First Sighting

At least for me, here in Cincinnati, of the Smart ForTwo:

Seen in the 100 block of W. 8th Street while walking to work today. It was parked behind a BWM 5 or 7 series, which looked like it was towing a two year old in arears.

Can I say I want one?

Church Squirrels

Just in time for the Christmas turnout:

There were four country churches in a small Texas town: The Presbyterian Church, the Baptist Church, the Methodist Church and the Catholic Church. Each church was overrun with pesky squirrels.

One day, the Presbyterian Church called a meeting to decide what to do about the squirrels. After much prayer and consideration they determined that the squirrels were predestined to be there and they shouldn't interfere with God's divine will.

In the Baptist Church the squirrels had taken up habitation in the baptistery. The deacons met and decided to put a cover on the baptistery and drown the squirrels in it. The squirrels escaped somehow and there were twice as many there the next week.

The Methodist Church got together and decided that they were not in a position to harm any of God's creation. So, they humanely trapped the Squirrels and set them free a few miles outside of town. Three days later, the squirrels were back.

But -- The Catholic Church came up with the best and most effective solution. They baptized the squirrels and registered them as members of the church. Now they only see them on Christmas and Easter.

Some good news

and some not so good.

First the good, via Rich Leonardi and Amy Welborn, comes news of a new Vatican webpage which should be extremely helpful for priests and those doing academic research, especially in the area of the Church Fathers: Biblia Clerus


Then the bad, Dawn Eden passes along advertizing posters of Planned (un)Parenthood from around the world, shivers down the spine.

Living the courage of the Martyrs

Fr. Z. passes along a CNS news story of an Iraqi Muslim woman coming to faith in Christ through the witness of military medical personnel and a Navy Chaplain:

As Fr. Bautista continued speaking with us, he described the fascinating story of a young Muslim woman who was entering the Church under his guidance through the RCIA process. Her story was moving. While working with Americans, this woman, who must remain anonymous, was touched deeply when she realized that the U.S. medical personnel not only treated wounded Americans and Iraqi civilians, but also treated wounded enemy combatants, including one who was known for having killed U.S. Marines. As she put it, “This cannot happen with us.” This dramatic extension of mercy even to enemy soldiers caused her to take the next cautious step. She asked Father Bautista to “tell me more about Jesus.” As Father described Jesus and his life in the Gospels, one thing stood out among the rest for the Muslim woman he called “Fatima” (not her real name) and that was how kindly Jesus had related to, as she put it, “the two Mary’s.” Fatima was moved to see how Jesus deeply loved Mary, his mother, who was sinless, but also how Jesus deeply loved Mary Magdalene, who was “a great sinner.” As these discussions continued, Fatima reached a point where she said to Father Bautista, “I want to become a Christian.”

A priest's impact on others

The Dominican blog tells of the story of Father Robert A. Morris, OP, who likely doesn't even remember one act of kindness, that has stuck with a friend 50 years after the fact:

Father Morris ordered the cabby to stop and call the police. I watched from the cab as he ran to the man, removed his black wool coat and covered the man with it — not half the coat, as St. Martin did, but the whole thing. Then Father Morris knelt in the freezing rain, administering the last rites.

Be a Hero

St. Ambrose and First Friday Homily

If you missed the delivery yesterday on the radio, here is the printed text used for my homily yesterday for Sacred Heart Radio:

