SXSW & The Big Deal Down South

What do a bunch of livestock, Alan Jackson, Kenny Chesney, Mary J. Blige, the Jonas Brothers, Tim McGraw, Darius Rucker, Rascal Flatts, Brad Paisley, Toby Keith, Lady Antebellum, Keith Urban, the Black Eyed Peas, Brooks & Dunn, and Selena Gomez have in common? They are all featured at this year's Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. And which local band is notably missing from this list for the first time in I don't know how long? ZZ Top. What's up, guys? The Eliminator must be in the shop. We've been here almost four years now, and we still have only made it to one Rodeo event: the 2007 opening BBQ cook-off.

And what's the other big deal down south? The annual South by Southwest (SXSW) live music festival in Austin. It's not too far away from here.

Faith and Reason Lecture Series (#2)

Our monthly Faith and Reason lecture series at St. Theresa's in Sugar Land continues next Tuesday, March 16th. Our last lecture with Fr. Jeff Reed was quite excellent and well attended. In our next lecture, Joseph Magee, Ph.D., will explore the rational limits and requirements of faith with regard to the individual and the community. Can we believe anything we want to believe? If you are in the Houston area, come on down Tuesday evening to Sugar Land (705 St. Theresa Blvd.) and check it out! Everyone is invited and bring a friend!

The lecture begins at 7pm and will take place in the new school library of the St. Theresa Catholic School building (upstairs and at the end of the hallway through the double doors). I look forward to seeing you there!

Also, by way of a preview, Fr. Brian Mullady, O.P., will be at St. Theresa's on Monday, March 22nd, to give our annual Lenten parish mission. Details to come, everyone invited.

The Anglican Church in America

Last week, the big news was that the House of Bishops of the Anglican Church in America (ANA - belonging to the worldwide Traditional Anglican Communion) voted to implement the provisions of Anglicanorum Coetibus, which means they will join many others worldwide who have elected to enter full communion with the Roman Catholic Church. This group looks to include about 3000 members in 120 or so parishes. As they report on their website:

We, the House of Bishops of the Anglican Church in America of the Traditional Anglican Communion have met in Orlando, Florida, together with our Primate and the Reverend Christopher Phillips of the "Anglican Use" Parish of Our Lady of the Atonement (San Antonio, Texas) and others.

At this meeting, the decision was made formally to request the implementation of the provisions of the Apostolic Constitution Anglicanorum coetibus in the United States of America by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

The National Catholic Register has more:

The bishops of the Anglican Church in America have voted to accept Pope Benedict XVI’s invitation to bring their 3,000 members into the Catholic Church.

The unanimous vote of eight members of the House of Bishops, who met in Orlando, Fla., brings 120 parishes in four dioceses across the country into the Church.

Also present at the March 3 vote and in support of it were representatives of “Anglican use” parishes admitted on a one-by-one basis to the Catholic Church in accordance with the Pastoral Provision of Pope John Paul II in 1980.

The move is seen as significant for both the “AngloCatholics” in the Anglican Church in America and the worldwide Traditional Anglican Communion — and the Catholic Church.

“We are returning to the Roman Catholic Church as community with a common past and a common future,” commented Christian Campbell, a Florida lay member of the Anglican Church in America and coordinator of a blog called theanglocatholic.com.

There are those who have ignorantly sought to downplay the significance of Anglicanorum Coetibus, describing it as merely "an extension" of the pastoral provision already in existence. It's certainly rooted in that effort, but this is proof that what the pope has done here is truly something new, as we now have the means to implement meaningful structures to allow for significantly large groups of Anglicans to become Catholic. But I'm just glad that it looks like the Anglican Church of St. Mary of the Angels in Los Feliz, CA, will finally be Catholic. Several years back, it looked like the community was ready to join via the pastoral provision as an Anglican Use parish, but for several reasons (some trivial, some not), that fell through. Ut unum sint.

UPDATE: I just want to correct a point here. It is now my understanding that even though the Anglican Church in America has voted to implement Anglicanorum Coetibus, it is still the responsibility of each parish to vote on whether it will join the movement or not. Thus, it is not a fait accompli that all 120 or so parishes will automatically join the Anglican ordinariate that is set up.