Merry Christmas

This year marks our first Christmas in Texas away from our respective families. We're making the best of it by cooking a plump goose this year.

Since becoming Catholic, Midnight Mass has been somewhat of an annual tradition for me, and my wife has joined me in me in this. We went last night and experienced an incredible midnight liturgy. My wife sings in our parish choir, and so last night I experienced the fruit of their many weeks of practice as they sang, as a choral prelude to the mass, Antonio Vivaldi's setting for the Magnificat, complete with chamber orchestra. The new, most dignified and awesome tabernacle in our newly renovated sanctuary was flanked by flowers, with the blessed sacrament now reserved there for the first time. The Christmas liturgy was magnificent. It's good to be home here in Texas.

I could go on and on, but let me just say that I was also pleased that, at the very beginning of the liturgy, our pastor chose to read from a sermon given by 5th century Pope St. Leo the Great on the meaning of Christmas, a reading also taken from today's Office of Readings, which I had only just read privately before the mass! Here is the text, and this is all I will say today:

Sermo 1 in Nativitate Domini, by Pope St. Leo the Great

Dearly beloved, today our Savior is born; let us rejoice. Sadness should have no place on the birthday of life. The fear of death has been swallowed up; life brings us joy with the promise of eternal happiness.

No one is shut out from this joy; all share the same reason for rejoicing. Our Lord, victor over sin and death, finding no man free from sin, came to free us all. Let the saint rejoice as he sees the palm of victory at hand. Let the sinner be glad as he receives the offer of forgiveness. Let the pagan take courage as he is summoned to life.

In the fullness of time, chosen in the unfathomable depths of God's wisdom, the Son of God took for himself our common humanity in order to reconcile it with its creator. He came to overthrow the devil, the origin of death, in that very nature by which he had overthrown mankind.

And so at the birth of our Lord the angels sing in joy: "Glory to God in the highest", and they proclaim, "peace to his people on earth" as they see the heavenly Jerusalem being built from all the nations of the world. When the angels on high are so exultant at this marvelous work of God's goodness, what joy should it not bring to the lowly hearts of men?

Beloved, let us give thanks to God the Father, through his Son, in the Holy Spirit, because in his great love for us he took pity on us, "and when we were dead in our sins he brought us to life with Christ", so that in him we might be a new creation. Let us throw off our old nature and all its ways and, as we have come to birth in Christ, let us renounce the works of the flesh.

Christian, remember your dignity, and now that you share in God's own nature, do not return by sin to your former base condition. Bear in mind who is your head and of whose body you are a member. Do not forget that you have been rescued from the power of darkness and brought into the light of God's kingdom.

Through the sacrament of baptism you have become a temple of the Holy Spirit. Do not drive away so great a guest by evil conduct and become again a slave to the devil, for your liberty was bought by the blood of Christ.

Merry Christmas to all.

It's the small realities...

From The Richness of Ordinary Life, a homily by St. Josemaría Escrivá.

... Certainly our goal is both lofty and difficult to attain. But please do not forget that people are not born holy. Holiness is forged through a constant interplay of God's grace and the correspondence of man. As one of the early Christian writers [St. Mark the Hermit] says, referring to union with God, "Everything that grows begins small. It is by constant and progressive feeding that it gradually grows big." So I say to you, if you want to become a thorough-going Christian -- and I know you are willing, even though you often find it difficult to conquer yourself or to keep climbing upwards with this poor body of ours -- then you will have to be very attentive to the minutest of details, for the holiness that our Lord demands of you is to be achieved by carrying out with love of God your work and your daily duties, and these will almost always consist of small realities.

Hayrides, Carols, and Lights

Every year about this time (as we are told), various folks in our neighborhood put together elaborate trailers and structures for their trucks for the sole purpose of hauling boatloads of screaming kids around the neighborhood at night, singing carols and looking at Christmas lights. Our neighborhood is pretty big, so each trip could last about an hour.

Some friends on our street built a pretty impressive little ride... complete with two generators mounted on the front of the truck, a blasting stereo system with speakers attached to the top of the cab, and a six foot long trailer filled with hay in tow -- all covered, and I mean covered, with Christmas lights. It was 80 degrees outside today, and the night air was cool and breezy - how could we not go along for a ride? It's not my usual gig, but it was spontaneous and fun. Frequently during our little journey around the neighborhood, we would pass other trucks with trailers, filled with kids.

California vs. Texas

Honor the Texas flag;
I pledge allegiance to thee,
Texas, one and indivisible.

That is the pledge of allegiance to the flag of Texas, and I am told that children are even taught this pledge in elementary school here along with the pledge of allegiance to the flag of the United States. And did you know that the lone star featured on the flag of California refers to Texas, which, like California, did once exist as an independent republic before it eventually became part of the United States.

On that note, I would like to draw your attention to a post written by my beautiful wife concerning some of our observations: California vs. Texas.

Most people wouldn't put Texas and California in the same sentence, unless noting how opposite they are supposed to be. I've lived in both states, and find that they have a few things in common:

1. Both were once part of Mexico
2. Both were independent republics before joining the US.
3. Both have fabulous historical sites reflecting items 1 & 2.
4. Both states are huge, geographically speaking.
5. Residents of each state think they live in the best of all possible places, not just on this planet, but possibly in the known universe. Ask them. Neither can fathom why anyone would want to live in the other state.

