" In light of Ignatius' 'Two Standards' and 'The Mystries Done From The Garden To The House Of Annas', at any moment we can be Judas or Peter, a Christian life can be a fine line."
Archbishop of New York Timothy Dolan has said that Fordham University did not inform him that pro-abortion rights Mayor Michael Bloomberg would speak at the Catholic school’s commencement and receive an honorary degree.
Fordham University President Fr. Joseph McShane, SJ, in his address to Fordham graduates, singled out Mayor Bloomberg and television commentator Tom Brokaw for “special mention,” acknowledging the mayor first.
“Last week I heard the Mayor speak at a Jesuit fund-raising event in Manhattan,” Fr. McShane said. “In the course of his typically gracious remarks, he noted wistfully that he had not had the benefit of a Jesuit education. Mr. Bloomberg, this is your lucky day: you are now a Fordham graduate and thus a member of the Jesuit family!”
Pro-abortion rights Sen. Charles Schumer also spoke at Fordham Law’s graduation on Sunday, also unbeknownst to the archbishop, the New York Post reports. Archbishop Dolan had criticized the University of Notre Dame for inviting President Barack Obama to be commencement speaker and to receive an honorary degree.
In 1864 a Jesuit mission was established on Easter Island, at which time the population numbered about 1,500. WhenH. M. S. Topaze visited the island in 1868 there were about 900 Rapa Nui (Natives of Easter Island) left. In 1870 the Frenchman Dutroux-Bornier transformed Easter Island into a sheep farm, which led to, in about the year 1875, some 500 were removed to Tahiti under contract to work on the sugar plantations of that island. Dutroux-Bornier was killed by Islanders in 1877. In 1878 the Jesuit missionaries (Fr. Alexis Clerc, S.J.) departed from the island, taking with them about 300 of the people, who settled Gambier Archipelago. WhenH. M. S. Sappho touched at the island in 1882 it was reported that but 150 of the inhabitants were left.
Father Anthony, a Jesuit priest in Madurai (Tamil Nadu), was born and lived for ten years in the former Burma.
In his opinion the arrest is designed to reinforce the idea that the military junta has an absolute power over the population, that it can use the iron fist, that people can be arrested arbitrarily, jailed and tortured. In Myanmar he said there is no “freedom of movement and torture of dissidents and political opponents is commonplace.”
The Jesuits priest said he was afraid that “Aung San Suu Kyi will never be released” until “she is dead or world powers exert such pressure on the junta that they have to free her.”
We also visited a little street shrine to Our Lady. A Shrine Fr. Jean-Claude-Marie Colin passed frequently and stopped to prayer before regularly. These little shrines are all over Rome and all over France as well. They are called 'Madonnellas' - little Madonnas.
We also said Mass in the Jesuit Novitiate Chapel -- the Chapel is really a small Church. This place holds significance for Marists (Society of Mary) because here at one of the side altars Fr. Colin said Mass several times in the month of November 1833. It was one of his favorite places. It's also the place where Jesuit Sts. Robert Bellarmine and Aloysius Gonzaga were Jesuit Novices. The Chapel is officially called -- Church of St. Andrea Al Quirinale -- because it is dedicated to St. Andrew and is located near the Quirinal Palace which was home to Pope for some time. It was this palace, and not St. Peter's, where Colin met Pope Gregory XVI on September28, 1833.
The higher culture of the Jesuit is nobly expressed in the most beautiful interior of all the churches of the Philippines, comparing well with the carved-wood interiors of Belgian churches.
In 1859, they returned to the country but it was only in 1878 that the last San Ignacio Church was started. It was finished in 1889. Done in the Neo-Classical style, it had two flanking towers and an impressive interior done by Filipino artisans. The woodwork done by Isabelo Tampinco is considered to be the height of woodcarving ever achieved in the country. Unfortunately, it was burned by the Japanese during World War II.
He was born in an obscure village, the child of a peasant woman. He grew up in another obscure village, where He worked in a carpenter shop until He was thirty.
Then, for three years He was an itinerant preacher. He never had a family or owned a home. He never set foot inside a big city.
He never traveled two hundred miles from the place He was born. He never held and office or did any of the things that usually accompany greatness. While He was still a young man, the tide of popular opinion turned against Him. His friends deserted Him.
