Gutsy Catholic Mom

Please see our latest addition: Dorothy's Gutsy Catholic Mom. It's right at the bottom of the list, as I am having some difficultly with its feed.

Blog Added

Check out the new blog added: Mittermeier: A Catholic's Journey to Physical Wellbeing here.

Michael from Newman

Michael from Newman Theological College in Alberta blogs at The School Bus on the Road to Emmaus. See it here.

Another Blogger from the East

Thanks to Julie for directing me to Mama P's Musings.

A Blogger from Newfoundland

Eric blogs at Sign of Contradiction.

Freedom Today

Today is Remembrance Day. It's a funny kind of day. How so - it commemorates the fallen dead, like Pericles' Funeral Oration of a latter day - a very sensible act, no?

It is a funny kind of day, unusual, in that it is a day that demands a common objective morality, which in the modern West is a funny thing, indeed. You cannot really sit on the fence today and there seems to be no easy way to dissent from the utter morality of "the cause." Sure, pacifists are want to register some kind of objection on this day, but they are lost in their rather silly incomprehension: they do not understand that Remembrance Day is not the glorification of war, but the lamentation of its necessity. I have never heard a veteran refer to the World Wars and Korea as "the good old days." Grimness and solemnity are such rare things in our culture. The one exposure we get of it no matter one's walk of life in Canada is November the 11th, especially on the faces of the veterans and the families of the fallen, on the faces of the comprehending. This is the day of objective morality. We shall not hesitate to string you up if you dishonour our honoured dead. And it is good to have a line in the sand, O society!

So, the Catholic, how does he fit in? All my friends and wider 'associates' are Catholic, nearly bar none. The importance they accord Remembrance Day is heartening. I think that they hold it in greater reverence than non-Catholics, and especially non-Christians. The honouring of our ancestors is innately Catholic and conservative. Liberal guilt is, on the contrary, innately uncomfortable with seeing any good in the past, a past, that is, that is other than Rousseau's fictitious fancy land of the state of nature. Under the misleading influence of their god's, Karl Marx's, hermeneutic of suspicion, they cannot believe other than that all that came forth from dead white men was bad.

How should our day of objective morality pay out today still? In many ways, of course. Not to take our freedoms for granted, to remember to honour and care for our veterans, to promote peace and freedom in the world at large, etc.

What kind of politics does it inspire? Libertarianism - isn't that the fullness of this cult of freedom, after all? No, not quite. I think a great many of the fallen fought for Christianity, or at least the Christian principles encased in our Canadian way of life, circa 1914 and 1939. They did not fight and die for freedom in the abstract. They fought for the type of life they loved - which was to a great extent Christian. They did not believe in a type of society where one should be fined or imprisoned for believing that, for instance, marriage was a sacred bond between a man and a woman, and that abortion was a horrendous crime. Our honoured dead wanted us to have the freedom to live the good life as they understood it. That excluded Hitler and that excluded Stalin, and that excluded the present war against Christianity of which those two were a part.

Remembrance Day is not freedom day. It is objective morality day for which one should be willing to die.

The Catholic Review of Books

I am very excited to announce the creation of a new journal to feature reviews of all sorts of books from the perspectives of Catholics. It will be a quarterly journal, with reviews of all the latest books - from the great Catholic publishers, New York Times Best Sellers, older treasures, books for children and young readers - all presented by trustworthy Catholic reviewers.

To participate, to subscribe, to donate, and/or encourage, please email me at:

catholicreviewofbooks@hotmail.com

or

kerrcolin@hotmail.com


Your prayers are crucial to the success of this venture!

I am especially eager for book review submissions. For guidelines, please email me.

The website will be up and running soon.

Please 'like' The Catholic Review of Books on Facebook!

A Non-Latin Rite Day

I am glad to add Fr. Alexander Laschuk's blog. Please visit it here.

Anglican Use Ordinariates

One of the most significant developments in English-speaking Catholicism in recent years was Benedict's XVI's establishment of Anglican Use Ordinariates.

Paul Nicholls blogs about this and related issues in Oshawa, at his blog, The Anglican Use of the Catholic Church/Oshawa Franciscan Blog. Please see it here.

