Only in the UK... The children detained in the Yarl's Wood Immigration Removal Centre are lost somewhere in the UK's asylum system. There more about this strange business here. "Santa Claus" is in reality the Rev. Canon James Rosenthal, a world class authority on the original "St. Nick," St. Nicholas of Myra. I love the …
Using Jesus, Joseph and Mary to Encourage Census Participation
This is another one of those "I thought I had seen everything" kind of moments: In an effort to encourage participation in the Census, the National Association of Latino Elected Officials is distributing this poster (mostly in Spanish) to churches nationwide: Rev. Miguel Rivera, who heads the National Coalition of Latino Clergy and Christian Leaders, …
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The Canon of the Mass: The Anaphora of St. Mark
The form and structure of liturgies is something that churches which employ these in worship either take for granted or argue over intensely. But very few people understand how a) these came into being or b) how they should be revised or replaced in times of liturgical change. What kind of theology is embodied in …
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Allan Bloom’s “Baptism of Fire” and Cornell’s Student Protests
Fans of Allan Bloom will find this article a fascinating account of Cornell University's 1969 student revolt: While the administration cowered, many students and faculty members objected. Allan Bloom, one of Cornell’s most popular—and controversial—professors, told the Cornell Daily Sun that he was “shocked” by the agreement, and an unnamed “senior government professor” warned that …
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Health Care: Which End of the Camel is in the Tent?
I agree with Grace-Marie Turner that the health care proposals currently bouncing through Congress are overreach. But I'm getting especially tired of "camel's nose" analogies such as this: When Sen. Joe Lieberman vowed to vote against the Senate bill if it contains a public plan, Reid had to have something to replace it. He revived …
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Chandrasekhar Rao: A New State From the “Fast Unto Death” and a Lesson for Christians
Christians who admire the non-violent protest methods of Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King should consider this: Wonder what Mahatma Gandhi would have made of this. India's newest state, its 29th, came about with a local politician, Chandrasekhar Rao, using the Gandhian protest of "fasting unto death". It ended 11 days later with the central …
The Canon of the Mass: The Anaphora of Theodore of Mopsuestia
The form and structure of liturgies is something that churches which employ these in worship either take for granted or argue over intensely. But very few people understand how a) these came into being or b) how they should be revised or replaced in times of liturgical change. What kind of theology is embodied in …
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More on the Eucharist, Churches and Priests
The discussion continues with Fr. Greg. I'll put his comments on my last post in with my reply. First, I’m confused, how is my account of the Eucharist as sacrifice any different from what you seem to approve of in this post, or, for that matter, different from the standard RC (and yes, Orthodox: see …
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When Both Sides are Wrong About Afghanistan
Mark Perry's piece about the conflict between Stanley McChrystal and Karl Eikenberry over how to proceed in Afghanistan--a conflict little documented in our myopic press--makes for riveting reading: The State Department's frustration extended into the embassy in Kabul, where the US ambassador, Karl Eikenberry, was having his own problems with McChrystal. The appointment of Eikenberry …
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The Canon of the Mass: The Anaphora of St. Basil
The form and structure of liturgies is something that churches which employ these in worship either take for granted or argue over intensely. But very few people understand how a) these came into being or b) how they should be revised or replaced in times of liturgical change. What kind of theology is embodied in …
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Positive Infinity 