WEAKLAND....an outrage unto himself

y'know, and just yesterday our priest gave a lovely homily on how we are called to love all these men and leaders in the church who are giving such scandal to everyone lately, despite how much we may be angered by them.

quite honestly, until today, I wasn't particularly ANGRY....just annoyed, tired and confused.

Now I'm hot.

Let's start with our own home grown, rotten tomato: Weakland. Yeah, his book is no longer news. But every day there are more and more disgusting leaks from it. One's dismay grows into annoyance, which grows into outrage. It is simply inevitable after outrage that anger is going to follow. Just is.

Right off the bat he claims to be the first bishop to "voluntarily" come out and admit to being gay. WHAT?! you may not realize it, sir, but we all knew that when your big secret was "outed" for you amidst scandal. What was voluntary about it then? it was so involuntary that you gave ginormous wads of diocesan money to shut your ex lover up. BAH! talk about revisionism.

Then he actually blames the Vatican for taking too long to defrock the perverts and molesters amongst the clergy. NEWSFLASH!!!! why would they defrock someone whom YOU never suspended??? huh? So it's THEIR fault the abusers kept being reassigned and given fresh ground to contaminate with their filth? ARE YOUR FOR REAL???? why would they investigate or do one damned thing to men who were simply reassigned by YOU and told to keep working. Blasted pope....just can't read minds like he's supposed to hey?

After this he treats us to a lamentation over how the church views homosexuality....and how it is dead wrong in regarding it as "objectively disordered". (of course!!...this is, after all, Weakland talking and it was probably too much to hope that he'd have changed his leopard spots yeah? the church is ALWAYS wrong in his book) So he openly whines that it's unfair to expect those who have same sex attraction to never have any "physical, genital" relations. Yeah, that's what he said. Could've just said SEX but I guess that wasn't annoying enough.
So may I answer you dear sir?
YES!! the church expects all of her children to practice chastity: gay, straight, married, single.....priests, monks, bishops. Guess you didn't let those last ones stop you either, eh? Oh I forgot, they're wrong on that too.

Which lead straight into his confessing to having sex with several men once he was bishop. What on earth made you think ANY of us ever needed to know that? Do you ever stop vomiting your issues on us or are we going to be hearing from you forever? This is even worse than those "witnessing" talks where people tell you their past life but do so with too much detail and too little tact. Most have forgotten you really shouldn't reveal your past sins to others unless it can be done
A) without scandal and
B) can explain how you came to your current place of conversion.
WHERE IS THE CONVERSION HERE?? where, pray tell, is even the repentance? I'm just hearing the same self righteous, heretical, agenda pushing diatribe as before! UGH!!

He also makes the claim that the Church was finally on the way to making much needed changes in the 60's and 70's after the Vatican Council but JOHN PAUL II (may be be forever blessed!) squelched it. Well praise God he did! But this was, of course, wrong in Weakland's eyes as he felt that the church became too "centralized" and "doctrinally rigid" under JP II's leadership. (ie - the Church had a "pope" and truth is "unchangeable".) Guess both bother him.

In fact, his poor relations with the Vatican and the Pope over such basic issues of doctrine are the REAL reason, according to him, that he didn't contact Rome when he was first blackmailed. huh? So, let's read between the lines: you knew you were on superthin ice to begin with and you didn't want to rock the boat (lose your office?) by admitting to your latest fiasco? Oh no, he says, he just didn't want to be labeled gay in the "little village of Rome". Oh sure, that's much more believable. You never cared what else you were labeled as....that makes a lot of sense. He also says he was told by a "friend" that Rome would have wanted him to just cover it up. That was "the way she did things". And he uses, as an example, poor dead Bishop Montalvo, who exclaimed upon getting a phone call from Weakland when his past irrefutably blew up on the national news that "surely you're going to deny it!" That's simply the man saying "tell me it's not true!!" he wasn't TELLING him to deny it. But Weakland claims that HE took the higher ground in this and said he could deny the rape but not the fact that he'd had sex with him. HOW KOOKY!!

On and on he goes like that. THE WHOLE WORLD IS TO BLAME FOR ALL HIS MISTAKES AND SINS. But I've yet to read any release of this little tome where HE owns up to his own responsibilities. Let alone culpabilities.

Truly, when the scandal first broke I was hardly a fan of his, having lived the majority of my life listening to embarrassing and shameful dissent from his mouth. BUT I FELT SORRY FOR HIM. And I had sincerely hoped it would serve as a wake up call to amend his life. To take stock of things. Clearly, it hasn't. All that mortification for naught. What a shame!

NOW BEFORE THE USUAL HATE MAIL STARTS where people bash me for "chastising" bishops or priests let me say this. I already GET it. I already know that we should just quietly pray for them. We should take it to Jesus. We should let other bishops/priests "fraternally" correct each other.....yeah yeah yeah.....I know.

This is me loudly crying out for one of them (just ONE of them) to do so already. I think they've all forgotten that we are the victims in these ridiculous matters. We are the ones who are embarrased, scandalized and demoralized. Why? No one, in any position of authority speaks out. And when they do, it's mealymouthed and pointless. Why say anything?

In their "pastoral" concern for those who are scandalizing us, they seem to forget their "pastoral" concern for those BEING scandalized. Is it so hard to stick up for Jesus and the truth once you have a collar or mitre that you instead have to couch a bunch of wasted words in diplomatic gobblety gook....when did you all turn into politicans???

If I'm not supposed to publicly complain then do something yourselves. Stop wondering why your pews are empty! You all look like ineffectual hypocrites. Asleep at the wheel while the wolves prowl your own flock.

