a catholic democrat from ohio

of some non-catholics, non-democrats, and non-democrat catholics

2009-07-13T17:05:00.006-04:00

This is my 400th post. I can continue, and comment about many things, but I only comment on some. But, even obvious things are not, admittedly, seen and understood. People will disregard truth, and, even, more loudly affirm falsity. The thoughtful, accurate, statement is derided, and dismissed, in favor of the loud and cocky, though often bullshit, statement.

In one endeavor after another, I have seen a form of steam rolling. I have, and am experiencing it. It is a situation resembling a mixture of Alice trying to debate with characters in Wonderland (Humpty Dumpty, White Queen), and the chicanery of the bush-cheney régime.

Now, I am proud to be a Catholic. I am proud to be a Democrat. I have continually seen, heard, and read many Democrats ignorantly, obnoxiously and falsely deride catholicism. I have continually seen, heard, and read many Catholics ignorantly, obnoxiously and falsely deride (*) democracy and Democrats. I feel revulsion for such practices, and their practitioners.

In the american public the more noticeable, and frequent, of these parallel behaviors is the defamation committed by the self proclaimed ‘conservatives’, whom are just intense Republicans, and as such combine several unpleasant, even vile, qualities. Another parallel is, when these [Republicans] are supposedly religious claim catholicism, they are a party of pharisees and hypocrites.

Now, Benedict has just released an encyclical, which amongst other things, blasts capitalism. Benedict and John Paul II were 100% against bush’s war, and certainly, cheney’s torture. These conservatives have not heralded these, and other, positions clearly stated by the Magisterium. No, they have their own cafeteria, where they pick and choose the selections, and other diners are not welcome. Such is the way of pharisees and hypocrites.
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postscriptum: some similar mini-essays can be read at: http://rustbeltvoice.blogspot.com/

Cindy Sheehan at St. Colman

2009-07-10T10:44:00.006-04:00

Yestereve, in the basement of St. Colman's (Cleveland, O.), there, visited Cindy Sheehan. She is on a national speaking and book tour. The local media, here and elsewhere, have maintained a blackout on the events. As is usual, a few peace groups sponsored the event, and presented an-anti war art exhibition, and disseminated literature. Ohio has had 177 troops die in bush's iraqui war. The empty boots signifies their absence.

Cindy was in good humor, feisty, impassioned and slightly disorganised, perhaps on account of fatigue. She affirmed her position as the "biggest bugger of george bush", and fully stating this war criminal should not escape constant reminding of his crimes. She also pointed out, Obama has not changed the course bushjr started.

Ms. Sheehan had some special animus for Nancy Pelosi, of whom, she invited the audience, of about three hundred, to hiss. She, also, spoke about the myths of America. The chief and foundational myth being that this is the greatest nation in the universe. This myth, as the others, benefits the robber class, which controls the country, and which creates other myths to sustain itself. It is virtually identical with the military industrial establishment. The robber class is united, and they divide the rest of the country into quarreling amongst itself.

She quoted Ralph Nader, in that, there is not two political parties in the US, but only one with two wings. She also echoed Nader in urging people to focus on their localities, where they have far better chance to effect change.

Ms. Sheehan also spoke of the lie of the volunteer army. In voluntary organisations, one is not imprisoned for attempting to leave. Also, with the "stop gap" programme enlistments are extended beyond the legal contract and agreement of service. The US government's prime focus is the support of a militaristic empire. The peace movement that stands up to it is weak and disorganised. She wishes for a better America, but seems to recognise, that, it will be what it is.

mess of pottage

2009-07-06T13:53:00.001-04:00

Perhaps some people are familiar with “Esau sold his birthright for a mess of pottage.” This ‘mess of pottage’ showed in three protestant english bibles, two generations, before the authorised version (KJV). In the last three centuries those were not commonly read. Yet, some people may recognise ‘mess of pottage’. Bergen Evans edited a Dictionary of Quotations, wherein he commented, "the retention of this phrase is a remarkable instance of the transmitting power of speech."

Esau was cheated by his brother, or Jacob bested his brother in a quick bargain. It is a matter of perspective. Esau gave up something valuable for something very minor. Esau was hungry NOW and wanted to eat. ‘Mess of pottage’, has come to mean: something considered of little value. The phrase is colorful, and evocative. It is one of many turns of biblical phrase that lingers in the idiom and vernacular.

Genesis xxv. 29-34.
And Jacob boiled pottage: to whom Esau, coming faint out of the field, Said: Give me of this red pottage, for I am exceeding faint. For which reason his name was called Edom. And Jacob said to him: Sell me thy first birthright. He answered: Lo I die, what will the first birthright avail me. Jacob said: Swear therefore to me. Esau swore to him, and sold his first birthright. And so taking bread and the pottage of lentils, he ate, and drank, and went his way; making little account of having sold his first birthright. ―DRC

Coxit autem Jacob pulméntum : ad quem cum venísset Ésau de agro lassus, ait : Da mihi de coctióne hac rufa, quia óppido lassus sum. Quam ob causam vocátum est nomen ejus Edom. Cui dixit Jacob : Vende mihi primogénita tua. Ille respóndit : En mórior, quid mihi próderunt primogénita ? Ait Jacob : Jura ergo mihi. Jurávit ei Ésau et véndidit primogénita. Et sic, accépto pane et lentis edúlio, comédit et bibit, et ábiit, parvipéndens quod primogénita vendidísset.

And Jacob sod pottage: and Esau came from the field, and he was faint: And Esau said to Jacob, Feed me, I pray thee, with that same red pottage; for I am faint: therefore was his name called Edom. And Jacob said, Sell me this day thy birthright. And Esau said, Behold, I am at the point to die: and what profit shall this birthright do to me? And Jacob said, Swear to me this day; and he sware unto him: and he sold his birthright unto Jacob. Then Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage of lentiles; and he did eat and drink, and rose up, and went his way: thus Esau despised his birthright. ―KJV

Mess refers broadly to food: its amount, softness, mixture, companions at table, and location of table. Pottage is a soft, semiliquid food; a simple, boiled stew.

Now, in the english, ‘pottage’ is used thrice. In the latin: pulmentum (appetizer) is used first, coctióne hac rufa (this red cooking) next, and finally, pane et lentis edúlio (bread and lentil edible). Pottage is not much used to-day in english, potage is in french.

Successful fictions

2009-07-05T00:01:00.009-04:00

Old propaganda becomes mythologised. When a claim is invented and it appeals to a mindset it joins that fabulous tableaux. I live in a waspish culture. So it is their cache of tropes I was immersed in. My misfortune is, I have no comfort in it. Several of the tropes are utterly false, while others are highly debatable and suspect. Yet, they are resistant to change. Several of these show up, and rattled off in, even, college history survey courses. They are so accepted, that they have become proverbial. They have become successful, so successful that, even, those whom they are directed against believe them. The following are certain, anti-catholic chestnuts. Now, there are other believed fictions in the non-religious sphere also; they are frequent in fields where opposing camps have divided themselves, such as in politics*. When factual corrections, and logical, even irrefutable, evidence is given, the false position, often, withstands the assault of reality.

angels on a pin's head, or needle's point
Isaac D'Israeli (1766-1848), the father of premier Benjamin Disraeli, wished to ridicule Thomas Aquinas and other scholastics and he, not they, brought forth this argument. He may have been familiar with a handful satires written between his time and Thomas' time. He is the author of this fiction. Saint Thomas tells us that angels are non corporeal, so the question never was his.

mediæval flat earth
The man who invented Rip van Winkle, and Ichabod Crane, invented this one. Washington Irving wrote a book on the voyages of Columbus. Salamanca, the spanish university, in 1486 had a discussion on the circumference of the spherical earth, not whether the earth was spherical. The american 'mediæval' mind created this theory in 1828.

adam's belly button
Some people, fundamentalist protestants, are upset with Michelangelo's Sistine painting of Adam. Adam has a navel. This was neither a renaissance, nor mediæval dilemma. God created man (Adam) completely and perfectly intact. Before people read the Bible, in certain protestant manners, and thought processes, this issue was unthinkable.

bibles were kept locked and chained to prevent reading
Bibles, and other books, were chained, in part, for the same reasons some reference books in twentieth century libraries, telephone books in booths, registry books in guard shacks and hotels were--so that people didn't walk off with them, and that the next person could use them. Also some of these mediæval tomes were very valuable, and artworks in themselves. Further, before movable type and the printing press, literacy rates were lower. Further, access to cheap books for a mass public was a nineteenth century phenomenon, as was still greater rates of education and literacy. The rationale depicted in this myth is easily demonstrable as ridiculous, but its true purpose is to project a successful slander.

luther's theses
Luther and the church door posting is a fiction, that, Luther in his own time denied. It is a dramatic, theatrical invention to trumpet his rôle.

spanish inquisition
In some versions 50 million or more were executed. Spain has not that population now in a far more populous world. Where did the bodies come from?

The spanish inquisition went on for centuries. Many real historians would cite the number of executions from one to ten thousand. This is part of the black legend that elizabethan propagandists used to slander, and libel, the spanish enemy. The tudor queen had an extensive terror, torture, and killing operation. A chief difference, between the two, was that the spanish institution allowed for legal defenses for the accused, while much of the english persecution was secret, and extra-legal, confere the tactics of the busheviks.

galileo
Galileo was under a condition of house arrest, not torture, nor execution.

mediæval burning of witches
The greatest number of witch trials were during the age of reason. The first english witch was executed in Elizabeth's reign. The scots first executed a great number of supposed witches beginning in 1590, in North Berwick. They were tortured and burnt. James VI was the instigator. Even greater numbers (a few thousand) during the seventeenth century. Calvinists, on both side of the Atlantic, hunted witches. Twenty were executed (nineteen hanged, one crushed) and five died in detention, all in Salem of Massachusetts Bay Colony, during 1692-3. In November of 1688 the irish, catholic, gaelic speaking, ex-slave, Mary Glover was hanged in Boston. Cotton Mather judged her guilty for all that she was as proof of being a witch.

dark ages
In this, supposedly, ignorant span of centuries the church created the university and the hospital as institutions. As a corrective one can read Régine Pernoud († 1998). Her quick, enjoyable read is available in english translation, Those Terrible Middle Ages (1997). Pernoud points out many historical fallacies, including the mussulman civilising influence, protestantism as liberating (in great contrast to a recent guest, Serene Jones, on the most recent Bill Moyers Journal, where she propagandised on Calvin as I turned on, and then off the set; usually Mr. Moyers has more accurate and credible guests), modernity as freedom and so on.
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*Republican talk radio is substantially of this nature, as is Fox television. John McCain had to tell a disbelieving woman that Obama was a christian, and not what she had heard. The false issue, that doubts his citizenship is of like nature, but this has always been the modus operandi of the Republicans. Oft told lies, especially appealing lies, are convincing.

Senator Sam Ervin

2009-07-04T00:01:00.007-04:00

The Watergate hearings began on the 17th of May 1973, and were widely watched. Some people thought they were a commercial soap opera programme. At times they had high tension. Slowly, but steadily, it was shown that all about Richard Nixon's circle, there was corruption that was willing to smash the guaranteed, legal freedoms of the nation, and its citizens.*

They were chaired by a veteran of the war to end all wars, a Harvard educated lawyer, who greatly studied, and valued the Constitution, a man, who often referred to himself as ‘a country lawyer.’ Samuel Ervin, senator from North Carolina, slowly spoke, and stuttered in a southern speech pattern. He was very capable.

John Ehrlichman was the chief advisor on domestic affairs to president Nixon. Ehrlichman gave authority to burglarise Daniel Ellsberg's doctor's (Lewis Fielding's) office to gather evidence on Ellsberg on reasons of national security. Ellsberg had been a Pentagon analyst. He came to the opinion, that, the war was wrong and should be ended. He lobbied Senators to release certain information, they did not. He went to a New York Times reporter. The story of the Pentagon papers broke, and Nixon and his cadre wanted revenge. In the hearings explanations were called for.

This was one of the many topics discussed in the senate hearings:

Senator Sam Ervin: The foreign intelligence activities had nothing to do with the opinion of Ellsberg's psychiatrist about his emotional or psychological state.

John Ehrlichman snottily: How do you know that, Mr. Chairman?

Senator Sam Ervin: Because I can understand the English language. It's my mother tongue.

The parry and thrust of Mister Ervin's words, in pique, were devastatingly effective. Ehrlichman's haughtiness was deflated by an obvious answer, an almost reflexive tautology, to an insulting and stupid question.

Richard Nixon was a troubled man with ability, and more than a modicum of decency and dignity. There has, hardly, been a better Republican since. Nixon abused the Constitution, and deserved impeachment, and a guilty sentence, and removal from office. He saved the country, and himself, some of the ignominy by resigning. That being said, the events of the régime that seized power during the eight years, that have recently ended, deserves greater scrutiny than anything concerning Nixon and Watergate. It is a great scandal that there has not been many investigations.

The price of freedom is vigilance. Justice has not been active. Obama is but an amelioration of bushjr. The nation deserves more. To-day is the anniversary of our declaration of freedom, the Declaration of Independence. One can recall, on this remembrance of that clarion day, the freedom of our civil liberties against a corrupt, and tyrannical government. Senator Sam Ervin did his nation much service.
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*What people remember as, “there’s a cancer on the presidency ”, was:
"I think, I think that, uh, there’s no doubt about the seriousness of the problem we’re, we’ve got. We have a cancer–within, close to the Presidency, that’s growing. It’s growing daily. It’s compounding, it grows geometrically now because it compounds itself."--John Dean, (21 March 1973 to Richard Nixon)

Governor resigns

2009-07-03T20:00:00.006-04:00

Friday afternoon, on the day before Independence Day, many people are already engaged in holiday mode, not that much work is done in many parts of the US of A. If one is to make an announcement, at that point of time, it would not get a full impact of attention. Now, if one were to read, say last night, that a controversial Republican governor resigned, one may think--Mark Sanford. Remember Sanford?

He was missing, for several days, incomunicado. O, he was returning from Argentina. He was returning after a tryst with a paramour. He is not relinquishing office, after all, King David continued. O, he loved her more than his wife. O, there were other women, that interested him. Are there more self revelations?

O, it is not Sanford, who is resigning. It is Sarah Palin. What? Well she does not embarrass. Government in Alaska is not a full year of business (the legislature meets for three months). If she eyes the presidency, it is early; the new president has not been in office for six months. She has no problem being combative. Many ethics complaints have been filed against her, she alludes to that in her resignation announcement, in which she used both ‘folksy’ chat, and meaningless clichéd political jargon. Something (scandal) of some magnitude may soon emerge*, if she is not just crazier than an outhouse rat. As Johnny Carson would often say, “sometimes it’s just rip and read”:

“Hi Alaska...It's pretty insane - my staff and I spend most of our day dealing with THIS instead of progressing our state now. I know I promised no more "politics as usual," but THIS isn't what anyone had in mind for ALASKA. If I have learned one thing: LIFE is about choices! And one chooses how to react to circumstances. You can choose to engage in things that tear down, or build up. I choose to work very hard on a path for fruitfulness and productivity. I choose NOT to tear down and waste precious time; but to build UP this state and our country, and her industrious, generous, patriotic, free people! Life is too short to compromise time and resources...it may be tempting and more comfortable to just keep your head down, plod along, and appease those who demand: "Sit down and shut up", but that's the worthless, easy path; that's a quitter's way out. And a problem in our country today is apathy. It would be apathetic to just hunker down and "go with the flow". Nah, only dead fish "go with the flow". No. Productive, fulfilled people determine where to put their efforts, choosing to wisely utilize precious time...to BUILD UP. And there is such a need to BUILD up and FIGHT for our state and our country. I choose to FIGHT for it! And I'll work hard for others who still believe in free enterprise and smaller government; strong national security for our country and support for our troops; energy independence; and for those who will protect freedom and equality and LIFE...I thought about how much fun some governors have as lame ducks...travel around the state, to the Lower 48 (maybe), overseas on international trade - as so many politicians do. And then I thought - that's what's wrong - many just accept that lame duck status, hit the road, draw the paycheck, and "milk it". I'm not putting Alaska through that - I promised efficiencies and effectiveness!? That's not how I am wired. I am not wired to operate under the same old "politics as usual."...Let me go back to a comfortable analogy for me - sports... basketball. I use it because you're naïve if you don't see the national full-court press picking away right now: A good point guard drives through a full court press, protecting the ball, keeping her eye on the basket... and she knows exactly when to pass the ball so that the team can WIN. And I'm doing that - keeping our eye on the ball that represents sound priorities - smaller government, energy independence, national security, freedom! And I know when it's time to pass the ball - for victory....In the words of General MacArthur said, "We are not retreating. We are advancing in another direction."
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noto bene: this is an abbreviated script[...],the eccentric punctuation is her operation, the red highlighting is mine.
*postscriptum: as of 13 July '09, other than mental instability, a scandal, other than possible avarice, has not become evident.

Shakespeare knew it

2009-06-30T23:06:00.008-04:00

How much more would Shakespeare have written if he had a typewriter? Thirty-seven, extant, credited plays, and the other poetry, of verbally dense work are studded with a myriad of gems. There are so many famous quotations, and beyond that many important insights of thought that are overlooked in the vast bounty.

In this one sentence, that has not been memorised by millions, Shakespeare destroys a baseline argument of the busheviks and the condoners of torture:

PORTIA: Ay, but I fear you speak upon the rack,
Where men enforced do speak anything. — The Merchant of Venice III. ii. 33-4.

Perhaps, every person literate in english should be familiar with about a dozen plays of Shakespeare. He is meant to be read out loud. Film adaptations of his plays are not all that common, but some of them are excellent, and can be viewed while having the text near by.

Some versions can compare to each other, film to film, film to print, and less at hand--live version to film, print or another live performance. As You Like It was filmed in 1936 and 2006. Elisabeth Bergner and Bryce Dallas Howard played Rosalind. Leon Quartermaine and Kevin Kline played Jacques. Bergner was a european german, and even though, she clearly pronounced each word, one could hear the teutonic tone from a distance, while Howard was brilliant and quite fetching. Quartermaine spoke the seven ages of man speech, in, virtually, the same tone, emotion and rhythm as I did off the page. It was almost unison, i was vainly impressed. Kline played the role far more lackadaisical.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream in 1935 was a delight, and one highlight was the hilarity of James Cagney as Bottom turning into an ass. Kline played the part in 1999. There are several fine, and great, actors appeared on film in Shakespeare. The wonderful part is, that, one can see the performances again and again. Richard Burton’s live performances on stage are not so recoverable for another look and listen. Film on disc is a great service.

But, back to the rack, the elizabethan english employed the rack and other forms of torture, and Shakespeare was fully aware. He had relatives tortured and killed. He himself was occasionally imperiled. Come Rack! Come Rope! (1912), a novel by Robert Hugh Benson, was written concerning that late elizabethan and early stuart time. Men could be broken to say anything true, imagined or fantastic; or for the pleasure of the torturers.

my name it don't matter

2009-06-28T00:01:00.002-04:00

When I was at university, I really became a confirmed folk music enthusiast. I mentioned to schoolmates, that, Bob Dylan was worthy of a Nobel prise; they softly ridiculed me. A while back, I read, he was nominated. To many, his voice is an obstacle. Some enjoy his work when performed by others. I knew one, whom, thought All along the watchtower, by Jimi Hendrix, was the finest rock song. I loved the voices of Joan Baez and Judy Collins. Those of my acquaintance did not. Many hours I played, listened, and sang to the records I enjoyed.

Dylan was not the only poet/lyricist, I found brilliant. There have been very, few, serious poets of the last half century, in the country, whose verses either sing or sting. Springsteen, Simon, Young and some other musicians have written gems, whilst professors and aesthetes type leaden words. Billy Collins has several delightful poems, some Richard Wilbur, and not much else. Robert Frost was a giant, Sandburg nearly and since their deaths it has fell. I know the russians have Vladimir Semjenovič Vysockij, and I have little familiarity of others.

Some of Dylan's songs took ancient folk melodies, and wedded words that had the same feel. Some lyrics struck deeply.

Oh my name it is nothin'
My age it means less
The country I come from
Is called the Midwest...

Dylan was a young man, and some of the lines were weary and haggard. There is the knowing desperation, the weltschmerz of the observant powerless. I also knew, that, my name it don't matter, and the land i came from is called the midwest. I, most probably, will never be recognised; and though my name means something to me, it does not to others, but i can place myself in time.

...I was so much older then,
I'm younger than that now.

My youth was sharply earnest. I knew it then, and was not going to reject nor deny it, but with the passage of time, I have grown tired, if not wiser. I was older then, i am younger than that now. Sounds a paradox, but that which i would battle then with gusto and awareness, now still exists, and my sabre is not forged. The passage of time puts me unready for engagement, and i knew that then.

Certainly, there are other readings of Dylan, and he encourages an uncertainty as opposed to an understanding. The material after the early periods sings less to me.

Sanford declares himself King David

2009-06-27T12:09:00.008-04:00

"What I find interesting is the story of David, and the way in which he fell mightily, fell in very, very significant ways, but then picked up the pieces and built from there."

"I remain committed to rebuilding the trust that has been committed to me over the next 18 months, and it is my hope that I am able to follow the example set by David in the Bible - who after his fall from grace humbly refocused on the work at hand. By doing so, I will ultimately better serve in every area of my life, and I am committed to doing so."

As I mentioned earlier, there is one standard for Republicans and another for Democrats. At first, I thought, there would not, even, be pressure for Mark Sanford to resign. Sanford is a smug Republican, who has been identified, and self identified, with “conservative family values”, fiscal conservatism and states rights. He voted for the impeachment of Bill Clinton on disguised counts of adultery. He has now admitted to being an adulterer, himself. After tearfully confessing in front of cameras, he has received some negative response. This must have been surprising, even though he is an anglican, he is still a southern Republican; and among that demographic electorate, it is expected after the formality of the public, ritual drama of confession of one’s own kind, to one’s own kind, to be forgiven and continue as before; thus making full peace with religious hypocrisy, and no one is to bring it up again. And conversely, one is still allowed to attack an opponent in the same manner as before, because that judgment always stands.

Apparently, he hit a snag, and has upped the ante. He is now like King David, God’s anointed and favorite. Before this proclamation, Nate Silver made the chart supra. I still think Sanford will be governor next month, and next year. Republicans do not resign, they get promoted.

And as a further aside: I have a couple of songs in my mind,

Don't cry for me Argentina
The truth is I never left you
All through my wild days
My mad existence
I kept my promise
Don't keep your distance

I've heard there was a secret chord
That David played and it pleased the Lord
But you don't really care for music, do you?
It goes like this, the fourth, the fifth, the minor fall, the major lift
The baffled king composing Hallelujah

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Postscriptum: I added this to the continuing list:
54. Mark Sanford - South Carolina. There used to be a television show called, Car 54. Where are you? Mark Sanford was missing, not on the Appalachian Trail, but in Argentina after tail. Being an arrogant, self-righteous, teabagger, and a hypocritical adulterer was not enough to add him to this list, that sort of thing is just par for Republicans. The self-aggrandisement to compare oneself, in biblical terms, to King David—the archetypal ruler is. - 27 June 2009

The baldest of lies

2009-06-24T15:13:00.001-04:00

We have a dishonest government. The most dishonest portions of government are those dealing with security, military and police functions. Here is the sine qua non and ne plus ultra: the war department (renamed--department of defense) calls citizen protest, low level terrorism; conversely they call torture, enhanced interrogation. And for dishonest media--Fox television: to-day, Mark Sanford, the Republican governor of South Carolina admitted to a sexual scandal, and Fox labels him -- Mark Sanford (D). Again and again they identify embarrassed Republicans as (D). Just as another side note: with the Ensign affair, and now this, the Republican nominee is boiling down to Romney or Palin.

The apt question

2009-06-23T13:29:00.008-04:00

Some friendly teachers, that I have had, make the statement, “There are no stupid questions”, a very broad statement, that may be true in spirit, but untrue in fact. Some questions are asinine, and that insults that beast, when they have no relation to the matter, or even worse, when they are provocatively dishonest. Yet, other questions are precisely perfect. Those go beyond clarification, they frame a resolution appropriately, or especially when they completely destroy the argument before it. Now, those questions that are provocatively dishonest, wish to be that which they are not.

Recently, a public television programme on episodes of indian history was shown. The particular episode was on cherokee resettlement. North Georgia was going to be ethnically cleansed of the red man. A discussion amongst the indians, themselves, was re-enacted. They were to be resettled on similar lands to the west of the Mississippi. One indian asked if those lands are as good as ours, why are they empty? He asked the vital question. There was no rationale, no evidence and no true argument to answer it. The question was devastatingly true.

This sort of question answered and ended the entire line of thought. I remember, hearing more than once, the argument that tries to defuse Jesus, when Jesus says:

Et íterum dico vobis : Facílius est cámelum per forámen acus transíre, quam dívitem intráre in regnum cælórum.
And again I say to you: It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of heaven. — Matthew xix. 24.

Facílius est cámelum per forámen acus transíre, quam dívitem intráre in regnum Dei.
It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. — Mark x. 25.

facílius est enim cámelum per forámen acus transíre quam dívitem intráre in regnum Dei.
For it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. — Luke xviii. 25.

They tell of a gate in the wall called the camel’s eye, or the needle, or something. Yes, the existence of such a thing would change the OBVIOUS meaning of the word of Jesus. BUT, it would have to have existed at the time of Jesus’ speaking, and certainly it did not, nor did anyone mention such a ‘convenient’ gate for centuries (perhaps until the twentieth). Shakespeare makes an allusion in Richard II, but not in the way of a gospel revisionist of the american prosperity school of capital mammon. I have not found which writer, or speaker, invented this tale of the crawling camel, but in different versions the gate is in Damascus, or another syrian city, or Jerusalem, or Joffa. Sometimes an ancient, but only mediæval ancient, entrance is alluded to. Sometimes there is a statement that points to a late mediæval or early modern writer, but not that the writer is speaking to that interpretation. But, all in all, no real gate has ever existed that gives credence to the supposition, and the crawling camel is still more dubious.

