"Coasting on God's Whispers"

By Justin Katz at Dust in the Light:

Periodically, rhetoric or circumstances — or rhetoric about circumstances — raise questions about the degree to which modernity has unconsciously relied upon its cultural, moral, and emotional heritage without its believing non-believers' realizing it. Even in the most secular groups and nations, to what degree has assessment of social dynamics and human nature been founded in the lingering effects of millennia of religious morality? And what happens if those effects wear off?...

Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Wed. 03/02/05 05:37:34 PM
Categorized as More Than Blogworthy.

"Better Off Dead" or "Not Dead Yet?" — Terry Schiavo & Million Dollar Baby

Christopher Blosser has a great blog today at Against the Grain:

.... In Killing Terri Schiavo, (Crisis Magazine January 4, 2004), Rev. Robert Johansen examines "the euthanasia connection" in great detail. It is no coincidence that Michael Schiavo's attorney, George Felos, is a member of the Hemlock Society (presently known as the warm, fuzzy and politically-correct "Compassion & Choices"), or that Felos' book Litigation as Spiritual Practice describes him as "spearheading a social revolution to enable death with dignity in the state of Florida."

Neither is it a coincidence that Michael Schiavo's leading medical witness in the case, Dr. Ronald Cranford, "was the leading medical voice calling for the deaths of Paul Brophy, Nancy Jobes, Nancy Cruzan, and Christine Busalucci, all of whom were brain-damaged but not dying."

You can read more about Felos and Cranford in Tony Collins' substantial article "Dealers of Death" (Envoy Magazine January 2004), in which she exames the Right-to-Die movement's exploitation of Terri Schiavo to advance their political agenda. How often do we hear pundits murmur in sympathetic tones that the plight of Terri Schiavo could have been avoided if only she had "A Living Will"? ....

Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Wed. 03/02/05 06:44:58 AM
Categorized as Terri Schindler Schiavo.

"Yada. Yada. Yada."

A faithful member of the Diocese of Idaho sends this article:

A deacon with a local Catholic Church is headed to prison. Last fall, Deacon Robert "Rap" Howell was charged with possession of internet child pornography.

In November, the Deacon pleaded guilty to the crime but many parishioners at St. Mary's Parish are angry because their priest just told about the conviction during last Sunday's sermon....

According to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Idaho, Howell resigned from active ministry a month before admitting his guilt in November. "So he hasn't been serving in that parish since October," said Colette Cowman.

But at least one parishioner told Local 2 News the Deacon was still giving sermons in February of this year. "To our knowledge he has been on a leave of absence and has not been serving at the parish since October," said Cowman....

Local 2 News spoke with several parishioners who wished to remain anonymous but said they were very upset with the way the church has handled the case and wondered why they were just told about the Deacon's conviction on Sunday. "We didn't tell them back in November when he plead guilty because it wasn't really a crime that had to do with the church," said Cowman.

But some parishioners argue even if the crime didn't happen at the church, the Deacon's duties involved dealing with families and children.

"I think that's definitely a concern," said Cowman, "but again, the crime didn't happen in the parish community and it didn't happen in the church community at all." ....

How about that, folks? A deacon commits a felony, and it doesn't involve the church!

My correspondent says, "This individual was only ordained in 2001, and it was clear to the faithful that this individual was not but a tireless promoter of heterodoxy."

And that "yada, yada, yada" stands for "Yet Another Doctrinal Aberration".

I say, Clue Number One was he went by "Rap".

Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Wed. 03/02/05 06:24:42 AM
Categorized as Religious.