Catholic Carnival 121: Better Late than…

If you knew me in real life…well, it would come as no surprise that I crawled into the shower this morning, with my holiday-weekend-hangover (which comes from doing too much too late) raging and making me wonder why we have holiday weekends (though the rest was much-needed!), well, it was then, with the hot water coursing through my hair, that I thought of the Catholic Carnival. It’s not that I don’t love you guys – I do! On Saturday, I was thinking of how much fun hosting would be (and it was no letdown, I assure you). It’s just that between Saturday and Monday, I completely blocked it out with things like tomato plants and bergamot and crisp hung-out laundry and large groups of young cousins and organizing and cleaning and…well, you get the idea.

This week’s Carnival is worth the wait, and has a lingering scent of grilled hot dogs and the crunch of potato chips lingering around. You can feel the parade music still thumping, can’t you? And behind the thumping, you can taste the bittersweet prayers and tributes as we stop for a moment to pay our respects to those who have made this country possible through their service.

We kick things off with “St. Augustine Comments on the Year 2007,” courtesy of the Scratching Post. Just how does Augustine tie in with now? It turns out, there are plenty of ways! “The story itself is compelling. As a kid, he was a total jerk. He lied, stole, cheated and did nasty things simply for the sake of nasty things. As a young man he lived a life that would be the envy of the Hollywood set today.”

Mind, Heart, and Mysteries brings us “Recalling,” which includes this gem: “Perhaps, the reason we love to reminisce is not because we want to endure to the past. As we move farther, the mnemonics become treasures for us. Through them, we have become the person we are now. Through them, we learn to keep on living. We know that we have passed the tests, and that we can also pass the tests yet to come.” But wait, there’s more! But you’ll have to find it out for yourself.

In “Trying to Read the News from Pakistan,” Revolt in the Desert covers the media’s struggle to cover the story of Christians in a small town in the Northwest Frontier Province of Pakistan receiving threatening letters. “Several things bothered me about the way the media approached the story. I will begin with the BBC article in particular but then move on to look at broader coverage of the story in the U.S., U.K., Pakistan and elsewhere.” And from there, you get a thorough analysis.

From Ever Hopeful, Ever Thankful, we have a choice this week, both of which will make you stop and think. In “Savior(s) Among Us,” you’ll read an insightful lesson proposed by the appearance of whales in the Sacramento River, 70 miles from where they’re supposed to be. “To many, the whales are just another spectacle, but to me, they are a reminder of God's greatness and that sometimes His message can be delivered in the form of a sign or a dream or in this case, a mother and calf pair. If our hearts are open to His messages, our conversations with God will never cease.” EHET’s other post, “Meeting God Halfway” considers the impact of the movie Conversations with God on some of the author’s perspectives.

Book Reviews and More gives us an interesting take on a meme you might have seen in the post “Saints Meme.” Writes Steven in his submission for the Carnival, “I love reading and that is why most of my posts are about books and book reviews. However as a prolific reader I run out of things to read because when I find an author or subject I like I read all I can. I want to highlight this meme, from the responses I have had and followed I have a found a few Saints I was unaware of to find out more about. Books to track down and read. So If anybody in the carnival would like to respond to this meme or has already through someone else. I would like to have a link back to expand my knowledge of saints and find some more reading material.” So, go for it, and give him some more reading material!

Fighting Irish Thomas brings us ““The World” Ends “The Period,” or The End of the World, Period.” If you find yourself clicking through just because of the taunting grammar, you’re not alone (OK, so I get “paid” this week to click through, I know!). There’s more to this post than just a catchy title, though. That new birth control pill? Yeah, well, scientists’ high hopes for ending The Period has Thomas a little skeptical: “This drug's not-exactly-stellar success rate gives a thinking person much to ponder. If a new food was tested and only fifty-nine percent of its ingesters ate it without getting violently ill, would it not be shelved forever? But the corporate heads of big drug companies and their ally Planned Parenthood do not think like St. James.” Read up, Pro-Life Prayer Force! There’s much to battle!

