The Catholic Vote helped the abortion agenda . . .

A seemingly easy question to answer is, "What is a pro-life parish?" Over the past several months, I have talked to various people who claim that their parish is exceedingly pro-life. They tell me about the programs available for mothers, adoption options, clothing drives for newborns and the many other aspects of helping pre-born babies become newborns. I was impressed until I started relating the status of our government system with saving babies. The government doesn't, for the most part, recognize any rights for the pre-born. Unborn babies are either a problem or a blessing and our world makes it possible to handle it any way the individual sees fit. Yet, I wondered, how could abortion on demand be so prevalent when there are so many pro-life, Catholic parishes?

During the last presidential election, I got a definite clue. Catholics attending Mass regularly, voted for the very people who would see that abortion would always be available. And the very people who praised God in church, went to the polls and praised the politicians who ran on a platform that condoned choice by willingly offering them their vote. The democratic process has not been very democratic to our unborn. Abortion has become wholesale slaughter. Our future children are met with a legacy of death before they even breathe their first breath of life outside their mother's womb.

Legacy, according to Webster's is something received from an ancestor or predecessor or from the past. The most tragic legacy is, of course, future lives that are cut down before they get a chance to live. As Catholics, we abhor this and participate in pro-life parishes. Until, however, we vote for the pro-life candidates, our pro-life efforts will not go far. A sign on the door proclaiming a church to be a pro-life zone is worth little if the majority of the congregation voted in the current government of death. Have any of these people ever considered their misplaced votes as legacies to their children and grandchildren?

The legacies that count most in life can't be sold or held in our hands. The legacies that go into our lives that count are the ones that shape us, our outlook on life, the world we live in and that which we hold in our heart. And many of the legacies influencing our lives do not come as bequests from a Will. The legacies are given to us, directly or indirectly, from the examples and actions set by parents and grandparents. Can all of us claim to be thoroughly pro-life in all we think, do and say in every facet of our life?

We all teach our children about pro-life. And being children, they will ask questions. How do we answer when they ask us how we voted? Can we look them in the eye and honestly say we voted in their best interests. It is obvious from election results that votes deprived the world of many potential people . . . Catholic votes. Pro-life will continue to be a good thing and, perhaps, if people think they are pro-life, eventually they may actually be totally pro-life.

Interesting . . .

The world is a weird and interesting place but sometimes, you just have to stand back and wonder about it all. Because they banned some aspects of the new Arizona Law this week, some factions were happy, some were angry, and some probably haven't even kept track of it all. In the wonderful, liberal City of Los Angeles, protestors chained themselves together to protest the fact that the law wasn't taken down entirely. They cause traffic congestion for five hours, disrupted business, and put a lot of police on overtime in a city with grave financial distress. According to a radio news show, about ten of the enchained protestors caused the problems yet the police had to treat them with kid gloves lest they get sued for actually doing their duty. I mean, if you break the law, shouldn't you take your chances on the treatment you get?

You have to wonder about protestors in California who are standing up against the Arizona Law when California has the same, basic law on the books. They might research a bit to discover the federal law is much the same as the state laws. Perhaps a few college courses in state and federal law should be required before you are allowed to look stupid.

Speaking of stupid, why on earth is the federal government suing Arizona who's law supports the federal one? Does the attorney general have a law degree? I always thought city, state, and federal officials were supposed to support and represent the citizens. It seems that they defend only a small part of the people in the United States and they aren't necessarily citizens.

Lots of tea parties going on yet I haven't heard of any of these groups disrupting the lives of any cities.

Cool weather vs. summer chores . . .

Every summer, I seem to find something to can. There is always an overabundance of some type of summer fruit that I like to hang onto longer by way of canning it in pretty jars to admire before eventually eating the contents. I always have hopes that the contents will be devoured in the dead of winter. In California, however, we never get a winter that drastic and I can be sure to find that at least two of the newly canned fruit will be opened within a day. Kind of makes you want to yell, "Why didn't you eat the fruit right from the tree?"

