Hi! Billy Mays here for...

Probably one of the best pitchmen in the business has died at age 50. The big guy in the blue shirt, with his dyed black hair and beard, and high-pitched voice would enter my living room on a regular basis, "Hi, Billy Mays here for Oxi-Clean!" Or any one of a number of products.

Billy's career in sales was made by being identifiable as your next door neighbor. Over the years he aged like the rest of us. His agent or his vanity could dye his hair, but nothing could hide the belly that protruded over his belt.

Whereas Ron Popeel always was an instant channel switcher for me, Billy Mays fascinated me. Whenever he was on selling something, my attention would be as riveted as a four-year-old watching SpongeBob Squarepants. When it was announced that he would co-hosting a reality-show called "Pitchmen", I was in seventh-heaven.

By the way, if you're trying to get stubborn wine stains out of altar linen, "Hi, Billy Mays here for Oxi-Clean." Just soak your linens in an Oxi-Clean solution for one-half hour and then wash them as normal. Your linens will look as fresh as they did when they came from Almy! Thanks Billy! I owe you one.

I don't know what Billy's faith was, but I'll bet that if he's in heaven, he's pitching angel-wing cleaner even as we speak.

William D. "Billy" Mays, Jr.
1958-2009
RIP

Here's a neat segment of Billy ordering breakfast at McDonald's:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VtYdDK1uTDI

Some Summertime Reading

I have a busy day ahead of me, but I want to post some links to articles to help you reflect on issues of our time.

First, George Neumayr shares some thoughts on the societal implications of the murder of late-term abortionist George Tiller:

http://spectator.org/archives/2009/06/12/scourging-at-the-tiller

Second, here's an article that parodies the difficulty of hiding from mainstream media and ties to it an unusual theme from Orwell's 1984:

http://spectator.org/archives/2009/06/12/who-are-jon-and-kate

Finally, here's Ken Connor's article, "Religious Liberty Stops at the Schoolhouse Door" from Townhall.com.

http://townhall.com/columnists/KenConnor/2009/06/14/religious_liberty_stops_at_the_schoolhouse_door

Sunday after Corpus Christi (Trinity I)

The Holy Gospel is written in the 16th Chapter of Saint Luke, beginning at the 19th Verse.

There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day: and there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores, and desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; and in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame. But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence. Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father's house: for I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment. Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them. And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent. And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.

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In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.

If you study the Bible, you will quickly see that the Sacred Scriptures are filled with stories of triumph. There’s the triumph of the people of Israel in their exodus from Egypt. There’s the story of the resettling of the Promised Land after the Babylonian exile. And who can forget the great victory of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, as he rose from the dead, conquering sin and death and promising eternal life to those who believe on His Name. Yes, from the beginning to the end, from the Alpha to the Omega, the Bible is filled with stories of victory over adversity.

However, there is a dark side to the Scriptures. There are stories of great tragedy in the pages of the Bible. Adam and Eve eat the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, losing their innocence and their direct relationship with God. Later, Esau sells his birthright to his brother Jacob for what amounts to a bowl of vegetable soup. Samson is seduced by a woman, losing his special place with the Lord as a Nazirite, only redeeming himself after he has been taken captive and blinded. Strapped between two pillars, he summons all of his strength and brings down the building upon his enemies. Yes, in addition to triumph, there is tragedy in the pages of the Bible.

Today’s Gospel reading, the story of the Rich Man and Lazarus falls into the tragedy category, I’m afraid. As we will see, the Rich Man is condemned to an eternity of torment, punished for ever in Hell. Even worse, his request to father Abraham to send Lazarus to his brothers to warn them of their impending fate is rebuffed, with the horrible words, “If they hear not Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.” How did this man of wealth, this man of power, find himself in this terrible, terrible judgment?

The fate of the Rich Man is even more stunning when you realize that this is a man who had it all. The Bible tells us that he dressed in purple cloth and fine linen. Purple cloth and fine linen? Purple is the color of royalty, the color of kings. Purple cloth was extraordinarily expensive in part because the ingredients required to make the dye were rare and costly, and in part because only a few skilled craftsmen could blend the ingredients in a way that would make the dye into a deep and rich violet. Linen was another fabric that was often reserved to Kings and princes. Linen was then, as now, a pure fabric, one that wore easily on the skin, and one that absorbed the sweat that naturally came about in the heat of the ancient near east. Purple cloth and fine linen was the stuff of kings and in choosing these clothes, the Rich Man was arrogantly proclaiming himself to be the equal to royalty. The purple and linen spoke to the Rich Man’s desire to be seen as subservient to no one, answerable to no one, accountable to no one.

