tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-89736110913784680032012-02-10T08:19:23.767-05:00St. Augustine: "To fall in love with God is the greatest of romances." Every great romance requires chocolate!My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.comBlogger4061100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-2689207510268394762011-12-17T13:37:00.000-05:002011-12-17T13:37:10.726-05:00<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ruo2mess6yw/TuzhC0aTMSI/AAAAAAAABQA/KL9zZ2qnPiI/s1600/xir206983_v1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ruo2mess6yw/TuzhC0aTMSI/AAAAAAAABQA/KL9zZ2qnPiI/s320/xir206983_v1.jpg" width="261" /></a></div><b><i><br />The 1st Joyful Mystery: &nbsp;The Annunciation</i></b><br /><br /><i>“Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you!” “You shall conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus.”&nbsp;</i><br /><br /><b>The fruit of the mystery is humility.&nbsp;</b><br /><br />Mary’s answer to Gabriel is simply incredible, but it became much more precious for me when I stopped to ponder the middle of this story. We may miss the best part is we fail to recognize the humanness in Mary. Not sinfulness, but humanness. That’s the quality that makes this event so marvelous.<br /><br /><i>“But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and considered in her mind what sort of greeting this might be. And the angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.’”</i><br /><br />She was greatly troubled! Scared, even? Can you see her expression; hear the thoughts racing through her mind? <br /><br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">What in the world is going on?!? He’s telling me not to be afraid… what is this all about? A son? Now I’m confused. How can this be? I do not know man. God Himself will do this? The child will be holy? The Son of God?&nbsp;</blockquote><br /><br />Now comes the glorious ending: <i>“Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be done to me according to your word.”&nbsp;</i><br /><br />She went from being troubled and confused one moment to being perfectly willing and trusting the next because of true humility. Her reply is remarkable not only because of what she said but because of all she didn’t say. She didn’t say, “Me? Why me?” Or, “But, but, wait…” She didn’t say, “I can’t…” Gabriel gave her precious few details about how this would all unfold, yet she didn’t hesitate to agree. &nbsp;She understood it wasn’t really about her; it was about Him.<br /><br />Mary didn’t say “yes” with a proud spirit or a self-congratulatory attitude, nor did she refuse out of a feeling of inadequacy or unworthiness. She knew she was a mere mortal, most unworthy. She also knew God was wise and loving and able. Her “yes” had nothing to do with her and everything to do with Him.<br /><br />Yes to His plan, His will, His power, His authority. She took Gabriel at his word and believed that God knew what He was doing, and her part was to simply say, “I am at your disposal.” It was up to God to do everything else. It’s also noteworthy that she didn’t offer any assistance. She didn’t presume that she could add something to the mix that would make it better. She said yes, and then carried on as usual. Not knowing what would happen next or how it would happen, she left everything after that moment up to God.<br /><br />That’s real humility. To say to God, “As You wish. You will do it. Do with me whatever You please. All glory is Yours.” It seems plain enough, but so often real humility gets all mixed up with false humility (which is actually pride). It seems more humble to refuse when asked to do something, especially something important, and we say self-deprecating things like, “Oh, I’m not that good,” or “I’m not smart enough,” or “I’ve never done that before,” or “There are lots of people who are better at this than me,” and on and on and on.<br /><br />Don’t you shudder to think what might have happened if Mary had responded that way? &nbsp;She may have felt there were smarter, more capable, more experienced women in the community. She could have tried to defer and list all the reasons why she was right to defer. But thank God she was humble enough to say yes.<br /><br />It’s not a mark of humility to say to God that His plan can’t be done because you’re not the one, you’re inadequate, you’re not smart enough, you’re not good enough, you’re not ________________ (fill in the blank).<br /><br />Of course you’re not good enough. So what? God is good enough. &nbsp;God has everything, God is everything and humility is just saying “yes” and not thinking too much or too little of you, but only of how great God is.<br /><br /><i>“My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed for the Mighty One has done great things for me – holy is his name.” Luke 1:46-49&nbsp;</i><br /><br />Mary, most mild, pray for me that I will humbly say “yes” to God in whatever He asks of me.<br /><br />~~~~~<br /><br /><b><i>The 2nd Joyful Mystery: &nbsp;The Visitation of Mary to her cousin, Elizabeth</i></b><br /><br /><br /><i>“At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea, where she entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth… Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months and then returned home.” Luke 1:39-40, 56&nbsp;</i><br /><br /><b>The fruit of the mystery is love of our neighbor.</b><br /><br />Gabriel had just left her, and the first thing she does is prepare to leave and visit Elizabeth, her cousin. Gabriel had told her Elizabeth was in her sixth month of pregnancy, a testament to the power of God.<br /><br />It wouldn’t have seemed unreasonable for Mary to have stayed home to rest and take care of herself, now that she herself was expecting. And after all, the angel had said this child would be the holy Son of God! That certainly deserves some pampering and special treatment!<br /><br />But I suspect Mary was overjoyed at the news of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, and couldn’t wait to get there and share the wonder of it all with her. Now the two of them could delight in each other’s miracles and bask in the glory of God and all He had done by His power alone. I can easily imagine them hugging and laughing and fussing over each other.<br /><br />It’s really a simple lesson this mystery teaches – take care of each other. Even when you have good reason for worrying only about yourself, try to find a way to care for someone else also. I’m your neighbor and you’re mine. There will be plenty of opportunities for us to care for each other and meet the other’s needs. But will we?<br /><br />And what about the neighbor we don’t particularly like? What about the neighbor we can’t stand? There’s where it gets sticky! Even then, we are asked to find ways to show love. Love that is hard to give, love that requires a real sacrifice, love that is on-purpose-even-though-I-really-don’t-want-to is the truest of all.<br /><br />A good place to start is our own families. Love-on-purpose that family member you don’t like being around. Love-on-purpose the one who irritates you to no end. Love-on-purpose the relative you have nothing in common with. Love the one who just plain drives you crazy. Do it as unto Jesus, and watch how your heart changes.<br /><br />Be happy for the blessings in your family member’s lives and celebrate with them. Rejoice in their good fortune without envy, and bear their sorrow with them whenever you can. Pray for them. Bring Christ to your family, as Mary brought Christ to Elizabeth’s.<br /><br />These are simple, ordinary bits of guidance, and most of the time we’ll do these things without earthly applause. We just do it because it’s the right thing to do. We may fail miserably and often in loving our neighbor, but the good news is we’ll never run out of chances to live this mystery, and practice makes perfect!<br /><br />~~~~~<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xK723Dh0a70/TuzhLAHgnII/AAAAAAAABQI/JOYl1tv4mJ8/s1600/Nativity-of-Jesus-picture.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xK723Dh0a70/TuzhLAHgnII/AAAAAAAABQI/JOYl1tv4mJ8/s320/Nativity-of-Jesus-picture.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><b><i><br />The 3rd Joyful Mystery: &nbsp;The Birth of Jesus</i></b><br /><br /><i>“She gave birth to her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.” &nbsp;Luke 2:7</i><br /><br /><b>The fruit of the mystery is poverty.</b><br /><br />When I think about poverty, my immediate reaction is to be repulsed. &nbsp;Poverty is not something I find enchanting. &nbsp;My instinct for self-preservation vehemently rejects the idea of poverty. &nbsp;It inspires fear and dread in me.<br /><br />Poverty means to be vulnerable, shunned, and perhaps worst of all, invisible. &nbsp;Poverty is empty and deprived.<br /><br />What a stunning paradox then that God would offer Himself to us in poverty. &nbsp;Omnipotent, All-possessing King lies helpless and needy in humiliating surroundings. &nbsp;He who commands the sun to shine and our hearts to beat within our chests comes powerless into our world to be greeted by cows and sheep. <br /><br />It’s disarmingly brilliant. &nbsp;We cannot refute the love of a God who sheds His riches and might and gives Himself to us in poverty. &nbsp;He did not come with frightening awe and intimidating splendor so we would cower before Him in fear. &nbsp;He came to us small, weak, dependent and poor. &nbsp;He sought to inspire our affection and devotion rather than command our submission.<br /><br />As much as I may dread the possibility of material poverty, I must learn to embrace the mystery of being poor in spirit. &nbsp;Who are the poor in spirit? &nbsp;Only those brave souls who willingly admit their wretchedness before a holy God, who know exactly how undeserving they are yet humbly bow before Him, grateful for His mercy. &nbsp;Those souls who never presume to be good enough on their own to stand before Him, but know how truly pitiful is their human state.<br /><br />More than just a superficial knowing, the poor in spirit live the knowledge of their sinfulness truthfully, without making light of their sin. &nbsp;What courage and honesty it requires to see myself as I truly am, without shining up my sin and spritzing perfume on my foul offenses.<br /><br />If gold could have relieved our troubles and lifted us out of our darkness, then Jesus could have simply come in His Royalty and tossed us bags of coins. &nbsp;If physical power and strength was all we needed to defeat our enemy, then the Invincible One could have come with His armies and settled the whole matter in minutes. &nbsp;He came to us in poverty so we would see that all we will ever need is <i>who</i> He is.<br /><br />We need Him, the person of Jesus. &nbsp;Only He can save us, because we don’t need wealth or power – we need mercy. &nbsp;We need forgiveness to cleanse us. &nbsp;Only His blood can do that. &nbsp;The illusion of our goodness keeps us full of ourselves, but the poor in spirit have Christ as their inheritance, for they know how empty they truly are and so they are filled with Him. &nbsp;“Blessed are they who are poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of God.” &nbsp; Isn’t it just like our God to turn poverty into unfathomable riches?<br /><br />~~~~~<br /><br /><b><i>The 4th Joyful Mystery: The Presentation in the Temple</i></b><br /><br /><i>“When the time of their purification according to the Law of Moses had been completed, Joseph and Mary took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord, (as is written in the Law of the Lord, “Every firstborn male is to be consecrated to the Lord.”) and to offer a sacrifice in keeping with what is said in the Law of the Lord: a pair of doves or two young pigeons.” Luke 2:22-24</i><br /><br /><b>The fruit of the mystery is obedience.</b><br /><br />It’s rather humorous to read that paragraph. Mary and Joseph took the Lord to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord! The Lord presented Himself to Himself!<br /><br />The Father demanded no special treatment for His Son. No exceptions, no favoritism. The Law of Moses was the Law and the Law was to be obeyed. &nbsp;He came to fulfill the Law, not toss the Law out the window. He came to live our human experience is every single way that we do, including obeying the law.<br /><br />But notice, please, which law we’re talking about here. God’s law – the law that is always just and right and good. We needn’t ever worry when obeying God’s law. It will always be for our benefit and His greater glory. Obeying God’s law will never steer us wrong or lead us down a destructive path. God’s blessing is always in His law.<br /><br />We live in a time when there are many unjust and just plain immoral laws, and one day we just might have to choose between following God’s law and following the law of the land because the two may be in irreconcilable contradiction. In fact, that day is fast approaching. &nbsp;For today, there will most assuredly be occasions, however small, where I have to choose to obey God. I may be sorely tempted to ignore or “forget” His commands and then try to justify my rebellion. No surprise – that never works out well!<br /><br />Time to refresh my memory about why it’s so good for me to follow God’s law:<br /><br /><i>“The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul. The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple. The precepts of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the Lord are radiant, giving light to the eyes.” Psalm 19:7-8</i><br /><i><br /></i><br /><i>“I gain understanding from your precepts; therefore I hate every wrong path.” Psalm 119:104</i><br /><i><br /></i><br /><i>“The wicked have set a snare for me, but I have not strayed from your precepts. Your statutes are my heritage forever; they are the joy of my heart. My heart is set on keeping your decrees to the very end.” Psalm 119:110-112</i><br /><i><br /></i><br /><i>“Great peace have they who love your law, and nothing can make them stumble.” Psalm 119:165</i><br /><br />Strength, wisdom, joy, light and clarity, understanding, courage, and sure footsteps… all the benefits of obedience. God is good!<br /><br />~~~~~<br /><br /><b><i>The 5th Joyful Mystery: Finding the Child Jesus in the Temple</i></b><br /><br /><i>“While his parents were returning home, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but they were unaware of it. Thinking he was in their company, they traveled on for a day. Then they began looking for him among their relatives and friends…After three days they found him in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers…His mother said to him, “Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you.” Luke 2:43-48</i><br /><br /><b>The fruit of the mystery is joy in finding Jesus.</b><br /><br />To be honest, it really seems to me like Jesus got a pass here! &nbsp;He really didn’t think that by staying behind he’d scare the living daylights out of his parents? He didn’t think they’d mind him just disappearing? Worrying them that way was not a very thoughtful thing to do!<br /><br />There’s Mary, worried out of her mind after searching for three days, and this is his response: <i>“Why were you searching for me? Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?”</i><br /><br />Well no, Son, actually, we <i>didn’t</i> know that! How would we know that?!? You could have just <b><i>said so</i></b> before we left, instead of making us look for you for <b><i>three days!!</i></b><br /><br />Anybody else thinking they would have wanted to dish out some serious punishment if their teenager had done this to them? (Who knows, maybe Mary and Joseph did!)<br /><br />His boyhood thoughtlessness aside, there’s an important message in this mystery for the whole world: our worrying ceases when we find Jesus. Our hearts are anxiously searching for Him, and we are troubled and frightened until we find Him. There is joy in finding Jesus; there is worry and fear without Him. This is true for every soul that has ever lived whether they realize it or not. “Our hearts are restless, O Lord, until they rest in You.” St. Augustine<br /><br />In every event of our day, in every encounter, every task, every challenge, every burden, every struggle, there will be joy once we find Jesus in it. We will be overcome with worry til we do. He is there with us in everything and He wants to be found. It only remains to be seen whether we will look for Him.<br /><br />There are a hundred opportunities every day for me to look for Jesus in what’s happening in my life and in the people I encounter. If I don’t see, it’s probably because I don’t look. I’m too wrapped up in my own head, too caught up in a hectic schedule. &nbsp;And so I find stress and anxiety instead of joy. I find worry and fear instead of Jesus. &nbsp;Silly me.<br /><br /><i>“You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the Lord.” Jeremiah 29:13-14</i><br /><br />Blessed Mary, ever patient Mother, teach me how to find Jesus… always… in everything.<br /><br /><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-268920751026839476?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-90926402461719624872011-11-16T23:15:00.001-05:002011-11-16T23:23:00.336-05:00<a href="http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=43696">at Catholic Online</a><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jEpnSx8SuWU/TsSK-4N1dRI/AAAAAAAABPw/gPFTONsGFDs/s1600/a-house-divided.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jEpnSx8SuWU/TsSK-4N1dRI/AAAAAAAABPw/gPFTONsGFDs/s320/a-house-divided.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br /><i>"Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand."</i><br /><br /><br />Our house is divided and may not stand much longer. &nbsp;We've been bitterly divided once before, and just as the evil of slavery nearly tore our nation in two, so will the evil of abortion and the desecration of marriage. &nbsp;We seem poised on the verge of a new Civil War. &nbsp;(The difference now, of course, is that those who value the sanctity of human life will not wage war on fellow citizens. &nbsp;We cannot kill in the name of stopping the killing.)<br /><br /><br />The modern-day battle is for true marriage and the humanity of the child in the womb. <br /><br />There's no way to satisfy the demand of full "equality" for cohabiting homosexuals in a newly-invented view of "marriage" and still protect religious liberty. &nbsp;Any exception written into same-sex "marriage" laws to protect those people or institutions who define marriage as between a man and a woman will always be rejected by homosexual marriage equivalency groups.<br /><br />The two views of what constitutes marriage are irreconcilable; there's no way to accomplish so-called "equality" in marriage and still allow individuals or institutions the freedom to reject that so-called "marriage equality" based on their faith teachings or upon the Natural Law. &nbsp;The stage is set for a bitter clash that has no solution. &nbsp;The writing on the political wall right now clearly says that the Constitutional right of religious freedom will be sacrificed on the altar of the homosexual equivalency movement.<br /><br />This is the divided state of America.<br /><br />It is the same with abortion. &nbsp;It comes down to a stark and unyielding difference: &nbsp;one side says the unborn are human beings from the moment of conception; the other side says it's just tissue, just cells, an insentient thing that has no right to anything. &nbsp;Both cannot be true. &nbsp;Both cannot be even partially true. &nbsp;One is entirely true and the other is entirely false.<br /><br />Science tells us that at the moment of conception, a genetically unique human being is created and exists. &nbsp;The size of the human being is not the issue, nor is that human being's independence or awareness or intelligence. &nbsp;There exists, in point of fact, a human being who did not exist before.<br /><br />With science against them, those who demand abortion now switch their argument to whether or not this human being is a person. &nbsp;Personhood, under their rules, requires physical separation from the mother, as well as the ability to survive apart from her. &nbsp;Many go even further and insist that personhood requires a certain degree of intelligence, self-awareness, and function. &nbsp;By their standards, a newborn, a 2 month-old infant, even a toddler is not a person.<br /><br />Mostly though, their demand for abortion revolves only around the woman and her "rights" to do whatever she pleases with her body. &nbsp;Do not bother them with the logic that it is not the woman's body being destroyed in an abortion, nor with the logic that the woman's actions (her choices) are the reason the baby is now residing in her womb. &nbsp;They insist that the baby is nothing more than a parasite and no woman is obligated to play host to such an unwanted intruder.<br /><br />So which is it? &nbsp;Will we decide once and for all that a newly conceived child in the womb is a meaningless, parasitic clump of tissue or a human being? &nbsp;We cannot continue to have it both ways. &nbsp;A choice -- a real choice -- must be made. &nbsp;We can dispassionately look at reality and science and acknowledge the truth, or we can continue to write our laws based on sophistry and willfully blind, self-interested, and unjust emotional demands.<br /><br />No longer can we continue to hide behind euphemistic rhetoric. &nbsp;We take cover under the deceiving phrase "terminating a pregnancy". &nbsp;Childbirth terminates a pregnancy, but it doesn't kill the child. &nbsp;A pregnancy does not happen apart from a baby. &nbsp;We're terminating babies, not pregnancies.<br /><br />We spit out the word "fetus" with a pejorative tone and use it as a shield, as though the term magically empties the child of all human value -- because that's exactly what we want the term to do for us that we might more comfortably live with our "choice."<br /><br />When we scream for "choice", we have to summon the guts to admit what choice we're talking about. &nbsp;We want the right to kill our babies. &nbsp;We want the <b><i>right</i></b> to <b>kill our babies.</b> &nbsp;That's what we're talking about. &nbsp;Is that who America is? &nbsp;Is that who America wants to be?<br /><br />We want the right to take a chemical poison and cause a 9, 10, or 11-week fetus to die and be expelled from the womb as though he or she were nothing more than a large blood clot. &nbsp;We want the right to suction a baby out of the womb as though we were vacuuming out our cars of junk and stray french fries.<br /><br /><br />We want the right to reach into the womb and dismember a 23-week fetus. &nbsp;We want that right so badly that we delude ourselves into thinking it's moral and just and even compassionate. &nbsp;Which of us would find it compassionate to dismember a 2 month-old infant? &nbsp;Why is it any different simply because the dismembering is done on a smaller baby who is still in the womb? &nbsp;Does that make the dismembering kinder? &nbsp;Does it make the dismembering less grotesque? &nbsp;Does it make the act itself respectable? &nbsp;Of course not.<br /><br />We can't delicately operate on a 23 week-old fetus in one room and stab the heart and crush the skull of a 23 week-old fetus in the room next door. &nbsp;We call the first an example of life-saving, miraculous medical advancement and the other a sacred "right" and protected "freedom." &nbsp;One child is considered a patient and the other child is not considered anything at all.<br /><br />How long can we perpetuate this absurd incongruency?<br /><br />This intellectual dishonesty is leading us toward national schizophrenia. &nbsp;We simply cannot insist that to kill one child is moral, right and respectable while to kill another child is abhorrent and criminal.<br /><br />Either it is moral, right and respectable to kill a child at any age and stage of development or it is abhorrent and criminal and the height of evil. &nbsp;It must be one or the other. &nbsp;Either we will protect our defenseless children from harm, or we'll inflict the harm ourselves and call it our right.<br /><br />It's time for honesty. &nbsp;Those who demand abortion must come clean and say out loud, "We want the right to kill our babies." &nbsp;Those who legislate for abortion on demand must come clean and say, "We will make sure it's legal to kill our babies and pay for it with our taxes." <br /><br />Those who want to sit on the fence rather than "tell someone else what to do" must come clean and say, "I'm content to let it be legal to kill our babies. &nbsp;That's okay with me."<br /><br />The issue is not "reproductive rights" but <i>the humanity of the child in the womb. </i>&nbsp;The question is not one of "equality" in marriage, but of defending the foundation of the family, and the unchangeable meaning of marriage.<br /><br />In both cases, the conflict demands a final and coherent answer. &nbsp;Government does not have that answer. &nbsp;The Church does. &nbsp;But we're not really "one nation under God" anymore, are we? &nbsp;Soon we may not be one nation anymore either.<br /><br /><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-9092640246171962487?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-36500220223922480552011-10-25T13:09:00.000-04:002011-10-25T13:09:44.704-04:00<a href="http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=43351">at Catholic Online</a><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--jV-xDS-vRg/TqbtCdM8geI/AAAAAAAABPc/mXFvKZlVaBw/s1600/chinatoddler.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--jV-xDS-vRg/TqbtCdM8geI/AAAAAAAABPc/mXFvKZlVaBw/s320/chinatoddler.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br />Little girls are worth next to nothing in China.&nbsp; Baby girls are killed on a regular basis in China.&nbsp; We all know that.<br /><br />Yet little YueYue's story may finally succeed in accomplishing what up to this point has not quite been done:&nbsp; bringing shame upon China for their abhorrent and violent treatment of their daughters.<br /><br /><br />The Chinese government routinely rounds up women who violate the 1-child policy by getting pregnant with a second child and forcibly aborts them, even well into the third trimester of pregnancy. Some mothers die along with their preborn babies. Sometimes they threaten and beat up fathers and husbands who refuse to cooperate; they threaten families' homes and businesses; in short, they destroy people's lives in every way they can -- literally.&nbsp; All for the sake of their evil, anti-human policies.<br /><br /><br />Yet inexplicably, this has failed to draw the international ire it deserves.&nbsp; Even our own government tries not to really notice, and certainly goes out of its way not to criticize.&nbsp; I don't really expect intelligent or courageous talk from Vice President Joe Biden, but his political-correctness sank to an inexcusable low when he told the Chinese, "We understand."<br /><br /><br />Perhaps Wang Yue, by her horrible, brutal death, will begin to arouse a disinterested world; perhaps she can revive the death-cold heart of her country by forcing the Chinese people to see her for what she was:&nbsp; a human being; a helpless child they trampled and threw away.<br /><br /><br />On October 13, Wang Yue, nicknamed "Little Yueyue", was crushed nearly to death in the street in the Chinese province of Guangdong.&nbsp; She'd wandered out alone into the small street near her parents' shop, and she was run over by a van.&nbsp; The driver hit her and she fell under the front wheel.&nbsp; The van slowed to a stop, and then drove on, crushing her a second time under the back wheel.<br /><br /><br />The driver never stopped again.<br /><br /><br />Now mutilated, smashed and broken, bleeding profusely onto the ground, Little Yueyue lay there as a total of 18 people passed her by.&nbsp; The first man to encounter her practically had to step over her as he walked past.&nbsp; He never stopped.&nbsp; Others walking down the street stopped to stare for a moment before turning their heads and continuing on their way.<br /><br />Her little arms still moving from time to time, she waited in agony for help.&nbsp; Not a single adult who witnessed her suffering did anything to help her.&nbsp; A 2 year-old child lay in the street crushed and dying, and no one would even acknowledge her there.<br /><br />Then, unbearably, along came a second van.&nbsp; The driver made no apparent attempt to avoid her, and she was crushed under the wheel for a third time.<br /><br />As more people continued to pass her by, her blood flowed into the street. <br /><br />Finally, an older woman carrying a trash bag sees her, set her bag down, and walked over to the mangled child.<br /><br />She grabbed Yueyue by the arms and dragged her across the pavement, out of the way of oncoming vehicles and people.&nbsp; Then, the child's mother appeared, and she half-carried her dying child away.<br /><br />Little Yueyue died of brain and organ failure on Friday, October 21.&nbsp; The intensive-care doctors treating her said her injuries were too severe and treatment had no effect.<br /><br /><br />The entire, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EaUf-lFWgUc">horrific, unspeakable scene in the street was captured on surveillance video</a> and posted online for the whole world to see.&nbsp; There can be no denying what happened to this child; no one can attempt to explain or rationalize or ask us to understand.<br /><br />I watched the video and fought the intense urge to vomit.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The violence, apathy, callousness, and stone-cold indifference of the people who crushed and then ignored this little girl is sickening beyond words.&nbsp; It will leave you shaken to the core.&nbsp; If it does not, something's very wrong.<br /><br />We must call China to account for this act of brutality and inhumane cruelty.&nbsp; Chinese officials may attempt to conceal from the eyes of the world their violent treatment of pregnant women, their destruction of preborn babies, their brutality against families who violate the inhumane one-child policy, but <b><i>this,</i></b> this they cannot conceal.<br /><br />They cannot pretend it did not take place, nor shroud it in political language. The images and facts of Yueyue's death give indisputable testimony to the truth that China has lost its humanity and its soul.<br /><br />We can take some small measure of encouragement from the cries of outrage being voiced by many Chinese citizens who are asking what has happened to their country to cause such apathy in the face of a child's suffering.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-15401055">A BBC news story</a> said that many people in China choose not to help for fear that they will end up being charged for the crime.&nbsp; Without evidence to prove their own innocence, they will not interfere.<br /><br />A professor of social science at Hong Kong University of Science "said he believed China's political environment had 'no tolerance' for people with a social conscience."<br /><br />Can anyone still seriously question the destructive effects of a government that rejects the moral laws of human freedom, religious freedom, and the sanctity of human life?&nbsp; Look at China: see what happens when people become mere instruments of productivity for the sake of economic prosperity.<br /><br />Will the United States government now finally voice an unequivocal condemnation of China's brutal and cruel human-rights violations?&nbsp; What do you think, Joe?&nbsp; Do you still understand?&nbsp; How about you, Mr. President?&nbsp; Any comment?<br /><br />Be wary and pay attention, America, because China's present could become our future if we do not cherish our freedoms and guard our hearts.<br /><br />I saw a beautiful photo of Yueyue, her mother and her older brother, and the thought occurred to me, "Wait -- she's their 2nd child?&nbsp; How'd they manage to have a 2nd child?"<br /><br />Is it unreasonable to question whether perhaps this little girl was targeted and killed intentionally because she was her parents' 2nd child?&nbsp; It's a chilling thought, but is it really an unreasonable one?<br /><br />For now what we know for certain is that a little girl has demanded through her death the attention her country refused her as she lay bleeding in the street.&nbsp; She died a victim of apathy and cruelty.&nbsp; Shame on China!&nbsp; Shame on every person who passed her by and ignored her.&nbsp; Shame, shame, shame!<br /><br />Rest now in peace, little Yueyue, in the loving embrace of your Heavenly Father.&nbsp; Those who mourn your death beg your forgiveness and ask for your prayers.&nbsp; Please pray for your lost country.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-3650022022392248055?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-13941598781889367482011-09-14T19:58:00.002-04:002011-09-20T18:02:27.993-04:00<a href="http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=42825">at Catholic Online</a><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wv2JWLQG0ic/TnE-yzReL3I/AAAAAAAABPM/DM3tM6_zWvo/s1600/rickandbella.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="206" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wv2JWLQG0ic/TnE-yzReL3I/AAAAAAAABPM/DM3tM6_zWvo/s320/rickandbella.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-C5mc5oevhDo/TnE_A0JjpXI/AAAAAAAABPQ/BAU9x6GJfk0/s1600/110427_karen_rick_santorum_328.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="173" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-C5mc5oevhDo/TnE_A0JjpXI/AAAAAAAABPQ/BAU9x6GJfk0/s320/110427_karen_rick_santorum_328.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />This week I had the great honor of interviewing the woman I hope will be the First Lady in 2013.&nbsp; As I picked up the phone to call her, my nerves were jumping and I was praying she wouldn’t notice.&nbsp; After just a minute of talking with her, it felt as relaxed as having coffee and dessert with a good friend.&nbsp; Karen Santorum is warm, gracious, completely genuine, down-to-earth, immensely likable, and filled with a spirit of love.<br /><br />We spoke at length about everything from campaign life to family life to faith and trials, and the serious concerns she has about the direction our nation is headed.&nbsp; She is highly motivated to fight for our country alongside her husband, Senator Rick Santorum, and believe me, she’s got the steel for it.<br /><br /><b>The Campaign</b><br /><br />What struck me the most was the distinct lack of ego in their decision to run for President.&nbsp; For them, it’s not about Rick trying to win something for himself – it’s about preserving a nation for their children and simply following the road God has laid in front of them.<br /><br /><i>JH:&nbsp; How did you and Rick come to the decision to run for President?</i><br /><br /><b>KS:&nbsp;</b> We’re doing this because we truly believe God is leading, and we have to be faithful.&nbsp; We spent more than a year praying about this, talking with our friends, our families, our spiritual advisors, and our children.&nbsp; It was a long process of talking it out, and we all had some real reservations.&nbsp; I had no desire at all to jump back into the political arena.&nbsp; We were in that life for 17 years and now I had a different vision for my family.&nbsp; Our kids all had their own thoughts and concerns, too.&nbsp; The boys wanted their Dad to continue coaching their baseball team, for instance.&nbsp; They weren’t too sure they wanted to share their Dad with the whole country.&nbsp; It’s a real sacrifice for them.<br /><br />Rick and I both said that if even one of the children had said they didn’t want Dad doing this, we absolutely would not have done it.&nbsp; But they are behind their Dad all the way, and the whole process is teaching them a lot about the way our political process works and how a President is elected.&nbsp; We’re very protective of our family time when Rick is able to be home these days, and we maximize that time together.&nbsp; No one is allowed to intrude!<br /><br />To be honest, Rick had no desire to run until Obamacare.&nbsp; That was the final straw for him, the line in the sand.&nbsp; Something has to be done.&nbsp; That law will change our country fundamentally forever, and as parents of a special-needs child we knew that they would be the first to be denied care under Obamacare.&nbsp; Rick and I can’t stand on the sidelines and allow Obama to bring our nation to its knees.&nbsp; We knew we had to get in and fight.<br /><br />But ultimately, we are just trusting God and praying for His will to be done.&nbsp; He could end this tomorrow and we’d be at peace with it.&nbsp; It could be God’s will that Rick just has a voice in the mix; it could be God’s will that he get to the Caucus and he’s not the guy; or it could be His will that Rick is the guy.&nbsp; Trust and be faithful is all any of us can do.<br /><br /><i>JH: What are the unique gifts and strengths that Rick brings to the table to solve our nation’s biggest challenges?</i><br /><br /><b>KS:&nbsp;</b> Most important, he’s rock-solid.&nbsp; Rick is rooted in his faith and has a solid foundation.&nbsp; You get what you see.&nbsp; He walks the walk.&nbsp; He’s someone who goes after the issues with such a passion.&nbsp; Preserving marriage, the sanctity of Life; these are things we really have to roll up our sleeves and fight for.&nbsp; He’s also brilliant in matters of the economy and national security.&nbsp; He has a mind for history and facts and numbers.&nbsp; There’s no doubt in my mind he’ll be a great leader to this nation.<br /><br /><i>JH: Why should Catholics vote for Rick Santorum?</i><br /><br /><b>KS:</b> He’s a devout Catholic who lives his faith, is very prayerful and will always stay grounded.&nbsp; He’s a loving, devoted, faithful husband and father.&nbsp; It’s one thing to take the pro-life stance and another thing to fight for it and yet another thing to live it.&nbsp; Rick lives it every day.<br /><br />Catholics in America need to understand the critical importance of their votes in 2012.&nbsp; Bill Clinton and Barack Obama were both elected because they won the Catholic vote.&nbsp; That is not to our credit!&nbsp; I see America right now literally poised on the edge of a cliff, and Catholics will decide whether the nation goes over the edge or gets pulled back.&nbsp; We have a huge responsibility.<br /><br /><b>Life with Bella</b><br /><br />Here is where Karen’s heart and passion come shining through.&nbsp; Here is also where the mama bear’s claws come out.&nbsp; In 2008, Rick and Karen welcomed little Isabella to their family.&nbsp; Just four days after her birth, they got the devastating news that Bella has Trisomy 18, a rare and usually fatal genetic disease.&nbsp; Since that moment, they have intensely battled our culture of death, protecting their daughter from being euthanized and fighting for her medical care.&nbsp; Most doctors urge women to abort babies with genetic diseases, and many such infants are euthanized after birth in order to “relieve their suffering.”<br /><br />Listen to Karen talk about Bella, and you’ll hear one word over and over:&nbsp; blessing.&nbsp; Rick and Karen want the whole world to know the joy they’ve found in their sweet angel.<br /><br /><b>KS:</b>&nbsp; After having Bella I had to relearn how to live my life.&nbsp; Now I’m a blessed mother of a special-needs child.&nbsp; Since her birth, I’ve learned that God truly has a reason for everything.&nbsp; Like every one of us, God has a purpose for her.&nbsp; Bella has made all of us grow in our faith like never before, made us more virtuous and shown us God’s love and mercy.&nbsp; Her life is a very happy and joyful life.&nbsp; Bella is an angel.&nbsp; I truly believe I am in the care of a saint.<br /><br />We are so blessed to be her parents and her family.&nbsp; Yes, there’s also a painful side of the journey because you’re fighting for her life, to have her treated with the same dignity as every other child.<br /><br /><i>JH:&nbsp; What would you say to those facing the possibility of a child with Trisomy 18 and wondering whether they can handle it?&nbsp; Maybe a woman tempted to abort a baby she is convinced will only know suffering?</i><br /><br /><b>KS:&nbsp;</b> It doesn’t make any sense to me that we choose death over love.&nbsp; You never lose with love.&nbsp; It’s never made any sense that when a doctor says your child has whatever defect, he then says “let’s kill the baby.”&nbsp; If the doctor said that about your five year-old you’d be outraged!&nbsp; As parents we’re wired to do everything possible to save our child.&nbsp; Why does that not apply to these sweet babies in the womb who need our love and care?&nbsp; Just simply bring your child into the world and love your child.&nbsp; You don’t know what God has planned.<br /><br />Bella is the greatest “burden” I’ve ever had.&nbsp; I wouldn’t trade the blessings that have come with her for anything in the world.<br /><br /><i>JH:&nbsp; Is it safe to say that special-needs children and their parents will have a fierce advocate in the White House under President Santorum?</i><br /><br /><b>KS:&nbsp;</b> Oh, absolutely!&nbsp; I have a real fire in the belly about this issue.&nbsp; It’s heartbreaking what these families go through.&nbsp; I was a NICU nurse for years and I thought I understood, but in fact, I was clueless.&nbsp; Now I know; now I get it.&nbsp; Until you’re in it every day, you just don’t know.<br /><br />I’m on a mission to get every obstetrician and geneticist in the country to change the way they think and especially the way they talk about genetic diseases like Trisomy 18.&nbsp; When a doctor says your child has a “lethal diagnosis” that is “incompatible with life” – those words are toxic.&nbsp; Those words lead to death.&nbsp; Doctors need to stop saying those words.<br /><br />I can’t tell you how many battles we’ve fought with doctors who wouldn’t even call Bella by her name.&nbsp; These children are denied the dignity they deserve as human beings. Parents should not have to fight for their children to receive medical care.&nbsp; This is why it’s critical that we get rid of Obamacare.&nbsp; Special-needs kids will be seen as lives not worth living and they’ll be the first to go.<br /><br />We’re grateful that Bella now has a good team of doctors who take great care of her and she’s doing great!&nbsp; I love Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.&nbsp; Other hospitals we’ve been to didn’t even want to try to give Bella the care or help she needed – she wasn’t worth it to them.&nbsp; At CHP, their philosophy is, “Just give the babies a chance.”&nbsp; Amen!<br /><br /><i>JH:&nbsp; Years before Bella was born, you and Rick experienced a “crisis pregnancy” and you lost your son, Gabriel.*&nbsp; Again, you battled the culture of death.&nbsp; It was the same time Rick was fighting in the U.S. Senate to pass the Partial-birth Abortion Ban.&nbsp; You were living exactly the scenario the abortion peddlers point to as proof that we "need" abortion.</i><br /><br /><b>KS:&nbsp;</b> Before Gabriel we always had picture-perfect pregnancies.&nbsp; Then to have a baby with a fatal defect – that’s how the doctors say it – right at the time of the Partial-birth abortion debate, that was no coincidence.&nbsp;&nbsp; God blessed us with the gift of “why.” As though He said, “Here’s why I’m doing this.”&nbsp; We saw the fruits of our son’s life and the significance of it.<br /><br />Before Gabriel, I thought I was pretty strong and could handle just about any cross.&nbsp; Any cross except the death of a child or a sick child, I told the Lord.&nbsp; Don’t give me those!&nbsp; But I’ve gotten both!&nbsp; Our crosses come in all shapes and sizes, but we’re better because of them.&nbsp; All you can do is embrace the cross God gave you and thank Him for it, because there’s definitely a reason.&nbsp; Even in the worst times God’s light shines through and He is working.<br /><br /><b>Family, Faith and Church</b><br /><br />Karen dreams of getting 8 hours of sleep someday.&nbsp; For now, she’s up by 0600 and doesn’t quit til midnight.<br /><br /><i>JH:&nbsp; How do you juggle all the demands of the campaign and family life and still keep your sanity?</i><br /><br /><b>KS:</b>&nbsp; It’s not easy.&nbsp;&nbsp; It’s a cross to do without Rick at home these days.&nbsp; He’s on the battlefield right now fighting the battles God wants him to fight.&nbsp; The only way I get through it is daily mass and keeping my prayer life in order.&nbsp; Daily mass, prayer time, family rosary; these things give you strength and I notice a real difference.&nbsp; I know if I’m not there I won’t be able to walk this walk.<br /><br /><i>JH:&nbsp; Any advice on passing the Faith on to our children?&nbsp; What have you and Rick done that’s worked well?</i><br /><br /><b>KS:</b>&nbsp; It’s a work in progress!&nbsp; They’re not going to get the Faith if you don’t live it.&nbsp; Live it with a lot of love.&nbsp; If you talk, but don’t live it, or maybe there’s anger, they’re not going to get it.&nbsp; You have to live it.&nbsp; The family rosary has been a beautiful thing for our family.&nbsp; It’s the time we can all come together again and you’re praying, and offering your prayers for so many other people.&nbsp; <br /><br />The most important thing is, do it with love.&nbsp; Always with love, never with force.&nbsp; You just can’t teach the Faith without the love of Christ.&nbsp; It has to be infused with love.<br /><br /><i>JH: Why be Catholic in 2011?&nbsp; Isn’t the Church outdated and full of criminals?</i><br /><br /><b>KS:</b>&nbsp; God’s truth never changes.&nbsp; No matter how modern we get or where we are technologically, God’s truth is the same throughout the ages.&nbsp; We can still be pure in the middle of a modern world!&nbsp;&nbsp; The terrible betrayals and disgusting scandals have served to prove one thing:&nbsp; God is in charge.&nbsp; Despite the sin and failings of men over the centuries, God is still in control and we’re still here.&nbsp; We are human and we’re going to fail and make terrible mistakes, but God is leading His Church.&nbsp; We can never forget His love and mercy.<br />~~~~~~~~~~<br /><br />As I finish writing this, the Church is celebrating the feast of the Triumph of the Cross.&nbsp; My time with Karen left me keenly aware that I’d met a woman who knows the Cross intimately.&nbsp; She knows the suffering and the pain, yet she is radiant with hope, overflowing with Love.&nbsp; She understands that embracing and carrying our cross always leads to triumph.&nbsp; Her strength and faith is, quite bluntly, awe-inspiring.&nbsp; It is abundantly clear that Rick is forged by that same fire, and possesses the strength and courage born of a deep love of Christ and His cross.&nbsp; That, folks, is a house built on rock.<br /><br />That’s the stuff great leaders are made of.<br /><br /><br /><br />* I highly recommend Karen's book, <i>Letters to Gabriel,</i> which chronicles the entire story of little Gabriel's life and death.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-1394159878188936748?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-48641127392559151152011-09-10T22:47:00.000-04:002011-09-11T09:02:11.961-04:00<a href="http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=42761">at Catholic Online</a><br /><br />I have a melancholy streak a mile wide.&nbsp; I love grey, cloudy days and cold weather and I especially love a beautiful, haunting sad song.&nbsp; (Guess I’m kinda weird that way.)&nbsp; Several years ago I heard a song in the background of a TV show that grabbed my melancholy by the arm and dragged me over.&nbsp; The music – a simple piano – was beautiful and the young man’s voice was earnest and mournful.&nbsp; I was hooked.&nbsp; I meant to hunt down the song later and find out about it, but life happened and I never did. <br /><br />Somehow it rose up in my mind this week as the solemn anniversary of 9/11 approached.&nbsp; This time, thanks to iTunes, I finally tracked it down.<br />&nbsp; <br /><blockquote><i>“I’d trade wisdom back in for innocence/to get away from all my lies/I’d trade wisdom back in for innocence/to get away from getting by/ I’d trade wisdom back in for innocence/for just one look through those eyes”</i><br />“Slow Down” (Ben Jelen)</blockquote><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />There are many days when I’d give anything to trade in some life experience and get my innocence back.&nbsp; That loss is the worst part about growing up.&nbsp; The gradual, almost unnoticed fading away of our ideals, our hopes, our belief in goodness and even the possibility of things we can’t imagine.&nbsp; Cynicism replaces optimism; guardedness shuts out generosity and faith; fear replaces trust.<br /><br />Then there are the moments like September 11, 2001, when innocence is shattered forever in an instant by a horror we still can’t comprehend and never saw coming.<br /><br />One minute I was sleeping cuddled up with my firstborn baby, holding her tiny fingers, breathing in her intoxicating new-baby scent, surrounded by bunnies and pink blankets, and everything was perfect and pure.&nbsp; The next minute the explosions in New York blew everything apart.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gPHms2KrH7M/TmwflMnoHYI/AAAAAAAABO8/xRATcgeFK_I/s1600/Innocence.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a></div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gZIIC7_BAWE/TmwfZN1SisI/AAAAAAAABO4/T0FPWG5ej5w/s1600/9-11-World-Trade-Center.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gZIIC7_BAWE/TmwfZN1SisI/AAAAAAAABO4/T0FPWG5ej5w/s320/9-11-World-Trade-Center.jpg" width="265" /></a><br />I remember thinking, “This can’t be real.&nbsp; The United States doesn’t get <i>attacked!”</i>&nbsp; I sat glued to the television like every other person in the country, unable to believe my eyes.&nbsp; It was simply too surreal, too hideous to take in.&nbsp; The shelter of our homeland had been invaded by the most hateful violence.&nbsp;&nbsp; And just like that, I realized that my daughter and I were no longer from the same country.<br /><br />The country I grew up in was <i>gone.</i>&nbsp; I could never pass it on to her.&nbsp; She’ll know it only through stories and history books.&nbsp; I don’t claim to be the first parent to ever feel this way, and there’ve surely been other page-turning events in our history that left two different Americas on either side.&nbsp; But there’s no denying that 9/11 changed everything in a radical way.<br /><br />The last remnants of innocence and naïveté went up in the smoke and rubble of those burning, collapsed towers.&nbsp; No place on earth felt safe anymore.&nbsp; Perhaps safety had been just an illusion before, but now even the illusion lay in ashes.<br /><br />I long to go back to the days when I wasn’t nervous getting on a plane.&nbsp; I long to return to childhood, when I didn’t know that life can be altered in the blink of an eye, completely against your will.&nbsp; I wish more than anything that I could protect my own children from losing their innocence, but I know I can’t.<br /><br />Is it hopeless then?&nbsp; Not hardly.&nbsp; We cannot go back to unsullied ignorance; we’ll never be naïve again.&nbsp; But we really can be restored to purity again; our innocence can be renewed.&nbsp; At the Cross we trade in our dirt and rubble and the Spotless Lamb washes us clean again.&nbsp; Innocence Himself takes away our stain and gives us His own pure life.&nbsp; <i>“God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”</i>&nbsp; 2 Cor 5:21<br /><br />We still live in the midst of explosive hatred and violence, but we are not obligated to become hardened and bitter.&nbsp; In fact, we must pray to remain guileless and hopeful, like a little child.&nbsp; <i>“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.”</i>&nbsp; Matthew 5:8&nbsp;&nbsp; <i>“Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.”</i>&nbsp; Psalm 51:10<br /><br />If I could say something to my country today it would be this:&nbsp; Follow the instinct you had in the hours and days after 9/11, when your heart told you the remedy was not in government or business or might or yourself, but in God.&nbsp; Only the One who had made us can heal us.&nbsp; That isn’t mythology or a fairytale or a crutch, and somewhere in our bones we knew it on that terrible day.&nbsp; Before we talked ourselves out of being “religious” we heard that still small voice in our spirits calling us to seek His face again.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bUAEYLVFBtg/Tmwhgv1rYeI/AAAAAAAABPE/uN7S9GxAr6U/s1600/Innocence.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bUAEYLVFBtg/Tmwhgv1rYeI/AAAAAAAABPE/uN7S9GxAr6U/s320/Innocence.jpg" width="251" /></a></div><br /><br />While we stare evil in the face and guard against danger, we may still remain pure in heart if we ask.&nbsp; Whatever violence may be done to us, if we live in the heart of the Holy God who came to us as a Child, and offered Himself as an innocent Victim in our place, then we <i>can</i> be made new each day, over and over.&nbsp; We can wear our “wisdom” like a ball and chain or we can trade it back in for Innocence.&nbsp; Let us choose wisely.&nbsp; <br /><br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-MvchtxsWGwM/TmwgRQGTJnI/AAAAAAAABPA/89Q5hT6Y2BY/s1600/Lori+Grinker+9_11.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="216" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-MvchtxsWGwM/TmwgRQGTJnI/AAAAAAAABPA/89Q5hT6Y2BY/s320/Lori+Grinker+9_11.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>God bless us, every one, on this day of remembrance.&nbsp; <b>We will never forget.</b><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-4864112739255915115?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-24753809031850156132011-09-08T19:52:00.001-04:002011-09-08T19:52:59.268-04:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object width="320" height="266" class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="http://0.gvt0.com/vi/WhuC9ITQUzw/0.jpg"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/WhuC9ITQUzw&fs=1&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/WhuC9ITQUzw&fs=1&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash"></embed></object></div><br /><b>SANTORUM 2012</b><br /><br />Watch Santorum give a terrific answer to a loaded question.&nbsp; The debate was as frustrating as all the others because once again, they practically ignored Rick.&nbsp; (They paid attention all night long to the wrong Rick.)&nbsp; He didn't even get a final question --all the others did, but not him.&nbsp; They want Rick to go away, but he's not going anywhere.&nbsp; Except, God willing, to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue in 2013. <br /><br /><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-2475380903185015613?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-56987994041558471512011-09-03T09:41:00.000-04:002011-09-03T09:55:46.833-04:00<a href="http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=42653">at Catholic Online</a><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-njU4iPNgnKU/TmIuVvk4_NI/AAAAAAAABOk/Ya0XyyfPI4w/s1600/tolerancegkchesterton250" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-njU4iPNgnKU/TmIuVvk4_NI/AAAAAAAABOk/Ya0XyyfPI4w/s1600/tolerancegkchesterton250" /></a></div><br /><a href="http://www.acceptingabundance.com/">Stacy Trascanos</a> is one gutsy lady.&nbsp; Last week she wrote <a href="http://www.acceptingabundance.com/2011/08/cant-even-go-to-park.html">a little blog post</a> about how she’s getting tired of wondering “what in tarnation we’re going to encounter” every time she and her kids leave the house.&nbsp; Two men ogling each other at the pool?&nbsp; Two women engaged in public displays of affection in the park?&nbsp; These are scenes she’d rather her young children not be exposed to every time they go out in public, but it’s become impossible to avoid in her community.<br /><br />For having the nerve to express her objection to immorality, she’s become the object of <a href="http://www.acceptingabundance.com/2011/08/you-duped-me-o-lord.html">wrath and nasty threats from homosexual activists.</a>&nbsp; Those who understand how Stacy feels (count me in) also know that her real crime is that she has rejected the Gospel of Tolerance.&nbsp; <br /><br />The Gospel of Tolerance really only has one rule: thou shalt tolerate any action, belief, lifestyle, agenda, and person<i><b> except</b></i> the person who believes a certain lifestyle, action or agenda is wrong and has the gall to say so out loud.&nbsp; The Gospel of Tolerance requires that you have no objection to that which it says must be tolerated.&nbsp; In fact, it requires that you not even question that which it says must be tolerated.<br /><br />Noncompliance will not be tolerated.<br /><br />The Gospel of Tolerance only contains one verse:&nbsp; "Judge not, lest ye be judged."&nbsp; It should be edited, however, to read more accurately, "Judge not <i><b>me</b></i> nor anything I say, do, or want, lest ye be judged intolerant."&nbsp; In the vocabulary of the Gospel of Tolerance, sin has no meaning.&nbsp; It has no concept at all.<br /><br />Those who preach this gospel have fashioned a “christianity" more to their liking, since the real thing cannot be tolerated.&nbsp; Theirs is a toothless kitten; soft, warm, cuddly, sleepy and sentimental.&nbsp; Its only purpose is to soothe and affirm.&nbsp; It makes no demands.&nbsp; It certainly will not tolerate any demands forthcoming!<br /><br />If their christianity has a savior at all, he is merely an amiable, sympathetic mascot for their cause and the only thing he ever said was “Don’t judge.”&nbsp; The only "sin" to require forgiving is the sin of intolerance, which of course is only committed by those who object to being told what they can and can’t object to.<br /><br />The Gospel of Tolerance is a ruse; it’s just a marketing ploy.&nbsp; The real goal here is submission.&nbsp; It's not enough to "get along" or tolerate quietly.&nbsp; <b>You must <i>approve.</i>&nbsp;</b> You don't dare disapprove publicly.&nbsp; Those who don’t tow the line will be punished.&nbsp; <br /><br />Just ask the teachers who’ve been suspended for expressing opposition to gay "marriage."&nbsp; Or the Catholic health care facilities being told they must dispense contraception against their explicit beliefs; or the Catholic adoption agencies that must close down to avoid being forced to place children with homosexual couples against their explicit beliefs (beliefs they’re supposed to have the freedom to live by).&nbsp; <br /><br />Ask the business owners now fighting lawsuits because they don’t wish to participate in gay weddings or receptions. When did they lose the right to run their own business as they wish?&nbsp; Under the Gospel of Tolerance, there is no freedom to disagree, no right to object.&nbsp; You must submit.&nbsp; Either carry the banner or risk losing your livelihood and liberty.<br /><br />Well here’s a radical piece of truth for you:&nbsp;<b> tolerance is not a virtue.</b>&nbsp; It’s not a moral victory to acquiesce to evil. <br /><br /><blockquote>"We need to remember that tolerance is not a Christian virtue. Charity, justice, mercy, prudence, honesty -- these are Christian virtues. And obviously, in a diverse community, tolerance is an important working principle. But it's never an end in itself. In fact, tolerating grave evil within a society is itself a form of serious evil." - Archbishop Chaput</blockquote><br />It used to be that we could hate the sin and love the sinner, but the problem is now we're not allowed to hate the sin anymore!&nbsp; We have to love the sin, celebrate the sin, and above all, stop calling it sin!<br /><br />It’s not intolerant to make the judgment that something is morally wrong and oppose it.&nbsp; Just as sex does not equal love, neither does tolerance!&nbsp; There <i>is</i> such a thing as sin, and it leads to death, and Love demands that we tell our brothers and sisters the truth so that they might decide to reject sin and gain life.<br /><br />This is the sobering territory in which Christians now find themselves – in the middle of the new Dark Ages, when evil is called good and darkness is called light.&nbsp; (Isaiah 5:20)<br /><br />Well, I’m with Stacy.&nbsp; I’ve had it with all this darkness parading around as light, being championed by the government, paid for with my tax dollars, shoved in my face and my children’s faces and rammed down our throats.&nbsp; I’m tired of being branded a hateful bigot for not abandoning the reasonable moral truths that have been the foundation of the human race since time began.&nbsp; And frankly I couldn’t care less if you find that intolerant.<br /><br />I find it intolerable that our children's innocence is being ripped away from them beginning in Kindergarten with the new mandate of Sex-Ed that indoctrinates them into embracing and celebrating homosexuality, trans-sexuality, gender-neutral insanity, every imaginable manner of promiscuity and abortion.&nbsp; It’s intolerable that our kids are seen as “sexual beings” rather than human souls.<br /><br />What's truly intolerable is that the adults in power are robbing the children of childhood purity to further their own immoral agenda.&nbsp; What’s horrifyingly intolerable is that killing an innocent child is considered a woman’s sacred “right.”<br /><br />It is intolerable that my children will probably not be able to make it to puberty without learning about sodomy and “gay marriage.”&nbsp; It is intolerable that before they can even drive a car they will also be convicted of intolerance if they dare to defend true marriage and sexual purity.&nbsp; It’s intolerable that they are growing up in a culture that defiles marriage, corrupts the family, perverts sexuality and destroys human life.<br /><br />The irony is that because I believe that babies in the womb have the right to live and be born and children have the right to a mother and a father who are married to each other and that sex is sacred and beautiful and should be treated accordingly and that marriage only exists between a man and a woman because that is God’s plan for the human family, I’m the one who’s called an enemy of freedom and human rights and an intolerant bigot.<br /><br />Then so be it.&nbsp; Far better to be called intolerant than to call evil good. <br /><br />One last thought – I recently read someone’s description of people who were “good Christians” and it boiled down to this:&nbsp; good Christians are tolerant of others.&nbsp; There’s that cuddly, feel-good christianity again.&nbsp; <br /><br />Find your courage, people.&nbsp; This gospel of tolerance is not our salvation and it will not bring us peace.&nbsp; There is Good News to share and we must live it without fear.<br /><br /><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-5698799404155847151?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-64165974600857833922011-08-20T12:27:00.000-04:002011-08-20T12:27:22.853-04:00<a href="http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=42484">at Catholic Online</a><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PX1OSK1LIY0/Tk_gMzqnopI/AAAAAAAABOQ/7PzjYlicfVg/s1600/madrid_world_youth_day_nationalturk-2458.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="215" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PX1OSK1LIY0/Tk_gMzqnopI/AAAAAAAABOQ/7PzjYlicfVg/s320/madrid_world_youth_day_nationalturk-2458.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br />I watched part of the World Youth Day welcoming ceremony in Madrid, Spain, and talk about great television!&nbsp;&nbsp; From every ethnicity and country stood throngs of youth jam-packed into the square, waving their countries’ flags and they were all absolutely beaming.&nbsp; They were exuberant with joy and excitement at welcoming the Holy Father and being welcomed by him.<br /><br /><br />I readily admit I was overcome with emotion at the sight.&nbsp; So many young people in every manner of dress, yet they all seemed to be clothed with the same electrifying spirit.&nbsp; I watched some of them present a thoughtful gift to Pope Benedict on behalf of their nation, and each of them got his childlike warm smile and blessing.&nbsp; The rice from a young Korean woman; a flower garland from the young lady from Japan (she looked like a walking flower herself -- so lovely!); the sombrero from the young man from Honduras; each one given with sincerity and gratitude, and equally received.<br /><br /><br />It was a striking thing to watch.&nbsp; Young Catholics in full-spectrum color, bubbling over with enthusiasm.&nbsp; This, after all, is supposedly the Church that has abandoned young people and oppressed women.&nbsp; I defy anyone to watch what's going on in Madrid and tell me the Church is not alive with young blood!&nbsp; What I saw tonight gives me great hope for my Church, and I shamefully admit I am often susceptible to discouragement.&nbsp; We, the Church, will indeed climb the steep hill before us because the souls doing the climbing are young and strong.<br /><br /><br />I saw young people screaming, crying and jumping for joy like lovesick fans at a rock concert, but their affection is for their Papa!&nbsp; This young flock knows him and they respect him.&nbsp; They know him because he speaks the truth without condescension or apology.&nbsp; They know him because he offers them hope that will never be shaken.<br /><br /><br />They recognize in Papa's voice the One who truly loves them and gave Himself for them.&nbsp; They hunger for that love and so they long to hear the words of the Holy Father, for he communicates the joy, the love, and the promise of Divine Mercy.&nbsp; He dares them to build their lives on the firm foundation of the Person of Christ rather than the flimsy, shifting sands of their era.<br /><br /><br />Those who wag their finger and look disdainfully at the Catholic Church and pile up their scathing criticism about this World Youth Day are yelling with their eyes shut.&nbsp; They have no idea what they're describing because they've never seen it.&nbsp; They’re filled with hatred, anger, resentment, disappointment, and other, less understandable motivation.&nbsp; Like scrawny, feral cats backed into a corner and sprayed with a hose, they're just hissing and clawing, all fangs and screeches.<br /><br /><br />One such cat is Amanda Marcotte.&nbsp; Slate had the bad sense (or was it endorsement?) to publish <a href="http://www.slate.com/blogs/xx_factor/2011/08/17/if_you_can_get_to_madrid_for_world_youth_day_you_get_freebie_for.html">her latest round of anti-Catholic vomit this week.&nbsp;</a> There was nothing at all new in her ravings, just the same ol', same ol':&nbsp; The Church is misogynist and hates women; the Church hates sex and thinks sex is dirty; the Church hates women who've had an abortion; the Church is full to the rafters will creepy pedophiles who practically eat little children for lunch; the Church has no remorse whatsoever for the crimes of her priests and couldn't care less who got hurt; and on and on it goes.<br /><br />Well, Amanda, there's only one thing to say.&nbsp; Sit down, honey.&nbsp; You must be exhausted!&nbsp; I mean, the energy it takes to perpetuate this much venomous anger toward the Church must be enormous!&nbsp; It's clearly consuming you, so why don't you just let it go?&nbsp; <br /><br />Seriously, Amanda, come on home.&nbsp; Are you Catholic?&nbsp; It's not your fault if you were never properly taught your Church's teachings.&nbsp; Sadly, most of us weren't.&nbsp;&nbsp; However, you're an adult now, so it is your fault if you don't now seek out the truth and learn to separate fact from twisted fiction.<br /><br />The good news is there's a plethora of great books, CD's and other material that can bring you up to speed real quick if you just make an effort.&nbsp; You’ll find a much different Church than the one you're railing against so viciously.&nbsp; You’ll find a very different God than the one you slander so callously.&nbsp; But you have to seek.&nbsp; That's the rule:&nbsp; seek and ye shall find.<br /><br />If you're not interested in seeking, well, I'm sorry to hear that.&nbsp; But in that case, please close your mouth and keep your vile and ignorant screeds to yourself.&nbsp; You don't know what you're talking about, and you don't have the right to spread lies and hatred.<br /><br />Did you <i>see</i> those people in Madrid, Amanda?&nbsp; Did you see the life and freedom on the faces of that crowd?&nbsp; Do those really look like mindless sheep to you?&nbsp; Do those vibrant young women really look oppressed or restricted to you?<br /><br />They are filled with something I believe you desperately want and need:&nbsp; real joy.&nbsp; The pure joy that comes from knowing you are loved.&nbsp; Endlessly, completely loved.&nbsp; And you are, Amanda.&nbsp; I'm truly sorry you don't know that.&nbsp; There's no way you could know that and still behave the way you do.<br /><br />They're also brimming with the excitement of being part of the Body of Christ on earth.&nbsp; By God's grace, they are hearing the call to transform their generation by the witness of their lives.&nbsp; They're getting ready to fling their nets wide and haul in the catch of the century.&nbsp; And through their faithfulness, our dying culture will be reborn.&nbsp; By God's grace...<br /><br />As I said, I’m prone to discouragement about all of this.&nbsp; I, too, see the statistics revealing the chasm between what Catholics are taught and what they're actually doing.&nbsp; I know there is much, much work to be done in catechizing generations of Catholics who don't know two bits about their faith.&nbsp; I'm frustrated on a daily basis by so-called Catholics who give the Church "the finger" and live like any other pagan.<br /><br />I’m disgusted by the betrayal of public officials who are supposed to be Catholic, yet devote their lives to tearing down every moral truth when they should know better.&nbsp; But you know what, Amanda?&nbsp; Those folks are not the Church.&nbsp; They’re just hecklers and criminals in sheep's clothing.<br /><br />The Church -- the real Church -- is seen in the faith and hope now gathered in Madrid.&nbsp; God is still in His heaven, and our High Priest still offers Himself for us every second of every day.&nbsp; Our Blessed Mother still intercedes for us.&nbsp; She's still teaching us the only way to freedom is through humble obedience to the lovable will of her Son.<br /><br />I am not ashamed of being Catholic.&nbsp; I'm not ashamed to join with the youth in Madrid in expressing profound affection, love and loyalty toward our courageous Holy Father, our Papa! Nearly half a million young people traveled to Spain for this WYD!&nbsp; You can't diminish that no matter what you say.<br /><br />The Catholic Church is both Spirit and mud.&nbsp; We bring the mud; Jesus brings the Spirit.&nbsp; In recent years there’s been way too much mud.&nbsp; There is much house-cleaning yet to do, and many of us are standing with broom at the ready.&nbsp; You'll find, Amanda, that no one is more disgusted by the filth that infiltrated our House than faithful Catholics.<br /><br />Yet Christ has not and will not abandon us.&nbsp; The gates of hell will not prevail.&nbsp; And neither will you, Amanda.&nbsp; Lay down your hurt and hatred.&nbsp; Wouldn't you rather be joyful?&nbsp; Come home.&nbsp; We'll leave the Light on for you.<br /><br /><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-6416597460085783392?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-46026964544623695252011-08-18T21:25:00.000-04:002011-08-18T21:25:15.635-04:00<a href="http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=42456">at Catholic Online</a><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gssjTQtiXPw/Tk26-L3fqjI/AAAAAAAABNM/3mfjUXrDRtU/s1600/twins-in-the-womb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="195" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gssjTQtiXPw/Tk26-L3fqjI/AAAAAAAABNM/3mfjUXrDRtU/s200/twins-in-the-womb.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><br />The Republican presidential candidates have agreed lately that one of America’s big problems is that we don’t manufacture things here anymore.&nbsp; That’s not entirely accurate.&nbsp; We manufacture babies now, and business is booming, both for the makers and the destroyers.&nbsp; One of the women featured in that hideous <i><b>NY Times</b></i> magazine story, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/14/magazine/the-two-minus-one-pregnancy.html?pagewanted=all">“The Two-Minus-One Pregnancy”</a> articulated it perfectly:<br /><br /><i>“If I had conceived these twins naturally, I wouldn’t have reduced this pregnancy, because you feel like if there’s a natural order, then you don’t want to disturb it.&nbsp; But we created this child in such an artificial manner – in a test tube, choosing an egg donor, having the embryo placed in me – and somehow, making a decision about how many to carry seemed to be just another choice.&nbsp; The pregnancy was all so consumerish to begin with, and this became yet another thing we could control.”</i><br /><br />The story attempts to deal with the ethical dilemma caused by the increasingly common practice of “reducing” triplet and twin pregnancies when the mother says she only wants one child.&nbsp; The author, Ruth Padawer, asks, <i>“What is it about terminating half a twin pregnancy that seems more controversial than reducing triplets to twins or aborting a single fetus?&nbsp; After all, the math’s the same either way: one fewer fetus.”</i><br /><br />Indeed, she has a point.&nbsp; Just the wrong point.&nbsp; The point is it’s reprehensible no matter how many babies are being terminated.&nbsp; But in this case it’s particularly odious because these parents requisitioned their babies and then discarded the “extras” they decided they didn’t want.&nbsp; In a bid for sympathy, we’re told how these women keep their “reduction” to themselves for fear of disapproval.<br /><br /><i>“Secrecy is common among women undergoing reduction to a singleton.&nbsp; Doctors who perform the procedure, aware of the stigma, tell patients to be cautious about revealing their decision.&nbsp; Some patients are so afraid of being treated with disdain that they withhold this information from the obstetrician who will deliver their child.”</i><br /><br />Awww, the poor, poor people so afraid of disdain and the sting of judgment!&nbsp; Sorry, I can’t spare a tear. <br /><br />It is astonishing that our society still isn’t shocked and sickened by what we’re doing to our own children.&nbsp; Good grief, people, what does it take to get your attention?&nbsp; What does it take to awaken the natural instinct to protect a child from harm?&nbsp; What does it take to blow away the fog and see things as they really are?<br /><br />(Ironically, the abortion zealots took great offense at the <i><b>NY Times</b></i> story, too.&nbsp; Sunsara Taylor over at <i><b>RH Reality Check</b></i> had a hissy fit over the <a href="http://www.rhrealitycheck.org/blog/2011/08/14/nytimes-whips-more-moral-agonizing-about-womens-reproductive-rights-enough">“Moral Agonizing about Women’s Reproductive Rights.”</a>&nbsp;&nbsp; She writes, “The only basis for viewing the decision of a woman not to carry every fetus to term as a “moral” or “ethical dilemma” is the unscientific lie that treats fetuses like people, rather than as a subordinate part of a woman’s body.”)<br /><br />One of the more outrageous segments of the NY Times story was about Shelby Van Voris, who became pregnant with triplets while under the care of a fertility specialist.&nbsp; With her husband deployed in Iraq, Shelby was pumped full of hormone injections and then artificially inseminated with the sperm he’d left behind.&nbsp; When the doctor told her she was expecting three babies, she yelled at him, <i>“This is not an option for us!&nbsp; <b>I want only one!”&nbsp; </b></i><br /><br />He then referred her to another doctor who did “reductions”, but was told the staff refused to reduce pregnancies below twins.&nbsp; Three other doctors told her the same thing.&nbsp; <i>“It was horrible,” Shelby said.&nbsp; “I felt like the pregnancy was a monster and I just wanted it out, but because we tried for so long, abortion wasn’t an option.”</i><br /><br />Shelby eventually found her way to Dr. Evans in New York and flew there for the “procedure.”&nbsp; She told Dr. Evans, <i>“You choose whoever is going to be safe and healthy.&nbsp; I didn’t give him any other criteria.&nbsp; I didn’t choose gender.&nbsp; None of that was up for grabs, because I had to make this as ethically O.K. for me as I could.&nbsp; <b>But I wanted only one.”</b></i><br />But wait, didn’t she just say that since they’d tried for so long abortion wasn’t an option?&nbsp; Then what exactly did she pay to have done to two of her babies?&nbsp; A “reduction”?&nbsp; How is that <i>not</i> an abortion?&nbsp; What did she think was done to them?&nbsp; Where are they now?&nbsp; <b>They’re dead.&nbsp;</b> For $6,500, she got precisely what she wanted:&nbsp; one.<br /><br />Shelby left the doctor’s office <i>“incredibly relieved.&nbsp; ‘I went out on that street with my mother and jumped up and down saying, “I’m pregnant!&nbsp; I’m pregnant!’&nbsp; And then I went out and bought baby clothes for the first time.”</i><br /><br />Someone please tell me what kind of person is relieved that two of her babies have been destroyed?&nbsp; And spare me the admonishment not to judge.&nbsp; It’s appropriate to judge these acts evil and question the morality of one who commits such evil.&nbsp; We have to call it what it is.&nbsp; It flourishes in our nation precisely because people are afraid to “judge.”&nbsp;&nbsp; They fear nothing like they fear being labeled judgmental.&nbsp; They’d rather hide behind sophistry and euphemisms, like “reduction.”&nbsp; What are we reducing again?&nbsp; Oh, that’s right – innocent human beings.&nbsp; How, exactly?&nbsp; Just a lethal shot in the heart.&nbsp; No biggie. <br /><br />That a mother could dance in the street and celebrate after having paid for the execution of two of her babies because she “only wanted one” is chilling and grotesque beyond words.&nbsp; Two babies had to die for this woman’s intolerable selfishness.&nbsp; Stop calling it an option or a personal choice.&nbsp; It is the most abhorrent violence. <br /><br />We have a thoroughly backwards sense of the unthinkable in our culture.&nbsp; It ought to be unthinkable for parents and doctors to target babies in the womb for execution.&nbsp; Instead, we find it unthinkable that they should not have that “option.”&nbsp; We find it intolerable that they should be criticized and disgraced.&nbsp; Pitiful are we who find it more objectionable to hurt someone’s feelings than to expose evil and defend the helpless.<br /><br />In the slavery of the modern age, we buy and sell children as our property.&nbsp; We “own” them in the way that gives us absolute power over their very lives.&nbsp; We do not receive them anymore as gifts; instead we manufacture them at will and afford them no greater value than any other expensive trinket we buy for our momentary craving.<br /><br />We pay to bring them into existence for our own purposes and then when they become inconvenient, we arrange for their demise with barely a second thought.&nbsp; When the ethicality of their deaths becomes a bit muddled for us, we employ clever terms like “reduction”, “choice” and “reproductive rights.”&nbsp; <br /><br />We assuage our guilt (what little we feel) by insisting that the baby isn’t human, isn’t a person yet, but merely a “fetus” (a term which now has a pejorative cast) and that makes it all better.&nbsp; Never mind that it’s absolute bull.&nbsp; We want to believe it because we need to believe it in order to prop up the illusion that we’re not really exterminating our own kids with less compassion and concern than the pest control guy has for the cockroaches in our homes.<br /><br />We kill our babies, but we add unthinkable insult to unimaginable injury by denying them their humanity.&nbsp; We call them blobs of insentient tissue; parasites; invaders.&nbsp; But worst of all, we call them unwanted, even after we’ve gone to ridiculous lengths to manufacture them.&nbsp; <b>We order ‘em up, and we order ‘em killed.</b><br /><br />But heaven forbid we should suffer any moral agonizing.<br /><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-4602696454462369525?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-73253014565165470052011-08-13T12:29:00.000-04:002011-08-13T12:29:34.623-04:00<a href="http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=42396">at Catholic Online</a><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dwtdM7ouaw4/TkamMgB6NkI/AAAAAAAABME/BhkqgsPP7EY/s1600/contraception-methods.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dwtdM7ouaw4/TkamMgB6NkI/AAAAAAAABME/BhkqgsPP7EY/s320/contraception-methods.jpg" width="269" /></a></div><br />The mandate has come down from on-high, and the pundits and political operatives are gushing as though it's the greatest gift to women since suffrage or waterproof mascara.&nbsp; They cheerfully tell us that beyond preventing those pesky “unwanted” pregnancies, this new birth control mandate will finally provide women with the counseling they need to prevent STD’s.<br /><br /><br />We must be really stupid.&nbsp; Do women in 2011 really not understand how STD's are spread or how babies are made?<br /><br /><br />If it's information that's needed, let's take care of that right now.&nbsp; Here's the deal:&nbsp; Sex makes babies.&nbsp; Sex often makes babies despite the birth control you're using.&nbsp; Very often, sex also passes icky diseases between partners, like an extra little "gift" that may stay with you for life.&nbsp; You could get a whole lot more than you bargained for from what's-his-name.<br /><br /><br />The good news is all of this is completely preventable.&nbsp; You needn't risk your health or your future as though you're playing the wheel in Vegas.&nbsp; It is amazingly simple to avoid getting a nasty STD or becoming pregnant when you don't want to be pregnant:&nbsp; don't have sex.&nbsp; (If you’re married, be faithful.)<br /><br />If you choose to have sex, you are throwing the dice by your own volition and you could very well lose your bet.&nbsp; Birth control will never, ever, replace self-control.&nbsp; Birth control can never, ever, compensate for bad judgment.&nbsp; Birth control is no substitute for respect and restraint.<br /><br />As to the inane argument that contraception reduces the number of abortions, thereby making it the only truly acceptable paradigm for society, reality says otherwise.&nbsp; Abortion statistics reveal that the majority of women having abortions were using birth control when they got pregnant.&nbsp; (Never mind the fact that many contraceptive drugs are abortifacients, and never mind the fact that abortion zealots will admit they consider abortion itself “birth control” of the last resort.&nbsp; Whatever it takes to make sure no baby is born!)<br />&nbsp; <br /><br />Contraception is not the antidote to abortion because fertility is not the problem.&nbsp; The problem is we’ve buried the law of cause-and-effect, along with the moral laws of responsibility, accountability, fidelity, and the code of honor that used to exist among men.<br /><br /><br />All these things have been buried under a steaming mound of self-indulgent relativism.&nbsp; Thanks to this infantile fertilizer we’re growing a nation of people who believe wishes are rights, freedom is license to do anything you please, and all that matters is what you want, think, and feel.<br /><br /><br />Think of it this way:&nbsp; It's like selling a pill that eliminates 75% of the alcohol from your blood so it's "safer" to drive. You're still not exactly sober, not guaranteed not to crash and hurt someone, but you're more protected than if you didn't take the Alcohol Control pill.<br /><br />Of course, the only right thing to do is to never get behind the wheel when you're intoxicated, but for heaven's sake, you can't expect people to do the right thing!&nbsp; So instead of requiring people to be responsible and respectful of human life by not driving drunk, you teach them they can have their drinks and car keys, too, with the Alcohol Control pill!