Tolkien's War Between Nostalgia and Utopia

By John Zmirak

What is the use of raising “dead” historical issues such as the rights or wrongs of World War I, or the virtues of Habsburg Austria as opposed to Woodrow Wilson’s America? That question has come up more than once in responses on this site to previous blogs of mine, and I think it’s an interesting one. Is it mere self-indulgence to muse over historical “what-ifs,” or maintain theoretical allegiances to political arrangements abolished before one’s own father was born? Should we collapse our horizons narrowly to the bounds of the probable, and keep our gazes fixed straight ahead of us? If we don’t, we’re prone to charges such as “escapism”....

Perhaps the best answer to start with comes from the author of our only great modern epic in English, J.R.R. Tolkien, who famously quipped, “The only people who would object to escapism would be jailors.” I don’t think that Tolkien was referring solely to totalitarians whom he despised, such as the Communists or the Nazis. Deeply influenced by the likes of Chesterton and Belloc, raised (as a fatherless boy) by a priest who’d studied under Cardinal Newman, Tolkien was concerned as well with the soul-deadening qualities of “moderate” world views such as Fabian socialism and Manchester liberalism.

A veteran of the Somme who’d seen all his closest friends butchered by machine guns or gas, Tolkien spent the 1930s and 40s in a manner quite unlike his contemporary, the equally gifted W.H. Auden. Appalled at the gathering darkness of what he rightly called a “low dishonest decade,” Auden felt it his duty to be “committed” to the contemporary struggles that assailed him daily in the newspapers. He wrote about the Popular Front, various intra-Communist disputes, the gathering force of fascism--and even after his conversion to Christianity, a concern with current events continued to pervade his work.

Read the rest here.

From Taki's Top Drawer

Courtesy of The Young Fogey

Latest Obama/Clinton Row: "Turbangate"?

Barack Obama has a lot of 'splainin' to do, or so some in Mrs. clinton's camp seem to think. Last year there were false rumors circulating from her campaign team that Mr. Obama was a Muslim (the new "boogeyman" of the post-9/11 world), but Mrs. Clinton put the rumormongering to rest by firing the aid who circulated the story. Now there's another row-a picture of Mr. Obama visiting his father's village in Kenya, and being dressed in the traditional garb of a Luo tribesman by one of the Luo elders. Given his father's provenance, we might respond with a collective "so what" to such a "revelation."

But no! There seems to be something rotten in the state of the Clinton camp, though denials are flying all around. Apparently the sight of Mr. Obama wearing a Luo turban so afrights the sensibilities of the established Democratic and Reopublican elites that her team, while denying any involvement in circulating the picture, nonetheless will milk it for all its worth. She continues to tout her foreign policy "credentials" (whatever those might be) against his inexeperience. This from a woman who thought the second Iraqi war was a good idea, until the winds of public opinion shifted! Yes, wonderful foreign policy "credentials."

And Mr. Obama is quite upset over this. As one who will never vote for him because he is, in my estimation, so far to the left that there is no continent that would stretch so far as to reach him, I nonetheless would say he should simply let it slide off like so much rain water. So the chap goes to his father's ancestral village and dresses in the tribe's native garb, which includes a truban. I think he should just own it proudly, say a few words about the proud heritage of the Luo, and maybe mention the fact that if he were of the Clan MacGregor of Glenorchy, wearing the ancestral kilt given him by the clan chiefs, there would hardly be a media row. What is Mr. Obama so upset about? Surely, taking a cool, calm approach to it all would help his case immensely, even adding a touch of humor by mentioning the fact that there is a running joke among the Luo, that it will be more likely for the United States to vote for a Luo president than for Kenya to do so (no Kenyan president has ever come from this tribe).

Mr. Obama may very well invoke Cicero's charge against Catiline: "Quid facis? Quid cogitas? Sentimus magna vitia insidiasque tuas!" (What are you doing? What are you plotting? We sense your vice and treachery!) Of course, there might be a more subltle and creative way to keep Mrs. Clinton from capitalizing on such this story, and that is to play it in as cool, calm and collected manner as possible.

Here's the BBCNews story.

The U.S. Constitution is Not Democratic-and Why That's a Good Thing

Another one from The Western Confucian.

Kevin Gutzman, author of The Politically Incorrect Guide to the Constitution, offers a brilliant critique of Sanford Levinson's Our Undemocratic Constitution: Where the Constitution Goes Wrong (And How We the People Can Correct It). Oxford University Press, 2006.

Excerpt: "The reason why the U.S. Constitution is not structured in the way that a national constitution would be is that it was not intended to create a national government. Majority rule is impeded throughout the system precisely because the states wanted the federal government to be inefficient; they feared that an efficient (national) government would strip them of their reserved powers. Silly fear, right?

As Levinson and his ilk have given the federal government the powers of a national one, it is they who have introduced distortions into the system. The method of selecting a truly federal chief executive, for example, or solely judicial judges, would not be a matter of much concern. It is because Levinson and Company agree that presidents must have untrammeled authority in foreign affairs and federal judges rightly may legislate that the methods of selecting them established by the Constitution seem inappropriate — to Levinson and Company."

You can read the whole article on Taki's Top Drawer.

The Killing Machine Continues to Bring in the $$$!!!

Even when there is a decrease of abortions, nationwide, Planned Barrenhood continues to rake in the dough killing children. Dr. Mengele, you have been outdone!

See the video here.

Biretta tip to The Young Fogey.

Pope Benedict XVI: "St. Augustine Defined 'True Secularism'"

The Pope comments on St. Augustine's Civitate Dei and its continued relevance to the current discourse concerning the relationship between church and state:

Pope: St. Augustine Defined "True Secularism"
Highlights Theologian's Political Contribution
VATICAN CITY, FEB. 20, 2008 (Zenit.org).- St. Augustine contributed to the development of modern politics with a definition of "true secularism" that clearly marks out the separation between Church and state, says Benedict XVI.

The Pope said this today during his weekly general audience in Paul VI Hall. This was the fourth address he dedicated to the bishop of Hippo, whose text "De Civitate Dei" (The City of God) he said has contributed to "the development of modern political thought in the West and in Christian historical theology.

"Written between 413 and 426, the Holy Father explained that the text came about after the sacking of Rome by the Goths in 410, after which many pagans expressed doubt regarding the greatness of the Christian God who seemed incapable of defending the city."

It is this charge that was deeply felt by the Christians that St. Augustine answered with this magnificent work, 'De Civitate Dei.' He clarified what we should and should not expect from God," said the Pontiff.

Read the rest here.

Bishop Hilarion to the WCC: Liberal Christianity Will Not Last

"I am convinced that liberal Christianity will not survive for a long time. A politically correct Christianity will die. We see already how liberal Christianity is falling apart and how the introduction of new moral norms leads to division, discord and confusion in some Christian communities. This process will continue, while traditional Christians, I believe, will consolidate their forces in order to protect the faith and moral teaching which the Lord gave, the Apostles preached and the Fathers preserved."

Read the whole article here

Sarkozy vs. Secularism

Ok, so the article's title is actually "Sarkozy and Secularism", but I thought my "editing" of the title made the point a little more clear. Finally, a French president who sees the loss of a Christian culture in Europe as a dire tragedy!

This, along with statements by Pope Benedict XVI and Bishop Hilarion Alfeyev of Vienna, will hopefully bring about a Christian renaissance in European culture that would embrace both Eastern and Western Europe. Grant it, O Lord!

Vive le Sarkozy!!!!

Here's the article:

A few years ago, I was in the middle of giving a lecture in Paris about religious persecution and martyrdom during the twentieth century when a woman stood up and shouted, “The French state has been repressing and killing Christians ever since the Revolution—and it has to stop!” Her outburst had more to do with her own pent up frustration than anything in particular that I was saying, but it immediately struck me that she had given voice to a feeling of religious disenfranchisement in France that we almost never hear about. Nicolas Sarkozy did not exactly express the same frustration when he went to Rome on December 20, but when the president of the French Republic makes an extended plea for the public affirmation of the value of faith in a high-profile venue, some equally unexpected cri de coeur has just come over the European horizon.
A few French friends have tried to convince me that there was nothing new in Sarkozy’s speech at the Palace of St. John Lateran, where he was installed as an honorary canon, which he had not already said in his 2005 book, La République, les religions, et l’esperance. Others tell me that if he even succeeds in half of what he wants to do, it will be virtually a nouveau regime in France. My reaction falls somewhere in between. When I read Sarkozy’s book last year, I was struck by two things: his belief that the French have to learn to talk about religion in public again and his willingness even to raise questions about the socialist inspired antireligious laws of 1905 that abolished some religious orders and confiscated religious property. He backed off a bit from the second point in his speech at the Lateran Palace. (It’s very clear and winsomely delivered, so even if your French is modest, you may want to listen to it yourself. But his position is still strong beyond all expectation.
Earlier the same day, Sarkozy met for twenty-five minutes with Benedict XVI and the Holy See’s secretary of state. One of the first things he said to them was that the Church in France has “to be more courageous” in intervening publicly because the French Republic has need of people of faith. This was already quite daring, but he did not stop there. Remarkably, in both events, Sarkozy openly expressed his agreement with the pope’s view that a Europe without faith is a Europe without hope—and maybe without a future. And, perhaps even more notably, he made a powerful case that the present and future depend on a more inclusive embrace of the past.

