Avatar: The movie so green it recycles the plot

Studio Exec: Hey, James Cameron, do you think we should change it up at all? Maybe add some unexpected twist or unique character?
James Cameron: No, if it worked for Pocahontas and Dances with Wolves, it will work for us!

Studio Exec: But do you think people will notice that we ripped off a bunch of other movies?

James Cameron: I already set it on an alien planet which I've cleverly named Pandora! What more do you want?

Studio Exec: Touche.

Rose's review from The Girl's' Tent

I haven't seen Avatar although I have read many reviews for it, especially enjoying Scott Nehring's savaging as he is quite clever and always amuses me even if I disagree (though I do not necessarily do so in this case, not having seen the movie). I also have heard many heated conversations in the last 24-hours with Rose (thumbs down) sparring against Hannah and Matt (two thumbs waaay up).

Rose also set off a firestorm of comment on her Facebook page when she changed her status to: Rose Davis has seen Avatar in IMAX 3D. Really James Cameron? You started directing again for this? Really?!?

I will say that Rose gives the film its due, saying that the graphics are worth a viewing and that the movie was entertaining, if you don't thnk too much.  However, she says so, so much more. Go read it.

Sherlock Holmes: and now for something completely different

There has been a great deal of nonsense talked about the new Sherlock Holmes movie not being a faithful presentation of Holmes and Watson. In actuality, Jude Law is one of the great Watsons, adding to the virtues of his acting a face straight out of the Paget illustrations. It was eerie. Downey did a miraculous job of playing Holmes without playing any of his actor predecessors in the role. With help from the script, he even managed to convince one that the one factor that neither Holmes nor he could alter — height — was meant to be shortness, not tallness. It was a great pleasure to see him go to work, or rather, to see Holmes emerge, fully formed, from Downey. Downey and Law made a great team, a faithful depiction of the young Holmes and Watson having adventures.

Aliens in This World wrote a lengthy review/response to nitpicky critics of the newest Sherlock Holmes movie. I also enjoyed reading this as it echoed my own first thoughts on seeing the trailer and reading initial reviews. Primarily among those were that Doyle wrote Holmes for money not art, much preferring his own historical novels, and that my own love of Without a Clue which also twists the Holmesian legend. At any rate, it is worth reading.

New Year's Eve

Signing off to go prep the celebratory feast for tonight. Don't forget that tomorrow is a Holy Day of Obligation ... which is why our church's vigil service at 6 p.m. looks like Christmas Midnight Mass, or so I'm told. We go to the 10 a.m. on the day itself.

However, until then ... here's a little bubbly from that maestro of the paintbrush, Edward B. Gordon.

"Did you say, 'enough?' You have perished."

I've been trying to find a little time here and there to go through past years (waaay past) and toss some of the detritus that accumulates. Old quizzes, pointers to blogs that are now long gone, that sort of thing. I only bother because Blogger will only allow you access to your most recent 5,000 posts. Yes, I said only. At one point I had over 8,000 posts. I'd like to be able to label and sometimes repost the really old Bible study posts from 2004 and suchlike.

At any rate, I was bemused when coming across this back in the early months of the 2005 archives. It expresses perfectly a subject that arose at Sancta Sanctis where Enbrethiliel was musing about cradle Catholics versus converts, simultaneously bemoaning the loss of Catholic culture to those who acquire their Catholicism mostly through book larnin'. Or something like that. The comments, to which I was also an enthusiastic party, have been lively.

So you can see why this really spoke to me when I read it.

We must never allow ourselves to think we have had sufficient formation. We must never be satisfied with the amount of knowledge about Jesus Christ and his teaching that we have so far acquired. Love always seeks to know the beloved better. In professional life, doctors, say, or architects or lawyers, though they may be good at their profession never think they have finished studying once they have qualified: they go on learning -- always. And so it is with the Christian. We can apply Saint Augustine's maxim to doctrinal formation: Did you say "enough?" You have perished.

The quality of the instrument -- for that is what we all are, instruments in God's hands -- can improve, it can develop new possibilities. Each day we can love a little more and give better example. But we will not achieve this if our understanding is not continually nourished by sound doctrine. I cannot say how often I have been told that some old Irishman saying his rosary is holier than I am, with all my study. I daresay he is. For his own sake, I hope he is. But if the only evidence is that he knows less theology than I, then it would not convince him, because all those rosary-loving, tabernacle-loving old Irishmen I have ever known ... were avid for more knowledge of the faith. It does not convince me, because while it is obvious that an ignorant man can be virtuous, it is equally obvious that ignorance is not a virtue; men have been martyred who could not have stated a doctrine of the church correctly, and martyrdom is the supreme proof of love: yet with more knowledge of God they would have loved him more still. (F. J. Sheed, Theology for Beginners)

The so-called plain man's faith ("I believe it all, even though I don't know what it is") is not sufficient for a Christian in the world who is confronted each day by confusion and a lack of light regarding Christ's doctrine -- the only doctrine that saves -- and is daily encountering ethical problems, both new and old, at work, in his family life, and in the environment in which he lives.

In Conversation with God: Ordinary Time Weeks 1-12

Top Discoveries of 2009: Blogs and Fiction

Once again, in no particular order, just as I came across them and added to my list ...

Blog Discoveries

• Do You Write Under Your Own Name?
  Martin Edwards is a British mystery writer who writes informatively and entertainingly about mysteries he's read, his own writing, and, to a lesser degree, about his craft in general. I've picked up several interesting book tips there and am awaiting delivery to my local library of a couple of his books to try.
• Mexico Bob
  As the name indicates, Bob is in Mexico. He's an American expat who writes about learning Spanish, Mexican customs and daily life, and also about his Catholic faith every so often. He's always interesting and has a big heart as anyone who has read about the time he agreed to let a gaggle of local school children interview him or about the stray dogs he feeds. Yeah. I'm a fan.
• Betty Duffy
  I discovered Betty Duffy via Darwin Catholic's frequent references. She's a no nonsense gal who constantly considers her life through that lens of faith which I so enjoy reading. She's not a wimp and she can take a shot in the comments boxes as I discovered when objecting to ... oh, I don't remember ... something. She totally disarmed me by responding, "Julie D, You've called me out! What fun!" I like her.
  
• Roman Catholic Cop
  The name pretty much says it all. Jamie's been a cop for 14 years and reading his thoughts about his faith while looking at the world he sees in law enforcement is an insightful ride along.
• The Art of Manliness: a blog dedicated to uncovering the lost art of being a man.
  Written by husband and wife team, Brett and Kate McKay this fantastic blog is not really for men only. True, in their search for the lost art of manliness, the blog features articles on helping men be better husbands, better fathers, and better men. However, tucked among articles about falconry, 3 feats of strength, and early 20th century battles every man should know are things like how to write a thank you note and what a manly man can expect from women (which is not bad for women to read either).
• Why I Am Catholic
  Recently begun by Webster Bull in response to the many puzzled people who kept asking about his conversion, this blog soon became a staple of my daily blog reading. Webster writes movingly and intelligently about his conversion and what he has found to love in the faith. Frank recently joined the blog so there are now two viewpoints about what there is to value in our faith.

Top Fiction

•  Grimspace by Ann Aguirre
  From an Amazon review: Sirantha Jax is a jumper, an individual with a rare gene that allows her to access GRIMSPACE and therefore speed up space travel. She finds herself trapped in a psych unit cell, accused of somehow killing the entire crew of her last assigned ship. Everyone... including her pilot, lover, and friend, Kai. The bond between pilot and jumper is sacrosanct and Sirantha can't fathom how or why she would have caused such a crash. Unfortunately, she can't remember what went wrong. A man named March enters her cell and offers to rescue her. But what does he want in return? What will be the costs of this rescue?
  
