Where the Rubber Hits the Road

Can a government force a Church or individual to do something that violates their principles and convictions? Here are two articles that look at the issue in the USA where Obamacare regulations will force Catholic institutions to provide free contraceptive coverage. Irrespective of the specifics of this issue (birth control) which according to most polls Catholics support individually, it does seem to violate the principle of separation of Church and State. What do you think? Catholics cross with Obama over birth-control coverage - Glenn Thrush - POLITICO.com White House denies health-care mandate violates Catholic consciences

Gentle readers,

I imagine that some of you may be sitting back now and saying to yourselves:

“Well OK Martin…so you have blathered on for several posts and you have managed to demonstrate that Brian W. Clowes wrote some propaganda against gay men. Big deal – he was wrong in this ONE single instance, but he is otherwise aligned with my church’s teachings, and he holds a correct biblical interpretation about homosexuality. In any case, Mr. Clowes has a right to free speech - even if that free speech is based on weak arguments. So why should I give a tinker’s hoot about this issue?”

Good point. Mr. Clowes indeed has a right to speak freely – even if that involves making poor arguments. Similarly, I have a right to point out those poor arguments and distortions, and to make counter arguments. But that is not really the end of the story. 

Why?

Firstly, Mr. Clowes produces his anti-gay propaganda in the name of the pro-life movement and in the name of Catholics everywhere. Mr. Clowes’ a...

Gentle readers,

This will be my last examination of Mr. Clowes’ anti-gay claims. It is my last - not because Clowes makes no further anti-gay claims in his article - but because I am bored of wading through this stuff. So far the article has not yielded a single shred of credible evidence against gay men. Nevertheless, let’s press on. Clowes writes:

“A study in the Journal of Sex Research noted that "... the proportion of sex offenders against male children among homosexual men is substantially larger than the proportion of sex offenders against female children among heterosexual men ... the development of pedophilia is more closely linked with homosexuality than with heterosexuality." 

This was taken from a February 1989 study published in the Journal of Sex Research entitled: “Heterosexuality, Homosexuality and Erotic Age Preference” by Kurt Freund et al. 
While the quote is taken from a legitimate peer reviewed journal, the quote is entirely out of context. We have seen...

Gentle readers,

As promised, here is another installment in my examination of Mr. Clowes’ anti-gay claims. The next anti-gay claim is this little gem:

“Another recent study in the Archives of Sexual Behavior found that "... all but 9 of the 48 homosexual men preferred the youngest two male age categories." These age categories were fifteen and twenty years old.”

This was taken from the following study: Zebulon, Z.A. Silverthorne and Vernon L. Quinsey. "Sexual Partner Age Preferences of Homosexual and Heterosexual Men and Women." Archives of Sexual Behavior, February 2000 [Volume 29, Number 1], pages 67-76, p. 73.

First, a bit of context: The study involved 192 subjects (comprised of 4 roughly equivalent groups of gay and straight men and women) who were shown photographs of either male or female faces between the ages of 18 and 60. Participants were then asked to rate their degree of attraction to each face. 

When we read the actual study, guess what we learn? ...

Gentle readers: Examining Mr. Cowles’ article is yielding some interesting results. Let’s take a closer look at another anti-gay claim:

“A recent study published in the Archives of Sexual Behavior found that "The best epidemiological evidence indicates that only 2 - 4% of men attracted to adults prefer men. In contrast, around 25 - 40% of men attracted to children prefer boys. Thus, the rate of homosexual attraction is 6-20 times higher among pedophiles."

This is a quote from:

Ray Blanchard, et al. "Fraternal Birth Order and Sexual Orientation in Pedophiles." Archives of Sexual Behavior, October 2000 [Volume 29, Number 5], pages 463-478, p. 464.

First let me begin by saying that the Archives of Sexual Behavior is a legitimate peer -reviewed journal, and that Dr. Blanchard is a well qualified researcher in his field of study. The quote provided by Mr. Clowes is not really damaging at all to the general population of gay men. 

Why? 

Because it tells us nothing a...

Gentle readers:

One of the reasons why anti-gay propaganda is so powerful is because it is relatively easy to make false claims, but it is much more time-consuming to do the heavy lifting necessary to refute those claims. Case in point – look at how long this series is relative to the brief section in Mr. Clowes’ original article that makes those claims.
 Nevertheless, let’s examine another of Mr. Clowes’ claims to see how well it stands up to critical thinking. He states that:

“Homosexual Alfred Kinsey, the USA's preeminent sexual researcher, found in 1948 that 37 percent of all male homosexuals admitted to having sex with children under 17 years old.”

I find it interesting that Mr. Clowes chooses to cite the work of Alfred Kinsey at all. The religious right often dismisses most of Kinsey’s work, especially his much publicized claim that 10% of the population tends towards a homosexual orientation.

For anyone with even a passing understanding of Kinsey’s work on homosexuals, t...

An interesting companion article to go along with Martin's 'Gentle Reader' Series. Archdiocese criticized for implementing Courage : News Headlines - Catholic Culture

Gentle readers:

Let’s get down to the actual business of examining one of the many anti-gay claims in Mr. Clowes’ article.

The article makes the following statement:

“NAMBLA is by no means on the fringe of the "gay rights" movement. For years, it was a member in good standing of the International Lesbian and Gay Association (ILGA), and was only jettisoned by ILGA when the parent organization applied for United Nations consultative status in 1993.” 

Some context: NAMBLA is the North American Man Boy Love Association, and is a notorious proponent of pedophilia. The ILGA is the International Lesbian and Gay Association, which is member organization belonging to the United Nations. Mr. Clowes is clearly insinuating that pedophile rights are a central part of the larger gay rights movement. 
While Mr. Clowes’ statement is “accurate” as far is it goes, it leaves out some extremely relevant facts in order to create a misleading impression, namely:

“ILGA does not advocate – and ...

Gentle readers:

People who use Mr. Clowes’ article as evidence to support their anti-gay biases sometimes note that the author holds a PhD. Indeed, Mr. Clowes holds a PhD from a reputable US school in Civil Engineering. Some people, however, like to believe that because a PhD wrote the article, it's conclusions somehow have more weight.

Let me bring you in on a little secret. Persons with a PhD are not infallible - especially when they are commenting on science outside of their area of expertise. And even when PhDs are commenting within their field, they can make mistakes. That is why we give the highest credence to articles and studies that are peer reviewed. 
Now I draw your attention to the following points:

 1. Mr. Clowes' anti-gay claims involve social science and behavioural psychology.
 2. Mr. Clowes is neither a social scientist nor a behavioral psychologist. In short, he is a civil engineer commenting outside his area of expertise.
 3. While the article notes the...

Gentle readers:

Many of you may be legitimately wondering what the heck I mean by “propaganda”, and some of you may suspect that I am simply trying to portray people with whom I disagree in a negative light by using this term. You are right to be skeptical, so I need to begin by defining the term “propaganda”. 

First of all propaganda is much more than what we commonly call “persuasion”. A useful definition of propaganda is put forward by Jowett and O’Donnell (Jowett, Garth S., and O’Donnell, Victoria. What is Propaganda and How does it differ from Persuasion?” in Propaganda and Persuasion. p. 4):

“Propaganda is the deliberate and systematic attempt to shape perceptions, manipulate cognitions, and direct behavior to achieve responses that furthers the desired intent of the propagandist.” 

Jowett and O’Donnell also provide us with sub-categories of propaganda:

White Propaganda – this propaganda “…comes from a source that is identified correctly, and the information in the message t...

'What has happened to contemporary atheism? Until a few years ago, atheism resided in a pragmatic space of irreligiousness and indifference, assisted by the modern turn of events which rendered philosophical discourse on the existence of God dogmatically impossible by definition. Today, we are witnessing a double turn. The first involves a return to theoretical atheism, assisted by references to scientific discourse. After the classic seasons of suspect teachers (Marx, Nietzsche, Freud), today it is the turn of neo-darwinism and neuroscience to furnish arguments for the belief that God does not exist. A God whom some authors prefer to write with a lowercase “g”. The second and more interesting change perhaps, is atheism as a new form of morality. In this case too, historical antecedents can be cited. In the modern age, there is Pascal’s debate with erudite libertinism or Sartre’s celebrated pamphlet on atheism as humanism. The new apologetics of atheism privileges the reference to ...

