As a native of Detroit and lifelong resident in the city or close suburbs (I currently live right outside the southwest side of the city, where I grew up), there are things we are extremely proud of, music-wise: Motown (of course), Aretha Franklin (the Queen of Soul), John Lee Hooker, and Bob Seger (born in 1945), recent long-overdue inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Eminem and Kid Rock? Yuck! We knew of Seger’s greatness ten years before... Read more
I’d like to call attention to Bob Seger’s early work, that is, unfortunately, very unknown outside of my home town of Detroit (where we knew of his music and owned the record albums in the late 60s and early 70s; he even outsold the Beatles in metro Detroit). Most of his pre-1975 work isn’t even available on CD (amazingly enough, for one who is in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame). He hit it big nationwide only in 1976,... Read more
Introductory Thoughts * This is intended as an overview of several interesting tidbits (some of which I discovered last night) concerning Austrian composer Anton Bruckner (1824-1896). I am an unashamed, enthusiastic admirer of 19th-century German-Austrian romantic orchestral music (Wagner, Beethoven, and Mahler being my musical “trinity”). I played trombone in the orchestra and band (1973-1976) at Cass Technical High School in Detroit: a public school that has been nationally renowned for its musical program. Bruckner can plausibly be regarded as the last of the great... Read more
I think we have to weigh very carefully whether “business” has become an idol in our lives. It is also something to deeply ponder, for those of us engaged in full-time Catholic apostolate work, or “ministry”: the relationship of “business” to that. In my own life, I try to minimize and avoid the application of pure, secular “business” techniques and outlook to my work. I’m here primarily to follow my calling and to serve others. Yes, I have to make... Read more
There is a long back story here. I don’t want to bore readers with it, but briefly: Catholic apologist Karl Keating and I have disagreed from the outset as regards Phil Lawler’s book, Lost Shepherd (that is highly critical of Pope Francis). I first wrote about it almost exactly a year ago. Karl didn’t like that at all and I dialogued about it with both him and Phil and then with Karl alone. In January 2018 I wrote five lengthy critiques... Read more
The following exchange came about in a combox on my blog, underneath the article, Christmas Trees as Idols?: Silly “Biblical” Arguments. The words of R. Green (possibly a Jehovah’s Witness: he didn’t say) will be in blue. ***** The scriptural understanding of idolatry, especially for Jehovah’s Witnesses, goes much deeper than just ‘worshiping the tree itself as an idol’. For a worshiper of God (as found in the Hebrew and Greek Scriptures,) the real idolatry comes from the replacing the type... Read more
These foolish “arguments” ostensibly drawn from Holy Scripture come up now and then. The Puritans and large sectors of the Protestant Reformed (Calvinist) tradition historically reasoned in this way. These are the same folks who would say that an organ in a church or even a bare cross or statue of Jesus Christ is an idol — as John Calvin and some other early Protestant leaders argued. Jehovah’s Witnesses picked up the same reasoning in the 19th century (the founder,... Read more
Since when have heartwarming fairy-tales been considered “lies”? I think this is a remarkably imagination-challenged mentality: all this business of anti-Santa Claus. Since many fantasies and stories and fairy tales are wonderfully instructive and cultivate the imagination, I don’t see how anyone can say they are lying. They’re examples of fiction. A belief like Santa Claus is simply a means to make them feel that some of the wonderful fantasies actually come true. If the parents control these things so that... Read more
This is an installment of a series of replies (see the Introduction and Master List) to much of Book IV (Of the Holy Catholic Church) of Institutes of the Christian Religion, by early Protestant leader John Calvin (1509-1564). I utilize the public domain translation of Henry Beveridge, dated 1845, from the 1559 edition in Latin; available online. Calvin’s words will be in blue. All biblical citations (in my portions) will be from RSV unless otherwise noted. Related reading from yours truly: Biblical Catholic Answers for John Calvin (2010 book:... Read more
This is an installment of a series of replies (see the Introduction and Master List) to much of Book IV (Of the Holy Catholic Church) of Institutes of the Christian Religion, by early Protestant leader John Calvin (1509-1564). I utilize the public domain translation of Henry Beveridge, dated 1845, from the 1559 edition in Latin; available online. Calvin’s words will be in blue. All biblical citations (in my portions) will be from RSV unless otherwise noted. Related reading from yours truly: Biblical Catholic Answers for John Calvin (2010 book:... Read more
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