Safe Haven

I can honestly say with a clear conscience, I knew it. I saw it coming. After the last home run to make it 6-0, knocking Cardinals co-ace Adam Wainwright out of the game, I just knew. These people are too excited. They don't know how this works. It was only the third inning. Teams that don't have "it" may fold in deciding games; the defending champs will not. On the one hand, a new year is different; commentators make too much of one team's history at times like this. On the other, this team is the same team that made the highly improbable run to the title last year, coming from behind five times in World Series Game 6. Two outs and two strikes in the final inning is old hat, as well. I said in published writing that the 2012 Cardinals would be better than the team that had just won it all; in all measures, they were better. But this team has a frustrating tendency to lose tight, well-played, (read: one run) games. The addition of the second wild card spot in...

Election Update: It's October 11, just a few weeks until we vote for president (and everything else). I know you're excited, because I am. Since we last chatted about this, a few things happened, in terms of "trail drama": the Embassy attack (may they rest in God's peace), Romney's huge debate win, and the hearings on the attack. All of these were bad for the president. But remember, events only reinforce narratives; I've already told you that Romney is going to win. Events will only decide the margin. Romney's debate win did not change this race, and don't let anyone tell you differently. Romney won precisely because there is no compelling narrative for an Obama victory. Obama knows that as well as we do. If he doesn't know it, he can't tell the voters what it is. And so, you lose debates, and sound like a moron. All that happened is that most people who are not political junkies got clued into the lack of a narrative that the junkies alr...

Rascal Flatts is one of those great groups in pop; great songs, great harmony, great lead singer. One of those songs is "Bless The Broken Road," and it's become a wedding standard in the last few years. What you may not know is that it was originally recorded by Christian artist Jaci Velazquez in the late '90s, and featured in the teen drama series, "Dawson's Creek." I liked "Dawson's Creek." There was too much sex and stuff, but it was great. I wasn't a Christian back then, so that isn't what I mean. I mean to say that TV always has more sex than actually happens. I asked my friend Brian junior year if he had "done it." He was good-looking and popular, so I figured he had. He said, "No, man. Been close, but got too scared." I think if I ever work for a youth group in the Church, more than sharing the teachings of Mother Church, I will tell them that in all sorts of ways, it's OK to be young and scared. We...

The mystery of contentment is this: There is no tomorrow. I am me today. God loves me today. I have what I need today. There is no denying what I want. There is no point in lying. But if I don't recognize the difference between what I want and what I need, I have no chance at joy. For my part, I wanted to encourage one of my myriad pretty friends with this truth. I know it always comes back to women with me. But in her case, a loss of self-confidence is completely unwarranted. She's beautiful, and funny, and interesting. The only explanation for this mind-boggling turn of events is Satan. And would she knock on the door of Holy Mother Church! What is this glut of beautiful Protestant women? What's going on over there? Anyway, I did my best to offer that gift I'm best at: encouragement. In a sense, I really hate being that guy. Women don't love encouragers, it seems. They like "bad boys" or hipster weirdos these days. Someone, please prove me wrong. If ...

I do need a printer. Poor Uncle Larry, having to put me up in his house, and print off my work. Investments in the future!

5 Moral Or Political Thoughts 5. You are not morally superior because you support a government program that I do not. 4. Socialism in fact is an affront to the moral agency of individuals, and to their personhood. 3. I'm not, nor have I ever been, a Randian. Stop saying it. Nor do I support candidates for political office who are Objectivists. 2. I don't even remotely dislike President Obama, so my criticisms do not proceed from personal animus, racism, fear, or any other bad thing. 1. In the words of President Obama, "Let me be clear..." I don't want fewer abortions; I want none.

5 Thoughts For Today 5. We're all thinking it: The Nationals aren't that good, and the Cards handed them a game. 4. Dionne Warwick is better than you think. 3. I fell asleep before the end of my Rosary last night, I think. It was the jazz at the end. I hope it still counts. 2. Shameless popery. Unabashed Romanism. And I didn't even pay the Babylonian Woman Of Ill Repute. 1. Sometimes great friends come out of nowhere. You gotta be ready to receive them, and do everything you can to keep them.

I woke up mad this morning. Sometimes, people make choices that may not directly affect you, but the results do. You want something, you hope something goes a certain way, and it doesn't. And the reason it doesn't is because the consequences of choices haven't even begun to unwind. I've gotta let it go. There must be a plan or purpose that I don't see. There's almost nothing in this world to convince me that it makes sense, but that's nothing new. Into Your hands, O Lord. But last night was a great night. I reconnected with an old friend from high school, had some pizza, beer, and chicken wings. Sometimes, just listening can be as good as any "gospel presentation." I can't say that mine is any kind of perfect life, or anything close to an actual saintly life, but hopefully it will be said that I lived a human life of real passion and meaning in the light of Christ. There is a dignity in this life only made sharper by the subhuman dignity of ...

