Sorrow

I love my country, really I do. But there are times when I am ashamed of her. Like for this: in the 1940's, US officials infected about 1,500 of men in Guatemala with STD's to do experiment. They allowed prostitutes carrying syphilis and gonorrhea to visit them and infect them. After penicillin was discovered as a cure, these men were not given the drug. Rather, the US gave them free meals...and free prostitutes. Shame. Just imagine a world where human dignity was respected all the time. Oh, Jesus, Have Mercy on us!!!

Sacred or Secular: Thoughts on the Pope

Now that I have finally gotten through Pope Benedict's speeches and homilies from his trip to the UK last week, I am again reminded of the fact that I simply love our German Pontiff. One of the more interesting themes that came up repeatedly was the need for the secular space in society to be preserved. This might seem strange at first glace, given that Catholicism has not always had the most friendly views toward a growing secularization - think French Revolution and German's Kultur Kampf.

But Benedict's desire to the secular space of society preserved is not for rampant secularism to dominate political ideologies - it is in fact rather, as Professor Zachary Calo calls it, "an invitation to resacralize the political life of modernity." (Quote taken from an article for the Journal of Catholic Social Thought 7:2, 2010 p. 236). Benedict XVI calls for a secular space in the public square so that a religious voice can be clearly heard and taken seriously. Consider, for example, what he says in his recent address to British dignitaries, political representatives, and academics on September 17th. This passage is worth quoting at length:

The central question at issue, then, is this: where is the ethical foundation for political choices to be found? The Catholic tradition maintains that the objective norms governing right action are accessible to reason, prescinding from the content of revelation. According to this understanding, the role of religion in political debate is not so much to supply these norms, as if they could not be known by non-believers – still less to propose concrete political solutions, which would lie altogether outside the competence of religion – but rather to help purify and shed light upon the application of reason to the discovery of objective moral principles. This “corrective” role of religion vis-à-vis reason is not always welcomed, though, partly because distorted forms of religion, such as sectarianism and fundamentalism, can be seen to create serious social problems themselves. And in their turn, these distortions of religion arise when insufficient attention is given to the purifying and structuring role of reason within religion. It is a two-way process. Without the corrective supplied by religion, though, reason too can fall prey to distortions, as when it is manipulated by ideology, or applied in a partial way that fails to take full account of the dignity of the human person. Such misuse of reason, after all, was what gave rise to the slave trade in the first place and to many other social evils, not least the totalitarian ideologies of the twentieth century. This is why I would suggest that the world of reason and the world of faith – the world of secular rationality and the world of religious belief – need one another and should not be afraid to enter into a profound and ongoing dialogue, for the good of our civilization.

Religion, in other words, is not a problem for legislators to solve, but a vital contributor to the national conversation. In this light, I cannot but voice my concern at the increasing marginalization of religion, particularly of Christianity, that is taking place in some quarters, even in nations which place a great emphasis on tolerance. There are those who would advocate that the voice of religion be silenced, or at least relegated to the purely private sphere. There are those who argue that the public celebration of festivals such as Christmas should be discouraged, in the questionable belief that it might somehow offend those of other religions or none. And there are those who argue – paradoxically with the intention of eliminating discrimination – that Christians in public roles should be required at times to act against their conscience. These are worrying signs of a failure to appreciate not only the rights of believers to freedom of conscience and freedom of religion, but also the legitimate role of religion in the public square. I would invite all of you, therefore, within your respective spheres of influence, to seek ways of promoting and encouraging dialogue between faith and reason at every level of national life.

While Benedict XVI is an academic and this long quotation might seem at first glance a little bit involved, what he is saying to us is that Catholic ethics in the public sphere are first and foremost available to all through common sense. You don't have to be a Christian to understand that you should always do the right thing and be nice to people. Religious beliefs should not necessarily dictate political laws and policies, but it should help to guide the public in key ways - and also be tempered by it so as not to give way to fundamentalism or sectarianism.

Pope Benedict's proposal is a reminder to us of what we continually strive to achieve as Catholics - a steady relationship between faith and reason - with each guiding one another and bringing out the best in each other as all good relationships should. How grateful I am for our Pope who has the courage to speak out in defense of Christianity's place in Europe and in the West more generally. Just imagine, readers, what we could achieve by heeding this advice and not being afraid to speak as our minds as followers of Christ.

