Chateau Lloyd

It was interesting to see the reaction to Pope Leo XIV's election yesterday.  It was something of a masterclass of distortion, click-bait and ill-informed pronouncements.  I figured it best to wait a day and let the chaff be separated from the wheat so that I could form an informed opinion.

Not that it matters, but I think he will do well.  Despite constant spamming and distortion, he is not a rabid progressive but a thoughtful Catholic steeped in the Augustinian tradition.  This sets him very much apart from his predecessor, who disdained tradition and rejoiced in chaos.

Leo has thus far been his polar opposite, using traditional vestments and even conducting his first Mass in Latin (albeit using the Novus Ordo) format.

It's been interesting seeing people who initially panicked over his selection come around to realize that he's quite orthodox and always has been.  Of course, there is now a permanent group of Catholic media whose only source off income is convincing its audience that the pope is a communist.

If nothing else, his elevation has helped to conclusively demonstrate which conservative Catholics are serious and which are just their for the hot takes and clickbait.

And for what comes next, I remain resigned to God's will and filled with hope that better days are at hand.

For Catholic media, the imminent conclave is a combination of the Super Bowl and an old-school political nominating convention.  Everyone has a favorite team, preferred outcomes and wants to find some way to keep score.

I'm going to turn this over the Holy Spirit because that's who ultimately gets to call the shots.  A lot of the coverage seems to be talking for the sake of talking.

That said, I do hope that we get a pope who will calm things down, lift the restrictions on the Traditional Latin Mass and perhaps heal the ancient schisms with Copts and Orthodox.

Is that too much to ask?

I first encountered David Horowitz through his "Heterodoxy" newspaper, which was distributed around campus in the 1990s.  It was a breath of fresh air, and part of the intellectual current that pushed me into a more independent - and often conservative - point of view.

I've always been something of a reactionary, and while I entered college as a Democrat, by the time I graduated, I was deeply dissatisfied with the party, which was already abandoning its principles to political expediency.

I next encountered Horowitz's work online, and regular read him for many years, but it was not until comparatively recently that I purchased Radical Son, his autobiography first published in 1998.  Horowitz was a classic "red diaper" baby, raised from birth by his Jewish Communist parents to carry out the long-awaited revolution.

In a sense, it's a secular conversion story, but what sets it apart is the penetrating analysis of the mentality behind the politics of the New Left.  Marxism is a rival religion, not an economic or political program, which is why people who believe in it have a quasi-religious zeal.  Horowitz laid out very clearly that the reason why so many American Jews "lived like Episcopalians but voted like Puerto Ricans" was because the synagogue had been replaced by the Party committee room.

This is still true today.

Many people of his generation followed the same path, and American popular culture reflected this drift through TV shows like Family Ties, where a hippy couple end up with apolitical or even conservative children, all the while living the middle class lifestyle they once condemned.

Having found his new faith, he carried it forward with zeal, and it is interesting to note what while many 80s conservatives turned against Trump, he instead embraced him.

Horowitz was a minor influence on my intellectual development, but an important one.  The seeds planted by reading his paper in the dorm cafeteria took deep roots and have remained with me ever since.  May he rest in peace.

Old trade paperbacks are more than a good value; they're often a time capsule.  Yes, there's the text of the book, but the blurbs, the quotes from reviewers and even the advertisements in the back that really set it in a specific time and place.

I bought A Burnt-Out Case simply because I wanted to read more of Graham Greene.  I knew nothing about the book, but the pull-quote featured on the cover assured me that it was his best work.

Well, I've only read three of his books and, I think it's in third place.

That's not to say I didn't enjoy it.  It's quite the page-turner and if I had been able to read it on a reliable basis, I would absolutely have gotten more out of it.  When you're reading a novel, taking days off at a time really disrupt the flow.

The plot is interesting if a bit contrived:  a famous Catholic architect grows tired of the world and seeks seclusion and meaning at a leper hospital in the Congo.  The title is derived from the name the doctors give to lepers who have lost all their fingers and toes and have become disease-free.  Such a person is a "burnt-out case," and it soon clear that the main character (known only as "Querry") is spiritually the same.

It is full of vivid description and Green's affectionate satire of Catholic clergy.  It starts slow, and picked up speed as it moves towards yet another unpredictable ending.  I appreciate Greene for that.  His endings are surprising, but never contrived.  They could have been "just so," but are not.  I'm looking forward to reading more of his work.

The news this morning that Pope Francis passed away seemed oddly fitting given all that has been going on.  I imagine that he held on for one more Paschal Feast and, with the task accomplished, shrugged off the mortal coil.

He brought enthusiasm and chaos to the Catholic Church, and it seemed inevitable that a quieter, more consistent candidate will be chosen to succeed him.

