Journeys of a Catholic Poster Girl

So apparently the Mayor of New Orleans has a direct line to God. From msnbc.com:

During the speech Monday, Nagin, who is black, said that the hurricanes that hit the nation in quick succession were a sign of God’s anger toward the United States and toward black communities, too, for their violence and infighting. He also said, “It’s time for us to rebuild New Orleans — the one that should be a chocolate New Orleans.” “This city will be a majority African American city,” he said Monday. “It’s the way God wants it to be. You can’t have New Orleans no other way. It wouldn’t be New Orleans.”

….The mayor’s speech also attacked America’s efforts in Iraq. “Surely [God] doesn’t approve of us being in Iraq under false pretenses. But surely he is upset at black America also. We’re not taking care of ourselves.”

well, this is almost too much for one piece of commentary. Let’s start with the obvious–can you imagine what would happen to a GOP or Right wing politician if he’d said something like, “God means New Orleans to be a milky New Orleans?” (or some other white food?) There’d be calls for resignation and defamation. He’d never be good for anything ever again in elected office. Pat Robertson said something equally as crazy last week and the media was all over it. I had to dig for this story on MSNBC after hearing about it on the morning news.

First of all, I don’t believe that God punishes people like that. What did Abraham say to God, “There are 10 righteous people” in the city, and God saved the city for the sake of those 10 righteous ones. I’m pretty sure there were good people in New Orleans. Not that I’m completely ruling out the idea, God being God, but I don’t think so. And if I though so, I certainly wouldn’t go around boasting like a peacock that I knew that this is what God wanted. Hello?

And the war? Well, let’s see. God told quite a few of his prophets to go to war in the O.T., and the Church has Just War theory. Whoever got the idea that Jesus was a pacifist obviously has never read the book of Matthew or looked at Christian history. Christians are not passive; we are not meant to be passive. We are meant to fight for the rights of ourselves and others and to defend the defenseless from tyranny. And that’s what’s happening in Iraq, just like it happened in Afghanistan. That’s what happened in WWI and WWII. Try to be as cynical as you want, but war isn’t just politicans talking. To meet Just War requirements, it must have a higher purpose.

As for that direct line to God, one New Orleans resident said it best on GMA: “If Nagin has a direct line to God, why didn’t he use it during the evacuation?” Good point. As my pastor says when someone’s cell phone rings in Mass, “That better be God calling.” Turns out He calls Mayor Nagin on a regular basis!

You know, I love nuns. The good ones, that is. That may seem like a contradiction in terms, but I assure you, it’s not. It amazes me how many nuns don’t really seem to care about what the church teaches, or engage in a gross form of cafeteria Catholicism in order to bend their vocation to fit their political agenda.

Today’s latest example is from the Akron Beacon Journal , one of the more avowedly liberal papers in my state. The northern part of Ohio is endowed with many Catholics (German, Polish, Italian descent, mostly) and a lot of our state’s convents. So it’s not surprising to read a lot about the Church in these papers. But what saddens me are letters like the one I read today. Written by a nun, it essentially said “don’t lump all Catholics in with Republicans” (that’s actually a paraphrase of the headline), and then continued on to say exactly how the Republican party doesn’t aline perfectly with Catholic values, and that the Church is for “peace, love and justice” (oooooh gag me with a spoon!).

Can we, again, get real for a minute? This doesn’t make me sad, it makes me mad. First off, as I have discussed many, many times, you cannot be a good Catholic and vote for politicians that go directly against explicit Church doctrine . For example, no voting for Pro-Choice candidates!! Now, I admit, the Republican party is not perfect. We don’t “perfectly embody” Catholic doctrine. But I tell you what–until the Left starts recognizing that abortion and assisted suicide legislation are not Catholic and aren’t exactly even Christian, Catholics of good conscience will be voting for Republicans. Because abortion is a top-tier social issue. If you’re Catholic, you are essentially told to be pro-life. Now I know this is America and we don’t like to agree with Rome or the Catechism , or what have you. Well that’s just our darn individualism (which is good in other places). But Catholics votes for G.W. in higher numbers than ever before (for a GOP candidate), so that should tell the left something. The Dems love to parade the death penalty issue around when there’s a Catholic audience, but here’s the difference–Catholics aren’t told that there’s no acceptable instance of the Death Penalty. Catholics believe in “just War” theory, so we’re not all about pacifism and isolationism.

The part that’s really irritating is I know that people will read her words and assume they are Gospel because she’s a nun, and shouldn’t a nun know what’s going on? One would think. One would expect that to be the case. Alas. No so. So a common layman like me has to go and tell you where a nun, a Bride of Christ, has gone terribly wrong. “I bet Our Lord is sorry He ever married you,” comments a character in The Divine Secret of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood to a particularly vindictive nun. I wonder how many others fit that description.

…because the man likes to ad-lib. Apparently, this isn’t something that the papal communication team likes too much. From totalcatholic.com:

What his audiences find amazing is how easily the 78-year-old pope can stand and deliver an impromptu talk or sermon that ranges over Scripture, patristic writings, social ethics and pastoral policies. “He’s using a fluid form of speaking to deliver a content that is very pastoral. It’s on a high level, but you can see that his audience follows it,” said Joaquin Navarro-Valls, Vatican spokesman. When the pope presided over a Mass in the Sistine Chapel to baptize 10 infants in early January, he was supposed to deliver a sermon presumably prepared by his staff. The text, released to journalists ahead of time, was nothing special. Maybe that’s why the pope pitched it. Instead, he stood beneath Michelangelo’s fresco of the “Last Judgment,” looked out at the small congregation of parents and relatives, and began, “Just what happens in baptism?” Then he extemporized on the topic for 16 minutes — twice the length of his planned homily. The Vatican press office, meanwhile, sent out an urgent disclaimer telling reporters to ignore the prepared text. The pope did the same thing when he visited a Rome parish in late December, preferring to wing it through a sermon on the Annunciation and its significance in salvation history. He began by examining Scripture and the account of the angel’s first words to Mary. The Gospel originally used the Greek word “Kaire,” which contains an element of rejoicing that is missing from the “Hail, Mary” translations in other languages. He connected Mary’s reaction with feelings of joy and fear people sometimes feel toward God. Nowadays, fear and apprehension seem to prevail, he said. “If we look around the modern world, where God is absent, we have to say that it is dominated by fear and uncertainty: Is it good to be a human being or not? Is it good to be alive?” he said. As one longtime Vatican observer commented, “Even in his spontaneous talks, the flow of argument and the citing of sources is impressive. It’s as if he can reference 2,000 years of Christian thought in his head.” At his weekly general audience, the pope now regularly punctuates his prepared remarks with explanatory asides. The off-the-cuff comments are typically more direct and succinct than the written reflections. At the Jan. 11 audience, for example, after mentioning the third-century theologian Origen — probably just a name to most of the pilgrims in the audience hall — the pope gave an impromptu lesson on his thought. Origen, he said, believed the fundamental difference between man and animals is that man is able to know his Creator. “It’s important in our time that we don’t forget God, amid all the other knowledge we’ve acquired,” he added. That knowledge can be problematic, even dangerous, without an awareness of God, he said.

Seems some Italians are pretty perturbed about what they read as the Pope’s “interference” in public and government affairs. Sigh….From the IHT :

