As shrewd as snakes and innocent as doves...

Some Great Expectations from Fr Brian Cavanaugh, TOR at the Franciscan University of Stubenville regarding Catholic participating in the political process.

This means that Catholic leaders in today's society must properly equip themselves to learn all the necessary skills to be competent in the arena of public affairs, i.e., rhetoric, debate, economics, civility and law, to name just a few. As well, they are to be enlightened through the teachings of Christian doctrine and faith. Simply put, Catholic leaders are to become competent and capable with all the tools necessary to perform their tasks in a qualified manner.

Jesus, likewise, prepares his disciples for the trials of ministry when he tells them, "I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves" ( Matthew 10:16 [NIV])[10].

You've got to admire that advice. To "be as shrewd as" means you need to recognize all the skills and the wiles involved in the public arena; yet, enlightened with faith and Christian doctrine, you need to remain civil and calm in the discourse of public affairs.

Thank you, Father! Most especially for that last line. That's just a snippet of his long article complete with a lot of references. Check it out when you have the chance here

Instead of Obama bashing maybe we should give publicity to this blog

The great story of Baby Faith

My name is Myah. I'm 23 years old and a single mom to a very special little girl.

When I was 19 weeks pregnant, I was told that my baby had no brain. This condition is known as "anencephaly." I was told that my baby was only alive because she was attached to me, but that she couldn't survive on her own. The doctor said that I could continue the pregnancy safely, but that my baby would die shortly after being born. Or I could choose to terminate the pregnancy then, which would mean being induced at 20 weeks and letting my baby die without ever seeing or holding her (I don't even want to know what they do with babies in this case). Well, to some people this would be a difficult decision, but it wasn't for me. I knew there was nothing to gain by terminating the pregnancy and I already loved my daughter more than anyone else in the world. Even if she was unconscious like the doctors said and lived for only a few seconds or minutes --even if she was stillborn --it was worth it to me. And so we began our journey...

Today, as I type this, Faith is 20 days old. Apart from a sterile dressing on her head that needs to be changed once a day, Faith lives a completely normal life. She isn't suffering or sickly, like you would expect. With no tubes and no machines supporting her life, she continues to thrive. She seems to function at the same level as any "normal" baby. In fact, she may be a little more advanced for her age. How many babies smile before they are born, start cooeing at one day old, and can sit up by 5 days old?

(Editor's note: The Baby actually has a brain but is missing a rather large part of the forebrain--regardless this is amazing.)

Read more of this woman's amazing journey here

An additional personal note: While I'm in favor of President Obama speaking at Notre Dame -- mostly because I think having him come there might actually influence his position on abortion and might actually help Catholics begin to put their money where their mouth is on approaching a holistic solution to the problem -- there's something about my own experience that comes to the fore when I discuss abortion.

My mother was 41 when she had me in February 1970. Throughout the summer of Love 1969 when she first learned that she was pregnant with me, she was advised to abort. Her age being a major factor in the doctor's decision. She flatly refused saying much like the mother of baby Faith that there was nothing to gain by aborting and that if I were to die that I would simply die naturally. This came after my mother had struggled to get pregnant for the first four years of her marriage until my sister was born and then tried again for the next 16 years unsuccessfully conceiving and living through 2 miscarriages. A nurse even said to her "How old are you? Well, you'll be back for an abortion." Needless to say, my mother was both insulted and angered by her comment and by the doctor's recommendation.

They told my mother that my brain would be deformed, that at best, I'd be mentally handicapped and that even if she carried me to term, I'd probably not live. I'm not sure what science textbooks they were looking at but we know now that women in their 40s have babies all the time.

My gutsy mom, now 81, told me that for years she used to see that doctor all the time and she'd always tell him about me. She'd exclaim in her Irish passive aggressive way that "You see that kid over there? That's the baby that you said would be brain damaged. That's the baby that you wanted me to abort. By the way, he's an honor student!" She would send him copies of my picture and my report cards for years. If the guy was still alive I'm sure he'd have a copy of Googling God by now. He'd probably get an entire box.

Now that's faith and that's witness. She lived her life in an authentic way and then did what she could to influence the doctor later on. She always did it with some kindness and was never angry when she spoke to him, but she still got her point across very effectively.

I don't know if her words had much influence on her doctor, but I do know that one of his patients said he was kind to her during a difficult pregnancy and never once suggested an abortion. So I'd like to think that she had some effect. Even if she didn't she certainly has had an effect on my family.

Thanks Mom, simply for having me--for ignoring the fact that you would be living uncomfortably and in a lot of uncertainty that could have brought you a lot of emotional pain. Thanks too for showing me how to live authentically and moreover, how to influence others in a very effective way.

What do you think of this style of Eucharistic Prayer?

I find it very inviting and wish that more priests would think about doing this. Makes the ritual seem so much more beautiful. Even a chanted Eucharistic prayer seems to be more prayerful to me.

What thinkest thou?

So Father, Why Can't We Get Married Outside?

The latest Princess and the Priest from Busted Halo. I particularly like the running commentary.



My thoughts are similar but also I'd like to add a practical matter and a theological/liturgical one. If everyone got married in several outdoor locations, priests or deacons would have to run all over the place to do weddings. With the priest shortage as it is, there's no way this could happen in any kind of situation short of buying them a helicopter.

Look churches are beautiful and the ceremony is only as good as you make it by your participation. My wife and I planned a good deal of the liturgy ourselves and people still talk about it. The bride and the groom, theologically speaking are the presiders at a Catholic Wedding ceremony, not the priest, who merely acts as a witness. The mass is presided by the priest of course but the rite of marriage is really the couple's celebration of sacrament.

Speaking of marriage, I'm off to celebrate my 7th anniversary.

Dolan Wears Rusty's Number

Archbishop Dolan showed up at Citi Field signing autographs and earlier visited the West Bronx Community Center in Highbridge working with Catholic Charities and the Rusty Staub Foundation in giving our free meals.

I thought with that relationship between the Archdiocese and Staub's foundation that perhaps Staub, a former Met and a Catholic, might have asked if Dolan could wear his old number. But coincidence of coincidences Dolan is the 10th Archbishop of NY.

I'd like to get this jersey and wear it to the Cathedral!

What Else Can Susan Boyle Sing?

Turns out she sings "Cry Me a River" as well:

Pope's Gift to Prince Charles...Or Not?

