Roger Kimball's The Long March

..is a systematic take-down of the '60s radicalism and its longterm effects. His style and argumentation remind me of Dr. Blosser's. Towards the end of the book he mentions NY Times columnist David Brooks, red state ambassador to the blue states. But as a defender of the reds Brooks certainly leaves a lot to be desired. Kimball writes that Brooks praises faintly:

According to him, the bourgeois doesn't want to bother with "grand abstractions," he is "never heroic" and "has no gradeur," he "never seem[s] to look up from the quotidian concerns to grapple with great truths or profound moral issues."...

What Brooks neglects is the fact that what conservatives have traditionally championed are bourgeois values not bourgeois vices. And those values are rooted deeply in God-fearing Protestant ethic that emphasizes church, community, country, family and moral honor. The bourgeois ethic is not a form of Romanticism, true enough; its ideal is moderation, not excess. There is a deep sense in which Schumpeter was right that "capitalist civilization is rationalistic and 'anti-heroic'." But that does not mean that bourgeois capitalism need embrace the vacuous, feel-good, "I've-got-mine" philosophy that Brooks apparently wants us to embrace. "Anti-heroism" need not exclude passionate commitments or steadfast loyalty to transcendent values. Irving Kristol once wrote that "if you believe that a comfortable life is not necessarily the same thing as a good life, or even a meaningful life, then it will occur to you that efficiency is a means, not an end in itself."

Another interesting passage:

One sign of [conservative defeat in the culture wars] is that one hears considerably less about those battles today than in the early and mid-1990s. That is partly because, as Robert Novak notes in his book Completing the Revolution, "moral issues tend to exhaust people over time." Controversies that only yesterday sparked urgent debate today seem, for many strangely beside the point.

He also culled a marvelous quip:

"The virtues have gone mad because they have been isolated from each other and are wandering alone. Thus some scientists care for truth; and their truth is pitiless. Thus some humanitarians only care for pity; and their pity...is often untruthful." - GK Chesterton

Cashier Roulette

One of the more challenging daily activities is deciding which cafeteria line to choose. Oh, the mental calculations required! With just one sweeping glance I must choose between four or five cashiers, each having two queues. I need instantly calculate the number of people in each line (adjusting for the line the cashier is currently serving), the number of men in the line (men are quicker because we don't have purses), and the speed of cashier - all in a fraction of a second! Then you have to be alert for another cashier line opening.

Of course you say I could just pick a line and wait. And there is some truth in that. For even if we all had personal cashiers, the problem with instant gratification is that it just isn't quick enough...

Food for the Race

  The well-balanced spiritual diet includes many essential vitamins and minerals...

The Rosary... for strong teeth and bones. Stiffens spines and improves cartilage tissue by sinking the Mysteries into your marrow.

Prayer in general...provides oxygen, vital to life and pulmonary function; without prayer/0² death occurs.

The Eucharist... for strengthened immune system, packs His white blood cells that our spiritual wounds may heal. The taste of the Other offers bliss and provides energy for doing good works.

Confession...for fiber. Don't let those poisons accumulate in your colon! Purge them with Confession. And in the case of serious sin, Confession is the stomach pump that saves lives.

Scripture reading...builds capillaries, softens hard hearts, improves truth function.

Picture graphic via www.seton.net

Sermon Notes

The sermon from Luke at the Byzantine liturgy was about a man who was given many blessings but was called a "fool" by our Lord for his life was required of him that very day:

"Some gospel readings scare me. Today's scares me.

The farmer in this reading wanted an early retirement. That's all.

All of us in here our blessed. If we want to be like God, theosis, then we have to act like God. And God gives his blessings away.

We are meant to give away our blessings. We cannot keep them. As soon as we receive them we must get rid of them.

Did God keep his blessing to himself? No he gave us his greatest blessing, his Son.
Does God give us only part of his Holy Spirit? No he gives us the full Spirit.

Jesus taught us this out of love, not to threaten. He is warning us of danger."

Thoreau & Today's Homily

The story told at the homily was of two priests who went to a restaurant for breakfast. The owner stopped by several times. The younger priest read the newspaper, and barely listened to the owner, while the older priest listened intently and spoke with him. After the meal, the owner said it was "on the house" even though the younger priest tried to offer him money. Afterwards, the older priest said the younger stole a meal from the restauranteur. "How so?" asked the younger, "I tried to pay but he would not let me."

"He did not want money. He wanted to be listened to and for you to talk to him." It was not what he did that was sinful, but what he failed to do.

When I was a young adult I had the unfortunate habit (in effect, if not knowingly doing so) of treating literature as canonical if it "spoke to me". In other words, instead of trying to become what Scripture said I should become, I treasured works that explained me to me as I already was. (I'm sure that was clear). One example is Henry David Thoreau, who wrote in Walden that "we meet at too frequent intervals" and give each other only the "stale bread that is ourselves". He went to the woods perhaps in order to ensure he'd meet others at less frequent intervals or, more charitably, to gather wisdom that he might have more to give. That passage resonated, as did his recommendation that we have a "large margin to life" (though it would seem that most saints live off slim margins of free time).

So, to answer Thoreau's first point, there's no reason to think that God can't make something of what seems to promise to be a mundane encounter. We've all experienced times when we think we have nothing to offer someone - and yet we do - or they have nothing to offer us - and yet they do. But that utilitarian view is beside the point. Even if nothing meaningful seems to occur, our conscience, unlike the young priest's, is clear and our openness is itself an act of obedience.

“.. and I will raise you up on the last day”   - By Mary Herboth

Two and a half months ago, my brother was brought to the hospital near death. His daughter had come up from California to visit him in his rustic Mt. Hood cabin when she found him in a frightening state. He was ashen and lethargic. She urged him to go with her to the hospital and he agreed. The doctors discovered that his blood sugar level was over 600. A few more points, they warned, and he would have been in a coma. He went home thinking that he had become a diabetic like our Dad. The days that followed were dreadful. Not because of sugar-restrictions and needles in the finger but because of violent stomach cramps and vomiting that would not stop. We soon found out that this was more than diabetes or a terrible stomach flu. My brother was diagnosed with incurable and aggressive pancreatic cancer. The doctor simply said, “We don’t cure this” and let him know that most people in this condition live for less than three months. He went back to Mom and Dad's with a new bed and an arm full of medical supplies. We all began to pray for wisdom and strength.

Recently, my brother was moved from my parent’s house to a hospice care facility because his condition was getting worse. Two weeks ago they told us that he had 2-3 days to live. At the time that was good news. It meant that the suffering was about to come to an end. But, God had other plans. My brother continues to live and we keep holding on to the knowledge that life is good. However, I must admit that it’s not easy to understand the meaning of suffering when it is happening to someone you love. His body has been reduced to skin and bones, his face is caved in, his tongue and lips are cracked from dehydration, his belly and lower back are swollen from the cancer and he is often in tears from the heartache of dying in front of people he loves. Every day the medical staff increases his medication in an effort to keep up with the pain but most of the time the pain is ahead of the race.

Despite this grim picture there is always hope - there is always grace. For example, God granted me the grace to be with my brother on the day the doctor told him he had only 2-3 days to live. After the doctor left, I told my brother, "I'm going to miss you" and he said, "I'm going to miss you too." I replied, "No you won’t! You're not going to miss me because you will be with Christ and the Blessed Mother." I smiled but he started to cry. He said, "I'm not ready to meet her. I love her so much and I don't want to offend her." He told me that he didn't feel worthy to meet Christ because of some things he had done in his life. I told him that we could take care of that. That he could prepare his soul to meet Christ and the saints by confessing his sins and receiving the Eucharist. On hearing this he cried out "I want that." I held his hand and we talked a little while about God's love and mercy and how wonderful it will be in heaven. The next day a priest came to visit and to administer the sacraments. My heart was light and I kept thinking about Christ’s promise, “If you eat my body and drink my blood you will have life within you and I will raise you up on the last day.” That's what I wanted for my brother and I thanked God for drawing near and for bringing him into a deeper more pure relationship with Him.