Meeting with Italian politicians last week, Pope Benedict XVI repeated his opposition to gay unions and to the abortion pill, RU-486, which he said hid the “gravity” of taking human life.
“The Vatican is free to express an opinion, but Italy must remain a lay state and the government can’t become a megaphone for the church just to get the Catholic vote,” Anna Annunziata, a regional counselor from Tuscany with the Democrats of the Left, the nation’s largest leftist party, said as she marched Saturday in Milan.
Organizers at the demonstration in Milan said the protest had drawn 150,000 people, but the police put the figure at 60,000. About 1,000 protesters joined the march in Rome, police officials said.
“In Italy, the pope speaks as though he’s a member of the government,” said one of the demonstrators in Milan, Daniela Labella, a civil servant, who complained about the church’s continued challenges to the abortion law.
Although the issues of abortion and gay unions have become controversial topics before the hotly contested general elections set for April, members of the Berlusconi government dismissed the demonstrations on Saturday, reiteratering their support for the “traditional family.”
Reforms Minister Roberto Calderoli said he had found the demonstration in Rome in favor of same-sex unions “nauseating,” the ANSA news agency reported. The culture minister, Rocco Buttiglione, who is close to the Vatican, said the government had called for an inquiry into the abortion law to strengthen the “bond between mother and child.”
The Vatican won a major victory in June when it campaigned to defeat a referendum to ease Italy’s strict fertility law, which took effect in 2004. The church is now moving to put abortion and traditional marriage on the electoral agenda.
Though Italy’s center-left opposition advocates the recognition of civil unions as part of its campaign platform, centrist members of the coalition have stopped short of calling for the legalization of same-sex unions.
MILAN Protesting what they see as the growing interference of the Roman Catholic Church in domestic politics, tens of thousands of Italians took to the streets here over the weekend in support of abortion rights, while demonstrators in Rome gathered to endorse the legalization of same-sex unions.
In Milan, protesters chanted slogans against Silvio Berlusconi’s government, which they accuse of planning, with the support of the church, to undo a 1978 law that makes abortion legal during the first three months of pregnancy.
Meeting with Italian politicians last week, Pope Benedict XVI repeated his opposition to gay unions and to the abortion pill, RU-486, which he said hid the “gravity” of taking human life.
“The Vatican is free to express an opinion, but Italy must remain a lay state and the government can’t become a megaphone for the church just to get the Catholic vote,” Anna Annunziata, a regional counselor from Tuscany with the Democrats of the Left, the nation’s largest leftist party, said as she marched Saturday in Milan.
Organizers at the demonstration in Milan said the protest had drawn 150,000 people, but the police put the figure at 60,000. About 1,000 protesters joined the march in Rome, police officials said.
“In Italy, the pope speaks as though he’s a member of the government,” said one of the demonstrators in Milan, Daniela Labella, a civil servant, who complained about the church’s continued challenges to the abortion law.
Although the issues of abortion and gay unions have become controversial topics before the hotly contested general elections set for April, members of the Berlusconi government dismissed the demonstrations on Saturday, reiteratering their support for the “traditional family.”
Reforms Minister Roberto Calderoli said he had found the demonstration in Rome in favor of same-sex unions “nauseating,” the ANSA news agency reported. The culture minister, Rocco Buttiglione, who is close to the Vatican, said the government had called for an inquiry into the abortion law to strengthen the “bond between mother and child.”
The Vatican won a major victory in June when it campaigned to defeat a referendum to ease Italy’s strict fertility law, which took effect in 2004. The church is now moving to put abortion and traditional marriage on the electoral agenda.
Though Italy’s center-left opposition advocates the recognition of civil unions as part of its campaign platform, centrist members of the coalition have stopped short of calling for the legalization of same-sex unions.
MILAN Protesting what they see as the growing interference of the Roman Catholic Church in domestic politics, tens of thousands of Italians took to the streets here over the weekend in support of abortion rights, while demonstrators in Rome gathered to endorse the legalization of same-sex unions.
In Milan, protesters chanted slogans against Silvio Berlusconi’s government, which they accuse of planning, with the support of the church, to undo a 1978 law that makes abortion legal during the first three months of pregnancy.
Meeting with Italian politicians last week, Pope Benedict XVI repeated his opposition to gay unions and to the abortion pill, RU-486, which he said hid the “gravity” of taking human life.
“The Vatican is free to express an opinion, but Italy must remain a lay state and the government can’t become a megaphone for the church just to get the Catholic vote,” Anna Annunziata, a regional counselor from Tuscany with the Democrats of the Left, the nation’s largest leftist party, said as she marched Saturday in Milan.
Organizers at the demonstration in Milan said the protest had drawn 150,000 people, but the police put the figure at 60,000. About 1,000 protesters joined the march in Rome, police officials said.
“In Italy, the pope speaks as though he’s a member of the government,” said one of the demonstrators in Milan, Daniela Labella, a civil servant, who complained about the church’s continued challenges to the abortion law.
Although the issues of abortion and gay unions have become controversial topics before the hotly contested general elections set for April, members of the Berlusconi government dismissed the demonstrations on Saturday, reiteratering their support for the “traditional family.”

At one point in my life, I was engaged to a protestant guy, and as we began to plan the wedding, one of the underriding (like that?) questions was, “um, how do we explain the protocol of a Catholic Mass to half the guests that aren’t Catholic?” Given that I, too, have many non-Catholic friends (in fact they override the Catholic ones), we got this question a lot. And Catholics, of course, feel free to read and comment. And I am basing this on my experience and understand of how the Church operated. Alas, there are parishes that do not follow the below guidelines. Sic their bishop on them!!

So, for posterity, I am recording what to DO and NOT to do if you are not Catholic and yet find yourself in a Catholic Church (note: these are guidelines for a general Mass. There’s no way I’m going into all the possible variations for feasts and solemnities and Holy Week and Christmas and what have you. But these’ll get you through). I’ve attended Lutheran services, and they are fairly similar to the Catholic Mass, with a few changes. So here we go:

1. When you enter Mass, you’ll notice people dipping their right hand in the holy water fonts by the doors and making the sign of the cross. This is to remind us of our baptism and note that we are entering a holy place. Do it or don’t do it–up to you.

2. When a Catholic enters the pew, he will not just slouch in. He will genuflect towards the tabernacle, make the sign of the cross, and then take his seat, acknowledging the True Presence of Christ in the consecreated hosts that are stored in the tabernacle. Again, up to you.

3. Most Catholics will then kneel and pray. Mass is preceded by five minutes of “sacred silence”, so this is not the time to ask your neighbor what he thought of the latest Jennifer Aniston flick. Look through the hymnals and books available; one of them will probably have an Order of the Mass, with the congregation’s responses in bold, so you can follow along.

4. Mass begins with an opening hymn and procession. Stand up. NOTE: Catholics do not sing in four-part harmony! The quickest way to reveal Protestant roots is to begin singing the Alto/Tenor/ Bass/ your own harmony line to “The Church’s One Foundation” or whatever the opening hymn is. This is particularly true if the opening hymn is “A Mighty Fortress”. Only Catholic choirs sing four-part–the congregation doesn’t. Don’t do it.

And Catholics and Protestants do not have the exact same hymnal, so don’t expect to know every hymn.

5. Introductory rites: The priest opens the Mass with “The Lord be with you”. Then we have the penintential rite (”Lord have Mercy”/ “Christ have Mercy”/ “Lord have Mercy”). Unless it’s Lent or Advent, the Gloria (”Glory to God in the highest/ And peace to His people on Earth”), which is sung, follows. This is similar to the “Hymn of Praise” some Protestants sing, although the words are totally different.

6. Then we have the opening prayer. Sit.

7. The Liturgy of the Word: First reading, from the O.T. (or Acts/ Revelation, depending on the feast/ season) Notice “reading”, not “lesson”. The response after the reading is “Thanks be to God”

8. Responsorial Psalm: Sung by the cantor or small group (if small group, could be in four-part harmony). The cantor will sing the refrain and the congregation repeats it after each verse. It’s usually a psalm, but could be another scripture verse.

9. Second reading; an epistle.

10. Gospel Acclamation (stand): Unless it’s Lent, some form of “Alleluia”. Same protocol as Pslam. If it’s Lent, then it’s “Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ / King of endless Glory!” (no Alleluia during Lent)

11. Gospel. The priest/deacon will say, “The Lord be with you”. Response: “And also with you”. The priest will then announce the reading, which the congregation will reply to with “Glory to you, Lord” while making the sign of the cross on their foreheads, lips, and heart, to remind them to keep Christ always present in these areas. The Gospel is then proclaimed. At the end, the congregation replies, “Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.” Sit.

