Photo: Old Navy's new Graphic Tee might look familiar to you

Someone call Old Navy, Jesus wants His Sacred Heart back:

I'm not kidding.

Good: Church of Scientology convicted of fraud in France

This couldn't have happened to a nicer, ponzi-schemed "religion":

"A Paris court convicted the Church of Scientology of fraud and fined it more than euro600,000 ($900,000) on Tuesday but stopped short of banning the group as prosecutors had demanded.

The group's French branch immediately announced it would appeal the verdict.

Olivier Morice, lawyer for civil parties in the case, said the verdict was "historic" because it was the first time in France that the Church of Scientology has been convicted of organized fraud.

... Belgium, Germany and other European countries have been criticized by the U.S. State Department for labeling Scientology as a cult or sect and enacting laws to restrict its operations." (AP)

Evidently those countries have more common sense than our state department.

Sacrament of Confession featured in yesterday's House MD episode

Regular AmP readers will remember that I like the TV show House, MD.

Yesterday's episode featured the character Dr. Robert Chase, who is a Catholic and, in the show's back story, attended seminary for a year before deciding he wanted to become a doctor.

At a pivotal point in the episode, Dr. Chase goes to confession.

I thought the show treated the Sacrament of Confession and the necessary contrition for absolution in a very good, even theologically-informed, manner. The priest came off as somewhat distant, but also as someone with integrity and a sure moral compass.

Nothing on TV about matters of faith is ever perfect, but Dr. Chase's choice to not seek absolution and remain obstinate, I predict, will result in even greater difficulties for his character in the episodes ahead.

House, MD - like most shows about hospitals, doctors and patients, is ultimately a drama about life's ultimates, about matters of life and death. With the stakes so high, it's good to see the show's writers also discussing such issues as faith, sin, confession and morality.

If you watched the show - what are your thoughts?

Katie Holmes places daughter Suri in Catholic pre-school

This is as close to tabloid coverage as you'll see AmP cover, so enjoy it while you can:


UK Daily Mail:

Katie Holmes has won a battle with her Scientologist husband Tom Cruise to enrol their daughter Suri in a Catholic pre-school.

The Church of Scientology has always been a bone of contention between the couple and Tom wanted three-year-old Suri to be raised a Scientologist.

But last week Katie enrolled the toddler at the Catholic Charities Yawkey Centre For Early Education And Learning in Boston, Massachusetts.

The family are living in the city while Tom, 47, films his new movie, the spy comedy thriller Wichita. Katie’s mother also flew in for her granddaughter’s first week at the pre-school.

‘Katie has been listening to her parents who are devout Catholics,’ I’m told.

‘She is not convinced by Scientology and has told Tom that she wants Suri to be educated as a Catholic – as she was.

‘They had been having huge problems agreeing on her school. To say they were having arguments is putting it mildly – but Tom came around to the idea in the end.’

Holmes, 30, has not been seen at the Church of Scientology for more than
five months.

But Cruise, who was also raised Catholic but converted to Scientology in 1990, remains an ardent follower.

However, the decision does not seem to have upset the couple's relationship.

Talk about a mixed-religion marriage.

Sarah Silverman's modest proposal for the Pope, and what I propose for Sarah

Professional attention-searcher Sarah Silverman has released a YouTube video called "Sell the Vatican, Feed the World" which will soon pass half a million views.

You are welcome to watch it, but we warned that it's extremely vulgar.

In the video, Silverman tries to make an argument that the Pope needs to sell the Vatican to feed poor people.

I'm not disagreeing with Silverman that poor people ought to be fed, but I'm sure sick of liberal know-it-alls getting away with stupid arguments and ignorant stereotypes of the Church. That's what I'm going to focus on.

Even the Associated Press has covered this story, and it doesn't help the reputation of the Church when Rev. James Martin, SJ - culture editor of the Jesuit magazine America, writes that Silverman may be onto something.

.... excuse me?!

Silverman is trying to claim that if the pope doesn't sell the Vatican to feed the poor, the pope and the Church are somehow being hypocritical - that their actions don't reflect their beliefs.

Well, let's take a look at the facts:

• The Catholic Church already feeds more people than any private institution in the world. In the world. There's not even a close second. As a Church, of course we could do more. But we are doing something - and its a lot of something. Silverman might give credit where credit is due.
• Silverman makes the slur that the Vatican was involved in the holocaust. Seriously, Sarah? The historical evidence firmly exonerates the activity of the Church during the holocaust. Pope Pius XII personally saw to the protection of thousands of Jews, at great personal risk to himself and the Church. As a person of Jewish ancestry, how dare she attack the institution credited by Jews the world over with protecting Jews when so many world governments were deaf to their cries. This is beneath even her.
• Silverman likes quoting Christian sayings back to the pope - does she know about motes and beams? I'm curious how much of Sarah's profits, including her movie profits, have you used to feed the poor? If she is tired of seeing starving people on TV, what has she done about it, besides uploading a self-promoting video to YouTube? Shouldn't those who work to feed the poor be outraged at the antics of Silverman, when she uses the plight of starving people to further her own popularity and distract from their needs?
• At the end of the day, it's just a really stupid idea even in itself. The assets of the Vatican (St. Peter's Basilica, etc.) don't have a fair market value. Who is going to buy the Vatican? The best use of the Vatican is to continue to provide a place of worship to the millions of people who are members of the Church, who are in turn the economic engine behind the Vatican's ability to feed the poor. Pure and simple.

Some of you may be thinking: "Thom, chill out, everyone knows this is a joke."

Well not so fast - we look at this proposal and find it preposterous, but plenty of people watch this and receive yet another confirmation of their ingrained opinion - frequently reinforced by pop culture - that the Catholic Church is a bunch of selfish hypocrites who use Christianity as a way of lining their fur-coat vestments.

Honestly.

So my last point is for Fr. Martin, who writes that Silverman "is on to something - like Jesus was":

• Attacks on the Church are not the correct opportunity for pius hand-wringing. The take-away from the Sarah Silverman proposal is not "Gee, I guess she has a point". Rather it is: "The only good point Sarah makes we Catholics already knew, now has she heard any of the points we Catholics have in response?"

I, and every serious Catholic, don't need Sarah Silverman telling us we need to do more as individuals and as a Church to feed the poor. However, Sarah Silverman and most everyone who listens to her, needs to know that the Church is attempting - to the best of its ability and despite all its human failings - to live out the gospel mandate of Jesus Christ to feed the hungry.

(A little example might help here, if Silverman promised to match the charitable output of the Church dollar-for-dollar in its care and feeding of the poor, she would be bankrupt in a couple days. And that's just a guess. Maybe she would be bankrupt sooner.)

So no, Sarah Silverman doesn't have a point. The Church has a point - it has the truth.

That's what we should be talking about.

I realize papists don't need to hear these truths from me, but when your friend or co-worker asks you, "so what do you think about that Sarah Silverman video?" ... you know what I have to say about it.

Answer Sarah Silverman, Teach the World.

MSM shocked that Catholics see connection between prayer, sex

Just because its off-beat news day:

Roman Catholic couples are being encouraged to pray together before they have sex.

A book published by a prominent Church group invites those setting out on married life to recite the specially-composed Prayer Before Making Love.

It is aimed at 'purifying their intentions' so that the act is not about selfishness or hedonism.

The prayer, which appears in the Prayer Book for Spouses, implores God 'to place within us love that truly gives, tenderness that truly unites, self-offering that tells the truth and does not deceive, forgiveness that truly receives, loving physical union that welcomes'.

It adds: 'Open our hearts to you, to each other and to the goodness of your will.

'Cover our poverty in the richness of your mercy and forgiveness. Clothe us in true dignity and take to yourself our shared aspirations, for your glory, for ever and ever.' - UK Daily Mail

Tsk-tsk, those Catholics and their unhealthy views about sex.

Video: Mickey Rourke thanks God and Catholic faith for 'second chance'

CNA provides the video and a background story:



Rourke recently won a Golden Globe Award for "The Wrestler" and was an Oscar favorite.

Tip: Want to see a good movie this weekend? See Ponyo.

That's what Stephen Greydanus suggests, and I take his suggestions very seriously.

