That is definitely a cool bottle of burbon, certainly one of the more interesting I've seen. And good luck with the move and the slower pace. It's hard to obtain, but certainly a worthy goal. And I look forward to reading what you come up with in the months to come. Besides, I think we could all stand to disengage from the collective insanity. It might be the only way to safely manage a world that has completely lost it's mind. And at the end of the day, no one is going to lament that they didn't read more about the Pope's newest scandal, but they will lament that they didn't love their family better. God bless Steve.
Steve: I was only moderately surprised by your announcement. You seemed to be heading in this direction for at least the past few months. Work, even good, holy and important work, can become an all-consuming monster. Your wife and children deserve something better than that.
From reading his works and listening to him, Eric Sammons does seem to have his head on straight and is a clear voice in the present insanity.
I only became aware of the Catholic blogosphere three years ago while reacting to my shock, dismay, and maybe horror, at the McCarrick scandal. At the time I was stricken with the sick in the pit of my stomach, realization that “they” had been lying to us and covering up, in spite of all the high-minded language that had come out of the Dallas accords. In looking for answers, I discovered a world that at first intrigued, but as time went on, began to wear on me. The internet community has been a confirmation of my life long experience that my brothers and sisters in the faith will always fall short. I am also quite certain that they can justifiably say the same of me.
The only certain thing is Jesus, and the Holy Spirit attempting to guide us. A part of me is aware that He has always been standing there waiting to catch me if I will only let Him. All the rest is more or less complicit in this fallen world. Even in the disappointment and discouragement of the past few years He has used what I have read and heard to bring me to a deeper place in my Catholic faith and in my reliance on Him.
Being a life-long Rhode Islander, who now spends a great deal of time at our northern New Hampshire “camp” (New Hampshire/Maine speak for a lake or forest cabin) I heartly encourage you to search out New Hampshire and Maine. Even though the cities in New England are quite liberal and caught up in the present craziness most places in the countryside are conservative, family and church orientated and have not adopted the present woke culture.
God bless you and your family. I pray for you every day.
Well done good and faithful servant, take your rest 😊! Great wisdom putting your beautiful family first. Its where we learn and teach real love - what it is and what it isn't. They grow up fast, build your relationships and cherish your time with them. It pays off a hundredfold when they are grown.
As a fellow hot-dry-place-dweller I envy your choice - ever since seeing the film The Europeans I have been in love with New England. Gorgeous. Who could not open their heart and humbly praise God in such surroundings?
Stay close to Jesus - He knows everything about being a struggling human. Prayers for you all.
I wish you peace, happiness and future success in whatever direction you take. Subscribed and will follow your posts with interest.
So excited for you as embark on your new journey! God bless. Yes, come to New England! Aside from the crazy liberals, it’s great here. Beautiful scenery, nice weather, beaches are great, restaurants are awesome. We are lacking big families though. Maybe our kids can be friends!
I also welcome you to New England! The best place on Earth, in my opinion. Though I can’t claim to be unbiased. It’s true, the descendants of the Puritans, though they lost the faith of their ancestors, have lost none of their zeal, and “crazy” would be the best way to describe them. But in most cases they can be safely ignored.
I've followed your writing for so long, Steve. This new chapter is timed just about right, I think.
Blessings on your decision, your move (I could never have lived in the desert that long!), all that you are attempting, and your family.
I hope I'm subscribed; I would hate to lose the connection. I think I'm subscribed, because I composing a comment and only subscribers can, right?? (I guess I'll see what happens when I click "post".)
Do not leave the Catholic Church in her darkest hour. Why should WE leave? Let the bad priests, etc., leave. Would you leave your mother while she was being attacked by a band of criminals? No, you'd stay ever closer and try to fight them off. Our Lord always knew this would happen and He has a plan. I trust God completely. Jesus promised us that He would not let Satan overwhelm the church he established on the Rock of St. Peter. Many of Our Lady's apparitions point to the time we now are living in. These things give me comfort (the warnings and prophecies by Our Lord and Lady).