&nbsp; So it's not as good as sobriety, but it's better than drinking without it.&nbsp; It's protection against car accidents and deaths that is necessary because people are <i>going</i> to drink and drive anyway, so we should provide them with a way to do it more safely.<br /><br />And when the Alcohol Control pill fails or someone forgets to take it and somebody dies in a car crash, it will surely lead to demand for a more effective Alcohol Control pill and greater access to it.&nbsp; Then activists groups will be picketing for free distribution of the Alcohol Control pill, along with education about how the A.C. pill works so "user failure rates" go down.<br /><br />Meanwhile, young people grow up drinking more alcohol more often, caring less and less about the consequences or how their drunkenness might affect someone else.&nbsp; They damage their livers, kidneys, hearts and brains; they gamble with their health and future; they regard another person's life with cavalier indifference but as long as they're not arrested for DUI's, it's all good and victory is declared.<br /><br />Rather than treating alcohol with due caution and respect for its power to harm, people are trained to complain that they can't drink whatever they want without getting wasted.&nbsp; Even worse, some party-pooper has the nerve to say they can't get wasted and drive.<br /><br />There's no burden on them anymore to think or act as a mature adult.&nbsp; The expectation of self-control and accountability are all but wiped out.&nbsp; Generations are raised to think society has the burden to remove every and all unwanted, unintended outcomes from every activity they choose to indulge in.<br /><br />That's exactly where we are with sex and birth control.&nbsp; The idea that more birth control will reduce "unwanted" pregnancies is a fairytale.&nbsp; It's the sexual equivalent of crack cocaine to a sex-addicted culture.&nbsp; Just gimme more and more sex, and delude me into thinking it's safe, I'm safe, and nothing bad will happen.<br /><br /><br />But the people growing up on top of the steaming mound of self-indulgent relativism don’t want to hear any of this.&nbsp; It’s not that they’re stupid – they just want what they want when they want it with no strings, no consequences, no obligation, no demands.&nbsp; <br /><br />They refuse to hear that sometimes not doing what they want is the only responsible choice.&nbsp; They reject the reality that their actions have consequences.&nbsp; They are downright indignant at the idea that they have to exercise self-control and say “no” because the choice at hand literally involves life and death.<br /><br />Just as alcohol has the nerve to intoxicate the person who drinks too much, sexual intercourse has the nerve to transmit diseases and worst of all, the unmitigated gall to make babies.&nbsp; The audacity!&nbsp; (Why, in this day and age, we just shouldn't have to put up with that!)<br /><br />And so, sadly, we now celebrate the victory of entrusting our lives and our children’s lives to latex and chemicals rather than modeling a real respect for the beauty of sexual love and marriage, and a sense of honor and modesty.&nbsp; And when the latex and chemicals fail, we don’t learn our lesson and modify our behavior.&nbsp; No, instead we head over to the human butcher shop to have our babies exterminated.&nbsp; We toss aside any reverence for human life.&nbsp; We attack our children when they show up uninvited (as though they created themselves out of thin air).<br /><br />There’s no pill for what ails us.&nbsp; We’ve been given a mandate from on-high, alright, but not a contraceptive one.&nbsp; It’s a mandate of chastity and love.&nbsp; We ignore it at our peril.<br /><br /><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-7325301456516547005?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-38126365431270066362011-08-12T12:56:00.000-04:002011-08-12T12:56:25.431-04:00<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/sVBwebvGfaI?rel=0" width="425"></iframe><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-3812636543127006636?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-29422574603312620272011-08-05T19:05:00.000-04:002011-08-05T19:05:59.412-04:00I LOVE this ad!!&nbsp; Way to go, Rick!<br /><br /><b>SANTORUM 2012</b><br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/qKjUuETMkdA?rel=0" width="560"></iframe><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-2942257460331262027?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-78856206261344770862011-07-30T01:35:00.001-04:002011-07-31T13:10:03.736-04:00<a href="http://www.catholic.org/hf/family/story.php?id=42242">at Catholic Online</a><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BxyfIxBxSog/TjWLIKfdo5I/AAAAAAAABLo/T33yZWilDOA/s1600/indian+woman200" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BxyfIxBxSog/TjWLIKfdo5I/AAAAAAAABLo/T33yZWilDOA/s1600/indian+woman200" /></a></div><br /><br />A thoughtful late-night conversation with my husband turned out this question:&nbsp; If you asked a woman if she would rather her husband think she is incredibly beautiful or incredibly smart, which would she choose?<br /><br />My husband said he was a bit surprised at my response.&nbsp; I said that I really believe, in her heart of hearts, a woman would rather be incredibly beautiful to her man.&nbsp; A woman wants to be desired and prized by her husband as the most beautiful woman he knows.<br /><br />For beauty, I said, is the domain of women.&nbsp; Beauty belongs to women.&nbsp; Men and women can both be smart, capable, industrious, talented, clever, etc., but only women are beautiful.&nbsp; We just don’t go around calling men beautiful!&nbsp; I love and admire my husband and find him appealing, but I would never describe him as beautiful.&nbsp; Men are to be handsome, strong, noble, charming, warrior-protectors, but they’re not beautiful.<br /><br />That is God’s chosen gift to women.&nbsp; I went on and said it’s surely no coincidence that God chose women to be co-creators of life with Him because new life is so beautiful!&nbsp; It is further proof of God’s tenderness and affection for us; evidence that we occupy an especially-honored place in His creative heart.&nbsp; He bestowed on His daughters the gift of beauty and equipped us to perpetuate beauty.<br /><br />This is why it pains me so much to see so many women in our culture behaving so crudely.&nbsp; Women seem to be losing all gentility and grace, choosing instead to be crass, vulgar, immodest, coarse, and unkempt.&nbsp; A man behaving badly is boorish, perhaps even savage.&nbsp; A woman behaving badly is just plain <b>ugly.</b>&nbsp; They are profaning the glorious gift of beauty God gave them.&nbsp; A flower should never be covered in dung.<br /><br />Recall what Archbishop Sheen said about women: <br /><blockquote><br />"To a great extent the level of any civilization is the level of its womanhood. When a man loves a woman, he has to become worthy of her. The higher her virtue, the more her character, the more devoted she is to truth, justice, goodness, the more a man has to aspire to be worthy of her. The history of civilization could actually be written in terms of the level of its women."</blockquote><br />I already know that my husband thinks I’m smart.&nbsp; If I thought he didn’t appreciate my intellect and abilities I never would have married him.&nbsp; But I can’t lie – what my feminine heart really rejoices in are those moments when he gets that look in his eye, smiles at me and says, “How did I ever get such a beautiful wife?”<br /><br />This doesn’t mean a woman’s beauty is merely physical – far from it!&nbsp; The most outwardly gorgeous woman in the world, if her heart is cruel and vain, and her manner is vile is <i>not</i> beautiful.&nbsp; The delicate and tender characteristics of femininity are what make a woman beautiful, as well as her heart.&nbsp; You could say character is the stem on which beauty blooms.&nbsp; Yet we shouldn’t discount the value of a lovely appearance, either.&nbsp; There’s nothing wrong with enjoying the rose or the lily.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1MlDL0d8AuM/TjWKT4_JXPI/AAAAAAAABLk/LTY4Cnu7Jzk/s1600/Light-red-rose250" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1MlDL0d8AuM/TjWKT4_JXPI/AAAAAAAABLk/LTY4Cnu7Jzk/s200/Light-red-rose250" width="200" /></a></div><br /><br />This is what the male-female dance is all about: the contrast between a man’s strength and a woman’s beauty.&nbsp; This is what we’re in terrible danger of losing forever as we try to annihilate gender differences under some delusion of “equality.”&nbsp; God forbid we be perfectly, equitably the same!&nbsp;&nbsp; How boring, how uninspired, how <i><b>ugly</b></i> that would be.<br /><br />The Psalmist reminds us that physical beauty is fleeting, but a woman who fears the Lord shall be praised.&nbsp; I don’t think this contradicts what I’ve said; it reminds us that time and hardship may steal the beauty of our youth, but the love of the Lord makes a woman’s heart become ever more beautiful with time and that beauty will never be hidden and will never fade away.&nbsp; The beauty we should carefully cultivate is a beautiful soul, but we needn’t despise the bloom in the process.<br /><br />My beloved brought our conversation to a winning conclusion by telling me I was “B-squared.”&nbsp; My puzzled look turned to a grin when he said, “Beautiful <i>and</i> brilliant.”&nbsp; See – I told you men are supposed to be charming!<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-7885620626134477086?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-50805277353357568422011-07-27T21:55:00.000-04:002011-07-27T21:55:24.929-04:00I've met Fr. Paul Schenck in person and heard his story.&nbsp; To say it is inspiring and amazing is a pitiful understatement.&nbsp; This wonderful priest is an unspeakable gift to the Church in this age.&nbsp; <a href="http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=42208">He's written an excellent article about New York's same-sex marriage fiasco at Catholic Online.&nbsp; </a>It's worth a read:<br /><br /><blockquote>Last Sunday's same sex "marriage" registrations are being hailed as a victory for civil rights and what is now widelycalled "marriage equality" by homosexual equivalency activists, whatever that phrase means.<br /><br />I see something very different at work in the hundreds of "marriages" of male to male and female to female couples before misguided clergy, politicians and state bureaucrats.<br /><br />I don't doubt that many, if not most of the couples love one another, at least in a limited understanding of that essential word which lies at the heart of the very meaning of life... <br /><br /><br />One of the roots problems with "same sex marriage" as I see it is that it is a fatally flawed attempt to recover meaning in marriage within a society that has lost confidence in the ancient human ritual and arrangement which lies at the very foundation of human society.<br /><br />Marriage was in deep trouble long before anyone suggested granting government licenses to two men or to two women...&nbsp; </blockquote>Do read it all.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-5080527735335756842?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-63349653966270869552011-07-19T18:45:00.001-04:002011-07-19T18:45:58.006-04:00<a href="http://www.catholic.org/hf/family/story.php?id=42121">At Catholic Online</a><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jkJsae_MRwM/TiYI0S1HrtI/AAAAAAAABLM/qv3YNiskn_Q/s1600/natural-family-planning+chart.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jkJsae_MRwM/TiYI0S1HrtI/AAAAAAAABLM/qv3YNiskn_Q/s320/natural-family-planning+chart.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br />Next week is <a href="http://www.usccb.org/prolife/issues/nfp/nfpweek/index.shtml">Natural Family Planning Awareness Week</a>.&nbsp; (Do we get thermometer pins?)&nbsp; Talking about NFP tends to be awkward because it’s so personal and it rapidly descends into the realm of “too much information.”&nbsp; On the other hand, a little honesty on the subject is long overdue, so here goes nothin’!&nbsp; And anyway, <a href="http://www.crisismagazine.com/2011/five-ways-i-dont-love-natural-family-planning">Danielle Bean started it.&nbsp;</a> (And God bless her for it.)<br /><br />I have a real love/hate relationship with NFP.&nbsp; There are days I’d give anything for another way to live in harmony with my faith and my reproduction.&nbsp; It’s a great tool for understanding and managing fertility, but it’s not fair to put a pretty ribbon on NFP and sell it as just a shiny, wonderful wedding gift.&nbsp; NFP requires some real sacrifice, and we should be honest about that without sugar-coating the challenges.<br /><br />If you’re a healthy woman whose body is great at being pregnant and giving birth, and you &amp; your hubby are thrilled to receive as many children as God wants to give you, then you probably don’t have any complaints about NFP because you probably have no need of NFP.<br /><br />But what if you’re slightly less than healthy, or you have complications during pregnancy and a pattern of premature labor with every child (like me)?&nbsp; What if you have serious reasons for not having more children?&nbsp; (Some of us may wish the Church would come out and define more specifically what qualifies as a “serious reason” but She wisely leaves that for each married couple to discern for themselves through prayer and honest evaluation of their circumstances.&nbsp; The Church gives guidelines regarding health and finances, but the decision is between the spouses and God.)<br /><br />If, like me, you fall into this latter category, then NFP becomes a necessity.&nbsp;&nbsp; In my case, I’m able to take care of my family today thanks to a wonderful drug that is “incompatible with pregnancy.”&nbsp; Another child for us would have to be a very intentional choice, would have to be well-planned beforehand and would involve some risk for me.&nbsp; Should we?&nbsp; Shouldn’t we?&nbsp; Don’t think for a second that my husband and I don’t wrestle with that decision.&nbsp; (We’d be thrilled to welcome a new baby.)&nbsp; You know how often I’ve wished for writing on the wall?&nbsp; It doesn’t work that way.&nbsp; So we keep praying and doing the best we can to follow God’s lead.<br /><br />In the meantime, it means very careful NFP.&nbsp; It means living by The Chart.&nbsp; Not much room for spontaneity or surprise romantic interludes.&nbsp; (Here comes that “too much information” part.)&nbsp;&nbsp; It means small windows of opportunity for sex.&nbsp; And don’t think abstinence is only hard on the guys!&nbsp; Women are hard-wired to want sexual intimacy when they’re fertile, so if you must be diligent in avoiding pregnancy, you have to say ‘no’ precisely when you most want to say Yes!&nbsp; It stinks!!<br /><br />Times of abstinence are ideal for finding other ways to connect and be intimate with each other; or to pray together, relax and watch a movie together and above all, to “offer it up.”&nbsp; When that actually happens, it’s wonderful and rewarding.&nbsp; But in reality, this is where it can sputter and falter because we’re only human and we’re vulnerable to mood swings, fatigue, and chaotic schedules.&nbsp; Alas, often those times of abstinence are just, well, uneventful.&nbsp; That’s life.<br /><br />NFP can also feel very one-sided.&nbsp; It’s never the man’s fertility we have to be concerned with; only the woman’s.&nbsp; It’s not his temperature being taken at the same time every day, or his – ahem – fluids being checked (what am I, a car engine?).&nbsp; No wife wants to feel like the Gatekeeper.&nbsp; It’s crummy to have to turn your husband down time after time.&nbsp; And when it’s your health issues that necessitate all this trouble, well, you feel doubly crummy. <br /><br />It’s not NFP’s fault it’s so one-sided.&nbsp; Reproductive biology does not spread the burden equally between men and women.&nbsp; We may not always like it, but it’s simply a fact that women bear the heavier load (no pun intended).&nbsp; We’re the ones who get pregnant; we’re the ones who breastfeed.&nbsp; We’re the ones who deal with weight gain, sickness, complications, exhaustion, loss of freedom, and the pain of childbirth.<br /><br />The flip side is we’re the ones who <b><i>get</i></b> to be pregnant!&nbsp; How many of our husbands would love to know what it’s like to carry a child inside you and feel the kicks and hiccups and experience the miracle of new life?&nbsp; I bet a lot of men would love to know how that feels.&nbsp; But that gift has been reserved for us, ladies.&nbsp; Along with the ability to feed our children with the most miraculous food God ever designed.&nbsp; The men have no share in that; it’s all ours.<br /><br />So come to think of it, maybe all this one-sidedness presents another perspective that gets overlooked.&nbsp; All this woman-centeredness means that a husband who loves his wife must really <i>love her</i> as St. Paul described, and give himself up for her.&nbsp; He must really tame his own desires in light of her body and her needs.&nbsp; He must truly <i>prefer her</i> above himself.&nbsp; It forces him to acknowledge the wondrousness of her co-creator status with God, and treat her with appropriate reverence.&nbsp; No longer is his wife merely his source of physical satisfaction, but she becomes someone that, dare I say it; he should be in awe of.<br /><br />And then, this perspective should also compel women to behave accordingly!&nbsp; It should make us ever mindful of the miraculous ability we possess, which was given to us by our Creator with intention and generosity.&nbsp; God chose us to be co-creators of life with Him!&nbsp; It ought to give us a holy pause regarding our bodies and how we treat them; while every man is a temple of the Holy Spirit, only women are “temples” of new souls.&nbsp; Yes, it is an awesome weight, and in difficult times can feel like a “burden.”&nbsp; But has an awesome gift ever come without an awesome obligation?&nbsp; <i>To whom much is given, much will be required.</i><br /><br />I’d say that’s the real treasure NFP offers and this is why I love it.&nbsp; Like a pair of eyeglasses, NFP helps correct our vision of each other and our physical love.&nbsp;&nbsp; NFP is worth the “cost” because some things are sacred – like sex.&nbsp; And people are sacred – like my spouse. <br /><br />Love is never sterile or “preventative.”&nbsp; Love is self-giving and sacrificial.&nbsp; By definition, that means it is not easy or always convenient.&nbsp; NFP requires selfless love that honors the other and reveres life because marital lovemaking is life-generating.&nbsp; <br /><br />While our contracepting counterparts are swallowing pills, snipping body parts and aborting babies in order to “free” themselves of the worry of an unplanned pregnancy, we are implored to treat our bodies and each other differently.&nbsp; While the world separates love from sex, we are called to love that brings life.&nbsp; If more of us lived that way, then maybe those contracepting counterparts would see the blessing of living a holy sexuality.<br /><br />So after careful reflection, I think I’ll keep my chart and thermometer, thank you.&nbsp; It’s worth the trouble after all.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-6334965396627086955?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-78635795783473997262011-07-18T22:22:00.000-04:002011-07-18T22:22:05.471-04:00<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/VwFSMsrCnn8?rel=0" width="560"></iframe><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-7863579578347399726?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-29730059009418816282011-06-29T15:05:00.000-04:002011-06-29T15:05:48.350-04:00Sheesh, <i><b>I</b></i> don't have an iPad yet!&nbsp; Well, good for you, Papa!&nbsp; I'm following on Twitter, too!<br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/tC8s44MRGVA?rel=0" width="425"></iframe><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-2973005900941881628?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-43492560125164723802011-06-26T13:56:00.000-04:002011-06-26T13:56:49.905-04:00<b>Absolutely fantastic.</b><br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/cZ5aYoSr3Hg?rel=0" width="560"></iframe><br /><br />I noticed as I watched that most of the people who stopped to kneel were older.&nbsp; The young people stood around, absorbed in their cell phones, or smirking and laughing.&nbsp; They seemed oblivious to Who was in their midst.&nbsp; They were ignorant.&nbsp; Clearly, there is much evangelizing to do.<br /><br />I was also amazed that no police or security came over to stop the monks.&nbsp; God bless those holy men for doing this.&nbsp; I'd love to see this in every public square in America, wouldn't you?<br /><br />"Come and kneel before Him now."<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-4349256012516472380?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-3499446860528872852011-06-24T10:08:00.000-04:002011-06-24T10:08:33.152-04:00<a href="http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=41882">at Catholic Online</a><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Tdx5wqQ-iXI/TgSZsOsRzBI/AAAAAAAABLE/Ti1f9j2efoU/s1600/Cigarettes+packaging.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="182" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Tdx5wqQ-iXI/TgSZsOsRzBI/AAAAAAAABLE/Ti1f9j2efoU/s320/Cigarettes+packaging.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Did you hear that now the nanny government is forcing cigarette makers to put color photos on their packages of what happens when you smoke cigarettes – like an image of a diseased lung; a woman on an oxygen mask; a man on an autopsy table, a premature infant in an incubator, etc.?<br /><br />Full disclosure:&nbsp; I despise cigarettes and cigarette smoking.&nbsp; I think it’s a nasty, stinky habit along with being destructive to the body.&nbsp; I admit I don’t enjoy being around folks who smell like an ashtray.&nbsp;&nbsp; I do not appreciate being forced to breathe in other people’s cigarette smoke in public, either.&nbsp; I get livid when I see pregnant women smoking.<br /><br />All that being said, I have to agree with those who find this new required packaging to be over-the-line.&nbsp; If there’ s anyone out there today who still doesn’t know how bad cigarettes are for your health, then pardon me, but it’s time to come out from under your rock and join the world again.&nbsp; If teenagers are smoking in epidemic numbers, it’s because they have clueless or permissive parents, not because the cigarette package didn’t have the right picture on it.&nbsp; The answer isn’t graphic images, but involved parents.<br /><br />Why does the government have the right to make tobacco companies put these images on their packages?&nbsp; Has the concept of personal responsibility gone entirely extinct?&nbsp; As I said, I despise cigarettes, but I’m not sure it’s Uncle Sam’s place to say to any manufacturer, “You must put this picture on your product warning people not to buy and use your product.”&nbsp; <br /><br />If someone really wants to destroy their own lungs, guess what?&nbsp; They’re allowed.&nbsp; I’m allowed to consume too much sugar if I want, and that’s not good for me, either.&nbsp; (Though sugar just makes me all the more sweet, not smelly like an ashtray, and no one else has to breathe in my sugar.)&nbsp; Again, what makes me truly go berserk is when a pregnant woman endangers the health of her unborn child by smoking.&nbsp; Or by drinking, or doing drugs, or taking medicine that has deadly side-effects for babies, etc.<br /><br />So here’s the better question:&nbsp; if the government is willing to force tobacco makers to put graphic (some say gross) images on its packaging for the intended purpose of discouraging people from buying and smoking those cigarettes, because they’re concerned about people’s health and well-being, then why not require every abortion clinic in the U.S., including Planned Parenthood, to put poster-size color photos of aborted fetuses at the front door?<br /><br />Underneath the severed limbs, the crushed head and mangled, bloody body of the baby they can write, <b>“This is what happens in this clinic.&nbsp; An abortion will result in your fetus likely being dismembered, or her head crushed or heart stabbed.&nbsp; Abortion will result in the certain death of your fetus.”</b>&nbsp; (Unless, of course, your little one has the nerve to survive, in which case, we will take the necessary steps to make sure the abortion is “successful” since that’s what we’re paid a lot of money to do.)<br /><br />If it’s informed consumers we’re after, then I want such signs outside every abortion clinic tomorrow.&nbsp; If it’s truth in advertising that the government is demanding, then there’s no reason at all not to put such “graphic and disturbing” images of the results of abortion front and center for everyone to see.<br /><br />And why is it that people get more bent out of shape at having to see images of aborted babies than the fact that the babies were aborted in the first place?&nbsp; Why is it so offensive and cruel to show people what actually happens to a baby through an abortion, but the act of aborting is not?&nbsp; Why will people be angered by a picture of a tiny, bloody fetus with her little hand cut off, but refuse to say the killing must stop?&nbsp; If the <i>picture</i> of the act is so troubling, why is the <i>act itself</i> acceptable?<br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BH_opEy346M/TgSaF2CiCWI/AAAAAAAABLI/LG_zFdrygz8/s1600/aborted+baby+hand.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BH_opEy346M/TgSaF2CiCWI/AAAAAAAABLI/LG_zFdrygz8/s320/aborted+baby+hand.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />Here’s the difference between the tobacco companies and the abortionists, between cigarette smoking and abortion:&nbsp; one is a product, albeit an addicting and unhealthy one, that adults can legitimately choose to consume; the other is the intentional killing of an unborn child by whatever means necessary (stabbing, crushing, suctioning, dismembering, etc.).<br /><br />The government actually <i>does</i> have the right – the <i><b>obligation</b></i> – to intervene where abortion is concerned.&nbsp; This is not a question of privacy or personal liberty, but of the life of an innocent human being.&nbsp; This is the purposeful elimination of a person who has been declared by the law to be less than a person, <i>in order that we might legally kill him.</i>&nbsp; That’s the advantage of one class of people declaring another class of people to be “less than” or “not fully” human – the ruling class can kill the lesser class indiscriminately.&nbsp;<br /><br />As vile as slavery was, blacks were considered 3/5th of a person under the law.&nbsp; Today, our unborn children are considered <i>nothing at all.</i>&nbsp; They are utterly disposable.&nbsp; They are legally extinguished at an astonishing rate.<br /><br />It is a backwards and crazy world we live in.&nbsp; Our government will flex its muscle and exert its power to make sure we’re confronted with the damage done by cigarette smoking, but will they dare to confront its citizens with the truth about the damage done by abortion?&nbsp; Of course not, because abortion is a sacred “right” while cigarette smoking is truly deadly.<br /><br />We take away real liberty and instead demand a false liberty for some that means certain death for others.&nbsp; Cigarette smoking costs a ton of money in health care for people every day, so naturally, it should be denounced, and the government in its kindness is looking out for our best interests.<br /><br />On the other hand, abortion costs more than <b>3,000 lives</b> every single day, and is a wildly profitable business.&nbsp; It’s a sin that tobacco companies make millions in profit on their stinky butts, but just hunky-dorey that a lot of folks in America get rich by killing our unborn children.<br /><br />Yes, clearly, our national priorities are screwed up.&nbsp; Clearly, our moral center has evaporated in a cloud of smoke.&nbsp; It’s about time the government got back to doing what it was intended to do – protect its citizens, establish and enforce just laws, and make sure all American citizens are allowed to enjoy their God-given rights of LIFE, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.&nbsp; If we return to a right understanding of the sanctity of human life, including our children in the womb, then maybe we’ll be able to correct our tendency to indulge in personal pollution.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-349944686052887285?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-56817934912573465442011-06-07T22:11:00.000-04:002011-06-07T22:11:28.555-04:00Had a great time today talking with <a href="http://www.relevantradio.com/Page.aspx?pid=635&amp;cid=18&amp;ceid=5962&amp;cerid=0&amp;cdt=6%2f7%2f2011">Drew Mariani on Relevant Radio</a> about the Girl Scout quandry.&nbsp; Should Catholic families continue to be involved with Girl Scouts?<br /><br />I've made my opinion known a few times, and you can read it<a href="http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=35768"> here.</a><br /><br />A few more links on the subject:<br /><a href="http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/denver-bishop-girl-scouts-could-make-girls-more-open-to-pro-abortion-agenda/">LifeSite News</a><br /><a href="http://www.archden.org/index.cfm/ID/6190?CFID=31498784&amp;CFTOKEN=15313840">Bishop Conley cautions parents about Girl Scouts</a><br /><a href="http://honestgirlscouts.com/">HonestGirlScouts.com</a><br /><br />This continues to be a touchy subject in many communities.&nbsp; I, for one, would love to see Catholic parishes really throw their support behind Little Flowers Girls Club.&nbsp; I just don't know if Girl Scouts can be restored to their original vision.&nbsp; I understand the desire to fight for change from within, and not walk away in defeat, but these are our daughters.&nbsp; They are vulnerable and naive.&nbsp; It's one thing for adults to do battle with the culture and work to transform organizations and people, but it's another thing to use our children for that task.<br /><br />So there's my two cents'.&nbsp; What say you?<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-5681793491257346544?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-91707667180826585512011-05-31T09:25:00.000-04:002011-05-31T09:25:43.182-04:00<a href="http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=41603">at Catholic Online</a><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tRvs75dJbGE/TeTrf-MvPlI/AAAAAAAABLA/2NEzaEG7K3k/s1600/orange-room-and-neat-book-display.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tRvs75dJbGE/TeTrf-MvPlI/AAAAAAAABLA/2NEzaEG7K3k/s320/orange-room-and-neat-book-display.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />The 2010-11 school year marked my first as a homeschooling mom.&nbsp; For two years our daughters had attended Catholic schools, but this school year was the grand opening of the Hartline Academy for Girls.&nbsp; It’s been challenging, rewarding, frustrating at times, a steep hill to climb some days, but a blessing for all of us and we have no regrets.<br /><br />I was quite dismayed – rather irritated, actually – to read the <a href="http://www.osv.com/tabid/7621/itemid/7963/Homeschoolers-sometimes-at-odds-with-dioceses.aspx">article in <i><b>Our Sunday Visitor</b></i> </a>recently regarding the conflict between homeschool families in Texas and Bishop Joe Vasquez of Austin, as well as Ned Vanders , superintendent of Catholic Schools.<br /><br />It centers on a belief that Catholic parents are obligated to send their children to Catholic schools if there’s a school in their area, and parents who do not are guilty of abrogating that obligation.&nbsp; In other words, parents who choose to homeschool are committing a grave offense against Catholic schools.<br /><br />The Holy Family Homeschoolers Association had invited Bishop Vasquez to celebrate a blessing Mass with them at the beginning of the next school year.&nbsp; Curiously, the response didn’t come from the Bishop’s office but from Ned Vanders.&nbsp; <br /><br />He wrote:&nbsp; <i>“Bishop Vasquez received your invitation to celebrate a Eucharistic liturgy for the fall home-schooling blessing Mass.&nbsp; Bishop Vasquez believes Catholic education, and in particular Catholic school education, is an essential part of the life of the Diocese of Austin.&nbsp; As you know, Catholic schools are at the heart of the mission of the Church.&nbsp; Bishop’s presence at the homeschooling Mass would convey a contradictory message equating the importance of Catholic school education with Catholic home schooling; therefore, Bishop Vasquez must respectfully decline the invitation.&nbsp; Sincerely in Christ, Ned F. Vanders, E.D.”</i><br /><br />Respectfully, there was nothing respectful about Mr. Vanders’ reply.&nbsp; It was a thinly-veiled snobbish attack on the integrity of homeschoolers, the right of parents to make such a choice, and the validity of Catholic homeschooling.&nbsp; It was insulting and dismissive.&nbsp; And it still baffles me why Bishop Vasquez did not respond himself.&nbsp; I sincerely hope the Bishop does not share Vanders’s views on Catholic homeschooling. <br /><br />(OSV reported that the Diocese of Austin declined interview requests for Vanders and Bishop Vasquez.)<br /><br />It’s disturbing that the Diocese of Austin has intentionally created an “us-versus-them” atmosphere regarding homeschooling families.&nbsp; The OSV article went on to quote Fr. Peter M.J. Stravinskas, executive director of the Catholic Education Foundation.&nbsp; Fr. Stravinskas is also not very supportive of homeschooling families.<br /><br />Fr. Stravinskas says “the Church Fathers made clear that catechesis is the job of the whole Church, with the main responsibility resting on the shoulders of the pastor, not the parents.”&nbsp; I did a double-take upon reading that one, because it seems to me that runs contrary to Vatican II’s Declaration on Christian Education which states that parents are the primary educators of their children.&nbsp; No pastor can replace parents, and no parish can substitute for the child’s home.&nbsp; Children will live what they’ve been taught to live at home.&nbsp; If the Faith is lived and taught within the family, chances are good the children will “catch” it and nurture that Divine Love for themselves.&nbsp; If home is a place where God and the Church are neglected or blasphemed, well, the children will surely catch that, too.<br /><br />Fr. Stravinskas also says that “Catholic parents who choose to homeschool when there is a Catholic school available at least implicitly send the message that they do not trust the Church to educate their children properly, and the children get that message.&nbsp; That leads to a subtle anti-clericalism because the children learn that priests cannot be counted on to hand on the faith.&nbsp; It shows in what he sees as a dearth of vocations from homeschool families.&nbsp; ‘Why would you want to join the club if its members can’t be trusted to do their jobs?’”<br /><br />First, I’d like to know exactly how many vocations are coming from Catholic school families compared with homeschool families.&nbsp; I wouldn’t be so quick to discount the homeschoolers.&nbsp; The homeschool families I know would be elated to have a future priest or nun among their children!&nbsp; I sure would!<br /><br />But mostly this is just a continuation of the theme that it’s the pastor’s job to teach children, not the parents.&nbsp; I disagree.&nbsp; God has entrusted three souls to my husband and me to raise and teach, and we will be held accountable for how well we passed on the Faith.&nbsp; The buck stops with us first, not our pastor.<br /><br />A few more thoughts:&nbsp; How many priests or nuns are in the classrooms of Catholic schools around the country?&nbsp; If educating the children is their primary job, then why is it the Catholic schools my girls attended rarely ever saw the pastor assigned to the Church next door?&nbsp; Why is it the children only attended Mass about once every other <i>month?</i>&nbsp; Fr. Stravinskas is partially correct in his insight that many parents do not trust the Church to educate their children, though I would clarify that the church distrusted is likely the local parish, not Holy Mother Church.&nbsp;&nbsp; <br /><br />When a Catholic school does not make daily Mass, or at least weekly Mass, a priority for the formation of its students, then something is very wrong.&nbsp; It’s not a generic Christian education we’re after, but a <i>Catholic </i>one, and that means the Eucharist, the liturgy, Mary and the saints.&nbsp; That means <i>Mass.</i>&nbsp; At my children’s former school, Mass was more of a special occasion than the essence and foundation of the Faith.&nbsp; Is that the catechesis I’m supposed to be satisfied with?<br /><br />Finally, Fr. Stravinskas never really addresses the issue that begs to be confronted: the outrageous cost of Catholic education.&nbsp; It is simply out of reach for most families.&nbsp; Consider this: it cost us more money to put our daughter through <i>1st grade</i> than it did for my husband to get a very demanding, high-tech Masters Degree from a major university.&nbsp; Tuition for most Catholic elementary schools is just ridiculously expensive.&nbsp; I’d wager that Fr. Stravinskas would declare the money well-spent because the quality of education is unmatched.&nbsp; I would disagree again.<br /><br />I am now using a homeschool curriculum that in my opinion far surpasses the curriculum used at our former Catholic school.&nbsp; Not to mention the fact that homeschooling gives me the opportunity to tailor the instruction to each child, to emphasize what my child needs more, and quickly advance through what she needs less.&nbsp; If I see my child struggling to understand something, we don’t just move on ahead like a classroom teacher must.&nbsp; The goal is to <i>learn,</i> not just get through a textbook.<br /><br />The religious instruction we’ve gone through at home this year has been better than the catechesis they received in previous years.&nbsp; The reading, vocabulary, English, math, spelling, history and science have all been outstanding, very thorough and completely faithful to the Magisterium. <br /><br />The reality is we educated both our girls at home this entire school year for the cost of ONE MONTH of Catholic school.&nbsp;&nbsp; And we only had two school-aged kids at the time – what about the families with 4, or 5, or 6 children in school at once?&nbsp; In my opinion, this is an <i><b>abysmal failure</b></i> on the part of the Church.&nbsp; If Catholic parents are expected to send their children to Catholic schools, then the Church had better get serious about making education the number-one priority and stop burdening Catholic families with thousands upon thousands of dollars in tuition every year.<br /><br /><a href="http://catholicdioceseofwichita.org/about-us-schools/we-are-parish-schools">The Diocese of Wichita</a> has proven it <i>can</i> be done.&nbsp; They are presently the only diocese in the country where children of active parish members can receive a K – 12 education <i><b>tuition-free!&nbsp;</b></i> What’s stopping every other diocese from doing the same thing?<br /><br />Beyond the tuition, my husband and I honestly got sick to death of all the “extra” costs associated with the school.&nbsp; We were required to purchase a certain amount of Scripp each month, plus participate in a Fundraising program (if we didn’t sell enough of the fundraising stuff, we’d be charged a couple hundred dollars to cover our cost).&nbsp; School lunches, field trips, different uniforms for winter and summer, etc, it all added up to a lot of money, and it got very annoying very quickly.&nbsp; <br /><br />I’ll gladly admit I’m happy to be free of fundraising obligations, since I can’t stand having to sell people over-priced stuff they don’t need or want.&nbsp; I’m happy to be saving lots of gas money each month since I’m not making two round-trips each day to a school 20 miles away.&nbsp;&nbsp; I’m happy not to have to worry about $40 sweaters getting lost or stolen.&nbsp; I’m very happy not to be forced to change my shopping habits in order to purchase $200 of Scripp each month that I don’t really want.&nbsp; I wanted a Catholic education for my kids, not all these expensive and crazy requirements.<br /><br />I’m not trying to bash Catholic schools; I fully believe there are many excellent Catholic schools out there, and I want to see Catholic schools thrive.&nbsp; I don’t disagree at all that Catholic schools are essential to the Church and the mission of our time.&nbsp; We’re open to enrolling our kids in a great Catholic school in the future, if possible.<br /><br />But if Fr. Stravinskas, Ned Vanders and Bishop Vasquez are going to insist that Catholic parents have an <i>obligation</i> to send their children to Catholic schools; if they’re going to dismiss the validity of homeschooling and impugn the motives of homeschooling parents, then it’s high time they faced reality and dealt with the legitimate reasons why many of us have chosen to teach our children at home.<br /><br />We’re not trying to undermine the Church or our pastor’s authority.&nbsp; We<i><b> love </b></i>the Church.&nbsp; We want our children to become priests and nuns and faithful Catholic adults.&nbsp; We’re not the enemy of Catholic schools – we <i>are</i> Catholic schools.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-9170766718082658551?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-59803928039351175512011-05-10T11:38:00.000-04:002011-05-10T11:38:39.409-04:00<a href="http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=41339">at Catholic Online</a><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-379-YNO9VT0/Tclbk8KqNwI/AAAAAAAABK8/JHd2OO1fwoc/s1600/marriage250.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-379-YNO9VT0/Tclbk8KqNwI/AAAAAAAABK8/JHd2OO1fwoc/s1600/marriage250.jpg" /></a></div><br />The pronouncement came from actress Cameron Diaz and psychiatrist Dr. Keith Ablow last week:&nbsp; marriage is a dying institution.