Shock: Kourtney Kardashian decides to Keep her Kid

You don't often see AmP covering a story reported by People magazine, but then again, you (sadly) don't often see a megastar facing a crisis pregnancy and decide to keep her child. People magazine doesn't quite know how to handle it:

"Kourtney Kardashian's unplanned pregnancy forced the shocked reality TV star to make one of the most difficult decisions in her life: Would she have the baby or terminate the pregnancy?

.... "I looked online, and I was sitting on the bed hysterically crying, reading these stories of people who felt so guilty from having an abortion," she recalls. "I was reading these things of how many people are traumatized by it afterwards."

After scouring the Internet, Kardashian says she started to realize that an abortion wasn't an option for her. "I was just sitting there crying, thinking, 'I can't do that,' " she says. "And I felt in my body, this is meant to be. God does things for a reason, and I just felt like it was the right thing that was happening in my life."

The Catholic Mommy Brain blog, basing her comments on the CNN coverage of the story, names four simple reasons Kourtney decided to keep her child: God, the internet, her doctor and the father.

God is always at work, and we can continue to show the truth about unborn human life through the internet, as well as applaud doctors and support fathers who help women facing difficult choices about "unplanned" pregnancies.

It's also worth noting that Kourtney attended four years of Catholic high-school. Though she went on to a Methodist University, I would hope that both places taught her the Christian values she is now calling upon to make the human choice, in the face of great odds. Let's say a prayer that her brave choice is not savaged by the same media culture that is so-often at-odds with authentic sexual fulfillment, human dignity, and a culture of life.

I hope the rest of America tries to keep up with this Kardashian.

AP: Catholic basketball coach paid for mistress's abortion

An AmP reader sent me this sad story of the men's basketball coach Rick Pitino, a Catholic father of five, who apparently paid his mistress $3,000 to have an abortion.

Being a party to an abortion results in an automatic excommunication, so in addition to the significant legal problems Mr. Pitino is facing, he also ought to urgently seek reconciliation with the Church.

The Associated Press article claims that Pitino "brings along a priest who's a close friend and spiritual adviser on many team trips". 

I hope that this priest is helping Mr. Pitino and his family.

Let's say a quick prayer for men whose job keeps them away from their families for long periods of time. I'm not condoning at all what Mr. Pitino did but certainly this can be an occasion of temptation.

update: My father, Canon Lawyer Ed Peters, takes a look at the canonical consequences arising from the abortion in this case.

Papist Pic: Hulk Hogan wears rosary at divorce hearings

AmP reader Anthony send in this June 14th picture of Hulk Hogan in his divorce proceedings.

Mark Wahlberg gets married in the Church

Catholic actor Mark Wahlberg is trying to make things right....

Mark Wahlberg is now part of the married bunch: The actor wed his longtime girlfriend, model Rhea Durham, on Saturday.

The couple exchanged vows before 12 family and friends at Beverly Hills' Good Shepherd Catholic Church, People reports. The bride wore a white, strapless Marchesa gown, as well as Neil Lane jewelry, while Wahlberg donned a black suit and a silver tie.

Daughter Ella, 5, served as flower girl. The couple has two other children, Michael, 3, and Brendan, 10 months.

Wahlberg revealed last year that he and Durham, together since 2001, were contemplating a trip down the aisle this month. "We're talking about getting married in August," he said. "It's a good month." - TV Guide

Video: Florida Quarterback shocks reporter by admitting he's a virgin

You get what you ask for:

LifeSiteNews has a story on this. Tebow is a homeschooled Christian. Quality guy. ;)

Offbeat Friday....

Video/Story: U2's Bono admits new song inspired by Virgin Mary

Tim Drake reports at NCRegister.com:

In a recent Rolling Stone magazine interview with Brian Hiatt, U2’s Bono says that the song “Magnificent” is inspired by the Blessed Virgin Mary.

“All music for me is worship of one kind or another,” says Bono.

The song appears on the band’s new album, “No Line on the Horizon.”

“Magnificent was inspired by the Magnificat, a passage from the Gospel of Luke in the voice of the Virgin Mary that was previously set to music by Bach,” says Bono. “There’s this theme running through the album of surrender and devotion and all the things I find really difficult.”

Here is the music video:

Here is where you can buy the Magnificent track ($1.00) or full CD ($9) on Amazon.

Offbeat: Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie Donate $1 Million to (Catholic) Hospital

Friday is offbeat news day at AmP, and this one is perfect because it allows me to draw upon a story reported by US Magazine:

Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt and his family donated $1 million to a Missouri hospital over the weekend.

Brad's bro, Doug, announced the generous contribution to St. John's Hospital in his hometown of Springfield Saturday. The money will establish an endowment fund to pay children's cancer specialists, the Springfield News-Leader reports.

The hospital's cancer treatment unit will be renamed the Jane Pitt Pediatric Cancer Center, in honor of Brad's mom, who is passionate about children's issues.

Who are the most generous celebs?

Once completed this summer, St. John's Hospital will become one of six affiliates of the St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital (one of Jennifer Aniston's favorite charities).

The endowment fund will also go toward building a new pediatric unit, a 10-bedroom hospital-based Ronald McDonald house and doubling the size of the neonatal and pediatric intensive care units.

Of course, for the more traditional among us, the Associated Press also has the news.

Following the trail begun by the official news release, one finds that Mercy St. John's hospital is part of the Sisters of Mercy Health System, which is sponsored by "Mercy Health Ministry, an entity established by the Catholic Church to oversee the healing ministry and Catholic identity of Mercy."

Ph/t: The Blog of the Courtier.

Heartbreaking: NYT on "Choosing not to keep the baby"

Over at the New York Times blog "Motherlode: Adventures in Parenting", a heartbreaking story:

When asked for advice, Motherlode readers come through, and last week more than 700 of you poured out your thoughts to Emmie, a young woman unexpectedly pregnant as she is about to start a grueling and prestigious Master’s degree program.

I heard from her yesterday. I will let her explain in her own words what she decided and why. Then I ask you to please return later today to brainstorm ideas on how to transform the surge of compassion that rose up here toward Emmie into real action that can help the many young women who find themselves in her shoes.

Emmie sent me a number of emails laying out her thoughts, and asked me to combine them into one.

[Click here to see what she wrote.]

What is heartbreaking for me is not only the "choice" she has made, but how very close she was to making the right one. If there is anything that should inspire us to try harder to provide for young women experiencing problems in their pregnancy, it is a story like this. Let us pray for Emmie and her soon-to-be-ended young child.

Cameron Diaz: “We don't need any more kids. We have plenty of people.”

Oh Cameron:

Cameron Diaz has said in an interview in the July issue of Cosmopolitan Magazine, which comes out tomorrow, that “We don't need any more kids. We have plenty of people on this planet.” (LifeSiteNews)

Previous gem from Miss Diaz:

“If you think that rape should be legal, then don’t vote. But if you think that you have a right to your body, and you have a right to say what happens to you and fight off that danger of losing that, then you should vote,” she said.

Maybe her publicist could also begin sending her highlights from world census data.

Video: Miss USA California puts Perez Hilton in his place

Good for Miss USA California (never really thought I'd say something like that):


The (beginning of the) aftermath:

Miss California's answer sparked a shouting match in the lobby after the show. "It's ugly," said Scott Ihrig, a gay man, who attended the pageant with his partner. "I think it's ridiculous that she got first runner-up. That is not the value of 95 percent of the people in this audience. Look around this audience and tell me how many gay men there are." (FOX News)

Support for traditional marriage: supposedly a "minority" position whose adherents it is considered acceptable to mock and marginalize.

... at least if you live on the edge of the California coast.

The Tale of Desperaux

I saw an advance screening of The Tale of Desperaux this morning and was quite impressed.

It's a lovely animated film for younger audience, although the parents in my screening enjoyed it as well! I was cracking up most the time.

Desperaux combines excellent animation with a complex, virtue-extolling storyline based on this novel of the same name by Kate Dicamillo and Timothy Ering.

You can watch a high-quality trailer of the movie here.

Desperaux is a fairy tale in all the right ways, without any of the recent Hollywood -style deconstruction that has been popular (I loved the Shrek series, but it was an "anti-fairy tale" flick).

The movie will be released the 19th, and if you're looking for something to entertain the kids (or your nieces/nephews/grandchildren) amidst the Christmas reunions, I don't think you could do much better.

