Jesus’ command to be one Church…

One thing I like about the Catholic Church is that you can go to any Church, anywhere in the world on the same day and hear the same readings from the Bible. If you go to Mass every day of the year, you will have been read the Bible pretty much completely through.

One of the things that has been foremost on my mind for about three years, is the number of Christian based religions that all say they are the true Christian Church, yet most of them are less than 500 years old. The oldest Christian Church is the Catholic, or Universal Church. This Church has stated that it wants to bring all the Christian Churches “back home”, yet does many things to stop that from happening, based on comments, actions, and in some cases doctrine. (Priest not being able to marry being one such doctrine that has many outsiders, and some insiders not happy.)

Today’s Gospel reading is John 10:11-18 [show]John 10:11-18 [11]I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. [12]He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. [13]He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep. [14]I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, [15]just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. [16]And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd. [17]For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. [18]No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father." (ESV)
, which points even harder to merging the Christian Churches back into one Church, specifically: 16: “…and there will be one flock, one shepherd.”

Actually many of my readings of late keep pointing to the need for the Christian Churches to merge again and become one in Christ, with one Shepherd.

How do we make that happen?

Religion Today…

As I stated in this post, for the past 5 years I have been very deep into religion and learning more about the various religions out there. I had already spent about 20 years learning, following and teaching about the ways of the Apache Nation, specifically the Mescalero Tribe.

From my studies then and since, I have been convinced that God created the earth, and then gave the, now called, Jewish community His Graces. He saw where sin was taking them and He had various holy people state that there would be a Messiah to come along and save the World. In the thousands of years that the Jewish people had favor with God, they continued to sin and move away from, then closer to, then away from God, in cycles.

As time went on, from my reading of history, the Qur’an, Torah, and “Christian” Bible, I see a nation, the Jewish, following in appearance the rules of God, but at the same time trying to gain wealth and stature in this world, while appearing to follow the rules of God.

Finally God gave the world His Only Begotten Son, Jesus as the Messiah/Christ. When the Jewish world saw this man of extreme knowledge and power, “spouting” words that challenged the leaders of the Jewish communities, and at the same time showing the various traits and happenings that were foretold to the Jewish hundreds of years earlier, the leaders of the Jewish communities, and the Jewish communities as a group shunned and despised the Foretold Messiah as it would mean that they would loose their power and wealth. This even after the Jewish Leaders acknowledged Jesus’ miracles as being done and teachings as being valid.

Since the Jewish communities, as a group, with exceptions of course, were not accepting the Messiah, the Messiah spread the word to the rest of the world, accepting anyone who would take His Word and follow it. In the process He changed the rules of life, opening up the protection of God to those who loved one another, lived as sinless lives as possible, and followed the new Covenant of Christ. Thus began the “new” Church of God, the Christian Church.

My studies show me that this Church started out as one Church that covered two areas, the “East” and the “West”. Many years later those two areas split into the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church. They follow to this day the same basic practices, with some minor differences, and they both can show an uninterrupted “laying of hands” of the 11 Apostles/Disciples of Christ on their Clergy and Leadership. There is only one Pope, currently Pope Benedict XVI, who is the Head of the Roman Catholic Church, and whom the Eastern Orthodox Church respects and listens to with respect.

The Muslim or Islamic faith began in roughly 610AD when Mohammad began having visions in caves. His following was slow to grow, and grew from fighting and conquering of peoples. To this day, his faith is centered on death of anyone not following his words. His history and sayings didn’t start taking to written text until over 100 years, and in many cases 200-300 years after his death from illness. (This is an area I know least about, but have looked at to an extent.)

The rest of the Christian faith systems currently out there really didn’t start until 1500+ years (just in the last 500 years!) after the Christian faith started through the teachings of Jesus Christ himself! This split from the Orthodox/Catholic Church system was started over protesting various issues in the Church. So, Martin Luther, a Roman Catholic Ordained Priest split from the Church and created his own Church, the Lutheran Church. The rest of the Protestant (derived from protesting) Churches, have come from that split at various levels years later.

The foundation for the Christian faith is recorded in documents that are created in the lifetime of those that witnessed Jesus’ actions, and have been proven through archeology and through various in depth reviews and research from many professions and by people of many faiths, often those trying to disprove them.

Over the last 500 years, and probably longer, the Catholic Church has started heading the way of the original Jewish faith. They have gone towards the desire of money and “fame”. Many of the Protestant Churches and leaders have as well. The Catholic Church has, in the recent 100 or so years, appeared to have gotten away from spreading the Word, and has gotten centered on “shortening” the Word to make it easier for people to come to Church. The Catholic Congregation is more worried about football games, time off to play, etc, than worrying about going to Worship services, etc. For example, the Easter Vigil done on the Saturday evening before Easter Sunday normally has 7 large readings that are done, and most Churches, at least in the US do 4 or less of the readings to make time go by faster. The Palm Sunday services, which are historically about 2.5 hours long now last about an hour, and many aspects of the service are shortened or removed to make it a shorter service so more people will come.

One aspect of the Protestant Churches that is good is that many Protestant Congregations know the Bible much better than those of the Catholic basis.

All of these Churches/Faiths, Orthodox-Catholic/Muslim-Islamic/Protestant, pray to the same God of Abraham/David. The Christian side, Protestant/Orthodox-Catholic, using the same Bible (not counting the King James Version, which I am not sure how valid it is to the original wording of the Authors), and with the same intent, and with the Muslim-Islamic faith come from an entirely different direction.

The newest Christian Churches are those that take the current “me” aspect of life that many people are leaning to, and are almost doing away with all the traditions and teachings of the Church and making it a religion that the individual sets up for themselves, almost making themselves God. In many cases the ones I’ve been to have looked like the Pastor, a self appointed “Reverend”, was attempting to make money from tithing while screaming at the top of their lungs about Sin/etc.

The Christian Church needs to get back to it’s roots and get back to the teachings of Jesus and God. Stop hording the money and valuables. Find Christ again, follow His Words and give to the poor, help the needy (go to most Catholic Churches today and ask for help if you are homeless!!), and teach and live the Love of Christ again!

The Christian faith needs to come together again within the Catholic Church grow strong as a single and united Church in Christ. The Catholic Church needs to learn from the Protestant Churches on the evangelizing and missionary practices they are known for, while keeping the items that Jesus and the early Church taught, such as the Eucharistic services, and the process of Mass, which many Protestant Churches have done away with to further remove themselves from the Catholic Church they came from. The Catholic Church needs to look at the early Church and the Priest being married, at least initially, and rethink the need to have Priest being 100% celibate. (In the Old Church, if the wife passed away, the Priest was not allowed to remarry and must remain celibate to his state in life.) This issue is probably one of the biggest issues in the need for new Priest within the Church.

After converting to the Catholic faith last year, I was pretty negative on the Protestant Churches out there. This past two months I have been looking at that negativity closer and am now moving well away from it. All Christians are good as long as they follow the Rules as set down by God through the Commandments and the rules as outlined by Jesus.

Both sides of the Christian Fence should look with less negativity towards the other side of the fence and learn from their piers in Christ!

In Christ!

What a find!

For the last two and a half years, I have spent a lot of time at a couple of the local libraries studying various aspects of Theology as it was required by the Order I was in, or as I found an interest. During that time I got to know several of the staff pretty well, and have become close friends with a couple of them.

Yesterday one of them brought me two books:

The second book has me VERY excited. It is a book that has a photo copy of one of the original printings of William Tyndale’s initial translations of the Greek text of the New Testaments to the Bible. The history of the text and notes at the beginning of the book are also very interesting reading.

I am very excited that Charlie gave me this book. And it is in almost new condition, with no writing in it or other such marks! Very nice of him to give these two books, especially the New Testament one!

Say it isn’t so!!?? AGAIN!!

I received an email from the Knights of Columbus Supreme Chapter of which I am a Knight that reads in it’s entirety here, my comments below:

Religious freedom under attack in Connecticut

(March 10, 2009) – A First Amendment storm is brewing in the Constitution State.

Without any consultation with its bishops, a bill under consideration in Connecticut’s Judiciary Committee threatens to forcefully reorganize the Catholic Church, taking authority away from pastors and bishops and placing governing decisions in the hands of boards of directors from which clergy would be excluded.

