Accepted!
By Fric | April 12, 2008
It is now O-F-F-I-C-I-A-L. We are accepted into the Deacon Aspirancy Class of 2012.
We met with Archbishop Kurtz yesterday afternoon for a little less than 45 minutes total. He is an extremely gracious and engaging man. We truly enjoyed our talk with him. For some reason he didn’t have our packet with all the information on what steps we had completed, results, etc. So we just spent some time telling him about ourselves and our family. We segued into marriage and family issues and NFP and living out our faith daily. It was a fascinating talk.
Archbishop Kurtz is on two committees dealing with marriage and family/life issues and he is quite passionate about these subjects. We seemed to really connect while talking about these issues. He saw our own passion for these things and told us he could easily see our ministry taking place in these areas.
Surprisingly we didn’t really talk about things like why I wanted to be a deacon or what I expected to get out of it or put into it. I presume he puts his trust in the process that we have been vetted pretty well so far. I think he got a pretty good sense of us in the time we spent with him. As did we of him.
So, now we begin our first year, the aspirancy year, of the diaconate formation process. Four years of classes and studying. God willing, I will be ordained to the Diaconate in August 2012.
Topics: Diaconate | 4 Comments »
Meeting with the Archbishop on Friday
By Fric | April 7, 2008
Finally another Diaconate update.
We had the psych test done way back in February. Mrs. Fric finished it in 3 hours. Took me another hour on top of that. Some of it was really odd. Some of it was relatively obvious. Weird parts were the questions like ”Would you like to be a florist?” and “If you were an artist, would you like to draw flowers?” Haven’t figured out what flowers signify, but I answered no to both.
There was an intelligence test and various types of evaluations and a personal interview with the psychologist. Mostly OK. I was still nervous, knowing that this one man could interpret the results in a negative way and I’m done.
Results were to take several weeks in the end. On the day we were to go for our results, the office called and rescheduled for the following week. Had to pause to keep myself from swearing, but I figured that God wanted me to practice patience. So I decided to take it all as no big thing. After all, what was another week?
When I got home, there was a letter waiting from the Office of the Diaconate. That was surprising. Figured it was about the psych profile, but I had thought the results weren’t sent to them until after we got to review them. I opened the envelope with some serious trepidation. I figured if any one stage would knock us out, it would be this one.
Lo and behold! We passed and would be meeting with the Archbishop! Whew! I have to say that at that point the weight of uncertainty lifted from my shoulders. It seemed like the whole thing was a weight I hadn’t realized yet. We still had to go over the results with the pysychologist which was a little disconcerting at the same time it was nothing to worry about. We knew we were in, but honestly, the results left me wondering how I passed. I see how Mrs. Fric passed, but me? I probably wouldn’t have let me in which is also illustrates the point about how I tend to be harder on myself than others.
So, we finally have our appointment with Archbishop Kurtz this Friday, April 11. This is the last step. While technically possible, it’s rare to get to see the Archbishop and not get into the program. After all they don’t want to waste his time. That’s why you go through this long process. So keep praying. I am sure I am creative enough to screw up. 
God willing, I will start classes on July 19th, 2008 and be ordained some time in late August of 2012.
Topics: Diaconate | No Comments »
RCIA Process
By Fric | January 27, 2008
Last week I gave my last scheduled talk for RCIA this year. Did a talk on the Eucharist. I spent quite a bit of time on it and prepared a ton of information. Never got to finish all the things I wanted to put in it, which is not uncommon. Last thing I did was to type up the bullet list of things about the Eucharist that I wrote out at lunch one day.
Turns out, that was what I spent most of my time on. Ah well. I covered the Eucharist in context of Mass and who can receive it and Who the Eucharist is and where we get our reasoning from. Then I spent some time walking everyone through the Eurcharist as foretold in the Old Testament and the New.
In a later post I plan on posting my ideas on the Eucharist as the Gospel Message in Sacramental form and how the Fall in Genesis has Eucharistic tones and prophetic elements. Have some more research to finish there.
Topics: RCIA | 1 Comment »
Diaconate Application Update
By Fric | January 27, 2008
I have been quite remiss in my updates on my application to enter the Permanent Diaconate. Since I last blogged about it, I had my perceiver interview, submitted my full application and have had my home interview.
The Perceiver Interview was done about a week or two after the last post in early October on a Wednesday. I met with Deacon Gerry at his parish and had a wonderful interview. He told me going in that he would just ask the questions and not comment, except to prod me to stop if I were pummelling an expired equine as it were. By the end of the interview he was making positive comments and really seemed positive about the whole process.
As we were walking out, I asked how long the decision process took and he said about 2 weeks or so. Sometimes more, sometimes less. I said I was mainly trying to gauge when to start getting nervous, as I was trying to take the whole process one step at a time. He then proceeded to tell me that I didn’t have anything to worry about.
That was certainly encouraging to say the least.
So, Mrs. Fric and I go to a Marriage Encounter Weekend not thinking much about the results yet. However, when we got back Sunday afternoon, a letter from the Diaconate Office was waiting for us. I had made it into the next round and enclosed was my full application. That was really FAST.
Unfortunately, I sat on the application for about 6 weeks. I had filled out part of it and was kind of wondering what to put in the biography. Really I fretted over it quite a bit. I had finally resolved to get it done no matter what the coming weekend. Mrs. Fric had already given me her part and I had no excuse. Oddly enough, Deacon Bob emailed me the next day asking me when he could expect the application as he wanted to get me scheduled for the home interview and psych evaluation as soon as possible before the rush of last minute apps happened.
OK. He was already planning on getting me that far? Cool! Still, I was nervous about the app. I actually wrote 3 and a half pages for my bio and upon advice from fellow Maniac, Deacon (who will finally be ordained into the Diaconate August 23, 2008), cut it down by half.
So, I get it in the mail on Monday and by the end of the week I have my response. I have been moved on to the next stage, the home interview. This is early/mid December at this point. I figure we will hear from the Deacon couple after Christmas most likely. I was kind of getting anxious when we were into January before I got their call. I was literally going to call Deacon Bob about it the next day when I got the call and set the appointment.
The Deacon couple plus the lay representative on the Selection Committee came over and talked with us for about an hour, less time than I though they would. Normally they separate the applicant couple and talk about the commitment and make sure both are on the same page. They actually skipped this for us since Mrs. Fric is the one who initiated this process. She was the one who decided it was time and pushed me along into doing it now instead of later.
The interview went very well I though and Deacon Dave even said he didn’t think some things that are common with converts (ministry formation and religious formation) would be an issue. Apparently some applicants are so new that they still have Protestant things to unlearn. Since pretty much all my religious formation has truly been Catholic, I have no ingrained habits to unlearn. This is all on this past Wednesday evening.
Yesterday the letter came in the mail, much like after the Perceiver Interview. I have been moved on to the next and pretty much last step, the psychological profile. This, like the Home Interview, is done as a couple. As I understand it, we take a 500+ question survey and have a personal interview with the psychologist separately. Then we go back for the results. Hopefully we will get this scheduled quickly. According to the other couple in my parish that has already been accepted, it’s about 3 weeks to get the results.
Presuming we make it past this step, all that would be left is the formal meeting with our Archbishop where he says “I accept you” which makes it official. They say that this meeting is largely a formality. No one can recall of hearing someone getting to the Archbishop and not getting in. Rarely do couples get to the psych profile and not make it too. I still am going to take it one step at a time, though I can nearly taste it, I am so close!
So, we are almost there. It’s been very interesting how we’ve been getting subtle hints that we are on track and seem to be expected to make it in. For the last month or more, I have been getting the emails that go out to the Deacon Community. Those of us in process currently also got the schedule for the next year from Deacon Bob. He prefaced it saying he wanted all of us to get ready schedule wise as he expected everyone receiving the schedule to make it in.
I am excited to no end. The more and more I think about it and what it means for me, it seems right and true that this is His Will for me and us as a family. And I sincerely pray that if it isn’t, I realize that and let it go. I’d be disappointed of course, but many of the things I can offer the Church, I can offer as a lay person. Not all, as I believe I am well suited to the preaching and teaching aspect of the ministry.
No matter what, all I want to do is serve Him.
Topics: Diaconate | No Comments »
Scandal In San Francisco - A Measured Response
By Deacon | October 16, 2007
Somehow I missed it when it originally happened, but thanks to my Brother in Law, I got up to speed rather quickly.
I got home last night from taking my daughter to Volleyball practice to find my wife in an animated discussion on the phone, wildly gesticulating at the TV which was set to the Fox News Channel. I had only seconds before she handed me the phone saying “It’s Mark - you’ve got to hear this!” before she stormed out of the room.
What followed was 45 minutes on the phone with my outraged brother in law while his outraged sister paced around the house, listening to my side of the conversation. In the end, the waters were calmed and everyone appeared to be satisfied with my words, although I’m really not sure how I managed it.
What drove them both to outrage - and absolutely rightfully so - was a news report by Bill O’Reilly showing individuals dressed as “mock” nuns and priests receiving communion from the Archbishop of San Francisco, George Niederauer at a mass this past Sunday.
To say that I was flabbergasted and totally caught off guard and unprepared is an understatement of biblical proportions!
