Apparently, God has nothing to do with it!

http://www.catholiccourier.com/tmp1.cfm?nid=88&articleid=108674&cfid=1797499&cftoken=77341329

And finally, a post that seems to focus largely on the U of R, or as it has apparently branded itself, UR...we'll work from quotes, most from a girl named Kellie Ileto...my comments in red

"Newman is a nonjudgmental environment. We all introduce ourselves, and there's no cliques.

Nonjudgemental in what way? I recall a post from Gene Michael that mentioned a "homosexual" student "coming out" during his...well, why he was talking during the homily baffles me, but mid-mass. There's a big difference between being judgemental and ignoring Catholic morality. I had the distinct displeasure of going to Mass at the U of R once...what she doesn't mention is that they all introduce themselves...at Mass...during the liturgy!
Ileto, who is minoring in religion at UR, has come to accept that "there's not just one way to feel close to God"
This sounds an awful lot like it's not Catholic...the paper seems to imply she is correct, and despite her previous convictions, she now realizes that Hinduism, Buddhism, etc. work well too? Has she been reading THE SHACK? Presumably the Religion Department at U of R teaches the same crap every other religion department teaches at a secular University--that all religion is essentially the same, and that it's a great sociological phenomenon.

Ileto acknowledged that transitioning your Catholic faith to college is no easy process for many. She said that some students are jarred by a style and setting for Catholic worship that is much different than in their home parishes;

WHY?! The U of R Newman Club...Community?...worships in the basement of an ugly building that lacks any Catholic character. It should be jarring. They don't kneel, they sit in chairs, and they face each other across a big aisle, on one end of which is the "altar" and on the other is the "ambo" though it's a bit of a stretch to call either by those names.
"One big thing is, who am I going to be friends with? You may be 18, but still very insecure. It's all about fitting in."
I never knew the U of R was a middle school. How about that. It's all about fitting in. It's not about learning, it's not about God, it's not about growing up and being independent, it's all about fitting in. Remind me to send my daughter there for middle school!

Loughlin gave special credit to her campus ministers at the time, Wes Kennison and Father Jim Hewes, for guiding her through that period. "They're why I'm still Catholic," remarked Loughlin

God has nothing to do with it! Nope, not grace, nothing to do with God...Jim and Wes, though, they're great!

"In the end it doesn't matter about the time commitment, the exhaustion. It only matters that they're my family," Ileto said. "Really, bottom line, is the Catholic Newman Community is my family."

It's not about God, just that they're all really close, it seems...Apparently, God has nothing to do with it!

-Arialdus

Busted Halo, Busted Haehl-o

The second in my series of issues with this Catholic Courier theme issue...

http://www.catholiccourier.com/tmp1.cfm?nid=88&articleid=108679&cfid=1797499&cftoken=77341329

"Try campus ministry."
"It will be different from your parish back home, but give it a try," she said. "Once is not enough. You've got to give yourself a chance to get used to it. There will be enough that's familiar, and it can be a great anchor to your week."

HUH?! Why? Why should it be different? I mean...the rubrics are the same...and...the purpose of going to Mass is to prevent you from being homesick? And the way that it helps...is...not prayer...nothing to do with God...just...that it's an anchor to your week?

Of course, our CATHOLIC NEWSPAPER cites something from BustedHalo, a site with an entire section on sex and relationships, The Freshmen Survival Guide encourages you to be chaste for the first few weeks...so you don't hook up with a jerk...and this is a book we want to sell our teens? Wait a few weeks? Great. Somebody get Jason Evert on the line and tell him he's asking too much. Purity is only required for the first month of college!

The site also includes this article:

http://www.bustedhalo.com/features/back-from-vocation/

Apparently, the chain smoking kept Freud here from tormenting some poor bishop...

In any case, Nora Haehl often preaches at St Paul's in Webster, since apparently, she fails to understand that...well, she's not a priest. As many of my friends know her well, and I have spent some time with her, I can guarantee that this woman is never ever ever ever ever meeting (nor falsely catechizing) my kids. So, apparently, my children will never see the beautiful interior of St Paul's in Webster.

-Arialdus

And to think, I considered the salvation of souls!

This is the first in a series of posts I hate to have to make.

The Catholic Courier is officially a less trustworthy source than Wikipedia.

http://www.catholiccourier.com/tmp1.cfm?nid=88&articleid=108675&cfid=1797499&cftoken=77341329

"Loughlin noted that students may be more willing to try new things and join new groups when they are in a group of their peers.

"The goal is to give them experiences and faith and skills that they bring back to their parish experience," Loughlin said."

NEW IN 2009: THE PARISH EXPERIENCE! Activities include a scavenger hunt entitled: Where the heck is the Tabernacle?, a prayer labyrinth, and an opportunity to come together as a community by holding hands and sitting on couches, rather than archaically kneeling for the consecration! Get your tickets today!

All joking aside, the phrase "parish experience" gives me the heebie-jeebies. After all, would this parish experience include readings of The Shack?

Let's discuss the book that's mentioned in our CATHOLIC newspaper...

“I don’t need to punish people for sin. Sin is its own punishment, devouring from the inside. It’s not my purpose to punish it; it’s my joy to cure it”

“When we three spoke ourself into human existence as the Son of God, we became fully human. We also chose to embrace all the limitations that this entailed. Even though we have always been present in this created universe, we now became flesh and blood”

"Evil and darkness can only be understood in relation to Light and Good; they do not have any actual existence."

"Authority, as you usually think of it, is merely the excuse the strong use to make others conform to what they want.... We carefully respect your choices...."

"'Are you saying I don't have to follow the rules?'...

"'Yes. In Jesus you are not under any law. All things are lawful.'

"'You can't be serious! You're messing with me again,' moaned Mack.

"'Child,' interrupted papa, 'you ain't heard nuthin' yet.'...

"'...enforcing rules [says Sarayu] ...is a vain attempt to create certainty out of uncertainty. And contrary to what you might think, I have a great fondness for uncertainty. Rules cannot bring freedom; they only have the power to accuse.'"

"That made Mack smile. This lady was fully enjoying herself...“We created you to share in that. But then Adam chose to go it on his own, as we knew he would, and everything got messed up. But instead of scrapping the whole Creation we rolled up our sleeves and entered into the middle of the mess—that’s what we have done in Jesus.... When we three spoke ourself into human existence as the Son of God, we became fully human. We also chose to embrace all the limitations that this entailed. ...flesh and blood.".

"Those who love me come from every system that exists. They were Buddhists or Mormons, Baptists or Muslims.... I have no desire to make them Christian, but I do want to join them in their transformation into sons and daughters of my Papa, into my brothers and sisters.”

HUH?! These are all quotes from Papa, the black female God character, Sarayu, the Holy Spirit character, and the Jesus character. Of course, I suppose William Young's writing is just as good as divine revelation...you know, even though it's...kinda...sorta...heresy

If anyone finds this book encouraged by someone in your parish, please give them a smack of the crozier!

Back to the article and the main point of this post

"The goal of the essay contest -- and of campus ministry in general -- is to engage students in genuine conversation, Father Smith said.''

HUH?!

The point of ministering to college students is to engage them in conversation? That's it?! That's why Newman Centers/Clubs/Communities exist?! Remind me to shake the hands of Richard Hunt over at RIT and Brian Cool over at U of R. They are actually doing their jobs! We must stop criticizing them. After all, it appears they don't need to seek the salvation of souls, only genuine conversation.

-Arialdus

He's Baaaaack!

After a long absence, the writings of Fr. Richard McBrien once again taint the pages of the Catholic Courier. This time he is addressing the issue of the upcoming visitation of women’s religious communities, particularly that of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

The point of McBrien’s piece is to question the objectivity of the CDF’s investigation and to suggest that they are setting up straw-men now so that they can harass women’s religious communities in the United States. “one has reason to wonder how objective and dispassionate the visitation of religious communities of women in the U.S. will be.” Of course, this notion is preposterous, given the CDF’s role in safeguarding the objective truths of the faith.

He then summarizes Cardinal Rode’s outlining of four distinct approaches to religious life today.
“The cardinal-prefect listed four distinct approaches to religious life today: new communities that bring energy to old traditions, older communities that have revived their traditions, and older communities that have, according to The Boston Pilot, simply accepted their decline and have acquiesced. Again, no examples were given.
Cardinal Rodé described the fourth approach in even more ominous terms. He claimed that "there are those who have opted for ways that take them outside communion with Christ in the Catholic Church, although they themselves may have opted to ‘stay’ in the church physically."…

Nonetheless, Cardinal Rodé’s was a serious allegation and should not have been made without evidence. Perhaps it is expected that such "evidence" will be gathered during the course of the visitation of religious communities of women in the U.S. and in the CDF’s investigation of the LCWR.”

McBrien seems plenty ready to hurl accusations here. He insists on examples of abuses being given and lambasts Cardinal Rode over his mention of religious communities that have broken with the Catholic tradition without specific examples. He seems to think that we’re going on a witch hunt for ills that aren’t there.

If Fr. McBrien needs evidence of heterodoxy within US womens’ religious societies, he need look no farther than here, here, or here! Then again, in McBrien's world, orthodoxy is outdated and madness is the hip thing. In any event, let the investigation begin!

-Bellarmine

An Important Announcement

Guinness is good for you. Apparently it contains antioxidants that help prevent heart disease. It's the luck of the Irish I tell ya! Props to Kevin at New Advent for finding that one!

-Bellarmine