feminine-genius

It's not just baby girls...

...that the Chinese Communist don't like. They also have a problem with elderly women who won't submit to their overlords:

Ms. Jiang, a [65-year-old] “healthy and strong-willed woman,” according to her family, had survived at least three years of forced labor in the past for practicing Falun Gong. When five police officers came to abduct her on September 7, her husband in his seventies, along with several neighbors, attempted to dissuade the police, but they were unsuccessful.

Her family was frantic to find her, but the government was uncooperative.

After several days, Ms. Jiang's son located her at a brainwashing center run by the 610 Office, a Party-based security force leading the campaign against Falun Gong. He was prohibited from contacting her until October 1, by which time Ms. Jiang was in critical condition. He rushed her to an emergency room where doctors identified bruises throughout her body, bleeding, and deteriorated organ function.

Ms. Jiang died the next day.

She had endured three weeks of torture. Such was the courage of her convictions--and such was the response of a government that cannot honour conscience. I don't understand the tenets of Falun Gong, but I know that China is not the only country with draconian policies against people of faith. May she rest in peace, and may we choose wisely in the coming election so that good may prevail.

No, you don't understand

The Leadership Conference of Women Religious is sponsoring an exhibit that they want the Vatican to take note of, specifically an overview of the 300 years of hard work that they've put into the United States. No argument there from anyone.

The exhibit was done in association with the Cincinnati Museum Center. In the 3,200 square foot exhibit, you’ll find letters, artifacts, images and multimedia displays. It opened in Cincinnati, Ohio in May, kicking off a three-year tour, and is possibly headed to the Smithsonian Institution in the nation’s capital.

“We started this exhibit out of an intense desire to share the history of the Catholic sisters and their contributions to the history and culture of the United States,” Sister Helen Maher Garvey, a sister with the Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary order and chair of the history committee for the Leadership Conference of Women Religious, has reportedly said. “The sisters feel very strongly that it is an untold story.”

In telling the story, the details or glorious and worthy of admiration:

Catholic sisters’ quiet heroism during the Civil War, the Gold Rush, the San Francisco Earthquake, the Influenza Epidemic, the Civil Rights Movement, even to this day in their work with Hurricane Katrina. For example, more than 600 sisters from 21 different communities nursed both Union and Confederate soldiers during the Civil War.

*Catholic nuns have served frontier communities, talked down bandits and roughnecks, lugged pianos into the wilderness, and provided the nation’s first health insurance to Midwestern loggers.

*Throughout periods of struggle and controversy, Catholic sisters have opened orphanages, schools, hospitals, colleges, universities, and provided other social services that have served millions of Americans.

*The U.S. Catholic school system is the largest private school system in the world, largely established and run by Catholic nuns. More than 110 U.S. colleges and universities were founded by Catholic sisters. The first American-born saint, Elizabeth Ann Seton, SC, founder of Sisters of Charity, was a mother and widow who established the nation’s first free Catholic school.

But with the Vatican Investigation looming, the Sisters are hot under the collar, as if there is a lack of appreciation for so much hard work. Their petulance over this is misplaced, though. If the story is untold, it has never been lost on the Vatican -- who knows their value and is distraught over their current distracted approach to the essential mission. The obstacles they faced over the centuries were not from the hierarchy but from the protestant foundations in the US that made folks highly suspicious of the Papists in Skirts. The concerns over their work wasn't because of the charity involved, but the religious motivation (the Catholic "mumbo jumbo") that accompanied it.

Consider the confusion over the mission that passes for their identity, in the words of Cokie Roberts:

“From the time the Ursulines arrived in New Orleans in 1727 up to today, women religious have made an incalculable contribution to this nation. Running schools, hospitals and orphanages from America’s earliest days, these women helped foster a culture of social service that has permeated our society. Over the centuries these courageous women overcame many obstacles–both physical and cultural–to bring their civilizing and caring influence to every corner of the country. Understanding and celebrating the history of women religious is essential to understanding and celebrating the history of America.”

No Cokie, understanding and celebrating the history of women religious is impossible without understanding the faith and fidelity that inspired them -- every single one. What does a Sister Helen (mentioned above) say about that faith?

Make no mistake, I am a Catholic, and I love my faith [but] I don’t agree with it on a host of issues. ...

There lies the rub. Civilising and caring influences can be found in a variety of places, but in Women Religious, one expects to find the Catholic faith. As Benedict notes in his newest encyclical, Caritas in Veritate:

Truth opens and unites our minds in the lógos of love: this is the Christian proclamation and testimony of charity. In the present social and cultural context, where there is a widespread tendency to relativize truth, practising charity in truth helps people to understand that adhering to the values of Christianity is not merely useful but essential for building a good society and for true integral human development. A Christianity of charity without truth would be more or less interchangeable with a pool of good sentiments, helpful for social cohesion, but of little relevance (4).

All those fine women noted above came to save souls -- souls which also needed nursing and education and guidance and care. But ultimately it was not about providing social services, it was about making room for Jesus Christ. That's the concern that's driving the investigation -- not that the last 300 years haven't been heroic, but that the status quo isn't capable of carrying it forward.

Violence against women

Violence against women is a sad reality of every day life in most areas of the world. There are many contributing factors, which combine the greater physical strength of most men with cultural constructs that allow women no recourse -- but the press to protect women doesn't include the greatest violent act of all: abortion. The Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) tries to short-circuit the outcome with heavy penalties for those accused of hurting women while ignoring the sexual predators who count on easy access to women borne of a contraceptive mentality.

Sadly, Georgetown University's Law Center and the National Organisation for Women's former legal arm, now called "Legal Momentum" are joining forces to honour VP Joe Biden who has been the Senate sponsor or VAWA legislation. It's bad on every level:

• Joe Biden is a Catholic who supports abortion;
• NOW is one of the largest abortion promotors in the country; and
• VAWA falls grievously short of understanding the dynamics that lead to abuse of women.

That a Catholic institution is the setting for this tragic event is one more scandal in a year of scandals.

UPDATE: Irony alert! Pro-abortion Biden included in his remarks this statement:

You know there is no excuse for violence against a women or child. There is no excuse.

I guess that's why "choicers" don't like the graphic photos of aborted foetal remains -- it undermines their "safe and legal" platitudes with something that looks almost, well, violent. Jesus, mercy!

Two wrongs don't make a right

Jesus laid down his life for his Bride--Holy Mother Church, but He didn't realise that She'd get stuck in a time warp and become irrelevant in the late 20th century. Kerry Kennedy (daughter of Bobby) has a newsflash for the Messiah: the Church has overstepped its bounds with all that complicated talk of sin. In case one was worried about her credibility (um, Kerry's) she shares common ground with Cokie Roberts, Anna Quindlan, and Nancy Pelosi. (Whew!) In fact, she's so sure of her own bearings that she's declared the Church's very "words and symbols" anathema -- tricky!

Kennedy said she is at odds with the church hierarchy over many issues - abortion rights and women's ordination among them. Her views do not make her extraordinary; polls suggest that an overwhelming majority of American Catholics support women's ordination and that American Catholics reflect the general public's split over abortion.

Kennedy is divorced from Andrew Cuomo, but said her divorce has not been an issue for her in Catholicism because she has not remarried; however, she said, she considers the debate over whether politicians who support abortion rights, such as her uncle Senator Edward M. Kennedy, should be allowed to receive Communion "a terrible mistake" by "a few wayward bishops."

Now what good is the Church? They all agree that it serves one over-riding purpose: "a sense of spirituality and community and concern for justice." NOTE: a sense and a concern. Not exactly bedrock. The actual teachings and authority would be part of the anathema part, I'm guessing. If we could just jettison those annoying things, the good feelings could carry us forward towards a heaven of our own making. Bad pope! Bad commandments!

No one defends the priest scandal, and yet the essence of that tragedy -- lying about dignity and undermining purity -- is now carried forward by these pseudo-catholics in different forms. If raping children under the guise of "priestly authority" was bad, Kerry, so is support of fornication and murder in the name of "spirituality" and "concern." If you thought Cardinal Bernard Law abdicated his episcopal responsibilities by giving a pass to wayward priests, would you be content for Cardinal Sean O'Malley to exercise his by removing your right to teach CCD? Audacious, but tired, worn, and predictable.

Two points

Father Zed has done an excellent job fisking an article by the NCReporter, about the consequences for a Woman Religious who attempted ordination in the diocese of Saint Louis. The piece combines some facts with some reactions, creating a typically biased piece which is long on feelings and short on doctrine. (Father's comments are in red.)

Sister of Charity Louise Lears, forced out of all church ministerial roles [Ummm… she attempted ordination – for crying out loud!  Can you say "excommunication"?] by Saint Louis Archbishop Raymond Burke, is described by friends and colleagues in near saintly terms.

They call her a bright, energetic, compassionate and faith-filled woman. They see her as a creative, generous and selfless person, a highly effective parish minister. They say she is first rate teacher and preacher. They view her as a person guided by the gospels including an unwavering commitment to justice and the local poor.  [Do they see her as a contumacious excommunicate and probably a heretic?]

These seemingly universal accolades, however, were not enough to save Lears from a severe interdict by Burke who banished her from all Saint Louis church ministries last week.

