A-Rod and Steriods

I watched Alex Rodriquez with Peter Gammons on ESPN last night. For those who don't know, I covered baseball for over 8 years at WFAN and WOR (a lot less glamorous than it sounds--think of me as a "soundbyte gatherer" as opposed to a reporter) and had the opportunity to meet and interview A-Rod when he was with Seattle. I found him to be surprisingly nice--I say "surprisingly" because many baseball players--especially the bigger stars hate the media and are often surly. A-Rod, at least in Seattle, was one of the rare exceptions.

So keep in mind that this is a guy who I genuinely liked meeting and interacting with and a guy who I found to be an outstanding player on the field as well.

So what do i think should be done to A-Rod after he was caught and then admitted that he used steroids in 2001-2003?

I would opt that A-Rod's contract should be void now with the Yankees and he can only re-sign with them under their terms. He should not be allowed to take on any endorsement deals and should be fined at least 40% of the value of his contract from 2001-2003.

The same punishment should also be doled out to the other 103 ballplayers on that list--that now have become public despite the baseball union's lack of protecting these players who submitted their results for an anonymous test. It's time for baseball to take a stand and while there were no rules in play for this type of behavior at that juncture, the bottom line is that baseball's numbers have now been artificially inflated because of drugs.

And baseball is a numbers game. This has so much stink on it now that a good bath with tomato juice won't clean it. We can never look at this time of baseball history again in the same way. Period. End of story.

A-Rod cited being "young and stupid" feeling pressure to perform and a host of other convenient excuses. While I'm apt to forgive people their faults and move on (we're a forgiving church after all), I'm less apt to do so once someone gets caught and has imperfect contrition. If this report doesn't come out--then A-Rod is still playing and not about to mention anything to anyone about his steroid use.

The worst part about it for me was when he said and I paraphrase, "I don't even know what substance I was found guilty of taking."

So does that mean he was possibly taking many different substances? Who knows?

While our church emphasizes forgiveness and I admit that it takes a big man to stand up and admit that these reports are true as opposed to Roger Clemens (who I suspect is still taking steroids) who will never admit it, it also demands justice.

The Two Minute Warning of Young Adult Life

Happy Birthday to me! Today indeed is my 39th birthday. Interestingly enough I have spent nearly the entire decade of my thirties in young adult ministry and working for BustedHalo.com.

Birthdays are always time to reflect on not just the past year but on what we do with the years we have left. Hopefully that means many years for me--but one never knows when God will decide to call us home. So for me, birthdays are often a reminder that we have a limited number of days as well--so Carpe Diem!

Where is God calling me this year? That's where I'll be spending most of my praying time, in discernment on how I can spend more of my time helping others do the very same thing--discernment. It's a particular gift that I think I have to give to others and want to intentionally try to do more of it.

I'm also trying to see how I can be more intentional about being home more. I've been on the road so much and miss the rhythms of being at home with Marion and the dog that I feel out of sorts. I get invited to speak a lot around the country and I like doing that but I also feel that my ministry may in fact be a bit more introvert-focused. I think the internet may have lots to teach me in doing that kind of ministry differently--in particular social networking.

But for today....let's celebrate!

Marion's taking me to a nice Italian restaurant tonight that I've wanted to try for some time. Yay!

Also, a Happy Belated Birthday to Paulist Father Jack Collins.

The Whole Town Gathered at the Door

The Gospel paints an interesting picture today...

On leaving the synagogue Jesus entered the house of Simon and Andrew with James and John.

Simon's mother-in-law lay sick with a fever.

They immediately told him about her. He approached, grasped her hand, and helped her up. Then the fever left her and she waited on them.

When it was evening, after sunset, they brought to him all who were ill or possessed by demons.

The whole town was gathered at the door. He cured many who were sick with various diseases, and he drove out many demons, not permitting them to speak because they knew him.

The whole town? Wow! This says a lot to me about the context of Jesus' life and ministry. Does the Gospel writer mean to imply that nearly everyone in the town was suffering from some kind of malady? Or were people so entranced by Jesus' healings that they couldn't help but stay away?

Or were people scandalized by this and had to come and check it out for themselves?

Perhaps it's a bit of all three. After all, while the whole town was gathered at the door Jesus only cured "many who were sick" --perhaps some were unable to be cured or wished not to be cured.

