Friday Night Smackdown, 5/24/13: Whadda maneuver!

I am pleased, very pleased indeed, that Damian Sandow got significant time on the mic. He challenged the mouth breathing troglodytes of the WWE universe to untie the Gordian knot. The insufferable ignoramus Matt Stryker was not up to the task. The missing link known as Sheamus could not do it either. In a stroke of genius, Sandow cut the Gordian knot himself and avoided an incoming Brogue Kick. Well done WWE, well done. Please give Sandow a regular show. That one segment was much, much better than anything that's ever been done on Miz TV. I hope this is the start of a feud with Sheamus. Sandow needs to resume his singles career and be given more time for promos. I feel smarter just listening to him.

I think it's generally agreed that the current WWE commentary teams are terrible. JBL does the best he can with the material he has to work with, but Michael Cole is awful. Jerry Lawler was effectively neutered when he turned face, and it's obvious he doesn't care about the product anymore. Josh Matthews is a nonentity. Listening to them last night made me reminisce about previous commentary teams. Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler are deservedly known as the greatest broadcast team in professional wrestling history. When I first started watching wrestling, Vince McMahon was known as a baby face commentator. I have fond memories of Vince's partnership with Jesse "The Body" Ventura and Jerry Lawler. He wasn't the best commentator but his enthusiastic delivery made up for his spotty knowledge of wrestling techniques. "Whadda maneuver! OH a devastating maneuver! ONE TWO WE HAVE A NEW CHAMPI... no we don't." Every week I heard him open the show with "Welcome everrrrryone to Mooondaaaaay Niiiiiight Rrrrrrrraaaaaaawwwww!" Vince marked out for Shawn Michaels the way JR did for Stone Cold Steve Austin. I remember being disappointed at first when Vince left the broadcast team to begin his Mr. McMahon persona, but I got over it quickly. His commentary skills have declined to be sure. Michael Cole receives a lot of well deserved heat for his performance, but he's only repeating what Vince is squawking at him through his headset.

Poor Wade Barrett. Who did that guy piss off in creative? He lost his title at Wrestlemania and won it back the next night, but since then he's lost every non-title match. Even when he's in a title match he can't win clean. It looks like he'll be feuding with both Miz and Fandango. Who even cares about the IC title anymore? If I were a wrestler I wouldn't touch the IC belt with a ten foot pole. WWE books it so that the IC champion is a jobber to the stars.

Speaking of jobbers, Jack Swagger got a jobber entrance for his match with Daniel Bryan. Bryan's new gimmick is trying to prove to himself that he's not the weak link. You've convinced me sir! I stand by what I said earlier this week: Bryan is the most talented wrestler on the roster and he is gold on the mic. He snapped and put the No Lock on Swagger again after the match ended. You know the dude's got problems when Kane is the voice of reason.

Kofi Kingston got his rematch with Dean Ambrose. Rollins and Reigns interfere, Kofi wins by disqualification, and the Shield are doing their thing when Sheamus and Randy Orton come to the rescue. Brace yourselves...

Teddy Long and the Shield are a match made in heaven. This six man tag team match wasn't as awesome as Raw's, but it was still a worthy main event. Let us all pray the Shield's guardian angel continues to watch out for them in creative.

Curt Axel squashed Sin Cara. All jokes aside, Axel is a talented wrestler. He can't give a promo to save his life, but that's what Paul Heyman is for. I'm glad he's getting a second chance.

Diversity is the source and summit of all that is good, noble, and beautiful

Sweden is enjoying the benefits of diversity:

Unrest in Stockholm’s suburbs continued for a fourth night as rioters showed their anger over a police shooting a week ago by setting fire to cars and buildings and pelting emergency workers with stones.

As many as 30 cars burned in the Swedish capital’s southern suburbs, while 11 were set alight in the Husby area, north of the city centre, where the violence broke out four days ago, police spokesman Kjell Lindgren said by phone today. Police detained one person, a 16-year-old girl suspected of preparing an act of arson. That followed eight arrests since Tuesday.

“While the situation has become better in Husby, where a lot of local people have become engaged to calm things down, the situation has intensified on the southern side of the city,” Mr Lindgren said.

The UK continues to reap the rewards of multiculturalism:

A rapper who witnessed the shocking Woolwich attack revealed the true horror of the situation as he posted a series of tweets from the scene.

Boya Dee was among a number of eyewitnesses who saw the incident yesterday from start to finish, and described how the suspects tried to attack police officers after hacking at a man with a machete.

He wrote: 'The two black bredas [brothers] run this white guy over then hop out the car and start chopping mans head off with machete!!'

In another dramatic tweet, he added: 'The first guy goes for the female fed [police officer] with the machete and she not even ramping [messing about] she took man out like robocop never seen nutn [nothing] like it.'

It was confirmed by police last night that two men had been arrested and officers from the counter-terrorist unit were leading the investigation into the killing.

...'I asked him if he did it and he said yes, and I said, "Why?" And he said because he has killed Muslim people in Muslim countries, he said he was a British solider and I said, "Really?" And he said, "I killed him because he killed Muslims and I am fed up with people killing Muslims in Afghanistan, they have nothing to do there".'Mrs Loyau-Kennett said that the attacker seemed to be 'in full control of his decisions and ready to do everything he wanted to do'.She added: 'I said, "Right now it is only you versus many people, you are going to lose, what would you like to do?" and he said, "I would like to stay and fight".'

Diversity, inclusiveness, multiculturalism... whatever term we use, it's another way of expressing the liberal mania for equality. Liberals believe as a matter of principle that the benefits of society should be equally available to all, and that it is one of the basic functions of government to make this possible. They want everyone of every race, ethnicity, sex, religion, culture, disability, and sexual orientation to equally participate in every major social institution.

The demand for inclusiveness is, in effect, the demand for the State to administer every dimension of human life unrestrained by either tradition or popular sentiment. It is the demand to erase our personal identities. Liberalism holds that I should not be treated any differently from anyone else on the basis of race, ethnicity, sex, etc. If who I am is to have no relation to my place in the world, then I am wholly displaced from the social order.

This is, of course, silly on its face. My race, ethnicity, sex, social class, and place of birth have as much to do with who I am as where I went to school or what kind of work I do. It's difficult to see why the latter should be paramount in determining my identity rather than the former. Man is a social animal, and the good life requires community, and community requires discrimination because human beings are different. It is an objective fact that if my workforce is primarily composed of meat eaters then bringing a vegetarian on board is going to damage workplace cohesion. Communities form from common interests, but historically they form from common ethnicities, races, nationalities, and religions whether it's the nation-state or the local neighborhood. Different peoples and different religions have different ideas of what constitutes the good life, ideas which will inevitably clash when forced into close quarters.

Imagine how disruptive to social order it has been for the Christian West to welcome millions of hostile African, Middle Eastern, and South East Asian Muslim immigrants. We don't need to stretch out imaginations far because we have seen Europe experimenting with this for some time. The bureaucrats like it because diversity requires an ever larger and more powerful State to administer the dysfunctional "youths" and crack down on the lonely voices who protest the systematic dismantling of their culture. And the liberals like it (but I repeat myself) because they want white people to pay for their sins by exterminating their historic nations. Multiculturalism is, ultimately, a form of slow motion anti-white genocide. Personally, I think it's too late for Europe. It's a shambling corpse that will eventually collapse when enough Muslims put a bullet in its collective brainpan. But God has worked miracles before and there may yet be a Charles Martel able and willing to turn back the Saracen invasion.

Vibrancy and diversity without end, amen

Diversity, not Jesus, saves says Episcopalian bishopette:

The Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church has denounced the Apostle Paul as mean-spirited and bigoted for having released a slave girl from demonic bondage as reported in Acts 16:16-34 .

In her sermon delivered at All Saints Church in Curaçao in the diocese of Venezuela, Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori condemned those who did not share her views as enemies of the Holy Spirit.

The presiding bishop opened her remarks with an observation on the Dutch slave past. “The history of this place tells some tragic stories about the inability of some to see the beauty in other skin colors or the treasure of cultures they didn’t value or understand,” she said.

She continued stating: “Human beings have a long history of discounting and devaluing difference, finding it offensive or even evil.  That kind of blindness is what leads to oppression, slavery, and often, war.  Yet there remains a holier impulse in human life toward freedom, dignity, and the full flourishing of those who have been kept apart or on the margins of human communities.”

