It seems that governments (and corporations) are now able to accomplish through the force of money (and a economic system that works to their advantage) what used to take the forms of arms. Land is a common good, and those who inhabit a certain territory have a sort of universal ownership (which is compatible with 'private property rights'). To take what should be employed for the benefit of the natives in order to produce food and other materials to be used by non-natives does seem to be wrong and unjust. But if we subscribe to a simplistic understanding of the right of property, which is not limited by other laws and the common good, then any form of restriction on the sale and purchasing of property by non-natives would seem to be wrong.
The world map is being redrawn. Over the past six months, China, South Korea, Japan, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and other nations have been buying and leasing huge quantities of foreign land for the production of food or biofuels for domestic consumption. It's a modern day version of the 19th-century scramble for Africa.
There's something just unpleasant about the idea of canon. After all, if there's only one telling of the story that drags on, it's just a franchise. You have to start taking hammer and tongs to continuity to get to the meat of things -- becoming myth.Commercial story-telling is that must maintain some sort of consistency and continuity (along with quality) in order to keep the fans (who are seeking something to draw themselves out of the normal world, and value good, coherent story-telling accordingly) and generate revenue. Now by trying to broaden the appeal of Star Trek and bring in a greater audience, will the producers alienate the Trekkies/Trekkers?
Beginning Sunday at 12:01 a.m., coupons for a free 20-ounce soda will be available for 24 hours on Dr Pepper's Web site. They'll be honored until Feb. 28.
John Michael Greer wonders whether the Transition Town Movement is engaging in "premature triumphalism." As a part of the initiating group in Transition Town Montpelier, which on Tuesday received official recognition from the international transition folks, I doubt it.
We're happy if people even notice what we're up to.
With Transition, many people encounter the model, the tools, the Network, and enter what we might call ‘Super Exuberance Mode’, where they feel they have found the One Thing That Will Save Us. Over time, this then calms down, and they become more realistic and grounded, but although that early stage is a powerful experience for many, it also has its inherent dangers.
Cardinal Points to "Essential" Lay Vocation
Cautions Against 2 Temptations in Living Faith
VATICAN CITY, NOV. 18, 2008 (Zenit.org).- The lay vocation in the Church is not a series of functions for the non-ordained, but rather an encounter with Christ that transcends all other human activities, says the patriarch of Venice.
Cardinal Angelo Scola said this when he addressed the plenary assembly of the Pontifical Council for the Laity, which was dedicated to a consideration of John Paul II's apostolic exhortation "Christifideles Laici," some 20 years after its publication.
"The Church cannot be defined in the abstract, but must be based on two focuses: in relation to Christ and his mission, and in relation to the world, to which she is constantly sent," the cardinal said, according to a L'Osservatore Romano report of his address. "The risk of thinking that the Church is an independent reality must be overcome."
The cardinal went on to affirm that the "lay dimension" is essential for the Church.
The lay faithful are called "within each particular Church, to live their specific lay nature, facing the historical circumstances and situations in which they are protagonists," he said.
And in that regard, it is necessary to "overcome the temptations" that contradict this dimension of the Church, but which are very present today, the cardinal contended.
The first temptation consists in enclosing the faith within believing communities, which "does away with the popular dimension of the initial Christian experience," Cardinal Scola suggested. This temptation "is ever greater in areas where publicly living the faith and ecclesial membership is increasingly difficult."
The second temptation, he continued, consists in reducing the Christian faith "to a civil religion or mere ethical cement," an ever greater temptation in Western society "in which civil life is rather exhausted."
"The Church lives her characteristic lay dimension with the simple courage of being the People of God moving through history, the whole of history, giving witness to the beauty of the integral event of Jesus Christ, which in the form of communion, opens eternal salvation to us, giving us 100-fold as a pledge here on earth," the cardinal affirmed.
In this connection, he added that it is necessary to overcome a "theology of the laity" understood only as a "juridical demarcation of the laity's functions within the Church."
"The appropriate way to understand the lay dimension of the Church," Cardinal Scola stated, "is that of an encounter with Christ which transcends all realms of human existence."
On Investing Our Talents
"The Mistaken Attitude Is That of Fear"
VATICAN CITY, NOV. 16, 2008 (Zenit.org).- Here is the address Benedict XVI delivered today before reciting the Angelus together with the crowds gathered in St. Peter's Square.
* * *
Dear Brothers and Sisters!
The Word of God this Sunday -- the penultimate of the liturgical year -- invites us to be vigilant and active, in awaiting the return of the Lord Jesus at the end of time. The Gospel passage tells the parable of the talents, reported by St. Matthew (25:14-30). The "talent" was an ancient Roman coin of great value and precisely on account of the popularity of this parable it has become synonymous with personal gifts, which everyone is called to develop.
In reality, the text speaks of "a man who, going abroad, called his servants and handed over his goods to them" (Matthew 25:14). The man in the parable represents Christ himself, the servants are his disciples and the talents are the gifts that Jesus gives them. For this reason such gifts, apart from natural qualities, represent the riches that the Lord Jesus has left us as a legacy, so that we bear fruit with them: his Word, deposited in the holy Gospel; baptism, which renews us in the Holy Spirit; prayer -- the "Our Father" -- that we address to God as sons united in the Son; his forgiveness, which he commanded to be brought to all; the sacrament of his immolated Body and his Blood that he poured out. In a word: the Kingdom of God, which is Christ himself, present and living among us.
This is the treasure that Jesus has entrusted to his friends, at the end of his brief life on earth. Today's parable considers the interior attitude with which this gift is accepted and valued. The mistaken attitude is that of fear: The servant who fears his master and fears his return, hides the coin in the ground and it does not produce any fruit. This happens, for example, to those who, having received baptism, Communion, and confirmation bury such gifts beneath prejudices, a false image of God that paralyzes faith and works, so as to betray the Lord's expectations.
But the parable puts greater emphasis on the good fruits born by the disciples who, happy at the gift received, did not hide it with fear and jealously, but made it fruitful, sharing it, participating in it. Indeed, what Christ gives us is multiplied when we give it away! It is a treasure that is made to be spent, invested, shared with all, as the Apostle Paul, that great administrator of Jesus' talents, has taught us.
The Gospel teaching, which the liturgy offers us today, has even entered into the historical and social sphere, promoting an active mentality among Christian populations. But the central message regards the spirit of responsibility with which the Kingdom of God is to be accepted: responsibility toward God and toward humanity. This attitude is perfectly incarnated in the heart of the Virgin Mary who, receiving the most precious of gifts, Jesus himself, offered him to the world with great love. Let us ask her to help us to be "good and faithful servants," so that one day we can take part "in the joy of our Lord."
[Translation by Joseph G. Trabbic]
[After praying the Angelus, the Holy Father greeted the crowds in several languages. In English, he said:]
I extend warm greetings to all the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors present at today's Angelus. May your time in Rome be filled with divine blessings of joy and peace. On this third Sunday of November, we remember in a special way all those who have died as a result of traffic accidents. We pray for their eternal rest and for the consolation of their families who grieve their loss. Dear brothers and sisters, I implore everyone - drivers, passengers and pedestrians - to heed carefully the words of Saint Paul in the Liturgy of the Word today: "stay sober and alert". Our behavior on the roads should be characterized by responsibility, consideration and a respect for others. May the Virgin Mary lead us safely along streets and highways throughout the world.
© Copyright 2008 -- Libreria Editrice Vaticana
Posts
All Comments
