Friday, January 11, 2008

HASTENING OUR LORD'S RETURN

Hastening Our Lord's Return

He will finish the work, and cut it short in righteousness: because a short work will the Lord make upon the earth. Rom. 9:28.


In the prophecy of Jerusalem's destruction Christ said, "Because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come." This prophecy will again be fulfilled. The abounding iniquity of that day finds its counterpart in this generation. So with the prediction in regard to the preaching of the gospel. Before the fall of Jerusalem, Paul, writing by the Holy Spirit, declared that the gospel was preached to "every creature which is under heaven." Col. 1:23. So now, before the coming of the Son of man, the everlasting gospel is to be preached "to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people." Rev. 14:6, 14. God "hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world." Acts 17:31. Christ tells us when that day shall be ushered in.

He does not say that all the world will be converted, but that "this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come." By giving the gospel to the world it is in our power to hasten our Lord's return. We are not only to look for but to hasten the coming of the day of God. 2 Peter 3:12, margin. Had the church of Christ done her appointed work as the Lord ordained, the whole world would before this have been warned, and the Lord Jesus would have come to our earth in power and great glory. {Mar 19.1}

It is the unbelief, the worldliness, unconsecration, and strife among the Lord's professed people that have kept us in this world of sin and sorrow so many years. . . . {Mar 19.2}

We may have to remain here in this world because of insubordination many more years, as did the children of Israel; but for Christ's sake, His people should not add sin to sin by charging God with the consequence of their own wrong course of action. {Mar 19.3}

Maranatha, Ellen G. White, Page 19.

NOTE: Bolds and highlights added for emphasis. Arsenio.

Thursday, January 10, 2008

FROM THAMES TO TIBER

From Thames to Tiber

Tony Blair and the politics of conversion
the cover of America, the Catholic magazine

The reception on Dec. 21 into the Catholic Church of the UK’s former prime minister, Tony Blair, has echoes of America’s JFK moment, when the old ghosts of suspicion about divided allegiances (“Rome or home”?) were laid to rest. Yet the fact that it has happened some months after resigning as prime minister points to the difficulties Catholics continue to face in public life–that is the reason he himself has given.

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Source: http://www.americamagazine.org/content/article.cfm?article_id=10530

Note: Bolds and Highlights added for emphasis. Blogman.

CARTOONIST VIEW OF US AMATEUR HOUR '08

MORLAND

**********************************************



PETER BROOKES



Source: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/cartoon/

TONY BLAIR: HOB NOB EXTRAORDINAIRE?

Tony Blair: hob nob extraordinaire?
[V]illionaire
With Tony Blair's recent conversion to the Roman Catholic religion, and his headline grabbing new job offer, I thought it fitting to demonstrate the web of influence that the former British Prime Minister can boast of. Here, I will analytically substantiate the connections that Tony Blair has, and show how they intertwine neatly to form a "Genetic Strand" of the New World Order. Do yo see the what I see? All roads lead to Rome... Follow the threads (treads)...
*********

January 10, 2008

Tony Blair to take up £500,000 job as political adviser to US company

Tony Blair is to take a job with JPMorgan Chase
,
the international financial services and investment banking group, The Times learnt last night.

The former Prime Minister is to be a political adviser to the American firm which operates in more than 50 countries and whose assets are put at $1.5 trillion, with interests also in commercial banking and private equity.

Sources said last night that Mr Blair would advise the bank on global political issues. His salary is unknown but is likely to be more than £500,000.

Jamie Dimon, chief executive of JPMorgan Chase, said Mr Blair would be “enormously valuable” to the company. “There are only a handful of people in the world who have the knowledge and relationships that he has.”


Related Links

Mr Blair said that he expected to agree to “a small handful” of similar appointments with other companies in different sectors. He is believed to have held talks with other banks, such as HSBC and Citigroup, about such roles and there was speculation at the end of last year that he would take a position at Credit Suisse because of his close friendship with Russell Chambers, one of the bank’s senior executives.

Mr Blair told the Financial Times: “I have always been interested in commerce and the impact of globalisation. Nowadays, the intersection between politics and the economy in different parts of the world, including the emerging markets, is very strong.”

The JPMorgan Chase job was brokered by Robert Barnett, the Washington lawyer who also negotiated a reported £5 million advance for Mr Blair’s memoirs.

Mr Dimon, who is one of the leading Democrats on Wall Street, said he approached Mr Blair personally. “I went to visit him and we hit it off.” He said it was important to both men “to try to make the world a better place and have a bit of fun doing it”.

Mr Blair will add the part-time advisory role to his job as a Middle East envoy and speaker on the international lecture tour, which is earning him about £100,000 a speech.

It will be the first big City appointment for Mr Blair, who is on course to earn £5 million from the publication of his Downing Street memoirs in 2009. Mr Blair has struck a deal with publishers on both sides of the Atlantic that has only been bettered by the sums paid to Bill Clinton, according to publishing sources.

A source close to Mr Blair said: “Tony is focused on and enjoying the challenge of his task in the Middle East. He continues to receive requests to speak and, as his schedule allows, he does so on both a paid and unpaid basis.”

Mr Blair’s new job will have been approved by the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments, which vets all jobs given to former ministers.

He is not being paid a salary in his role as Middle East envoy, working on behalf of the Quartet — the US, Russia, the UN and the EU. However, Britain has donated £400,000 to a UN development programme trust fund, which provides “operational and technical support” in the Jerusalem office of Mr Blair.

In a Commons written reply, David Miliband, the Foreign Secretary, said that Britain had seconded four staff to Mr Blair’s team, and that other international donors were supporting his work. A



Chatham House, the Royal Institute of International Affairs

Brief history and influence

Founded in 1920, the organisation is officially called The Royal Institute of International Affairs. The name of the building which houses it - Chatham House - is now commonly used to refer to the organisation itself.
The idea of an Anglo-American institute to study foreign affairs was conceived at the 1919 Paris Peace Conference. In the event, the British Institute of International Affairs was founded in London and the Council on Foreign Relations in New York was developed as a sister organisation.


What it does

Aims to be Europe's leading foreign policy thinktank, operating at the heart of the debate on international affairs. It invites academics, business people, politicians, diplomats, media, NGOs, and policy-makers to interact in an open and impartial environment.

