Columbus and Scripture

Today is Columbus Day observed. So is it really Columbus day or not? One problem with moving holidays is that their cultural meaning is lost. Sure a long weekend is more covenient for family trips, but it also means that local celebrations are less attended and soon die. I like my Holy Days of Obligation celebrated on the Holy Day and my holidays not to be moved around for commericial gain.

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Both Jimmy Akin (here) and Amy Welborn (here) comment briefly on comments on "The Gift of Scripture" (a document from the bishops from England and Wales). I haven't read the document, but saw comments on it by at Traditio et Radice. I weighed in-not because I want to defend, or agree, or disagree with what is written in "The Gift of Scripture" (recall I haven't read it), but because from the context presented, I couldn't understand the criticism.

I have friends who accuse me of always playing the devil's advocate-no matter what the topic. I am not sure that is true, but I do like a good discussion if only to flush out the truth. At the same time, I want an honest discussion; in other words, I want the argument to follow legitimate and rational lines and not get sidetracked by preconceptions or agendas, or personal attacks.

I am afraid I got sarcastic in my remarks here this morning. (Sarcasm does have its definite place - but you must careful with it - especially when you can't call it back.) In any case - it will be interesting to see where the discussion leads.

A similar discussion on the essence of Sacred Scripture has been spawned by Jeff's posting of the Traditionalist FAQ, see discussion here and here.

One question I have-which maybe I should ask over at Jeff's-would be: What is considered to be old earth theory and what is considered to be young earth theory (6000 years?)? As someone who has studied (as a physicist) these areas in the past I do have an interest and opinions on this.

Finally, (off subject) I shut off my office window unit (air conditioner) for the first time since early spring today. Maybe fall is really here!

From Bethany, the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!

Update: "Protecting God's Children"...

Received this link via email yesterday from a friend. Maybe some other discerning and courageous bishops will read this and follow suit? I don't know who else may have already posted it, but here it is:.

http://www.sentinel.org/articles/2005-40/14234.html

To Make Sure We Really Protect Children, We Need Answers
By Bishop Robert Vasa

The next topic is one that I bring up only with great reluctance for I do not want to give any appearance whatsoever of being soft on my desire to assure the complete safety and protection of children. The Charter for the Protection of Children has been interpreted to include mandatory "safe-environment training" for all children of or connected with the Church. In the diocese, we have indicated that such training must be made available to all children under our supervision in our Catholic schools but have not taken on the nearly impossible task of assuming responsibility for every child in the diocese.

As a result of this discrepancy between a new interpretation of the charter and our diocesan policy, the annual charter audit will undoubtedly find the Diocese of Baker, and me as bishop, "Not in Compliance" and will issue a "Required Action," which I am prepared, at this point, to ignore. I say this not because I resist efforts to protect children, but rather precisely the opposite. There are a series of questions that I believe need to be answered before I could mandate such a diocesan-wide program of "safe-environment training."

A few such questions follow: Are such programs effective? Do such programs impose an unduly burdensome responsibility on very young children to protect themselves rather than insisting that parents take such training and take on the primary responsibility for protecting their children? Where do these programs come from? Is it true that Planned Parenthood has a hand or at least huge influence on many of them? Is it true that other groups, actively promoting early sexual activity for children, promote these programs in association with their own perverse agendas? Do such programs involve, even tangentially, the sexualization of children, which is precisely a part of the societal evil we are striving to combat? Does such a program invade the Church-guaranteed-right of parents over the education of their children in sexual matters? Do I have the right to mandate such programs and demand that parents sign a document proving that they choose to exercise their right not to have their child involved? Do such programs introduce children to sex-related issues at age-inappropriate times? Would such programs generate a fruitful spiritual harvest? Would unsatisfactory answers to any of the questions above give sufficient reason to resist such programs?

There are many concerned parents who have indicated to me that the answers to all of these questions are unsatisfactory. If this is true, do these multiple problematic answers provide sufficient reason to resist the charter interpretation? At very least, even the possible unsatisfactory answers to any of the questions above leaves me unwilling and possibly even unable to expose the children of the diocese to harm under the guise of trying to protect them from harm. I pray that, in this, I am neither wrong-headed nor wrong.

For holding to this conviction I and the diocese may be declared negligent, weighed and found wanting.

Heard at Mass this morning....

"God asks us to live in the present. We shouldn't dwell on the past, nor worry about the future. God's mercy will cover the past and God's providence will cover the future. Live in God's presence today."

