Dubious

In a recent Twitter exchange regarding Stephen Bullivant's article [1] on the dubia of Cardinals Caffarra, Burke, Brandmüller and Meisner, Austen Iveriegh suggested the document which was written in order to clear up "grave disorientation and great confusion" was "dissent / theological protest masquerading as a dubium." [2] Indeed, as Amoris Laetitia is, according to Mr Ivereigh "the mind of the Church discerned in 2 synods and expressed in magisterial document" [3], the Cardinals have had their answer, "They just don’t like it." [2]

I cannot accept Mr Ivereigh's contention that the matter is closed because it appears to me that he, and like minded bishops, clergy and commentators are suggesting that it is possible that some divorced and re-married Catholics should and will be allowed to receive communion. If this is true, then it flies in the face of everything I understand regarding the Bible, Sacred Tradition, the deposit of Faith, the authority of the Church, the power of Grace and the nature of the Sacraments. If I am to accept such a teaching, I will need far more persuasion than is being proffered by footnotes, off the cuff remarks and the current murky state of affairs. Answering the dubia, if only out of courtesy, would be a start.

[1] http://www.catholicherald.co.uk/commentandblogs/2016/11/24/submitting-dubia-is-a-standard-part-of-church-life-its-not-unreasonable-to-expect-a-clear-answer

[2] https://twitter.com/austeni/status/802131388153663488

[3] https://twitter.com/austeni/status/802191636449071105

The crushing depths of feminism

In a recent blog post [1] @ccfather suggests that "the reality is that sex is about bonding and babies; that is an empirically verifiable fact. So in order to justify other uses of sex, and the ways in which the natural consequences of sex can be thwarted, elaborate theories have to be developed, to flee that reality."

One of the most insipid of these theories is a form of feminism which appears to denigrate every unique aspect of femininity in favour of a vision for women which takes it's inspiration from the worst behaviour in man. Sexual licence is at the core of this ideology which eulogies the errant belief that men are capable of indulging in sexual activity without consequences. To mimic the behaviour of the "men" which they idolise, women must frustrate the natural function of their own bodies, pumping it full of hormones to frustrate their reproductive potential. When this fails, the ideology encourages them to go a step further, leading them to reject motherhood; the scourge of abortion is the cornerstone of this insipid form of feminism. Thus women are betrayed into the hands of men who welcome them into this mutually destructive ideology which sees fellow human human beings as ends to be used and abused.

The degree to which abortion is a mainstay of this movement can be evidenced in this picture which was posted on Instagram:

Words failed me when it was first brought to my attention by a friend; I was equally disgusted, sad and angry. I then had the misfortune to read some of the comments underneath it which truly reveal the depraved depths to which this ideology has pulled our society and culture. Here's a sample of the callousness which encompasses this world view:

• "Let's get matching ones"
• "Awesome. I love her work"
• "Abort Meee!" (Followed by a number of heart emojis)
• "Does it come in men's?"
• "Need this for work"
• "My birthday is coming up..."
• "There's a knitting needle joke in here somewhere"
• "All women need that dress"
• "Found my future wedding dress"

In contrast to this aberration, the Catechism of the Catholic Church offers us a vision of a mutually beneficial complementarity which challenges men to be men and women to be women:

"Everyone, man and woman, should acknowledge and accept his sexual identity. Physical, moral, and spiritual difference and complementarity are oriented toward the goods of marriage and the flourishing of family life. The harmony of the couple and of society depends in part on the way in which the complementarity, needs, and mutual support between the sexes are lived out. In creating men 'male and female,' God gives man and woman an equal personal dignity. Man is a person, man and woman equally so, since both were created in the image and likeness of the personal God. Each of the two sexes is an image of the power and tenderness of God, with equal dignity though in a different way. The union of man and woman in marriage is a way of imitating in the flesh the Creator's generosity and fecundity". [2]

[1] http://ccfather.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/the-flight-from-reality.html

[2] Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2333 - 2335