Priests never stop being deacons just because they are ordained to the priesthood. Here is a story of Fr. Tom Lewandowski living out his diaconal call. Log on to:
www.pittsburghcatholic.org/newsarticles_more.phtml?id=2529
By the way, my sister in the early 80s volunteered for the Appalachian Mission Center and Fr. Beiting. She met her future husband there. Check it out if you want to give a few weeks or your time serving the poor of our country.
Bishop Blase Cupich of the diocese of Rapid City wrote the following on January 31, 2007 which was subsequently printed on February 3, 2007 in the Rapid City Journal.
“… our elected representatives are debating the issues of abortion and the death penalty. Without question, the moral weight of these two matters differs greatly, since abortion involves the taking of innocent human life without any regard for due process. Yet, the convergence of these debates provides us with an opportunity to recognize how these two issues rest on the common claim that the right to life is universal and God-given. The assertion that every human life has an inherent and inalienable value will only be strengthened if we as a state apply this principle to the morality of defending both convicted criminals and the lives of the unborn.
“Even if it does not intend to do so, a state that opts for the use of the death penalty inevitably weakens the ability of its citizens to defend the sacredness of human life….” — Bishop Blase Cupich
Read the entire episcopal letter at: rapidcitydiocese.org/Bishop/Documents/CapitalPunishmentandAbortion.swf
In a world that seems at times hell bent on revenge and punishment, there is a real life story of forgiveness when faced with tragedy. I am talking about Sally Lancaster in California. To read her account log on to:
www.catholicvoiceoakland.org/2009/07-06/inthisissue1.htm
Remarkable!
“Pray as you can, not as you can’t!” — Fr. Mark Pierce
“Stop working for things that perish…” — Jesus
The Osservatore Romano today, July 31, printed an interview with the rector of the College of Vatican Confessors, who happen to be Franciscan priests. In it, the history of the Franciscan ministry of administering the sacrament of Penance in St. Peter’s Basilica is discussed, along with the qualifications of the confessors and a little about their life and work.
I recall so vividly my confession in St. Peter’s, just a few paces from the main altar. My wife and I made a pilgrimage to Rome, and this was one of my “must do” items on the itinerary. The priest to whom I confessed was an American Franciscan, the only American with this ministry in St. Peter’s. It may sound quaint, but in all honesty, the man saw through me and kept me in the confessional for 15 minutes or more. My confession, and his advice, literally turned my life around. I have thanked God for it since.
I would recommend anyone visiting St. Peter’s stop and take the time for the sacrament while you are there. And afterward, linger in the quiet of the transept reserved for penitents, then make your way to the chapel of the Blessed Sacrament and kneel before our Eucharistic Lord along with over a hundred people from literally all over the world, all of whom are praying silently.
By the way, the article in the Osservatore is in Italian, but perhaps some of you can read that beautiful language and profit from its contents.
“God’s love does not differentiate between the newly conceived infant still in his or her mother’s womb and the child or young person, or the adult and the elderly person. God does not distinguish between them because he sees an impression of his own image and likeness (Gen. 1:26) in each one.” — Benedict XVI, Address to the Participants at the 12th General Assembly of the Pontifical Academy for Life and Congress on ‘The Human Embryo in the Pre-Implantation Phase’ (Feb. 27, 2006)
I am afraid I was a tad bit distracted at 6:30 Mass this morning. In the pews were three religious sisters, two from one order and one from another. The two had traditional habits with the veil, black shoes and ramrod straight posture when kneeling in prayer before Mass. The one was in modern garb, street clothes, a bit more casual all around, but no mistaking her for anyone other than a nun.
I was struck by how at that Eucharist the old and the new, the traditional and the progressive, the young and the elderly all congregate without rancor, division or fuss. We all are there for the same reason. We all are Catholic at that moment, in that Present.
I think it is because we all are caught up in the presence of the Truth, in the presence of Love. We are truly church from 6:30 to 7:00 each morning. Thanks be to God!
“I have been privileged to give great gifts from my empty hands.” — St. John Vianney
Today’s Office of Readings includes a homily from St. Basil the Great. He talks of being generous to the poor.
My translation of the Italian:
“Actively do the good. God will approve of you, the angels will praise you, and all men who have ever lived from the creation of the world will proclaim you blessed, you will receive eternal glory, a crown of justice, and the reign of heaven as a prize for the right use of the things of this world.
