Preparing for 2009

Now that my class is on vacation until January, I thought I'd share this clip about their upcoming milestone...receiving the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

The Fight for Life

Just look

Just Look
Edward Cardinal Egan

The picture on this page is an untouched photograph of a being that has been within its mother for 20 weeks. Please do me the favor of looking at it carefully.

Have you any doubt that it is a human being?

If you do not have any such doubt, have you any doubt that it is an innocent human being?

If you have no doubt about this either, have you any doubt that the authorities in a civilized society are duty-bound to protect this innocent human being if anyone were to wish to kill it?

If your answer to this last query is negative, that is, if you have no doubt that the authorities in a civilized society would be duty-bound to protect this innocent human being if someone were to wish to kill it, I would suggest—even insist—that there is not a lot more to be said about the issue of abortion in our society. It is wrong, and it cannot—must not—be tolerated.

But you might protest that all of this is too easy. Why, you might inquire, have I not delved into the opinion of philosophers and theologians about the matter? And even worse: Why have I not raised the usual questions about what a "human being" is, what a "person" is, what it means to be "living," and such? People who write books and articles about abortion always concern themselves with these kinds of things. Even the justices of the Supreme Court who gave us "Roe v. Wade" address them. Why do I neglect philosophers and theologians? Why do I not get into defining "human being," defining "person," defining "living," and the rest? Because, I respond, I am sound of mind and endowed with a fine set of eyes, into which I do not believe it is well to cast sand. I looked at the photograph, and I have no doubt about what I saw and what are the duties of a civilized society if what I saw is in danger of being killed by someone who wishes to kill it or, if you prefer, someone who "chooses" to kill it. In brief: I looked, and I know what I saw.

But what about the being that has been in its mother for only 15 weeks or only 10? Have you photographs of that too? Yes, I do. However, I hardly think it necessary to show them. For if we agree that the being in the photograph printed on this page is an innocent human being, you have no choice but to admit that it may not be legitimately killed even before 20 weeks unless you can indicate with scientific proof the point in the development of the being before which it was other than an innocent human being and, therefore, available to be legitimately killed. Nor have Aristotle, Aquinas or even the most brilliant embryologists of our era or any other era been able to do so. If there is a time when something less than a human being in a mother morphs into a human being, it is not a time that anyone has ever been able to identify, though many have made guesses. However, guesses are of no help. A man with a shotgun who decides to shoot a being that he believes may be a human being is properly hauled before a judge. And hopefully, the judge in question knows what a "human being" is and what the implications of someone's wishing to kill it are. The word "incarceration" comes to mind.

However, we must not stop here. The matter becomes even clearer and simpler if you obtain from the National Geographic Society two extraordinary DVDs. One is entitled "In the Womb" and illustrates in color and in motion the development of one innocent human being within its mother. The other is entitled "In the Womb—Multiples" and in color and motion shows the development of two innocent human beings—twin boys—within their mother. If you have ever allowed yourself to wonder, for example, what "living" means, these two DVDs will be a great help. The one innocent human being squirms about, waves its arms, sucks its thumb, smiles broadly and even yawns; and the two innocent human beings do all of that and more: They fight each other. One gives his brother a kick, and the other responds with a sock to the jaw. If you can convince yourself that these beings are something other than living and innocent human beings, something, for example, such as "mere clusters of tissues," you have a problem far more basic than merely not appreciating the wrongness of abortion. And that problem is—forgive me—self-deceit in a most extreme form.

Adolf Hitler convinced himself and his subjects that Jews and homosexuals were other than human beings. Joseph Stalin did the same as regards Cossacks and Russian aristocrats. And this despite the fact that Hitler and his subjects had seen both Jews and homosexuals with their own eyes, and Stalin and his subjects had seen both Cossacks and Russian aristocrats with theirs. Happily, there are few today who would hesitate to condemn in the roundest terms the self-deceit of Hitler, Stalin or even their subjects to the extent that the subjects could have done something to end the madness and protect living, innocent human beings.