Texas, however takes its state pride to a slightly different level than California. Furniture stores in Texas often feature pieces with the Lone Star emblazoned proudly upon them. You don't see many Californians looking for furniture with the Bear on them. Texas even has its own pledge of allegiance... I did a Google search, to see if California has its own equivalent. All I got was references to news articles and court cases about people in California trying to ban the national Pledge of Allegiance because of the words "under God". A similar Google search for the Texas pledge got notably different results.

Ah, California... Ah, Texas.

Parish Mission with Scott and Kimberly Hahn

We just got back from an advent parish mission at our parish, which included mass this morning followed by speakers Dr. Scott and Kimberly Hahn... Very enriching... and standing room only. I'm sure that folks benefited very well from having such articulate speakers come to visit us and talk about the beautiful truths of our Catholic Faith.

I was pleased when Kimberly Hahn referred to the conciliar document Gaudium et Spes, from the Second Vatican Council, to underscore her point about the life giving nature of the marital union as being a union with the life creating power of God Himself; this God who is Love and pours out love (as Love can only do) in the creation of new life. Also the important fact that just as children benefit from the love and education given by their parents, parents also benefit from the love and education given to them every day by their children. Gaudium et Spes (paragraph 50) says it this way:

Marriage and conjugal love are by their nature ordained toward the begetting and educating of children. Children are really the supreme gift of marriage and contribute very substantially to the welfare of their parents. The God Himself Who said, "it is not good for man to be alone" (Gen. 2:18) and "Who made man from the beginning male and female" (Matt. 19:4), wishing to share with man a certain special participation in His own creative work, blessed male and female, saying: "Increase and multiply" (Gen. 1:28). Hence, while not making the other purposes of matrimony of less account, the true practice of conjugal love, and the whole meaning of the family life which results from it, have this aim: that the couple be ready with stout hearts to cooperate with the love of the Creator and the Savior. Who through them will enlarge and enrich His own family day by day.

Made in Santa Barbara

From the SB Independent, courtesy of Goleta pastor Billy Calderwood. All of these items (and there are many more) started in Santa Barbara, California:

-Earth Day
-Balance Bar
-Shortboard
-Motel 6
-Sex Wax
-Sambo's
-Big Dogs (clothing)
-Kinko's (in Isla Vista)
-Ranch Dressing
-Egg McMuffin

Although I dispute the assertion that Tri-Tip is a Santa Barbara invention. Santa Maria has held claim to that for lo these many years.

Maria, Gratia Plena

The Magnificent Event of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Through a singular grace of God, in view of the merits of her Son, Jesus Christ, Mary was preserved from the stain of original sin from the first moment of her presence in her mother's womb. This was to prepare her as a sinless vessel, the immaculate ark of the new and everlasting covenant, through which God would take human flesh upon Himself and be born as a human being, human like us in all things but sin.

It does not refer, as many Catholics have been erroneously taught, to the conception of Christ in Mary's womb, although it does anticipate that reality. And whatever special grace Mary has that others do not have is there because of God. Mary's sinlessness can only be a work of grace, of being perfected and made whole. For Mary, God did this at the moment of her conception, though she still had the freedom to cooperate with that grace. For the rest of us, however, God does this throughout our ordinary human lives, so that all who enter Heaven are perfect as God is perfect.

In mense autem sexto missus est angelus Gabriel a Deo in civitatem Galilaeae, cui nomen Nazareth, ad virginem desponsatam viro, cui nomen erat Ioseph de domo David, et nomen virginis Maria. Et ingressus ad eam dixit: "Ave, gratia plena, Dominus tecum". Ipsa autem turbata est in sermone eius et cogitabat qualis esset ista salutatio. Et ait angelus ei: "Ne timeas, Maria; invenisti enim gratiam apud Deum. Et ecce concipies in utero et paries filium et vocabis nomen eius Iesum. Hic erit magnus et Filius Altissimi vocabitur, et dabit illi Dominus Deus sedem David patris eius, et regnabit super domum Iacob in aeternum, et regni eius non erit finis". Luke 1:26-33

The angel Gabriel came down to her and said to her, "Hail, Full of Grace, the Lord is with you.... Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bare a son, and you will call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the seat of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His Kingdom will have no end."

Through this we know that 1.) Mary was "full of grace", 2.) God chose her out of all the women of the world, and 3.) because she was to carry the Son of the Most High in her womb, God in the flesh.

Giving thanks and Richard Dawson

We've been pretty busy lately; we spent much of last week preparing for family visits during the Thanksgiving holiday, which we were very blessed to have so soon after moving out here to Texas. We spent a lot of time eating all the food we prepared and touring the city and surrounding areas.


Sometimes when I relax, I like to tune in to reruns of old Match Game episodes on Game Show Network. This show epitomizes all that was nutty about the 1970's, complete with groovy music, polyester fashions, historical trivia, and tacky attempts at humor. Gene Rayburn, my muse. But, if I see Richard Dawson kiss one more woman on the lips, I'll...

Two brothers...



Last week while in Turkey, Pope Benedict XVI spent a good amount of time with Patriarch Bartholomew I (Eastern Orthodox) of the very ancient and venerable city of Constantinople (Istanbul). It is certainly refreshing to see them together, like the two brothers Peter and Andrew. While it's clear that Benedict and Bartholomew aren't quite ready to join hands and sing Kum Ba Ya, one hopes that this visit will further dialog and strenghten the hope for future reconciliation between much of the Eastern Orthodox world and the Roman Catholic church... after 1000 years of schism. Ut unum sint...

Here they are giving a common blessing, courtesy of YouTube.com... Benedict pronounces the blessing in our cherished Latin, while Bartholomew pronounces the blessing in Greek.



This was only one of many memorable moments that occurred during this visit. Go here for more videos of the visit between Benedict and Bartholomew.

UPDATE: Joshua Treviño posts a very moving piece about his experience of the Patriarchal liturgy with Patriarch Bartholomew and Pope Benedict. Read it!

On the twofold coming of Christ

Taken from today's office of readings, by St. Cyril of Jerusalem.

We do not preach only one coming of Christ, but a second as well, much more glorious than the first. The first coming was marked by patience; the second will bring the crown of a divine kingdom.

In general, what relates to our Lord Jesus Christ has two aspects. There is a birth from God before all ages, and a birth from a virgin at the fullness of time. There is a hidden coming, like that of rain on fleece, and a coming before all eyes, still in the future. At the first coming he was wrapped in swaddling clothes in a manger. At his second coming he will be clothed in light as in a garment. In the first coming he endured the cross, despising the shame; in the second coming he will be in glory, escorted by an army of angels. We look then beyond the first coming and await the second. At the first coming we said: "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord." At the second we hall say it again; we shall go out with the angels to meet the Lord and cry out in adoration: "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord."

The Savior will not come to be judged again, but to judge those by whom he was judged. At his own judgment he was silent; then he will address those who committed the outrages against him when they crucified him and will remind them: "You did these things, and I was silent." His first coming was to fulfill his plan of love, to teach men by gentle persuasion. This time, whether men like it or not, they will be subjects of his kingdom by necessity. Malachi the prophet speaks of the two comings. "And the Lord whom you seek will come suddenly to his temple": that is one coming. Again he says of another coming: "Look, the Lord almighty will come, and who will endure the day of his entry, or who will sand in his sight? Because he comes like a refiner's fire, a fuller's herb, and he will sit refining and cleansing."

These two comings are also referred to by Paul in writing to Titus: "The grace of God the Savior has appeared to all men, instructing us to put aside impiety and worldly desires and live temperately, uprightly, and religiously in this present age, waiting for the joyful hope, the appearance of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ." Notice how he speaks of a first coming for which he gives thanks, and a second, the one we still await.

That is why the faith we profess has been handed on to you in these words: "He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father, and he will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end."

Our Lord Jesus Christ will therefore come from heaven. He will come at the end of the world, in glory, at the last day. For there will be an end to this world, and the created world will be made new.

Christ came first to be judged; When He comes again, He will come to judge us. As St. Cyril connects to the prophet Malachi, quoting him, he comes like a refiner's fire, a fuller's herb, and he will sit refining and cleansing... Christ, son of the living God, have mercy on us.

Let Them Say, "I Regret My Child!"

Janet A. Morana, associate director for Priests for Life and co-founder of the Silent No More Awareness Campaign, makes a very good point in her article, When Pro-Aborts Say, "I Do Not Regret My Abortion."

More and more women, as part of the Silent No More Awareness Campaign, hold signs at public events saying "I regret my abortion." The pro-abortion side, in response to this effort, is trying to give visibility to women who say, "I had an abortion and I don't regret it at all." ... Here's the point. We are saying abortion is hurtful, and they are saying childbirth is hurtful... The alternative experience to killing an unborn child is giving birth to that child -- not killing the child and then saying it was OK. The point of the Silent No More Awareness Campaign is that what the other side defends and promotes (that is, abortion) has a negative side that is being hidden and denied. To round up a group of women to continue denying it only proves our point, not theirs. The denial, in other words, continues, and most of the women who now hold "I Regret my Abortion" signs once said that their abortion caused them no problem at all.

If the other side really wants to try to mount a counter-campaign, they need to do what we have done, namely, take what we promote and show the negative side of it. We promote childbirth. The true reverse of our campaign would be to have women publicly come out and say, "I regret my child."

These groups that put forth abortion as the emancipation of women simply do not have a good response to these women who have found each other and are coming out to tell other women that their abortions have hurt them profoundly. Planned Parenthood, NOW, and NARAL have been trying to ignore them, passing them off as simply anti-woman... yeah, right...

Please check out Silent No More.

Marie Antoinette: La Reine Martyr



Just wanted to point out www.emvidal.com, which is the blog of Elena Maria Vidal (aka Mary Eileen Russell), author of Trianon, a historical fiction novel about the life of Queen Marie Antoinette of France, and Madame Royale, the sequel concerning the life of the Queen's daughter after the French Revolution.

