Big new post at the inquisition. I'm feeling a bit sad at the dearth of posting by so many fellow-bloggers. I hope they're out enjoying these lovely spring days and, today, celebrating our Lord's Ascension. May HIs perpetual presence, which He promised on that day, be a source of comfort and strength to all Christians!

Lately my hometown has been hosting a convention of “mainline” Presbyterians. I had forgotten about that when we went to brunch after Mass this past Sunday. Coming out of the restaurant, we heard bagpipes and drums. Intrigued, we walked toward the source of the sound – the plaza in front of a large public theater -- to find a dozen pipers and a brace of drummers, all quite nattily attired. Most were quite young, yet impressively proficient. We listened for a while as the convention delegates trudged toward a meeting. As overbearingly PC as the convention is,* it’s good to see that there’s room for at least a bit of their heritage. Seeing as how they’re “mainline”, you know that heritage would just have to be stylistic rather than substantive.

It struck me that, except for the bagpipes (which would probably be replaced by Andean flutes or maybe didgeridoos), this is just the sort of thing that Voice of the Trendy or any other number of dissenters would foist on the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church. Fie!

*The main item on their agenda appears to be how to maximize the denomination’s promotion of buggery -- and possibly, by extension, selected other extra-marital sexual relationships. Wonder how John Knox or other early protestants would respond to that?

Good news!

There’s been much made of the varied failings of several bishops. I’m one of too many that have said uncharitable things about some of the men whom Christ has chosen to lead His Church. That makes it all the more important to rejoice when a bishop does something that vividly demonstrates fidelity and courage.

Some time ago I came to know a priest whom I’ll call Fr. P – a somewhat annoying man*, but a decent priest who said Mass with reverence and dignity; preached heresy-free homilies and made numerous hospital calls. Before I came to know him, Fr. P had been a member of a religions order (“Order X”). For reasons unknown to me, Fr. P sought to leave Order X and become a diocesan priest here in Denver. (I know of another priest who left a different order and was incardinated as a diocesan priest in Denver earlier this year.) It was agreed that Fr. P and the archdiocese would go through a period of mutual discernment. Fr. P was given a series of assignments in Denver that, though no fault of his own, turned out to be rather brief.

About two years ago, Fr. P was told that his next assignment would be a parish in a town some 70 miles from Denver. (Our archdiocese is quite large geographically and it is common for priests to move between parishes in the metro area and those in towns in the farther reaches of the state – 70 miles is very close to Denver compared to some parishes.) Fr. P told the archbishop that he could not accept this assignment, or any assignment that would require him to be away from his “circle of support” or to live somewhere other than his condominium. (Yes, you read that right: Fr. P, until about four years previously a member of a religious order that had a vow of poverty, owned a condominium. It’s in a nice neighborhood too. I’m not sure I could afford a condo in that building. I don’t have any idea how he raised that kind of money, but I’m sure that the source of his funds for buying the condo are absolutely none of my business.)

Fr. P asked (and was allowed) to continue on his last Denver assignment for the duration of the discernment period. That discernment period ended just before the recent archdiocesan clergy conference at which Archbishop Charles J. Chaput, O.F.M.Cap. mentioned the case of Fr. P (or so I was told by a priest who was there and whom I believe to be a reliable source for what follows).. His Excellency made it clear that there were no allegations of any moral turpitude against Fr. P**, but that since accepting the assignments given by one’s superior and living in a rectory are essential elements of the charism of the diocesan clergy in our archdiocese, Fr. P would not be incardinated. As of the last I heard, Fr. P is in a sort of limbo. He does not have priestly faculties in the Archdiocese of Denver, yet he’s no longer a member of Order X. I suppose he could petition for incardination in some other diocese, though I honestly have no idea whether he’s inclined to do so. It will be interesting to see what he does.

