Faith found and lost

Immediately after posting my gouge on the Pew Forum's latest research yesterday, I drove to work listening to On Point with Tom Ashbrook. He was interviewing William Lobdell, a former religion reporter for the Los Angeles Times and author of the book Losing My Religion: How I Lost My Faith Reporting on Religion in America-and Found Unexpected Peace, whose personal story of faith and religious practice is odd. The program website summarizes it well:

"Award-winning journalist William Lobdell grew up an indifferent Episcopalian. Drifted from faith. By age 28, his life was a mess. He couldn’t stand the person he’d become. A friend told him, 'You need God.'

"Lobdell found Jesus. Felt his heart split wide open. Was born again, to the tune of Amazing Grace. Was saved.

"And then, over fifteen years, it all fell apart. Now, Lobdell puts himself in the ranks of American atheists. And he’s telling the wrenching story of his journey into and out of faith."

It was an interesting interview. Lobdell is very honest about where he stands, but quite unclear as to why. One of the questions posed, which reduces faith to moralism, is "If Christians are no more ethical than atheists, why belong to a church?" While that is a good question, it is reductive and ignores the fact that Christians see the world and ourselves as fallen, but in the process of being redeemed, this is a very uneven process. I mean, if we were magically perfected by being baptized, or coming to faith in Christ, there would be no need for any other sacrament, least of all confession. In addition to Giussani, another antidote for this kind of reductive view is Timothy Radcliffe's What Is The Point of Being A Christian? Catholic Christianity is not now and never has been strictly binary, that is, either/or, but both/and, accounting for reality according to the totality of its factors.

I don't mind stating that I am suffering from blogger's blah. So, unless really moved, there will be much less filling this cyber space. It seems that unless you can state something in 140 characters or less, nobody's gonna take the time. Don't look for me on Twitter, I have difficult enough time convincing myself participate on Facebook. Call me a Luddite, but I stand opposed to reduction and exalting quantity over quality, our ability to reason is already short-circuited enough. I am very interested in what others think, should they choose to take the time. The end of a month is a good time to shift into a lower gear.

Kim Kardashian Life & Style Bikini Photos: 'I Have Cellulite So What!'

Kim Kardashian Life & Style Bikini Photo

Kim Kardashian shows off her REAL curvaceous figure Life & Style magazine which hits newsstands On Friday May 1.

The 28-year-old reality star, who was airbrushed on the April-May issue of Complex magazine, has a group of unretouched photo shoots in a black two-piece bikini for the latest issue of Life & Style.

"I love my body the way it is, I'm not perfect. I have cellulite, so what!……I chose to do the shoot because I am so sick of people giving me a hard time for those photos that came out in Complex, I wanted to say, 'This is me, take it or leave it.’” Kim Kardashian defended herself after some recent controversial comments on her curves.

Yup, Kim, don't let it get to you. I also have cellulite but never got bothered, too!

Jennifer Aniston Adopting a Baby Boy? PEOPLE 100 Most Beautiful People 2009; etc

Jennifer Aniston was believed to become a mother soon. The 40-year-old actress was said to consider adopting a baby boy from her own country, the United States. She reportedly has already started planning a $250,000 nursery and even picked out a nanny. --Star

Sean Penn has filed for divorce from his wife of 13 years Robin Wright Penn again last Friday. The Academy Award actor initially filed for divorce in December 2007 but dismissed the divorce petition later. -- Extra

Mel Gibson, the 53-year-old actor made a first public outing with his new Russian girlfriend Oksana Grigorieva, 39, last night, attending the Los Angeles premiere of Hugh Jackman's X-Men Origins: Wolverine. --Aceshowbiz

Christina Applegate, the 37-year-old Samantha Who actress, covers the latest special double issue of People magazine, which features world’s 100 most beautiful people of 2009 including Barack and Michelle Obama, Hugh Jackman, Angelina Jolie, Zac Efron, Nick and Joe Jonas, and Taylor Swift among other. --People

Sarah Jessica Parker, the 44-year-old Sex And The City star and her actor husband Matthew Broderick are expecting twin daughters through a surrogate pregnancy. Their twin daughters will be born this summer. -- Dailymail

Heidi Montag Playboy Photos: A $500,000 Playboy Deal?

Heidi Montag bikini photo via Myspace.com

Heidi Montag Playboy photos are coming soon?

The 22-year-old The Hills star is reportedly considering stripping down for Playboy magazine, and her newlywed husband Spencer Pratt is in support for that. The reported deal will earn Heidi $500,000 in payment.

"(Heidi) wants to do it. It’s just a matter of working out the details,” an insider claims that in the May 11 issue of Life & Style magazine.

After undergoing breast augmentation and getting a nose job, the plastic beauty is more confidently to show off her good look body.

But sources told PerezHilton that "(Heidi) won't be required to actually get n*ked for Playboy.” Sad a little bit!

What does the survey tell us; trying to make some sense of the data

According to the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life report, Faith in Flux: Change in Religious Affiliation in the U.S., currently 44% of all adults in the U.S. do not belong to their childhood faith, the faith in which they raised, that amounts to roughly 95 million people, according to 2007 estimates from the CIA World Factbook. 9%, or some eight and a half million of these adults were raised Catholic, but no longer affiliate with the Catholic Church. 4% of U.S. adults who were raised Catholic and are now unaffiliated, with the other 5% now self-identifying as Protestants. It is also interesting to note that 9% of adults who practice the faith in which they were raised, at some point changed faiths, either being unaffiliated or affiliating with another group, before returning to their childhood faith. According to the survey, only 3% of those raised Protestant become Catholic. In fact, more people who were raised Protestant, 4%, affiliate with non-Christian religions than with Catholicism.

Unsurprisingly, Mass attendance seems to be the biggest predictor as to whether someone remains Catholic, especially during teenage years. 69% of Catholics who were born and raised in the church and are still Catholic attended Mass at least weekly during their teen years, compared to 60% of those who were raised Catholic and who now self-identify as Protestants, and 44% of those who are now unaffiliated. Even as a child, 86% of those who remain Catholic attended Mass at least weekly versus 79% of those who are now Protestant and 74% of those who are unaffiliated. This is a bigger predictor than either participation in children and youth religious education programs or attendance at Catholic schools, with 25% of those who remain Catholic having attended Catholic schools, compared with 16% who changed to being Protestant, and 20% of those who are unaffiliated.

Among the common reasons given by formerly Catholic respondents for leaving their childhood faith and now being unaffiliated, 71% said that they “just drifted away from religion,” followed by 65% ceasing to believe in the church’s teachings. They could give more than one reason leaving Catholicism. These are the only two general reasons identified by more than half of the previously Catholic and currently unaffiliated respondents. In their own words, 54% of the unaffiliated respondents who were raised Catholic cited religious and moral beliefs as their reason for leaving, the only reason to garner more than half among this group of respondents.

For those who were raised Catholic and now identify themselves as Protestants, 54% of those who now identify themselves as Evangelicals and 53% of those who are mainline, denominational Protestants said they just drifted away from religion. Presumably, when they came back, they affiliated differently for any number of reasons. 62% of Evangelicals and only 20% of mainline Protestants said that they stopped believing in the church’s teachings.