Photo Credit

A Few Random Notes

I wanted to thank Aaron and Joe for their comments in response to my post about the destructiveness of pornography. I think this is such an important and powerful topic and I was grateful for their insight.

It is interesting and a little scary to begin thinking about this subject. It is both prevalent in our culture, and likely a problem with someone we know and are close to. I was grateful then, especially, to Aaron's three concrete points about what women can and should do:

1) Never cut a guy slack on this issue
2) Yet, be supportive and patient, not "irate"--since this is a lingering addiction
3) Strive for full, loving, fulfilled relationships to battle deep temptations

As a side note: I've always really loved JPII's formulation of the phrases "Culture of Death" and "Contraceptive Mentality". I want to think about this a bit more, but there is surely a connection between contraception and pornography and their widespread acceptance in our culture. I don't suppose we'd have the one without the other (and, lets face it, though the pill is only 60 years old, they are both as old as sin).

Elsewhere, there has been some really interesting discussion about Kagan and her Clinton-era brief about partial birth abortion making her ineligible for the job as Supreme Court Justice. Check out Will Saletan's article in Slate, and Ross Douthat's addendum in the New York Times. Saletan begins:

Fourteen years ago, to protect President Clinton's position on partial-birth abortions, Elena Kagan doctored a statement by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. Conservatives think this should disqualify her from the Supreme Court. They understate the scandal. It isn't Kagan we should worry about. It's the whole judiciary.

Kagan, who was then an associate White House counsel, was doing her job: advancing the president's interests. The real culprit was ACOG, which adopted Kagan's spin without acknowledgment. But the larger problem is the credence subsequently given to ACOG's statement by courts, including the Supreme Court. Judges have put too much faith in statements from scientific organizations. This credulity must stop.

On a lighter note: Have you see this? It's grand.

(HT: The Anchoress)

Pro-Life Women in Politics

Thank you, NYTimes, for your recent op-ed. Worth reading, readers.

Health Care Vote 3/21

Readers,
Please please call or email your Representatives if you have not already and ask them to vote NO on the Healthcare bill. I say this not to push a political persuasion, but because this bill WILL allow for taxpayer funded abortions. YES, it will. Get info here at Americans United for Life - and do your part to save human life, showing true care for health.

Some Things to Anticipate!

The Pope's second volume of Jesus of Nazareth is set to go to press, according to this CNA news story.


And some more good news! Tomorrow is the March for Life and this year, thousands are expected to participate directly coast to coast and over 50,000 more will be participating virtually through the Virtual March for Life website.



Lots of great news!!! Lots to look forward to!!

What I've Been Doing This New Year

Well, the year has already proved to be a crazy and busy one! I guess I should have figured that since my wedding is getting so close. Aside from lots of family time, many stresses from UPS about my wedding gifts (I recommend you DO NOT use them if you have a choice), I've been trying to help Iraqi Christian refugee families who have relocated to my city get settled and start to feel at home. My sisters, you have no idea of the depth of suffering that they have been through and are going through.



Although I'm certainly no expert on Iraq, but I do know a little bit about the Arab world and its culture. These people are a beautiful and proud people. Not proud in a bad way. But proud of who they are as a people. And they should be! Do you know that Iraqi Christian community is one of the oldest in the world? Do you know that the Magi, the priests of Zoroaster, are said to have come from Iraq? And now, well now, they've been so persecuted, attacked, and de-humanized by their compatriots because they are not Muslim. One young woman told me that an American Muslim woman told her that when she came to the US, she should convert and where the hijab. Probably not the best thing you want to tell someone who just got ran out of her country because she would not become Muslim. With a look of utter sadness, another young woman said to me, "There really is no freedom for us [Christians]. They will kill you. They will kill you."



I just cannot describe to you the sorrow that took hold of me yesterday as Peter and I went to visit the families. One family is a mother and father and three young sons. The father is struggling to find work, and the rest of them are struggling to learn English. The other family is three siblings - two sisters, one brother. They are well educated and rich in their own land, but here, they have nothing and finding jobs seems almost impossible. Their parents and another brother are stuck in Syria, unable to join them here in the US. No one quite knows why their case is getting rejected. I know too well the pain they feel in being in such a strange land, without even the comfort of their own language being spoken in the streets. But I cannot imagine how horrible it must be, to be so persecuted by your own neighbors for your faith. I believe they are God's holy ones. Oh pray for them!

Just Imagine This

Now, as some point in her life, every little girl thinks she wants to be a fashion model. And for some 200 Italian women, they thought they were going to finally get their dream when they answered an ad seeking 'tall, attractive' women to attend a party for modeling agency. But what these women did not anticipate was that they would not be modeling like this:



They would be encouraged instead to dress like this:


According to yesterday's New York Times, that's exactly what 200 Italian women dealt with this week when they answered what they thought was a modeling ad, but instead was a front by Libya's Colonel Qaddafi to um....evangelize these women to turn to Islam. First, he turned away any woman dressed provocatively, then shipped all the women to villa near Rome, then handed out the Koran and preached on women's role in Islam, offering to pay for each of them to take a trip to Mecca if they convert.

Wow, just wow. And the kicker of the article: the last line - "This week, Colonel Qaddafi is expected to hold similar events with other groups of women."

Does anyone else find this extremely disturbing? But if a Muslim converts to Christianity, then this is what they can expect. I am so stunned by this right now, I don't actually know how to react! Thoughts?

Dowd + Dolan + Maine + Sullivan + Fawkes + the Traditional Anglican Communion + Augustine

I was planning on writing something incredibly profound and lucid about Maureen Dowd's October 25th column--but it still has me so angry, I have a hard time thinking clearly. It is filled with so many gross inaccuracies, let alone hateful hyperbole, that I am not sure how she still has her job.

Instead, I'll quote New York City Archbishop Timothy Dolan's blogged response (the times refused to print it):

In a diatribe that rightly never would have passed muster with the editors had it so criticized an Islamic, Jewish, or African-American religious issue, she digs deep into the nativist handbook to use every anti-Catholic caricature possible, from the Inquisition to the Holocaust, condoms, obsession with sex, pedophile priests, and oppression of women, all the while slashing Pope Benedict XVI for his shoes, his forced conscription -- along with every other German teenage boy -- into the German army, his outreach to former Catholics, and his recent welcome to Anglicans.

True enough, the matter that triggered her spasm -- the current visitation of women religious by Vatican representatives -- is well-worth discussing, and hardly exempt from legitimate questioning. But her prejudice, while maybe appropriate for the Know-Nothing newspaper of the 1850’s, the Menace, has no place in a major publication today. (HT)

Also excellent was the response of Michael Sean Winters at America Magazine. Winters is a perplexing but compelling character, and I am always challenged by his articles, though I often disagree. I'm in complete agreement this time, as he said:

Ms. Dowd suffers from the misperception that the Church has said it won’t ordain women. That would indeed be an objectionable claim, and one with a prima facie suspicion of misogyny. But, the Church does not say it won’t ordain women; it says it can’t ordain women. The idea that something can’t be done is foreign to liberated, early twenty-first century Americans. Our politicians, of both parties, invoke the American Dream and advertisements tell us that we can be whatever we want. Horatio Alger lives. But, the Church believes that it received a definitive revelation to which we must always be faithful. In this sense, the Church is always conservative, conserving the deposit of faith. That faithfulness requires that we do certain things and not do certain other things. The sociological argument that feminism has changed women’s experience in other fields has absolutely no bearing on the issue but Dowd couldn’t find a theological argument if her life depended upon it.

Meanwhile, with Maine voting against a gay marriage amendment, by a pretty significant margin, Thomas Peters, has done an excellent round-up on the all the anti-Catholic rhetoric surrounding this decision. He points, especially to Andrew Sullivan, the gay-catholic blogger for The Atlantic Monthly, who said:

It is time to acknowledge that the Catholic church hierarchy can no longer pretend that it isn't the active enemy of gay people and our families. That this church hierarchy - especially in its more conservative wing - is disproportionately gay itself and waging war against their fellow gays through the cowardly veil of the closet, is not new.

