Association Of Catholic Bloggers

My plans for today did not include writing about mass murder on the Las Vegas Strip and rush hour panic in Wimbledon. Instead of trying to ignore what is now international headline news, I decided to look for whatever useful facts might be filtering through. I'll share what I found, along with what I think about the events. How I feel about them is — sad, for what happened in Nevada. No words can console folks who lost family and friends there. I won't try. The Wimbledon panic? I'm not entirely sure what I feel about that.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

I think that God knows everything, including what I'll do for the rest of my life. I also think I have free will, deciding what I do for the rest of my life. I'm not, however, emulating the White Queen.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Jesus said we should always pray. Our Lord gave us pointers about prayer, too: the parable of the persistent widow and another about the pharisee and the tax collector. That's in Luke 18:1 - 14 . Maybe someone's taken those verses and decided it means that Christians should be saying prayers 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Or at least until our voices give out or we drop from exhaustion. I'm pretty sure that's not what our Lord had in mind. Prayer is important, though. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

The neighborhood parish took a second collection again today. This week's was to help folks hit by Hurricane Irma. The one before that was for those affected by Harvey. Folks in the Caribbean, Gulf Coast, and Florida weren't the only ones dealing with disaster recently.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Quite a few parts of the Bible don't talk about forgiveness. But quite a few do, and they're not just in the New Testament. This morning's second reading doesn't mention forgiveness directly, but the verse right after it does. They all say why forgiving is a good idea. It's enlightened self-interest, in the long run.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

The good news is that folks on the Gulf Coast probably won't be affected by Hurricane Irma. Not directly. Cleanup and rebuilding there is taking a back seat to news of this weekend's hurricane and Mexico's major earthquake. I'll be talking about this week's disasters, and how folks deal with them. Also faith, reasonable and otherwise, and a little science.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

We are involved in a war which was raging when the current event, which we call the universe, began its existence. This war's origins are in a place where space and time are not, and many of its soldiers are beings whose nature and mode of existence we can only infer from their dealings with us. When the first humans walked Earth, they quickly became involved in this war. On the wrong side. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Harvey was still a tropical storm when it went over the eastern Caribbean. That was a little over a week ago. Folks in Barbados were without power for a while. At least one house was destroyed, and more folks had to evacuate their homes. Pretty much the same thing happened in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. Suriname and Guyana had wind and rain: enough to kill at least one person, a woman whose house collapsed with her inside. Harvey was a category 4 hurricane when it reached the Texas coast, between Port Aransas and Port O'Connor . That was around 10:00 p.m. Friday.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Danae's odd view of Papal infallibility isn't accurate. ( July 30, 2017 ) But I'm not upset by Non Sequitur's 'Church of Danae,' particularly since I see the funny side of the cultural quirks Wiley Miller highlights. I do, however, occasionally use Danae's distinctive theology and Eddie's "Biblical Prophecies" as a contrast to my faith. I'm a Christian, and a Catholic. I have well-defined views on social and legal issues: but I am not conservative or liberal. I'm Catholic. That means acting as if Jesus, love, and people matter.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

We live in a big world. We've known that for a long time, and have been impressed. "How great are your works, LORD! How profound your designs!" ( Psalms 92:6 ) But impressive as what we see is, God is greater: almighty, infinite, eternal. Ineffable, beyond what can be expressed in words. That's pretty much what God told Moses in the 'burning bush' interview: "'But,' said Moses to God, 'if I go to the Israelites and say to them, "The God of your ancestors has sent me to you," and they ask me, "What is his name?" what do I tell them?' "God replied to Moses: I am who I am. Then he added: This is what you will tell the Israelites: I AM has sent me to you." ( Exodus 3:13 - 14 ) Moses said "but" three times before their talk was over. I've talked about him before, and other prophets. Mary also asked a question: a sensible one. I get the impression that her reaction was calmer than theirs. M

I'll be talking about miracles today. Also religious art and kitsch, the Mayan apocalypse, and why folks occasionally see faces that aren't there. Even by my standards, this post rambles a bit. Quite a few folks act as if they think faith and reason, religion and science, have about as much to do with each other as cheese and Wednesday. Some go a step further, and blame the world's woes on religion. The antics of loudly-religious folks don't help make faith look like a reasonable, or safe, part of today's world. I think faith isn't reason, but that it's reasonable. I also think that an honest search for truth doesn't threaten faith. (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 31 - 35 , 159 ; " Fides et Ratio ;" " Gaudium et Spes ," 36) More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

