What wondrous love is this?

 

Random thougths on a Friday night

• Rocky went to get the oil in his SUV changed. The woman at the desk asked him if he'd been vaccinated. My husband is a gentleman so he politely told her that this kind of question was awfully personal. She seemed surprised by his response and perhaps his soft answer shamed her and she restricted her remarks to the oil change for the rest of the appointment. 
  
  
  
  
• I was asked again about whether I've made an appointment to be vaccinated. I wish HR would just come out and say the magic words, "You can't come back to office until you get the shot." But they won't do that so instead I get asked about it every other Friday. I was upset the first two times. This time I just felt flat. 
  
  
  
• Some priests say that there's no point in baptizing a baby just so the family can have the formality and a party if they have no intention of living Catholic lives. Other priests say they'll baptize the baby and pray that th child one day comes back to the Church even if the parents never do or remain nominal Christmas, Ash Wednesday and Easter Catholics. I've heard both arguments and I'm not sure which one is right but I do feel sorry for  Steve Skojec's pastor.  
  
  
  
• I'm finally coming out of  a two week long sinus infection. I felt like I walking on a rolling ship when I was outside but I couldn't sleep when I lay down because that made the pain from my nose to my right eye erupt. I am still exhausted but there was grace in this. Lying in the dark, waiting for the pain pill to kick in is a moment to think about the Agony in the Garden and to try pray the Rosary. I say try because I failed in most of the attempts. Sometimes I didn't even make through the Creed. Mostly I was able to say the first three Hail Mary's and had to give up because I couldn't even think. 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

Our Lady of Good Help, pray for us.

There is only one fully approved apparition* in the United States. Our Lady appeared to Sr. Adele in the wilds of Wisconsin in 1859.








*It looked like Our Lady of America was at least partially approved but it's now been ruled as not supernatural. 

Abandoned update

 As I expected nobody from the diocese has contacted me. Interestingly enough, I noticed that I didn't get the usual Zoom invitation for the parish bible study this week or last week. Unless, this was just an oversight I have to shake my head at the pettiness. 

On the work front, we've all been notified that 90% of the staff have been vaccinated and the "hesitant" were told in very subtle wording to stop being fearful and selfish and get on with it. 

The Sanofi-Pasteur vaccine, from what I've read has nothing to do with fetal remains but it is doubtful that it will be available until Winter 2021. If you don't have that much time left and you're looking for some bit of hope, I did read this on the Children of God for Life Site. They have further discussion on this page.   I also found a form letter on the Corey Diggs blog.  However,  if you are in a Right to Work State or signed an Employment at Will contract, as I did,  I don't think these will help you or me.  

I will wait and watch the battle and God willing I will meet whatever happens like a Catholic woman should. 

Abandoned

 Over 80% of the people at my job have been vaccinated and everyone else is strongly encouraged to get the jab or ... Or has not been spelled out. I contacted my parish for advice about a religious exemption and was given a number for the archdiocese. 

The person  I spoke to was so contemptuous of my query that  I was stunned. I seriously doubt that anyone will be getting back to me.

 I didn't expect much. Maybe a sigh and a "Here read this brochure on exemptions," but the dripping disgust in that diocesan employees voice let me know that anybody asking for guidance from the diocese is going to be abandoned. Surely I can't be the first person in my diocese to ask about this and I fear that I may have even made a mistake in telling that nasty person my name.

Oh my goodness

 Between the wonderful Frank Walker and the magnificent Ann Barnhardt I'm astonished at how many people have read my last post. The Internet can be an amazing place. 

So why did a bunch of Trad Inc. folks and their fans go after a lone essayist?

 For a long time I've wondered why nobody seemed to have a problem with Charles Coulombe's tarot card reading.  After watching the Tweet attacks on Alistair McFadden  for mentioning Coulombe in his essay I was really taken aback. Coulombe does not hide his tarot reading. He's done it on

camera for years so nobody who is a serious fan of his can say that they didn't know about it or that he has not read tarot cards in public in the past.  You can't accuse Mr. McFadden of calumny or detraction. People who have only seen Coulombe's interviews on history with Sensus Fidelium or Taylor Marshall are probably shocked right now but they are the only ones. 

I think his serious fans look up to him because he represents a boyish fantasy. He is living proof that you can go to the traditional Mass and still be "sophisticated". You can bounce off to Europe and hang out with pretenders to obscure, defunct thrones. You can be so much more nuanced, smarter and classier and better dressed  than the working class guys at your chapel or parish. You are at heart  a knight....an intellectual....a prince, and if anyone questions Sir Charles well then, they must be a common small-minded ignorant fool. I suspect that this kind of silly thinking is one the reasons of why the tarot thing has been ignored for so long. 

It's all juvenile nonsense of course. A Catholic should not be fooling around with tarot cards any more than you should play with a ouija board or any kind of occultism. You know this. If your sensus fidie is disturbed by a particular thing then that is your warning from Heaven to avoid it and anyone pushing it. So, what does it mean that certain Professional Catholics have leapt to Coloumbe's defense? It means that you should back away from those people and shut the door behind you. 

 

Easter Joy!

 

Rejoice

 

Are there any who are devout lovers of God?

Let them enjoy this beautiful bright festival!

Are there any who are grateful servants?

Let them rejoice and enter into the joy of their Lord!

Are there any weary with fasting?

Let them now receive their wages!

If any have toiled from the first hour,

let them receive their due reward;

If any have come after the third hour,

let him with gratitude join in the Feast!

And he that arrived after the sixth hour,

let him not doubt; for he too shall sustain no loss.

And if any delayed until the ninth hour,

let him not hesitate; but let him come too.

And he who arrived only at the eleventh hour,

let him not be afraid by reason of his delay.

For the Lord is gracious and receives the last even as the first.

He gives rest to him that comes at the eleventh hour,

as well as to him that toiled from the first.

To this one He gives, and upon another He bestows.

He accepts the works as He greets the endeavor.

The deed He honors and the intention He commends.

Let us all enter into the joy of the Lord!

First and last alike receive your reward;

rich and poor, rejoice together!

Sober and slothful, celebrate the day!

You that have kept the fast, and you that have not,

rejoice today for the Table is richly laden!

Feast royally on it, the calf is a fatted one.

Let no one go away hungry. Partake, all, of the cup of faith.

Enjoy all the riches of His goodness!

Let no one grieve at his poverty,

for the universal kingdom has been revealed.

Let no one mourn that he has fallen again and again;

for forgiveness has risen from the grave.

Let no one fear death, for the Death of our Savior has set us free.

He has destroyed it by enduring it.

He destroyed Hell when He descended into it.

He put it into an uproar even as it tasted of His flesh.

Isaiah foretold this when he said,

"You, O Hell, have been troubled by encountering Him below."

Hell was in an uproar because it was done away with.

It was in an uproar because it is mocked.

It was in an uproar, for it is destroyed.

It is in an uproar, for it is annihilated.

It is in an uproar, for it is now made captive.

Hell took a body, and discovered God.

It took earth, and encountered Heaven.

It took what it saw, and was overcome by what it did not see.

O death, where is thy sting?

O Hell, where is thy victory?

Christ is Risen, and you, o death, are annihilated!

Christ is Risen, and the evil ones are cast down!

Christ is Risen, and the angels rejoice!

Christ is Risen, and life is liberated!

Christ is Risen, and the tomb is emptied of its dead;

for Christ having risen from the dead,

is become the first-fruits of those who have fallen asleep.

To Him be Glory and Power forever and ever. Amen!

The Easter sermon of John Chrysostom (circa 400 AD)

Holy Saturday

 

What is happening? Today there is a great silence over the earth, a great silence, and stillness, a great silence because the King sleeps; the earth was in terror and was still, because God slept in the flesh and raised up those who were sleeping from the ages. God has died in the flesh, and the underworld has trembled. from an ancient Holy Saturday Homily

Good Friday

 Dream of the Rood

What I wish to say of the best of dreams,

what came to me in the middle of the night

after the speech-bearers lie biding their rest! (1-3)

It seemed to me that I saw the greatest tree

brought into the sky, bewound in light,

the brightest of beams. That beacon was entirely

garnished with gold. Gemstones

prominent and proud at the corners of the earth—

five more as well blazoned across the span of its shoulders.

