The Minnesota professor who obtained and desecrated a consecrated Communion host got interviewed by Jeff Gardner for the National Catholic Register (if memory serves me, that’s the “good” NCR as opposed to the other NCR which is the “bad” one.) Here’s an excerpt:

That xxxxx has the equivalent of a junior high school education in religion is glaring. He understands little about the history and function of the Catholic Church and even less about the place of the Eucharist in the lives of Catholics. When I told him that many have laid their lives on the line to protect the Blessed Sacrament, he recoiled in disbelief, saying, “Really? People really do that!?”

This is one of the interesting revelations from the interview.  He walked away from religion at 14 and it becomes clear he’s never taken any time to study it; in the Lutheran denomination, his heritage, there is certainly a history surrounding the Eucharist, even though that denomination’s understanding of the Eucharist is incomplete.  Yet he doesn’t know this.  He’s a scientist, but without studying something he has discounted it entirely (and don’t start on me…there are things I refect out of hand without studying them, but I never claimed to be a scientist.)

“Religion,” he continued, “has been selling everybody a bill of goods for so many years; it’s about time somebody spoke up and said that it’s a load of nonsense.”

I decided to call his bluff. “Has Christianity contributed anything to humanity?” I asked him.

“Well,” he said in a matter-of-fact tone, “there is this general property of religion — it’s great at building community. Religion has been a good thing for many individuals; it has brought them together and given them comfort. But over all, religion … holds back humanity.”

What, I asked, about the Church’s role in founding the first Western hospitals, universities, banks and even many breakthroughs in science? He interrupted me, irate and incredulous:

“No, people made those contributions to Western Civilization.”

That the Church was involved in the very foundations of our Western culture is, according to Myers, irrelevant.

“That’s like saying,” he continued, “that because for so many years people got smallpox, smallpox is to be credited for all the virtue men have done.”

As I talked with Myers I was struck by an irony: For a scientist whose job it is to observe cause and effect, he has a poor understanding of the cause, Catholicism, and its effects on world culture. He does not see Christianity as an elevating force in the world, but rather as a strange superstition — akin to banging a pot to scare away the moon.

The Curt Jester has an excellent rebutt to this portion of the interview:

It really makes me sorry for him that his hatred of Christianity has destroyed any vestige of objectivity.  Say for example somebody asked me.

“Do you think science has contributed to humanity?  What about science’s role in developing medicine, technology, and helping us to come to a greater understanding of the universe?”

“No, people made those contributions to Western Civilization.”

I would deserve a good slap to my head for such an answer.

Perhaps the answer here is that there is not any true objectivity, although “science” has claimed the sole ownership of objectivity.

B16 has weighed in now on the military operations in Georgia.  Predictably, he is calling on all sides to mediate and stop fighting.

The pope expressed his “deep anguish” at the fighting so far, which he said already had led to dramatic and tragic consequences. He said it was important to resume the process of respectful and constructive dialogue and spare the civilian population “additional painful suffering.”

“I also invite the international community and the countries most influential in the current situation to make every effort to sustain and promote initiatives aimed at reaching a peaceful and lasting solution, one which favors open and respectful coexistence,” he said.

The pope said he was praying along with Orthodox Christians, who form the majority of the populations in Georgia and Russia, so that peace will come to the region.

In a separate comment, the Vatican spokesman, Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, said the Vatican was concerned deeply about the explosion of violence in Georgia. He said the Caucasus region has proven itself to be an area where long-standing tensions can re-emerge even after years of relative calm.

My request from yesterday was answered.  President Bush has told Russia to stop it, to leave Georgia alone, fearing that the breakaway region of the former Soviet republic might end up taking over the whole republic.

Almost immediately after his return from the Olympics in China, Bush warned Russia in his strongest comments since the fighting erupted over Georgia’s separatist South Ossetia region last week to “reverse the course it appears to be on” and abandon any attempt it may have to topple Georgia’s pro-western government.

“Russia has invaded a sovereign neighboring state and threatens a democratic government elected by its people. Such an action is unacceptable in the 21st century,” the president said in a televised statement from the White House, calling on Moscow to sign on to the outlines of a cease-fire as the Georgian government has done.

As a lame duck, one must wonder if this will have any impact.  If violence continues, especially violence in which it appears communists masquerading as freedom-loving Russians gain the upper hand, how will this impact our elections?  Could be pretty interesting.

The Olympics seem to be creating a nice diversion of global attention as it appears Russia is trying to take control of one of its former Soviet republics, that of Georgia.

The question is, where does the USA stand on this issue?  Our lame-duck President is hanging out in Beijing, enjoying the fact that there’s not really anything big going on, and our candidates have not so far made no comment that I can find on the issue.  We have got to figure out whose side we are on.

more

Since I sent a letter to our Bishop, asking if Communion on the tongue should return in the wake of the nutty professor’s desecration of the Eucharist, I got a response…seems like a form letter, but here goes:

Thank you for your letter of July 24^th to Archbishop Gregory.  The Archbishop asked that I respond too your email.

I commend you for your dedication to the Sacred Presence of our Lord in the host, and your solicitude for the dignity of the Eucharist.  The bishops of the Church, when the time came to deliberate granting the privilege of receiving Communion in the hand, weighed all the arguments for and against, including those you mention.  Their decision was that the Faithful could not be deprived of the blessing of receiving in the hand, because of the threat of some ill-guided individuals who might seek to desecrate the Sacred Host.  This phenomenon arises occasionally, and the upshot is always that when such acts are made public, it is the desecrator who ends up feeling the weight of shame that comes upon him from both the words and prayers of those who respect the Sacrament, whether Catholic, Protestant, or outside the Christian Faith. For those who obtain consecrated hosts surreptitiously, then their shame is known only to God, and of the two set of circumstances, I would think the consequences of the latter are far worse than the former.

Our Lord’s sacrifice on the Cross, we believe, was perfect, and everlasting, and no amount of worldly insults cast upon Him now, no matter by whom, can make a jot of difference in the fact of Redemption, and its availability to all mankind.  What we must do, as Christ would want us to do, is to pray for those so misguided as to think they can harm the best, most perfect Son of God, who took upon Himself human form, even for their sake.  I appreciate your cautions, but I want you to know, that every priest I know, has at heart at every Mass, the desire to see that our Lord in the Eucharist is honored and protected – our eyes are open when we distribute – and if something amiss should happen, you can be assured that we will address it.  If it is something we miss, then we can all be assured that God sees nonetheless, and He will not let such actions escape the balance of His justice.

Thanks for sharing your concern, and I hope my answer will allay your fears – and remember, we must pray for our enemies.  God bless you.