VersoVatican International Exhibit of the Eucharistic Miracles of the World will be held in Hayward, WI.
Lanciano
June 30th - July 4th, 2011.
St. Joseph Church
10586 N. Dakota Ave.
Hayward, Wisconsin
(715)634-2867
Click on top link for times and details.
This weekend: Exhibit of the Eucharistic Miracles - Hayward, WI
Archdiocese cemetery trust sues to protect funds in bankruptcy case
Why did I get a mental image of the crypt keeper in court...
The trust created by the Archdiocese of Milwaukee in 2007 to fund burials and maintain its Catholic cemeteries filed a lawsuit this week in an effort to keep the estimated $53 million in the account from being used to pay creditors in its bankruptcy.MJS
Archbishop Jerome Listecki, who serves as the lone trustee for the fund, said he has a moral and legal obligation to ensure the money is used for its intended purpose.
"It is important to have a clear decision from the bankruptcy court regarding the ongoing perpetual care of burial places," he said in a statement issued by the law firm Godfrey & Kahn, which represents the trust.
An attorney for the creditors committee said he was surprised by the Tuesday filing, which came a week after U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Susan V. Kelley gave creditors the go-ahead to hire a forensic accountant to review the archdiocese's financials.
They have questioned whether certain transactions, including the movement of $55 million from an archdiocese cemetery account to a cemetery trust, were intended to shield assets from sex abuse victims in the event that the archdiocese filed for bankruptcy.
"I don't know what tactical advantage they hope to see by filing the complaint," said local creditors committee counsel Al Solochek. "The court will give us ample time to analyze the information."
Support for MN Marriage Amendment in Winona Daily News
Recent letters to the editor allege that support for maintaining the traditional definition of marriage in the eyes of the law is based on fear and bigotry, particularly religiously motivated bigotry.
However, a closer examination of the institution of marriage and the reason government recognizes it shows those claims are false.
Man and woman naturally complement each other physically, emotionally, psychologically and spiritually. They were made to give themselves completely and fully to each other, for the two to become one. Marriage is merely one man and one woman making a complete and total gift of self to the other, for the rest of their earthly lives, and this is consummated in the act of sexual intercourse, which reflects and echoes this two becoming one in a physical way.
The two literally become "one flesh" and this one flesh union is the sole means by which human life is transmitted. This procreative capacity of marriage is the reason the government recognizes and bestows financial and legal benefits on it that are not bestowed on any other union. Those benefits are given to bind the husband and wife together, to bind the children to their mother and father, and to help the mother and father financially support their children, because children do best when they grow up in a stable home with their mother and father.
Recognizing marriage and endowing it with government benefits helps guarantee such an environment for children, and government has a compelling reason to do this in virtue of its responsibility to safeguard and promote the common good.
Government is justified in denying same-sex relationships as equivalent with marriage for the simple fact that same-sex sexual acts, such as sodomy and mutual masturbation, are inherently sterile and can never under any circumstances result in the transmission of human life.
Happy Birthday Cardinal Burke!
Today is Cardinal Burke’s birthday. Please remember His Eminence in your prayers, perhaps by praying the Chaplet of the Holy Face for his intentions:
God, come to my assistance.
Lord, make haste to help me.
Glory to the Father…
Let God arise, let His enemies be scattered;
let those who hate Him flee before His Holy Face.
(33 times in honor of the mortal life of Our Lord)
Glory to the Father… (3 in honor of the Trinity)
63 years, and many more!
That leaves 17 years until His Eminence is no longer eligible for election to the papacy..... just sayin!
Abp Listecki celebrates the Sacrament of Confirmation in the Extraordinary Form!
On Ember Saturday in the Octave of Pentecost, June 18, His Grace, the Most Reverend Jerome E. Listecki, Archbishop of Milwaukee, conferred the Sacrament of Confirmation in the Extraordinary Form on nearly fifty candidates at St. Stanislaus Oratory.ICKSP - St. Stan's
Following the Confirmations, Canon Michael Wiener of the Institute celebrated a Solemn High Mass in the presence of Archbishop Listecki. His Grace was assisted during the Confirmations and the Mass by Canon William Avis, provincial Master of Ceremonies for the Institute’s US province, by Canon Glenn Gardner, and by Father Jean-Pierre Herman, an affiliate priest of the Institute.
After Mass, Archbishop Listecki greeted the faithful at the festive reception and received a gift showing the gratitude of the Institute and the faithful of the Oratory. He expressed his thanks to the Institute for the ministry it provides in the Archdiocese.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but this is a first as far as I know. A few photos below, the whole set can be viewed at St. Stan's website.
Kudos to His Excellency!
"The epistles were the wives of the Apostles"
Creative Minority Report posted a list of church bulletin bloopers (read the whole list! so good!):
Ladies, don’t forget the rummage sale. It’s a chance to get rid of those things not worth keeping around the house. Bring your husbands.—————————————Remember in prayer the many who are sick of our community. Smile at someone who is hard to love. Say ‘Hell’ to someone who doesn’t care much about you .—————————————Don’t let worry kill you off - let the Church help .—————————————Miss Charlene Mason sang ‘I will not pass this way again,’ giving obvious pleasure to the congregation.—————————————For those of you who have children and don’t know it, we have a nursery downstairs .—————————————Next Thursday there will be tryouts for the choir. They need all the help they can get.—————————————Irving Benson and Jessie Carter were married on October 24 in the church. So ends a friendship that began in their school days.—————————————A bean supper will be held on Tuesday evening in the church hall. Music will follow.
And that reminded me of a recent email a friend forwarded me, on kids' responses to questions about the old and new testaments. The following statements about the Bible were written by children. Incorrect spelling has been left in.
1. In the first book of the Bible, Guinessis. God got tired of creating the world so he took the Sabbath off.2. Adam and Eve were created from an apple tree . Noah's wife was Joan of Ark. Noah built and ark and the animals came on in pears.3. Lots wife was a pillar of salt during the day, but a ball of fire during the night.4. The Jews were a proud people and throughout history they had trouble with unsympathetic genitals.5. Sampson was a strongman who let himself be led astray by a jezebel like Delilah.6. Samson slayed the Philistines with the axe of the Apostles.7. Moses led the Jews to the Red Sea where they made unleavened bread which is bread without any ingredients.8. The Egyptians were all drowned in the dessert. Afterwards, Moses went up to Mount Cyanide to get the Ten Commandments.9. The first commandments was when Eve told Adam to eat the apple.10. The seventh commandment is thou shalt not admit adultery.11. Moses died before he ever reached Canada then Joshua led the Hebrews in the battle of geritol.12. The greatest miricle in the Bible is when Joshua told his son to stand still and he obeyed him.13. David was a Hebrew king who was skilled at playing the liar he fought the finkelsteins, a race of people who lived in biblical times.14. Solomon, one of Davids sons, had 300 wives and 700 porcupines.15. When Mary heard she was the mother of Jesus, she sang the magna carta.16. When the three wise guys from the east side arrived they found Jesus in the manager.17. Jesus was born because Mary had an immaculate contraption.18. St. John the blacksmith dumped water on his head.19. Jesus enunciated the golden rule, which says to do unto others before they do one to you. He also explained a man doth not live by sweat alone.20. It was a miricle when Jesus rose from the dead and managed to get the tombstone off the entrance.21. The people who followed the Lord were called the 12 decibels.22. The epistles were the wives of the Apostles.23. One of the oppossums was St. Matthew who was also a taximan.24. St. Paul cavorted to Christianity, he preached holy acrimony which is another name for marraige.25. Christians have only one spouse. This is called monotony.
- Virginia
Quite possibly the top reason against online dating...
Praying in a church
Let me repeat this sentence. It is impossible in human language to exaggerate the importance of being in a chapel or church before the Blessed Sacrament as often and for as long as our duties and state of life allow. That sentence is the talisman of the highest sanctity.
- Fr. John Hardon, SJ
St Peter's Catholic Church, Tilden, WI
When my great grandfather immigrated from Austria, he settled in Tilden, WI. I still have a great deal of family in the area and around Chippewa Falls. I had never been in the church although I had been there before for my great aunt's burial in the cemetery behind the church(a Traditional Requiem Mass btw). I should have got a shot of the servers vestments which were fantastic. I've never seen them so well done. A nice church, ordinary form of the Mass, it's been a month or so but I don't remember much else. I think everything was pretty standard, 100% English, ect. This is where we were when the announcement was made about the big priest swap. By the way, that begins July 1st in the Diocese of La Crosse. A whole lot of new faces for Masses next Sunday.
The rest on Flickr:
The rest on Flickr:
Shrine of Our Lady of Good Help Shrine to be featured on ABC's 'Nightline' July 6
the rest at GB GazetteThe spotlight shone on a small shrine in Champion in December when it became the sole location in the United States officially designated as a place where the Virgin Mary appeared.
The Shrine of Our Lady of Good Help now has hundreds of visitors each day and will be featured in a primetime documentary on ABC's "Nightline" on July 6.
The documentary examines the things that made the Virgin Mary such a religious icon in the last century and highlights the trend of efforts to garner formal recognition of shrines.
The show will interview Marian experts and people who have seen apparitions, and it will visit shrines and pilgrimage sites across the world.
That includes a stop in Champion, a community 16 miles northeast of Green Bay, the only formally recognized apparition site in the United States, and a conversation with Bishop David Ricken of the Catholic Diocese of Green Bay. He oversaw the approval of the Marian apparitions at the shrine.
"We appreciated the opportunity to share our story with … the ABC staff during the three days they spent in our diocese this spring," Ricken said.
"I am confident that the account of the apparitions at the shrine will benefit all those who are able to view this program. We look forward to welcoming many of them to the shrine in the months and years ahead."
Baby girls' sex-change operations
The fate of girls around the world (some have called it a war on girls) has been making the news lately -- pro-life news, Catholic media, main stream, etc.
The Wall Street Journal review of the book "Unnatural Selection" is perhaps one of the best:
There have been so many sex-selective abortions in the past three decades that 163 million girls, who by biological averages should have been born, are missing from the world.
Ross Douthat had an op-ed in yesterday's New York Times on the same topic. Also worth a read.