Now, such a supposition would be devastating, but challenging that supposition by devastating fact, totally negates it. Now, there is another view, which states, in aramaic the word for rope was similar to camel, and even that does not change the meaning. There are other semitic sources (talmud, koran, proverbs) that have a camel, or elephant, travel the needle that are similar to the example given by Christ. Perhaps, Jesus meant what he said.

So, when such a false story is given, there is not often, allowed or allotted, the response so as to suggest the statement stands. So a teacher, or presenter, can be opened to be steered to the truth, or resistant, so as to continue course. There are good questions, there are stupid questions and there are bad questions.

Ensign, Hoekstra, Palin: A study of the Republican

2009-06-19T21:33:00.005-04:00

Now, I contend that nearly, every committed, partisan Republican is demented. This is a severe judgment, the only other judgment, that, the evidence suggests is that they’re hypocritical, duplicitous, miscreants. I wanted to rest these arguments, but this week three ugly heads arose Cerberus like, to remind us all of the unending tonnage of crazy there exists in their store of barrels.

Sarah Palin does not want to be out of the headlines. She began a campaign to blacklist David Letterman. She is an opportunist, a thin skinned hypocrite, and a true bitch. Letterman told an unpleasant joke. Palin has one unmarried daughter, with a bastard child of an athlete, Letterman was referring to her. Palin mounted a campaign, that Letterman, referred to another, younger daughter.

Letterman is employed by CBS. The Bushes had Dan Rather’s scalp in continuous site, and eventually got that scalp from CBS. Palin would enjoy that sort of coup, and so would her rabid admirers. Now, here is part of the hypocrisy: both Jay Leno and Conan O’Brien, each, made more than twice as many jokes about Palin’s daughter’s randiness, and there was no outrage. Saturday Night Live made a comment suggesting incest and Palin performed on that show. Palin has a history of vendettas, and a penchant to be filmed.

John Ensign is a senator from Nevada. He has admitted to an extra-marital, sexual affair. When Bill Clinton committed an infidelity, Ensign demanded Clinton’s scalp. These three facts, and actions, he shares in common with Larry Craig, and David Vitter. Craig retired after his term ended. Not one of the three resigned. Is this sort of hypocrisy a requirement to be a Republican senator?

Cornelius Peter Hoekstra is a Republican congressman from Michigan. On June 17th, he sent out an electronique mass communique:

Iranian twitter activity similar to what we did in House last year when Republicans were shut down in the House.

A website, http://petehisameme.wordpress.com/, formerly HoekstraIsAMeme.com., has collected new examples of his rhetorical device, perhaps the best are:

I burned my finger this morning on a hot plate, now I know how Joan of Arc felt.
My softball game was rained out today. Now I know what Hurricane Katrina felt like.

This rhetorical device, they define thusly:

To Hoekstra is to whine using grandiose exaggerations and comparisons.

Pete has said other stupid things. He, also, promised to serve no more than twelve years as a congressman; he passed that mark over four years ago. He had replaced the bloviating Guy Vander Jagt who spent twenty-six years. Hoekstra, three years ago, discovered five hundred, imaginary, chemical weapons in Iraq. Two years ago, Pete found imaginary, nuclear weapons in Iran.

Corpus Christi Procession

2009-06-11T00:01:00.008-04:00

Corpus Christi existed before the city in Tejas. Corpus Christi is the body of Christ, it is the Sacrament. Holy Thursday, the day of the Last Supper, was the initiation of Corpus Christ and the Sacrament.

It's introduction as a feast was initiated by the urging of St. Juliana of Mont Cornillon and Liège, whom impressed Robert de Thorete, then Bishop of Liège. At that time, bishops could initiate feasts within their diocese. Robert did so in 1246, he died soon thereafter, before the first celebration. Jacques Pantaléon was, at that time, Archdeacon of Liège.

The Bull, Transiturus, was issued in 1264 by Pope Urban IV, whom had been previously Jacques Pantaléon; he died soon thereafter. The feast was extended to the whole latin church. Urban had St. Thomas Aquinas compose a new office for the feast. The songs, Lauda Sion, Sacris Solemniis (which includes, Panis angelicus), Pange lingua gloriosi (which inludes, Tantum ergo) are from Thomas for this day. Another communion hymn of his is Adoro Te Devote.

Even before the changes in celebrations, of the last generation, the US moved this celebration to the Sunday next. It is a public holiday in several lands. It is one of those catholic holidays that disturb the convenience of tourists and commerce.

Soon after introduction, outdoor, theophoric processions became common, and spread to many countries. Of course, with the suppression that came with the triumph of the protestant rebellions, and the imposition of state heresy, such public demonstrations in regard to the faith were absent in several lands. But, to-day with societal apathy being the more pronounced, such public, outdoor processions are an opportunity of evangelisation. People may notice, “Oh, the catholics are having some sort of parade, or something.”

Traditionally the feast is on a thursday, but the procession does not have to be. Since it is a movable holiday, it can fall about 13 June, Saint Anthony of Padua and Lisbon. Saint Anthony is a rightly, popular figure. It has so happened that, adjacent parishes have had, both processions on the same day. What does the bewildered stranger, or unbeliever think?
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noto bene: last year, I had another essay.

Bling and Ferguson

2009-06-10T00:01:00.002-04:00

‘Bling bling’ [or ‘bling’ for short] was a term used in a ‘rap’ number by the Cash Money Millionaires (Christopher Dorsey, aka, BG), in 1999, and perhaps, previously by the Silvertones, from Jamaica . It quickly joined the national lexicon, and international lexicon (OED in 2003). At first it was familiar to a certain youth culture, but since it so aptly described an actuality it spread, to the snarky disdain of the clued-in hip.

Bling refers to the shine and clink of ostentatious, extravagant and garish jewelry and ornamentation of the ‘gangsta’ culture and its imitators. Once seen, easily remembered. Perhaps, it is the most well known, and understandingly used, and transferred term of that subculture. Bling is ugly, loud and expensive; well serving its raison d’être.

Its perfection in portrayal of absurd reality strikingly came to me in response to two pieces of filming: in the film, Brother Sun, Sister Moon, about Saint Francis, there is a scene, in church, where the rich citizens wear expensive, colorful, and for the most part, beautiful costumes, but about there necks hang huge, bejewelled squares, and away from them―the poor in rags. This bling is the sign of station, without any practical use BUT identification; the other one: Craig Ferguson and crew in lip synchronisation to Fatboy Slim’s, It’s a wonderful night, had a chorus of animal hand puppets wearing bling about their necks. Bling is an advertisement of ugly and unnecessary wealth. This is easily seen by saints and jesters, but not by the ambitious, or those desirous of society’s acceptance.

To diverge on a tangent: Ferguson is in a public niche of his own. He can barely, at times, conceal his knowledge behind buffoonery. In his comedic monologue he once, self-consciously, mentioned reformation history. On one show he mentioned, knowingly, Aristotle and, then later, Picasso. In interview he brought up Aquinas, and in another, Augustine, for questions. I do not know what his past schooling and reading has been, but at least some of it was academically significant. On american, commercial, network broadcasting such references might be unique. These are topics, occasionally, mentioned on public radio and television, and are, therefore, anathema to many.

He needs to fill airtime. He has been employing puppets for humor, and they are funny. Ed Sullivan had Topo Gigo act in a similar rôle, and Señor Wences.

Ferguson reuses several set lines and pieces for familar comic effect: he will remind you, that, “your cat will eat you when you die”; that all dogs speak like Scooby Doo and George Jetson’s Astro; on maps Narnia always borders the place in question; that the glorious land of Scotland is on the northern part of an island, that has the insignificant England beneath her; that all non-anglo, teutonic peoples speak vit dah zame accent, und haf a schared fetisch; Craig portrays himself as sexually ambiguous; and it’s a great day for America, everybody (as he hits the camera).

A police attack

2009-06-09T11:06:00.003-04:00

There was the Rodney King incident in California where four cops had batting practice. The officers escaped court justice and a brutal riot took place in Los Angeles. Rodney King was a troubled character, none-the-less he was brutalised by police. The anger and frustration exploded in senseless group criminal action. Some primarily, remember the reaction, the riot, and forget the action, police license unconditional to attack. King was fleeing and had a previous record. The possible existence of police brutality was not considered, by the american public, for some time. The jury involved, effectively, denied it. Some people believed, that oh yes, it existed, and there was no penalty.

In Passaic, New Jersey, a man, described as mentally defective and peaceful, was assaulted by a thug, on 29 May 2009. The thug was a uniformed, on duty, member of the local police force, Joseph R. Rios III. Now, we live in a society that has surveillance cameras in abundance. After some time of beating, passerbys witness the action. Often, such future testimony is suppressed, and an active search is not done, unless to scare off witnesses. The camera cannot be pressured, destroyed yes, lost yes. But, since the camera was visible, and assumingly within the repeated path of the police, one would think there was cognition of its existence and function.

Ronnie Holloway, aged 49, is standing on the curb of an intersection. A police car stops. A female cop tells/instructs/orders/commands/asks? him to zip up his jacket. As he does so, the other cop, comes up from behind and begins the attack. Now, at this point one should stop and think. Why does the first cop tell Holloway to adjust his clothing? Is there any known dress code that is enforceable, in New Jersey? One is often reminded that in strict moslem societies there are. Are police free to invent laws? Or is it meant to occupy and distract Holloway, so as the other cop has a clear and free shot to pummel Holloway?

Holloway was thrown into a cell for the night to heal. He was charged with resisting arrest. The surveillance camera shows no resistance of any kind, there has not been noted a word, that, Holloway may have said. Clearly, it is the routine and nonsensical charge that blankets false arrests. The auxiliary charge of disorderly conduct is similar, and was tagged on. The victim was also charged with the even vaguer, and mind reading, charge of “wandering for the purpose of obtaining controlled dangerous substances.” Does Passaic not have an ordinance of failing to comply with a lawful order? Oh, he was zipping up his jacket.

Mister Holloway’s defense is that walking is his chief pastime. Oh, what these wild youth do for kicks. This has been reported to be Holloway’s first legal trouble. The police do not want to talk to the press, or the world about this.

There are always people to defend the most outrageous, stupid and vicious police actions. Many of these people will decry the laxness of punishment for criminals. One standard for one group, another standard for another is not equal justice for all.

Trinity Sunday, First after Pentecost

2009-06-07T00:01:00.009-04:00

Domenico Fetti. Parable of the Mote and the Beam. 1619. New York City.

Estote ergo misericordes sicut et Pater vester misericors est. Nolite judicare, et non judicabimini: nolite condemnare, et non condemnabimini. Dimitte, et dimittemini. Date, et dabitur vobis: mensuram bonam, et confertam, et coagitatam, et supereffluentem dabunt in sinum vestrum. Eadem quippe mensura, qua mensi fueritis, remetietur vobis. Dicebat autem illis et similitudinem: Numquid potest cæcus cæcum ducere? nonne ambo in foveam cadunt? Non est discipulus super magistrum: perfectus autem omnis erit, si sit sicut magister ejus. Quid autem vides festucam in oculo fratris tui, trabem autem, quæ in oculo tuo est, non consideras? aut quomodo potes dicere fratri tuo: Frater, sine ejiciam festucam de oculo tuo: ipse in oculo tuo trabem non videns? Hypocrita, ejice primum trabem de oculo tuo: et tunc perspicies ut educas festucam de oculo fratris tui.

Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful. Judge not: and you shall not be judged. Condemn not: and you shall not be condemned. Forgive: and you shall be forgiven.Give: and it shall be given to you: good measure and pressed down and shaken together and running over shall they give into your bosom. For with the same measure that you shall mete withal, it shall be measured to you again. And he spoke also to them a similitude: Can the blind lead the blind? Do they not both fall into the ditch? The disciple is not above his master: but every one shall be perfect, if he be as his master. And why seest thou the mote in thy brother's eye: but the beam that is in thy own eye thou considerest not? Or how canst thou say to thy brother: Brother, let me pull the mote out of thy eye, when thou thyself seest not the beam in thy own eye? Hypocrite, cast first the beam out of thy own eye: and then shalt thou see clearly to take out the mote from thy brother's eye. — Luke vi. 36-42. DRC

Now, the first three Gospels are called synoptic, in being similarly comprehensive. A gospel reading from to-day, and the week, in the old rite, is from Luke; compare the beginning, of the third part, of the sermon on the mount from Matthew’s Gospel vii. 1-5:

Judge not, that you may not be judged. For with what judgment you judge, you shall be judged: and with what measure you mete, it shall be measured to you again. And why seest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye; and seest not the beam that is in thy own eye? Or how sayest thou to thy brother: Let me cast the mote out of thy eye; and behold a beam is in thy own eye? Thou hypocrite, cast out first the beam out of thy own eye, and then shalt thou see to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.

The Mote and the Beam would be a cute name for a public house (saloon) somewhere. Vision and perception can be disturbed after drinking. Tunnel vision is a form of myopia. Selectively criticising is also myopic, and hypocritical, as it employs discrepant standards, or as kids in the schoolyard have it--rubber and glue.

Charity and humility are called for, and this will bring mercy to you. How does God behave? How do you, or I, behave?

Fetti was employed by the cardinal, and later Duke of Mantua, Fernando Gonzaga. For him he painted thirteen illustrations of parables, for his studiola (cabinet room), for contemplation. In the one supra, both men are pointing to the other’s eye. The series proved popular, Fetti’s workshop made several copies as did others. Several of Fetti’s parable paintings are together in Dresden, along with some Fetti’s Old Testament scenes.
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last year's essay on the first Gospel reading

A second Sysack sign

2009-06-06T14:33:00.005-04:00

To-day I see that Harry (Russell Sysack) has another sign. Sometimes one is surprised at his chosen targets. He gives his opinion on "conservative talk radio & the liberal tv news media". On a few he splits the arrow. He is scatologically correct on Bennett, Hannity and Limbaugh.

An incident in Collinwood:

2009-06-05T20:28:00.007-04:00

A lesson in urban geography and sociology:
It has been reported, yesterday evening, in the local Cleveland news, the ending of a crime campaign in a Collinwood neighborhood. Seventeen houses were broken into, and seemingly all done by a thirteen year old, eighth grader. All the houses targeted were between the tracks of the old New York Central (now Amtrak and Conrail) and the Norfolk and Western railroads, from Saranac to Mandalay Avenues. The northeast terminus was Spellacy junior high school. St. Clair Avenue splits the territory in half. The northerly half is about Saint Mary's, and the southerly about Holy Reedemer, churches. The two areas had been pre-dominately slovene, and pre-dominately italian. It was a rough, working class neighborhood in its vibrant days, and not particularly welcoming to anyone.

Now, it must be understood that Cleveland had been very segmented by turf, very much the Chicago model in patterns of settlement distribution. Before the first world war, there was very few negroes in the city. During the second world war matters changed. In the 1950s and ’60s black migration from the southern states became very significant. From an area around Central Avenue black population expanded on the east side. Formerly white neighborhoods became black quickly.

There was resentment, and there still is. The general sociological, economic, and political events that took place in the US, and especially what happened to the industrial, now rust belt, was quite true for Cleveland.

Banks, and the normal mortgage companies, did not want to deal with the blacks. They had to have some quarters. Previously, for the negroes who worked on the trains, the railroad owned houses, and this was prior the big migration. So other than tenamentised apartments owned by landlords, there came housing contracts, in which the new owners, and the old neighbors were badly treated. Blacks would ‘buy’ houses at, even, a multiple of their old worth. To keep these houses, they often, had to make each payment on time, or the house would be forfeit. So, in response the houses would often be overcrowded, and not kept in repair. These unscrupulous blockbusters, made much money as they, destroyed neighborhoods. They would buy low, after the initial entrance, and sell high and collect, and often recollect. Sometimes they would double as lawyers, accountants and realtors, not always transparently.

It became apparent to white residents, that, blacks would ruin a neighborhood. At the current time, there are twenty one wards in Cleveland; wards one to ten have been (virtually) all black for most of this time. Ward 11, in the northeast corner of the city, is most of Collinwood. Wards 1 through 10 have always had black councilmen.* Ward 11 has a white councilmen, Mike Polensek. He has been a councilman for nearly a generation†. For a short time the barrier to black settlement was at East 140th Street, it fell as did others. East 152nd Street held as a barrier, it also fell; but the area west of 152nd has been virtually all black for a generation, the area east still has some white residents.

Two summers ago it came public, that Polensek had been writing angry letters to black, juvenile, criminals, whom were engaging in crime in Collinwood, and lived outside of Collinwood. For a couple of days he was called a racist. Well, all these break-ins happened in Ward 11, in the area bounded by East 152nd, Spellacy (that is another tale of urban geography and politics within itself), and the two railroads. The burglar has not been publicly identified. He is a resident in Polensek’s ward.

This is emblematic of a lot of the resentment white people, here often white ethnic groups, have for black people, and especially black juveniles. Here it has not been stated, his race or name, which, by past practice, highly suggests his race. The remaining, often elderly, some immigrants from the old country, have felt besieged and endangered for decades; for when the neighborhood changes, the new residents, especially, the young have no respect for the old. Blacks often find this as fuel for their resentments.

This is part of the scenery, along with declining job opportunities for all residents in the area, the demographics, the family patterns, racial attitudes, the busing and desegregation of the public schools in 1975, the riots in 1966 and 1968. Both, black and white, have been victims of bad economics. Blacks have suffered from their american experience in totality, and white clevelanders (and others) have suffered from the resultant black sociology.
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*prior to 1982 there were 33 wards, soon there will be 19
†a generation is 33 years, three in a century. Polensek has been in council since 1977.

Value of olive boughs

2009-06-02T13:58:00.009-04:00

We live in the now, the Bible was written in the then. I propose, and not alone, that, time flows from the past to the now, and not vice versa. It is extremely irksome, when someone interprets biblical passages backwards from modern understandings, and then uses that as premise to a conclusion. This is dishonest and logically false. This is a principle (past→now) that should hold! [not: ∵now→past∴now] Now, to use a biblical passage as a prologue to a current situation, I propose, is fair. Concentrating on two phrases, “portans ramum olívæ”* and “non succídes arbores”† (carrying an olive branch, and by no means cut down trees), I will apply, to current situations.

At a meeting, last night, one of the participants said, “Let’s offer an olive branch.”. In agreement, I responded, “Olive branches are cheap”, meaning as a gesture, and action, it is both easy, and if successful, efficacious. Now, Noë knew, this meant that God was appeased, sufficiently, so that man could return to the land. After this God sealed the peace with the appearance of the rainbow. The dove with the bough of olive, and the rainbow have been signs of peace.

Not being familiar with semitic languages, I will continue none-the-less, the equivalent of ‘non succídes’ is bal tashchit (do not destroy). For some, this takes on an environmental stewardship command. Truly, in many respects: pollution, desertification, urban sprawl, climate change..., this is an operant, and valid concept.

This biblical passage from the Books of Moses, prohibits military destruction of fruitful trees. The trees are non-combatants. Also, after the battles are done, and presumably peace arrives, the destruction lasts for many years, continuing the aggression into the supposed peace.

Still to-day in occupied Palestine, agriculture is a goodly portion of the economic base. Olives are the second highest export. Olive wood carvings are sold the world around, often with the buyers sentimentality in being connected with the Holy Land. Olive trees live in poor soil, and dry climate, and take many years to produce a good crop, and can live for centuries—a very good plant. They provide oil for soap, for fuel, for cooking, for church purposes. Olives as food are preserved for later use.

In the current troubles stemming from the Intifada, the destruction of the olive tree has been policy by the Israeli military and bandits. The first year, 2000, 374,030 trees‡ were destroyed. This has continued. The creation of the apartheid walls, serpenting Palestine, destroy groves, and deny access to remaining trees. It is ongoing. “Jewish settlers ”, amongst other acts, cut and burned olive trees at the beginning of this week.

As the lebanese have had the cedar as a national symbol and attachment, so have the palestinian arabs the olive. As in the 19th century american plains buffalo (bison) were slaughtered by army and settlers, so as to starve and destroy the indians, this is premeditated policy.
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*At illa venit ad eum ad vésperam, portans ramum olívæ viréntibus fóliis in ore suo: intelléxit ergo Noë quod cessássent aquæ super terram.
And she came to him in the evening, carrying a bough of an olive tree, with green leaves, in her mouth. Noe therefore understood that the waters were ceased upon the earth. — Genesis viii. 11.
†Quando obséderis civitátem multo témpore, et munitiónibus circumdéderis ut expúgnes eam, non succídes árbores, de quibus vesci potest, nec secúribus per circúitum debes vastáre regiónem : quóniam lignum est, et non homo, nec potest bellántium contra te áugere númerum.
When thou hast besieged a city a long time, and hath compassed it with bulwarks to take it, thou shalt not cut down the trees that may be eaten of, neither shalt thou spoil the country round about with axes: for it is a tree, and not a man, neither can it increase the number of them that fight against thee. — Deuteronomy xx. 19.
‡Palestinian Ministry of Agriculture figures

what is a talent?

2009-06-01T00:01:00.009-04:00

Now, I can think of ten parables without thumbing books. I would say about four everyone would list (The Good Shepherd, The Good Samaritan, The Prodigal Son, Poor Lazarus [or as the english say, Dives and Lazarus]). There is a parable of the ten talents. What does it mean? The first logical question is--what is a talent? [if you have followed this journal, you may notice there is no illustration]

Now, the way we understand 'talent' is that of aptitude of ability, or gift. That meaning has been interpolated from a parable of Jesus. At that time it had no such meaning. A thousand years later, it still did not. What meaning it did have for centuries before, was that of mass and weight [of money]. There was no one coin, and the exact number and composition of coin changed. There is ambiguity.

The minimum is three thousand shekels, at times--six thousand. These shekels could be silver, or they could be gold. Gold is worth more than silver. (The US used to have silver dollars, a comparable sized gold coin, was a double eagle, twenty dollars [both about 90% true]. At the end of the 19th century, a major political issue was the failed demand to return to the old ratio, between silver and gold, at 16:1.) Saint Jerome understood a talent to be ten thousand gold shekels.

Now, what was a shekel? One shekel was a tetradrachma (four drachmas). One drachma was equal to one denarius. One denarius or drachma was a day's wage.*

There are 365 days in a year. There is no work to be done on the sabbath, there are 52 sabbaths a year. There are some holidays where no work is done. Roughly three hundred work days a year for the fully employed. How many days did the average non slave work?

The maximum a laborer would make per annum would be 300 denarii. A roman soldier's salary was less than 300 denarii. The smallest talent is 12,000 denarii silver (the largest 40,000). It would take 40 years of full employment, to equal wages, of one talent. The average life expectancy was less than 40 years. The probability of a servant (read slave) or laborer to have created a talent approached zero.

Jesus' audience were the poor. They would never see a talent, certainly not have one. A talent was a fortune, because of what a talent means to-day, the operative word would be akin to fortune, or a million (or a bazillion) dollars. What master would trust a servant with that, while he was away, for an unspecified time? What servant would stay?

But he that had received the one talent, came and said: Lord, I know that thou art a hard man; thou reapest where thou hast not sown, and gatherest where thou hast not strewed. And being afraid I went and hid thy talent in the earth: behold here thou hast that which is thine. And his lord answering, said to him: Wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sow not, and gather where I have not strewed: Thou oughtest therefore to have committed my money to the bankers, and at my coming I should have received my own with usury. -- Matthew xxv. 24-27.

The servant accuses, and the man admits, that he is a 'hard man'. This hard man 'reaps and gathers' where he neither 'sown nor strewed'. He takes profits where he never worked, is that not a damning statement? He then abuses his fearful servant. The servant is told, that he, should have engaged in usury. Usury was forbidden by religious law.

Now, we know of some current american exegeses of this passage, and now, there are four legitimate gospels. The prosperity gospel, the gospel according to Milton Friedman, the gospel of Adam Smith, and the gospel of Harvard Business School are not them. What those, who, heard Jesus spake knew this 'lord' could not be G*d. To suggest that would have been blasphemy. Perhaps, the parable is one of the hard sayings of Jesus. He did want people to think, consider and ruminate. Or perhaps some, people of to-day, form their ideas into their interpretations. Perhaps one ought to read the fathers and doctors of the church, and not parrot the charlatans on television, or the mouthfoamers on the radio.

Under the old rite this parable, there are some 33, was not read at mass. To-day it is in cycle A, the 33rd week of ordinary time, and in the shorter form the portion quoted is not read.
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*And having agreed with the labourers for a penny a day, he sent them into his vineyard.
conventione autem facta cum operariis ex denario diurno misit eos in vineam suam -- Matthew xx. 2.
confer: the householder, here who, hired labourers for the vineyard, with this 'hard man'.
noto bene: a shekel was multi-thousand, also legion was multi-thousand. In the roman army, a legion was four to six thousand.
And he asked him: What is thy name? And he saith to him: My name is Legion, for we are many.--Mark v. 9.
And Jesus asked him, saying: What is thy name? But he said: Legion. Because many devils were entered into him.--Luke viii. 30.

La Pucelle, Sainte Jeanne d’Arc

2009-05-30T00:01:00.013-04:00

Thérèse de Lisieux portraying Jeanne d’Arc

Many are the images of this french teenager. She, that saved France from the anglais, and was so treacherously, dastardly, wickedly and cruelly martyred by her captors. Two centuries later, even Shakespeare blasphemed her. But again and again, she inspired France.

We have always lived in a biased world. It is nearing six hundred years from time she walked the world. One can say, that, it was just an episode of mediæval dynastic war, perhaps a bit more interesting than most, but apparently, immediately after her initial public appearance, her presence was real celebrity. Quickly, the english were unnerved, apoplectic and desperate. Agincourt was not in the distant past. Most of non-burgundian France was either occupied by [or in proximately pending] the english. France would be as Poland in the century prior the first world war. The french nation would exist, but the state gone. France was desperate

Even in doing the most un-christian, and anti-christian acts, people thought in christian terms. The english had a remarkable reversal. Either God, or the devil conspired against England, and the agent was Jeanne. The english needed to demonize Jeanne, otherwise they were damned.

