Tuesday, August 30, 2011

The Holy Martyrs Chrysanthus and Daria



As a follow up to the earlier blog I reproduce here the legend of the Holy Martyrs Chrysanthus and Daria 



Commemorated on March 19th

The Holy Martyrs Chrysanthus and Daria and with them the Martyrs Claudius the Tribune with his wife Hilaria and their sons Jason and Maurus, and Diodorus the Presbyter and Marianus the Deacon.
St Chrysanthus came from a pagan family who had moved to Rome from Alexandria. He received a fine education, and among the books he read were those in which pagans discussed Christianity. The young man, however, wanted to read books written by Christians themselves. He finally managed to find a copy of the New Testament, which enlightened his rational soul.
Seeking someone to instruct him in the Holy Scriptures, he found the presbyter Carpophoros hiding from persecution, and received holy Baptism from him. After this, he began to preach the Gospel. Chrysanthus' father tried to turn his son from Christianity, and finally married him to Daria, a priestess of Minerva.
St Chrysanthus managed to convert his wife to Christ, and the young couple mutually agreed to lead celibate lives. After the death of the father, they began to live in separate houses. St Chrysanthus converted several young men to Christ, and many pious women gathered around St Daria.
The people of Rome complained to the eparch Celerinus that Sts Chrysanthus and Daria were preaching celibacy and attracting too many young men and women to monasticism. St Chrysanthus was sent to the tribune Claudius for torture.
The torments, however, did not shake the bravery of the young martyr, since the power of God clearly aided him. Struck by this, the tribune Claudius himself came to believe in Christ and accepted holy Baptism together with his wife Hilaria, their sons Jason and Maurus, and all his household and soldiers. When news of this reached the emperor Numerian (283-284), he commanded them all to be executed. The Martyr Claudius was drowned in the sea, and his sons and soldiers were beheaded. Christians buried the bodies of the holy martyrs in a nearby cave, and St Hilaria constantly went there to pray. Once, they followed her and led her off for torture. The saint asked that they give her a few moments to pray, and as soon as she finished, she gave up her soul to God. A servant buried the saint in the cave beside her sons.
The torturers sent St Daria to a brothel, where she was protected by a lion sent by God. A certain man who tried to defile the saint was knocked to the ground and pinned down by the lion, but the lion did not kill him. The martyr preached to them about Christ and set them to the path of salvation.
They threw St Chrysanthus into a foul-smelling pit, into which all the filth of the city flowed. But a heavenly light shone on him, and the pit was filled with a sweet fragrance.
Then the emperor Numerian ordered Sts Chrysanthus and Daria to be turned over to the executioners. After many cruel tortures, the martyrs were buried alive in the ground.
In a cave near the place of execution, Christians began to gather to honor the anniversary of the saints' martyrdom. They celebrated Church services and partook of the Holy Mysteries. Learning of this, the pagan authorities sealed the entrance to the cave, and those within received the crown of martyrdom.
Two of these martyrs are known by name: the Presbyter Diodorus and the Deacon Marianus.
Troparion Tone 1
Let us honour the like-minded pair of Martyrs,/ Chrysanthos scion of purity, and supremely modest Daria./ United in holiness of faith, they shone forth as communicants of God the Word./ They fought lawfully for Him and now save those who sing:/ Glory to Him Who has strengthened you; glory to Him Who has crowned you;/ glory to Him Who through you works healings for all.
Kontakion Tone 1
O Chrysanthos, in the sweet fragrance of holiness/ thou didst draw Daria to saving knowledge./ Together in contest you routed the serpent, the author of all evil,/ and were worthily taken up to the heavenly realms.

The decline on decorum and the "sluttification" of dress


The decline in decorum on the way people dress for church can’t be separated from the overall decline in the general culture.   The 60’s gave birth to the hippie movement, the sexual revolution and the so called “youth rebellion”.  There was a tremendous shift in the way people dressed and acted in public.   Today we are seeing the logical conclusion of the Cultural Revolution, most of all in the glorification of sex and the widespread “pornificacion” of culture, where behavior and dress that was seen as disgraceful in the past is now celebrated.  We saw that in the so called “Slut Walks” http://www.esarcasm.com/21870/slutwalk-2011-organizer-plans-one-million-slut-march/.  