&nbsp; It is an old tradition that has now overstayed its welcome and should be thrown out the back door.&nbsp; It doesn’t suit us or our world any longer.&nbsp; So they say.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2011/05/06/dr-keith-ablow-cameron-diaz-right-4-reasons-marriage-dying-institution/">Dr. Ablow gave a detailed analysis</a> of the reality of marriage and the reasons why it should and will soon disappear from society.&nbsp; His eulogy for the cornerstone of civilization as we know it was depressing to say the least.&nbsp; (I could envision him walking up to the casket in order to smack the dead body upside the head and say, “Good riddance, ya lousy thief.&nbsp; You shoulda died a long time ago.”)&nbsp; He suspects the reason marriage doesn’t suit us now is because it never has.<br /><br />Marriage, he says, takes so much from us.&nbsp; It is “a source of real suffering for the vast majority of married people.”&nbsp; “As a healer, I can’t help looking askance at anything that depletes energy, optimism, mood and passion to the extent that marriage does.&nbsp; It is, without a doubt, one of the leading causes of major depression in the nation.”<br /><br />Yikes.&nbsp; When and how did marriage become such a terrible thing?<br /><br />First he calls the government’s involvement in marriage a “colossal mistake.”&nbsp; He insists government “should have no role in marriage, whatsoever.” “Laws should exist, instead, that simply commit parents to financially support their biological children.”&nbsp; Forget about parents making a home for their kids; forget about forging a family for them; forget about showing them what it means to keep promises and put someone else first.&nbsp; Forget about commitment, fidelity, honor, security, and all those other foundational virtues.&nbsp; All that’s necessary is financial support, and I guess you’re off the hook entirely if your kids are adopted.<br /><br />Surprisingly, Dr. Ablow agrees (unintentionally, I think) with the Catholic Church regarding his second reason marriage is dying:&nbsp; oral contraception.&nbsp; Whether he meant to or not, he illustrated that the Church has been right all along:&nbsp; contraception corrodes marriage.&nbsp; Sex is meant to be both procreative and unitive and when you separate the two, disaster ensues.&nbsp; Of course, Dr. Ablow put it differently: “Once human beings understood that they could express themselves emotionally, romantically and sexually without necessarily creating multiple families and perilously diving their assets, the psychological pain of living without sexual passion (even by choice) was significantly intensified.”<br /><br />I’ll rephrase:&nbsp; Once people realized they could have sex with a different person every night with much less “risk” of making a baby, therefore less “risk” of disrupting their life and losing their assets, they soon found no reason at all to remain faithful to anyone, including their child.&nbsp; All that mattered was lessening their “psychological pain” and increasing their sexual passion.&nbsp; Pleasure trumps everything.<br /><br />What a pile of sand.&nbsp; No wonder the foundation of the family – marriage – is crumbling.<br /><br />Conspicuously absent from Dr. Ablow’s bruising verdict that marriage is passé was even the slightest mention of love.&nbsp; He speaks passionately about passion, sex, good feelings, physical attraction, freedom, the hassle and expense of divorce, but has nothing whatever to say about love.&nbsp; So it’s no surprise he comes to the same self-serving conclusions as Ms. Diaz and every other prognosticator spreading doom and gloom about marriage.&nbsp; Marriage surely <i>is</i> doomed to failure without love.<br /><br />I’m not talking about being “in love.”&nbsp; I’m talking about <b>Love.</b>&nbsp; And guess what?&nbsp; Love is hard work.&nbsp; And that’s good!&nbsp; We self-absorbed humans need daily, plentiful opportunities to look beyond ourselves and stretch our sacrifice muscles so that, with time, we learn how to love.&nbsp; We have to learn how to love when the good feelings have vanished.&nbsp; We have to learn how to love when the passion has chilled.&nbsp; We have to learn how to love when there doesn’t seem to be anything in it for us.<br /><br />We have to be reminded what love actually is:&nbsp; <i>Love is patient, love is kind. Love is not jealous or boastful; it is not arrogant or rude.&nbsp; Love does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrong, but rejoices in the right.&nbsp; Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.&nbsp; Love never ends.</i><br /><br />Did you see where it said love is passion, or love is easy, or love is physical attraction?&nbsp; Me neither.&nbsp; Did it say love is a good feeling?&nbsp; Nope.<br /><br />That doesn’t mean that the love of a husband and wife should be devoid of good feelings, or that the spousal relationship should be tepid and boring.&nbsp; Emotional barrenness is not inevitable and certainly not God’s plan for spouses.&nbsp; But like all of life there are changing seasons; there are highs and lows; there are easy times and trying times; there is happiness and sadness – you get the idea.&nbsp; Those who head for the door when they aren’t feeling it anymore will never reap the rewards of love.<br /><br />Dr. Ablow says, “The third reason marriage is a dying institution is because it inherently deprives men and women of the joy of being ‘chosen’ on a daily basis.”&nbsp; (Here again, marriage is a thief stealing something precious from us.&nbsp; Sheesh.)&nbsp; Well, boo hoo.&nbsp; So none of us should have to feel obligated to stay if we don’t want to anymore?&nbsp; If we don’t feel especially “chosen” this week, we should be able to leave in search of someone who will stroke our ego?<br /><br />I don’t want the guy who won’t hang around through the tough times.&nbsp; I don’t want the guy who’s going to split when someone prettier and more tingly with excitement over his greatness comes along.&nbsp; I want the guy who has the steel to stand by me, keep his vows, and honor his commitment particularly when it doesn’t feel good.&nbsp; I want the guy I <i>chose</i> when I promised to forsake all others.<br /><br />And by the same token, I want to be the woman who does the same for her man.&nbsp; That means I’m gonna have to learn how to love, and it’ll be painful at times, because Love will entreat me down off my throne and smash my selfishness to bits.&nbsp; But only little by little, day by day.<br /><br />I also want the guy who will <i>choose</i> to love me when I’m not very lovable.&nbsp; I want the guy who will keep walking with me through the hard times, being faithful through the empty times because he believes that Love will breathe on us again and the delights of passion will warm us again, even if more mellow than when we first began.&nbsp; (Like a good wine, Love ages sweetly.)<br /><br />I want the guy who wants to learn to love, because he values Love and knows that Love is the reason for living.&nbsp; If that sounds like a greeting card cliché to you, too bad.&nbsp; Love <i>is </i>the end-all and be-all. <br /><br />The sad state of marriage today has nothing to do with it being outdated or confining or passion-killing.&nbsp; It has everything to do with people who are no longer willing to love each other because they no longer understand what Love is, nor do they know Who Love is.&nbsp; It has everything to do with people being slaves to sexual desire and desecrating the beautiful gift of sexual love that brings forth new life.<br /><br />No, Dr. Ablow, marriage is not a dying institution.&nbsp; What’s dying is our respect for each other and our reverence for human life.&nbsp; What’s dying is our willingness to sacrifice, to serve, to remain steadfast, to keep our vows.&nbsp; We are weak with self-gratification and a toddler’s attention span.&nbsp; We have no faith that deserts can bloom, ice can melt, storms will pass, and wounds can heal.&nbsp; What’s dying is our love.<br /><br />Dr. Ablow concludes, “It’s only a matter of time now.&nbsp; Marriage will fade away.&nbsp; We should be thinking about what might replace it.”&nbsp; Marriage is in serious jeopardy, no doubt.&nbsp; If it dies, it will not be due to any inherent defect of its own but because we have ceased to try to conquer <i>our</i> defects.&nbsp; It will be because we gave up the struggle of love.<br /><br />With what, exactly, shall we replace Love?<br /><br />~~~<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-5980392803935117551?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-21631047396020072542011-04-24T15:15:00.000-04:002011-04-24T15:15:05.691-04:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3K-FE4l28OA/TbR2A3TIhlI/AAAAAAAABKs/34x7MYZM-es/s1600/Jesus+risen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3K-FE4l28OA/TbR2A3TIhlI/AAAAAAAABKs/34x7MYZM-es/s320/Jesus+risen.jpg" width="274" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XfkeERBVwk8/TbR2FhNNmtI/AAAAAAAABKw/zv6m6hZ8FOA/s1600/www-St-Takla-org___Jesus-Resurrection-08.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XfkeERBVwk8/TbR2FhNNmtI/AAAAAAAABKw/zv6m6hZ8FOA/s320/www-St-Takla-org___Jesus-Resurrection-08.jpg" width="203" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-BGOkztgXkpM/TbR2S8St-sI/AAAAAAAABK0/g2ED2bseejA/s1600/Resurrection2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-BGOkztgXkpM/TbR2S8St-sI/AAAAAAAABK0/g2ED2bseejA/s320/Resurrection2.jpg" width="252" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IaUNYLWyX1g/TbR2f2w4eNI/AAAAAAAABK4/-PYlL3bzQ0M/s1600/resurrection.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IaUNYLWyX1g/TbR2f2w4eNI/AAAAAAAABK4/-PYlL3bzQ0M/s320/resurrection.jpg" width="259" /></a></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-2163104739602007254?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-3067280872802009352011-04-22T16:00:00.001-04:002011-04-22T16:02:14.665-04:00<b>~ 1st Sorrowful Mystery:&nbsp; The Agony in the Garden</b><br /><br /><i>"Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done."&nbsp; An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him.&nbsp; And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.&nbsp; Luke 22:42-44</i><br /><br /><b>The fruit of the mystery is true contrition for our sins.</b><br /><br />True contrition.&nbsp; Before we can have true contrition, we have to first truly understand that we have sinned.<br /><br />Our self-obsessed, "enlightened" society would very much like to proclaim Sin as an archaic, prohibitive concept whose time is over.&nbsp; Moral restrictions, clearly defined standards of right and wrong, and consequences for violations are all antiquated notions wrongly imposed on people of free will, says the modern mind.<br /><br />To dare to suggest that Someone outside ourselves, higher than ourselves has the authority to define right and wrong, good and evil, and then establish the just punishment for wrongdoing, well, that's downright blasphemous in this age of moral relativism.<br /><br />How can we be truly sorry if we're not thoroughly convinced we've done wrong?&nbsp; Okay, maybe we can admit that we've sinned, but we haven't done anything truly terrible, so it's not really that bad.&nbsp; It can't be <i>that</i> big a deal.<br /><br />Take another look at that scene in the Garden.&nbsp; Jesus was in so much anguish that He sweat blood as He prayed!&nbsp; He asked God if there was some other way to accomplish the plan, so it's obvious this Sin problem is a very big deal, indeed.&nbsp; The torture He was about to suffer wasn't due to something small or trivial.<br /><br />But I can't help wondering what grieves Him more - that we sin, or that we try to cover our sin, make light of it, and even delight in it?<br /><br />Is it the arrogance that inhabits our sins and causes us to deny that we haven't just broken a rule or made a little mistake - we have sinned against a perfect and just God who also happens to love us beyond our comprehension?!&nbsp; Our sin is aggravated by prideful indifference.&nbsp; Insult is added to injury.<br /><br />Why?&nbsp; Because it is scary as all hell, literally, to fully grasp the gravity of our own sin and the consequences of it, and were it not for the Cross and the unspeakable love of the Father, none of us could bear it.&nbsp; Contrition that begins out of fear of the just punishment for sin is a good place to start, but God isn't satisfied with leaving us there.&nbsp; He wants to overwhelm us with His love; that crazy, illogical, endless love that took our hideous sin upon His perfect Self and endured our punishment for us.<br /><br />We no longer have anything to fear.&nbsp; Now we are free to be repentant out of sorrow, not terror or despair.&nbsp; We can face our wretched condition and own up to our sins honestly, because what awaits us is forgiveness, not wrath.&nbsp; Once that reality takes root in our hearts, then gratitude inspires us, humility enables us, and Love compels us to true contrition.<br /><br /><i>"Blessed is he who transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.&nbsp; Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord does not count against him and in whose spirit is no deceit.&nbsp; When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long.&nbsp; For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer.&nbsp; Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity.&nbsp; I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the Lord" and you forgave the guilt of my sin."&nbsp;&nbsp; Psalm 32:1-5<br /><br />"Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions.&nbsp; Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.&nbsp; For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.&nbsp; Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you are proved right when you speak and justified when you judge.Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me and I will be whiter than snow."&nbsp; Psalm 51:1-4, 7<br /></i><br /><b>~ 2nd Sorrowful Mystery:&nbsp; The Scourging at the pillar</b><br /><br /><i>"Then Pilate took Jesus and had him flogged."&nbsp; John 19:1</i><br /><br /><b>The fruit of the mystery is purity, and accepting the will of God.</b><br /><br />They used a whip made of several strips of leather that were embedded at the ends with pieces of bone and lead.&nbsp; No Roman limitation was placed on the number of lashings inflicted, and often the victim didn't survive the flogging.&nbsp; Jesus did.<br /><br /><br /><i>"But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed." Isaiah 53:5</i><br /><br />Every blow from that cruel whip was for my sake.&nbsp; Every vicious tear in His flesh, every drop of precious blood that flowed was for my healing.&nbsp; Every agonizing moment of pain He endured was to secure my peace.&nbsp; His punishment, my freedom.<br /><br /><br />My impurities are not beaten out of me; they were beaten out of Him.<br /><br /><br />God deals with me gently and patiently, always with love.<br /><br />I can't even fathom the harsh treatment Jesus received in my stead.&nbsp; He must have cried out in pain, but He never protested.&nbsp; He never even tried to whisper a plea to the Father, <i>"Stop!&nbsp; Please stop!"</i><br /><br />He would do anything to rescue a lost child.<br /><br />Me.<br /><br />You.<br /><br /><br /><b>~ 3rd Sorrowful Mystery:&nbsp; The Crowning with Thorns</b><br /><br /><i>"They put a purple robe on him, then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on him.&nbsp; And they began to call out to him, "Hail, king of the Jews!"&nbsp; Again and again they struck him on the head with a staff and spit on him.&nbsp; Falling on their knees, they paid homage to him.&nbsp; And when they had mocked him, they took off the purple robe and put his own clothes on him.&nbsp; Then they led him out to crucify him."&nbsp; Mark 15:17-20</i><br /><b><br />The fruit of the mystery is moral courage.</b><br /><br />Humiliation, in one form or another, is part of the package.&nbsp; It is only avoidable if we decide to deny Christ.&nbsp; Every single day, we'll be presented with moments of choice:&nbsp; either choose Christ and risk mockery and scorn, or deny Him and remain safe, comfortable, hidden.<br /><br />In a shallow culture that reveres only the Self and demands tolerance of all things while it is bitterly intolerant of Christ and His Church, we can't play both sides.<br /><br />If we're truly following Jesus, we are <i>going</i> to be mocked.&nbsp; We <i>will </i>be the object of scorn and ridicule.&nbsp; We are going to be attacked as closed-minded, oppressive, backward, intellectually-stunted, bigoted, fanatical.&nbsp; We're going to be hated and persecuted.&nbsp; If we're not being treated as such, perhaps we'd better re-examine our lives and our faith.&nbsp; If we don't stand out from the world, then we could be in serious trouble.<br /><br />It will cost us dearly sometimes to stand firm in our faith, to go against the current societal tide, to defend the unchanging truth that others dismiss as merely religious belief.&nbsp; But the Humble Savior listened to the vile mockery spewing from the soldiers' mouths and decided that your soul and my soul was worth the degradation.&nbsp; He could have silenced them in an instant if He'd wanted, but He loved us - He loved them - so much that He submitted to their abuse quietly.&nbsp; Like a lamb to the slaughter, He opened not His mouth.<br /><br />Discipleship will exact a price -- at the very least, humiliation and scorn for His sake.&nbsp; Someday it might even cost our lives.&nbsp; But what is the cost of the alternative?<br /><br /><br /><b>~ 4th Sorrowful Mystery: The Carrying of the Cross</b><br /><br /><i>"Finally, Pilate handed him over to them to be crucified. So the soldiers took charge of Jesus. Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place of the Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha.) John 19:16-17</i><br /><br /><b>The fruit of the mystery is perseverance and patience.</b><br /><br /><br />He was still standing after a brutal flogging that should have left him dead. His flesh is already mutilated and profusely bleeding, and His body is weak and shaky from the blood loss. Yet somehow, He withstands the pain and keeps going. I wonder if maybe the soldiers, besides being irked, weren't just a little impressed that He was still alive after all they'd done to Him.<br /><br />Maybe that's why they enlisted some help for Him and made Simon carry the cross the rest of the way to Golgotha.<i> "A certain man from Cyrene, Simon, the father of Alexander and Rufus, was passing by on his way in from the country and they forced him to carry the cross." Mark 15:21</i><br /><br />But whether Jesus could walk or not, they were determined in their cause. Nothing was going to stop them from their final goal of execution.<br /><br />Jesus persevered. So did Satan.<br /><br />Satan was every bit as determined as Jesus that day and he was getting plenty of help from those blood-thirsty Roman soldiers. In this battle between Love and Evil, it was beginning to look like Satan would prevail.<br /><br />Thus far he had succeeded in shredding Jesus' body and utterly humiliating Him. Not a bad day's work for a fallen angel.<br /><br />(Ah, but things are not as they seem! Evil was about to be soundly, eternally defeated.)<br /><br />I wonder if perhaps it was tempting for Jesus to just lie down on the dirt road and die right there. Completely sapped of strength and in agonizing pain, I wonder if He was tempted by the thought,<i> "I can't take another step."</i><br /><br />How many times have I had that thought? It seems to me that my cross is getting too heavy, or I have been carrying it for too long, and I can't take another step. I feel weakened by some harsh blows, and it looks as though the enemy is winning.<br /><br />In faithful obedience to the Father's will, Jesus persevered. So must I. Though it seems the enemy is scoring too many points against me, I must remember he has already lost. Though I'm sapped of strength and in pain, if I remain faithful, Satan will not prevail.<br /><br /><i>"Keep walking,"</i> Jesus says to me. <i>"I will carry you when you are weak. I will never leave you. I have been to hell and back for you, and there's nothing to fear."</i><br /><br /><i><b>"Keep walking."</b></i><br /><br /><br /><b>~ The 5th Sorrowful Mystery: The Crucifixion</b><br /><br /><i>"When they came to the place called the Skull, there they crucified him, along with the criminals - one on his right, the other on his left. Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing." Luke 23:33-34</i><br /><br /><i>"It was now about the sixth hour, and darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour, for the sun stopped shining. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two. Jesus called out with a loud voice, "Father, into your hands I commend my spirit." When he had said this, he breathed his last." Luke 23:44-46</i><br /><br /><b>The fruit of the mystery is faithfulness to God.</b><br /><br />This Sorrowful pilgrimage now brings me here to this lonely hill. All the agony, the beatings and the bleeding have led me somewhere I do not want to go; somewhere I resist going with all my might.<br /><br />The bitter truth is this: I really don't want to die.<br /><br />Will I walk with You along this distressing road only to shrink in fear when the final moment comes? Lord, You know that is exactly what I do, time and time again. My spirit may be willing, but my flesh is so weak. I start out well enough and I pray "not my will, but Thine" because I love You. But then the choice comes, and I stop short of the dying. I choose to spare myself. human instinct kicks in. But in sparing myself, I lose my life.<br /><br /><i>"If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it." Luke 9:23-24</i><br /><br />Clearly, there's no getting around it. Following You means dying.<br /><br />It means the death of my own will; in small choices, in big decisions, in little ways, in old habits. It means relinquishing my right to myself, over and over again, day after day.<br /><br />What does a heart really sound like when it has died to itself? It sounds like this: <i>"I am at His disposal - He can do with me just as it pleaseth Him, without even a thought of consulting me. I just want to be His own little one - if He so wants, otherwise I will be happy to be just nothing and He everything."</i><br /><br />How does a face look when the self has given up its rights? Like this:<i> "Take whatever He gives and give whatever He takes with a big smile."</i><br /><br />Those are the words of Your faithful servant, Blessed Teresa of Calcutta. She put hands and feet to those words every single day while privately enduring the darkest interior pain. Is that kind of faithfulness within my grasp?<br /><br />I am most definitely not Mother Teresa. My vocation is quite different, but the call is the same: take up my cross and follow Jesus. I'm still being called to die.<br /><br />Today, my dying looks a lot like the mundane, thankless, routine tasks that I have no motivation to accomplish. Dying is me choosing patience and kindness; dying is being faithful in little things. Dying is me forgiving the one who has hurt me - really forgiving; no grudge, no animosity, no hope of vindication, just release.<br /><br />Dying is me, freely and generously, choosing someone else ahead of myself. Dying is making a sacrifice that hurts, and doing it with a full heart, asking nothing in return.<br /><br />Dying is victory.&nbsp; Dying is freedom from all that frightens me.&nbsp; When I die to myself, it's my fear that's burned to death, and real faith rises out of the ashes.<br /><br />With You, there is only life. Even death can no longer harm me because Your wondrous cross has rendered it void and powerless.<br /><br />You held nothing back. You willingly gave it all so that I could have abundant life. I desire that kind of faithfulness, Lord! Teach me to give my all, even in little things, and withhold nothing. Grant me the courage to carry my cross and submit to the dying it asks of me, and then I will live...truly live.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-306728087280200935?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-90284901038722621592011-04-21T14:35:00.000-04:002011-04-21T14:35:59.164-04:00Do you have Good Friday traditions or habits?<br /><br />Like many people, Good Friday for me means watching <b><i>The Passion of the Christ.&nbsp;</i></b> Late in the evening, alone, after the kids are in bed.<br /><br />I still can't get through the scourging at the pillar without literally hiding my head in my arms, eyes clenched shut through tears.&nbsp; I weep openly when Pilate's wife hands Mary that stack of clean white towels, and Our Lady gets down on her hands and knees to wipe His blood from the ground.<br /><br />I crumble when she stands at His feet and says, "Let me die with you."&nbsp; Then she kisses His bloody feet with such tenderness and love.&nbsp; I just come undone.<br /><br />I will watch this film every Good Friday til I die, I suspect.&nbsp; I <i>need</i> to see it.<br /><br />Beyond that, I try to keep the day quiet and somewhat somber.&nbsp; As much as can be achieved with three young children.&nbsp; But I'm trying to let them know that it's a solemn day.&nbsp; A day to look inward and think about Jesus.<br /><br />What about you?<br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/CXcbGxvgyR4?rel=0" title="YouTube video player" width="425"></iframe><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-9028490103872262159?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-23653994230921101852011-04-20T10:30:00.000-04:002011-04-20T10:30:57.733-04:00This is priceless.&nbsp; I especially, love the "So help me, me."<br /><br />And "In the name of sex, options, and selfishness."<br /><br />(Thanks, but I'll keep my marriage vows.) <br /><br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/XVErKZGzNNM?rel=0" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-2365399423092110185?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-10578194854064328992011-04-08T09:18:00.000-04:002011-04-08T09:18:57.204-04:00This is unbelievable.&nbsp; This "President" is so tacky, rude, and smug.<br /><br />Watch to the end to hear him mock the people in the audience who have large families.<br /><br /><object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=9,0,47,0" height="412" id="flashObj" width="486"><param name="movie" value="http://c.brightcove.com/services/viewer/federated_f9?isVid=1" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="flashVars" value="videoId=891982051001&playerID=19407224001&playerKey=AQ~~,AAAAAETmrZQ~,EVFEM4AKJdQtJLv7zbMPiBGChHKnGYSG&domain=embed&dynamicStreaming=true" /><param name="base" value="http://admin.brightcove.com" /><param name="seamlesstabbing" value="false" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="swLiveConnect" value="true" /><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always" /><embed src="http://c.brightcove.com/services/viewer/federated_f9?isVid=1" bgcolor="#FFFFFF" flashVars="videoId=891982051001&playerID=19407224001&playerKey=AQ~~,AAAAAETmrZQ~,EVFEM4AKJdQtJLv7zbMPiBGChHKnGYSG&domain=embed&dynamicStreaming=true" base="http://admin.brightcove.com" name="flashObj" width="486" height="412" seamlesstabbing="false" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowFullScreen="true" swLiveConnect="true" allowScriptAccess="always" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/shockwave/download/index.cgi?P1_Prod_Version=ShockwaveFlash"></embed></object><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-1057819485406432899?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-44199024198430877242011-04-01T21:03:00.000-04:002011-04-01T21:03:49.267-04:00<a href="http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=40900">at Catholic Online</a><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-O4YwUKrNqlM/TZZ1ddoeddI/AAAAAAAABKo/lZXeDaExe9g/s1600/2011044159.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-O4YwUKrNqlM/TZZ1ddoeddI/AAAAAAAABKo/lZXeDaExe9g/s1600/2011044159.jpg" /></a></div><br /><br />There’s much more than a budget at stake in this battle over Planned Parenthood.&nbsp; The horrifying abortion statistics and the hundreds of millions of dollars are certainly bad enough, but the choice before us as a nation goes much deeper than simply who gets federal funding.&nbsp; It is actually about <i><b>us; </b></i>it is about two radically, fundamentally different ideas about who and what we are as people.<br /><br />In a nutshell:&nbsp; are we human beings or what they call "sexual beings"?<br /><br />Planned Parenthood knows that to maintain their bloody cash cow of abortion they have to win over the next generation of young people to their counterfeit idea of freedom and happiness (though they surely don’t believe it to be counterfeit) that says unconstrained sexuality is the pinnacle of life.&nbsp; The only antidote to their warped thinking is the truth of the dignity of the human person, real human freedom and happiness that is proclaimed by the Catholic Church.<br /><br />The Church has a great deal to say about man’s sexuality and none of it is dismissive.&nbsp; The Church rightly understands that a person’s sexuality is an integral part of their identity and humanity – the key word being “humanity.”&nbsp; We are human beings with a sexual component to our nature.<br />&nbsp; <br />More accurately, we are embodied souls!&nbsp; The distinction people want to draw between the body and the soul is a fantasy.&nbsp; Our eternal soul is what makes us human!&nbsp; <i>“The human body shares in the dignity of “the image of God”: it is a human body precisely because it is animated by a spiritual soul, and it is the whole human person that is intended to become, in the body of Christ, a temple of the Holy Spirit.”&nbsp; (CCC 364)<br />“The union of soul and body is so profound that one has to consider the soul to be the “form” of the body; i.e., it is because of its spiritual soul that the body made of matter becomes a living, human body; spirit and matter, in man, are not two natures united, but rather their union forms a single nature.”&nbsp; CCC 365</i><br /><br />Our sexuality is an essential part of our humanity but it is not the summit of our lives.&nbsp; That is where Planned Parenthood starkly disagrees.<br /><br />PP sees people as <i>sexual </i>beings, not <i>human</i> beings.&nbsp; To them the sexual nature is King.&nbsp; It rules over everything and must be served, rather than serving the good of the person or their communion in love through marriage.&nbsp; Their doctrine says unrestricted, self-centered sex is required for happiness; the epitome of personal fulfillment is only found in self-centered sexual gratification.<br />&nbsp; <br />From <a href="http://www.plannedparenthood.org/health-topics/sexuality-4323.htm">PP’s website</a> come these insights into their thinking: (emphasis mine)<br />&nbsp; <br /><blockquote>“We are all sexual. We are sexual from the day we are born until the day we die. Our sexuality affects who we are and how we express ourselves as <b>sexual beings.</b><br />Our sexuality includes:<br /><ul><li>our bodies, including our sexual and reproductive anatomy </li><li>our biological sex — male, female, or intersex&nbsp; </li><li>our gender — being a girl, boy, woman, man, or transgender </li><li>our sexual orientations — straight, lesbian, gay, bisexual </li></ul>The ways we experience and express our sexuality include:<br /><ul><li>our desires, thoughts, fantasies, sexual pleasure, sexual preferences, and sexual dysfunction </li><li>our sexual behaviors — the ways we have sex including masturbation</li></ul>Even though we spend our lifetimes as <b>sexual beings,</b> it’s normal to have many questions about sex and sexuality.<br />Many of us find that <b>sexual pleasure is one of life’s most rewarding experiences.</b><br />It helps us <b>create connections to other people</b> and <b>it helps us enjoy our world.”</b></blockquote><br />Only “sexual beings” would find sexual pleasure one of life’s most rewarding experiences.&nbsp; Human beings would say the most rewarding experiences are things like parenting, a loving marriage, professional and vocational service to others, serving God, honing their talents and skills, giving of themselves sacrificially for someone else, etc.&nbsp; It is not <i>sex</i> that helps us create connections to other people, but<i> love, </i>which seeks the good of the other person.&nbsp; It’s the practice of love, faith, patience, humility, temperance, and generosity that help us enjoy our world, and not sexual pleasure which is merely self-seeking.<br /><br />In the International Planned Parenthood Federation’s report <a href="http://www.ippf.org/en/Resources/Reports-reviews/Stand+and+deliver+-+sex+health+and+young+people+now.htm">“Stand and Deliver: Sex, health and young people in the 21st century”</a> (by “young people” they mean anyone between age 10 – 24), they portray “comprehensive sexuality education” as the answer to nearly every societal problem all over the world. They state repeatedly that “young people are sexual beings.”&nbsp; Sexual empowerment is what will free young people from poverty and open the doors of opportunity, while ensuring they develop satisfying and pleasurable sexual lives.<br /><br />Obviously, their curriculum of empowerment and fulfillment does not include the concept of chastity; nor does it say anything about selfless love.&nbsp; PP cannot comprehend that anyone would freely choose to live a virginal or chaste life or that such a life could bring immeasurable joy and satisfaction.<br /><br />Chastity to them is a fetter of oppression and ignorance, since they insist it’s through sexual exploration that a person comes to know who they are.&nbsp; Since people are “sexual beings” they must order their lives around their sexual desires.&nbsp; Abstinence is then absurd; the risks and consequences of sexual activity are unavoidable, and you needn’t even try to avoid them if you don’t want to.<br /><br />For example:&nbsp; IPPF has a booklet – directed at young people living with HIV – called <a href="http://www.ippf.org/NR/rdonlyres/B4462DDE-487D-4194-B0E0-193A04095819/0/HappyHealthyHot.pdf">“Healthy, Happy and Hot.”&nbsp;</a> (The twisted immorality of that title pains me to write.)&nbsp; It is replete with silhouette images of young people in a variety of embraces, including same-sex couples.&nbsp; The message of the booklet is clear:&nbsp; you can and should still have an unrestricted, active sex life while living with HIV.&nbsp; Pleasure is paramount.&nbsp; <br /><br /><blockquote>“Young people living with HIV have the right to decide if, when and how to disclose their HIV status.”&nbsp; “Some countries have laws that say people living with HIV must tell their sexual partner(s) about their status before having sex, even if they use condoms or only engage in sexual activity with a low risk of giving HIV to someone else.&nbsp; These laws violate the rights of people living with HIV by forcing them to disclose or face the possibility of criminal charges.”</blockquote><br /><blockquote>“Young people living with HIV have the right to sexual pleasure.”&nbsp; “Improve your sex life by getting to know your own body.&nbsp; Play with yourself!&nbsp; Masturbation is a great way to find out more about your body and what you find sexually stimulating.”<br />“Some people have sex when they have been drinking alcohol or using drugs.&nbsp; This is your choice.&nbsp; If you want to have sex and think you might get drunk or high, plan ahead by bringing condoms and lube and putting them close to where you usually have sex.&nbsp; That way you won’t forget them in the heat of the moment.”</blockquote><br /><blockquote>“Sometimes people choose not to have safer sex.&nbsp; If this is something you and your partner agree to, then it is your choice.&nbsp; It is not always possible to talk to your partner(s) about or to practice safer sex – for example, maybe you know that your partner will get angry or aggressive, or you don’t have access to condoms or a safe place to have sex.”</blockquote><br />Let’s see if I can sum all that up:&nbsp; You are entitled to conceal the fact that you have an incurable, life-altering disease from any sex partner(s), and any law that compels you to inform your sex partner(s) violates <i>your</i> rights.&nbsp; You have the right to transmit the disease to your sex partner(s).&nbsp; Play with yourself!&nbsp; Pleasure is your right!&nbsp; Sex while drunk or high?&nbsp; Go for it!&nbsp; Just try to plan ahead and have condoms within reach.&nbsp; That should take care of everything.&nbsp; Got an aggressive or hot-tempered partner and you don’t dare ask him to use a condom because he might get perturbed?&nbsp; Have sex anyway and forget the “safe” part.&nbsp; Sexual pleasure comes first!<br /><br />Is all of this really how we want to define ourselves and our sexual nature?&nbsp; Is there not more to us than self-centered, slavish, animal sexuality?<br /><br />The Catechism offers a wealth of teaching on the beauty and dignity of the human person.&nbsp; Our male and female sexuality is to be embraced and cherished, for it is good and holy.&nbsp; It is highly integral to who we are.&nbsp; The tool by which we gain the proper understanding of our sexuality is chastity.<br /><br /><i>“Chastity means the successful integration of sexuality within the person and thus the inner unity of man in his bodily and spiritual being.&nbsp; Sexuality, in which man’s belonging to the bodily and biological world is expressed, becomes personal and truly human when it is integrated into the relationship of one person to another, in the complete and lifelong mutual gift of a man and a woman.&nbsp; The virtue of chastity therefore involves the integrity of the person and the integrality of the gift.”&nbsp;&nbsp; CCC 2337</i><br /><i><br />“Chastity represents an eminently personal task; it also involves a cultural effort, for there is “an interdependence between personal betterment and the improvement of society.”&nbsp; CCC 2344</i><br /><i><br />“Chastity is a moral virtue.&nbsp; It is also a gift from God, a grace, a fruit of spiritual effort.”&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; CCC 2345&nbsp; “Chastity is the form of all the virtues.&nbsp; Under its influence, chastity appears as a school of the gift of the person.&nbsp; Self-mastery is ordered to the gift of the self.”&nbsp; CCC 2346</i><br /><i><br />“Chastity includes an apprenticeship in self-mastery which is a training in human freedom.&nbsp; The alternative is clear: either man governs his passions and finds peace, or he lets himself be dominated by them and becomes unhappy.&nbsp; “Man’s dignity therefore requires him to act out of conscious and free choice, as moved and drawn in a personal way from within, and not by blind impulses in himself or by mere external constraint.”&nbsp; CCC 2339</i><br /><br />We are not “sexual beings” in the sense that Planned Parenthood presents.&nbsp; We are human beings – embodied souls – with a sexual aspect of our nature that is powerful and beautiful.&nbsp; By mastering our passions and respecting the inherent dignity of each human person, we find the true freedom that brings with it true happiness.&nbsp; If instead we enslave ourselves to self-centered sexual gratification, we degrade our humanity until we lose it altogether.&nbsp; The choice is ours.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-4419902419843087724?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-19204720518466592372011-03-21T21:12:00.000-04:002011-03-21T21:12:00.834-04:00<a href="http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=40768">at Catholic Online</a><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-NSQETgbFH1M/TYf2jcgzT2I/AAAAAAAABKg/JbIne__PqxM/s1600/holy+orders.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-NSQETgbFH1M/TYf2jcgzT2I/AAAAAAAABKg/JbIne__PqxM/s320/holy+orders.jpg" width="277" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><i>It is written, ‘Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.</i></div><br />Consider the crisis of sin and failure the Church is presently walking through and the reactions often fall into one of two camps.&nbsp; Either there’s a predator in every priest, the Church is an evil villain and celibacy is surely to blame, or there’s nothing to do but weep and wring your hands, and perhaps leave the Church, disgruntled and demoralized, looking for perfection somewhere else.<br /><br />There is a third response – a much better one – but it requires a lot more trust and courage.&nbsp; It is the response of the faithful who have not lost faith.<br /><br />I hope that the unspeakable betrayal of a few clergy in our midst has caused us to also become very protective of our good, holy priests and deacons.&nbsp; May the stark reminder of how easy it is to fall from grace propel us to our knees on behalf of our shepherds.&nbsp; We need to do a better job covering them with our prayers.&nbsp; We need to get our dander up a bit and say to Satan, “Not my priest!&nbsp; Get away!”<br /><br />I can’t recall the last time our parish publicly prayed for our pastor at mass.&nbsp; I wonder if we ever have.&nbsp;&nbsp; I mean prayed for his heart to remain pure and humble, prayed for his service to remain holy and righteous, prayed for his protection against the schemes of Satan, who is on the prowl and eager to destroy a good priest.&nbsp; Our holy servants are prized targets and sexual accusations are the weapon <i>du jour</i> right now.&nbsp;<br /><br />Most recently, the sad news has come that <a href="http://www.fathercorapi.com/Default.aspx">Fr. John Corapi</a> is facing serious accusations from a former female employee.&nbsp; The rumor mill is already abuzz with theories and conjecture.&nbsp; Another priest, one who has done so much good, is under the weight of scandal, even though no proof has yet been offered.<br /><br />My thoughts upon hearing the news about Fr. Corapi were about us – the faithful – not him.