Read the rest here

Christians and the State

"It seems clear that the public sphere in America is irretrievably secular. So the only logical response of Christians must be to try to shrink it. Instead of attempting to baptize a Leviathan which turned on us long ago, we’d do much better to cage and starve the beast. We should favor low taxes—period, regardless of the “good” use to which politicians promise to put it. We should oppose nearly every government program intended to achieve any aim whatsoever. We can make exceptions here and there: We can favor the protection of innocent lives, which would cover things like fixing traffic lights and throwing abortionists into prison. But that is pretty much that. Christian public policy should focus not on capturing the power of the State but shrinking it, to the bare minimum required to enforce individual rights, narrowly defined. Likewise, the share of our wealth seized by the state must be radically slashed, to allow for private initiatives and charities that will not be amoral, soulless, bureaucratic and counterproductive (like the secular welfare state). Instead of asking for handouts to our schools in the forms of vouchers, we should seek the privatization of public schools—which by their very nature, in today’s post-Christian America, are engines of secularism. And so on for nearly every institution of the centralized State, which has hijacked the rightful activities of civil society and the churches, and which every year steals so much of our wealth to squander on itself that we can barely afford to reproduce ourselves. (So the State helpfully offers to replace us with immigrants, but that’s another article.) "

From Taki Theadorakopulos' blog

Courtesy of The Young Fogey

Conversi Ad Domini

In the liturgy of the ancient Church, after the homily the Bishop or the one who presided at the celebration, the principal celebrant, would say: "Conversi ad Dominum". Then he and everyone would rise and turn to the East. They all wanted to look towards Christ. Only if we are converted, only in this conversion to Christ, in this common gaze at Christ, will we be able to find the gift of unity.
-Pope Benedict XVI, in a General Audience comemorating the "Week of Prayer for Christian Unity (23 Jan., A.D. 2008)

Biretta tip to Fr. John Fenton and The Young Fogey

Bishop Behind Barbed Wire

Our wonderful legacy from the 1999 Kosovo War!

His Grace, Bishop Artemije of the Diocese of Raska and Prizren, laments from Gracanica Monastery, which is behind barbed wire:

“Unfortunately, the destruction of our holy shines have been committed under the authority of the international community, in the presence of KFOR and UNMIK , so their presence here was not any guarantee or protection for our churches and monasteries.

“We can only presume what will happen to us if the Albanians would be granted independence of Kosovo. And I’m asking myself why would the international community sacrifice one historical nation and its cultural heritage in the 21st century. I wonder, why?”

Read the BBC News report by Mark Mardell here.

Garrison Keillor: "Where is St. Michael?"

Courtesy of The Western Confucian

From The Korea Herald:

by Garrison Keillor

Back in the day, we fundamentalists didn't mess with angels, sensing that Catholics owned the angel franchise, part of their dim smoky world of bead-rattling and hocus-pocus and lugubrious statuary, so instead we focused on the Holy Spirit who dwelt in all of us true believers and told us what to do and what to say, which is convenient for people with plenty of self-confidence. You read some Scripture and work up a sweat over it and stand up in the sunlit sanctuary, no dinging or chanting, no costumes or choreography, and you open your mouth and out comes Truth, such as the doctrine of Separation from the World, which was appealing to those of us with no social skills -- if people didn't like us, it was proof of our righteousness.
The idea that I was right and most other people were wrong stuck with me through my cocksure youth and some of middle age, but then comes the perilous passage of life when a man lies awake thinking about the prostate and the mitral valve, and your interest in Truth fades a little compared to your interest in winged beings who might come and rescue people in serious trouble. Nowadays I think more about angels. And sometimes I slip into Catholic churches to sit and commune with any resident angels and to light a few candles, especially for young people in trouble.
The sorrows of old age are tedious; it's the disasters of the young that tear at your heart. The son of an old friend has a bad accident and damages his spinal cord and now is in rehab, trying to put as much of his life together as he can. The daughter of an old friend is shot in broad daylight in the streets of Johannesburg, carrying her infant. A young man's little boy sprouts a horrible brain tumor and the father suspends his studies for several years to care for him, meanwhile his wife leaves him. These are grievous situations for which I sit in a cold empty church and look at St. Michael and ask him to intervene.
And then there is the grief that old righteous people inflict on the young, such as our public schools. I'm looking at U.S. Department of Education statistics on reading achievement and see that here in Minnesota -- proud, progressive Minnesota - on a 500-point test (average score: 225), 27 percent of fourth-graders score below basic proficiency, and black and Hispanic kids score 30-some points lower than white on average, and the 30 percent of public schoolkids who come from households in poverty (who qualify for reduced-price school lunches) score 27 points lower than those who don't come from poverty.
Reading is the key to everything. Teaching children to read is a fundamental moral obligation of the society. That 27 percent are at serious risk of crippling illiteracy is an outrageous scandal.
This is a bleak picture for an old Democrat. Face it, the schools are not run by Republican oligarchs in top hats and spats but by perfectly nice, caring, sharing people, with a smattering of yoga/raga/tofu/mojo/mantra folks like my old confreres. Nice people are failing these kids, but when they are called on it, they get very huffy. When the grand poobah Ph.D.s of education stand up and blow, they speak with great confidence about theories of teaching, and considering the test results, the bums ought to be thrown out.
There is much evidence that teaching phonics really works, especially with kids with learning disabilities, a growing constituency. But because phonics is associated with behaviorism and with conservatives, and because the Current Occupant has spoken on the subject, my fellow liberals are opposed.
Liberal dogma says that each child is inherently gifted and will read if only he is read to. This was true of my grandson; it is demonstrably not true of many kids, including my sandy-haired, gap-toothed daughter. The No Child Left Behind initiative has plenty of flaws, but the Democrats who are trashing it should take another look at the Reading First program. It is morally disgusting if Democrats throw out Republican programs that are good for children. Life is not a scrimmage. Grown-ups who stick with dogma even though it condemns children to second-class lives should be put on buses and sent to North Dakota to hoe wheat for a year.
St. Michael, I beg you to send angels to watch over fourth-graders who are struggling to read, because the righteous among us are not doing the job.
Garrison Keillor's "A Prairie Home Companion" can be heard Saturday nights on public radio stations across the United States. -- Ed.

Bishop Hilarion's "Passion According to St. Matthew"

For your Lenten pleasure (ours start in three weeks!)

His Grace's EXCELLENT composition is available online, as originally aired on EWTN.

Click here to listen, and while there, you may read a number of essays this remarkable man of God has written. Accomplished musician, theologian, and bishop of Christ's flock. Enjoy!

Archbishop Christodoulos of Athens, RIP

I had mixed feelings about his ministry, for the reasons that this article will show.

However, since he was an able shepherd of Christ's flock, carrying out his duty in celebrating the mysteries and guarding the sacraments to the end of time, I will exclaim: Requiescas in Pace, pastor Christi! Memory Eternal!

From the BBC News Service:

An attempted liver transplant in 2007 was unsuccessful, and the archbishop had grown steadily weaker recently.
Archbishop Christodoulos was a colourful and controversial figure, the BBC's Malcolm Brabant in Greece says.

He defended the church's pre-eminent role in the state and upheld Hellenism - the national character and culture of Greece, our correspondent says.

But critics say that under Archbishop Christodoulos, Greece remained a country which discriminates against those who are not Orthodox, including Catholics and worshippers of other branches of Christianity.

Read the rest of the article here:

Update: First Chapter Sent Off!

The first chapter of my dissertation was just sent to my committee. I await their feedback with earnest expectation!

In the meantime, I will be working on the two chapters I need to finish, plus finish editing the rest of the five.

