From the MSN article: “It’s finished, we’ll never be able to see it again,” said Jerome Fautrey, a 37-year-old who had come to watch. “Now we need to know how this happened — with everything that’s going on in the world, why Notre-Dame? Maybe it’s a message from on high,” he said.

This from our priest in the weekly bulletin: Our priest, after Mass, told us he would not process out of the church and would, instead, wait around the altar for the class on annulment. He also gave a nice plug for the class during his homily. Separately, the homily–after the Annulment Advertisement–centered on compassion for others, an odd topic for the Gospel for the third Sunday in Lent. The reading, Luke 13: 1-9, is a call for repentance and conversion. It’s a warning from Jesus.

I am completely ripping this off from Rod Dreher’s blog this morning (I even $tole the “$” in the title from Rod-). The undergraduate of my (law school) alma mater has this whopper of a job posting: JOB SUMMARY In accordance with our University of St. Thomas mission of advancing the common good and convictions of dignity and diversity, the university seeks to create and sustain a diverse, equitable and inclusive community.  Reporting directly to the President, the Associate Vice President for (AVP) for Inclusive Excellence will lead the development and implementation of a proactive diversity, equity and inclusion strategy, which will support St. Thomas’s mission and strategic priorities.   The AVP for Inclusive Excellence is a high-level management position reporting directly to the President and serving as a member of the President’s Cabinet. The AVP for Inclusive Excellence will lead the development of a vision and effective strategy that champions the importance and value of a diverse and inclusive university environment. Annual university-wide goals and strategies will be developed by the AVP for Inclusive Excellence to bring together various constituencies across the university.  Tapping into a broad array of existing university resources, the AVP for Inclusive Excellence will also engage faculty,…Continue reading $t. Thoma$

My wife and I spent Saturday this past weekend at the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis’ Newly Married Retreat (0-7 years or marriage). Outside of the marriage-related takeaways, I came away with two main thoughts: We, as Catholics, should expect persecution. From Obergefell, to states expanding abortion, to the widespread disdain laid bare against Catholics (Covington Catholic), to the open persecution of Catholic beliefs as bigoted that render one unfit for public service, this ain’t stopping. It’s easy to become discouraged that the line in the sand has been drawn (the world and the left against Catholicism) and we appear to be losing. We should expect this to continue. The forces of evil will not stop. Persecution may look different now than it did in the past, but it is persecution nonetheless. And we need saints and martyrs (maybe not in the literal sense) to step up. We must speak truth to power and model beauty and truth in our lives. We are the counter-culture, and that’s okay (and maybe even good). Married millennial? Whatever floats your boat. Not using contraceptives? Oh, you’re one of those people. Oppose abortion? You hate women. Etc. Etc. As Ross Douthat put it recently: “It was…Continue reading Hold faith as a shield

The Church should excommunicate New York Governor Andrew Cuomo. Not only because he has broken his marriage vows by “divorcing” his wife. Not only because he is cheating on his rightful wife by living with another woman. Not only because he has, presumably, continued to take communion while in a state of repeated mortal sin. Not only because he is in violation of nearly every Offense Against the Dignity of Marriage in the Catechism of the Catholic Church. No, while those mortal sins are bad enough (and frighteningly common in today’s world), the Church should excommunicate Governor Cuomo because on Tuesday he signed a bill into New York law firmly entrenching abortion on babies after 24 weeks in the womb for the mother’s health—a nebulous term that federal law has interpreted to mean virtually anything (for example, it includes a woman’s age). The Bill did other things, of course, but as a father to a preemie baby (born at 32 weeks), this part strikes me particularly hard. Cardinal Dolan, please do everything in your power to excommunicate this purported Catholic. Offer him every chance for repentance and—if he balks—see to it that his is formally kicked out of our Church.…Continue reading Excommunicate Cuomo