It is high time to stop pretending that we do not know what this nation of ours is allowing—and approving—with the killing each year of more than 1,600,000 innocent human beings within their mothers. We know full well that to kill what is clearly seen to be an innocent human being or what cannot be proved to be other than an innocent human being is as wrong as wrong gets. Nor can we honorably cover our shame (1) by appealing to the thoughts of Aristotle or Aquinas on the subject, inasmuch as we are all well aware that their understanding of matters embryological was hopelessly mistaken, (2) by suggesting that "killing" and "choosing to kill" are somehow distinct ethically, morally or criminally, (3) by feigning ignorance of the meaning of "human being," "person," "living," and such, (4) by maintaining that among the acts covered by the right to privacy is the act of killing an innocent human being, and (5) by claiming that the being within the mother is "part" of the mother, so as to sustain the oft-repeated slogan that a mother may kill or authorize the killing of the being within her "because she is free to do as she wishes with her own body."

One day, please God, when the stranglehold on public opinion in the United States has been released by the extremists for whom abortion is the center of their political and moral life, our nation will, in my judgment, look back on what we have been doing to innocent human beings within their mothers as a crime no less heinous than what was approved by the Supreme Court in the "Dred Scott Case" in the 19th century, and no less heinous than what was perpetrated by Hitler and Stalin in the 20th. There is nothing at all complicated about the utter wrongness of abortion, and making it all seem complicated mitigates that wrongness not at all. On the contrary, it intensifies it.

Do me a favor. Look at the photograph again. Look and decide with honesty and decency what the Lord expects of you and me as the horror of "legalized" abortion continues to erode the honor of our nation. Look, and do not absolve yourself if you refuse to act.

Edward Cardinal Egan Archbishop of New York

The Catholic Vote 2008

No argument here

"Human life must be respected and protected absolutely from the moment of conception. From the first moment of his existence, a human being must be recognized as having the rights of a person - among which is the inviolable right of every innocent being to life"

~Catechism of the Catholic Church 2270

For Catholics: In short...

What makes me as an orthodox Catholic shake my head in bewilderment, shock and laughter.

(warning: get ready to view liturgical abuse at it’s most abusive)

What makes me as an orthodox Catholic smile with love for our Church.

Parent Open House

A big thank you to the parents who showed up last Monday for our Open House. As an extra special gift, click HERE for a blessing on you and your family by Fr. John Corapi.

Pope's prayer for Ground Zero

Pope Ground Zero prayer seeks terrorists' redemption

Thu Apr 10, 2008 8:50am EDT

By Philip Pullella

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Pope Benedict will pray for the conversion to love "of those whose hearts and minds are consumed with hatred" when he visits New York's Ground Zero, the site of the World Trade towers destroyed on September 11, 2001.

A prayer he will read also commemorates those who died or were injured in the other September 11 attack at the Pentagon and on United Flight 93, which crashed in Pennsylvania after passengers fought off hijackers.

Nearly 3,000 people died in the September 11 attacks, including the 19 hijackers.

The pope will visit Ground Zero in lower Manhattan on April 20, the last day of his six-day visit to Washington and New York.

Last month, al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden accused Benedict of being part of a "new crusade" against Islam. The Vatican rejected the accusation.

The visit to Ground Zero, now a gaping crater where new buildings and a memorial will be built, is expected to be the emotional high point of the trip.

The prayer, as released by the Vatican on Thursday, reads in full:

"O God of love, compassion, and healing, look on us, people of many different faiths and traditions, who gather today at this site, the scene of incredible violence and pain.

“We ask you in your goodness to give eternal light and peace to all who died here -- the heroic first-responders: our fire fighters, police officers, emergency service workers, and Port Authority personnel, along with all the innocent men and women who were victims of this tragedy simply because their work or service brought them here on September 11, 2001.

"We ask you, in your compassion to bring healing to those who, because of their presence here that day, suffer from injuries and illness.

"Heal, too, the pain of still-grieving families and all who lost loved ones in this tragedy. Give them strength to continue their lives with courage and hope. We are mindful as well of those who suffered death, injury, and loss on the same day at the Pentagon and in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

"Our hearts are one with theirs as our prayer embraces their pain and suffering. God of peace, bring your peace to our violent world: peace in the hearts of all men and women and peace among the nations of the earth.

"Turn to your way of love those whose hearts and minds are consumed with hatred. God of understanding, overwhelmed by the magnitude of this tragedy, we seek your light and guidance as we confront such terrible events.

"Grant that those whose lives were spared may live so that the lives lost here may not have been lost in vain. Comfort and console us, strengthen us in hope, and give us the wisdom and courage to work tirelessly for a world where true peace and love reign among nations and in the hearts of all."

(Reporting by Philip Pullella, editing by Mary Gabriel)

http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSL1079181020080410?pageNumber=2&virtualBrandChannel=0

Happy Easter

Check out this American Greetings ecard HERE. Just beautiful!!!