Russell also reviews Sofia Coppola's recent film about Marie Antoinette. Christina and I went to see this film a few weeks ago. While I loved the film's use of scenary and costume, I agree with Russell's review for the most part, particularly this:

The Coppola film ends when the Revolution begins, at the moment when as Marie-Antoinette came into her own as the daughter of a great empress and as a queen who would not forsake her husband or her duty, even when to do so cost her her life. The new generation of movie goers will be deprived of such an inspiration that would be so powerful on screen. Antoinette's Christian fortitude is ignored and her personal tragedy is trivialized amid a movie of froth. Without the spiritual depths, the depiction is shallow and incomplete. I do not begrudge people their enjoyment of an art film about decadent adolescents romping at Versailles, surrounded by pastries and champagne, but the real Marie-Antoinette seems to be missing.

I guess the bloody details of revolution, courage, and martyrdom are too much real history for today's adolescents to appreciate...

Dogma is a Progressive Good!

As an addendum to my previous blogpost on the necessity of dogma, I submit this additional quotation from G.K. Chesterton, offered by Dr. Thursday of the American Chesterton Society blog:

People talk nowadays of getting rid of dogmas and all agreeing like brethren. But upon what can they all agree except upon a common dogma? If you agree, you must agree on some statement, if it is only that a cat has four legs. If the dogmas in front of you are false, get rid of them; but do not say that you are getting rid of dogmas. Say that you are getting rid of lies. If the dogmas are true, what can you do but try to get men to agree with them? Nevertheless there is something deeper behind the rather vague attack on dogma which is widespread in our world. I think what the honest anti-dogmatists really mean about dogma is something like this: it is quite true that when one is talking to simple people such as children or the very poor, one does not repeat theoretic dogmas in their very theoretic form. One does not use frigid and philosophical language. One does not, in short, define the dogma. But let no one suppose that one is any the less dogmatic. For the simple truth is that, instead of defining the dogma, we simply assume the dogma. A mother does not say to her child, "There is a personal God, the moral and intelligent Governor of the universe". She says, "God will be pleased if you are good". She is quite as dogmatic as a college of theologians. Nay, she is more dogmatic, for it is more dogmatic to assume that a dogma is true than to declare that a dogma is true. But she is certainly simpler and better adapted to looking after babies than a college of theologians would be. And from this fact flows a singular consequence. It does often happen that the more good or innocent a man is, the more he imagines that he is undogmatic. The truth is that, so far from being undogmatic, he believes his dogmas so implicitly that he thinks that they are truisms.

[GKC Daily News Feb 13 1906 quoted in Maycock, The Man Who Was Orthodox]

Remembrance Vespers, this week in Sugar Land

If you live in the Houston area, check this out. The Sugar Land choirs of St. Laurence Catholic Church and St. Theresa Catholic Church will be presenting an evening concert for Remembrance Vespers, featuring:
The Mass in G by Franz Schubert
with organ, orchestra, and soloists
conducted by Kevin Klotz

Thursday, November 9th, 7:30pm
at St. Theresa Catholic Church
115 Seventh St. in Sugar Land, TX
Admission is free, with free-will offering.

Don Giovanni, a cenar teco m'invitasti e son venuto!

Christina and I went downtown last night to experience Mozart's Don Giovanni, a production of the Houston Grand Opera at the Wortham Center for the Performing Arts. We had a great time, and we of course loved the opera. Not bad for our first time! We had seats up in the loge section, which afforded us with a really great view of the stage as well as the orchestra below. And surely, the cultural and historical significance of this opera was not to be missed. So much fun!!

If you're interested, here is a Playbill Arts article about this production, with some photos of the performance.

St. Catherine of Genoa, Treatise on Purgatory

... from the Treatise on Purgatory, by St. Catherine of Genoa, a most beautiful devotional read concerning purgatory and the holy souls embraced in God's perfect, divine love.

I perceive there to be so much conformity between God and the soul that when He sees it in the purity in which His Divine Majesty created it He gives it a burning love, which draws it to Himself, which is strong enough to destroy it, immortal though it be, and which causes it to be so transformed in God that it sees itself as though it were none other than God. Unceasingly He draws it to Himself and breathes fire into it, never letting it go until He has led it to the state whence it came forth, that is to the pure cleanliness in which it was created.

When with its inner sight the soul sees itself drawn by God with such loving fire, then it is melted by the heat of the glowing love for God, its most dear Lord, which it feels overflowing it. And it sees by the divine light that God does not cease from drawing it, nor from leading it, lovingly and with much care and unfailing foresight, to its full perfection, doing this of His pure love. But the soul, being hindered by sin, cannot go whither God draws it; it cannot follow the uniting look with which He would draw it to Himself. Again the soul perceives the grievousness of being held back from seeing the divine light; the soul's instinct too, being drawn by that uniting look, craves to be unhindered. I say that it is the sight of these things which begets in the souls the pain they feel in Purgatory. Not that they make account of their pain; most great though it be, they deem it a far less evil than to find themselves going against the will of God, whom they clearly see to be on fire with extreme and pure love for them.

God is merciful. His grace brings about our sanctification and salvation in Him, and it proceeds to complete the job even after death, so long as we desire, moved as it were by Him, to live in that grace and love here on earth.

