Showing posts with label John Paul II. Wojtyla. Show all posts
Showing posts with label John Paul II. Wojtyla. Show all posts

Tuesday, September 29, 2015

Notes: Tuesday, August 11-Tuesday, September 29, 2015

1. "A CNA [(Catholic News Agency) ]investigation has found that millions of dollars have been poured into efforts to combat religious freedom exemptions in the United States."

The quotation, excluding my square-bracketed interpolation, in that headline comes from the article "LGBT grant-maker wants to win religious liberty fight within three years", by Mr. Kevin Jones, dated July 29, 2015, downloaded from CNA's website:

http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/lgbt-grant-maker-wants-to-win-religious-liberty-fight-within-three-years-96064/

(That article came to my attention via the "In Brief"—"UNITED STATES" article headlined "Benefactors turn against religious freedom", on p. 3 in the "NEWS" pages of the Sydney Catholic Weekly, August 9, 2015, Vol. 73, No. 4787, published by The Catholic Press Newspaper Company Pty. Ltd.)

Labels: G.L.B.T.

2. Australian "taxpayer funding of the International Planned Parenthood Federation" includes "$651,801 for “core funding to strategic plan (Asia)”, $769,800 “Contribution to IPPF (global)” and $30 million to “Pacific Regional Partnerships for Reproductive Health Program (Pacific)”."

The quotations in that headline come from the opinion piece "Miranda Devine: Planned Parenthood scam shows us evil has a way of creeping into the world", by Ms Miranda Devine, dated July 25, 2015, downloaded from the Sydney Daily Telegraph's website:

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/opinion/miranda-devine-planned-parenthood-scam-shows-us-evil-has-a-way-of-creeping-into-the-world/story-fni0cwl5-1227456749468

(That article is also available as a blog post at Ms Devine's blog and it came to my attention via the opinion piece "Children are more than the sum of their parts" by Monica Doumit in "The Catholic Talk Column" on p. 19 ("COMMENT") of the Sydney Catholic Weekly, August 9, 2015, Vol. 73, No. 4787, published by The Catholic Press Newspaper Company Pty. Ltd., available online under the same headline, in the same column, with the same author, but dated August 6, 2015, here.) This might be the source for what Ms Devine wrote:

http://dfat.gov.au/about-us/corporate/Documents/contracts-for-the-period-1-january-2014-31-december-2014.pdf

(That report came to my attention via the comment by Nick Barnes of 6.8.15 / 4pm in the combox at this blog post by Mr. Muehlenberg.)

Labels: abortion, contraception, feminism, foreign affairs

3. Some recent information on morbid propaganda in Australian public schools

3.1 Beginning in 2016, the thirty minutes each week which is currently devoted to, or at least is available for, non-compulsory Special Religious Instruction in Victorian public schools (Prep to Year 10) will instead be devoted to, or at least available for, compulsory indoctrination of pupils in "healthy, respectful relationships" ideology (presumably a blend of sodomy, Feminism, Moral Relativism, and Multiculturalism)

See the media release "New Curriculum Supports Students To Build Healthy Relationships And Understanding", from The Hon. James Merlino M.P. (Victorian Minister for Education) and The Hon. Fiona Richardson M.P. (Victorian Minister for the Prevention of Family Violence), dated Friday, August 21, 2015, downloaded from the official Premier of Victoria website:

http://www.premier.vic.gov.au/new-curriculum-supports-students-to-build-healthy-relationships-and-understanding

(That media release came to my attention via the print version of the article "Relationship advice to replace religious instruction", by Ms Natasha Bita, dated August 21, 2015, downloaded from The Australian's website:

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/education/relationship-advice-to-replace-religious-instruction/story-fn59nlz9-1227492123139

The same website also has a much shorter article ("Vic religious education classes axed", no byline (though the stated source is the A.A.P.), same date) on that topic:

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/latest-news/vic-religious-education-classes-axed/story-fn3dxiwe-1227492687675)

See also
  • the article "State to axe religious education", by Mr. Robert Hiini, on p. 6 in the "Catholic education" pages of the Sydney Catholic Weekly, August 30, 2015, Vol. 73, No. 4790, published by The Catholic Press Newspaper Company Pty. Ltd., available online under the headline "Victoria axes state religious education", with the same author, dated August 26, 2015, downloaded from The Catholic Weekly's website:
    https://www.catholicweekly.com.au/state-to-axe-religious-education/
  • the opinion piece "NSW wolves baying at Vic move", by Mr. Jude Hennessy (director of the Confraternity of Christian Doctrine for The Diocese of Wollongong), on p. 23 in the "News" pages of the Sydney Catholic Weekly, September 6, 2015, Vol. 73, No. 4791, published by The Catholic Press Newspaper Company Pty. Ltd., available online under the headline "Wrong to compare state religious education programs", with the same author, dated September 2, 2015, downloaded from The Catholic Weekly's website:
    https://www.catholicweekly.com.au/nsw-wolves-baying-at-victoria-sre-move/
Labels: education, feminism, G.L.B.T., morals, multiculturalism, relativism, Victoria

3.2 Australian "education ministers agreed yesterday[, that is, the 18th instant.,] to change the[ national] curriculum again, to introduce teaching of “respectful relationships’’."

The quotation, excluding my square-bracketed interpolations, in that headline comes from the article "Phonics, faith and coding for primary school kids", by Ms Natasha Bita, dated September 19, 2015, downloaded from The Australian's website:

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/education/phonics-faith-and-coding-for-primary-school-kids/story-fn59nlz9-1227534083014

(That article came to my attention via the version printed under the headline "Phonics, faith and coding for primary kids as schools go back to basics", by the same author, on p. 1 (continued on p. 10 in "THE NATION" pages under the headline "Phonics, faith and coding as schools go back to basics") of The Weekend Australian, September 19-20, 2015, Second Edition, No. 15837, ISSN 1038-8761, published by Nationwide News Pty. Limited.) That development came less than a week after the Sydney Daily Telegraph reported that
The Minister Assisting the PM for Women, Michaelia Cash, has written to Education Minister Christopher Pyne to encourage programs in the school curriculum that promote respectful relationships.
["Domestic violence: Abbott Government to offer panic alarms and security upgrades to women at risk", by Renee Viellaris and Steven Wardill, dated September 13, 2015, downloaded from The Daily Telegraph's website:
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/national/domestic-violence-abbott-government-to-offer-panic-alarms-and-security-upgrades-to-women-at-risk/story-fnii5v71-1227525367267
Follow that link for more details—I don't want to infringe copyright by quoting too much.
(Other versions of that article are available via the following two links:
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/nsw/domestic-violence-abbott-government-to-offer-panic-alarms-and-security-upgrades-to-women-at-risk/story-fni0cx12-1227525473657
http://www.news.com.au/national/queensland/domestic-violence-abbott-government-to-offer-panic-alarms-and-security-upgrades-to-women-at-risk/story-fnii5v6w-1227525367267)]
Shortly after that report, The Australian reported that
The Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for Women, Michaelia Cash, has written to the chairwoman of the Education Council, Queensland Education Minister Kate Jones, on behalf of her state counterparts expressing support for additional measures in schools.
["Schools to tackle domestic violence", by Rosie Lewis and Sarah Elks, dated September 15, 2015, downloaded from The Australian's website:
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/education/schools-to-tackle-domestic-violence/story-fn59nlz9-1227527187249
(The "additional measures" are presumably of the 'respectful relationships' variety—see the fourth-last paragraph of that article (which (paragraph) also reports Mr. Pyne's action in response to Sen. Cash's letter to him).)]
And now, in the latest development,
$5 million will also be provided as a longer-term measure to change the attitudes of young people to violence, through expanding the Safer Schools website to include resources for teachers, parents and students on respectful relationships.
["Release: Women’s Safety Package to #StoptheViolence", dated September 24, 2015, downloaded from the electorate website of The Hon. Malcolm Turnbull M.P. (Prime Minister):
http://www.malcolmturnbull.com.au/media/release-womens-safety-package-to-stoptheviolence
See also the "Transcript of joint press conference: Women’s Safety Package to Stop the Violence", also dated September 24, 2015, downloaded from Mr. Turnbull's Prime Ministerial website:
https://www.pm.gov.au/media/2015-09-24/transcript-joint-press-conference-womens-safety-package-stop-violence]
Labels: education, feminism, G.L.B.T., morals, multiculturalism, relativism

