Category Archives: Politics

A rant about the US political situation

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This morning, I got on a bit of a rant on Google+ after seeing repeated partisan and pro-abortion posts by one individual. While this individual is not Catholic (so far as I know), it still struck a nerve over how divided we are as Catholics in the United States. Unlike some rants, I still stand behind it, and want to give it further distribution. So, here it is:

Today I uncircled someone who had bought into the liberal talking points completely. “Republicans are evil, greedy”, etc. “Her body, her choice”. (Yes, he actually used that tired, ridiculous slogan.)

I removed him from my circles because I got very tired of hearing his political BS, and it’s not because he’s politically liberal. I get just as annoyed when I hear someone on the Republican side trashing out the Democrats instead of explaining what the Republicans can do to solve the problems they claim are the Democrats fault.

Catholics, this is tiresome. I’m sick of the partisan sniping. I’m sick of the left-right, Republican-Democrat divide in the United States. Both sides are responsible for the mess this country is in, and both sides point to the other as responsible. “It’s Bush’s fault we’re in a recession.” “No, it’s Obama’s fault.” You know what? The problems may have started under President Bush, if not directly his fault, but they’ve gotten worse under President Obama’s watch.

Right now, here in Montana, one of our Senate seats is up for vote between the Democrat incumbent and the sole Representative (yes, Montana only has one Representative in the House), who happens to be Republican. The other night, as I was watching the Olympics, commercials for both candidates came on the TV. The commercials were identical. Each candidate accused the other of causing the financial crisis and “being out of touch with Montana values.” The colors and the fonts were identical, I think even some of the video clips of “typical Montanans” were identical. There was nothing in either commercial of any ideas beyond the United States and the State of Montana going down in flames if you vote for the other guy. It’s sickening.

Catholics, we need to get past this stuff. We need to get over our “I’ve always voted [Republican/Democrat].” We need to be united under the banner of Christ and His Church. No more of this “I disagree with the Church on X.” To put it bluntly: get over it. You can disagree, but make sure you’re not disagreeing because you want your way instead of Christ’s. If you don’t understand why the Church teaches as She does, seek understanding! Disobedience, dissent, and pride are not virtues. Obedience, respect for authority of the Church, and humility are powerful virtues that free us instead of tie us down.

As Catholics, we need to Catholic first, American second. I love our country and want to see it be prosperous and successful, but I desire salvation more. No more “I’m an American who happens to be Catholic.” Instead, it should be “I’m a Catholic who happens to be American.” When we ignore or fight against the teachings of the Church to promote the values of our culture, we’re saying the former. When we fight against our Culture of Death (and make no mistake, we are in one) to promote the Truth of Christ passed down through 2000 years of Church teachings, we are saying the latter.

OK. Rant over. Go and be good, faithful Catholics in union with the Pope and Bishops first!

“Where were you when the world stopped turning…”

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There are events that have occurred throughout history that are so shocking, so life-changing that you can remember exactly where you were when you heard about them.  Bombing of Pearl Harbor, JFK’s assassination, and fall of the Berlin Wall are examples of these kind of historic events.  Of course, September 11, 2001 is one of those historic days that are seared into our memories.

The title of this post comes from a song performed by Alan Jackson shortly after the attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon, and is a question that comes up every September 11: “Where were you when you heard about the Twin Towers?” We want to share how we found out, how it changed our lives for good or bad, and how it’s affected us to this day. It’s good to stop and reflect on that day, to remember where we were and to remember those who died on that tragic day.

September 11, 2001 was a typical day in my second year of college studies at Mount Angel Seminary.  One of the dorms on campus was being remodeled, so the college seminarians were living in a dormitory in the town of Mount Angel that was originally built as part of a girls’ school. The girls’ school had closed many years before, and the building was used as both transient housing and storage. The Benedictine Sisters who owned the building remodeled and rented out the top floor to the college seminary so that we would have a place to live while the dormitory on campus was going through its remodel.

Since we lived off campus, every morning started with a drive through town and up “the Hill”.  Of course, this was only about a 5-10 minute drive, but was less convenient than actually living on campus and walking to Mass or classes. On Sept. 11, I woke up, as usual, and got ready for the day. With all my books and stuff needed for the day in hand, I hopped in my truck and headed to the seminary campus.