12. The Homily, NOT the sermon. Not the most important part of Mass, thus is short. A reflection on the readings of the day and how they apply to our daily lives.

13. Stand for the Creed-usually the Nicene, but occasionally the Apostles’.

14. Intercessions–when the reader/ deacon reads the prayer requests of the faithful. Response is “Lord, hear our prayer.”

15. Liturgy of the Eucharist begins–this happens EVERY SUNDAY. The gifts are brought up to the altar, the altar is prepared for Communion, and a hymn is sung. Offetory is also taken at this time. we’re sitting at this point.

16. Stand for the preface to the Eucharistic Prayer. Note that this can be chanted. If everyone around you starts chanting (it seems that we Catholics are born with an extra chip in our head that allows us to do monochant without much of a problem), just join in if you’re comfortable, and stay silent if you’re not.

17. Followed by the “Holy”, which is sung.

18. Now everybody kneels (!) for the Eucharistic Prayer. Eucahristic Prayer I is the longest and usually reserved for special feasts. Usually you’ll get 2 or 3, which are shorter. This can also be chanted.

19. After the Consecration, the “Memorial Acclaimation” (Christ has died / Christ is risen / Christ will come again) is sung.

20. The Eucharistic Prayer finishes, leading to the Doxology (Though Him / With Him /In Him/ In the Unity of the Holy Spirit / All Glory and Honor is yours, Almight Father / Forever and Ever) followed by the Great Amen.

21. Stand. The “Our Father” is prayed. NOTE: The Catholic “Our Father” does NOT segue right into “for the kingdom”. This is the surest sign that there’s a Protestant in our midst. When I was a cantor in college, we always (well, almost always) had Protestant organists (it was a Protestant school, after all) and the first time they would play for us they would give themselves away by going right into it, stopping abruptly when they realized they were the only ones going on. STOP. We say it after the priest gives a brief prayer.

22. The Sign of Peace. Everyone hugs or shakes hands or kisses (depending on the level of affinity) with the people around them.

23. The “Lamb of God”.

24. Kneel again. Time for Communion. The priest distributes Communion to the Eucharistic Ministers and the distribution begins. Hymns are sung throughout, or a piece by the choir. Some churches only do vocal music after Communion is finished as a “song of praise”. Whatever.

This is the big sticking point: Catholic doctrine says that you shouldn’t receive communion if you’re not Catholic. The reason is simple: Catholics see the Eucharist as a sign of their oneness in Faith. When you receive Eucharist, the exchange is thus: the distributor says “The Body/ Blood of Christ” and you answer “Amen”. The “Amen” implies that you believe what was just told to you. If you don’t, then you’re essentially committing blasphemy by taking it. That’s not cool. If you’re not united with the Catholic Church and don’t believe what we believe, then why would you want to receive Eucharist? But some of you will do it anyway, and I will tell you that the Church floor won’t open and God won’t smite you with thunder (at least I’ve never seen it) but it’s not generally accepted practice. It is quite acceptable to remain in your seat in silent prayer while everyone else receives. You won’t be the only one sitting there, trust me. All the little kids’ll be with you.

25. After Communion, people kneel until the priest/ deacon is seated and the altar servers begin clearing the altar. Sit.

26. Stand. After Communion prayer is prayed. Annoucements (if any) are read.

27. Final blessing.

28. Closing hymn–you stay until the hymn is over!! I don’t care if the choir is launching into all 11 verses of “O Sons and Daughters”–you stay!!! It’s polite! And it’s not the Indy 500 out in the parking lot, anyway!

That, my friends, is the Order and Etiquette of the Catholic Mass. A few other points:

–no gum chewing, please.
–wear nice clothes, i.e. not ripped jeans or a trampy t-shirt or something with inappropriate messages (i.e., a shirt with a Darwin fish wouldn’t fly). Remember it’s God’s house you’re visiting.
–Refrain from any and all snide comments about the Faith during Mass!
–Catholics do not bring Bibles to Church–the priest doesn’t announce a particular verse that he’s preaching on and have everyone open up. You may see some Catholics with St. Joseph’s Missals, which give the Order of the Mass and the readings for the particular day. That’s not the same thing.
–The Homily will most likely be under 10 minutes. Shocking, I know.
–Catholic Churches don’t pass out bulletins with the reading in them. These readings can be found in one of the books in the pews, normally.

Hope this was helpful–Catholics, let me know if I’ve left anything out.

According to BXVI, yup (courtesey the Corner):

The Asia Times Online columnist Spengler notes that Pope Benedict XVI is recently reported to have observed that Islam cannot reform itself along the lines the West is depending on. The reason is very simple: unlike Judaism and Christianity, which take the Bible to be the inspired word of God, mediated through humans and therefore subject to interpretation, Islam believes the Koran is the literal and direct word of God, dictated to the Prophet. If you believe this, then it’s easy to see why diverging too far from the plain text of the Koran is blasphemous (and we know what happens to those deemed to have blasphemed against Islam). Spengler is amazed by the silence from the Western media over this remarkable statement attributed to the current Pope — a statement Spengler endorses — and he suggests that we shrink from acknowledging it because the consequences of the Pope being right about this is too horrible to contemplate.

Um, yeah. This is too horrible to contemplate. I mean, whew. If you believe that the Koran is the direct word of God dictated by the Prophet then blasphemy is pretty easy to come by. Can you imagine what would’ve happened to Christianity if we took everything in the Bible as literal? I mean, the no cutting your hair thing that the Amish cite would’ve had most of us dead by now as “infidels”….woo boy. This, combined with the sobering concluding chapters in George Weigel’s The Cube and the Cathedral don’t paint the happiest picture for world affairs, especially in Europe…

More mini-book reviews as I plow through the pile:

– True Believer by Nicholas Sparks: came out over the summer but I just got around to reading it now (I got the sequel for Christmas, ergo I had to read this one!). Typical Nicholas Sparks story–boy meets girl, girl meets boy, girl and boy fall in love but there’s some obstacle that prevents the love. That’s not to say it’s not enjoyable and that there aren’t a few twists that you don’t see coming, which I like. Jeremy is one of those men who expose cons on TV and in the media and has gone to a little NC town (a Sparks trademark) to investigate the appearances of so-called “ghosts” in the local cemetery. While there, he meets Lexie, the local librarian, and the two both, albeit reluctantly, become smitten. Sparks is in his element writing about the South where he grew up and giving us characters we actually care about. Also deals with the matter of believing, not seeing, and the issues of faith, while not directly talking about God (if you want characters that directly talk about God you need to read Richard Paul Evans, who I also highly recommend–his latests is The Sunflower ). Good read, esp. during the winter. There’s just something about his books that lends themselves to fall/winter reading. Not sure what it is.

– Our Oldest Enemy: America’s Disastrous Relationship with France by NR Political writer John J. Miller and Mark Molesky. Good book about our misconstrued ideas that France is America’s “oldest ally” while really they’ve been trying to screw us over for about 200 years. Well-written, meticulously documented, well-researched, and funny to boot. The last few chapters on the War on Terror are particularly relevant. Excellent for the poli sci/ history buffs out there (who I know read this!)

More later–still working on the Confessions (I know, I know…) and there are many theological books in the pile, including Scott Hahn’s newest, B XVI and Hans Ur Von Balthazar, JP II, and St. John of the Cross. They’re coming–really!!

From WBCSTV in NYC:

After nearly four years of fighting sex abuse charges, Monsignor Charles Kavanagh will have his day in a Church court. It’s what the Vatican ordered. It’s what Kavanagh wants. “This is what I prayed for,” Kavanagh said. “I understand the need in this climate for significant review. All I want is a full and fair hearing and I’ll be fine.” In 2002 a former student accused Kavanagh of abusing him more than 20 years ago, when Kavanagh was head of Cathedral Prep Seminary in Manhattan. The claims were made beyond the statute of limitations. The Archdiocese of New York suspended Kavanagh, then pastor at St. Raymond Church in the Bronx, and pressed on with an internal investigation. They sent their findings to the judicial arm of the Vatican, which found the evidence merited a full trial by a Church Tribunal. “It’s good for the people of faith of the Archdiocese of New York,” said Joseph Zwilling of the Archdiocese of New York. ” They know I hope now that the Church takes those allegations very seriously.” While not overconfident, Kavanagh says the facts should exonerate him. “I feel that if I do this honorably my name will be cleared,” he said.

