Friday, August 24, 2007

seeking a new church

I read in this story that a retired bishop has gone over to the dark side. He's advocating the same thing that Called to Fraction has been calling for since their inception. And he'll, undoubtedly, be just disappointed as they are when the Vatican "doesn't hear him". In truth, they'll say what they do when people propose radical change: Say thank you very much but NO!!!!

My favorite quote is "I'm looking for a very different church" because, in some sense, he's right. Initially I wanted to respond, "No, you're not. You want us to be one of a host of mainlain Protestant communities." But, since they aren't a church per se because they've disregarded apostolic succession, he's clearly not talking about simply becoming one of them them. Of course, it would make us look and act exactly like a Protestant community and it makes me wonder why these "dissenting Catholic" don't just go and become one of them. What is so threatening about the catholic church that people always want us to act like other Christian bodies?

Tuesday, August 21, 2007

Pius X: pray for us

I was struck by a story that I learned about this saint in his biography. It was apparently, as a child, his father didn't think he could send him to more than two years of schooling. But, when he consulted his pastor and his pastor convinced him to send him to a nearby town, Saint Pius earned enough money while in school to send his brother to school and maintained stellar grades.

It reminded me that there are so many times in history when people who have felt compelled by God to do something but have also felt fear but nonetheless do what God wants will often find that God makes a way for them.

As Jesus said in the gospel of John, "Throw out into the deep."

2 L B: Christianity is not a pithy pop song

  Friends Peace be with you.  As some of you know, the series The Chosen has been released in theaters. Last week, I had the opportunit...