Feast of All Saints, Feast of All Souls

These two great feast days have grown to be immensely important to my general spiritual life. Ever since becoming a Catholic in 1997, my appreciation and understanding concerning the mystical reality of the Communion of Saints and, indeed, the communion of all the baptized in the grace of Christ has grown in leaps and bounds. The realization that has most fostered my devotion to the holy souls in Purgatory is the realization that the connection we share with them and with the saints in heaven is not unlike that connection that all the baptized share, particularly those of us living here on the earth. We are all baptized into the same Christ, into His death and resurrection.

Sometimes it's easy to take our connection with the saints for granted. Our divine patrons and protectors, unceasingly offering prayer for us before God's throne. They behold the beatific vision, truly. And also those at God's doorstep, being purged of whatever remains of their sinful, selfish, and earthly inclinations after death before being able to completely behold the fullness of God's beauty and embrace. We have a connection with these souls that transcends the flesh. And our connection with each other really is no different. Yes, we interact with each other in the flesh, and though we do not yet behold the beatific vision, we should live with an appreciation of the profound spiritual unity we share in Christ. And so, knowing this connection, what is there to fear when one of us dies in God's grace? Yes, we can no longer behold one another in the flesh, but the spiritual reality is not destroyed since we know and believe that Christ conquered death.

So let us always and unceasingly offer prayer for both the living and the dead... and let us ask the dead, those who have new life in Christ, to offer prayer for us.

UCSB Daily Nexus & California Elections

Some interesting things...

My opinion of the UCSB Daily Nexus is not very high... and this is largely due to many, many reasons, not the least of which is their recent embrace of obscene and pornographic writing over the past couple of years. But I want to comment on a couple of their reflections of some of the California issues in next week's election.

First, it's interesting that they are endorsing Republican Arnold Schwarzenegger. That's the first time I've seen them support a Republican of any stripe... not that it's saying much.

But here's what they say about Proposition 85, which will require parental notification for minors seeking abortions in the state:

This proposition puts unnecessary pressure on young pregnant girls and could lead these individuals to seek illegal abortions. While it would be nice if all parents could be involved in their children?s lives, certain exceptions prove parental notification to be dangerous. Prop 85 does not account for abusive parents who would kick their daughters out of their homes or for victims of incest.

Well, that's just it, isn't it. If a girl lives in an abusive situation at home, what is the alternative? Why it would be the status quo. Give the girl the (dangerous, unsafe, medically unregulated, yet legal) abortion she seeks, and then return her back into that abusive living environment... no questions asked. Not a chance - that solution is not sufficient. If a young woman is in an abusive situation, then she needs to be removed from that harmful environment. I believe Prop. 85 actually facilitates this rather than protecting the status quo. Yes, it involves the law. But protecting children often does -- that's why we have the law and child protection.

(Of course many of us already believe, as the early American feminists believed, that abortion, even when it's legal, is the ultimate form of oppression of women).

The Nexus then endorses Diane Feinstein (no surprise there), saying this:

Feinstein has, for the most part, championed everything that Californians believe in. She is for education, the environment, a woman?s right to choose and embryonic stem cell research. Meanwhile, Mountjoy does not embody California?s generally liberal attitude.

Is California really that liberal? It may surprise you to know that Kerry won California by only 55%. Would you call that a landslide victory? It is true that California's largest cities generally come out in favor of abortion. But it isn't generally true for California as a whole. Of course, if you oppose abortion and embryonic stem-cell research, you must oppose education and the environment as well, right? ;p Of course, those of us who endorse medically proven stem-cell research that doesn't involve the destruction of human embryos are told to "Shut up! There's no room for discussion, here!" Bleh...

Count Dracula goes to Washington



Last week we were flipping channels on the television and landed on some show about vampirism... Apparently folks in Transylvania are upset with Bram Stoker for ruining the reputation of their national hero, Vlad the Impaler, otherwise known as Dracula. And they don't like the whole vampire-lore popular culture surrounding Dracula that Americans seem to perpetuate. "How would you like it", they say, "if we made George Washington into an evil vampire?" Well, I'd have to say, that'd be totally awesome! Of course, can you really compare George Washington to a man known for impaling vast enemy armies on a pike? Either way...

Have a happy and fun Eve of All Hallows! In whatever you do, don't forget that this day means nothing without the Feast of All Saints, Nov. 1st.

Pope Benedict wants "for many"

According to Fr. John Zuhlsdorf at the WDTPRS blog:

Three different well-placed sources I trust in Congregations here in Rome confirmed for me that the Holy Father made the determination that the words "pro multis" in the consecration of the Precious Blood will be properly translated, "for many", in the upcoming English text now in preparation.

So if we use one of the original drafts of the upcoming new English translation of the mass, I guess the words will fit into Eucharistic Prayer I something like this:

Who on the day before he was to suffer took bread into his holy and venerable hands, and with eyes raised to heaven, to you, God, his almighty Father, giving you thanks, he blessed, broke, and gave it to his disciples, saying:

Take this, all of you, and eat of it, for this is my body, which will be given up for you.

In the same way, when supper was ended, taking also this noble cup into his holy and venerable hands, once more giving thanks, he blessed and gave it to his disciples, saying:

Take this, all of you, and drink from it, for this is the cup of my blood of the new and everlasting covenant; it will be poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Do this in memory of me.