Just as the forces of historical inevitability led to the ending of industrial slavery, so too would the march of progress lead to a change in attitude towards homosexuality, she argued.

“We live with the continuing tension between holier impulses that encourage us to see the image of God in all human beings and the reality that some of us choose not to see that glimpse of the divine, and instead use other people as means to an end.  We’re seeing something similar right now in the changing attitudes and laws about same-sex relationships, as many people come to recognize that different is not the same thing as wrong.  For many people, it can be difficult to see God at work in the world around us, particularly if God is doing something unexpected.”

...Salvation comes not from being cleansed of our sins by the atoning sacrificial death of Jesus Christ, but through the divinization of humanity through the work of the human will. “We are here, among all the other creatures of God’s creation, to be transformed into the glory intended from the beginning.  The next time we feel the pain of that change, perhaps instead of annoyance or angry resentment we might pray for a new pair of glasses.  When resentment about difference or change builds up within us, it’s really an invitation to look inward for the wound that cries out for a healing dose of glory.  We will find it in the strangeness of our neighbor.  Celebrate that difference – for it’s necessary for the healing of this world – and know that the wholeness we so crave lies in recognizing the glory of God’s creative invitation.  God among us in human form is the most glorious act we know.” 

Show me a church that allows women to be pastors and I'll show you a church that will deny the bodily Resurrection of Christ within fifty years.

Monday Night Raw, 5/20/13: the start of this moment is the genesis of Curt Axel

My predictions for the Extreme Rules winners were 99.9% accurate. Technically, Cena vs. The Ryback was a no contest, but Cena retained his title so he can be considered the winner. Whatever happened to "Last Man Standing?" Ryback was the last man standing was he not?

I, Beefy Levinson, have a WWE exclusive. Everyone knows that Joe Hennig, son of Curtis "Mr. Perfect" Hennig, grandson of Larry "The Axe" Hennig, is now Paul Heyman's new client. He's been on WWE before as Michael Migillicutty. His new ring name is Curt Axel as an homage to his father and grandfather. Heyman sold it as well as he could. Choosing his client's new name was no easy task. I have here the official list of other possible names the two considered:

Slab Bulkhead, Fridge Largemeat, Punt Speedchunk, Butch Deadlift, Bold Bigflank, Splint Chesthair, Flint Ironstag, Bolt Vanderhuge, Thick McRunfast, Blast Hardcheese, Buff Drinklots, Crunch Slamchest, Fist Rockbone, Stump Beefknob, Smash Lampjaw, Punch Rockgroin, Buck Plankchest, Stump Junkman, Dirk Hardpec, Rip Steakface, Slate Slabrock, Crud Bonemeal, Brick Hardmeat, Rip Slagcheek, Punch Sideiron, Gristle McThornbody, Slate Fistcrunch, Buff Hardback, Bob Johnson, Blast Thickneck, Crunch Buttsteak, Slab Squatthrust, Lump Beefbroth, Touch Rustrod, Beef Blastbody, Big McLargehuge, Smoke Manmuscle, Beat Punchmeat, Hack Blowfist, Roll Fizzlebeef

Triple H came out to bury the newcomer. First he told him to be quiet because the adults were having a conversation. Then he slaps Terse Driveshaft hard enough to knock him down, and tells him that he's going to kick his ass. Later on that night, he did. Or did he? This is the second night in a row where WWE has ended a match with no clear winner. They didn't even bother with a false finish. They just decided, "Nah, that's enough wrestling for now." This is a new degree of burial. Triple H couldn't even be bothered to pin the man clean. I think I know what they're going for though. Axel gets to claim he "beat" Triple H, so he looks good. Triple H gets to claim he fought while concussed or whatever, so he looks good (which would be silly because Ziggler is legit concussed, but WWE booking.) Axel gives a promo next week calling Triple H a wimp. Triple H comes out and beats him up for ten minutes. The Cerebral King of Asskicking Games is desperate for that teary farewell from fans before he retires for good, eh? Look WWE Creative, this isn't that hard. If you want a new guy to get over, have him win a clear victory over the veteran. Focus on the new guy celebrating his victory. Don't declare a no contest and focus on the old guy who is now an executive within the company. If you don't want the new guy to get over, then why the hell do you people even bother? You people are supposed to tell us compelling stories, not give us weaksauce endings like these. Send me my paycheck Vince.

