This man is a saint in Heaven! John Paul II

Last moments of John Paul II described
Rome, Apr. 03 (CWNews.com) - The Vatican press office released the following official statement by papal spokesman Joaquin Navarro Valls regarding the sequence of events preceding and following Pope John Paul's death on Saturday:
"At 8 p.m. the celebration of Mass for Divine Mercy Sunday began in the Holy Father's room, presided by Archbishop Stanislaw Dziwisz with the participation of Cardinal Marian Jaworski, of Archbishop Stanislaw Rylko and of Msgr. Mieczyslaw Mokrzycki.
"During the course of the Mass, the Viaticum was administered to the Holy Father and, once again, the Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick.
"The Holy Father's final hours were marked by the uninterrupted prayer of all those who were assisting him in his pious death, and by the choral participation in prayer of the thousands of faithful who, for many hours, had been gathered in St. Peter's Square.
"Present at the moment of the death of John Paul II were: his two personal secretaries Archbishop Stanislaw Dziwisz and Msgr. Mieczyslaw Mokrzycki, Cardinal Marian Jaworski, Archbishop Stanislaw Rylko, Fr. Tadeusz Styczen, the three nuns, Handmaidens of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, who assist in the Holy Father's apartment, guided by the Superior Sr. Tobiana Sobodka, and the Pope's personal physician Dr. Renato Buzzonetti, with the two doctors on call, Dr. Alessandro Barelli and Dr. Ciro D'Allo, and the two nurses on call.
"Immediately afterwards Cardinal Secretary of State Angelo Sodano arrived, as did the camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church, Cardinal Eduardo Martinez Somalo, Archbishop Leonardo Sandri, substitute of the Secretariat of State, and Archbishop Paolo Sardi, vice-camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church.
"Thereafter, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, dean of the College of Cardinals, and Cardinal Jozef Tomko also arrived."
The first announcement of the Pope's death came from Navarro-Valls who, minutes after the Holy Father expired, sent an email to journalists informing them of the event. A formal announcement from Archbishop Sandri to the tens of thousands gathered in St. Peter's Square. "Our Holy Father, John Paul, has returned to the house of the Father," he said. "We all feel like orphans this evening."
As the end of his life approached, the Holy Father reportedly dictated a message for the Catholic faithful to his secretary: "I am happy and you should be happy too. Do not weep. Let us pray together with joy."
Father Jarek Cielecki, director of a Vatican TV station, gave more of the details of the Holy Father's last moments: "The Holy Father died looking towards the window as he prayed, and that shows that in some way he was conscious," Cielecki said. "A short while before dying, the Pope raised his right hand in a clear, although simply hinted at, gesture of blessing, as if he became aware of the crowd of faithful present in St Peter's Square, who in those moments were following the reciting of the Rosary," he added. "Just after the prayer ended, the Pope made a huge effort and pronounced the word 'Amen'. A moment later, he died."

Papa! Papa! Papa! - Rest in Peace

"This evening or this night, Christ opens the door to the pope," Angelo Comastri, the pope's vicar general for Vatican City, told a crowd at St. Peter's Square.

From Fox News earlier:

"Navarro-Valls said the pope followed the Way of the Cross prayer re-enacting Christ's final hours as he has done every Friday since he was a priest. He asked that the 14 stages be read to him — biblical texts which describe Christ's path to the cross, his crucifixion and when his body is taken down, wrapped in a linen shroud and buried in his tomb, the spokesman said. Thpope made the sign of the cross as the passages were read, he said." (Emphasis added)

We prayed at Mass yesterday and this morning for John Paul the Great - that is, Pope Saint John Paul the Great. Now, just as he has done these past years with his suffering, he will pray for us at the foot of the throne of God. He may not be formally canonized for some years, but just as in the early days of Christianity when holiness was celebrated by popular acclamation, so it will be with John Paul, (as is with Mother Teresa).

This is a day of great joy! While we mourn the loss of a great Pope, we thank God for his years and rejoice for another advocate in Heaven!

John Paul made many initiatives. He traveled the world to bring the Gospel in person. (Perhaps because he knew the bishops were not?). It will be years before his pontificate will be fully digested. He writings were prolific. He has written for those at every intellectual level. His writings touch on every subject which is important to mankind and salvation.

Woe to us who are not grateful and responsive to the words of this vicar of Christ.

INCLINA, Domine, aurem tuam ad preces nostras, quibus misericordiam tuam supplices deprecamur, ut animam famuli tui Joannes Paulus, quam de hoc saeculo migrare iussisti, in pacis ac lucis regione constituas et Sanctorum tuorum iubeas esse consortem. Per Christum Dominum nostrum. Amen.

INCLINE Thine ear, O Lord, unto our prayers, wherein we humbly pray Thee to show Thy mercy upon the soul of Thy servant John Paul, whom Thou hast commanded to pass out of this world, that Thou wouldst place him in the region of peace and light, and bid him be a partaker with Thy Saints. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

From the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!

From the latest bulletin from the Vatican:

The spokesman said that the Holy Father was mindful of the young people who had gathered beneath the windows of the papal apartments in St. Peter's Square throughout the night as well as all the youth he had met throughout the world during his pontificate. Navarro-Valls said, "In fact, he seemed to be referring to them when, in his words, and repeated several times, he seemed to have said the following sentence: 'I have looked for you. Now you have come to me. And I thank you.'

Saturday Morning

While our Holy Father still clings to life - I offer these thoughts of his from a document, Familiaris Consortio, which has had a great impact on our family and our family life:

“The family has vital and organic links with society, since it is its foundation and nourishes it continually through its role of service to life: it is from the family that citizens come to birth and it is within the family that they find the first school of the social virtues that are the animating principle of the existence and development of society itself. ….… Thus, far from being closed in on itself, the family is by nature and vocation open to other families and to society, and undertakes its social role.”

Sometimes, in this society we live in, we are tempted to shut all doors and live in our own world. John Paul counsels us to spread the Gospel as a family among families

Papa we love you!

Oremus pro invicem!

John Paul II in Boston, October 1979

Here is what I heard when John Paul came to Boston Common in 1979.

"Tonight, I want to repeat what I keep telling youth: you are the future of the world, and "the day of tomorrow belongs to you". I want to remind you of the encounters that Jesus himself had with the youth of his day. The Gospels preserve for us a striking account of a conversation Jesus had with a young man. We read there that the young man put to Christ one of the fundamental questions that youth everywhere ask: "What must I do. . .?" (Mk 10:17), and he received a precise and penetrating answer. "Then, Jesus looked at him with love and told him. . . Come and follow me" (Mk 10:21). But see what happens: the young man, who had shown such interest in the fundamental question "went away sad, for he had many possessions" (Mk 10:22). Yes, he went away, and - as can be deduced from the context - he refused to accept the call of Christ.

This deeply penetrating event, in its concise eloquence, expresses a great lesson in a few words: it touches upon substantial problems and basic questions that have in no way lost their relevance. Everywhere young people are asking important questions - questions on the meaning of life, on the right way to live, on the true scale of values: "What must I do. . .?" "What must I do to share in everlasting life?" This questioning bears witness to your thoughts, your consciences, your hearts and wills. This questioning tells the world that you, young people, carry within yourselves a special openness with regard to what is good and what is true. This openness is, in a sense, a "revelation" of the human spirit. And in this openness to truth, to goodness and to beauty, each one of you can find yourself; indeed, in this openness you can all experience in some measure what the young man in the Gospel experienced: "Jesus looked at him with love" (Mk 10:21).

To each one of you I say therefore: heed the call of Christ when you hear him saying to you: "Follow me!" Walk in my path! Stand by my side! Remain in my love! There is a choice to be made: a choice for Christ and his way of life, and his commandment of love.

The message of love that Christ brought is always important, always relevant. It is not difficult to see how today's world, despite its beauty and grandeur, despite the conquests of science and technology, despite the. refined and abundant material goods that it offers, is yearning for more truth, for more love, for more joy. And all of this is found in Christ and in his way of life.

Do I then make a mistake when I tell you, Catholic youth. that it is part of your task in the world and the Church to reveal the true meaning of life where hatred, neglect or selfishness threaten to take over the world? Faced with problems and disappointments, many people will try to escape from their responsibility: escape in selfishness, escape in sexual pleasure, escape in drugs, escape in violence, escape in indifference and cynical attitudes. But today, I propose to you the option of love, which is the opposite of escape. If you really accept that love from Christ, it will lead you to God. Perhaps in the priesthood or religious life; perhaps in some special service to your brothers and sisters: especially to the needy, the poor, the lonely, the abandoned, those whose rights have been trampled upon, or those whose basic needs have not been provided for. Whatever you make of your life, let it be something that reflects the love of Christ. The whole People of God will be all the richer because of the diversity of your commitments. In whatever you do, remember that Christ is calling you, in one way or another, to the service of love: the love of God and of your neighbor.

