Jesus and Guns Parts 3 and 4

Here are Part 3 and Part 4. Read it all, don't be lazy.

Jesus & Guns Part 3

Posted by Ann Barnhardt - December 29, AD 2012 8:23 PM MST

"And they that were about Him, seeing what would follow, said to Him: Lord, shall we strike with the sword? And one of them struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his right ear." So just to make certain that we are all appreciating this, Peter, the Prince of the Apostles, is carrying a side arm and knows what to do with it. Now this next verse is the one that really surprised me: "But Jesus answering, said: Suffer ye thus far. And when He had touched his ear, He healed him." Huh? What does "Suffer ye thus far" mean? Hmmm.

Let's look at some contemporary translations and see what they say: "Stop! No more of this." (New American Standard) "Let them be. Even in this." (The Message) "No more of this!" (Holman Christian Standard) Uh-oh. Facepalm. This is not good. These modern translations aren't anywhere close to the Douay-Rheims. The words "stop" and "no" were obviously part of the English lexicon when the Douay-Rheims was made, and they are not used in this verse. Something is wrong here. In order to figure this out, let's go to the Latin. "Sinite usque huc." Sinite: second person plural active imperative of "sino"

Sino: let, permit Okay, so sinite means "you all let" or "you all permit" in the imperative case, which means a command.

(That makes sense! Like "suffer the little children to come unto Me" means "permit the little children . . . ") Usque: adverb meaning "all the way" Huc: adverb meaning here, hence, to this place, to this point You all permit + all the way + here. Our Lord isn't scolding them. Our Lord isn't saying "no more of this" and barking at them to stop. Our Lord is giving them the command to hold and stand down. "You all permit all the way here." This is a HUGE distinction. If a military commander gives his men the order to hold fire and stand down, is he criticizing them? Is he attacking and rebuking their use of weaponry? Is he communicating that they should be pacifists? Is he rejecting their vocations as soldiers? No! He is simply telling them to hold their fire and stand down because there is, at the moment, a tactical reason to do so.

That is EXACTLY what is going on here. Our Lord isn't rebuking the apostles because they are doing exactly what they should do - they are defending their Beloved Friend. If your spouse, or your child, or your best friend, or whoever you love most in this world was being physically attacked and seized, what would you do? What would every fiber of your being be screaming out for you to do? Come to their defense and aid. This is called the Natural Law. God MADE us this way. God made us with the instinctual drive to physically fight to defend those we love. Failure to do so is the sin of cowardice.

Cowardice is a violation of both of the Great Commandments: to love God above all else, and to love our neighbor as we love ourselves. Cowardice places the self above both neighbor and God. And in the case of the apostles, they were engaging both commandments (God and neighbor) directly in the person of Jesus.

Jesus & Guns Part 4

Posted by Ann Barnhardt - December 29, AD 2012 8:09 PM MST

This is why Our Lord had to give the order to hold and stand down. He had to specifically release them from the Great Commandments in that moment. Why? Two reasons: Obviously, it was the will of the Triune Godhead that Jesus be arrested and crucified. These things had to happen. The apostles couldn't be expected to understand this at the time, so there was no expectation for them to quietly sit and watch as Jesus was arrested.

Remember who Jesus is. Jesus is God. He knows everything and everyone. Jesus knew every one of the men who came to arrest Him. Not only did He know them, He loved them all infinitely. He MADE every one of them. He wove them together in their mothers' wombs. He knew every detail of their lives, every thought, every deed. And He loved them. Every single one of them. He also had a plan for every one of them. Like, oh I dunno, CONVERSION? Can you imagine the amount of grace those guards were exposed to? They got to TOUCH Him. They got to look right at Him, and speak to Him. He probably locked eyes with every one of them at some point. Don't discount that. Even though they were absolutely horrible to Him, they were primed for conversion. We know that Malchus, the guy who got his ear cut off, and then was healed by Our Lord, converted. We don't know about the other guards, but we do know that thousands and thousands of Jews were converted in the first years after the Resurrection.

We also know who the first Gentile convert was. It was the Roman Centurion Longinus. Longinus was the Roman soldier who drove the spear into Jesus' side to make certain He was dead, instead of breaking His legs. When the spear went in, it burst the cardiac edema, or the water that had built up around Our Lord's Sacred Heart as He died of asphyxia and heart failure. Longinus, standing beside and below Jesus, was sprayed with that water. Baptism. When the all of the water had come out, Our Lord's Precious Blood sprayed out. Eucharist.

Calvary IS the Mass. The Mass IS Calvary. The Last Supper was an ANTICIPATORY MASS that instituted the Sacrament of the Eucharist AND ratified and elevated all of the previous licit, yet woefully inadequate sacrifices of mankind which were in accordance with the Natural Law. Calvary, and thus the Mass, reaches out through time in BOTH DIRECTIONS, like the crossbeam of the Cross itself, pulling all of time, both before and after, THROUGH the temporal centerpoint of Calvary.

And so, the first Gentile convert was a man who had just spent the past nine hours participating in the torture and execution of Jesus. Grace. I wouldn't be surprised to learn that some of the Jewish guards in the garden were converted too. So we can see an additional reason, beyond the obvious, why Jesus told the apostles to stand down. It was His will that some or all of the guards survive and convert, not die in battle in that moment.

Finally, some might reference Jesus' words in Matthew's gospel:

"Then Jesus saith to him: Put up again thy sword into its place: for all that take the sword shall perish with the sword."

Do you know what I think Jesus is doing here, in part? I think this may be a veiled prophecy about islam. Islam teaches that the way to convert people to the islamic political system is to put a sword to their neck and give them a choice: convert or die. This is referred to as "the Sword of islam". This is how all other evil, satanic political systems operate as well. Marxism leaps to mind. In Marxist tyranny, people are arrested and imprisoned, given the choice to "learn the new system" and be "re-educated" or die.

In addition to a veiled prophecy, Jesus is telling Peter that Christianity does not and will not convert with the sword. It converts only with love. AND, He is telling Peter and us that Christians do not and will not punish apostates (people who leave the faith, like Judas) with the sword. Both islam and Marxism execute apostates. But the second phrase, "shall perish with the sword" is very telling. Jesus is saying that those who "take the sword" and try to convert people to, and hold people in their evil systems by force will in the end be killed WITH THE SWORD. Who will be wielding that sword? Christ will be victorious, so doesn't it stand to reason that the Army of Christ will be the one wielding the sword in the second phrase? Boy, this sure sounds like a ratification of self-defense and just war, doesn't it?

So there you go. Like I said, I'm no authority. I'm just a chick with a Douay-Rheims/Vulgate Bible and a Latin dictionary. I hope you find this interesting, and I hope it spurs thought and discussion. I also hope it drives home the point that the translation of the Bible that we use is utterly critical. It isn't a mere "detail". It is the difference between the Truth and a lie. I think my exegesis is rooted in Scripture, logic and love. I don't think I'm simply fabricating things that aren't there in order to support my own personal philosophical leanings, but then, I'm not a "theologian". I guess we'll all find out, someday.

Have you Heard of Ann Barnhardt?

She posts some amazing stuff--the things I want to say but don't have the courage to say (I'm getting there Ann) Because she doesn't post the linky things to her blog, I'm going to grab some of her stuff and link it here and tweet it. I should have been doing this for years, but, I'm doing it now.
Everything that follows will be Ann's work and please take a minute to follow the link back to her site and see and SHARE the riches for yourself. Thank you Ann.
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Jesus & Guns Part 1

Posted by Ann Barnhardt - December 29, AD 2012 8:58 PM MST

It's time for this again. Originally penned and posted on November 27, AD 2010.

We need to have a frank discussion about Christianity, war and pacifism, because we may all be making direct decisions about these huge questions in our own lives before long. Some scripture popped into my mind earlier this week, and I was able to really dig into it yesterday. I was taken aback by what I found but in a good way. I hope that this will help bring some clarity, or at the very least start some discussions.

First, a small but necessary sidetrack. I have been asked many times about which Bible translation I use or think is best. I used to hemm and haw and say something non-committal about the King James version. I now know beyond a shadow of a doubt what translation we need to be using. We need to be using the Douay-Rheims translation which was begun in 1582 and completed in 1610. It is only two steps removed from the original texts. The Douay-Rheims is the direct translation of St. Jerome's Latin Vulgate. St. Jerome was commissioned to translate the entire canon of scripture into Latin in the year 382 in preparation for the Church Councils which finally set and canonized the Bible, particularly the Council of Carthage in 397. St. Jerome worked from ORIGINAL texts as much as possible, and translated from Hebrew, Greek and Aramaic.

The Douay-Rheims is the direct translation from St. Jerome's translation of the original texts into modern English. Remember, English as we recognize it today, has only been around for 550 years or so. If you were to be dropped into England earlier than the year 1450, you would have a very, very difficult time communicating. So, the Douay-Rheims has between it and the original texts only St. Jerome's Latin Vulgate. I personally use a Bible that is Douay-Rheims side-by-side with the Latin Vulgate. As I pick up more and more Latin, I find myself reading the Latin, and using the English as a cross-check.  You're about to see that this is all very, very important.

  Let's go to Luke 22, The Last Supper.
Christ has just instituted the Eucharist and the Mass. By doing this in anticipation of His death on the Cross the next day, He has made Calvary the centerpoint of time. He has drawn the Old Testament forward to the Cross, and He has pulled the time after Calvary backward. Every moment in time will now pass through and be reconciled to Calvary. "And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all things to Myself." John 12:32

  What I want you to appreciate is the enormousness of the occasion. This is one of the most important things that has ever or will ever happen. This isn't just a farewell meal. The entire world and everyone in it is utterly pivoting on what is happening in this room. Let's go to verse 35 through 38. Jesus has just told Peter that he will deny Him three times. "When I sent you without purse and scrip and shoes, did you want anything?

But they said: Nothing. Then said He unto them: But now he that hath a purse, let him take it, and likewise a scrip: and he that hath not, let him sell his coat and buy a sword. For I say to you that this that is written must yet be fulfilled in Me. And with the wicked was he reckoned. For the things concerning Me have an end. But they said: Lord, behold, here are two swords. And He said to them: It is enough."

  FYI: "scrip" means money. What He is telling them is that they are about to encounter evil, and in preparation for this they need to do whatever they need to do in order to prepare. He is saying that they need to reallocate their assets and "buy a sword". In Latin, "emat gladium". Emat = buy, purchase, acquire, procure. Gladium = sword.

Jesus & Guns Part 2

Posted by Ann Barnhardt - December 29, AD 2012 8:45 PM MST

Wow. I can hear the communists and homosexualists screaming from here. "He didn't really mean it! He wasn't speaking literally! He was speaking figuratively!"

He was speaking, as God Almighty almost always does, on multiple levels, INCLUDING THE LITERAL. Oh, yes. I'll concede that we should take from this scripture His call to reject materialism and gird ourselves for spiritual battle. No doubt. But if we delude ourselves into thinking that this is the ONLY sense in which He is speaking, we are missing something huge.

Look at the last verse:

"But they said: Lord, behold, here are two swords. And He said to them: It is enough."

Okay. Stop, stop, stop. Hold the phone. Put out the cat. First of all, this proves that He was speaking in the literal sense in addition to the figurative sense. But more importantly, do you realize what this means? At least two of the apostles arrived at the Upper Room wearing side arms, which they then took off so they could sit on the floor around the low table that was used in those days. What this also means is that there were side arms present, in the room, at the Last Supper.

