A Spiritual Crisis – “By the end of a tumultuous 2020 I felt like I might be going a bit mad. It seemed to me that we were clearly living through revolutionary times: politically, ideologically, technologically, even geopolitically . . . ” Thoughts on Today’s Upheaval and Its Implications (What We Need Now)
The Taliban – “Religious oppression in Afghanistan, China, Nigeria, Nicaragua and Sri Lanka — among dozens of other nations — took center stage Monday as the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom released its 2023 Annual Report . . . ” Religious freedom commission calls on Blinken to admonish China, Nicaragua, others (Washington Times)
Inclusive Christianity – “While neither Hungary’s Viktor Orbán nor his most prominent guest this weekend, Pope Francis, have appeared anxious to play up their differences, there’s no getting around the fact that the two men represent contrasting versions of Christianity . . . ” Competing versions of Christianity between Pope, Hungary’s Orban on display (Crux)
German Exodus – “An increasing number of practicing German Catholics don’t want to fund the local Church’s controversial trajectory in the wake of the Synodal Way; but the only way to not pay the ‘church tax’ is to officially disaffiliate from the Catholic Church in Germany — and risk losing access to the sacraments.” ‘Leaving the Church to Stay Catholic’? German Faithful Face Church Tax Dilemma (National Catholic Register)
Discarded Old Ring – “During the Mass, Stika reportedly realized that he wasn’t wearing his episcopal ring, and began asking the people to pray. He reportedly thought he might have left it at a gas station, on the way to the parish where he celebrated the Mass.” Bishop Stika’s ‘miracle’ gold ring (The Pillar)
“Detransition” – “Democrats are muscling through a bill on ‘gender-affirming care’ that they may come to regret.” Oregon’s Reckless Medicine (City Journal)
Tykocinski’s “like” List – “The chief executive officer of Thomas Jefferson University said he was ‘disappointed’ in president Mark Tykocinski’s ‘careless use’ of his Twitter account in which he ‘liked’ tweets that question the science of COVID-19 vaccines.” Thomas Jefferson president ‘should have known better,’ says the CEO in a note to the system’s community (The Philadelphia Inquirer)
Defending Mr. Carlson – “The whole world is commenting on and speculating about the abrupt departure of former Fox commentator Tucker Carlson from that network.” The Crime of “Talking to Tucker Carlson” (Outspoken with Dr Naomi Wolf)
Criticizing Catholic Teaching? – “But is capital punishment different? Are papal prudential judgments on that topic binding on Catholics in a way prudential judgments about the application of just war theory are not?” The Catechism and Capital Punishment: A Reply to Annett (Edward Feser)
The Immaculata – After a fire burned down the original Immaculata of the Society of St. Pius X in St. Marys in 1978 the church began fundraising efforts to build a new facility which is set to open its doors for its first service the first week of May. 45 Years in the Making: Consecration set for new Catholic church in St. Marys (13 WIBW)
Soft Imperialism – The State Department in Washington DC provide funding for “civil society” groups in Hungary, for example. Such groups are actively seeking to overturn Orbán’s heavy restrictions on LGBT campaigning and activism. Why Pope Francis chose Hungary for his speech on ‘ideological colonisation’ (Catholic Herald)
Over 190 Catholic Sites – “Starting with the unrest in many American cities in May of 2020, criminals have attacked more than 190 Catholic sites, mostly churches and even a few schools, and often committing multiple crimes.” A Lutheran Plea to End the Attack on Roman Catholic Churches (National Catholic Register)
Corvada, New Mexico – “The fight is on to save historic structures with elaborate altarpieces honoring santos, or saints, threatened by depopulation, dwindling congregations and costs.” New Mexico Spanish descendants work to preserve 400-year-old adobe churches (NBC News)
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@ A Spiritual Crisis
Belief will do that. That is, the perspicacity to identify what is absent underlies the chaos.
Lyons acknowledges Foucault on power and knowledge, how they are used as a form of social control through societal institutions. He can’t blame him for his vexing distress. Madness is distance from reality. Where there’s fault is seen in the gaslighting.
Gas Light, an English drama stories the intent to psychologically manipulate someone to question their sanity. Lyons, perhaps metaphorically faults the glossing over, example the use of power as a form of social control through societal institutions, exactly what is occurring – of the chaos.
From this writer’s perspective it would seem the Holy Spirit was already at work quietly tapping, eventually ‘crashing down the door’. Faith, a gift undeserved. Lyons comes away with the stark realization that we cannot excise God from reality and not expect derangement.
No one has addressed the Pope’s goft of a relic of the true cross to the Church of England. Am I the only one to find this odd? Surely the C of E stole and destroyed plenty of relics back when England was busy killing off the Catholics.
On the “odd” gifting of a relic of the True Cross, see the CWR article–and the comments: https://www.catholicworldreport.com/2023/04/19/pope-francis-donates-relic-of-the-true-cross-for-king-charles-coronation/
About Henry VIII (d. 1547) and only the written relics, between 1535 and 1540 all of the 800 monasteries had been dissolved (England, Wales, N. Ireland). The loss and destruction of illuminated manuscripts (often with gold and silver covers) is incalculable. Summarizing a (tabulated) account: “in England [alone] six hundred and thirteen Monasteries were suppressed at the epoch of the Reformation, in addition to ninety Colleges under the care of the Religious” (Leicester Ambrose Buckingham, “The Bible in the Middle Ages,” 1853).
@ Defending Mr Carlson
“Truth existed. We would hunt it down, by God, and make our case for it”, Naomi Wolf’s account of her epiphany from CA radical feminist disdain of Tucker Carlson to enlightened advocate.
Truth no longer exists, her conclusion beginning with the Covid crisis, her fact finding exchanges with Carlson on Fox. Surprisingly, as the truth continues to trickle out, at least for some myself included, example, Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò wasn’t entirely wacky regarding ‘big pharma’, global elites, conspiracy theory, Ms Wolf realizing now, You can’t buck the system! Why Fox management dropped megastar Carlson a worldwide query. He did challenge with acuity the affairs of the powerful, the firing indicating Fox, considered the independent voice of the media, was nevertheless a member.
Whether there is a global conspiracy conspiring in secret meetings is not evident. What does likely exist are common interests. And it’s becoming increasingly evident that a common interest is the manipulation of what information is fed the public best serves the powerful. For the Christian, particularly Catholics, political interests, increasingly Antichrist ideologies are served to the detriment of religion.