He was turned over to his enemies, and went through the mockery of a trial. He was nailed to a cross between two thieves. While He was dying, His executioners gambled for the only piece of property He had-His coat. When He was dead, He was taken down and laid in a borrowed grave.
Two thousand years have come and gone, and today He is the central figure for much of the human race. All the armies that ever marched and all the navies that ever sailed and all the parliaments that ever sat and all the kings that ever reigned, put together, have not affected the life of man upon this earth as powerfully as this "One Solitary Life".
Listen and watch to Jesuit educated Bing Crosby retell the story of Jesus (here)
By what right ? If it may not be said that priestly continence is literally and rigorously of divine right, there is no question that it is, as Bellarmine says, in imitation of a divine pattern, that it was taught by the Apostles and is imposed by Ecclesiastical Law.
Could the Church require less of priests, who morning by morning immolate the Lamb without spot, than did the Law of Moses from the priests of Aaron, or the Pagans from the priests who offered sacrifices to false gods ? The priests of the Temple of Jerusalem were obliged to continence for the entire year during which their term of office lasted, and the Greeks and Romans laid a similar obligation upon the priests who served their idols.When there was question of the worship of their deities the Pagans recognized only one virtue and one vice : Castaplacent Superis, says Catullus ; and Plutarch said : Diis omnia munda , and in consequence the impure were thrust from their altars.
Jews and Persians, Indians and Greeks, Romans and Gauls, all peoples, recognized something divine in celibacy. The same idea was found existing in the New World among the Mexicans and Peruvians, and even among the Hurons and the Iroquois. Among all peoples and in ail ages there has been a persuasion that purity of body, that chastity, is an indispensable preparation for the exercise of sacred functions.
I quite agree, however, that Paganism was nothing more than a mass of rottenness, and that the Vestal Virgins bore the same resemblance to Christian Virgins that a hypocrite bears to a Saint. Paganism, while parading its chastity, everywhere set up altars to lust.
Chastity is indigenous to heaven and, when transplanted to earth, it is with difficulty that it takes root in our corrupt soil. Jesus Christ came to teach us by precept, and still more by example, how it is to be cultivated, how it is to be made to exhale and diffuse its sweetness and its fragrance and to bear incomparable fruit. How tender a love did the Man-God, Himself a Virgin from all eternity and born of a Virgin Father among the splendors of the Saints, bear to this angelic virtue throughout the whole course of His life! He chose a Mother ; she was a virgin and will be so for all the eternities, and this will ever be one of her sweetest and most glorious titles.
That a God on becoming man should be born of a Virgin goes without saying, but this was not enough : He wished that everybody about Him, every one nearest Him, should breathe forth only purity and innocence. Mary was given one to aid her in watching over the infancy of Jesus ; he was a virgin. Another was sent before the face of Jesus to prepare the way for Him ; he was a virgin. Jesus gathered together disciples and made them sharers in His divine mission ; they were virgins, says St. Jerome, or made the vow of chastity after they had been called : Apostoli aut virgines, aut post nuptias continentes. He permitted His enemies to impute to Him all sorts of crime, but there was one He would not suffer them to name. Dying on the Cross He committed to a Virgin disciple His Virgin Mother. Now triumphant in heaven and seated at the right hand of His Father, His throne is encompassed by Virgins, who form His guard of honor, who accompany Him wherever He goes, and who sing in His praise that mysterious Canticle which only virgins can sing.
Jesus Christ having so dignified chastity in His own person left it to His priests as the most beautiful adornment of their priesthood and the greatest glory of their ministry. A priest whose reputation is clean and whose morals are pure is dear to the heart of God and useful to His Church;
whereas, on the contrary, a priest whose morals are not beyond reproach, a pastor who is not chaste, what sort of a priest, what sort of a pastor is he?
For us, therefore, chastity is a treasure of infinite price, but we bear it about in frail vessels, and how shall we protect it against so many enemies ever on the alert to rob us of it ?
Jesus Living in the Priest: Considerations on the Greatness and Holiness of the Priesthood. By the Rev. P. Millet, S.J. English Translation by the Right Rev. Thomas Sebastian Byrne, D.D., Bishop of Nashville. New York, Cincinnati, and Chicago: Benziger Brothers. [Price, 8s.]
