Because Christ Has A Body--Why I Stay Catholic

My mom's prayers were the real reason I returned to the Catholic Church, but now the question The Anchoress is asking is why do I stay Catholic? Because Christ has a body.

Don't you mean had? True, at the Annunciation Mary's humble willingness to accept what the angel Gabriel told her of God's plan for her was fulfilled in the incarnation of Jesus in her womb. He grew up with Mary and Joseph and, even in that mysterious time he stayed behind in the Temple when he was 12 to be in his Father's house, was obedient to them. He would go on to teach about the Kingdom of God, to suffer, to die, to be buried, and to rise from the dead. All this could do because he had a body.  Even now, risen and ascended, he still has a body, one made fit to live eternal life.

And he has another body, the Church. He established the Church during his mission among us. He gave it his own authority to continue that mission, to build the kingdom of God. Everything that the Church is flows from the Incarnation. She, for the Church is also his bride as well as his body, she continues Jesus' Incarnation in time while he continues in eternity. The Church lives out Jesus' life, especially as she suffers and dies with him (Col 1:24). Christ and his Church will be united in what St. John in Revelation calls "the wedding feast of the lamb" (Rev 19:9).

The Catholic Church has sacraments because God uses matter to bring grace into the world, just like he bought his divine Son into the world in a human body conceived  and carried in Mary. We have the Bible because the Word became flesh and gave us some of his words to be remembered. Catholic theology flows from the Church's understanding of the Incarnation--God in a Body.

What People Really Mean When They Say They Are Leaving Facebook

From time to time people will declare that they are taking a break or leaving Facebook, Twitter, etc. Yeah, sure.

Keeping Family Together

I was reading Denise Bossert's article on Catholic Exchange "The Challenge of the Assumption of Mary."  She raised this question:

Why is it so easy for people to believe that Jesus Christ will return and “rapture” those who love Him, leaving behind the rest of the world, but those same people find it impossible to believe that Jesus Christ came for His mother and assumed her, body and soul, into heaven?

Some Christians will believe in the Rapture, but not the Assumption of Mary. Both are about human bodies being taken up into Heaven. I think people forget the the Assumption of Mary is not the Ascension of Mary. Even Elijah was taken up into Heaven! The Church does not teach that Mary went up by her own power; rather, her son took her to be with him. It is by Jesus' power that the Blessed Mother is assumed into Heaven.

The Assumption of Mary also anticipates the bodily resurrection of the faithful.  St. Paul teaches that:

⁵¹ Listen, I will tell you a mystery! We will not all die, but we will all be changed, ⁵² in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. ⁵³ For this perishable body must put on imperishability, and this mortal body must put on immortality.  1Corinthians 15:51-53

At the resurrection of the dead, we shall be changed: raised with an imperishable, immortal body. Mary has already been given that grace.


 The Catholic Church teaches that:

966 "Finally the Immaculate Virgin, preserved free from all stain of original sin, when the course of her earthly life was finished, was taken up body and soul into heavenly glory, and exalted by the Lord as Queen over all things, so that she might be the more fully conformed to her Son, the Lord of lords and conqueror of sin and death." The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin is a singular participation in her Son's Resurrection and an anticipation of the resurrection of other Christians.--Catechism of the Catholic Church

Now there's a lot of theology in that paragraph. Today, let's keep it simple. The Assumption of Mary is about a son taking his mother home to be with him. It's act of love from Jesus to Mary.


It's about family being together.

 

There Are More Things in Heaven and Earth Than Are Dreamt of in Your Philosophy

The internecine battle among Yes fans over the rotational roster of lead vocalists has all the spite of Yankee fans arguing over the pitching rotation. Occasionally it becomes a hockey fight; all bluster and bravado born of frustration.

Cards on table: Jon Anderson is irreplaceable. Yes should have learned that by now. He is so much more than a lead vocalist with a tenor-alto range. If that were the case, either Benoit David or Jon Davison or even Tevor Horn would have done the job adequately. (Suggestion: Benoit David and David Benoit should do an album together. But I digress).

Jon Anderson was not only the lead vocalist and lyricist for Yes, he was the spiritual center of the band. He was also, as his nickname of Napoleon suggests, it's diminutive leader. Hand-in-waistcoat, Jon would be the one pushing the band to do more, to risk more. Now another Jon is mise en place to be the lead vocalist and, for Heaven and Earth, main lyricist. He is also, at 43, the youngest member of Yes with the rest in their 60s. This is your grandfather's Yes! Don't expect it sound like Yes of the 1970s. This is Yes of 2014.

"Believe Again" is the opening invitation to Heaven and Earth. Like any well-behaved opening track, it tells you what you need to know about what's to follow. After Steve Howe's volume-swelled intro, we hear Jon Davison sing a melody and lyrics that are very much in the Yes style, going quickly if briefly into his upper range. Chris Squire's harmony vocals are as good as ever, even if he's missing Jon Anderson's melodic phrasing to blend in and around. Howe's solo section, while not as fast as in the past, still has a lovely tone. While the lyrics are about a lover desiring to find the ability to believe in love again, the song is clearly meant to invite fans to believe again in this incarnation of Yes.

Next on deck, "The Game" sports a similar intro to "Believe Again", this time on keyboards.  While it works as a love song, it could also be about the game of the music business. "Step Beyond" could have stepped off the CD and not have been missed. Geoff Downes' toy synthesizer sound reminds me of something Will Farrell's Marty Culp would play, or an ice cream truck as it rolls through you neighborhood, or the Buggles. Fortunately, "To Ascend" puts us back in Yes territory with a slow ballad. (They may regret the line "as freed bird flies from the hand" when they play live, however). Many have put down "In a World of Our Own", but it has a jaunty rhythm and some funny lines--rather Beatle-ish. The moody and atmospheric "Light of the Ages" follows, written by a solo Jon Davison, who co-wrote all the others songs except for the Steve Howe penned "It Was All We Knew", a sort of English pastoral tune with the very catchy "sweet were the fruits/long were the summer days" melody.

Heaven and Earth closes with "Subway Walls." When I first saw the title, I expected it to be an odd-ball track. But it is one of the best on the album, certainly the most progressive, sounding reminiscent of "On the Silent Wings of Freedom" or "Shoot High, Aim Low." Given that Jon Anderson and Chris Squire were both big fans of Paul Simon, it seems apropos that this track, written by Davison and Downes, has some lyrical debt to "Sounds of Silence."

Heaven and Earth rewards the listener who is the owner of an open heart. No, it doesn't sound like classic Yes. It does sound like Yes, albeit a mid-temp mellower version. They lyrics don't rise to Mr. Anderson's (if I can get a bit New York Times-y) level of genius (Yes, I said genius!) , but they are well within the prog-rock template. The lyrics and melodies from Jon Davison are good but not quite surrounded by what Yes is capable of. From what I've read it seems that the recording time in between tours was too brief, the music isn't fully matured. For older fans who hold on to Yes of the 70's, let it go and, as Warren Zevon said, learn to enjoy every sandwich. And for the Heaven and Earth's new line-up, "as a stranger, give it welcome."

Barkeep, I Need Some Wine....

I woke up one night in my hospital bed to see my friend Father Vincent Druding preparing to say Mass. I was groggy from sleep, so I took me awhile to realize what was happening. Fr. Vince told me he would like to say Mass, would that be OK? While I was very tired, how could I refuse this great grace?

I followed the liturgy as best as I could, drifting in an out of sleep--so just like a regular Mass! I didn't realize it at the time, but it was between 1am and 2am on July 16, the Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel.

Much of what I remember comes from hearing the story of that night from Fr. Vince weeks, maybe months later. He was able to find some hosts in a Chapel, I think, but no wine. So he and someone from the hospital went out around midnight to try to find some wine for the Mass!