Now here is where all of the Communist-homosexualists are going to absolutely lose it. What is the contemporary, technological equivalent of a sword? What is considered a "side arm" today? That's right. A gun. A sword, in first century Judea was, without any doubt or question, an "assault weapon". Now you can scream and spit and stomp and rage and retch all you want, but you know I'm right. The apostles report that they have two swords, and Jesus says, "It is enough."

I saw in my research that some "scholars" try to paint Jesus as snapping at the apostles, trying to translate "Satis est (It is enough)" as "Oh, enough already!" I don't hear that at all. I hear Him simply saying that two swords will be enough. This is where we get into huge problems with modern quasi-Christian "scholars" projecting their own agendas onto their translation of the Bible.

Here are a couple of examples of bad, agenda-driven translations:

"Enough of that!" (Holman Christian Standard)

"Enough of that; no more sword talk!" (The Message - not a joke, they completely fabricated that second phrase. Evil.)

Even if you go with these false translations, you're still stuck with the fact that there were side arms, assault weapons, IN THE ROOM at the Last Supper. What, are you going to argue that Jesus didn't KNOW that there were swords in the room? Who is Jesus? He's God Almighty. He knows EVERYTHING.

Further, if this was just a horrible mistake or coincidence, why would Jesus make specific reference to swords (which are assault weapons, remember) and arming one's self, thus leading the apostles to inventory the weapons arsenal in the room?

FURTHER, why would the Holy Spirit, through Luke, put all of this down in writing? Why are we all sitting in front of our respective computer screens, poring through our Bibles, reading and discussing this 1979 years after the fact? Dude. It is not sufficient at this point to simply declare me a bloodthirsty, gun-toting war monger and then walk away. You have to refute and rebut the logical progression I just laid out. Good luck with that.

Now, let's go to verse 49. They're in the Garden, and Jesus has gone through His agony. Now Judas, with the Jewish guards, approaches. Judas kisses Jesus to show the guards which man they should arrest. The apostles see this and ask, "Lord, shall we strike with the sword?"

Dude, they're STILL ARMED. With ASSAULT WEAPONS. If Jesus was disgusted with the swords back in the Upper Room, why are the apostles wearing SWORDS (which are assault weapons, remember) in the Garden? Don't you think that hippie, pacifist Jesus would have told them to LEAVE THE SWORDS BEHIND? And then scolded them? He didn't do that. They put on their swords (which are assault weapons) and walked to the Garden. You know why? Because Jesus is neither a hippie nor a pacifist.

Next, Peter (and we know it was Peter from John 18) struck one of the guards and cut off his ear.

Obama Throws Our American Elders off a Cliff

Wow, American Doctors4Truth.org hits President Obama's Healthcare bill hard with the truth. Please share this! These brave medical professionals need our support and deserve our thanks! Please let them know how much you appreciate them standing for our elderly loved ones!

Lying to the Catholics...again.

"He that gathereth treasures by a lying tongue, is vain and foolish, and shall stumble upon the snares of death" Proverbs 21:6

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Get informed, take responsibility for your vote. Catholics do not have the luxury of  "sitting this one out" --you have a duty before God to make an informed and responsible vote. No excuses.

"It is necessary that all participate, according to his position and role, in promoting the common good. This is inherent in the dignity of the human person ... As far as possible citizens should take an active part in public life" (CCC nos. 1913-1915).

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Ten Ways Catholic Voters Will Be Misled in 2012

By Deal W. Hudson & Matt Smith

1. In spite of the new "Introduction" to "Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship," the bishops’ document will be cherry-picked and repackaged into sound bites to justify voting for a candidate who supports abortion and same-sex marriage.

2. Pro-life Catholics will be labeled as "single issue voters" who don't care about the larger social teaching of the Church, especially concern for the poor and vulnerable.

3. The budget passed by the House of Representatives, led by Rep. Paul Ryan (R, WI-01), a Catholic, will be relentlessly attacked as not caring about the poor because it proposed cuts and spending freezes to reduce the growing U.S. deficit that is hurting the economy.

