The Legion of Christ to Meet in Extraordinary General Chapter

Let this be known far and wide: BELGIAN CARDINAL CLEARED OF PORN CHARGES

Zenit reported some very good news yesterday:

The Brussels public prosecutor's office confirmed Friday that Cardinal Godfried Danneels, retired archbishop of the city, did not download pornography to his computer.

The authorities' clarification, however, comes after the "Het Nieussbald" newspaper accused the cardinal of using pornography.

In fact, authorities affirmed that a pornographic picture on the cardinal's computer was downloaded automatically.

Jean Marc Meilleur, spokesman of the office of the public prosecutor, confirmed the existence of the "suspicious" photograph, but clarified that "anyone who surfs the Internet can find this type of photograph among his temporary files."

Cardinal Danneel's spokesman, Hans Geybels, announced that legal action will be made regarding the accusation being sent to the press. He has called for a serious investigation to clarify what happened.

This case comes on the heels of a similar violation, when the press was told that the archbishopric of Malines-Brussels was linked to a serial killer, Marc Dutroux. That information was also subsequently shown to be falsified... (continue reading)

Ear Candy

Bach: Cello Suite No.1, Prelude

A Plethora of Catholic Movies Available on Netflix

One of my Facebook Friends brought this to my attention today. Seems that Netflix, which our family uses almost exclusively to stream movies directly to our TV, carries a plethora of good Catholic movies. (Think of that scene in "The Three Amigos" when you say the word "plethora," mkay?) If you use Netflix, here are some worthy Catholic titles to add to your queue:

A Hand of Peace

A Man for All Seasons

After the Truth

Don Matteo

Father of Mercy: The True Story of Venerable Don Gnocchi

Faustina

God in China

Into Great Silence

John XXIII

Karol: The Pope, The Man

Love is a Choice

Maria Goretti

Our Father's Plan

Padre Pio Between Heaven and Earth

Paul VI: The Pope in the Tempest

Pope Benedict XVA

Road of Hope

Saint Anthony

Saint Francis

Saint Rita

Saints and Soldiers

St. Giuseppe Moscati: Doctor to the Poor

St. Teresa of Avila

The 13th Day

The Jeweller's Shop

The Miracle of Marcelino

The Reluctant Saint

The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius

Théresè

Phase Two of the Post-Maciel Legion of Christ Saga Begins

It was announced today that an Italian archbishop, Msgr. Velasio De Paolis, a member of the congregation of the Missionaries of St Charles Borromeo, is the prelate whom Pope Benedict XVI has appointed to take charge of the reform of the Legionaries of Christ. He was briefly in the cross-hairs of the international mainstream press two years ago for being the Vatican official who denied permission to Ron Howard and company to use any Catholic churches in Rome for filming the blasphemous, "Angels and Demons," the sequel to "The Da Vinci Code."

Archbishop De Paolis was quoted as saying: That the movies “turned the gospels upside down to poison the faith. . . .”[and] “It would be unacceptable to transform churches into film sets so that his blasphemous novels can be made into films in the name of business.”

Regarding his current appointment as the new head of the Legionaries of Christ . . .

The Vatican said the visitation highlighted three primary requirements: The need to "redefine the charism" of the Legionaries of Christ, the need to revise the exercise of authority in the order and the need to preserve the enthusiasm and missionary zeal of younger members through adequate formation.

What this will mean for the current leadership of Legionary priests isn't clear yet, but it seems likely that, in order for this reform to be carried out smoothly and expeditiously, some of them will need to relinquish their positions.

How Fireworks Pros Make Those Brilliant Pyrotechnics

“A brilliant fireworks display is a complicated, calculated mixture of chemistry, ballistics and imagination. Here is an in-depth look at how the pros pull it off every year:

“There's no tradition quite like a Fourth of July fireworks display. Lawnchairs and blankets line the grassy viewing area as spectators wait for spellbinding colors, thrilling explosions and intriguing shapes to paint the sky. The event may be magical—especially for the kids—but of course, its all the product of meticulous chemistry and clever ballistics.

— By Amanda Dematto, Popular Mechanics —

“Behind the curtains—out on a river barge floating a distance from the onlookers' vantage point—are brown cylindrical and spherical canisters of varying sizes, placed in mortar tubes and wired to a central control. An engineer pushes a button that routes an electrical impulse through 40 feet of wiring to the first canister. The impulse lights a fuse at the canister's base, which burns through to a black powder that catapults the shell into the sky. At the same moment, a time-delay fuse is triggered, giving the shell time to soar before bursting. After about 5 seconds the shell peaks, the fuse kindles a bursting charge, and poof!—the casing ruptures, and magnificent tendrils of red, white and blue stream into the sky.

“Every step of this process is a complex, carefully crafted process. If one thing is off—too much black powder, misaligned stars or a misplaced trigger—everything can fail. Here's a look at how professionals pull it off every year while one-upping last year's pyrotechnic display. . . .” (continue reading)

New "Dramatic" and "Weird" Cloud Type Discovered?

Photograph courtesy Merrick Davies

Photograph courtesy Jane Wiggins

I'd have thought that whatever different types clouds exist here on earth, we've already seen and categorized them all. Looks like I was wrong. National Geographic says,

“These choppy clouds over Cedar Rapids, Iowa, in an undated picture could be examples of the first new type of cloud to be recognized since 1951. Or so hopes Gavin Pretor-Pinney, founder of the Cloud Appreciation Society.

“The British cloud enthusiast said he began getting photos of 'dramatic' and 'weird' clouds (including the above) in 2005 that he didn't know how to define.

“A few months ago he began preparing to propose the odd formations as a new cloud variety to the UN's World Meteorological Organization, which classifies cloud types. . . .” (continue reading)

Get Yer Beatles On

The true story of a real smart ass

Forget about Joe Biden. This fellow here is much more interesting.

Things could have worked out differently

I'll bet that, in retrospect, Dave Thomas was pretty glad he opted to name his hamburger chain after his daughter instead of his son. Just a thought.

This is not a blog post

Contempervent Sunday: Come as you are

Whoo boy, do these guys really capture the empty essence of the Evangelical megachurch phenom. Humorous but dead-on accurate. That's my take. What do you think?

Update (suggested by a reader):

Coming soon to a doorbell near you: Mormon missionaries

Here's yesterday's "Catholic Answers Live" radio show in which I discuss some general principles for Catholics who want to evangelize Mormons, especially their missionaries who will, sooner or later, show up on your doorstep, ready to talk religion. Be ready for them!

Also, as an aside, here's a tract I wrote on this subject many years ago, and here's an article on "The Great Apostasy" that I mention during the show. (It's a crucial Mormon doctrine which Catholics should clearly understand so they can zero in on it when missionaries show up at the door).

N.C. Abortuary Hammered by Pro-Life Prayers Ceases Abortions

Check out this very encouraging story out of North Carolina. It recalls to my mind St. James' teaching on prayer and its effects:

“The prayer of a righteous man has great power in its effects. Elijah was a man of like nature with ourselves and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. Then he prayed again and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth its fruit. My brethren, if any one among you wanders from the truth and some one brings him back, let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins” (James 5:16-20).

A Raleigh abortuary that has seen constant prayer from pro-lifers with the popular 40 Days for Life campaign has ceased performing abortions.

The Raleigh News and Observer reported Wednesday that National Women's Health Organization of Raleigh is, in the words of one local pro-abortion affiliate, "in transition." The affiliate, Ann Rose, said that the last abortions would be conducted on Saturday, but she would not explain what other changes the “transition” would entail.

The paper reports that the abortuary was generally thought to be for sale after its founder, pro-abortion activist Susan Hill, passed away of breast cancer in February. There are two other facilities in Raleigh where abortions are performed.

David Bereit, the national director of 40 Days for Life, praised the end of the destruction of unborn life at a building where prayer witnesses with the nationwide campaign have kept vigil. North Carolina was one of the first states ever to conduct a 40 Days for Life campaign.

"Even as we praise God for this victory, pray that this center, which has done so much harm, completely closes and that the workers experience conversions!" said Bereit.

Bereit also lauded statistics cited by the News and Observer story, which show that abortions have been declining in North Carolina; the abortion rate dropped 4.6% between 2007 and 2008.

"Your prayers and faithful efforts continue to bear great fruit!" Bereit told supporters. (source)

A little dose of St. Thomas for those who think faith is nonsense

During yesterday's general audience at St. Peter's, Pope Benedict delivered the third of three installments of his catechesis on the perennial importance of St. Thomas Aquinas. The whole message is excellent, and I would like to draw your attention to a few things he said about the rationality of belief in God and the irrationality of atheism. This is just a morsel, of course, but I thought you might find the Holy Father's simple yet cogent point to be interesting and useful, as I did.

“To those who object that faith is nonsense, because it makes one believe something that does not fall under the experience of the senses, St. Thomas gives a very articulated answer, and recalls that this is an inconsistent doubt, because human intelligence is limited and cannot know everything.

“Only in the case that we could know perfectly all visible and invisible things, would it then be genuine nonsense to accept truths purely on faith. However, it is impossible to live, St. Thomas observes, without trusting the experience of others, where personal knowledge does not reach.

“Hence it is reasonable to have faith in God who reveals Himself and in the testimony of the Apostles: they were few, simple and poor, dismayed by the Crucifixion of their Teacher; and yet many wise, noble and rich persons were converted in a short time upon listening to their preaching. It is, in fact, a historically striking phenomenon, to which with difficulty one can give any other reasonable answer, other than that of the Apostles' encounter with the Risen Lord” . . . (continue reading)