Somehow I was given the task of trying to explain all of this without any real data as to what happened to whom and when and come up with some answer as to the “why” in order to satisfy both my dear wife and her brother. My brother in law was to the point, as his sister often is, of “storming the Bastille” in outrage, wondering how we can “get Rome to stop this” and how “Satan could get into the Church like this.” It was into this maelstrom that I walked and from where I began.
I’ve since read up on the incident and fortunately it seems I pretty much got the grasp of it and assumed much of the details correctly. It seems that the “Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence”, a notorious militant homosexual organization, “raided” (for lack of a better term) a mass celebrated by the Archbishop at Most Holy Redeemer parish in San Francisco this past Sunday (October 12th 2007.) Some of these people - in full costume and regalia - presented themselves for communion (to the Archbishop personally of course) and - God save us - the Archbishop gave it to them, all of which was caught on tape.
The blasphemy and in-your-face behavior was indeed outrageous and most definitely prone to provoke anger in anyone who loves the Sacrament and the Church. But like any good medic, the first thing I tried to do was to staunch the bleeding so most of my first words were designed to calm him down but as we moved forward, I began to try and get him to use his rational senses along with his emotional ones and to properly direct his outrage. It seems the Holy Spirit had a clear message he wanted me to articulate, which I’m sort of quantifying and analyzing in this blog posting.
The climate I tend to sense these days is a rather disturbing one and it seems to have entered into too much of the arena of criticism, and that is that Mark’s first reaction was to “go nuclear” on the Bishop for his actions in giving them communion. What I tried to impart to him instead is an urging for him to redirect his understandable anger and venom to those who perpetrated this “grave sin” -such was primarily on the part of the MILITANTS who presented themselves - it is they who committed the grave blasphemy and sacrilege here.
This is not to say that the Bishop didn’t screw up - he certainly did BUT he publicly apologized in print for doing so immediately afterwards – it seems he was blindsided at the time and didn’t know or understand who they were. (A very distinct possibility I mentioned to Mark – turns out I was right.) There he was, within the setting of the mass, with no way of understanding who these people were or their agenda – if he didn’t know them ahead of time, there’s no real way he could be informed once mass was underway. (Yes, I know people could have told him, etc, etc, etc, but who would have the guts to do such a thing during mass? Lots of potential woulda-coulda-shoulda’s here to go around. In any event, it was apparently quite the sneak attack.)
The Bishop is the one where the authority and responsibility rests regarding his diocese of course and make no mistake these militants darn well knew that - their attack (for that’s what it was) was premeditated, strategically planned and executed precisely for effect.
From there I went into the subjects of the presumption of proper disposition of a communicant when they present themselves, as well as the duty to avoid scandal, and how the refusal at the time with no preparation or ability to react may lead to greater scandal than the reception would bring – all of which was designed to give possible reasoning as to why someone would have done such a thing as distribute communion to such individuals. I did not defend the accuracy or inaccuracy of any of these possible reasons other than to say there is great controversy and disagreement among the US Bishops over this issue and has been for some time. I spoke of Archbishop Burke and his courageous stance in the 2004 election and beyond, but also pointed out many equally good bishops consider that response to have been “too much.”
I also spoke of how a similar and ongoing controversy of the Rainbow Sash Movement and how they have before, and continue to, attempt to disrupt communion in similar ways on Pentecost. Most places are now prepared for their theatrics and they are usually refused communion now - particularly by Cardinal George in Chicago - although such events often descend into chaos and some other bishops elsewhere – Cardinal Mahoney in Los Angeles for example - faced with such possibilities do not refuse them.
It is understandable that a Bishop would wish to avoid such disruptions in mass, but looking back, and now in the clear light of day with all the facts in hand - Archbishop Niederauer clearly messed up.
But the main point I want to make here is that he realized what he did almost immediately and promptly DID THE RIGHT THING AND APOLOGIZED, so in my book, any further criticism of him on this incident would be out of line. I suspect, he’ll be more informed and READY when this ATTACK occurs again (and be assured that sooner or later it will.)
I think the real thrust of this blog post, even though I am not satisfied with how I explained it to Mark now that I’ve thought further about it, is the following. We all need to remember that Christ - by definition of his Godhood and omnipotence - cannot himself be personally harmed by his reception by these apparent grave sinners. (I said it to Mark as “Christ needs no defense from us” which is REALLY misphrased - I wouldn’t say it at all that way again, although Mark tended to focus in on it and take comfort from it. I was shooting from the hip and it seemed the gun got away from me a little.)
My reason for pointing this out is not to say we should not defend the sacrament, but more to say that by doing that we often never go any further than that, and that’s the real tragedy here. While this first natural response is commendable in that it shows our love for him, we must fight to see the real attack here - that as one on the Church herself and the person of the Archbishop. THAT’s what we miss too often here, and THAT’s exactly what the attackers are counting on.