As we gather today to celebrate this Mass, there are many things that are happening in the Church’s cycle of prayer. Not only do we gather on this First Friday of December, but we are making our way through this great season of Advent, plus we celebrate an early Doctor of the Church, one of the four great Latin Patriarchs in St. Ambrose, not to mention that tomorrow is the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, you may be wondering how we’re going to tie all this together, or even if they might somehow be related to a theme of Vocation as well. Hmm… Let’s give it a shot, shall we? It is this last aspect, the theme of Vocation that underlies all that I do, is one aspect that I see that unifies all of these various themes and venues that we celebrate today.
First, let’s begin with the Season in which we find ourselves: Advent. This is, as we have been hearing, a season of Preparation, a joyful season of anticipation of Christ’s coming, not only at the great Feast of Christmas that ends this season, but also an acknowledgement that Christ is coming that the end of time. However, if we look at it this way, there may be a temptation to think that Jesus has left us orphans somehow. He is currently off enjoying the richness of Heaven, exploring the endless mansion that His Father has up there. But we all know that this is NOT the case. During this season of Advent, we have such moving passages, especially from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah, that show how God is intimately concerned with what is going on ‘down here.’ God wants to turn our world which can be full of hatred, jealously and tyranny, into a world of peace, full of orchards, where the poor rejoice in God’s presence and the lion and the lamb lie down together, in peace.
We hear in the moving announcement to Mary that she will ‘conceive and bear a son, and you shall name him: Emmanuel; which means: God is with us.’ So we know, fundamentally, Christ is present here with us, leading us deeper into the mystery of his very self, and drawing us ever closer into His heavenly home.
But, how does he do this? How is His presence made known to the world today? Obviously, there are many and varied ways, but a primary way that he enters the world is through the life and ministry of His priests, whom he calls to do His bidding in the world.
As a priest, I have to be very conscious of the fact that what I do in this world is not about me, rather I am to be a doorway for others to come to know Christ, in whose presence, in whose persona I act, that we do represent Christ to the world. I am reminded of this continually as I walk downtown and am asked repeatedly if I am ‘a reverend.’ “Nope, I am a Catholic priest.” Even the homeless guys respond: ‘Pray for me, Father.’ You betcha!
The priest stands as a constant reminder that Jesus is still present to us, that he gives his life for His people, just as the priest does in celibacy. The priest is also a reminder that all of us live in anticipation of the world to come, and not just for this world. The priest is an eschatological sign of our hope in heaven.
But interestingly, as he stands arranged to the world to come, he also focuses on this world, on the here and now, which is part of the lesson that we have today from St. Ambrose, the great teacher and doctor, Patriarch of the Latin Church and founder of the Ambrosian Rite in Milan. While I admittedly do not know as much as I should about Ambrose’s thought and theology, there is always a connection between him and another great Patriarch of the Latin Church: Augustine, whom he baptized. This connection points to the fact that the priest is not to be concerned with his own salvation, per se, but with the salvation of the souls entrusted to his care. He is to give his life so that others may live. He is to draw others deeper into the mystery of Christ, so he is to not only be a witness, but must also be a teacher of the mysteries which he celebrates. The two great Patriarchs, along with Gregory I and Jerome, help us even yet today to understand the mystery of Christ’s presence in the world, and give especially the priests of today the example to follow of preaching Christ, yesterday, today and tomorrow.
Finally, and most importantly, we come to Mary, whose presence is inescapable during this great season. She is the mother of all priests, for she is the mother of the Great High Priest, Jesus Himself. But she is also first and foremost a disciple, who gives those who follow in her footsteps the pathway to come to know her son better.
But, she is also the extreme example for her priests to follow, for everything that she does points the way not to herself, but to her Son, just as everything that a priest does should also point to her Son. In a sense, she is the first priest because she bears Christ to the world, she makes Him known through her deeds and actions. Yet, she is also the model of humility because she never sought the glory for herself, even as she recognizes that ‘All generations will call me blessed.’ But this is only because of her connection with the Almighty, ‘who has done great things for’ her; and ‘Holy is His name.’
Because of her example, because of her connection with her Son, every priest is to be Marian in his devotion, and I am convinced that my vocation to the priesthood was marked by her gracious intercession and guidance. I was baptized and raised at Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception in Botkins, I was formed as a disciple of Christ under Mary’s patronage in this very chapel and at Her Farm in Falmouth, for which I am very grateful. I attended Mount St. Mary’s Seminary, which celebrates her Patronal Feast tomorrow, and I was first assigned to Our Lady of the Visitation on the West Side upon my Ordination. She guides not only her priests, but all the disciples of Her Son, closer to Him.
One final note regarding Mary’s life: she also teaches us that to follow Christ, to bear Christ to the world, is not a pathway for glory, it is a pathway of humility. She knew whom she was bearing in her womb, yet she submitted and gave birth in a manger, with the animals to keep her company. The Shepherds in the fields were the first to come and visit, and the kings only came later. She experienced persecution and ridicule when she ended up pregnant before she and Joseph came to live together. Through all this, though, God refined her and made her a more perfect dwelling place for Christ. In the same way, God brings us through our own sufferings that we too might become more perfect dwelling places for Christ, too.
During this Advent season, as we make our journey to Christ, coming not only at Christmas, but also at the End of Time, let us embrace this journey, that in following the footsteps of Mary and the Saints, we may make Christ known more perfectly in our lives, and that through our faithfulness, Jesus may transform this world of suffering and pain, to a world that recognizes that Christ is always with us. And with that knowledge, we have the true freedom that comes to His Son’s and Daughters.

Clarifiers

First off, the 'slogan' below is a reworking of a quote from Pope Benedict, and his comes across much stronger:

Fulfillment does not lie in comfort, ease, and following one’s inclinations but precisely in allowing demands to be made upon you, in taking the harder path. Everything else turns out somehow boring anyway. Only the person who recognizes and ideal he must satisfy, who takes on real responsibility, will find fulfillment.

Unfortunately, we can't find the attribution. :(


And Barb wins the prize here for her comment in the 'Post 300' thread. Thanks for the kind wishes, Barb.

Narcissism, Priestly Style

With a swing of the thurible to Carl Olson at Ignatius Insight, he points readers to the following article on priests and narcissism:

Much of this change was long attributed to the “Spirit of Vatican II”, but in fact, our point is that the secular and narcissistic spirit of the times lies beneath these liturgical irregularities. This secular spirit, as described by Lasch, was explicitly self-indulgent and self-aggrandizing. The rationale of those who personalize the liturgy is clearly one that rejects the Church’s history and tradition — just as society in general has rejected its past. This is easily seen in the frequent neglect and sometimes even explicit disparagement of the Church’s liturgical tradition by those who should be most closely wedded to the Church — priests.

The article is a good read about how the underlying the narcissism of the wider culture has infiltrated its way into the ranks of the clergy. The authors (a father and son team, one a psychologist, one a brother and seminarian) point to the psychological aspects that help spur the advent of the 'happy, clappy Mass,' as some call it.

Reb Bull and New Slogans

So, after fielding pressure from a Catholic priest, Red Bull pulled an ad from Italian television:

The advert depicted four wise men, instead of three, visiting Mary and the Baby Jesus in Bethlehem. The fourth wise man bore a can of the soft drink.
"The image of the sacred family has been represented in a sacrilegious way," Father Damanti told Corriere della Sera. "Whatever the ironic intentions of Red Bull, the advert pokes fun at the nativity, and at Christian sensitivity."


Speaking of adverts (not Advents), hows this for a new slogan for the vocation office:

Choose the Priesthood, everything else turns out somehow boring anyway.

Post 300!

And a Big ol' Happy Birthday goes out to my brother Kurt, swarming through the snow in Iowa (That Iowa, always was a corny state!)

Anyway, thanks for those that turned in to listen to the Son Rises morning show. I now have a fair amount of scheming to do in response, however. I was a little suspicious as Matt went looking around for a set of head phones for me to wear in studio with Brian Patrick: "What, I never have head phones, who's calling in???"

The surprise was that my mother called in to wish Kurt a happy birthday. It was good to talk to her, and share some reminisence.

God Bless, and enjoy the day!

FYI

Did you know that the Chad Johnson Degree commercial, with the four guys in empty stands yelling 'C' 'H' 'A' 'd' with the last guy staying seated, yeah you know the one, was filmed at Elder High School's Pit, the 10,000 seat concrete horseshoe football stadium?

3 PSA's

Three Public Service Announcements, from the fine folks here at Called by Name:

1) If you missed the radio broadcast of my homily for this weekend, you can catch it LIVE at the Cathedral of St. Peter in Chains Cathedral, 11 AM and 6 PM Masses.

2) If you haven't seen the movie Bella yet, they've announced more cities. (Be forewarned, they release some type of eye irritant into the theatre near the end, caused my eyes to water furiously!) If we want more success like the last post and Planned (un)Parenthood, ventures like this will certainly help our cause!

3) For the teenagers out there, when unpacking the dishwasher, remember its not where you put the dishes, it's where the cook has to find them! Just out to help.

Man, I hope he

picks me up one! (The Geek Cleric's Holy Grail, that is!)

(If anyone is looking for a Christmas gift for the good padre....)

Progress?

Sometimes words come out of your mouth and later seem to be prophetic, as I hope was the case this morning.

For the last ten years or so, Holy Name Church in Cincinnati's Mount Auburn neighborhood (between Univeristy of Cincinnati and Christ Hospital) has been kept open primarily because of its proximity to the largest Planned (un)Parenthood mill in the city. During those years, the faithful have gathered on Saturday mornings to pray for a conversion of those who work there, of those who seek their services, and for the repose of the souls of those killed there.

For many years, they gathered one Saturday a month. Low and behold, the 'clinic' was soon closed on those days! So, in a moment Andy Dufrense (sp?) would be proud of, they started gathering twice a month. Well, soon, the 'clinic' was closed those two Saturdays!

In February of this year, I was asked to be part of the First Saturday's Mass at Holy Name, which would have a focus for youth and young adults, and we would now have covered four of five Saturday's a month: Mass, followed by Exposition and a Rosary Procession to the front of That Evil Institution.

Since I hadn't yet heard, but assumed, I checked with the organizer this morning before Mass to see if I was still on the schedule for next year, First Saturday's. Response: 'Unless that place closes down, we're still doing!" I think my response was: "While I would love extra sleep on a Saturday AM, as long as there is a need and I am available, I'm here."

Well, low and behold: the gates into the Compound were CLOSED and LOCKED this morning!!!

What a great sign that God rewards the faithfulness of His people! Now, can we get a 24/7 vigil going there?