Delayed Reaction

11 Replies

This morning someone commented on an entry I posted July 31.

“Dude, you were raised lutheran, you were an agnostic and now you think you’re like, what, the pope’s right hand man? Take it from this cradle catholic and quit judging people. Don’t think you can just crash the party and start playing the records that you want. I was an altar girl when I was in school and now they’re saying that women have to know their place? Excuse me, but I don’t have to agree to that.

You so funny. Ooh, heresy! Let’s burn ’em at the stake! Sorry, dude, but we left the inquisition behind. Why don’t you warm up with a little social justice work instead?”

– Deb

What was I writing about that could rile Deb so?

To save you from digging back into my archives, I repost the relevant parts here.

Catholics for a Free Choice in the United States works in partnership with reproductive health, interfaith and Catholic church reform groups that share our commitment to safe, legal reproductive health care and women’s equality.

CFFC supports artificial contraception, abortion “rights”, heresy, open disobedience, and female priesthood. In other words, they’re Catholics in name only (CINO). One of these days, I or someone I trust will post a fisking of CFFC’s mission statement here.

“For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own likings, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander into myths.” 2 Timothy 4:3-4 (RSV)

Anyhow, the reason I brought this abominable group up is that they released a statement in response to “On the Collaboration of Men and Women in the Church and in the World”.

Now that we’re all up to speed on this, let’s answer Deb.

“Dude, you were raised lutheran, you were an agnostic and now you think you’re like, what, the pope’s right hand man?”

Why should it matter how I got to the Church, so long as I got to it? Also, I don’t think nearly so high of myself or my knowlege of theological matters as you seem to think – from reading a single post. I am loyal to the True Church of Christ, the teachings of her magesterium, and the leadership of her pope. When I speak on theological matters, I frequently refer to Scripture and/or the Catechism of the Catholic Church. For anything that cannot be directly or easily answered by either I rely upon fellow orthodox bloggers and the excellent priests at the Pittsburgh Oratory. When I’m speculating, rather than explaining Church teachings, I’m pretty good about saying so to avoid confusion or misinformation.

“Take it from this cradle catholic and quit judging people. “

I fail to see how being a cradle Catholic makes you authoritative in theological matters. Also, who is judging whom? You’re the one calling me self-righteous.

” Don’t think you can just crash the party and start playing the records that you want.”

So you think converts like me are bossing everyone around and changing things from what you’re used to? If that’s the case, then you should meet my army of cradle Catholic friends who are just as eager to undo the damage done by those acting “in the spirit Vatican II”. (NOTA BENE: I don’t reject Vatican II as a valid council or disregard its documents. I reject the abuses which followed the council.)

“I was an altar girl when I was in school and now they’re saying that women have to know their place? Excuse me, but I don’t have to agree to that.”

I don’t have a problem with altar girls. However, I can also understand if the Church wants to restore the position as a stepping stone to the priesthood. If that’s the case, then since women can’t be priests, girls shouldn’t serve at the altar. Perhaps I’m mistaken, but I think the CFFC supports female ordination. That’s contrary to Church teaching. You claim you don’t have to agree with the Church. Actually, you do. Reason? It’s called obedience. More precisely, it depends on what you mean by agreement. If you disagree with the Church, you can work to change it from within, but you may not openly teach that the Church is wrong. That’s cause for scandal.

“You so funny. Ooh, heresy! Let’s burn ’em at the stake! Sorry, dude, but we left the inquisition behind.”

Cradle Catholic you may be, but your catechesis was poor. The Catechism says, “Heresy is the obstinate post-baptismal denial of some truth which must be believed with divine and catholic faith, or it is likewise an obstinate doubt concerning the same; apostasy is the total repudiation of the Christian faith; schism is the refusal of submission to the Roman Pontiff or of communion with the members of the Church subject to him.” The CFFC is heretical because of their openly disobedient beliefs and teachings about abortion, contraception, and other issues. The concept of heresy didn’t disappear from Catholic teaching in the 60’s as you seem to believe.

“Why don’t you warm up with a little social justice work instead?”

I am involved in social justice work. It’s called the pro-life movement.

“If you want peace, work for justice. If you want justice, defend life. If you want life, embrace truth — truth revealed by God.” – Pope John Paul II