I am going to suggest the state of PA, which is actually a red state, and pretty gorgeous (especially the Pocono mountain area in NE PA, which is 100 miles west of NYC). It is still quite affordable, even with the run-up in real estate prices outside of blue cities. I would avoid moving to a blue state--you'll regret it eventually. The people are so liberal (left-wing) they cannot think straight about anything and they will censor and stop you from even speaking. You'll be living among "the woke," in other words, which is a hellish prospect if ever there were one. If not the Poconos (which consists of Monroe and Pike counties; personally, I prefer Monroe county to Pike), try moving to FL, Daytona Beach area. The area about 5 miles south of Daytona Beach is a tiny community called Wilbur-by-the-Sea. That community has a large, well-run public beach (with free parking, a life guard, outdoor showers, rest rooms, lots of beach, gorgeous sand and sea) which only the locals know to go to (but word is getting out). That particular stretch of beach frequently forms little tidal pools that the kids can frolic in without the parents having to jump up every two minutes for fear little toddler has gotten too far into the surf. There are no cars, alcohol or dogs allowed on the beach, which also allows one to relax under the beach umbrella without fear of being run over by a car or set upon by an overly enthusiastic dog.
I know you had an awful experience recently with your (former) pastor and with the Legionnaires of Christ, but there's no way I'll let a bad priest or set of priests drive me from the RCC. I just change churches (but not religions) when something rubs me the wrong way about a priest. Also, I try very hard NOT to get too involved in the church life--I don't want to get caught up in the politics and see the priests' warts and foibles. There are other ways I contribute to building up the Body of Christ (like constant evangelization in informal circles and giving the local parish money--my local parish has a very good priest, thank God).
There are holy and inspiring priests. I met a particularly holy, kind priest 30 years ago and I can honestly say this priest saved my life at my most vulnerable moment. He MADE the difference, and I'll never forget him. (Of course, Jesus brought me to this priest, so ultimately, I am grateful to Jesus, Who did the REAL saving--the priest was just the "channel of His peace". ) Also, when I was age 10, I had the most wonderful nun for a fifth grade teacher. I just loved that woman beyond the telling, and she love me right back. That lit in me an ardor for God that went out during the awful teen years, but got rekindled later, and burns very hot now (which led to my becoming a Third Order Carmelite about 10 years ago).
Watch out for the drinking--I know how relaxing a cocktail is, especially hard spirits, but as an Irish American who has seen (and barely dodged) my share of alcohol-consumption tragedy, I issue a word of caution to all imbibers of hard liquor. Whiskey and the Irish are a dangerous combination (even for the non-Irish)! It creeps up on one, like a cat creeping up on a mouse in the tall grass.
For inspiration, read up on Sr. Clare (who died at age 33 on April 16, 2016). She is a modern day saint. A movie was made about her life (very inspiring) called "All or Nothing." There are many shorter summaries about her life and death on Youtube, etc. And I think "All or Nothing" is also on youtube (the entire movie).
It certainly got very crowded with people I have little in common with. The whole thing turned into a giant outrage and scandal trap. No thanks. That's no way to go through life.
This is very well said. I wanted to share some thoughts in relation to this. I reached the point where Steve seems to be at sometime around January 15th of this year, of just being exhausted and burned out by the swamp that the Roman Catholic Church has become. So I have spent the last 6 months looking at things from a different point of view, that being the history and theological differences concerning the East, which seem to have at least as valid a claim to the Faith as the Catholic Church.
Two things that seem pretty evident at this point.
First, putting aside arguments from a theological perspective in favor of the pope as wielding universal temporal and spiritual power, it seems apparent from the progression of history that the Popes over time, especially due to their struggle against the barbarians in the west, gradually sought and gained more power and control in western Europe. Eventually the power they wielded in Europe was near universal, giving them the idea that their influence and control extended beyond the Western Empire to include the whole of the Church.
A book I have been reading recently (The Orthodox Church, An Introduction to Eastern Christianity by Timothy Ware) summed this up well when he said that one of the major differences was that of the five original patriarchies, four of them were in the east and only Rome was in the west. So in a sense, as the east/west divide became more acute, the Council-led view of the Church in the east continued in large part because while Constantinople was strongest in the east, there were three other patriarchs that continued to have respect and a high place of honor. Add to that the continued presence of the Emperor and the need for the patriarchs to assume secular type powers wasn't there as it was in the west.
The western church on the other hand had only the pope to serve as a point of unity that those in the west could turn to as one of the original centers of the faith. So naturally, power began to consolidate around the person of the pope, especially given how fractured things were in Rome after the western empire fell.
The second thing I have noticed is concerning the way in which the east and the west have endured the last several hundred years. What's interesting to me are the differences in the way in which both have struggled and the end results. The east first fell under Islam, and then eventually Communism. There have been an untold number of martyrs and there have certainly been compromising bishops. But by and large, the Faith itself and the liturgy survived intact, despite the lack of a central figure like the Pope. The notion that the Faith itself is comprised of the seven ecumenical councils, and anything beyond that is open for debate without the necessity of dogmatic definition I find interesting.