This in today with hat tips to The Times of London and Catholic News Service

Upon Prince Charles' visit to the Vatican the Times of London reported the Pope was going to issue a luxury facsimile of the 1530 appeal by English peers to Pope Clement VII asking for the annulment of Henry VIII’s marriage to Catherine of Aragon. This seems somewhat cheeky (as the Brits would say) since Charles is married to divorcee Camilia Bowles.

One problem: The Vatican says it's not true.

Could it be the Vatican is getting fed up with inaccurate reporting?

The Times story said that when Prince Charles comes to the Vatican next week, Pope Benedict planned to present him with ”a gift that may strike an unwelcome chord”: a facsimile of the 1530 appeal by English peers to Pope Clement VII asking for the annulment of Henry VIII’s marriage to Catherine of Aragon.

As everyone knows, Pope Clement refused that appeal, King Henry married his mistress anyway and renounced Roman Catholicism, establishing the Church of England.

As the Times put it, the pope’s gift appeared to be either “an unfortunate accident or a piece of mischievous theater.” That was no doubt enough to set people off at the Vatican.

One part of the story did appear to be true: The Italian company Scrinium is in fact producing a limited-edition facsimile of the famous letter of Henry VIII, in collaboration with the Vatican Secret Archives, which holds the document in its underground vaults.

This is getting ridiculous. Are media outlets taking advantage of the obvious weakness of the Vatican press office by trying to put out plausible but untrue stories and turning Vatican News into a sideshow? Fr Federico Lombardi, SJ (pictured above) must be going insane today.

Obama's Seder

Somehow this escaped me:



While the first seder at the White House is certainly something to behold not everybody was happy about it. From the Jewish Journal:

It turns out that while President Obama becoming the first U.S. president to host and attend a White House Seder was seen as a nice gesture by some of his supporters, others were miffed. Why? Because they weren’t invited and their delicate egos couldn’t bear the slight.

The Times reported:

“Apparently Jewish [residents] here and in neighboring states are now calling wondering why they have not been invited,“ one staffer wrote, asking to take the event off the public schedule. The White House, which kept the dinner on the schedule because it had been announced, would not say who had sought invitations.

First Lady Michelle Obama’s Jewish cousin, Rabbi Capers Funnye of Chicago, thought that though Seders are traditionally held in the spirit of inclusiveness, it might be a bit much to host all those seeking to celebrate at the White House.

“I would hope that there would be a sense of understanding that . . . also, Seder is about family,“ said Funnye, a convert to Judaism, who was not at the White House. “I think you would certainly have to limit it. . . . You want to be inclusive, but you also want to be prudent in being inclusive as well.“

What was he supposed to do? Have the seder at The Kennedy Center or something?

Columbine:10 Years later

In Googling God (my book) I attest that Columbine is a seminal moment in the life of the Millennial Generation, that their world has been marked by many tragedies all mounting on one another leading them to see the world as precarious. Religiously speaking, they look for security within religion's ranks, especially because when you couple this precariousness with the rise in technology you get a world where many different sources compete for the attention of the younger generation and therefore trust also becomes a major issue.

"Who or what can I trust?" is a major question for this generation. Contrasting that with Generation X's wonder of who will be there for them at all and we find a bunch of cynical people who wonder if religion seems to make any sense altogether. The younger millennials seem less willing to search for these truths, but also adhere strongly to something that makes sense to them that they are able to find quickly. Long term however, some initial commitments also make lack staying power. People who follow Catholicism strongly at this juncture are likely to eschew it for something that may fit their lifestyle better down the road when that life changes into family or marriage responsibilities or when deeper questions of faith go unanswered by their religious mentors or even their tradition as a whole. There seems to be little room for ambiguity amongst the young.

For the older Generation Xers, faith is more relational. How do I see myself and others in faith traditions? Where is our belief helping us form community, virtual or otherwise. As a member of Gen X I can say, we crave community so much that we settle for new ways of trying to produce its effects (See, facebook, social networks). We long for trusted sources too, but are more willing to listen to all-comers and then discern for ourselves what is is that God is trying to tell us within it all?

Columbine and 9-11 and the myriad of tragedies that followed revealed even more:

Millennials ran to churches and intellectual approaches to see where God exist. What have certain structures said about God because they've taken the time to look at it--time Millennials don't have time for. More critically, Gen Xers don't trust the institution but instead look for what the tradition itself forms--what cohorts come together to try to make sense of things and to explore questions of deeper meaning as well as provide support for one another in it all.

But as the world grows more precarious, I pray that we remember the lessons of Columbine. That the pressure that students are under is often immense and we need to continue to be active in their lives asking questions and staying informed about who they are developing into. They want your help, they need it and moreover they seek it.

On the Virgin Birth...100 words (give or take) ..our new BustedHalo feature

Here's our new BustedHalo feature which explain different elements of Catholic teaching--like a glossary of sorts in our Googling God section which is scheduled for an upcoming facelift in about a week or so.

Catholics believe that Mary, the mother of Jesus, became pregnant not through a sexual encounter with a man, but by the power of the Holy Spirit. Joseph was betrothed to a woman who was pregnant and he knew he was not the father. He was troubled. God spoke to Joseph in a dream telling him, “that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.” (Matthew 1:20)

Many people, when they encounter this piece of Catholic tradition, have doubts that it could happen. Some even point to other pagan gods being born of virgins and suggest the possibility that Catholicism borrowed from these legends — especially since there is no mention of Mary’s virginity in Mark’s Gospel, the oldest of the four gospels.

Read the rest of the answer here and look for much more to come.

Bono: U2 Need to Ask Where Your Soul Is

Bono wrote a compelling piece in the NY Times yesterday

I come to lowly church halls and lofty cathedrals for what purpose? I search the Scriptures to what end? To check my head? My heart? No, my soul. For me these meditations are like a plumb line dropped by a master builder — to see if the walls are straight or crooked. I check my emotional life with music, my intellectual life with writing, but religion is where I soul-search.

The preacher said, “What good does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses his soul?” Hearing this, every one of the pilgrims gathered in the room asked, “Is it me, Lord?” In America, in Europe, people are asking, “Is it us?”

He seems to also point out that much charity comes not from religious people but rather from spiritually agnostic people. Which causes me to reflect on whether we as religious people are really committed to all that we say we believe... especially when others who don't believe in much of anything, or at least anything with some structure or a tangible kind of God that's not some amorphous, unknowable being.

A big question remains in this Easter season: Do we really believe in the resurrection or is there really no good news at all? If we believe than it's about time that we start acting like it and start taking better care of one another.

