American Papist: Not Your Average Catholic!: June 2006

Current reading list sidebar update (for summer)

In case anyone is interested in what I'm reading right now, I've updated the sidebar with these titles:

List of Archbishops who received their Paliums yesterday

From the Vatican Information Service: "Given below is a list of 27 metropolitanarchbishops received in audience today by Benedict XVI, accompanied by membersof their families. Yesterday, in the course of a Eucharistic celebration heldin the Vatican Basilica, they received the pallium:

1. Cardinal Jorge Liberato UROSA SAVINO, archbishop of Caracas, Venezuela.
2. Cardinal Crescenzio SEPE, archbishop of Naples, Italy.
3. Archbishop Louis CHAMNIERN SANTISUKNIRAN of Thare and Nonseng, Thailand.
4. Archbishop Jose Belisario DA SILVA, O.F.M., of Sao Luis do Maranhao, Brazil.
5. Archbishop Jabulani NXUMALO, O.M.I., of Bloemfontein, South Africa.
6. Archbishop Jorge Enrique JIMENEZ CARVAJAL, C.I.M., of Cartagena, Colombia.
7. Archbishop Tommaso VALENTINETTI of Pescara-Penne, Italy.
8. Archbishop Fabriciano SIGAMPA of Resistencia, Argentina.
9. Archbishop Odon Marie Arsene RAZANAKOLONA of Antananarivo, Madagascar.
10. Archbishop George Hugh NIEDERAUER of San Francisco, United States.
11. Archbishop Jose Luis MOLLAGHAN of Rosario, Argentina.
12. Archbishop Cornelius Fontem ESUA of Bamenda, Cameroon.
13. Archbishop Daniel N. DiNARDO of Galveston-Houston, United States.
14. Archbishop Antonio Javellana LEDESMA, S.J., of Cagayan de Oro, Philippines.
15. Archbishop Jose Serofia PALMA of Palo, Philippines.
16. Archbishop Sylvain LAVOIE, O.M.I., of Keewatin-Le Pas, Canada.
17. Archbishop Joviano DE LIMA JUNIOR, S.S.S., of Ribeirao Preto, Brazil.
18. Archbishop Luigi CONTI of Fermo, Italy.
19. Archbishop Franc KRAMBERGER of Maribor Slovenia.
20. Archbishop Ignazio SANNA of Oristano, Italy.
21. Archbishop Francois-Xavier MAROY RUSENGO of Bukavu, Democratic Republic ofthe Congo).
22. Archbishop Jean-Pierre KUTWA of Abidjan, Ivory Coast.
23. Archbishop Andrea MUGIONE of Benevento, Italy.
24. Archbishop Orlando BRANDES of Londrina, Brazil.
25. Archbishop Georges PONTIER of Marseille, France.
26. Archbishop Donald William WUERL of Washington, United States.
27. Archbishop Wojciech ZIEMBA of Warmia, Poland.

The Pope's new ride: a volvo

Via Papa Razi Post:

On Wednesday June 28, His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI has received the keys of the Volvo XC90 that Volvo Car Corporation has presented him with.The delivery of the keys to the Pope has taken place in the Vatican, during a short ceremony after the Papal Audience.
To represent Volvo Cars, Gerry Keaney, Vice President Volvo Car Corporation, Marketing Sales and Service, Pascal Bellemans, President Volvo Auto Italia, and Michele Crisci, General Manager Volvo Auto Italia attended.
The Volvo XC90 delivered to the Pope – and fitted for His personal use – is a V8 version. It is a dark blue XC90 with light interiors. [More...]

I swear, being Pope sure gets you alot of cool toys...

Pallium Day in Rome

Rocco has excellent coverage:

"Receive the Sacred Pallium..."

Photo of the Day

"It Was Not You Who Chose Me...."

... and Selvester explains the Pallium.

... and Amy covers everything else.

Is Cardinal Trujillo right about excommunication for deliberate embryo destruction?

Canon Lawyer Edward Peters takes a look at the question:

Alfonso Cardinal Lopez Trujillo, the outspoken president of the Pontifical Council on the Family, has asserted that "destroying human embryos is equivalent to abortion"; therefore, he says, those directly involved in such deeds are liable to the canonical penalty established for abortion, namely, excommunication (1983 CIC 1398). That the cardinal stands on solid biological and moral grounds in equating deliberate embryo destruction with procured abortion is beyond serious question. What I want to ask is whether he stands on solid canonical grounds as well.
Consider: until the last few decades, all canonical discussions of abortion were concerned with actions occurring, obviously, within the womb. The recent development of extra-uterine fertilization technologies, however, including cryogenic storage of embryonic human beings, has created a group of humans at peril for their lives, but who, given the canonical maxim that penal laws are subject to narrow interpretation (1983 CIC 18), might fall outside the scope of the traditional abortion canon. So, one must ask: is the deliberate destruction of an embryonic human being outside the womb the canonical equivalent of an abortion procured within it?
Cardinal Lopez Trujillo believes that it is, and I think he's right. How? [More...]

Only the coolest radio show about Latin ever (now on MP3)...

Via Res P&C, here is a link to mp3 archives of Fr. Reginald Foster's latin broadcasts from the Vatican!

Reginald Foster is a legend among latin lovers, and his show is a cult classic (so to speak...).

Learn more about "The Pope's Latinist" right here.

Your Papist-Picture-of-the-Day, Wednesday June 28

"Shares of U.S. automaker GM fell lower on Wednesday after an undercover reporter produced photographic evidence confirming a rumor that Detroit's own Cardinal Szoka was urging the Pope to buy a Volvo."

[photo credit: REUTERS/Osservatore Romano]

Update: the Curt Jester reveals some of this Volvo's "unique" selling points.

Kid named after Pope Benedict gets Vatican greeting

From the Lancashire Evening Post:

"Baby Benedict is only 10 weeks old and already he's received a special letter from the Pope.
The personalised note on Vatican headed-notepaper arrived on baby Benedict's doorstep after officials in Rome learned the tot had been named after the Pope, with whom he also shares a birthday.
Mum Amanda, 34, spoke of her surprise to receive the letter, as the first she knew of husband Kevin writing to Pope Benedict XVI was when they received the reply.
Kevin, 37, who works at Galloway's Society for the Blind, mentioned their baby was born on Easter Sunday and named after the Pope in a letter he wrote to the Vatican explaining how the charity includes Catholic publications in its range of talking book services.
...
Kevin, of Fishwick View, Fishwick, Preston, revealed: "The letter says the holy family [I sure it should be "FATHER"] is pleased to learn of the arrival of baby Benedict and assured us of his prayers."
"It's obviously got to Rome. The reply is kind of personalised, it's on Vatican headed paper. These sort of stories, they must get through somehow."
"Then it said, the holy family [again, I'm sure it should be "FATHER"] is unable to baptise Benedict but [the letter] includes details of the audiences that we can go and be in when he is in Rome." [source]

England drinking Germany dry during World Cup

Proof that the World Cup isn't all bad?

ENGLAND's massive army of World Cup fans is drinking Germany dry, it emerged yesterday.
Breweries warned beer could run out before the final because of huge demand from our supporters.
In Nuremberg, organisers revealed 70,000 England fans who flooded the city drank 1.2MILLION pints of beer - an average of 17 pints each.
Astonished bar keeper Herrmann Murr said: "Never have I seen so many drink so much in such little time." [More...]

I wonder if the Germans have started praying to St. Augustine (patron saint of brewers)?

More Beer Saints (and miracles).

Pro-abortion catholic democrats throwing down the gauntlet already?

From Julia Duin, religion writer, The Washington Times:

On the very day of Archbishop Wuerl’s installation, two of Massachusetts’ most pro-choice Catholics — Kerry and the state’s senior U.S. senator, Ted Kennedy — showed up and sat in the VIP section. Archbishop Wuerl shook their hands as he moved toward the altar. I didn’t see whether Kennedy took Communion, but I know Kerry did because I talked with him immediately afterward. He was there, he said, as a longtime friend of the archbishop’s.
Isn’t it odd that two of the Senate’s most liberal Catholics made time in their schedules to be at the installation Mass while their conservative Republican colleague from Pennsylvania, Sen. Rick Santorum, did not?
Santorum, I heard, had to stay close to his office for a vote. All the same, here were two Democratic senators giving the new archbishop notice that they intend to ignore any move to disenfranchise them from the Eucharist. No one could miss the message. Welcome to Washington, Archbishop. [source]

Picture via LifeSiteNews, which has more on this story.

My opinion? Kerry shouldn't get communion. It's really that simple.

The Catholic Caveman points out CCC #2272: "Formal cooperation in an abortion constitutes a grave offense. The Church attaches the canonical penalty of excommunication to this crime against human life."

And Thomistic points out Worthiness to Receive Holy Communion: General Principles, by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger. Paragraphs 5-6 are crystal clear:

5. Regarding the grave sin of abortion or euthanasia, when a person’s formal cooperation becomes manifest (understood, in the case of a Catholic politician, as his consistently campaigning and voting for permissive abortion and euthanasia laws), his Pastor should meet with him, instructing him about the Church’s teaching, informing him that he is not to present himself for Holy Communion until he brings to an end the objective situation of sin, and warning him that he will otherwise be denied the Eucharist.
6. When "these precautionary measures have not had their effect or in which they were not possible," and the person in question, with obstinate persistence, still presents himself to receive the Holy Eucharist, "the minister of Holy Communion must refuse to distribute it."