Every angel of the Lord warded it there,

a brilliant sight of a universe to come.

Surely it was no longer the gallows of vile crime

in that place—yet there they kept close watch,

holy spirits for all humanity across the earth,

and every part of this widely famous creation. (4-12)

Surpassing was this victory-tree, and me splattered with sins—

struck through with fault. I saw this tree of glory,

well-worthied in its dressing, shining in delights,

geared with gold. Gemstones had

nobly endowed the Sovereign’s tree.

Nevertheless I could perceive through all that gold

a wretched and ancient struggle, where it first started

to sweat blood on its right side. I was entirely perturbed with sorrows—

I was fearful for that lovely sight.

Then I saw that streaking beacon warp its hue, its hangings —

at times it was steamy with bloody wet, stained with coursing gore,

at other times it was glistening with treasure. (13-23)

Yet I, lying there for a long while,

beheld sorrow-chary the tree of the Savior

until I heard that it was speaking.

Then the best of wood said in words: (24-27)

“It happened long ago—I remember it still—

I was hewn down at the holt’s end

stirred from my stock. Strong foes seized me there,

worked in me an awful spectacle, ordered me to heave up their criminals.

Those warriors bore me on their shoulders

until they set me down upon a mountain.

Enemies enough fastened me there.

I saw then the Lord of Mankind

hasten with much courage, willing to mount up upon me. (28-34)

“There I dared not go beyond the Lord’s word

to bow or burst apart—then I saw the corners of the earth

tremor—I could have felled all those foemen,

nevertheless I stood fast. (35-38)

“The young warrior stripped himself then—that was God Almighty—

strong and firm of purpose—he climbed up onto the high gallows,

magnificent in the sight of many. Then he wished to redeem mankind.

I quaked when the warrior embraced me—

yet I dared not bow to the ground, collapse

to earthly regions, but I had to stand there firm.

The rood was reared. I heaved the mighty king,

the Lord of Heaven—I dared not topple or reel. (39-45)

“They skewered me with dark nails, wounds easily seen upon me,

treacherous strokes yawning open. I dared injure none of them.

They shamed us both together. I was besplattered with blood,

sluicing out from the man’s side, after launching forth his soul. (46-49)

“Many vicious deeds have I endured on that hill—

I saw the God of Hosts racked in agony.

Darkness had covered over with clouds

the corpse of the Sovereign, shadows oppressed

the brightest splendor, black under breakers.

All of creation wept, mourning the king’s fall—

Christ was upon the cross. (50-56)

“However people came hurrying from afar

there to that noble man. I witnessed it all.

I was sorely pained with sorrows—yet I sank down

to the hands of those men, humble-minded with much courage.

They took up there Almighty God, lifting up him up

from that ponderous torment. Those war-men left me

to stand, dripping with blood—I was entirely wounded with arrows.

They laid down the limb-weary there, standing at the head of his corpse,

beholding there the Lord of Heaven, and he rested there awhile,

exhausted after those mighty tortures. (57-65a)

“Then they wrought him an earthen hall,

the warriors within sight of his killer. They carved it from the brightest stone,

setting therein the Wielder of Victories. Then they began to sing a mournful song,

miserable in the eventide, after they wished to venture forth,

weary, from the famous Prince. He rested there with a meager host. (65b-69)

“However, weeping there, we lingered a good while in that place,

after the voices of war-men had departed.

The corpse cooled, the fair hall of the spirit.

Then someone felled us both, entirely to the earth.

That was a terrifying event! Someone buried us in a deep pit.

Nevertheless, allies, thanes of the Lord, found me there

and wrapped me up in gold and in silver. (70-77)

“Now you could hear, my dear man,

that I have outlasted the deeds of the baleful,

of painful sorrows. Now the time has come

that men across the earth, broad and wide,

and all this famous creation worthy me,

praying to this beacon. On me the Child of God

suffered awhile. Therefore I triumphant

now tower under the heavens, able to heal

any one of them, those who stand in terror of me.

Long ago I was made into the hardest of torments,

most hateful to men, until I made roomy

the righteous way of life for them,

for those bearing speech. Listen—

the Lord of Glory honored me then

over all forested trees, the Warden of Heaven’s Realm!

Likewise Almighty God exalted his own mother,

Mary herself, before all humanity,

over all the kindred of women. (78-94)

“Now I bid you, my dear man,

to speak of this vision to all men

unwrap it wordfully, that it is the Tree of Glory,

that the Almighty God suffered upon

for the sake of the manifold sins of mankind,

and the ancient deeds of Adam.

Death he tasted there, yet the Lord arose

amid his mighty power, as a help to men.

Then he mounted up into heaven. Hither he will come again,

into this middle-earth, seeking mankind

on the Day of Doom, the Lord himself,

Almighty God, and his angels with him,

wishing to judge them then—he that holds the right to judge

every one of them—upon their deserts

as they have earned previously here in this life. (95-109)

“Nor can any remain unafraid there

before that word that the Wielder will speak.

He will ask before the multitude where that man may be,

who wished to taste in the Lord’s name

the bitterness of death, as he did before on the Cross.

Yet they will fear him then, and few will think

what they should begin to say unto Christ.

There will be no need to be afraid there at that moment

for those who already bear in their breast the best of signs,

yet every soul ought to seek through the Rood

the holy realm from the ways of earth—

those who intend to dwell with their Sovereign.” (110-21)

I prayed to that tree with a blissful heart,

great courage, where I was alone,

with a meager host. My heart’s close was

eager for the forth-way, suffering many

moments of longing. Now my hope for life

is that I am allowed to seek that victorious tree,

more often lonely than all other men,

to worthy it well. The desire to do so

is strong in my heart, and my guardian

is righteous in the Rood. I am not wealthy

with many friends on this earth,

yet they departed from here from the joys of the world,

seeking the King of Glory—now they live

in heaven with the High-Father, dwelling in magnificence,

and I hope for myself upon each and every day

for that moment when the Rood of the Lord,

that I espied here upon the earth,

shall ferry me from this loaned life

and bring me then where there is great bliss,

joys in heaven, where there are the people of the Lord,

seated at the feast, where there is everlasting happiness

and seat me where I will be allowed afterwards

to dwell in glory, brooking joys well amid the sainted.

May the Lord be my friend, who suffered before

here on earth, on the gallows-tree for the sins of man. (122-46)

He redeemed us and gave us life,

a heavenly home. Hope was renewed

with buds and with bliss for those suffered the burning.

The Son was victory-fast upon his journey,

powerful and able, when he came with his multitudes,

the army of souls, into the realm of God,

the Almighty Ruler, as a bliss for the angels

and all of the holy, those who dwelt in glory

before in heaven, when their Sovereign came back,

Almighty God, to where his homeland was. (147-56)

Maundy Thursday

 

Spy Wednesday

Palm Sunday

 

random thoughts on a hot Friday afternoon

• Most Catholics have no idea how common Freemasonry is. In Europe it was an openly aggressive, violent force but was forced to be subtle and only show a benign face in public in Colonial America. Several of the  Founding Fathers were Masons. George Washington was a Master Mason. It's part of the American fabric. 
  
  Most American Masons have no idea that the brotherhood is anything but a civic, fraternal organization that will allow them to contribute to the community, get a job and provide for their families if anything should happen to them. I've read and heard that the guys don't get the full story unless they reach a high rank. 
  
  The Mason next door did not join after meeting a tall, dark figure at a crossroads one midnight. He probably walked into the lodge with his dad, his uncles or his boss. My grandfather and Rocky's grandfather's were Masons. Both were kind, gentle men who were active in their Baptist churches and among the first to step up if a community member needed help. When Masons' take their vows, probably most have no idea of what they are saying.  
  
  I read that Masonic vows curse the mason and his descendants to the fourth generation but I never thought much about it until I dug deeper into my genealogy hobby.  My uncle joined the Masons when he was 19 but in his twenties, something he's never discussed  caused him to stop attending meetings or take any active part. He told my mother that once a man joins he can't really leave and she didn't press him for more detail.
  
