Posted on 04/13/2007 6:54:57 AM PDT by Frank Sheed
Two years into his reign, Pope Benedict XVI is finally poised to make a major mark on American Catholicism with a string of key bishop appointments and important decisions about the future of U.S. seminaries and bishops' involvement in politics.
Benedict's election on April 19, 2005, shook liberals and comforted conservatives who expected a doctrinal hard-liner. So far, they have found an easier hand - and someone who has not made the United States much of a priority.
When Benedict has gained attention, it has mostly been on the world stage, focusing on the re-Christianization of Europe, Islam and mending relations with Orthodox Christians. He also has stressed universal themes of faith and reason.
``The last two years have been much quieter years as far as the papacy is concerned because you have a very different personality'' than John Paul II, said Monsignor Robert Wister, chairman of the church history department at Seton Hall University's School of Theology.
``Many Americans were surprised - some happily, some disappointed - that he did not turn into the pit bull of dogma. He is taking a very pastoral approach, and I think people resonate very positively with that.''
Yet America's turn may be coming. At the top of the list is a looming generational shift among the nation's bishops, whose decisions at the local level greatly affect Catholics in the pews and can carry national weight. For instance, church leaders recently closed parishes in Boston and New York, while the St. Louis archbishop has clashed with a heavily Polish parish over control of its assets.
Key appointments are expected in New York, Baltimore and Detroit, where cardinals have reached retirement age - 75. And retirements or appointments are likely in at least seven other archdioceses...
(Excerpt) Read more at guardian.co.uk ...
That's awful! You never know when you might have to design, say, a circuit using 12AX7 dual triodes, so I still have my trusty old 1960 Sylvania vacuum tube guide on the shelf.
Junk is like papers in the office. At night they get together and have orgies that result in offspring.....
That is the only explanation I have for all the stuff I have accumulated. Surely I could not have bought it. When could I have had the time to do that much shopping?
LOL!
Well, it WAS a dream! And obviously, not very inventive!
I DID like the way your house was laid out, though...even the stairs were there, with no kids on them!
You think you have it bad? My computer hates me ...
"Slow down. You type too fast!"
"Your sentences are too long."
"You make my CPU hurt."
My problem is that I tend to think in long, convoluted sentences, keeping a thought going long beyond what most people, or any computers, find confortable.
I used accounting textbooks for doorstops and stepladders (my roommate was 4’10”). You couldn’t resell them!
What a novelty - stairs with no kids on them!
I really want a one-story house, though, if we’re going to be moving.
So how are the “jitters?”
Can we expect piccies of the bride and groom and entourage?
Computers should come with an automatic semicolon function. How hard could that be to program?
LOL! My Dad used to run a vacuum-tube square-root calculator for Boeing, back in the late 50’s. He said it was as big as the average living room.
After he joined the Navy, he always had a subordinate to do computer stuff for him :-). If I want to communicate, I have to phone or write a letter on paper!
LOL!
“Stairs with no kids on them” seemed to be the only “off” thing about the dream, since I remember asking about your kids. As in, “Where are all your kids?” Or something just as rude!! :o])
Oh, that’s not rude. The cashiers at Wal-mart always notice when I’m there without the full mob! Once I even went to Wal-mart *alone*, and three of the regular cashiers showed up to chat while my stuff was rung up!
WHOA! Chatting at the check out when you have no kids??? I’m amazed! Maybe you should send that in to “That’s Incredible!” Oh. They don’t have that any more, do they...? (My son loved that show!)
It’s nice to be recognized. It’s not unusual for days to go by without my going anywhere but Wal-mart ... at least I get to see friendly people who can take a few minutes to visit!
And as soon as you throw it out the identical thing sells on ebay for $999.99. Who knew overhead projector slides were a collector’s item?
Once there was a family whose trailer burned down. We donated 6 garbage bags full of clothes (in the appropriate sizes) and never did find the hole those clothes were filling.
My laundry-room shelves are full of clothes that need to be given away. The kids grow really fast!
I cut some recipes out of the inaugural edition of “Saveur” magazine (a cooking magazine). It was worth almost $1000, last time my husband checked.
My mom liked to tell the story of a time she had her kids and the neighbor’s family all crammed into one big station wagon.
“Good Heavens! Is this all one family?” asked a gas station attendant.
“No, sir.” My mother replied laconically, “We left the rest of them at home.”
People often say, “Are these all your children?” and I say, “No, one’s at camp and a couple are at home.”
One of my friends got tired of people asking her if she was pregnant. Since she obviously was, she finally said, “No. I’m just carrying it for a friend.”
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