Doubt, Marriage and the Passing Years

We had a great time last night celebrating the birthday of BustedHalo's development coordinator, Brittany Janis in downtown Manhattan. On Monday, my wife, Marion and I celebrate 7 years of marriage. So blogging has been light with all the festivities.

Still some reflections:

Statistics show that if you can be married for seven years that you're likely to stay married (the dreaded 7 year itch--which Lou Costello once said he had and scratched real fast and got rid of it in three and a half years!). So it looks like we did it. I tell Marion that she's stuck with me now. She seems OK with that possibility so I guess I'm still amusing enough to stick around.

As years pass I'm reminded in today's gospel of Doubting Thomas that we do not know what will come after us--but in marriage we have faith that we will go through it together. Living in that hope is sometimes difficult and only intimacy--touching the deep wounds that we all have helps us believe. I need to be in touch with what wounds Marion has undoubtedly, but I also need to believe that she will continue to be there for me despite her wounds and my own--and know more importantly that even despite the wounds that I all too often create and even re-open for her, Marion remains my wife, forgiving me and calling me into a deeper love relationship.

The Gospel calls us to believe without seeing. As we celebrate birthdays, anniversaries and other great moments in our lives we also need to have faith to believe that God can see us through anything, that there is really nothing to fear and that doubting only reminds us that we are not tied enough to the woundedness that we all share and calls us to be back in touch with those and believe once again.

You Just Might be Canadian

And while we're at it: The Molson Joe Canadian Commericals never got old:



Nor did the I Am Canadian Song:


And William Shatner tops it off with this piece of hysterics (is says for mature audiences but it's very mild IMO):


Can you tell my mother's father was Canadian?

More on Susan Boyle

This got twittered to me:

From the fine Catholic News outlet in Minneapolis: The Catholic Spirit

According to British media, she has learning disabilities as a result of being starved of oxygen at birth. She is unemployed and, as a churchgoing Catholic, her social life revolves around her family and her parish of Our Lady of Lourdes. She also enjoys karaoke in her local pub.

Father Clark said, "When she gets up to sing it can either be wonderful or you can get the unpredictable eccentric behavior, but it is to do with the fact that she has learning difficulties.

"In a sense, there is a beautiful voice trapped in this damaged body," he said. "It is an absolute contrast. There she was on television acting very peculiarly and the audience was expecting peculiar things to happen and then a voice of an angel comes out -- and that's Susan."

Father Clark said that local people who knew Boyle, the youngest of nine children of a family descended from Irish migrants, were "enormously proud of her and wish her the best but they are aware of the risks she is running," adding that her behavior has previously drawn cruel taunts from children.

"People are slightly worried about what might happen after this bout of fame," he explained.

"I am quite worried for her," he added. "I think it's great at one level. It might just be the thing that will make her, but she is a very vulnerable person and it could be quite difficult.

"It is a great opportunity for her and as far as I am concerned she should make the best of it, and if it lasts, it lasts, and if it doesn't, then it's still more than almost any one of us will ever achieve," he added. "It is important in sustaining her and making sure this is all a very, very beneficial experience."

Boyle indeed has that bit of eccentricity in her. It may indeed be tough for her to deal with fame and prestige or for her to handle a salty barb from Simon or Piers. But it seems to me that she has plenty of people around her to keep her in check. I can't wait for her next performance which is supposedly going to be Andrew Lloyd Webber's "Whistle Down the Wind" which is from the disastrous show Whistle Down the Wind that was so bad they once called it "Whistle Down the Drain."

Hopefully, that's not an omen for Susan Boyle.

Richardson at the Vatican: Successful Dialogue at Work

New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson, a pro-choice Democrat who recently ended the death penalty in his state with help from his local Archbishop Michael Sheehan met with Pope Benedict today as I reported yesterday. Rocco has the report:

Richardson, a former candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination, led a state delegation to Rome for the evening lighting ceremony, which was sponsored by the Community of Sant'Egidio, a lay Catholic group whose activities include a world-wide campaign against capital punishment.

Earlier in the day, Richardson attended Benedict's weekly public audience in St. Peter's Square, where he was seated in the front row of spectators, along with Sheehan.

Following the audience, Sheehan introduced the governor to the pope, saying "Holy Father, this is our governor and he just repealed the death penalty," to which the pope "nodded very happily in agreement," the archbishop later told reporters.

Perhaps the folks at Notre Dame can take a lesson from Archbishop Sheehan who is one of the finest men I've ever had the pleasure to meet with and know. We need to work with people, to influence them charitably. Maybe even to wear them down a bit. Governor Richardson said this was a tough decision for him to make but still, he was able to do this with the Archbishop working with him to save the lives of prisoners who have the right to live and to inform the state that they don't have the right to play God.

What if we all looked for openings of influence like this? Would our elected officials give us more of a benefit of the doubt when we bring them an issue that we disagree on? Would they listen to us more because they've had a good experience of working alongside us despite our disagreements at times?

If the folks at Notre Dame were smart they'd ask President Obama to outlaw the death penalty and to work with them on it to bring that to fruition. That's something that has a better chance of happening and maybe if it does move us a stride forward we can then work together on seeing where we can go further in uniting on the abortion question.

But my sense is that those in the Cardinal Newman Society will point out that Capital Punishment isn't as bad as abortion and will say that it's not an objective evil and the church even allows it in certain situations. Ingrained in their own limited Republican agenda, they fail to see that in a country such as ours there is no compelling reason for us to execute anyone. We have the means to protect society from those who do evil and instead many state governments opt for a cheaper solution and resort to vengeance. Let me be clear, I don't favor abortion and think we should do all we can to end abortion in this country (and in the world for that matter), but we also need to do this strategically in order to succeed. And right now, yelling nasty words at politicians doesn't seem like a good strategy to me.

I'm just sayin'.

A final point: if anyone should see the madness in capital punishment it's Christians. After all, that's how Jesus died.

Just when you thought we had problems

In Mexico, the leader of a devotion (for lack of a better word) to something called "St. Death" has called for a "holy war" against the Catholic Church in Mexico.

Catholic News Agency has stunning pictures of these--I'll use the word "nuts."



Oh brother! What's next?

Vatican Ambassador Possibilities

After getting several Facebook messages and emails from people asking me what I thought about Caroline Kennedy being rejected as a choice for Vatican Ambassador.

For the record, she was not rejected at all. No names were floated or rejected according to the Vatican.

However, in today's Washington Post, Eric Gorski does indeed float some possibilities and the inside track to how these decisions would be made.

