Happy St. Patrick’s Day!
Month: March 2012
Friday Frivolity: Excommunicating The Pope
A few days ago, there was an article over at Shameless Popery which asked the question What if a Bishop (or the Pope) is Morally Wrong? It was a superb blog entry, up to Joe’s usual high standard. If you haven’t read it, you really should… you are subscribed to Shameless Popery right?!
I’ve often come across Protestants who think that the Catholic Doctrine of Papal Infallibility means that every word that comes out of the mouth of the Pope is 100% true and orthodox. This is not true! Joe’s article explains this in more detail and looks specifically at an example from the life of Pope John XXII.
When I read the article I had flashbacks to a YouTube video I stumbled upon a while ago so I went and dug it out again. I feel a little bad for posting this for Friday Frivolity, but there are so many things in this video which are just so…so….well, watch it….you’ll see…
If that’s not enough for you today, I’d suggest you go watch the “Pope Michael” documentary…
Sunday Lectionary: Arise and shine!
4th Sunday of Lent, 18th March 2012
In our First Reading last week we read about the giving of the Ten Commandments and this week we continue our Lenten tour through the high points of Old Testament Salvation History.
Our First Reading begins on a rather somber note. The Kingdom of Judah had abandoned God’s Law and, as a result, the Jerusalem Temple was destroyed and the people led into captivity. All of God’s promises to King David seemed to be lost! We hear the people’s song of lament in today’s Psalm.
However, because of God’s mercy and through His divine providence, the pagan King Cyrus decides to grant the Jews their freedom, releasing them from bondage.
In the light of the New Testament, we know that God’s promises to King David were not forgotten, but that they all found their fulfillment in Jesus of Nazareth, both Son of David and Son of God! The freedom granted to God’s people by King Cyrus was simply a foreshadowing of Jesus’ work of salvation. It is through the King of Kings that we are released from the bondage of death and brought to new life.
In our Second Reading, St. Paul tells use that “because of the great love he had for us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, [He] brought us to life with Christ”. These words of St. Paul are themselves only an echo of the Master’s teaching. In this week’s Gospel Reading, during His discourse with Nicodemus, Jesus reveals the heart of the Father: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life“.
Full of confidence, therefore, in God’s mercy and love, let us approach this week’s Eucharistic liturgy with the joy of those who have been granted new life 🙂
Wise Words On Wednesday: Spiritual Leaders
“Never trust spiritual leader who cannot dance.”
– Mr. Miyagi, The Next Karate Kid
Mercy Wins
“Even if we have thousands of acts of great virtue to our credit, our confidence in being heard must be based on God’s mercy and His love for men. Even if we stand at the very summit of virtue, it is by mercy that we shall be saved.” – St. John Chrysostom
Israel Intercession
“We meet together as an assembly and congregation, that, offering up prayer to God as with united force, we may wrestle with Him in our supplications. This violence God delights in.”
– Tertullian
Fear, inadequacy and power
“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us… You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others”
– Marianne Williamson