STARTING CAPTIONS:
(Cowboy hat tip to the reader who e-mailed this and suggested the last caption!)
Y’know how I’ve been writing about the templates that news organizations want to pour their stories into? A common one is the "conflict between two parties or points of view" template.
Theoretically, this is a balanced way of doing the news, but often it’s possible to tell the true biases of the folks doing the story.
They yanked the line from their web site, but quick!
Powerline comments:
There you have it. The Times’ criticisms are ready to go, a few good words for the Pope are an afterthought.
VIEW THE FULL SCREEN-GRAB OF THE NYT STORY.
(Cowboy hat tip to the reader who e-mailed!)
What is it?
A still from Episode VI from a walker on the forrest moon of Endor?
A still from Episode III from a walker on Kashyyk?
Neither!
It’s not on an alien planet (even in the movies), and it has nothing to do with science fiction.
It’s a shot taken from the cabin of THIS:
YES! That’s RIGHT! We now have walker technology here on Earth!
As you can see, it hasn’t evolved very far and is still at the grashopper stage, but it’s still real-life walker tech!
The above application is used to cut down trees.
And, as you can tell from the distinctive paint job, it’s made by John Deere!
YEE-HAW!
Also,
A reader writes:
This has been bothering me for a while but since tomorrow’s funeral Mass for the Pope will be televised, it has galvanized my will to email you about this. Some of these may seem very trite but I have a rationale for asking.
There are no bad questions, only bad answers.
1) When I watch a Mass on TV (i.e, on EWTN, or the funeral Mass for the Pope), may I plan on having a spiritual communion when the Eucharist is distributed?
You may.
2) If I can/do have spiritual communion, is it recommended that I observe the fast for Eucharist?
It is not. The Eucharistic fast is for preparation for the sacramental reception of the Eucharist, not its spiritual reception. You can make a spiritual act of communion with Jesus (i.e., the Eucharist) at any hour of the day or night with no fasting.
3) Would it be totally illicit and/or crass to have breakfast while watching the Mass for the Pope tomorrow if I cannot/do not partake in spiritual communion during the televised Mass?
It is not illicit as there is no law against doing so. Neither would it be crass as long as one isn’t engaging in a gluttinous, debauched feast or something like that. While the impulse to ask the question displays a praiseworthy concern for propriety, you should not indulge yourself very far in that direction as it could very quickly lead one into scrupulosity. Being at home while something is on TV is not the same as being at the event itself, and the standards of conduct that would apply in the latter case simply do not apply in the former. If we don’t feel the need to get dressed up in our Sunday best to watch a funeral on TV, neither do we need to refrain from eating while it’s on.
Any and all commentary you can deliver about this would be much appreciated. You’re one in a billion, Jimmy, and I really enjoy reading your blog! Keep up the good work.
One in a billion???
You mean that there are six of me???
(NOTE TO SELF: Must track down and eliminate my five clones.)
20 (with respect to the eating questions.)
I have a project that I want to do with the encyclicals of John Paul II to make them more accessible to folks, but I need some help from someone with more scripting experience than me.
Here’s the deal: I’ve got the encyclicals in HTML format, but I need to have the footnotes and (preferably) the parenthetical Scripture references STRIPPED OUT of them.
I could do this with my limited scripting experience, but it would be a needlessly long and painful process.
THEREFORE,
If someone with more scripting experience than I would like to step up to the plate and volunteer, I’d be most appreciative.
Lemme know.
More details on request.
Much obliged!
So long, and thanks for all the fish!
The former president has succumbed to the temptation to go in for snipish remarks regarding the late holy father, commenting to the press that John Paul II “centralized authority in the papacy again and enforced a very conservative theological doctrine. There will be debates about that. The number of Catholics increased by 250 million on his watch. But the numbers of priests didn’t. He’s like all of us – he may have a mixed legacy.”
The former president has succumbed to the temptation to go in for snipish remarks regarding the late holy father, commenting to the press that John Paul II “centralized authority in the papacy again and enforced a very conservative theological doctrine. There will be debates about that. The number of Catholics increased by 250 million on his watch. But the numbers of priests didn’t. He’s like all of us – he may have a mixed legacy.”
In Christianity Today, Lutheran writer Uwe Siemon-Netto writes:
For the last quarter of a century, this non-Catholic has had a pope. Now that John Paul II is gone, I am even more of an orphan than the Christians in the Roman church. For they will surely have another pope, but that one may not be mine, since I haven’t converted.
I am sure I am reflecting the views of many Protestants. Who else but John Paul II gave voice to my faith and my values in 130 countries? Who else posited personal holiness and theological clarity against postmodern self-deception and egotism? Who else preached the gospel as tirelessly as this man?
In Christianity Today, Lutheran writer Uwe Siemon-Netto writes:
For the last quarter of a century, this non-Catholic has had a pope. Now that John Paul II is gone, I am even more of an orphan than the Christians in the Roman church. For they will surely have another pope, but that one may not be mine, since I haven’t converted.
I am sure I am reflecting the views of many Protestants. Who else but John Paul II gave voice to my faith and my values in 130 countries? Who else posited personal holiness and theological clarity against postmodern self-deception and egotism? Who else preached the gospel as tirelessly as this man?
EXCERPT:
ONTARIO, Calif. — Jack Chick, author of Christian tracts, made a surprise purchase of some of the world’s best-loved comic strips and is spreading the gospel in typical Chick fashion through the Sunday funnies.