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Thursday, June 18, 2015

Some new books I've received over the past few weeks:

....this should keep me busy for a few weeks.  If I had life my way, the world would leave me the fuck alone and let me read 24/7!!!  Actually I DO have life my way....LEAVE ME THE FUCK ALONE!  ESPECIALLY DUMB-ASS SKANKY, UGLY, NASTY, JUNKIE HOOKERS [D.C.]


"The Struggle forVirtue: Asceticism in a Modern Secular Society"  by Archbishop Averky (Taushev)


"The Monk"  by Matthew Lewis 


"The Curious World of Drugs & Their Friends: A Very Trippy Miscellany"  by I Nierman & A. Sack


"St Nikodim of the Holy Mountain: What God Has Done for Our Salvation"  by St. Nikodim


""The Icon of the Nevskaya Mother of God, Quick to Hear"   by Archpriest Gennady Belovolov


"My Life in Christ"  by  St. John Kronstadt


"Nazi Germany: Confronting the Myths"  by C. Epstein


"Living Without Hypocrisy: Spiritual Counsels of the Holy Elders of Optina Monastery "  trans. by Archimandrite George Schaefer


"On Suicide"  by Emile Durkheim


"Reset Your Inner Clock: The Drug Free Way to Your Best-Ever Sleep, Mood & Energy"  by M. Terman, Phd & I. McMahan, PhD


"The Body and the Blood: The Middle East's Vanishing Christians and the Possibility for Peace"  by C.M. Sennott


"Fire & Fury: The Allied Bombing of Germany, 1942 - 1945"  by R. Hansen  [NEVER forget Dresden, a holocaust inflicted on innocent Germans by America & her allies -ECM]


"A Concise History of Nazi Germany"  by J.W. Bendersky


"Germany, 1945: From War to Peace"  by Richard Bessel


"After the Reich: The Brutal History of the Allied Occupation"  by Giles MacDonogh  [Please learn as much as you can about the occupation of Germany from 1945 -1955 or so. Millions of innocent Germans were raped & killed by the "Allies", mostly the Red Russian scum!]


"The Urantia Book: Revealing the Mysteries of God, The Universe, World History, Jesus, and Ourselves"  by Unknown 


"Totally Wired: Postpunk Interviews & Overviews"  by Simon Reynolds 


"We Owe You Nothing: Punk Planet, the Collected Interviews"


"The Eichmann Trial Diary: An Eyewitness Account of the Trial the Revealed the holocaust"  by Sergio Minerbi


"Please Kill Me: The Uncensored Oral History of Punk"  by L. McNeil & G. McCain


"The Young Hitler I Knew: The Definitive Inside Look at the Artist Who Became a Monster"  by August Kubizek


"Yoga: Immortality & Freedom"  by M. Eliade


"Why I am Still a Catholic"  various essays


"The Future of the Catholic Church With Pope Francis"  by Gary Willis


"Judaism for Dummies"  by Rabbi Ted Falcon, PhD & D. Blatner


"Preaching: Communicating Faith in an Age of Skepticism"  by Timothy Keller "Goodbye, Good Men: How Liberals Brought Corruption into the Catholic Church"  by M.S. Rose 


"How the Catholic Church Built Western Civilization" by T.E. Woods, Jr.


"Islamic Political Thought: An Introduction"  ed. by Gerhard Bowering  [Thinking of my sweetest friend Karin Friedemann]


"Dance of Days: Two Decades of Punk in the Nation's Capital"  by M. Andersen & M. Jenkins


"Seeds of Grace: A Nun's Reflections on the Spirituality of Alcoholics Anonymous"  by Sister Molly Monahan


"Nazis, Islamists, and the Making of the Modern Middle East"  by Barry Rubin & Wolfgang G. Schwanitz


"Apocalypticism in the Dead Sea Scrolls"  by John J. Collins


"The Nuremberg War Crimes Trial, 1945 - 1946"  by M.R. Marrus


"The Fruitful Darkness: A Journey Through Buddhist Practice and Tribal Wisdom"  by Joan Halifax


