Pro-life March in St. John's, NL

Today I attended a pro-life march at the Health Sciences Centre Hospital in St. John's, Newfoundland. There were around 300 people, many of whom make this pilgrimage every Good Friday. We were there to show our support to the pro-life cause and to walk peacefully against abortion.

I was selected to be interviewed for NTV. She asked me a couple of questions. I do not have a lot of experience giving interviews, so I hope I did well. It will air tonight at 6pm local time. I was interviewed along with a young couple. They are friends of mine and the girl is expecting her first child in June. Her husband spoke to NTV about the miracle of life and said they are very anxious to see their child. He said being an expectant father makes him truly realize why he is pro-life.

The event seems to get larger every year. The weather was beautiful for the event, which contrasts last year where there was rain and cold. Many young families came out with children and pets. It was a very peaceful protest. We said prayers, sang songs, and conversed with each other. It was not a time to condemn those who have had abortions, but rather a time to embrace life.

Let's hope the success of this event continues each year.

P.S. I will try to get a video of my interview for my blog.

Hopefully enough men will get their feet cleaned

Today is Holy Thursday and tonight I will be going to Mass where we commemerate the Institution of the Eucharist (more emphasized than usual), and where the priest will wash the feet of a dozen people to commemerate Christ's actions. The 12 people who have their feet washed represent the 12 apostles. Therefore, the Church has officially said the 12 must be men.

Sadly, in my church, this practice has not been observed. Last year was a dismal display. Only about 7 people approached to have their feet washed, and there were a number of women. Of course there were hundreds of people at the church, but only 7 participated. There is no exception made for women to have their feet washed because they cannot represent the 12 apostles.

My suggestion is that if there are not enough men at first, make a general announcement asking for men to approach. I can guarantee you could easily get 12. People feel as though the people having their feet washed have been predetermined and no one else can be admitted.

According to the website http://www.catholicdoors.com/faq/qu71.htm:

The Vatican instruction regarding the washing of the feet on Holy Thursday that is found in the rubric of the Sacramentary states:

"Depending on pastoral circumstances, the washing of feet follows the homily. The men who have been chosen (viri selecti) are led by the ministers to chairs prepared at a suitable place. Then the priest (removing his chasuble if necessary) goes to each man. With the help of the ministers he pours water over each one's feet and dries them."

Another note to media: Learn what "Vatican" means

In my past article, I explained what infallibility means when Catholics speak of it. This time I want to address the use of the word "Vatican". The media will use the word Vatican to describe a number of things, but only one can be really used.

Sometimes the media will interview a priest or bishop working at the Vatican or in a particular congregation and the headline will read "The Vatican says...". This is incorrect. This individual does not represent the entire Vatican. When people hear "Vatican" they hear "the Catholic Church". So if this one priest expresses his personal opinion, people are led to believe it's a pronouncement by the entire church.

"Vatican" should really only be used to describe a decision made by the universal church through the Pope. If someone working in the White House made a comment on immigration saying "We need to tighten legislation on immigration", it would be poor journalism to report "United States to get Tough on Immigration". Often the people interviewed are not heads of congregation, and many times may represent an opinion that is not sanctioned.

An example is when a cardinal made comments about Harry Potter books. Media broadly reported that the Vatican had made an official pronouncement on the book. It hadn't. People were misled.

The media needs to be aware of this.

To the Media: Learn what "infallibility" means.

Over the past several days as a media frenzy has blown up around the Pope, the word "infallibility" has been bandied around quite liberally. It's interjected into almost every news story done on the pope as if trying to show some sort of hypocracy or inconsistency. Unfortuantely, the media almost always uses the word in the wrong way, or uses it in such a way that it's implication is totally off. Perhaps some reporters are aware of the true defintion, but interject it into ambiguous places to give readers or listeners the wrong idea.

For example, I heard a CBC reporter talking about sex abuse, and he ended his commentary with a line something like "accusations are reaching all the way to the Vatican on the doorstep of the man Catholics believe is infallible." Or someone might make a comment like "How can the Pope be infallible if his apology left much to be desired!" and so on.

