Association Of Catholic Bloggers

Emoji Virtues in our emotions? Is that even possible? When we encounter characters in the books we read, the movies and TV we watch, as well as in the ever-unfolding story we call real life, we can witness virtues. Virtue comes alive in people’s beliefs, perceptions, thoughts, decisions and actions. But, how often do we consider the way that virtue can operate in human feelings and emotions? A lifetime of research by a Catholic spiritual psychology pioneer, Richard Johnson, PhD. revealed that we  have special spiritual strengths, otherwise known as virtues; which specifically operate in the part of our personality whose function is emotion. He identifies Joyfulness, Trust , Devotion , Empathy and Gratitude as personality traits that we can cultivate as holy habits of virtue in a unique way in our emotions. Often, we think of emotions as something reactive; triggered by some new situation, or a recalled memory. However, through the miracle of virtue, aided by God’s grace, we ca

Harvey was still a tropical storm when it went over the eastern Caribbean. That was a little over a week ago. Folks in Barbados were without power for a while. At least one house was destroyed, and more folks had to evacuate their homes. Pretty much the same thing happened in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. Suriname and Guyana had wind and rain: enough to kill at least one person, a woman whose house collapsed with her inside. Harvey was a category 4 hurricane when it reached the Texas coast, between Port Aransas and Port O'Connor . That was around 10:00 p.m. Friday.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Danae's odd view of Papal infallibility isn't accurate. ( July 30, 2017 ) But I'm not upset by Non Sequitur's 'Church of Danae,' particularly since I see the funny side of the cultural quirks Wiley Miller highlights. I do, however, occasionally use Danae's distinctive theology and Eddie's "Biblical Prophecies" as a contrast to my faith. I'm a Christian, and a Catholic. I have well-defined views on social and legal issues: but I am not conservative or liberal. I'm Catholic. That means acting as if Jesus, love, and people matter.... 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

I'll be talking about miracles today. Also religious art and kitsch, the Mayan apocalypse, and why folks occasionally see faces that aren't there. Even by my standards, this post rambles a bit. Quite a few folks act as if they think faith and reason, religion and science, have about as much to do with each other as cheese and Wednesday. Some go a step further, and blame the world's woes on religion. The antics of loudly-religious folks don't help make faith look like a reasonable, or safe, part of today's world. I think faith isn't reason, but that it's reasonable. I also think that an honest search for truth doesn't threaten faith. (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 31 - 35 , 159 ; " Fides et Ratio ;" " Gaudium et Spes ," 36) More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Someone said "write what you know." It was definitely Mark Twain, Ernest Hemingway, Nathan Englander, or somebody else. I've mostly seen the quote applied to writing fiction. Apparently some folks assume that it means authors should only write stories about events they've experienced. That may help explain why fantasy and science fiction stories aren't taken seriously in some circles, and entirely too seriously in others. Others, including John Briggs , Diablo Cody /Brook Busey-Maurio and Jason Gots , say it means using the author's emotional memories when telling stories. They're professional writers, so I figure they know what they're talking about. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

The "most disturbing image" gag in Wiley Miller's Non Sequitur comic depends on a fairly common misunderstanding of Catholic belief. The important word in that sentence is misunderstanding. Papal infallibility doesn't mean that. I'm none too pleased that Catholic beliefs are misunderstood by non-Catholics: and by some Catholics. But I can't fault a cartoonist for poking fun at cultural quirks I see as silly. Not reasonably. Besides, strips featuring the Church of Danae's "so-called holy scriptures" have given me pretty good illustrations of what I don't believe.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

I think pursuing knowledge and truth is a good idea. That's probably why Tennyson's "Ulysses" is one of my favorite poems. It's the source of my Google Plus tagline: "To follow knowledge like a sinking star, Beyond the utmost bound of human thought." ( March 26, 2017 ) I'll be talking about science, faith, and why I see no problem with admiring God's work. Also the Flat Earth Society's origin, and my own silly notion: a doughnut-shaped Earth. But first, an excerpt from Apollodorus that reminded me of the pottery metaphor in Genesis 2:7 : "...Prometheus moulded men out of water and earth and gave them also fire...." (Apollodorus, The Library, Book 1, 1.7.1 ; via The Theoi Classical Texts Library) Bible translations I grew up with often called the material in Genesis 2:7 "clay." The Hebrew the word is אדמה , adamah /adama. It means ground, land, or earth — dirt. I use the The New American Bible these days, wher