And...

"Most people go to God with lists of needs and of prayers. They are saying, 'Hear Lord, your servant is speaking...'"

Happy Feast of Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary. (I wanted to post about this feast and Lepanto, but you might as well just go here to learn about it).

From Bethany, the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!

Thursday Morning - Feast of St. Bruno

Will be very busy until next week, so I don't expect to post much. Although I have noticed that everytime I say that, something comes up I just can't keep silent about.

Referring to yesterday's lament, now I read in several places: here and here for example that Bush's "Trust me" message is that Miers is an Evangelical thus will be a conservative on the court. We shall see-but it still doesn't address the leadership issue. Bush should not have to resort to code words and stealth candidates to tell his base and whole country what he believes. We can win the abortion debate in this country (and therefore openly nominate qualified pro-life judges) if we had a leader as president who would use his bully pulpit to articulate the cause.

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Have you ever had lentils? Mrs. Curley has been making lentil soup occasionally for several years now. I usually avoided it when possible, not because I don't like lentils, but just because I never like to try new things to eat. This has been changing of late. With the exception of last week when my in-laws were in town we have been eating lentil everything! I have found them (to my surprise) quite tasty, and Mrs. Curley says they are a great substitute for meat. We have had lentil soup, lentil cassarole (rice, corn, lentils and ...) lentil etc. This week it has been lentils with barley and carrots - cooked once and served up in a variety of forms. The last bit of this Mrs. Curley very imaginatively formed into lentil burgers with melted mozzarilla cheese on top, which we had yesterday. Again, very good, but I would not mind having meat occasionally. (The new chickens won't be eating-size for another month or two, and we won't have rabbits to eat until February or so.)

What is my point with all this lentil talk? Here is where you can help: Please come visit us at Bethany because Mrs. Curley will make sure we have meat on the table, come hell or high water, when guests are here... in the alternative you can simply buy some books from Requiem Press! Recall our plea where you can take advantage of discounts on large quantities of prayer books for the holy souls in Purgatory. Of course you can buy any book we offer. (The meat lovers here will thank you!)

From Bethany, the small holding in Bethune....

Oremus pro invicem!

The longer you pretend something is real....

I remember being upset (outraged is more accurate) when Mr. Bush wouldn't allow Alan Keyes to speak at the Republican convention before the 2000 election. My Catholic Republican friends assured me that "Bush was a true believer-that he needed to make sure that he wasn't percieved as some anti-abortion extremist. But after he was elected-then I'd see his true colors."

Well we have seen his true colors over and over, and they are as I predicted. He throws a few bones, but when going gets tough he does not come down on our side. He is not a true-believer. He is a politician and a Republican before anything else. Hopefully my Catholic Republican friends are Catholic first....

My view of the latest Bush nomination for Supreme Court are better expressed by others: here and here (hat tip to Southern Appeal); and the posts at Southern Appeal on October 3rd expressing thoughts like these I lifted:

Even if Miers turns out to be the second coming of Scalia, which I doubt very much, the reasons and the process by which she was chosen will still have a negative impact on the legal side of the conservative movement. From here on out, judicial conservatives and academics will always be mindful that participation in the Federalist Society or the expression of strong opinions may very well be an automatic disqualifier for the federal bench. Better to keep quiet and avoid associating with those who have made their feelings known if you hope to go very far.

Such a development is not only bad for the conservative movement but for the health of the Republic as well. The process and reasons by which people in our Republic reach high office should be such that the people have a better than average chance of knowing what they are getting. We need to know where these nominees stand and what philosophy, if any, guides them. However, if the only people nominated to the highest court in the land are those who throughout their careers have successfully managed to hide their true beliefs and avoid associating with those who don’t then we will end up with a court of cowards and opportunists. I am not implying that Miers is a coward or an opportunist (I certainly hope she isn’t); only that a system that elevates stealth candidates favors such people and arms them with the advantage of anonymity, an advantage unavailable to those who are willing to take a stand for their convictions.

Our Republic deserved better.

Where do we go from here?

I would be remiss if I neglected to mention St. Francis of Assisi on his feast day-especially as my daughter has taken St. Francis' spirituality as her own (here). Personally, I was never much a fan of St. Francis-maybe because his image has been so often co-opted by leftists. But having recently read the biography of St. Francis by Chesterton and having read Augustine's Confessions (you may wonder at the connection-maybe later I will expound...), I think I am beginning to appreciate St. Francis all the more. He was not some nature-loving powder puff. His rule was so strict that the Vatican was very slow to approve it. (Few Franciscan monasteries and convents practice the strict rule of St. Francis' today!) St. Francis was a man who certainly loved all the good things in life and one day responded to the grace to seek out the Author of those things - and to give everything in praise and homage to this Author, the King of creation.

When my daughter was discerning her vocation and seeking out orders-she told me that the first thing she looked for were signs of the evangelic vow of poverty. Poverty is something most of us are afraid of. Most of us are used to certain levels of comfort and especially security, which we are afraid to give up. Living poverty by choice is an exercise in trust in God (or better put - a leap of faith).

St. Francis of Assisi, pray for us!

Tuesday morning ....

Yesterday we transplanted (from a pot) a Rose of Sharon given to us. We actually were given three of these. The other two go in today. We had one already just outside the kitchen window. These plants attract hummingbirds - which are truly fascinating to watch up-close.

We continue to move the chicken tractor, but we are slack about moving it each day. We average every other day or so. Unfortunately, the converted dog-pen-to-chicken tractor is really not up to all this moving. Invariably some part of the structure needs repair after each move.

Of course the chores keep piling up. We want to finish putting our fall crop in (spinach and radishes are already in) but there are other pressing needs also. I still have to build another two rabbit cages before the does start to get after each other (they are very territorial); a new chicken house is in the works; tree removal (see story below); house preparation for winter (we need to tighten up places, replace broken panes - especially with fuel costs rising), etc. We are also still getting green peppers and a few tomatoes off our summer crop.

The biggest lesson we have learned in gardening is probably that more manure is better. This past spring we had to buy all our manure from the local farm and garden center-which is not an efficient use of money. We had no compost to speak of. This year we have compost, we will have rabbit manure and rabbit manure tea, our chicken tractor, and if we keep our eyes open, will be able to find some free or virtually free cow or horse manure. So I think our garden should yield more abundantly this coming year.

I have been so busy, I have had little time to read others' blogs, but I thank all who have spread the word about our plea. We are not out of the woods yet ...

I promised last week to unveil the final version of the cover you all so graciously voted on. Here it is below:

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I am hoping to have some more news on related to this new title from Requiem Press later in the week....

From Bethany, the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!

As we start a new week, just a reminder that All Souls Day is now exactly one month away. Spread devotion to praying for the holy souls in Purgatory by taking advantage of the discounts being offered on the prayer book pictured below: "Daily Prayers for the Church Suffering", (order here).

Trees and Rabbits

In my last post I mentioned that my father-in-law and I were taking down some trees. Grampy (as we call him) has taken down many, many trees at the house he and Nanny are having built in western Massachusetts. We have a few dead pines in our old goat pen (now the dog pen). One in particular was right next to our feed/garden shed at the edge of the pen and close to the rabbit cages. This pine was one of those 'double' trees (for want of a better or correct name). It has one large trunk, but splits into trunks about 4 feet off the ground. One of those trunks splits again into two trunks some 5 feet further up. The tree was only about 30-40 feet tall. Grampy had brought his chain saw and went to work. He decided to take each of the two main trunks down separately. It was harder work than we expected, partially because the tree had not been dead a long time. So while it was hard work, Grampy laid that first trunk down right where he wanted. The second trunk proved more difficult....

Grampy decided he would place the second trunk right on top of the first. For whatever reason-maybe the notch wasn't deep enough; maybe the cut on the backside wasn't high enough-the tree started coming down 180 degrees opposite of the intended fall. It pinched Grampy's saw and leaned, but didn't fall. The pinched saw was holding it up.

Up to this point, I had just been an observer, fetching gas when needed, or ice water, or yelling timber. Grampy wanted to save his saw (it was the best of the four he owns - unfortunately it was also the only one he brought). Of course he also didn't want to leave with the tree still standing. They had planned to leave that night for home. Now, it being mid-afternoon, these plans started to fade.

We tried numerous things, but lacked proper equipment. Our chains weren't long enough and our ropes not sturdy enough. Finally we decided to take a section of fence down and start in with the axe and a hammer and chisel. We worked for a couple hours at it with seemingly no progress. Finally we decided to replace the fence section (so the dogs could return to the pen) and retire to our cookout for the night.

