Gingrich goofs

Gingrich told ABC NEWS: "I think that if you take a position when a woman has fertilized egg and that’s been successfully implanted that now you’re dealing with life."

Think again Newt. What? Is it a dead Human-seed before it's planted? Isn't an acorn as much an oak tree albeit in an undeveloped state as the smithy's mighty tree. Humans are, like trees, only made by God. 

Public Service for Killer Whales

It seems to me that of all cetaceans the orcas, known to all as killer whales, whales who kill, who have never denied the designation as killer or shown any remorse for their killing even of other cetaceans, have the least grounds for freedom. Dolphins and other cetaceans may kill in self-defense or mating combat, but only killer whales have earned the name killer. Rather than give then their freedom to continue their killing, ought not we continue to give them usefull, productive lives in public service as entertainers?

They actually seem to do better in their role as entertainers than their Human audience does at serving to their own species, are better servants like the Best Servant of all, He Who gave up all to become Human to serve Humans.

the Klopts' agenda

While editing my perhaps never to be finished Encyclopedia Xenologica, I return to pondering my favorite science fiction writer, Cordwainer Smith, for the umpteenth time. I discovered that his word "klopt" probably comes from the Dutch with his characteristic word play for the greatest enemy of (wo)mankind. It's ironic too because the Klopts have good reason for thinking of girl babies as a birth defect. It's ironic too because of how very relevant the dehumanization of women is now when Smith wrote his story fifty years ago.  It also ties in with recent blogging on the pregnant man hoax. He and his stories were definitely ahead of his time. I even learne a bit about genetics to add to my entry.

Klopts: [Dut. correct, true] “lost children of mankind”, “singing monsters” singing “We want in, in, in!”, “worst people ever to get loose among the stars”, surviving colonists on Arachosia transformed by Astarte Kraus into feuding, burlesque, misogynic heterophobes, opposed by legendary Catlanders (“The Crime and the Glory of Commander Suzdal” by Cordwainer Smith), from XXY, XXYY and XYY Klinefelters to ‘neither male nor female” YY bleeders with steely-hair and red-green colorblindness, see psi-Klopts, Ptokls

The Third Steward

I feel compelled to ponder the contrast between the homily Sunday and today on the same Gospel passage. On Sunday the third steward of the parable was described as prudent, like many nowadays not trusting the banks, not wanting to risk what they cannot affort to loose.
Today the homily's point was from a completely different direction as an encouragement to increase the influence of the Word of God we have been given and not to "bury" it.
Could both be right? The Word of God is much more valuable than mere money yet we are to be good stewards of "little things" like money as well. We are told not to cast pearls before swine, not to share the Word of God to those who would not hear it. Perhaps we are called to be both kinds of stewards at once, guided by the Holy Spirit Who blows God only knows where.

St. Francis and the Renegade Refugee

I just watched the most interesting Perry Mason episode I've seen. As usual it was a complex tangle of a Nazi war criminal, a deserter, a couple blackmailers, an embezzler, a theif and a murderer. What made it different was that the victim was killed at St. Francis Retreat. Perry learns the life story of St. Francis from the priest. But it also had the Nazi revealing his identity to save Perry's client while holding a rosary and the client, as usual proved innocent of murder, but also a war hero. A very happy happy ending.

Personhood loses.

The defeat of Mississippi's re-redefinition of personhood as beginning at conception is a loss to all persons ever conceived. It reminds one of the civil-war-triggering mistake of making colored people unpeople. The rampant dehumanization in the world-wide culture of death is not an issue that will just go away. It reminds me also of "Logan's Run" where persons after a certain deadline were made eliminated. It's a fight-or-fight moment.

OMG! I agree with Sheldon!

I was surfing again and came across "Big Bang Theory" when Sheldon objected to Leonard turning off "the Deep Space Nine/Star Trek: The Original Series Tribble crossover" episode, better known as "Trials and Tribblations", which I could quite understand. Who wouldn't want to see Dax in a miniskirt! He also argues that the Crisis of Alternative Universes never happened. He's not as strange as I thought he was -- or does this mean that I'm stranger than I thought I was? It did get me to switch to watching my own copy of the classic Trek episode, maybe even a Tribblathon with animated Star Trek's "More Tribbles, More Trouble".

Plutocrats Beware!