Indeed, in his arrogance and conceit the Bible tells us that the Rich Man would feast sumptuously every day. Now think about that. What would you say about a man who would travel with an entourage into Atlanta to Buckhead to spend hundreds of dollars every night at Bones or Ruth’s Chris? Would you wonder about his judgment? Would you wonder about his sense of propriety? But this man wouldn’t go to Buckhead to feast. No, he would gorge himself daily in his own home. Then, dressed as befits a King, he would come and go from his estate, passing through the gate of his property on his way to and from the city, where he would go to be seen in all of his glory.

And there, laying at the Rich Man’s gate, was the beggar Lazarus. Now, when the Bible says “laying at the Rich Man’s gate,” it means, in our terms, laying across the Rich Man’s driveway. In other words, it was impossible for the Rich Man to enter or leave his property without seeing Lazarus, in fact, without having to step over Lazarus. The Bible goes even further and says that Lazarus was so destitute and ill, that the dogs would come and lick his sores. Now, we’ve talked before about the dogs, remember? They weren’t licking Lazarus’ sores out of pity. No, they were trying to keep the wounds open and the flesh soft, so that when Lazarus finally died, the dogs would be able to feast in a way that Lazarus never could. What does Saint Luke tell us that Lazarus wanted? Nothing more than the crumbs that fell from the the Rich Man’s table. Not a full meal, just the scraps, just the stuff that we scrape of our plates into our dog’s bowls.

Then, Saint Luke tells us, both Lazarus and Rich Man die. Lazarus goes to heaven and the Rich Man is consigned to eternal torment. Why was sent to Hell? The Bible doesn’t tell us the nature of the judgment directly, but from the text we can immediately see a couple of reasons. First, the Rich Man never placed himself in right relationship to God. He presumed that he was the master of his own destiny and he arrogantly claimed for himself an authority that belonged only to God. Second, and closely related to the first, the Rich Man failed to recognize his neighbor Lazarus who laid in his driveway desperately hoping for the scraps that were fed to the dogs. Remember another passage, this one from Saint Matthew about the final judgment of the righteous and the unrighteous? Our Lord said to those unrighteous who stood at his left hand:

“Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels: for I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not. Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee? Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me. And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.”

And so it was that the Rich Man went to his torment, and Lazarus to his reward. The Rich Man consigned to a dominion where he would be forced into submission to demons and where his voracious appetites could never be satisfied. And Lazarus, given a peace and fullness that he had never known in this life.

If there is a lesson to be learned from this awful story, it is certainly not a pleasant or popular one. The lesson is this: Like it or not, agree with it or not, all of us will someday have to give account for our lives before Almighty God. All of us will have to answer and be judged for our deeds. What will that judgment find? Will it find us so wrapped up in our own pride, filled with the unbridled narcissism of the Rich Man? Or will that judgment find us humble before God, not claiming salvation as a thing that is our right, but praying that God will grant us the crumbs of mercy that fall from His table? Will our attitude be that of the Rich Man, who expected everything as his due? Or will our attitude be one of grateful thanksgiving for the gift of salvation that comes to us through our Lord Jesus Christ?

On this Sunday, as every Sunday, we have the opportunity to rededicate ourselves to God. We have the opportunity to “acknowledge and bewail our manifold sins and wickedness, which we, from time to time, most grievously have committed, by thought, word and deed, against the Divine Majesty of Almighty God.” And then, as Christians have done from time immemorial, we can approach the Altar to share in that Great Thanksgiving of the Body and Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ. We can share in that heavenly banquet, where Christ feeds us with His Flesh and Blood. And in this Thanksgiving, in this Eucharist, we may be made whole and understand our place before God. In that Thanksgiving, we may see ourselves, not as the Rich Man arrogantly claiming his own freedom and living without regard to his neighbor. No, in this Thanksgiving, this Eucharist, let us pray that we may see ourselves as we truly are, sinners under the mercy of a loving God, sinners who have been forgiven and set free by the Body and Blood of their Risen Lord. So may it be now and always, world without end. Amen.

For It's One, Two, Three Strikes You're Out...

One of the marks of Christianity, especially the Catholic kind, is it's respect for the dead. Recognizing that the human body has the capacity to be the Temple of the Holy Spirit, Christians have an appreciation of the value of God's handiwork, honoring the remains of the deceased because, like the soul, the body will rise again at the Last Day, renewed through the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.

