+Catholic Ponderings+

Call to Action: Respect for Rights of Conscience Act

2012-01-27T00:16:00.003-05:00

Under the fine leadership of Cardinal designate Timothy Dolan, Archbishop of New York and President of the USSCB, an unquestionably quick call to action has been heralded against the recent attack against the rights of every Catholic in the United States.

Dated January 20, 2012:

WASHINGTON—The Catholic bishops of the United States called “literally unconscionable” a decision by the Obama Administration to continue to demand that sterilization, abortifacients and contraception be included in virtually all health plans. Today's announcement means that this mandate and its very narrow exemption will not change at all; instead there will only be a delay in enforcement against some employers.

“In effect, the president is saying we have a year to figure out how to violate our consciences,” said Cardinal-designate Timothy M. Dolan, archbishop of New York and president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

The cardinal-designate continued, “To force American citizens to choose between violating their consciences and forgoing their healthcare is literally unconscionable.It is as much an attack on access to health care as on religious freedom. Historically this represents a challenge and a compromise of our religious liberty."

The HHS rule requires that sterilization and contraception – including controversial abortifacients – be included among “preventive services” coverage in almost every healthcare plan available to Americans. “The government should not force Americans to act as if pregnancy is a disease to be prevented at all costs,” added Cardinal-designate Dolan.At issue, the U.S. bishops and other religious leaders insist, is the survival of a cornerstone constitutionally protected freedom that ensures respect for the conscience of Catholics and all other Americans.

“This is nothing less than a direct attack on religion and First Amendment rights,” said Franciscan Sister Jane Marie Klein, chairperson of the board at Franciscan Alliance, Inc., a system of 13 Catholic hospitals. “I have hundreds of employees who will be upset and confused by this edict. I cannot understand it at all.”

Daughter of Charity Sister Carol Keehan, president and chief executive officer of the Catholic Health Association of the United States, voiced disappointment with the decision. Catholic hospitals serve one out of six people who seek hospital care annually.“This was a missed opportunity to be clear on appropriate conscience protection,” Sister Keehan said.

Cardinal-designate Dolan urged that the HHS mandate be overturned.“The Obama administration has now drawn an unprecedented line in the sand,” he said. “The Catholic bishops are committed to working with our fellow Americans to reform the law and change this unjust regulation. We will continue to study all the implications of this troubling decision.”

To take action, go HERE.

Read other +Ponderings from the past about the Obama administration and Ms. Sibelius HERE.

*See also USCCB January 23, 2012 News Release HERE

Holy Family School Annual Vegas Bowl!

2012-01-21T14:42:00.000-05:00

An incredible fund raiser for HFS and always a lot of fun!

Games include:

Joker Seven *NEW!*
Black Jack (get there early to find a spot at the tables)
Over Under Seven
Poker Best Hand
Chinese Auction

Tickets available at the door or in advance at the school or Our Lady of Mercy rectory. For more information on Holy Family School or the fund raiser, call (585) 768-7390. Thank you for supporting Catholic Education!

October Baby

2012-01-19T12:28:00.001-05:00

Sanctity of Human Life Day is Sunday, January 22, 2012.

Lenten Conferences - Diocese of Buffalo

2012-01-11T11:56:00.003-05:00

The 10th Annual Catholic Men's Conference will be held on Saturday, March 24, 2012 at Cardinal O'Hara High School in Tonawanda. Speakers will include:

Allen Hunt, nationally known author and radio talk show host
Bishop Gregory J. Hartmayer, OFM Conv.
Sammy Violante, "mentor, coach and survivor"

The theme for this year's conference is "Servant Leadership - The Challenge"

They are asking that those who are able, please bring non-perishable food items to be collected at the entrance. All donations will be distributed locally to those in need.

For more information and to register, visit the Catholic Men's Fellowship site HERE.

____________________________________

The Station of the Cross/WLOF Radio presents the Buffalo Women's Lenten Conference on Saturday, March 17, 2012.

The theme for the day of reflection is, “Behold, I Make All Things New” and is to be held at the Hearthstone Manor at 333 Dick Road in Depew, NY.

Speakers will include:

Maryalice Demler, Emcee
Teresa Tomeo author, syndicated talk show host
Leah Darrow from Catholic Answers
Mother Yarrow Yaqob the "Mother Teresa of Baghdad"
Fr. Rick Poblocki, host of "Calling all Catholics," Mass Celebrant and Homilist

Music will be provided by Marian Grace. This conference is open to all women age 14 and up and a boxed lunch is included in the registration fee. There is a discounted price for early registration and students receive 25% discount. Invite all of the women you know! For more information and to register, click HERE.

Edited to add:

"We are very excited to announce a special limited time promotion for the upcoming Catholic women's conference, "Behold I Make All Things New." We're offering every woman who purchases tickets through January 30th a chance to win the opportunity to have lunch with our speakers the day of the event. What better way to spend your lunch the day of the conference than with Teresa Tomeo, Leah Darrow, Mother Olga and Maryalice Demler? Time is limited so we encourage you to buy your tickets now. Call 1-877-888-6279 or visit www.wlof.net for tickets and details."

Blessings,

Sarah Buttino

Conference Coordinator

The Copyrighted Catholic

2012-01-10T12:18:00.000-05:00

Michael Voris. You've seen him on +Ponderings+ and elsewhere on the internet. He's the energetic guy with a whole lot of zeal for the Church and a double blessing of hair on his head. Never afraid to speak his mind, and always doing so out of his undying love for Christ and His Church, Mr. Voris sometimes ends up in the spotlight himself. Having been on the receiving end of poor catechesis in his youth, Mr. Voris has apparently made it his life mission to expose cafeteria Catholicism for the evil that it is and to lead the stray sheep back to the fold. He unapologetically has exposed many issues which he backs with evidence gained by lengthy research and shares the information and sources for others to use in discernment.

On December 15, 2011, the Archdiocese of Detroit released the following statement:

The Church encourages the Christian faithful to promote or sustain a variety of apostolic undertakings but, nevertheless, prohibits any such undertaking from claiming the name Catholic without the consent of the competent ecclesiastical authority (see canon 216 of the 1983 Code of Canon Law). For some time, the Archdiocese of Detroit has been in communication with Mr. Michael Voris and his media partner at Real Catholic TV regarding their prominent use of the word "Catholic" in identifying and promoting their public activities disseminated from the enterprise's production facility in Ferndale, Michigan. The Archdiocese has informed Mr. Voris and Real Catholic TV, RealCatholicTV.com, that it does not regard them as being authorized to use the word "Catholic" to identify or promote their public activities. Questions about this matter may be directed to the Archdiocese of Detroit, Department of Communications. Source

Following the release of the statement, there have been heated comments directed toward the Archdiocese and many questions raised. Canon lawyers have weighed in on both sides and a lot of people have pointed out that some entities use Catholic in their name within the Archdiocese of Detroit, and they are clearly operating in ways contrary to the Catholic faith. Is the word 'Catholic' copyrighted and just who does and does not have the right to use 'Catholic' in a name? If some can use Catholic and others cannot, why does it appear that Michael Voris from RealCatholicTV is being called out and others not? There have been no allegations of wrong-doing made against RealCatholicTV, yet they are being told that they cannot use the word 'Catholic' in their name. On January 3, 2012 the Archdiocese of Detroit released a follow-up statement:

Subsequent to the release in mid-December, 2011, of a "Statement regarding Real Catholic TV and its name," inquiries have come to the Archdiocesan Department of Communications regarding the timing and need for this particular declaration. The Director of Communications presents this response:

"The Archdiocese of Detroit has been consistent in its statements to and about Real Catholic TV since the fall of 2008. (Regarding RealCatholicTV.com) Due to continued requests made to the Detroit archdiocese for clarification concerning the use of the title Catholic by Real Catholic TV, and to avoid any confusion among the faithful, it was determined a public statement should make clear what has been told to Real Catholic TV, namely, that it does not have the authorization required under Church law to identify or promote itself as Catholic."