And now coming back to the story of the young man in the Gospels, we see that he heard the call - "Follow me" - but that he "went away sad. for he had many possessions ".

The sadness of the young man makes us reflect. We could be tempted to think that many possessions, many of the goods of this world, can bring happiness. We see instead in the case of the young man in the Gospel that his many possessions had become an obstacle to accepting the call of Jesus to follow him. He was not ready to say yes to Jesus, and no to self, to say yes to love and no to escape.

Real love is demanding. I would fail in my mission if I did not clearly tell you so. For it was Jesus - our Jesus himself - who said: "You are my friends if you do what I command you" (Jn 15:14). Love demands effort and a personal commitment to the will of God. It means discipline and sacrifice, but it also means joy and human fulfillment.

Dear young people: do not be afraid of honest effort and honest work; do not be afraid of the truth. With Christ's help, and through prayer, you can answer his call, resisting temptations and fads, and every form of mass manipulation. Open your hearts to the Christ of the Gospels - to his love and his truth and his joy. Do not go away sad!

And, as a last word to all of you who listen to me tonight, I would say this: the reason for my mission, for my journey, through the United States is to tell you, to tell everyone - young and old alike - to say to everyone in the name of Christ: "Come and follow me! "

Follow Christ! You who are married: share your love and your burdens with each other; respect the human dignity of your spouse; accept joyfully the life that God gives through you; make your marriage stable and secure for your children's sake.
Follow Christ! You who are single or who are preparing for marriage. Follow Christ! You who are young or old. Follow Christ! You who are sick or aging; who are suffering or in pain. You who feel the need for healing, the need for love, the need for a friend - follow Christ!

To all of you I extend - in the name of Christ - the call, the invitation, the plea: "Come and follow Me". This is why I have come to America, and why I have come to Boston tonight: to call you to Christ - to call all of you arid each of you to live in his love, today and forever. Amen! "

Papa!

From Fox News: "Vatican spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls tearily said that the pope had requested to remain in his apartment after being "informed of the gravity of his situation," and that the request was being honored."

Dear Lord, we pray and beseech Thee to grant the grace to Pope John Paul to prepare well for his meeting with You in these last hours. He has truly been Your servant; and in Your example at the Last Supper when You washed the feet of Your apostles, John Paul has served Your Church with his suffering, with his prayers, with everything he has. We thank Thee for giving this Holy Father to Your Church. Have mercy on us - for we are sinners!

Oremus pro invicem!

The Holy Father ...

Fox news is reporting here that John Paul's condition is worsening - although Reuters doesn't have the story and there seems to be conflicting reports.

Let us pray for the Holy Father ....

Our Father ...

Terri Schiavo - Rest in Peace

At Mass this morning I prayed for Terri Schiavo in the commemoration of the living - unaware that she had passed by this time. Let us pray that her life and her death will bring awareness to the euthanasia which is practiced in the country daily and will cause many to reconsider the value of suffering, which has been sanctified by Christ's passion.

God can bring goodness out of evil. The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away. Blessed be the name of the Lord!

Christ is Risen!

Two Lives

Every morning when I turn on the computer, the first thing I check is how Terri Schiavo is doing and how the 'powers that be' have found a new way to make sure this woman dies - no appeals heard. (I also notice that the Supreme Court is not releasing information on the vote.) It is amazing that she has held on this long. There is a will to live in Terri Schiavo. She is making sure we notice!

And in the background our Holy Father is fading. While it still may be years or only weeks, his illnesses seem to be finally taking their toll. I have feared his death as one fears their own father's death. He has been a spiritual father to me. As my own father taught me in practical ways how to love a wife and children, how to fix almost anything, how to have faith, how to teach children and countless other things;John Paul's writings have helped me understand the human person, marriage, economics, prayer, family life, and many other things which effect my daily life. John Paul has helped me understand the things my Dad taught me to do. As when my own father died some 6 years ago - I will realize in a special way (that only comes when you stop and reflect) again the gift God has given me (and the whole world) in John Paul - as he gave me in my own father. I will lament that I have not been as a good a steward of the gift as I should have been. I will pray for mercy and pray that I will appreciate God's gifts more in the future.

From the small holding in Bethune ...

Oremus pro invicem!

My Latest on CatholicExchange.com

I have an article on www.CatholicExchange.com this morning: here. It is similar to a something I posted here on Bethune Catholic back in January. But if you missed, here is your opportunity.

The winter issue of Catholic Men's Quarterly has a big ad for one of Requiem Press' books - "Witnesses to the Holy Mass and other sermons". Check out CMQ when you get the chance. They have some good stuff. In fact there is a travel review of Charleston, SC and they did visit at least two of our favortie spots: Stella Maris on Sullivan's Island (Traditional Latin Mass every Sunday and on First Fridays) and Mary of the Annuniciation Church downtown - very old, very beautiful. But the review missed going to The Citadel - my alma mater. Of course now that it is co-ed, maybe a writer from CMQ was not welcome. I don't know if my bumper stickers: "Save the Males" or "The Old Corps" would be welcome on campus anymore either for that matter. But the chaplain at The Citadel is a very good priest and friend.

I have been told that The Catholic Answer magazine (OSV) has a short review of "Witnesses" - although I haven't seen it. If anyone suscribes to The Catholic Answer, and is willing to email the review (I believe it is only a few sentences) I would greatly appreciate it. In fact I might even send the first person to do it, a copy of the book.

I am also going to try to post a couple of chicken-plucking pictures in the next few days - if time permits.

From the small holding in Bethune ...

Oremus pro invicem!

New Releases

We (Requiem Press) are releasing at least 2 new titles within the next 10 days . The first is traces the developing relationship between Church and State during the Middle Ages, and should be available on 4 April. The cover (see it on the website: www.RequiemPress.com) was done by Nicholas Mason, a student at Christendom College - and it is good.

The second is a snapshot in time: the first impressions of a missionary priest in Zambia in mid-1960's.

Both of these are booklets. We hope to have a couple more out by the end of April.

Please continue to pray for the success of our fledgling endeavor.

Oremus pro invicem!

If you haven't noticed, I have added a few more links on the sidebar in the past week or so. The newest is Hallowed Ground formerly of El Camino Real. We really look forward to reading this new offering. The Culbreath's, like the Curley's have recently moved to the country.

The Curley's have found that life is busier as we run our own business, take care of chickens and dogs, plant big gardens, and still homeschool, and try to keep house. We are carefully trying to decide on the next animal. We were going to get goats - especially for the milk, but now we are rethinking this (milking 2X per day, on schedule - may be too much to ask of us right now). Possibly we should get some low maintenance - high yield animals (rabbits?) until we fully adjust to the new life.

I may have mentioned when our daughter was home for a short visit from Christendom College a couple weekends ago, that she commented just before leaving that she had been busier and more tired after 3 days at home than she ever had been at college. Remembering my college days, that is quite a feat. (She did not come home for Easter - this was our first year not all together.)

From the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!

One more thing.

Mark Shea ends his sabbatical briefly to say this. It is worth reading.

Easter Monday

He is Risen!

This morning we rejoice that Terri Schiavo has been given the last sacrament – spiritual food for her next journey.

Our pastor, Fr. John O’Holohan, SJ, talked on Easter of three snapshots of the world on this Easter morn. The first was that of the Holy Father, silently blessing the crowds, working in his last days, and suffering for the Church. The second was another person getting ready to die, but she has been told that her life is worthless as she is starved to death in Florida. The third snapshot was the war scenes in Iraq. Father made the point that the Resurrection gave meaning and hope to all – even in these times which may seem hopeless to some.

Mrs. Curley and I need to remember this last. We were up late last night discussing the future, the system, politicians. I read this morning in a little book, "The End of the Modern World", by Romano Guardino the following:

"The crisis which confronts democracy has arisen because it received its historical imprint from the attitudes of a personality culture. Thus democratic values presumed a small population. ...Man's relations with nature have been altered radically, have become indirect. The old immediateness has been lost, for now his relations are transmitted by mathematics or by instruments. Abstract and formalized, nature has lost all concreteness' having become inorganic and technical, it has lost the quality of real experience. ... Man can no longer experience the work he does; he can only calculate its possibilities and control its effects from a distance. This condition raises graver problems. Basically man becomes himself, is himself through his experiences. What can he be, however, if he can no longer involve himself "sensibly" in the work he does?"

What has this to do with Terri Schiavo? First, we see that democracy has run amok. The system is "god". No president, governor, congressman dare challenge it. The laws are too many and complex for anyone in the country to understand - because they encompass all and every situation - and no man supercedes what the 'system' has put in place

Further, if man has lost his identity, he has lost his place in the world. He no longer understands the cycle of life, the cycle of nature, the redemptive value of suffering - even though it sits before him. A woman suffers to bring forth new life and joy! Yet even this suffering has been profaned by our society. (Note I don't say 'culture' as we have none.).

So many people have bought the 'quality of life' product - that they are of no use past a certain age, or wellness. They have been convinced (or have convinced themselves) that to be a burden on another, on our children, due to age or illness is the ultimate evil! Oh no!

Please, O Lord, let me have these burdens! Please, O Lord, let my children have these burdens!

From the small holding in Bethune ...

Oremus pro invicem!

The final days

I have not said much here on Terri Schiavo. Many others have done much better than I could have. But we have been praying. My boys have asked every morning if there is anything new. A few times Mrs. Curley and I have heard them say an extra Rosary after we have shuffled them off to bed. More rosaries are certainly needed. Mrs. Curley has been very upset at the lack of humanity our society seems to have come to. My 5 year old, who has some awareness of all this due to family discussions, asked why we don't just go down and rescue her (and kill the bad guys). Mr. Luse asks a similar question of Mr. Bush: here.

Jeff at El Camino Real says here that "our 'system' in the United States is damaged beyond repair. Yes, beyond repair. What a bloody tangled mess."

Over at Caelum et Terra, one wonders: Nevertheless, the boy who cried wolf was eventually correct. I don't think that the almost certainly impending death of Terri Schiavo means that the government is going to start rounding up Christians or implementing a program of euthanasia for the disabled. But I am concerned that we have taken a decisive step in that direction, a step big enough that historians might one day see it as a useful marker, like the burning of the Reichstag, of a decisive change. We are witnessing the government-ordered starvation of an innocent person.

Indeed will this be a marker? Popular opinion is with Michael Schiavo. It is the opinion of a society which has lost its way, which has no hope.

We have been letting people be starved to death for years. However this is one of the few cases, where there has been someone to speak for the victim of our modern "compassion and justice". Our outrage can not die when Terri Schiavo dies, as she most likely will later this week.

Once more battle lines have been drawn, we cannot let the army disband as it usually does. However, we must remember that prayer, prayer, and more prayer must precede and accompany actions.

Some of us do live in hope - the hope of the Resurrection which we celebrate tomorrow. We must somehow find a way to bring this hope to the rest of society. John Paul in his suffering is the best witnes - but eyes are closed. We must pray all the harder. The temptation is to act, and act and act - but only God can change hearts - our actions can not. We must pray and fast and realize these times are cause for heroic prayer.

From the small holding in Bethune ...

Oremus pro invicem!

Passion Play Pictures

On the cross.


I have uploaded these pictures (with great difficulty) mostly for my family and the families of the other children who participated in the Passion Play. I note that there was no adult involvement in this play except for the placing of the cross in the ground which took three of us. The 11-year-old director has not seen Mel Gibson's movie.

Have a prayful Holy Week.

From the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!

Jesus is nailed to the cross.

Carrying the cross.

After being scourged, they led Jesus back to Pilate.

Betrayed by a kiss.

Can you not spend an hour with me?

Agony in the garden

Holy Week

It will be a light blogging week. I am shutting down the store on Wednesday afteroon until Easter Tuesday - so my time at the computer will be limited. By the way, I know that Requiem Press has 'finally arrived' - one of our books showed up on a used book search on the internet.

The children and their friends put on their annual 'Passion Play' on Saturday. If I get the pictures developed I may try to put one or two on the site - if I can figure it out.

We put a 110 square foot addition onto the chicken coop this weekend as planned in my last post. It has helped dog Challenger. I took him for a long walk/run on Sunday. He seems almost back to normal after being separated from those chickens.

Have a prayerful Holy Week.

From the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!

Catching Up

This will be a short one. I am still trying to catch up with the few comments made below when I was having trouble with the ‘blogger’.

A few articles of interest – most of which I am late in recommending:

New evidence and images on the Holy Shroud of Turin - here
Important article on torture from Mark Shea, online at Crisis – here

Most recent issue of Catholic World Report has an eye-opening article on “brain death” and organ donation. It is not online (that I know of), but here is an brief excerpt:

Dr. Hill recalled that the earliest attempts at transplanting vital organs often failed because the organs, taken from cadavers, did not recover from the period … following the donor’s death…… “It is not generally realized,” he said, “that life support is not withdrawn before organs are taken; nor that some form of anesthesia is needed to control the donor whilst the operation is performed.”

--Get your hands on a copy of CWR and read the whole thing - it is an article which should be distributed widely.

Terry Shiavo – while we have not mentioned her before on this blog, but she has been in our prayers, and is especially today.

It has been so busy at Requiem Press these past few weeks, as we have a new release due to be available on Easter Monday and we have made arrangements to carry a book, a prayer book, in limited quantity which is in its 11th edition since 1971. Hopefully the website will be updated on Monday with this news.

Finally, today is a bit unusual. Most of the day will be taken up extending our chicken coops. We are having problems with hens attacking each other and roosters attacking each other. This being the case even though we have much more than the recommended square footage per bird. We need more separation. In addition, our dog Challenger (of slaughter fame – see October archives) has not been himself since the chickens have reached maturity. He sits all day by the fence bordering the coop barking and/or licking his lips. He doesn’t want to go exercise or run in the woods anymore. We need to do something about this.

But first, off to the Holy Sacrifice….

From the small holding in Bethune…

Oremus pro invicem!

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Growing up we played Irish music (really American-Irish music) and marched around the house and danced. My sister Judy drew an almost lifesize picture of St. Patrick and I drew the Irish coat of arms on a piece of wood mounted to a hockey stick. These two items were used to lead the parade. My grandmother - Nana - had come from the Connemara country and had stowed away on a ship at 12 coming to America. My grandfather was Irish, but he died so young we know almost nothing about him. I used to spend hours discussing Ireland with Nana. She died when I was in 4th grade. She left some $400 to me so I could visit the "old country". I never have, but hope to someday.

Today we will stop work a little early and break the somberness of Lent for a couple hours in the evening to sing some songs and dance a little.

Here is today's installment from O'Reilly's "Lives". It is from the Preface:

In no country was this practice of preserving the memorials of the saints more carefully observed than in Ireland. Our earliest and most authentic records since the days of St. Patrick are the lives of our saints; and from Jocelyn to Colgan to record their deeds was a labor of love. It was a remarkable fact that, in all these collections, up to the sixteenth century one class of saints found no representatives. The Church of Ireland had produced a "glorious choir of apostles" who bore the good tid­ings to many a distant land; the "number of her prophets who uttered praise" was not small; but she numbered in her calen­dar no representative of "the white-robed army of martyrs." By a singular prerogative her conversion had not cost the life of a single one of her teachers, and it seemed probable that, were she left to herself; no blood of her children, shed for the faith, would ever stain her soil. But the litany of her saints was to be completed, and he who was the "Master of her apostles," the "Teacher of her evangelists," the "Purity of her virgins," was also to be the "Light of her confessors" and the "Strength of her martyrs;" and the church, whose foundations had been laid in peace, was to see her persecution-shaken walls cemented and rebuilt with the blood of her martyrs.

The sixteenth century saw in Ireland the commencement of a persecution which, gradually increasing in intensity, culminated in the middle of the seventeenth in what was probably the most exterminating attack ever endured by a Christian church. The fanatical followers Of Mohammed, in the seventh century, propa­gated their faith by the sword; but the hordes of Cromwell aban­doned the attempt to make the Irish converts, and turned all their energies to blotting out Catholicity in Ireland by the destruction of the Irish race: the Irish were recognized as ineradicably Catholic, and were slain or banished to wildernesses where it was believed they must become extinct. While this persecution was one mainly and essentially of Catholicity, it was embittered and prolonged by every other element which could exacerbate and increase its ferocity; the differences of race, of conquest, of government, all added their elements of bitterness to intensify and prolong the strife.

From the small holding in Bethune on this feast of St. Patrick ....

Oremus pro invicem!

Mysterious Happenings

Wrote a long post early yesterday but it got lost in blog-land. I couldn't get in to my blog all day today, even to leave myself an anonymous comment - until just now when of course I want to hit the hay. But I will take a moment to excerpt a little more from O'Reilly's "Lives". This one is for Krystle...

THE FRANCISCAN NUNS OF GALWAY:

IN 1712, when Edward Eyre, Mayor of Galway, was directed to suppress the nunneries in that town, " Dr. John Burke, then provincial of the Franciscans in Ireland, of which order the nuns were, obtained permission from Dr. Edmund Byrne, titular Archbishop of Dublin, to admit them into his diocese, hoping they would be less noticed there than in a place upon which government kept so strict an eye as Galway. A few of these ladies were accordingly translated to Dublin ; but they had scarcely reached the city, when the lords-justices received information of their arrival, and immediately issued orders for their apprehension, in consequence of which several were taken in their conventual habits. A proclamation was then issued, dated 20th September of that year, to apprehend said John Burke, Dr. Byrne, and Dr. Nary, as popish priests attempting to exercise ecclesiastical jurisdic­tion contrary to the laws of this kingdom; and it was ordered that all laws in force against the papists should be strictly carried into execution. Such were the fears and alarms caused by the arrival of a few women in the capital, as if the circumstance had been sufficient to over-turn the government …

From the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!

As St. Patrick's Day is coming ...

When Number One daughter made a surprise visit this weekend, she brought me a nice (if temporary) present. She checked out of the Christendom College library a copy of "Lives of the Irish Martyrs and Confessors" by Myles O'Reilly (pub. 1878). I would love to have my hands on a copy of this treasure - permanently. (In fact Requiem Press would love to reprint this classic either in parts or in its entirety. If it be God's will - we will get around to it.) Here is a sample:

CROMWELL landed on our shores in July, 1649, firmly resolved to acquire popularity among his fellow-Puritans by the extermination of the Irish papists. On his arrival in Dublin he addressed his soldiers, and declared that no mercy should be shown to the Irish, and that they should "be dealt with as the Canaanites in Joshua's time."

Drogheda was first attacked. It was defended by 3000 good troops, commanded by Sir Arthur Ashton, a Catho­lic. Three times did they repel the assaults of their 10,000 besiegers. At length, seeing further resistance useless, they surrendered on terms. Cromwell, writing to the Par­liament, makes it a boast that, despite the promised quarter, he himself gave orders that all should be put to the sword; ("Our men were ordered by me to put them all to the sword." — Cromwell's Letter) and, in his Puritanical cant, he styles that brutal massacre a righteous judgment of God upon the barbarous wretches; a great mercy vouchsafed to us; a great thing, done, not by power or might, but by the spirit of God. The slaughter of the inhabitants continued for five days, and the Puritan troops spared neither age nor sex, so much so that the Earl of Ormond, writing to the secretary of Charles II, to convey the intelligence of the loss of Drogheda, declares that "Cromwell had exceeded himself, and anything he had ever heard of, in breach of faith and bloody inhumanity;" and the Parliamentarian General Ludlow speaks of it as an extraordinary severity. The church of St. Peter, within the city, had been for centuries a place of popular devotion; a little while before the siege the Catholics had reobtained possession of it, and dedicated it anew to the ser­vice of God, and the Holy Sacrifice was once more celebra­ted there with special pomp and solemnity. Thither many of the citizens now fled as to a secure asylum, and, with the clergy, prayed around the altar; but the Puritans re­spected no sanctuary of religion. "In this very place," writes Cromwell, "near one thousand of them were put to the sword. I believe all the friars* were killed but two, the one of which was Father Peter Taaffe, brother to Lord Taaffe, whom the soldiers took the next day, and made an end of; the other was taken in the round tower; he confess­ed he was a friar, but that did not save him."

We read in Johnston's History of Drogheda :

“Quarter had been promised to all those who should lay down their arms, but it was observed only until all resist­ance was at an end. Many, confiding in this promise, at once yielded themselves prisoners; and the rest, unwilling to trust to the mercy of Cromwell, took shelter in the stee­ple of St. Peter's; at the same time the most respectable of the inhabitants sheltered themselves within the church. Here Cromwell advanced, and, after some deliberation, concluded on blowing up the building. For this purpose he laid a quantity of powder in an old subterraneous passage, which was open, and went under the church; but, chang­ing his resolution, he set fire to the steeple, and as the garrison rushed out to avoid the flames they were slaughtered. After this he ordered the inhabitants in the church to be put to the sword, among whom many of the Carmelites fell a sacrifice. He then plundered the building and defaced its principal ornaments."

Thomas Wood, one of the Puritan officers engaged in the massacre, relates that a multitude of the most defenceless inhabitants, comprising all the principal ladies of the city, were concealed in the crypts or vaults of the church ; thither the bloodhounds tracked them, and not even to one was mercy shown. Lord Clarendon also records that dur­ing the five days, while the streets of Drogheda ran with blood,* "the whole army executed all manner of cruelty, and put every man that related to the garrison, and all the citizens who were Irish — man, woman, and child — to the sword;" and Cromwell himself reckoned that "less than thirty of the defenders were not massacred."

Note: Down to the present century the street leading to St. Peter's Street retained the name of Bloody Street. It is the tradition of the place that the blood of those slain in the church formed a regular torrent town the street

I will post a little more from this classic on or before St. Patrick's feast.

From the small holding in Bethune ...

Oremus pro invicem!

A few thoughts

Posts have been few and far between recently. Number One daughter made a surprise visit home this weekend as she won't be home for Easter this year. We were very happy to have her, but two of the children cried themselves to sleep last night because her visit was so short. She had her first taste of home-grown chicken. We cooked it in the crockpot in white wine and ... - (suggested by Alicia at Fructus Ventris - thanks Alicia). It was enjoyed by all. While home she also helped us start the flower garden for the year. On Saturday we spent a couple hours hiking in the Sandhills National Wildlife Refuge. (Only wildlife seen were children, mosquitoes, and one unidentifiable snake.) Number One daughter commented on Sunday that life was very tiring on the homefront.

While I haven't studied this site yet, I saw it referenced at Openbook. Some readers may be aware from this post in January that I have had keen interest in the Shroud of Turin. So I will be looking into http://www.shadowshroud.com/index.htm soon.

From the small holding in Bethune ...

Oremus pro invicem!

Cheraw

A couple of weeks ago when Fr. John was on retreat for several days, we decided to go up to St. Peter's in Cheraw for daily Mass. St. Peter's is the oldest Catholic church (building) in South Carolina. It is about 35 miles from us, (as is our parish, St. Catherine's). We had never been to St. Peter's - we were in for a delightful surprise.

Fr. Francis Obong is the paster and also in charge of two mission parishes. Fr. Obong is from Nigeria and a credit to the diocese of Charleston. He is full of joy. He tells us about sin and the effects of our sins - yet he also tells us about God's mercy.

Since, geographically, I doubt any parish can lay claim to us (we have about 4 parishes, each about 35 miles away from us), I would love be in St. Peter's parish (especially as they have a 7:30 AM Mass on Sunday) - except for the fact that we are also very blessed at St. Catherine's, with a wonderful pastor and community.

More from Maria von Trapp:

"You know what I really miss?" he (Captain) said to me. "Catholics don't read the Bible as much as Protestants do. I wish my children would get thoroughly aquainted with Holy Scriptures." (My husband had joined the Church only a year before I had come into the family). "Let's start with the New Testament and read it every evening until Easter." .... It turned out to be a beautiful six weeks. The reading of the Gospels togther proved to be wonderful. It proved to be the Book of Books, the only one in the whole world to which a four-year-old girl would listen with enraptured interest, while all the philosophers are not yet able to get to the bottom of its divine wisdom."

From the small holding in Bethune....

Oremus pro invicem!

Catholic Culture and the Trapp Family

I don't often blog on Sunday due to time factors, but today we are going to the Traditional Latin Mass in Columbia, so we don't leave the house til 1:15PM or so.

I picked up "The Story of the Trapp Family Singers" by Maria Augusta Trapp in a 2nd-Hand Catholic bookstore some years ago in Pittsburgh. It was on our shelf growing up, but I never read it. [Note it is somewhat different from the movie it inspired. And in fact out the 312 page book, the movie portion is ended by page 126. And even here Hollywood took liberties.]