Advises over 250 corporate members - including government departments and 2000 individual members - on the latest development in foreign affairs. Operates 10 research programmes with separate regional or thematic specialisations to analyse developments. Recent speakers have included Tony Blair, Russian president Vladimir Putin; Afghan president Hamid Karzai; and author Jung Chan
g
.
1

Research

In August 2006 Chatham House released a report titled Iran, its Neighbours and the Regional Crises which said that the influence of Iran in Iraq had overtaken that of the US. The report asserted that any threatening action towards Iran could result in mass destabilization across the Middle East.

In December 2006 the departing director of Chatham House – Victor Bulmer-Thomas – produced a briefing paper on U.K. foreign policy during the Blair era entitled Blair’s Foreign Policy and its Possible Successor(s). The paper generated a media storm as it heavily criticized the Prime Minister for allying the U.K. too closely to the U.S. at the expense of closer ties with Europe.2



3

Early history

The earliest origin of the Council stemmed from a working fellowship of about 150 distinguished scholars, called "The Inquiry," tasked to brief President Woodrow Wilson about options for the postwar world when Germany was defeated. Through 1917-18, this academic band, including Wilson's closest adviser and long-time friend Col. Edward M. House, as well as Walter Lippmann, gathered discreetly[citation needed] at 155th Street and Broadway in New York City, to assemble the strategy for the postwar world. The team produced more than 2,000 documents detailing and analyzing the political, economic, and social facts globally that would be helpful for Wilson in the peace talks. Their reports formed the basis for the Fourteen Points, which outlined Wilson's strategy for peace after war's end.[4]

These scholars then traveled to the Paris Peace Conference, 1919 that would end the war; it was at one of the meetings of a small group of British and American diplomats and scholars, on May 30, 1919, at the Hotel Majestic, that both the Council and its British counterpart, the Chatham House in London, were born.[1] Although the original intent was for the two organizations to be affiliated, they became independent bodies, yet retained close informal ties.[5]

Some of the participants at that meeting were, apart from Edward House, Paul Warburg, Herbert Hoover, Harold Temperley, Lionel Curtis, Lord Eustace Percy, Christian Herter, and American academic historians James Thomson Shotwell of Columbia University, Archibald Cary Coolidge of Harvard and Charles Seymour of Yale.

Morgan and Rockefeller involvement

The Americans who subsequently returned from the conference became drawn to a discreet club of New York financiers and international lawyers who had organized previously in June 1918 and was headed by Elihu Root, J. P. Morgan's lawyer;[13] this select group called itself the Council on Foreign Relations.[14] They joined this group and the Council was formally established in New York on July 29, 1921, with 108 founding members, including Elihu Root as a leading member and John W. Davis, the chief counsel for J. P. Morgan & Co. and former Solicitor General for President Wilson,[15] as its founding president. Davis was to become Democratic presidential candidate in 1924.

Other members included John Foster Dulles, Herbert H. Lehman, Henry L. Stimson, Averell Harriman, the Rockefeller family's public relations expert, Ivy Lee,[16] and Paul M. Warburg and Otto H. Kahn of the law firm Kuhn, Loeb.[17]

The Council initially had strong connections to the Morgan interests, such as the lawyer, Paul Cravath, whose pre-eminent New York law firm (later named Cravath, Swaine & Moore) represented Morgan businesses; a Morgan partner, Russell Cornell Leffingwell, later became its first chairman. The head of the group's finance committee was Alexander Hemphill, chairman of Morgan's Guaranty Trust Company. Economist Edwin F. Gay, editor of the New York Evening Post, owned by Morgan partner Thomas W. Lamont, served as Secretary-Treasurer of the organization. Other members related to Morgan included Frank L. Polk, former Under-Secretary of State and attorney for J.P. Morgan & Co. Former Wilson Under-Secretary of State Norman H. Davis was a banking associate of the Morgans.[18] Over time, however, the locus of power shifted inexorably to the Rockefeller family. Paul Cravath's law firm also represented the Rockefeller family.[19]

Edwin Gay suggested the creation of a quarterly journal, Foreign Affairs. He recommended Archibald Cary Coolidge be installed as the first editor, along with his New York Evening Post reporter, Hamilton Fish Armstrong, as assistant editor and executive director of the Council.[20]

Even from its inception, John D. Rockefeller, Jr. was a regular benefactor, making annual contributions, as well as a large gift of money towards its first headquarters on East 65th Street, along with corporate donors (Perloff 156). In 1944, the widow of the Standard Oil executive Harold I. Pratt donated the family's four-story mansion on the corner of 68th Street and Park Avenue for council use and this became the CFR's new headquarters, known as The Harold Pratt House, where it remains today.

Several of Rockefeller's sons joined the council when they came of age; David Rockefeller joined the council as its youngest-ever director in 1949 and subsequently became chairman of the board from 1970 to 1985; today he serves as honorary chairman.[21] The major philanthropic organization he founded with his brothers in 1940, the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, has also provided funding to the Council, from 1953 to at least 1980.[22]

Another major support base from the outset was the corporate sector; around 26 corporations provided financial assistance in the 1920s, seizing the opportunity to inject their business concerns into the weighty deliberations of the academics and scholars in the Council's ruling elite. In addition, the Carnegie Corporation contributed funds in 1937 to expand the Council's reach by replicating its structure in a diminished form in eight American cities.[23]

John J. McCloy became an influential figure in the organization after the Second World War, and he held connections to both the Morgans and Rockefellers. As assistant to Secretary of War (and J. P. Morgan attorney) Henry Stimson during World War II, he had presided over important American war policies; his brother-in-law John Zinsser was on the board of directors of JP Morgan & Co. during that time, and after the war McCloy joined New York law firm Milbank, Tweed, Hope, Hadley & McCloy as a partner. The company had long served as legal counsel to the Rockefeller family and the Chase Manhattan bank. McCloy became Chairman of the Board of Chase Manhattan, a director of the Rockefeller Foundation and Chairman of the Board of the CFR from 1953 to 1970. President Harry S. Truman appointed him President of the World Bank Group and U.S. High Commissioner to Germany. He served as a special adviser on disarmament to President John F. Kennedy and chaired a special committee on the Cuban crisis. He was said to have had the largest influence on American foreign policy of anyone after World War II. McCloy's brother-in-law, Lewis W. Douglas, also served on the board of the CFR and as a trustee for the Rockefeller Foundation; Truman appointed him as American ambassador to Great Britain.[24]4

