Author: Steve

New job – airport security. Old job – village idiot.

I have a new friend in the seminary who calls OCP hymnals “music tissue.” Get it?

Richard Chonak sends in this rather unecumenical and uninclusive hymn.

While leafing through some mailing-list archives, I
found a 1999 post from the
‘fatherhood’
men’s list.
It contains the following spirited hymn, which the German choir at
my parish
had recently sung. Maybe converts and apologists
will want to sing it together over beer, but the ecumenically
sensitive might not approve!
–RC
—quote—
Katholisch bin und bleibe ich,
Nichts soll mich von der Kirche trennen!
Sie liebt wie eine Mutter mich,
Und ich, ich darf ihr Kind mich nennen.
An ihrer Hand entgehe ich
Mit Gottes Gnade sicherlich
Dem ewigen Verderben.
Katholisch ist gut sterben!
(My english adaptation: not an exact translation)
I’m Catholic and will remain;
From Mother Church will naught remove me!
A child of hers – this is my name,
And like a mother she doth love me.
Her guiding hand preserves me
Far from th’eternal flood
It’s good to die a Catholic!
Safe in the grace of God.
Welch’ Glueck, dass ich Katholisch bin,
Und stets geschuetzt vor falschen Lehren!
Katholisch sein ist mein Gewinn,
Nie soll der Irrthum much bethoeren.
Katholisch bin und nenn’ ich mich,
Katholisch leb’ und sterbe ich;
so werd’ ich nicht verderben.
Katholisch ist gut sterben!
I’m Catholic: this is my joy,
protected from the ways of error,
I’m Catholic — this is my prize:
False teaching will deceive me never.
A Catholic I’ll live and die,
In fact and in profession,
It’s good to die a Catholic!
And never see corruption.

Phillip Vaccaro considers Jesus his best friend.
So to him, Jesus seemed perfect for a writing assignment the 7th-grader got this spring in his language-arts class in Brookfield, Ohio: write a friendly letter to someone who dramatically changed his life.
But his teacher didn’t like his choice of correspondent.
“She told him he could not write that letter because Jesus wasn’t a real person — that he didn’t exist,” Phillip’s mother, Peggy Koehler, said.
“How dare they throw their atheistic values upon my child?”

I’ll comment on this later today as time allows. Feel free to add your comments below in the meantime!