Calling Mothers with Large Families

These days anything over three qualifies as a large family I suppose.

A discussion is going on over at Et tu Jen that life today is so hard without traditional family groups living together to help watch the kids, etc., that it is only normal to limit families to a few children.

This is your chance to have a charitable, perhaps eye-opening discussion about it so head on over there.

The Trinity

Another blast from HC's past.

This is one of the descriptions of the Trinity that almost lets me wrap my brain around that whole mystery ... almost. Also, one of the best descriptions ever of the family's inner essence.

Our thoughts and our loves, the two distinctively human acts that no animal can perform, issue forth from us but do not become distinct persons unless aided by the flesh. In God, they are so real that they are the two additional Persons in God: God's word, or self-expression, is so real that he is the second person in God, and the love between Father and Son is so real that he is the third Person. Human creativity, both mental and biological, is the image of the Trinity. That is one reason why the family is holy; it bears the intimate stamp of the very inner nature of God, the life of Trinitarian love, the two becoming three in becoming one.

Fundamentals of the Faith by Peter Kreeft

We'll Be on the Lookout

Prison Break will be filming its second season in Dallas, beginning around the middle of June. We don't hang around the places where celebrities are likely to be spending any off hours. But it'll be fun to keep an eye out anyway.

IN OTHER TELEVISION NEWS
Reading this morning that President Bush will be speaking to the nation tonight about the immigration bill, I was struck by the idea that all over America, people were saying, "Not during 24! Please, no!" If the President is wise he won't try to compete with Jack Bauer. Let's face it. Who really can?

AND A LITTLE BIT OF LOST
Because how can we leave that out if we're discussing television? How Stuff Works has an interesting rundown of The Dharma Initiative.

Back to Basics: Sacred Tradition

God's word is more than letters on a page or sounds to the ear. His word is creative. When God speaks the word it happens. For example, the book of Genesis in the Bible tells us that God created merely by saying the word: "God said, 'let there be light,' and there was light."

Catholics believe that the Word of God is found not only in the Bible but also in the unwritten or spoken word — Sacred Tradition...

It took some time between what Jesus actually said and did from when the Gospel writer put it on paper (actually on parchment), so what took place during that period? Before the written word was the unwritten or spoken word. Just as in the Old Testament, things happened and were said long before they were written down, so, too, in the New Testament. Jesus preached his sermons and worked his miracles, died on the cross, rose from the dead, and ascended into heaven long before anyone wrote it down. No one took notes while he preached. No letters were written between Jesus and the apostles. Sacred Tradition predates and preceded Sacred Scripture, but both come from the same source — God.

The New Testament is totally silent on whether Jesus ever married or had children. The Bible says nothing about his marital status, yet Christians believe he had no wife and kids. Sacred Tradition tell us that he never married just as Sacred Tradition says that the Gospels number only four...

Catholicism For Dummies by John Trigilio

Honestly, the Sola Scriptura way of thinking just doesn't make sense to me. For example, nowhere in the Bible that I can see is our understanding of the Holy Trinity spelled out. Where did that come from, if not from except divine revelation which has been passed down by Sacred Tradition? When it comes to taking the Bible at its word as so many seem to insist on ... how about the part where Jesus tells everyone that they must eat his flesh and drink his blood (the words used mean "gnaw") so almost everyone leaves ... and he lets them go. No arguing or saying it was symbolic. Not even any behind-the-scenes different explanation as he so often gave to the disciples after everyone was gone. If we really want to get basic, how about what the Bible itself says is the holder of truth?

I hope to come to you soon, but I am writing these instructions to you so that, if I am delayed, you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and bulwark of the truth.

I Timothy 3:14,15

At the Catholic Catechism Dialogue Blog, a former Protestant minister points out that Protestants have their own unacknowledged form of Sacred Tradition.

One. Protestants do not in fact make the Bible only their sole pillar of truth. No, they don't. They recall, study, emulate and if honest with themselves venerate the teachers of the founders {and there are several of them with several conflicting understandings of what the Bible alone teaches} of their Protestant faith. The Bible alone is not the actual sole guide.

That never occurred to me until he mentioned it but does ring true.

For Mothers' Day

Mary Cassatt, The Child's Caress, Source

I am not a fan of Mothers' Day. It is too much of a manufactured holiday. For Mary we have the month of May as well as other special feast days. For me ... my birthday is the day.

However, I do not begrudge the enjoyment of the day to all who are fans so ... Happy Mothers' Day!

Got 4 Tunes and a Shallow Plot? Let's Call it Opera!

THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA
Rose got this movie yesterday for her birthday and we watched it last night. Interestingly it was so very operatic ... gorgeous sets, melodrama, haunting music (through quite similar to each other somehow ... they all seemed to run together and I could recognize them but had a hard time telling them apart also), glorious voices ... which did not necessarily make for the best movie ever. I think it was definitely a chick flick in that way.

We wisecracked our way through it and at one point I apologized to Rose for being so flip about a movie she obviously loved. She grinned and said, "Oh I know exactly what this movie is. But I love it anyway." Don't we all have movies like that? I didn't love this one but it was certainly entertaining enough.

The one thing it did leave me with was a desire to go see some real opera. My mother used to take us when we were in junior high and it engendered a love that has never left me. I never passed that on to the girls which I regret. At one point, Rose said, "I love this exchange. Listen to all three songs interweaving and then coming together." Classic opera at that point. Guess I'll have to check out what the Dallas Opera is up to when their new season starts and plan a field trip!

For those who want a quickie but not to sit through the movie, Occupation: Girl did one of her trademark movies in 15 minutes which is, as always, hilarious (you must be registered with LiveJournal but it's free).

Some Underground Lair

CHRISTINE [waking up]: What the crap is this musical monkey box? And I’m in a… swan bed? Whatever. So. Let’s see. I remember… a lot of candles…

A LOT OF CANDLES: *flicker*

CHRISTINE: …a horse…

HORSE: Neigh, baby.

CHRISTINE: And a big lake, and a boat… and some guy.

THE PHANTOM: [writing music]: Mornin’.

[She goes over to the Phantom and touches his face and he seems to dig it.]

CHRISTINE: So, I’m gonna take your mask off.

THE PHANTOM: Okay.

CHRISTINE: Peeling it off as we speak.

THE PHANTOM: Ten-four.

CHRISTINE: It’s totally coming off.

THE PHANTOM: Sure, have a party.

THE MASK: *comes off*

THE PHANTOM: OMG YOU (expletives deleted by HC) HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

(HC rating: Good despite lack of flubber)

Speaking of Over the Hedge

Here's the official Othercott spot with more info than simply urging you to go see a different movie than the Da Vinci Code. Scroll down for 10 "other" things to do on or before May 19th.

Me? Ahem ... I'm not gonna comment about Over the Hedge any more, however, that will be our wedding anniversary weekend as well as Hannah's baccalaureate mass and graduation weekend.

Movies are the last thing I'll be thinking about!

Dance, Dance Evolution

Got six minutes to watch the Evolution of Dance? Via Quiet Life.

Rose is Sweet Sixteen

Our sweet, smart, musical, savvy, sensitive Rose ... how can she really be 16 and getting ready to learn to drive? How time flies (trite but so true).

We'll be celebrating Tex-Mex style at Marianos. For the grand finale, she has chosen chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting (can't believe I found a photo for it though ours will be round not square). Mmmmm....

TAR: Monkeys!

Getting close to the end and I was very happy to see that MoJo got eliminated. I really could not stand her whining and crying a minute more. I feel that the Frat Boys will probably win but would be happy with either of the other two teams actually.

And, we loved the dear little monkeys ... I can only imagine what that shrine area must smell like! Whew!

"Now I understand why Sawyer squashed that tree frog"

So said soft-hearted, animal-loving Hannah upon finding out that the very loud, "whirring" sound she's heard all night for the last two nights is a frog outside her window. It's been driving Tom and her crazy. Me? I didn't even notice it until she asked what it was. Talk about tuning out...

In a World Where Mermaids Are Viewed as Sweet ...

... and where the first trailer for Lady in the Water was so innocent seeming and even boring, there comes this trailer that gives us a totally different view altogether. Not so nice after all. But interesting looking...

The Problem of Evil

Working my way through Peter Kreeft's Fundamentals of the Faith, I continue to be struck at how well he summarizes answers to common objections to the existence of God. While the existence of evil never particularly was something that struck me as a reason there could not be a God, it clearly is one of the main objections. In fact it is one of the only two objections that St. Thomas Aquinas could find. (The other was the apparent ability of natural science to explain everything in our experience without God.) You can find Kreeft's chapter on evil here. What I liked most were his comments on the philosophical problem of evil.

Finally, what about the philosophical problem? It is not logically contradictory to say an all-powerful and all-loving God tolerates so much evil when he could eradicate it? Why do bad things happen to good people? The question makes three questionable assumptions.