Another incredible moment was the day that they moved him to hospice. That first day was very difficult. With a new staff of doctors and nurses it took a while to get everything squared away. He suffered quite a bit that first night because his meds were not adequate and the machine that delivered the meds was not working properly. All night he was in pain, moaning and crying in agony. I cried too - as you can imagine. I thought of Mary during the passion. I wondered how she coped with the suffering. I turned to her for consolation.

Everyone was doing all they could to keep him comfortable but nothing worked for very long. At one point I felt so completely helpless. I didn't know what to do so I started to pray the rosary. It was Wednesday so we meditated on the Glorious Mysteries. After the first two Hail Mary’s, my brother joined me, saying the second half of each prayer. The words of his prayers were slurred and hard to decipher. I just began the next prayer when he stopped. We kept going despite several interruptions. After the rosary I said some other prayers and then I sang, "Come Holy Ghost." My brother smiled and he wept a little. I stopped singing and he said, "Don't stop." So I sang again and then he said sweetly, "I can smell incense." Oh! How wonderful the Lord is! "Did you know," I said, " that the fragrance of incense is a sign of the presence of Christ?" This time the Lord was calling my brother –and me – to the kind of faith that surrenders all things. It is a gift to be truly helpless because at that level of helplessness we have no one to turn to except God Almighty and to be in his presence.

The next morning the doctors were able to find a way to get him comfortable. He actually made some progress and did things that they said he'd never do again - like eat some peach pie! Instead of dying, he had 3-4 "good days" where he was able to have visitors and stroll around the pleasant grounds. He even made it to Mass with the other patients. To receive communion in the context of the Liturgy was another wonderful gift because before this illness my brother had been out of full communion with the Church. He had, however, been growing in his love for God for some time. He often prayed, read spiritual works and taught his friends to say “I love you, God” 100 times a day.

There have been many times during this trial that I have thought that this illness was my brother’s reward for his sincere search for God and the meaning of love. When he became ill, he started the steps toward complete reconciliation. Early on he was annointed with oil and within the first few weeks he recieved general absolution and communion. Then he had the conviciton to confess particular sins and now God provided a whole liturgy - a whole Easter!

Although it breaks my heart to witness the ravages of cancer I can't help but thank God for his goodness and mercy. I'm thankful for the opportunity to share in his passion. Even my brother recognizes that. One time he told me that when he is having the most pain he doesn't ask God to take it away but he tells God "Thank you. I love you." You wouldn't believe all the things he tells the doctors and nurses. When they ask him how he's doing he always tells them about God's love and mercy. He tells them again and again how much he believes in God and everlasting life. They often look at him with amazement. When they see his pain and suffering they can't imagine why he has faith and I can’t imagine him not having it.

Update: Sunday morning, on the feast of Christ the King, Mary's brother passed away. May he rest in God's peace.

From Percy MacKaye, the poet-in-residence at my alma mater during the 1920s:

The Automobile
    By Percy MacKaye  (1875-1956)

Fluid the world flowed under us: the hills
        Billow on billow of umbrageous green
        Heaved us, aghast, to fresh horizons, seen
One rapturous instant, blind with flash of rills
And silver-rising storms and dewy stills
       Of dripping boulders, till the dim ravine
       Drowned us again in leafage, whose serene
Coverts grew loud with our tumultuous wills.

Then all of Nature's old amazement seemed
        Sudden to ask us: "Is this also Man?
        This plunging, volant, land-amphibian
What Plato mused and Paracelsus dreamed?
        Reply!" And piercing us with ancient scan,
The shrill, primeval hawk gazed down -- and screamed.

Thoughts While Watching O'Reilly's Show

O'Reilly mentions to Sen. Schumer that "when the Iraqi democracy is flourishing and they have large oil revenues maybe they'll give back some of the money we spent".

Uh bartender, I'll have what he's having. O'Reilly's not usually this naive. There are so many ifs in there, not to mention the fact that the average lifespan of a nation's gratitude is shorter than that of the fruitfly. (Exhibit A: Kuwait). In the immortal words of a '70s song" "dream on, dream on, dream until your dreams come true...". Speaking of Iraq, NPRs Diana Rehm asked why can't we honor Iraq's unbearable urge to split (i.e. into three countries Shiite, Sunni & Kurdish)? Indeed why not? After all, Iraq was a originally an arbitrary construction anyway, cobbled together after the first World War. All of this angst over the pre-war intelligence regarding WMDs seems misplaced; the true intelligence nightmare was not knowing how difficult nation-building is. Now that we should've known.

But back to the Factor.

Sen. Schumer says "80 million? That's nothing. We spend that before breakfast in Washington"

And that's something to brag about?

Sex on TV segment

One of the things that is so hilariously blatant about FOX is that sexual content on TV is shown over and over, often in slow motion, while discussing the evils of sexual content on tv. Nothing like soft core porn to accompany your outrage over soft core porn right Bill?

First Things Article on Godbloggers

Alicia & Amy got a mention as did others (via Spec Catholic):

Godbloggers hail from all walks of life, from professional writers such as Domenico Bettinelli, Eve Tushnet, and Dawn Eden to laymen with day jobs: Emily Peterson and Annie Banno, for instance, at the blog After Abortion, or Marc, a UNIX administrator, who runs the blog Thickness.

...
Another concern is how the Internet is demystifying religion. One of Joseph de Maistre’s pet theories was that the authority of the Church depended in large part on mystery. Blogger Mickey Kaus recently wondered if the notion of mysterious silence on the part of religious institutions has become outmoded: “If you were a respected authority you used to be able to get away with maintaining a meaningful silence. Now you’ve got to be blogging in your own ‘unique voice’ about every little thing that comes up, or else some ambitious lesser authority who posts more frequently will steal your flock.”

Happy 80th to Bill Buckley (er, one week early)


Link:

We were all chuckling about something bone-headed the Soviet spokesman had pronounced earlier in the day, I don’t remember the exact reference. But I do recall Bill saying “You know I’ll almost miss them when we win.” Being of the lugubrious Whittaker Chambers sensibility (Chambers thought he had left the winning for the losing side), I was startled. Only later did I recognize this confidence as a form of faith. In Reagan, it was called optimism. But it was more than that. It was a spiritual strength and it was one important though perhaps underappreciated reason Bill Buckley was and is a great leader.

— Mona Charen

For You Narnia Fans...

Ross Douthat defends C.S. Lewis's use of allegory:

I think that Noah has to be right, almost definitionally, to prefer non-allegorical stories to allegories. So how to escape the contradiction?

Well, here's one theory - that for the most part Narnia actually isn't an allegory, but rather an explicitly Christian fairy tale (like The Snow Queen) that happens to include, as one of its characters, the second person of the Trinity.

And an arresting/interesting comment found in the ensuing comment thread:

Very few people claim to understand quantum mechanics or how their furnaces work who don't actually understand quantum mechanics or how their furnaces work. Christianity is very different. No body of thought about anything has such a enormous gap between what people think they know about it and what they actually do know about it as Christianity. It's not just secular intellectuals either, even if he has read lots of papal encyclicals, the religion on display at AndrewSullivan.com is pretty much unique to Andrew Sullivan, and Mr. Sullivan seems blissfully unaware of it.

Notes on Msgr. Lane's Talk on the Passion of the Lord:

Christians have struggled with the Crucifixion since the very beginning, going back to the account of the men on the road to Emmaus. "What does this mean?". Some early Christian thinkers came up with a legalistic view, that humans errored and it makes sense that only God can appease God. But that's horrible. What kind of God sends His Son to die in order to appease Himself?

Another way to look at it is to recall that we are made in the image and likeness of God which is reflected in human freedom. Freedom is what makes us human and able to relate to God in a one-to-one in a friendship relationship rather than a dependent, destructive way. Look at families where a parent watches every thing the child does and forces obedience - that child is not free and ultimately bears a hatred towards his parents.

God intended Jesus as a gift. He said as it were, "go down and give yourself to them, put yourself in their hands." Gift, not appeasement. It is human nature to be threatened by holiness since we have constructed a world and are comfortable with it as it is. Look at the simple matter of going to Mass on Sunday and how many do not avail themselves?

Read the language describing moment of Christ's death. It is the triumph of chaos. It is the only way the Hebrew writers, who could not use an abstraction, could describe nihilism, nothingness. The darkness descending over the abyss, the wind over it, recalls Genesis before the creation of the world. The world was ending. God was dying in a very real sense, not just the more trivial sense in which Jesus was just giving up a body that was a lot of trouble anyway. But Mary and John at the foot of the Cross held the world together, kept the chaos from completely abolishing existence for the three days before the Resurrection. In some mysterious way. Mary, a symbol of the Church, and John a symbol of the priesthood, saved the world. Did they know it? No. They were at the cross out of love for the son and their friend. The giving of the Holy Spirit created a new world, re-enacting the story in Genesis. And now the Church and the sacraments through the ministry of the priesthood keep the world in existence before the Second Coming. We are in a sense re-enacting the interval between the death of Christ and his Resurrection, awaiting his Second Coming as Mary and John awaited His Resurrection. Christians are keeping the world in existence.

And so why can't it be over now? Because of human freedom. He asks us to come, little by little, inviting us to come closer. It is fraught with failure and we experience it in our human relations. Love is existential, experiential, you can't learn it from a definition of a book, even Scripture. It has to be made concrete, in the harshness of saying 'yes' amid the chaos, as Mary and John did at the foot of the Cross. A relationship with God is not behavioral, moral in the sense of "I'm a good person". It is relational, an invitation and beckoning to come nearer.

Poetry Wednesday

I like Heidi Lynn Staples's quirky poetry and wordplay. She'll title a blog post "maid public" when speaking of getting a mention or creatively scribe a post like "O my bloggerissimo, each sentence writ a cage in which to hide or a draft on which to glide?".

Here's an interview and a poem, the latter being the sort I'd write if I could write poetry:

Reddening Devout of the House

o let's go for our sun say drive,
land wet a honking foil'll gleamingly geese.
you'll thrive on the thrive
wilding an ode. i'll sway to your pleased,
roil down the window to let din the air hive,
the wind singing kin the sheaves.

o hours unsay we're alive;
yet, flare now we're trill flung, full of be leaves –
you sway thru me, derive
mulch perfect there hums. yes, let's conceive
a bay of be. o throes mortis and heat,
true lush here and roaring, we'll cleave

sun to beech copper, arrive
as dei parts, swilling wills of weave.

Written after noting that every poet's website is accompanied by leftwing ideology...

A Conservative Poet
   (- and other oxymorons)

"A bloggin' poet I shall be!"
I said to all who wouldst read me
I called up Local 53
and asked what they would need to see.

They said I wasn't qualified,
They said George Bush I deified,
For Politics they reified
I was a con they neo-fied.

I felt as lonely as a cloud
a rightwing poet yet unbowed
chastened, yes, but still not cowed
I could not be a Maureen Dowd.

So to eyries I did repair
to ply the trade without a care
my porridge seemed a meagre fare,
did Politics myself ensare?

Interesting...

...link via Tom of Disputations:

Very often when people are thinking or speaking about the spirituality of the Dominican Order there is a tendency, with respect to a phrase such as "sober intoxication," for example, to give more weight to the adjective "sober" than to the noun "intoxication." It is an understandable tendency and, in respect of the work of many Dominican authors, often a wise one. The adjective "sober" sits particularly well with the work of someone like St Thomas Aquinas, or with that of his contemporary, Humbert of Romans, or with the work of the later scholastics. But if one is considering the life and work of other Dominicans, such as the exuberant and generous preacher, Blessed Jordan of Saxony, or the irrepressible Italian mystic, St Catherine of Siena, or the colourful and intensely devout German friar, Blessed Henry Suso, or the great and daring thinker and visionary, Meister Eckhart, then clearly the word "sober," for all its sane, and sharply qualifying wisdom, will need to have placed – and close beside it – the noun "intoxication."
...
Towards the end of his remarkable study, Enthusiasm, Ronald Knox writes : "Men [and women] will not live without vision; that moral we do well to carry away with us from contemplating, in so many strange forms, the record of the visionaries. If we are content with the humdrum, the second-best, the hand-over-hand, it will not be forgiven us."