This fine, solid, and substantial volume was published in French in 1858. Four editions of an Italian translation of it have appeared, the latest in 1898. The Bishop of Nashville, in the United States, met with it in Rome, and was greatly struck by its order, its clearness, its solidity, its spirituality, and its common- sense. Strange to say, he failed to get a copy of the French original, and was forced to translate it from the Italian translation. It is a most useful addition to a priest's ascetic library. It is excellently produced by the publishers; but several misprints have crept into the Latin quotations, as at page 495, etc. It is translated extremely well.
After the bible, there is no sounder spiritual reading than The Imitation of Christ.
It encourages us gently, yet with firmness, to follow Christ more faithfully, and shows us how to do it. Fifteen minutes a day would give us a balanced spiritual diet.
Since it was written, early in the 15th Century, thousands of editions and translations have appeared.
Father John Jenkins, C.S.C. received a Masters of Divinity from the Jesuit School of Theology at Berkeley, California. If it is anything like its secular sister a few blocks down the street, then the teaching staff is likely saturated with Frankfurt School proponents. Indeed, on the "Our Faith" page of their website, a testimonial in the sidebar says: "Hours of conversation, study, and prayer with my peers in ministry taught me that we want the Catholic community to lead the work of creating a just society," says Claire Noonan (M.Div. '00). The Program Organizer for Social Justice and Next Generation at Call to Action in Chicago, she creates educational programs and sustained action campaigns focusing on sweatshop labor. As some of you doubtless know, the Frankfurt School was founded by communists shortly after the Bolshevik coup in Russia, and is dedicated to destruction of the West by cultural corruption. Willi Munzenburg, one of the school's founders, put it bluntly. The school's curriculum was designed to: "organize the intellectuals and use them to make Western civilization stink. Only then, after they have corrupted all its values and made life impossible, can we impose the dictatorship of the proletariat."
This is one of two murals depicting scenes from Ignatius's life by the artist for the high school's renovated chapel, constructed in the early 1930s. The chapel is dedicated to the Jesuit North American martyrs.
He was commonly known by the name of Christopher Barton, was a zealous and laborious missioner, and a man of great mortification.
He was apprehended at the altar, saying mass, hurried away in his vestments to the next justice of peace; and after divers injuries and affronts which, like his master, he suffered with invincible patience, was cast into a filthy prison,
where the stench, and other incommodities of the place, put an end to his mortal life in some part of this year, 1645. See Floras Jlnglo-Bavaricus, p. 72.
Mother Teresa had habitually preferred Jesuits as retreat preachers, spiritual directors and confessors for herself and her Sisters. Many Jesuits of Calcutta Province were in close contact with Mother Teresa. They include Archbishop Ferdinand Perier, Cardinal Trevor L. Picachy, Frs. C. Van Exem, Julian Henry, Joseph Sanders, Edouard Le Joly, Camille Bouche, Anton Gabric, Jose Cukale, Josef Neuner, Shukaley, Lawrence Abello, Carl Dincher, Harden, Albert Huart, Moyeson, Jambrekovic, McGuiire, and Travers-Ball. Most of these Jesuits were Belgians who had made, like Mother Teresa, Kolkata their home.
Fr. Celest Van Exem was the earliest main adviser and supporter to Mother Teresa and for the foundations of the Missionaries of Charity, right from her days as Loreto Sister. He was the spiritual director to whom Mother Teresa confided her inspiration and who first sought to discern the authenticity of her experiences. He was the first to support Mother in requesting Archbishop Perier to begin the process for her to leave the Loreto Congregation. He made major contributions to the writing of the Constitutions of the Missionaries of Charity. From the time of the foundation of the Congregation until his illness in the 1980s, he was a confessor and instructor of the novices. A few days before his death, he wrote to Mother Teresa, herself critically ill, that he had offered his life to God in exchange for hers and for her mission to China (which did not materialize).
