Laundry List

I've collected a lot these last couple of days, and it's just been awaitin' a place to live... so here goes my little laundry list of interesting stuff, fascinating finds, and whatnot...

- The Washington Post hits another one out of the ballpark with some tremendous coverage of young (~30... hey! my age!) parents in NoVA (northern Virginia, for those unfamiliar with where my "main office" for my day job is located) that attend Mass in a very traditional, "old school", conservative Catholic parish.  God bless them and this wonderful parish.

"Young, orthodox Catholics are more enthusiastic about Benedict than are many in the older generation, said Colleen Carroll Campbell, author of 'The New Faithful,' a book about the youthful set. 'They like his countercultural stance on a lot of things. . . . They also like his emphasis on Catholic identity and fidelity to Catholic doctrine.'

"Like Catholics of their generation, young conservatives grew up under the liberalizing changes to the church brought on by the Vatican II Council in the 1960s, but some rejected those reforms as they reached adulthood.

"Paulitz, 32, remembers 'lots of guitars and banjoes' at church services and priests who had fallen away from church doctrine.

'"I felt uncomfortable about it constantly,' he said.

"Those who eschew artificial birth control and have large families say they hear comments and rude remarks when they venture out with their children: 'Don't you have enough?' and 'Aren't you done yet?'

"Sam Fatzinger, a Bowie mother of 11, has learned to respond with a tart: 'No, I'm just getting warmed up.'"

- Try this test over at Ten Reasons that "every Catholic eighth-grader should be able to pass before graduating from a Catholic grammar school."  If you don't get 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 10, and 11 without reference support, let me know so that I can flog you with a wet noodle (just kidding, of course.)  Number 12 got me.  For some reason, I've never been able to remember them all.  But I know people at our church that can recite them like they can their own childrens' names.

- Former coworker and good friend Nicole Hollway is pregnant!  I can finally say (even though I'm happy to say I've known for weeks) since she's shared it on her blog and is actively blogging about it now. Congrats and best wishes to her and Cameron and baby!  I know of one other former coworker who's also expecting - due date at around the same time - but my lips are still sealed on that one. 

- Insight Scoop pulls out some wonderful Pope Benedict XVI quotes from back in his days as Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger (before the good old Holy Spirit singled him out to lead the Church), from his book "God and the World" about "The Essential Nature of the Church."  Invest two minutes to check it out.

- William F. Buckley is remembered as "truly touched by the grace of God"... check out this report on his funeral Mass at Catholic News Service.

- Matthew over at Creative Minority Report (whose writing and coverage I absolutely LOVE lately) talks about the joys of children and the wonderment that they cause in modern society.

- From the same entry at Creative Minority Report, this wonderful t-shirt that I'm wanting to buy. I have to go ask Suzanne...

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