Hurray for Archbishop Burke!

In his column for the St. Louis Archdiocesan newspaper last week, Archbishop Burke wrote about the excommunication of the St. Stanislaus Kostka Church and the priest they hired after having an interdict imposed on them. I think it's fair to say that the Archbishop covered all the bases in this column: he defended himself against claims made about him in the media, and cited canon law to back up his decision. Most importantly, he expressed his sorrow over what has happened with this situation. The conclusion of his column sums it up very well:

As I wrote at the beginning, my heart is heavy in writing to you about the break of communion with the Church by our brothers and sisters at St. Stanislaus Kostka Parish, most especially at the Holy Seasons of Advent and Christmas. We must not, however, permit Satan to steal our joy at the preparation for Christmas and the celebration of the Birth of Our Lord Jesus. Let, rather, the mystery of the Incarnation, which we will celebrate with deepest joy on Christmas Day and throughout the Christmas Season be the source of our renewed prayers for the reconciliation of the members of the board of directors, of those who support them, and of Father Marek Bozek.

(read the entire - excellent - column here)

Don't forget...

...NBC is broadcasting Midnight Mass from St. Peter's at 11:30 CST on Christmas Eve.

It's never a good sign when you go to Mass and...

...the cantor/music leader recently released an album entitled "Fully Exposed."
...the words of the Great Amen are interspersed with little tinkly piano riffs which build to a full-blown song in the "background" before Father's done.
...the Eucharistic Minister doesn't know what to do when you don't want to receive Communion in the hand.
...after Mass, "Fully Exposed" woman asks for volunteers to move the Altar and put the piano in its place in preparation for tomorrow night's concert in honor of the release of the former pastor's new book (it's not that I have a problem with the pastor writing a book or anything. It's the Altar moving that bugs me, especially when their piano is already in a prominent place).
...Father adds little phrases into the Eucharistic prayer. Nothing big enough to be a big deal, just stuff like "And then, we know that Jesus took the cup..."
...on the way home, you hear "Yahweh" by U2 on the radio, and it sounds more prayerful than anything you sang during Mass.

A Musical Game (from Katie)

Step 1: Get your playlist (or Itunes library) together, put it on random, and play.
Step 2: Write down the first line from the first 30 songs that play or close to it.
Step 3: Post and let everyone you know guess what song the lines come from. (Title and Composer/Artist)
Step 4: Cross out the songs when someone guesses correctly

NO GOOGLING FOR ANSWERS!!!

1. In open fields of wild flowers
2. Makin' my way downtown
3. Poor old Johnny Ray
4. Silence is golden, but I think it's going to kill me now
5. She said, "Life's a lot to think about sometimes"
6. There's a dark and a troubled side of life
7. Take my photo off the wall
8. I'm 'round the corner from anything that's real
9. It takes a crane to build a crane
10. Buona sera, signorita, buona sera
11. What'll you do when you get lonely, and nobody's waitin' by your side?
12. My story is much too sad to be told
13. We'll be singin', When we're winnin'
14. As I went down in the river to pray
15. Don't tell me what to think
16. I've got chills, they're multiplyin'
17. When I was a young boy I tried to listen
18. A long December and there's reason to believe
19. If I ever leave this world alive
20. First you get down on your knees, fiddle with your rosaries
21. Ave Maria, gratia plena
22. Deep down in Louisiana, close to New Orleans
23. You come like a dream, peaches and cream
24. The Western wind is blowing fair across the dark Aegean Sea
25. A long, long time ago, I can still remember how the music used to make me smile
26. O little town of Hackensack
27. I looked out this morning, and the sun was gone
28. Baby slow down, the end is not as fun as the start
29. I feel stupid, but I know it won't last for long
30. Summer has come and passed

Boy, that took a lot longer than I expected it to. I'm guessing that has something to do with the fact that I had to skip at least every other song because it was from a movie score or something else instrumental (that's to be expected, though, as I have the entire score from the original Star Wars trilogy). I have a lot of really wierd stuff on there...
I know I'm supposed to pass this on to someone else, but I really can't think of anyone, so feel free to take it if you want to do it.

I'm just happy to have an excuse to post a picture of Harrison Ford

You scored as Indiana Jones. Indiana Jones is an archaeologist/adventurer with an unquenchable love for danger and excitement. He travels the globe in search of historical relics. He loves travel, excitement, and a good archaeological discovery. He hates Nazis and snakes, perhaps to the same degree. He always brings along his trusty whip and fedora. He's tough, cool, and dedicated. He relies on both brains and brawn to get him out of trouble and into it. Indiana Jones 88% Lara Croft 75% Maximus 63% Captain Jack Sparrow 63% The Amazing Spider-Man 63% James Bond, Agent 007 54% William Wallace 42% Neo, the "One" 38% Batman, the Dark Knight 38% The Terminator 21% El Zorro 13% Which Action Hero Would You Be? v. 2.0 created with QuizFarm.com

The perfect gift for anyone who's ever wanted to own a piece of Darth Vader's cape.

Or maybe I'm the only one...

Fun Website of the Day

A Pen Lover's Paradise

There's really just nothing I could say to make this more bizarre than it already is

From the Baby Jesus Head CafePress Shop

Of course, if the above-linked item isn't good enough, there's always the "Chastisement Cards". Sounds like a good Valentine's Day item...

Is this the Protestant counter to the New Evangelization?

How Minnesota Girls Know Chivalry Isn't Dead...

When we came out of work at 10:15 the other night, the guys took it upon themselves to brush/scrape the foot of snow and ice that had accumulated on everyone's cars. We didn't even have to ask.