First, who's to say we are good people? The question should be not "Why do bad things happen to good people?" but "Why do good things happen to bad people?" If the fairy godmother tells Cinderella that she can wear her magic gown until midnight, the question should be not "Why not after midnight?" but "Why did I get to wear it at all?" The question is not why the glass of water is half empty but why it is half full, for all goodness is gift. The best people are the ones who are most reluctant to call themselves good people. Sinners think they are saints, but saints know they are sinners. The best man who ever lived once said, "No one is good but God alone."

Second, who's to say suffering is all bad? Life without it would produce spoiled brats and tyrants, not joyful saints. Rabbi Abraham Heschel says simply, "The man who has not suffered, what can he possibly know, anyway?" Suffering can work for the greater good of wisdom. It is not true that all things are good, but it is true that "all things work together for good to those who love God."

Third, who's to say we have to know all God's reasons? Who ever promised us all the answers? Animals can't understand much about us; why should we be able to understand everything about God? The obvious point of the Book of Job, the world's greatest exploration of the problem of evil, is that we just don't know what God is up to. What a hard lesson to learn: Lesson One, that we are ignorant, that we are infants! No wonder Socrates was declared by the Delphic Oracle to be the wisest man in the world. He interpreted that declaration to mean that he alone knew that he did not have wisdom, and that was true wisdom for man.

Another reposting as I continue to listen to Peter Kreeft's audio offerings and want to share with y'all just how inspirational and mind expanding I find his thinking.

Literary Post of the Week

THE TAMING OF THE SHREW
By William Shakespeare

Katharina
Spit. Hiss.

Petruchio
Shut your mouth before I hit you.

Katharina
I can be civilized now that a man has bossed me around.
I love you madly, Petruchio.

THE END

Book-a-Minute Classics

Miracles: Evidence of God's Existence

If I were an atheist, I think I would save my money to buy a plane ticket to Italy to see whether the blood of Saint Januarius really did liquefy and congeal miraculously, as it is supposed to do annually. I would go to Medjugorge. I would study all published interviews of any of the seventy thousand who saw the miracle of the sun at Fatima. I would ransack hospital records for documentated "impossible", miraculous cures. Yet, strangely, almost all atheists argue against miracles philosophically rather than historically. They are convinced a priori, by argument, that miracles can't happen. So they don't waste their time or money on such an empirical investigation. Those who do soon cease to be atheists -- like the sceptical scientists who investigated the Shroud of Turin, or like Frank Morrison, who investigated the evidence for the "myth" of Christ's Resurrection with the careful scientific eye of the historian -- and became a believer. (His book Who Moved the Stone? is still a classic and still in print after more than sixty years.)

Fundamentals of the Faith by Peter Kreeft

Interesting idea isn't it? Just go check out the facts for yourself on those miracles and trust the evidence of your own eyes. It takes someone with a very open mind or a determination to prove the miracles false to go check them out. I think such people are much rarer than is commonly believed. Certainly, most atheists I know would not investigate but just argue from what they already know to be true.

By the way, I highly recommend Who Moved the Stone.

(Reposted from a long time ago ... I just like it too much.)

More Choices For That Pesky Da Vinci Code Movie

Yesterday I wrote about choosing between the Da Vinci Code and Over the Hedge movies as has been suggested to show Hollywood that we ain't gonna take it anymore.

My problem largely was that there are no good movie alternatives and Over the Hedge just looks so dreadful to watch that I thought a boycott and staying home would be better. In answer to a question about why my sudden dislike for Over the Hedge I must say that it is not sudden at all. I have loathed that movie ever since seeing the first trailers. It looks like the worst of "dumbing down, scatalogical" movies directed at kids. Think "Madagascar" put in the woods. Ugh! There just hasn't been any reason to mention it before now. Believe me, if you had to listen to me mention every movie trailer that looks terrible we'd all be here for a very long time.

Nehring the Edge talks about the superior effectiveness of a "buycott" and says that even paying for Over the Hedge while not seeing it would be a better alternative. I like the "buycott" idea but in response to saying that a boycott doesn't ever work I have noticed this morning that there has been a lot of talk about Mission Impossible III's relatively low box office numbers which has been attributed to Tom Cruise's self-inflicted over exposure and resultant lack of appeal, especially to women.

College Catholic via the comments boxes mentions that it might be important for Christians to see the Da Vinci Code so that they know what they are arguing about if asked questions after someone has seen the movie. He mentions paying for a different movie and then going to see the Da Vinci Code instead. I think that I've seen that idea before (though it may have been at his place, just can't remember).