Getting more specific, 56% of the now unaffiliated, compared with 20% of self-identifying Evangelicals, and 31% of those who now consider themselves mainline Protestants, report their unhappiness with the church’s teachings on abortion and/or homosexuality as reasons no longer affiliating with the church. 48% of the currently religiously unaffiliated, 12% of former Catholics who are now Evangelicals and 26% of former Catholics who now affiliate with mainline Protestant denominations cite the church’s teaching on birth control as a reason for leaving. Divorce and remarriage also factor in with 33% of the now unaffiliated, 23% of Evangelicals and 31% of formerly Catholic mainline Protestants, saying it is a reason that they left.

Of the 48% of those adults who have left the Catholic faith, having been raised Catholic, who cited the church’s teaching on birth control as a reason they left the Catholic Church, 23% of those who now identify as mainline Protestants, 9% of those who are self-identifying Evangelicals, and 46% of the currently unaffiliated say that the Catholic Church is “[t]oo strict and conservative.”

It also bears noting that 36% of those who change religious affiliation from the faith of their childhood change twice, and 26% change three or more times, leaving 38%, thus constituting a plurality, who only change once.

A few tentative and preliminary observations:

I am one of the 44% of adults in the United States who no longer belongs to the faith in which I was raised, having changed only once. I became Catholic at the age of 24 in 1990. I consciously quit affiliating with the LDS at 22. By way of comparing a rough outline of my own experience with that of others who have changed religious allegiance, for whatever that might be worth, I am among the 79% of people who left their childhood faith before turning 24. However, I am slightly over the age at which 71% of those who change affiliation join their current faith, which is also prior their twenty-fourth birthday, though I did begin RCIA when I was twenty-three. These numbers are overwhelming. Only 21% of adults who change religious affiliation do so after age twenty-four! This gets back to religious practice and the late teen/early adult years. These are vital years. It is a time of transition for people from being children to adults. Hence, it is not a time merely for faith formation, but for faith transformation! St. Paul wrote: “When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways” (1 Cor. 13:11).

Helping people in their mid-to-late teens and early twenties see that maturity in faith, as in all aspects of life, is vital. To aid them in discerning that faith in Christ, which of necessity is mediated to us by the church, conceived of as the whole communio sanctorum, of which they are a part, can withstand rigorous intellectual and existential scrutiny, is our pastoral challenge. This means assisting people in getting over much silliness, like believing that the mystery of the triune God, formulated as one God in three divine persons, somehow consists of believing that at the heart of Christian faith is a gross arithmetical error, namely that 3=1, which reason tells us differ by exactly two. It also means helping people get beyond the temptation, as Fr. Carrón put it, to reproach the Lord because, even though we are Christians, bad and unexpected things happen to us. Such things happen to everybody, just as it rains on the just and unjust in equal measure. We must also do a better job of engaging young people in the area of morality, especially in the always delicate area of sexuality. This is no small challenge, there are no easy answers here, especially given that against which we are forced to contend, but you do not meet a challenge by shrinking away from it. As with success in all education, the role of parents, who are the primary catechists of their own children, a task that cannot be delegated, is crucial.

Liturgy features centrally in all of this, it was not just a theological, but an anthropological assertion by the fathers of Vatican II that the euchartistic liturgy is the source and summit of our faith. However, we must strive for good liturgy, which is not liturgy that tries too hard to be relevant. Substantial preaching is also a must. People are not stupid, especially those adults who attend Mass each week and are serious about following Christ. In no two aspects of church life do we need to put away childish things than in liturgy, which includes preaching, and catechesis. On the whole, there needs to be far more adult formation on offer.

We must assist people in forming a faith that is not only an understanding of but a relationship with God, through Christ, in the power of the Holy Spirit, a house built on a rock, strong enough to withstand the storms of life. Belonging to a community in order to help each other out is also vital; you know, that whole God and neighbor dynamic? In fact, 10% of the formerly Catholic and currently unaffiliated cite not enough feeling of community as a reason for leaving. An identical 10% of those who were raised Catholic, but who as adults belong to Protestant congregations also gave not enough feeling of community as reason for leaving the Catholic Church. That computes to roughly 850,000 leaving because they do find the community that they seek, either giving up the search altogether, or seeking it elsewhere.

David Beckham Designs Clothing Line “Adidas Originals By Originals”

David Beckham has joined his wife Victoria Beckhamhis in fashion as a clothing designer.

The 33-year-old footballer designed his own clothing line Adidas Originals By Originals, collaborating with Undefeated sneaker-freak boutiques’ owner James Bond on a fall-winter men’s collection, according to wwd.

Beckham and Bond developed fashionable materials such as leather, cashmere and silk to update classic American sportswear even accessories and thermal layering pieces.

Regretfully, Beckham won’t use his image or personal appearances to promote the new line because he already has an endorsement relationship with Adidas.

Julia Roberts F-Word Tom Hanks Tribute Speech

Julia Roberts photo via Youtube.com Julia Roberts ( Photogallery )

Julia Roberts dropped the F-bomb several times during a tribute speech to her good friend Tom Hanks, who was presented the new Chaplin Award at the 36th annual Film Society of Lincoln Center event last night, Us Weekly reports.

Alright well, it's late and I'm paying my babysitter overtime and I have to pee. So Tom, everybody f-----g likes you. All my bits are gone.

Julia Roberts said with a f-Word introductory remarks, and began to make some uncomfortable comments to Hank’ wife,

Listen, I had lunch today with Rita [Wilson, Hanks' wife], and her t--s were here [motioned high] and her waist was here [motioned small] and her a-- was like that [motioned high], so what can I tell you that's new? Tom Hanks, what the f--k?

I love the Cohen brothers, but the hair Tom [in 2004's Ladykillers], I didn't even know what the f--k that movie was about!

She went on using f-word and joked about Hanks’ role in his movies,

You in the airport with the accent [in 2004’s The Terminal]? It was a pass for me. Airport? Were you just an immigrant lost? I didn't know. I love you, and I didn't know what to do, really. God, I’m wearing the same f-----g dress tonight as your publicist!

Finally, she closed her speech with a highly praise to Tom Hanks, utilizing the f-word again and again,

So Tom, everybody f-----g likes you. So what can I tell you that's new? Tom Hanks, what the f--k? Listen, I've got to get home. But this much we know ... I will say this: Tom Hanks, I love you.

Ouch, what a bizarre tribute speech!

Selena Gomez Taylor Lautner Dating Or Not?

Selena Gomez & Taylor Lautner photo via Photobucket

Selena Gomez and Taylor Lautner dating rumor sparked again when they were spotted stepping out together in Vancouver over the weekend.

Selena Gomez, the 16-year-old Disney Wizards of Waverly Place star, were photographed hugging Taylor Lautner, the 17-year-old Twilight actor during an outing for dinner together at the Cactus Club in Coquitlam on Saturday, April 25.

The two teen stars looked happy after the dinner. They then went to a nearby cinema to watch Beyonce Knowles's thriller Obsessed .

Both Selena and Taylor are currently in Toronto shooting their new movies ( Ramona and Beezus and Twilight sequel New Moon, respectively). The pair previously has been snapped outings together a few times. Are they just friends?

Living, not ossified, faith

It is far too easy to over generalize about the experience of others. It is reductive and so is not helpful, as it tends to rob people of their humanity, at least in our eyes, to reduce them to a type, which is a caricature. On the basis of such an assessment, we could all arrive at the conclusion that, somehow, we are so very different from everyone else, that our experience is of a different order. After having arrived at this conclusion we are prone to privilege our experience over that of others and use it as an excuse to stay apart, to withhold ourselves because "They just don't get me."

