'Ignoto Deo'

It's so easy for me to picture Paul among the philosophers at Athens. The book of Acts records the scene at the Areopagus beautifully:

Then the brethren immediately sent Paul off on his way to the sea, but Silas and Timothy remained there. Those who conducted Paul brought him as far as Athens; and receiving a command for Silas and Timothy to come to him as soon as possible, they departed.

Now while Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his spirit was provoked within him as he saw that the city was full of idols. So he argued in the synagogue with the Jews and the devout persons, and in the market place every day with those who chanced to be there.

Some also of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers met him. And some said, "What would this babbler say?" Others said, "He seems to be a preacher of foreign divinities" -- because he preached Jesus and the resurrection. And they took hold of him and brought him to the Areopagus, saying, "May we know what this new teaching is which you present? For you bring some strange things to our ears; we wish to know therefore what these things mean."

Now all the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there spent their time in nothing except telling or hearing something new. So Paul, standing in the middle of the Areopagus, said:

"Men of Athens, I perceive that in every way you are very religious. For as I passed along, and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription, `To an unknown god.' ('Ignoto Deo') What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you. The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in shrines made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all men life and breath and everything. And he made from one every nation of men to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their habitation, that they should seek God, in the hope that they might feel after him and find him. Yet he is not far from each one of us, for `In him we live and move and have our being'; as even some of your poets have said, `For we are indeed his offspring.' Being then God's offspring, we ought not to think that the Deity is like gold, or silver, or stone, a representation by the art and imagination of man. The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all men everywhere to repent, because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed, and of this he has given assurance to all men by raising him from the dead."

Now when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked; but others said, "We will hear you again about this." So Paul went out from among them. But some men joined him and believed, among them Dionysius the Areopagite and a woman named Damaris and others with them.

Acts 17:14-34 (RSV)

Harry Potter... in Ancient Greek

My intention was to recreate a version of the book which would make sense to a Greek from any era up to the 4th century AD who had managed by some magical process (such as would only be taught only to very advanced students at Hogwarts!) to reach the 21st century. Objects and ideas would be unfamiliar - but once he'd got used to his new surroundings, the book would make complete sense. So I thought it was very important to have this time-traveling Greek in mind at all times, and continually ask myself "would that have any meaning for him? what would he make of that?" In other words a cultural transposition is involved, not just finding the words.

Classicist Andrew Wilson discusses how he translated Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone into Ancient Greek, published last October. Check out his website.

Harry Potter is also available in Irish Gaelic, and I have the Latin translation sitting on my bookshelf. I'll get to it eventually when I feel more confident!

I am randomly reminded of that scene in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade where, having escaped with the Jones Diary, Marcus Brody finds himself lost in Iskanderun trying desperately to communicate with the townsfolk:

Does anybody here speak English? Or even ancient Greek? No thank you sir, no water for me--fish make love in it. No thank you madam, no chicken I'm a vegetarian! Does anybody here understand a word I'm saying...?

Lost in his own museum.

In Full Compliance...

According to an independent audit:

The Archdiocese of Los Angeles has been found to be "in full compliance" with all aspects of the U.S. Bishops' "Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People".

Pray for JPII

According to Italian media, the Pope has come down with the flu and related respiratory problems and was taken to the hospital today.

L'enfer, c'est les autres

n'est-ce pas?

I promised I would comment on this. I like how my earlier post about la rue des Blancs-Manteaux immediately followed the one about Danny and Armi's music video. They kind of cancel each other out -- or maybe they compound each other, it depends. But that really wasn't the intention. It was more of a preparation for Lent.

Jean-Paul Sartre's classic Huis Clos was an attempt to illustrate his rather atheistic assertion that Hell (l'enfer) is other people (les autres). That is, Sartre's existentialism held that man can only define himself (or ascertain his image) according to how he is perceived by other people. However, what is fundamental to Sartre's beliefs is that man's existence has no universality: He is born, he lives, he dies; there is no second life, no afterlife, and no eternal life. Therefore, he has nothing to prepare for and no grand ideal to measure himself against, save what the others see. And so, he is therefore responsible for determining who he is to be.

According to Sartre, because man must gauge himself according to what the others perceive, he is doomed because other people only see the superficial -- they don't see what drives the man. Though man may strive to obtain heroic virtue, all it takes is one cowardly act for him to be branded a coward by the others for the rest of his life. And so man is trapped between the loneliness of himself and the judgments of the others. If he is to engage the world, he must contend with the others, and if he cares about their perceptions of himself, he abdicates his liberty.

In Sartre's world, man creates his own values. But Sartre's world is characteristically selfish. Man is focused on himself and his needs, he is subject to judgment by the others who care only about themselves, and there is a constant battle between what man keeps as his own liberty and what he sacrifices to the bondage of the others. Sartre's world can only exist if there is no grace, no love, no redemption, and no reconciliation. Sartre, being an atheist, would have no trouble admitting this, but when Christ enters Sartre's world, it ceases to exist.

I was reflecting on this recently because there are times when my observations about the world mirror Sartre's. A world that is morbid, dark, and weak. It is at those times that I find myself to be the most most selfish and the most superficial, even while I call myself a Christian, and I despair -- Thus, I enter Sartre's world. But, that is a lie. Sartre's world doesn't truly exist. It represents man's world at its worst, but there is a deeper, spiritual reality that is part of the physical world. And there is a grace that moves us beyond despair and into repentance and reconciliation. If we allow ourselves to be transformed by grace, which is unmerited favor granted to us by God, we can enter Christ's world. This is the world we encounter even at the height of our prayer in the Sacrifice of the Mass. It's a world that doesn't mask Sartre's world, but rather redeems it through self-sacrifice and the supreme self-sacrifice of Christ.

I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and your joy may be complete. This is my commandment: love one another as I love you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends. - John 15:11-13

Sartre observes a world without grace, unloved, and beyond redemption. Christ observes a world greatly loved and therefore, purely out of that love, worthy of grace and redemption. Sartre observed a selfish, physical world in which man is left to his own devices. Christ observes a spiritual world that is fundamentally transformed by the most unselfish act possible, where man is given everything he needs to know God, love God, and be with God forever. Christ obliterates the darkness forever because He has given us hope.

Santa Maria

Santa Maria, California, my home for about 10 years before coming to Santa Barbara, is back on the map again. I was there this past weekend to visit family, and yesterday, I drove past the courthouse to check out what had been setup. At that time, not many people had moved in, aside from some news crews.

Members of the community are renting out rooms in their homes at outrageous prices to die-hard Jackson fans who want to be near the courthouse. A local attorney, whose law office is right across the street from the courthouse and has the only nearby building with a flat roof, has rented out portions of the roof to 4 or 5 different news crews. And it was a little surreal to see a stand dedicated to CNN and Larry King Live. It's all a little too overwhelming for a modest town such as Santa Maria. Imagine the OJ Simpson trial in Mayberry... Okay, maybe Santa Maria is not that modest!

We'll see if I know anyone who ends up on the jury. :)

In Latin, fetus means child...

The San Francisco March for Life was held today, and it looks like it drew a pretty sizeable crowd, in spite of counter-protests from local politicians and other abortion friends who yelled and threw condoms at the peaceful marchers.

Check out some photos of the march at FreeRepublic. Big this year, even bigger next year. (Stove-pipe hat tip to Bill Cork)

The marchers were able to use the Women Deserve Better slogan from Feminists For Life.

I wish I could've been able to make it down today to the Cathedral in Los Angeles for Cardinal Mahony's annual Requiem for the Unborn Respect Life Mass. They were expecting a full house. Hopefully, I'll hear about it soon.

Join me this weekend in offering prayer for the intention of the right to life for every human being.

La rue des Blancs-Manteaux

Dans la rue des Blancs-Manteaux
Ils ont élevé des tréteaux
Et mis du son dans un seau
Et c'était un échafaud
Dans la rue des Blancs-Manteaux

Dans la rue des Blancs-Manteaux
Le bourreau s'est levé tôt
C'est qu'il avait du boulot
Faut qu'il coupe des généraux
Des évêques, des amiraux,
Dans la rue des Blancs-Manteaux

Dans la rue des Blancs-Manteaux
Sont v'nues des dames comme il faut
Avec de beaux affûtiaux
Mais la tête leur f'sait défaut
Elle avait roulé de son haut
La tête avec le chapeau
Dans le ruisseau des Blancs-Manteaux

I encountered this rather macabre song back when I read Jean-Paul Sartre's infamous Huis Clos when I was at the university. A little poem about public execution, the blade up on a scaffold, and a street that, in the end, becomes a river of draining blood. L'Enfer, c'est les autres, and all of that. I'll reflect on that later.

Danny and Armi

Fiat posts a link to the music video for I Wanna Love You Tender by Finnish pop stars Danny and Armi. Lots of fun to watch, and catchy lyrics; Obvious influence from Grease and Star Wars. Hmmm... My guess is that this was produced in 1978 when Danny and Armi were hugely popular (in Finland), and from what I understand, this song, sung in English, was one of their biggest hits. Here are the lyrics. Do people talk like this?

You love me, you wanna love me tender.
How can I be sure you're not pretender?
You want me today,
But what about tomorrow?

Oh, you're absolutely fine,
Your lips are taste of wine.
I'd like to think you're mine.
And if I could touch your hand,
This rock would turn to sand,
So this is where we stand.

Unfortunately, Armi died in 2002, but Danny is still alive and kickin'. Rock on!

Top 5 Vatican Myths

A speech by John Allen given at Marquette

Myth #1: Single-Mindedness
Myth #2: Absolute Control
Myth #3: Secrecy
Myth #4: Wealth
Myth #5: Careerism

Allen does a pretty decent job examining each of these from his point of view as an American observer in Rome. These are only the top 5 myths that abound, mind you. :)

Contraceptive dangers...

More news from Zenit on how the use of particular forms of artificial contraception are proving to be dangerous to women's health.

Homo Adorans...

My parish here in Santa Barbara has begun 24-hr Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament on First Fridays. It's good to see more and more parishes start to offer something like this again. Up until this point, only the Poor Clares downtown had offered First Friday 24-hr adoration. To the north in Santa Maria, one parish has been offering it for a few years now, and another large parish up there opened up their own perpetual adoration chapel.

So What's New?

* For information on how to donate and/or help relief efforts in Southeast Asia as millions of people recover from the tragic natural disaster and cope with the loss of hundreds of thousands of mothers, fathers, children, providers, and caretakers, check out Catholic Relief Services.

* Congratulations to the newly elevated Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston and to Archbishop Joseph Fiorenza. Also check out Bill Cork's excellent website dedicated to Young Adult and Campus Ministry.

* Congratulations to the Diocese of Saginaw on the appointment of Bishop Robert Carlson by the Holy Father, formerly of the Diocese of Sioux-Falls.

* Let's turn out those New Year's Resolutions.

A Meditation at Christmas

From Meditations on Christian Doctrine
By Cardinal John Henry Newman

1. God was all-complete, all-blessed in Himself; but it was His will to create a world for His glory. He is Almighty, and might have done all things Himself, but it has been His will to bring about His purposes by the beings He has created. We are all created to His glory - we are created to do His will. I am created to do something or to be something for which no one else is created; I have a place in God's counsels, in God's world, which no one else has; whether I be rich or poor, despised or esteemed by man, God knows me and calls me by my name.

2. God has created me to do Him some definite service; He has committed some work to me which He has not committed to another. I have my mission - I never may know it in this life, but I shall be told it in the next. Somehow, I am necessary for His purposes, as necessary in my place as an Archangel in his - if, indeed, I fail, He can raise another, as He could make the stones children of Abraham. Yet I have a part in this great work; I am a link in a chain, a bond of connection between persons. He has not created me for naught. I shall do good, I shall do His work; I shall be an angel of peace, a preacher of truth in my own place, while not intending it, if I do but keep His commandments and serve Him in my calling.

3. Therefore, I will trust Him. Whatever, wherever I am, I can never be thrown away. If I am in sickness, my sickness may serve Him; in perplexity, my perplexity may serve Him; if I am in sorrow, my sorrow may serve Him. My sickness, or perplexity, or sorrow may be necessary causes of some great end, which is quite beyond us. He does nothing in vain; he may prolong my life, he may shorten it; He knows what He is about. He may take away my friends, He may throw me among strangers, He may make me feel desolate, may make my spirits sink, and hide the future from me - still He knows what He is about.

O Adonai, O Ruler of Israel, Thou that guidest Joseph like a flock, O Emmanuel, O Sapientia, I give myself to Thee. I trust Thee wholly. Thou art wiser than I - more loving to me than I myself. Deign to fulfill Thy high purposes in me whatever they be - work in and through me. I am born to serve Thee, to be Thine, to be Thy instrument. Let me be Thy blind instrument. I ask not to see - I ask not to know - I ask simply to be used. Amen.

Christmas 2004

Merry Christmas from Ad Altare Dei!

The most excellent gift that I have received over the past few days is a renewed appreciation and love for our dear Mother, the Church on Earth and in Heaven, and our precious Lord who left us the wondrous mystery that is our Church. In preserving Her in spite of the sinfulness of Her members, She continues to bring us His teachings and give us His graces, and we have Christ's word that He will never leave Her. I wish never to take Her for granted! Would that, some day, I might even have the courage to lay down my life in witness to Her and that Christ to whom she is wedded.

Today's feast is more than a mere birthday. Today, we celebrate an event - the Incarnation of God in human flesh. We celebrate God humbling Himself so as to be born a child from the womb of the Blessed Virgin. Oh, the minds that have tried for centuries to wrap themselves around that one! Fundamentally, what we learn is that you and I are worth so much to God that He might do this for us.

For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him. -- The Gospel of John 3:16

We have value because God so loves us. Yes, even those who have no family or friends to love, those without a home, or without food, or without a steady job that they might earn a living and provide for themselves and their families.

Personent hodie Voces puerulae,
Laudantes iucunde Qui nobis est natus,
Summo Deo datus, Et de virgineo
Ventre procreatus.

In mundo nascitur; Pannis involvitur;
Praesepi ponitur Stabulo brutorum
Rector supernorum; Perdidit spolia
Princeps Infernorum.

Magi tres venerunt; Munera offerunt;
Parvulum inquirunt, Stellulam sequendo,
Ipsum adorando, Aurum, thus et myrrham
Ei offerendo.

Omnes clericuli, Pariter pueri,
Cantent ut angeli: 'Advenisti mundo:
Laudes tibi fundo Ideo: Gloria
In excelsis Deo'.

A marvelous mystery. Lord, I believe. Help me in my unbelief.

"Preach My Gospel"

New Mormon Missionary Manual is online. I post this only as a resource for understanding where LDS missionaries are coming from when they approach you. Above all, be ready to give an account of your Catholic faith and know and live your faith well!

Our Lady of Guadalupe

Got back from the annual candlelight procession for Our Lady of Guadalupe along downtown State Street this evening. It had been raining all day, but the clouds parted for our procession, thanks be to God! Bishop Thomas Curry came out to lead the procession along with several local pastors. It was wonderful to see thousands of Santa Barbarans, primarily Hispanic, turn out to participate in this. It's a powerful witness to the Catholic faith in a city in dire need of grace and reconciliation. It's a humble witness that Our Lady can give for her Son, Our Lord, in obedience to God the Father.

The procession wound up at Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic Church where Bishop Curry led a standing-room-only crowd in prayer. By a merely random circumstance, I was asked to read the reading from Revelation 12 before the assembly. That was certainly a humbling experience.

Maria, Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe, Patrona de las Américas, ora por nosotros.

The Tallis Scholars

Got back from a heavenly experience at the The Tallis Scholars concert this evening.

They performed renditions of the Magnificat by Hieronymus Praetorius and Orlando di Lasso, renditions of O Magnum Mysterium by Palestrina and Clemens non Papa, two Christmas pieces by William Byrd as well as Josquin des Prez's famous Ave Maria... virgo serena. Wonderful.

The concert was held at All Saints by the Sea Episcopal Church in Montecito, a cozy little church originally built in 1900 combining Gothic Revival and Shingle architectural styles, complete with wooden, hammer-beam roof. I missed the concert two years ago, which they held at Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic Church in Santa Barbara.

What did I say about UCSB?

Forget what I said.