On this election day I think upon this plutocracy in which we live, in which money and the power which it gives is what is deemed important. I remember
"RICH AND POOR" inspired by Psalm 49 included in Psalms, Hymns and Inspired Songs.
Rich and poor alike must hear this, men and women, low and high,
For my lips speak words of wisdom all would do well to apply.
With these words we'll solve our problems and no longer afraid be:
"Why should we fear in evil days when our God is almighty?"
He alone can ransom from death or souls unto Himself draw,
So do not fear the man who's rich, who holds not his Lord in awe.
Nothing goes with him when he dies. All his stored up wealth he'll lose,
If he does not soon mend his ways and the Source of all wealth choose.

heavenly "Cold Heaven"

While channel surfing I discovered the unexpectedly good "Cold Heaven", which portrayed spiritual warfare quite believably. The portrayal of the unbelieving visionary Maria Davenport was believable, as was the diabolic relapses of her husband Alex, connected to her wavering between her husband and her lover and the prophetically dreaming Sr. Martha. The best part however was Fr. Niles' encouraging the adultress to go "sin no more" and go back to her husband, even before she knows he's been healed. He runs back. The devil's dispossesion of Msgr. Cassidy was believable too, though seen only by the viewer. It was very pro-prayer, pro-marriage, very much like experiences I've had or heard of, though it didn't look like it would be at first glance. Such subtle, hierogamous interventions of the heavenly in our lives are puzzling to those who don't experience them but quite believable to us who do.

on-fire Fr. Barron

I just finished an article for the November My People newspaper on Fr. Robert Barron, host of the new "Catholicism" series and the man behind the Word on Fire ministry. It's too much to describe hear, but Fr. Barron and the Holy Spirit working through him re-energizes me even though I have always been a believing, practicing Catholic since pre-Vatican II. To me it seems like much of the same old truths that we were taught 50 years ago, but I forget that since then too many have not been ignited. God bless Fr. Barron and the rest of those behind WoF!

Curse of the Rapechildren

This blog entry was prompted by watching "Curse of the Werewolf" after listening on our Catholic radio station to testimonies of children who survived being conceived by rape. They unanimously are for not aborting others like themselves, the most innocent victims of the horrible crime. In the horror movie the title werewolf is not the poor beggar kept in the dungeon for twenty years, not the mute servant girl who kills her cruel master. They are his parents. By the grace of God the testimonies did not turn out tragically in real life as the story on the screen. Some of the Rapechildren were adopted, but all deserve better than the wolfboy got.
There was even a strange scene in the movie where the old woman tells the rescuer of the rape victim that the curse was because of the baby being born on Christmas (not because of being conceived by a rapist, which she did not know). That's as ridiculous as thinking Rapechildren are cursed. Rod Serling and Isaac Newton were Christmas babies and we've all been blessed through them, to say nothing of Mary's Baby.

The Best Killers in the Universe

Although I've read about the Outer Limits episode "The Zanti Misfits", I had somehow missed it until now. Joseph Stephano's story of how the Zanti picked Earth for the execution of its violent misfits makes perfect sense since we are the only God-killers in the God's universe. It therefore makes perfect sense that the Earth would be the most invaded planet or the one most often narrowly avoiding self-destruction. We medievalists are not so far wrong in considering the Earth the center of the universe. Since more forgiveness means more love and where sin abounds grace abounds all the more, we, the greatest sinners, are the focus of the greatest concentration of Love and grace in the universe!

Baby Seven Billion

I wonder about the hoopla over the seven billionth baby being born, when the seven billionth baby was conceived some time ago and was likely as not aborted before birth. It is more than likely that it was a girl who was aborted. Couples have been choosing to become mothers and fathers and so increasing the number of babies in the world for thousands of years and so making it possible for the other 99.99999986% of us to be here.
As a Baby Boomer, I remember there being predictions that the Earth couldn't support 5 billion just a few decades ago. I'll be looking forward to Baby Eleven Billion, the next prime number of billions. Let's hope Humans will make life more livable for other Humans by then.

Seal of Approval

Hierogamous Enterprises newest book, Psalms, Hymns and Inspired Songs, has received the Catholic Writer's Guild's Seal of Approval, indicating that it is an authentically Catholic book, upholding the Church's teachings. This means that it will likely also receive disapproval from those who disapprove of the Church's teachings on transsexuality being a disorder and marriage as being a holy sacrament between a man and a woman and God Himself. Some call that "homophobic", being afraid of homosexuality or homosexuals. It's more rightly called being right with God.

remember Cordwainer Smith?

I posted a review of The Concordance of Cordwainer Smith at Good Read: "I did really like it, but I've added a lot of my own notes in my copy. How could there ever be a really thorough concordance of Cordwainer Smith?" He has long been my favorite science fiction author because his stories were so imaginative and original yet with the millennia-old Old Strong Religion (Christianity).

Dracula and Brainiac remembered

Watching Svengoolie's showing of the classic "Dracula", followed by Off-Beat Cinema's new-to-me "Brainiac" (a brain-sucker conjured by a Mexican sorcerer, not the Superman mythos' supervillian/superhero) this past weekend, reminds me of my anti-vampire article "Vampire Craze Is Unhealthy Passion" from last year. The use of crosses, crucifixes and rosaries against the undead and Bela's memorable quotes like "There are worst things than death." clearly demonstrate the shift in the popular culture is a mere 75 years. It also reminds me of "The whole of man's history has been the story of dour cimbat with the powers of evil ..." (Gaudium et Spes 37:2). Evil seems to be winning, but we know that god wins because we, muggles, read it in the Good Book.

one Israeli soldier = 2000+ Palestinian terrorists

I take it as granted that every life is equally valuable, so I find it hard to understand this latest prisoner exchange. The released terrorists will now likely kill or kidnap many more Israelis to get even more such "victories". I also remember when Israel used to successfully recapture hostages.
Why can't they just love one another? Why can't they share the Holy Land they both claim so that it lives up to its name? Do yu think maybe it takes a Christian to love enemies?

Mormons vs. Christians

   I thought this was all covered in the previous presidential campaign, but it seems Mormons are not the only ones who do not know they are not Christians. They, like Jehovah Witnesses, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists and other non-Christians do not acknowledge "Jesus is Lord", "Lord" being the name of the one and only God, Lord of lords. They have the same religious freedom as these other religions, but they ought not to further confuse already too confused American voters.
   I have not had much success in trying to discuss the book of Mormon with Mormons. They always seem to not know how to answer questions not in their play book. They don't even seem to have read either the Bible or the Book of Mormon. They changed the subject more than once when I tried to get at the reason the Book of Moroni is so blatantly anti-infant Baptism when Judaism is so pro-circumcision. It seems so intolerant, so obviously anti-Catholic.

Feasability Study revisited

I'd seen Twilight Zone's "Feasibility Study" before, but watching it yet again it stuck me even more strongly than before. The spouses' love for one another, the unity of the Catholic, Protestant and Jewish neighbors saving the world at the cost love their own freedom -- that's the Good News. It was good new in Jesus time and in Christmas-born Rod Serling's and still is now. It even included the praying of the Lord's Prayer and a couple rosaries. Holding hands in church holds quite a lot of meaning for such an ecumenical group, though not as much as Communion between Catholics would.

Entrepreneurs Unite!

The recent protests in the news, particularly in this Land of Opportunity, make me wonder what the protestors are protesting. Why aren't they out creating the jobs they say they want created? They couldn't really expect the government to help them? All they "create" is the same old debt and confusion. They couldn't still expect an employer to give them job security? Have they not been paying attention?! Wake up, people! You have to take responsibility for creating your own jobs. Find a need and fulfill it. You can't expect help from the government or compeditors, only opposition. That's what the American Dream has always been about, isn't it? Hierogamous Enterprises started with a couple hundred dollars in 1989 and is still going and looking forward to a brighter future without any government handout, bailout, grant, loan. Let "In God we trust." be our motto once again.

Merry Michaelmas!

The feast of St. Michael the Archangel is certainly hierogamous since he is the best example of an mediator between God and man other than the God-man Himself. I was named Michael by my mother in 1937, ten years before I was born, so he's rather special to me.. I think this is because of all the spiritual warfare in my life.

He has appears in Scripture and elsewhere:
490 to Elvi Emmanuete
708 to bishop Aubert of Auranches
590 over Castel'Angelo
1430 to Joan of Arc
1656 ended plague

Happy Psalms

My newest inspired song, "Happy's the Man", came from the mention of the the happy psalms on our Sacred Heart Catholic radio station. I looked them up, the psalms that begin with "happy", Pss. 1, 32, 112, 119, 128. It begins:

Happy's the man who follows not the counsel of the wicked,
Nor walks in the way of sinners, but follows what the Lord's said.
Happy's the man who does not sit in the insolent company,
But delight in the Lord's Law, keeping it attentively.

Dodge and/or Mayberry?

Watching an old episode of "Marshall Dillon" in which an attempt to disarm Dodge resulted in a senseless killing by a drunken cowboy, reminds me of gunless Sheriff Taylor. It reminds me of Archie Bunker's rebuttal that if you took away a man's gun he'd kill some other way. Guns do make it easier. Disintegrators would make it very easy and clean, but all Cain needed was a rock.

The real solution is not taking the gun away from the gunman, but making this world more like Mayberry than Dodge, more like a home and less like a frontier. With the unrest in men's hearts, it's no wonder there's unrest in the Middle East and elsewhere. The wonder is when a man puts down his gun or his rock and becomes his brother's keeper.

Our new gun law allows concealed weapons to be carried as long as the carrier doesn't drink. That's was what led to Dillon's problem. He didn't arrest Miss Kitty.

The Blame Game endgame

I came across Lars Larson's parody song, "I Blame Everyone, Man", about our president for whom we pray daily. The second line "I blame father and son, man." struck me as having a double meaning. Our current president has often blamed the previous president and his father, but he seems to want to blame even the Father and the Son. His attitude howver is widespread. You can see it best in the way that the Confession lines have dwindled.