  My comments: I can tell you that this is space opera at its finest. Tough, hard bitten characters with hearts of gold waaaaay down below the surface, romance, terrifyingly creepy aliens, a mystery to solve while on the run from the authorities. This book has it all. I was pretty disappointed that the sequel didn't match up to the original.
• Anatomy of Fear by Jonathan Santlofer
  From the book description: From the smallest clues—an off-hand comment, a brief flash of fear in a victim's eyes—Nate Rodriguez is able to create an uncanny likeness of the assailant. Now Detective Terri Russo needs his help to solve a particularly shocking series of murders, perpetrated by a psychopath who enjoys drawing pictures of his crimes before committing them. Nate is being asked to enter the dark, twisted mind of a monster—to re-create a face that no one has lived to identify. But as a portrait slowly begins taking shape in Nate's mind and on the page, an electrifying game of cat and mouse reaches an unexpected new level—as a brilliant killer uses his own unique talents to turn the investigation in a terrifying new direction...
  
  I especially enjoyed Santlofer's artistic knowledge, Nate's grandmother who practices voodoo to help protect her grandson, the mystery from Nate's background that keeps popping up to haunt him, and ... of course ... guessing who was committing the crimes. I read lots of mysteries but somehow this one grabbed me enough to make me interested in the entire series and I'm still not tired of Nate.
  
• The Death of a Pope by Piers Paul Read
  A thriller that keeps you on the edge of your seat. Oh, with lots of Catholicism. That too. My review is here.
• The Uncommon Reader by Arnold Bennett
  A sweet and charming tale of Queen Elizabeth II suddenly being overtaken by reading every book she can get her hands on. My review is here.
• Eon: Dragoneye Reborn by Alison Goodman
  This story set in a mythical China where real dragons control the weather, among other things, captivated not only me but Hannah as well. My review is here.
• Way Station by Clifford D. Simak
  From SFFaudio's review: This story spans more than a century, but most of the ‘action’ takes place in the middle of the 20th century, over a couple of months. See, a friendly alien recruited Enoch Wallace to become something of a galactic station master shortly after the American Civil War. Now, with his neighbors generally accepting his mysterious eternal youth, Enoch has a curious and unseen visitor watching him from the woods. Enoch is lonely, with his only friends being a completely deaf and mute young woman and his kindly mailman. Will the visitor in the trees learn the truth? Will Enoch help guide the Earth to its ultimate destiny?
  
  I really enjoyed this story which also sparked quite a debate about the nature of fiction and storytelling between Jesse from SFFaudio and me. (Dang, I think those comments are lost at the moment thanks to Haloscan's bugging out.) This story makes you think of what it means to truly be human, the nature of conflict (and not just between Jesse and me), and also made me love and appreciate nature more than ever.
  

So I'm Betting I Won't Be Finishing Any More Books This Year ...

... which will put my yearly count for 2009 at 123. Funny how podcasting and blogging and other writing projects cut into one's reading time. I still have several reviews to get out (Mark Shea's Mary trilogy, Lorraine Murray's spiritual bio of Flannery O'Connor) which I am going to try to do in the next week, but that's really my problem and nothing that anyone else really cares about isn't it?

I began using GoodReads this year as an alternative to keeping a list by hand. My "2009" list is below:

My New Year's resolution in reading is to jot at least a line of comment for each book with current impressions as I'm reading or in summary since for me that is the most interesting part of looking at anyone's "read" list. I don't care so much if someone has read a book as I do about knowing what they thought of it. Clearly I've been remiss in that area. I always have a link in the sidebar showing what I'm reading currently.

My attempt to begin as I mean to go on may be found in my newly updated "reading list." Click through to see current comments on books I have cracked open at the moment (yes, all over the house so I'm never without reading material wherever I go ... except, now that I think of it, in the bathroom which is the more "traditional" place to have a little something for those extra few moments of seclusion.)

Top Discoveries of 2009: Movies and Audiobooks

I couldn't resist, especially since I've been making notes for these categories since the beginning of the year. So I dodged back in to drop some of them on y'all (oh, how I've missed doing that in the last few days). These are not necessarily new as of 2009 but things that I discovered in 2009.

Click through the links for reviews. Where there are none I made a few notes which, admittedly, are brief, but it is this or nuttin'.

So here goes ... with no particular order within the lists, except chronologically I suppose.