There's plenty to admire in this tale of little Desperaux!

What about Twilight?

If you look at the movie Box Office returns from last weekend, there's a big surprise....

.... it's the movie Twilight. I'm rather disturbed by its huge success, because I've heard nothing good about the book it is based on.

A Catholic mother blogging about the book and movie over at Spes Unica has this to say:

"The Twilight Saga is an international sensation, but unlike other recent blockbusters (for example, the Harry Potter series), this fan base tilts very, very heavily towards females. (One fan site listed a ratio of 31 registered females for every male, and I would venture to say it may be optimistic about the number of males.) The series has been carefully marketed as a courtly romance based on old fashioned morals, but this is simply untrue. It is driven by eroticism and obsession, contains explicit sexual situations and violence, and disturbing spiritual content which concludes in a “happy ending” where the heroine of the story gives up her soul to become a vampire." (Read More)

So be advised - Twilight is dark for a reason.

update: it's evident from the comment thread that other Catholics view this series favorably, for instance the USCCB review, and pro-life chastity blogger Kate Bryan.

Since I have not read the books or seen the movie, nor do I have a particular interest in the genre, I'll refrain from commenting and allow AmP readers to pursue the debate who are closer to it.

I would say, speaking as an outsider, that this genre of film in general contains unsavory elements, and so if it is good, that means it has an uphill battle. But for all that, it would be encouraging to see that there is an entry that features acceptable moral values for a chance. Otherwise it's just another teen vampire movie. Blech.

Ron Howard having a tough time filming in Rome

Boo-hoo:

"Da Vinci Code director Ron Howard had to shoot the movie's forthcoming prequel using imitations of the Catholic churches in the storyline - after the Vatican banned him from all of its holy buildings.

The first movie's portrayal of the Catholic church angered the religion's heads, who were in no mood to cooperate when Howard headed to Rome, Italy this year to shoot an adaptation of author Dan Brown's 2000 book Angels & Demons, which is set in the Vatican City.

As a result, Howard has been forced to used camera trickery and substitute locations.

He reveals, "We've had problems filming in Catholic Churches. We just weren't allowed anywhere near them." (Wenn)

[photo credit: divxplanet, which also has a photo album of pictures taken on the movie set ... yeah, you're looking great, Tommy.]

Mark Wahlberg wants to be left alone at Mass

Mark Whalberg is Catholic, and goes to Mass every Sunday.

Problem is, people know it:

Entourage has become a curse for Mark Wahlberg on Sundays - because people approach him in church with story lines and requests to be on the hit show. Wahlberg, who is the producer of the series - which is based on his early days in Hollywood, admits a family trip to church has become a business meeting and he'd like others to leave him alone when he's worshiping.

He says, "I go to church and people ask me if they can be on Entourage, what's gonna happen. I go to church to worship, I don't go to church to talk about it. The stuff that I did with my entourage back in the day is stuff that I'm not proud of and I'm asking forgiveness for; I don't want things brought up in church, but, if you go to church in Beverly Hills, those kind of things happen."

And his fellow worshipers don't just bug him about Entourage.

He adds, "I get scripts, resumes, books - people tried to come up to me with a children's book before and I wouldn't take it. They got upset with me. This is church." (StarPulse)

Whalberg's wiki page says he "credits his faith and a priest from his childhood for helping him turn his life around and recognize the seriousness of his faith." He has three children with model Rhea Durham, whom he has never married, but plans to marry her next August, in a Catholic wedding:

"Catholic church, small, family only, no media!" [Whalberg] told Us. Laughing, he added, "And there will be no wedding pictures sold to any magazines!"

Mark and Rhea named their youngest son Brendan. "It's for St. Brendan" he told Us. No kidding!

Perfect? Nope. Trying? Seems like it.

Update: ‘Fireproof’ Earns Twice As Much As ‘Religulous’

This news warmed my heart:

Fireproof has earned twice as much at the box office as Religulous.

Both opening weekend box office numbers and total to date are as close to two-to-one as you can get. On their respective opening weekends (one week apart), the barely advertised Fireproof earned $6.8 million while the highly advertised Religulous earned only $3.4 million. As of the date of this post the numbers are $23.6MM vs $10.6MM.

And let’s not even get into the profit margin side of things. Fireproof had an ROI of $46 for every dollar spent while Religulous earned $4 for every dollar (probably less, if marketing is considered).

It couldn't have happened to a nicer solipsist.

.. and shouldn't the picture have Maher on the left instead of the right?

"Mel Gibson pours millions into extremist Catholic sect"

A sad tale:

"Australian actor Mel Gibson has poured another $15.2 million into his controversial private church in California’s exclusive beachside suburb of Malibu.

US federal tax filings showed Gibson’s Holy Family Catholic Church now has tax-free assets worth a total of $64 million.

Gibson is the sole contributor to the church, which has a small congregation of about 70 members and follows a 500-year-old ethos.

Among the church’s assets were art works with a listed value of almost $760,000." (Religion News Blog)

I love his movies, but can't countenance the way he's spending his profits.

Speaking of the former - has anyone heard rumors about what his next planned movie might be?

It's my understanding that he's still sitting on significant profits from The Passion of the Christ and even Apocalypto broke even (or did slightly better). So he doesn't need outside funding.

I've heard rumors ranging from a life of John Paul II to an adaptation of the Book of Maccabees.

Either would be awesome.

Vatican newspaper likes "Wall-E" animated movie

Andrea Piersanti, writing for L'Osservatore Romano, thinks Wall-E "underscores defense of life, hope and humanism." It's certainly one of my favorite movies of the year, and I think you would like it.

Video: Doubt Trailer

I don't immediately find this trailer offensive merely for its subject matter (some endorsement, huh?):

Margaret Cabaniss at IC tells us why I might think that.

MTV host disparages Purity Ring wearers, earns rebuke

I'm hardly surprised shock-artist Russell Brand said these things (he seemed to be on a mission to antagonize everything and everyone he could think of), but I am happy to see that someone was brave enough to call him out on the same platform so soon:

"While Brand’s political comments certainly brewed up a storm, what drew arguably the biggest response was Brand’s repeated jabs at the Jonas Brothers and the purity rings they wear as a symbol of their vow not to have premarital sex.

... Following Brand’s comments, American Idol winner and fellow purity ring wearer Jordin Sparks took to the stage, and before presenting an award, defended the evangelical Christian brothers with a quick statement [and drew applause]."

Sadly, the adjective Sparks chose to describe individuals who don't live chastely wasn't very charitable.

Brand, for his part, didn't know to stop when he was behind:

"[He] also encouraged Americans to vote for Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama in the upcoming election, referred to George W. Bush as a "retarded cowboy fella" and took a shot at Republican VP nominee Sarah Palin and her pregnant daughter."

Some have already stepped up to give Brand the appropriate slap on the snout he deserves:

Rock for Life, a national pro-life music and advocacy movement that promotes 832 bands, is demanding an apology from MTV Music Video Awards host Russell Brand for his sexist, judgmental and intolerant remarks.

"Brand is a sexist pig who has been arrested 11 times, once for indecent exposure,” said Erik Whittington, director of Rock for Life. “He appears to care more about making crude jokes to gain attention than he does offending who choose to live a lifestyle different from his own lascivious past.” (American Life League)

Hopefully Brand someday discovers how to be funny without appearing like a bigoted idiot.

Papist Quote of the Day

I'm going to break a rule of quotation and excerpt the last lines of Ross Douthat's thought experiment:

Hence the weird anger emanating from social liberals at the religious right's failure to tar and feather the Palins and run them out of GOP politics on a rail: they're mad that religious conservatives aren't fitting neatly into the stereotypes that liberals have spent years cultivating.

Read this to see how he got here.

Video: US Weekly editor attempts to defend cover

Megyn Kelly takes on Bradley Jacobs:

Background here.

Pictures: US Weeky's double standard (Palin v. Obama)

For today's example in objective, non-editorializing popular journalism, I give you:

Exhibit A: "Barack Obama. He loves his wife. She calls him "my rock." Isn't their wedding picture cute? There's nothing much else to say, folks, because it's all good - just like him!"

