Yes, New Jersey, there is a Santa Claus

It seems for some people there is a controversy as to whether to tell their kids about Santa Claus. Some people get quite upset about how parents "lie" to their children about Santa. This baffles me. Of course there's a Santa Claus. As The Saint Nicholas Center explains, Santa Claus is another name for St. Nicholas, who was bishop of Myra. Over the years Saint Nicholas became "Sant Ni Klaus" which became "Santa Claus". He is the patron saint and protector of children, and known for his generosity and orthodoxy. And yes, he did punch a heretic at the Council of Nicaea. And anyone who says he doesn't exist is sadly mistaken.

This is what I have always taught and continue to teach my children. But realize there are three Santas we talk about.

First, there is the Santa I just mentioned, St. Nicholas, the "real" Santa. Of course he exists. His relics are on display in Italy. And yes, he's real. As real as all the saints with him in heaven. I suppose Protestants would have a problem with him being alive in heaven, but even they must admit he exists, even if "sleeping." But of course, as a Catholic I recognize that God is the God of the living, not the dead (Matthew 22:29-32).

Then there are the guys in the mall who have fake beards and say "Ho ho ho." Nobody believes they are really Santa Claus, they are just actors playing a twisted notion of Santa. In fact, as I explained to my kids from an early age, the "Coca Cola" Santa is not the real Santa. But if you want to call them Santa, yes, they exist. the proof can be found in any mall across the country.

Laslty there's the Santa that delivers presents in the middle of the night on Christmas Eve. Of course he exists. The proof is that there will be presents under the tree on Christmas morning. "But isn't Santa really your parents?" my youngest son asked me. Well, if so, then of course your parents exist, so that Santa Claus exists too.

So by any definition of "Santa Claus" he exists. As I see it, it is misinformation (at best) to tell your children Santa is a myth.

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Feminist Opposites

Back to the Opposite files.

Bare breasts offensive to feminists in Sweden.

But apparently not when they do it. [Warning: NSFW]

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Monday Joke

A woman walks into the Post Office to buy stamps for her Christmas cards.

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O Come O Come Emmanuel

Every Advent I cringe at the first sound of "O Come O Come Emmanuel." Not because I hate it, per se, but because I know I will be subject to hearing it thousands of times. Every mass, every service. It is the only "Advent hymn" anybody knows. Jeff Miller has noticed the same thing, and blogged about it in "Parishioners shocked to Learn there is more than one Advent hymn." For the record, here are just a few of the Advent songs from the Advent playlist I made in protest:

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Monday Joke

A man who had been away from Confession finally broke down and decided to go again. Since he hadn't made a Confession in so long, he wasn't quite sure what to expect.

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Transubstantiation

I've been having yet another discussion about Transubstantiation with a Protestant - a very good man and a very smart one. And I've been thinking of a way to explain it by analogy in terms that someone who didn't believe might consider valid. The best I can come up with is the Louisiana Purchase.

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Monday Joke

Two great white sharks swimming in the ocean spied survivors of a sunken ship. "Follow me son" the father shark said to the son shark and they swam up to the mass of people.

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Monday Joke

In light of the recent change in weather...

It's late fall and the Native Americans on a remote reservation in South Dakota asked their new chief if the coming winter was going to be cold  or mild.

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Monday Joke

A woman was golfing one day, when she hit her ball into the woods. She went into the woods to look for it and found a frog in a trap.

The frog said to her, "If you release me from this trap, I will grant you 3 wishes." She did and the frog said, "Thank you, but I failed to mention that there is a condition to your wishes. Whatever you wish for, your husband will get 10 times more or better!"

The woman said, "That's okay." For her first wish, she wanted to be the most beautiful woman in the world.

The frog warned her, "You do realize that this wish will also make your husband the most handsome man in the world, and women will flock to him."

The woman replied, " That's okay, because I will be the most beautiful woman, and he will only have eyes for me." So, KAZAM - she became the most beautiful woman in the world!

For her second wish, she wanted to be the richest woman in the world. The frog said, "That will make your husband the richest man in the world, and he will be ten times richer than you."

The woman said, " That's okay because what's mine is his and what's his is mine." So, KAZAM she became the richest woman in the world!

The frog asked her what she would like for her third wish. She said, "I'd like a mild heart attack."

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Logic

I had several discussions over the last day with different friends on the topic of logic. One such discussion was whether logic could prove the existence of God. There was debate, but I wanted to expand on my thoughts a big here.

Logic per se can prove anything and noting. It depends on the axioms you start with. For instance, take the argument for God's existence from design. It goes along the lines of "Complex things need an intelligence to design them. The universe is complex. Therefore there is a designer. We call that designer 'God.'"

I have yet to see an atheist who was convinced by that logic, even though it is perfectly sound. The problem is that the atheist rejects the axiom that complex things need an intelligent designer. Therefore the proof, while perfectly valid as a proof, is rejected. But let's continue to follow that chain of logic where it leads.

Ask the atheist why he rejects the notion that complex systems have a designer and he will ask you to show why he should accept that notion. You reply that everything we see that is complex has a designer. My iPhone, car, house all had an intelligent designer. "Ah" replies the atheist, "but you are overlooking the prime example of a complex thing that has no designer - the universe!" And of course they hold the truth of the statement that the universe has no designer based on the axiom that there isn't a God.

And so their logic is consistent as well, only it is circular. If you are trying to determine whether or not there is a God, you can't start with the axiom "there is no God" and see where logic takes you. You have to start with the axiom "there may or may no be a God" or you are being intellectually dishonest. It has nothing to do with logic, and everything to do with faith. The atheist has blind faith in his axiom.