It is here that I take my jumping off point. Sickness is curable, but only if we really want to be cured. For some of us, spiritually speaking, we think we have no need for a physician. We know better than God and are happy to stay mired in our own sinful ways. It's easier to stay drunk than to seek help, it's easier to keep our distance than to get involved, it's easier to sit on the couch than to seek what we are really called to, especially when that may be scary.

From what do we need healing?

Where do we need to reconcile to heal hatred or misunderstanding? Where have we offended not just one another but God? Do we bring those "illnesses" before God and ask his help in removing what ails us from becoming spiritually whole.

The second point is more systemic. The people of this town were undoubtedly poor. They were the so-called "dregs of society." We should think of them as we picture or have seen the slums of the third world. Most people could not pull themselves out of poverty. Many people were kept in poverty because the Romans continued their oppressive rule.

As first world people--who do we keep down so that we might be that much more comfortable? Who can we bring healing to and by doing so also provide ourselves with much needed spiritual healing? How do we get in touch with the rhythms of the poor and in turn, try to provide them at least some temporary relief from what ails them.

We cannot do it all...we cannot heal ourselves nor can we bring all people to a more fulfilled sense of their own healing. It is what every addicted person knows all too well: We are powerless over what makes us sick.

For any of this to occur, we need Jesus. We need to come into that house and acknowledge that indeed God alone has the power to save us.

World Marriage Day

Over at the Deacon's Bench, Deacon Greg reminds us that today is World Marriage Day and treats us to one of the most beautiful homilies on marriage I have ever heard.

It’s so fitting that the first miracle of Jesus, the changing of water into wine, happened at a wedding, in the early hours of a marriage. Because marriage is about transformation – it is about how the water of our lives, when touched by another, is changed. Life becomes sweeter, richer, fuller. It becomes like wine. It has the ability to intoxicate us.

And, of course, what has become wine can then be further transformed. Wine, at this altar, becomes Christ. And two people, in marriage, become a family. The human story continues – enriched, changed, sanctified.

What this means is so simple, and so beautiful: when joined in the sacrament of matrimony, we become something more than what we were.

Go hug your spouse now or maybe even do something nice for them. I'm off to give the dog a bath.

A bittersweet Sunday

I finally got a chance to get to mass as one of New York's great churches, St. Paul the Apostle, the Paulist Motherhouse in Manhattan, where I was a more frequent worshiper until fairly recently and where I was married and in fact, met my beloved wife, Marion. Since I travel so much the prospect of a 35 minute subway ride on Sunday seems less attractive to me than a simple 3 minute walk up the block to our local church in Woodside.

I also planned to go this Sunday in particular because it was Paulist Appeal Sunday and as a good employee who benefits from such funds I always think that I should attend this mass and make my own contribution. Seminarian Dat Tran did a fantastic job with the appeal pitch.

The bittersweet moment came when it was announced that this was the final Sunday that Director of Music Anne Holland would be at St Paul's. Anne, has been the director of music there for the past 18 years! After a blessing that the parish pronounced on her, a thunderous applause seemed to last for about the same length of time.

The St. Paul Singers were always a big reason for me to attend this parish. Anne's leadership in raising their voices in prayerful song often moved me beyond mere singing into a more holy place. Each Holy Thursday the haunting sounds of the Taize chant "Stay with me...Remain here with Me....Watch and Pray...Watch and Pray" move me in ways that a full Benedictine monastery could not equal. Being near Lincoln Center much of the arts community is nearby and that allows a great number of talented men and women to share their gift of music with the parish. Anne is but one of these people, but in my mind, she was the wingnut that held it all together (I'm just an ordinary nut).

Mostly, I'll remember Anne playing the music at my wedding. I remember being comforted by the fact that the music was in such capable hands and her and cantor Nancy Meyer and a select group of the St Paul Singers did not disappoint. People still remind me of how great the music was at our wedding. What most people don't know is that Anne donated her fee for the day as a wedding gift to us. What an awesome wedding gift!

My prayer today is that Anne's gift of music continue to touch the lives of others in whatever way she feels called to bring her talents to the world. Amen.

Coming to a Theatre Near You: Mary, the Mother of the Christ

Interestingly enough, they didn't title it Mary, the Mother of God. Hat tip to Deacon Greg here and Barbara Nicolosi.