If we remember only the Sacramental attack, we fall right into the trap the militants set for us - THEY WILL HAVE DIVIDED US and by their sins they have directed our anger and pressure against the Archbishop and the Church instead of where it belongs - at them, the perpetrators themselves. They KNOW we will go right to defence the Sacrament and by doing so they also know that blame, anger and venom will fall straight on the shepherd himself. They will have attacked out head and attempted to undermine our faith in him as leader, and in so doing, attempt to engineer a public opinion storm that will rob him of credibility – and by extension that of the entire institution of the Church. You see, they cannot abide the existence of such a large, visible, respected and ACTIVE institution as the Catholic Church that dares to promote that the lifestyle which they wish to lead is not proper or moral. To destroy its credibility is to destroy its criticism of them. THAT’s who attacked us and that’s who needs to be our focus.
They’ve inserted a deadly virus of blame and finger pointing and accusations and outrage into the Catholic Arena and that they’re counting on eating us alive from inside. THAT’s where Satan is in all this. They see it as a win-win scenario: The Archbishop refuses them, they make a stink and take the high ground of being “persecuted” or they are allowed to receive and undermine the teachings and the authority of the Church.
But all of this works ONLY if we cooperate with them by reacting as they expect us to do!
(Slight aside here: Mark was hitting hard that Satan himself was receiving communion himself as these militants. I had to remind him that such is not possible, although the grave sin that these people displayed may undoubtedly have him as designer, it was the people themselves who were the sole perpetrators.)
In my opinion we all took a sucker punch on the chin as a Church through this incident, but believe you me, forewarned is now forearmed for the future. We must be aware of these blatant attacks on the Church and stand united with our Bishops, keep them informed and stand with them ready to defend the faith.
For if we were to fail in that duty, then the militants would truly have won.
Topics: Uncategorized | 4 Comments »
Quick Note on Perceiver Interview
By Fric | October 6, 2007
A couple of days ago I got the call from Deacon Gerry to setup my perceiver interview. That’s Wednesday the 10th. Apparently, he’s the same Deacon who interviewed one of the other men from my parish that also applied to the Diaconate.
Inching closer and closer. I can tell it’s getting more and more real to me. I noticed I started referring to the program saying “we” as if I was already in it.
Keep praying, please.
Topics: Diaconate | No Comments »
Moving on to the Perceiver Interview
By Fric | September 28, 2007
Came home after a long day at work and saw the mail on the kitchen table. There on top was a letter from the Archdiocese of Louisville Diaconate Office. This was it. The letter saying whether or not I got past the initial eligibility review.
I have to say I was a little nervous about opening the letter. After all, who knows what could happen? I could have written something the rubbed someone the wrong way. There could be any number of reasons.
I immediately slid my finger down the envelope flap and pulled the letter out. I paused a little moment before unfolding it and I think I may have taken a small breath and held it. I flipped open the top fold of the letter and scanned it quickly for the way which it was to go.
I passed!
I passed the eligibility phase and have been passed on to the perceiver interview phase of the process. I’ll get a call from Deacon Gerry soon to setup an interview time and place. We’ll meet in person, one on one. After that, if I pass that phase, will come the written application and later the psych evaluation.
I breathe a sigh of relief, to be sure, that step one is out of the way. For some reason, this seems to make it all the more real that I could be admitted to the program as a member of the Class of 2012. The hardest parts are still to come, but I’m a step closer and it’s more concrete.
Pray for my eventual admission to the Class of 2012 Diaconate Program in my Archdiocese.
Topics: Diaconate | 2 Comments »
Getting Old and it Bites
By Fric | September 20, 2007
Got my bifocals on Monday. Also got monovision contact lenses on Saturday. The contacts are set differently than normal lenses. The left eye is for close up vision. The right is for distance vision. That’s a little weird to get used to. Especially since the right lens isn’t the final prescription. These are just samples.
The glasses are a little different. The lenses are short as I don’t care for the really big lenses and about two thirds of the lens is for the close up stuff which is on the bottom. Unfortunatley, that means I am having to tilt my head down to be able to look through the distance part of the lens. It’s awkward to say the least.
Not sure which one I like or hate more.
Topics: Health and Welfare | No Comments »
Officially in the Process Now
By Fric | September 20, 2007
Finally got the application into the Diaconate Office. Got an email back from Deacon Bob who runs it, confirming that he got it and was forwarding it on to the Selection Committee. Also confirmed that my pastor, Fr. Dismas, supports my application.
So, now I wait. Another gentleman at my parish is also in the process, though he’s farther along, having submitted his app some weeks back. He said the turnaround was very quick. Days, usually between finishing one step and moving on to the next. Deacon Bob said up to two weeks to get my eligibility processed.