Exhibit B: "Sarah Palin. She lies. She's immersed in scandals. She's having babies like crazy. Her daughter doesn't know how to use birth control. She fires her sister's ex-husbands. Need we say more?"

The backlash has reached 10,000 boycotters, and US Weekly is feeling the hit.

More than sickeningly embarassing.

Related: Women shifting to McCain according to Rasmussen

"Archbishop Chaput’s book makes NYT Best Seller List"

And he beats Joe Biden's book:

Just three weeks into the publication of “Render Unto Caesar,” Archbishop Charles Chaput’s new book has made the New York Times Best Seller list. The archbishop’s book is currently one place ahead of “Promises to Keep,” written by Democratic vice presidential nominee Sen. Joe Biden. (CNA)

I see that having Render Unto Caesar as my AmP book of the month is making a difference! :)

Oprah snubs Palin, Palin wins over America

Drudge is claiming that Oprah Winfrey has decided not to have Sarah Palin on her hugely-popular TV show (despite many, many requests from her viewers) while Oprah denies that Palin was ever even considered.

This is a surprising decision for (at least) two reasons: 1] Oprah typically loves the opportunity to showcase accomplished, prominent women and 2] Oprah can't really claim neutrality here because of her whole-hearted support of Barack Obama.

It's not like Palin needs the exposure, after her extremely popular, effective convention speech, Rasmussen polling is reporting that she is more popular than McCain or Obama! And indeed, every time people like Oprah snub Palin, her stock increases.

I also agree with Brian Saint-Paul that "if John McCain wins the 2008 presidential race, it will be because Sarah Palin dragged him across the finish line."

Without intending any sort of pun ... Palin sure is polarizing.

Peggy Noonan on Sarah Palin {updated}

{updated most recently @ 11:45pm - see below}

As always, excellent observations.

Highlights from what she has to say about Sarah Palin:

Because [Palin] jumbles up so many cultural categories, because she is a feminist not in the Yale Gender Studies sense but the How Do I Reload This Thang way, because she is a woman who in style, history, moxie and femininity is exactly like a normal American feminist and not an Abstract Theory feminist; because she wears makeup and heels and eats mooseburgers and is Alaska Tough, as Time magazine put it; because she is conservative, and pro-2nd Amendment and pro-life; and because conservatives can smell this sort of thing -- who is really one of them and who is not -- and will fight to the death for one of their beleaguered own; because of all of this she is a real and present danger to the American left, and to the Obama candidacy.

She could become a transformative political presence.

So they are going to have to kill her, and kill her quick.

And it's going to be brutal. It's already getting there.

And also:

I'll tell you how powerful Mrs. Palin already is: she reignited the culture wars just by showing up. She scrambled the battle lines, too. The crustiest old Republican men are shouting "Sexism!" when she's slammed. Pro-woman Democrats are saying she must be a bad mother to be all ambitious with kids in the house.

update: well this is a shocker... (via AmP reader mark:)

Conservative columnist Peggy Noonan: “It’s over… They went for this, excuse me, political bull**** about narratives. Every time Republicans do that… they blow it.”

Source.

I'm out the door right now and don't have time to immediately comment. AmP reader Mary:

Peggy Noonan has updated her WSJ article to explain her unfortunate epithet, which was made about "political narrative" and not about Gov. Palin. She believes that she was 'mugged'. Considering the speed with which the MSNBC video clip went viral and the way liberal bloggers are now skewing the context of her remarks, she's probably right. She's not the only victim, though.

Curious.

update 2: Matthew Balan notes the accelerated timeline at NewsBusters.

Video: Cannes '08 Short Film Winner

A good video for a Sunday:


Description:

Fourth annual Short Film Online Competition - Cannes 2008. The NFB, in association with the Cannes Short Film Corner and partner YouTube, is proud to announce that the winner of the NFB Online Competition Cannes 2008 is Alonso Alvarez Barreda for his short film Historia de un Letrero (The Story of a Sign) produced in Mexico/U.S.A.

Running Time : 04:50

With a stroke of the pen, a stranger transforms the afternoon for another man in this emotionally stirring short film by Alonso Alvarez.

[Ph/t: PhatMass user "Seven77"]

Confratenity of Catholic Clergy defends Humanae Vitae on its 40th anniversary

Stories relating to Humanae Vitae (explicitly and implicitly, or tangentially) have been increasing lately in anticipation of its 40th anniversary on July 25th. Notably among these is the outrageous decision of "Catholics for Choice" to publish an open letter to Pope Benedict criticizing the church's constant teaching against artificial contraception.

I'm happy to see, therefore, that the Confraternity of Catholic Clergy (who generously invited me to their convocation in Baltimore last week) is jumping into the breach:

The leader of "Catholics" for Choice argued that in some countries where Catholic institutions exercise great power, people "are dying as a result of the ban" on contraceptives. His statement presumably referred to the argument that AIDS is spread by the lack of access to condoms.

However, the Confraternity of Catholic Clergy, a group of 600 orthodox Catholic priests and deacons, meeting in Baltimore last week, strongly endorsed the Church's teaching. Referring to the papal encyclical Humanae Vitae, in which Pope Paul VI reinforced the traditional teaching, the Confraternity approved a statement asking "all its brother clergy to teach, explain, and defend this timely encyclical."

"While sometimes a difficult teaching to embrace and maintain, it is nevertheless the only means to uphold the natural law and to safeguard the sanctity of the human person, marriage, and the family as well as civilization itself," the Confraternity proclaimed. The group pointed out that in the 40 years since Pope Paul issued the encyclical, the steadily growing public acceptance of contraception has been associated with epidemics of sexual promiscuity, deviancy, venereal disease, divorce, illegitimacy, and other problems including sharp increases in breast cancer and uterine cancer. (CWNews)

LifeNews has more on the story. You can also read more on the Catholic and Christian newswires.

Please consider making a donation to the CCC or sponsoring your priest for a CCC membership to support the good work they are doing and spread awareness their joyful, firm obedience to the Church's teaching.

Does Having Kids Makes You Happy?

Newsweek says it doesn't, and cites surveys.

I say they should reevaluate their questions.

Plus, I find it very intriguing that they would choose to publish such an article so close to the 40th anniversary of Humanae Vitae. What, are they trying to console all those folks who chose to contracept instead of having children, telling them, in other words, that they're probably happier off for it?

On ignoring the "f" word in questions of early puberty

Liberal Feminist blog Feministing.com, in their "weekly feminist reader" notes this article in Colorlines ("the national newsmagazine on race and politics"), which claims that plastic is the reason why black girls enter puberty earlier than white girls:

"A 1997 study, conducted at pediatricians’ offices nationwide, found that girls were showing the first signs of puberty about a year earlier than was considered normal. Most striking was that Black girls were beginning puberty about a year earlier than white girls."

What I found most striking is the entire article never once mentions the many many studies which claim that early puberty normally occurs in situations where there is no biological father present during the girls' upbringing (it's a pheromone thing). African American homes in the United States, sadly, often do not have the original biological father present through the entirety of childhood.

In other words, lack of a father, not the presence of plastics, can begin to account for some of the disparity in the statistics along ethnic lines.

But if there's anything I've learned from reading these radical feminist blogs, it's to never accept a sound sociological/biological explanation when a hypothetical ecological/lifestyle solution can be offered instead.

AmP Quick Movie Review: The Dark Knight

On Friday I got myself out of the house to catch a matinee showing of the new batman movie The Dark Knight (official website here).

The movie has been hyped to no end, receiving a 94% rating from metareview site Rotten Tomatoes. Early word is that it is set to break countless records at the box office. Watch the high-definition trailer on YouTube here.

Because the movie came to me so highly recommended, I tried especially hard to give the movie an honest, unbiased viewing.

The filming technique and pacing are flawless, and the acting is top-notch. Heath Ledger is absolutely brilliant, and if he certainly deserves a posthumous Oscar.

With a run time of over two-and-a-half hours, there's plenty to absorb while watching it (and plenty to digest after), but I can say with confidence that it's the best movie I've seen this year.

Because the movie is so complex, I've decided to go see it again tonight before I try to review it.

