Claims are up–because workers are better informed.

Article about the first Tridentine mass to be offered in Altoona. I wonder if this is what will be done in other dioceses–offer the Tridentine mass as if the liturgical reforms of the 20th century, in the decades prior to Vatican 2, had never happened. That’s what’s happening in this place. Only the altar server…

One of my Catholic friends asked me a question some time ago, and has been waiting patiently for an answer. Regarding the Eucharist, did you (a) once believe and then stop believing, or, (b) never believe in the first place?   Bonus question:  if (a), what caused you to stop believing? I’ve been thinking about…

And he’s been singing it for a long, long time. George Beverly Shea is 100.

That’s the critique of a Southern Baptist pastor.

Not very effective, says Monte.

The archbishop of Los Angeles is shocked–shocked!–that the government is looking into how he handled abusive priests. Lee Podles; Commonweal; Rocco. Commonweal asks, “Should the government be able to determine the proper relationship between a bishop and his flock?” If that relationship involves sending them priests he knows are molesters, I say yes. The state’s…

Massive labor demonstrations across France and Germany. Of course these are not spontaneous. Will they spread here? If unions stir workers up and cause unrest, they might. Here’s a place to keep an eye on–International A.N.S.W.E.R. These are the radicals behind the anti-war protests. They don’t like violence or racism or war … that’s why…

Penn Jillette reflects on an incident when someone gave him a Bible after a show. He’s an atheist–but he respects this guy as “a very, very, very good man.” He says if you are going to believe, you need to witness to be consistent.

EthicsDaily has an article about “The Ethics of Working on Sunday.” It tells the story of a group of church members who went into a restaurant after their Sunday evening service and told the waitress they wouldn’t be giving her a tip because she was working on Sunday. Another waitress said, “We wouldn’t be working…

In Detroit, no one cares about a dead body in a block of ice–not the homeless people who wander by, not the police on the street or the 911 dispatcher.

Report that the Traditional Anglican Communion has been offered the status of a personal prelature. HT Tito. Update: Vatican denies the report.

It’s about time: a major federal investigation of the sexual abuse crisis in the Catholic Church and how a bishop handled it. And they’re starting in the right place–Los Angeles.

Disney bailed on Walden after “Caspian,” but Fox will pick up “Dawn Treader.” Hopefully Fox, unlike Disney, will respect the integrity of the books.

Another speech code found unconstitutional, this one in Jews for Jesus v. City College of San Francisco.

Sad story.

A report claims the Chief Rabbinate of Israel has severed ties with the Vatican in response to the restoration of communion with the SSPX bishops. Update: Nasty reactions from the loyal readers of Fr. John Z’s blog. Update: Head of the Chief Rabbinate appreciated Pope’s words at Wednesday audience. Update: The head of the Chief…

Some people think it is important, some don’t.  Gallup survey maps the US as to how people answered the question. The least religious states are in New England and the west:  VT, NH, ME, MA, AK, WA, OR, RI, NV, CT. Most religious? MS, AL, SC, TN, LA, AR, GA, NC, OK, KY, TX. Map…

SWAU webpage interviews Ricky Smith, who was on American Idol a few years ago (got to number 8 the year Clay Aiken won came in second to some guy named Ruben Studdard).

And explains his reasons for desiring reconciliation with the SSPX.

Rabbi Leon Klenicki, former director of interfaith relations for the Anti-Defamation League, has died. Rocco has a good reflection. I got to know Rabbi Klenicki during the last National Workshop on Jewish-Christian Relations, held here in Houston in 1999. And that reminds me that we haven’t had one in ten years!! They used to be…

Teacher fired, humiliated, arrested–because malware she had no control over sabotaged her computer.  A prosecution witness lied. Prosecutors dragged out case even after that was proven; they finally wrung a “guilty” plea out of her on a “disorderly conduct” charge, because she was simply exhausted from the neverending court battle. It’s an outrageous situation, that…

At GetReligion, a review of articles about a girls’ basketball game in Dallas. It was a 100-0 blow out, leaving one team crushed and humiliated. The winning team apologized. The winning coach said they had nothing to apologize for. He was then fired.

Jan posts some comments from a former employee of conspiracy buff Walter Veith.

“Men and Church,” by Frederica Mathewes-Green.

“Protestants have no moral theology,” claims Robert Moon at ReligiousLiberty.TV; “ethics would be the closest consideration.” It’s a strange statement. If Protestants think theologically about moral issues, then is not such thinking “moral theology”? He defines “moral theology” thus: Moral Theology is the Catholic teaching about how man must live to obtain favor with God.…

Tom Hanks has apologized for calling Mormons (and implicitly, other supporters of Prop 8) “Un-American.” Last week, I labeled members of the Mormon church who supported California’s Proposition 8 as “un-American.” I believe Proposition 8 is counter to the promise of our Constitution; it is codified discrimination. But everyone has a right to vote their…

I’m out of step with Oscar once again. The only nominated films I’ve seen are “The Dark Knight” and “Iron Man.”

Have you seen the county-by-county red/blue map for the 2008 election? It’s very interesting (via Rush)…

Army to stop recruiting for one day to remember them. An Army investigation into a string of suicides among Houston-based recruiters has found that poor leadership, job-related stress, personal matters and medical problems all contributed to the deaths. As a result of the findings released Wednesday, Secretary of the Army Pete Geren ordered a rare…