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About Funky Dung

Who is Funky Dung? 29-year-old grad student in Intelligent Systems (A.I.) at the University of Pittsburgh. I consider myself to be politically moderate and independent and somewhere between a traditional and neo-traditional Catholic. I was raised Lutheran, spent a number of years as an agnostic, and joined the Catholic Church at the 2000 Easter Vigil. Why Funky Dung? I haven't been asked this question nearly as many times as you or I might expect. Funky Dung is a reference to an obscure Pink Floyd song. On the album Atom Heart Mother, there is a track called Atom Heart Mother Suite. It's broken up into movements, like a symphony, and one of the movements is called Funky Dung. I picked that nickname a long time ago (while I was still in high school I think), shortly after getting an internet connection for the first time. To me it means "cool/neat/groovy/spiffy stuff/crap/shiznit", as in "That's some cool stuff, dude!" Whence Ales Rarus? I used to enjoy making people guess what this means, but I've decided to relent and make it known to all. Ales Rarus is a Latin play on words. "Avis rarus" means "a rare bird" and carries similar meaning to "an odd fellow". "Ales" is another Latin word for bird that carries connotations of omens, signs of the times, and/or augery. If you want to get technical, both "avis" and "ales" are feminine (requiring "rara", but they can be made masculine in poetry (which tends to breaks lots of rules). I decided I'd rather have a masculine name in Latin. ;) Yeah, I'm a nerd. So what? :-P Wherefore blog? It is my intention to "teach in order to lead others to faith" by being always "on the lookout for occasions of announcing Christ by word, either to unbelievers . . . or to the faithful" through the "use of the communications media". I also act knowing that I "have the right and even at times a duty to manifest to the sacred pastors [my] opinion on matters which pertain to the good of the Church, and [I] have a right to make [my] opinion known to the other Christian faithful, with due regard to the integrity of faith and morals and reverence toward [my and their] pastors, and with consideration for the common good and the dignity of persons." (adapted from CCC 904-907) Statement of Faith I have been baptized and confirmed in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. I, therefore, renounce Satan; I renounce all his works; I renounce all his allurements. I hold and profess all that is contained in the Apostles' Creed, the Niceno- Constantinopolitan Creed, and the Athanasian Creed. Having been buried with Christ unto death and raised up with him unto a new life, I promise to live no longer for myself or for that world which is the enemy of God but for him who died for me and rose again, serving God, my heavenly Father, faithfully and unto death in the holy Catholic Church. I am obedient to the Magisterium of the Catholic Church. That is, I promote and defend authentic Catholic Teaching and Faith in union with Christ and His Church and in union with the Holy Father, the Bishop of Rome, the Successor of St. Peter. Thanks be unto Thee, O my God, for all Thy infinite goodness, and, especially, for the love Thou hast shown unto me at my Confirmation. I Give Thee thanks that Thou didst then send down Thy Holy Spirit unto my soul with all His gifts and graces. May He take full possession of me for ever. May His divine unction cause my face to shine. May His heavenly wisdom reign in my heart. May His understanding enlighten my darkness. May His counsel guide me. May His knowledge instruct me. May His piety make me fervent. May His divine fear keep me from all evil. Drive from my soul, O Lord, all that may defile it. Give me grace to be Thy faithful soldier, that having fought the good fight of faith, I may be brought to the crown of everlasting life, through the merits of Thy dearly beloved Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen. Behind the Curtain: an Interview With Funky Dung (Thursday, March 03, 2005) I try to avoid most memes that make their way 'round the blogosphere (We really do need a better name, don't we?), but some are worth participating in. Take for instance the "interview game" that's the talk o' the 'sphere. I think it's a great way to get to know the people in neighborhood. Who are the people in your neighborhood? In your neighborhod? In your neigh-bor-hoo-ood...*smack* Sorry, Sesame Street flashback. Anyhow, I saw Jeff "Curt Jester" Miller's answers and figured since he's a regular reader of mine he'd be a good interviewer. Without further ado, here are my answers to his questions. 1. Being that your pseudonym Funky Dung was chosen from a Pink Floyd track on Atom Heart Mother, what is you favorite Pink Floyd song and why? Wow. That's a tuffy. It's hard to pick out a single favorite. Pink Floyd isn't really a band known for singles. They mostly did album rock and my appreciation of them is mostly of a gestalt nature. If I had to pick one, though, it'd be "Comfortably Numb". I get chills up my spine every time I hear it and if it's been long enough since the last time, I get midty-eyed. I really don't know why. That's a rather unsatisfying answer for an interview, so here are the lyrics to a Rush song. It's not their best piece of music, but the lyrics describe me pretty well.

