The Ark and The Dove

Italian police to form "Satan Squad"

Bad boys, bad boys.  Watcha gonna do when they come for you.  I can't help thinking what a cop show that would make.  "The Italian police are considering the formation of a special squad to help tackle the growing problem of Italian Satanic gangs."

Life of Brain

Exercise the gray matter and render me an opinion.  Is Monty Python's movie Life of Brian a mockery of Christ's life, or is it merely non-malicious (if slightly naughty) humor employing Christological elements?

I have never seen this movie, except for an excerpt - the Latin lesson that the centurion gives Brian (which, if you know Latin, is hilarious).  I have heard both of these opinions from friends whose judgment I respect.  Does anyone know what the deal is?  Not that I'm planning on going and watching it, but the Hoff is showing it for free on campus, apparently, which is why people are talking about it.

Hitler Fatigue

or, The Boy Who Cried Hitler.

I linked to this article earlier, so I hope I'm not overusing it, especially as it is a news-format article evidently meant to slam Dawkins (not that he doesn't deserve it).  But there's another angle on it that I forgot to write about earlier.

When everything that you want to insult is insulted by being compared to Hitler, people get "Hitler fatigue" so that they automatically stop listening when something is compared to Hitler.  The problem is that when something comes along that is actually like Hitler, you can't say it's like Hitler because people are sick to death of Hitler.  Eugenics isn't kind of like what Hitler did, it's exactly what Hitler tried to do.  Before Hitler, everyone who was a little progressive was "open-minded" about eugenics, because after all, don't you want the human race to improve?  But eugenics requires breeding practices contrary to human dignity and the elimination of the unfit.  As long as that was kind of abstract, people glossed over that part.  But Hitler showed us in a most dramatic and gut-wrenching fashion how dreadful eugenics is in real life as opposed to castle-in-the-air fancies about human improvement.

Keep in mind he said the Hitler word first, not me.

Morning Coffee

I don't drink coffee.  Instead I read op-ed's, they get me going better than any amount of caffeine.  It's a system I recommend whole heartedly.  In fact if you want to try it, I'd recommend this editorial from a supposedly Catholic newspaper.  Oh and if you need a place to vent please try our comments section, it can take it.

Prayer for the Pope

V. Oremus pro pontifice nostro Benedicto
R. Dominus conservet eum, et vivificet eum, et beatum faciet eum in terra, et non tradet eum in animam inimicorum eius.

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.

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V. Let us pray for N, 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.

Our Father. Hail Mary.

O God, Shepherd and Ruler of all Thy faithful people, look mercifully upon Thy servant N, 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.

This one is from the Enchiridion of Indulgences and is based on Ps. 43.  Source: Treasury of Latin Prayers.  Here is a prayer composed specially for the occasion by Bishop Lori, the Supreme Chaplain of the Knights (of which I am a member).

Episcopalian news

I don't know if you have been paying any attention to the goings-on in the Episcopalian world.  You may hear/have heard something about this in the newspapers.

First Things coverage. Get Religion coverage.

Btw, this was a sort of a meme that went through the Catholic blog scene a little while ago; it was right after the John Kerry gaffe, so they put up a picture of a big family with a caption "Help us Bishop Schori, we are Catholic" misspelled and scrawled.

Sankt Nikolaus gegen den Weihnachtsmann

Anti-Santa campaign in Germany (Deutsche Welle).

If you see this in English-language newspapers, I expect that it will be reported that there is an anti-Santa movement, but they will probably just report that its backers say that they are against the commercialization of Christmas so that they sound like unreasonable grinches.  The two Catholic organizations behind it see it as a pro-St. Nicholas campaign.  Frankfurter Nicholas Initiative's Bettina Schade says she "doesn't have anything personal against Santa Claus" and likes many of the things about the cultural aspects of how Christmas is celebrated today.  But she would like to see the commercial side toned down and the religious elements emphasized.

In Germany there was never as much of a need to de-Catholic St. Nick as in Puritan-dominated America, and so der Weihnachtsmann has traditionally been much more explicitly religious, clad in red bishop's robes and a miter as he gives out gifts to to children that recall the generosity of St. Nicholas.

Not only is it annoying to religious Germans that the traditional St. Nick is being eroded by a mostly secular pop-culture Santa Claus, but it only puts salt in the wound that it is foreign pop culture - America's modern Santa Claus, you will recall, was shaped chiefly by Thomas Nast, Clement Moore, and Coca-Cola.  They are annoyed that religion and tradition are being "drowned out by Jingle Bells and ho ho ho."

The Protestants have an organization called "Christmas in December" that encourages people to at least wait until December to start Christmas festivities, rather than beginning in November or September.

A time where I was pleased to have my prediction proved wrong

I see the public made OJ Simpson go away and shut up.  Good work.

This is one of those things...

...where if you had predicted it a month ago, I would have laughed at you for suggesting something so absurd. 

Apparently Archbishop Milingo is teaming up with Dan Brown.

Oh, please please Lord don't let the media get ahold of this story and try to milk it.  Or if they do, let their spin backfire so that the Church is seen to be the reasonable one.  Pray for the bishop to come back to the Church.

Pray for Turkey This Thanksgiving

And pray for the Pope, who's visiting the country.