So, either Pietro Sambi (the Apostolic Nuncio who gave Kerry communion) is ignoring this directive or he does not know John Kerry at sight (which would be embarassing considering Sambi's position). And Sambi was right next to Wuerl in the communion line! Argh.

O'Reilly takes on Planned Parenthood tonight?

Seen on the O'Reilly website:

"A Planned Parenthood probe! Is the group making money talking teens into abortions?! Don't miss this story." Tuesday, June 27 @ 8pm & 11pm EST.

Update: Fumare has more details.

How to make your (troubled) diocese worship faithfully

Via Mark the Sheamaster:

"Bishop Robert Carlson, Currently Reconstructing the Diocese of Saginaw after it was Severely Mauled by its Last Bishop, is the Bee's Knees." [Here's Why.]

3 CNA Headline Highlights, June 27

The Aussies are on board: "Following a similar decision by U.S. Bishops, the Bishops of Australia have voted, in principle, to accept a new English translation of the Roman Catholic Mass, which the Vatican favors as being more faithful to the original Latin text, reported the Sydney Morning Herald." [More...]
One more reason to visit Spain: "A decree was made public today by Cardinal James Francis Stafford, Apostolic Penitentiary, declaring a plenary indulgence for the faithful during the 5th World Meeting of Families, which is being celebrated in Valencia, Spain from the 1st - 9th of July." [More...]
Hope on the Chinese front?: "Several news services are reporting that two senior Vatican officials were in Beijing Tuesday for talks on re-establishing diplomatic relations with China. The AP reports that two Vatican representatives, Archbishop Claudio Celli, who is secretary of the Patrimony of the Holy See, and Monsignor Gianfranco Rota Graziosi of the Secretariat of State have been in Beijing since Sunday." [More...]

600lb woman ejected through sunroof survives

Her guardian angel put in some serious overtime for this one:

Town N Country, Florida – A woman is in stable condition after being ejected through the sunroof of her SUV during an accident.
Thirty-seven-year-old Ruth Matthews told paramedics that another vehicle cut her off in traffic, and she took evasive action to avoid a crash. Her Isuzu Amigo rolled over and she was thrown through the sunroof and onto the roadway. Investigators say she was not wearing her seatbelt.
Paramedics initially tried to fly Matthews to Tampa General Hospital, but her weight, estimated at 600 pounds, made it impossible. Emergency crews were able to transport her to St. Joseph’s Hospital, where she is listed in stable condition. [source]

Summer Reading and Shifting Gears

I just finished Michael Crichton's latest book, State of Fear. As a novel, I found it somewhat inferior to his previous titles. I did agree, however, with his (very vocal) opinion on the widespread fearmongering associated with "global warming." And while he has his finger on an important cultural phenomenon, he often sacrifices the integrity of the book's plot for truth claims that just came across as preachiness. Oh well, for an $8 NYT bestseller - what more can you really expect?

Anyway, my next book read involves some more usual fare, namely, Joseph Ratzinger's Milestones, the autobiography that details his early life and various ecclesial posts before taking over CDF. The first chapters completely put to rest the nasty story that the MSM tried to keep afloat about his (forced) association with the Hitler Youth. So much for that. Next up: the details of his time at seminary.

"Szoka plans to be active in retirement" - DFP

From the Detroit Free Press:

Cardinal Edmund Szoka, who led the Archdiocese of Detroit in the 1980s, is looking forward to pitching in with masses at metro Detroit Catholic parishes and spending part of his retirement years in the area after his 16-year stint at the Vatican ends.
"I'd be more than willing to help in the parishes on Sunday and hear confessions and do whatever I can do," Szoka said in a telephone interview Friday from his Vatican quarters behind St. Peter's Basilica. "I don't stop being a priest because I'm retiring."
[More...]

Szoka steps down as President of the Vatican City State

From CNS:

Also June 22, the Vatican announced that Pope Benedict has accepted the resignation of 78-year-old U.S. Cardinal Edmund C. Szoka as president of the commission governing Vatican City State.
However, the Vatican said, the pope also asked Cardinal Szoka to remain until Sept. 15, when he will be succeeded by 71-year-old Archbishop Giovanni Lajolo, currently the Vatican's foreign minister. [More...]

Carlson rocking and rolling in Saginaw...

Via Rocco:

"A friend briefs that, in the Michigan diocese, Bishop Robert Carlson is "publishing a pastoral letter (being sent to all homes in the diocese) about his directives for implementation" of the General Instruction on the Roman Missal."
"Word is that some highlights are:
A clarified, standard recipe for Eucharistic bread
Firm directives on who can and cannot preach [as many of you know, this has been an issue in the diocese]
All parishes must have kneelers by 2009" [More...]

New Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Bertone

From CWNews:

"Vatican, Jun. 22 (CWNews.com) - Pope Benedict XVI has named Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone of Genoa to be the next Vatican Secretary of State, replacing Cardinal Angelo Sodano.

Cardinal Sodano, who has served an extraordinary 15 years in the powerful post, will formally step down on September 15, the Vatican announced on June 22. He will be approaching his 79th birthday-- well beyond the ordinary retirement age of 75-- when he leaves the Secretariat of State." [More]

A collection of links (from Ignatius Insight):

Pictures of Cardinal Bertone: One, Two, Three

My previous post on Bertone.

Nike: Managing to tick off just about everyone at this year's World Cup...

[click image for larger version]

(hopefully this will be my only World Cup-related blog post this year - I don't care much for soccer and could care even less for the World Cup ...)

"Nike attacked over Rooney 'warrior' picture"

Drenched in blood-red paint and screaming a war-cry, this chilling image of Wayne Rooney was last night condemned as 'offensive', 'exploitative' and 'tacky' by MPs and church groups.

He may yet turn out to be the saviour of England's World Cup campaign, but the Christ-like pose of the striker in a new Nike campaign yesterday provoked fierce condemnation.
...
Five people complained to the Advertising Standards Authority watchdog on religious grounds within hours of the advert being posted.
Its other interpretation as a battle cry from the dark ages or throwback to the Crusades was equally unfortunate as the poster's launch coincided with the first outbreak of serious violence involving England's army of fans in Germany on Monday night.
Labour MP Stephen Pound said the advert was 'truly horrible.'
...
'Wayne's a good Catholic boy and I think the obvious crucifixion nuance is one part of it, but the aggressive nature of the pose is something we could do without.
...
[Those against it say:] 'The other aspect of it is the aggression contained in it, bound up with the flag of St George, which you might see as a throwback to the Crusades, which is hardly going to go down well with Muslim countries. It's offensive on several different levels.'
...
[At which point Nike responds:] The red paint is not meant to be blood, it's just echoing the body paint which fans cover themselves in and the rest of Wayne's body is painted white. It's the flag of St George, and nothing else. [More...]

Frankly, this is what you get you try to make something that is just a sport more than a sport through the (ab)use of cultural symbols and icons. Plus it looks stupid. I bet St. George would get a good chuckle out of it and then go back to slaying dragons.

"Pluto's newly found moons named Nix, Hydra" - AP

From the AP:

LOS ANGELES - Meet the newest kids in the solar system: Nix and Hydra [picture faintly at left]. The pair of moons orbiting Pluto were officially christened last week by the International Astronomical Union, which is in charge of approving celestial names.
Until last year, scientists thought Pluto was accompanied by only one moon, Charon. But the Hubble Space Telescope spotted the two satellites — more than twice as far away as Charon and many times fainter.
...
Nix was originally spelled "Nyx" by Stern's group. Nyx is the Greek goddess of darkness and Hydra is the nine-headed serpent that guarded the underworld. Pluto is the Roman god of the underworld.
...
This summer, the IAU will debate whether Pluto should remain a planet. The discovery of an icy object slightly larger than Pluto in the Kuiper Belt last year reinvigorated the argument over whether to demote Pluto or add other planets. [More...]

I'm firmly in the "pluto is not a planet" camp myself.

Beat by the heat or beating the heat?

From AFP, "Heat forces pope to cut short address":

ROME (AFP) - Stifling heat has forced Pope Benedict XVI to cut short his address during his weekly general audience in Saint Peter's Square.
The pope, protected from the sun by a parasol held by an attendant, told 25,000 faithful, many of whom were bare-headed, that "as it is too hot, I will be briefer."
Benedict XVI also took less time in his traditional greetings to those present on Wednesday, ranging from senior prelates to newly-weds.
Temperatures went over 35 degrees Celsius (95 Fahrenheit) in Rome Tuesday, bringing summer to the Italian capital following a relatively cool spring.

Now here's my question: did Pope Benedict cut short his outdoor address because he was too hot or did he rather shorten it because he recognized that it was a hot day and many people in the audience were not well-equipped to handle it (so he cut it short more on account of their safety than his own)?

Dick DeVos for Governor of Michigan

I'm starting to really like the republican candidate for governor in my troubled state of Michigan, and not just because anyone is better than our current resident pro-abortion harpy, Jennifer Granholm.

Dick DeVos is in a dead heat with Granholm right now, and I'd love to see him pull ahead and win it. Goodness knows Michigan needs a change, and so far it seems that DeVos is very palatable on life issues as well (from what I've read, at least).

The Detroit Free Press recently ran an extended article on his election race, which is starting to get some serious national attention:

"You will see Michigan nationalized, and you will see stars from both parties come in," said Debbie Dingell, Democratic National Committee member and party strategist.

Think McCain, Giuliani and Romney on the GOP side; the Clintons, Sen. John Edwards and Sen. Barack Obama for the Democrats. Former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and Sen. Hillary Clinton of New York already have been to Michigan for DeVos and Granholm, respectively. Sen. John McCain of Arizona has committed to campaign with DeVos.

