Anamchara

SARAH PALIN, DEATH PANELS AND TRUTH

LOVE HER OR HATE HER, SHE'S STRUCK AN AUTHENTIC NERVE

When she wrote on her Facebook page a few weeks ago that government death panels were the fruit of ObamaCare--the health care plan pushed by the President--many op ed writers opined that she was a nut, a basketcase, and truly weird.  Must be a real surprise to them that her accusation stuck and for weeks now, the powers that be have struggled to refute her.

Fact is, the proposed health care initiatives in Congress don't actually say "death panels", but they don't have to in order to make Palin's accusation true.  Government, governed by cost concerns, shouldn't be in the business of helping folks make end of life decisions.  Also, government, infused by ideas from noveau eugenicists like Dr. Emmaneul (Rahm Emmanuel's, the President's Chief of Staff, brother), will in fact make choices that benefit those who have more "life years" to give to society.  Bottom line is:  we just don't want government to make choices that are better left between patient and family.  Some say that insurance companies do this already.  True, but they are not the government. Bad as they can be, they do not have the overarching reach that government will have.  Palin was right to sound the alarm.

Many years ago, Charlton Heston was in a fine little film called Soylent Green.  Society, with the best of intentions, tried to solve its problems by taking away the dignity of human beings.  Cal Thomas, the famous op-ed writer, says it best when he talks about the bottom line being what we think of human beings.  Are we going to hold human beings as made in the image and likeness of God, or are they just a piece of slime, genetically the same as other animal life?  The answer by society will determine whether Sarah Palin's "Death Panels" are a reality or just a figment of imagination.

VOYAGE OF THE DAWN TREADER--GET READY TO RETURN TO NARNIA!

VOYAGE OF THE DAWN TREADER BEGINS FILMING!

The third installment of C. S. Lewis' beloved CHRONICLES OF NARNIA has begun filming down under!  This is the lifesize replica of the Dawn Treader (still being constructed)--the ship that carries King Caspian and children across the seas to adventure, wonder, and awe.  Aslan accompanies them along the way.  One of the best-beloved of the 7 books, the story's filmed version is under the direction of Michel Apted who directed one of my most favorite movies THUNDERHEART.

Stay tuned here for more updates.

 

ROBERT NOVAK, R.I.P.--THE PRINCE OF DARKNESS SEES THE LIGHT

 

A FOND FAREWELL TO A GREAT JOURNALIST

Bob Novak died today from complications of brain cancer which he valiantly fought for over a year.  Acerbic, biting, incisive, and perceptive, he earned the sobriquet "The Prince of Darkness" from friends and foes who had to tangle with his journalistic greatness relentless drive, and absolute pursuit of truth.  Others can document his professional accomplishments, but I have always been touched by the testimony he gave a few years ago about his conversion to the Catholic Church.  His faith sustained him in his last days and gave even more purpose and meaning to his life. 

In Barbara Matusow's Washingtonian interview of several years ago, she reported this about Mr. Novak's conversion:

Father C. John McCloskey III is an author and television personality who has revitalized the Catholic Information Center in Washington. "During Bob's baptism, I was looking out from where I was standing," says McCloskey, "and it looked like a Who's Who of political and journalistic Washington. I found it very moving--here were all his friends, seeing this adult come into grace, bowing his head to receive the sacramental waters of baptism. Many of them had tears in their eyes."

The ceremony, in May 1998, was mostly a solemn affair. In the course of it, Novak, then 67, was baptized, confirmed, and received his first Holy Communion. "It was an exhilarating experience," he says, "one of the great moments of my life. I thought I was in a different dimension."

The solemnity lifted for a moment when Monsignor Vaghi said how privileged they were to witness the transformation of the "prince of darkness" into a "child of light."

Paul Begala, liberal and disdainer of all things conservative, called Bob Novak a friend.  In his commentary today, he writes, "In our innumerable debates, I delighted in calling Bob Novak "the finest mind of the 12th century." One time, though, he scowled and growled, 'I prefer the 15th century. Spanish Inquisition. Those were the days.'"

He used his talents for the good of America.  May God grant him peace, light and joy.

 

ST. JOHN VIANNEY 150TH ANNIVERSARY--YEAR OF THE PRIEST

 

ST. JOHN VIANNEY--ICON FOR YEAR OF THE PRIEST

Today we celebrate the 150th anniversary of the death of the Cure of Ars--St. John Vianney.  This anniversary is one of the reasons why the Pope chose this year to kick off the Year of the Priest.  St. John Vianney is a curiously modern saint whose relevance to our era challenges the prevailing Zeitgeist of godlessness and atheism and ambivalent angst that afflicts both young and old alike.

Here are five good reasons to venerate this great saint:

• He loved God.  His evident learning disability nearly disqualified him from the priesthood, but his passionate faith and love of Christ made his superiors take a second look at him.  He never let the pundits and intelligentsia of the day cloud his vision of the Lord. 
• He preached the Catholic faith clearly and with enthusiasm.  One of the things we have to be careful of is to judge saints by the times we live in.  If we did so, we would find St. John Vianney touched by Jansenism--a Catholic puritanism that in its extreme forms was a heresy.  Moderns might say, "He was against dancing" and we might think him a prude, but actually, what he was against was the lack of moral boundaries present in that kind of "fun".  He saw a people living without God, and it scared him.  He wanted souls for Christ.
• He understood evil and stood up to it.  Wrestling with the devil, fighting evil in the hearts of humanity, St. John Vianney showed a courage that touched his parishioners.  They never confused his condemnation of sin with a condemnation of themselves.  They knew this saint loved them.  He realized that life was a battle of good against evil.  In his little parish battles as fierce as STAR WARS were fought and won for the side of good.
• He could read people's hearts.  He heard confessions for most of the day because people came to him for his understanding of their lives.  Did people love him?  Absolutely!  So much so that they trusted their hearts to him.
• He made sanctity something cool and worth striving for.  He was a hero and seen as such by the people of his day.

In my own life, he has always been important since I was a little kid.  He made me want to be a priest.  He showed that holiness is made up of everyday heroic actions.  He's a great model for the priesthood.  St. John Marie Vianney--pray for us!