It's nearing completion, and I have this clammy sense of expectation, fear, elation, all at once! It's close to the end of the road before, hopefully, I can at last say Phinally Done!!!

Pagans or Apostates?

An Essay by Dr. Alice von Hildebrand, published by the New Oxford Review:

He who aims at changing society -- for good or for evil -- knows that he should gain control over three things: education, the news media, and entertainment. These are the keys that shape a society.My concern is education. Great men have always emphasized its crucial importance. To form young minds is to build the future of a society. There is no nobler task, and education begins at home. The mother is the primary educator of her child, for she will spend more time with her babies than the father can, even though his role is also crucial. To educate is to lead, to draw, to guide. The child, inexperienced and unknowing, needs a guiding hand to teach him the elementary rules of human existence. This hand should be both firm and gentle: firm because morally, intellectually, and physically, the child is not yet steady on his legs; gentle because this firmness should be an expression of loving concern for his welfare. Granted that these two qualities are not easily combined, it is typical of great personalities that they manage to unite what -- at first sight -- are irreconcilable opposites.

It is monly said today that "we have fallen back into paganism." This claim is a gross oversimplification. Granted that man's nature has been wounded by Original Sin, it is definitely not true to claim -- as the Calvinists do -- that it is totally corrupt. We only need turn to the great works of pagan antiquity to see that the best among the pagans were sincere lovers of truth and that their contributions are remarkable even though they were inevitably incomplete. They did not benefit from Christian revelation, but their works prove that there is a natural law inscribed in man's heart, and that men of good will can easily read its dictates. Plato was such a man.


Plato devoted most of his writings to education. His two major works, The Republic and The Laws, are dedicated to this all-important topic. This article aims partly at etching the accomplishments of this great pagan.

Had Plato met Peter Singer (who advocates infanticide at Princeton), he would have been outraged. To place animals on the level of man would have kindled his ire. Some animals can be trained, that is, forced to do the will of the trainer; one can train a dog to take a few steps on two legs. Children can be trained as far as certain physical activities are concerned, but education addresses children as human beings. In this case, the educator worthy of the name does not impose his will upon his pupils; he guides them to do, in collaboration with them, what they ought to do, so that, one day, they will freely do it on their own. The knowledge of this "oughtness" will benefit the child: Knowing the moral law and living up to its norms is essential to man's true development.

Read the rest here
Biretta tip to to The Western Confucian

I'm Baaack!

It's been a long hiatus, I know, but the dissertation is LARGELY done, with one-and-a-half more chapters to go. I am editing the introductory chapter, getting ready to send it out to my doctoral committee, and while finishing the chapters I need to finish, I will go on with editing what is finished. I am hoping to defend some time in April.

In May I will be flying out to Michigan for the annual International Medieval Congress at the University of Michigan in Kalamazoo (yes, I know, that catchy ditty by Glen Miller). This is often called a "summer camp for medievalists." I won't be giving a paper this time around, but will be attending a number of conferences on monastic history and spirituality, and a few on Tolkien and the Middle Ages!

Last year at the Congress, I met this man
His name? Diego Poole, who is now professor of law at the King Juan Carlos University in Madrid. As a university student in the late 80's, he was Pope John Paul II's "unofficial jester," if you will, entertaining him, and thousands of college students from around the world during a world student congress at the Vatican every on Holy Week. He is known as the man who made the Pope laugh so hard, he alomost fell out of his seat!

He is a member of Opus Dei, and as a university faculty, his main research is on the how Christian natural law tradition (especially in its Thomistic variety) can inform moral and ethical questions that arise in modern jurisprudence.

I had the pleasure of having served as his translator during the presentation of his paper. My job was simply to explain some questions from the Q and A period that he might have some trouble understanding due to his still growing grasp of English. He did fine, only needing my services once. We have since then kept up e-mail correspondence, and will likely see each other again this year in Kalamazoo (or "The Zoo" as it is oftimes called).

I hope you, whatever reading public I have, have had a blessed Christmas feast and Holy Epihany/Theophany season.

I will be posting moderately again, given my many commitments, but will blog more once the dissertation is done, defended and approved!

Pax Vobiscum!

Beheading of St. John the Baptist

From The Golden Legend:

Here followeth the Decollation of Saint John Baptist. It is read that the decollation of Saint John Baptist was established for four causes, like as it is found in the Book of Office. First, for his decollation; secondly, for the burning and gathering together of his bones; thirdly, for the invention and finding of his head; and fourthly, for the translation of his finger and dedication of the Church. And after some people this feast is named diversely, that is to say, decollation, collection, invention, and dedication. First, this feast is hallowed for his decollation which was made in this manner. For, as it is had in Historia Scholastica, Herod Antipas, son of the great Herod, went to Rome and passed by the house of Philip his brother, and began to love the wife of his brother, which was named Herodias, wife of the same Philip, his brother. After that Josephus saith, she was sister of Herod Agrippa. And when he returned, he refused and repudiated his own wife, and secretly wedded her to his wife, the which thing his wife knew well, that he had wedded his brother's wife. And this first wife of Herod was daughter of Areth, king of Damascus, and therefore she abode not the coming home of her husband, but went to her father as soon as she might. And when Herod returned, he took away the wife of Philip his brother, and wedded her, and left his own. And there moved against him therefore Herod Agrippa, and the king Areth and Philip became his enemies. And Saint John said to him that he had not done well to do so, because after the law it appertained not to him to have and hold the wife of his brother living. And Herod saw that John reproved him of this thing so cruelly, as Josephus saith, because he reproved him of blame. He assembled great people for to please his wife, and did do bind and put Saint John in prison, but he would not slay him for doubt of the people, which much loved John, and followed him for his predication. And Herod and Herodias, coveting occasion against Saint John how they might make him die, ordained between them secretly that, when Herod should make the feast of his nativity the daughter of Herodias should demand a gift of Herod for dancing and springing at the feast tofore the principal princes of his realm, and he should swear to her by his oath that he shall grant it her. And she should ask the head of Saint John, and he would give it to her for keeping of his oath, but he should feign as he were angry because of making of the oath. And it is read in the History Scholastic that he had this treachery and great fantasy in him where it is said thus: It is to be believed that Herod treated first secretly with his wife of the death of Saint John. And under this occasion saith Jerome in the gloss: And therefore he sware for to find occasion to slay him, for if she had required the death of his father or mother, he had not given it to her ne consented it. And when the feast was assembled, the maid was there springing and dancing tofore them all, in such wise that it pleased much to all. And then sware the king that he would give to her whatsomever she required, though she demanded half his kingdom. And then she, warned by her mother, demanded the head of Saint John Baptist. Nevertheless, Herod by evil courage feigned that he was angry because of his oath, and as Rabanus saith: That he had sworn follily, that he must needs do. But he made no sign of sorrow save in the visage, for he was joyous in his heart; he excused the felony of his oath, showing that he did it under the occasion of pity. Then the hangman came and smote off his head and delivered it to the maid, the which she laid in a platter and presented it at the dinner to her mischievous mother. And then Herod was much abashed when he saw it. And Saint Austin rehearseth in a sermon that he made on the occasion of the decollation, by way of example, that there was an innocent man and a true which had lent certain money to another man which denied it him when he asked it. And the good man was moved, and constrained him by his oath to swear whether he owed him or no, and he sware that he owed him nought, and so the creditor lost that he had lent. And then he saith that, in the next day following the creditor was ravished and brought tofore the judgment, and it was asked him: Why calledst thou that man for to be believed by his oath? And he said: Because he denied my debt. And the judge said: It had been better to thee to lose thy debt than he should lose his soul by making of a false oath as he did. And then this man was taken and grievously beaten, so that when he awoke the tokens of his wounds appeared on his back, but he was pardoned and forgiven. And after this Austin saith that Saint John was not beheaded on this day when the feast of his decollation is hallowed, but the year tofore, about the feast of Easter, and because of the passion of Jesu Christ and of the sacrament of our Lord it is deferred unto this day, for the less ought to give place to the more and greater. And of that, Saint John Chrysostom saith: John the Baptist beheaded is become master of the school of virtues and of life, the form of holiness, the rule of justice, the mirror of virginity, the ensample of chastity, the way of penance, pardon of sin, and discipline of faith. John is greater than man, peer unto the angels, sovereign holiness of the law of the gospel, the voice of the apostles, the silence of the prophets, the lantern of the world, the foregoer of the Judge, and moyen of all the Trinity. And this so great a man was put to martyrdom, and gave his head to the adulterer, and was delivered to the springing maid. Herod then went not away all unpunished, but he was damned into exile. For as it is contained in the History Scholastic, Herod Agrippa was a noble man but he was poor, and for his overmuch poverty he was in despair, and entered into a certain tower for to suffer death there by famine and hunger. But when Herodias, his sister, heard thereof, she prayed Herod Tetrarch that he would bring him thence and minister to him. And when he had done so they dined together, and Herod Tetrarch began to chauffe him by the wine which he had drunk, and began to reprove Herod Agrippa of the benefits that he had done to him. And that other sorrowed sore, and went to Rome and was received into the grace of Gaius the emperor, and he gave to him two lordships, that is to say of Lisania and Abilina, and crowned him, and sent him king into the Jewry. And when Herodias saw her brother have the name of a king, she prayed her husband with great weepings that he should go to Rome and buy him the name of a king. He abounded greatly in riches, and entended not to her desire, for he had liefer be idle in rest than to have honour laborious. But at the last he was overcome by her busy prayers, Baptist and went to Rome with her. And when Herod Agrippa knew it, he sent letters to the Cæsar, that Herod Antipas, or the Tetrarch, had made friendship with the king of Persia and alliance, and that he would rebel against the empire of Rome. And in token of this thing he signified to him that he had in his garrisons armours enough for to garnish with seven thousand men. And when the emperor had read these letters he was much glad, and began to speak of other things first, afar from his purpose, and among other things he demanded him if he had in his cities great abundance of armours as he heard say, and he denied it not to him. Then the emperor believed well that which Herod had sent him in writing, and was angry toward him, and sent him into exile. And because his wife was sister to Herod Agrippa, whom he much loved, he gave to her leave to return to her country, but she would go with her husband into exile, and said that he that had been in great prosperity, she should not leave him in his adversity. And then were they brought to Lyons, and there ended their lives miserably. This is in the History Scholastic.

Read the rest here.

Feast of St./Blessed Augustine

Nos fecisti ad te et inquietum est cor nostrum donec requiescat in te. (You made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in you) Confesiones

Fr. Seraphim Rose: “His main benefit to us today,” he writes, “is probably precisely as a Father of Orthodox piety—something with which he was filled to overflowing.… Here he is one with the simple Orthodox faithful, as well as with all the Holy Fathers of East and West who, whatever their various failings and differences in theoretical points of doctrine, had a single deeply Christian heart and soul. It is this that makes him unquestionably an Orthodox Father.” -The Place of Blessed Augustine in the Orthodox Church ISBN 0-938635-12-3

Sanctus Pater Augustinus, ora pro nobis!

Feast of the Dormition/Assumption

St. Augustine's sermon for the Feast of the Assumption:

When the holy Gospel was being read, we heard that the Lord was received by a religious woman into her house, and her name was Martha. And while she was occupied in the care of serving, her sister Mary was sitting at the Lord's Feet, and hearing His Word. The one was busy, the other was still; one was giving out, the other was being filled. Yet Martha, all busy as she was in that occupation and toil of serving, appealed to the Lord, and complained of her sister, that she did not help her in her labour. But the Lord answered Martha for Mary; and He became her Advocate, who had been appealed to as Judge. "-->Martha,"--> He says, "-->you are occupied about many things, when one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the better part, which shall not be taken from her."-->16-3330--> For we have heard both the appeal of the appellant, and the sentence of the Judge. Which sentence answered the appellant, defended the other's cause. For Mary was intent on the sweetness of the Lord's word. Martha was intent, how she might feed the Lord; Mary intent how she might be fed by the Lord. By Martha a feast was being prepared for the Lord, in whose feast Mary was even now delighting herself. As Mary then was listening with sweet pleasure to His most sweet word, and was feeding with the most earnest affection, when the Lord was appealed to by her sister, how, think we, did she fear, lest the Lord should say to her, "-->Rise and help your sister"-->? For by a wondrous sweetness was she held; a sweetness of the mind which is doubtless greater than that of the senses.16-3331--> She was excused, she sat in greater confidence. And how excused? Let us consider, examine, investigate it thoroughly as we can, that we may be fed also.
2. For what, do we imagine that Martha's serving was blamed, whom the cares of hospitality had engaged, who had received the Lord Himself into her house? How could she be rightly blamed, who was gladdened by so great a guest? If this be true, let men give over their ministrations to the needy; let them choose for themselves "-->the better part, which shall not be taken from"--> them; let them give themselves16-3332--> wholly to the word, let them long after the sweetness of doctrine; be occupied about the saving knowledge; let it be no care to them, what stranger is in the street, who there is that wants bread, or clothing, or to be visited, to be redeemed, to be buried; let works of mercy cease, earnest heed be given to knowledge only. If this be "-->the better part,"--> why do not all do this, when we have the Lord Himself for our defender in this behalf? For we do not fear in this matter, lest we should offend His justice, when we have the support of His judgment.
3. And yet it is not so; but as the Lord spoke so it is. It is not as you understand, but it is as you ought to understand it. So mark; "-->You are occupied about many things, when one thing is needful. Mary has chosen the better part."--> You have not chosen a bad part; but she a better. And how better? Because you are "-->about many things,"--> she about "-->one thing."--> One is preferred to many. For one does not come from many, but many from one.
The things which were made, are many, He who made them is One. The heaven, the earth, the sea, and all things that in them are, how many are they! Who could enumerate them? who conceive their vast number? Who made all these? God made them all. Behold, "-->they are very good."-->16-3333--> Very good are the things He made; how much better is He who made them! Let us consider then our "-->occupations about many things."--> Much serving is necessary for the refreshment of our bodies. Wherefore is this? Because we hunger, and thirst. Mercy is necessary for the miserable. Thou breakest bread to the hungry; because you have found an hungry man; take hunger away; to whom do you break bread? Take houseless wandering16-3334--> away; to whom do you show hospitality? Take nakedness away; to whom do you furnish clothes? Let there be no sickness; whom do you visit? No captivity; whom do you redeem? No quarrelling; whom do you reconcile? No death; whom do you bury? In that world to come, these evils will not be; therefore these services will not be either. Well then did Martha, as touching the bodily—what shall I call it, want, or will, of the Lord?—minister to His mortal flesh. But who was He in that mortal flesh? "-->In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God:"-->16-3335--> see what Mary was listening to! "-->The Word was made flesh, and dwelt 430 -->among us:"-->16-3336--> see to whom Martha was ministering! Therefore "-->has Mary chosen the better part, which shall not be taken from her."--> For she chose that which shall abide for ever; "-->it shall not be taken from her."--> She wished to be occupied about "-->one thing."--> She understood already, "-->But it is good for me to cleave to the Lord."-->16-3337--> She sat at the feet of our Head. The more lowlily she sat, the more amply did she receive. For the water flows together to the low hollows of the valley, runs down from the risings of the hill. The Lord then did not blame Martha's work, but distinguished between their services. "-->You are occupied about many things; yet one thing is needful."--> Already has Mary chosen this for herself. The labour of manifoldness passes away, and the love of unity abides. Therefore what she has chosen, "-->shall not be taken from her."--> But from you, that which you have chosen (of course this follows, of course this is understood) from you, that which you have chosen shall be taken away. But to your blessedness shall it be taken away, that that which is better may be given. For labour shall be taken away from you, that rest may be given. You are still on the sea, she is already in port.

Two More Chapters!

For all my readers who have been wondering, I can happily announce that after two pages of the current chapter, I have only two chapters to go!

This has been a quite productive summer in terms of my dissertation work, and I'm happy to see that the end is in sight.

Your prayers and good thoughts will be much appreciated. Let's hope my doctoral committee will like the finished product!!!

Motu Propio Released!

I interrupt this hiatus to bring you the following news:

Vatican has released the Motu Propio, liberating the Tridentine Mass according to the 1962 missal. Here's the official Latin version. It was released today, the 7th of July, in the year of Our Lord 2007.

And apparently, the 1962 Missal was never abrogated to begin with!

I think this is good news for the furtherance of the continuing Orthodox/Roman Catholic relations. With the widespread celebration of the ancient Roman rite in Roman Catholic parishes, it will signal to the Orthodox that the Catholics are serious about liturgical piety and the mystical and transcendent nature of the Mass. Monsignor Klaus Gamber (+Requiescat in Pace) talked quite a bit about this.

This could mean the reconcilliation of the Society of Pius X with the Holy See. This, along with ROCOR's reconcilliation with the Moscow Patriarchate (effective May 18, 2007) would be nothing but good news.