My father reminded me of this good advice when I was in my teens: "...whatever is true, ... whatever is lovely, ... think about these things." My response was something like '...because they won't last.' I wasn't happy about saying that at the time. I still regret it. I can't, of course, undo what was done. And the time for telling my father "I'm sorry" has long since passed. In any case, I said "I'm sorry" too often, and that's almost another topic. The quote is from Philippians 4:6 - 9 . I'll get back to that. Following the advice from Philippians isn't easy for me. But it's been getting easier as I work though a massive backlog of bad habits. Nothing unusual there, since we're all dealing with consequences of a bad choice described in Genesis 3:1 - 13 . 1 ... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

We wouldn't expect to find life on 51 Eridani b, even if were the size of Earth and at the right distance from its star. The planet is only a bit over 20,000,000 years old. At that point in our home's long story, the earliest critters wouldn't appear for at least another several million years. We've discovered thousands of new worlds so far, some a bit like Earth, most not; and many not like anything in our Solar System. Scientists are starting to make sense of what's being found, and discovering that we have a very great deal left to learn. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Gay/LGBT Pride Month will be over in about two weeks. Wanting respect is reasonable, but I don't agree with much of what's said on this issue. Don't worry, I won't be spitting venom. Even if I felt like it, which I don't, that kind of trouble I don't need. First, I'd better talk about love and respect, and why I think both are important.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Humanity's current model may be a whole lot older than we thought. A team of scientists say that remains found in Morocco are human, Homo sapiens. The scientists also say these folks lived about 300,000 years ago. If that's confirmed, they were around 100,000 years earlier and about 2,000 miles away from where we thought Homo sapiens showed up. Other scientists say T. rex may not have been fluffy. It looks like the big dinosaur lost its feathers somewhere along the line. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

I gave my condolences to a young friend after his great-grandfather passed away by saying "I'm sorry", which sparked a conversation between the 2 of us. We spoke of what part our faith plays in our grieving. Read more here .

It's about four months since I started a new daily prayer routine. ( February 19, 2017 ) I sometimes forget the morning set, but not often. Having a printout of both sets next to my keyboard helps. The evening prayers are another matter. Happily, I remember the gist of what's between the Lord's prayer and "glory be." That lets me catch up: if I remember before falling asleep, which doesn't always happen. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

India's 'monster rocket,' the GSLV Mark III, successfully put the GSAT-19 E satellite in orbit this week. BBC News called some coverage of ISRO's launch "euphoric." That's understandable. India is like America in the late 20th century, where spaceflight is involved: and is rapidly catching up. I'm not euphoric, quite, but I see what's happening as very good news for everyone. Rocket Lab's Electron test launch wasn't entirely successful. But the company thinks they can get the system working, and plan to start commercial launches later this year. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

This is bad, but could have been much worse. Yesterday evening, starting around 10:00, three people in a van drove across London Bridge, deliberately running down pedestrians. 1 After crossing the bridge, they left the van and attacked folks out for an evening with friends and family near Borough Market. A few minutes later, they were dead; shot by police. They had killed seven folks by then, 48, were taken to hospitals, 36 are still hospitalized, 21 in critical condition, as I write this.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

"Folks have thought truth is important for quite a while... "...I think truth is important, too. As a Christian, I'd better...." More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

I take God very seriously. I also think people matter. I care deeply about truth and love. By some standards this isn't a particularly "religious" blog. For one thing, I keep saying that loving my neighbor and seeing everybody as my neighbor is a good idea. I'll get back to that. For another, I write about science each Friday; real science. And I don't see it as a threat. I don't 'believe in' science, in the sense that I expect it to replace God. That would be as silly as trying to find life's meaning in the second law of thermodynamics . It would also be a very bad idea.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Scientists used new DNA screening tech to study caves in Belgium, Croatia, France, Russia, and Spain. What they found wasn't a big surprise. What's exciting about the news is that we now have another tool for unraveling our family history. We've been pretty sure that nobody lived in North America until about two dozen millennia back. That may change, if scientists who say they found 130,000-year-old tools in San Diego County, California. Quite a few other scientists are dubious, understandably. I took a longer look at what we've been learning about Homo naledi. They're folks who don't look like humanity's current model. We found their remains in a cave they probably used as a crypt. Since you may be reading my stuff for the first time, I'll review why I think truth is important. All truth, not just the bits I grew up knowing about. Also why I take the Bible seriously, but not 'creation science.'... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

I'll be talking about scientific research that may not be "fake:" but isn't reliable, either. The good news is that many scientists want to fix the problem. I'll also take a look at truth, beauty, Copernicus, and how a science editor sees faith and science. Faith and science Truth and Beauty "...There Will be Babblers...." Being Scientific News and views... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .