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Showing posts from January, 2015

The 'Dark Ages'? Were they really so dark? Not according to this video.

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Top Catholics, evangelicals: Gay marriage worse than divorce or cohabitation | Crux

Nine times out of ten, I find myself in agreement with the folks noted or quoted in this article. This article might be that rare time when I don't. I think that as much as I agree that marriage (as seen from a religious perspective) is defined exclusively as a sanctified heterosexual union, does the fact that the State is using the same term in a broader context when it assesses who is eligible for government benefits not really only a semantic argument? Put in fewer words, what does it matter that the State uses the word marriage to mean something different than what Churches do? So long as the Churches are not compelled to accept the State's redefinition as being operational within their walls, is such a lexiconic brouhaha really the end of civilization as we know it? I just don't see it. Click on the link below to read the source article and decide for yourself. Top Catholics, evangelicals: Gay marriage worse than divorce or cohabitation | Crux
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Will You Still Need Me, Will You Still Feed Me, When I’m 64? A Refutation of the Latest Assisted Suicide Bill By: Msgr. Charles Pope

Who knew the Beatles would prove to be so prophetic? What was a whimsical question in the 1960's begins to sound quite different when it's listened to in the context of legislation designed to make legal the termination of someone's life. At least it does for me. h Will You Still Need Me, Will You Still Feed Me, When I’m 64? A Refutation of the Latest Assisted Suicide Bill By: Msgr. Charles Pope
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This is a truth I learned from my nieces and nephews!

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Ontario authorities take action on doctors who deny birth control - The Globe and Mail

When abortions were made legal, everyone was assured that doctors would not be forced to perform them if they had moral objections to the procedure. Now that promise is gone and all physicians in Ontario must agree to perform one if requested. Now we have euthanasia becoming legal in the country (once again starting with Quebec) with a similar 'protection' offered to both doctors and patients. Any bets on how long it will take before this protection of one's morals disappears as it now has done with abortion? I doubt it will take very long at all. Certainly not the 20+ years that it took in the earlier issue. I won't be surprised to see it come to pass within the next decade. Ontario authorities take action on doctors who deny birth control - The Globe and Mail
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German rabbit breeders: Our bunnies are chaste | Crux

It has become (painfully?) clear that one must always read the entire text of one of Pope Francis's impromptu press conferences - and the most recent as he flew home from the Philipines was no different. This time the media glommed on to his remark about responsible parents controlling their fertility and not 'breeding like rabbits'. In response, I offer what I consider to be the perfect rejoinder to this latest brouhaha... a story about rabbit breeders complaining that the Pontiff has maligned the moral status of their stock. It seems the perfect story to highlight the inane response of much of the Western media when it come to understanding what the Pope says in these media scrums. German rabbit breeders: Our bunnies are chaste | Crux
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Pope Francis On Charlie Hebdo: 'You Cannot Insult The Faith Of Others'

Again here is another example of the media getting Pope Francis all wrong.  He said that we 'shouldn't' insult the faith of another. He didn't say that we cannot. Nor did he say that it would be justified to use violence in response if or when one's own faith is insulted, mocked, or derided. But he did say that, just as when one insults another's mother, they shouldn't be surprised if the insult provokes an unexpectedly violent response. Put in a modern aphorism: It might be a surprise, but it shouldn't be a shock if insulting one's faith provoked a punch on the head in return. That doesn't make it right. It simply describes a common human impulse when something or someone, which is near and dear to one's heart is insulted, demeaned, or injured. In all of this, Pope Francis is being very 'Canadian' in his teaching. Civility and respect in the public square have been the hallmark of conduct for those of us of a certain age. Decorum
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Francis struggles to answer crying girl's question about suffering | National Catholic Reporter