N.B. As Deacon Will on Plurk pointed out, the first reading for the next day was Wisdom 13:1-9 (emphasis mine):

All men were by nature foolish who were in ignorance of God,
and who from the good things seen did not succeed in knowing him who is,
and from studying the works did not discern the artisan;
But either fire, or wind, or the swift air,
or the circuit of the stars, or the mighty water,
or the luminaries of heaven, the governors of the world, they considered gods.
Now if out of joy in their beauty they thought them gods,
let them know how far more excellent is the Lord than these;
for the original source of beauty fashioned them.
Or if they were struck by their might and energy,
let them from these things realize how much more powerful is he who made them.
For from the greatness and the beauty of created things
their original author, by analogy, is seen.
But yet, for these the blame is less;
For they indeed have gone astray perhaps,
though they seek God and wish to find him.
For they search busily among his works,
but are distracted by what they see, because the things seen are fair.
But again, not even these are pardonable.
For if they so far succeeded in knowledge
that they could speculate about the world,
how did they not more quickly find its Lord?

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Monday Joke

This joke come courtesy of Therese R. (AussieMama). I have translated it painstakingly from Australian to English. Enjoy! You can go over to her blog and read it there and tell me how I've ruined it.

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Any color, as long as it's black

There is an old quote attributed to Henry Ford that goes "Any customer can have a car painted any color that he wants so long as it is black." I reminded of this by the recent kerfuffle between Michael Voris and Fr. Robert Barron. Below are the two videos, if you haven't seen them and care to.




OK, ready? First off, if you notice, Michael Voris accuses Fr. Barron of not saying things he says, and saying things he doesn't say. Nowhere does Fr. Barron say that hell is empty, but that there is a hope that in the end it will be. Now hoping for something is a lot different from asserting something.

But I wanted to add my own $0.02 on the issue of "is hell empty?" I say "no" with great confidence. That's not to say that I can't have hope that God will someday save all, but there are individuals who have chosen hell over heaven. My logic relates to the quote by Ford.

One of the things atheists (and some Christians) accuse God of is making people just to throw them in unquenchable fire and torture them forever. Seems cruel, if it's true, but the explanation is that God doesn't intend for us to be thrown into unquenchable fire, but gives us the gift of free will, and we can choose whether or not we want the fire. This is also an answer to the problem of evil - why a good God would tolerate people choosing evil. Again, free will necessitates that evil is at least possible, just as it necessitate hell is possible. It is pretty clear that some people choose evil over good, and therefore I would say it is clear some people choose hell over heaven.

But then, why doesn't God make people who have free will, but only create those whom He knows will choose good? the problem is like Henry Ford's car color choices. If the only people God creates are those who will always choose good over evil, He has not created people with free will. If you are given a choice of colors, but the only color you can possibly choose is black, you haven't actually been given a choice of colors.

Therefore I conclude that not only is there a hell, but there must be people in it. I just hope I never wind up joining them.

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Foxes

I was reflecting on today's readings. Today's Gospel reading, in particular is from Luke 13:31-55:

Some Pharisees came to Jesus and said,
“Go away, leave this area because Herod wants to kill you.”
He replied, “Go and tell that fox,
‘Behold, I cast out demons and I perform healings today and tomorrow,
and on the third day I accomplish my purpose.
Yet I must continue on my way today, tomorrow, and the following day,
for it is impossible that a prophet should die
outside of Jerusalem.’

“Jerusalem, Jerusalem,
you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you,
how many times I yearned to gather your children together
as a hen gathers her brood under her wings,
but you were unwilling!
Behold, your house will be abandoned.
But I tell you, you will not see me until the time comes when you say,
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.”

I find Jesus' choice of animals interesting. Usually you hear about sheep and wolves, but no less at odds are foxes and hens. There is a saying, "the fox is guarding the hen house" referring to someone in power abusing and exploiting it to the detriment of those they are supposedly protecting. I don't know if the origins of the phrase go back to this passage or not, but the analogy is sound.

And so it was with Herod. Herod was an Edomite, which meant that although he practiced Jewish customs he was not considered a Jew by the Judeans. So, like the fox, he was an outsider who didn't belong in his position, but had been placed over the Jews by their Roman oppressors. And just as the fox has no love of the hens (other than as dinner), so Herod had his own interests, contrary to the Jews he governed. Just as a fox will destroy the hen house and attack the hens, so Herod had gone against the people of Jerusalem.

I also like the way the liturgy refers to this passage. We do not start the Eucharistic prayers (where we see Jesus as truly present) until we say "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord." How cool is that?

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Monday Joke

MARINE CORPS EXERCISE REGIME FOR PEOPLE OVER 50

Begin by standing on a comfortable surface, where you have plenty of room on each side.

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Who killed Andy Lopez?

I'm sure you've read the story of Andy Lopez, the 13 year old boy who was shot and killed by police for carrying a toy gun. I've been reading a lot of people's reactions and I thought I'd chime in with my own.

First off, people are debating whether the police overreacted. I think the answer is plain and simple. Of course they overreacted to the situation - they were in no danger. On the other hand, they clearly did not overreact to what they thought the situation was - someone about to fire a military-style weapon at them.

So the real problem is, what made them think the situation was deadly when it was in fact not? I have heard some people blame the boy for it. They claim he wanted to commit "suicide by cop." I think this theory can be dismissed immediately. First off, there is no indication that the boy was suicidal. Secondly, even if he was, would a 13 year old engineer something that complex. I mean, the most likely outcome of the situation would have been his arrest, not his death. And if he had wanted to die a spectacular death, why not leave a note, and why not walk down to the police station and charge them, screaming and acting like he was going to shoot them? The theory does not fit the facts.

Others blame the police. But the police were acting appropriately for the situation they thought they were in, or at least the situation they say they thought they were in. I see no reason to assume the police lied. There's also very little reason to think that the officers involved has a grudge against Lopez, or wanted to be involved in a very messy public tragedy.

So what made the police think a child with a toy gun was a berserk killer with a military weapon? First off, let me mention that the toy was supposedly an airsoft rifle, like the one pictured above. For those not familiar, airsoft guns are toy guns which shot small plastic balls using either a spring (which may be cocked by hand or by a battery powered electric motor) or CO2 (provided by a tiny cartridge). Funny thing about these rifles - they all have very visible orange tips, and the only picture released of the toy in question is at such an angle that you can't see if it had the orange tip on it or not. If it did, that was certainly something the police should have seen, but missed. If it did not, the question is - was the toy broken, or was it modified to look more realistic?