Mind you, the road to reunion between Roman Catholic and Orthodox Churches is still a long, crooked road, and it should continue with honesty on both sides. The long-awaited restoration of the old mass is a step in the right direction, in my humble opinion.

Now back to my dissertation!

Blogging hiatus

Given the pressures of writing a dissertation, I have decided to take a long break from blogging. I hope to be done with my dissertation in January, and to meet that deadline, I must make every use of my long vacation from teaching this summer.

I will conitnue to post a few things here and there, but will not be doing so with any degree of regularity.

Please keep me in your prayers, that I may take on this task with due diligence.

American Liberty

Today is Independence Day. It is a common ritual for me, on this day, to read the Declaration of Independence in order to reconnect with the "ideals" of liberty that have shaped this country's identity for the past 231 years. I put "ideals" in qutation marks because I am more and more dissatisfied, and a bit impatient, with the word. When men fight, they fight for something much more concrete than "ideals". They fight for home, family, community, and honour (for my fellow Americans, yes, I know, it shouldn't have a "u", but it just does not seem right without it).

"Ah," you ask, "is not honour an ideal?" Well, no. You see, when we describe someone who is honourable, there usually is good reason to do so. For instance, we may call someone who is reliable, consistently moral, upright, magnanimous, and generally worthy of high estimation as an "honourable man." Such individuals are looked upon with a great degree of respect because there is a history of a commitment to honouring their commitments, and are thus worthy of that high estimation. Dignity, worth, nobility, esteem-all of these are wrapped up in the word honour.

Honour is in fact the very last word of the Declaration of Independence: "And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the Protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our Sacred Honor." Now what precedes these stirring words are, first of all, general guidelines for when and under what circumstances one people may dissolve political ties with another, and alter their form of government (argued in good Lockian fashion). A detailed set of "evidences" that occasioned the move towards separation from Crown and Parliament follows. Since Crown and Parliament had not honoured their commitments to treat the colonials as free Englishmen, then they, the signers of the Declaration, would put their worth, esteem, and dignity on the line for the cause of liberty.



Now what is meant by liberty? It seems clear that, for the signers of the Declaration, liberty was no abstract notion or ideal. After all, Frenchmen would later in 1789 take up the fight against the French crown on the ideals of liberte, egalite, fraternite, resulting eventually in a cartload of headless corpses and a tyrant. As Edmund Burke would argue, the French Revolution was fought for the sake of abstractions. Noot so for the signers of the Declaration: something more substantial than an "ideal" was at stake-their rights as Englishmen. It is on this basis-i.e. their traditional and ancient rights as Englishmen-that they made their case. Liberty, then, like honour, is tied up in very specific and historically-rooted circumstances. John Locke argued along the lines of traditional English constitutional law in order to establish the common rights of men living in civil society (Second Treatise on Government). Likewise, the signers of the Declaration appeal to their common inheritance of English Common Law tradition, and this Burkian sense of ratioanl liberty that takes into account the "consent of our ancestors," as well as the governed. By "rational liberty," Edmund Burke meant one in which men are free to pursue their just and equitable needs and desires for happiness (as in Aristotle's eudaemonia, or that condition of well-being that results from virtuous actions), always with a view of our ancestors' input. He underscores this relationship between tradition and liberty in Reflections on the Revolution in France (1789):

"Through the same plan of a conformity to nature in our artificial institutions, and by calling in the aid of her unerring and powerful instincts, to fortify the fallible and feeble contrivances of our reason, we have derived several other, and those no small benefits, from considering our liberties in the light of an inheritance. Always acting as if in the presence of canonized forefathers, the spirit of freedom, leading in itself to misrule and excess, is tempered with an awful gravity. This idea of a liberal descent inspires us with a sense of habitual native dignity, which prevents that upstart insolence almost inevitably adhering to and disgracing those who are the first acquirers of any distinction. By this means our liberty becomes a noble freedom. It carries an imposing and majestic aspect. It has a pedigree and illustrating ancestors. It has its bearings and its ensigns armorial. It has its gallery of portraits; its monumental inscriptions; its records, evidences, and titles. We procure reverence to our civil institutions on the principle upon which nature teaches us to revere individual men; on account of their age, and on account of those from whom they are descended. All your sophisters cannot produce anything better adapted to preserve a rational and manly freedom than the course that we have pursued, who have chosen our nature rather than our speculations, our breasts rather than our inventions, for the great conservatories and magazines of our rights and privileges."

Thus, far from being an abstract "ideal", liberty is grounded on a bedrock of experience and natural law. For Burke, as well as for the signers of the Declaration, the common Englishman (and American) knows his rights not on the basis of abstractions, but on the basis of an inherited trust, one bequethed by his ancestors, forging a bond between the past, the present, and the future. What is bound up with with liberty? History, tradition, and natural law.

By birth, I am Cuban, but by adoption (if I can co-opt a Pauline metaphor) I am an Anglo-American. This means that this nation's history has become my history, its laws, rooted in English Common Law tradition, are my laws. As a result, I hold deeply a love and admiration for English history, law and institutions, which gave birth to the country I now call home.

So I raise a good pint of Sam Adams to my dear Republic. Long may it prosper! And I also raise my glass to Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II. Long may she reign!

Feast of the Visitation of the BVM

Sermon by St. Bede the Venerable, from Rosary Blog

Mary proclaims the greatness of the Lord working in her soul:

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my savior. With these words Mary first acknowledges the special gifts she has been given. Then she recalls God's universal favors, bestowed unceasingly on the human race. When a man devotes all his thoughts to the praise and service of the Lord, he proclaims God's greatness. His observance of God's commands, moreover, shows that he has God's power and greatness always at heart. His spirit rejoices in God his savior and delights in the mere recollection of his creator who gives him hope for eternal salvation. These words are often for all God's creations, but especially for the Mother of God. She alone was chosen, and she burned with spiritual love for the son she so joyously conceived. Above all other saints, she alone could truly rejoice in Jesus, her savior, for she knew that he who was the source of eternal salvation would be born in time in her body, in one person both her own son and her Lord.

For the Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name. Mary attributes nothing to her own merits. She refers all her greatness to the gift of the one whose essence is power and whose nature is greatness, for he fills with greatness and strength the small and the weak who believe in him. She did well to add: and holy is his name, to warn those who heard, and indeed all who would receive his words, that they must believe and call upon his name. For they too could share in everlasting holiness and true salvation according to the words of the prophet: and it will come to pass, that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. This is the name she spoke of earlier: and my spirit rejoices in God my savior.

Therefore it is an excellent and fruitful custom of holy Church that we should sing Mary's hymn at the time of evening prayer. By meditating upon the incarnation, our devotion is kindled, and by remembering the example of God's Mother, we are encouraged to lead a life of virtue. Such virtues are best achieved in the evening. We are weary after the day's work and worn out by our distractions. The time for rest is near, and our minds are ready for contemplation.

Feast of the Precious Blood of Christ

St. John Chrysostom's Homily 16 on Hebrews

Hebrews ix. 15-18
"And for this cause He is the Mediator of the New Testament, that by means of death for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first Testament, they which are called might receive the promise of an eternal inheritance. For where a testament is, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator. For a testament is of force after men are dead, otherwise it is of no strength at all while the testator lives. Whereupon neither the first [testament] was dedicated without blood."

[1.] It was probable that many of those who were more weakly would especially distrust the promises of Christ because He had died. Paul accordingly out of a superabundance introduced this illustration, deriving it from common custom. Of what kind is it? He says, "indeed, on this very account we ought to be of good courage." On what account? Because testaments are established and obtain their force when those who have made them are not living, but dead. "And for this cause," he says, "He is the Mediator of the New Testament."A Testament is made towards the last day, [the day] of death. And a testament is of this character: It makes some heirs, and some disinherited. So in this case also: "-->I will that where I am,"Christ says, "they also may be."( John xvii. 24 .) And again of the disinherited, hear Him saying, "I pray not for" all, "but for them that believe in Me through their word."( John xvii. 20 .) Again, a testament has relation both to the testator, and to the legatees; so that they have some things to receive, and some to do. So also in this case. For after having made promises innumerable, He demands also something from them, saying, "a new commandment I give unto you."( John xiii. 34 .) Again, a testament ought to have witnesses. Hear Him again saying, "I am one that bear witness of Myself, and He that sent Me bears witness of Me."( John viii. 18 .) And again, "He shall testify of Me"( John xv. 26 ), speaking of the Comforter. The twelve Apostles too He sent, saying, "Bear ye witness before God."

