I listened yesterday US East Coast time. But, wanted to think more about your broadcast before commenting.

Something to consider.  By mandating “free” contraception Obama and the Libs have:
–Revived the “woman’s right to choose” issue and a massive voting block. I think he gains more from the firming up this block than losing the “Catholic vote.”
–He has also boosted support for ObamaCare from this same block. Free birth control (and abortions – just wait.) Nothing else matters to this major voting block.
–He has moved to way down the list:
–The spotlight from the rapid economic demise of our Country.
–The apocalyptic events developing in Iran and the Mid-East.
–His continuing to circumvention of the US Constitution by issuing dictates to change regulations rather than properly doing this through the Legislature. 
–And other “midnight” appointments, executive orders, etc.

I know little about the Islam religion, other than killing and maiming seem to be The Law in “their book.”  But, I question why I’ve not heard any reaction from them about this issue (maybe it’s OK with them.) Silly me, if it did offend Muslims in this country, Obama would never had imposed the dictate. Christians can be stifled, criticized, etc. But, we must be considerate of the religious tennents of Muslims.  But, even the slippery slop of eroding religious freedoms in this country should raise some concern for them.

The war on Christianity has bee bumped up a huge knotch.

Is Revelation playing out?

Well, I could go on and may send other “thoughts” as they come to me, if you don’t mind. 

Now people you may want to follow in you study of US government and politics.

Sean Hannity. http://www.hannity.com 

Mark Steyn: http://www.steynonline.com The perspective of a conservative Canadian (living just over the boarder in the us.) 

And, in addition to checking out SQPN’s own iPadre’s latest tweet:  Fr. Jay Finelli @iPadre The Audacity of Obama wp.me/p1rAyv-FU.  Also, listen to his latest podcast at iPadre.com it’s #248. A compelling sermon he gave this weekend in his parish.

Well, you did say you wanted comments. Although, you may be regretting that after this lengthy one.

Just wondering.  Do you broadcast the podcast while recording it?  If so, is there a chat room?  This works well with the SQPN podcasts that are recorded live.  We can provide real time info to the hosts. I.e. the woman’s right to choose voting block would have been, what I think, an important addition to your show.  

Do you have a separate Twitter account or do you use use the 15th station account.

That’s all I can think of.  For now…

Great show.  And, I’m looking forward more podcasts from you and exploring the others in the 15th Station “stable.”  [Stable. Interesting choice of now.  I have a "stable." It is the home of my horse. ]

Marianna
Massachusetts, USA

“The basic reason for the confusion in the ministry of Christ in the last few decades has been: the identification of the priesthood with liturgy and ceremony instead of with holiness; and the identification of victimhood with social action with rather than with human guilt. The priest was linked with the altar; the victim with poverty exclusively, rather than with human frailty and ignorance and suffering. Once the priesthood no longer meant a vertical relation to the Holiness of God,
and victimhood no longer a horizontal relation to all men who have come short of the glory of God, then the priest was chained to the sanctuary and the victim to the inner city. Not only were they divorced from their original intent of sanctity and oneness with aggrieved humanity, but they began to quarrel with one another, each blaming the other for failing his vocation …”

He mentions social justice a few more times in the book, each time as a veering off track from it’s original intent – that is the saving of sinners.  He talks about Christ not being a political priest.  This social justice movement taking in the Church must have been already quite strong when he wrote the book in 1974, for he says:

“The gravest danger facing the Church in the future is the politicalization or the turning of theology into politics, seminaries into schools of social service and the preaching of the Word of God into the vague notion of “presence”.  An intellectual amnesia makes some in the Church forget the demonic power that is hidden behind the exousiai or the powers of the world (1 Corinthians 15:24).  Forgotten, too, is the fact that prayer is the most important political action the Christian can possibly take.  Prayer-life is far more important that all the protests, burnings, demonstrations, praying on Fifth Avenue for TV cameras and fasting on City Hall steps to the utter oblivion of: “When you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites.  They make their faces unsightly so that other people (NBC, ABC, and CBS) may see they are fasting” (Matthew 6:16).  In almost every instance where  priests and religious have divorced the Christ Who is Offerer and Offered, it has resulted in a decline of prayer, a betrayal of revealed truth or apostasy.  What is actually going on is a sacerdotal vulgarisation of political extremism.  Because the Church has sometimes been behind in implementing social justice, some clerics soaring from ignorance to rapture, turn pulpits into secondhand revolutionary verbiage and vacuous sociological rock and roll.  They become the tails of kites, and homiletic spray guns.  When the Anti-Christ appears he will be, as St Thomas Aquinas warns, a Potestas Politica, a Political Power.“

Quite different from the vision given to the children at Fatima in 1917 where souls fell into Hell like snowflakes and the children suffered and prayed in order to save poor souls from going there.

Now, we tip-toe around this word “obligation” because we understand that with Sunday trading (for example) we can’t be talking about obligations and responsibilities in this “new” society, for fear of putting pressure on people.

The key is to understand that we are now back in Roman times for the Catholic Church.  We are now counter-cultural.  It is understanding our obligations and responsibilities that will differentiate us from the main-stream culture that is currently suiciding.  Obliged to go to mass?  Oh, lets make it optional.  Obliged to stay married?  Oh, lets make it optional.  Obliged to give birth to the life already created?  Oh, let’s make that optional.  Obliged to have responsibilities?  Oh, that might generate a sense of guilt!

We practice the small things to help build the strength to take on the big things.

Thanks for coming along and checking out 15 Minutes with the Bishop. Hope you become a regular listener