My radio was usually tuned to the Catholic radio station in the Portland, OR area, and this morning was no exception. The announcers kept talking about some big event that just occurred in New York City and we needed to pray, but they weren’t being specific. They just kept encouraging prayer for those affected. After a few minutes, my curiosity was getting the better of me, and I needed to find out what happened. I switched over to one of Portland’s talk radio stations as I started driving up the road that snakes up the hill to campus. About half-way up the hill, I heard about the Twin Towers and the Pentagon. To this day, I can still see exactly where on the road I was when the announcement came across. Pulling into the parking lot, I rushed to the student recreation hall and saw the images for the first time. I arrived in the rec hall about 7:15 AM Pacific Time, just between the collapse of the two towers. According to Wikipedia, Tower 2 collapsed at 9:59 AM Eastern (6:59 AM Pacific), with Tower 1 collapsing at 10:28 AM, 30 minutes later.

Over the next week or so, the seminary had several organized prayer events for the victims of the attacks, and many seminarians spent much time in the chapels on campus praying. Like much of the country, we responded by turning to God to pray for the souls of the deceased and their families, and to pray for consolation for ourselves.

Some might wonder why we would dwell on an event like this. Is this a kind of perverse nostalgia, living in the past focusing on a terrible event? I would answer that question in the negative, and even assert that it is important to remember those who have died, even 9 years later. Families are still dealing with the losses of their loved ones, and we need to remember those who gave their lives to save others. Likewise, we need to remember that there are those who would do such attacks on this country again, and again, and again. The second we stop remembering, we open ourselves up to those attacks.

Is this to say we can’t criticize the response to the attacks? No. There may very well be much that should have been done differently, but there also was much that was done right. We need to remember those who acted with bravery and those actions that were good responses, while correcting those actions that may have caused more harm.

We need to remember. “Where were you when the world stopped turning, that September day?”

Teen sex may not hurt GPAs, but is that the only concern?

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Another day, another new study. A front-page article in today’s local paper proclaimed, “Teen sex not always bad for school performance“. Well, parents, I guess you don’t have to worry any more if your teens are in a “committed relationship” and engaging in premarital sex, because a group of sociologists from the U of California and the U of Minnesota have determined that “teens in committed relationships do no better or worse in school than those who don’t have sex.” Well, I guess that’s one less thing to worry about for parents, huh?

Not quite. Let’s start with a few definitions, shall we? First, what is a “committed relationship” versus “hooking up”? Yes, those are the terms used in the article (probably not in the original study, though). Is a committed relationship one where the couple is engaged, but not married yet? Is it having dated for a significant length of time before beginning sexual activity? Or is merely a monogamous relationship for a couple of months or so?

To put it simply, a committed relationship is one in which the man and woman commit themselves to remain faithful to each other for life. In other words, entering into the marital covenant. Anything else is not a committed relationship. It may not be the casual sexual relationships you see on TV and in the movies, but it is still less than a true commitment to the other. What woman wants to hear, “I love you, and I’ll commit to you until I get tired of you and want to find someone else”? Yet this is what a couple is saying when they enter into the sexual act without the bonds of marriage. It’s a false commitment.

By the fact that this study focused on teenagers, the so-called “committed relationships” are really false commitments. Legally, teens in most states can’t get married until 16 – only with parental permission – and with good reason. I would venture that the great majority of teens today are not mentally mature enough to make the life-long commitment that marriage demands. (As an aside, I’m sure every reader of this post can think of an adult who is not mentally mature enough for marriage.) Just because one has reached the age of puberty does not mean that he or she is mentally ready for the commitment and consequences that come with sex.

Now, let’s look at the other phrase: “hooking up”. As I’ve heard that phrase, it means having casual sex with multiple partners with no relationship beyond the sexual act. This, of course, is extremely dangerous physically and emotionally. The article is correct when it points out that hooking up leads to greater risk of truancy, diseases, criminal acts, and so on. It also views the other people as objects to provide physical pleasure.

The problem I have with these so-called committed relationships is that they become a long-term hooking up. Rarely does one couple remain together for the entire 4 years of high school, much less for the rest of their lives. Instead a couple will get together and date for months or a couple of years. They’ll break up, find new partners and repeat the process. They’re still having sex with multiple partners, just over several years. Sadly, this has become so prevalent that there’s a popular term for it: serial monogamy.

When these couples do break up, which will eventually happen in most cases, the emotional turmoil that is unleashed can and will seriously affect the teens at an age in which the emotions are already confused. I doubt the sociologists ever looked at the effects of the breakup of these committed relationships, and how it affects the teens’ GPAs at that point. I’m also sure they never looked at the teens’ later likeliness to enter into marriage and remain married, yet premarital sex does affect how one views marriage, especially the desire for entering into marriage and remaining within a marriage once difficulties arise. If you can enter into a “committed relationship” and break up when you’re no longer “in love” (meaning no longer feeling the mushy attraction towards the other person), why would you want to commit to someone for your entire life?

In short, the teens’ GPAs should be the least of their worries if they’re engaging in premarital sex. Sadly, the study only focused on one insignificant, unimportant aspect of their lives.

