I. Strange, the other day I was going through my notes on Gödel's Theorem of Incompleteness and the subject of apostate nuns suddenly popped up in my noggin. Like I said, strange. No, the epiphanic correlation wasn't the result of snorting a line of coke, which pretty much explains Freud's free association of ideas, let alone Dr. Phil. To me at least, a quoted line jotted from one of Kurt Gödel's papers provided an analogy to the mindset of that habitless sector of women religious existent today. The words that sparked a connection were as follows: "...there does not exist a consistent proof for the system S... Hence a consistency proof for the system S can be carried out only by means of modes of inference that are not formalized in the system S itself, and analogous results hold for other formal systems as well".[1] Quite a mouthful that and yes, I know, perhaps less tracts on mathematical logic and more Super Mario is in order. Recently, a devout nun and personal friend effectively told me the same, except she sternly instructed more prayer rather than video games. I'm not that much into video games anyway. So there you go.
II. What Gödel was getting at in the abovementioned was, if you have a logically consistent formal system comprised of a rule set (e.g. mathematical equations, computer code, both expressed in symbols), there are true properties of the system that still cannot be explained by the rules themselves. That is, the logical consistency of the system cannot ultimately be proven within the system as such. There is always something "outside", so to speak. Hence Gödel used the term "metamathematics" which, obviously, has a transcendent twang to it. Gone was David Hilbert's dream of demonstrating mathematical systems to be entirely consistent and complete within themselves which, obviously, rings oppositely of immanentism. And, boy, did Gödel tick off the logical positivists. Their claim to fame was that all knowledge can be understood solely with symbolic logic/mathematics. Too bad. So much for lucky numbers.
III. For the purpose of this analysis we continue in mathematical logic mode: Let Gödel represent the good guys. Call them Team Gödel. Hilbert et allia are the bad guys, or bad girls, in this case. Assign them Team Hilbert. Further, let Team Gödel equal the both the Vatican's Congregation for Consecrated Life and Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. In the context of the Theorem of Incompleteness, members of Team Gödel take the position that there is always something "outside" the system, an authority. Let us call this authority God. Let Team Hilbert equal women religious on the other side of the Atlantic. Not all of them. Hopefully the reader already knows where we're heading. You might recall that Mr. Scampers made an enigmatic film about the particular class of nun under our purview. Following Hilbert's schema, Team Hilbert has no need of anything extraneous to its system, for it believes it is complete and consistent within itself.
IV. The story for far... On January 30, 2009 the Vatican announced the start of an Apostolic Visitation of Women Religious in the U.S. Its objective being to "look into the quality of the life of apostolic women religious in the United States". To lead the investigation, the CCL appointed Mother Mary Clare Millea, the American superior general of the Apostles of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. The Visitation involved four stages. The first, personal meetings with more than 100 religious superiors. The second, questionnaire's to be completed regarding life, work, prayer and finances. The third, on-site visits. The fourth is currently underway, namely report preparation. Also in early 2009 you probably heard a commotion from the Leadership Conference of Women Religious regarding a so-called Vatican intrusion into their affairs.[3] This reaction was not the result of the CCL Visitation, but of a separate investigation commenced a couple months later by the CDF. The man in charge of the LCWR investigation is the USCCB's Bishop Leonard Blair of Toledo. It's euphemistically called a "doctrinal assessment", which one guesses is purposely meant to sound pleasant so as downplay the "shock and awe" factor, hoping the apostate sisters wont freak out. Prominent pant suit fashionista Sr. Sandra Schneiders is, however, uneasy: "the motivation for the visitation remains very vague".[4] That's right, cookie, you got it: B16 is coming to get ya.
V. Now you're not to going to hear much about the Visitations whilst ongoing. Such inquiries are done quietly, behind the scenes. It's all internal stuff. Still, we can get a glimpse of what's going on by watching the latest home page video at the Apostolic Visitation site. Highly recommended viewing. Watch it and you'll conclude that Team Gödel did excellently in selecting Mother Clare to take the lead. Mother speaks respectfully, she is confident yet polite, and you can tell her words are carefully selected. Watch again, listen even closer and, between the gaps, there are subtle signs indicating the Holy See isn't exactly thrilled with the current state of American women religious. Here are some quotes from Mother Clare (TH2 emphasis with italics): "some initial misgivings and apprehensions", "revitalize religious life", "renewed and inspired dialogue among many of their members", "discerning a life of total consecration to Christ", "may continue to inspire all people to follow Christ faithfully". Why were there misgivings and apprehension in the first place? Why is renewal and revitalization required? Shouldn't total consecration and faithfulness to Christ already be assumed? So, yes, there are problems. Note further that Mother is dealing with some (ahem) non-compliant nuns: "I have once again invited those major superiors who did not submit a completed questionnaire to do so at this time". Evidently, a number of them are just filling in names and leaving remaining pages blank. Thus it would not be unreasonable to state that defiance is occurrent in some quarters.
VI. Especially interesting is this statement: "Naturally, the story is much richer when it's told through the voices of those who are living it". This line brims with significance regarding, not so much the superiors, but the sisters under them. My guess is that not a few sisters are very troubled at the secularization and worldliness of their wayward orders. Because of obedience and perhaps introverted personalities, they have remained silent for years, suffering all the while as they watched their orders embrace whatever heresy. Indeed, take a few minutes to visit websites of apostate orders. You will occasionally see group photographs with a more elderly nun in the background, those pre-babyboomers in their late 70s or 80s, still wearing habits or a modicum thereof. In my estimation these are the ones who were overwhelmed by SV2 onslaught. They have been helpless for decades. But what really struck me about the video is how Mother's presentation mimics Pope Benedict's manner of presentation. You have to listen a few times to comprehend that there is more being communicated than mere surface appearance. B16 has this way of condemning people and ideas with utmost cordiality. You listen, go home, ruminate more on what he said, slap your hand across the forehead, then say: "I've just been broadsided". Nifty, when you think about it.
VII. My gripe with the Visitation process is its restriction to the United States. True, population numbers and influence are greater south of the 49th. Yet it's just a short hop up here. The lesser number of orders in Canada would not have involved much more work. And it's not as if the Canadian bishops are doing anything about the bad habits adopted by our nuns. Although there are only upwards of 50 orders/institutes of women religious in Canada (based here or with sisters in Canada from orders originating outside the country), a simple perusal of their websites strongly evidences widespread apostasy. The pickings are aplenty. Let's line some of them up: Ursulines of Jesus (Prince George, BC; Edmonton, AB), Ursulines of the Chatham Union (Chatham, ON), School Sisters of Notre Dame (Waterdown, ON), Sisters of Sion (Toronto, ON), Sisters of St. Martha (Antigonish, NS), Sisters of Charity (Halifax, NS), Sisters of Providence of St. Vincent de Paul (Kingston, ON), Sisters of Mercy (St. John's, NL), Our Lady's Missionaries (Toronto, ON), Les Filles de la Sagesse (Ottawa, ON), Congrégation de Notre-Dame (Montreal, QC), Benedictine Sisters at the House of Bread Monastery (Nanaimo, BC), Benedictine Sisters at St. Benedict's Monastery (Winnipeg, MB), Sisters of Social Service (Toronto/Hamilton, ON; Regina, SK), Adrian Dominican Sisters (based out of Adrian, MI) and Sisters of St. Joseph (at various Ontario locations: London, Hamilton, Toronto, Peterborough, Sault Ste. Marie).
VIII. Immediately apparent aspects of nuns at the aforelisted are agedness and habitlessness. You will also notice a preoccupation with "social justice", "eco-spirituality", "women's issues", environmentalism, "climate change" and other allied leftist platforms. Let alone the downright obsession with causes, claims and conferences under the auspices of the United Nations. All of these, of course, are easy issues to support and endorse. Not because they are necessarily immoral or wrong. But because they are in a sense amoral. No uncomfortable morality is required to confront the hard issue of personal sin as defined by the Catholic Church. Sin has been the source of the world's problems from time immemorial. Don't forget to add the Ennegram, Zen meditation and acoustic guitars into the mix. Most tellingly, abortion and other life issues are avoided like the Black Death. And there's no denying that the whole polyester pant suit/crew cut hairdo thing bespeaks of big time lesbian action, whether some be inclined to homosexuality or not. This is what radical feminism has wrought. Blame Gloria Steinem and Ms. Magazine. Accordingly, these apostatic or so inclined women religious on Team Hilbert, whether oblivious or not, are geared mainly to things earthy, worldly, immanent. Certainly, they're eligible for review by Mother Clare and the rest of Team Gödel.
IX. Yes, a bleak picture is here being painted. This is not to take the extreme position and claim all women religious in Canada have gone astray. Look at the Sisters of Our Lady Immaculate (Cambridge, ON), Sisters of the Sacred Heart (Welland, ON), Missionary Sisters of the Precious Blood (Toronto, ON) and the Carmel of St. Joseph (St. Agatha, ON). These nuns are generally younger and, as a sign to the world, wear habits. Their prime focus is on Jesus and Mary, prayer and adoration. Any work they do for the poor or vulnerable in society flows from this prime focus, not vice versa. The whole sense is ethereal and transcendent. These wonderful nuns give me hope and relief. We're talking the real deal here. Put it this way: you're on your deathbed, slowly being eaten away by some noisome disease. Do you want the apostate nun Mary Jo Leddy in her pumps and blue blazer at your bedside, reminiscing about a chance encounter with the Dalai Lama in Helsinki? Or would you rather have a Sister Margaret Mary in full regalia praying the Rosary with you, afterward attending the Adoration Chapel until 4 o'clock in the morning so as to pray for your immortal soul? Come on people. No brainer.
X. If there is an order emblematic of the degree to which Canadian women religious have immersed themselves into "the spirit of the world", it would be the Loretto Sisters, Canadian Province of the Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary (IBVM). Quite a bunch we got here. Let's start with Sr. Christine Leyser. In 2009 she was conferred a Member of the Order of Canada for being "a pillar of her community and a beacon of hope for those marginalized in our society".[5] Fair enough. Thing is, a year prior Canada's arch-abortionist Henry Morgentaler was inducted as well, creating much controversy. So much that Cardinal Turcotte, along with other Catholics, returned his medal in protest.[6] This says much since Jean-Claude isn't exactly an "orthodox" Prince of the Church. Remember, he presided at the funeral Mass for the pro-abortion Trudeau who, while prime minister, made anti-Catholic Catholicism respectable from Halifax to Vancouver to Resolute. Given this situation, one would expect a Catholic nun to decline the award. Nope. Instead, the "unpretentious" Chrissy gave CBC Leftista Michaëlle Jean a big wet smacking kiss in appreciation. You go girl! So much for little babies. So long and thanks for all the fish. View Kissy Chrissy and former Governor General Michaëlle Jean here. The photograph is symbolic in that it shows, as in the past, how apostate Catholics so quickly grovel before the State to which they are later subsumed. Give them candy and toys and they will play like nice little girls and boys. He he he he he. Giggles.
XI. This disregard of abortion, if not a tacit approval thereof, is manifest from articles at the IBVM website. Very interesting is the post on the 2010 UN Conference on Global Health. Delegates included seven Loretto sisters, including Sr. Anne Kelly. One goal of the conference, as the muffins clearly approve, is to "achieve universal access to reproductive health". Now unless the girls weren't smoking too much weed while in attendance, they and everyone else know that "reproductive health" is UN/NGO code for abortion, artificial contraception and so forth. Accordingly, it would be safe to say that a hardcopy of Humane vitae wasn't a document included in their biodegradable brief cases.
XII. Then there is this post on the appointment of former Chilean president Michelle Bachelet as head of the UN Agency for Women. This article was written by Sr. Anne Kelly, "IBVM NGO Representative at the United Nations". Gosh, that extended title must mean Annie is an important person. Anyhow, you can almost hear her giggling with delight when she wrote: "There has been general rejoicing in UN circles recently about the appointment of Michelle Bachelet as head of the newly created UN Women, an entity comprised of four previous UN bodies espousing the cause of women. It has taken four long years of debate to bring about this change, nevertheless the appointment of the high profile former president of Chile, Michelle Bachelet, suggests that Ban Ki-moon and other UN powerbrokers are serious about raising the profile of women’s issues within the UN... Apart from her personal history, Bachelet, now a UN under-secretary-general, brings a unique set of professional qualifications to the job. Reproductive health and rights, domestic violence and the abuse of women in conflict areas will be topics on her agenda in the new agency" (TH2 emphasis). There's the old "reproductive health" euphemism again. De-emphasis and omission. For another take, let's see what Joseph Meaney of Human Life International said of Bachelet:
XIII. Let's end with the glories of Gaia, mother goddess of the Earth. For the girls at IBVM have produced a most delicious of bookmark prayer card to reflect upon as you wallow your way through our polluted planet. It comes under the name "Eco Examen", an ecological examination of conscious. Indeed, holy Gaia has a disease and that disease is humanity. The terrible weapon wielded against Gaia, Her Magnificence, is the Divine Injunction in Genesis 1 to "subdue the earth". Sayeth the giggling girls: we must "pray to be grateful for the cosmos and for our planet". We must ask "Creator God to help me to see and understand what great gifts of creation have been given us to cherish and nurture". We must "honestly review how I live in this world; how I use the gifts of creation and how I contribute to the care and protection of the planet". But there's more, Catholic peoples: "Today did I turn off the lights when not needed? Turn down/off the heating or cooling? Turn off electrical appliances at the power point? Wait until I had a full load before using the washing machine? Take a shorter shower? Saved the shower water for the garden? Use public transport rather than the car? Make the effort to place cans, bottles and plastics in the recycling bin? Talk with a community member/friend/relative about the importance of caring for the planet?".
Antiphon: "Lead me to do more for the earth, the planet, the cosmos".
What else is there so say? Except... You've come a long way baby ;)
NOTES / REFERENCES
1. K. Gödel, "Some metamathematical results on completeness and consistency", In: Collected Works, Kurt Gödel (Oxford University Press, 1986), vol. 1, pp. 141-143. Quote is from an abstract presented to the Vienna Academy of Sciences on October 23, 1930.
2. Cf. R. Carnap, Meaning and Necessity, A Study in Semantics and Modal Logic (University of Chicago Press, 1970). Both Carnap and Gödel were members of the "Vienna Circle", a school of thought influenced by the philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein.
3. A good chronicle of the ongoing investigations is given in A. Carey, "How Is It Going", Catholic World Report, January 2011.
4. S.M. Schneiders, "Why they stay(ed)", National Catholic Reporter, August 17, 2009.
5. Governor General of Canada, "Governor General to invest 45 recipients into the Order of Canada", May 12, 2009. For local newspaper coverage see S. Tracey, "Sister Christine Bucks Protocol", Guelph Mercury, May 16, 2009, p. 1.
6. "Cardinal Turcotte gives back Order of Canada", CBC News, September 11, 2008.
7. Quoted in S. Weatherbe, "New U.N. Women's Agency Gets Pro-Abortion Chile's Ex-President as Leader", National Catholic Register, September 27, 2010.
8. For the support of abortion by the UN MDG: "Pro-Abortion UN Leader to Address World Youth Day Pilgrims in Germany", LifeSite News, August 9, 2005 (author not indicated). Amnesty International: "Amnesty International Canada's consultations regarding sexual and reproductive rights - May 2007", Public Statement issued on June 14, 2007. Human Rights Watch: S. Ertlet, "George Soros to Give $100M to Pro-Abortion Group Human Rights Watch", LifeNews, September 8, 2010. Refugees International: "Refugees International Opposes New Restrictions on Reproductive Health Programs for Displaced Women", Planet Wire, March 6, 2003. KAIROS: A. de Valk, "Catholics should stop funding KAIROS", Catholic Insight, January 2010, vol. XVIII, no. 1, p. 3.
II. What Gödel was getting at in the abovementioned was, if you have a logically consistent formal system comprised of a rule set (e.g. mathematical equations, computer code, both expressed in symbols), there are true properties of the system that still cannot be explained by the rules themselves. That is, the logical consistency of the system cannot ultimately be proven within the system as such. There is always something "outside", so to speak. Hence Gödel used the term "metamathematics" which, obviously, has a transcendent twang to it. Gone was David Hilbert's dream of demonstrating mathematical systems to be entirely consistent and complete within themselves which, obviously, rings oppositely of immanentism. And, boy, did Gödel tick off the logical positivists. Their claim to fame was that all knowledge can be understood solely with symbolic logic/mathematics. Too bad. So much for lucky numbers.