The Hollywood Reporter tells us:

Camilla Belle, who is onscreen in "Push," which opens Friday, has been cast as Mary. Jonathan Rhys Meyers will take on the double role of Gabriel and Lucifer, while Peter O'Toole is set as Symeon, who meets Mary and her family in the temple shortly after Jesus' birth.

The filmmakers are seeking Al Pacino and Jessica Lange for the respective roles of Herod and Anna the Prophetess.

Argentinean director Alejandro Agresti ("The Lake House") will direct the film, scheduled to begin shooting in May in Morocco with production partner Dune Films. Benedict Fitzgerald, who co-wrote "Passion," wrote the "Mary" screenplay with Barbara Nicolosi.

Mary Aloe and Rodrigo Berlanga are producing. The executive producers are Mike Dolan, Mauricio Sanchez and James Volk.

Although New Line recently told the story of Jesus' birth in "The Nativity Story," released in December 2006, to modest boxoffice returns, Aloe said of her project: "This is not a Christmas movie. This is a part of Mary's life that has never been shown on the big screen before. It takes us through Mary's youth, young love, her life as a new mother and the triumph through the absolute terror of Herod the Great's reign. It is truly a story of real female empowerment."

Is it sacrilegious to say that Mary's kinda....hot?

On a more serious note, I wonder if this will be filled with as many theological inaccuracies as The Passion of the Christ was? I liked The Nativity Story so I'm hoping for the best for this project. But who knows? Looks like they're trying for some star power here too with Pacino.

Podcast: Is Addiction a Mortal Sin?

This week's podcast is up and running!

Is addiction a mortal sin? And I preach on Prophets in their own land.

Check it out here

Catholics: Sponsored by the Word Transparency

John Allen at the National Catholic Reporter cites three big stories all surrounding the word transparency in Catholic life today. As always, nicely done.

Here are the three stories in brief, two of which we've covered ad nauseum here followed by my take on each one.

A rare Vatican review, technically known as an "apostolic visitation," of women's religious communities in the United States was announced last Friday. The news came as a surprise to most leaders in religious life.

The sisters are nervous. The Vatican claims that the reason for the review is a "positive effort to support (women's) congregations." But obviously people will get skittish any time a Vatican review is put forth. Perhaps there is a lack of transparency on the part of the Vatican as to the purpose of these visits but those in charge have started a website--so who knows? The site claims the goals are threefold:

1) To look into the quality of apostolic life in the United States.
Read: How well are things really going? Are we keeping with the church's vision here.

2) To learn more about the ways in which women religious contribute to the welfare of the church and society.
Read: Wow! We hear that women are doing all sorts of things. We need to publicize the good stuff and clamp down on anything that may not be in line with our vision of ministry.

3) To assist the Church to strengthen, enhance and support the growth of the more than 400 congregations to which the approximately 59,000 women religious in the United States belong.

Read: How will we get more vocations?

Fallout from Benedict XVI's decision to lift the excommunication of four traditionalist bishops, including one who is a Holocaust denier, continued to spread, reaching an apex on Tuesday when German Chancellor Angela Merkel rebuked the pope. The next day, the Vatican issued a statement demanding that Bishop Richard Williamson recant his views "in absolutely unequivocal and public fashion."

Obviously we've covered this at length here. Just look at the posts to the right on the SSPX. The problem here is one of transparency as well.

The Legionaries of Christ have acknowledged conduct by their founder, the late Fr. Marcial Maciel Degollado, which was "surprising, difficult to understand, and inappropriate for a Catholic priest." Reportedly, that conduct included fathering a child out of wedlock.

This was a major story which we touched on here. Jeff Guhin wrote about this on the BustedBlog recently and has a take on this.

Cardinal Egan adds to SSPX outrage

Rocco has the scoop:

"Yesterday, the Vatican condemned in the clearest terms a statement made by an illicitly consecrated Bishop by the name of Richard Williamson in which the evil of the Shoah was questioned or at least minimized. As Archbishop of New York, I add my voice to that of the Holy See and the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops in rejecting Williamson’s words as hurtful, baseless, and outrageous..."

Head over to Rocco for more.