One frequently mentioned name is Douglas Kmiec (pictured,right), a former dean of the Catholic University of America law school and Reagan administration lawyer who broke Republican ranks and endorsed Obama. Kmiec, who has a long record of opposing abortion, was lambasted by conservative Catholics and denied Communion by one priest.

Asked whether the administration had contacted him about the ambassadorship, Kmiec declined to comment.

Another possible candidate is Nicholas Cafardi, a professor at Duquesne University law school and the school's former dean. Cafardi, who once considered the priesthood, is a canon lawyer and speaks Italian.

He was an original member and former chairman of the National Review Board, a panel of lay people formed by U.S. bishops in 2002 to help oversee the response to the clergy sex abuse crisis.
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Cafardi opposes abortion rights and endorsed Obama. While not as visible as Kmiec, Cafardi did resign last year from the board of trustees at the Franciscan University of Steubenville, a conservative Catholic school in Ohio, to head off any conflict over his support for Obama.

Cafardi told The Associated Press on Thursday that the administration has not asked his advice about the post or offered it to him. He said he would be honored to be considered.

Read the whole article here

A hat tip to David Gibson for pointing us in the right direction.

With reference to Kmiec, Catholic News Agency says he's got no shot.

Death Becomes Them

This is today's article on BustedHalo which I have to say was one of the more intriguing reflections on the Incorruptible Saints that I've seen in ages.

One evening last month, while surfing YouTube, I stumbled across a five-part slideshow on the incorrupt bodies of saints. Having once been a soul mate to television’s ghoulish Wednesday Addams, I launched “Part One,” expecting to get halfway through before my maturing tastes demanded I resume searching for the clip where Triumph, the Insult Comic Dog, humiliates the geeks at the Star Wars premier.

To my surprise, the spectacle held me in thrall. In every dead face, sanctity intersected with human nature in some unique and memorable way. St. Jean-Marie Vianney’s fine features hinted at a painful sensitivity. With her mouth half open, St. Veronica Giuliani looked as though she were savoring one of her ecstatic visions. The puppy fat on the face of the child Beata Imelda Lambertini spoke of youthful good health and a life unexpectedly cut short.

But some of the other holy cadavers looked distinctively, well, cadaverous. With skin the color and texture of fine leather and both nose and lips gone, St. Virginia Centurione Bracelli looked like any of the mummies I’d seen in the British Museum. Seated upright, her face and hands blackened, St. Catherine of Bologna looked as though she’d paid a terrible price for nodding off with a lighted cigarette.

The rest is a must read--so check it out here

America the Beautiful

Congrats to America Magazine, the Jesuits fine weekly Catholic magazine which celebrates 100 years today. Three of my favorite people Maurice Timothy Reidy, Fr. Jim McDermott, SJ and Fr. Jim Martin, SJ are editors there and have done a wonderful job in bringing the magazine into the new Millennium.

Ad Multo Annos!

How Were You Raised Religiously?

I missed this article in the NY Times last week by Judith Warner, a virtual religious mutt who was raised Jewish, but also attended an Episcopal school and sang in their choir.

Having a very abstract sense of faith – or religion, or God, or whatever you want to call it – works perfectly for me. According to Newsweek this week, having such a “post-modern” form of faith is becoming increasingly common among many other Americans as well.

But how do you pass that on to children? Can children apprehend religion or spirituality or even uplift in such a nontraditional way?

My children’s school is ultra-self-consciously secular. They’ve never even learned the words to “Kumbaya.”

My girls prepare the Jewish holidays with my mother, much as I did. But they do not drive, as I did, out to Brooklyn on the second night of Passover, for a non-seder dinner with my father’s relatives, my grandmother at the head of the table, matzo balls mysteriously designated for particular people. (“Monogrammed,” my father once mumbled.)

That world is gone – dead or dispersed.

My mother, like my father before her, when he was alive, performs our seders very quickly, skipping pages peremptorily, reciting the prayers almost ironically. I think it started as a rebellion against the interminable-seeming seders of her – and his – youth. (My Gourmet-reading friend’s mother says hers, in Hebrew, were incomprehensible.) Now it’s a habit. Instinctual, almost.

Read her whole article here. Does she reflect your experience? I think she reflects much of what happened to a lot of Gen-Xers whose parents rebelled against their religious upbringing or perhaps were simply apathetic to it. Often there's no axe to grind, but rather a simple indifference to formal religion in favor of an amorphous sense of God and an ecumenical spirit of "spiritual tinkering" that Robert Wuthnow the great Princeton sociologist considers to be the norm today with regards to religious practice.

I say similar things in Googling God but I'd really like to know what your religious experience has been. So pass this post around and comment on it and share your thoughts. I'll even comment on my own experience in the comments section as well.

What if Susan Boyle Couldn't Sing?

CBS has this interview with Susan Boyle:


Watch CBS Videos Online

And from the Huffington Post, a better question asked by writer Dennis Palumbo: What if Susan Boyle couldn't sing?

What would the judges and the audience have thought, and said, had her voice been a creaky rasp, or an out-of-tune shriek? Would she still possess that "inner beauty?" Would we still acknowledge that the derisive treatment she received before performing was callous, insensitive and cruel?

The unspoken message of this whole episode is that, since Susan Boyle has a wonderful talent, we were wrong to judge her based on her looks and demeanor. Meaning what? That if she couldn't sing so well, we were correct to judge her on that basis? That demeaning someone whose looks don't match our impossible, media-reinforced standards of beauty is perfectly okay, unless some mitigating circumstance makes us re-think our opinion?

Personally, I'm gratified that her voice inspires so many, and reminds us of our tendency to judge and criticize based on shallow externals of beauty. What I mean is, I'm glad for her.

But I have no doubt that, had she performed poorly, Simon Cowell would be rolling his eyes still. And the audience would have hooted and booed with the relish of Roman spectators at the Colosseum. And that Susan Boyle's appearance on the show would still be on YouTube, but as an object of derision and ridicule.

Indeed. Someone I know had the audacity to accuse her of lipsynching. I even found myself asking if she could sing anything else. Another friend said that if she wants to win the whole thing they'll have to "clean her up a bit." The world is still a tough audience even after a spectacular performance. And what of the dozens of people who take their turn on the stage and make complete fools of themselves? The issue at hand is not their foolishness but rather their desperation to be noticed. We crave that as humans and some go to unreasonable lengths to get it.

Society does indeed place people in the categories of being "cool" or "uncool" and Susan's dowdy matronly demeanor qualifies her only to the latter status even with her amazing voice and not despite it. It's almost as if we are saying that she's better sing well because she's got nothing else going for her.

