Posts Tagged ‘catholic’

Under the Fedora No Promises for Dodger Stadium, Three Cheers for My Bishop, Duck and Cover, The Price of Cowardice and Paradise Burnt

Posted: August 22, 2023 by datechguy in Blame Biden Administration, catholic, elections, politics, primaries, under the fedora, war
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Apparently Hurricane Hillary caused flooding at Dodger Stadium an excellent reminder that while God promised not to end the world by flood he gave no such assurances for Chavez Ravine.

Might I suggest that LA operate a program to make sure there are at least 10 faithful devout Catholics in the city at all times (Any Biden or Pelosi doesn’t count).

Speaking of Faithful Catholics it’s nice to know I have one for my Bishop:

The Diocese of Worcester, which is about 45 miles west of Boston, announced last week that Bishop Robert McManus earlier this summer approved a policy titled “Catholic Education and the Human Person” for all schools under its jurisdiction starting this fall.

The policy states: “Pope Francis has repeatedly stressed the importance of a proper understanding of our sexuality, warning of the challenge posed by ‘the various forms of an ideology of gender that denies the difference and reciprocity in nature of a man and a woman and envisages a society without sexual differences.’” …

Students under the policy are expected to act according to their biological sex, including in school sports, uniforms and locker rooms.

He’s going to catch hell here in Massachusetts but he’ll help avoid hell both for himself and those under his charge.

Donald Trump has announced that he will not just be skipping one debate but won’t be attending ANY debates with his GOP rivals.

While many say this is a sound decision as he will not be challenged on things like Fauci (which DeSantis et/al will eat him alive on) the problem here is that if he doesn’t absolutely wipe out his opponents fast then any decision to debate later will look like desperation.

Trump has a pretty good record as president and he should be spending every single day comparing the Trump years to the Biden years. I think making that point bluntly on stage with the rest of the GOP candidates on stage is a winner for him.

If even half of what is being said about the Ukrainian war on the Tucker Carlson show is true the disaster that this war is going to produce is horrifying.

This is yet another cost of the stolen election in the US. If this was Trump’s 2nd term Russia would not be in Ukraine today, but then again lots of elites would not have the graft they have made off of this war.

Cowardice in not stopping the steal has incredible costs and will continue to cost more.

It has taken less than a week for the governor of Hawaii to blame the fires in Maui on climate change.

What’s really amazing about this is that compared to Biden words in Maui he sounds sane.

But the craziest thing about it all is that I suspect when November 2024 comes along Hawaii will still vote for the left because they’re rather risk being burned out of house and home than vote for a republican or even worse a conservative.

The Easiest Way for Any Christian To Gain Admission to Hell Without Realizing It…

Posted: August 17, 2023 by datechguy in catholic, Church doctrine
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…is to wish and pray for God’s mercy on themselves while at the same time wishing and praying for God’s justice on others.

Because if you are doing that it means you are forgetting this key line from the Our Father/The Lord’s Prayer.

Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.

I suspect that no line in general prayer is more consistently ignored by those pray it than this is.


It’s [Bracket away Jesus Talking About Hell] week at your Local Catholic Parish

Posted: July 23, 2023 by datechguy in catholic, Church doctrine, culture
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Fr Lou: Hmm. Sadly, movies and TV have filled our heads with images that are largely metaphorical. Not meant to be taken literally. I’m not here to hurt you, Edward. I’m here to help you. To put you at your ease. Make sure you’re comfortable. Personally, I’ve never met a demon. I’ve never been part of an exorcism, nor do I expect to be. Many of the things that bother us are just our own fears and disordered thoughts.

Nefarious (though James): [Suddenly calm] So… You… You don’t consider demonic possession to be a possibility?

Fr Lou: Our understanding has evolved beyond that.

Nefarious: Huh. Well, I appreciate you telling me that. I feel… I feel much better. And, Lou, I was wrong about you. I should’ve had you come and visit sooner.

Fr. Lou: I am glad that we’re all getting along. Would you like me to stay?

Nefarious: No, we’re done.

Nefarious 2023

One of the most basic teachings of the church is that the mass is the mass and the sacraments are the sacraments even if the priest who preforms the mass or delivers the sacraments is a lukewarm, priest or a bad priest or even an unbelieving priest. Thus the mass obligation doesn’t disappear if the priest you have isn’t up to snuff, one just has to be careful to know their catechism so as to accept the sacraments and any should teaching while reject anything contrary to church teaching that might be thrown in.

But sometimes the problem isn’t so much what is preached being contrary but what is not taught at all and the next two weeks are a good measuring stick along those lines:

Today’s Gospel for example is the parable of the sower and the weeds:

Jesus proposed another parable to the crowds, saying:

“The kingdom of heaven may be likened to a man who sowed good seed in his field. While everyone was asleep his enemy came and sowed weeds all through the wheat, and then went off. When the crop grew and bore fruit, the weeds appeared as well. The slaves of the householder came to him and said, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where have the weeds come from?’ He answered, ‘An enemy has done this.’ His slaves said to him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’ He replied, ‘No, if you pull up the weeds you might uproot the wheat along with them. Let them grow together until harvest;
then at harvest time I will say to the harvesters, “First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles for burning; but gather the wheat into my barn.”‘”

Matt 13:24-30

Now that passage above will be read in every catholic parish in the nation, but the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has, for some reason, made the rest of the full Gospel scheduled for this week “optional”:

He proposed another parable to them.

“The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that a person took and sowed in a field. It is the smallest of all the seeds, yet when full-grown it is the largest of plants. It becomes a large bush, and the ‘birds of the sky come and dwell in its branches.'”

He spoke to them another parable.

“The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed with three measures of wheat flour
until the whole batch was leavened.”

All these things Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables. He spoke to them only in parables, to fulfill what had been said through the prophet:


I will open my mouth in parables,
I will announce what has lain hidden from the foundation
of the world.

Then, dismissing the crowds, he went into the house. His disciples approached him and said, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field.” He said in reply,

“He who sows good seed is the Son of Man, the field is the world, the good seed the children of the kingdom. The weeds are the children of the evil one, and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels. Just as weeds are collected and burned up with fire, so will it be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will collect out of his kingdom all who cause others to sin and all evildoers. They will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Whoever has ears ought to hear.”

Matt 13:31-43

What jumps out at you right away in the part of the Gospel that is “optional” is Jesus explicably talking about those who “cause others to sin and evil doers” being thrown into the fiery furnace, in short, Hell.

So the USCCB is giving parishes the option to duck away from a core teaching of the church. Why? Perhaps because it might be off putting to those who sin or cause others to sin (think of all those pro-abort Catholics out there) who might otherwise think twice and want to give pastors the option to skip it.

“But DaTechGuy” you might say, “It’s the middle of summer and it’s a long gospel. If it’s a hot day perhaps a shorter Gospel might be better in a church without AC.” Well one might give that innocent interpretation to such options , that is if next weeks’ Gospel didn’t do the same thing with the following passage from Matthew’s Gospel mandatory on the joys of the kingdom of heaven:

Jesus said to his disciples:

“The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure buried in a field, which a person finds and hides again, and out of joy goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant
searching for fine pearls. When he finds a pearl of great price, he goes and sells all that he has and buys it.”

Matt 13:44-46

And this part about eternal punishment “optional”:

Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net thrown into the sea, which collects fish of every kind. When it is full they haul it ashore and sit down to put what is good into buckets. What is bad they throw away. Thus it will be at the end of the age. The angels will go out and separate the wicked from the righteous and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth. “Do you understand all these things?”

They answered, “Yes.” And he replied,

“Then every scribe who has been instructed in the kingdom of heaven is like the head of a household who brings from his storeroom both the new and the old.”

Matt 13:47-52

Those extra five verses doesn’t make it a very long Gospel, but they again explicitly talk about damnation of the wicked and the USCCB has again made them “optional” in this post Vatican II world.

I’m sure there are many Fr. Lou’s out there who aren’t comfortable reading that Gospel or teaching about it because it challenges the congregation to see themselves in the light of truth and that just won’t do. I guarantee you that those are the parishes that have short or non-existent lines for confession every week because nobody there ever sins and has to worry about hell.

My advice is this: if you find yourself in such a parish, find another if you’re able. If you’re not then go to Mass and take the sacraments where you are but make it a point to read all the bracketed text and find a good solid outlet either online or on radio or TV with solid Catholic teaching to feed your soul.

Whoever has ears let them hear.

Ending Celibacy in the Catholic Church A Solution that Causes Problems and Solves None

Posted: July 13, 2023 by datechguy in catholic, Church doctrine
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Today I noticed this tweet from Church Militant:

The fact is while the motives for those pushing this might not be all that pure I find this issue interesting because unlike Gay Marriage or communion for the divorced this isn’t an issue that involves making mortal sin licit.

Many people forget that the imposition of celibacy on the priesthood was itself a reform to stop inherited parishes being passed down to sons as a family business rather than being about the worship of God, so if this reform was rolled back while it would be a big change from what we’re used to it would not be an assault on the doctrine of the church.

But there is a difference between this change being “licit” and it being wise. Let me give you a few reasons why this would be a rather foolish idea.

  1. Time: If there is one thing that you will notice about your parish priest is that his time is at a premium. Between masses, hospital and nursing home visits, and various duties attending parishioners in need, a priest is very busy particularly give these duties are a 24/7 situation. Add to that the administrative duties and you leave very little time to take care of a wife and family.
  2. Cost: Right now the cost of medical care for retired priests is a significant expense. Consider what costs you would be adding to the church in general and to parishes in particular if you added the cost of insuring a priest, his wife and children.
  3. Housing: Once you are housing a priest his wife and his family you suddenly need bigger accommodations. While this might not be a disaster when you have a rectory that has a single priest when it was built to house several, if you have a parish with multiple priests suddenly housing one or more families becomes a real problem.
  4. Scandal: What do you think will be the situation when a priest and his wife quarrel? Or a priest and his son? What happens when a priest’s son or daughter gets in trouble or if you run into a situation where a wife wants to leave? All of these things not only consume time to try to repair but have the potential for scandal within the church.
  5. Jealousy: Anyone who has been in a parish for any amount of years will notice that there are a group of women who tend to pursue priests some more subtle than others. What do you think will happen when it is suddenly licit for a priest to get married? The pursuit of eligible priests in a parish will be a lot more brazen with results that will generate a lot of difficultly in for a man trying to fulfill his pastoral duties. And can you picture the type of trouble a woman whose advances are rejected by a priest can cause? Does the church really need that?

And of course none of this will solve the problem of predatory priests when you consider that four out of five cases involve homosexual behavior, in fact you might end up with the horrible situation where a priest uses a wife as a “beard” to cover such behavior. And these are just the problems that I’ve come up with today.

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