WHORE OF BABYLON DEDICATED TO ROBERT JEFFRESS

There are those who claim that the Catholic Church is the Whore of Babylon. They are, for the most part, customers of a competing whore, but of course, they obey the rule of never speaking badly of your own mother. 

The last time I heard this accusation hurled at the Catholic Church was about 2 weeks ago. [Now, slightly more than one month]  At the time,  First Baptist church of Houston Pastor,  Dr. Robert Jeffress was a guest on the Lawrence O’Donnell show, “The Last Word” which airs on MSNBC.  His appearance there [February 21, 2012] was one during which he proclaimed that Mormonism is not a Christian religion and that the Catholic Church is the Whore of Babylon.
This poem is dedicated to him.  
Signed:
One of the Whore’s assiduous and dedicated customers.

Use the "comment" utility to add on what you think is appropriate.
ODE TO THE WHORE OF BABYLON

She is old, but still turning tricks, age after age,
Era after era, forever present on center stage.
To some she should have long ago been dead,
To others her survival and her zeal bring real dread.

I, proud child of this misnamed, renowned mother
Present before you, friend, enemy and even brother,
The munificent generosity with which this universal woman
Has blessed, and blesses the world, material and human.

It is thanks to the Great Whore that the world is blessed indeed
With the integrity of the unbreakable, unshakable creed
Built on the Faith that the crown of King David is Her crown alone
Bequeathed by Her original, foundational lover 


Her gifts to the nations include Alighieri and Buonarrotti,
Chrysostom, Francis, Jerome, Da Vinci, Verdi and Gregory.
She helps our worship along with simple, sweet plainchant sound
Which raises our soul to the heights where God is found. 

From her was born the book that we all treasure
And read every day with devotion and pleasure.
For centuries she has welcomed and housed the poor,
The orphans, the infirm, the sick, anyone who’se at the door.

She has lived in the hottest of the world’s deserts.
She has protected life that was saved in the Ark’s berths.
She has warmly embraced the children of this world,
Keeping them warm in her arms, tight to her bosom curled.

She has been the refuge of soldier and widow alike
Infirm, weak of body and mind she’d never dislike,
She has always bent low and stretched a way up high
in search of the rich, the poor, the brash and the shy.

Imagine the energy that it takes to keep going this long
And still be frowned upon with disdain ever so strong
By those who, rather than enjoy her charms ever divine,
From their cold margins the warmth of her love do malign.

No doubt that the ability to attract this tsunami of vitriol
While remaining attractive, loving, kind and above it all,
Is without a doubt a sign that she is indeed the faithful bride  
Of the God-Son whose Spirit in her great soul doth abide.

It is this accomplishment ever so miraculous
That in their proximity ever so perilous
The gates of Dante’s great inferno quite sulfurous
Will never, ever take Her away from any of us.

SHACKING UP vs TYING THE KNOT -- WHAT'LL YOU HAVE?

Attack against marriage?  Really?  Not mine, for sure.  Those who shack up don't do it in my house, so I'm safe.  What about yours?  Do you feel attacked?  It all depends.
These days the language is not quite so crude as that which appears in the title.  These days we are more evasive with our language if not with our morality.  We rarely use the words "cohabitate"or "concubinage" or even just plain old "shack up."  We hear, "Living together."  "Yeah, she and I decided to move in together."  Actually, they moved in under the sheets.  After all, it was Winter.  98.5 degrees of body heat comes free and you have to pay for gas and electric.  It's cohabitation also when two people of the same sex do it together.  That's always interesting, but believe me, it is not an attack on MY marriage.  Nope.  Not for one single minute.  Better than that though is when you hear that two pages from the grammar book move in together.  You know, you have two same gender beings snuggled together on a cute, quiet library shelf.  I wonder what it feels like to have to iron out the wrinkles from the English feminine page so that the Italian pagina feminina  won't be rubbed the wrong way?  That is not an attack on my marriage because in my house we are hot blooded animals with sex on our minds, not grammar.  Ouch! I forgot to mention, we are married too.  None of that cohabitation stuff for us.  Uh, Unh, we have settled down.  It's nice now too, we have the house all to ourselves.  We don't even have to wrap our towel around our wrinkled bodies on the way to the shower.  That's not cohabitation.  That's not concubinage.  That's pure, outright conjugal community life.  Pure sex.  Devoid of grammar.  Morally acceptable, even according to majority community standards.  Not only that, even Catholics can do it and still not feel guilty.  Now ain't THAT something?  Yep.  No scandal there.  Except, of course, if you're against misogynistic matrimony.
That's what we have.  Big word that only means that I "glow in the dark" and she doesn't.
The point here, boys and girls, feminines and masculines, is that any housing arrangement that is not marriage is immoral.  That means that it is wrong.  In Catholic terms, it is a sin.   It is a habitual sin, so it leaves you out of the church's sacramental life.
The attack on marriage is a myth.  The real attack is on the conscience of the population at large.  So many people of good faith are forced to live in the condition of "loving the sinner and hating the sin" that after a while the moral fabric of the entire world starts to wear thin.  That's the attack.
The attack is not even the government's legalizing same sex [same gender?] marriage.  That's a taxation issue on the one hand, and, as such, innocuous enough.  On the other hand, the vicious and dangerous part of it is that the population then forms a conscience about this legalized cohabitation that confuses the righteousness of real marriage with the insane immorality of legalized cohabitation.  [The technical religious moral word for cohabitation is concubinage.]  So, the attack is not on marriage.  That's the wrong language. The real attack is essentially against the collective conscience of the world.
I know.  I communicate with people in several countries.  Slowly but surely the ability to recognize the difference between right and wrong is weakening.  This is true of the ability to recognize objective right and wrong as well as the ability to recognize and accept community standards of right and wrong and match them up in order to manage human life effectively and stay on the path of justice and righteousness.
So, don't try telling me that as a married guy I cohabitate with my wife.  That is pure bullshit.  I am married to my wife.  Twice.  Once in city hall and once in church.  That's enough to confirm me in my community life and save me from concubinage.  it also is enough to confirm us as male and female, not as masculine and feminine.  

