The Pope's Ipod

I can't decide if this is scandalous or not, but it sure as heck is funny. H/t the Curt Jester

The Easter Sermon of John Chrysostom

[Pastor of Constantinople (~400 AD)] Is there anyone who is a devout lover of God? Let them enjoy this beautiful bright festival! Is there anyone who is a grateful servant? Let them rejoice and enter into the joy of their Lord! Are there any weary with fasting? Let them now receive their wages! If any have toiled from the first hour, let them receive their due reward; If any have come after the third hour, let him with gratitude join in the Feast! And he that arrived after the sixth hour, let him not doubt; for he too shall sustain no loss. And if any delayed until the ninth hour, let him not hesitate; but let him come too. And he who arrived only at the eleventh hour, let him not be afraid by reason of his delay. For the Lord is gracious and receives the last even as the first. He gives rest to him that comes at the eleventh hour, as well as to him that toiled from the first. To this one He gives, and upon another He bestows. He accepts the works as He greets the endeavor. The deed He honors and the intention He commends. Let us all enter into the joy of the Lord! First and last alike receive your reward; rich and poor, rejoice together! Sober and slothful, celebrate the day! You that have kept the fast, and you that have not, rejoice today for the Table is richly laden! Feast royally on it, the calf is a fatted one. Let no one go away hungry. Partake, all, of the cup of faith. Enjoy all the riches of His goodness! Let no one grieve at his poverty, for the universal kingdom has been revealed. Let no one mourn that he has fallen again and again; for forgiveness has risen from the grave. Let no one fear death, for the Death of our Savior has set us free. He has destroyed it by enduring it. He destroyed Hades when He descended into it. He put it into an uproar even as it tasted of His flesh. Isaiah foretold this when he said, "You, O Hell, have been troubled by encountering Him below." Hell was in an uproar because it was done away with. It was in an uproar because it is mocked. It was in an uproar, for it is destroyed. It is in an uproar, for it is annihilated. It is in an uproar, for it is now made captive. Hell took a body, and discovered God. It took earth, and encountered Heaven. It took what it saw, and was overcome by what it did not see. O death, where is thy sting? O Hades, where is thy victory? Christ is Risen, and you, o death, are annihilated! Christ is Risen, and the evil ones are cast down! Christ is Risen, and the angels rejoice! Christ is Risen, and life is liberated! Christ is Risen, and the tomb is emptied of its dead; for Christ having risen from the dead, is become the first-fruits of those who have fallen asleep. To Him be Glory and Power forever and ever. Amen! [From the medieval Sourcebook]

Hmmm

The possibilities here are endless. For example.

D@#* Corporations

This cool coffee shop, Double Shot, in Tulsa, OK, is being threatened with legal action by Starbucks for trademark violation. Starbucks, you may know, produces a product called Starbucks Doubleshot, which is sold in grocery stores. Because Sbx has a trademark on "Starbucks Doubleshot," some legal paper mover decided that they also have the rights to the words Double Shot. The coffee shop has started up a blog to advertise their plight to the world. This is really ridiculous. A shot describes a quantity of liquid. Imagine me trademarking the inch. It doesn't make sense. All Starbucks achieves with this maneuver is reinforcing their image as the big bully uber-corporation, which uses its size to squash the little guy. I have heard of many situations where Starbucks will intentionally build a coffee shop within a few blocks of another independent shop so as to take advantage of their customers, effectively putting the little guy out of business. I like Starbucks, because its convenient being able to know, in any city, that every store will have the same quality product. But in my heart, I like the home-grown store a lot more, and I really don't like Stx business practices. I think I will make it my business to get my coffee elsewhere. You can buy Double Shot coffee here. For some reason, they only sell it by the gallon, which does not readily translate in my mind to pounds, so I can't tell you how the price compares to Starbucks' own coffee. You can email Starbucks here. If you live in Irving, you can avoid Starbucks at Granada Market in Los Colinas and at the Argentinean Bakery next to Half Price Books on Belt Line. H/t Patterico.

Contest

The object is to stump the readership. To play, post a quote from a movie which you think others will not guess. It must be in some way peculiar to that movie (i.e., entries like "Hello." are not acceptable). To post your quote, you must first correctly guess the movie of the previous post. For example, if I post "Exits are here here here here here here here anywhere", you must first guess "Aladdin" before you can post your own quote. If you guess wrong you are eliminated. If no one guesses your post correctly for 24 hrs, you win. The reward is one dollar. The movie genera is live-action children's movies. Researching the quotes, whether on the internet or in any other way, is cheating. I'll begin. "I'm a codfish."

Things Not to Do:

Make Bishop Bruskewitz mad.

From the Mouth of

Peggy Noonan (about a month ago, but I just saw it today). "Americans take refuge in their homes. It's how they protect themselves from their culture. It helps us maintain our optimism." [Btw, I especially like the rhetorical effect here of switching from the third to the first person plural.] I could think about this quote all day. TV, Internet (here I am!), radio, billboards, ads on taxicabs, pop music in every store, in every bank, in every public building. It's true: we need a place of refuge from our own culture. And we are optimistic because we have one, our home. God save our homes. Her piece is quite good. The main thrust is as follows: "America has become creepy for women who think of themselves as ladies."

Don't Forget

Big government is stealing, not just your hard earned money, but your time. One hour of it. Tonight. Raise your hand if you plan on being an hour late to mass tomorrow.

It's a Good Thing

that we've got scientists to tell us things like this.