Before it takes a Tolle...

I know that some people at the parish here have read Mr. Eckhart Tolle's book. But I think it is one of those modern books that should cause one to pause if one considers oneself a Catholic. Fr. Barron, who I have posted about before, offers this two-part reflection:



Here is part 2:


What many people don't realize is that the New Age movement has a very real correlation to Freemasonry, which is, again, one of the official enemies of the Catholic Church (again, not the people but the teachings). Why? Because as Mr. Fr. Barron points out, there is a vast distinction between the similar teachings of Mohammed, Buddha, and Jesus. In Freemasonry, as in the New Age movement, Jesus is reduced to his role as a teacher, and ignored as the Divine Son of God. This is a pretty serious thing to overlook and to equivocate a few men with some wise ideas with the only Son of the Living and True God who suffered and died upon a cross.

Let us be aware of this desire towards indifference in our own lives. We must be careful that anywhere we are, especially at any Catholic parish, that we aren't led into being indifferent to the person of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.

"Who woulda thunk it?"

A friend of mine sent the article below to me today. I don't know if it is actually true, but hey I am not quite sure how you could argue its meaning isn't true:

ATHEIST HOLY DAY - ( A MUST READ ) FLORIDA COURT SETS ATHEIST HOLY DAY!
In Florida, an atheist created a case against the upcoming Easter and Passover holy days. He hired an attorney to bring a discrimination case against Christians, Jews and observances of their holy days. The argument was that it was unfair that atheists had no such recognized days. The case was brought before a judge. After listening to the passionate presentation by the lawyer, the judge banged his gavel declaring, "Case dismissed!" The lawyer immediately stood objecting to the ruling saying, "Your honor, how can you possibly dismiss this case? The Christians have Christmas, Easter and others. The Jews have Passover, Yom Kippur and Hanukkah, yet my client and all other atheists have no such holidays." The judge leaned forward in his chair saying, "But you do. Your client, counsel, is woefully ignorant." The lawyer said, "Your Honor, we are unaware of any special observance or holiday for atheists." The judge said, "The calendar says April 1st is April Fools Day. Psalm 14:1 states, 'The fool says in his heart, there is no God. Thus, it is the opinion of this court, that if your client says there is no God, then he is a fool. Therefore, April 1st is his day. Court is adjourned."

Hmmm...I am not too sure that guys like Bill Maher would be too happy with this post.

Truly, Imagine...

I am thankful for so many things... the least of which is that if you are a regular visitor to this website, I hope, that the video of John Paul II that always came on as soon as you came to this page would always start is finally moving away. I have finally enough posts to make that stop.

I am also thankful for the gift of life. This week as we mourn the Anniversary of Roe vs. Wade decision, I hope that many others might become aware of how precious life is.

I am also thankful for President Obama - oddly enough. Why? Because his life is also a gift, though with no greater or lesser dignity than all those who will be murdered today by abortion. In fact, this was just sent to me today:



Too true. Perhaps, we must first appreciate the gift of life if we ever desire to help others to learn about its dignity and its wonder. As Pope Paul VI brilliantly pointed out, "Modern man listens more willing to witnesses than he does to teachers, and if he listens to teachers it is because they are witnesses."

Would you take a swing at it?

I have really been rediscovering Swing Music and my love for it. And the other day on Facebook, the social networking website, I came across one of the "superpoke" options as giving somebody Frankie Manning, which I promptply gave to everyone I am friends with on Facebook. To which one of my friends asked, "Who is Frankie Manning?" It's unfortunate that is a question. Frankie Manning is one of the people who helped to put Swing Dancing on the map as one of the integral part of American Culture (as shared by all American people regardless of race, creed or color). Particularly he was known for his days when he was part of a Lindy Hop Troupe. If you would like more info on him you can check out this website.

In the meantime, and before you go read about that here is a quick demo of the Shim Shim dance by the same Frankie Manning and friend:



And more exciting, than that basic clip from an instructional video (which I would love find and purchase!) here is another clip from the annals of TV history from some show that demonstrated some of the great things one can do with Shim Sham...


... and which I would argue begins the demise of couples dancing when Shim Shamming became more of a freestyle dance, than with one's partner. It's all about "the lead and follow!"

But, and I loved the previous post on this, here is what the Lindy Hoppers where famous for, including Mr Frankie Manning:



I don't know about you, but it is quite a beautiful dance with much of the ingenuity and joy that constitutes the American lifestyle at its best... so says I. What do you say?

Every one needs a "guru"...

... or not... depending how you define "guru." But at any rate, this came to me today from a friend:


I have to admit, it did brighten up my day. Why would my day need brightening? Well, I have just received word today that, due to the economy, my job here at St. Jude is now being made redundant - as the British would say. That is to say, I have been laid off. Thankfully, Fr. Darrell was very kind in giving me until April 30th. I know I am not the only one struggling with a job, and having a Pontifical License in Theology it is only just that I am paid more for my education. Unfortunately for me that means that I was an extravagance here at the parish. I have enjoyed my time here and will continue this blog for as long as I am employed by the parish, but please pray for me all you Christians who read this as I seek to find new employment somewhere in the world.

The Scourge of my generation...

I recently was pointed to this video:


Two days after? That is right, on Jan.22nd, two days after president Obama is inaugurated will be the annual March for Life. I wish we had something like that here in Denver. Perhaps the time has come for me to stop wishing and start acting. There seems to be nothing more painful than feeling like our Blessed Mother who was at the foot of the Cross and watched her innocent Lord die. I feel like this when it comes to abortion. Sure, I have had my share of "pro-death choice" people tell me that I shouldn't be interrupting their way of living, even if they are able to promote the interruption of that normal human development of a child by means of an abortion.

In merely two weeks and some days, we mourn the loss of millions and millions of innocent human lives because of the "choice" many women have made. Thankfully, in the Mercy of God we all find the healing we need as a human race and as a culture. Now it is a matter of choosing grace to destroy the scourge of my generation.

Give credit where credit is due...

I know some people may not be big fans of Stephen Colbert who is on the cable show called "The Colbert Report." But, as I understand it, he is a practicing Catholic and at times the respect that he shows to his faith is very much appreciated by me, even if his "schtick" lends itself to being not so Catholic. That is perhaps a debateable assessment. Nevertheless, I did laugh my head off when I saw this:


I have to give credit to the man; that is pretty funny when it comes to the Pope comments and at the same time they are respectful even if edgy!

I saw that video as I was surfing, as they say, around the internet trying to find an image for the computer at the Youth Center for the desktop. I came across this one:


That also made me laugh! I found it on this website. Which I have not perused very well, but if they are half as funny as the cat picture I am sure there must be some other gems there.

Well, anyway, I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas and a brilliant New Year. I am back from Canadia, where I spent Christmas with my wife's family, and I am back at these blogs as much as I can.

Oh, and in case you were wondering, I settled on this background for today's feast of the Epiphany: