Fausta's Blog

Adam Cahn reminds us; here’s George Washington’s Prayer for Guidance,

O eternal and everlasting God, I presume to present myself this morning before thy Divine majesty, beseeching thee to accept of my humble and hearty thanks, that it hath pleased thy great goodness to keep and preserve me the night past from all the dangers poor mortals are subject to, and has given me sweet and pleasant sleep, whereby I find my body refreshed and comforted for performing the duties of this day, in which I beseech thee to defend me from all perils of body and soul….

Increase my faith in the sweet promises of the gospel; give me repentance from dead works; pardon my wanderings, and direct my thoughts unto thyself, the God of my salvation; teach me how to live in thy fear, labor in thy service, and ever to run in the ways of thy commandments; make me always watchful over my heart, that neither the terrors of conscience, the loathing of holy duties, the love of sin, nor an unwillingness to depart this life, may cast me into a spiritual slumber, but daily frame me more and more into the likeness of thy son Jesus Christ, that living in thy fear, and dying in thy favor, I may in thy appointed time attain the resurrection of the just unto eternal life bless my family, friends, and kindred.

And a link to the traditional Saint Patrick’s breastplate.

Three items,
God banned from funerals for war vets under Obama VA’s orders

UNBELIEVABLE! Obama Administration Puts Israel On List Of Countries That Support Terrorism

Is a bond market panic next?

From the White House, National Journal’s Marc Ambinder reports that Obama believes he can get the Republicans to cave on taxes if he first lets the bond markets panic in late-July. Obama then hopes that Wall Street and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce will force Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, to compromise, like he did on the FY 2011 budget deal earlier this year.

(h/t TigerHawk)

Denzel, Gary Oldman, apocalyptic story, and action-adventure… what more can a woman want?

I haven’t been to the movies yet, but this review by John Nolte caught my attention, REVIEW: ‘Book of Eli’ Delivers God, Guns, and Guts. Oh yeah, that sounds good to me,

Like most of you, many years ago I decided that after the apocalypse it will be The Mighty Gary Oldman I’ll choose as arch-nemesis to my Road Warrior (or Tina Turner). Oldman has a high-old time here, and what a credit to this great actor that he can perfectly inhabit the buttoned-down Commissioner Gordon one day and leave no scenery left un-chewed as Carnegie the next. Every line of dialogue, facial expression and movement is delivered for maximum impact. Oldman understands this genre, what it takes to be its villain, and succeeds in finding a place of his own.

And oh how I loves me some Denzel.

Will have to see it.

NORAD has Santa’s location. Go check it out!

And, via The Anchoress, Gregorian chant for the soul, and you can sing along,

Obama Worldview Unchanged Since His College Years?

Israel on the chopping block. It was a very naive, Wilsonian speech

‘Czarism’, and why it’s not a good thing. Is it time to appoint a zombie czar?

Why we should Get rid of the mandate

The difference between “a society which organizes itself around stern lessons administered by bureaucrats preaching to schoolchildren and a society of free men who hire bureaucrats to take out the garbage”: Equal to ourselves

Omphaloskepsis – Navel Gazing In Obama’s White House

CBO: Obamacare Cuts Your Medicare Benefits (video via Ed):

The night they raided Alinskys

Look up the word, and then Feel the Gleichschaltung!

Bummer: New York Again Leads Way On Property Taxes; NJ Worst Business Climate.

Mortgages, The “Walk-Away” Crisis

James ponders whether we’re Losing our religion.

Got a question? Ask Hillary.

Via Maria, U.N. climate meeting was propaganda: Czech president. Vaclac Klaus isn’t buying the hype.

EU
Emerald Elvis says no to the Lisbon treaty:

Erik is blogging about the Clearstream trial. I predict that, no matter the outcome, Villepin’s pompadour will remain untouched.

International
The Death of a Top Indonesian Militant

THE CAR NOT EVEN COMMIES WILL BUY

And more shameless self-promotion
I was in Ed’s podcast this afternoon,

and in Rick Moran‘s yesterday evening.

Check out the ugly church art contest, because your submissions make Baby Jesus cry…, via The Anchoress.

Michael D’Antuono’s “The Truth:”

I first came across the above painting a couple of days ago when a friend emailed me. I emailed back saying that we live in a free country and every mediocre artist has a right to paint whatever they best please.

But let’s take a second look at the painting:

The bizarre picture of Barack Obama in Messianic imagery (which is starting to become routine) imbued in Christian symbols while dressed in red, white and blue, is appalling to a Christian. The painting was to be unveiled in New York tomorrow, which happens to be President Obama’s 100th day in office.

Michael D’Antuono has decided that he won’t unveil the painting now. Thousands of people have seen the painting but now he won’t unveil it. Why? Because he didn’t intend to have a religious debate:

I just thought that through that painting people would see different things. The right and the left would have different interpretations of it based on their political lens. But I have to admit I was very surprised that instead of that I got thousands of email complaining on the religious front. And that was not my intent at all. I wanted to create a dialog politically but not religiously. I didn’t mean to make fun of anybody’s religion; maybe I did so naively but I didn’t mean it that way. In the bible Jesus is The Truth and comparing Obama that way isn’t something I meant to do at all.

Say again?

• Obama with his arms extended, as Jesus’s arms on the cross
• The crown of thorns, an instrument of Jesus’s torture
• The curtain, which refers to St. Luke, 24, 44: And the sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was rent in the midst

And, to top it off, this statement at Michael D’Antuono’s own website:

“More than a presidential portrait, ‘The Truth’ is a politically, religiously and socially-charged statement on our nation’s current political climate and deep partisan divide that is sure to create a dialogue.”