3.3 What Safe Schools Coalition/Wear It Purple Day events look like

See
  • the opinion piece "Purple has become the colour of thought control", by Mr. Mark Powell ("a Presbyterian minister from the Cornerstone Church in Strathfield" who was involved in opposing the planned pro-sodomite activities), on p. 52 in the "OPINION" pages of the Sydney Daily Telegraph, Thursday, September 3, 2015, ISSN 1038-8745, published by Nationwide News Pty. Ltd., apparently not available at the Tele's website. In that article, Mr. Powell relates that a Burwood Girls High School parent told him by e-mail that
    on Friday the 28th of August classes for all years would be cancelled for two periods and everyone was instructed to wear pur-ple clothing as well as eat purple cup-cakes and then join in a special parade “under the rainbow flag.”
    (the dashes resulted from words spanning two lines)
    It seems that "Initially there was no “opt out.”", but "Later the school sent out another communi-cation saying you could “opt out” of viewing the film but not regarding participation in the rest of the day."
  • the article "NSW Education Minister bans schools from screening gay film" by Mr. Eryk Bagshaw, dated August 26, 2015, downloaded from The Sydney Morning Herald's website:
    http://www.smh.com.au/national/education/nsw-education-minister-bans-schools-from-screening-gay-film-20150826-gj7sid.html?skin=text-only
    Mr. Bagshaw reports therein that
    The NSW Education Minister, Adrian Piccoli, has banned every public school in the state from screening a documentary about children with gay parents during school hours.

    […]

    Up to 50 schools across Australia, including 20 in NSW had organised a simultaneous broadcast of the film as part of a nationwide Wear it Purple day campaign of sexual inclusion in schools.
  • the article "Purple rain: true coulours shine after ban", by Mr. Eryk Bagshaw, on p. 3 in the "NEWS" pages of The Sydney Morning Herald, Weekend Edition, August 29-30, 2015, Issue No. 55500, published by Fairfax Media Publications Pty. Ltd., available online under the headline "Gayby Baby uproar: Schools defiant on Wear It Purple day", with the same author and date, at The Sydney Morning Herald's website:
    http://www.smh.com.au/national/education/gayby-baby-uproar-schools-defiant-on-wear-it-purple-day-20150828-gj9pr6.html?skin=text-only
    In the online version, Mr. Bagshaw reports that
    At Burwood Girls High almost 2000 purple cupcakes were consumed while principal Mia Kumar spoke of the tough week the school had endured.

    The girls had come out stronger because of it, she told the 1000-strong crowd that included NSW police officers in bespoke purple uniforms.
    and that Mr. Piccoli "has been a vocal supporter of Wear It Purple day in the past." (In another article by Mr. Bagshaw—"Gayby Baby: Education Minister Adrian Piccoli and Premier Mike Baird ban film without seeing it", dated August 27, 2015—he says similarly that Mr. Piccoli "has previously been a vocal supporter of the inclusiveness of LGBTI (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex) issues in schools", and Miranda Devine describes Mr. Piccoli as "driving the Proud Schools program" (see her opinion piece "DENIALS, FEAR AND A LACK OF REAL TOLERANCE", dated August 28, 2015, at the Tele's website or at her blog.)

Labels: education, G.L.B.T., N.S.W.

4. A man who regards himself as having three parents is "calling on NSW Attorney-General Gabrielle Upton to allow for changes to the Status of Children Act 1996 (NSW) to reflect that a child might have more than two parents."

See the article "Hugo Atkinson's fight to have three parents recognised on his birth certificate", by Lucy Cormack, dated August 27, 2015, downloaded from The Sydney Morning Herald's website:

http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/hugo-atkinsons-fight-to-have-three-parents-recognised-on-his-birth-certificate-20150827-gj9anp.html?skin=text-only

Labels: polyamory

5. Mr. Webster on Mr. Turnbull's "support of last year's Bingham Cup in Sydney": "He donated personally to the tournament - he was one of the top 15 individual sponsors - and lent his considerable presence to a score of functions, including a pledge from the chief executives of the major sporting codes to implement anti-homophobia and inclusion policies."

The quotations in that headline come from the article "NRL finals 2015: Sydney Roosters wary of Canterbury Bulldogs' tackling style", by Mr. Andrew Webster, dated September 17, 2015, downloaded from The Sydney Morning Herald's website:

http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/league-news/nrl-finals-2015-sydney-roosters-wary-of-canterbury-bulldogs-tackling-style-20150917-gjopyo.html?skin=text-only

Labels: G.L.B.T., sport

6. A couple of items concerning the death penalty

6.1 More from H.H. The Pope on capital and custodial punishment

On capital punishment:
… The Golden Rule also reminds us of our responsibility to protect and defend human life at every stage of its development.

This conviction has led me, from the beginning of my ministry, to advocate at different levels for the global abolition of the death penalty. I am convinced that this way is the best, since every life is sacred, every human person is endowed with an inalienable dignity, and society can only benefit from the rehabilitation of those convicted of crimes. Recently my brother bishops here in the United States renewed their call for the abolition of the death penalty. Not only do I support them, but I also offer encouragement to all those who are convinced that a just and necessary punishment must never exclude the dimension of hope and the goal of rehabilitation.
[from the Address of the Holy Father to the U.S. Congress, Thursday, September 24, 2015, downloaded from the Vatican's website:
http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/speeches/2015/september/documents/papa-francesco_20150924_usa-us-congress.html
also available at the U.S. Congress's website here:
https://www.congress.gov/congressional-record/2015/09/24/house-section/article/H6191-8?loclr=twtho
and here:
https://www.congress.gov/crec/2015/09/24/CREC-2015-09-24-pt1-PgH6191-8.pdf]
On custodial punishment:
This time in your life can only have one purpose: to give you a hand in getting back on the right road, to give you a hand to help you rejoin society. All of us are part of that effort, all of us are invited to encourage, help and enable your rehabilitation. A rehabilitation which everyone seeks and desires: inmates and their families, correctional authorities, social and educational programs. A rehabilitation which benefits and elevates the morale of the entire community and society.
[from (a translation from Spanish of) the Address of the Holy Father to detainees at Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility in Philadelphia, U.S.A., Sunday, September 27, 2015, downloaded from the Vatican's website:
http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/speeches/2015/september/documents/papa-francesco_20150927_usa-detenuti.html]
Labels: death penalty, Francis Bergoglio, morals

6.2 Jean-Jacques Rousseau and John Paul II., respectively, on the death penalty:
  • We may add that frequent punishments are always a sign of weak-ness or remissness on the part of the government. There is not a single ill-doer who could not be turned to some good. The State has no right to put to death, even for the sake of making an example, any one whom it can leave alive without danger.
    [the first dash there occurred because the word "weakness" spanned two lines,
    p. 212, in an extract from The Social Contract or Principles of Political Right (from The Social Contract and Other Discourses by Jean Jacques Rousseau, translated by G. D. H. Cole, Everyman's Library; the quotation in question comes from (the translation of) Book II, Chapter V, "The Right of Life and Death") which (extract) was printed in Society, Law, and Morality, edited with introductions by Frederick A. Olafson, published by Prentice-Hall, Inc., Englewood Cliffs, N.J., 1961]
  • It is clear that, for these purposes[ (apparently retribution, defence, and rehabilitation)] to be achieved, the nature and extent of the punishment must be carefully evaluated and decided upon, and ought not go to the extreme of executing the offender except in cases of absolute necessity: in other words, when it would not be possible otherwise to defend society. Today however, as a result of steady improvements in the organization of the penal system, such cases are very rare, if not practically non-existent.

    In any event, the principle set forth in the new Catechism of the Catholic Church remains valid: "If bloodless means are sufficient to defend human lives against an aggressor and to protect public order and the safety of persons, public authority must limit itself to such means, because they better correspond to the concrete conditions of the common good and are more in conformity to the dignity of the human person".
    [my square-bracketed interpolation,
    paragraphs two and three of §56 of (a translation of) the Encyclical Letter Evangelium Vitae, March 25, 1995:
    http://w2.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_jp-ii_enc_25031995_evangelium-vitae.html
    This is the official Latin version of the two paragraphs in question:
    Patet tamen omnia ut haec impetrentur proposita, modum et genus poenae diligenter omnino aestimanda esse decernendaque neque ad exstinguendum extremo consilio reum descendere licere nisi absoluta instante necessitate, cum videlicet aliter prorsus non potest defendi societas. Atqui hodie, propter convenientiorem institutionis poenalis temperationem, admodum raro huius modi intercidunt casus, si qui omnino iam reapse accidunt.
    Quidquid id est, valet etiamnum in novo Catholicae Ecclesiae Catechismo significatum principium, ex quo: « Si instrumenta incruenta sufficiunt ad vitas humanas defendendas ab aggressore et ad ordinem publicum tuendum simulque personarum securitatem, auctoritas his utatur instrumentis, utpote quae melius respondeant concretis boni communis condicionibus et sint dignitati personae humanae magis consentanea ».
    italics in the original,
    p. 464, Acta Apostolicae Sedis, Vol. 87, A.D. 1995:
    http://www.vatican.va/archive/aas/documents/AAS-87-1995-ocr.pdf
    The official Latin version of Evangelium Vitae is also available here:
    http://w2.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/la/encyclicals/documents/hf_jp-ii_enc_25031995_evangelium-vitae.html]
Labels: death penalty, John Paul II. Wojtyla, morals

Reginaldvs Cantvar
Michaelmas, A.D. 2015
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Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Notes: Some previously-unpublished items from 2011 (part 1 of 2)

In no particular order:

1. "HUMANITAS MAGAZINE TO HAVE ENGLISH-LANGUAGE EDITION"

"HUMANITAS MAGAZINE TO HAVE ENGLISH-LANGUAGE EDITION"
VIS 20111129 (280)
http://www.news.va/en/news/humanitas-magazine-to-have-english-language-editio

This is the linked U.R.L. for Humanitas Review's website:

http://www.humanitas.cl/

Of particular interest in the first issue of Humanitas Review is the posthumous contribution on pp. 27-41 by His late Eminence Avery Robert, Cardinal Dulles S.J. on Bl. John Paul II. and Dignitatis humanæ (though you might be familiar with the content of that contribution already, since that contribution is based, according to footnote 21, on a lecture given at Oxford University under the sponsorship of the Becket Fund on October 26, 2000).

Labels: Church and State, Confessional State, Dignitatis Humanæ, John Paul II. Wojtyla, religious liberty

2. Some points of interest from a recent AD2000 article on Russia:
[…] In early July this year, the Russian Orthodox Church declared it was against becoming the state religion: "The Moscow Patriarchate's position on what relations between the state and the Church should be is invariable. We do not want the Church to become part of the state apparatus, state machinery, to assume secular functions," Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin, the head of the Synodal Department for Church and Society Relations, said.

He was commenting on a poll conducted by the Sreda Agency along with the Public Opinion foundation, of 1,500 people across 44 Russian regions, 100 towns and villages. According to the poll, 30% of Russians want Orthodoxy to become the state religion, 48% are against it and 23% did not have an opinion.

[…] According to Russia's census, the country's population plummeted by more than 12 million between 1992 and 2008, and stands at around 143 million today. Legalised abortion has accounted for a significant part of that drop, with some 1.5 million abortions reported in the country in 2007 - nearly the same as the number of children born in that year. Unofficial estimates indicate that there are nearly four million abortions per year in Russia yet only 1.7 million live births. The UN has predicted that by 2050 the Russian population will have dipped to 116 million. Russia's population will not be able to support its elderly citizens and the nation faces an acute worker shortage.

[…] WCF [World Congress of Families] Managing Director, Larry Jacobs, noted the Summit was coming at a crucial time. "It's not Russia alone that's experiencing demographic winter," Jacobs observed. "Worldwide, birthrates have declined by more than 50% since the late 1960s. By the year 2050, there will be 248 million fewer children under five years of age in the world than there are today. This birth dearth will be one of the greatest challenges confronting humanity in the 21st century," he said.

[…] A member of the Duma (Russia's parliament) Viktor Zvagelsky, said ads for abortion had made "young girls believe they won't have any problems interrupting a pregnancy." Another Duma member, Valery Draganov, said the "number of abortions in our country reaches six to eight million a year. Every minute, two abortions are carried out in Russia. Due to botched abortions, 20 percent of families lose the ability to become parents. One in every five pregnant women who dies, dies as a result of abortion. These are catastrophic statistics."

[…] Russian lawmakers have now passed a bill requiring all abortion advertisements to carry health warnings. Under this law, passed by the the Duma in early July, ten percent of the space used in abortion ads must carry a list of possible negative consequences for women, including infertility. The bill also stipulates that mothers who don't want to keep their babies will be able to leave their newborn children anonymously in special adoption centres.

Russia's upper house of parliament, the Federation Council, followed the Duma in approving the measure and President Dmitry Medvedev signed the legislation into law in mid-July.

[…] One of Russia's most visible pro-life leaders, is Svetlana Medvedeva, wife of Russia's President Dmitry Medvedev. At a "Sanctity of Motherhood" forum last year Mrs Medvedeva spoke about the "rights of a child to life," and about the "general lack of support" that usually drove women to "artificial termination of pregnancy."

[…] In a recent speech, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin pledged to raise the nation's birthrate by up to 30% in just three years. Putin's plan calls for spending the equivalent of $53 billion to encourage Russian families to have more children. But Larry Jacobs says that more than cash incentives and government benefits will be needed to raise Russia's well below replacement birth rate. Family & Demography Foundation, which represents the World Congress of Families in Russia, and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) has announced the launch of its latest project: The Life-Family Medical Centers Network. These will be opened in all of the major cities in Russia and the CIS.
[My square-bracketed interpolations, everything else as in the original,
"Glimpses of a new dawn in Russia", by Babette Francis, from the September 2011 issue of AD2000, downloaded from the AD2000 website:
http://www.ad2000.com.au/articles/2011/sep2011p8_3606.html]
Labels: abortion, Church and State, Confessional State, demography, R.O.C., Russia, Vladimir Putin

3. Fr. Harrison on God's creation of Eve

"Old or young earth?", a letter by The Rev. Fr. Brian Harrison O.S., from the October 2011 issue of AD2000, available on-line here:
http://www.ad2000.com.au/articles/2011/oct2011p14_3634.html

"First Parents", a letter by The Rev. Fr. Brian Harrison O.S., from the November 2011 issue of AD2000, available on-line here:
http://www.ad2000.com.au/articles/2011/nov2011p13_3657.html

"DID WOMAN EVOLVE FROM THE BEASTS?[:] A DEFENCE OF TRADITIONAL CATHOLIC DOCTRINE - PART I", by The Rev. Fr. Brian Harrison O.S., in Living Tradtion, No. 97, January 2002
http://www.rtforum.org/lt/lt97.html

"DID WOMAN EVOLVE FROM THE BEASTS?[:] A DEFENCE OF TRADITIONAL CATHOLIC DOCTRINE - PART II", by The Rev. Fr. Brian Harrison O.S., in Living Tradtion, No. 98, March 2002
http://www.rtforum.org/lt/lt98.html

I was glad to see that there was someone else who agreed with me that "we must necessarily admit the special creation of … Eve" (source). For convenience, here are Fr. Harrison's sources, taken from those two letters to AD2000, for his contention:
  • I Cor. 11:8, 12
Labels: Adam (Patriarch), Creation, theology

Reginaldvs Cantvar
Feast of St. Anthony, Abbot, A.D. 2012
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Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Notes: Tuesday, November 1-Tuesday, November 8, 2011 (part 2 of 2)

6. "Kyrgyzstan returns to Kremlin fold"
IT is the only country that hosts both Russian and American military airbases.

But the first act of the new President of the highly strategic central Asian republic of Kyrgyzstan, within hours of his election victory, has been to serve notice that Washington must leave its big supply and transit hub close to Bishkek, the capital.

[...] But there's another alarming element in Atambayev's decision - the extent to which Russia, skilfully using Putin's plans for a Eurasian Union, is again asserting itself in Central Asia, exerting influence over highly strategic recent converts to democracy such as Kyrgyzstan, enticing them back into the Kremlin's fold.
[bold type in the original
"Kyrgyzstan returns to Kremlin fold" by Bruce Loudon
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/kyrgyzstan-returns-to-kremlin-fold/story-e6frg6ux-1226187004545]
Labels: Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Vladimir Putin

7. "ADL Releases New Book On Pope John Paul II and His Historic Accomplishments in Catholic-Jewish Relations"

http://www.adl.org/PresRele/VaticanJewish_96/6150_96.htm

(That came to my attention via this AQ comment.)

Labels: A.D.L., Assisi III, inter-religious dialogue, Jews, John Paul II. Wojtyla

8. Mr. Baker on usury

http://www.superflumina.org/usury_1.html

Labels: economics, morality, usury

Reginaldvs Cantvar
Feast of the Four Crowned Martyrs, A.D. 2011
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Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Notes: Wednesday, June 15-Tuesday, June 21, 2011 (part 1 of 2)

1. "["[H]omeless people sleeping rough"] represent probably only 3 or 4 per cent of the homeless population"

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/cold-and-so-alone-for-sydneys-homeless/story-fn6b3v4f-1226075926361

(Please do not jump to conclusions as to why I have noted this. I do not mean to downplay the difficulties which those who are homeless but are not sleeping rough undoubtedly experience.)

Labels: homelessness, poverty

2. Prof. Flint on, among other things, the questions of H.M. The Queen's nationality and who is Australia's Head of State

Under the heading "State of the nation" here:

http://www.smh.com.au/national/letters/tough-reality-is-ill-health-necessitates-change-20110615-1g3qf.html?skin=text-only

The next day, the Herald published a number of responses to Prof. Flint's letter, under the heading "It's obvious who's the boss, and her nationality", here:

http://www.smh.com.au/national/letters/theres-room-to-make-way-for-commuters-20110616-1g673.html?skin=text-only

Labels: David Flint, republicanism

3. "Echo of Soviet era in Putin's bid for votes"

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/echo-of-soviet-era-in-putins-bid-for-votes/story-e6frg6so-1226076653930

Labels: Russia, Vladimir Putin

4. "Hungary sponsors bold pro-life campaign with EU money - Eurocrats enraged"

http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=37795

Labels: abortion, E.U., Hungary

5. Mr. Ferrara on the Rosary and the New Rosary

http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=23422

Labels: John Paul II. Wojtyla, Rosary

6. Two recent opinion pieces from Mr. Muehlenberg

6.1 A blog post on fallacious comparisons of mixed-race marriage and same-sex 'marriage'

http://www.billmuehlenberg.com/2011/06/19/same-sex-marriage-playing-the-race-card/

The Girgis-George-Anderson Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy article to which Mr. Muehlenberg presumably refers in that post is available here:

http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1722155

Labels: discrimination, G.L.B.T., law, marriage, morality

Reginaldvs Cantvar
Feast of St. Aloysius Gonzaga, Confessor, A.D. 2011
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Monday, April 18, 2011

Notes: Tuesday, April 12-Monday, April 18, 2011

1. Latest American figures on sexual abuse by Catholic priests

http://members7.boardhost.com/CathPews/thread/1302558767.html

http://www.catholicleague.org/nytstraighttalk.php

http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=36834

http://www.cathnews.com/article.aspx?aeid=25812

Labels: sexual abuse

2. Dr. Gates on the G.L.B.T. proportion of the population

http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/society-and-culture/gay-equality-doesnt-add-up-until-we-do-the-numbers-20110412-1dcit.html?skin=text-only

Labels: demography, G.L.B.T.

3. Cardinal Pell with some facts about events in the post-Conciliar era
Pope Paul VI appointed no bishops who were opposed to the ethos of Vatican II, ...

[...] Incidentally it is a matter of historical record that at the 1971 Synod of Bishops, Pope Paul offered to the bishops the option of ordaining married men to the priesthood and the bishops declined to accept this.

[...] In Pope John Paul’s 27 years of pontificate 24 individuals were disciplined for their theological views, including eight who were silenced or removed, in the worldwide Catholic community of more than one billion believers.
[http://theswag.org.au/2011/04/some-gaudium-and-no-spes/]
His Eminence also asserts in that letter that "the bishops of the Society of St. Pius X ... are still in schism", which is not only false, even from Rome's perspective, but illogical for him given that in the same section of the letter he says that their putative excommunications were lifted.

Labels: celibacy, George Pell, John Paul II. Wojtyla, Paul VI. Montini, S.S.P.X., Vatican II

4. "Ethnic federation calls on PM to bolster multicultural policy"

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/ethnic-federation-calls-on-pm-to-bolster-multicultural-policy/story-fn59niix-1226039379342

Labels: multiculturalism

5. Discussion thread on the pre-1955 Holy Week liturgical schedule

Mainly of interest to me for the references to the present and past practice of the S.S.P.X. in that connection:

http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=36891

Labels: liturgy, S.S.P.X., T.L.M.

6. Figures on the use of contraception by American Catholics

http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=36893

Labels: contraception

7. Two items regarding John Paul II.

7.1 Review of a biography of John Paul II.

http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=36884

Labels: John Paul II. Wojtyla

7.2 List of quotations from John Paul II. regarding Islam

http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?p=404020#404020

Labels: Islam, John Paul II. Wojtyla

8. Note regarding possible new admissions to the Order of the Garter

This Saturday, April 23 (which is usually St. George's Day), is Holy Saturday. Apparently,
This year 2011, St Georges Day will be officially celebrated on May 2nd. This is because Easter falls late this year and April 23rd is Holy Saturday, the day between Good Friday and Easter Sunday. Under the rules of the Church of England, if St Georges Day falls within a week of Easter then Easter has precedence and St Georges Day is moved to after Easter. This will the first Monday in May, May Day Bank Holiday, ...
[http://www.historic-uk.com/CultureUK/StGeorge.htm]
Now there are currently three vacancies in the Order of the Garter (judging by the list at H.M. The Queen's website, one would think that there were only two, but that list has not been updated to take into account the death of His late Grace The Duke of Grafton). If Her Majesty intends to fill some or all of those vacancies this year, I wonder whether the announcement will be made on Holy Saturday, or on May 2? Delaying any announcement till the latter date would be convenient in that The Queen could also announce Miss Middleton's admission to the Order as one of its Royal Ladies.

Labels: Order of the Garter

Reginaldvs Cantvar
Monday in Holy Week, A.D. 2011
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Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Notes: Tuesday, March 22-Wednesday, March 30, 2011 (part 2 of 2)

10. "Apostolic Nuncio to Britain on Russian Orthodoxy"

http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=36583

See also:

http://wdtprs.com/blog/2011/03/should-you-ever-advise-someone-not-to-become-a-catholic/

http://scecclesia.com/?p=5288

Labels: Antonio Mennini, ecumenism, R.O.C.

11. Figures on annulments in the U.S. in recent decades

http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=36580

Labels: annulments, marriage, U.S.A.

12. "Cardinal to Launch Groundbreaking Intellectual Journal"

http://members7.boardhost.com/CathPews/thread/1301052217.html

Labels: Solidarity (journal)

13. "REFORM OF ECCLESIASTICAL STUDIES OF PHILOSOPHY"

VIS 20110322 (600)

http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=36556

http://wdtprs.com/blog/2011/03/latin-in-the-ordinary-form-seminary-wherein-fr-z-rants/#comment-261488

Labels: education, Fides et ratio, John Paul II. Wojtyla, seminaries

14. Interesting new academic/news website: "The Conversation"

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/breaking-news/new-website-the-conversation-gives-access-to-australian-academics/story-fn3dxity-1226027509468

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/australian-it/academia-nets-2m-to-go-on-the-web/story-e6frgakx-1226027704333

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/media/andrew-jaspans-new-site-offers-something-to-talk-about/story-e6frg99o-1226029038230

Labels: Conversation (website)

15. "Gender Bender Moonbattery" (in the U.N. and elsewhere)

http://www.billmuehlenberg.com/2011/03/29/gender-bender-moonbattery/

Labels: G.L.B.T., U.N.O.

Reginaldvs Cantvar
30.III.2011
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Notes: Tuesday, March 22-Wednesday, March 30, 2011 (part 1 of 2)

1. "A Statement of Reservations Concerning the Impending Beatification of Pope John Paul II" (with an interesting list of signatories)

http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=36543

Labels: John Paul II. Wojtyla

2. "[A] a regular Green voter" on, among other things, The Greens' defence policy

http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/blogs/blunt-instrument/when-pacifist-greens-want-military-action-its-time-to-ask-if-their-policies-really-can-fly-20110321-1c3zk.html

Labels: Greens

3. "US hails world move to end violence against gays"

Not just violence, though, but also criminal sanctions:

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/us-hails-world-move-to-end-violence-against-gays/story-fn3dxix6-1226026852281

Labels: G.L.B.T., law

4. Text of Cardinal Burke's recent Australian speech

No mention of 'separation of Church and State' (cf. item 7 of this Notes post of mine):

http://members7.boardhost.com/CathPews/msg/1300844922.html

http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?recnum=9567

Labels: Church and State, Raymond Burke

5. A couple of recent developments in Ireland

5.1 "Meet Ireland's new Minister for "Justice, Equality, Defence," Immigration and much, much more"

http://mauricepinay.blogspot.com/2011/03/bolshevik-takeover-of-ireland.html

Labels: Alan Shatter, Ireland, Jews, State of Israel

5.2 "Irish govt. to take 50% of schools away from the Church"

http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=36666

Labels: Ireland

6. "The Greens have pledged to introduce private members' bills [in New South Wales] to remove abortion from the NSW Crimes Act, and legalise voluntary euthanasia"

http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/state-election-2011/nile-says-coalition-is-best-bet-20110323-1c6rq.html?skin=text-only

Labels: abortion, euthanasia, Greens, N.S.W.

7. 'Sidere mens eadem mutato' in nineteenth-century Australia

I was interested to read the following the other day:

Prince Alfred, who excited colonial Australia with a six-month tour in 1867-8, was greeted as a bearer of civilisation by colonists building new cities and towns in the ''wilderness''. English, Scots, Germans and even Chinese lined up to present their guest with loyal addresses declaring that ''in changing our skies, we have not changed our minds''. Australians used the visit to demonstrate all too eagerly that they were not, in fact, Australian. Aboriginal people were displayed at missions to show the prince how they had adopted the culture of the colonisers.
[my emphasis,
http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/society-and-culture/the-real-reason-for-royal-visit-20110317-1byxo.html?skin=text-only


The mid-nineteenth-century-founded University of Sydney's motto is "Sidere mens eadam mutato", which means something like 'though the skies change, the mind remains constant'. Perhaps this was a popular theme of the time.

Labels: history, University of Sydney

8. Dr. van Gend on euthanasia

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/commentary/unproductive-burdens-still-have-a-right-to-live/story-e6frgd0x-1226027674393

Labels: euthanasia

9. "A new analysis of abortion data across all 50 U.S. states has found solid evidence that legislation intended to reduce abortion, such as parental involvement laws, is effective"

http://members7.boardhost.com/CathPews/msg/1301459312.html

Labels: abortion, law

Reginaldvs Cantvar
30.III.2011
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Monday, November 22, 2010

Notes: Saturday-Monday, November 20-22, 2010

1. More Russian developments

http://www.smh.com.au/world/russia-pledges-a-new-era-of-cooperation-20101121-182nd.html?skin=text-only
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/russia-baulks-at-full-shield-role/story-e6frg6so-1225957956414
http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=34791

2. Mr. Fitzgerald on, among other things, drug and alcohol 'harm minimisation'

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/opinion/close-the-doors-early-on-teenage-binge-drinking/story-e6frg6zo-1225956404275

3. Mr. McCauley on the teachings and disciplinary (in)actions of John Paul II.

http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=34787

4. More on so-called gay marriage

Article:
http://www.smh.com.au/national/gillard-would-lose-poll-held-now-20101121-182mf.html?skin=text-only
(latest Herald/Nielsen poll results)

Opinion/analysis:
http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/politics/support-for-gays-offers-a-way-out-for-gillard-20101121-182mq.html?skin=text-only
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/opinion/gay-marriage-demands-should-be-left-on-shelf/story-e6frg6zo-1225956787304
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/opinion/same-sex-marriage-should-be-put-to-a-referendum/story-fn558imw-1225957968965
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/opinion/gay-marriage-a-union-by-any-other-name/story-fn558imw-1225956825872
http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/marriage-not-for-gays-and-maybe-not-for-anyone/

Related (if All Love Is Equal, then might not some Loves be more Equal than others?):
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/opinion/three-is-the-new-two-as-couples-explore-the-boundaries-of-non-monogamy/story-e6frg6zo-1225956410108

4. "Vic priest expects dismissal for public support of women priests"

http://www.cathnews.com/article.aspx?aeid=24248

5. Fr. Ford on the morality of extra-marital condom use

http://www.cathnews.com/article.aspx?aeid=24255

6. H.H. The Pope and Cardinal Bertone on religious liberty

The second and fourth paragraphs are, from the perspective of Tradition, the most encouraging pronoucements to come from the Vatican on religious liberty probably since before the Second Vatican Council (unsurprisingly, though, given the publicity over other recent Papal remarks, these remarks have, as far as I know, gone as yet unreported, or at least under-reported, by both the mainstream media and Catholic media):

CONSISTORY BEGINS WITH A DAY OF PRAYER AND REFLECTION

VATICAN CITY, 19 NOV 2010 (VIS) - As part of the consistory during which the Holy Father will create twenty-four new cardinals, the College of Cardinals is today meeting in the Vatican's New Synod Hall to hold a day of reflection and prayer.