Please pray for me as I go through this process. God willing, I will be accepted and make it through the 4 year program. Ordination to the Diaconate would be in 2012.
Topics: Diaconate | No Comments »
Men in the Church
By Fric | September 2, 2007
A while back there was a discussion going on over at Amy’s old blog. It was a fascinating discussion about the role of men in the Church, feminization and/or effeminization (depending on who is speaking and whether they properly understand it of course) of the Church.
I say it is fascinating for a couple of reasons that come to mind readily…
First is that there is a definite and pronounced recognizement that the proper roles of men and women in the Church seem to be out of whack. I say proper rather than traditional because we Americans tend to have a limited view of what constitutes tradition. Anything that we are used to seems to qualify for traditional.
Second is that everyone seems to be dancing around the central issue and making some very good tangential points that just do not get to the heart of the matter.
Third is that there seems to be a backlash against the current problems and against what is seen as unmanly, whether that is seen as effeminate or feminine.
Some are aguing that the Church has too many women doing what men used to do. That is certainly true in the sense that most Masses that many go to have at best 1 or 2 men beyond the priest as a lector or Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion, never mind the choir and cantor. The numbers are certainly skewed. We certainly need more men visible in our public worship.
Some are arguing that the Church has become too feminine because of this. But as one astute female commenter pointed out, the Church IS feminine. She is the Bride of Christ after all.
However, the Church is also the Body of Christ. The Church is both male and female. Male in that we are Christ to the world. Female in that we, the Church, are the Bride of Christ.
Those arguing against a supposed feminization rail against the homosexual abusers in the priesthood and epispcopacy. They see a priesthood that has all too many men acting like women or having female traits that destroy the calling of some to the priesthood.
These three themes certainly all have valid examples to back them up. But I do not think any one of them is right, nor is it that all three are right. They are the outgrowth of the problem and it is a problem in the West specifically, thought I certainly believe that it can exist elsewhere as well.
The roles of the sexes have been totally messed up. Men are not supposed to be men except as in how they support women’s choices, either sexually or in the family. Man is no longer seen as the pillar of strength and support of the family, especially in the way that it mirrors the Church as the Body of Christ. Men are no longer supposed to assert their masculinity unless his dominant female association (mother, sister, girlfriend or wife) approves. Men aren’t sure how to act around women anymore. Not that we had all the answers in bygone eras certainly.
Women are asserting themselves in ways unthinkable 50 years ago. They are replacing men in roles of head of family and household, whether the man is present or not. They are told they can have motherhood and career and wealth and happiness all for free. Almost. All you have to do is give up any kind of total union, physical and spiritual, with your chosen male. Don’t trust him. Don’t let him have “power” over you. You are the one in control. In other words you are the man of old.
The media and culture support these ideas by presenting strong women paired with oafish buffoons for husbands. The wives are the ones who control everything and everyone. Men are mere bystanders to their own lives. At best we are just another child for the wife to take care of.
Think about all the commercials and sitcoms that portray these things. There’s a lot aren’t there?
Now how many examples do we have of a man and a woman who complement each other and complete each other and do and want what’s best for each other?
Not many.
What does it all mean?
It means that men don’t know what’s expected of them any more. One of the reasons that men are civilized is that our wives and mothers, including the Church as Bride of Christ and the Blessed Mother have helped us get there. Men left to their own devices makes you think Calvin’s doctrine of Total Depravity doesn’t even scratch the surface. A totally male dominated society without the moderating influence of women probably gets you something like the Taliban.
What we seem to have done is recognized this as a society and decided that men as a group need less power and influence.
OK.
Now what?
That’s what we have been asking ourselves for 40 years. We need to know what it is we are supposed to live up to.
Men in general are goal orientented and tend to define ourselves by what we do and what we accomplish. The female half of the species, as noted on Amy’s blog, tend to define themselves by their relationships.
Which is actually perfect for a lot of what passes for theology now. The total emphasis in my parish for instance with our pastor is all about relationship. And to be sure there is much truth in it, but there is much more to the Church than that.
This sort of thing I think tends to appeal to women more than men. Women, I have always joked, DO relationships and men HAVE them. The difference is that men are in them and women are working on them. It’s no wonder that men are not attracted to what comes from the pulpit in many places. It’s all about the stuff we try to avoid the rest of the week.
To quote the great philosopher, Foghorn Leghorn, “That’s a joke, son.”
Seriously though, I think men that stay away do so because the Gospel is presented in a way that appeals primarily to women. We don’t hear the facts of the Gospel and what we are supposed to do about it. Loving one another and boiling it down to that phrase only is not going to appeal to many men. We tend to want to know all of it and what we need to do with it. What actions do we need to take?