Sullivan goes on to quote in full a letter to a parish priest by a gay man who is "finished":

Hatred fueled by the resources of hundreds of thousands of parishes will be the central reason why the Church will eventually wither and die. I can no longer bear the stench of the rotting body and hierarchical ignorance. I can no longer embrace what has become a menace and money machine to support evil. We are all tainted by what happened in Maine. We are all lesser citizens because our brothers and sisters are lesser citizens.

Did you notice? In the entire letter, there isn't a single thought about Christ, nor about his radical love for every human being--a love that demands us to do well and live well, and set aside sin. The mass is not a gathering place, the chalice is not merely " shared by everyone"--it come with a price of our own.

I can't help but think about the timeliness of this, with regards to our Magdalene Novena: Magdalene was labeled a prostitute by all, but she shed that label and lived rightly by Christ's law, for his love. His love demanded that of her, and she saw the true cost with her own eyes.

Peters responds to this anti-catholic bigotry head on:

All this is especially ironic when one considers how the gay marriage movement tries to cast itself as one that is seeking tolerance and acceptance of all. Well, apparently the Catholic Church isn't a legitimate recipient of such treatment. I would be more encouraged if leaders of the gay marriage movement would call out or apologize for outbursts against the Church like the ones I've cited above.

Today is the 5th of November (remember, remember). Four-hundred and five years ago the Gunpowder Plot to blow up the Houses of Parliament was discovered, and squashed, as Guy Fawkes was arrested after hiding cases of gunpowder in the cellars. As William Newton points out, those were dark times for Catholics in England. But Fawkes' plot did more harm than good (as violence always does) for the cause of Catholicism in England. Though persecutions had largely died down, it was only in 1829 with the Catholic Relief Act, do we start to see some progress, and restoration of civil liberties. Guy Fawkes Night is still a night of drunken debauchery and anti-catholic demonstrations.

But, there is hope yet for the Church of England and the cause of Catholicism in England. That hope is one step closer to being realized, as the Traditional Anglican Communion officially stated that it will accept Pope Benedict's offer and seek to join the Roman Catholic Church.

Two steps forward and one step back. Anti-Catholicism will always be with us, but we needn't worry. The thing Dowd, and Sullivan, and the anonymous gay parishioner don't realize is that, though members of the church are indeed fallen, and make mistakes all the time, the Chruch itself is faithful to Christ, and will not fall. There are bigots in the Church. But the Church is not bigoted. As Winters said above: it's not that we don't, it's that we can't. By law. God's law. The God who came down from heaven, emptied himself, died on the cross, and raised us all up because he loves us.

All are indeed welcome. But that doesn't mean it's a free pass. "Love" St. Augustine says, "And do what you will."

Some More Women Warriors on Abortion and Health Care

Here is great (well, also sad) Youtube video of some women giving their testimonies about the damage abortion has done to them. Fr. Frank Pavone and the Priests for Life organization produced it to give us all an idea of the repercussions that abortion inflicts upon women -- especially in view of what the proposed Health Care Reforms would do for the abortion industry. Let's listen to the voices of our mothers and sisters and inform others to make the right choice about health care reform!

Lesson in Our Roots: American Catholicism Part I

As promised, I am going to write a bit on the history of Catholicism in our country -- and cross reference it with some political history. I think a good place to start is with the very first bishop of our country: John Carroll. He is one my favorite historical figures, and vastly under-acknowledged. I did a term paper on him one year in grad school, and I was so impressed by his work.

He was born into a fairly aristocratic family in 1735, and one of his cousins, Charles Carroll, actually signed the Constitution. John was not the most political man, but he did accompany the US ambassadors to Canada to gain support for the Revolution. But Carroll put all of his energy into the building the Catholic Church in America. He used his own resources and land to set up missionary Churches (because there were not Churches), and he worked tirelessly to build up a system of Catholic education. We owe the institution of Georgetown to him.

One of the most important things he did for American Catholics was to help them gain the respect and equal status of citizenship with their Protestant compatriots. He did this by writing extensively on the Church's stance on religious liberty and freedom of conscience. Religious liberty and freedom of conscience were some of the most important issues for the American founders, and many did not believe that American Catholics would be able to support them. So Carroll wrote pamphlets and letters to defend Catholics and Catholicism in our nation. For example, in one pamphlet, he writes:

When men comprehend not, or refuse to admit the luminous principles on which the rights of conscience and liberty of religion depend, they are industrious to find out pretences for intolerance. If they cannot discover them in actions, they strain to cull them out of the tenets of the religion which they wish to excluded from a free participation of equal rights. . . . I am anxious to guard against the impression intended by such insinuations; not merely for the sake of any one profession, but from an earnest regard to preserve inviolate for ever, in our new empire, the great principle of religious freedom.