There are some folks (particularly those fond of Fr. P) who are upset by the archbishop’s decision. I applaud it. At last a bishop takes a stand on behalf of the Church (and, of course of her Lord and His people) rather than kowtowing to the whims of a priest who wants to write his own rules. Would that more of the bishops that have had to deal with problem priests (and, particularly, those with much larger problems) have done the same.

The grand irony is that after all of this Fr. P may end up as an effective priest in some other diocese. (If there is one where priests can name their own assignments and live on their own that would take a priest who isn’t screamingly heterodox.)

*He annoys me because he is prone to several of my own faults. He annoys others by being pedantic, condescending and stubborn, but I repeat myself.

**I would think that Fr. P would be especially vulnerable to such allegations by virtue of his living arrangements. The priest who lives in a rectory acquires a series of witnesses to his behavior and companions that can serve to deflect allegations of impropriety.

in the garden

My late father was quite knowledgeable about horticulture, which knowledge I took advantage of after we all moved into the new house. We’re the third family to live in the house. The original homeowners did all sorts of wonderful things with the house. The family from whom we bought the house neglected the grounds to a shocking degree – not that I’m complaining as I’m sure it saved us lots of money!

The wild roses that are now in bloom reminded me of this. These roses are quite different from the roses you’d normally see. They’re tiny. They have only five simple petals each. They last only a couple of days each and their scent is quite faint. (They really look like the roses you see in heraldry.)

The roses you’re more likely to see are the result of many years of hard work by growers who have created hybrids. These hybrids have bigger showier flowers that last longer and have a stronger smell, but that comes at a substantial cost in natural vigor. So most of the roses available for planting have the hybrid stems grafted on to wild roots. If you neglect the roses (for instance, letting new shoots grow up untended), eventually the wild roots will take over and the vines will lose the characteristics for which you selected the particular roses.

So it is in life. Without sufficient attention to the new life that’s been grafted on to us, the habits of our old roots grow and choke out the good.

What a glorious day it is!

Today I finally had the complete Sumer ist ycumen in moment. It was presaged by the fact that it was barely dark by dinnertime last night, but light when I got up this morning*. When, though, I saw the myriad vivid shades of the green of fully leafed trees against the brilliant blue sky this morning, I realized that it was really here!

In recognition of this glorious day, a hymn from my old Lutheran days (with one verse omitted) seems in order:

1. All praise to God, who reigns above,
The God of all creation,
The God of wonders, power, and love,
The God of our salvation!
With healing balm my soul He fills,
The God who every sorrow stills,--
To God all praise and glory!

2. What God's almighty power hath made
His gracious mercy keepeth;
By morning dawn or evening shade
His watchful eye ne'er sleepeth;
Within the kingdom of His might
Lo, all is just and all is right,--
To God all praise and glory!

3. I cried to Him in time of need:
Lord God, oh, hear my calling!
For death He gave me life indeed
And kept my feet from falling.
For this my thanks shall endless be;
Oh, thank Him, thank our God, with me,--
To God all praise and glory!

5. Ye who confess Christ's holy name,
To God give praise and glory!
Ye who the Father's power proclaim,
To God give praise and glory!
All idols under foot be trod,
The Lord is God! The Lord is God!
To God all praise and glory!

6. Then come before His presence now
And banish fear and sadness;
To your Redeemer pay your vow
And sing with joy and gladness:
Though great distress my soul befell,
The Lord, my God, did all things well,--
To God all praise and glory!

Author: Johann J. Schuetz, 1675, cento
Translated by: composite

*One of the few things of which my maternal grandfather would approve in my life today is that I end up feeling a little guilty if I sleep until daybreak.

A relic of St. Juan Diego visits Denver right when some uber-Protestant relatives from Alaska are coming for a visit. Still, both promise to be good events.

This article ties in (forgive the pun) with this post. A disgusting trend.

From our friends at the Ministry of Unfortunate Names

comes this gem: Mr. Garrett Hall. I wonder whether that name's more attributable to a wicked parental sense of humor or a poor parental vocabluary.

