I was with him when he said married priests...

but now I'm not so sure...

"VATICAN CITY - Archbishop Emmanuel Milingo, the charismatic Zambian prelate who defied the Holy See by getting married in 2001, has been excommunicated after installing four married men as bishops, the Vatican said Tuesday.
...

Milingo has long had a troubled relationship with the Vatican. In 2001, he was married to a South Korean acupuncturist chosen for him by the Rev. Sun Myung Moon of the Unification Church, in a group wedding ceremony in New York.

After John Paul made a personal appeal a few months later, Milingo renounced that union. But last summer, the prelate surfaced in the United States and said he was living with his wife in the Washington area.
...
"

For more nuttiness...check this out!

Nutella!

It's like a party in my mouth, and everyone's invited!

Music I Find

So when I was working, I listened to a LOT of random live streaming music. I started paying subscription to yahoo music just to keep my mind occupied on something other than silence. From alternative, I wandered into techno, from techno I wandered into electronica, and from electronica I wandered into this middle eastern/Indian-inspired fusion. Thus I discovered the Transglobal Underground. I have a sneaking suspicion these are anarchist...nihilist...communist...anti-establishment folks. It's good music though, and I finally found it on youtube. Enjoy!

No Compulsion in Religion?

from "The Pope, Jihad and 'Dialogue'"
"When Manuel II composed the Dialogue (which Pope Benedict excerpted), the Byzantine ruler was little more than a glorified dhimmi vassal of the Ottoman Sultan Bayezid, forced to accompany the latter on a campaign through Anatolia. Earlier, Bayezid had compelled the Byzantines under Manuel II to submit to additional humiliations and impositions—heavier tribute, which was already onerous—as well as the establishment of a special quarter in Constantinople devoted to Turkish merchants, and the admission of an Ottoman kadi to arbitrate the affairs of these Muslims.

During the campaign he was conscripted to join, Manuel II witnessed with understandable melancholy the great metamorphosis—ethnic and toponymic—of formerly Byzantine Asia Minor. The devastation, and depopulation of these once flourishing regions was so extensive that often, Manuel could no longer tell where he was. The still recognizable Greek cities whose very names had been changed into something foreign became a source of particular grief. It was during this unhappy sojourn that Manuel II’s putative encounter with a Muslim theologian occurred, ostensibly in Ankara.

Manuel II’s Dialogue was one of the later outpourings of a vigorous Muslim-Christian polemic regarding Islam’s success, at (especially Byzantine) Christianity’s expense, which persisted during the 11th through 15th centuries, and even beyond. The Muslim advocates’ (particularly the Turks) most prominent argument was the indisputable evidence of Islam’s military triumphs over the Christians of Asia Minor (especially Anatolia, in modern Turkey). These jihad conquests were repeatedly advanced in the polemics of the Turks. The Christian rebuttal, in contrast, hinged upon the ethical precepts of Muhammad and the Koran. Christian interlocutors charged the Muslims with abiding a religion which both condoned the life of a “lascivious murderer”, and claimed to give such a life divine sanction.

Manuel, and generations of Christian interlocutors, argued that the “Christ-hating” barbarians could never overcome the “fortress of belief,” despite seizing lands and cities, extorting tribute and even conscripting rulers to perform humiliating services. Manuel II’s discussions with his Muslim counterpart simply conformed to this pattern of polemical exchanges, repeated often, over at least four centuries."
-Andrew G. Bostom

CS Lewis on Pacifism

"It is arguable that a criminal can always be satisfactorily dealt with without the death penalty. It is certain that a whole nation cannot be prevented from taking what it wants except by war. It is almost equally certain that the absorption of certain societies by certain other societies is a great evil. The doctrine that war is always a greater evil seems to imply a materialist ethic, a belief that death and pain are the greatest evils. But I do not think they are. I think the suppression of a higher religion by a lower, of even a higher secular culture by a lower, a much greater evil . . . . The question is whether war is the greatest evil in the world, so that any state of affairs, which might result from submission, is certainly preferable. And I do not see any really cogent argument for this view."
-CS Lewis

quoted in
When War must be the Answer
by James V Schall

This pretty much sums me up

Check this out

Thanks to Gina for the link!!

From the Desk of Campus Ministry Secretary Dennis Mathai

DISCLAIMER: The Lord knows and you all know that I am not perfect. Please take these words that I write as a loving servant, a caring brother of you all.

I have been a member of ‘thefacebook’ community for more than a year and have enjoyed the fact I was able to keep in contact with friends that I have lost contact with or that I was able to keep in touch with people I have recently met. However in the recent times, I have been quite disturbed by what I have been seeing in peoples’ profiles.

To see the young smart, beautiful young men and women who I see teaching Sunday School or helping to lead a group discussion at a Retreat or Praise & Worship at some Spiritual Activity or who is seen as a mentor or ‘big brother/big sister’ in their local church community to more than 100 kids, doing things that would never cross my mind in a thousand years when I spend time with them at a church, retreat, or some Orthodox Fellowship on campus.

My brothers and sisters, what are we doing to ourselves? I can understand we are free from the grasp of our parents, but does it necessarily mean to act irresponsibly? Does it necessarily mean we need to toss our vocation or who we are called to be, a CHRISTIAN, in the back seat and throw it back on when Sunday rolls around? Is it okay to parade around drunk? NO! Is it okay to ‘grab’ the opposite sexes body parts (use your imagination) either before or after drinking? NO! Is it okay to ‘hook up’ with random guy/girls one night and disregard any relation we had with them the day or week after? NO!

I can understand we all want to have fun in College, and I say NO DOUBT! Have fun! But must we have fun at the expense of who we are? A Christian. Christianity, as we all know, is a way of life, not something we take up on the weekends and forget about on Thursday & Friday.

I made mistakes in college; Lord knows I lived as a mistake in college, an ultimate screw up. But I do not want to see others make that same mistake.

My heart grieves, it truly does, I do not know what more to say, but I will leave with this. When we are on the off days from college and we are in Church and come before the Chalice which contains the Life-Giving Body & Blood of our Lord & Savior Jesus Christ, I ask you to listen to the words of what the Priest says before giving the Holy Elements.

He says: “The atoning fiery-coal of the Body and Blood of Christ our God is given to this faithful believer for the remission of debts and for the forgiveness of sins, in both worlds forever”. The key words are FIERY (burning) COAL. Fire or heat has the power to burn you and the power to mold you (like the dude that makes glass vases on PBS).

You may disregard what I have to say, but do not disregard what the Body & Blood of Christ says by coming to the Chalice in an unworthy fashion. St. Paul warns us about this “Therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord.” He again says, “A man ought to examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body of the Lord eats and drinks judgment on himself.”

If you would like to talk, please feel free to message me back.

Love & Prayers,
Dennis Mathai
Secretary for the
Department of Campus Ministry

Pope Benedict XVI's Security in Question....Rosie O'Donnell is still fat

"A growing chorus of Muslim leaders have called on the pope to apologize. Muslim scholars say his comments show little understanding of Islam and some say Islamic countries should threaten to break off relations with the Vatican.

One high-ranking Church source also also expressed fears for the pope's safety.

"While I think the controversy will go away, it has done damage and if I were a security expert I'd be worried," he said.

At least one Muslim leader, Syed Ahmed Bukhari, the chief cleric of New Delhi's historic Jama Masjid, India's largest mosque, extolled Muslims to "respond in a manner which forces the pope to apologize." He did not elaborate."

So when Islamists protest...do they get their banners printed at Kinkos? Heaven forbid the Pope say something vaguely Catholic...and possibly offensive.

More reasons I hate rap music

Hip Hop lovers get more sex and break the law

Well I guess if you're into that kind of stuff...then whatever floats your boat?