It's good to see the Bishops speaking with some unity on this albeit a few days late.

President Obama: "No religion hates"

President Obama's main quotable from the National Prayer Breakfast:

"No matter what we choose to believe, let us remember that there is no religion whose central tenet is hate. ... There is no God who condones taking the life of an innocent human being. This much we know."

Now if we could all just agree on what constitutes an "innocent human being" we'd be in business.

National Prayer Breakfast: Tony Blair Steals the Show

The now Catholic Tony Blair had two poignant moments at the National Prayer Breakfast. The first came when he noted

"religion is under attack from without and from within. From within it is corroded by extremists who use their faith as a means of excluding the other. ... If you do not believe as I believe, you are a lesser human being. From without, religious faith is assailed by an increasingly aggressive secularism, which derides faith as contrary to reason and defines faith by conflict. Thus do the extreme believers and the aggressive nonbelievers come together in unholy alliance."

The second was much less analytical and far more touching to hear. CNS reports

Blair explained how a teacher knelt and prayed with him as he worried about his ailing father.

"Now my father was a militant atheist," he said. "Before we prayed, I thought I should confess this. 'I'm afraid my father doesn't believe in God,' I said. 'That doesn't matter,' my teacher replied. 'God believes in him. He loves him without demanding or needing love in return.'"

"That is what inspires," Blair said, "the unconditional nature of God's love. A promise perpetually kept. A covenant never broken."

Amen.

iPod touch blogging

So I'm trying to post with my touch. Let's see if it works.

Mobile Blogging from here.

[Posted with iBlogger from my iPod touch]

I'd be a lousy Slumdog

The poor are much smarter than we are. I just watched Slumdog Millionaire which reminded me so much of my experience in Nicaragua. The slums of India are the centerpiece of Danny Boyle's heartfelt epic of a young boy and his drive to find his true love. Draped around this main story is the gameshow "Who Wants to be a Millionaire" which offers the teen-age Jamal the opportunity to win 20 million rupeesas well as the chance to hope that his love is watching.

Director Danny Boyle took great pains to depict the slums of Mumbai with its tin roofs and little children playing and smiling-- somehow happy. He's drawn criticisms in some corners because some thing he's made the slums seem brighter, or at least a place that's not all that bad. But he's got a point in that regard. Slums in the third world are places that to us first worlders seem degrading, horrible and inhuman. But to the people of Mumbai, it is simply home. And no matter where we call home, it is often a place that we have a fondness for and children, no matter what their social class often play and romp with little care for what surrounds them.

A second point: The poor in slums are indeed ingenious people who struggle to be sure, but yet they always find a way to get by. If any of us were in the situations they are in each day, we'd have a much harder time of it. We have so much to learn from the poor. In Nicaragua, I was impressed by the back-breaking work most of the men, young and old, did without much struggle while I was doubled over with back pain and near heat stroke. My first world ingenuity did me no good in the slum.

While few will escape this poverty, most do just fine there despite their lack of education, resources and comfort. Children are especially telling here. The orphans I visited in Nicaragua didn't need the latest iPod or cool clothes or even a tv set. All they needed was my time and my love.

The sad thing is that we let people struggle like this and allow people to live in such squalor and yet, their resilience marches on despite our indifference. Would I be able to push all that to the side and go through each day without help or without feeling a sense of control? If I'm honest with myself, probably not. Boyle's point here is not that the slums are just peachy-keen places but that the poor get by without much of what we value and take for granted and are seemingly happy nonetheless.

The movie is really about destiny--a state of life that the people of India with their caste system are deeply in touch with.

Director Danny Boyle, tells us more here with a lilt of Irish charm:



The religious violence in the movie also shows the precariousness of each day in India where lives are routinely hanging in the balance of another senseless killing over religious differences. How often do we take our religious freedom for granted and even wish that we didn't have it...that we could stop others who believe things that we think are simply stupid or backwards.

Do you believe in destiny? That everything in your life just might be leading you somewhere?

Regardless, a great movie and my vote for the Oscar this year. By far! And I've seen all of the Oscar movies.

Hudson Plane Crash Audio

This is amazing:



Ever been on a plane in which you thought it was soon going to be all over? Coming back from my honeymoon in Montreal my wife and I were on a bouncy plane in one of the worst snowstorms Montreal had seen in awhile (and that's saying something!). Needless to say, I said a few Hail Marys that flight.