"As I Lay Dying: Meditation Upon Returning"  by Richard John Neuhaus


"The Heritage of the Bhikkhu"  by Walpola Rahula


"The Diamond That Cuts Through Illusion"  by Thich Nhat Hanh


"Finding Our True Home: Living in the Pure Land Here & Now"  by Thich Nhat Hanh


"Calming the Fearful Mind: A Zen Response to Terrorism"  by Thich Nhat Hanh


"My Master's Robe: Memories of a Novice Monk"  by Thich Nhat Hanh

Sunday, May 31, 2015

Byzantine Catholics [A Crash Course on One of the Many Eastern Catholic Churches]

(Borrowed without permission from The All Saints Byzantine Catholic Church in Ft. Myers, Florida....)

In the mountainous region of Carpatho-Rus, known also as Carpatho-Ruthenia, situated between present day Slovakia and Ukraine, there is a group of Eastern Christians. Evangelized in the ninth century by those equals-to-the-apostles, Saints Cyril and Methodius, this group received the Holy Gospel and Sacred Mysteries (Sacraments) from the Byzantine Church of Constantinople. Although Cyril and his brother, Methodius, were Greek (from Thessalonika), they promoted the use of the ancient Slavonic language in worship. This language, later known as Old Church Slavonic, would become the liturgical language of the Carpatho-Rusyns and all Slavonic Christians, both Orthodox and Catholic. In time, Cyril and Methodius brought their liturgical books to Rome to receive the blessings of Pope Hadrian, and he in turn blessed their mission of establishing the Greek (Byzantine) Catholic religion in the Carpathian mountains of Central Europe.
Over time, a rift grew between East and West; and, in 1054, estrangement was realized with the Great Schism of Constantinople and Rome. Being an Eastern Church, the Carpatho-Rusyns were eventually drawn into by this unfortunate break and became members of the Orthodox Church. This ecclesia sui iuris (self-governing church) of Mukachevo-Uzhorod in time sought reunion with the Church of Rome, re-establishing its Catholic faith while maintaining the spirituality, ceremonies, and discipline of the Eastern Church. On April 24, 1646, in Saint George Castle Garden in Uzhorod, a number of priests and faithful proclaimed vocally their reunion with the Catholic Church, re-establishing the unity that Christ so ardently prayed for. From this nucleus would grow a reborn church which the Empress Maria Theresa of Austro-Hungary would later call "The Greek Catholic Church" -- "Greek" in its ritual, theology and art; "Catholic" in union with the Bishop of Rome. In time, the reunion would spread to other areas of Europe, and new eparchies (dioceses) would be created in such places as Presov (Slovakia), Krizevci (Croatia), Hajdudorog and Miskolc (Hungary).

 
In the 1870’s, the first wave of Carpatho-Rusyn immigration brought significant numbers of Greek Catholics to the United States of America. The first parish they founded on these shores was Saint Michael's in Shanandoah, PA followed by an establishment in Freeland, PA. Others were established in places like Wilkes-barre and Kingston, PA, and in Jersey City and Passaic, NJ. 
The Greek Catholic Church in America continued to grow, and there was seen a growing need for hierarchial leadership. In 1905, Father Andrew Hodobay was sent by Rome as Apostolic Visitor to care for the immigrant church; but, being a Hungarian, he was not the proper leader for a predominantly Slavic church. Rome, then, in turn, sent two men to care for what would become two separate administrations for the American Greek Catholics: Father Peter Poniatishyn for the Ukrainians, and Father Gabriel Martyak for the Carpatho-Rusyns (Ruthenians). By this time parishes were springing up all over Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Ohio and the Northeast. In 1924 Rome raised the status of the American Greek Catholic Ruthenian community to that of an Exarchate (Apostolic Vicariate) with Bishop Basil Takach as its first Exarch, establishing Saint John the Baptist Cathedral in Pittsburgh’s Homestead/Munhall neighborhood as its seat. Meanwhile, Greek Catholic immigration continued from Carpathia as well as Hungary and Croatia. Not only were parishes and priests being established and assigned, but the Sisters of Saint Basil the Great received a call from Bishop Takach to minister to the immigrant church, and they eventually settled in Uniontown, PA, after a number of temporary locations.

 


As the decades of the twentieth century progressed, missionary efforts led to the establishment of parishes in California, Florida and even in Alaska. The term "Greek Catholic" would change to "Byzantine Catholic," stressing that the church was not Hellenic (Greek) in nationality, and that the spirituality and liturgical services were of the Byzantine Rite; also, English, now the vernacular, became the dominant liturgical language. The church was then honored in its growth and permanence by the elevation of Pittsburgh as an Eparchy (diocese) in 1963, with Bishop Nicholas T. Elko as first Eparch, after serving as Exarch since 1955. In addition, the East Coast was given their own Eparchy, Passaic, NJ, with Bishop Stephen J. Kocisko as first Eparch, and with the church of Saint Michael the Archangel designated as the Cathedral. The Eparchy of Passaic would encompass the entire eastern sea coast of the United States, from Maine to Florida. In 1968, Bishop Stephen Kocisko was transferred to the Eparchy of Pittsburgh, and subsequently Bishop Michael Dudick was consecrated and enthroned as the second Eparch of Passaic. The crowning achievement of this near century of ecclesiastical growth would be the creation, in 1969 by Pope Paul VI, of a Metropolian Church ecclesia sui uris based in Pittsburgh. This Metropolia would have as its suffragan sees the Eparchy of Passaic (covering the East) and the newly-created Eparchy of Parma, OH, (in the Midwest) governed by Bishop Emil Mihalik as its first eparch. The church of Saint John the Baptist in Parma, OH, would serve as Cathedral for the new eparchy. Bishop Mihalik endeavored to establish more churches in the outer-most parts of his eparchy in places such as Las Vegas, NV, Albuquerque, NM, and Denver, CO. The growth of these Western missions and churches was acknowledged by Pope John Paul II through the erection of a fourth jurisdiction for Byzantine Catholics: the Eparchy of Van Nuys, CA; and, through the selection of Bishop Thomas V. Dolinay (then Auxiliary Eparch of Passaic) as its first Eparch. He shepherded the Eparchy from his seat at Holy Protection of the Mother of God Cathedral in Van Nuys until he was chosen, in 1991, to be Metropolitan of Pittsburgh, succeeding the ailing former shepherd, Archbishop Stephen J. Kocisko. Consequently, the auxiliary Eparch of Passaic, Bishop George Kuzma, was enthroned as the second Eparch of Van Nuys, and, in 1997, moved his seat of administration to Saint Stephen Protomartyr Pro-Cathedral in Phoenix, AZ. In 1996, Bishop Michael J. Dudick retired after a long and pastorally beneficial ministry in the Eparchy of Passaic. Upon his retirement, the Holy Father appointed Bishop Andrew Pataki (formerly Eparch of Parma), as the third Eparch of Passaic.
The spiritual life of the Byzantine Catholic Church was and continues to grow with assistance not only from the Basilians of Uniontown, but also from Monasteries for men and women, such as The Basilian Fathers of Mariapoch, Matawan, NJ, as well as from Holy Dormition Franciscan Monastery, Sybertsville, PA.
The Byzantine Catholic Church is an Eastern Church in union with Rome; Carpatho-Rusyn in background and flavor, but indeed an American Eastern Church celebrating the Gospel in words, symbols, and action. We are unique in our mystical theology, blending the colors of our many ikons with the congregational acapella chants; raising up our hands and our fragrant incense in prayer and inviting you to come and see who we are and what we are all about as part of the Eastern half of the Universal Church.


http://www.allsaintsbyzantinechurch.com/Site/Byzantine_Catholics.html

Tuesday, May 26, 2015

Video 'NYHC New York Hardcore 1980–1990 Book Launch'


This book is going to be incredible! Can't wait to hold it in my hands....I wonder how it will fare next to the "American Hardcore" book? We'll see. ♥
 

Wednesday, May 20, 2015

Great Quote from Thomas Paine ~


"I love the man that can smile in troubles - that can gather strength from distress, and grow brave by reflection. It is the business of little minds to shrink; but he, whose heart is firm, and whose conscience approves his conduct, will pursue his principles unto death."

"I dwell not upon the vapours of imagination, I bring reason to your ears; and in language as plain as A,B,C, hold up truth to your eyes."

- Thomas Paine, American Crisis I

Wednesday, April 15, 2015

Short Documentary, "A Monk's Life"


I've wanted to be a monk--of some type--for at least twenty years. The idea of living in near seclusion on Mount Athos in Greece fascinates me. I would have to convert from Catholicism to Orthodox, however, and that's not going to happen. Regardless, I would like to visit Mount Athos someday!!  (Check out some of my others posts having to do with the monasteries of Athos!)



Wednesday, March 25, 2015

"St. Theophan the Recluse"

St. Theophan the Recluse 

Here is a rule for reading: 

Before reading you should empty your soul of everything. 
Arouse the desire to know about what is being read. 
Turn prayerfully to God. 
Follow what you are reading with attention and place everything in your open heart. 
If something did not reach the heart, stay with it until it reaches. 
You should of course read quite slowly. 
Stop reading when the soul no longer wants to nourish itself with reading. That means it is full. If the soul finds one passage utterly stunning, stop there and read no more. 
The best time for reading the Word of God is in the morning. Lives of saints after the mid-day meal, and Holy Fathers before going to sleep. Thus you can take up a little bit each day. 

The Path to Salvation

"Byzantine Catholics"

Lifted from the All Saints Byzantine Church website, without permission. Sorry.






                   Byzantine Catholics

In the mountainous region of Carpatho-Rus, known also as Carpatho-Ruthenia, situated between present day Slovakia and Ukraine, there is a group of Eastern Christians. Evangelized in the ninth century by those equals-to-the-apostles, Saints Cyril and Methodius, this group received the Holy Gospel and Sacred Mysteries (Sacraments) from the Byzantine Church of Constantinople. Although Cyril and his brother, Methodius, were Greek (from Thessalonika), they promoted the use of the ancient Slavonic language in worship. This language, later known as Old Church Slavonic, would become the liturgical language of the Carpatho-Rusyns and all Slavonic Christians, both Orthodox and Catholic. In time, Cyril and Methodius brought their liturgical books to Rome to receive the blessings of Pope Hadrian, and he in turn blessed their mission of establishing the Greek (Byzantine) Catholic religion in the Carpathian mountains of Central Europe.
Over time, a rift grew between East and West; and, in 1054, estrangement was realized with the Great Schism of Constantinople and Rome. Being an Eastern Church, the Carpatho-Rusyns were eventually drawn into by this unfortunate break and became members of the Orthodox Church. This ecclesia sui iuris (self-governing church) of Mukachevo-Uzhorod in time sought reunion with the Church of Rome, re-establishing its Catholic faith while maintaining the spirituality, ceremonies, and discipline of the Eastern Church. On April 24, 1646, in Saint George Castle Garden in Uzhorod, a number of priests and faithful proclaimed vocally their reunion with the Catholic Church, re-establishing the unity that Christ so ardently prayed for. From this nucleus would grow a reborn church which the Empress Maria Theresa of Austro-Hungary would later call "The Greek Catholic Church" -- "Greek" in its ritual, theology and art; "Catholic" in union with the Bishop of Rome. In time, the reunion would spread to other areas of Europe, and new eparchies (dioceses) would be created in such places as Presov (Slovakia), Krizevci (Croatia), Hajdudorog and Miskolc (Hungary).
 
In the 1870’s, the first wave of Carpatho-Rusyn immigration brought significant numbers of Greek Catholics to the United States of America. The first parish they founded on these shores was Saint Michael's in Shanandoah, PA followed by an establishment in Freeland, PA. Others were established in places like Wilkes-barre and Kingston, PA, and in Jersey City and Passaic, NJ. 
The Greek Catholic Church in America continued to grow, and there was seen a growing need for hierarchial leadership. In 1905, Father Andrew Hodobay was sent by Rome as Apostolic Visitor to care for the immigrant church; but, being a Hungarian, he was not the proper leader for a predominantly Slavic church. Rome, then, in turn, sent two men to care for what would become two separate administrations for the American Greek Catholics: Father Peter Poniatishyn for the Ukrainians, and Father Gabriel Martyak for the Carpatho-Rusyns (Ruthenians). By this time parishes were springing up all over Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Ohio and the Northeast. In 1924 Rome raised the status of the American Greek Catholic Ruthenian community to that of an Exarchate (Apostolic Vicariate) with Bishop Basil Takach as its first Exarch, establishing Saint John the Baptist Cathedral in Pittsburgh’s Homestead/Munhall neighborhood as its seat. Meanwhile, Greek Catholic immigration continued from Carpathia as well as Hungary and Croatia. Not only were parishes and priests being established and assigned, but the Sisters of Saint Basil the Great received a call from Bishop Takach to minister to the immigrant church, and they eventually settled in Uniontown, PA, after a number of temporary locations.
 