New World Man He's a rebel and a runner He's a signal turning green He's a restless young romantic Wants to run the big machine He's got a problem with his poisons But you know he'll find a cure He's cleaning up his systems To keep his nature pure Learning to match the beat of the old world man Learning to catch the heat of the third world man He's got to make his own mistakes And learn to mend the mess he makes He's old enough to know what's right But young enough not to choose it He's noble enough to win the world But weak enough to lose it --- He's a new world man... He's a radio receiver Tuned to factories and farms He's a writer and arranger And a young boy bearing arms He's got a problem with his power With weapons on patrol He's got to walk a fine line And keep his self-control Trying to save the day for the old world man Trying to pave the way for the third world man He's not concerned with yesterday He knows constant change is here today He's noble enough to know what's right But weak enough not to choose it He's wise enough to win the world But fool enough to lose it --- He's a new world man...
2. What do you consider your most important turning point from agnosticism to the Catholic Church. At some point in '99, I started attending RCIA at the Pittsburgh Oratory. I mostly went to ask a lot of obnoxious Protestant questions. Or at least that's what I told myself. I think deep down I wanted desperately to have faith again. At that point I think I'd decided that if any variety of Christianity had the Truth, the Catholic Church did. Protestantism's wholesale rejection of 1500 years of tradition didn't sit well with me, even as a former Lutheran. During class one week, Sister Bernadette Young (who runs the program) passed out thin booklet called "Handbook for Today's Catholic". One paragraph in that book spoke to me and I nearly cried as I read it.
"A person who is seeking deeper insight into reality may sometimes have doubts, even about God himself. Such doubts do not necessarily indicate lack of faith. They may be just the opposite - a sign of growing faith. Faith is alive and dynamic. It seeks, through grace, to penetrate into the very mystery of God. If a particular doctrine of faith no longer 'makes sense' to a person, the person should go right on seeking. To know what a doctrine says is one thing. To gain insight into its meaning through the gift of understanding is something else. When in doubt, 'Seek and you will find.' The person who seeks y reading, discussing, thinking, or praying eventually sees the light. The person who talks to God even when God is 'not there' is alive with faith."
At the end of class I told Sr. Bernadette that I wanted to enter the Church at the next Easter vigil. 3. If you were a tree what kind of, oh sorry about that .. what is the PODest thing you have ever done? I set up WikiIndex, a clearinghouse for reviews of theological books, good, bad, and ugly. It has a long way to go, but it'll be cool when it's finished. :) 4. What is your favorite quote from Venerable John Henry Newman? "Ten thousand difficulties do not make one doubt." 5. If you could ban one hymn from existence, what would it be? That's a tough one. As a member of the Society for a Moratorium on the Music of Marty Haugen and David Haas, there are obviously a lot of songs that grate on my nerves. If I had to pick one, though, I'd probably pick "Sing of the Lord's Goodness" by Ernie Sands.

11 thoughts on “Delayed Reaction”

  1. Jerry

    “…eager to undo the damage done by Vatican II. (NOTA BENE: I don’t reject Vatican II as a valid council or disregard its documents. I reject the abuses which followed the council.) “

    I agree with your intent, but your wording implies that Vatican II itself hurt the Church (“..damage done by Vatican II”), not just the people who claimed its mantle after the Council had ended. Maybe it sounds like nitpicking, but what would you think of someone who spoke of “the damage done by Nicea(or Trent)?” 🙂

  4. theomorph

    Ha! Yeah, well, it doesn’t seem to matter what anyone else thinks. The more I learn, the less I know I know and the dumber I feel. Or, in the words of the inimitable Donald Rumsfeld (from Pieces of Intelligence: The Existential Poetry of Donald H. Rumsfeld, compiled and edited by Hart Seely):

    The Unknown

    As we know,
    There are known knowns.
    There are things we know we know.
    We also know
    There are known unknowns.
    That is to say
    We know there are some things
    We do not know.
    But there are also unknown unknowns,
    The ones we don’t know we don’t know.

    Yeah, and I’d say there are more of the third than both of the others put together! –theomorph

  5. Donna Marie Lewis

    I’d guess that this is a ‘cradle Catholic’ who tends to think of ‘being Catholic’ as a birthright rather than as a Faith and a relationship. Hence the scorn for you. She does not want to be reminded that the Faith is not imprinted on the genes, but must be practiced in order to be real. (About 1/2 of my relatives are similar….and not just the young ones, either…)

  6. Jerry

    It might be a good idea to refer Deb to the discussions on the Constitutional support for the Church (or any other association, from Toyota to the NAACP or even the CFFC) to create its own rules and regulations for membership and good standing. I think it important to show how Church discipline in fact is protected by a cornerstore of American political thought.

  7. theomorph

    It’s stuff like this that reminds me how happy I am to be an atheist. No scriptures, no doctrines, no authoritative councils to worry about. I love thinking for myself without regard to authority, even though I feel like a complete idiot most of the time. Better to be my own broken machine than a cog in someone else’s.

  10. steve

    Theo, I would love to take this

    It’s stuff like this that reminds me how happy I am to be an atheist. No scriptures, no doctrines, no authoritative councils to worry about. I love thinking for myself without regard to authority, even though I feel like a complete idiot most of the time.

    up again, but the demands (all 6 of ’em) of real life beckon. But take some consolation in my observation that I don’t think you’re a complete idiot most of the time! 😉

    Good nite!

  11. Philothea Rose

    Why is it that people don’t think of right-to-life issues as FUNDAMENTAL teachings of the Church? Why do they think it’s a give-or-take thing? Being a pro-life Catholic should be like being a Catholic who goes to Mass every Sunday. Oh…yeah…oops, some people “forget” about that too. 😉

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