I am now reading it to the family every night, one chapter at a time. It provides quite a snapshot of Catholicism in Europe in the 20's and 30's. Here is Faulien Maria's description of Lent:

"Lent, the six weeks' preparation for Easter, is very rigorously observed among the country people in the Catholic countries. On purpose I don't say simply "in the Catholic countries," because the big cities have shed all these peculiarities in order to be admitted into the big-city corporation around the world. The national costumes they exchanged for street clothes worn the same in Paris, London, New York, or Shanghai on their respective Fifth Avenues; folk dances were replaced by inter-national ballroom dances; and instead of folk customs-the century-old voice of your own people informing you what your forefathers did at certain times and what you should imitate—they have books now, the Emily Posts of the respective coun­tries, giving minute instructions on what to wear if you want to be called "smart," how to behave if you want to be "socially acceptable."
"The people living in the country still celebrate Lent as it was understood by the many generations since the beginning of Christianity: by voluntary penance and mortification we should participate in the sufferings of Christ in order to be able to celebrate also the day of Resurrection together with Him. We should die to our old sinful self and rise as a new man. To this end fasting is one of the oldest precepts. In Poland, Italy, some valleys of Austria, and especially the Balkan countries, the fast is most conscientiously observed. One meal a day only, and no animal products: no meat, no fish, no eggs, butter, cheese, or milk.
"Of course, when Easter comes and these goods are back on the table again, the stomachs feast and celebrate together with the souls, sometimes so much so that a doctor is needed. The money which is saved by fasting goes to the poor, and the time which is saved is invested in prayer. Ancient devo­tions like the Stations of the Cross are much practiced. Pil­grimages are undertaken, and the soul, sobered and helped by the bodily chastisement, finds easier the access to heavenly things."

Note that (and this is 1927) the culture of Catholicism was alive and well in the country, but not in the cities. Note also the words I bolded about culture and music.

Here is more on music and from Maria Trapp:

"After having read a couple of hours, I would say: "That's enough for today. Let's sing now; all right?"
"That was the signal for everyone to drop whatever he was doing. We sat closer together and started out. First we sang rounds. You can do that for hours on end, and it is a wonderful schooling for the ear. It leads quite naturally to polyphonic music. The rounds teach you to "mind your own business"; sing your part, never to mind what your neighbor sings.
"After the First World War the Catholic Youth Movement sweeping all over Austria and Germany had done a wonderful job for music. These young people were fed up with glee club stuff, with all that coy, sweetish, unnatural material which was sung everywhere. They wanted genuine music again. They went up and down the countryside, collecting real folk songs and folk tunes, delved into archives and libraries and copied unpublished music of the old masters, the great unknown ones. In mimeographed and hand-copied sheets this music went from town to town and brought about a radical change in musical life within a few short years.
"I was lucky enough, in my student years, to belong to one such group of young ones. Boys and girls didn't "go steady" at that time. We met in large groups of thirty or forty and had the most wonderful time doing things together. A large portion of our free time was spent with music. Out of the enthusiasm of those hours blossomed beautiful settings of the melodies we brought home from our hikes through the moun­tains, for two, three, four, and five parts, a cappella and with the accompaniment of instruments. There were violins and cellos, French horns, and clarinets, and there was the newest and oldest of them all, the revived recorder, the ancient flute. There we sat together by the hour, singing and playing and enjoying ourselves thoroughly."

This book, written "to be a canticle of love and gratitude to the Heavenly Father", is somewhat of a handbook on how to celebrate seasons and feasts as a Catholic, and how to create a Catholic culture in your home."

From the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!

A Quick Question

Update: Or maybe the question should be how do y0u definitively tell a male from a female chicken when they are grown?

Originally we bought 50 roosters (white leghorn type) and 50 brown egg-layers (as day-old chicks) of various breeds. As readers know, many did not survive our dog.

After eating some roosters, we have in the main coop, 3 of the white leghorn roosters and 8 hens - we think. Two of the hens, while they don't crow, copy the roosters in attempting to "fertilize" eggs. Sometimes they are pretty aggressive. One of these is a 'Turken'. The other we don't know the breed of. The Turken's comb could be large enough to be a rooster. Since we don't have two of the breed of opposite sex, we don't know how different they should look. The other 'hen/rooster' is different than all are others, white with some brown; but 'her' comb is small.

So our basic question - (I'm sure we will figure it out eventually based on egg production) - is whether these two could actually be roosters.

From the small holding in Bethune....

Oremus pro invicem!

Random Thoughts

Have been very busy between work (check out our our website we have a new addition today) and puppies (see post below somewhere). We have decided (as I promised the kids) to keep the 'sandy-haired' lab. We still need a name for her. Right now Sissy, Pearl, Oatmeal, and some other name are the top choices, but none have overwhelming support. The last stray we will take to the shelter. She will not warm up to us. Even if she just hears our voices in the distance, she runs into the pup house.

Have been out of the loop on many things, but here are a couple of good signs in the battle from Archbishop Chaput, here and here.

There is some more negative news, mostly having to do with bishops lacking spines and/or clarity, I'm sure you can find around st. blog's parish today - but I'm not linking to them.

Interesting commentary on traditions in two parts (today has the second installment called the Orchardmen part 2 - scroll down for part 1) at Caelum et Terra.

I think that because we are so focused on the immediate and can satisfy most desires with a snap (at least a Wal-Mart, if not the real thing), we don't often understand how our journey to (or from) God progresses, and how the groundwork is laid over time.

The cause and effect of many traditions (and of eliminating those traditions) is not well understood in today's society. A society with many cultural traditions tends to understand itself and life itself better because these cultural traditions are teachers - not just parties. [An article in crisis magazine this month by Anthony Esolen makes the case that America is actually devoid of any culture; we have Mass entertainment, but no culture which emanates from the populace.] The Catholic Faith itself is so rich and answers man's needs so well because it speaks to the cycle of seasons and the seasons of our lives - it is a culture not just a religion.

From the small holding in Bethune ....

Oremus pro invicem!

National Exposure for Requiem Press????

Friday Dom Bettinelli (Bettnet.com) was interviewed on MSNBC, see details here. I believe they showed a snapshot of his blog coverpage on TV. And they put a link to www.Bettnet.com on the MSNBC website - (I don't know if it is still there). What has this got to do Requiem Press?

We have had a blog-ad running on Bettnet.com for two weeks, and on Friday morning as the first one was set to expire, we put on a new one for our new book, "Prayers in the Presence of the Holy Eucharist for the Church Suffering".

Thus our 15 minutes of fame.

I can't tell if this sudden fame has helped increase business, but if it has, it hasn't done much.

From the small holding in Bethune....

Oremus pro invicem!

Strays

Update: We got him! Number 3 and Number 2 son captured him when he ventured out again.

Friday afternoon two pups wandered into our yard. Both looked to be about 6-10 weeks old. One all black, the other had the coloring of a baby rottweiler. Having three dogs already, I asked around with the neighbors and around town, but with no one claiming them, I took them to the animal shelter in Camden. Saturday afternoon a sandy-haired pup showed up. This one really took to the kids. In a weak moment I promised they could keep him if the vet said he had no contagious diseases.

Sunday afternoon a fourth pup showed up. If we hadn't seen his three brothers and sisters, I'm not sure I would have recognized this fella as a dog. He looks part racoon, part bear, and part human, like an eskimo covered with fur. He has proved difficult to catch. We first saw him curled up in a ball beside his sandy-haired sister's little pen. We ran and chased him sort of haphazardly - but he is much faster than his brethern. A couple of us made stabs and should have got him, but he eluded us and hid under our feed house. We spent a couple of hours in the cold rain trying to coax him from under the feed house to no avail. Thus we left him food and water for the night. I may have pneumonia this morning from these failing efforts.

This morning he has ventured out a few times, but he is very cautious and smart. Every time we make a move he runs back to shelter. I would like to catch him today because both the vet and the shelter are in Camden, and I would like to make only one trip.

How many pups does the average litter have? Do I have to go through this a couple more times? It is obvious someone dumped a litter.

From the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!

Chickens and Eggs

We got our first eggs today. We found them by accident because we didn't think they would start laying in February. Son went into the hen house after a rooster (for Saturday dinner) and found 5 brown eggs. In hindsight, we now know why the roosters have been grabbing the hens by the neck and jumping on them.

The roosters have started to fight a bit too. One was actually bloodied-up today. We have 8 hens and 7 roosters. We isolated 2 roosters (for Saturday dinner) today. But we need to get down to 2 roosters for the 8 hens we have. I think we may have a suitable pen which we can use until I can build a second coop.

From the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!

We pray for you John Paul II!

Just saw the news, first at Fructus Ventris, that our Holy Father is back in the hospital.

Let's pray for John Paul!

From the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!

"Pro Multis"

There is an interesting debate in the 'Letters' section of this month's Catholic World Report regarding the proper translation of 'pro multis' (i.e. 'for many', 'for the many', or 'for all') used during the Mass. I am in no way a scholar in Greek or Latin, so I will not venture an opinion in that regard.

I recall reading (I think on the EWTN expert forum) a priest commenting that while the translation of pro multis used in the Novus Ordo (for all) is unfortunate, it is not so serious. I believe his reasoning was something like: Christ died for all of mankind; but only many will take advantage of His sacrifice, and only many will come to the Eucharistic feast.

This same path of reasoning is also mentioned in the CWR exchange of letters.

Feast of St. Polycarp

For reasons explained below, on the feast of St. Polycarp I always think of the controversy between those who think the Gospels were written early, that is while the Apostles were still alive (and by the traditional authors) and those who believe the Gospels were written later (by either followers of the traditional authors or by ....?).

Of course I am in the former group, and with good reason. St. Irenaeus, a disciple of St. Polycarp, [Polycarp was in turn a disciple of St. John the Apostle and Evangelist], wrote (in Against Heresies):

"Matthew published a Gospel, writing among the Hebrews in their tongue, at the time when Peter and Paul were announcing their glad tidings at Rome and were founding the Church. After their departure, Mark, the disciple and interpreter of Peter, delivered to us in writing what had been preached by Peter. Luke, Paul's companion, recorded in a book the Gospel preached by Paul. Then John, the disciple of the Lord, who reclined on his breast, also published the Gospel, whilst staying at Ephesus in Asia."

If that isn't enough evidence, then consider the practical evidence. The Gospel of St. Luke and the Acts were written by the same author, and Acts was written after the Gospel - (no one seems to disagree with this.) It is inconceivable that the author of Acts would neglect to include the martyrdoms of Peter and Paul and the destruction of Jerusalem (because Christ's prophecies) if the Acts were written (as the Modernists claim) after these events.

Certainly there is much more evidence - however I have never heard an argument which can refute these two pieces of evidence.

From the small holding in Bethune ...

St. Polycarp - ora pro nobis

Oremus pro invicem!

New Things at Requiem Press

Friday we release a new booklet - a holy hour dedicated to the holy souls in Purgatory. It is entitled, "Prayers in the Presence of the Holy Eucharist for the Church Suffering". You can read more about it here.

This is a book we are printing in-house (we are farming out a small part of the manufacture for a time)! In the past few months we have been doing research; in the past few weeks we have been gathering and trying equipment. We printed our first booklets today and they look as good as the "Daily Prayers for the Church Suffering", which we released in July of '04.

This new flexibility will allow us to respond to the "market" more quickly and to have a greater variety of offerings. I expect that by March 7th or so we will have one or two more booklets out. Most of these new booklets will not be prayer booklets. The booklets will deal clearly (albeit briefly) with aspects of Catholic history and/or culture (for example: the theology of martyrdom; the relationship of Church and State in the Middle Ages - just to name two).

The new offerings should all be under $5. Some of these will be good outside reading for high school age homeschoolers . We will still publish full length books. Our next in fact is due for release in late spring. (More on this in the coming months.)

We are very excited. As we did this summer with our first offerings when we launched our new effort with a prayer book to relieve the Church Suffering; we do so again as we start a new chapter in Requiem Press.

From the small holding in Bethune...

(Now more than ever,) Oremus pro invicem!

A Joker in the Mailroom

I received the most unlikely piece of junk mail today. I can safely say that this is the first time I have been invited to join the ACLU. I didn't know that the greatest threat to America was the Bush Administration's attack on religious liberty. I am confused - I had always thought it was the ACLU who attacked my religious liberty. Oh well.

Chicken & Beer!

We slaughtered and ate our second meal of home-grown chickens this weekend. This time the whole process was much quicker - and with better results. The chicken was tasty and tender. Here's my recipe:

Two whole chickens, two quarts of Milwaukee's Best, 1 can crushed tomatoes, a pinch of garlic powder, a sprinkling of parmesian cheese, and a sprinkling of Bells' seasoning - cook in crock pot all day. Serve with biscuits, green beans, and baked potatoes.

Mrs. Curley came back from Florida on Saturday with this feast awaiting her.

Next time I may use a darker beer - but otherwise no one would change a thing. It was so good we felt guilty eating it during Lent.

From the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!

Light Blogging?

Mrs. Curley's mother flew down to Bethune today. Tomorrow they are off to Florida to visit the older generation. Between work, school (I am told I need to keep their noses to grindstone), cooking (if boiling hot dogs and heating beans count as cooking), and the other messes which are sure to happen, I don't know if I will have time to write anything. I will try to paint the bathroom ceiling and finish scraping the kitchen counter, (The previous owners painted the kitchen counter! You can't put a hot pot on it without melting the paint.), while Mrs. Curley is gone.

If you miss me you can always go over to Bettnet.com and see my new ad for Requiem Press!

From the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!

This is a very thought provoking piece at the Caelum et Terra Blog. An excerpt:

"The news story last week, with its tale of sexual and religious abuse of Muslim prisoners at Guantanomo, was reminiscent of earlier reports of abuse of prisoners at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq. In both cases women participated in subjecting Islamic men to pornographic degradation and religious humiliation. ....

"Does anyone for a moment think that women of my mother's generation, which came of age in the 1940s, would have behaved like this? Is not such behavior the result of exposure to pornography? What sort of culture accepts that its young women would possess such easy familiarity with such things? ....

"Al Qaeda is rightly and roundly condemned for its attacks on innocent civilians. Yet how many Americans will fail to defend our country's use of nuclear weapons against Japan at the end of the second World War? This is not lost on Osama bin Laden, who in his writings has invoked the moral logic of Hiroshima to justify his attack on the World Trade Center. Indeed, if Hiroshima can be justified the only argument is whether circumstances justified 9/11, not the inherent immorality of the act."

We know that when men are exposed to pornography women suffer degradation. What does happen when women themselves are routinely exposed to pornography, as they are in this society. Does it make them hate being women?

It seems that the feminist movement has through 'sexual liberation' destroyed women in the eyes of men; destroyed families by leaving children alone; and destroyed women in the eyes of women themselves. Thus they try to become men.

Remember that awful book many of us had to read in high school, "The Lord of the Flies" - it tells a story of a group of boys being left alone on an island with no adult supervision. At first they form a government and organize, but it quickly degrades into an uncivilized barbaric existence.

Isn't this what is happening when we displace the natures of man and woman? In many senses women and children are what keep men from being barbarians. If we make women the same as men - both become barbarians.

On the last point, quoted above, just look at GW Bush's inaugural speech and the general Protestantism of America which truly believes that 'God is an American, - thus for America, the ends always justify the means.'

From the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!

In the past month this blog and others have posted on the Mass, and especially the Traditional Latin Mass. This article by Eamon Duffy (found it on Amy Welborn's blog) gives another historical perspective to the Mass.

I think, (of course we at Requiem Press are biased), historical perspective is helpful in understanding things. G.K. Chesterton was known to have said (essentially) that something shouldn't be changed or eliminated until the reason for its existence is understood.

Anyway an interesting read....

I came across this at Bettnet.com today and have my own thoughts on the future of John Paul (the Great) II's pontificate.

I think our Holy Father believes he the still has much to accomplish: a visit to Russia; improved relations (or even reunification) with the Orthodox; more direct evangelization with the youth of the world; more episcopal appointments in the likeness of Archbishop Burke; and the list goes on.

I don't know what plans God has for John Paul, but I do agree with Mr. Bettinelli that John Paul is a direct challenge and contradiction to the culture of death with his acceptance of suffering.

Often man (especially in modern culture) thinks short-term. However, the legacy of a great pope is realized and felt over centuries. Just as it is said that a father influences his descendents for at least four generations, our Holy Father will reach even further into posterity.

From the small holding in Bethune on this Feast of our Lady of Lourdes...

Oremus pro invicem!

"The Throne of the World"

In 452 A.D. Attila the Hun was bearing down on Rome and there was no army to stop him. Yet Attila marched within striking distance of Rome and then mysteriously retreated, never to return; he was dead within a year.

Dr. Warren Carroll writes in The Building of Christendom:

"He (Attila) took the Romans by surprise, so his crossing of the eatern Alps was unopposed. The great city of Aquileia ... fell to him and he razed it. Attila pushed on into the lush plain of the Po. City after city opened its gates to him. Wetern Emperor Valentinian III was useless in a crisis, and Aetius, though he had defeated the Huns at Chalons just the year before, now meditated flight. Finally it was decided that Pope Leo (Pope Saint Leo I, the Great) himself should head an embassy to Attila. No man knows what they said to each other, the great wise Pope of old Rome and the new Church and the brutal bandy-leeged Hun .... But when the talk was over, Attila turned his army around and rode out of Italy, never to return. A year later, back in the lands along the Danube, he died suddenly and mysteriously after a night of hard drinking. Modern historians have many ideas about problems and dangers and materialistic considerations which could account for Attila's sudden retreat after meeting Pope Leo. ... The fact remains that it was immediately after meeting the Pope that he departed, without explanation , but without hesitation; and Italy was saved."

I just finished reading "The Throne of the World" by Louis De Wohl, which I picked up in a thrift shop some years ago. Mr. De Wohl writes an historical novel, climaxing on the last three pages with Pope Leo the Great's talk with Attila the Hun. I don't know how close Mr. De Wohl's solution was to reality, but I can imagine that Mr. De Wohl's portrayl of Pope Leo I was accurate: strong, decisive, prayful and holy - in a word: a man of Christ.

(Don't forget that Witnesses to the Holy Mass and other sermons is great Lenten reading especially in this year of the Eucharist. You can get it here).

From the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!

Ash Wednesday

In his homily this morning Fr. John O'Holohan SJ mentioned that during his many years in Africa, all the pagans and even the witch doctors would come to get ashes on Ash Wednesday for some reason. He always thought that they came because the pagans also recognized their mortality.

From the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!

The Traditional Latin Mass - Columbia, SC

"Dad, Can we please go to the Latin Mass again next month?" - This was the general reaction from my children on the way home from the Traditional Latin Mass celebrated by Fr. Gabet FSSP at Good Shepard Catholic Church in Columbia yesterday.

I asked my 11-year old son this morning (after attending the Novus Ordo), why he liked the Latin Mass better. For one, he said he liked the priest praying inaudibly during the Canon. When asked why, he said, "I'm not sure. It just seems to make more sense for him to pray silently." He also said, "I hope within about two years this Mass (the Traditional) is the more common one." (Agressive expectations!)

My 9 year-old and my 6 year-old both (when asked separately) said the Traditional Mass made them feel closer to God. They all especially like the chant (it was a sung high Mass).

I asked Mrs. Curley for her thoughts. She said the prayers in the Traditional Mass were much more beautiful (than in the Novus Ordo). Not to quote her, but she essentially said that the two Masses are different: the Novus Ordo is like praying with the priest on your own behalf and the Traditional Latin Mass was more like worship, the prayers were both longer and more beautiful - (realizing that 'I am nothing' and that God is everything - you need His love and mercy.) Here you witness the priest offering the Sacrifice on your behalf as you pray silently. [Note that this is my interpretation of her longer explanation.]

At the same time, Mrs. Curley thought the prayers being said audibly in Latin while she tried to follow the English in the Missal was distracting. Also distracting was the Canon being said inaudibly - distracting in that it was harder to follow where we were in the Canon.

3:00 in the afternoon is a difficult time to take young children to a 90 minute Mass (especially after a 1.5 hour drive) - yet our 3 and 4 year-olds were content throughout.

Is the Traditional Latin Mass inherently better? My children think so (albeit after only one Mass).

From the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!

Tomorrow we will go to the Traditional Latin Mass at Good Shepard in Columbia. While I have been to Tridentine Masses throughout my life, this will be the first time for Mrs. Curley and the children.

I will blog about this Sunday night or Monday. I myself am very interested in their reactions.

From the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!

A New Challenge and an Old Letter

Light blogging of late due to the fact I am still working on my taxes. A new challenge arose this morning though. I went to 'warm up' the car for travel to morning Mass as usual - but the car won't turn over. Went to car number 2 and that won't turn over either. I did not plan to spend my day working on the cars - but it seems to be the only option available.

I suspect I will be walking the 3 miles into town later today.

However, to keep my hundreds (thousands) of readers entertained, I am going to blog on a controversial subject.

In the Fall of 2003 issue of Latin Mass Magazine there was an article by Mr. Kenneth Jones, “Vatican II Renewal: Myth or Reality”. While I didn't dispute Mr. Jones' data, I did dispute his conclusions from the data - especially considering the 'data' he left out. I wrote a letter to the editor of Latin Mass Magazine with my objections and concerns. This letter was never printed to my knowledge. As more than a year has now passed, I think it is time to re-print it below (especially as this will save me the trouble of trying to blog something original). As I recall, my original letter was three times as long, but in fear they wouldn't print it or would edit it to death, I did the editting myself. Therefore, if I were to make a complete rebuttal to Mr. Jones' article, what you see below would only be the highlights.

Without further ado, I present an old letter:

"Dear Editor,

Without being an apologist for the implementation of Vatican II, I am also weary of articles like “Vatican II Renewal: Myth or Reality” by Mr. Kenneth C. Jones (Fall 2003). Tunnel-vision may be the appropriate term to describe the selection and analysis of data whenever a discussion of the wisdom of convening Vatican II is on the agenda. I do not dispute the data Mr. Jones provides, but dispute its completeness and the conclusions.

Was the Faith so robust around the Catholic world as Mr. Jones assumes it to have been in the USA prior to the convening of Vatican II? My understanding is that the Catholic culture in Europe, especially France, was already waning – desperately needing some kind of renewal. Further, the logistics of solidifying the Catholic evangelization in many third world countries may also have been a factor in convening Vatican II and the pastoral documents emanating therefrom.

Further evidence that troubles were already brewing in the Catholic world can be found in Humani Generis where Pope Pius XII says in effect that modernist errors have infiltrated higher education – even the seminaries (HG - Paragraph 13).

If the priests and bishops were, prior to Vatican II, so staunchly orthodox, it is hard to fathom how their orthodoxy disappeared so suddenly following Vatican II. Is it possible that their orthodoxy was more of a convenience and than of true belief?

By 1962 in the US, Catholics had come of age. They were no longer poor immigrants; they had economic and political clout. Sometimes money and power corrupt – both the laity and the clergy. These Catholics had not had their Faith seriously challenged in years. When it was, in the decades of the 60’s and 70’s: were so many so poorly educated in their Faith that they blindly followed modernist clergy and secular immorality; or were they simply not spiritually up to the challenge? Many remained faithful, but many more did not or did not pass the Faith to their children.

Great societal changes were beginning at the time of Vatican II. The introduction of the pill and the resultant so-called ‘sexual revolution’ were the most significant. Neither the clergy nor the laity were up to dealing with these changes. It would be difficult to show how they would have been any better prepared without Vatican II. The battle was joined before Vatican II convened, but it was under the radar.

Vatican II was implemented poorly (I surely understate) because the much of the clergy was already corrupted.

The conclusion that the problems in the Church in the past 40 years would have been avoided without Vatican II is very naive considering all we have witnessed. In fact, one might conclude that Vatican II was convened 10 or 20 years too late!

Understand my comments are generalized and not comprehensive, but perhaps will provoke more thoughtful research. One final thought: is it possible that the fruits of Vatican II have not been fully realized – that the blossom is just beginning during the current pontificate? Looking at Pope John Paul II’s extensive writings, travel, and influence on Vatican II as a young bishop, hasn’t he proposed the Catholic Truths directly to the people – because much of the clergy is unwilling to do so? Ironically, if the fruits are just beginning to blossom, perhaps the true renewal of and with the Tridentine Mass will be one of the fruits of Vatican II.

Oremus pro invicem!

Jim Curley"

From the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!

Importance of Culture

Our men's prayer group at St. Joseph's in Columbia, SC (after saying Morning Prayer) has been reading and discussing Steve Wood's (www.dads.org) book, Christian Fatherhood. The subject of 'keeping the Faith' as it concerns teens and college-age sons and daughters has come up in the past and again this week. For some reason many Catholics seem to expect their children to fall away from the Faith - but (because of their Catholic upbringing) expect that they will return to the Faith when they get married and have children.

