O say can you see

 

Mark Cuban, the owner of the NBA's Dallas Mavericks, has been experimenting with not playing the national anthem before the team's basketball games. Mark Cuban said that some fans were fearful of the national anthem, and that some felt their voices were being silenced. Fearing a backlash from some of its fans, the NBA quickly announced the national anthem would be played at games by all teams.

Despite that edict, the Dallas Mavericks have stopped playing the national anthem before home games and have no plans to start up again, team owner Mark Cuban confirmed to media outlets on Tuesday.

The Athletic first reported that the Mavericks had not played the anthem at any of the team’s 13 games at the American Airlines Center in Dallas. ESPN added that Cuban directed the team to end the practice after a discussion with NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, although he did not announce the decision publicly until Tuesday’s reports.

“It was my decision, and I made it in November,” Cuban said in a brief statement to The New York Times.

Cuban addressed critics of his stance, namely Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), saying on Twitter: “The National Anthem Police in this country are out of control. If you want to complain, complain to your boss and ask why they don’t play the National Anthem every day before you start work.”

 https://www.huffpost.com/entry/dallas-mavericks-national-anthem_n_6023667fc5b6c56a89a5561c?utm_campaign=hp_fb_pages&section=politics&utm_source=politics_fb&ncid=fcbklnkushpmg00000013&utm_medium=facebook&fbclid=IwAR3HYs9ptVa4ZfKSfjWTdi1zXFb8WMIGuYIi8PDTI-bkzjAyPBpa6YN6WsU

 Predictably, Cuban’s decision about the national anthem was met by scorn by some of our country’s conservatives, but his actions are very much in character. He has repeatedly clashed with league official, and has been fined often. His ownership of the Mavericks is completely fitting, since he is very much a maverick himself – which is why he got to be a billionaire to begin with.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Cuban 

As long as I can remember, the national anthem has been played at sporting events, but that was not always the case.

The first documented time that we know the song was played at a sporting event is in 1862 in Brooklyn. But the thing is, you had to hire a band. That was expensive, so it was only for special occasions - opening day, holidays - up until the time of World War II, where sound systems come in, so they could play a recording. And thus, they started to play it before every game.

In the 1950s, the Baltimore Orioles, of all teams, decided that playing "The Banner" before every game cheapened its impact. The general manager at the time decided that he was going to only play it during special occasions.

The Chicago Cubs owner felt the same way. And he did not play "The Banner" before every game until the '60s, during the Vietnam War. And even in the 1960s, the Chicago White Sox experimented with substituting "God Bless America."

Then 1968 happened, and things got crazy.

On January 23, the USS Pueblo was seized by authorities in North Korea.

The Vietcong launched the Tet offensive on January 31.

Martin Luther King was assassinated on April 4.

Bobby Kennedy was assassinated on June 6.

The 1968 Democratic National Convention was held August 26–29 at the International Amphitheatre in Chicago, Illinois, United States. On August 28, 1968, around 10,000 protesters gathered in Grant Park for the demonstration, intending to march to the International Amphitheatre where the convention was being held. At approximately 3:30 p.m., a young man lowered the American flag that was at the park. The police broke through the crowd and began beating the young man, while the crowd pelted the police with food, rocks, and chunks of concrete. The chants of some of the protesters shifted from, "Hell no, we won't go!" to, "Pigs are whores".

At the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City in October, in the medal award ceremony for the men's 200 meter race, black American athletes Tommie Smith (gold) and John Carlos (bronze) took a stand for civil rights by raising their black-gloved fists and wearing black socks in lieu of shoes. The Australian Peter Norman, who had run second, wore an American "human rights" badge as support to them on the podium. In response, the IOC banned Smith and Carlos from the Olympic Games for life, and Norman's omission from Australia's Olympic team in 1972 was allegedly as punishment.

At the World Series in October, Jose Feliciano performed the national anthem on his guitar, and played it in a very non-traditional way. Fans were outraged, and his career suffered for a period of time, but eventually recovered.

 https://www.wbur.org/onlyagame/2019/04/12/jose-feliciano-susan-tigers-world-series

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQkY2UFBUb4

In 1990, Roseanne Barr sang the national anthem in San Diego, and did such a poor job that she was booed by the fans, and (briefly) retired from the entertainment business.