Soccer star Chase Hilgenbrinck retires to enter priesthood

Professional soccer isn't exactly my cup of tea, but brave young men sacrificing fame and fortune to discern a call from God? I'm all about that. From USA Today:

When Chase Hilgenbrinck bounced from Chile to Colorado to New England this spring, his eyes were already on another path. Not toward another MLS club or Europe. Toward the priesthood.

MLS fans might have been startled to read the New England Revolution's announcement this week that the defender was ending his career in midseason to enter a seminary at Mount St. Mary's in Maryland, but the decision wasn't abrupt.

It was something very personal to me. I didn't discuss it with anybody for a long time," says Hilgenbrinck, adding that it took a couple years to reflect. "I just discerned it through personal prayer for a long time, trying to come to a conclusion if this was really what the Lord was calling me to or not."

He started the application process a year ago, telling his family when he returned from Chile. Yet he also wanted his family to see him play in MLS. He was waived by the Colorado Rapids in preseason but landed in New England, where he appeared in four league games and Open Cup and reserve play.

Hilgenbrinck gave the Revs plenty of notice. But coach Steve Nicol encouraged him to stay as long as possible, and the team made no announcement until he had departed after Sunday's SuperLiga game in which he dressed but did not play.

"There's always something that surprises you," Nicol says. "On this occasion, it's a good surprise. Chase is going to go and do something that he really wants to go and do. There's not many of us that can say we're able to do something we really want to do, so that's great for him."

Mount St. Mary's, eh? That's right up the street from DC.

More from Chase Hilgenbrinck himself:

Chase Hilgenbrinck's decision to leave MLS for the seminary and eventual priesthood was surprising but not sudden. The former Revolution defender tells the story ...
Why?Because I feel called. I’ve actually had my calling. I’ve been discerning this decision for several years now. I had a chance to go play professional soccer in Chile. For a long time, I felt called to something greater, and I didn't know what it was. I thought maybe it was professional soccer. In playing soccer, I realized that wasn’t it. I continued searching.

(In Chile,) for a time, I was trying to get used to the culture and trying to get used to life on my own. I did a lot of soul-searching. I went back to my roots in the Catholic church. I did a lot of praying and strengthened my personal relationship with Jesus Christ. That is what led me and first got me onto the idea that this was a possibility for my future, that this could be what the Lord was calling me to. It was something very personal to me – I didn’t discuss it with anybody for a long time. I just discerned it through personal prayer for a long time, trying to come to a conclusion if this was really what the Lord was calling me to or not.

After all this time, I did realize this is my calling. I decided to discuss that with the priest, who is Father Brian Brownsey, the vocations director of the Peoria diocese where I live. I was accepted by the bishop of the Peoria diocese to be a seminarian. They have accepted me and are sending me to Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, Md.

I found an old interview he gave on YouTube:



Watching it, I think one can sense in him the maturity you need to prudentially make a decision like this.

Best of luck, Chase. Our prayers are with you!

What do Anne Hathaway and Cardinal Sodano have in common?

It's not often that Hollywood tabloid stories and Vatican rumors find a common subject.

The sad tale of actress Anne Hatheway and socialite Raffaello Follieri (L) is one of them, however.

Raffaelo Follieri evidently masqueraded as the Vatican's CFO in one of his many shady dealings. The story has been widly covered.

And as Diogenes writes today, one of Follieri's partners in crime was none other than ex-Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Angelo Sodano's nephew Andrea Sodano.

Follieri's dreams have since crumbled into rubble.

And let's hope that in the future, Vatican officials will display a bit more common sense than a Hollywood actress, because frankly they stand little chance of besting her in the looks department.

Finally: "Complaints cause cervical cancer vaccine scrutiny"

In February 2007 I did a story on Gardasil, a vaccine for certain STDs that cause cervical cancer. What upset me most about the story at the time was that Texas had decided to mandate this drug for all school-age girls, even those who did not intend to engage in sexual activity.

Such a decision is outrageous because this vaccine can cause serious side effects. Quite simply: why inoculate girls for an STD they have no chance of contracting (if they practice abstinence) and thereby put them in danger of suffering the vaccine's own harmful side effects?

Texas is not alone in this quest to mandate Gardasil. As recently as June 18th, Alberta was trying to force Catholic schools to give the vaccine to girls in pre-sexual activity age groups.

In January of this year, two instances of Gardasil-related deaths finally made it into the mainstream: "Alert over jab for girls as two die following cervical cancer vaccination" (UK Daily Mail).

By June, the FDA had refused permission for Gardasil to be marketed among women age 27-45. This decision came as a blow to its pharmaceutical producer Merck, because Gardasil "has been one of [its] most successful newer products and has helped the company recover after the 2004 withdrawal of its Vioxx arthritis treatment." Again, to put it simply: Gardasil is big business for Merck.

Today, it caught my eye that even CNN thinks there could be a story here:

A vaccine designed to prevent cervical cancer is coming under fresh scrutiny amid thousands of complaints linking it to a range of health problems.

Gardasil has been the subject of 7,802 "adverse event" reports from the time the Food and Drug Administration approved its use two years ago, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Girls and women have blamed the vaccine for causing ailments from nausea to paralysis -- even death. Fifteen deaths were reported to the FDA, and 10 were confirmed, but the CDC says none of the 10 were linked to the vaccine. The CDC says it continues to study the reports of illness.

It's nice to see the mainstream media finally noticing a story that I (and many, many others) have known about for about 16 months. So why did it take them so long?

I would argue that this is only getting reported now because their fixation on eliminating the harmful side-effects of promiscuous sex often causes them to turn a blind eye to the drawbacks of mandatory universal vaccination. And the sad thing is that even young women trying to live a chaste lifestyle, in these situations of mandatory vaccination, are in danger of the vaccine's own harmful side effects.

Now whose freedom is being violated?

Photo: South Carolina plans license plate for Christians

Coming to a highway near you? Perhaps:

Unless a federal court intervenes, South Carolina drivers may soon be able to profess their Christian faith with a state-issued license plate.

The state plans to issue plates featuring a Christian cross and the words "I Believe," but a group advocating the separation of church and state says that goes too far.

A similar design had been considered by Florida's lawmakers, but it was rejected there because of concerns over separation of church and state.

Americans United for Separation of Church and State {anyone else find this title ironic?}, which includes Christian, Jewish and Hindu clergy, filed a federal lawsuit last month. The group contends that the plates violate the U.S. Constitution's prohibition against government favoring one religion over another religion or non-religion.

... Lynn's group said in a news release "that other religions will not be able to get similar license plates expressing differing viewpoints, nor can a comparable 'I Don't Believe' license plate be issued. (CNN)

Would you buy one?

Offbeat: "Group Asks for Divine Intervention to Ease Oil Prices"

It rather defies rational comment:

As the price of oil continues to rise, some are turning to God and prayer for an answer to their financial troubles.

The Pray at the Pump Movement, founded by Rocky Twyman, has been holding prayer vigils at gas stations across the country. On Monday, Twyman decided to take his movement from Exxon and Shell stations straight to the steps of the Embassy of Saudi Arabia in Washington, D.C., hoping to encourage the oil-rich country to raise the amount of barrels they release each day from 200,000 to 1.2 million.

Twyman, who is a member of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, spent the afternoon outside of the embassy praying and asking passersby to sign his petition for the release of more oil, which he hopes to deliver to the Saudi oil minister.

"Our people are really suffering through this crisis," Twyman told Cybercast News Service. "We need the Saudis to release at least 1.2 [million] barrels of oil per day for about the next six months until we can get everything settled in America ... (I)f they can just do that for us, than this will help us get through this crisis." (CNSNews)

Twyman has hosted pray-ins before (here's a photo). At least he has specific demands?

AmP at the movies: Hulk, Get Smart & the future

Barbara Nicolosi wasn't impressed by The Incredible Hulk, and I can't say I was either.

(I did like the scene where Edward Norton risks sexual impurity and is saved by his racing heart. When he said "I can't do this", I couldn't help saying audibly "that's right - because you're not married!" ... oh well, I hope my fellow audience members appreciated my comment.)

I also saw Get Smart. Not impressed. Mildly amused, at most. I actually watched the original TV series for a time and thought Anne Hatheway did a far better job as 99 than Steve Carrel did as Agent 86. Steve Carell was just Steve Carell, which is good if you like that sort of thing, I guess.

