Friday, October 29, 2004

Crisis Magazine: "In living our Faith and in living our citizenship, we need to begin with the end in mind. Where do we want to spend eternity? Because we won't spend it here. We're citizens of God's kingdom first. That's our homeland. That's the citizenship we need to be faithful to, because if we serve God well then we serve our nation well. If we live as faithful Catholics, we live as faithful Americans.

"But if we try to separate our Catholic convictions from the political and other decisions we make, then we're no better than thieves because we steal from American public life the most important gift we have to offer: The truth of Jesus Christ and the wisdom of His Church.

"St. Thomas More, who knew exactly what he did and didn't owe Caesar, said, 'I am the king's good servant, but God's first.' He had his priorities right. We should follow his lead."

Wednesday, October 27, 2004

Sacred Space - the prayer site run by the Irish Jesuits: "The contrast between Pharisee and tax collector has entered so deeply into our culture that it is sometimes reversed, and people are more anxious to hide at the back of the church than to be in the front pews. Pharisee, a term of honour in Jesus' society, is not something we want to be called. To place it in our culture, for tax collector read convicted rapist, paedophile, or those found guilty of wholesale robbery or fraud against the public, the hate-figures of the yellow press.

How does the story hit me? I hate to be the object of people's contempt. But Lord, if they knew me as you do, they might be right to feel contempt. I have no right to look down on those whose sins are paraded in the media. Be merciful to me."
Declaration Foundation: Restoring America: "'The two Americas ... are two nations of different faiths. One is observant, tradition-minded, moralistic. The other is unobservant, liberation-minded, relativistic.'"

Tuesday, October 26, 2004

Declaration Foundation: Restoring America: "The cultural fault line is taking on San Andreas proportions. As Michael Barone observed in his essay 'The 49 Percent Nation' published in the National Journal in June 2001, not long after the divisive 2000 presidential election: 'The two Americas ... are two nations of different faiths. One is observant, tradition-minded, moralistic. The other is unobservant, liberation-minded, relativistic.'" I made note of this when it was published in the Denver Post last March. The author is Carl Raschke is professor of religious studies at the University of Denver. He is co-director of Res Publica, a national group of scholars and citizens exploring the role of faith and American public life. Why has this been deleted from the Denver Post archives?