So Carroll challenged American citizens who were not Catholic to lay aside any ignorance as to the ability that Catholics would have in accepting religious freedom and freedom of conscience, assuring them that these were a proper expression of the Catholic faith, not inimical to its precepts.

When I first learned about Carroll, I wondered why no one has taken up his cause for sainthood--after all, he was a great friend to our own St. Elizabeth Ann Seton (who I will write on next!) I am sure they pray for us and for our country from above. Let's ask them to help us rediscover the greatness of our nation and rediscover the great responsibility we have because we have the liberty to worship, praise, and adore our God any way we wish.

The Bishops on Health Care

Here's a link to the USCCB's website on Health Care Reform. I think it's so helpful. Keep informed!

A Teacher Always Learns

I have had the joy of teaching two classes of American politics at my university, and I am already so excited for the time I will spend with them in the classroom. I have mostly freshmen and sophomores, and they are still so -- not jaded or lazy -- that I just love their enthusiasm. I had one very interesting moment on the first day of class. I asked my class of 40 what the first thing they thought of was when they thought of American politics. The class consensus was 'corruption.' Wow, I was blown away. I would have said "the Constitution" or "republicanism," but it seems that today's young people (okay, well younger people) are so disillusioned with their own government. When I asked why, they said it was because they had no idea what was going in the government, and you know, they might be right. I guess maybe I should learn from them and be a little more skeptical too.

Anyway, it got me thinking and reflecting. These kids have no faith in their own country and that's a pretty scary sign. Now, I teach at a secular institution in a very Catholic state. I know that many (but not all) of my students are Catholic -- but to bring Catholicism into the classroom is in some ways inappropriate. (BTW, I freaked myself out when I made a comment in front of my class that made me seem like a raging feminist and a relativist....I turned so red and kind of tripped up my words. I could not believe I did, especially since every day before I teach, I pray to the Lord to help my words in small way lead them to Him. Any advice on how to find the balance between faith and reason in the classroom of a public and secular institution??)

I decided that even if I cannot always bring up the faith in the classroom, I can do it here. So, I think I will start a new column about the history and the future of the Catholic Church in our country. It will debut next week (probably Friday, as I am so ill and really need to get some rest!) Let's give our young people something they can have faith in -- and learn how to hope again!

Freedom: Thoughts on the Feast of Maximilian Kolbe

Dear sisters,
My mind has been in 10,000 places lately!! As I explained in my last post, I have just returned from North Africa, and have been trying very to process the experience. I just cannot seem to get my hands on enough books about Christians living in Muslim countries, or Muslims who convert to Islam. I've been reading lots of articles and books on the lack of religious freedom in Muslim countries for Christians. For example, the most ancient Christian community that has been in Iraq since 35 AD is being driven out by radical Muslims.

And it happens on our own soul. Here's another true woman warrior...Rifqa Bary. Here is her story - beware -- it's utterly heart-rending:


Why, Lord? Why? She has such bravery. She is beautiful. What can we do to ensure freedom for His people?

So now I come to today's saint: St. Maximilian Kolbe. He knows what it is like to live under the shadow of persecution...to the point of death. He gave himself in an act of love willingly. Kolbe was a priest of the Lord, and he gave his life on this day in Auschwitz to save a Jewish man who had children. That man survived to see his family again. St. Fr. Kolbe, our brother, pray for us. Pray for those who are persecuted for their faith and for their love of Christ. Help us to obtain the grace that all in the world may live in freedom -- that true freedom that only Christ can give. Amen.

Today was the Day

Well, today it happened -- yes, the most pro-abortion president in our history gave the commencement address at Our Lady's university. Does anyone else wonder what she must be thinking?? Here's a snippet from a New York Times article on today's infamous event:

Anti-abortion leaders protested his appearance at the University of Notre Dame and he was heckled four times during a commencement address by protesters yelling slogans like “abortion is murder.” But the audience shouted down the hecklers and cheered Mr. Obama as he called for “open hearts, open minds, fair-minded words” in a debate that has polarized the country for decades.