In spite of all the stupid and scary stuff happening in our government and world today, it is calming to go through the process of canning the surplus from our garden. It makes me feel that life WILL go on in one way or the other. The world that exists while I bottle fruit today may change and even improve by the time the summer harvest is enjoyed in the later months. I kind of bottle fruit AND hope.

How come . . . ?

I can understand going out of one's way to make someone feel welcome and not intimidated but if you are visiting another country, you are required to show passports/documentation when going over one border into another country. I'm having trouble processing why this is a problem in Arizona. Everyone carries identification of one sort or another. If non-citizens aren't required to show documentation, does that mean we have a choice about showing our driver's license when stopped? Isn't that just as much an invasion of OUR privacy as asking someone for their proof if identification, whether as a citizen or not? Shouldn't the citizens of a country be of first priority when it comes to protection and services? Very confusing, conflicted world we live in right now.

Not sure . . .

Something new at our parish. It seemed spontaneous but WHY? The choir/parish finished the recessional hymn and then people broke out in applause. Uh, the hymn was not sung that well and were they applauding the hymn, the choir, God . . .?

I hope it is not another made-up, grass roots agenda that spreads throughout the Church like hand holding at the Our Father. I am faithful to the laws and rubrics of the Church and am constantly fighting off fellow parishioners who want to grab my hand at this time. Even when a pastor explained from the pulpit that holding hands at the Our Father is NOT in the rubrics of the Mass, people pretty much, by out loud word and action, said, "So what? We WANT to do it!" If a Catholic knows their Faith, they know the Rubrics and if you go in opposition to the Rubrics, your gesture is illicit.

Given that 'history', I'm hoping we don't turn the end of the Mass into a curtain call with applause. It is kind of nice and spiritual to head out of church to the last strains of the music with thoughts of the Mass still in mind.

Where Charity and Love Prevail . . .

A situation is brewing at our local parish. It is of minor importance except to the two parties involved. It seems a simple thing, on the surface, but the ladies have turned it into a subterfuge of behind the scenes confrontation.

Two parishioners have donated tabernacle veils. They watch the altar like hawks, each day, to make sure it is THEIR veil that is front and center on the altar. Naturally, it varies according to the mood or time of the sacristan. At this point, the sacristan would gladly dispose of both veils and suggest new but separate parishes for the two ladies.

When one lady feels the other one's tabernacle veil has been up way too many days, she heads into the sacristy to chastise the sacristan. If she does not get satisfaction, you can be sure she will change it herself when no one is looking. Meanwhile, the other lady is watching from the pew and has been known to change the veil back once the first lady is out of sight.

The sacristan just shakes his head.

Today, the battle has taken on greater proportions - one of the tabernacle veils is missing! Instead of asking the other woman if she knows about it and, if this is the case, shaming her into producing the property, the deprived woman is putting her tongue to use in informing everyone, whether it is true or not, that HER tabernacle veil has been stolen and by whom.

The sacristan just shakes his head.

Amusement aside, it is kind of sad that neither woman can really enjoy the blessings of the Mass as they fret over tabernacle veils. Wonder if I should up the ante and donate my own tabernacle veil?

Helpful thought for the day!

“This is the trouble with secular humanism and materialism: There’s no person to love. So then the new way of the Little Flower is… fall in love. Love the Good Lord, and then you will strive to please Him. And because you see that there are imperfections in you, you will love Him more so that they may be washed away.” –Archbishop Fulton J Sheen

Points to ponder . . .

"I have noticed that the people who are late are often so much jollier than the people who have to wait for them."
-- E. V. Lucas

"Realism...has no more to do with reality than anything else."
-- Hob Broun

"Democracy is a device that ensures we shall be governed no better than we deserve."
-- George Bernard Shaw

"Only sick music makes money today."
-- Friedrich Nietzsche

The World, Quilts, and Me . . .

I love to quilt. I enjoy the challenge of taking bits and pieces of different fabric and turning them into a whole cloth again. When you sew a dress or suit, you have to keep in mind how the various colors and patterns work together. You would never sport a striped blouse with a flowered skirt. In quilting all these rules are left behind and you find the oddest combinations seem to work amazingly well.

I am beginning to see that our world is a lot like a quilt. We all come in different colors, patterns and sizes. Alone we are something but together we can make a formidable whole. We all have a place in our world-wide quilt of humanity. Each person is in his or her place as a part of a pattern that wasn’t designed by mortal hands. Our free will, however, is starting to make a difference in the fabric of our lives.

When you make a quilt, each piece, square, triangle is stitched carefully to the next one. Each segment is dependent on the pieces connecting it to the whole. Because one piece is in place, the rest can be built accordingly. The pieces of a quilt provide a meaning and basis for the entire quilt. The world’s quilt is starting to miss spaces. The solid fabric of its connecting pieces are fraying and disappearing. God sends children into the world to step into the places left by the souls called to Heaven. He keeps older people in the world until He calls them to their eternity.

Mankind has been arranging its quilt without consulting God. Abortion leaves empty spaces and euthanasia leaves gapping holes that bring down our solidarity. You look around at your friends and relatives and wonder what life would be like without them. How many other people should be in our lives that were not given the chance to take their place in our quilt? I have heard that abortion and euthanasia weed the unproductive and unneeded. Will your child miss out on the perfect partner because they were weeded out? Will the wisdom of an older person be missing when you need it the most because someone decided they were unproductive?
The reasons for destroying our unborn and eliminating our elderly and sick are not valid, at least not to the minds that see God’s Hand in our lives. Although we will all pay for this holocaust, we, as pro-life Catholics, know where the future of our world is going. We understand why scientific cures are not being discovered. We realize why there is a lack of vocations, either in religion or marriage.

In this day the best blessing we can give anyone is to pray that they are surrounded by all the quilt pieces of life that should be there and that their children will always be surrounded by the people God planned on being there. This is a hopeful blessing although the sins of those who justify their wrongs can be seen in our lives.

I love to quilt, yet as I sew, these thoughts go through my mind. I can only pray the bits and pieces of our lives will be eventually sewn together with as much love as I put into my quilts.

“The one peculiar and characteristic sin of the world is this, that whereas God would have us live for the life to come, the world would make us live for this life. (Cardinal Newman)

This is the solution . . .?

A few weeks ago, a company sponsored what is called a 'rave' which, from what I can gather, is a huge groups of young people getting together to listen to bands/music, dance, etc. They pack the stadiums or whatever space is used for these affairs. From what we hear, it doesn't draw a really good element. At the last one, a 15 year old girl died of an overdose. I don't imagine she was the only one indulging in some experimentation. It wouldn't seem the morality level at these events would be very high, either.

The city put a temporary stop on the Raves until they could figure out a safe way to operate them. A temporary stop seemed to me to be a good beginning followed by a permanent stop. All the blame doesn't fall to the companies that sponsor these things. What kind of parents allow their young people to attend them?

Last I heard, the sponsors decided to put on more security and more on-site emergency medical teams. You have to miss the olden days when you would go to a decent concert or event and you didn't have to worry about drugs, guns, and immorality. The sponsors can put whatever kind of 'bandaids' they want on a huge problem. When it comes down to reality, the people in charge should be the parents and they are seriously falling down on the job. No fifteen year old should die of a drug overdose. No fifteen year old should be in a situation where she can obtain drugs. No one deprived the parents of a daughter. The parents aided the demise of their child by not being a parent.

It is a sad world where the children seem to be in charge and people don't recognize inappropriate behavior for what it is. Guess I'm getting old and showing my old-fasioned mentality more and more these days. My children, however, have never been to a Rave.

My favorite find of the week!