Canon Law Commentary In the Light of the Law: blog entries from Dr. Edward Peters, a widely-known lay canon lawyer on the graduate faculty at Sacred Heart Major Seminary.
Canon law and the statement on Real Catholic TV

Questions and answers on Real Catholic TV statement Source

Here is the video response to the story from Michael Voris himself:

Lifesitenews.com has interviewed Fr. Mark Gurtner, Judicial Vicar of the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend in Indiana in regard to the matter. They report on their site:

Speaking as a canon lawyer and not an official of the diocese, Gurtner also said he believes the jurisdiction of the case resides with the Indiana diocese. “It certainly seems to me that canonically Michael Voris would not be the one that this would be imposed on,” he said. “Even though he is the one that regularly appears on (the show) he, in a sense, is really just an employee of (RealCatholicTV.com).”

“It seems like if the Archdiocese of Detroit is trying to go after (Voris), that’s the wrong person to address this with, that would have to be with the owner of the website or blog,” he added.
“I suppose if this Marc Brammer [owner of RealCatholicTV and Indiana resident] is paying for and running, constructing his blog from our diocese in his home I suppose you could make the argument that we have jurisdiction canonically.”

When asked by LifeSiteNews what concerns the Detroit Archdiocese had about Voris and RealCatholicTV.com, Detroit Archdiocesan Director of Communications McGrath would not specify any concern other than the use of the word ‘Catholic’.

Asked if the archdiocese has asked any other group or individual in the archdiocese not to use the name Catholic, McGrath said he couldn’t remember any other cases during his 20 years with the diocese. “I don’t know. I’ve been here 20 years I can’t say that we’ve never done that in the history of the Archdiocese,” he said.

Pressed on the point, he said, “I wouldn’t want to say that definitively. But not any that I can recall recently, no.”

What a tangled web and I can't help feeling that I am caught up in it. Afterall, this is +Catholic Ponderings+ and I cannot tell which, if any, canon law I may or may not be breaking. I suppose I should just be thankful to not be under the jurisdiction of the Archdiocese of Detroit. In my opinion, Michael Voris has shined a light on something or someone somewhere and a certain Archbishop didn't like it. He can tell Mr. Voris to put his lamp under the basket, but I will not. I don't always agree with Mr. Voris but I love his tenacity. I can think of a lot of "Catholic" people, universities, and leaders who bear the Catholic trademark, but a nagging inner voice tells me they have clearly ventured into the realm of small 'c' catholicism.

Is the Call to New Evangelization for YOU or Everyone Else?

2012-01-06T11:51:00.004-05:00

*Click on the video and then on the link to watch the video on YouTube. A new tab will open.

"The New Evangelization depends largely on the domestic Church. In our time, as in times past, the eclipse of God, the spread of ideologies contrary to the family and the degradation of sexual ethics are intertwined. Just as the eclipse of God and the crisis of the family are linked, so the New Evangelization is inseparable from the Christian family." --Pope Benedict XVI, Plenary Assembly of the Pontifical Council for the Family

You go to Mass, perhaps you are even a daily communicant. Maybe you help in a ministry at your parish by serving as an EMHC, CCD instructor or greeter. All of this is wonderful and certainly pleasing to God. What concrete things are you doing to evangelize others -- those who are lost sheep, wandering without direction - and bringing them to Christ? Think of the possibilities. This would be a great ministry for people in the RCIA program, Confirmation class students and youth groups. If you have an idea on how to bring the Lighthouse Media program to your parish, please do share it via comment or e-mail. Share the video with your Pastor, lay ministers and other fellow Catholics. God is calling you and me.

Lent begins February 22 this year! Now is the time to get the program in the works at your parish and watch it grow! "My brethren, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins."[Jas. 5:19-20]

*Pastors, please click HERE for the bottom line on pricing, etc.

Governor Cuomo Statement is Call to Action

2012-01-04T15:17:00.004-05:00

Archbishop Timothy Dolan with then Attorney General Andrew Cuomo/NY Daily News

This story is just developing. Thanks to a notice from New York State Catholic Conference, Gov. Andrew Cuomo (noted to be a practicing *CINO) is revisiting the nightmare legislation former Gov. Eliot Spitzer championed. Today in his State of the State address, he once again mentioned the Reproductive Health Act. According to the NY State Catholic Conference, "Although in his prepared remarks, Gov. Cuomo pledged to fight for the radical abortion bill known as the Reproductive Health Act, he eliminated the paragraph from the remarks he delivered and ended up saying nothing about abortion. Time will tell how the battle over this Spitzer-era bill will develop." Clearly, he thinks we will not pay any attention and no alarm will be raised if the word 'abortion' is omitted. The final transcript for the address today reads as follows:

"I will continue to vigorously protect a woman's right to choose and will fight for passage of the Reproductive Health Act. This Act protects the fundamental right of reproductive freedom and a woman's right to make private health care decisions. A woman facing an unplanned or problem pregnancy should have the opportunity to make the best decision for herself and her family. The Reproductive Health Act will ensure that the rights of individuals to make difficult and personal health care decisions are preserved."

From his previous State of the State (New York) address, January 5, 2011:

Protect Reproductive Rights

A woman facing an unplanned or problem pregnancy should have the opportunity to make the best decision for herself and her family, whether her decision is continuing the pregnancy, adoption, or abortion. I will continue to vigorously protect a woman’s right to choose and will fight for passage of the Reproductive Rights Act, which will protect the fundamental right of reproductive freedom and a woman's right to make private health care decisions.

The Reproductive Rights Act will ensure that the rights of individuals to make difficult and personal health care decisions will be preserved.

Reproductive Rights Act sounds benign enough, really. +Ponderings+ has covered the legislation that then Governor Eliot Spitzer was championing for years (before he was embroiled in a very public scandal). Read that post HERE.

From my previous post in February of 2007:

According to Kathleen M. Gallagher, director of pro-life activities for the New York State Catholic Conference:His euphemistically titled ‘Reproductive Health and Privacy Protection Act’ would raise abortion to the level of a fundamental right, like the freedom of speech, and would therefore prohibit virtually any restrictions at all.
“This bill would ensure the easy availability of late-term abortions of fully formed infants, even if there was no threat to a woman’s physical health, and allow non-doctors to perform abortions. It would prohibit ‘discrimination’ regarding the right to abortion to such an extent that Catholic hospitals could be forced to provide abortions or lose their license to operate. It would prohibit parental notification, expand the over-the-counter availability of the morning-after pill to children of any age and force all insurers to cover abortion for any reason.
“In many ways, this intolerable bill is more radical than the original state law legalizing abortion nearly 40 years ago. It would potentially force the closure of Catholic health care institutions and undoubtedly lead to the deaths of countless unborn children who otherwise might have had a chance at life. No matter what Mr. Spitzer calls his bill, clearly it is not about reproductive ‘health.’ On the contrary, this bill is about death, and it must be rejected.” Source

NY State Right to Life's statement on the proposed legislation is HERE.

Read the perspective of Planned Parenthood when the legislation was reintroduced to the State Assembly back in April of 2011 HERE.

When/if The Catholic Conference alert comes available, I will update this post and include a link where you can make your voice heard.

*CINO: Catholic in name only

CCHD: Yessiree, it is that time again folks!

2011-11-04T22:27:00.000-04:00

Throughout the United States, parishes typically participate in the fund raising collection every year at Thanksgiving time. See other Ponderings over the past few years HERE. Before you discern whether to give or not, please be certain you are making an informed decision.

Missal Revision: Music Changes

2011-11-02T19:04:00.001-04:00

Also, be sure to check out THIS SITE. You can sample new chants for the Mass. God is always good and change can be good, too!

End of Life Care: To Feed or not to Feed?