A "Benefit for Teri (Sanden) Starkey" notice was on the Our Lady of Angels bulletin board this Sunday. The event was Saturday, July 29, and in Litchfield; a town south and a bit east of here, about an hour and half away. I saw the notice a day late to do anything by Saturday, but figure I could pass along what I learned. She has cystic fibrosis, and needs new lungs. The clinic in her area wouldn't or couldn't do the procedure. The good news is that an outfit in North Carolina will. However, getting a chance to keep her alive means raising money to move her, her two kids, and husband, to North Carolina. That's something like a thousand miles away. My guess is that the family has above-average medical expenses, too.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

The "most disturbing image" gag in Wiley Miller's Non Sequitur comic depends on a fairly common misunderstanding of Catholic belief. The important word in that sentence is misunderstanding. Papal infallibility doesn't mean that. I'm none too pleased that Catholic beliefs are misunderstood by non-Catholics: and by some Catholics. But I can't fault a cartoonist for poking fun at cultural quirks I see as silly. Not reasonably. Besides, strips featuring the Church of Danae's "so-called holy scriptures" have given me pretty good illustrations of what I don't believe.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

13th Sunday in Ordinary Time, 2017 By Deacon Lawrence N. Kaas July 2, 2017 What a week this has been, a Deacons Retreat at the Abbey of the Hills, resulting in thoughts, reflections, and stories to share.... ...His theme for the weekend became known as old books. Besides the Bible, obviously an old book, he spoke extensively on G.K. Chesterton, C.S. Lewis, and a bit on Tolkien.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

My #3 daughter has some of my qualities, and attitudes. About four years back now, she vented frustration about writers, faith, and assumptions. She wasn't nearly as loud as I've often been during 'vents.' When folks learned she's a writer, they'd often say something like 'oh, good: we need more Catholic writers.' She'd say something like "I'm a writer who is Catholic, not a 'Catholic writer.'" I know what she means. She isn't writing another 'lives of the Saints,' or book of prayers. She's a Catholic who writes.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

The diagram shows how a Pythagorean cup works. It's a thinking person's dribble glass , sort of. The cup, pan, and ladle in the photo is a yuza no ki . Both are gadgets used for teaching moderation. The yuza no ki is in the Ashikaga District , 足利郡 , in the Tochigi Prefecture . It hasn't been since around 1896. Ashiga District, that is. Not officially. The cup might be. It's a learning tool. Empty, it's tilted. Pour a little water in, and it goes upright. Pour in more, and it tilts again. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

My father reminded me of this good advice when I was in my teens: "...whatever is true, ... whatever is lovely, ... think about these things." My response was something like '...because they won't last.' I wasn't happy about saying that at the time. I still regret it. I can't, of course, undo what was done. And the time for telling my father "I'm sorry" has long since passed. In any case, I said "I'm sorry" too often, and that's almost another topic. The quote is from Philippians 4:6 - 9 . I'll get back to that. Following the advice from Philippians isn't easy for me. But it's been getting easier as I work though a massive backlog of bad habits. Nothing unusual there, since we're all dealing with consequences of a bad choice described in Genesis 3:1 - 13 . 1 ... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Many folks who lived in Grenfell Tower got out. Many others died. We don't know how many. A current estimate is 79. Determining the exact number will be difficult, since high temperatures may have effectively obliterated some human remains. Some survived because they didn't listen to official instructions to stay in their homes. That advice makes sense in a building with sprinklers and adequate interior firewalls. In Grenfell Tower, not so much.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Wanting respect is reasonable. I think folks who support Gay/LGBT Pride Month for that reason have a point. I don't agree with much of what's said on the gay/LGBT pride issue — and explained why I won't spit venom in today's earlier post. Basically, I should love God, love my neighbor, and see everybody as my neighbor. No exceptions.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Gay/LGBT Pride Month will be over in about two weeks. Wanting respect is reasonable, but I don't agree with much of what's said on this issue. Don't worry, I won't be spitting venom. Even if I felt like it, which I don't, that kind of trouble I don't need. First, I'd better talk about love and respect, and why I think both are important.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .