…because the college kids have been home for a couple of weeks and we have ten people in this house! Crazy times, fun times, but it leaves me much less time to blog. I have to be succinct. Here goes.
1) Two of my favorite men. Different races, different cultures, different dimensions (one long dead), both princes of the Church, both smart as whips, both sharing the same faith that transcends all time and space. Man, I love being Catholic!!
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| If your eyes are old like mine, it says: "I am not amused by your amateur theology", ha ha! |
2) Okay, so aside from the 47 other things that are just-so-wrong and depraved about this story itself and the existence of the website in the first place (which promotes bowl-a-thons to fund human abortions), does anyone notice something glaringly, obviously missing from this atrocious, heartbreaking piece about a 14-year-old girl?
I'm not going to mention what it is. I want to see if anyone else notices.
3) I find myself asking (even shouting) the following question out loud lately:
WHERE HAVE ALL THE GROWN-UPS GONE???
4) Saw this a few days back, from the brilliant Robert P. George, of Princeton, whose common sense, logic, and straight talk is so refreshing:
At a forum at Princeton a few evenings back, I predicted --- it hardly took much prescience --- that the race between Obama and Romney would be brutal and nasty. I see that the Obama supporters have already taken the gloves off. The consistently and strongly liberal Washington Post is running a story today reporting that 47 years ago, while at prep school, the adolescent Mitt Romney tackled another boy whose long hair and hairstyle he didn't like, and cut off some of his hair. 47 years ago. That would be 1965. Gosh, how can we get a sense of just when that was? Hmmm . . . Let's think. Well, it was after the Kennedy assassination and before Barack Obama used cocaine. Yes, it was definitely before Obama used cocaine. I mean, Obama was only four years old in 1965, so he couldn't yet have used cocaine. No, he only used cocaine later. Of course, the President doesn't use cocaine now. He hasn't used cocaine for a long time. Well, it's true that it has been less than 47 years since he used cocaine. So, I suppose if it's OK to bring up bad conduct that occurred 47 years ago, then it's perfectly OK to bring up bad conduct that happened less than 47 years ago, right? Or should both sides observe a rule against bringing up bad conduct from decades (and even half-centuries) ago that tells us nothing about what the candidates are like as people today? Obviously, the answer to that last question is yes. But the point of this comment, for anybody who hasn't gotten it already, is that there must be --- we must insist on --- a single standard to be applied to both campaigns and their supporters. Double standards are simply intolerable. What's fair for one side is fair for the other. What's foul for one side must be treated as foul for the other.We all get that, right? Please say we do.
5) Had a son's kindergarten graduation on Wednesday night, a son's eighth grade graduation last night, and a bunch of year-end activities for everyone these past couple of weeks. May is a busy month! It is also Mary's month, and a time for countless worldwide May Crownings of Our Blessed Mother:
I am fairly certain I had never seen a May Crowning or procession in the first 27 years of my life as a Catholic. So grateful it's a yearly occurrence in my own children's lives!
6) I'm reviving the…
… with the following quote from LJP to Johanne (who, as a non-Catholic, finds the rules of Catholicism confusing):
Johanne,
I'd like to second Leila's appreciation for your answer. I understand where you are coming from...it can be confusing to see all the Tradition, Liturgy, dogma, etc.. and try to make sense of it all individually. I think this may be a case of missing the forest for the trees. If you are truly interested in coming to a better understanding of the Church, may I suggest a different route?
Let's say you are interested in learning about baseball; you know nothing about it but you do know several people who are quite passionate about the game. Would you want to start by reading up on the infield-fly rule, defensive strategy, or what factors are involved in determining batting lineups? Of course not! You would start by going to a few games, just enjoying the stadium, the roar of the crowd, the hot dogs, the beauty of the game itself. Are the rules of the game complex? Absolutely. Can a child enjoy and appreciate the play of the game without understanding the rules? Absolutely.
Think of Catholicism in the same way. If you are truly interested, look at the great Cathedrals, look at the abundance of art, music, philosophy, and science that has been created and forwarded by the Church faithful. Go to a Mass and just watch.
Would you judge the legacy, foundations, and beauty of the sport of baseball solely upon a reading of the Mitchell Report (report on the investigation into the use of steroids in the MLB)? No, you would read stories of the the greatest players, the greatest games, the greatest stadiums.
Read a biography of a saint. Visit a Cathedral. Find a local monastery and spend an afternoon there.
I would suggest taking a look at Fr. Robert Barron's website, wordonfire.org. He has many, many interesting videos that explain many aspects of the faith. He's the one who puts forth the baseball analogy I used earlier (although much more profoundly than I did).
Start by seeking the Beautiful. This will lead you to the Good. Eventually you'll end up at the Truth. Then you can dive into all the rules you want.
Just thought I would share that.
I'm so glad he did!
7) Finally, orphan stuff. I've decided that Quick Takes #7 will always be about orphan stuff. You can always skip #7 if you'd like, but I hope you will read this post from my other blog before you do. There is so much hope, and when you read this story, you will understand the happy side of all this!
See? So simple to feel better about things, and even get excited!
Oh, and look at Stella:
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| Mommy and Daddy, are you out there? |
Yes, I believe that each #7 is going to feature the photo of a waiting child from now on, too. :)
One last thing: Malcolm is still waiting in that darned orphanage, but the rusty wheels of bureaucracy are slowly moving ahead, and the Smiths hope to have him home by the end of the year. They hope to take their first flight to his country before he is sent to the adult mental institution (transfer apparently scheduled for September, sigh), so that he will be "held" at the baby house instead. The family is so close to being fully funded, but we are still trying to close that gap. Kara has put together an online silent auction (too fun!) for Malcolm and the Smiths. You can go look at the great items here (or search "Bidding Malcolm Home" on facebook) and start anticipating! The bidding begins on Saturday, June 2, and I think there could be a feeding frenzy on some of those items. :)
I lied. There is still one more thing. The iPad giveaway to bring Ava home to America -- to be reunited with her orphanage crib-mate and be real sisters at last! -- is now running, here. My son just donated (he really wants
Have a great weekend everyone, and thanks to Jen for hosting!
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