm 146:3-4

Where do you put your trust? Are you a "science person" who thinks only those things that can be tested and verified are real? I know some people like that. A few are atheists. Many are evolutionists. They accept uncritically the belief (faith?) that nothing created everything.

Well, consider some of these facts about scientists and their honesty. Rampant fraud seems to be a characteristic flooding the scientific community. Ethics? Well...let's just say many scientists seem to have the same level of integrity as politicians.

Here are just a few examples to consider before you put your blind trust in the scientific princes of the world:

Scientific Fraud is Rife: "A recent paper in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences shows that since 1973, nearly a thousand biomedical papers have been retracted because someone cheated the system. That's a massive 67% of all biomedical retractions. And the situation is getting worse - last year, Nature reported that the rise in retraction rates has overtaken the rise in the number of papers being published." 

Can Medical Research be Trusted? "The resounding verdict—much as our own five-part series, America’s Healthcare Crisis—is that medical research, medical journals, medical practice guidelines, FDA advisory panels, and doctors—all of who are bankrolled by the pharmaceutical industry—cannot be trusted!"

Science is great. Many of us wouldn't be alive today without antibiotics. I would probably not have my five children and twenty-three grandchildren because I'm Rh negative and required rhogam after each preganncy. But science has its limits and can become a monster in the hands of those who think they have the unlimited right to do whatever happens to be possible. Science without the hand of God is satanic.

Pray for scientists that they will always use their gifts and talents for the good of mankind. "First do no harm" should be the watchword, not only of physicians, but of all scientists.

Back to (Quiet) Normal -- After a Memory-Making Week

As you may have noticed by my posts today, all our grandchildren have gone home and we are back to our (too) quiet normal. We waved off our Pittsburgh family early this afternoon. This evening I wanted to post the photos of our princess (and little prince) tea party. If you'd like to see them visit Camp Kreitzer. 

Family times are sacred times. We pray together and play together, and, as parents and grandparents, we create memories. Hopefully they are happy ones. When I read about children who are abused and neglected I want even more to embrace my grandchildren and create for them and for my children and their spouses joyful times with family.

We moved around so much when I was a child and our relatives lived so far away that I had almost no relationship with any of my cousins or my grandparents. I don't want that to be the case for our grandchildren. And so, when they visit Camp Kreitzer, we consider it memory-making time. I think this summer we will buy some extra bee veils so the next time our grandchildren visit we can give them the memory of "playing" with the bees.

And speaking of memories, our oldest (We call her "Julie" after the Love Boat activity director because she always thinks of great activities during family gatherings.) on Easter separated us all into groups (adults and children mixed) and we had to come up with questions to ask our partners and then report back. Some shared what they like best about Camp Kreitzer, some asked what super power you'd choose if you could. The questions and answers were serious, funny, and imaginative and we all learned a little more about each other. It was great fun! Thanks, Alice.

And after we were done we all said night prayers together with everyone articulating what they were thankful for. I am certainly thankful for our five children, their spouses and our 23 grandchildren living and the six little angels in heaven. God has certainly richly fulfilled the blessing of the marriage covenant that we might see our children and our children's children. Thank you, Lord.

What memories are you making with your children or grandchildren this week?

RIP, Gilbert Blythe...

...in real life - actor Jonathan Crombie. Only 48, he died April 15th of a brain hemorrhage. Anne of Green Gables fans will miss him, me included. Anne and the BBC version of Pride and Prejudice are my favorite films ever.

So many of the actors who made Anne so memorable are gone: Colleen Dewhurst so perfectly cast as the somewhat crusty Marilla Cuthbert; Richard Farnsworth as her brother Matthew, shy and sweet and absolutely smitten with a talkative little girl; Charmiion King as the rich and bossy Aunt Josephine. Ah...what joy these creative souls continue to bring to those who love Anne and her life on Prince Edward Island.