The Judiciary Committee, co-chaired by State Senator Andrew McDonald and Assemblyman Michael Lawlor, will hear evidence on Raised Bill No. 1098 on Wednesday. The bill would revise current governance provisions applicable to the Catholic Church in Connecticut. If passed, it would strip a bishop of control of his diocese.

“I think that (this bill) would be very problematic under the First Amendment,” Erwin Chemerinsky told Headline Bistro. Chemerinksy is one of the nation’s foremost authorities on First Amendment law and dean of the Law School at University of California Irvine.

Chemerinsky said the law is problematic “partly because it targets one religion and partly because it enmeshes the legislature in the workings of a particular religion.”

Catholic reaction to the bill has been swift as well.

In the Archdiocese of Hartford and the Diocese of Bridgeport, statements were read from every pulpit last Sunday by Archbishop Henry Mansell and Bishop William Lori respectively.

Calling the bill “irrational, unlawful and bigoted” and a blatant violation of the First Amendment, Bishop Lori’s statement hit back hard.

“This bill, moreover, is a thinly-veiled attempt to silence the Catholic Church on the important issues of the day,” Lori said, pointing out that no other religious organization is targeted by the measure. “The State has no right to interfere in the internal affairs and structure of the Catholic Church.”

Mansell called on each parish in his diocese to send a delegation to the bill’s public hearing in Hartford on Wednesday.

The laity has been equally appalled.

Carl Anderson, Supreme Knight of the Knights of Columbus, founded and headquartered in New Haven, Conn., called the bill a throwback to the extreme anti-Catholicism that pervaded America’s early history.

“Whatever their reasons for introducing this bill, there is no doubt that these Connecticut politicians find themselves not only on the wrong side of the First Amendment, but on the wrong side of history, as well,” Anderson wrote in an op-ed in the Stamford Advocate Tuesday.

Background for the bill

The New Haven Register quoted Assemblyman and Judiciary Committee co-chair Mike Lawlor as saying he was approached by “very devout Catholic” constituents asking for greater transparency in terms of diocesan funds.

Misappropriation of parish funds is rare. But in 2007 a priest from the Diocese of Bridgeport pleaded guilty to defrauding his parish of over $1 million. That same year, a Greenwich priest resigned after an audit found $500,000 in unaccounted for spending.

The diocese responded by implementing safeguards and launching thorough investigations and financial audits.

“The pastors of our diocese are doing an exemplary job of sound stewardship and financial accountability, in full cooperation with their parishioners,” Bridgeport Bishop Lori said in his statement. “For the State Legislature – which has not reversed a $1 billion deficit in this fiscal year – to try to manage the Catholic Church makes no sense.”

Doctrinal differences also seem to have a role in the current controversy as well. Reports from newspapers and blogs link the bill’s origins to a lay group with a history of challenging the Church’s structure.

The New Haven Register credits Connecticut attorney Thomas Gallagher as spearheading the bill, and an article by an officer of the dissident Catholic group Voice of the Faithful in the Diocese of Bridgeport stated that Gallagher had been in dialogue with legislators on this issue since 2007.

The article’s author, James O’Callaghan, encouraged the group’s members early on to “lend their support” to this effort of overhauling current regulations on religious corporations.

Among the stated purposes of Voice of the Faithful is to “shape structural change within the Catholic Church.”

In 2002, the same year the group was formed, Bishop Lori banned Voice of the Faithful from meeting on Church property in his diocese. While he has “consistently supported greater involvement of the laity in the activities of the Church,” the bishop said he could not condone a movement that rejected core Catholic teachings on issues such as sexual morality, celibacy “and a view of conscience contrary to the traditions of the Church.”

First Amendment scholars take exception

In addition to Chemerinksy, many other Constitutional law experts have expressed shock at the proposed law.

In a letter to Connecticut’s Judiciary Committee, Philip Lacovara, who has taught law at Columbia and Georgetown and is now senior counsel at the law firm of Mayer Brown, wrote that even his first year law students would have “little difficulty seeing why the bill goes well beyond the powers that the Constitution allows the States to exercise in dealing with organized churches.”