I guess classical music isn't as sophisticated as I thought it was either.

"North’s survey [of Britons] also revealed that 50 percent of Hip Hop/Dance fans were more likely to have broken the law with several subjects admitting to have committed a criminal act.

The study also showed that a group of classical music fans surveyed had tried cannabis with 12 percent of the subjects who also liked opera admitting to experimentation with magic mushrooms. With his first results announced, North is now hoping to recruit 10,000 people for a wider study."

Stick to your show tunes, Rosie

"Radical Christianity is just as threatening as radical Islam"
-Theologian and World Religions Expert, Rosie O'Donnell

Oh really?

Ask Steve Centanni about radical Islam.

Here's a kind of corny but pointed "View" parody on Hot Air.

"Anyway, back to Rosie. You know something else? Neither Jerry Falwell nor Pat Robertson have beheaded anyone this entire week. Nor have they threatened to do so.

Hmmm. What a mystery! How could such things be? Rosie, I'm happy to discuss this further with you. You can find me at director@jihadwatch.org."
-Robert Spencer, Dhimmiwatch

And just because I never let secular progressivism off the hook that easily...remember the millions and millions killed and still being killed in leftist "people's republics" around the world.

View of God can predict values, politics- USA Today

Four different "types" of God leads to different political outlooks. No mention of Eastern/Oriental Orthodox...surprise surprise. I imagine our politics run along ethnic lines. No category for "Loving God," however. Love is not the same as benevolence. Also, it'd be good to know non-Christian philosophies on God and their consequent philosophical outlook. For instance, Islam, as far as I know doesn't characterize their God as Loving, so what is the consequence of that?

---

Highlights of Baylor's analysis:

• The Authoritarian God (31.4% of Americans overall, 43.3% in the South) is angry at humanity's sins and engaged in every creature's life and world affairs. He is ready to throw the thunderbolt of judgment down on "the unfaithful or ungodly," Bader says.

•The Benevolent God (23% overall, 28.7% in the Midwest) still sets absolute standards for mankind in the Bible. More than half (54.8%) want the government to advocate Christian values.

•The Critical God (16% overall, 21.3% in the East) has his judgmental eye on the world, but he's not going to intervene, either to punish or to comfort.

•The Distant God (24.4% overall, 30.3% in the West) is "no bearded old man in the sky raining down his opinions on us," Bader says. Followers of this God see a cosmic force that launched the world, then left it spinning on its own.
---

Reflecting on September 11th

I had my first organic chemistry exam, got my tickets to the UF/Tennessee Rivalry game, and came home. Three thousand people-Americans, died on TV...in America. Five years later, what has changed? We thought we'd be profoundly changed. Do we know what we're fighting for and who we're fighting against? More importantly, do we have the resolve to fight?

---
"Yet America has confronted evil before, and we have defeated it – sometimes at the cost of thousands of good men in a single battle. When Franklin Roosevelt vowed to defeat two enemies across two oceans, he could not have foreseen D-Day and Iwo Jima – but he would not have been surprised at the outcome. When Harry Truman promised American support for free peoples resisting Soviet aggression, he could not have foreseen the rise of the Berlin Wall – but he would not have been surprised to see it brought down. Throughout our history, America has seen liberty challenged – and every time, we have seen liberty triumph with sacrifice and determination."
George W. Bush, 9-11-2006

1 Year Anniversary

So it's been a year since I was unceremoniously laid off from my environmental engineer job in Tampa...

It was rough-extremely rough for me.

But I'm so grateful it happened.

I've had the best opportunity of my life to move away for a while, get my masters, meet great people, and continue working for the Church in a new area. Praise be to God!

Back in NJ

So I'm finally back in New Jersey...time to post regularly again!

I left Florida on a bright, sunny, beautiful day, and landed in the Northeast; it was cold, dark, and inhospitably rainy *sigh*