Try shepherding your good sheep now and then too hey? and not just the lost and unrepetentant ones.

weakland had to write a book to tell us all he's gay....

...yeah....we already knew that.

http://www.news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090512/ap_on_re/us_rel_gay_archbishop

please stop stirring up trouble and giving 9 hour depositions and writing books.
just quietly go someplace and THINK. Silently. To yourself. You've done enough damage around here.

NUDE "VIRGIN MARY" ON PLAYBOY COVER

mexican Playboy has finally gone and done it.

this month they published a nude model on the cover depicting the Virgin Mary whose feast day was almost upon the Mexican people. They were just starting their novenas and pilgrimages to Our Lady of Guadalupe. On the front cover of the magazine are also the words 'Adoramos Maria' (we adore you Mary)

they now say they are VERY sorry if anyone was offended but they NEVER meant to depict the Holy Virgin. They were simply going for a "renaissance" look.

mm-hmm.
yeah right.

You be the judge

CLICK BELOW

I, for one, think they lie.

una grande mentira!

more weirdness from around the world

DUTCH PLAN "GAY" NATIVITY FOR CHRISTMAS

In Amsterdam, which wants to proudly label itself as the "gay" capital of the world, members of ProGay are holding a ten day Christmas festival promoting both the gay agenda and religion. Amongst the festivities, such as homosexual movies and church services, they plan to have a "gay" nativity with two Josephs and wto Mary's.

uhhhh.....yeah.

y'know....why bother? what is the point?

near the end of the article (link below) one of the chairs of this spectacle makes the claim that "orthodox religion believes in two separate worlds...as if homosexuality isn't part of their own closed society."

really?

I just live in one world. The same can't be said of those who want to remake the Christmas story and the Church in general into some fantasy based concept. They're on another planet. Void of reality at that.

ohhh, merry christmas world.

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?pageId=83048

GAYS PROTEST AT VATICAN OVER ITS OPPOSITION TO UN RESOLUTION DEALING WITH GAY RIGHTS

as usual, most of the world can feel or act a certain way - but if the Vatican or the Church comes out in support of something, then there's trouble.

I say in "support of something" because its opposition to this UN resolution dealing with gays has nothing to do with wanting discrimination or human rights violations against those with same sex attraction and everything to do with fully and completely supporting tradtitional marriage rights as they are. Moreoever, the Vatican is concerned with some of the phrasing in the document which would pressure countries into having to legalize same sex marriage against the popular will.


but the UN has it all locked up where no one can change the wording or debate certain phrases. You can either sign as a supporter or not sign (and thereby shut up and go away). But that is tantamount to forcing countries and nation states into throwing the baby out with the bath water. A concensus could be reached and a working resolution passed protecting gays from the arbitrary discrimination and even execution they face in some countries without violating others rights by forcing same sex marriage on governments.

Italian transgender and former communist lawmaker
Vladimir Luxuria mimics a hanging outside the Vatican during
a candlelight protest of the Church's opposition to UN document

this falls on deaf ears though, because the writers of the resolution want all or nothing.

so this is what you end up with: the vast majority of nations have refused to sign. In fact, only 54 have ---- compared with 192 who have not.

who gets the protests though?
the Vatican.

why?

well - one of the main organizers came out and clearly said that their hopes in holding these demonstrations in St Peter's square wasn't so much to get them to just sign the paper but to actually change their beliefs after two thousand years.

ooophhh! you're gonna need a lot more candles.....
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,464245,00.html

long time no see.....

but now that I'm back we'll knock up a couple of outrages for December.....

first up:

GOOD CATHOLICS USE CONDOMS

oh get over yourselves! really? what is most despicable about this new latino radio ad campaign is that it is produced by people who are not even practicing Catholics. And ringing in the fringe, leftist group "Catholics for Choice" (who will find that the only choice they're making is one for hell) doesn't give it any more authenticity than if Margaret Sanger stood up and wrote a treatise on what it takes to be a good nun. They've already jumped ship and now they're going to proclaim what Good Catholics should do if they're still on the boat?!

bah!

one ad has a latina abuela telling her grandson (who is gay, and disturbed when he just heard that "Good Catholics" can't use condoms) that she took care of him and if he loves that man (and wants to be a "Good Catholic" too) he'll wear a condom.

WHAT?!

where to even start with that one.....

there is another ad that goes on about how sex is sacred for Catholics and it means we ought to "take care of each other". Of course this means suiting up each and every time you have sex.

call me old fashioned, but if it is within the required covenantal, permanent sacrament of marriage and both partners are faithful to their vows..... do you wanna run past me again just why we need to treat the marital act as something requiring a HAZMAT team to protect the couple from each other?

ohhhhh - I forgot. This is for all those who just want to knock boots with whoever rubs past them.... man, woman, whatever. But still want to be Good Catholics!

what is most bemusing is how the writers announcing this joyous news had to include a little bit near the end where they lament how "our church" hasn't always been honest about sex and therefore there exists an embarrassed silence about condom use.

really?

I went through the whole catholic school/CCD regime where I received a substandard, piss poor education that left me at just about the same level theologically as a heathen - but even I heard the message about contraception and condoms. One of the few things that did get taught! So show me this embarrassed silence! where is it?

unless you mean the "silence" that comes from not hearing what you want to hear. The message isn't what you want it to be and so therefore ....you don't hear it.

As Christ said -
"Why do you not understand what I am saying? It is because you cannot hear My word.

"You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies....