During the 2015 NFL season, Colin Kaepernick of the San Francisco Giants started kneeling during the national anthem in order to protest police violence and racism. Since becoming a free agent at the end of the season, he has been shunned by other teams – but he made a difference. Although he enraged Donald Trump, the league eventually came to the conclusion that he was right, and recently committed $250 million over the next decade to combat racism. 

https://www.npr.org/2016/09/04/492599463/how-did-the-national-anthem-get-to-be-a-mainstay-of-sports-in-the-first-place#:~:text=MARC%20FERRIS%3A%20The%20first%20documented%20time%20that%20we,come%20in%2C%20so%20they%20could%20play%20a%20recording.

 Francis Scott Key (August 1, 1779 – January 11, 1843) was an American lawyer, author, and amateur poet from Frederick, Maryland, who is best known for writing the lyrics for the American national anthem "The Star-Spangled Banner".

Key observed the British bombardment of Fort McHenry in 1814 during the War of 1812. He was inspired upon seeing the American flag still flying over the fort at dawn and wrote the poem "Defence of Fort M'Henry"; it was published within a week with the suggested tune of the popular song "To Anacreon in Heaven". The song with Key's lyrics became known as "The Star-Spangled Banner" and slowly gained in popularity as an unofficial anthem, finally achieving official status more than a century later under President Herbert Hoover as the national anthem.

Key was a lawyer in Maryland and Washington D.C. for four decades and worked on important cases, including the Burr conspiracy trial, and he argued numerous times before the Supreme Court. He was nominated for District Attorney for the District of Columbia by President Andrew Jackson, where he served from 1833 to 1841. Key was a devout Episcopalian.

Key owned slaves from 1800, during which time abolitionists ridiculed his words, claiming that America was more like the "Land of the Free and Home of the Oppressed". As District Attorney, he suppressed abolitionists and did not support an immediate end to slavery. He was also a leader of the American Colonization Society which sent freed slaves to Africa. He freed some of his slaves in the 1830s, paying one ex-slave as his farm foreman. He publicly criticized slavery and gave free legal representation to some slaves seeking freedom, but he also represented owners of runaway slaves.

 

It’s not the end of the world if the Dallas Mavericks don’t play the national anthem at their games, since the song will be played virtually every where else at public events – and EVERYBODY loved Lady Gaga at Joe Biden’s inauguration.

  

WATCH: Lady Gaga sings ‘The Star Spangled Banner’ at Biden inauguration | PBS NewsHour

 

 

age is just another number

A French nun who survived both world wars, the 1918 flu pandemic and a coronavirus infection is marking her 117th birthday with red wine, a Mass in her honor and dinner followed by her favorite dessert: baked Alaska.

 

Sister André, who is believed to be the second-oldest person in the world, is set to spend Thursday celebrating her long life at her care home in the French city of Toulon. The facility’s spokesman, David Tavella, told the Associated Press that the nun was “in great shape” and “really happy,” ahead of a busy schedule that would feature a video call with her family, a service hosted by the bishop of Toulon and a champagne birthday feast.

 

Tavella said the menu would include foie gras, capon with fragrant mushrooms and some alcohol to toast the occasion.

 

“All of it washed down with red wine, because she drinks red wine. It’s one of her secrets of longevity. And a bit of Champagne with dessert, because 117 years have to be toasted,” he said to the AP.

 

In the weeks leading up to her 117th birthday, Sister André spent her days isolated in her room at the Sainte Catherine Labouré retirement home in the southern French city of Toulon. The nun was one of dozens of residents at the home who tested positive for the coronavirus.

 

Ten others at the retirement home died of covid-19, Le Parisien reported, after 81 of the 88 residents tested positive in January. There have been more than 3.4 million cases in France and more than 80,000 deaths, according to The Washington Post’s COVID  tracker.

When Sister André turned 115, Pope Francis sent her a personal letter and a blessed rosary, according to FAMVIN, a religious news service.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2021/02/10/nun-117-survive-covid-france/

  

Even at 117, she is not the oldest person in the world, since a Japanese woman named Kane Tanaka, became 118 in January.

Tanaka has had several major illnesses, and was infected with paratyphoid fever with her adopted daughter at the age of 35. She underwent pancreatic cancer surgery at the age of 45. Most recently, Kane was diagnosed with colorectal cancer and underwent surgery when she was 103 years old. Her life and longevity were noted by her second son and his wife four years later when they published a book called: In Good and Bad Times, 107 Years Old At the age of 114, she was interviewed by KBC in September 2017.^[ Kane said she would like to live to the age of 120, crediting family, sleep, hope, eating good food, and practicing math for her longevity.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oldest_people

I’ve written about really old people a few times in the past.

https://tohell-andback.blogspot.com/2013/09/the-secret-to-long-life.html

https://tohell-andback.blogspot.com/2013/01/older-than-dirt.html

https://tohell-andback.blogspot.com/2018/05/the-value-of-being-poor.html

What’s surprising as that their lifestyles were not particularly healthy.

Jeanne Calment, for example, lived to be 122. Although olive oil was part of her daily routine, she smoked until she was 117, had dessert with every meal, ate 2 pounds of chocolate every week, and frequently had a glass of port wine with her meals.

America's oldest living veteran ((Richard Overton) recently met with President Obama in 2013 at the White House. At the time, he was 107 years old, and has survived by taking no medicine other than aspirin, drinking whiskey with his morning coffee, and smoking up to 12 cigars a day.

Sarah Knauss, number 2 on the list, was born in an impoverished coal mining town in Pennsylvania, and was a homemaker for most of her life. She confessed to a fondness for chocolate turtles, cashews, and potato chips. Her daughter (who lived to be 101 herself) attributed her mother’s long life to the fact that “she was a very tranquil person, and nothing fazes her”.

Lucy Hannah, number 3 on the list, was one of the eight children born to slaves living in southern Alabama. After she and her husband moved to Detroit to work in the auto factories, they also had 8 children. Two of Lucy’s sisters lived to be 100, and her mother (who was whipped every day when she was a slave) lived to be 99.

Elizabeth Bolden, number 7 on the list, was born in southern Tennessee, and was the daughter of freed slaves. She and her husband had 7 children, most of whom passed before she did. She is survived by a LARGE NUMBER of relatives, including 75 great-great-great-great-children.

Besse Cooper, number 8 on the list, was the third of eight children born to her parents in a tiny town in Tennessee. She was a school teacher for many years, and her husband was a farmer. After her husband’s death, she lived alone on their farm for 48 years, and finally moved into a nursing home when she was 105.

Finally, Maggie Barnes (number 9 on the list) was also the child of slaves. She married a tenant farmer, and they had 15 children together, 11 of whom preceded her in death.

I took the RealAge test again this morning, and discovered that I am actually 1 year and 8 months younger than my chronological age. Three of my relatives lived to be 95 years old, and my uncle Harold was still drinking beer well into his 90’s.

If you want to live a long life, it’s good to watch what you eat, and to live a healthy lifestyle, but now you know the REAL SECRET to living to a ripe old age:

Be poor - and stay calm.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pink Smoke Over the Vatican

“Pink Smoke Over the Vatican” is a 2011 documentary film about the controversial movement of women seeking to be ordained as priests in the Roman Catholic Church. On June 3, 2008, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith issued a sweeping order of excommunication for “the crime of attempting sacred ordination of a woman”.

It’s an excellent film – and I bought a copy of it when it was released in 2011. 

I thought of the film this morning when I read an article in the National Catholic Reporter by The Rev. Dr. Mary M. Foley, who is a board-certified chaplain, ACPE certified educator, and Roman Catholic Womanpriest who is currently serving the Catholic Apostolic Church in North America, or CACINA.

 https://www.ncronline.org/news/opinion/capitol-insurrectionists-i-have-met-them 

To save you a little scrolling time, I have pasted her entire article below: 

 “I was deeply affected by our democracy coming under attack one month ago, with the storming of the Capitol by people wielding flags that proclaimed Trump, civil war and Jesus. I was traumatized by hearing people gleeful about the destruction, who were happy that members of Congress were terrorized. Listening to some people in those moments, I felt like I was face to face with evil. 