It's Enough to Make You Despair of the Intelligence of College Students

Really? You'd vote for Hillary just because she's a woman? How about Minnie Mouse for Pres? But, let's face it, college these days isn't about encouraging rational thinking. It's all about the focus on feelings. Rational thinking and decisions making is almost a lost art. Sad...the mind is a beautiful thing to waste. And this video show a lot of wasted minds reflecting the mindless wasteland of college campuses these days.

March for Marriage Next Weekend - Saturday, April 25th, 11:30 AM

Participants will gather on the mall side of the Capitol at 11:30 with by a rally and speakers beginning at noon. The March to the Supreme Court starts at 1:00 p.m. If you can't be there physically, be sure to be there spiritually. A twenty decade rosary in honor of the Holy Family can certainly magnify the success of the March. And please sign the petition here.

Every successful society has been build on the nuclear family. When the family collapses, so does the culture. Look at Rome in its later years filled with sexual corruption, prostitution, child killing, and family dissolution and you'll have a microcosm of the U.S. today.

If you love your children and grandchildren, you will fight for the family. Moms and dads matter despite the lie of the same sex establishment that they don't. No man can take the place of a mother; no woman can take the place of a father. Love your spouse and resist the siren call that you'll find paradise in the next relationship or the one after that. Read 1 Corinthians 13; in fact, memorize it. If you practice that kind of love, and you can be sure of being blessed no matter how difficult the struggle. O Lord, help me to imitate Your love for me, especially in my marriage relationship. Amen.

Faux Man May Be First "Trans-Man" on Cover of "Men's" Health

Check her DNA. She's not really a man biologically. She's a woman who mutilated her body by having her breasts cut off and pumped what was left with male hormones to produce body hair and a more muscular build. She's in a lesbian relationship with her "wife" and is likely to be the icon for "men's" health. (See article and photos here. Note that regardless of all the hormones Dowling still has a woman's hip structure. You can't fool mother nature.)

When the "ultimate man" is a woman, you have to wonder how much nuttier the culture can get.

Putting First Things First

I like to blog in defense of the faith and western culture, but it isn't a major priority in my life. That belongs to God and my family. I'll probably be blogging intermittently and shortly the next few days because we have four little granddaughters visiting at present and, when their parents return on Friday, they will bring four cousins who are staying through the weekend while their mom and dad travel to Massachusetts so mom can run in the Boston marathon.

To be honest I am never happier than when I'm surrounded by family and I always try to make things fun. So we are planning a princess tea party this week and today we made pine cone fairies as favors for the six little princesses who will participate. You can check out the fairies at Camp Kreitzer. But here's a preview. I call these the fairies with the crazy wings. We used some foam sea creatures to make coral and crab wings and a crab crown. The green "hands" started life as frog legs. But if you could see this fairy up close she looks like she has her hands on her hips, so she's the fairy with attitude.

Abortionists are cavalier about murdering babies and just as cavalier about killing their moms!

This video saved a baby in Little Rock. When the child's mom saw this video, she cancelled her appointment. Women who abort are taking their lives in their hands. Abortionists are the bottom feeders of the medical industry. Many are circuit riders who travel around the country and abort at multiple facilities with no hospital privileges in case of complications. And the reality is that many women feel coerced into abortion. I've seen some of those women when I sidewalk counseled. Guys dragged women along the sidewalk blocking their little sex toys from hearing anything that might influence them to choose life. I wonder if this latest victim felt she had no choice because everyone in her life was pushing her into abortion. If she died from the abortion which seems likely from the fact a mill worker said, "She would have died anyway," she never has to worry about being coerced into anything again.

Fr. Tom's Comment on a Hillary Presidency: Get Ready for a Laugh!

We apparently need a woman in her twilight years with a degraded sense of reality and accountability to guide America through her own twilight years, as the Democratic leadership continues to promote the decline of our nation's stamina through the degradation of an increasingly crippling debt, the blindness of amoral gratification, and the paralysis engendered by the festering resentments of political correctness.

HILLARY - LEADERSHIP WITH ONLY ONE FOOT IN THE GRAVE

AND THE OTHER FIRMY SECURED ON A BANANA PEEL!