I also heard The Happening wasn't worth the ticket price. Too bad, I've liked previous Shamylan flicks.

Towards the future, I'm excited about Wall-E. Hancock looks promising as well. And of course, The Dark Knight. I have to say, I'll probably end up even seeing Hellboy II, because I can be shallow like that sometimes.

So, what's on your movie radar this summer?

Music: UK Superstars ColdPlay talk "Saint Peter" in latest CD

I don't often get a chance to review or talk about pop music, but this thread caught my eye. English rock superstar band Coldplay is releasing a new CD soon, and its subject matter is notable.

I'll get right to the interesting part of the first pre-review which appeared in the UK Sun:

"This latest album — much of which was recorded in churches in Spain and and Latin America — is full of religious references. It’s as heavy-going as the Bible but as ultimately as rewarding if that’s your bag."

British tabloid rhetoric aside, the lyrics of Coldplay's title-bearing song "Viva La Vida" don't dissapoint in terms of religious imagery. See what you think of them:

I used to rule the world
Seas would rise when I gave the word
Now in the morning I sleep alone
Sweep the streets I used to own

I used to roll the dice
Feel the fear in my enemy's eyes
Listen as the crowd would sing:
"Now the old king is dead! Long live the king!"

One minute I held the key
Next the walls were closed on me
And I discovered that my castles stand
Upon pillars of salt and pillars of sand

Chorus: I hear Jerusalem bells a ringing
Roman Cavalry choirs are singing
Be my mirror my sword and shield
My missionaries in a foreign field
For some reason I can't explain
Once you go there was never, never an honest word
That was when I ruled the world

It was the wicked and wild wind
Blew down the doors to let me in.
Shattered windows and the sound of drums
People couldn't believe what I'd become

Revolutionaries wait
For my head on a silver plate
Just a puppet on a lonely string
Oh who would ever want to be king?

Chorus: I hear Jerusalem bells a ringing
Roman Cavalry choirs are singing
Be my mirror my sword and shield
My missionaries in a foreign field
For some reason I can't explain
I know Saint Peter won't call my name
Never an honest word
But that was when I ruled the world

(Repeat Chorus)

This will probably be one of the most popular CDs released this year. I wonder what the other songs say.

Ph/t: Phatmass user "yndige23".

IronMan: The "Catholic Batman"?

Barbara Nicolosi calls the movie "a fun diversion and harmlessly nonsubstantial for those who like that sort of thing" but Sancta Sedis is playing around with some latent allegorical interpretations and Steve Skojev takes things along a more literaly track.

Anywhichway, it's fun reading.

AmP Movie Review: Iron Man

Iron Man is currently the most popular movie in America, and opened to rave reviews. Even Rotten Tomatoes (my go-to source for movies) gives it an unheard-of 93% rating.

With all the hype, I decided it was worth my time.

I loved it. It's probably one of the best (if not the best) adaptations of a comic book hero to the big screen. Not only does it provide the necessary explosions, gadgetry and comedic-interludes, but in many ways it transcends these normal showy accessories through the brilliant (awesome!) performance of Robert Downey Jr.

The "messages" of the movie are not particularly subtle, but they are very pertinent to and very needed in our modern age. Plus they are artistically integrated into the lives and decisions of the characters.

I would recommend seeing it, if you can afford the prohibitive theater fees. There is one brief scene of some rather passionate intimacy, so parents might want to screen it for their younger kids first.

AmP Rating: 8/10.

Video: Kelly Clarkson performs for Pope Benedict

Here ya go (link updated):

Kelly Clarkson will sing for Pope Benedict

A little bird told me that Kelly Clarkson, pop superstar, will perform Franz Schubert's version of the Ave Maria towards the end of the Gathering with Youth and Seminarians program at St. Joseph's Seminary in Yonkers, with Pope Benedict XVI in attendance.

No word yet if the performance will subsequently be released as a single. ;-)

A clearing house of the challenges facing Catholic public witness

... is handily provided by this article in the UK Times, both in what it says, and in how it says it:

"Italian bishops condemned for urging actors to shun sex scenes"

Point 1: Let's just pause at the title.

The bishops themselves are the ones being "condemned" for urging actors to shun sex scenes. The news subject is actually the bishops being criticized for speaking out.

Point 2: A misappropriation of the facts:

Father Nicolò Anselmi, head of the youth section of the Italian Bishops Conference, said that Moretti was normally noted for his “idealistic and sensitive” films. But the “gratuitous” sex scene with Isabella Ferrari, his co-star, would have an undesirable effect on the “impressionable young” since it was shown without any context involving love or tenderness.

I doubt this quite captures the essence of the Italian Bishops' criticism. Sex scenes in movies are not problematic only when they are "shown without any context involving love or tenderness." Sure, that's a part of the problem. But more fundamentally, sex scenes involve ... people engaging in sexual activity(!), and doing so outside of marriage b) publically c) for profit and publicity, etc., etc.

In other words, sex scenes depicted even in a "context involving love or tenderness" would still be wrong.

Point 3: Anti-Catholicism.

Franco Zeffirelli, the film and opera director, said: “The Church is full of pedants who have lost all sense of proportion.” It was a “fourth-rate” film that did not merit the publicity generated by the bishops' intervention.

A condescending generalization. It's like saying "America is full of nitwits who have lost all sense of honor." What organization besides the Church can routinely be treated in this way with such tolerance? This comment from the man who has previously offered to help Pope Benedict with his style, saying on the one hand "The papal robes are too opulent and flashy" but then claiming "I am in continual contact with his inner circle. The Holy Father honours me with his esteem." He sure isn't sounding like a reliable opinion source to me.

Point 4: Anti-Catholicism (again):

"The row comes amid charges that the Centre Right, led by Silvio Berlusconi, is playing the Catholic card by making abortion an issue in the run-up to the general election in April. Mr Berlusconi has asked the United Nations to pass a moratorium on abortion and the death penalty."

Bringing up the issue of abortion, in a county with one of the lowest birth rates in a continent already experiencing population implosion, is ... "playing the Catholic card." I'm sorry, I don't get it.

Point 5: Anti-Catholicism (surprise):

The comments posted in response to the article follow certain numbing, universal patterns of argument on this topic. Most of them hold that because the Church allowed the sex abuse scandal to happen, for it to speak out on any issue of human sexuality ever again is nothing but hypocrisy. Well, try to defend that conclusion logically.

The later comments do, however, contribute a little glimmering of hope in their use of reason and practice of civility. But honestly, those voices are generally marginalized.

Just like the Italian bishops.

"Miraculous medal? Nuns say medal might have helped Giants win"

"Ursuline Sister Kathleen Finnerty, superintendent of schools for the Archdiocese of New Orleans, knows the limitations of Catholic theology as well as anyone.

So when she mailed a small medal of Our Lady of Prompt Succor to the New York Giants president, John Mara, before Super Bowl XLII, she knew there was no way she could "guarantee" his team a victory over the heavily favored New England Patriots.

"I never guaranteed him anything, but I wrote in the note that I thought he could use a little extra divine intervention," Sister Kathleen said. "I sent it off and completely forgot about it."

During the game-winning drive, Mara was caught on TV pacing in the owner's suite of the University of Phoenix Stadium and reaching into his shirt pocket.

It turns out he was praying silently and touching the religious medal sent to him by the former principal of Resurrection Grammar School in Rye, N.Y., where Sister Kathleen got to know the Maras and their three young children from 1984 to 1991."

... When Pope John Paul II visited Giants Stadium in 1995, the Maras allowed Resurrection parishioners, teachers and students to use their luxury box." - CNS

I'd take a miraculous medal over a super bowl ring anyday, and twice on Sunday.

Exorcism in the modern world...

... is a topic almost impossible for the modern reporter to accurately present.

Case in point, WaPo's "Ritual of Dealing With Demons Undergoes a Revival."

Quotes from the beginning and end of the article:

POCZERNIN, Poland -- This wind-swept village is bracing for an invasion of demons, thanks to a priest who believes he can defeat Satan.

The Rev. Andrzej Trojanowski, a soft-spoken Pole, plans to build a "spiritual oasis" that will serve as Europe's only center dedicated to performing exorcisms.

...