For all the problems he caused, the Church is growing, vocations are up, and there is a real possibility that the schisms between Rome, the Copts and the Easter Orthodox may well be resolved.  Certainly, I think there is more sympathy for a less authoritarian papacy, and some sort of stricture may well be enough to resolve long-standing disputes.

Papal politics are famously opaque, but one gets a sense that Francis' turbulent tenure has been exhausting.  Even his liberal allies in the College of Cardinals have to be breathing a sigh of relief that there will be no more off-hand statements that require a careful walk back.

And that's really all the Church needs at this point.  

At several points this week, I intended to write something, but events invariably called me away from the keyboard.

I didn't resist because real life should take priority.  Each day I've gone to bed relatively early and immediately fallen into restful, healing slumber.

This Easter will be one of my busiest in years, and there remains much to be done today.  Indeed, the operational tempo around here is probably not going to  ease until June, but it is all positive, productive work.

In the wider world, the usual anti-Catholic antics took place, but they seem to be either ineffective or counterproductive.  The report that 40% of young adults in England go to Catholic Mass each week sent shock waves through the religious community.  By contrast, only 20% attend Anglican services.  While England is something of a basket case at the moment, its future within the Church seems bright.  I can't help think that the nonsensical attempt to ban silent prayer has people wondering what it is like.

I must be powerful stuff if you're willing to lock up old ladies over it.

France is having another banner year of adult conversions, and the final number seems close to 18,000, which is yet another increase over the previous year.  This trend has been going on for a while, and while 18,000 in a nation of millions seems paltry, it is happening year after year.  Indeed, much of Europe seems to be seeing similar trends.

The great exception, of course, is Germany, where the numbers of Lutheran and Catholic alike are crashing down.  The actions of the Catholic leadership can only be explained as either insane or demonic.  It is insane because all of the "reforms" they are pushing have already been tried by state Protestant churches for decades without any positive effect.  Indeed, the one comfort Catholics might derive is that they will soon outnumber the Lutherans because the rate of loss among Protestants is higher.

The other predictable result will be schism and excommunication, which is why I say it is demonic.  They know that Rome is not going to bend the knee on questions of core doctrine like sexual morality and the ordination of women.  

In a sense, this challenge has been coming for a long time, and presumably the liberal Catholics who dominate the upper ranks of the German Church see this is their last opportunity to ram through their long-desired 'reforms.'

Another miracle was announced this week at Lourdes, bringing the grant total to 72.  It should be noted that this list is far from comprehensive - these are only the most well-documented and completely inexplicable healings.  There are plenty more where people found healing, but it was within the tiniest margin of probability.  

Finally, archeologists working beneath the Holy Sepulchre have found evidence that there was once a garden on the site, closely following the Gospel  of John.  It is interesting that scientists constantly denigrate the Catholic Church, yet it tirelessly subjects its beliefs to scientific validation.  

Over the past few months, I've noticed the appearance of a strange new creature: the Calvinist Catholic.

These seems like an oxymoron, but as with so many things, contradiction can often coexist in the disturbed mind.

Catholic Calvinists are people who have bought fully into the idea that the Utterly Depraved are incapable of doing good.  One can never judge them by the fruits of their action, but only by their perceived motivations.

The Case Zero for this is of course Donald Trump.  Objectively speaking, Trump has been the most pro-life president of my lifetime.  Not only did his appointments overturn Roe v. Wade, but his subsequent actions (including recent executive orders), have further hammered abortion providers, forcing Planned Parenthood to close numerous clinics.

Yet when presented with these facts, one gets a remarkable set of excuses, such as Trump was motivated by DEI to hit Planned Parenthood, and the pro-life aspect was unintentional.  Similarly, his economic and governmental reforms are always characterized as chaotic and random even when it is clear that they are moving an a long-planned progression.

Maybe this is vanity.  Maybe the Catholics in question have much knowledge of theology and little of economics or politics.

It is tempting to write this off as the all-too-familiar Trump Derangement Syndrome, but these people are otherwise sensible and important voices in the Church.  It is illogical to expect them to change their opinion of Trump personally, nor should anyone ask that they do so.  He is a polarizing figure.

But when we move into the realm of policy, such distinctions assume a secondary character.  This is especially true when there is no moderate alternative.  The opposition has wedded itself to abortion without any limits at all, and their other policies are equally morally abhorrent.

When Trump is wrong, Catholics should speak out, but their criticisms will be much more effective when coming from voices that were hitherto friendly and supportive.  Simply carping at him non-stop, qualifying any praise while indulging in personal attacks are unwise and counterproductive.  It is also not particularly Christian.

One of the most disturbing - and yet comforting - revelations of the past few months is just how much money is wasted on bogus aid programs.  It's disturbing because most people assuming that the US was incapable of Third-World level corruption.  We're not.