"He who is of God hears the words of God; for this reason you do not hear them, because you are not of God."

if they want to go round talking about how the Church is "not being honest" when it comes to sex then they should really first look at the lie they spread that you can be a good catholic by wearing a condom while sneaking about committing every mortal sin you can dream up.

a bit of an oxymoron there.

or maybe just some morons... hard to say sometimes.

here is the article with its own links as well:
http://www.rhrealitycheck.org/blog/2008/12/01/new-radio-ads-say-good-catholics-use-condoms

next up:

MILWAUKEE NUN PROCLAIMS THAT GOD IS PRO-CHOICE

really - I read this one myself in "YOUR Catholic Herald" as they like to label themselves. If they were really my Catholic Herald they wouldn't print such tripe.

tripe.
now that's a word that just doesn't get used enough anymore.
you hardly ever hear it these days.

anyhow - Dear Sr. Arlene of the woe begotten School Sisters of St Francis (who must be spinning in his grave over them lately) took her precious, ministry-filled time to write to the Herald and lament on how the bishops were "picking" on Obama for his abortion stance.

she then went on to make some mind-numbing claims:
1. God is prochoice
2. she's known some poor children who would've been better off to be aborted
3. other issues, such as poverty and economic injustice (note how it always come down to money with these women) are the real sins crying to heaven for vengeance.

apparently she made the last comment in such as fashion so as to leave one to conclude that she means abortion, in fact, is not one crying to heaven for justice.

interesting.

seeing as it has been a week or so since I read it (and decided to make pumpkin pies rather than blow my top in writing a letter of my own) I will now attempt to put charitably into words the RAGE I feel at her audacity.

(....besides, the dear editors at the paper always seem to re-write my letters in such a way as to make them quite good, but lamentably not mine. They rid them of all the best parts and make me sound like the lady I still haven't managed to become.)

soooo - from the bottom up:

since we are arbitrarily making up what God finds most offensive I'll join that bandwagon and say that in my book, the latest and most infuriating sin crying to heaven is not economic injustice.....but so-called professed religious who so abuse their ministry and vocation as to use it to blaspheme the Lord. If I yet wore a veil (or for that matter, if you still did) I would tear it off in frustration.

where precisely do you get off, luv?

you are so obsessed with building a world of "social justice" you long ago forgot to build the kingdom of God.

for shame.

and you leave Him out of any equation when you seek to better the world around you. There is no justice apart from Him. So why do bang your head on that wall? You can accomplish nothing if He isn't at the central part of the plan. Whose "justice" and "mercy" are you referring to when you feel it would've been better off for those children in the Honduras to have been aborted?

NOT HIS!

are you nuts?!

while you may heretically believe He is pro-choice, in fact, He is not. He is the God and Giver of Life who is gravely offended that we end the lives HE CHOSE TO CREATE. Those little souls whom He willed into existence for this very moment in time.

is that the mercy of the Lord to say that they'd have better off if they were murdered in the womb? Maybe of your social justice god but not of mine. Mine instills dignity and worth into every human life no matter what its economic or social circumstances. Mine gives value by His own Passion and Death to our every human suffering that it may be salvific, that we may enter with Him into his redemptive plan and "make up what is lacking in the suffering of Christ."

mlechh!

you are right in sayign He doesn't force any one to do what is right. He certainly isn't cattle-prodding you.

but Pro- choice? no. he gave us free will that we His finite and limited creatures might choose Him ion love. But in and of Himself, the Almighty has no "choice" for evil in Him. He cannot be other than that which he is by His very nature, which is All Holy, All Knowing, All Powerful, Eternally Living Truth. He IS life. He IS Holiness.

how could He be pro choice?
How could He be "pro" choosing that which is evil, and therefore apart from Him? He cannot. He gives you the freedom to come to Him in love but that is not the same as approving your evil choices. There is no legitimate choice but to choose God. Any route that doesn't lead to Him isn't of Him and cannot claim authenticity because of some strange twisted idea that He is "Pro Choice"...simply because he gives you the freedom to actually have authentic love.

cr-aa-aa-aa-ziness !

I don't know who is responsible for your formation or if you slipped off track after some good nun did her best - but you are not a shining example of what it means to be a sister in the Church of God. I shall fervently pray that your Spouse sets you down and has a long discussion with you on where you are headed, if you even still recognize Him as such.

it is a terrible scandal that a professed religious would say publicly, in a diocesan publication no less, what amounts to nothing other than heresy.

when will the Bishop have his fill of you lot?

life site still has the full text of her letter on its page:
http://www.cathnewsusa.com/article.aspx?aeid=10498

Archbishop Weakland Returns....

he is truly the gift that just keeps on giving......

whilst he held the office of Archbishop we in the Milwaukee archdiocese just prayed and prayed he'd be removed and/or silenced. When he finally resigned due to his own scandal with a former seminarian (who then blackmailed him for half a million dollars to keep quiet about their affair) I must admit I found myself somewhat sympathetic to his plight. I didn't like him and I still thought he was a huge blight and scandal on us all, having done almost irreparable harm with his leadership over those years....but I felt badly for him. All of us have been used by someone we loved and trusted at some point.

BIG BLEEDING HEART that I occasionally am, I felt sorry for how his sins were dragged though the public square. Not only had he erred and gotten us all screwed in the process but his embarrassment over his own being duped and used was now a public one, what with their old love letters trotted out in the papers and press.

how awful for anyone.

he'd go to churches afterwards and no one woudl sit by him. Some even tried to ask him to leave. I felt bad for him.

errrr....this video pretty much nixes that.

seems he was too wrapped up in his own affairs to properly tend those of the church. Anyhow - now his big mouth will cost us all more money.