The meeting began at 9.30 a.m. with a greeting from the Pope who focused his remarks on the two themes of the morning session. Considering the first of these themes, he noted that the Lord's command to announce the Gospel implicitly embraces the need for the freedom to do so, although, over the course of history, it has encountered various forms of opposition. The relationship between truth and freedom is essential but today faces the great challenge of relativism, which seems to complete the concept of freedom but which actually risks destroying it and becoming an authentic 'dictatorship'. We are then, he suggested, facing a difficult period in our commitment to affirm the freedom to announce the truth of the Gospel and the great achievements of Christian culture. The Pope also recalled the essential importance of liturgy in Church life, being the place of God's presence with us.

The cardinals then turned their attention to the two chosen themes: the situation of religious freedom in the world and new challenges, with an introductory talk by Cardinal Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone S.D.B., and the liturgy in the life of the Church today, with a preliminary contribution from Cardinal Antonio Canizares Llovera, prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments.

Cardinal Bertone presented a panoramic overview of current attempts to restrict the freedom of Christians in various parts of the world, inviting people to reflect on the situation of religious freedom in Western States. We are witnessing, he said, a process of secularisation accompanied by attempts to remove spiritual values from social life. The Cardinal Secretary of State also elucidated the situation of religious freedom in Muslim countries, recalling the conclusions reached during the recent Special Assembly for the Middle East of the Synod of Bishops. Finally, he explained the activities the Holy See and local episcopates make to defend Catholics, in both East and West. On this subject he also recalled the great efforts made by the Holy See in the international arena to promote respect for the religious freedom of believers.

For his part, Cardinal Canizares Llovera focused his remarks on the importance of liturgical prayer in the life of the Church.

In the course of a broad-ranging debate, eighteen cardinal arose to speak of the great difficulties the Church has to face today in defending values founded on natural law, such as respect for life and the family. Another question examined was that of inter-religious dialogue, in particular with Islam.

Two further contributions are scheduled for the afternoon session. The first, to be delivered by Cardinal William Joseph Levada, prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, will focus on Holy See norms for welcoming Anglican priests and faithful who request to be admitted to the Catholic Church, and for defending victims of child abuse by members of the clergy. The second contribution, by Archbishop Angelo Amato S.D.B., prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, will serve to recall the validity of the Instruction "Dominus Iesus" on Jesus Christ our only Saviour, published ten years ago.
OP/ VIS 20101119 (570)

I've pasted the whole V.I.S. bulletin item, but, as I indicated, it's the second and fourth paragraphs in which I'm interested:

The meeting began at 9.30 a.m. with a greeting from the Pope who focused his remarks on the two themes of the morning session. Considering the first of these themes, he noted that the Lord's command to announce the Gospel implicitly embraces the need for the freedom to do so, although, over the course of history, it has encountered various forms of opposition. The relationship between truth and freedom is essential but today faces the great challenge of relativism, which seems to complete the concept of freedom but which actually risks destroying it and becoming an authentic 'dictatorship'. We are then, he suggested, facing a difficult period in our commitment to affirm the freedom to announce the truth of the Gospel and the great achievements of Christian culture. The Pope also recalled the essential importance of liturgy in Church life, being the place of God's presence with us.

[...] Cardinal Bertone presented a panoramic overview of current attempts to restrict the freedom of Christians in various parts of the world, inviting people to reflect on the situation of religious freedom in Western States. We are witnessing, he said, a process of secularisation accompanied by attempts to remove spiritual values from social life. The Cardinal Secretary of State also elucidated the situation of religious freedom in Muslim countries, recalling the conclusions reached during the recent Special Assembly for the Middle East of the Synod of Bishops. Finally, he explained the activities the Holy See and local episcopates make to defend Catholics, in both East and West. On this subject he also recalled the great efforts made by the Holy See in the international arena to promote respect for the religious freedom of believers.

Not perfect, but nevertheless refreshing in its focus on the only legitimate 'religious liberty': The liberty of the Church of Christ, namely, the Catholic Church, to preach the Gospel, i.e., Catholicism. Any other 'liberty' is really just licence.

Reginaldvs Cantvar
Feast of St. Cecilia, Virgin, Martyr, A.D. 2010
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Wednesday, October 13, 2010

H.H. The Pope formally establishes Pontifical Council for Promoting [the?] New Evangelisation

Two items from the one edition of the Vatican Information Service daily e-mail bulletin:

PRESENTATION OF COUNCIL FOR NEW EVANGELISATION

VATICAN CITY, 12 OCT 2010 (VIS) - This morning in the Holy See Press Office Archbishop Rino Fisichella, president of the newly-founded Pontifical Council for Promoting New Evangelisation, explained the contents of "Ubicumque et semper", the Apostolic Letter "Motu Proprio data" by which Benedict XVI establishes the new dicastery.

"The theme of new evangelisation has been the subject of deep reflection by Church Magisterium over recent decades", said Archbishop Fisichella. "It is immediately clear that this goal represents a challenge to the entire Church, which must ... find adequate ways to renew her announcement to many baptised people who no longer understand what it means to belong to the Christian community, and are victims of the subjectivism of our times with its closure in an individualism that often lacks public and social responsibility. The 'Motu Proprio' directly identifies those Churches of ancient tradition which ... require a renewed missionary spirit, one capable of helping them make a forward leap to meet the new requirements which the current historical situation imposes".

"As 'Ubicumque et semper' makes clear, new evangelisation is not a mere formula, identical in all circumstances", the archbishop explained. "Rather, it obliges us to develop well-founded ideas capable of acting as support to a corresponding pastoral activity. Moreover it must be capable of carefully verifying the various traditions and goals that the Churches possess by virtue of the treasure of their centuries-long history: a plurality of forms that does not undermine unity".

Nor must new evangelisation sound like "an abstract formula", the president of the new dicastery continued his remarks. "We must", he said, "fill it with theological and pastoral content, and we will do so with the strong support of the Magisterium of recent decades", also bearing in mind "the many initiatives which, over the course of recent years, have been enacted by individual bishops in their particular Churches, epsicopal conferences and groups of believers".

Among the tasks entrusted to the Pontifical Council for Promoting New Evangelisation is that of promoting the use of the Catechism of the Universal Church. "The Catechism is indeed", the prelate noted, "one of the most mature fruits to emerge from the directives of Vatican Council II. It is an organic compilation of the entire heritage of the development of dogma and is the most complete instrument to transmit the unchanging faith in the face of the constant changes and questions the world poses to believers".

Thus the new dicastery will use "all the inventions that progress in communications technology has created, making them positive instruments at the service of new evangelisation", Archbishop Fisichella concluded.
OP/ VIS 20101012 (440)

HOLY FATHER'S MOTU PROPRIO "UBICUMQUE ET SEMPER"

VATICAN CITY, 12 OCT 2010 (VIS) - Given below are extracts of "Ubicumque et semper", the Apostolic Letter "Motu Proprio data" by which Benedict XVI establishes the Pontifical Council for Promoting New Evangelisation.

"The Church has the duty to announce the Gospel of Jesus Christ always and everywhere. ... Over history this mission has assumed new forms and methods, depending on place, situation and historical moment. In our own time, one of its most singular characteristics has been that of having to measure itself against the phenomenon of abandonment of the faith, which has become progressively more evident in societies and cultures that were, for centuries, impregnated with the Gospel.

"The social transformations we have seen over recent decades have complex causes, the roots of which are distant in time and have profoundly modified our perception of the world. ... If, on the one hand, humanity has seen undeniable benefits from these transformations and the Church received further stimuli to give reasons for the hope she carries, on the other, we have seen a worrying loss of the sense of the sacred, even going so far as to call into discussion apparently unquestionable foundations, such as faith in the God of creation and providence; the revelation of Jesus Christ our only Saviour, the shared understating of man's fundamental experiences like birth, death and family life, and the reference to natural moral law".

"Among the central themes examined by Vatican Council II was the question of relations between the Church and the modern world. In the wake of this conciliar teaching, my predecessors dedicated further reflection to the need to find adequate forms to allow our contemporaries to still hear the Lord's living and eternal Word".

"Venerable Servant of God John Paul II made this demanding undertaking one of the pivotal points of his vast Magisterium, summarising the task awaiting the Church today in the concept of 'new evangelisation' (which he systematically developed in numerous occasions), especially in regions of age-old Christianity".

"Thus, in my turn, sharing the concern of my venerated predecessors, I feel it appropriate to offer an adequate response so that the entire Church, allowing herself to be regenerated by the Holy Spirit, may present herself to the modern world with a missionary vigour capable of promoting a new evangelisation".

"In Churches of ancient foundation, ... although the phenomenon of secularisation continues its course, Christian practice still shows signs of possessing vitality and profound roots among entire peoples. ... We also know, unfortunately, of areas which appear almost completely de-Christianised, areas in which the light of faith is entrusted to the witness of small communities. These lands, which need a renewed first announcement of the Gospel, seem particularly unreceptive to many aspects of the Christian message".

"At the root of all evangelisation there is no human project of expansion, but the desire to share the priceless gift that God wished to give us, sharing His life with us".
MP/ VIS 20101012 (500)


See also Fr. Zuhlsdorf's coverage:

"Ubicumque et semper: New Motu Proprio and new Vatican office"
http://wdtprs.com/blog/2010/10/ubicumque-et-semper-new-motu-proprio-and-new-vatican-office/

Reginaldvs Cantvar
Feast of St. Edward, King, Confessor, A.D. 2010
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Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Notes: Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Mr. Williams on the possibility of Australian States legislating for so-called gay marriage

http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/politics/states-could-legalise-samesex-marriage-20100927-15u0k.html?skin=text-only

"Egyptian Coptic Pope Shenouda III Fined For Stand Against Divorce"

From LifeSiteNews.com via AQ:

... The Egyptian Supreme Administrative Court has issued a decision requiring Orthodox Coptic Pope Shenouda III to pay damages of approximately 19,500 Egyptian pounds to church member Magdi William who sued the Coptic Church over its refusal to issue a certificate to re-marry after he divorced his wife.

In May, the Supreme Administrative Court ruled in favor of another litigant seeking re-marriage, Hani Wasfi Naguib, stating that under Egyptian law the Coptic Orthodox Church must allow its members to divorce and remarry.

However, after an appeal of that decision by the Coptic Church, the Supreme Constitutional Court overturned the ruling by the Supreme Administrative Court, stating that marital matters are under the sole jurisdiction of the church because civil marriage without a religious ceremony is not recognized in Egypt.

The Orthodox Coptic Church forbids divorce and re-marriage except in cases of proven adultery or religious conversion of a spouse.

In the current case, Pope Shenouda lost an appeal to overturn the court verdict in favor of William, despite the Constitutional Court ruling.

According to Al-Masry Al-Youm news service, the Coptic pope has refused to pay the fine, and instead said he would defrock any priest who allows a divorced Christian to remarry, except under the allowed conditions.
[http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=33925]

Fr. Flader on the philosophical influences on John Paul II.

Good to see the following acknowledged by a member of the Novus Ordo Establisment:

In 1913 [St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, née Edith Stein] transferred to the University of Göttingen, where she studied philosophy under the phenomenologist Edmund Husserl.

There she also met Max Scheler, another philosopher, who directed her attention towards the Catholic faith. Pope John Paul II, as is well known, was very much influenced by these philosophers.
[http://www.catholicweekly.com.au/article.php?classID=3&subclassID=59&articleID=7300&class=Features&subclass=Question
Time]

Reginaldvs Cantvar
Feast of St. Wenceslaus, Duke, Martyr, A.D. 2010
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Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Notes: Saturday-Tuesday, July 17-20, 2010

D.I.C.I. article on the new President of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity

http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=32557

D.I.C.I. commentary accompanying the article:

The statement by the new official responsible for ecumenism at Rome should be noted: “Benedict XVI does not want in any way to go backwards,” in other words, to what was taught before the Second Vatican Council—in the encyclical Mortalium animos (by Pius XI), for example. One should also remark that, according to the Swiss prelate, the pope desires a reformatio, a reform allowing the Church to “rediscover its authentic shape, as the Second Vatican Council has already effected/accomplished [réalisé(e)]”. Reading the excerpts from the latest work by Msgr. Gherardini (see our Documents) shows that such a reformatio is more than compromised because, according to the director of the review Divinitas, this council is in conflict with Tradition on at least 9 points which are not insignificant. In passing, one might also ask whether this reformatio, presented as “already effected/accomplished by Vatican II” still needs to be done. And if it has already been effected/accomplished, what are its fruits? The creation of a new Pontifical Council for the evangelization of the countries which “are experiencing the progressive secularization of society and a sort of ‘eclipse of the sense of God’” provides a significant answer to that question.

See also the first comment at that thread for an editorial by Fr. Lorans on the possible tension between the respective aims of that Pontifical Council and of the new Pontifical Council for Promoting New Evangelisation.

Blog comments by me

At Mr. Schütz's blog:

Cardinal Pole
July 20, 2010 at 3:57 am

Mr. Schütz, neither of the two Conciliar/Catechism texts you adduced said that Muslims worship the same deity as Christians, or that what they adore is the God of Abraham:

“In the first place amongst these there are the Mohamedans, who, professing to hold the faith of Abraham, along with us adore the one and merciful God, who on the last day will judge mankind.”

“The Church regards with esteem also the Moslems. They adore the one God, living and subsisting in Himself; merciful and all- powerful, the Creator of heaven and earth, [Cf St. Gregory VII, letter XXI to Anzir (Nacir), King of Mauritania (Pl. 148, col. 450f.) ] who has spoken to men; they take pains to submit wholeheartedly to even His inscrutable decrees, just as Abraham, with whom the faith of Islam takes pleasure in linking itself, submitted to God.”

Given that Latin doesn’t have articles, I would expect that things like “the one and merciful God” and “the one God” could be translated respectively as ‘a single, merciful god’, ‘a single god’ (with capital ‘g’s if you prefer). Note also those two texts’ purely subjective linking of the Muslim God to the God of Abraham–”professing to hold the faith of Abraham”, “Abraham, with whom the faith of Islam takes pleasure in linking itself”.

So in fact it would seem that the one and only Magisterial pronouncement which supports the identity of the Lord and the Muslim God is when John Paul II. said that “[w]e believe in the same God”. But given that His late Holiness made that statement “to a rally of Muslim youth” can it even be considered Magisterial? (And I don’t ask that rhetorically–can someone tell me whether that is to be classified as a Magisterial pronouncement? Mr. Schütz says that it was an Act of the Ordinary Magisterium, but the criteria for that are that the pronouncement be on a matter of Faith–the Catholic Faith, not the faith of any other religion–or morals and in the Pope or Bishop’s teaching capacity. John Paul II.’s statement that we (Christians and Muslims) believe in the same God seems to me to fail the first criterion, and possibly the second one too.

Now of course Muslims profess much about God which is knowable by unaided reason. But they also profess much about which unaided reason can give no answer, thus exceeding the proper scope of philosophy. If you ask the hypothetical ‘virtuous pagan’ (to whom the Gospel has not been announced but who knows, loves and serves God as far as right reason dictates) how many Persons are God and he answers ‘I don’t know’, then he worships the same God as Christians. But he who answers ‘God is not personal’ or ‘only one person is God’ does not. (Furthermore, if I’m not mistaken, Muslims are also in error on some points of natural theology–a commenter at this blog recently mentioned how she said to a Muslim colleague that God is love, which he denied).

So do Christians and Muslims believe in the same God? Mr. Schütz was right to point out that it is a non sequitur to say that “Muslims profess to be monotheists and therefore the God they worship must logically be the God we worship”. But if the fact that both Christians and Muslims profess monotheism does not imply that we believe in the same God, then why would the fact that both Christians and Muslims profess ‘Abrahamism’, to coin a term, imply that we believe in the same God (given that we disagree as to the content of ‘Abrahamism’)? It seems to me that there is no logical or Magisterial reason to conclude that the respective objects of Christian and Muslim adoration are one and the same.
[http://scecclesia.wordpress.com/2010/07/17/bill-muehlenberg-takes-issue-with-my-post-on-cadburys-chocolate/#comment-15868]

At Terra's blog:

Cardinal Pole said...

"since Australia has secret ballots the requirement is to attend a polling station. One can then voting informally."

That is incorrect. Section 245(1) of the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 gives the following command:

"It shall be the duty of every elector to vote at each election."
[http://www.comlaw.gov.au/ComLaw/Legislation/ActCompilation1.nsf/0/14E2E2F9F0662775CA2576080017348A/$file/CwlthElectoral1918_WD02.pdf]

(The same Act (Section 101) also commands us to apply "forthwith" to become electors if not electors already. Also, Sections 239 and 240 prescribe the manner of voting for Senate and Lower House elections, respectively, thus ruling out the possibility that an informal vote could satisfy the obligation to vote.)

So given that the requirements imposed in the Act are, as far as I know, just, possible, and properly promulgated, the Act is a valid law and thus its commands are binding in conscience (I have no reason to think that they are purely penal) and it would therefore be a sin not to vote (properly).

To sum up:

1. Australian law commands non-electors to become electors.
2. Australian law commands electors to vote (and not merely informally).
3. A lawful command by a competent authority (which is what the preceding commands are) binds on pain of sin, so informal voting is sinful, as is obstinate non-enrolment.
(Obviously there are also exceptions.)

And of course in addition to these intrinsic reasons there are also, as Terra indicated, extrinsic reasons to vote properly--one way or another, one of the candidates is going to win whichever office is being contested, so it seems to me that we might as well do our part to make sure that the least-worst one wins.

July 20, 2010 1:17 AM
Your comment has been saved and will be visible after blog owner approval.
[http://australiaincognita.blogspot.com/2010/07/and-it-is-on-australia-goes-to-polls-on.html]

At Coo-ees:

Cardinal Pole said...

Check out the conference photos which Mr. Coyne has helpfully provided--can anyone spot any Roman collars (I don't want to be too droll and ask whether anyone can spot any cassocks)?

July 20, 2010 2:25 AM
Your comment has been saved and will be visible after blog owner approval.
[http://coo-eesfromthecloister.blogspot.com/2010/07/why-bother-going.html]

Reginaldvs Cantvar
Feast of St. Jerome Emiliani, Confessor, A.D. 2010
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Thursday, July 15, 2010

Notes: Thursday, July 15, 2010

WOMEN'S brains function better at remembering information than men's, researchers have confirmed.

A Cambridge University study of 4407 men and women from East Anglia, southeastern England, discovered gender plays a clear difference in memory function.

In tests on participants aged between 48 to 90 years, women made an average of 5.9 fewer errors than men, regardless of age.

[...] “Although the links between sex and education and cognitive function have been explored before, this very large dataset provides striking evidence that these factors play a major role in determining how good our memory function is as we age," Dr Andrew Blackwell, Chief Scientific Officer at Cambridge University's Department of Psychiatry, said.

“Using these data, we can determine whether or not an individual’s memory function is normal or not for people of their age, sex and education level.

“A body of scientific literature has demonstrated that women typically outperform men on test of verbal function, whereas men tend to outperform women on tasks of spatial function.

"However, in this study, we used a measure of memory that is spatial and women consistently outperformed men.

“There are many possible explanations for this, including both neurobiological and environmental differences.”

"U.S. Supreme Court Decision on Vatican's Immunity Not What It Seems, Says Legal Expert"

http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=32513

Most important part:

But Addison points out that the Supreme Court issued no ruling, but merely decided not to decide on the issue at this stage of the case. Further, he insists that the Ninth Circuit ruling has been grossly mischaracterized.

The Ninth Circuit decision, he writes, was merely meant to establish a theoretical point of law, where the court was asked to rule under the presumption that all of the plaintiff’s allegations are true. “There has been no trial regarding Doe’s allegations or assertions and all the legal proceedings so
far have been entirely questions of law,” emphasized Addison.

“For the purposes of deciding whether the Holy See COULD be liable the 9th Circuit had to accept the bare assertion by Doe that Father Ronan was an employee of the Holy See,” he writes. “On that basis they decided that if (and it is a very big IF) Ronan was an employee of the Holy See then the Holy See would be vicariously liable for his actions.”

Further, he pointed out that the appeals court accepted the Holy See’s status as a sovereign state, as well as the fact that that status guarantees it the same immunities as every other state.

Addison says the Supreme Court’s refusal to hear the case is “not unusual” given that there has not yet been a trial or any findings of fact. Given these circumstances, he concludes, the decision “does not mean that the Supreme Court necessarily agrees or disagrees with the 9th Circuit.” Rather, it indicates “merely that the case has not yet reached a stage which is appropriate for adjudication by the Supreme Court.”

"U. of IL to 'Review' Firing of Catholic Prof. [namely Kenneth Howell]"

http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=32511

Mr. Donnelly on adoption by same-sex couples

http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/the-law-shouldnt-be-changed-in-nsw-to-allow-gay-adoption/

Dr. Brown on the respective pontificates of Paul VI. and John Paul II.

Pope Paul VI took a very soft stance on dissident priests, bishops, and theologians because he wanted to avoid a schism, and Pope John Paul II largely followed his lead (although he did push the church in the right direction in a lot of more subtle ways).
Comment by ies0716

It had nothing to do with wanting to avoid a schism. If PVI wanted to avoid a schism, he would not have been so hard on the SSPX. PVI wanted to move the Church to the left for political reasons, so the Church could deal with secular govts. JPII was also interested in international politics. Both were what the Italians call papa politico.

IMHO, Voris is right referring to the problems but not so right in attributing them to the present hierarchy, most of whom inherited the mess.

Comment by robtbrown — 13 July 2010 @ 8:59 pm
[http://wdtprs.com/blog/2010/07/new-michael-voris-video-and-wdtprs-poll/#comment-213954]

Reginaldvs Cantvar
Feast of St. Henry II., Emperor, Confessor, A.D. 2010
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