Tuesday, September 13, 2005

Catholic Carnival XLVII - Faith

A terrific week for submissions for my first time hosting the Carnival! The submissions all focus to one extent or another on witnessing to the faith, a theme of particular interest to this blog. Our faith commands us not only to believe, but to demonstrate those beliefs in our everyday deeds.

Hurricane Katrina continues to be a source of reflection. la nouvelle théologie looks at what our proper response should be in the face of Hurricane Katrina. Kicking Over My Traces has been reading what the blogosphere has had to say about Katrina, trying to sort things out, and also finds answers in the words of Our Lord. The Troglodyte looks at Sean Penn's much publicized and ridiculed rescue mission, and finds a silver lining for fundamental hope for NOLA coming out of the tragedy of Katrina

As we reflect on Katrina, we also recall the fourth anniversary of September 11. In a timely reminder, HMS Blog looks at the readings for this past Sunday, and what they tell us about how and why we must forgive.

Our relationship to God aids us in living our faith. CowPi Journal looks at Psalm 139 and realizes that a simple change in pronouns and the insertion of your name makes it a love letter from God to you personally - a letter which, if prayed, can deeply transform your whole sense of being. And Living Catholicism gives us a review of Citadel of God, a book by a man of great faith - Louis de Wohl, about a man of great faith - St. Benedict, our new pope’s namesake

Pro-abortion politicians would have you believe that you can separate your faith from your actions - how can that be? Spurred by an an article on "The Disappearance of Pro-Choice Women" in Glamour magazine, Heart Speaks to Heart offers her own manifesto on "Why This Young Woman is Pro-Life." Of course, even some pro-lifers don't fully understand that you can't separate contraception from this discussion, either - Jay at DeoOmnisGloria excerpts from 50 Questions on the Natural Law that covers the importance of not using contraception to our spiritual lives.

Sometimes living our faith requires us to be patient - to remember that His timeframe can be quite different from our own. North Western Winds shares his experience, after waiting two years for an anullment, of first communion at age 36.

Amidst stories that Bush administration officials are formulating contingency plans for a preemptive nuclear strike to prevent terrorist use of Weapons of Mass Destruction against the United States, the question of the just war criteria of Last Resort and Legitimate Authority. Herb Ely calls for the Bishops, journalists and bloggers to raise these questions before the plans are approved. Herb wants them to prove him wrong, but doubts that will be the case.

Our Lord tells us that we must live our faith not only for our friends, but for those we don't even know. The most delicious-sounding blog of the week, Confessions of a Hot Carmel Sundae, has a response to a Democrat who spoke of refusing a ride to a woman stranded on the road with a baby, because the stranded woman had a "W" bumper sticker. This woman may have lacked compassion, but Dr. Hartline reminds us to be careful of our own motives - are we truly being compassionate, or is it simple self-righteousness? And as Mr. Satire satirically points out, there's no end of people wanting to prove just how righteous they are.

Speaking of faith, did anyone demonstrate living the faith more than our Blessed Mother? Quenta Nârwenion quotes from Venerable John Henry Newman on the glory of her faith. And speaking of glory, one of the great statements of our faith is the Gloria of the Mass. Chris at Veritas casts a careful eye at the real and apparent weaknesses of the approved English translation of the Gloria, and finds that it pays to ask people who know.

Ah, but what does our faith say? Sadly, not all Christians can agree on that. On the Other Foot is weary after constantly dealing with Protestants who treat us as though we were either stupid or deliberately disseminating heresy. But that's not to say that there can't be different commentaries on the Bible - Parableman provides commentary on commentaries on Paul's Letter to the Ephesians. And then there's the ultimate source - The Vatican. The Church Online has an idea on how the Vatican web site and her lengthy documents could benefit from a simple CSS (Cascading Style Sheets) implementation.

Our Lord recognized that obedience must be given to those in lawful authority. In "He Hates Poor People" (a provocative title!), A Penitent Blogger reflects on the importance of praying for those in authority - even the ones we oppose.

Are all faiths the same? Should they be treated the same? Angry in the Great White North talks about Ontario's debacle when they tried to introduce Islamic sharia law into the family dispute arbitration system, all in the name of "consistency."

Again, it's been a privilege to host this week's Carnival, and these terrific bloggers. Check them out, not only today but frequently!

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