When the Road Less Traveled Leads to the Abyss

I wrote the other day about re-reading People of the Lie by M. Scott Peck. I'm over halfway through the book now and I have to kind of shake my head to clear it. When I read it some 40 years ago I was still a bit naive and enthralled by men in white lab coats, although my pro-life activism had already dispelled the childish notion that all doctors were Albert Schweitzer.

Today, I'm reading the book with a more critical eye and, while I still find it useful, interesting, and thought-provoking; I'm much more aware of the flaws and my serious disagreements with Peck's philosophy and opinions. So here goes with a few:

• Peck was obviously Freudian in his approach to psychotherapy. Like Freud, most of his client examples go back to childhood assuming that almost all psychological problems are the result of parental abuse, neglect, and, as this book makes the case, actual parental evil. Freud believed that anything wrong with a person was the fault of upbringing, particularly problems with the mother. Many of Peck's cases exemplify this Freudian theory. Mom is a villain, in one case a spider. In several cases both parents are villains and I don't disagree, especially the case of the parents who gave their son a rifle for Christmas that his brother used to kill himself. That appears diabolical!

The Government Shut Down at Midnight -- Paid Vacation for Federal Employees Until Dems Capitulate

We've been here before. The government shuts down amid threats of Armageddon, the national parks close, paychecks are delayed, and then the agreement is reached and everyone gets back to work with back pay. For those federal employees living pay check to pay check the Democrats are inflicting a serious problem with their hissy-fit over funding health care for millions of illegals. Hey, taxpayers, you owe it to the invaders. And besides we need their votes and if we don't deliver the goodies, they'll stop coming. And besides, our base will call for our ouster if we don't obey them and they hate ICE and love illegals even the ones who bring in fentanyl and commit violent crimes against our citizens.

This Land is Your Land! Pray for her and your local community!

Woodstock, VA historic courthouse

Does it make you angry to see the evil global elitists doing everything they can to destroy not only our country, but all the sovereign nations of the world? Love of your homeland is a virtue.  According to St. Thomas Aquinas it is man's nature to be  a “civic and social animal.” (ST, I-II, 72.4) Society begins in the family, the basic building block of every community. If the family is moral and strong, a nation will be moral and strong. That's why communist philosophy always strikes at the family. Orwell showed that masterfully in 1984 where children were encouraged to spy on their parents and report them for violations against Big Brother. 

Michael and Christine on Valentine's Day! Aren't They a Cute Couple?

I just watched the Valentine's Day Vortex, "Leading People Astray." It's the perfect title for every Church Militant (CM) blather episode since they are experts at doing exactly that. This episode happened to be an excerpt from a long interview with Tim Gordon by the darling duo, Mike and Christine. I couldn't stomach the entire interview. I just watched the short Vortex. That was enough!

A Little Optimism from President Trump! And Don't We Need It?

Hate Trump all you want, he loves America unlike many of our liberal politicians who engage in a continuous mantra urging people to hate our patria, our homeland. Patria is the root of the words patriot and patriotism, the love of country. St. Thomas Aquinas describes piety (from the Latin pietas meaning dutifulness) as a special virtue that "pays duty and homage to our parents and country":  

"Just as religion is a protestation of faith, hope and charity, whereby man is primarily directed to God, so again piety is a protestation of the charity we bear towards our parents and country. (my emphasis) 

God save America!

An Epiphany of Nothing

A picture of nothing

First I’d like to say that this article is about God and the fact that He reveals Himself to all people, big and small, important and not important. I use myself only as an example because this truly happened, and I explain it as best I can in hopes that it may be of use to other people. 

When I was a child I could not see, that is, I could see, but just barely since my eyes were so damaged that they were unable to focus. Until I received the miracle of glasses I never knew that people were able to see individual leaves on trees or flowers in the fields and I had never before then seen stars in the sky.

Without the benefit of clear sight it was difficult to understand what was spoken to me since I couldn’t see facial expressions or word formations on people’s lips. In school, teachers seated me in the front row and thankfully I was intelligent enough to understand what was taught verbally even though I couldn’t see what was written on the blackboard. Of course if I held books close enough to my face I could see the words and read.