Here’s are some of my recent podcast recommendations: The Thomastic Institute: Let Us Pray? The Liturgical Revolution of the 1960’s Who’s in Charge Here?: The Church, Society and Obedience Purifying the Clergy After the Scandals of 2018 Radical Personal Finance: Host Joshua Sheats provides a treasure trove of knowledge and inspiration. This podcast (and his less frequent accompanying podcast Encouraging Christian Fathers) are must-listens for younger, Christian father to learn how to lead his family. It appears that Joshua has not been updating his website, so I cannot link to individual shows–you’ll have to subscribe to the podcast in whatever app you use. Episodes 618, 598, and 616 should give you a good flavor of the direction of this podcast recently. I would also generally subscribe to the following podcasts: Word on Fire–Robert Barron, the Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, hosts this podcast with the mission of utilizing the tremendous resources of the Roman Catholic tradition—art, architecture, poetry, philosophy, theology, and the lives of the saints— in order to explain and interpret the event of Jesus Christ. Be sure to subscribe to Bishop Barron’s Word on Fire Sermons as well as the Word on Fire Show. Father…Continue reading Podcasts to check out: part 1

Add Gillette to the no-go company list. Here’s a good idea, let’s take a swipe at the vast majority of our customers: I am not sure that I’ve seen an ad with so many social justice warrior hot-button issues in one.

Alright, here it is. A list* of companies we shouldn’t shop at, and the reasons why: Food Ben & Jerry’s: Support for Obergefell; signing amicus curiae brief that that bakery owner Jack Phillips cannot rightly cite religious beliefs in his decision to not bake a cake for a gay “wedding” (Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission) Gillette–social justice campaign with insulting ads. And while we can’t possibly make a list of all the good companies to shop from, we can outline general criteria. Try to shop at local companies, owned or operated by well-regarded people who attend your church, raise good children, and participate in your community in a positive way. Local butcher shops can be a treat to visit. Non-chain coffee shops are usually quaint. *List began as of January 14, 2019 and will grow with time. I welcome suggestions in the comments.

Three Sundays ago, we welcomed my daughter into the Catholic Church through her Baptism. My wife and I were very excited to do this, and the Church, our priest, and the sacrament did not disappoint. I spend a lot of time worrying about, and attempting to diagnose, the Church’s current problems along with those of the world today. The Church, has appeared to me over time, has been the last bastion of hope in a post-modern world obsessed with finding meaning through money, sex, and power. No longer, it seems–the Church seems to be punting on its role in the world: easing up on granting annulments, declaring the death penalty “inadmissible,” ignoring the problems surrounding homosexuals in the priesthood, and continuing to cover-up abuse scandals are the norm now. Sometimes I get angry. Other times I am just sad. As the baby’s Baptism approached, I grew a bit nervous. “How would it feel to bring a child into this faith?” I asked myself. I knew I wanted her baptized, but I’ve just been very frustrated with the Church. The night before the Baptism, I was straightening my office up a bit and found one of my old dog tags from…Continue reading Rejoice for a Baptism

Here is my 2018 reading list: From Here to Eternity: James Jones–this is a long book about a soldier stationed in Hawaii on the precipice of World War II. It was a good read, but very pulpy–huge focus on boozing, insubordination, and carousing. I’m glad I read it, but I’m glad it’s over.  Tears in the Darkness: The Story of the Bataan Death March–Michael and Elizabeth Norman gripping story of The Bataan Death March; see my review here. The Life We Bury–Allen Eskens: a local lawyer debuts as an author in this mystery/thriller about a college student unraveling a 30-year old murder.  The Benedict Option–Rod Dreher: I keep putting off reviewing this book. Dreher’s proposed response to cultural conservatives’ repeated losses? Double-down on orthodoxy instead of abdicating responsibilities to “conservative” Republicans. Beartown–Fredrik Backman: I was attracted to this book because it popped up in every online “best 2017 fiction” search I tried. The story of a Swedish hockey town wrestling with its true identity really resonated with me. My father-in-law grew up in one of Minnesota’s best hockey towns along the Canadian border. Since he moved, the town has struggled economically and shrunk. The mill on the Canadian side of…Continue reading 2018 reading list