Nine Ways of Being an Accessory to Sins of Another Person There are some persons, who concern themselves but very little about the sins which they cause their neighbor to commit; although they are as guilty before God, as if they had committed the sinful acts themselves; and even more so. 1. By counsel. 2. By command. 3. By consent. 4. By provocation. 5. By praise or flattery. 6. By concealment. 7. By partaking. 8. By silence. 9. By defense of the ill done. Source  

IF YOU want to understand a bit more about Freemasonry and the role of this secret society in the history of America, you might appreciate this video tour of the  palatial Masonic Temple of Philadelphia. Freemasonry existed since the 1700s in Pennsylvania, where Benjamin Franklin was a prominent member of the lodge. The ornate temple built in the 1800s, in the medieval Norman style, stands across from Philadelphia City Hall The massive granite cornerstone, weighing ten tons, was leveled on St. John the Baptist's Day, June 24, 1868. The ceremonial gavel used on that day by Grand Master Richard Vaux was the same gavel used by President George Washington in leveling the cornerstone of the nation's Capitol building in 1793. The construction was completed five years later, in 1873, and dedicated on September 29th of that year. This is an amateur tour from a visitor five years ago, but it's a fascinating glimpse inside this historic home of Masonry.  

'WISDOM preacheth abroad, she uttereth her voice in the streets. At the head of multitudes she crieth out; in the entrance of the gates of the city she uttereth her words, saying: O children, how long will you love childishness, and how long will fools covet those things which are hurtful to themselves, and the unwise hate knowledge? Turn ye at my reproof. Behold I will utter my spirit to you, and will show you my words.' --- (Proverbs i. 20-23)  

"THE spirit of Christ is a spirit of martyrdom, at least of mortification and penance. It is always the spirit of the cross. The remains of the old man, of sin and of death, must be extinguished, before one can be made heavenly by putting on affections which are divine. What mortifies the senses and the flesh gives life to the spirit, and what weakens and subdues the body strengthens the soul. Hence the divine love infuses a spirit of mortification, patience, obedience, humility, and meekness, with a love of sufferings and contempt, in which consists the sweetness of the cross. The more we share in the suffering life of Christ, the greater share we inherit in his spirit, and in the fruit of his death. To souls mortified to their senses and disengaged from earthly things, God gives frequent foretastes of the sweetness of eternal life, and the most ardent desires of possessing him in his glory. This is the spirit of martyrdom, which entitles a Christian to a happy resurrection and to the bliss of the life to come." --- Rev. Alban Butler, Lives of the Saints (1866 Edition)  

YOU gotta admit, Paula White is one heck of a fundraiser.

For only $1,000, she’ll arrange “seven supernatural blessings.” She’s got some powerful connections.

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MANY more examples from social media here.  

ALAN writes: Thank you for posting portions of the Motion Picture Production Code. What a difference nine decades have made in the lowering of standards.  Observe the moral-philosophical frame of mind reflected in motion pictures from the 1930s-'40s, and then compare it with the palpable hatred of moral standards depicted in today's motion pictures.  Two things could not be more different, yet both are called entertainment. The word applies properly to the former.  But for the latter, the right word is Junk. We are fortunate indeed that old movies are still available in which we can see concrete expressions of the good advice reflected in that Code: Uplifting stories brought to life by actors like Ronald Colman, James Stewart, Walter Pidgeon, and Fred Astaire, and actresses like Greer Garson, Claudette Colbert, Loretta Young, and Irene Dunne.  What they created represents a moral-philosophical-esthetic world of entertainment as different from today's degradation-called-entertainment as day from night.  That was my world.  I cannot stand anything in or about the indescribable junk that is now called entertainment.  Friends and acquaintances are shocked when I tell them this.  They cannot imagine that anyone could be so untrendy and uncool as not to appreciate any motion pictures made since the 1960s (and very few in that decade).  

S. H. writes:

If you study the Movie Production Code, you can interpret recent movies and see where they go wrong.

Look at this scene from the 1990 film Misery. Look at how Katherine Bates is dressed, she’s practically the trad-wife meme wearing a cross. Since she lives in the wilderness, in a way she represents the pioneering independence of heritage America.

She complains about the profanity. He defends the profanity saying, “that’s how we talk.” The code says it doesn’t matter if some people talk that way, it’s the effect on the souls of the viewer.

So the Bates character goes crazy — proving to the viewer that Christian traditional women are evil.  They are pent up authoritarians.

Read too in the code how powerful they knew theater to be. And how people confuse the characters with the actors and real life.

Do you have to “early- life” the guy who wrote the screenplay to Misery? Cause you shouldn’t have to! (more…)

I WANDERED LONELY AS A CLOUD
By William Wordsworth

I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o’er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the milky way,
They stretched in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance. (more…)

A beautiful musical recording of the Angelus can be found here.  

WHERE Eve was pride, she was humility. Where Eve was action, she was surrender. Where Eve was novelty, she was birth. Where Eve was outward, she was inward. Where Eve was death, she was life. Where Eve was self, she was compassion. Where Eve was shame, she was modesty. Where Eve was materialistic, she was maternal. Where Eve was wealth, she was poverty. Where Eve was doubt, she was trust. Where Eve was foolishness, she was wisdom. Where Eve was liberation, she was restraint. Where Eve was impulse, she was thought. Where Eve was confusion, she was clarity. Where Eve was virtue signaling, she was virtue. Where Eve was slave, she was queen.   **** "At that time: the angel Gabriel was sent from God into a city of Galilee, called Nazareth, to a Virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the Virgin’s name was Mary. And the angel being come in, said unto her: Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. Who having heard, was troubled at his saying, and thought with herself what manner of salutation this should be. And the angel said to her: Fear not, Mary, for thou hast found grace with God." [St. Luke, Chapter 1] Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee; Blessed art thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.…

FROM 1934 to 1968, most movies produced by major studios in this country complied with the Motion Picture Production Code of 1930. Known as the Hays Code, it provided moral standards for the industry, regulating how everything from murder and vulgarity to dress and religion were portrayed on screen. Cruelty to children and animals, prostitution, executions, “gruesomeness” and the demonizing of other nations were among the things it condemned.

All in all, the code represented benevolent and paternalistic protectiveness of the minds and souls of movie viewers.

Did you ever read the code? You might find it a profound statement on the importance and influence of film. You might also be amazed from the vantage point of today that such thoughtfulness ever existed.

Below is an excerpt from what is considered the most complete version:

GENERAL PRINCIPLES

I. Theatrical motion pictures, that is, pictures intended for the theatre as distinct from pictures intended for churches, schools, lecture halls, educational movements, social reform movements, etc., are primarily to be regarded as Entertainment.

Mankind has always recognized the importance of entertainment and its value in rebuilding the bodies and souls of human beings.

But it has always recognized that entertainment can be of a character either helpful or harmful to the human race, and, in consequence, has clearly distinguished between:

Entertainment which tends to improve the race, or, at least, to recreate and rebuild human beings exhausted with the realities of life; and Entertainment which tends to degrade human beings, or to lower their standards of life and living.

Hence the moral importance of entertainment is something which has been universally recognized. It enters intimately into the lives of men and women and affects them closely; it occupies their minds and affections during leisure hours, and ultimately touches the whole of their
lives. A man may be judged by his standard of entertainment as easily as by the standard of his work. (more…)

"THE holy season of Lent is fast advancing; the choicest graces are daily being offered us; woe to the man whose mind is distracted by the fashion of this world that passeth away, and takes no thought for eternity and heaven, and even in this time of grace, is like tamarick, a worthless weed of the desert. Oh, how numerous is this class! and how terrible is their spiritual indifference! Pray for them, of ye faithful children of the Church, pray for them without ceasing. Offer up your penances and almsgivings for them. Despair not; and remember that each year, many straying sheep are brought to the fold by such intercession such as this." --- Dom Prosper Guéranger, The Liturgical Year