I’m glad to see a priest actually challenging these claims in court. I’ve been getting kind of tired of dioceses just rolling over and accepting these charges without a detailed investigation, especially ones past the statute of limitations like this one is. I don’t know how it will turn out, but I’m glad it’s been challenged in court.

Comments to follow:

Via Yahoo!

Pope Benedict XVI stressed his commitment to bringing Christian churches closer together during a meeting with a delegation of Presbyterian and Congregational church leaders at the Vatican. The pontiff made the point that the meeting with the World Alliance of Reformed Churches came on the 40th anniversary of the “Unitatis Redintegratio” papal decree committing the Catholic Church to dialogue with other churches to overcome “the tragic divisions which arose among Christians in the 16th century”, according to a statement released by the Vatican. The pope said he intended to pursue the strategy of his predecessor John Paul II who stipulated that “purification of memory” and “inner conversion is the prerequisite for all ecumenical progress”.
“Dear friends, I pray that our meeting today will itself bear fruit in a renewed commitment to work for the unity of all Christians. The way before us calls for wisdom, humility, patient study and exchange,” Benedict XVI said.

Well I am all about Christian unity as long as major theological points are sacrificed. I want a “good peace” but not at the expense of theological truth. Happily, I don’t believe B XVI will allow that (especially based on the title of his last book, Truth and Tolerance , which I’ve got to read soon….it’s in the pile). But any dialogue is good, and hopefully it will lead us closer to fulfilling Jesus’ prayer that “all may be one.”

A round-up of news from the Catholic world…with pithy comments ….

–The man who shot JP II will be released from prison this month. “Agca served 19 years in Italy for the assassination attempt before being pardoned at the Pope’s behest in 2000. He was then extradited to Turkey to serve a separate sentence in an Istanbul jail for robbery and murder. “Agca is expected to be released between January 10 and January 15,” Anatolian said, adding that he may then be required, like all Turkish men, to perform his military service.”

Given that JPII officially forgave him, and it seems that Agca experienced a conversion while in prison, it seems fitting to the late Pope’s memory that he is being released. I’m sure that his time in the military would curb any still-existing tendencies toward violence. (or so one would hope).

–B XVI elegantly ties scraments with theology at his first baptism; while baptising 10 babies (five boys, five girls) in the Sistine chapel (appropriately before Michaelangelo’s Last Judgement , he decried the “culture of death” (yay!), stating that:

“In our times we need to say ‘no’ to the largely dominant culture of death… “(There is) an anti-culture demonstrated by the flight to drugs, by the flight from reality, by illusions, by false happiness … displayed in sexuality which has become pure pleasure devoid of responsibility,” he added. He singled out ancient Rome’s Colosseum amphitheatre and the gardens of the emperor Nero, where Christians were once martyred, as a “real perversion of joy and a perversion of the sense of life.”
“The anti-culture of death was a love of lies and of deceit. It was an abuse of the body as a commodity and as a product. Even in our times there is this culture and we must say ‘No’ to it,” he said. (information from Yahoo! News)

The article also mentions this was the first time that B XVI spoke “off-the-cuff” to reporters (which, as I gathered from the article, was sort of unexpected and not exactly welcomed). I’m glad he talked about this issue, instead of the generic “importance of baptism” on which he was supposed to discuss. Too many priests and bishops in our Church do not discuss the important of this issue enough. It should be preached with regularity and passion, reminding us all of the importance of protecting all human life as our duty as Catholic Christians. It is of vital importance. Kudos to B XVI for continuing this important work.