I don't object to the change; but I had heard good arguments that "for all" was a fairly accurate translation of the inclusive sense of the original language, transliterated into Latin as "pro multis". But nonetheless, "for many" more closely reflects the literal Latin, and doesn't necessarily destroy the sense of the text (in a way not unlike how our English bibles translate the phrase). Certainly, if this report is true, the Holy Father believes it is significant.

Please pray more...

The mother of a close friend of mine from childhood, of whom I spoke back in 2004, was diagnosed with cancer of the intestine back in 2004 and has managed to fight its spread relatively well only until recently. Now, things have taken a turn for the worse, and other organs are now affected. She is being placed in hospice care, and her situation is quite dire. Please take a moment to pray for her and for her family, for healing or holy death, if it be God's will, and for physical and spiritual consolation. Her name is Carolina. I only wish I was back in California if only to be present with them during this time. Like the families of many of my good friends, they have been so good to me. They included me in everything they did as a family, in spite of the culture gap.

UPDATE: Carolina died late Saturday night just after 11pm PST. Please pray for the respose of her soul and for the consolation of her family.

The Curse of the Child Star

... strikes again...

The Trouble With Converts...

Jeff Tucker writes about his feelings in his article, I Hate Converts on Beliefnet. A little bit of generalizing, but he has some good points. Jeff is himself a former Southern Baptist, like myself.

The life of a new Catholic begins with confession and then reception of the Holy Eucharist at the Easter Vigil, when many converts receive the first communion they have ever received in their lives. They are the center of the entire congregation's attention, and the grandeur of the Easter liturgy seems designed for them alone. They are the toast of the Catholic town.

That's also when the trouble starts. Gone is the humility of the confessional, as the pride of having grabbed the brass ring takes over. Many new converts make the mistake of believing that there is nothing else to learn, no more questions to ask, no issues in dispute. Since all seems settled and done with, it is time take on the world?the Catholic world especially. They become know-it-alls who appoint themselves as the fixer-uppers of the whole faith

... Converts should remember that after the Easter of baptism comes the Second Sunday of Easter. In past times, that day was sometimes called Quasimodo Sunday because the traditional Latin entrance hymn of the Mass says: Quasi modo geniti infantes, rationabiles, sine dolo lac concupiscite. That means that converts should be like newborn infants guilelessly drinking sweet milk from God.

Newborn infants. That?s the message. Remember the old adage that children should speak only when spoken to? You don't have to take it literally, but it's good cautionary advice. I suggest that converts first live the real day-to-to-day lives of Catholics for a while--and it's not always easy?before they dictate to the rest of us how to live.

This is why I have some problems with certain converts being hired as official Catholic apologists or Master Catechists in their parishes during their first year of being Catholic... I know there is a temptation to want to tell the world about the beauty of the Catholic faith, and that is something we shoudn't suppress at all! But we should be humble about it. In living the faith out, we come to a much more solid and realistic appreciation for it... and speaking from personal experience (as a convert know-it-all), I recommend that some converts seek spiritual direction after their reception into the Church. In fact, I would almost say it should be required that each convert be assigned a spiritual director. I would recommend the same for any Catholic who is serious about developing his/her spiritual life.

It's really sad to see some converts resort to being bitter and critical of the Church and its leaders within only one month after their reception of the sacraments. What does that really say?

All Saints Day Meme

Alas, I was tagged for this meme by Custos Fidei...

1. If you were invited to a Halloween/All Saints Day Costume Party, which saint would you dress up as and why? (The Blessed Virgin Mary,the Mother of God, is not an option.)

St. Thomas Aquinas, if only for the Dominican habit alone! being married will make it a little awkward... but, I don't think the wife'll mind too much!

2. Which saint or other person would accompany you to the party?

Meister Eckhart, St. Augustine of Hippo, Martin Luther, and a beer or two. There's your party right there.

3. What famous quote would help others identify you?

Sciences are differentiated according to the various means through which knowledge is obtained. For the astronomer and the physicist both may prove the same conclusion: that the earth, for instance, is round: the astronomer by means of mathematics (i.e. abstracting from matter), but the physicist by means of matter itself. Hence there is no reason why those things which may be learned from philosophical science, so far as they can be known by natural reason, may not also be taught us by another science so far as they fall within revelation. Hence theology included in sacred doctrine differs in kind from that theology which is part of philosophy.

They'll never forget who I am.

4. Describe your costume.

the Dominican habit... or some likeness... that's all I need.

5. Which movie or film best depicts the life of this saint?

I don't believe there is a movie or film... hmm...

6. What is your favorite book written about this saint or that he or she has written?

The Summa Theologica...

Jesus in Cowboy Boots, Part 2

This is in reference to my earlier post on the subject of the Jesus in Cowboy Boots statue found in Evergreen cemetery in Paris, Texas. Here is a better picture of the statue... with the boots, of course. After carrying your cross, enjoy a night of dancing with these fashionable boots. They look comfortable, even in cement form. (Actually, as I mentioned in the previous post, this may not actually be meant to represent Jesus, but it's something only found in Texas!)

