This week's Catholic Carnival...

... is back at Living Catholicism.

"Coordinator of U.S. seminary visitations expects report this fall" - CNS

From CNS:

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (CNS) -- Archbishop Edwin F. O'Brien of the U.S. Archdiocese for the Military Services said May 26 that the Vatican's visitations to U.S. seminaries and houses of formation are nearly complete, and he hopes the resulting reports will be released this fall.

"Bottom line, I think this visitation was most successful," Archbishop O'Brien said in a talk to the 2006 Catholic Media Convocation in Nashville. A former head of two seminaries, he was coordinator of the visitations for the Vatican's Congregation for Catholic Education, which oversees seminary formation.

The objectives of the visitations, which were sparked by the sexual abuse crisis that hit the U.S. church in 2002, were to examine the criteria for admission of candidates and various aspects of priestly formation, including the intellectual formation of seminarians in the field of moral theology and the programs of human and spiritual formation aimed at ensuring they can faithfully live chaste, celibate lives.

...

"Each seminary will get its own report. The question is will it be made public?" Archbishop O'Brien said."I think each report should be made public to the appropriate constituencies," he added.

He said it would be difficult to keep the results confidential.

...

He said the overall report won't name specific seminaries or rank them in terms of compliance with the congregation's objectives.

...

"I hope there will be consequences for all concerned," he said. "I just don't know what means Rome will use to make sure seminaries are in compliance."

[Read the entire article.]

What guarantee is there that this report won't be quickly filed-away and forgotten?

Update: Diogenes posts his comments here.

"Woman balks at having 6/6/6 'devil' baby" - UPI

From UPI:

CAVERSHAM, England, May 30 (UPI) -- A woman in England due to give birth on June 6 is fighting with her hospital to induce her sooner to avoid delivering on the demonic date of 6/6/6.
Melissa Parker, 30, said as a fan of "The Omen," a movie about a demonic child, she's genuinely concerned about the numerology involved, The Sun reported Tuesday.
"I'm terrified the birth will go wrong or the child will have evil in him or her," Parker said. "Even worse my beautiful baby could be the devil himself -- the anti-Christ."
The figure 666 is mentioned in the Bible and various cultures believe it represents the date the anti-Christ will appear on Earth, but that doesn't hold any water at the Royal Berkshire Hospital.
A hospital spokesman said Parker's request for an induction was refused because due dates are not 100 percent certain.
"There is little we can do to change them without a Caesarean or inducing the child, which we try to avoid," the spokesman said. "We must let nature take its course. The baby will be born when ready, no matter what day it is."

Ugh. How sad...

Domenico Bettinelli is job searching...

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Dom is currently the editor of Catholic World Report Magazine.

Click here for more info about him.

CB's reflections on Pope Benedict's visit to Auschwitz

Christopher Blosser analyzes what is quickly becoming the most talked-about event of the Poland Trip:

On Sunday, May 28, 2006, Pope Benedict XVI walked in silence under the iron gate bearing the Nazi slogan, "Arbeit Macht Frei," or "Work Makes You Free," and into the concentration camp of Auschwitz. [More...]

The inscrutable ways of God: Opus Dei membership boosted by Da Vinci Code

Via AMDG:

The controversial religious organisation lambasted in the blockbuster movie and book The Da Vinci Code has revealed that membership inquiries have soared in the past year.

...

Jack Valera, Opus Dei's UK spokesman, said: "We're getting 10 times more enquiries than we would normally get. Over the last two months, as the hype for the film has built up, we have had about 50 inquiries a month about membership. We would normally get about three or four a month. [More...]

"Church-run programs making inroads on AIDS in Zambia" - CWNews

From CWNews:

May. 30 (CWNews.com) - The chancellor of the Ndola diocese in Zambia reports that Church efforts to combat AIDS have produced strong positive results by emphasizing traditional Christian moral principles.

Father Alick Mbanda told officials of Aid to the Church in Need that Catholic agencies are sexual abstinence and marital fidelity, while providing medical help for those already infected with AIDS. "Of late, we have at last begun to see a bit of progress," he said. "The numbers of people infected with HIV have not been going up and, because of the campaign; the numbers are finally coming down." [More...]