“If it comes from God…”

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Notice how relevant to the Church today is the speech by Gamaliel in today’s first reading:

“For if this endeavor or this activity is of human origin,
it will destroy itself.
But if it comes from God, you will not be able to destroy them;
you may even find yourselves fighting against God.”

When we look at the history of the Church, there have been more scandals than we can ever imagine. Heresies, murders, political intrigue, illicit children by popes, you name it. For 2000 years, we fallen humans have done our best to destroy the Church from within. Never mind the attacks from the media, we have done enough by permitting the abuse of children by those who have promised celibacy should be enough to destroy the Church.

Even with all the scandals, and no period in the Church’s history is free from them, the Church still exists, spreading the Gospel of Christ to the whole world. As Gamaliel said, “if this endeavor or this activity is of human origin, it will destroy itself.” If the Church were merely a human organization, such as the Masons or the governments of the world, the massive weight of hypocrisy and scandal would have destroyed it years ago.

We can be assured that the Church was established by Jesus and is supported to this day by the Holy Spirit through the rest of Gamaliel’s statement: “But if it comes from God, you will not be able to destroy them; you may even find yourselves fighting against God.” The Church is a divine institution, made up of imperfect humans, and is sustained by God through the authority of the Pope and faithful bishops in union with him. God will not allow the Church to disappear from the earth until that day when Our Lord Jesus Christ returns from the dead. The Church and Her members will undergo periods of cleansing and persecution, as I believe we are now entering, but will be all the stronger for it.

Today, please take time to pray for those who have been hurt by sexual abuse by priests and bishops, especially those children who have seriously harmed. Also, on this birthday of our Holy Father Benedict XVI, let us pray for him, that he may have the courage and guidance by the Holy Spirit to lead the Church out of this horrific scandal.

Bishop’s Letter on the Media Attacks Against the Pope

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Today, Bishop Michael Warfel, bishop of the Diocese of Great Falls-Billings, sent a letter to parishes for inclusion in this weekend’s bulletins. In this letter, Bishop Warfel responds to the media attacks against the Holy Father’s handing of the sexual abuse scandal. One of my confreres posted the letter on his blog. Instead of reposting it here, I encourage you to visit Fr. Leo’s blog and read the letter there.

Pray for the Pope

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If you’ve been following the Catholic blogosphere, you likely know all about the New York Times accusations against Pope Benedict and the responses from many quarters of the Church. Instead of rehashing all that, I want to encourage all Catholics to join in praying this prayer for the Pope originally posted by Fr. Z at his What Does the Prayer Really Say blog:

V. Oremus pro Pontifice nostro Benedicto.

R. Dominus conservet eum, et vivificet eum, et beatum faciat
eum in terra, et non tradat eum in animam inimicorum eius.
[Ps 40:3]

Pater Noster…,  Ave Maria….

Deus, omnium fidelium pastor et rector, famulum tuum
Benedictum, quem pastorem Ecclesiae tuae praeesse voluisti,
propitius respice: da ei, quaesumus, verbo et exemplo,
quibus praeest, proficere: ut ad vitam, una cum grege sibi
credito, perveniat sempiternam. Per Christum, Dominum
nostrum. Amen.

V. Let us pray for Benedict, our Pope.

R. May the Lord preserve him, and give him life, and make
him blessed upon the earth, and deliver him not up to the
will of his enemies. [Ps 40:3]

Our Father,  Hail Mary.

O God, Shepherd and Ruler of all Thy faithful people, look
mercifully upon Thy servant Benedict, whom Thou hast chosen
as shepherd to preside over Thy Church. Grant him, we
beseech Thee, that by his word and example, he may edify
those over whom he hath charge, so that together with the
flock committed to him, may he attain everlasting life.
Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Right now our Holy Father is under serious attack. The attacks will likely get worse, so I highly entreat you to pray this prayer daily, in front of the Blessed Sacrament if possible.

The Irony of Timing

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I have to wonder if I’m the only one who sees the irony behind the health care bill, which most major pro-life groups and the USCCB view as dramatically expanding abortion coverage, being passed the Sunday before what is arguably the most pro-life feast of the liturgical year? In this Solemnity of the Annunciation, we celebrate that moment when Our Lord became incarnate in the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Note that we don’t celebrate the first trimester of His Incarnation, or the point of viability of His Incarnation, but we celebrate His Incarnation at the very moment of His conception by the power of the Holy Spirit. This feast, which has been celebrated since at least the 5th Century AD, points to an indisputable biological fact: at the moment of conception (AKA fertilization by those supporting birth control), the embryo is a unique human child with a distinct DNA pattern.