About this, he writes:

A personal ordinariate [of Anglican Use] is a canonical structure within the Catholic Church in accordance with the apostolic constitution Anglicanorum Coetibus of 4 November, 2009.The text of this document is available on the Holy See's  website, as are also the complementary norms of the same date. This canonical structure enables Anglicans  to enter into full communion with the Church of Rome, while maintaining some degree of corporate identity and autonomy with regard to the geographical dioceses for other Catholics of the Latin Church  while  preserving elements of their distinctive Anglican spiritual and liturgical heritage.

and he adds:

Four former Anglican priests  have had their rescripts signed by the Holy Father, Pope Francis. They  are Douglas Hayman and Kipling Cooper (The Annunication, Ottawa), John Hodgins (St. Thomas More, Toronto), and James Tilley (The Good Shepherd, Oshawa). Colin O’Rourke is now a seminarian of the Diocese of Calgary, and is currently spending a year at a seminary in the United States. We are hopeful that he will be ordained priest next summer, and have faculties for the Ordinariate. We continue to await good news from the CDF in Rome for Michael Shier (OLW, Vancouver), David Skelton (St Benedict, Edmonton), and Richard Harris (Our Lady of the Sign, Fredericton Junction). Praise God for the good news from Rome last week.

Thanks, for your participation in the Society of Canadian Catholic Bloggers. I look forward to hearing more good news from you.

A Thought about Life

From St. Gregory of Nyssa:

Which was the better way?--never to have brought our nature into existence at all, since He foresaw that the being about to be created would fall away from that which is morally beautiful; or to bring him back by repentance, and restore his diseased nature to its original beauty?

(The Great Catechism, 8)

Another Blog

Introducing Edmund Lo, who writes at Elodocuments.

Piety towards the Pope

One thing that needs to be revisited, in light of the recent trend of right-wingers feeling all too comfortable with criticizing the Holy Father (for shame when the left does it, though!), is our religious duty towards him.

Back when it was John Paul II being criticized for his stance on women's ordination or contraception, that one had a religious duty to honour the pope with a sort of awful silence was bandied around fairly steadily. But I have a feeling that it is the very same people who were saying this who are now calling a different tune.

A priest I know, very 'old school,' so to speak, has a simple rule, he never ever criticizes his superiors. He has a mind - a rather sharp one in fact - and has very definite views on life - and thus is aware of so many things going on that are not to his liking. But for the decade or so that I have known him I have never heard him say anything critical about his superiors - this would include priests, bishops, and the pope. Some might want to jump in at this point and say, "Well, this is the kind of attitude that led to Mt. Cashel, Boston and Ireland..." But in this priest's defense, what I am talking about is the kind of idle chat-chat criticism that we all do too readily, not things of grave moral import.

The question is, who do we think we are? Bloggers, arm-chair theologians, canon-lawyers, historians and politicians. What possesses us to offer an opinion on the acts of the pope? Seriously. I am not accusing, I am asking, why do we do it?

Well, for starters, I criticize my wife, my children, my parents, my (former) teachers, my brothers, my prime minister, my bishop, my pastor, etc. So, why not the pope?

Is it possible to actually live in the world and not criticize one's superiors, by which I mean my parents and pastors? By is it possible, I mean is it morally beneficial? I generally believe in meritocracy. But a pope is a pope by virtue of his election and his acceptance of the office, of course, not in virtue of his moral stature. He does not nullify this distinction by refusing to act in accordance with the graces of office.

One must, however, understanding the true nature of the office in question. Americans are too comfortable, I believe, with the idea that they should not criticize a president while in office. I think etiquette is extremely important, and so no coarse or degrading language should ever be used, but I also believe that democratic offices are merit-based, and so should stand up to scrutiny or be nullified. I assume that if we follow the bare measure of etiquette, then an office can be criticized but not dishonoured. Indeed, part of the honouring of the office is utilizing the freedom of speech that office is meant to protect by criticizing the holder of it. Criticism does not mean degradation. One has a moral duty not to degrade anyone, of course, and so the question is, does the office deserve special respect?

Parenthood, political authority and ecclesiastical authority are all different, and are supposed to 'govern' different spheres. If a politician tells me how to parent, he is operating outside of his jurisdiction. If a pope tells my kids when to go to bed, he is outside of his. Political office is merit-based and temporary, the other two are not supposed to be.

What kind of things are people criticizing the pope for? Right now, various statements the specific context of which cannot be guaranteed. Now some people are afraid he is going to overturn the indissolubility of marriage! They are concerned that he is minimizing the importance of the abortion and homosexual issues. I think this sort of thing is equivalent to my children telling me that I am parenting incorrectly. The only difference is that my children are not adults. This difference means that, in the case of adults we presume that they have arrived at their opinions reasonably, that they have a right to them, but not necessarily to voicing them in a critical fashion, against dad or against pope.

Also, no parent agrees with how another person parents in every way - not even spouses! There is something good about not agreeing on everything; something disturbing when one never disagrees. That does not mean that in every case I should make my disagreement known. Sometimes, maybe. When asked, perhaps; when not asked, only in grave situations. I don't know if that is a good rule for criticizing the pope, but this is to move towards something I am comfortable with.

A pope is not immune from error, but should he be thought immune to my criticism? As a theologian, I have the ability to offer advice on a few matters, but only should do so when asked. As a theologian, I do  not see how I have a right or duty to criticize. As an adult, believing Catholic do I? What if the pope takes a mistress? It has happened. In that case, I do not see how the duty to rebuke would fall to some guy in the Ottawa Valley, and not to someone much nearer to hand. If they were not availing, then perhaps it would fall to me. But I think people need to know their place, and mine ever being to offer advice to the pope seems an unlikely scenario. The pope has advisors, the cardinals. I think it would be their job to 'criticize.' Failing their intervention, I could see a St. Catherine of Siena situation or a St. Bernard of Clairvaux situation being possible.

I am not arguing that a pope should never be challenged by anyone. I am arguing that in the case of the Vicar of Christ, those who should are of a number that does not include me. A father might need to hear the opinion of his oldest child. My pastor might need my advice, due to my proximity and specific competence; even my bishop might.

For the record, I have only once criticized my good friend, my metropolitan, and I regret it and apologized for it. Sure, I frequently think I am right, but love him enough to know (yes, love can bring knowledge) that among those things that he requires from me, criticism is not included.

So, yes, we bloggers are really smart, well-read and have breath-takingly insightful opinions, but have no right to make critical statement about the Holy Father. First of all, piety requires thinking the best of one's father. When you don't have all the facts, assume the best.

When you don't assume the best it is because you assume you know better, which means you do not think very highly of the person in question, or, even worse, you think quite highly of yourself.

______________________

One thing I can add, from my experience with leaders and sometimes as one, is that support is key for success. It's not that the criticism is always untrue, it is that the better thing to do is to build together. The person calling the shots needs to be supported by people even when it's not the way they would do it.

Suzanne

Lots of people have said some great things re. the Pope. I think Suzanne over at the Big Blue Wave is the winner, though. Read her thoughts here and here.

Our Lady, Great and Beautiful

Melanie posts this stunning picture of Our Lady on her blog. It is credited to Cameron Smith. I have never seen it before and don't know the artist. I just wanted to share it.

New Bloggers

I want to introduce a husband and wife, the Singhs: Jasbir, who writes here, and Lea, who writes here.

Additionally, a new friend of mine, David, writes here.

Let's Talk About it: The Decision

Dear Friends of SCCB,

I have decided that whatever good Sylvia's advocacy of sexual abuse victims has done and is doing, I tend to see it now as a private forum for victims, thus I do not think that its inclusion on the SCCB list aids that goal. Victims needs to express themselves, and don't need their every word measured and thrown back at them by people - like me - who are concerned about other goods, like reputations, etc. The same courtesy that I wanted extended to Bishop Wingle, I will extend to those who benefit from Sylvia's Site, by letting them be. This is the courtesy to exist in the manner they deem best. I too must let others be, and, as such, will no longer carry her blog on the SCCB list.

I wish all victims of sexual abuse every solace in Christ. I have not been the victim of this and can only imagine the toll it takes on people. The 'little' things I have suffered in life I find hard enough to carry. By comparison, I have nothing to compare... I hope that Sylvia will promote healing and justice. I hope we all can in our own ways.

A whole lot rests on who turns out to be correct - those who say Wingle's motives were nefarious or those who say they are benign. I had hoped that people would see that when it comes to 'guessing' it doesn't matter who turns out to be right. Philosophers often say that knowledge is justified belief. No one, in other words, who hasn't specific evidence upon which to base their assumption of his innocence or guilt has knowledge. They have a blind shot in the dark. It is either yes or no. It is luck to be correct in this case, not some special mystical knowledge. It is a disgusting vice to look at the colour of someone's clothing and feel the right to impugn their reputation; it is not graced insight. Some people make such guesses out of hurt, some out of hate. In neither case is it justified belief. In the end, if Wingle's supporters are correct, what do they gain? His detractors, what do they gain? Has anyone gained greater peace, or simply smug satisfaction?

Frankly, I find people's nosing into my character because I urge caution when making assumptions rather distasteful. (It happened again in the comments section of that blog.) I cannot contribute to anyone's healing on the internet. I will turn to prayer to do this and I will do this by walking with my hurt friends, hand-in-hand, in person. Arguing with people in com boxes can profit nothing. I like a good debate. But I have found that many do not, not in the hallowed halls of learning, not in boardrooms. I will not change my deep love of the principles by which I live - love of knowledge and the principles of the liberal democracy, as I understand them - because others cannot refrain from ad hominem attacks. I walk away to seek the fraternity of those who don't need to win at all cost, but who love truth, goodness, etc.

The SCCB is meant to be a celebration of Catholic life in Canada. No, I can't view the world through rose coloured glasses (that I rarely do!), but I must draw a line around certain excesses, like playing fast-and-loose with others' reputations. That's my call. Hopefully it's the correct one.

Let's Talk About it, Part II

There was some good feed back from a few people. Thanks. Please keep it coming.

So far, my opinion in a big fat 'Nay.' What has really moved me was the sudden implication that I have 'reason' for defending Bishop Wingle in the comments section of Sylvia's Site.

Yesterday I had written this in her comments section:

I find this entry a little disturbing. Very Stalin-esque. I hope I don’t actually have anything in common with someone who did something bad – like eat at the same fast-food restaurant!

Sure, we are all curious about Bishop Wingle’s sudden disappearance, but that gives us no right to make the kind of suggestion you seem to be making. What if he had a nervous breakdown? Is this helping him any?

Sylvia, gracious as always, responded:

I assure you there is nothing sinister in posting this information and asking a few questions. For the past three years many Catholics throughout Ontario have been wondering where Bishop Wingle is and why his sudden and mysterious disappearance. In this day and age that is not the way to deal with a resignation of this nature. He is a public figure. While many people in the Pembroke area may know exactly why the bishop resigned and where he has been and what he has been doing for the past three years, many more in the Pembroke area and beyond do not.

And then a little later a third party wrote:

Further to my previous statement, why are you so concerned about helping him, Colin? What about the victims down in the St. Catherines/Hamilton way. Do they not need help first? (Emphasis added by me) 

To which I then responded:

Invent your own reason for my ‘why.’ I guess I have something to hide. Maybe I too have done some shameful things…

Or, I just think it’s wrong to assume the worst about people.

And what about you, Mike, are you trying to divert attention away from yourself by attacking Wingle? Come to think about it, where were you the night of… I am starting to wonder about you.

Not good, my friends. It is not relevant why I am 'defending' Bishop Wingle, is it? Every Canadian has a moral obligation to presume innocence so long as it is remotely reasonable to do so. I know several people - even people I would consider friends - who have been hurt by abuse, clerical abuse. That too is irrelevant. Also, against many requests urging me to remove Sylvia from the blog roll, I kept her on for about two years. Even still my motives are suspect to some. How dare I defend a priest! I have friends who are victims of clerical abuse. I also have friends, dear friends, who are clergy. I do not have friends who are Muslim, but, even still, I certainly would not paint all Muslim with the jihad brush. 

In sum, people have all sorts of reasons for wanting to preserve their privacy. It is unethical to publicly provide the worst interpretation of this. 