The reason we can perform this feat is because we have immediate and continuous access to our own experience, to our own inner life, an access we do not have when it comes to others, even those close to us. We fool ourselves if we think that there is such a life that is a uniform Catholic life, even among those who share the same state of life (i.e., married, single, clerical, religious). There is no following Christ that is not a journey to destiny, a pilgrimage, and there is no road to destiny without its treacherous patches, even for those who have believed all their lives. In fact, those who have always believed have weathered many storms. To take such a view is in stark contrast to our call to be companions on the way.

I cannot begin to tell you how many times people have asked to meet with me about their desire to be involved, only to tell me "No" at every opportunity afterwards. I am usually pretty available to people, but when it comes to this matter these days, I just give them ways to be involved on the phone, or in an e-mail and who they can contact to do this. I use the Nike slogan- Just do it and spare us all the hand-wringing and the pseudo-discernment, as you "discern" your way into eternity. I do not think it necessary to wrestle all night with an angel in order to decide to teach a third grade religious education class, or make sandwiches for the parish outreach program.

If I have one lament about my own experience of church, which I am careful these days not to universalize (I was not always so judicious and I still lapse, as parts of this post probably demonstrate), it is that we talk real good about community, but we are often bad at living it, choosing instead to be alone together. This why I am grateful for the Movement, which has enabled me to light a candle instead of contenting myself with the all too easy alternative of cursing the darkness. So, for me, the Movement is a positive hypothesis. Loneliness and longing for community, for communio, is also what initially prompted me to seek the companionship of certain saints. My companionship with them is a true companionship, not an imaginary one. I would invite anyone to verify this themselves through their own experience. All of this is why I was deeply moved by Fr. Louis-Marie Chauvet, when he wrote that "on the basis of the incarnation of God in Jesus... [our] encounter with God goes through [our] encounter with others" (The Sacraments: The Word of God at the Mercy of the Body, pg. 38). As I preached last Sunday: "This 'encounter with others' is to be taken in its twofold sense: our encounter of others and an experience that we share with them."

In other words, for everyone who believes and seeks to follow Christ, there is an inherent tension, a tension that is necessary in order to grow, to become who God created, redeemed, and now sanctifies you to be. This cannot happen in a vacuum, it requires other people and authentic community.

As far as what we believe, there is much we are free to dismiss, to bracket, to not believe. For example, we are not obligated to believe even in those Marian apparitions that the church has investigated and to which she has given her imprimatur and nihil obstat. In fact, I think a healthy skepticism is necessary when it comes to claims of private revelation. On other hand, we must not become skeptics and dismiss the very possibility of such things. Hence, this is one example of a dialectical tension inherent to faith. Cardinal Martini, in his wonderful book, compiled and translated by his devoted student, Marsha Daigle-Williamson, The Gospel According to St. Paul: Meditations on His Life and Letters, says that faith itself is living the dialectic tension between the seen and the unseen. Certainly, what the church proposes dogmatically is perfectly consonant with human reason. It is possible to reject it, but it can't be rejected on the basis of there being no possibility of it's being true, even according to reason.

At the end of the day, the criterion of truth is your heart, what genuinely corresponds to your deepest desire. This is why there is no substitute for honesty because without integrity there can be no faith, which is a way of knowing. In other words, as Anselm of Canterbury wrote: "we do not seek to understand in order to believe, but we believe in order to understand." Authentic faith is never a reduction, it is always an expansion of ourselves, of our view of the world, and of others. Seeing with the eyes of faith is precisely what enables us to see people as they are and to engage reality according to the totality of its factors, which is to see things neither through gray-tinted nor rose-colored glasses, but clearly.

Beyonce "Obsessed" Tops Box Office; Kim Kardashian Blonde Hair Is Just A Wig

Beyonce Knowles and Idris Elba's fatal attraction thriller, Obsessed, topped the box office this weekend, earning $28.5 million in ticket sales -- well over what studio execs predicted.

Slumdog Millionaire co-stars Freida Pinto and Dev Patel are dating, Patel comfirmed.

Farrah Fawcett's son Redmond O'Neal left jail on Saturday to visit his cancer-stricken mother. He was given a three-hour window from departure to return for the visit.

Miley Cyrus denied the rumor that she has rekindled her romance with ex boyfriend Nick Jonas.

Kim Kardashian said her new blonde hair showed off this weekend was just a wig.

Samantha Ronson Married? Samantha Ronson Facebook Relationship Status Changed to “Married”

Samantha Ronson picture via Photobucket.com

Samantha Ronson’s Facebook relationship status always swings with her mood.

Samantha Ronson allegedly deleted her previous "In a Relationship" status following a split with Lindsay Lohan earlier this month.

Her Facebook status read “It's complicated” last Thursday after she was rumored reuniting with Lindsay Lohan.

Now X17online is reporting that the 31-year-old DJ changed her relationship status again, from "It's Complicated" to "Married".

Samantha Ronson is married? Is it possible that Samantha Ronson and Lindsay Lohan have been married??? Gross!

Britney Spears Pregnant With 3rd Child? Ryan Seacrest's Claim Sparked Britney Spears Pregnancy Rumor

Britney Spears and Chase Benz photo via Youtube.com

Britney Spears is pregnant with her third child?

American Idol host Ryan Seacrest announced that he heard Britney Spears was pregnant again on his morning radio show in Los Angeles on last Wednesday. Ryan claimed the Britney Spears pregnancy news came from a “reliable source”.

Britney Spears, the 27-year-old divorcee who has given birth two sons of ex husband Kevin Federline, was said to have been knocked up by Chase Benz, the 21-year-old background dancer of her Circus tour 2009.

Britney Spears and Chase Benz photo via Youtube.com

But Britney’s camp denied the rumor immediately. "She (Britney) is not pregnant. I have no idea where this ridiculous rumour came from. Ryan has communication with our camp and could have checked this before saying it," the singer’s manager Adam Leber said.

l'affair Notre Dame redux

Ambassador Mary Ann Glendon announced this morning that she is declining the award of Notre Dame's highest honor, the Laetare medal. She did so by making public a letter she wrote to university president, Fr. John Jenkins, C.S.C. In light of a trend UND seems to have set, with the announcements over the weekend that Xavier University, a Catholic school in New Orleans, has invited Donna Brazile and that St. Joseph's University in Philadelphia has invited Chris Matthews, both pro-choice Catholics, to give commencement addresses and to be honored, Ambassador Glendon's decision strikes me as the right one.

Bishop D'Arcy has confirmed in recent days the concern I expressed at the beginning, namely that UND never consulted him about the decision to invite and honor Pres. Obama, nor did they inform him before the public announcement that they had made these decisions. However, they did consult presidents of other Catholic universities and, oddly enough, other bishops. In my humble opinion, this shows a troubling disregard for the communion of the church, both local and universal. In her letter, Ambassador Glendon calmly, succinctly, and eloquently explains her reasoning in refusing this very high honor. I think it bears mentioning that by unwittingly dragging Ambassador Glendon into this controversy, Notre Dame demonstrated a distinct lack of charity toward her.

Kim Kardashian Blonde Hair Photos

Kim Kardashian Blonde Hair Photo

Kim Kardashian become a blonde! the Keeping Up With The Kardashians star changed her colour from black to blonde. She posted photos of her new hairstyle on her twitter page Sunday, inviting fans to give opinions on her new hairdo.

"Hey everyone I have a drastic new look!... I went blonde! Do you like it?... Tell me what u guys think!” the 28-year-old blogged.

