Peter at The Ark and the Dove was disgusted by a recent Newsweek article anticipating President Obama’s meeting with the pope. I read it, and though I did not respond with the same revulsion, I was distressed.
I am very proud to be from Maryland (I brought my flag up from Alabama specifically to decorate my dorm room for the summer), but things like that article make me ashamed. Not only is Kathleen Kennedy Townsend a vocally pro-choice Catholic Democrat, but she was the lieutenant governor of Maryland. Back before I really started learning and caring about my faith, I’m pretty sure I campaigned for her outside the primary polls to earn community service hours. Oops.
Townsend’s political and religious conflicts aside, this article is an excellent reminder that the Catholic Church in the United States does not control the world. Catholicism sustained itself just fine long before there was a single Protestant colony, let alone this country. (And Maryland was the Catholic colony!) It may be true that 54% of American Catholics voted for Obama, but Obama is not in charge of the Church, and neither are the people that voted for him. Similarly, American Catholics’ thinking that something is right does not make it so.
Townsend writes that, in Humanae Vitae (which, incidentally, I just printed the other day), “authority—not truth, not love—prevailed.” Does she think you can’t be authoritative, truthful, and loving at the same time? I think I know a guy who did that. His name was Jesus, and to any Catholic worth her salt, Jesus left the pope in charge. If Townsend really believes that Obama wants nothing more than “polite disagreement”—that is, that he doesn’t want the pope to change his views—then why bother making this statement? However, if she doesn’t think Obama wants a change from the Vatican, then this article simply proves that, no matter what changes Americans want, Rome will do what is right.
Tags: Blog-Hopping, Catholicism
T. O. at LAMLand relays a priest friend’s story about old Catholic habits that die hard. I guess it goes to show how much the Church ingrains itself into our lives. No matter how hard you try to fight him, God will get to you. Once a follower, always a follower.
Fr. Bill, when I emailed the post to him, replied, “Who’s to say the man wasn’t still a Catholic? We have a few sots in our lot.” It takes all sorts.
Tags: Blog-Hopping, Catholicism
Disbelief: what I feel at having been linked from SwitchFeed. I love Switchfoot; they’re my favorite band. I was delighted to find Switchfeed, and I thought it was really cool when they went official. Never, ever did I think that I would find myself linked in SwitchFeed, and therefore linked from Switchfoot.com. Never!
Here’s what my site traffic looked like in response:
This is the coolest thing that has happened to me since I was personally blessed by Archbishop Wuerl.
Yeah, I’m a great big Catholic nerd, but if this is what happens to Catholic nerds, I say, bring it on!
Tags: Blog-Hopping, Entertainment
Some of my favorite Catholics are converts. I can only imagine what an experience it must be to come from some other religious tradition (or none!) to the truth of the Holy Catholic Church.
That said, I love it even more when converts and I think alike. Somehow, I stumbled across a link to “How and Why I Am Becoming Catholic,” by Pete of Fortune Favors the Bold. I was struck by two things in particular from his converting story. First, he read St. Thomas Aquinas without getting bogged down in it. Even I’m not that brave. Second, he recommends Catholicism for Dummies. I love that book!
Congratulations on your decision, Pete. I’ll save the “welcome” for next March.
Tags: Blog-Hopping, Catholicism
My first super-cool blog moment was being mentioned in the National Catholic Register, albeit under my old title and at my old URL on Blog*Spot. Today I had my second: I’m in a podcast! I submitted my entry on the Eucharistic Congress to the Catholic Carnival, and The Catholic Underground mentioned it in their podcast! Clearly, I needed to re-add that “About Me” section to the sidebar sooner, but still. I’m in a podcast! Yay!
Tags: Blog-Hopping, Catholicism
