Simply amazing music

Evidence that musical masterpieces are not confined to the dustbins of the past.

When I first heard this piece, the first thing that came to mind was "Johannes Sebastian Bach" - especially his organ works.

Such a great film

The Horror

Misc.

We on our own cannot handle it

Good video from Bishop Barron on the strangeness of the cross.





Making Christianity respectable is not a prerogative, nor a commission.

Always remember that the authorities arrested him, but not before falling on their faces before him. He became sin for us; there was nothing in his countenance that we should regard him. Yet he was completely in charge, the one who went before and led the way.


Aside: I tend to align with the tradition that says that Mother Mary used her veil to protect the modesty of her son after he was stripped. Could be historically otherwise of course.

Why didn't Britain vote to declare independence from Ireland, Scotland, and Wales, before voting to declare independence from the EU?

Then they could fly St. George's Cross from parliament instead of the imperialistic Union Jack.

Then they would have independence.

Then they would be known as England.

Then they would begin again to be Merrie.

You would think "independence" would refer to a country, and not a union of countries, three of which are not sovereign, being bound to Britain (London).

The "U.K." voted for sovereignty when it has three countries within itself that are not sovereign, but are part of Britain, and those countries had different vote results from Britain. So a victory against the European Union, and tough shit to the countries bound by Union to Britain who voted otherwise.

So maybe Britain should vote to declare independence from Ireland, Scotland, and Wales.

Then you wouldn't have the situation in which conservatives say "tough shit" to those countries called Ireland, Scotland, and Wales who have no sovereignty because they are part of the union known as the United Kingdom (Union Jack) and who voted against leaving the EU.

"Exactly, Mr. Stilwell, exactly."

Such a great film

"Come out from among them, and be ye separate."

Is watching Game of Thrones a mortal sin?

From the Catechism of the Catholic Church:

2354  Pornography consists in removing real or simulated sexual acts from the intimacy of the partners, in order to display them deliberately to third parties. It offends against chastity because it perverts the conjugal act, the intimate giving of spouses to each other. It does grave injury to the dignity of its participants (actors, vendors, the public), since each one becomes an object of base pleasure and illicit profit for others. It immerses all who are involved in the illusion of a fantasy world. It is a grave offense. Civil authorities should prevent the production and distribution of pornographic materials.

The pornography of Alessandro Serenelli's time was basically the sort of stuff that sailors would have pinned up beside their bunks. It was a major influence and corruption in his life. He lost his mind to it.

What would he say of the material in Game of Thrones? People call it "soft porn" because it gets compared to the "hardcore" stuff on the internet. Yet Game of Thrones is totally hardcore in comparison to the pornography of Serenelli's time (from what I've read in descriptions about the show).

Isn't it interesting, the relativistic sliding scales we use in order to immediately excuse ourselves?

I was thinking about this because I just read this article at StAR about Game of Thrones.

Seems the majority of Catholic news services,

be they a television network or some blog, are unreliable and untrustworthy - at least when it concerns Pope Francis. Kind of like the mainstream media. The commentators of these Catholic social media sites and networks sow confusion by their impromptu statements.

"Arroyo really should be sued for slander."

Exactly.

Catholic in Brooklyn has a most excellent post on the statements made by Pope Francis concerning marriage. Really, it's amazing to see the difference between what the Holy Father actually said and the cut and paste canards that the news outlets/blogs/apostolates feed their readers, listeners and viewers.

Update: here's another good article.

Such an alright film

"I'm your hucklebearer" -- love that line.

To be self-centered is to incapacitate yourself

An amazing paradox. The more self-centered a person is the more incapable they become of carrying out their own responsibilities. This works conversely: seeing to our own responsibilities and to our own duties carries us out of ourselves, and we become aware and sensitive to others.

The failure to carry out one's own responsibilities is not just a failure; it becomes the way of one's life; it is to live irresponsibly. There is one kind of person who lives irresponsibly: the one who is incapacitated. He may be strong - mentally, physically, and seemingly spiritually, but with regards to the most mundane forms of justice, of doing what ought to be done because it is right, he is a total midget.

The world is full to brimming with such people. They conjure up the most fantastic entitlements to themselves but cannot meet the most simple demands of one's ordinary duties.

To live responsibly is to live. The more responsible that a person becomes, the more duties he has to meet; because the more of life that he meets with. A person becomes "just".

Hence another paradox: duties well performed become a kind of love affair - very different from what we imagine when we think of the word "duty".