However, I'm often surprised when I hear stories of near-miss tragedies. Here's three quick ones:

A priest-friend of mine was flying not long after his ordination and the oxygen masks fell and they all thought the end was near. The plane soon righted itself and the woman next to him couldn't get over how calm and cool he was the whole time. He said, "Well I figured that if I just became a priest and God was deciding to take me home at this point, then I was in pretty good shape for the journey."

A second colleague was on a plane that seemingly just dropped about 20,000 feet very quickly. She said that she just looked at the person next to her and said, "Hi my name is Michelle and you're probably the last person I'm ever going to see. I guess we should know each other's name at this juncture." (Amazing how closed off we can be from people when we travel--I'm at fault here too--I almost never talk to people on airplanes).

Lastly, a non-plane story. Many friends were in NYC on 9-11 when all kinds of things started running through their head. Just North of the towers in Midtown, many wondered if they'd be able to get home that dreaded night or if more attacks were imminent. In the days that followed this attitude pervaded the city. It made some altruistic and piously fearful. Many went back to church fearful of their sinful lives while others took a much more hedonistic attitude and took to the bars in a madcap week of drunkenness and what I call "end of the world sex." They had as much sex as they could, while they still could. They did all kinds of crazy and risky behaviors because who knew what tomorrow would bring.

As for myself, I'm not sure why but I felt very calm both on my honeymoon flight and again during 9-11. I found myself angrier at what had happened than fearful of what might happen or for my own lot in the afterlife. I'm not sure why that's the case because I know I'll have plenty to answer to God for, but I wasn't very concerned about that or even about personal safety. I traveled on the subway and on buses. I flew a few weeks after and didn't have too many cares about it. My friend Dan made me feel much better when he, an amateur statistician told me that the chances of something like an attack or even a crash are infinitely tiny and that I probably have a greater chance of falling down the stairs.

But I'm rambling now...my question to you....How do you spend your final moments if you think you don't have much time left?

Idol Inspiration

Pres. Obama says No Money for Religious Groups that Discriminate in Hiring Practices

This just in from CNN

In an executive order to be announced on Thursday, Obama does not rescind Bush's provision to allow faith-based groups to discriminate in their hiring practices, but does provide a legal process for organizations to go through in order to that ensure hiring is legal and non-discriminatory.

Administration sources say the new legal safeguard is a "key step forward" in addressing the thorny issue of faith-based hiring.

But Dr. Joel Hunter, a senior pastor at Northland Church in Longwood, Florida, who will be part of a 25-member council of religious leaders in the faith-based office, said the issue is a particularly tricky one for religious leaders.

"We're going to have to work that out, because on the one hand, you don't want to use federal funds to discriminate. But on the other hand, we can't have religious organizations taking money on the condition that they will hire people who live a lifestyle contrary to what they teach," he said.

This is going to open a large can of worms I think. What happens now to Catholic hospitals that hope to get a grant but won't hire doctors who perform abortions? Would that be considered "discriminatory"?

Being the Pope is Lonely

Sandro Magister--Vaticanista par excellence, has much to add about the SSPX story.

In the disaster, Pope Benedict XVI found himself to be the one most exposed, and practically alone.

Both within and outside of the curia, many are blaming the pope for everything. In effect, it was his decision to offer the Lefebvrist bishops a gesture of benevolence. The lifting of excommunication followed other previous gestures of openness, also decided personally by the pope, the last of which was the motu proprio "Summorum Pontificum," dated July 7, 2007, with the liberalization of the ancient rite of the Mass.

As he had done before, this time as well Benedict XVI did not demand in advance anything from the Lefebvrists in return. So far, all of his acts of openness have been unilateral. The pope's critics have seized upon this in order to accuse him of naivety, or appeasement, or even of wanting to take the Church back to before Vatican Council II.

In reality, Benedict XVI has explained his intention absolutely clearly, in one of the key addresses of his pontificate, the one delivered to the Roman curia on December 22, 2005. In that speech, pope Ratzinger maintained that Vatican II did not mark any rupture with the Church's tradition, but in fact it was in continuity with tradition even where it seemed to mark a clear break with the past, for example when it recognized religious freedom as an inalienable right of every person.