  Fr. Richard Neuhaus (RIP) used the say when asked why he converted from the Lutheran communion to the RC Church that Vatican II finally saw the Catholic Church correct its ways and answer the issues raised by Martin Luther. As he put it, there was no longer any reason to remain separate, so he came home to Rome. Is this the same spirit that seems to be now moving the RC Church towards the 'rehabilitation' of Martin Luther? Is the Catholic Church gradually moving to rehabilitate Martin Luther? - Vatican Insider

Emperor Constine The Journey: Almost Not Catholic: Myth Buster: Constantine Founded the Catholic Church

Working as I do within the beauty of the Ottawa Valley, I see many cars pass by from “la belle province” emblazoned with the phrase “je me souviens” imprinted on each license plate. These words are a testament to the desire of this francophone people to always “remember” the struggles of “la révolution tranquille” (the Quiet Revolution) which transformed the Quebec society into a modern secular state. Under  vigorous new secular leadership, and faced with a wholesale ecclesiastical retreat from public affairs, the francophone population of the past 50 years, seemingly all at once, turned a deaf ear to the voice of the Quebec Church within their culture. They've chosen instead to consider only the siren cry of the  secularist project and modern consumerism. The church's counsel is no longer welcome in the public square. This sudden shift rendered the Catholic Church  both impotent and irrelevant in the minds of the overwhelming majority of the Quebec population. In just on...

Viktor Frankl, M.D. Ph.D, in his seminal work, 'Man's Search for Meaning' shines a light onto the role of human suffering as a path to discover the meaning of anyone's life. He was certainly  qualified to write on the field as he wrote the book soon after being liberated from a WWII German concentration camp. As well as being a Holocaust survivor, he was the founder of logotherapy, which is a form of Existential Analysis, the "Third Viennese School of Psychotherapy". His best-selling book, chronicles his experiences as a concentration camp inmate and describes his psychotherapeutic method of finding meaning in all forms of existence, even the most sordid ones, and thus a reason to continue living. Frankl was one of the key figures in existential therapy and a prominent source of inspiration for humanistic psychologists. He wrote: “If there is a meaning in life at all, then there must be a meaning in suffering. Suffering is an ineradicable part of life, even...

Want to find a reference in the Catholic Church Catechism? Here's the link for you! It is hosted by the Knights of Columbus. Knights of Columbus - Catechism

I always knew that my old friend Fr. RJN was a trend setter. Too bad he didn't live to see these changes in the ecumenical movement he supported bear fruit. The Lutheran Landslide | Blogs | NCRegister.com

The more things change, the more they stay the same! These changes in the English liturgy will bring the text closer to the original Latin, as is evidenced by the fact that it will finally match the French text. As a priest who celebrates in both of Canada's official languages I've often wondered by the two texts were so variant. As of Advent next year, the differences will be gone. Catholics to learn new wording for Mass – CNN Belief Blog - CNN.com Blogs

 “ It is not often that someone at a New York dinner party calls for a count of religious affiliations, and I cannot recall exactly what led to it. But one guest suddenly said he had the impression that many of those present were Catholics. “Can we have a show of hands?” he asked.   Two of us raised our hands. A third person, who once wrote frequently in the Catholic press, said “no longer,” though as a conservative he continued to sympathize with the church. A fourth person, with whom my wife and I have sometimes worshipped on Easter, Christmas, and other occasions, chose not to make any declaration at all. Finally, the man who asked the question avowed that he had been raised Catholic, “and I hate everything about it.” (Peter Steinfels, Commonweal Magazine) I've been to the same dinner party. At least, I've participated in similar conversations in the past few years. They've been exceedingly painful moments, not at all like unlike the crises that assault us in the wak...

Folks have written to me asking why I cross post articles like this one from Maclean's Magazine in Canada. I do so for a few basic reasons. First I do so because it is a significant part of the reality of peoples convictions about the Church in these sordid tales. Each story in itself does not inflict unique or specific damage to the Church (my sad little Diocese being the exception that proves the rule - as this article demonstrates once again), but their accumulation can over time  become  serious and genuine drifts which obstructs us from doing what Christ called us to: making present the Kingdom of God in anticipation of the Lord's coming. As a Canadian, I know that even a few snow flakes can be blown together into a drift which can imprison us until it is cleared away. Right about now, the snow that has been gathered by these evil winds has almost snowed in the voice of faith, locking them into the sanctuaries of Church and individual conscience. I also post these s...