As the decades of the twentieth century progressed, missionary efforts led to the establishment of parishes in California, Florida and even in Alaska. The term "Greek Catholic" would change to "Byzantine Catholic," stressing that the church was not Hellenic (Greek) in nationality, and that the spirituality and liturgical services were of the Byzantine Rite; also, English, now the vernacular, became the dominant liturgical language. The church was then honored in its growth and permanence by the elevation of Pittsburgh as an Eparchy (diocese) in 1963, with Bishop Nicholas T. Elko as first Eparch, after serving as Exarch since 1955. In addition, the East Coast was given their own Eparchy, Passaic, NJ, with Bishop Stephen J. Kocisko as first Eparch, and with the church of Saint Michael the Archangel designated as the Cathedral. The Eparchy of Passaic would encompass the entire eastern sea coast of the United States, from Maine to Florida. In 1968, Bishop Stephen Kocisko was transferred to the Eparchy of Pittsburgh, and subsequently Bishop Michael Dudick was consecrated and enthroned as the second Eparch of Passaic. The crowning achievement of this near century of ecclesiastical growth would be the creation, in 1969 by Pope Paul VI, of a Metropolian Church ecclesia sui uris based in Pittsburgh. This Metropolia would have as its suffragan sees the Eparchy of Passaic (covering the East) and the newly-created Eparchy of Parma, OH, (in the Midwest) governed by Bishop Emil Mihalik as its first eparch. The church of Saint John the Baptist in Parma, OH, would serve as Cathedral for the new eparchy. Bishop Mihalik endeavored to establish more churches in the outer-most parts of his eparchy in places such as Las Vegas, NV, Albuquerque, NM, and Denver, CO. The growth of these Western missions and churches was acknowledged by Pope John Paul II through the erection of a fourth jurisdiction for Byzantine Catholics: the Eparchy of Van Nuys, CA; and, through the selection of Bishop Thomas V. Dolinay (then Auxiliary Eparch of Passaic) as its first Eparch. He shepherded the Eparchy from his seat at Holy Protection of the Mother of God Cathedral in Van Nuys until he was chosen, in 1991, to be Metropolitan of Pittsburgh, succeeding the ailing former shepherd, Archbishop Stephen J. Kocisko. Consequently, the auxiliary Eparch of Passaic, Bishop George Kuzma, was enthroned as the second Eparch of Van Nuys, and, in 1997, moved his seat of administration to Saint Stephen Protomartyr Pro-Cathedral in Phoenix, AZ. In 1996, Bishop Michael J. Dudick retired after a long and pastorally beneficial ministry in the Eparchy of Passaic. Upon his retirement, the Holy Father appointed Bishop Andrew Pataki (formerly Eparch of Parma), as the third Eparch of Passaic.
The spiritual life of the Byzantine Catholic Church was and continues to grow with assistance not only from the Basilians of Uniontown, but also from Monasteries for men and women, such as The Basilian Fathers of Mariapoch, Matawan, NJ, as well as from Holy Dormition Franciscan Monastery, Sybertsville, PA.
The Byzantine Catholic Church is an Eastern Church in union with Rome; Carpatho-Rusyn in background and flavor, but indeed an American Eastern Church celebrating the Gospel in words, symbols, and action. We are unique in our mystical theology, blending the colors of our many ikons with the congregational acapella chants; raising up our hands and our fragrant incense in prayer and inviting you to come and see who we are and what we are all about as part of the Eastern half of the Universal Church.