Friday, January 27, 2006

Which sportscar are you?



You are a Porsche Boxster!


You're stylish, nimble, and good-looking. When it comes to having fun, there are few who can surpass you. And yet, you suffer from a lingering inferiority complex. Maybe it's because you have an older relative who is always in the limelight?



LOL oh, that is so much not me, stylish, nimble?? lol Inferiority complex... that part could be true in some ways....lol

(which sports car are you?)


Thanks for the laugh, Catholic Fire!

Haleigh in Rehab

CatholicFire has an update on little Haleigh! She has been moved to a rehab center!!!

YOU GO, HALEIGH! SHOW EM! KEEP fighting, little one!

I have not had much time to write about her here, but have in some of the groups I am in. This is a case of people who should have helped sooner, but did not... doing nothing to help now, either.

This little girl was in danger from the get-go, and from what the news said, there were also two other children in danger with Haleigh. Shame on the social workers who did nothing to help her before this latest beating... or after.

Praying for you, Haleigh!!

From Roe to Michael to Hamas

Fr Rob has been busy at his blog (good to see him back!) and there are four posts that I recommend taking the time to read....

The first is on Roe, and the Children of Roe, as he calls the generation that has grown up since the infamous court decision of Jan 22, 1973.

The second is about the Schindlers' work that has been ongoing since Terri's death. I have been to the new website and encourage you along with Fr Rob to keep up with their work.

The third one is on the recent wedding ceremony of Michael Schiavo and Jodi Centonze, with reference to Dr Edward Peters blog update on Crimen. He raises an issue that I would like to see Dr Peters address.

And finally, the fourth is on the recent Hamas victory, including many of the same things that I and others have been saying. He had been putting off a visit to the Holy Land... now he is thinking that he may have to go soon, if he ever wants to get there.... and I think that he has good reason to feel this way.

Along those lines, Janjan has two that are also interesting in the news articles that she sites,
one is here, the other is here. I am always amazed (and know that I should NOT be...) at the people who do not know the history of the Middle East from the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem til today, especially in light of what he said way back then, that is being proclaimed loudly by Iran's President of today...and is in the Palestinian's charter from way back. But then, so many just take the word of the MSM and do not look beyond what is touted. Hamas and Fatah are no friends of Israel. Never have been and probably never will be. But they are friends of Iran......who wants (and according to SOME experts....already may have) the nuclear weapons.

God have Mercy. Pray for the peace of Jerusalem!


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Archbishop Dolan to speak on Benedict XVI

From the comments section, important enough to be brought up into a post of its own...

If anyone from Chicago to Green Bay, Superior to Kenosha, LaCrosse to ... Door County area can make it, feel free to check it out!

AND check out Mike's blog while at it! I have been following it since not long after he began. Interesting!

Thanks, Mike! And God bless!!

Sorry, a shameless plug...

To gain some more information about Pope Benedict XVI, and support one of the few worthy efforts of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee, plan on attending a lecture hosted by Archbishop Timothy Dolan and given by His Eminence, Francis Cardinal George. The Cardinal will speak about the new Holy Father and, I am sure, the new encyclical.

Tuesday, January 31st, 2006
Archbishop Cousins Catholic Center
3501 S. Lake Drive
St. Francis, WI 53235

Vespers at 6:30pm
Greeting by Archbishop Dolan at 7:00pm
followed by lecture, Q & A, and a reception.

It looks to be fascinating. For more info see: http://www.archmil.org/news/ShowNews.asp?ID=2448

Thanks.
Check out my blog:
http://movingcatholic.blogspot.com/

Mike

Thursday, January 26, 2006

Deus Caritas Est

Many articles about Benedict XVI's new encyclical can be found at CWNews:


- Papal encyclical explores divine, human love
http://www.cwnews.com/news/viewstory.cfm?recnum=42036

- Understanding the Pope's "surprising" encyclical
http://www.cwnews.com/news/viewstory.cfm?recnum=42039

- Pope Benedict's first encyclical: full text from Holy See
http://www.cwnews.com/news/viewstory.cfm?recnum=42035

- Facts, myths about papal encyclical
http://www.cwnews.com/news/viewstory.cfm?recnum=42049

And additionally, these:

- God's love is source of Christian unity, Pope tells ecumenical service
http://www.cwnews.com/news/viewstory.cfm?recnum=42046

- Ten Commandments are blueprint for just society, Pope says
http://www.cwnews.com/news/viewstory.cfm?recnum=42045

Hamas Claims Election

In view of the return of the Gaza Strip, etc, this news is really not good.

I have doubted the "Peace Process" would ever get very far all along. Appeasement never works, and the Palestinian Authority really had no intention of peace.

But now, as if Fatah was not bad enough, we have Hamas heading the Palestinian Authority. Hamas, who is proud of the bombings and says that negotiations with Israel are 'off the table', and that not one word of their charter will be changed ... meaning the destruction of Israel is still there.

AND they are calling for a union of all factions. One can only imagine the union of Fatah and Hamas, with an Iran that has nuclear weapons. What a situation that would bring about!

The Middle East gets more troublesome and worrisome as the days go by. It is time to begin to listen to those like Walid Shoebat and the others who speak with him to learn the truth of the history of these organizations!



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A response to Joel Stein

Reading AirForceFamily tonight, and have to pass on to you, her reaction to Joel Stein's column
to read.

It is heartfelt, and as she said, "if anyone doubts this is the career of an entire family".

All I can say is... GO, AirForceWife!

Bookworm: Kushner/ Ominous Statement of Principal

Bookworm has dissected Kushner's defense of Munich here, and did a very good job.

And another must read is entitled "Where do one person's rights end and another's begin" and can be found here. This one is about five teachers refusing to post a sign in their rooms that states it is safe ground for gays, lesbians, etc. The principal of the school has made a statement that sounds rather ominous...

Furtado said she is confident that every teacher eventually will comply
with the district mandate. She said she intends to work with those
teachers who have refused to ensure they comply with the order.

"We work in a public school," she said.
"I have no wish to change anyone's personal belief,
but we want all kids to feel safe.
That's where we have common ground."

Wednesday, January 25, 2006

Encyclical Now on Vatican Website

The Encyclical has been posted on Vatican Website, and can be found in English here.

ENCYCLICAL LETTER
DEUS CARITAS EST
OF THE SUPREME PONTIFF
BENEDICT XVI
TO THE BISHOPS
PRIESTS AND DEACONS
MEN AND WOMEN RELIGIOUS
AND ALL THE LAY FAITHFUL
ON CHRISTIAN LOVE


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Tuesday, January 24, 2006

Visitors Are Nice!

I had to laugh tonight as I looked at the site meter. I am being visited by someone from Brigham Young University, Temple University, The University of Hong Kong, Princeton University (that one I thought would relate to Walid...but nope, it was Terri Martin Hekker that brought the visit), Auburn University, DePaul University, and the Catholic University of America.

What a wide range is represented! Some stayed a short time, some left right away, and some... read awhile.

I also like to see the different countries! Chile, Phillippines, Canada, Italy, France, Germany, IRELAND (yay!), Australia, Turkey, United Kingdom, and others. Surprised me, though I do know that this IS the 'World Wide Web', so it really should not have done so.

Many from Wisconsin, too.

Enjoyed knowing that it was more than just a few.

God bless!

The Catholic Marriage by Jaye Procure

A friend of mine works with her Parish, and RCIA. During the discussions we have had over the years, Marriage has also come up as part of the discussion of Sacraments. I had asked her if she wanted to share notes from any talks on the subject she may have. Unknown to me, she had none at the time, but began to put her thoughts on 'paper', including having it critiqued by others.

God works in strange ways, His Wonders to perform.... it turns out that she may end up BEING the one who has to give this talk after all! So, as a result, she now has her thoughts ready to go, no stress involved! lol.

She has graciously consented to having it put here. Thank you, Jaye! And God bless!


The Catholic Marriage

It has struck me strongly of late how casually we treat marriage. This is no doubt a characteristic of the ease with which one can enter into and exit from a marriage. Couples form and dissolve often without any marriage at all. Heaven forbid one should talk about such couples in mixed company any differently that one would speak of a couple 'officially' married.

We must be tolerant, after all!

I don't think the vast majority of us realize what a disservice we are paying to the institution of marriage, to the state of our souls, and by extension to the society and world at large.

Most Christian Churches recognize the value of marriage, to a point anyway. They recognize the necessity of the couple placing God first in their lives and relationships. And yet most Christian churches have no qualms about second "marriages" for people who are divorced.

The Catholic Church sees this all so differently. The Church is held up as an object of ridicule on this account. Her teachings are regularly misconstrued.

Why is the Catholic Church so different in their view of marriage? The Catholic Church considers marriage a Sacrament. A Sacrament is an outward action instituted by Christ to give grace within the Church. The Catholic Church believes in seven Sacraments: Baptism, Reconciliation (Confession), Confirmation, Marriage, Holy Orders, and Anointing of the Sick. In the case of marriage, the outward action is the couple marrying each other. They are the ministers! Graces are gifts from God which enable us to make right choices…choices to follow God. These graces are received by the couple who is properly disposed to receive this sacrament. This means they understand the sacrament and that they are in good standing with the Church. In other words, they are in a state of grace.

Some have argued that Jesus never actually performed a marriage, was married, nor is a wedding described anywhere in the New Testament. This is true, but Jesus chose the environment of a wedding, the Wedding at Cana, to perform his first miracle. This illustrates the importance of a wedding to Jesus, the Son of God, Emmanuel: God-with-us.

Why is a marriage important? Well, from the Church's viewpoint the husband and wife, in getting married to each other, enter into a covenant, the most solemn of promises, with God to see that they get each other into heaven. How many people realize that? How many of us as 'cradle Catholics' ever considered this or were told this? If the couple is blessed with children, the parents are then tasked with passing on the Catholic faith to the children and guiding them toward heaven as well.

If a couple thinks this way, following the Church's rules for sex and marriage gets a little easier. We are not permitted to have sex outside of marriage. If anyone thinks this is solely a teaching of the Catholic Church, I would direct you to look at 1 Corinthians: 13-20. These verses tell us that our bodies are for the Lord, and not for immorality. They are very specific!

If one wants one's future spouse to get to Heaven, one will not pressure his or her intended into actions which are contrary to Church teaching. Breaking this rule may well lead to the breaking of another rule, that being against contraception. It may even lead to the horrific sin of abortion. It starts to pile up! Sin tends to pile on sin.

Seeking to get one's spouse into heaven is an awesome responsibility. The graces given in a Sacramental marriage are there to help the spouses toward this goal. A couple without those graces, even if they can manage to gain a concept of the responsibility, is likely to have a harder time.

And that's why the Church calls marriage a Sacrament!

And what is a Sacramental marriage? It is the freely-entered into union between two eligible people (that is, two validly baptized, unmarried adults), ordinarily witnessed by a priest or deacon. This union may not ever be dissolved except by the death of one of the spouses, however, a marriage may be declared null (an "annulment") if it is later declared that one of the spouses was not actually eligible to be married for one of several possible reasons. This is very different from a divorce.

Marriage is not always easy. Sometimes one spouse or the other has to do double duty to keep to that goal of helping his/her spouse into heaven! A spouse may be ill or may even fall into serious sin. There are many stresses which may come into any marriage. This is not a signal for a Catholic spouse to move on! This is the signal to get to work! Prayer and sacrifice are certainly in order! Seek the guidance of a holy person (priest, deacon, holy layperson) for guidance in this case.

We assume that to become good at a hobby or activity that we have to work at it. It may be very challenging. Marriage is no different.

If we look to the lives of the Saints, we can find many examples of Saints praying, sometimes for years, and often putting up with many trials, in order to stay with a spouse or family member. This is what we are called to be willing to do for a spouse.

Some questions to ask yourself are these: if you are contemplating marriage, is your future spouse working on getting you into heaven, or is he/she encouraging you to sin? How are you acting toward your intended? Does your intended love God more than he or she loves you? Do you love God more than you love your intended? This is necessary because it will remove the temptation to try to expect your spouse to be God. He or she will always fail at that!

If you've made mistakes in the past, you can change! It may not be easy and the people who knew you as you were may not be at all supportive. But you can, with prayer and the support of others, change yourself from your past. The Sacraments given to us by Christ in his Church give us the strength to make the changes we need. We need to ask for God's help in all things, but particularly in something as momentous as marriage. Prayer is a "habit" that should be part of every life, but becomes particularly important when the welfare of another's soul becomes linked with your own.

The Catholic Church has a very particular vision for marriage. This will provide us with the tools we need to get ourselves and our spouses into heaven. What is required is that we search out and use those tools.

God bless you.

AMDG

Jaye Procure (with much assistance)

Crimen: Impediment to Marriage

This topic is getting quite a bit of comment on blogs since Edward Peters sent it out to those on his mailing list.

In the time I have had the email, I have had time to think, and to read others thoughts. And now I have a question.

Having written about this in January 2004, two years ago, and again shortly after it was announced that Michael Schiavo married Jodi Centonze this past Saturday in the Catholic Church, what is Dr Edward Peters going to do about it?

Besides write about it, that is.

Anything?

Many of us complain about a variety of wrongs and do nothing.

In the adoption field, there are many who need updated Medical Histories, but never try to get the laws changed, and never do anything but complain about the fact that they are not allowed to know.

In the Marriage/Divorce field, many complain that there are too many divorces, and that it is too easy to GET a divorce, but do nothing to solve the problem by trying to get the laws changed, speaking Truth to friends and family when they stray, etc.

So, is this going to be another talk about, but take no action kind of event? If so, then we are not the Church Militant part of the Church Universal. We are not part of the Mystical Body of Christ, called to be Light and Salt to the World.

We are gossips. Gossips with lights hidden under a bushel, whose salt has lost its flavor.

So, Canon Lawyers (who may be the only ones who can do anything about the impediment of Crimen)... what action will you take, if any?

And what is the average lay man supposed to do besides shake our heads and wring our hands that yet another scandal may be taking place?

Just thinking out loud........and remembering the Spiritual Work of Mercy to Admonish the Sinners.....

God bless!

Ezekiel 3:
17: "Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you shall give them warning from me.

18: If I say to the wicked, `You shall surely die,' and you give him no warning, nor speak to warn the wicked from his wicked way, in order to save his life, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at your hand.

19: But if you warn the wicked, and he does not turn from his wickedness, or from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but you will have saved your life.

20: Again, if a righteous man turns from his righteousness and commits iniquity, and I lay a stumbling block before him, he shall die; because you have not warned him, he shall die for his sin, and his righteous deeds which he has done shall not be remembered; but his blood I will require at your hand.

21: Nevertheless if you warn the righteous man not to sin, and he does not sin, he shall surely live, because he took warning; and you will have saved your life."



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Another question About Blogs

I have seen some blogs where they have 'topics' that they file certain posts under, enabling related topics to be grouped together so someone can read one subject.

Anyone know how to do this here? Not technorati tags, but right here on the blog, by topic.

It WAS There All the Time!

Ok, finally got an answer to this query! On Jan 6, I asked what had happened to my time/date edit section. AND, it had been missing for quite awhile already before I asked.

I had gone through my template with a fine tooth comb thinking maybe, just maybe I had inadvertently changed something. Nada. I am so afraid of touching anything in there that I have only recently done ANYTHING, and that was the links section....lol.

I poured through all the help things I could find on editing, and other topics looking for answers, and finally EMAILED blogger support with the url to the page of what I was talking about just so that there would be no doubt about what I meant was missing.

I got two form letters back over time, and today, I got my answer (took about four of my emails total.... but that is ok, I got an answer.) AND, it had a very simple solution.

There is now a little arrow on the left hand bottom corner, which, IF YOU CLICK ON IT, VOILA! The whole thing appears, with an additional line to it.

I had seen it, I had clicked on the wrong part. TADA, I can now go back to using my time/date edit thingy, and no more withdrawal angst.

Thank you, Stephanie of Blogger Support! God bless!

Hi,

These options are still in their usual place below the posting form. If
you click the small arrow by the "post and comment options" text, you will
see the options as before. This change was made to make this section more
compact and to allow for more options to be included in it. We apologize
for any confusion it has caused.

Sincerely,

Stephanie
Blogger Support


God bless!

Monday, January 23, 2006

"Crimen": Canon Lawyer again Raises Schiavo Issue

I am not a Canon Lawyer. I have some issues with the Tribunals in the USA regarding Nullity Decisions, and would not accept any Null decision without appealing to the Roman Rota as the Court of Second Opinion.

I cannot and will not lie in order to fill out forms that are currently being used that would force me to state that I believe my marriage to be Null, thereby giving the 'advantage' to the original Petitioner of divorce in no fault unilateral forced divorce once again. Therefore, I would seem to be put into the same position of little or no defense once again by the one who chose to abandon the vows made before God and mankind long ago.

However, at least in the Tribunals, the EXPECTATION and ASSUMPTION is SUPPOSED to be that our marriage is VALID. (Which is why I would not accept a Court of Second Opinion from the US Tribunals, but would seek to go directly to the Rota....).

I have, therefore, a few issues with some things that members or former members of the US Tribunals have said on Nullity, including by this author. That being said, he still has more education in this field and probably other areas than this humble member of the Church Universal.

Tonight, he has sent out a VERY interesting update to his blog which is an area that I have no knowledge of at all, but needs to be addressed.

I direct you to the blog of Dr. Edward Peters for several items to read, two of which are here and here.

He is speaking of 'crimen' (and has spoken of it previously) in the Schiavo case relating to Michael and the Church. He raises serious questions that ultimately may have bearing on salvation. It is a strong point, and is not something to be sneezed at by anyone truly wanting to be considered Catholic.

It has nothing to do with Divorce, but a lot to do with Validity.

What IS Crimen?

  • Crimen - An impediment to marriage caused by one party previously conspiring to marry (upon condition of death of spouse) while still married

By attempting a marriage to Jodi Centonze in the Catholic Church, Michael Schiavo IS subject to the Canon Law of our Church. It also raises questions once again that I have had about Bishop Lynch and the Diocese, etc which are not completely germaine, but also not completely off topic. (Recall that Bishop Lynch did not ever go to see Terri, nor issue a direct statement defending Life as did Bishop Vasa, now Archbishop Burke, JPII and others from the Vatican and Magisterium).

Dr Peters had brought this issue up long before Terri died, having published his article in THIS ROCK January, 2004.

Just a part of what Edward Peters wrote, with a strong encouragement to follow the links above and read the rest at his site:

1) The original parties must have been validly married. This fact that can be presumed, however, whenever there is a public celebration of a Catholic wedding.

2) At the time of the killing, the surviving spouse must have been intending to enter marriage with a specific person once free of the prior marriage bond. This is a question of fact to be determined on a case-by-case basis. Evidence such as positive statements about wanting to marry another or behavior consistent with future marriage plans, can be used to show this intention to marry. By the way, the fact that one might have multiple motives for wanting to cause the death of one's spouse (say, also the desire to save money on the disabled spouse’s health care), would not obviate the desire-to-marry motive.

3) The death of one spouse must be brought about by the surviving spouse. This does not mean, though, that the survivor spouse needs to have "struck the deadly blow". Commentators agree that a death brought about at the behest of the survivor qualifies for imposition of the impediment. Even if, therefore, spousal death came about with the approval a civil court and no civil liability could be attached to the instigator, one would still be burdened by the canonical impediment if, under the Church's moral analysis, one is found to have been morally responsible for the death of one's former spouse.

Once incurred, the impediment of crimen never ceases on its own. The mere passage of time will not erase it, not even if, sadly, after many years, people more or less forget about the dead spouse. Pastors cannot grant a dispensation from this impediment, nor can bishops. Even if a cleric is found to witness the wedding of one laboring under the impediment of crimen, such an attempt at marriage is null and of no effect in the eyes of the Church. Only the Apostolic See can dispense from the impediment of crimen (Canon 1078 § 2, n. 2), and commentators agree that the Holy See only very rarely considers such dispensations. Going back at least a hundred years, they can find no example of a dispensation from the impediment of crimen being granted where the fact of one's moral responsibility in the death of a former spouse is public knowledge.

In sum, if, in order to be free to marry a third party, one spouse succeeds in ending the other spouse's life, even through a civilly-approved death by euthanasia, and then goes on to attempt that marriage, such a person, besides facing other moral and even canonical consequences for the spousal death, attempts the subsequent marriage without the blessings of or recognition by the Catholic Church.





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They might have done this years ago, but he already had a wife

"They might have done this years ago, but he already had a wife."



So begins a news article announcing the fact that Michael Schiavo and Jodi have applied for a marriage license. Though this is the longest 'intimate relationship' he has had while married to Terri, it was not the first, as he testified in court and in deposition under oath.

When one considers that the vows taken on our wedding day are solemn, and are meant to be upheld just as they are stated, the above statement says it all.

I have no patience for adultery. I have less patience when it is justified that 'he/she had a right to get on with his/her life' while their spouse is ill. Though I dislike no fault divorce immensely, it is an option, and it is much more honest than adultery for any reason.

Just as murder of a spouse is unacceptable, so is 'the killing' of a marriage in this way. I have more respect for a person who says I want out (though that does not mean APPROVAL of the actions) than I do of someone who gets out with another already taking the place of the spouse. That action often means two marriages are being destroyed.

I have even less patience for those who try to excuse and justify adultery of others.

Those vows were not until one becomes ill, nor until one becomes disabled. The vows were in sickness and in health, in good times and in bad, for better, for worse, until death of one of the spouses.

Which part of them did you not understand when you said them in front of God and mankind?

If you want to break those vows, then don't use another human being to justify your own choices and actions. Just as getting married is a choice, adultery is a choice. This 'soul mate' thinking of today's society is just more excusing one's behavior.

Love is a choice. Committment is a choice. Forgiveness is a choice. And so is adultery.

Sin is sin no matter what the reasons are, including the long-term illness or disability of a mate.

As Archbishop Fulton J Sheen said so very clearly,
"Right is still right if nobody is right,
and wrong is still wrong if everybody is wrong,"


The bridegroom says:

I, N., take you, N., to be my wife. I promise to be true to you in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health. I will love you and honor you all the days of my life.

The bride says: I, N., take you, N., to be my wife. I promise to be true to you in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health. I will love you and honor you all the days of my life.

Or: "I, ________, take you ______, for my lawful wife/husband, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do us part."

Rings:

N., take this ring as a sign of my love and fidelity. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.


ADDENDUM

Fox News this AM (Mon Jan 23, 2006) has announced that Michael Schiavo and Jodi Centoze were married Saturday. You can read all about it here and here.


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