Bratz Dolls

Worse, we have parents encouraging their children to dress in such manners, especially girls and buying them or giving them the money to acquire clothing that would make prostitutes of a bygone era blush.  And every year this poisoning of decorum targets younger children.  Look at the type of dolls little girls play with now such as the “Bratz” dolls and the type of make-up sold to girls as young as five or six years old.   Parents should put boundaries on this behavior, but unfortunately it is parents who are sometimes the worst offenders. 

They were real! Saints found show Christian stories are based on true events.

I recently watched a National Geographic program called “Mystery of the Murdered Saints”.  The program is fascinating as it explores how the bones of Chrysanthus and Daria, young saints martyred in Ancient Rome for their Christian faith, ended in the Cathedral of Reggio Emilia in Italy.  The bones of the martyrs were kept under the main altar in a stone sarcophagus while their skulls were inside reliquary busts made of gold and silver.  As the program develops the scientists involved in the investigation can’t but recognize that the bones do belong to a young man and female, carbon dating puts them smack right at the appropriate time period (circa mid third century) and the characteristics of the skeletons match what we know of the saints based on the legends. 

It is funny to see that the scientists come to a positive conclusion, while the religion scholars are skeptical, which is typical of today’s Catholic scholarship.   This reminds me of many other cases where the relics taken as archaeological evidence match the stories of saints and martyrs passed on to us throughout the centuries.  Some examples are the relics of St. Cecilia, Saint Augustine, Saint Ambrose, and many others.   These martyrs and saints were real and God has preserved their holy relics to enable us to have a direct contact to their lives and know that their faith was real and worthy of imitation. 
Found: The holy bones of Saint Crisanto and Saint Daria on display in the Cattedrale di Reggio Emilia after tests linked them to the married couple who were martyred in ancient Rome

Of all places I was not expecting National Geographic to affirm that these relics are indeed real and that the Church does preserve these valiant young martyrs for veneration and remembrance.   You can see the previews for the shows here and read about Chrysanthus and Daria here.   SAINT CHRYSANTHUS AND SAINT DARIA PRAY FOR US!  

Thursday, August 25, 2011

The Destruction of The Church

Little Catholic Bubble: "If you think, as I naively once did, that the general public will be horrified by the loss of so many wonderful, longstanding Catholic charities, think again. Most Americans are clueless about what's happening, and the secular left loathes the Catholic Church. We've had at least one atheist in the Bubble state with pride that she would be pleased to see a world without the Catholic Church, and she is far from alone in her desire."

Serbian church destroyed by Albanian Muslims


Read this from the "Little Catholic Bubble", Leilla Miller the author is absolutely right. Unfortunately many Catholics are deceived into thinking that they can negotiate and accommodate the left and its anti-Catholic stands. Let it be said clear: The aim of the left, in government and inside the Church is the destruction of the Roman Catholic Church by undermining its orthodoxy. The Obama administration, the Gay movement, the rabid Feminists, the Atheists, are out to destroy the Church. So far they have been very successful, helped by either malicious or deceived Catholics.

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

50 Years of the most lavish welfare state in the planet produced this.

Police water cannon and plastic bullets? After 50 years of the most lavish welfare state on earth? What an abject failure - Mail Online - Peter Hitchens blog: "No doubt they will find ways to save themselves. But they will not save the country. Because even now they will not admit that all their ideas are wrong, and that the policies of the past 50 years – the policies they love – have been a terrible mistake. I have heard them in the past few days clinging to their old excuses of non-existent ‘poverty’ and ‘exclusion’."

Thursday, August 18, 2011

And now for something truly scary

Catholic Culture : Latest Headlines : Former consultant to US bishops keynotes conference pushing for acceptance of pedophilia
"A former consultant to the US bishops was the keynote speaker at a conference organized by a group that is lobbying for decriminalization of pedophilia."


"Fred Berlin was for years a consultant to the US bishops in their attempts to develop policies for handling complaints of sexual abuse by Catholic priests. Archbishop Rembert Weakland has testified that in 1985, Berlin strongly argued against removing abusive priests from public ministry."