One of the marks of our secular society is its hideous tendency to view the human body as a commodity. To the secular world, the body is a commodity that can be easily disposed of at will, at least at the beginning of the life cycle. At the end of the life-cycle, the secular materialist has to struggle with the question of meaning that they have avoided throughout life. What does one do to memorialize the human body which is, essentially, only a collection of material that accidentally came together in this form? The emptiness of materialism is found in its lack of respect for the human body, a body that was created in the image and likeness of God, and which finds its redemption in the very real, very physical Passion, Death, and Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. As Christians, we must pray for the triumph of the Spirit of God over the spirit of the Age. We must pray that all men will be enlightened by the grace of God and will see the body as the Temple it was designed to be.

See this interesting article by Michael Medved that provoked the above thoughts:

http://townhall.com/columnists/MichaelMedved/2009/05/20/after_death_decadence

Dan Brown's Angels & Demons: More than a Novel, It's a Way of Life!

Ross Douthat has published an interesting column in today's New York Times. His column, entitled "Dan Brown's America", discusses the works of the popular novelist and how they tie into Mr. Brown's attempt to put forward a world-view that severely critiques traditional religion while at the same time expresses an appreciation for an individualized expression of faith that is all-inclusive.

Mr. Douthat writes:

"In the Brownian worldview, all religions — even Roman Catholicism — have the potential to be wonderful, so long as we can get over the idea that any one of them might be particularly true. It’s a message perfectly tailored for 21st-century America, where the most important religious trend is neither swelling unbelief nor rising fundamentalism, but the emergence of a generalized 'religiousness' detached from the claims of any specific faith tradition.

"The polls that show more Americans abandoning organized religion don’t suggest a dramatic uptick in atheism: They reveal the growth of do-it-yourself spirituality, with traditional religion’s dogmas and moral requirements shorn away. The same trend is at work within organized faiths as well, where both liberal and conservative believers often encounter a God who’s too busy validating their particular version of the American Dream to raise a peep about, say, how much money they’re making or how many times they’ve been married.

"These are Dan Brown’s kind of readers. Piggybacking on the fascination with lost gospels and alternative Christianities, he serves up a Jesus who’s a thoroughly modern sort of messiah — sexy, worldly, and Goddess-worshiping, with a wife and kids, a house in the Galilean suburbs, and no delusions about his own divinity.

"But the success of this message — which also shows up in the work of Brown’s many thriller-writing imitators — can’t be separated from its dishonesty. The “secret” history of Christendom that unspools in “The Da Vinci Code” is false from start to finish. The lost gospels are real enough, but they neither confirm the portrait of Christ that Brown is peddling — they’re far, far weirder than that — nor provide a persuasive alternative to the New Testament account. The Jesus of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John — jealous, demanding, apocalyptic — may not be congenial to contemporary sensibilities, but he’s the only historically-plausible Jesus there is."

The problem with Mr. Brown's view of religion is that it strives mightily to develop a system in which the believer can achieve union with God by conforming himself to this world. While that might be desirable from a human perspective, it is antithetical to true life in Jesus Christ. Saint Paul said it well in Romans 12:2: "Be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God."

Here's the link to the article:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/19/opinion/19douthat.html?_r=2

Five Operas I'd Take to a Desert Island

I'm so tired of current events that I had to write something completely different.

Here's the question: Suppose you were to be stranded on a desert island. Further suppose that said desert island has electricity and a stereo system. What five opera recordings would you take with you? (If you don't like opera, you'll have to find your own island.)

Here are my five:

1. Puccini. La Boheme. Anna Moffo, Richard Tucker, Robert Merrill, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and Chorus, Erich Leinsdorf conducting. Yes, it's old and has neither Pavarotti or Domingo, but it's still a beautiful performance and it was the first opera recording that I ever owned.

2. Wagner. The Ring of the Nibelungen. The Georg Solti recordings. Don't lecture me about the Ring being four operas, because it's really only one story and this is my favorite recording. The late Anna Russell said, "The Ring is the only grand opera that comes in the large, economy sized package."

3. Verdi. Rigoletto. Joan Sutherland, Luciano Pavarotti, Sherill Milnes, Richard Bonynge conducting. Verdi's finest opera sung magnificently.

4. Donizetti. L'Elisir d'Amore. Joan Sutherland, Luciano Pavarotti, Richard Bonynge conducting. Sutherland sounds a little old for Adina, but she has such a wonderful tone. Nemorino is the role that Pavarotti was born to sing.

5. Gounod. Faust. Mirella Freni, Placido Domingo, Nicolai Ghiaurov, Thomas Allen, Georges Pretre conducting. One of my favorite operas and this one is well casted, well played and well sung.

Oops. Just saw the news. I'm off to the island!

The Magician's New Trick

The Magician announced his budget today. Fiscal responsibility is the Magician's new "abracadabra." When he pronounces "Fiscal responsibility," the United States federal budget proclaims a deficit of $1,750,000,000,000! What a trick!