I think so many people in the Church leave and go to evangelical and other churches is because they get more than the love thy neighbor sermon and because these churches keep them DOING things. They keep learning and doing things in their new churches. In our parishes we rarely hear or do anything it seems. Even when we have parish missions, we are preaching to the choir as it were. We are then left to our own devices as to what we are to do with it.
Other than the parish Men’s Club and the guys who setup and cleanup for the picnics and festivals, young men to those approaching middle age don’t participate much in parish life it seems.
Catholic men need to man up and be what they are supposed to be. Men of God and spiritual leaders of their families and communities. Strong men protect their families, both physically and spiritually. Strong men volunteer to be lectors and extraordinary ministers of holy communion. They volunteer to be religious education teachers. They volunteer to work with St. Vincent DePaul and the youth group. They volunteer to take communion to the sick and visit the elderly.
Yes, I understand that women can, should and do these things as well. That’s beside the point. We have a vocations crisis in the Church because in too many places, men are not presented with a positive view of the what it means to be a priest.
Authentic manhood is rooted in Jesus Christ. He is our model. He confronted evil and fought it. He battled unto death with evil and rose from the dead in triumph over it. He served His friends and followers. He loved His Mother and his human father and was obedient to their authority over Him. He never backed away from Truth because He is Truth. Jesus Christ was the perfect man and the perfect expression of masculinity.
If we men follow Christ and model our lives on His, we can only move closer to Him, begin to lead our wives and loved ones and start to fill up the pews in our parishes again. Authentic manhood will only be authentic when working with authentic femininity in the service of Christ. Authentic manhood is not about “being the boss” or making other do what you want. It’s not about putting women in their place.
It’s about men retaking their place in the Church. It’s about leading others to do what is Right and Good with and in cooperation with good Christian women.
Who will be the one to step up in your parish?
Topics: Catholic Men | No Comments »
Our New Shepherd - Bishop Joseph Kurtz
By Deacon | June 13, 2007
Well, the maniacs are back on the air!
Well, this one anyway.
First of all I must apologize for being away for so long. My last post was almost three years ago to the day and I will not bore you with excuses for why and the business that being a father and a Deacon in formation carries with it a busy-ness that we all understand and frankly don’t want to hear about anyway.
The Holy Spirit has whupped me upside the head with the proverbial frying pan to get back and comment upon all things Catholic, so here I am - back and better than ever!
What led to this epiphany was, I suppose, the extremely exciting news received yesterday that our Archdiocese (Louisville) is to receive our new shepherd, Bishop Joseph Kurtz (now formerly) from Knoxville.
I have to say that, of course, I am well pleased.
He is 60 years old and an active runner they say, and the energy which he seems to have is something that will be of great blessing to all of us. He drives himself everywhere, and indeed drove up from Knoxville for the formal announcement at 4:00 AM so he could keep his already scheduled visit to the local prison the night before! That’s commitment, energy and an enthusiasm we certainly love to see! Archbishop Kelly has seemed to have lost a lot of his earlier vitality - age and all that’s happened here in the last few years makes this easily understandable - and I think that the change will be noted quite vividly in all manner of ways.
Being somewhat on the “inside” by my Diaconal formation, I seem to be coming more and more into contact with all manner of clergy and administrators within the Archdiocese, and the general consensus on BOTH sides of the political spectrum - and I mean both sides inclusive of their respective extreme ends as well here - is that they all want a strong LEADER, period. The overwhelming opinion of anyone and everyone, from those who are kind and intelligent in their talk to those who flame every word they speak or write - is that they want someone who will say “Do it this way (and I’ll even tell you why.)”
Archbishop Kurtz will have many issues to solve, and those that get mentioned a lot are always the ones with someones vested interests attached it seems. Nevertheless, the people here wish unanimously to be LED, and most aren’t afraid of that concept, even if it might mean not hearing what they want to hear.
And that for me, is quite refreshing.
I was once told that be careful of praying for a “Law and Order” Bishop, because invariably swinging the axe creates far more casualties on all sides than may be prudent. There’s no question that a renewal is needed here, as is inevitable everywhere at the proper times, but I think that we are receiving someone who knows the truth, is not afraid to state it clearly and authoritatively, but with the kindness and clarity that compels everyone to follow him joyfully to where he wants us to go.
And again, I am well pleased.
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Happy Birthday to Me.
By Fric | July 4, 2006
Today I turn 40.
Still seems weird. Not freaked out about being 40 so much. I don’t feel that old. Feel more like I am 30 or 32, give or take…
What freaks me out is where did the last 20 years go?
I must say I am nowhere near where I thought I would be 20 years ago. Figured I would have made at least one fortune by now and be extremely wealthy and semi-retired. I did get the wife and family I thought I would have though. And pretty much when. Though I never thought the third one would come this late. Certainly never expected to be Catholic. Just wasn’t on the radar screen.
