The Theology of the Body: 97. Marriage Is the Central Point of the Sacrament of Creation

In his General Audience of 6 October 1982, the Holy Father continued his exposition of fifth chapter of the Letter to the Ephesians, for the light it sheds on marriage as the "primordial" sacrament in the state of man's original innocence.


Marriage Is the Central Point of the Sacrament of Creation

The general audience of 6 October took place in St Peter's Square in spite of inclement weather. Pope John Paul delivered an address following the theme of the last several weeks.


1. We continue the analysis of the classic text of the Letter to the Ephesians, 5:21-33. For this purpose it is necessary to quote some phrases contained in one of the preceding analyses devoted to this theme: "Man appears in the visible world as the highest expression of the divine gift, because he bears within himself the interior dimension of the gift. With it he brings into the world his particular likeness to God, whereby he transcends and dominates also his 'visibility' in the world, his corporality, his masculinity or femininity, his nakedness. Resulting from this likeness there is also the primordial awareness of the conjugal significance of the body, pervaded by the mystery of original innocence" (L'amore umano nel piano divino, Citta del Vaticano, 1980, p. 90). These phrases sum up in a few words the result of the analyses devoted to the first chapters of Genesis, in relation to the words with which Christ, in his conversation with the Pharisees on the subject of marriage and its indissolubility, referred to the "beginning." Other phrases of the same analysis pose the problem of the primordial sacrament: "Thus, in this dimension, there is constituted a primordial sacrament, understood as a sign which effectively transmits in the visible world the invisible mystery hidden from eternity in God. This is the mystery of truth and love, the mystery of the divine life in which man really shares.... It is the original innocence which initiates this participation..." (ibid., p. 90).

The state of man before original sin

2. It is necessary to look again at the content of these statements in the light of the Pauline doctrine expressed in the Letter to the Ephesians, bearing in mind especially the passage of chapter 5, verses 21-33, situated in the overall context of the entire letter. In any event, the letter authorizes us to do this, because the author himself referred to the "beginning," and precisely to the words of the institution of marriage in Genesis (Eph 5:31; cf. Gn 2:24). In what sense can we see in these words a statement about the sacrament, about the primordial sacrament? The previous analyses of the biblical "beginning" have led us gradually to this, in consideration of the state of the original endowment of man in existence and in grace, which was the state of innocence and original justice. The Letter to the Ephesians leads us to approach this situation—that is, the state of man before original sin—from the point of view of the mystery hidden in God from eternity. In fact, we read in the first phrases of the letter that "God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ...has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places. He chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him" (Eph 1:3-4).

God's eternal plan

3. The Letter to the Ephesians opens up before us the supernatural world of the eternal mystery, of the eternal plans of God the Father concerning man. These plans precede the creation of the world, and therefore also the creation of man. At the same time those divine plans begin to be put into effect already in the entire reality of creation. If also the state of original innocence of man, created as male and female in the likeness of God, pertains to the mystery of creation, this implies that the primordial gift conferred on man by God already includes within itself the fruit of having been chosen, which we read of in the Letter to the Ephesians: "He chose us...that we should be holy and blameless before him" (Eph 1:4). This indeed seems to be indicated by the words of Genesis, when the Creator-Elohim finds in man—male and female—who appeared before him, a good worthy of gratification: "God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good" (Gn 1:31). Only after sin, after breaking the original covenant with the Creator, man feels the need to hide himself "from the Lord God." "I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself" (Gn 3:10).

4. On the contrary, before sin, man bore in his soul the fruit of eternal election in Christ, the eternal Son of the Father. By means of the grace of this election man, male and female, was "holy and blameless" before God. That primordial (or original) holiness and purity were expressed also in the fact that, although both were "naked, they were not ashamed" (Gn 2:25), as we have sought to make evident in the previous analyses. Comparing the testimony of the "beginning" found in the first chapters of Genesis, with the testimony of the Letter to the Ephesians, one must deduce that the reality of man's creation was already imbued by the perennial election of man in Christ. Man is called to sanctity through the grace of the adoption as sons. "He destined us to be his sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace which he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved" (Eph 1:5-6).

Supernatural endowment

5. Man, male and female, shared from the beginning in this supernatural gift. This bounty was granted in consideration of him, who from eternity was beloved as Son, even though—according to the dimensions of time and history—it had preceded the Incarnation of this beloved Son and also the redemption which we have in him through his blood (cf. Eph 1:7). The redemption was to become the source of man's supernatural endowment after sin and, in a certain sense, in spite of sin. This supernatural endowment, which took place before original sin, that is, the grace of justice and original innocence—an endowment which was the fruit of man's election in Christ before the ages—was accomplished precisely in reference to him, to the beloved One, while anticipating chronologically his coming in the body. In the dimensions of the mystery of creation the election to the dignity of adopted sonship was proper only to the first Adam, that is, to the man created in the image and likeness of God, male and female.

The subject of holiness

6. In what way is the reality of the sacrament, of the primordial sacrament, verified in this context? In the analysis of the beginning, from which we quoted a passage a short time ago, we said that "the sacrament, as a visible sign, is constituted by man inasmuch as he is a 'body,' through his visible masculinity and femininity. The body, in fact, and only it, is capable of making visible what is invisible: the spiritual and the divine. It was created to transfer into the visible reality of the world the mystery hidden from eternity in God, and thus to be its sign" (loc. cit., p. 90).

This sign has besides an efficacy of its own, as I also said: "Original innocence linked to the experience of the conjugal significance of the body" has as its effect "that man feels himself, in his body as male and female, the subject of holiness" (Ibid., p. 91). He feels himself such and he is such from the beginning. That holiness which the Creator conferred originally on man pertains to the reality of the "sacrament of creation." The words of Genesis 2:24, "A man...cleaves to his wife and they become one flesh," spoken in the context of this original reality in a theological sense, constitute marriage as an integral part and, in a certain sense, a central part of the "sacrament of creation." They constitute—or perhaps rather they simply confirm—the character of its origin. According to these words, marriage is a sacrament inasmuch as it is an integral part and, I would say, the central point of "the sacrament of creation." In this sense it is the primordial sacrament.

7. The institution of marriage, according to the words of Genesis 2:24, expresses the beginning of the fundamental human community which through the "procreative" power that is proper to it serves to continue the work of creation. "Be fruitful and multiply" (Gn 1:28). Not only this, it expresses at the same time the salvific initiative of the Creator, corresponding to the eternal election of man, which the Letter to the Ephesians speaks of. That salvific initiative comes from God-Creator and its supernatural efficacy is identified with the very act of man's creation in the state of original innocence. In this state, already in the act of man's creation, his eternal election in Christ fructified. In this way one must recognize that the original sacrament of creation draws its efficacy from the beloved Son (cf. Eph 1:6 where it speaks of the "grace which he gave us in his beloved Son"). If then it treats of marriage, one can deduce that—instituted in the context of the sacrament of creation in its globality, that is, in the state of original innocence—it should serve not only to prolong the work of creation, that is, of procreation. But it should also serve to extend to further generations of men the same sacrament of creation, that is, the supernatural fruits of man's eternal election on the part of the Father in the eternal Son—those fruits which man was endowed with by God in the very act of creation.

The Letter to the Ephesians seems to authorize us to interpret Genesis in this way, and the truth about the "beginning" of man and of marriage contained therein.

John Kenneth Galbraith: Requiescat in pace.

Another commie-symp icon of the late, unlamented century now knows The Truth. May God have mercy on his soul.

John Kenneth Galbraith: Statist Advocate
By Tom Brewton (05/02/2006)

Widely known economist John Kenneth Galbraith, who recently died at age 97, was one of the radical left's most articulate and prolific advocates for state control of economic and social activity.

Living through most of the 20th century, Professor Galbraith was the embodiment of the era's atheistic and materialistic religion of socialism, a description he proudly accepted. Naturally, he was a member of the Harvard economics department, the fountainhead of socialistic economics in the United States. From early 20th century Progressivism, to open advocacy of socialism in the 1920s and 1930s, through post-World War II liberalism, he was probably the most quoted and most admired single icon of American left-wing intellectuals.

The Washington Post's obituary observed: "One of the most influential [of Galbraith's books] was "The Affluent Society" (1958), which argued that overproduction of consumer goods was harming the public sector and depriving Americans of such benefits as clean air, clean streets, good schools and support for the arts."

Dr. Galbraith was generally considered to have been an apostle of the theories advanced by British economist John Maynard Keynes: that government could promote full employment and a stable economy by stimulating spending and investment with adjustments in interest and tax rates, and deficit financing."

Galbraith's self-assurance not withstanding, Keynes's prescriptions failed miserably; unemployment never fell below 14% until our military mobilization for World War II.

Professor Galbraith was called an economist, but more accurately he should be identified as a liberal sociologist and propagandist. Few of his "economic" ideas are used or respected by economists. Even the New York Times, the journal-of-record for American socialism, admits this.

As the Times obituary put it, "... other economists, even many of his fellow liberals, did not generally share his views on production and consumption, and he was not regarded by his peers as among the top- ranked theorists and scholars."

".....Later, in "The New Industrial State" (1967), he tried to trace the shift of power from the landed aristocracy through the great industrialists to the technical and managerial experts of modern corporations. He called for a new class of intellectuals and professionals to determine policy."

"......In 1973 he published "Economics and the Public Purpose," in which ... [he] called for a "new socialism," with more steeply progressive taxes; public support of the arts; public ownership of housing, medical and transportation facilities; and the conversion of some corporations and military contractors into public corporations."

Michael Harrington, then head of the American Socialist Party, wrote in his 1968 "Toward a Democratic Left: A Radical Program for a New Majority":

"The very character of modern technology, [Harvard economist] Galbraith says, renders the old market mechanisms obsolete. In these circumstances planning is obligatory. The state must manage the economy in order to guarantee sufficient purchasing power to buy the products of the industrial system.”

This is typical Galbraithian "wisdom" that, at best, was counter- productive and more often disastrous.

Harrington's book was published as price levels were quadrupling under President Nixon's embrace of Keynesian, socialist economics, leading OPEC to impose its oil embargo and catapult prices to an inflation-adjusted $95 per barrel. On the eve of this unfolding catastrophe, the liberal media lauded the Keynesian-oriented Council of Economic Advisors for having finally learned to exert perfect, fine-tuning socialistic control over the economy.

Economic stagflation – soaring inflation coupled with a moribund economy - soon thereafter revealed the hollowness of this hubristic claim. Savings and loan institutions went bankrupt. Stock market prices fell to fractions of replacement costs for company assets, giving rise to the take-over boom by stock market raiders that dismembered companies and threw long-loyal workers into the streets. Mothers were compelled to leave home for full-time employment and fathers had to moonlight on extra jobs, just to pay monthly bills. With fewer parents at home to supervise their children, crime and drug abuse rose.

Yet to this day Galbraith's ruinous prescriptions remain central tenets of American liberals' socialistic religious catechism.

Thomas E. Brewton is a staff writer for the New Media Alliance, Inc.

His weblog is THE VIEW FROM 1776 http://www.thomasbrewton.com/

*Ed: Views are those of individual authors and not necessarily those of American Daily.

24's Body Count Update.

From Right Wing Nuthouse:

BODY COUNT

The Grim Reaper took the night off, resting up for next week as Jack may have to wade through a lot of blood in order to reach his ultimate objective; Henderson.

JACK: 30

SHOW: 184

I love the smell of speculation in the morning...

Secret Service agent Aaron will save the Designing First Lady from a suicide attempt and kill President Hilter before he can shut ol' Martha up for good. Martha and Aaron become an item.

Chloe will be named acting head of the newly reconstituted CTU in the final three minutes of the final hour.

Jack will actually arrest some of the Men With Phones In Their Ears (They don't have the stones to try and shoot it out with him.) and their trial will figure prominently in next season's storyline.

Curtis and Chloe will marry and he will be forced to leave CTU because of some silly government nepotism rule. Curtis will then...

...Start a private security consulting firm with a retired Jack Bauer. Needless to say, they both will be dragged back into the fight against Big Badness next year. Look for Curtis to get shot early and for Chloe to break down.

Nobody cares about Mike Novick.

Buckaroo Banzai Henderson will die horribly by his own hand. Literally. I predict he will become the first man to successfully choke himself to death with his bare hands.

Kim Bauer will reappear before this season ends, looking better than she did the last time we saw her and sans the therapist-cum-boyfriend.

In the final seconds of this season's 24 hours, it will be suggested the Men With Phones In Their Ears are disgruntled sports agents.

From The Glories Of The Old Country Department:

ABOVE: Something similar (but much sexier) to another Italian gesture Justice Scalia is sure to know.




I have no idea who Carolina Marconi is, but that hardly seems to matter at this point.

Carolina Update:
Her father Pasquale (an Italian diplomat) is half Italian and half Eritrean, from Asmara. Mother Soraya is half Venezuelan and half Portugese.

(Wow! That is one heck of a mix!)

Moved to Italy when she was 17.

Favourite soccer team is Juventus.

Enjoys latin dancing, surfing and snowboarding.

The Michael and Cathryn Borden Memorial Book of the Day.*

The Politically Incorrect Guide™ to Women, Sex, and Feminism by Carrie Lukas, vice president for policy and economics at the Independent Women's Forum, contributor to National Review Online, and author of the latest installment of the bestselling series.

Did you know?

Research shows that women still tend to prefer men who are
breadwinners, who they can consider intellectually superior, and who can physically protect them.

Women have made great strides in the workplace, but most women are still working in traditional fields and are motivated by financial need—not the desire for glamorous careers.

Feminists recoil at research suggesting that children with parents as primary caregivers are better off than those in full-time daycare.

Many women have been led to believe that they can postpone childbearing without consequence and regret that decision later in life.

Contrary to most feminist groups, abortion was not a top consideration of most women voters.

Most women want a husband and a strong family, but "independent" feminists pine for a sugar daddy in Uncle Sam.

In The Politically Incorrect Guide™ to Women, Sex, and Feminism, Lukas clears the air, busts the myths, and provides the best (but usually suppressed) research on the most important issues young women face, so that women can make better decisions about their families, careers, and futures.

* WTF??? Look here.

Scriptural Snippets.

From Sunday's readings:

Acts 3:19.

Be penitent, therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out. Paenitemini igitur et convertimini ut deleantur vestra peccata


1 John 1:6-10.

1:6. If we say that we have fellowship with him and walk in darkness, we lie and do not the truth.
Si dixerimus quoniam societatem habemus cum eo et in tenebris ambulamus mentimur et non facimus veritatem

1:7. But if we walk in the light, as he also is in the light, we have fellowship one with another: And the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.
Si autem in luce ambulemus sicut et ipse est in luce societatem habemus ad invicem et sanguis Iesu Filii eius mundat nos ab omni peccato

1:8. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.
Si dixerimus quoniam peccatum non habemus ipsi nos seducimus et veritas in nobis non est

1:9. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just, to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all iniquity.
Si confiteamur peccata nostra fidelis est et iustus ut remittat nobis peccata et emundet nos ab omni iniquitate

1:10. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar: and his word is not in us.
Si dixerimus quoniam non peccavimus mendacem facimus eum et verbum eius non est in nobis

The Stolen Valor Act.

Please contact your friendly neighborhood Congressthing and Senatrix and ask them to vote for The Stolen Valor Act (HR 3352 and S 1998). We have so few real heroes and their reputations must be protected from the vile imposters who dare to claim they are heroes.

In a related matter, I have heard a bill will soon be introduced in the Pennsylvania Legislature that will outlaw the use of military medals for commercial purposes in the commonwealth. While the US Department of Defense regulations prohibit such abuse, there is no federal or PA law against it.

The bill will be introduced by Representative Gordon Denlinger.

If you think this is much ado about nothing, consider this. Here in Flyover, there is a trash hauling business called "Purple Heart Disposal" that features a painting of the Purple Heart medal on its garbage truck. I do not think this is appropriate use of the medal my dad received twice for being shot up by Nazis. (I am singularly proud of my restraint in voicing my opinion in this matter.)

There is right and there is wrong, kiddies. First we must learn how to discern one from the other. Then we must gather the courage to act on behalf of what is right.

The Anna Nicole Smith story is not a joke.

I can certainly understand his children's dismay, but, on the other hand, look at her through the eyes of a 90 year old...

If an old fool wants to bequeath his fortune to an ex-stripper he just married, that is his business.

SF Chronicle: Anna Nicole Smith wins right to fight for half husband's fortune / High court ruling gives ex-dancer better odds in case
All nine Supreme Court justices sided with former Playboy centerfold Anna Nicole Smith on Monday and ruled she can continue to fight for a share of late husband's huge estate. The justices reversed a ruling by the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in...

We lost power yesterday afternoon...the generators are gulping price-gouged gas made from commie Venezuelan oil...the toilets exploded about 2 AM...

...there are reports of white on white cannibalism coming over the shortwave set...we can only assume California has been lost...

Why, oh, why didn't we listen? We should have known we were totally dependent on the illegal Mexican underclass for everything...

Toilet paper stocks are dangerously low...nobody's watching the baby and the hedges need trimming...

No...No! It can't be true...Soylent Green is people!

Boss Brain Damage tells that uppity candidate, Lynn Swann, how to win the colored vote.

The senior citizen Senator from PA can't help himself. He really does think he knows what he's talking about. I blame Bush and Rove for this.

From Phillyburbs.com:

There was U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter dispensing unsolicited advice, suggesting that Swann, who is black, cultivate black voters' support by becoming "conversant" on job training and other issues important to African-Americans and talking about them in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.

"Speak Ebonics to Power", saith the Brain Damaged One.

"His race could be a very strong factor, but not in a shirt and tie," Pennsylvania's senior senator told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. "Have him go into the community and get his hands dirty."

Of course! You see, kiddies, in Arlen's feverish mind, all blacks are either sharecroppers in overalls or retarded children who can't function without Uncle Leviathan holding their hands.

Mr. Swann never had much of a chance, but with "friends" like Senator Brain Damage on his side, the odds against him have increased.

The bottom line, kiddies? Swann could not be any worse than Slow Eddie Rendell.

Saint of the Day and daily Mass readings.

Today is the Feast of St. Joseph Luu, Vietnamese martyr. Pray for us, all you angels and saints.

Today's reading is Acts 7:51; 8:1.
Today's Responsorial Psalm is Psalms 31:3-4, 6, 7, 8, 17, 21.
Today's Gospel reading is John 6:30-35.

[Links to the readings will be from the NAB until I can find another chapter and verse searchable Douay-Rheims Bible on-line.]


Everyday links:

The Blessed Virgin Mary
The Rosary
Our Mother of Perpetual Help
Prayers from EWTN
National Coalition of Clergy and Laity (dedicated to action for a genuine Catholic Restoration)
The Catholic Calendar Page for Today


Just in case you are wondering what exactly Catholics believe, here is

The Apostles Creed

I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of Heaven and earth; and in Jesus Christ, His only Son Our Lord, Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried.He descended into Hell; the third day He rose again from the dead; He ascended into Heaven, and sitteth at the right hand of God, the Father almighty; from thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead.I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body and life everlasting. Amen.


Memorare

Remember, O most gracious Virgin Mary, that never was it known that any one who fled to thy protection, implored thy help or sought thy intercession,was left unaided.Inspired with this confidence, I fly unto thee, O Virgin of virgins my Mother; to thee do I come, before thee I stand, sinful and sorrowful; O Mother of the Word Incarnate, despise not my petitions, but in thy clemency hear and answer me. Amen.


St. Joseph, her most chaste spouse, pray for us.


Prayer to St. Anthony, Martyr of Desire

Dear St. Anthony, you became a Franciscan with the hope of shedding your blood for Christ. In God's plan for you, your thirst for martyrdom was never to be satisfied. St. Anthony, Martyr of Desire, pray that I may become less afraid to stand up and be counted as a follower of the Lord Jesus. Intercede also for my other intentions. (Name them.)


Prayer To Saint Michael The Archangel

St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle, be our defense against the wickedness and snares of the devil; may God rebuke him, we humbly pray, and do thou O Prince of the heavenly hosts, by the divine power, thrust into hell Satan and all the evil spirits who prowl about the world seeking the ruin of souls. Amen.


Prayer to End Abortion

Lord God, I thank You today for the gift of my life, and for the lives of all my brothers and sisters. I know there is nothing that destroys more life than abortion, yet I rejoice that you have conquered death by the resurrection of Your Son. I am ready to do my part to end abortion. Today I commit myself never to be silent, never to be passive, and never to be forgetful of the unborn. I commit myself to be active in the pro-life movement, and never stop defending life until all my brothers and sisters are protected and our nation once again becomes a nation with liberty and justice, not just for some, but for all. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Trees go to Detroit to die.

All We Can Say Is Wow!
As all norteamericanos know, this Friday is Cinco de Mayo. But that's not the only reason it's a special day. It's also the septaquintaquinquecentennial*** of the Detroit Free Press. "Each day in the week leading up to our 175th birthday on May 5," the Freep promises, "we'll wow you with some facts about us and what we do." Here's what they've done so far:

Saturday: "Some Free Press staffers have gained fame writing
books. Here's a purrfect example."

Sunday: "We run a lot of names. But which ones do we run the
most? Here are the top dozen from 2005 with the number of stories in which their name is mentioned at least once."

Monday: "At 175 years young, the Detroit Free Press has
outlasted nearly all its peers, becoming the second-oldest continuously operated business in Michigan. We've tried to be good neighbors."

Wow, are we ever wowed!

*** Now we've done it--we're going to be inundated by emails from pedants who prefer terquasquicentennial.

Education Update.

Student Body in Topless Bar
"Half a Million Taught in Schools Without a Head"--headline, Independent (London), April 29

'Uh, Aren't They a Little Young for You'?
"Republican Party Looks to Embrace College Women"--headline, Hatchet (George Washington University), May 1

The Find The Hottest TV News Babe Contest continues...

Nichole Vrsansky,


Mimi Murphy, (Bonus Points for the red hair!)


and Naytonie Williams are the babes of WIFR in Rockford, IL.

Big Babykilling has no big tent. No little one, either. In fact, it hates tents with a passion.

When 'Pro-Choice' Means No Choice"
After eight years of chafing under the rule of Republican Gov. Bill Owens, Colorado Democrats have a candidate for governor with a real shot at winning--and he opposes abortion," the Washington Times reports from Denver:

Bill Ritter, the former Denver district attorney who's running unchallenged for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination, doesn't describe himself as pro-life--but he is also not pro-choice--thus violating what has become a virtual litmus test for Democratic officeholders.

Hmm, he isn't "pro-life" and he isn't "pro-choice." So what is he? You have to read to the end of the piece to get to the explanation:

Mr. Ritter doesn't shy away from his opposition to abortion, although he's quick to assure Democrats that he has no intention of advancing a pro-life political plank.

"I'm opposed to abortion as a matter of conscience for me, but our agenda doesn't involve changing the law," Mr. Ritter said at a meeting of Drinking Liberally, a club for young, urbane Democrats.

His agenda places the emphasis on reducing unintended pregnancies and promoting adoption as an alternative to abortion. He said he also would restore state funding for family planning cut by Republicans, and that he would have
signed the emergency-contraception bill recently vetoed by Mr. Owens.

Opposing abortion "as a matter of conscience" while wanting to keep it legal used to be a completely acceptable Democratic position; it was espoused by Mario Cuomo, the very liberal former governor of New York, for instance. But according to the Times, Colorado Democrats view Ritter with great skepticism:

At a Democratic gathering last week at a trendy Lower Downtown bar, Andy Bosselman said some of his liberal friends decided to stay home rather than meet Mr. Ritter, who dropped in to rally the troops and answer questions.

"The abortion thing made them think he's socially conservative," Mr. Bosselman said. "I think for Colorado he's probably as good as we can get. I wouldn't consider him a strong ally, but he's probably better than [Republican
candidate Rep. Bob] Beauprez."

That lack of enthusiasm was echoed by Kathryn Wittneben, executive director of NARAL Pro-Choice Colorado.

"We obviously would have liked to have had a strong pro-choice candidate running for governor," she said, adding that her group was "still in discussions" with the Ritter campaign.

If you manage to keep your food down, listening to the "leaders" of The Party of Blasphemy, Buggery, and 'Bortion can be quite funny.

Meanwhile in California, Jerry Brown, the former governor and current mayor of Oakland, is running for state attorney general, and opponent Rocky Delgadillo is painting Brown as insufficiently fervent for feticide, the San Jose Mercury News reports:

Delgadillo, in his first TV ad unleashed last week, seized on a 1988 letter Brown wrote on behalf of a woman who served 2 1/2 years in prison for breaking into a Pensacola, Fla., abortion clinic.

Joan Andrews had been convicted 67 times before and arrested more than 150 times for anti-abortion actions, but Brown wrote a letter seeking clemency for her. Then again, Brown was acting on a request by none other than Mother Teresa.

Brown consultant Ace Smith "said Brown is 'absolutely' pro-choice." Maybe not absolutely enough, though.

Traveshamockery Democracy Update.

From Best of the Web Today:

Trouble in Paradise
A month after Hamas took over the government of the Palestinian Authority, "a growing number of Palestinians . . . believe they are now closer than ever to civil war and bankruptcy," reports the Jerusalem Post's Khaled Abu Toameh:

Boycotted by the international community, [Prime Minister Ismail] Haniyeh's cabinet is still struggling to raise funds to pay salaries to more than 140,000 PA civil servants. They have not been paid for March and many of them say they can't even afford to travel to work.

Hamas has thus far failed to raise enough funds in the Arab and Islamic world. True, its leaders have been promised tens of millions of dollars by Iran, Libya and a few Arab countries, but the money has still not been transferred to Ramallah and the Gaza Strip. A drive by Hamas to collect donations from Arabs
and Muslims has also failed because of the failure of Arab banks to cooperate. . . .

In addition to the financial crisis, the Hamas cabinet is also facing a political and diplomatic boycott by most of the world. Foreign Minister Mahmoud Zahar, who has just wrapped up a tour of a number of Arab countries, including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Libya, is about to return home with a suitcase full of promises and little cash.

This after reportedly having $450,000 in cash stolen from his suitcase in Kuwait. Toameh also reports that "Palestinian Authority officials here expressed deep concern over the weekend about reports that al-Qaida was planning to assassinate top PA leaders":

The latest measures were taken after a hitherto unknown group calling itself al-Tawhid and Jihad [Unification and Holy War] distributed leaflets in the Gaza Strip threatening to kill a number of senior officials belonging to [Mahmoud] Abbas's Fatah party.

This is the first time that the group, which is believed to be headed by Jordanian arch-terrorist Abu Musab Zarqawi, has issued a leaflet in Gaza, indicating that al-Qaida elements had begun operating in the area. . .
.

Muwafak Matar, a senior Fatah activist in the Gaza Strip, strongly condemned the threat as an attempt to spark civil war in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. "Why are the Zarqawis of Palestine focusing their efforts on issuing threats to kill Palestinians?" he asked. "Why now and what's their goal?" He
added: "Doesn't the Palestinian citizen have the right to shout, 'Enough is enough' We have reached the red line of tensions and restraint."

Indeed. Imagine if the Palestinian Arabs had shouted that back in 1948, when the U.N. offered them a chance to have their own country.

Heehee!

John "Mutha" Murtha Update.

Great Minds Think Alike

"Murtha Assesses U.S. Army as 'Broken' "--headline, Washington Times, Dec. 2, 2005

"Al-Zawahri Says U.S. 'Broken' in Iraq"--headline, Associated Press, April 29, 2006

(Thanks to Best of the Web Today for the heads up.)

The Theology of the Body: 96. Analogy of Spousal Love Indicates the Radical Character of Grace

In his General Audience of 29 September 1982, the Holy Father continued his catechesis on theology of the body by further examination of the spousal relationship between Christ and His Church in Ephesians 5. Of the various biblical analogies of the mystery of God's love, the marriage analogy most emphasizes God's gift of Himself to His people.


Analogy of Spousal Love Indicates the Radical Character of Grace

The general audience of 29 September took place in St Peter's Square in the presence of a large crowd of pilgrims from various parts of the world. Pope John Paul delivered the following address, following the theme of the last several weeks.


In the Letter to the Ephesians (5:21-33)—as in the prophets of the Old Testament (e.g., in Isaiah)—we find the great analogy of marriage or of the spousal love between Christ and the Church.

What function does this analogy fulfill in regard to the mystery revealed in the old and the new covenants? The answer to this question must be gradual. First of all, the analogy of spousal or conjugal love helps to penetrate the essence of the mystery. It helps to understand it up to a certain point, naturally, in an analogical way. It is obvious that the analogy of earthly human love of the husband for his wife, of human spousal love, cannot provide an adequate and complete understanding of that absolutely transcendent Reality which is the divine mystery, both as hidden for ages in God, and in its historical fulfillment in time, when "Christ so loved the Church and gave himself up for her" (Eph 5:25). The mystery remains transcendent in regard to this analogy as in regard to any other analogy, whereby we seek to express it in human language. At the same time, however, this analogy offers the possibility of a certain cognoscitive penetration into the essence of the mystery.

Realized by Christ

2. The analogy of spousal love permits us to understand in a certain way the mystery which for ages was hidden in God, and which in turn was realized by Christ, as a love proper to a total and irrevocable gift of self on the part of God to man in Christ. It is a question of "man" in the personal and at the same time communitarian dimension. (This communitarian dimension is expressed in the Book of Isaiah and in the prophets as "Israel," and in the Letter to the Ephesians as the "Church"; one could say: the People of God of the old and of the new covenant.) We may add that in both conceptions, in a certain sense the communitarian dimension is placed in the forefront. But it is not to such an extent as completely to hide the personal dimension, which, on the other hand, pertains simply to the essence of conjugal love. In both cases we are dealing rather with a significant "reduction of the community to the person":(1) Israel and the Church are considered as bride-person in relation to the bridegroom-person (Yahweh and Christ). Every concrete "I" should find itself in that biblical "we."

God of the covenant

3. So then, the analogy which we are speaking of permits us to understand in a certain degree the revealed mystery of the living God who is Creator and Redeemer. (And as such he is, at the same time, God of the covenant.) It permits us to understand this mystery in the manner of a spousal love, just as it allows us to understand it also in the manner of a love of "compassion" (according to the text of Isaiah), or in the manner of a "paternal" love (according to the Letter to the Ephesians, especially in the first chapter). The above-mentioned ways of understanding the mystery are also without doubt analogical. The analogy of spousal love contains in itself a characteristic of the mystery, which is not directly emphasized either by the analogy of the love of compassion or by the analogy of paternal love (or by any other analogy used in the Bible to which we would have referred).

Radical and total gift

4. The analogy of spousal love seems to emphasize especially the aspect of the gift of self on the part of God to man, "for ages" chosen in Christ (literally: to "Israel," to the "Church")—a total (or rather radical) and irrevocable gift in its essential character, that is, as a gift. This gift is certainly radical and therefore total. We cannot speak of that totality in a metaphysical sense. Indeed, as a creature man is not capable of receiving the gift of God in the transcendental fullness of his divinity. Such a total gift (uncreated) is shared only by God himself in the triune communion of the Persons. On the contrary, God's gift of himself to man, which the analogy of spousal love speaks of, can only have the form of a participation in the divine nature (cf. 2 Pt 1:4), as theology makes clear with very great precision. Nevertheless, according to this measure, the gift made to man on the part of God in Christ is a total, that is, a radical gift, as the analogy of spousal love indicates. In a certain sense, it is all that God could give of himself to man, considering the limited faculties of man, a creature. In this way, the analogy of spousal love indicates the radical character of grace, of the whole order of created grace.

Sacrament and mystery

5. The foregoing seems to be what can be said in reference to the primary function of our great analogy, which has passed from the writings of the prophets of the Old Testament to the Letter to the Ephesians, where, as has already been noted, it underwent a significant transformation. The analogy of marriage, as a human reality in which spousal love is incarnated, helps to a certain degree and in a certain way to understand the mystery of grace as an eternal reality in God and as a historical fruit of mankind's redemption in Christ. However, we said before that this biblical analogy not only "explains" the mystery. On the other hand the mystery defines and determines the adequate manner of understanding the analogy, and precisely this element, in which the biblical authors see "the image and likeness" of the divine mystery. So then, the comparison of marriage (because of spousal love) to the relationship of Yahweh-Israel in the old covenant and of Christ-Church in the new covenant decides, at the same time, the manner of understanding marriage itself and determines this manner.

6. This is the second function of our great analogy. In the perspective of this function we approach the problem of sacrament and mystery, that is, in the general and fundamental sense, the problem of the sacramentality of marriage. This seems especially justified in the light of the analysis of the Letter to the Ephesians (5:21-33). Indeed, in presenting the relationship of Christ to the Church in the image of the conjugal union of husband and wife, the author of this letter speaks in the most general and at the same time fundamental way. He speaks not only of the fulfillment of the eternal divine mystery, but also of the way in which that mystery is expressed in the visible order, of the way in which it has become visible, and therefore has entered into the sphere of sign.

Visibility of the mystery

7. By the term "sign" we mean here simply the "visibility of the Invisible." The mystery for ages hidden in God—that is, invisible—has become visible first of all in the historical event of Christ. The relationship of Christ to the Church, which is defined in the Letter to the Ephesians as "a great mystery," constitutes the fulfillment and the concretization of the visibility of the mystery itself. The author of the Letter to the Ephesians compares the indissoluble relationship of Christ and the Church to the relationship between husband and wife, that is, to marriage—referring at the same time to the words of Genesis (2:24), which by God's creative act originally instituted marriage—turns our attention to what was already presented—in the context of the mystery of creation—as the "visibility of the Invisible," to the very "origin" of the theological history of man.

It can be said that the visible sign of marriage "in the beginning," inasmuch as it is linked to the visible sign of Christ and of the Church, to the summit of the salvific economy of God, transfers the eternal plan of love into the historical dimension and makes it the foundation of the whole sacramental order. It is a special merit of the author of the Letter to the Ephesians that he brought these two signs together, and made of them one great sign—that is, a great sacrament (sacramentum magnum).

NOTE

1. It is not merely a question of the personification of human society, which constitutes a fairly common phenomenon in world literature, but of a specific "corporate personality" of the Bible, marked by a continual reciprocal relationship of the individual to the group (cf. H. Wheeler Robinson, "The Hebrew Conception of Corporate Personality," BZAW 66 [1936], pp. 49-62; cf. also J. L. McKenzie, "Aspects of Old Testament Thought," The Jerome Biblical Commentary, Vol. 2 [London: 1970], p. 748).

It seems Saddam is really a shy teen with bad acne and self-esteem problems.

NYT: Saddam Hussein, Misunderstood
An article in Foreign Affairs concludes that Saddam Hussein's decision to try to cooperate with U.N. inspectors helped convince the West that he was hiding weapons of mass destruction.

I get mail from soft-headed left-fascists who hate Mexicans and want them to remain slaves forever...

Responding to my brilliant bit of cogitating on the invasion of Mexican criminals washing over our southern border like a lawless tsunami, one anonymous (and clueless) shilpit wee nyaff* dares to vomit forth its hate-the-poor hate speech into my secluded corner of Bloggerdom and subsequently suffers the intellectual beat-down of its sad, pathetic life:


Anonymous (1) said...

the people of mexico come to america in hopes of obtaining a better life (2)..a new beginning. (3) America is the land of opportunities. (4) They come here, and perform strenuous tasks that many americans would prefer not to do. (5) You seem to be a very disgruntled person, (6) before you bash another race(7) ...have a sit down with yourself (8) and re-evaluate yourself. (9) thanks (10) =P


1. You are a coward.

2. This is a meaningless and, in the hands of simpletons like you, dangerous piece of rhetoric. Everyone wants to be rich, famous, sexy, and powerful, too. No one has the right to demand any of these things from anyone else. Nobody has the right to the opportunities this country offers except our citizens and those following the dictates of our laws in the hope of becoming US citizens.

3. That is a lie. They merely want to recreate their third world mess here at our expense. Just listen to their rhetoric. Would one who is looking for a "new beginning" start by breaking the laws of a sovereign nation? Of course not.

4. This is merely obfuscation on your part. See 2 above.

5. This is a lie. Being used to slave wages at home, illegal Mexicans are happy to take jobs at wages below legal minimums. This prevents America's poor, unemployed, unskilled, and young from getting entry level jobs they desperately need to begin their quest for the American dream. This hatred you harbor for America's underprivileged is despicable and elitist. Shame on you. (By the way, your disordered thinking here also condemns Mexicans to jobs with no benefits and sub-standard wages - happily paid by greedy capitalists - while their homeland sinks deeper into corruption and death. Why do you hate Mexicans and Mexico so?)

6. "Disgruntled" doesn't half cover it, princess. I am pissed off. The Repansycans and Democrasses who pretend to rule in our name refuse to enforce our laws. The consequences of this fact alone will be far-reaching and long-lasting.

7. You are a moron. There is no "Mexican race". I cannot believe I have to stoop this low. Try reading a sixth grade social studies textbook if you want to learn about the three races of mankind.

8. WTF??? (This bit of psycho-crapola would only be excused if you happened to be that arch-lamebrain, Dr. Spill.)

9. Ditto.

10. I would tell you you were welcome if I thought there was even the slightest chance of reaching whatever's left of your cold, black heart.

* a misshapen little good-for-nothing

LA's pinko-Mex mayor gets his priorities straight.

Well, well, well...

Roto-Reuters: L.A. mayor picks NFL talks over immigrant boycott
Antonio Villaraigosa, Los Angeles' first Latino mayor in the modern era, will skip huge pro-immigration rallies planned for Monday to meet with pro football officials in Dallas, leaving organizers feeling like "a ship without a captain."

It Takes A Village To Staff A Gestapo Unit Update.

US Senatrix Hitlery Shickelgruber (N-NY) unveils her long-anticipated Puerto Rican anschluss plan.

New York Post: Sen. Clinton Supports Bill Advancing Statehood for Puerto Rico

Another way to help Our Boys and their families.

'Homefront' Initiative to Benefit Military Families Expanding(CNSNews.com) - A web-based network of Ohio businesses that offer discounted services to the families of military personnel is about to attract its 100th participant. Full Story

Antipodeans GET IT.

Extremism Fears Prompt Proposal for Citizenship Test
(CNSNews.com) - At a time of keen debate surrounding immigration in the U.S., the government of Australia may introduce a compulsory test for prospective migrants that would require both a grasp of English and an understanding of commonly held "Australian values." Full Story

How Hollyweird molests your children.

New Movie Called 'Soft Core Eco-Terrorism' for Kids
(CNSNews.com) - A new movie, opening this Friday, features environmentally conscious middle-schoolers sabotaging a construction site, gagging a land developer and taking him hostage to hinder a development project. One reviewer described it as "soft core eco-terrorism" for kids. Full Story

The reviews from the brainwashed are in:

"If it's a really, really good cause and you aren't like really hurting someone, it's sort of like it works out okay," responded 12-year old Alex Kacher, when asked by Cybercast News Service whether he was troubled by the kids' criminal behavior in the movie.

A seven-year-old girl who identified herself as Dillon noted that "it was a fun movie" and said she learned that "it's not good to kill animals."

Rachel Carson, call your office.

From Drudge: Pesticides may affect penis size...

A renowned U.S. scientist who has documented fertility and sex changes -- including decreasing penis size -- due to environmental contamination says he wouldn't apply pesticides on his own lawn.

Delivering a special series of lectures this week at the University of Western Ontario, Louis Guillette has been drawn into London's lawn-care debate during question periods and talk-show interviews.

"The use of these compounds just for cosmetic reasons, just because you don't want to make dandelion wine from your yard or whatever, I think is inappropriate," Guillette, who is associate dean for research at the University of Florida, said in a lecture yesterday at UWO's Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry.

Based on his own scientific investigations, Guillette said there's enough evidence pesticides put children, wildlife and the ecosystem at risk.
"Just because you can go buy them at the local stores doesn't meant that is appropriate use," he said.

HOLY CRAP! Senator Plagiarism agrees with Your Humble Servant! (sort of)

From February 22's genius typing effort:

"I still think they should divvy up the whole shebang into cantons, like the Swiss did. In several hundred years, you might have a civilized nation. "

Roto-Reuters: Sen. Biden: Iraq should be divided into 3 regions
Iraq should be divided into three largely autonomous regions -- Kurd, Sunni Arab and Shiite Arab -- with a weaker central government in Baghdad, Sen. Joseph Biden said on Monday.

OMG!!!!! Millions of Mexican criminals and their left-fascist American stooges have shut down the good ol' US of A!!!!!!

Ha! Had you going there for a minute...

Super Bowl XL Champion Steelers Draft Update.

From the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review:

New Steelers

Round (overall) -- Name, Position, School

1 (25) -- Santonio Holmes, WR, Ohio State
3 (83) -- Anthony Smith, FS, Syracuse
3 (95) -- Willie Reid, WR, Florida State
4 (131) -- Willie Colon, G, Hofstra
4 (133) -- Orien Harris, DT, Miami (Fla.)
5 (164) -- Omar Jacobs, QB, Bowling Green
5 (167) -- Charles Davis, TE, Purdue
6 (201) -- Marvin Philip, C, California
7 (240) -- Cedric Humes, RB, Va. Tech

Prisuta: Steelers fully staffed

Junker: Steelers ace their first round

Steelers draft day 2 summary

Jacobs highlights second day of NFL draft
Bowling Green quarterback Omar Jacobs was the third of the Steelers' six picks Sunday.

Leinart stays in school, loses $10 million
Wow. I hope that ballroom dancing class was worth it.

Everybody is a winner -- or so they say


From Pittsburgh's other newspaper:

Steelers trade talks with Atlanta fizzle as 2006 draft wraps up
The Steelers were exploring a trade for Atlanta running back T. J. Duckett today against the backdrop of their selections in day two of the NFL Draft but no deal was hatched with the Falcons.


Steelers snag Ohio State receiver Holmes in Round 1
Santonio Holmes may not throw the occasional touchdown pass the way Antwaan Randle El did for the Steelers, but his new coaches believe their first-round draft choice should catch more than the wide receiver who left in free agency.

Close Up: Santonio Holmes

Hey, America! In case you forgot, here's how REAL immigrants behave.

WIFR-TV (Rockford, IL): Immigrants Granted Citizenship in Rockford

It's a privilege most of us are born with, but becoming an American citizen was much more difficult for some 233 immigrants. Some lived here in the stateline for decades before they officially became an American at Rock Valley College on Friday.

"I was living on a green card since '91 and then last April I initiated the process," said Kevin Jesmer, a former Canadian citizen.

All of the immigrants sworn in on Friday have been living in the United States legally for at least five years. People who do not have their legal documentation cannot apply for American citizenship.

"Some people entered as refugees and they have green cards upon entry that allow them to work and live in the United States. Others are sponsored immigrants," said Amy Massot with Rock Valley College.

Most of the new citizens came to the United States for the same reason as our ancestors; they believe America is a land of freedom and possibilities.
"It's bigger opportunities here. I can go to school. When I finish school I get a nice job and work," said Vladimir Silchuk, a former citizen of Ukraine.

Some of these immigrants do not think those trying to live here illegally should have the same rights as those who wait for the legal process.
"It's bad for us because we had to do the paperwork, we had to wait. When they just come in illegally and get the same privileges, it's not fair to us," said Silchuk.

The new citizens had to go through a yearlong process of interviews, tests and paperwork. Now they can finally enjoy what so many other foreign citizens are denied., a chance at the American dream.

All the requirements for becoming a U.S. citizen are posted online. To learn more about the process, log onto www.uscis.gov.

Here's more:

San Mateo Daily Journal: Citizenship is more than just an oath

It took Daly City resident Jocelyn Cruz 13 years to make the decision to become a United States citizen but only a few minutes to make that decision official.

On April 20, Cruz and 1,258 other immigrants representing 97 different countries took an oath to become an American citizen at the Masonic Auditorium in San Francisco. The immigrants were asked to stand when their country was named and shortly after 10 a.m. U.S. Rep. Tom Lantos, D-San Mateo, swore them in as citizens of the United States. Some cried, some breathed a sigh of relief — Cruz was just happy she could finally travel with her 15-year-old daughter.

Since 1991, Cruz traveled with a Philippines passport and her daughter traveled with a U.S. passport. They have been required to stand in different lines at airports and go through different procedures. Now Cruz can travel with confidence next to her daughter and she’s free to take international cruises with her friends or husband, an American citizen.

It’s only a piece of paper, but it offers a sense of freedom immigrants don’t realize they’re missing until they spend years living in the United States. After putting down roots in the Unites States, having a family and landing a job, the privileges of citizenship become obvious. Voting and traveling are the most cited reasons people at last month’s ceremony say they wanted to be a citizen.

In 1988, Cruz’s sister legally moved to the Bay Area. Her sister then petitioned for their parents and two younger siblings. Cruz was 18 at the time and did not qualify to come to the United States via a petition. In 1990, she began visiting her family on vacation. During the visits, she met her future husband and decided to stay for good in 1993.

Since then, she said she was too busy working and being a mom to become a citizen, she said.

After making a call to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to become a citizen, immigrants are usually surprised by how easy the process is. Cruz applied in November, was interviewed in April and was signed up to take the April 20 oath.

Johanna Jans, of Pacifica, said she was also surprised at how easy it was to become a citizen and finally be able to vote. After an initial interview, she was signed up for the April 20 oath.

Unlike Cruz, Jans did not bring any family. She was not prepared for what an important event it was.

“I hadn’t fully appreciated what a big event that was, I had no idea,” Jans said. “I felt more impressed by the importance of it. Some people were very emotional.”

Jans moved to the United States 14 years ago after meeting her American husband at a friend’s party while she vacationed here. He met her the next month in Amsterdam and when the two decided to wed, she moved from her native Holland to the United States. She now has a 5-year-old daughter and is a stay-at-home mom.

