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| Spiraling Whirlpool Galaxy taken by the Hubble Telescope M51. See more photos here. |
It always amazes me to hear people say that science proves God does not exist. What a silly idea! Science can only observe material things. It has nothing to say about non-material things: love, integrity, beauty, mercy. They can't be measured in the lab.
One of St. Augustine's pearls of wisdom is the statement that God loves each one of us as if there were just one of us. Think about that for a minute. Everything we see around us, God made it all for our delight. He gave us our five senses so we could enjoy His gifts: the moon and stars that light up the night sky, the birds singing to welcome the morning, the smell of the honeysuckle to sweeten the air, the touch of a baby's silky skin, the taste of your favorite meal. All, everything he made for you, not you plural, but you, the precious one. He loves you and me individually and enough to die for. It's a reality almost too big to grasp. Does it make you dizzy?
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| Rest in Peace, Jeanne |
My sister died yesterday morning. She was declining for a long time, but there was no indication that death was imminent. When the phone rang at 6:30 a.m. I thought it might be one of the multiple fishing calls I get with an agent wanting to talk about my back pain, diabetes, knee problems, ulcers, take your pick.
"Wow! Somebody decided to call really early," I thought." Odd to go there because when the phone rings at unexpected times, I usually immediately think of my sister. That shows how unexpected her death was.
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| working on the perfect Snickerdoodle recipe for my entry |
When I lived in Northern Virginia, I occasionally worked the Fairfax County Fair manning the pro-life table for Virginia Right to Life. Sometimes we were near the table for the gay clinic with their fishbowl filled with free condoms and tubes of lubricant. Being there was a penance; I did not enjoy it. And, of course, we got plenty of flack from pro-abortion fair goers. Now what did they find offensive about the fetal models and the video showing how the baby grows? Plenty of baby haters out there!
I like to start my day by making coffee and then taking it outside to sit on the front porch.
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| Kurt Vonnegut |
Well, I'm not adverse to chasing down rabbit holes, so I did a search on Vonnegut and his novels some of which examine the influence of technology on society. Since he worked at GE before quitting to write full time, and his brother was a scientist there doing cloud seeding research, he has some first-hand knowledge.
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| Indira Talwani, Empress |
Federal Judge Blocks New Law Defunding Planned Parenthood
A federal judge on Monday extended a block on a provision in President Donald Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” that aimed to strip Medicaid funding from Planned Parenthood.
The ruling ensures continued taxpayer funding for the nation’s largest abortion company, prompting criticism from those who argue no public dollars should support organizations killing babies in abortions.
MP Chris Coughlin banned from Communion
A Single Denial to Give Communion That Echoed Around the World
It's canon law -- 915 to be exact. And yet it is almost never enacted against politicians who champion abortion, euthanasia, and other intrinsic moral evils often while announcing their Catholic faith and describing themselves as "devout". Talk about scandal!
Archbishop Cordileone banned Nancy Pelosi from communion in 2022. [Letter to Pelosi] His action was undermined by Pope Francis who bragged that he never denies communion to anyone. (Presumably he would have given communion to a mafia don after he shot an enemy during Mass.) Nancy received communion at the Vatican after the ban. Was anyone surprised?
Thought I'd start the week with some good news. Remember that "All things work together for good for those who love the Lord and serve according to His purpose." So God brings good out of even the bad news. But it's still nice now and then to see the good news happening. So check out these items of interest from the past few weeks and remember to thank God for them.
I also tended to be a people pleaser and later my view altered to ask myself whether or not I was "doing enough" to please God and make it to heaven. If I had raised these issues with my parents, I'm sure they would have corrected me, but I never did. And so, it wasn't until I moved on into early adulthood, that my false images began to disappear, replaced by the reality that God is love, the Sacred Heart, bleeding, wounded, and on fire for love of me. I'm His daughter, the apple of His eye, whom He loved so much He stretched out His arms on the cross and died.
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| Is this what the board didn't want published? |
The 8th Commandment isn't a suggestion.
The truth about the attempted coup at LifeSiteNews is coming out and it's ugly. You can read the whole sordid tale at Chris Jackson's Hiraeth in Exile.
A short synopsis: Some of the board members and the co-CEO, Robert Hoover, didn't like the direction that LifeSiteNews was taking under Westen. They didn't want any criticism of Pope Leo's actions. They wanted to change the brand of LSN. What exactly that new brand would look like we don't know.
Gone to tradition every one. (Well, maybe not every one.) Some aren't fully there yet, but the trend is definitely away from Kumbaya and guitars and toward Gregorian Chant and sacred polyphony. God speaks in silence not in constant noise and "dialogue", and many young people are beginning to realize it. When the world is as crazy as ours is today, the only real rebellion is orthodoxy.
Oh, yes...and that anyone who criticizes Israel's policies and tactics hates Israel and is anti-semitic Targeting Palestinian Christians and Catholics is just an unfortunate reality of war -- wrong place/wrong time. Church of the Holy Family in Gaza
As for Muslim women and children, I borrow a phrase from Sheridan, "The only good Indian Muslim is a dead Indian Muslim."
Yes, Satan is a progressive, tickling man's desire for novelty and change with his diabolical temptations. When you hear that term "progressive", look for Satan hiding behind his human helpers. They're really not hard to identify and they are basically the same over the millennia. Only the fashions change.
I'm slowly reading Pio Nono by E.E.Y. Hales published in 1954. The blurb on the cover calls it, "A Masterful Study of Pius IX and his role in Nineteenth-Century European Politics and Religion." It also illustrates well the politics of hell against the Church, the same strategies and plots we see today. As they say, "The more things change, the more they stay the same."
BREAKING: LifeSite board chair says John-Henry Westen's removal is 'null and void
LifeSite's Board Chairman Dominic Ismert has informed company co-founder John-Henry Westen that after seeking legal advice he believes Westen’s removal as CEO earlier this month was illegal.
A new term has popped up in the Catholic blogosphere lately: Trad Inc. The term refers to Traditional Catholic Media. Is that like the drive-by media in the Church? It seems so. It's hard to find a definition and I have no idea who coined the term, but it refers to the velvet glove avoiding criticism of the pope and the Vatican. Some of those labeled "Trad Inc." include Eric Sammons at Crisis, Taylor Marshall, Kennedy Hall, Damian Thompson, and presumably Steve Jalasevac since John-Henry Westen and Stephen Kokx's ouster from LifeSite News.
Do you ever think you know what a word means and use it in your mistaken way only to find out that you didn't have it quite right?Socrates, the original gadfly
That's what happened to me the other day. It's embarrassing for a wordsmith to admit it. If I'm not sure of a word, I usually look it up. But when you think you know a word's meaning, you tend to just use it. And that's what I did.
I had to empty the dishwasher and put everything away. Whenever I do that it's with a sigh. You would think it was one of the tasks of Hercules. It was all I could do to force myself to complete the task and, in fact, I stopped with the dishwasher half empty to do something else.
I decided to do a retreat with Fr. David Torkington by listening to his 15 session series on Prayer to Contemplation. Every Sunday I plan to listen to one of the videos until I finish it. Here are some ideas and thoughts from the first session which was excellent. I hope you will join me:
God's power finds Its full scope in human weakness.
You are a great gift to the Church Dr. Hickson! Your sacrifices and sufferings for the Truth of Christ are an inspiration to me. https://t.co/yWDCeLhufW
— John-Henry Westen (@JhWesten) July 11, 2025
I've known Maike Hickson for years. She's been a huge grace to LifeSite News with her interviews and her excellent articles. That she has chosen to resign in solidarity with John-Henry Westen is a significant blow to the organization in my opinion. Her action also highlights the loss of credibility surrounding the announcement and the subsequent spin by Jalsevac about the reasons.
God bless John-Henry. May his new apostolate grow and thrive. Hat tip to the reader who posted the link in the comment section.
@Hennen, bishop-elect, as bishop of Baker...instead of correcting...Francis, Pope Leo XIV is doubling down on it...Hennen...work with Davenport’s LGBTQ+ directive...Fiducia Supplicans green-lighted blessings same-sex unions...No more more blessings without conversion.
An article followed. Here's the beginning:
When Pope Leo walked out on the balcony in Rome clothed in the traditional vestments, one hoped that the exterior matched the interior. Did we have a pope who would restore the faith of our fathers and set us back on the right track? Or would we soon be disillusioned and see that we had a man walking in the footsteps of Francis.
Some are saying that the survey of the bishops played almost no role in Pope Francis issuing Traditionis Custodes (TC) and the accompanying letter. Vatican correspondent, Diane Montagna, continues to investigate and posted additional evidence on her substack forum yesterday:
New Evidence Confirms CDF Report, Erodes Vatican Narrative...
Quoting Francis' own letter indicates that he used the survey to justify his draconian restrictions. As the pope of synodality, it isn't surprising to find him pretending that he acted in union with the bishops. Here's an excerpt from the letter:
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| John-Henry Westen and Stev Jalsevac |
The new head of LifeSite News is its co-founder Steve Jalsevac who sent out the message below. Is this the whole story? I doubt it and I suspect there are other issues. I was once involved with a contentious fight over who would run a pro-life organization. We ended up in arbitration. The primary issue had nothing to do with the focus of the organization. It was management style and personality conflicts. I'm wondering how much of that played into Westen's firing.
Zionism Should Not Be a Conservative Sine Qua Non
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| Msgr. Nicola Bux |
THE INTERVIEW / MGR. NICOLA BUX
War on the ancient rite, it was not the bishops who started it
It was not the world episcopate that asked to "cage" the Mass in the ancient rite, as Pope Francis instead claimed, declaring that the motu proprio Traditionis Custodes was the response to a specific request from the bishops consulted on the matter.
Christ desires us to bring forth the fruits of a holy life, i.e., He wishes us gradually to improve, to grow more just and charitable in our dealings with others, more humble and severe in judging ourselves. Do those who call themselves Christians invariably display these characteristics? If you are uncharitable, irritable, untrustworthy, harsh toward others, self-satisfied and self-indulgent, there is much reason to fear that your profession of Christianity is vain, and that you do not possess the Holy Spirit and are not united with Christ in the Spirit.
Knud Karl Krogh-Tonning (+1911), Norwegian theologian, convert from Lutherinism
Note that we are encouraged to "gradually improve." God is patient with us giving us a model of how to be patient with others. I plan to read this every day this week as an examination of conscience. Lord, bless this week and make each of us better at the end of it than we were at the beginning.
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| a tremendous trifle |
Journalist Obtains Exclusive Access to World Report on Summorum Pontificum: Francis' Restrictions Based on Lies
Pope Francis lied to the world about the bishops' responses to the survey about implementing the TLM in their dioceses. The survey responses almost universally showed a positive impact with recommendations to leave Summorum Pontificum alone. Parishes using both forms, the TLM and the Novus Ordo, had little or no division among parishioners and the TLM tended to increase reverence at the Novus Ordo. That didn't stop lying Francis from issuing Traditiones Custodes with its draconian repressions.
Today is the anniversary of my Dad's death. He died in 1985 at the age of 67 -- too young, too soon to say goodbye. I still miss him. I still ask him to forgive me for not being a better daughter. I was with him when he died. In fact, at least four of his ten children were in the house at the time and several grandchildren. My sister Peggy and I were with Daddy when he died. He was sitting in a chair leaning against the bed and we were stroking his back and talking quietly when we realized he wasn't breathing. The blood had already begun to pool at the pressure point on his forehead.
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| The Exhortation to the Apostles -- James Tissot (1836-1902) |
This was the lead article from the Spring issue of the Les Femmes newsletter. Vol 21 #1 2016. I'm republishing it here because so many people have been sucked in by the heresy of Americanism and the rather arrogant belief in American Exceptionalism. Both of these beliefs have as their foundation the false beliefs of the French Revolution. And many Catholic prelates including Cardinal Gibbons of Baltimore Catechism fame, who promoted Elizabeth Seton's educational efforts, got caught up in the enthusiasm and desire to be politically accepted. The desire for human respect is a trap that catches many. July 4th seems a good day to reprint it.
I plan to read the Declaration of Independence while I watch fireworks on my computer. Too hot to go see the real thing, especially after we did the honey harvest yesterday which is always a hot job. I'm sure we'll have some sparklers and Roman candles after sunset. Hope all my readers have a fun day planned and may God bless and protect you on this last 4th before we celebrate our 250th year as a nation next 4th of July. Let us pray with zeal for our country and her political leaders that they may be men and women after God's own heart.
I would very much like to believe that the homosexual problem in the Church is over, that Michael Rose's 2002 exposé Goodbye, Good Men, caused major reform. But did it? I'm not so sure.
When you see men like Robert McElroy, who covered up for a notorious clerical sex abuser, appointed to a plum see like Washington, D.C. you know the elephant is still in the room. How many D.C. seminarians will be recruited who are, shall I say, light in the loafers? The priesthood can be a cushy job. Remember Bishop Michael Bransfield of Wheeling, WV, my husband's home town, who lived like a king. His behavior was no secret, but he enjoyed wining and dining himself for thirteen years on the faithful's dime. It was so bad I did a series with an anonymous priest, Nabi, who detailed the scandals. [See a recent local story from the Weirton Daily Times, Ex-Bishop Michael Bransfield’s ‘creepy’ behavior detailed.] How many bishops like Bransfield still rule dioceses in the U.S.? Many I fear.
At the Last Supper, Jesus prayed that all might be one. That reality seems further away than ever. It's easy to understand how the division between religions is disastrous for the world. Religious wars throughout the millennia illustrate that so clearly no one with eyes and ears can miss it. What's more difficult to understand on a spiritual level is the division among Catholics who claim the same religion, but are more and more divided.
In 2019 The Catholic Register described their plight in an article titled Holy Land Christians: Threatened With Extinction, but Still Bearing Witness:
...the Christians of the Holy Land — who are often forgotten in this crisis, as they are ignored by worldwide media, and whose number has been reduced to an alarming level — struggle every day for their own religious identity.