&nbsp; (I will presume his innocence until proven otherwise.)&nbsp; Are we doing our duty?&nbsp; Do we expect our priests and deacons to be superhuman and inexhaustible and forget to shield them by our prayers?&nbsp; They have big, flashing neon targets on their heads.&nbsp; Have we forgotten?&nbsp; They feed us the Bread of Life; they loose our sins and usher us into God’s mercy; they baptize us into the Body of Christ.&nbsp; This makes them a most sought-after trophy for the enemy to hang on his wall.<br /><br />Like any of us, they are human and weak.&nbsp; That doesn’t justify or excuse their sin any more than it does our own.&nbsp; But it’s time we remembered that they are on the front lines of a fierce battle for souls, and Satan really, <i>really wants theirs.&nbsp;</i> Who’s got their backs?&nbsp; We must.&nbsp; For starters, let us plead for the intercession of St. Michael and the Blessed Mother on their behalf constantly, not just when another scandal is brewing.<br /><br />I hope we are also willing to demand justice for them and believe the best of them.&nbsp; The horror&nbsp; of the abuse of children by priests is a knife that still remains in the heart of the Church, so now the merest mention of a possible sexual allegation against a priest is handled severely (even if the charge involves adults, not children).&nbsp; The danger is that we seem to presume guilt rather than innocence, and vindication never quite restores what was taken.<br /><br />It’s distressing to witness how the accuser is permitted to remain anonymous while the charge is made public and the priest’s name and reputation are unprotected from speculation and insinuation.&nbsp; To say the least, such a system is inequitable.&nbsp; Even if the accusations are proven false and the matter against the priest is dismissed, the damage to him and his ministry has been done and cannot be undone.&nbsp; The false accuser remains protected by privacy, while the priest is forever clouded with the wisp of suspicion.&nbsp; That seems highly unjust.&nbsp; Is that really the right way to treat the sons of the Church?<br />&nbsp; <br />What the secular world will never understand is that the faithful, those who have faith in the Church as God’s plan to reach the world with the Gospel, those who trust that the gates of hell will not prevail against Her; we are angry about the sin in our House and we groan with despair at the filth and we are nauseated at the foul stench.&nbsp; We <i>want</i> the House cleaned from top to bottom and we want it cleaned now.&nbsp; Open the windows and doors and turn on the lights!&nbsp; Expose the rot!&nbsp; Clean out the infectious wound.&nbsp; We want the Body healed and whole again.<br />&nbsp; <br />We do not shrink from the cleansing even though we are wearied at the endlessness and severity of it.&nbsp; But while the world would just as soon burn the House down, the faithful know that the Church is spirit and mud, flesh and divine, made up of mortal men who will fall again and again.&nbsp; The Church is our Mother, living and breathing; praying and serving; singing and weeping.&nbsp; We are unwilling to just throw our Mother to the wolves.<br /><br />Christ’s promise of hope to us is that the gates of hell will not prevail against His Church.&nbsp; Satan cannot – will not – ever, ever, destroy the Church.&nbsp; The shocking sin of a few shepherds has certainly dealt some horrifying blows and we now have to endure the deserved chastisement and purification, but the sheep need not scatter in despair or disillusionment.&nbsp;<br /><br />Jesus promised He would never leave us and He entrusted us with the eternal mission.&nbsp; It is His truth, His power, His blood, His love, His mercy, His grace, and He has not changed.&nbsp; <br /><br />While we have every right to expect our clergy to be holy, virtuous men, we cannot leave them to live and fight alone.&nbsp; Perhaps we should examine carefully whether we have left them vulnerable because of our lack of prayer for them.<br /><br /><i>St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle.&nbsp; Be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil.&nbsp; May God rebuke him, we humbly pray; and do Thou, O Prince of the Heavenly Host – by the Divine Power of God – cast into hell, Satan and all the evil spirits, who roam throughout the world seeking the ruin of souls.&nbsp; Amen.</i><br /><br /><i>Lord Jesus, guard Your priests.&nbsp; Preserve them in purity and humility, strengthen them to resist temptation; fill their hearts with Divine love and a passion for souls.&nbsp; Protect and defend, Good Shepherd, our shepherds here on earth, and let their faithful service bring You glory and honor and praise.&nbsp; Amen.</i><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-1920472051846659237?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-37590316687039185632011-03-21T08:44:00.003-04:002011-03-21T08:46:49.535-04:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-OgHjf4YmLg8/TYdHakSwJ-I/AAAAAAAABKc/PPtLmxTOwcg/s1600/fp-beans-2011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="144" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-OgHjf4YmLg8/TYdHakSwJ-I/AAAAAAAABKc/PPtLmxTOwcg/s320/fp-beans-2011.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />I wish I had known about this site years ago!&nbsp; I'm very excited to have found a <a href="http://www.naturalcandystore.com/">Natural Candy Store</a> online!&nbsp; Lots of candies made <span style="color: red;">without corn syrup and artificial, chemical dyes!</span><span style="color: magenta;">&nbsp;</span> Wahoo!&nbsp; <a href="http://www.naturalcandystore.com/category/yummy-earth">Yummy Earth lollipops</a> are already kid-tested in this house and they're a hit.<br /><br />Now, I'm not all that <b><span style="color: #274e13;">"green"</span></b> and there's no shortage of sweets in my house.&nbsp; Won't deny that.&nbsp; Yet I still am looking for ways to get rid of chemicals and artificial junk.&nbsp; Keep it as natural as possible, please.&nbsp; I've switched to some good natural cleaning products, I add ground flax seed to my chocolate chip cookies, I make homemade mac-n-cheese with pureed carrots and sweet potatoes (shhh! my kids don't know that), and a few other things like that.&nbsp; I try to sneak in some goodness and get rid of some toxic crap wherever I can.<br /><br />So I'm very happy to find this <a href="http://www.naturalcandystore.com/">Natural Candy Store.</a>&nbsp; More yummy candy, less guilt and worry!&nbsp; Everybody wins.&nbsp; Guess where I'm getting my Easter candy this year?&nbsp; (Got that, Bunny?)<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-3759031668703918563?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-71479034015687420722011-02-24T12:19:00.000-05:002011-02-24T12:19:09.846-05:00This made my day today.<br /><br />This poor guy never really got close to the real thing, and he certainly didn't last very long, but you gotta give him big props for trying.&nbsp; It was a worthy effort.<br /><br />No man could ever feel or understand, though, the most painful part of childbirth -- the actual birth.&nbsp; The pushing, pushing, pushing!&nbsp; The crowning!&nbsp; <i><b>Keep pushing!</b></i>&nbsp; Without an epidural, THAT is pain.&nbsp; I've done it twice, thank you, and I much preferred the epidural the third time!<br /><br />Watch and laugh.&nbsp; Women are warriors!&nbsp; Mommas are warriors!<br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/6AdFdmE9A84" title="YouTube video player" width="425"></iframe><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-7147903401568742072?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-59339334409108742152011-02-09T19:24:00.001-05:002011-02-09T19:29:30.553-05:00<a href="http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=40283">at Catholic Online</a><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7Lb8TSydnAc/TVMvr6JAZXI/AAAAAAAABKQ/MfzS27xXrVQ/s1600/Everyone.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7Lb8TSydnAc/TVMvr6JAZXI/AAAAAAAABKQ/MfzS27xXrVQ/s1600/Everyone.jpg" /></a></div><br /><blockquote><i style="color: blue;">“Let us not despair; it is a blessed cause, and success, ere long, will crown our exertions. Already we have gained one victory; we have obtained, for these poor creatures, the recognition of their human nature, which, for a while was most shamefully denied. This is the first fruits of our efforts; let us persevere and our triumph will be complete. Never, never will we desist till we have wiped away this scandal from the Christian name, released ourselves from the load of guilt, under which we at present labour, and extinguished every trace of this bloody traffic, of which our posterity, looking back to the history of these enlightened times, will scarce believe that it has been suffered to exist so long a disgrace and dishonour to this country.”<br />&nbsp;</i></blockquote><blockquote><i style="color: blue;">William Wilberforce,</i><br /><i style="color: blue;">speech before the House of Commons, 18 April 1791</i></blockquote><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GCa4vwusgMU/TVMv1JQ8g7I/AAAAAAAABKU/YT2u2VO20q4/s1600/abortion.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><br /><b>To President Obama, Honorable Members of Congress, and the Honorable Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States:</b><br /><br />I’ve recently watched the inspiring film, <i>Amazing Grace,</i> which recounts the tireless efforts of William Wilberforce to end the evil of the slave ships.&nbsp; For decades he fought to bring an end to the disgrace, the murder of thousands upon thousands of African men, women and children, who were forcibly brought to England by way of cruel and torturous ships; ships on which most of them died a horrible death.&nbsp; He spent his youth and health struggling to raise the conscience of his countrymen until they would finally recognize the unspeakable injustice being inflicted on fellow human beings.<br /><br />I was absolutely gobsmacked at the irony, the bitter realization that the very same battle for humanity depicted in this film is still being fought today.<br /><br />It’s true.&nbsp; Slavery is alive and well in America.&nbsp; What we thought we had abolished in 1863 was resurrected just over a century later.&nbsp; It came to us disguised and called itself “privacy” at first; later it simply became “choice.”&nbsp; It came as an <i>angel of light</i>, and has wrought the most terrible darkness on our nation.<br /><br />We have made our children slaves.&nbsp; They are slaves to our convenience; slaves to our greed; slaves to our ambition; slaves to our insatiable sexual appetites; slaves to our self-interest; slaves to our irresponsibility.&nbsp; Abortion is a merciless and bloody master and the preborn child is its slave.<br /><br />The slave ships of today resemble doctor’s offices and clinics, but they are vessels of torturous death nonetheless.&nbsp; Our tiniest children are dismembered and suctioned from the womb; they are stabbed in the heart or the head; and if these methods of execution somehow fail, the “unwanted” is simply left to die unattended. <br /><br />Our actions today are different from the evil of the slave ships in one important, noteworthy manner:&nbsp; they are even more despicable because the human beings we disregard are our own flesh and blood, our own offspring, our own innocent, defenseless children.&nbsp; We cannot claim ignorance or disinterest or the inability to protect them.&nbsp; We are bound to them eternally, and we owe them eternally.<br /><br />Unlike the “poor creatures” Wilberforce fought for, however, our babies have not yet even been recognized as fully human.&nbsp; We’ve come to regard them as property, to be purchased at will and disposed of at will.&nbsp; If for any reason, they are found to be defective or too bothersome, or we deem them unwanted, we simply rid ourselves of the burden.&nbsp; They are abandoned and literally thrown away like trash; or left to drown in toilets despite Safe Haven laws; they are considered sub-human; an “it.”&nbsp; Can you not see?&nbsp; When children are thought to be disposable, they will be more frequently discarded!<br /><br />We can no longer deny them the dignity of their humanity.&nbsp; We can no longer content ourselves with invented distinctions like “viability” and “quality of life.”&nbsp; We cannot go forward in the deception that full humanness is somehow magically endowed at birth and absent before.&nbsp; <br /><br />The trickery of euphemisms can no longer suffice.&nbsp; Our modern science gives us the true picture and reveals to us what we’ve stubbornly refused to acknowledge – the child in the womb is as human as we are, is alive and distinct, an individual person deserving of life.&nbsp; All the euphemisms in the world cannot provide a comfortable justification for an act of violence against the most innocent. <br /><br />There is no honor in sacrificing a child’s life for the sake of privacy or autonomy.&nbsp; No man or woman has the right to make such a “choice.”&nbsp; Stop being hypnotized by legal-speak and see the child!&nbsp; He is you; she is me; they are us there in the womb.&nbsp; If humanity is qualified as a function of intelligence, or utility, or size and development, then we are an inhumane race.<br /><br />Men in America have been allowed, taught and in many cases forced to walk away from their responsibilities as fathers.&nbsp; The “choice” of abortion has robbed many good men of fatherhood and been a handy excuse for too many cads and cowards.&nbsp; Even worse, it has turned mother and child into enemies.&nbsp; <br /><br />It’s time the bar was raised once again to its proper height and that the adults grew up and behaved as adults again.&nbsp; We’ve allowed our reckless sexual wants to control us rather than controlling them.&nbsp; Everything now must be sacrificed on that addictive altar, including our babies.<br /><br />But that is not how free and honorable people treat their children.&nbsp; <i>Parents give their lives for their children; we do not take their lives for our own.</i>&nbsp; Life goes forward, not backward.&nbsp; Parents are obligated toward their children and we owe them the life which they have been endowed by their Creator.<br /><br />The present-day evil empire that most threatens us is right within our own borders, built by our own hands.&nbsp; A billion-dollar industry has morphed and exploded from a “penumbra, formed by emanations.”&nbsp; Killing our preborn children has become a wildly profitable enterprise.&nbsp; It will ultimately be our downfall.&nbsp; We’ll surely drown in blood.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GCa4vwusgMU/TVMv1JQ8g7I/AAAAAAAABKU/YT2u2VO20q4/s1600/abortion.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GCa4vwusgMU/TVMv1JQ8g7I/AAAAAAAABKU/YT2u2VO20q4/s320/abortion.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br />Why has the United States lost the instinct to protect her youngest citizens?&nbsp; How is it possible that the nation forged by the unalienable right to life can willfully deny life to future generations?&nbsp; How can we call it “freedom” to “terminate” the powerless?<br /><br />You have the power, this very day, to end the scourge of abortion on demand in America.&nbsp; You have the power, this very day, to protect the rights of our children to be born.&nbsp; You have the power, this very day, to uphold the <i>humanity</i> of every child in the womb.&nbsp; If you refuse to do it, it is not because you lack the understanding or the means, but because you lack honor, honesty and the will.<br /><br />I dare each one of you today to live up to the “Honorable” in your title.&nbsp; Have the decency to admit the tragic and irreparable mistake we have now lived for nearly 40 years and have the courage to set it right.&nbsp; Let this Congress not pass into history without abolishing the slavery of abortion.<br /><br />Then once you have secured the right to life of every American citizen, expend yourselves in rebuilding a society where every child is welcomed and cared for.&nbsp; Focus the energy of America on restoring the strength and dignity of the family.&nbsp; Prove to the worried pregnant mother that she is not alone and join with those in her community who are there to offer hope and real help.&nbsp; Take the hundreds of millions of dollars formerly poured into destroying human life and invest it protecting and caring for those lives instead.<br /><br />Stop wasting time and money on politically-correct and useless endeavors and actually educate our children.&nbsp; Stop condemning them to failing schools and crime-ridden neighborhoods.&nbsp; Stop lining your own pockets and securing your own re-election and actually enable our states to provide health care for every citizen.&nbsp; Stop creating one set of laws and benefits for yourselves and another for everyone else.&nbsp; You are not kings and queens; you are servants in the People’s house.&nbsp; <br /><br />But first, before any of these urgent needs can be satisfactorily met, you must guarantee the Right to Life of every child.&nbsp; We who recognize the humanity of the child in the womb will never give up until the laws of our nation also acknowledge it.&nbsp; As Wilberforce rightly said, <i>“Never, never will we desist till we have wiped away this scandal from the Christian name, released ourselves from the load of guilt, under which we at present labour, and extinguished every trace of this bloody traffic, of which our posterity, looking back to the history of these enlightened times, will scarce believe that it has been suffered to exist so long a disgrace and dishonour to this country.”</i><br /><br />Wilberforce’s friend, the slaveship captain haunted by the “20,000 ghosts” of the souls he killed, mournfully exclaimed to him, <i>“We were apes.&nbsp; They were human!”</i>&nbsp; So must we come to the same realization:&nbsp; <i>They are our children!</i>&nbsp; <b>They are human!&nbsp;</b> We are heartless animals as long as we continue to slaughter them.<br /><br />We’ve no business imploring the blessings of God on our country until we cease in this evil.&nbsp; You, our leaders, must put an end to it now.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-5933933440910874215?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-54047620726144488322011-02-02T21:16:00.001-05:002011-02-03T00:29:41.374-05:00<a href="http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=40217">at Catholic Online</a><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TUoP23nhmzI/AAAAAAAABKM/ruagFfB8A5k/s1600/child+sex+trafficking.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TUoP23nhmzI/AAAAAAAABKM/ruagFfB8A5k/s320/child+sex+trafficking.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br />There can be no further doubt about the depths to which Planned Parenthood will sink for the sake of profit and abortion.&nbsp; There seems to be nothing they won’t do; no law they won’t bend or try to circumvent; no child they will not exploit, no baby they won’t kill.&nbsp; They revel in the lucrative benefits of the sexploitation of young girls and the blood money of abortion. <br /><br />Lila Rose and <i><b>LiveAction.org</b></i> <a href="http://liveaction.org/blog/planned-parenthood-aids-sex-ring-full-footage/">released video this week</a> of their recent Planned Parenthood sting, and it is shocking to watch.&nbsp; Now we know PP employees will also knowingly aid in the sex trafficking of young girls.&nbsp; <br /><br />In the video, a man and a woman posing as a pimp and a prostitute entered a Planned Parenthood clinic in New Jersey, explained that they were “sex workers” and say there’s a group of girls that they “manage” who need treatment for sexually-transmitted diseases.&nbsp; He admits the girls are young, fifteen or fourteen years-old, and that they “don’t speak English cause they’re not even from here.”<br /><br />Without missing a beat, office manager Amy Woodruff happily explains what PP can do for them, and assures him that <i>“minors are always accepted without parental consent.”</i>&nbsp; She cautions the pimp, however, to be careful how much information they divulge:&nbsp;<i> “The only thing is you have to be careful, if they are a minor we are obligated if we hear certain information.”</i>&nbsp; She tells the pimp that if a translator is needed, the girls need to understand that they can’t reveal their age or the ages of their sexual “partners.”&nbsp; She advises the pimp to have the girls lie about their age if they are under fifteen so PP won’t be obligated to report the sex abuse to the authorities.<br /><br /><i>“You know, me and my other counselor, like for the most part, we want as little information as possible.”&nbsp;</i> She explains that the girls should say their “partner” is the same age as they are.&nbsp; <i>“So, even if they lie and just say, ‘Oh, he’s the same age as me.&nbsp; Fifteen.’&nbsp; So you know like if they’re mainly fourteen and under we have to.&nbsp; It doesn’t matter if their partner’s the same age, younger, whatever. Fourteen and under we have to report.&nbsp; Once they get to fifteen then there’s a little bit more play room.&nbsp; So as long as they just lie and say, ‘Oh, he’s fifteen, sixteen.’&nbsp; Then we just kind of play stupid.”</i><br /><br />When the pimp asks Woodruff what happens if the girls are fourteen and need an abortion, she quickly reassures him that’s a different story, then seems to think better of her words.&nbsp; She seems to realize that there would still be an obligation to report and thinks of another option for the pimp.&nbsp; She reaches for a piece of paper on her desk and says, <i>“You never got this from me.&nbsp; Just to make all our lives easier.&nbsp; If they’re fourteen and under just send ‘em right there if they need an abortion.”&nbsp; [laughs]</i><br /><br />The clinic she’s referring to is Metropolitan Medical Association, an abortion clinic that apparently asks fewer questions than even PP.&nbsp; She explains, <i>“They (the girls) won’t need ID.&nbsp; They’re gonna be a little bit more different but their protocols aren’t as strict as ours and they don’t get audited the same way that we do.”</i>&nbsp; She emphasizes again that this is only for girls fourteen and under.&nbsp; <i>“So pregnancy – fourteen.&nbsp; Like this is for fourteen and under I’m saying.&nbsp; Once they hit fifteen it’s kind of a whole different, like, playing field with the age and New Jersey guidelines.”</i><br /><br />Then she gets them a copy of a sheet listing minor’s rights in order to help the pimp protect himself.&nbsp; <i>“So you already kind of know before you get into any situation.&nbsp; Like, ‘Oh, alright, you know let’s not do it this way, let’s go this way, you know, that kind of stuff.”</i><br /><br /><i>“I use this as my Bible,”</i> Woodruff laughs.&nbsp;<i> “Cause no matter what you get so many parents and I mean, like you understand where they’re coming from, but it’s like, ‘Oh, but she’s a minor.’&nbsp; Okay, yeah, so? [laughs] She’s still entitled to care without mom knowing what the hell’s going on.”</i><br /><br />Woodruff also tells the pimp to simply have the girls say they are students when they fill out the paperwork for their exam.&nbsp; <i>“If they’re a minor just tell them to put down that they’re students.”</i><br /><br />“Students?” asks the pimp.<br /><br /><i>“Yeah.&nbsp; Just kinda play along that they’re students.&nbsp; We wanna make it look as legit as possible.”</i><br /><br />The pimp and prostitute imply that they like Woodruff and feel they can trust her, and she reciprocates by telling them to make sure they deal with her only when they come back with the girls.&nbsp;<i> “So the whole thing is with me we already know.&nbsp; I see you.&nbsp; We already know we’re gonna kind of alter the story and kinda see what we can do to kinda tweak the information.”</i><br /><br />The pimp then asks her what happens afterward if one of the girls needs an abortion.&nbsp; Woodruff says the girl will need two weeks to recover before she can have sex again.&nbsp; The pimp asks her for suggestions about what they can do in the meantime, “Cause they still gotta make money, you know?”<br /><br />Incredibly, Woodruff replies, <i>“Waist up.”</i><br /><br />“Waist up?” asks the pimp.<br /><br />She repeats, <i>“Waist up.&nbsp; Or just be that extra action walking by.”</i><br /><br />Planned Parenthood received $363 million dollars of taxpayer money last year under Title X.&nbsp; In New Jersey alone, they received $7.5 million dollars.&nbsp; It is time to demand that our Congress acts <i><b>now</b></i> to <b>defund Planned Parenthood permanently.</b>&nbsp; They greedily prey on our children, either killing them in the womb, or exploiting, corrupting, and abandoning them to the depravity of sexual slavery and abuse.&nbsp; Is this an entity you want to finance?<br /><br />The pro-life heroes in the U.S. have known for decades that PP is not an altruistic organization committed to women’s health, no matter what fanciful yarn their public relations folks spin.&nbsp; PP’s survival depends on promiscuity and all the disease that goes along with it.&nbsp; Most important to their bottom line, of course, are all those pesky “unplanned and unwanted” pregnancies that simply must be “terminated.”&nbsp; Abortion is their cash cow.<br /><br />Let this newest revelation remove all doubt that Planned Parenthood is thoroughly invested in the moral, sexual, and physical destruction of our children.&nbsp; We cannot continue to allow it.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.jillstanek.com/2011/02/breaking-planned-parenthood-fires-worker-caught-on-sex-traffick-sting-videotape/">Amy Woodruff has been fired and Planned Parenthood is working overtime to repair its image.</a><br /><br />Contact your Representatives and urge them to pass the <a href="http://www.lifenews.com/2011/01/07/pence-drops-bill-to-de-fund-planned-parenthood-abortion-biz/">Title X Abortion Provider Prohibition Act </a>now.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-5404762072614448832?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-77035850985504864852011-02-02T01:31:00.002-05:002011-02-15T23:11:41.158-05:00<a href="http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=40180">at Catholic Online</a><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Meet James Pendergraft, convicted felon and owner of five abortion clinics in the state of Florida.&nbsp; His medical license is currently on its 4th suspension, but that has hardly deterred him. On his website, <i><b><a href="http://latetermabortion.net/">LateTermAbortion.net</a>,</b></i> he reveals his current method of circumventing the system to kill babies in the 2nd and 3rd trimester (greater than 24 weeks), leaving others to clean up after him.<br /><br />At his office in the DC-area, the address and location of which he will not disclose even to women seeking his “services,” he specializes in abortion by intra-cardiac injection.&nbsp; Guided by a sonogram image, he uses a spinal needle to stab the baby in the heart and inject a lethal dose of a “feticide agent” or 50 cc’s of air in order to stop the child’s heart.&nbsp; This “procedure” takes from 2 to 4 minutes to complete.&nbsp; The website reports that the woman is able to go home within 15 minutes of the “procedure.”<br /><br />You may be wondering what happens next.&nbsp; Now carrying a dead baby, the woman must take herself back to either her regular OB/GYN, family doctor, or head to the emergency room so that someone else can complete “the evacuation of the uterus.”<br /><br />Pendergraft only wants to do the execution; he leaves the rest to the woman and whatever doctor she can find.&nbsp; His website carefully explains that payment for his “services” is only accepted via electronic bank transfer of funds.&nbsp; While he does not specify a dollar amount, he lists <i>“unlimited phone consultation, the time spent at the LateTermAbortion.net facility, the sonogram, lab testing, counseling, recovery and administrative fees including travel costs.”</i>&nbsp; He explains that this intra-cardiac injection is not a simple “procedure” and thus, very few doctors are trained in how to do it.&nbsp; He, of course, is highly trained in this specialized method of execution, and undoubtedly, it ain’t cheap.<br /><br />Women who make an appointment are instructed: <i>“On your day of arrival, you will be told of a designated area to meet based on when you arrive to the D.C. area by plane, train, car, or other form of transportation. That individual will pick up you and your significant other up as there will be only one other person to come with you to the facility due to privacy and security issues for the patient and staff.”</i> [sic]<br /><br />When the “procedure” is over and the woman is ready to leave, she is given a post-op packet<i> “with instructions on how to care of yourself until you follow-up with your personal physician or the proper referral where the evacuation of the uterus will be carried out.”</i> [sic]<br /><br />Pendergraft details what can happen if the abortion isn’t completed in a timely-enough manner:&nbsp; <i>“Generally when most fetuses die in utero, there are enzymes released that cause an inflammatory reaction to occur which leads to labor which is followed by delivery of the tissue. The problem is if you do not go into labor for a few days, not only can the patient's blood become severely infected, but this can lead to a clotting disorder where the patient's blood does not clot, severe low blood pressure, bleeding constantly from needle sticks, internal bleeding, multiple organ failure which can lead to maternal death. This is nothing that should be taken lightly. Therefore once the intra-cardiac injection is complete, there is no turning back. The remainder of the procedure must be carried out as pre-planned.”</i><br /><br />He makes certain he gets his money up front, carries out the execution, then sends the mother off to have the abortion completed somewhere else, by someone else, and removes himself from any liability, complication, or even maternal death that may result.&nbsp; <br /><br />The most obvious scenario is this:&nbsp; the woman goes to her local emergency room and says her baby has stopped moving.&nbsp; They do an ultrasound that shows no heartbeat and tell her the baby has died.&nbsp; Now an unsuspecting doctor begins to induce labor and deliver the child, not knowing how the baby died.&nbsp; If this doctor believes in the sanctity of human life and chooses not to take innocent life through abortion, he has now been deceived into unwittingly completing an abortion against his conscience.&nbsp; The hospital either bills the woman’s insurance for the extensive costs of induced labor and delivery, or the taxpayers pick up the tab.&nbsp; <br /><br />The mother’s recovery care, including any complications resulting from the abortion, is not anything Pendergraft cares to concern himself with.&nbsp; It’s now up to the doctor and/or hospital who completed the abortion Pendergraft started, and they will probably not even know what situation they’re actually dealing with.<br /><br />Pendergraft, like Kermit Gosnell, is nothing more than a butcher who preys on babies and women for profit.&nbsp;&nbsp; It was in Pendergraft’s clinic, Orlando Women’s Center, where baby Rowan was aborted alive and left to die.&nbsp; In 2005, a pregnant woman delivered her baby alive in a toilet.&nbsp; Baby Rowan lived for 11 minutes.&nbsp; Despite his mother’s pleas for help, staff at OWC refused to help the child.&nbsp; 911 tapes revealed that the staff also refused to allow baby Rowan’s mother to use their phone to call an ambulance.&nbsp; (So much for obeying the Born Alive Infant Protection Act, which was signed into law in 2002.) Baby Rowan’s story was documented in the drama,<b><i> 22 Weeks.</i></b><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TUj5QpyW0KI/AAAAAAAABKE/FT2F2pF3AAA/s1600/Baby+rowan_head.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TUj5QpyW0KI/AAAAAAAABKE/FT2F2pF3AAA/s320/Baby+rowan_head.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br />No criminal investigation into baby Rowan’s death was ever done, and Pendergraft has continued doing late-term abortions in Florida and now in D.C.&nbsp;&nbsp; His website assures women that at his D.C.-area office the intra-cardiac injection is perfectly legal, though he adds this qualifying statement:&nbsp; “Though it is being called a Late Term Abortion Facility, it actually is not by Florida or most other State's definition of abortion.”<br /><br />Since there are no dead babies actually delivered in his office, he claims it’s not really an abortion facility.&nbsp; How convenient for him.&nbsp; Like a secret hitman, he does the kill and then pushes the two victims out the door to be someone else’s problem while he counts his cash.<br /><br />James Pendergraft, champion of “choice.”<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-7703585098550486485?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-25717375426913258092011-01-27T14:21:00.002-05:002011-01-27T14:21:31.476-05:00<b>Gotta love this!</b><br /><br />I didn't see the show, but I saw this video and wept.&nbsp; God bless Chris Medina!&nbsp; He's got my vote!&nbsp; Great voice to go along with his heart.<br /><br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="youtube-player" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/elaXeN15isM?rel=0" title="YouTube video player" type="text/html" width="425"></iframe><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-2571737542691325809?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-52557432038088050122011-01-17T13:30:00.000-05:002011-01-17T13:30:58.999-05:00I'd like to say something poignant, something insightful, something brilliant.<br /><br />But my only words today are <b>Thank You, Lord,</b> for these 40 years.&nbsp; I know perhaps I haven't lived them as well as I could have.&nbsp; Yet they are the clay I'm now made of.&nbsp; Lumped, spotted, stained and broken clay that You have fashioned into more than it is.&nbsp; Your gentle, nail-scarred hands have sifted through my ashes and found rose petals.&nbsp; You have filled my clay pot with Yourself and made it holy.<br /><br />Grant me this, please.&nbsp; Let every year to come bring me closer to Your side.&nbsp; Let every day You give me bring me closer to Love.&nbsp; And let me put a smile on Your face.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TTSKqat9ijI/AAAAAAAABKA/NDlHSjqOm7M/s1600/40-bday.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TTSKqat9ijI/AAAAAAAABKA/NDlHSjqOm7M/s320/40-bday.jpg" width="178" /></a></div><br /><i>Thank you for my life.&nbsp; Thank you that it is overflowing with blessings and joys.&nbsp; Thank you for everything.</i><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-5255743203808805012?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-459371689467570932011-01-12T22:38:00.000-05:002011-01-12T22:38:36.977-05:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TS5xKxoCWwI/AAAAAAAABJ0/Rn3nHglZNGY/s1600/tucson+victims.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="226" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TS5xKxoCWwI/AAAAAAAABJ0/Rn3nHglZNGY/s320/tucson+victims.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TS5x1zCjbjI/AAAAAAAABJ4/WgvBb4XNtFw/s1600/christina-taylor-green.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TS5x1zCjbjI/AAAAAAAABJ4/WgvBb4XNtFw/s320/christina-taylor-green.jpg" width="316" /></a></div><br /><br /><a href="http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=39928">At Catholic Online</a><br /><br /><br />Hatred is in the air this week.&nbsp; Everyone’s talking about it.&nbsp; Some are capitalizing on it.&nbsp; Words and pictures are being denounced.&nbsp; Laws are hastily being written in response to an unthinkable tragedy, out of a desperate need to prevent another unthinkable tragedy.&nbsp; As though we can prevent all unthinkable tragedies with enough laws and prohibitions… but we cannot legislate the end of hatred and violence.<br /><br />A deeply disturbed man walked into a shopping center parking lot, took out a gun and killed six people, including a 9 year-old child.&nbsp; His apparent target, Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, is fighting for her life.&nbsp; Nothing about what Jared Loughner did will ever make any sense.&nbsp; There will never be a satisfactory “why.”<br /><br />The answer is certainly not political, nor is the blame to be laid there.&nbsp; Sarah Palin is not responsible for this madman’s actions.&nbsp; President Obama is not responsible.&nbsp; Rush Limbaugh is not responsible.&nbsp; Neither the Left nor the Right is responsible for the violence that erupted first in Jared Loughner’s heart and finally in a Safeway parking lot.<br /><br />But now we find ourselves in the middle of a shouting match over who is to blame, and whose words and actions motivated this man to go on a killing spree.&nbsp; <i>“Tone down the rhetoric!” </i>some say.&nbsp;&nbsp; <i>“Shut down Talk Radio!”</i> others demand.&nbsp;<i> “From now on no one is allowed to carry a gun within 1000 feet of a public official!” </i>says one politician. <br /><br />Now, I haven’t yet lived even a half century, but it seems to me there’s nothing new about lunatics shooting people in public.&nbsp; Many public officials have been the victims of such heinous attacks, going back at least to Abraham Lincoln.&nbsp; Was “vitriol” to blame for Lee Harvey Oswald shooting President Kennedy?&nbsp; Was John Hinckley, Jr.’s attempt on President Reagan’s life the result of “heated rhetoric?”<br /><br />I make no defense of Palin’s crosshairs graphic nor do I blame her for the shooting in Tucson.&nbsp; I find it amazingly disingenuous that so many are rushing to condemn the “vitriol” of the Right, blaming every visible conservative for the escalation of hatred in American politics while very conveniently forgetting things like:<br /><br /><blockquote>Comedian Sandra Bernhard saying that if Sarah Palin came to New York she would be “gang-raped by my big black brothers.”<br /><br />The graphic art image of Sarah Palin being punched in the face by a man’s fist under the heading, M.I.L.P. (Mothers I’d Like to Punch).<br /><br />The numerous images of President Bush with a gun to his temple, or the T-shirt image of blood running down over the words, “Kill Bush.”<br /><br />The protest signs with Bush’s cut-off head dripping blood, and the sign that said, “Bush, the only Dope worth shooting.”<br /><br />And let’s not forget the bloody, violent, environmental “green” ads of last year that featured children being blown up in the classroom, or shown with a noose around their necks.</blockquote><br />That’s only a small sampling of the disgusting garbage that’s been spewed in recent memory.&nbsp; All of it should be condemned.&nbsp; That’s not political discourse; it’s just childish, mean-spirited, shameful vomit. <br /><br />Those so eager this week to blame Palin and any other conservative who voices their anger over the current state of our government seem more like ambulance-chasing lawyers, just trying to turn a senseless tragedy into a political opportunity. <br /><br />Crosshairs on a map are not to blame here.&nbsp; Remember, it was Barack Obama, back in 2008, who said of Republicans, “If they bring a knife to the fight, we bring a gun.”<br /><br />Was he suggesting that Democrats in America start shooting Republicans?&nbsp; Of course not!&nbsp; It was hyperbole, an analogy to signify his intent to defeat the enemy.&nbsp; (And yes, he did call Republicans “the enemy” not the opposition.)<br /><br />There are scathing words being carelessly thrown around by everyone.&nbsp; But the underlying problem is more than a lack of civility.&nbsp; The real trouble is spiritual, not political.&nbsp; <br /><br />The fact is we have constructed a society whose laws do not value human life, whose entertainment teaches even the very young to glorify violence, worship at the altar of sexual pleasure, and live for immediate self-gratification while shunning responsibility. We have purposefully, systemically evicted God from our homes, our businesses, our laws and our lives.&nbsp; We’re paying the price.&nbsp; We may arrogantly think we can thrive without Him, but we will perish in flames as we thumb our noses at Him.<br /><br />We’re sick with hatred, all right – hatred of sacrifice, of self-denial, of obligations, of morality, maturity, honesty, patience, humility, and love.&nbsp; We spurn all these things because they require we put others first.&nbsp; Mostly, we have grown to detest these things because they come from God and we’ve decided we are tired of Him and His demands.&nbsp; In rejecting God, we are given over to anger, selfishness and violence.&nbsp; Without Him, we are emptied of love.<br /><br />There will be a memorial service on Thursday for Christina Green, the little girl who was murdered in that parking lot last week.&nbsp; And perhaps the most distressing thing I’ve heard so far is that this poor grieving family may have to contend with <i>true</i> hatred once again while they gather to mourn their beautiful child.<br /><br />There are Angels who will be present to intervene to protect the family from the hate-mongers of the Westboro Baptist Church, who just may show up to picket this little girl’s memorial.&nbsp; Why would these people do such a thing to the Green family?&nbsp; Again, there is no sane explanation for hate.&nbsp; There is no logical explanation for lunacy and evil.<br /><br />But anyone looking for perpetrators of raw hate and vitriol need look no further than the members of the WBC.&nbsp; To every rational and decent person, they are anathema and should be eschewed.&nbsp; Cruelty is their creed.&nbsp; They are a disgrace to our nation.&nbsp; Let’s hope they stay away.<br /><br />My prayers go out in a special way to the Green family because their parish in Tucson was my childhood parish.&nbsp; I grew up in that church.&nbsp; I pray the Green’s will have nothing but calm, solemn peace as they remember their daughter on Thursday.&nbsp; May the Lord protect them, keep them and give them His healing.<br /><br /><b>The political blame-game must cease</b>.