Then, I realized, I have met them before.

 I grew up in Oak Park, Illinois, one of eight children of white parents were who involved in the civil rights movement. My parents moved from the South Side of Chicago to this suburb because it was nationally known for its integration policies. However, the Catholic school we attended was not integrated. When riots burned through Chicago after the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was killed, my family took in a Black single Mom and her kids who lost their home, until they could get back on their feet again. When my parents enrolled the kids in our school, parishioners boycotted the church collection and sent threatening messages to my mother. The pastor asked my father to take the kids out of the school. 

I have met them before. 

When a series of circumstances put me back on the Southwest Side of Chicago as a young adult, I was horrified to see the American Nazi Party headquarters across the street from our Catholic parish. When I walked a baby stroller through Marquette Park, I tore down signs on lamp posts and light poles that said, "N----- Keep Out," and "No Afros Allowed." I learned that it had not been long since the Ku Klux Klan marched through the park. I heard the priest at our parish supporting those who wanted to keep the Western Avenue color line from being crossed. 

I have met them before. 

When living in the Marquette Park neighborhood and my children were small, I was mugged returning from the grocery store one night. The mugger tried to pull me down my front stairs as I was carrying groceries into my house. No one heard my yelling and it was not until the groceries fell and glass broke that the mugger yanked my purse from my arm and took off. Being locked in a bear hug by a mugger was very scary and I called the police. When the officer who came to take the report found out that the mugger was Black, the street was suddenly filled with police cars and the officer asked me, "When we catch him, do you want us to string him up in the tree in front of your house?" The mugger scared me. 

The police officer terrified me.

 I have met them before. 

When I worked as a young mother to try and change things in my neighborhood and in the church, I did a lot of research about the local area. I read books that recorded stories of Catholics demonstrating against Dr. King when he marched and was attacked in the park. I found a document written by church leaders of different denominations in the Marquette Park neighborhood who were trying to keep the area white. The list of names in this document included the name of the priest who would baptize me as an infant some years later. The people I have met before have been here long before me. 

During recent weeks, there has been action taken to hold President Donald Trump accountable, and calls to also hold accountable other politicians who participated in inflaming the people I have met before. Those in law enforcement who proclaim the need for law and order for some people but not for others, and those in Catholic and evangelical churches who proclaim respect for life but only for the unborn, should also be held accountable. All of us need to take stock of how we participated in what happened at the Capitol, through our action or inaction. Otherwise, we are like the people I have met before. 

It's difficult to find a lot of information about Mary Foley, but LinkedIn has a page that confirms that she is a highly-educated woman:

 https://www.linkedin.com/in/mary-m-foley-5828126b/ 

During the early days of the Roman Catholic Church, women were allowed to be priests, but the practice ended in about the 4th century, although there ARE rumors that Pope Joan existed briefly in the 9th century. 

Woman HAVE played an active role in the Catholic Church for close to 2000 years, but not as priests. The article below details the actions of a Roman Catholic nun who is very involved in social justice issues. 

https://tohell-andback.blogspot.com/2012/12/love-cannot-be-silenced.html 

Sister Joan Chittester is also a woman that you need to pay attention to:

https://www.joanchittister.org/

Then, of course, there’s the nuns on the bus. 

Nuns on the Bus is a Catholic advocacy group in the United States. Their name comes from the fact that they tour the country on a bus. 

 Led by Sister Simone Campbell, they place emphasis on the Church's long-standing commitment to social justice. In different years, the nuns have tackled different themes. In 2012, the nuns aimed to draw attention to nuns' work with the poor and to protest planned aid cuts. In 2013, the theme was immigration reform. The nuns' journeys are sponsored by NETWORK. 

 The nuns came under criticism when Pope Benedict XVI led the church, but they have received strong support from Pope Francis.

 Now, about the womenpriests ….