An Evening with the Opus Dei Prelate

Just got back from an evening with the Prelate of Opus Dei, Bishop Javier Echevarria. He's a very personable and humble man, a joy to interact with. I'm going to reflect on the experience a bit more before I post in depth, but suffice it to say that there did appear to be well over 2000 people in attendance, from Houston and other areas. Overall, a good evening.

Cardinal Mahony on CA's Prop 85

Message from the news archive... and a transcript of a recorded message:

As you may know, under current California law a minor girl under the age of 18 cannot leave school to go on a field trip, she cannot get a flu shot, a tooth pulled, or even an aspirin from the school nurse without one of her parents being notified.

Yet that same child -- a girl as young as 12 years old -- can be taken by a complete stranger to an abortion center, put under general anesthesia, and undergo a surgical or chemical abortion without her parents' knowledge or consent.

This is why I urge you to support, work for and vote YES on Proposition 85, the Parents' Right to Know and Child Protection Initiative, on Election Day, Tuesday, November 7th.

Proposition 85 requires a physician to notify at least one parent 48 hours before performing an abortion on a girl under 18 years old.

Parents have a duty to protect their own children. Engaged in the raising of their daughter, parents have insight into what is best for their children; they know her personal and medical history. Parents are the best ones to help a minor daughter understand all her options if she becomes pregnant. Without parental involvement, other influences can dominate.

Parental notification laws are desperately needed to protect young girls.

Here is another vital reason you and I should vote YES on Proposition 85 on November 7th: secret abortions on minors allow the exploitation of tens of thousands of vulnerable girls, leaving them physically and emotionally devastated.

More than thirty states now have parental notification or consent laws, and these states have seen a dramatic drop in teen abortions AND teen pregnancies as a result of this change in the law. Here in California, the Office of the Legislative Analyst estimates that parental notification would reduce the number of abortions in our state by 25% per year.

So please vote YES on Proposition 85 on November 7th. And please do all you can to promote this crucial measure, and urge your family, friends and neighbors to do the same.

I hope you will join with me in praying daily, from now until the November elections, that voters will strongly support Proposition 85.

This same initiative was very narrowly defeated last year.

George Weigel: The Pope was Right

From the LATimes.

Good article also engaging the whole subject at hand... the pope's use of the quotation was not meaningless...

By quoting from a robust exchange between a medieval Byzantine emperor and a learned Islamic scholar, Benedict XVI was not making a cheap rhetorical point; he was trying to illustrate the possibility of a tough-minded but rational dialogue between Christians and Muslims. That dialogue can only take place, however, on the basis of a shared commitment to reason and a mutual rejection of irrational violence in the name of God.

And the reaction to the quotation also demonstrates this point. It is the confrontation, if you will, of dialogue between those who treat faith and reason as complimentary, and those who do not. Somewhere from that, dialogue must proceed. Reducing the lecture down to a quotation soundbite, as the press has done, does not even touch on the point of the lecture. I firmly believe that the primary cause of this violence has been because the press has so actively aimed to distort the lecture's point, first and foremost by deliberately taking this quotation out of context and waving it for the world to see.

Cardinal Mahony meets with Muslims

...from the News Archive.

It looks like it was more an opportunity to affirm interfaith commitments rather than a chance to discuss the substance of the pope's lecture (or at least the article doesn't discuss that part of the meeting with us), but I was still glad to at least see this:

The Muslim leaders recalled the hurt that many Muslims felt when Pope Benedict quoted a 14th Century Byzantine emperor who stated that Islam was spread by the sword. The Muslim leaders also said that they welcomed the pope's subsequent statements clarifying his position on Muslim-Catholic relations. The delegation also condemned the violent acts that targeted Christian churches and people in the wake of the pope's initial speech.

Dr. Muzzamil Siddiqi, Chairman of the Islamic Shura Council of Southern California, recalled "Nostra Aetate," the Second Vatican Council's document on the Church's relations with non-Christians, in urging Muslims and Catholics to re-double their efforts to work more closely together on moral, social and civil rights issues. Muslim and Catholic leaders have collaborated on issues of health care, education, immigration and the alleviation of poverty. Over the years, Catholic-Muslim dialogue in Los Angeles has resulted in the publication of two joint documents: "Religion and the U.S. Constitution," and a document on interfaith marriage.

This proves that many Muslims are willing to speak up and condemn the violent actions of the radical fringe. What also pleases me is the urgency on their part to recommit themselves with Catholics to interfaith dialogue, including collaboration on important social problems.

Sunday Homily: Faith, Reason, and Regensburg

I meant to post this excellent homily given by my pastor, Fr. Stephen B. Reynolds, last Sunday at St. Theresa's in Sugar Land. It is posted on our parish website here. The MP3 is about 17 minutes long, but it is a thorough treating of the whole affair.

Effectively, the homily treats the true subject of the Holy Father's lecture and notes how well the reaction from both some Muslims and secularists fit into it, all resulting from those who have tried to separate reason from faith (or faith from reason). I understand a hard copy will be available soon. The Catholic Church treats faith and reason as being perfectly complimentary, as Fr. Reynolds notes at the end and as I have quoted before on this blog, the opening line from Pope John Paul II's encyclical Fides et Ratio:

Faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth; and God has placed in the human heart a desire to know the truth -- in a word, to know himself -- so that, by knowing and loving God, men and women may also come to the fullness of truth about themselves.

