Max Lindenman has been on a roll with his essays lately, and his piece on people determined to fix the South is insightful as always. I especially like the bit about how the South is dragging the rest of the country down, and the US would be some Euro-Canadian paradise if it weren’t for those backwards folk wrecking our numbers. You’d almost think someone’s arguing for secession after all. I’m not going to contest these claims. Let me assure you, the... Read more
Shortly after the Supreme Court decision imposing same-sex marriage laws, I read this reaction from Lindsey at A Queer Calling: If you were to ask me to name my top fear, I would tell you that I am most afraid of Sarah losing health care access. Currently, Sarah’s health care access rests entirely on my employer extending coverage to domestic partners. We first opened the conversation about protecting ourselves legally over 20 months ago. We’ve been encouraged to grant one... Read more
UPDATE: Here’s the link to the Quick Give form (hosted by OSV), where you can designate your gift to be used for Catholic Radio. From in the inbox, a request for help from St. Peter’s Catholic Church in Columbia, SC, to fund a local radio station ASAP. This was a bit of a surprise, and is a use-it-or-lose-it situation. Details in the pastor’s letter: At the end of the three Sunday Masses I celebrated last weekend, I announced that... Read more
H/T to Joe Long for the link to this history of the conversion of Nathan Bedford Forrest, which begins by explaining just how unconverted the man was: Nathan went on to become a very successful and wealthy businessman. Though uneducated and “backwoods” by nature, he was a skilled entrepreneur, albeit in an immoral trade. He made his fortune as a slave trader and as a plantation owner, and by the time the Civil War began in 1861, he was worth... Read more
I’m losing my patience with the sudden anti-Confederate Flag hysteria that seems to be infecting everyone, everywhere. Some of us who live in South Carolina and were glad to see the flag come down from in front of the State House would like to remind you: We didn’t think up that resolution two minutes ago. This has been a long and peaceful democratic process that has unfurled in stages. The late unpleasantness was a catalyst for something we’ve been thinking... Read more
UPDATE: For a detailed treatment of the question of intersex persons and the possibility of sex change, see Christopher Tollefsen writing at Public Discourse, “Sex Identity.” *** A friend shared two articles about genetically XY women who conceived via IVF. She wonders what we are to make of such cases. A few thoughts: 1. The real scandal in these particular stories (here and here) is the use of IVF, which is gravely immoral. 2. I’m not aware of any particular... Read more
What I’m doing this weekend is hanging out at the Edel Gathering (read and weep on Twitter at #Edel15). Going to parties is not the kind of thing that I do. But I live in the general neighborhood, and my friend was going and she asked if I’d meet her for lunch, and then new tickets opened up, and next thing I knew, wow, party! Coming here was the best decision ever. I have a great network of faithful Catholic... Read more
An acquaintance lamented privately about a particular difficulty her family had faced, and the senselessness of it all. She had endured any number of trials past and present, but those had all had meaning. She could see in those other cases how the sacrifices and hardships were oriented towards a greater good. Now she faced a situation that was nothing but purposeless torment. Adding to the insult, she was aware of ways to possibly relieve her family’s suffering, but every... Read more
It is, of course, a sin against the virtue of justice to spend your Mass singing songs about yourself, since it is to God that we owe our worship. But just in case fear of the Almighty wasn’t enough for you, a story about why this is also a sin against your fellow man: So I have this friend, Eastern Orthodox, who expressed interest in visiting a Catholic parish near her home. I told her I’d watch for some mutually-convenient... Read more
H/T to Deacon Greg Kandra for pointing out the most recent case of a Catholic school teacher being fired after parents found out about her same-sex civil wedding. Let me remind you right now that I hold 100% with the teachings of the Catholic faith. I succeed at following them about 2% of the time, but that’s a problem with getting me to behave, not a problem with the ideals themselves. The details reported at Philly.com are sparse, but raise a... Read more
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