Sunday Snippets – A Catholic Carnival

Glad to be back for “Sunday Snippets – A Catholic Carnival.” [link to host site]  I always enjoy seeing what my fellow bloggers of the Papist Persuasion have been up to over the past week. 

My week started out with a post co-written by my lovely bride, Linda, about our curious (one time) stint talking to pre-married couples at Pre-Cana about Catholic teaching on marriage and sexuality.  We call it “Our Pre-Cana Adventure (As Presenters)” [link].  We had thought of calling it “The Day We Were Thrown To The Wolves” but that seemed too, well, negative  . . .

Next, a short post called “’Marriage Week’ Article”[link] – a brief comment and link to an article (non-Catholic, but interesting) on the American Spectator site.  I also linked to a letter written by then California Governor Ronald Reagan to his son Michael on the eve of Michael’s wedding.

I saw a post on Fr. Z.’s blog Tuesday on church closures [link] that got me thinking . . . the result was “The New, New Evangelization?”[link] It involves French Canadian immigration, the Industrial Revolution, the faith of our fathers (and mothers) some thoughts on what we ought to do with empty churches.

Thursday saw the latest installment of our Abortion Myths series, “Abortion Myth #4”[link].  We take a look at why abortion is just as wrong in the so-called “hard cases” (i.e. rape and incest) as it is in the . . . um . . .  soft? . .  cases.

This past Wednesday a federal judge ruled that standing on a narrow median in the middle of rush hour traffic asking for money is an exercise in constitutionally protected “free speech” that the City of Portland, Maine, might not restrict.  On the same day local pro-lifers introduced a suit in another federal courtroom challenging the same City of Portland’s 39 foot no-protest zone in front of abortion clinics.  In “Federal Judges Say The Darnedest Things”[link] I speculate as to whether the federal courts will consider actually protesting while standing on a public sidewalk to be similarly protected by the First Amendment.  I hope it turns out better than I expect, but I’m not holding my breath . . .  

I often post music videos that I find particularly moving (or amusing).  My last post of the week is clip of a beautiful performance of the “Benedictus” from Mozart’s Requiem[link].  But don’t take my word for it: listen!