Friday morning I sharpened my axe on the belt sander, and we went to work. (Now we were aiming to let the tree fall the direction it wanted to go.) We alternated with the axe and chisel for an hour or so til it finally came down. The sharpened axe had made a world of difference. Now it got interesting....

In the previous day's effort we had sunk an old telephone pole which was laying around our property into the ground near the rabbit cages. We had hooked rope and chain around the tree and to Grampy's truck; the pole acted as leverage point or 90 degree angle point for rope and chain before being hooked to Grampy's truck. This effort failed, but we left the pole in the ground. When tree came down, one of the limbs hit the top of the pole and snapped. Small sections hit the rabbit (doe) cage. The latch released and a doe got out. She hopped under the feed house after a narrow escape from one of our dogs. So instead of a triumphant tree-felling and high fives, now we were on our bellies trying to lure a rabbit out. After about 30-40 minutes the doe emerged and scampered right by Mrs. Curley who was holding a fishnet on a pole. I grabbed the net from her and we raceded around the property in hot pursuit. Finally, I lunged and got the net around the doe. (The doe squeaked and squealed - I never knew rabbits made any sound.)

While Grampy took a nap for his long drive home, I spent much of the rest of the day cutting the trunks with the (saved) chain saw. It is funny that the best part of the Nanny and Grampy's visit, for me, was probably that last day when they weren't even supposed to be here. I had never really worked with Grampy on any project like this. And while nothing we tried seemed to work out (due to lack of equipment - not lack of skill or imagination), in the end the job got done. It was fun-but my axe swinging body is suffering this morning.

From Bethany, the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!

P.S. Don't forget our special on these books.

Father-in-law and I are cutting down some large pine trees today.

And, Requiem Press has officially changed our address to a Bethune P.O. Box. We were maintaining a Columbia P.O. Box as I often had to go into town for supplies anyway. Columbia is some 60 miles from here and with gas so high and the ability to order almost anything on the internet, the rational is gone. The P.O. Box here is 1/2 the price of a Columbia on and is 2 miles down the road. The website has been updated with the new P.O. Box in Bethune.

Please remember the discounted Holy Souls prayer books , and spread the word.... The Holy Souls could use the prayers, and frankly, the Curleys could use the cash.

From Bethany, the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!

"Protecting God's Children"????

Since I am teaching CCD at the parish this year I had to attend our diocese's "safe environment" program. The one we are using is called "VIRTUS - Protecting God's Children". The three-hour session I attended yesterday was largely a waste of time in my opinion. There are two videos shown where they interview a few victims of sexual abuse and two convicted pedophiles. My general impressions of the program were these:

1. They assume we are dummies who never talk to our kids, have no idea who they play with, whose house they are at, etc. etc. (maybe this is true in many quarters?????);

2. There was no mention of God in the program except in the title (in fact they state that we need to tell our kids that the reason we cover our body is for "health and safety" reasons. There is no mention of chastity, being made in the image and likeness of God, being a temple of the Holy Spirit, etc. etc.) - only temporal things seem to matter;

3. They imply that the scandal in Catholic Church for these past two years has everything to do with pedophilia - which we know is false;

4. They present common sense things as revolutionary ideas.... (for example: a. talk to your kids and find out who they are playing with and whose house they slept over last night.... or b. if you see someone, even if its a close friend, fondling your child, you should stop it....) Okay, an exaggeration-but not much;

5. They assume it is inevitable that a victim will have life-long, devastating scars (I dispute this one the grounds that: a. it is well-known that children tend to be more resilient and recover more quickly from terrible things than adults do; b. that a child who has a proper understanding of themselves and God and sin and forgiveness will cope better; and c. if the parent doesn't sweep it under the rug for fear of embarrassment as was done by the parents and the bishops in all these cases, but deals with the abuse and the child properly, the child will cope better also.) ; and

6. Suspicion is the order of the day. Trust no one.....especially anyone who wants to teach kids.....

Number 5 is important, because if VIRTUS is the model they are going to teach - they are correct. A victim will never recover. However, supposedly the Catholic Church proposes something better.........

Of course the origin of the VIRTUS program is dubious at best - I have not done the research myself, but I have a folder of emails from friends that claim to link VIRTUS to various evil organizations.

There is also a 3-session VIRTUS for children (starting in kintergarten). To our diocese's very partial credit, the last of the 3 sessions was scrapped as being too explicit, and the first two sessions are parental opt-in or opt-out sessions, depending on your parish.

I won't teach VIRTUS to my students - it is against my religion.

The 'facilitator' at the course my wife attended admitted that VIRTUS was being implemented because otherwise the insurance company threatened to cease coverage.

That's a great headline: "Insurance companies meet to discuss Catholic Church doctrine - US bishops provide rubber stamp!"

I have read the curriculum for the students - again God is largely absent! Temporal health and safety (and insurance premiums) are the concern of curriculum. Even if this curriculum were not taught in a public, co-ed setting, it is still problematic.

It is a longstanding Church teaching that parents have the priority and obligation of teaching - especially in sexual matters. The Church has always recommended that these teachings not occur in public settings, but in the home. If bishops and pastors don't believe the parents under their spiritual guidance have the ability to teach the Truth and the Faith - especially with respect to these matters in their homes, then the bishops and the pastors should assist the parents - NOT by taking on the parents responsibility, but by teaching the parents how to carry out their God-given responsibility....

Oh yes. I forget. This isn't about "Protecting God's Children" - it is about money, and placating an unplacatable media.....

I am sorry I am so cynical this morning, but this whole thing has me been upsetting to me.

Notes from the weekend...

Here we go again. Just lost a long post of the same title. I will see if I can reconstruct, at least an abbreviated version.

We spent most of Saturday cleaning because my in-laws will be visiting Bethany this week. But first, we finally sent Requiem Press' next book off to the printer! (See the 'cover contest' here ) I will unveil the final version of the cover later this week....

Sunday morning we awoke to the cry, "A rabbit is loose!". Sure enough, after I raced downstairs and out, I saw our buck was hopping around under the rabbit cages. Now chickens are one thing. You know that you will eventually either catch them or be able to lure them back to the coop. I have limited experience with rabbits, but I figured that if that buck wanted to run away, I had little chance to catch him. Fortunately, we slowly surrounded him and I grabbed him. Apparantly, the last person (who shall remain nameless) to water the rabbits did not completely latch the cage door. The concern is not yet over. I was told when we bought the rabbits not feed them grass - that any diet change before they were old enough could kill them. Losing a doe would be one thing (we have three), but if we lose the buck, there will be no meat. So far he is looking okay.

We went to the 11:30 Mass at St. Catherine's. When we got home the younger kids played cowboys, the older boys played their instruments and later ran the dogs. Mrs. Curley and I played rummy. Sunday afternoons have turned into a waiting period. You see, on Sunday evenings we get to call Krystle and talk for a half an hour or so. We give the children 2-3 minutes each with her every other week. The time goes quickly. She is doing well. Her mishaps at the convent remind us of Maria von Trapp in "The Sound of Music". She will leave for Italy in another month or so, where she will stay for the next 2 years. Then phone calls will not be so frequent.

We have instituted a new "office" at Bethany. One of reasons I have given (when asked) for choosing the life we are attempting to lead came off the cover of a book, (Flee to the Fields, IHS press), 'when noon-time is Angelus time again'. Yet we still often miss the Angelus most days - there is no Church bells in Bethune to ring it. So Mrs. Curley and I decided to institute the "office" of bell-ringer. We have a small cast iron bell on our side porch. (Very useful for rounding up everyone at meal time). The bell-ringer is responsible for ringing the bell at 11:59 and 2:59. When we hear the bell at 11:59 we are to drop everything and find Mrs. Curley (usually in the kitchen at this time) to say the Angelus. (At 3:00 we gather and say our daily prayer for the holy souls in Purgatory.) We will rotate the bell-ringer duties among the children. The bell-ringer will be selected each week as an honor rewarded to one child for some heroic or other sacrificial act done for the family the previous week. The bell-ringer this week Matthew for helping Mrs. Curley scrub and oil the wood floors in the bedroom and for getting up by himself on his own initiative in the wee hours of the morning to scrub and oil the living and dining room floors.

Finally, please remember that Requiem Press continues to offer (from now until Nov. 1st) great discounts on large quantity purchases of "Daily Prayers for the Church Suffering". Shipping for the 500 quantity is free - so you get the books pretty close to cost and you have a great tool to promote prayers for these suffering souls. Of course we get some much needed cash flow. You can order here . Thanks to those who have ordered some of the books.

From Bethany, the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!

Printers and Rabbits...

Unexpected, but fruitful trip into the city (Columbia) today. The "official" image of Millet's "Sower" for the our next book (due out in late October) had come in- but in a form which I could not deal with on my equipment. I called a printer, RL Bryan (who in fact printed our Daily Prayers for the Church Suffering - Don't forget our important PLEA- here) and they said they would would take a look. Well they were able to get me a fantastic scan of the image. More vibrant color than I had expected - which of course may change again some of the planned color scheme.

I had gone to this college with the RL Bryan sales rep many years ago - we didn't know each other at that time, but had mutual friends. Anyway, when they printed the "Daily Prayers" book he took care of me. He did so again today. It turns out he loooves rabbit and gave me a tutorial on how to skin them ("its similar to doing a squirrel"). So I promised him the first two rabbits off my doe when they are ready sometime around February.

From Bethany, the small holding in Bethune....

Oremus pro invicem!

Prepping for 3rd CCD class tonight - (its going well so far...)

Doing the final touches on "Catholic Laity in the Mission of the Church" - which is by the way an new title from Russell Shaw (not a reprint).

Don't forget my plea below!

Here's a short one: My daughter, on entering the convent asked me:

"Dad, did you know that when you give a child to the Church in religious life, it is a long-standing tradition that you are exempt from the tithe for 5 years! ... Whoa, Mom did you see the look of joy on Dad's face? Sorry Dad, only kidding! "

From Bethany, the small holding inBethune...

Oremus pro invicem!

Finally updated/added some links on the sidebar ....

Paying the bills .....

I plug Requiem Press here occasionally, but I seldom beg anyone to buy books and never have begged for donations (notice, no PayPal button). However, we need $$$ to keep going here.

Coincidentally, we sell holy soul prayer booklets, and November is just around the corner: one of our missions is to promote devotion to praying for the Holy Souls in Purgatory. So here is the deal:

We are offering deep discounts on quantity purchases of "Daily Prayers for the Church Suffering - a daily commitment to praying for the Holy Souls in Purgatory" at our website from now until November 2nd - or while supplies last.

The purpose of printing this book was to get it into many hands-so many prayers would be offered for the holy souls. We have sold over 1,000 copies and have distributed for free about 1,000 more. However we need to get more out there. It just so happens we are desperate for cash too ......

Please consider purchasing and distributing these books as an apostolate which will help the holy souls and, incidentally, Requiem Press. (Or you could direct your pastor to Requiem Press to buy some for the parish...)

More on the book....

The prayer booklet has a prayer for everyday of the week, directed to help a specific suffering soul, (i.e. the one most destitute of aid, the one you are most bound to pray for, etc.) followed by the Psalm 'De Profundis'. The introduction to the prayer book explains the Church teaching on purgatory and the tradition of praying for holy souls. Below is a sample page:

Booklet is 3.5" x 5.5" and has glossy pages. The print is fairly large, so all ages can easily use it. (We do the prayers everyday as a family and we know others who do also.)

Please spread the word. Both the Holy Souls and the Curley's will be thankful.

Gratefully, from Bethany, the small holding in Bethune....

Oremus pro invicem!

The Chicken Tractor

Saturday morning the boys and I converted an old dog kennel (6' x 6') we had inherited with the property into a chicken tractor. The hardest part was moving it from underneath one of our cedar trees over to the garden area. The old dog house attached to the kennel had at least 7 black widow spiders attached. I think we dispatched them all.

Two sides of the tractor are covered with plywood. (This will give the chickens a shaded area. Two sides are covered with chicken wire or other fencing wire. The top has fencing wire. We have put a small shelter inside the tractor - however, we plan to get them a retractable roof (tarp) for bad/cold weather and put in a perch. We took 6 male (we believe) chickens (about 12 weeks old) and put them in the tractor. The tractor is in part of the garden in which Mrs. Curley won't plant in until spring.

The idea is that you let the chickens manure and till your garden by rotating the tractor over the garden. Chickens naturally lay their manure and scratch. Why waste it all in one place? So we move the tractor every couple days. Further if (as is true for us) we want to prepare total new ground for planting in the spring, the chickens will take care of the hard work for us. The grass they eat will also cut the feed bill (a little).

Now the tractor is not on wheels, so we will see how well it moves later today. I do believe it will generally be more than a one-man job. You have to make sure you don't run over the chickens while moving it. I will post pictures when available (probably in a couple months based on my track record.)

If this works out, I will probably make a second one - but specifically designed for the purpose.