On reading the Bible, from a great Catholic website

The class received their First Reconciliation last week and now it's full swing into Lent, the Mass and preparing for their First Holy Communion.

In the meantime, I found this lovely website created free of charge by a Catholic psychologist, Dr. Richmond. Check out his summary of the Bible and how to approach studying it HERE.

And consider getting yourself one of these:

Love

Some people at my job have a picture of themselves meeting Pope John Paul II. Today, as I was dropping by another co-worker's office, I noticed her picture with JPII from about 19 years ago. I was in awe at how fortunate she was and she told me the story of how she met him. She was in a line of people from her charismatic group and he went to each person to greet them. He had an assistant with him who whispered to him the name of each person he was meeting. She recalled that she was a new Catholic and wasn't sure what to do; whether she was supposed to kiss his ring or anything like that. She stood there looking down and then the white figure of JPII appeared in the corner of her eye. She could see his shoes and immediately thought "hmmm...those are very nice shoes...I wonder if he has a special shopper for his shoes...." She couldn't believe she was thinking that as she was about to meet the Pope.

Then, my co-worker stood in front of me to demonstrate how JPII greeted her. She said that at the time she saw JPII, it was before he was shot and before he was in a wheelchair. It was about 10 years into his pontificate and he was not an aging, frail figure. He was a tall, powerful presence. So after the assistant whispered in his ear, my co-worker re-enacted the meeting by swooping up my hands with a loving smile, looking into my eyes and saying something like "My dear (co-worker's name), from (her hometown), God's blessing be upon you and your family!" I could almost see his eyes and hear his voice...her impression of him obviously was burned into her memory. Tears came to her eyes and I felt as if I was there. She said that she didn't know what to say after that. I completely understood.

I may not be well-traveled and I may never become as worldly as I once dreamed I would be...but the Lord always surprises me with these personal keepsakes of immeasurable value. God has blessed me with family and friends who share with me...who trust me with their thoughts and memories...and who will pray for me and ask me to pray for them. This, to me, is love the way God intended...the spiritual magnet between souls...the stuff money could never buy. May God's blessing be upon all of us and our families...

A question about scientists

One of my students asked if scientists didn't believe in God. Pedrito, my assistant, and I explained that there are high-level scientists, like Einstein, who understood that God exists. However, there are those scientists that do not believe in God or the the teachings of the Catholic Church.

Read article HERE.

Jesus was also shunned in His day, even when he saved a man from demons.

Mark
Chapter 5

1

¹ They came to the other side of the sea, to the territory of the Gerasenes.

2

When he got out of the boat, at once a man ² from the tombs who had an unclean spirit met him.

3

The man had been dwelling among the tombs, and no one could restrain him any longer, even with a chain.

4

In fact, he had frequently been bound with shackles and chains, but the chains had been pulled apart by him and the shackles smashed, and no one was strong enough to subdue him.

5

Night and day among the tombs and on the hillsides he was always crying out and bruising himself with stones.

6

Catching sight of Jesus from a distance, he ran up and prostrated himself before him,

7

crying out in a loud voice, "What have you to do with me, ³ Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I adjure you by God, do not torment me!"

8

(He had been saying to him, "Unclean spirit, come out of the man!")

9

⁴ He asked him, "What is your name?" He replied, "Legion is my name. There are many of us."

10

And he pleaded earnestly with him not to drive them away from that territory.

11

Now a large herd of swine ⁵ was feeding there on the hillside.

12

And they pleaded with him, "Send us into the swine. Let us enter them."

13

And he let them, and the unclean spirits came out and entered the swine. The herd of about two thousand rushed down a steep bank into the sea, where they were drowned.

14

The swineherds ran away and reported the incident in the town and throughout the countryside. And people came out to see what had happened.

15

As they approached Jesus, they caught sight of the man who had been possessed by Legion, sitting there clothed and in his right mind. And they were seized with fear.

16

Those who witnessed the incident explained to them what had happened to the possessed man and to the swine.

17

Then they began to beg him to leave their district.

Sad that people refuse to recognize or are just plain scared of the truth. If these people would accept that God does exist, then that means they would have to be accountable for their actions. They would have to be called to love God and love one another, go to Church, and care about heaven. A lot of college students just don't want to be bothered with that. And unfortunately, many ignorant professors feed on that. Bigotry against God and Christianity is one thing that is allowed to exist and it hasn't done this generation any favors.