Sunday, November 27, 2005

Good news

An English translation of the Vatican instruction on gays in the seminary is online at Catholic World News and other places. It looks like good news. If a young man is prancing around the seminary acting like Truman Capote he's not supposed to be ordained. Of course how many bad bishops are going to obey? How many seminarians are just going to go the Rock Hudson route? Oh well, it's a start. The road to Heaven begins with one faltering step.

In other news, the pope put the smackdown on the monks at Assisi. Years ago there was a meeting of world religions at the St. Francis shrine. The buddists were allowed to put an idol on the altar and animists slaughtered a chicken. That was an appalling episode that set the rad trads on fire and frankly, us conservative semi traditionalists couldn't really answer back.


Oh, I saw Harry Potter last night. The trailers before the movie got a mostly tepid response. Nobody seemed to be moved by King Kong, a few people laughed at Cheaper by the Dozen II and there were approving murmurs for the the Lady in the Water trailer.

The Goblet of Fire movie is MUCH better than Azkhaban. The theater was so packed it was actually too warm. The audience reaction was good. I thought the girl playing Fleur was horribly miscast....c'mon Fleur is part Veela. She should be a stunner. This actress was plain as a pancake. The boy playing Victor was perfect. I wasn't impressed by Voldie's makeup but I did like how Hogwarts looked this time out. Next up, Order of Phoenix in 2007?

Sunday, November 20, 2005

Neat blogs and a confrontation at the confessional

I found a blog by a young man that is very neat. It's called St. Joseph's Vanguard.

And another one was Catholic Fire.

I went to the Catholic Answers forum and was kind of sad. It was 100% better than Angelqueen. The people at CAF are normal but judging by the posts the church in America has a long, LONG way to go in improving catechesis.


Mass tonight was interesting. I didn't get to confession. Just as I was about to go into the confessional and old man waved me off. "He's done." the old fellow grunted. Confession is from 4 to 5. It was 4:45. I felt like telling him to step off, mind his own cotton picking business, and that preventing somone from going to confession has got to be some kind of mortal sin but I didn't. Actually, in just a split second I went from being annoyed to amused. Bless the old guy's heart. I guess he was just trying to look out for Fr. Gandalf, in his own way.

Father Aragorn preached a smoking homily. There was a large group of elderly people there so I guess they were having something for them after Mass. There was a second collection but we weren't told what it was for.

things that make me happy

Fr. Corapi's preaching.

Fr. Pablo Struab's preaching. Love that accent.

The Franciscans of the Eternal Word.

Friday, November 18, 2005

Weep

The LA Times ran a story about a seminary in California that apparently was the original Pink Palace. It looks like any freak with a yen to hide his pervesion behind a white collar was welcome there.

In Virginia a brave priest went up against the lavender mafia and lost. His incredibly painful story is here The disgusting way Father Haley was treated is one of the reasons I left the Arlington diocese.



St. Charles Borromeo, patron of seminarians, pray for us.

St. John, the Cure d' Ars pray for us.

St. Pio, pray for us.

St. Peter and St. Paul, pray for us.

St. Athanasius, who had to hang tough for God when almost all the other clergy failed, pray for us.

St. John Fisher, who stood up to Henry the VIII, when all the other bishops turned coward, pray for us.

Sunday, November 13, 2005

it's a mystery

Why is Mark Shea the king of Catholic blogdom? His blog is not funny. He's often mean and is always picking fights with people. I don't get it.

My search for a good Catholic newsy blog goes on. I checked out Angelqueen.org awhile back and didn't like it. Those folks are too bitter for my taste.

Mass

Father Gandalf did the confessions today. He is so kind and gives such good counsel. I felt so light and free when I left the confessional. Young Fr. Aragorn celebrated the Mass and his homily on the lazy, timid servant and his one talent was a knock out. For a young priest he speaks very well and really stirs the heart.

One funny thing-- okay most normal folks wouldn't find it funny but I have this weird sense of humor, okay? One funny thing happened. There were three or four babies of various ages at Mass tonight. One began to make a sound like yodeling. The others joined in. It was like a baby choir. Fr. began to pray and the tots got louder so he got louder. One began to shriek and Fr. just prayed a litlte louder. Finally he came to the consecration and they all quieted down. I immediately thought about the power of Christ compels you scene from the Exorcist and began to grin. At one point Fr. looked up and had this perplexed look on his face as if he couldn't figure out what the heck was wrong with me. Oh well....

I discovered something tonight. You can't wear a chapel cap on top of curly hair. It works fine when my hair is straight but tonight even with a hair comb it just wouldn't stay on.
I guess I'll buy a for real veil for the curly days. Now where to get one? I don't like the ones at Immaculata. The ones at Halo-works are nice but too long and the ones at the online Aquinas store are way too big. I might just get a chiffon scarf and carry it with me in my bottomless pit of a handbag.

Saturday, November 05, 2005

and here we are, in heaven

"...and here we are in heaven, 'cause you are mine...at last. "

That line is from the great Etta James song, "At Last." I was reminded of it tonight while thinking about the Mass my husband I attended this evening. Our backup church (when my husband works late on Saturday and is just too tired to go 30 miles to our parish church we go to the back up church which is just 4 miles away.) is a little old church in a semi okay neighborhood. It's a beautiful thing. I guess the parish was too poor to renovate back in the 70s and 80s when that was the big church fad and thankfully the church looks much the same as it probably did 90 years ago. The Mass there is always beautiful, always reverant, always about God and not some experimental mess. The priests there are fantastic.

Tonight Father Gandalf (no, that's not his name but it's what I've nicknamed him because he's a lot like Gandalf the Gray) gave a long homily on the parable of the foolish virgins who let their oil run out. He really explained that parable and I was inspired. Mass is heaven on earth because Jesus, Himself comes to us and gives Himself, body, blood, soul and divinity to us in the form of the Eucharist but tonight I felt it more strongly than I have in a while.

God makes it plain

At confession tonight the priest suggested that I refrain from profanity. When I got home I was surfing the net and found this quote from St. John Chrysostomos "Above all the other members, then, let us control this; let us bridle it; and let us expel from the mouth railings, and contumelies, and foul and slanderous language, and the evil habit of oaths." Okay, Lord. I promise to try.