The Magician says that he wants to help restore the economy. As any Harry Potter fan can tell you, this is backwards spell. The Magician doesn't want to restore the economy. He wants to destroy the economy and replace it with the one he wants. Cool slight of hand, no?

The Magician is announcing faith-based initiatives. But beware! The Magician wants to insert federal money into church programs and then, when the churches are on the federal dole, "Abracadabra," the Magician will tell them who they can hire, what they can teach, and who can receive the services of the church.

All hail the Magician! His deceptions are without end!

Here's the link to an article:

http://www.reuters.com/article/businessNews/idUSTRE51O6JA20090226?feedType=RSS&feedName=businessNews&rpc=23&sp=true

Watch the Magician

Anyone who has ever stood in awe of a magician understands that the key to a successful trick is to distract the audience's attention from what is really going on. This works with all sorts of illusions. Every now and then, a truly spectacular magician comes to the forefront and puts on a show to end all shows.

Christians, pay attention to the Magician, please. While we are debating about the "Stimulus bill" have you noticed the number of radical pro-aborts that the Magician is making appear in key positions in our government? Has anyone noticed that while the Magician has us looking to the Stimulus bill, portions of it would forbid the use of public land for any sectarian purpose (read church's renting school auditoriums on Sunday, etc.)? Has anyone noticed that the house will vote on a bill that would allow Americans to travel to Cuba (encouraging a terroristic, atheistic regime)? Did anyone notice that the Magician has said he's all for religion, but not a religion that divides? That he favors a religion that helps with the great social issues of the day?

Many Christians love the Magician and they wanted to see the Magician's show. What none of them realized is that the greatest trick that the Magician will try to pull off is a disappearing act for Christian faith as we have always understood it. Now you see it, now you don't.

Just another set of isolated incidents?

Computer failure at Citibank yesterday. See link:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081217/ap_on_bi_ge/citibank_outage_2

Computer failure at Toronto Stock Exchange today. See link:

http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=081217184540.xwyr1ayl&show_article=1

I'm sure these are totally unrelated, but it is a disturbing coincidence, no?

We Must Protect the Children

I think there are many things from which our children must be protected. Apparently, the editors of the Junior Dictionary of the Oxford University Press think so, too. These folks have decided that many words need to be removed from the dictionary because they are no longer relevant to the lived experience of the world. Here are some of the irrelevant words that are to be removed:

Abbey
aisle
altar
bishop
chapel
christen
disciple
minister
monastery
monk
nun
nunnery
parish
pew
psalm
pulpit
saint
sin
devil
vicar

Don't want our children exposed to irrelevance like this, do we? Sooner or later, they might think that this Jesus person was more than a myth.

Maranatha!

Thoughts about the Future

Since the Obama election in November, I have sat amused as conservatives have talked about how to reconstitute the conservative movement. "We need to propose legislation that reflects conservative values," they say. "We need to try to block legislation that goes against our notion of limited government," they say.

They all seem to be blind to a sad reality: Our culture is now firmly liberal and post-Christian and will probably remain so for our lifetime. Why do I say this? It's simple: All one has to do is look at our education system. For more than three decades we have sat by and watched as hard leftists created the curriculum that has taught our children. We have sat by as teachers have usurped the role of parents in the education of their children on matters such as sexual behavior and family structure. We have sat by as our universities have dismantled any semblance of traditional liberal arts education. Most importantly, three decades worth of students have been exposed to all of this and many have been indoctrinated. These people are young and they now vote.

From a religious point of view, these people are all post-modernists and, if they claim to be Christian, most of them believe in a faith that would be unrecognizable to previous generations. Most of these young Christians, in fact, view faith and its ethics as a smorgasbord where you can pick those parts of faith that you like and disregard the rest. Most importantly, most of these folks deep down have rejected the fundamental tenet of Christian faith that faith in Christ is absolutely essential to salvation. According to them, even pagans who have knowingly rejected the Gospel of Christ can go to heaven.

Many would like to say that this will be Obama's fault. Deep down, though, we know that's not true. Barack Obama simply reflects the beliefs that mark this post-Christian generation.

Also, don't blame Barack Obama for the spiritual and cultural mess that we're in. When the universities and schools were being overrun with leftist ideology, Barack Obama wasn't in charge. When the conservative movement was being dismantled by profligate spending and compromise with people who sought to undermine it, Barack Obama wasn't in charge. When the country sat by and allowed almost 50,000,000 babies to be sacrificed at the altar of free choice, Barack Obama wasn't in charge.

No, we are the ones who were at fault because we saw all of this happening and did nothing about it but bitch.

So, conservatives, when the left proposes a massive expansion of government, don't be surprised and don't think there is anything that you can do about it. You can't. That ship sailed long ago.