2011-10-13T17:45:00.003-04:00

"Medical science is called on to eradicate the illnesses from which we suffer; it is not called on to eradicate the patients who suffer the illnesses." --The National Catholic Bioethics Center

I have posted previously about end of life care issues and one entry, End of Life Care Decisions: More Gray than Black and White, remains one of my most popular entries to date. People charged with making decisions for a loved one nearing the end of earthly life are searching anywhere and everywhere for answers. The internet is loaded with so many sites and articles and it is very difficult to find definitive answers to match individual situations. Many links that show up in an online search go directly against people the values of people who cherish all life from natural conception until natural death. There are other sites which give basic Church teachings but don't break it down into information a caregiver can absorb and use in his or her own situation. When you are in the middle of a crisis involving a very ill family member, you are not interested in theological views on life throughout history. You need answers and guidance, and you need them now! There is one website, operated by The National Catholic Bioethics Center in Philadelphia, which I have found to be the most clear and concise. First, a case to illustrate a point:

My grandmother was recently admitted to the hospital following a very bad chest cold which developed into pneumonia. Her regular doctor was out of the country for a couple of weeks and the doctor who was covering while he was away simply ignored repeated requests by nursing staff and family members to examine her over a two day period. My mother and an aunt were spending time with my grandmother and it was clear her health had diminished. She was difficult to awaken and it seemed she had difficulty breathing. The nurse called for the ambulance and she was admitted to the ICU that evening. She was severely dehydrated, tests indicated a UTI and the pneumonia. I went to visit her the next morning and she opened her eyes and responded to my voice. I asked if she wanted a drink and she said she did. She proceeded to drink four ounces of apple juice, an ounce or so of milk and asked for some Pepsi. Her blood pressure was very unstable and we had difficulty keeping her warm. The following day she ate a bit of tomato soup and had a few more drinks and appeared to be improving thanks to good medical care, intravenous fluids and antibiotics.

A day or two later (they all blend together when you and your family spend so much time at the hospital) they moved her out of ICU and into a regular room and she was beginning to become more alert. For anyone who has spent time with a dementia patient, this is a good thing and can also be a big challenge as well. She became more animated and was very anxious with unfamiliar surroundings. We asked if they could give her any anti-anxiety medications and they did. She calmed within 15 mins and family left the bedside as she settled in for sleep at night. The next day, clearly due to the medication she was given the night before, she was completely unresponsive. I have no idea how much they gave her, but I can assure you whenever she has been given anti-anxiety meds before, this was not the result. Her eyes were tightly closed and I could not rise a response out of her and others tried off and on throughout the entire day. We left her bedside at night hoping that the morning would present a different level of alertness. The following morning, she was still unresponsive for the most part and we noticed a sign on the door stating that the patient was NPO, or was to receive nothing by mouth. We asked the nurse the reason behind the order and she said that it was because she had choked on a drink and was unable to swallow. Unable to swallow? They had her on NPO until she could be evaluated by a speech pathologist. Since we wanted the doctor from the nursing home to have no involvement in her health decisions and care, she was treated by the on-call doctor - and their were at least a few over the period of a week. The contact with a physician went from every day for the first few days to not a word even when a nurse was asked to page a doctor. My mother and I noted that the antibiotics appeared to be all gone and she was only receiving a very slow drip of IV fluids. When my mother returned later in the evening, not only were the antibiotics gone, but the last of the IV fluid was gone in the bag. She summoned a nurse who brought her meds and a cup of water and my mother stopped her showing her the NPO order clearly posted on the door. And oops, the IV fluids and antibiotics should have been administered several hours before. Dry mouth, no fluids and no food by mouth. But word was her lungs were sounding much better!

While my aunt was with my grandmother the following day, a speech pathologist came into evaluate her swallowing. She indeed had difficulty swallowing and choked on a drink they offered her. By this time, the IV fluids have been withdrawn (without a clear explanation from medical staff), no doctor could be found though family members had asked and still the NPO order clipped to her door. She was still very groggy from the meds administered a couple days prior and a grim scenario was unfolding. They gave her a couple of units of blood due to severe anemia, and we were told she would probably be going back to the nursing home in a day or so. Her lungs were sounding much better, blood pressure stabilized, all blood tests indicated normal levels and we were all left staring at each other in disbelief. NPO but no mention of the dreaded topic: a feeding tube. My mother and her sisters were clearly stretched to a very dark corner of more questions than answers, and no doctor to advise us. I had a discussion over the phone with my mother and she raised a question which has become common place today, "But what about her quality of life? If she can't eat or drink, do we want her to have a feeding tube? Do we want to put her through that?" Knowing that she loved my grandmother and only wanted the very best for her, I reminded her that if that was her grandson in the bed and all of his systems were functioning properly but for whatever reason he was unable to swallow, she would be right there demanding that he be fed by any means possible. Her life is a life - no more or less important than the life of one of her great-grandchildren. That was just yesterday.

Knowing that today would be decision day, my mother was the first to go to the hospital this morning. She called me and left a panicked message telling me that when she got there, my grandmother was already moved back to the nursing home. I raced over to the nursing home and sure enough, there was my dear grandmother back in her bed at the nursing home. Her eyes were wide open and when I came into view she saw me and said, "Oh hi!"as if it had been a very long time since we had last seen one another. A very sweet aide was feeding her some pureed peaches and mashed potatoes and gravy. Yes, NPO my foot. Half of the mashed potatoes were gone (her first solids in over a week) and she was also drinking a thickened nutritional beverage. She said she didn't want any more food and I kept eyeing the mug of water next to her bedside table with the straw in it. I knew she had to be parched beyond belief. I knew she would be able to swallow just fine and was waiting to make my move. NPO could just take a bus to hades for all I cared. Just then, her social worker walked into the room.

A very nice lady, M. has been a very valuable asset to my grandmother and all of us. She tells you like it is and keeps communication lines open. She has gone to bat more than once for us on behalf of my grandmother and I felt like a bit of light entered the room. She said they knew last night she was coming back to the nursing home and they told her "the family refused a feeding tube" and she needed to set up a meeting with family to "set up comfort care" for my grandmother. WHAT?! We explained that there had been no such conversation, and seeing that I am her healthcare proxy and my mother is the secondary proxy, there was going to be no such order for comfort care. Thankfully, M. was relieved and said she wasn't ready just yet to put her into comfort care either. M. bent over closely to welcome my grandmother back and Grandma was clearly happy to see another familiar face. M. asked if she would like a drink and went off to retrieve some thickened juice for her. I decided to make my move and asked Grandma if she would like some ice water - her eyes widened and she said, "Oh, yes!" I offered her the straw and she sucked on that plastic tube with vigor! I pulled the straw out briefly to make sure it was going down and she said, "It's so cold!" I asked if she wanted more and she said, "Please!" The social worker came back into the room and I told her that the water had made a big impression. Then she offered my grandmother the juice and she drank all of that. Grandma said she wanted some more juice, so when the social worker left the room, I offered her more water which she drank as though she had finally emerged from the Sahara.

We met with the administrator of the nursing home and will be meeting with the social worker and supervisors of entire care team Monday morning to clear up any of the 'gray' areas and have a clear plan put in place. Again.

_____________________________

I found this excellent guideline for hydration and nutrition. Please bookmark it, print it, share it and if you are a Priest, please have copies of this available for your parishioners. Medical 'professionals' cannot continue to get away with starving and dehydrating human beings who they decide to not have a proper quality of life. Our loved ones cannot speak for themselves and it is left to us to fight for them just as they would fight for us if the situation were reversed. What about people who have no family nearby? Is it a good idea to handle medical decisions over long-distance phone calls? Here are some bullet points from the linked article:

We should provide food and water, even by artificial means, to all who are in need of them and can physiologically benefit from them.
The more burdensome to the patient a particular intervention, the less likely it is to be morally obligatory.
The provision of nutrition and hydration by artificial means does not differ in its moral dimension from the provision of food and water by fork and cup. Both constitute ordinary means of preserving life.
If death is imminent, the provision of artificial nutrition and hydration is not necessary. Death will follow from the underlying disease.
We need not undertake any medical procedures that will extend this life beyond its appropriate boundaries, but neither should we take any steps to shorten life out of exaggerated fears or misplaced concerns.

UPDATE: October 24, 2011

We met with the care team at the nursing home which included the social worker, an administrator in charge of nursing, the medical director (and my grandmother's personal physician for over 30 years) and the dietician. The doctor had just returned the previous day from a trip out of the country and had yet to read the hospital reports. He read much of them aloud at the meeting which filled in some missing pieces. The report indicated that my grandmother suffered from severe protein malnutrition at the time of her admission, anemia, dehydration and pneumonia due to aspiration. Anemia has been a constant battle for my grandmother since she had young children and the lack of protein was no mystery either. She had reached the point of less frequent bouts of alertness at meal times and quite often the protein offered to her was of no interest. She would drink nutritional supplement drinks, but since she had a very bad cold it was difficult to get her to eat or drink much of anything. She had also started to forget to chew properly and swallow. This is what most likely led to the aspiration.

The blood tests all indicated that my grandmother's systems were functioning fine for a 90 year old lady and her greatest difficulty was the struggles with dementia. We agreed that pureed food would be best for her at this stage and that she neither seemed to mind a change in the texture nor the appearance. It was also noted that in between meals non-thickened beverages were fine as she did not appear to have difficulty with them. With meals, they suggested that thickened beverages were best so that the consistency would remain the same for all food items offered to her. They were going to provide her with oxygen as needed and offer nebulizer treatments (which strangely had taken place even when she was in much better shape a couple of years ago but somehow were discontinued) as she had been diagnosed with COPD years ago. The doctor assured us that she will again, at some point, aspirate food again and wanted to know what extreme measures we wanted for my grandmother. He mentioned 'comfortable' and 'comfort' which threw up red flags for me. Doctors and loved ones do not share the same meanings of seemingly simple words. Having learned the hard way that in order to secure the care your loved one deserves you need to put all of the details on the table, I told the doctor succinctly, "We do not want to starve or dehydrate my grandmother to death simply because here brain is not functioning properly." I think my frankness had unsettled him, but I needed to be clear.

The matters of the doctor who failed to treat my grandmother prior to admission and the hospital telling the nursing home social worker that the family refused a feeding tube and were seeking comfort care directives are both being looked at. The former is being investigated by the administrator at the nursing home and she has promised a report in two weeks after speaking to all parties involved and consulting records. An entry on the physician assignment list with my grandmother's name had been crossed out which is something that is actually illegal to do on such a document. We are not sure what, if anything, there really is to do about the latter situation. Our culture clearly extends life in certain situations a thorn bush instead of a loving hand. If you have any comments, suggestions, insights, questions - and especially if you have found yourself in a similar situation - please leave a comment.

Book Review: The Fathers Know Best

2011-08-15T12:21:00.003-04:00

"The Christianity of history is not Protestantism. If ever there were a safe truth it is this, and Protestantism has ever felt it so; to be deep in history is to cease to be a Protestant"

--John Henry Newman

My most recent pick for the reviewer program at The Catholic Company was The Fathers Know Best by Jimmy Akin, well known Catholic apologist from the National Catholic Register, Catholic Answers and Catholic radio. I was thrilled to see it listed in their newest offerings and expected an excellent reference book citing quotes from the Early Church Fathers. What I received in the mail was much, much more.

Similar to other books in my library, Mr. Akins divides the quotations attributed to the Church Fathers by topic. This section is found in Part Two, the largest portion of the book. Topics in Part Two are: God, Creation, The Sources of Faith, The Church and the Pope, Morality, Sacraments and Worship, Mary, the Saints, the Miraculous and The Last Things. Topics are further broken down into subtopics, some of which cover the so-called hot topics of the day: female ordination, the permanence of marriage, contraception and sterilization and abortion. I would consider this portion the go-to section for those engaging in apologetics or wishing to better understand why Catholics believe what they do.

Lastly, but most interesting to this apologist wannabe, Part One is a refreshing addition to what can be a very repetitive study in other books covering the teachings of the Early Church Fathers. Often missing from other books, Mr. Akin concisely explains where the writings of the Fathers came from and explains the relationship between the Magisterium and the Fathers' teachings. He then includes maps of various regions where they lived and preached. Brief biographies shed light on some lesser known ECFs and refresh the memory about more familiar names. Closing out Part One of the book, additional writings which are referred to are explained and early heresies and schisms are explained. While reading through the section on heresies, I was struck by how many of them are quite visible in society (and sadly, sometimes in our own Church) today.

The Fathers Know Best is undoubtedly an essential book for learning about the early Church and how deeply Scriptural the Church yesterday and today truly is.

Updated Aug. 24: Save 10% this week using coupon code SUMMER during purchase. Save on all items including hundreds already marked down.

My Summer

2011-08-15T09:57:00.000-04:00

It may come as a surprise to many of you that I have not fallen from the face of the earth. For new readers, WELCOME! I have not posted since April and will try to explain my absence for those of you who may have noticed. Here goes:

April and high school track season blended into summer kayaking, camping, Boy Scout events and family visits. This was also impacted by the imploding of the motherboard on our PC, anticipation of quadrupling of school tuition next year (as our son moves on to high school), the head gasket needing replacement on my car with nearly 180k miles on it, looking for part time work which enables me to both help financially and still be Mom and a varied assortment of other things that come not in threes, but threes squared. Needless to say, but of course I will anyway, the blog was put on the back burner for months. Thankfully, we already had a mini laptop that can substitute for the desktop computer in a limited way until we can have the necessary repairs made.

I am currently reading The Closing of the Muslim Mind which is an amazing book that is sure to completely change the view of Islam to all who read it and recently finished Jimmy Akin's The Fathers Know Best. RCIA is gearing up for a new year and our parish has a lot of exciting things happening, yet I hope to make more regular contributions to the blog once again. I hope this entry finds you well. If you have prayer requests or wish to contact me either leave a comment or mail me at catholicponderings(at)yahoo.com. May God bless you!

On Blood Pressure, Edmund Burke and the Domestic Church

2011-04-04T12:10:00.001-04:00

This blog entry has been ruminating for a few weeks now and was delayed until my blood pressure finally recovered to within a normal range. Actually, I never took my blood pressure, and for all I know it never ventured into the danger zone. I can tell you that I lost a lot of sleep and my left eye twitched with such frequency that the crow's feet are more deeply defined on one side of my face. All due to the 'mama bear' reflex gone into overdrive. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, just know that to 'mess with' me or my faith, I can calmly re-educate you. Mess with my kid... watch out for Mama Bear!

Knowing that our regular readers are just as passionate about certain sensitive topics as I am, I thought I'd update you on a topic I brushed upon HERE in an earlier entry. From that post:

Our son who is in 7th grade came home with a permission slip for us to sign last night. It was for a seminar to be held at our local community college this month with the main theme of tackling bullying. The program is only for junior high students from all of the local schools and seems quite benign. He shared that they will have a speaker and then can choose different programs to attend. Then I found at the bottom a list of sponsors of the 2011 conference - YMCA, our local drug and alcohol abuse council, the college, other similar community organizations and at the tail end of the list was PLANNED PARENTHOOD. My reaction was not very contained when I read it and thankfully our son looked at me knowingly and asked, "What? You saw Planned Parenthood is on the form?" This was just last night and for fear of losing your interest so soon, I'll cut the details and get to the bottom line. By 8 a.m. I already had e-mailed the school principal with my concerns and sent Alex to school without the permission slip and written a letter to the editor of the local paper.

I was assured that Planned Parenthood was not to have any information distributed (or condoms?) to our children and they were not making any presentations. Were we going to be sending our son to something where Planned Parenthood was listed as a sponsor? We could not in good conscience send him. There were no pros to the situation no matter how deeply we looked. Between spasms overwhelming my eyelid, I desperately tried to figure out which was becoming more upsetting to me: Was it that Planned Parenthood was involved in this project for our children or that no other parent or adult in charge was upset about Planned Parenthood's involvement? The more I thought about it, the more agitated I became. I had become a three-eyed alien furious with an event that left other people looking bored to death. There was this huge, white elephant in the room and I was the only one (beside my husband) who saw that it was about to devour our children.

Taking the lemons I was served, we made the best out of the awkwardly quiet situation. Our parish was to celebrate the start of a 40-hours devotion on that very day. It just so happened that my Bible study group also was to meet that day. The day of the youth conference, our son and I had an amazingly blessed day. We started with attending Mass that morning and then went to Bible study for two hours. From Bible study, we went to adoration where we had signed up for a holy hour before the Blessed Sacrament. Not knowing if he would be up to an entire hour after our long morning, I told our son that if he wanted to leave the church earlier, he could just go step outside and wait for me. I lost track of time and being without a watch, I realized that much more than an hour must have passed. I turned to leave to find him and there he was, still kneeling in a pew in the back. He smiled and I looked at his watch - we'd been there in prayer for well over one hour and thirty minutes. We walked out and I asked him how his time with the Lord was. He looked at me with a huge smile on his face and he said, "Mom, this is the best day I have had in a long time." Wow. God is great! And to think of the alternative programming option for the day...

My letter to the editor did not make it into the paper that day, but it was printed the following day. Our local online news website covered the youth conference and included pictures. They acknowledged various supporters of the event and clearly absent was the mention of Planned Parenthood. I noted that in a comment to the author of the article and he replied to my comments noting that indeed Planned Parenthood was involved, and in fact, one of their "educators" had led a presentation that was offered to the children. What was the topic? Named after the quote often attributed to Edmund Burke, the 18th century philosopher, "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." Please forgive my repetitive nature, but I must point out the searingly ironic information again: Planned Parenthood taught seventh and eighth graders about GOOD AND EVIL?! If the bold print and capital letters do not convey the image of me to your mind's eye when I first read that information, please picture a 40-something woman with a twitchy eye, head spinning and green slime flying out of her eyes and mouth. Too vivid? You have no idea how understated the description is.

Our son came home from school and shared that his classmates all told him that Planned Parenthood wasn't even there - he stayed home for a complete waste of time. He had missed a lot of fun at the youth conference and a free lunch. At this point, it had become clear that many, many adults must have been abducted by aliens and had their brains replaced with something, well, alien. All common sense, obligation to the Domestic Church and commitment to a good quality education for our children thrown to the nearest metallic disc flying through the sky. I would offer to give them a clue but reconsidered knowing that I had played court jester long enough and made my viewpoint amply clear. And their viewpoint had been sadly made loud and clear - to me at least.

"The most merciful thing that a family does to one of its infant members is to kill it." --Margaret Sanger

Survey: Cafeteria Open or Closed?

2011-03-28T11:08:00.001-04:00

I was prompted to create this survey following an earlier post where I was labeled as judgmental and a non-thinker since I do not rebel against Church teaching. I will share results of the survey in a later entry. Please answer all questions that may apply to you. Thank you for your contribution!

*If you cannot view the survey properly here, follow THIS LINK.

Children: Begotten, Not Made

2011-03-24T16:11:00.012-04:00

Over the past week, I have been strongly conflicted while reading the book Inconceivable. It is about a Catholic couple who struggled with secondary fertility issues since their first child was born and turned to science in order that they may have more children. Since men are fallible, a medical error resulted in the mother's pregnancy with a child who was not genetically hers.

On one hand, I was deeply saddened while reading what Carolyn and Sean Savage went through. Their pain from having dreams of a large family dashed could not prepare them for the pain that was yet to come. Carrying a child and subsequently falling in love with the boy, all while knowing that the child was to go to his genetic parents upon delivery is for most of us unimaginable. On top of this, Carolyn had health complications and was putting herself at risk by carrying this child and giving him the gift of life. As Carolyn noted in the book, she could legally kill the child through abortion, yet would have to give the child to his biological parents upon birth if she chose in favor of life. Though I personally have not and would never choose to use In Vitro Fertilization to expand my family, I can feel so much pain while reading the words of both Sean and Carolyn. They desperately longed to do what was right for their family. Their plans for a large family resulted in two healthy sons and two miscarriages before they decided to choose IVF to offer them hope for a larger family. They are blessed to have a daughter who was conceived through IVF and in an attempt to further add to their family, once again underwent the implantation of three lives - embryos -which had been preserved frozen at a fertility clinic. This is where the real nightmare began.

On the other hand, and this is where the conflict rises, they knew what the Church teaches about IVF and decided that the Church was wrong and that they were right. They perceived a certain 'discrimination' against people who could no physically get pregnant without resorting to IVF procedures. A look at Sacred Scripture shows that Carolyn and Sean were not alone in their longing for children. There are perhaps dozens of instances of infertile couples struggling emotionally in the Bible.

In the Old Testament Elkanah says to his wife who was unable to conceive, "Hannah, why do you weep? And why do you not eat? And why is your heart so sad? Am I not more to you than ten sons?" Of course Elkanah's wife loved him, but she wanted to bear their child. Source

I do not wish to hurt the Savages any more than they have been hurt. It is they who put this story into a book and over the air waves into our living rooms, so I do feel I have some sort of implicit permission to give my own perspective on their deeply personal story.

It is my hope that they will read these comments and take them with the love and concern they are intended:

Children are begotten, not made.
Gifts are to be freely given and accepted - but never forced.
You are deeply in love with a boy who is not genetically yours, and could have been as well with an adopted child.
The Church does not discriminate against you because of your infertility; to the contrary her members want to help you carry the burden of the cross.
You made an extreme error in judgement just as everyone does. Begin anew and put aside your anger with Church teaching. Prayerfully discern why the Church says that IVF is morally unacceptable.
Isaac was the only son for Abraham and Sarah, yet through his obedience, Abraham was willing to sacrifice his only son for God.
Put yourself at the foot of the cross during this Lenten season and consider Mary, with her only beloved Son, knowing that he was destined to die upon a cross in order that all of humanity may be saved. She too carried a child knowing heartbreak would be inevitable.
Further encouragement of others to seek IVF not only leads yourself to further separation from God through mortal sin, it also brings others to the same destination.
Having children through 'any means necessary' serves yourself and your needs, disregarding God's will
Gestational Carrier is a horrid term and one the Savages used when they decided to have their remaining embryos transferred to another woman in further efforts to expand their family.
We all sin and sometimes it is with the best of intentions. If we are off the mark according to Church teaching, it is best to further investigate where we are wrong - not the Church.
Catechism of the Catholic Church: 2378 A child is not something owed to one, but is a gift. The "supreme gift of marriage" is a human person. A child may not be considered a piece of property, an idea to which an alleged "right to a child" would lead. In this area, only the child possesses genuine rights: the right "to be the fruit of the specific act of the conjugal love of his parents," and "the right to be respected as a person from the moment of his conception."

EDITED 3-31-11: A link to this blog entry was posted on the Savage's Facebook page and a storm followed. I temporarily removed the previous bullet points, but after having read and re-read the comments made by Mrs. Savage and others, have since returned them where they were initially. There is no delicate way to tell someone that they did something wrong and to suggest alternatives. Certainly that is the case where someone has been through difficult trauma such as Mrs. Savage experienced. One additional note: If a priest comments that he does not support the Church's position on IVF, one should not feel justified as many a priest has also supported gay marriage, artificial contraception, fornication, female ordination and numerous other topics against Church teaching. No one has stated that a child brought into the world via IVF is any less precious than any other child. It is not the child, but the means that the parents used to become pregnant that is a serious matter. Does that mean you think a child born out of wedlock is somehow inferior? Nonsense. Please read the information contained in the links at the end of the entry as I have added more.

From their Facebook page (not including comments made by other individuals though some are quite interesting):

"It is articles like this that leave me shaking in my chair. Off to take a deep breath and say a prayer for guidance. C"

"I know...it just hurts. I feel like the doctrine is so shortsighted and discriminatory. And, I can't count the number of priests who have whispered to us...."I don't really agree w/the church on this issue!", but are so deathly afraid to speak up and urge the hierachy to reconsider. C"

"[facebook fan], So sorry this upset you so! I just keep torchering myself and rereading it. My goodness, to say that we should have adopted....to say that she would never personally choose IVF...I find it so interesting when people are quick to say what they would or wouldn't do when they have never been in a certain situation. It seems so arrogant."

