Mark P. Shea's Blog, page 1392

Big Brother

One hand on your groin, the other in your pocket.

You have to be overjoyed about our ever-expanding national security state, or the terrorists will already have won.

If only the Church would allow male nursery workers to marry!

If only women could be nursery workers! None of this would happen.

National Catholic Reporter Declares Ed Peters...

to be a non-person.

Never Swat a Fly

Quirky tune I first heard on a Maria Muldaur album.

525 Followers!

Dear Minions:

If you live in Western Washington, I command you to attend the following:

St. Alphonsus Parish presents
Dead Theologians Society
Parent's Night Wine & Cheese Reception

Sunday Jan 9th, 6pm in the Family Center

Parents of 8-12th grade students are invited to a DTS preliminary session, just for parents, beginning at 5:45pm in the Wilson Room in the Family Center. Following the session, there will be a wine and cheese reception in the Family Center, as well as a free raffle for "a very special bottle of wine," donated by a fellow parishioner.

Then, I command you to bring your 8th to 12th grader to the following:

Coming Soon to St. Alphonsus Youth
Dead Theologian's Society
Sunday January 16th, 6pm
Achtergael Room

The Saints of Yesterday, Inspiring the Youth of Today.
"Dead to the world. Alive in Christ."

Meanwhile, if you live in the St. Paul or Owatonna areas of Minnesota, I thought you should know that I will be coming to speak this Saturday and Sunday:

January 8 1:00- 3:30 PM. Holy Name Society,
Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.  Topics: 101 Reasons Not to
Be Catholic; Mary, Mother of the Son.  Contact: Mike
Gores.  Phone: 651-307-2601.

January 9 3:00-5:00 PM. The Call to Be Catholic Speakers Series.  Topics:
Infallibility Doesn't Mean Never Having to Say You're Sorry. Contact: Joe
Stiles.  Phone: 507-451-1588.

Be there. Aloha. That is all!

Why I Love Where I Live

Lynnwood is, literally, a couple of miles from where I live.

Prayer Requests and Praise report

A reader who asked prayer recently writes:

Lynda called this morning with high spirits. She is off all pain medication and feels better than she has in quite some time. On January 5, the doctors will inject dye into the tube in her nose to see how well the surgery repaired her liver. If the results are good, she may go home on the following day.

She is extremely thankful to God for allowing her to survive this ordeal, and also to all of us for going through it with her.

Thanks be to God the Father through Jesus Christ!

Another reader writes:

A dear friend gave birth on Dec. 22 to a little girl who had already been diagnosed with Trisomy 18. As you likely know, these children are often aborted, but this wonderful Catholic family has been an amazing testimony to the power of love and true prolife standards. Gianna Caeli lived two weeks in the loving arms of her family, and she passed away still surrounded by her family this morning. Please pray for little Gianna as she speeds her way to Heaven, and please pray for her family as they grieve but not as those without hope.

Here's the website so you and your readers can learn more about the precious life of little Gianna.

Holy Innocents, pray for Gianna and her family. Father God and Mother Mary, welcome this newest saint to Heaven through Jesus Christ. Mother Mary, intercede for her grieving family that God will grant them grace, consolation, peace and strength through Jesus Christ.

Another reader writes:

An 89-year-old priest who is a close family friend is going through a difficult time right now. He is part of a religious order and originally from another country, but has been working in the same diocese in the U.S. for over 30 years now. His superior has ordered him to return to his home country, the reason being that the order can't take care of him if he gets sick here and his health insurance through the diocese lapses. This priest has benefactors willing to take care of his insurance payments but the superior still insists on sending him back. Though he's 89, this priest has been incredibly active in the parish and with all different types of groups. Serving the people of God has kept him young. Through conversations with other retired priests in his home country, he knows that there is nothing for senior, retired priests to do there. Nobody bothers with them and they aren't given any opportunities to help others. All this priest wants is to continue his ministry in his current parish for however many years he has left in his life. His heart is breaking at being forced to leave the friends he has made through the years. Please ask your readers to pray that this situation comes to a positive resolution and that this priest finds peace that surpasses all understanding.

Father, hear our prayer that this human being will be exalted above an inhuman bureaucratic system. Grant that he be able to stay and continue doing the work to which you have called him to in your Holy Church. Whatever happens, grant him the grace to do what you call him to do through Christ our Lord. Mother Mary, pray for him and all involved with his life.

How Refreshing!

Air Maria has a nifty video up which actually expresses appreciation for and a reading of the Second Vatican Council in light of the Tradition instead of through the crack lenses of Reactionary or Progressive dissent and contempt for the Church. More please.

Brilliant!

A reader writes...

A reader writes:

Interesting column from Gene Lyons in today's newspaper. He says that "To save a lousy $1.4 million (out of a $9 billion budget) Arizona's Health Care Cost Containment system has decreed an end to organ transplants." This is for Medicaid patients. He wonders why there is not the outcry from the right similar to the death panel comments.

Very likely nobody outside Arizona has heard about it. Still, is anybody surprised that beancounters are going to decree that the weak need to die and get out of the way? This is how a system ordered toward economic efficiency works. We do not have a system which really takes seriously the idea that the human person matters. We have a system that takes seriously (sometimes) that the human person is a useful source of profit, when he is fit and strong. It maximizes making sure that the fit and strong stay that way (and are therefore useful for as long as possible). When the human person is weak and a) statistically less likely to become lucrative (ie. an unborn baby with an unpromising future or a chronically sick or old person) the system is putting all sorts of pressure on simply returning to paganism and bumping them off. Eventually, when the system conks (as it will surely do) those who are rich and powerful will come to regard more and more of the general population as expendable fodder and, in the end, as slaves. Slavery is the natural condition of man under paganism. The only thing in the history of the world that has ever successfully opposed it is the Christian tradition. Get rid of it and we will return to it just as surely as an unconscious man falls to the ground.