 Over 80 million people identify themselves as Catholics in the United States, an increase of over 30 million since 1965. With more Catholics, there could be an assumption that the United States is overflowing with men trying to become priests. 

https://www.turnto23.com/longform/number-of-catholic-priests-on-the-decline-across-the-us

But that is far from the truth. Instead, the number of Catholic priests in the United States has seen a drastic decline since 1965, from nearly 60,000 to 37,500 in 2015. It’s not at all unusual for priests in many cities in America overseeing two, or even three, parishes – which is exactly why there should be a LOT more women serving as priests – even though you’ll probably never see a woman as a pope.

Shoe

 

You already know that I am a huge fan of the comics, and I still read more than a dozen of them every day, courtesy of the Arizona Republic.

https://tohell-andback.blogspot.com/2018/04/i-love-comics_23.html

One of my favorites is Shoe, which was started by Jeff McNally in 1977. Although he died of lymphoma in 2000 (age 52) the strip lives on today, and is penned by his widow Susie and fellow cartoonist Gary Brookins.

https://www.gocomics.com/shoe/2021/01/19

McNally is one of 5 people who have won the Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Cartooning three times. (1972, 1978, and 1985).  In 1977, he received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement. In addition, he won the Reuben Award in 1978 and 1979, and the "Outstanding Cartoonist of the Year" from the National Cartoonists Society in 1978 and 1979.

MacNelly won the Thomas Nast Award  in 1985, and he also won a George Polk Award the same year.. He was the first cartoonist inducted into the UNC School of Journalism Hall of Fame in 1985.

 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeff_MacNelly 

In 1993, at the suggestion of his wife, he also launched “Pluggers”, which relies on reader submissions (referred to as "Pluggerisms") for the premise of each day's panel. In the context of this strip, "pluggers" are defined as rural, blue-collar workers who live a typical working-class American lifestyle, accompanied by a mentality characteristic of the G.I. and Baby Boomer generations. In the comic, pluggers are portrayed in the form of anthropomorphic animals, most often a plump bear, dog, chicken, or rhinoceros, sometimes a kangaroo or a cat.

https://www.gocomics.com/pluggers/2021/01/23

Some of our better journalists have provided political commentary for decades. Tom Brokaw recently retired (at the age of 80) from NBC, where he had worked for 55 years.

https://www.ocregister.com/2021/01/22/after-55-years-at-nbc-news-tom-brokaw-announces-retirement/

Walter Cronkite, “the most trusted man in America, was the anchor for CBS Evening News for 19 years, and Hugh Downs was the anchor for 20/20 (NBC) for more than 20 years.

Like the TV anchors that we know and trust, many of the best cartoons remain in print for decades. “Pogo” lasted 27 years, “Li’l Abner lasted for 43 years, “Shoe” has been in print for 44 years, and Doonesbury was first published 50 years ago.

Jeff McNelly has been gone now for more than 20 years, but his genius lives on today in “Shoe” – a strip that is strictly for the birds.

 

 Perfesser Cosmo Fishhawk is an over-educated underachiever. He is the reporter and columnist for Shoe's newspaper, The Treetops Tattler-Tribune although he'd much rather be a famous novelist. Even though he's slightly on the chubby side, Cosmo insists he's not fat... he's just fluffy. When not fighting his war on calories, he specializes in being late for work, striking out with the ladies and taking naps at his desk.

 

 

 

 

 

For want of a nail

The phrase above refers to the fact that a major catastrophe can sometimes be traced back to a small error. The lack of a basic part or a small object can lead from one unwanted consequence to another larger one to yet another one, as in a stack of falling dominos.

That ancient poem came to mind recently for an unlikely reason - COVID. That, of course, requires a fuller explanation. 

Until sometime in the late 1970’s, the cars that I owned were relatively simple from an electronics standpoint. Years ago, I changed my own oil, did my own tune-ups, rotated my own tires, and watched and waxed my cars frequently. 

The owner’s manual for my 1972 Opel suggested changing the spark plugs every 6000 miles, and gave instructions on gapping the points, setting the dwell angle, and gapping the plugs. Today’s cars are a lot more sophisticated, since there are LOTS of electronic components in a modern car, and all of them require computer chips. Today, spark plugs are good for 100,000 miles, and tune-ups can only be performed by a dealer (who also will rotate your tires for you) 

 The first computer chip was invented in 1958, and life today would be impossible without them. Computers, phones, televisions, and electronic games would not work as well, and possibly not even at all. 

http://gria.org/history-invention-silicon-chip-computer/ 

 Since March, a large part of our population has been forced to stay at home, giving us a lot of times on our hands. To fill that time, we spend more time on our computers, (often connecting by Zoom), we’ve been watching more movies on our DVD players, and we’ve been buying lots of electronic games that we played on our Xboxes. All of those things require computer chips. 

So do cars. 

Recently, several car companies had to shut down production of some of their models because they were unable to buy enough computer chips. Since modern cars can contain approximately 100 computer chips, the lack of a handful of them can prevent car manufactures from assembling their cars.

 https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/13/business/auto-factories-semiconductor-chips.html?action=click&module=Well&pgtype=Homepage&section=Business 

Although Samsung is best known for its consumer products, like smart phones and televisions, the company also happens to be the world’s largest computer chip manufacturers. Its computer chip sales are in excess of $200 billion a year. Intel, a California-based company, is a distant second, with annual chip sales of around $70 billion a year. 

 https://blog.bizvibe.com/blog/top-semiconductor-companies 

All this brings us to the modern version of the old poem:

 For want of a chip, a car could not be built

 If a car could not be built, it could not be sold 

If a car could not be sold, a salesman could lose his job 

If he loses his job, his family becomes poor 

If his family becomes poor, he needs help from taxpayers to survive 

If too many people need help, the country goes broke 

And all for the want of a chip

Angels we have heard on high

The Newsroom television show, starring Jeff Daniels, was on the air from 2012 through 2014. The most famous episode of the series (for which Jeff Daniels got an Emmy award) was when a young woman asked him why America was the greatest country in the world. He answered that America is only #1 in the world in 3 categories – the number of incarcerated people per capita, the percentage of the population that believes in angels, and defense spending. 

I’ve already written some articles about the first and third topics, so I’d like to address the second, which is angels.

 An Associated Press survey from about 10 years ago found that 77% of the American population believes that angels are real. Although Italians and Croatians also believe in angels, their percentages are somewhat less, and most counties are a lot less. 

I was an insurance underwriter for 25 years, so I don’t believe anything that I haven’t researched personally, which is why I am convinced that the story of Noah’s ark is a myth. 

https://tohell-andback.blogspot.com/2013/04/noahs-ark-and-othe-rfairy-tales.html#:~:text=Noah%27s%20ark%20-%20and%20other%20fairy%20tales%20If,related%20to%20the%20ark%20are%205%3A32%20-%2010%3A1.

However, I DO believe that angels exist – even though there is absolutely no way to prove that. There have been numerous times in my life that I avoided disaster for no apparent reason, and “the luck of the Irish” was not always fail proof. 

In the 1946 movie, “It’s a Wonderful life” Jimmy Stewart’s character had an angel named Clarence. I don’t know his name, but I’m pretty sure that I’ve got a guardian angel watching over me from time to time so that no harm befalls me. 

By the way, I also believe in ghosts – and so does 45% of the American population. If you need more convincing, I’d recommend reading “True Irish Ghost Stores (St. John Seymour and Harry Neligan), “Ghosts of the Heartland” (Frank McSherry, Charles Waugh, and Martin Greenberg), and “Resurrection Mary” (Kenan Heise). 

Now it’s time to talk about the Blessed Virgin Mary. 

The house that Mary, Joseph, and Jesus lived in (in what eventually became Palestine) was moved in the latter part of the 13th century to Dalmatia to protect it from Muslim soldiers during the Crusades, and eventually moved to Italy. 

Both moves were facilitated by angels. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basilica_della_Santa_Casa 

This is the part where my “bullshit detector” kicks in. 

As it turns out, it’s a true story.

 In the 13th century, a noble Byzantine family, the Angeli family, was responsible for both moves. The name “Angeli” means “angel” in both Greek and Latin. The modest house in Palestine was much modified over the centuries, and eventually it evolved into the Basilica della Santa Casa, which is located in Loreto, Italy. 