Although my own parish is small and we no longer have a resident pastor, some other churches I can get to for daily Mass offer frequent Confession. Taking the blame for our own actions and their consequences is the only way to win the Blame Game, because only the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit can take away our shame.

I am old enough to remember LBJ's refusal to run again after what saw that he had done while in office. He found himself in difficult situation, inheriting an unwinnable war, and yet took the blame as commander-in-chief. Keep praying for all our government leaders to, not play, but pray to God.

FAQ #1: What does hierogamous mean?

As I explained in my first book, Hierogamous Hymns (2000), hierogamous means "demonstrating hierogamy, the 'holy union' of two opposite things to form a synergistic new thing greater than the originals. Some examples would be: God and man uniting in the God-man, body and soul uniting into a human being, husband and wife into a marriage, Heaven and Earth uniting into the cosmos."

Pat Robertson and the Colossal Man

   After posting on facebook about Pat Robertson's remark that Altzheimer's was grounds for divorce, I was reminded by a friend of his remarks last year about the sin of the Haitians being the cause of their devastating earthquake.
   It reminded me of my quite different take on it in my article, "Haiti Quake Produces 'Miracles'". where I quoted Col. Gili Shenhal, " 'If you save one man,' we say in Hebrew, 'you save the whole world,' and this is one of the main reasons that we are here." and added "Some, however, consider the outpouring of charity from so many recession-hit nations to these very needy people the greater miracle."
   Death for Haitian quake or Altzheimer's victims is said to be justifiable because the person is "gone" or no longer productive, no longer functioning as a person is expected to function. It was stated tonight in Off-beat Cinema's "The War of the Colossal Beast" (1958) as the Colossal man could not be restored to the way he was, but was now merely a beast. Col. Manning's sister did not believe that then and some of us still do not believe it. Once Human always Human! I like to think that the ending self-electrocution didn't kill the Colossal Man but like electroshock restored the rest of his memory.
   It was then and still is the heresy of utilitarianism, the false idea that a person is only a person as long as he or she is useful to society. In a sense this is true, but the untruth comes in when one failed to consider the usefulness of the useless. Beggars were once considered a vital part of society because they kept the wealthy from growing too proud. That sort of idea is now considered medieval, archaic, useless. It is not; it's hierogamous.

new book from Hierogamous

Hierogamous Enterprises has just published its latest book, Psalms, Hymns and Inspired Songs (Psalms Hymns Inspired Songs: from self-hate to Love through Scripture).

Here's what other autors have written about it:

Laurence Winchester: "Your book deserves all the success this site can give and I hope you do well. It is a fascinating, moving and humbling read and feel privileged to share and rejoice in your story."

Elizabeth Wolfe: "I like your limericks! This has obviously been a tough road for you, but worth it if you discover who you are as a person. That is the most important thing. I give you a lot of credit for working so hard to be honest with yourself.

Gordon L. Thomas: "I admire you from several viewpoints. You are extremely courageous. To write in such detail and openness about your own personal issues is an act of courage, to say the very least. You are an excellent writer and have a great sense of the rhythm of words. I just love your poems and songs. I enjoyed the one on the Klein bottle, especially as a former theoretical physicist, not that it is possible to be 'former' once you are a physicist!"

Rakhi Jha: "Beautifully expressed with a lot of heart and honesty. I particularly liked 'To Mom'."

Davis Craig: "You're telling a courageous and honest story here,
one which the secular world needs to hear."

Barry Wenlock: "Thanks for writing this. My friend's son has been very distressed about his own sexuality problems recently, so finding that one is not alone, will be a great help to people like him with similar difficulties in their life. I wish you all the best with it."

Rob A. Price: "Thank you for your honesty and open heart regarding this topic. I am
fully aware, myself, of the struggle the misguided attractions can bring-including the torment! I back this book 100%."

Fergus Davar: "Amazing stuff. Amen to you and your book. Your testimony gives glory to Almighty God (Father Son & Spirit). I am proud to have a brother like you. Sending you a lot of Christian love from India, yours in Christ."

Denise MacDermott-King: "This is heart searching. Your book has taken much soul searching also. Honest, real, poetic, touching in some ways, wow what faith, full of real love. CONGRATS on a very well crafted book."

Suzie Gulick wrote, "I love that Jesus is the lover of your soul and you are baring it to us. Your pitch is excellent, so set the hook for me to read your book. When you use short paragraphs and lots of dialogue, it makes me want to keep reading to find out what's going to happen next."

Daelle Worth: "Touching, Deep, Moving Book.It is clear that you stripped yourself naked in writing this and I love the pitches used throughout. I love the fact that you expound on scriptures to tackle the issue. It will lead others dealing with the same struggle to the right way out! And Congratulation on your victory... you are indeed more than a conqueror!!! Six-rated and backed. ;-)))"