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A Reformed view of the Eucharist
2007-05-07 19:20:00
(H/T: The Boar's Head Tavern and TitusOneNine)For those interested in learning a bit more of how our brothers and sisters in the Reformed tradition view the Eucharist , check out Cynthia Nielsen's guest post series on the topic:Part I: Between the Rock and a Hard Place: A Reformed View of the EucharistThe author of the article on which the post is based upon, Douglas Farrow, has converted to Catholicism since. Nonetheless, it is still an interesting analysis of Calvin's view of the Eucharist.
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The Seven Step Program for American Left-Wing Catholics
2007-05-07 16:38:00
Of course, it did not take long for someone to respond to Morning Minion's Seven Step Program for American Right-Wing Catholics , which was of course satirical, but it still hit a nerve:The Seven Step Program for American Left -Wing CatholicsThis is what Michael Denton from For the Greater Glory has to say about Michael and Morning Minion:"...they believe, as the Catholic left, that they are morally superior to anyone whodisagrees with their interpretation. This allows them to laugh at stuff like this, b/c they cannot imagine that anyone could make similiar criticisms about them."As I said in his blog, apparently, if one is critical of certain aspects of the American right, that makes one part of "the Catholic left" or a member of the abortion party, as we have been labeled in other blogs. I personally can't vote and Michael has never voted Democrat, but for some unknown reason he is still part of the "Catholic left"! Oh well, we have been called communists before on our own blog, s...
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Through Jesus Christ all things are made new
2007-05-07 01:18:00
"Behold, I make all things new."Revelation 21:5
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French Presidential Election Today
2007-05-06 19:55:00
Marie-Ségolène Royal vs. Nicolas Sarkozy35% of France's registered voters had already cast their ballots by noon today. 75% had voted by 5:00pm. The U.S. ought to follow the example!Reuters projects Sarkozy victoryUPI agreesFrench ambassador says election will have no impact on France/U.S. relationsGet to know a bit about the candidates here.Here's an example of how pathetic the FoxNews coverage of the election has been. You'll notice that no real issues are discussed. Rather, Sarkozy is likened to Rudolf Giuliani, Royal to Hillary Clinton and Bayrou to Ross Perot. The only matter about which Fox seems to care is whether the candidates are pro-U.S. Once again, Fox lags behind in political perspective. Contrast with CNN:Update: Sarkozy wins the French presidency with roughly 53% of the vote. See CNN's write-up for the details and for videos of the candidates' reactions.
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The Neo-Con Game Plan
2007-05-05 17:28:00
Morning's Minion has written what I find to be the funniest political post to date:Seven Step Program for American Right-Wing CatholicsNotice how one confused commenter cannot but think in binomials, accusing Morning's Minion of being "loyal" to the Democratic party.
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Quote of the Week
2007-05-05 05:05:00
With the ?epistemological turn? of the early modern period, ?truth? has been understood mainly in terms of ?clear and distinct ideas? or ?justification of beliefs,? both of which notions, as Cardinal Ratzinger has observed, ultimately reduce to the attainment of data or knowledge of facts.1 According to the moderns, then, to be educated means to be informed of such facts: facts such as, ?a² + b² = c²,? ?the Treaty of Paris, which granted American independence, was signed in 1783,? ?hydrogen has the least atomic density of all the elements,? et cetera. The worth of education, on this view, is determined by its success in driving certain propositions into its learners? memories such that, even after the eroding affects of age and antipathy, one can, if need be, recall them on command. However, so understood, truth is extraordinarily impoverished and likewise the kind of education that seeks to impart it.And yet, truth has not always been so narrowly understood?it has not always been r...
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IPCC issues plan for global climate change
2007-05-05 00:24:00
In Thailand today, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) held a press conference to announce its Fourth Assessment Report which gathers together the research, opinions and prognosis of 2,000 scientists around the world. According to MSNBC, "the report said the world has to make significant cuts in emissions through increasing the energy efficiency of buildings and vehicles, shifting from fossil fuels to renewable fuels, and reforming both the forestry and farming sectors."According to MSNBC, the report warned:The document made clear that nations have the technology and money to decisively act in time to avoid a sharp rise in temperatures that scientists say would wipe out species, raise ocean levels, wreak economic havoc and trigger droughts in some places and flooding in others.Under the most stringent scenario, the report said the world must stabilize the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere by 2015 ? eight years from now ? at 445 parts per million to keep g...
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What do you get...