The NCR is showing its prejudice by describing Pope Francis's response to this question as a 'struggle'. It's evident that he didn't struggle but, in fact, used who used this simple question to great catechetical advantage. Simply put, he used the suffering in that girl's life to highlight our shared responsibility for them. Imagine, he suggested if we were so moved by compassion for her situation that we eliminated all human injustice from the world, leaving only the natural elements of creation to bring suffering into anyone's life. Imagine how much better life would be not only for that crying child before him, but for all of us as well if we could achieve such an end? In saying this, he challenges the premise of her question that God is the cause of her suffering and pain. By pointing out that it has been our lack of concern, compassion, and commitment that has multiplied her initial injury many times over, he reduces God's responsibility for her c
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Faith is not alone, Scripture is not alone, Grace is not alone. We ought not separate what God has joined. By: Msgr. Charles Pope

"There are a lot of “solos” sung by our Protestant brethren: Sola Fide (saved by faith alone), Sola Scriptura(Scripture alone is the rule of faith), and sola gratia(grace alone). Generally, one ought to be suspicious and careful of claims that things work “alone.” It is our usual experience that many things work together in harmony, that things are interrelated. Very seldom is anyone or anything “alone.” The problem of the “solos” emerges (it seems to me) in our minds, where it is possible to separate things out. But the fact is, just because we can separate something out in our mind does not mean that we can separate it out in reality." Click here to read entire article
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Gay marriage cases to be heard by U.S. Supreme Court in April - World - CBC News

Granted that as a Canadian I am not always au courant on how the States are addressing the issue of same-sex marriage, but I thought that the Supreme Court had already ruled on this issue which was why gay marriages were recognized as legal in most of America's jurisdictions today. Evidently I was mistaken. It seems the issue is not going to be settled until June 2015 when the US Supreme Court is expected to render its definitive judgement on the issue. It's expected that oral arguments will be heard this Spring. It should make for some interesting times ahead south of the border. Gay marriage cases to be heard by U.S. Supreme Court in April - World - CBC News
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When Science is Betrayed – and What Lessons We Should Learn By: Msgr. Charles Pope

There is a great reverence for science in our culture. On the one hand, rightly so. Science has made enormous strides that have changed life as we know it. Profound discoveries have eradicated diseases, improved health, increased the world’s food supply, led to a computer revolution, drawn us higher into outer space and deeper into inner space, revealed hidden mysteries of nature, and produced technologies unimaginable to even our recent ancestors. On the other hand, the reverence of science has tipped perhaps too far in the direction of a religious substitute.Indeed it is arguable that the robes of the priest, once admired and revered, have now been replaced in our culture’s esteem by the lab coat. Many regard the findings of science with an almost blind faith that many (often unfairly) attribute to religious believers. “Scientists say … ” has become a kind of mantra wherein all dissent must stop and a slight bow of the head might also be appropriate. The matter is settled since “sci
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About Paris attacks, Francis says freedom of expression has certain limits | National Catholic Reporter

Pope Francis, reporters, and an airplane.  What could go wrong?  Here's the 1st article I've found that reports on what usually is a 'highlight' of any papal voyage... the impromptu airplane interview.  About Paris attacks, Francis says freedom of expression has certain limits | National Catholic Reporter
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Michael Den Tandt: Luminous new Charlie Hebdo cover cartoon fearlessly defiant — and hopeful | National Post

Michael Den Tandt: Luminous new Charlie Hebdo cover cartoon fearlessly defiant — and hopeful | National Post
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Senators' problems were bigger than Jason Spezza: I know it's a sports story... but as a Sens fan from day one, I wish people would understand the point this article is making.

Senators' problems were bigger than Jason Spezza - Article - TSN
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Boy Trapped In Coma For 12 Years Has Nothing But His Thoughts, Finally Awakens As A Man To Tell The Story

“I hope you die,” are words whispered into his ear by his own desperate mother. She thinks she is sitting with a shell of her former son, just a body without any feelings, thoughts, or hope. However, what this mother didn’t know was that her son heard every word, his mind was alive and fully functioning, he simply couldn’t get his body to function. The boy was trapped inside his own body, fully awake in thought but unable to communicate. If this child was a citizen of Quebec in 2015, his mother could have had her wish and he would have been euthanized since the doctors proclaimed him to be in a permanent vegetative state.  Good thing for him that he didn't live here! Boy Trapped In Coma For 12 Years Has Nothing But His Thoughts, Finally Awakens As A Man To Tell The Story
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