The Seminarian's Song
To the Tune of the Major-General's Song from The Pirates of Penzance

I am the very model of Catholic seminarian
I've information pastoral, canonical, and Marian,
I know the Popes of Avignon and Councils Ecumenical
From Nicaea to Vatican plus gatherings heretical.
I'm very well acquainted too with matters homiletical,
I'll write a pretty sermon that is eloquent yet practical,
About soteriology I'm teeming with a lot o' news
Such as salvation history's relation to the modern Jews.
I'm very open minded, I have Sunday lunch with Protestants,
I teach them our Church History and sing it in Gregorian Chants,
In short in matters pastoral, canonical, and Marian,
I am the very model of a Catholic seminarian.

I know my ancient languages, some Latin, Greek, and Hebrew too;
I'm smart as a Dominican, I write for The Thomist review,
I quote Thomas Aquinas and I know the Summa all by heart,
I know the arguments for God from Anselm to Rene Descartes;
I am an expert without doubt in all matters liturgical,
I'll see the rubrics carried out in fashion demiurgical!
I can intone polyphony from every epoch, school and rank
And sing all of the arias composed by Mister Cesare Franck.
Then I can run a bingo or a bake sale in the Parish Hall,
And sell spaghetti supper tickets at the local shopping mall:
In short, in matters pastoral, canonical, and Marian,
I am the very model of a Catholic seminarian.

In fact, when I know what is meant by 'Molinist' and 'Arian,'
When I can rise above the title of Popish sectarian,
When such affairs as wakes and confirmations I'm more wary at,
And when each sort of imperfection, sin, and fault I can combat;
When I have learnt the progress of von Balthasar's theology,
Converted every member of the Church of Scientology.
In short, when I've a smattering of basic Catholicity.
They'll say that I'm a cleric full of goodness and simplicity.
And though my Bishop is impressed by my enormous panurgy,
The man is rather wary at my love for Latin Liturgy,
But still in matters pastoral, canonical, and Marian,
I am the very model a Catholic seminarian.

Remembering . . .

When I was eight years old, my mother went to work full time outside the home. I wasn’t very happy about it. During the subsequent years, I often dwelled upon the situation with some bitterness. I was a latchkey child before it even became prevalent in our society. Until she went to work, my mother was a stay-at-home mother who baked, cooked, sewed and was ALWAYS there for helping with homework. I would come home from school secure in the knowledge that she would be there. She did everything I now do today.

My mother didn’t actively start an all-out, job-hunting campaign. She did her work as a full-time mother very well. Gradually, however, she found more satisfaction in volunteer work outside the family. Volunteer work eventually turned into a job offer and she took it. The job did provide more income but the security of finding my mother home when I needed or wanted her was gone. Don’t get me wrong, she still loved us deeply but her desire for intellectual stimulation and perhaps even prestige called to her strongly. She was a woman of the nineties in the late fifties.

My own first child came along and he seemed to take away a lot from me---freedom, solitude, time to be artistic, intellectual stimulation, money not to mention sleep! I felt trapped and then guilty because I felt that way. When my baby was four months old, I got a part-time job. Actually, it was the best possible deal. I could take the baby with me to work, I only worked one day a week and I worked for someone I loved and respected.

Even though I worked for a sympathetic person, the work I was hired for came first. I remember instances of trying to nurse the baby AND get a typing assignment completed. Paperwork came first and a living, human being was a definite second in the business world. Whatever I typed, filed or wrote is long gone and forgotten. My baby is now an intelligent, young man. By the time I became pregnant with my second child, way back then, I was more than ready to quit the job and had finally found appreciation for my God-given place in life. I am a mother. I found I couldn’t divide my attentions for that responsibility and still provide the best for my children.

That year of trying to work and be a mother opened my mind. I came to discover that I wasn’t giving up a single aspect of my life in taking up a career in motherhood. I was actually enhancing my life greatly. I found freedom in taking my children with me on errands and enjoying their growing up as we went about our daily tasks together. I made the most of my solitude while they were napping and appreciated it more. I started incorporating my artistic abilities in the baking, cooking and sewing I did for my family. Money went very low on the scale of necessities for happiness. We had sufficient.

When people ask me if I ‘work’, I can reply truthfully, “Yes, I work very hard and I LOVE my job!” I don’t have to look outside my home to find fulfillment. And my mother’s job actually helped make my life better. Unknowingly, she showed me what is important in life. I no longer harbor any bitterness. I am thankful that God showed me how any childhood unhappiness could be used to build a more productive and happy present and future. Mother’s Day is everyday if you let it happen.

What happened to professional journalism?

There was a time when the newspapers would keep us informed of what the government was about in regards to our life and affairs. The government sort of behaved because they didn't want bad publicity. These days, the media virtually tries to hide the bad stuff and leaves the subscribers out to dry.

The few avenues of truth on the radio and in the media that dare to expose the truths, are maligned and lied about. It has to make you wonder where virtue and truth has gone in the world? I've also noticed that the more wrong anyone is, the louder they yell as if that will convince you.

It isn't so much the bad politics but the politicians refusal to represent the people that initially gave them their place in office. I have written to our senators on several occasions and they DO write back but the gist of the reply is, "I appreciate you writing with your concerns but I will have to do what I think is right in this matter." The concerns I wrote about shows the senator's view to be in the minority. If the senator is going with the minority's view, how are we being represented democratically?

It does come down to the fault of many voters and non-voters. The fools we have in office didn't get there by themselves. Voters who didn't research and look past the end of their nose, put them into office. The non-voters let the rest down by not honoring their privilege to vote.

I'm especially shocked at how supposedly pro-life people voted for the economy and left the unborn to fend for themselves. The current, anti-life administration garnered 65% of the Catholic vote and that is a sad commentary on a Faith that honors life. If these 65% thought the economy was more important than life, they need to review their religion and basic, common decency.

Inspirational note for the day . . .

Did you hear about the new car that runs entirely on water? The only problem is you can only use the water from the Gulf.

For cookin' moms!

Interested in lots of recipes, hints, and homebody kitchen talk, join my new group at:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PhillingPhilosophy/

Brilliant Math!

The Beauty of Mathematics! !!!!!!

1 x8+1= 9
12 x8+2= 98
123 x8+3= 987
1234 x8+4= 9876
12345 x8+5= 98765
123456 x8+6= 987654
1234567 x8+7= 9876543
12345678 x8+8= 98765432
123456789 x8+9= 987654321

1 x9+ 2 =11
12 x9+ 3 =111
123 x9+ 4 =1111
1234 x9+ 5 =11111
12345 x9+ 6 =111111
123456 x9+ 7 =1111111
1234567 x9+ 8 =11111111
12345678 x9+ 9 =111111111
123456789 x9+10=1111111111

9 x9+ 7 =88
98 x9+ 6 =888
987 x9+ 5 =8888
9876 x9+ 4 =88888
98765 x9+ 3 =888888
987654 x9+ 2 =8888888
9876543 x9+ 1 =88888888
98765432 x9+ 0 =888888888

Brilliant, isn't it?

And look at this symmetry:

1 x 1 =1
11 x 11 =121
111 x 111 =12321
1111 x 1111 =1234321
11111 x 11111 =123454321
111111 x 111111 =12345654321
1111111 x 1111111 =1234567654321
11111111 x 11111111 =123456787654321
111111111 x 111111111 =12345678987654321


Mind Boggling...


Now, take a look at this...

101%

From a strictly mathematical viewpoint:

What does it mean to give MORE than100%?

Ever wonder about those people who say they
are giving more than100%?



How about ACHIEVING 101%?

Here's a little mathematical formula that might help
answer these questions:

If:

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

is represented as:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26.

Then:

H-A-R-D-W-O- R- K
is

8+1+18+4+23+ 15+18+11 = 98%



And:

K-N-O-W-L-E- D-G-E
is
11+14+15+23+ 12+5+4+7+ 5 = 96%



But:

A-T-T-I-T-U- D-E
is
1+20+20+9+20+ 21+4+5 = 100%

THEN, look how far the love of God will take you:

L-O-V-E-O-F- G-O-D


12+15+22+5+15+ 6+7+15+4 =101%


Have a nice day & God bless you





.

Donut Day!

I was blessed with an early start to the day AND a cool morning in the climate department so I decided to surprise the family with donuts. People seem to think this is a difficult task. It is surprising how fast you can whip up a batch of them. Sharing my recipe!

3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
2/3 cup milk
1/4 cup melted butter
2 beaten eggs
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
Donut cutter*

Heavy-bottomed cooking pot for the oil and enough oil to fry the donuts. If you have a deep fryer, even better!

In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients and gently mix with a spoon until combined. It should be just combined. Knead the dough briefly on a floured surface. Roll out dough (you might have to do this in two or three installments.) to under 1/2 inch thick. Cut out donuts and holes and set out on waxed paper.

When the oil is hot (about 375 degrees in a fryer), put in enough donuts to cook without crowding. It takes about a minute on each side. Remove to a baking tray covered with several layers of paper towels to drain. Repeat until you are finished.

Combine a cup of granulated sugar with a generous tablespoon of cinnamon. Roll the donuts and arrange on trays, plates, whatever suits your purposes. They won't last long once the family smells them, anyway!

*If you can't find a donut cutter, you can use a round cookie cutter and a thimble or pill bottle cap to cut the hole.

Come join us!

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/bbarthelette/

A few smiles . . .

"Honesty may be the best policy, but it's important to remember that apparently, by elimination, dishonesty is the second-best policy."
-- George Carlin

"I was a vegetarian until I started leaning toward the sunlight."
-- Rita Rudner

"Hollywood is a place where they place you under contract instead of under observation."
-- Walter Winchell

"There are 350 varieties of shark, not counting loan and pool."
-- L. M. Boyd

Cap and Trade is SCARY!

If you have been following the various proposed laws being pushed by the current administration, you have probably heard about the Cap and Trade bill. It includes some scary stuff that will have long-reaching effects on our country and our personal lives forever if it is passed. Here are some links to check out but, basically, we would have to jump through all kinds of 'global warming' sort of hoops in order to sell our own homes. We would also be required to license our home much like a car. Knowing how the politician works, I can see this being another charge on our diminishing incomes as they figure out they can increase the annual fees according to the value of the home. Watch out for inflated figures on how much the politicos decide what our market values will be!

Cap and Trade: A License Required for your Home http://www.nachi. org/forum/ f14/cap-and- trade-license- required- your-home- 44750/
HR2454 American Clean Energy & Security Act: http://www.govtrack ..us/congress/ bill.xpd? bill=h111- 2454
Cap & Trade A license required for your home: http://www.prisonplanet.com/cap-and-trade-a-license-required-for-your-home.html
Cap and trade is a license to cheat and steal:
http://www.sfexamin er.com/opinion/ columns/oped_ contributors/ Cap-and-trade- is-a-license- to-cheat- and-steal- 45371937. html
Cap and Trade: A License Required for your Home: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/2393940/posts
Thinking about selling you House? Look at HR 2454:
http://www.federalobserver.com/2009/10/01/thinking-about-selling-your-house-a-look-at-h-r-2454-cap-and-trade-bill/

I'm for that . . .!

"It's not that I'm afraid to die, I just don't want to be there when it happens."
-- Woody Allen

Smile, be happy!

"Most people would rather be certain they're miserable than risk being happy."
-- Robert Anthony

What a great quote and how true of so many attitudes today. It is as if people are afraid to embrace the blessings God sends them for some reason. Perhaps, they feel that the certainty is in misery so why take a chance on being disappointed in happiness.

It is a self-centered world that breeds this type of outlook. If they look out from their misery, they might have to include others who have things to say or do. They feel the loss of the limelight. Regardless of the saying, 'misery loves company', miserable, grumpy people don't have a large following. The most they get in socializing their depression is a few moments before the cornered person moves on to enjoy life.