But either way, whether it was modified (illegally) or the police missed seeing the tip, I think the killer is the same - the media. On the one hand, nearly every TV show and movie glorifies walking around with a big gun in your hand - not slung over a shoulder, but in your hand, with your finger inside the trigger guard. Because we have become so afraid of guns (due to media coverage), we don't let children know anything about them, so the only instruction they get is from TV and movies. And so they don't handle them correctly. For the record, the four basic rules of handling firearms are:

1. All guns are always loaded.
2. Never let the muzzle cover anything you are not willing to destroy.
3. Keep your finger off the trigger until your sights are on the target.
4. Be sure of your target and what is beyond it.

My kids have airsoft guns, like Andy Lopez did, and before I let them have them I taught them these rules, and to treat any weapon, even an airsoft gun, as if it were a real gun. And when I have seen them not following the four rules above they have been punished. No, I don't think I'm being anal about it - these guns may not be lethal but they can still put out an eye. Poor Andy Lopez didn't have the benefit of such training, only what he learned on TV and movies (to walk around like Arnold in The Terminator).

So we have a kids who thinks guns are to be handled casually, but what about the police? They are highly trained, and know about guns and stuff, right? True, but police are still people, and they watch the media news coverage demonizing so called "assault" weapons. We come to expect that every person who has a scary looking gun is a killer, when in fact that is a very unlikely situation.

We have the case of Army Master Sgt. C.J. Grisham, who was illegally arrested in Texas for legally carrying an AR-15 on a boy scout hike with his son. There is Air Force veteran Mack Worley, who was arrested for legally carrying an AR-15 in Washington state. There's case of Police officer Scott Urkov, who was told he can't drop his daughter off at school because he carries a gun. Really? Our children need to be protected from police officers?

And now we have the most extreme case, young Andy Lopez, shot for legally carrying a toy gun. I think the reason that the officers thought they were in such danger, and missed the signs that they were not, is because, like people all over this country, we are being conditioned to be afraid of guns, no matter who carries them, no matter what the actual situation is.

I ask that you join me in prayer for our nation, for Andy Lopez and his family, and for the officers involved, who will have to live with the memory of this tragedy and the guilt of what happened, however undeserved.

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Monday Joke

A man walking along a California beach was deep in prayer. All of a sudden he said out loud, "Lord, grant me one wish." Suddenly the sky clouded above his head and in a booming voice the Lord said, "Because you have tried to be faithful to me in all ways, I will grant you one wish."

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Monday Joke

An eye doctor, a heart surgeon and an Obamacare customer service representative die and are in heaven. God asks the eye doctor why he should be let into heaven.

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Monday Joke

A woman received a call that her daughter was sick. She stopped by the pharmacy to get medication, got back to her car and found that she had locked her keys inside.

The woman found an old rusty coat hanger left on the ground. She looked at it and said "I don't know how to use this." She bowed her head and asked God to send her HELP.

Within five minutes a beat up old motorcycle pulled up. A bearded man who was wearing an old biker skull rag was the rider. The man got off of his cycle and asked if he could help.

She said: "Yes, my daughter is sick. I've locked my keys in my car. I must get home. Please, can you use this hanger to unlock my car?"

He said "Sure." He walked over to the car, and in less than a minute the car was open. She hugged the man and through tears said "Thank You SO Much! You are a very nice man."

The man replied "Lady, I am NOT a nice man. I just got out of prison yesterday. I was in for car theft."

The woman hugged the man again sobbing, "Oh, thank you God! You even sent me a Professional!"

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The First Day

So people are crowing about how successful Obamacare is, since 2.8 million people visited health care exchange web sites on the first day. Let's think about that a minute. We have a product that at least 50 million Americans are required to buy or face penalties (according to the numbers used to justify passing the bill in the first place). A product that American supposedly really really really want, and it got 2.8 million hits (not sales, mind you, hits - unclear if those are unique visitors to the site or just page hits).

Let's compare that to the iPhone 5c/5s, which is a minor tweak on the iPhone 5, and which many have said is not worth the upgrade, had 9 million people actually buy it the first weekend. That should tell us something.

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Monday Joke

A priest and a bus driver both died and went to Heaven at the same time. They get to the pearly gates where Pope St. Peter greets them. He motions to the priest, and they both hop in a jeep and go out the back door. There are about 50 acres of rolling hills with a little cottage on the knoll.

St. Peter turns to the priest and says "This will be yours for eternity. A perfect little cottage, right next to lovely pond, a lush little garden, and a library full of books."

The priest says, "Thank you so much. This I shall enjoy!" St. Peter drops off the priest, goes back to the pearly gates and motions to the bus driver.

They hop in a stretch limo and go out the front door. There are about 500 acres of land, with mountains and lakes and rivers. There is a huge 200-room castle on one of the mountains, and a wishing well that makes wishes come true. St. Peter says "This will be yours for eternity. You can live in that castle with servants to wait on you hand and foot, and you can have everything you want."

The bus driver looks and St. Peter and says "Well, now, don't think I'm not grateful, but why am I getting so much more than the priest?"

St. Peter just laughs and says "You brought more souls to Heaven! When the priest preached, everyone fell asleep. When you drove your bus, people prayed!"

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Monday Joke

An American tourist was walking around the cathedral in Ireland admiring the architecture.

"Are you enjoying your visit to our grand country?" asked a young priest.

"Very much, Father, but the whiskey is far too strong for me," said the Yank.

"How so?" asked the priest.

"Well, I got drunk on it on Saturday night and passed out. Sunday morning I woke at 5 a.m. bright as a button. I went to 6 o'clock mass, 7 o'clock mass, 8 o'clock, nine, ten and eleven o'clock mass. Then I went to afternoon Rosary, sermon, Stations of the Cross and Benediction!"