Archbishop Ferdinand Perier, Archbishop of Calcutta, who cautiously approved the foundation of Missionaries of Charity, was the immediate one to whom Mother Teresa had to apply to leave the Loreto Congregation. He was her confidant and spiritual guide, as well as her Superior until she became Superior General of the new Congregation. He was the only Bishop who knew Mother from the time she arrived in India in 1929. Mother had an extraordinary, childlike confidence in the Archbishop as the spokesperson of God's will. In turn, he guided her with a truly extraordinary wisdom and prudence.
Fr. Julian Henry was a spiritual friend and close cooperator of Mother already from her days as Loreto sister. In 1949, as parish priest of St. Teresa's Church, he was the first to help Mother Teresa in her new apostolate, offering her a place to pray, rest and to run a dispensary. Before Mother had Sisters as companions, Fr. Henry used to send girls to accompany her. The Sisters of the first group to join Mother Teresa are grateful to Fr. Henry for all that he did in the early days to assist their apostolate, including the teaching of slum children to do carpentry.
A Worldly Priest Compromises the Success of His Ministry.
By Fr. Pierre Millet, S.J.
St. Gregory the Great, writing of the prophet Samuel, says : "Raro videbatur in civitate, videlicet tarde veniens et cito recedens. He wishes the priest to follow the same rule : Raro sit in piiblico frequcns in secreto, ut qni tar dins aspicitur, devotius revcreatur. Ea est mens Jnunana, says St. Maximus of Tyre, lit qucz ex posit a sunt, minor is faciat; qua; abstrusa, veJicmentcr admiretur."
St. Peter Damian compares ecclesiastics to a picture. A picture is admired, he says, provided it is not brought too close to the eye. When looked at from a distance the objects seem so faithfully reproduced that it is difficult to distinguish the copy from the original ; while if the picture is brought too close the illusion vanishes. Instead of those delicate shadings which so charm the beholder, you see only a mass of color laid thick on the canvas, outlines formed by heavy strokes of the brush and figures without grace or beauty. The same thing happens in the case of priests. They are esteemed and venerated when they are seen at a distance engaged in the duties of their holy office. They are then regarded as the representatives of Jesus Christ, and the faithful dispensers of His mysteries and graces.
These high ideals are destroyed by habitual intercourse and familiarity, and priests are no longer regarded as heavenly messengers and angels of the New Covenant; they are looked upon as are other men, subject to the same weaknesses and liable to the same human maladies.The aversion which laymen have for a priest who makes himself too common, passes insensibly from his person to his ministry. The sacred word which he preaches and the sacraments which he administers produce little effect in souls, because sermons when not backed up by example are as a rule sterile, and because a physician of the soul, who is himself afflicted, is not the proper person to heal another stricken with the same malady.
What will be the thoughts of men of the world who see a priest at a club or other place of amusement, as worldly, as dissipated, as exuberant as an ordinary layman, and who then sees the same man in the Church, saying Mass at the Altar, absolving penitents in the confessional, preaching the word of God from the pulpit and discharging the august functions of his calling after the manner of any public official in the world?
Have they not reason to be scandalized? Is it any wonder that they should say: Our priests do not believe what they preach; if they did, would they lead such lives as they do?
Link (here)A Worldly Priest Compromises the Success of His Ministry (pg 136)contained in the book by Fr. Pierre Millet, S.J. entitled Jesus Living In the Priest
"Dear Friends, It must have been quite a shock to many of you when Father Cameron announced his intention to take a leave of absence from the Jesuits so that he could discern his own personal vocation....
A more detailed account may be found at The California Catholic Daily (here)
Read a personal testimony of Fr. Ayers (here) from 2006
Bishop of Macerata, Tolentino, Recanati, tracks and Treia
I have learned with joy that in that diocese have planned several initiatives to commemorate, in the ecclesial and civil life, the fourth centenary of the death of P. Matteo Ricci of the Society of Jesus, which took place in Beijing on 11 May 1610. In the course of this special jubilee year, I am pleased to send you and the entire diocesan community my cordial greetings.
Born in Macerata October 6 of 1552, the Jesuit Matteo Ricci, with deep faith and extraordinary cultural and scientific genius, he dedicated many years of his life to weave a fruitful dialogue between West and East, at the same time conducting a vigorous action rooting of the Gospel in the culture of the great people of China. His example remains even today as a model of fruitful meeting between European civilization and the Chinese. Link (here)
It is a Georgetown tradition to hold separate commencement ceremonies so students may graduate with their classmates and also hear from speakers who are experts and scholars in the students’ chosen fields.
