Stop going to the bishop and other random Sunday morning thoughts.

• As I posted earlier this month, I listened briefly to a woman who was giving an interview on a Catholic podcast. She said  a priest made  advances and that she reported it to the bishop who after an investigation decided in favor of the priest. She then went on about how hurt she was. I had only one thought: People, stop going to your bishop.  If Fr. X lays hand on you with carnal intent you need to call the police. Period. Don't trust anybody who tells you to keep this quiet and handle it in house. That's one of the reasons the pedophilia scandal festered for decades. If the plumber, the accountant or the man next door attempts to visit his sexual urges on to your unwilling person; do you call their bosses afterwards? No, you call the cops. Stop going to the bishop. Call the cops and then and only then do you make an appointment at the chancery.
  
  
  
  
  
• All the New Springtime movements should be examined with a careful eye. A few might be good but my guess is that most are either not Catholic really or are Marciel-like.
• I was listening to the 20 somethings at work loudly panicking about the corona virus and sighed. These kids are so scared of everything it's like they are afraid of life itself. As I listened to them make their potential bug in grocery lists the following began to roll around in my mind:
  Do I need to freak out about the Corona virus?
  Are you a Han Chinese? Yes or No? If yes, do you live in Wuhan? If yes, there's nothing funny or sarcastic I can say. May God protect you. If yes, are you a high ranking member of the Party? If yes, then you have little to concern yourself about. Even if you are infected you will receive modern medical care and unless you are over 50 or have other health issues you have a high of recovery. If no, you are neither Han Chinese or living in Wuhan, do you live in China? Yes or No? If yes, you do have reason to be concerned and if your health is already compromised you are with reason to be alarmed. If no, do you live in a third world country? If yes, you may have real concern if your government has a close relationship with China and the Chines are building your infrastructure and your nuclear program. Do you live in a Western nation, yes or no? If yes, do you practice normal personal hygiene? If no, you need to clean up and don't be surprised if nobody ever wants to try your potluck to visit you at home. If yes, do you live in a home that has indoor plumbing that is up to code? Yes. If yes, are you over 50 and/or have health issues that compromise your immune system? If yes, it still unlikely that you need to worry.You are more likely to be taken out by the common flu and/or pneumonia than the corona virus. If no, you have a major problem but catching the corona virus is very low on your list of concerns right now. Do you live off grid but practice normal personal hygiene, keep a sanitary kitchen and deep clean your outhouse with extreme rigor every week? If no, you don't need to be overly concerned but you need to clean up and don't be surprised if nobody ever wants to try your potluck or to visit you at home.You are more likely to be taken out by the common flu and/or pneumonia than the corona virus. If yes, are you over 50 and/or have health issues that compromise your immune system? If yes, it still unlikely that you need to worry.You are more likely to be taken out by the common flu and/or pneumonia than the corona virus.
• I've noticed with puzzlement that a number of traditional Catholics make snotty comments about the red booklet missal by Ecclesia Dei. Why is that? When I first started going to the traditional Mass there was no affordable missal out there. The red missal was an absolute boon for my learning process and probably is the only missal that many people typically see. The big daily missals are wonderful-- truly wonderful but they are expensive and the red missal is the only game in town for many folks, still.
  
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random thoughts on a queasy Friday night.

• Remember back in the 90s and from 2000 onward when all the celebrities were adopting Chinese and Korean baby girls, black American, and African children? Ever wonder what happened to those kids?  I always thought the poor kids were mostly props for publicity who spent their time with the nanny or at boarding school until it was time for photos but for at least one little girl it was even worse than that.
  
  
  
  
• St. Aloysius Gonzaga, pray for us. 

• I had broccoli soup a little after 3 PM today and maybe the restaurant had it out too long because by the time Rocky and I got the adoration chapel at 6 PM my stomach felt like it was being twisted and wrung out like a wet rag. We didn't stay as long as Rocky usually does on Lenten Fridays but I just couldn't tough it out.  I'll have to remember to do an extra devotion before Mass tomorrow and I will never  reach for a Pret a Manger broccoli soup again.
  
• Psst. While people are freaking out about the corona virus people are dying everyday of plain ole ordinary flu.
  
  
• I don't know what the Bishop's Appeal season was like at your parish but at mine it was mighty slim. I've heard jokes about priests who don't make their quota in February being transferred in June and that's sad. No bishop in his right mind should expect a good turn out this year. 

As the twig is bent so grows the tree

One my Muslim neighbors has a a little grandson who is getting old enough to start expressing his surprise that the whole world is not like his grandparent's mosque. We were on the elevator with them when he reached over and touched my calf screaming, "Leg! Leg!" His grandmother apologized profusely and I told her not to worry about it. A few years later when he was 8 he took offense to my hair and tried to shoot me with his water pistol. Luckily for him it was empty. His grandmother apologized. I think it just hit him that how could I be a contemporary of his grandmother and be uncovered and it blew his mind. He's too young to understand why a woman who was acceptable for conversation with his grandmother and grandfather could look like the evil infidels. He's just a little fellow now but if he doesn't work this out he's going to be a real problem for somebody when he becomes a teenager. I thought about the neighbor's grandson while reading Susan Matthiesen's post at Les Femmes.

Lord have mercy

The photo below is not a parody. It's real.  Cardinal Christoph Schönborn was not asleep and some crazy person put this up in the cathedral. The cardinal is apparently enamored with odd artistic projects for Lent.  I'd like to write something witty or profound but all I can come up is this: Some people just need a good whipping.