While we are distracted by the efforts to discredit Michael Voris, this is a really scary note, a former consultant to the Catholic Bishops is advocating for a "normalization" of pedophilia of all things.   Noted homosexual and retired bishop Rambert Weakland used the services of this person.   Talk about the Church in the hands of the devil. Read the story here. 

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Anticipation!

What Ever Happened to Homemade Ketchup? | Food & Think: " In addition to being cheap to manufacture—with factories using tomato scraps—the commercial product ended up setting the standard for Americans’ expectation of what ketchup should be: It was thicker, smoother and had had more sugar and vinegar than the homemade varieties."


Don't mess with my Ketchup! The Smithsonian Magazine has an interesting article.  Read a little history of the now all present condiment. Pass the burgers...

Mass is changing soon!

Survey: Most Catholics unaware of Mass revisions

"Most respondents took the survey in English (82 percent), and among these Catholics, awareness was just slightly higher at 26 percent."


Be aware, starting this Advent the text of the mass will change. Read on.


Survey Results

Friday, August 12, 2011

Can We Stop Telling God What To Do?

Can We Stop Telling God What To Do?: "Notice that such “prayers” rarely involve direct address: “Help us, O Lord, to see your truth and walk in your ways.” Rather, they involve talking about God in the third person as though He weren’t really present. Then there are intercessions that leave out God altogether: “That we may make a greater use of alternative fuels and lessen our dependence on fossil fuels.” Is that a prayer, or a plank in a political platform?"



And that you may read the rest of the article here

UK riots 2011 "You are so special!" Liberal Dogma and the Welfare State.

UK riots 2011: Liberal dogma has spawned a generation of brutalised youths | Mail Online: "They are essentially wild beasts. I use that phrase advisedly, because it seems appropriate to young people bereft of the discipline that might make them employable; of the conscience that distinguishes between right and wrong."


Manchester: Hooded looters laden with clothes run from a Manchester shopping centre



http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi4084073497/



Decades of the Welfare State, of relativistic indoctrination, of stupid immigration policies, of liberal agendas implemented are coming now to produce their fruit.  I believe that the U.K. riots if 2011 are only a beginning of a new era.  The barbarians are now inside, they are ourselves.  Read the excellent article by Max Hastings here, and if you can watch the film with Michael Caine 'Harry Brown' it gives an excellent view of the barbarity that now grips not only England, but the Western World.   



The Blood of a Pope

Pope John Paul II’s Blood to be Displayed in Mexico, Christian News: "“In the perception of a Mexico plunged into terror, pain, hopelessness, anguish, vengeance and rancor as a result of insecurity and violence… the veneration of the relics will be an opportunity for the baptized and people of good will to turn their eyes to God,” said Rev. Manuel Corral, the council’s public relations secretary to reporters."




We pray to Blessed John Paul that trough his intersession with our Lord Jesus Christ, this blood may atone for all the blood shed in terror in Mexico, that peace may return and that the Mexican people return to the light of the Gospel.


Read the story here.

For God is with us!

CNEWA Connections

"When families lost someone to violence or kidnapping, the sisters stayed with them, accompanied them, let them know we were there for them."


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True Christian witness from a group of nuns in Iraq. They preach the Gospel; and when necessary they speak.

Read the interview of the CNEWA magazine here.

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Hoodwinked!

A Pyrrhic 'Victory' - Thomas Sowell - Townhall Conservative: "the Republicans have now been maneuvered into being held responsible for the spending orgy that Democrats alone had the votes to create. Republicans have been had -- and so has the country. The recent, short-lived budget deal turns out to be not even a Pyrrhic victory for the Republicans. It has the earmarks of a Pyrrhic defeat."






Read more from Thomas Sowell here

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

NATO Crash: Team Seal Six Members Killed in Afghanistan

NATO Crash: Team Seal Six Members Killed in Afghanistan - ABC News

PHOTO: US soldiers from the 2nd Brigade, 87th Infantry Regiment, 10th Mountain Division, secure the area after existing a Chinoonk helicopter, Helmand Province, southern Afghanistan, in this Sunday, June 18, 2006 file photo.


The Navy Seal Team 6 who found and killed Osama Bin Ladin suffered a devastating loss two days ago when a helicopter carrying 30 Americans including 22 Navy Seals members of Team 6, crashed in Afghanistan.

