extreme Catholic 

The Monthly Reflections with Fr.Groeschel which this year is has as its theme: The Sacraments: Appreciating the Gifts of Christ.

Earlier in the week he fell and was released from the hospital only yesterday (December 16, 2005) but he came down to Holy Innocents parish and, as usual, the place was packed.

He told the story of how it was suspected that he had life-threatening internal bleeding. Because of his January 2004 accident, he has been using a substance, coumarin Fr. Benedict gave the credit to Ireland but the web gives it to Wisconsin: rotting clover, a dead cow, a bucket of blood that doesn't coagulate -- a medical miracle. (Coumadin ® is the name of the drug as it is manufactured)

He fell and that caused internal bleeding which for a time, it could not be determined if it was life-threatening. Thanks be to God, it wasn't and he was able to be at Holy Innocents. He didn't mention if was going to be on EWTN Live tomorrow.

He noted all the modern saints and the holy people of New York that might be saints one day had a deep devotion to the Holy Eucharist.

It was tragic that the informality in the Catholic Church that started in the 60's led to a loss of reverence for the Holy Eucharist.

posted by Patrick Sweeney at 10:22 PM   Permalink  

Michael J. Quill must be looking down from heaven and smiling tonight.

posted by Patrick Sweeney at 10:43 PM   Permalink  

There are so few elected and electable pro-life politicians in the Republican party that it no longer unifies the party or draws pro-life people to it. Pro-life pols are giving up and the ones that remain are marginalized in states like New York and Massachusetts.

In the Democratic party, the old pro-life pols of the 1960's and 1970's have gone to God's waiting room in Florida or to God. Hugh Carey was the first pro-life, then pro-choice, elected governor, groomed pro-choice Mario Cuomo to succeed him, and then Carey became pro-life again in retirement.

Our local congressman, a Democrat, had a pro-life dad, and a pro-life uncle (also in politics) who fathered 15 children. The congressman who is around my age, is pro-choice. He succeeded the last pro-choice congressman of the New York City delegation.

I only vote for local Republicans in the hope that they will support national Republicans who, at least under President Bush, walk and talk pro-life.

I think the New York State Republicans have a point that they excuse themselves by saying they only have votes to lose and none to gain and risk not being reelected by supporting pro-life legislation.

I conclude it's a "choice" of pragmatism over morality.

posted by Patrick Sweeney at 12:47 PM   Permalink  

Black people were offended that Red Cross volunteers running the Astrodome facility in Houston wore latex gloves.

Everyone in New York wears latex gloves where the have physical contact with people or food -- police and fire, all kinds of health care workers, food vendors. People among the public wear latex gloves for no apparent reason except that they want to.

You have to wonder if the Washington Post's anonymous black people would have been offended if the Red Cross volunteers were not wearing latex gloves -- as it would be indicative of indifference to spreading disease.

posted by Patrick Sweeney at 11:48 AM   Permalink