Wednesday, April 22, 2015
Tuesday, April 21, 2015
Suffering
This appeared in my parish bulletin for the Second Sunday of Easter (April 12, 2015):
I have a friend who is suffering greatly. She is very spiritual about her suffering and seems to have found a truly Christian way to embrace it. How can we best understand suffering?
A Sympathetic Christian
Dear Sympathetic,
Mother Teresa tells us this about suffering: Suffering will never be completely absent from our lives. If we accept it with faith, we are given the opportunity to share the passion of Jesus and show him our love. She tells this story: "One day I went to visit a lady who had terminal cancer. Her pain was tremendous. I told her, 'This is nothing but Jesus' kiss, a sign that you are so close to him on the cross that he can kiss you.' She joined her hands and said, 'Mother, ask Jesus not to stop kissing me.'"
The Book of Job in the Hebrew Scriptures gives us the classic approach to suffering. Job was inflicted with great suffering. He was able to find meaning in his suffering only when he stopped scolding God and complaining to God. Job suddenly started to see the beauty and mystery of all the life that surrounded him. He began to see that every part of God's creation was marvelous. He found that knowing and accepting God was more important than finding the answers to why he suffered. Job testified, "By his light I walked through darkness." (Job 29:3).
Jesus brought a new notion to suffering: for Jesus, suffering is redemptive. When we suffer, we can link our experience with the Lord's. Our sufferings then have a redeeming place in the salvation of the world. They can bring a miraculous presence into the life of another. In times of trial, Jesus is the companion and the guide who can lead us through.
Rev. William J. Parker, S.Ss.R.
Monday, April 20, 2015
Sunday, April 19, 2015
The Goodall Ring Cycle
I have to take Wagner in doses. About six months ago, I got back into one of my Wagnerite moods and listened to The Rhine Gold, The Valkyrie and Siegfried all in a row. Tired of Wagner, I put off listening to The Twilight of the Gods. It's taken me about six months to get back to it.
The Space Age staging of the English National Opera production
The Rhinegold: recorded at the London Coliseum March 19th, 25th, and 29th, 1975
The Valkyrie: recorded at the London Coliseum December 18th, 20th, and 23, 1975
Siegfried: recorded at the London Coliseum August 2nd, 8th, and 21st, 1973
Twilight of the Gods: Recorded at the London Coliseum August 6th, 13th, and 27th, 1977
Rita Hunter, Sir Reginald Goodall, and Alberto Remedios
Sir Reggie, who is acknowledged by most critics as one of the greatest Wagner conductors of all time, was apparently quite an eccentric. Considering the fact that Der Meister himself was one of the most eccentric characters of all time, being an eccentric is appropriate for a Wagnerian.
According to Wikipedia: Passionate about all things German, in the 1930s Goodall openly sympathized with the Nazi regime, which he perceived as a defender of Germanic cultural traditions. Goodall also actively supported Oswald Moseley's British Union of Fascists, and he eventually joined the party just five days after Britain's declaration of war on Germany. He maintained his outspoken pro-Nazi views during World War II, the uninhibited expression of which once led him to be briefly questioned by the police. Goodall was known to refer to the Holocaust as a "BBC Jewish plot."
True Wagner Fans Never Get Enough!
A celebrated Wagnerian who was a Nazi sympathizer and Holocaust denier. I'm sure that somebody could write several shelves of books about the psychology of that!
Sir Reginald Goodall
Der Meister: Richard Wagner
According to David P. Goldman in an article in First Things from December, 2010: "Das Rheingold premiered in Munich in 1869 under the patronage of King Ludwig II of Bavaria, who worshiped Wagner. The First Vatican Council was in session. A year later, Italy's unification destroyed the Vatican's territorial power, completing what Napoleon began: the dissolution of the old regime of Church and Empire. Wagner's contemporaries could have no doubt as to the content of his allegory. . . . That the old regime of throne and altar had fallen, Wagner's generation could have had no doubt. Wagner told them to celebrate rather than mourn its demise, for in the Twilight of the Gods their impulses would be freed from the fetters of the law."
The Goodall Ring Cycle is worth a listen. The Bad Catholic gives it five out of five horned helmets.
Wednesday, April 15, 2015
Sunday, April 12, 2015
Abbey Roads: The Feast of Divine Mercy
Abbey Roads: The Feast of Divine Mercy: Jesus I trust in you. The Divine Mercy is not 'cheap grace' by any means. Rather, I'm convinced it is like the Father, ...
Saturday, April 11, 2015
Abbey Roads: Remembering Bonhoeffer
Abbey Roads: Remembering Bonhoeffer: - source - Seventy years ago April 9, 1945, Lutheran pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer was put to death by the Nazis. Today he is remembere...
Anglicans Ablaze: The Doctrine of the Church in a Post-Indiana Ameri...
Anglicans Ablaze: The Doctrine of the Church in a Post-Indiana Ameri...: Simply as a practical necessity, Christians have always paid closer attention to the doctrine of the church in times of rising cultural o...
Number 3 Equity Court: I am totally sick of DanielWebster. He was the g...
Number 3 Equity Court:
I am totally sick of DanielWebster. He was the g...: I am totally sick of Daniel Webster. He was the greatest lawyer of his age, the greatest orator of his age, and one of the most influe...
I am totally sick of DanielWebster. He was the g...: I am totally sick of Daniel Webster. He was the greatest lawyer of his age, the greatest orator of his age, and one of the most influe...
Thursday, March 26, 2015
Friday, March 20, 2015
Vox Cantoris: Homosexual activist says gay ‘marriage’ isn’t abou...