He also banned her from receiving any of the Sacraments in the archdiocese.

It was her belief that all church ministries, including women’s ordination, should be open to women. [Which seems to trump what the CHURCH says about the matter.  "I want it this way!"] Curiously, this seems to have been only one of many of her passions and, perhaps, not her central passion, which seems to have been parish work.

There are many good things in his analysis, but I think two comments missing. Since his combox is off (perhaps for his sanity's sake) then I'll provide them here.

1. In making the point that the Church has lost the wide range of gifts that this Sister has provided -- as parish administrator, as college professor, as guide for troubled women, as advocate for victims of brutality, and helper to the homeless, the writer forgets the wider, more obvious point: look how much the Church appreciates the feminine genius in all its manifestations. Even without ordination, there is so much to be done by laity and religious -- and she sounds like a very accomplished, compassionate and busy woman.

2. More importantly, as the above snippet makes clear, ordination was not her "central passion." This is staggering, given that she risked it all to make a point that wasn't even about her true "vocation." A man with a vocation to the priesthood would be consumed by the necessary holocaust of his life -- given in imitation of Christ, sacrificing everything so that he could be true to God's call. The way this is phrased, it sounds like she embraced the premise that women should be ordained, and pursued it to make a point -- going through the motion "in principle." If she cannot see the scandal of her disobedience, then at least can she consider the scandal of pretending a vocation to make a point?

Whatever her angle on the charitable works (and we'll have to assume it was all pure of intention for the greater glory of God) the angle on ordination is coy and political, which is as bad as any theological "misunderstanding" behind it. Wrong and bad, and I'm glad Apb. Burke dealt firmly to safeguard the flock and the sacramental games. May he stand as firmly by these principles in his new post at the Signatura. 

No saccharine here

This got posted on Mothers' Day, no less, although you won't find an ounce of Hallmark sentiment from me. I do ask your prayers for all Religious -- those faithful to their Spouse, and those who may have ... chafed a bit. Living in spousal union can be a challenge, no doubt.

Spring fashions

Diogenes has found the ultimate in clerical fashions, which cannot be lampooned. It is metaphysically impossible to make sport of something that stands alone as the height of self-parody.

But there's more than mere physical comfort in play. We're meant to find ourselves in a comprehensive, all-embracing, sense of well-being. Kneelers are out. Pews are padded. The road never forks. We can have our cake and eat it. No decision means a final separation. Everyone's a priest: dad, mom, sis, Aunt Gretchen with the tattoo and the butch haircut ... We can tolerate anything except intolerance. We are a Spandex People.

Versatility -- of both articles of faith and articles of clothing. For those who can't read the fine print, this cute piece can be a cool layer under a suit, stand alone, or be worn as a camisole. What's left to say?

'Nuf talk, do something!

Janet Daley has come out with an essay in the Telegraph which is excellent, deploring the hand-wringing that is crippling Britain in terms of its downward spiral.

I have lost count of the zillions of projects and reports and think-tank pamphlets that I have assiduously read and fervently reported on the breakdown of the traditional married family and its direct link with the myriad dysfunctions of the young. I, and many others, have quoted endlessly those brave and wonderfully painstaking authors, from Patricia Morgan of Civitas to Jill Kirby of the Centre for Policy Studies, who have provided veritable mountains of statistical proof for the argument. What more could possibly need to be said? Not only do we have the objective evidence to show, beyond any possibility of rational doubt, that the decline of marriage has had disastrous consequences for the community, but we can demonstrate that successive governments have effectively bribed mothers to remain single and keep their children fatherless.

She points to specific economic incentives that would help strenthen marriage, and then takes on the shibboleth of modernism:

The great national scandal of our time is not just the deterioration of life in our communities but the fact that everybody knows what is at the heart of it and no one in power – even those who talk most about poverty and know that family breakdown is the chief cause of it – will do what must be done. This has been the most shameful failure of political and moral courage among the governing classes in living memory. Who is going to face down the smug Left-liberal coterie (or what remains of it: on this subject, at least, it is losing its nerve) and say that marriage must be supported, however many respectable people you know who are cohabiting?

I look forward to seeing how her piece is received by this very coterie, and see that one initiative is already being approved, the demand that fathers take responsibility for their children. Of course, in other quarters, the government is working at cross-purposes of stable families with nonsense like this. (According to Ms. Daley, children in same-sex arrangements are a small portion of the total, but a common vision of family life would be helpful.)

All in all, with immigration causing its share of problems, the media adding salt to the wounds, and families being shredded, a single coherent voice for virtue and heritage arising in the next 2-3 years would save Britain before it's too late. Beyond that, not much is possible.