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Mary Ann Glendon, former U.S. ambassador to the Holy See, Receiving the Gaudium et Spes Award, States Dinner, (August 5 2025) I'm not comfortable with the way today's America works, but I think this is a good time to be an American and a Catholic. That's because part of my job is easier now, than it would have been in my youth. Granted, experiencing "increasing opposition" from The Establishment 1 isn't comfortable. But honestly: why would I want their approval? Vatican II and Making Sense "...The End of Christendom ... Not a Gloomy Picture..." An Assumption and "The Apotheosis of Washington" "...Great and Wonderful Days in Which to be Alive...." Goals, and the Best News Humanity's Ever Had Justice, Charity, Respect: Sounds Good to Me ... More at A Catholic Citizen in America . (I think Fulton Sheen was right. The end of Christendom is not a gloomy picture. These are great days to be alive, and we have a jo...

The Grand Canyon, Petrified Forest, and Meteor Crater aren't on the obvious and shortest route from San Francisco to the Upper Midwest. But in 1979, with no reason for staying in San Francisco — that's another topic, for another time — and good reasons for returning to Minnesota, going out of my way to see them seemed like a good idea.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America . (Two Thai tourists at the Grand Canyon. A military jet in the Petrified Forest. Two popes, two poems, and the civilization of love: a very long-haul project.)

I could ignore the current presidential fracas: claiming that I'm too 'spiritual' for worldly matters, or can't abide the pervasive political posturing and pandering. But that's not an option. Neither, for me, is getting "political" in the sense of declaring that, if elected, candidate A will doom us all; while candidate B is America's only hope. Those attitudes aren't new, and that's another topic. 1 This week I'll be talking about why I don't fit into current political pigeonholes: or, rather, why I fit into several. Acting As If What I Believe Matters Political Pigeonholes and the Big Picture Sex, Death, and Immigrants Hawk? Dove? Long-Term Goals Fear and Politics Love, Hope, and Making Sense More at A Catholic Citizen in America . (Catholic teachings do not conform to American political labels. Not when I consider the big picture. I look at beliefs, fears, and long-term goals.)

All is not right with the world. But all is not wrong, either. Take Sunday night's air disaster that didn't happen, for example. Alaska Air 2059 Underground (Literally) Schools in Ukraine Hey, Everybody! See What We're Doing! — Improv by Hamas Meanwhile, Back in the States Civilian Homes, a Little Extra Shielding — Tomayto, Tomahto. Loving Neighbors: Not Easy, But I Must Bogeymen, Assumptions, and Attitudes: Past and Present Politics, Religion, and Not Missing 'the Good Old Days' "The Protocols of the Elders of Zion" — Article 32 and "Protocols" — "Several Experts" and the Reptilians Spears, Pruning Hooks, and Making Sense in the Meantime Double Effect: It's Complicated "This is Not Us" "Yeh Hum Naheen" Academic Freedom and Responsibility A Civilization of Love: Something to Work Towards A "...Competent and Sufficiently Powerful Authority...." Poetry, Future Generations,...

Yesterday was Veteran's Day. In my country, it's a time to remember folks who have served in America's military. Today I'll talk about why countries have military forces, and why I think it's a good idea. Even though I don't like war. More at A Catholic Citizen in America . We live in a less-than-ideal world. But we can make it better. I look at conscience and conflict, songs and ideas: and a few things we got right.

(From Balon Greyjoy, via Wikimedia Commons, used w/o permission.) (Prometheus sculpture for Rockefeller Center's lower plaza. (Paul Manship, 1934)) It's been 246 years since a bunch of disgruntled colonists decided that they'd had enough of transatlantic micromanagement. There's more behind the Declaration of Independence than that. But today I'm focused more on what's happening and what's ahead, than on where we've been. Although, given the way I see things, that involves looking back, too.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America . Patriots, pigeonholes and attitudes. The Apotheosis of Washington, loving America anyway. Alabaster cities and Hair. Working toward a patriot dream.

For two dozen centuries, at least, a few folks have said that peace is a good idea. Many others have agreed. Making peace a practical reality has remained an elusive goal. But I think we're closer to it than when Chu won the Battle of Bi, or Sparta lost the Battle of Leuctra. 1 I'm quite certain that finding an alternative to war is a good idea. No matter how long it takes us to get there. More at World Day of Peace, 2019 ; brendans-island.com/catholic-citizen/world-day-peace/ . (More at A Catholic Citizen in America )

Folks who saw virtue in unquestioning devotion to established values didn't like the 1960s. No institution, custom or belief seemed safe from scrutiny. Even the idea of progress — a cherished heirloom from the Age of Enlightenment — was challenged disputed, and ultimately rejected. Visions of a technotopia, where our greatest challenge was deciding how to spend our leisure time, were fading. Hopes for nuclear power's abundant clean energy were giving way to fears of an atomic holocaust and reactor meltdowns. Assuming that pollution didn't kill us first. ( July 28, 2017 ; February 17, 2017 ) Perhaps even more disturbing for social Luddites, the nation's youth seemed ill-suited for their assigned role as torchbearers for liberty, conformity and suburban living. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Today's Gospel, Mark 9:2 through 10 , describes the Transfiguration. I'll be talking about that. Partly. Also Peter, perceptions, and laundry detergent. It seems like a better idea than getting upset that not everybody calls the second Sunday in Lent "Transfiguration Sunday." Or that some folks read this part of the Gospel on a different Sunday. Or that we had a different second Sunday Gospel reading last year. Or that our Feast of the Transfiguration is August 6 this year. And is a Monday. Occasions for angst abound. I'd rather look at what today's Gospel says and what's been said about it. Then think for a bit and see what happens. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

This year's Ash Wednesday and Valentine's Day were the same day. Folks exchanged greeting cards. Many got their foreheads marked with ashes. And 17 were killed at a high school. Someone's already called last Wednesday's mass murder the 'Valentine's Day Massacre of 2018.' The famous Valentine's Day Massacre was in 1929 . It happened when a Chicago gang tried resolving a disagreement over bootleg booze. It didn't succeed. Not quite.... ...I'm quite sure the 17 folks killed at Stoneman Douglas High School will be missed by their families, friends, and acquaintances.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Today's tech and social norms aren't what they were in my youth. It's exciting. Or bewildering. Or unstable. Or dynamic. or any of a myriad other options. Change happens, even if I don't approve. What matters is making good choices. More about that later. These are the 'Good Old Days' I'll indulge in nostalgia. Occasionally. Parts of my past are nice places to visit. But I wouldn't like living there. Taking a stroll down memory lane lets me see the best times places, people and experiences. It's a 'best-of' selection. But I certainly don't yearn for the days before social media, smart appliances, and online search software. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

'Tis the season for frantic shopping, eye-popping light shows in suburban front yards, and Christmas television specials. It's also the start of Advent. This is a season when we look back at ancient hopes for a Messiah, and our Lord's first arrival. And look ahead to when Jesus will be back.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Today's Mass is something new, introduced by Pius XI in 1925. We've had it on the last Sunday in Ordinary Time since 1970. Focusing on who and what our Lord is seems like a good way to wrap up the Church calendar. That's how I see it. Today's Gospel reading is Matthew 25:31 - 46 . That's the one starting with "When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him...." It's an important part of the Gospels, and not what I'll be talking about today. I'd better explain that. I'm okay with what the Church says about Mass, including how the annual schedule works. I'm not a religious scofflaw, disdaining the laws of God and man. But I don't try to coordinate these 'Sunday' posts with what happens in Mass. I figure it's not a problem, since I'm a Catholic layman — and you're probably not here looking for a homily.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

(From Getty Images, via BBC News, used w/o permission.) ("Police say a number of students had to be medically evacuated from the school" (BBC News)) I hadn't planned on writing about murder and getting a grip this week. Or next. But another multiple murder is international news.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

This universe is bigger and older than some folks thought, a few centuries back. I don't mind, at all. Besides, it's hardly new information. We've known that we live in a big world for a long time. " 4 Indeed, before you the whole universe is as a grain from a balance, or a drop of morning dew come down upon the earth." ( Wisdom 11:22 ) If that bit from Wisdom doesn't sound familiar, I'm not surprised. It's not in the Bibles many Americans have. The one I read and study frequently is the unexpurgated version.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

BBC News posted what a scientist thinks about we've learned in the last hundred years. That's hardly news. What's remarkable is that he didn't go on to say that the sea will catch fire, or that if we don't recycle with greater zeal all the birds will die. In short, that we're doomed. Doomed! DOOMED, I TELL YOU!!!!! Not that BBC News goes in for that sort of thing. They're very British. Even so, an essentially upbeat look at a century of science and technology is somewhat remarkable. The way I see it, science and technology are tools. Whether we use them to help or hurt each other is up to us. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

The neighborhood parish took a second collection again today. This week's was to help folks hit by Hurricane Irma. The one before that was for those affected by Harvey. Folks in the Caribbean, Gulf Coast, and Florida weren't the only ones dealing with disaster recently.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

We live in a big world. We've known that for a long time, and have been impressed. "How great are your works, LORD! How profound your designs!" ( Psalms 92:6 ) But impressive as what we see is, God is greater: almighty, infinite, eternal. Ineffable, beyond what can be expressed in words. That's pretty much what God told Moses in the 'burning bush' interview: "'But,' said Moses to God, 'if I go to the Israelites and say to them, "The God of your ancestors has sent me to you," and they ask me, "What is his name?" what do I tell them?' "God replied to Moses: I am who I am. Then he added: This is what you will tell the Israelites: I AM has sent me to you." ( Exodus 3:13 - 14 ) Moses said "but" three times before their talk was over. I've talked about him before, and other prophets. Mary also asked a question: a sensible one. I get the impression that her reaction was calmer than theirs. M...

A vehicular homicide case near the intersection of Fourth and Water streets in Charlottesville, Virginia, is international news. I regret the loss of life, particularly since the driver apparently intended to harm or kill the victims. I'll get back to that. Heather Heyer had been with several other folks there, protesting something — or maybe someone — which or who she felt should be inspiring more outrage. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

I think being concerned about air quality, recycling, and other environmental issues, makes sense. But I don't think only being concerned about the environment is a good idea. People matter, too. I don't think it's an either/or thing. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .