I'm Home! (again)

Well, I’m back from London. Sorry about not checking email or updating while I was gone, but I couldn’t find any unsecured wireless. I had a great time, nice and relaxing. We went to Westminster Cathedral for Mass on Wednesday and Thursday. On Thursday Mass was in one of the side chapels for St. Thomas Becket’s feast day. We were thinking of going to Canterbury for Thursday, but decided against it. Actually going to mass in Thomas’s chapel in the new seat for the Catholic Church in England was better than seeing (and paying to get in to) the stolen property in Canterbury again. I really think that Westminster Cathedral is the most beautiful church in the world, and it’s not even finished. If I ever become fabulously wealthy (very unlikely) I will finish all the mosaics.
We also went to visit a few paintings at the national gallery, but I’ll make a separate post on that later today. Other than that, and a trip out to my sister’s Fiancé’s parent’s house, we took it very easy. I hope everyone had a joyous Christmas.
Yours in Christ,
Thursday

Support this student!

This student was denied the right to wear a kilt at his High School's formal dance. Read the full story here. I wore my kilt to my formal dance, and I love wearing it to the pub. You can also sign the online petition here.

Hat Tip: The Shrine of the Holy Whapping

Yours in Christ,
Thursday

I'm Home!

Well, I've been home since Saturday, but haven't had a chance to write any new entries. Also, while I'm at home, I have to rely on my neighbors for wireless, and they can be a mite unpredictable. So, it is wonderful to be home, and I have a few new entries on my brain's back burner. Look for them in the next couple of days. I will also blog my trip to London right after Christmas. My mom, my sister, and I are going for a couple of days to see my sister's fiancé's family.

Yours in Christ,
Thursday

Raphael

I promised I would write this today, and I will. I just might fall asleep while I'm typing!
My guardian angel's name is Raphael. When I was very little, I was asked what his name was, and I said Raphael. Fast forward several years. I had a very nasty crash on my bike. I really tore my arm open badly, and needed to go to the hospital. During the ambulance ride, I was given a stuffed ninja turtle. Do you want to guess which one? Yup, Raphael. Later I found out Raphael is the patron angel of healing. Go ahead several more years. I start reading books on philosophy, theology, and metaphysics. I began to put pieces of the puzzle together. angels have no material aspect, they are purely spirit. Because of this, their name is very important. It is how angels are distinguished from one another. No two angels can share the same name. Their name is their identity. So after I found out about this, I began to wonder, "Can I have an archangel as a guardian angel?" Some of the Saints believed so (I'll give an update when I can find the book where I found this.), and there is the entire book of Tobit. If an archangel was sent by God to look after tobias during the times B.C., why not now? And, after all, each angel could have an infinite number of wards, as they can polylocate.
So, there you have it. That's my Guardian Angel entry. I'm glad I didn't fall asleep, I think Raphael wants me to write this. My sister had sent me a package on the 3rd, that just arrived today, and one of the items in the package was a small icon of Raphael.

Yours in christ,
Thursday

P.S.
I had a very hard time finding a decent image of Raphael for this post. He is usually drawn in a very feminine manner. I imagine that it is because one of his jobs is matchmaker to Tobias. But people forget that he also bound an ancient and powerful demon in the desert. I think he should be given a more prominent role in the rite of Exorcism. Right now, he is only mentioned along with the other two archangels.

Some new links.

You may have noticed that the blogroll has gotten a few new members recently. Why don't you check them out, I guarantee that any blog there is well worth the read.

Theology of the Body
Conspicuously Lacking a Latin Title
Confessions of a Chronic Dork
The Sober Sophomore

And yes, I do know my blogroll is not in alphabetical order, I'm just too lazy to bother. If and when I gets bigger, maybe I will put them in order.

Yours in Christ,
Thursday

Moving on up!

Thanks for the Link Joey. I am now up to 16627 on "Truth laid Bear", one space above "Meet an Atheist!" No, I am not going to link to his blog, that would move him up. If you want, I'm sure you can find him on google. No other news, just wanted to gloat.

Yours in Christ,
Thursday

Death now a crime. Punishable by death?