Trojanowski is a priest in the northwestern Polish port city of Szczecin. He said that he sees as many as 20 people a week who are under the influence of evil spirits, but that he needs more space to treat them properly.

At his exorcism center, he said, people could check in for a few days and receive ministrations.

Plans for the center were announced in December after an archbishop gave approval to build it on church land in Poczernin, a village surrounded by cabbage fields about 20 miles outside Szczecin.

The news came as a bit of a shock to the villagers, who said they hadn't been consulted and weren't sure they liked the idea of demons coming home to roost.

In between these two quotations is a great jumble of the usual:

• confused presentations of Church teaching
• "required" exorcism pop culture references (The Exorcist, etc.)
• wierd claims (e.g., John Paul II was "himself an occasional demon chaser" - huh?)

Now, the article does make a few helpful distinctions and observations, but really, the more I read reports on this topic, the more I'm convinced that accurate summaries are far beyond the average reporter's kenning.

I don't mean they are malevolent, I mean they are ill- (or non-)equipped to discuss the topic cogently.

Churches cancel Super Bowl parties fearing prosecution

ABC News:

Football fans at churches around the country are praying for a Hail Mary play in time for Sunday's Super Bowl.

Some congregations that throw parties to watch the big game and possibly convert a few nonbelievers may be in violation of National Football League policy and could face legal action. According to the league, the churches are violating NFL copyright by airing games on large-screen TV sets and by charging admission.

Here's a solution: don't charge admission. I saw last year's Super Bowl at a Catholic Church's recreation hall. At halftime they showed excerpts from the Champions of Faith DVD. It was good fun and attracted a great number of the parish's youth and young adults. I think they might have had a donation basket to offset chips and soda.

update: reader Laura comments: "Unfortunately, it isn't as simple as not charging admission. There are churches with legal action against them who never charged admission. See: WaPo article."

Thanks Laura, that's different, for sure.

A single observation about the movie Cloverfield

This afternoon I took a break from by preparations for this weekend's pro-life activities to unwind a bit by sitting in a darkened movie environment immersed in dolby digital surround.

I chose the movie Cloverfield, which currently sits comfortably at the top of the weekend box office. I don't have much to say about the movie, per se, because frankly there isn't much to say about it.

Without giving anything away, one little scene did strike me.

The movie is filmed from the perspective of a young man's home movie camera, with him providing a live voice-over narration. During an intense near-death experience, the young man begins blurting out a series of profanities, but tucked away within the stream of cursing is a single, very sincere remark:

"Oh God, I'm so sorry."

And that's it. But it got me thinking: what is it about human nature that causes us, in our moments of greatest fear and with the prospects of eternity proximately looming, to fixate on two things: one, God, and second, contrition.

The young man, in the drama, is not notable religious, he's your quintessential average joe. Neither are the producer, director or script writer, to my knowledge, particularly "religious." But that's the point: you don't need to be. They are simply acting as good artists, trying to capture an emotional moment vividly and realistically:

"Oh God, I'm so sorry."

Breaking: Peter Jackson to film Tolkien's "The Hobbit" in two films

You heard that right. Plans that had previously fallen through have now been patched up.

The gist from AFP:

Oscar-winning "Lord of the Rings" director Peter Jackson has settled a feud with Hollywood studio New Line and will make two films based on J.R.R Tolkien's "The Hobbit," a statement said Tuesday....

.... As with the "Lord of the Rings," the movies will be shot simultaneously before being released separately. Principal photography was likely to begin in 2009 before the release of the films in 2010 and 2011.

An interesting comment from Lew Harris, editor of Movies.com:

New Line have discovered with 'The Golden Compass' that not anybody can make a movie like this," he added referring to the studio's recent fantasy film starring Nicole Kidman which has struggled at the US box-office.

Correction: "Not anything (that includes anti-Christian fantasy) can make a movie like this."

(But I'll keep my peace.)

I'm not quite sure about splitting the story into two films, but then again it does makes sense if you want to squeeze everything in. And you should. By the by, the combined worldwide box office gross of the original Lord of the Rings trilogy stands just under $3 billion. Great Gimli's beard!

Other sources:

• AP: "Hard 'Hobbit' to Break: Jackson's In"
• MGM CEO talks to Entertainment Weekly
• Coverage from TheOneRing.net

... and there's already an official "The Hobbit Movie Blog."

There ya have it!

Golden Compass author Philip Pullman calls critics "nitwits"

I've been noticing an ongoing stream of headlines relating to the Golden Compass in recent weeks (it opens Dec. 7th), and also to the Catholic League's initiative to boycott the film because it is based on Philip Pullman's anti-Catholic series, His Dark Materials.

I blogged about this story back in August ("The Golden Compass is pointing towards anti-Catholicism") and composed a short summary of what you need to know about the film back in October ("The word is getting out about The Golden Compass").

Now, with the movie's release imminent, and the fate of films two and three hanging on how this first one performs (New Line Cinema has more riding on this series, it has been reported, than it did on Lord of the Rings), series author Philip Pullman has broken his silence, saying "it causes me to shake my head with sorrow that such nitwits could be loose in the world". The nitwits in question are those who are calling for a boycott of the film.

To give the Catholic League credit, their reasons for the boycott seem reasonable to me:

The author of this children's fantasy is Philip Pullman, a noted English atheist. It is his objective to bash Catholicism and promote atheism. To kids. "The Golden Compass" is a film version of the book by that name, and it is being toned down so that Catholics, as well as Protestants, are not enraged.

The second book of the trilogy, The Subtle Knife, is more overt in its hatred of Catholicism than the first book, and the third entry, The Amber Spyglass, is even more blatant. Because "The Golden Compass" is based on the least offensive of the three books, and because it is being further watered down for the big screen, some might wonder why a boycott is warranted.

The Catholic League wants Christians to boycott this movie precisely because it knows that the film is bait for the books: unsuspecting parents who take their children to see the movie may be impelled to buy the three books as a Christmas present. And no parent who wants to bring their children up in the faith will want any part of these books.

Friends of mine have read part or all of this series, and tell me that the books are both well written, and very dark (torture, etc.) Certainly not suitable for younger children, they said (noting sensualism, etc.). And they confirm the CL's claim that the books' anti-Catholicism becomes more blatant with each succeeding volume.

The anti-Catholic message of His Dark Materials, and Pullman's intention to compose atheistic propaganda are, from my reading, really beyond any dispute. One need only look at the Ignatius title "Pied Piper of Atheism: Philip Pullman and Children's Fantast" or read through Carl Olson's many and excellent posts on the topic to admit this point. Alternately, Chris Blosser wrote a megapost on Pullman vs. C.S. Lewis in June at Against the Grain. Finally, prominent secularists are actually criticizing New Line Cinema for not including Pullman's full anti-religious venom in the movie! Honestly, he has no defense. And it makes his protestations all the more hypocritical.

Donohue responded thusly to Pullman's protestations recently:

"In the current Newsweek, Pullman lashes out at me saying, [How could Donohue know that I'm a militant atheist, and that my intention is to convert people?] That’s easy—I just quote him: ‘I’m trying to undermine the basis of Christian belief.’"

Let's take a look at what Pullman exactly said, so we can bask in his excellent use of English prosody:

"To regard it as this Donohue man has said - that I'm a militant atheist, and my intention is to convert people - how the hell does he know that?" - UK Times

I agree with Pullman - how the hell isn't he a good influence on kids?

Update: Rebecca Davies of the UK Telegraph movie blog royally doesn't get the point:

It is blatant attempts such as these to control personal choice and shirk scrutiny that have led to criticism of the Catholic [sic] in the first place.

And they’re only lucky that some independent filmmaker didn’t come along and take them to the cleaners with a full-blown anti-Catholic Golden Compass, complete with Pope Benedict lookalike.

In terms of crossing the line, I think that was a pole-vault. So let me get this straight: Pullman's writing of a subversive novel to "control" the "personal choice" of kids - that's okay. But Catholics' decrying of Pullman's attempt to control the personal choice of kids - that's wrong?

To paraphrase Davies in my own words: "It is blatant examples such as this to apply a double-standard to anti-Catholic activists that has led to my recurring criticism of the mainstream media in the first place."

"And she's rather unlucky that the AmP, an independant blogger, decided to come along and take her to the cleaners with a full-blown anti-double-standard stance, complete with direct quotations."