Charles VII, the french king, who owed his crown to Jeanne was despicably aloof and negligent. The burgundians, who captured Jeanne, were avaricious. Jeane was sold by the burgundians to the english, for the price of king, a king’s ransom, ₤ 10,000.

The trial and conditions under which she was held were illegal and criminal, and everyone, whom, brought this up was either, ignored, dismissed, dispatched and endangered. The english wanted her tried as a witch, no evidence was available. She was to be tried as an heretic. Her persecutor in charge was Peter (no longer Pierre) Cauchon, the bishop driven from Beauvais, and desirous of Rouen, a lackey of Cardinal Winchester. Cauchon had not jurisdiction, but ambition. Winchester was the wealthiest, and most powerful, man in England. He was uncle to the regents of England, and the occupied possessions in France. Jeanne had no chance to survive. Michelet wrote, “Never were the Jews filled with such hatred against Jesus as the English against the Maid.” The english wanted her shamed, recanting and burnt.
an idealised martial statue

“Jeanne’s mission was on the surface warlike, but it really had the effect of ending a century of war, and her love and charity were so broad, that they could only be matched by Him who prayed for His murderers.” ― Arthur Conan Doyle, who translated a french biography of our heroine in 1924.

People have found in Jehanne, or presented, what they want. She is used for noble purposes, and base. She is loved and respected; and she is used to promote inanities. There have come out theories concerning her as varied as the causes of dinosaur extinction. Do not be so gullible to run with the next one that appears in the press.

Some great writers have fell in love with her: Schiller, Shaw, Twain. One of the best silent films ever made was that on her trial, La Passion de Jeanne d'Arc, directed by Carl Theodor Dreyer (1928). It was on her trial testimony, which the original is extant, that her strength, spirit and sanctity was shown. All the marvel and gallantry of her campaigns for France were not central. In her interrogations, she was caught by the church militant, the visible church, and she maintained that the church triumphant, the invisible church smiled on her. She was soldier and martyr. Her martyrdom trial confirmed her sanctity.

Michelet ends with:

A secretary of the king of England, as he returned, said aloud, “We are lost, we have burnt a saint.” ⚜⚜⚜

Sainte Jeanne
*Domremy ............1412
†Rouen..................1431
rehabilitated ..........1456
cause introduced 1869; Actor Causae: Félix A.P. Dupanloup, Bishop of Orléans
nulla osta...............1894
declared venerable 1904
beatified................1908
canonised..............1920

Are ‘pro-lifers’ pro-life?

2009-05-29T09:01:00.005-04:00

I was in conversation, with a friend, and he said, “capital punishment is euthanasia”. He was exactly right.

I have seen many people denounce abortion, and yet favor execution by the state, offensive and defensive war, torture, increasing poverty and gun proliferation. I have seen the same people object to government welfare programmes. They invent specious and vacuous arguments as premises, the academic logic is absent. Usually they ARE against assisted suicide and other sorts of euthanasia.

To be pro-life, one must be more than anti-abortion. Some of the intellectual divides are hard to make, others should be extremely easy. How can a moral person be for torture or elective war? They can not be, by definition.

Capital punishment can be just, when the crime is great enough, and the individual who is responsible is the one to be executed. The state has a judicial and political right to do so. Capital punishment is still death, it is a form of euthanasia. It has been applied haphazardly and unjustly often. It is not the christian response! It is pro-death.

Sometimes it is a choice of the lesser of two evils. I also belief in the just war theory. But, in modern war, increasingly, just war does not approach the thresholds of justness. Modern war is, primarily, the killing of non-combatants. In bushjr’s iraq war people LIED, completely, about it being a ‘just war’, when it only was just war for the purpose of war, and of course the whole thing was based on lies.

― To be pro-choice on abortion is to be pro-death.
― To be pro-war is to be pro-death.
― To be pro-euthanasia is to be pro-death.
― To be pro-capital punishment is to be pro-death.
― Capital punishment is euthanasia.
― To be pro-torture is to be pro-death.
― Gun proliferation is pro-death.
― Extending poverty is pro-death.
― Drug abuse and its black market is pro-death.
― O, yes many, many people are pro-death.

Killing is never good. Some may say, some killing is more egregious than others, and some killing is not so bad. I will agree, that, some is more senseless, and more cruel. All killing is bad. People have a right to self-defense, but killing is still evil.

To-day, is Shavous, the pentecost of the hebrews, fifty days after Passover. Shavous is the day Moses received the Ten Commandments. One commandment is “Thou shalt not kill.” The command is not modified, nor conditional.

It is simple. To be pro-life is to be anti-death, to be pro-death is to be anti-life. There is nothing being justified. No killing, do not engage in killing, “Thou shalt not kill.” To say: this killing is acceptable....this killing is good... this killing is unacceptable... this killing is bad... is being pro-choice, it is making selections at the life and death cafeteria. People who call themselves “pro-choice” are some times pro-life on this fetus, and some time pro-death on that one. A person who is truly, pro-life has a catholic consistency, he does not pick and choose, and reject entrées, so as to be a cafeteria pro-lifer.

These and other acts are all pro-death. I believe in consistency. I disdain double standards. I believe in christian mercy and clemency.

If one is TRULY pro-life, he must be broadly pro-life, not narrowly and selectively. “Pro-choice” people are narrowly and selectively pro-abortion, or pro-life on pregnancies.

I know, when people say “pro-life”, they mean anti-abortion, sometimes exclusively. Honestly, they are two different terms, in which “pro-life” is inclusive of the other, and being inclusive, is the broader, and therefore, should be recognised as such.

If one is only speaking of abortion, then one is either pro-abortion, or anti-abortion. Pro-life and pro-choice are not logical, twin, diametrically, opposite alternatives. When there is one issue and two views, one must be pro and the other con (or anti). Having two ‘pros’ is debate trickery, it is a falsity. I have argued what ‘pro-life’ is; ‘pro-choice’ is only a cover for pro-abortion, it is duplicitous.

I am pro-life and anti-abortion, or anti-abortion and pro-life! One is not pro-life, in actuality, if they are ONLY anti-abortion. In our recent christian past, Mother Teresa of Calcutta, Pope John Paul the Great, Joseph Bernardin*, and Oscar Romero were genuinely, consistently pro-life.
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noto bene: this was a continuation, of a point of the last essay.
*Joseph Cardinal Bernardin gave the Gannon lecture at Fordham, on 6 December 1983. “The spectrum of life cuts across the issues of genetics, abortion, capital punishment, modern warfare and the care of the terminally ill.”

Obama's pick for Justice, Republicans, abortion

2009-05-26T16:29:00.006-04:00

“The essence of being a Republican is the belief in free markets, the belief in individual responsibility, the belief in the faith of the individual. This is what our party is about.” -- Eric Cantor, on whether there can be pro-abortion Republican candidates. -- reported 14 May
***
Republican party chairman, Michael Steele: The choice issue cuts two ways. You can choose life, or you can choose abortion. You know, my mother chose life. So, you know, I think the power of the argument of choice boils down to stating a case for one or the other.

Q by Lisa DePaulo. March 11, 2009 : Are you saying you think women have the right to choose abortion?
Michael Steele: Yeah. I mean, again, I think that’s an individual choice.
...
Q: You do?
Michael Steele:Yeah. Absolutely.

Q:Do pro-choicers have a place in the Republican Party?
Michael Steele: Absolutely!

Q: How so?
Michael Steele: You know, Lee Atwater said it best: We are a big-tent party. We recognize that there are views that may be divergent on some issues, but our goal is to correspond, or try to respond, to some core values and principles that we can agree on.
***
“A vacancy on the Supreme Court. This is something we haven't seen in awhile. Let's just hope the president is better at picking a justice than the justices were at picking a president.” --Jay Leno. 1 May

I do not wish to constantly revisit this topic. I am a catholic. I am a democrat. I am pro-life. I am anti-abortion. I have maintained that the distinguishing principle of the Republican party is hypocrisy. I also maintain, that, many so called pro-life, or anti-abortion, Republicans are only Republicans. President Obama has been reflexively attacked by catholic Republicans, including the episcopacy over this. Now, with the following two additional facts, we may see which master they [catholic Republicans] serve.

I lifted this directly from the Wikipedia to-day:

In Center for Reproductive Law and Policy v. Bush[40], Sotomayor upheld the Bush administration's implementation of the "Mexico City Policy" which requires foreign organizations receiving U.S. funds to "neither perform nor actively promote abortion as a method of family planning in other nations". Sotomayor held that the policy did not constitute a violation of equal protection, as the government "is free to favor the anti-abortion position over the pro-choice position, and can do so with public funds".[41]

I lifted this directly from christianitytoday.com to-day:

In 2004, she ruled that a group of clinic protesters could proceed with its suit.
Ted Olsen | May 26, 2009 9:30AM

In 1989, members of Amnesty America entered an abortion clinic in West Hartford, Connecticut, chained themselves together, and blocked the entrance. When police arrived, the protesters used passive resistance to continue their protest (among their techniques: covering their hands in maple syrup to make handcuffs less useful).

The police dragged the protesters out anyway, and Amnesty America members sued, saying several of them suffered lasting physical damage from the police officers' actions (among the claims: an officer rammed a protester's head into a wall).

A district court issued a summary judgment for the town of West Hartford, but Sotomayor's Second Circuit Court of Appeals vacated the judgment and sent it back to the lower court for a jury trial.

"It is entirely possible that a reasonable jury would find, as the district court intimated, that the police officers' use of force was objectively reasonable given the circumstances and the plaintiffs' resistance techniques," Sotomayor wrote. "Because a reasonable jury could also find that the officers gratuitously inflicted pain in a manner that was not a reasonable response to the circumstances, however, the determination as to the objective reasonableness of the force used must be made by a jury following a trial."

Sotomayor also warned the group that its lawyer was unprofessional. He "has hardly acted as an effective advocate for his clients by presenting briefs so haphazardly prepared that they contain almost no legal argument," she wrote. His behavior was so bad, she wrote that, "we would be within our discretion to summarily dismiss this appeal. We opt, however, to consider the merits of this appeal because plaintiffs' claims are substantial enough to merit a trial, and declining to consider this appeal would unfairly penalize plaintiffs for Williams's failings as an advocate."

Pro-lifers seem unimpressed by the decision. "Though not concerning abortion policy directly, the case is viewed as a stand against free speech for pro-life advocates," says a briefing at LifeNews.com. Eh? It's hard to see the decision as anything but a good thing for this particular pro-life group. The question is more about how large the decision's implications are.

President Barack Obama was attacked for having the temerity to speak at Notre Dame. He spoke of a common ground. The Republicans were against any selection Mr. Obama was going to make for the Supreme Court, they were preparing, at least, since the announcement of justice Souter retiring. We will now see, how they will react to, or merely attack Sonia Sotomayor. It is, certainly within the realm of possibility, that Ms. Sotomayor is not in favor of abortion. It is to be remembered that Alito and Roberts were evasive on the issue, and that bushjr stated, that, he had no idea, whether Miers had an opinion. Also note: I have not seen, or expect logical continuity, or coherence, or consistency, or one to one correspondence, concerning Republicans’ words, or words and deeds.

Ventura body slams mouthfoamers

2009-05-20T13:43:00.003-04:00

Jesse Ventura became known to America as a television wrestler and loudmouth. He became a political figure, first as a mayor and then as a successful, third party candidate for Minnesota governor. He defeated the loser Coleman, and Hubert Humphrey’s son. He made the national media notice by some controversial statements.

Well, recently he has been promoting a book. I have seen three segments of television, where he is not promoting the book, but fighting for the honor of the nation. He has, in succession, verbally defeated three, rabid mouthfoamers. Their logic is wretched, their enthusiasm is dogged. Mr. Ventura makes the honest and rational argument, that, torture is illegal, immoral and ineffective. Elisabeth Hasselbeck, Brian Kilmeade and Sean Hannity advocated for the devil, and could not speak calmly, honestly or rationally. Kilmeade, an individual I was blissfully unaware of, was extremely repugnant toward Ventura, and eventualy fled his own show in a fit of pique, and defeat.

Mr. Ventura was a navy veteran, with highly specialised training. He was a SEAL. Kilmeade, in effect, called him a coward and a traitor. Ventura has repeatedly identified Cheney's motive and lies. ‘Enhanced interrogation’ is an obfuscation, an insidious, invented synonym for torture. The bully, Hannity (practically admitted he was a bully that could not intimite Ventura), tried to get his false last words in again, and again. Mr. Ventura did not relinquish the ground to this villain.

Jesse Ventura has been painted, and has acted the entetaining fool, but he is telling the necessary truth. Those, who are trying to stifle him, all speak from the same, diabolic script. They do not interview, they interrogate.

Short shrift

2009-05-19T16:15:00.003-04:00

This term appears in Shakespeare's longest play, Richard III. Lord Hastings is to be executed, to his surprise, and these being christian people, the condemned is supposed to be allowed last rites for the benefit of his eternal soul. To be shriven is to use the sacrament of confession, hence 'Shrove Tuesday'. Hastings is being pressured first by Ratcliff, and then by Lovel to hurry up, and dispatch. Richard (Duke of Gloster) is hungry, presumably so are they, and he wants the beheading executed, so that, he can be nourished and satiated.

Lord Hastings. Woe, woe for England! not a whit for me;
For I, too fond, might have prevented this.
Stanley did dream the boar did raze his helm;
But I disdain'd it, and did scorn to fly:
Three times to-day my foot-cloth horse did stumble,
And startled, when he look'd upon the Tower,
As loath to bear me to the slaughter-house.
O, now I want the priest that spake to me:
I now repent I told the pursuivant
As 'twere triumphing at mine enemies,
How they at Pomfret bloodily were butcher'd,
And I myself secure in grace and favour.
O Margaret, Margaret, now thy heavy curse
Is lighted on poor Hastings' wretched head!

Sir Richard Ratcliff. Dispatch, my lord; the duke would be at dinner:
Make a short shrift; he longs to see your head.

Lord Hastings. O momentary grace of mortal men,
Which we more hunt for than the grace of God!
Who builds his hopes in air of your good looks,
Lives like a drunken sailor on a mast,
Ready, with every nod, to tumble down
Into the fatal bowels of the deep.

Lord Lovel. Come, come, dispatch; 'tis bootless to exclaim.

Lord Hastings. O bloody Richard! miserable England!
I prophesy the fearful'st time to thee
That ever wretched age hath look'd upon.
Come, lead me to the block; bear him my head.
They smile at me that shortly shall be dead.

[Exeunt] III. 4.

One of the characters, in the novel and movie, The Reader, speaks of the task in killing many people. One of the soldiers, the fellow speaking, sits down to smoke a cigarette, between dispatches. This bunch is done, and I take a smoke break, and then return to the job at hand. No thought of significance or morality, just the infringing annoyance preventing an ordinary enjoyment done several times a day.

"...It was in a quarry, and above the Jews and the soldiers there was an officer sitting on a ledge in the rock swinging his legs and smoking a cigarette. He looked a little morose. Maybe things weren't going fast enough for him. But there was also something satisfied, even cheerful about his expression, perhaps because the day's work was getting done and it was almost time to go home. He didn't hate the Jews. He wasn't..."

Evil is often banal. Consideration for a victim's life is trivial in comparison.

Harry X Sysack

2009-05-18T23:06:00.008-04:00

At a triangle of a lot, where Pearl and State meet, in the Old Brooklyn neighborhood of Cleveland, Ohio, there is a public library branch. Across the street, on Pearl there is a billboard four times as wide as it is high. It belongs to the artist, and libertarian looney, Russell Sysack. I believe he, himself, has been in business over forty years, the company [Harry X Sysack] longer, perhaps it is a family business. The library has plate glass windows facing the sign, the library places large posters on those windows.

Sysack exercises his art, the first amendment, and a bilious spleen. From time to time he displays a new work. I thought I would photograph his signs for years, I had thought. I had not. To-day, I saw he had put another one up. I thought over the years, people would have posted, on the internet, his previous signs. The current one was posted by a few people, a few other recent ones also, but far fewer than I'd expected. The current one, equating environmentalists with nazism, has made it onto a few, internet, message exchanges. The nazi party flag with a green background is not the first swastika he has painted, it is the first green one. He is not subtle!

He does not like politicians, especially Democrats, especially Edward Kennedy. He noted Teddy's death, earlier this year, yes Teddy is alive. Sysack was just relishing with bated anticipation. He does not like negro politicians, or any negroes, it seems. Many local celebrities he ridicules. The Catholic church, public education, NBC, and others he displays odium for. He does not mind being scatological in caricature or word. He uses vulgarity and obscenity. Occasionally, in the past, local television highlights a new sign. He has many targets. He claims to stand for the ravaged taxpayer, and the beleaguered, small business man. He is very provocative and mean spirited.

I remember one sign was hit with a couple of paintballs, but usually they are left completely alone, without defacement. Once, if I recall, the sign was hit by a vehicle, and once partly torched*. He used the initialism 'H.N.I.C.', and the words spelled out, in regards to two, competing, local, black politicians. That made the television news, a few get more tan passerby notice. The racial hatred, he indulges in, is what has unnerved people to complain and retaliate. It seemed for a long time, that, he was intimidated to stop. He came back.

He is a sort of evangelist. Many such nuts paint a vehicle, add speakers and proselytise their propaganda. Some owners of businesses place a sign with their editorial comment for the public to view. This clever fellow's mania is part of his trade. He engages his talent and business practice to spew forth. Are there such individuals in many towns? His theses echo a common script, of many of the angry white people, whom listen to mouthfoamer radio, and cable television. Harry(Russell) and company are more than town cranks, they believe they are powerless patriots and defenders of capitalism.
_____________________________
*one torching came in February 2002, Martin King was pictured with Osama as two type of terrorists. I am a bit vague of the details, someone must have photos.

Demjanjuk

2009-05-13T13:03:00.011-04:00

The current prosecution of John Demjanjuk has nothing to do with justice.

Inconvenient facts:

Sobibor was a concentration death camp, that was in existence for eighteen months during World War II. Approximately one hundred germans, and two hundred prisoners of war, formerly members of the soviet army (mostly ukrainians), operated the camp. Each and every german outranked each, every and all ukrainians, et alia. The ukrainians were prisoners of war. Prisoners of war do not create policy for their captors.

The germans have tried some of the geman personnel. The vast majority were either freed, or spent less time in prison than Demjanjuk had in Israel. The russians, under the USSR, tried some ukrainian guards, most were killed by the state under the imposed, death penalties.

Israel had Demjanjuk tried as Ivan Marchenko, a notorious guard at Treblinka's camp. There were eyewitnesses, Treblinka survivors, who testified, that, Demjanjuk was Marchenko.

Demjanjuk lived in Indiana, and then the Cleveland (Ohio) area, from 1952 to 1986, after which he was deported to Israel. In 1988 he was sentenced to death. In 1993 the Supreme Court found doubt, and he was returned to the US.

In the 1970s the US's Immigration service wanted Fedor Fedorenko, a former Treblinka guard, deported, and Demjanjuk's picture came up. In 1977 Demjanjuk was targeted for revocation of citizenship. This came to be a cause célèbre, that has not ended in the Cleveland area. A few hours ago the US had a plane carry Demjanjuk to Germany. He is now imprisoned in Munich.

[How to write the rest of this without being accused of being an anti-semite?] (I am not writing a dissertation, and am not going through old newspapers, so I am not researching each date.) Somewhere along the timeline CBS's 60 Minutes, gathered the evidence, witnesses, et cetera, to show that Marchenko was dead. Youngstown, Ohio area congressman James Trafficant (currently imprisoned) became involved in the case.

In Israel, the trial was a spectacle. A defense lawyer was attacked with acid, if I remember correctly. It was a show trial. It was propaganda. It was used to impress young israelis, and the outside world.

In Cleveland from 1977 on, though waning at each new chapter, sides were drawn. Vocal jews and zionists wanted centerstage. Some ukrainians counter demonstrated. The local news media followed attentively. It has again made the news. There is an absolute presumption of guilt by many, to whom this is new to, and the local media does not have to look far to present an angry, jewish voice.

What came out was--that, at some point in time, it came apparent to Israel, and the US, that Demjanjuk was innocent of the charges accused. Then the point became that none of that mattered. If he was not that Ivan, then he was another Ivan. Still now, the unrelenting arguments are to imprison, and try him. The past judicial mistakes are glossed over, denied, or equivocated away. The US's contention is, that, he lied in his documentation in 1951, therefore...

What is Germany's interest? Have they tried another ukrainian guard before? Is there an element of double jeopardy? What prompted Germany to prosecute, now?

Is there a word that we don't have, or my memory cant grasp? What word is there for the inability to abide, and allow to exist, someone that you want destroyed? an imperiousness of hauteur and hatred? a vindictive vengeance? an invincible spite? Perhaps english needs to borrow. There is a strong, german word for spite, ‘gehässig’. These instances do not occur only on a human level, but also, on an institutional level: the power of the state of its highest reluctance to admit error, its overweening desire, and feeling of intensive necessity to execute its will, regardless, irrespective and irrationally, but completely.
_________________
addendum: 14 May '09. This is not the only example. Don Siegelmann was the governor of Alabama. Karl Rove, and Republican lawyers and judges under his control, had him imprisoned. Since then, in March, a three judge panel threw out two charges. They permitted some of the rubbish. Now the busheviks want Siegelmann to receive an even, longer sentence. Justice has little place in the Justice Department, political vendettas and gehässiglich gall trump justice.

Perhaps, the foremost reason I detested the eight years of the imposed bushevik regime was its total disregard for the law, after all, it was not legally installed. Now, Obama and his attorney general Holder have the opportunity to uphold the Constitution and other laws. They have done little, not nothing, but little to this point. This is why it is is so ridiculous, that the anti-Democratic party holds so much venom for Obama and the Democracy.

Lying like Dick Cheney

2009-05-11T22:05:00.006-04:00

Occasionally, new words and phrases enter the language. Some are proverbial or axiomatic, they even become reflexive. A new one ought to be, lying like Dick Cheney. Darth Cheney will not stop. That permanent smirk announces, with a voice of invented, constant certitude, lies without end. He will carefully select where, and with whom, he speaks. He retracts nothing.

Remember, he told the first public lies that began the ginning up to war. Now, he spews constant diarrhœa cheering torture. Also remember, that another sobriquet for the Devil is the father of lies. He is truly evil.

Die Schuldfrage/The Question of Guilt

2009-05-04T15:11:00.005-04:00

In 1946, a professor of philosophy, at Heidelberg, lectured on guilt. That year a short book was published, Die schuldfrage : ein beitrag zur deutschen frage, The question of guilt: a contribution to the german question, which is usually rendered, The Question of German Guilt. Karl Jaspers had been a psychiatrist. After the first war, he became a philosopher. After 1933 and especially after 1938, life became difficult. Jaspers had married a jewess. After Dachau was established, he at any day, might become a resident, and his wife...

Jaspers was an existentialist, who was interested in christian mysticism, but did not believe in a personal God. He believed in a transcendence. As a psychiatrist, he studied delusion. As a man, he worried about the power of the modern world to crush men. He was an humanist. One can see how he would not have been a favorite of the fascists, then or now.

He wrote, and spoke, and by doing so ― questioned. There is guilt and liability, personal and collective, and there is responsibility. It is not sui generis, there is criminal, political, moral, and [he is a philosopher] metaphysical. Nuremberg had trials, at the time. The student in Germany must confront this in his culture and education.

Two of the recent award winning movies concerned this: The Reader, from a novel by Bernhard Schlink, and Frost/Nixon, from a play by Peter Morgan. In the former, Jaspers book, is specifically mentioned, at the beginning of a law seminar, as required reading. Several books are read from in the film, that one is not; but it is a thesis of the story. In the latter, there is an admission, by Nixon in an interview with Frost,“Well, when the president does it that means that it is not illegal.”* The ‘it’― that which, Mr. Frost posits, is something illegal. This is the old political theory, that, the sovereign is above the law; it is the opposite of that which is taught, in the american classroom, to children.

After Nixon’s resignation, his successor pardoned him. Gerald Ford lost the 1976 election, in part, due the anger of that move. Much of the nation believed and wanted a criminal trial. Some Republicans wanted revenge. Carter, Clinton and Obama are immaterial, any Democrat, thoroughly irregardless of thought, belief or deed will be attacked, even hysterically ― a priori.

Now, the germans must struggle with morality. The United States has no such compunction, or even scruples. A great deal is because of the essential, calvinist mythology developed here. Such americans, and the United States are uncondtionally, predestined for earthly glory; will not be damned: because, they cannot be; they need partake in no, personal atonement, it has been done for them by God; they can never lose this state. What this means, is they have absolute license and no culpability. History, even chronicles, are devoid of meaning and cannot instruct.

The german has to consider the burden of the nation’s fascist and nazi past. Certain routes of behavior are suspect, and cannot appear to be engaged in. In the United States of America there is a sizeable percentage of people, that will complain and accuse, and condemn the “blame America first crowd” and those citizens whom “hate America”. A german is required by the world to be moral, many americans, merely, and quickly sanctify every action.

Now, Nixon was wily, paranoid and vindictive. His Viet Nam policy and all the spying, dirty tricks and criminality that surrounded Watergate indicts him to history; but the man had a certain gravitas, he did do good things, he had diligence and he is better than any Republican who followed. Perhaps, the greatest evil he did was the promotion, from political oblivion, of GHW Bush, for his spawn, had none of the good qualities of Nixon, and did greater harm to the nation, and the world, in exceeding the degree of criminalities that Nixon invoked, caused and did do.

Just recently, Miss Rice, took a question at Stanford about busheviks and torture, she answered, “by definition, if it was authorized by the president, it did not violate our obligations under the Convention Against Torture.” Yesterday, she was asked, by a fourth grade elementary student a similar question. She responded, “So the president was only willing to authorize policies that were legal in order to protect the country.” She has a remarkable firmness in denial, she will not shake the party line. Those are just two incidents, but will the nation’s youth be undaunted in asking the questions, that, the press and the legal system are silent about?
__________________
*This was on the third televised program, seen 19 May 1977, in the story it is at the end.