Ah well. Time to start over with the dreams and goals. Just because I didn’t ever get where I though I would, doesn’t mean I can’t shoot for something else. Who knows, maybe in another 20 years, I WILL be fabulously wealthy and semi-retired.
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More on that New Little Maniac…
By Fric | July 4, 2006
Actually found this out not long after the last post, but it’s been busy, what with hand therapy, kids being out of school, etc. etc….
We are having a BOY!!!!!!
Woooooooo-Hoooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!
Not that I wouldn’t love another girl at all. Absolutely I would. But I am like every guy out there. We want a boy. A buddy. Someone who we can use to justify the purchase of war toys with. Luckily my girls are already into comic books so I was covered there. But now a whole different world is opened up.
So far the little guy is extremely active according to Mrs. Fric. He’s constantly on the move. I could feel his movements through Mom’s belly some time ago. Way earlier than the girls.
We are all excited about it too. The girls are happy to have a brother on the way.
Names are still an issue. At one time I wanted to name a boy after me… William Timothy. Since becoming Catholic, that doesn’t seem so important anymore. Not sure why, but I think my ego doesn’t need to be stroked that way anymore. Mrs. Fric still likes William though with Will for short. We are thinking William David to include her father. She also likes Patrick, Elijah and others. Not sure myself. She’s way more into it than I am right now. We’ve got time, right?
Please pray for a healthy baby and a safe delivery. Thanks!
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Happy Birthday America!
By Fric | July 4, 2006
And many more to the greatest nation on God’s green earth!
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That New Little Maniac…
By Fric | June 10, 2006
Still on the way. Mom and baby are doing great so far.
Got to feel the baby move for the first time last weekend. Could barely tell, but definitely there. Way cool stuff.
Next week we find out if we are having a boy or girl.
God knows I will love the baby no matter what, but I gotta say that a boy and the extra testosterone in the house would be welcome. Outnumbered 3 to 1 now. The dog is male but fixed. And a wuss. No help there.
Ah well… Let it be done according to thy word, Lord.
Can’t wait til October.
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Back to Two Hands
By Fric | June 10, 2006
Back to two hands… Six weeks ago today I had surgery on my right ring finger to set a fractured bone at the very tip and to reattach the tendon at that point. Had my hand in a cast for all that time since and got the cast and the final suture (down through the nail, around the bone, back out the nail and tied off) removed. My right hand is my dominant hand and I’ve had no (OK, a little… I cheated now and then) use of it for six weeks.
Ever tried to use your non-dominant hand and ONLY that hand to brush your teeth?
Eat?
Tie your shoes?
Put on pants?
Take pants off?
Type?
Mouse?
OK. I know it sounds like I am whining. Not intended. After all I got the use of it back. It was just kind of eye opening how much you don’t use the non-dominant hand you you are forced to use it as the dominant. Everything was backwards and weird.
My hand is stiff and sore. And I have a ton of new therapy exercises. Yay. At least I can type again. Maybe I can blog if I can get my brain unstuck.
We’ll see.
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Saint John Paul the Great
By Fric | April 2, 2006
OK. I know it’s not official for us down here.
But, really…
Do we doubt JPII is a Saint in Heaven?
Do we doubt his status as “Great”?
OK. Some may doubt the last. Only the truly obstinate can doubt the first.
One year ago today the Holy Father passed from this life into the next. According to many reports at the time, he died with a prayer on his lips, saying Amen just before passing. Supposedly this coincided with the conclusion of a Rosary or a part of the Rosary being prayed outside.
The Holy Father died as he lived. An example of Christian holiness and suffering. He died with the eyes the entire world watching and with a good many more non-Catholics than I could scarcely believe grieving at his passing along with us. That was part of what I think makes him “Great”. I remember reading a quote from a non-Catholic Christian that said he was their Pope too.
That is utterly astounding to me. Certainly not all non-Catholics believed that. It certainly was true though simply by the nature of the Church and the Papacy. All validly baptized Christians are a part of the Body of Christ which is the Catholic Church. They may not realize it, and they may not like it. But they are. Any Pope is the Pope of all Christians. I think the Holy Father understood this better than any other Pope before him.
As a convert in 2002 I never really knew any other Pope. I remember becoming aware of the Papacy and Popes in 1978 when Paul VI died and JPI was elected. Then he died and JPII was elected. He was all I knew. Even though not Catholic, I have always respected the institution of the Papacy because I instinctively understood that the Pope was the successor of Peter. I never really understood the implications of that until I started studying the Church in preparation for making sure my girls would be raised as proper Catholics. If they were to be Catholic, I wanted them to be good ones. I then understood what that succession meant for me.