4. "Progressive" Catholic groups will produce polling that supposedly shows Catholics disagree with Church teaching on the sanctity of life and marriage, implying those who agree are in the minority and "behind the times."

5. Catholic politicians and leaders who support abortion and same-sex marriage will not be termed "dissenters" or "liberals" but "progressives" in order to make them sound more attractive to independent voters.

6. Catholic voters will be told the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Obama-care) did not contain federal funding for abortion.

7. Catholic voters will be told the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Obama-care) does not pose a threat to religious liberty, for example, the conscience of a Catholic health care worker.

8. Anyone supporting state collective bargaining reforms with public-sector unions, such as Wisconsin, is ignoring the importance of worker's rights in Catholic social teaching.

9. Those Catholics who opposed President Bush and Senator McCain over Operation Iraqi Freedom will not make the same argument against Obama who increased the U.S. military in Afghanistan and the use of drone aircraft to perform executions.

10. The issue of immigration will be elevated to a level of importance equal to abortion and marriage with the only acceptable 'Catholic' position being support for specific pieces of legislation such as the 'DREAM Act' (Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors).

Killer Windmills

I hate to see this happening. This is a no win for everyone and the only answer I can see to disable the windmills. We need these magnificant birds, they work non stop hunting rodents, snakes and insects. But, the damage may already be irreversable, averaging 67 deaths per year for decades I hope not.

"The death count along the ridgelines of the Bay Area’s Altamount Pass Wind Resource Area has averaged 67 a year for three decades.

The 200ft high turbines, which have been operating since the 1980s, lie in the heart of the grassy canyons that are home to one of the highest densities of nesting golden eagles in the US."

Get Clean--the Sacrament of Reconciliation

As a Catholic in the south, I am often asked if I have a "close and personal relationship with Jesus Christ". I smile and say "I do" We Catholics are blessed with Seven Sacraments, Reconciliation is just one...

Betrayal

We've all experienced it--betrayal, the moment when expectation bursts through the veil of reality. I don't expect alot from the folks I know and trust within my circle of life other than respect and loyalty--both of which I am happy to return. Yet, there is  always that one person, isn't there? She knows who she is...

...and I will dance anyway.



"Undefeated" The Truth about Sarah Palin

Pamela Geller says it exactly when she writes "Every American is needed in this war for the security, the viability, the soul of America. Every American is needed on deck. Every family is a unit in the national service of our country. This is no exaggeration. This is life and death. This nation is at the precipice. A terrible war is coming, thanks in part to disastrous policies set in motion by a dangerous post-American president...The media has ceased to act in any kind of responsible news gathering/disseminating fashion. It acts only to serve the state and its party (statism, collectivism). America must break the hold it has on creating false narratives about traitors and low-lives, while destroying the reputations and careers of patriots and heroes.
                                  
I am sick and tired of hearing that Sarah Palin is "unelectable." Says who? The urbane degenerates masquerading as "journalists?" This is who America is looking to for information and direction? Civilizational suicide.

I am sick and tired of hearing Republicans say Sarah Palin is unelectable. Says who and why and based on what? I am sick and tired of letting our enemies define our leaders for us. Palin has the stuff of true greatness. She has grit and courage and love of country. The palpable hatred among the left elites (and their counterparts, the RINOs) is the hatred of the good for being the good.

Palin's record is exemplary. From the PTA to the Mayors office. From the Mayor to the Governor. From Governor to Vice-Presidential candidate. She is close to perfect, and yet she is reviled, defamed, ridiculed by those who aren't fit to wipe her black stilettos."

We need a person with the grit, determination and unabashed love of country that Sarah Palin so proudly demonstrates, over and over again. Even though we are on a tight budget these days, this is one expense I will gladly budget for, if for other reason than to annoy the liberals. :) So yeah, Im going to see this documentary "Undefeated" 

I am not suprised.

I wish I could say I am suprised, but I am not. He's told so many lies, I doubt even Obama remembers the truth.
 But, of course, Sarah Palin is the one "unfit to be president" Rigghtt...