The basilica is also known as the Madonna of Loreto. Christopher Columbus made a vow to the Madonna of Loreto in 1493 when he and his crew were caught in a storm during their return journey from the Americas. He later sent a sailor to Loreto on a pilgrimage of thanksgiving on behalf of the entire crew. 

Queen Christina of Sweden offered her royal crown and sceptre to the Virgin Mary in Loreto in 1655 after her conversion from the Lutheran faith to Catholicism. 

Napoleon plundered the shrine and its treasury on Feb. 13, 1797, taking with him precious jewels and other gifts offered to the Virgin Mary by European aristocracy, including several French monarchs, over the centuries. Yet, the object of real value in the eyes of pilgrims, the Holy House of Mary, was left unharmed. 

In a homily in 1995, Saint Pope John Paul II called the Holy House of Loreto, “the house of all God’s adopted children.” 

 https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/did-angels-really-carry-the-holy-house-of-mary-to-loreto-italy-25088#:~:text=Catholic%20pilgrims%20have%20flocked%20to%20the%20Holy%20House,born%2C%20raised%2C%20and%20greeted%20by%20the%20Angel%20Gabriel. 

There is virtually no chance that I’ll ever get to see the basilica in person. In fact, due to the coronavirus, there is also zero chance that I’ll ever leave the country again, which makes my trips to Ireland and China all the more special. 

 The year 2020 was one of the mot bizarre years that I have ever lived through, but I AM hopeful that 2021 will be much better. I you are still feeling stressed about the news that we all get on a daily basis, take a minute or so to gaze on an old basilica in Loreta, Italy, because it will likely bring you comfort. 

After all, that’s what angels do.

Being the Pope can be a tough job

 

The Pope has a tough job, since he is the spiritual leader of 1.329 billion people (at the end of 2018.)

When Pope Francis was elected in 2013, I thought that he was too old for the job, since he was 76 years old at the time. He is still the pope today, and he is now 84 years old – and still going strong.

Even if you aren’t a history buff, I’d recommend that you watch the 2019 movie, “The Two Popes”, since it discusses the transfer of power from Pope Benedict to Pope Francis.

(When Joe Biden announced his candidacy, there were a lot of people in this country who thought he was too old (he recently turned 78) but he was running against a man who is 74. If Biden decided to run again in 2024, he would be 86 years old at the end of his second term, if he was re-elected)

Throughout history, there have been a number of Popes who had very short tenures. In fact, a total of 9 Popes reigned for less than 30 days, and 2 Popes reigned only for 33 days.

A total of 10 Popes served 20 years or longer, and the longest serving Pope was Pius IX, who served for more than 31 years. 

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_popes_by_length_of_reign

Since Popes generally are older when they are elected, it is not unusual for a Pope to die in office. As a result, it is common for 2 different people to serve as a pope in a given year. There have also been 12 times when there were THREE different Popes in one year, and there is one year (1276) when there were FOUR different people to serve as the Pope in a given year.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Year_of_three_popes 

There was also a period of time (1378 – 1417) when three popes served AT THE SAME TIME. Pope Clement was the Pope of Avignon (France), Urban was the Pope of Rome, and Alexander was the Pope of Pisa.

https://www.interesly.com/medieval-three-popes-antipope/#:~:text=Between%201378%20and%201417%2C%20three%20popes%20actually%20reigned,papacy%2C%20Italians%20really%20wanted%20a%20pope%20in%20Rome.

Although Pope Francis is a busy man, he has still managed to write 27 books. I’ve read “Laudato Si”, and I’ve read a book ABOUT Francis, but trying to read ALL his books would be a Herculean task.

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=books+by+pope+francis&hvadid=77996737481119&hvbmt=be&hvdev=c&hvqmt=e&tag=mh0b-20&ref=pd_sl_1r2ieb9aki_e

I’m of the opinion that Pope Francis is doing a good job, but he is not well liked by the more conservative members of our society. To those folks I would say, “give him a break – he’s got a tough job”.