Because of JPII I was able to respect the office and the Church even when I was ignorant of the true meaning of the Church and its doctrines. I think many must have felt that way. I don’t know how much previous Popes were accepted by the world and times they lived in. I do know that JPII was the conscience of the human race. He was the only one who could speak with such moral authority. No other religious or secular leader could do so.
His legacy will be seen in the fruits of the coming years. I think he planted the seeds that will bring us back from the brink of modernism that has infected the Church since the rubbish of the “spirit of Vatican II” crap that has infected the Church. Though not particularly young, I will be 40 this year, I still consider myself part of the JP2 Generation. This group, including the group of excited and motivated converts of the past 15 or more years, is the strength of the Church. They are the driving force for a return to orthodoxy of doctrine and practice. They are young, producing children and vocations.
We may be going through the desert now. But due to the seeds JPII planted, our children and grandchildren will reap the benefits of his Papacy.
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New Little Maniac Coming in October!
By Fric | April 2, 2006
Greetings Fellow Maniacs!
Been busy obviously of late. No posting and all.
But I return with awesome news!
Mrs. Fric and I have been blessed with the impending arrival of a new little Maniac! This is our third child and the older two are actually excited rather than mortified. Considering the age differences (9 and 12 years when the baby gets here), that is pretty good. Samantha, our now middle child, keeps proclaiming that she is now the middle child. Apparently Emma, the oldest, has been oppressing her mightily and she is looking forward to some of that rolling down hill a little farther.
We are all excited about this. We will be finding out the gender when the time comes and will do some of those really cool 3-D pics in July. Can’t wait for that.
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Words from the 1800’s
By Guvnur | February 3, 2006
Some things should not be forgotten
“The world has never had a good definition of the word ‘liberty.’ The American people just now, are much in want of one. We all declare for liberty. But in using the same word, we do not all mean the same thing. “What constitutes the bulwark of our liberty and independence? It is not our frowning battlements, our bristling seacoasts — these are not our reliance against tyranny. Our reliance is in the love of liberty, which God has planted in our bosom. Our defense is in the preservation of the spirit which prizes liberty as the heritage of all men in all lands, everywhere. Destroy this spirit and you have planted the seeds of despotism around your own door. “At what point shall we expect the approach of danger? By what means shall we fortify against it? Shall we expect some transatlantic military giant to step the ocean and crush us at a blow? “Never. “All the armies of Europe, Asia and Africa combined, could not, by force, take a drink from the Ohio, or make a track on the Blue Ridge, in a trial of a thousand years. At what point then, is the approach of danger to be expected? I answer that if it ever reach us, it must spring from amongst us; it cannot come from abroad. If destruction be our lot, we ourselves must be the authors and finishers. “As a nation of free men, we must live through our times or die by suicide. Let reverence for the law be breathed by every American mother to the lisping babe that prattles on her lap; let it be taught in the schools, in the seminaries and in the colleges; let it be written in primers, in spelling books and almanacs; let it be preached from the pulpit, proclaimed in legislative halls and enforced in courts of justice; and in short, let it become the political religion of the nation. And let the old and the young, the rich and the poor, the grave and the gay, of all sexes and tongues and colors and conditions, sacrifice unceasingly at its altar. And let us strive to deserve, as far as mortals may, the continued care of Divine Providence, trusting that in future national emergencies, He will not fail to provide us the instruments of safety and security. “Let us not be slandered from our duty by false accusations against us, nor frightened from it by menaces of destruction to the government, nor of dungeons to ourselves. “Let us have faith that right makes might, and in that faith, let us, to the end, dare to do our duty as we understand it.”
– Abraham Lincoln
Though these words are from the 1800’s I think they are still very important to remember and can be applied to the events and struggles that we face in today’s world. Though we are a country of diversity and differing opinions we are bound together in unity that we have the ability to express ourselves in many ways but when people reach the point that this freedom of ours causes disharmony and we are split and divided as Americans we can only help but to usher in the seeds of our own destruction. So regardless what side you may fall on of the many different views from the war in Iraq to the issue of when life actually starts to the ecology in our search for natural resources. Remember that we are unified in our own diversity but we should never be so petty as Americans to portray our diversity as our image to those abroad. Be united in our freedom of choice but not divided in our difference of opinion.
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Sorry for the Lack of Posting Lately…
By Fric | January 17, 2006
But been busy with the new job and the old side work. Also moving the CM stuff to a new server. So that should be interesting. We have been getting a lot of hits on our site from search engines on things like “lutherism” (I accidentally misspelled LutherAnism), Fr. Corapi and more. It will be interesting to see if that dries up. Search engines tend to penalize new sites for a year or so as potential spammers. I have seen that myself on a colleague’s sites. So will we lose the random surfers now?
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