&nbsp; No elected official from either party sanctions the shooting of our public leaders, nor encourages violence to be carried out against another American.&nbsp; Let’s stop the ridiculous opportunism and yield to honesty and mature reasoning.&nbsp; <br /><br />I know we all pray the Lord’s comfort and peace will be with each of the families who grieve their loved ones, and His healing power will be with those recovering from injury, especially Rep. Gabrielle Giffords.<br /><br /><i>Have mercy on us, Lord.&nbsp; Turn our hearts back to You and bring us peace.</i><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-45937168946757093?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-37790690302823918912011-01-10T21:01:00.000-05:002011-01-10T21:01:29.054-05:00<a href="http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=39881">at Catholic Online</a><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TSu5oZOsNeI/AAAAAAAABJw/1MVmlzIhe5c/s1600/conception_8_week.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="217" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TSu5oZOsNeI/AAAAAAAABJw/1MVmlzIhe5c/s320/conception_8_week.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br />The <i>No-Spin Zone</i> is once again in need of some actual truth.&nbsp; I tuned in on Friday night to hear Bill O’Reilly read a letter from a viewer in New York who asked him why he keeps referring to the fetus as a “potential human being.”&nbsp; This viewer reminded Bill that as a Roman Catholic, he should know better!&nbsp; How absolutely correct.&nbsp; O’Reilly, however, responded this way:<br /><br /><blockquote>“I’m absolutely factually correct when I say a fetus is a potential human being and no one can deny that.&nbsp; I respect your opinion but until you become a Supreme Court Justice, it remains your opinion, your belief.&nbsp; I can’t run this program based upon my religious beliefs, so I try to put up arguments based on facts and I believe we are successful in doing that.”</blockquote><br />Bill, in that one small paragraph you have gone so very, very wrong in so many ways.<br /><br />It is not “factually correct” to say that a fetus is a “potential human being.”&nbsp; It isn’t scientifically correct.&nbsp; The fetus is an unrepeatable, unique human child, created from the joining of a woman’s egg and a man’s sperm, possessing a brand new DNA never before seen in the world.&nbsp; Human beings can only make human beings.&nbsp; The fetus is never anything other than human.&nbsp; The child is never a plant or animal.&nbsp; This seems so obvious as to not need pointing out, but clearly, the obvious must be stated.<br /><br />O’Reilly’s reasoning is unfortunately, a favorite of the abortion peddlers – that the fetus is not <i>fully</i> human, but only <i>potentially</i> human and therefore, extinguishable without moral wrongdoing.&nbsp; It’s not actually <i>a person</i> being killed, they say, but only tissue that at best vaguely resembles a human.<br /><br />Those who perpetuate this false argument justify it by placing subjective value on the child based on the stage of development, health, and ability to survive outside the womb.&nbsp; <b>But none of those things has anything to do with humanity.</b>&nbsp; The humanity of the unborn child is inherent from the first moment of conception, simply because the new person is an unrepeatable human being, endowed by their Creator with the right to life.&nbsp; Humanity is not a function of utility!&nbsp; Humanity is not merely an expression of size, ability, quality of health or even intelligence.<br /><br /><b>Every child in the womb – whether in existence for one day or fifty days or 200 days – is fully human, not “potentially” human.&nbsp;</b> <br /><br />This is not an insignificant distinction.&nbsp; It’s not semantics.&nbsp; It reveals the heart of two very different philosophies; one diametrically opposed to the other; one true and one false.&nbsp; Those who refuse to acknowledge the full humanity of the child in the womb will eventually deny the full humanity of <i>any</i> person whose life becomes too inconvenient, too expensive, too unproductive to justify within their limited and selfish definition.&nbsp; It is inevitable.&nbsp; Once a human being can be justifiably eliminated at one stage of life, he can be eliminated at any stage.&nbsp; Once the sanctity of life is put up for grabs, no one is safe.&nbsp; Sooner or later, we are all vulnerable.&nbsp; To declare the child in the womb only “potentially human” is a false, de-humanizing tenet that leaves no life at all sacred.<br /><br />It’s distressing that Bill continues to subscribe to the lie that this is merely a “religious” belief and not a knowable, undeniable truth.&nbsp; He fails to see that abortion is the ultimate human rights issue, not simply a personal opinion based on cozy theology.&nbsp; He tells his viewer that the only opinions that matter in the U.S. are those of the Supreme Court Justices, and anything else is relegated to “religious beliefs” that carry no weight and hold no value where laws are concerned.<br /><br />In this he not only helps the cause of the abortion vendors but also those who insist that religious beliefs and principles have no place in the public square.<br /><br />Bill asserts that he can’t run his program based on his religious beliefs, but instead must present facts to support his arguments.&nbsp; Well Bill, the good news is that you never need to check your faith at the door in order to do your show and present the facts, especially when it comes to abortion.&nbsp; And since you brought it up, what are those religious beliefs?<br /><br />Since you are Catholic, I assume you accept Church teaching regarding the sanctity of all human life from conception to natural death.&nbsp; I assume you accept the fact that every abortion kills <b>a human being</b> and is therefore always morally wrong.&nbsp; I also assume that you understand your obligation to God’s revealed truth and the duty each of us has to live our faith authentically out in the world (even on television).<br /><br />This means that each of us who wear the name Catholic and claim to follow Christ must defend the revealed and knowable truth of the sacred humanity of every life, from conception to natural death.&nbsp; We have only just celebrated the most incredible event in human history – the Incarnation, the Word made flesh.&nbsp; Our God came to inhabit our humanness in every way, declaring it sacred.<br /><br />Christ began his human journey the same way each of us did – as a child in the womb.&nbsp; From the moment the Holy Spirit overshadowed the Virgin Mary, Jesus was fully human in order to fully redeem our humanity.&nbsp; If it were not so, then His coming and His death gained us nothing.&nbsp; This is the core of the Catholic Christian faith, Bill!&nbsp; This is the heart of the faith you profess!&nbsp; Would you yet insist that Jesus was only “potentially” human in Mary’s womb?<br /><br />Your passion for a solid argument is admirable, Bill, but in this case your pursuit of what you call “facts” is <b>not</b> leading you to the truth.&nbsp;<br /><br />You needn’t be a Supreme Court Justice to defend the truth of the sanctity of all human life.&nbsp; When the law of our land violates the revealed truth, when it violates the fundamental right to life that every human being must be granted, <b>then our law is wrong and must be changed.</b>&nbsp; You can and should be part of the effort to hasten the day when U.S. citizens in the womb are protected by the law of the land.&nbsp; In fact, given your influential platform, your voice could be a powerful ally.&nbsp;<br /><br />But as long as you continue to perpetuate the falsehood that the child in the womb is merely a “potential” human being, you are giving aid and comfort to those who profit from exterminating babies.&nbsp; You’re a smart man, Bill.&nbsp; Figure it out.<br /><br />The truth is not elusive or hard to comprehend, but it will require some courage to defend.&nbsp; I’m praying that you will live your Catholic faith without compromise or fear.&nbsp; That’s your sacred duty as a Catholic Christian.&nbsp; That’s the no-spin truth.&nbsp; (I’m just looking out for you, Bill.)<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-3779069030282391891?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-74904562065891942832010-12-18T15:07:00.001-05:002010-12-18T15:08:06.122-05:00An ordinary day had suddenly become the most miraculous day in human history.&nbsp; She was no longer simply Mary, no longer alone in herself. How astonishing is the news the angel has just given her! The God she loves above all else has called her name; called her to come receive the most splendid gift. He chose Mary, and she chose Him. And in an instant the God whom the universe cannot contain was safely tucked inside the darkness of her womb, growing and becoming. Though she could not feel Him yet, He was there. Not just in spirit now, but <i>in her…</i> part of her as He’d never been part of anyone before.<br /><br />Weeks pass…she looks no different, yet she is the chamber that now protects the Holy One as He grows.<br /><br />Then one day out of the blue she feels Him! That first exhilarating movement that feels like bubbles… so slight yet unmistakably baby.&nbsp; <b style="color: #351c75;">Mighty God</b> now softly stirs with delicate arms and tiny legs. He formed the vast oceans and filled them with marvelous creatures, and now He floats quietly in the warm, pure sea created only for Him.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TQ0S8Qa8zKI/AAAAAAAABIk/3bjKAdNA9SY/s1600/conception_8_week.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="217" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TQ0S8Qa8zKI/AAAAAAAABIk/3bjKAdNA9SY/s320/conception_8_week.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br />Soon He is kicking her, pushing her, and forcefully! He enjoys doing flips in this private pool; His ears now hear the sound of her voice, and He is quickly taking up more and more space in her body. He has always occupied her heart, and now she looks down at her round belly, places her hand over the spot where He kicks, and marvels at how He has taken her over. She eagerly awaits the moment when she can kiss His tiny face, count tiny fingers and toes, and hold Him close to her heart…the heart He captured long ago.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TQ0TIC-97UI/AAAAAAAABIo/rYdxcu4M1nI/s1600/baby+in+utero.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="210" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TQ0TIC-97UI/AAAAAAAABIo/rYdxcu4M1nI/s320/baby+in+utero.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />Finally, the appointed hour comes, and He who gives life to every man and creature now waits for His own birth. <b style="color: #351c75;">I AM the LIFE</b> waits for His first breath. She must deliver her <span style="color: #351c75;">Redeemer.</span> And suddenly, there He is in her arms! <i>Eternity</i> was cradled sleeping in her lap.<br /><br />The mighty, sovereign Lord she bowed before was now wearing the skin of her own flesh and nursing at her breast! To be twice overcome with fierce and tender love; once as a mother for her child, and again as a servant daughter of her <span style="color: #351c75;">Savior.</span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TQ0TS13ppsI/AAAAAAAABIs/hQQda1F4oj8/s1600/kissingfacegod.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TQ0TS13ppsI/AAAAAAAABIs/hQQda1F4oj8/s320/kissingfacegod.jpg" width="239" /></a></div><br />What exquisite joy and affection she must have felt to smell the sweetness of His head, feel the softness of His new baby skin (all parents know there’s nothing better than baby skin), hear His baby sighs and snores, and snuggle His warm little body against her own in sleep. Heaven on earth – literally – and every moment was hers to savor. How indescribably sweet! No mother has ever known greater joy, nor ever will.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />Yet she who was blessed with such an unspeakable gift also bore the greatest sorrow of any mother on earth. She gave Him life, raised Him, taught Him, tended Him, and adored Him only to suffer with Him the cruel death that would bring us Life.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TQ0UGH4_USI/AAAAAAAABI0/qND3BRvknnY/s1600/pieta.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TQ0UGH4_USI/AAAAAAAABI0/qND3BRvknnY/s320/pieta.jpg" width="308" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />By His Incarnation a holy mother was born.&nbsp; And as though the blood He shed on the cross wasn’t gift enough, in His magnanimity He gave to us heaven’s most fragrant rose.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TQ0Tbku3AmI/AAAAAAAABIw/b4_r6uuASls/s1600/mystical_rose.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TQ0Tbku3AmI/AAAAAAAABIw/b4_r6uuASls/s320/mystical_rose.jpg" width="231" /></a></div><br />Now the Mother of the Savior is our mother, and how blessed we are to have the guiding light of her obedience and humility to illumine our lives and show us the way of faithfulness.<br /><i><br style="color: #351c75;" /><span style="color: #351c75;">Come quickly, Lord Jesus, and do not delay!</span></i>&nbsp; <i>Blessed Mother, give us your heart so beautiful, so pure, so immaculate, so full of love and humility that we might receive Jesus and love Him and you loved Him!</i><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-7490456206589194283?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-51778759631507409432010-12-10T13:26:00.000-05:002010-12-10T13:26:30.579-05:00<div style="color: #351c75;">Stealing this from <a href="http://freethroughtruth.blogspot.com/2010/12/philosophy-of-ambiguity.html">a friend's blog.</a>&nbsp; I know he won't mind.&nbsp; It made me laugh, and it's just plain encouraging.&nbsp;</div><br />The next time you feel like GOD can't use YOU, just remember...<br /><br />Noah was a drunk<br />Abraham was too old<br />Isaac was a daydreamer<br />Jacob was a liar<br />Leah was ugly<br />Joseph was abused<br />Moses had a stuttering problem<br />Gideon was afraid<br />Sampson had long hair and was a womanizer<br />Rahab was a prostitute<br />Jeremiah and Timothy were too young<br />David had an affair and was a murderer<br />Elijah was suicidal <br />Isaiah preached naked<br />Jonah ran from God<br />Naomi was a widow<br />Job went bankrupt<br />John the Baptist ate bugs<br />Peter denied Christ<br />The Disciples fell asleep while praying<br />Martha worried about everything<br />The Samaritan woman was divorced, more than once<br />Zaccheus was too small<br />Paul was too religious<br />Timothy had an ulcer...<br />AND Lazarus was dead!<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-5177875963150740943?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-24260361629108018552010-12-07T22:04:00.001-05:002010-12-07T22:05:25.451-05:00<a href="http://www.catholic.org/clife/advent/story.php?id=39471">At Catholic Online</a><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TP71ZYkkmqI/AAAAAAAABIg/g_MGeTfAqMY/s1600/annunciation.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TP71ZYkkmqI/AAAAAAAABIg/g_MGeTfAqMY/s320/annunciation.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><i>“Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you!” “You shall conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus.” </i><br /><br /><b>Let this mystery teach us humility. </b><br /><br />Mary’s answer to Gabriel is simply incredible, but it became much more precious for me when I stopped to ponder the middle of this story. We may miss the best part is we fail to recognize the humanness in Mary. Not sinfulness, but humanness. That’s the quality that makes this event so marvelous. <br /><br /><i>“But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and considered in her mind what sort of greeting this might be. And the angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.’” </i><br /><br />She was greatly troubled! Scared, even? Can you see her expression; hear the thoughts racing through her mind? <i>What in the world is going on?!? He’s telling me not to be afraid… what is this all about? A son? Now I’m confused. How can this be? I do not know man. God Himself will do this? The child will be holy? The Son of God? </i><br /><br />Now comes the glorious ending: <i>“Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be done to me according to your word.” </i><br /><br />She went from being troubled and confused one moment to being perfectly willing and trusting the next because of true humility. Her reply is remarkable not only because of what she said but because of all she didn’t say. She didn’t say, <i>“Me? Why me?”</i> Or, <i>“But, but, wait…”</i> She didn’t say, <i>“I can’t…” </i>Gabriel gave her precious few details about how this would all unfold, yet she didn’t hesitate to agree.&nbsp; She understood it wasn’t really about her; it was about Him. <br /><br />Mary didn’t say “yes” with a proud spirit or a self-congratulatory attitude, nor did she refuse out of a feeling of inadequacy or unworthiness. She knew she was a mere mortal, most unworthy. She also knew God was wise and loving and able. Her “yes” had nothing to do with her and everything to do with Him. <br /><br />Yes to His plan, His will, His power, His authority. She took Gabriel at his word and believed that God knew what He was doing, and her part was to simply say, “I am at your disposal.” It was up to God to do everything else. It’s also noteworthy that she didn’t offer any assistance. She didn’t presume that she could add something to the mix that would make it better. She said yes, and then carried on as usual. Not knowing what would happen next or how it would happen, she left everything after that moment up to God. <br /><br />That’s real humility. To say to God, “As You wish. You will do it. Do with me whatever You please. All glory is Yours.” It seems plain enough, but so often real humility gets all mixed up with false humility (which is actually pride). It seems more humble to refuse when asked to do something, especially something important, and we say self-deprecating things like, “Oh, I’m not that good,” or “I’m not smart enough,” or “I’ve never done that before,” or “There are lots of people who are better at this than me,” and on and on and on. <br /><br />Don’t you shudder to think what might have happened if Mary had responded that way? She’d never been a mother before, so she was inexperienced. She may have felt there were smarter women in the community. She could have tried to defer and list all the reasons why she was right to defer. But thank God she was humble enough to say yes. <br /><br />It’s not a mark of humility to say to God that His plan can’t be done because you’re not the one, you’re inadequate, you’re not smart enough, you’re not good enough, you’re not ________________ (fill in the blank). <br /><br />Of course you’re not good enough. So what? It isn’t about you or me and what we don’t have. God has everything, God is everything and humility is just saying “yes” and not thinking too much or too little of you, but only of how great God is. <br /><br /><i>“My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed for the Mighty One has done great things for me – holy is his name.” Luke 1:46-49 </i><br /><br />Mary, most mild, pray for me that I will humbly say “yes” to God in whatever He asks of me.<br /><br />-----<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-2426036162910801855?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-17997485749302315392010-12-07T15:44:00.000-05:002010-12-07T15:44:00.607-05:00Grab the Kleenex now.&nbsp; I'm still wiping away tears as I type this.&nbsp; Sit down and watch, weep, and be amazed.<br /><br /><object height="340" width="560"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Ye39mgcHC3E?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;color1=0x5d1719&amp;color2=0xcd311b"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Ye39mgcHC3E?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;color1=0x5d1719&amp;color2=0xcd311b" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="560" height="340"></embed></object><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-1799748574930231539?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-39591151844794933792010-12-06T10:12:00.001-05:002010-12-06T10:13:10.007-05:00A new favorite during prayer time:<br /><br /><br /><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/g7BbncHyw9E?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;color1=0x5d1719&amp;color2=0xcd311b"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/g7BbncHyw9E?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;color1=0x5d1719&amp;color2=0xcd311b" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br /><br />Isn't it lovely?<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-3959115184479493379?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-34092340935533353112010-12-04T17:28:00.000-05:002010-12-04T17:28:55.864-05:00<a href="http://www.catholic.org/clife/advent/story.php?id=39437">At Catholic Online</a><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TPrAb0zFlHI/AAAAAAAABIc/qDdQ4Dh1HgM/s1600/She-shall-bring-forth-a-son.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TPrAb0zFlHI/AAAAAAAABIc/qDdQ4Dh1HgM/s320/She-shall-bring-forth-a-son.jpg" width="278" /></a></div><br /><br />We hold in our hands during these weeks of Advent the treasure of all treasures.&nbsp; The season beckons us to once again contemplate something truly astonishing.&nbsp; It will pass us by if we are not careful.&nbsp; In the stillness, as the earth is falling asleep for the winter comes a message, spoken with a single word.<br /><br /><i><b>Emmanuel </b></i><br /><br />The headlines are shouting doom and despair but today I am not listening.&nbsp; Our culture is yelling obscenities but today I am not listening. Problems and annoyances are mocking and taunting me, but today I am not giving in. <br /><br />Not today. Not now. For this moment I am enthralled by Emmanuel.<br /><br />God is with us. GOD is <i>with</i> us. GOD is with <i>us</i>. Emmanuel. Close your eyes, quiet your heart and hear the word pass through your lips and realize what it means. <br /><br />This is the thing that makes Christianity unique. This is what makes the Christian faith more than a philosophy or an abstract idea.&nbsp; It’s what makes it the real deal.&nbsp; This is what renders every other belief in every other god meaningless and a sham. <br /><br />The Incarnation is the tenderest, most revealing, most daring love letter ever written:<br /><br /><blockquote><i>“I love you so much.&nbsp; I long for you.&nbsp; You cannot become as I am, so I will become as you are.&nbsp; You cannot reach Me, so I will inhabit you.&nbsp; There shall never be anything between us ever again.&nbsp; Your darkness is now My light.&nbsp; There is no part of you I refuse.&nbsp; I withhold nothing from you.”</i></blockquote><br />Jesus <i>came.</i> He shed His robe of glory and put on vulnerable flesh. He became one of us, clothed in our skin and bones and blood and sweat and tears. He blessed and restored our humanity by inhabiting it Himself and closed the gap between mortal and immortal. By taking that mortal flesh to the cross to shed His precious and perfect blood, He bridged the impassable chasm between us and our Creator. <br /><br />Our God has done the unthinkable, the unimaginable, the impossible, the radical, and the incredible. He came, and He remains. He is with us still. <br /><br />Does a God of anger or arrogance humble Himself and take on the very form of His created ones in order to save them from their own sin? Does a God of contention lay His authority down and subject Himself to the law of the world He created? Does a vengeful God surrender Himself to an unjust death for the sake of those murdering Him? <br /><br />And still, the world doesn’t get it! Still, the reality of Christ’s unabashed love for us is not understood. Still, He is with us, unnoticed. Still, we forget the magnitude of what He has done. Still, we are unaware of who He is.&nbsp; <br /><br />Rejoice! There is no distance between us and our God. We do not stand outside His door weeping, begging for a glance from His furrowed brow, or a crumb from His table. He has demolished the wall between us and carried us inside His house to enjoy everything He has, including the food of Himself. <br /><br />Our God alone is worthy of praise and honor and awe and obedience because He has left no measure of separation between us and Himself. Out of love our King became our servant. Love compelled the spotless Lamb to become every wretched, repulsive, disgusting sin in order to free us, cleanse us and make us new. Love compelled the Lord who owes us nothing to pay everything to cancel our debt. <br /><br />There is none beside Him.&nbsp; Only Jesus is Emmanuel, God with us. Nothing in this world is more deserving of our attention, especially this season. Whatever else may be going on, our gaze should be fixed on Emmanuel. We should be looking expectantly at that manger with grateful hearts. We not only can rejoice, we must rejoice. <br /><br />Of course, life will go on, and our obligations must be met. Work must be done and should be done. Important current issues must be dealt with and not ignored. But heaven forbid we blow past Advent in our haste, worry and stress, and fail to open our minds and our hearts each day to the miracle of Emmanuel.&nbsp; <br /><br />Heaven forbid we do not read this love letter.&nbsp; It is an astounding reality our language cannot articulate.&nbsp; It is the summation of our every need; the complete expression of God’s desire.&nbsp; The Word made flesh.&nbsp; It’s the only word the world needs to hear.<br /><br />Emmanuel ~ God is with us! Rejoice!<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-3409234093553335311?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-5194830805091632492010-12-01T22:13:00.001-05:002010-12-01T22:14:32.020-05:00<a href="http://www.catholic.org/clife/advent/story.php?id=39397">at Catholic Online</a><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TPcN81yLqEI/AAAAAAAABIU/v5ZdV76zdQE/s1600/Nativity-Scene.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TPcN81yLqEI/AAAAAAAABIU/v5ZdV76zdQE/s320/Nativity-Scene.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div style="color: blue;"><i>Simple and profound, done with paper, yarn, glue and lots of prayer, these little efforts reap wonderful spiritual rewards for young and old alike.</i></div><br />Far beyond the decorations I’ve been pulling out of boxes all week, my most favorite <span style="color: black;">Christmas</span> things are the traditions we unpack and dust off during this joyful season.<br /><br />This week I was providentially gifted with a brand new Advent/Christmas tradition for my family, one I’d never heard of before but instantly loved when I read about it. (<a href="http://catholicfamilyvignettes.com/2010/11/30/our-2010-nativity-advent-ure/">Catholic Family Vignettes</a>, thank you!)&nbsp; Perhaps some of you will be familiar with it, but it’s more likely you’ve not heard of it before either, since I now know that it’s not practiced much anymore outside of monasteries in Europe.<br /><br />I don’t even know what to call the tradition.&nbsp; But it goes like this:&nbsp; Every character in the Nativity scene has something valuable to teach us as we prepare for the Savior’s birth.&nbsp; Each one has a unique role, and virtues they embody and model for us.&nbsp; The names of all the characters are printed on slips of paper, along with the virtues they best demonstrate.&nbsp; The slips of paper go in the proverbial hat, and each family member draws one.<br /><br />You must trust that you will draw the one you’re “supposed” to get.&nbsp; God knows!&nbsp; Then you spend your Advent trying to learn the lessons and virtues of the character you drew.&nbsp; You do your best to “be” who you drew, asking the Lord in prayer to help you each day.<br /><br /><b>Christmas Star</b><br /><i>Virtues: provide a steady light to guide weary pilgrims.&nbsp; A source of guidance and illumination.</i><br /><br /><b>Angel</b><br /><i>Virtues: Proclaims the “tidings of great joy.”&nbsp; A source of inspiration.&nbsp; Obedient to the will of God.</i><br /><br /><b>Blessed Virgin Mary</b><br /><i>Virtues: Meek, humble, modest and pure.&nbsp; Full and complete obedience to God.&nbsp; Holiness.</i><br /><br /><b>St. Joseph</b><br /><i>Virtues: Humility, leadership and trust in God.&nbsp; Chastity and patience.</i><br /><br /><b>Shepherd</b><br /><i>Virtues: Leadership.&nbsp; Listens to God.&nbsp; Kindness to the lambs.&nbsp; Goodness, tenderness, watchful care.</i><br /><br /><b>Donkey</b><br /><i>Virtues: Humility, docility.&nbsp; Patiently bears all burdens.</i><br /><br /><b>Ox</b><br /><i>Virtues: Hard work, diligence, patience and sacrifice.</i><br /><br /><b>Lambs</b><br /><i>Virtues: Docility, innocence, obedience and trust.</i><br /><br />After dinner the other night, we all drew our “parts” and talked about what it meant to have humility or docility or to be a source of illumination.&nbsp; It took a minute, but I was able to convince my 9 year-old that she really could “be” St. Joseph this Advent!&nbsp; (She never expected to draw that one!)&nbsp; Then she asked me, “Hey, Mom – what about the Wise Men?”&nbsp; I think she’s absolutely right.&nbsp; They should be in on this as well.&nbsp; So this is my own addition:<br /><br /><b>Wise Men</b><br /><i>Virtues:&nbsp; Humility, perseverance, faith, piety, trust in God’s promises.</i><br /><br />A beloved Austrian priest friend explained to me that this tradition was once very popular in Central Europe, especially the Alps and in Italy, but today it’s known only in a few monasteries and parishes.&nbsp; He said that his order has been practicing this tradition for decades and their version includes things like the crib, the fire, the stone, etc.&nbsp; There is a beautiful meditation for each character.&nbsp; In his monastery, they do the drawing during the O-antiphon days before Christmas. <br /><br />It is surely a beautiful new tradition in our family, one that I pray we will cherish for generations to come.&nbsp; (If you’re wondering, there were some characters that didn’t get drawn at all.&nbsp; Again, God knows what He wants to teach us and who we need!)<br /><br /><b>Other Favorite Advent/Christmas traditions:</b><br /><br />Let’s call this one <b>“Making a Comfortable Bed for Jesus.”</b>&nbsp; It’s wonderful when you have young children in the house.&nbsp; I type up a long list of helpful deeds and sacrifices that can be offered up to Jesus, and cut them into slips of paper.&nbsp; The slips go into a jar or bowl and we draw one or more out each day and do the suggested task.&nbsp; When we’ve done our selfless deed, we put a small piece of yarn into a small “bed” we’re making for Baby Jesus.&nbsp; The idea is we want Him to have a very soft, warm bed when He’s born, so we must do lots and lots of sacrificial deeds before Christmas!<br /><br />I cut up pieces of yarn and leave the yarn and the deed slips somewhere the kids can all reach, and then we watch our little bed of yarn grow as the days go on.&nbsp; This can be a great “course corrector” when a child is having a bad day, or frankly, when Mom is having a grouchy day!<br /><br />We also love putting shoes on the front porch for <b>St. Nicholas Day!</b>&nbsp; Visit <a href="http://www.stnicholascenter.org/Brix?pageID=23">The St. Nicholas Center website</a> for all the details about this tradition, as well as great craft ideas you can do with your children.&nbsp; St. Nicholas’s feast day is December 6, so hurry!!<br /><br />Finally, we are so grateful to the hard-working family behind <a href="http://www.holyheroes.com/">Holy Heroes.</a>&nbsp; They’ve put together a wonderful Advent experience that includes activities each day for the kids to do, including the Jesse Tree, fun word searches, coloring pages, and how to use St. Therese’s sacrifice beads to teach your kids about making a sacrifice, and learn the Rosary as well!&nbsp; You can sign up to participate free of charge, and you’ll be glad you did.<br /><br />All these traditions, these little efforts pay big rewards in bringing the Advent/Christmas seasons alive for children and passing on the truths of our rich inheritance, our Catholic faith.&nbsp; It does a grown-up heart much good as well.<br /><br />Do you have any great traditions to share?<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-519483080509163249?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-16973124845555313032010-12-01T10:09:00.000-05:002010-12-01T10:09:08.923-05:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TPZksQNKAcI/AAAAAAAABIQ/mziQEhRmlts/s1600/jesus-christ-in-robe-cradling-lamb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TPZksQNKAcI/AAAAAAAABIQ/mziQEhRmlts/s320/jesus-christ-in-robe-cradling-lamb.jpg" width="224" /></a></div><br /><br /><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;">Thank you, Good Shepherd, for loving this little lamb today.&nbsp; Thank you for a most surprising and unexpected gesture of love and affection.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;"><i><br /></i></div><i><span style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;">I love you, Jesus!</span></i><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-1697312484555531303?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-11567516104235737042010-11-27T23:53:00.000-05:002010-11-27T23:53:32.788-05:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TPHewck2RRI/AAAAAAAABH4/CAHN9Q0GW1Q/s1600/advent_cal_2010.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="293" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TPHewck2RRI/AAAAAAAABH4/CAHN9Q0GW1Q/s320/advent_cal_2010.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br /><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: large;">For a season of expectant waiting</span></i></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: large;">Of hopeful longing</span></i></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: large;">Of quiet seeking</span></i></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: large;">Of silent awe</span></i></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: large;">Of joyful preparation</span></i></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;">I give <span style="color: red;">Praise</span> to God</span></span></i></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-1156751610423573704?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-73992421627299461992010-11-25T00:55:00.000-05:002010-11-25T00:55:47.513-05:00<div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-large;">Thank You, Heavenly Father.</span></i></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TO31NG53AjI/AAAAAAAABHU/nJurlQuWqUo/s1600/thanksgiving+food.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TO31NG53AjI/AAAAAAAABHU/nJurlQuWqUo/s320/thanksgiving+food.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;"><i><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TO31Ij7yfUI/AAAAAAAABHQ/R6ip4nrp1KE/s1600/thankful.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TO31Ij7yfUI/AAAAAAAABHQ/R6ip4nrp1KE/s320/thankful.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TO31SZBE_BI/AAAAAAAABHY/1A4uvBUjHq0/s1600/autumn+landscape.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TO31SZBE_BI/AAAAAAAABHY/1A4uvBUjHq0/s320/autumn+landscape.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;"><i><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TO34W0MkdOI/AAAAAAAABHg/bopABhFfL6U/s1600/mystical_rose.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TO34W0MkdOI/AAAAAAAABHg/bopABhFfL6U/s320/mystical_rose.jpg" width="231" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;"><i><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;"><i><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TO34bug2c7I/AAAAAAAABHk/m_xUeYEtXUs/s1600/papa+Benedict.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TO34bug2c7I/AAAAAAAABHk/m_xUeYEtXUs/s320/papa+Benedict.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;"><i><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;"><i><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TO31dSnhK8I/AAAAAAAABHc/8R3srxLrWXE/s1600/thank_you_US_troops.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TO31dSnhK8I/AAAAAAAABHc/8R3srxLrWXE/s320/thank_you_US_troops.jpg" width="264" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;"><i><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;">For Everything.</span></span></i></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-7399242162729946199?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-30469134218358432192010-11-22T15:55:00.002-05:002010-11-23T20:05:22.790-05:00<a href="http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=39274">at Catholic Online</a><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TOrXz56cg3I/AAAAAAAABHM/koMfQgN2U6o/s1600/man+patdown.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="203" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TOrXz56cg3I/AAAAAAAABHM/koMfQgN2U6o/s320/man+patdown.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />There’ve been many disconcerting stories from folks who’ve been subjected to the TSA’s new security procedures at airports around the country.&nbsp; Three that most clearly illustrate the insanity and stupidity of these new screenings are the <a href="http://www.wbtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=13534628">breast cancer survivor</a> who was forced to remove her prosthesis from her bra and show it to the TSA agent; the image of a little boy standing shirtless near the metal detector as a grown man touches every inch of his half-naked little body; the <a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40291856/ns/travel-news">bladder cancer survivor</a> in Detroit who was left soaked in his own urine after agents broke the seal on his urostomy bag even though he begged them to be careful.<br /><br />This is <i><b>security?!?</b></i>&nbsp; Have we lost our collective minds?&nbsp; Humiliation, undressing and groping are now the tools of counter-terrorism?<br /><br />There is an uproar across the nation, but is it loud enough yet?&nbsp; We’re on the cusp on having these “procedures” cemented into permanent existence if we don't soon halt this gross violation of rights.<br /><br />I’m among those who think this is a 4th Amendment issue.&nbsp;&nbsp; <i>“The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures shall not be violated…”</i><br /><br />It is unreasonable to treat every passenger as a potential terrorist.&nbsp; It is unreasonable to subject every passenger to being seen virtually naked and/or groped by a government official.&nbsp; It is unreasonable and inexcusable to treat small children this way.&nbsp; Random selection is not a sufficient reason, besides which it seems a laughable waste of time and resources.<br /><br />3 year-old girls are not the enemy.&nbsp; 7 year-old boys are not the enemy.&nbsp; Elderly nuns in full habit are not the enemy.&nbsp; The overwhelming majority of people in the United States are not the enemy.&nbsp; The enemy, by and large, is Muslim men.&nbsp; But since the current administration won’t even <i>name</i> the enemy, let alone employ security measures that actually target the enemy, now every American citizen is treated as the enemy.<br /><br />The fact is, if we’re only finding the chemical explosives hidden in a potential bomber’s underwear while he’s standing in security surrounded by hundreds of other passengers, then we’re finding out too late.&nbsp; We’ve already failed.<br /><br /><b>Profiling is not a dirty word</b><br /><br />We will never be secure if we are unwilling to do the logical, necessary, perfectly reasonable act of profiling.&nbsp; That must be the first step in determining if someone poses a security threat.&nbsp; As a law-abiding citizen, I have nothing to hide or fear.&nbsp; <b>I would much rather have someone digging into my profile than into my pants.</b><br /><br /><i><b>El Al</b></i> is widely held up as the model of how to achieve airport security.&nbsp; The Israelis have successfully kept their people and their planes safe from terrorist attacks and they’ve done it without requiring naked full-body images, reaching inside passenger’s clothing or groping people’s genitals.<br /><br />Recall <a href="http://articles.cnn.com/2010-01-11/opinion/yeffet.air.security.israel_1_airport-security-isaac-yeffet-el-al?_s=PM:OPINION">the interview in January of this year with Isaac Yeffet,</a> former head of security for<i><b> El Al </b></i>in which he said, “Stop relying only on technology.&nbsp; Technology can help the qualified, well-trained human being but cannot replace him.”&nbsp; Every passenger flying El Al is interviewed in person before check-in by one of their highly-trained agents.<br /><br />When asked what we learned from the failed bombing in Detroit last Christmas Day, Yeffet said, “We learned one thing. We do not have a good security system to be able to prevent tragedies in this country.&nbsp; After Lockerbie, everyone thought, now we've learned the lesson of how to be proactive instead of being reactive. Unfortunately, September 11 came and we know the result. Thousands of people lost their lives. Security totally failed, not at one airport, at three different airports around the country.”<br /><br />“In 2002, we had Richard Reid, the shoe bomber. This man gave the security people all the suspicious signs that any passenger could show. The man got a British passport in Belgium, not in England. Number Two: he flew to Paris; he bought a one-way ticket from Paris to Florida. He paid cash. He came to the airport with no luggage. What else do I need to know that this passenger is suspicious?”<br /><br />“What did we learn from this? Just to tell the passenger from now on, you take off your shoes when you come to the airport? This I call a patch on top of a patch.”<br /><br />His decisive recommendation for improving our security:&nbsp; “Every passenger – I don’t care his religion or whatever he is – every passenger has to be interviewed by security people who are qualified and well-trained and are being tested all year long.”<br /><br />That sounds reasonable, does it not?&nbsp; It would require a redirection of funds and an investment in more than machinery.&nbsp; It would require we put time and money into finding and training qualified people to handle the task of security.&nbsp; <i><b>El Al’s</b></i> approach is far different from ours.&nbsp; Their agents must be educated, speak two languages, go through long periods of classroom training, then extensive on-the-job training with supervisors to learn how to approach passengers.<br /><br />It’s expensive, but worth it because it’s highly effective.&nbsp; <i><b>El Al</b></i> passengers cooperate because they know the security interviews are truly done for their safety and they’re performed efficiently so people aren’t missing flights or being delayed without cause.<br /><br />When asked what he thinks of the full-body scanners, Yeffet replied, “I am against it. This is once again patch on top of patch. Look what happened, Richard Reid, the shoe bomber, hid the explosives in his shoes. The result -- all of us have to take off our shoes when we come to the airport. The Nigerian guy hid his explosives in his underwear. The result -- everyone now will be seen naked. Is this the security system that we want?”<br /><br />Indeed.&nbsp; Is this the security system we want?<br /><br />Like many other folks, I can’t help but wonder what will happen when the next terrorist bomber hides the explosives inside his rectal cavity where it won’t be seen or felt.&nbsp; Will every passenger then be required to submit to a body cavity search?&nbsp; It’s the next logical step in this progression of insane actions.<br /><br />We are forever <i>reacting,</i> always two steps behind because we care more for political-correctness than for real security.&nbsp; Profiling is not a violation of anyone’s rights.&nbsp; It is not discrimination.&nbsp; It is common sense to know who the enemy is likely to be and look more closely at that individual.&nbsp; It’s time we paid more attention to passengers before they enter the security area in the airport.<br /><br />How many patches will we keep putting on top of patches?&nbsp; And how many violations of fundamental rights by our bumbling government will we allow?&nbsp; Many Americans simply do not trust the government, and that is not an unreasonable position.&nbsp; Promises of scanned images never being saved are already broken.&nbsp; Assurances of professional courtesy are hard to believe when some agents can’t even exercise common decency when dealing with people with medical conditions and equipment.<br /><br />Napolitano, the TSA and now the President are all digging in their heels and insisting that these measures – these ineffective, invasive, humiliating and inappropriate procedures – are the best we can do, and in fact, what we must do.&nbsp; Napolitano is even favorable toward TSA unionizing. Can you imagine?&nbsp; Never being able to fire a lousy TSA agent?<br /><br />Pardon the pun, but we got caught with our pants down on 9/11 and we still haven’t pulled them back up.&nbsp; Now we’re treating every citizen like a suspected terrorist and calling it security.&nbsp; We’re so clever.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-3046913421835843219?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-4118944760146313472010-11-21T14:12:00.000-05:002010-11-21T14:12:21.183-05:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TEJVIvlWkmI/AAAAAAAABEg/sM7NAjXuVAg/s1600/Praise+heart.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TEJVIvlWkmI/AAAAAAAABEg/sM7NAjXuVAg/s320/Praise+heart.jpg" /></a></div><br /><br /><div style="color: red; text-align: center;"><b>Praise to Jesus Christ the King!</b></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TOlu6QZapsI/AAAAAAAABHI/SlvVS9jtDwQ/s1600/christ-king2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TOlu6QZapsI/AAAAAAAABHI/SlvVS9jtDwQ/s320/christ-king2.jpg" width="247" /></a></div><br /><br /><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;">Praise Him for His mercy!</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;">Praise Him for His compassion!</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;">Praise Him for His steadfast love!</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;">Praise Him for His faithfulness!</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;">Praise Him for His saving blood!</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;">Praise Him for His power and might!</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;">Praise Him!</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-411894476014631347?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-69690902656798929572010-11-19T19:37:00.001-05:002010-11-19T19:38:05.051-05:00<div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;">Perhaps the greatest strength of a good children's book is its ability to communicate complex or grown-up ideas in the most simple and utterly profound way.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;">That's what Anthony DeStefano has done with his newest book, <i>Little Star.</i>&nbsp; It's both the essence of Christmas and the essence of Good Friday all in one irresistible package.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;">An unlikely little star gives all he can give out of love for a tiny king... and we are all reminded of the difference a selfless, loving sacrifice can make.&nbsp; It's the Christmas story like you've never heard it told before.&nbsp; Whether 2 or 92, <i>Little Star</i> is a book you'll love to read Christmas after Christmas, silent night after silent night.&nbsp; And when you look up at the brightest star in the sky on that holy night, you'll smile in a brand new way.</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TOcW-HQbI8I/AAAAAAAABHE/PenWMCScioI/s1600/little_star_anthony-300x300.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TOcW-HQbI8I/AAAAAAAABHE/PenWMCScioI/s1600/little_star_anthony-300x300.jpg" /></a></div><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;">You can purchase this delightful book on Amazon.</span><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-6969090265679892957?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-44288461939941346952010-11-14T21:39:00.001-05:002010-11-14T21:41:00.462-05:00Hauntingly beautiful.<br /><br /><br /><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/miLV0o4AhE4?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;color1=0x5d1719&amp;color2=0xcd311b"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/miLV0o4AhE4?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;color1=0x5d1719&amp;color2=0xcd311b" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-4428846193994134695?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-44083933190832305372010-11-13T10:38:00.006-05:002010-11-24T18:56:33.518-05:00<span style="color: red;">UPDATE:&nbsp;</span> See also <a href="http://mychocolatehart.blogspot.com/2010/11/security-or-unreasonable-search-stop.html">"Security or Unreasonable Search?&nbsp; Stop Treating Americans Like Suspected Terrorists" </a><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=39152">at Catholic Online</a><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TN6w3cG2WNI/AAAAAAAABHA/PefxIy9U2fU/s1600/tsa_body_scan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TN6w3cG2WNI/AAAAAAAABHA/PefxIy9U2fU/s320/tsa_body_scan.jpg" width="260" /></a></div><br />I see long car trips in my future.&nbsp; Lucky for me I don’t mind driving.&nbsp; Barring unexpected emergencies, I think my flying days are over.&nbsp; Count me among the many, many Americans who are unwilling to be seen virtually naked and/or physically groped by a government employee.<br /><br />The reports coming from all over about the Transportation Security Administration’s new airport security measures are alarming.&nbsp; Since late October, airports around the country have begun requiring an “enhanced pat-down” procedure for anyone who refuses the full-body scan.&nbsp; People who have experienced this pat-down tell a very different story than the official statement given by TSA.<br /><br />First, travelers describe the shout-out:&nbsp; “We’ve got an Opt-out!” which is yelled at the top of the agent’s lungs so everyone around can hear.&nbsp; Next, they’re taken to a roped-off area usually still in view of everyone else going through security and the “pat-down” begins.&nbsp; The agent begins at the ankles and works his way up, now using the palms of the hand and the fingers when necessary, feeling every inch of the traveler’s body – including the genitals and breasts.<br /><br />What used to be done with the backs of the hands is now done with fingers and palms, and much more thoroughly and intrusively.&nbsp; Passengers are describing it as fondling, groping, aggressive, humiliating, and over the line.<br /><br />TSA swears that these pat-downs are done by a person of the same gender, but the reports I’ve read this past week say otherwise, that woman are being patted-down by men, and that even small children are being searched by agents of the opposite sex.&nbsp; Though frankly, there’s <i><b>NO WAY</b></i> this side of eternity I would allow <i><b>any</b></i> adult to search my child’s body and touch my child’s genitals, man <i>or</i> woman.<br /><br />This is going way too far.&nbsp; This to me is simply the beginning of the end of appropriate bodily privacy.&nbsp; This is a forced invasion under the guise of safety. The underlying goal is that people will gradually become accustomed to having their modesty shredded in public and their bodies exposed or groped whenever the government deems necessary.<br /><br />Thanks to the Shoe Bomber we’re all walking through security barefoot.&nbsp; Fine, I don’t care how many people see my feet.&nbsp; But the latest bombing attempts – have they been discovered on a terrorist’s person?&nbsp; No, they’ve been found in the baggage beneath the plane.&nbsp; Meanwhile, we’re doing virtual strip-searches and groping people’s genitals.&nbsp; Doesn’t it just seem like the terrorists are two or three steps ahead of us?<br /><br />Along with the gross bodily invasion, my objection to these new security measures lies with TSA agents themselves.&nbsp; In the last ten years, I have flown numerous times with my small children and sadly, my encounters with TSA agents have been ridiculously consistent.&nbsp; There surely are some agents who defy the trend, but time and time again, I found them to be unhelpful and indifferent.&nbsp; Traveling alone with small children isn’t easy and security after 9/11 made it even more difficult. <br /><br />Trying to manage a stroller, car seat, carry-on’s, plus two or three kids under age 4 is exhausting.&nbsp; Removing everyone’s shoes and jackets; collapsing the stroller while holding the baby; hoisting the stroller and car seat up onto the x-ray machine belt while holding the baby; having my walking child(ren) pushed by the agent through the metal detector alone; trying to keep my eyes on my child(ren) while the agent stands there waiting for me to dismantle everything with one arm; finally making it through with the baby only to find our shoes, bags, stroller, car seat, &amp; jackets left in a heap for me to collect.&nbsp; All the while, the TSA agents just stared, or glared if I wasn’t moving fast enough.&nbsp; These excursions through security always left me sweating, worn-out, and angry.<br /><br />On my last flying adventure, I was battling food poisoning from the day before.&nbsp; I was dehydrated and barely able to keep myself upright.&nbsp; Going through security, the agent confiscated my small water bottle despite my pleas and then “selected” me for a more extensive carry-on search.&nbsp; I was carrying my infant daughter and I begged to be allowed to sit down before I fell over, but the agent refused and forced me to stand there while she spent ten minutes going through every article in my carry-on.<br /><br />So no matter how often the TSA assures the American public that their employees are “professionals” who are “specially trained” to handle these enhanced security measures in a “respectful manner,” I don’t buy it for a second.&nbsp; I’ve seen otherwise.&nbsp; And now more than ever, passengers are at their mercy.<br /><br />We’re supposed to trust that these images are never saved but deleted immediately.&nbsp; Sorry, but I don’t buy that either.&nbsp; Suppose someday, God forbid, another lunatic successfully boards a plane with explosives on his/her body somewhere and blows up the plane.&nbsp; You don’t think TSA is going to want to be able to go back and review the scans from that day to try to find out who the terrorist was, how the explosives were missed and which agent missed them?<br /><br />Knowing human nature, is it so implausible to think that since these incredibly detailed full-body scans are randomly selected, more physically attractive people will <i>just happen</i> to be randomly selected for the honor?&nbsp; The counter-argument is to make the scans mandatory for everyone then, right?&nbsp; Even infants?&nbsp; Little children?&nbsp; The elderly?&nbsp; The disabled?&nbsp; Am I the only one who thinks the terrorists would be laughing their heads off at our clueless, politically-correct inability to actually protect ourselves?<br /><br />I do not trust the TSA to handle images of people’s naked bodies with respect or to keep their word that these images will be deleted immediately and not stored.&nbsp; I’m not at all okay with being intimately felt up by a TSA agent in places only my husband has the right to touch, and I see absolutely no reason whatsoever why children should be subjected to such a violation at the hands of an adult stranger.<br /><br />Did you know that TSA’s background check procedure only requires employees to disclose felony convictions that occurred in the previous ten years?&nbsp; Department of Homeland Security guidelines list 28 disqualifying convictions, one of which is rape and aggravated sexual abuse, but it does not specifically mention crimes against children.&nbsp; Is it possible the TSA agent patting down you and your children was convicted 11 years ago of sexually assaulting a child or raping a woman?&nbsp; Sure seems that way. <br /><br />It will be interesting to see how TSA responds to the new instructions given to Muslim women this week by the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR):&nbsp; <i>“In the “special recommendations for Muslim women who wear hijab,” it states: “Before you are patted down, you should remind the TSA officer that they are only supposed to pat down the area in question, in this scenario, your head and neck. They SHOULD NOT subject you to a full-body or partial-body pat-down.”</i><br /><br />Will TSA back off from giving Muslim women the “enhanced” pat-down?&nbsp; This confrontation is sure to play out very soon.<br /><br />We all want our planes to be safe.&nbsp; No one wants to be afraid to fly.&nbsp; But there has to be a better way to achieve security than this.&nbsp; (And indeed, <a href="http://mychocolatehart.blogspot.com/2010/11/security-or-unreasonable-search-stop.html">there is.</a>)&nbsp; If full-body scans are indeed essential, then I want only a specially-trained radiologist looking at it and <b>proof </b>that the images are deleted.&nbsp; If invasive bodily pat-downs simply must be endured, then I insist that specially-trained, thoroughly background-checked doctors and nurses are the ones doing it and that <b>my children are left alone.</b> I refuse to surrender my modesty, privacy, and bodily respect just to get on an airplane.&nbsp; It’s not worth it.<br /><br /><span style="color: red;"><br /></span><a href="http://mychocolatehart.blogspot.com/2010/11/security-or-unreasonable-search-stop.html"></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-4408393319083230537?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-53272820929779516792010-11-09T20:52:00.000-05:002010-11-09T20:52:26.130-05:00Astounding... inspiring... beautiful.<br /><br /><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/8MkxtkmXmvU?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;color1=0x5d1719&amp;color2=0xcd311b"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/8MkxtkmXmvU?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;color1=0x5d1719&amp;color2=0xcd311b" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-5327282092977951679?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-82279785521196053282010-11-07T08:21:00.000-05:002010-11-07T08:21:38.336-05:00<div style="color: red; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TEJVIvlWkmI/AAAAAAAABEg/sM7NAjXuVAg/s1600/Praise+heart.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TEJVIvlWkmI/AAAAAAAABEg/sM7NAjXuVAg/s320/Praise+heart.jpg" /></a><i> </i></div><div style="color: red; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="color: red; text-align: center;"><i>"I will praise the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praises to my God while I have being."&nbsp; Psalm 146:2</i></div><br />This morning I'm giving <span style="color: red;">Praise</span> to God for His tireless pursuing.<br /><br />For His love which never ends.<br /><br />For His mercy. Other gods want the blood of their people but our God wanted us so He spilled His own blood.<br /><br />For this gorgeously bright autumn day and the spectacle of <b><span style="color: red;">c</span><span style="color: orange;">o</span><span style="color: #6aa84f;">l</span><span style="color: #b45f06;">o</span><span style="color: #660000;">r</span>.</b>&nbsp; I <i><b>LOVE</b></i> it!!<br /><br />For my kiddos and my husband... I know, they're on my list every week but I can't help it.&nbsp; I still pinch myself and say, "They're <i>mine?</i>&nbsp; Wow..."<br /><br />For atomic clocks that automatically adjust the time so I don't miss Mass on time-change days like today!<br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TNanw4m2KLI/AAAAAAAABG8/WB7tU-NHWsA/s1600/hotchocolate.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TNanw4m2KLI/AAAAAAAABG8/WB7tU-NHWsA/s320/hotchocolate.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />For the many cups of hot cocoa we've been drinking around here lately.&nbsp; Gotta love it.&nbsp; Bring on the whipped cream or the marshmallows.&nbsp; And the biscotti.&nbsp; Yum.<br /><br />Glory and <span style="color: red;">Praise</span> to our God!&nbsp; Have a wonderful week everyone.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-8227978552119605328?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-64143451140177725742010-11-04T12:25:00.001-04:002010-11-04T12:29:01.237-04:00<object height="340" width="560"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/wp_RHnQ-jgU?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;color1=0x5d1719&amp;color2=0xcd311b"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/wp_RHnQ-jgU?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;color1=0x5d1719&amp;color2=0xcd311b" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="560" height="340"></embed></object><br /><br /><br />On Saturday, October 30, 2010, the Opera Company of Philadelphia brought together over 650 choristers from 28 participating organizations to perform one of the Knight Foundation's "Random Acts of Culture" at Macy's in Center City Philadelphia. Accompanied by the Wanamaker Organ - the world's largest pipe organ - the OCP Chorus and throngs of singers from the community infiltrated the store as shoppers, and burst into a pop-up rendition of the Hallelujah Chorus from Handel's "Messiah" at 12 noon, to the delight of surprised shoppers.<br /><br />This event is one of 1,000 "Random Acts of Culture" to be funded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation over the next three years. The initiative transports the classical arts out of the concert halls and opera houses and into our communities to enrich our everyday lives. To learn more about this program and view more events, visit randomactsofculture.org. The Opera Company thanks Macy's and the Friends of the Wanamaker Organ (wanamakerorgan.com) for their partnership, as well as Organ Music Director Peter Conte and Fred Haas, accompanists; OCP Chorus Master Elizabeth Braden, conductor; and Sound Engineer James R. Stemke. For a complete list of participating choirs and more information, visit operaphila.org/RAC. This event was planned to coincide with the first day of National Opera Week.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-6414345114017772574?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-83479015690925538002010-10-30T11:27:00.003-04:002010-10-30T11:28:45.015-04:00<object height="340" width="560"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/DE-US7YM9S8?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;color1=0x5d1719&amp;color2=0xcd311b"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/DE-US7YM9S8?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;color1=0x5d1719&amp;color2=0xcd311b" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="560" height="340"></embed></object><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-8347901569092553800?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-978600497580228762010-10-26T19:48:00.000-04:002010-10-26T19:48:28.992-04:00<a href="http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=38885">at Catholic Online</a><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TMdnrZhSzuI/AAAAAAAABG4/i64Mav8RqIU/s1600/leadership+sign.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TMdnrZhSzuI/AAAAAAAABG4/i64Mav8RqIU/s320/leadership+sign.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />There’s nothing quite election season to leave a bitter taste in your mouth, is there? This election season is particularly acidic.&nbsp; I’d say I’ll be relieved when it’s over but the problem is it never seems to end.<br /><br />When I take note, state by state, of the weaselly, dishonest, greedy, smug, power-drunk creeps that are being elected and <i>re-elected</i> to our government’s chambers, I am both disgusted and flabbergasted.&nbsp; It’s appalling that so many men and women without honor are rising to positions of consequence; it’s downright mystifying that having shown their true colors they are rewarded for their disgrace with another opportunity to be publicly disgraceful.<br /><br />It’s tempting to think that the virtue of leadership has been all but eradicated.&nbsp; What has happened to honor?&nbsp; What has happened to our appetite for it? What about integrity?&nbsp; What of self-control, decency, respect, graciousness, humility, or honesty?&nbsp; It’s a lazy, drowsy, ignorant and disinterested electorate that does not require virtue and good character from its officials.<br /><br />Oodles of our public servants routinely cheat, lie, and steal to their hearts’ content.&nbsp; They break their private and public vows again and again.&nbsp; They make excuses and justify and hold a press conference to perform a tearful apology and then cheat, lie and steal some more.&nbsp; They have no honor.<br /><br />It’s not perfection I’m looking for, and certainly not a savior.&nbsp; I have a Savior.&nbsp; I’m simply longing for a genuine leader.&nbsp; Someone who will remember who works for whom here.&nbsp; Remember Barbara Boxer’s tantrum earlier this year when a senior military officer had the decency to call her “Ma’am” and she dressed him down like he was a snotty adolescent?&nbsp; “I’ve worked so hard for that title,” she whined.&nbsp; Boxer desperately needs reminding that if indeed she has worked hard, it’s supposed to have been <i><b>for the people,</b></i> not to get herself a title.&nbsp; She’s a <i>public servant,</i> not the Queen of Sheba.&nbsp; (And if military protocol is so offensive to her, by all means we should make sure she’s never subjected to it again.)<br /><br />I’m longing for a leader who doesn’t explain away his own failures by intimating the masses are just too stupid to understand what he’s trying to do for us.&nbsp; The condescension coming from the President toward Americans is unbelievable.&nbsp; Those who don’t agree with him and aren’t thrilled with his policies and plans are just “not thinking straight.”&nbsp; Anyone not voting for Democrats next week is accused of being “scared” and giving in to fear instead of facts.&nbsp; <br /><br />He goes on the radio and makes a pitch to African-Americans to get out and vote for Democrats, implying they may not understand the importance of this election.<br /><blockquote> “Everybody in the barbershops, the beauty shops, and at work — everybody’s got to understand: This is a huge election; if we turn out in strong numbers, then we will do fine. If we do not, if we are depressed and decide, ‘well, you know, Barack’s not running right now, so I’m just going to stay home,’ then I’m going to have my hands full up here on Capitol Hill.”</blockquote>Naturally, it’s all about<b> him.</b>&nbsp; Isn’t it just a tad insulting that the President assumes the only reason African-Americans will get out and vote is to support <i>him?</i>&nbsp; And “we’ll” be just fine as long as Democrats are re-elected?&nbsp; Who’s “we?”&nbsp; <br /><br />He continues to insist the reason Americans aren’t skipping with glee over the new health care law is that we still don’t understand it; we either didn’t listen or he didn’t talk about it enough or didn’t use small enough words for the peasants to comprehend.&nbsp; (Well, there may be a grain of truth to that – Nancy Pelosi herself said the bill had to be passed in order to find out what was in it.)<br /><br />Again and again, this President shows his arrogance and his contempt for those who aren’t falling in line with his agenda.&nbsp; It seems in his mind it just can’t be possible that we have seen him clearly, heard him clearly, understood him clearly and rejected all of it soundly!<br /><br />The snobbery continued this week when he said that if Republicans wish to come along for the economic recovery ride, “they gotta sit in back.”<br /><br />Where are the leaders who are willing to place themselves under the same laws and penalties they wish to inflict on us?&nbsp; If the Obama/Pelosi/Reid Health Care Extravaganza is so fabulous and benevolent, why isn’t everyone on Capitol Hill joining in the party?&nbsp; They grouse at the mere suggestion that those who <i>write</i> the law should be <i>subject</i> to the law.&nbsp; No, the peasant citizenry must applaud the Royals new prescription even as the Royals refuse their own medicine.<br /><br />This year we’ve seen ordinary Americans assert their right to question and criticize their government officials, doing it peacefully and legally and yet those citizens are regularly caricatured by this arrogant administration as racist, bigoted, dim-witted crazies who are a dangerous threat to the country.&nbsp; Since when is protesting over-taxation and too much government interference a sign of being unhinged?&nbsp; I seem to remember another group of citizens who got tired of being taxed to death by an overbearing government…George, Tom, Sam, John, Ben, Richard, Stephen, Charles, etc.&nbsp; They pledged to each other,<i> “our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.”</i><br /><br />My, how things have changed.&nbsp; It seems the only things sacred today are “tolerance” (meaning everything must be tolerated except the belief that some things are immoral and just plain wrong), political correctness (we mustn’t call something what it actually is), “choice” (legal child extermination) and the right to demean Christianity, especially Catholicism.<br /><br />Give me a man who would rather die than behave dishonorably.&nbsp; Give me a woman who will not degrade herself or spill her own child’s blood.&nbsp; Give me a man who is faithful to his wife and family.&nbsp; Give me a woman who prizes true femininity.&nbsp; Give me a leader who elevates our discourse with his speech.&nbsp; Give me a leader who inspires by virtue of his character and actions.<br /><br />I’ll take a man who’s made a mistake, acknowledged it honestly, taken responsibility, and worked to correct it any day over one who passes the blame, covers it up or tries to rewrite history.&nbsp; I’ll take a man who has failed once or twice over a pompous prince.<br /><br />Give me a leader who <i><b>serves.</b></i>&nbsp; Give me a leader whose strength is his humility and integrity; whose gift is her savvy and wisdom and grace.<br /><br />These men and women will be the reward of the citizens who diligently seek them, support them, demand them, and frankly, <i>become</i> them.&nbsp; How long will we punish ourselves with tyrants, thieves and scoundrels?&nbsp; I still believe there <i>are</i> men and women with honor out there and they <i>could</i> be our elected leaders.&nbsp; (I’ve made my choice for our 45th President!)&nbsp; The question is, will we choose them?<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-97860049758022876?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-9790143868524184222010-10-26T16:43:00.000-04:002010-10-26T16:43:44.453-04:00<a href="http://azstarnet.com/news/blogs/pueblo-politics/article_3bbf4f4e-e12c-11df-b57f-001cc4c002e0.html">The 9th Circus has done it again.</a><br /><br />I can't scream loud enough.<br /><br />Does citizenship mean NOTHING anymore to anyone? Why don't we just hold open elections where the whole world can vote? Who cares, right? We're halfway there now.<br /><br />If you're not a legal American citizen, YOU DON'T GET A VOTE. PERIOD.<br /><br />When will this madness stop? What is wrong with these people?<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-979014386852418422?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-54406014465234358612010-10-24T13:45:00.000-04:002010-10-24T13:45:41.548-04:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TEJVIvlWkmI/AAAAAAAABEg/sM7NAjXuVAg/s1600/Praise+heart.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TEJVIvlWkmI/AAAAAAAABEg/sM7NAjXuVAg/s320/Praise+heart.jpg" /></a></div><br /><br /><div style="color: red; text-align: center;"><i>"Every day I will bless thee, and praise thy name for ever and ever."&nbsp; Psalm 145:2</i></div><br /><span style="color: red;">Praise</span> the Lord for this<span style="font-size: large;"><b> <span style="color: orange;">gl</span><span style="color: #660000;">or</span><span style="color: #783f04;">i<span style="color: red;">o</span></span><span style="color: #bf9000;">us</span><span style="color: #cc0000;"> au</span><span style="color: #b45f06;">tu</span><span style="color: #ffd966;">mn</span> <span style="color: #274e13;">d</span><span style="color: #4c1130;">ay</span>!&nbsp; </b></span>The drive to church this morning was so colorful and beautiful!&nbsp; Every day more and more green is giving way to orange, yellow, red and gold.&nbsp; Just gorgeous.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TMRwcfUXyGI/AAAAAAAABG0/Aegzje8S8qQ/s1600/leaves.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="231" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TMRwcfUXyGI/AAAAAAAABG0/Aegzje8S8qQ/s320/leaves.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="color: red;">Praise</span> Him for the cooler weather, which I can't get enough of.&nbsp; I'll have to suffer through this coming week, however, since our forecast calls for 80 degrees again!&nbsp; Yuck!<br /><br />For a wonderful day yesterday, baking and decorating pumpkin and leaf cookies with my girls and a good friend.&nbsp; Plus, my husband became a 4th degree Knight!&nbsp; I truly have a knight in shining armor.&nbsp; And he's surrounded by fair maidens!<br /><br />For a fun week ahead... my aunt is visiting which will be lots of good times for everyone.<br /><br />For His steadfast love and patience and mercy that is always new.&nbsp; For the way He is chipping away at the hardness around my heart, so gently, and teaching me how to love.<br /><br />For the joy of knowing so many truly good men... good men are becoming too rare, and it's such a blessing to a woman to know them and be cared for by them.&nbsp; I pray for three good men to make wonderful husbands for my girls someday.&nbsp; Or maybe two... I'm still hoping one of my girls will become a nun.&nbsp; :) <br /><br />Enjoy the week ahead.&nbsp; The Lord bless you and keep you and make His face shine upon you!<br /><script src="http://www.linkytools.com/basic_linky_include.aspx?id=52030" type="text/javascript"></script><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-5440601446523435861?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-63708366815688134292010-10-22T13:39:00.001-04:002010-10-22T13:42:07.285-04:00I love this!&nbsp; Brilliant!&nbsp; Barbara Boxer is an arrogant, condescending, rude woman.&nbsp; She dressed down a senior military officer like he was a stupid adolescent.&nbsp; No respect whatsoever.&nbsp;<br />Yet I fear it'll take a miracle for the people of California to vote her out of office.&nbsp; CA seems to love rude, condescending, man-hating feminists.<br /><br /><iframe frameborder="0" height="225" src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/16072732" width="400"></iframe><br /><a href="http://vimeo.com/16072732">Call Me Senator</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/user3849600">RightChange</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-6370836681568813429?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-1546923247035114292010-10-17T09:43:00.000-04:002010-10-17T09:43:38.141-04:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TEJVIvlWkmI/AAAAAAAABEg/sM7NAjXuVAg/s1600/Praise+heart.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TEJVIvlWkmI/AAAAAAAABEg/sM7NAjXuVAg/s320/Praise+heart.jpg" /></a></div><br /><br /><div style="color: red; text-align: center;"><i>"Praise the Lord!&nbsp; Praise him from the heavens, praise him in the heights!&nbsp; Praise him, sun and moon, praise him, all you shining stars!&nbsp; Praise Him, you highest heavens, and you waters above the heavens!"&nbsp; Psalm 148</i></div><br />I want to <span style="color: red;">Praise</span> Him today for being faithful and patient and generous.&nbsp; He is tender and gentle and compassionate.&nbsp; He gives wonderful gifts.<br /><br />For the love He shows me through my husband, and the blessings He has brought me because of my husband.&nbsp; Not the least of which is my husband!<br /><br />For the temperature outside... 50 degrees!&nbsp; I'm loving it!&nbsp; Hubby said this morning, "Jen, I think Fall has really, truly fallen."&nbsp; AMEN!<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TLr9LhiSrfI/AAAAAAAABGw/eu3YK0QWFgI/s1600/fall+leaves.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TLr9LhiSrfI/AAAAAAAABGw/eu3YK0QWFgI/s320/fall+leaves.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />For warm stew, warm bread, good wine, and a comfortable home.<br /><br />For my little ladies and the awe of watching them grow.&nbsp; (Too fast, if you ask me!)<br /><br />For peppermint mochas.&nbsp; Mmmmmm...<br /><br />For the chance to use my voice for His glory and the good of His church and witness to the truth in a world overshadowed by lies.&nbsp; <i>Here am I, Lord.&nbsp; Send me.</i><br /><br /><br /><br />Share your <span style="color: red;">Praises</span> with me this beautiful day!<br />God bless you this coming week with more joy than you can hold.<br /><br /><script src="http://www.linkytools.com/basic_linky_include.aspx?id=50717" type="text/javascript"></script><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-154692324703511429?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-23260785355934928062010-10-14T19:18:00.002-04:002010-10-14T19:20:05.602-04:00<a href="http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=38738">at Catholic Online</a><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TLeOWv_8WUI/AAAAAAAABGs/u8yVOqyzwQw/s1600/potential-beach-baby-cute-life250" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TLeOWv_8WUI/AAAAAAAABGs/u8yVOqyzwQw/s1600/potential-beach-baby-cute-life250" /></a></div><br /><br />Words have great potential.&nbsp; They can build up or just as easily tear down; heal as easily as harm; unite as easily as divide.&nbsp; They can also manipulate and conceal the truth.<br /><br />Words twisted out of their proper meaning into a refashioned one have perhaps the greatest potential of all – the potential to convince untold numbers of well-meaning yet vacillating people to accept a lie they would otherwise reject.<br /><br />Nowhere in our society is this played out more clearly than in the abortion battle.&nbsp; The pro-aborts depend on verbal shenanigans to persuade and give moral cover to the evil act of killing the child in the womb.&nbsp; Among the abortion peddlers’ favorite euphemisms are “terminating a pregnancy,” “choice,” and “reproductive rights.”&nbsp; These deceitfully constructed terms are preferred over the word <i>abortion</i> itself because they brainwash people into forgetting all about the baby. <br /><br />Everyone who saw <i><b>The O’Reilly Factor</b></i> on October 7th got a double helping of this dehumanizing rhetoric, and sadly some of it came from Bill O’Reilly himself.&nbsp; In a segment with Alan Colmes and Monica Crowley about “nanny state” government intrusion, Colmes argued that Republicans are the worst offenders because they want to prevent homosexuals from marrying and take away “reproductive rights” from women.<br /><br />O’Reilly started out strong by saying that abortion is about life and death, not “reproductive rights.”&nbsp; Colmes countered, “It’s giving women the right to do with their bodies as they choose.”&nbsp; Then, to my dismay, O’Reilly offered up the latest euphemism <i>du jour:&nbsp;</i> “That sounds good,” he said to Colmes, “but what happens to the potential human being in the process?”&nbsp; <br /><br />The discussion concluded with O’Reilly asking Colmes whether the government should protect the lives of potential human beings, and Colmes replied, “No, because you cannot tell when it’s a potential human being, you cannot answer when that becomes a human being.”<br /><br /><b>There it is:&nbsp; <i>potential</i> human being.</b><br /><br />Not 30 minutes later in his Culture Warriors segment, while discussing that horrible woman in England who said she’d be the first to put a pillow over the face of a suffering child, O’Reilly told Margaret Hoover that abortion sloganeering has desensitized people to the seriousness of abortion through the use of euphemisms like “reproductive rights.”&nbsp; When Hoover objected to him conflating “reproductive rights” with a woman suffocating a child to death, O’Reilly sternly told her, “Whether you believe in abortion or not, it is a very serious issue.&nbsp; And to cloud it under the euphemism ‘reproductive rights’ is insulting – insulting – <b>to the potential human beings who lose their lives.” </b><br /><br />Bill, you may have meant well, but Pot, meet Kettle.&nbsp; By calling your preborn neighbors only “potential” human beings, you are guilty of the very same sloganeering and deceptive euphemisms you properly denounced on your program.<br /><br />There are no “potential” human beings.&nbsp; Only human beings, with the potential to grow and change and come closer every day to being the person God created them to be.<br /><br />The pro-abort strategy now is to insist that we cannot know exactly when life begins and therefore, whatever classification you put on the occupant of the womb (zygote, embryo, fetus, baby), it is only a <i>“potential”</i> human being, not an <i>actual</i> one.&nbsp; As such, it’s not a matter of life and death, but solely a matter of a woman’s personal choice and “rights.”&nbsp; Therefore, no need to question the ethics or legality of abortion or consider the life being killed, since what is being destroyed was only “potential.”<br /><br />Now genetically and scientifically, the matter is settled.&nbsp; Immediately upon conception there exists a new and unique member of the species <i>Homo sapiens.</i>&nbsp; Is there any time from conception to birth when the child is a cat or a whale or a potato?<br /><br />So now come the ambiguous, subjective definitions of what makes us human and when we become fully human and when a human deserves the right to his/her own life.&nbsp; Some will contend that intelligence is required, or independence, or utility.&nbsp; <br /><br />The pro-aborts insist that a human being is only an actual human being deserving of life <i>if and when</i> the mother decides so.&nbsp; If she wants the child, the child is a human being.&nbsp; If she doesn’t want the child, it is at best a “potential” human being, but more likely just an insentient parasite.&nbsp; For the abortion propagandists, humanity is irrelevant.<br /><br />I expect the abortion peddlers to perpetuate this false and dehumanizing notion that the child in the womb is merely a “potential” human being, but not O’Reilly.&nbsp; O’Reilly is Catholic, and a high profile one to boot.&nbsp; The responsibility of his faith obliges him to know better and to defend the humanity and right to life of every child in the womb from the moment of conception, period.<br /><br />In fairness, O’Reilly has on many occasions been a vocal advocate for the preborn and I appreciate his willingness to speak out when no one else in the media would dare.&nbsp; He helped Jill Stanek put the spotlight on Christ Hospital’s infanticide over a decade ago.&nbsp; He was willing to call the late Dr. George Tiller exactly what he was – a baby killer.&nbsp; He didn’t shy away from pointing out the funding of abortion in Obamacare.&nbsp; In many ways, O’Reilly is an ally in the fight to protect the preborn.<br /><br />Yet, like so many Catholics, he seems to be either ignorant of authentic Catholic teaching or uncomfortable defending it.<br /><br />For all our sakes, let’s review what the Church teaches about the human person:&nbsp; “Man exists as a unique and unrepeatable being, he exists as an “I” capable of self-understanding, self-possession and self-determination…However, it is not intellect, consciousness and freedom that define the person, rather it is the person who is the basis of the acts of intellect, consciousness and freedom.