"Maybe we won’t agree on abortion," the president told 2,900 graduating students as well as their relatives and professors, "but we can still agree that this is a heart-wrenching decision for any woman to make and not made casual. It has both moral and spiritual dimensions. So let’s work together to reduce the number of women seeking abortions by reducing unintended pregnancies."

Well, ladies - what do we think? I can agree that we need to reduce unwanted pregnancies. However, we as a nation and as a global community need to recognize that while there may be unwanted pregnancies, there is no such thing as an unwanted child. And I am not sure that increasing availability of birth control will help. I just get so disheartened by all of this.

On another note, last night I had a conversation with a friend who told me of one her best friends who has an abortion about 10 or 11 years ago. When she married and got pregnant again, she dreamt ever night of her first baby -- a daughter in her dreams. She still thinks of her always. She is not alone. So many post-abortive women suffer in the exact same way. Let's pray for women and men suffering from an abortion. I hope you will suggest help if you know them, or will seek it if you are such a woman or man. Here's some sources that can help: Rachel's Vineyard, Project Rachel, Hope After Abortion.

National Catholic Prayer Breakfast

Last friday I had the pleasure of attendin the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast, a veritable who's who of Catholics in Washington, D.C. This year's keynote speakers were Justice Scalia and Archbishop Burke, of St. Louis.

Scalia was wonderful--wry and grave--as he discussed the "foolishness" of believing in the Ressurrection. It was a stirring talk, charging Catholics to act with courage in the public sphere, calling on the example of St. Thomas More.

But it was Burke's thoughtful and powerful address, "The Teachings of the Catholic Church" that stole the show. The speech is amazing, and I encourage you all to read it in full.

The path of violation of the most fundamental human rights and of the integrity of marriage and the family, which our nation is traveling, is not accidental. It is part of the program set forth by those whom we have freely chosen to lead our nation. The part of the program in question was not unknown to us; it was announced to us beforehand and a majority of our fellow citizens, including a majority of our fellow Catholics, chose the leadership which is now implementing it with determination. For example, I refer to our President's declared support of the Freedom of Choice Act, which would make illegal any legislation restricting procured abortion; his repeal of the Mexico City Policy, permitting U.S. funding of procured abortion in other nations, together with the grant of fifty million dollars to the United Nations Fund for Population Activities which, for example, supported the Republic of China's policy of one child per family by means of government-dictated sterilization and abortion; his proposal to rescind the regulations appended to the federal Conscience Clause, which assure that, not only physicians, but also all health-care workers may refuse to provide services, information or counsel to patients regarding medications and procedures which are contrary to their conscience; his removal of limitations on federal funding of embryonic-stem-cell research, involving the wholesale destruction of human life at the embryonic stage of development; and his choice of the members of his administration, who are remarkable for the number of major officials, including several Catholics, who favor the denial of the right to life to the unborn and the violation of the integrity of marriage and the family. These are only some examples of a consistent pattern of decisions by the leadership of our nation which is taking our nation down a path which denies the fundamental right to life to the innocent and defenseless unborn and violates the fundamental integrity of the marital union and the family.

As Catholics, we cannot fail to note, with the greatest sadness, the number of our fellow Catholics, elected or appointed by our President to public office, who cooperate fully in the advancement of a national agenda was is anti-life and anti-family. Most recently, the appointment of a Catholic as Secretary of Health and Human Services, who has openly and persistently cooperated with the industry of procured abortion in our nation, is necessarily a source of the deepest embarrassment to Catholics and a painful reminder of the most serious responsibility of Catholics to uphold the natural moral law, which is the irreplaceable foundation of just relationships among the citizens of our nation. It grieves me to say that the support of anti-life legislation by Catholics in public office is so common that those who are not Catholic have justifiably questioned whether the Church's teaching regarding the inviolable dignity of innocent human life is firm and unchanging. It gives the impression that the Church herself can change the law which God has written on every human heart from the beginning of time and has declared in the Fifth Commandment of the Decalogue: Thou shalt not kill.