In that speech, Benedict XVI was speaking to the entire Catholic universe. But at the same time, he was also addressing the Lefebvrists, to whom he pointed out the direct route for healing the schism and returning to unity with the Church on the points that they oppose most vigorously: not only religious freedom, but also the liturgy, ecumenism, relations with Judaism and the other religions.

On all of these points, after Vatican Council II the Lefebvrists had gradually separated from the Catholic Church. In 1975, the Priestly Fraternity of St. Pius X – their organizational structure – did not obey an order to disband, and formed a parallel Church, with its own bishops, priests, seminaries. In 1976, its founder, Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, was suspended "a divinis." In 1988, the excommunication of Lefebvre and of four new bishops he had ordained without papal authorization – who were in turn suspended "a divinis" – was the culminating action of a schism that had been underway for years.

The lifting of this excommunication therefore did not by any means heal the schism between Rome and the Lefebvrists, just as the lifting of the excommunications between Rome and patriarchate of Constantinople – agreed on December 7, 1965, by Paul VI and Athenagoras – did not by any means mark a return to unity between the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Churches of the East. In both cases, the dropping of the excommunication was intended to be simply a first step toward reversing the schism, which remains.

He goes on to add something even more profound:

The question comes naturally: was all of this really inevitable, once the pope had decided to lift the excommunication of the Lefebvrist bishops? Or was the disaster produced by the errors and omissions of the men who are supposed to implement the pope's decisions? The facts point to the second hypothesis.

The decree revoking the excommunication bears the signature of Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, prefect of the congregation for bishops. Another cardinal, Darío Castrillón Hoyos, is the president of the pontifical commission "Ecclesia Dei," which, ever since its creation in 1988, has dealt with the followers of Lefebvre. Both of these cardinals have said that they were taken by surprise, after the fact, by the interview with Bishop Williamson, and that they were never aware that he was a Holocaust denier.

But wasn't it the primary responsibility of these two cardinals to carry out an in-depth examination of Williamson's personal profile, and of the three other bishops? The fact that they did not do so seems inexcusable. Such an examination wasn't even difficult. Williamson has never concealed his distaste for Judaism. He has publicly defended the authenticity of the "Protocols of the Elders of Zion." In 1989, in Canada, he risked being taken to court for praising the books written by Holocaust denier Ernst Zundel. After September 11, 2001, he supported conspiracy theories to explain the collapse of the Twin Towers. Just a click on Google would have turned up all of this background material.

Another serious lapse concerned the pontifical council for the promotion of Christian unity. Reversing the schism with the Lefebvrists is logically part of its competencies, which also include relations between the Church and Judaism. But the cardinal who heads the council, Walter Kasper, says that he was kept out of the deliberations: this is all the more surprising in that the issuing of the decree lifting the excommunication took place during the annual week of prayer for Christian unity, and a few days before International Holocaust Remembrance Day.

Church politics at its best. I wonder if Cardinal Kasper who is known in many circles for being somewhat progressive in his thought was shut out of these conversations simply because of his purported liberalism? A clear case of people not checking with those in the know.

I also wonder how long it's been since either of the Cardinals have touched a keyboard, much less done a google search. They should both hold their staff's feet to the fires for this one. And yet, I wonder if the Cardinal's staff people even had any inkling of this. It seems to me that the two Cardinals "rubber stamped" this along without much consideration. The prevailing wisdom seems to be one of arrogance.

Vatican bureaucrats think only in terms of what the main purpose of events like this are. In this case, it was the start of healing a schism. So if the Pope wants to start that process the Cardinals look at this as something minor--after all, it is just the start of these talks, primarily in theory designed to separate the wheat from the chaff anyway. Or in this case the nutters from those who just value the Latin mass.

But only geeks like me and Vaticanistas like Sandro or Rocco would know that. Joe Catholic has no idea and neither does the mainstream media. A huge learning session needed to go along with this action--and I suppose the Pope will end up taking his lumps for this but it's really the fault of anybody else who knew about the start of this process and didn't act to advise the pope.

And now he's left to take most of the heat in this regard.

Being the Pope is lonely. Even when good intentioned in Peoria, you might make Catholics in Zimbabwe angry. When something makes sense to Chinese Catholics, it might seem repressive or scary to U.S. Catholics.

