The Synod Report is out in English; LGBTQ agendas are dashed

Did anyone notice?

I never wrote about, nor was I at all concerned about, the Synods Of Bishops On The Family that convened at the Vatican in recent months amidst much hand-wringing and controversy. I was saddened by the number of Catholics who were up in arms and full of anxiety, who followed every news report, interview, and conspiracy theory, wondering what the final result would be.

Why was any faithful Catholic worried? Why do we not trust the Holy Spirit? Jesus Christ is not dead, He is fully alive and the Head of His Church.

Finally, the English translation of the The Final Report of the Synod Of Bishops is out, and it is a steel-strong, unassailable re-statement of the truths of marriage, family, and human sexuality. The report, as the National Catholic Register has noted, has "not only dashed the hopes of those who hoped the Church would jettison its historic and biblical teaching on sexual ethics, it blew them to hell."

For the millionth time, the hopes of the heterodox were raised, and for the millionth time, they have been dashed. When will people understand?

"Gender ideology" is utterly rejected (Section 8, emphases mine):

Today, a very important cultural challenge is posed by “gender” ideology which denies the difference and reciprocity in nature of a man and a woman and envisages a society without gender differences, thereby removing the anthropological foundation of the family. This ideology leads to educational programmes and legislative guidelines which promote a personal identity and emotional intimacy radically separated from the biological difference between male and female. Consequently, human identity becomes the choice of the individual, which can also change over time. According to our faith, the difference between the sexes bears in itself the image and likeness of God (Gen 1:26-27). “This tells us that it is not man alone who is the image of God or woman alone who is the image of God, but man and woman as a couple who are the image of God. [...] We can say that without the mutual enrichment of this relationship — in thought and in action, in affection and in work, as well as in faith — the two cannot even understand the depth of what it means to be man and woman. Modern contemporary culture has opened new spaces, new forms of freedom and new depths in order to enrich the understanding of this difference. But it has also introduced many doubts and much skepticism. [...] The removal of the difference [...] is the problem, not the solution” (Francis, General Audience, 15 April 2015).

Homosexual "marriage" is denounced as a lie (Section 76):

Regarding proposals to place unions of homosexual persons on the same level as marriage, “there are absolutely no grounds for considering homosexual unions to be in any way similar or even remotely analogous to God's plan for marriage and family” [CDF]. In every way, the Synod maintains as completely unacceptable that local Churches be subjected to pressure in this matter and that international bodies link financial aid to poor countries to the introduction of laws to establish “marriage” between people of the same sex.

There was also no mention of admitting the divorced and remarried (without annulment) to Holy Communion, as had been widely rumored. Nothing has changed. Why did anyone think it would?

Every Catholic needs to be at peace with Christ's promises. Our Lord would not have warned us against building our houses on shifting sand if He had not also provided the firm ground on which we are to build. His Church is that unshifting ground, and those who have built upon it have nothing to fear.

When will we learn to trust?

It's important to note that the Synod Report is not primarily concerned with gender ideology and homosexual "marriage" (aside from the rejection of their veracity). There is so much more, so much goodness and beauty and mercy in it, and so much help and hope for families today, rooted in eternal truths and promises, all of which are made for human flourishing. Read it all, here.

I am grateful to Pope Francis for convening the Synod, and I love what he is doing to bring in the lost sheep. He stands for unwavering Truth even as he reaches out in mercy and love to a world that, without Jesus, has no hope.

And did you all know that today is the pope's birthday? Let us each offer up a prayer for the Holy Father's intentions today!

Happy Birthday, Papa!

CNS photo/Paul Haring

My burning question about gender issues

Here's what I don't understand.

I have talked to and debated countless people who assure us that there are no real differences (outside of incidental genitals) between men and women. No difference in essence at all.

They have told us that it absolutely does not matter if a child has a father or not, or whether a child has a mother, because mothers and fathers are completely interchangeable. Mothers and fathers can perform the same functions, we are told. They can cook dinner and make a nice home and they can "love". Gender is meaningless.

They tell us that gender is fluid (unlike one's sex, which is the incidental genitals that I mentioned above), and that any perceived differences are social constructs. To think otherwise, they say, is narrow, bigoted, foolish, archaic.

And yet the same people -- the same people -- tell us that gender differences are so real, so important, so crucial, that people who merely think they are a different gender have a right to surgically mutilate their genitals to get their incidental physical bodies to conform to what they feel in their minds, what they feel is their essence. That to surgically alter their bodies is, quite literally, a matter of life and death, so much so that even prisoners have the right to have taxpayers pay for their gender reassignment surgeries, and small children who are conflicted about their gender vs. genitals need to be put on hormone treatments without delay.

So, which is it? Is one's gender a matter of such essence and import that it means life or death, or is it something so insignificant that mother and father, bride and groom, woman and man are indifferent, meaningless designations that must be ignored or done away with?

Please, I'm sincerely asking: Which is it? And if it can be both, then how?

Quick Takes, including a dramatic home makeover by Danya!

I'm away from the computer for a few days, but yippee for being able to schedule posts in advance!!