As I understand it, there were no regular liquor stores open and nearby convenience stores had only beer. So Fr. Vince ended up in a bar asking for some wine to use for a Mass! I'm not sure how much the bartender understood about why a priest was looking for wine after midnight, but Fr. Vince left with enough to say Mass.

Since then, I try to remember that night when Fr. Vince  after tracking down some wine in a bar, came to the foot of my hospital bed so he could say Mass for me on the feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel.

Beatae Mariae de Monte Carmelo, ora pro nobis!

PZ Myers On the Good Life

The Washington Post published this little hairball by PZ Myers, "An Atheists Guide to the Good Life."

He admits:

A curious thing happened to my thoughts on the way to composing this essay.  

It was supposed to be about how to be an atheist, but I realized that that wasn’t right. Atheism is the default position. You don’t have to do anything to be an atheist, but you have to work awfully hard to not be one — atheism strips away a lot of superfluous nonsense, rather than piling on remarkable requirements and strange creeds and bizarre pointless rituals that you need to obey. So instead, I thought I’d address the believers and tell you what baggage you can throw off ol’ Conestoga Wagon of life, the stuff that we know is completely unnecessary because atheists have traveled the trail without it, and come out just fine.

It's hardly curious that an essay on how to live the good life as an atheist turned into a screed against religion, Prof. Myers. That's kinda your thing. I guess the 'steemed professor couldn't think of anything connecting atheists to the Good Life, so he went to his true "default position", attacking Christianity. (I'm not saying you can't connect atheism to the Good Life, just that Dr. Myers couldn't.)

Ditch the Sunday church services first thing. Hanging out with friends and neighbors is great, we atheists do it all the time, but guess what? We do it without a boring dude in a dog collar droning away at us, without sitting in those uncomfortable pews, without snoozing through the same old homilies.

Instead, let's ditch class with Prof. Myers. Who needs a boring old dude in a professors tweed jacket (or Hawaiian shirt) droning away at us while sitting in those uncomfortable classroom chairs, snoozing through the same old lectures.

Telling us we’re going to be set on fire by a malicious god if we don’t behave isn’t just unbelievable, it’s insulting — we don’t need extortion or offers of imaginary paradise cookies to do the right thing. Why do you?

We don't, Doc. Have you been getting your theology from South Park again? I don't believe what you think we believe either! But those paradise cookies sound delicious!

Dr. Myers on prayer:

Atheists have the simplest answer: no one is listening. It fits just as well, even better, than all the convoluted explanations you might come up with. And it means you can stop the futile babbling, hang up and do something productive.

If  "no one is listening", maybe it's not God. We've already stopped the futile babbling because Jesus told us to!  Hey, Doc! You and Jesus agree on prayer. Boy, that Jesus must be smart as a university professor!

On love:

Most importantly, you never have to feel bad about reciprocating love with another person, because medieval rules to govern relationships have all lost their divine foundation.

Medieval rules? They're way older than that!  Just because you don't believe in a building doesn't mean it has no foundation.

 On society:

Speaking of medieval rules, throw away the hierarchical view of society. Rulers aren’t better than those they rule, priests are not above the congregation...

 Woo hoo! No more university professors!

On death and dying:

Have you ever lost someone you love? You know what churchy people will tell you: They’re in a happier place, God needed another angel, they’re having strawberries and waffles with Jesus right now. Atheists won’t do that: they’ll tell you that it’s OK to grieve.

Yes, it is OK to grieve. I've been told that all my life by "churchy" people. We don't become angels, although having strawberries and waffles with Jesus sounds awesome! And it gives me an excuse to show one of my favorite clips:

 If you want to read the whole article, here.


 Dr. PZ Myers....

Big Mac Attacks!

"Big Mac tastes like the smell of success." Yeah. So *that's* what I smell at McDonald's. I thought I tasted the smell (WTH?) of corporate and caloric excess. But my little paper McDonald's hat (remember those?) is off to all those employees working hard to make something of themselves. I just hope it's not a Big Mac.

Why I Am Catholic--My Mother's Prayers

My answer to Patheos.com's question:

When I left the Catholic Church after graduating college to join a Baptist Church (that long story here), my parents were quite concerned. My dad’s response was to have me meet with a priest, a professor of moral theology. My mom got out her rosary.

My parents found some comfort that I remained a Christian, though not a Catholic. Over the years I graduated from a Southern Baptist seminary in Ft. Worth, TX. My father died while I was there; mom kept praying.

After I moved back to NY, I attended other Baptist churches. Eventually, I left one intending to find another church, but never did. One day my mom asked me to think of going back to the Catholic Church since I wasn’t attending any church. I told her no, I wasn’t interested. She went back to her rosary.

As you might guess, I wasn’t long before I decided to give my old parish Church a try. I never had a chance! My mom was praying to the Blessed Mother for me. After a few weeks of research and talking with Fr. George, I made my confession in Advent of 2004.

Never underestimate the power of a Mother’s prayers.

Spiritual Friendship

Saints Basil the Great and Gregory Nazianzen

Today's feast of St. Basil the Great and St. Gregory Nazianzen is a reminder of the power of spiritual friendship. Both men were bishops, but were nearly opposite in personality. St. Basil was a pastor and preacher, and a excellent bishop (of Caesarea in 370). He is the father of Eastern Monasticism. St. Gregory was more of an introvert and contemplative. Their friendship developed while they were students in Athens. They are both Doctors of the Church. You can read more here.

Below is the text of a sermon By St. Gregory Nazianzen from today's Office of Readings.


Two bodies, but a single spirit

Basil and I were both in Athens. We had come, like streams of a river, from the same source in our native land, had separated from each other in pursuit of learning, and were now united again as if by plan, for God so arranged it.

  I was not alone at that time in my regard for my friend, the great Basil. I knew his irreproachable conduct, and the maturity and wisdom of his conversation. I sought to persuade others, to whom he was less well known, to have the same regard for him. Many fell immediately under his spell, for they had already heard of him by reputation and hearsay.

  What was the outcome? Almost alone of those who had come to Athens to study he was exempted from the customary ceremonies of initiation for he was held in higher honour than his status as a first-year student seemed to warrant.

  Such was the prelude to our friendship, the kindling of that flame that was to bind us together. In this way we began to feel affection for each other. When, in the course of time, we acknowledged our friendship and recognised that our ambition was a life of true wisdom, we became everything to each other: we shared the same lodging, the same table, the same desires the same goal. Our love for each other grew daily warmer and deeper.

  The same hope inspired us: the pursuit of learning. This is an ambition especially subject to envy. Yet between us there was no envy. On the contrary, we made capital out of our rivalry. Our rivalry consisted, not in seeking the first place for oneself but in yielding it to the other, for we each looked on the other’s success as his own.

  We seemed to be two bodies with a single spirit. Though we cannot believe those who claim that everything is contained in everything, yet you must believe that in our case each of us was in the other and with the other.

  Our single object and ambition was virtue, and a life of hope in the blessings that are to come; we wanted to withdraw from this world before we departed from it. With this end in view we ordered our lives and all our actions. We followed the guidance of God’s law and spurred each other on to virtue. If it is not too boastful to say, we found in each other a standard and rule for discerning right from wrong.

  Different men have different names, which they owe to their parents or to themselves, that is, to their own pursuits and achievements. But our great pursuit, the great name we wanted, was to be Christians, to be called Christians.

A Prog-rock Christmas: Day 4

Day 4 brings us back to Chris Squire--with a twist. The video is miguelbass of YouTube playing his bass to a track of Personet Hodie from Chris Squire's Swiss Choirs.

Hewing the Hobbit

Finished reading "The Hobbit": good!  Then I saw the movie. To Paraphrase GK Chesterton: “A good movie  tells us the truth about its hero; but a bad movie tells us the truth about its director.”

Don't worry! You can trust me!