Prayer Intention for the Kolbe Center -- Please Join

I received this email today and urge you to join in praying for this event. I recently attended a Kolbe one-day conference and it was outstanding. All the Fathers of the Church believed in fiat creation, not evolution. Why so many in the Church have jumped on the evolutionary bandwagon is beyond me. It flies in the face of not only science (where are the "missing links" in the fossil record?) but it seems to me to fly in the face of metaphysical realities. Would God who sent his Son into the womb of a human mother really make the first humans the children of apes? 

Dear Friends of the Kolbe Center,

Christ is risen!

Tonight, April 13, at 8 p.m. EST, Dr. Thomas Seiler and I will be involved in an internet debate with two atheists in a forum that gets almost 200,000 views.

Please pray that Our Lord will give us the right words to say that will open the hearts and minds of our debate partners and our mostly atheist audience to the Truth and Charity of God.

Yours in Christ through the Immaculata,  

Hugh Owen 

Unintended Consequences: Shift in Morbidity from Chicken Pox to Shingles....

...which has a much higher morbidity rate. Here's a fascinating article on chickenpox in the U.S. where vaccination is widespread vs. the U.K. where it's considered a normal childhood disease and vaccination is not recommended. There is a mounting body of evidence that the shingles epidemic is the unintended consequence of the chicken pox vaccine. When children got the chicken pox they exposed family and friends who already had chicken pox to a booster effect. So shingles was rarely seen even in the elderly if they had regular contact with children. Now shingles is being seen even in children which was unheard of before the vaccine.

But it's all a boon to big pharma: millions for the chicken pox vaccine and now a vaccine for shingles to deal with the unintended consequences of the chicken pox vaccine.

"Love, love, and once again, love" God!

Pray today that God's divine mercy will fall on this vale of tears.

"God has given me to understand that there is but one thing that is of infinite value in His eyes, and that is love of God; love, love and once again, love; and nothing can compare with a single act of pure love of God. Oh, with what inconceivable favors God gifts a soul that loves Him sincerely! Oh, how happy is the soul who already here on earth enjoys His special favors! And of such are the little and humble souls."                                      
                                                                   Sr. Faustina's Diary #778

What will you do today for love of God?

(Note: This is the original image of Divine Mercy painted by E. Kazimierowski in Vilnius in 1934. I prefer it to the more modern image because it has more of the look of an icon and Jesus is more masculine in appearance.)

SB 277: California Eliminates All Parent Rights Relating to Vaccines

Read the bill here.

There are many questions about vaccine safety. Some of the current vaccines are more dangerous than the disease they are supposed to prevent. (Do the research on Gardisil.) Live vaccines can actually spread the disease after inoculation making children carriers.

Sometimes a Commotion Gets Attention and the Good Guys (or Gals) Win!

School reinstates Patricia Jannuzzi

I love what Professor Robert George had to say:

Princeton Professor Robert George, who had raised the alarm about Jannuzzi’s suspension, thanked the school in a comment on his Facebook page. 

“Sometimes---not often enough, but sometimes---justice is done and things come out right,” he said. “This was one of those times. I am grateful to Immaculata High School and Bishop Paul Bootkoski for doing the right thing. I suspect that Susan Sarandon and the ‘Real Housewives’ guy are feeling a bit less friendly towards them, which, to me, is something to be proud of."

Say a prayer of thanksgiving that this wonderful teacher will be back in the classroom where she belongs.

New Evangelization or New Capitulation?

IS THE NEW EVANGELIZATION BEING DIVERTED INTO A NEW CAPITULATION? 

By Fr. Tom Collins

As the Church seeks to embrace the call to a new evangelization, we must ask ourselves whether it is possible to really evangelize the world by capitulating to, and thereby validating, the defective and perverted premises of secular society. In Ephesians 6:12, St. Paul points out the danger of worldly powers which seek to turn the faithful from the authentic truth of the Gospel by offering false ideals, which would seduce them into accepting immoral practices for the sake of fulfilling the demands of what we would call today A New World Order. Thus, no matter how sincere and well planned are the efforts we make to evangelize the world, if those efforts are based on defective or perverted premises proposed by “the worldly rulers of this present darkness,” this whole outreach ministry will bear little lasting fruit. Since its efficacy would be determined on the basis of its ability to engender the excitement of hubris, rather than the humble docility which is essential for authentic conversion, it may manipulate people to conform to an idealistic secular agenda, but will be unable to draw them into the transformative grace of God offered by humility and docility of true Christian discipleship. It is important, then, for us to critically examine some of the defective premises, which have been subtly insinuated into our thinking and which threaten to abort our efforts to evangelize our modern world.

We Need Real Knights Ready to Defend the Faith!

What do you think of when you think of a "knight?" I imagine a strong man, a man of integrity and self-control, a man who loves God, his country, and his family. I think of a man ready to stand in the gap upholding truth, defending what's good and battling against evil. The Knights of Columbus was founded for exactly that -- to defend the faith and support widows and orphans. Yes, a primary focus was defending the weak and vulnerable against unjust attack and exploitation.

So when Norfolk Council 3845 invited extreme pro-abort Terry McAuliffe to be the Grand Marshal of their St. Patrick's Day Parade they betrayed everything the Knights stand for. If nothing is done about this travesty, if the council proceeds without consequences, the Knights might as well fold up their tents and go home. They have abandoned the field of battle and left it to the enemy of life. Any man who turns his back on the most vulnerable member of our human family is a coward.

But what can be done? At the bare minimum, join the effort to expel the council from the K of C. Sign the petition posted by Knight Pete Barker of Virginia Beach Council 10601. And then share it far and wide urging all your family and friends to join the effort calling the K of C back to their roots. As of this afternoon only 52 people have signed the petition. Many more would if they knew about it. Won't you pass the word?

When men act like men and take the field of battle under the banner of Christ, great things can happen. You don't need to be a knight to sign the petition. Won't you help? Call on the Virginia State Knights of Columbus to disband renegade council  3845 and restore the honor of the Knights as a courageous pro-life organization.

Great Alternative to the Scouts: Federation of North American Explorers

I received a comment this morning on an old post about the Boy Scouts suggesting the Federation of North American Explorers (FNE) as an alternative. After examining their website, I'm pretty impressed. They are Catholic and have separate boy and girl units to help children grow and develop individually as young men and young women. The parent testimonials are inspiring.

FNE started in 1999 and has a number of groups in the U.S. and Canada. They look like a great group!

No need to reinvent the wheel. If you want to transition from the secularized (and perverted) Boy and Girl Scout movement, FNE offers a wonderful, God-centered alternative.

Rand Paul Rocks!

At least on his approach to answering questions on abortion. The pro-abort crowd always want to talk about protecting a "clump of cells" or exceptions or anything that deflects the debate away from their death dealing extremism.

But the reality is that the Democratic party favors killing unborn babies at any moment up until birth by any means including stabbing them in the neck and sucking out their brains. So when Paul was asked about abortion, he focused on the Democrats' pro-abort extremism. Here's the question from Paul Steinhauser of CNN:

Project Veritas vs. Barry University: Whom Do You Trust to Tell the Truth?

I've been having an email exchange with the Florida Family Association over the Project Veritas' report on universities supporting ISIS. James O'Keefe irritates me a little with his "gotcha" approach, but it does get attention; and I enthusiastically applaud his success in going after ACORN with the prostitute/pimp videos. 

"Sr. Linda," Pres. of Barry U.

After O'Keefe's most recent video exposé of Barry University, I received an email from the Florida Family Association that spurred a back and forth between myself and David Caton, FFA president. Here's their original email:

FFA email sent April 6, 2015 -- James O’Keefe issued a report via his organization called Project Veritas titled “O’Keefe exposes another university sympathetic to ISIS." The report states in part “Barry University Officials Unfazed by Club Purportedly Being Formed to Send Aid to ISIS; Their Only Suggestion was a More Politically Correct Name “Because Technically our Country is at War with ISIS.” Numerous organizations that oppose Islamization of America posted O'Keefe's report online and included it in their email broadcasts.