Unless someone can really change my thinking at this point, Sylvia will be removed shortly.

All of this reminds me of a corny, but nevertheless poignant, episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation:

The clip makes more sense if you've seen the whole episode.

Let's Talk About it

Some of the members have expressed concern to me over the time of the Society's existence about Sylvia's Site. I have always had a 'wait and see' attitude, fueled in no small part by my desire to extend a little bit more slack toward the victim lobby than pure jurisprudential reason alone would allow. Today, however, I was rather disturbed by what I read in her latest post: read it here.

I have communicated with Sylvia a few times over the last few years and have always found her to be very humble and obliging. That has tended to reassure me. Yet I have read enough about justice going bad to have been really disturbed by the kind of things I was reading in this latest post.

I think more - much more - work needs to be done to clean out the Church, and in that regard I am 100% alongside the goal of her blog. Yet a blog is not a private sphere of private contemplation. Legislation is catching up with the internet and perhaps some day we will have a better idea of what constitutes online defamation, etc. But so far, a blogger seems to have a great deal of freedom to harm another's good reputation. I am practically libertarian when it comes to free speech, but fueling speculation that another person is perpetrating, or has perpetrated, illegal activities should be against the law, in my opinion. Frankly, priests don't have it easy these days, and it is the fault of the few bad apples, not the majority. Law is at its best when it serves to ensure every person receives due-process, including the presumption of innocence.

As many of you know, I spent one year in the seminary. When I announced my desire to become a priest, a family member, someone very dear to me, said, "I hope you don't become one of those molesters." Suspicion hurts. It is unchristian. But people are astronomically stupid, even the best of us. Because of human stupidity, we need law. Innocent people deserve it, and it is usually very difficult to sort out the innocent from the guilty - that is why the legal system is so expensive to run.

If you want to make sure that none of the guilty get away, you employ the tactics of someone like Joseph Stalin. But no one got away from Stalin, neither the innocent nor the guilty.

So, now that I have stacked the deck, I put the question out in the open, as all these things deserve to be: should I remove Sylvia's Site from the SCCB roll or not? I am all ears.

Catholic Insight Aboard

My favorite Canadian Catholic publication is now listed here. Please check out all the latest from their slew of great bloggers.

Updates on List

Welcome to Mr. Sergio Vereiro who writes at St. Pat's Youth Speak

And good-bye to some long defunct blogs...

My Third Pope is Like What?

Sure, I'm a convert, but I don't think that this fact comes into play for anyone in their mid-forties or under: Pope Francis is the third pope of our generation. And he's the first one not to fit into the neo-conservative, anti-spirit-of-Vatican-2 pope our very faith has come to rely upon, unfortunately. Sure he's orthodox - all popes are by definition - that's not my point. The point is, he's the first non-Ratzinger pope we've ever known, and we are having trouble making sense of that. The papal atmosphere that JP II and B XVI evoked doesn't seem to be present in our current Holy Father. Something else is. I know it's good, but I just don't know what it is! He is a great and loving man, but seems much more mortal than the previous two. Of course, he is making it difficult (on purpose, I believe - good for you, Holy Father!) for his Vatican handlers to create a pristine papal image for.

But of course, in the end, a simplistic view of the papacy is much easier to maintain with only two popes to fit into your mold than it is with three. I accept that the Holy Spirit is doing great things in Pope Francis. These simply don't fit the saint-theologian mold that I have constructed over these twenty or so years. Thank you, God, for this!

Maybe I am just growing up as a Catholic? I am moving beyond the superlative stage of my faith-life? You know what I mean, the need to have all aspects of your faith magnified: JP II was the most 'seen' human being in history, he is John Paul 'the Great', Ratzinger was the greatest pope-theologian since Gregory the Great, the Catholic Church is the oldest continuous institution in human history, the Catholic Religion is the largest in the world, our doctors of the Church are the smartest human beings in history, Catholic art and literature is greater than... you know the need for this kind of thing.

Certainly, Pope Francis is hard to fit into superlatives. He is the most South American pope ever... Don't you see, though, that this kind of thinking is not from God? The Holy Father's heart is pure and good. And even if it weren't, we'd still be obliged to say, thank-you, God, for Your tender mercies!

Open-Up Those Churches!

As the heat rages in Ontario, spiritual pilgrims should always count on a quiet afternoon retreat in a cool, stone church. Is your church open? Is your's cool and stone-walled?

Matter glorifies the Lord too.



This is Little Stone Church, Abernethy, Saskatchewan.

Got any cool churches for me to visit? Best if they have the Real Presence in 'em.

Santo Subito Subito!

Our Popes, In Picture

Unfortunately, there will be too few of these pictures, I am sure. If you contemplate what you are seeing, you will realize that at very few times in human history was such a picture possible - at no other time when the camera had been invented!

And here is one of my favorite shots. It's my desktop background:

Best Singing Group I've Heard in Church

I've been privileged to have heard David Rashed and his small group at the 5 pm mass at St. Dunstan's Cathedral in Charlottetown, PEI, these last two weeks. Rashed was a member of the band, Haywire, back in the day. This group epitomizes good liturgical music, even if Praise and Worship isn't your thing. I didn't think it was my thing until I heard them! Why I say they epitomize good liturgical music is that they actually serve the mass. The problem with talented artists is too often they allow themselves to become the focus of attention, because their spiritual development isn't synced with their musical development. But the members of Rashed's group are servants of the holy mass.

So if you are on the Island this summer, please take in that mass. You won't regret it.

I have a soft spot for St. Dunstan's - not because of its beauty - it is beautiful! - but because Anne-Marie and I were married there, nearly fourteen years ago.

Some House Cleaning

Gotta get rid of some old blogs that have fallen by the wayside.

If you are erased, send me an email when and if you are going to start writing again...

A Deacon Joins the Throng

Deacon Chuck joins us at Thoughts from Theophilus.

Two New Blogs

Catholic Canuck writes here.

And this is the Newman Centre's the U of T.

If you know of any of Canadian Catholic blogs, email me!

New Priest-Blogger

Fr. Blake blogs in the Ottawa Archdiocese. Welcome aboard and God's blessing on your priestly ministry.

New from T.O.

I was recently sent the link to this blog. Check out Tanya here.

New Addition

I've been very slow to update.

Here is our new member:

Pious Posers are writing from Alberta and Vancouver Island.


I also recently received an email from Neil Wedin who would like one of us to review this book:

Hello,

This April we are publishing a book on the life and art of Father Dunstan Massey. The book is called The Artist in the Cloister: The Life and Works of Father Dunstan. Father Massey lives at the Abbey in Mission, British Columbia where he studies and works on his incredible artwork.

I thought the book might be of interest to some of your bloggers. While there was a film made about Father Massey ,this is the first comprehensive book about him.  While the book will not be available for a couple of months, I could send you a PDF of the book for review purposes. The book will be available throughout North America and early response has been exceptional.

Thank you for your time; should you like more information or a copy of either the PDF or the finished book in April, please let me know. And please feel free to send my email or contact information to your bloggers.

Best regards,
Neil Wedin

-- 
Neil Wedin
neil@heritagehouse.ca
Media + Marketing 
Heritage House 
250.370.9964

Pope Francis

I know next-to-nothing about our new shepherd, but I look forward to learning about him, and following and supporting his ministry on behalf of the Holy Church. I am excited, not for the trivial reasons journalists proffer: place of origin, etc., but because he seems like such a good man. No, not the theologian Benedict XVI was, but a holy man like Benedict? It appears so. Let us trust that that was what the Holy Spirit was up to with this choice.

I Like Cardinal Ouellet

Not my favourite source for Catholic reading, but like a dirty pearl in a rotten clam, John Allen has an informative column on this papabile today. Not a flattering column, but honest. Cardinal Ouellet is the man for me.

Read the article here.

An Amazing Catholic Evening

If you are planning to be in Ottawa Saturday, February 2nd (Presentation of the Lord, aka Groundhog Day) and want to have an amazing night, why not come to Maryvale Academy's Gala? Present will be His Grace, Archbishop Prendergast, and Brian Lilly - yes, that Brian Lilly! He will be the evening's emcee. I am so excited! To find out more about getting tickets to my school's major fundraiser, please call the school at 613-321-2186.