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St. Clement of Alexandria Against Metrosexuals
2007-12-09 17:17:00
How many times do we have to have this cliche reaffirmed - nothing new under the sun:But for one who is a man to comb himself and shave himself with a razor, for the sake of fine effect, to arrange his hair at the looking-glass, to shave his cheeks, pluck hairs out of them, and smooth them, how womanly!He seems to have a problem with men shaving their beards...But the embellishment of smoothing (for I am warned by the Word), if it is to attract men, is the act of an effeminate person,—if to attract women, is the act of an adulterer; and both must be driven as far as possible from our society. "But the very hairs of your head are all numbered," says the Lord; those on the chin, too, are numbered, and those on the whole body. There must be therefore no plucking out, contrary to God's appointment, which has counted them in according to His will.Yup. Sounds like me and ole' CofA would have gotten along just fine. I have often wondered why it is that men universally prefer a more f...
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New USCCB Document on Music
2007-12-07 17:32:00
Not that the leadership at many parishes will pay any attention but so that the faithful know what the Church is actually saying about music in worship - here is the new USCCB document on liturgical music. (Remember this is from the USCCB which historically has been pretty lame on this issue)The use of the vernacular is the norm in most liturgical celebrations in the dioceses of the United States “for the sake of a better comprehension of the mystery being celebrated.” However, care should be taken to foster the role of Latin in the Liturgy, particularly in liturgical song. Pastors should ensure “that the faithful may also be able to say or to sing together in Latin those parts of the Ordinary of the Mass which pertain to them.” They should be able to sing these parts of the Mass proper to them, at least according to the simpler melodies....To facilitate the singing of texts in Latin, the singers should be trained in its correct pronunciation and understand its meaning. To ...
More About: Music , Document

A Lutheran Considers How to Respond to Challenges From the Ancient Christia
2007-12-07 17:11:00
How's that for a loaded title? Check out the new blog entitled Lutheran Seeker. H/T Ecumenicity.
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Church Signs
2007-12-06 20:37:00
Just couldn't resist...So to be fair I thought I should make some Catholic ones too:
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Father Z Slams National Catholic Reporter For Dissension
2007-12-05 21:14:00
I say dissension, in the old days they called it "heresy". Check out his post. Go Fath er Z.
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Narcissism to Blame for Liturgical Abuse
2007-12-04 14:35:00
Oh that every priest in America would read this essay on our narcissistic culture. Reading through this article I am constantly reminded of my own parish. Here's an excerpt:In 1990 Thomas Day, in Why Catholic Can’t Sing, gave some clear examples of the narcissistic phenomenon in the Catholic liturgy — a phenomenon that he calls “Ego Renewal.” “It is Holy Thursday and we are at the solemn evening mass in a mid-western parish. The moment comes for the celebrant of the Mass, the pastor, to wash the feet of twelve parishioners, just as Christ washed the feet of the apostles at the last Supper. During this deeply moving ceremony, the choir sings motets and alternates with the congregation, which sings hymns. Finally, this part of the liturgy comes to a close with the washing of the last foot. The music ends; you can almost sense that the congregation wants to weep for joy. Then, Father Hank (this is what the pastor wishes to be called) walks over to a microp...
More About: Abuse , Narcissism , Blame

New Patristic Carnival
2007-12-03 15:15:00
The new patristic carnival is up at Hyperekperissou. Be sure to check it out. Also let Phil know if you want to host the next one.
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On Racism
2007-11-28 23:04:00
What I'm going to say here isn't likely to be popular even among my usual readers but I think it's something that needs to be said.Pro Ecclesia linked to Vox Nova's recent discussion on racism in America. For those who don't know, Vox Nova is a left wing Catholic blog. Phil Snider also posted this discussion on antisemitism and the views of the Church fathers. These two posts (and the recent document on voting from the USCCB spurred this post on).The left wing can only agree on two evils in the universe - hypocrisy and racism. Nothing else can be called objectively evil in our culture of relativism. But why racism (and really stereotyping in general)?The USCCB document called racism "intrinsically evil". Well what do we mean when we say racism? Is racism the obstinate refusal to admit that the absolute average of all human attributes (intelligence, athleticism, height etc...) is exactly the same for every race? In that case, it would be racist to say "blacks are bett...
