random Ash Wednesday thoughts

• I went to Mass at St. Matthews Cathedral for Ash Wednesday. It was fine except the cantor sang the Kyrie at the Prayers of the Faithful instead of the "Lord hear our prayer," response. He sang it as long as possible and almost in the melisma style so nobody who wasn't a trained singer could really follow him. It may be permitted but I don't really care for it. 

• What is wrong with Chris Matthews? Did he get kicked in the head as a child or was  he the victim of harsh potty training? If he feels this way about Catholics why did  he go to  the Shrine of the Blessed Sacrament Church to sign his new book?

• I was reading a blog where  a commenter mentioned that she had gone to help out at a food bank and was shocked because the people were  uncouth, (I take it nobody used a finger bowl),  badly dressed, and some of the women were fat (I bet this person isn't so pretty herself), and people were actually  watching TV while they ate. The TV thing is something that was beyond the pale in her household, apparently. She also seemed to get the vapors because American Idol was on. Reading this really made me angry. I hope this woman doesn’t go back or if she does, I hope that  the ladies who run the food bank wisely keep her in the back peeling potatoes or washing pans.  If I ever get to the point where I need to go somewhere to get a free meal I’d hate to have this imperious “Christian” looking down her precious nose at me. If you’re going to do something with the hardcore underclass or even the folks who recently slipped into dire financial straits this Lent please don’t be like this person. Nobody who’s hit the skids (and considering what’s happened to this country that could be any of us)  needs someone mincing about going “Ew, yucky!,” at them. Throw a dollar into the collection plate instead.

• Please say a prayer for this good man.

• The more I read about Fr. McRae the more I think that we are no better than the folks in Old Salem.