The Papal Conclave . . .

The cardinals are gathering in Rome. There are meetings going on and they are talking among themselves to get a feel for who would/should be a contender to head the Catholic Church. The secular media keeps talking about voting in a cardinal that will bring the Catholic Church into the current century . . . in other words, allow birth control, abortion, and married priests. Interesting how they think that is what the Church needs to survive. Have any of these media hounds stopped to consider that many things have come and gone in the world but the only mainstay in over 2,000 years has been the Catholic Church? Seems to me that kind of records might indicate that we are doing the right thing.

Today, I read that reports are about who would be a 'safe' vote which sort of indicates to me that until the more liberal faction can get liberal change they don't want anyone stepping up the discipline too much. I remember, years ago, when the Vatican was sending out some enforcement of rules (which escapes me right now) and when I mentioned this to some people from our parish who were active in the parish, they said, "Well, if we can implement the changes into our routine, we will do it, otherwise, it won't apply to us."

I have a feeling that whatever comes our way, the Church will withstand if even if we go through more turbulent times. We, as Catholics, can't vote for the next pope but we can pray and prayer often surpasses human efforts.

Getty Villa - Outside views . . .

 As amazing as the artifacts housed at the Getty Villa are, the villa, itself, is also fantastic. It is modeled after an ancient Roman villa. You walk through the covered pathways, view the pools, fountains and start to wonder about the people of that time and how they actually lived.

Gluten-Free Bake Day at My House . . .

 Someone's friend was just diagnosed with celiac and is a bit down about not being able to grab a cookie or treat without thinking about whether or not it has gluten. Frankly, I've looked at a lot of commercial gluten-free products and the cookies and crackers don't look all that great. If I'm going to add calories to my day, I'd prefer they be on the slightly decadent side. So, to help out the friend, I spent the day baking some gluten-free crackers and cookies. Considering my first efforts at the beginning of the year, I'm doing pretty well. I've mastered chocolate chip cookies and brownies! My saltines and common crackers are tasty for snacking, too. Anyway, I have a couple of tins filled with treats for the 'new celiac'. Not really a chore and a good excuse to bake during Lent!