"I love my church. My next blog post is about my relationship with our parish. A few Sundays ago I sat in my pew and admired all of the families that had gathered for worship. Funny thing about it was...there were many there that have IVF children. They've just never been publicly 'outed' (or chastized). It's really, really hard to reconcile right now. C"

"Interesting thing about the [Catholic Ponderings] author. I think if the church changed it's mind, she'd change her mind. She is a devoted follower. I'm not always a fan of devoted "followers". Instead, I love to read articles, blogs, and published works written by "inspired ponderers". Critical thought, prayerful reflection and the recognition of the dangers of arrogance are probably a more accurate reflection of Jesus' loving approach to mankind. I often wonder what Jesus would say about the Church of our world. My guess is, he'd be shaking his head in disappointment. C"

Inconceivable was, as mentioned, a difficult read. It was well-crafted, alternating between Sean's perspective and that of Carolyn's, seamlessly taking you through a very painful time in their lives. I was brought to tears over and over as the waves of painful news mounted against this loving couple who were trying to cope with unimaginable circumstances. A little boy and a family were blessed with life and yet another family was left to cope with incredible emptiness and despair at what they had hoped could have been. +

*To read more about the Savage family or to order the book, visit their website HERE.

_________________

For further information on Church teaching in regard to infertility treatments and IVF consult the following:

In Vitro Fertilization: Ethical Implications and Alternatives

Catechism of the Catholic Church

In Vitro Fertilization and Reproductive Technology - USCCB

Embryo and Fetal Research - USCCB

Technology to assist infertile Catholic couples consistent with Church teaching - USCCB

What you need to know if you are struggling with infertility

Infertility: Terms you need to know

Quick Questions on IVF answered

Dignitas Personae

IVF and the Catholic Couple

The Multiple Injustices of IVF

NaPro Technology: Moral and Better than IVF

In Virto Fertilization and the Hermeneutic of the Gift by Christopher West

U.K. article: New fertility legislation will make it illegal to use embryos with a known genetic abnormality in IVF treatment

*Agree or disagree with the Church's teaching on IVF, please take this survey. Thanks.

North Dakota Bishops Warn Against Donating to Certain Charities

2011-03-16T14:13:00.001-04:00

On Ash Wednesday, the Bishops of North Dakota issued a guide on charitable giving. You may find that document HERE in its entirety.

They noted that all Catholics and Catholic entities including churches, schools and other organizations have an obligation to support only those missions which clearly support Catholic teaching. Listed are some less obvious and perhaps a surprise or two for you in the 'do not support' list:

American Association of University Women: AAUWʼs stated mission is to advance “equity for women and girls through advocacy, education, philanthropy, and research” and often provides local scholarships with money raised through book fairs. AAUW, however, strongly supports abortion rights and same-sex “marriage,” and opposes parental choice in education.

Amnesty International: In 2007, Amnesty International abandoned its neutral stance on abortion and adopted a pro-abortion position.

Crop Walk/Church World Service: CROP Walk, an annual hunger awareness and fundraising effort that beneﬁts many local food pantries, is sponsored by Church World Service (CWS), an agency of the National Council of Churches. Catholic Relief Services withdrew its name from the list of funding recipients since some of the partners of CWS support the provision of contraceptives in their overseas missions and programs and CRS could not guarantee that donations, particularly Catholic donors who have earmarked their contribution to those efforts consistent with Church teaching, would not be utilized for objectionable services.

March of Dimes: The March of Dimesʼ focus is the prevention of birth defects, premature birth, and infant
mortality. March of Dimes, however, also supports embryonic stem cell research, preimplantation diagnosis for untreatable conditions, and mandatory contraceptive coverage for insurance plans.

Susan G. Komen for the Cure: This anti-breast cancer organization is known for its “Race for the Cure”
fundraising activities (not to be confused with “Relay for Life.”) Money raised at these events has gone to
Planned Parenthood and the organization refuses to acknowledge the link between abortion and breast cancer.

UNICEF: The Holy See suspended an annual symbolic contribution in 1996 due to the “shift in UNICEF activities” that were once solely focused on child welfare but now includes contraceptive and abortion services.

May God bless †Most Rev. Paul A. Zipfel and †Most Rev. Samuel J. Aquila

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Hat tip to Thomas Peters from Catholic Vote for sharing the story.

Fr. Frank and Baby Joseph

2011-03-14T09:52:00.001-04:00

I have wonderful news to pass on today!

Press release from Priests for Life:

STATEN ISLAND, March 14, 2011 /Christian Newswire/ -- Under cover of darkness, Father Frank Pavone, national director of Priests for Life, arrived in Ontario, Canada, Sunday night to rescue Baby Joseph Maraachli from the London Health Sciences Centre. For two weeks, doctors at the hospital in London, Ontario, have been delaying the baby's transfer to a hospital where efforts to save his life will not be officially labeled "futile."

"I knew, after this dragged on day after day, that I needed to be here myself to get Baby Joseph to safety," said Father Pavone. "He needs to be in a hospital that cherishes life over the bottom line. After around-the-clock negotiations, this really became a race against time." Father Pavone was accompanied by Priests for Life staff, who were there to assure the transfer proceeded smoothly.

Baby Joseph and his father, Moe Maraachli, were flown with Father Pavone to SSM Cardinal Glennon Children's Medical Center in St. Louis, Mo., on a specially equipped air ambulance provided by Michigan-based Kalitta Charters, and sponsored and paid for by the New York City-based Priests for Life.

"If there is a chance this boy can live, we have to explore every option," said Father Pavone, who was to arrive back home in New York earlier today after weekend speaking engagements in Cleveland. Instead, he flew to Detroit and then on to Canada, vowing not to leave the country until he had Baby Joseph and his father with him.

"Priests for Life staff toiled through the night for many nights, working in concert with dozens of people to make this possible," Father Pavone said of the nighttime rescue mission. "Now that we have won the battle against the medical bureaucracy in Canada, the real work of saving Baby Joseph can begin."

Father Pavone said Baby Joseph's transfer was accomplished through the efforts of a number of people, including his parents; family spokesman Sam Sansalone; family attorney Claudio Martini; Bobby Schindler of the Terri Schiavo Life & Hope Network, St. Petersburg, Fla.; Dr. Martin McCaffrey, a neonatologist at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, Medical School; the Rev. Pat Mahoney, director of the Christian Defense Coalition in Washington, D.C., and attorney CeCe Heil from the American Center for Law and Justice, also in D.C. Father Frank also thanked the many other Canadian pro-life groups and individuals who have been consistent and heroic in their advocacy for Baby Joseph and for all the vulnerable. "We are united across national boundaries to continue to work together for a Culture of Life," Father Pavone said.

SSM Cardinal Glennon Children's Medical Center opened in 1956 and was named in memory of Cardinal John Glennon, Archbishop of St. Louis from 1903 until his death in 1946. The hospital was a fulfillment of Cardinal Glennon's vision of a health-care facility open to all children in need of medical care. The hospital is part of SSM Healthcare, which is run by the Franciscan Sisters of Mary. The system has 19 acute-care hospitals in Missouri, Illinois, Wisconsin and Oklahoma.

______________________________

Consider the power given to hospitals and doctors to decide who should live and who is a waste of time and money. This issue was compounded by the Canadian healthcare system. The hospital in Ontario claims that it was targeted with personal threats and falsehoods (because they were going to kill little Joseph) - and they just cannot imagine why people were exercising their free speech rights. This healthcare system is the same system that the current administration in the United States hopes for. The family simply wanted the child to be given a procedure so that they could take him home and that procedure was refused because the life of this little child was not valuable to the doctors and hospital administration. Even if an outside source were to pay for the procedure, the procedure itself was refused.

Praise God for Father Frank and all who have assisted in this matter. Recall the posting on Baby Faith back in 2009 and the problems this mom faced in Canada in regard to delivering her child that, according to medical advice, was not worth giving life to. The United States is not immune to the mentality of leaving medical 'professionals' to decide where life is worth living or not. Every day parents decide to abort a child because they may be born with a physical abnormality or not fit in to the ideals of our secular society. Need an example? See this post on prenatal testing, also from 2009.

EDITED 9/29/2011: Baby Joseph passed away at home surrounded by his loving family. Please read the story here.