"So what's wrong with that?" asked the priest.

"I'm a Protestant!" said the tourist.

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A Short Reflection

I don't have a lot of time to blog right now, but  I didn't want to let this pass. Yesterday's Gospel was from Luke 15 - "there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people." While you've no doubt heard countless homilies on this subject, and the prodigal son parable, that all focus on how great repentance is, there's a danger.

People come to think of sin as being not very bad because hey, look how much joy it brings when I repent. You can look at these verses and think that it is "OK" or actually even preferable to sin. After all, the ninety-nine righteous people didn't bring God as much joy as me when I sin and then repent. But consider the converse. If it is not true that God delights in sin, and it is true that the repentant sinner brings more joy than ninety-nine righteous people, then the repentant sinner is a net loss, even considering the joy when he repents. Or in other words, one sin brings more sadness than the joy that repentance brings, which we are told is immense.

So next time I think about a sin being "no big deal" I'm going to reflect on how much sadness one sin can bring about. A sobering thought.

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Monday Joke

Not so very long ago, an old German man was feeling guilty about something he had done, so he decided to go to Confession.

He said, "Bless me, Father, for I have sinned. I feel terrible because during World War II I hid a refugee in my attic."

The priest said, "But that's not a sin! I wouldn't feel bad about that if I were you!"

"But I made him agree to pay me 50 Marks for every week he stayed."

The priest said, "Well, I admit that certainly wasn't the most noble thing to do, charging the man to save his life -- but you did save his life, after all, and that is a good thing. Don't worry about it too much; God forgives."

The man said, "Oh thank you, Father, that eases my mind. I have only one more question to ask you -- Do I have to tell him the war is over?"

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On What Charge?

I'm somewhat confused (and a bit irate) at this piece from AP news:

Polk County sheriff's deputies arrested Pastor Terry Jones, 61, and his associate pastor, Marvin Sapp Jr., 34, on felony charges as he drove a pickup truck towing a large barbecue-style grill filled with Qurans soaked in kerosene. He had said he was heading to a nearby park to burn 2,998 Qurans — one for every victim of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Sheriff's officials said they would hold a news conference later Wednesday to discuss specific charges.

So, what is he being charged with?

Here's a story with a bit more detail.

Jones planned to burn the books at the county-owned Loyce E. Harpe Park in Mulberry, but was denied a permit, with officials saying he filed his request too late and that he does not have permission for an event of that magnitude. 

...Polk deputies took Jones and Sapp into custody. The Lakeland Ledger reports the men are facing traffic-related offenses for driving with kerosene in the grill. 

The Polk County Sheriff's Office has not publicly said what charges the two men face, but they will be felonies.

Really? I can't see how driving with a trailer with kerosene in it is a felony. Kerosene, like diesel fuel and unlike gasoline is not considered a flammable fuel. According to Wikipedia kerosene has a class II flammability rating, which means it must be moderately heated or exposed to relatively high ambient temperatures before it will ignite.

So I really don't see the problem. Stupid, yes, but a felony? Nor is failure to get a permit to exercise one's first amendment rights a felony.

Now I don't agree with Pastor Jones, or condone what he was about to do, but this is supposed to be America. The articles mentioned describe how his actions could spark Muslim violence in the Middle East. Although I doubt his actions would be that important, and there already seems to be violence in the Middle East without his help, even if it did, this is America, not the Middle East.

[Update: the charges have been disclosed:

Jones was charged with unlawfully conveying fuel, a felony, and openly carrying a firearm, a misdemeanor. Sapp was charged with invalid registration for his trailer that hauled the grill and the felony of unlawful conveyance of fuel.

So apparently in Florida it is a felony to carry kerosene this way, although I read several articles about its use in sprayers to kill vegetation - I wonder how they get around the law for that?

Well, my already low opinion of Pastor Jones' intelligence has taken a dip. He supposedly knew this was illegal but wanted to flout the law. Or at least that's what's being reported. We'll see what happens at the trial. I bet they throw the book at him (pun intended).]

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Remember

[Note: This is a modified repost of Ten Years Later]

Pictured above is Frigate FFG 29, the USS Steven W. Groves. It is leaving New York harbor on a shakedown cruise of the Mk92 FCS, a surface to air missile control system (you can see the egg-shaped radar dome for it in the picture). My father helped design the Mk92, and I worked on its software.

This picture was taken in the 1980s and hung in my parents' kitchen for years. It now hangs in my house. I remember looking at it soon after the 9-11 attacks ten years ago, and thinking of the brave Americans, both first responders and military, who have given and still give their lives to keep ours safe. Please join me in prayers for them on this 12^th anniversary of the attacks.

Blessed are you, Lord, God of mercy,
who through your Son gave us a marvelous example of charity
and the great commandment of love for one another.
Send down your blessings on these your servants,
who so generously devote themselves to helping others,
and protect them always as they work to protect us all.
Grant them courage when they are afraid,
wisdom when they must make quick decisions,
strength when they are weary,
and compassion in all their work.
When they are called to aid both friend and stranger,
let them faithfully serve you in their neighbor.
We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

O Prince of peace, we humbly ask your protection for all our men and women in military service. Give them unflinching courage to defend with honor, dignity and devotion, the rights of all who are imperiled by injustice and evil. Be their rock, their shield, and their stronghold and let them draw their strength from you.

For you are God, for ever and ever. Amen

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Monday Joke

Sorry for the delay - tough day at work. Today's joke is H/T Godwin Delali Adadzie on Google+ (with changes)...

Hans Kung, Carol Keehan and Pope Benedict XVI all die on the same day, and go to meet St. Peter to know their fate.

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Gay Guns

Yes, the Opposite Files are back...

Made up "right", states must honor most lax laws of other states.

Real right (written in Constitution) states can restrict despite laws in other states.

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Monday Joke

Today's Monday Joke is courtesy of Ambrose Little on google+.