[2.] "And for this cause"(he says) "He is the Mediator of the New Testament."What is a "Mediator"? A mediator is not lord of the thing of which he is mediator, but the thing belongs to one person, and the mediator is another: as for instance, the mediator of a marriage is not the bridegroom, but one who aids him who is about to be married. So then also here: The Son became Mediator between the Father and us. The Father willed not to leave us this inheritance, but was angry against us, and was displeased [with us] as being estranged [from Him]; He accordingly became Mediator between us and Him, and prevailed with Him.
And what then? How did He become Mediator? He brought words from [Him] and brought [them to us], conveying over what came from the Father to us, and adding His own death thereto. We had offended: we ought to have died: He died for us and made us worthy of the Testament. By this is the Testament secure, in that henceforward it is not made for the unworthy. At the beginning indeed, He made His dispositions as a father for sons; but after we had become unworthy, there was no longer need of a testament, but of punishment.
Why then (he would say) do you think upon the law? For it placed us in a condition of so great sin, that we could never have been saved, if our Lord had not died for us; the law would not have had power, for it is weak.

[3.] And he established this no longer from common custom only, but also from what happened under the old [Testament]: which especially influenced them. There was no one who died there: how then could that [Testament] be firm? In the same way (he says). How? For blood was there also, as there is blood here. And if it was not the blood of the Christ, do not be surprised; for it was a type. "Whereupon,"he says, "neither was the first [Testament] dedicated without blood."
What is "was dedicated"? was confirmed, was ratified. The word "whereupon" means "for this cause."It was needful that the symbol of the Testament should be also that of death.
For why (tell me) is the book of the testament sprinkled? (Ver. 19, 20) "For" (he says) "when Moses had spoken every precept to all the people according to the law, he took the blood of calves, with water, and scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book itself and all the people, saying, This is the blood of the testament, which God has enjoined unto you."Tell me then why is the book of the testament sprinkled, and also the people, except on account of the precious blood, figured from the first? Why "with hyssop"? It is close and retentive. And why the "water"? It shows forth also the cleansing by water. And why the "wool"? this also [was used], that the blood might be retained. In this place blood and water show forth the same thing, for baptism is His passion.

[4.] Ver. 21, 22 Moreover he sprinkled with blood both the tabernacle and all the vessels of the ministry. And almost all things are by the law purged with blood, and without shedding of blood is no remission." Why the "almost"? why did he qualify it? Because those [ordinances] were not a perfect purification, nor a perfect remission, but half-complete and in a very small degree. But in this case He says, "This is the blood of the New Testament, which is shed for you, for the remission of sins." ( Matt. xxvi. 28 .)

Read the rest here

Sts. Peter and Paul

St. Leo the Great's Sermon 82, for the Feast of Sts. Peter and Paul (from New Advent)

The whole world, dearly-beloved, does indeed take part in all holy anniversaries, and loyalty to the one Faith demands that whatever is recorded as done for all men's salvation should be everywhere celebrated with common rejoicings. But, besides that reverence which today's festival has gained from all the world, it is to be honoured with special and peculiar exultation in our city, that there may be a predominance of gladness on the day of their martyrdom in the place where the chief of the Apostles met their glorious end36-1166-->. For these are the men, through whom the light of Christ's gospel shone on you, O Rome, and through whom you, who wast the teacher of error, wast made the disciple of Truth. These are your holy Fathers and true shepherds, who gave you claims to be numbered among 195 -->the heavenly kingdoms, and built you under much better and happier auspices than they, by whose zeal the first foundations of your walls were laid: and of whom the one that gave you your name defiled you with his brother's blood36-1167-->. These are they who promoted you to such glory, that being made a holy nation, a chosen people, a priestly and royal state 1 Peter 2:9, and the head of the world through the blessed Peter's holy See you attained a wider sway by the worship of God than by earthly government. For although you were increased by many victories, and extended your rule on land and sea, yet what your toils in war subdued is less than what the peace of Christ has conquered.

For the good, just, and Almighty God, Who has never withheld His mercy from mankind, and has ever instructed all men alike in the knowledge of Himself by the most abundant benefits, has by a more secret counsel and a deeper love shown pity upon the wanderers' voluntary blindness and proclivities to evil, by sending His co-equal and co-eternal Word. Which becoming flesh so united the Divine Nature with the human that He by lowering His Nature to the uttermost has raised our nature to the highest. But that the result of this unspeakable Grace might be spread abroad throughout the world, God's Providence made ready the Roman empire, whose growth has reached such limits that the whole multitude of nations are brought into close connection. For the Divinely-planned work particularly required that many kingdoms should be leagued together under one empire, so that the preaching of the world might quickly reach to all people, when they were held beneath the rule of one state. And yet that state, in ignorance of the Author of its aggrandisement though it rule almost all nations, was enthralled by the errors of them all, and seemed to itself to have fostered religion greatly, because it rejected no falsehood. And hence its emancipation through Christ was the more wondrous that it had been so fast bound by Satan.

For when the twelve Apostles, after receiving through the Holy Ghost the power of speaking with all tongues, had distributed the world into parts among themselves, and undertaken to instruct it in the Gospel, the most blessed Peter, chief of the Apostolic band, was appointed to the citadel of the Roman empire, that the light of Truth which was being displayed for the salvation of all the nations, might spread itself more effectively throughout the body of the world from the head itself. What nation had not representatives then living in this city; or what peoples did not know what Rome had learned? Here it was that the tenets of philosophy must be crushed, here that the follies of earthly wisdom must be dispelled, here that the cult of demons must be refuted, here that the blasphemy of all idolatries must be rooted out, here where the most persistent superstition had gathered together all the various errors which had anywhere been devised.

To this city then, most blessed Apostle Peter, you dost not fear to come, and when the Apostle Paul, the partner of your glory, was still busied with regulating other churches, entered this forest of roaring beasts, this deep, stormy ocean with greater boldness than when you walked upon the sea. And you who had been frightened by the high priest's maid in the house of Caiaphas, had no fear of Rome the mistress of the world. Was there any less power in Claudius, any less cruelty in Nero than in the judgment of Pilate or the Jews' savage rage? So then it was the force of love that conquered the reasons for fear: and you did not think those to be feared whom you had undertaken to love. But this feeling of fearless affection you had even then surely conceived when the profession of your love for the Lord was confirmed by the mystery of the thrice-repeated question. And nothing else was demanded of this your earnest purpose than that you should bestow the food wherewith you had yourself been enriched, on feeding His sheep whom you loved.

Your confidence also was increased by many miraculous signs, by many gifts of grace, by many proofs of power. You had already taught the people, who from the number of the circumcised had believed: you had already founded the Church at Antioch, where first the dignity of the Christian name arose: you had already instructed Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, in the laws of the Gospel-message: and, without doubt as to the success of the work, with full knowledge of the short span of your life carried 196 -->the trophy of Christ's cross into the citadel of Rome, whither by the Divine fore-ordaining there accompanied you the honour of great power and the glory of much suffering.

Thither came also your blessed brother-Apostle Paul, "-->the vessel of election Acts 9:15,"--> and the special teacher of the Gentiles, and was associated with you at a time when all innocence, all modesty, all freedom was in jeopardy under Nero's rule. Whose fury, inflamed by excess of all vices, hurled him headlong into such a fiery furnace of madness that he was the first to assail the Christian name with a general persecution, as if God's Grace could be quenched by the death of saints, whose greatest gain it was to win eternal happiness by contempt of this fleeting life. "-->Precious,"--> therefore, "-->in the eyes of the Lord is the death of His saints36-1170-->:"--> nor can any degree of cruelty destroy the religion which is founded on the mystery of Christ's cross. Persecution does not diminish but increase the church, and the Lord's field is clothed with an ever richer crop, while the grains, which fall singly, spring up and are multiplied a hundred-fold36-1171-->. Hence how large a progeny have sprung from these two Heaven-sown seeds is shown by the thousands of blessed martyrs, who, rivalling the Apostles' triumphs, have traversed the city far and wide in purple-clad and ruddy-gleaming throngs, and crowned it, as it were with a single diadem of countless gems.

And over this band, dearly-beloved, whom God has set forth for our example in patience and for our confirmation in the Faith, there must be rejoicing everywhere in the commemoration of all the saints, but of these two Fathers' excellence we must rightly make our boast in louder joy, for God's Grace has raised them to so high a place among the members of the Church, that He has set them like the twin light of the eyes in the body, whose Head is Christ. About their merits and virtues, which pass all power of speech, we must not make distinctions, because they were equal in their election36-1172-->, alike in their toils, undivided in their death. But as we have proved for ourselves, and our forefathers maintained, we believe, and are sure that, amid all the toils of this life, we must always be assisted in obtaining God's Mercy by the prayers of special interceders, that we may be raised by the Apostles' merits in proportion as we are weighed down by our own sins. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, &c.

