We don't get to vote, but we can surrender.

The Unfeeling President

By E. L. Doctorow

I fault this president for not knowing what death is. He does not suffer the death of our 21-year-olds who wanted to be what they could be. On the eve of D-Day in 1944 General Eisenhower prayed to God for the lives of the young soldiers he knew were going to die. He knew what death was. Even in a justifiable war, a war not of choice but of necessity, a war of survival, the cost was almost more than Eisenhower could bear.

A Vision for America?

Whatsoever therefore is consequent to a time of war, where every man is enemy to every man, the same consequent to the time wherein men live without other security than what their own strength and their own invention shall furnish them withal. In such condition there is no place for industry, because the fruit thereof is uncertain: and consequently no culture of the earth; no navigation, nor use of the commodities that may be imported by sea; no commodious building; no instruments of moving and removing such things as require much force; no knowledge of the face of the earth; no account of time; no arts; no letters; no society; and which is worst of all, continual fear, and danger of violent death; and the life of man, solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short. -- Thomas Hobbes

Friday cat-blogging

The Abbess Hildegard von Kitty (aka: Abbey)

Dueling Laptops

Notice who won.
Martin Luther Kitty (aka: Marty)

Cool tool

9.11

My Purple Heart: A Swiftie Speaks.

Online Forum

A Soldier's Request

Click on the headline to read.

1100 US Troops Wounded in August

Ailing Heart Upstages President

James Wolcott

Pale riders, today's headlines

Knock, knock.

Who's there?
Jesus.
Jesus who?
Have you ever considered taking the Alpha Course?

Without comment

The old gods

I went to Houston this weekend on a dual mission. My primary motivation was to attend an "advanced prayer ministry training session" that Alpha Houston was putting on. Moving our Alpha Course to a deeper level of prayer is a goal of mine, and so I figured this might help. It may have, but I'll save that for another post.

My other reason for going was a desire to revisit the Houston Arts District. The Visual Arts were a "god" to me at one time (although truth be told, I wanted to be a "god", and art was a way to feed that desire). But a fellow parishioner had said some things about some of the de Menil Collection that stirred an interest in me. Specifically, I wanted to see the Rothko Chapel, the Cy Twombly Gallery, the Dan Flavin Installation, and the Byzantine Chapel.

The juxtaposition between the de Menil Rothko Chapel and Byzantine Chapel was amazing. The Rothko Chapel (octagonal?) has light colored walls with massive black-on-black paintings. As you enter the "chapel", copies of all the religious guides they could think of are available to take in to meditate from. The Bible, the Koran, the Book of Mormon, Hindu texts, Bhuddist writings, etc., etc. Pick and chose.

The light is filtered in from the top cupola, indirectly illuminating the walls and the paintings. The paintings themselves (approximately 10 by 12 feet) look to be dark aperatures to the underworld. Mark Rothko (IIRC) committed suicide shortly after the completion of the chapel. DEATH.

The Byzantine Chapel is also desribed as a reliquary for the two 12th Century frescoes that it has been built to house. The interior is all black with direct artificial lighting illuminating the beautiful frescoes of Christ, an alter back-piece and a dome ceiling fresco. The dimensions of the small original chapel that the frescoes came out of (stolen, btw, from St. Themonianos church in Lysi, Cyprus) are formed by suspended glass panels. There is grate-work iconostasis, and altar, and candles (including a Sacristy lamp). LIFE.

In the Rothko Chapel, I took out my Palm PDA to make notes (and a sketch). The security guard was very concerned that I might be taking a picture with my "cell phone" of the depressing interior. Three times she asked me what was I doing.

In the Byzantine Chapel, I again took out my PDA, but this time I went to the Daily Office of Vespers, and observed the service aloud, but quietly. I left the chapel and went into the walled courtyard with fountain, and in the 104 degree heat index of an August afternoon in Houston, I could smell an aroma that told me that this is what Cyprus smells like.

Western wisdom

"There will come a time when you believed that everything is finished...
...that is the beginning."

--Louis L'Amour


Certainly true for me... twenty years ago this First Advent.

Keeping their priorities straight (WWJD?).

8-year-old's first Holy Communion invalidated by Church (phillyBurbs.com)
A reminder that the term "hocus pocus" supposedly refers to Roman Catholic eucharistic theology in the Latin Mass: "hoc est corpus", this is my body. True or not, one can definetly see the connection with "magic" in this cruel, law-bound understanding of Christ's Real Presence in Holy Communion.

Choking back outrage

Perhaps I've missed it in the discussions regarding the City of Arlington's bid for the Dallas Cowboys, or perhaps it's merely been overlooked by everyone.

The sole reason Arlington can even consider the package they are proposing to finance another sports stadium is a glaring example of municipal governance at its worse. Arlington has sales tax headroom to finance a proposed stadium for one simple reason: they have opted out of regional transit with its 1/4% sales tax.

The Metroplex is suffering through a very dangerous air quality season, an ozone problem caused primarily by mobile source emissions (that bureaucrat-speak for cars and trucks). As a response to the air quality problems that are literally choking the life out of North Texans, Arlington has repeatedly voted down both joining a regional transit authority, and even offering public transit for its own citizens.

If all goes as planned by Arlington's politicians, they can soon add the Dallas Cowboys to their dubious distinction of being the largest city in the western world to not have public transportation.

It's a fact that should make Arlington a regional pariah, not a tourist destination.

A Church Rocked to its Ancient Foundations

Some unintended consequences of the fight against Islam.

Magnolia

Stepping off the bus, this was the view as the sun struck Pegasus atop the Magnolia building.