Now, a two-fer that has a title longer than the explanation: “Authentic Dialogue includes Listening to Criticism and Announcing What We Have Encountered” by Deep Furrows. In these two articles about Pope Benedict XVI’s dialogue with the world, you’ll get insights into Benedict that will leave you clapping your hands with delight. For example, “The Pope is speaking of the heart, of love, of reason, of education, of dialogue. He is speaking of “secular” matters, instead of concerning himself with faith and religion, which is, after all, his field of competence. Instead, he dares to use the words that thinkers and ideologies hostile to Christianity claim as their own, and on questions into which Christians, not to mention the Pope, have no right to poke their noses; these are the words of modernity, which interest modern man.” Ah, yes. And you guessed it, there’s more where that came from…

“The Spirit of Reconciliation and Peace” is a reflection on the Mass readings for Pentecost, focusing on the Spirit’s work of bringing reconciliation and peace, and therefore on the importance of cooperating in the pursuit of these gifts throughout the year and throughout our lives found over at HMS Blog. “It might seem odd to focus one's reflections on the Mass readings for Pentecost around the theme of reconciliation. That is, this theme might seem to have more to do with Ash Wednesday - over three months ago now - and with the subsequent season of Lent. However, as I would like to suggest briefly, this is in fact an prominent and important Pentecost theme, together with the related theme of peace.”

All you’ve ever wanted to know about altar serving – from the history to the appropriate demeanor – can be found at “History and Graces Received from Altar Serving,” brought to us by A Catholic Life. “To serve at the altar as an altar server is one of the greatest sources of graces. The altar server assists the priest at the Sacred Liturgy; he is privileged to walk into the sanctuary. Remember, the Mass is the Sacrifice of Calvary. It is not a memorial but rather the Mass truly is the Sacrifice of Calvary.”

From Phatcatholic Apologetics, we get “YouTube Summer Project,” which is home base for the YouTube Summer Project. “I want to scour YouTube (and Google Videos) and find all of the good, solid, orthodox Catholic videos and put them all in one place. I'm also looking for as many people to help as possible. This post gives directions for how to get involved. Please help!

Over at The Cross Reference, you’ll enjoy “Scripture Reflection: The Feast of Pentecost.” Comparing the Tower of Babel with the first Pentecost, you’ll find this: “Here is the beautiful Wisdom of God displayed: yet another foreshadowing of the New Covenant in the Old. Just as the sacrifice of Isaac prefigured the sacrifice of Jesus, just as the ark of Noah prefigured baptism, just as the manna in the desert prefigured the True Bread from Heaven, so to did the confusing of tongues in Babel prefigure the confusing -- and understanding -- of tongues in Jerusalem.”

Postscripts from the Catholic Spitfire Grill comes at us fresh from a recent question-and-answer with a Protestant colleague. In “Are Catholics Wrong about Sole Fide?” you’ll find the answer, with the complete rundown of why flashy slogans and pithy sayings just won’t get you “saved” without the hard work of obedience. “Jesus spoke the Truth not contradiction and that means (according to his words) both believing AND doing are necessary. If believing is all that is necessary to accept God's gift of Salvation why are the examples of faith that are held up to us in the New Testament always really examples of faithful obedience and not 'faith alone'?” I love this kind of reading! (Now, if I could only remember it when I need it…)

“Prayers for Us on Memorial Day,” at Living Catholicism, gives you two great prayers. Use them this week…just like a feast, there’s no reason to limit your prayers for veterans and soldiers to just one day.

Get ready for some more apologetics, folks, with “Avoiding History: Who Were the Waldenses?” over at Deo Omnis Gloria. Some protestant groups claim the Waldenses as the earliest form of protestanism. This post examines that claim. “In reality, all of the current protestant sects come from the Reformation and simply broke off further at one time or another. But this isn’t satisfying, is it? So these churches try to claim a much earlier birth that makes them seem older and more long-lasting.” Find out more about the Waldenses and their claim to fame.

CatholicLand brings us “What a Blessed Day!” SWP considers how fortunate we are when we place our trust in Divine Providence, and leaves us with this thought: “No matter which route or direction or stop along the way, if we place ourselves in God's hands, the rest will follow.”

We join My Domestic Church on the second week in a series following the e-book An Understandable History of the Bible, by Samuel Gipp. “An Examination of Chapter 1” finds much agreement with Dr. Gipp regarding the presence of God in creation, but his use fiction in the second half of the chapter does not make for very compelling apologetics. This post, however, falls squarely in the apologetics section, with references and a logical thought process.