A Sandro double-header

The latest two articles from Vatican analyst Sandro Magister:

• The Pope at Auschwitz: “They wanted to kill God”: “By destroying Israel, they ultimately wanted to tear up the taproot of the Christian faith.” A startling interpretation of the Holocaust in the words of the German pope
• The New Curia of Benedict XVI Looks toward Asia: The new prefect of “Propaganda Fide” comes from India. And the new secretary of the congregation for the liturgy is from Sri Lanka. His first public address was the presentation of a book. And it was revealing

"Blair to meet Pope and invite him to UK" - CNA

From CNA:

London, May. 30, 2006 (CNA) - British Prime Minister Tony Blair is expected to have his first papal audience with Pope Benedict XVI this weekend and to invite the pontiff to set a date for his first visit to the UK, the Telegraph reports.

This is Blair’s second papal audience in three years. Blair had a private audience with Pope John Paul II in 2003 during which the late pontiff expressed his reservations about military action in Iraq.

The audience with Pope Benedict is expected to include discussions about reconciliation between the Muslim and Christian faiths.Blair's wife, Cherie, is Catholic.

She met Pope Benedict in a private audience in April, after attending a Vatican conference on young people.

The feast of Chesterton - hoorah!

Yesterday Gilbert Keith Chesterton turned 132 years old!

The Chesterton and Friends blog is where you want to hang out for the party.

A short description of what is happening over there:

"[we] will be producing an extended look at both G.K. Chesterton's life and the Chestertonian Life during the period of May 29 to June 14 inclusive... Our aim is not only to deliver a useful and engaging treatment of Gilbert's life (which it will be, we hope), but also to foster thought and discussion about the Catholic life, and Life in general." [Learn More...]

I would also recommend taking a look at Gilbert! the Magazine of G. K. Chesterton (which my family has subscribed to from the beginning of its publication and thoroughly enjoy).

Finally, Dale Ahlquist, President of the American Chesterton Society has a short "pithy bio" of GKC.

His recent book, G. K. Chesterton: Apostle of Common Sense is now available ($10).

Sounds like a parody but isn't: "College too Catholic"

Via Curt Jester:

STUDENTS at Bexley's first sixth form college are in revolt because they claim their Roman Catholic college is too Catholic.

Nearly a third of the students at St Luke's College, Chislehurst Road, Sidcup, have protested to headteacher Maria Williams, likening practices at the college to "fanatical religious cults".

The 16 to 18-year-olds claim they are forced to attend "evangelical talks" expressing puritanical views on subjects such as chastity and homosexuality.

They say they were made to walk around the school field carrying a statue of the Virgin Mary singing hymns and have been hauled into the principal's office for holding hands off college premises and told they were a "disgrace".

Girls have also been banned from wearing skirts shorter than knee-length and boys from wearing three-quarter length trousers because they are deemed as "disrespectful".

The most recent mandatory talk by pro-life campaigner Barbara McGuigan, founder of pressure group Voice of Virtue International, prompted more than 100 of the 383 students at the college to sign a protest petition to Mrs Williams.

They also claim many parents complained.

One student told News Shopper: "We were dictated right-wing views typically associated with extreme religious groups."

...

Another student said: "Although we accepted by going to a Catholic college we would be signing up to the Catholic ethos, we had no idea we were also joining an institution which embraced many values present within many fanatical religous cults."

Accusing the headteacher of "losing a grip on reality" the student referred to the religious procession and added: "We would certainly not have been forced to do such an extreme ritual in any of our previous schools." [More...]

Babies aborted for not being perfect - DailyMail

From the UK Daily Mail (via Drudge):

Babies aborted for not being perfect

The ethical storm over abortions has been renewed as it emerged that terminations are being carried out for minor, treatable birth defects.

Late terminations have been performed in recent years because the babies had club feet, official figures show. Other babies were destroyed because they had webbed fingers or extra digits.

Such defects can often be corrected with a simple operation or physiotherapy.

The revelation sparked fears that abortion is increasingly being used to satisfy couples' desire for the 'perfect' baby.

A leading doctor said people were right to be 'totally shocked' that abortions were being carried out for such conditions.

Campaigners warned we are turning into a society that can no longer tolerate imperfection. Doctors were recently told they can now screen IVF embryos to try to weed out inherited cancers.