And you know what? it's not our doing!!!
We touched no one.
We transferred no one.
We covered up nothing!!

when you all you SNAP people sue the diocese ....you sue me, you moronic nitwits!
how dumb!

the very people who have sympathy for you that you were so abused by clergy, those are the very ones you are now abusing in your own turn.

thanks a lot mates.

y'know...some of us would like to know who we get to sue if we were molested by joe blow down the street.... or the bus driver or the gym coach.... or betty sue's dad at sleepovers.
Hmmm? any ideas for us? or are you the special ones cuz he wore a collar?

yeah - those cases don't get extensions on the statute of limitations do they?
nor are there DEEP POCKETS to go after.

you make me sick with your incessant whining and monetary lawsuits. If you really loved the church like you claim you do you wouldn't do this to us. Because it is US you're doing it to. Not the priests, not the bishops, not anyone who is culpable in this matter.

but us.

be proud.
be proud as though you were really doing something good.

you're not.... but that doesn't matter does it?
what do you care if our schools and parishes are closed cuz we're bankrupt with obscenely high lawsuits?

it's not like you go anymore anyhow!

bah on him and you!

here is the article and video:
http://www.jsonline.com/news/milwaukee/34335169.html

more sad stories....

WOMAN SUES DIOCESE OF PRIEST WHO SEDUCED HER

apparently she went to him for guidance during her divorce but he instead seduced her. Possible? sure. Stuff like that happens all the time whether with friends, therapists, attorneys, you-name-it. That whole use-the-needy thing is nothing new.

what's gobsmacking is that this chick was told in confession by him that their relationship was ordained by God. Creepy but true. Not sure how that really works as a pick up line as there is too much ewww factor in the whole setting and what have you. Very disturbing. At least pick somewhere else to utter such craziness.

But even more baffling is that this is the great romeo:

are you kidding me?
I'd rather set myself on fire! hahaha....

not sure how he could seduce anyone, but apparently he had more than one chick going....as this particular affair broke up when he emailed her about a rash on his "thing" that he got from another chick. (err....his words, not mine)

call me picky...but he's really unattractive and such foolishness on the part of multiple women stumps me on so many levels.

*shrugs*

read about it here:

http://www.gothamist.com/2008/10/30/woman_sues_catholic_priest_who_sedu.php

FIRST PREGNANT PRIEST?

news just gets weirder and weirder today.

One of the ladies down in St Louis who fancies herself a priest is now expecting a child any day now with her United Church of Christ minister husband. Apart from the fact that she isn't really Catholic (now belonging as she does to the Ecumenical Catholic Communion) and she isn't really a priest, she and her husband add to the "not" list that they are not really up on theology as they are planning to baptize their child TWICE.....once at his church and once at hers.



here is the article:
http://www.blogs.riverfronttimes.com/stlog/2008/10/st_louis_claims_first_pregnant_catholic_priest_jessica_rowley.php


2 JESUIT PRIESTS ARE SLAIN IN MOSCOW

killed in their own apartment, officials have no clue what happened but are considering it may have been "domestic" as it looked as though there hads been a party.

huh?

how do two guys bludgeon each other to death?
http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/10/29/europe/russia.php

OM - - - !!

gob smacked once again, I leave you with this:
PRIEST LOSES CUSTODY OF TRIPLETS HE FATHERED DUE TO SEXUAL ABUSE

http://www.baltimoreexaminer.com/local/crime/Priest_loses_custody_of_triplets.html

are you kidding me?
what the sam hill is in the water lately?

I'll leave you to it.
the article has more details than you even would want.

(I must say this though. His reasoning for the way he fathered them was BIZARRE...."due to his vow of celibacy it was done by artificial insemination"....but - wouldn't that have required...errr.....a donation?

....just sayin')

caray caray!

Pope suspends bishop after he adopts woman

well now....back to India for more weird crap.

I read of this last week or so but there wasn't' enough info out at the time to warrant making this infamous column so I held mum.

today though more details have been released on the strange case of Bishop John Thattumkal. Apparently he met this woman on pilgrimage in Europe last April. Afterwards, the 58 year old bishop "adopted" this chick whom he claimed was 26. Now it comes out she's in her late 30's.

Bishop John Thattumkal

yeah...take a moment with that.
Now wrap your heads around this.

He apparently wasn't the first. She used to be under the "guardianship" of Fr. C K Joseph, a priest of the Thumpamon diocese. He has been stripped of all parish duties since the church took disciplinary actions against him in '05.

(in fairness...and do let's all be fair .....no one said she had anything necessarily to do with the trouble he found himself in. Although I'd venture to say you can't just "adopt" a grown woman and move her in without raising some eyebrows somewhere along the line.)

anyhow - the situation has now come home to roost in the bishop's house.

his defense is that he didn't feel he violated any laws. That he would "nullify" the adoption if the church wanted him to.

well now the church has suspended him pending an investigation.

mmm - no word on where Miss Sony Joseph is residing now.

I'm telling you there appears to be a way around everything lately hey? hahaha....
really - if you put the sheer goofiness of what he did aside, one can almost admire his balls-out way of just going about it. "Yeah man - just didn't see why I couldn't do it hey?"

hahaha...good one mate.

here's the latest:
http://www.sify.com/news/fullstory.php?id=14783662

I'm sure more stuff will roll out on it eventually.
you'll hear it when I do.

EDIT:
and here it is....

just when I was about to give him a pass because maybe she was special needs and was the relation of the former priest who had guardianship over her, etc etc etc (working up a very plausible and acceptable reason within my head as to why he'd have taken this chick home with him in teh first place) I READ THIS:

"Bishop Thattunkal met the woman during a pilgrimage abroad and was impressed by her “spirituality and divine experience.” “I have only fatherly love towards the woman who has spiritual powers. This relation is giving me spiritual refreshment,” Thattunkal was quoted by Mathrubhoomi, a Malayalam newspaper, as saying."

SPIRITUAL REFRESHMENT?!

hahaha....yeah... we all need that, mate.

hehe...oohhhh mlechh! weirder and weirder.

the article this bit came from is here:
http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/Bishop-adopts-26yrold-woman-Kerala-smells-scandal/373544/

I was right on the other bit though. She is related to the other priest (the who has been stripped of all his duties). She is his daughter. Apparently he had been in the orthodox church before he got booted out. Fine and well.

But since she's in her late 30's....and already has a real father.....errr....why does she need another again?

ahhhh yes......she brings him 'spiritual refreshment.' hehehe...I forgot that bit already!
well kiddies...it's a mad cap world.

Personally, I'd like to see the Pope step in and suspend Fr. Pfleger already too, with all his adoptions. He never had permission either. Although...err...at least they really were children.

*shrugs*
have at it peoples. whatever makes it work for y'all.

another week, another motlied pot of outrageous behavior

buckle up, here we go:

JOE BIDEN DOESN'T WANT TO "PUSH" HIS FAITH ON ANYONE, JUST HIS HERESY
here's a great article by Fr. Jon on why Obama's VP pick, Senator Biden, should be silent on church issues (as should Pelosi, frankly) until they undergo a renewed catechetical effort on the part of their Bishops to rein in their scandalous comments and actions:
http://www.foxforum.blogs.foxnews.com/2008/09/09/frj_0909/

OK - to be honest that isn't really what Fr. Jon said. But that is why his article is great and mine is just snarky. Anyhow - give it a read.


GAY MASSES CONTINUE DESPITE SUPPOSED "BAN"
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2008/sep/08090807.html

despite a Dec '07 statement announcing now more masses for "special groups" the frequent "gay" masses in London's SOHO district have continued.

Westminster Diocese has done nothing to abate them either.

In fact, while they issued the statement regarding no more "special group" masses they had themselves actually offered the group the possibility of moving from the Anglican Church to the Catholic Church of the Assumption for these doings. Which they quickly agreed to.

Now - in all fairness, they did say that the masses were not to be used to "promote homosexual political agenda or to disparage or deny the church's teaching regrading the matter, but that they should be to minister to the LGBTQ community and their family/friends.

HOWEVER - that is exactly the opposite of what is going on at these masses. They are being used as platforms for the furtherance of a gay political agenda and to make inroads on changing church doctrine itself.

Are they stopped?
nope.
Any word or statement from the Bishop?
nope.
Are you surprised?
nope.

what IS crazy is that England's far left ,super liberal Catholic magazine (the Tablet) has actually ran articles noting how this leaves the faithful confused and scandalized and how it undermines the spiritual efforts of those with same sex attraction who are ACTUALLY TRYING TO LIVE OUT THEIR BAPTISMAL VOWS.

good glory!
one never knows where help will come from these days, does one?
the Tablet ?!
whooda thunk?

by the by LGBTQ stands for the Lesbain, Gay, Bi-sexual, Transgender and Queer community.
yeah, the options just keep getting longer, eh?

take this new form that I had to fill out recently on a social forum I've frequented for years:

Orientation?
Straight
Mostly straight
Mostly gay
Bisexual
Bi-curious
Gay
Not gay- but I know how to party
Lesbian
Asexual
Trisexual
Furry
I'll let you know when I figure that out
Any port in a storm
other

now.... I do realize they are being tongue in cheek as I frequently have my own tongue firmly lodged in betwixt my teeth as well...however....there's actually a sad bit of truth to be gleaned from such a list.

this is what we've come to.


MORE CATHOLIC CHURCHES DESECRATED....PRIEST HUNTS FOR THE STOLEN ITEMS AT PAWN SHOPS

.....and STILL, not a pip on the news unless it is about Obama being befuddled about how to handle Palin.

Fr. Kohler in his ransacked church

*shrugs*
you can tell what we value as news. we chide the rest of the world for the censored press but we have nothing but sports, celebrities and the non stop political grind. It's a shame I have to stay up into the wee hours of the night to get real global news off of BBC radio.

anywhooo - here's the article:
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080909/NEWS01/80909062/1003/news

MORE INDIAN OUTRAGE: .... PRIESTS, FAITHFUL ARE FORCED TO CONVERT TO HINDUISM TO SAVE THEIR LIVES

first they were driven out of their homes, convents and parishes by week upon week of violence and bloodshed as Hindu extremists have gone on a killing campaign against all Christians.

Finally they wound up in refugee camps where one would think they'd be safe....

....however, the Hindu groups have access to them there as well and are forcing them to "freely" sign conversion papers where they "re-convert" to Hinduism. The penalty for not doing so is to be beaten with clubs and have their homes burned.

Christians en route to refugee "safe"camps

the priests, whose families are threatened, and who do decide to sign are then made to undergo the humiliation of having their heads shaved bald as though they are Sadhus (Hindu ascetics). This is to show the faithful their "re-conversion". They are also forced to cooperate in burning down their own parishes and houses.

and how long will this outrage go on without the world giving it any notice?

you tell me...maybe you have more faith in people than I do. I think it's 1.) INDIA ...and no one gives a rip and 2.) it's CATHOLICS.... so they care even less.

call me cynical, but I figure they'll get away with it.

here is the latest article:
http://www.asianews.it/index.php?l=en&art=13171&size=A

Multiple Outrages

As I've been ridiculously busy, let me try to do a brief round up of what has crossed my desk or hit my ears in the last week or so.