Some Fun Articles for Wednesday (or any day)!

Those Catholic Kids Could Swear and Fight

How We Think Helps Explain the Culture Wars

A Fun Lesson in Grammar

Another Fun Lesson in Grammar (Can you tell I like Anthony Esolen?)

And a Fun Game Called Utter Nonsense (I'm ordering this one.)

The Gay Mafia Have NO Tolerance for Christians!

Christian churches ‘must be made’ to affirm homosexuality, says New York Times columnist

A New York Times columnist and a corporate leader have agreed that Christian churches “must” be convinced, or coerced, to change their teachings on sexual morality and abandon an “ossified” doctrinal teaching that sex outside heterosexual marriage is immoral. 

Frank Bruni wrote that traditional Christianity – whether among evangelicals, Catholics, or Orthodox – provides the greatest resistance to normalizing homosexuality in the United States in a recent column in the New York Times....

Bruni quoted furniture tycoon Mitchell Gold, who has used his millions to found a liberal pressure group Faith in America, writing that Gold believes Christian churches “must be made 'to take homosexuality off the sin list.'” 

“His commandment is worthy — and warranted,” Bruni added.

Ah, yes...the commandments of God mean nothing; the commandments of Mitchell Gold are, well, gold! The article points out that the Episcopal Church lost over 600,000 members (12%) after it changed its teaching, or rather God's teaching, on homosexuality to fit modern sensibilities.  Seems like the average man in the street has more sense than many modern Pharisees.Conservative columnist Pat Buchanan calls for Christian churches to, "Just say no!" and prepare for civil disobedience. Amen to that.

Terrorism is Terrorism: Rip the Mask off our American Version of Jihad

One class of victims are red martyrs; the other are white martyrs. Both groups are being persecuted and discriminated against because of their religious faith. It's time to expose the homegrown terrorists who think the only people who have rights are themselves. Pray for them, always treat them with kindness and respect, but never...never...never...bend the knee to their agenda. Reserve the bended knee for God! (Visit Americans for Limited Government here.)

Our Help and Our Hope is in the Name of the Lord!

"Hope is the power of being cheerful in circumstances which we know to be desperate."
                                                                                                   G.K. Chesterton

My husband and I recently spent about two weeks on a car trip and visit to Austin to see one of our sons and his family. We generally listen to books on tape when we drive and one choice this trip was Ten Prayers God Always Says Yes To! Great book with many sound insights. One of the prayers seemed to me to be the quintessential prayer of hope. "God get me through this!" You can only pray that prayer if you expect God to do exactly that!

We all have terrible times that grind us down and challenge us with nagging doubts. Does God really love me to allow this disaster in my life? Why is He so silent while I'm suffering? Where are you, God? Are you listening?

The grim reality is that life is, as the prayer says, a "vale of tears. " And sometimes we can feel overwhelmed as if those tears have created an ocean and we are drowning in it. Keeping our head above water for five more minutes seems impossible.

When the Homosexual Bullies Come for Your Business -- Give it to "Em!

I absolutely love this from Fr. Z. Let's face it; the homosexuals hate Christians and want to eliminate any opposition to their perverse lifestyle. So, sure, take their business and give them OUR CHRISTIAN LIFESTYE. Here's just a little from Fr. Z:

When some homosexual couple comes to your Christian business for services at their immoral event, don’t panic. Go ahead and take their business! 

Then explain what is going to happen next.

One caveat, however, Fr. Z's plan works great for the caterers who will be on site serving, etc. But a wedding cake is delivered, set up, and left. Ditto with the flowers. Of course, an ad can still be placed thanking them for their business and their support for real marriage. But what does the B&B owner do? I suppose they can put crucifixes in the bedrooms and stick green scapulars under the mattresses.

I think I will have to give this more thought, but two thumbs up to Fr. Z for thinking outside the box.