I'm OK with Kim Kardashian new blonde style, now she looks more like Beyoncé Knowles or Jennifer Lopez!

Felipe Solis Olguin Death Caused President Barack Obama's Swine Flu Scare

Felipe Solis Olgin, director of Mexico's National Museum of Anthropology , caused President Barack Obama's swine flu scare. On April 16 three days after the swine influenza virus broke out in Mexico, Felipe Solis, 64, hosted Barack Obama at his museum when the President paid a one-day trip to the country's capital Mexico City before travelling on to attend the Americas summit in Trinidad and Tobago. Unfortunately, one week after that meeting, Mr. Felipe Solis, a distinguished archaeologist, passed away. As it was first thought Solis died from "flu-like symptoms, many concerned the President may have a brush with the swine flu virus. To their relief, the White House now said Obama’s health was not in any danger, "The president’s trip to Mexico has not put his health in any danger," White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said in a press conference.“The incubation period is 24 to 48 hours and we have been back from Mexico for nine days now. The doctors say he was not at risk.” Solis’s death cause was confirmed as pneumonia by Health Minister Jose Cordova, but Artdaily.org's official obituary said he suffered a heart attack.

Sources: Obama's swine flu scare after shaking hands with archaeologist who died 24 hours later @ Dailymail Felipe Solis Olguin, Director of Mexico's National Museum of Anthropology, Died at 64 @ Artdaily.org

Year B 3rd Sunday of Easter

Readings: Acts 3:13-15.17-19; Ps. 4:2.7-9; 1 John 2:1-5a; Luke 24:35-38

In our Gospel today, the resurrected Lord appears as Cleopas and the other disciple, who hurried back to Jerusalem from Emmaus, are recounting to "the eleven and those with them" how Jesus had walked the road to Emmaus with them and how he "was made known to them in the breaking of the bread" (Luke 24:35-36). In the middle of their report, the suddenly appearing Lord says words similar to the ones he said to the two while they were on the road: "These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the law of Moses and in the prophets and psalms must be fulfilled.’ Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures" (Luke 24:35-36. 44-45). The minds of the eleven and the other disciples are opened to receive the same enlightenment as the two disciples who walked with the unidentified stranger.

What the resurrected Jesus gives them is the key to unlock the mystery of God’s plan, namely that "the death and resurrection of the Messiah" is "the key to understanding God’s whole plan according to the Scriptures" (Chauvet, The Sacraments: The Word of God at the Mercy of the Body, 24). This is exactly what Peter faithfully preaches in our reading from Acts, pointing out that both the law and the prophets are fulfilled in the person of Christ Jesus when he declares that "[t]he God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his servant Jesus" and that "God has thus brought to fulfillment what he had announced beforehand through the mouth of all the prophets, that his Christ would suffer"(Acts 3:13.18).

"In the background of this account," observes Fr. Louis-Marie Chauvet, is a question, "which is that of any disciple of Jesus, today as yesterday: 'If it is true that Jesus arose and is alive, how is it that we cannot see/touch/find him'" (23)? Indeed, does this question not arise in your mind as you think about the resurrection, especially living in a time and culture that seeks to reduce what you can know to what you can empirically verify? The truth of the matter, my dear friends, is that "you cannot arrive at the recognition of the risen [Lord] unless you renounce seeing/touching/finding him by undeniable proofs" (25). Nonetheless, as philosopher Roger Scruton maintains, "[t]here can be no motive for pursuing truth in abstract empty praise of it: Truth must be incarnate in a person... who calls us to obedience through love" (Gentle Regrets: Thoughts from a Life).

Faith, which is a method of knowledge mediated to us by means of a witness, necessarily begins with our "renunciation of the immediacy" of needing to see and touch in order to know (Chauvet 25). Hence, faith starts with your "assent to the mediation of the church," of which the sacraments, which we celebrate together, especially baptism and Eucharist, are the primary means. The Scriptures, which never reach their "truth as word of God as fully as in the liturgical act of [their] proclamation," are fundamental to the church’s sacramental mediation of the real presence of Christ (Chauvet 47).

To this end, it is essential in order for us to grasp the instruction Luke seeks to impart, that the eyes of Cleopas and his companion only recognized Jesus after "he took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to them" and that as soon as they recognized him, "he vanished from their sight" (Luke 24:30-31). In other words, our encounter with Christ arises from our shared experience, from which we learn "on the basis of the incarnation of God in Jesus, that [our] encounter with God goes through [our] encounter with others" (Chauvet 38). This "encounter with others" is to be taken in its twofold sense: our encounter of others and an experience that we share with them.

Let us make no mistake, the certainty about our future, which we call hope, is not rooted in "simple human reasoning, but on a historical fact of faith: Jesus Christ, crucified and buried, is risen with his glorified body" (Pope Benedict XVI, Urbi et Orbi, Easter 2009). St. Paul, in correcting an erroneous view of Christ’s resurrection that had arisen among the Christians in Corinth, vigorously declared: "If Christ has not been raised, our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain" (1 Cor. 15:14). He goes on to say: "If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all men most to be pitied" (1 Cor. 15:19).

Our experience of the risen Christ, to whom we turn in the face of the inevitability of our own death and in response to the pain brought about by the absence of a loved one, who it seems we have lost to death, is better expressed in poetry than the language of either scientific or philosophical discourse, as this passage from a poem, Dream of a dead friend, written by Christian Wiman, shows:

"If I say the world is real
And outside my window is a dawn;
If I say the proof of love is grief
And trees are greener being gone,
Why, oh why
Will none of this be true
But in the moment I reach for you
Saying no, no."

Our participation in the Eucharist has implications for our lives, implications that give meaning to our mortality precisely as it is and not as we wish it to be, a meaning that points us toward the fulfillment of our desire, which is infinite. We are called to verify, to make true what we both celebrate and receive in and through this most Blessed Sacrament, the sacramentum caritatis, the sacrament of love. Love is the key that unlocks the mystery of faith, the mystery of one God in three divine persons, the paschal mystery of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, by virtue of which we, through our baptism, confirmation, confession of our sins, and sharing this Eucharist, participate. By coming to share in the mysterium tremendum, this overwhelming mystery that constitutes reality at its most fundamental, we recognize that there is often an abyss between our knowledge and our desire, an abyss that can only be filled by love made real.

To really know Jesus Christ is to desire to make him known to others. Let us take heed of what the old song says, "they will know that we are Christians by our love." Many good people who do not share our faith in Christ serve others selflessly. So, what makes our service Christian is not its matter, but its form, "which is given it by love understood as a response to God’s love, which [always comes] first" (Chauvet 41). As we read in 1 John, the same letter from which our second reading is taken: "In this is love: not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as expiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also must love one another" (4:10-11). My dear sisters and brothers in Christ, what the Scriptures declare is true: "The way we may be sure that we know him is to keep his commandments" (1 John 2:3).

He who taught us to love God with our whole being and to love our neighbor as we love ourselves, also commanded us to do what we are gathered here to do in memory of him (Luke 22:19). Beloved, Jesus Christ is alive and as with Cleopas and his companion, he walks with us to unfold for us the mystery of faith, which is nothing less than the mystery of our lives. In the end, "[o]nly those who give thanks are able to rejoice, for only they are conscious that life, freedom and well-being are not rights but gifts" (Scruton, Gentle Regrets).

I also posted my Vespers homilette, on the reading from 1 John, over on The People of St. Mary Magdalene.

Casey Aldridge Charged in Car Crash

Casey Aldridge was charged with careless operation of a motor vehicle after the car crash in the early hours of Sunday, according to TMZ.

The father of Jamie Lynn Spears' baby lost control of his Ford F150 at around 1:30am April 26 while driving home on the LA 606 in the Tensas Parish in Louisiana, near the Mississippi border. It was a single car crash.

Casey Aldridge, a Mississippi native, who badly injured with a possible blood clot in his brain, is hospitalized at the University of Mississippi Medical Center.

He is currently in stable condition after an emergency surgery to drain fluid from his brain.

Casey Aldridge Hospitalized For Car Accident

Casey Aldridge, the fiance of Jamie Lynn Spears, was hospitalized after involving a car accident last night.

According to TMZ, the 19-year-old dad was initially taken to emergency room at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Mississippi. He has been transferred to another part of the hospital when he was in stable conditon.

Hope he gets better soon for Jamie Lynn and their baby’s sake!

Update: Casey Aldridge was badly injured at the serious car wreck. He has a hematoma and even a possible blood clot in his brain. He is about to undergo surgery in the hospital, Perezhilton reported.

According to Radaronline, Aldridge was driving home with two male pals from a fishing trip in Amite Counts, MS at 1:30 a.m. Sunday. When he wrecked his Ford F150 in the car, one of whom broke collar bone.

Jamie Lynn Spears had rushed to the hospital at the first time and she is remaining at his side.

Update:Casey Aldridge was released from a Mississippi hospital on Friday, May 1.

Brad Pitt Moves Out In Touch Weekly Cover Story; Henry Ian Cusick Accused of Sexual Harassment; etc

Brad Pitt Moves Out In Touch Weekly cover story

Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie were reportedly having serious problems behind the scenes. Tired of Angelina Jolie’s selfish behavior, Brad Pitt was remored to have moved out and already packed his belongings from their home in France, In Touch Weekly cover story this week reported.

Henry Ian Cusick, who plays Desmond Hume on Lost, is being sued for sexual harassment by a former ABC Entertainment employee Chelsea Stone who claims the actor fondled her buttocks and breasts and kissed her on the lips in October 2007 on the Lost set.

Kelly Monaco narrowly escaped a run-in with a burglar who broke into her Las Vegas penthouse early Thursday morning -- by hiding behind her bed while it all went down.

Rihanna wanted cops to return the $1.4 million in Jewelry which took as evidence at the night of alleged Chris Brown attack.

Jay Leno was back at home Friday after spending the night at Providence St. Joseph Medical Center in Burbank for the dyhydration.

Miss Universe Australia finalist Stephanie Naumoska sparked too thin controversy on Thursday in Australia’s Miss Universe contest, a competition that supposedly encourages “healthy, proportioned, bodies.”

Miley Cyrus Nick Jonas Dating Again?

Miley Cyrus and Nick Jonas are working together on a music video for Disney called Pass It On. The two, who split in 2007, are reportedly dating again.

According to NY Daily News, the 16-year-old Hannah Montana star is on a dilemma: she is considering rekindling her romance with her first love boyfriend Nick Jonas. But she doesn’t know how to dump her current boyfriend Justin Gaston, whom she has been dating about 8 months. An insider told NY Daily News,

Miley and Nick want to get back together, Because they’re working together [on a new video], they’ve been put in close proximity to each other. They’re now spending more and more time together, and they’re constantly on the phone

Miley was over at the Jonas house recently, and they were smooching. Nick’s parents have this rule that when a girl is over, the door has to be open, but that didn’t stop Nick and Miley from making out.

She doesn’t know how to tell Justin that they’re over, but Nick is being very firm with her. He’s a good, stand-up kind of guy, and is making Miley tell Justin very, very soon. He’s being tough about it.

The rumor Miley Cyrus and Nick Jonas were dating again comes early April as the pair was spotted lunching together. Both Miley and Nick’s rep declined to comment on their clients' personal life.

"We must not abandon faith! Faith is the most important thing"

KBYU, of all television stations, is showing Inherit the Wind late tonight. I saw this movie for the first time when I was a high school sophomore. I went on that same year to perform this scene as a dramatic reading at a high school speech competition. Frankly, it was liberating.

I do not agree that we must abandon faith in Genesis, though, not being a person of "the book", at least not in any strict sense, the Bible is not the object of my faith, but God and His Christ, who is Risen and accompanies us even now. We certainly must give up believing that Genesis tells us how things came to be, instead of, not only why things came to be, but why we came to be. It is amazing how many church fathers addressed issues that we see as exclusively issues of our own age. For example, we have St. Augustine's De Genesi ad litteram (i.e., On the literal meaning of Genesis). In this work, he wrote: "Often a non-Christian knows something about the earth, the heavens, and the other parts of the world, about the motions and orbits of the stars and even their sizes and distances,... and this knowledge he holds with certainty from reason and experience. It is thus offensive and disgraceful for an unbeliever to hear a Christian talk nonsense about such things, claiming that what he is saying is based in Scripture. We should do all that we can to avoid such an embarrassing situation, lest the unbeliever see only ignorance in the Christian and laugh to scorn." As believers, we, too, must hold knowledge certainly from reason and experience, especially when we understand faith as a form of knowledge, in which revelation, properly apprehended and comprehended, plays an indispensible role.

All of this reminded me of something I posted on our parish blog more than two years ago: Doing "all that we can to avoid such an embarrassing situtation". This is a response to the so-called new atheists, whose writings only serve to demonstrate that "[w]hat has been is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done, and there is nothing new under the sun" (Eccl. 1:9 ).

I also think Drummond's speech in this scene is fraught with false dilemmas. After all, are not architectural, engineering, and construction techniques necessary to erect a cathedral? In fact, it is often man's desire to erect cathedrals that leads to technical and artistic advancement. Creating beauty is essential to culture and beauty cannot be separated from our desire for what is transcendent. In other words, ideas that lead to authentic human advancement do not arise in the solitary vacuum of an individual human mind, including the mind of Charles Darwin. As Dr. McNamara reminds us, posting a quote from the late Fr. Vincent McNabb, OP: "Art is beauty made a sacrament. Art is finite human expression made infinite by love."

The extreme represented in Drummond's speech, apart from being a reaction to Brady's thoughtless biblical literalism, is a good indication of what occurs when we turn to ideology, putting it before a sincere desire for truth: polarization. Once we find ourselves at polar extremes, we can only shout at each other across the distance that separates us. Besides, faith cannot be reduced to mere belief, to giving assent to a set of propositions. By its very nature, conceiving of faith in this way is static and defensive. To reduce faith to belief is to render faith uncompelling, not fascinating, unattractive. I keep coming back to our National Diaconia's judgment on the Notre Dame commencement controversy, A New Commencement, particularly to: "For us faith is not an ethical code nor an ideology but an experience: an encounter with Christ present here and now in the Christian community. Christian faith gives us a freedom and a passion for living that express themselves above all in the form of questions as we face reality, and an inexhaustible openness to everything human."

Of course, as a sophomore, my favorite line from the movie was when Henry Drummond, played by Spencer Tracy, who is a fictionalized version of Clarence Darrow, is reprimanded by his opponent, Matthew Brady, for swearing, quipped: "I don't swear just for the hell of it. Language is a poor enough means of communication. I think we should use all the words we've got. Besides, there are damn few words that anybody understands." Needless to say, my parents were neither impressed nor amused.

"Whoever troubles his own household will inherit the wind, and the fool will be servant to the wise of heart" (Pro. 11:29).

