John Schultz: August 2006 Archives

We had a somewhat unplanned addition to the Schultz family on Friday. We brought our foster baby home from the hospital at exactly 4pm.

I say somewhat unplanned because we finished our training in June and the county was still working on our paperwork. They said since we were new parents, they were recommending us for respite care - weekend or weeklong placements for full time foster parents. Instead we got the call a week ago that there was a baby in need, and we could meet her on Monday.

My wife spent the week at the hospital - mostly bonding with the baby but also getting training on working with a newborn with some special medical needs. I spent a couple of hours a day with her.

Now we're into our first full weekend together. The house is upside down, but caring for the baby is going well. She was an absolute angel at Mass today, and did what I hope hope a 2 month old would do: sleep through the entire Mass.

We're not sure how long we'll have her - maybe a few months, maybe forever. Only God knows, and the state gets to decide is she can be cared for by a family member.

She's sleeping now, and when she wakes up I'll be taking care of her all afternoon while Teresa catches up on some sleep.

She's a real blessing to have in our family.

Guess what today's featured article is about?

"Some issues morally ‘non-negotiable’"

“On most issues that come before voters or legislators, the task is selecting the most effective policy to implement or apply a moral principle. Good Catholics must embrace the principles, but most of the time there isn’t a specifically ‘Catholic position’ on the best way to implement that principle,” the guide states.

“But some issues concern ‘non-negotiable’ moral principles that do not admit of exception or compromise,” the guide continues. “One’s position either accords with those principles or does not. No one endorsing the wrong side of these issues can be said to act in accord with the church’s moral norms.”

A couple of thoughts: Catholic Answers is an outstanding organization, and they produce wonderfully engaging and accurate publications.

You'll also note that "Comprehensive Immigration Reform" is not on the non-negotiable list.

This looks perfectly awful.

This month's pig-pile is on the Israeli government.

Because when an enemy is indiscriminately launching rockets into your cities and towns, it's important to act with proportion.

And don't make it look like you've any planning or preparation for such as operation. That will just make people (including Catholic Bishops) question your intentions.

Only God knows when Israel will get a break. Every concession they make only results in more demands from the terrorists in the region. Every defensive act they take is condemned. And the global media gets spoon-fed propaganda and doctored photos.

Polka services popular with parishes

At Sacred Hearty Heart Catholic Church in Dent, where there’s a strong German and Polish heritage, polka music the Night Owls from Sauk Center provided the music. The congregation appreciated the happy music coordinated by Kevin and Marlene Gwost. ...full article

Does "celebratory gunfire" violate a cease-fire?

I will pray it holds and there can be peace, but with Hezbollah on the other side of this, how can we have true peace?

Top 100 Pro-Catholic Movies

First we have all the news stories about women getting "ordained" to the priesthood.

Now we get the stories about their first "Mass."

When do we get to start calling the story writers "reporters" or the papers that publish them "news outlets?"

Lebanese Catholic expresses solidarity with Israeli soldiers

TEL AVIV, Israel (CNS) -- Sharbel Salameh, a Maronite Catholic and Lebanese refugee living in Hadera, Israel, grew up thinking Israeli soldiers were the good guys. Salameh said he remembers his father's stories about when his family was still in Beirut, Lebanon, in 1982, and Israel was trying to evict the PLO. "We brought the Israeli soldiers flowers, threw rice on them, a symbol of blessings, and sang them songs," he told Catholic News Service in a telephone interview Aug. 3. Later the family moved to Klayaa near the south Lebanese army base in Marj Uyun. The army worked to prevent Hezbollah outposts from growing near the Israeli border, but things changed in May 2000 when Israeli forces withdrew from Lebanon. Pressured by Syria and Hezbollah, the Lebanese government endorsed Hezbollah's claims that Israel still occupied Lebanese land even after Israel's withdrawal. Salameh and his family of five, along with 7,000 Maronites, other Christians, Muslims and Druze, fled Lebanon, seeking political asylum in Israel. Salameh, 24, said he doesn't agree with a Beirut Center for Research and Information report that said 80 percent of Christians in Lebanon support Hezbollah, as reported July 28 by The Christian Science Monitor. "There is no way. This makes me angry," Salameh said. "None of my friends in Lebanon support the Hezbollah.

Reuters: "You're fired!"

Be sure to click on photo on the right side.

And LGF has full details (scroll down.)

My choir sang this anthem by Gabriel Faure today. In French. We had about 20 singers, including my twin the seminarian. And they did an outstanding job.

Word of God the most high, our sole hope,
eternal day of the earth and heavens
as we break the silence of the peaceful night
divine saviour, look down upon us.

Imbue us with the fire of thy great mercy
so that hell itself will flee at the sound of your voice
disperse the sleep which leads our languishing souls
to stray from the path of righteousness.

O Christ show your favour to your faithful people
who have come together to worship you
receive the praises that they offer up to your immortal glory
and may they come back laden with the gift of your grace.

This is making the e-mail rounds, so you may have seen it. But it was new to me.

SPOONS
A holy man was having a conversation with the Lord one day and said, "Lord, I would like to know what Heaven and Hell are like."

The Lord led the holy man to two doors. He opened one of the doors and the holy man looked in.In the middle of the room was a large round table. In the middle of the table was a large pot of stew which smelled delicious and made the holy man's mouth water.
The people sitting around the table were thin and sickly. They appeared to be famished. They were holding spoons with very long handles that were strapped to their arms and each found it possible to reach into the pot of stew and take a spoonful, but because the handle was longer than their arms, they could not get the spoons back into their mouths. The holy man shuddered at the sight of their misery and suffering. The Lord said, "You have seen Hell."
They went to the next room and opened the door. It was exactly the same as the first one. There was the large round table with the large pot of stew which made the holy man's mouth water. The people were equipped with the same long-handled spoons, but here the people were well nourished and plump, laughing and talking. The holy man said, "I don't understand.

"It is simple" said the Lord, "it requires but one skill. You see, they have learned to feed each other, while the greedy think only of themselves."