The Crocker Post: Obama's SSN May Be Fraudulent: "Attorney Orly Taitz has been given the go ahead by U.S. District Chief Judge Royce C. Lamberth to go after Obama's potentially fraudulent C...">>

Mittens Romney You Aren't Fooling Anyone

The more I see this woman, the more I like her. Ann Barnhardt rips the guts out of Mitt Romney's campain platform. Please share this ass kicking.

6 More Soldiers from the 101st Airborne killed tonight by jihadi terrorist cowards

The Department of Defense announced late Saturday night the death of six 101st Airborne Division soldiers who were supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.
They died May 26 of wounds suffered when insurgents attacked their unit with an improvised explosive device in Kandahar province, Afghanistan, according to a news release from Fort Campbell.

They were assigned to Fox Company, (Pathfinder), 4th Battalion, 101st Aviation Regiment, 159th Combat Aviation Brigade.

Go here to read the rest and see their faces. Six more. God.

Trump still isn't finished with Obama's birth certificate

Hmmmm...more questions than answers at this point. You know what I find striking--the complete lack of curiosity of those who claim to be searching for the truth --and from those who so self-righteously thump their chests and claim that those who keep asking questions are going to "hand the 2012 elections to Obama"--a more contemporary charge than "racist" I suppose. It's almost as if the charge of "racist" has been replaced by the charge of "birther" as a form of silencing, complete with ridicule and mockery.
What I don't understand is how anyone can not grasp the fact that if Obama is proven to be a fraud, then he will not be eligible to run in 2012. Maybe I am just too simplistic, idk.

Anyway, this is a good article and I hope you will take the time to actually watch the videos. They are very well done.

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Via WND
"Billionaire businessman Donald Trump, who staged a weeks-long public campaign questioning Barack Obama's eligibility to be president during March and April – and rose to the top of the pool of potential candidates for the 2012 GOP nomination then as a result – says he believes the "birth certificate" released by the White House is forged.
His comments came yesterday in a telephone call to WND senior reporter Jerome Corsi, Ph.D., who is appearing on wall-to-wall radio programs – between 10 and 20 per day – to respond to questions about his latest best-seller, "Where's the Birth Certificate? The Case That Barack Obama is Not Eligible to be President."

Trump asked Corsi about the book, its evidence and what is happening next in the effort to document whether Obama is, in fact, constitutionally qualified for the presidency under Article 2, Section 1's "natural born citizen" requirement."

St. Michael the Archangel

Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle, be our protection against the malice and snares of the devil. May God rebuke him we humbly pray; and do thou, O Prince of the Heavenly host, by the power of God, thrust into hell Satan and all evil spirits who wander through the world for the ruin of souls. Amen.

Sáncte Míchael Archángele, defénde nos in proélio, cóntra nequítiam et insídias diáboli ésto præsídium. Ímperet ílli Déus, súpplices deprecámur: tuque, prínceps milítiæ cæléstis, Sátanam aliósque spíritus malígnos, qui ad perditiónem animárum pervagántur in múndo, divína virtúte, in inférnum detrúde. Ámen

Oklahoma savaged by tornadoes

                                                    **Update**
68 of Oklahoma's 77 counties are declared disaster zones today by Gov Mary Fallin. It's bad y'all.

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Oklahoma, my homestate, was slammed by another round of tornadoes... again.  If you can take a few moments to pray for the brave people of this great state, they would be very much appreciated. Today, they will do what Oklahomans always do after a disaster, pick themselves up and carry on. It's what we do.
If you are so inclined, you can reach the RedCross here, and specify the donation for the Oklahoma tornado survivors

The Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin (May 31st)

Sometimes less fully catechized Catholics confuse the Annunciation with the Visitation. They are two separate events. During the Annunciation the Archangel Gabriel came to Mary and announced that she would become the mother of Jesus Christ--Gabriel came to "announce". During the visitation, Mary came to help her older cousin Elizabeth during the later part of her pregnancy--Mary came to "visit"

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The Holy Gospel according to Luke 1: 39-55

During those days Mary set out and traveled to the hill country in haste to a town of Judah,

where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth.  

When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said, "Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.  

And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord ¹⁴ should come to me?  

For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy.  

Blessed are you who believed ¹⁵ that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled."  

And Mary said: ¹⁶ "My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord;  

my spirit rejoices in God my savior.  

For he has looked upon his handmaid's lowliness; behold, from now on will all ages call me blessed.

The Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name.  

His mercy is from age to age to those who fear him.  

He has shown might with his arm, dispersed the arrogant of mind and heart.

He has thrown down the rulers from their thrones but lifted up the lowly.  

The hungry he has filled with good things; the rich he has sent away empty.

He has helped Israel his servant, remembering his mercy,  

according to his promise to our fathers, to Abraham and to his descendants forever."

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You know what is really cool? In that section of the gospel is where Catholics derive two of my very favorite Catholic prayers, the Hail Mary and the Magnificat.

Look:

"Hail Mary, full of grace the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus..." See? That is nothing more than what Elizabeth said to her younger cousin when the child within her womb leapt for joy, as John recognized his Savior, Jesus Christ. The Hail Mary is one of the prayers Catholics pray during our Rosary--it is not a spell or incantation, it is a prayer. 

Greg Erlandson says this about the Magnificat

"The Visitation is also the occasion for Mary’s great prayer, the Magnificat. This prayer is treasured by a wide variety of Catholics because it is an eloquent articulation of the Catholic belief in the dignity of all people and the Gospel injunction to help the weakest among us, uniting the pro-life and social-justice wings of our sometimes divided Church.
This May 31, pray for all women who are struggling with pregnancies. Pray that God gives them strength to protect the life they bear in their wombs. And while you are at it, make a donation to an aid organization that provides assistance to unwed mothers."

Two women, both of them endangered by the tiny lives they carried within their wombs, Elizabeth who was advanced in years and Mary, unwed in a society who stoned women for adultery. Courage. Faith. Love.

Lindsey Graham, you jackass

Ive been busy. Life comes in waves and sometimes I just have to set everything down and take care of my family. But, this one was too good not to post. Repost if you dare.

Lindsey Graham, RINO extraordinaire

Rebuttal:


Pork Bookmarks

Bishop Olmsted responds to attempted ordination of women | Sept. 1, 2010

Bishop Olmsted responds to attempted ordination | Sept. 1, 2010

Catechism of the Catholic Church, #1577: “Only a baptized man validly receives sacred ordination. The Lord Jesus chose men to form the college of the twelve apostles, and the apostles did the same when they chose collaborators to succeed them in their ministry. The college of bishops, with whom the priests are united in the priesthood, makes the college of the twelve an ever-present and ever-active reality until Christ’s return. The Church recognizes herself to be bound by this choice made by the Lord himself. For this reason the ordination of women is not possible.”

Seems pretty clear to me. Where's the confusion?

Answering the 'why not?' of women's ordination: Our Sunday Visitor

Answering the 'why not?' of women's ordination: Our Sunday Visitor

That Would Be as Stupid As...

That Would Be as Stupid As...

Songs From the Soul of America

Our nation is under seige-- relentless, grinding seige from people who do not care about our way of life. They only want to impose their way of life upon us, the free people of the United States of America. Tyranny. Totalitarianism. Dictatorship.Oligarchy. Whatever label one places on those who seek to usurp the freedom of Americans doesn't matter. What matters is that we continue to fight against them. Fight when you are fired up and full of fury when American citizens are burned alive in buildings. Fight when you are saddened by the loss of another son or daughter. Fight when you are so bone weary from worry and work that you feel you simply cannot face another moment of animosity. Fight when you want to give up. Fight when you are mocked and ridiculed. Fight in everyway you know.

When we stop fighting, we lose. Everything. Keep going. Never surrender.