ALL ABOUT THE LAY PULPIT

Saturday, August 26, 2017

“Moderation in All Things”

As many of our readers will recall, sometime in June we experienced a bit of a “cyber bombardment” of “wall-to-wall spamming,” coupled with as many as thirty (exceptionally adversarial) comments in a single day (obviously “orchestrated” by one of the cult centers).  And, since such an onslaught made it difficult to answer all the comments in an orderly fashion -- and also because it was wasting the time of our regular readers having to put up with all this nonsense -- we decided to implement “moderation.” Each comment is now “moderated,” i.e., reviewed for content (by a blog administrator) before being approved for publication.  This way, comments can now be addressed in a rational, orderly fashion; and each comment can be given the attention it deserves.2  But, more importantly, it puts the blog administrator – not these disruptive “loonies” -- back in control.  The latter can no longer wreak their havoc.  It has put a fitting end to their “disruption” strategy.

And, although such an onslaught was “disruptive” -- we welcomed it, for a couple of reasons: Firstly, the comments themselves illustrated to our regular readers how completely adolescent these people are (thus reinforcing what we’ve been saying about them all along).  And secondly – because these comments were so absurd – they gave us “material” with which to expose these clowns in future articles.  One of our articles -- Say Again? (click here) -- in fact, was a direct outcome of this disruption.  It was in answer to one of these loonies’ comments about Schiavo; and, guess what?  That article brought on yet another spurious comment about Schiavo,1 which gave us – you guessed it -- yet another opportunity to talk about Schiavo again: 

The comment was as follows:  “Fr. Cekada clearly stated, that IF Terri was capable of eating via the mouth when fed, then what they did was murder. The other issue is whether a stomach tube is extraordinary means. And it is. My father revered his parish priest, who later got cancer of his arm, and he chose death rather than amputation. Amputation is a one-time-thing, and quite easy compared to a stomach tube...which is on-going. Fr. Cekada is entirely vindicated.”

Well, for starters, Checkie already knew that Terri was “capable of eating via the mouth when fed” – because, not only was it public knowledge before, during, and after the time of her ordeal, but Checkie himself was actually informed of it at the time -- by several people. 3   Hence, his statement, IF Terri was capable of eating via the mouth when fed, then what they did was murder,” is a LIE.  There was no “IF” about it.  We might also ask: what person who calls himself a “theologian” would – on such an important point – not be sure of his facts before making such a [mis]communication?  And what sort of “theologian” – when he did find out (which he indeed did), would not write a retraction of his erroneous position?  Checkie did neither of these things.  Over a decade later, he still stubbornly refuses to recant what he said.

The next lie that this commenter told was the following: “The other issue is whether a stomach tube is extraordinary means. And it is. My father revered his parish priest, who later got cancer of his arm, and he chose death rather than amputation. Amputation is a one-time-thing, and quite easy compared to a stomach tube...which is on-going. Fr. Cekada is entirely vindicated.”  Apparently, he did not read the part stating that [Cekada] “based his ‘extraordinary means’ argument on an outdated opinion of Pius XII’s that tube-feeding might be considered ‘extraordinary.’  By the time of Terri’s death, tube-feeding had for decades NOT been considered ‘extraordinary’ but routine.  So routine, in fact, that two of SGG’s parishioners had their kids on tube-feeding at the time (as we also included in one of our footnotes).

Sure, one might consider tube-feeding to be “extraordinary” in the sense that it is not a “natural” food-ingestion process; but, by that definition, any “artificial device,” such as artificial limbs, crutches, hearing aids, cataract inserts – you name it – could be considered “extraordinary means.”  And as far as tube-feeding goes, this has been considered routine for so long – even in decades-long feeding – that the term “extraordinary means” is no longer applied to it (except, in the case of (to use Checkie’s words) “a body that is obviously shutting down for good.”  The only problem here (as we also pointed out), Terri’s body was NOT “shutting down for good.”

Lastly, we must point out the idiocy of the part of the comment dealing with the “parish priest, who later got cancer of his arm, and he chose death rather than amputation. Amputation is a one-time-thing, and quite easy compared to a stomach tube...which is on-going.”  Actually, according to Catholic moral theology, someone choosing death over a life-saving amputation would be considered morally reprehensible – perhaps tantamount to suicide.  There are plenty of people who have undergone amputations to save their lives.  This priest sounds as if he’s some sort of wimp or coward.  Hasn’t he ever heard of the expression, “offering it up”?  Also, we might point out that the two aforementioned kids who were on long-term tube-feeding did not register one complaint about it being “painful” or “a burden.”  Bottom line, “Mr. Commenter”:  Checkie is NOT “entirely vindicated.”  He should, in fact, be indicted.

So, as one can see, this comment (along with the previous “onslaught”) has given us plenty of “material” about which to write.   In an ensuing comment (which, by the way, we decided to “spam”), someone added this: “You should go back to not requiring a post approval, this new way is much too slow. Ya [sic] I know some people blasted you in a similar way that you pretty much always blast others and it probably didn’t feel good, but bid deal so there are a few extra posts about how you delete comments and now you only play into that by monitoring all comments.”  (This same comment was also sent in to Pistrina, who responded to it in a succinct but decisive way, hence our decision to simply spam it and let them handle it.)4

But that ensuing comment got us to thinking:  The fact that we at Lay Pulpit (and, of course, Pistrina) allow comments at all – “moderated” or otherwise – is far and away a more liberal policy than what the cult-masters allow.  In their bulletins, newsletters, and other “communications,” they make provision for no feedback whatsoever.  Can you imagine if someone started giving Dannie, Checkie, or Big Don the kind of “feedback” that we get here – or if someone got out of his pew and started giving a “sermon within a sermon” (similar to that one lunatic’s “blog within a blog” nonsense back in June)?!  How long would Dannie (or Big Don) tolerate that?  (Dannie can’t even tolerate crying babies during his sermons!) 5

So, bottom line, we see our new “moderation” policy as an eminently good one –one that provides for feedback -- but one that spares our general readership the disruptive (and time-wasting) influence of a handful of crackpots.  It is a policy that (we think) will be here “for the duration” at Lay Pulpit (and at Pistrina).6  There is one notable difference between us and Pistrina, however: we at Lay Pulpit have decided to “spam” those comments that we feel are merely “disruptive for disruption’s sake.”  We choose not to tolerate such comments.  Pistrina, on the other hand, is more “accommodating” in their approach to such opposition – and we applaud them for it.  We feel that they have chosen the “right” strategy for them – but we feel that our strategy is “right’ for us.  We both have our reasons for our policies, and we think both are valid ones.  But beyond that, we feel no need to further explain why our policy is different from theirs.

In either case, we certainly believe that moderation of comments is a good thing, for everyone concerned.  (And, actually, it is a good policy for any publication, large or small, for it provides for two-way communication, yet still provides the right safeguards.)  The cult-center loonies have been whining loudly, complaining that moderation “slows things down too much.”  No it doesn’t (and no, it hasn’t).  We like it, and we think it’s here to stay.  And if those loonies don’t like it -- well – they’ll just have to get used to it!

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1 Ironically, many of the comments we got from these trolls were accusing us of “bringing up Schiavo again” – yet it was they who actually brought it up!  So, in writing about Schiavo, we were merely responding to their taunts, not prematurely and preemptively “dredging up old news.”  But, regardless of who was “dredging it up,” according to these trolls’ logic, regularly reminding people of our Lord’s crucifixion would too be considered as “dredging up old news.”

2 And, of course, comments that are particularly absurd can be “spammed” and/or deleted if need be – and we have done a fair amount of “spamming” already, with no adverse effects.  It has, to be sure, resulted in fewer comments; but we like it that way, because the comments we now get are constructive and rational – not the insane claptrap that the loonies have been peddling.  Plus, more importantly, our new policy has not adversely affected our readership; it has actually increased since we’ve implemented the policy.

That is not to say that a more “open” toleration of comments doesn’t have its advantages.  For one thing, as we’ve already noted, it gives us more “material” for future articles; but on the other, it often turns the comments section into a three-ring circus, where the loonies can carry on an incessant dialogue about issues of interest no one but themselves (and which waste everyone’s time) -- and which, more often than not, are only read by the loonies themselves anyway.  We have chosen to be not so “open” – and that works for us.

Our colleagues at Pistrina Liturgica, by the way, were the first to implement moderation, and we followed suit shortly thereafter.   And this is what has particularly upset these “loonies”: they can no longer wreak their havoc in an unbridled and haphazard way.  “But,” as they say, “they have brought it on themselves.”  So, if they want to blame anyone for this new policy, they need only “look in the mirror.”

3 And Cekada was totally aware at the time he wrote his words that Terri could swallow – because he was informed of it by several people (including one of his own parishioners, as well as a noted neurologist).  In correspondence between this parishioner and him, she informed Checkie that Terri was – amongst other things -- able to swallow.  (For more of her correspondence with Checkie, click here.)

4 Pistrina responded thusly: “We didn't go to moderation because of the "blasts": we always allowed them, and we even enjoyed them. Even now, almost all comments but spam are published. We do delete those that offend decency.  We had to moderate because the spammer was disturbing our Readership. As it stands now, there isn't too much time before a comment is posted, except when they arrive during our night-time, so we'll stick to moderation.”

5 As we’ve reported in more than once in the past, Dannie stops his sermon if a crying baby is “interfering.”  The “offending baby’s” mother must remove it to SGG’s vestibule (because there is no crying room per se) – a vestibule that is neither heated in winter nor air-conditioned in summer.  And, once in the vestibule, mother and baby are not allowed to re-enter the church until AFTER the sermon is finished (because the “commotion” of the door being opened is too much for His Self-Importancy to bear).


6 In fact, it is a policy that should have been implemented in the first place.  We did not have the foresight to see the day when disruptive loonies would cause such harassment for both us and our readers.  Now that they have done so, we have been able to “neutralize them” by putting the right safeguards in place.  So, we thank these loonies for their “disruption” – for, thanks to them, now those safeguards are in place!

Saturday, August 12, 2017

Dannie’s “Not-So-Divine Comedy”

Dannie Dolan’s SGG Bishop’s(?) Corner, as always, “never disappoints.”  It’s always chuck full of his usual mix of ecclesiastical excrement: “S&S” (Syrup & Sanctimony), “The Show,” gruesome details of his feral critters’ exploits, copious quantities of “Bergoglio bashing,” lots of condescending flattery for all his cult slaves -- and, of course, the weekly “weather report.”  And, as usual, many of Dannie’s absent-minded musings and ramblings – especially about his critters – are fairly pointless to anyone other than himself.  Well, last week’s ‘ Corner  was no exception: it was vintage “Dannie.”

First, he started off with the weather, as he is wont to do: “This past week was a heavy one, both for work and weather. And it’s always harder to work in this weather!”  (We’re not sure why it’s “harder to work in this weather!” but, okay, so be it.)  And then this tidbit: “The McFathers have decamped to hot humid Florida (they could have stayed here) for vacation.”  (Sounds like Dannie was perhaps a little “addled” that they went to Florida [vs. staying back at the cult center] for vacation.  Is he complaining about it being “a waste of money”?  (If so, isn’t that a bit like “the pot calling the kettle black”?!)

Then Dannie started waxing poetic about “The Show”: “But all of our feasts and devotions were duly done, and sung. Our young people formed a fine choir for St. Peter’s Chains. First Friday’s Adoration (thank you to the Guard of Honor) anticipated the glory of today’s Transfiguration. ‘Lord it is good for us to be here!’ we can only cry out with Peter. Believe it.”  Well, okay!  But why recount the week’s past events (including those poor “Guard of Honor” scmucks who had to drive to the cult center in the middle of the night to do their “hour” for Dannie -- while His Complacency slumbered, snugly and indolently, in his king-sized bedroom back at the rectory).  We don’t think that the “Guards of Honor” who were there (between 2 and 5 A.M.) exclaimed, “Lord it is good for us to be here!”  It was probably something more like, “Lord, why are we here at this hour, while Dannie (as usual) is snoozing comfortably?”

The next thing Dannie blathered about was his “critters” (Caravaggio and a certain “weasel,” followed by some “bashing” of the cult’s “enemies” (but, curiously, no “Bergoglio bashing” this time): “The idea of God as Father is blasphemous to the Mohammedans, and forgotten by too many Christians.”  And then, “At some point he [Fr. Lehtoranta] pulled into the parking lot of a Baptist church to get his bearings. It was a beehive of activity. ‘Vespers,’ Fr. Cekada quipped. Well, if only the Baptists knew about Vespers being almost all biblical, I’m sure they would crowd in. Then our parking lot would be packed on some Sunday afternoons. Imagine. Twice on a Sunday and once during the week, and they line up to tithe their ten percent!  [Our bold emphasis.]  But they have neither tabernacle nor altar nor sacrifice. Do you suppose we will one day pay terribly for taking it all for granted?”  The “takeaway” from this is not so much Dannie’s “Baptist bashing” per se, but his using this as an opportunity to give his culties another not-so-subtle reminder about tithing.  Dannie still expects them to give one tenth of their gross income to the cult center!1

But we save the pièce de résistance for last: Dannie's next "tidbit" was about implementing a new “liturgical practice” for SGG: “First Wednesday” devotions!  To quote Dannie, “Last week Fr. Lehtoranta had the inspiration to initiate the First Wednesday devotion, so we did. (How did we miss that one all these years?)  [Yes, Dannie, how did you?!]  A five years indulgence is granted for those who ‘perform some devout exercise in honor of St. Joseph’ on the first Wednesday of the month.”  Well, Golly! (as Gomer Pyle would say).  “Five years’ indulgence!”  [Yes, that’s right, boys and girls: five years!]  Whether or not Dannie has the “power” to grant such an indulgence (and we don’t think he does – for a multitude of reasons) is really an irrelevant point.

Rather, the relevant point here is that, for Dannie, “being Catholic” is all about how many First Fridays, First Saturdays, First Thursdays – and now, First Wednesdays -- one observes, not about how one treats one’s fellow man.  (Dannie has lost sight of the latter.  Correction: he never saw it to begin with.)  That’s why Dannie can reconcile watching porn and fornicating with a fellow student (aka, “boys being boys”) with “being Catholic.”  That’s why he and Tony can sell a congregation’s satellite chapel out from under them (and expropriate their building fund), and still be “Catholic.”  And that’s why he can muse whimsically, with complete detachment, about birds and bunnies being shredded by his feral cats, and still be “Catholic.”  And how can Dannie reconcile all these things? Because he has no principlesthat’s how.

With Dannie, it really doesn’t matter what one does (or how one treats his fellow man), as long as he “shows up for the show” (or, to put it more correctly, “as long as he donates”).  It’s all “letter-of-the-law” stuff: all letter, but no spirit.  Or, as St. Paul puts it, it’s all “sounding brass and clanging cymbal,” but no charity.  And that – coupled with no morals or principles – is, as they say, “a deadly combination.”  That being the case, all of these extra-added “devotions” are not about making people holier, but about imposing extra-added control and manipulation.  It’s about totally immersing them in the cult, until there’s nothing else left but the cult – the classic cult blueprint for control. 

And why is Dannie doing this?  Because he’s getting desperate, that’s why.  This is “Last Chance Gulch” for Dannie: a last ditch attempt to whip the Gerties into line, because he’s losing his grip: financially, psychologically, actually. “The old magic” (aka, manipulation and control) isn’t working very well anymore (and hasn’t for some time). Both the collections and attendance have never recovered to pre-2009 levels, and are down even more, so Dannie “has to do something.”  And that “something” is still control and manipulation (even though it’s not working very well anymore).  It’s really all he has left – that, plus lashing out at all his “enemies” (real or imagined): Bergoglio, Moslems, Baptists, SSPX, FSSP, the government, the local energy utility, “weasels” – you name it.

So, that’s why he’s going back to his old standby: overloading the Gerties with “activities” (that time-worn but tried-and-true cult tactic).  Will it work?  No, we don’t think so.  The Gerties (at long last) are beginning to see through this ruse.  As we said, both attendance and collections are down (although Dannie did comment in his ‘Corner, “Summertime brought another light attendance last week, but a good collection”).  This, however, is wishful thinking on Dannie’s part.  The collection (relatively speaking) was not all that “good.”  But this comment was significant in one respect: like his earlier “tithing” comment, it did reaffirm Dannie’s one, overpowering priority: MONEY.  (And, let’s face it: Dannie really doesn’t care if the pews are completely empty, as long as he gets his Geld.)

That being said, we implore those Gerties still being exploited by the mitered maggot to “turn off the Geld,” i.e., to shut their pocketbooks -- and to continue “voting vote with their feet.”  Dirt-bag Dan and Antonius Balonius are two “fake news phonies” who do not deserve ONE RED CENT of anyone’s hard-earned cash.  Let’s “bring down the curtain” on their "Not-So-Divine Comedy"!  Let’s “close down production” on this farce -- and the sooner, the better.  In other words,

Starve the beast!

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1 One perceptive commenter [“Anonymous,” Aug. 5, 8:27 PM) caught this (about Dannie’s perpetual preoccupation with tithing) on last week’s ‘’Corner, and commented about it on PL’s article (click here), after which The Reader, in concurrence, responded with several remarks, including the following:

Boy does he [Dannie] want the Gerties to get the idea. To make sure they did, a couple paragraphs later he [Dannie] wrote:  Summertime brought another light attendance last week, but a good collection.’   P.S. The collection haul still amounted to less than what $GG used to rake in before the 2009 $GG $chool $candal. 


All we shall add to that is, “Right on, Reader!”