Monday, June 25, 2012

RIP Lonesome George

A giant Galapagos Pinta tortoise, Lonesome George, a.k.a. Jorge, was not Catholic and did not actually attend Our Lady of Vilnius.  Like Our Lady of Vilnius Parish he was the last of his kind.  On this basis, we happily welcome him to the fanciful paradise that is the Our Lady of Vilnius Virtual Basement Hall where he will silently scuttle past Dorothy Day and Jurgis Aleliunas will slip him a morsel of koldunai.  This earthly realm will be a bit sadder without him.

Correspondent leaving Fox to serve as media consultant to the Vatican

An item by Rachel Donadio in today's NY Times, Fox News Reporter Hired as Vatican Media Adviser, spreads the news that Fox's Rome correspondent Greg Burke has accepted a position as a media advisor for the Vatican.  Burke, who has covered the Vatican for Fox since 2001, is identified in the article as being a member of Opus Dei.  According to the article, Mr. Burke will  report directly to Archbishop Giovanni Angelo Becciu, the third-ranking Vatican official.  deputy to Cardinal Bertone. He will also work closely with Archbishop Becciu’s deputy, American Monsignor Peter Wells.  In a quote, Mr. Burke likened his anticipated role to that of the Secretary of Communications in the White House: "It’s a very similar job. It’s a strategy job. It’s very simple to explain, not so easy to execute: to formulate the message and try to make sure everyone remains on message.”

It will be interesting to see what unfolds from this appointment.  Will the Dan Brown Vatican intrigue phenomenon deplored by Cardinal Bertone be quelled by appointing a member of Opus Dei to do the job?  Will the Cardinals be rendered more lovable, like Nanni Moretti's volleyball-playing prelates in Habemus Papam?    Maybe foam fingers will soon be sported in Rome, too.



Monday, June 11, 2012

Our Lady Queen of Angels Mourns the Loss of Ada Maria Isasi-Diaz


I had the privilege of meeting Dr. Isasi-Diaz at Our Lady Queen of Angels celebration of the parish's 125th anniversary.   She was intelligent, kind and generous and I had no inkling that she would be called home to God within a year of this encounter.  The New York Times published her obituary on June 5th: Ada María Isasi-Díaz, Dissident Catholic Theologian, Dies at 69.

Our hearts and prayers go out to Carmen Villegas and the rest of the Our Lady Queen of Angels upon the loss of their good friend and spiritual guide.