Details, from CNS via the Catholic Review: “My dad used to say, ‘I know what happened 2,000 years ago. I need to know how to live my life today.'” These words, from Archbishop Robert J. Carlson of St. Louis, get to the heart of a new proposed document on preaching to be considered by the U.S. bishops at the fall general meeting in November. The document, “Preaching the Mystery of Faith: The Sunday Homily,” encourages preachers to connect the Sunday... Read more
Not sure what to make of that. But it does indicate, I suppose, that “Jesus” is The Way—or at least, the way to get your e-mail. Details: Time to check your password. Password management company SplashData has analyzed millions of passwords released online by hackers to compile its list of the most used passwords of 2012. Once again, “password,” “123456” and “12345678” were the top three most common passwords. But there were some interesting new additions to the list. “Jesus”... Read more
If you caught any of the big launch event yesterday for the new Apple products—including the long-anticipated iPad Mini—you might have felt like you were in church. That may not be a coincidence. Details from the Christian Science Monitor: We asked Kirsten Bell, an anthropologist at the University of British Columbia in Canada, to look at some launch videos for us. She came to some of the same conclusions as her predecessors, including Eastern Washington University sociologist Pui-Yan Lam, who... Read more
From Associated Press: Pope Benedict XVI has named six new cardinals, adding prelates from Lebanon, the Philippines, Nigeria, Colombia, India and the United States to the ranks of cardinals who will elect his successor. Benedict made the surprise announcement during his weekly general audience Wednesday and said they would be elevated at a consistory Nov. 24. The nominations help even out the geographic distribution of cardinals, which had tilted heavily toward Italy. The new cardinals are: Monsignor James Harvey, the... Read more
I sure didn’t. Days after the EU won the Nobel Peace Prize, this “rest of the story” anecdote has emerged: Mario Mauro, leader of the Italian People of Freedom Party (PDL), one of the parties that form part of the the European People’s Party (EPP), stressed that the EU flag has twelve golden stars that form a circle set against a blue backdrop. The number of stars has nothing to do with the number of EU states but is an... Read more
From Stan Winston comes this fascinating glimpse at how they made those dinosaurs so realistic. It’s not as technically sophisticated as you might think: ultimately, it was mostly a guy in a rubber suit. Check it out, though. It’s surprising, and fascinating. Read more
I took in an advance screening of Steven Spielberg’s “Lincoln” last night. Five quick points, in no particular order: Forget the trailer. What you’re seeing to promote the movie is more histrionics than history, and what actually unspools on the screen is sharper, smarter, headier and often much more reflective and tender than what you see in the previews. This isn’t hagiography. Spielberg, author Tony Kushner, and star Daniel Day-Lewis give us a Lincoln with warts. He’s a political opportunist... Read more
Amazing. Read on: The Vatican’s ambassador to Iraq and a number of monks held the first mass in 1,500 years in one of the oldest monasteries in the Iraqi city of al-Hira (south of Najaf), and met with the top Iraqi Shiite cleric, Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani. Hira had been a spiritual capital for Christians, and was a destination for monks for more than 500 years before the introduction of Islam to the country. There are 33 monasteries between Najaf and... Read more
And the secularization of Europe continues. Details: Poland’s Prime Minster Donald Tusk announced plans on Monday to finance in-vitro fertilization treatment for couples, setting himself on a collision course with conservatives who say the procedure violates Catholic doctrine. A growing number of increasingly secular Poles back IVF, which has been performed in Poland for 25 years, but traditionally Catholic Poland has never passed legislation regulating the treatment. Tusk said he would ask the Health Ministry to provide financing for 15,000... Read more
It’s called a fanon. Huh?? Details, thanks to the Catholic Encyclopedia and New Liturgical Movement: A shoulder-cape worn by the pope alone, consisting of two pieces of white silk ornamented with narrow woven stripes of red and gold; the pieces are nearly circular in shape but somewhat unequal in size and the smaller is laid on and fastened to the larger one… The front part of the fanon is ornamented with a smallcross embroidered in gold… The fanon is like... Read more
The Deacon's Bench
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