Firm Foundation or Total Collapse?

NB.  I have a lot of really good reasons why this homily is so bad. . .unfortunately, none of those reasons rise to the level of a decent excuse.  Oh well. . .

23rd Week OT (S)

Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP

Blackfriars, Oxford U.

Just in case you aren't keeping up with the latest fashions from Paris and New York, I thought you should know that foundations are out. I'm not taking about undergarments here or makeup but rather the sorts of foundations that purport to “hold up” our humane efforts toward exploring, describing, and explaining our world—that is, foundations like reason, God, reality, language, that sort of thing. Somewhere along the way, back in the early 60's, someone—no doubt, someone French—decided that “founding” the truth of our various claims to know stuff about the world was just slightly less embarrassing than wearing white socks with sandals. Can anyone who claims that their knowledge of the world is based on a sound foundation be taken seriously? No. No more seriously than someone who rinses mushrooms before the saute or pairs a winter fruit with a summer cheese! Now, of course, the arguments against foundationalism are more complex and serious than I'm letting on. However, the essential attraction of anti-foundationalism is less about its rational appeal and more about the alleged liberty it confers on the hearts and minds of its followers and the stamp of trendy approval that that alleged liberty imparts. Without a foundation, without foundations of any kind, the human heart and mind is supposedly freed to create, re-create, adapt, evolve, transfigure; to do and to be anything that the imagination can conjure. Attractive idea? Oh, yes. But remember, “When the river burst against [the house built w/o a solid foundation], it collapses at once and is completely destroyed." 

While some have been busy these last few decades or so dismantling the literary, philosophical, and theological traditions of the West—all sturdy suppliers of foundational materials—, the destructive force of the flooding river has only increased in strength. That's right. The storm hit; the waters started to rise; the dams broke; and rather than turn to the time-tested solutions found in God, reason, and revelation, some of us belly-flopped on the first wave in and try to ride the tide, all the while claiming that there is no danger, no destruction, no imminent collapse of culture. There can't be any danger b/c there are no foundations upon which to make such outrageous claims about the “truth.” Just narratives, texts, perspectives, and feelings—all fleeting, always in flux, unstable by nature, and one no more true than any other. 

Some of our contemporaries in the Church have bought into an anti-foundationalist version of the faith. The historic Christian faith is just a set of stories we tell one another, a set of literary texts we use to motivate ourselves to be better people. But can a 21st century Christian navigate a healthy course to real holiness w/o a rock-solid foundation in Christ? Of course not! Listen again to Paul writing to Timothy: “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.” The Word becomes Flesh, a man like one of us. An historical event. An historical event with a divine purpose, to save sinners. Yes, there's a story to tell and a text to dissect and a couple of different perspectives involved in the retelling. . .but we are telling, retelling, and dissecting an event. An event that makes our salvation possible and establishes a large piece of the foundation for our faith. Without this piece, without the incarnation, there is no Christ for us to be perfected into. The river floods its banks, bursts the dams, and our houses collapse and are completely destroyed. And why? B/c we built them—and our faith—on ground w/o a firm foundation. We listen to Christ, but we do not obey. We hear and do not act. Why would we call Christ “Lord” and then refuse to obey him? How exactly is he our Lord if we cannot/will not obey his commands? The firm foundation of our holiness is obedience to Christ—that is, listening to his Word and acting on his Word. There's nothing trendy, fashionable, or even all that practical about this sort of obedience. Unless of course you consider life everlasting in the presence of the Most High practical.

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On not running on empty

23rd Week OT (T)

Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP

Blackfriars, Oxford U.

The artists, poets, musicians, novelists, and all the other demiurges of the 20th century culture-machine were deeply influenced by the “twin idols [of] humanism and nihilism. . .” So notes literary critic Joel Brouwer back in 2009. He goes on to observe that the simultaneous worship of the Human and Nothingness creates “an impossible religion. . .” When the reality of all things is measured by the human, and yet—at the same time—life is lived as if nothing is truly real, then what it means to be human is reduced to nothingness. Perhaps we should borrow an epitaph from the 5th century B.C. philosopher, Gorgias and use it for ourselves: "Nothing exists; and even if something does exist, nothing can be known about it; and even if something can be known about it, knowledge about it cannot be communicated to others." This is the sort of “seductive philosophy” that Paul warns the Colossians about in our reading today; this is the sort of empty thinking that left the Ephesians “without hope and without God. . .” until they encountered Christ. And—despite all of our advances as rational creatures in the 2,300 years since Gorgias' death—his is the sort of nihilistic thinking/believing that continues to poison our hearts and minds against the beauty of our redemption, against the truth and goodness of our renovated lives in Christ Jesus. What is the truth of our salvation? Paul writes, “For in [Christ] dwells the whole fullness of the deity bodily, and you share in this fullness in him. . .” 

If this is true (and it is), then it is fairly easy to see how the Church—as she goes about proclaiming the Good News—sets herself against the spirit of this age, sets herself against the wisdom and traditions of men, the seductive philosophies and empty thinking of this world. Let's break it down. The whole fullness of the deity dwells bodily in Christ. You and I were buried with him in baptism, a baptism in which we were also raised with him through faith in the power of God. And b/c we were buried with him and raised with him, we share in the fullness of the divine that dwells in him. Now, excuse my Mississippi English. . .but that ain't NOTHING, folks! It's not Nothing. But it's more than just something. It's everything. Because even when we were dead in our transgressions and in the uncircumcision of our flesh, he forgave us all our transgressions and brought us to life along with him. He brought us along with him. To life everlasting. . .he brought us along with him.