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Getting Catholic Answers

Well, people are lining up on both sides. On the one side we have Michael Voris and his supporters, and on the other side EWTN and Catholic Answers. For those who've missed the kerfluffle, Michael Voris, of Church Militant TV recently rebuked "Catholic media" for not having the same outspoken reprimands against bishops and clergy who are (in fact) too lax on issues of faith and morals. He also points out that these people are making salaries which he believes to be too high.

I don't want to get into the specifics what was said about whom, but I wanted to offer my thoughts (in keeping with the title of this blog). It seems to me to be analogous to those who decry the use (or lack of use) of graphic abortion images in the pro-life movement. And as I've said before on that topic, there is room in the church for both approaches. Not everyone can be St. Paul (all things to all men) and so people will approach the salvation of souls from different angles.

Michael Voris is a necessary voice, calling for the repentance of correction of those in the church who ignore or actively support evil. God bless him for that. But that doesn't mean he is perfect, or even better than Karl Keating or Michael Warsaw. Not everybody has to have the same style, thank God.

Yes, Catholic Answers forums is not always a good place to go, but it is a public forum, and can't always be "policed" properly. Having moderated forums before I can say from personal experience that even with the best of intentions and a lot of hard work, forums get out of hand.

As for the salaries involved, while both EWTN and Catholic Answers are non-profit organizations, they are not charities. When I get a cell phone I don't say "this iPhone is evil because Tim Cook is rich" (even though that might be true). I say "is this iPhone worth what it will cost me?" Catholic Answers produces 400 some odd hours of solid Catholic apologetics radio, plus audio video and print products. Even more so EWTN. When I support those organizations I am paying what I feel it is worth to have this material available, to me and to others. And frankly I think if you live in Southern California and have a large family, and several college degrees, the salaries mentioned are not unreasonable.

And lest this post be seen as anti Michael Voris, I refer you to paragraph 3 of this post. I do think it was not useful for him to publicly excoriate other apostolates but I think his heart is in the right place, and if he is overzealous sometimes, so am I. To Michael, Karl and the others involved in this, I say "God love you."

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Monday Joke

Mrs. Donovan was walking down O'Connell Street in Dublin when she met Father Flaherty.

The Father said, "Top o' the mornin' to ye! Aren't ye Mrs. Donovan and didn't I marry ye and yer husband 2 years ago?"

She replied, "Aye, that ye did, Father."

The Father asked, "And be there any wee little ones yet?"

She replied, "No, not yet, Father."

The Father said, "Well, now, I'm goin' to Rome next week and I'll light a candle for ye and yer husband."

She replied, "Oh, thank ye, Father." They then parted ways.

Some years later they met again. The Father asked, "Well now, Mrs. Donovan, how
are ye these days?"

She replied, "Oh, very well, Father!"

The Father asked, "And tell me, have ye any been blessed wit wee ones yet?"

She replied, "Oh yes, Father! Three sets o' twins and 4 singles, 10 in all!"

The Father said, "That's wonderful! How is yer loving husband doing?"

She replied, "E's gone to Rome to blow out yer stinking candle."

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Liars!

Those following prolife news abroad (or those living in Ireland) may be familiar with Ireland's "Protection of Life During Pregnancy Act." And those who are at all familiar with western politics will realize that in doublespeak "Protection of Life" is a code word for "Destruction of Life."

The law was rushed through in response to the case of Savita Halappanavar, an Indian woman in Ireland who died last year of septicemia following a miscarriage, who may not have wanted an abortion, who would not have been saved by an abortion, and who did not die because she did not have an abortion. Fortunately pro-abortion forces were waiting in the wings, and were able to use the media to effectively raise an outcry which was used to pass the new law in record time despite the protests of the majority of Ireland's population. Legislators who didn't go along with the law were sacked.

So what is this new law? It's very similar to the U.S.'s Doe v. Bolton case, which of course is not a law passed by Congress, but a law made by the Supreme Court, which states that a woman has a "right" to kill her baby (well, pay to have him killed - it's still illegal for her to do it herself) up to and including the moment of birth in order to preserve her health. "Health" in the U.S. has been interpreted to mean any kind of health, medical, physical, mental, emotional, financial, you name it. It has lead to the most permissive abortion criteria in the world, except for China.

But I digress. So after decades where no Doctor in Ireland has been able to find a case where abortion actually did save the life of a mother, and after years of having the safest, best medical care in the world for expectant mothers, we're told all of a sudden, only a month after the new law is passed that it was used to save a life! Hallelujah!

Only that's another lie. The story was fabricated to defend the new law, just as the Savita story was fabricated and twisted to promote its passage. What happened was what would have happened if the law had never been passed.

So what exactly is that? In this case, the babies' (it was twins) amniotic sac ruptured when they were only 18 weeks old. The danger is that the tissue may become infected, and the mother and babies will die of sepsis. There is a chance that no infection will occur and babies have been born with a ruptured amniotic sac, but it is rare. So how is this usually treated?

In a pro-life state (like Ireland used to be, and still is, in her people if not in law), labor is induced, and the baby delivered. Labor and delivery are "easy" at that age, since the child is only 5 inches long. If the baby were close to the 21 week mark, he would have a decent chance of survival with medical care, but an 18 week old baby cannot survive outside the womb. So the baby is swaddled and made comfortable, and the parents can see and hold their precious child and comfort him in his last moments. The mother is examined to make sure no parts of the placenta are left inside, where they could cause infection, and is given prophylactic antibiotics. The baby's remains may be cremated or buried.

In a pro-abortion state (like the U.S.) the preferred "treatment" is abortion. By far the most common procedure for an 18 week abortion is a D&E. The cervix is dilated. A pair of forceps is inserted into the womb to grasp part of the fetus. The teeth of the forceps dig into the flesh tightly and the doctor twists and pulls to dismember and tear apart the body of the still living baby. Once the limbs are out, the spine is snapped to make it easier to extract the torso. Finally the skull is crushed, again to make it easier to extract. The pieces of the baby are reassembled and examined to make sure the entire corpse has been removed. Then the uterus is scraped with a knife to remove the placenta and any other tissue remaining. The mother is examined to make sure no parts of the placenta are left inside, where they could cause infection, and is given prophylactic antibiotics. The baby's remains are put in the garbage as "medical waste" or may be sold for us in cosmetics or other product by companies like Nestle and Neocutis.