Mixed reaction for plan to make Blair Middle East envoy



· Backing from US, Israel and Fatah leadership
· Moscow unlikely to want retiring PM as spokesman


Julian Borger, diplomatic editor and Ian Black, Middle East editor
Friday June 22, 2007
The Guardian


Tony Blair is keen to become the international community's Middle East envoy after leaving Downing Street and has the support of the US, Israel and the Palestinian Fatah leadership, the Guardian has learned. However, a formal job offer depends on the agreement of the international quartet attempting to salvage the Israeli-Palestinian peace process: the US, Europe, the United Nations and Russia.

The greatest obstacle is Moscow, which has had an increasingly combative relationship with the Blair government, particularly over the poisoning of the Russian dissident Alexander Litvinenko.

The Bush administration has been the driving force behind the Blair candidacy but many Middle East observers see the job as a poisoned chalice. Since the last quartet envoy, James Wolfensohn, a former World Bank president, resigned in April 2006, conditions in the Palestinian territories have worsened markedly.Nevertheless, both Israel and Palestinians loyal to President Mahmoud Abbas said they would welcome Mr Blair as a special envoy. Zvi Heifetz, Israel's ambassador to London, said: "It's an excellent idea. There is no better person for this job. He has been dealing with the Middle East for 10 years, and he has been objective and balanced."...5

Blair received into Catholic Church in private Mass at cardinal's home

Tony Blair has long celebrated his religious faith and now joins his family as a Catholic. Pictures: PA
Tony Blair has long celebrated his religious faith and now joins his family as a Catholic. Pictures: PA

CARDINAL Keith O'Brien, the Archbishop of Edinburgh, last night welcomed Tony Blair, the former prime minister, into the Roman Catholic Church.
Mr Blair made the long- predicted conversion at a special service on Friday conducted by the Archbishop of Westminster, Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, and his private secretary, Monsignor Mark O'Toole.

Mr Blair joins his wife Cherie and four children in the Roman Catholic faith.

Cardinal O'Brien told The Scotsman: "I was very happy to hear that Tony Blair had been received into the Catholic Church.

"He had obviously spent a long time considering God's call. Now I join with others in wishing him and his family every blessing as they go forward together in one faith."

Following the special Mass at the archbishop's house in Westminster, attended by Mrs Blair and their children, Cardinal Murphy-O'Connor – the leading Roman Catholic in England and Wales – said the service was "very intimate, very prayerful". The Vatican has also welcomed Mr Blair's decision to become a Catholic.

It comes as research suggests Catholic churchgoers now outnumber Anglicans in the UK for the first time in 500 years.

A Vatican spokesman said such an "authoritative personality" choosing to join the Catholic Church "could only give rise to joy and respect".

Last year, Mr Blair, who is now a Middle East peace envoy, said he had prayed to God when deciding whether or not to send UK troops into Iraq.

It had been an open secret that Mr Blair had been taking instruction from a Catholic priest as a prelude to conversion.

Dr Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, wished the former prime minister well in his spiritual journey.

Dr Williams said: "A great Catholic writer of the last century said that the only reason for moving from one Christian family to another was to deepen one's relationship with God.

"I pray that this will be the result of Tony Blair's decision in his personal life."

But the former Tory minister Ann Widdecombe – herself a Catholic convert – said Mr Blair's voting record as an MP had often "gone against Church teaching" and that his conversion raised some questions.

The Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC) reacted with surprise to the news of Mr Blair's conversion.

John Smeaton, its national director, said: "During his premiership Tony Blair became one of the world's most significant architects of the culture of death, promoting abortion, experimentation on unborn embryos, including cloned embryos, and euthanasia by neglect.

"SPUC is writing to Tony Blair to ask him whether he has repented of the anti-life positions he has so openly advocated throughout his political career."

There has never been a Roman Catholic prime minister of Britain, although there is no constitutional barrier to such a move.

However, it had been suggested in the past that Mr Blair would wait until after leaving office, to avoid possible clashes such as that of the role in appointing Church of England bishops.

A RELIGIOUS OFFICE

TONY Blair's formal conversion appears to have taken a number of months and it is thought his decision followed a period of contemplation rather than a "falling out" with the Church of England over an issue such as the ordination of women priests.

The move comes after years of speculation that Mr Blair would convert from Anglicanism after he resigned from No 10 in June.

Converting while in office would have caused him problems in connection with issues such as abortion, contraception, homosexuality and faith schools.

Mr Blair's former spokesman, Alastair Campbell, once famously told reporters "We don't do God", but has since said that his former boss "does do God in quite a big way".

Even while in office, Mr Blair attended Catholic services with his family, but did not participate fully.


The full article contains 638 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
Last Updated: 23 December 2007 10:42 PM. 6

Article Footnotes:

A http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article3162665.ece

1 http://politics.guardian.co.uk/thinktanks/page/0,,1538994,00.html

2 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chatham_House

3 http://www.cfr.org/

4 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Council_on_Foreign_Relations

5 http://www.guardian.co.uk/israel/Story/0,,2108848,00.html

6 http://news.scotsman.com/uk/Blair-received-into-Catholic-Church.3617088.jp

Note: Extensive Bolds, Large Fonts, and Highlights used for emphasis. Blogman.

WHAT'S NOT KNOWN OF BLAIR'S CONVERSION

What we still don't know about Blair's conversion
January 8th, 2008, filed by Tom Heneghan

Tony BlairDoes the public have the right to know the reasons why Tony Blair converted to Roman Catholicism just before Christmas? I mean the real reasons — what does the Catholic Church give him in terms of spirituality, theology or tradition that the Church of England did not? The initial news stories and follow-up articles over the holidays repeated the known circumstantial evidence, such as the fact his wife and children are Catholic and he has attended Catholic mass for years. Many took a political angle, noting that he waited until he had left office. Some accused him of hypocrisy for doing so despite supporting policies the Vatican opposes. But they didn’t give the real reasons.