Yes, Christ brings us along, but we must follow. And we cannot follow Christ if we worship the twin idols of humanism and nihilism, if we practice the impossible religion of making man the measure of all things and at the same time believing that there are no existing things out there to measure! Those who gather around Jesus and the newly appointed apostles know that they need to touch the Christ; they know that he is the source of healing and cure for their diseases. Luke reports, “Everyone in the crowd sought to touch Jesus because power came forth from him and healed them all.” Power came forth from him. Virtus. Strength. Excellence. Vigor. The crowd knew his strength. They sought it out. And when they were healed, they went out as witnesses testifying to his power. Jesus gathered followers because he always spoke the truth, always radiated goodness and strength, and pointed always back to his Father as the Source of all life. If we are follow him to where he would bring us, we must do the same, rejecting the emptiness of this age's thinking, walking in him, rooted in him, built upon him and established in the faith, abounding always in thanksgiving!

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PoMo Christ & the Church

A few weeks back, I rec'd a request for a short reading list on postmodernist theory and its uses in Christian theology.  There are hundreds of books that tackle this subject.  Here are just a few in no particular order:

Myron Penner (ed.), Christianity and the Postmodern Turn:  Six Views.

Peter J. Leithart, Solomon Among the Postmoderns.

Millard J. Erickson,  Truth or Consequences:  The Promise and Perils of Postmodernism.

Graham Ward, The Postmodern God:  A Theological Reader.  (NB.  This is heavy-duty theology)

James A. K. Smith, Who's Afraid of Postmodernism?: Taking Derrida, Lyotard, and Foucault to Church.

Keep in mind that each book has its own bibliography. . .so, check these out as well. 



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Coffee Cup Browsing

Once again, the Inquisition of the Church of Global Warming gets its pound of flesh from a heretic. 

On how to deal with those Protestant ministers posing as Catholic priests in Austria. 

A good piece on the Polish Dominicans serving in Manhattan. 

It's hard to find Good Goons these days. 

More on that New Tone in American politics.  Did you hear that big yawn from the MSM?

What Do Philosophers Believe?  (Well, who counts as a "philosopher" and what do you mean by "believe"?)  :-)  Just practicing. . .

I laughed at this. . .then realized that it's pretty dumb. . .and laughed again.

Dad needs to refresh his parenting skills. . .

First World Riots vs. Third World Riots

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The New Translation on this Side of the Pond

Catholics all over England and Wales started using the new English translation of the Mass yesterday.  

We followed along here at Blackfriars.  

Besides the stack of new books to juggle in the choir stalls and the occasional slip up with "And also with you," everything went well.  

One thing I noticed. . .for most of the Mass I was lost; that is, I kept having to stop and think about where we were in the liturgy.  All the familiar verbal cues were gone, so keeping track of where we were was a matter of actually concentrating on the content of what we were praying and not just the Cue Words. 

Another American friar visiting the priory noted that the text of the new translation sounds better when prayed in a posh Brit accent. . .so, maybe Americans should start practicing their Received Pronunciation!

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Coffee Cup Browsing

Apologies for the lack of blogging lately.  I'll try to do better this week!

10 Things B.O. Should've Done Differently.  No. 11:  "Stayed in Chicago in 2008 and got a real job."

Vouchers free parents to abandon the union-infested classrooms of the public schools in IN.  Guess where they are going?  Catholic schools!

"Castle Doctrine" might be coming to a county in WI.  I agree with one commenter:  if you're in my house without permission, you're a threat.  This doesn't mean I would shoot you. . .it just means that I'm not legally obligated to run through a cost-benefit analysis of whether or not to shoot you.

Fascinating piece on the role of new social media in the Arab uprisings. . .

What will be "off the table" in the 2012 election? 

Wow. . .this captures my flying experiences perfectly!  The only thing I would add is a panel on sitting in the plane with no A/C for an hour in the Texas heat. 

Adding a little black & white fun to otherwise blah photos. . .I especially like the dinosaur one.

Dust Bunnies attack some poor guy's computer.  Evil, evil bunnies.

Hundreds of beautiful/disturbing/weird pics. . .some are R-rated. 


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New Angelicum video

A new promotional video about the Pontifical University of St Thomas Aquinas in Rome.

Please link to the video here or on Youtube. . .get the word out!





The narrator is Fr. Dominic Holtz, OP a Central Province USA friar.

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Can you hear me now. . .?

Beheading of St. John the Baptist

Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP

Blackfriars, Oxford U.

The feasts and memorials of John the Baptist always rile me up for some reason. Maybe it's my Southern Baptist's root reasserting themselves. Whatever it is that winds me up about John, one question swims through the murk of my agitation and demands a response: Can we hear the voice of a prophet anymore? Over and through our texting, IM's, cell-phones, iPod earbuds, and the constant hum of civilization's commercial white noise, could we recognize a prophet's voice if we heard it? And if we could hear such a voice and recognize it as a prophet's voice, would we understand the message? Can we even speak Prophetese anymore? These questions were provoked by Mark's account of John's beheading. Nota bene: Herod fears John. Despite this fear, the king keeps the prophet out of hands of a wrathful queen by putting him in prison. And even though John greatly perplexes the king by preaching against his royal marriage, Herod listens to him gladly b/c he considers John to be a righteous and holy man. Thus, when the king is compelled by the terms of a hastily taken oath to have John executed, he is exceedingly sorry. Now, what blows me away about this account of John's execution is that Herod knows John is a genuine prophet. The king can hear John speaking God's Word to him. He understands what John is saying. He even seems to enjoy listening to John berate him for his adultery! Sure, he's perplexed by John's admonitions, but he listens. 

Do we? Listen, that is. Can we listen to a prophet? Will we listen to a prophet? It is standard procedure these days to describe our hyperactive culture as “addicted to crisis,” or “exhausted by emergencies,” or “numb to catastrophe.” A daily news cycle in the U.S. isn't complete unless a talking-media-head solemnly announces that something/someone is verging on collapse, teetering on the brink of extinction, just moments from annihilation. When every moment of your life is a crisis, every second of your day an emergency. . .well, it's going to become very easy to grow immune to prophetic voices, even when those voices belong to genuine God-sent prophets. Can we filter out the white noise, all the clamoring, and listen for voices raised in the name of God, listen for words spoken in hope to show us our way back to God? And that's the key, isn't it? Hope. What CNN, the BBC, the NYT, and all the rest lack in their frantic, doomsday reporting is the virtue of Hope. Prophets hope. And prophets manifest that Hope in their words and deeds before God's people. This is what Herod saw in John. The prophet's complete reliance on the truth; his complete trust in the hope that Christ made flesh. John didn't prophesy to Herod for money or fame. He didn't speak the truth to Herod to score political points or get a boost in his poll numbers. He spoke the truth to Herod b/c Herod needed—more than anything at that moment—to hear the voice of his father urging him back onto the righteous path. IOW, Herod needed to know that his salvation was not lost; he was not lost. . .there is always hope. 

So, can we hear, recognize, and understand a prophet's voice if we happen to hear one over the banging, clanging, booping and beeping of our hyperactive lives? We can, of course, if we will. Silence is helpful. But even more helpful is your absolute commitment to the virtue of hope. Without it, a genuine prophetic message is going to sound like just another siren, just another alert, just another doomsday prediction. Hope is your white noise filter; hope filters the pollution of despair.

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Coffee Cup Browsing (Better Late Than Never Edition)

Frugality during a recession is for the Little People, i.e. NOT for Michelle and B.O.   Note well:  we have to get this info from a Brit newspaper.

This is what the U.K. has come to. . .according to the moonbats in the U.K., if you join a group of neighbors to help clean up the streets after a riot, you're "scum."  What's moonbattier than a moonbat?

"Tattooed gargoyles raised on antisocial entertainment, instant gratification, socialist dogma and empty materialism."  OUCH!

Italy getting her financial house in order?  I predict more riots/strikes.  Maybe I should just stay in the U.S.  Of course, I've always wanted to witness a riot first hand.

Heh.  The Dems have chosen to hold their 2012 convention in a Right to Work state, S. Carolina.  National unions are balking.  Of course, the unions have no where else to go politically, so let them whine.

Actual political violence vs. the Imaginary Violence of Lefty's Getting Their Feelings Hurt.

Earthquake rattles D.C.  Is Jesus trying to tell us something? 

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Shout out

Mama Becky told me that HancAquam has a fan working with her at the local bank and that I should say hello to her next time I am blogging. . .so, here's a HA Shout Out to:

Bubba Sue!

Is that a Mississippi name or what?  :-)   It just sounds like fried catfish and pecan pie. . .

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Arrived in the U.K.

Made it to Oxford, UK!

No problems at all. . .well, a Sikh immigration officer at Heathrow grilled me rather mercilessly about my travel plans.  It was like an episode from NCIS with Gibbs ripping my travel itinerary apart.  I've flown in and out of the UK twenty times (?) since 2003 and no one in immigration has ever so much as looked twice at my passport or questioned my reasons for being in the UK.  I wonder if I got a little extra scrutiny b/c I listed "Catholic priest" as my occupation?  Hmmmm. . .paranoid?  Maybe. . .

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Fr. Philip's Annual Squirrel Retreat

Heading to Mississippi bright and early tomorrow morning (Monday) for my annual frolic with the squirrels.

It's a seven hour drive, so please keep me in your prayers.

I'll drive back to DFW next Monday (22nd) and hop a plane to London for a six week visit at Blackfriars, Oxford and then on to Rome and my philosophy exams.

Blogging will resume sometime around Aug 23rd.

God bless, Fr. Philip

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Divorce, insanity, & the Real

19th Week OT

Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP

St. Albert the Great Priory

Much like reporters trying to force a politician into an embarrassing public gaffe, the Pharisees throw “gotcha” questions at Jesus. They confront him with hypothetical scenarios and quibble with him over picayune, legalistic disagreements. These questions aren't motivated by a genuine desire for enlightenment or the quest for dialogue on pressing policy issues. They are hoping that Jesus will say something controversial and damage his reputation. What they don't anticipate is Jesus' command not only of the Law itself but his knowledge of the Law's foundations in the divinely created order as well. Our Lord responds to their tricky questions by going well beyond familiar hair-splitting legal distinctions and draws on what we call the Natural Law; that is, the reason, the purpose woven by our Creator into the fabric of reality itself. When asked about marriage and divorce, Jesus sets aside procedural problems and goes to the heart of the question. He quotes Genesis on marriage—a man and woman are made one flesh by God—and concludes, “Therefore, what God has joined together, man must not separate.” How does a creature unmake what the Creator Himself has made? In more prosaic terms, how can what is real be made unreal without destroying it?

Though we may not immediately recognize this question, it is the question being asked by those who argue that marriage may not be redefined by legislative, judicial, or executive fiat. Congress, the Supreme Court, the President may no more change what marriage is than they can repeal the law of gravity or make 2 + 2 equal 5. Underlying marriage is a divine reality, an eternal truth that is not subject to the social engineering impulses of the human heart. Gravity can be tragically inconvenient even deadly but it is a force of nature, a feature of reality that cannot be wished, prayed, or voted away. Despite my best efforts as a student, algebra stubbornly held to its fundamental reality, resisting tantrums, pleadings, arguments, and threats of bodily harm. To this day, the quadratic formula haunts my memories as a terrible witness to the harsh, unyielding reality of numbers. For those who would alter reality with words alone, marriage stands as a testament to their inability to command the forces of the Natural Law and unmake that which God Himself has made. 

Divorce—as Moses understands it—springs from the inability or unwillingness of the human heart to endure the burdens of marriage. Jesus understands divorce quite differently—it's the destruction of a divinely created reality and a failure to continue giving witness to the love that he shows his Church. A man and woman joined as one flesh by God constitutes a sacramental ministry to the Church and the world. To hold that marriage is soluble is to hold that Christ can cease loving his Church. Though we recognize the notion of a “civil divorce,” we cannot recognize the actual dissolution of a marriage b/c we cannot imagine that Christ would ever stop loving his people. Thus, once married, always married and if civilly divorced then another “marriage” is an impossibility. This isn't a cruel law of a controlling institution but the recognition that we cannot unmake what God Himself has made; we cannot render what is real unreal. Moses made a concession to the hardened human heart when he allowed divorce. Were we to make such a concession, we would concede to what amounts to insanity: by sheer force of will and the application of intellect, a creature can re-create that which the Creator Himself has made. Once that concession is made, we enter a fantasy world, a world where gravity is a suggestion and algebra an art.

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A parasitical political culture

One of the (um) less-flattering terms applied to the U.K. looters/rioters this week was "parasites."  Calling folks parasites makes me twitchy b/c we usually work hard to exterminate pests, vermin, etc.  We can, however, safely refer to a "parasite culture," that is, a culture that creates gov't dependency, moral atrophy, political corruption, and, eventually, economic collapse.

Witness:  California. . .

WONDER WHY CALIFORNIA IS SO BROKE?? TAKE A LOOK (LINK)

These are all California State Agencies

California Academic Performance Index (API) * California Access for Infants and Mothers * California Acupuncture Board * California Administrative Office of the Courts * California Adoptions Branch * California African American Museum * California Agricultural Export Program * California Agricultural Labor Relations Board * California Agricultural Statistics Service * California Air Resources Board (CARB) * California Allocation Board * California Alternative Energy and Advanced Transportation Financing Authority * California Animal Health and Food Safety Services * California Anti-Terrorism Information Center * California Apprenticeship Council * California Arbitration Certification Program * California Architects Board * California Area VI Developmental Disabilities Board * California Arts Council * California Asian Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus * California Assembly Democratic Caucus * California Assembly Republican Caucus * California Athletic Commission * California Attorney General * California Bay Conservation and Development Commission * California Bay-Delta Authority * California Bay-Delta Office * California Biodiversity Council * California Board for Geologists and Geophysicists * California Board for Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors * California Board of Accountancy * California Board of Barbering and Cosmetology * California Board of Behavioral Sciences * California Board of Chiropractic Examiners * California Board of Equalization (BOE) * California Board of Forestry and Fire Protection * California Board of Guide Dogs for the Blind * California Board of Occupational Therapy * California Board of Optometry * California Board of Pharmacy * California Board of Podiatric Medicine * California Board of Prison Terms * California Board of Psychology * California Board of Registered Nursing * California Board of Trustees * California Board of Vocational Nursing and Psychiatric Technicians * California Braille and Talking Book Library * California Building Standards Commission * California Bureau for Private Postsecondary and Vocational Education * California Bureau of Automotive Repair * California Bureau of Electronic and Appliance Repair * California Bureau of Home Furnishings and Thermal Insulation * California Bureau of Naturopathic Medicine * California Bureau of Security and Investigative Services * California Bureau of State Audits * California Business Agency * California Business Investment Services (CalBIS) * California Business Permit Information (CalGOLD) * California Business Portal * California Business, Transportation and Housing Agency * California Cal Grants * California CalJOBS * California Cal-Learn Program * California CalVet Home Loan Program * California Career Resource Network * California Cemetery and Funeral Bureau * California Center for Analytical Chemistry * California Center for Distributed Learning * California Center for Teaching Careers (Teach California) * California Chancellors Office * California Charter Schools * California Children and Families Commission * California Children and Family Services Division * California Citizens Compensation Commission * California Civil Rights Bureau * California Coastal Commission * California Coastal Conservancy * California Code of Regulations * California Collaborative Projects with UC Davis * California Commission for Jobs and Economic Growth * California Commission on Aging * California Commission on Health and Safety and Workers Compensation * California Commission on Judicial Performance * California Commission on State Mandates * California Commission on Status of Women * California Commission on Teacher Credentialing * California Commission on the Status of Women * California Committee on Dental Auxiliaries * California Community Colleges Chancellors Office, Junior Colleges * California Community Colleges Chancellors Office * California Complaint Mediation Program * California Conservation Corps * California Constitution Revision Commission * California Consumer Hotline * California Consumer Information Center * California Consumer Information * California Consumer Services Division * California Consumers and Families Agency * California Contractors State License Board * California Corrections Standards Authority * California Council for the Humanities * California Council on Criminal Justice * California Council on Developmental Disabilities * California Court Reporters Board * California Courts of Appeal * California Crime and Violence Prevention Center * California Criminal Justice Statistics Center * California Criminalist Institute Forensic Library * California CSGnet Network Management * California Cultural and Historical Endowment * California Cultural Resources Division * California Curriculum and Instructional Leadership Branch * California Data Exchange Center * California Data Management Division * California Debt and Investment Advisory Commission * California Delta Protection Commission * California Democratic Caucus * California Demographic Research Unit * California Dental Auxiliaries * California Department of Aging * California Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs * California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control Appeals Board * California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control * California Department of Boating and Waterways (Cal Boating) * California Department of Child Support Services (CDCSS) * California Department of Community Services and Development * California Department of Conservation * California Department of Consumer Affairs * California Department of Corporations * California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation * California Department of Developmental Services * California Department of Education * California Department of Fair Employment and Housing * California Department of Finance * California Department of Financial Institutions * California Department of Fish and Game * California Department of Food and Agriculture * California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CDF) * California Department of General Services * California Department of General Services, Office of State Publishing * California Department of Health Care Services * California Department of Housing and Community Development * California Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) * California Department of Insurance * California Department of Justice Firearms Division * California Department of Justice Opinion Unit * California Department of Justice, Consumer Information, Public Inquiry Unit * California Department of Justice * California Department of Managed Health Care * California Department of Mental Health * California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) * California Department of Personnel Administration * California Department of Pesticide Regulation * California Department of Public Health * California Department of Real Estate * California Department of Rehabilitation * California Department of Social Services Adoptions Branch * California Department of Social Services * California Department of Technology Services Training Center (DTSTC) * California Department of Technology Services (DTS) * California Department of Toxic Substances Control * California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) * California Department of Veterans Affairs (CalVets) * California Department of Water Resources * California Departmento de Vehiculos Motorizados * California Digital Library * California Disabled Veteran Business Enterprise Certification Program * California Division of Apprenticeship Standards * California Division of Codes and Standards * California Division of Communicable Disease Control * California Division of Engineering * California Division of Environmental and Occupational Disease Control * California Division of Gambling Control * California Division of Housing Policy Development * California Division of Labor Standards Enforcement * California Division of Labor Statistics and Research * California Division of Land and Right of Way * California Division of Land Resource Protection * California Division of Law Enforcement General Library * California Division of Measurement Standards * California Division of Mines and Geology * California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) * California Division of Oil, Gas and Geothermal Resources * California Division of Planning and Local Assistance * California Division of Recycling * California Division of Safety of Dams * California Division of the State Architect * California Division of Tourism * California Division of Workers Compensation Medical Unit * California Division of Workers Compensation * California Economic Assistance, Business and Community Resources * California Economic Strategy Panel * California Education and Training Agency * California Education Audit Appeals Panel * California Educational Facilities Authority * California Elections Division * California Electricity Oversight Board * California Emergency Management Agency * California Emergency Medical Services Authority * California Employment Development Department (EDD) * California Employment Information State Jobs * California Employment Training Panel * California Energy Commission * California Environment and Natural Resources Agency * California Environmental Protection Agency (Cal/EPA) * California Environmental Resources Evaluation System (CERES) * California Executive Office * California Export Laboratory Services * California Exposition and State Fair (Cal Expo) * California Fair Political Practices Commission * California Fairs and Expositions Division * California Film Commission * California Fire and Resource Assessment Program * California Firearms Division * California Fiscal Services * California Fish and Game Commission * California Fisheries Program Branch * California Floodplain Management * California Foster Youth Help * California Franchise Tax Board (FTB) * California Fraud Division * California Gambling Control Commission * California Geographic Information Systems Council (GIS) * California Geological Survey * California Government Claims and Victim Compensation Board * California Governors Committee for Employment of Disabled Persons * California Governors Mentoring Partnership * California Governors Office of Emergency Services * California Governors Office of Homeland Security * California Governors Office of Planning and Research * California Governors Office * California Grant and Enterprise Zone Programs HCD Loan * California Health and Human Services Agency * California Health and Safety Agency * California Healthy Families Program * California Hearing Aid Dispensers Bureau * California High-Speed Rail Authority * California Highway Patrol (CHP) * California History and Culture Agency * California Horse Racing Board * California Housing Finance Agency * California Indoor Air Quality Program * California Industrial Development Financing Advisory Commission * California Industrial Welfare Commission * California InFoPeople * California Information Center for the Environment * California Infrastructure and Economic Development Bank (I-Bank) * California Inspection Services * California Institute for County Government * California Institute for Education Reform * California Integrated Waste Management Board * California Interagency Ecological Program * California Job Service * California Junta Estatal de Personal * California Labor and Employment Agency * California Labor and Workforce Development Agency * California Labor Market Information Division * California Land Use Planning Information Network (LUPIN) * California Lands Commission * California Landscape Architects Technical Committee * California Latino Legislative Caucus * California Law Enforcement Branch * California Law Enforcement General Library * California Law Revision Commission * California Legislative Analyst’s Office * California Legislative Black Caucus * California Legislative Counsel * California Legislative Division * California Legislative Information * California Legislative Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) Caucus * California Legislature Internet Caucus * California Library De velopment Services * California License and Revenue Branch * California Major Risk Medical Insurance Program * California Managed Risk Medical Insurance Board * California Maritime Academy * California Marketing Services * California Measurement Standards * California Medical Assistance Commission * California Medical Care Services * California Military Department * California Mining and Geology Board * California Museum for History, Women, and the Arts * California Museum Resource Center * California National Guard * California Native American Heritage Commission * California Natural Community Conservation Planning Program * California New Motor Vehicle Board * California Nursing Home Administrator Program * California Occupational Safety and Health Appeals Board * California Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board * California Ocean Resources Management Program * California Office of Administrative Hearings * California Office of Administrative Law * California Office of AIDS * California Office of Binational Border Health * California Office of Child Abuse Prevention * California Office of Deaf Access * California Office of Emergency Services (OES) * California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment * California Office of Fiscal Services * California Office of Fleet Administration * California Office of Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Implementation (CalOHI) * California Office of Historic Preservation * California Office of Homeland Security * California Office of Human Resources * California Office of Legal Services * California Office of Legislation * California Office of Lieutenant Governor * California Office of Military and Aerospace Support * California Office of Mine Reclamation * California Office of Natural Resource Education * California Office of Privacy Protection * California Office of Public School Construction * California Office of Real Estate Appraisers * California Office of Risk and Insurance Management * California Office of Services to the Blind * California Office of Spill Prevention and Response * California Office of State Publishing (OSP) * California Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development * California Office of Systems Integration * California Office of the Inspector General * California Office of the Ombudsman * California Office of the Patient Advocate * California Office of the President * California Office of the Secretary for Education * California Office of the State Fire Marshal * California Office of the State Public Defender * California Office of Traffic Safety * California Office of Vital Records * California Online Directory * California Operations Control Office * California Opinion Unit * California Outreach and Technical Assistance Network (OTAN) * California Park and Recreation Commission * California Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) * California Performance Review (CPR) * California Permit Information for Business (CalGOLD) * California Physical Therapy Board * California Physician Assistant Committee * California Plant Health and Pest Prevention Services * California Policy and Evaluation Division * California Political Reform Division * California Pollution Control Financing Authority * California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo * California Postsecondary Education Commission * California Prevention Services * California Primary Care and Family Health * California Prison Industry Authority * California Procurement Division * California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS) * California Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) * California Public Utilities Commission (PUC) * California Real Estate Services Division * California Refugee Programs Branch * California Regional Water Quality Control Boards * California Registered Veterinary Technician Committee * California Registrar of Charitable Trusts * California Republican Caucus * California Research and Development Division * California Research Bureau * California Resources Agency * California Respiratory Care Board * California Rivers Assessment * California Rural Health Policy Council * California Safe Schools * California San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission * California San Gabriel and Lower Los Angeles Rivers and Mountains Conservancy * California San Joaquin River Conservancy * California School to Career * California Science Center * California Scripps Institution of Oceanography * California Secretary of State Business Portal * California Secretary of State * California Seismic Safety Commission * California Self Insurance Plans (SIP) * California Senate Office of Research * California Small Business and Disabled Veteran Business Enterprise Certification Program * California Small Business Development Center Program * California Smart Growth Caucus * California Smog Check Information Center * California Spatial Information Library * California Special Education Division * California Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology Board * California Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) * California Standards and Assessment Division * California State Administrative Manual (SAM) * California State Allocation Board * California State and Consumer Services Agency * California State Architect * California State Archives * California State Assembly * California State Association of Counties (CSAC) * California State Board of Education * California State Board of Food and Agriculture *California Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO) * California State Children’s Trust Fund * California State Compensation Insurance Fund * California State Contracts Register Program * California State Contracts Register * California State Controller * California State Council on Developmental Disabilities (SCDD) * California State Disability Insurance (SDI) * California State Fair (Cal Expo) * California State Jobs Employment Information * California State Lands Commission * California State Legislative Portal * California State Legislature * California State Library Catalog * California State Library Services Bureau * California State Library * California State Lottery * California State Mediation and Conciliation Service * California State Mining and Geology Board * California State Park and Recreation Commission * California State Parks * California State Personnel Board * California State Polytechnic University, Pomona * California State Railroad Museum * California State Science Fair * California State Senate * California State Summer School for Mathematics and Science (COSMOS) * California State Summer School for the Arts * California State Superintendent of Public Instruction * California State Teachers Retirement System (CalSTRS) * California State Treasurer * California State University Center for Distributed Learning * California State University, Bakersfield * California State University, Channel Islands * California State University, Chico * California State University, Dominguez Hills * California State University, East Bay * California State University, Fresno * California State University, Fullerton * California State University, Long Beach * California State University, Los Angeles * California State University, Monterey Bay * California State University, Northridge * California State University, Sacramento * California State University, San Bernardino * California State University, San Marcos * California State University, Stanislaus * California State University (CSU) * California State Water Project Analysis Office * California State Water Project * California State Water Resources Control Board * California Structural Pest Control Board * California Student Aid Commission * California Superintendent of Public Instruction * California Superior Courts * California Tahoe Conservancy * California Task Force on Culturally and Linguistically Competent Physicians and Dentists * California Tax Information Center * California Technology and Administration Branch Finance * California Telecommunications Division * California Telephone Medical Advice Services (TAMS) * California Transportation Commission * California Travel and Transportation Agency * California Unclaimed Property Program * California Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board * California Unemployment Insurance Program * California Uniform Construction Cost Accounting Commission * California Veterans Board * California Veterans Memorial * California Veterinary Medical Board and Registered Veterinary Technician Examining Committee * California Veterinary Medical Board * California Victim Compensation and Government Claims Board * California Volunteers * California Voter Registration * California Water Commission * California Water Environment Association (COWPEA) * California Water Resources Control Board * California Welfare to Work Division * California Wetlands Information System * California Wildlife and Habitat Data Analysis Branch * California Wildlife Conservation Board * California Wildlife Programs Branch * California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) * California Workers Compensation Appeals Board * California Workforce and Labor Development Agency * California Workforce Investment Board * California Youth Authority (CYA) * Central Valley Flood Protection Board * Center for California Studies * Colorado River Board of California * Counting California * Dental Board of California * Health Insurance Plan of California (PacAdvantage) * Humboldt State University * Jobs with the State of California * Judicial Council of California * Learn California * Library of California * Lieutenant Governors Commission for One California * Little Hoover Commission (on California State Government Organization and Economy) * Medical Board of California * Medi-Cal * Osteopathic Medical Board of California * Physical Therapy Board of California * Regents of the University of California * San Diego State University * San Francisco State University * San Jose State University * Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy * State Bar of California * Supreme Court of California * Teach California * University of California * University of California, Berkeley * University of California, Davis * University of California, Hastings College of the Law * University of California, Irvine * University of California, Los Angeles * University of California, Merced * University of California, Riverside * University of California, San Diego * University of California, San Francisco * University of California, Santa Barbara * University of California, Santa Cruz * Veterans Home of California

It is said that the only places they can cut is Police and Fire. . .

It doesn’t matter whether you are a Democrat, a Republican or Independent. This list has to shock you.

Over the years, our politicians have created this enormous pork barrel of agencies that employ over 350,000 people directly and countless more via contracts with the State. All of these people get salaries, medical coverage and pensions at our expense.

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Vicious Rioting in Manchester, UK!

If British Prime Minister, David Cameron doesn't call in the military after seeing this video. . .he should be removed from office.

The Brits will be OK so long as they keep up their eccentric sense of humor! 

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Coffee Cup Browsing (Anarchy in the UK Edition)

"What’s the cause of the riot? I’m guessing lack of incoming fire."  Heh.  Watching the news about the U.K. looting/rioting, I keep thinking about how these thugs would scatter if we sent an American riot squad over there.  In America, Po-po don't play.

Maybe these coppers trained in the U.S.?

Yup:  "Years of liberal dogma have spawned a generation of amoral, uneducated, welfare dependent, brutalised youngsters."  Coming soon to a neighborhood near you. . .

London Metro Police were ordered to "observe and contain" looting!?  Oh, this ain't gonna end well.

Keeping that upper lip British-stiff.

Multi-culties are to blame for the riots. . .well, yea. . .them and lots of others.  When the State runs out of other people's money, the Wards tend to get grouchy.

50 Powerful Pics from the London riots.

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We cannot die fast enough

St. Lawrence

Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP

St. Albert the Great Priory

Growth often requires death. Hold in your imagination for a moment the image of a seed, a single germ from which a plant will sprout. Now imagine that plant growing, blossoming, and producing healthy fruit. For this process to work, the seed, the germ of the plant, must die. It must cease to be what it is to become what it was made to be. We can expand the image of the growing seed to include acorns, pits, spores, and eggs. Even the human zygote must cease being a zygote to become a fetus. Growth often requires death; it also requires generosity and risk. Any farmer or gardener can tell you that every abundant harvest started with a generous planting of seed. Take melons for example. Planting watermelons and cantaloupe is a generous gamble—generous in that you put four or five seeds in the ground for each plant you hope to grow and a gamble b/c you're betting that some of those seeds won't germinate. You plant more to harvest more. Such is the work of faith in the world, “Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.” 

If we put Jesus' teaching together with Paul's we come away with a frightening combination: in order to produce an abundant harvest for the faith, we must risk a generous death; that is, we must gamble what we are right now against the chance of becoming what we were made to be. But why is this frightening? It sounds like a perfectly comfortable version of modern humanist psychology. Be the best you can be! It's frightening b/c the best WE can be is Christ; we were made to be Christ. And Christ has but one purpose: to die for another. “. . .unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit. . .Whoever serves me must follow me. . .” If we will be Christs, we must fall and die. For some, falling and dying are quite literal. St. Lawrence, for example. Or the thousands who die everyday around the world simply b/c they follow Christ. They are martyrs and their blood seeds the Church. 

For most of us, our falls and our deaths are much less bloody, much less painful but no less vital to the health of the Body of Christ. We fall from power and control, the attention of the limelight, the heights of success; we die to the illusions of false humility; the fantasies of a theatrical holiness. Perhaps the hardest fall, the cruelest death I might suffer is the death of the delusion that I am the hub around which the rest of the world turns. Being one member of a Body will kill that lie. But it is a lie that must die if I am to produce an abundant harvest for the faith. Jesus tells us that the seed must fall and die, but he doesn't lay out for us a systematic program for how we accomplish this. Instead, he says, “Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will preserve it for eternal life.” Loving our lives in this world means clinging to the natural order of a creation that is always changing, always passing away. Hating our lives in this world means clinging to the supernatural order that draws each of us toward the Love who made us. Our task—in falling, dying, and producing abundant fruit—is to give witness to and make manifest that supernatural order so that everyone might see and hear and know Him who loves us. Truly, we cannot be too generous in our falling and dying, too reckless in our planting and reaping. We cannot fall and die fast enough in bringing to Christ all those who need his mercy and seek out his saving Word.

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Nihilism, Logos, & the New Evangelization

No, I'm not sick. . .nor have I been assumed into heaven! 

U.D.'s server was down from Saturday to early Monday morning.  So, when the thing came back on, I had a backload of email to deal with.  

Also, the day-retreat with the OP Laity was fantastic!  They asked excellent questions and made insightful comments. . .as always.  