Samantha Ronson Lindsay Lohan Together Again?

Lindsay Lohan & Samantha Ronson photo via photobucket.com

Lindsay Lohan and ex Samantha Ronson reunited already?

Lindsay Lohan was spotted visiting Samantha Ronson’s Hollywood Hills house Thursday afternoon. They reportedly spent about six hours together.

Samantha then changed her Facebook relationship status to "It's complicated" the same afternoon.

Either the Thursday night or early Friday morning, Lindsay met up with Samantha at home, and Sam didn’t left Lilo’s place untill 6am.

Lindsay admitted she and Sam “are talking” on the Ellen Degeneres show that aired Thursday afternoon. The 22-year-old actress declared she is still in love with the 31-year-old DJ.

Are there signs that the ex-lovers are reuniting?

Britney Spears Hair Extensions Pulled Out During Show (Video)

Britney Spears’ hair extensions was accidentally pulled out during her Circus show in Oakland, California this week.

A cluster of blonde Britney’s hair was ripped off by one of her aerialists who descended to the stage on a wire during the live concert Wednesday, as the performer grasped the singer then lift her into the air.

It would be very painful if the hair was not fake! Check out the video below.

Britney Spears hair extensions fall out video

J.S.Bach

Bach's Brandenburg Concerto, No. 5, i. Allegro played by the Freiburg Baroque Orchestra is our traditio for this Easter Friday.

Oh, and my Jazz won one from the Lakers last night! Since I have introduced this bit of miscellania, why not a little more?

I do not shy away from matters of sex and sexuality in this cyberspace. So, I appreciate very much what Steven Crowder writes over on the Big Hollywood blog - Appreciate My Indifference To Your Sexuality. I linked to Crowder's post via The Anchoress, who adds "I think the gay community does not really understand that most folks don’t care who they sleep with - they just resent having it all shoved in their faces, so they’re forced to react - it’s a set-up." I would add that such a desparate need for socio-religious approval is a pretty good indication that something is not quite right. Again, to reduce yourself or anyone else to their sexuality is dehumanizing. Very often our sexuality is the most difficult part of our personality to integrate. We live in a society that presents every imaginable obstacle to such a healthy integration. Herein lies the set-up: instead of being able help each other, we get into knock-down, drag out arguments that do not leave any of us better for it, just weary and resigned. The kind of weary resignation exhibited by Doug Kmiec and others, who are seriously advocating that there should be no such thing as state-recognized marriage. In other words, "I don't care if you don't care."

Heidi Klum Seal Having Baby No.4; Kim Kardashian: Carrie Prejean 'Narrow-Minded'

Heidi Klum and husband Seal Us Weekly cover photo

Heidi Klum and husband Seal are hoping their 4th child is a little girl.

Kim Kardashian slams Miss California Carrie Prejean's anti-gay marriage stance at the Miss USA pageant last weekend is 'narrow-minded'.

Michael Phelps is denying rumors that he is romancing controversial Miss California contestant Carrie Prejean.

Michael Jackson was out shopping wearing a surgical mask over his face yesterday in Los Angeles.

Hayden Panettiere had her home burglarized recently. She discovered around $15,000 worth of jewelry was missing.

Lindsay Lohan declared she is still in love with ex-girlfriend Samantha Ronson in a new interview with Ellen DeGeneres.

Lindsay Lohan The Ellen DeGeneres Show April 23, 2009 video

Beyonce Today Show April 23, 2009 (Video)

Beyonce Knowles is on the Today show this morning April 23.

The singer and actress talks to Today’s Matt Lauer about her role in the new thriller Obsessed, her upcoming tour, and a fake audio recording of her singing If I Were a Boy which haoxed by Howard Stern on his radio show Tuesday. She calls the audio "a complete joke."

Check out the videos below of Beyonce on Today Show April 23.

Beyonce Today Show April 23, 2009 Video

Beyonce performs Halo on Today Show April 23, 2009 Video

Beyonce Screech Tape Hoax: Fake Beyonce If I Were a Boy Today Show Tape

Beyonce Screeching Version of If I Were a Boy video

A unedited board mix of Beyonce performing If I were boy on the Today show last year hit the internet. It was played by Howard Stern on his radio show Tuesday. Beyonce sounds out of tune and terrible in the screeching version tape.

E! News tracked down the creator of the video above and confirmed that it’s just a haox.

Yup, If I Were a Boy is one of my favorite songs, I agree the tape is fake because everyone knows Beyonce can sing!

Hope is certainty about one's future

Hope is certainty about the future that arises from the Presence we encounter by means of a witness. Hence, it is not politics, school plans, career progression, or financial independence that give us certainty about the future. Despite our best efforts, plans may not come to fruition due to any number of factors, most of which are beyond our control. Think of Hurricane Katrina, the Christmas tsunami in the Pacific several years ago, the recent earthquake in Italy, or the global financial meltdown that reduced fortunes to pittances. Having certainty about my future requires that I trust and to trust means to entrust myself to Another. This cannot be done lightly and it is not a snap decision made in the blinking of an eye. Rather, it happens through experience.

I can only come to completely entrust myself to Christ through my experiences, the circumstances of my life, through which I verify that He is trustworthy, that He will not disappoint me. Christ does not satisfy me by giving me everything I want; asking for and receiving everything I want is not entrusting myself to Him, it is being a manipulative, spoiled child. If I have Christ, I have everything! Indeed, "this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith" (1 John 5:1-4). Do we believe this, or does it remain inspiring religious rhetoric? Completely entrusting myself to Christ means being obedient, but not as a way of placating Him in order to get what I want, this is a truly pagan notion. Obedience is the fulfillment of my freedom, it is the only way of being free. Of course, obedience is not conformity with rules imposed on me, that is oppression that arises from fear and "perfect love casts out fear" (1 John 4:18).

Fr. Carrón reminded us in January of what Msgr Giussani taught us: when we are faced with life's challenges what we hold most dear surfaces. In other words, it is when we are faced with life's challenges that what we put our hope in is made known. Was your hope in the promotion at work, getting an A in that class, Pres. Obama fixing many problems in our society, McCain becoming the next president, in the friendship of one who turns out to not be trustworthy? If our hope is in anything or anyone other than Christ, sooner or later we will not only be disappointed, but defeated, not just discouraged, but despairing, that is, without hope. It is by entrusting ourselves to Him that we learn what it is to be trustworthy and faithful.

It is important that we avoid falling into the trap that sees pinning our certainty about the future on Christ alone as a form of fatalism, a call to retreat and quietism. On the contrary, it is a call to witness, a call to be engage reality according to the totality of its factors, a call to gaze on another with the gaze we have received. In A New Commencement we are reminded that

"For us faith is not an ethical code nor an ideology but an experience: an encounter with Christ present here and now in the Christian community. Christian faith gives us a freedom and a passion for living that express themselves above all in the form of questions as we face reality, and an inexhaustible openness to everything human."

We had a beautiful example last week of what I am trying to explain: Carrie Prejean did not place her hope in being crowned Miss U.S.A. Instead, she gave witness to the truth about marriage. In an interview after the pageant with NBC's Matt Lauer, she continued to be an impressive young woman, saying that "it's unfortunate that a lot of pageant girls, you know, they have the pressure. Like Claudia Jordan said—she was one of the judges, she was great. She said that, you know, I should have been more in the middle, I shouldn't have given a specific answer. But that goes against what I stand for. And when I'm asked a specific question, I'm going to give a specific answer. I'm not going to stand in the middle. I'm going to take one side or the other." To which Lauer responded, "Carrie, you came so close." She responded to that, ending the interview by saying, "And I am—I am so proud of myself and I have so many people that are so proud of me. And it wasn't what God wanted for my life that night." That's impressive and a far cry from Rick Warren's less than straight-forward answers on Larry King, which I can only describe as Hinckleyesque. I am beginning to suspect that Larry may have hypnotic powers.

