One can readily admit that the Magisterium's manner of expression does not seem very easy to understand at times. It needs to be translated by preachers and catechists into a language which relates to people and to their respective cultural environments. The essential content of the Church's teaching, however, must be upheld in this process. It must not be watered down on allegedly pastoral grounds, because it communicates the revealed truth.
Eccles is saved
This is the spiritual journey of me, Eccles, my big brother Bosco, and my Grate-Anti Moly. Eccles is saved, but we've got real problems with Bosco and Anti.Eccleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00357168852208499013noreply@blogger.comBlogger1715125
Updated: 42 min 23 sec ago
The six Eccles laws
Spending 23 hours per day on Twitter has enabled me to appreciate some fundamental truths,
which need to be recognised more widely. This post is less spiritually nourishing than
some, but I'll do my best.
1. Actors have nothing intelligent to say if they are not given a script, and often not even then.
Socialist actor Brian Cox calls the Bible 'one of the worst books ever' and says 'the theatre' is the 'one true church'.
2. Never click on anything described as "hilarious". It will just be mildly amusing.
A few from the Daily Mail to illustrate my point. Would you really bother with any of these?
Spilling the dirt! Hilarious moment man covers himself in soil after wheelbarrow tips over.
Plane passenger reveals his hilarious take on what your seat selection means about your journey.
We're live, guys! Hilarious moment BBC's Chris Mason realises he's standing in the wrong spot at start of live News at Six broadcast.
3.
All those in positions of power in the 1960s were stark staring bonkers.
Well, you may be thinking of Beeching closing the railways, Vatican II doing untold damage to the
Catholic Church, and almost any 1960s architecture:
St Horten in Ahaus, Germany. Before and after.
4.
"Could" is journalese for "won't".
There are many variations on this, e.g. "explains" is journalese for "guesses".
We're doomed, do you hear me? Doomed!
Another example:
There's more than one way of being doomed.
5.
Anyone with pronouns in their profile is bonkers.
I think the non-binaries are the most bonkers, but kids these days are always attracting
attention, and asking to be referred to as "whee/whoosh" or whatever is probably less of a
public nuisance than breaking windows.
6.
Finally, applicable to religion and politics:
those who rant and rage are usually wrong: those who can laugh and joke are generally right.
Rather than posting yet another picture of Pope Francis or Austen Ivereigh throwing a wobbly, let's be synodal
(hmm... I feel another Eccles law coming on here...).
Nobody sensible actually enjoys synods.
The best and the worst
Nothing new here, just a list of the winners of all the world cups we have conducted.
I will keep it updated as new competitions are held.
BAD HYMNS November 2018
Gold: Lord of the Dance
Silver: Gather us in
Bronze: Shine, Jesus, Shine
Fourth Place: Kumbayah Sydney Carter, Marty Haugen and Graham Kendrick. BAD CARDINALS (I) February 2019 Gold: Blase Cupich
Silver: Reinhard Marx
Bronze: Walter Kasper
Fourth Place: Francesco Coccopalmerio BAD CATHOLIC JOURNALISTS October 2019 Gold: James Martin
Silver: Austen Ivereigh
Bronze: Massimo Faggioli
Fourth Place: Antonio Spadaro LITURGICAL ABUSES July 2020 Gold: Idols
Silver: Changing words in the liturgy
Bronze: Communion in the hand
Fourth Place: Consecrating ordinary bread UGLY CHURCHES November 2020 Gold: St Francis de Sales, Norton Shores, Michigan
Silver: Eglise Sainte Bernadette du Banlay
Bronze: Newman Hall, Holy Spirit, Berkeley
Fourth Place: Parroquia Santa Monica, Rivas-Vaciamadrid FRANCIS ACHIEVEMENTS September 2021 Gold: Pachamama worship
Silver: Traditionis Custodes
Bronze: Treatment of the church in China
Fourth Place: Rehabilitating Uncle Ted McCarrick INSTRUMENTS IN HELL March 2022 Gold: Vuvuzela
Silver: Bongo drums
Bronze: Kazoo
Fourth Place: Tambourine PATRON SAINTS OF ENGLAND May 2022 Gold: Thomas More
Silver: Thomas Becket
Bronze: John Fisher
Fourth Place: John Henry Newman BAD CARDINALS (II) October 2022 Gold: Blase Cupich
Silver: Arthur Roche
Bronze: Reinhard Marx
Fourth Place: Francesco Coccopalmerio UNCROWNED SAINTS April 2023 Gold: Pope Leo XIII
Silver: Thomas à Kempis
Bronze: Pope Pius XII
Fourth Place: G.K. Chesterton ROYAL SAINTS July 2023 Gold: Jadwiga of Poland
Silver: Elizabeth of Hungary
Bronze: Stephen I of Hungary
Fourth Place: Louis IX of France SYNODAL HORRORS September 2023 Gold: Abp Víctor Fernández
Silver: Fr James Martin
Bronze: Cdl Arthur Roche
Fourth Place: Dr Austen Ivereigh SYNOD JARGON December 2023 Gold: a new way of being Church
Silver: a kenotic de-centering
Bronze: a listening Church
Fourth Place: respects the protagonism of the Spirit BAD CATHOLIC WRITERS March 2024 Gold: Víctor Manuel Fernández
Silver: Austen Ivereigh
Bronze: James Martin
Fourth Place: Massimo Faggioli MISUSED CHURCHES April 2024 Gold: Borgloon (Belgium), Holy cow
Silver: New York, God is trans
Bronze: St Edmundsbury, Masonic dinner
Fourth Place: Rochester, Crazy golf Coming next: the World Cup of Great Catholic Leaders.