If you are interested in the texts I used for the retreat, check out JPII's Novo millennio ineunte (2000) and BXVI's follow-up to NMI in 2000, The New Evangelization:  Building a Civilization of Love and his now-famous pre-Conclave homily from 2005, wherein the future Holy Father coins the phrase "dictatorship of relativism." 

My memory and long-experience with PoMo theory provided most of the fodder for the conference on cultural nihilism and its various rotten fruits in the academy and the Church.  The info on social constructionism came from various internet sources, and I cribbed a few broad notions from the excellent book, Theory's Empire:  An Anthology of Dissent.  

The overall theme of the retreat:  intolerant forms of scientific materialism and cultural Marxism have made it difficult (if not yet impossible) for believers to engage the Public Square in serious spiritual discussions.  Our concerns/priorities are simply "ruled out of order" as private prejudices and consigned to the impotent safety of individual preference and/or mythology.  Various forms of postmodern ideology have eroded the authority of public reason and elevated the narratives of identity politics and power as the sole arbiters of right and wrong.  Since these narratives have no anchor in anything beyond their own structures as narratives, nihilism inevitably results.  The project of the New Evangelization is more than just getting "butts in the pews;"  it's about returning the West to its rational roots, that is, once again educating the public in the intelligibility and purposefulness of reality.  Historically, in the West, we have understood this reality to be the Logos, or the Christ who is the embodiment of Love and Truth.

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Abounding Weirdnesses

Around 4.30am I was sipping my coffee and browsing the First Things website.  I landed on a poetry post written by Gabriel Torretta.   Turns out that Mr. Torretta is actually Br. Gabriel, OP!  I was delighted to find another Dominican friar who's interested in modern poetry.  So, I left him a comment in the hope that he might get in contact with me.  

This morning I went into the priory chapel to celebrate Mass.  The Usual Suspects are there. . .and one stranger in an OP habit.  After Mass, we introduce ourselves. . .he's Br. Gabriel!  How weird is that?  We immediately retired to the refectory and commenced a longish discussion of poetry.  

I said to another friar in the house after telling him this story, "See.  Jesus loves poetry too."

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Following Christ isn't a theory or a game

NB.  I got to the end of the second page this morning at Mass and discovered nothing but a blank page.   Apparently, the printer just spit out the last page w/o printing anything on it.  I had to improv the ending.  Oh well.  Good thing I love to talk.

18th Week OT (F)

Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP

St. Albert the Great Priory

Jesus has just finished telling his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem where he will suffer and die at the hands of his enemies. Peter, no doubt rocked to his core at this revelation, takes the Lord aside and rebukes him, saying, “God forbid, Lord! No such thing shall ever happen to you." Being a deeply pastoral sort, Jesus turns to Peter and offers to listen to his concerns; gently leads the newly minted facilitator of the disciples through all of the available options, and helps him to express his concerns in a non-confrontational, non-threatening way. Once consoled, Peter smiles and Jesus continues, saying, “Whoever wishes to come after me is invited to explore a wide variety of possible means for doing so and choose the path that best suits his/her felt needs.” All the disciples smile and wander off in different directions in search of how best to actualize his/her individual human potential. We are happy to learn that no one suffered, no one died, and everyone eventually fulfilled all of his/her felt needs. Now, what does Jesus actually say in response to Peter's rebuke? “Get behind me, Satan! You are an obstacle to me. You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do. . . Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. . .” If you've never thought of Jesus as a major buzz-kill, now's the time to start!

We don't want to say that Peter is urging his Master to abandon his mission and create some sort of humanistic, therapy-ish program for achieving inner-peace and enlightenment. But we have to wonder what exactly Peter is thinking when he objects to God's plan for His Christ. Peter knows the Hebrew prophecies concerning the fate of the promised Messiah. He's witnessed the religious and political opposition to his Master's teachings. He's heard the dropped hints and subtle clues that indicate a less than glorious end for Jesus' public ministry. So, what exactly is his problem? Maybe it's just hearing it all said out loud. Maybe it's hearing Jesus himself reveal the ugly details. Or, maybe it's a combination of being handed the keys to the kingdom AND THEN told that his Master is to suffer and die at the hands of their enemies. The combination of authority, responsibility, and the lack of Messianic supervision is enough to rattle anyone! No doubt—Peter doesn't want his teacher to suffer and die, nor does he want the burdens of leading a Messianic movement w/o a Messiah. But it could be the caase that Peter is most afraid for his own skin. He knows that Christ's suffering and death means that his own suffering and death is not far behind. When he rebukes Jesus, what he's really saying is: “God forbid, Lord! No such thing shall ever happen to ME!"

Let's ask a difficult question: how much of our daily lives as followers of Christ is spent avoiding the suffering Christ himself suffered? How often do we put down our cross and let it rest against convenient props—props like social justice politics, theological speculation, well-worn and comfortable devotions, intellectual gaming, therapeutic processes, or an old favorite: “just doing a job”? Following after Christ—that is, following him to the Cross in Jerusalem, following him to suffer and love for others—isn't a theory, a therapy, a game, a devotion, a process, or a job. Nor is it a lifestyle or a career. It's a commission, a ministry, a vocation; one that each of us has accepted freely, willingly, perhaps even eagerly. And even though each of us individually has set our feet on this path, we do not travel the path alone. Christ died so that he might be among us always. . .with each of us and with all of us together. With all the authority and responsibility of leading others behind our Christ, there is nothing we should fear and so we can say, “God forbid, Lord! That we should set down our cross.”

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