Infallible has a variety of meanings, but in Catholic theology, there is only one. Papal infallibility does not mean the pope is perfect or that he cannot sin. It does not mean he doesn't make mistakes or that he can't be wrong. It doesn't mean he is holy or righteous or even a good example to follow. Of course, personal goodness and holiness are desirable characteristics of the Pope, but they do not fall under the definition of infallibility.

According to its definition, Papal infallibility is the dogma in Roman Catholic theology that, by action of the Holy Spirit, the Pope is preserved from even the possibility of error when he solemnly declares or promulgates to the universal Church a dogmatic teaching on faith or morals as being contained in divine revelation, or at least being intimately connected to divine revelation.

So it's a pretty tight definitions. In July 2005, Pope Benedict even remarked "The Pope is not an oracle; he is infallible in very rare situations, as we know."

Theoretically the Pope could commit terrible sins and this would not destroy papal infallibility. It is also a necessary doctrine. Since Catholics believe that the Church is the "foundation and bulwark of the truth", there needs to be a final arbiter, and that final arbiter is the Pope. This was promised to the Church when Jesus said the gates of Hell would not prevail against her.

Popes are human, given a special office. Our current and past popes were known to frequent the confessional often, probably more frequently than most other Catholics. These would not be the actions of someone who couldn't make mistakes.

I hope the media start using the definition of infallibility correctly.

Free speech not widely observed in Canadian University

Once again, free speech has taken a back seat to liberal activism in Canada. Ann Coulter was going to speak to students at the University of Ottawa. She is a well-known conservative speaker and has written several books. But many students, some placing the number in the thousands protested her speaking at their campus. They violently yelled and harassed her until her group decided to leave. But it wasn't just students who were doing this. The President of the University sent her a warning her that she could go to prison if she wasn't politically correct enough. But his threat didn't need to be carried out. The open-minded students forced her out.

This is a major blow to democracy. Ann Coulter is a speaker, not a terrorist. Just because she is not Liberal, doesn't mean she has no right to speak. But this is just another step in a terrible policy making its way through the Canadian university system. Groups that support conservative values are being banned from even expressing their opinion. Several campuses across Canada have disallowed pro-life groups from operating, including at the University of Guelph, McGill University, and in my hometown, Memorial University of Newfoundland. It seems being conservative and supporting pro-family and pro-life policies is illegal in Canada.

Pope issues heart-felt letter to Ireland

The Pope issued a very understanding, concerned and loving letter to Catholics in Ireland after a great deal of pain and suffering caused by the clergy sex abuse scandal in that country.

With no stone left unturned, the Pope is showing his solidarity with victims and taking steps to ensure there are no more. He says, "You have suffered grievously and I am truly sorry. I know that nothing can undo the wrong you have endured."

The Pope notes that throughout the years, he has sat with victims, spoken to them, tried to understand them. I was watching CNN one day about the Pope's visit to America. There were 3 victims of sex abuse who met with him. They said he was truly on their side and that he showed great concern. One of the victims said the Pope is a truly good man.

The pope, in this letter, also addresses priests who have abused children by saying "You betrayed the trust that was placed in you by innocent young people and their parents, and you must answer for it before Almighty God and before properly constituted tribunals."

The pope also addresses parents, children, and priests and religious.

I suggest anyone read the Pope's letter.

For the official English translation, please go to: http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/letters/2010/documents/hf_ben-xvi_let_20100319_church-ireland_en.html

Food, water, shelter, and contraceptives

The Conservative government of Canada has announced that it will provide a large amount of support and help for people in less developed countries. This includes food, water, shelter, and other necessities for life. However, many MPs are angry because Harper's plan does not include condoms, sponges and spermaticide jellies. According to his opponents, these "safe" sex products are just as important as food and clean water.

It's important to note that the government has not specifically refused to include contraceptives, it just wasn't in the first plan. Of course, outrage ensued.

Canadians have been propagandized for so long that many believe contraception is essential for survival. Without contraception, the story goes, we would become mere beasts with no hope for peace. Contraception is what separates us from the animal kingdom.

Organizations have falsely believed that condoms can solve all the world's problems. If a country is war-torn and lives are desvastated, the best way to solve this is to make contraception very accessible. Of course! I would like to know who the condom companies hire to do marketing, they do a really amazing job.