Some Economic Lessons from the Amish

By Dan McLaughlin, from the Ludwig von Mises Institute

The Amish are interesting people. Having lived much of my life in a rural area with a significant Amish population, I have had the opportunity to interact with them, and have some level of understanding of the culture. It is a fascinating study.
The Amish make a conscious choice to live without most of the modern conveniences that Americans take for granted. They have strong religious beliefs and a commitment to principles. Different communities have varying perspectives on what is allowable and what is not, but they all have a common belief that they must maintain a separation from the world and worldly things. They provide lessons to us that they may not intend, but are valuable nonetheless.
Their life is centered around the local Amish community, and they live separate lives from non-Amish people around them. They generally don't use insurance, but they share risk in a different way. They have a strong sense of internal community, and in time of disaster, they are drawn together to help their neighbors. When someone's barn burns down, there is a barn raising, where the whole community gathers to build a new one. It is an amazing display of cooperation.
Many people view full employment as the primary purpose of society. It is a concept that animates much of the discussion in economics and politics. If full employment truly is the primary goal of our society, then we should follow the lead of the Amish. They have developed a social structure that provides full employment for every member. In fact, the problem is not too little employment, but too much employment. They have to have large families with many helping hands to absorb all of the employment that the lack of modern equipment affords them.
Because they do not use tractors, they need many hands to plow, cultivate, and harvest the fields. Milking cows by hand is time-consuming manual labor. Shoveling manure by hand provides employment for some of the less fortunate members of the family. Cutting, transporting, and stacking wood for heat and cooking provides more work that can keep someone busy and sweaty for a considerable period of time.

Read the rest here

Two Christian Views of Islam: The Historia Roderici, The Song of El Cid, and The Song of Roland

The political fortunes of the Christian kingdoms of Asturias-Leon were greatly enhanced by the fragmentation of the Cordoban Caliphate into small Taifa kingdoms. Oviedo itself had replaced Leon as the Asturian capital under Ordono II around 910, but after the last major Christian victory of Simancas in 939, a crisis of succession weakened the kingdom, making it more vulnerable to Andalusian raids, especially those of Al-Mansur (978-1002). The fortunes of the kingdom of Asturias changed with the reign of Sancho III Garces of Navarre (1000-1035). With his death, the succession is passed on to his three sons: Garcia III, who inherits the kingdom of Navarre; Fernando I (1035-1065), who rules the kingdom of Castille; and finally Ramiro I, who rules over the newly established kingdom of Aragon. Fernando's career saw the absorption of the Leon (after he had killed Vermudo III) and the establishment of the county of Portugal through the conquest of Coimbra. At his death, his kingdom would be divided between Sancho II (who inherited Castille and the Zaragozan paria) and Alfonso VI (who inherited Leo and the Toledo paria) With the assassination of Sancho, Alfonso also rules over Castille. Alfonso eventually absorbs the Toledo paria in 1085, prompting the invasion of the Almoravids.
Under Sancho II, a knight by the name of Rodrigo Diaz (El Cid) would begin his career as the king's field marshal (alferez). After the assassination of Sancho, he served under his brother Alfonso, but their relationship was cordial, but distant, especially when Rodrigo forced an oath upon Alfonso that he had no complicity in Sancho's death. The accounts of his subsequent adventures are rehearsed in the Historia Roderici and the Poema del Mio Cid, as well as the Chronicon Regum Legionensium. In each of these, the problem of religious identity becomes more confusing. In the Historia Roderici, while one might find an occasional reference to the traditional Christian nomenclature may occur (i.e. "Saracen", etc.) the force of the narrative is much more "secular". Rodrigo forges a strong relationship to Al-Mutamin of Seville, and generally fights to represent the Taifa kings. This takes on even a more bizarre twist when the Count of Barcelona accuses El Cid of not being a good Christian, an unusual charge given that his own tributary was the Taifa king of Zaragoza, for whom Count Ordonez is fighting. The narrative begins to change a little with the invasion of the Almoravids. With the siege of Valencia, Rodrigo, overwhelmed by the "vasr and innumerable" multitude of the Almoravid camp, calls down divine help, "trusting in God and His mercy" (Historia Roderici, chapt.5). Here the narrative shifts from the largely political and pragmatic concerns of Rodrigo, to a general representation of a good Christian knight. A "holy war" imagery emerges here, but the overall tenor of the chronicle treats the Taifa kings (who are Muslim) in more friendly and familiar terms than the Almoravids. This overall tension and confusion of religious identity is not quite as palpable in CRL, an account of the kings of Leon from Vermudo to the reign of Alfonso VI. It opens with the reign of Vermudo, king of Leon, whom the chronicler describes as a "foolish" and a "tyrant". The key and decisive moment of reckoning for this evil king comes, according to Bishop Pelayo, at the moment when, on account of the king's sins, Al-Mansur and his son Abd al-Malik (with two exiled Christian counts), lay siege to the kingdom of Leon. The irony of this scenario consists in the fact that retribution comes in the form of a combined Islamic and Christian invading force, an irony that can to some extent fit a sort of "chosen people" narrative. Just as the kingdom of Judah ultimately succumbs to superior Babylonian strength because of its sins, so divine retribution can be visited upon an evil Christian king. The chronicler, however, does not draw upon this imagery, only making use of the word "Hagarene" to describe Al-Mansur and thereby highlighting the fact that the wickedness of Vermudo brought about this invasion. The only other place we might find a sort of "chosen people" and "holy war" narrative is in Bishop Pelayo's account of the reign of Alfonso VI, but even here the emphasis is not so much on the military expansion of the kingdom of Leon, but on the gradual integration of the Spanish church into western Christendom, a program pushed by the reforming Popes under the influence of the Hildebrandian reforms. Bishop Pealyo exemplifies this point through his account of Alfonso VI's efforts to seek closer collaboration with Pope Gregory VII.
A more militant form of "reconquest" imagery takes place in portions of El Cantar del Mio Cid. This romance poem recounts the life and career of Rodrigo Diaz de Vivar in light of the chivalric expectations of the twelfth century, casting him as the ideal Christian knight. It does that in the most curious fashion, as it juxtaposes Rodrigo's confusing and pragmatic relationships with A-Mutamin and the Taifa kingdoms with the Almoravids. In the case of the Almoravids, like the Historia Roderici, the tone of the poem reverts to a "holy war" rhetoric. The poem exemplifies this in two instances: when it portrays him as a just ruler of the Moors (Cid: 46), and when the French cleric Jerome appeals to "crusader ideology" in describing El Cid's career (78). In the latter instance, the bishop has a thoroughgoing "black and white" ideology, in contradistinction to the confused politics of the Taifa kingdoms and their relationship with Alfonso VI. The bishop's more militant crusader posturing has much to do with the fact that he, unlike El Cid, has had no contact with Muslims. This only highlights even more the peculiar character of religious identity in eleventh and twelfth century Iberia. Crusader ideology may be called upon when faced with militant foreign forces (as with the Almoravids), but no such rhetoric is applied to Muslims in the Taifa kingdoms.