III. For the purpose of this analysis we continue in mathematical logic mode: Let Gödel represent the good guys. Call them Team Gödel. Hilbert et allia are the bad guys, or bad girls, in this case. Assign them Team Hilbert. Further, let Team Gödel equal the both the Vatican's Congregation for Consecrated Life and Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. In the context of the Theorem of Incompleteness, members of Team Gödel take the position that there is always something "outside" the system, an authority. Let us call this authority God. Let Team Hilbert equal women religious on the other side of the Atlantic. Not all of them. Hopefully the reader already knows where we're heading. You might recall that Mr. Scampers made an enigmatic film about the particular class of nun under our purview. Following Hilbert's schema, Team Hilbert has no need of anything extraneous to its system, for it believes it is complete and consistent within itself.
IV. The story for far... On January 30, 2009 the Vatican announced the start of an Apostolic Visitation of Women Religious in the U.S. Its objective being to "look into the quality of the life of apostolic women religious in the United States". To lead the investigation, the CCL appointed Mother Mary Clare Millea, the American superior general of the Apostles of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. The Visitation involved four stages. The first, personal meetings with more than 100 religious superiors. The second, questionnaire's to be completed regarding life, work, prayer and finances. The third, on-site visits. The fourth is currently underway, namely report preparation. Also in early 2009 you probably heard a commotion from the Leadership Conference of Women Religious regarding a so-called Vatican intrusion into their affairs.[3] This reaction was not the result of the CCL Visitation, but of a separate investigation commenced a couple months later by the CDF. The man in charge of the LCWR investigation is the USCCB's Bishop Leonard Blair of Toledo. It's euphemistically called a "doctrinal assessment", which one guesses is purposely meant to sound pleasant so as downplay the "shock and awe" factor, hoping the apostate sisters wont freak out. Prominent pant suit fashionista Sr. Sandra Schneiders is, however, uneasy: "the motivation for the visitation remains very vague".[4] That's right, cookie, you got it: B16 is coming to get ya.
V. Now you're not to going to hear much about the Visitations whilst ongoing. Such inquiries are done quietly, behind the scenes. It's all internal stuff. Still, we can get a glimpse of what's going on by watching the latest home page video at the Apostolic Visitation site. Highly recommended viewing. Watch it and you'll conclude that Team Gödel did excellently in selecting Mother Clare to take the lead. Mother speaks respectfully, she is confident yet polite, and you can tell her words are carefully selected. Watch again, listen even closer and, between the gaps, there are subtle signs indicating the Holy See isn't exactly thrilled with the current state of American women religious. Here are some quotes from Mother Clare (TH2 emphasis with italics): "some initial misgivings and apprehensions", "revitalize religious life", "renewed and inspired dialogue among many of their members", "discerning a life of total consecration to Christ", "may continue to inspire all people to follow Christ faithfully". Why were there misgivings and apprehension in the first place? Why is renewal and revitalization required? Shouldn't total consecration and faithfulness to Christ already be assumed? So, yes, there are problems. Note further that Mother is dealing with some (ahem) non-compliant nuns: "I have once again invited those major superiors who did not submit a completed questionnaire to do so at this time". Evidently, a number of them are just filling in names and leaving remaining pages blank. Thus it would not be unreasonable to state that defiance is occurrent in some quarters.
VI. Especially interesting is this statement: "Naturally, the story is much richer when it's told through the voices of those who are living it". This line brims with significance regarding, not so much the superiors, but the sisters under them. My guess is that not a few sisters are very troubled at the secularization and worldliness of their wayward orders. Because of obedience and perhaps introverted personalities, they have remained silent for years, suffering all the while as they watched their orders embrace whatever heresy. Indeed, take a few minutes to visit websites of apostate orders. You will occasionally see group photographs with a more elderly nun in the background, those pre-babyboomers in their late 70s or 80s, still wearing habits or a modicum thereof. In my estimation these are the ones who were overwhelmed by SV2 onslaught. They have been helpless for decades. But what really struck me about the video is how Mother's presentation mimics Pope Benedict's manner of presentation. You have to listen a few times to comprehend that there is more being communicated than mere surface appearance. B16 has this way of condemning people and ideas with utmost cordiality. You listen, go home, ruminate more on what he said, slap your hand across the forehead, then say: "I've just been broadsided". Nifty, when you think about it.
VII. My gripe with the Visitation process is its restriction to the United States. True, population numbers and influence are greater south of the 49th. Yet it's just a short hop up here. The lesser number of orders in Canada would not have involved much more work. And it's not as if the Canadian bishops are doing anything about the bad habits adopted by our nuns. Although there are only upwards of 50 orders/institutes of women religious in Canada (based here or with sisters in Canada from orders originating outside the country), a simple perusal of their websites strongly evidences widespread apostasy. The pickings are aplenty. Let's line some of them up: Ursulines of Jesus (Prince George, BC; Edmonton, AB), Ursulines of the Chatham Union (Chatham, ON), School Sisters of Notre Dame (Waterdown, ON), Sisters of Sion (Toronto, ON), Sisters of St. Martha (Antigonish, NS), Sisters of Charity (Halifax, NS), Sisters of Providence of St. Vincent de Paul (Kingston, ON), Sisters of Mercy (St. John's, NL), Our Lady's Missionaries (Toronto, ON), Les Filles de la Sagesse (Ottawa, ON), Congrégation de Notre-Dame (Montreal, QC), Benedictine Sisters at the House of Bread Monastery (Nanaimo, BC), Benedictine Sisters at St. Benedict's Monastery (Winnipeg, MB), Sisters of Social Service (Toronto/Hamilton, ON; Regina, SK), Adrian Dominican Sisters (based out of Adrian, MI) and Sisters of St. Joseph (at various Ontario locations: London, Hamilton, Toronto, Peterborough, Sault Ste. Marie).
VIII. Immediately apparent aspects of nuns at the aforelisted are agedness and habitlessness. You will also notice a preoccupation with "social justice", "eco-spirituality", "women's issues", environmentalism, "climate change" and other allied leftist platforms. Let alone the downright obsession with causes, claims and conferences under the auspices of the United Nations. All of these, of course, are easy issues to support and endorse. Not because they are necessarily immoral or wrong. But because they are in a sense amoral. No uncomfortable morality is required to confront the hard issue of personal sin as defined by the Catholic Church. Sin has been the source of the world's problems from time immemorial. Don't forget to add the Ennegram, Zen meditation and acoustic guitars into the mix. Most tellingly, abortion and other life issues are avoided like the Black Death. And there's no denying that the whole polyester pant suit/crew cut hairdo thing bespeaks of big time lesbian action, whether some be inclined to homosexuality or not. This is what radical feminism has wrought. Blame Gloria Steinem and Ms. Magazine. Accordingly, these apostatic or so inclined women religious on Team Hilbert, whether oblivious or not, are geared mainly to things earthy, worldly, immanent. Certainly, they're eligible for review by Mother Clare and the rest of Team Gödel.
IX. Yes, a bleak picture is here being painted. This is not to take the extreme position and claim all women religious in Canada have gone astray. Look at the Sisters of Our Lady Immaculate (Cambridge, ON), Sisters of the Sacred Heart (Welland, ON), Missionary Sisters of the Precious Blood (Toronto, ON) and the Carmel of St. Joseph (St. Agatha, ON). These nuns are generally younger and, as a sign to the world, wear habits. Their prime focus is on Jesus and Mary, prayer and adoration. Any work they do for the poor or vulnerable in society flows from this prime focus, not vice versa. The whole sense is ethereal and transcendent. These wonderful nuns give me hope and relief. We're talking the real deal here. Put it this way: you're on your deathbed, slowly being eaten away by some noisome disease. Do you want the apostate nun Mary Jo Leddy in her pumps and blue blazer at your bedside, reminiscing about a chance encounter with the Dalai Lama in Helsinki? Or would you rather have a Sister Margaret Mary in full regalia praying the Rosary with you, afterward attending the Adoration Chapel until 4 o'clock in the morning so as to pray for your immortal soul? Come on people. No brainer.
X. If there is an order emblematic of the degree to which Canadian women religious have immersed themselves into "the spirit of the world", it would be the Loretto Sisters, Canadian Province of the Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary (IBVM). Quite a bunch we got here. Let's start with Sr. Christine Leyser. In 2009 she was conferred a Member of the Order of Canada for being "a pillar of her community and a beacon of hope for those marginalized in our society".[5] Fair enough. Thing is, a year prior Canada's arch-abortionist Henry Morgentaler was inducted as well, creating much controversy. So much that Cardinal Turcotte, along with other Catholics, returned his medal in protest.[6] This says much since Jean-Claude isn't exactly an "orthodox" Prince of the Church. Remember, he presided at the funeral Mass for the pro-abortion Trudeau who, while prime minister, made anti-Catholic Catholicism respectable from Halifax to Vancouver to Resolute. Given this situation, one would expect a Catholic nun to decline the award. Nope. Instead, the "unpretentious" Chrissy gave CBC Leftista Michaëlle Jean a big wet smacking kiss in appreciation. You go girl! So much for little babies. So long and thanks for all the fish. View Kissy Chrissy and former Governor General Michaëlle Jean here. The photograph is symbolic in that it shows, as in the past, how apostate Catholics so quickly grovel before the State to which they are later subsumed. Give them candy and toys and they will play like nice little girls and boys. He he he he he. Giggles.
XI. This disregard of abortion, if not a tacit approval thereof, is manifest from articles at the IBVM website. Very interesting is the post on the 2010 UN Conference on Global Health. Delegates included seven Loretto sisters, including Sr. Anne Kelly. One goal of the conference, as the muffins clearly approve, is to "achieve universal access to reproductive health". Now unless the girls weren't smoking too much weed while in attendance, they and everyone else know that "reproductive health" is UN/NGO code for abortion, artificial contraception and so forth. Accordingly, it would be safe to say that a hardcopy of Humane vitae wasn't a document included in their biodegradable brief cases.
XII. Then there is this post on the appointment of former Chilean president Michelle Bachelet as head of the UN Agency for Women. This article was written by Sr. Anne Kelly, "IBVM NGO Representative at the United Nations". Gosh, that extended title must mean Annie is an important person. Anyhow, you can almost hear her giggling with delight when she wrote: "There has been general rejoicing in UN circles recently about the appointment of Michelle Bachelet as head of the newly created UN Women, an entity comprised of four previous UN bodies espousing the cause of women. It has taken four long years of debate to bring about this change, nevertheless the appointment of the high profile former president of Chile, Michelle Bachelet, suggests that Ban Ki-moon and other UN powerbrokers are serious about raising the profile of women’s issues within the UN... Apart from her personal history, Bachelet, now a UN under-secretary-general, brings a unique set of professional qualifications to the job. Reproductive health and rights, domestic violence and the abuse of women in conflict areas will be topics on her agenda in the new agency" (TH2 emphasis). There's the old "reproductive health" euphemism again. De-emphasis and omission. For another take, let's see what Joseph Meaney of Human Life International said of Bachelet:
Bachelet is a leftist and feminist. As president of Chile, she tried very hard to undermine the pro-life laws and constitution of her country... Now that she will be free to do what she wants at the U.N., I think she will lobby energetically within the U.N. system to support the anti-life agendas at UNFPA [the U.N. Population Fund] and other agencies there.[7]The disturbing thing is that when women religious like Sr. Anne are confronted with hard facts, such as those told by Mr. Meaney, the response is an effective shrug of the shoulders and a nonchalant "oh well". Indeed, gotta have those "Justice Links" to the UN's Millennium Development Campaign (MDG), Amnesty International, Make Poverty History (International Planned Parenthood is member), Human Rights Watch, KAIROS and the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. All are pro-abortion agencies.[8] This really is sinister, especially because of the stealth involved.
XIII. Let's end with the glories of Gaia, mother goddess of the Earth. For the girls at IBVM have produced a most delicious of bookmark prayer card to reflect upon as you wallow your way through our polluted planet. It comes under the name "Eco Examen", an ecological examination of conscious. Indeed, holy Gaia has a disease and that disease is humanity. The terrible weapon wielded against Gaia, Her Magnificence, is the Divine Injunction in Genesis 1 to "subdue the earth". Sayeth the giggling girls: we must "pray to be grateful for the cosmos and for our planet". We must ask "Creator God to help me to see and understand what great gifts of creation have been given us to cherish and nurture". We must "honestly review how I live in this world; how I use the gifts of creation and how I contribute to the care and protection of the planet". But there's more, Catholic peoples: "Today did I turn off the lights when not needed? Turn down/off the heating or cooling? Turn off electrical appliances at the power point? Wait until I had a full load before using the washing machine? Take a shorter shower? Saved the shower water for the garden? Use public transport rather than the car? Make the effort to place cans, bottles and plastics in the recycling bin? Talk with a community member/friend/relative about the importance of caring for the planet?".Antiphon: "Lead me to do more for the earth, the planet, the cosmos".
