Sunday, November 29, 2009

you don't have to agree with everything this woman has to say, but

most of it is good and she says it well.
my reply
Well written Ms Goldstein. I do not agree with some of the asides, but the thrust is appropriate.

The bottom line is his child and that child's inheritance from his father. Which is better: to have money or self-respect and dignity?

The root value is: it is better to teach your child values than to give gold.

Or are "values" a dirty word?

Thursday, November 12, 2009

illiterates and the intellectally deficient

oh my God, this reads like someone overheard small talk between illiterates and the intellectally deficient on the east wing of the psychiatric ward!! Fortunately for all US citizen the SSA systems work magnitudes better than the above link. - a senior IT person

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

if you are lucky you learn something new everyday

down in the valley

if I had paid attention to Fr Rooks during logic class

I would know the name of this logical fallacy.

Ask the experimenters why they experiment on animals, and the answer
is:
Because the animals are like us.Ask the experimenters why it is morally
OK to experiment on animals, and the answer is:
Because the animals are not
like us.Animal experimentation rests on a logical contradiction. -
Charles R. Magel, professor of philosophy
In the first case, the similiarity is physiological and chemical. In the second case, the difference is on the level of consciousness. The argument is intellectual dishonesty using bait-and-switch tactics. Clever but no cigar!

Thursday, November 5, 2009

sing a new song unto the Lord

I am just getting around to the August issue and have been pondering the articles on liturgy.

It seems to me "reverence" is a code word for "quiet."

I am registered in what I think is the largest parish in my diocese 6000 families (give or take), 2/3 Spanish speaking. I have been in multi-lingual / multi-cultural parishes before. Most non-US and non-European liturgies are quite lively. Emotion is on the surface. I have heard criticism of that and "reverence" is one of the words in the conversation. Are we afraid of the "otherness" that goes beyond mere language and into culture?

While I dislike music with excessive percussion, I find all music styles appropriate for worship. As the choir director in the parish I sing at says, "as long as it is good music."

The article by Ted Rosean appears to be dismissive of diversity of worship styles. I surprised that in IL he has not experienced the various Byzantine liturgical styles. While I lived in Pittsburgh, the Byzantine archeparch lived just down Perrysville Ave. The Roman Rite bishop lived on the other side of the Allegheny River.

Our church has wonderfully diverse history from Jesus to the present. Would that we would not disown any of it.