For more detailed and graphic descriptions of the procedure, here is a description by a doctor, and here is a diagram of the procedure. For images of babies around this age or older who have been aborted, click here. I try to keep this blog relatively family friendly, so I'm not including this material in the post.

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Hate Speech

Yet another one for the Opposites files...

Hate Speech

Not Hate Speech

Just for clarification, the part of the first letter ruled "hate speech" is the following:

Sodomites are 430 times more likely to acquire Aids and 3 times more likely to sexually abuse children!;
Born Gay? No Way! Homosexual sex is about risky and addictive behaviour!;
If Saskatchewan’s sodomites have their way, your school board will be celebrating buggery too!;
Don’t kid your selves; homosexuality is going to be taught to your children and it won’t be the media stereotypes of two monogamous men holding hands;
The Bible is clear that homosexuality is an abomination;
Sodom and Gomorrah was given over completely to homosexual perversion and as a result destroyed by God’s wrath;
Our acceptance of homosexuality and our toleration of its promotion in our school system will lead to the early death and morbidity of many children.

Parts of the second letter that are not considered hate speech include the following (emphasis mine):

Personally, they should take whatever non retarded body parts he possesses and donate it to science. What the hell else good is he to anyone!!!
I HATE people like you
Do the right thing and move or euthanize him!!! Either way, we are ALL better off!!!

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Only the good die young

Source: Wikipedia

If you haven't been living in a cave you've probably heard the Billy Joel song "Only the Good Die Young." It's a very catchy tune, and when it's on the radio or somewhere I can't help but hum along. But did you ever stop to listen to the words? It's pretty horrible. A man is trying to get a young girl (not sure how young, if you get my drift) to have sex with him. The girl is a virgin and he blames the Catholic Church for keeping her from having the fun that she should be having.

Aside from the anti-Catholic lines, there is one verse that catches my attention:

They say there's a heaven for those who will wait
Some say it's better but I say it ain't
I'd rather laugh with the sinners than cry with the saints
Sinners are much more fun

It catches my attention because many people think it's true. And even if you read the Butler's Lives of the Saints you get the same impression - that the saints live horrible lives in misery. But getting a martyr's death isn't the point of sainthood, or even a requirement.

Take a moment to watch this video about St. Maximilian Kolbe.


St.Kolbe died what to us would seem a horrible death, but he wasn't crying, he was smiling. I haven't been around too many saints, but I have been around lots of sinners, and although they have their moments of laughter, there's a lot of crying going on. It seems to me that Billy Joel's words are spoken out of ignorance, or maybe wishful thinking. You don't laugh with sinner and cry with saints, but more like the other way around.

The saints are the joyful, peaceful happy ones. This becomes evident if you read the writings of the saints, or see videos of them. There is a quality about real saints that makes you admire and want to be like them, which is quite opposed to the way they are portrayed in secular descriptions.

So I was thinking of a way to explain this to people by way of analogy. Let's say all you knew about exercise was watching a weight lifting competition. You might think "I don't ever want to exercise and become strong because strong people are just crushed with weights." Quite the opposite is true. The weak person struggles lifting weights, while the strong person is not bothered by them.

St. Maximilian Kolbe didn't die a hard death. He simply saw a weight too heavy for someone else, that he could lift with ease.

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Chris Christie has lost my vote

Source: Wikipedia

Well, for the most part Christie has been doing the right things, but he has taken a turn for the worse. In today's news:

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie signed into law on Monday legislation that bars licensed therapists from trying to turn gay teenagers straight, though the Republican said in a statement he did so "reluctantly."

and

Christie found middle ground on medical marijuana for children when he agreed Friday to allow growers to cultivate additional strains, and for marijuana to be made in an edible form for chronically ill children. But he would not lift an oversight provision that could require as many as three doctors to sign off on a prescription.

On the first issue, I think most people, even those who feel that one is "born gay" acknowledge that sometimes a person who has been "straight" for some time feels unhappy where they are and "discovers" they have homosexual tendencies. So why is it so hard to imagine that someone who is "gay" could be unhappy and discover they are straight? Why can a therapist help an unhappy straight person to be gay, but be forbidden by law to help an unhappy gay person to be straight? Why is the "discovery" a one way street?

As for parents making this decision for their children, why not? A child does not have any idea of right or wrong, or sexual identity except as it gets it from parents and peers. And in today's society, how many children are "faking" being gay to get the attention they crave? If a particular method of behavior modification is harmful, then ban that method of behavior modification for all behavior, but banning the end, not the means, strikes me as particularly biased against a given outcome.

As for the second, exactly why do we need state laws to put marijuana into the hands of children? There is a procedure in place to get drugs to patients, that's designed to make sure the drugs are effective safe and used properly. If there were a medical benefit to be had, don't you think drug companies would have jumped on it, gotten FDA approval, and be dispensing it already, at great profit? They've had years and years to study it. Now the typical argument is that the drug companies can't experiment with it because it is an illegal substance. Poppycock! So are all the controlled substances out there. They make morphine, opiates, barbiturates, all sorts of things, without having governors sign special laws.

The other argument I've heard is that drug companies know how wonderful marijuana is but are hiding it because there's no profit to be made since people can grow it themselves. Well, that can be said of most plant-derived drugs. What drug companies do is find the active ingredients and put them in an easier to use form, like a pill or inhaler, and work on eliminating side effects, etc. If marijuana was safe, effective, and useful, I'm sure someone would put it in pill form and charge an arm and a leg, and since it is illegal to grow it yourself, they could charge a ton of money for it.

The fact that nobody has gotten the marijuana inhaler or patch or pill or what have you through FDA approval is indication to me that such a drug would not pass muster in terms of safety or effectiveness. The real end game of this bill is to make money by selling tones of marijuana to people who want to use it for recreational purposes and will use medicine as an excuse.