Ethical groups fear parents are opting for abortions because they are not told of the support and help available if they continued with the pregnancy.

Details of the terminations emerged as new figures revealed an alarming rise in the use of an abortion pill that has been linked to 10 deaths. [More...]

One line in particular got to me:

"Remarkable pictures recently have revealed how at just 23 weeks baby in the womb appears to smile, yawn and flinch in pain."

Why must the verb "appear" be used to qualify what a baby does in the womb (like "smiling, yawning and flinching in pain")? Oh that's right - because it's not human?!

Another nonsensical line:

"if, as a society, we are truly committed to equality for people with disabilities then such blatant discrimination against the disabled unborn must stop."

It's discrimination to kill a child with a disability, but "the parent's choice" when killing a healthy baby.

Update: the second quote, from a LIFE Charity member, I took out of context, as another Life Charity member was kind enough to inform me:

LIFE does not only oppose abortion for foetal handicap but abortion for any reason. LIFE is in complete agreement with your analysis of how inconsistent it is to merely oppose abortion for disability: It's discrimination to kill a child with a disability, but "the parent's choice" when killing a healthy baby. We do not advocate any choice that involves the destruction of innocent life from fertilization and believe that a truly civilised society recognizes the inviolability of each and every human being from the moment they are conceived.

More info on LIFE:

LIFE is the largest pro-life charity in the UK working hard to overturn the 1967 Abortion Act. I would warmly encourage you to familiarize yourself with the work of our charity (http://www.lifecharity.org.uk/).

Thank you for the correction. My point about the inconsistency still stands, but it was certainly not the point the LIFE member intended to make.

Roll Me Over: An Excellent WWII Book

I've almost finished reading Roll Me Over: An Infantryman's World War II by Raymond Gantter. My grandfather served in WWII under similar circumstances, and he recently recommended this book to me as the best first-hand description of that war for the average American infantryman (my grandfather was an editor and has read dozens and dozens of WWII related titles). I figured today would be a good day to mention it to anyone interested in this genre of literature. We should all pray today for those who have served and are serving now in the armed forces. God keep them in his ever-merciful gaze.

The New Sin: Kneeling (A quick survey of links)

The big story today is a (front page) Los Angelas Times article about the members of a parish being told that kneeling at certain times in the Mass is " ... rebellion, grave disobedience and mortal sin...", and apparently even the bishop is in on it (!):

"At a small Catholic church in Huntington Beach, the pressing moral question comes to this: Does kneeling at the wrong time during worship make you a sinner?

Kneeling "is clearly rebellion, grave disobedience and mortal sin," Father Martin Tran, pastor at St. Mary's by the Sea, told his flock in a recent church bulletin. The Diocese of Orange backs Tran's anti-kneeling edict.

Though told by the pastor and the archdiocese to stand during certain parts of the liturgy, a third of the congregation still gets on its knees every Sunday." [More...]

Numerous Catholic blogs have been covering this story for some time, so do read up:

• Bettnet: Kneeling as a mortal sin
• Off the Record: warning: not for children or the squeamish
• Open Book: On the Kneeling Beat
• Cafeteria is Closed: Los Angeles Times story on ban on kneeling in Orange County
• Get Religion: Is kneeling really a mortal sin?
• Roman Catholic Blog: A Ban on Kneeling? Some Catholics Won't Stand for It

Sticky: Pope Benedict's trip to Poland, Roundup of Coverage

For all your Pope-Benedict-Visiting-Poland needs, please click here. For all other posts, scroll down.

Reuters: Rome-approved Chinese bishop defies state church

From Reuters:

HONG KONG (Reuters) - A Chinese bishop approved by the Vatican but not by China's official state-backed Catholic church has defied authorities and officiated at a religious ceremony, a Hong Kong newspaper reported on Monday.

The row over Wu Qinjing's appearance highlighted the current friction between the Holy See and Beijing over the appointment of bishops, a key sticking point in negotiations over the normalization of relations which were severed in the early 1950s.

Wu appeared at Zhouzhi cathedral in the northern province of Shaanxi on Saturday despite official warnings that his secret October elevation, made public only last Monday, was illegal and that he could not work as a bishop, the South China Morning Post said on Monday.