The articles didn’t report Blair’s innermost convictions because he hasn’t revealed them. And he may never do so. There is so much public use and misuse of faith in politics that he may have decided he did not want his beliefs torn apart by his critics or the media, so he waited until they could no longer argue the prime minister’s faith was a matter of public interest. Journalists regret this, because we always want to know more, but fair-minded people can respect it.

I mention this because the latest edition of the U.S. Jesuit magazine America has the most informative article on Blair’s conversion that I’ve seen. In “From Thames to Tiber,” Austen Ivereigh, a former adviser to London Cardinal Cormac Murphy- O’Connor, tells us that “Blair’s background is in liberal Anglo-Catholicism; his favorite theologians are Leonardo Boff and Hans Küng, not Joseph Ratzinger and Hans Urs Von Balthasar. He America magazinebelongs to an ecclesial tradition in which the gate is wide, and bridges more important than borders.” He says Blair was attracted by “the Church’s vast international reach, its commitment to the poor, its capacity for mobilisation against injustice and its courage to stand firm on unpopular issues.” That goes a lot further in locating his faith.

On Catholics in politics, Ivereigh said: “It is one thing is to hold Catholics in public life to account: to question how Judge Antonin Scalia can be in favour of the death penalty, or John Kerry of abortion. But it is another to call them hypocrites, to pretend to know what choices faced them, and why they took the decisions they did. Politicians are not lackeys; they must govern in favour of the common good in a pluralist society. If a Catholic can only serve a government whose every act chimes with his conscience and with church teaching, he cannot be a politician.

Do you think Tony Blair has a duty to tell why he converted? And are Catholic politicians held to more demanding standards than others? Is that more hypocritical than the hypocrisy they’re accused of?

Source: http://blogs.reuters.com/faithworld/

BLAIR TAKES JOB WITH JP MORGAN

Blair takes job with JPMorgan, will continue Mideast role

Posted

1h 39m ago

JERUSALEM (AP) — Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair has accepted a part-time job as strategic adviser to the JPMorgan Chase & Co. bank, but it will not affect his work as an international Mideast peace envoy, a Blair spokeswoman in Israel said Thursday.

As the representative of the Quartet of Mideast peace negotiators — the U.S., European Union, U.N. and Russia — Blair's mandate is to help the Palestinians build up their economy and governing bodies in preparation for the establishment of a Palestinian state.

Spokeswoman Ruti Winterstein said Blair would advise JPMorgan's senior management team, "drawing on his international experience, and provide strategic advice and provide insights on global issues." The appointment, effective Thursday, will be the only banking commitment Blair will take, and will not infringe on his Quartet duties, Winterstein said.

"He will continue as Quartet representative in the exact way, with the same level of commitment and time input," she said.

Source: http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2008-01-10-mideast-blair_N.htm

Wednesday, January 09, 2008

YO, GET CRUNK AND REPRASENT!!!...

Yo, Get Crunk and Reprasent!!!: Dr. Eric Svendsen on Christian Rap


rapper2.jpgThe following is a critique of modern rap and hardcore music that is being labeled, “Christian”. The article is written by Dr. Eric Svendsen of New Testament Research Ministries. Here is Part One and this is Part Two. Dr. Svendsen writes:

In my conversation with the youth pastor mentioned above, I initially asked him to convince me why I should accept the notion that these genres of music deserve the label of “Christian.” When he asked for clarification I pointed out that the behavior these groups exhibit is antithetical to the fruits of the Spirit. They exhibit an “in your face” arrogance, haughtiness, rebellion, rage, anger, loudness, boisterousness, and a lack of self control. The Scriptures commend to us “peaceful and quiet lives” (1 Tim 2:2; 1 Thess 4:11), and warn us against haughtiness, pride, arrogance, anger, rage and the like: “Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice” (Eph 4:31). We are to be “self-controlled” (Titus 2:2; particularly relevant for “young men” according to 2:6, and the very quality conspicuously absent in the “hardcore” videos), “dignified” and “worthy of respect” (obnoxiously demanding respect is not the same thing).


Posted on January 7, 2008 by Ingrid

Source: http://www.sliceoflaodicea.com/

Tuesday, January 08, 2008

JESUITS DECIDE THEIR FUTURE

Jesuits Decide Their Future

A spokesman for the Society of Jesus explains what’s happening at the Jesuit General Congregation in Rome.

image

Jesuit spokesman Father Jose Maria de Vera will be fielding lots of questions this month at the Society of Jesus’ most important gathering for 25 years.

As well as electing a new general superior to succeed Father Peter-Hans Kolvenbach (brief, page 2), the 225 delegates are likely to decide on changes in governance and mission of the society. Some hope the meeting, called a general congregation, will also tackle the problem of Jesuits who in recent years have tended to dissent from Church teaching.

Father De Vera, spoke with Register correspondent Edward Pentin Jan. 3.



What is the purpose of a general congregation?

St. Ignatius, our founder, had two reasons for having it: Firstly, to choose a new superior general. That is very important for the society because the Society of Jesus is, without doubt, a kind of monarchy, and the superior general has a very important role to play.

The second reason is that when the Society of Jesus, the Church or the world is facing difficulties — such as globalization or ecology — all these matters are beyond the scope of one particular province or nation to solve.

So for that reason, when there are serious matters, the superior general is supposed to convoke a general congregation.



How long will this congregation last?

Normally, general congregations don’t tend to be too long. I don’t know how long this one will be. I’m speculating, but I would be surprised if this year it will go beyond the beginning of March. But some congregations, for a particular reason, go on longer than that.



What goes into the planning of such a conference?

There has been a commission preparing for the general congregation, but its role is only to suggest because, in the end, it is the general congregation that decides [what is discussed].

The commission proposed 11 topics for discussion, but the first part of the congregation — lasting about two weeks — will be mainly preparing for the election of the general. Once the election is over, there will be discussion of other matters — the 11 topics that have been suggested.

These topics are of a general nature. One concerns the mission of the society. We know what the mission of the society is of course, but it should be adapted to the circumstances we have now in 2008.