Personally, (and I said this on Tuesday morning), I am astonished at these expectations. While I realize my children have free will, and that I won't be able to force them to embrace the Faith on their own, and that some of my children (Dear God, please preserve them!) may lose the Faith - in general I expect them to embrace the Faith and to live it - even in college when they are away from home. Why do I expect this about my own children?

1. Children will tend to rise or fall to your expectations. Your expectations are written in your actions and attitudes as well as your words.

2. If you create a Catholic culture in your home, your children will start to love Jesus in the most Blessed Sacrament and love the Faith at a young age. You can't just make them memorize the 10 Commandments and the Baltimore Catechism (although they need to do this too); the Catholic culture in your home must be filled with joy in celebration of feasts, and with solemness in the penitential seasons. A child will soon realize - even if unconsciously - that God, through the Faith provides for the needs of man through all times and seasons of life. They will come to understand that one cannot live without God and that He deserves worship. (Misguided Youth Group leaders try to "minister" to youth with crazy innovations to try to prove that the Faith is "cool" or "fun" or try to make the Faith an emotional experience only. These things do not last. Young people are not deceived. They want something authentic. )

3. As your child gets older you give them responsibilities and freedom appropriate to their age and personality. It would be foolish to expect a child who is not mature for their age and is not well-grounded in their Faith (by this I mean more formation than is provided in even the best Catholic schools and/or CCD programs) to keep in faith in college if you shuffle them off to a college with co-ed dorms, no curfews, lax alcohol rules, professors who are hostile to the Faith, etc. etc. A child's first long term experience away from home should be a guided one with rules, and mentors, etc. in an environment with encourages the Faith - not one that is hostile. (Unfortunately few 'Catholic' colleges meet this criteria.) The child can still reject the Faith, and some will. But as parents, we have the obligation to stack the chips in their favor instead of throwing our children to wolves!

If you happen to get chance, go see this entry at El Camino Real. It is obvious from this poem that this child lives in a Catholic culture.

I make no claims about my own parenting skills. I see the beautiful young lady my oldest daughter is - and I know it is God's grace in spite of my faults. But despite my faults as a parent (Mrs. Curley doesn't have any - and if she did I wouldn't dare publish it) at least we have tried to create a Catholic culture at home along with the more formal formation and instruction in the Faith.

(We pray today for our Holy Father, that he may recover and persevere in his mission.)

From the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!

The Holy Father!

Fox News reports this morning that John Paul II has the flu. But they also report this story. The accompanying photos of our Holy Father are best photos I have seen of him in some time - he looks happy and full of vigor.

I am going to try to blog a little later, but I am starting to do my taxes for the year - my first time as a small business. Hopefully it won't take too long.

From the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!

Chicken!

In late September we bought 50 chickens. 25 were brown egg layers. 25 were billed as the 'frying pan specials' - roosters which within 8-12 weeks are ready for the fryer. All these chickens were mailed via USPS when they were one day old.

You are supposed to keep them at 90 degrees F for the first week or so and then slowly let them acclimate to the temperature - certainly not exposing them to cold until they are fully feathered.

We don't have an incubator, nor do we have electricity out at the chicken coop. So, it being late September (80's during the day - 60's at night) decided to bring the chickens into our bathroom at night so they wouldn't be exposed to the cooler air. Number one son became their surrogate mother, gathering them each afternoon and bringing them upstairs to the master bath. We did this for a week and then set them on their own in our coop.

We only lost two to sickness (the cold weather), and those we lost the first two nights before we decided to bring them in every night.

Of course we lost over half the chicks early on by massacre - the details of which you can read of here.

The brown egg-layers will start laying sometime in the Spring. (We have 8 or 9 left). We will keep a rooster or two to fertilize so we can perpetuate the flock. The remaining 8 roosters are ready for the pot.

There was a small chicken coop which came with the house. It has a perch and 9 laying 'bins'. It also had a small fenced yard. We doubled the size of the yard especially since we expected to have 50 chickens.

So today I butchered our first home-grown chicken, and we ate him tonight. Yesterday we isolated the rooster and only gave him water for the last 24 hours. (Supposedly I figured this would make the job cleaner.) Number one son went into the isolation chamber and brought him out to me. I tried to follow the instructions given in John Seymour's (may his soul rest in peace) "The Self-Sufficient Life and How to Live It". I tied the feet together and laid his head on a board. I laid a dowel across his neck, (I held one end, son held other) and I broke his neck. It was not as easy as all the literature claimed. After he finished twitching, we dipped in scalding water. I plucked him. (By the way, my dog Challenger of the massacre fame was going nuts the whole time.) I sawed off his head on the neck with a cheese knife (next time I should do it farther down). Then I brought him into the kitchen and finished the drawing etc. It took me an hour and 10 minutes. Next time I think it will take half the time. Two things I learned. 1. Our knives are not nearly sharp enough; 2. I should do the whole procedure outside. Once I got to cutting around the vent and drawing out the guts, it was a little smelly.

When finished I realized that one of these "frying pan specials" would not feed our family.

Dinner: The chicken was a little tougher than we are used to but had a better (stronger) flavor, but not so much as to be gamey. Next time we will probably put him in the crockpot.

From the small holding in Bethune ...

Oremus pro invicem!

The Difference and Clearing my head

This morning we had to take one the cars in for brakes and an overheating problem. I left first and asked Mrs. Curley if she remembered where the Auto Shop was. She said that she thought so, "Once you're in Camden, you turn left at the Pizza Hut", She said. I replied, "No, you turn left at the Bank of America." Turns out we were both correct. Just goes to show the difference between two people - you tend to pay attention to what is on your mind and what you are interested in. (Mrs. Curley's response to my analysis: "If you would make more money I could get more pizza)

When we first moved to Bethune and got our dog Challenger, I used take him and one of the boys each day on a walk through the forest (pine tree farms) which border our property. Our neighbor leased these areas to hunters for the deer season, so our walks ceased. Now that deer season is over, I am back to taking this walk/run every afternoon at about 4:00. One of the fascinating things for both myself and the boys, is seeing clear animal tracks on the trails. We have positively identified deer and racoon, and tentatively identified coyote and possum.

These walks also clear and sharpen my mind. I tend to work out all my outlines and do all my writing in my head first before ever committing to paper. I had an article deadline last Friday but couldn't seem to put it together. An hour in the woods with Challenger (and God) solved my problem.

From the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!

I responded last week on a piece posted at El Camino Real, here, regarding the New Rite originally from Seattle Catholic.

Jeff tried to attend Mass at a Novus Ordo parish this weekend with disasterous results - see here .

I was very adamant in comments at El Camino Real and here that the Novus Ordo is not inferior to the Traditional Mass (which I also have a great fondness for). I continue to believe this is the case. However, I am not naive. A proper Novus Ordo can be very, very hard to find. While for some, this makes the case for abandonment of the Novus Ordo - I differ. A Traditional Mass is hard to find in many dioceses also. Both are gems to be cherished when found.

An Anglo-Catholic youth (later converted) in the 1930's describes his first experience at a Catholic Mass, - "where the Latin was, when audible, badly pronounced; the music was ghastly, and the religious art was utterly vulgar. As for the priest, he appeared bored by the whole performance, except when he delivered a brief sermon ..." - Fr. Paul Van K. Thomson, "Plus Sign on the Roof".

My point is that the "happy, holy, reverent, thriving days" of old were not always so happy and holy.

I am sorry that Jeff and his family had these troubles this weekend. I have been through them myself so many times that my heart aches. While Jeff was almost exposed to "Gather Us In" this weekend, at least he didn't have to endure, "Sing Hey to the Carpenter" - (more on this later.)

From the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!

The Weekend

Pro-Life March in Columbia on Saturday. It was like old-home week as many of our friends we had not seen since moving to Bethune came out for the march. Former Governor David Beasily was present (as he always is - even when he is not running for office). My only complaint is that the last few years the speeches have turned into a Bush rally. While Bush has rhetorically furthered the cause to end abortion, frequently his actions show he is more a Republican than pro-life, i.e. nomination of Gonzales for AG, stumping for Senator Spector, etc.

Sunday night we always have a special desert after dinner. Tonight we were finishing off the ice cream in the freezer. As I opened up the neopolitan ice cream we found the missing ice cream scoop - just another reminder that our dear number one daughter has left us of her most recent visit.

I need to blog about music in Church - but will gather my thoughts and do it later this week.

From the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!