From Bethany, the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!

Film developed ......

Here are a couple of pictures which go with this post from July. The kids formed a band so Mrs. Curley and I could dance to the sounds of Glen Miller, Benny Goodman, etc. like we used to do every Thursday night at the local hotel when we lived in the city. (I should really co-ordinate my film developing with my posting...) Krystle (clarinet) and Nicholas (trumpet) are very good at their respective instruments. As I recall it was very hot that night. Mrs. Curley and I danced directly in front of a big box fan we had brought out. (The band members had no relief.)

Below, a couple of the 'band-members' take a break and cut a rug while enjoying the music of the others....

In the top picture you can see the neighbor's cornfield in the background, but the muscadine vines are ours.

Next week sometime, I will post a few pictures from our trek and "vacation" in Massachusetts before we dropped Krystle off here.

From Bethany, the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!

The saddest thing....

We live in a very small parish. Today's daily Mass was also the funeral Mass for a elderly parishioner. His wife had passed away a few years ago and was also buried from our parish. It seemed that most of his family came to the funeral from out of town. (None are parishioners that I know of.)

At Communion time, of the 40 or so family members present, only one family member received Holy Communion.

Upon leaving Mass I told my sons (who had served the Mass) that I didn't want to see that at my funeral. I expected my children to remain practicing Catholics and to be able to receive our Lord at my funeral Mass - and the same with my grandchildren and great-grandchildren (as the case may be)....

Rabbits

As reported earlier, we purchased 4 New Zealand Whites: 3 Does and 1 Buck. They each come from a different litter and range from 2 months to 3 months old, the buck being the oldest. I have built 2 cages, but will need to have 2 more built soon as the does will want their own space as they get older.

The cages are fairly simple to build - and in fact if we end up selling some of the offspring, I may offer cages (at a price) to the purchasers. The cages are 36" x 30" (and 36" tall). The cages are all wire with the openings in the wire on the bottom being approximately 1/2" x 1" and the side and top being ~ 1" x 2". I used J-clips to put the cage together. The sides, front and back are one continuous length of cage fence, joined at one corner with the J-clips. One cage has a hinged door (J-clips for hinges) on the top. (This is inconvenient for shorter people who are feeding the rabbits as the cages are hung.) I put the door to the buck's cage in front. This (while recommended by most books) can be problematic as the buck seems to be getting bolder and bolder when I open the door; someday I am afraid he will get by me (or one of the boys) and never be heard from again.

I have started building an outdoor shelter for the cages. Basically, they need some protection from sun in the summer and some shelter from cold wind/rain. So far the shelter isn't complete, I am using a tarp to protect from rain and sun now, but a permanent roof and some side shelter will appear before winter.

Our plans with the rabbits, of course, is to breed them for meat. When (at about 5 months) the does are ready to get pregnant, we bring the buck to the doe's cage. The doe will give birth in about 31 days. At 5-6 weeks old, you remove the small rabbits from their mother and sell or slaughter them. (The doe should be already pregnant again before you remove the young ones.) The idea is that you only buy feed for your buck and does and not for the meat target. The rabbits will dress up to about 2.5 pounds of meat - but is considered more dense than chicken, so you may not need quite as much meeat as equivalent to a chicken. (You can let them get bigger; NZ Whites get to 10 lbs, but then you must buy feed for them and have more cages, etc. etc.) I figure right now we will probably need two rabbits for a meal, possibly 3 as the younger ones get older.

The other alternative is to sell the rabbits (the rate in SC is about $5/rabbit). If you figure it out, selling the rabbits may be more cost effective than eating them - especially if you sell value added products like cages. (I can put together a cage in about 1/2 hour - after only doing 2).

I figure that we will do a combination (eating and selling) unless we find there is a tremendous demand for rabbits in Kershaw County!

Jeff at Hallowed Ground says of his chicken butchering experience: "Butchering chickens is the most brutal thing I have ever done. It wasn't fun, it stinks, and the first one even made me a little queasy. I may never do it again, but I'm glad we did it this once."

I have now butchered some 10-12 chickens. I don't like it but am getting better/quicker at it. I dread doing the rabbits even more than I dreaded the chickens.... but unless a Requiem Press book becomes a true bestseller - I figure I will be butchering chickens and rabbits for some years whether I like it or not.....

From Bethany, the small holding in Bethune...

Oremus pro invicem!