“… freely give what you possess, be generous, even overly generous, with the needy….. How much you should be grateful to the giver of all benefits for the honor that he has given you! How much you should be content to not have to beat on the doors of others, but others beating on yours!” — Basil the Great, Hom.6 on charity 3.6; PG 266-267
The honor is ours to be able to give to the poor. The poor give us this honor in their need. We owe them what they need. This is a difficult thing to live out, but something the scriptures tell us will be the basis of our judgement on the last day.
A disturbing piece of news that I fear may be indicative of things in the future for health care workers nationwide.
A nurse, Catherina Cenzon-DeCarlo, was reportedly forced to participate in a late-term abortion. Her supervisors threatened her job status if she didn’t and reportedly misled Catherina as to the condition of the patient. Read about this at the website for the Alliance Defense Fund which is filing a lawsuit against the hospital in which Cenzon-DeCarlo is employed:
I’d like to draw your attention to the latest edition (August 2009) of Ethics and Medics, the publication of The National Catholic Bioethics Center on Health Care and the Life Sciences. Working in a medical center for over 23 years, I take keen interest in ethics in medical science and practice.
Edward Fulton, Ph.D., wrote an article in the August edition entitled, “Faith in Science, Reason in Religion” in which he turns on its head the popular understanding of faith and reason in both science and religion.
His essential point as I see it is that the physical sciences are essentially founded on faith in that they accept as premises that which is not proved by reason. From those foundations it reasons to conclusions; yet as Dr. Fulton asserts, those conclusions rest upon assertions of faith, if you will. (He defines faith as “the willingness to accept what has not been shown to be true by reason.”)
In contrast, religion is founded on reason, from which we assent to supernatural doctrine because such assent is reasonable. He points out that the existence of God is something that can be known from human reason alone. Philosophers throughout the ages have done so. It is from the reasonableness of God’s existence and his attributes that we make our profession of faith. It would be difficult to accept the truths of revelation if we could not know by means of reason the fundamental attributes and presence of God the Creator.
I quote his last paragraph: “Thus science and religion, as these are typically caricatured, turn out to be their opposites. Religion begins with certain truths about God that can be known by reason, and to this it adds articles of faith. Science begins with certain beliefs that cannot be known by reason, and to these it adds the discoveries of reason. Science has a dogmatic foundation. Religion does not.”
By the way, there is another article in the August edition on stem cell research well worth your time.
“”Behold, Lord, I throw all of my cares onto you, so I may live, ‘so I may see the wonders of your law’ (Ps. 118, 18). You know my ignorance and all of my ills. Teach me to do your will and restore me.” — St. Augustine
I would suggest you click on the blogroll link for “The Anchoress” (Elizabeth Scalia) and read her post for today, Wednesday July 22.
Or click here: www.firstthings.com/blogs/theanchoress
A wonderful piece on faith and reason!
“… reason and faith can come to each other’s assistance. Only together will they save man…. reason without faith is doomed to flounder in an illusion of its own omnipotence. Faith without reason risks being cut off from everyday life.” — Benedict XVI, Caritas in Veritate
“There are two forms of excess; to exclude reason and to admit nothing but reason.” — Blaise Pascal
I was listening to talk radio a couple of days ago, and one of the speakers made the comment that there are many who “are educated into imbecility.” I laughed at the time, knowing in the midst of the laughter that he was right, although I couldn’t really articulate my reasoning behind it all.
I then completed my reading of Benedict’s encyclical, Caritas in Vertitate, and found that his writing put words to it all.
Take a look at section 61.
I quote, “education refers not only to classroom teaching and vocational training…..but to the complete formation of the person. In this regard, there is a problem that should be highlighted: in order to educate, it is necessary to know the nature of the human person, to know who he or she is. The increasing prominence of a relativistic understanding of that nature presents serious problems for education…. Yielding to this kind of relativism makes everyone poorer….”
True education requires a good understanding of human nature. In our contemporary culture, our minds and our consciences are being blinded to even the recognition of the human person. We do not recognize a human person when we see him or her; our failure to extend the rights of personhood to the unborn is a glaring example of this. The advancement of the euthanasia movement is another example: we devalue and dehumanize the feeble. Those completely dependent on others are in effect, dehumanized.
A sizable portion of our society have been educated into imbecility.
Frankly, I believe this is a result of the failure to require learning philosophy in all academic programs at the university level. A failure to require learning theology. Faith and Reason. They are the cornerstones of an educated person.
What do you think?