Mounting frustrations over not being allowed to vote led her to pursue citizenship. Her dreams of being able to vote were met with a line of Democratic, Republican and Green party representatives pushing registration cards on immigrants entering the Masonic Auditorium. They are there every month when citizens are sworn in.

For years, the only proof Jans belonged in this country was the small green card she carried. Before the oath ceremony, Jans was asked to hand over the green card in exchange for her citizenship certificate. After the ceremony, she had to turn in her certificate to have her passport issued.

“It’s all kind of scary. My green card for all these years has been it. It’s my only proof that I live here. You suddenly are sitting there with nothing,” Jans said.

Freedom is scary, madam. Welcome to the real world.

Congratulations. Even if you decide to vote Democrass.

Both women were one of 1,259 people to become citizens in April in Northern California, representing the area from Bakersfield to the Oregon border. About 35,000 people become citizens annually, said Sharon Rummery, spokeswoman for the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

There is an oath held every month in San Francisco with a different keynote speaker. Lantos, April’s speaker, emigrated from Hungary in 1947 on an academic scholarship. He was 16 years old when the Nazis took control of Hungary and forced him into a Hungarian fascist forced labor camp. He is the only Holocaust survivor to serve in Congress.

“When I arrived in New York, I didn’t know a single person and I didn’t have a single penny to my name, but I felt I was on the threshold of becoming a citizen of a unique and extraordinary society,” Lantos said.

Much like Lantos, Cruz said she came to America to “try her luck.” After 15 years, with her husband by her side, a certificate of citizenship in hand and her daughter in her thoughts, Cruz knows one thing for certain.

“It’s been good luck,” she said.

Doesn't anyone see how allowing criminals to bully their way to citizenship by sheer numbers cheapens the achievements of decent, law-abiding , REAL immigrants who love this country more than many of us who were born here?

Muskegon Chronicle: 'Lost Boy' no more; call him an American citizen

Long ago, in what seems like another life, Gabriel Agor knew nothing of freedom and opportunity. He knew only survival.

And he never imagined as he fled the nightmare that was Sudan in 1987 that he might end up where he is today.

"Through almighty God, we make it in a way that we don't even know. We never dreamed that we would be in America," said Agor, 25, a Grand Rapids resident who is proud to call himself a U.S. citizen.

Amen to that, Brother, and congratulations. You are already a better American than many of your fellow citizens.

He is believed to be the first of West Michigan's "Lost Boys" of Sudan to achieve the distinction. Agor was scheduled to be sworn in today in a ceremony at the Gerald R. Ford Museum with dozens of other new citizens.

While it is a remarkable journey, Agor deflected praise for himself. He wanted instead to thank all those who helped since he arrived in December 2000.

"I don't know what to say to the government of America and the people of Grand Rapids. The way they welcome us, it's really wonderful."

There have been other impressive milestones among the estimated 200 Lost Boys who have settled in West Michigan since 2000:

In 2003, David Mayom and Abraham Garang graduated from Grand Rapids Community College.

In May 2005, Simon Majak was first to join the military when he signed up for the Marines. He called it his way of saying "thank you."

No sir. Thank you. And kill some bad guys so Iraqis can be free in their homeland.

In December, Mayom became the first to earn a four-year college degree when he graduated from Western Michigan University.

But Western Michigan University student David Bishow, another Lost Boy, said he believes Agor is the first in this community to gain citizenship.

Under immigration law, refugees are permanent residents when they arrive and are eligible to become citizens after five years.

They are among about 3,700 Sudanese refugees to settle in America, including eight of the Lost Boys who settled in Grand Haven in 2001, sponsored by the First Christian Reformed Church.

Agor said his father and a brother were killed in the war. He has not seen his mother or other siblings since they were separated in 1987. His mother remains in a refugee camp in Kenya, while another brother is in a hospital in Uganda with chronic malaria and his sister is in a hospital in Kenya with diabetes.

From his earnings in his second-shift job at Lacks Industries in Kentwood, Agor managed to scrape together $200 to send them to defray their medical expenses.

"It is not a lot of money in America. But in Africa, it is quite a lot," he said.
Unsure if he will ever see them again, Agor manages to smile and think that the best days are still ahead.

"In America, it means a lot to have citizenship. I am proud to be part of this country."

Maybe we could start some sort of barter program where we would send squishy-soft leftist pinheads to third world cesspools in exchange for decent people who will appreciate the freedom and rule of law the pinheads take for granted.

Steve Howe, Requiescat in pace.

Mr. Howe wasted his considerable pitching talent on drugs. He became a joke on top of the joke that is major league baseball and its drug policy with his seven chances at getting his life straight.

Let us just hope he wasn't stoned when he wrecked his truck.

From the LA Times via the Chicago Tribune:

Steve Howe, a former Dodger relief pitcher whose cocaine and alcohol abuse overshadowed and ultimately tarnished his major league baseball career, was killed early Friday morning when he rolled his pickup truck in an unincorporated area of Riverside County east of Palm Springs. He was 48.

The single-vehicle accident occurred about 5:30 a.m. on westbound Interstate 10, half a mile west of the Cactus City rest area in Coachella, according to an official with the Riverside County coroner and a California Highway Patrol news release.

"For unknown reasons," separate statements released by the agencies said, Howe's pickup truck left the roadway, entered the median and rolled numerous times before coming to rest on its roof.

It was traveling at an estimated 70 mph.

Howe, not wearing his seat belt and partly ejected from the vehicle, was pronounced dead at the scene. He had been in Arizona on business and was on his way home to Valencia, business partner Judy Welp told the Associated Press.

The National League rookie of the year with the Dodgers in 1980, Howe helped the team win the World Series in 1981, was an All-Star in 1982 and later pitched for three other major league clubs, including the New York Yankees.

But the hard-throwing left-hander probably is best remembered for his drug and alcohol abuse, Howe's frequent missteps playing a large part in him falling short of his vast potential and making him a reviled figure among unsympathetic fans. He was suspended seven times for violating baseball's substance-abuse regulations.

Angel Manager Mike Scioscia, a former teammate on the Dodgers, remembered Howe before Friday night's game at Angel Stadium as a fiery competitor who "would blur that line of being cocky and confident and not care. He had that swagger…. "

"Clearly, he was a kid who never reached his potential, but for a short time he did. The feeling of regret, he never expressed, as far as I know."

Also in Anaheim, Manager Ozzie Guillen of the Chicago White Sox said, "Steve was so good, baseball kept him. He got in trouble all the time. That showed you how good he was" that baseball kept reinstating him.

I don't think baseball did him any favors by constantly reinstating him, kiddies.

Howe, after a series of transgressions, was released by the Dodgers in July 1985, in part to satisfy his desire to relocate and make a new start.

"It came down to fight or flight," Howe told a television interviewer at the time. "Certain people in this town had a lack of understanding toward me, and in this situation I chose the flight instead of the fight."

Signed by the Minnesota Twins a little more than a month later, he was still pitching in the major leagues 11 years later despite all his suspensions.

The Yankees, on their way to a World Series championship, released him in June 1996.

A two-time All-Big Ten selection at the University of Michigan, Howe was 47-41 with 91 saves and a 3.03 earned-run average in 12 major league seasons.

He was arrested two days after the Yankees released him when a loaded .357 magnum was detected inside his suitcase at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport. Later pleading guilty to gun possession, he was placed on three years' probation and sentenced to 150 hours of community service.

In 2003, reflecting on his star-crossed major league career, he told the Wichita, Kan., Eagle, "I don't worry about tomorrow and I try not to focus on what happened yesterday because it's gone forever."

In a 1985 interview with the Associated Press, then-Dodger manager Tommy Lasorda expressed frustration in dealing with Howe's drug abuse: "I'd tell him, 'It's against the law and it's harmful to your body.' He'd say to me, 'You're right, you're right.' And then he'd go out and do it."

Lasorda said Friday in a statement released by the Dodgers, "Steve played for me for five years and I thought the world of him. I am truly sorry to hear about his passing and my deepest sympathies go out to his family."

Howe is survived by his wife, Cindy, daughter Chelsi and son Brian, a senior left-handed pitcher at Valencia High School.

Dodger announcer Vin Scully called the news "heartbreaking."

Added Scully before Friday night's game at San Diego: "The thing I remember about Steve Howe was how calm he always was, how low-key he could be in pressure spots. He always seemed detached from the crowd. I assume that's why he was able to be so successful."

Said Dodger broadcaster Rick Monday, a former teammate of Howe's: "He seemed to constantly struggle to figure out how to get his life in order. But no matter how bad things were, Steve always found a ray of sunshine."

May God have mercy on his soul.

Half-assed earthly justice is meted out to the unrepentant (to say the least) killers of Faheem Thomas-Childs.

Here's another great argument for the death penalty.

Philly.com: PROFANITY-SPEWING PAIR GET LIFE FOR KILLING FAHEEM
By THERESA CONROY

Satan must have had fun yesterday.

If that opening shocks you, it shouldn't. If she had written that little Faheem now rests in the arms of God or allah, that would be shocking.

The two men he dispatched to kill 10-year-old Faheem Thomas-Childs during a school-zone drug battle spewed more evil yesterday while being sentenced to life in prison.

"I just want to tell you all, I ain't the one who killed your kid, but you all don't give a f- - - about my life, so I don't give a f- - - about his," defendant Kareem Johnson said, turning his soulless eyes toward Faheem's mother.
When it was his turn to speak, co-defendant Kennell Spady stood in court and spat a jarring list of "f- - - yous": to the prosecutors, the "district," even Faheem's family.

"F- - -ing chump," he added at the end of the nearly unintelligible speech.
The vitriol sparked an outburst among the killers' supporters, who sat behind the defense table. Several young men and women stood during the hearing, yelling out, "Hang tough!" and "They don't know where we live!" They were quickly tossed from the courtroom.

Philly is well known as an intellectual hotbed.

Then it was Common Pleas Judge Jane Greenspan's turn.

She topped Johnson's and Spady's life sentences with an additional 23 ½-47 years.

Amen to that, Sister.

Judge Greenspan has been exemplary throughout this trial and decent people everywhere should let her know they appreciate her efforts.

As the two men were led from the courtroom, Johnson fired one more shot at Faheem's mother.

The defendant, wearing a kufi, a Muslim skullcap, stood, turned his face toward the wounded, grief-stricken eyes of Patricia Arnold, and threatened:
"I'm going to haunt you, mother f- - - - -, until my appeal comes."

Can't somebody charge this goon with terroristic threats or something?

Spectators pulled a collective gasp. The killer, his shoulders swaggering with cockiness, turned and walked off to begin his sentence.

Time to go be somebody's bitch-for-life, tough guys.

It took Johnson 21 years to accumulate that much hate. Spady got there in 22 years.

Sorry. May God have mercy on your souls, boys.

Greenspan, who last month convicted the men of first-degree murder, commented on the incongruity between Johnson's faith - both defendants sport the Muslim mark of prostration on their foreheads - and his chilling behavior.

"Apparently he prays five times a day," Greenspan said of Johnson. "To what God are we talking about here?"

Amen to that, Sister! If Judge Greenspan ever runs for the PA Supreme Court, she has my vote!

Faheem was shot in the head during a gunfight that Spady and Johnson had with the infamous Broaster brothers, in February 2004, outside Peirce Elementary School, at 23rd and Cambria streets. Cassius and Jerome Broaster have not been charged in the crime, but a police investigation is continuing.

The boy's death came to symbolize the depravity of the city's drug trade. The trial came to exemplify the fear of witnesses of violent crimes, said prosecutor Mark Gilson.

A total of six witnesses "went south" during the trial, recanting statements they had made to police incriminating to the defendants. The father of one witness was charged this week for openly instructing his teenage daughter to lie on the stand.

"This case, your Honor, came to represent this phenomenon of witnesses who refused to testify for fear of being labeled snitches," Gilson said.

The truth, he said, no longer sets you free. It gets you killed.

Even though there is not enough justice is this poor old world for Faheem and his family - and good moslems know that as well as good Christians do - at least this next story offers a modicum of hope for the City of Brotherly Death.

Philadelphia Daily News: Dad accused of muzzling Faheem witnesses
Devonso Dawson looked into his daughter's eyes as she prepared to testify as a key witness in the Faheem Thomas-Childs murder trial last month and told her to say nothing.

His daughter followed his advice. Six other witnesses also recanted their statements.

Dawson's brazen move incensed District Attorney Lynne Abraham.

Yesterday, Abraham announced that Dawson had been arrested and charged with a host of felonies, including intimidation of a witness and solicitation to commit perjury. If convicted, Dawson could face 36 years in prison.

I hope Judge Greenspan gets a hold of this knucklehead, but I am sure there are "laws" against that sort of thing.

"We're going to be very aggressive in our prosecution of Mr. Dawson," Abraham said against a backdrop of law-enforcement officials, including Police Commissioner Sylvester Johnson.

Saint of the Day and daily Mass readings.

Today is the Feast of St. Joseph the Worker (also St. Joseph the Betrothed), the earthly spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Pray for us, all you angels and saints.


Today's reading for the Feast of St. Joseph the Worker is Colossians 3:14-15, 17, 23-24.
Today's Responsorial Psalm is Psalms 90:2, 3-4, 12-13, 14, 16.
Today's Gospel reading is Matthew 13:54-58.


[Links to the readings will be from the NAB until I can find another chapter and verse searchable Douay-Rheims Bible on-line.]


Everyday links:

The Blessed Virgin Mary
The Rosary
Our Mother of Perpetual Help
Prayers from EWTN
National Coalition of Clergy and Laity (dedicated to action for a genuine Catholic Restoration)
The Catholic Calendar Page for Today


Just in case you are wondering what exactly Catholics believe, here is

The Apostles Creed

I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of Heaven and earth; and in Jesus Christ, His only Son Our Lord, Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried.He descended into Hell; the third day He rose again from the dead; He ascended into Heaven, and sitteth at the right hand of God, the Father almighty; from thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead.I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body and life everlasting. Amen.


Memorare

Remember, O most gracious Virgin Mary, that never was it known that any one who fled to thy protection, implored thy help or sought thy intercession,was left unaided.Inspired with this confidence, I fly unto thee, O Virgin of virgins my Mother; to thee do I come, before thee I stand, sinful and sorrowful; O Mother of the Word Incarnate, despise not my petitions, but in thy clemency hear and answer me. Amen.


St. Joseph, her most chaste spouse, pray for us.


Prayer to St. Anthony, Martyr of Desire

Dear St. Anthony, you became a Franciscan with the hope of shedding your blood for Christ. In God's plan for you, your thirst for martyrdom was never to be satisfied. St. Anthony, Martyr of Desire, pray that I may become less afraid to stand up and be counted as a follower of the Lord Jesus. Intercede also for my other intentions. (Name them.)


Prayer To Saint Michael The Archangel

St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle, be our defense against the wickedness and snares of the devil; may God rebuke him, we humbly pray, and do thou O Prince of the heavenly hosts, by the divine power, thrust into hell Satan and all the evil spirits who prowl about the world seeking the ruin of souls. Amen.


Prayer to End Abortion

Lord God, I thank You today for the gift of my life, and for the lives of all my brothers and sisters. I know there is nothing that destroys more life than abortion, yet I rejoice that you have conquered death by the resurrection of Your Son. I am ready to do my part to end abortion. Today I commit myself never to be silent, never to be passive, and never to be forgetful of the unborn. I commit myself to be active in the pro-life movement, and never stop defending life until all my brothers and sisters are protected and our nation once again becomes a nation with liberty and justice, not just for some, but for all. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.