Good Shepherd Sunday

2009-05-03T00:01:00.002-04:00

Statua del Buon Pastore. from Catacomb of Domitilla. 3rd C. Rome. Vatican.
In the extant catacombs of Rome there appears scores of frescoes, and many sarcophagi, with the image of the Good Shepherd. Some are from the first century, it is the oldest motif in depicting Jesus. It is funereal. It is metaphorical. The lamb about the neck and shoulders of Christ, is the soul of the deceased. The shepherd bears the soul to paradise, the sheep about Jesus are the souls already there. Note Jesus is beardless in early Rome.

These survivals, from the pre-toleration times of the empire, prove a christian iconography from almost ab ovo. They also run counter to the iconoclasm heresy of centuries later in the east, and a millennium later in the west. In all three years of the new liturgical cycle, to-day, the 4th Sunday of Easter, is Good Shepherd Sunday

The images [Good Shepherd] gave comfort, and taught the faith. The Montessorians, Sofia Cavalletti, and Gianna Gobbi, believed this seminal image spoke intuitively to the child. Jesus cares, and nurtures, and protects the small and young. They developed a programme, Catechesis of the Good Shepherd, to teach the young, the faith.

Saint Joseph the Worker, Our Patron

2009-05-01T00:01:00.007-04:00

Holy Family at work. Immaculate Conception. Cleveland, O.

The primary feast day of Saint Joseph is that of 19 March. In 1955, there was instituted, by Pius XII, the feast of Saint Joseph the Worker for the 1st of May. It replaced the Solemnity of St. Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary and Patron of the Universal Church, which was called, in short, “The Patronage”, which was held on the Third Sunday after Easter, and had an octave day, from 1847, and from 1913 on the Wednesday after the Second Sunday after Easter.* It had been first celebrated in Spain, in the 17th century and then spread, and very early during the long pontificate of Pio Nino, was extended to the whole world.

Joseph, the foster father and guardian of the Redeemer, worked to feed, house and clothe his family. The fruit of his labor gave succour, that is the value of work, and the workman should be so recognised and respected. His work is not meant for another to be enriched, while he and his have nought.

And in the same house, remain, eating and drinking such things as they have: for the labourer† is worthy of his hire. Remove not from house to house. ― Luke x. 7.

Nor scrip for your journey, nor two coats, nor shoes, nor a staff; for the workman† is worthy of his meat. ― Matthew x.10.

Some saints are privileged to extend to us their patronage in certain cases, but not in others, with peculiar efficacy; but to our holy Patron, St. Joseph, it is given to assist us in all cases, in every necessity, in every undertaking. ― Thomas Aquinas IV. Sent. 9, 45.

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*If it were held in 2009, it would have be on the 3rd of May, in the first instance, and the 29th of April on the second. Really, I think, I need to see an old calendar.
†operarius

It is four, it is always four!

2009-04-30T16:34:00.019-04:00

Sometimes one thing reminds one of another, and sometimes there is chain of provenance of memories and works. Last night I had a couple of discussions, and in between them I remembered a scene from a television show. The scene had the actor, Patrick Stewart being subjected; the scene is a retelling of Orwell. The character O’Brien, was portrayed by Richard Burton, in an extremely grey Nineteen Eighty-Four [which I do not remember well] at the picture show, but the motivation of the interrogator (read torturer) was shown better in Star Trek as, the unnamed, Gul [captain] Madred. The two and two formula of truth, I have remembered maintaining many times as truth and freedom, and have been appalled by the other conversant not agreeing. I remember Dostojevskij, and other russians, and Aristotle, and Aquinas, and the epitome of the self evident.

In a two part episode, Chain of Command, of the second Star Trek, which came out very late in 1992, Captain Picard is captured by the next series main villains, Cardassians. They want military information and plans. The interrogating officer finds out Picard knew nothing of any military plans, yet the torture continues. He shows four lights. The answer he wants to hear from Picard is that there are five.

The torturer received news of the agreement which is to have Picard released immediately, he [the torturer] quickly attempts to fool and pressure Picard to verbally break, and to state the evident falsity as actuality. Guards come to escort Picard’s release, and are displeased that the officer does not have Picard ready. Picard stands defiant, “There are four lights!”

Elsewhere, Captain Picard remarked,“Torture has never been a reliable means of extracting information. It is ultimately self-defeating as a means of control. One wonders why it is still practiced.” The torturer says to his daughter: “But human mothers and fathers don’t love their children as we do.” At times, the episode is chilling, it is even more chilling, that such scenes happen every day, and by fellow citizens. I have since read, that, the scriptwriter, Frank Abatemarco, was in contact with Amnesty International.
____________________
From, George Orwell, 1984, part 3, chapter 2:

'Do you remember,' he went on, 'writing in your diary, "Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make four"?'
'Yes,' said Winston.
O'Brien held up his left hand, its back towards Winston, with the thumb hidden and the four fingers extended.
'How many fingers am I holding up, Winston?'
'Four.'
'And if the party says that it is not four but five -- then how many?'
'Four.'
The word ended in a gasp of pain. The needle of the dial had shot up to fifty-five. The sweat had sprung out all over Winston's body. The air tore into his lungs and issued again in deep groans which even by clenching his teeth he could not stop. O'Brien watched him, the four fingers still extended. He drew back the lever. This time the pain was only slightly eased.
'How many fingers, Winston?'
'Four.'
The needle went up to sixty.
'How many fingers, Winston?'
'Four! Four! What else can I say? Four!'
The needle must have risen again, but he did not look at it. The heavy, stern face and the four fingers filled his vision. The fingers stood up before his eyes like pillars, enormous, blurry, and seeming to vibrate, but unmistakably four.
'How many fingers, Winston?'
'Four! Stop it, stop it! How can you go on? Four! Four!'
'How many fingers, Winston?'
'Five! Five! Five!'
'No, Winston, that is no use. You are lying. You still think there are four. How many fingers, please?'
'Four! five! Four! Anything you like. Only stop it, stop the pain!'
Abruptly he was sitting up with O'Brien's arm round his shoulders. He had perhaps lost consciousness for a few seconds. The bonds that had held his body down were loosened. He felt very cold, he was shaking uncontrollably, his teeth were chattering, the tears were rolling down his cheeks. For a moment he clung to O'Brien like a baby, curiously comforted by the heavy arm round his shoulders. He had the feeling that O'Brien was his protector, that the pain was something that came from outside, from some other source, and that it was O'Brien who would save him from it.
'You are a slow learner, Winston,' said O'Brien gently.
'How can I help it?' he blubbered. 'How can I help seeing what is in front of my eyes? Two and two are four.'
'Sometimes, Winston. Sometimes they are five. Sometimes they are three. Sometimes they are all of them at once. You must try harder. It is not easy to become sane.'
He laid Winston down on the bed. The grip of his limbs tightened again, but the pain had ebbed away and the trembling had stopped, leaving him merely weak and cold. O'Brien motioned with his head to the man in the white coat, who had stood immobile throughout the proceedings. The man in the white coat bent down and looked closely into Winston's eyes, felt his pulse, laid an ear against his chest, tapped here and there, then he nodded to O'Brien.
'Again,' said O'Brien.
The pain flowed into Winston's body. The needle must be at seventy, seventy-five. He had shut his eyes this time. He knew that the fingers were still there, and still four. All that mattered was somehow to stay alive until the spasm was over. He had ceased to notice whether he was crying out or not. The pain lessened again. He opened his eyes. O'Brien had drawn back the lever.
'How many fingers, Winston?'
'Four. I suppose there are four. I would see five if I could. I am trying to see five.'
'Which do you wish: to persuade me that you see five, or really to see them?'
'Really to see them.'
'Again,' said O'Brien.
Perhaps the needle was eighty -- ninety. Winston could not intermittently remember why the pain was happening. Behind his screwed-up eyelids a forest of fingers seemed to be moving in a sort of dance, weaving in and out, disappearing behind one another and reappearing again. He was trying to count them, he could not remember why. He knew only that it was impossible to count them, and that this was somehow due to the mysterious identity between five and four. The pain died down again. When he opened his eyes it was to find that he was still seeing the same thing. Innumerable fingers, like moving trees, were still streaming past in either direction, crossing and recrossing. He shut his eyes again.
'How many fingers am I holding up, Winston?'
'I don't know. I don't know. You will kill me if you do that again. Four, five, six -- in all honesty I don't know.'
'Better,' said O'Brien.

Pontiac

2009-04-29T00:01:00.003-04:00

At the beginning of this week, what was formerly denied, was announced, that, General Motors would dispatch Pontiac to oblivion. From the 1920s through the '50s, the Pontiac emblem, logo and hood ornament featured an handsome indian. Only a fool or liar would propose that the indian was treated well within or by the United States, but occasionally he has been recognised, if only to make a dollar.

Now, Pontiac (*c.1720, †1769) was a real indian, a war chief of a confederacy, before the birth of the United States, in what was the old northwest, or french territory. He defeated the british, almost took Detroit, but it was an international war and Pontiac's line was dispatchable and not central. Pontiac was impressive. Francis Parkman the yankee historian wrote about him in his volumes on the french and the english in north america.

Alfred Sloan was chief (president 1923-37, ceo '23-'46, chairman '37-'56) at GM and founded a business school at MIT. His thoughts dictated business. Planned obsolescence, market segmentation for price niche marketing were among his contributions. He also thought, in 1940, that, the fascist countries were more advanced than the democracies.

In the middle '20s General Motors had five car makes, in ascending order: Chevrolet, Oakland, Oldsmobile, Buick, and Cadillac. Sloan saw gaps and added 'companion makes'. The line became: Chevrolet, Pontiac, Oakland, Oldsmobile, Viking, Marquette, Buick, LaSalle and Cadillac.

General Motors, in 1909, bought the Cartercar, which was manufactured in the city of Pontiac, in Oakland county, Michigan. General Motors, in 1909, bought the Oakland Car Company as well. An earlier Pontiac was manufactured in 1907-08 by another Pontiac buggy company. In 1915 GM builds Oaklands, in the Cartercar plant, in Pontiac.

The new companion Pontiac is introduced in 1926. In 1932, the Oakland division becomes the Pontiac division. Pontiac survived the first Depression, when many lines failed. Pontiac often had some sporty models. It was the 'muscle car' GTO. Pontiac had a certain panache that sounded well by the ear. Ricky and Lucy Ricardo drove a Sky Chief convertible on television. Working class america had liked Pontiac, but working class america has been under a great assault for over a generation. An icon of a certain glory is going to the attic of memory.

Tulips

2009-04-28T17:00:00.002-04:00

6 April 2007 supra, 1 May 2007 media, 28 April 2009 infra

Date.......................High.............. Record
27 April 2009........85 °F....... 86 °F (1990)
26 April 2009........86 °F....... 87 °F (1948)
25 April 2009........85 °F....... 87 °F (1990)
24 April 2009........85 °F....... 88 °F (1925)

The color and shape of spring bulb flowers are truly lovely. Tulips are often delightful in those qualities, and in fragrance. The aesthetic experience is thoroughly enjoyable; under moderate weather, they can be brilliant for more than a month. The colors can succeed each other, yellow comes first, and the darkest purple, called black, is the finale. The color palate waxes and withers. Some colors predominate, and then fall away, and other colors come to the fore. Drying, wilted tulips have a concentrated color on their curled, and contorted petals.

During their vibrancy, they open and close their blooms. The mid-day sun can splay them 180°, exposing the internal base color, which can be white, or black, or another hue than the predominate color.

They prefer the mid 50°s. Here, they just went through four consecutive mid 80°s. The first day, it surprises them, and they recover during the night; after that, the cycle is, noticeably accelerated, and the toll hits.

They can survive an early snow, especially when the bud is tight; an open bud, when capturing enough wet snow can snap the stalk. Tulips are cold hardy. Too much heat, and they mature rapidly.

Theology on a communion rail

2009-04-26T15:23:00.014-04:00

communion rail section. p. 1918. Saint Colman, Cleveland, O.
Saint Colman church in Cleveland did not suffer remodeling after Vatican II. It is a magnificent place for a mass. The irish, who had made it off the boat, were expanding in resources and settling in; some had grandchildren born in the new country. In the middle of Cleveland's westside they built a new church for a parish, during the years of the great war, the european war, the war to end all wars.

In the midst of the first generation of the new century, the building went up fast. The parish priest wanted baroque Rome built by irish hands for america. So much excellence of material and detail converged on this particular church. It was going to be more magnificent than the older, of the then, two surviving, westside, irish parishes. It was going to be grander than the yankee, and other protestant neighbors' opinions of the irish would expect, and in this, it followed much catholic building projects throughout the country.

The communion rail is white italian marble, carved in Dublin. There are 30 panels that run from wall to wall. There are twelve bas-relief episodes in vertical oblong, and eighteen carved stone filigree in horizontal oblong twice size, interrupted by colored columns, spanning in front of the sanctuary altars. There is more theology in that stone span of frieze than in some graduate level theology courses. A stunningly, spectacular, artistic craftsmanship of sacred beauty. As central to catholic worship, and of great importance, the liturgy of the Eucharist deserved, in the sentiments of fervid believers, an appropriate locale and atmosphere for Its celebration and reception. To many, nothing was too good for Its regard. This is the main reason for the necessary requirement of beauty to many believers.

Weaved and cut, illustrated, biblical passages that presage the passion, and sacrifice of Christ, and His Sacrament, and his monograms, and continuing Presence in the physical forms of communion are shown. Some of these stone vignettes are immediately recognisable, others may jog or elude the memory, or cognition.
At first, what is this scene; look at the several details: a young (no beard) man kneeling, before what? a fire, a fire with a Hand from above (heaven), God is accepting a burning offering, in the background: another man is watching, he is clutching...a weapon.

Abel also offered of the firstlings of his flock, and of their fat: and the Lord had respect to Abel, and to his offerings. But to Cain and his offerings he had no respect: and Cain was exceeding angry, and his countenance fell. ― Genesis iv. 4-5. DRC

Abel quoque obtulit de primogenitis gregis sui et de adipibus eorum et respexit Dominus ad Abel et ad munera eius ad Cain vero et ad munera illius non respexit iratusque est Cain vehementer et concidit vultus eius.

Here at communion, God the Father, accepts the sacrifice of the Sacrament, as he did of Abel. Abel, like Jesus, would unjustly be killed by his own, a pre-figurement of the Passion. Here when one did kneel while waiting reception, one could be reminded at the meaning and significance of the True and Acceptable Sacrifice and Mystery, a tool for catachesis, for every first communicant, in the theology of the Blessed Sacrament. This rail should be appreciated by all communicants of the diocese, yet this church did not make the bishop's list for saving.*

The bas-reliefs are of :

wheat
Abel's offering ― Genesis iv. 4-5.
gathering manna ― Exodus xvi. 14-18.
Jesus knocking ― Apocalypse iii. 20.
(2) distributions of the Host (one, St. Colman receiving the Viaticum)
Melchísedech and Abram ― Genesis xiv. 18-20.
Sacrifice of Isaac ― Genesis xxii. 9-12.
Chanaan grapes ― Numbers xiii. 24.
Jesus as Good Shepherd ― John x. 1-18.
Moses and Brazen serpent ― Numbers xxi. 8.
grapes

The marble filigrees are of :

(2) chalice and host
(2) pelican vulning
(2) nails of crucifixion
(2) loaves and fishes
(2) ΧΡ Chi Rho
(3) IHS (appears as $ to some)
ΑΩ Alpha Omega
the veronica
sanctuary lamp ― Exodus xxvii. 20-21.
hand of God giving manna
monstrance

________________
*postscriptum: shortly after the original writing, Bp. Lennon amended his list. Saint Colman was given a conditional reprieve, a probationary period.

a continuing list of repugnant partisans...

2009-04-24T18:19:00.011-04:00

Feeling beleaguered and, possibly, writing in vain, I am considering to end this journal. Instead of rolling out a little essay mentioning new lunatic partisans, every now and then, when piqued by some outrage of inanity, or absence of ethics, I might just add to a continuing list. You can always further investigate why they are despicable, and why they should not represent sane, ethical and moral people. Some are just extreme partisan lunatics, some are shithouse rat crazy, and some are plain evil.

Some of those noted already:

george bush junior - Texas ?
Karl Rove - Texas
Tom Delay - Texas
Dick Cheney - Texas ?
Newt Gingrich - formerly Georgia
George Allen Jr. - Virginia
George Herbert Walker Bush - Texas ?
Dick Armey - Texas
Orrin Hatch - Utah
Fox news [sic]
Jack Kingston - Georgia
Larry Craig - Idaho; sexual scandal and hypocrisy exposed
(Diaper Dave) David Vitter - Louisiana; sexual scandal and hypocrisy exposed
David Dreier - California
David Addington - architect of torture
Alberto Gonzales - Texas
John Woo - architect of torture
Wayne Allard - Colorado
Kit Bond - Missouri
Tom Coburn - Oklahoma
Thad Cochran - Mississippi
John Cornyn - Texas
James Inhofe - Oklahoma
Pat Roberts - Kansas
Jeff Sessions - Alabama
Ted Stevens - Alaska
Condoleezza Rice
Tony Zirkle - currently local (Indiana)
Douglas Bruce - currently local (Colorado)
Kenneth Blackwell - Ohio
Diebold - Ohio
Todd Rokita - currently local (Indiana)
Rush Limbaugh III
Vito Fossella - New York; sexual scandal and hypocrisy exposed
Mike Erickson - currently local (Oregon)
Sarah Palin - Alaska
George Voinovich - Ohio
Michele Bachmann - Minnesota
Paul Broun - Georgia
Bob Corker -Tennessee
Richard Shelby - Alabama
Mitch McConnell - Kentucky
Jim DeMint - South Carolina
Norm Coleman - Loser
Grover Norquist
Rick Perry - Texas

new additions

47. on continuing flow of inanity: Peter King - New York (crazy since 9/11)
48. John Carter - Texas (demands Napolitano's head over DHS report on danger of right wing extremists)
49. on continuing flow of partisan inanity: Marsha Blackburn -Tennessee
perhaps a shorter list would be: decent non-repugnant Republican congressmen
List as of 24 April 2009
_________________________
50. Lamar Smith - Texas [yes, another one]
Speaking on FOX [surprise] : "Let me just say — this is going to sound radical, I don’t mean for it to be radical — but to me, the greatest threat to America is not necessarily a recession or even another terrorist attack. The greatest threat to America is a liberal media bias." - 3 June 2009
51. Michael Steele - chairman (guffaw). I forgot this blithering fool, he seems addicted to saying one ludicrous, crazy statement after another whenever a microphone is present. Perhaps, he should have been a cigarette lawyer. - 11 June 2009
52. Peter Hoekstra - Michigan. This idiot is the ranking Republican on the intelligence committee. Ha Ha! - 19 June 2009
53. Dana Rohrabacher - California. This idiot has said many foolish things for years, but with so much competition for stupidity, or worse, he has not come to the fore in some time. To-day, 23 June, he has. He has blamed the iranian situatuin on the current president, Barack Obama, as if Obama has authored persian-american relations since the end of wwii. The previous régime demonised and ignored Iran simultaneously for eight years. For most of the last generation, the US has been the Great Satan in the rhetoric of Iran. Idiot Rohrabacher lays this on Obama? Clearly, the Republicans must hire a score of psychiatrists for their congressional delegation.
54. Mark Sanford - South Carolina. There used to be a television show called, Car 54. Where are you? Mark Sanford was missing, not on the Appalachian Trail, but in Argentina after tail. Being an arrogant, self-righteous, teabagger, and a hypocritical adulterer was not enough to add him to this list, that sort of thing is just par for Republicans. The self-aggrandisement to compare oneself, in biblical terms, to King David—the archetypal ruler is. - 27 June 2009

George,Quijote and the Dragon

2009-04-23T00:01:00.010-04:00

To-day is Saint George’s, and the traditional date of the death of Miguel de Cervantes. Heroism of the struggle, with the ardor of a chivalric, christian heart ties these two together. The dragon is symbolic of a fearsome adversary. Saint George defeated him. In Cervantes Don Quijote, our befuddled caballero was, in spirit, the perfect christian chevalier. I could write a book on this, but I have not the audience, nor the support...
Jurij Zaninović. Bridge with four dragons. 1900-01. Ljubljana.
I am also fascinated with the word for the creature: draco, drakon, zmaj, aždaja, smok. There are particular dragons, and there are types of dragons, and the general dragon. (The east asian dragons have a different ethos, from the indo-european dragons.) These dragons share with the biblical dragon an interchangeability with the serpent, but with wings and fire, which greatly increases their fearsome mythology. There are exceptions to their rapacious, evil ferocity, some are guardians. This is surprising and interesting. The dragon of Ljubljana, ljubljanski zmaj, supposedly guards the bridge, and the city; yet in the small town of Sveti Jurij (Saint George) not far off, the traditional heraldic depiction of the armoured and caped saint dispatching the fearsome beast with a lance is the coat of arms, shield, and flag. A similar Jurij serves Moscow. Now, the serbs also love George, as the english once did, but in addition to the generic slavonic zmaj, they also name aždaja. This dragon came from Persia and the zoroastrians, but not directly. The barbarian turks picked up words from conquered civilisations and were linguistic vehicles.

To further speculate, wildly, and most uncertainly: there is the less common words 'pogoj' dragon, and, in srpskohrvatsko, 'pakoa', hell, perhaps suggesting sulfurous pitch*. In addition the greek 'hades', 'aidelon', and 'άδης', fires of hades, and in Plato, the house of hades. From the greeks the russians got 'ad' in addition to their variation of peklo, pekel, pakao, pekla. There is the persian 'aži dahāka'. Is there a multi-lingual convergence of creature and locale? of dragon and hell? Or am I like the father in, My big fat greek wedding, creating fanciful etymologies?
_____________
*Jakob Grimm noted the fire and stench of slavonic hells, and modern greek hell. The hebraic 'gehenna' has often been translated into hellfire, and fire and brimstone means fire and sulfur.

Anselm, Doctor of the Church

2009-04-21T16:06:00.006-04:00

To-day is Saint Anselm's day. Nine hundred years ago, to-day, he left the earthly life. He is apelled: d'Aosta, à Bec, of Canterbury, depending on the language used, and the nation claiming. He was born in Aosta (Piedmont Italy) and went on to Bec (Norman France) and became a benedictine monk, scholar and philosopher. Now, in the year Anselmo reached Christ's age, William conquered England, and Anselm was prior at Bec, the prevous prior, Lanfranc became the archbishop of Canterbury in 1070. Lanfanc was succeeded by Anselm. William (II) Rufus was an overreaching, immoderate king, and interfered with church affairs. For four years the see was left vacant as William Rufus collected and robbed what was available. Anselm succeeded his old teacher, and inherited his problems. With a new king, Henry I, a slightly better go went forth, although Anselm would still find exile. The conflict between mitre and crown would continue in England for centuries, until the faith was completely forbidden. Now, neither Canterbury nor the crown mean much of anything, outside of pomp and ceremony.

Anselmo, during his time at Bec, was in the center of the intellectual world. Anselm is considered a founder of scholasticism. In philosophy and theology, he is the most important betwixt Augustine and Aquinas. In Cur Deus Homo, he writes on the theology of the Atonement. In the Proslogium, he gives two versions of, what Kant later calls, the ontological proof of God, which in the simplest manner can be reduced to: God exists by definition, because that which you understand to be, as what God would be, is an idea that could not be invented in your mind, by your mind.

Augustine said, "Crede, ut intelligas". Believe that you may understand.
Anselmo said, "Credo, ut intelligam". I believe that I may understand.
Christian faith was at the center of philosophy and understanding.
_______________________________
To-day, is also the birthday of the city of Rome.

Elixir of texas tea(baggers)

2009-04-20T00:01:00.004-04:00

Every year there is an anti-tax protest at some state house or public park, but this year they were organised by a television network and professional mouthfoamers. Much coverage was aired. There were years of much larger anti-war protests, that, they and others ignored. We report, you decide.

These hypocritical idiots without intellectual consistency complain about taxation and spending. The number one funded department is that of the military, the department of war, the Pentagon, or euphemistically, defense. It is well over 50%, near if not exceeding 60%, depending on accounting methods, and their degree of transparency. To all intelligible people, that has to be the place to start. Was one protester protesting military spending? Was one person brandishing a poster, banner or sign against useless, wasteful military spending? or criticising the merchants of death? Besides the military, there are other perennial snouts at the public trough. Any protesting agricultural subsidies to millionaires? Any protesting aid to Israel?

Any protesting about their states and communities that receive more than they pay? Alaska receives almost double in receipts, from its outgo, to the federal government. Alaska has an idiot opportunist as governor, who has claimed Alaska to be a sovereign state, she also has an husband, whom, belonged(s) to a secessionist party, did she also? She wants [stifle your guffaws] to be president of the United States of America. Where is there logical continuity in this, anywhere?

Further, the protests gathered smaller crowds, than those held for the legalisation of hemp and marijuana, or the right to ride motorbikes sans helmet. I am sure, that, to-day 4/20, there will be a sizable crowd, somewhere, in the country protesting something. I once participated in a labor rally, at the Ohio State House, on one cold Saturday, years ago. Downtown Columbus was abandoned. We marched in solitude, except for the many police forces to watch us. There were speeches by a Representative in Congress, Marcy Kaptur, and labor leaders, including Richard Trumka. No media coverage, save for a couple sentences buried in a Columbus paper.

These sideshows of teabaggers were orchestrated and pumped up, but the balloon will not fly. In addition to what they purported to be, they were anti-Obama rallies. The man just took office, and legally so. bushjr stole office without public demonstrations against it, there was one in Florida to aid the theft, though. There were insane accusations and villifications of Obama. The klan was out in their civvies, not in their dress whites. In the bizarre dystopia of the crazier than shithouse rat Republicans, anything less than a complete, fascist dictatorship is appalling, an elected democracy is anathema, and deserving of subversion and annihilation. They accused Obama, simultaneously, of being a fascist (an absurd situation of a cauldron calling a teakettle black), and a communist. Have they ever opened a dictionary? They sense that ‘fascist’ is an extreme political insult, while they blindly stare into the mirror. When a vote is taken, and the votes are actually counted, the winner is not a non-democrat.