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Thanksgiving - Authority & Unity
2007-11-22 15:24:00
Bryan Cross has an excellent post on Christian Authority & Unit y . Check it out if you get a chance. BTW, Happy Thanksgiving .

Another Anglican Bishop Returns to Full Communion With the Church
2007-11-21 20:07:00
Welcome home Bishop Lipscomb. Read his open letter here in which he requests release from his vows and acceptance into the Holy Catholic Church . H/T NotMyOpinion. It reminds me of the homily I heard recently at the Ukranian Catholic Church in which the priest stated, after the collapse of our self centered culture all that will remain is Islam, Secularism and the Catholic Church. Pick your side while you still can. The Protestant experiment has failed - the Church stands firm as she always has. This is not the work of man but of God.
More About: Full , The Church , Anglican

In Praise of Fundamentalism
2007-11-21 19:11:00
"Fundamentalist" has become such a dirty word these days. Let me first say something perhaps a bit controversial. There will be a thousand fundamentalists in Heaven per every one progressive. Or in other words, how much better to be a fundamentalist than to be a progressive Catholic or mainstream evangelical.I've been exposed to quite a bit of fundamentalism. To the evangelical mainstreams at my work, the denomination I grew up in (PCA) would be considered fundamentalist-right wing. In fact, one referred to the OPC as a “scary” denomination. That is scary. I have a number of relatives who would be unhesitant in labeling themselves ‘fundamentalist’. I have more in common with them than with dissenting Catholics. I have more respect for the simpleton thumping his bible and saying that Jesus is coming soon to rapture all the Christians than for the Jesuit theologian claiming that the greatest problem we face today is something that could be solved in the political aren...
More About: Fundamentalism , Praise , Mentalism , Amen , Dame

Stem Cell Breakthrough Without Destroying Embryos
2007-11-20 15:38:00
I was pleasantly surprised to see this article getting mainstream press. NEW YORK - Scientists have made ordinary human skin cells take on the chameleon-like powers of embryonic stem cells, a startling breakthrough that might someday deliver the medical payoffs of embryo cloning without the controversy.
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Early Christians and the Sacrifice of the Mass
2007-11-19 17:39:00
In reply to Thos from my previous discussion:Didn't have time to elaborate any more last night but i also wanted to add that forgiveness of sins found in Christ's sacrifice replace the temple sacrifice.We have some evidence that the earliest Christian liturgies celebrated the 'liturgy of the Word' in the Jewish synagogues on the Sabbath and celebrated the Eucharist on the Lord's day. Mike Aquilina's book "The Mass of the Early Christians " discusses this briefly. Also see this helpful article on the subject.But that the earliest Christians celebrated the Eucharist as we celebrate it today is uncontested. The specific act of Eucharistic adoration is a fairly recent (recent as in only as old as Protestantism) but this isn't a typical part of our liturgy. The centrality of the Eucharist in even the earliest of Christian liturgies is uncontested historically. It has been called many names - almost all having to do with the Eucharist. "Breaking of the bread" etc.. Some of the ...
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Ukranian Catholic Mass - Wow
2007-11-18 04:32:00
I just got back from the Ukranian Catholic Mass at St. Basil the Great in Charlotte. How incredibly awesome. If you ever get a chance to go to one, don't pass it up. This parish meets at the Catholic high school once per month and for the last 2 or 3 months, I haven't been able to attend for various reasons. Short of an act of God I don't think I'll miss another. The reverence for the Eucharist was unbelievable. The beauty was unparalleled. I've never been to a 2 hour mass that felt like 10 minutes. Now I see a glimpse of what the "spirit of Vatican II" has robbed the Church of. Her rightful liturgy is absolutely beautiful. Beautiful and reverent liturgy is absolutely fitting to the Eucharist. Anything less is a spit in God's face. In fact, dumbing down the liturgy (like my Parish unfortunately does) is looking in lust after other religions - the casual living room liturgies of Protestant communities, the inwardness of Buddhism even the self-centered attitude of sec...