"It first came as a suggestion, then a requirement, and an order. It is a final warning," the paper quoted a Catholic source as saying. [More...]

Youth promise Pope to be drug-free, Pope's response

From Zenit:

KRAKOW, Poland, MAY 28, 2006 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI appealed to young people as a "father," asking them to say no to drugs.

After a huge outdoor Mass today in Blonie Square in Krakow, the Pope addressed the faithful and revealed that on Saturday some young people gave him a book which read: "I do not take them, I am free of drugs."

The statement had been signed by 30,000 youths, following an Internet campaign in Poland.

The Holy Father responded to the gift saying, "I ask you now, as your father: Remain faithful to this promise. It is a question of your lives and your freedom. Do no let yourselves fall victim to this world's illusions."

Pope Benedict's public appearance preparation secret revealed!

Rocco says, "Don't be fooled, however -- it may look like Hoegaarden or some kind of Hefeweisen, but it's more likely the Pope's beloved Orangina/Fanta...."

I practically lived on orange Fanta while backpacking in Europe... good stuff.

[photo credit: AP/Czarek Sokolowski]

Probably the most memorable picture from the Poland trip will be...

"[In a trip plagued with constant drenching rain...] A rainbow is seen in the sky as the Pope Benedict XVI pays his respect to the victims of the former Birkenau Nazi death camp in Oswiecim, southern Poland May 28, 2006."

[photo credit: REUTERS/Damir Sagolj]

More Pictures from BBC News.

The Pope visits Auschwitz - Pictures

[source: Papacy and the Vatican (Yahoo! News slideshow)]

Police: 900,000 go to papal Mass in Poland - AP

From the AP:

KRAKOW, Poland - Pope Benedict XVI urged 900,000 singing, clapping Poles gathered in a rain-soaked field Sunday to share their faith with other countries in mostly secular Europe, saying it was the best way to honor their beloved John Paul II.

The enormous, exuberant crowd chanted "Benedetto! Benedetto!" and sang "Sto Lat," or "A Hundred Years," wishing him a long life.

"I ask you, finally, to share with the other peoples of Europe and the world the treasure of your faith, not least as a way of honoring the memory of your countryman, who, as the successor of St. Peter, did this with extraordinary power and effectiveness," Benedict said as he concluded his homily during the Mass in the Blonia meadow.

"I ask you to stand firm in your faith! Stand firm in your hope! Stand firm in your love! Amen!" he concluded, speaking in Polish on the last day of his trip. [More...]

The article also includes a short video from the AP (NB: Cardinal Macharksi sighting!).

Your Papist-Picture-of-the-Day, Satuday May 27

"I see you, American Papist!"

[photo credit: "Polish Cardial Franciszek Macharski mimics photographers in Krakow 26 May 2006 during the visit of Pope Benedict XVI." (Cardinal Macharksi graces the top photo of the AmP blog)] - Thanks Marketa!!

Phil Lawler speculates on next Vat. Sec. of State

From Off the record:

The announcement, we're told, will come very soon. Who will it be?

The ideal candidate [for Vatican Secretary of State] would be:

• Someone the Pope knows well, and trusts. Someone with whom he has worked closely.
• Italian. Since 1979 it has been possible to think of a non-Italian Pope; it's not yet possible to think of a non-Italian Secretary of State.
• A cardinal, preferably papabile. This job commands enormous respect, and the man holding the post will be on every short list of potential successors to the current Pontiff. If he already appeared on last year's lists, so much the better.

One man neatly fills all those criteria: Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone of Genoa. He's Italian, he's a cardinal, he's widely respected, and he's the former secretary of the CDF, where he served for 7 years under you-know-whom. Sure enough, that's the name that friends in Rome keep hearing mentioned. [More...]

The magic holy 8-ball says the appointment will come in early June...

Your Saturday Morning Laugh

... brought to you by Bruce Willis:

This week's AmP poll: Do you support Ben Kessler?

This week's AmP poll inspired by Ben Kessler's commencement address at the University of St. Thomas.
My coverage of his address can be found here.

American Papist Poll: Do you support Ben Kessler's commencement address?

As always, feel free to discuss or explain your vote in the comments box below.