Now here's the good stuff:

The DeVoses have supported such right-wing advocates as the Family Research Council, Focus on the Family, Council for National Policy and the Acton Institute for the Study of Religion and Liberty in Grand Rapids, the Mackinac Center for Public Policy and Michigan Right to Life.
(sounds like my kind of guy.)
The organizations promote conservative economic and social agendas: free trade and less government regulation, school choice including vouchers, the infusion of Christian beliefs into public life and opposition to abortion and gay marriage. Chris DeWitt, spokesman for Granholm's campaign, said DeVos' support for those causes will be an issue.
(good, let's hope the right side of it wins.)
"Dick DeVos is so far to the right it would make Rush Limbaugh blush," DeWitt said. "He has supported groups that oppose all abortions, oppose stem cell research, oppose affirmative action, support outsourcing and unfair trade agreements, school vouchers, worked against the environment.
(again, sounds like my kind of guy.)
"The DeVos camp has gone out of its way to avoid answering any questions. What they can't hide is the fact that DeVos' actions in support of these groups speak very loudly."

Future governor of Michigan? I hope so.

Now, I realize he won't win this election because he is conservative - Michigan desperately needs a governor with some sort of economic competence, and that's clearly the issue that he'll win or lose the race on. Nevertheless, as an alternative to Granholm he is looking very appealing, both in terms of economic planning and life issues.

I'd be very interested to hear what others have heard about him.

A few DeVos links:

[tags: Dick DeVos, Jennifer Granholm]

Sodano reacts to rumors of his retirement

From CNA:

"I see you have very noisy colleagues who are always looking for new events," Cardinal Sodano told Italian newspaper L'Eco di Bergamo. "Saint Paul used to speak in his time about some Christians who had ‘itching ears' that always desire to seek new sensations. Maybe they don't know the way we work (in the Vatican): with order and serenity."
The cardinal also said that "years pass for everybody. I look forward to handing-off my dicastery when the Pope wants". He said decisions in the Holy See are never rushed. "I’ve met four cardinals who have been State Secretary in my 45 years of service to the Vatican. They were all an example of calm work in order to serve the Pope well. Each of us passes-away and the Church goes on." [More...]

Quote of the Day: U.S. papal nuncio

From Archbishop Pietro Sambi, new papal nuncio to the United States, in his first address to the U.S. bishops:

Archbishop Sambi highlighted the global role of the United States and the U.S. church with an anecdote about when he was the Vatican representative to Indonesia several years ago.
One Christmas, he said, he decided to celebrate the feast with a visit to a small, remote, primitive village where "I could not drink the water" because he was not immune to local bacteria or viruses.
Then a smoker, he also forgot to bring enough cigarettes with him.
When he arrived in the remote village, he said, in its street shops "I found Coca-Cola and Marlboros."
"I think the United States and the church of the United States has something more to bring to the world than Marlboros and Coca-Cola," he said. [source]

"New social encyclical rumored for 2007" - CWNews

From CWNews:

Jun. 20 (CWNews.com) - Pope Benedict XVI may publish an encyclical on Church social teaching next year, according to an Italian newspaper.
Il Sole 24 Ore, a business daily, cites "unofficial information" pointing to an encyclical on "ethical and spiritual questions posed by the process of globalization." [source]

S.D. Voters to Decide Fate of Abortion Ban

From the AP:

PIERRE, S.D. (AP) -- Voters will have the final say on South Dakota's tough new law that bans almost all abortions.
Secretary of State Chris Nelson said Monday that the law's opponents had collected enough signatures to put a question on the Nov. 7 ballot asking voters if the law should go into effect as planned or be dumped.
...
Both sides pledged Monday to conduct all-out campaigns on the issue. [More...]

My understanding is that this state-wide vote is a step back for Pro-Lifers, who instead hoped that the law would be referred to the Supreme Court for resolution, and not kept within the state. Am I on track?

Video: "Duel of the Seminarians" - Star Wars meets Seminary Life

Via the Dawn Patrol, a must-see video for seminarians (watch it to the end!):

Visit their website to see how they made the movie, etc.

John Neuhaus/Get Religion on the Episcopal Church's Female Bishop head

RJN overviews the situation:

Facing that prospect, a commission of ECUSA [Episcopal Church of the USA] some months ago issued the Windsor Report, which proposed that the ECUSA apologize to the Anglican Communion for difficulties caused by the election of Robinson and that a moratorium be declared on ordaining gay bishops and blessing same-sex unions. [Recently elected female] Bishop Schori was sharply critical of the Windsor Report, and her election is a decisive repudiation of its recommendations. Schori is an unequivocal supporter of Gene Robinson and of the blessing of same-sex unions. She is reported to be a friend and strong supporter of the retired Bishop John Spong, perhaps the most leftist of ECUSA bishops, who has long agitated against core doctrines of historic Christianity such as the inspiration of Scripture and the divinity of Christ.
At each step of the way, Rome pleaded with Anglicans to reject such grave departures from the orthodox Christian tradition. It may be that there will emerge from the breakup a new configuration of the Anglican Communion with which serious dialogue can be resumed. A few bishops of ECUSA and a larger number of clergy and parishes are involved in “continuing Anglican” movements and are working in tandem with the African and Asian provinces. A great deal depends upon how Canterbury, meaning the Church of England, positions itself in the rapidly advancing dissolution of what was the Anglican Communion. As of this week’s General Convention, however, one thing seems certain beyond doubt: The Episcopal Church in the U.S. has declared itself to be just another liberal Protestant denomination, in deliberate defiance of the Anglican Communion and in scornful indifference to a long history of hope for reconciliation with Catholicism. Yes, many, going back to John Henry Newman in the early nineteenth century, said that this would be the inevitable outcome of Anglicanism’s claim to be a “middle way” between liberalism and Catholicism, but it is nonetheless very sad to see it come to pass, and to see the self-congratulatory rejoicing of Episcopalians in celebratory assembly at the death of an honorable, if finally untenable, hope for greater Christian unity. [full article]

Get Religion has more (and links to MSM coverage):

It is true that many, perhaps even most, Anglicans have accepted the ordination of women to the deaconate and priesthood. But millions have not and most of them are in the rapidly growing churches of the Third World. They view the ordination of women as yet another imperial power play by the pushy Americans and, soon, the British. But the ordination of female priests only affects the status of those priests. The ordination of a woman as bishop affects the status of all of the priests that she ordains, both female and male. For millions of Anglicans, the priests ordained by female bishops are literally not priests. Who will keep track of who is who?
The current occupant of the throne in Canterbury knows that, when the mother Church of England ordains women to the episcopate, many more clergy and laity will hit the exit doors of a church that is already in sharp decline. Can the creation of an Anglican Rite Church in Great Britain by the Vatican be far behind? How many will join Eastern Orthodox churches? [More...]

Against the Grain Roundup

A nice assortment of St. Blog's readings, compiled by Christopher Blosser.

Nicole Kidman to have Catholic wedding in Australia?

Looks like it:

SYDNEY, Australia - Nicole Kidman and fiance Keith Urban came home to Australia on Monday to be married, they said in a joint statement.
"We are very happy to be back in Australia," they said in a joint statement carried by Australian Associated Press. "We have come home to celebrate our wedding with our family and friends."
Australian media have widely speculated that Kidman, who will be 39 on Tuesday, and Urban, 38, will wed June 25 at a Catholic church in a northern Sydney suburb close to where Kidman, who was born in Hawaii, attended high school. [More...]

Safe and Sound

I arrived safely back home last night after a wonderful birthday weekend. Thanks for all the best wishes!

Going to a wedding ... and turning 21.

No, I'm not laying down on the job. I'm attending the wedding of two of my former classmates ... and I'm turning 21 (so don't expect any early monday morning posts).

I rejoice because I'll be able to celebrate three things this weekend: the wedding, my birthday, and the new translation of the Mass in English being approved! (Cardinal Macharski looks very pleased as well, dont you think?)

Now, I'm not normally the biblical numerology sort, but on a whim I decided to look up the 21st book of the bible (Ecclesiastes), and then find the 21st verse of that book. Lo and behold here is what the verse reads:

"I searched with my mind how to cheer my body with wine -- my mind still guiding me with wisdom -- and how to lay hold on folly, till I might see what was good for the sons of men to do under heaven during the few days of their life."

Throughout these years of wine and folly, may I (and all around me) never lose sight of what is truly good for the sons of men to do under heaven during the few days of their life. Amen! Deo Gratias!

AmP Poll: Are you in favor of the new English translation of the Mass?

Such joyous news calls for an AmP vote (not to influence your decision or anything ...):

Are you in favor of the new English translation of the Mass?

As always, feel free to link to this poll (ang that way get a good sampling of St. Blogs).

Bishops approve new translation of the Mass! Hallelujah!

Tremendous news for the Church in the United States:

New Translation of the Mass in English

approved by the USCCB

173-29

Adaptations to the Missale Romanum passed 184-8.

So, it was hardly a close vote. And the discussion was quick: five minutes. The whole thing was done smoothly in 45 minutes, and not a single adaptation was resisted. Bishop Trautman himself came out in favor of the translation...

The comments at Open Book are going (understandably) crazy. Hop in!

Gerald of Closed Cafeteria is dancing in the aisles (but not liturgical dancing - of course).

Dom has a good summary: "The US bishops’ conference approved the new translations of the Mass proposed by the International Committee on English in the Liturgy (ICEL), something that bishops in the rest of the English-speaking world had already done, but the US bishops also included a number of adaptations and amendments that will need to be scrutinized by the Vatican. Nevertheless the bulk of the changes required by the Liturgiam Authenticam and other Vatican directives have been approved." [More...]

If you really want the MSM coverage, the AP and NYT have some faulty fair.

Such joyous news calls for an AmP vote (not to influence your decision or anything ...):

Are you in favor of the new English translation of the Mass?

As always, feel free to link to this poll (ang that way get a good sampling of St. Blogs).

Papal Photo from today's Corpus Christi procession

I'd surrender if I was facing this army...

[photo credit: AP Photo/Pier Paolo Cito]

Today's Vote on the new Order of the Mass in English

Rocco is covering the story closely:

"... at 2.30 Los Angeles time, the Order of Mass will be presented by the chair of the BCL, Bishop Donald Trautman of Erie. Approximately one hour has been scheduled for the debate. However, considering the tensions of the body leading up to this meeting, don't be surprised to see that time-frame go out the window..." [More...]

The other important piece of news for today on this front is the text of the address given by the chairman of ICEL (Bishop Arthur Roche of Leeds) to the assembled bishops of the USCCB.

Rocco also says that if the vote for the new translation is passed by less than 2/3 of the majority, it fails for the time being. If it is close, the vote might be decided by mail voting, which could take about two weeks to complete...

My 900th post.

Nothing too exciting here. But while I have a moment:

Many thanks to the kind souls who have dropped me a PayPal tip.

Many thanks to the individuals who have taken out blogads.

As always - many thanks to the readers who post enlightening comments as well as send me news updates and links!

900 posts and still chugging. :-)

An uneven treatment of the USCCB NTOM vote

From the Associated Press:

(starts off decent)

LOS ANGELES -- Roman Catholic bishops are considering the most sweeping changes to the Mass that American parishioners have seen in about four decades.
At the behest of the Vatican, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops is planning to vote Thursday on a new translation for the Order of the Mass that adheres more closely to the Latin version.
The changes would be the most significant to the Mass since parishioners first began worshipping in English instead of Latin in the wake of the Second Vatican Council.
The new translation would the alter the wording of 12 of the 19 texts spoken by Catholics during worship, including the Nicene Creed, the Gloria, the Penitential Rite, the Sanctus and Communion.

(and then falls into the regular tread)

Some bishops, however, worry that the new translation will alienate Catholics at a time when the church can least afford to do so. Mass attendance has been declining, the priest shortage has left a growing number of churches without a resident cleric, bishops and parishioners have been battling over the closure of old churches and schools, and the prelates have been trying to rebuild trust in their leadership after the clergy sex abuse crisis.
"My big concern is people are going to feel like they're being jerked around. They finally got used to the English translation and now they have to get used to another translation," said Rev. Thomas Reese, a senior fellow at the Woodstock Theological Center at Georgetown University and a Jesuit priest.
"It's going to cause chaos and real problems and the people who are going to be at the brunt end of it are the poor priests in the parishes who don't need any more problems."

(an interesting statistic:)

Survey results released by the conference's Committee on Liturgy in last November found that U.S. bishops were split over whether the changes were necessary _ or even advisable. Forty-seven percent rated the new translation fair or poor, while 52 percent said it was excellent or good.

(finishes with a recap and coverage of the Arinze letter)

The Curial Tsunami - set for June 29th?

... so says CWNews: "Some Vatican-watchers had predicted an announcement on June 10. When that date passed without any major news, speculation began to center on June 29: the feast of Sts. Peter and Paul."

Bettnet adds more: "It’s still looking like Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone of Genoa, Pope Benedict’s former right-hand man at the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, will be named Secretary of State, the second-most powerful man in the Vatican, and some are saying that Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, currently of the Congregation for Bishops, will move into Genoa to get some badly needed pastoral experience."

Finally, Phil Lawler adds his two cents: "Four other top Curial officials are already past retirement age. Cardinal Edmund Szoka, the American president of the Vatican city-state government, will be 79 in September. Colombian Cardinal Dario Castrillon Hoyos (bio - news), prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy, will be 77 in July. And Spanish Cardinal Julian Herranz, president of the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts, turned 75 in March. Cardinal Sergio Sebastiani, president of the prefecture for economic affairs at the Holy See, reached retirement age in April."

In essence, we could see a thoroughly revamped Curia in a matter of weeks/months... exciting times.

Your PPOTD! (Papist-Picture-of-the-Day) Wednesday, June 14

"Speculators claim that the public relations committee for
Pure Natural Spring Water paid up to 2.6 million euros for the Pope to endorse their product at his Wednesday audiences this year."

[photo: REUTERS/Max Rossi]

A most active Cardinal retires (at 91 no less!)

From CWNews:

Jun. 14 (CWNews.com) - Cardinal Kazimierz Swiatek has resigned as Archbishop of Minsk in Belarus, at the age of 91.
A bland Vatican statement on June 14 announced that Cardinal Swiatek had resigned "upon having reached the age limit." But actually the Belarusian prelate was already beyond the ordinary retirement age of 75 when he was appointed by Pope John Paul II to become Archbishop of Minsk in 1991. His resignation came just four months short of his 92nd birthday.
A survivor of brutal Stalinist persecution, Cardinal Swiatek had been by far the oldest cardinal still actively heading an archdiocese. (Six other retired cardinals are older, led by the Dutch Cardinal Johannes Willebrands, who will be 97 in September.) [More...]

Cardinal Bertone to be next Vatican Secretary of State?

Rocco says so:

OK, so it's basically a fait accompli -- or so it seems -- that Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone of Genoa, Cardinal Ratzinger's former CDF secretary, will succeed Cardinal Angelo Sodano as Secretary of State.
So much for Papa Ratzi's cred as a technocrat. Then again, desperate times call for desperate measures.The only question, it seems, is when. Four cardinals briefed that the appointment was coming this past Saturday, the 10th. It didn't, which has led several people to simply give up and not think about it anymore. [More...]

More Bertone Links:

Miracle baby - 1lb at birth and the size of a cellphone!

Via the UK Daily Mail:

So tiny that she fitted in her mother's hand, Ruby Angel Dunn is one of the smallest babies ever to be born in Britain.
Weighing less than a 1lb at birth, doctors warned her parents Kerry and Craig that she may not survive.
And even if Ruby did pull through, the couple were told to prepare for their daughter developing sight or brain problems.
Four months on, the baby girl has defied the odds and astounded medics with her progress.
Tests this week at Southmead Hospital in Bristol where she was born show that Ruby is in perfect health.
Now weighing 3lb 13oz, less than most babies at birth, she will be able to go home with her parents tomorrow (thurs).
[More...]

Dr. Smith's CDs and MP3s on Sexual Questions

MyCatholicFaith has made numerous talks by Dr. Janet Smith available on CDs ($5) and MP3s ($2.50). Dr. Smith is an internationally-renowned expert on the Church's sexual teachings (you can listen to Dr. Smith debate dissenter Charlie Curran here). At these low low prices, these recordings make an excellent resource for either personal development or handy one-stop apologetics tools.

Here is a list of the topics she treats (can be purchased individually or as a set):

Contraception: Why Not? New Edition
The Genesis of Humanae Vitae
Dissent from Humanae Vitae
Two Cultures: Life and Death
Hormones R' Us
Follow Your Conscience?
NFP: When is it Moral?
Reproductive Tech: Why Not?
Homosexuality: Why Not?
Theology of the Body
Over-Population: A Problem?
Family: A Path to Holiness
Sexual Common Sense [complete] 12 Talk Series

[Click here to purchase!]

Whispers begins its USCCB spring meeting coverage

All ICEL, All The Time... For This Week, At Least: Scotland has also approved the new translation of the Order of the Mass, putting even more pressure on the USCCB to approve it this Thursday (also includes some good back-history links).
The Book of Gray: Rocco's own look at the NTOM.

Just what is the reason for Philemon?

Jimmy Akin tackles a question that I've heard come up often (and had myself): Why Philemon?

"What exactly is the purpose of the Epistle to Philemon? Or more appropriately, why is included in the New Testament canon?"

[A good read...]

Filming God's Footprints | An Interview with Steve Ray

"Almost since its inception, the Footprints of God DVD/video series has been lauded for excellence. Just this month the Telly Awards -- the "Oscars" of the home video industry -- honored the newly released installment, David and Solomon, with a first-place award in the religious documentary division."

"Steve Ray, the creator and host, designed the series around ten individual movies, each of which tell a portion of the history of salvation from Abraham to St. Augustine. Ray is the author of three Ignatius Press books and it was that connection that led Ignatius to embark on a collaboration with Ray and his wife Janet."

"Ray, with his wife Janet, converted to Catholicism in 1992. They have four children, two of whom still live at home and two married children who have made them proud grandparents six times. They live in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Ray, an independent businessman (www.dmigroup.com), also leads pilgrimages to the Holy Land and Rome (www.SteveGoes.com)."

"IgnatiusInsight.com recently caught up with Ray (no easy task!) and spoke with him about the series and its genesis." [More...]

Vatican post office to issue special stamps - CWNews

From CWNews:

On June 22, the Vatican will release stamps for the 250th anniversary of Mozart's birth. Along with the Austrian composer (who is a special favorite of the Holy Father), another set of stamps released the same day will commemorate the Pope's 2005 trips to Bari, Italy, and Cologne, Germany. Also on June 22, the Vatican post office will release a series of stamps celebrating the 500th anniversary of St. Peter's basilica.
To mark the Pope's trip to Spain for the 5th World Meeting for Families, the post office will use a special postmark on July 8 and 9, the dates of his visit to Valencia. The postmark will bear the Pope's coat of arms and the inscription: Benedictus XVI Familias Convenit Valentiae. [More...]

