Overpopulation: The Making of a Myth

Overpopulation: The Making of a Myth

Is 'absolutely' overused? Absolutely! - CNN.com

Is 'absolutely' overused? Absolutely! - CNN.com

The Phoenix Zoo - Otter Man

Here is an abbreviated version of a commercial Sophia was in. Cool, eh?

Robertus, Episcopus, et Confirmandus

Sometimes when I'm out visiting my public, random prelates jump in for a quick photo-op...

Joseph's First Communion

Joseph was confirmed and received his first communion (at 6:33 PM) on Sunday, April 19, 2009, Divine Mercy Sunday. He was confirmed by Bishop Thomas Olmsted at St. Thomas the Apostle parish. The reading was the one about Doubting Thomas touching the wounds of Christ.

Blessed is the one (like our Joseph) who has not seen yet still believes. The image below by Caravaggio is amazing.

Madonna’s Grammy Award: National Catholic Register

Madonna’s Grammy Award: National Catholic Register

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Imaginary Good and Evil

“Imaginary evil is romantic and varied; real evil is gloomy, monotonous, barren, boring. Imaginary good is boring; real good is always new, marvelous, intoxicating.”
--Simone Weil

Beauty Ever Ancient, Ever New

Late have I loved you,
O Beauty ever ancient, ever new,
late have I loved you!

You were within me, but I was outside,
and it was there that I searched for you.
In my unloveliness I plunged into the lovely things which you created.

You were with me, but I was not with you.
Created things kept me from you;
yet if they had not been in you they would not have been at all.

You called, you shouted, and you broke through my deafness.
You flashed, you shone, and you dispelled my blindness.
You breathed your fragrance on me;
I drew in breath and now I pant for you.

I have tasted you, now I hunger and thirst for more.
You touched me, and I burned for your peace.

~ St. Augustine, Confessions of St. Augustine

Honey, Pack Your Things...

...we're moving to Japan.

Maybe it's their way of making up for all the TV sets (a.k.a. poor man's birth control) they sold.

h/t The Duck

Pollywog in a Bog

My kids' new favorite song, from one of my favorite bands.

St. Ambrose

My last post concerned the Immaculate Conception whose feast day is celebrated on my twin's birthday. I've often complained that my sister gets to be associated with the Virgin Mary while I, having been born on December 7, am forever linked to "a day that will live in infamy"--Pearl Harbor Day.

December 7 is also the feast of St. Ambrose, someone I've mocked for having been named, well, Ambrose. My friend Cory insisted that, in spite of his delicate name, Ambrose was in fact a "Bad- A" and bought me a print of a copy of the picture shown here to prove it.

This painting is called "St. Ambrose and the Emperor Theodosius" by Peter Paul Rubens*. It shows Ambrose facing down the Roman Emperor, Theodosius, after he massacred a bunch of women and children in Macedonia. St. Ambrose denied the emperor entry to the cathedral at Milan and refused to lift the emperor's excommunication until he made public penance. This might not be a bad policy to adopt with some of our more "ardent Catholic" politicians. . .

Ruben's disciple, Anthony Van Dyck, painted an almost identical painting to this one. It's this copy that I now have a matted and framed print of, thanks to Cory. I would have included it in the post, but the best version I could find had a digital watermark.

*not to be confused with Pee Wee Herman