For instance, Father Pedro Arrupe [superior general 1965-1983] made changes. Refugees were an emerging problem, and they discussed whether that should be a proper concern of the society.

A second topic concerns the identity of Jesuits, another is on governance and then another topic is obedience, including obedience to the pope.

As you know, all religious make three vows: poverty, chastity and obedience. We add one vow of obedience to the pope — a special vow that St. Ignatius especially wanted.

In the 21st century, obedience is not easy, generally speaking.

In our constitutions of the past, the pope gave us a mission to fight atheism, for instance. Now, our mission is directed at China, Africa or intellectual life. When the pope gives us a particular mission, we have to accept it without question. The pope is the supreme authority.



Openly dissenting Jesuits have been a problem in recent years. Do you therefore foresee a tightening of this fourth vow?

Some Jesuits interpret this obedience to the pope only as mission. However, there is another interpretation that is wider than that. Our obedience means that we have a special relationship with the pope, which is of love, service and faithfulness.

It’s not limited to saying: “Okay, we’ll do that, and that’s it.” No, Ignatius thought and felt very strongly that obedience is not only intellectual, but there must be a real affection for the pope. He uses the Latin phrase sentire cum ecclesia (think with the mind of the Church).

But the relationship between the society and the pope has not always been easy, historically.

From the beginning, St. Ignatius wanted a religious congregation that was apostolic in nature, but a later pope preferred a kind of monkish, contemplative society, to pray together and recite the breviary. … Then, in 1773, the Society of Jesus was suppressed. It was mandated by the pope who was under the influence, the pressure, of the kings of France and Spain, the masons and enemies of the society.

Apparently he didn’t want to do it but he did, and so until 1814 the Society of Jesus did not exist canonically. So the relationship between the pope and the Jesuits has gone through difficulties.



But hasn’t the situation of the 18th and 19th centuries been reversed in a way? Instead of being so pro-Church and pro-pope, there is this dissent among some Jesuits, which is the opposite of what they used to be. Will that be a major point of discussion?

It will be discussed, but when the present superior general, Father Kolvenbach, was asked how the relations were between the Vatican and the Society of Jesus, with his good sense of humor he replied: “Well, they are normal — as they should be!”

Because it’s well known that even in the time of the previous general, Padre Arrupe, there were difficulties between the Vatican and the Curia of the Society of Jesus. Arrupe was a prophet. He was a person with a great vision for the future, perhaps ahead of many others in the Church, and that caused some misunderstanding.

Obviously, Father Arrupe did not always understand what the pope meant. As we say today, perhaps he was not very fluent in “Vaticanese,” in interpreting the language of the Vatican. He spoke several languages but perhaps he was too intuitive. So there were difficulties and that’s not a secret.

The Pope [John Paul II] took some exceptional measures. When Padre Arrupe was sick, the normal procedure of the society would have been to call a general congregation to elect a successor. But the Pope did not allow that to happen, and chose a cardinal whose mission was to prepare a quiet general congregation, without some of the problems like liberation theology, which at that time was fervent in the society. But these problems are behind us now. The present relationship is very, very good indeed.



That being so, do you think Pope Benedict might enter into some of the discussions? Will he be invited to take part in any way?

No, I don’t think so, because they [popes] have a great trust — always have had — in the society. Father Kolvenbach has the respect and confidence of all the people in the Vatican. They know he is honest, very faithful and close to them, so there’s no reason why the Pope now feels he has to intervene.

The general congregation has been invited by the Pope for a meeting on Feb. 21. Perhaps he will have something to say, but as Father Kolvenbach has said, we have received these warnings of the Pope with humility and gratitude, because he’s our superior.

If he finds something faulty in the society, we are ready to receive it in humility and reflect on it. But that would be in a public speech without any further implications.



But do you think Pope Benedict might bring up this point in a very distinctive fashion, perhaps single out this problem when he meets the general congregation?

The Pope addressed the society in April of last year. We were all in Rome and went to the basilica because we were celebrating 500 years since the death of St. Ignatius. And he made a very good speech. We thought it would be a formal speech saying congratulations. But no, he pointed out some of the things he would like the society to do, and one concerned the intellectual life.

“Do not abandon the intellectual life,” he said. The Pope also wanted us to be aware of the difficulties between faith and reason, and these also would be taken seriously.



Of the 262 proposals on future concerns that have been tabled for discussion, many are on justice and ecology. But shouldn’t evangelization be more of a priority?

Certainly, some people [Jesuit priests and provincial superiors of the society] are concerned about social issues, and whether we are truly involved in these justice and peace issues. But without provincial superiors, all these things will remain merely at the level of conversation.

The superiors are the ones who are really committed to carry it out. On the other hand, many of the superiors are aware of, and are really committed to, social problems, to refugees and things like that. For those Jesuits involved in the social field, sometimes they feel it’s not enough, that the society should do more. And this is the occasion to make that known.



In view of vocations to the society coming from the developing world, is it likely the next leader of the Jesuits will come from there?

I’m regularly asked: “Are you ready to elect a superior general from Africa or India?” And I say, “Why not?”



What are the personal qualities you’re looking for in a leader?

St. Ignatius has a description for what the superior general of the society should be like. It’s a description that nobody can fulfill.

He said if a general superior lacks in any virtue — he should, for example, be understanding, he should be austere — but if he lacks these, he should not lack in goodness and love of the society.

This year is a kind of novelty. Each province has been asked to make a profile of the ideal superior general. Of course, everyone starts from Ignatius, but there are some things that are important today that Ignatius could not foresee. For instance, some people presenting a profile of the new general say he should have multicultural experience and not be a mono-cultural person.



And holiness and intellect are also vital?

Yes, of course they are basic things a superior general has to have. Ignatius starts by saying that he should be a man of profound prayer life — that should be his first duty, to listen to the Spirit and then, of course, to be understanding, to be close to the people, and so forth.



Edward Pentin writes

from Rome.

Source: http://ncregister.com/site/article/7713

BUSH'S PEACE MISSION OFF TO SHAKY START

CATHOLICS MEET TO ELECT NEW BLACK POPE

Catholics meet to elect new black pope
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Credit: ©ALESSIA GIULIANI/CPP


• Tuesday, Jan 8, 2008

The Jesuits from around the world gathered yesterday to choose the worldwide Jesuit leader to run the largest Catholic clerical order known as the black pope.