2007-05-04 20:47:00
...when you put together a libertarian, some democratic socialists, a neo-con, a few pacifists, a Democrat and an anarchist, all of whom are Catholic? You'll find out next week!

EWTN "Catholic" Q&A on Capitalism
2007-05-04 19:15:00
As a follow-up to my previous post on the disappointing response from Fr. Stephen Torraco regarding illegal immigration, Michael from Cath olic Anarchy seems to have found another one regarding Capital ism .Keep in mind, that I have recommended in the past to watch EWTN when wanting to learn more about the faith. In fact, I would watch it every evening if I would have it on my cable plan. I think EWTN does a great ministry for Catholics, but as shown in the Q&As, there are some shortcomings in their panel of experts, which should be of concern for any Catholic if we take to heart what John Paul II has to say about proper catechesis.Here is the original question to Fr. Torraco:In short, I know, from what I?ve read, that the Church opposes, at least in some regards, capitalism. But I also hear the Church opposes Socialism and Communism. My question is this:1) What is it about these three systems that the Church opposes, and why?2) Why don?t we favor a more socialist or communist form of ...
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"Going Home" -- Sad News
2007-05-04 17:51:00
One of our readers brought to our attention that Bill Cork from Built on a Rock is "going back home" to the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Bill Cork was the Director of Young Adult and Campus Ministry of our Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston. Only Bill can know why this decision was made and we have no intentions to question it. From his post, he says the following about his decision:I?ve been laying out theological and ecclesial issues over the past two months that were contributing factors to my loss of trust in the authority of Rome and the Catholic Magisterium. And that?s what so much of Catholic life and teachingis built on: ?Trust us.? If you do, you can accept everything; if you don?t, then you must fall back on something else?the Word of GodI don't know Bill personally. I never really visited his blog. I only went once and had a rather unpleasant discussion with him on immigration issues. I still think that it is saddening for all of us whenever a friend of ours or even someo...
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Think you pay a lot for gas?
2007-05-04 15:47:00
Worried that we may soon have to pay $4/gal? Well, if we do end up paying that much, it seems that we would only be in the middle of the pack when we start looking at global gas prices:Source: CNN MoneyNetherlands, Amsterdam........................... $6.48 Norway, Oslo..................................... ........... $6.27Italy, Milan.................................... ............... $5.96Denmark, Copenhagen............................... $5.93Belgium, Brussels................................. ....... $5.91Sweden, Stockholm................................ ..... $5.80United, Kingdom London............................ $5.79Germany, Frankfurt................................ .... $5.57France, Paris.................................... ............ $5.54Portugal, Lisbon................................... ........ $5.35Hungary, Budapest................................. .... $4.94Luxembourg.......................... ....................... $4.82Croatia, Zagreb................................... .....
More About: Economy , Think

Reasons to Believe Conference in Houston
2007-05-03 23:26:00
We have received an e-mail from one of Michael's fellow FUS' Alumni, Carson Weber, telling us that Dr. Scott Hahn will be in Houston for the Reason s to Believe Conference on June 23-24. June is going to be a busy month for Michael and myself, but we are really excited about this opportunity and hope we can make it. We want to let our friends and readers from the Houston and Texas area about this great opportunity! Registration for adults is $50 and $40 for students. Among the speakers will be our great Archbishop Daniel Dinardo, Jeff Cavins, Michael Barber, and more! Check out the website for more information.
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Theodore of Mopsuestia on the imago Dei
2007-05-03 23:01:00
(Here is a copy of a short research assignment I had to do for my Church History class. I found McLeod's book The Image of God in the Antiochene Tradition for $15 at Half Price Books and Michael recommended me to write my paper on Theo dore and his understanding of the imago Dei, which I found quite fascinating. I hope this short summary sparks an interest in some of you to read more about Theodore and the Antiochene Fathers, whose theology has helped me strengthen my personal relationship with Christ.)Theodore of Mopsuestia (ca. 350-428) was a prominent representative of the Antiochene school during the late fourth and early fifth centuries and, as such, ?gives a maximum value to the humanity assumed by the divine Logos and its capacity to operate autonomously? as noted by the Encyclopedia of the Early Church. During his lifetime, Theodore was highly esteemed and admired by his contemporaries both within and without the Syrian Church, but it was not until the Second Council of Cons...
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Global Warming: Not a Partisan Issue (Part 2)
2007-05-03 17:39:00
Part 1: Energy Balance of the Earth and Greenhouse GasesI have decided to break down the summary of the conclusions from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change into two posts instead due to the amount of information contained in it. This is the same document that the Nuncio and the Holy See are referring back to when speaking of global warming, so it is important for us to understand what is contained in it.Basically, I have used the same text in the document (in blue) by copying the main points for each topic and changing the layout or emphasizing certain figures to make it a bit easier to read. Definitions used in this report are included below. My side-comments are in red.Part I: HUMAN AND NATURAL DRIVERS OF CLIMATE CHANGEChanges in the atmospheric abundance of greenhouse gases and aerosols, in solar radiation and in land surface properties alter the energy balance of the climate system. These changes are expressed in terms of radiative forcing, which is used to compare ho...
More About: Politics , Global Warming , Global , Part , Ming

May -- Month of Mary
2007-05-03 15:45:00
May is the month dedicated to the mother of our Lord. We would like to remind our readers that Michael has written an excellent 10-part series of Mary in the Bible. He has used part of this series in a Bible study we do every two weeks with our friends and we all enjoyed it and learned quite a bit. So if you have a Bible study group, you can consider this topic for this month:Part 1: IntroductionPart 2: PreliminariesPart 3: Mary in the Gospel of MarkPart 4: Mary in the Galatians and the Gospel of MatthewPart 5: The "Firstborn" of MaryPart 6: The Archangel Gabriel Sent to MaryPart7: Zechariah's Pomp and Doubt Illuminating Mary's Simplicity and FaithPart 8: What's in a Name?Part 9: SalutationsPart 10: God has left the buildingTo Jesus through Mary!
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National Day of Prayer
2007-05-03 07:45:00
Here is a video that Michael prepared for his school to be shown today on the National Day of Pray er . Michael chose two songs for this video: Enya (The First of Autumn) and U2 (The Hands that Built America). The video is divided in four parts: 1) Prayer in thanksgiving for America's history, 2) joy in America's Christian heritage, 3) Prayer for forgiveness of America's sins against humanity, and 4) an invitation to keep hoping in the Lord.
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May 2nd -- St. Athanasius (Memorial)
2007-05-02 21:27:00
"Jesus whom I know as my Redeemer cannot be less than God." --St. Athanasius St. Athanasius--Bishop of Alexandria and Doctor of the Church. A prominent figure of the Nicene party and his strong defense of the Incarnation during the Arian controversy gained him the title "Father of Orthodoxy." During his lifetime, he suffered many trials, and was exiled many times from Alexandria. Most of what we know today about St. Anthony Abbott is based on the extensive writings St. Athanasius dedicated to the desert monk. And one of our favorite Fathers!
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Meeting with the Bishop of San Antonio
2007-05-02 20:29:00
The author of Catholic Notebook and I (along with two others) are taking a group of 7th graders to San Antonio for a two-day trip to visit the historic and Catholic sites. Well, I just received confirmation today that Bish op Thomas Flanagan has agreed to my request for a private meeting with our group. Depending on his schedule next week, Archbishop Jose Gomez may drop by our meeting for a few minutes. I am very excited for our group of 7th graders. I try to instill in them an awe and reverence for the episcopal office, and I believe that spending private time with one--possibly two--bishops of San Antonio would be an inspiring and enriching Catholic experience. So the plan is to attend Mass at the Cathedral and then to head over to the Chancery for the visit.
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Global Warming: Not a Partisan Issue (Part 1)
2007-05-02 18:14:00
Too much hype has been going on around the media and the Catholic blogosphere in regards to global warming. The effect of increased human activity on climate change carries many consequences that quickly turn this issue into a political one. One of the main ramifications is the possible increased regulation of fossil fuel production and consumption, which for a carbon-based global economy, can heavily affect economic activities as we know them today.As Catholics, we cannot fall into political partisanship, but fulfill our divine responsibility in protecting the environment. Sadly, we have seen the former in main Catholic blogs, rather than an informed approach and interest in the issue. The starting point for all of us in this issue is to understand what is global warming, its potential causes, and a path forward. This is what I attempt to include in this post, which will be divided in two parts: the first will deal with the basics of the earth's energy balance and the greenhouse e...
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Follow up: John Paul II on the link between humans and climate change
2007-05-02 00:15:00
Last Friday, I posted a lengthy documented post on the Holy See's public position on the question of a link between human activity and climate change. This post was written in response to some clumsily written remarks from Thomas N. Peters and Jimmy Akin. Peters described global warming as surrounded by many "myths," almost becoming a "secular religion." Akin posted a video and approvingly linked to a conservative, ideological commentary that calls the video "devastating" to any position that claims human activity has had an adverse affect on climate change. Teasing out the implications of Peters' and Akins' comments, I submitted that they should have looked into the Holy See's position on the question before writng their Catholic opinions. After, the Holy See's position is the very one mocked by Peters and "devastatingly devastated" by Akin's video. My beef? These bloggers unwittingly aid not only in narrowing the scope of episcopal authority in the minds of misinformed Catho...
More About: Climate Change , Climate , Change , John , Link

Thinking Blogger Award
2007-05-01 23:23:00
Sister Anne, from Nunblog, has awarded us and four other Catholic bloggers, the "Think ing Blogger Award "!Sister Anne wrote: "I can only point to these five as models for blogging with a mission, blogging with a vision, blogging with a brain..." and that Evangelical Catholicism has "informed insights with depth and breadth from a young pair of writers. They bring reliable research to the blogosphere in matters that are often highly charged."Sr. Anne also picked another four great Catholic blogs: Crossed the Tiber, Catholicism, Holiness and Spirituality, You Duped Me, O Lord, and la Nouvelle Theologie.Michael and I don't believe much in Catholic blog awards, but on this case, since it comes from another fellow blogger, it is more like getting feedback from one of our readers, who does not necessarily leave comments on our posts, but seems to enjoy them anyway--and that is always a good thing to know :)Thank you for the honors, Sr. Anne!We will "announce" our picks for the "Thinking B...
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May 1st -- St. Joseph the Worker
2007-05-01 19:49:00
"Glorious St. Jose ph , model of all who are devoted to labor, obtain for me the grace to work in the spirit of penance in expiation of my many sins; to work conscientiously by placing love of duty above my inclinations; to gratefully and joyously deem it an honor to employ and to develop by labor the gifts I have received from God, to work methodically, peacefully, and in moderation and patience, without ever shrinking from it through weariness or difficulty to work; above all, with purity of intention and unselfishness, having unceasingly before my eyes death and the account I have to render of time lost, talents unused, good not done, and vain complacency in success, so baneful to the work of God. All for Jesus, all for Mary, all to imitate thee, O patriarch St. Joseph! This shall be my motto for life and eternity." -- Pope Pius IX
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EWTN "Catholic" Q&A on Illegal Immigrants
2007-05-01 16:50:00
Well, this is disappointing:EWTN Catholic Q&A illegal immigrantsQuestion from Lawrence on 04-11-2007:Fr. Torraco, I am struggling to understand the position that many Church leaders have taken regarding the stay of illegal immigrants in the United States. Would you please explain why so many of our Church leaders are proponents to allow all illegal immigrants to remain in a country in which their entry was knowingly unlawful. What is the moral law that would trump civil law in this situation? I live in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, and Roger Cardinal Mahoney is an outspoken advocate to allow illegal immigrants to categorically stay in our country without any provision or qualification to the lawfulness of their entry into the country. Thank you for the service that you and your colleagues at EWTN provide us,Lawrence Answer by Fr.Stephen F. Torraco on 04-27-2007: The positions of various Church leaders on illegal immigrants are entirely their own opinions and not the official t...
More About: Illegal Immigrants , Immigration , Grants , Ants

A Catholic Perspective on Immigration
2007-05-01 15:49:00
Below are a summary of the many posts we have written in regard to immigration in this country and the perspective of the Cath olic Church on this topic. We have also included posts that our fellow bloggers have written on the topic. If we missed other blogs or posts, let us know.On this day, May 1st, which is Labor Day for most Latin American countries, many in this country will flock to the streets to demand a humane and comprehensive immigration reform from Congress. Let us condemn deportation and other actions that violate human dignity. Let us pray for a humanization of the people behind the numbers and the statistics, for people to understand the difference between the violation of a civil law and a criminal law, and for a consistent ethic of human life.Papal Perspective s and Conciliar TeachingsJohn Paul II on the care for migrantsJohn Paul II on illegal immigrationQuote of the Week (Benedict XVI on migration)Gaudium et spes on respect for dignity U.S. Bishops Archbishop Chaput...
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Michigan Bishops call for immigration reform
2007-04-30 21:18:00
The Catholic bishops of Michigan issued a statement Sunday calling for federal immigration reform. Echoing the repeated calls of Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI for immigration policies that treat the migrant, regardless of legal status, with dignity, respect and compassion, the Michigan bishops are leaving political ideology aside. I am very pleased to see the Michigan bishops taking a stand against the problematic immigration laws of the United States, especially because they refuse to forget that law always proceeds from morality, which in turn is grounded in the dignity of the human person. Whenever we succumb to the temptation to view the migrant solely in terms of law, we ascribe a primacy of law over and above ethics and the human person when, on the contrary, law is intended to serve ethics and the human person.Here's a snippet of the Detroit News write-up:In their statement, the bishops denounce current immigration law that requires spouses and children of legally auth...
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Recommended Book: Eucharist through the Centuries
2007-04-30 17:49:00
On one of our frequent trips to Half Price Book s, Michael found a great reference book on the Eucharist by Robert De La Vega called Eucharist through the Centuries for only $6. The book contains all the writings concerning the Eucharist, which the author has broken up century-by-century. The book starts off with Eucharistic references found in Scripture and covers related writings all the way up to modern times.The Center for Integral Formation has this book for only $8.96 (paperback) Amazon seems to have only one hardcover copy for $11.95.
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Pontifical Academy Notes Seven Worrying Signs
2007-04-30 17:43:00
Source: Zenit.orgThe Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences has published an introductory statement to the plenary sessions dealing with justice and charity between the nations that started today and will run until Tuesday. The Academy noted that there are seven "signs of the times" that are worrysome when considering relations among the nations. These are: Re-emergence of nationalism,Weak convergence, Pervasive poverty, Weakness of multilateralism, Doubts regarding millennium goals, Insufficient and inefficient aid, andTerrorism and war.According to Zenit, the Academy has expressed that Pope Benedict X VI's encyclical Deus Caritas Est should be an inspiration to all of us:"In particular this document reminds us that the theological and human virtue of charity must preside over all of the social teaching and all of the social works of the Church and her members... Indeed, 'Deus Caritas Est' places itself in the long lineage of other social encyclicals, not only because it addresses...
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What is the Holy See's Current Position on Global Warming?
2007-04-27 23:11:00
What eventually follows is the Holy See's on-the-record position on global warming. But first, a preface...This post is inspired by Thomas N. Peters, the self-described "American Papist." Yesterday evening, Thomas wrote the following words in reaction to a message given by Pope Benedict XVI on the occasion of the Pontifical Council of Justice and Peace's Climate Change and Development Study Seminar, which is currently in session: "Of course, I'd like to see [Pope Benedict XVI's] full message so I can see whether the Pope actually came out and said anything about 'manmade global warming.' My understanding is that to this point he has not." I assume that by "manmade global warming" Thomas means to signify the hypothesis that human production and development contributes to or accelerates the natural phenomenon of climate change (after all, I don't think global warming can be manufactured). In a post last month, Thomas made the unusual assertion: "I post this because global warmi...
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Is Catholic doctrine conservative? Liberal? Socialist?
2007-04-26 19:03:00
The Church's social doctrine is not a "third way" between liberal capitalism and Marxist collectivism, nor even a possible alternative to other solutions less radically opposed to one another: rather, it constitutes a category of its own. Nor is it an ideology, but rather the accurate formulation of the results of a careful reflection on the complex realities of human existence, in society and in the international order, in the light of faith and of the Church's tradition. Its main aim is to interpret these realities, determining their conformity with or divergence from the lines of the Gospel teaching on man and his vocation, a vocation which is at once earthly and transcendent; its aim is thus to guide Christian behavior. It therefore belongs to the field, not of ideology, but of theology and particularly of moral theology. (John Paul II, Sollicitudo rei socialis 41)How many times do we hear statements or questions that go something like this: ?Is that bishop orthodox?? or ?the ...
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My Time at SLU
2007-04-26 16:14:00
Taking a look around the Catholic blogosphere, feelings toward my alma mater, Saint Louis University, seem to range from disgusted to sympathetic. By now, many are aware that the city of St. Louis (not SLU) was cleared of the charge of violating state and federal constitutions by providing $8 million in tax increment financing to SLU. The suit was filed by the Masonic Temple Association (there are two masonic temples directly across the street from Saint Louis University's campus church). The Missouri Supreme Court disagreed with the Masonic Temple Association 6-1 and declared that SLU "is not now owned or controlled by the Society of Jesus." For a report on the judicial proceedings and result, see the St. Louis Post-Dipatch's write-up.Two bloggers who posted on this story were Amy Welborn and Matthew Fish. Welborn was terse, remarking: "Sorry but when traditionally Jesuit institutions do things like this, you can't blame us if the word, well...'jesuitical' pops into our h...
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