Kevin Hasson, president of the interfaith Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, likewise issued a stinging statement against the bill, which he called “truly a monstrosity.”

“It would be unconstitutional under the First Amendment even if it applied to all churches,” he said. “But the fact that it applies to only one church – the Catholic Church – makes it unconstitutional under the Fourteenth Amendment besides.”

Legislators have also expressed shock at the bill.

Republican State Senator Michael McLachlan was outspoken in his blog.

“I pray fervently that we can dispense with this brutal attack on the Roman Catholic Church very quickly,” he wrote. “Catholics don’t deserve this attack and the proponents of this bill will hopefully hear this message loud and clear.”

Trusteeism

The Church has been the target of such laws before – albeit over 150 years ago.

The concept of lay “trusteeism” was a persistent problem for the Church in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, as some American Catholics – influenced by Protestant congregationalism and aided by groups like the “Know-Nothings” – tried to take control of Church structure.

The Know-Nothing party specifically tried to lessen the influence of the Church using “trusteeism.” They actually succeeded at times – passing the Putnam Bill in New York, for example, in 1855. Overtly anti-Catholic in its purpose, that bill – similar in content to the bill being considered in Connecticut – remained on the books until the need for Union Army recruits from the Catholic population forced New York legislators to think better of it in 1863.

At its worst, trusteeism caused riots and sent some parishes into schism, as trustees asserted their authority over a parish’s temporal matters – often with implications for spiritual matters as well.
Experts warn the religious consequences would be profound today as well.

“Make no mistake, the effect of such a law – if enforced – would be the balkanization of the Catholic Church. Our one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church would no longer be apostolic, with bishops losing the say in the administration of their dioceses,” Anderson wrote in his op-ed.

“Rather than ‘one’ and ‘catholic’ our Church could become many and inconsistent as trustees forced their version of theology on a parish under the very real threat of confiscation if their ideology were resisted,” he added.

Msgr. Francis Weber holds a PhD in Church History and serves as archivist for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles.

He told Headline Bistro that the trusteeism being proposed in Connecticut is “even worse than the normal kind” because it totally excludes priests and bishops from even voting. Historically, Weber said, “the Church has had all kinds of trouble” with the trustee system.

In terms of the current law under consideration, Weber was clear: “This is a takeover,” he said.

Both Bishop Lori and Archbishop Mansell noted in their statements that the bill is “contrary to the Apostolic nature” of the Church by disconnecting parishes from their priests and bishop. Bishops provide the unifying charter of an apostolic church, and assure doctrinal consistency.

Unlike some Protestant denominations where congregations influence doctrine, “Ours is a doctrinal Church,” Weber said. “We don’t have doctrine up for grabs.”

It is my understanding that the Government, of any level, be it Town, City, State, or Federal does not have any control or say in Church actions and management!? How can something like this make it through today’s system, and how can the Church listen to it if it does happen? If the people of a Church, any Church or denomination don’t like what happens in that Church, move on and find one that meets your needs. Don’t go about trying to change the one you are in.

The Catholic Church has it’s share of problems. Because it is as big as it is, and has the wealth that it has in Real Estate, art, money and other items, it gets talked about a lot more than other denominations and groups, but those other groups have the same problems. And proportionally just as big.

There is no way that the State Government should be allowed to even attempt to take this to the next level and attempt to make this happen.

I can’t believe where the US is taking itself these days! I still love this country, and will not leave it, nor do I have the desire to, but I’m not happy with were I see it going!

Marriage and Divorce, a Civil Affair!

Historically marriage has been a civil contract between two consenting, and sometimes not consenting, people to live together and help each other through their trials, tribulations and positive life events. It was originally a Church or religious process, blessed by a Priest/Pastor and the community.

When the marriage was not going well, the couple would go back to the Church and talk with Priest/Pastor and attempt to find ways to get the marriage back on track. If the marriage could not be saved in any way, one of two things happened, they stayed together anyway, or the marriage was “annulled”.

As people and families started gaining wealth, when an annulment came about, there would be squabbles and disagreements about the splitting of the wealth. Initially the Church intervened and helped divide the possessions (and took a good portion of said wealth). But soon there after, the local government began getting involved and divorce court (roughly speaking) was created on the civilian side, outside of the Church(es). Again this was still a civil issue. As this continued one spouse or the other kept demanding more and more. Now, mind you, at this stage, most of the women were not working, except at home taking care of the children, house and spouse.