Biritiba Mirim, a city in Brazil, is voting on a new city regulation. This law would make it illegal to die. The city of 28,000 people does not have any more room in its cemetery, and is prohibited from building a new one due to environmental laws. Apparently, 98% of this city is conservation land, and nothing can be built on it, including burial grounds. The city doesn't expect the law to bring the mortality rate to zero. It is mainly being used as a protest against the strict environmental laws in the area. The city is also asking its inhabitants to take cares not to die in the near future. You can read the full story here at the BBC. You realize, in the Old Testiment, this would be considered "testing the Lord, thy God."

Yours in Christ,
Thursday

Another Letter to TIA...

I just can't help myself, sometimes I feel Tradition in Action is there for me to convert to convert them! Here is a copy of the latest email I sent them:

"Dear TIA,
I have been looking through your link page, and found that you link to Catholic Insight (http://www.cathinsight.com/.) As sedevacantists, they are heretics as defined by the first Vatican council.

"Therefore, if anyone says that it is not by the institution of Christ the Lord himself (that is to say, by divine law) that Blessed Peter should have perpetual successors in the primacy over the whole Church; or that the Roman pontiff is not the successor of blessed Peter in this primacy: let him be anathema." - Dogmatic Constitution Pastor Aeternus (emphasis added)

As you have pointed out several times on your website, the code of Canon law of 1917 states:

"A person who of his own accord and knowingly helps in any manner to propagate heresy, or who communicates in sacred rites with heretics, incurs suspicion of heresy" (Canon 2316).

By linking to a website which propagates a heresy, you have brought yourselves under suspicion o of heresy. I am sending this email with the hope that you were not aware of the position of Catholic Insight. I also hope that now that you know of their position, you will immediately remove the link, and publicly declare their views to be contrary to the the teachings of the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church."


TIA constantly says that it is not enough for someone suspect of heresy to stop associating with those propagating the heresy, that person must also publicly denounce the heresy. That is all I am asking TIA to do. Comments on this would be most appreciated.

Yours in Christ,
Thursday

The Inclusive Worshiper is no more...

It is my very sad duty to report that the Inclusive Worshiper is no longer blogging. Here is the final post:

"Faithful readers,

Thank you for your enthusiastic participation these past few weeks.

Unfortunately, a few very Tolerant and Inclusive administrators have taken quite an interest in the blog, and baptism in the New Religion apparently washes away any sense of humor.

Therefore, it has become necessary to discontinue the blog.

Yours truly,
The Author"

I will now preform my victory dance! *dances* Just remember, I called it as satire FIRST!

To Lucian Gregory: I now see you were never an anarchist to begin with, but merely one of the members on the "Council of the Seven Days." Though, you can't be Sunday, and I'm Thursday, you can choose one of the other five. If I might make a suggestion, I think you should go with Saturday.

Yours in Christ,
Thursday

The Inclusive Worshiper

I'm actually kind of jealous, if this page is satire, the writer is excellent. Check it out here.
I'm also jealous because I know his traffic is higher than mine, after all most of St. Blogs is talking about him/her/it. I still strongly believe this is satire, but I'm going to pull a Adam Wayne on it. For those of you not in the know, that would mean treat it seriously. I coined the name myself, so I figure I'm the only one really in the know! It comes from this passage in Napoleon of Notting Hill.


"Suppose I am God," said the voice, "and suppose I made the world
in idleness. Suppose the stars, that you think eternal,
are only the idiot fireworks of an everlasting schoolboy.
Suppose the sun and the moon, to which you sing alternately,
are only the two eyes of one vast and sneering giant, opened alternately
in a never-ending wink. Suppose the trees, in my eyes, are as
foolish as enormous toad-stools. Suppose Socrates and Charlemagne
are to me only beasts, made funnier by walking on their hind legs.
Suppose I am God, and having made things, laugh at them."

"And suppose I am man," answered the other. "And suppose that I
give the answer that shatters even a laugh. Suppose I do not
laugh back at you, do not blaspheme you, do not curse you.
But suppose, standing up straight under the sky, with every power
of my being, I thank you for the fools' paradise you have made.
Suppose I praise you, with a literal pain of ecstacy,
for the jest that has brought me so terrible a joy.
If we have taken the child's games, and given them the seriousness
of a Crusade, if we have drenched your grotesque Dutch garden
with the blood of martyrs, we have turned a nursery into a temple.
I ask you, in the name of Heaven, who wins?"


