It’s the first day of spring, and I’m not doing so well. Today’s the anniversary of buying my first car, the car that ended up a home for an addicted woman in Columbus, and I haven’t been driving in three months. Serendipity is parked in front of my house, and she won’t start. This has been going on for three months now. It’s something to do with the wiring. The Lost Girl’s uncle won’t return calls and we’ve given up... Read more
We all need to look very carefully at what’s happening in South Carolina– because a bill being proposed will be called a pro-life bill, and it could get people killed. NBC has reported: South Carolina Republicans are pushing legislation that would make a person who undergoes an abortion subject to the state’s homicide laws, which include the death penalty. The South Carolina Prenatal Equal Protection Act would “ensure that an unborn child who is a victim of homicide is afforded equal... Read more
It’s almost spring. The flowers are blooming and the birds and the bees have come back. And as happens every year, Christians on the internet are being disturbingly weird about sex. I guess it started last week, with an unbelievably nasty article which was eventually pulled from the Gospel Coalition website. The article was actually a chapter from an upcoming book, Beautiful Union by Joshua Ryan Butler. In the article, he referred to a vagina as a “sanctuary” and described... Read more
Hey friends, This isn’t a real blog post, it’s just my every-several-months reminder that Steel Magnificat, and my family, run on tips. I get a very small paycheck from Patheos every couple of months for clicks in the United States and a couple other countries, nothing at all for clicks outside of those countries. I get a tiny royalty check for my books and whenever I get published in a real paper. And the rest of my income is... Read more
The winter that never came finally got here last night. We had a dreadfully cold Christmas, followed by a rainy and muddy January, followed by the sunniest, warmest February of my lifetime, bleeding right into a soft gentle March. The daffodils were out and the crocuses were already past their peak. Buds were on all the trees and the birds were singing merrily. Then, suddenly, it started to snow. It kept snowing as night fell, covering the parked car... Read more
Things are progressing at somewhat less than a snail’s pace. Uncle Junkyard says he’ll be able to put brakes in my car “hopefully this weekend.” He’ll take a look at what’s wrong with the wiring then. If it’s the wiring harness, he’ll start digging out whatever needs to be dug out to replace it while I try to figure out how to buy a thousand dollar car part. If, as I hope, it’s something simpler, he might be able to... Read more
Jesus went to a town of Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of land Jacob had given his son Joseph. Jacob’s well was there. Jacob, you recall, was the good-for-nothing younger son who’d cheated his brother out of everything Esau had coming to him, and then he went on the run. Eventually, he had children by four different women: Rachel, whom he’d wanted to marry, Leah, who he’d been tricked into marrying, and Bilah and Zilpah who were slaves... Read more
Invitation and accompaniment. Invitation and accompaniment. Invitation and accompaniment. I have decided to believe in a God of invitation and accompaniment, and to cast down any idols that ask me to revere something else. That’s the penance I’ve set myself to do during Lent. I’m going to act as if mortal sin and obligation aren’t real, and there’s only a God of genuine love inviting me to grow in grace and accompanying me when I suffer. Wherever that leaves... Read more
I didn’t think I’d have to talk about scapegoating of LGBTQ Catholics again so soon, but here I am. Today, it’s been reported, in a bombshell article from the Washington Post, that a nonprofit known as Catholic Laity and Clergy for the Renewal spent millions of dollars to buy mobile app tracking data which they then handed over to bishops all over the country. They did this to expose gay priests who were using dating and hookup apps. The article... Read more
The anxiety hasn’t been good this week. In fact it’s been terrible. It hasn’t let up since my attempt at going to Mass on Sunday. That was a mistake. It’s too soon. I was down for the count on Monday. Tuesday I was still having surges of anxiety every several hours. Tuesday into Wednesday night, I couldn’t sleep. I woke up unusually early Wednesday morning, still exhausted but unable to rest. I ate breakfast but I didn’t feel full.... Read more
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