Notre Dame's grievance against the HHS Mandate was rejected by the courts because the Mandate hasn't actually begun yet
The White House has been petitioned to label Catholicism as a "hate group" because of comments Pope Benedict made on Christmas Day during his annual address. Who hasn't seen this coming for a while?
The HHS Mandate kicks in for many employers soon, among those continuing to resist include Hobby Lobby, which has stated it will refuse to cooperate. The CEO of Hobby Lobby wrote a BEAUTIFUL letter to his employees which can be read by clicking here.
Cardinal George and Bishop Paprocki both issued letters to their flock urging defense of marriage as being between one man and one woman. Read Cardinal George's letter by clicking here. Bishop Paprocki's letter can be found here.
A couple of things for readers of this blog
1) we just crossed the 1/3 of a million hits, or the number of times people have visited. WOW! I would NEVER have imagined!
2) Lifesite News listed the "I Have a Say" video of mine as the number 10 pro-life story of the year!
Thanks for following the blog, thanks for all the encouragement, and I pray that you have a blessed and happy new year!
Thank you Father for keeping us up on the Catholic news. Steve and I got back from Rome on December 28th. We stayed across the street from the North American College. Christmas Eve Mass with the Pope was the hi-light of our trip! We were 5 ft. from him as he came into the vatican and leaving. He looked right at us and I said, God Bless you!
ReplyDeleteHeard a wonderful homily last Saturday at Little Sisters of the Poor with Msgr. Duncan. He went through the history of the State intruding into religious liberty in England because of the feast day (cant remember the saint) whose feast day was December 29th. He spoke out as did Saint Thomas Moore against the government in moral issues and they were both killed.
We (Catholic and Protestant) Christians are speaking out against the HHS mandate which has not recognized conscience protections as past administrations have in regards to abortion, sterilization, the morning after pill, contraception, etc. It helped me to realize that what we are going through with this current administration, other Catholic christians have gone through, and we must stand up like they did....pray, fast, and speak up for our Catholic faith.
Keep doing what you are doing! We are praying for all Priests!
That's awesome!!! Welcome back!
DeleteHappy New Year to you to Father! Dave, Jamie, Neil, Sammy, and Katie Clark
ReplyDeleteA blessed new year to the Clark Family!!!
DeleteThank you, Father..its hard to put into words how appreciative we all are for your courage and inspiration for the rest of us...we sure need it! Suzanne McConnell
ReplyDeleteThanks Suzanne!!!
DeleteFather, may our Lord grant you abundant peace in the new year. No matter how busy you get, we pray that you will always be granted the time to keep blogging...we find it incredibly informative. Happy New Year from Mike, Susan, Rebecca, Alicia, Elena and Pete.
ReplyDeleteGod's blessings this new year to the Nygra's and all the good people of St. Malachy!
DeleteGreat news about your blog! Thank you for all the work you do!! God bless you!
ReplyDeleteChristmas time. A time for celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ. A time of the year when we give to others and help those in need. Yet the pope talks about GAY MARRIAGE AT CHRISTMAS MASS?!?!?!?!?!? Honestly Fr. Hollowell, do you think that was an appropriate time for Benedict to talk about that? Is it fair to say that Benedict's harsh words to gay people was a little overboard? Could he have said it in a different way? "People eschewing their God-given gender identities to suit their sexual choices – and destroying the very "essence of the human creature" in the process." Given the number of people out there who heard this and read it online, for some people it will cause them to hate gay people in general. Guarantee you some brat teenager will remember that speech and next time they see a gay person(whatever their relationship status is), they will commit a violent act upon them cause Benedict said they are destroying humanity. Benedict doesn't give a hoot about gay people at all. If he did, he would have most certainly said something like this: "Gay people are made in the image and likeness of God and are loved by God. They are human beings that deserve no harm, no bullying, and deserve to be loved like everybody else." Perhaps one of these days a pope will say that.
ReplyDeleteIt wasn't at Christmas Mass, and all he did was affirm families.
DeleteHe affirmed "traditional" families, and essentially bashed families of gay couples. You apparently fail to see that. Additionally, along with the film you have supported, wouldn't it be wise of the pope to explain his position better. Anonymous is correct that this kind of talk only perpetuates homophobia in the world. Church teaching says that gay people should be treated with dignity and respect. Where is exactly is that being practiced? The whole notion is on "defending traditional marriage" when it should be about expressing care for all people, whether gay or straight. Advocating for groups such as Courage is not what I am talking about. Why not include more neutral (Catholic message but not forced upon the children) safe-spaces in schools and parishes for gay people?
DeleteYou don't "essentially bash"...if you are bashing something you are bashing it - there is no way to "subtly bash" because that is an oxymoron.
DeleteSo you want the Church to explain its teaching but you don't want my film that is explaining the Church's teaching.
You want the Church to affirm people with SSA but you don't want the Church to talk about Courage, our group that affirms people with SSA.
These are quite the catch 22's.
You like to make rash assumptions. Picking out "essentially bashing" has nothing to do with what I was referring to. Fine, he flat-out bashed them. You did not address that at all. So why are you calling me out on that?
DeleteAdditionally I never said that I did not want your film. Read my post. You completely misinterpreted it. You said that you want to explain the Church's position in your film. That's great, although I do not agree with that position nor do I think it will actually help people. You said you wanted more explanations. What I said was that if the Church's teaching on homosexuality are not clearly shown/known, why don't you address that with regards to the Pope's speech? If you truly want more explanations and less misunderstanding in what the pope or others say, why not explain it better for others because it can be easily misconstrued.
Yes I want the Church to affirm people (all people including LGBT). The usage of "people with SSA" comes of as "people with a disorder", which is contrary to Catholic teaching. It's not a condition. Courage does affirm LGBT people, however it seems like there is not much conveyed. Understandably it teaches the Church's views. I'm talking about neutral programs in schools where kids are allowed to come to their own understanding of what it means to be LGBT and not fall into the Catholic notion of being "burdened by a cross." I never said i didn't want the Church to talk about Courage. I said that I wasn't talking about Courage.
It's clear that you aren't addressing my post at all, just nit-picking and misconstruing it. It seems like you really don't care at all.
So what did the Pope say on Christmas day? How would YOU present it to people? Read over his speech, and then let me know how it SHOULD be summarized.
DeleteYou still fail to admit that you were wrong in your interpretations of my post. And still haven't addressed it.
DeleteRegardless, the pope could affirm the "traditional family" as well as non-traditional families in the sense that there are efforts to raise children in a good household setting, even though the Church does not validate same-sex relationships. He also could have stated that we still must love and support LGBT people. There was no mention of the latter.
"The issue in the world today is not homophobia but "Catholicphobia" as you and the other anonymous poster are illustrating" So the Ugandan "Kill the Gays" bill was not homophobic in nature?
And why are you asking me how I should summarize the speech? I am not a priest nor did I choose to take up the responsibility of explaining the Church's teachings on this matter clearly. You have and that's why you should clarify statements further. I've read some of your other posts. You defend yourself rather than actually addressing the post. Criticizing gay rights activists and others does not strengthen your arguments at all.
CLAIMING that I've failed to address your post doesn't mean that I ACTUALLY failed in addressing your post.
DeleteI've read over all your comments on here and I still have no idea what it is you want me to address.
I think Christmas day was the perfect time to talk about families
I think the Pope's speech was great.
I don't think he should have said anything different.
The Holy Father and the Church have affirmed the dignity of people living with SSA elsewhere.
I'm asking you what the Pope should have said because I don't have any problem with what he said, and so since you do, it falls to you to propose what should have been said and how it should have been said.
The Kill the Gays Bill was proposed by the Catholic Church in Uganda?
Let me know if I have still failed to answer whatever it is that you want answered.
Dogen222 never said the bill was proposed by the church. it was asked to you, Fr. Hollowell, if the bill was homophobic. To shed a little more light on the matter, Pope Benedict did bless Rebecca Kadaga, the Speaker of the Uganda Parliament who promised to pass the “Kill The Gays” bill as a “Christmas gift” to Uganda’s Christians, during a mass attended by thousands of pilgrims at the Vatican. Giving an individual who is trying to get gay people killed(and God only knows in what disgusting way to kill them) a blessing is one of the most repulsive things I've seen in a long time.
DeleteTell me more about this blessing incident
Deletehttp://www.newvision.co.ug/news/638115-speaker-kadaga-receives-blessings-from-pope.html
DeleteDon't know what else to say here.....maybe I don't get it.
I'm praying for you, Father. As a young person, I love all the Priests very much. What would we do without you! Seriously! No Church, No Sacraments, no nothin'!
ReplyDeleteAs for the HHS Mandate, I agree. We must fight! The Devil has always used the state to attack the Catholic Church and now it's here in this country. The Government is there to protect our rights, NOT take them! We're looking at tyranny here. We can't let that happen. Please, for the sake of my future, don't let them do this to us. We're not their slaves and we're not going to be. If only George Washington were here, he wouldn't have any of this. And now gun control?! 56 million people were killed in the 20th century alone, because of gun control. They had no way of defending themselves so they were then rounded up and exterminated. We can't let that happen, Father. Please, Father, pray we don't just wound up being another statistic that people can look back at 50 years from now. I just don't know what to do anymore, except pray. History is repeating itself and I'm scared for my future, and for my generation for that matter. Please pray for this Country, Father. More than we ever have before. I feel as if I'm the only one that understands. America is so asleep, wallowing in immorality and now look where it's gotten us. If only we could turn this tide back around.... Jesus, have mercy on us....
~Hannah
Regardless of where he said all that, was that his way of saying Merry Christmas to gay people? By making them all look like a filthy pile of disgusting trash? What say you Fr. Hollowell?
ReplyDeleteThe issue in the world today is not homophobia but "Catholicphobia" as you and the other anonymous poster are illustrating
DeleteWhatever. One should be afraid of the church if they want to make certain people look like a pile of filthy garbage! Especially on CHRISTMAS of all days! Now back to the question at hand that you failed to answer Fr. Hollowell. Was that the pope's way of telling gay people Merry Christmas??? Has Benedict ever once stated that gay people are made in the image and likeness of God, are loved by God and deserve NO harm whatsoever and deserve to be loved like everybody else??? If so, where can I find it online? Also, inquiring minds want to know this---- the Courage Group you mention above; do YOU run a Courage Group? If not, why not???
DeleteWow, your motto must be charity towards all, unless I deem someone to be uncharitable."
DeleteAs to wondering what Pope Benedict has said in the past on this topic, I'm glad you asked!
I'll give you one guess who wrote this:
10. It is deplorable that homosexual persons have been and are the object of violent malice in speech or in action. Such treatment deserves condemnation from the Church's pastors wherever it occurs. It reveals a kind of disregard for others which endangers the most fundamental principles of a healthy society. The intrinsic dignity of each person must always be respected in word, in action and in law.
As for me, I have been asked by some about the possibility of starting a Courage/encourage chapter, and would be totally open to it. Do you know someone in the area looking for one?
Ok. Thank You for pointing that out. That was in the congregation for the doctrine of faith in a letter to the Catholic Bishops on the pastoral care of homosexual persons back in 1986. But what leaves me in a state of total bewilderment is what he said back in 1986 and this past Christmas. First he says It is deplorable that homosexual persons have been and are the object of violent malice in speech or in action, now, nearly 3 weeks ago, he says gay people are "eschewing their God-given gender identities to suit their sexual choices – and destroying the very 'essence of the human creature' in the process". Amongst some other things.... So did he forget about what he said back in 1986? Why did he not reiterate that in his Merry Christmas speech? You know what that makes him look like don't you? A HYPOCRITE(a person who acts in contradiction to his or her stated beliefs or feelings). Given what I have told you, Fr. Hollowell, please explain to me why he is NOT in this case, a hypocrite.
DeleteAs for Courage....no, I don't know anybody in your area that would be interested. In fact, I don't know anybody in the state of Indiana at all. Sorry.
Pope Benedict was the head of the congregation for the doctrine of the faith when the letter was written. As to your question about the Pope's words, telling people that they are destroying themselves through sinful action is completely different from discrimination, and in fact is the opposite of discrimination...it is love. One of the spiritual works of mercy in the Church is to admonish the sinner so we see this as a work of love. It has nothing to do with one's ability to welcome and love a person who struggles with a sin or a temptation to sin. The two statements, the one from 1986 and the one from Christmas 2012, are completely compatible with one another and with the Church's mission.
Delete