Moral of the story: Always have good PR people posted at all four corners of every room you're in.

RIP Michael Dubriel

Please keep Amy Welborn in your prayers. Her husband and Catholic author Michael Dubriel collapsed this morning at the gym and died needless to say quite suddenly.

Our Sunday Visitor adds more about Michael:

Mike had left Our Sunday Visitor last April to go to work for his long-time friend, Bishop Robert Baker of Birmingham, Alabama. In my encounters with Mike after he left, he seemed enthusiastic about the work in the diocese. He was responsible for several areas of concern, and the challenges appeared to energize him.
Mike was always a hard worker. He was also a prolific and gifted author.
Among his titles for Our Sunday Visitor were
· The Church’s Most Powerful Novenas
· The How-To Book of the Mass, Expanded
· How to Get More out of the Mass
· How to Get the Most Out of the Eucharist
· A Pocket Guide to Confession
· A Pocket Guide to the Mass
· Praying in the Presence of Our Lord with Fulton J. Sheen
· Praying the Rosary

The titles reveal his deep concern for the fundamental practices of the faith by Catholics. He sensed a great pastoral need in this area, and he had a gift for deepening the appreciation of ordinary Catholics for the encounters with Christ that occurred in Mass, during the Eucharist, in Confession.

I didn't know Mike Dubriel personally, only by reputation. Amy and I have shared the occasional email but have never met in person. I know of their deep love for one another, for the church, and for their children most of all. He was clearly a great dad who was revered by his family.

Eternal Rest Grant Unto him O Lord and let perpetual light shine upon him. May the soul of Michael Dubriel and all the souls of the faithful departed through the mercy of God rest in peace. Amen.

Chicago's Holy Name Cathedral on fire

A three alarm fire has broken out at Chicago's Holy Name cathedral. Although the fire has been snuffed out at this juncture the AP reports "severe damage to the attic and quotes the Chicago Archdiocese Chancellor Jimmy Lago as describing the water damage as 'humongous.'"

Let's pray for Cardinal George and all those who call the Cathedral their spiritual home. I'm supposed to speak there in a couple of weeks so let's also hope that we will still be able to use the building for our event with Charis Ministries.

German Bishop-appointee says Katrina punishment for gays and immorality?

Anyone hear more about this guy? It's tearing up the wires in Europe and CNN mentions it briefly.

From CNN

A priest who called the Harry Potter book series satanic and said Hurricane Katrina was divine punishment for immorality has been named Austrian Bishop of Zuri, according to the Vatican and Italy’s state-run news agency ANSA.

The Rev. Gerhard Wagner has been a pastor in Windischgarsten, Austria, for 20 years, ANSA reported Saturday, and his controversial remarks have triggered controversy.

After Katrina slammed into the Gulf Coast in 2005, levees broke in New Orleans, Louisiana, flooding most of the city. More than 1,800 people in the region died, including over 1,500 in Louisiana.

Wagner was among some ultra-conservatives who suggested Katrina was punishment for the sins of New Orleans, ANSA said.

A hat tip to Cathcon blog who had this to add to the story:

Many engaged Catholics of the Diocese of Linz will perceive this as a provocation. The diocese could have a test of endurance.

According to unconfirmed information, no candidate was considered appearing on the proposed list of Linz Diocesan Bishop Ludwig Schwarz. Allegedly, Rome has directly taken the decision. Even the Vienna Archbishop Cardinal Christoph Schoenborn was not directly involved in the decision-making.

Vicar General Severin Lederhilger could feel deep disappointment at this decision. The Vicar-General was considered one of the favorites and was also next to the former Chaplain of the Seminary of Linz, Johann Hintermaier on the Bishop’s three name candidate list.

The future bishop is so far noted mainly for controversial statements and absolute fidelity to Rome. He has said that environmental disasters are close to divine punishment. The diocese was forced to distance itself from Wagner. (Cathcon- nothing comes except God permits it- an understanding of Catholics in all ages but our own.)

Within the Diocese, Wagner stands for a very controversial minority. According to a church insider, the weight of Wagner's future office is less important than the fact of his appointment. Rome wanted to signal to Linz that the era of liberal and moderate courses are gone.

Some other links include:
San Francisco Chronicle


The Guardian