Jennifer Hudson Pregnant With Boyfriend David Otunga's Child, Essence Magazine Reported

Jennifer Hudson reportedly is pregnant with fiance David Otunga's child. Jennifer Hudson has been rumored pregnant on various gossip websites since February, but her manager and publicist denied such claims. Now Essence Magazine cited two unnamed sources close to the Oscar and Grammy winner as reporting "she is indeed expecting."

Jennifer Hudson, 28, met fellow Chicago native David Otunga in 2007. On her 27th birthday last August, Hudson was proposed by Otunga, a Harvard Law graduate and former contestant on I Love New York 2 reality show, with a Neil Lane diamond ring. Earlier this month when returned to perform If This Isn’t Love on American Idol 8 results show, Jennifer Hudson confessed to AI host Ryan Seacrest she had set a wedding date but " it’s a secret" and she "can’t tell anybody.”

Earth Day

Today is Earth Day, a day to be mindful that we are stewards of God's good creation, of this relatively small orb that we call home. The scientific consensus shows that human activity is impacting our environment hugely. The exact effects of this are in some dispute, but it is easy to see in many places, certainly here along the Wasatch Front, which is my home and native land, what these effects are.

Progress has been made on many fronts, but more needs to be done. As in all worthy things, we must do our part. As we sing: "let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me." I believe it was Tolstoy who quipped that everybody wants to change the world, but nobody wants to change themselves.

Bishop William Skylstad of Spokane, Washington published an article in a recent issue of America entitled Stewards of Creation: A Catholic approach to climate change that is worth reading today. Another good article is one published in this same magazine back in 2001: Biodiversity and The Holy Trinity. One of the two suggested hymns (the other being All Creatures of Our God and King) for Morning Prayer for Wednesday, Week II of the Psalter, the week we are in, except that is Easter, includes this verse:

"He only is the maker
Of all things near and far;
He paints the wayside flower,
He lights the evening star.
The winds and waves obey him,
By him the birds are fed:
Much more to us his children,
He gives our daily bread"

Think about attending Mass today and giving God thanks for creation. As the IC notes there are many good reasons to go to mass daily, or any time. Of the twelve reasons given, my favorite is number 1. "It's kind of like facebook with God, the angels, and the saints." It dawned on me this morning (not for the first time) that being able to truly pray is a grace in itself. For me, this shows two things- the absolute goodness and graciousness of God and how dependent we are on our Father, who, in Christ Jesus, through the power of the Holy Spirit, gives us life in abundance

Ashley Tisdale “Its Alright, Its Okay” Official Music Video; Julie Chen Expecting First Child With Husband Les Moonves; etc

Ashley Tisdale’s new music video for its alright its okay, the lead single off her new album Guilty Pleasure is now on Myspace. Check it out below.

Madonna going back to the the gym just five days after horse-riding accident in New York. --Dailymail

Julie Chen of CBS' The Early Show is pregnant. she and husband, CBS Corporation President and CEO Les Moonves, are expecting their first child together. --Us Weekly

Jenna Dewan and fiance Channing Tatum’s wedding coming soon. -- People

Dave Grohl, the 40-year-old rocker and and his wife, Jordyn, have welcomed their second daughter. – The insider

Ashley Tisdale Its Alright Its Okay Official Music Video

Jesus and Rutherford B. Hayes

I am doing some reading on the sacrament of confirmation, while reading today I came across something by the late Fr. Aidan Kavanaugh, OSB, who, when discussing the problems that negatively affect our understanding, liturgical praxis, and living out the sacrament of confirmation, states that we misunderstand "the connection between memorial (anamnesis) and invocation (epiclesis) in worship." He insists that "memorial and invocation, anamnesis and epiclesis are in reality one, since the deepest memory of God is made possible only when the Holy Spirit reveals Jesus to be the Christ of God." Here is the punchline: "To remember Jesus in any other way is not essentially different from remembering Rutherford B. Hayes."

I love Fr. Kavanaugh's writings on the sacraments and this made me smile today and to remember him. He passed over in 2006.

Ashley Tisdale Caught Kissing Scott Speer In Car (Video)

Ashley Tisdale was caught kissing her new boyfriend Scott Speer in a car at 1 a.m. last night.

Scott Speer, 26, directed a three-part video series video series for Tisdale in 2007, including He Said She Said, Not Like That and Suddenly released at her DVD There's Something About Ashley.

Tisdale and Speer recently worked together on her new music video its alright its okay, the lead single off her new album Guilty Pleasure.

These days, the two were photographed closely together several times.

Ashley Tisdale kissing Scott Speer At 1 AM video

Rihanna Andrew Bynum Dating? Rihanna Rumored Dating Los Angeles Lakers Star Andrew Bynum

(Andrew Bynum Photo) AndrewBynum.com

Rihanna and Andrew Bynum were romantically linked! The Umbrella singer was reportedly dating Andrew Bynum, a professional basketball player who plays for the Los Angeles Lakers of the NBA.

According to X17online, Rihanna and Andrew Bynum went on an intimate dinner date at Mastro's Steakhouse in Beverly Hills last Friday April 17. A witness told the website when the two left the restaurant together, they looked "very couple-y, sitting real close to each other in the car."

This is the first time Rihanna has been spotted out with a man since she split from Chris Brown.

Hierarchy update

It was announced this morning that the Holy Father has named His Excellency, Bishop Robert Carlson, who was serving as the bishop of Saginaw, Michigan, as the new archbishop of St. Louis. Prior to leading the Diocese of Saginaw, Bishop Carlson headed the Diocese of Sioux Falls, SD. It was also announced that Bishop Robert Cunningham is being transferred from the Diocese of Ogdensburg, N.Y. to the Diocese of Syracuse, replacing Bishop Moynihan, whose resignation was accepted by the Holy Father, Moynihan having reached 75 almost two years ago.

With these appointments there are now six vacant sees in the U.S.: Cheyenne, Wyoming; Duluth, Minnesota; Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Ogdensburg, N.Y.; Owensboro, Kentucky; Saginaw, Michigan.

The number of Latin rite bishops currently serving beyond the mandatory retirement age of 75 (i.e., bishops whose resignations the Holy Father has not accepted) is now at eleven.

Archbishops:

Hughes- New Orleans, LA; Curtiss- Omaha, NE; Brunett- Seattle, WA;

Bishops:

Tafoya- Pueblo, CO; Cooney- Gaylord, MI; Peña- Brownsville, TX; Carmody- Corpus Christi, TX; D'Arcy- Ft Wayne-South Bend, IN; Higi- Layfette, IN; Cullen- Allentown, PA; Skylstad- Spokane, WA.


On an unrelated note: Last night I posted "Perez… that’s a very hot topic in our country right now" and..., over on Cahiers.