It was with particular horror that I read a Daily Mail article today about girls as young as one having sex-change operations forced upon them by parents desperate for a son:
Wealthy parents from Delhi and Mumbai are reportedly flocking to Indore, a city in the centre of India, for the relatively low cost £2,000 treatment to surgically 'correct' their daughters.Parents have allegedly pressed for the surgeries despite being told by doctors that the 'converted' male would be infertile.Seven genitoplasty experts in Indore boasted each of them had turned 200 to 300 girls into 'boys' so far, with only one being older than 14, the legal age of consent to such an operation.
As the oldest of six children -- I have four younger brothers and one younger sister -- I cannot imagine life without my younger sister, who is now married with a son of her own. We were quite happy as youngsters (and are all still close), and it wasn't until I was in college that my mom told me how there were several times she didn't know if she would have enough money for food and diapers.
As a woman, it is difficult to comprehend how I -- and my gender -- could be unwanted.
It is quite the twist of fate how modern pro-abortion feminism (which I will write separately on, I promise!) exported abortion to developing countries such as India, and now women are being exterminated.
The pro-abortion blog Abortion Gang wrote a blog post about the persistent issue of sex-selection abortion. It's a look inside the pro-abortion mindset that wants to keep abortion legal at all costs.
The pro-abortion blog Abortion Gang wrote a blog post about the persistent issue of sex-selection abortion. It's a look inside the pro-abortion mindset that wants to keep abortion legal at all costs.
I leave you with this excerpt of an editorial by Kathryn Lopez:
Liberal feminism, with its addiction to abortion and its bullying of men, was never what American women and men – and certainly the American family – needed.Despite some of the best of its intentions, it was mixed up in eugenics and disloyal to the legacy of the suffragette movement, a failed experiment in remaking reality that has left a trail of misery….We girls can be confident, feminine, life-affirming compliments to men, at home, school, work, and politics. And even pro-life conservatives. We’ve come a long way, baby.
- Virginia
HT Creative Minority Report for the sex-change article.
Blessed José Anacleto González Flores, ora pro nobis!
The body of Bl. Anacleto Gonzales Flores. His widow took their sons to the wake, where she said to the elder, “This is your father. He has died defending the faith. Promise me on his body that you will do the same when you are older if God asks it of you.This Rock: September 2007
To this day, innumerable Catholics are dying for their faith at the hands of Muslims who are told by the Koran to either convert Christians from their idolatry of adoring the man Jesus as though He were God, or put them to death.Fr. John Hardon
But my focus here is on our country. Call it an unbloody martyrdom. But have no doubt that to live an authentic Catholic life in America today is to live a martyr’s life. That is why the sacrament of confirmation cannot be more clearly identified than to call it the sacrament of martyrdom. Only the Holy Spirit whom we received on our Pentecost Sunday can sustain us in our witness to Jesus Christ.
After fifty years in the priesthood, I can testify to every syllable of the following sentence: Only heroic bishops and heroic priests, heroic religious, heroic fathers and mothers, heroic faithful, will survive the massive persecution of the Catholic Church in our country to day. We call ourselves the Land of Liberty. But the only liberty that is given freedom is the liberty to do your own will. Pro-choice is not just a clever phrase. It is the hallmark of a culture in which millions have chosen to do what they want and make life humanly impossible for those who choose to do what God wants.
WRTL nod goes to ex-Planned Parenthood official
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| Sen. Alberta Darling |
In politics, some things just don’t happen.MJS; Dogged
Third-party candidates don’t win major races. Politicians don’t admit to running negative ads.
And Wisconsin Right to Life doesn’t back former board members of Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin.
Except this year.
Without fanfare, state Sen. Alberta Darling, who has described herself as “pro-choice” in the past, won a qualified endorsement from Right to Life in her contest against state Rep Sheldon Wasserman. In the early ‘90s, Darling served on the board of Planned Parenthood, the chief advocate of abortion rights.
This is considered the hottest local race in the fall election.
Barbara Lyons, head of Right to Life, said her group has not previously backed Darling, a River Hills Republican, during her 18 years in office. Lyons noted that Darling had voted with the organization 77% of the time in the past four years, whereas Wasserman, a Milwaukee Democrat, had a 0% rating.
Asked to describe Darling’s abortion stance, Lyons said, “She’s more pro-life than not.”
So what changed?
Darling didn’t return a call. Her campaign Web site doesn’t mention the endorsement.
But Sen. Glenn Grothman, the go-to guy for abortion rights foes, had a theory.
“As we get older, we get more conservative,” the West Bend Republican said. “I think that’s happened to Alberta.”
If you ... recall, it was Sen. Alberta Darling who thwarted Gov. Walker's effort to completely defund Planned Parenthood. Her comments on retaining public funding for Planned Parenthood:
Committee co-chairwoman Alberta Darling (R-River Hills) said that other state family planning programs would also remain for women and that Planned Parenthood could still receive federal funds. Gov. Scott Walker had sought to completely cut the family planning grants.
“I see this as a very positive effort to retain critical health care services for women,” said Darling, a former Planned Parenthood board member who voted for the change.
Bp. Morlino Mass at the tomb of Blessed John Paul the Great
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| Bp. Robert Morlino |
What a moment! I was blessed to start today with Mass at the tomb of Blessed John Paul the Great. All the people of the Diocese of Madison were especially in my prayers.Bp. Morlino Facebook
Some of my most wonderful moments were the opportunities I had to pray the Mass with Pope John Paul. Though he is united powerfully with us now at the Mass, through the communion of the Saints, it was truly a grace to be offering the Sacrifice above his physical remains and to be "with" him in that way again. AMDG!