Making Lemonade from Lemons

"When life hands you lemons...." Or so the old adage begins. Well, it should come as no surprise to our readers that I do not approve of the Obama presidency, and I pretty much loath all of the administration's policies. Sometimes, it's hard for me not to overreact with anger against him personally. However, Obama is only a man, a human person (which may come as a surprise to many). And as a Catholic Christian, I do vow to treat each person with the dignity they have as a creature made Imago Dei.
Lately, I've been trying really hard to find the good in the president. Well, I've not found much, but I have been heartened by this news. Notre Dame students, in response to Obama's coming to campus, have organized a rosary to pray for his change of heart. And I join them. I don't wish evil on him; as a Christian I must hope to rejoice with him in eternity. It doesn't mean that I'm complacent in his horrific beliefs or that I support the 'changes' he wants to make in our country. It doesn't mean that I keep quiet. I must pray for his conversion.

On another note, cnn.com posted this story today about Michelle Obama and her 'icon' status for the women of the world. The story basically discusses that Mrs. Obama really does give women hope, especially women of color in nations such as India, Vietnam, and in many nations of Africa. One quote I found interesting about women in India:

Heather Ferreira works in the slums of Mumbai, India, where she has watched thousands of women live under a "curse."

The women she meets in the squalid streets where "Slumdog Millionaire" was filmed are often treated with contempt, she says. They're considered ugly if their skin and hair are too dark. They are deemed "cursed" if they only have daughters. Many would-be mothers even abort their children if they learn they're female.

Yet lately she says Indian women are getting another message from the emergence of another woman thousands of miles away. This woman has dark skin and hair. She walks next to her husband in public, not behind. And she has two daughters. But no one calls her cursed. They call her Michelle Obama, the first lady.

I say if the wife of the most pro-abortion president in our history can inspire women not to abort their children, then we might just be on our way to having a little bit of lemonade. And that's something sweet that I can find joy in.

What a Woman -- One Reply to the Notre Dame Scandal

Harvard Law Professor and former US Ambassador to the Vatican Mary Ann Glendon was to receive a Laetare Medal from the University of Notre Dame at its coming commencement, one of its most prestigious honors. However, in light of the Obama scandal, she has declined the award and written a letter explaining her position (hyperlinked above). Thank God for her witness and courage! What a woman for us all to emulate!!

On another note, another Obama induced scandal. President Obama spoke at Georgetown university on April 14th. At his request, the university removed the IHS letters of Christ. Where's the Mary Ann Glendon for this case? We Catholics sure do need to put our feet down with just a little more force....

A Letter to the President

I'm not sure if anyone has come across this, but it is WELL worth the read.  Reverend Hugh W. Cleary, Superior General of the Holy Cross Fathers (the order that runs Notre Dame) wrote President Obama a rather lengthy, open letter regarding his honorary degree and invitation to speak at ND's commencement in May.  He sincerely congratulates him and challenges him at the same time.  I really respect what he has to say, and I will be going back to this letter to explore my involvement in the American democracy as a Catholic.  

I think his letter is not only written to Obama, but to American Catholics as well.  His words encourage real dialogue and an opening of our hearts, while maintaining steadfast faithfulness to the tenets of our faith.  Father Clearly cites Obama's own words which makes a very powerful case for the protection of life in social justice issues: abortion, immigration, welfare, the death penalty et. al.  He also tackles other major American issues like the media, voting, freedom, etc. I hope it brings you clarification on Christianity in the public square and inspires you to pray about how to be a faithful, American Catholic! I would LOVE to continue a conversation about what he says here... 

The Catholic Colbert Report

I'm a huge fan of Stephen Colbert, host of The Colbert Report - not only because he has me in side-splitting laughter, but because he's a great example of how practicing Catholics can break into the media and do good work for the population they target.  And in Colbert's case, that's a heck of a large viewing audience. 

I recently came across the blog Catholic Colbert.  Be sure to watch the video on the homepage with Fr. James Martin, SJ, author of My Life with the Saints (an awesome read!).  The clip is about finding God during the economic crisis, and it makes me laugh everytime I watch it.   I think Fr. Martin is onto something, too.  I just spoke with a Dominican priest yesterday who told me that vocation numbers have been steadily on the rise for the past two years, and they are expected to increase given the period of recession (apparently this is a pattern throughout history)!