&nbsp; <b>These acts can even be absent, for even without them man does not cease to be a person.”</b>&nbsp; (<i>Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church</i>, 131)<br /><br />As to the cowardly tendency of many to say that abortion is “between a woman and her God,” we should remember this:&nbsp; <br /><br />“Certain sins, moreover, constitute by their very object a direct assault on one’s neighbor.&nbsp; Such sins in particular are known as social sins…Social too is every sin against the rights of the human person, starting with the right to life, including that of life in the womb…”&nbsp; (CSDC, 118)<br /><br />Regarding the alleged “right” to abortion, the teaching is crystal clear; there is none.&nbsp; There IS a right to life:&nbsp; <br /><br />“The right to life, from conception to its natural end…is the condition for the existence of all other rights and, in particular, implies the illicitness of every form of procured abortion and of euthanasia.”&nbsp; (CSDC, 155)<br /><br />“Concerning the ‘methods’ for practicing responsible procreation, the first to be rejected as morally illicit are sterilization and abortion.&nbsp; <b>The latter in particular is a horrendous crime </b>and constitutes a particularly serious moral disorder; far from being a right, it is a sad phenomenon that contributes seriously to spreading a mentality against life…” (CSDC, 233)<br />&nbsp; <br />In truth, birth does not elevate the humanity of the child to a new, previously unattained status. The child in the womb is fully human from the moment of conception and as Catholics, we are gladly burdened with the duty to proclaim and defend this truth against the deceptive euphemisms of our time.&nbsp; We’re not lacking in this country for public Catholics who don’t know and don’t live their faith, or worse, flaunt their open disregard for Church teaching.&nbsp; What we need are more Catholics who know their faith thoroughly and profess it unapologetically.&nbsp; <br /><br />Bill O’Reilly has great potential to become such a Catholic.&nbsp; Each of us has that potential.&nbsp; Here’s hoping we all exceed our potential.<br /><br />(By the way, the Compendium is available on Amazon.com and Catholic bookstores everywhere.&nbsp; Every Catholic should have one.)<br />---------------------------------------------------------------<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-2326078535593492806?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-52408341697197663982010-10-10T17:35:00.000-04:002010-10-10T17:35:34.538-04:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TEJVIvlWkmI/AAAAAAAABEg/sM7NAjXuVAg/s1600/Praise+heart.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TEJVIvlWkmI/AAAAAAAABEg/sM7NAjXuVAg/s320/Praise+heart.jpg" /></a></div><br /><br /><div style="color: red; text-align: center;"><i>"If we have died with him, we shall also live with him; if we endure, we shall also reign with him; if we deny him, he also will deny us; if we are faithless, he remains faithful -- for he cannot deny himself."&nbsp; 2Tim 2:11-13</i></div><br />I am horribly late posting this today, but better late than never.&nbsp; It is never too late to <span style="color: red;">Praise</span> our God!!<br /><br />I <span style="color: red;">Praise</span> Him today for His faithfulness.&nbsp; Though I am faithless and fickle and easily swayed and distracted and prone to wandering, He remains faithful.&nbsp; He cannot be otherwise.<br /><br /><span style="color: red;">Praise</span> God for the gorgeous days we've had, though it's been far too warm for my taste.&nbsp; You know how I love the cold weather and it's been in the 80's this week.&nbsp; Much too warm for fall.&nbsp; But later this week it is supposed to cool down, which means I'll be praising Him even more!<br /><br />For the joy of my family, for being home with my children, teaching them, playing with them, and hopefully building a good home for them.&nbsp; I so often feel like I'm failing at all of the above, but I'm the only mom they've got, so I better keep trying!<br /><br />For my husband's love and affection, and his willingness to do things that make me happy.&nbsp; He loves me better than I deserve.&nbsp; Lord, make me a worthy wife.<br /><br />For pumpkin spice waffles... with homemade whipped cream.&nbsp; Yum.<br /><br />For hot cocoa... with homemade whipped cream.&nbsp; YUM.<br /><br />For the brownie recipe I found last week and tried.&nbsp; Let me just say - <i><b>YUM.</b></i><br /><br />If you're new to My Chocolate Heart, I post this meme every Sunday.&nbsp; It's the Lord's Day and I want to give Him praise for all He's done and all He's given.&nbsp; Please join in by linking up below and share your <span style="color: red;">Praises!&nbsp;</span> You can borrow the picture of the heart and use it on your blog and link back here.&nbsp; I look forward to reading them.&nbsp; God bless you!<br /><script src="http://www.linkytools.com/basic_linky_include.aspx?id=49440" type="text/javascript"></script><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-5240834169719766398?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-2997167071684472382010-10-04T21:57:00.000-04:002010-10-04T21:57:05.124-04:00<a href="http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=38552">at Catholic Online</a><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TKqFOC3rISI/AAAAAAAABGo/9fWBW36Hpsw/s1600/army_suicide.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TKqFOC3rISI/AAAAAAAABGo/9fWBW36Hpsw/s320/army_suicide.jpg" width="261" /></a></div><br /><br />Do you recall President Obama’s speech last month on the Iraq war?&nbsp; Vaguely?&nbsp;&nbsp; I remember hearing some TV pundit saying that night after the speech, “The problem for Obama is that he delivered good news on a topic nobody cares about.”&nbsp; <br /><br />Is that true?&nbsp; After so many years, are we just so weary of hearing about the war and the billions of dollars spent that we’re not interested anymore?&nbsp; With all due respect, we don’t have the right to not care anymore.&nbsp; <br /><br />June, 2010 was an historic month for U.S. soldiers and not in a proud way.&nbsp; The Army reported a record number of suicides – 32 total.&nbsp; Every day during June, at least one of our soldiers took his or her own life.&nbsp; That knowledge grieves me.&nbsp; I hope it grieves all of us.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <br /><br />Just last week the news from Fort Hood, TX was once again senseless and tragic.&nbsp; It seems four soldiers took their own lives; one of them also killed his wife first, leaving their two young children orphans. <br /><br />The simple fact is after 9 years of war, the Army is severely stressed.&nbsp; Troops have faced multiple and extended deployments that have taken a harsh toll on soldiers and their families.&nbsp; Long separations can strain even good relationships and troubled ones may crumble under the stress.&nbsp; But the bottom line is there is simply no way a soldier goes off to war and returns home untouched by what he saw and experienced on the battlefield, and the hidden wounds may be the most deadly.&nbsp; Too many of our heroes are coming home only to fight the war after the war – the battle for their peace of mind, their self-worth, and their lives.<br /><br /><i>(This article is not meant to be a referendum on the war.&nbsp; I’m not interested in trashing President Obama or President Bush or Democrats or Republicans.&nbsp; Nor am I interested in criticizing the Army.)&nbsp; </i><br /><br />The Army is well aware of the problem and they are taking it very seriously.&nbsp; I recently had the opportunity to speak directly with COL Christopher Philbrick, director of the Army Suicide Prevention Task Force.&nbsp; He readily acknowledges the extraordinary stress the troops are under and the reality that many of them need help dealing with the psychological, physical and emotional effects of a brutal war.<br /><br />When I asked him about the stigma attached to behavioral and mental health needs, the reluctance of many military members to seek help for fear of harming their careers, he admitted such a stigma has been around a long time, but today’s Army is aggressively working to eliminate it.&nbsp; “Is the stigma gone?&nbsp; No, it is not,” COL Philbrick told me.&nbsp; “Is it less prevalent than in the past?&nbsp; Yes, it is.”<br /><br />New standards being implemented across the board call for every soldier of every rank to receive a series of behavioral health consults before deployment, during deployment, and upon returning home.&nbsp; The Army is even taking advantage of Skype technology to provide long-distance help to soldiers – even those in theater – when counselors are not immediately available in person.<br /><br />I asked him if there was one message he’d like to communicate loud and clear to every soldier, no matter their rank or circumstances, and he replied without hesitation, “Raising your hand and asking for help is a sign of strength, not of weakness.&nbsp; The days where help could not be found are over.&nbsp; <b>You are not alone, and there is hope and help.&nbsp; You can get better.”</b><br /><br />COL Philbrick directed me to a new video recently released and posted on the Army’s suicide prevention website, called <a href="http://www.armyg1.army.mil/hr/suicide/">“Shoulder to Shoulder: I Will Never Quit On Life.”</a>&nbsp; I’ve watched the entire video and I share COL Philbrick’s hope that it will be widely viewed and utilized to reach soldiers who need to know that they’re not broken or weak or unwanted – they can heal and their lives can be good again.<br /><br />I’m very glad to hear about what the Army is doing to take care of its soldiers, but is that the end of the story?&nbsp;&nbsp; What about the rest of us?&nbsp; What about the community of faith?&nbsp; Can we provide more than just moral and patriotic support, more than care packages?&nbsp; Indeed, we can.&nbsp; <br /><br />After 9 long years, human nature dictates that war-fatigue easily takes over and if we do not have a loved one serving, the battle can seem very far from us and impersonal.&nbsp; It’s easy to put it out of our minds.&nbsp; It’s gone on for so long now that it just blends into the background of our daily lives.<br /><br />(<i>Again, this is not a referendum on the war!&nbsp;</i> The point of this discussion is to rally the troops – by that I mean the Prayer Warriors.)<br /><br />May I urgently beg you to bring it back to the forefront?&nbsp; Bring it back to your private prayer times and bring it back to your parish’s mass intentions if it has been absent lately.&nbsp;&nbsp; <br /><br /><b>We need to pray for our heroes’ protection against depression and the spirit of suicide and hopelessness.&nbsp; </b>Even after they have returned home to “normal life,” Satan is still working to destroy them through despair, guilt, anger, grief, and fear.&nbsp; Let us do what we are uniquely equipped to do and carry them to Jesus, imploring the intercession of the angels and saints.&nbsp;&nbsp; We owe them that.<br /><br />Let the rest of the world read this and scoff and say, “How stupid and meaningless!”&nbsp; I don’t care.&nbsp; We know the reality of the spiritual realm; we know the truth of things unseen.&nbsp; It’s not a battle against flesh and blood; it isn’t fought with rifles or bombs.&nbsp; It is fought on our knees with persistence and faith.&nbsp; <br /><br />October is the month of the Rosary – what better way to pray for our heroes than to place them in Mary’s arms.&nbsp; Offer your rosary for them.&nbsp; If your parish prays a communal rosary, offer it for them.&nbsp; Remember them when you spend time in Adoration.&nbsp; Pray the chaplet of St. Michael for them.&nbsp; Get specific and pray that our heroes’ hearts and minds will be kept safe from suicide and despair, fear, hate, guilt, anger and every other device of the enemy.&nbsp; Pray that the families waiting at home will remain strong and faithful.<br /><br />Look around you and see the soldiers in your community, in your church and pay attention.&nbsp; It may sound surprising, but soldiers who’ve been there say that when someone actually asked them whether they were thinking of hurting or killing themselves, they were honest about it.&nbsp; If you think there’s a soldier or family in your midst who needs help, be brave enough to say something.&nbsp; You might save a life.&nbsp; <br /><br />Most of all, <b>please keep praying.</b>&nbsp; Do battle for our troops as they fight the war after the war.&nbsp; <br /><br />For more information and resources, go to <a href="http://www.armyg1.army.mil/hr/suicide/">http://www.armyg1.army.mil/hr/suicide/</a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.armyg1.army.mil/hr/suicide/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TKqFGMtqyQI/AAAAAAAABGk/TY9PpW2BuM4/s320/SPSP_Poster_tn.jpg" width="213" /></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-299716707168447238?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-53108007839091795652010-09-26T18:13:00.000-04:002010-09-26T18:13:42.308-04:00<a href="http://www.catholic.org/hf/faith/story.php?id=38435">at Catholic Online</a><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TJ_FDuE10hI/AAAAAAAABGg/W8DQRwgmArE/s1600/rosary+in+hands.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="277" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TJ_FDuE10hI/AAAAAAAABGg/W8DQRwgmArE/s320/rosary+in+hands.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br />It feels like a terrible thing I’m about to say, but here goes:&nbsp; <span style="color: #990000;">I often have a very hard time with prayer.</span><br /><br />I wish I didn’t.&nbsp; I wish I had a heart like St. Therese or John Paul the Great or St. Francis de Sales, but right now I don’t.&nbsp; I’ve been struggling greatly with discouragement and futility and a lack-luster, ho-hum spirit.&nbsp; Combine that with the busyness of homeschooling, childcare, housework, and other responsibilities and it’s a recipe for defeat. <br /><br />Why is it such a struggle?&nbsp; Everything in me wants to be closer to Jesus.&nbsp; There’s nothing in my heart that wants to reject Jesus and choose the world instead.&nbsp; Yet I continually seem to be clawing my way up the mountain loaded down with frustration and doubt instead of walking steadily along the path of trust and devotion.<br /><br />I love Jesus.&nbsp; There is no doubt about that.&nbsp; He is my Wonderful, merciful Savior.&nbsp; I will not let Him go.&nbsp; That much I know for sure.&nbsp; So why doesn’t that translate into a vibrant, rich, colorful, fulfilling prayer life?&nbsp; What’s wrong with me?<br /><br />What’s wrong is that I’m me and not the idealized, perfected image of me that I want to be.&nbsp; I have many weaknesses to overcome.&nbsp; If I am ever to do that, I need help.&nbsp; And Jesus, being ever wise and helpful, gives me what I need – struggle.<br /><br />The struggle is a gift because the most important thing I need to learn is simply to be faithful.&nbsp; To commandeer Nike’s slogan, <b><span style="color: #073763;">“Just Do It.”</span></b>&nbsp; Like strengthening a muscle through repeated exercises, my heart needs some strength training, and some days the weight is heavier than others.&nbsp; There are those sweet times when prayer is joyful and rewarding and inspiring, but then there’s times when it’s like schlepping through thick mud and it feels utterly pointless.<br /><br />It is a test of my faithfulness.&nbsp; It’s the weight of perseverance.&nbsp; It will strengthen me if I carry it.&nbsp; I don’t have to run with it, only walk.&nbsp; But if I truly want to grow in devotion and holiness, I am obligated to struggle.&nbsp; There’s no assurance that I won’t fall or fail miserably – quite the opposite.&nbsp; Sure as the sun will rise, I will fall.&nbsp; I’ll screw up.&nbsp; It doesn’t matter.&nbsp; I’m obligated to struggle anyway.<br /><br />Devotion is proven during the hard times; the flat, stale, monotonous times.&nbsp; It’s easy to fall in love, but staying in love requires great effort.&nbsp; God has heard me say I want to love Him more, and He obliges my request by giving me ample opportunities to prove it.&nbsp; It’s up to me to push my weak heart to resist the complacency and excuses and distractions and come to Him in prayer.<br /><br />I recently read “The Sustaining Power of Ritual: Emotions, Celebration, Boredom” by Fr. Ronald Rolheiser and it was a good dose of encouragement.&nbsp; He begins like this:&nbsp; “Never travel with anyone who expects you to be interesting all the time.&nbsp; On a long trip there are bound to be some boring stretches.”<br /><br />He writes in a reassuring way about the purpose of ritual and habit in our spiritual lives.&nbsp; Everything is not exciting, brimming with emotion and romance all the time.&nbsp; That does not automatically mean there’s something wrong.&nbsp; There is something important to be said for routine and duty.<br /><br /><blockquote>“Duty and commitment without heart will not ultimately sustain themselves.&nbsp; However, with that being admitted, it is important to recognize and name the fact that any relationship in love, family, church or prayer can only sustain itself over a long period of time through ritual and routine.&nbsp; <b>Ritual sustains the heart, not vice versa.”</b><br /><br />“Anyone who prays only when she can affectively bring along her heart and soul will not sustain prayer for long.&nbsp; But the habit of prayer, the ritual, simple fidelity to the act, showing up to do it irrespective of feelings and mood, can sustain prayer for a lifetime and reign in the roaming of the head and heart.”</blockquote><br />Jesus knows what meager, pitiful things I have to give Him even on my best days.&nbsp; It’s not Jesus who tells me I must prepare an extravagant banquet for Him every time I pray, but the enemy of my soul.&nbsp; That way he can persuade me to skip prayer when I am feeling stressed or disinterested or unmotivated.&nbsp; <i style="color: #20124d;">It’s pointless to pray when your heart isn’t in it,</i> he lies. <i style="color: #20124d;">Why bother?</i><br /><br />Well, I need to bother because it’s the only way to resist the liar.&nbsp; It is never pointless to pray and Satan knows it.&nbsp; And whether I say, “Amen” and <i>feel</i> any better for the time I spent in prayer or not is beside the point.&nbsp; I’m building spiritual muscle and training my will.&nbsp; I’m showing the Lord in my small way that I’m not a fair-weather friend but a sincere follower.<br /><br />The good news is that as Catholics we have a rich storehouse of prayers at our disposal to help train our weak prayer muscles.&nbsp; The Liturgy of the Hours, the Rosary, the Divine Mercy chaplet, the Angelus, etc., are all tailor-made for developing a sustaining ritual of prayer throughout the day.&nbsp; There’s also no shortage of wonderful devotional books with daily readings to jump-start your prayer and focus your heart in the right place.&nbsp; My favorite right now is the <i>In Conversation with God</i> series by Francis Fernandez.&nbsp; (It’s easy to find on Amazon and most Catholic bookstores.)<br /><br />Whether the prayers spill out of a full heart and roll off the tongue or whether it feels like schlepping through mud or as dull as watching paint dry, it’s all good.&nbsp; The hardest part may be just showing up and doing it.&nbsp; It takes repetition, time, determination, and humility.&nbsp; It’s a struggle I don’t think is going to go away anytime soon.&nbsp; But fidelity through the hard times is the evidence of love; faithfulness when it’s easier to give up is the mark of devotion.<br /><br />So there is only one thing to do – <span style="color: #990000;">pray.</span>&nbsp; If it doesn’t come easily, pray all the more.&nbsp; And be assured that by doing so your heart will be strengthened, your faith increased whether you can immediately perceive it or not.&nbsp; The struggle is not there to frustrate you or discourage you but to condition your soul for the battle.<br /><br />Just do it.&nbsp; And remember you’re not alone.&nbsp; I’m schlepping right along with you.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-5310800783909179565?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-47948732819200750232010-09-26T09:27:00.001-04:002010-09-26T09:28:01.037-04:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TEJVIvlWkmI/AAAAAAAABEg/sM7NAjXuVAg/s1600/Praise+heart.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TEJVIvlWkmI/AAAAAAAABEg/sM7NAjXuVAg/s320/Praise+heart.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div style="color: red; text-align: center;"><i>"The heavens are telling the glory of God; and the firmament proclaims his handiwork."&nbsp; Psalm 19:1</i></div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TEJVIvlWkmI/AAAAAAAABEg/sM7NAjXuVAg/s1600/Praise+heart.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a><br /><span style="color: red;">Praise God</span> for the new season!&nbsp; It's finally autumn!&nbsp; Yippee!!&nbsp; Only problem is, the weather here has been SO HOT.&nbsp; Ugh.&nbsp; Double ugh.&nbsp; But at least summer is officially over.<br /><br /><span style="color: red;">Praise God</span> for my wonderful husband who celebrates a birthday tomorrow.&nbsp; Happy Birthday, my love!&nbsp; Here's to a few more decades together.<br /><br />We have the joy of seeing deer come right up into our backyard almost every night (the apples and carrots I throw out helps!) and it's so much fun to see them.&nbsp; Such beautiful, gentle creatures. <br /><br />I'm thanking God for 4 weeks of homeschool completed!&nbsp; We're doing it!<br /><br />I'm just bursting with the need to fill my house full of autumn things... colors and candles that smell like pumpkin spice and apple orchards and cinnamon, leaves and scarecrows, "Thankful" messages, tokens of harvest and good food.... mmmmmmm!!&nbsp; Thank you God for <span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="color: orange;"><span style="color: #f6b26b;">a</span>u</span><span style="color: red;">tu</span><span style="color: yellow;"><span style="color: #e69138;">m</span><span style="color: orange;">n</span></span>!!</b></span><br /><br />What's on your list of <span style="color: red;">Praises</span> today?<br /><br />&nbsp; <br /><script src="http://www.linkytools.com/basic_linky_include.aspx?id=46810" type="text/javascript"></script><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-4794873281920075023?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-28596345925242307372010-09-20T17:27:00.002-04:002010-09-20T17:30:17.956-04:00<a href="http://www.catholic.org/hf/family/story.php?id=38331">at Catholic Online</a><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TJfQhbVkEKI/AAAAAAAABGY/ATl9clsTUIk/s1600/married+couple.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TJfQhbVkEKI/AAAAAAAABGY/ATl9clsTUIk/s320/married+couple.jpg" /></a></div><br />The September 20th edition of National Review magazine contains an editorial called <a href="http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/print/245649">“The Case for Marriage”</a> that is, in my humble opinion, one of the best I’ve ever read on why our society needs to protect – rather than redefine – the institution of marriage.<br /><br />This reasoned and objective article wastes no time getting right to the point: <br /><br /><blockquote>NR: “If it is true, as we are constantly told, that American law will soon redefine marriage to accommodate same-sex partnerships, the proximate cause for this development… will be that the most influential Americans, particularly those in law and the media, have been coming increasingly to regard opposition to same-sex marriage as irrational at best and bigoted at worst.”</blockquote><br />Setting aside the drama currently mucking up the issue, isn’t it prudent to consider the merits of the case?<br /><br /><blockquote>NR: “But we should first consider whether the historic and cross-cultural understanding of marriage as the union of a man and a woman really has so little to be said for it.”</blockquote><br />Indeed.&nbsp; Before we just pitch marriage out the window in an emotional ballyhoo, let’s stop for a moment and put our thinking caps on.&nbsp; I believe we’ll discover the case for marriage is much stronger than its remodelers care to admit.<br /><br /><blockquote>NR: “We think there is quite a bit to be said for it: that it is true, vitally true.&nbsp; But it is a truth so long accepted that it is no longer well understood.&nbsp; Both the fact that we are debating same-sex marriage and the way that debate has progressed suggest that many of us have lost sight of why marriage exists in the first place as a social institution and a matter of public policy.”</blockquote><br />So what is marriage for?&nbsp; The emotional fulfillment of the people involved?&nbsp; To ensure people have someone to care for them in sickness and old age?&nbsp; No.&nbsp; Yes, marriage is an emotional union and yes, it encourages spouses to care for one another til the end, but the real reason for marriage is far more “other-oriented.” <br /><br /><blockquote>NR: “So at the risk of awkwardness, we must talk about the facts of life…The reason marriage exists is that the sexual intercourse of men and women regularly produces children.”</blockquote><br />It’s about <i>the children.</i>&nbsp; It’s about the family. <br /><br /><blockquote>NR:&nbsp; “Marriage exists, in other words, to solve a problem that arises from sex between men and women but not from sex between partners of the same gender: what to do about its generativity.&nbsp; It has always been the union of a man and a woman…for the same reason that there are two sexes:&nbsp; It takes one of each in our species to perform the act that produces children…the institution is oriented toward child-rearing.”<br /><br />“What a healthy marriage culture does is encourage adults to arrange their lives so that as many children as possible are raised and nurtured by their biological parents in a common household.&nbsp; That is also what a sound law of marriage does.”</blockquote><br />It is rightly pointed out that our society today is overflowing with broken homes where children are not residing with both parents in a common household.&nbsp; (This is not an argument in favor of further altering marriage, but a clarion call to rebuild the family as it <i>should be</i> – father, mother and children together.)&nbsp; One of the many undesirable effects of this is that now the government must be more involved than ever in the lives of children.&nbsp; Courts assume greater and greater responsibility for children’s welfare the more our marriage culture crumbles.&nbsp; For anyone desiring less government intrusion in their lives, this alone should be a great reason to encourage a return to a child-oriented view of marriage.<br /><br /><blockquote>NR:&nbsp; “Our culture already lays too much stress on marriage as an emotional union of adults and too little on it as the right environment for children.&nbsp; Same-sex marriage would not only sever the tie between marriage and procreation; it would, at least in our present cultural circumstances, place the law behind the proposition that believing that tie should exist is bigoted.”</blockquote><br />As NR goes on to say to those who object that it is unfair to tie marriage to procreation,<br /><blockquote>“Harm, if any, to the feelings of same-sex couples is unintentional:&nbsp; Marriage, and its tie to procreation, did not arise as a way of slighting them.”&nbsp; </blockquote><br />Marriage must not be required to morph into an expression of the ever-changing <i>feelings</i> of society. A married father and mother is what our children need and deserve and what we are obligated by God to give them to the very best of our ability.&nbsp; We know this is God’s perfect and loving plan for humanity because Christ Himself came to us as a child, born into a home with a father and a mother.&nbsp; God has unequivocally declared the family unit to be holy and worthy.<br /><br />Finally, the truth the marriage remodelers least want to hear is that redefining marriage to accommodate same-sex couples would require accommodating nearly every other conceivable partnership or group. <br /><br /><blockquote>NR:&nbsp; “The argument that same-sex marriage cannot be justified without also, in principle, justifying polygamy and polyamory infuriates many advocates of the former.&nbsp; There is, however, no good answer to the charge; and the arguments and especially the rhetoric of same-sex marriage proponents clearly apply with equal force to polygamy and polyamory.”<br /><br />“Legal recognition of same-sex marriage would make the countervailing norms, and the public policy of marriage itself, incoherent.&nbsp; The symbolic message of inclusion for same-sex couples – in an institution that makes no sense for them – would be coupled with another message:&nbsp; that marriage is about the desires of adults rather than the interests of children.”</blockquote><br /><i><b>Exactly.</b></i>&nbsp; Serving the good of the next generation has become almost passé in our culture that lives for self-satisfaction, pleasure and immediate gratification.&nbsp; It’s why we are so willing to justify the killing of our babies in the womb.&nbsp; We have forgotten that the focus of our lives as adults should be those to come after us along with those who already surround us looking for guidance and protection.&nbsp; We think too little of the future and too much of the present.<br /><br /><blockquote>NR:&nbsp; “If our understanding of marriage changes in this way, so much the worse for the future.”</blockquote><br />You'll want to read this <a href="http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/print/245649">excellent article in its entirety.</a>&nbsp; I don’t know how the lawyers defending marriage in court are arguing their case, but I sincerely hope they read this astute analysis and take copious notes.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-2859634592524230737?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-35482940256824421262010-09-19T09:15:00.000-04:002010-09-19T09:15:29.410-04:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TEJVIvlWkmI/AAAAAAAABEg/sM7NAjXuVAg/s1600/Praise+heart.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TEJVIvlWkmI/AAAAAAAABEg/sM7NAjXuVAg/s320/Praise+heart.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div style="color: red; text-align: center;"><i>"O Lord, open thou my lips, and my mouth shall show forth thy praise."&nbsp; Psalm 51: 15</i></div><br />This beautiful morning I am <span style="color: red;">Praising God</span> for the <b>COOL</b> air coming in through the window!&nbsp; It got down to 65 degrees last night!&nbsp; Woohoo!&nbsp; Now if only it would be 65 degrees during the <i>day</i>...or colder!&nbsp; Can you tell I love cold weather?<br /><br /><span style="color: red;">Praise God</span> for the joy of praising Him, for knowing Who He is and believing His promises.&nbsp; This past week I interacted with someone who does not know Him and is <b>very hostile</b> toward God.&nbsp; It made me very sad.&nbsp; I can only imagine how it makes God feel.<br /><br />For the mercy He shows, new every morning.&nbsp; What is behind is done and His love for me is unwearying.&nbsp; He reminds me I can only look at my faults and sins through the "lens" of the Cross.&nbsp; Yes, I am pitiful and wretched sometimes, but I have been redeemed.<br /><br />For the love of an affectionate husband and three sweet and joyful little girls.<br /><br />For the homeschooling we have accomplished!&nbsp; I have much to learn and we have some bumps to smooth out, but we're doing it!&nbsp; Thanks be to God.&nbsp; I've never been this busy in my life!!<br /><br />For clean windows... Hubby and I worked hard yesterday together cleaning several windows that were just loaded with disgusting, nasty stuff like bugs (dead and alive) webs, dirt and grime, etc.&nbsp; It was enough to make you lose your lunch, but now they're clean and we can open the windows without fear!<br /><br />For the day ahead and the down-time it holds.&nbsp; A nap is on the schedule this afternoon, along with some cookies or brownies or something yummy.... a day of rest.<br /><br />Have a blessed Sunday everyone!&nbsp; <span style="color: red;">Sing Praise to God!</span><br /><br /><script src="http://www.linkytools.com/basic_linky_include.aspx?id=45591" type="text/javascript"></script><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-3548294025682442126?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-16942551514839858692010-09-12T09:15:00.000-04:002010-09-12T09:15:09.710-04:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TEJVIvlWkmI/AAAAAAAABEg/sM7NAjXuVAg/s1600/Praise+heart.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TEJVIvlWkmI/AAAAAAAABEg/sM7NAjXuVAg/s320/Praise+heart.jpg" /></a></div><br /><br /><div style="color: red; text-align: center;"><b><i>"Give thanks to the Lord for He is good."</i></b></div><br />I <span style="color: red;">Praise</span> the Lord today for my country.&nbsp; Though it grows increasingly wicked each passing day, it is still the Land I love, where my family and I live in greater freedom than any other place on earth.&nbsp; Lord Jesus, have mercy on us and turn our hearts back to You.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TIzPLzVLLiI/AAAAAAAABGA/6rut-cOcUIM/s1600/firemen-raising-flag.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TIzPLzVLLiI/AAAAAAAABGA/6rut-cOcUIM/s320/firemen-raising-flag.jpg" /></a></div><br />For the courage and heroism of all those who died 9 years ago this weekend.&nbsp; I re-read their stories yesterday and watched the videos of all the horror and vowed once again to <b><span style="color: blue;">never forget.</span></b><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TIzPCsX5ddI/AAAAAAAABF4/pIyZa-OuSxo/s1600/2nd+plane.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TIzPCsX5ddI/AAAAAAAABF4/pIyZa-OuSxo/s320/2nd+plane.jpg" /></a></div><br />For every man and woman in uniform today, serving in hostile territory, facing a very real threat of death.&nbsp; I thank God for each one of them and beg His constant protection for them.&nbsp; <span style="color: blue;">God grant them a swift victory and bring them home safely.</span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TIzP6TamvZI/AAAAAAAABGI/QihwfXLUmsM/s1600/Iraq+392.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TIzP6TamvZI/AAAAAAAABGI/QihwfXLUmsM/s320/Iraq+392.jpg" /></a></div><br />I'm thankful today for those public servants who still serve with honor and integrity.&nbsp; I'm praying for the man God will raise up to lead our nation out of the hellhole we're in.&nbsp; Thy will be done, Lord.<br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TIzRr3JKyVI/AAAAAAAABGQ/pfKDArWDtr8/s1600/600px-Seal_Of_The_President_Of_The_Unites_States_Of_America_svg.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TIzRr3JKyVI/AAAAAAAABGQ/pfKDArWDtr8/s320/600px-Seal_Of_The_President_Of_The_Unites_States_Of_America_svg.png" /></a></div><br /><br />For the clouds in the sky giving relief from the hot sun, the rain, a quiet day to be lazy at home, setting up "Mom's Beauty Salon" with my girls (pink nails all around!), a good mocha, some chocolate chip cookies... for all of this, <i><b>thank You, Lord.</b></i><br /><br />Please join me in giving <span style="color: red;">Praise to God</span> today for the blessings in your life!&nbsp; Link up below.<br />Have a wonderful week ahead everyone!<br /><br /><script src="http://www.linkytools.com/basic_linky_include.aspx?id=44459" type="text/javascript"></script><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8973611091378468003-1694255151483985869?l=mychocolatehart.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>My Chocolate Hearthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08930852646863448655noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8973611091378468003.post-39799000395246024782010-09-09T22:40:00.000-04:002010-09-09T22:40:57.218-04:00<a href="http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=38163">at Catholic Online</a><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TImaNS5gtRI/AAAAAAAABFw/nmZAgi2C9Lk/s1600/baby+blocks+on+belly.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fpqIRz7QU9U/TImaNS5gtRI/AAAAAAAABFw/nmZAgi2C9Lk/s320/baby+blocks+on+belly.jpg" /></a></div><br />I thought I had heard it all, but then I read about the abortion doulas.<br /><br />Yep.&nbsp; Doulas – women who are trained to assist women during labor and childbirth – for abortions.&nbsp; The Doula Project’s website says they “provide free and compassionate care and emotional, physical and informational support to people across the spectrum of pregnancy.”&nbsp; They also now offer support to women who are having an abortion via the “abortion pill.”&nbsp; How comprehensive of them.<br /><br />In the perverse world of abortion doulas, pregnancy is a “spectrum” and it’s not women any longer, but “female-bodied people.”&nbsp; One such doula consistently refers to her patients as “pregnant people,” not women.&nbsp; Why?&nbsp; Is it now demeaning to be called a woman?&nbsp; Can men also become pregnant?&nbsp; Surely men need not be considered at all in the grand scheme of abortion – pardon me – “reproductive rights.”&nbsp; The only “people” the pro-aborts are interested in are women, so why the neutral, silly new terminology?<br /><br />The whole concept of an abortion doula is oxymoronic.&nbsp; I thought abortion was supposed to be a great thing for women, all that freedom and choice and autonomy and such.&nbsp; Who needs compassion and emotional support for something so wonderful?&nbsp; <br /><br />This is the tiger giving you bandages for your wounds right before he mauls you, plus arranging for a “companion” to hold your hand and remind you how painless and great it’s going to be.<br /><br />The abortion industry wants – no, needs – to seem caring and compassionate, not indifferent to a woman’s feelings.&nbsp; They’re stuck having to play both sides.&nbsp; On the one hand, abortion is a “legitimate medical procedure,” a “choice,” a “right,” and simply the ending of a pregnancy.&nbsp; It’s not a baby but a mass of insentient tissue.&nbsp; A non-person.&nbsp; No big deal.<br /><br />On the other hand, when it suits their purpose they passionately describe the heart-wrenching choice some women are forced to make, and the personal and private pain they go through.&nbsp; They decry the interference of government into such a complex and difficult decision.<br /><br />They can’t have it both ways.&nbsp; There is absolutely nothing heart-wrenching about “terminating a pregnancy.”&nbsp; There’s nothing sad about vacuuming out a blob of insentient tissue.&nbsp; There’s nothing heartbreaking about getting rid of a non-person.&nbsp; By their own definitions of the inanimate, nonviable, insentient, non-person in the uterus, they are eliminating nothing but a condition that resulted from someone’s sperm getting too cozy with their egg.&nbsp; What’s so troubling about that?&nbsp; But saying that out loud at fundraisers and rallies, or during political campaigns, well, that’s a whole other ballgame.&nbsp; It’s a public relations nightmare.<br /><br />So they twist themselves into a bloody pretzel trying to perpetuate the delusion that abortion isn’t murder, or cold-blooded, or heartless, or violent, or bad for women in any way.&nbsp; They flip-flop between being nonchalant about the normalcy, the routineness of abortion and then protective and compassionate toward the <i>suffering women who “must” undergo such a painful procedure because they have no other options.</i><br /><br />They insist it’s so simple and safe these days, in fact, that they want “instant- abortion-at-home-in-a-pill!” dispensed long distance to women who’ve never even seen the doctor prescribing the meds that will cause their body to spit out the unwanted thing.&nbsp; (And hopefully not several liters of blood along with it.)<br /><br />Yet, now they want to promote their softer side and provide women with a doula to help them deal with the unpleasantries of this completely routine yet heart-wrenching procedure, or any anxieties they might be having about ceasing to be pregnant.&nbsp; After all, it’s emotionally draining to be pregnant this morning, and not pregnant anymore by lunch.&nbsp; Just imagine if there was actually a death involved!<br /><br />Don’t want to see that ultrasound image of your baby who’s about to die?&nbsp; No problem, says the abortion doula.&nbsp; I’ll stand in front of the monitor and tell you jokes to take your mind off it.&nbsp; Don’t want to hear the sound of your child being killed?&nbsp; Yeah, that vacuum machine is kinda loud.&nbsp; I’ll get you some headphones and blast Lady Gaga for you.&nbsp; Are those cramps getting painful?&nbsp; How about a massage?&nbsp; I’m here for you, hon.&nbsp; You’ll be outta here real soon.&nbsp; Just think about all the things you’ll be able to do, the dreams you can fulfill once this is over.<br /><br />Abortion can’t be both routine and heartbreaking.&nbsp; It can’t be both the termination of a pregnancy, the removal of meaningless tissue and a sad, painful loss.&nbsp; If abortion truly is what the pro-aborts insist it is, there is absolutely no need for a doula; there’s no need for emotional support of any kind or any reason to extend compassion.<br /><br />Who feels sad at the removal of an intrusive parasite in his belly?&nbsp; Anyone in their right mind would celebrate being rid of such an undesirable, nutrient-robbing worm.&nbsp; Whose heart is broken by the cessation of an unwanted medical condition?&nbsp; If my rheumatoid arthritis disappeared tomorrow, I would not shed a tear.&nbsp; If it’s merely tissue, then women should be skipping <i>in and out</i> the door of the abortion clinic.<br /><br />All we’ve heard from the pro-aborts for decades is that abortion does not leave women with grief or trauma.&nbsp; They hiss that pro-lifers have made up the phenomenon of post-abortive stress just to make abortion look bad and sound terrible and saddle women with needless guilt.<