An especially good mid-day homily today on “If you remain in me, ask for whatever you want and it will be given to you.” This is particularly pertinent for me. Some months ago, I ardently prayed for a particular irreversible event to take place. It took place, in relatively short order and I immediately saw the drawbacks of this event that I had not anticipated. I wondered if I had been wrong to pray for the event to take place. Not too surprisingly, my prayer life suffered and, as my prayer life declined, most other aspects of life took a turn not for the better. Time did as it is wont – wounding all heels. Eventually I reached a crisis that drew me back to the foot of the cross, pleading for mercy.

Lately there have been a few intentions that have occupied a great deal of my attention and I’m on the flipside of the previous problem – I’m frustrated by the paucity of immediately visible results. No wonder I need to keep praying for fidem rectam, spem certam et caritatem perfectam.

It appears I spoke too soon . . .

about the GIA CD. I looked through the liner notes to find:
- they inverted the order of two words in the Latin text of Ave Verum Corpus -- changing “in mortis examine” to “mortis in examine”, which doesn’t make much sense and is obviously not correct if you’ve ever heard the piece –it being one of the most famous of all choral pieces.; and
- the translations of Tantum Ergo and Regina Caeli Laetare are so far off from the Latin text as to nearly contradict the Latin on a few points each Additionally the translation of Ave Maris Stella is more like an extremely loose paraphrase. .

While my Latin isn’t that great, it’s certainly enough to recognize blatant mistranslations.

Here’s one they didn’t screw up:

O salutaris Hostia,
Quae caeli pandis ostium,
Bella premunt hostilia;
Da robur, fer auxilium.
Uni trinoque Domino
Sit sempiterna Gloria,
Qui vitam sine termino
Nobis donet in patria.

O saving Victim, op’ning wide
The gate of heaven to us below!
Our foes press in on ev’ry side;
Your aid supply, Your strength bestow.
To Your great Name be endless praise,
Immortal Godhead, One in Three;
O grant us endless length of days
When our true native land we see.

that the two tastiest fruits have very short seasons that coincide? I speak of apricots and cherries. Every year at this time it’s a mad dash to get them while the gettin’s good. Then the long wait to get at them again.

Another reason to be glad I’m not Anglican any more!

”. . . and there’s just so much to see”

Spent a couple of days in Arizona at the end of last week. The highlight was a few hours in Sedona. Yeah, I know there’s lots of new age kookiness there. Although, to be fair, there didn’t seem to be that much more of it there than anywhere else in the western US.

Sedona is breathtaking. There are numerous impressive rock formations in a palette of reds. Unlike many of the west’s other rock areas, there’s quite an abundance of vegetation too. There are many gentle rolling hills and a few steep hills. Of course there are lots of folks building there, but for the most part they’re keeping things pretty unobtrusive. As befits such a place, there are several artists in residence. We bought a couple of pieces, furthering the southwest look of our home.

In Sedona, the must-see location is the Chapel of the Holy Cross. Best of all, it’s Catholic! Several years ago, a sculptress decided she wanted to build a chapel in memory of her parents. She wanted the chapel to stand on solid rock with a towering cross. In Sedona, she found a fitting site. The chapel is available for prayer very nearly every day, but masses are not said there. It can’t hold more than maybe 60 people. Even so, if it were available for weddings, it probably wouldn’t be available for anything else!

Bonus: since I’ve often derided OCP and GIA when they are in the wrong, I have to give GIA credit for the CD they sold in the chapel’s gift shop. It’s called “Catholic Latin Classics” conducted by Richard Proulx © 2000. It’s a first-rate recording and exactly what one would hope to find promoted by a Catholic publishing house.

I've been hoppin' more than the proverbial one-legged man in the butt-kicking contest -- what with spring semester finals (ganz gut!), the trip south, company, a few work crises, the sudden disintegration of my fall semester course schedule and, most of all, as much time as I can spend in prayer for a dear one who needs it very much.

Potpourri

So a few days ago, I said I would probably be scarce. As you can see, I have not been scarce, either here or at The Lidless Eye Inquisition. I've been procrastinating finishing a project for school. I have to turn it in this evening. Not much more time to procrastinate, eh?

The inimitable mister victor lams has completed a 'BlogTone ™ for me. I hope to get time before leaving on our trip tomorrow to futz with the template and install it. If you're in a hurry to hear it, you can listen in at the 'BlogTones page.

Please remember to pray for Dylan and the other members of St. Blog's who are experiencing present difficulties.

Two notable anniversaries today:

* Twenty-five years ago today I was confirmed into the Lutheran church.

* Four years ago today was my last day working in the desert of eastern San Diego County. Very nearly every day I still rejoice and thank God that I am finally free from that desert drudgery.

“I'm interested in things.
I'm not a real doctor.”

Your mileage may vary.

Any word from anyone about Dylan? It’s not like him to be so quiet for several days on end.

This or That

1. Packrat or minimalist?

As minimalist as my better half will let me be.

2. Computer: desktop or laptop?

Desktop. I can never adjust to those funky little keyboards.

3. Seashore or mountains?

Shore for a long trip, mountains for picnics.

4. Carpeting or bare floors?

Bare floors. (Though we have both, I like the non-carpet better.)

5. Drinking water: bottled or tap?

Tap in Denver or NYC, bottled elsewhere – especially SoCal and ABQ.

6. Shopping websites: eBay or Amazon?

None of the above.

7. Cute little kitties or big scary tigers?

Cute big dogs.

8. Front door or back door?

The door that isn’t locked at the time.

9. Lots of jewelry, or little/none?

Little/none. I’ll never be called Ringo.

10. Thought-provoking question of the week: At the last minute, you obtain tickets to an event you're dying to attend. However, you have to work that day! Do you ask the boss for the time off, or just call in sick?

Probably more “tell” than “ask”, but I’d be up-front about it.

Monday Mission (courtesy of Kat Lively

1. Who are your favorite cartoon characters?

That’s a tough one. As a wee fellow I really liked all the junky Hanna-Barbera sixties stuff (Space Ghost, the Herculoids, etc.). I still have a soft spot for them, I suppose. Later I became a Woody Woodpecker fan (let’s not forget Chilly Willy and Andy Panda, either).

2. Have you yet reached the point where you feel like you are from a different generation than today's youth?

I felt that way when I was a youth among my own kind, are you kidding? (I know, that’s just what the young lady said, but she was right!)

3. What was the first music video that really impressed you? What made it so amazing?

That’s a harder question than it seems. I was a fanatic about music videos for a few years, but then I decided I was too cool for them. (We had a local music video show before MTV. I watched the local show, FM-TV, a whole lot more than I ever watched MTV or its eventual progeny.) I haven’t thought that much about videos since. There was one from ’80 or ’81 called “The Thin Wall” where a guy was running down a narrow corridor and hands came reaching out of the walls to grab him. That was a scene I had dreamt of before ever seeing the video, so that made a big impression. “Two Triple Cheese Side Order of Fries” was good for a laugh, as was “Jack’s Got a Problem”. “Under Pressure” didn’t come out until shortly before the whole video thing went stale for me, but I think it was overall the best of the videos because all of it worked on many levels. The clips from Nosferatu and the reverse run of the engine explosion were brilliant. “Controversy” was a pretty good introduction to Prince’s whole career. Of course, since I was a teenager, I eagerly watched videos like “Superfreak” that were, at best, near occasions of sin.

4. Name a song and an era that comes to mind when you hear the word "Retro."
“Ain’t That a Kick in the Head” and the years between Sputnik and the Cuban Missile Crisis. (I wasn’t yet born, but that’s when lots of my folks’ furniture and housewares originated.)

5. How has your life been affected by HIV or AIDS?

I never got to meet my brother-in-law who died of AIDS three years before I met my wife. She still misses him very much. Seems like a guy I would have liked to have known.

6. Yesterday in the USA, we celebrated "Mothers Day," a day where we honor the mothers in our lives. If you were on a "special day" nominating committee, whom or what would you recommend that we create a day in honor of?

Folks who smoke, drink and dance the hootchie-koo -- preferably all at the same time. (Of course they’d have to be meat-eaters too.)

7. Last week, we had several tornadoes tear through many neighborhoods, destroying homes and devastating the lives of the residents. How would you feel if you lost every possession you owned? Or would it matter? How would you go on with your life?

I’d be miffed, but not devastated. Losing my family or losing my mind would be so much worse.

BONUS: Do you remember the 21st night of September?

IIRC, in 2002 that wasn’t a particularly happy evening. Let’s back up a year or two, shall we? I think that was a very nice evening in y2k – really.

Thanks again to those of you who have offered prayers on my behalf. I’m glad to report that a degree of success has been attained. By the mercy of God, A has been substantially less aggravating than usual, but when A has engaged in aggravating behaviors, I’ve so far been able to resist the internal rant connecting the recent event with previous events. I haven’t given over to anger. Thank God!

I’ll probably be a little scarce in days ahead for the following reasons:

May 12 – 15 finals (if you hear loud shouts of glee on Wednesday, don’t worry, it will just be me exulting that my Finance class is over for good);
May 16 – 18 a trip out of town;
May 18 – 24 company staying with us (arriving just 3 hours after we get back
from our trip!)

Not too much danger of the problems connected with idleness in the days ahead.
Huzzah!

The past two days were quite delightful. On Friday it was nice and cool for walking Mr. Puppy in the morning. The work day was quiet and productive. Running mid-day errands, I took the opportunity to attend Mass at a parish that was somewhat new to me. I’d gone in for prayer before, but never for Mass. Though only 7 were there, it was a most beneficial Mass. The homily was perfectly applicable to my immediate situation as were a few of the intercessions offered by the priest – intercessions I’d never heard made at any Mass before. (I wonder if he has the occasionally reported gift of reading souls.)

Yesterday I awoke to about 4 inches of wet snow – yet more much-needed drought relief. It did quite a job of pruning the trees beyond what the March storm had done – reminding me of the need for pruning in my interior life. Got to have dinner with friends last night at their house.

This morning I had a great walk with Mr. Puppy and we’re preparing to go to a noon Mass followed by a nice brunch. God has truly blessed us.

I’ve been remiss in mentioning Fructus Ventris, probably because I can’t ever read it at work. (The Windows 1895 computer at my desk can’t recognize the font and, per company policy, I can’t load more fonts onto the relic.) If you’re here, you’re likely to know about it already, but if you don’t, hie thee thither!

Many thanks

to all of you who have responded to my question below. I’m torn between being glad that I hadn’t missed anything and being frustrated at lack of progress.

I asked the question because of events of Tuesday. It started off ordinarily enough. I was going to confession. At this particular church, it’s offered on weekdays after the midday Mass, which I didn’t attend. There was a startlingly large line of penitents. I was in the line for the new priest. (I didn’t think I had anything serious enough to discuss to go to my usual confessor and thought I should get to know the new priest.) Since this was a new priest, he was using a confessional that I’d not used before, but nothing about it seemed too odd. I entered and continued to reflect and pray in preparation for the sacrament. Suddenly the door to the confessional opened. I turned to see a very startled and apologetic woman. I said something along the lines of “Don’t worry about it” as she profusely apologized.

A moment later the priest was ready. He had very good counsel for me. I knelt before the Blessed Sacrament in prayer. During that prayer I had what I can only describe as a very brief moment of spiritual ecstasy. It stopped when the woman who had opened the confessional door came up to me to apologize again.