On the flip side, the west, has struggled primarily with schism and apostasy, as more and more groups rebel from the power of Rome. First Luther/Zwingli, then Henry in England and eventually you have the enlightenment which gave us the French Revolution and the end of the papal states. Finally you get to modernism, evolutionary ideas and atheism which has marked a pretty solid end to Faith in the west. And the end result is a diluted and uncertain Faith and an utterly wrecked liturgy.
I'm not suggesting the east is right and the west is wrong. I think such a simple discourse would undervalue the complexity of the history that has led us to this point. But what I would say is this, there is something powerful to having a figure-head like the pope to turn to (when he's faithful) as a point of christian unity. But acting like a tyrant, making changes whenever he wants and demanding unquestioning loyalty is completely anti-Christ. And it's not about having the right person, but having our image of who and what he is properly oriented. And I'm not sure that's what we have right now. The east views the pope as 'first among equals' and I'm starting to think that's closer to the right answer, and the historical evidence seems to point to that. As the papacy gained power, the end result has been division and error.
One final thought, and this was to Vatican 2, looking at it from the eastern perspective, I'm starting to wonder if several of the popes saw what I mentioned above, that things with the papacy had been taken too far. Perhaps to a natural intellectual end, based on the theological arguments put forth, but that doesn't make them ultimately good for the Church. After all, the two major shifts out of V2 are a moving away from the central power of the pope and making the liturgy available in the local languages, something the Eastern church has by and large always tried to do.
In any case, I don't have the answers. But I do love history. And these are just observations for conversation.
Excellent analysis. Ware's book is great- check out "The Orthodox Way" by him as well. It's a more theological reflection. A couple of summers ago, I read "The Papacy and the Orthodox: Sources and History of a Debate" by Dr Edward Siecienski. It largely changed my view of the papacy. I have always believed it was of divine institution, as a touchstone of unity to the Church, but like King Rehoboam of Judah who tyrannically tried to rule the United Kingdom of ancient Israel, the exercise of the papacy by very flawed men resulted in the splintering of Christianity. While it has been useful at times, I think it's been more of a stumbling block for the Church overall.
This is what I have seen as well. If what the papacy is purported to be has always been the case, then there should be clear evidence of it early on and there just isn't.
That is definitely a cool bottle of burbon, certainly one of the more interesting I've seen. And good luck with the move and the slower pace. It's hard to obtain, but certainly a worthy goal. And I look forward to reading what you come up with in the months to come. Besides, I think we could all stand to disengage from the collective insanity. It might be the only way to safely manage a world that has completely lost it's mind. And at the end of the day, no one is going to lament that they didn't read more about the Pope's newest scandal, but they will lament that they didn't love their family better. God bless Steve.
Steve: I was only moderately surprised by your announcement. You seemed to be heading in this direction for at least the past few months. Work, even good, holy and important work, can become an all-consuming monster. Your wife and children deserve something better than that.
From reading his works and listening to him, Eric Sammons does seem to have his head on straight and is a clear voice in the present insanity.
I only became aware of the Catholic blogosphere three years ago while reacting to my shock, dismay, and maybe horror, at the McCarrick scandal. At the time I was stricken with the sick in the pit of my stomach, realization that “they” had been lying to us and covering up, in spite of all the high-minded language that had come out of the Dallas accords. In looking for answers, I discovered a world that at first intrigued, but as time went on, began to wear on me. The internet community has been a confirmation of my life long experience that my brothers and sisters in the faith will always fall short. I am also quite certain that they can justifiably say the same of me.
The only certain thing is Jesus, and the Holy Spirit attempting to guide us. A part of me is aware that He has always been standing there waiting to catch me if I will only let Him. All the rest is more or less complicit in this fallen world. Even in the disappointment and discouragement of the past few years He has used what I have read and heard to bring me to a deeper place in my Catholic faith and in my reliance on Him.
Being a life-long Rhode Islander, who now spends a great deal of time at our northern New Hampshire “camp” (New Hampshire/Maine speak for a lake or forest cabin) I heartly encourage you to search out New Hampshire and Maine. Even though the cities in New England are quite liberal and caught up in the present craziness most places in the countryside are conservative, family and church orientated and have not adopted the present woke culture.
God bless you and your family. I pray for you every day.
JT
We call them "camps" in Vermont as well.
Well done good and faithful servant, take your rest 😊! Great wisdom putting your beautiful family first. Its where we learn and teach real love - what it is and what it isn't. They grow up fast, build your relationships and cherish your time with them. It pays off a hundredfold when they are grown.
As a fellow hot-dry-place-dweller I envy your choice - ever since seeing the film The Europeans I have been in love with New England. Gorgeous. Who could not open their heart and humbly praise God in such surroundings?
Stay close to Jesus - He knows everything about being a struggling human. Prayers for you all.
I wish you peace, happiness and future success in whatever direction you take. Subscribed and will follow your posts with interest.
So excited for you as embark on your new journey! God bless. Yes, come to New England! Aside from the crazy liberals, it’s great here. Beautiful scenery, nice weather, beaches are great, restaurants are awesome. We are lacking big families though. Maybe our kids can be friends!
I also welcome you to New England! The best place on Earth, in my opinion. Though I can’t claim to be unbiased. It’s true, the descendants of the Puritans, though they lost the faith of their ancestors, have lost none of their zeal, and “crazy” would be the best way to describe them. But in most cases they can be safely ignored.
I've followed your writing for so long, Steve. This new chapter is timed just about right, I think.
Blessings on your decision, your move (I could never have lived in the desert that long!), all that you are attempting, and your family.
I hope I'm subscribed; I would hate to lose the connection. I think I'm subscribed, because I composing a comment and only subscribers can, right?? (I guess I'll see what happens when I click "post".)
Looking forward to seeing what the Lord has planned for you!
Dear Steve,
Congrats!
Can't wait to hear what comes next.
Best wishes
Do not leave the Catholic Church in her darkest hour. Why should WE leave? Let the bad priests, etc., leave. Would you leave your mother while she was being attacked by a band of criminals? No, you'd stay ever closer and try to fight them off. Our Lord always knew this would happen and He has a plan. I trust God completely. Jesus promised us that He would not let Satan overwhelm the church he established on the Rock of St. Peter. Many of Our Lady's apparitions point to the time we now are living in. These things give me comfort (the warnings and prophecies by Our Lord and Lady).
I am going to suggest the state of PA, which is actually a red state, and pretty gorgeous (especially the Pocono mountain area in NE PA, which is 100 miles west of NYC). It is still quite affordable, even with the run-up in real estate prices outside of blue cities. I would avoid moving to a blue state--you'll regret it eventually. The people are so liberal (left-wing) they cannot think straight about anything and they will censor and stop you from even speaking. You'll be living among "the woke," in other words, which is a hellish prospect if ever there were one. If not the Poconos (which consists of Monroe and Pike counties; personally, I prefer Monroe county to Pike), try moving to FL, Daytona Beach area. The area about 5 miles south of Daytona Beach is a tiny community called Wilbur-by-the-Sea. That community has a large, well-run public beach (with free parking, a life guard, outdoor showers, rest rooms, lots of beach, gorgeous sand and sea) which only the locals know to go to (but word is getting out). That particular stretch of beach frequently forms little tidal pools that the kids can frolic in without the parents having to jump up every two minutes for fear little toddler has gotten too far into the surf. There are no cars, alcohol or dogs allowed on the beach, which also allows one to relax under the beach umbrella without fear of being run over by a car or set upon by an overly enthusiastic dog.
I know you had an awful experience recently with your (former) pastor and with the Legionnaires of Christ, but there's no way I'll let a bad priest or set of priests drive me from the RCC. I just change churches (but not religions) when something rubs me the wrong way about a priest. Also, I try very hard NOT to get too involved in the church life--I don't want to get caught up in the politics and see the priests' warts and foibles. There are other ways I contribute to building up the Body of Christ (like constant evangelization in informal circles and giving the local parish money--my local parish has a very good priest, thank God).
There are holy and inspiring priests. I met a particularly holy, kind priest 30 years ago and I can honestly say this priest saved my life at my most vulnerable moment. He MADE the difference, and I'll never forget him. (Of course, Jesus brought me to this priest, so ultimately, I am grateful to Jesus, Who did the REAL saving--the priest was just the "channel of His peace". ) Also, when I was age 10, I had the most wonderful nun for a fifth grade teacher. I just loved that woman beyond the telling, and she love me right back. That lit in me an ardor for God that went out during the awful teen years, but got rekindled later, and burns very hot now (which led to my becoming a Third Order Carmelite about 10 years ago).
Watch out for the drinking--I know how relaxing a cocktail is, especially hard spirits, but as an Irish American who has seen (and barely dodged) my share of alcohol-consumption tragedy, I issue a word of caution to all imbibers of hard liquor. Whiskey and the Irish are a dangerous combination (even for the non-Irish)! It creeps up on one, like a cat creeping up on a mouse in the tall grass.
For inspiration, read up on Sr. Clare (who died at age 33 on April 16, 2016). She is a modern day saint. A movie was made about her life (very inspiring) called "All or Nothing." There are many shorter summaries about her life and death on Youtube, etc. And I think "All or Nothing" is also on youtube (the entire movie).
Good luck, Steve! Happy house hunting!
It certainly got very crowded with people I have little in common with. The whole thing turned into a giant outrage and scandal trap. No thanks. That's no way to go through life.
This is very well said. I wanted to share some thoughts in relation to this. I reached the point where Steve seems to be at sometime around January 15th of this year, of just being exhausted and burned out by the swamp that the Roman Catholic Church has become. So I have spent the last 6 months looking at things from a different point of view, that being the history and theological differences concerning the East, which seem to have at least as valid a claim to the Faith as the Catholic Church.
Two things that seem pretty evident at this point.
First, putting aside arguments from a theological perspective in favor of the pope as wielding universal temporal and spiritual power, it seems apparent from the progression of history that the Popes over time, especially due to their struggle against the barbarians in the west, gradually sought and gained more power and control in western Europe. Eventually the power they wielded in Europe was near universal, giving them the idea that their influence and control extended beyond the Western Empire to include the whole of the Church.
A book I have been reading recently (The Orthodox Church, An Introduction to Eastern Christianity by Timothy Ware) summed this up well when he said that one of the major differences was that of the five original patriarchies, four of them were in the east and only Rome was in the west. So in a sense, as the east/west divide became more acute, the Council-led view of the Church in the east continued in large part because while Constantinople was strongest in the east, there were three other patriarchs that continued to have respect and a high place of honor. Add to that the continued presence of the Emperor and the need for the patriarchs to assume secular type powers wasn't there as it was in the west.
The western church on the other hand had only the pope to serve as a point of unity that those in the west could turn to as one of the original centers of the faith. So naturally, power began to consolidate around the person of the pope, especially given how fractured things were in Rome after the western empire fell.
The second thing I have noticed is concerning the way in which the east and the west have endured the last several hundred years. What's interesting to me are the differences in the way in which both have struggled and the end results. The east first fell under Islam, and then eventually Communism. There have been an untold number of martyrs and there have certainly been compromising bishops. But by and large, the Faith itself and the liturgy survived intact, despite the lack of a central figure like the Pope. The notion that the Faith itself is comprised of the seven ecumenical councils, and anything beyond that is open for debate without the necessity of dogmatic definition I find interesting.
On the flip side, the west, has struggled primarily with schism and apostasy, as more and more groups rebel from the power of Rome. First Luther/Zwingli, then Henry in England and eventually you have the enlightenment which gave us the French Revolution and the end of the papal states. Finally you get to modernism, evolutionary ideas and atheism which has marked a pretty solid end to Faith in the west. And the end result is a diluted and uncertain Faith and an utterly wrecked liturgy.
I'm not suggesting the east is right and the west is wrong. I think such a simple discourse would undervalue the complexity of the history that has led us to this point. But what I would say is this, there is something powerful to having a figure-head like the pope to turn to (when he's faithful) as a point of christian unity. But acting like a tyrant, making changes whenever he wants and demanding unquestioning loyalty is completely anti-Christ. And it's not about having the right person, but having our image of who and what he is properly oriented. And I'm not sure that's what we have right now. The east views the pope as 'first among equals' and I'm starting to think that's closer to the right answer, and the historical evidence seems to point to that. As the papacy gained power, the end result has been division and error.
One final thought, and this was to Vatican 2, looking at it from the eastern perspective, I'm starting to wonder if several of the popes saw what I mentioned above, that things with the papacy had been taken too far. Perhaps to a natural intellectual end, based on the theological arguments put forth, but that doesn't make them ultimately good for the Church. After all, the two major shifts out of V2 are a moving away from the central power of the pope and making the liturgy available in the local languages, something the Eastern church has by and large always tried to do.
In any case, I don't have the answers. But I do love history. And these are just observations for conversation.
Excellent analysis. Ware's book is great- check out "The Orthodox Way" by him as well. It's a more theological reflection. A couple of summers ago, I read "The Papacy and the Orthodox: Sources and History of a Debate" by Dr Edward Siecienski. It largely changed my view of the papacy. I have always believed it was of divine institution, as a touchstone of unity to the Church, but like King Rehoboam of Judah who tyrannically tried to rule the United Kingdom of ancient Israel, the exercise of the papacy by very flawed men resulted in the splintering of Christianity. While it has been useful at times, I think it's been more of a stumbling block for the Church overall.
This is what I have seen as well. If what the papacy is purported to be has always been the case, then there should be clear evidence of it early on and there just isn't.