At the same time, it is comforting because we now know that there are vast amounts of resources that could be redirected to do immense good (or at least lowering the tax burden and reducing the national debt).

There is also newfound scrutiny being directed at the almost entirely useless "non-profit" sector.  Most of these organizations serve as pass-through recipients, who take a cut of whatever grant they get and then pass it on to others who then take a cut and pass it along again.

The mission statements of these entities is invariably open-ended.  They "advocate" or "raise awareness" or "build networks" and so on.  Their staff is well-compensated, with the CEOs living in luxury.  It was not always so.

Before women became preponderant in the office environment, actual charities were primarily staffed by volunteers, typically housewives whose kids had reached a point where they no longer demanded close supervision.  My grandmother was one of these women - having raised five kids, she now turned her attention to various societies and right up until her death, she was constantly busy organizing and attending meetings, events, and so on.

In those days, women gained status by having thriving families and doing good works (yes, she was Catholic).  To not contribute one's time was shameful.  How could you sit around the table at the country club without recounting your various activities, many of which you shared with your dining companions?

We have long since replaced this concept of charitable obligation with charity as an income generator, and the very uselessness of non-profits is held to raise them above grubby for-profit business, which of course are what powers the economy that keeps them afloat.

This shift is one of the engines that has powered Yard Sign Calvinism, which has no concern over whether any of their labor accomplishes anything, it is all about looking good and feeling good.  Pulling down hundreds of thousands of dollars in salary while running a food bank into the ground is the epitome of this mentality.

There is also the problem of where the money that isn't wasted on staff perks actually goes.  In the above example, some of it went to electioneering, which is clearly fraud.  

The fact is that we live in a fallen world, and one way to avoid aid being misused is to keep it close to home and under close observation.  Even nominally religious organizations can fall victim to a bureaucratic mentality.

As I have repeatedly pointed out, my parish bulletin is simultaneously asking for help in resettling foreign migrants while also lamenting the depletion of the food pantry and housing resources.  We are literally robbing Peter to pay Paul, all the while preening about our virtue.

Indeed, there is almost a perverse delight in this, as the Protestant work ethic is weaponized against native-born poor, who are condemned as lazy, ill-educated and of course racist, while those from overseas bear none of the sins of this blighted nation.

Our charities are increasingly uncharitable, designed to comfort the comfortable, and punish the suffering.  I see these discoveries as an opportunity to make a radical change, sweeping out the corruption and refocusing on truly good works.

Val Kilmer has died, and it is not particularly surprising.  The image he put forth in his documentary a few years ago was not one of a healthy man.

In many ways, his appearance in Top Gun: Maverick was something of a final sendoff, and the scene of his final farewell to Tom Cruise's character is deeply moving, in large part because the vocal limitations on Kilmer were real.

In many ways, the end of "Iceman" paralleled that of the actor who played him.  In his prime, Kilmer was outstanding, but more than anything else, his illness destroyed any attempt at him making a comeback.  The contrast between Kilmer and Cruise was remarkable, and again, added to the gravity of the moment.

As I wrote before, Kilmer professed to be a Christian, but it was not much in evidence, even in the documentary.

Nevertheless, it is to be hoped that he died in Christ and that he and his family find some measure of comfort through that.

On the Feast Day of St. Joseph last week it was announced that a major Planned Parenthood facility in New York City was closing down.

This is glorious news, and it highlights the need to press forward against the evil of abortion on all fronts.  It is well and good to lobby for legislation, or file lawsuits, but another key theater of the war is in the hearts of both workers and those seeking abortions.  I've remarked before on how strange it is that highly secular England bans prayer around abortion mills.  Note that this does not refer to open services, but simply standing silently can now land one in jail.

Clearly, the prayer makes the demons uncomfortable.  The British also seem troubled that women might change their mind, which is now an illegal form of coercion.  That admission gives the game away, because we know for a fact that many abortions are coerced, either by men who want to avoid child support or families who fear the scandal or burden of a teen mother.

I am often frustrated by Right to Life organizations that collect money but seem to have no real legislative strategy other than endless "trainings," but this is proof that street presence matters.

It also shows that the economics of abortion are shifting against its profiteers.  It would be nice to see more on this front, something similar to what happened in Lansing some years ago, when an abortion clinic's lease came up and a Catholic parish bought out the property, forcing the clinic to close.  The building was given an exorcism and now is a pregnancy resource center.

In recent years, the Enemy has played up the fears of women through lies about ectopic pregnancies.  These lies must be exposed and the reality of abortion made clear, as well as the sordid wealth gained from it.  As abortion demand falls, there will inevitably be pressure for tax dollars to sustain it.  This will only play well in the most lop-sided jurisdictions, and even there it will not be without controversy.  

In the mean time, we must continue our prayers, which are clearly proving efficacious.