The battle against Chick-Fil-A goes on and I just don't get it. The main complaint from the opposition is that Chick-Fil-A supports groups that do not deal with the gay or transgender groups. Why? Because the founders of Chick-Fil-A based their company on traditional values regarding marriage. Why are they considered hateful because they do not donate to groups that are not affiliated with those values?
It is election time and the Democrats donate strongly to the political party of their choice. The Republican party does the same thing. Both parties have different values/standards that don't always mesh with each other. Given the mind set of the people bashing Chick-Fil-A, wouldn't you think the political parties should demand that everyone give equally to both parties? No? Doesn't make sense? Of course it wouldn't because each party has their own agenda and are more comfortable with their sense of the world.
Every Sunday, we put our check into the collection plate at our parish because we feel we have the religion that works for us and puts meaning and Faith into our lives. Should the local Protestant churches object if we happen to collect more or have the ability to build a bigger church based on our congregation's giving habits? No? Doesn't make sense? Of course not, because why would we support something that goes against our personal values?
Today, the opposition to Chick-Fil-A is staging a 'same sex kiss day' at the restaurant locations. And, I don't imagine we are talking mere pecks on the cheek, either. They talk about charity, kindness, etc., yet they are willing to expose over the top public displays of affection in front of children who might be at the restaurant. I would file a compliant against any overt, over the top displays of affection in a public place - same sex or not. To me, it is somewhat demeaning to one's self to put themselves on display like that.
It is also reported that the opponents to Chick-Fil-A are having an appreciation day at StarBucks next week because that company has been an advocate of same-sex marriage for years. Uh, aren't they doing exactly what they are complaining about re. Chick-Fil-A? Chick-Fil-A supports traditional marriage. StarBuck supports same-sex marriage. They both hire based on qualifications not sexual orientation. Chick-Fil-A is intolerant and StarBucks is not . . . Both companies are outspoken yet they want to ruin the one because it exercises it's freedom of speech. I just don't get it . . .
Friday, August 3, 2012
Saving my soul, one moment at a time . . .
Like everyone else in the world, I have only 24 hours in each day and will have to account to God, some day, on how I used this gift of time. When I was a child, 24 hours was almost a life time. The older I get, the faster these minutes go and it is all to easy to find one's self years down a road you didn't realize you were traveling.
And, like everyone else in the world, there are a lot of chores that need accomplishing in the time alloted. Many times, the chores/requirements of our station in life are not all that pleasing to us. I, myself, am guilty of either avoiding said obligation or grumping to myself because I have no choice but to do the task. One day, I realized that eternity is going to be a lot longer than my 24-hour segments of time on earth. Every grace counts and knowing that anyone would be thrilled to reach Purgatory and realize they are slated, for sure, for Heaven, who wants to spend more time there than necessary there?
When you break someone's window, they will forgive you BUT you still have to make reparation for the accident. Same with God, we ask for forgiveness and He gladly bestows it upon us, however, reparation is still due and that is what Purgatory is for - to finish off the reparation we didn't get done while on earth. That's why we offer up inconveniences and worse on earth to bring us into the Gates of Heaven as soon as possible.
I realized that one can work off bits and pieces of reparation by remembering one word - purgation! It can be a little as picking up someone else's clutter from the living room without saying a word. It is washing up dishes instead of hopefully waiting for someone else to do them. It is giving up your own, free time to help someone out. It is basically not inwardly sighing or snarling when your time and efforts are required. It is giving up a snack and going with the hunger until dinner. Lately, instead of muttering under my breath in anger/frustration, etc., I just think 'purgation' and offer it up. Okay, I still forget but it grows on you. Things get done without argument and you actually start being a nicer person to be around . . . and no one knows your 'secret' but they certainly enjoy the change!
pur·ga·tion/ˌpərˈgāSHən/
And, like everyone else in the world, there are a lot of chores that need accomplishing in the time alloted. Many times, the chores/requirements of our station in life are not all that pleasing to us. I, myself, am guilty of either avoiding said obligation or grumping to myself because I have no choice but to do the task. One day, I realized that eternity is going to be a lot longer than my 24-hour segments of time on earth. Every grace counts and knowing that anyone would be thrilled to reach Purgatory and realize they are slated, for sure, for Heaven, who wants to spend more time there than necessary there?
When you break someone's window, they will forgive you BUT you still have to make reparation for the accident. Same with God, we ask for forgiveness and He gladly bestows it upon us, however, reparation is still due and that is what Purgatory is for - to finish off the reparation we didn't get done while on earth. That's why we offer up inconveniences and worse on earth to bring us into the Gates of Heaven as soon as possible.
I realized that one can work off bits and pieces of reparation by remembering one word - purgation! It can be a little as picking up someone else's clutter from the living room without saying a word. It is washing up dishes instead of hopefully waiting for someone else to do them. It is giving up your own, free time to help someone out. It is basically not inwardly sighing or snarling when your time and efforts are required. It is giving up a snack and going with the hunger until dinner. Lately, instead of muttering under my breath in anger/frustration, etc., I just think 'purgation' and offer it up. Okay, I still forget but it grows on you. Things get done without argument and you actually start being a nicer person to be around . . . and no one knows your 'secret' but they certainly enjoy the change!
pur·ga·tion/ˌpərˈgāSHən/
| Noun: |
|
Pumpkin Bread - Basic recipe
This is my go-to recipe for Pumpkin Bread. I like it because you can go with the set recipe and get a great loaf of tasty bread or add some perks of your own and enhance your baking experience. It is August and the Fall months are silently creeping up on us. Time to plan those Autumn meals and desserts!