The involvement of French crusaders in peninsular affairs added a new dimension to the ideological construction of the Reconquista-the crusading ideal. The promulgation of the Crusade in the Council of Clermont in 1095 by Pope Urban II also identified Spain as a crusading territory; he granted papal indulgences to those who would take part in helping the Christian kingdoms repel the Almoravids.
The Almoravids themselves would play a dominant role in uniting the Taifa kingdoms under one rule, but the successors of Ibn Yusuf could not quite retain effective rule (nor his strict observance of Islamic law), and soon they would divide into petty kingdoms by the middle of the twelfth century. This would allow Alfonso VII to aggressively establish the kingdom of Leon as the dominant "imperial" domain, and Alfonso I of Aragon to make incursions into Zaragoza, eventually conquering it in 1119. The successes of the Christian kingdoms would halt with the arrival of the Almohads, who defeated the Almoravids in North Africa, and would supplant them as the dominant Islamic power in the Iberian Peninsula.
The addition of the crusading element gives rise to a new paradigm in Christian and Muslim relations in Spain, in that whereas previous chronicles and epic poems (like El Cantar del Mio Cid) would make definite distinctions between Taifa kings and the Almoravids, French knightly literature such as the Chansons de Geste would make no such differentiation. This is especially the case with The Song of Roland, part of the Geste cycle, composed in the mid- to late eleventh century. Many of these tales recount stories of knightly prowess, most of them framed in the context of the reign of Charlemagn. The Song of Roland recounts the deeds of Roland, Chralemagne's nephew, in his battle against King Marsila of Zaragoza and his confederates, resulting in Roland's death (though Ganelon's treachery) at the battle of Roncevalles in 778. The remarkable thing about this epic poem is the fact that it provides an interesting "extra-peninsular" view of the Islamic presence in Spain. Again, unlike El Cantar del Mio Cid, it does not quite differentiation between Islamic allies and enemies (perhaps a function of the fact that it is looking back at a time when Islamic Spain was unified under the Cordoban caliphate). The refernces to the forces of Marsila as paynims (pagans), worshippers of "Mahound and Apollo", gives us a strong indication that there is very little attempt, if any, to recognize Islam as either a "Christian heresy", or any kind of Abrahamic faith whatsoever. There are occasional references to them as "Saracens", but "pagan" is much more prominent. The nature of the struggle is defined by Archbishop Turpin of Rheims (who is also takes part in the battle!), when he frames it as a "struggle to uphold Christianity". He further promises absolution to those who would fight bravely: "Certes, ye shall have battle, for here before you are the Saracens. Confess your sins and pray God's mercy, and that your souls may be saved I will absolve you. If ye are slain ye will be holy martyrs, and ye shall have seats in higher Paradise". The tone of this sermon is clear-it is a crusading rhetoric, one which will give shape to the contours of the developing Reconquista ideology.

What hath Athens to do with Jerusalem?

As my good friend and colleague, John Mark Reynolds, is fond of saying, "It's a suburb!"

Read this thoughtful piece by Dr. Reynolds in Scriptorium Daily:

I stood today with fifty students on Mars Hill. There the apostle Paul delivered the answer to Delphi. He did what Plato could not do and defeated the Power of that Hideous Strength in his day.
Paul then Athens at the time of Paul was a city that in many ways lived in the past. It had ceased to have much economic importance. The school of Alexandria surpassed it in many ways. Still, however, the great Parthenon towered over the center of the city on the great rock of the Acropolis covered with the wonderful friezes that now are the prizes of world-class museums. If it dazzles the eye still with its beauty in its nearly ruined state, imagine how it must have appeared to Paul when it was still in one piece. Though looted many times, pagan benefactors who honored the classical period had also filled Athens with temples, theaters, and art work to honor the intellectual gifts of Greece to Rome. The marketplace was still there and if it was less busy than before one could still remember that here Socrates had begun philosophy. The type of Athenian porches (stoa) that had given their name to the Stoic school could still be enjoyed to beat the heat. The Academy still carried on its mission, even if it had little to do with the actual teachings of Plato, a short walk away and on the walk one could remember the teachings of Aristotle. In between the great Acropolis and the marketplace stood a small hill which the ancient Athenians called the Areopagus. It had served from deepest antiquity as an Athenian court. On the hill of the Areopagus, the archons, the members of the court, met and even under the democracy they retained some power especially over murder and sacrilege cases. By the time of Paul, it was a favorite meeting place for intellectuals where the judgments were more over ideas than men. So Saint Paul would have walked through the marketplace where philosophy was born to the hill where religious judgments had traditionally been made in the shadow of the greatest temple of the religion of Homer and of Delphi. Athens was still symbolically one the great centers of ancient paganism and as a symbol had no equal for it contained great icons of both pagan religion and pagan philosophy. The Areopagus, Mar’s Hill to the Romans, stood right in the center of the life of Athens.

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Prayer Request, and a Call to Action

From Ben Johnson's blog WesternOrthodox.blogspot.com:

I recently received this in my e-mail. The man in the story was born a Coptic Christian in Egypt. However, he later joined St. John Chrysostom Antiochian Church in York, Pennsylvania. If the government has its way, he may be put to death.
At this moment, the United States is threatening to deport Mr. Sameh Khouzam back to Egypt at the request of the Egyptian government. Mr. Khouzam is a Coptic Christian currently held at the York County Prison in Pennsylvania charged with crimes against a Muslim family in Egypt.
Why does that matter?
First, to date, no one has presented one shred of credible or verifiable evidence to substantiate the charges against Mr. Khouzam.
Additionally, we are certain that if Sameh is deported he will face torture and probable death upon his return. The government of Egypt has a well-documented history of human rights abuses against its own citizens, particularly against religious minorities like Coptic Christians.
In other words, Mr. Khouzam is facing imminent torture and likely death simply because he is a Coptic Christian--a member of a religious minority in Egypt.
The Institute on Religion and Public Policy will not stand still and let this happen. But, we need your help!
To save Sameh from certain torture and death we need you to click here and sign our Petition to Save Sameh Khouzam immediately.
Sameh Khouzam left Egypt in 1998 under intense pressure to change his religion. He was detained by the Egyptian government and forcefully "encouraged" to convert from his Coptic Christianity to Islam. He escaped Egypt, however, and fled to America - fearing for his life. Afterward, the Egyptian government informed United States officials that Mr. Khouzam was wanted for completely unsubstantiated crimes against a Muslim family.
Mr. Khouzam has proven to be an upstanding member of his local community yet when he voluntarily reported to U.S. immigration authorities last month he was detained, imprisoned, and scheduled for deportation.
He is now set to be deported MONDAY, JUNE 18!
This travesty of justice condemns Sameh to certain torture and death upon his return to Egypteven though there is NO CONCRETE EVIDENCE he committed any crimes in Egypt.
I believe he is being persecuted because of his religious identity.
And the potential for violence against Sameh is real. In fact, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals found it is "more likely than not" he will be tortured upon his return to Egypt. Yet, for apparent political reasons, our government still intends to deport him.
That's why I am determined to act to right this terrible wrong.
The Institute on Religion and Public Policy is poised to IMMEDIATELY deliver your signed Petition to Save Sameh Khouzam to Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff and to Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice.
But there is no time to waste. Sameh is scheduled to be deported THIS MONDAY!
And the U.S. Government simply will not act unless confronted by an overwhelming outpouring of outrage from its citizens!
That's why I need you to click here and sign our Petition to Save Sameh Khouzam right now!
Your participation may help save Sameh's life. But I need you to do more than just sign the petition.
I need you to forward this urgent, life and death petition to as many of your family members, friends, co-workers, co-religionists and others as possible. At the very least, please take a moment and immediately forward this appeal to at least 5 others.
Your few seconds of effort can make all the difference in rescuing Mr. Sameh Khouzam from the likelihood of torture, and possibly, death.Please pass it on. I know the Pope recently condemned Amnesty International (belatedly, in my opinion) for its support of abortion. Perhaps he could steer his followers to support organizations such as the one that sent out this alert?
Labels: current events, Oriental Orthodox

A Muslim Professor's Tribute to his Friend, a Slain Iraqi Priest (Requiescat in Pace)

Biretta Tip to Fr. Jim Tucker

ROME, JUNE 6, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Here is a translation of a letter written posthumously to Father Ragheed Aziz Ganni by a Muslim friend of his who is a professor at the Pontifical Gregorian University. Father Ragheed and three deacons were shot and killed in Mosul, Iraq, on Sunday after Mass.

* * *In the name of the compassionate and merciful God,

Ragheed, my brother,I ask your forgiveness for not being with you when those criminals opened fire against you and your brothers. The bullets that have gone through your pure and innocent body have also gone through my heart and soul.You were one of the first people I met when I arrived to Rome. We met in the halls of the Angelicum and we would drink our cappuccino in the university's cafeteria. You impressed me with your innocence, joy, your pure and tender smile that never left you.I always picture you smiling, joyful and full of zest for life. Ragheed is to me innocence personified; a wise innocence that carries in its heart the sorrows of his unhappy people. I remember the time, in the university's dining room, when Iraq was under embargo and you told me that the price of a single cappuccino would have satisfied the needs of an Iraqi family for a whole day.You told me this as if you were feeling guilty for being far away from your persecuted people and unable to share in their sufferings …In fact, you returned to Iraq, not only to share the suffering and destiny of your people but also to join your blood to the blood of thousands of Iraqis killed each day. I will never forget the day of your ordination [Oct. 13, 2001] in the [Pontifical] Urbanian University … with tears in your eyes, you told me: "Today, I have died to self" … a hard thing to say.

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