Teaching Begins at Home

May the Lord bless our children as they apply themselves to their studies this year and may we never forget that the primary responsibility of educating and preparing our children rests with us.

St. Ignatius, pray for us.

St. Joseph, guide us.

Mary Most Holy, carry our prayers to Your Son.

Same Ol’ Same Ol’

Ok, so I went to the Men’s event in KC (Lee’s Summit) on 8/2 with Patrick Madrid.  Nice group of men there but there was a group missing.  The retirees were there and the men you always see at these or other “traditional”  events were there.  But where was “Joe Catholic”?  The men who NEEDED to be there were not.  The soccer dads, the Home Depot dads, the Saturday tee-time dads, the 9-5 dads were all missing.  Patrick Madrid preached nicely to the choir.  If these events are going to build the kingdom rather than simply maintain the foundation, they need to do a better job of reaching our and selling.

Not Too Late (but it will be 8/3)

You COULD mow the yard… but a better honey-do is always to be a better spouse.  Thus I suggest:

http://www.diocese-kcsj.org/content/offices_and_agencies/family_life/men_on_a_mission/

Via Con Dios, KCC

Update From Abp. Naumann

There is an item of interest in The Leaven - the newspaper of the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas.  Abp. Naumann does a very nice job presenting a “Q&A” addressing questions that have come up since he publically asked Kansas Governor Sebelius to renounce her positions on abortion or cease to present herself for Holy Communion.  (See previous post)

Among the highlights:

Q. What is meant when it is said that Gov. Sebelius’ actions were scandalous?

A. To answer this question, I again refer to “Happy Are Those Who Are Called to His Supper,” which references the Catechism of the Catholic Church: “To give scandal means more than to cause other people to be shocked or upset by what one does. Rather, one’s action leads someone else to sin. Scandal is an attitude or behavior which leads another to do evil. The person who gives scandal becomes his neighbor’s tempter. To lead others into sin is indeed a very serious matter. Anyone who uses the power at his disposal in such a way that it leads others to do wrong becomes guilty of scandal and responsible for the evil that he has directly or indirectly encouraged” (no. 4).
Governor Sebelius’ public support for legalized abortion, as a Catholic, naturally leads others to question the moral gravity of abortion. In effect, her actions and advocacy for legalized abortion, coupled with her reception of holy Communion, have said to other Catholics: “I am a good Catholic and I support legalized abortion. You can be a good Catholic and support legalized abortion.”

The complete article is here.

SERVIAM! once again salutes Archbishop Naumann. It should also be noted that his neighbor on the Missouri side, Bishop Robert Finn of the Diocese of Kansas City/St. Joseph, has also published his support of Abp. Naumann.

Say The Word, Do The Word.

One of the slogans on Fr. Z’s blog is “Say the Black, do the Red.”  This refers of course to the celebrant reading the prayer (black) and performing the action stated in the rubrics (red).  In life though, the manual is not so precise. 

As managers, we want to be able to instruct once and watch it happen forever.  We also would like for everyone to be able to read our minds.  Ah were it so easy.  God of course knew this and thus sent His son to show us.

Jesus is the Word.  He also did the Word.  He spoke, he acted.  He told us what to do and showed us the Word in action.

There is a commercial that does a good job with this.  It shows people doing simple things to help others and being unknowingly witnessed in the process.  The witnesses then find themselves going out of their way to help others and being witnessed in the process and it all multiplies.

There will be times when we face difficult situations in our businesses.  During these times, our words will be important.  But we will be more influential with our Catholic Christian attitude and actions, than with our words.

Your Appointment With Jesus.

Remember LONG ago when your day seemed to be yours?  Now if someone wants to see you for more than a minute, they likely need to make an appointment.  That’s all good.  Appointments help us organize our day and make sure that important tasks are not missed by unplanned distractions. 

But what about our daily time with Jesus?  Outside of our ability to get to Mass, do we see time with Jesus as something for which we hope to find time or do we make an actual appointment?  And if we make an appointment, do we treat it with the same priority as we treat one with our most important customer?  If you’re reading this, you don’t need a speech from me about which one is more important.  I’m writing this only as a testimony to how the practice of making an appointment with Jesus and actually putting it on my daily calendar has helped me.

Just as we cannot have a business life without customers, we cannot sanctify our business lives without Jesus Christ. 

Jesus is on line 1 and He would like to make an appointment with you.

Way To Go Archbishop Naumann!

SERVIAM salutes Archbishop Naumann on his pastoral action with Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius.  May his action be an example to other bishops.  May it also inspire us all to be men of action.  And most of all, may it lead Governor Sebelius and other Catholics who have fallen away, to repent and return to The Way.

From the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas:

Governor’s Veto Prompts Pastoral Action

On the day of my return (Monday, April 21) from the exhilarating experience of participating in Pope Benedict’s pastoral visit to the United States, I learned that Governor Kathleen Sebelius had vetoed the Comprehensive Abortion Reform Act (HS SB 389), which had been passed by significant majorities in both chambers of the Kansas Legislature. Last week, an attempt to override the governor’s veto failed in the Senate by two votes.
Governor Sebelius in her veto message claimed: “For years, the people of Kansas have asked their elected officials to move beyond legislative debates on issues like abortion.”  From her veto message, I received the impression the governor considered it a waste of the Legislature’s time to pass a statute that attempts to protect some women by making certain they have the opportunity to be well-informed: 1) about the development of their unborn child; and 2) about abortion alternatives available to them. Evidently, the governor does not approve of legislators devoting energy to protecting children and women by making it possible to enforce existing Kansas laws regulating late-term abortions.
The governor’s veto message demonstrated a lack of respect to the members of the Kansas General Assembly who had carefully crafted and resoundingly passed the Comprehensive Abortion Reform Act, as well as to the many Kansans who find it more than an embarrassment, in no small part due to several previous vetoes by Governor Sebelius of earlier legislative efforts to regulate abortion clinics, that Kansas has become infamous for being the late-term abortion center for the Midwest.
What makes the governor’s rhetoric and actions even more troubling has been her acceptance of campaign contributions from Wichita’s Dr. George Tiller, perhaps the most notorious late-term abortionist in the nation. In addition to Dr. Tiller’s direct donations to her campaign, the governor has benefited from the Political Action Committees funded by Dr. Tiller to support pro-abortion candidates in Kansas.
In her veto message, the governor took credit for lower abortion rates in Kansas, citing her support for “adoption incentives, extended health services for pregnant women, providing sex education and offering a variety of support services for families.” Indeed, the governor and her administration should be commended for supporting adoption incentives and health services for pregnant women.
However, the governor overreaches by assuming credit for declining abortion rates in Kansas. Actually, lower abortion rates are part of a national trend. Our neighboring state of Missouri has actually had a steeper and longer decline in its abortion rate.
Governor Sebelius’ inclusion of public school sex education programs as a factor in the abortion rate decline is absurd. Actually, valueless sex education programs in public schools have been around for years, coinciding with increased sexual activity among adolescents, as well as increases in teen pregnancy and abortion. On the other hand, the governor does not acknowledge the significant impact of mass media education programs, such as those sponsored by the Vitae Caring Foundation, or the remarkable practical assistance provided by Crisis Pregnancy Centers which are funded through the generosity of pro-life Kansans.
What makes the governor’s actions and advocacy for legalized abortion, throughout her public career, even more painful for me is that she is Catholic. Sadly, Governor Sebelius is not unique in being a Catholic politician supporting legalized abortion.
Since becoming archbishop, I have met with Governor Sebelius several times over many months to discuss with her the grave spiritual and moral consequences of her public actions by which she has cooperated in the procurement of abortions performed in Kansas. My concern has been, as a pastor, both for the spiritual well-being of the governor but also for those who have been misled (scandalized) by her very public support for legalized abortion.
It has been my hope that through this dialogue the governor would come to understand her obligation: 1) to take the difficult political step, but necessary moral step, of repudiating her past actions in support of legalized abortion; and 2) in the future would use her exceptional leadership abilities to develop public policies extending the maximum legal protection possible to the unborn children of Kansas.
Having made every effort to inform and to persuade Governor Sebelius and after consultation with Bishop Ron Gilmore (Dodge City), Bishop Paul Coakley (Salina) and Bishop Michael Jackels (Wichita), I wrote the governor last August requesting that she refrain from presenting herself for reception of the Eucharist until she had acknowledged the error of her past positions, made a worthy sacramental confession and taken the necessary steps for amendment of her life which would include a public repudiation of her previous efforts and actions in support of laws and policies sanctioning abortion.
Recently, it came to my attention that the governor had received holy Communion at one of our parishes. I have written to her again, asking her to respect my previous request and not require from me any additional pastoral actions.
The governor has spoken to me on more than one occasion about her obligation to uphold state and federal laws and court decisions. I have asked her to show a similar sense of obligation to honor divine law and the laws, teaching and legitimate authority within the church.
I have not made lightly this request of Governor Sebelius, but only after much prayer and reflection. The spiritually lethal message, communicated by our governor, as well as many other high profile Catholics in public life, has been in effect: “The church’s teaching on abortion is optional!”
I reissue my request of the faithful of the archdiocese to pray for Governor Sebelius. I hope that my request of the governor, not to present herself for holy Communion, will provoke her to reconsider the serious spiritual and moral consequences of her past and present actions. At the same time, I pray this pastoral action on my part will help alert other Catholics to the moral gravity of participating in and/or cooperating with the performance of abortions.

Time for a PC PC without PP?

My business operates with about 15 Windows based PCs.  I also have one at home.  I did not know at the time that Microsoft was a major contributor to Planned Parenthood.  So, do I phase out my PCs for Macs?  I’m sure Steve Jobs’ company is not one to throw the first stone.  Where do I draw the line and if like the upcoming election, I need to settle for the “least objectionable alternative”, what is it?

 

Happy Birthday Kansas City Catholic

Congratulations Wolftracker on two-years of great work AMDG.