Not so fast Michael Schiavo... (redux)

From In Light of the Law:

I have expanded my earlier (23 Jan 2006) blog concerning potential canonical problems with the Schiavo-Centonze wedding and published those more developed observations in the Fellowship of Catholic Scholars Quarterly 29:2 (Summer 2006) pp. 6-8. Interested readers may click here for an on-line version of my "Canonical questions about the Schiavo-Centonze marriage". Together with my January 2004 essay from This Rock, these three short pieces set forth why I think that several important canonical and pastoral questions have been raised by a Schiavo-Centonze wedding taking place under Catholic auspices (21 Jan 2006). [More...]

From reading the article, it is clear to me that Michael Schiavo should be scared. The question remainds whether or not the St. Petersburg diocese will do anything about this grave situation...

Ben Kessler Follow-Up: "The Identity of a Catholic University"

Zenit is running an interview clearly inspired by last month's commencement address by Ben Kessler:

Interview With Notre Dame's Father John Coughlin
NEW YORK, JUNE 12, 2006 (Zenit.org).- Questions about the nature of Church-related universities resurfaced after a commencement speaker at a Catholic institution was booed when defending Church teaching on premarital sex and contraception.
For insight into the identity of Catholic colleges in general, ZENIT turned to Franciscan Father John Coughlin, a law professor at the University of Notre Dame.
He shared with ZENIT the essential characteristics of a Catholic university as laid out in canon law and the 1990 apostolic constitution "Ex Corde Ecclesia," and the need for a commitment to the priority of Catholic truth over all other claims.
Q: What does it mean that a university is Catholic? What are the ways Catholic identity should manifest itself on a practical level? [More...]

This week's AmP Poll: Who reads the AmP Blog?

Are you single? married? a seminarian? in school? working?

Answer in this week's AmP Poll!

One of my boys has an audience with the Pope

From the VIS:

"VATICAN CITY, JUN 12, 2006 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in separate audiences: ... Cardinal Edmund Casimir Szoka, president of the Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State and of the Governorate of Vatican City State."

Cardinal Szoka (wikipedia entry), who was the Archbishop of Detroit, has been very important in making Sacred Heart Major Seminary such a good place for orthodox theology. During the school year (and intermintantly over the summer), I work in the Edmund Cardinal Szoka Library, so in some way, he helps me pay the bills. :-)

Cardinal Szoka keeps a permanent residence at SHMS, and comes back at least a couple times a year for an extended period (most recently February of this year). At 78, he is overdue for retirement from his many important posts.

New method of fertility regulation in line with Catholic teaching

From CNA:

Seattle, Jun. 12, 2006 (CNA) - A relatively new method of regulating fertility is catching on around the world. CycleBeads are 95 percent effective and, in themselves, do not conflict with Catholic teachings related to reproduction and fertility.
The CycleBeads, which consist of 32 beads in three colors, is a fertility awareness-based method that helps plan or prevent pregnancy naturally.
Victoria Jennings, an anthropologist and director of Georgetown's Institute for Reproductive Health, believes women are looking for non-hormonal, non-invasive ways to control their fertility. [More...]

New topics proposed for next Synod meeting - but not made public

From CWN:

The Synod of Bishops has proposed three themes for the next plenary session of the Synod.
The suggested themes-- which were not made public-- were presented to Pope Benedict at a private audience. The Pope will choose both the topic and the timing of the next Synod meeting. [More...]

Now that's news!

McCarrick issues clarification on his same-sex marriage comments

From CNA:

Washington DC, Jun. 12, 2006 (CNA) - Cardinal Theodore McCarrick issued a clarification Friday on remarks he made during an interview on CNN’s The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer. The interview had generated some concern among many Catholics.
The cardinal said he recognized that his remarks could have given the wrong impression to people who took them out of context.
“I’m afraid that I misspoke last Wednesday when I was being interviewed on CNN,” the cardinal wrote, referring to the June 7 interview. [More...]

Curt Jester has a good summation of the situation.

("Man of the muddle"... tee hee.)

Itinerary for the Pope's trip to Valencia, Spain (July 8-9)

Vatican Information Service:

Made public today was the itinerary of Benedict XVI's forthcoming apostolic trip to Valencia for the Fifth World Meeting of Families, due to be held in that Spanish city on July 8 and 9.

The Holy Father will depart from Rome's Fiumicino airport at 9.30 a.m. on Saturday, July 8, whence a two-hour flight will take him to Manises airport in Valencia. Following the welcome ceremony, he will visit the cathedral of Valencia and the basilica of the "Virgen de los Desamparados," After praying the Angelus in the "Plaza de la Virgen," he will address some words of greeting to those present. He will then go on foot to the archbishop's palace where he will have lunch.

At 5.15 p.m., the Pope will pay a courtesy visit to King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia of Spain in the palace of the "Generalitat de Valencia." Thereafter, he will return to the archbishop's palace to meet with Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, prime minister of Spain.

At 8.30 p.m., the Pope will travel by popemobile to Valencia's City of Arts and Sciences where, at 9.00 p.m., a festive meeting is due to take place marking the closure of the Fifth World Meeting of Families. On this occasion, the Pope is due to deliver an address. After the meeting, he will return to the archbishop's palace where he will spend the night.

At 9.30 a.m. on Sunday, July 9, Pope Benedict will preside at a Eucharistic concelebration in the City of Arts and Sciences, and then pray the Angelus. At 12.30 p.m., he will travel by car to the airport of Manises where, following the departure ceremony, he will board his plane for Rome. He is due to arrive at Rome's Ciampino airport at 3.30 p.m.

I'll have to update the AP countdown ticker...

CWN also presents the Pope's itinerary.

Vatican official welcomes birth to "brain-dead" mother

From CWN:

Jun. 12 (CWNews.com) - Bishop Elio Sgreccia, the president of the Pontifical Academy for Life, applauded the doctors in Milan whose work made it possible for a baby girl to be born on June 10, several weeks after the child's mother had been declared "brain dead."
The mother, identified to the public only as Cristina, suffered a celebral aneurysm on March 23. Although she was irreversibly comatose, doctors kept her alive in order to save her unborn child. Finally on June 10 the baby was delivered by Caesarian section. Although she was born 2 months premature, the tiny 1.5-pound baby-- named Cristina, after her mother-- was soon breathing on her own strength. Her mother, removed from the respirator after the birth, died the same day. [source]

Read the AP story here.

"Church artifacts finding unusual homes" - AP

From the AP (generously quoted):

ALBANY, N.Y. - The altar was old. It was ornate. And it was on the gambling floor of the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.
James Lang was startled when he saw it there. Lang, vicar of parishes for the Roman Catholic diocese in Syracuse, had a chat with the manager about desecration. The altar eventually was removed.
"They thought it looked cool," Lang remembers.
It also looked like part of a growing phenomenon: Religious artifacts are migrating as America's shifting population leaves empty churches across the Midwest and Northeast. This March, New York City's archdiocese recommended shutting 31 metro parishes, and Boston has closed almost 60 in three years.
So, chalices appear in antique shop windows. A confessional turns up in an Italian cafe. A stained-glass window of St. Patrick lands in a pub. And don't even start with eBay.
People who deal in such artifacts say interest in them is growing.
And while some are troubled by secular re-uses of religious items, they're encouraged about a different set of collectors: New churches in booming suburbs and in the South and West that are reaching for the relics of an older generation.
....
Every month, a downtown Philadelphia warehouse is unlocked to reveal about 2,000 items from closed area churches. Those in the religious community can browse tables of marble statues, altar pieces, candlesticks and tabernacles, or thumb through racks of vestments.
....
"We're an equal-opportunity seller," says Stuart Grannen, owner of the Chicago-based Architectural Artifacts, whose Web site boasts religious artifacts as its newest category. Recently listed were a carved oak bench from a Minneapolis church for $12,000 and a marble Ten Commandments from a Milwaukee synagogue for $3,800.
....
Interest in church items has even led to a new but unofficial order of priests devoted to preservation, the Society of St. John Cantius in Chicago.
[Full article]

The disturbing thing is when the sacred items are used for profane purposes...

Wuerl Winds-Up for Washington

A good article on Wuerl, who has been in the spotlight during the weekend. A snip:

Cardinal McCarrick's successor is a bookish, almost austere scholar who reads ancient Greek and Roman history for relaxation. When pressed to name a sport he likes, he finally says he enjoys tennis and swimming.
"My life is really the church," Bishop Wuerl says in a lengthy interview. "I've felt no need to get away from it." [More...]

More Wuerl coverage:

Whispers: More From the 'Burgh (includes links to the audio of his homily and post-communion remarks) ... More Whispers coverage here.
Some nice photos: the dynamic speaker, greeting the powerful, and young.
Get Religion talks about the MSM's Wuerl-coverage, and the fallout.
Open Book points to Ann Roger's oft-noted fairwell article.

Tropical Storm Alberto forms off Florida

As promised, my summer hurricane coverage is kicking off...

National Hurricane Center

UPDATE: Hurricane Warning issued for Alberto...

Meditations from Carmel

Lisa writes in:

Celebrating the greatness of the Holy Spirit on this holy feast day of Pentacost, the Order of Carmel Discalced Secular in St. Louis, Missouri invite you to the launch of their new website and downloadable Podcast!
As part of our new apostolate, we invite you to learn more about Carmelite Spirituality through listening to short meditations we have put together which come directly from the treasury of writings of the great Carmelite Saints including St. Teresa of Avila, St. John of the Cross, St. Therese of Lisieux, Blessed Elizabeth of the Trinity, St. Teresa of the Andes, Brother Lawrence of the Resurrection, St. Teresa Benedicta and many more.
The audio from these Podcasts can be downloaded onto your computer or MP3 player, and you may store the meditations on an iPod or CD and to enjoy them wherever you go. There will be a new episode listed every week and to help keep you alerted to EVERY new Meditation, we have provided an RSS link so you won't miss a broadcast! Please visit us at: http://www.stl-ocds.org

Vatican appeals Portland ruling on suing the Vatican

(pardon me for the akward blog title...)

Vatican Appeals Ruling in Sex Abuse Lawsuit
PORTLAND, Oregon, JUNE 9, 2006 (Zenit.org).- The Vatican has appealed a federal judge's ruling that the Holy See may be subject to a lawsuit.
The lawsuit, filed in 2002, claims the Vatican, the Archdiocese of Portland and the archbishop of Chicago conspired to protect Father Andrew Ronan, who died in 1970, despite a history of sex abuse allegations, moving him from Ireland to Chicago to Portland.
U.S. District Judge Michael Mosman ruled Wednesday that there are exceptions to the Foreign Sovereign Immunity Act, under which the Vatican is typically immune from the jurisdiction of U.S. courts.
Jeffrey Lena, the Vatican's attorney, said a district court had agreed Thursday to send an appeal of the ruling.

The original news story.

Bp. Aquila from Fargo to Minneapolis-St. Paul?

That's what the little birdes are saying:

Bishop Samuel Aquila, head of the Catholic Diocese of Fargo, is being mentioned as a possible candidate to replace Archbishop Harry Flynn of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, according to a Twin Cities television station.
Flynn has asked church officials to appoint a "coadjutor bishop" to assist him and replace him at his retirement, expected in the next two years, archdiocesan sources told KSTP-TV, according to the station's Web site Thursday. [More...]

Update: The birdies are chirping a bit louder...

From Thomas Szyszkiewicz: "...Bishop Samuel Aquila of Fargo will be coming to the Twin Cities as the archbishop. My prediction is that the announcement will be made on the 13th or the 20th."
"While the reports are saying that Archbishop Flynn sought a coadjutor, the reality is that this was something pushed from the Vatican. Let's just say that a certain someone in Rome was rather unhappy with the Archbishop's response when it came to a Communion issue." [More...]

Vatican rumoring - CWN style

Today's buzz from CWN:

Vatican, Jun. 09 (CWNews.com) - Pope Benedict XVI met on June 9 with two key members of the Roman Curia, giving new life to the persistent rumors that the Holy Father is planning major staff changes at the Vatican.
Pope Benedict met on Friday with Cardinal Francis Arinze, the prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship, and Cardinal Walter Kasper, the president of the Pontifical Council for Christian Unity. Although such meetings are common, it is somewhat unusual for the Pontiff to meet with the heads of two different dicasteries in close succession.

oooo, two congregation heads at once! :-)

(I'm kidding of course - I've rumored on less...)

Cardinal Maida celebrates his 50th

Some local news on the SW-Michigan front:

Detroit, Jun. 09, 2006 (CNA) - Cardinal Adam Maida is giving thanks to God for his priestly vocation on his 50th anniversary of ordination.
“Even in a dream I couldn't imagine the experiences that I've had as a priest - just doing every day what I thought was God's will, responding to God's call,” the cardinal-archbishop of Detroit told the Michigan Catholic.
Cardinal Maida has been Archbishop of Detroit for nearly 16 years. As a priest, he earned degrees in canon and civil law and eventually worked on legal matters regarding Church/state cases, even preparing cases for the Supreme Court. He reflected on his 50 years as a priest with the Michigan Catholic. [More...]

More local coverage from the Detroit News (photos, etc.)

Bishop Burbidge, next bishop of Raleigh Roundup

From the diocese of Raleigh website:

Pope Benedict XVI today named Philadelphia Auxiliary Bishop Michael F. Burbidge to be the 5th Bishop of Raleigh, accepting the retirement of Bishop F. Joseph Gossman, who has shepherded the Diocese of Raleigh since 1975.
Bishop Burbidge, who was ordained as a priest of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia in 1984, holds a Doctorate Degree in Education and Masters Degrees in Theology and Education Administration. As a priest, he has been a high school teacher and Special Assistant for retired Cardinal Anthony Bevilacqua. In 1998, he was named a Monsignor by Pope John Paul II and in 1999 he was appointed Rector of Saint Charles Borromeo Seminary in the archdiocese, where he served until 2004. In 2002, he was ordained an auxiliary bishop and for the last two years has worked in the Archdiocesan Office Center.
Bishop Burbidge will be installed as Bishop of Raleigh August 4, 2006. Bishop Gossman has been named Apostolic Administrator in the interim.

Links from the DoR website:

Full news release
Watch the press conference (Windows Media)
Statement by Bishop F. Joseph Gossman
Statement by Bishop Michael F. Burbidge
Archbishop Wilton Gregory welcomes Bishop Burbridge
Watch a video tribute to Bishop Gossman (Windows Media)

More Resources:

The Fathers know best how to evangelize the Youth

From the Fathers of the Church Blog:

The Church Fathers had a distinctive approach to youth ministry.
Now, don’t jump to conclusions. I haven’t uncovered any evidence that St. Ambrose led teens on ski trips in the nearby Alps. Nor is there anything to suggest that St. Basil sponsored junior-high dances in Pontus. (There’s not even a hint of a pizza party.) In fact, if you check all the documentary evidence from all the ancient patriarchates of the East and the West, you won’t find a single bulletin announcement for a single parish youth group.
Yet the Fathers had enormous success in youth and young-adult ministry. Many of the early martyrs were teens, as were many of the Christians who took to the desert for the solitary life. There’s ample evidence that a disproportionate number of conversions, too, came from the young and youngish age groups.
How did the Fathers do it? [Find out!]

Harvard starts privately-funded human cloning

From the UK Times:

The world's richest university has put its clout behind medical research opposed by President Bush.
AMERICA’S richest university threw its reputation and financial resources behind efforts to clone human embryos for medical science yesterday.
Scientists at Harvard University were awarded ethical approval and private funds to pursue therapeutic cloning experiments, which are strongly opposed by the Bush Administration and the Religious Right. Researchers hope that they could lead to cures for conditions such as diabetes and motor neuron disease.
The Harvard team will seek to clone embryos using cells from patients with these disorders, and then to create “disease-specific” colonies of embryonic stem cells that can be used to develop new treatments.
The work is hugely contentious in the US, where experiments on embryonic stem cells created since 2001 cannot receive federal funding and attempts to outlaw the use of cloning for medical research have narrowly failed to pass in Congress.
...
It is also one of the first therapeutic cloning projects to be started since the disgrace of Woo Suk Hwang, the South Korean scientist found last year to have faked his data.
...
The university, which has an endowment of $27 billion, which makes it the richest in the world, took more than two years to vet the ethical and scientific credentials of the project before deciding to give it its support. The project is the first of its kind in the US that will be conducted without commercial backing.
...
The initial goal is to take nuclei from adult cells belonging to patients with these diseases, and to transplant them into eggs from which DNA has been removed.
...
In the longer term the aim is to develop cloned embryonic stem cells for transplant as “spare-part tissue” that would be genetically matched to patients.
“We plan to take skin cells from a patient with a genetic disease and reprogram that skin cell back to its embryonic state,” Dr Daley said. [source]

LA dodges another judicial bullet (for now)

From the AP:

LOS ANGELES -- Many of the records in lawsuits alleging sexual abuse by priests from the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles will remain secret before trial, a judge has ruled.
Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Haley J. Fromholtz on Wednesday ordered lawyers not to disclose general background information and medical and financial records of individual plaintiffs and defendants.
...
The first three of 560 sexual abuse lawsuits are scheduled to go to trial in November.
...
Most of the litigation has been frozen for the past 3 1/2 years as parties tried to negotiate a settlement, similar to the record $100-million pact the Diocese of Orange reached with its accusers in 2005. [More...]

Business (of killing babies) is Booming

From LifeSiteNews:

WASHINGTON, D.C., June 8, 2006 (LifeSiteNews.com) – America’s largest abortion provider brought in close to $900 million last year, and achieved its second largest profit ever, according to the organization’s 2004-2005 annual report.
The massive organization reported a record income of $882 million dollars and a profit of $63 million, reported PipeLineNews on Monday. Profits have nearly doubled since 2003, when the 2002-2003 annual report indicated a profit of over $36 million dollars.
Planned Parenthood aborted more babies last year than in any previous year, ending the lives of more than 255,015 children by surgical abortion. That number doesn’t include the vast number of deaths caused by the sale of chemical abortion drugs, the morning after pill and abortifacient contraceptives, a major source of Planned Parenthood’s income.
The abortion chain operates more than 800 centers across the U.S. A report obtained by American Life League’s STOPP International in January revealed the organization operates 173 surgical abortion centers, 57 medical abortion facilities and 595 locations that distribute products causing early chemical abortions.
Despite continuing to promote itself as an adoption referral service, the organization also set a new record in the ratio of abortions to adoption referrals it carried out in the past year, at 180 abortions per 1 referral for adoption.
Planned Parenthood received a record amount of money in federal funding this year, with a total of $272.7 million dollars in government grants and contracts.
“Planned Parenthood must assume that elected officials can't read a simple annual report," said American Life League vice president Jim Sedlak. "While Planned Parenthood is begging for increased government funding, it's also admitting that it racked up record operating profits in its most recent fiscal year."
“Since 1987, Planned Parenthood has now received a total of $3.9 billion in taxpayers’ money,” said Mr. Sedlak.
"It is absolutely incredible that, in these days of natural disasters and homeland security threats, our federal, state and local governments would fund this controversial organization to the tune of nearly $4 billion," he continued. "Why is our government so quick to finance such ruthless attacks on our own innocent children?" [More...]

Simply Staggering.

Child born 6/6/06 named Damien and weighs 6lb, 6oz...

From the UK Mirror:

HORROR film fan Suzanne Cooper yesterday named her baby Damien after the devil child in the The Omen, who was also born on June 6.
Suzanne went one better than the movie by hitting the full Number of the Beast with the date - 6/6/06.
Special needs teacher Suzanne, 36, was also induced for six days before Damien arrived at 6.59am, tipping the scales at a spine-chilling 6lb 6oz. [More...]

Waiting for my nightly episode of Jeopardy to come on last night, I had to sit through the Michigan powerball number being announced ... 667. (*whew*!)

Seriously, though, what kind of issues is this poor kid going to face once he figures out who he is named after?

Gay "marriage" constitutional ban rejected

From the AFP:

A constitutional amendment seeking a national ban on gay marriage, strongly backed by US President George W. Bush and conservative Christian groups, failed to pass the US Senate.
The Republican-controlled upper chamber failed to endorse the amendment despite a majority of senators backing the proposal in a 49 to 48 vote. The measure required the backing of two-thirds of the Senate for it to be approved and taken forward to a formal vote. [More...]

"Lajolo and Kasper, Two New Additions to Team Ratzinger"

Sandro Magister's latest:

"They occupy key positions in the curia, having been appointed by John Paul II. But they fully support the new course charted by pope Ratzinger. Here is what has changed with them in the areas of ecumenism and relations with Islam"
ROMA, June 7, 2006 – Benedict XVI’s new curia isn’t just a matter of promotions and dismissals. It is also determined by the archbishops and cardinals who have deliberately assimilated, in their areas of competency, the new orientations that pope Joseph Ratzinger has impressed upon the Church’s direction.
One of these is archbishop Giovanni Lajolo, secretary for relations with states, or the foreign ministry.
Another is cardinal Walter Kasper, president of the Pontifical Council for Christian Unity. [More...]

Your Papist-Picture-of-the-Day, Wednesday June 7

All I want this year is my two front teeth ... and a chance to meet the Pope.

[photo: REUTERS/Max Rossi (VATICAN)]

Colbert does his thing

Rocco takes a look at Stephen Colbert's commencent address at Knox college.

I've talked about Colbert and Catholicism before.

Your Papist-Picture-of-the-Day, Tuesday June 6

Pope Benedict couldn't entirely hold back a gleeful smile at what was supposed to be a very austere book burning of The Da Vinci Code.

"Albino monks!" he thought to himself, "What's next?!"

[photo: AP Photo/Pier Paolo Cito]

More details on the Spring USCCB meeting

What's on the agenda for the Spring USCCB meeting (which I'm going to try to cover extensively):

Washington DC, Jun. 06, 2006 (CNA) - The relationship between bishops, the Church and politicians will be on the agenda for the spring meeting of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, June 15-17, at the Millennium Biltmore, Los Angeles. The USCCB’s Task Force on Catholic Bishops and Politicians will present its report.
The agenda will include discussions on the widely popular new DVD by the Committee on Vocations, “Fishers of Men.” The bishops will discuss extending the annual appeal for the Retirement Fund for Religious, adaptations of the Order of Mass, liturgical translations, and a beginning a draft document on stewardship and teenagers.
Reports on the work of Catholic Relief Services and their Hurricane Task Force will also be presented.

An important document: PIF's "Family and Human Procreation" (and NFP)

A very significant text has been published today:

The Pontifical Council for the Family, founded 25 years ago by John Paul II with the Motu Proprio "Familia a Deo Instituta," and presided by Cardinal Alfonso Lopez Trujillo, today published a document entitled: "Family and Human Procreation."
The text, according to an explanatory note written by Fr. Abelardo Lobato O.P., consultor of the pontifical council, "is destined to be an object of study, both for its doctrine and in its pastoral application." The document opens with "an introduction to the theme of the relationship between ... the family and procreation." [More...]

Amy Welborn notes that this document is "undoubtedly issued in preparation for the World Meeting of Families to be held in Valencia, Spain in July at which Benedict will be in attendance on July 8-9." [source]

Dom of Bettnet is displeased with the MSM's coverage of this event: "Apparently, for the first time today, the Catholic Church has condemned abortion, contraception, homosexuality, and other misuses of sexuality and procreation, at least if the breathless reports by the mainstream media are to be believed... This is nothing new or groundbreaking, but on a slow news day, the media has to pump it up." [source]

Purposes for publication and mischaracterizations in the media aside - I am very eager to read this document. From the AP's coverage and the (far better) CNS coverage, it is apparent that the document includes a lengthy treatment of the problems caused and questions raised by homosexual unions in society.

Furthermore, the CNS coverage highlights what the document has to say about the misuses of NFP:

"Couples who use natural family planning to have only one or two children allow "brief parentheses" in a marriage "willingly made sterile," said a new document from the Pontifical Council for the Family."
...
The document called for greater church efforts to educate married couples in responsible parenthood, which is not simply refusing to use artificial means of birth control.
When for the good of the entire family it is best to avoid having another child, couples can abstain from sexual intercourse during fertile periods to avoid a pregnancy, it said.
However, using natural family planning to have only one or a maximum of two children "is nothing other than a kind of series of brief parentheses within an entire conjugal life willingly made sterile," it said."

I've witnessed fierce debates on this very question, so it will be interesting to see what this document adds to the discussion. Did anyone catch when it will be made available?

Brooklyn Bolsters its Bishop Count

From this morning's VIS:

The Holy Father appointed Msgr. Octavio Cisneros of the clergy of the diocese of Brooklyn, U.S.A., rector of the Cathedral Seminary Residence of the Immaculate Conception in Douglaston and secretary for priestly formation;
Msgr. Guy Sansaricq of the clergy of the diocese of Brooklyn, pastor of the parish of St. Jerome and national director of the Haitian apostolate;
and Msgr. Frank J. Caggiano of the clergy of the diocese of Brooklyn, vicar for evangelization and pastoral life, as auxiliaries of the diocese of Brooklyn
(area 466, population 4,698,009, Catholics 1,832,235, priests 771, permanent deacons 152, religious 1,452).
Bishop-elect Cisneros was born in Havana, Cuba in 1945 and ordained a priest in 1971.
Bishop-elect Sansaricq was born in Jeremie, Haiti in 1934 and ordained a priest in 1960.
Bishop-elect Caggiano was born in Brooklyn in 1959 and ordained a priest in 1987.

Rocco adds his comments:

A source on the ground up there raises an interesting point: "[T]he fact that the three new bishops in Brooklyn -- even though they represent the diversity of the population (a Cuban, a Haitian and a Brooklynite) -- are all being assigned Titular Sees in Ireland."Respectively, those sees are Eanach Dúin, Glendalocha (which title once belonged to one amatissimo Diarmuid Martin) and Inis Cathaig."Does this mean," our op asks, "that our Holy Father (or our new Papal Nuncio in Washington) has a sense of humor, or, is it a sign of genuine respect for the history of the diocese?" [More...]

Catholic News Agency provides biographies of the three new bishops-elect.

Texts of the new Order of the Mass prayers

Rocco has posted some of the texts from the new order of the Mass that will be voted on in about 8 days, along with his commentary on the situation as it is unfolding.

An excerpt from a prayer as it has been newly translated:

"Behold the Lamb of God,
behold him who takes away the sins of the world.
Blessed are they who have been called to the banquet of the Lamb.
Lord, I am not worthy that you should come under my roof,
but only say the word,
and my soul shall be healed."

"'Rhythm Method Killing Embryos' Study is False on Science and Morality"

From LifeSiteNews:

June 5, 2006 (LifeSiteNews.com) - A study released last week by the British Medical Journal's subsidiary, the Journal of Medical Ethics, seemed more designed for attacking the Catholic Church than for scientific rigour. If that was the goal of L. Bovens' "The rhythm method and embryonic death", then the mainstream media fell for the ploy head-over-heels.
"How Vatican roulette kills embryos," screamed Australia's Sydney Morning Herald; "Rhythm method linked to massive embryonic death," was the headline of India's New Kerala, and Canada's Vancouver Sun styled it "'Rhythm' method a killer of embryos."
Physicians and medical ethicists, however, have responded to the journal noting that the study was "absurd science", "insulting to the general Catholic population", and just plain "wrong". [More...]

Walking the northeast as "missionaries for a new sexual revolution"

From reader David:

Missionaries for a new sexual revolution bring message to Augusta: Real Love Rejects Abortion
AUGUSTA, Maine – Dissatisfied and disenchanted with the culture's glorification of abortion and no-strings-attached sex, 12 young adults have dedicated their summers to walking through the Northeast as "missionaries for a new sexual revolution."

"We will stand no longer for the culture of death advocated by those who promote casual sex and abortion," said spokesperson Jessica Newman. "Our generation needs to hear the message that real love rejects abortion."

She continued, "We are not rejecting the culture; we are going to untwist the lies thrown upon our generation and transform the culture."

Using the late Pope John Paul II's collection of revolutionary teachings known as the "Theology of the Body," the young adults from throughout the United States are sharing the good news about the true meaning of sex, along major highways and in Catholic parishes from Augusta, Maine, to Washington, D.C.

"True liberation did not come from the sexual revolution of our parents' generation," said Lacy Howard, a student at the University of Maryland. "True love must be total, faithful and fruitful, or it is not authentic. It is disheartening to see so many people buy into the lie that selfish relationships will lead to happiness and freedom. Instead, we are echoing the words of John Paul II, who said that only in a sincere gift of self can one discover himself."

Although their message is universal, the young adults, known as the Missionaries of the Eucharist, are also urging Catholics to look to the example of Jesus Christ who gives of himself in Holy Communion at every Mass.

For more information, please visit the organization's website, www.MissionariesoftheEucharist.org.

Cardinal Pell on new Order of the Mass: "I think it'll get through."

An excerpt from an interview with Cardinal Pell by John Allen regarding the June meeting of the USCCB and the new translation of the Order of the Mass:

Where do things stand on the new Order of the Mass? Basically pretty healthy. It's been approved in Australia, it's been approved in England.
There's a big vote coming up in June in the United States. Do you have any sense of what you think will happen? I think it'll get through.
If so, are the big battles over? Experience has taught me that it's always dangerous to claim that. Nevertheless, if it gets through, that represents a significant achievement. I think the approval by Australia and England of the Order of the Mass is also significant.
[A good read, for sure.]

*looks up at AP countdown*

9 days and change ...

"Cardinal speaks to UN on AIDS fight" - CNA

From Catholic News Agency:

New York, Jun. 05, 2006 (CNA) - Cardinal Javier Lozano Barragán, President of the Pontifical Council for Health Pastoral Care, delivered an address to the United Nations Friday, detailing the Catholic Church’s work against the HIV/AIDS pandemic.
Barragán told the assembly that the Catholic Church has been at the forefront of the fight against HIV/AIDS since the beginning and will continue to provide increased service in this area. [More...]

Faithmouse comic about Ben Kessler's Commencement Address

More at faithmouse.

Latest Cardinal Arinze Podcast Up (and better than ever!)

From Rob:

"Isabel and I flew over to the Vatican to meet up with Francis Cardinal Arinze for what is bound to be the first live podcast recording with a Roman Curia Cardinal. Find out that this really is his podcast! Please join us for this powerful teaching on many subjects. Listen to the Cardinal's defense against atheistic misrepresentations of his words about the Da Vinci Code. Learn about the Patron for Unbelievers, the evil of the flesh and the devil and how one should go about to gradually switch to Roman Catholicism. Then receive his first podcast blessing!"

http://www.familylandeurope.com/blog/podcast/arinze

Your Papist-Picture-of-the-Day, Monday June 5

"Finally, dear brothers and sisters, let's hear it for the Virgin Mary!"

[photo credit: REUTERS/Dario Pignatelli]

"Theater actors want John Paul II as patron saint" - CNA

From Catholic News Agency:

Rome, Jun. 02, 2006 (CNA) - While the canonization process for Pope John Paul II is in its earliest stages one group is all ready calling to make St. John Paul their own. Some Italian theater actors are saying they would like John Paul to be named their patron.
"We would be so happy to have him as our patron saint,” Giuseppe Ferrazza told the Catholic TV channel Telepace on Thursday. Ferrazza is the chairman of Italy's National Theatre Agency, which published a book on Pope John Paul's writings for and about theatre.
“Theatre needs a protector because it has become too atheist," Ferrazza was quoted as saying.
The young Karol Wojtyla was once an amateur theater actor and a prolific writer of poetry and drama for the theatre. Most biographers agree that the late pontiff's theatrical experience helped him become one of the best communicators in the world. [source]

"Vatican review of English-language Mass translations picks up speed" - CNS

From Catholic News Services:

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The Vatican's review of English-language Mass translations is picking up speed as bishops' conferences approve liturgical books.
The Vox Clara Committee, a body of English-speaking bishops appointed to advise the Vatican on translations, met May 29-June 1 and will meet again in July.
The July meeting is likely to focus on reviewing the Order of Mass translations adopted in May by the bishops' conferences of Australia and of England and Wales. Bishops in the United States will be asked to approve the translation during their June 15-17 meeting in Los Angeles. [More...]

Diocese of Orange County clarification regarding kneeling

Jimmy Akin has the goods.

Rumors about the Pope's travel plans for the U.S.

From the Papa Ratzinger Forum (via Amy):

Finally, the last stop - New York, with two very important moments. He will address the United Nations General Assembly, where Paul VI in 1965 and John Paul II in 1995 both delivered historic speeches. Above all, however, he will be there to pray at Ground Zero, for the victims of terrorism.
This is a mission that his predecessor had wanted to do in July 2002 on his way to World Youth Day in Toronto. But two things decided against it: The first was the Pope’s health which had already started to decline.
But the bigger reason was the political climate. It was the peak of polemics over the “clash of civilizations.” A few months earlier, Cardinal Angelo Sodano, the Pope’s Secretary of State, had said: “They cannot ask us to place ourselves behind cannons,” and the image of the Pope praying at the still-smoldering ruins of the Twin Towers would have immediately become the icon of an anti-Taliban crusade.
Now it is different. The context in which Benedict XVI will find himself will be very different: “Freedom Tower”, a crystal needle that will project a ray of light heavenwards, will be under construction, along with its surrounding urban amenities, its gardens, the memorial pools containing the names of all the dead, and other buildings in the complex. The Pope’s presence will be a gesture of remembrance and homage to the victims of the attack, but also a sign of hope for the future. From New York, the Pope will return to Rome. [More...]

Back in the saddle again...

Blogging will resume once I wash the sand out of my hair. :-)

Blogging resumes Sunday...

An opportunity to go on a summer camping trip is something I just can't pass up. ttfn! :-)

Twitter Updates

Friday, June 30, 2006

Current reading list sidebar update (for summer)

List of Archbishops who received their Paliums yesterday

The Pope's new ride: a volvo

Thursday, June 29, 2006

Pallium Day in Rome

Is Cardinal Trujillo right about excommunication for deliberate embryo destruction?

Wednesday, June 28, 2006

Only the coolest radio show about Latin ever (now on MP3)...

Your Papist-Picture-of-the-Day, Wednesday June 28

Kid named after Pope Benedict gets Vatican greeting

England drinking Germany dry during World Cup

Tuesday, June 27, 2006

Pro-abortion catholic democrats throwing down the gauntlet already?

O'Reilly takes on Planned Parenthood tonight?

How to make your (troubled) diocese worship faithfully

3 CNA Headline Highlights, June 27

600lb woman ejected through sunroof survives

Monday, June 26, 2006

Summer Reading and Shifting Gears

"Szoka plans to be active in retirement" - DFP

Thursday, June 22, 2006

Szoka steps down as President of the Vatican City State

Carlson rocking and rolling in Saginaw...

New Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Bertone

Wednesday, June 21, 2006

Nike: Managing to tick off just about everyone at this year's World Cup...

"Pluto's newly found moons named Nix, Hydra" - AP

Beat by the heat or beating the heat?

Dick DeVos for Governor of Michigan

Tuesday, June 20, 2006

Sodano reacts to rumors of his retirement

Quote of the Day: U.S. papal nuncio

"New social encyclical rumored for 2007" - CWNews

S.D. Voters to Decide Fate of Abortion Ban

Monday, June 19, 2006

Video: "Duel of the Seminarians" - Star Wars meets Seminary Life

John Neuhaus/Get Religion on the Episcopal Church's Female Bishop head

Against the Grain Roundup

Nicole Kidman to have Catholic wedding in Australia?

Safe and Sound

Friday, June 16, 2006

Going to a wedding ... and turning 21.

AmP Poll: Are you in favor of the new English translation of the Mass?

Bishops approve new translation of the Mass! Hallelujah!

Thursday, June 15, 2006

Papal Photo from today's Corpus Christi procession

Today's Vote on the new Order of the Mass in English

My 900th post.

An uneven treatment of the USCCB NTOM vote

The Curial Tsunami - set for June 29th?

Wednesday, June 14, 2006

Your PPOTD! (Papist-Picture-of-the-Day) Wednesday, June 14

A most active Cardinal retires (at 91 no less!)

Cardinal Bertone to be next Vatican Secretary of State?

Tuesday, June 13, 2006

Miracle baby - 1lb at birth and the size of a cellphone!

Dr. Smith's CDs and MP3s on Sexual Questions

Whispers begins its USCCB spring meeting coverage

Just what is the reason for Philemon?

Filming God's Footprints | An Interview with Steve Ray

Vatican post office to issue special stamps - CWNews

Not so fast Michael Schiavo... (redux)

Ben Kessler Follow-Up: "The Identity of a Catholic University"

Monday, June 12, 2006

This week's AmP Poll: Who reads the AmP Blog?

One of my boys has an audience with the Pope

New method of fertility regulation in line with Catholic teaching

New topics proposed for next Synod meeting - but not made public

McCarrick issues clarification on his same-sex marriage comments

Itinerary for the Pope's trip to Valencia, Spain (July 8-9)

Vatican official welcomes birth to "brain-dead" mother

"Church artifacts finding unusual homes" - AP

Wuerl Winds-Up for Washington

Sunday, June 11, 2006

Tropical Storm Alberto forms off Florida

Meditations from Carmel

Friday, June 09, 2006

Vatican appeals Portland ruling on suing the Vatican