“Is God Love?” by Teresa’s Two Cents is a response to those advocates of a “biblical view of God” that emphasizes righteousness and justice at the expense of mercy. “It was the "Letters of Paul" class with Dr. Schubert and a classmate, a Pentecostal-turning-Baptist minister, gave a presentation on a beloved passage, 1 Cor. 13 (NAB). In his summation, he stated with some genuine astonishment that the passage, popular especially with brides and grooms, never once mentions God by name. The minister feared that Christian couples using this passage were founding their marriages on love rather than on God.” So what’s the response? Go find out!

If you’ve ever asked yourself “Is Christianity Good for the World?” then maybe you’ll be interested in the current debate between atheist Christopher Hitchens and christian Douglas Wilson? Both are heavyweights, great thinkers and widely published. It's a discussion you don't want to miss. This is Apologetics 101 in the trenches. La Nouvelle Théologie has all the details in this post.

For those of you who are less-than-web-savvy, “CSS Tools Collection,” over at Prosperity Achiever, (which doesn’t seem Catholic until you consider all the Catholic blogs that can use the information) gives you a handy-dandy listing of things that will make your blog whir and dance. But only if you know how to use them. So…don’t ask me, OK? And don’t use them if you’ve had more than one coffee. Who knows what would happen?!?

It wouldn’t be May without Mary, and what better way to bring us back around to what this month is all about than “iRosary – Audio Rosary Roundup Part 2”? A Third Way posts this collection, which is part of an ongoing series, just in time for you to get your iPod ready for the closing of May. Who might the winner be? You’ll have to find out for yourself; I have other posts to prepare…

For those of us who are fully swamped with booster seats, here’s a new take on a crusty old kitchen mainstay: “A Booster Seat to Holiness,” brought to us by Contrariwise. This isn’t just a metaphor in my house, it’s reality. This will be on my fridge this week: “God’s grace gives us the help we need to fulfill His plans for us. Grace is like a booster seat to holiness.” But you have to read the rest to know just where the booster seats come in.

The masked woman from Minnesota, Adoro Te Devote, brings us “Centering Prayer vs. Contemplative Prayer.” Now before you go skimming away to easier-to-read waters, stop for just a minute. This is no skimming matter. You get the history and the background of each, and then you get the differences. I think it won’t be long before someone writes up an online quiz that will determine for you which type of prayer you’re best at…but until then, chew on this: “Let's consider this; prayer is a conversation with God. Throughout history, although it has been Man who ruptured the union with God, it has always been God who sought to restore that intended union, even unto the death of His only beloved Son, sent to heal that rupture. And it is always Man who questions God and does not trust God.” So which form of prayer are you? Well, I hope you know the right answer!

Thanks to my powers of waiting until the last minute, we get to enjoy “If There’s Justice Here, It’s Bloody Hard to Find” at On the Other Foot. The Spokane Diocese has reached a settlement in the pervo-priest lawsuits, but it looks more like a lynching than an attempt at justice. And the conclusion? “This whole thing stinks worse than a waterfront brothel the morning after payday.”

Our penultimate posting this week, “Word of Faith: Prosperity Theology II” at THEOdyssey, takes a look at the author’s visit to a church following the Word of Faith movement. “The traditional understanding is that we are creation and God is Creator. This is a simple way of understanding that God and human beings are distinct in being from each other. No matter how “great” a person becomes, no matter how much God works in us to make us more like Him; we will always be creation and not creator. God is infinite and we are not; but in remaking God in their own image, WoF teachers are following the paths of many who wished to place their own sovereignty before God’s.”

And wrapping things up, I bring you “The Shoes that Took Over the House” (here at just another day of Catholic pondering), not because it’s Catholic, but because it’s just how my life has been going, and maybe you’ll relate with that. :) Then again, maybe shoes taking over the house is catholic, in the sense that it’s universal…

Don’t miss out on future editions of the Carnival: join the fun today! You can host, or you can submit, or you can do both. A variety of contributors and hosts is part of what makes the Carnival worth its weight in cyberspace!

Catholic Carnival 121: Better Late than…

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