At Jesuit headquarters, a block from the Vatican, 225 delegates from around the world will choose a new superior general to run the Catholic clerical order.

The election is expected to take place in mid-January after days of prayer among the delegates.

The new Jesuit leader is elected by a secret ballot.

After his election, the delegates are not allowed to leave the room until Pope Benedict is informed, in keeping with a centuries-old tradition.

But unlike a conclave to elect the real pope, a Jesuit general congregation can continue for weeks or even months after the new head has been elected.

Their leader is known as the black pope because of the colour of the simple cassock he wears and because like the pope who dresses in white.

The current superior general, Father Peter-Hans Kolvenbach, 79, received permission from Pope Benedict to retire for age reasons.

Kolvenbach has been in the job since 1983 and has won widespread praise for steering the Jesuits through one of their most difficult periods in their 468-year history.

Kolvenbach's charismatic predecessor, Pedro Arrupe, had several conflicts with Pope John Paul, who believed the order had become too independent and political, in Latin America.

When Arrupe suffered a stroke in the early 1980s, Pope John Paul appointed a personal delegate to run the order.

Kolvenbach, by contrast, has been credited with re-establishing good relations with the Vatican in the past 25 years.

He deals with issues such as declining vocations and the future of the order founded by St. Ignatius Loyola in 1540.

In the 1960s, the all-male order officially known as the Society of Jesus peaked with some 36,000 members worldwide.

It now has about 19,200 members involved in education, refugee help and other social services.

One is Father Lisbert DâSousa of India, and some Jesuits have said it was time for the top job to go to someone from the developing world.

Source: http://www.thetidenews.com/article.aspx?qrDate=01/08/2008&qrTitle=Catholics%20meet%20to%20elect%20new%20%E2%80%98black%20pope%E2%80%99&qrColumn=BACK%20PAGE

VAST RIGHT WING CONSPIRACY?

Hillary moment of the day:


Her middle name is CHANGE.
Changing the world since 'Watergate'. And she needs the attention, folks.
It's not fair, they don't want her to be President!

Doesn't she look presidential? Kinder-gentler, narcissistic?
There's more propaganda like this coming, 10 months to go.

Arsenio.

POPE CALLS FOR CONTINUOUS PRAYER...

January 7, 2008
Pope calls for continuous prayer to rid priesthood of paedophilia

Pope Benedict XVI has instructed Roman Catholics to pray “in perpetuity” to cleanse the Church of paedophile clergy. All dioceses, parishes, monasteries, convents and seminaries will be expected to organise continuous daily prayers to express penitence and to purify the clergy.

Vatican officials said that every parish or institution should designate a person or group each day to conduct continuous prayers for the Church to rid itself of the scandal of sexual abuse by clergy. Alternatively, churches in the same diocese could share the duty. Prayer would take place in one parish for 24 hours, then move to another.

Vatican watchers said that there was no known precedent for global prayer on a specific issue of this kind. There are about one billion Roman Catholics worldwide.

The instruction was sent to bishops by Cardinal Cláudio Hummes of Brazil, head of the Vatican Congregation for the Clergy. He told L’Osservatore Romano, the Vatican newspaper, that he was acting in the Pope’s name. The Pope wanted Catholics to pray for the “mercy of God for the victims of the grave situations caused by the moral and sexual conduct of a very small part of the clergy”, he said.

Officials said that the prayers were in addition to support for legal action against paedophile priests by their victims and a code adopted two years ago by the Vatican to try to ensure that men “with deep-seated homosexual tendencies” do not enter seminaries to train for the priesthood.

Cardinal Hummes said that the aim was to put a definitive stop to a scandal that had damaged the image of the Church and forced US archdioceses, including Boston and Los Angeles, to pay millions of dollars in compensation to the victims. He said that the scandal was exceptionally serious, although it was probably caused by “no more than 1 per cent” of the 400,000 Catholic priests around the world.

When the paedophile scandal erupted in Boston five years ago, Pope Benedict XVI – or Cardinal Ratzinger as he was then – accused the media of exaggerating the crisis. He later took a tougher stand and was said to have been behind the statement in 2003 by Pope John Paul II to a meeting of American churchmen in which he said: “The abuse which has caused this crisis is rightly considered a crime by society and is also an appalling sin in the eyes of God. People need to know that there is no place in the priesthood and religious life for those who would harm the young.”

When Cardinal Ratzinger stood in for the dying John Paul II at the Good Friday procession of Easter 2005, he stunned the faithful by deploring publicly “how much filth there is in the Church, even among those in the priesthood”. A month later he lifted the legal protection that the Vatican had given to Father Marcial Maciel, the Mexican founder of the Legionaries of Christ, who was accused of sexual abuse of youngsters. Maciel was banned from saying Mass or speaking in public.

However, Cardinal Bernard Law, who was Archbishop of Boston when the scandal broke, was transferred to a post in Rome and remains a respected figure – despite accusations that he did not take strong enough action in dealing with abuse in his diocese.

The Pope, who is preparing an encyclical on the social effects of globalisation, gave a homily at St Peter’s yesterday on the feast of the Epiphany in which he deplored the West’s “search for excess and the superfluous”. He said: “The conflicts for economic supremacy, and the scramble for energy and water resources and raw materials, render difficult the work of all those who strive to construct a more just and united world. We need a greater hope, which allows us to prefer the common good of all to the luxury of few and the poverty of many. Moderation is not only an ascetic rule, but a way of salvation for humanity.”

Church crisis

$660m The amount paid out by the Los Angeles Roman Catholic archdiocese to 500 victims of sexual abuse

$2bn The amount estimated to have been paid out across the US

4,392 The number of priests alleged to have abused children in the US in the past 50 years

10,000 The number of Americans who say that they were abused

100 The number of allegations of abuse made in Ireland between1962 and 2002

21 The number of priests involved

6 of the 21 Irish priests involved died before any allegations were made against them

3,000 The number of allegations of abuse received by the Australian group Broke Rites by 2002

John Jay Report (2004), Times archives

Source: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/faith/article3142511.ece

Monday, January 07, 2008

CARDINAL FRANC RODE'S ADDRESS 35th SOJ

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Full text of Cardinal Franc Rode's Jan. 7 Address to 35th General Congregation of the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits)

HOMILY

XXXV General Congregation of the Society of Jesus


His Eminence, the Most Reverend Franc Card. Rodé, C.M.