Truth be told, Susan had the deep love in her heart that cared for her sick mother for years and has tons of friends at her local pub where her voice often sang karaoke--when she wasn't lulling her mother to sleep with it. Her obvious kindness and friendship seems to surpass most people's. Her mother's death even seemed to throw her into a depression which stilled her voice for some time, but also has now propelled her into stardom.

These are indeed the people that Jesus warns the Pharisees about. He was careful to remind them that while they were people of the law that they had also forgot about the people who society had cast to the sidelines. The poor, the ignored, the lepers and those who had betrayed them like the hated tax collectors were all victims of derision. If Susan Boyle had been part of this society would Jesus have shamed the Pharisees by having her intone just one note?

The point that we need to see is not that Susan is wonderful because she sings, but that Susan is wonderful because she is Susan. She is one of us--a child of God in all her frump and dowdiness. Her voice betrays that to be sure--but our lesson is that we should've seen her worth long before her song.

My Pastor the TV Star

Yesterday Msgr. Michael Hardiman, the pastor of my parish, St Sebastian's in Woodside launched his TV career, sitting in with Jim Watkins and Mary Murphy on Channel 11's coverage of Archbishop Dolan's installation here in NY.

The good pastor is also a blogger and had this to say after the experience:

One question Jim asked me off air and then on as well was "What do you think the reaction of a man is when he receives that phone call from the Nuncio, a great sense of accomplishment and recognition, the way a man feels when he is elected CEO?" I said, no from having spoken with more than one bishop, the man feels completely humbled. And I'm sure that was true of Archbishop Dolan today as well.

Agreed. Most of the Bishop's I know say similar things and even the Pope mentioned that "it was obvious that the guillotine was going to fall on me" during the Papal election.

A similar analogy: Most U.S. Senators can easily see themselves being President of the United States. However, most priests have a hard time imagining themselves as a Bishop and many have an even more difficult time thinking about the idea of them ascending to the Papacy. That being said, there are certainly social climbers in the priesthood, to be sure, but many of them and certainly the best of them don't think they deserve all the accolades that go along with being a Bishop.

Congrats to Msgr. Hardiman on this TV gig and read more of his blog here

Porn Industry Uses College Campus Promotions

From the folks at Spero Forum

College students across the U.S. have been watching porn. More specifically, they have been watching hard-core porn in campus lecture halls, assembly rooms and theaters…with universities’ approval.

Free on-campus screenings of the pornographic film Pirates II: Stagnetti's Revenge, the most expensive hard-core porn film ever made, have been taking place at various colleges and universities across the nation. The distributor of the film, Digital Playground, recently began offering screenings to student unions, and universities have been showing the movie for “entertainment and educational purposes.”

At first I didn't believe this story and didn't think it made sense--even from a business standpoint. In an age where the porn industry more than any other industry has been able to use the internet to market their product anonymously and make tons of money doing it--why would they do this more traditional marketing approach?

But then Michael Leahy cleared things up in the same Spero News Article:

Michael’s new book also focuses on the minds of college students although in a different way. Porn University revolves around the results of an online sex survey taken by more than 26,000 college and university students over the past three years. Leahy analyzes the findings and offers eye-opening insights into the sexual behaviors, beliefs and attitudes of today’s college student.

"The findings discussed in my book show pretty clearly why the porn industry loves catering to a younger college audience, especially since most university administrations don't have the backbone to resist popular pro-porn sentiment that exists on most university campuses in the U.S.,” Leahy says. “This is yet another reason why we need to start thinking seriously about putting a new kind of 'warning label' on the industry and their products. The negative impact viewing porn can have on how we view ourselves and act toward others in relationships is undeniable."

Leahy's book is #23 on the Amazon rankings. Looks interesting. Still, since porn is so widely available on the net--and since it widens the arousal template so much because of that medium, I wonder if their goal here is to make porn more um, palatable to a mainstream audience. Is the attempt here to start to gain a more widespread acceptance of pornography as a genre in mainstream culture?

Stranger things have happened.

Gov. Patterson doesn't let Dolan's seat get cold

Introduces gay marriage bill:

“What we have is not a crisis of issues; we have a crisis of leadership,” Paterson said. “We’re going to fill that vacuum today. I’m introducing a bill to bring marriage equality to the state of New York.”

Mayor Michael Bloomberg stood by Paterson’s side during the announcement to demonstrate his support for the bill.

“When it comes to recognizing civil rights, New York state has always been a leader,” Bloomberg said, citing the fight for women’s suffrage, immigration rights and equal rights for African Americans. “Keeping with that proud history, I agree with the governor that New York should be the next state to allow same-sex marriages.”

It won't be an easy road, however. Just yesterday, newly installed Archbishop Timothy Dolan pledged to fight Paterson's bill for gay marriage in the state. Dolan made his intentions clear at his first press conference when asked about the issue.

"The topic you raise -- other topics that are controversial, that the church has a message to give -- yeah, you'll find that I do'nt shy away from those things and I wouldn't sidestep them," Dolan said.

Indeed these two along with Mayor Bloomberg will make interesting sparring partners and it looks like the new Archbishop will do so in a charitable way that remains dedicated to church teaching.

Highlights from Archbishop Dolan's Homily

One of the things I loved about Archbishop Dolan's homily was his great sense of NY's history. He mentioned many Catholic New Yorkers and how proud he was of their contributions. Such as:

St. Isaac Joques, Venerable Felix Varela, Issac Hecker (YAY! The Paulist's founder!), Fighting Father Duffy, Fulton J. Sheen, Richard John Neuhaus, Avery Dulles, Elizabeth Ann Seton, Francis Xavier Cabrini, and Michael Judge.

Pierre Toussaint, Dorothy Day, and Governor Al Smith were also mentioned as outstanding lay Catholics.

He even went into the political realm when he mentioned "Mayor Ed Koch’s observation that the Catholic Church is the glue that keeps this city together."

Indeed. Not lost on me was the two bursts of applause--including a standing ovation--when the Archbishop mentioned the protection of the unborn in his homily. He compared the church to a "big momma bear" who will always protect her cubs. A nice image and a true one. The standing ovation that followed was interesting and had to be an uncomfortable moment for the politicians who simply sat on their hands throughout the thunderous ovation--which I thought was bad taste on their part. They could clap for the church's commitment to her principles, something to be respected even by those on the other side of the aisle.

Rocco has all the highlights of the day's events and he has excellent commentary on WNBC 4 TV yesterday along with my main man, Fr Joseph O'Hare, SJ - former President of Fordham.

Installed! Works great so far!

They hooked him up and threw the switch and indeed Archbishop Timothy Dolan does not look like he'll have to go back to the factory for repairs!

It was about as perfect an installation as one can get. Verizon Fios doesn't even do that good a job.

But don't take my word for it. Look for yourself when you have a few hours free to spend and enjoy.

Now here's what we call dialogue...

By a good Bishop, Santa Fe's Archbishop Michael Sheehan...

David Gibson has the story at Pontifications

The pro-choice Democratic--and Catholic--New Mexico governor is going to Rome next week with his archbishop, Michael Sheehan, to a special lighting ceremony at the Colosseum in honor of the state's decision to repeal the death penatly. The effort was a long slog, and one the Catholic bishops helped push it over the top.

According to this story, Richardson and the delegation will also be part of the general audience with Pope Benedict XVI. No mention of an honorary degree, however.

Archbishop Sheehan was the episcopal moderator for the National Catholic Young Adult Ministry Association and was always generous with his time and relished a good argument. He'd always listen charitably to people--on both sides even when they disagreed with him and was always faithful to the teachings of the church.

A parishioner once asked him: "Are you a liberal bishop or a conservative bishop?"

His response was brilliant: "A bird needs a right wing and a left wing in order to fly!"

Which I hope one day means he'll have both wings of a Cardinal at some point.

Obama and Notre Dame Insanity Continues

The lack of journalistic integrity in headlines at the Cardinal Newman Society is astounding. Their headline reads:

Notre Dame President refuses dialogue with students on Obama invitation.

But a quick perusal of their own stupid press release shows that this is hardly true.

The leaders of ND Response, a broad coalition of Notre Dame student groups founded to express the “deepest opposition” to the invitation to President Obama to speak at commencement, informed The Cardinal Newman Society that they wrote a letter to Father Jenkins confirming their interest in discussing concerns with him. The students expressed hesitancy at accepting the limited closed-door meeting which was at first suggested by Father Jenkins. They instead proposed to allow all student members of ND Response to attend.

Perhaps the headline should be:

Pro-lifers blow chance to influence University President because of their own arrogance. Although admittedly that's a bit long--albeit more accurate.

It's a simple algorithm. When people have disagreements they argue (in the best sense of that word) together about it. They do so with charity and civility.

The unborn are not being served by the arrogance of people who would rather host a side-show in which they can gang up on a University President, than to have an actual civil discussion of the issues.

Here's the main story: If these people can't even get a meeting with Notre Dame's President because he views them as either extremists, or at minimum uncharitable and unable to have a half-way decent discussion, then what shot do they have in gaining the ear of the President of the United States or for that matter, with anyone who disagrees with them?

My second point on this:
Would they be making similar objections to a pro-choice republican? Patrick Reilly the proported head of the Cardinal Newman Society sheepishly admitted that George W. Bush also shouldn't be invited to Notre Dame not that long ago--and then clammed up when he was invited to a lesser known Catholic institution as Joe Feuerhard pointed out in NCR:

In 2005 I pointed out to Reilly that should Bush be invited to speak at a Catholic campus, the Society would be compelled to outrage. “Bush, you see, supports embryonic stem cell research, though his policies limit it to existing stem cell lines,” I wrote. “That’s a position directly counter to church teaching.

“Similarly, despite his anti-abortion record, the president supports exceptions for abortion in cases of rape, incest or where the life of the mother is threatened. That alone should be enough to draw the wrath of the Virginia-based group ... ’”

Responded Reilly: “Certainly if his position is opposed to the church on those issues (stem cell research and abortion exceptions),” he would be treated “just like anyone else.”

That, I concluded, was “more than a little hard to believe.”

Two years later, Bush was invited by his old friend and former adviser Jim Towey, president of St. Vincent College in Pennsylvania, to give the commencement address at the small Catholic school.

Not a peep from Reilly – a silence that says more about Reilly and company than all the “outrages” and “scandals” he manufactures and exploits.

Bottom line: Mudslinging is not a gospel value. Learn how to come to the table with love and charity and maybe then you have a chance to influence decisions.

Until then...you're just another guy at the end of the bar.

Attention College Students

My colleague Nora Bradbury Haehl is writing a book in collaboration with Busted Halo on adjusting to college life. She needs your help:

That is why we’re asking our readers who are still in college or recently graduated (in 2007 or 2008) to offer us their wisdom via our Freshman Survival Guide Survey, so we can pass it along to incoming freshmen. Your advice will be a resource for new college students and will help smooth the transition from life at home to life on campus for thousands of college freshmen across the country. If you wish, your results will remain completely anonymous. If you would like to participate further in the research for this book, you will have the opportunity to share your contact information at the end of the survey. All respondents giving contact information by our deadline (3 a.m. EDT, May 1, 2009) will be entered in a random drawing for a $100 Amazon Gift Card (one entry per person, all contact info must be verifiable).

Go here to take the survey: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=UhzPn71MBYc_2fKGq_2fitoFMQ_3d_3d

Thanks


http://www.bustedhalo.com/features/take-survey-make-book-win-prize/

The Jerky Priest

Archbishop Dolan: Knock Three Times on The Cathedral If You Want Us

Archbishop Dolan - Always Leave Them Laughing

I watched the Solemn Vespers service last night, my favorite part being the expression on the new Archbishop's face when he knocked on the door with a hammer. He looked as if to say, "If anyone else did this the cops would have them arrested." He seems to be having fun in these early days.

My friend Dave added this comment on my facebook wall yesterday:

Sadly, sitting in a chair isn't much of a spectator sport, nor is gazing at a papal autograph from 300 feet away... perhaps if they made it more interesting - blindfolded him and turned him around a few times first, with the congregation calling out "hot" or "cold"... or if he had to choose the right chair from among several ones (a la indiana & the grail...).

Hysterical. Even more hysterical was when Archbishop Dolan who is always is self-deprecating about his weight said: "Thanks for opening the doors wide enough for me to get in."

Looking back in history, I remember John Cardinal O'Connor's installation mass well. I was in 8th grade and we got the day off from school. Later in the year I attended his first youth mass (Surprisingly, our teacher asked if anyone wanted to go and only 3 hands went up! Mine being one of them--hey it was an afternoon away from class and we got to go to the Cathedral).

What I remember most about O'C's installation were his words at the end of mass. He simply looked out at the congregation after the final blessing with outstretched arms and said:

"For better or for worse...this is what ya got!"

Perhaps NY's new top prelate will have a new one-liner today?