That is one of my favorite passages in all of Chesterton's works.
I hope you join us at the Inclusive Worshiper's, it's quite a jolly time.
Yours in Christ,
Thursday

P.S.
Be sure to read the posts from the bottom up, it's the only way it makes sense.

Baba Yetu

I was going to post on this song when I had second, but I found out something that is just too cool. The song is called "Baba Yetu," and is the opening music for the game Civilization IV. You can download it here. Clicking on the link plays the song, right-clicking (or control-clicking for my Mac friends) lets you download it. Baba Yetu is Swahili for Our Father. Yup, that's right, a mainstream game has the Lord's Prayer sung at the beginning. The composer's name is Christopher Tin, here's his website. It has some samples of his work, all of which is very good. The singers are "Talisman A Cappella," a group from Stanford, who as you can tell, are very talented.
Ok, let me just say I don't like suburban white choirs singing african spirituals in church, I think it is just wrong. I'm not saying I want to hear Baba Yetu in church, just that I like the song. If I ever go to South Africa, then I wouldn't mind hearing it, but not in the U.S..
Oh, one more thing. Did you notice the image with the post? That is the screen that comes up when you are the first to discover theology in Civ. IV. When you do that, your civ. founds Christianity. I thought it was nice that they used bread and wine as the symbols for Christianity. WIthout them there could be no Eucharist.

That's all for now.
Yours in Christ,
Thursday

A gift for our Mother.

I was going to post this on Thursday, but I decided it would be better to do it earlier. If everyone in St. Blogs posted this by Thursday, it could be an excellent gift for our Mother, on the day of her Immaculate Conception. I hope you enjoy it, and that you post it, if you have a blog.

Ave Maria


Yours in Christ,
Thursday

P.S.

I have no way of posting the html code for you to paste into your blog here without it turning into another video player. So, you have two options: 1) view my source and search for "Ave Maria" or 2) click on this link, and copy what's in the box labeled quote.

MegaChurches

Now, I've only ever been to one "megachurch," and that was definitely enough. I just don't see the point of cramming 10,000 people in for one service week after week. (World Youth Day is different, it's only every couple of years, and it's with the Pope.) The megachurch that I visited was Southeast Christian Church, in Louisville KY. Here's the outside of the Church:
This is the Church that one of my pair of Grandparents go to. They are very nice and holy people, they just go to church in a building that looks like an airport. If you don't believe me, look at this picture of the main atrium:
Once you get to the sanctuary, however, you lose the feeling of being in an airport, and start to feel you're in a convention center. Have a look at these images:

They do have a "smaller" chapel for weddings. I guess they figure most people are not going to be inviting 10,000 guests to their wedding. The "smaller" chapel only holds 500 people, and actually looks like a church.
Well, it doesn't look like a church that makes me think of the majesty of God, but it's a step towards that goal. I really just don't get the point. This is not just a church, it has a library, gyms, conference rooms, a youth assembly (fancy word for a stage.), and a whole lot more. And when I say gym, I don't just mean a small room with an old set of free weights for the pastor, I mean this:
Now, don't get me wrong, I like big churches. But my definition of big is seats maybe 1,500 tops, and has flying buttresses. If a church is going to seat more than 1,000 people I demand flying buttresses galore. That and mosaics, floor and ceiling. Oh, and it needs a dome, the dome is what really seals the deal. This church has none of that, and close to ten times the seating. As I said, I just don't get it.
My ideal church would be Westminster Cathedral which looks like this:
It can be forgiven its lack of flying buttresses because it has a dome, and because of these:


So there you have it, what every church with seating for more than 1,000 should look like.

Yours in Christ,
Thursday

I'm no longer alone on this blog.

If you scroll down to the bottom of this page, you will see my new partner in blogging, Midnight the Hedgehog.
He likes to play, so have some fun.

Yours in Christ,
Thursday

Christian "Unity"

From Eddie Izzard's "Dress to Kill"

(Jesus speaking to the Father about Christian "unity")
"...they split into different groups!—Catholics, Protestants, Jesuits, Methodists, Evangelicals, Free Presbytarians, Locked-up Presbytarians, Quakers, Bakers, Candlestick-makers,—oh, and the Mormons are from Mars, Dad, we just found out."

I died laughing during this sketch!

Yours in Christ,
Thursday