Sadly, the laws in the United States and many other developed nations throughout the world fail to recognize this scientific fact, instead choosing to treat the developing child as a “clump of cells” no different from a cancerous tumor. These laws promote the view that abortion is just a routine surgery, like removing a questionable tumor from your arm, with no moral consequences. As a result of laws permitting abortion, a child in the womb has zero human rights until it is “wanted” by the mother.

Today, on this Solemnity of the Annunciation, dedicated as the International Day of the Unborn Child by a number of pro-life groups, let us continue to pray that these unjust and inhumane laws may be overturned and viewed for the abominations that they are. Let us also pray for those who have been hurt by abortion: the children killed directly, and those who were harmed physically and psychologically by abortion.

Edit: this evening, after posting this entry, I saw a post by Twitter user Luke_181 which linked to a website called The Great Prayer Project – End Abortion. If you want a concrete way to pray for the end of abortion, this is it. Pick a couple 20-hour time slots a week and spend that time in prayer. I’m not going to say “Please consider”. Instead, to quote the old Nike slogan: “Just do it!”, and join me in praying for the end of abortion.

Fight FOCA

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President-elect Obama has vowed to sign the Freedom of Choice Act when it crosses his desk after January 20th. Fight FOCA is a website that has information on this bill and a petition which will be sent to all members of Congress when the bill is reintroduced. I encourage you to check out Fight FOCA and sign their petition.

Moving Forward

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As you can probably tell by the tone of my post last night, I’m disappointed in the results of the election. I’m especially disappointed in the coverage regarding pro-life legislation and the candidates’ positions. Flipping between several major news networks, I never once heard a mention of how abortion played a part in the results. They were quick to mention the economy, the race and age of the candidates, even the religious views of the voters, but no mention on how the candidates’ position on abortion played into the results. As pro-lifers, we need to work to make respect of life a more front and center issue in the 2012 election.

Echoing many other conservative Catholic bloggers, we need to be respectful of Mr. Obama and those who have been elected to office. We can disagree with their positions and argue against what they stand for, but we must not fall into the trap of attacking the person that many fell into during President Bush’s terms in office. To engage in ad hominem attacks is completely uncharitable and will not help advance the pro-life cause. We need to pray for those who hold elected office, engage them charitably without name-calling or insults, and debate without yelling or slander. In short, we need to “love our neighbor as ourselves.” Sound familiar?

I wish to congratulate President-elect Obama and all those who achieved political office during this election season. May God bless you and this country, and may you serve this country with the respect of all life.

Is the Political Season Over Yet?

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Like many Americans, I’m getting very tired of the presidential election cycle. The two candidates spend very little time talking about what they’re going to do if they get elected. Instead, they expend great quantities of hot air showing us how he’s the savior of the country (if not the world), and his opponent is evil incarnate and will destroy the known world the moment they’re elected. I’m looking forward to November 5th, at which point the political advertisements will no longer be running. Sure, there will be at least a week of finger pointing and recounts before one or the other is named President of the United States, but that can be avoided by refusing to turn on the 24-hour news channels.

While one might be able to avoid the commercials, debates, and other attacks by simply not turning on the TV (not a bad idea in the first place), it’s hard to avoid when representatives of one of the candidates call on a Friday night while I’m enjoying watching Babylon 5 on DVD (yes, I’m a sci-fi weenie). On Friday night, I received a call from the local representatives of the Obama campaign. Unfortunately for her, I decided long ago that I could never in good conscience vote for a candidate who is so openly in the back pocket of Planned Parenthood and NARAL. You see, I was born in 1976. Roe v. Wade was January 22, 1973. Do the math. Abortion matters to me because I realized many years ago I would not be here if my mom said 4 words: “I want an abortion.” Now, my mom is very much against abortion, but the fact that I could have been aborted legally, and that over 1 million boys and girls my age were aborted in 1976, matters to me very deeply. Also, the fact that we are over 48 million “legal” deaths due to Roe v. Wade and counting concerns me even more. Needless to say, I cannot vote for a candidate who supports abortion rights advocates.

Anyways, now that you know where I’m coming from, this poor unfortunate volunteer from the Obama camp calls to encourage me to vote for him. As part of our conversation, she asks me, “What keeps you from voting for Barack Obama?” My response, after a short pause when I was deciding whether to be nice to this lady or not, was as follows:

“Ma’am, I’m a Roman Catholic priest. As such, respect for human life is of vital importance to me. Mr. Obama has made statements that cause me concern regarding his respect for all human life, especially regarding abortion.”

She kind of stammered out an “I understand.” Then, after a short pause of about a second or so, she invited me to visit their office in town for more information and wished me a good night. I really don’t think she expected to ever hear that response, and was completely unprepared for it. I almost feel sorry for her.

Like I said, I can’t wait for November 5th.