Taliban forces claim they shot down the Chinoonk helicopter, but Department of Defense says it crashed in an accident.

Rather tragic coincidence, read the whole story here

The World According to Newsweek: Bias? What bias?

The World According to Newsweek | CatholicVote.org



Bias, what bias? There is no bias, we just despise conservatism and conservatives, that's all.


See the rest of the pics and read the blog here.


Barack Obama's 2012 plan: 'Kill Romney'

Barack Obama's 2012 plan: 'Kill Romney' - Alexander Burns - POLITICO.com


Barack Obama calls Kanye West

From the presidency of "hope" to the politics of personal destruction. Obama's political advisers plan to "kill" Romney. And we thought that using violent metaphors was out of the question after the Gabrielle Giffords shooting.  Read more here

Friday, August 5, 2011

Eat, drink and be merry?

Living to see 100 is just luck, not lifestyle - Telegraph

"They found those who lived extremely long lives ate just as badly, drank and smoked just as much, took just as little exercise and were just as likely to be overweight as their long-gone friends."

Not good news for our health fascist establishment.  Read the whole thing here

Is the US a nation of liars?

Is US a nation of liars? Casey Anthony isn't the only one. - CSMonitor.com: "But as the news fills with one example after another of people – both humble and mighty – telling lies, it's easy to wonder: Can America even see the truth anymore, let alone tell it?"



Can the truth set us free?  Read the whole article from the Christian Science Monitor

RIP John Sott

John Stott - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Stott remained celibate his entire life. He said, "The gift of singleness is more a vocation than an empowerment, although to be sure God is faithful in supporting those He calls."


John Stott one of the great evangelical theologians of our time passed away last week. I read his book Christian Counter-Culture: The Message of the Sermon on the Mount; which showed me that being a Christian in this day and age is being counter-cultural.


Read the Wikipedia article linked above.

The Oldest Book in Europe

£9m campaign to acquire the St Cuthbert Gospel | Past Horizons:

"The British Library has announced an ambitious fund-raising campaign to acquire the St Cuthbert Gospel for the nation. Created in the 7th century and intimately associated with one of Britain’s foremost saints, the Gospel is the earliest surviving intact European book and one of the world’s most significant books."

The Gospel of  St. John, amazingly preserved

I am book enthusiast, a "Bibliophile". Books to me are an extension of our brain, a depository of knowledge, a dialogue with our ancestors. No question, I love books. So this news is very interesting to me, more so because I have to confess I did not know of the St Cuthbert Gospel. This is the oldest book in Europe, having been produced by the monks of Lindisfarne in the late 600's and placed in St Cuthbert's casket, where it lay for four hundred years. In the year 1004 it was rediscovered when the casket was opened on relocating the Saint's remains. The book was probably plundered from its resting place by the barbarians of Henry VIII and went into private possession. It made its way to the Jesuits who are now selling it to the British Library for a cool nine million pounds. The book is in an astonishing state of preservation, its leather cover looks almost new. Read the rest in the link above.

A Dialogue about Abortion

Little Catholic Bubble: Answering Michelle: I don't think you want all babies aborted



From a favorite blog by Leila Miller a dialogue with a young atheist woman on abortion.:


Answering Michelle: I don't think you want all babies aborted




After my last post, Michelle (a friendly young atheist) left a comment which deserves a whole post in response. Her words are in red, and my comments are in black.



To those saying that the Obama administration views pregnancy as a disease: 


Before you go on, let me just say that it's hard not to conclude this. If fertility/pregnancy is not a disease, disorder, illness or pathology, then why are health insurance companies now forced to provide free contraception and morning-after pills to all? What "disease" is being "cured" or "prevented" if not pregnancy? This should elicit a short medical answer, not a long philosophical one like the one you are about to give….


consider this rough analogy. Most of you have probably seen the show Extreme Home Makeover, where families in need are given a fancy new house (and I think sometimes a car as well), one that even the richest families would probably be lucky to have. 


Yes, I used to love that show! "Bus driver, move that bus!" (Screams, excitement, tears!!) Good times watching with the family. :)


It's a feel-good sort of show, and you're always left with the impression that despite all of their problems, their lives are finally looking up and everything is going to be fine. 

Yes, that's the illusion that "feel good" TV shows leave us with. We Americans like to "feel good", and it sells. Definitely an hour of escapism (and envy!).

But think about the taxes and the maintenance the house will require that they probably can't afford, and how the money spent on the house could probably have better gone towards addressing whatever problem (medical, financial, whatever) was originally plaguing them.

Yes, exactly! Building folks a big house and and providing lots of material things cannot solve the underlying problems that families in crisis face. Thank goodness there are real people in real life who do provide real help, every single day: Catholic Charities, the Societies of St. Vincent de Paul, crisis pregnancy centers, Catholic hospitals and shelters, etc. Real help, real solutions.


Saying that Obama's insistence on contraception means he necessarily considers pregnancy to always be a disease (and babies to always be a punishment) 

Did I say "always"? I don't think I did. There are plenty of babies that Obama does not see as "punishments". And then there are the others. For example: 


Obama thinks these baby girls were worthy of love and life. 
Obama thinks that this this baby girl was not.


He celebrates the "wanted" babies while ardently supporting the legal killing of 53 million other "unwanted" babies. Heck,he even notoriously voted more than once to let born babies die alone and without care should they survive a late-term abortion. (This was no mere academic exercise for him, as he knew from first-hand testimony what was occurring in his own state.)

In the pro-"choice" world, there are plenty of valuable children, worthy of love and life. But there are plenty of children with no value, who are worthy of neither love nor life. 

So, for Obama, I'm guessing that pregnancy is not a disease when it's wanted, and babies are not a punishment when they are wanted.

Wanted = Good
Wanted = Valuable

is the same as saying that I'm heartless for recognizing that getting a big new house is not always the best thing for a family. 

Not the same thing at all. Look...

These are not heartless:


"It is not good for this family to get a big new house."
"It is not good for children to be conceived out of wedlock."
"It is not the best thing for this drug-addicted battered woman to raise a child."


But this *just might* be considered heartless:


"Because this is not a good time for this woman to have a child, the child must die."

See, the "not heartless" statements don't imply or necessitate that someone has to die as a solution to the unfortunate situation. But the "heartless" statement does. Big distinction.

Just as big new houses are, under the right circumstances, a wonderful thing, so are babies.

Michelle, are you really comparing houses to babies?
Catholics don't believe that houses have the same moral standing, rights and dignity as human beings. I hope you can see that distinction.


Say a teenage mother's conservative parents would disown her if she gave birth out of wedlock,

Whoa, wait. Why do you make "conservative" parents the heavy? I know plenty of conservative parents, and I have seen how they react when children come to them with news of an unplanned pregnancy: Many tears, but also love and support for child and grandchild. I also know several liberal mothers who coerced or forced abortion on their pregnant daughters. So, why not just say "parents"? Sorry, but that is a pet peeve, as if conservative parents are heartless meanies while liberal parents are kind and loving. 

ruining all her chances of a healthy, normal life thereafter 

Seriously? Ruining all her chances of a healthynormallife, thereafter? Utterly, totally hopeless? How on earth can one possibly know or predict such an outcome? We can't predict that outcome anymore than we can predict someone being hit by a car tomorrow and being paralyzed for life. And even that scenario wouldn't equate to a "ruined" life. But, okay, let's go with your impossible hypothetical:

- is the baby still a wonderful blessing? 

Yes.

If the baby's born to a drug addicted mother who can't and won't even provide for the baby's most basic needs?

Yes. Please get the mother help, and if she truly can't care for the child (who already exists!), then it's time to help her with an adoption plan.


If the pregnancy threatens the life of the mother?


Yes. (Ask Becky how she feels about that one, since she's going through it right now.)


I know, it's not a black-and-white moral standpoint, and what constitutes good circumstances for a baby will change from person to person. 


Right, but you're not talking about good circumstances for conception, you're talking about killing a baby. I think Nicole C. got right to the heart of it:
I get so tired of hearing the argument surrounding good and bad circumstances to "have a baby", when what we're really arguing is acceptable circumstances to have an abortion. Please remember, when a woman is pregnant, she already HAS A BABY. As Mark Crutcher would say, "The question is, will she have a live baby or a dead one?" 
So, you see, I think you are confusing two different things.