You can hear all the action on Sirius XM today. Get a temporary account on Sirius.com

Photo Credit: NY Daily News

Daily Inspiration: In the Breaking of the Bread

The Emmaus Retreat Program meant a lot to me in college and this song is very touching.

Maybe it was because he suggested that she was going to hell?

From AP:

Mel Gibson's wife of 28 years filed for divorce Monday, citing irreconcilable differences.

Robyn Gibson filed the petition, which offers no details of the breakup, in Los Angeles Superior Court.

The couple have seven children, but only one under 18. Robyn Gibson has requested joint custody of their son who turns 10 on Tuesday.

Details of how the couple's assets will be divided were not spelled out in the court filings. Robyn Gibson is seeking jewelry and earnings and assets she accrued after the couple separated, and a share of the money and assets Gibson, 53, has earned during his nearly three decades as a Hollywood hitmaker.

She wants the actor-director to pay spousal support and her attorney's fees.

The Gibsons released a joint statement Monday, seeking privacy.

"Throughout our marriage and separation we have always strived to maintain the privacy and integrity of our family and will continue to do so," the statement read.

Never good to see a marriage break up. But I found this unseemly interview awhile back:

Gibson was interviewed by the Herald Sun in Australia, and the reporter asked the star if Protestants are denied eternal salvation. “There is no salvation for those outside the Church,” Gibson replied. “I believe it.”

He elaborated: “Put it this way. My wife is a saint. She’s a much better person than I am. Honestly. She’s, like, Episcopalian, Church of England. She prays, she believes in God, she knows Jesus, she believes in that stuff. And it’s just not fair if she doesn’t make it, she’s better than I am. But that is a pronouncement from the chair. I go with it.”

Yikes. So she's a saint but she's going to hell?

Someone needs a theology lesson.

And apparently a good lawyer. Rumors of possible infidelity on Gibson's part have surfaced on a few gossip sites.

Opening Day at Citi Field

Blogging was light yesterday because I attended the Mets Home Opener. Also the first "real" game at Citi Field.

Here are some pictures from Opening Day at Citi Field. Thanks to my pal Steve Nadel for offering me the ticket.



The Scoreboard Says It All




Tom Seaver and Mike Piazza head in for the ceremonial first pitch



It's Your Pitch, Tom Seaver!



My friend Steve Nadel and I who offered me the seat at the game.



My favorite of all the pics: Citi Field at Night.

The Mets lost but they also lost their first game at Shea and their first game in 1969.

Vote Googling God for Best Religion Blog

Let the Campaign Begin! The Blogger Awards have started!

Cardinal Egan's Swan Song

As Milwaukee Archbishop Timothy Dolan hads to the big apple to take the reigns of Gotham's Archdiocesan seat, NYers bade farewell to the man who NYers never really fell in love with but who did a lot of hidden work that went unseen.

Edward Cardinal Egan inherited a nightmare of a financial disaster at the land of 1011 (1011 First Avenue is the address of the Archdiocesan Offices). While Cardinal John O'Connor was clearly a statesman and a pastor for NYC, he was hardly a financier. 20 million in hock, Egan was sent in to clean it up with promises of retiring to a nice spot in Rome somewhere--a place where he seems much more comfortable than in the Metropolitan area.

Egan was no-nonsense in restructuring things and doing so admid the sex abuse scandal and a political climate that made him look like a villain when he closed a school or a parish. During the sex scandal his own mistakes in the Diocese of Bridgeport haunted the papers and even had some question the cardinal's own sexuality.

His biggest mistake was leaving NY after 9-11 for some meetings and not being as visible as he could as NY's pastoral leader during the time of crisis. "O'Connor would've grabbed a shovel with rescue workers and stayed there all day if he needed to." a colleague once remarked. He may have been right--but that was not Cardinal Egan's style.

He lacked the simple grace and lunchpail attitude of his predecessor, but at the same time he had vision that enabled him to see the long sure future for an Archdiocese that needed to get its house in order. In short, Egan did what he was asked to do.

While his voice often sounded aristocratic when preaching it did not when speaking with him personally, which made me think that he often tried too hard in creating a public persona. An old colleague at the newspapers told me he came into the newsroom one day lit up a cigar and started talking and had the whole place in stitches. One on one Egan could indeed be charming--in crowds he seemed aloof and nervous--a tough spot for a public cleric.

One thing that has gone quite unnoticed by nearly everyone...Cardinal Egan started The Catholic Channel on Sirus-XM Radio. In an age when many clerics are lambasting technology, Egan embraced it and what's more was open to listening to professionals in the business tell him how the station should sound and he stayed committed to not making a radio version of EWTN but to employ a more colloquial style, using a lot of humor and fun as opposed to sappy or overtly pious programming. Egan should get some of the credit for being an early adopter here.

Archbishop Dolan will inherit a sound house that indeed will be a fitting tribute to his predecessor. Although Dolan appears to be more of a pastor who can motivate his priests, Egan never claimed that role--and for that matter neither did the Holy Father when he assigned him to NY. He was here pure and simple to be an administrator. And while his public persona was not well-liked, NY does owe a debt of gratitude to the Cardinal for what he has done.

I pray today that he may indeed enjoy his retirement. While his health is not good, perhaps the pressure of the job wore him out and taking it easy in the coming years will add back a few rolls of the odometer?

A small dig: I always thought his preaching voice sounded a bit like Kermit the Frog. You be the judge:



But as Kermit would tell you it's not easy being green...and it's even harder to be red. Thanks, your eminence and blessings on your retirement.

Today's inspiration: Britain's Got Talent

A hat tip to The Anchoress for pointing us here:

Susan Boyle as the Anchoress duly noted seems a bit eccentric but then again, aren't well all? She then does something simply unbelievable and stuns the entire panel. Something you've never seen before for sure! And it will stay with you all week.

There's no embed on this video from Britain's Got Talent
but it's a must-see.

Bo Knows the White House

The new "first dog" has been picked --a Portuguese Water Dog named Bo who was a gift from friends of Senator Kennedy.

My own Dog Haze Hayes has the scoop and some advice for the new Obama dog here

He's kinda cute but not half as cool as a chihuahua. And what's up with the boa? Are you a stripper at GoldPaws or something?

Still we chihuahuas are not great with children. We just don't have the patience for them and don't like to play as much as kids would like us to I'm afraid.

Regardless, some advice for the first dog.

1) Don't pee in the Rose Garden. Save your best work for the Oval--that way you'll make the press.

2) No biting. Unless they are a Republican.

3) Be a picky eater. This is the White House. They have all kinds of good stuff somewhere. Steaks and Hamburger meat might not ever come your way but at the same time, hold out for the high end stuff. And don't settle for the cheap stuff after that. Besides, once you have the gourmet meat by-products you really can't ever go back, can you?

He's got 7 more at the jump

Welcome to the White House, Bo. I hope the kids love you as much as I love my Haze.

Easter Vigil--the Deacon's Role and more

So as I continue to discern becoming a Deacon, last night I was watching our deacon, Deacon Steve, during the Easter Vigil. At the Easter Vigil the Deacon has a major role. First off, he carries the Easter Candle, which is huge and unwieldy--and then you have to carry it in the dark! If I ever do this I'm going to have to work out for a few months! Deacon Steve is a firefighter and I could tell he was struggling. He humorously said that it's "getting harder and harder each year." I was praying that he wouldn't drop the candle (which was the hugest Paschal Candle I've ever seen!), but probably not as hard as Steve was!

Regardless, after the candle reaches the front and is placed in the holder, then the deacon has to chant a long seven minute poem called the Exsultet. It's a difficult chant for a seasoned singer, never mind those of us whose gift is not song. People are forgiving of chant though and moreover the church is filled with candles at that point so most people are being distracted and moved by the lights--as the church moves from darkness to light.

St Sebastian's was packed with people. Probably the most I've seen at the Easter Vigil. What was beautiful was the diversity of culture there--Koreans, Filipinos, HIspanics, Irish and Italians all praying together. Twelve people were baptized and if I remember right 34 more were confirmed. Msgr Hardiman noted that all seven sacraments were celebrated in some way that night. He anointed a dying man moments before the Vigil in the chapel. The baptisms and the confirmations led us all to the Eucharist. And while the formal sacraments of marriage and Holy Orders weren't celebrated the priests and deacons along with all the married couples there certainly felt re-affirmed in their vows. The Spirit was indeed hovering amongst us all.

I read "the voice of God" during the first reading (the story of Creation). I had to channel my "inner Bob Sheppard." I also read the prayer of the faithful.

A great night-he is truly risen. He is risen indeed.

He is Risen!

He is risen! Our hope has come to fruition. But what lies beyond hope for us is the reality that Jesus is alive--that we are alive in Him.

We need Easter to remind us of this sure and certain hope each year. And our Easter readings remind us that the disciples were not all that much different from us. They too did not believe. They too, failed to have faith. They too were indeed hopeless when the world did not seem to give them what they thought they were looking for.

So on Easter morning when the women--oh God bless those women--went and found that the tomb had been opened, the disciples knew better. Women were far from reliable witnesses in this culture. What could these women possibly know?

Well... it turns out they knew everything. Everything that they would ever need to know. They knew that one truth that death has no power over God. They trusted in their experience and they believed.

But even these women struggled. Mary Magdelene was so blinded by her grief and so unaware of the possibllity of resurrection that she mistakes Jesus for the gardener! The women at the tomb were going to the tomb hopeless, to simply anoint Jesus' body and when they didn't find a body there they were distraught because Jewish ritual called for these things to be done and they couldn't fulfill their ceremony, couldn't squash their grief by a very intimate ritual of bathing and purifying the dead.

What these women didn't know is that everything had changed. The death was no longer possible. That Jesus had indeed become different in going beyond death and yet was still that human Jesus who they had come to know so intimately.

Resurrection is not some kind of magic trick. There is a huge difference in what Jesus does and what happened to Lazarus who came out of the tomb. In both cases, we need Jesus. Jesus to go through death and rise to new life and Jesus who revives Lazarus from the dead. This Jesus looks different from the resuscitated Lazarus. He is bathed anew in the power of the resurrection. He is glorious. Perhaps this is why Peter is almost always the first to recognize Jesus as he was the witness to the transfigured Jesus who was dazzling white and who now is the one who is visible as the resurrected one. The one who would deny him three times can all the more easily recognize him now in hindsight.

It all makes sense to Peter and Jesus allows him to make amends by asking him three times if he loves him. It reminds me of those Verizon "Can you hear me now?" commercials. Jesus asks Peter, "Do you love me NOW?" And Peter unequivocally answers yes, you know well I love you as if there is still a quiver of a doubt in Jesus' voice because Peter failed to have faith even with the foretaste of the resurrection that he saw on that mountain when Jesus was transfigured.

While Peter had the hindsight in his favor, so do we. And while Peter denied Jesus three times, I'm afraid I've probably denied him closer to three thousand times. Jesus today, still allows each and every one of us to return to him and to answer the question "Do you love me?" Often we don't know what to say. What with the forces of the world telling us that Jesus is absurd, that sex is really all we need, or drugs, or booze, or a great job and most especially precious to us in this downtrodden economy money--what will we do without money?

Our restless hearts, Augustine tells us are restless until they rest in you, O God.

This is Easter. This is that empty tomb. This is the risen jesus who gives us that blessed opportunity to return to him three thousand times and we often shun that opportunity because like those disciples we don't believe that it could be possible.

Jesus couldn't love us this much.

But the women, they knew. They had faith...so much faith that they could shout it from the rafters that he is alive. We see this still today when women reach out to the poor in India wearing nothing but a cheap sari and the little woman they call Mother Teresa that they followed who taught them that the poor need our care is the mightiest one of all. Death has no power over her. Death didn't stop her from serving the dying in welcoming them to new life in having faith that in dying we rise again and it is all because of Jesus.

Do I believe? I do believe, Lord--help my unbelief. Because truth be told, I don't often act much like a believer.

I'm scared to die and scared to see others die. I have 81 year old parents and they can die at any day. And so can any of us for that matter in this precarious world were schools get shot up and madmen fly planes into buildings. If I believe then I should be angry at the fact that bad things happen but should also have faith that God has the final word. Forgiveness comes easy for those with faith and I'm afraid my resentments betray my unbelief.

I believe Lord, Help my Unbelief.

When I get greedy or selfish or when I learn nothing at all from my Lenten practices what other reason could there be for my lack of faith than simply unbelief.

Because I have the gift of hindsight. Of hearing all that they have written and said about Jesus and still I fail to live any differently at all at times.

Do you believe? Do I believe?

We do today--but we need one another to remind us of our sure and certain hope of our future. That death can not hold us.

And if death can not hold us than we should live with boundless energy in the one who gives us life.

Jesus.

He is risen. We have seen His face and heard his voice alive in our hearts.

Let us live in the light of the resurrection--for death has no power over God.

He is Risen. He is Risen indeed.