When one of the most devastating earthquakes in history hit Haiti a few months ago, the first thing Planned Parenthood did was raise money to buy condoms, and oral contraception, not to mention material to promote abortion. Forget clean water, food, and medical help, all the people of this devastated land need are condoms. How could I not see that!

I always learned that the basic needs for survival are food, water, clothing, and shelter, but now it seems contraception has somehow made its way to the top of the list.

Many claim that more condoms can alleviate problems in poor countries. In fact, they cannot. More access to contraception actually increases the rates of STIs, abortion, etc. This has been seen in Africa. Uganda is the only country to promote abstinence and commitment. The others promoted greater condom use. Condoms are easier to find in Africa than clean drinking water. All provided by wealthy industrialized countries. So what happened? Uganda was one of the rare success stories in the fight against AIDS.

When the Pope made comments to this effect, many reacted with outrage. You mean to say contraception and abortion are not the solutions to all the world's problems? Did I hear that correctly? But this clearly goes against modern thinking! The pope's comments were also backed up by the head of Harvard's AIDS program.

Just imagine: a dying man approaches a Liberal or NPD MP. What is their first reaction? Water, shelther, food? No, contraception. This is ridiculous. Of all human needs, even for those advocating contraception, condoms and other such things should be at least #50 on the list of things people need to be healthy. It's pretty sad when your political platform is based around the culture of death. People who espouse that culture tend to view everything through their culture-of-death glasses and they will stop at nothing to further their ideology.

It's shocking that instead of backing up the Prime Minister with his support of the less-fortunate, many politicians have decided to focus on contraception. This is while people die from hunger, lack of clean water, war, and disease. Contraception doesn't reduce or eliminate disease, it makes it worse.

For once, these politicians ought to seek ways to help the needy, rather than try to push their culture of death policies.

Oh, and congratulations to Stephen Harper and his government: Way to go!

Reverse Racism on Little Mosque on the Prairie

Racism is an unspeakable crime in Canada. Anyone guilty of it is publically shunned and criticized. But apparantly this is only the case for white Christians. Other people can feel free to mock and criticize the majority with impunity. This is clearly shown on Little Mosque on the Prairie.

The other day I finally decided to watch an episode. Every time I watch Jeopardy, previews for the upcoming show are shown. I heard reviews, but decided to have a look for myself. I was pretty disappointed.

The episode started when the Anglican priest ordered a Jesus statue, ostensibly for his own church. A group of Muslims, including a white woman convert, opened the crate that it came in and saw the statue. One of the men accidentally knocked over the large statue (larger than life-sized) and it smashed to pieces. They were worried about being caught, and made several jokes in bad taste. First of all, it seems rather shocking to feature an episode where a statue of Jesus would be smashed to pieces. Would there ever be an episode where a koran was accidentally shredded in an industrial shredder? Don't count on it. Jesus is obviously the central figure of Christianity and a statue is a likeness of Jesus which we use as a point of reverence. To smash it is a great insult. Why it's part of a comedy is a little odd to me.

We then go to the Anglican priest in the episode. The priest is shown as extremely untrusting and suspicious of Muslims in general. He believes they are all "up to something". This is quickly contrasted with the Muslims' acceptance and tolerance. The bigotted priest accuses Amaar, the young imam, of doing things which are wrong. The only basis for his accusation is that they are Muslim and must be up to something. Amaar, however, is the voice of morality throughout the episodes. He continually petitions others to "do the right thing". This of course is much different from the priest who only jumps to unfounded conclusions and whose morality seems somewhat skewed.

The episode plays like a sort of "after-school special". It attempts to be comedic but falls short as it quickly become a politically correct lesson in Islam. Baber is a more traditional Muslim who seems to be in the episodes simply to provide a springboard for canned responses to popular opinions about Muslims. For example, in the episode Baber demands that his daughter wear a traditional Muslim veil. She refuses. This sets up a great "the more you know" opportunity. A Muslim woman informs the girl that: wearing the veil is a choice, one that must be made by all Muslim women. The entire episode was one contrived and humourless lesson opportunity after another.

The current Anglican priest replaced another who was less morally offensive. It seems they wanted to turn up the contrast of Muslim vs. Christian. Whereas the Muslims are seen as tolerant members of society who want to integrate themselves and help out the community, the Christians are viewed as backward and bigotted. In the episode, the original Jesus statue was (accidentally) replaced by a black Jesus. The priest had a good laugh at this "ridiculous" Jesus and went on a sort of racist rant. This was only to discover that the Catholic priest for whom he was storing the statue was himself black.

I have only watched one episode, and doubt I will watch more. However, I am not spared from the constant onslaught of commercials promoting the show on CBC. It seems the next episode will feature the same Anglican priest in a state of near ecstacy at the possibility of the Muslims leaving the community. I'm sure viewers can expect some comedic genius in that episode.

Canadian Government does something sensible - partakes in seal meat

On Wednesday in the parliamentary restaurant, MPs ate seal meat prepared in various ways. This was meant as another show of solidarity by the government with those in the seal industry, including many Newfoundlanders. The EU recently banned the sale of all seal products in Europe. This is also the case in the United States. But these bans are non-sensicle.

Please read my previous article for reasons why this ban is a bad idea: here

I am proud of the Canadian Government for making this move. Their support for the seal hunt is logical and moral, unlike the EU's position.

When Life is more opposed to than Death

The Duggars, a famous American family known for having 18 children and their own TV show, has just given birth to the 19th member and are not planning on stopping until God tells them to. But in this strange world in which we live, many people are not happy about this.

Birth and children are true gifts. Each one is unique and brings something wonderful to the world. But many people are calling the Duggars 19th child a bad decision. They say it is irresponsible to have that many children. In order to justify their objection, they make up things which may or may not be true, but fit with their narrative. They say this many children cannot be loved, they cannot be supported financially, the mother's health is at risk, etc. But there is no coherence, because these are all invented objections.

The baby, named Josie, was born prematurely, but is doing well. She is born into one of the most loving families out there. Also, the family is quite secure financially. The forces of darkness are very upset about this because it acts in accordance with God's command to "go forth and multiply". Having a large family is a blessing from God. These children are well raised, respectful, and loving. They add a lot to their communities and the world.

How can people object to such a beautiful situation? The culture of death detestes stories like this. They contradict the idea that a woman can only be happy if she has a career where she is making tons of money, is independent, and has a maximum of 2 children, preferably a boy and a girl. That's a maximum. Women who denounce their childbearing ability are commended as heroes. One woman I heard of recently felt she was helping the world by rendering herself sterile. Angry, vindictive people refuse to believe that anyone who chooses to be a mother and raise a family is anything but oppressed by a patriarchal society. When a woman does this and is very happy and joyful, it does not fit well into their vision for the world.

On the other hand, a woman who procures an abortion is seen as brave, standing up for the rights of women everywhere, a champion of femininity. The is seen as progressing the women's rights movement. But a woman who bares a beautiful child willingly and lovelingly is attacked and berated. Every article you read will approach this story from the angle of "isn't this too many kids?" Never will a positive point of view be presented.

Also, how can we look at these 19 beautiful children and say "She had too many children"? Which of the 19 would you like to see disappear? These are not numbers, these are living, breathing human beings who are loved by their family and by God. Who are we to say they don't belong?

Let's celebrate this beautiful family and show them our support.

Sexual Abuse Reporting: a double standard?

Recently an article emerged of a famous Newfoundland hockey coach who has been charged with sexual assault of a boy. Many were shocked because he such a prominent figure in the community. Many have rightfully pointed out that although our justice system ensures that someone is considered innocent until proven guilty, the publication of his name has already led to disgrace.

There has been a vocal outcry from the public denouncing this practice and saying that if someone is innocent until proven guilty, their name should be withheld unless they are found guilty of an offense.

Strangely however, no such outcry was made when Catholic clergy were being accused left, right and center. In fact, the reaction was quite the contrary. People were quick to not only condemn all accused priests, but also those who were not accused. Popular opinion suggested that every single priest is a pedophile and none are innocent.

People's reaction to a priest accused of inappropriate sexual behavior was to lock him away and throw away the key or worse, and then to begin a diatribe about the evil Catholic Church. I read dozens of articles with reader responses and not once did anyone suggest hiding identities until charges were proven.

There have been accusations and arrests for pedophilia for all kinds of people, including teachers, coaches, scouts leaders, and yes, clergy. But have you ever heard a report of a teacher accused of sexual assault in another country? How about settlements between victims and school boards worth hundreds of millions of dollars? Never. The statistics however show that teachers are 4 times more likely to sexual abuse children than clergy.

To get an idea of the double standard, go to Google News and search for things like arrest pedophile, etc. You will find stories of people from all walks of life. There may be an odd priest here or there, but there are far more from other areas.

Clearly there is a major bias. A priest who commits sexual abuse in Germany is headline news, but 17 teachers who get arrested in a single country is not mentioned.

This is in no way excusing clergy sexual abuse. It must be stopped immediately and the Church is doing many things to eradicate this. But let's show some semblance of fairness. Let's end the double standards.

Co-worker's anti-catholicism

At my workplace, I sit across from a man who spews his anti-Catholic rhetoric on a regular basis. He generally speaks to another anti-Catholic individual, but his conversation partner could be any number of co-workers, all of whom agree with him either implicitly or explicitly. I have yet to hear someone criticizing his viewpoint. I believe this is less the fact that they agree with him and more so the fact that they want to be "politically correct". In today's age, political correctness means agreeing with anti-Christian bigots, but not tolerating any form of religious observance.

The man identifies himself as a former Catholic so most of his venom is targeted in that direction. Of course, he beats the same dead horses, such as the clergy sex abuse scandal. But he also seems to have gone very deep in atheist teachings, and mocks the Eucharist, belief in God (especially the God of the Bible), Jesus, Mary, etc.

He doesn't simply disagree with these topics, he mocks them, laughs at them, and presents them in a very vulgar and distasteful way.

As an example, he was speaking to a co-worker about someone's wedding. Apparently a friend or family member of his called him about the wedding and said it will be at a Catholic Church. On the phone, he mocked the ceremony, including the format and the use of wine and unleaven bread. Later, when speaking to a co-worker and mocking Catholic marriage preparation. He claims the marriage prep course said a man cannot touch a woman in a sexual way and the only "acceptable" action is direct intercourse for the purpose of procreation.

After laughing about this thoroughly, he added: "you can tell this stuff was made up by guys who don't have sex" ... "well, except for with altar boys". To which the guy he was speaking with responded: "Yeh, they had that system down to a T!"

This is considered acceptable. In fact, someone would appear "odd" if they openly disagreed with the comments made.

The only conversation topic which this man prefers is that of fast food. He has at least one very in depth conversation per day on the topic of fast food. The topics get rather specific. Such as his favorite type of cheese on a pizza, how long he likes to microwave leftover fast food, etc.

I'm not attacking him personally. I'm just saying I find his two main conversation topics kind of strange.

I would implore anyone of faith to speak to these individuals when they have a chance. Tell them you disagree with what they are saying. Refrain from laughing. Speak the truth. You will probably be criticized and harrassed, but this is a small price to pay.

Is the Catholic Church a protector of Muslim freedom of worship?

In France, the Catholic Church is speaking out against a ban on full veils for Muslim women. I'm not an expert in Islam, but I believe the correct term for this face covering is the Niqab. Another common piece of clothing is called burqa, which I believe refers to an entire set of clothing worn by Muslim women.

In any event, the Catholic Church in France is against plans to ban these face covering veils. The reason is they feel in order for full rights to be granted to Christians to practice their beliefs in Muslim countries, the opposite must be granted as well.

Right now in Saudi Arabia, North Korea, and several other countries, practice of Christianity and specifically Catholicism is banned completely and anyone caught worshipping is strictly dealt with. In other countries, such as China and some Middle Eastern countries, the practice of Catholicism is seriously curtailed. The Catholic Church is striving for religious freedom in all parts of the world. They do not want any hindrance on their faithful practice. Therefore, they believe religion must be free and thus oppose efforts to curtail this freedom.

Another example of the church's fight for freedom of worship is its stance against banning new minarets in Switzerland. The Swiss people, in a referendum, banned any new development of Islamic minarets in the country. The Church spoke out against this as well.

This is an appropriate and well thought-out move by the church. The Church realizes that with true freedom, Christianity will grow. Also, many Christians now live in oppresive states where they are not free to worship. But it would be ironic to only advocate freedom of religion for Catholics. Therefore, the Church stands up for religious freedom of all people.

The Church is not afraid of the Truth, because the Church proclaims the Truth which is Jesus Christ. Therefore, if there is worldwide freedom of religion, there is bound to be an increase of Catholic faithful, as people seek the truth.

For more on the situation in France, please view: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/02/world/europe/02briefs-France.html

I now have EWTN!

Yesterday I had digital cable installed. About an hour later, I called in to have EWTN activated. I'm really glad I did. It costs $2.79 per month, but is worth much more than that. When it came on, they were at the Vatican, where Pope Benedict was celebrating the Feast of the Presentation of Our Lord in the Temple.

Non-Catholics

I was just watching a debate between a Christian and an atheist. They both made their respective points. So I decided to make a blog posting about non-Catholics. As everyone knows, I am Catholic. So what is my relationship with others, and my feelings about them? I want to spend some time speaking of the good aspects of non-Catholics.

Atheists:
They seek the truth and love science. Atheists are seekers like Christians. Many are good people and many make contributions in their own ways. Some atheists have made contributions to science and to other fields. They have logical minds. Sometimes it may seem I am angry with atheists, and often I will receive angry messages from people who seem to be atheist. In fact, according to the survey on my blog, I get more atheist viewers than Catholic. I am not angry with atheists. I only want for them what I believe is best, what I believe will bring most joy.

Muslims:
Believers in the one God. Muslims have strict morals and are known for praying five times a day and doing what they believe God asks of them. They also share a love of Jesus and Mary.

Jews:
The first to believe in the One True God. They were chosen by God to carry his message. Today, we receive much from them including their Scriptures. Jesus and the some Apostles were Jewish.

Hindu:
Hindus are also lovers of truth and wisdom. They place great value on family and community. Gandhi is a well known Hindu who advocated peace.

Buddhists:
They seek peace and meditation. I will admit I do not have much contact with Buddhists, but they adhere to principles of non-violence.

Protestants:
Great love for God and his Holy Scriptures. We see them as our brothers and sisters, though separate and pray for future unity.

Jesus called everyone into his fold, and so who am I to reject others? Jesus prayed for unity, and that's my prayer also. Everyone is a child of God, whether or not they are believers. We do not need to convert someone, we just need to make them aware of their calling. The calling comes from God and once they hear it, the process will take care of itself.

St. Thomas Aquinas

It's just after midnight where I am, and therefore officially January 28th, and the Feast Day of St. Thomas Aquinas. Aquinas is one of my favorite saints. He wrote a book on theology which is 3 times the size of the Bible called the Summa Theologica. He had such an amazing mind and loved God with all his heart. I may write more about him soon.

Fearless Pope during the Black Plague

Today is the 667th anniversary of the publication of Pope Clement VI's papal bull Unigenitus. In it, he explains indulgences and justifies their use. As I was reading Clement's biography, some things stood out as exemplary. He was the pope during the black plague in Europe, which killed between 1/3 and 2/3 of the population of Europe. The pope consulted with many people, including astronomers and doctors to see if they could find a cure. Many people blamed the Jews for the outbreak, and it was a very popular public opinion, but Clement condemned this belief and said those who blamed the Jews were being influenced by Satan.

Clement also tended to those with the illness, without fear that he would contract it himself. This is similar to the early Christians. In early times, some plagues swept through the Roman Empire. Pagan Romans tried to save their own lives and did not provide much care to family and friends. The Christians however, not fearing death, risked their lives to help their brethren. Ironically this helped the Christians live. The reason is that these diseases were not necessarily deadly if proper care was given. However, left alone a person had a much greater chance of dying. So, the Christians, by helping each other, survived. Also, the caretakers would develop an immunity to the diseases. After this had occurred several times, the proportion of Christians in the Roman Empire increased substantially.

Back to Clement. He also did not get the disease, even though he cared for those who were ill. There are many good things about Clement's life which are worth emulating.

Pope embraces technology

In a speech, Pope Benedict encouraged priests to use the internet to spread the Gospel. This harkens back to the time of the apostles when they traveled to far off lands to spread the good news. Although he was speaking to priests, the message is for all Catholics. I'm glad that my blog is able to reach a lot of people.

Check out more on this story at: http://www.digitaltrends.com/computing/pope-wants-priests-to-become-web-savvy/?news=123