1. Okay, this is the best thing ever. A while back, I lamented that my house never looks as pretty as the other blogger ladies' houses. I have always oohed and aahed over the "before" and "after" pictures of their home interiors, while being stuck with no taste and no talent of my own. Well, lucky for me, I have a friend named DANYA!!! Yes, our own dear Danya has done something for me that I could never in a million years do for myself. And she did it out of love. Are you ready for this? Here is a "before" picture of my living room:

What house full of boys would be complete without pink walls?

And now, after Danya and her beautiful daughter worked their magic on a shoestring budget, I have my own "after" pictures! Ta-daaaa!!!

Have to add one more, because Jesus is in it (over there on the left!), overlooking the peace and tranquility of at least one room in this house!

I am relaxing just looking at these pictures.

I mean really? Who else but Danya could make pink walls work? If you think that's amazing, you should see the photos from the baby shower she threw for me a year and a half ago. I thought it was a royal wedding reception!

Now, she is not done yet, as there are still some touches to add. A couple of glowing lamps, and a large, round mirror over the armoire ("rose window" style!).

Bottom line? Danya, you are the bee's knees, sister!

2. Since I am away from the blogging world for a few days, I asked the wonderful Stacy at Accepting Abundance to write a guest post. She was kind enough to accept, and her post on education, a subject she knows well, will run on Monday.

I won't be able to follow the comments, but I thought I'd throw out this interesting story, which sticks in my craw to this day: I was on an internet forum a few years ago (so what if it was a Clay Aiken fan group???), discussing educational choice with a staunch supporter of the NEA and the public school system. She kept talking about money, money, money, as if that were the answer to the problem of educational decline. I told her that my children attended a tiny private Catholic school which was housed in an old public school building, in a bad neighborhood, with no indoor toilets for the kids (the parents were in charge of cleaning the restrooms each week!). There was no library, no auditorium, no sports fields. The kids sat in mismatched desks and never saw a computer in a classroom. And yet, without all the "necessary" bells and whistles, my kids were getting an excellent and complete education, at a cost per student which was thousands less than the state was spending per student in public schools.

Do you know what this lady said to me, after I described the state of our school?

She called me a liar!

Seriously, I could not believe it! I still don't believe it! I politely asked if she were kidding, and she said it again! Oh, my. I know, I'm still bitter. But I knew then that some conversations are just not possible.

3. Speaking of liars, how about that Planned Parenthood? They are at it again, those crazy kids, and they are good! Check it out, here. If only the media would call Cecile Richards out. Ah, a girl can dream. Indiana residents, I hope you are all over this!

4. In the "eclipse of reason" file, from Sweden:

No 'him' or 'her'; preschool fights gender bias

Those poor kids. 

5. Speaking of gender roles as "societal construct", how do the proponents of a gender-neutral world explain the difference between the lesbian culture and the gay male culture? They are very, very, very different cultures. What accounts for that, if (as we have heard on this blog) there is no essential difference between men and women? Of course, most of us realize and expect that gay men would be different from gay women, because (drum roll)... men and women are essentially different. Even when they are gay!

6. I challenge any reader, left or right, to listen to Dennis Prager on the radio for one week. He is Jewish, conservative (grew up very liberal), thoughtful and respectful, and utterly brilliant. I don't agree with everything he says by a long shot, but I am always edified when I hear him discuss matters of religion, politics, philosophy and society. If you like the discussions in the Bubble, you will love his show.

7. Finally, have a wonderful Fourth of July weekend! May God bless America! And speaking of that, check out the amazing, faith-filled lyrics to some of our nation's most patriotic songs, here. I remember learning them in my public elementary school. Do they still do that anymore? If not, remember to teach your kids these national treasures!

Thanks to Jen, who's enjoying her babymoon, for hosting!

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Race, class and gender…less

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When Complicated Life alerted me to the following story, I first felt sick to my stomach:

Parents Keep Child's Gender Secret

Then, I just felt profoundly sad for the children. It is heartbreaking, and I can barely write about it.

However, it did not surprise me that the father of these "genderless" children teaches in a small school "whose lessons are framed by social-justice issues around race, class and gender" (emphasis mine). I've talked extensively about my disdain for the "race, class and gender" paradigm which is the lens through which the secular Left sees the world. I have also heard from readers who do not see any essential difference between men and women, or between motherhood and fatherhood.

Lately, I sometimes feel like Alice down the rabbit hole.

Then, sweet relief! Balm for the soul in the form of a post by Sarah at Sarah's Journal. She takes on the issue of the "genderless" baby better than I ever could. Run, don't walk, to her latest offering, which includes truthful gems like this:

From a Catholic perspective, the body isn't just a shell in which our "true selves" are trapped. Our bodies don't conceal our identities but are in fact an integral part of our unique selves. 

And this:

When a person asks if a baby is a boy or girl, they aren't really asking about details of their genitalia. Instead, they are hinting at a deeper truth: the reality that our bodies, including our sex, are an integral part of our identities as whole, complete human beings and that a person's femininity or masculinity will be expressed in a myriad of ways.

Sarah reminds us that the antidote to the confused, misguided, and even tragic push for a "genderless" society can be found in Blessed John Paul II's seminal work, Man and Woman He Created Them: A Theology of the Body. (Or, for beginners, an easier treatment of TOB, here).

I've spoken before about the need to frame things in terms of ordered vs. disordered. There is nothing ordered about a "genderless child". Please Lord, open our eyes and our hearts to see the truth, goodness, and beauty of Your design for our bodies. 

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