PBS journalist Gwen Ifill of “Washington Week” and “The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer,” spoke at Georgetown College’s ceremony -- the largest at the university. Ifill encouraged the more than 800 graduates to approach life with a healthy dose of skepticism.
“You need to prepare to question yourself, to question those around you, and maybe even question those who you aspire to be,” Ifill said to a sea of graduates and their families sitting on Healy Lawn.
Saint Louis University has announced a $3 million gift from the Anheuser-Busch Foundation -- the largest donation to date for a $35 million expansion of SLU's School of Law and the largest-ever individual gift to SLU from A-B in its corporate history.
"There is no better St. Louis corporate citizen than Anheuser-Busch," said University President Lawrence Biondi, S.J. "This very generous gift demonstrates that its support for local institutions remains unmatched."
The gift, which fits into Anheuser-Busch's priority to support educational institutions in communities where it does business, was announced officially during the law school's hooding ceremony at Chaifetz Arena.
The thousands in attendance were the first to see what the future holds for the SLU law community, as the University unveiled never-before-seen renderings of the Anheuser-Busch Student Commons, the new front door for the school and a major feature of the expansion, which will be funded by the gift.
"The Saint Louis University School of Law continues to grow in reputation," said Dean Jeffrey Lewis, J.D. "This major gift will help make the expansion of our law school a reality, and we are proud that a company so important to the St. Louis community is partnering with us on this exciting project."
What can we say about this constant warfare? Our battle is ultimately a spiritual battle for the eternal salvation of souls – our own and those of other people. We are not engaged in physical battles in the same way military soldiers defend with material weapons. We need not – we must not – initiate violence against other persons to accomplish something good, even something as significant as the protection of human life.
But it is true that we might have to endure physical suffering to prosper the victory of Jesus Christ. He carried the Cross. He promised us that – if we were to follow Him – we also would share the Cross. We must not expect anything less. When you stand up for what is right – you will be opposed. The temptation will be to avoid these attacks. But through our responses we must see what kind of soldiers we are.
Who is our enemy in this battle of the Church Militant? Our enemy is the deceiver, the liar, Satan. Because of his spiritual powers he can turn the minds and hearts of men. He is our spiritual or supernatural enemy when he works to tempt us, and he becomes a kind of natural enemy as he works in the hearts of other people to twist and confound God’s will. In our human experience people deceived by Satan’s distortions and lies may appear as our “human enemies.”
Norma Leah McCorvey ("The Roe" of Roe vs. Wade) was arrested while praying the Rosary for trespassing by police after Notre Dame University authorized the police action. Watch the video of her arrest (here) and read more (here).
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Notre Dame President Fr. John Jenkins, C.S.C. authorized the arrest by police of Father Norman Weslin for trespassing. The frail Father was arrested twice, watch video of his first arrest (here) and the second arrest (here). Fr. Weslin is the co-founder with Alan Keyes of Lambs of Christ. The video shows the 80 year old Fr. Weslin caring a large cross on his shoulder then being apprehended, cuffed and carried off in a full body restraining devise. While being taken down he is singing the hymn Ave Maria.
Fr. Norman Weslin is no stranger to President Obama, he was arrested for praying at the 2008 Democratic Convention. See the picture (here) of his arrest by the Denver Police Department.
Fr. Norman Weslin was portrayed in the 2006 pro-abortion film "Lake of Fire"read Lifesite's analysis (here)
Former Ambassador to the United Nations Alan Keyes, a long standing political rival to President Obama was also arrested. You can watch the video (here). Keyes ran unsuccessfully in 2004-5 against President Obama for the United States Senate in Illinois. Keyes ran an unorthodox race against Obama, he ran on their pro-life differences and what it means to be a Christian in public office. You can watch a samples of their debates (here) , (here) , (here) and (here) President Obama was taken back by Keyes' strait forward criticism and President Obama gave this speech at the Call to Renewal Conference (here) as a reflection of that criticism. With some follow up commentary (here)
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364,351 people signed the petition at notredamescandal.com against President Obama's speech at Notre Dame. The strengthening and influence of the Cardinal Newman Society in Catholic academics is hard over look.