Understanding Islam

2011-03-11T14:45:00.004-05:00

Admittedly, I am ignorant in regard to the religion of Islam. I know some foundational history and a bit about the Crusades. The rest of my knowledge is sadly based upon events which have ravaged both our nation and nations all over the world in the name of Islam.

I recently was contacted by a friend, L., seeking advice on how to proceed with a neighbor she has befriended. The woman is an Islamic immigrant from Pakistan and had asked L. for information about Catholicism and wanted to meet with a priest. As you can understand, my friend was both pleased and torn apart with the request. On one hand, she wanted to lead the woman to a font of Salvation, on the other, she was afraid for what this could mean for the woman and her marriage. Her husband had already warned her against converting to Christianity. Also in question was if it would be acceptable to keep the information from the woman's husband, possibly considered to be a lie by omission. I thought about it for a few minutes and arrived at the best possible answer I could give her: "Which is more important? Her marriage to a Muslim man or leading her to Christ where she can have eternal life? Christ is certainly the only answer to the question.

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Prompted to learn more after my discussion with L., I began searching the internet for sources of Muslim converts to Christianity. I was pleasantly surprised that there are vast numbers of former Muslims posting online about their conversion experiences. There were even Bibles online in the woman's native language from Pakistan. I have not done extensive research on any of the following sites and ask you to proceed with that in mind.

Answering Islam: Christian and Muslim dialogue

On EWTN's World Over with Raymond Arroyo, he recently interviewed the author of the book The Closing of the Muslim Mind: How Intellectual Suicide Created the Modern Islamist. To listen to the entire show, click HERE or to view, watch the embedded video below.

____________________

Special podcast for download exclusively HERE at EWTN and ONLY available through the end of March 2011:

THE MILITARY ORDERS AND THE CRUSADES(28:00)

The Crusades are often a misrepresented and misunderstood part of the history of the Church. James and Joanna Bogle reveal the compelling truth behind the crusades, investigating their causes and history. They also explain how various military orders were established to protect Christian interests in Europe and the Holy Land from invading Muslims after the first crusade.

Tickets for Services to Honor Venerable Nelson Baker at Basilica

2011-03-10T11:04:00.001-05:00

From the Diocese of Buffalo:

Free tickets available for Mar 18, 19 services at Our Lady of Victory Basilica honoring Venerable Nelson Baker. Pick them up at the OLV Rectory, 767 Ridge Road, Lackawanna, between 9 am and 4 pm, Monday through Saturday. First come, first served

Book Review: The Virtues

2011-03-07T12:48:00.000-05:00

My latest contribution to the Catholic Company reviewer program is the book The Virtues by Pope Benedict XVI. At a mere 142 pages, this book is a delightful gem and wonderful gift idea. The book is divided into two distinct sections: Part one contains the Theological Virtues and part two features the Cardinal Virtues (see also CCC 1803-1832). The book is comprised of excerpts from the Holy Father's homilies, addresses and encyclicals paired with quotes from Scripture and the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

Though I find it imperative for all Catholics to read the encyclicals and addresses as they come available and refer to them for further study, this book highlights the heart of the writings with a special focus upon the importance of living a virtuous life. From his encyclical Spe Salvi, the Holy Father explains:

"It is not science that redeems man: man is redeemed by love. This applies even in terms of this present world. When someone has the experience of a great love in his life, this is a moment of "redemption" which gives a new meaning to his life. But soon he will also realize that the love bestowed upon him cannot by itself resolve the question of his life. It is a love that remains fragile. It can be destroyed by death.The human being needs unconditional love. He needs the certainty which makes him say: "neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 8:38-39). If this absolute love exists, with its absolute certainty, then -- only then -- is man "redeemed," whatever should happen to him in his particular circumstances. This is what it means to say: Jesus Christ has "redeemed" us. Through him we have become certain of God, a God who is not a remote "first cause" of the world, because his only-begotten Son has become man and of him everyone can say: "I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me" (Galatians 2:20)."

In a time where modern occurrences can leave us feeling there is little to hope, sensing a decline in faith among people and an overwhelming absence of charity, Pope Benedict XVI reminds us that with the assistance of the Paraclete we too can be redeemed by immeasurable love. The love of Christ which supersedes all other others.

I highly recommend this book and think it would be wonderful to have with me next time I attend adoration. The theological insights shared by our Holy Father can only serve to bring one closer to Christ.

Time to Catch Up

2011-03-03T14:10:00.001-05:00

After having scared off regular readers of +Ponderings+ following my long absence, I still feel the need to share what has been going on with me and what you may have missed in the news about our Church.

Me: I am not one to share much information about myself, not so much out of concern for privacy, but it just goes against the hub of my personality. On a celebratory note, our family is no longer under the yoke of pay television. We had the satellite dish disconnected and don't even have an antenna for broadcast television. We don't miss the junk that came into our home on a daily basis and have discovered some wonderful films and television programs on Netflix. Out with the Viagra commercials, in with "The Bells of Saint Mary's" and "A Man for all Seasons".

There are two things that have occupied much of my mind and the first I wish to share is this: Our son who is in 7th grade came home with a permission slip for us to sign last night. It was for a seminar to be held at our local community college this month with the main theme of tackling bullying. The program is only for junior high students from all of the local schools and seems quite benign. He shared that they will have a speaker and then can choose different programs to attend. Then I found at the bottom a list of sponsors of the 2011 conference - YMCA, our local drug and alcohol abuse council, the college, other similar community organizations and at the tail end of the list was PLANNED PARENTHOOD. My reaction was not very contained when I read it and thankfully our son looked at me knowingly and asked, "What? You saw Planned Parenthood is on the form?" This was just last night and for fear of losing your interest so soon, I'll cut the details and get to the bottom line. By 8 a.m. I already had e-mailed the school principal with my concerns and sent Alex to school without the permission slip and written a letter to the editor of the local paper. After dropping by the school this morning and speaking with the principal about the issue, I drove past our local PP office and stared at the beautiful brick-faced and tastefully trimmed old building, feeling entirely ineffective and helpless. It was almost as if the building was mocking me.

Second, the all-time most popular post on +Ponderings+ is about end of life care. Find my December 2009 post about how our family is currently facing difficult decisions HERE. I just updated the entry.

The Church: Has the world gone mad? Here are some headlines that I thought needed to be highlighted.

Cardinal Raymond Burke: 'Liturgical abuses lead to serious damage to the faith of Catholics.'

Catholic Pakistani Minister Killed for Protecting Christians

Countdown to Madrid - Pope’s WYD 2011 Itinerary Released

First Glimpse at Pope’s New Book

Save Baby Joseph! There is an 18-month old baby boy who is about to be put to death by order of the Canadian government

New Edition of the New American Bible available on Ash Wednesday - The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops said its 2011 translation of the Bible will omit the word "booty" from a verse and replace "virgin" with "young woman." ?!

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That's all for now and keep watch for my review of The Virtues by Pope Benedict XVI later this week. ***At the Catholic Company: Save 15% through Sunday March 6th, 2011! Use code SOCIAL15 during checkout to get discount.

2011 Catholic Men's Conference in Buffalo

2011-01-10T10:57:00.001-05:00

Fr. Larry Richards

The annual Men's Conference promises to be a most memorable one this year! The guests include Jesse Romero, Fr. Larry Richards and Mike McCoy. I offer a challenge to all men who read this post to visit the official Men's Conference website HERE and check out the early-bird registration information and schedule. Please, prayerfully consider attending even if you feel reluctant. Men, bring your sons. Sons, invite your dad. Pay for the tickets and tell your Catholic friends or fellow Christian men about this amazing opportunity. Though this is a Catholic men's conference, any Christian man is welcome to attend. Included in the day will also be lunch, time for confession and fellowship.

We are committed men who recognize our need for God's help.

We gather in Christ's presence in an atmosphere of trust, equality, and anonymity to share personal feelings and experiences. We unconditionally accept each other and prayerfully support one another.

--Men's Conference 2010

Jesse Romero

Mike McCoy

"As iron sharpens iron, so man sharpens his fellow man."

