Monday, February 23, 2009

Pope's Response to "American Messiah"



I hear ya, man. I hear ya.

Theological Equasions

I was just thinking today and was wondering about the following.

A) Christ Jesus = the body of Christ (or Christ's body)...
B) The Body of Christ = The Church
C) Christ Jesus = The Word (made flesh)
D) The Word = Scripture

so can I conclude that:
The Church = Living Scripture?

It sounds kind of cool to me. :)

American Messiah?


Good Lord, here they go again! Halos on Obama. Geez! Gimmee a break.

Sunday, February 22, 2009

New Members



Welcome Romeo and Mercutio.
My sisters Valentine's Day presents.

Saturday, February 14, 2009

Speaking of Greed...

The following is the web address of an article that was republished in our parish bulletin once upon a time. I agree with some of what this guy is saying, but some of his views really rub me the wrong way. I'll respond to it later.

"America's Disease is Greed"
by Andrew Greeley

www.commondreams.org/views04/0820-09.htm

Greed and the Spiritual Life



pic by tashamichele





According to the dictionary greed is “an excessive desire to acquire or possess more than what one needs or deserves, especially with respect to material wealth.”

I believe greed stems from dissatisfaction. I once heard the word “zehnzucht”(spelling uncertain) used to describe a deep longing for “that which we know not what”. C.S. Lewis said, "If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world." We Christians recognize it as a longing for our creator, for God. We are restless. We know we are restless for something outside of ourselves. The satisfaction of consumption sooths it for a while, but only for a very little while. In fact, from my own experience (for I do not claim to be immune to this myself) feeding this need with buying or acquiring is like getting a sugar buzz. One feels high for a short while, but then the feeling fades and sometimes even leaves one feeling a bit sick. These are the consequences of filling the need with objects or money. Some begin to desire the high itself. They need the money to support their consumer high. They cannot stop buying or they discover that their things are not truly filling the ache. It’s just not soothing the longing. They are craving something very Other. Only God can satisfy that need.

Greed is also a problem of security. People who are afraid and don’t have a trust in divine providence struggle for money as a safeguard against the hollow echoes of the future. Money becomes a pacifier and a life preserver. The idea that money can guarantee a secure future breeds the greed to acquire it. Where there is no trust in a good God, there is only fear of chance.

Pride also feeds greed. It is a greed that struggles to keep up an image or keep up with the Jones’. There is a desire to be liked or to be looked up to; a desire to be held in awe because of what one owns or the lifestyle one maintains. This kind of greed feeds on our need for love and affection. It feeds on our need for simple communion with others. We are so afraid that we are not enough in and of ourselves. We are terrified that stripped of our stuff, we are lacking in likeability. Thus we seek to inspire awe based on what we own, our stylishness and even the power we have acquired. A person secure in God’s love has no need for such things. May I suggest the Litany of Humility as a safeguard against this type of greed? A person secure in God’s love has no need of frivolous trappings.

Greed is an affliction of the lonely, insecure, frightened and the lost, grabbing for something to nourish, sustain, protect, build up and reassure them. However, money is a poor god.

A person who resists the temptation to fear, trusts in providence, is secure in their identity as a beloved child of God and allows their faith in that relationship to fill that aching space in their soul has little need for mere things, for they are fulfilled. Greed is unlikely to be a serious temptation. May we all aspire to live such a simple and trusting life. May we desire to be rich in the things that matter most.


(Disclaimer: I am by no means anti-stuff. I like my stuff and collect neat stuff, but I am also aware that the simpler the life the better. I really should get rid of some of my stuff. *sigh*)

Litany of Humility

I love this prayer. It helps me grow.



Litany of Humility

Rafael Cardinal Merry del Val (1865-1930),
Secretary of State for Pope Saint Pius X

O Jesus! meek and humble of heart, Hear me.
From the desire of being esteemed,

Deliver me, Jesus.

From the desire of being loved...
From the desire of being extolled ...
From the desire of being honored ...
From the desire of being praised ...
From the desire of being preferred to others...
From the desire of being consulted ...
From the desire of being approved ...
From the fear of being humiliated ...
From the fear of being despised...
From the fear of suffering rebukes ...
From the fear of being calumniated ...
From the fear of being forgotten ...
From the fear of being ridiculed ...
From the fear of being wronged ...
From the fear of being suspected ...

That others may be loved more than I,
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

That others may be esteemed more than I ...
That, in the opinion of the world,
others may increase and I may decrease ...
That others may be chosen and I set aside ...
That others may be praised and I unnoticed ...
That others may be preferred to me in everything...
That others may become holier than I,
provided that I may become as holy as I should…

Monday, February 9, 2009

LOLSaints

I love books! This statue is awesome.

Found at lolsaints.com

Saint Obama!?! Oh my!


The media deification of this guy has gone too far!

Wednesday, February 4, 2009

T-Shirt




Another pet project finished!
Well, almost. It needs a few tweaks.
This is the front and back of a t-shirt I made using some of my illustrations of Dante's Inferno.


Sign of the Cross

A visual exploration of the Sign of the Cross.