MEDJUGORJE PRIEST SUSPENDED:
http://www.cbismo.com/index.php?mod=vijest&vijest=228

.....about time.

rumours have swirled about this man for too long a period and on the off chance that the apparitions there are legit, this needs to be addressed and cleared up. I highly recommend reading the press release from the Bishop of Mostar regarding Fr Vlasic's canonical status, as it has a lot to say.

And for those of you who want to dismiss what the Bishop of Mostar has to say because you have a personal gripe with him (feeling he is 'too against' the alleged apparitions) may I remind you of two things:

ONE.) he is a bishop and has the authority to make the decisions he feels is best for the faithful and as such deserves respect (if you're from elsewhere) and obedience (if you're one of his flock)

TWO.) the Vatican has mandated he has to publish this information on Fr. Vlasic. The sanctions have not come from him but from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. IN yesteryear we'd have called it the Office of the INQUISITION, just so you get a feel for how much trouble he's in. We may have changed the name but, err.... they still do the same job as before. Anywhooo - he stands accused of (amongst other things) heresy, schism and sexually immorality "aggravated by mystical motivations".

yeah...I never heard of that one either!
mystical motivations?

anyhow he is accused of fathering a child with a nun and then refusing to leave his order to marry her but instead begging her not to expose him. After this, he then acted with disobedience to the order and his bishops and left for Italy where he set up a COED religious community that he named Queen of Peace where he propagated more odd doctrines. (mostly pertaining to these alleged apparitions)

I'm sure this doesn't sit well with hard core believers in Medjugorje since it was once claimed that the Virgin said he was a "living saint". Of course, this was back in the day when he was the "spiritual advisor" for the six seers.

it also comes on the heels of America finding out a couple years back of Fr Jozo Zovko's suspension as well. Another big supporter and "protector" of the seers way back when. He had been accused of sexual assault by different women who had confessed to him whilst on pilgrimage there and had his faculties suspended to hear confessions WAY BACK IN '89!! But he failed to stop hearing them, and when his disobedience was discovered he was suspended altogether.

Not that that stopped him from making many personal appearances at conferences and the like, either.

ye gads!

in fact, Fr. Zovko was scheduled just a couple years ago to come to America to speak at the NATIONAL SHRINE but the Diocese of Mostar had to fax info over to let the Bishop here know that he is not allowed to do so. And this is how the cat got out of the bag in America regarding him.

those crazy Franciscans seem to have troubles all over the world. (ummm....that's a joke, amigos --- please refrain from the hate mail as my box is rater full up this week, luv) I'm just saying....

anyhow - jury is still out for me (and apparently for the church) in regards to the alleged apparitions there. One must be very very prudent in discerning these things for oneself before they go over for a pilgrimage.

especially keeping this bit in mind from the Bishop:
"In this local Church of Mostar-Duvno, there exists something similar to a schism. A number of priests that have been expelled from the Franciscan OFM Order by the Generalate of the Order, due to their disobedience to the Holy Father, for years now have been forcefully keeping a few parish churches and rectories along with church inventory. They have not only been illegally active in these parishes, but they have also administered the sacraments profanely, while others invalidly, such as Confession and Confirmation, or they have assisted at invalid marriages. This type of anti-ecclesial behaviour is shocking to all of us. At the same time, this scandal of sacrilegiously administering the sacraments, especially of the Most Holy Body of Christ, must shock all the faithful as well who invalidly confess their sins to these priests and participate in sacrilegious liturgies. We pray to the Lord that this scandal and schism be uprooted as soon as possible from our midst.

on a lighter note:
I have gorgeous four o'clock seeds from there if anyone would like them for their garden....

ONE NUN BURNT ALIVE ANOTHER RAPED IN INDIA

Here is the link to the article:
http://www.asianews.it/index.php?l=en&art=13056&size=A

Hindu extremists burned one nun alive and gang raped another while setting fire to the orphanage where they minister. A priest was also badly burned in the terror. In other locations another priest was badly wounded and two others abducted.

The extremists are running around in mobs proclaiming "death to the Christians".

apparently they mean it.

they say they want to kill the Christians and destroy their institutions and so are setting fire to whatever homes, churches and convents they come across. many have been beaten and badly wounded. Even Mother Teresa's sisters have been attacked.

Why is this not heard around the world???

because OBAMA needed to make history with back to back coverage on CNN.
not that they'd care anyhow.

gotta love the news "makers" who decide what to tell the world and what to edit out. How are we different in that regard from China again?

VANDALIZED CHURCHES IN DELAWARE RESANCTIFIED

after their churches were ransacked and profaned, two parishes in Delaware had to re-sanctify their vessels and places of worship. One had its tabernacle actually stolen and the consecrated hosts scattered all over the ground outside.

And this was in the U.S.!

again....no news at all.

read the whole article here:
http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/new.php?n=13607

SO MUCH FOR GENETICALLY ALTERED WHEAT HEY??

genetically altered wheat may be some years away for wide-scale use but the church is already raising questions as to whether it would be canonically allowable for use in communion hosts.

The article is here:
http://www.independent.ie/national-news/eucharist-from-gm-wheat-contravenes-canon-law-1462177.html

the outrage to me is that we feel we need to genetically alter wheat itself so that...wait for it....it will stand up to harsh chemical pesticides.

oh yeah...BRILLIANT.
that makes a LOT of sense hey?

....morons abound.

at least the church is ahead of the curve on this one.


ITALIAN MONKS FEROCIOUSLY BEATEN IN MONASTERY BY MEN WITH HOODS AND CLUBS.....ALL HOSPITALIZED......ONE IN COMA

entire article is here:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article4625001.ece

simply horrifying.
people are comparing the incident to something out of "A Clockwork Orange".
(and if you haven't seen the movie I don't recommend it. It never leaves you. Really.)

anyhow - the article has all the in's and out's of it.

ONCE AGAIN......NO NEWS ON THIS.....just back to back Obama.

shutteth thy piehole, pelosi!

if you haven't already heard, you're in a mayo jar:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/08/27/EDV412IJO8.DTL

hopefully this time SF's bishop will do something practical and good when confronted with another front page scandal and will bravely and pastorally settle her bum.

ye gads!

Diocese lists "inappropriate " behavior for priests with kids

in it they basically outlaw:
bear hugs,
wrestling,
piggy back rides,
tickling,
kissing
etc etc etc.

still allowable: hand shakes, pats on the back and high fives.

yeah...we'll all breathe easier now, hey?

how retarded.
the ones who aren't up to no good don't need to be told what to do in the first place - and the ones that are, well....it won't matter much, will it?

the outrage isn't what's on the list....kind of a no-brainer in this climate (and a sad and unfortunate one to boot).

no, the outrage is that there is a list. As if this will stop a person from molesting a little kid. YEAH RIGHT! who buys that??....it's like a suicide bomber. Nothing will stop them. Try being realistic and just stop making the rest of us jump through big, flaming, ludicrous hoops.

moreover are we going to put these same rules on to the teachers of our kids as well?

here is a bit of a gem:

"Comparing the incidence of sexual misconduct in schools with the Catholic Church scandal, Shakeshaft notes that a recent study by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops concluded 10,667 young people were sexually mistreated by priests between 1950 and 2002. (that's a little over 50 years)

In contrast, she extrapolates from a national survey conducted for the American Association of University Women Educational Foundation in 2000 that roughly 290,000 students experienced some sort of physical sexual abuse by a public school employee between 1991 and 2000. (that's less than 10years)

The figures suggest "the physical sexual abuse of students in schools is likely more than 100 times the abuse by priests," said Shakeshaft, according to Education Week."

yeah, I don't think we'll be honest about who are the real predators and who aren't either....we'll just make another list to shut SNAP up. I'd like to shut SNAP up but they may not like my methodology.

article on list is HERE:
http://www.ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hO7TkwmOzfk20bG2YcF_uPhE_jcgD92G31SG0

article on the statistics above is HERE:
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=49389

Professor and accomplice steal Host from London

Knowing full well that this post will bring the usual cadre of bigoted and hateful wingnuts back out of the woodwork, it still remains that such a heinous act as this needs to be brought to light and named for the evil that it is.

The Minnesota professor has purportedly been sent his consecrated host by someone from London. It was allegedly taken from the London Oratory (singlehandedly my favorite church in London....I used to travel all the way across town by various buses and then have to walk some more just to get there, as it was the only one I could find where things were done right....sad to say but true).

The priests there have called on everyone to make personal acts of reparation and have already started having public evenings of reparation and adoration to the Blessed Sacrament.

A young man stole the Host July 13th at a High Mass and posted a video where he showed it held "hostage" with a condom to protest the Church's stance on condoms in Africa. When he was good and done with it he then sent it to Myers who stabbed it with a rusty nail and then tossed it into the garbage.

the picture Myers put up on his website

The London Oratory (also called St. Mary's or the Brompton Oratory) has started asking parishioners to receive on the tongue and have been using the communion plates of late.

MAYBE PEOPLE WILL NOW WAKE UP AND SEE THE BENEFIT OF SUCH THINGS ONCE MORE --- AS THIS GOES ON ALL THE TIME! we just don't usually hear about it so publicly.

here's the article from Britain's Catholic Herald:
http://www.catholicherald.co.uk/articles/a0000341.shtml

by the way, here is Professor Paul Z Myers' post on his blog of the desecration:
http://www.scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2008/07/the_great_desecration.php#more

and the video of the guy stealing it in London:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHPZFsGrt-Y (if you click on the blurb to the right of the video where it says (MORE) it will open up the rest of his rant)

look - if you feel you need to write him, don't make an fool out of yourself or the rest of us --- be respectful, otherwise you're just like him.

you can also scroll down this page for the July 11th post regarding this issue to get the university president's email.

Once again - if you can't write a comprehensible, well-reasoned letter to them either, then don't write. Letting folks like this work you up into a lather is half the fun for them. Just say some prayers for them if nothing else. They clearly don't know what they're doing.

Priests go on hunger strike against Bishop

Why you may ask?

because they didn't like him "arbitrarily" assigning them to parishes. Most wanted to keep their suburban and country posts and not be sent to work in the cities. They also resented the fact that he has curbed their exorbitant and luxurious lifestyles financed off the backs of parishioners. They didn't like having a smaller pot to spend from and having to clear the larger amounts with a finance committee.

so...they are going starve themselves in front of a coffin they have inscribed with the name of their diocese.

no! FOR REAL!! they have written the name of the diocese on a coffin and have posted themselves in front of it to starve. I mean, what does that imply? is it death to the bishop? the diocese? themselves?

aaaaaahhhh gimme a break.

you can read one of the several articles about it here:
http://www.cathnews.com/article.aspx?aeid=8405

only in India.
I suppose it is very Ghandi-ian of them.
.....and ridiculous.

former milwaukee woman seeks ordination as priest

"Bishop" Patricia Fresen is pronouncing the
blessing over the two "ordinands",
Rose Marie Dunn Hudson and Elsie Hainz McGrath.

if they are so into being "WomenPriests"
why do they insist on going out of their way to look
as much like a man as they possibly can?

BLIMEY!!!

not even automatic excommunication wakes these chicks up, so one can gander that trying to reason with them won't either. What is it that makes a woman so rabid about being ordained into the priesthood that she will risk such a sentence, and fly in the face of all that is good for her spiritual welfare?

ignorance?
pride?
a certain self hatred for her own feminine gifts?

that last one would more than likely be hotly protested by our bra burning sisters par excellence, but I feel it is valid nonetheless as they see their self-worth wrapped up in being able to break through imaginary glass ceilings and do whatever the boys can do. Errr... even if they're not a boy. Go figger.

mostly, it seems to be symptomatic of a profound lack of catechesis on what makes a priest a priest and what the role of the laity within the Church truly consists of. Sad part is, if one tries to explain it to them, they are, at this point, no longer willing to hear the truth. Puts one in mind of this little ditty, no?:
"For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths." 2 Tim 4:3-4

Anyhow Bishop Weakland, unless he has done an abrupt about face, must be proud that a former Milwaukee woman (Janice Sevre-Duszynska) has the...err...balls to seek such a thing. This goes right along with his letter of complaint where he headed up 40 other US bishops in lamenting the fact that the Pope had the audacity to fulfill the function of his own office and publish "Ordinatio Sacerdotalis."

Guess he felt that he should have had his own heterodox views consulted first. Yeah, uh, he actually said that. Well - not the heterodox bit but still....he wanted to have the POPE consult HIM and those LIKE HIM who hold heretical views on just about every topic prior to exercising his right to teach and confirm his brethren.

*sigh*

He then wanted the Bishops Conference to respond "blow by blow to the documents of various kinds that come from Rome." Starting with that one.

are you kidding me???

As if the Vicar of Christ needed their imprimatur on it......wow, hey? WOW.

well - you can't say he doesn't have a healthy ego. For that matter, so does Ms. Janice. She learned well from him.

here is the article:
http://www.blogs.jsonline.com/faith/archive/2008/07/30/former-milwaukee-woman-risks-excommunication-to-seek-ordination.aspx

maybe we could all start a prayer campaign so the Spirit will aid her in reconsidering this before she makes an awful, dreadful mistake. I hate to see people hurt themselves. I hate it even more when they hurt the Church around them with their foolishness. God help us all.

you're looking at the future.

china detains two underground priests prior to OLYMPICS

yeah, they gotta clean up the streets of all potential protesters before the world rushes into Beijing and sees China for what is really is.

article on their "disappearance" here:
http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSPEK15823520080714

ENJOY YOUR OLYMPICS peoples. Have a grand ole time!

but here's a thought on how they came up with this year's logo:

Catholic School Principal Caught In Outdoor Gay Orgy

uhhh....when my powers of speech return to me I may actually say something.

until then catch the article here: (one never knows how long these links are good for with TV news sites so......)

http://wcbstv.com/watercooler/gabriel.dejesus.catholic.2.771245.html

Gabriel de Jesus
husband and father of three

MINNESOTA PROFESSOR PLEDGES TO DESECRATE EUCHARIST

rather than reinvent the wheel I simply copied and pasted this from the Catholic League website:

MINNESOTA PROFESSOR PLEDGES TO DESECRATE EUCHARIST
July 10, 2008

Paul Zachary Myers, a professor at the University of Minnesota Morris, has pledged to desecrate the Eucharist. He is responding to what happened recently at the University of Central Florida when a student walked out of Mass with the Host, holding it hostage for several days. Myers was angry at the Catholic League for criticizing the student. His post can be accessed from his faculty page on the university’s website.

Here is an excerpt of his July 8 post, “It’s a Frackin’ Cracker!”:

“Can anyone out there score me some consecrated communion wafers?” Myers continued by saying, “if any of you would be willing to do what it takes to get me some, or even one, and mail it to me, I’ll show you sacrilege, gladly, and with much fanfare. I won’t be tempted to hold it hostage (no, not even if I have a choice between returning the Eucharist and watching Bill Donohue kick the pope in the balls, which would apparently be a more humane act than desecrating a goddamned cracker), but will instead treat it with profound disrespect and heinous cracker abuse, all photographed and presented here on the web.”

Catholic League president Bill Donohue responded as follows:

“The Myers blog can be accessed from the university’s website. The university has a policy statement on this issue which says that the ‘Contents of all electronic pages must be consistent with University of Minnesota policies, local, state and federal laws.’ One of the school’s policies, ‘Code of Conduct,’ says that ‘When dealing with others,’ faculty et al. must be ‘respectful, fair and civil.’ Accordingly, we are contacting the President and the Board of Regents to see what they are going to do about this matter. Because the university is a state institution, we are also contacting the Minnesota legislature.

“It is hard to think of anything more vile than to intentionally desecrate the Body of Christ. We look to those who have oversight responsibility to act quickly and decisively.”

Contact U of MN President Robert Bruininks at bruin001@umn.edu

et tu Brute?

now liberal priest par excellence Andrew Greeley has jumped on Obama's bandwagon......

if you haven't already been told By Fr. Pfleger that if you are white then you are racist, Rev Greeley expands the dragnet and claims that EVERYONE who doesn't vote for Barack is racist. Maybe unconsciously but still one just the same.

And not just whitey, my friends...the latinos, the asians, the UNION MEMBERS for crying out loud.....you name it....we're all racist, bigoted and so prejudiced against blacks that THAT is why a vote may be cast for someone other than Obama.

uh -huh....good to know.

you can either read Greeley's pompous and illogical treatise here

....o-o-o-ooor, you can read Warner Todd Huston's hilarious and on-the-money commentary on it HERE.

your choice....

really, Greeley would be better off sticking to writing his near pornographic novels than doing such Op-Ed pieces. *shrugs* ......IMHO, peoples, IMHO.