Here's the story: Christmas morning at Mass we were doing really good, not getting fussy that the church was a tiny bit crowded, not complaining about the hymns (which were good, so that was easy), even thinking about Jesus and stuff. I received Communion. As I was walking back to my seat, I sensed a disturbance in the force. I glanced back, and there's my kid, standing before the Blessed Sacrament, and she looks like she's about to burst into tears. Not in a way that would impress the hagio … [Read more...]
Piety Police on Patrol: Try Some Civil Disobedience
January 4, 2015 by
In a private forum we're discussing a sad and decidedly personal (so no, I'm not going to link to it) article by a woman who was seeking God in her native Catholic faith, and was told at every turn, "Quit acting so holier-than-thou!" It is no surprise that, isolated and mocked for practicing the very religion she'd been reared in, she eventually decided it was not the place for her.I wish I could say hers was an unusual case, but it isn't. I've known families who won't tolerate relatives w … [Read more...]
Friends in High Places: Get Yourself a Saint for 2015
January 3, 2015 by
Matchmaking time. Jen Fulwiler's Patron Saint Generator is up and running. If you haven't done so already, go get yourself an assigned saint for 2015.I did this in 2014, and got Don Bosco on my case. We had started out with a rocky relationship some years ago, so I was a tad nervous when we were paired last winter. But we've come to an understanding and we're friends now.Still, I had to hold my breath when I clicked the button this year, because I'm always secretly afraid I'll get so … [Read more...]
Being Someone New for 2015
December 31, 2014 by
Two links to my work elsewhere that deserve your attention as we start the new year:1. At CatholicMom.com earlier this month, I wrote about a Gospel passage I never quite grasped until the events literally happened to me. And then I got it. Read the whole thing, and then you'll know the context for my summing up: Is there an area of my life where I’m clinging to a past identity? Allowing what I’ve done to define me? To condemn me? What can I do, right now, to become a person who is no long … [Read more...]
Diocese Pays for IVF, Does $2 Million Penance
December 27, 2014 by
In my comments yesterday, I neglected to fully rake the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend over the coals. Let's look at one more detail, as reported in The National Catholic Register: According to court documents, Herx informed the school’s principal, Sandra Guffey, in March 2010 during the first round of treatment — part of which was paid for by the diocese’s health plan — and her contract was renewed. Yes. A Catholic diocese's health insurance plan covered IVF, a procedure that is immoral un … [Read more...]
Catholic School Principal Learns $2 Million Catechism Lesson
December 26, 2014 by
The IVF case that generated as much heat as light earlier this month has been decided, a jury determining that the Diocese of Fort Wayne - South Bend was indeed guilty of discriminating against a female employee in firing her for seeking IVF treatments. When I initially commented on this case, working only from a few anecdotes told from the plaintiff's side, I wrote: Terrible handling of the situation. There should have been no doubt, long before Ms. Herx ever began her job at St. Vincent’s, t … [Read more...]
Doing Something Right, Christmas Edition
December 25, 2014 by
Heard on the playground after Mass this morning: "I know what I want for Christmas next year." "Oh yes? What's that?" "More of those little notebooks." Mad Libs for the win. And I tell you: 2015 will be the year my children learn the parts of speech for more than two minutes at a time.Image Credit: The ________ [noun] of the book I got my _______[person]. … [Read more...]
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