What else is there so say? Except... You've come a long way baby ;)
NOTES / REFERENCES
1. K. Gödel, "Some metamathematical results on completeness and consistency", In: Collected Works, Kurt Gödel (Oxford University Press, 1986), vol. 1, pp. 141-143. Quote is from an abstract presented to the Vienna Academy of Sciences on October 23, 1930.
2. Cf. R. Carnap, Meaning and Necessity, A Study in Semantics and Modal Logic (University of Chicago Press, 1970). Both Carnap and Gödel were members of the "Vienna Circle", a school of thought influenced by the philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein.
3. A good chronicle of the ongoing investigations is given in A. Carey, "How Is It Going", Catholic World Report, January 2011.
4. S.M. Schneiders, "Why they stay(ed)", National Catholic Reporter, August 17, 2009.
5. Governor General of Canada, "Governor General to invest 45 recipients into the Order of Canada", May 12, 2009. For local newspaper coverage see S. Tracey, "Sister Christine Bucks Protocol", Guelph Mercury, May 16, 2009, p. 1.
6. "Cardinal Turcotte gives back Order of Canada", CBC News, September 11, 2008.
7. Quoted in S. Weatherbe, "New U.N. Women's Agency Gets Pro-Abortion Chile's Ex-President as Leader", National Catholic Register, September 27, 2010.
8. For the support of abortion by the UN MDG: "Pro-Abortion UN Leader to Address World Youth Day Pilgrims in Germany", LifeSite News, August 9, 2005 (author not indicated). Amnesty International: "Amnesty International Canada's consultations regarding sexual and reproductive rights - May 2007", Public Statement issued on June 14, 2007. Human Rights Watch: S. Ertlet, "George Soros to Give $100M to Pro-Abortion Group Human Rights Watch", LifeNews, September 8, 2010. Refugees International: "Refugees International Opposes New Restrictions on Reproductive Health Programs for Displaced Women", Planet Wire, March 6, 2003. KAIROS: A. de Valk, "Catholics should stop funding KAIROS", Catholic Insight, January 2010, vol. XVIII, no. 1, p. 3.
7 comments:
Regarding XIII: The IBVM have neglected to include this bit of advice in their examination: http://youtu.be/oEulkK7SpRs
We have one of the forementioned orders in our diocese...along with another that has 'sold out' in what seems to be an even more egregious fashion.
They have a "centre" which I will not name, which teaches all manner of new age nonsense, and has hosted talks by some, well, rather interesting folk.
I don't go in there these days unless I bring blessed salt. Mind you, I don't go there...When all the crucifixes disappeared, I figured it had become no man's land.
All the orders/institutes I list as being apostatic are catalogued at the Toronto archdiocese website (link in main text). Not much quality control happening therein. Nor do I expect anything to be done. It would really nice if someone from the CDF would, at least, make a courtesy call.
1: Now that you mention him, where has Mr. Scampers been hiding?
2: Maybe the US Visitation is just a warm up for the Canadian one. Or maybe the Vatican decided to do a seperate one because combining them would be too much for whoever was in charge. OK, I know I am being a bit tongue in cheek, but I am sure the Canandian hussies will get their turn in the spotlight.
3: Have to comment about the avoiding abortion in VIII> Of course, there are exceptions, like the infamous Sr. donna OP from across the way who worked as an escort at an abortion mill until caught.
4: So are there any good orders up there?
1. Scampers is on hiatus. He'll be back in the future, or so he tells me.
2. Me too.
3. Exception noted.
4. Yes: Sisters of Our Lady Immaculate, Sisters of the Sacred Heart, Missionary Sisters of the Precious Blood. These are in the province of Ontario.
My daughters, at an IBVM school in UK, were told by a teacher to roll condoms on to hockey sticks, as part of a sex ed. lesson.
A good preparation for lapsing.
Great post. Thank you and God bless.
Yes, problems with the IBVM aren't restricted to points this side of the Atlantic.
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