When your health care is mandated by the government and rationed, don't be surprised and don't think there is anything you can do about it. You can't.

When you sit appalled at all the children that are killed in the abortion mills that will turn children into medical waste with the same efficiency that Hitler showed in turning Jews into smoke, don't be surprised and don't think there is anything that you can do about it. You can't. That ship sailed long ago.

And, Christians, when your lives become more constricted and you are even less able to express your faith in public and you no longer are able to work in certain professions because of your faith, don't be surprised and don't think there is anything that you can do about it. You can't. That ship sailed long ago.

Barack Obama did not create the mess that we are in now, but he will bring the mess that we are in now to its logical post-modern, pro-death, anti-Christian conclusion.

All that we can do as Christians is to recall that God is in charge and that, somehow and in some way, the destruction of our nation as it has existed is part of His inscrutable design.

Even so, come Lord Jesus!

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John Derbyshire wrote a great piece on nationalreview.com that carries this theme forward and ties it to the birthday of John Milton. Here's the link:

http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=NmNhMTQ3NzkyZjdhZTUxMGI0ZWU4YmQwMzJlYjY3MDI=

What On Earth Is He Talking About?

I don't know about you, but I've always enjoyed Bob Dylan. I always thought I've understood his lyrics, but then I realized that I really have no idea what he's talking about. Not long ago I bought his album, Modern Times, and heard the song "Thunder on the Mountain." Finally I realized that I must not understand the lyrics, so I downloaded them. Let's take a look at them and see if we can make sense out of them.

Thunder on the Mountain

Thunder on the mountain, and there's fires on the moon
A ruckus in the alley and the sun will be here soon
Today's the day, gonna grab my trombone and blow
Well, there's hot stuff here and it's everywhere I go

I was thinkin' 'bout Alicia Keys, couldn't keep from crying
When she was born in Hell's Kitchen, I was living down the line
I'm wondering where in the world Alicia Keys could be
I been looking for her even clear through Tennessee

Feel like my soul is beginning to expand
Look into my heart and you will sort of understand
You brought me here, now you're trying to run me away
The writing on the wall, come read it, come see what it say

Thunder on the mountain, rollin' like a drum
Gonna sleep over there, that's where the music coming from
I don't need any guide, I already know the way
Remember this, I'm your servant both night and day

The pistols are poppin' and the power is down
I'd like to try somethin' but I'm so far from town
The sun keeps shinin' and the North Wind keeps picking up speed
Gonna forget about myself for a while, gonna go out and see what others need

I've been sittin' down studyin' the art of love
I think it will fit me like a glove
I want some real good woman to do just what I say
Everybody got to wonder what's the matter with this cruel world today

Thunder on the mountain rolling to the ground
Gonna get up in the morning walk the hard road down
Some sweet day I'll stand beside my king
I wouldn't betray your love or any other thing

Gonna raise me an army, some tough sons of bitches
I'll recruit my army from the orphanages
I been to St. Herman's church, said my religious vows
I've sucked the milk out of a thousand cows

I got the porkchops, she got the pie
She ain't no angel and neither am I
Shame on your greed, shame on your wicked schemes
I'll say this, I don't give a damn about your dreams

Thunder on the mountain heavy as can be
Mean old twister bearing down on me
All the ladies in Washington scrambling to get out of town
Looks like something bad gonna happen, better roll your airplane down

Everybody going and I want to go too
Don't wanna take a chance with somebody new
I did all I could, I did it right there and then
I've already confessed - no need to confess again

Gonna make a lot of money, gonna go up north
I'll plant and I'll harvest what the earth brings forth
The hammer's on the table, the pitchfork's on the shelf
For the love of God, you ought to take pity on yourself

Music and words by Bob Dylan
Copyright 2006 Special Rider Music

That's perfectly clear now, isn't it?

Some Random Articles

Here are links to some articles that I thought were interesting. I post them here for your information.

---

(From the One Big Happy Family Department)

From The Financial Times

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/7a03e5b6-c541-11dd-b516-000077b07658.html

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(From the Let's All Grab a Piece of Pie Department)

From The Wall Street Journal

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122875608562688401.html

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(Now from the Global Warming Department)

From The Ventura County Star

http://www.venturacountystar.com/news/2008/dec/08/rare-50-year-arctic-blast-sets-sights-on/

---

(From the It Worked for the Soviets Department)

From The International Herald-Tribune

http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/12/08/asia/china.php

---

(From the Why Can't We All Just Get Along Department)

From Telegraph.co.uk

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/pakistan/3688288/Pakistan-Were-ready-for-war-with-India.html

---

You might be saying, "Why, on a blog dedication to religion, psychology and popular culture, are you posting such an odd collection of articles without comment?"

The answer: Because these are the times in which we live. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.

From Defense of Tradition to Defense of our Persons

Proposition 8 passed easily in the State of California. This ballot initiative defined marriage as a union between one man and one woman. It was vigorously opposed by gay activist groups who have responded to the bill's passage by attacking old women with crosses, threatening blacks, and disrupting church services. National Review Online's writer, economist Thomas Sowell, has published an outstanding article on this.

Mormons voted overwhelmingly in favor of Proposition 8, which is not surprising. The reaction of certain gay activists toward Mormons in general is described aptly in Sowell's article:

"In Oakland, California, a mob gathered outside a Mormon temple in such numbers that officials shut down a nearby freeway exit for more than three hours.

"In their midst was a San Francisco Supervisor who said 'The Mormon church has had to rely on our tolerance in the past, to be able to express their beliefs.' He added, 'This is a huge mistake for them. It looks like they’ve forgotten some lessons.'"

This should chill any American to the bone. Supervisors in San Francisco are similar to Commissioners in most counties, but with a lot more authority. That someone in a powerful position of government, albeit local government, could state that a church that is exercising a constitution right is "tolerated" indicates just how far our society, or elements of it, have drifted from core principles. Sadly, there are many others out there who agree with this thinking.

So, what's a Christian to do? The answer is simple: Pray, preach the Gospel as always, and do not allow bullies to keep us from bringing souls to Christ.

Here's the link to Sowell's article:

http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=M2E1ODgyMDczMDA3NzkzY2E4YTNhNjgzMjk2NmEyOTY=

Adventures in Bad Liturgy

This week's winner in the Adventures in Bad Liturgy is His Eminence, Christopher Cardinal Schoenborn, the Archbishop of Vienna. In this Mass for Youth, the Cardinal demonstrates such incredibly bad taste that it should remove all doubts as to why Anglo-Catholics value their liturgy.

Also, note the use of leavened bread in this liturgy. Only unleavened bread is valid matter for the Holy Eucharist in the Western Church. So here we have a Cardinal of the Church not only allowing a liturgical shipwreck, but also attempting to celebrate a Mass with invalid matter.

Here's the link to this liturgical travesty:

http://en.gloria.tv/?video=pwxa9jff7gs5kldzpiu7

You can't be serious, part 323,674

In the 1970s, George Carlin came up with the seven bad words that can't be said on television. Now, as if governments don't have enough to do, the Bournemouth Council in the United Kingdom has banned....LATIN!! There are 19 phrases that these bright folks believe are elitist and should not be used.

Even George Orwell would have problems with these guys.

Here's the link to the article and the 19 phrases you can't say without sounding elitist:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1082427/The-councils-ban-Latin-words-elitist-discriminatory-confuse-immigrants.html#

Is the Time Growing Short?

For years our pre-millenialist evangelical brethren, along with Catholic apocalyptic writers such as Michael O'Brien, have been proclaiming that we are on the verge of seeing the events that will ultimately bring about the Second Coming of Christ. It would be much easier to take these folks lightly if the events that they foretold for decades weren't coming true right before our eyes.

For instance, look at the following story about British Prime Minister Gordon Brown. Mr. Brown believes that now is the time to push for a "new world order," a global government.

Is that the sound of the hoof beats of the four horsemen that I hear in the distance?

Here's the link:

http://mobile.reuters.com/mobile/m/FullArticle/CBUS/nbusinessNews_uUSTRE4A900K20081110?src=RSS-BUS

Michael Crichton, RIP

I don't read much fiction. I seem to lack the patience for it. One notable exception was the work of Michael Crichton. His works always had wrestled with the ethical questions that exist on the intersection of science and human experience, particularly the world of hi-tech commerce. Although his literary style was criticized by some, I found his work to be delightful and thought-provoking in always unusual ways.

Chrichton died today in Los Angeles after battling cancer. He was 66 years old. RIP.

Here's the link to his obituary:

http://apnews.myway.com/article/20081105/D9492EJ80.html

All Saints Day

The Lesson is written in the 7^th Chapter of The Revelation of John the Divine, beginning at the 2^nd Verse.

And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea, saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads. And I heard the number of them which were sealed: and there were sealed an hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel. After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and peoples, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands; and cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb. And all the angels stood round about the throne, and about the elders and the four living creatures, and fell before the throne on their faces, and worshipped God, saying, Amen: Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen. And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they? And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.

The Holy Gospel is written in the 5^th Chapter of The Gospel according to Saint Matthew, beginning at the 1^st Verse.

Jesus, seeing the multitudes, went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him: and he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying, Blessed are the poor in spirit: for their's is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. Blessed are the peace-makers: for they shall be called the children of God. Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for their's is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.

Today is the feast of All Saints. Today, we celebrate the saints of God who dwell in the glory of God the Father.

We celebrate the lives of the Saints all the time in our church. If you look at our calendar, our calendar is just chock full of days when we call to mind those great people who have lived in times past.

In March, we celebrate the feast of Saint Thomas Aquinas, probably the greatest thinker the Church has ever known and a man whose grasp of theology and philosophy still stands as the hallmark of much Christian theology.

In June we celebrate the feasts of Saint Peter and Saint Paul. Saint Peter, of course, is the rock of the Church. He is the rock on whom the Church is built. Saint Paul was the first theologian of the faith. He was the first Apostle who, because of his training, his ability to articulate the faith, and his selection to be an apostle by the Lord, gave a theology that defined Christianity at its very beginning.

In October, we celebrate the feast of Saint Francis of Assisi. Saint Francis of Assisi, as we all know, used to preach to the birds and he liked animals. Along the way, he founded a major religious order that had a lot to do with the renewal of the Church in the early part of the 13^th Century. We’ll talk about him more in a few minutes.

We celebrate those great Saints on the days of their death. When we celebrate a Saint’s day, we celebrate it on the day of their death, because that is the day they entered into heavenly glory.

But on this day, we do something different. Today we remember all those men and women who have lived in the service of God and now dwell in His presence. In other words, we celebrate the entire choir of Saints whose task now is the praise and glory of almighty God.

To fully understand that, we have to understand something about what we mean by the term “Saint.” “Saint” has a lot of different usages. On the one hand, we use the term “saint” colloquially, ranging from complimenting people for their good deeds by saying, “What a saint.” Another example of this colloquial use of the term is the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League. We have songs that we sing about Saints. Colloquialism aside, in Christianity we use the term in, essentially, two ways.

There are two types of saints. There are Saints with a big “S” and there are Saints with a little “s.” By definition, all Saints are people who have died and are in heaven with Christ. That’s what a Saint is.

The first type of Saint is the capital “S” Saint. These are the big Saints, the ones that are proclaimed by the Church definitively to be in heaven. These are folks like Saint Peter, the Saint Paul, Saint James, Saint Thomas, and Saint Benedict. These are the kind of folks whose live shine across the centuries as beacons of the faith.

But then there are other kinds of Saints, the kind who are small “s” Saints. These number in the ten thousand times ten thousand. These stand before the throne of God and none of us have ever heard of them or will hear of them, and the world never even noticed that they were there. They were the men and women who quietly went about their daily life, going to work, raising their families, trying to live as Christ would have them live. And when they died, they were buried with hardly any notice by any one outsideof their family or their little circle of friends. But God noticed, and now they dwell with him for ever.

And then there are thousands and thousands, ten thousands of ten thousands who we never have heard of, who, because of their faith, were called upon to shed their blood for Christ. After their deaths, their bodies were cast away into pits, thrown out for wild animals to eat, or just left out on the ground to rot. No one has ever heard of them, no one ever will hear of them, and no one on earth will notice that they were there. But God noticed and they dwell with him now for ever.

And so, on this day, we remember all the Saints, great and small, known and unknown, who by their witness have provided us with a guide toward holiness, with a guide toward sanctity.

Earlier I mentioned Saint Francis of Assisi. Saint Francis of Assisi is an interesting story and provides an interesting example to us of sanctity.

But before we can tell his story, we have to think about a problem that we have with the story of the great saints. That is our tendency to view the lives of the great saints from halo backwards. In other words, we see their pictures with the haloes around their head, standing in great holiness, much like St. Stephen in the portrait to my left here. We looking at their lives backward through the halo to their birth. But I think when we look at the story of a great saint it’s belpful to look at how they went from their birth to become great Saints.

So, looking from birth to halo, let’s look at the life of Saint Francis.

Saint Francis was born in the city of Assisi. He was the son of a nobleman, he was a member of an extremely powerful family. He was raised to be a warrior, a knight, and there was nothing, believe me, nothing that Francis liked better then to go out to war, to battle, and to fight. We know that he was brilliant with a sword. We know also that he was brilliant with the ladies and brilliant with a bottle. He was, in short, what you would expect from a knight. By the way, he’d been baptized, received his first communion and all of the normal events that you would expect from a Catholic Christian in his day. But he did these things because they were socially acceptable, not out of any religious conviction.

And then one day he went out to fight. In that battle, an opponent’s sword cut him severely in the chest, barely missing his heart, and damaging his lung. As he was carried back to Assisi, it was presumed that he would die because, if the wound itself didn’t kill him, the infection probably would. Day in and day out, week in and week out, Francis lay in a delirium, in that state of consciousness that lingers somewhere between life and death.

Miraculously, Francis recovered. One day, he was wandering through the little town and he came upon an old church. It was a church that had fallen down in absolute rubble. It was the Church of San Damiano. The only thing that was left standing in the little church was an iconic crucifix, a Greek-styled crucifix that hung above the old altar of the church. As Francis walked into the dilapidated building, he heard a voice calling him. “Francis,” it said, “rebuild my church.”

Francis was stunned. But he did as the voice commanded and single-handedly took brick after brick, stone after stone, and he rebuilt the little church of San Damiano.

Then he realized that that voice was calling him to more than just rebuilding the little church. It was calling him to rebuild the entire Church of God, which had stagnated into a rigid system of clerical power and privilege. So Francis shed all of the trappings of his wealth, put on a ratty old brown robe, tied a belt around his waist, and took off his shoes. And he walked shoeless through town after town proclaiming the Gospel of Christ in poverty.

I would love to say that the people who saw him said, “Francis, that’s wonderful. You’re just fantastic. Isn’t it great that you’re doing all of this.”

But that’s not what they said. They said, “You’re crazy. Who do you think you are going against the tide? What is it that you think you are doing?”

And they would say things behind his back like, “Poor Francis. You know, he’s never been the same since he came back from the war. He’s just gone crazy.”

During all that time, Francis would preach to the birds, but not because he had any deep abiding love of them. When he was asked about this odd practice, Francis’ temper would flare and he would respond, “I would rather preach the Gospel to the ravens who pick the eyeballs out of the dead than preach to people who will not hear it.”

I don’t think I’d try that kind of preaching style, but Francis did.

Later he started a religious order that in its time and too this day has transformed Christianity.

So what does the life of Francis teach us about how to become a Saint? The first thing is this: we become saints by doing the things that God puts in front of us to do. Not necessarily what we want to do, but what God puts in front of us to do.

Then, the Gospel tells us something else about how to become a Saint. If you want to become blessed, this is how you do it. The Gospel says, “Blessed are the poor in spirit; blessed are they that mourn; blessed are the meek; blessed are they that hunger and thirst after righteousness; blessed are the merciful; blessed are the pure of heart; blessed are the peacemakers; blessed are they that are persecuted for righteousness’ sake; blessed are ye when men shall revile you and persecute you and say all manner of evil against falsely for my sake.” That’s the nine-step biblical plan for how to be a saint.

Do what is put before you and then know that you are blessed when you are poor in spirit. Know that you are blessed when you are all alone because the world goes in one direction and you go another. That’s how you become a saint.

And the reward of sanctity is glorious. The Book of Revelation tells us clearly, “Therefore are they before the throne of God and serve him day and night in his temple. They shall hunger no more. Neither thirst anymore. Neither shall the sun light on them nor any heat. For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them and shall lead them unto living fountains of water and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.”

That’s how we become saints and what the saints have for a reward. Sanctity is an incredible thing and it is that reward for which we hope. It is that reward for which we long, to stand in that choir of saints. And we have a God that makes that possible for us.

Saint Paul tells us, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the God who has made us worthy to share in the lot of the saints in light.” That same light which Saint John says, comes from no lamp, nor does it come from the sun. The light which comes from the Lord Jesus Christ, the light which shines in all of our hearts.

God has made us worthy to share in the lot of the saints in light. God has made us worthy to be blessed in proportion of our sufferings for him.

Our feast of All Saints today gives us a model that tells us that what these great people have achieved and what these people of anonymity have achieved, we can achieve, too. This holiness is something that can be in our lives and in which we may dwell for ever. That God, who has created the heaven and earth, has made a special place for us, and has made us worthy to share in the lot of the saints in light. That God has given us the path that, if we follow it in faith, will make us one with him for ever.

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.

Barak the Antichrist? Probably Not.

Every time I get ready to write an article on a subject, someone comes along and says what I want to say. The real problem for me is that they say it so much better than I could.

What follows is an example. A few weeks ago I planned to write a post about the stuff being posted on the web saying that Barack Obama is the foretold Antichrist. I don't believe he is, by the way, and I'm not sure that any Christian alive today will ever know who he is. But that is a story for another post. I do think that Obama is a very good warm up act for the Man of Sin.

Roman Catholic writer Michael O'Brien who addresses this question quite well. He is the author of some very powerful apocalyptic fiction and is most known for the book Father Elijah. O'Brien especially focuses his attention on Roman Catholics who are supporting Obama although his words could be directed at most Christians of any stripe.

Here's the link to O'Brien's post:

http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2008/nov/081103a.html