Tejas, texas, taxes; other idiots, of the outrageous, reprobate Republicans, gave cover and support. The chief elected one, Rick Perry*, wants a third term as governor of Tejas. He was talking secession. Perry is not John C. Calhoun, or one of the literate fireaters of the antebellum south. People, carrying union [not labor, certainly not] flags, talking of secession, does not anyone see the irony, well, back to the point, Texas already seceded once—it was an extremely, bloody failure. Have they ever read a real history book? And Texas, is there any one state that has caused more disaster for America, at least in the last several years?...Armey, Baker, bushes and bushes, Cheney, Delay, Gramm, Halliburton.... If Texas wanted to leave, it would have behooved the world, far more so, if it had been done a generation ago. The combination of arrogance, ignorance, callousness, worthlessness, belligerence, incompetence, gall and the damnedest stupidity is utterly jaw dropping! Really, every anglo leaving Tejas needs to be tested for rabies.
_______________________
*former Texas Aggie cheerleader, who may or may not be aware of:
Texas v. White, 74 U.S. 700 (1869), in which the Supreme Court ruled that a state cannot secede.
When, therefore, Texas became one of the United States, she entered into an indissoluble relation. All the obligations of perpetual union, and all the guaranties of republican government in the Union, attached at once to the State. The act which consummated her admission into the Union was something more than a compact; it was the incorporation of a new member into the political body. And it was final. The union between Texas and the other States was as complete, as perpetual, and as indissoluble as the union between the original States. There was no place for reconsideration or revocation, except through revolution or through consent of the States. ― Chief Justice Salmon P. Chase

Postscriptum: 26 April 2009. There is stupid, and there is hypocrisy; and then there is Texas stupid, and Texas hypocrisy. Yesterday, the governor [sic] of Tejas, Mr. Goodhair, Rick Perry requested the federal (that means, the national government of the United States) bureaucratic agency (funded by tax dollars from the 50 states) of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to provide Tejas, from the national stockpile, 37,430 courses of antiviral medications for the swine flu crisis. His words, “We will continue to work with our local, state and federal health officials to ensure public safety is protected.” How quickly, Tejas petitions (begs) the Union for help and material, that Tejas does not provide texicans with. Maybe crow is the meal meant for tea.

... to each according to need.

2009-04-19T13:57:00.006-04:00

To-day's first scriptural reading was from the Acts of the Apostles, chapter 4, verses 32-35:

The community of believers was of one heart and mind, and no one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they had everything in common. With great power the apostles bore witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great favor was accorded them all. There was no needy person among them, for those who owned property or houses would sell them, bring the proceeds of the sale, and put them at the feet of the apostles, and they were distributed to each according to need. ― NAB

Multitúdinis autem credéntium erat cor unum et ánima una : nec quisquam eórum quæ possidébat, áliquid suum esse dicébat, sed erant illis ómnia commúnia. Et virtúte magna reddébant Apóstoli testimónium resurrectiónis Jesu Christi Dómini nostri : et grátia magna erat in ómnibus illis. Neque enim quisquam egens erat inter illos. Quotquot enim possessóres agrórum aut domórum erant, vendéntes afferébant prétia eórum quæ vendébant, et ponébant ante pedes Apostólorum. Dividebátur autem síngulis prout cuíque opus erat.

And the multitude of believers had but one heart and one soul: neither did any one say that aught of the things which he possessed, was his own; but all things were common unto them. And with great power did the apostles give testimony of the resurrection of Jesus Christ our Lord; and great grace was in them all. For neither was there any one needy among them. For as many as were owners of lands or houses, sold them, and brought the price of the things they sold, And laid it down before the feet of the apostles. And distribution was made to every one, according as he had need. ― DRC

How many people in the congregation were listening? Did anyone who was not in the habit of church going, or Scripture reading, yet educated otherwise, hear something that sounded familiar? Were any angered? made uncomfortable? Will any consider? or take heart?

This is the first reading in year 'B'. The first reading in year 'A' is:

They devoted themselves to the teaching of the apostles and to the communal life, to the breaking of the bread and to the prayers. Awe came upon everyone, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles. All who believed were together and had all things in common; they would sell their property and possessions and divide them among all according to each one's need. Every day they devoted themselves to meeting together in the temple area and to breaking bread in their homes. They ate their meals with exultation and sincerity of heart, praising God and enjoying favor with all the people. And every day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved. ―Acts of the Apostles ii. 42-47. NAB

And they were persevering in the doctrine of the apostles and in the communication of the breaking of bread and in prayers. And fear came upon every soul. Many wonders also and signs were done by the apostles in Jerusalem: and there was great fervor in all. And all they that believed were together and had all things common. Their possessions and goods they sold and divided them to all, according as every one had need. And continuing daily with one accord in the temple and breaking bread from house to house, they took their meat with gladness and simplicity of heart: Praising God and having favour with all the people. And the Lord increased daily together such as should be saved. ―Acts of the Apostles ii. 42-47. DRC

To-day, being the Octave of Easter, Divine Mercy Sunday and Doubting Thomas Sunday, it is easy for a homilist to not comment on this reading, making it convenient for either him, or the congregation, or both. Some of these people would rather not examine their consciences on those sentiments, and if those lines were said, without attribution, or even with, in public civil discourse, they might not receive a friendly hearing. And there are certain professing christians, who would, twist into convolutions the words of Scripture on similar sentiments. This sort of radicalism, or extremism, by Jesus is not welcoming to all, it can be most discomfitting.

Ambrosian & gregorian hymns for Quasimodo Sunday

2009-04-19T00:01:00.015-04:00

Andrea del Verrocchio. Christ and Doubting Thomas. 1467–1483. Florence.
The hymns available for the traditional mass wed text, theology, and music exquisitely. I live in an english speaking community. English is an accumulative language. Ecclesiastical latin accumulated greek vocabulary, and hebraic theology. A song can refer to the sacrifice of the mass, the communion of believers, and the salvation of God's people now, and from Moses―or anytime from Adam to the last day.

Saint Stephen has had a latin schola for a year, it has finished an annual cycle, but some songs are being done for the first time, since the ordinary had to be learned first, and some members have joined during the year. One of the members studied for a doctorate in classical languages at the University of Pennsylvania, and can give spontaneous translation of the text. This with a little discussion amongst the members, in asides and questions becomes a mini symposium (without the drinking). Ablatives, gerunds and the importance of the fourth declension are mentioned in passing.

To-day has many names. I must mention, to-day fulfills the octave of Easter, and is also, then fittingly, Divine Mercy Sunday. Perhaps, most anciently, to-day is Dominica in albis depositis, the sunday of laying away the white (garment of baptism) is one which is reflected in an ambrosian hymn, which is not served well by the usual Neale translation.
[each verse should span only the column]
1. AD cenam Agni providi, stolis salutis candidi, post transitum maris Rubri Christo canamus principi.
--At the supper the Lamb provides,
--------------------------clothes of health(salvation) of gleaming white,
---------------------------------------------after the passage through the Red Sea
------------------------------------------------------- we sing to Christ the prince.
--At the mass
--Ad regias Agni dapes [beginning of alternate hymn]
-----------------------banquet
2. Cuius corpus sanctissimum in ara crucis torridum, sed et cruorem roseum gustando, Dei vivimus.
------j*-------------------------------------------------------------------------rosy gore
3. Protecti paschæ vespero a devastante angelo, de Pharaonis aspero sumus erept(i)§ imperio.
--------------------χ†‡---------------------------------------------Φ†
-----------paschal eve a devastating angel (unnamed, conjecture -- Uriel?)
4. Iam pascha nostrum Christus est, agnus occisus innocens; sinceritatis azyma qui carnem suam obtulit.
---J* ------ χ -------------- χ-innocent (in = negation, nocens = harmful, a criminal)
-unleavened (a = negation, greek)
5. O vera, digna hostia, per quam franguntur tartara, captiva plebs redimitur, redduntur vitæ præmia!
---------------------------------netherworld (greek, latin is inferno, english hell),
-------------------------------------------------------------, the captive proletariat ----------------------------------redeemed/ransomed/atoned,
6. Consurgit Christus tumulo, victor redit de barat(h)ro, tyrannum trudens vinculo et paradisum reserans.
----------------------------------------------------------depths† ------------------------------------- unbolted
7. Esto perenne mentibus paschale, Iesu, gaudium et nos renatos gratiæ tuis triumphis aggrega.
----------------------------------------------- J*
8. Iesu, tibi sit gloria, qui morte victa prænites, cum Patr(e)§ et almo Spiritu, in sempiterna sæcula. Amen.
--J*

Another song for today is, O fillii et filiæ. It deals greatly with T(h)omas’ doubt. Quando Thomas vidit Christum, pedes, manus, latus suum, dixit: Tu es Deus meus, alleluia. The uncertain Thomas shrinks at the staid Christ as he inspects his wounds.
____________________________________
*(i) when palatised becomes (j)
†(h) in words borrowed from greek are unaspirated (silent); (Φ) is written ph in latin, (Φ) in cyrillic is (f), sounded (f) in latin, russian, english, (χ) = ch
‡ Pasch is the passover and the resurrection holiday, hebrew→greek→latin
§ silent or slurred in song not in speech

Shame on Obama and Holder

2009-04-17T10:06:00.005-04:00

Some of the officially, documented evil committed, by the busheviks, by members of the CIA has been released, and has confirmed much of what has been known, and denied.

"This is a time for reflection, not retribution. I respect the strong views and emotions that these issues evoke...But at a time of great challenges and disturbing disunity, nothing will be gained by spending our time and energy laying blame for the past." -- President Barack Obama

"It would be unfair to prosecute dedicated men and women working to protect America for conduct that was sanctioned in advance by the Justice Department."-- Attorney General Eric Holder

These statements do several things: they are protecting the guilty; Obama is not much different than bushjr on too many important matters; the rule of law in the US of A is fiction; and the Nuremberg defense will succeed for american fascists, where it did not for german fascists. Well, Obama and company are wrong, deeply and gravely wrong, they are excusing, and condoning, the evil of the busheviks, and their ultimately demented, and vicious supporters; and still it will not lessen their [that of fervent Republicans] hatred for him. Obama has shown a steadfast loyalty to the financial and imperial enterprise that this country has become.

He is a vast improvement over the last occupant, he may yet accomplish great things, he is a compromising politician, and in his compromised positions, he has done great ill. He acts in favor, and defense, of those whom vilify him, and have besmirched and corrupted the country. Does Obama suffer from Bill Clinton's need to be liked? These people will always hate him, and far more disturbing, by serving them, he does great disservice to the nation and the world, or has Obama been co-opted by the entrenched ruling class?

Religous ignorance

2009-04-13T16:00:00.004-04:00

Terry Mattingly wrote an essay, in which he concluded, that ‘secular’ journalists are not so much anti-religious as lacking a religious vocabulary, and, therefore, understanding. This observation, I also, note regularly. To-day, I read a foto caption where someone wrote, that the eight point star symbolizes Jesus’ Resurrection eight days after His death. Now, the obvious error is, that, he rose on the third day (which was the eight day of the week, Sunday; especially, when one thinks of Holy Week which began on Palm Sunday). The week begins on a sunday, the seventh day is saturday, therefore, the eight day, must be, sunday. This is why baptistries are often eight sided, and baptism is a birth to a new life, a victory over death. The paschal vigil mass repeats baptismal vows for all, and often people are baptised at this mass. Also, the church celebrates octave days, e.g., the 1st of January is the octave of the Nativity. So, the phrase--sunday is the eight day, has a great texture and context, that many do not, and cannot be expected to comprehend. So, often it is not disbelief, but incomprehension, that is the answer. Ignorance is more prevalent than malice.

Also it is not only, so called ‘secular’ ignorance, there is also inter-denominational ignorance. I remember reading an essay, by a protestant professor of an extremely ‘conservative’ school, trying to explain Saint Francis of Asissi as an alter Christi, another Christ. There is more than one way to understand ‘another’. The catholic, and contextually correct, way is as an exemplar in apostleship and manner in the following of Christ. Saint Francis ‘Il Poverello’ was christlike in behavior, mode and thought. We should also be. An incorrect interpretation of ‘another’ is substitute, and you can imagine how ill that can be used.

Some of this is definition of terms. In arguments, dictating the definition of terms is half the contest won before it starts. Now, in western civilisation the standard is to the one that has continuity, and original usage. In religion, that would fall to catholicism. In non-specific writing and conversation, the general definition, the standard is the catholic definition; it is the non-catholic use, that needs to be specified (of course, when two of the same sectarians are talking, they are using common formulæ); after-all, catholic means universal.

A little more than a fortnight ago, Mrs. Clinton, on a state visit, went to the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Mrs. Clinton is noted to be very attached to her Methodist faith, she is a highly educated person. The tilma was lowered for her to see closely, the rector was with her. She did not know what she was viewing, “who painted it?” Now, the image of the Virgin of Guadalupe on the tilma, is a relic of the class, that the orthodox, often, call ‘not made by human hands’. In the last sentence, there are several items of vocabulary that need to be understood, in order, that the sentence is to be understood as intended.

Resurrection Sunday

2009-04-12T16:00:00.006-04:00

Albrecht Altdorfer. The Resurrection of Christ. c. prior 1518. Vienna.
Painted, concurrently, with the onset of the german heresy, to which the painter later succumbed to, this was a portion of an altarpiece from, the Augustine monastery, Sankt Florian, Upper Austria. Christ is risen before many, in what appears to be a large, mountain, forest grotto, in expressively vivid colors. We are not in 1st century, roman, occupied Judea (Palestine). On the left stands an armored halberdier, one of the, then, newly, formed landsknecht, that would be prominent in supporting the protestant princes against the peasantry, and the catholic emperor, and would also be employed by the same Habsburg emperor, against the rebellious princes, and in other wars. Jesus was victorious over death; the halberdier became emblematic of renaissance germany.

Paschal Triduum observances

2009-04-11T05:36:00.008-04:00

Good Friday Procession, Cleveland, Ohio, from La Sagrada Familia to Saint Patrick to Saint Michael.

To-day is Holy Saturday, amongst slavonic christians, it is custom and tradition to have baskets of food blessed in church. Yesterday, was Good Friday. Theologically, they are part of one day, the Paschal Triduum. The mass, that began Thursday evening, did not end yet, the dismissal comes at the end of the vigil mass on what some slavs call ‘Great Night’*.

Friday, the day of the crucifixion and burial, has its traditions. The Via Dolorosa is the walk of sorrows in Jerusalem, but throughout the world, similar sojourns can occur. Now, on the west side of Cleveland, a procession left after the noon, angelus bell at La Sagrada Familia and went eastwards, first, on Franklin Boulevard. A hundred years ago, it was a fashionable street; it had lost its cache, but a renewal is sporadically underway. A few lots were under construction or being remodeled that day. This procession interrupted the lunch time of some, and was not expected by some. Non religiously observant residents would recall the procession from past years, but temporary interlopers might have had a novel experience.

For catholics the day has the highest solemnity. Generations of children had been taught that the hours from noon to three were to be reserved. The unaffected world goes by, often, unconscious of the singularity of the time. Perhaps, for some it might be a spur for investigation; for others a mere recognition; and for the uncharitable ― an occasion to complain. We live in a world, where, we exist in different cultures occupying the same society.

Gandhi had an attraction and respect for the devotion of the Way of the Cross, but as much as he loved Jesus, he did not become a christian. Some are not affected by such devotions. Some are sorely vexed, and will propagandise vigorously against. A painted egg will give them fits, a rabbit makes them livid. The definition of terms do not co-incide. Self appointed censors create their own universal banns, for others, by fickle fiat. While some celebrations foster a deep religious glow, and communal cohesion, that deepens the faith in some; others can not share in that. Some are of great good will, and do welcome all.
____________
*Velika noč, Veľká noc, Velikonoce, Velja noć

Frances Perkins

2009-04-10T00:01:00.005-04:00

Frances Perkins was born on this date 1880. She was the first female cabinet secretary. If one person in government was responsible for Social Security or a minimum wage, it was she.

She witnessed the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire, of 25 March 1911, in New York City. 146 people died, 129 of them female. Immigrant girls worked 60 and 72 hour weeks for six or seven dollars. Two years earlier there had been a strike. The owners hired goons to beat the girls, they hired street whores as scabs to further humiliate the girls.

From 1918 she worked in government for justice for labor, for women, for children, and for America, first under Al Smith, and then his successor, Franklin Roosevelt. She is sadly neglected. The Washington National Airport could be renamed in her honor.

pre-Paschal events, tenebræ

2009-04-04T15:11:00.016-04:00

For the byzantines, and others using the gregorian calendar, to-day is Lazarus Saturday. To-morrow is Palm Sunday, some german churches wheel in a palmesel figure, a statue of Christ on an ass. The poles have a lamentation service, Gorzkie zale, throughout lent, similar to the way of the cross and to tenebræ. The spaniards have parades.

I have been busy with latin, tenebræ, singing practice. It will, probably, be the first time since 1955, that, at Saint Stephen, Cleveland*, tenebræ in the original form will be done. I would like to know, how many times it has been done in the entire diocese in this form since.

In this format, it is the combined matins and lauds for Holy Thursday. Matins chant the psalms 68 to 76, the beginning of Jeremias’ Lamentations, responses and antiphons; in addition: Augustine on part of psalm 54, and a selection of Paul to the Corinthians is read. Lauds has four psalms, and the canticles of Moses and Zacharias (the Benedictus), and antiphons. In other forms, it is truncated, and other readings may be used, but the Miserere (ps.50) of David, and Jeremias’ cry over Jerusalem are generally retained.

The tenebræ hearse is a triangular candelabrum used for this service since, at least, the seventh century. It is triangular with fifteen prickets. This hearse was also used during the funeral mass, and placed by the casket, and now the wagon, that carries the casket, is called the hearse. At the end of each psalm a candle (unbleached wax taper, preferably) is snuffed, until the last candle, remaining lit, is taken away; this candle represents Christ and returns after the strepitus. There are six candles on the altar, that are snuffed, consecutively, at the last six verses of the Benedictus. The antiphon, that begins Christus Factus est, has the last candle leave.

The strepitus, latin for din, or loud noise, or crash, is the theatrical climax. The church is in darkness total and silent, and then an unexpected, isolated sound terrifies those, whom, do not know about it. This can be the most, memorable moment of any tenebræ service. I vaguely remember a rain storm, occurring one night, to help the dramatics. The theatre for the strepitus has possibilities. The simplest is to drop a phonebook from the choir loft. There is a musical instrument sheet of bronze or brass, a tonitruone, that can be used; a thunder sheet, or piece of sheet metal used for ventilation ducts could be shook, one can strike wood with a heavy, hand hammer, or lay both forearms across an organ keyboard. Sixteen foot pipes would make a great sound.

There is much symbolism, and much interpretation. The strepitus is the tomb closing, the tomb opening, the destruction of the first temple, the third temple, the earthquake of the crucifixion. The Christ candle is joined by the eleven apostles and the three Maries.

While going over the practice singing, I was hit with the eloquence of Saint Jerome’s latin. He was a ciceronian. The joy of the hebrews over the destruction of faro’s army is also evident.

―Tu confregísti cápita dracónis ; dedísti eum escam pópulis Æthíopum. (Ps. 73. v.14)
Thou hast smashed the heads of the dragon [faro’s army]; and given it as meal to the ethiopians.
―vox tonítrui tui in rota. Illuxérunt coruscatió nes tuæ orbi terræ ; commóta est, et contrémuit terra. (Ps. 76. v.19)
the voice of thy thunder in a wheel. Thy lightnings enlightened the world: the earth shook and trembled.―DRC
―equum et ascensórem dejécit in mare. (Exodus xv. 1b)
horse and his ascendant [usually trans. rider] He has thrown [poured, deposed] into the sea.
―currus Pharaónis et exércitum ejus projécit in mare : elécti príncipes ejus submérsi sunt in mari Rubro. (Exodus xv. 4)
Pharao's chariots and his army he hath cast into the sea: his chosen captains are drowned in the Red Sea. ―DRC

_____________________________
*6.30 p.m. Wednesday, 8 April 2009.
postscriptum: in this tenebræ, there was a very muted strepitus, it consisted of rapping the missals, but there was an addition, the throwing of thirty silver coins onto the marble steps.

Working class fools wanted

2009-04-01T00:01:00.001-04:00

Unemployment is noticeable enough now, that, local news and other media are running stories. They offer solutions. There are job fairs sprouting. Training, interviewing, resume writing are promoted. None of this creates jobs, except for the hawkers. Those, who offer these "services", make out.

People are trained, and pay for the training, for non existent jobs. Employers who do hire make out, training is paid for by the new employees or government. Business is subsidised and receives welfare. Rubbish schools are created. People are pushed to be competitive, the dog eat dog philosophy of social darwinism and american business. Paid apprenticeships and union membership are not suggested. The proposed Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA), wherein when a majority of workers sign up for the union, making it difficult for the employer to impede, stall or retaliate, as was the intent, and part, of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) 1935 is not being advanced.

In Roosevelt's solution for vast unemployment, this was not the course of the New Deal. This is the bait and switch bullshit of con artists, the typical american management programmes. Men need jobs. These offered paths make men hungrier, more pliable, less organised, politically and financially weaker. The moneyed interests, who, created the disasters are being protected. The media, and much of the government, are puppets and catpaws of the moneyed interests

Thucydides and bushjr

2009-03-28T19:35:00.010-04:00

Since it is truly hazardous to keep your position teaching the truth, yet important; I have long been of the opinion, that, history and politics need only be taught of the classical pre-christian age, the appropriate study of Herodotus, Tacitus, Livy, Cæsar will fully illuminate the issues of to-day; and still, people will know what implies what. Socrates was capitally condemned for subverting the youth. What does a knowledgeable, moral, and scrupulous teacher sacrifice for continued employment? or minimal criticism?

We can remember the play within a play, Shakespeare used, in Hamlet. He was telling the power that was, how it was. Hamlet did not survive the play. In the winter of 1933, as Weimar fell to the new reich, the operetta Der Silbersee had a ballade on Cæsar. Everyone knew that Cæsar was alive in Germany. The principals never worked in the homeland again, at least under that regime; if they had written and performed that work later, it would have been the hemlock they would taste. If the following passage was published in the papers of this land, or read on television and radio during the recent usurpation of government in early 2003, what would have been the responses?

[4] Words had to change their ordinary meaning and to take that which was now given them.* Reckless audacity† came to be considered the courage of a loyal ally; prudent hesitation, specious cowardice; moderation‡ was held to be a cloak for unmanliness; ability to see all sides of a question inaptness to act on any. Frantic violence, became the attribute of manliness; cautious plotting, a justifiable means of self-defence.
[5] The advocate of extreme measures was always trustworthy§; his opponent a man to be suspected||. To succeed in a plot was to have a shrewd head, to divine a plot a still shrewder; but to try to provide against having to do either was to break up your party and to be afraid of your adversaries. In fine, to forestall an intending criminal, or to suggest the idea of a crime where it was wanting, was equally commended,
[6] until even blood became a weaker tie than party, from the superior readiness of those united by the latter to dare everything without reserve; for such associations had not in view the blessings derivable from established institutions but were formed by ambition for their overthrow; and the confidence of their members in each other rested less on any religious sanction than upon complicity in crime**. — Thucydides (Θουκυδίδης). c.400 b.C. from the History of the Peloponnesian War. Book III. chapter 82. Civil War in Corcyra (Κέρκυρα, Kérkyra, Corfu)

_______________________________
*axis of evil, coalition of the willing, decapitating the regime, democracies, embedding, freedom fries, homeland security, mission accomplished, old Europe, patriot act, regime change, shock and awe, weapons of mass destruction, with us or against us, yellow cake

†...there is no doubt that Saddam Hussein now has weapons of mass destruction.―Darth Cheney. Speech to VFW National Convention. 26 August 2002.
...We know for a fact that there are weapons there.―Ari Fleischer. 9 January 2003.
...We know where they are. They're in the area around Tikrit and Baghdad and east, west, south and north somewhat.―Donald Rumsfeld. 30 March 2003.
...Saddam's removal is necessary to eradicate the threat from his weapons of mass destruction.―Jack Straw (British Foreign Secretary). 2 April 2003.
...Given time, given the number of prisoners now that we're interrogating, I'm confident that we're going to find weapons of mass destruction.―Gen. Richard Myers, Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff. 26 May 2003.
...For bureaucratic reasons, we settled on one issue, weapons of mass destruction (as justification for invading Iraq) because it was the one reason everyone could agree on.―Paul Wolfowitz. Vanity Fair. 28 May 2003.
...for those who say we haven't found the banned manufacturing devices or banned weapons, they're wrong, we found them.―george w bush. 30 May 2003.

‡En adoptant à l'unanimité la résolution 1441, nous avons collectivement marqué notre accord avec la démarche en deux temps proposée par la France : le choix du désarmement par la voie des inspections et, en cas d'échec de cette stratégie, l'examen par le Conseil de Sécurité de toutes les options, y compris celle du recours à la force...En réponse à cette question, la France a deux convictions: la première, c'est que l'option des inspections n'a pas été conduite jusqu'à son terme et peut apporter une réponse efficace à l'impératif du désarmement de l'Iraq ; la deuxième, c'est qu'un usage de la force serait si lourd de conséquences pour les hommes, pour la région et pour la stabilité internationale qu'il ne saurait être envisagé qu'en dernière extrémité...L'option de la guerre peut apparaître a priori la plus rapide. Mais n'oublions pas qu'après avoir gagné la guerre, il faut construire la paix. Et ne nous voilons pas la face : cela sera long et difficile, car il faudra préserver l'unité de l'Iraq, rétablir de manière durable la stabilité dans un pays et une région durement affectés par l'intrusion de la force. Face à de telles perspectives, il ya l'alternative offerte par les inspections, qui permet d'avancer de jour en jour dans la voie d'un désarmement efficace et pacifique de l'Iraq. Au bout du compte, ce choix là n'est-il pas le plus sûr et le plus rapide?...Il ya dix jours, le Secrétaire d'Etat américain, M. Powell, a évoqué des liens supposés entre Al-Qaida et le régime de Bagdad. En l'état actuel de nos recherches et informations menées en liaison avec nos alliés, rien ne nous permet d'établir de tels liens...Dans ce temple des Nations Unies, nous sommes les gardiens d'un idéal, nous sommes les gardiens d'une conscience.La lourde responsabilité et l'immense honneur qui sont les nôtres doivent nous conduire à donner la priorité au désarmement dans la paix.―Dominique de Villepin.14 February 2003.

In unanimously adopting resolution 1441, we collectively expressed our agreement with the two-stage approach proposed by France: the choice of disarmament through inspections and, in case of failure of this strategy, the review by the Security Council of all options, including the use of force...In response to this question, France has two convictions: the first is that the option of inspections has not been carried through to its conclusion and can provide an effective response to the imperative of disarming Iraq, the second is that use of force would be so fraught with consequences for men, for the region and for international stability that it can not be considered as a last resort...The option of war may appear a priori the fastest. But let us not forget that after winning the war, we must build peace. And let us be clear: this will be long and difficult, because it will preserve the unity of Iraq, restoring a lasting stability in a country and region harshly affected by the intrusion of force. Faced with such prospects, there is the alternative offered by the inspections, which allows to move from day to day in the way of an effective and peaceful disarmament of Iraq. Ultimately, the choice is not the safest and fastest?...Ten days ago, U.S. Secretary of State, Colin Powell, spoke of the supposed links between Al Qaeda and the regime in Baghdad. In our current state of research and information carried out in conjunction with our allies, nothing allows us to establish such links...In this temple of the United Nations, we are the guardians of an ideal, we are the guardians of a conscience. The onerous responsibility and immense honor that we must lead us to give priority to disarmament in peace.[these two sentences, typically french]

§‘neo-conservatives’, ‘busheviks’
|| Robert Byrd, Edward Kennedy, John Kerry
**David Addington, Jay Bybee, Douglas Feith, Alberto Gonzales, William Haynes II and John Woo. And of course bushjr, Cheney, Fleischer, Wolfowitz, Libby, Rumsfeld, et alia.

Some thoughts on the Republicans

2009-03-27T21:35:00.010-04:00

In an earlier number, I put the question: Now, who would be the craziest Republican? As it is approaching the 1st of April, and the public frequency of ridiculous inane statements of madness made by Michelle Bachmann. I must submit, that, the mad minnesotan is more a loon, than the state bird.

To guess the future: the 2010 US senate elections will have a minimum plus 5 for the Democrats. The Republican party 2012 primary campaign will have the moneyed wing support Romney, the collection of idiot factions will go to the alaskan chick. Either candidate, or another, would be greatly defeated by President Obama.

As Jesus said, man can not serve two masters. Mammon is the god of the anti-Democratic party. So much of what they promote is in that regard. Do not go that path. When christianity conflicts with the party, christianity is jettisoned.

Furthermore, the Republican party is indistinguishable from a criminal conspiracy. Their propaganda and their parrot and lemming following cannot be suaded by facts, truth or glimpses of reality. It is a waste of time and effort to engage intercourse with these fascists. Virtually insane vituperation is the response. But their idiocies and lies cannot go unchallenged. Republicans do not allow any facts to cloud their ‘thinking’ and beliefs.
_________________________
postscriptum 4 29 09: on 27 April 2009, the minnesotan loon, Bachmann made this statement:

"I find it interesting that it was back in the 1970s that the swine flu broke out then under another Democrat president Jimmy Carter. And I'm not blaming this on President Obama, I just think it's an interesting coincidence."

Rhetorically, the fallacy here is an ad hominem attack by association. She creates a false innuendo, it is a non-sequitur, and its premise is false. There will be people who will believe and repeat her bullshit, they will vote. For those with a memory, or ability to read: in February 1976, swine flu appeared at the army bade, Fort Dix, New Jersey. Certain medical spokesmen urged the president to act, and a media panic occurred. Immunization began in October, after a few days 40 million were inoculated, a few people died after inoculation. Another media panic occurred. A general election took place in November. The programme was ended in December. The president, for the entire year of 1976, was Gerald Ford. Gerald Ford was a Republican. Michelle Bachmann is a Republican. Michelle Bachmann is an idiot. Michelle Bachmann is a liar. Jimmy Carter received a Nobel Peace Prize and is a good man.

Saint Oscar Romero

2009-03-24T00:01:00.003-04:00

John Roberts. (one of ten) Twentieth Century Martyrs. 1998. Westminster Abbey. London.
In 1990, Kenneth Woodward finished a book, Making Saints, in which he describes, very well, the history and, especially, the politics involved. Richard Vetere wrote a novel, The Third Miracle, which became a movie. In them, he takes examples and explanatory material, from Woodward, about the process. There is drama and conflict betwixt the heroic sanctity of a candidate, and the process of official recognition.

We saw recently, while Mother Teresa was alive, she was recognised as a living saint. There were calls, immediately after her death, to speed up the bureaucracy. When John Paul II, some commentators referred to him as John Paul the Great*, but what was really something, is the crowds of people some with banners, chanting and demanding ‘Santo Subito’. The vox populi was about to do the canonisation, and this was a common manner in the first millennium of the church. From 993 to 1234 a centralisation of canonisation came to the pope and his bureaucrats. The people recognised the chrism of charisma, bureaucrats prefer pious drudges.

Archbishop Thomas à Becket was murdered, in his cathedral, on the command of his sovereign. Archbishop Romero spoke, in his cathedral 23 March 1980, these words:

No soldier is obliged to obey an order counter to the law of God.

The next day he was murdered while saying mass. Those controlling the state, military and police made a similar command. In a mediæval age, a sovereign could be made to do penance for such action.

Those words in a sovereign state, that is actively commits terror, against its populace, are fatal. Now, it is understood, that in an officially, atheistic state an appeal to God is not appreciated. An atheist state does not respect God, and often has a stated goal to persecute believers in God. Now, in a state that acts counter to God, and persecutes His people, while not being atheist, and may, even, claim to be God believing, then such words are more, fatally lethal.

Franz Jägerstätter would not join the nazi, german army, because to be a soldier, especially in such circumstances, was counter to the law of God. He was beheaded. El Salvador was a like state, but without a fully, functioning bureaucracy, but commands by the sovereign powers were quickly carried out.

While much of the populace of El Salvador honors, and reveres, the sanctity of Romero, much of the intervening civil, and governmental power structure, then and now, still are inimical. There have been miracles to confirm, Rome, and the world knows he is a martyr. But local politics will be upset and contentious. Beyond that, those words of San Romero are a grave threat to militaries, and governments, the world over. Those statements would not go well in the United States, they would go well with the US hierarchy.

In the months before his martyrdom, the world focused on the homilies of a little, cleric from a little, country in a poor region. His figure, his example stood gigantically on the world’s stage. His via crucis was apparent, only the exact moment of crucifixion, and the imminent earthquake, and eclipse, was not.
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*Three previous popes were so titled Leo†461, Gregory†604 and Nicholas†867.

What parish would a committee close?

2009-03-22T14:35:00.011-04:00

I am a constitutionalist, and we know constitutions are not respected much in the US, these days. Besides, the revealed Law of God, the church has a body of canon law. In canon law, it is very difficult to suppress, or to make extinct a parish. The episcopacy in the US has made it too easy. The bishop's advisers, by canon law, are his college of priests (presbyteral council). There is no official rôle for a cluster committee. Canonically, it is equivalent of three parishioners chatting over coffee. It was an ad hoc creation. Once its task is done, it goes out of existence.

A parish is a juridic person, when once created, is meant to be perpetual. The term "juridic person" is similar in concept to a "corporation" being a public person in US law. A parish, by nature, as recognised, in canon law is meant to continue.

You may posit a cluster committee as an organ to engage the parishes in decision, or you may posit it as a public relations vehicle to defuse a feeling of helplessness. Each parish has a personality, as do people, and a collection of either will have a social dynamic. It is politics. In that particular grouping, where the vote was reported in a Cleveland Plain Dealer article, the chances of Saint Stephen* emerging as one of the three to survive, was zero. In the discussions, Saint Stephen's position was not heard. There was a fait accompli, a priori, ab initio.

I believe Saint Colman's should remain open, but the vote of a biased, and non-binding committee should not be its justification. The first thing that was "agreed on" was, that, two parishes were untouchable, Our Lady of Mount Carmel (West) and La Sagrada Familia. There, that, was the game unfolding. Then the next part of the agenda was to push, that, the remaining rationale to be: social outreach as the criterion for the third slot. My contention is that it was fixed.

A parish fulfills many functions, but by definition, a parish is an aggregate of believers. Its primary function is to celebrate its common faith in the sacraments instituted by Jesus Christ. God so loved the world, that he sent His Son, not a committee. Now, there was some favorable press coverage, concerning Saint Stephen, before the official announcements. Saint Stephen's should stay open. The bishop's decision was for the two parishes to merge at the site of Stephen's.

Now, there is seems to be a campaign of: say yes to us, and no to them. All parishes should want to continue, no parish should wish another not to. A charitable response would have had no hint of animus. Reliance on a committee with private agendas, or self-defining whom is the fittest, or most worthy vis-à-vis another, should not go unchallenged. Such arguments are manipulatively self-serving, and are meant to disguise a turf war. Saint Colman, seems to be, the only irish parish effected in the diocese, and Stephen's is the only remaining, nationality german parish. Some have wrongly suggested, that, Colman's was discriminated against, on the account of being an irish parish. Have they overlooked, nearby, Saint Malachi? and Saint Patrick (Bridge Ave.)? and other parishes in the diocese?

The 1300 figure (cited in the article) comes on Saint Patrick's Day alone. The mass celebrated on that day at Colman's was more akin to a rally. Before the mass began, the pastor continued his campaign. He is a lawyer, and shewed he can construct a disingenuous argument. Now, that being so, St. Colman's is the irish cathedral in the diocese; and beyond that a functioning parish of christian concerns. And so is Saint Procop's, that also had no chance.

Addendum: This evil game was to get to be one of the three of the five. Who chose the rules? Richard Lennon.

All these parishes should remain open. The bishop, Richard Lennon, so engendered this horrid process so as to have people at each other's throats. This death lottery was his evil tool. He is not a man with original thoughts, or inspiration. Where did he learn of this idea?
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*postscriptum: It may also have been, that the delegation from Saint Stephen's badly reflected on the parish.

Loaves and Fishes

2009-03-22T00:01:00.005-04:00

Giovanni Lanfranco. Miracle of the Bread and Fish. 1620-23. Dublin.
The Gospel reading for the 4th Sunday of Lent*, in the Tridentine mass, is the same as, that, for the 17th Sunday of Ordinary Time†, year B. The only difference -- is the older mass prefaces the Gospel with: At that time, In illo tempore. And this is germane, for every mass, it presages the Eucharistic miracle‡, which is celebrated in every mass.

After these things Jesus went over the sea of Galilee, which is that of Tiberias. And a great multitude followed him, because they saw the miracles which he did on them that were diseased. Jesus therefore went up into a mountain, and there he sat with his disciples. Now the pasch, the festival day of the Jews, was near at hand. When Jesus therefore had lifted up his eyes, and seen that a very great multitude cometh to him, he said to Philip: Whence shall we buy bread, that these may eat? And this he said to try him; for he himself knew what he would do. Philip answered him: Two hundred pennyworth§ of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one may take a little. One of his disciples, Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, saith to him: There is a boy here that hath five barley loaves, and two fishes; but what are these among so many? Then Jesus said: Make the men sit down. Now there was much grass in the place. The men therefore sat down, in number about five thousand. And Jesus took the loaves: and when he had given thanks, he distributed to them that were set down. In like manner also of the fishes, as much as they would. And when they were filled, he said to his disciples: Gather up the fragments that remain, lest they be lost. They gathered up therefore, and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves, which remained over and above to them that had eaten. Now those men, when they had seen what a miracle Jesus had done, said: This is of a truth the prophet, that is to come into the world. Jesus therefore, when he knew that they would come to take him by force, and make him king, fled again into the mountain himself alone.―John vi. 1-15. DRC

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* 22 March 2009
† 7 July 2009
‡ [forgive me this indulgence, dear reader] There is a rubbish, protestant (desanctifying) argument, often repeated in sermons and pop psychology, promulgated by William Barclay*1907,†1978. I have heard two priests quote Barclay: one perhaps unknowingly on this; the other directly on something else. I was, somewhat, shocked, at the latter, for he being extremely, political (privately) in the fanatical, radio, Republican manner, and thusly -- myopic and naïve in regards to politic and actual reality, whilst generally, liturgically being conservative; it seemed incongruous, that, he uses protestant exemplars, at times, and all positively. This is not a journal of a protestant Republican.
§ Ducentorum denariorum

Crucify!

2009-03-20T12:01:00.002-04:00

Now, we stand for the Gospel. The longest Sunday Gospel is that for Palm Sunday, and it calls for participation of the congregation. Each fellow in the pew is supposed to join in as the Gospel calls for the crowd to speak. It is the Passion of Christ.

A few years ago, a small boy, two rows of pews before me, picked up the chant, with mindless enthusiasm, but after the co-ördinated unison, and yelled, “Crucify Him!” The mindless enthusiasm of the child, embarrassed his mother, because of the awkwardness and untimeliness. It was humorous on several levels: the unexpectedness, the joy of the outburst in the small voice, the ignorance of the new word he joyfully mouthed.

I have tried to make stations every week during lent. The way of the cross is Palm Sunday’s Gospel. Good Friday there is no mass, but the Passion according to John is read. Before the joy of Resurrection Sunday, the events of that one friday are to have been deeply felt and understood.

The mindless enthusiasm of that child was innocent. Many, many people have that same mindless enthusiasm as a response for many other situations.

The United States has a huge jailed population, the largest in the world in percentage and absolute numbers. More than half of the world’s military spending is that of the US. The world’s largest military-industrial complex--the US. More than half of the world’s countries have US military bases. Each one of these items yell with a guilty, mindless enthusiasm, “Crucify Him!”

If your impending birth is inconvenient, “Crucify Him!” Cross the border, “Crucify Him!” Drink a glass of wine, or drink two beers before driving, “Crucify Him!” Grow a marijuana plant, “Crucify Him!” Vote the wrong way, “Crucify Him!” Disagree with any of political or social opinions, “Crucify Him!” Support a rival sport’s team, “Crucify Him!” Dropping two atomic bombs was, “Crucify Him!” Invading Iraq was, “Crucify Him!” The mouthfoamers on lunatic television and radio yell, “Crucify Him!” several times a day. It has become automatic, almost an autonomous reflex.

Sure, similar responses happen the world round. Is there another country claiming to be a christian one more or louder than this one?

Part of the old Good Friday services was the Reproaches from the Cross. How many of the crucifiers listen to the reproaches?

Saint Patrick

2009-03-17T00:01:00.005-04:00

from a window of the new Cathedral Church of Saint Patrick in Armagh.

Patrick is instantly identifiable from several items. He is almost always dressed as a mitered bishop with a crosier or shepherd staff. Since the last century, he is often in green vestments. He is sometimes holding a three leaf clover, the shamrock which he used to teach of the Triune God, the Three in One God. Sometimes a green clad bishop is not Patrick. It may be Malachy, or Mel, or another. There is a church of St. Mel in Cleveland, that has a statue of such a one, but he holds a living fish. This is immensely amusing, the fish points to a story of Mel, and it separates the depiction from the generic irish bishop.

Sometimes he is either trampling serpents, or shooing them away, sometimes with a bell. Now, this picturesque tale has caused confusion. Ireland is an island distant from a continent, such places are naturally without snakes. Some people if they know or believe of nothing else, about Patrick, know and believe, that, Patrick drove the snakes out of Ireland. The snakes are a metaphor of the pagan druids, whom, he challenged and defeated.

Patrick’s just celebrity is cause of the world’s note, because of his legacy. He found a land of pagan barbarity, and left a fertile Catholic land. Centuries later of foreign occupation, oppression and bigotry, and the faith remained secure. Soon christian missionaries left the island to evangelise other lands, and their are still catholic, irish missionaries flung about the globe.

Spheres of light in photos

2009-03-16T13:25:00.009-04:00

I take fotos with a moderate, or less, digital camera that can fit in my shirt or coat pocket. I had taken pictures in the garden and my house. Then, after beginning these little essays, I started to take pictures at church. At Saint Stephen, at the reintroduction of the latin mass, I took a picture of the main altar, and there appeared translucent spheres. In some other photos there, other such spheres have appeared. I took two photos at the croatian parish, Saint Paul, in one photo these spheres were clearly visible. I went to Saint Sava, Parma, on the evening of the orthodox celebration, on the first Sunday of Lent, the Triumph of Orthodoxy, and in this photo, supra, of the entrance door, the most such spheres yet. I have not doctored the image, it had been a damp afternoon. The other photos, where they have appeared, were taken within the churches.

Now, I had read and heard of such images before. They are now referred to as ‘orbs’. Some people argue for a supernatural explanation, others for physical phenomena. I will not venture to identify them further, to safeguard myself from the accusations of either being a fool, or a charlatan. I am not very active or proficient with the camera, but these ‘orbs’ have appeared in these locations.

52 additional parishes found to be redundant

2009-03-15T21:54:00.017-04:00

Jesus calms the tempest, Immaculate Heart of Mary, Cleveland, O.
In part, this window was symbolic, in the early part of the last century, in announcing the end of discord between two, neighboring, polish parishes, IHM and Saint Stanislaus.

The letters of decision came from Bishop Lennon, saturday afternoon. The diocese will be reduced by 52[or so] parishes. Ethnically, the slavonic parishes were hit the hardest, perhaps the poles most so by number. Before the official paper, some expected parishes were not amenable. IHM was spared, nearby Sacred Heart of Jesus was not; three Sacred Heart parishes were suppressed (Akron, Cleve., Elyria).

To-day is traditionally, the ides of March, it is also the day the buzzards return to Hinckley, Ohio. The news received from other birds is being ruminated about, and will not be fully digested for quite some time.

As physical sites, Saint James is marvelously muralled, but has suffered great water damage, and has plastic buckets of several sizes under the proscenium arches of two altars. It is a magnificent church in the form of a norman cathedral in Sicily. St. Ignatius of Antioch has a wonderful campanile, that is, a beacon from the interstate. Saint Peter is the oldest, surviving parish building in the city, and has financial resources, and many programmes of service and education. A few years ago, a fellow, with some relationship with local CWRU, wrote a book on exciting congregations across the country. Two catholic congregations were profiled, one was Saint Peter’s. These three were suppressed, there are fine arguments for an appeal to Rome.

Saint Peter was in the same cluster with the cathedral, and with the Shrine Church of the Conversion of Saint Paul, which has a monastery of Poor Clares and a friary of Capuchins, and has a resident confessor, and each day has a line of penitents waiting to be heard. The shrine will not operate as a parish, but was previously promised to remain celebrating mass publicly.

St. Colman is to be merged with Saint Stephen. The “new” parish will be at the site of Saint Stephen. The political infighting, of the cluster committee, was very unpleasant. This group voted to close Saint Procop, and Saint Stephen. Saturday evening, the pastor of St. Colman posted a letter, on the internet, of uncharitable animus,* in regards to that merger decision, and it was available in church to-day. Saint Colman is a beautiful, italianate church blessed with white, sculpted marble. They have a well attended St. Patrick Day mass, and the sentiments may be rowdy that day.† Those are some of the unfortunate stories, there are more; many people are saddened and hurt.

During this process, some parishes have already been suppressed: St. Philip Neri, St. Jude (Warrensville Hts.), St. Wenceslas (Maple Hts.), and St. Andrew Svorad. St. Catherine, St. Henry were merged with Saint Timothy. Saint Andrew was demolished, very recently. The dust is still settling.
__________________
postscriptum: As of Mayday, a partial recension has occurred, the parishes of Sts. Colman, Ignatius and Stephen have been given a four year reprieve. Before the end of the month, the first of these redundant Cleveland parishes, Epiphany, has closed, with very, little public announcement, save for the radio station, WCPN. Prior to that, Holy Cross (Polish) in Elyria was suppressed.
*postscriptum: 29 July 2009, I have found out, that, I need to apologise to Saint Colman's parish. I was not in the cluster meetings, but have learned that perhaps two of St. Stephen's cohort had made themselves obnoxious, perhaps unto odiousness, especially one. That may be part of the reason of Colman's hostility.
† and it was, Father Begin can be a very spirited and dauntless cheerleader.

Ballade von Cäsars Tod

2009-03-15T00:01:00.004-04:00

To-day is the Ides of March (Idus Martias). Most of us, who, have even a rudimentary knowledge of history, know this is the day Cæsar was warned about. We know he disregarded the warning, and met a dramatic and bloody end, in 44 b.C.

The ides came every moon and, therefore, month, sometimes on the 13th, sometimes on the 15th. The ides* was, ideally, the day of the full moon. Now, March was the month of the god Mars, the god of war and a fine occasion for a military parade. Cæsar was a brilliant soldier, a man of many talents, much ability, accomplishment and ambition.

Now, Georg Kaiser [ironic] wrote a novel, Der Silbersee: Ein Wintermärchen, The silver lake: a winter tale. The title alludes to both Shakespeare and Heine†, and to a fairy tale. Often in a fairy tale, a fanciful event and characters can refer to other realities and people. Kaiser wrote a libretto from this to Kurt Weill’s music. A singspiel (operetta) Der Silbersee premiered in three german cities 18 February 1933.

In 1923 Kaiser was jailed for stealing bread. In der Silbersee, a character is shot for stealing a pineapple. He and his shooter reconcile on the frozen lake. Sometime before this, the castlekeeper’s, soprano niece (Lotte Lenya, Frau Weill) sings a song of the death of Cæsar in seven verses, Ballade von Cäsars Tod.

The song relates the famous tale. It begins:

Rom war eine Stadt, und alle Römer
hatten in den Adern heißes Blut.
Als sie Cäsar einst tyrannisch reizte,
kochte es sofort in Siedeglut.

Nicht die Warnung konnte Cäsar hindern:
"Hüte vor des Märzes Iden dich!"
Er verfolgte seine frechen Ziele
und sah schon als Herrn der Römer sich.

Immer schlimmer schlug ihn die Verblendung,
nur sein Wort galt noch im Capitol.
Und den weisen Rat der Senatoren
schmähte er gemein und höhnisch Kohl...
___________________________

Rome was a city, and all the Romans
had in their veins hot blood.
As Cæsar became tyrannical,
it boiled immediately in seething ardor.

Not the warning could hinder Cæsar:
“Beware of the Ides of March you!”
He pursued his cheeky intention
and saw himself already the Lord of the Romans.

Evermore worse hit him the delusion,
only his word [was] valid in the capital.
And the wise counsel of the senators
he reviled [as] common and derisive nonsense...

A bit earlier, 30 January 1933, the nazis took power when Hitler became chancellor. The Reichstag fire was set the night of 27 February 1933. This event was a spectacular event of terror that was orchestrated, by Hitler, to take severe measures, and was the justification for the elimination of civil liberties, in the guise of homeland security.

The production ran sixteen times before it was banned, well before the ides. The careers of the principles were ended in Germany. Substitute Cæsar for the over reaching leader‡ of the time, as certainly people did.

Ute Lemper recorded the song, on an album, Ute Lemper Singt Kurt Weill, in 1987, Ute Lemper Sings Kurt Weill, in 1988. I knew of Weill and Lenya. I was very taken with the second cut on the disc. Later in 2001, and the years thereafter, I remembered the song. I wonder if other people did. The lyrics cut deeply into a tyrant, but we still have tyrants, und der Senatoren im Capitol hat getan nichts, und diese Leute hatten keines heißes Blut, als Cäsar einst tyrannisch bekommt.
________________
*and sometimes the seven days prior
†Heinrich Heine wrote a poem Deutschland: ein Wintermärchen, Shakespeare, Winter’s Tale
‡ der Führer is german for ‘the leader’

Police versus priest, cameras contradict cop

2009-03-14T15:00:00.006-04:00

The area about New Haven Connecticut has had a new source of population coming from the south of the Rio Grande. This is not new, but yesterday, the Associated Press picked up a story from East Haven. On the 19th of February, police accused ecuadorian storeowners of abusing government property. The police then had the owner, of My Country Store, remove five dozen car license plates from display on a rear wall. A priest, Father James Manship, pastor of Saint Rose of Lima church in New Haven, was inside the store, and began filming.

The police accused the storeowners of abusing government property, and the priest of pointing a weapon on the police. Store surveillance images, and the priests video too, have surfaced onto YouTube, and other internet sites. Oddly, the videos contradict the police. At first the police were not aware of security cameras, the police wanted the surveillance images or to erase the hard drive, but could not secure it, over the owner’s insistent refusal. The owners received a $372 ticket, and the confiscation of most of the plates.

Conversation on the priest’s camera:
policeman David Cari: "Sir, what're you doing? Is there a reason you have a camera on me?"
priest: "Yes."
police: "Why's that?"
priest: "I'm taking a video of what's going on here."
police: "Well, I'll tell you, what I'm going to do with that camera."
--end of recording

The priest pled not guilty on the 4th of March (there was not a police report until then) to creating a public disturbance and interfering with police. There is to be a trial on the 27th.

The police have ‘lawyered up’. Hugh Keefe says the video does not show what happened after the camera went off, and the priest is “creating controversy where none needed to be.”

“He refused two or three times and at that point Officer Cari approached him wanting to check out if it was a weapon. He wouldn't tell him, the officer went up to him and grabbed him and finally saw it was a camera.”

Now, of course, there are always two sides of the story: what actually happened and the official story. Certainly there are many who will support all armed authority, and there are people who believe catholic priests brandish guns, and are meddlesome dangers to the community, and the safety of police officers. Then there are the left wing troublemakers, who invent stories of racial and ethnic harassment. Where in the second amendment are people allowed to carry dangerous cameras?
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Postscriptum: Father Manship appeared in court on the 26th of March. The state prosecutor admitted there was not evidence to prosecute. The judge dismissed the case. That day, parishioners petitioned the federal government to investigate the East Haven police for harassment of civil rights. Now, since the busheviks, presumably, are not running the Justice Department, perhaps some justice will come.

14th Station

2009-03-14T00:01:00.001-04:00

14th Station (Saint Mary of the Assumption, Cleve., O.)
XIV Jesus is laid in the tomb
14. Jesús es colocado en el sepulcro

John xix ― 39 And Nicodemus also came, (he who at the first came to Jesus by night,) bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about an hundred pound weight. 40 They took therefore the body of Jesus, and bound it in linen cloths, with the spices, as the manner of the Jews is to bury. 41 Now there was in the place where he was crucified, a garden; and in the garden a new sepulchre, wherein no man yet had been laid. 42 There, therefore, because of the parasceve of the Jews, they laid Jesus, because the sepulchre was nigh at hand.

39 Venit autem et Nicodémus, qui vénerat ad Jesum nocte primum, ferens mixtúram myrrhæ et áloës, quasi libras centum. 40 Accepérunt ergo corpus Jesu, et ligavérunt illud línteis cum aromátibus, sicut mos est Judǽis sepelíre. 41 Erat autem in loco, ubi crucifíxus est, hortus : et in horto monuméntum novum, in quo nondum quisquam pósitus erat. 42 Ibi ergo propter parascéven Judæórum, quia juxta erat monuméntum, posuérunt Jesum.

Porque no pensemos, hermanos, que nuestros muertos se han apartado de nosotros, su cielo, su recompensa eterna, los perfecciona en el amor, siguen amando las mismas causas por las cuales murieron, lo cual quiere decir que en El Salvador esta fuerza liberadora no sólo cuenta con los que van quedando vivos, sino que cuenta con todos aquellos que las han querido matar y que están más presentes que antes en este proceso del pueblo. ― Monsenor Romero. 2 March 1980.

Don’t think, brothers, that our dead have left us. Their heaven, their eternal recompense, makes them more perfect in love. They are still loving the same causes that they died for. That means that in El Salvador this liberating force not only counts those who remain living, but also counts those who they wanted to kill who are more present than before in the people.

13th Station

2009-03-13T00:01:00.001-04:00

13th Station (Saint Wendelin, Cleve., O.)
XIII Jesus is taken down from the Cross and given to his Mother
13. Jesús es bajado de la cruz

Mark xv ―43 Joseph of Arimathea, a noble counsellor, who was also himself looking for the kingdom of God, came and went in boldly to Pilate, and begged the body of Jesus. 44 But Pilate wondered that he should be already dead. And sending for the centurion, he asked him if he were already dead. 45 And when he had understood it by the centurion, he gave the body to Joseph. 46 And Joseph buying fine linen, and taking him down, wrapped him up in the fine linen, and laid him in a sepulchre which was hewed out of a rock. And he rolled a stone to the door of the sepulchre.

43 venit Joseph ab Arimathǽa nóbilis decúrio, qui et ipse erat exspéctans regnum Dei, et audácter introívit ad Pilátum, et pétiit corpus Jesu. 44 Pilátus autem mirabátur si jam obiísset. Et accersíto centurióne, interrogávit eum si jam mórtuus esset. 45 Et cum cognovísset a centurióne, donávit corpus Joseph. 46 Joseph autem mercátus síndonem, et depónens eum invólvit síndone, et pósuit eum in monuménto quod erat excísum de petra, et advólvit lápidem ad óstium monuménti.

Maria es la expresión de la necesidad del pueblo Salvadoreño. Maria es la expresión de la angustia de quienes están en prisión. Maria es la tristeza de las madres quienes han perdido a sus hijos y nadie les dirá donde están. Maria es la ternura que busca con angustia una solución. ― Monsenor Romero. 24 Diciembre 1978.

Mary is the expression of the need of the Salvadorian people. Mary is the expression of the anguish of those who are in prison. Mary is the sadness of the mothers who have lost their children and no one will tell them where they are. Mary is the tenderness that looks with anguish for a solution.

Salt march

2009-03-12T00:01:00.009-04:00

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi *1869,†1948.
(some one thought the Cleveland winter cold, and placed a muffler about the neck)

It is becoming common for many large cities and moderate cities to have a statue of Gandhi. There is one in London, the capital of the empire he defeated, other cities, that, have no connexion to him, Moscow and New York City.

During the last depression, in one of Franklin Roosevelt’s projects, there was built, in Cleveland, on then Liberty (now M. L. King) Blvd., Cultural Gardens. They have not been finished. In the new Indian Garden, a bronze statue of Gandhi, by Gautam Pal, was installed in 2006.

Gandhi so impressed his fellow nationals, they acclaimed him ― Mahatma (great soul) ― for what he did, and how he did it. The english empire held south asia and South Africa. Gandhi was familiar with how the english ruled.

There is a passage from Luke first half of vi. 29:

And to him that striketh thee on the one cheek, offer also the other.

This was the key passage to Lev Nikolajevič Tolstoj and to Gandhi. They corresponded.

I want to tell others what I feel so particularly keen about, namely what is called non-resistance, but what is essentially nothing other than the teaching of love undistorted by false interpretations…This law has been proclaimed by all the world's sages, Indian, Chinese, Jewish, Greek, and Roman. I think it has been expressed most clearly of all by Christ…―Tolstoy to Gandhi, 7 September 1910.

That, and the Golden Rule:

And as you would that men should do to you, do you also to them in like manner. ― Luke vi. 31.
All things therefore whatsoever you would that men should do to you, do you also to them. For this is the law and the prophets. ― Matthew vii. 12.
See thou never do to another what thou wouldst hate to have done to thee by another. ― Tobiæ iv.16.
Seek not revenge, nor be mindful of the injury of thy citizens. Thou shalt love thy friend as thyself...― Leviticus xix.18.

But there is evil, and injustice in the world, and people want better. As Aristotle taught ― man is a political animal. How to act? Non coöperation with evil and injustice. The irish under the english used the boycott. Labor refused to labor. In using a variation of the golden rule, ahimsa (non-injury), and non co-öperation Gandhi confronted the empire again and again.

In america, the bostonians dressed as red indians, and dumped british tea in the harbor, to protest british taxation. They did this secretly, and in dark, and in disguise. Gandhi and his indians protested british taxation of salt. They marched 24 days, beginning on 12 March 1930, peacefully, in the open, from Ahmadabad to Dandi on the arabian sea, and made salt. The british responded brutally. They arrested Gandhi, again. They ran a world wide campaign of black propaganda against him and his people. The campaign of peaceful refusal began. The english lost, eventually [they did not want to leave France either 500 years previous].

Gandhi had campaigns against the evil of his people. He opposed the caste system and the treatment of dalits, the untouchables. The laws to-day are in their favor, but not the actions of indian society.

Slowly the world is beginning to commemorate his presence, if not his ideas. The little dedication ceremony in Cleveland did not have much hoopla. The indian community recognised one of their own. Congressman Kucinich, a war opponent, was in attendance. The quakers had given him a Gandhi prize for peace*. Many people admire Gandhi in the US, but few politicians, and fewer will act in his fashion. Peace does not win votes here.

********************

I am being led to my religion through Truth and Non-Violence, i.e., love in the broadest sense. I often describe my religion as the religion of Truth. Of late, instead of saying God is Truth I have been saying Truth is God, in order more fully to define my religion.

Gentle Jesus, the greatest passive resister the world has seen.

Live simply, that others may simply live.

Those who say that religion has nothing to do with politics, do not know what religion means.... Spirituality that has no bearing on and produces no effect on everyday life is an ‘airy nothing.’

What difference does it make to the dead, the orphans and the homeless, whether the mad destruction is wrought under the name of totalitarianism or the holy name of liberty or democracy?

Nonviolence in its dynamic condition means conscious suffering. It does not mean meek submission to the will of the evildoer, but it means putting of one’s whole soul against the will of the tyrant. Working under this law of our being, it is possible for a single individual to defy the whole might of an unjust empire to save his honor, his religion, his soul, and lay the foundation for that empire’s fall or its regeneration.

Jesus gave mankind, in these lessons and in his life, the great goal toward which to aspire. It is because there is such a goal, and because there was such a figure as that of Jesus, that I cannot be pessimistic, but instead am hopeful and confident of the future. And it is because his life has this significance and meaning for me that I do not regard him as belonging to Christianity alone, but rather to the whole world, to all its peoples, no matter under what name they worship.

...to be a good Hindu also meant that I would be a good Christian. There was no need for me to join your creed to be a believer in the beauty of the teachings of Jesus or try to follow His example...
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* Gandhi did not win a Nobel prize for peace, Kissinger did though.

12th Station

2009-03-12T00:01:00.005-04:00

12th Station (Saint Augustine, Cleve.,O.)
XII Jesus dies on the Cross
12. Jesús muere en la cruz

Luke xxiii ― 44 And it was almost the sixth hour; and there was darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour. 45 And the sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was rent in the midst. 46 And Jesus crying out with a loud voice, said: Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit. And saying this, he gave up the ghost. 47 Now the centurion, seeing what was done, glorified God, saying: Indeed this was a just man.

44 Erat autem fere hora sexta, et ténebræ factæ sunt in univérsam terram usque ad horam nonam. 45 Et obscurátus est sol, et velum templi scissum est médium. 46 Et clamans voce magna Jesus ait : Pater, in manus tuas comméndo spíritum meum. Et hæc dicens, expirávit. 47 Videns autem centúrio quod factum fúerat, glorificávit Deum, dicens : Vere hic homo justus erat.

Mientras miramos a Cristo clavado en la cruz nos invita la Sagrada Palabra a descifrar un misterio de actualidad. Si Cristo es el representante de todo el pueblo en sus dolores, en su humillación, en sus miembros acribillados con unos clavos en una cruz, tenemos que descubrir el sufrimiento de nuestro pueblo. Es nuestro pueblo torturado, es nuestro pueblo crucificado, escupido, humillado al que representa Jesucristo Nuestro Señor para darle a nuestra situación tan difícil un sentido de redención ― Monsenor Romero. Marzo 24, 1978.

While we look at Christ nailed to the cross, he invites us to discern from the sacred word a real mystery. If Christ is the representative for all people, we have to discover the suffering of our people in his suffering, his humiliation, his body scarred by the nails of the cross. This is our people tortured, crucified, spat upon, and humiliated from whom Christ our Lord is represented in order to give our very difficult situation a sense of redemption.

11th Station

2009-03-11T00:01:00.001-04:00

11th Station (Saint Stephen, Cleve., O.)
Jesus wird ans Kreuz geschlagen
XI Jesus is nailed to the Cross
11. Jesús es clavado a la cruz

Mark xv ― 22 And they bring him into the place called Golgotha, which being interpreted is, The place of Calvary. 23 And they gave him to drink wine mingled with myrrh; but he took it not. 24 And crucifying him, they divided his garments, casting lots upon them, what every man should take. 25 And it was the third hour, and they crucified him. 26 And the inscription of his cause was written over: THE KING OF THE JEWS. 27 And with him they crucify two thieves; the one on his right hand, and the other on his left. 28 And the scripture was fulfilled, which saith: And with the wicked he was reputed. 29 And they that passed by blasphemed him, wagging their heads, and saying: Vah, thou that destroyest the temple of God, and in three days buildest it up again; 30 Save thyself, coming down from the cross. 31 In like manner also the chief priests mocking, said with the scribes one to another: He saved others; himself he cannot save. 32 Let Christ the king of Israel come down now from the cross, that we may see and believe. And they that were crucified with him reviled him.

22 Et perdúcunt illum in Gólgotha locum : quod est interpretátum Calváriæ locus. 23 Et dabant ei bíbere myrrhátum vinum : et non accépit. 24 Et crucifigéntes eum, divisérunt vestiménta ejus, mitténtes sortem super eis, quis quid tólleret. 25 Erat autem hora tértia : et crucifixérunt eum. 26 Et erat títulus causæ ejus inscríptus : Rex Judæórum. 27 Et cum eo crucifígunt duos latrónes : unum a dextris, et álium a sinístris ejus. 28 Et impléta est Scriptúra, quæ dicit : Et cum iníquis reputátus est. 29 Et prætereúntes blasphemábant eum, movéntes cápita sua, et dicéntes : Vah ! qui déstruis templum Dei, et in tribus diébus reædíficas, 30 salvum fac temetípsum descéndens de cruce. 31 Simíliter et summi sacerdótes illudéntes, ad altérutrum cum scribis dicébant : Álios salvos fecit ; seípsum non potest salvum fácere. 32 Christus rex Israël descéndat nunc de cruce, ut videámus, et credámus. Et qui cum eo crucifíxi erant, convitiabántur ei.

Roma crucificaba pero no a sus romanos, Roma crucificaba a los pueblos que dependían de su imperio; y como Palestina dependía de Roma -Pilatos era el representante de Roma en aquel pueblo oprimido- Cristo tiene que ser humillado como un ser que no merece ni siquiera ciudadanía ― Monsenor Romero. 19 Marzo 1978.

Rome used to crucify people, but not Roman citizens. Rome used to crucify the people that depended on their empire. And since Palestine depended on Rome (Pilate was the representative of Rome to this oppressed people), Christ had to be humiliated like someone who didn’t merit citizenship.

What Parish Would Jesus Close?

2009-03-10T19:42:00.006-04:00

A few years ago, there appeared throughout the country, shirts, bracelets and other items with the initials: WWJD? To some it was trivial, marketing kitsch; but it truly is an important ethical question of volition. We, who, say that we, are christians ought be followers of Jesus in more than in name alone. We ought to emulate Him as much as our ability, being an occasional admirer is not enough.

Sunday evening last, at Saint Sava’s, in attendance, from all the Eastern Orthodox Catholic churches of the area there was celebrated The Triumph of Orthodoxy. Now, most of these churches were independent of each other, and yet, they share a common communion, and are part of the one holy catholic and apostolic church. They are not in communion with the church of the west, Rome. The grand shame of the Great Schism continues. These orthodox many are organised by nation. There they were slavs, and greeks, and arabs, and smaller nations in unity.

To the new world there, also, came those who were in communion with Rome: the many eastern rites, and the slavs, teutons, celts, latins, litvins, and more; also the iberians came and joined with the indian nations. In the cities, and even the rural parts, many, if not most, parishes were predominately of one nation. With new patterns of internal migrations, and the fashions of the current age, this has changed in the US.

The Catholic church in the US is diverse, the hierarchy (bishophry) not so much. Much of the laity have been subject to: pray, pay and obey. Some members and parishes of the byzantine and uniate rites were driven away to eastern orthodoxy. Some of the poles formed a schismatic national church which, because of its separation, has veered from orthodoxy. And as we have seen here, many polish parishes are cited for suppression, and many of these poles are not willing to quietly surrender. Many catholics, who have no argument with the old, true and everlasting faith, nor with Rome and the pope, past and present, but have been misused by the american bishops.

Here and elsewhere, the three reasons cited (demographics, clergy shortage and expense) for the necessity of reducing parishes are invalid. In public discourse, virtually everyone has agreed, that, they are valid premises. The Church has a body of canon law, which is similar to a constitution, it is a legal code. We have seen, in this country, constitutions and other social contracts ignored, even abrogated, too often. The public debate is thoroughly on the principles of the american business model, which the public errantly accepts. The three reasons, often cited, are reasons the american business model gives for reduction of franchises. The american business model gives great honor to capitalism. Capitalism is a form of mammon worship, and it should not be substituted for canon law, nor the Sermon on the Mount.

A parish is a juridic person, as in american law a corporation is a fictive, yet legal, person. A parish is formally erected by a bishop, in the diocese he oversees, not rules. Once created it is meant to be perpetual. To suppress it towards extinction is not easily done canonically! And in alliance with this, these parishes, and their property were created by these diverse people, and given to the future in trust. Canon law does not put a quota for one priest for so many parishioners, a parish can have, and often has had, no resident priest. We are being told, that, the old parishes must pass away for the new. Some of us disagree.

Capitalism wants to maximise profit. When we take this to the logical extreme of continuing action, we come to the point where, after getting the most, and expending the least (maximised efficency), we have gotten everything for giving nothing. Jesus gave us all and took nothing. American business management theory does not belong in Jesus’ church. In this Sunday’s Gospel, John tells us of the time Jesus drives marketers and financiers from His Father’s House.

10th Station

2009-03-10T00:01:00.004-04:00

10th Station (Saint Rocco, Cleve., O.)
X Jesus is stripped of his garments
10. Jesús es despojado de sus vestiduras

John xix ― 18 Where they crucified him, and with him two others, one on each side, and Jesus in the midst. 19 And Pilate wrote a title also, and he put it upon the cross. And the writing was: JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS. 20 This title therefore many of the Jews did read: because the place where Jesus was crucified was nigh to the city: and it was written in Hebrew, in Greek, and in Latin. 21 Then the chief priests of the Jews said to Pilate: Write not, The King of the Jews; but that he said, I am the King of the Jews. 22 Pilate answered: What I have written, I have written. 23 The soldiers therefore, when they had crucified him, took his garments, (and they made four parts, to every soldier a part,) and also his coat. Now the coat was without seam, woven from the top throughout. 24 They said then one to another: Let us not cut it, but let us cast lots for it, whose it shall be; that the scripture might be fulfilled, saying: They have parted my garments among them, and upon my vesture they have cast lot. And the soldiers indeed did these things.

18 ubi crucifixérunt eum, et cum eo álios duos hinc et hinc, médium autem Jesum. 19 Scripsit autem et títulum Pilátus, et pósuit super crucem. Erat autem scriptum : Jesus Nazarénus, Rex Judæórum. 20 Hunc ergo títulum multi Judæórum legérunt : quia prope civitátem erat locus, ubi crucifíxus est Jesus, et erat scriptum hebráice, græce, et latíne. 21 Dicébant ergo Piláto pontífices Judæórum : Noli scríbere : Rex Judæórum : sed quia ipse dixit : Rex sum Judæórum. 22 Respóndit Pilátus : Quod scripsi, scripsi. 23 Mílites ergo cum crucifixíssent eum, accepérunt vestiménta ejus (et fecérunt quátuor partes, unicuíque míliti partem) et túnicam. Erat autem túnica inconsútilis, désuper contéxta per totum. 24 Dixérunt ergo ad ínvicem : Non scindámus eam, sed sortiámur de illa cujus sit. Ut Scriptúra implerétur, dicens : Partíti sunt vestiménta mea sibi : et in vestem meam misérunt sortem. Et mílites quidem hæc fecérunt.

Este es el compromiso de ser cristiano: seguir a Cristo en su encarnación y si Cristo es Dios majestuoso que se hace hombre humilde hasta la muerte de los esclavos en una cruz y vive con los pobres, así debe ser nuestra fe cristiana. El cristiano que no quiere vivir este compromiso de solidaridad con el pobre, no es digno de llamarse cristiano. Cristo nos invita a no tenerle miedo a la persecución porque, créanlo hermanos, el que se compromete con los pobres tiene que correr el mismo destino de los pobres: ser desaparecido, ser torturados, ser capturados, aparecer cadáveres ― Monsenor Romero. 17 Febrero 1980.

This is the commitment of being a Christian: to follow Christ in his Incarnation. And if Christ is a majestic God who becomes a humble man and lives with the poor until the death of slaves on a cross, our Christian faith should be lived in the same fashion. This Christian who doesn’t want to live with this commitment of solidarity with the poor doesn’t deserve to call himself a Christian. Christ invites us not to fear persecution because, believe it brothers, the one who binds himself with the poor has to go through the same destiny as the poor: to be disappeared, to be tortured, to be captured to appear as dead.

9th Station

2009-03-09T00:01:00.001-04:00

9th Station (Shrine Church of Saint Stanislaus, Cleve., O.)
Jezus upada pod krzyżem raz trzeci
IX Jesus falls for the third time
9. Jesús cae por tercera vez

Luke xvii ― 1 And he said to his disciples: It is impossible that scandals should not come: but woe to him through whom they come. 2 It were better for him, that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he cast into the sea, than that he should scandalize one of these little ones.

1 Et ait ad discípulos suos : Impossíbile est ut non véniant scándala : væ autem illi per quem véniunt. 2 Utílius est illi si lapis moláris imponátur circa collum ejus, et projiciátur in mare quam ut scandalízet unum de pusíllis istis.

¡No está vencido nadie aunque lo pongan bajo la bota de la opresión y de la represión, el que cree en Cristo, sabe que es un vencedor y que la victoria definitiva será de la verdad y de la justicia. ― 23 Marzo 1980 (un día antes de su muerte)

¡Qué bien se identifica Cristo con el sufrimiento de nuestro pueblo! Así parecen clamar muchas cosas, muchos tugurios, muchos en las cárceles y en el sufrimiento, muchos hambrientos de justicia y de paz. "¿Dios mío, Dios mío, por qué me has abandonado?" No nos ha abandonado. Es la hora en que el Hijo de Dios va pasando con toda su carga de pecado por la obediencia que Dios le pide para poder perdonar esos pecados de la humanidad de donde derivan todas las injusticias, todos los egoísmos ― Monsenor Romero. 8 Abril 1979.

No one is vanquished even though he is put under the boot of oppression and repression. He who believes in Christ knows that he is victor and that the ultimate victory will be from truth and from justice. (a day before his death)

How well Christ identified himself with the suffering of his people! Many shacks, many slums, many imprisoned by suffering, many hungry for justice and peace appear to clamor, ‘My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?’ He hasn’t abandoned us. This is the hour in which the Son of God is carrying all of the load of sins to obey God, asking him to pardon these sins of humanity from whom is derived all injustices, all selfishness.

Sacrifice of Isaac

2009-03-08T00:01:00.008-05:00

Filippo Brunelleschi. Sacrifice of Isaac[detail]. 1401. Florence.

Now, in the Second Sunday of Lent, in the Tridentine rite, and all three years of the vernacular, the Gospel is the Transfiguration, the same as on 6 August. This is year B, the Gospel of Mark is used; in year B, the Sacrifice of Isaac is also read [in a shortened form]. Two foretellings of Jesus’ rôle are presented.

Brunelleschi’s gilded panel, was a test piece, for the commission, of the bronze doors, of the Baptistery of Florence’s cathedral. He lost to Lorenzo Ghiberti, whose work would use less bronze. Brunelleschi has Abraham’s left hand on Isaac’s neck, Abraham’s right hand holds a knife. The angel grabs Abraham’s right arm and ends Abraham’s test. It is Isaac, who prefigures Jesus, the perfect Sacrifice. The drama is within a triangle of heads and the grasping of three hands.

After these things, God tempted Abraham, and said to him: Abraham, Abraham. And he answered: Here I am. He said to him: Take thy only* begotten son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and go into the land of vision†: and there thou shalt offer him for a holocaust upon one of the mountains which I will shew thee. So Abraham rising up in the night, saddled his ass‡: and took with him two young men, and Isaac his son: and when he had cut wood for the holocaust he went his way to the place which God had commanded him. And on the third day, lifting up his eyes, he saw the place afar off. And he said to his young men: Stay you here with the ass: I and the boy will go with speed as far as yonder, and after we have worshipped, will return to you. And he took the wood for the holocaust, and laid it upon Isaac his son: and he himself carried in his hands fire and a sword. And as they two went on together, Isaac said to his father: My father. And he answered: What wilt thou, son? Behold, saith he, fire and wood: where is the victim for the holocaust? And Abraham said: God will provide himself a victim for an holocaust, my son. So they went on together. And they came to the place which God had shewn him, where he built an altar, and laid the wood in order upon it: and when he had bound Isaac his son, he laid him on the altar upon the pile of wood. And he put forth his hand and took the sword, to sacrifice his son. And behold an angel of the Lord from heaven called to him, saying: Abraham, Abraham. And he answered: Here I am. And he said to him: Lay not thy hand upon the boy, neither do thou any thing to him: now I know that thou fearest God, and hast not spared thy only begotten son for my sake. Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw behind his back a ram amongst the briers sticking fast by the horns, which he took and offered for a holocaust instead of his son. And he called the name of that place, The Lord seeth. Whereupon even to this day it is said: In the mountain the Lord will see. And the angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time from heaven, saying: By my own self have I sworn, saith the Lord: because thou hast done this thing, and hast not spared thy only begotten son for my sake: I will bless thee, and I will multiply thy seed as the stars of heaven, and as the sand that is by the sea shore: thy seed shall possess the gates of their enemies. And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because thou hast obeyed my voice. ― Genesis xxii.1-18. DRC

Now, of all the Bible stories, this one children do not like. This makes all children nervous. Some stories make, particular, children nervous, e.g. when people call out for the death of Jeremias. A child with that name, or a derivative thereof, is not at ease.

But, here as elsewhere, we see the Lord call out to a man, and the response, ‘Here I am.’ That is the response, that one, who hears and does the Lord’s will, gives.
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*there was also Ismaël by Agar earlier, both who were cast off, and later:

And Abraham married another wife, named Cetura: Who bore him Zamran, and Jecsan, and Madan, and Madian, and Jesboc, and Sue. ― Genesis xxv.1-2. DRC

†Moriah, in some versions
‡yes, that is the correct word, donkey is a bowdlerisation

The hound, Hachi

2009-03-08T00:01:00.004-05:00

In 1924, Hidesaburō Ueno, a professor at Imperial U.*, brought an akita pup from the snow country (Yukiguni), of Akita prefecture, to live with him. He would go to Shibuya station, in the morning accompanied by his hound, to travel to work. When the train returned in the afternoon, the dog would be waiting. One day, the next year, the professor was felled with a stroke. He never returned, and soon died. Hachi (*10 November 1923,†8 March 1935), the hound, was taken away, but would return to their old residence, until one day he returned to Shibuya station. This he would do for, more than, nine years.

People noticed. He was acknowledged, greeted and fed. Newspaper articles were written. A song was sung in schools by children. Hachikō was an exemplar of loyalty and faithfulness. These were the qualities the people, of the nation, should have for their country, and emperor.

People donated money for a statue of Hachikō†, while he was still a living model. When he died, a funeral service with many mourners gathered. He was stuffed, and placed as a museum exhibit. His bones were buried near his master.

The war came. The bronze statue, by Ando Teru, was melted in 1944 for armament. The akita breed had declined to a small number in the early twentieth century, after having been a favorite hunting dog of samurai. The furry and muscular hounds took down bears. During the war, dogs were butchered for food and pelt; similar stories were true in other lands too, certain breeds were nearing vanishing. In certain locales, the harboring of hounds became illegal, police would kill the animals. People who kept, and hid, their companions were harassed by their, own, family members.

Recently a book has been published, by Martha Sherrill, that tells the story of Morie Sawataishi’s rôle in saving the akita. From 1944 til he died in 2008, Sawataishi cared for the breed. The akita is a loyal breed of a loyal animal, that, has regular habits.

After the war a new statue‡ came to Shibuya station and it is, again, a landmark. A film, Hachikō Monogatari (1987), was made. This year an american version, set in New England, will be released. The 8th of April an annual remembrance takes place, for Hachikō, at the railway station.
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*now Tokyo U.
†Hachikō, a familiar diminutive form
‡ by the sculptor’s son, Takeshi; other statues have followed

8th Station

2009-03-07T00:01:00.000-05:00

8th Station (Saint Procop, Cleve., O.)
VIII Jesus speaks to the women of Jerusalem
8. Jesús habla a las mujeres de Jerusalén

Luke xxiii ― 27 And there followed him a great multitude of people, and of women, who bewailed and lamented him. 28 But Jesus turning to them, said: Daughters of Jerusalem, weep not over me; but weep for yourselves, and for your children.

27 Sequebátur autem illum multa turba pópuli et mulíerum, quæ plangébant et lamentabántur eum. 28 Convérsus autem ad illas Jesus, dixit : Fíliæ Jerúsalem, nolíte flere super me, sed super vos ipsas flete et super fílios vestros.

El que convive con el pobre, con el miserable, con el campesino y lo defiende y quiere como Cristo nuestro Señor predicar la liberación a los pobres, a los oprimidos, a los prisioneros, a los que sufren. Este es Cristo que está en medio de nosotros ― Monsenor Romero. 23 Marzo 1978.

The one who lives with the poor, the miserable, the peasant and who defends them and loves them like Christ our Lord, and who preaches the liberation of the poor, of the oppressed, of the one who suffers, this one is Christ in our midst.

7th Station

2009-03-06T00:01:00.001-05:00

7th Station (Our Lady of Peace, Cleve., O.)
VII Jesus falls for the second time
7. Jesús cae por segunda vez

John xii ― 24 Amen, amen I say to you, unless the grain of wheat falling into the ground die,

24 Amen, amen dico vobis, nisi granum fruménti cadens in terram, mórtuum fúerit,

Aquí donde Cristo es carne que sufre, aquí donde Cristo es cosa, donde Cristo es persecución, donde Cristo es hombres que duermen en el campo porque no pueden dormir en su casa, donde Cristo es enfermedad que sufre por consecuencia de tantas intemperies y de tantos sufrimientos; aquí es Cristo con su cruz a cuestas, no meditado en una capilla junto al vía-crucis, sino vivido en el pueblo; es Cristo con su cruz camino del Calvario ― Monsenor Romero. 5 Marzo 1978.

Here, Christ is flesh that suffers. Here where Christ is something, he is persecution, where Christ is men who sleep out in the country because they can’t sleep in their house, where Christ is sickness that suffers because of the consequences of being so unprotected. Here is Christ with the cross upon his shoulders on the road to Calvary, not meditated in some chapel with the way of the cross or lived outside the people.

6th Station

2009-03-05T00:01:00.004-05:00

6th Station (Saint Colman, Cleve., O.)
VI Veronica wipes the face of Jesus
6. Verónica limpia el rostro de Jesús

Matthew xxvi ―27 And taking the chalice, he gave thanks, and gave to them, saying: Drink ye all of this.

27 Et accípiens cálicem, grátias egit : et dedit illis, dicens : Bíbite ex hoc omnes.

Si viéramos que es Cristo el hombre necesitado, el hombre torturado, el hombre prisionero, el asesinado; y en cada figura de hombre, botadas tan indignamente por nuestros caminos, descubriéramos a ese Cristo botado, medalla de oro que recogeríamos con ternura y la besaríamos y no nos avergonzaríamos de él ― Monsenor Romero. 16 Marzo 1980.

If we could see that Christ is the needy person, the tortured person, the prisoner, the assassinated one, the one thrown away with so much indignity on our roads. If we could discover in this rejected one Christ, we would treat this Christ as a medal of gold. We would pick him up with tenderness and kiss him. We would not feel ashamed of him.

Reasons cited for closure are invalid

2009-03-04T00:05:00.004-05:00

In two earlier numbers, №1, № 2, there was presented, verbatim, canon laws. Below is an argument that has them as premises and rationale.

The three reasons cited for the necessity of reducing parishes, in Cleveland, Ohio, and elsewhere, are: priest shortage, demographic change, and lack of funding. It should be remembered that in defining the terms of debate, more than half the argument is won.

The proposed answer, to the three reasons cited for the necessity of reducing parishes, is invalid. The church must answer to the dictates of God, especially in the teachings of Jesus, Our God and Brother. Christ instituted the Church, and left Peter and his successors to guide it. Over the years, there has developed, a body of canon law that governs the working of the church as an organisation. The parish, the diocese, the bishops, and more are defined, and delineated, within canon law. A parish is a juridic person (similarly, in american law a corporation is a fictive, yet legal, person). A parish is formally erected by a bishop, in the diocese he oversees, not rules. Once created it is meant to be perpetual. To suppress it towards extinction is not easily done, canonically! The proposed answer, closing parishes, is not a response to the premises given. The premises may all be accurate, but they are not germane to the action desired.

Canon law provides for the administration of parishes without each parish having a resident priest. There is no equation, no quota, no ratio relating laity to clergy, priests to parishes, no 1 to ‘x’. Many countries have a higher ratio than the US, and the US has had higher ratios in the past. At the founding of the United States there were thirteen states and, probably, less than that number of priests.

The communities, who labored, and built their parish church, and signed the deed over to the bishop, would never have thought a future bishop would suppress them. With infrastructure, and transportation changes people can have a greater separation of their domicile from their labor and other pursuits. If one can regularly drive an hour to work, each way, and travel 90 miles or more round trip five times a week; such an one can drive more than a few miles to mass.

In Cleveland, and other cities of the industrial rust belts of the northeast and middle west, that multiplied in population several fold from the civil war to the vietnamese war, the catholic immigrants and their immediate descendants were the great engines and producers of growth. Now, with greater social and economic, status and opportunity (compared to their forebears), they have left their old haunts; but they can return, somewhat. The juridic persons, parishes, remain. New ones are not required to be made. The old ones were not created as temporary ad hoc entities, but as perpetual.

If funding were to be a canonical requirement, then self sustaining parishes would be exempt. Non self funding parishes could be forced to a reduced physical campus without extinction as a parish, in fact many people were led to believe, that initially, such measures were suggested by clustering, and that clustering would not mean suppression.

There may be other financial considerations of convenience that have not been stated. But they are not canonical either.

The three reasons cited are reasons the american business model gives for the reduction of franchises. The american business model gives great honor to capitalism. Capitalism is a form of mammon worship. Many people are quite pleased to say something is run, or ought to be run, like a business. Others are willing to assume, or acknowledge, that is the way to do things.

Capitalism wants to maximise profit. Capital is stored and accumulated labor. Without this cache of labor--there is no capital. Profit is receipts minus expenses. In every capitalistic business exchange the goal is to increase this vigorish. To accelerate and expand the principle: to get the most, while giving the least. To reduce to the ultimate simplicity: everything for nothing. THIS IS THE EXACT OPPOSITE OF CHRIST, AND HIS WAY.

Christian economic theories were: the early, simple communism of the early church, the theory of just prices of Augustine, the distributivism of Chesterton. In capitalism, as we know it to-day, there is given great power to the owner, or the chief economic officer, or simply management. In his business he demands to be as powerful as faro of old, an absolute despot. The dissenter is to be crushed, his prescribed role is to be silent and obedient. This american business management theory has become the accepted fallback model, here. In regards to the Church of Christ, Peter’s Barque, it is anathema.

The three reasons cited are not appropriate within the Church. General Electric, Starbucks and the rest of american apparat can act that way with impunity. A pastor is to guard each member of the flock. A bishop is not self invested with administrative power to do as he wishes. The Church does not need bureaucrats, whom think as MBAs from Wharton, Weatherhead or the University of Chicago. God have mercy on us, and send us an occasional saint.

Parishes can exist without a resident priest

2009-03-04T00:03:00.003-05:00

Can. 526 §1. A pastor is to have the parochial care of only one parish; nevertheless, because of a lack of priests or other circumstances, the care of several neighboring parishes can be entrusted to the same pastor.

§2. In the same parish there is to be only one pastor or moderator in accord with the norm of can. 517, §1; any contrary custom is reprobated and any contrary privilege whatsoever is revoked.

Can. 517 §1. When circumstances require it, the pastoral care of a parish or of different parishes together can be entrusted to several priests in solidum, with the requirement, however, that in exercising pastoral care one of them must be the moderator, namely, the one who is to direct the joint action and to answer for it to the bishop.

§2. If, because of a lack of priests, the diocesan bishop has decided that participation in the exercise of the pastoral care of a parish is to be entrusted to a deacon, to another person who is not a priest, or to a community of persons, he is to appoint some priest who, provided with the powers and faculties of a pastor, is to direct the pastoral care.

5th Station

2009-03-04T00:01:00.002-05:00

5th Station (Saint Peter, Cleve., O.)
V Simon the Cyrene helps Jesus to carry the Cross
5. Simón el Cirineo ayuda a Jesús a cargar la cruz

Luke xxiii ― 26 And as they led him away, they laid hold of one Simon of Cyrene, coming from the country; and they laid the cross on him to carry after Jesus.

26 Et cum dúcerent eum, apprehendérunt Simónem quemdam Cyrenénsem veniéntem de villa : et imposuérunt illi crucem portáre post Jesum.

Lamentablemente, queridos hermanos, somos el producto de una educación espiritualista, individualista. Donde se nos enseñaba: procura salvar tu alma y no te importe lo demás. Como decíamos al que sufría: "Paciencia, que ya vendrá el cielo, aguanta". ¡No!, no puede ser eso, eso no es salvar, no es la salvación que Cristo trajo. La salvación que Cristo trae es la salvación de todas las esclavitudes que oprimen al hombre. Es necesario que el hombre que vive bajo de tantas opresiones y esclavitudes rompa las cadenas-el miedo que esclaviza los corazones; la enfermedad que oprime los cuerpos, la tristeza, la preocupación, el terror que oprime nuestra libertad y nuestra vida ― Monsenor Romero. 9 Septiembre 1979.

Unfortunately, dear brothers, we are the product of an education which is spiritualistic and individualistic, where we are taught ‘to gain salvation of the spirit, don’t worry about others.’ Like we say to the suffering, ‘Have patience that you will get to heaven, endure!’ No! That can’t be. This isn’t salvation, not the salvation that Christ brought. The salvation that Christ brings is the salvation from all the slaveries that oppress people. It is necessary that people break the chains that bind them: starting with the many oppressions and slaveries, fears that enslave their hearts, illnesses that oppress their bodies, sadness, preoccupations, terrors that oppress their freedom and their life.

Rome does not allow bishops to close parishes

2009-03-03T15:33:00.003-05:00

Can. 115 §1. Juridic persons in the Church are either aggregates of persons (universitates personarum) or aggregates of things (universitates rerum).

§2. An aggregate of persons (universitas personarum), which can be constituted only with at least three persons, is collegial if the members determine its action through participation in rendering decisions, whether by equal right or not, according to the norm of law and the statutes; otherwise it is non-collegial.

§3. An aggregate of things (universitas rerum), or an autonomous foundation, consists of goods or things, whether spiritual or material, and either one or more physical persons or a college directs it according to the norm of law and the statutes.

Can. 120 §1. A juridic person is perpetual by its nature; nevertheless, it is extinguished if it is legitimately suppressed by competent authority or has ceased to act for a hundred years. A private juridic person, furthermore, is extinguished if the association is dissolved according to the norm of its statutes or if, in the judgment of competent authority, the foundation has ceased to exist according to the norm of its statutes.

§2. If even one of the members of a collegial juridic person survives, and the aggregate of persons (universitas personarum) has not ceased to exist according to its statutes, that member has the exercise of all the rights of the aggregate (universitas).

Can. 121 If aggregates of persons (universitates personarum) or of things (universitates rerum), which are public juridic persons, are so joined that from them one aggregate (universitas) is constituted which also possesses juridic personality, this new juridic person obtains the goods and patrimonial rights proper to the prior ones and assumes the obligations with which they were burdened. With regard to the allocation of goods in particular and to the fulfillment of obligations, however, the intention of the founders and donors as well as acquired rights must be respected.

Can. 122 If an aggregate (universitas) which possesses public juridic personality is so divided either that a part of it is united with another juridic person or that a distinct public juridic person is erected from the separated part, the ecclesiastical authority competent to make the division, having observed before all else the intention of the founders and donors, the acquired rights, and the approved statutes, must take care personally or through an executor:

1/ that common, divisible, patrimonial goods and rights as well as debts and other obligations are divided among the juridic persons concerned, with due proportion in equity and justice, after all the circumstances and needs of each have been taken into account;

2/ that the use and usufruct of common goods which are not divisible accrue to each juridic person and that the obligations proper to them are imposed upon each, in due proportion determined in equity and justice.

Can. 123 Upon the extinction of a public juridic person, the allocation of its goods, patrimonial rights, and obligations is governed by law and its statutes; if these give no indication, they go to the juridic person immediately superior, always without prejudice to the intention of the founders and donors and acquired rights. Upon the extinction of a private juridic person, the allocation of its goods and obligations is governed by its own statutes.

Can. 369 A diocese is a portion of the people of God which is entrusted to a bishop for him to shepherd with the cooperation of the presbyterium*, so that, adhering to its pastor and gathered by him in the Holy Spirit through the Gospel and the Eucharist, it constitutes a particular church in which the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church of Christ is truly present and operative.

Can. 373 It is only for the supreme authority to erect particular churches; those legitimately erected possess juridic personality by the law itself.

Can. 374 §1. Every diocese or other particular church is to be divided into distinct parts or parishes.

§2. To foster pastoral care through common action, several neighboring parishes can be joined into special groups, such as vicariates forane.†

Can. 515 §1. A parish is a certain community of the Christian faithful stably constituted in a particular church, whose pastoral care is entrusted to a pastor (parochus) as its proper pastor (pastor) under the authority of the diocesan bishop.

§2. It is only for the diocesan bishop to erect, suppress, or alter parishes. He is neither to erect, suppress, nor alter notably parishes, unless he has heard the presbyteral council.

§3. A legitimately erected parish possesses juridic personality by the law itself.

Can. 516 §1. Unless the law provides otherwise, a quasi-parish is equivalent to a parish; a quasi-parish is a definite community of the Christian faithful in a particular church, entrusted to a priest as its proper pastor but not yet erected as a parish because of particular circumstances.

§2. When certain communities cannot be erected as parishes or quasi-parishes, the diocesan bishop is to provide for their pastoral care in another way.
_________________________________
*college of priests
†deanery
noto bene: color highlighting not in original, nor footnotes and their marks

4th Station

2009-03-03T00:01:00.001-05:00

4th Station (Saint Patrick, Cleve., O.)
IV Jesus meets his Mother
4. Jesús encuentra a su madre

John xix ― 25 Now there stood by the cross of Jesus, his mother, and his mother's sister, Mary of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalen. 26 When Jesus therefore had seen his mother and the disciple standing whom he loved, he saith to his mother: Woman, behold thy son. 27 After that, he saith to the disciple: Behold thy mother. And from that hour, the disciple took her to his own.

25 Stabant autem juxta crucem Jesu mater ejus, et soror matris ejus, María Cléophæ, et María Magdaléne. 26 Cum vidísset ergo Jesus matrem, et discípulum stantem, quem diligébat, dicit matri suæ : Múlier, ecce fílius tuus. 27 Deínde dicit discípulo : Ecce mater tua. Et ex illa hora accépit eam discípulus in sua.

La liberación de Cristo, hermanos, es ternura, es amor, es la presencia de una madre bondadosa: María. Y María es el modelo de quienes colaboran con Cristo para la liberación de la tierra y la adquisición del cielo. María en su cántico de acción de gracias proclama las grandezas de Dios y también proclama que Dios desecha el orgullo de los poderosos y enaltece a los humildes ― Monsenor Romero. Marzo 24, 1978

Brothers, the liberation of Christ is tenderness; it’s love; it’s the presence of a loving mother, Mary. And Mary is the model of those who collaborate with Christ for the liberation of the earth and the acquisition of heaven. Mary, in her song of thanksgiving, proclaimed the greatness of God and also proclaims that God rejects the pride of the powerful and exalts the humble.

3rd Station

2009-03-02T00:01:00.001-05:00

3rd Station (Sacred Heart of Jesus, Cleve., O.)
Jezus Upada Pierwszy Raz
III Jesus falls for the first time
3. Jesús cae por primera vez

Mark viii ― 34 And calling the multitude together with his disciples, he said to them: If any man will follow me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.

34 Et convocáta turba cum discípulis suis, dixit eis : Si quis vult me sequi, déneget semetípsum : et tollat crucem suam, et sequátur me.

Cristo no es un ser insensible. Cristo es un hombre de carne y hueso, de nervios y músculos como nosotros. Un hombre que siente lo que siente alguien cuando lo lleva la Guardia Nacional y lo lleva a ese lugar de tortura ― Monsenor Romero. 1 Abril 1979.

Christ is not an insensitive man. Christ is a real person of flesh and bones, nerves and muscles, just like us. He is a man who feels just like a person feels when he is carried away by the National Guard and taken to a place of torture.

Quadragesima -- Forty Days

2009-03-01T00:01:00.002-05:00

Ivan Nikolaević Kramskoj. Christ in the desert. 1872. Moscow.

Then Jesus was led by the spirit into the desert, to be tempted by the devil. And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterwards he was hungry. And the tempter coming said to him: If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread. Who answered and said: It is written, Not in bread alone doth man live, but in every word that proceedeth from the mouth of God. Then the devil took him up into the holy city, and set him upon the pinnacle of the temple, And said to him: If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down, for it is written: That he hath given his angels charge over thee, and in their hands shall they bear thee up, lest perhaps thou dash thy foot against a stone. Jesus said to him: It is written again: Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God. Again the devil took him up into a very high mountain, and shewed him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them, And said to him: All these will I give thee, if falling down thou wilt adore me. Then Jesus saith to him: Begone, Satan: for it is written, The Lord thy God shalt thou adore, and him only shalt thou serve. Then the devil left him; and behold angels came and ministered to him. ― Matthew iv. 1-11. DRC

To-day is the first Sunday in Lent.* The Gospel reading in the old roman rite, and in year A, of the cycle is supra. In the other years, the corresponding passages are from Mark and Luke. Jesus is in the desert alone, and has prepared His Soul for His mission ahead. He is weary and hungry. He will soon meet the devil.

Ivan Nikolaević Kramskoj *1837,†1887 was the leader of the Wanderers (Peredvižniki), a group of realist painters (conferre: the Barbizon), whom, were artists of the people, and not of the academy. Before entry to Saint Petersburg, he had been apprenticed to an iconographer, and then to a photographer. Kramskoj became, primarily, a limner of poets, philosophers and peasants. His brush was not dipped in too, many colors. This portrait of Christ Jesus was THE painting of the second travelling exhibition. The light of the sun is as a nimbus about Jesus, as He broods, in desolation. Many were impressed with the intense, moral gravity, some were upset with Jesus the Serf, and wanted Jesus the Pantocrator. Tolstoj saw the painting and approved, and later consented to sit for a portrait. As Tolstoj was, then, writing Anna Karenina, Kramskoj, became the character, Mikhajlov. Kramskoj died whilst painting another portrait.
Kramskoj spoke and wrote of this painting:

“I suddenly stumbled upon him, just like that at daybreak; just like that he sat there, the hands clasped together, with bowed head, his mouth almost faded away from long remaining silent. He did not notice me...Nothing in the painting is contrived. I saw everything together just like that. By chance the whole scene was exactly the same.”

“At daybreak he [Jesus] sits tired, tormented, and careworn amongst the stones, cold stones. His hands are convulsive and pressed together tightly, very tightly; the fingers press into the flesh, the feet are sore, the head bowed. He has been deep in thought and has been praying for a long time ...”

“During work on the painting, I mused, prayed, and suffered a great deal ...”

“I have perhaps committed sacrilege, but I couldn’t help but paint him. I couldn’t, if you like, not do it. I can say that I painted him with blood and tears.”

____________________________
* in the greek, and other eastern, rite(s), to-day is the First Sunday of the Great Fast, Sunday of Orthodoxy and the Feast of the Return of the Icons; for the separated, our orthodox brothers, it is next week.

2nd Station

2009-02-28T00:01:00.002-05:00

2nd Station (Immaculate Heart of Mary, Cleve., O.)
II Jesus takes up his Cross
2. Jesús carga su cruz

John xix ― 14 And it was the parasceve of the pasch, about the sixth hour, and he saith to the Jews: Behold your king. 15 But they cried out: Away with him; away with him; crucify him. Pilate saith to them: Shall I crucify your king? The chief priests answered: We have no king but Caesar. 16 Then therefore he delivered him to them to be crucified. And they took Jesus, and led him forth. 17 And bearing his own cross, he went forth to that place which is called Calvary, but in Hebrew Golgotha.

14 Erat autem parascéve Paschæ, hora quasi sexta, et dicit Judǽis : Ecce rex vester. 15 Illi autem clamábant : Tolle, tolle, crucifíge eum. Dicit eis Pilátus : Regem vestrum crucifígam ? Respondérunt pontífices : Non habémus regem, nisi Cæsárem. 16 Tunc ergo trádidit eis illum ut crucifigerétur. Suscepérunt autem Jesum, et eduxérunt. 17 Et bájulans sibi crucem exívit in eum, qui dícitur Calváriæ locum, hebráice autem Gólgotha :

Sentimos en el Cristo de la Semana Santa con su cruz a cuestas, que es el pueblo que va cargando también su cruz. Sentimos en el Cristo de los brazos abiertos y crucificados, al pueblo crucificado pero que desde Cristo, un pueblo que crucificado y humillado, encuentra su esperanza ― Monsenor Romero. 19 Marzo 1978.

We feel in the Christ of Holy Week, with the cross upon his shoulders, that his is the people who are also carrying their cross. We feel the people crucified in this Christ with the open arms crucified, but it is from this Christ that a people crucified and humiliated will encounter their hope.

1st Station

2009-02-27T00:01:00.002-05:00

1st Station (Immaculate Conception, Cleve., O.)
I Jesus is condemned to death
1. Jesús es condenado a muerte

Luke xxiii. ― 1 And the whole multitude of them rising up, led him to Pilate. 2 And they began to accuse him, saying: We have found this man perverting our nation, and forbidding to give tribute to Caesar, and saying that he is Christ the king. 3 And Pilate asked him, saying: Art thou the king of the Jews? But he answering, said: Thou sayest it. 4 And Pilate said to the chief priests and to the multitudes: I find no cause in this man. 5 But they were more earnest, saying: He stirreth up the people, teaching throughout all Judea, beginning from Galilee to this place. 6 But Pilate hearing Galilee, asked if the man were of Galilee? 7 And when he understood that he was of Herod's jurisdiction, he sent him away to Herod, who was also himself at Jerusalem, in those days.

1 Et surgens omnis multitúdo eórum, duxérunt illum ad Pilátum. 2 Cœpérunt autem illum accusáre, dicéntes : Hunc invénimus subverténtem gentem nostram, et prohibéntem tribúta dare Cæsári, et dicéntem se Christum regem esse. 3 Pilátus autem interrogávit eum, dicens : Tu es rex Judæórum ? At ille respóndens ait : Tu dicis. 4 Ait autem Pilátus ad príncipes sacerdótum et turbas : Nihil invénio causæ in hoc hómine. 5 At illi invalescébant, dicéntes : Cómmovet pópulum docens per univérsam Judǽam, incípiens a Galilǽa usque huc. 6 Pilátus autem áudiens Galilǽam, interrogávit si homo Galilǽus esset. 7 Et ut cognóvit quod de Heródis potestáte esset, remísit eum ad Heródem, qui et ipse Jerosólymis erat illis diébus.

Dios que renuncia a su categoría, de Dios, deja la felicidad de su cielo y se viene a hacer hombre, hombre que no anda mencionando sus prerrogativas de Dios, hombre cualquiera -dice la Biblia hoy-, un hombre cualquiera; un hombre cualquiera que es amarrado por la autoridad de su tiempo, llevado a los tribunales, ajusticiado. Se me ocurre pensar cuando San Pablo dice: "un hombre cualquiera", esas figuras que ya estamos acostumbrados a ir viviendo en nuestros periódicos: el campesino esposado, el campesino torturado, el obrero a quien no se le reconocen sus derechos, un hombre cualquiera, así se quiso hacer Cristo ― Monsenor Romero. 19 Marzo 1978.

This is a God who renounces his condition as God, coming down from the happiness of heaven to become a man, a man who doesn’t go around mentioning his prerogative as God—“any man,” says the bible today. “Any man” who is tied to the authority of his time and carried to the courts. When St. Paul says “any man,” it occurs to me to think of those people whom we are already accustomed to seeing in our newspapers: the handcuffed peasant, the tortured peasant, the laborer whose rights aren’t recognized. This is the “any man” whom Christ wanted to become.