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The Origin of "God Bless You"
2007-11-16 20:18:00
My co-workers and I had a quick debate about the origin of "God bless you". I heard someone repeat the tired myth - "people used to think that when you sneezed a demon was coming out of you so they started saying God bless you". We do far too much to perpetuate baseless stereotypes of medieval Christian peasantry. At least that's the impression I get. I replied "I've heard that too and I really don't know where it came from but that doesn't sound right to me. There was never a time when people were too dumb to know that sneezing was caused by an irritation of the nose. Ask a three year old why he sneezes. He'll tell you (without having gone through the "Enlightenment") that it's because he has something in his nose or he sniffed some pepper. So that line about the ridiculous superstitions held by our ancestors just never really convinced me. (Not to say that people haven't believed some really stupid things... Just look at some of the stuff we still believe).So it's ...
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The Doctrine of Irenaeus In His Own Words
2007-11-15 02:59:00
In my previous post, I discussed Irenaeus as the quintessential early Church father. Continuing on that thought process, I wanted to briefly examine his doctrine. In his lengthy work, Against Heresies, he is entirely devoted to exposing the fallacies of the various Gnostic (in his words: falsely so called) sects. He spends a great deal of time explaining the details of their theology and in fact, much of what we know of their belief system we owe to him as many of their texts are no longer extant. Of his works only one other has survived though we know he wrote many more.It even seems odd to us that such effort was spent defending Christian orthodoxy against what to us seems to be ridiculous theology. How could any person with even the slightest bit of learning call the God of the Old Testament an evil - lesser god than the True God who sent Jesus Christ? How could Christ have any credibility were it not for the divine origin of the Jewish Scriptures and in turn the Jewish rel...
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Irenaeus The Ancient Bridge Between East & West
2007-11-14 15:19:00
Irenaeus in my mind is the quintessential early Church father. Through his predecessor St. Polycarp, he is but one degree separated from the apostles. Since he was born in Asia minor and later migrated to Lyons in Gaul, he is a bridge between the East and West . And since his doctrine was thoroughly orthodox, he is a champion of the faith.Irenaeus had already spent time in Rome before coming to Lyons. It’s possible that he even accompanied Polycarp on his journey to Rome to settle disputes between the East & West at around 155 AD. He would have heard Polycarp’s famous response to Marcion “Yes I do recognize the firstborn of Satan”. While this is speculation, we do know that Irenaeus spent some time in Rome.Following the intense persecution under Marcus Aurelius which claimed not merely a few martyrs, Irenaeus succeeded St. Pothinus as bishop of Lyons. His move from East to West itself exemplifies a truth about the early Church we need to understand and far too oft...
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Another Baptist Community Takes Sola Scriptura a Little Too Seriously For C
2007-11-12 20:16:00
From the Charlotte Observer:When N.C. Baptist s meet this week for their annual session, they will likely kick out a Charlotte church that has said it welcomes homosexuals as they are -- a violation of controversial rules passed at last year's state convention.Here's my favorite line:"We think the local (Baptist) church ought to be free to interpret Scripture itself"Well the Church does have the authority to interpret Scripture. But if you break away from the Church and call your ecclesial community a "church" then you can no longer say that. You can't even agree on how to read "don't lie with a man as with a woman" how will you interpret the tough parts of Scripture?Now, I know... I know... not every evangelical agrees with this community. There are plenty of Protestants who are just as upset about this blatant departure from Christian values as I am (or rather would be if I was a Baptist). But surely it must serve as a reminder for us all of what sola scriptura has led to....
