Drinking fun!

[sabotabby]

Beginning of evening:

Find out that your ex has done gone and joined Opus Dei. Ick.
K: "Oh, come on. He was always a bit of a fascist."
Me: "I hope it's not my fault. You think it's 'cause I'm Jewish?"

End of evening (actually morning):

Massive snowball fight between friends on the south side of Bloor St. and random strangers on the north side of Bloor St., with unfortunate cars in the middle.

Comments

[incendiarymind.livejournal.com]

He joined Opus Dei? Has he read "The DaVinci Code"? Even though a lot of the insinuations about that order from Dan Brown's book have been proven false, I don't know anyone who would want to join after having read the description of it in that book.

[sabotabby]

I don't know if he has, but someone asked me the same thing last night. I haven't read it, anyway. I can't imagine why my ex, who was once an anarchist and an atheist, would experience a sudden re-conversion (he was raised as a Catholic, but not that kind of Catholic). I can only speculate that it involved drugs. Lots of drugs. And being a rather bitter and angry person, I suppose.

[incendiarymind.livejournal.com]

Yeah, that's die-hard Catholic. He's not a journalist looking for insider information, is he?

[sabotabby]

Nah. More a weak-minded and confused wanker looking for one true authority to give meaning and direction to his life.

[zingerella.livejournal.com]

Nonetheless, eeew. I checked out their webpage, out of curiosity, and they sounded like all the stuff they tell you in Catholic school, but for grownups. Lots of strange abstract language, though, and a culpably high fog index, in certain places, mixed in with very plain language in other spots, which makes me certain that they're trying to confuse the reader, hide something, or they just don't know what they mean.

The website also looks like the organization probably throws really lame parties.

There's nothing there about secret plans to take over the world. Of course, if they mentioned the secret plans on their website, the plans wouldn't be secret anymore, so I guess the secret plans are communicated some other way.

Couldn't he have joined the Mennonites or something? Or undertaken a quest? Or a Cause?

Because there have to be secret plans, right? Otherwise it would be like the Scouts, but only for Catholics, and with added weird bowing to Catholic authority.

I didn't do any drinking this weekend. I bet you're surprised.

Couldn't he have joined the Mennonites or something?

[frandroid.livejournal.com]

Dude, you can't casually switch from catholicism to protestantism. Especially when you're Irish!

Re: Couldn't he have joined the Mennonites or something?

[sabotabby]

Beat me to it!

I just don't know why he didn't join a nice sect of Catholicism. Like the Catholic Workers or the Old Roman Catholic Church. But noooo...he has to go be a religious extremist. Figures.

Re: Couldn't he have joined the Mennonites or something?

[frandroid.livejournal.com]

He could have become a Jesuit. At least he could claim to be a bad motherfucker without necessarily being an extremist.

Re: Couldn't he have joined the Mennonites or something?

[sabotabby]

Last time we actually talked about it, he was going to become a Jesuit. Which would have made some sense, given his background.

Re: Couldn't he have joined the Mennonites or something?

[frandroid.livejournal.com]

If I wanted to be a hardcore catho, I'd totally be a Jesuit. Don't fuck with me, or we'll slap another inquisiton on your ASS!

A frightening proportion of Québec's political élite went to Collège Jean de Brébeuf, a Jesuit college... including Jean Chrétien and Bernard Landry.

But I guess their influence largely lies in the past now... Opus Dei uber alles! ahem.

Re: Couldn't he have joined the Mennonites or something?

[zingerella.livejournal.com]

Yes you can.

I did.

Well, I reneged on my confirmation, sent my parish a letter informing them of same, and went on the payroll of the United Church, before deciding that I'd rather sleep in on Sundays.

And this was after my Prot. mother converted to Catholicism (and subsequently reneged), in order to share the religion that she and my Papist da had chosen to raise us in. And even my Prot grandmom didn't blink an eyelash.

And Dude, if you're born in Canada, to parents of Canadian citizenship, you're Canadian. No matter where your family brought its religion over from, and whose national feast days you recognize.

This isn't Ireland. Prots and Papists intermarry all the time, go to each other's churches, accept each other's sacraments, dance at each other's ceilidhs, and convert jointly to Buddhism. Happens all the blessed time. Sure the Catholic church maintains that once they've baptised you they get your soul for eternity, but, sheesh! Catholics ignore the church's dicta on most other matters (premarital sex, contraception, divorce, and fish on Fridays, frex.); if G*d hasn't smote them yet, it's probably not going to happen. All you do is send your parish a letter saying that you made a mistake when you confirmed your faith, and you'll thank them to remove you from any lists they may keep. If you're really into it, you can say something like "Further study into church history has convinced me that the church made an error in rejecting Manicheanism, as the true fusion of faith and reason, and I am spiritually committed to seeking out a community of believers in this path. I cannot, therefore accept the tenets of Nicene creed, and must sadly reject the Baptismal vows that I confirmed."

Then you find a nice protestant church, start attending services there, and eventually take confirmation (though I'm not certain whether Mennonites do confirmation.) It's pretty simple, really. Nobody comes along and throws things at you, or bombs your house. The Catholic church may send a priest around to chat with you, but mine couldn't be asked.

So yeah, you can do it. If you've already declared yourself an atheist, it shouldn't be at all difficult.

Re: Couldn't he have joined the Mennonites or something?

[sabotabby]

Theoretically, and with moderately tolerant people. We had to exclude any wedding photos where the priest's collar was visible when we showed them to my grandmother. It's Canada, not the shetl, but I still have to hear about the "shiksa your uncle married." Oy.

F.'s family didn't freak out that much when he declared himself an atheist, but I have no doubt each and every one of them would disown him if he converted to Protestantism...even to being a Mennonite. Not saying it's right, but still.

Re: Couldn't he have joined the Mennonites or something?

[frandroid.livejournal.com]

Well, I reneged on my confirmation, sent my parish a letter informing them of same, and went on the payroll of the United Church, before deciding that I'd rather sleep in on Sundays.

And this was after my Prot. mother converted to Catholicism (and subsequently reneged), in order to share the religion that she and my Papist da had chosen to raise us in. And even my Prot grandmom didn't blink an eyelash.

Your mother was confused in the first place, so you're a second-generation switcher. That's cheating.

Further more, I want to specific that while prots don't care if you turn Papist, but the reverse isn't true. Protestants, like Sunni Muslims, are the anarchists of their respective religion, i.e. they don't recognize a higher authority on earth, and thus everyone can do whatever you can. Protestants are the breakaway churches, so further breakage is just normal. For Catholics, on the other hand, the Pope is God's salesperson, and they are The Original Faith. (Nevermind judaism...) I'm not saying that they come after you; I'm saying that part of the upbringing inculcaltes this in you. It certain did for me in Québec, where Lionel Groulx was describing French Canadians as the Tribe of Israel...

And Dude, if you're born in Canada, to parents of Canadian citizenship, you're Canadian. No matter where your family brought its religion over from, and whose national feast days you recognize.

That's like saying your legal status supercedes your cultural origins. I'm from Québec, and I can tell you, even though we bloody founded this country, that many French Québécois don't recognize themselves as Canadians. (Now that's something really screwed up in the separatist movement, but I won't address it here.) Culture trumps legal status every time.

Anyway, I didn't say that it's *impossible*. I'm very well aware that it's doable and that people have done it. I'm just saying that you can't do it. :]

[terry-terrible.livejournal.com]

Miss Negativity and crew: Remebering an earlier post about D. Horowitz's site, here is a cool parady of it.

http://www.discoveryourmommasnetwork.org/

[sabotabby]

Bwahahaha.

[rohmie.livejournal.com]

Speaking of funny links, this has "missnegativity" written all over it. Interestingly, I know of two gamers who have gone AWOL - but not from any sudden fit of ethics or common sense. Nope, they wanted to be in the Special Forces and when they didn't make the cut, they decided being a regular grunt wasn't cool enough for them. I suspect they also discovered that military life wasn't much fun either. Rumor has it that they had other avenues out; but being dumb fucks, they opted for the high-hassle route. That's the rumor, anyway. I have no idea where they are now.

[sabotabby]

Heh. Yes, I did hear about that (on all4israel, to be specific). It gave me many giggles indeed.

[chailash.livejournal.com]

Hi...just found you through random clicking on my flist. I've added you because your journal seems entertaining to read. The Ward Churchill support banner on your user page and the "Necrophilia means never having to say you're sorry" pretty much sealed the deal for me.

I live in Colorado, about an hour away from Boulder. It's unbearable what they're doing to him out here. I wish they'd just leave him alone. It's sad that our universities are the last places that free and (sometimes) radical thought can occur, and be supported.

[sabotabby]

Hey there! I gather Boulder is somewhat of a coolness Mecca (bike4fish is also from your neck of the woods).

I'm rather pissed at the way Churchill's been hounded, but in the same way, I can see it being incredibly good for his career. That is, if he doesn't get killed or run out of the country. I've been into him for years, so it's hilarious to see so many people who hadn't heard of him freaking out over something he wrote back in 2001.

[rohmie.livejournal.com]

Find out that your ex has done gone and joined Opus Dei. Ick.
K: "Oh, come on. He was always a bit of a fascist."

The cover story in the current Time Magazine is about Protestants starting the venerate Mary. However, the hand-up portrait they chose with the "Hail, Mary" headline really seems like an ill-considered combination. I first read something else. It doesn't even need photo-shopping.

From In God We Trust:

"Seek him ... Hail him ... Seek! ... Hail! ... Seek! Hail! Seek! Hail! Sieg Heil! Sieg Heil! ..."

[rohmie.livejournal.com]

This link is better.