AUTO DEALER OFFER / I COUNTER OFFER

THIS OFFER WAS IN THE COFFIN FROM THE TIME I OPENED IT

I know you can't read this because the print is too small.   But you've seen some of these "offers" to buy your car for the top of the Kelly Blue Book range.  I just got one today.  They promise to give you more than the price they start with if your car is in "better then excellent" condition.   If my car, or anybody's car, or even just their can opener were in "better than excellent" condition, even the Koch Brothers couldn't afford it.  Here's the letter that I mailed back to the sweethearts who sent me the offer.

Thursday, February 16, 2012

Paul Dion

23820 Ironwood Avenue 166

Moreno Valley, CA 92557

Spreen Honda

25050 Redlands Boulevard

Loma Linda, CA 92534

Hello:

Here’s the deal.  I own a 2004 Honda Civic Hybrid which is in better than excellent Condition.

It has 151,300 miles on it.

Cracked windshield

Some body dings and dents

Same “baling wire” fixes

The IMA light is on

The air bags went out at 16,000 and Honda refused to replace them at no cost to me

It still gets 40 miles to the gallon

It never got the advertised 50 MPG except with a tail wind while going downhill

It has just passed the 150,000 maintenance exercise for $700.00

Now that I have told you the truth, I dare you to tell me the truth.  You have absolutely no intention of ever paying anybody $8,379.00 for a car of this vintage.  It is clear to the discerning reader when along with the numerous disclaimers and caveats you put the cap on your offer with the absolute champion of all oximorons better than excellent.  On the day when you set eyes on anything better than excellent, I suggest that you join the circus or contact Mr. Ripley, or maybe even God Himself. 

Bottom line.  Give me $10,000.00 and a 0% loan for $7,000 for 60 months and we can talk.  Maybe.

Oh yes, I kept the fake check as a souvenir, suitable for framing.

Paul Dion

I AM ANTI-ABORTION

I read a blog post today that really made me go back to my entrenchment into my pro-choice conviction.  Don't get excited, it's not what you think.  Read on.
It was about Rick Santorum and his family choosing to keep a baby that they knew had a condition that would be worse than Down Syndrome and cut the life of the child to very few years, if not months.  The author of the blog accused the parents of egoism.  Making themselves feel better because they had kept the baby.  The author insisted that this was the type of baby that should have been aborted to save the baby from such a short and pain-filled life.  I am still disturbed by the thoughts put forward by the blogger.  I just feel that I have to stake out my position on this matter.
I have blogged before on this topic.  I made some short comments about it here.  My argument is simply that I tell everybody that I am anti-abortion and make no bones about it.  I don't have to cave in to the political jargon.   I am pro-choice because the freedom to make choices is what makes us human.  Take away the reminder that I have a choice to make and you take away my humanity.  Therefore, choose life over death, every time, and you will be making the right choice.  
The blogger from this morning was saying that the Santorum baby should never have been left to come to term.  He should have been spared the suffering of such a short life.  I say BULLSHIT!  Let me state two [yeah, only two for now] reasons.
1. Love.  Children are procreated in love.  They are a fruit of love.  Even the fruit of rape is kept out of love.  Not egoism, religious or otherwise.  
2. Love. Children are born into love.  No one is going to tell me that a mother who accompanies her child during a short, warm cuddly life close to her soft, velvety smooth breasts and her safe, warm, embracing arms is not normal, or an egoist.  She is providing a warm welcome to life and celebrating saving her baby from the cruelty of having been sucked out of her womb by the abortionist's vacuum cleaner.  Now, that is a true love choice.  That is true anti-abortion, pure and simple.  If the baby could, he would be celebrating too.  Better to die in my mother's arms than to be sucked out of her womb.  Life sure is great out here! 
I am not a single issue moralist or activist.  I am anti-abortion and I despise the clowns who call it "woman's health care services."  It's too bad that I don't have too much longer to make life uncomfortable for the demoniacs who make this stuff up.  