  My uncle's first born son was born with a serious defect and the poor baby did not live the whole day. My uncle and his wife tried again and my cousin was born and is fine. That cousin's first born was born without a brain and died quickly. His second child is fine. My mother's first born died immediately. Two years later she had me. I've never had a successful pregnancy. Looking at that I wondered if some sort of genetic defect runs in my maternal line. 
  
  The good news is that if you are a Catholic Mason or Eastern Star you can go to confession, repent and be done with it. If you are a Masonic descendant and have noticed that a particular tragedy keeps cropping up in your family tree, know this: your grandpa  may have messed up but you and your family don't have to live with it. See a good priest and ask his advice. 
  
  
  
  
• Lately I've been feeling not exactly nervous but aware that something really unpleasant is going on in my area. I live a small city that is older than the nation. We used to have one or two murders a year, car accidents, drunks and mostly white collar crimes. Now suddenly young men are roaming apartment parking lots stealing air bags or the whole car. We've had two car-jackings this year and several cars stolen at gas stations. Last week there was a robbery and abduction. This week a victim was robbed by four men while walking on the public street. What happened to my quiet, placid town? I think it has to do with the number of breadwinners who have lost their jobs as a result of the lockdowns. They or their sons are going slowly crazy. 
  
  
  
  
• Fr. Harrison Egwuenu, a kidnapped priest of the Catholic diocese of Warri in Nigeria has been released!

Christ, have mercy on me, a sinner. 

• Yesterday was the Feast of the Annunciation. On two different sites I saw someone in the comment section chime in to remind us all that March 25th was the day Frodo took the Ring to Mt. Doom. Both individuals reminded us that Lord of the Rings is an important Catholic book and you'll see the Gospel if you read it right. I just shook my head and thought, "Will you guys give it a rest?" People were talking about the Angel Gabriel coming to address the Virgin Mary and a fanboy harps about a work of fiction that most of us picked up once when we were kids and forgot about until the movies came out. Come on! 

You Cannot Have it All

 Years ago I read about a woman in her 30s who decided concentrate on her career and put off marrying and having children by using IVF.  At 45,  a suitable man hadn't come along and she decided to defrost her eggs and use a sperm donor. 

Out of the 11 eggs she had frozen only one survived the defrosting process and was not abnormal in some way. That egg was fertilized and implanted in her womb. The child didn't thrive and she lost the baby. So what does this woman have to show for her $19,000 and moment of fame? Nothing. If she isn't doing it now in a few years she will be standing in her kitchen at midnight and asking her herself, "Where is my man? Where are my children? What the Hell did I do?"

Your career will not last, no matter how fantastic you are. Smart men already know this. About five years ago I watched an attorney start to physically decline. He'd fall asleep in his office from exhaustion and he just couldn't keep up with the rest of his team. He was forced out. It was humiliating for him. I observed another lawyer who was a big money maker for years. He put the R in rainmaker. He won multiple awards and accolades. He was quoted in local journals. He was a powerful person in the firm. And then he got sick. His sickness was progressive and he was in so much pain that he just wasn't able to work like he had for 40 years. Guess what? He was forced out. In previous years he would have been allowed the grace of semi retirement for a year or two and then he would have gotten a fabulous party and a farewell. In the years of the great plague firm's can't afford that and have to be lean and mean. 

In the end, you will be given a gold watch, a retirement bonus and a party if you're lucky and people will wave goodbye. If you aren't lucky you'll get a cold meeting and an embarrassed friend telling you that look, you just aren't able to pull the load anymore and you have to go. 

The Passion was ever before Our Lord's eyes

 The 17th century LeNain brothers of Paris, Antoine, Louis and Mathieu were all celebrated painters and worked together so closely that art historians aren't sure if one brother did this painting of the Child Jesus or if all the brothers had a part in it. The painting shows Our Lord at as a boy, just past His babyhood, contemplating the instruments of the Passion which are a long way off but always on His mind. The hidden years in Egypt and Nazareth were a countdown until He could begin His rescue mission.  

The Engel Report and some random thoughts on a Monday night

• I'm sorry. I am not ready to jump on the Milo bandwagon yet. Does this make me the Prodigal Son's older brother or one of the townsfolk who couldn't believe that St. Margaret of Cortona really was giving up her old life? I hope not. It's just that Milo  Yiannopoulos  is one of those people who really, really needs attention. It's flesh after fasting and water in drought lands to him.
  
