Mark P. Shea's Blog, page 1278

Totalitarian Population Planners Miffed

...at Becks and Posh. Totalitarian Population Planners can drop dead.

Your tax dollars at work

Obama can't promise that Social Security checks will be mailed on August 3rd, but the NIH will remain funded so that studies like these can continue.

A snapshot...

...from the bleak world of divorcee cougars trying to make the singles scene look fun. What a monstrous thing no fault divorce is.

The Thirsty Gargoyle...

...with whom I had the honor of slaking my thirst in the good old Irish way when I was in Dublin a few years back, writes:

I've been blogging a bit again of late, on all sorts of topics as ever, and it struck me that it might be worthwhile giving you a heads-up on two posts from the weekend, both relating to the Cloyne Report at home:

The first post is my own thoughts; the second is mainly Archbishop Martin's homily from Sunday morning. Feel free to link and quote as you see fit.

I'll write again on the topic later in the week, basing it on a letter I wrote to our Taoiseach -- Prime Minister -- over the weekend. There's a lot of nonsense being talked about teh Vatican having undermined the State, and the Government's talking of making illegal the inviolabity of the Confessional seal. I don't think that'll happen, as I suspect that doing so would be unnecessary, unconstitutional, unenforceable, and profoundly damaging, but anyway, you'll see why when I write. I just need to redact and reshape the letter so it becomes a piece about things that are worth saying. Maybe Wednesday or so, I guess.

I confess I haven't had time to follow events in Ireland beyond the most minimal impression from headlines. The general narrative appears to be "Rank gross mishandling of abuse by corrupt/stupid bishops prompts draconian overreach by anti-catholic pols who would love to destroy the Church". But that generally always seems to be the narrative. Beyond, I've just been too busy to offer more than a passing glance.

Welcome to Jason and Nikki Workmaster!

Two more Evangelicals are astonished to find themselves walking the Roman Road.

And they are Chestertonians! What's not to like?

A reader writes:

My Aunt is faced with cancer and needs an operation. Please ask anyone to pray for her and particularly me to be understanding at this time. She is my Grandmother's only daughter. Also ask people to pray for her son whom met a lady and had a child. The lady's mother is also faced with cancer and an operation.

Father, grant healing to each person in need of it in this situation. Grant as well the grace for each person to do what is prudent, just and charitable. Mother Mary, pray for all involved that they be given grace, peace, strength, guidance and all the actual graces necessary to do God's will. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen!

Today at the Register...

we are discussing what Scripture does not say about the grave sin of Harry Potter enjoyment. For instance, it does not say it's a sin. Neither does the Church.

Totally believable

The news, having inculcated deep deep wells of shallowness in it Talking Hairdos cannot suddenly turn on a dime and expect profundity during profound moments. When catastrophe strikes our civilization (as surely it must sooner or later) our Chattering Classes quite literally will have no capacity to think or speak of it and we will be treated to interviews with Lady Gaga and Sarah Palin to get their "perspective" on it all.

That's partly the point of this mysterious parable:

Then the kingdom of heaven shall be compared to ten maidens who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them; but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. As the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept. But at midnight there was a cry, 'Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.' Then all those maidens rose and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.' But the wise replied, 'Perhaps there will not be enough for us and for you; go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves.' And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast; and the door was shut. Afterward the other maidens came also, saying, 'Lord, lord, open to us.' But he replied, 'Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.' Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour. (Matthew 25:1-13)

You don't get up and suddenly run the Boston Marathon. You ready yourself for it by a series of small choices over time. You don't suddenly enter the Divine Presence having done nothing whatever to conform yourself to
Christ your entire life. You can't be a Paris Hilton people and expect to be prepared for an apocalyptic world.

Speaking of Religious Freedom

Obama hates it and wants to force all Christian employers to support abortion, sterilization and contraception. I hope they can organize, man up, and tell the Feds to go to Hell.

In related news, I'm delighted to see that the Irish Church is preparing to say exactly that to their Caesar if their government carries through with it disastrous, stupid, immoral, and fruitless attack on the Seal of the Confessional.

Paul Zummo at the American Catholic

...tries to speak slowly, calmly and sanely to fans of Herman Cain who are ready, in their blind panic over Islam, to pitch our entire tradition of freedom of religion overboard.

Where would demagogues be without bogeymen and irrational mobs to fear them?