And now, meet the other "Father Z"

For the last several years, I've been following with great interest the astonishing success that Father Zakaria Botros, a Coptic priest, has had in evangelizing the Muslim world — in Arabic, using the Koran. As an Arab, he understands the mindset that so many Muslims have toward Christianity, and he exploits that knowledge quite effectively, not by simply presenting the claims for the divinity of Christ, as an example. Rather, he firmly turns the tables on Muslim apologists by relentlessly critiquing and refuting their own claims, using mainly the Koran as his tool. The reports are, he is successfully converting large numbers of Muslims (albeit secretly, for fear of deadly reprisals from their erstwhile co-religionists), and this is causing a lot of consternation among many Muslims who see Father Z as a real threat to Muslim hegemony.

And they are right to think this.

We should all be praying for this courageous priest. For one thing, he is almost single-handedly evangelizing hundreds of millions of Muslims every day through his television program. Anyone in that situation needs a lot of prayer. As one would expect, his life is in danger because of his work. May the Lord bless and protect this worthy servant of His!

Visit the other Father Z's English website here and his Arabic site here. And, of course, the excellent Father Z we all know and love can still be found feeding the chickadees here.

Scripture Says "the Devil Is Like a Roaring Lion." Yes, and He's Also Like a Silent Owl

Nancy Gave Me My Christmas Present Early This Year

Whoever said Catholic apologetics isn't cool?

The all-new "PatMan Ultra-Glide Jet Pac" is a new addition to a steadily expanding array of of high-tech apologetics tools that I've been assembling for awhile. Sometimes, I just have to get somewhere in a hurry to debate a Protestant minister, thwart a pair of Mormon missionaries, or stymie a cadre of JWs.

That's just how I roll.

200,000 Christian Shoppers Are Wearing "It's OK to Wish Me A Merry Christmas" Buttons

There are plenty of creative and effective things Catholics and other Christians can do to push back against militant secularism, and this new button campaign is a good example. It's an overt way of publicly making an important point — i.e., Christmas is about Christmas, not some generic "holidays" — and you don't even have to open your mouth to do it. To be sure, wearing one of these buttons will likely lead to opportunities to speak verbally about this message, but even if no one queries (or challenges) you about it, they will read the message, and it will stick with them.

So, I say "bravo" to the people who came up with this idea. Let's have some more of this kind of stuff, just in time for the holid . . . I mean, for Christmas.

Over 200,000 shoppers are wearing buttons this Christmas season that proclaim a straightforward message to retailers: "It's OK, Wish Me A Merry Christmas(tm)." Individuals and churches around the country are partnering with the Wish Me A Merry Christmas Campaign mobilizing advocates energized for a return to the traditional, convivial greeting, bearing buttons that make a clear statement - "It's OK, Wish Me A Merry Christmas(tm) (www.wmamc.com)". Over 200,000 of these buttons have been distributed nationally.

With over 200,000 buttons on the streets and in stores this year, local store associates are likely to be presented with the opportunity to deviate from the corporate holiday wishing policy of top retailers like the Gap and Best Buy, and stealthily wish their customer "Merry Christmas" instead of the generic "Happy Holidays". But since 96% of Americans celebrate Christmas (Gallup Poll, 2004), it's likely that the store cashiers would prefer to wish their customers "Merry Christmas" as well. In fact 88% of Americans state that "It's okay to wish 'Merry Christmas'." (Gallup Poll). . . . (source)

This Russian Guy Can Rollerblade Better Than You -- Way Better Than You

My Advice to Catholic Parents: Don't Let Your Kids Date Non-Catholics

I know, this is hardly revolutionary or unique advice, but I was recently asked about this issue by a young Catholic man who called my "Open Line" radio show (heard every Thursday at 3:00 p.m. ET). He had been dating a devoutly Presbyterian girl, and her father didn't like it one bit that the guy was Catholic.

I think my response to his "what do I do now?" question may have surprise him. (It apparently surprised and even dismayed a few of my listeners, judging from some of the e-mails that came in after that show.)

My basic premise, which I advert to in this audio segment is that, more often than not, mixed marriages (i.e., when a Catholic marries a non-Catholic) are a recipe for serious problems down the road in that marriage. My advice to Catholic parents is, teach your children well the importance of finding a devoutly Catholic spouse. Eventually, if you haven't taught them this maxim and they, as a result, do not act on it, you will very likely see problems springing up in your extended family due to your sons and daughters being, in a certain sense, unequally yoked with non-Catholics. Word to the wise.

Take a listen . . . .

Here's a thurible to end all thuribles

This amazing video gives a whole new meaning to the phrase "in the line of fire." You definitely do not want to be standing in or near the path of this bad-boy censer. The way I see it, if you're going to incense the sanctuary of the house of the Lord, really, really incense it, like these priests do.

Unfortunately, a few tourist lookie-loos can be heard tittering in the background as this thurible gets going. But I have to think that even they were impressed by the majestic symbolism of the billowing incense pouring forth from this no-nonsense bowl of fire.

Elves are . . . weird

Hey, Remember the 60s? They're Coming Back on Campus

This time around, students aren't agitating on campus for a cause like civil-rights or anti-war. These UCLA students are hacked off because of money. Specifically, they don't like the fact that the school is planning to bump up their tuition rates by 32%.

But, but, what happened to all the fresh, youthful altruism that, at least ostensibly, fueled the 60s' student demonstrations? You mean these college students want to hang on to their (parent's) hard-earned money and not be required to fork it over to an institution that has the power to forcibly extract it from them?

Why, these kids are starting to sound like conservatives! (At least when it comes to money.)

Anglican Archbishop of Canterbury Urges the Pope to Change His Mind About Female Bishops

In related news, a junior-high science teacher in Dismal Seepage, Illinois, is urging the dean of the MIT science department to change his mind about the law of gravity.

The archbishop of Canterbury today pleaded with Roman Catholics to set aside their differences with Anglicans over the issue of female bishops, insisting there was more uniting the denominations than dividing them.

Rowan Williams was giving a lecture in Rome before Sunday's meeting with the pope, their first encounter since the Vatican's surprise announcement of a special institution for traditionalist Anglicans wanting to convert to Catholicism.

In his address at the Gregorian University, Williams said the Anglican communion was proof that churches could stay together in spite of their differences.

The communion has teetered on the edge of schism for nearly a decade over the issue of gay clergy but has retained a sliver of fellowship. Williams urged Roman Catholics to continue their 35-year dialogue with Anglicans in spite of theological and ideological divisions.

He said: "The various agreed statements of the churches stress that the church is a community, in which human beings are made sons and daughters of God.

"When so much agreement has been established in first-order matters about the identity and mission of the church, is it justifiable to treat other issues as equally vital for its health and integrity?"

Those issues included papal primacy, female clergy and the relations between the local and universal church in making decisions. "Is there a level of mutual recognition which allows a shared theological understanding

of primacy alongside a diversity of canonical and juridical arrangements?" he wondered

Williams challenged Roman Catholic thinking on female bishops, saying there was no proof that their ordination damaged the church.

For his part the "ecumenical glass" was "genuinely half-full". Catholics and Anglicans had achieved "striking" agreement on the broader questions. All that stood between them now were the "second order" issues of church organisation.

In an explicit but fleeting reference to the pope's move last month, Williams said it was an "imaginative pastoral response, but did not break any new ecclesiological ground." His speech was aimed at reviving dialogue between Anglicans and Catholics. But it also carried an implicit threat that there would be little point in continuing if the Catholic side continued to insist that the obstacles were insuperable.

Williams said: "The question is whether this unfinished business is quite as fundamental as our Roman Catholic friends believe."

He seemed tense, biting the sides of his fingers while he listened to the speaker who followed. His anxiety is understandable. . . . (continue reading)

Man discovers he's not a ninja after all

Ouch.

Did you know Hitler's propaganda machine tried to commandeer Christmas?

Neither did I. And that's why this article in today's Daily Mail online caught my eye and raised my eyebrows.

This insidious effort on the part of the Nazis to superimpose their own atheistic symbols and thought categories onto Christendom's ancient Christian symbols associated with the celebration of the Nativity of Christ was ultimately a failure, mainly because the Nazis were beaten by the Allies before this program of "re-education" could gain traction and take effect. But it is a good reminder that one of Hitler's prime directives was to do everything in his power to neutralize the Catholic Church, a force which he clearly understood to be the most formidable non-military obstacle standing in the way of the Reich's quest for total domination of Europe and beyond.

Well, happy holidays, Adolph. Your little scheme didn't work out the way you had planned, now did it?

P.S. Sadly, where Hitler failed, the modern Western media and merchandise complex has succeeded. But that's another post for another time.

Nazi Germany celebrated Christmas without Christ with the help of swastika tree baubles, 'Germanic' cookies and a host of manufactured traditions, a new exhibition has shown.

The way the celebration was gradually taken over and exploited for propaganda purposes by Hitler's Nazis is detailed in a new exhibition.

Rita Breuer has spent years scouring flea markets for old German Christmas ornaments.

She and her daughter Judith developed a fascination with the way Christmas was used by the atheist Nazis, who tried to turn it into a pagan winter solstice celebration.

Selected objects from the family's enormous collection have gone on show at the National Socialism Documentation Centre in Cologne.

'Christmas was a provocation for the Nazis - after all, the baby Jesus was a Jewish child,' Judith Breuer told the German newspaper Spiegel. 'The most important celebration in the year didn't fit with their racist beliefs so they had to react, by trying to make it less Christian.'

The exhibition includes swastika-shaped cookie-cutters and Christmas tree baubles shaped like Iron Cross medals.

The Nazis attempted to persuade housewives to bake cookies in the shape of swastikas, and they replaced the Christian figure of Saint Nicholas, who traditionally brings German children treats on December 6, with the Norse god Odin.

The symbol that posed a particular problem for the Nazis was the star, which traditionally decorates Christmas trees. . . . (continue reading)

"My Name Is Luka" Redux

First, refresh your memory as to the original:

Now, listen to this:

Some words of encouragement for those who predict the imminent end of the world

“When you wish upon a falling star, your dreams can come true. Unless it's really a meteorite hurtling to the Earth which will destroy all life. Then you're pretty much hosed no matter what you wish for. Unless it's death by meteor.”

— Despair.com

In Praise of Bacon

You know this is true. You know it. Don't lie.