The truth the movie tells us about Peter Jackson is that he has become a Gollum. He thinks "The Hobbit" is his to do with as he likes. Where he hews to the story the movie is fine. When he hews "The Hobbit", cutting from and adding to as he wills, it's a mess.

Spoiler alert!

To be fair, some of the additions work quite well. The council at Rivendell with Galadriel and Saruman gave a sense of import and danger to the journey. I also liked the prologue with the Ian Holmes' Bilbo and Frodo.

However, having Azog, "The Pale Orc", survive an earlier battle to be the enemy of Thorin  Oakenshield brings several changes to the story, and not for the better. As other have said, it is no longer simply "The Hobbit". It is now a prequel to Jackson's "Lord of the Rings" movies. It is his precioussss, not ours.

A Prog-rock Christmas: Day 3

This song done here by the Moody Blues isn't all that proggy or rocky, but it's a lovely melody. The original melody was "Soleado", a tune from 1972 by Ciro Dammicco . The English lyrics were written a few years later by Fred Jay, According to Wikipedia.




And here's the classic Johnny Mathis version:

A Prog-rock Christmas: Day 2

OK, a little catching up to do!  The second video is from the "Chis Squire's Swiss Choirs" CD.  In addition to being a amazing bass player, Chris is a great vocalist, especially his harmonies. Here he is with his Run With the Fox:
Hmm, issues with YouTube...

A Prog-rock Christmas: Day 1

This a series of music posts for, hopefully, 12 days of Christmas with a progressive rock theme. Ready?

First up is a video from the elf himself, Jon Anderson. This is my favorite prog Christmas CD. It has both new and old; great originals and old British carols. Here's one of Jon Anderson's originals.

Faithful Citizenship Is Not Just for Catholics!

This is a good, basic overview of the idea od faithful citizenship as proposed by the USCCB.
I think that it is a overview for any voter.

What's Wrong with the World by G.K. Chesterton
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Rather than a collection of various essays, What's Wrong with the World is an attempt to answer that question. It introduces GKCs stand-ins for Big Government and Big Business, Hudge and Gudge. As with many of his books, it's important to remember that is was written in the early to mid 1900s in a British culture, therefore some things will sound a little strange to contemporary American ears. But this a brilliant and challenging look at where we got off track on education, government and family.

“The woman does not work because the man tells her to work and she obeys. On the contrary, the woman works because she has told the man to work and he hasn’t obeyed.”
― G.K. Chesterton, What's Wrong with the World

And two of Chesterton's best known quotes:

"If a thing is worth doing, it is worth doing badly."
Part Four: Education, or The Mistake About The Child - Ch. 14 : Folly and Female Education

"The great ideals of the past failed not by being outlived (which must mean over-lived), but by not being lived enough. Mankind has not passed through the Middle Ages. Rather mankind has retreated from the Middle Ages in reaction and rout. The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting. It has been found difficult; and left untried."
Part One: The Homelessness Of Man, Ch. 5 : The Unfinished Temple

The Womb Before the Dawn

The phrase "in the womb before the dawn" comes from the translation of Psalm 110 used in The Liturgy of the Hours. I've been thinking about that idea for several months. Today, this poem came to me. Tonight is the vigil of Pentecost 2011. Pentecost is nothing less than a new creation, the birth of the Church.


In the Womb Before the Dawn

Wild winter waters,
Disordered deep,
Empty and formless void
Waiting for the wind
In the womb before the dawn.

The dove hovering
Moving over the ocean's face
Creating the foundations--
de profundis.

The breath breathes
The word speaks
From the heart of God

And there is light
To end the endless night
Of creation's confusion
At the cosmos' untamed sight
As the first day
Gives birth to the dawn.

What Is Irish Music?

There are two kinds of Irish music. Most people, especially around St. Patrick's Day, think of those sappy sentimental songs like "When Irish Eye's Are Smiling" or comic songs like "Who Threw the Overalls in Mrs. Murphy's Chowder?" Some have called this American Irish music.