Holy Family

random thoughts on a Sunday afternoon

Saints Dominic and Francis, pray for us

• If your beloved wants to major in theology expects you to live in genteel poverty like the March family from Little Women* until he can get a professorship at Ave Maria, Christendom or Steubenville and a book contract, run away.
  
  
  
• The Bishop's Lenten appeal in DC is not doing as well as in previous years. Rocky looked at the collecion basket during Mass and noted that there was only one Appeal envelope in it. People aren't saying so out loud but the whole parade of McCarrick, Wuerl, Bransfield, and Rossi has had it's effect.
  
  
• How can Matthew Matt talk about uniting the clans when he's still treating Louie Verrechio as persona non grata?

• I'm listening to a woman give an interview on a Catholic podcast. She says a priest made advances up to laying hands on her. She reported it to the bishop who after an investigation decided in favor of the priest. She then went on about how hurt she was. I had only one thought: People, stop going to your bishop.  If Fr. X lays hand on you with carnal intent you need to call the police. Period. Don't trust anybody who tells you to keep this quiet and handle it in house. That's one of the reasons the pedophilia scandal festered for decades. If the plumber, the accountant or the man next door attempts to visit his sexual urges on to your unwilling person; do you call their bosses afterwards? No, you call the cops. Stop going to the bishop. Call the cops and then and only then do you make an appointment at the chancery. 

* I loved Little Women and one day when I was 12 I started thinking critically about the back story and suddenly I just couldn't read it anymore. Mr. March was a terrible father who let his wife and girls live in patched clothes and be so poor that Jo had to sell her hair in order to get the money for Marmee to travel to see him in the battlefield hospital and they had to rely on the charity of the rich aunt, and the kindly rich neighbor.  Louisa May Alcott wrote Little Women because she needed to support the family, her father, the Rev. Alcott and the real Mr. March failed. She didn't love the book for itself but she was delighted to be able to give her mother a secure old age. 

Not cool, my boy

Standing on an image of Our Lady's FACE while you skateboard? I'm sorry, that's not cool.

Father Visitor tells a joke about the president

Last Saturday Rocky and I went to  Mass and were "treated" to the spectacle of  the guest priest telling a joke about an assassination  attempt on the president.  I think the priest misjudged the room. Yes he was in  DC and most of  the  people  in  the  pews were government workers who will still be voting Democrat five years after they're  dead  but there was a sound in the church of decent people  gasping in surprise.

After the dismissal  Rocky asked if I was going to say something  to Father Visitor or to the pastor who was completely blindsided by the joke, poor man.  I said "no," and bolted for the door. Fr. Visitor is supposed to be here for three weeks. I really hope he's not celebrating this week.

Back talking to the professional lay Catholics...

Something is happening in Trad land. That's not a deep thought since something is always happening where there is life but I mean that something new seems to be stirring. People are talking back to the leaders of Trad Inc. and asking questions. Benedict Carter  has come out with his suspicion that the people we've been told represent and are the leaders of traditional Catholics are really controlled opposition who do it for the money, honey.

I don't trust professional lay Catholics in general. I think I've made that clear over the years. I've just  observed too many guys who twist every which way in order to keep the mortgage paid. I've long felt that if you truly do what you do for the love of Christ then do it without pay. I don't have a problem with taking donations to keep the server working and to keep the day to day mechanics of your site in order but I do dislike and distrust the people who are making their whole living off the Faith and claiming that they are more holy than the rest of us and that they are making a sacrifice. Really? How about you get a real job and support your family AND run your site with a discreet donation button that way?


Constant, strident hustling for money for your lay "apostolate" leaves me cold. There is one site that I will not name that sends me e-mails every week asking for money. Another site owner makes long podcasts and essays talking about how hard it all is, how exhausting and how much he could be making if he hadn't taken on this holy cause so hit the donate link. A few years ago, a Catholic writer had or allowed his wife to post on his site with a nagging, pleading missive. She wrote about how hard it was to see her child standing in front of the refrigerator and not being able to afford to have the food that the child wanted. That pissed me off. I clicked away from that site and never read anything from that individual again.

I grew up in a working class household. When my father died, my mother worked two jobs. I never went without food. I always had books, shoes and a Winter coat that fit. I stayed in Catholic school until 12th grade. My mother didn't even ask relatives for help. She just got on with it. So, forgive me if I am aghast at college credentialed individual who has obvious talent and cleverness who wants me to donate to his cause so his kids can eat. Sir, go get yourself a job, handle the responsibility that God gave you and then come back to me. Finally there is one lay professional Catholic who writes on and on and on some more about stupid and worldy (you and me) people but wants us to send our worldly cash to him/her. I say again, you are by your claim, more righteous than me. You are by your claim, more holy than me. You are, by your claim, more educated and sophisticated than me so why exalted sir or madam do you not seek employment and support your rent and food that way and run your site? 

It will be interesting to see how many people start asking the professional Catholics rude questions about how they spend their money and how long they'll keep it up  but I'm amazed  and delighted that anybody has brought it up in public at all. 

Oh Twitter, Facebook and YouTube priest....

 Now this is what I want to see a priest doing. Not body building, not hunting cheese steak, and not dancing on TV and not doing Star Wars commentary.