ISIS Names Virginia State Senator Dick Black an Enemy!

Read the article here.

Dick Black is a pro-life hero who has never fled from the battleground. I first met him fighting in the abortion wars when he joined a Les Femmes event protesting a Catholic parish giving an award to pro-abortion state senator Joe Gartlan (who died several years later). Dick came dressed as the grim reaper an appropriate reminder of Gartlan's deadly positions.

As a four-term state delegate, Dick continued to fight vigorously making liberals foam at the mouth when he sent every delegate a 12-week model of an unborn baby. Think about it -- not a graphic picture of an aborted baby but a model of a living baby in the womb. Every mother has longed for a window into the womb to see what her baby looks like, but liberals in the state house were offended and incensed that Black would engage in such an evil tactic. And he became the target of the liberal media. So much for the integrity of these disgusting hypocrites.

Well, Black is now a target of ISIS. He is a personal friend and I beg you to pray for his and his family's safety. Christians can expect the attacks to become more and more virulent both from outside terrorists who hate Christianity and make red martyrs through beheadings and mass executions and home-grown terrorists including gay activists whom make white martyrs by destroying businesses and reputations of anyone who disagrees with their moral perversion.

Pray and do penance for the safety of the Black family. And for your own as well. Anyone who stands up for truth these days is likely to find a bullseye painted on his back.

Mike Pence Wimps Out: Makes Pontius Pilate Look Good!

Religious Freedom Act overturned -- morphs into Christian discrimination bill

Ah...what a difference a week makes. Last Thursday I was hailing Mike Pence for his courage. Yesterday, he revealed what he's really made of and the picture isn't pretty. It is always a tragedy when a man, especially a family man, sells out his children. That's exactly what caving in to the gay activist lobby means. The disintegration of the family means the destruction of the culture. Soon Christians will be prohibited from most businesses: food service, photography, any kind of wedding rental, florists, hotels and B&Bs, wedding jewelry, etc., etc. Unless a business owner is willing to actively cooperate in moral evil, the jackboots of political correctness will smash him into the ground.

The fact of the matter is that two people of the same sex cannot marry -- not because of discrimination, but because of the nature of marriage. Marriage isn't just about the love (even perverted love) between two people. A major aspect of marriage that cannot be separated from its meaning is the biological complimentarity that allows creation. Two men and two women are physically unable to marry. Their parts don't fit together. They cannot in any circumstances conceive a new human life. Please don't give me the argument about heterosexuals who are infertile. That is irrelevant. The have the necessary parts. If they don't work, it's unfortunate, but in no way changes the argument.

But those who have been brainwashed by the mantra of "fairness" will turn a blind eye to truth and to the damage of same-sex "marriage" both to individuals and to the culture at large. Let me outline a few examples.

1) To say there is no difference between same sex families and normal families means you must believe that mothers and fathers don't matter. If two men can be parents (Obviously they can't be biological parents.), then mothers are unnecessary. Their role is insignificant and easily filled by a man. If two women can be parents then father's aren't necessary. The father can be substituted by a woman.

I'm a mother. I know that mothers and fathers are both necessary to children. Children raised by same-sex parents have a twisted view of the relationship between men and women. Even many homosexuals agree and in France they developed the motto, "The rights of children trump the right to children."

2) The animosity expressed by homosexuals against Christians and their absolute intolerance of those who disagree with their agenda (including demanding people be fired who contribute to pro-marriage groups) is extreme. Anyone who dares to articulate an opposing position is attacked and ground into the dust. Often they receive hate-filled messages and death threats from these folks who blather on about tolerance but have none for others. Just look what happened to the little pizzeria in Indiana after one of the owners said they would not cater a same-sex wedding. The outpouring of hate including a high school coach urging an arson attack was vicious and evil.

3) Despite claiming that homosexuals are "born that way," homosexual groups actively recruit young people. Check out the disgusting and graphic "Little Black Book," aimed at teaching children homosexual practices. But say the St. Michael the Archangel prayer before you look at it. The lewd materials given to kids urges homosexual experimentation because they know it will lead some kids to embrace the homosexual lifestyle. And let's face it, that's the only way to grow their numbers.  Now why, if homosexuals are born, not made, would you need or want to teach youngsters about the disgusting practices described in the Little Black Book?