Top Movies
In a year in which we watched fewer movies than ever, these were the stand outs.

• In Bruges
• Lagaan
• Star Trek
• JCVD
• Gran Torino
• Stranded
• Spaced: ok, not a movie but whatever. This is the television show that Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg (Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz) did before their movies. Somewhat slow moving it is nonetheless hilarious. Chock full of sci-fi, pop culture, and video game references, it chronicles the adventures of a guy and girl who pretend to be a couple in order to fulfill the rental requirements for a decent flat. You either will like this or you won't. We all do except for Rose who prefers to ignore it while doing soduku. But 3 outta 4 ain't bad!

Top Audiobooks

• The Adventures of Jimmie Dale by Frank L. Packard (free from Librivox, click through for full story description): done by various readers, one of whom read two or three chapters evidently to practice his English which was excruciating to listen to. However, this tale of dashing adventure from the turn of the century set in New York's gritty underbelly took no great harm from my skipping those couple chapters. This story made me a Frank L. Packard fan.
• Lamentation by Ken Scholes (reviewed for SFFaudio): not just the best audiobook I heard, but very possibly the best science fiction I "read" all year. Wow.
• The White Moll by Frank L. Packard (free from Librivox, click through for full story description): the White Moll, an angel of mercy in the New York slums, is falsely accused of a terrible crime. She must now use her intelligence, grit, and knowledge of slum gangs to outwit both her accusers and the police. This story made me a fan of narrator Rowdy Delaney whose low key style proved addictive.
• Giants of the Frost by Kim Wilkins (reviewed for SFFaudio): just when you think this is a typical romance story (enough already of the whining girl protagonist) it takes a very interesting turn for the better into Norse mythology.
• The White Company by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (free from Librivox, click through for full story description): surprisingly Doyle considered his historical novels to be his best and I must say this book makes a strong case. A story of knight errantry, wooing a fair lady, and learning the ways of the world during England's Hundred Years War with France.
  

The Thoughtfulness of Pope Benedict XVI

Back in the day when the Pope was Cardinal Ratzinger, Pete Seewald did a series of interviews which give us great insight into the way our Papa thinks. And I like it. Here's a great example directly swiped from Webster at Why I Am Catholic. Tge non-italicized words are Webster's commentary. Go there to read all of his post.

In the interviews that became God and the World (Ignatius Press, 2002), German journalist Peter Seewald asked then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger:

In the course of two thousand years of Christian history, the Church has divided time and again. In the meantime, there are around three hundred distinguishable Protestant, Orthodox, or other churches. There are way over a thousand Baptist groups in the United States. Over against these there is still the Roman Catholic Church with the pope at her head, which claims to be the only true Church. She remains at any rate, and despite every crisis, indeed the most universal, historically significant, and successful Church in the world, with more members today than at any time in her history.

This question asked by a skeptical young journalist, no Catholic at the time he asked it, might seem to be what Frank would call a “fat pitch.” Did Ratzinger, in his answer, knock Protestantism out of the park in a grand slam of triumphalism? No, the cardinal laid down a thoughtful bunt single—then stole second, third, and home:

I think that in the spirit of Vatican II we ought not to see that as a triumph for our prowess as Catholics and ought not to make much of the institutional and numerical strength we continue to enjoy. If we were to reckon that as our achievement and as our right, then we would step outside the role of a people belonging to God and set ourselves up as an association in our own right. And that can very quickly go wrong. A Church may have great institutional power in a country, but as soon as faith is no longer there to back it up, the institution will break down.


Perhaps you know the mediaeval story of a Jew who traveled to the papal court and who became a Catholic. On his return, someone who knew the papal court well asked him: “Do you realize what sort of things are going on there?” “Yes,” he said, “of course, quite scandalous things, I saw it all.” “And you still became a Catholic,” remarked the other man. “That’s completely perverse!” Then the Jew said, “It is because of all that that I have become a Catholic. For if the Church continues to exist in spite of it all, then truly there must be someone upholding her.” And there is another story, to the effect that Napoleon once declared that he would destroy the Church. Whereupon one of the cardinals replied, “Not even we have managed that!”