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Over 80 Roman Catholic Bishops openly denounced the invitation of President Barack Obama by Notre Dame President, Fr. John Jenkins, C.S.C.
Former Vatican AmbassadorMary-Ann Glendon refused to accept Laetare Medal because of President Obama's stance on abortion.
Fr. Martin was on CNN with Raymond Arroyo from EWTN. You can read the transcript of their exchange (here)
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Fr. Frank Pavone of Priests for Life did a great job on "FOX News Sunday With Chris Wallace." he debates Fr. Richard McBrien (here)
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Despite what President Obama said in his speech. Watch (here). Despite the positive spin put on it by the Catholic left (here). President Obama actions and why he is such a threat to the unborn can be found (here).
Tom Brokaw, addressed Fordham's Class of 2009, at the University's 164th Commencement at Rose Hill on Saturday, May 16. Brokaw, who has covered his share of turmoil in 47 years of journalism, told the new graduates that "it will not be easy, but I promise you it will be rewarding in ways that a Wall Street bonus or a shot on American Idol cannot compete."
More than 16,000 graduates, family, friends and faculty and staff packed Edwards Parade under cloudy skies, and gave Brokaw rousing cheers at every full stop.
Fordham conferred a doctorate of humane letters, honoris causa, upon Brokaw, and likewise conferred honorary degrees upon Hon. Michael Bloomberg, mayor of the City of New York; Justin Lin, chief economist of the World Bank; Frank J. Macchiarola, former chairman of the New York City Charter Revision Commission; and Kathryn Wylde, chief executive officer of the Partnership for New York City.
Joseph M. McShane, S.J., president of Fordham University, told the happy crowd, "Members of the Class of 2009, this is above all your day. This is the day on which we celebrate you. We celebrate hopes that have been realized, dreams that have come true, loves that have blossomed and lives that have been changed—changed utterly."
Creve Coeur Police are making one last plea to students at De Smet Jesuit High School. In February the students raised $28,000 for the missions. All the cash was stolen.
Two years ago $8,000 in mission money was also ripped-off. Neither case has been solved. Police say even though the school has been cooperative they have not received any leads or tips from anyone at the school. And, they fear that with summer vacation upon us students who may have any knowledge of the thefts will graduate or could transfer to other schools.
A cold case could freeze-up. De Smet school officials declined an interview because of the on-going investigation. Students tell Fox 2 they are as frustrated as police because the thief has not been caught.
A new Gallup Poll, conducted May 7-10, finds 51% of Americans calling themselves "pro-life" on the issue of abortion and 42% "pro-choice." This is the first time a majority of U.S. adults have identified themselves as pro-life since Gallup began asking this question in 1995.
President Obama on his grand children "Look, I got two daughters — 9 years old and 6 years old," he said. "I am going to teach them first about values and morals, but if they make a mistake, I don't want them punished with a baby. I don't want them punished with an STD at age 16, so it doesn't make sense to not give them information."
So when President Obama goes to Notre Dame this week, we should be sure what is at issue. He goes there for one reason, namely, in this symbolic place, to convince the vast majority of Catholics that his operative definition of “human rights,” not that of the Church, is the correct one.
One night, a nursing co-worker was taking an aborted Down’s syndrome baby who was born alive to our Soiled Utility Room because his parents did not want to hold him, and she did not have time to hold him. I could not bear the thought of this suffering child dying alone in a Soiled Utility Room, so I cradled and rocked him for the 45 minutes that he lived. He was 21 to 22 weeks old, weighed about ½ pound, and was about 10 inches long. He was too weak to move very much, expending any energy he had trying to breathe. Toward the end, he was so quiet that I couldn’t tell if he was still alive unless I held him up to the light to see if his heart was still beating through his chest wall. After he was pronounced dead, we folded his little arms across his chest, wrapped him in a tiny shroud, and carried him to the hospital morgue where all of our dead patients are taken.
Obama questioned whether the born alive legislation would impede the right to abort and doctor/patient decision-making. He and an American Civil Liberties Union attorney speculated Born Alive would force doctors to resuscitate nonviable aborted babies.
Obama opposed Born Alive in committee, but voted “present” — neither “yes” nor “no,” but merely “present” — on the state Senate floor, one of many “present” votes that Hillary Clinton has cited as evidence that Obama lacks leadership skills. Clinton voted for the federal Born Alive bill, putting her on record as more pro-life than Obama.
Today a 80 year old priest carrying cross was arrested by police at Notre Dame while he is being arrested and restrained Father Norman Weslin was singing the Ave Maria. This will bring tears to your eyes I promise.
By the age of 18, Agnese Gonxha Bojaxhiu, Mother Teresa's name in the world had decided to become a missionary nun.
Father Jambrekovic, S.J., her pastor, encouraged her to follow her heart, saying that if the thought of serving God and His people filled her with joy, it was the right path for her. He compared joy to a compass, pointing the way to one's true vocation.
SNAP says SLU shelters sex offenders, challenges Sam Simon
By Chris King Of The St. Louis American Wednesday, May 13, 2009 10:09 PM CDT
Two African Americans who were molested by a Catholic priest who is now sheltered at Saint Louis University’s Jesuit Hall are calling for SLU Director of Public Safety Sam Simon to come clean about their former abuser’s whereabouts and activities – and to make a full disclosure of all sex offenders currently housed or employed by the university.
“Put it all on the table so we know who these people are, where they are kept and how we can protect ourselves,” said Charles Spearman.
SLU currently houses Fr. Chester E. Gaiter at Jesuit Hall. Spearman accused Gaiter of sexually abusing him in the mid-1980s at Cardinal Ritter College Prep High School. The suit was settled in 2007, with $140,000 awarded to Spearman and both the Jesuits and the Archdiocese of St. Louis agreeing to write him letters of apology.
My second blast of ire is directed at House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. It’s quite possible that Pelosi was briefed on waterboarding in 2002 and it’s certain she was on Feb. 4, 2003. She first denied that fact and now has invented a series of ever more complicated evasions. The California Democrat Jane Harman heard the briefing and was so alarmed she wrote a letter in protest, but Pelosi was silent.
Why can’t she just tell the obvious truth? She was influenced by the climate of the time. In retrospect, she wishes she had raised her voice in protest. Meanwhile, the 80 percent of the people who want to prosecute Justice Department lawyers have gone strangely silent as far as Pelosi is concerned.
My lesson of the day is that partisanship trumps everything.
The following is an excerpt from a letter written by USF President Stephen A. Privett, S.J., explaining his association with Nancy Pelosi:
I am, by nature, an inclusive person who seeks to extend a conversation rather than cut it off, build bridges rather than walls across differences and engage divergent opinions rather than condemn them.
I realize that my pastoral strategy may not be universally endorsed, but it is the product of careful thought, prayerful reflection, and some experience. From my friendship with Ms. Pelosi, I know that she is a serious Catholic, an active member of her parish here in San Francisco, and a regular communicant. Though Speaker Pelosi’s record on abortion and embryonic stem cell research is at odds with official Church teaching,
her efforts to end the war in Iraq, as well as her support for HIV-AIDS patients, universal health care, aid to dependent children, increased higher education financial assistance for needy students, just and compassionate immigration laws, tax structures that do not unduly burden persons of low and moderate income, reordering budget priorities to be more responsive to the needs of the poor, higher Congressional ethical standards, environmental preservation, and day care for children of the working poor reflect concerns of Catholic social thought. Fr. Kenneth Weare, a pastor in the San Francisco Archdiocese, made a pointed observation in Catholic San Francisco, noting that Pelosi “is by far much more in line with the greater body of Catholic moral teaching than [President] Bush ever was.”
I am not a Jesuit, nor am I a cleric. I spent about 5 years under the spiritual direction of a Jesuit, 3 of those years in a weekly directed retreat in everyday life. The profound impact that the Society and the Excercises had upon my life, resulted in me, trying to deal with that impact in some way by sharing my view of Jesus Christ with others. My intention is to pull together Jesuitical and Catholic subjects that interest me. I was born on the feast day of St. Paul Miki, S.J.. I am the father of three small children and an infant, I am married to a great wife.
Archbishop of New York Timothy Dolan has said that Fordham University did not inform him that pro-abortion rights Mayor Michael Bloomberg would speak at the Catholic school’s commencement and receive an honorary degree.