UC to Play Major Role in Cell Institute

While no embryonic human stem cells are currently used in research at UCSB, there is "talk about organizing a stem cell program," said Dennis Clegg, chair of the Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology Department. "We are particularly interested in the biochemistry and molecular biology of the aging process."

They would like to recruit some new talent and get some of the benefit of the recent passing of Proposition 71, which will provide state money for human embryonic stem-cell research.

Blind Ideology

RU-486 is being linked with women's deaths and a load of adverse reactions. Some are calling for it to be taken off of the market, or at least that the FDA should warn women of its adverse effects, which includes death (Warning: May cause death would be an interesting label). Elizabeth Cavendish, interim president for NARAL Pro-Choice America, responds:

I think that the characterization of it being deadly and dangerous is really anti-choice propaganda.

Don't worry, women of the world, NARAL is looking out for what's best for you! Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain. Give me the wisdom of the ages over the wisdom of the world!

Eucharist means Thanksgiving

Be thankful and enjoy your feast. And don't forget about eternity -- or the coming of the Kanamits!

Please, Mr. Chambers, Eat. We wouldn't want you to lose weight!

Happy Thanksgiving.

Christus Rex

Hodie est et Festum Christi Regis et finis anni liturgici.
Laudemus Regem Regum Dominumque Dominorum!

Te saeculorum principem,
te, Christe, regem gentium,
te mentium, te cordium
unum fatemur arbitrum.

Quem prone adorant agmina
hymnisque laudant caelitum,
te nos ovantes omnium
regem supremum dicimus.

Exsultemus in amore Christi et exspectemus adventum Incarnationis Filii Dei.

Angel in the Waters



A children's book about life in the womb by Regina Doman put out by Sophia Institute Press. Go read it online!

Farewell Friend

I was shocked today to hear of the passing of Gerard Serafin, beloved of St. Blog's Parish. Requiescat in pace. I read his blog daily; I felt that he had one of the most balanced perspectives of the Catholic faith as a lived reality, and his desire for holiness was truly inspirational. Please pray for the repose of his soul.

Tallis in Santa Barbara

Laudate pueri Dominum,
laudate nomen Domini.
Sit nomen Domini benedictum,
ex hoc nunc, et usque in saeculum.

The Tallis Scholars are coming to Santa Barbara next month for a Christmas concert. I bought my ticket today!

You would have murdered Beethoven

Maurice Baring once told this story:

One doctor said to another doctor, "About the termination of a pregnancy, I want your opinion. The father has syphilis. The mother has tuberculosis. Of the four children born, the first was blind, the second died, the third was deaf and dumb, the fourth also has tuberculosis. What would you have done?"

"I would have ended the pregnancy," the other doctor replied.

"Then you would have murdered Beethoven."

Baring is also known for this:

In Mozart and Salieri we see the contrast between the genius which does what it must and the talent which does what it can.

Questions about Natural Family Planning methods

NFP - Myths and Reality

USCCB office of Pro-life Activities responds to ten myths surrounding Natural Family Planning. Although I have heard more myths abound, this is a good start. I can't speak to what engaged couples are actually told about NFP during marriage preparation throughout the country. I'd like to think that they're given solid, factual information and simple instruction, but, unfortunately, I'm not always so sure!

Church of Los Angeles welcomes Billy Graham

Here's an interesting bit of news. Billy Graham is having a crusade at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, CA on Nov. 18th through Nov. 21st. Cardinal Mahony is encouraging Catholic participation:

While there are some doctrinal differences in our theologies, we can certainly support Dr. Graham?s core message of the need for conversion of life and the establishment of a personal relationship with Jesus.

When the Crusade was held in other locations, many Catholics responded to Dr. Graham?s message and came forward for Christ. Crusade officials expect the same for the Los Angeles area. These officials have assured me that, in keeping with Dr. Graham?s belief and policy, there will be no proselytizing, and that anyone identifying him or herself as a Catholic will be referred to us for reintegration into the life of the Catholic Church. We must be ready to welcome them... Dr. Graham preaches the Gospel with great eloquence and with a true ecumenical spirit, and I encourage your parish to pray for the success of his efforts in our community.