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You Are the Light of the World - Heaven & Hell and Other Random Thought
2007-11-12 19:44:00
If I hear another 'you are the light of the world' homily I'm gonna puke. You know the one I'm talking about - the safe, ambiguous and powerless homilies often having little to do with the gospel readings. I was talking with a friend about this recently and we both came to the same conclusion - they suck.I hear a lot of good theology at my parish - our priests are pretty good about that. Unfortunately the homilies are too often summarized up with the "salt & light of the world" bit.. Guys, Christ said this once. He didn't wrap His entire identity around this catch phrase - move on! I was also thinking about Jesus' words on the subject in Mark's gospel. In chapter 4 Jesus said "salt is good but if it loses its saltiness how can you make it salty again?" This cryptic saying is tough to decode but our current liturgical crisis comes to mind. To say that the Catholic liturgy has lost its saltiness is being extremely generous. I wonder, like Jesus' rhetorical question...
More About: World , Heaven , Random , Thought , The World

Book Review - Jesus of Nazareth by Pope Benedict XVI
2007-11-11 23:15:00
I had this book on pre-order for about 6 months before it came out. When it finally arrived in May (I think) I promptly set it on the shelf and let it collect dust for another 5 months. Don't ask me why. At any rate, I finally picked it up and read it. It was a very easy read - and it moved very quickly. I wasn't as impressed with it as I anticipated being and I think I've found that Pope Benedict speaks much more impressively when he speaks in an official ecclesial capacity (may have a slight connection with the Holy Spirit). That is not to say it wasn't a good book or even a great one. It was and well worth the read.I would encourage anyone whether Catholic or not to read it. I don't think there is anything that a non-Catholic would find objectionable (unless you're the liberal historical critical scholar B16 continually rails on in which case the more you find objectionable - the better of a book it must be).
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Go Archbishop O'Brien
2007-11-09 19:55:00
Man, this kind of stuff is encouraging. Something I need right now with my schola being fired and so far two different pastors in my diocese acting in disobedience to the pope regarding the Latin Mass. Baltimore, Nov. 9, 2007 (CWNews.com) - Baltimore's Archbishop Edwin O'Brien has removed a pastor who invited a female Episcopalian priest to join him in celebrating a funeral Mass, the Baltimore Sun reports.

Interesting Blog - Free Catholic Audio
2007-11-09 16:37:00
Here's a blog I stumbled on recently that is worth bookmarking. It exists to provide free Catholic audio on the net for download or streaming. Enjoy!
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Founder of Weather Channel: Global Warming is 'the Greatest Scam in History
2007-11-08 16:27:00
John Coleman, founder of the Weather Channel calls global warming the "greatest scam in history". Hat Tip: Jimmy Akin.I am amazed, appalled and highly offended by it. Global Warming ; It is a SCAM. Some dastardly scientists with environmental and political motives manipulated long term scientific data to create an allusion of rapid global warming. Other scientists of the same environmental whacko type jumped into the circle to support and broaden the “research” to further enhance the totally slanted, bogus global warming claims. Their friends in government steered huge research grants their way to keep the movement going. Soon they claimed to be a consensus.Later he says:I do not oppose environmentalism. I do not oppose the political positions of either party. However, Global Warming, i.e. Climate Change, is not about environmentalism or politics. It is not a religion. It is not something you “believe in.” It is science; the science of meteorology. This is my field of life-l...
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Father Euteneuer Responds to Jesuit Priest Who "Came Out" During a Mass
2007-11-08 14:41:00
FRONT ROYAL, VA — The Rev. Thomas J. Euteneuer, STL, president of Human Life International, (HLI) today published an “open letter” to Fath er Thomas J. Brennan, SJ, who declared that he was a homosexual during a student Mass , admitting that it was one of “the worst kept secrets” on campus.Father Euteneuer’s response, “Homosexual Jesuit Needs Refresher Course in Priest ly Love” was published in his weekly email newsletter, Spirit & Life, available Thursday after 3:00 PM EST on the HLI website (http://www.hli.org). The letter called for Brennan to apologize to his congregation.Father Euteneuer said, “There is something just plain wrong about abusing people’s trust in the priesthood in such a public way, and since you chose to ‘go public’ with this matter, a public response to your outrageous ‘outing’ is merited.”“First of all,” Father Euteneuer said, “Holy Mass is not a forum for your self-expression. You chose the sacred liturgy and the pulpit re...
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Another Evangelical Pastor Heads to Rome
2007-11-07 15:26:00
Check out this pastor's blog about his journey through the RCIA process. H/T TheDen.