I get it, Catholics don't like that sort of moral ambiguity. 

Actually, it's more that Catholics "don't like" the willful killing of innocent human beings. What you call "moral ambiguity", I would call "attempting to justifying an immoral act".

Sometimes, "moral ambiguity" = "moral relativism"

But saying that pregnancy is either always a blessing or always a curse, or a baby is always a gift or always a punishment, is silly at best. 

I never once put it in those terms, that liberals think pregnancy is "always a curse" or babies "always a punishment". So, I am not sure where you are getting that? 


However, it's not "silly" to believe that all babies are a blessing. They are. They are all equally valuable, and they areall worthy of love and life. To hold any other position is dangerous -- to say the least.

Please, give us some credit and don't ascribe such simplistic ideas to liberals/pro-choicers/whoever.

I never did ascribe those ideas to you or other pro-"choicers". Like I said, I have no idea where you are getting that. Of course you love and cherish some babies.

If I were to get pregnant at this point in my life, it would undoubtedly be an enormous punishment. 

Who would be punishing you? The baby? And what would the punishment be for? I truly don't even understand this statement. 

At the same time, though, my cousin recently had a baby and I was excited about the baby the moment I heard my cousin was pregnant. 

Because in your mind, the baby had that elusive quality that made him valuable and worthy of love: "Wantedness"

Or was it something else that made the baby worthy of your love? I'm interested.

It's not an "either you love babies or you want them all dead" sort of thing, 

Right, and I never said that, so we are good.

and I'm offended every time someone suggests that liberals think babies are worthless drooling monsters that all should have been aborted.

I'm glad that's never been said to you here, then. Has someone elsewhere said these things to you? That you thinkall babies should be aborted? That's outrageous if so.


I'm on vacation and won't be commenting after this (blame icky Internet Explorer that won't let me post, plus the fact that abortion debates always, always, always turn ugly whenever I get involved). 

It's not exclusive to your involvement, Michelle. Abortion debates necessarily include discussion of the actual act of abortion, which by its very nature is horrifically ugly. The stuff of nightmares, really. So yes, abortion debates are never pretty. We are discussing the willful killing of innocent children, some of whom are shredded in the womb, some of whom are dismembered, and some of whom are burned alive with saline, and some of whom are stabbed in the neck and have their brains sucked out while still living. Most of whom are thrown out as garbage, labeled "medical waste". Ugly, indeed. 


But did you think the reality of abortion could be sugarcoated? I realize that's what the "choice" and "women's rights" euphemisms are aiming for: Pleasantness. Our own atheist commenter MaiZeke has said with confidence, "Abortion involves only one person: the woman."  How it eases the mind to believe this, when it's the "non-person" being extracted and eviscerated. It makes us feel all warm and fuzzy inside, and we can sleep well at night, because there is no "person" being killed in an abortion. Just a pregnancy being "terminated".

I hope my points made sense, even if you don't agree. 

Some of them didn't make sense, which is why I wanted to flesh them all out here and give you a chance to respond. Thanks for you willingness to dialogue honestly, and I hope to hear from you after your vacation!


Blessings to you, Michelle! I've always enjoyed our discussions.

Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Gay candidate in trouble for justifying his lover's pedophilia

David Norris's Irish presidency chances marred by mercy letter | World news | The Guardian

"His campaign has been badly damaged by his links to Yizhak. When the Israeli was accused, and later convicted, of the statutory rape of a Palestinian boy in 1992, Norris wrote a letter claiming his former partner was a "good and moral person".


David Norris

Wait a second, I thought Irish politicians were furiously indignant because Catholic priests that abused kids were protected by the bishops; are they indignant in this case?

Budget Reform: Opportunity Knocks

Catholic Culture : On the Culture : Budgetary Reform: Opportunity Knocks



"Catholic leaders, who ought to have charity (which is in most ways the opposite of government-mandated programs) as their first concern, have in my lifetime been characterized by an almost wholesale inability to think outside the Statist box when it comes solving human problems."

Read it all in the link above.

US debt problem visualized: Debt stacked in 100 dollar bills

US debt problem visualized: Debt stacked in 100 dollar bills

You have to see the link above, it is a graphic representation of the U.S. debt and how politicians have taken us to the brink.