One day I'll stop writing posts about relationships, dating, and my lack thereof, but I was talking with "The Deb" about it--because she's my Wise Married Woman friend--and I'm getting kind of wistful. Back when doing ministry and being married wasn't a possible contradiction, I had a class with a pretty friend. Bible Content--Old Testament. She sat next to me. Even though she is one of the most beautiful women I have ever seen, I felt all silly trying to talk to her. [Don't you mean 'because'?--ed.] Maybe. Anyway, she was going to go away to do work in ministry, but it didn't work, so she came back. By then, I was thinking through "the Catholic thing" and I didn't want to jump into anything. But I swear, that was the craziest chemistry ever. We never talked about it. I still have no idea why she isn't married. As soon as I post this to Facebook...well, I shouldn't. Tim, you certainly know who this is. Why do I think lik...

It's Wild Card Day in baseball. This is a new thing. Since I believe, 1995, when the wild card concept was implemented, there have been three division champions and one wild card team. Baseball, concerned that no advantage was given to teams that won their divisions, added a second wild card this season in each league. Thus, the two wild card teams will play one another for the right to play the top seeds in the Division Series, followed by the series for the pennant, and of course, the World Series. The National League game features the World Champion St. Louis Cardinals (that never gets old) and the Atlanta Braves. Atlanta is favored, having won 94 games, falling just short of their upstart division mates, the Washington Nationals, who won 98. The Cardinals won 88 games, exactly the same number they won as a division champion in 1996, when they were beaten by the Atlanta Braves for the pennant in 7 games, by a combined score in the final three of 32-1. The other game features t...

There's a photo on my shelf from a wedding two years ago. Two very attractive women are posing and smiling next to me. It's the sort of picture I should get rid of. One of the women got engaged to another dude named Jason. Really can't argue with that, am I right? The other lady I'll probably never see again. Why get rid of the photo, you ask? I can think back on several occasions where young women in a big group decided to do the Ladies' Picture With JK. Now, at the time, I was probably gratified. Now, I'm not so sure. It probably means I am A) safe, and B) pitied. Those are two things I do not want to be. Romance is supposed to be scary and a little dangerous. There's a kernel of truth in the opinion that women like "bad boys." You can't control them, or predict what will happen. That's eros, man. That's how it's supposed to be. Now, I know that when women gain a little maturity, they think about the future. And this is good. Ev...

I want to talk about something mundane. I ate a Hardee's Thickburger tonight, and while I've had them before, it was heavenly. This burger was so good, it ought to be dogmatically defined. I'm not even pulling your chain. I guess I'm supposed to be worried about "sustainability" or some such, but the only thing I care about sustaining right now is Hardee's Restaurants and their delicious burgers. I can recall when Hardee's discontinued their fried chicken as a prelude to becoming The Den Of Freakishly Large And Life-Shortening Burgers, and I don't mind saying that I was mad. I'm not saying it rivaled KFC or anything, but I loved it. CEO Andy, I was fully ready to call that a huge mistake, but then, they came. I doubt I'll ever recover. And a lot of places offer curly-fries, but when I think of them, it's the Hardee's fries that come to mind. And it's not to say that the regular fresh-cut fries are bad. In fact, they have that ...

WOOOO!!! Internet! The great JK is back on the interwebs after being away since I switched providers on Oct. 1. You wouldn't believe how much you do on the internet. Specifically, we stay in touch with distant people, read news, sports, and maybe weather. I saw your e-mails but couldn't really answer them. My phone's pretty smart, but it's kinda small. I don't think there should be so much whining about how technology separates us from each other. If we're failing each other, it doesn't matter what year it is, or what toys are around. You might be able to convince me that certain sins and vices are made worse by technology, but people are who they were before: we need God.

You'd think I'd learn. I am A) a big sap, B) in love with Barbara Hershey, and C) a fan of music. Why did I watch "Beaches" (the end) again? At least I turned away at the climax, so I didn't cry again. I don't care what you say; that's a good movie. I'm not a Bette Midler fan per se, but I can't hear "Wind Beneath My Wings" without thinking of the movie. By contrast, her song "From A Distance" is hideous, deistic crap. God is not in fact watching us from a distance; He's about as near as you can get. Get thee to a tabernacle, stat! I digress. Perhaps I was in a frame to cry, because I found "For Love Of The Game" on one of the movie channels, too. I've seen this movie 4 times now. Love it. Great baseball movie. Vin Scully announcing the game. Yankee Stadium. Aging pitcher. Kevin Costner. Love story. Is there any way this could be a bad movie? Just trust me. But it got me choked up again, at the end. Confirm...