Vox Cantoris: Homosexual activist says gay ‘marriage’ isn’t abou...: W ith the continuing anti-family and anti-marriage agenda this is a good time to reexamine it from the perspective of those who undertake it...
Medieval Cesspit in Jerusalem Reveals Medieval Diseases
Very interesting article on what can be learned from studying ancient poop.
Thursday, March 19, 2015
Saint Louis Catholic: Feast of St. Joseph
Saint Louis Catholic: Feast of St. Joseph: Prayer of St. Francis de Sales to St. Joseph Glorious St. Joseph, spouse of Mary, grant us thy paternal protection, we beseech thee b...
Wednesday, March 18, 2015
Anglicans Ablaze: Largest Presbyterian denomination in the US approv...
Anglicans Ablaze: Largest Presbyterian denomination in the US approv...: A landmark vote saw the largest Presbyterian denomination in the US change the wording in its constitution to approve same-sex marriage y...
Anglicans Ablaze: How to Tell the Difference between the PCA and PCU...
Anglicans Ablaze: How to Tell the Difference between the PCA and PCU...: Last week NBC news reported that the “top legislative body of the Presbyterian Church in America” voted to recognize same-sex marriage as...
Anglicans Ablaze: Southern Baptist Church plants: 5% gain in 2014
Anglicans Ablaze: Southern Baptist Church plants: 5% gain in 2014: Southern Baptists planted 985 new churches in 2014 -- a 5 percent increase over 2013 church starts. This is very good news as we work t...
Monday, March 16, 2015
Friday, March 13, 2015
Thursday, March 12, 2015
Wednesday, March 11, 2015
Southern Orders: Going Forward Depends on Taking the Right Road
Good post from Father McDonald at Southern Orders
Thought For the Day
"There remains only one question to ask - why is this persecution so inevitable? It is inevitable because the Church, when it really is the Church, is bound to be the conscience of the nation and the conscience of society. Where there is good the Church must praise; where there is evil the Church must condemn - and inevitably men will try to silence the troublesome voice of conscience. It is not the duty of the individual Christian to find fault, to criticise, to condemn, but it may well be that his every action is a silent condemnation of the unchristian lives of others, and he will not escape their hatred."
WILLIAM BARCLAY
WILLIAM BARCLAY
Saturday, March 7, 2015
Vox Cantoris: YOUR BLOGGER VOX CANTORIS IS THREATENED WITH A LAW...
Vox Cantoris: YOUR BLOGGER VOX CANTORIS IS THREATENED WITH A LAW...: Letter from Fogler Rubinoff, Barristers & Solicitors No further comment. Well, maybe this as an update on February 26, 2015 at 0...
Sunday, February 22, 2015
Number 3 Equity Court: Rebellion In The Temple of Justice
Number 3 Equity Court: Rebellion In The Temple of Justice: Rebellion In the Temple of Justice: The Federal and State Courts in South Carolina During the War Between the States by Warren Moise is ...
Saturday, February 21, 2015
Wednesday, February 18, 2015
Tuesday, February 17, 2015
Number 3 Equity Court: JOSEPH HENRY LUMPKIN: GEORGIA'S FIRST CHIEF JUSTIC...
Number 3 Equity Court: JOSEPH HENRY LUMPKIN: GEORGIA'S FIRST CHIEF JUSTIC...: As I read Paul DeForest Hicks' biography of Chief Justice Joseph Henry Lumpkin (University of Georgia Press, 2002), I couldn't h...
Monday, February 16, 2015
Sunday, February 15, 2015
Friday, February 13, 2015
Thursday, February 12, 2015
La Salette Journey: The suicide of Belgium: America behold your future...
La Salette Journey: The suicide of Belgium: America behold your future...: Giulio Meotti, an Italian journalist with Il Foglio, wrote an interesting Op-Ed which I share here because it portends what is coming to ...
Wednesday, February 4, 2015
Saturday, January 31, 2015
Number 3 Equity Court: What a Left Wing Nut Job Dictatorship Will Look Li...
Number 3 Equity Court: What a Left Wing Nut Job Dictatorship Will Look Li...: A county in New Mexico has tried to strip corporations of their rights under Federal and State law. This is the kind of laws that we can e...
Thursday, January 22, 2015
louie, louie: contemplative identity
louie, louie: contemplative identity: Contemplative Identity Any "contemplative identity" comes not so much from individual endowment as from the melding that fol...
Monday, January 19, 2015
Wednesday, January 14, 2015
The Atlanta Fire Chief War
The Atlanta Fire Chief, a Baptist Minister, was recently fired from his job by the Mayor for publishing a book that called homosexuality a sin. Read about it here.
Friday, January 9, 2015
The Digital Hairshirt: USA Today Giving a Voice to Shari'a
The Digital Hairshirt: USA Today Giving a Voice to Shari'a: Let's blame the victims. Why did France allow the tabloid to provoke Muslims? Contrary to popular misconception, Islam does not me...
Wednesday, January 7, 2015
Missouri 7th Grader Told Bibles Are Not Allowed At School
A Missouri 7th grader was told by a teacher that he was not allowed to read a Bible during free time. Full story here.
Friday, January 2, 2015
Tuesday, December 30, 2014
Number 3 Equity Court: A Troubling Decision
Number 3 Equity Court: A Troubling Decision: From The Daily Signal
Monday, December 29, 2014
Friday, December 19, 2014
louie, louie: or nothing at all
louie, louie: or nothing at all: People who know nothing of God and whose lives are centered on themselves, imagine that they can only find themselves by asserting their ...
Friday, December 12, 2014
Wednesday, December 10, 2014
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