During this phase, child support and spousal support programs were started. The male (initially, now either side may have to pay) had to pay the female money each month to support the children, and often her as well.

People being people, the men stopped paying sooner or later, to support their children or spouse. The courts stepped back in and did all they could do to get the payments started up again. Again, it was still a civil issue.

Some time in the “resent” past the federal government decided to step in. Divorce is now a federal issue, and not a civil issue. You go to a federal district court to get your divorce. At least in most states, such as Colorado, California, etc. So, we have gone from a civil contract (which it still is!!) to a federal ending of the civil contract. Now, the Judge, instead of the Priest, ends the marriage and decides, if the parties don’t agree initially, how to split the property and wealth, and who pays whom what.

This payment system is built off of a bizarre formula that twist and turns on numerous factors. It isn’t based on the needs of the spouse or kids, but on other issues, not related to the basic needs of survival. It is keyed on the paying spouses income predominately, and at the time of divorce, not at real time.

Now, initially, in this “new” system, the court only demanded the payments, and would garnish wages and withhold tax returns to get the payments, minus their handling fees of course, made to the paid spouse. The the Feds step in again…

In most States the District courts are only able to garnish up to 80% of your wages, remove your driver’s license, and withhold tax returns. Now, the money maker goes form paying a child support, to loosing up to 80% of their income to their X-Spouse. Often not having enough to live on, forcing them to work two or more jobs just to survive. And all this while not having a vehicle (legally anyway!)!?

If the national economic situation changes, it doesn’t matter, the paying spouse still must pay as if they are able to make the same amount of money they did before. Hey, they did it once, they still can. What, the receiving X-spouse now has a very good paying job? No problem, the paying must continue at the same level!

There are some States, such as Colorado, California and a few other states, that have made the non-payment of child support a felony offense, punishable with up to 6 years in prison as a Class 5 felony at the low end, and a Class 1 felony with 25-life at the high end. Now, if you are convicted as a felon, you now have a reduced area of work capacity, because few people hire felons, regardless of what the charges are. (All they see is the word “Felony conviction” and automatically lump you into the same category as rapist, murderers, drug lords, etc.) So, a civil issue is now a felony issue.

So, my questions are:

(I have more questions, but these are the pressing ones..)

Now, in some cases I have seen fathers that stopped paying child support because their XWife stopped letting them see and interact with their kids. The judges, as a majority, don’t seem to care about that, they say “work it out”, but don’t do anything to make the visitations happen. In fact they hamper it in many ways. So, when the father stops paying child support, he is taken to court, often by the District or States attorney, not even by the Xspouse. Then the charges start and the man is in trouble all over again. (Could be inverted rolls, I’ve seen it both ways!)

Mind you, I do think that both parents should be responsible for the growth and upbringing of the offspring. With some catches. Both parties should have access to the children, should be able to input into their growth, and should be able to communicate with them. If this is blocked by one of the spouses, or even the courts, that person being blocked should not have to contribute financially. Now, if that spouse is not blocked, but does not contribute physically by being there, they should probably still be paying into the growth of their children. I do not think the federal/district court should be involved in these cases, and at most the civil courts may touch on them. I don not think there is criminally actionable events (in most cases) involved here that require taking away drivers license, jail or prison. Again all three of those make it harder to get the payments in that everyone is after.

Again, we are going the way of the Romans in all of our demands and actions. Wake up America, smell the coffee (at $8 a cup) and let’s get back to the basics of life, growth and love! Let us bring back God and Church into our life. Let us get back to the reasons we ceded from England, and stop taxing heavily (one of the main reasons we split), governing heavily (another big reason), and legislating heavily!

The Way of Rome…

The Roman Empire lasted for roughly 1000 years. It started between 753BC and 625BC, and ending in roughly in 467AD. Rome grew large for many reasons. One strong reason for their growth over those 1000ish years was what they brought with them as they grew. They brought a strong governmental system that allowed everyone to prosper. With this they had a justice system that was well thought out and beneficiary to all parties in that it was fair, and became the foundation for many civilized justice systems. They brought with them, through the “conquering” and acquiring many peoples, many inventions, locks and keys, quick drying cement, many weapons of war far advanced for the time, public toilets, and many other items of use.