DEAR MEMBERS OF THE

XXXV GENERAL CONGREGATION OF THE SOCIETY OF JESUS


St Ignatius considered the General Congregation “work and a distraction” (Const. 677) which momentarily interrupts the apostolic commitments of a large number of qualified members of the Society of Jesus and for this reason, clearly differing from what is customary in other religious Institutes, the Constitutions establish that it should be celebrated at determined times and not too often.

Nevertheless, it must be called principally on two occasions: for the election of the Superior General and when things of particular importance or very difficult problems which touch the body of the Society must be treated.

This is the second time in the history of the Society wherein a General Congregation gathers to elect a new Superior General while his predecessor is still living.

The first time was in 1983, when the XXXIII General Congregation accepted the resignation of the much loved Fr. Arrupe, for whom the exercising of the role of governance had become impossible, due to a serious and unforeseen illness. Today it gathers a second time, to discern, before the Lord, the resignation presented by Fr. Kolvenbach, who has directed the Society for nearly twenty-five years with wisdom, prudence, commitment and loyalty. This will be followed by the election of his successor. I wish to express to you, Fr. Kolvenbach, in my name and in the name of the Church, a heartfelt thanks for your fidelity, your wisdom, your righteousness and your example of humility and poverty, Thank you Fr. Kolvenbach.

The election of a new Superior General of the Society of Jesus has a fundamental value for the life of the Society, not only because its centralized hierarchical structure constitutionally concedes to the General full authority for good governance, the conservation and growth of the whole Society, but also because as Saint Ignatius says so well, “the wellbeing of the head resounds throughout the whole body and as are the
Superiors so in turn will their subjects be.” (cf. Const 820) For this reason your founder when pointing out the qualities which the general must have places first of all that he must be” a man very united to the Lord our God and familiar with prayer” (Const 723). After having mentioned other important qualities which are not easily found in a single person, he ends by saying “if any of the above qualities should be missing, at least may he not lack much goodness, love for the Society and good judgment” (Const 735).

I join you in your prayer that the Holy Spirit, the father of the poor, giver of graces, and light for hearts will assist you in your discernment and your election.

This Congregation also gathers together to treat important and very difficult matters which touch all members of the Society, such as the direction which the Society is presently taking. The themes upon which the General Congregation will reflect have to do with basic elements for the life of the Society. Certainly you will deal with the identity of today’s Jesuit, on the meaning and value of the vow of obedience to the Holy Father which has always defined your religious family, the mission of the Society in the context of globalization and marginalization, community life, apostolic obedience, vocation recruitment and other important themes.

Within your charism and your tradition you can find valuable points of reference to enlighten the choices which the Society must make today.

Certainly and necessarily, during this Congregation you are carrying out an important work but it is not a “distraction” from your apostolic activity. As St Ignatius teaches you in the Spiritual Exercises you must with the same vision of the three Divine Persons, look at “the entire surface of the earth crammed with men” (n 102) Listening to the Spirit, the creator who renews the world and returning to the fonts to preserve your identity without losing your own lifestyle, the commitment to discern the signs of the times, the difficulty and responsibility of working out final decisions are activities which are eminently apostolic because they form the base of a new springtime of being religious and of the apostolic commitment of each of your brothers in the Society of Jesus.

Now the vision becomes broader. It is not only for your own Jesuit brothers that you provide a religious and apostolic formation. There are many institutes of Consecrated Life who, following an Ignatian spirituality, pay attention to your choices; there are many future priests in your Colleges and Universities who are preparing for their ministry. There are many peoples from both within and outside the Church who frequent your centers of learning seeking a response to the challenges which science, technology and globalization pose to humanity, to the Church, and to the faith, with the hope of receiving a formation which will make it possible for them to construct a world of truth and freedom, of justice and peace.

Your work must be eminently apostolic with a universal human, ecclesial and evangelical fullness. It must always be carried out in the light of your Charism, in such a way that the growing participation of laity in your activities does not obscure your identity but rather enriches it with the collaboration of those who, coming from other cultures, share your style and your objectives.

Once again I join in your prayer that the Holy Spirit may accompany you in your delicate work.

As a brother who is following your works with great interest and expectation, I want to share with you “the joys and hopes” (GS. 1) as well as “the sorrows and anguish” (GS. 1) which I have as a man of the Church called to exercise a difficult service in the field of Consecrated Life, in my role as Prefect of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life.

With pleasure and hope I see the thousands of religious who generously respond to the Lord’s call and, leaving all they have behind consecrate themselves with an undivided hear to the Lord to be with him and to collaborate with him, in his salvific desire to “conquer all things and thus enter unto the Glory of the Father” (Spiritual Exercises, 95). It is clear that consecrated life continues to be a “divine gift which the Church has received from the Lord” (LG 43) and it is for this very reason that the Church wants to carefully watch over it in order that that the proper Charism of each Institute might be evermore known, and, although with the necessary adaptations to respond to the present time, it keeps its proper identity intact for the good of the whole Church. The authenticity of religious life is characterized by the following of Christ and by the exclusive consecration to Him and to his Kingdom through the profession of the evangelical counsels. The Second Vatican Ecumenical Council teaches that “this consecration will be the more perfect, in as much as the indissoluble bond of the union of Christ and His bride, the Church, is represented by firm and more stable bonds” (LG 44) Consecration to service to Christ cannot be separated from consecration to service to the Church. Ignatius and his first companions considered it thus when they wrote the Formula of your Institute in which the essence of your charism is spelled out: “To serve the Lord and his Spouse the Church under the Roman Pontiff” (Julio III, Formula I). It is with sorrow and anxiety that I see that the sentire cum ecclesia of which your founder frequently spoke is diminishing even in some members of religious families. The Church is waiting for a light from you to restore the sensus Ecclesiae. The Spiritual Exercises of St Ignatius are your specialty. The rules of sentire cum Ecclesiae form an integral and essential part of this masterpiece of Catholic spirituality. They form, as it were, a golden clasp which holds the book of The Spiritual Exercises closed.

You hold in your very hands the elements needed to realize and to deepen this desire, this Ignatian and Ecclesial sentiment.

Love for the Church in every sense of the word, – be it Church people of God be it hierarchical Church – is not a human sentiment which comes and goes according to the people who make it up or according to our conformity with the dispositions emanating from those whom the Lord has placed to direct the Church. Love for the Church is a love based on faith, a gift of the Lord which, precisely because he loves us, he gives us faith in him and in his Spouse, which is the Church. Without the gift of faith in the Church there can be no love for the Church.

I join in your prayer asking the Lord to grant you the grace to grow in your belief in and love for this holy, catholic and apostolic Church which we profess.

With sadness and anxiety I also see a growing distancing from the Hierarchy. The Ignatian spirituality of apostolic service “under the Roman Pontiff” does not allow for this separation. In the Constitutions which he left you, Ignatius wanted to truly shape your mind and in the book of the Exercises (n 353) he wrote” we must always keep our mind prepared and quick to obey the true Spouse of Christ and our Holy Mother, the Hierarchical Church”. Religious obedience can be understood only as obedience in love. The fundamental nucleus of Ignatian spirituality consists in uniting the love for God with love for the hierarchical Church. Your XXXIII Congregation once again took up this characteristic of obedience declaring that “the Society reaffirms in a spirit of faith the traditional bond of love and of service which unites it to the Roman Pontiff” You once again took up this principle in the motto “In all things love and serve”.

You must also place this XXXV General Congregation, which opens with this liturgy, celebrated close to the remains of your founder in this line, which has always been followed by the Society throughout its multi-century history in order to show your desire and your commitment to be faithful to the charism which he left you as an inheritance and to carry it out in ways which better respond to the needs of the Church
in our time.

The service of the Society is a service “under the banner of the Cross” (Formula I). Every service done out of love necessarily implies a self-emptying, a kenosis. But letting go of what one wants to do in order to do what the beloved wants is to transform the kenosis into the image of Christ who learned obedience through suffering (Hebrews 5, 8). It is for this reason that St. Ignatius, realistically, adds that the Jesuit serves the Church “under the banner of the Cross” (Formula I).

Ignatius placed himself under the orders of the Roman Pontiff “in order to not err in via Domini” (Const 605) in the distribution of his religious throughout the world and to be present wherever the needs of the Church were greater.

Times have changed and the Church must today confront new and urgent necessities, I will mention one, which in my judgment is urgent today and is at the same time complex and I propose it for your consideration. It is the need to present to the faithful and to the world the authentic truth revealed in Scripture and Tradition. The doctrinal diversity of those who at all levels, by vocation and mission are called to announce the Kingdom of truth and love, disorients the faithful and leads to a relativism without limits. There is one truth, even though it can always be more deeply known.

It is the “living teaching office of the Church, whose authority is exercised in the name of Jesus Christ” (DV 10) which is the voucher for revealed truth. The exegetes and theological scholars are involved in working together “under the watchful care of the sacred teaching office of the Church, to an exploration and exposition of the divine writings (DV 23). Through your long and solid formation, your centers of research, your teaching in the philosophical-theological-biblical fields you are in a privileged position to carry out this difficult mission. Carry it out with study and in-depth examination, carry it out with humility, carry it out with faith in the Church. carry it out with love for the Church.

May those who, according to your legislation, have to oversee the doctrine of your magazines and publications do so in the light of and according to the “rules for sentire cum ecclesia”, with love and respect.

The feeling of ever growing separation between faith and culture, a separation which constitutes a great impediment for Evangelization (Sapientia Cristiana, proemio) also worries me.

A culture immersed with a true Christian spirit is an instrument which fosters the spreading of the Gospel, faith in God the Creator of the heavens and of the earth. The Tradition of the Society, from the first beginnings of the Collegio Romano always placed itself at the crossroads between Church and society, between faith and culture, between religion and secularism. Recover these avant-garde positions which are so necessary to transmit the eternal truth to today’s world, in today’s language. Do not abandon this challenge. We know the task is difficult, uncomfortable and risky, and at times little appreciated and even misunderstood, but it is a necessary task for the Church. The apostolic tasks demanded of you by the Church are many and very diverse, but all have a common denominator: the instrument which carries them out, according to an Ignatian phrase must be an instrument united to God. It is the Ignatian echo to the Gospel proclaimed today: I am the vine, you are the branches. He who remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit (Jn.15, 15). Union with the vine, which is love, is realized only through a personal and silent exchange of love which is born in prayer, “from the internal knowledge of the Lord who became man for me and who, integral and alive, extends himself to all who are close to us and to all that is close to us”. It is not possible to transform the world, or to respond to the challenges of a world which has forgotten love, without being firmly rooted in love.

Ignatius was granted the mystic grace of being “a contemplative in action”(annotation to the Examine MNAD 5, 172). It was a special grace freely given by God to Ignatius who had trodden a tiring path of fidelity and long hours of prayer in the Retreat at Manresa. It is a grace which, according to Fr. Nadal, is contained in the call of every Jesuit. Guided by your Ignatian magis keep your hearts open to receive the same gift, following in the same path trodden by Ignatius from Loyola to Rome, a path of generosity, of penance, of discernment, of prayer, of apostolic zeal of obedience, of charity, of fidelity to and love for the hierarchical Church.

Despite the urgent apostolic needs, maintain and develop your charism to the point of being and showing yourselves to the world as “contemplatives in action” who communicate to men and women and to all of creation the love received from God and to orient them once again toward the love of God. Everyone understands the language of love.

The Lord has chosen you to go and bear fruit, fruit that lasts. Go, bear fruit confident that “all that you ask the Father in my name, he will give you (cfr. Jn 15, 16).

I join with you in prayer to the Father through the Son and in the Holy Spirit together with Mary, Mother of Divine Grace, invoked by all the members of the Society as Santa Maria della Strada, that he may grant you the grace of “seeking and discovering the will of God for the Society of today which will build the Society of tomorrow”.

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Source: http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2008/jan/080107b.html