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New Pharisees
2007-11-06 17:35:00
The title may lead some to think I’m about to start harping on some sort of self appointed ‘sin patrol’. If that was your initial impression you either have a shallow understanding of the 1st century Christ-Pharisee conflict or you think very little of my perception of it. I have argued before (borrowing heavily from N.T. Wright) that the simplistic understanding of the conflict is to be dismissed outright. That is, the Pharisees affirmed the wrong kind of religion and Jesus, traveling sage of timeless wisdom that He was, rebuked them – meanwhile offering a new type of internal, Platonic religion. Recent scholarship has thoroughly destroyed these historic fantasies yet the legends live on in the feeble minds of churchgoers everywhere. To put it another way – Jesus was not a liberal. In the Sermon on the Mount, the ‘mount’ signifies the new Sinai and Jesus Himself is the new Torah. The Christology behind the event is a call to loyalty and obedience to Christ as the...
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HLI Condemns Action of NJ Governor and State Senator as 'Tyranny'
2007-11-06 14:35:00
FRONT ROYAL, VA — The Rev. Thomas J. Euteneuer, STL, president of Human Life International, (HLI) today said, “When a state rejects the protection of individual consciences, that state loses its soul.” Father Euteneuer was commenting on a New Jersey law sponsored by state Senator Joseph Vitale and signed into law by Governor Jon Corzine that effectively forces pharmacists in that state to violate their consciences by filling prescriptions for abortifacient—abortion-causing—contra ception.“In a free society, the rights of conscience are recognized. When the state abrogates those rights forcing citizens to violate their consciences as a condition for employment, then that state is no longer a free society,” said Father Euteneuer. “This is not yet another action by government in America leading to tyranny, it is tyranny. Governor Corzine and Senator Vitale are no longer acting as American statesmen but as representatives of the Culture of Death, joining officials in elev...
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Patristic Carnival V
2007-11-01 22:20:00
Its a GodFearin' carnival this one. I'm honored to host the fifth Patristic Carnival . Just a brief intro might not be terribly unwelcome. First, if I missed any good posts, please reply in the comments. Second, I wanted to remind everyone, myself first of all, that the entire aim of patrology is nothing other than to glorify our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Though we come from varied faith backgrounds, we find common ground in our love for orthodoxy - for the true doctrine of Jesus Christ. Studying the early Church fathers does not lessen the importance of Scripture - in fact it can do nothing but add to it. The fathers, in harmony with the Scriptures, point to Christ. It is easy in the thick of scholarly study (as if I would know anything about that) to get lost in the intellectualism of it all. I don't think I'm being too sentimental when I preface this carnival's entries with a reminder of the reason we all started studying the fathers of our faith. Also, if you'...

Halloween
2007-10-31 18:49:00
I'm more concerned with the horror/gore aspect of Halloween than with kids dressing up as spiderman.... But I'm not going to have time to post on this today like I wanted to. Here are my previous two posts on the subject:Parents Shouldn't Let Kids Watch Horror MoviesThe Distortion of Horror MoviesEnjoy.Update: The Mexican Bishops Agree With Me - Dont Celebrate Halloween.
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Transubstantiation and Its Historical Significance
2007-10-30 14:54:00
This is a response to Dave, continuing our discussion from this post.On prayers for the dead - it's in our Scriptures, not yours but it is a Jewish tradition.I think the doctrine of Tran substantiation is absolutely critical. It affects how we treat the species (come to a mass you'll see what I mean). The Eucharist is the center of our liturgy.In the PCA where I grew up, after communion the leftover grape juice and crackers would just be chucked in the trash or consumed by kids. This isn't uncommon. But if we were to believe that by taking it unworthily we were profaning the body of Christ as Paul said, what does throwing it in the trash do? How can we profane the body of Christ by unworthily eating a cracker? I do that all the time!As for the Aristotle argument, I'm pretty ignorant on Greek philosophy but I have heard that sort of a charge too. First, just because a pagan says something doesn't make it false. Pagan philosophers can easily be right about things. (Aristot...
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