Later in the day, I read several posts in various blogs about the necessity of forgiving others, the most pertinent of which is Fr. Jim’s excellent homily. The message was unmistakable – I absolutely must forgive. The person in question (whom I’ll call A) did several of the things A does that get my goat. I reacted with the bitter cocktail of anger, pride and resentment. I dredged up old unsettled scores and stewed on them. I began to experience a serious temptation. The contrast between what I’d learned earlier in the day could not have been clearer.

Since then, I’ve been in tension – between the lure of the familiar and the (so far) impossible task of forgiving A. May the Lord have mercy on me.

the heart of the matter

Over the past day or so, it's become increasingly obvious that most of my current problems come from my inability to forgive one person's sins as they've had an impact on my life. I've known it at some level all along, but it's been made overwhelmingly clear to me how much I've failed to do so and how much I need to forgive.

Might anyone have any advise on how I can learn to really and truly forgive?

mille grazie

Tueday either/or

1. TV or radio? Radio, if you must. Silence, though is better than golden.
2. On the radio: talk or music station? Music – classical or jazz.
3. Actual books or books-on-tape (or e-books)? Got some old paper books (including some real treasures from the 18th century), but find e-books more convenient.
4. Actual newspaper, or web version? Web – usually quicker to find what I want to see and no icky inky fingers.
5. Wall Street Journal or National Enquirer? WSJ if those are the only choices. How’s about a nice NY Post or Wash Times?
6. TV news...news channel such as CNN, or your local broadcast news? Fox News if there must be TV news. (I’ve got to keep quiet about my disdain for TV news as it seems a third of the TV news folks in town attend my parish.)
7. A movie you've been looking forward to seeing gets bad reviews all around. See it anyway, or pass? See it anyway. Not that big of a movie watcher though.
8. See movies when they first come out, or wait a few weeks for the lines at the theater to get shorter? No predictable pattern. Depends on too many other things.
9. TV: cable, satellite dish, or just plain old antenna? Cable.
10. Thought-provoking question of the week: If you had to choose only one form of media to come into your home, which would you choose...print (newspapers, magazines) or electronic (TV, internet)? Why? The net is the most versatile form of media and I’d have an awfully hard time giving it up.

A truly odd (and very positive) experience

took place whilst I was at prayer this afternoon. I can’t really describe, explain or even understand it yet. It seems important, though, and I hope to be able to come to terms with it. Perhaps then I can post something substantive about it.

How Can I Sin Like A Girl?

Eve Tushnet posted some great stuff she got from a book about counseling women. It generally applies to me too, though, hence the smart-aleck caption. Three things that really hit me:

(1) sins want to become addictions;
(2) just as there are rituals that are good for us, there are also rituals connected with our habitual sins – disruptions to these supporting rituals (or countervailing rituals) can weaken the habits themselves; and
(3) many habitual sins are really responses to unresolved anger. (I know Eve says unrecognized, but here I diverge from girldom.)

If knowledge is power, then there is a bit of strength with which to fight the good fight.

Got to go to John Derbyshire’s book signing yesterday -- a quite pleasant experience. There were a few dozen folks there, mostly mathematicians. I’m very much not a mathematician, though I’ve been on friendly terms with several. (If someone didn’t know me well, they might peg me as one.) Looking forward to reading the book next week while we take a brief vacation.

Derb is a very pleasant polymath. Handles questions remarkably well. Has a unique and enjoyable accent. I was surprised that his voice is as high at it is – I’d imagined him as more of a baritone. Nonetheless, he’d be devastating on radio. (I note that he was on local radio today, but I can’t get radio at my office. No doubt he was hawking the book.)

Just three weeks ago yesterday I met Jonah Goldberg. I wonder if that means I might meet another NROnik around Memorial Day.

A hearty welcome

to Don’s Mixolydian Mode. Once I very nearly named an online fantasy baseball team the Mixolydians, but I could only use ten letters. (Nearly named them the Aeolians instead.)

Better Late Than Never!

The Dante's Inferno Test has sent you to Purgatory!
Here is how you matched up against all the levels:

Level	Score
Purgatory (Repenting Believers)	Very High
Level 1 - Limbo (Virtuous Non-Believers)	Low
Level 2 (Lustful)	Very High
Level 3 (Gluttonous)	Moderate
Level 4 (Prodigal and Avaricious)	Very Low
Level 5 (Wrathful and Gloomy)	Low
Level 6 - The City of Dis (Heretics)	Very Low
Level 7 (Violent)	Low
Level 8- the Malebolge (Fraudulent, Malicious, Panderers)	Moderate
Level 9 - Cocytus (Treacherous)	Low

Take the Dante's Inferno Hell Test

The caption above refers not only to my tardiness in accessing the quiz, but also to its ultimate end. In all good seriousness, I have no right to expect any better than to be the straggler who's in Purgatory for [infinity]-(1/[infinity]). Even that would be an immense demonstration of divine mercy.

NOTE: I am getting rather frustrated at Blogger's intransigence regarding whether or not it will recognize the apostrophe. And what is up with not recognizing the symbol for infinity? Arrgh. . . If I took the test again, I'd probably get a higher schore for wrathful!

An Observation

I’ve long noticed that if I fall into a particular sin after being away from it for a while, it’s all too easy to keep at that sin – as if the previous resistance was all for naught. I think I’ve finally recognized one of the engines of that mechanism. If it’s a sin that I get particularly worked up over, I’ll feel a good deal of shame. Sometimes I’ll use that shame as an excuse to avoid prayer. It’s easy to conclude that the prayers of someone in the state of sin are worth little, but I can think of many times when I was veritably smothered in mortal sin and my prayers were answered resoundingly. (I especially think back to times when I prayed for contrition over sins that I wasn’t willing to leave behind.) As so many other (and holier) members of St. Blog’s have mentioned, the secret to success at prayer is just to keep at it. Now ‘tis time for me to try that.

Two old habits

For a long time I’ve had two complementary bad habits of conscience. Just recently I recognized them, which gives me at least a chance at getting past them.

The first habit was to develop rather elaborate hierarchies of related sins. For instance, let’s say there are a dozen particular ways in which I might violate one of the principal duties of my station in life. If I had sinned in three of the ways, I’d find a way to rationalize that those three sins weren’t really SO bad, since at least one of the other related sins was bound to be worse. This helped me to rationalize a great many sins.

The other habit was in many ways the reverse of the first. If I got to a point where I was particularly preoccupied with a particular sin, I’d convince myself that I’d be better off by committing the sin and getting to remorse than resisting the temptation and continuing to think about it. This also helped me to rationalize a great many sins.

It isn’t much, but it is at least a step in the right direction. As such, it isn't really of my doing.

Whoa momma!

img src="http://images.quizilla.com/S/ShopGurl/1036791902_eld3Kramer.jpg" border="0" alt="You're Kramer">
You're Kramer


Who are you on Seinfeld?
brought to you by Quizilla

Today was one of those days where nothing went as planned. Since I’m so “planful” (seriously, a reputable personality instrument described me thus), that can be challenging. I had really looked forward to midday Mass in honor of St. Joseph the Worker. I was a little late (due to work, fittingly enough), but got there in time to hear the deacon read the Gospel. I then saw that there was no priest at all and we had only a communion service. I have much reason to eagerly anticipate the priests’ return. (They were away at a meeting. Odd day for such a meeting.) Ended up getting Mexican for lunch at a Greek restaurant, served by a Russian waitress. Only in America, only in our day and age.

Oh yeah, I’m changing the image to one of our Lady in honor of the month of May.

And hoping to get the Dante test from Kathy the Carmelite, but it’s constantly offline.