Miss California Carrie Prejean Anti-Gay Marriage Controversy (Video); Gossip Girl Spinoff Promo Poster Preview (Picture); etc

Miss California Carrie Prejean at the Miss USA 2009 pageant picture

Miss California Carrie Prejean believed her answer on gay marriage ruined her chances of winning during the Miss USA beauty 2009 pageant in Las Vegas after she was asked by openly-gay celebrity blogger Perez Hilton on her thoughts on legalizing same-sex marriages.

Check out the video of Miss California Carrie Prejean giving her answer below.

Miss California Carrie Prejean anti-gay marriage answer video

Khloe & Kourtney Kardashian were branching out with their own reality show Kourtney And Khloe In Miami, the spinoff of Keeping Up With The Kardashians.

Lindsay Loha was reportedly told her new BFF Mel. B that she is 'back on men'.

Gossip Girl spinoff promo poster

Gossip Girl spinoff preview: Gossip Girl fans are getting their first glimpse at The CW series’ still-untitled spin-off set to premiere next fall.

Amy Winehouse is heartbroken over husband Blake Fielder-Civil having a baby with another woman.

PP. Benedictus XVI

On this day four years ago, then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger was chosen to walk in the shoes of the fisherman from Galilee and to sit on the chair of Sts. Peter & Paul. He chose the name Benedict in order to highlight his determination to re-evangelize Europe in the manner of his chosen namesake. I very much agree with and like Sharon's reflection on four years of the Benedictine papacy- The Serenity of a Simple and Humble Laborer.

Of the many things he has written and spoken that resonate so deeply within me, sharing, even transmitting, He who corresponds to my heart, Christ the Lord, I am still struck by the closing words of his first Easter Urbi et Orbi message:

"For this reason the Church repeats insistently: 'Christ is risen - Christós anésti.' Let the people of the third millennium not be afraid to open their hearts to him. His Gospel totally quenches the thirst for peace and happiness that is found in every human heart. Christ is now alive and he walks with us. What an immense mystery of love!

Christus resurrexit, quia Deus caritas est! Alleluia!" (emphasis mine).

Vive il Papa!

Since I spent a good portion of last November researching and writing about the papacy, especially developments over the past 140 years or so, here is an extended excerpt from my writings on the papacy and Scripture:

"In the lists of the Twelve Apostles recorded in the Gospels, Peter is always listed first (Matt 10:2-4; Mark 3:16-19; Luke 6:13-16). It is impossible to understand the perceived relationship between Peter and the papacy without examining the scriptural text on which a lot of weight has been placed, especially as it pertains to any interpretation of Vatican I’s dogmatic definition of papal infallibility:

'And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven' (Matt 16:18-19).

"It is never enough to merely point to any given passage of Scripture as proof of a stated proposition, it is always necessary, when seeking to discern the meaning of a given passage, how that passage has been received, interpreted, and understood in Christian tradition, a tradition that is at once fixed and evolving. To that end, it is important to note that the first distinctive characteristic of the passage is that 'rock' is apparently intended, in its original Greek, as '[a] pun on Peter’s name in Greek (Petros, petra)' (Viviano 659). Just as Abram’s name was changed to Abraham and Jacob’s to Israel, in this passage, Simon becomes Peter, the rock (Gen 17:5; 32:29; Matt 16:18). Another, perhaps more important, term in this passage is the use of the Greek word ekklesia, which is translated as 'church' (659). The word ekklesia is fairly precise and is derived from the Hebrew Scriptures. It 'refers to the assembly of the people of God' (659).

"This brings us to Jesus’ giving the keys of the kingdom to the newly renamed Peter. By relating the church to the kingdom, the author of Matthew sees the ekklesia as 'an interim arrangement which mediates salvation in the time between the earthly ministry of Jesus and future coming of the kingdom' (659). The part of the passage that has the biggest implications for Vatican I’s dogmatic definition of papal infallibility is the power to loose and to bind. It is clear that Jesus, in this verse, 'gives enormous authority to Peter' (659). This prompts the question, 'What is the nature of this authority' (659)? Binding and loosing are 'rabbinic terms' that have a range of meaning, but mostly refer to authority in the form 'of definitive decision making' (659).

"It necessary here to appeal to history and to appropriate it theologically, or, more precisely, ecclesiologically, to remember that the leader of the earliest church in Jerusalem was James the Greater. James presided over the anachronistically named Council of Jerusalem, at which Peter was present (Acts 15:1-29). The Gentile Christians, whose status vis-à-vis the Mosiac Law was the subject of the church’s first so-called council, would have preferred Paul as their leader (Viviano 659-660). On this view, Peter 'represents a compromise that can hold both tendencies in the early church in an uneasy synthesis' (660). The two tendencies, were those of the almost exclusively Jewish Church in Jerusalem and the Gentile churches being established by Paul and probably others, the very churches among which the so-called Judaizers from Jerusalem were stirring up dissension and calling into question Paul’s apostolic authority. Most importantly, in this compromise the author of Matthew 'shows his ecumenical good sense' (660).

"It is also important to note that Jesus entrusts Peter with 'the keys to the kingdom of heaven' only after Peter’s two-fold confession that Jesus is both Messiah and Lord (Matt 16:16.19). Peter is able to make this two-fold confession only because the Father has revealed it to him (Matt 16:17). Nonetheless, 'Simon does not learn that Jesus is the Messiah by some mystical or intuitive mode of knowing' (Hauerwas 150). Peter 'learns that Jesus is the Messiah because he obeyed Jesus’s command to be his disciple' (150). Jesus Christ is God’s revelation. 'There is no other revelation of God than Jesus' (150). Scripture, along with tradition is the church’s way of handing on revelation. Scripture is the premiere institution for handing on apostolic tradition, but not revelation per se. Jesus is God’s revelation. Hence, there is an important distinction to be made between the Word of God (i.e., Jesus Christ) and the words of God (i.e., Scripture and tradition). Peter and the author of Matthew 'are witnesses to the revelation of Jesus,' irreplaceable ones; without Peter and the other apostles, without the witness of Scripture, especially the Gospels, 'we would not know Jesus' (150). So, while 'Peter becomes the first among the disciples,' a primacy based on nothing other than his two-fold confession, his new status does not reduce that of the other disciples (150). It becomes Peter’s 'task to serve so that none of the gifts of the church will be lost' (150). This is indicated by another key Gospel passage employed in Pastor Aeternas to support the dogmatic definition of papal infallibility: 'Simon, Simon, behold Satan has demanded to sift all of you like wheat, but I have prayed that your own faith may not fail; and once you have turned back, you must strengthen your brothers' (Luke 22:31-32). On the basis of Scripture, proclaiming that Jesus is 'the Messiah, the Son of the living God,' and the strengthening of his brothers and sisters are what constitute the universal ministry entrusted to the Bishop of Rome, conceived of as Peter’s representative (Matt 16:16)."

While I will not go on at length, we must never forget that Rome is the See of Sts. Peter & Paul and that the papacy has a Pauline dimension as well, one that in our day is often overlooked. Whenever, the Holy Father undertakes an apostolic journey, as he did to these shores a year ago and to parts Africa recently, he is exercising the Pauline dimension of the papacy. This dimension was given a great deal of impetus by Pope Paul VI, who was the first pope to avail himself of modern means of travel and to undertake apostolic journeys throughout the world. As to the distinction between the Word of God, Jesus Christ, and the Scriptures, I like very much that Fr. Chauvet writes that they are the sacrament of the Word of God, as such, as pointed out in the paragraphs above, their function, as with sacraments as a whole, is to mediate, that is, to signify. After all, we are not a people of the book, we are the people of the resurrected and risen Lord! Alleluia!