Proverbs 27:17

The Pornographizing of our Children

2011-01-03T13:32:00.004-05:00

Scenario: You raise your children to know and love the Lord and our Holy Mother, to see all men and women as being made in the image of God and to understand that sexual relations are to be solely reserved for married people. They are surrounded in the home with love and images that remind them of their mission as Baptized individuals. You encourage them to frequent the Sacraments and remind them of the importance of prayer in their lives. By sending them to a good Catholic school and overseeing computer access and television viewing, you hope to protect them from rampant secularism. It is summer time and that means time for the annual Scout camp with the local troop for one of your youngsters. You trust the leadership and the other children in the troop are for the most part pretty good kids from what you have seen. 'Mary's' bunkmate is someone who attends your church which offers comfort that all will be well. When the week is over, you pick up your child and anxiously await the many stories of adventure, mosquito bites and poorly cooked meals over the campfire. Instead, a long story begins to unfold of two children (one leading the other along) in the troop whispering long into the night to all who would listen about how to view pornography on the computer without parents knowing. The images and vocabulary and that were planted into your child's mind, heart and soul can never be erased; innocence lost forever. Talk was not of nudity or descriptions of anatomy that one could view in a magazine twenty years ago. Described in minute detail is deviant sexual relations between siblings as viewed on the internet, acts between man and woman that no one with respect for the individual would ever consider doing, let alone record and transmit into cyberspace. Instructions are given on how to erase the traces of the pornography so that Mom cannot detect such visits. The conversation turns to the young 'educator' boasting about seeing certain classmates in the nude, mocking purity rings and other children who aren't 'going out with someone' and on and on and on.

Facts:

Every second - $3,075.64 is being spent on pornography.
Every second - 28,258 internet users are viewing pornography.
Every second - 372 internet users are typing adult search terms into search engines.
Every 39 minutes: a new pornographic video is being created in the United States.
When entering search terms in a search engine, 23% of all searches under the term 'porn' were under the age of 18. I will not specifically list other search terms as they are explicit.
The average age for boys to be exposed to pornography is age 12 and for girls it’s 14, according to a poll of 26,000 college students through 2009. By age 14, 82% of boys have been exposed to porn
25% of teen girls and 33% of teen boys have had nude or semi-nude images—originally meant to be seen by someone else—shared with them online or on mobile phones
There are 100,000 websites that offer pornography and 1 in 7 youths report being solicited for sex on the internet.
4.2 million (12% of total websites)
8-16 year olds in percentage having view porn online: 90% (most while doing homework)
US adults who regularly visit Internet pornography websites: 40 MILLION
Christians who said pornography is a major problem in the home: 47%
The United States is the top producer of video pornography
The United States is the top producer of pornographic web pages by far with 244,661,900 pages or 89 percent

Source

Pornography is ruining marriages, families and our children. The sin pours out to others and cannot be blotted out just as one cannot 'un-ring' a bell. Listed below are links to helpful sites, support and materials for suggested reading. We are under assault from satan and we all must take a stand NOW. Think this doesn't affect you? Chances are very good your child, your grandchild, your husband, your friend or your parent has been deeply affected by pornography in some form. Now is not the time to put your blinders on. Remember: Sin is not only that of commission. What are you failing to do today in regard to pornography?

True Knights - True Knights was founded to encourage the spiritual growth of men, to promote a true and courageous faith among men of all vocations world-wide.

The Porn Effect - established to expose the reality of porn for what it is; a weak and whimpering counterfeit of love which is emasculating men, degrading women and destroying marriages.

St. Joseph's Covenant Keepers - As St. Joseph's Covenant Keepers, we are not just concerned with our own families. We will also strive for a Christlike concern for the spiritual and material welfare of other families in our community, in our parish, and in other localities throughout the world.

Pure Love Club - the chastity outreach program of Catholic Answers, based in San Diego, California. Catholic Answers was founded in 1982, and is now one of the nation's largest lay-run apologetics and evangelization organizations.

Internet Filter Reviews

The Catholicism Project

2010-12-17T13:27:00.003-05:00

Bishop Kmiec's Pastoral Letter on the Roman Missal, 3rd. Edition

2010-12-06T11:30:00.002-05:00

Throughout its entire history the Roman Catholic Church has found its strength in the sacred mysteries celebrated in the divine sacrifice of the Eucharist. It has nearly become cliché to say that “the Liturgy is the summit toward which the activity of the Church is directed, at the same time it is the font from which all the Church’s power flows” (Dogmatic Constitution on the Liturgy of the Second Vatican Council n.10) Such phrases become cliché because they so ably express commonly accepted truths. The liturgy celebrates God’s plan of salvation, fulfilled by Christ, the Lamb of God.

Through His sacrifice on the cross, in which He shed the blood of the new and everlasting covenant, Christ Jesus leads us to the New Promised Land of the heavenly kingdom. This is our faith. This is our hope. All Christian activity is expressive of that truth. The graces imparted through our sacramental rites empower us to act in the world as God would have us do. As Church, we, its members, are unified by this truth that we recall and celebrate at every liturgy. Therefore, it is of utmost importance that every liturgy be celebrated with great care and reverence. This includes actions performed sincerely and meaningfully, and words chosen carefully.

From the earliest experiences of Church when the faithful gathered for the telling of the Good News, the breaking of the bread and the sharing of prayers (Acts 2:42), through the early formulations of liturgical texts and councils that developed our Creed, to the 16th century Council of Trent that produced the first universally adopted missal, to the Second Vatican Council that initiated a new era of liturgical renewal, up to the present day with the third typical edition of the Roman Missal, the Church has been developing itself and expressing itself through a recurrent effort to refine our ritual practice.

Many of the texts in the missal find their roots in the words of Sacred Scripture, patristic writings and the earliest prayers used in the first centuries of Christianity. This means that the words take us back to the origins of our liturgical prayer and our roots as the people of God. We are tied, through text, to all of the faithful in our Church from the earliest beginnings through to the present era. Languages have changed, text has been translated, but the truths expressed remain unchangeable. The truth known and celebrated in the age of the apostles is true for us today. In each age and in each language the Church strives to revere and celebrate appropriately the truths of faith. The words that we use in our age and in our language are chosen carefully to preserve the meaning and essence of that truth which we celebrate.

The scholars associated with the International Commission on English in the Liturgy and Vox Clara in Rome have worked in consultation with the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops to produce an English translation that invites the faithful of our country to become more fully engaged, with deeper understanding in the sacred mysteries that we celebrate. This text is comprehensible for our people, while remaining faithful to the tradition of the Church, noble in language and accurate in liturgical theology.

With the publication of the Third Edition of the Roman Missal and its English translation for use in the United States of America we are embarking on a new moment in the centuries-old process of liturgical refinement and renewal. This revised translation is an invitation to participate fully in the faith, tradition and theology of the universal Church as it has been handed down through the ages. As we become familiar with the new text we must be careful to avoid focusing on individual words. It is the context and the liturgical action that enrich the meaning of these words while the text helps to amplify and explain the ritual action of the liturgy.

I encourage all in our diocese to study the new texts and prayerfully reflect upon their meaning. When the time comes to use the Third Edition of the Roman Missal, let us all unite in a sincere celebration of the sacred mysteries praying the words of the new text faithfully.

These prayers are our inheritance from all who came before us, and the legacy that we hand on to those who will follow us. Thus, we continue to be the “one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church.” In obedience to the teaching authority of our Church, let us avoid straying from these words that were chosen carefully.

Our diocesan Office of Worship and our Liturgical Commission will help us to understand and implement the new Roman Missal. The Bishops’ Committee on Divine Worship has worked with the Federation of Diocesan Liturgical Commissions to produce materials for use throughout the country to help us in this effort. As we enter this next stage of liturgical refinement in our Church, let us seek to enrich our own appreciation of the sacred mysteries that express sacramentally who we are as God’s holy people.

Be assured of my profound gratitude and appreciation for all the clergy, religious and laity of our diocese for all that you do each and every day to build up the Body of Christ in our diocese.

May God bless you all!

Most Rev. Edward U. Kmiec