Hideous Mass

I just watched an incredibly hideous Mass on EWTN. It took place at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel in Melrose Park, IL. I was astonished at the ugliness of the church and the poor dress of the people. Every other woman was wearing the fat lady's cop out outfit: big flowered, sleeveless blouses and polyester shorts or shapeless skirt. The men, even the skinny guys had the fat guy's cop out outfit: the Hawaian or bowling shirt over sweat pants or the sansabelt pants. The poor Knights of Columbus who were present looked like they were doing a penance.

The music was appalling. At one point a man and woman got up and sang "The Prayer", a sticky sweet pop song by Josh Groban. Ewwww! Judging by the sour expressions on the faces of the people in the pews when the camera panned over them, a lot of people didn't like it. At one point the priest was providing commentary jokingly asked how long this was going to go on. The Mass was poorly filmed--- but I'll give them a break on this, maybe they are not used to broadcasting. This was all to dedicate a new statue of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel. The statue is gorgeous but looks strange in such an ugly, stuck in the 1970s place.

Yip, yip, yip! I gotta an award.

The rules are to say thanks to the presenter. That's easy.

Thanks Joe! I hope you find the right seminary.

Second, I have to say ten honest things about myself. Hmmm.

1. I don't give a damn about the Iranians. The lesser of two evils, (the Mousavi (sp.) guy was involved in the Lebanon bombing that killed over 200 of our Marines)) is still evil. If they are fighting each other hopefully they'll be too busy to use their nukes on Israel. The protestors may wear jeans but I'll bet you they'd spit on Jewish Levi Strauss if he came back to life and were to walk into one of their mosques.
2. I loathe feminists.
3. Unless there is no other Mass to go to within a 20 mile radius, if the cantor whips out a guitar and/drums I'm out of there.
4. I think George Lucas completely botched Padme's death and her relationship with Anakin in Revenge of the Sith.
5. Otis Redding makes me cry.
6. I want a basso profundo to sing Dies Irae at my funeral.
7. I don't like holding newborn babies. When they can hold their own heads up it's fine but I worry that I'm doing it wrong with the brand new ones.
8. I love the smell of a river or creek.
9. One of the happiest days of my life was when Rocky and I walked the sky trail to Belle Island in Richmond, VA.
10. I love Bear Grylls. I could adopt him.
11. Bonus. I really wish the Anchoress hadn't moved her blog to First Things.

1. I pass this on to everyone who's in my links list.

Why Jesus did not establish a female priesthood...

Have you ever noticed that women preachers never talk about humility, service or obedience? They are however, very big on feelings, power, expressing themselves, rights, and "dignity".

An Episcopalian (Church of Anything Goes) priestess has publicly claimed that God rejoices in abortion.

Somewhere in a fetid corner of hell, Queens Jezebel and Athaliah are nodding in recognition of a sister in spirit.

It's a strange feeling when a piece of your childhood dies

Fr. Aragorn

Father Aragorn, our old parochial vicar will be saying a Solemn High Mass at Our Lady of Hope
in Potomac Falls, Virginia on July 1 at 7PM. I'm temted to go but the last time I visited OLoH I was not comfortable--- the church is gorgeous, the priest is very good but the people are coldfish, rich Northern Virginians with all that entails and I'm not sure I want to put up with that again. Potomac Falls is one of those stuffy, artificial places that I loathe. No history, no real center, just a bunch of mini mansions squating on the manicured hills.

On the other hand, it would be lovely to be at a Solemn High Mass and Fr. Aragorn's Latin is exquisite.

St. Vincent DePaul, Baltimore

Rocky and I spent a day in Baltimore and visited St. Leo's in Little Italy and thanks to the kind church housekeeper we took a quick tour of St. Vincent DePaul. St. Vincent is the oldest continuously used parish in the Baltimore diocese.

It is surrounded by hard core beggars, but don't let that frighten you. Nobody bothered us and two of them politely told us to go to the side door to gain entrance. They did not ask us for money. The church is beautiful. It's Federal style, all white wash, marble and light coming in from delicately colored stained glass. They are the only church in the diocese that has a 12:15 AM Mass. Boy would I have loved that back when I was single. My date and I could've gone out, had dinner, done our hour of fasting and still made Mass and slept in the next day.

Father's Day

Father's Day is always bittersweet for me. I think of my own dad and I miss him. I think of Rocky never getting a hug from a grimy little boy of his own and I feel terrible for that. But then, I think of God, our Father and I think of all His son's, our priests. On this day and every day in this Year of Priests, thank your Father.

Fr. Cutie

Fr. Cutie "married" his girlfriend this week. The celebrant was a judge.

Clever. Wickedly clever.

The fact that it was a judge officiating and that no attempt to pretend that the marriage is sacramental will come in handy later if he changes his mind. As I said before, I wouldn't want to be in Mrs. Cutie's shoes.

Run like hell....

....If your pastor stands up in the pulpit and says "We need a new Pentecost."
or "Vatican II unleashed a new Pentecost for the Church".

If Wanda Sue, the daughter of the church secretary suddenly appears in a leotard and begins leaping and twirling up the the center aisle. If it's a flesh colored leotard, run screaming.

If your pastor refuses to speak about abortion because he doesn't want to offend the openly and loudly pro abortion but quite wealthy parishioner who is paying for the church's new roof.

If the deacon stands up and does a Jay Leno imitation instead of giving a homily.

If your priest tells you in Confession that IVF is okay.

If you go to a parishioner party and see your pastor sitting in a hot tub with a woman-- oh hell, if you go to a church function and see Father sitting in a hot tub, period. And doesn't matter if he's wearing rash guards or Speedos.

If a lady in a polyester pantsuit-- the Mother Superior of an order than used to exist in your parish and who is visiting her old stomping grounds--- gives the homily.

If a priest tells you not to kneel at Mass-- ever.

Strange days in Boston

It looks like the Boston archdiocese is going to be involved in the abortion business. http://votingcatholicin2008.blogspot.com/

This must be a kick in the gut to every man and woman who's ever prayed in front a Boston area abortion clinic and to everyone who works in a crisis pregnanc cener. They must feel so betrayed.

I am reminded of Our Lady's words in Akita:

"The work of the devil will infiltrate even into the Church in such a way that one will see cardinals opposing cardinals, bishops against other bishops. The priests who venerate me will be scorned and opposed by their confreres (other priests). Churches and altars will be sacked. The Church will be full of those who accept compromises and the demon will press many priests and consecrated souls to leave the service of the Lord."
"The demon will be especially implacable against the souls consecrated to God. The thought of the loss of so many souls is the cause of my sadness. If sins increase in number and gravity, there will be no longer pardon for them."

i found this disturbing

....If a man really thought that marriage meant half a dozen children or more, if he really thought that his wife wouldn't be able to work because she was pregnant every two years. If he really thought marriage meant supporting a dozen kids then maybe celibacy wouldn't seem so bad.


I read this on the Standing on My Head blog (don't think I'm going back either) and although I'm not entirely sure of why it did so, it really disturbed me. American Catholics from the Baby Boomers onward have been having sex with the mindlessness of animals but seem terrified of actually having a baby, the whole point of mating in the first place.

It seems so strange. Now granted, with my fertility issues I'm probably not the one to comment on this since I've not been able to carry a pregnancy past two months. Rocky doesn't need to "worry" about having a dozen kids out of me but when we married we did so assuming that kids would come along because that's the deal with with marriage.

Oh, and just becuase you have a bunch of kids doesn't mean that a woman can't work outside the home. My great grandmother had twelve and she was picking cotton in the South Carolina sun, cooking on a wood stove, raising chickens, goats, pigs, keeping a cow and sewing quilts for tourists in her spare time-- a hell of a tougher job than sitting in a nice air conditioned office all day.

What's up with that?

Why do so many Catholics go on and on about Francis Shaefer? He was some kind of Protestant.

Why is Cardinal Law safe in Rome instead facing his former flock in Boston?

Why do Catholics love Flannery O'Conner so much? Her stuff gave me nightmares as a kid.

Why do so many people who clearly don't love the Faith get themselves ordained or professed as nuns?

What is about working for one's parish that seems to turn so many middle aged women into power tripping hapries?

more important than Tiller

Pray the rosary. I have a feeling that things are going to get very greasy in the next few months. Pro-lifers may be harrassed and insulted but babies are going to die.

Pass me not, Oh Gentle Savior

Fr. Cutie

I once saw Fr. Cutie in person. It was after the Papal Mass in DC. Rocky and I were still in the stadium and walked right past him. I think he was doing a commentary on the Mass for a Spanish language channel. He is a good looking man---- movie star pretty and has JFKesquse charisma. His followers (that's a problem right there-- a priest shouldn't have followers) were mostly women, since it's chicks who babble on about love and marriage. Guys don't.
Surely someone in the diocese should've had enough sense to see that a mess could happen. If he had time to carry on a dalliance then he obviously had no oversight and had too much unaccounted for time surrounded by dreamy women with heaving bosoms and slobbery emotions.

Anyway, he and his woman have abandoned the Church for Episcopalianism, a religion that was started becuase Henry VIII was a heartless swine and Anne Boleyn was an ambitious woman. I wouldn't want to be the future Mrs. Cutie. There's a mark on her back. Every woman who's every looked too long at Fr. Cutie before thinks that she has a shot at him now. All is fair in love and war and sisterhood is crap, especially when a man is on the line. Afterall, if he could not be faithful to his vows to God and the Church why should anyone expect him to be faithful to one woman?

It's all too bad and too sad.

Christopher West

I read that Christohper West has suggested that married couples bless their genitals before doing the deed. Some fans of his on other blogs defended this and said they do just that. I began snickering then outright laughing because the genital blessing ritual reminded me of the this adults only, NSFW scene from of the most oddly revolting and stupid movies ever made by a great director, Eyes Wide Shut.

why do catholics so often bayonet their own troops?

Dawn Eden echoed this question which was originally posed by Mark Shea. My first impulse when I read it was to ask, "What do you mean our troops?" If a professional Catholic who presumes to speak for the Church spouts garbage, blasphemy, or acts a fool in public what's so bad about calling him or her on it?

Ascension Sunday

The Ascension Chapel at Our Lady of Walsingham. My all tme favorie Ascension imge.

Mass was beautiful. The feast of St. Rita was earlier this week so the church was filled with red roses for St. Rita and pink and white roses for Mary. A joyful and glowing Fr. Gollum preached a remarkable homily. I wish I'd been taking notes because this was worth keeping and savoring.

After Mass a nice old couple renewed their wedding vows. They'd been married for 40 years.

After they were done I went to work. The crown of carnations on our Mary statue was crooked and that bugged me all during Mass so as soon as I could I straightened it. Fr. Theoden saw me and smiled sympathetically. 'Oh look, he must have thought, 'There's Dymphna being OCD again.'
Rocky, later pointed out to me that he'd watched my crown straightening attempt with nervousness. "You could've fallen. You barely reach Mary's head."

He's right, of course. The statue was too tall for me and I had to do a certain amount of climbing and stretching but I can't stand half assedness. I had to straighten out that crown.

My thorn crowned Captain

Woe, to me if I should prove to be a half hearted soldier in the service of my thorn crowned captain. ----St Fidelis.

Please pray for a poor messed up kid

Tony, (that's not his name) is 17. He was born out of wedlock. Instead of putting him up for adoption his mother decided to keep him and like a great many single mom's in this country, she did a lousy job. He's depressed, bi-polar and isn't good about taking his medicine. He doesn't like school and has managed to skip most of this year. Soon he'll be 18 with little chance of passing the GED test, no chance of going to college or to trade school and the world is not going to baby him like his mom did. He'll be legally a man with nothing going for him. I have no idea what's going to become of this poor kid.