Digital Areopagus

Benedict says that "now with the collapse of big banks we see that money disappears, is nothing and all these things that appear real are in fact of secondary importance." He urges those who build their lives "only on things that are visible, such as success, career, money" to keep that in mind.

The pontiff was speaking Monday as he opened the works of a meeting of 253 bishops at the Vatican.

Benedict says "the only solid reality is the word of God."

He instructed them to take nothing for the journey but a walking stick--no food, no sack, no money in their belts.They were, however, to wear sandals but not a second tunic.

This is a very good video by Father Barron who does "The Word on Fire" show that can be heard on Relevant Radio. It's in response to Bill Maher's "Religulous" movie that came out this weekend. I recently saw Bill Maher on "Larry King Live" and the guy hates religion and you can tell that all he wants to do is tear people down and doesn't even care to have an open mind to people of faith. The best thing you can do for people like this is to pray for them...

The following comes from a statement released by the Bishops of New York called Our Cherished Right, Our Solemn Duty.

The document [issued by the bishops of NY] “Our Cherished Right, Our Solemn
Duty,” states that there are many important issues such as the right to life,
issues of war and peace, the education of children and how we treat the poor and
vulnerable. While all must be considered, “not every issue is of equal moral
gravity.”

“The inalienable right to life of every innocent human person outweighs other concerns where Catholics may use prudential judgment, such as how best to meet the needs of the poor or to increase access to health care for all,” the New York bishops’ document says.

“The right to life is the right through which all others flow. To the extent candidates reject this fundamental right by supporting an objective evil, such as legal abortion,
euthanasia or embryonic stem cell research, Catholics should consider them less
acceptable for public office.”

Hat tip to Jeff over at Curt Jester, this was too good not to re-post.



Really does say it all doesn't it? :)

I could survive for 1 minute, 3 seconds chained to a bunk bed with a velociraptor

Hat tip to Father Erik...

SEAGOVILLE  --  A Dallas-area high school student says she's been forbidden from wearing her rosary to school because it's considered a gang symbol.

"I went to school, walked through the metal detectors and they told me to take it off," said the teenager. "I asked them why and they said because it's gang-related."

The approved “Order for the Blessing on the Fifteenth Birthday,” the quinceañera ritual, will be published Sept. 19.

Communities can celebrate this bilingual ritual both within and outside of Mass. The Mexican-American Cultural Center in San Antonio developed the original text of the rite in 1999. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops acquired the rights to the text in 2007 and has collaborated with the Secretariat of Divine Worship in completing the final text.

Jesuit Father Allan Deck, executive director of the Secretariat of Cultural Diversity, said the quinceañera ritual will be one of “many resources Latinos can use to preserve both Catholic and cultural identity.”

The quinceañera ritual can help young Catholics “learn more about the importance of upholding one’s baptismal commitment in a spirit of thanksgiving,” said Msgr. Anthony Sherman, executive director of the USCCB Secretariat of Divine Worship, because the ritual allows baptismal godparents or other couples serving as sponsors the option of presenting religious articles.

USCCB Publishing

Please keep praying for those in Ike's path this is going to be a nasty one...

But every year for the past two decades, Mr. Wright has led a revival at the Elmwood United Presbyterian Church in New Jersey, and on Sunday he returned, this time with kind words for the man who called him “divisive and destructive.”

Preaching about God’s power to transform ordinary believers into extraordinary people, Mr. Wright cited the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks, then talked about Mr. Obama, the Democratic nominee for president.

“Twenty years ago,” he told the crowd at Elmwood’s branch here on Clinton Avenue, “a scrawny little kid, pointed nose, big-eared, mama from Kansas, daddy from Kenya — the Lord told him, an ordinary black boy, ‘You can be a state senator and you can bring folk to the bargaining table who not only do not talk to one another, these folk don’t like one another.’

“He did what the Lord said,” Mr. Wright continued, “an ordinary black boy like Mary was an ordinary little girl. Not only did he become a state senator, this black boy with an African daddy from Kenya and a white American mama from Kansas, he had the audacity to hope, so he ran for the United States Senate.
“And now,” Mr. Wright said, as cheers rang from the audience and the organist punctuated his words, “Oh, my God, and now — whoo!”

The Obama campaign declined to comment on the remarks, which were similar to ones Mr. Wright made last month at a church in Houston

As was reported the USCCB released a statement yesterday about Sen. Biden's foot-in-mouth incident on "Meet the Press" this weekend. What has been more interesting is that the media has seemed to let this one pass it by.