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Monday Joke

An atheist was taking a walk through the woods, admiring all that evolution had created.

"What majestic trees! What powerful rivers! What beautiful animals!", he said to himself. As he was walking along the river, he heard a rustling in the bushes behind him. When he turned to see what the cause was, he saw a 7-foot grizzly charging right towards him. He ran as fast as he could. He looked over his shoulder and saw that the bear was closing, He ran even faster, crying in fear. He looked over his shoulder again, and the bear was even closer. His heart was pounding and he tried to run even faster. He tripped and fell on the ground. He rolled over to pick himself up, but saw the bear right on top of him, reaching for him with his left paw and raising his right paw to strike him.

At that moment, the Atheist cried out "Oh my God!...." Time stopped. The bear froze. The forest was silent. Even the river stopped moving.

As a bright light shone upon the man, a voice came out of the sky, "You deny my existence for all of these years; teach others I don't exist; and even credit my creation to a cosmic accident. Do you expect me to help you out of this predicament? Am I to count you as a believer?"

The atheist looked directly into the light "It would be hypocritical of me to suddenly ask You to treat me as Christian now, but perhaps could you make the bear a Christian?" "Very well," said the voice.

The light went out. The river ran again. And the sounds of the forest resumed.

The bear stopped in mid swipe, put its paws together, looked up and said "Bless us O Lord, and these thy gifts, which we are about to receive..."

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Superstition

Fr. Dowling (image via CNA)

Stevie Wonder defines superstition as "when you believe in things that you don't understand." Although I enjoy the song, let's face it, we all believe in things that we don't understand. I don't understand nuclear physics or why my wife loves me, but I believe both to be true, and I don't consider either belief to be superstition.

Merriam-Webster has a better definition:

Superstition: a belief or practice resulting from ignorance, fear of the unknown, trust in magic or chance, or a false conception of causation

 Recently the news was all abuzz about the "mystery priest." From USA Today:

Emergency workers and community members in eastern Missouri are not sure what to make of a mystery priest who showed up at a critical accident scene Sunday morning and whose prayer seemed to change life-threatening events for the positive.

Even odder, the black-garbed priest does not appear in any of the nearly 70 photos of the scene of the accident in which a 19-year-old girl almost died. No one knows the priest and he vanished without a word, said Raymond Reed, fire chief of New London, Mo.

"I think it's a miracle," Reed said. "I would say whether it was an angel that was sent to us in the form of a priest or a priest that became our angel, I don't know. Either way, I'm good with it."

Now, immediately, several people began to speculate whether this was a supernatural event. Take Joel and Lisa Schmidt, for instance, who hypothesized that the priest might be Fr. Lukas Etlin.

I became aware of the story from a friend who is a non-believer, who brought it to my attention as the kind of thing I would be interested in. And they were right, I was very interested in the story. My non-believing friends chuckled kindly at my superstitious belief in the supernatural. They dismissed the story as likely a hallucination of people under stress. Clearly the photographic evidence shows it was just wishful thinking, and so they pooh poohed all the hoopla and investigation.

As it turns out, it wasn't a supernatural event at all but an actual living priest with the  (somewhat ironic) name Fr. Dowling, who happened to pass by and prayed with the young girl and anointed her. Mystery solved.

Now although my non-believing friends may point to this incident and say "look at those superstitious Catholics" let's look at the definition of the word and see who fits it better. On the one hand we have Catholics and Christians who said "we don't know what this is, but we'll keep and open mind and investigate." For instance, in the article above Chief Raymond Reed said it could be an angel or a priest, or as the Schmidts said, we should investigate from both a supernatural and natural perspective.

On the other hand we have non-believers who would not bother to investigate because it is clear wat the answer is - it must be a mistake.

Which group is rejecting the unknown, acting in ignorance and trusting in chance?

Now, what do you think of this?




[Update, Michael Fanelli on Facebook pointed me to the following clip o the mystery priest - World Over - 2013-08-15 -- the "Mystery Priest" - not embedding it so I can give the offset where the story startes.]

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Belated Monday Joke

With all my "back from camp" work I forgot to post this one on time! Sorry folks, but here it is - better late than never.

A man walks into a monastery and says “I want to be monk.”

The abbot replies “Great! But you realize monks in our order are only allowed to talk once every ten years.”

The man replies “Fine.”

Ten years go by and the man goes into the abbot’s office and says “Bed’s hard.”

Another ten years go by and the man goes into the abbot’s office and says, “Food stinks!”

Another ten years goes by and the man goes into the abbot’s office and says “Water’s cold. I quit!”

The abbot replies, “Figures! You’ve been complaining ever since you got here!"

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Monday Joke

An Irish priest is driving down to New York and gets stopped for speeding in Connecticut.

 

The state trooper smells alcohol on the priest's breath and then sees an empty wine bottle on the floor of the car.

 

He says, "Sir, have you been drinking?"

 

"Just water," says the priest, fingers crossed.

 

The trooper says, "Then why do I smell wine?"

 

The priest looks at the bottle and says, "Good Lord! He's done it again!"

source: http://www.jokes4us.com/religiousjokes/catholicjokes.html

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Monday Joke

Inspired by this image posted by my friend Anthony, and H/T Catholic Answers...

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Meet the Staff

This is another in my "Meet the staff" series, where I introduce the reader to the people who work at my local abortion clinic. The object is to show what kind of people typically do abortions. Not the Kermit Gosnells, but the "average Joe". The media paints these people as angels and pro lifers as demons. But is that really the case? I started looking into the clinic where I pray to see. The first post in the series talked about Dr. Steven Brigham.

This post is about Dr. Vikram Kaji, who is an abortionist at the same clinic. By way of introduction, here is a consent agreement from the State of Pennsylvania Department of State from 1993. It reads (in part, emphasis mine):

Respondent admits that the following facts are true:

On or about October 20, 1993, the New Jersey State Board of Medical Examiners found that the Respondent's conduct with respect to three female patients constituted gross malpractice and ordered that Respondent's New Jersey Medical License, No. MA023976, be suspended for a period of three (3) years...

