My World of Religion, Politics, Entertainment and Social Issues

Dear Blog Visitors: As I was combing my hair this morning, I thought of a line from Shakespeare: "Parting is such sweet sorrow." If I were to do this at the seashore, I guess I would be referred to as a 'beach comber.' Hopefully, you'll excuse the play on words above. This was simply a lead-in to the video I have posted, which serves the purpose of a long-held secret: I color my hair. I thought it would be fun to get away from my usual video format, ranging from social topics to church politics. In this particular video, I take viewers with me for a visit to my hair stylist, Shari (daughter of high school classmate). We shot this at Donna B's in Penfield, New York. As I near retirement from my job at City Hall, I may let my gray hair color return. For the time being, the coloring helps me to blend in with my co-workers, many of whom are much younger than myself. (As I point out in the video, I would hate for anyone in my work environment to accuse me of...

Dear Blog Visitors: If you have followed my blog the past month, you are aware that I announced a shift of focus, concerning the subject matter I will be covering. Whereas I used to devote the vast majority of my writings to reform initiatives in the Roman Catholic Church, I made a decision that I wanted to address other topics of interest as well. However, when an important matter arises in the Catholic Church, I will certainly address it from time to time. A matter of extreme importance arose the past week that I felt needed at least a few comments on my part. In brief, a Vatican official stuck his foot in his mouth by announcing that in the future, any woman seeking ordination to the priesthood would be guilty of a crime against the church as serious as sexual abuse by a priest. The Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith perhaps does not realize that the Inquisition ended a long time ago. However, the behavior of Vatican officials is such that we have to wonder...

Dear Blog Visitors: On occasion, friends will inform me when they notice a blog post that is critical of me. Just yesterday, a friend let me know that an orthodox Catholic blogger referred to me as a heretic, for the simple reason that I don't follow all the rules of the Roman Catholic hierarchy. I am the first to admit that I don't follow all the rules of the RCC hierarchy. So, if an orthodox Catholic wishes to refer to me as a heretic, I am certainly fine with that. As I have grown older, I have become increasingly fascinated with images sent to us from the Hubbel telescope. The images help us to realize that the universe is much larger than we ever imagined. When we consider the vastness of God's creation, we also come to realize that what we know of our Creator is in actuality very little. Many persons have told me that they are suspicious of any religious institution that claims to have the fulness of truth about God. I share in such suspicions, which is why I hav...