Vatican Cardinal Turkson Backs Protests

from Bloomberg......

Oct. 24 (Bloomberg) -- A senior Vatican official said the Occupy Wall Street protests were justified, as the Holy See called for overhauling global financial rules and establishing an international market regulator.
"Do people at a certain time have a right to say: 'Do business differently, look at the way you are doing business because this is not leading to our welfare, to our good?'" Cardinal Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson told reporters at the Vatican today. "Can people demand this of the people of Wall Street? I think people can and should be able to."
The comments by the Ghanaian-born cardinal came as the Vatican office he heads, the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, called for changes in the way financial markets are run and regulated. The appeal is the latest by the Vatican following a 2009 encyclical by Pope Benedict XVI calling for a new financial order.
The council laid out its proposals in a document released today in Vatican City that included a call for taxing financial transactions. Economic injustices including "the hoarding of goods on a great scale" may create "a climate of growing hostility and even violence, and ultimately undermine the very foundations of democratic institutions, even those considered most solid," according to the text.
The Vatican called for a global authority with "universal jurisdiction" over financial policy, including a "central world bank" with functions similar to those of national ones. Such sweeping changes would have to be "gradual," according to the document.
"Everybody knows about globalization, everybody feels its impact," Turkson said. "But single individual countries don't have the competence to deal with it."
--Editors: Alan Crawford, Dan LiefgreenRead more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2011/10/24/bloomberg_articlesLTKT561A1I4H.DTL#ixzz1bkRGq6wi....

Compare Cardinal Turkson's idea of expanding one world government with the definition of "subsidiarity" found in Wikipedia--of all places! 


Subsidiarity is an organizing principle that matters ought to be handled by the smallest, lowest or least centralized competent authority. Political decisions should be taken at a local level if possible, rather than by a central authority. ^[1] The Oxford English Dictionary defines subsidiarity as the idea that a central authority should have a subsidiary function, performing only those tasks which cannot be performed effectively at a more immediate or local level.

Look up subsidiarity in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

The word subsidiarity is derived from the Latin word subsidiarius and has its origins in Catholic social teaching.......

Subsidiarity--that governments should be as localized and as small as possible-- is part of the Church's social teaching.  Cardinal Turkson's idea contradicts it.  not only does he contradict "subsidiarity", he contradicts himself.  He seems to be saying...."the solution to the problems of globalization is more globalization!"

Republican Candidates' disappointing answers on Iraq and Afghanistan

It seems that the Republicans have taken Bill Clinton's advice "it's the economy, stupid" to heart. All GOP talk is about the President Obama's dismal economic ventures.

Whatever has happened to the party of our nation's security?

What has happened to the party of our nation's honor?

The fact remains we have put our hands "to the plow" in Iraq and Afghanistan, and it has cost our "military families" dearly. Not all have lost loved ones or limbs. But many have. What lesson have we learned from their sacrifice? Do we "look back" now? And say "It was all a big mistake! (Sorry!)" ????

Republican hopefuls now compete with one another over who would be quickest to bring our troops home! Some are even labelling Afghanistan "Obama's war"! They never mention the "V" word perhaps because it is axiomatic that in war there are only two possible outcomes: victory or some version of defeat and they have opted for the latter.

This is dishonorable in the extreme. Thousands have willingly laid down their lives and tens of thousands have willingly surrendered arms, legs, even testicles (It is a sad fact that half of the blasts that blow off legs do not detour around the genitalia). Do we not owe it to them, our heroes, and to our national honor to do whatever it takes to win these wars? Do Mitt Romney and crew really think we have been defeated? Can they, like modern day Pilates "wash their hands" and pretend we can just run away and bear no responsibility for the ensuing slaughter of Afghanis and Iraqis who cooperated with Americans?

Bishops in Phoenix and in Madison (WI) reduce distribution of Most Precious Blood

His Excellency, Bishop Morlino, along with Phoenix' Bishop Olmsted, have both called into question the practice of frequently distributing Christ's Blood during Holy Communion. More than questioning the practice, they are restricting it! Bishop Morlino has pointed out that the original permission for the practice was granted only for a 30 year trial in 1975. Finally we have a Bishop who can do the math!

The practice of distributing under both kinds is a source of all kinds of liturgical confusion. "If I receive the Host in one location and then have to walk 30 feet to another site to receive the Blood, then what sign of reverence is required before the Chalice being as I still carry the Body of Christ in my mouth? What about the three or four other extraordinary ministers I must pass getting back to my seat? a genuflection for each?

The question of "both kinds" is closely bound to the practice of multiplying exctraordinary ministers of Holy Communion. They stand everywhere, so there are multiple foci of worship for a believer approaching the Sacrament. He is likely to pass three or four Sacred Species prior to arriving. This is how the practice breeds 'familiarity', and then a lackadaisical attitude towards the Sacrament.

is father Michel of Thiberville gone?

Who speaks French?



http://fr-fr.facebook.com/pages/Abb%C3%A9-Francis-Michel-Cur%C3%A9-de-Thiberville/245780040101

Steven Janco's New Gloria Has People 'Swayin' to the Music'!

Corpus Christ Cathedral debuted the new translation of the Gloria this Sunday. The musical accompaniment was by Steven Janco, of World Liturgical Press, Renssalear Program.

The tune is a fast waltz rythm, and it is apparently difficult to keep from swaying to the 6/8 beat. We noticed one of our priests "movin' and groovin'" to the new tune. I'm afraid this is an example of trying to mix oil with water. It's possible if you stir really hard! I believe it would be more congruent with the Holy Father's intention simply to apply Gregorian melodies (now that the Gloria has been translated to follow Latin phrasing.) Or, even to some of the beautiful polyphonic settings, e.g. William Byrd here: http://gloria.tv/?media=200920.

This might disappoint composers looking to get a lock on becoming the "Marty Haugen" for the new Translation, - and to turn a quick profit. Sorry.

There is also the need to prevent as much as possible Church funds being funneled to the same tired-old composers who have been part and parcel of the Church's decline over the past 50 years. Bill Veeck was once asked his opinion of the high salaries paid to superstars. Veeck replied that he wasn't bothered by the high cost of excellence, but that he was aghast at the high cost of mediocrity. We've paid enough! Let's have excellence!

Let's not fund the Pope's enemies!