Thomas over at American Papist who has been one of the main hubs of information about Pelosi and Biden-gate was the first to bring this to my attention. Outside the Catholic and religious blogs it doesn't seem that any mainstream press is going to touch this one. While the reactions to Sen. Biden's statement have been swift from some Bishops, it might be time to send our local Bishops an e-mail to see if they are going to chime in on this like they did with Nancy Pelosi.

This is a great video...please pass it on

WASHINGTON-Cardinal Justin F. Rigali, chairman of the U.S. Bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities, and Bishop William E. Lori, chairman, U.S. Bishops Committee on Doctrine, issued the following statement:
Recently we had a duty to clarify the Catholic Church’s constant teaching against abortion, to correct misrepresentations of that teaching by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on “Meet the Press” (see www.usccb.org/prolife/whatsnew.shtml). On September 7, again on “Meet the Press,” Senator Joseph Biden made some statements about that teaching that also deserve a response.
Senator Biden did not claim that Catholic teaching allows or has ever allowed abortion. He said rightly that human life begins “at the moment of conception,” and that Catholics and others who recognize this should not be required by others to pay for abortions with their taxes.
However, the Senator’s claim that the beginning of human life is a “personal and private” matter of religious faith, one which cannot be “imposed” on others, does not reflect Catholic teaching. The Church teaches that the obligation to protect unborn human life rests on the answer to two questions, neither of which is private or specifically religious.
The first is a biological question: When does a new human life begin? When is there a new living organism of the human species, distinct from mother and father and ready to develop and mature if given a nurturing environment? While ancient thinkers had little verifiable knowledge to help them answer this question, today embryology textbooks confirm that a new human life begins at conception (see www.usccb.org/prolife/issues/bioethic/fact298.shtml). The Catholic Church does not teach this as a matter of faith; it acknowledges it as a matter of objective fact.
The second is a moral question, with legal and political consequences: Which living members of the human species should be seen as having fundamental human rights, such as a right not to be killed? The Catholic Church’s answer is: Everybody. No human being should be treated as lacking human rights, and we have no business dividing humanity into those who are valuable enough to warrant protection and those who are not. Even this is not solely a Catholic teaching, but a principle of natural law accessible to all people of good will. The framers of the Declaration of Independence pointed to the same basic truth by speaking of inalienable rights, bestowed on all members of the human race not by any human power, but by their Creator. Those who hold a narrower and more exclusionary view have the burden of explaining why we should divide humanity into the moral “haves” and “have-nots,” and why their particular choice of where to draw that line can be sustained in a pluralistic society. Such views pose a serious threat to the dignity and rights of other poor and vulnerable members of the human family who need and deserve our respect and protection.
While in past centuries biological knowledge was often inaccurate, modern science leaves no excuse for anyone to deny the humanity of the unborn child. Protection of innocent human life is not an imposition of personal religious conviction but a demand of justice.

I saw today at work that I can no longer buy a soda out of the vending machine for $1.00. The price now reads $1.25, now don't get me wrong I'm used to seeing this kind of things when I'm at the movies or some random hotel where they want to get as much out of you as they can. But I never thought I'd see the day when I couldn't put a simple dollar into the work soda machine and walk away. This truly is a sign of the times...someone please turn on the Big Bang Machine and get it over with. :)

Seems like Mr. Biden missed out on a very poignant homily at the installment of his new Bishop. Let's take a look.

In early discussions, Bishop Saltarelli and I both agreed that this Feast Day of the Nativity of Mary would be a wonderfully appropriate day for the installation. Mary’s mother, St. Anne, carried a very special life in her womb which serves as a vivid reminder that every life is special. We will continue to stress the constant eaching of the Church that each person must respect every life from conception to natural death. And we will continue to seek the intercession of Saint Thomas More for Statesmen, Politicians, Supreme Court Justices, Judges and Lawyers—that they may be courageous and effective in defending and promoting the sanctity of human life, the foundation of every human right, the foundation of our love for the poor.

First Nancy Pelosi claims to be an "ardent and practicing" Catholic and slams her foot straight into her mouth. Now Joe Biden has followed suit on the same show no less!

Thomas over at American Papist who has been covering these issues has a write-up on this latest incident.

Also make some time to listen to Bishop Robert Morlino's homily on this topic, it is powerful.

God Bless you all!

Father Z over at WDTPRS has posted Bishop Niederauer's response to Nancy Pelosi's foot-in-mouth event on "Meet the Press" and added his own comments.