We believe God is reasonable, that is, he can be known by way of His creation, His revelation, and also because we know that God always acts in accord with His very nature -- He is not capricious. The pope's point concerning Islam involves their belief in the utter transcendence of God -- that He cannot be known by reason, and any revelation on his part or assertion of rationality diminishes, in their view, His transcendence. This allows for God to act in a way that contradicts His own word -- it doesn't have to make sense to human beings because His ways cannot be known.

Pastoral Visit of Bishop Javier Echevarria

The Prelate of Opus Dei, Bishop Javier Echevarria, is currently visiting North America, stopping to gather with folks in various locations, including New York, Canada, San Francisco, and (next week) Houston. Here are some pictures of Bishop Echevarria's visit in New York. Christina and I are planning to see him when he visits Houston next week. It promises to be fun!

Opus Dei

Bill reflects on his experience with Opus Dei. I also attended last night's evening of recollection in Houston and, as always, I enjoyed it immensely. I have been greatly impressed by the caliber of the men involved with the Work, and most especially the priests. I also find a great appeal in the teachings of St. Josemaria Escriva -- though these teachings are nothing new! They are the teachings of the Church, especially as underscored recently by the Second Vatican Council (e.g. Lumen Gentium), but I believe St. Josemaria's message is one that our modern world desperately needs to hear and hear again.

We are ordinary folk, and yet every one of us is called to be a saint. God wants all of us! But how is this accomplished in us? Be a saint in your work! Our daily work, in our jobs and in our families, should be a fit offering of God; if it's something we can offer to Him, then our work is holy. I always try to focus on my individual relationships and conversations of the day. How simple they are, yet God is present even in that connection if you only look and are aware. Everything we do in our day is carried out in the presence of God. He is never far from us, so we should never lose hope! God is always making His presence known to us... And yet we must talk about being realistic in our spiritual growth. It's not easy, and we have many things that distract us... many failings... but God, in His grace, gives us what we need to turn things around and to live with Him.

Do not become alarmed or discouraged to discover that you have failings - and such failings! Struggle to uproot them. And as you do so, be convinced that it is even a good thing to be aware of all those weaknesses, for otherwise you would be proud. And pride separates us from God.

-St. Josemaria Escriva, from The Forge #181

I have also found great inspiration in the spirituality of the Order of Preachers (Dominicans), which I will write more about another time.

Yes, yes, exactly!

...She values especially the Greek and Latin languages in which wisdom itself is cloaked, as it were, in a vesture of gold...

from Veterum Sapientia by Pope John XXIII.

This is why I always prefer the original language, even when it is a challenge to process. Things carefully articulated and expressed in Latin just don't have the same effect in translation.

10 Programming Languages

From eWeek: 10 Programming Languages You Should Learn Right Now.

1. PHP
2. C#
3. AJAX (Asynchronous JavaScript and XML)
4. JavaScript
5. Perl
6. C
7. Ruby and Ruby on Rails
8. Java
9. Python
10. VB.Net (Visual Basic .Net)

Garabandal: A Word to the Wise

So apparently a woman named Wendy Benedick had been organizing a charter trip for pilgrims to fly to Garabandal to be present for the alleged Miracle of Our Lady. Aside from the fact that the claims of Garabandal are highly questionable, there is absolutely no date given for the Miracle (and apparently it is only known by one of the supposed visionaries of Garabandal) other than that it would occur eight days after the preceding Warning. The information for the trip is noted on Sadie Jaramillo's website (emphasis mine):

Contact: Wendy Benedict(sic)-Pilgrimage Tours
Mail payments to Wendy Benedict (sic)...

Means of travel: A 470-seat 747-charter plane. Departure: JFK Airport, New York City, New York Arrival: Victoria or Bilboa, Spain. Date: (to be announced) In March, April or May based on the announcement by Conchita [one of the visionaries]. Cost: The price is $1,500.00 ($200.00 is non-refundable) per person from JFK to Spain (round trip). Cashier's check or money orders only (no personal checks). Other Necessities: It is recommended that you bring a sleeping bag, tent, and preserved food items as we will be camping at the foot of The Pines. Check back with this site at a later date for a recommended list of equipment. Also do not forget to have a current passport.

Please note!! - only Conchita knows the exact date of the Miracle. The Miracle will occur 8 days following Conchita's announcement. If people wait until the Warning occurs, they might not have enough time to make a booking on Wendy's flight or make any other travel arrangements. This is why those who are serious about being on this trip must call Wendy as soon as possible.

Well, it seems that some folks had enough faith in the claims of Garabandal to send their $1500 to Wendy Benedick in the hope of securing a place on this trip, without any real foreknowledge of when it was to occur. The plans turned sour when Wendy Benedick died in April of this year, and now a lot of these folks are in a dilly of a pickle trying to get their money back. Apparently she left absolutely no information concerning the charter trip she was organizing, and now all of the money is tied up in her estate, with all of the legal complications, struggles with creditors, and all the rest. There is a lesson to be learned here... but I can't quite put my finger on it!!