I believe that we see something important in these paradoxical tales. There have in fact always been plenty of human monstrosities in the Catholic Church. That she still holds together, even if she groans and creaks, that she is still in existence, that she produces great martyrs and great believers, people who put their whole lives at her service, as missionaries, as nurses, as teachers, that really does show that there is someone there upholding her.


We cannot, then, reckon the Church’s success as our own reward, but we may still say, with Vatican II—even if the Lord has given a great deal of life to other churches and communities—that the Church herself, as an active agent, has survived and is present in this agent. And that can only be explained by the fact that He grants what men cannot achieve.

Letter to the Editor

From the peerless Dr. Boli, of course.

Sir:

It is patently obvious to the most casual observer that our nation is not ready for the year 2010. Where are the orbiting space resorts and commercial interplanetary liners? Where are the extraterrestrial races with whom we ought to have established contact years ago, and with whom we should now be enjoying a flourishing trade? Where is the universal liberal democracy we were promised? Where is the end to hunger, poverty, and disease that was so confidently predicted?

There is no gentle way of putting this: we have fallen behind. Worse, we are in danger of becoming a nation of cynics because of it. We have a great deal of catching up to do if we are to restore the faith of the public in the year 2010.

I therefore urge your influential publication to put all its weight behind supporting the bill currently before the United States House of Representatives, commonly called the Catch-Up Act of 2009, which would postpone the beginning of the year 2010 until after December 3683, 2009, at which time a Special Committee would evaluate the nation’s preparedness and decide whether to extend the month of December for a further 3652 days. I also urge your editorial staff to refrain henceforth from facetiously referring to the bill as the “Catsup Act,” as we have had quite enough of that already from the opposition in Congress.

Sincerely,
[Name Withheld by Request],
Speaker of the House of Representatives,
Washington, D.C.

I value this holiday message as much as the excellent reading I know I will hear

Download the Life of Our Lord here.

We Are the Beggars Music Review: Solid Praise and Worship

This debut album from Ike Ndolo is an interesting mix of quiet, passionate praise and worship songs spiced up with the occasional rock song. The lyrics tend to be simple but that is not necessarily to their detriment. After listening to the CD several times I found, to my surprise, that the louder rock anthems I originally liked best were not what grabbed my mind's ear as I would catch myself humming some of the straight forward songs. This is despite the fact that, although the album is well produced, it tends to be a bit conventional in places with musical changes predictable to anyone who has heard much praise and worship music. This is not the case in every song but it is there.

Ndolo's talent is obvious and although the album is being marketed to the youth group demographic there is much here to recommend it to all ages, especially considering that older listeners are usually well attuned to appreciate the passion of an electric guitar.

My personal favorite was Wade in the Water which instantly went into my God Mix playlist. An adaptation of an old spiritual, this song broke the more conventional sounds of the other songs and the hint of banjo in the background speaks to Ndolo's self professed love of bluegrass (which we share). My interpretation is that this might be more to Ndolo's personal taste and I hope that future albums will see the producers let this talented young artist break free from convention a bit more and trust his own musical inclinations.

Tom's pronouncement: "Solid." High praise indeed from someone who is all about the music and not moved much by praise and worship music unless it is good music in itself.

Definitely recommended. It is a bit late to get this for Christmas unless the local Christian store is lucky enough to have it on hand. However, it would be a great way to spend that Christmas cash if you are looking for a way to lift your heart in praise of God. (Although now that I think of it, you can download the mp3s instantly. I tend to forget that, preferring to have an actual CD in my hands.)

You can hear samples and order the album here. I received this CD as a review piece but would give it the same rating regardless.

My Christmas Wish: That More People Would Make This Their New Year's Resolution

This all boils down to the need for more tolerance – not of other cultures, but tolerance of being offended. Instead of taking every word or phrase as a personal attack on a policy, creed, or preference, we should invoke that age-old rhyme regarding the sticks and the stones. I’m not sure when nit-picking language became a crucial part of our culture, but it needs to stop if we ever hope to be able to communicate the things that are really on the hearts and minds of the American people.

From an article at Curator magazine.

I suppose this gives you some idea of what our household is really like ...

... when I tell you that we were decorating the tree, the whole family together, conversation flying since all four of us hadn't been together since April

Then it happened. We suddenly ran into a wall over something that we just could not agree on. The uncomfortable pause while searching for a new subject, that point we didn't want to go past or it would get ugly ... came when considering whether Stephen Hawking's motivations for coming up with string theory were because he just was pursuing a great scientific idea or was actively searching for ways to avoid any hint of God in how the universe was created.

Yes. I know.

Can you spell "geek?"

We sure can.

The Uninvited, chapters 8-9

Now playing at Forgotten Classics as well as a source for ghost stories (of a sort) for Christmas. Ghost stories for Christmas, you may ask. If you have to ask, then you have to listen to get the answer. To the first few minutes of the podcast at any rate.

The Book of the Shepherd: Gnostic Twaddle Disguised as a Sweet Fable

I was asked if I'd like a review copy of The Book of the Shepherd: The Story of One Simple Prayer and How It Changed the World. The email commented, "... we believe this story of one simple prayer and how it changed the world does a superb job of examining the role of personal action in making the world more peaceful, and how peace on earth should begin with me."

My response was, "I must admit that I am dubious about this book, having read the first few pages at HarperCollins' site and also having just heard the first part of The Pilgrim's Progress. The Book of the Shepherd seems much of a muchness with that 300+ year old book.

However, if you believe I am wrong, then I am willing to read the book to see for myself."

Frankly, if I'd been them, that would have been enough to check me off the list. However, I received the book late last week and read it over the weekend.

My short review: the fable presented in this book is one of the biggest loads of sweetly simpering twaddle that has everything about 2/3 right. It should be avoided by all literature lovers and all practicing Christians.

I kept thinking that something was off as I read it, kept thinking "gnostic gospels?" but hadn't read any gnostic gospels. I got to the end and it turns out (Bingo!) that one of the author's sources was The Gnostic Gospels by Elaine Pagels which puts orthodox Christianity on trial as being formed from political and social reasons. Add to that her grateful credit to Philip Pullman's The Golden Compass and my sense of something being "off" proved completely justified.

The author wrote the story to illustrate the Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi that most of us know relatively well.

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace,
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
where there is sadness, joy;

O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

However, the author forgets what St. Francis never did. As praiseworthy as that prayer is, St. Francis's words are not gospel in themselves. He never would have urged us to interpret them without having Jesus Christ in the heart and center of them. This book is missing that heart and center.

I generally do not give bad reviews, especially to review books, preferring simply to ignore them. However, in this case, I felt my warning to the publisher was enough to justify setting that policy aside, especially as I feel this book is potentially dangerous to those of unformed faith. In fact, I had to scrape off the coffee grounds from this book after I plucked it from the trashcan in order to give you the dubious sources the author quotes. That is how much I care, folks. Avoid this book.

My advice is that excellent advice for how to live is found in the Gospels. If you want another source, then pick up a true classic, The Pilgrim's Progress. If reading it seems daunting, then this version on audio (both dramatized and a straight reading) is excellent. There is also this version at Librivox, free for the downloading. I admit I haven't heard it so can't comment on the quality of the reading. However, the point is that there is plenty of good material available without having to resort to The Book of the Shepherd.

Hi Matt ... and Tell Kirby Hi for Me ...

It's a small world thanks to the Internet and I find it out more all the time.

One of my very best friends, Joan, tells me that her lovely eldest daughter's boyfriend (who I hear is a heckuva good guy) told her about this great new blog he discovered.

Yep, we come full circle. And to think I can remember the days when I volunteered to be the Cookie Mom (yes, I'm also stupid) for the Girl Scouts which Joan headed up.

Matt, if you're ever in Dallas be sure to let me know. I'd love to meet you. (And now you know that your good reputation has preceded you!)

In the News ... Catholic Edition

Just a couple of things that I wanted to highlight more than in my Google Reader feed (sidebar). Both via the indispensable New Advent.

Pope John Paul II and Pope Pius XII Declared Venerable
Which is official recognition of their heroic virtue. They and nine others now qualify for the title "Venerable" and may be beatified with the approval of a miracle. That isn't all. Go read the list here of people who obeyed God with their all in all in those special vocations for which he created them. May their lives inspire in us the desire to do the same.

Bishops to Government: We're Not Backing Down on Abortion. Period.

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops is demanding that Pres. Barack Obama’s health-care revolution not include subsidized abortion — and the bishops are demanding honesty on the issue.

At a high-level Washington, D.C., insider dinner recently, a fellow Catholic made a highly cynical, harsh, and scandalously inaccurate accusation: that in the current debate, the bishops’ conference would trade abortion for immigration. That’s simply not true. As many disagreements as I might have on prudential matters with some of my fellow churchmen who are bureaucrats — and bishops! — on issues like immigration and health care, I recognize that their message on abortion is clear and unmistakable. As Francis Cardinal George of Chicago, president of the conference, has put it: “No one should be deliberately killed.” Even if some Catholics serving in Congress don’t accept that defending the most vulnerable human life is a matter of human rights and a moral imperative, the bishops’ official teaching is that abortion is a non-negotiable: We can’t have taxpayer funding of abortion, period.

Read it here. Lend them your support in prayer and in contacting your elected officials to join your voices with theirs.

A Cradle Catholic, A Convert, and An Atheist Walk into a Christmas Party ...

... and come out with a glittering truth in defense of the Church.

“There’s need and there’s truth. Truth is truth, regardless of what man’s needs may be. If there is a diamond in the middle of the road, it doesn’t matter what anyone is doing in the road. The jewelers can be corrupt. The diamond merchants can be guilty of horrible abuses. And people can lust after the diamond or they can ignore it altogether. It’s still a diamond.”

Read what led up to it and what happened after this statement at Why I Am Catholic.

It's About Babies. And, Yes, You Will Like It.

The trailer anyway. If the opening vignette doesn't grab you, then nothing will. And the ending shot is priceless.


Via DarwinCatholic with whom I must agree when they point out:

Pay close attention to the first rock-pounding sequence and reflect on St. Augustine's assertion that the effects of original sin are quite obvious in babies, who are pretty selfish by nature.

"It is good that you exist."

Man is that strange creature that needs not just physical birth but also appreciation if he is to subsist . . . If an individual is to accept himself, someone must say to him: “It is good that you exist” – must say it, not with words, but with that act of the entire being that we call love.

This is just a tiny bit of an excerpt from Pope Benedict that The Anchoress quotes in a searching and insightful post. She travels from seeing President Obama as a rather chilly, off-putting individual to looking beneath the surface to his "I" as Pope Benedict would put it. To seeing the person behind the surface elements.

This is a hugely important reminder to us all, especially in the last days of Advent. It is easy to talk the talk, but when it comes to walking the walk ... well, politics and personality and history and every other element that make us different individuals can rise to the surface and make us forget that we are to love one another as we love ourselves.

In this, The Anchoress leads us to consider where to turn in following Mother Teresa's command:

Find your own Calcutta.

It isn't as far away as you might think.

It is in the in-laws who interfere and don't appreciate our beloved family members.

It is in the teacher who picks on our children.

It is in the checker in the grocery store who doesn't smile and isn't nice and won't accept our coupon. Or who chats too much and wants to be our friend. (Depending on my mood ... because it's all about me isn't it?)

In fact our Calcutta is within ourselves. As we struggle to live the command to love one another no matter how unlovable those "others" seem to be.

Read The Anchoress's piece and let us ponder it in our hearts. We must ask where we are being called to love until it hurts ... to show them that "It is good that you exist."

"I am curious. Why do you list those for whom you privately pray?"

In case anyone else has this question about The Basics.

1. So that others may pray for them also.
   I am continually surprised and pleased at just how many people do that very thing.
   
   
2. So that we may praise God together when a prayer is answered
   (Hint: check the prayer list from the link above ... and see what I mean)

Thank you for asking!