Over time they got pretty spread out, they were in more peoples business than they knew how to handle. Their army was spread out over a VERY large amount of land. They were taxing their people pretty hard to build roads, water systems, and to feed the armies. They forced their religion (until the end) on their peoples to an extent as well.

The Roman Empire fell for many reasons. Some of them are:

Now, you may ask why mass migration may cause problems? Masses of people came into their Empire and just plain put such pressure on the Empire that it collapsed.

Now, we come to the United States. In the last 200+ years we have followed the same path. We have put our troops all over the world. We try to put our government system and laws all over the world. We push our religions and politics everywhere. People from all nations and ethnic groups are migrating to this nation looking for homes and success. As they come they bring their cultures and demand that we live by their cultures, just like what happened in Rome. Our economic structure is under major stress and is crumbling. We have MAJOR infighting and disunity within our Nation. We have had bad “Emperors” (on BOTH sides of the party lines!), and no good ones that fully meet the term Good Emperor in the horizon, and we have increased illnesses and issues of health.

So, like many things the US has done over the years, we have done in a bit under 300 years, what it took the Romans to do in over 1000 years. We, as a Nation of Power, are starting to die off. Years ahead of the schedule we should be dieing off if we were to have followed the Roman Empire’s foot steps.

Isn’t it time to sit back and look at what, as a Nation, we are doing to ourselves? Is it time to strategically get out of the lives of other Nations? Shouldn’t we focus on rebuilding our core National structure here in the US, spending our money and efforts here instead of around the World? Let us learn from the Romans, and not repeat what they did, at an accelerated pace! I only can pray that we are not too late already!

Martial Arts

For over 30 years now I have been studying martial arts. I have acquired a 6th Dan (Black Belt/Master Instructor) in AiKiDo, a 5th Dan (Black Belt/Master Instructor) in Judo, a 3rd Dan (Black Belt/Instructor) in Kendo (the Art of the Sword), a 3rd Dan (Black Belt/Instructor) in Tang Soo Do, and a 3rd Dan (Black Belt/Instructor) in Hapkido. I have also studied with other Masters in other styles, belting in some (at various levels) or just learning new things.

During this time of studying martial arts, I was studying and learning about the body through becoming a Combat Medic, a Cardiovascular Technician, and a Physician’s Assistant in the Army, and a Paramedic in the Civilian world. I also studied Shiatsu (massage therapy and pressure points), becoming a Master Technician in the State of Texas.

About 12 or so years ago, I started teaching individuals a mix of what I had learned, keeping the techniques in tact, and the “requirements” for each styles “belting”, with one minor twist, I took some belts out, and required more in each belt before taking a “Belt Test”. (I’m WAY old school when it comes to testing… I think it SHOULD be White Belt, Brown Belt and Black Belt, that is it…)

My martial theory consist of this:

1. Learn the arts to learn more about yourself.
2. Gain confidence in yourself.
3. Try to talk your way out of a fight, offer to take them for a drink, or food, or …
4. If that doesn’t work, walk (run?) away.
5. If that doesn’t work, block the attack, always trying to go back to 3 and 4.
6. If that doesn’t work, hurt the attacker (via a solid punch (often stops the fight), kick, throw, etc.), always trying to go back to 3 and 4!
7. If that doesn’t work, break something of the attackers. (Hand, wrist, arm, leg, jaw, etc.), always trying to go back to 3 and 4!
8. If that doesn’t work, maim them, always trying to go back to 3 and 4!
9. And if that doesn’t work, as a final and LAST resort, you make it lethal. This is ALWAYS a LAST RESULT, and only if you can’t walk/run away, or take them out for a drink, and the other things in the middle don’t stop the fight.

ANY time you get in a fight, you are going to get hurt, even if it is only the hurting of your hand when you hit them, because if you hit them right, your hand (or foot) will hurt too! Hopefully not as much as they will hurt (if you study under me, I can show you how to hurt them more than they hurt you!). Any time I get in a fight, it hurts me emotionally as well, fighting is not something anyone should be doing if at all possible!

Now, some of you may ask, why is someone like me, a “religious” person, teaching or partaking in martial arts? Well, after MUCH talking with several Priest and one Bishop of the Catholic Church, as long as I’m not studying or teach with the intent to do harm, but rather to learn more about the body, people, and “self defense” there appear not to be an issue with it and the Church. (Remember in the “old days” when Priest use to have boxing schools for their young boys, and when Priest had boxing in Seminary?)

Martial arts, to me, is about learning about my body, the body in general, and about staying in shape, the later of which I really need to do! It is not about hurting people. or about getting in fights.

All this to lead to the comment that I am in the process of opening up my own dojo! (Training Hall/School). I am now forming my own style of the ” Way of Circular Wind Ryu“. I am going to be aggressively be putting together a school, and have already started putting the blocks together!

To learn about that, click on “Investment” above! I could use your help.

You can also see my initial web site at http://cwryu.tripod.com/index.html. This will soon(ish) have it’s own domain and a better built site, but is a good start, if I do say so myself. The content there will be update over the next two weeks.

My opening day should be on or before October 6th of this year! Wish me luck, and pray for me!

Catholic Statistics…

A Order Brother sent me an email with a bunch of statistics about the Catholic Church. It is attributed to a non-Catholic person that is actually Jewish. I was not able to verify that info, and somehow don’t think that is who originally authored it, but I did verify the statistics:

Proud of Being Catholic

Excerpts of an article written by Sam Miller,
prominent Cleveland Jewish businessman -( NOT CATHOLIC )
Submitted by Dee Lynd.
18 April 2008

Why would newspapers carry on a vendetta on one of the most important institutions that we have today in the United States, namely the Catholic Church?

Do you know – the Catholic Church educates 2.6 million students everyday at the cost to your Church of 10 billion dollars, and a savings on the other hand to the American taxpayer of 18 billion dollars. Your graduates go on to graduate studies at the rate of 92%, all at a cost to you. To the rest of the Americans it’s free.

The Church has 230 colleges and universities in the U.S. with an enrollment of 700,000 students. The Catholic Church has a non-profit hospital system of 637 hospitals, which account for hospital treatment of 1 out of every 5 people – not just Catholics – in the United States today.

But the press is vindictive and trying to totally denigrate in every way the Catholic Church in this country. They have blamed the disease of pedophilia on the Catholic Church, which is as irresponsible as blaming adultery on the institution of marriage.

Let me give you some figures that you as Catholics should know and remember. For example, 12% of the 300 Protestant clergy surveyed admitted to sexual intercourse with a parishioner; 38% acknowledged other inappropriate sexual contact in a study by the United Methodist Church, 41.8 % of clergy women reported unwanted sexual behavior; 17% of laywomen have been sexually harassed. Meanwhile, 1.7% of the Catholic clergy has been found guilty of pedophilia. 10% of the Protestant ministers have been found guilty of pedophilia. This is not a Catholic problem.

A study of American priests showed that most are happy in the priesthood and find it even better than they had expected, and that most, if given the choice, would choose to be priests again in face of all this obnoxious PR the church has been receiving.

The Catholic Church is bleeding from self-inflicted wounds. The agony that Catholics have felt and suffered is not necessarily the fault of the Church. You have been hurt by a small number of wayward priests that have probably been totally weeded out by now.

Walk with your shoulders high and you head higher. Be a proud member of the most important non-governmental agency in the United States. -Then remember what was written in Jeremiah:’Thus says the Lord: Stand by the earliest roads, ask the pathways of old. Which is the way to good, and walk it; thus you will find rest for your souls.’ (Jer 6:16 [show]Jeremiah 6:16 [16]Thus says the LORD: "Stand by the roads, and look, and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is; and walk in it, and find rest for your souls. But they said, 'We will not walk in it.'
).

Be Proud to speak up for your faith with pride and reverence and learn what your Church does for all other religions.
…… Be Proud That You’re A Catholic……

These are trueish numbers. The number of students may be up or down each year, but the rest of the numbers are pretty close to the “real” numbers.