I don't have huge problems with Billy Graham, but I'm not sure how I feel about openly encouraging this. The Cardinal clearly recognizes that Catholics consistently fill the stands at Graham's crusades -- that they do is undeniable. And it's admirable of Graham to refer them to the Church for further guidance, but I do have questions about how effectively this is done. Does everyone in Graham's staff uphold his personal belief and policy? Understanding that Catholics will be there, I guess there is no serious harm in supporting this, and encouraging pastors to be aware of this. It allows the Church to actively reach out to those who respond to Graham, rather than abandoning them into separation from the Church.

A Victory for Bush

USA Today's county by county map (Bush=red, Kerry=blue):


If case you can't tell, I'm in the blue county of Santa Barbara in Southern California, just to the northwest of the blue county of Los Angeles. Here's a closer look. Do you see how there were only three blue counties in Southern California? Do you also see the red county of Ventura that separates me from Los Angeles? Yes, even though California showed up solid blue for the electoral college vote, our state was pretty divided nonetheless.

One thing that is particularly clear to me, but apparently not to some, is who better represents American values? "Middle America" or these folks? At any rate, now it's time for W to live up to his promises. Terrorism, Iraq, the Economy, Dignity of Human Life. Time to move forward.

Along those lines, will pro-life democrat senate minority whip, Harry Reid of Nevada, succeed Sen. Tom Daschle as senate minority leader? He has the same inconsistency as Orrin Hatch with regard to embryonic stem-cell research, but alas, he has a better record than Daschle.

Adoramus Te, Christe

Msgr. Ernesto Mandara of the Diocese of Rome holds up the Eucharist during Mass in the city's Popolo Square Oct. 9. The diocese marked the start of the eucharistic year declared by Pope John Paul II with an outdoor Mass and procession through the streets of Rome.

Nobel Prizes

Let me take some time to plug UCSB!

The faculty at UC Santa Barbara was awarded two more Nobel Prizes in the respective fields of Physics and Economics just within the last two weeks. The university had already possessed four nobels, three of which were awarded within the last six years. This brings the grand total to six.

I received an undergraduate degree as well as a graduate degree from UCSB, both from the College of Engineering. I can say that the College of Engineering as well as Institute for Theoretical Physics are absolutely top notch and are improving every year. In fact, physicists today expect the next major research breakthrough in theoretical physics to come out of either UC Santa Barbara or CalTech. Not a bad playing ground, that.

The Beauty of the Liturgy of the Temple

I am struck by the imagery in this description of the work of Simon "the Just", the high priest, son of Onias, in the temple and the people gathered around him worshipping God. It is recorded in Sirach 50:1-21.

How glorious [Simon, the high priest] was when the people gathered round him
as he came out of the inner sanctuary [from behind the veil]!

Like the morning star among the clouds,
like the moon when it is full;
like the sun shining upon the temple of the Most High,
and like the rainbow gleaming in glorious clouds;
like roses in the days of the first fruits,
like lilies by a spring of water,
like a green shoot on Lebanon on a summer day;
like fire and incense in the censer,
like a vessel of hammered gold adorned with all kinds of precious stones;
like an olive tree putting forth its fruit,
and like a cypress towering in the clouds.

Can you picture that? It continues. It gets better.

When he put on his glorious robe and clothed himself with superb perfection and went up to the holy altar, he made the court of the sanctuary glorious. And when he received the portions from the hands of the priests, as he stood by the hearth of the altar with a garland of brethren around him, he was like a young cedar on Lebanon; and they surrounded him like the trunks of palm trees, all the sons of Aaron in their splendor with the Lord's offering in their hands, before the whole congregation of Israel.

Finishing the service at the altars, and arranging the offering to the Most High, the Almighty, he reached out his hand to the cup and poured a libation of the blood of the grape; he poured it out at the foot of the altar, a pleasing odor to the Most High, the King of all. Then the sons of Aaron shouted, they sounded the trumpets of hammered work, they made a great noise to be heard for remembrance before the Most High.

Then all the people together made haste and fell to the ground upon their faces to worship their Lord, the Almighty, God Most High. And the singers praised him with their voices in sweet and full-toned melody. And the people besought the Lord Most High in prayer before him who is merciful, till the order of worship of the Lord was ended; so they completed his service.