   He gets a kick out of saying and doing things to stun and offend people. I don't think he even cares if he's loved or hated as long as he made you look.  I've read his last book and never mind his politics, that young man has some very dark  and moldy places in his soul's attic. I found parts of the book to be so gross that I had to get  rid of it. I didn't want it on my Kindle, in my house or in my search history. If I could've gotten my money back I would have done that. 
  
   Maybe this whole thing  is a miracle like St. Paul or Ratisbone and if so, time will tell. Maybe I'm gun shy. I think I've just seen too many big splashy converts disappoint  and too many Catholic celebrities turn out to be hot air. I am afraid that a year from now he'll give an interview or write a mocking  book about  Lifesite and his hilarious sojourn among the wacky, tacky, dumb as dirt Catholics. Pray for him. Be kind but don't give him any money. Wait and see, okay? 
  
  
  
  
• 
  

• 

  St. Margaret, pray for us

  
  
•  The McCarrick Report was distasteful and depressing but it also skipped over or sugar coated some nasty details. Randy Engel points them out here. http://www.renewamerica.com/columns/engel/210310

• Whenever someone says "my truth," you can be certain that the next words you hear will be lies. 

Why does the retired Cardinal Wuerl need 2 million to live on and other random thoughts

•  I think the Wuerl money is highly suspect. How many of you gave him this money via the Bishop's Lenten Appeal? Restore DC Catholicism asks  very good questions.   
  
  
  
  
  
• The always vinegary Mundabor, opines that Pope Benedict was never the man that we thought he was and thinks that the off kilter comments purported to come from him probably really what he thinks. I agree that Benedict's image was largely wishful thinking and PR. He was one of the bright boys at Vatican II but I believe that he was appalled by the bad taste, the malice and heretical things that came out of it over the years.  He was a conservative and conservatives are largely useless in a  fight but he never would have led us to the Pachamama or the Peacock angel. Remember that.
  
  
  
  
• The windmills of God grind slow but they grind exceedingly fine. I'm still leaning toward expecting Andrew Cuomo getting off scott free in this life but the mill stone is moving. Women have said for years that he was....not a gentleman but they were ignored. If anyone were to speak to his wife or his former concubine, neither woman would say he was a prince among men. However, maybe, just maybe Cuomo's decisions concerning the nursing homes in New York led to the death of the wrong person's parent and maybe that person had enough gravitas to pull the timid, the craven and the pragmatic in the New York press and legislature into a coalition that for their own individual reasons can strike at the king of New York. If they can't get rid of him perhaps they can at least end his political ascent. 
  
  
  
  
• I just watched an incredible interview on You Tube. It was a meaty discussion on one of my favorite subjects: Catholic history. 
  
  
  
  

• Ted McCarrick's old pals and protégés are in charge. 

Don't fall in the post under your own name or you're opinion is unworthy trap

 A smug  Catholic "influencer" and  writer frequently attacks people who use Twitter anonymously as mentally or morally defective cowards. Don't fall for that. Many people who Tweet under their own names are promoting their product; be it an apostolate in service to the Church, a decent Catholic business or  in some cases, their own grift.  They're in a position where they need to use their own names to stand by the soundness of the product. However, YOU, regular person with a job, kids and a spouse, don't have a product. You may not make a dime from Tweeting,  or posting on your blog, Facebook, etc... but you have a lot of dimes to lose.  Let's be honest. This aint your Dad's America, heck this isn't even your older Boomer aged sibling's America. You, regular person, can lose your job for simply saying something that certain groups don't like. Your spouse can lose his or her job. Your kids can be harassed at school or in public because of your opinion. 

Protecting your seed corn and your people is not cowardice. It's prudence. If your eight year old comes home crying because her teacher told her and the whole class that you said X and therefore are an evil person then you blew it. Shield your family and if someone who Tweets under their own name mocks you remember that this person probably is running a business and doesn't have a job at the plant, the office or the shop to lose. Don't fall into these people's trap. They are using you. They just fling the "coward" insult around to wrap themselves in a veneer of faux toughness and to create "buzz" that will drive more viewers to them.