There, I think that works nicely.

I wonder if he knew how right he was to pick this photo?

... that is, when the author posted this picture with a story entitled "Five Things You Need to Know About Effective Habit Change."

Maybe he intended to visually pun on the word "habit" which can describe the clothing that religious brothers and sisters wear.

Of course, the daily routines of religious orders are meant to foster habits of virtue - particularly the theological virtues of Faith, Hope & Love.

"Monasticism: Psychologically Savvy."

Why shouldn't we all buy our pastors one of these for Christmas?

A cell-phone jammer, that is.

Okay, they are technically illegal in the U.S., but I'm sure we've all had the experience of being in Mass one day during, say, the Gospel reading and suddenly we receive an obnoxious jolt of Britney Spear's latest single screeching out of cell phone two rows back. And of course, it's usually burried deep inside some purse or hidden pocket and takes forever to silence.

It's horribly distracting, and also completely avoidable.

Some buildings, for instance, already block cell phone signals naturally (we've all experienced that). Why not make a provision in law to authorize churches to electronically accomplish the same thing?

Remember, somehow Church-goers managed to survive for thousands of years without the ability to be contacted by or instantly communicate with those not present at Mass.

And no - to anticipate the jocular comeback - I'm pretty certain that it's not God calling.

Donohue's reaction to Britney's stunt...

... played right into the hands of Britney's promoters. The MTV article can't even get past the fact that this sort of thing has been done before ad nauseum. Why let it succeed by recognizing it?

Kiera McCaffrey, the Catholic League’s president of Media Relations, takes a much more reasonable "dismissing" approach to Britney's antics, as CNA reports. The less said the better.

Furthermore, Donohue's needless digs at Britney's professional career are going to also backfire as it looks like Britney's newest CD is actually a hit and will top the charts next week. Good one.

Update: Shelray of C-L-S agrees, and puts it well:

The conundrum on how to fulfil our obligation to protect the Church from slander and abuse while not feeding in to the hands of the desperate publicity hounds and those who take joy in wounding the Church is nothing short of frustrating. In my opinion, a great place to start would be to focus mainly on the issue at hand and not on the perps themselves. Given the fact that there will always be attacks at some level aimed at the Church, we must not only do our best to avoid doing any collateral damage which may feed the fire of anti-catholicism but also train ourselves to remain calm, couragous and sincere in our defense of Catholics and the truths within the Church. Easier said than done, I know. That’s not to say that from time to time I haven’t indulged in the guilty pleasures of seeing Donahue giving them hell.

Protestants, Video Games & Moral Bankruptcy

Here's something. From CrunchyCon:

In a story that could have been lifted from The Onion, but in fact appeared in The New York Times, hundreds of Protestant churches are using the ultraviolent videogame Halo to lure teenage boys into church. No, really, I'm not making this up.

... This story reveals the idiocy and moral bankruptcy of the idea that you measure success by how many people you get inside the church door. The church should be standing against the worst excesses of popular culture, not participating in them. Show me a church that uses Halo as a recruiting tool, and I'll show you a church that almost certainly has nothing useful to say about the road to salvation.

I've played the first two Halo games, and I mostly did so to spend time with my younger brothers (who love the games). It's purely a "time waster" for me. And wasting time with your brothers isn't necessarily a bad thing. But video games are something you should grow out of, there's far more important things in this world, and frankly, far more constructive ways to "waste time." When my brothers go to their Catholic youth group, they don't go to play Halo - they can do that at home.

Church youth groups should be challenging their members to live better, nobler lives. Buying a big-screen TV, a copy of Halo, and some snacks is something anyone could do. Churches should do what they do best - bring young people to a personal relationship with Christ. Catholic youth groups do well to foster devotion to the Sacraments, encourage pro-life innitiatives, and provide a positive environment for peer interraction.

This situation described by the NYT article isn't so much a condemnation of young boys. Young boys like playing war. No, instead, this is a condemnation of protestant churches that have to resort to material incentives to get kids to come to church. Because, you know, that's what kids really need - more material incentives in their life.

In other words, leave Halo parties to the big brothers.

Authentically forming the culture, starting with the side of a Starbucks cup

I like coffee. Working in a coffee shop for many months when I was living in Michigan did nothing to alleviate my addiction. I also like Starbucks. But I'm normally not impressed by the quotations they place on the sides of their cups to provoke thought and conversation. In fact, earlier this year I posted about an "anti-God" featured Starbucks quotation that (as I somewhat cleverly put it) "had Catholics steamed" (and rightly so, I might add).

Happily, today I received an email from a close friend who alerted me to a positive quotation that will be featured on the side of Starbucks cups starting next spring. Here it is. The quotation is from Rick Warren, author of The Purpose Driven Life (which I have not read). The quote however, is fantastic and deserves to be produced below in full:

You are not an accident. Your parents may not have planned you, but God did. He wanted you alive and created you for a purpose. Focusing on yourself will never reveal your purpose. You were made by God and for God, and until you understand that, life will never make sense. Only in God do we discover our origin, our identity, our meaning, our purpose, our significance, and our destiny."

There now. Isn't that something to contemplate and converse about? What's so hard about this, anyway?

USA Today covered this story here and points out several organizations that try to make faith statements to their customers. As a result of which, I am more favorably inclined to support In-N-Out Burger (when in California), Forever 21 (well, maybe hand-me-downs) and Chick-fil-A (which I actually knew about).

This gets me thinking, however, do you know of other secular organizations that provide some regular Christian witness to their customers? I'd love to hear about it. Drop me a line or send me an email. Thanks!

Video: Give Paul Potts a quick listen

Thales at Fumare reminded me today that I had wanted to share this video with my readers.

Thales also tell us why this is an important cultural moment:

But there is a implicit foundation to these [American-Idol type] shows which is wholesome: an inherent recognition that there exists the True, the Good, and the Beautiful. No matter how much a performer relies on glitz, if the performer does not have true talent, the audience sees through the outward appearance and the performer fails. If the performer is truly good and demonstrates truly beautiful art, the audience generally recognizes and honors the performer.

That is what recently happened in Britain, on Britain's Got Talent, the British version of a glorified talent show. In an incredible Cinderella story, Paul Potts, a pudgy, insecure 36-year-old cell phone salesman and amateur opera singer stunned the judges in his first audition and proceeded to capture the hearts of the audience throughout the competition.

Here is Paul Potts's first audition. Be sure to check out the reactions of judges Simon Cowell (a scathing, acerbic judge on American Idol) and Piers Morgan (an acerbic, scathing judge on America's Got Talent), as they go from disdain to disbelief. Sit down without distractions, turn up the volume, and I think your soul might be touched. I was, and I don't even like opera!

Well, I love opera, and it worked for me as well.

Here's the performance:

Paul Potts' first CD, One Chance, is on its way to top the UK charts. It goes on sale in the U.S. July 30th. Fumare has more. You can pre-order it here.

For those looking to dig a bit deeper, Paul Potts chose Nessun dorma from Giacomo Puccini's Turandot, one of the most beautiful arias in opera. Luciano Pavarotti made it his signature song, and it's not hard to see why.

Anti-God Starbucks Cup has Catholics Steamed

Most of us who frequent Starbucks with any regularity know that they often have quotations written on the side of their cups, ostensibly to provoke thought and contemplation.

Well, via Powerblog, try this one on for size [here's a picture of it]:

"Why in moments of crisis do we ask God for strength and help? As cognitive beings, why would we ask something that may well be a figment of our imaginations for guidance? Why not search inside ourselves for the power to overcome? After all, we are strong enough to cause most of the catastrophes we need to endure."

[WorldNetDaily continues:]

The quote was written by Bill Schell, a Starbucks customer from London, Ontario, Canada, and was included as part of an effort by the Seattle-based coffee giant to collect different viewpoints and spur discussion.

Starbucks has taken heat before for a quotation that promoted homosexuality appearing on one of its cups. Of course, as Jim Powers noted, Starbucks wouldn't dare publish the same quotation with the word "Allah" substituted for God. I also loved one of the comments by the Unseen One, "So I guess the people in Greensburg, Kansas should look inside themselves because they caused the tornado, eh? Nothing like a little liberal self-loathing to brighten up a Monday."