Nope -- same sex marriage is an oxymoron, an impossibility. A culture that pretends it exists is sick to its core. Pray and do penance for the conversion of our poor, sick, sex-addicted world.

Pizza Business Targeted by Gay Hate Campaign Garners Massive Support

I love these people! They are just little guys who served pizza to anyone in the community. They were ambushed by leftwing media and became the target of a vicious homosexual hate campaign including death threats and arson threats. If you missed the original story, go here. The outpouring of support for these folks is inspiring. It gives me hope that the gay juggernaut will ultimately meet a rock wall of resistance that takes their intolerant attack on Christians all the way down to hell where it belongs.

Congrats to The Blaze for supporting Memories Pizza. The Go Fund Me page has raised over $800,000 for this family. When that little gal spoke up to support her family's convictions she had no idea that ultimately she would see this kind of financial reward. Let's hope this has a chilling effect on the gay hate campaign against Christians. They want to destroy people not make them millionaires. This time their vicious behavior backfired. let's hope that becomes a trend!

Jesus Christ is Risen Today!

Holy Saturday: Getting the Church Ready for Easter Sunday

St. John Cantius, Chicago

Dump Angie's List

I'm sick of companies that promote the worst culture immorality whether it's abortion, same-sex marriage, pornography, etc. I don't drink Starbuck's coffee and Target won't get a penny of my business since they hopped on the Shades of Gray bandwagon selling "sex toys" in their stores.

Want to do something to push back? Drop Angie's list. Here's why.

Be Afraid, Be Very Afraid...and Pray for Our Military!

I can just imagine what my dad, a two-star Navy admiral, would say about what's happening to our military. I wonder what he would think of Obama's recommendation to cut military retirement by 20%. Many soldiers and sailors get no or very little retirement because they serve for only a short time. Compare that to the short service of many members of Congress and the president himself. Members of Congress are eligible for a pension after five years of service. The amount of their pensions is based on a formula of years of service, age at retirement, and highest three years of pay. Former presidents receive an annual pension of almost $200,000. Pretty good return for 4-8 years work. Think of members of Congress, some of whom sit in the chamber with their computers open playing free cell and others who spend the bulk of their time fundraising and gladhanding, Then think of our military on the front lines risking life and limb and mental health fighting to defend our freedoms. Exactly whose pay and retirement benefits should be cut?

Just a final thought. While our military is being degraded, many state and local police departments are receiving weapons appropriate for war. Why? Are the American people seen as the new threat to a Leviathan government? Oath Keepers thinks so and have taken a pledge not to obey certain orders to violate the Constitutional rights of Americans. Visit their website.

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words: The Passion in Great Art

Christ before Pilate by Toni Danchik

Ecce Homo by Caravaggio

Jesus Meets His Mother by Caravaggio

Christ on the Cross by Diego Velazquez

Jesus is Taken Down from the Cross by Rembrandt

The Pieta by Giovanni Bellini

Holy Thursday: The Mass of the Lord's Supper

The Last Supper - Natalia Tsarkova (2002)

This artwork appeared in the Holy Week Magnificat. What struck me especially is that Jesus sits alone with the beloved Apostle, the only one who will be at the foot of the cross. All the others are on the opposite side of the table. It seems a foreshadowing of their abandonment of the Lord. The moment captured is the instant after Jesus tells them one of them will betray them. Peter raises his hand in horror declaring his intention to die with Jesus if necessary. Judas in his red cape reminds me of a cartoon devil. All he needs are horns and a pitchfork. The others, in various states of shock, can almost be heard asking, "Is it I, Lord?" And Jesus looks back at us with almost a mournful gaze. "Will you betray me too?" he seems to ask. I think of all the times I have betrayed the Lord and cry out, "Please, Lord, give me the grace never to betray you again."