Then Simon came down, and lifted up his hands over the whole congregation of the sons of Israel, to pronounce the blessing of the Lord with his lips, and to glory in his name; and they bowed down in worship a second time, to receive the blessing from the Most High.

As you read this, what comes to your mind?

Which Biological Molecule Are You?


You are mRNA. You're brilliant, full of important,
interesting information and you're a great
friend to the people you care about. You may
have sides to you that no one understands. But
while you understand more than most people,
you're only half-there most of the time.


Which Biological Molecule Are You?
brought to you by Quizilla

Media Unbiased?

I oppose the war in Iraq, and I have many questions about how real the possibility is that the Iraqi people can take control and sustain a democracy after so much turmoil. Nevertheless, I do believe that the Iraqi people are better off having the chance to do this without living under the oppression of a brutal dictator. I have had an interesting time trying to form a balanced opinion about this matter - especially when thinking about who has the better plan to see the situation in Iraq all of the way through to really keep it from becoming a future haven for terrorist networks. But where can we really get a balanced view of things?

Chris at Veritas reports:

So, yesterday the Iraq Survey Group -- which was/is responsible for finding WMDs in Iraq -- released its long-awaited, 1000 page report.

Now, if all your news comes from the MSM -- like this AP story -- then you're bound not to hear certain things, like the fact that Saddam bribed politicians, journalists, and anyone else he thought would help him get rid of the sanctions on Iraq. Specifically, he went after France, Russia, and China, three countries which -- surprise! -- happen to have veto power on the UN Security Council.

In addition, the ISG found that Saddam's intent was that once sanctions were gone, he would begin -- again -- to actually develop WMDs, because the infrastructure for their production remained.

In other words, though there was no evidence of the physical existence of WMDs in Iraq, the future of the world is better without Saddam in power. I listened to details about Duelfer's report on all of the various networks, but the most balanced account, which included details about Saddam's bribery of the very countries responsible for imposing sanctions, was on FoxNews. Can we really trust those whom we like to call our Allies?

Quite the contrast

This was interesting. Toward the end of the 2nd presidential debate last friday, Sarah Degenhart asked the following question:

Senator Kerry, suppose you are speaking with a voter who believed abortion is murder and the voter asked for reassurance that his or her tax dollars would not go to support abortion, what would you say to that person?

An issue near and dear to my own thoughts. Here's what Kerry had to say to Sarah:

I would say to that person exactly what I will say to you right now. First of all, I cannot tell you how deeply I respect the belief about life and when it begins. I'm a Catholic, raised a Catholic. I was an altar boy. Religion has been a huge part of my life. It helped lead me through a war, leads me today. But I can't take what is an article of faith for me and legislate it for someone who doesn't share that article of faith, whether they be agnostic, atheist, Jew, Protestant, whatever. I can't do that. But I can counsel people. I can talk reasonably about life and about responsibility. I can talk to people, as my wife Teresa does, about making other choices, and about abstinence, and about all these other things that we ought to do as a responsible society. But as a president, I have to represent all the people in the nation. And I have to make that judgment.

In other words, Sarah, he can't reassure that voter, because he's going to use that voter's tax dollars to support murder. This position isn't popular enough to be worth defending, and Kerry's moral conscience, supposedly informed by his Catholic upbringing, has no part in decisions that affect the well being of the American people. One wonders how we can trust him to take a principled step in any endeavor that requires the motivation of his moral conscience.

Bush's response to Sarah Degenhart seemed much more clear:

My answer is, we're not going to spend taxpayers' money on abortion.

Kerry also stated that he wants to work to reduce the number of abortions, yet he's willing to give $100 million each year to advance research using stem-cells taken from destroyed human embryos. Am I the only one who fails to see the consistency with a position such as that? Bush's position, while insufficient, is at least more consistent. He stated what Kerry couldn't state:

Embryonic stem-cell research requires the destruction of life to create [extract] a stem cell.

Considering the pull in America today to federally fund this type of research, I'd say it isn't easy for a politician to stand up, take a principled stand for what appears to be the minority opinion: not to federally fund the destruction of human life.