Silver: Gather us in
Bronze: Shine, Jesus, Shine
Fourth Place: Kumbayah Sydney Carter, Marty Haugen and Graham Kendrick. BAD CARDINALS (I) February 2019 Gold: Blase Cupich
Silver: Reinhard Marx
Bronze: Walter Kasper
Fourth Place: Francesco Coccopalmerio BAD CATHOLIC JOURNALISTS October 2019 Gold: James Martin
Silver: Austen Ivereigh
Bronze: Massimo Faggioli
Fourth Place: Antonio Spadaro LITURGICAL ABUSES July 2020 Gold: Idols
Silver: Changing words in the liturgy
Bronze: Communion in the hand
Fourth Place: Consecrating ordinary bread UGLY CHURCHES November 2020 Gold: St Francis de Sales, Norton Shores, Michigan
Silver: Eglise Sainte Bernadette du Banlay
Bronze: Newman Hall, Holy Spirit, Berkeley
Fourth Place: Parroquia Santa Monica, Rivas-Vaciamadrid FRANCIS ACHIEVEMENTS September 2021 Gold: Pachamama worship
Silver: Traditionis Custodes
Bronze: Treatment of the church in China
Fourth Place: Rehabilitating Uncle Ted McCarrick INSTRUMENTS IN HELL March 2022 Gold: Vuvuzela
Silver: Bongo drums
Bronze: Kazoo
Fourth Place: Tambourine PATRON SAINTS OF ENGLAND May 2022 Gold: Thomas More
Silver: Thomas Becket
Bronze: John Fisher
Fourth Place: John Henry Newman BAD CARDINALS (II) October 2022 Gold: Blase Cupich
Silver: Arthur Roche
Bronze: Reinhard Marx
Fourth Place: Francesco Coccopalmerio UNCROWNED SAINTS April 2023 Gold: Pope Leo XIII
Silver: Thomas à Kempis
Bronze: Pope Pius XII
Fourth Place: G.K. Chesterton ROYAL SAINTS July 2023 Gold: Jadwiga of Poland
Silver: Elizabeth of Hungary
Bronze: Stephen I of Hungary
Fourth Place: Louis IX of France SYNODAL HORRORS September 2023 Gold: Abp Víctor Fernández
Silver: Fr James Martin
Bronze: Cdl Arthur Roche
Fourth Place: Dr Austen Ivereigh SYNOD JARGON December 2023 Gold: a new way of being Church
Silver: a kenotic de-centering
Bronze: a listening Church
Fourth Place: respects the protagonism of the Spirit BAD CATHOLIC WRITERS March 2024 Gold: Víctor Manuel Fernández
Silver: Austen Ivereigh
Bronze: James Martin
Fourth Place: Massimo Faggioli MISUSED CHURCHES April 2024 Gold: Borgloon (Belgium), Holy cow
Silver: New York, God is trans
Bronze: St Edmundsbury, Masonic dinner
Fourth Place: Rochester, Crazy golf Coming next: the World Cup of Great Catholic Leaders.
World Cup of Great Catholic Leaders - nominations, please!
Well, the
World Cup of Misused Churches
has been a bit of an anti-climax, as the polling
was probably the slowest of any of these World Cups.
Maybe we can do better this time.
Various people (some of them extremely
implausible) have been described as Catholic Leaders, or similar. So we will vote to see
who best deserves that description.
The rules:
1. Candidates must be living Catholic priests/bishops/etc.
So hard luck, Austen Ivereigh, Taylor Marshall, Joe Biden, ...
2. We will, as usual, do this by Twitter polls.
3. Marko Rupnik is disqualified.
4. The umpire's decision (mine) is final.
So far I have the following nominations (ranging from the
sublime to the ridiculous, but you will be able to decide which is which):
Athanasius Schneider
Carlo Maria Viganò
Charles Chaput
Dwight Longenecker
Gerhard Ludwig Müller
James Martin
John Zuhlsdorf
Joseph Strickland
Joseph Zen
Mario Grech
Pope Francis
Raymond Burke
Robert Barron
Robert Sarah
Thomas Reese
Timothy Dolan
Víctor Manuel Fernández
Wilfrid Napier
Wilton Gregory
You are encouraged to nominate further candidates, either by replying to this
post or by replying to the advert on Twitter. If I have never
heard of your nominee, then he probably isn't eligible,
however #saved he may be.
Also disqualified!
This one is SERIOUS, even though you may agree that some of the candidates
are complete no-hopers.