Personally, after having thought about it for an evening I think that if I had to go see a movie I'd plump for Flight 93. It is an option that would still be at the movies most likely. Also, wouldn't it be nice to see a resurgence in box office numbers for a movie that promotes good movie making, heroism, and right ideals in place of the Da Vinci Code?

The Universal Prayer

THE UNIVERSAL PRAYER (attributed to Pope Clement XI)
Lord, I believe in you: increase my faith.
I trust in you: strengthen my trust.
I love you: let me love you more and more.
I am sorry for my sins: deepen my sorrow.

I worship you as my first beginning,
I long for you as my last end,
I praise you as my constant helper,
And call on you as my loving protector.

Guide me by your wisdom,
Correct me with your justice,
Comfort me with your mercy,
Protect me with your power.

I offer you, Lord, my thoughts: to be fixed on you;
My words: to have you for their theme;
My actions: to reflect my love for you;
My sufferings: to be endured for your greater glory.

I want to do what you ask of me:
In the way you ask,
For as long as you ask,
Because you ask it.

Lord, enlighten my understanding,
Strengthen my will,
Purify my heart,
and make me holy.

Help me to repent of my past sins
And to resist temptation in the future.
Help me to rise above my human weaknesses
And to grow stronger as a Christian.

Let me love you, my Lord and my God,
And see myself as I really am:
A pilgrim in this world,
A Christian called to respect and love
All whose lives I touch,
Those under my authority,
My friends and my enemies.

Help me to conquer anger with gentleness,
Greed by generosity,
Apathy by fervor.
Help me to forget myself
And reach out toward others.

Make me prudent in planning,
Courageous in taking risks.
Make me patient in suffering, unassuming in prosperity.

Keep me, Lord, attentive at prayer,
Temperate in food and drink,
Diligent in my work,
Firm in my good intentions.

Let my conscience be clear,
My conduct without fault,
My speech blameless,
My life well-ordered.
Put me on guard against my human weaknesses.
Let me cherish your love for me,
Keep your law,
And come at last to your salvation.

Teach me to realize that this world is passing,
That my true future is the happiness of heaven,
That life on earth is short,
And the life to come eternal.

Help me to prepare for death
With a proper fear of judgment,
But a greater trust in your goodness.
Lead me safely through death
To the endless joy of heaven.

Grant this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Pope Clement XI

Choosing Between the DaVinci Code and Over the Hedge

Barbara Nicolosi made a suggestion that has caught fire around the blogosphere. Instead of going to see the DaVinci Code go to see Over the Hedge.

But wait a minute.

Have y'all seen the trailers for Over the Hedge?

*shudder*

I've been dreading that children's movie for longer than I've been dreading the DaVinci Code.

So we should pay to go see one bad movie to make our objections against another bad movie? Hmmm ... I object strenuously to either being encouraged with our hard earned cash.

How about this? Her adoration idea is a good one. Let's all either go to adoration or, if that doesn't work for your schedule, stay home. Either way you're not pay for any intelligence-insulting dreck whether directed toward adults or children.

While you're home you can catch up on the summer blockbusters and why you might (or might not) want to watch them. I liked this about the DaVinci Code.

"What it's about: In the film adaptation of Dan Brown's mega-bestselling thriller, Tom Hanks and Audrey Tautou follow a series of cryptic art-world clues to a long-kept religious secret.

Why it's probably a waste of time: Wasn't reading Brown's stilted, tortured prose bad enough, without having to hear Hanks declaim it too?

Why it might be worth seeing anyway: Given the film's massive budget, it's likely to look really, really good onscreen. Also, if everyone in the country goes to see it, maybe they'll finally burn out on Da Vinci Code fever and America can get a new national obsession.

Suggested alternate activity: Reading a good book, wishing someone would make a movie out of that instead."

Food for Thought: the Christian Family

Mike Aquilina at The Way of the Fathers has fast become a "must read" blog for me. Take a look at these two articles he wrote about the essential role of the Christian family in the development of the early Church and, indeed, in Christianity itself.

These are long but well worth the time. Eye opening and thought provoking, they tie in quite well to recent conversations generated both by my book club and by a weekly Bible study ... but I think they can be appreciated even without that "prep" work.

• Salt of the Empire: The Role of the Christian Family in Evangelization ... this actually was a follow up article to this post, The Stark Truth which is also well worth reading, as is the interview to which it links.


• Roman Cruelty, Christian Purity is a follow up article to the Salt of the Empire.

Gilligan = the devil?

This idea about Gilligan's Island from Orthodixie is both hilarious and thought provoking.