WHERE'S MY PHONE -- I DON'T WANNA TALK TO HIM

HELL-O!  YEAH, SPEAKING.  WHO'SE CALLING?

OH, SO YOU CALLED ME FOUR TIMES BEFORE GETTING HOLD OF ME THIS TIME.  

YOU'RE RIGHT.  I CALLED YOU BACK FOUR TIMES AND ALL I GOT WAS YOUR COMPUTER.  IF YOU WANT TO TALK TO ME, ANSWER YOUR PHONE.

AH, YOUR COMPUTER IS VERY EFFICIENT, YOU SAY.  IF THAT'S THE CASE, GO ACCUSE IT FOR NOT REACHING ME.  

SO TELL ME, WHADDYA WANT?

Ah, you're wondering if I would like to make some extra money working 3 to 5 hours a week at home.  If that were possible, I might want to give it a try.  For whom, by the way.  Oh, for you, the Bozos with the computers.  Ah, I see.  That's what it is.  You work three hours a week and the computer works the rest of the time swallowing all the calls that I make to you when I don't answer my phone on the second ring.   Well, Sweetie-pie, go talk to your computer, I don't want to take too much of your precious three hour work week.

To all you lovely human friends of mine, I divulge that this is a composite paraphrase of at least five telephone calls that I have received over the last five days.  I am not exagerating the tone of the interchange.  It's my favorite pass time these days.  Here's my favorite.

Billy Boilerroom from Manila wants to talk to Mrs. Isabel Dion.  I say, "I'm her husband and she doesn't want to talk to you, especially not at 10:30 PM, Idiot.  I'm hanging up now and don't ever call this number again."   Billy calls back about two days later.  I have to be honest, he got his GMT time zones in line this time.  "Hello," he says, of course, "I want to talk to Isabel Dion."  I tell this beast of burden that I told him not to ever call this number again.  Furthermore, says I, "I Know that you're calling to make us change our cell phone carrier, and the answer is no."

This guy is getting tough and he insists that he has to talk to Isabel Dion.  I'm having fun, so there's no way I'm caving.   I TOLD YOU NEVER TO CALL THIS NUMBER AGAIN.  ONE MORE TIME AND I WILL REACH THOUGH THE WIRES AND CHOKE YOU.  GOOD BYE.  I like this, it's good therapy.  I decide to tell Belle what is going on.   I get the usual five hundred word sermon about being nice to everyone.  I then say, OK, you wanna talk to him, you're on.  The next time he calls, it's your turn.

Sure as shootin', Billy calls again and I say, "You're an animal.  I told you never to call this phone number again, and yet here you are. "  

"I have to talk to Isabel Dion."

"You know what, Billy boy, she is not going to change the wireless phone carrier because I pay the bill."

Billy, the Boilerroom Parrot says, "I have to talk to Isabel Dion."

"OK.  Is your boss around?  Are you recording this call?"

"I don't know to you, sirrr."

"Here's Isabel."

The conversation lasts about 90 seconds.  She says an emphatic "no" because the guy won't divulge who gave him the contact information to begin with.  He begs and he begs in great Pinoy form.  She gives me the phone and the line is still open and he's telling someone in the background in tear-soaked Tagalog that Isabel Dion just said "no."  I say into the telephone, and in Tagalog,  "See, I told you so, Animal."  The phone did not click, it fairly exploded.

Yesterday I got a call wondering if I would consider working at home for excellent money.  I said, "Yeah, I've only been looking for that for five or six months now."  The guy says, "Would you consider making a small investment of $200.00 to get started?"

"Yeah, Socrates, I'm out of work and I'm going to give you 2 C's to try out your scheme.  Go get it from the neighborhood dog."  Click.

Sweet Pea of a young thing calls and asks if I would consider going to school to train for the latest "Hot field of enterprise endeavors...Blah, blah, blah."  I ask, politely of course, "Do you call-center people use computers in your work?" 

"Oh, yes, sir, we do."

"Good.  Do me a favor and go check how many times I have answered your calls and declared my distaste for talking to you people."  Click.

With that, all youse lovely hearts are just going to have to imagine me pulling the garbage can cover over my tired body as I have decided to strengthen my resolve to be nice to everyone, without exception.  Just as soon as the telephone stops ringing.

SOCIALIST CONGRESS LOVES FRANKING PRIVILEGE

http://www.wltx.com/news/story.aspx?storyid=86886

Have any of you ever had the chance to ask the members of congress who rale against socialism why they don't mind having franking privileges?  Do they know or care that what they did last year was to redistribute wealth to the tune of $50,000,000.00?  Do they know or care that if they had paid their own postage costs they could have contributed to the paying of 500 post office employees?
Mary Bono Mack sent a mailer out [paid by me and you, of course] asking what it is that her constituents wanted changed.  Here's what I said.  Forgive all student loans and start over again; institute a fair flat tax system; decree that no CEO can make more than 100 times the annual wages of the lowest paid employee in the company, salary and bonuses together;  remove the franking privilege.  Then, I had to put a stamp on the mail that I sent back to her.  You bet, the same mail for which I had paid for HER to send to ME in the first place.
Now, you perhaps think that this is bad.  Wait, wait, let me tell you one more.  Remember the Series E war bond?  You don't?  That's too bad.  No, wait, maybe it is good.  Know why?  Here's why.  If you still have a $25.00 or $50.00 Series E War Bond from 1944, let's say, and let's say that it is worth $100.00 now.  [This but a hypothetical example.]  When you go to cash it, you will be charged income tax on the gain.  I kid you not.  You help your country by lending it your money.  The country uses your money for its own ends.  It then turns around and takes more of your money on the interest that IT paid you for the privilege of using YOUR money for its own welfare.  Excuse me!  If there ever was an institutionalized insult, that is it.  When this happened to me, I decided right then and there that I would NEVER lend another penny to the USA again.  NEVER.
So, not only do we have to destroy the franking privilege and let the congress people pay for their own mailers, but we have to stop buying "savings bonds."  Let the Chinese buy them.  Let the government run after the Chinese for the tax owed on the gain.
There are some things that governments do that are the zenith of immorality.  These are two of them.

HOLY STATE OF MATRIMONY UNDER ATTACK? STERCUS TAURORUM

The holy state of matrimony is also now under vicious attack by secularism and evil forces both within and without our Church.  How is the holy state of matrimony being attacked?  These are not attacks.  They are denigration, insults, blasphemes and perhaps a few other things, but attacks? No.  My marriage is not being attacked.  The marriages of my children are not being attacked.  The one who is married is not being attacked.;  The one who is not yet married is certainly not being attacked.  So what is all this "attack" business.  Is marriage going to disappear?  Of course not.  Is marriage going to go crumbling into total desuetude because someone is going to insult it so badly that we are all going to quit?  No.  It is total intellectual short-circuiting to think that marriage is going to be destroyed because the state of marriage is being insulted.  It is the apex of idiocy to think that an institution as closely related to the nature of humans is ever going to fall under the weight of the insults and disparagement and completely crumble.  

Do I agree with homosexual marriage?  No.

Do I think that it attacks the state of my marriage?  No.

Do I think that divorce attacks the state of my marriage?  No

Do I think that institutionalized co-habitation without marriage attacks the state of my marriage?  No.

Do I think that the state has the power and the authority to legalize homosexual marriage?  Yes.

Do I think that the state has the power and the authority to coerce religious groups to perform and legalize homosexual marriages?  No.

People have to open up their ears and listen to what they are saying when they talk about these things.  People have to realize that marriage is a covenant between two people which is ratified by the state.  If the state doesn't want to ratify marriage as a valid object of legislation at certain, or all levels, then the union between two people depends on the consent of the two people involved.   It is not the state (nor the Church) that creates marriage and then is able to dissolve it.

Never!  It is the two human beings involved with each other and with the consent that they proffer to one other for their mutual welfare who create a marriage...no matter of what sex they are.  It is up to the state to accept the covenant as valid according to the state's outline of who qualifies and who doesn't.  That's it.  Marriage is what it is and no church or government can change its essence.  All they can do is to validate the union or not validate the union.  Churches and governments are nothing but ratifiers of a personal covenant that creates a stable union between two human beings who freely and mutually consent to the union.  Period.