If I could understand this world, and God, HALF as well as this guy ...and he's got a good priest, too. The reward will be great. And I couldn't be gladder. I say I haven't suffered at all. Really. I'm a cripple. Woo, big deal. At least my strongest desire on the natural level isn't doomed, in this life. Oh, I wonder if I'm some sort of leper, or the Phantom of the Opera at this stage, but there's no reason to fret. I was looking at myself in the mirror the other day--though I wish my skin was clearer, my nose was smaller, (and maybe I wasn't a cripple) and I thought, "Wow, I am really hot." No, seriously. I did that thing male models do: I squinted, and tried to look bad. It worked. I think. I like myself. Just thought I'd share.

A Guy's Christian Manifesto I am committed to praying at least once a day for myself or others around me, for salvation or sanctification, and for various material needs. I am committed to reflecting each day on my sins for the day, and to taking the necessary actions to repent of them. I am committed each day to encouraging one person (or more) in walking with God, no matter how near or far they are to actually doing that. I am committed to seeking spiritual counsel, and to placing myself under the proper authorities. Also, I will obey them in all things but sin, and in those matters left to prudential judgment. I am committed to knowing the Holy Scriptures better than I did yesterday. I am committed to purity in all things. Thus, I am committed to the avoidance of compromising situations or images with, or of, women, (or men) whether known to me or strangers. If I fail, I will carry out the instructions of my second committment. I will carry out those instru...

Hebrew Catholic Woody Allen was at it again, and it was outstanding. Sacraments, and how they work. The mark of the best teachers in anything is that they can teach the hardest things to the simplest people. I saw Confirmation Sponsor Lady there, and their daughter, 'Lucy.' I feel bad for that young person! [Bwhahaha!--ed.] I mean, honestly. Has there ever been a couple more naturally suited to winning arguments than those two? All the 'discussions' we've ever had end with me saying, "You know, you're right, I was thinking imprecisely; I was wrong." If it had stage directions, it'd be like, [submits to bishop] or [tries cheese] or [prays to Mary] or [goes to New Orleans for no apparent reason]. It's kind of funny now. [I don't think it's funny.--ed.] Of course you don't. I didn't see Confirmation Sponsor Guy; he was being a Dad. Pffft. Whatever that's about. Besides all that, he's been locked in the Cave of Writing s...

To be a son who loses your Dad is possibly the worst thing I can think of. It's been 24 years since I lost my Dad. It still hurts sometimes like it happened yesterday. I was 9 years old. He didn't battle a long illness; he was ripped away from us. My parents were divorced when I was a baby. I lived with my mom and my brother. He started again, and I grew up knowing his other children and his wife. She was and is family to me. As a side note, I entirely believe and aim to practice the Church's teachings on sexual ethics. I don't think they should change the teachings on divorce and remarriage, either. That said, it's hard to tut-tut these people I love for not toeing the line. All the hurt came back for me today, because I heard that a new friend lost his father in the past few days. If I could say one thing to him, it would be this: "Never apologize, even years later, for falling apart now and again over this. You will always be a boy who lost his Daddy, an...

You hear it a lot as an explanation: "Just go back to the Fathers." Why do people become Catholic? They went back to the Fathers. I suppose that's true. But it's important to know what it is about them that we're supposed to be looking for. There are patristics scholars everywhere, after all. Obviously, in any particular area of interest or time period within the patristic age, you can find leaders with divergent opinions on a great many things. There are some pretty fierce disagreements among them, too. If you wanted to make a surface case against the claim of the Catholic Church--that it is the Church Christ founded--you could do it. But what is it that they really tell us? They tell us where and how to locate the Church to which they submitted, and why. That's really the nature of the dispute between Protestants and Catholics: the nature of the Church and how to find it. It's really stupid to pretend that the visible expression of ecclesiastical a...

It was an interesting day. Catholic theology all day long. And OK, fine, my heart's a bit aflutter because of a note to the effect that I have a Secret Admirer. Which was dumb, because there are a grand total of 2 single women in our class, and the other one is a close friend for like 12 years. If she liked me that way, she'd just say so. So I know who it is. Like a moron, I told the Person I Am Hopelessly In Love With about it. Frankly, I might've hoped it made her jealous, but it won't. I hate it when that happens. She's really attractive, this Note-Leaver. She has braces, and I like that, because I'm a freak. I think I might've embarrassed her. Oh, well. She has a month to think about it. I left my number and e-mail. Pray for me. Happy Birthday, Tim.