The truth is that D’Antuono – by saying now that he didn’t intend to bring up a religious debate in the first place – is lying.

I’ll leave it to The Anchoress to discuss the painting from a Catholic’s point of view. My point is that D’Antuono tried to be a provocateur but chickened out at the last moment.

Three friends, including Instapundit have the good news:
Iraq Declares Christmas an Official Holiday for First Year

Iraq’s Christians, a small minority in the overwhelmingly Muslim country, quietly celebrated Christmas on Thursday with a present from the government, which declared it an official holiday for the first time.

Let’s continue to pray for Iraq.

Share on Facebook

Now Barack Obama makes it into Nativity, along with Michelle (h/t Pamela). Video, via Allahpundit.

However, this is not as outrageous as it sounds, since Naples Nativity scenes are eclectic, to say the least,

Italian families prize their Nativity sets and often add a new character to the stable scene each year. This year they can choose from a host of political and high-profile figures including Nicolas Sarkozy and his wife Carla Bruni, or the Pope himself. Even Silvio Berlusconi – Italy’s much derided Prime Minister – finds himself rendered in wood and standing next to the cattle.

Much more irreverent is the Obama caganer that’s selling like hotcakes in Barcelona, complete with “Yes we can”:

Caganers, which date back to the 18th Century, are traditionally hidden in the Nativity scenes and guests at Christmas parties look for them, like we do during Easter Egg hunts; they’re supposed to symbolize fertility, prosperity and hope (bet you didn’t see that one coming, did you?) for the incoming year.

In other Christmas season news, Hugh Heffner’s not content to pimp women young enough to be his granddaughters, now he’s pimping the Virgin Mary:

Playboy Virgin Mary Cover Sparks Outrage In Mexico. The timing of the cover coincides with a national religious holiday, the feast of the patron saint of Mexico,

The release was timed for the day before Mexico’s traditional Day of the Virgin of Guadalupe, a celebration of an apparition of the Virgin in the town.

Its headline reads in Spanish: “We adore you, Mary.”

Of course Playboy Mag in the USA has issued a non-apology apology, as in “too bad you’re offended but it ain’t our fault”:

Playboy Enterprises Inc., based in Chicago, released a statement Friday explaining that the company did not approve the cover because the Mexican version of the magazine is published by a licensee, according to Reuters.

“While Playboy Mexico never meant for the cover or images to offend anyone, we recognize that it has created offense, and we as well as Playboy Mexico offer our sincerest apologies,” the company said.

If you take a quick glance at the Huffpo comments you’ll see the commenters deal with the topic in a most sensitive and tactful way.

Catholics all over the world are rioting, aren’t they?

UPDATE
The Anchoress: You don’t mess with the Mother of God

Share on Facebook

Happy Easter to all friends and visitors of this blog.

Today we celebrate the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.

On this holy day, Pope Benedict makes a highly significant and symbollic gesture:

At an Easter vigil mass in St Peter’s Basilica on Saturday night the Pope baptized Magdi Allam, 55, a Muslim-born convert who is one of Italy’s most outspoken journalists.

Allam, a fierce critic of Islamic extremism and a strong supporter of Israel, is protected by a police escort because of threats he has received.

WELL-KEPT SECRET

His conversion to Christianity was a well-kept secret, disclosed by the Vatican in a statement less than an hour before the Easter eve service started on Saturday night.

“For the Catholic Church, each person who asks to receive baptism after a deep personal search, a fully free choice and adequate preparation, has a right to receive it,” it said.

Allam defended the pope in 2006 when the pontiff made a speech in Regensburg, Germany, that many Muslims perceived as depicting Islam as a violent faith.

The Vatican statement announcing Allam was joining Catholicism said all newcomers were “equally important before God’s love and welcome in the community of the Church”.

Allam, who has been living in Italy for 35 years, has said he was never a very devout Muslim. Still, his conversion to Christianity came as a surprise.

“What amazes me is the high profile the Vatican has given this conversion,” Yaha Sergio Yahe Pallavicini, vice-president of the Italian Islamic Religious Community, told Reuters.

Gateway Pundit links to the photos

As this article reminds us,

The role of Christian theology is not to reconcile the diversity of ‘creeds,’ to find in Islam ‘Christian seeds’ and ‘biblical seeds,’ to engage in dialogue, but to proclaim the Christian message

The Pope has reaffirmed this role.
(h/t The Baron)

UPDATE
Muslim Converted by Pope Says
Life in More Danger

ROME – An outspoken muslim author and critic of Islamic fundamentalism who converted to Christianity at the hands of Pope Benedict said on Sunday he realised he was in greater danger but he has no regrets.

“I realise what I am going up against but I will confront my fate with my head high, with my back straight and the interior strength of one who is certain about his faith”, said Magdi Allam.
…
Writing in Sunday’s edition of the leading Corriere della Sera, the newspaper of which he is a deputy director, Allam said: “… the root of evil is innate in an Islam that is physiologically violent and historically conflictual”. Allam, who is a strong supporter of Israel and who an Israeli newspaper once called a “Muslim Zionist,” has lived under police protection following threats against him, particularly after he criticised Iran’s position on Israel.

————————————————————–
This week’s WSJ’s Five Best Books, selected by Gabriel Schoenfeld:


————————————————————–
This week’s shoes: the very pretty Geox Sarah sandal, perfect for showing off a pedicure . . . once the temperatures allow it:

————————————————————–
Pat has the Easter Carnival of the Insanities

Share on Facebook