Sunday Meditation: Jesus wept over Lazarus to call us to repentance

"Lazarus, come out!" Painting by Duccio di Buoninsegna

Magnificat has an interesting meditation today about Jesus' mercy to Lazarus, a selection from the Angelic Doctor, St. Thomas Aquinas. It relates St. Augustine's belief that the the four days in the tomb represent the "fourfold spiritual death of the sinner." The four deaths include 1) death through original sin which actually brought physical death into the world, 2) death through actual sin against the natural law - something we see big-time in our own culture of death where mothers kill their own children and those enslaved by their own lust sin against their own bodies and those of others, 3) death through actual sin against the written law of God in the Ten Commandments, and 4) actual sin "against  the law of the Gospel and of grace." Think of how often we fail to listen to God's admonitions in the Sermon on the mount when Jesus says, "You have heard it said....but I tell you" when He expands the Mosaic law to embrace a more all-encompassing love that refuses to "look at another in lust" or even to "become angry with your brother."

Big Catholic Families: What a Gift to the Church and the World!

How one family is sending 13 kids to college, living debt free — and still plans to retire early

The Fatzingers could be the poster family for Dave Ramsey, the finance radio guru who always encourages his listeners to live debt free. And, in fact, maybe he could learn a tip or two from their approach to living well with less. 

I've always thought of myself as thrifty, but my strategies can't hold a candle to this family. What a revolution if more people would follow their example by both welcoming children as a blessing from the Lord and giving them the lesson of hard work, saving, and money management as well as having fun while living the faith.  

Sunday Meditation: You Can't Emote Your Way to Christ!

A guest meditation today from my sister Carol. Thanks for the reminder, Sis! 

If you think feeling and emoting are the way to Christ...well..that is a major error.
Feelings for the most part are very untrustworthy..Please note that fact..feelings are not always trustworthy....I can feel like bopping someone in the nose but I am not to act on that because one is supposed to "put one's brain into gear" and control the action that would be taken on that feeling if left to go unchecked...

Make 2009 the year you study St. Thomas Aquinas

I was a young adult during the turbulent sixties. I entered college in Washington, D.C. in 1964 and graduated in 1968. What a time: lunch counter sit-ins, , assassinations, the rebellion following Humanae Vitae, D.C. riots not far from campus, drugs, sex, rock and roll, bell bottom trousers, mini-skirts and tie-dyed T-shirts, the mantra: "If it feels good do it." Blowing your mind was a phrase that describes the decade well. Reason was thrown out the window, and feelings raged unchecked. What chaos! I don't remember the sixties with fondness, but relief that I survived despite the fact that almost every cultural anchor (including the hierarchy of the Church) failed us. Many self-destructed on the shoals and haven't recovered yet. How many today base their opinions on "personal truth" which is nothing more than feelings and rationalizations to do whatever they please? The culture endorses this irrational approach to life. Since the 60s, schools have focused more on promoting self-esteem than critical thinking skills.

But there's hope. St. Thomas Aquinas, that champion of wisdom, logic, and clear reasoning, is making a comeback. Thomas had a profound impact on the areas of ethics, philosophy and political theory. He is among the Doctors of the Church and one of the greatest thinkers of all times. If you want to know the truth about the big questions of life, you can hardly do better than to study St. Thomas and his method of examining life. Pope Leo XIII considered him an effective prescription against modernism and, during his pontificate, called for schools of higher education to teach Thomistic philosophy.

The Summa Theologica offers an excellent example in how to find the truth about any subject. St. Thomas states the question, then provides the objections; then he answers each objection and makes a declaration. His approach is open-minded and respectful of disagreement. It thoroughly and seriously evaluates all aspect of an issue. The desired end, for St. Thomas, as it should be for all of us, is to know the truth; and Thomas is methodical in his search. If he seems obscure at first, he becomes clearer and clearer the more you read him. As Peter Kreeft says, "St. Thomas aimed only for light, not heat." Aquinas' writings, he says, are filled with wisdom.

Make St. Thomas a guide in 2009. More and more our culture is returning to chaos, but St. Thomas can be a rock and an anchor against the current of confusion. He knew what philosophy truly was, "not the study of what men have opined, but of what is the truth." If you want to know the truth, study St. Thomas.

"Your Young Men Shall See Visions; Your Old Men Shall Dream Dreams" -- St. Thomas Aquinas Converts Abortionist