On Holiday Juneteenth has been declared a federal holiday. On the one hand, I’m pretty happy about that: the liberation of slaves is absolutely something to celebrate. On the other, there’s some mild chagrin, in that federal holidays in this country primarily benefit federal employees and the wealthy, not people in the service industry (for whom federal holidays are often far more wearing than usual). On the third hand, I’m white, so it’s not like this holiday is about me... Read more
Deus Vult: Conquer June Around the end of May and the beginning of June, I saw several posts on Twitter about “reclaiming Pride month for the Sacred Heart.” And, well, trads gonna trad. It wasn’t surprising, and honestly it didn’t even hurt much. LGBTQ people get much worse insults than that. But it does suggest what seems to me like a faith that’s not just homophobic, but incredibly weak. Do you really think Jesus is threatened by Pride month? That... Read more
I’ve been finding it difficult to write here lately (and I think I know why; if anybody wants to pray for some repentance for me, I’d appreciate it). But I’ve been working on a book, and several of the chapters are at least fully drafted. So I thought I’d steal from my future self—at least, I hope finishing this book lies in my future!—and share a selection. § § § It was particularly noteworthy to me that much of the... Read more
Who Is Fr. Altman? Fr. James Altman of Wisconsin has achieved notoriety over the past year and some, for a number of reasons. He has asserted that it is impossible to be a Catholic and a Democrat, citing abortion as the reason, while ignoring all criticism of the GOP. He has called the coronavirus pandemic a hoax, accused bishops of deserting their flocks by closing churches to prevent its spread, and stated that they will “burn in hell” for following... Read more
I. Thanks to a schedule misunderstanding, I missed my parish’s Ascension liturgy on Thursday, for what I think is the third year running. One year, which I think was 2019 but may have been earlier, was due to an ill-timed nap; last year was of course 2020. It’s one of my favorite feasts, too. On the other hand, there’s a Novus Ordo parish not far from me that I’ve been thinking of dropping in on—my parish’s architecture is okay, but... Read more
The Magnus Archives The Magnus Archives is a horror podcast produced by Rusty Quill, a British gaming and fiction company. I hadn’t come across Rusty Quill before, nor any previous work of Jonathan Sims, the writer of Magnus; I think I originally heard about it through the Overly Sarcastic Productions YouTube channel. In any case, I decided to give the first episode (“MAG 1: Anglerfish“) a try, and I was immediately hooked—pun not intended, but honestly called for. Magnus starts... Read more
Content Warning This post and series deal with various types of abuse, including sexual abuse and abuse perpetrated by clergy. Please read with caution. Okay, so we’ve talked about what spiritual abuse is and what it isn’t, who can be an abuser, and some typical forms abuse can take. However, there’s different and subtler form spiritual abuse can take which I want to address. I’ve mostly heard of this in religious contexts, though I see no reason it couldn’t arise... Read more
The Pope has laid a princely feast Upon the Church’s board; In files each cardinal, bishop, priest, The chosen of the Lord. No expense spared, each place is set With cups of gold and gem, Napkins of silk as black as jet, White plates of porcelain. The joint is carved, the wine is poured (Though the fish would not fry); Bishop with bishop firm concord Holds over roasted thigh. Their charities have got them fame, As promised in the Law.... Read more
I. It’s a very heavy week at my job, so I’m having to put my series on spiritual abuse on hold for a minute! However, on that topic, I can recommend this excellent post by Chris Damian, this interview with Rachael Denhollander, this report by Jenn Morson (from two years back) on what’s now a mounting scandal at Steubenville, and this sobering reflection by Mary Pezzulo on abuse, the Crucifixion, and Catholic media. II. I just started reading Death Comes for... Read more
What’s Going On? A lot of you have probably heard about the bill that just passed in Arkansas, banning all transgender-affirming medical care for minors. (It passed despite a surprise veto from the governor; he pointed out, rightly, that there was nothing “small-government conservative” about making more laws restricting the freedom of parents and doctors dealing with trans-identifying kids.) What’s not so well known is that this is just one of dozens of bills from all over the country, doing... Read more
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