Pumpkin Bread
1 cup vegetable oil
3 cups granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 cups canned pumpkin
3 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 tablespoon freshly grated orange zest
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1 cup toasted and chopped walnuts or pecans
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Generously vegetable oil spray two loaf pans.
Beat together the oil, eggs, sugar, vanilla, zest, and spices. Add in the salt, soda, flour, and baking powder. Stir in to combine. Add in the pumpkin and nuts.
Divide the batter between the two prepared loaf pans. Smooth the tops and bake at 350 degrees for 1-1 1/2 hours, depending on your oven.
Ideas . . .
When they are still warm from the oven, generously drizzle with lemon icing and let finish cooling.
1/2 cup dried cranberries would be interesting.
Skip the nuts if you don't care for them or have allergies.
Try a cup of tiny chocolate chips.
White chocolate chips gives it a new look.
Add some chocolate-covered raisins.
Pumpkin Bread
1 cup vegetable oil
3 cups granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 cups canned pumpkin
3 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 tablespoon freshly grated orange zest
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1 cup toasted and chopped walnuts or pecans
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Generously vegetable oil spray two loaf pans.
Beat together the oil, eggs, sugar, vanilla, zest, and spices. Add in the salt, soda, flour, and baking powder. Stir in to combine. Add in the pumpkin and nuts.
Divide the batter between the two prepared loaf pans. Smooth the tops and bake at 350 degrees for 1-1 1/2 hours, depending on your oven.
Ideas . . .
When they are still warm from the oven, generously drizzle with lemon icing and let finish cooling.
1/2 cup dried cranberries would be interesting.
Skip the nuts if you don't care for them or have allergies.
Try a cup of tiny chocolate chips.
White chocolate chips gives it a new look.
Add some chocolate-covered raisins.
Some Interesting Facts . . .
Unborn babies are innocent human beings from the moment of conception. They have a fundamental
right to life, which must be protected.
The Sixth Commandment of the Bible's Old Testament (Exodus 20:13) is "Thou shalt not kill." Abortion involves killing a human being and defies a commandment from God.
Fetuses feel pain during an abortion according to Kanwaljeet J. S. Anand, MBBS, DPhil, Professor of Pediatrics, Anesthesiology and Neurobiology at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center. "If the fetus is beyond 20 weeks of gestation, I would assume that there will be pain caused to the fetus. And I believe it will be severe and excruciating pain."
The original text of the Hippocratic Oath, the oath that doctors traditionally take when swearing to practice medicine ethically, forbids abortions. One section of the oath reads: "I will not give a woman a pessary [a device inserted into the vagina] to cause an abortion." The modern version of the Hippocratic Oath written in 1964 by Luis Lasagna also forbids abortion in its line, "Above all, I must not play at God."
The Declaration of Independence (33 KB) [51] states that "[A]ll men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." Allowing abortion directly contradicts the Founding Fathers' intentions for an inalienable right to life in this country.
Abortions cause psychological damage. A 2002 peer-reviewed study published by the Southern Medical Journal of more than 173,000 American women found that women who aborted were 154% more likely to commit suicide than women who carried to term. An Apr. 1998 Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology study on men whose partners had abortions found that 51.6% of the men reported regret, 45.2% felt sadness, and 25.8% experienced depression.
There is a lack of adoptable babies because abortion is legal. Over two million couples are waiting to adopt babies, and only 134,000 US children are available to be adopted as of June 2002. The percentage of infants given up for adoption has declined from 9% of those born before 1973 to 1% of those born between 1996 and 2002 Instead of having the option to abort, women should give their unwanted babies to people who can not biologically conceive.
Selective abortion based on genetic abnormalities (eugenic termination) is overt discrimination. Physical limitations don't make those with disabilities less than human. The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 provides the civil rights protection needed for people born with disabilities to lead fulfilled lives.
Abortion is an instrument of genocide against African Americans. Black women are 4.5 times as likely as white women to have an abortion. 1,876 black babies are aborted every day. Between 1882 and 1968, 3,446 Blacks were lynched in the US. In less than three days in 2010 more black babies are killed by abortionists.
The abortion industry makes an estimated $831 million annually. An abortion can cost anywhere from around $350 to more than $1,000. Abortion entrepreneurs are more interested in making money than assisting their clients.
Abortion eliminates the potential societal contributions of a future human being. The US would be an entirely different country if the mothers of our nation’s heroes, great presidents, scientists, athletes, and others had chosen abortion.
Abortion increases the likelihood of future miscarriages. A June 2003 study published by the peer-reviewed International Journal of Epidemiology estimated that about 15% of first-trimester miscarriages are attributed to prior history of induced abortion.
Abortion increases the likelihood that women will develop breast cancer. In early pregnancy, levels of estrogen increase, leading to breast growth in preparation for a woman to milk her child. When the process is interrupted by abortion, immature cells are left in the woman's breasts, resulting in a greater potential risk of breast cancer. Since 2006, eight medical organizations including the Breast Cancer Prevention Institute, the Catholic Medical Association, and the National Physicians Center for Family Resources have recognized the connection between abortion and breast cancer.
The 2001 claim by Freakonomics author Steven Levitt that abortion reduces crime is flawed. Economists at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston found coding errors in Levitt’s research. In response to their revelation, Levitt apologized and said on Nov. 28, 2005 that he was "personally embarrassed" about his errors.
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