True Irish music can be sentimental, but never sappy. It's humor is the humor that come out of a hard life. Frank Harte said, ""Those in power write the history, while those who suffer write the songs. And given our history, the Irish have alot of songs." As G.K. Chesterton put it,

"The great Gaels of Ireland
Are the men that God made mad
For all their wars are merry
And all their songs are sad"

The problem is that people confuse the two types of Irish music, making life difficult for Irish singers like Robbie O'Connell.

Watson on Jeopardy!

Well, the 3 day commercial for IBM on Jeopardy! is over and Watson won. As Ken Jennings said "I, for one welcome our new computer overlords." After revealing that Toronto is in the US, or at least it's airports are, I'm surprised that Ken Jennings and Brad Rutter didn't realize Watson's weakness. Captain Kirk figured it out in 1967! (The best part starts at 1 minute in.)

Waking Up to Christ--A Reflection on the 4th Sunday of Advent

In today's readings, St. Matthew begins his gospel with a deceptively simple statement, "This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about." What follows deals with an unexpected pregnancy, angels, dreams, a prophecy, and a virgin birth.

Central to Matthew's account is St. Joseph. Mary is found to be with child. Even though they are betrothed, they are not yet living together. For Mary to be pregnant in that case is bad enough, but Joseph apparently knows of her story of the visitation of the angel Gabriel and the claim that she is with child by the power of the Holy Spirit. "That can't be true, can it?" Joseph must wonder. He has decide. Can he believe her story or should he end the marriage?

Going to sleep on it, he dreams of an angel--was it Gabriel?--telling him, as angels usually do at first, "Do not be afraid!" The angel confirms that his wife, Mary, is with child by the Holy Spirit. He directs Joseph to take Mary into his home and to name the the child Jesus.

I don't know about you, but I wouldn't make any of my dreams the basis of a big decision! But I think that this was the kind of dream that is more real than life itself. Another Joseph was a dreamer and his dreams ultimately saved Egypt from famine and, in doing so, saved the Jewish people, setting the stage for their Exodus. Now this Joseph, husband of Mary, dreams of the salvation of his people. He takes Mary into his home and names their son Jesus.

St. Matthew places the story of Mary and Joseph into the larger picture. He quotes from our first reading from Isaiah, "Behold a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel." As the Church reflected on they stories of Christ's birth that ultimately were written down in St. Matthew's and St. Luke's gospels, they saw this as the fulfillment of Isaiah's words. He had gone to King Ahaz to tell the king to ask for a sign that the attack against Jerusalem by the kings of Israel and Damascus would fail. King Ahaz feigns humility and refuses to tempt the Lord. So Isaiah tells him that the Lord himself has decided what the sign will be, "the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall name him Emmanuel."

There is some dispute over whether the Hebrew word here translated virgin means "virgin" or "young woman". The Greek word used in the New Testament does mean virgin. It shows us what the early Church thought this story of Mary and Joseph meant. It helps us understand why Joseph was so concerned. Mary was as virgin when she was found to be with child. She and Joseph had not had relations. That's why Joseph thought he should divorce her quietly and spare her any additional shame. That's also why it took an angelic dream to sort things out!

The Church talks much about Mary's fiat, her "yes" to the angel's message to her--and rightly so. But let's take a moment to think of Joseph's "yes" to the angel's message to him, for it is just as important. In the midst of a difficult, embarrassing and confusing situation, Joseph listened to what God was saying to him. St. Matthew tells us that when he awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded. We need to wake-up!

As a result of this obedience, Jesus was born into a family with a father and a mother. Think of it! God entrusted his only-begotten Son to a human father and mother in Joseph and Mary. Joseph took the child and raised him as his own. He was the example to God of what it meant to be a man!

St. Joseph is the patron saint of the universal Church, all of us! Let us learn from him as Christ did what it means to be human. Even when it is confusing or difficult or embarrassing, let us say yes to God as Joseph did. That simple "yes" of faith is why we call him Saint Joseph. When we receive Jesus in the Eucharist today, let us, as Joseph did, wake-up and say "yes" to Jesus.