...The underlying basis for New Jersey's Order is as follows:

Respondent had allegedly engaged in sexual abuse of three female patients and indiscriminately prescribed an anabolic steroid and Seconal, a Controlled Dangerous Substance to one of those patients.

Here's one of the incidents described:

On or about May 26, 1993 Respondent testified that he had in fact engaged in sexual intercourse with Patient V.V. sometime around 1985... The incident occurred in the daytime on the bed in the birthing room of his Yardley Pennsylvania office while the staff was in the office and the door was unlocked. Respondent did not charge Patient V.V. for the visit. Respondent had not worn a condom during intercourse. Resopndent testified that there was no emotional involvement with Patient V.V. Patient V.V. suffered from depression and had been the childhood victim of sexual abuse.

Well, at least he didn't charge her for the visit. Dr. Kaji's license was reinstated in 1996.

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Silly Senator Cruz

Sen. Cruz (photo from LifeSiteNews)

In an interview with the Christian Broadcasting Network Senator Ted Cruz of Texas (Republican, you might guess) said:

If you look at other nations that have gone down the road towards gay marriage, that’s the next step where it gets enforced. It gets enforced against Christian pastors who decline to perform gay marriages, who speak out and preach biblical truths on marriage, that has been defined elsewhere as hate speech, as inconsistent with the enlightened view of government.”

What a silly statement to make. Of course in America nobody would take action against a Christian pastor for his religious beliefs. It's not like a human rights commissioner in Iowa would ever send death wishes to a Christian pastor and tell him his family should die and burn in hell.

And such a thing is especially ridiculous to say in Texas. I mean, it's not like San Antonio would make a law that people who believe homosexuality is immoral wouldn't be allowed to hold jobs in the city.

No, those things will never happen here.

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Monday Joke

Mary was coming home from a trip and was driving through New Mexico when she saw an elderly woman walking along the side of the road. She stopped the car and asked the woman if she would like a lift?

With a silent nod, the woman climbed into the car. Mary tried in vain to make conversation with the woman, but she wasn't very talkative. The old woman silently took in everything she saw, studying every little detail, until she noticed a red gift bag on the seat next to Mary.

"What's in the bag?" asked the old woman.

"It's a bottle of whiskey that I got for my husband."

The old woman was silent for another minute or two. Then speaking with the quiet wisdom of an elder, she said, "Good trade."

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Meet the Staff

If you follow this blog you've heard about Kermit Gosnell, the PA abortionist who's now serving time for murder. I think most people have the impression that Gosnell is an aberration, and that most abortion workers are actually professional, kind people. Certainly that is how they are portrayed in the media - "saints in surgical garb" who are beleaguered by the evil anti-choice criminals.

As you may know I go to pray once a week in front of an abortion clinic. I think it's time to introduce you to the staff at a "good" abortion clinic (as opposed to Gosnell's house of horrors). Here's a link to the web page for the clinic, showing it's impressive list of credentials. Must be a great place! [throughout this post, emphasis mine].

Our mission is to provide safe medical care in a kind, caring, compassionate atmosphere, while fully complying with all applicable standards, guidelines, statutes, and regulations. 

Our physicians are experienced Healthcare Providers who are devoted to providing quality reproductive health care services for women.

So let's meet this wonderful staff! The clinic is owned by abortionist Steven Brigham. Brigham had his NJ license suspended in 2010 as he faced murder charges in MD. As reported by the Philadelphia Inquirer:

TRENTON – The New Jersey Board of Medical Examiners on Wednesday temporarily suspended the license of abortion doctor Steven Chase Brigham, ruling that the Voorhees-based entrepreneur is “a clear and imminent danger to the public health and safety.”

The issue was that Brigham would start late term abortions in NJ, then drive the women down to MD to finish them, exploiting disparities between the two states' laws to kill viable babies. You see, he could practice in NJ, but could not kill late term babies here. In MD he had no license to practice. So the solution was to start a medical procedure, then load the women in a van and drive them 4 hours with the dead babies inside them, where another doctor's name and license would be used to remove the bodies.

Some of the legal wrangling hinged upon whether the abortion consisted of injecting the babies and killing them (which happened in NJ), or the removal of the dead corpses (which happened in MD). Ultimately Brigham was arrested in NJ and extradited to MD where he faced charges - five counts each of first and second degree murder. As Reuters reported:

A series of earlier investigations by state medical boards revealed that Brigham illegally initiated abortions at a clinic he owns in Voorhees, New Jersey, and then allegedly completed the procedures at a clinic in Maryland, where he was not licensed.

The scheme was only discovered when one of the abortions was botched and a woman was abandoned in critical condition. According to ABC News:

The investigation began in August 2010 after a botched procedure at Brigham's Elkton clinic. An 18-year-old woman who was 21 weeks pregnant had her uterus ruptured and her bowel injured, and rather than call 911, Brigham and Riley drove her to a nearby hospital, where both were uncooperative and Brigham refused to give his name, authorities said.

A search of the clinic after the botched abortion revealed a freezer with 35 late-term fetuses inside, including one believed to have been aborted at 36 weeks, authorities said.

Charges against Brigham were dropped after a witness for the prosecution refused to testify, allegedly under pressure from the abortion lobby. Likewise, his NJ medical license was restored under pressure.

But that's not the only trouble Brigham has been in. According to National Right to Life news, Brigham has lost his license to practice medicine in five states. In fact, the PA Board of Health has ruled that Brigham may not operate or own abortion facilities in PA, a rule that he evades by having corporations in others' names.

In future posts I'll introduce some of the other staff members at the clinic. I hope this gives you some insight into the operation of a "good" abortion clinic.

[BTW the image above is the clinic walkway as seen from the curb. My friend Connie used to like to stand there to pray because she said it was like looking down from the cross.]

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