Signs I might be looking elsewhere
My wife and I did actually attend a daily Mass there. They had a sort of adoration time after Mass so I didn't take pictures afterwards. But the inside is bad, real bad... Not like pews in circle bad, but well... I'll go early and get pictures next year. It clearly was gutted from the original. Chetek is within driving distance of some La Crosse diocese parishes we also attended.
The plus side was this view. And I think the reason God did not call me to be a fisher of men is that I am a terrible fisherman.
SNAP accuses Abp. Hanus of Dubuque of coverup
The suit states that the plaintiff's parents confronted Hanus, then the abbot in charge of Conception Abbey, about the sexual contact. "Hanus told plaintiff's parents that Fr. Parry had a 'mental breakdown' and that he would be treated for this breakdown." Parry was subsequently sent to a facility in New Mexico for sex offender treatment and did not return to the abbey.
The suit continues, "In fact, Fr. Parry did not have a 'mental breakdown.' Instead, Fr. Parry was a known child predator who had sexually abused numerous students before Fr. Parry sexually abused the plaintiff."
The suit said Parry previously reported to Hanus and other clergy that between 1973 and 1979, while Parry was a monk but prior to his ordination as a priest, "that he had been involved in three inappropriate sexual relationships" and another in 1981 while attending seminary classes in Collegeville, Minn.
At the insistence of Hanus, Parry was "required to receive psychological treatment" as a condition of his completing seminary school, the suit says.
Hanus, Dubuque archbishop since 1995, issued the following statement through Msgr. Thomas Toale, Dubuque archdiocesan vicar general:
"A lawsuit has been filed in Missouri that makes several claims about me while I served as abbot of Conception Abbey," Hanus said. "I await the opportunity to respond to these claims according to the system of justice in our country."
CapuchinFranciscan: Lift the City - a Catholic Eucharistic flash mob
If you haven't seen it yet.
HT LC
HT LC
ProvEmails: Those who have ears, too, here
The Provincial EmailsThe suburban weekly Now newspaper reported on the Greendale Tall Corn Contest.
"For those looking for some divine intervention in their favor, [Anne Marie] Pelkofer has this 'tidbit' to add to the mix, courtesy of St. Alphonsus Catholic Church in Greendale.
"'Father Alan (Jurkus), who is the pastor at St. Alphonsus, stopped by today with holy water in a little Tupperware container, and he said if you plant (the corn) and then sprinkle holy water on it, it'll grow even bigger,' she said."
NARAL NY director admits to felony theft; Planned Parenthood Virginia official caught stealing wine
Things that make you go, hmmm.
A former president of a prominent abortion-rights group’s New York chapter admitted Wednesday she got the organization to pay for thousands of dollars in a summer house rental, child care, clothes and other personal plums by passing them off as business expenses.Former NARAL Pro-Choice New York leader Kelli Conlin pleaded guilty to falsifying business records, a felony. Her case will be closed without jail time or probation if she pays more than $75,000 in restitution.
David Nova, vice president of Planned Parenthood Health Systems in Roanoke, was charged earlier this year with three counts of petit larceny. The charges stem from bottles of wine Nova took through a self-checkout line at the Cave Spring Kroger. The incidents occurred on two separate dates in January, according to online court records.As part of an agreement reached in Roanoke County General District Court last week, Nova was not convicted. The case was continued for a year, with the understanding the charges will be dismissed after Nova completes his jail time and avoids further charges.
Using her NARAL checkbook, Katherine Venskus siphoned off $12,939 from the organization over the next several months, according to the criminal complaint. She was charged with felony theft and forgery in April 2002 in Dane County Circuit Court and pleaded no contest to the theft charge in August of that year, with prosecutors dropping the forgery charge.
Details for Milwaukee Bishop-designate Donald J. Hying's Ordination
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| Bishop-designate Donald J. Hying |
Bishop-designate Donald J. Hying will be ordained Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee, Tuesday, July 19, 2011 at 2 p.m., at the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist, 812 North Jackson Street, Milwaukee.ArchMil
General details of the ordination are as follow:
SOLEMN VESPERS
Place: St. Anthony Parish
N74 W13604 Appleton Ave., Menomonee Falls
Date: Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Type of event: Prayer service
Event start time: 7 p.m.
Approximate conclusion: 8 p.m.
Reception to follow in the Parish Hall
MASS OF ORDINATION
Place: Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist
812 N. Jackson St., Milwaukee
Date: Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Type of event: Mass
Event start time: 2 p.m.
Approximate conclusion: 4 p.m.
Reception to follow in the Cathedral Atrium
PLEASE NOTE:
Media will be restricted to one camera in the choir loft during the Vespers Service and Ordination Mass. Cameras will be allowed at the reception following each liturgy.
Weapons of Mass Destruction? They're called liberals.
I've seen this billboard so many times and finally had a chance to take a picture of it Friday. I-94 West, a couple miles after Johnson Creek, approximately 1/4 mile before the Lake Mills exit. Enjoy!:)
More details on Cardinal Burke cancelling on conference in England
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| Fr. Paul Kramer |
So some organization called Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice was going to hold some conference in England on June 18. They invited Cardinal Raymond Burke, one of the most ardent champions of orthodox Catholic teaching and worship to speak at the conference. He kindly agreed to do so. Then, somebody apparently pointed out to the cardinal that the group spent a lot of time fomenting reactionary dissent. So he bailed. Does that make everything the English bishops do peachy? No. But it did send a clear message that the healthy response to problem bishops is not to foment reactionary dissent.
Response: The conference organizers, either in complete and utter ignorance or sheer stupidity, decided to invite Fr. Paul Kramer and Robert Sungenis to speak in his place, thereby confirming the wisdom of Burke’s decision to get out while the getting was good.
Fr. Kramer is notable for his theories of a vast “They’re tunneling under your house” conspiracy involving Rome in some sinister plot to hide the Real Third Secret of Fatima. He also feels himself called to hold forth on how the Second Vatican Council (a valid council of Holy Mother Church) was “satanic.”
A special note to Fr. John Hardon
While researching in the archives, we came across this special "Thank you" note from then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger to Father John A. Hardon S.J. What a find!
Father John A. Hardon, S.J. Archive and Guild
On compromise... sometimes The Almighty sorts things out
Grand Ducal Family of LuxembourgGrand Dukes Adolphe and William IV were Protestants. In the contract of William's marriage to the Catholic Marie Anne of Portugal, it was agreed that any sons would be brought up as Protestants and any daughters as Roman Catholics. The marriage produced no sons. Consequently, the religion of the House of Nassau changed to Roman Catholic when daughters of William succeeded to the throne.
My wife is like 99.5% Luxembourgish.
Plan/design of Madison’s new Cathedral can go forward
MADISON -- “Alert parishioners may have noticed that a ‘sold’ sign has been put on the former St. Raphael School building at the corner of Henry St. and W. Washington Ave.,” Msgr. Kevin Holmes, rector of the Cathedral Parish in Madison, wrote in the June 19 parish bulletin.MadCatHerald
Monsignor Holmes gave some background. He noted that St. Raphael Cathedral was destroyed by arson in 2005. It had stood on W. Main St. in the second block west of the Capitol Square. The land where the cathedral had stood and its former parking lot are now planted with grass.
In 2007, Bishop Robert C. Morlino announced that the St. Raphael Cathedral church would be rebuilt on the site of the present church in downtown Madison. Bishop Morlino made the announcement at the conclusion of a Eucharistic Procession on the Feast of Corpus Christi.
Two other buildings associated with the old cathedral are still standing on that block. They appear to be a single building running along Henry St. from W. Main St. to W. Washington Ave. In fact, Monsignor Holmes pointed out, they are two buildings constructed at different times, but they do share a common wall.
The building closer to Main St. was the cathedral rectory; the building closer to W. Washington Ave. was the parish school. The Cathedral School was closed in the early 1970s, and that building subsequently was sold.
Efforts to purchase the former school have been underway for several years,” said Monsignor Holmes. “The original asking price was several times the market value. Recent developments have made it possible for us to negotiate a very reasonable price for the building and property.
“So it is, in fact, our parish that is the buyer for that property. We expect to close on the property this week. Funds designated for the building of a new cathedral (principally the insurance settlement from the cathedral fire) will be used to make the purchase.”
Updated information will be available on the following Web sites: www.isthmuscatholic.org, www.madisoncatholicherald.org, and www.madisondiocese.org
Sexual freedom has its costs
In response to a June 21 op-ed in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel by a Planned Parenthood community organizer, I have the below op-ed in today's MJS. Props to the MJS for printing a pro-life perspective.
Sexual freedom has not liberated women. Instead, it has made them slaves to pregnancy tests, STD tests, cancer-causing hormonal contraceptives and abortion used as backup birth control.As a 2005 graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, I had many opportunities to witness the havoc the "hookup" culture wreaks on women. It's a little difficult to say, "I am woman, hear me roar!" with a friend as she is hunched over at the student health center with a pregnancy test and STD test results.Contraception works to change the way people think about sex and pregnancy. Contraceptives provide a false sense of security; contraceptives not only fail to lower rates of unintended pregnancy and abortion but may increase them.
Read the rest here.
Forensic accountant to review Milwaukee Archdiocese finances
A forensic accountant will be hired to review the finances of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee as part of its bankruptcy, and survivors of clergy sex abuse will have more time to file their claims, under an agreement reached Wednesday before U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Susan V. Kelley.the rest at MJS
The agreement, hammered out in marathon negotiating sessions that began Friday, gives the creditors committee the go-ahead to hire California-based Berkeley Research Group as a financial adviser. Among its duties will be to scrutinize church finances to determine whether the church made fraudulent transfers as a way to shield assets from victims of clergy sex abuse, as at least one victims attorney has suggested.
The archdiocese had objected, saying it was an unnecessary expense. But church attorneys dropped their opposition Wednesday after the creditors committee agreed to strictly control costs and submit expenses to the court for review.
"We have to be sensitive to the fees, we absolutely do," Kelley said.
As financial adviser, Berkeley is expected to focus on three main areas: the transfer of $55 million into a cemetery trust, and $75 million out of parish funds, and the creation of the Faith in our Future Fund to hold the proceeds of a $105 million capital campaign - all since 2004, said creditors attorney Jim Stang.
Statutory rape ad campaign launches in Milwaukee
Back in May, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel wrote about an effort by United Way of Greater Milwaukee to reduce teen pregnancy in Milwaukee. The effort involved an ad campaign using Disney-type fairy princesses; the ad campaign was put on hold due to concerns of copyright infringement.
Today, the “Fairytale statutory rape ad campaign” launched at bus stops throughout the city. Read more here. See ad, left.
Eliminating teenage pregnancy is something we’re all in favor of, but mixing United Way, Planned Parenthood, sex ed and Disney princesses into the mix is hardly the solution.
United Way is tied very closely to Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin (click here for a 2010 pledge form, listing PPWI as a “Community Health Charity”). In addition, United Way and PPWI are members of a “Healthy Youth Alliance,” pushing comprehensive sex ed across Wisconsin. The list of ties goes on and on.
The point is this: United Way refers these young girls to PPWI for treatment or “services.” PPWI has been shown willing to cover up purported statutory rape, sending these young girls right back to their abusers. It’s a vicious circle, rather than a deplorable societal injustice moving toward an end point.
Through its ties to Planned Parenthood, United Way is assisting in the cover-up of statutory rape, exacerbating the problem and allowing it to continue.
Continuing to push “comprehensive” sex ed on young girls starting at age 8, and then wondering why the teenage pregnancy rate is so high, is akin to holding a lighted match next to a piece of paper and then wondering why it catches on fire. If young girls are told it’s OK to have sex with a wink and a nod, and there are cultural factors at play here as well, that’s something an ad campaign can’t fix.
I highly recommend reading this article about teenage pregnancy in urban high schools, titled “Nobody gets married anymore, Mister.” It’s long but worth the read. It will make you think, and wonder where our society is going. Excerpt here:
Within my lifetime, single parenthood has been transformed from shame to saintliness. In our society, perversely, we celebrate the unwed mother as a heroic figure, like a fireman or a police officer. During the last presidential election, much was made of Obama’s mother, who was a single parent. Movie stars and pop singers flaunt their daddy-less babies like fishing trophies.None of this is lost on my students. In today’s urban high school, there is no shame or social ostracism when girls become pregnant. Other girls in school want to pat their stomachs. Their friends throw baby showers at which meager little gifts are given. After delivery, the girls return to school with baby pictures on their cell phones or slipped into their binders, which they eagerly share with me. Often they sit together in my classes, sharing insights into parenting, discussing the taste of Pedialite or the exhaustion that goes with the job. On my way home at night, I often see my students in the projects that surround our school, pushing their strollers or hanging out on their stoops instead of doing their homework.
AirMaria: "A Day With Mary" in London
Fr. Ignatius, flanked by his MC, addresses the huge crowd of faithful at the Day with Mary held in London’s Westminster Cathedral on Saturday 4th June 2011. This photo does not really do the crowd justice as the compression of the camera lens makes the Cathedral appear smaller than it is. In reality there were over 1000 people in attendance.AirMaria
The day ended with a procession of Our Lady of Fatima out the front doors of the Cathedral followed by the 1000 attendees who processed around the paved quadrangle in front of the Cathedral to the astonishment and wonderment of the locals. A double decker bus even stopped on Victoria Street so the passengers could rubber neck!
It is a moving experience to see the love and devotion the Catholics in London have for Our Blessed Mother.
Ave Maria!
....We are not quite there yet....
Wait, that reminds me, I never posted the pictures did I! Here they are.
Paul Ryan & family meet with Abp. Dolan in NY
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| Paul Ryan Attends Mass At Saint Patricks in NY |
House Budget Committee chairman Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) attended mass at Saint Patrick's Cathedral Sunday taking a break from budget negotiations in Washington.IBT
Ryan was invited by Archbishop Timothy Dolan who once lead Milwaukee's Archdiocese and called the represenative "my good friend."
After the service Ryan and his family met with Dolan in his private residence.
St. Mary's of the Lake Catholic Church, Westport, WI
Photos from 1948, courtesy of Wisconsin Historical Society:
And then I found that St Mary's of the Lake had their 1966 centenial parish directory available online. Great idea! But we find this tragic story.
Where's that lightning when you need it?
I am struck by when these changes happened(as I've found in my other research as well). This style is not the result of the Vatican II Council as some often propose, it is the result of the culture within the Church decades before the council even began. Vatican II didn't happen in a vacuum. The reality is that there was a crappy liturgical movement present far before the council from which we finally in our time have hopes of recovering.
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| Exterior |
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| Interior |
Sunday, July 8, 1951 -- a bolt of lightning in a fierce early morning storm -- and the cherished little home of God was reduced to ashes. All day and into the next, the fire smoldered -- like a gasping organism unable to die. All day heavy gray clouds rained down their sorrow onto the glowing embers, joining the warm tears of the parishioners who realized the end of an epoch, the severance with the historic past.And... a story in pictures....
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| Exterior today.... |
I am struck by when these changes happened(as I've found in my other research as well). This style is not the result of the Vatican II Council as some often propose, it is the result of the culture within the Church decades before the council even began. Vatican II didn't happen in a vacuum. The reality is that there was a crappy liturgical movement present far before the council from which we finally in our time have hopes of recovering.
Marquette failed to properly report rape allegations to police over last 10 years
Virginia ran across this in the Chicago Tribune:
and an update in MJS:
MILWAUKEE — On a chilly Sunday morning, a 19-year-old Marquette University student walked into the campus security office and tearfully reported being raped by an athlete just hours earlier.continue at ChicagoTrib
She says two of the officers on duty that February day dismissed her claim, telling her they didn't know whether it was a crime because she alleged the encounter began as consensual sex and ended as an assault.
No report was taken, and Milwaukee police were not notified by the university, which insists the woman said she did not want authorities involved.
The university now acknowledges that failing to notify police was a violation of state law, which requires campus security departments to report any possible crimes to local authorities. School officials also did not tell police about a sexual attack allegation involving four athletes in October.
In fact, Marquette administrators told the Tribune that they have violated their reporting obligations for the past 10 years. And in at least the two most recent cases, the lapse played a role in prosecutors declining to press charges.
and an update in MJS:
Marquette University officials acknowledged Wednesday that the university made mistakes in how it handled student reports of sexual assaults and said they've worked out a way to improve how they report sexual assaults to city police.
Previously, officials with Marquette's public safety department left it up to the student who reported a sexual assault whether to report that assault to the Milwaukee Police Department. But that was against Wisconsin law, which mandates that a private security firm that believes a crime has been committed has to promptly notify police. Now students will be told the incident will be reported, but they have a choice of whether to talk to police.
Marquette University President Father Robert A. Wild stressed that the student athlete-involved incidents reported to the university's Department of Public Safety in the fall and spring were investigated by the university and action was taken in accordance with the student conduct code. He said Milwaukee law enforcement officials filed no charges, but the university could have done better.
Fox11: Reaction to no school vouchers in Green Bay
whole article at Fox 11The latest back and forth about bringing the school choice voucher program to Green Bay came with mixed reactions from area educators.
The voucher program allows public school students to attend private schools at taxpayer expense. But an expansion to Green Bay was taken out of the state budget Wednesday.
The Director of Education of for the Green Bay Catholic Diocese says he sees the program as opening more doors.
"It as a great way of providing opportunity for families with modest income to be able to make the same kind of choices in terms of where they want their son or daughter to go to school as someone with more financial resources,” said Joe Bound.
Supporters say the program would save money. The vouchers are worth up to $6,442 per student, compared to the $10,000 a year it costs to educate a child in city's the public schools.
The program has been in Milwaukee for about 20 years. The proposal to expand it to Racine is still in the budget.
St Thomas More, ora pro nobis!
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| Perhaps not said by St. Thomas More: Wosley, you wienie! |
Did you know that Thomas More was a Franciscan Tertiary?
Italians, priests, mob connections and the vast right-wing conspiracy
I've written before that not all Italians are in the mafia. There's a long history of Chicago mobsters like Al Capone and Bugs Moran vacationing in Wisconsin, but apparently the practice isn't history.
A Roman Catholic priest pleaded not guilty today to federal charges he tried to help Outfit hit man Frank Calabrese Sr. spirit a family violin away from the federal government after it had seized the imprisoned mobster’s possessions.Klein, who administered daily communion to Calabrese at the prison in Springfield, Mo., is accused of passing messages from the notorious mobster and conspiring with two others to try to steal the violin believed to be hidden in Calabrese’s vacation home in Wisconsin. Calabrese thought the instrument was a Stradivarius worth millions of dollars.Calabrese, serving a life sentence for killing more than a dozen people in mob hits, was under highly restricted conditions in federal prison after allegedly threatening to have a prosecutor killed. He can talk to only his attorneys, doctors, prison officials and a priest. Communication with the outside world is barred – including by note, letter or phone.According to the charges, Klein violated the special conditions when he passed messages on Calabrese’s behalf.
But, have no fear, the mafia isn't dead yet... just so far undercover the Crime Commission doesn't even know who they are:
In fact, the Outfit has become so secretive that mob watchers are no longer sure who the top boss is.Matt is a bit skeptical of my lack of mob connections due to this little item from a year ago:
An recent request filed with the office of State Representative Leah Vukmir (R-Wauwatosa) by former One Wisconsin Now minion and current blogger Cory Liebmann:Please be advised that I am requesting the following public records of Rep. Leah Vukmir’s office under the state’s open records law:1. All email from 7/1/08 through 1/20/10 for Rep. Vukmir, Dean Cady and Matthew Adamczyk (only in his capacity working for Rep. Vukmir) that fit the following search words and names:“Jim Sullivan”, “Sullivan”, “WPRI”, “Wisconsin Policy Research Institute”, “MacIver”, “Americans for Prosperity”, “AFP”, “Sykes”, “Belling”, “Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce”, “WMC”, “Grebe”, “Kohler”, “Bradley Foundation”, “Obama”, “Palin”, “McCain”, “ALEC”, “American Legislative Exchange Council”, “Republican”, “Democrat”, “GOP”, “Barrett”, “Scott Walker”, “Lawton”, “Healy”, “Jensen”, “Zignego”, “Walton”, “Wal-Mart”, “Sprenger”, “Pro-Life Wisconsin”...
The vast right-wing conspiracy doesn't use the internet, fool.
Also, I have been told traffic to the BC increases on man-hating post days (and Matt finds it greatly amusing), so I guess that means I am due to post an update about online dating! I also want to write something about feminism and what it means for women these days... And in some capacity, I want to comment on this article about how men express interest in dating women (I do agree with some points, such as this, "A man who does not call is likely not interested... Men pursue. He will pursue if he is interested" but I have, ahhh, philosophical issues with that. But that's another post, I promise!)
Also, I have been told traffic to the BC increases on man-hating post days (and Matt finds it greatly amusing), so I guess that means I am due to post an update about online dating! I also want to write something about feminism and what it means for women these days... And in some capacity, I want to comment on this article about how men express interest in dating women (I do agree with some points, such as this, "A man who does not call is likely not interested... Men pursue. He will pursue if he is interested" but I have, ahhh, philosophical issues with that. But that's another post, I promise!)
Madison parishes can use musical settings with new translation beginning in September
This past Friday the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops issued a press release regarding a change in the plan for implementation of the Roman Missal this fall. I have pasted a copy of the press release to the end of this email.HT AE
In order to ease implementation of the new texts for the people, the musical portions of the people’s parts of the Mass may be introduced earlier than the general implementation date. The hope is that this will provide for a fuller and smoother transition.
On behalf of Bishop Morlino, and with his approval, I wish to inform you that in the Diocese of Madison:
There is not a required Diocesan musical setting. However, many have asked what Mass setting will be used at Diocesan and Cathedral liturgies. My intent at this time is to sing the following (each is followed by a link to more information):
- New musical settings of the people’s parts of the Glory to God, Holy, and Memorial Acclamation(s) may be introduced any time beginning on September 3 and 4, 2011 (Ordinary Time 23).
- New musical settings of the Glory to God must be introduced no later than the weekend of September 24 and 25, 2011 (Ordinary Time 26).
- New musical settings of the Holy and Memorial Acclamation(s) must be introduced no later than the weekend of October 15 and 16, 2011 (Ordinary Time 29).
- This applies only to the people’s parts of the Mass Ordinary which are normally sung (primarily the Glory to God, Holy and Memorial Acclamations). The general implementation of the other texts (for example, “and with your Spirit” in the greeting) will take place as planned on the First Sunday of Advent.
- The Creed, while part of the Mass Ordinary, will be part of the Advent implementation and is not affected by this change.
- This does not apply to any texts prayed alone by the priest.
Penitential Rite: Chant
Glory to God: Gloria Simplex by Richard Proulx (published by World Library Publications) http://www.wlp.jspaluch.com/search_results.htm?search-text=Gloria+Simplex&x=20&y=12
OR Gloria from a New Mass for Congregations (revised) by C. T. Andrews (published by GIA)
http://www.giamusic.com/sacred_music/additional_settings_gloria.cfm
Creed: recited
Holy, Memorial Acclamations, Amen, Lamb of God: Mass of the Resurrection by Randall DeBruyn (published by Oregon Catholic Press)
http://www.ocp.org/newmasssettings/newsettings/massofresurrection
This particular Mass is very versatile and can be done by both “traditional” musicians and “contemporary” musicians.
Again, you are not required to use these.
I hope to send more information soon, including information on discounts regarding the music above (for those who wish to use it). As you can see, this developed quite quickly. While it may require more work on our part, I believe that it will provide for a smoother transition to the new Missal.
USCCB President Authorizes Gradual Introduction of Musical Settings of New Roman Missal Starting In September
Marquette Univ. named in condemning report on Catholic support for assisted suicide
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| Daniel Maguire with Catholic Rainbow Parents co-founders Tom and Darlene White. Source |
Marquette University theologian Daniel Maguire shares a similar interest in both abortion advocacy and assisted suicide. The U.S. bishops publicly denounced Maguire in 2007 for promoting “false teaching” on abortion, contraception, and same-sex marriage, but the scolding did not address his views on end-of-life issues.Crisis Magazine
In 1974, Maguire wrote the book Death by Choice, as well as an article for the Atlantic Monthly in which he argued:
The present categories of the law do not encompass the realities involved in death by choice, that is… one’s own death or the death of another is opted for in preference to continued living. …The motives for these deaths are compassion and an unselfish desire to bring on death when continued living is unbearable for the patient due to physical and/or mental suffering. Mercy killings thus described do not fit into any of the categories of unjustifiable homicide available in American law.
In 2009, Maguire testified before the Wisconsin Medical Society in support of a resolution approving physician-assisted suicide and calling on the state legislature to legalize the practice in a manner similar to Oregon. He did so in his capacity as a Marquette professor and president of the Religious Consultation on Population, Reproductive Health and Ethics, a nonprofit organization that publicly disputes Catholic moral teaching.
I've been told we can't make fun of the old guard and their age or what Maguire looks like or that I would probably wear garlic if I met him lest he try to suck my blood ....
If a Ford salesman tells everyone that comes to him to buy a car to buy a Honda.... is that person really a Ford salesman? And would it be a good idea for that Ford dealership to fire him?
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