Swagger has officially been demoted to midcard status by jobbing to Randy Orton. He still has awesome music and the best manager.

Let's bask in the aftermath of that glorious six man tag team match. The Shield members are further refining their individual wrestling styles, but the whole is still greater than each of the parts. Daniel Bryan will never be the face of the company because he doesn't have the kind of physique that Vince McMahon likes, but he is without doubt the most over guy in the whole WWE. Think of him like the Mick Foley to Austin and Rock. He's the best pure wrestler on the roster and his promos are gold, every time. He needs to resume his singles career but I hope he and Kane remain friends. Or at least as close to friends as they can be. I don't know who is protecting the Shield in creative, but I pray their guardian angel continues to protect them in this company that delights in burying new talent.

Ryback opened the show by riding in an ambulance to the ring and calling out John Cena for an ambulance match. Later on in the night, Cody Rhodes defeats Zack Ryder. Ryback comes to the ring to destroy Ryder again and then dump him in the ambulance. The ambulance then backs out of the arena. I feel bad for the driver if he had to stay in the arena for the whole night.

Big E Langston won clean over Alberto Del Rio. Thus are sown the seeds of the future Ziggler/Big E split.

This company...

Look in my eyes, what do you see? The cult of personality

It's a misnomer to speak of a "vocations crisis" in the Catholic Church. Is anyone really prepared to argue that God is failing to call enough men to fill the ranks of the priesthood? Church leadership is wont to point the finger of blame outward: bishops blame our pornography saturated culture for making celibacy appear unattractive; they blame parents who want a more lucrative career for their sons; they blame a wholly materialistic culture that tells us whoever dies with the most toys wins; they blame a reluctance on the part of young people to make life-long commitments. All of these things play a part to be sure, but I don't think they're the only reasons or even the most important reasons. Celibacy is no harder today than it was during the fall of the Roman empire or during the Renaissance. Parents have always wanted more well-paying career tracks for their sons; St. Alphonsus Liguori's father was furious when his son announced he was quitting his career as a lawyer to become a priest. Even the heathens speak frequently of how America's materialistic culture kills the soul, so surely we civilized Catholics can do them one better. Catholics divorce and remarry at about the same rate as the general population these days, but they remain willing to devote themselves to political leaders who continually lie to them or ignore them.

The chief reason for the priest shortage lies with the personnel policies of Church leadership. They want to inspire young men to be priests but more often than not end up doing the opposite. If bishops and vocation directors are honest, they'll tell you that the problem they face is not that too few men aspire to be priests, but the kind of men who aspire to be priests. There is not a "vocations shortage" in the Catholic Church. It's more accurate to say that there is a shortage of the kind of men vocations directors and seminaries like who are able and willing to be priests given the current understanding of the nature of the priesthood. Compared to fifty years ago, the priesthood is depleted and demoralized. There are many ordained men who do not live as priests, and many priests who do not understand what their vocation actually means. Many Catholic men who might have become priests back then become instead teachers, bankers, doctors, lawyers, or social workers today.

There is no shortage of men who wish to enter the seminary or novitiate, but there is a shortage of men who get ordained or take final vows. The blame must rest squarely upon the clergy for this. For the last few decades many men who, by all of the traditional criteria, fittingly aspired to the priestly life have been unable to survive the formation process. Vocations directors will tell you that they receive a disproportionate number of applications from self-identified Traditionalists. These young men are typically interested in the things that only priests can do: confect the Eucharist and absolve penitents. Seminary faculty ding these men for being too narrow - or worst of all, rigid - for not being as interested in social justice, or cutting edge theology, or other things that the faculty thinks important. I'm not going to make specific charges that can no longer be substantiated, but anyone who has been in the seminary can tell you that there is often a strong homosexual subculture that alienates healthy heterosexual men from ever trying their vocation. You don't have to take my word for it - Fr. Donald Cozzens and Fr. Andrew Greeley, no conservatives they, have written extensively on the reach and power of the lavender mafia. To be fair, American seminaries are much improved compared to thirty or twenty years ago. Even so, there are some seminaries where I would consider it to be to a man's great credit if he got himself dismissed.

It sounds trite, but I believe there would be far more priests if Church leadership emphasized those specifically priestly duties: offering the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and absolving repentant sinners. These days a priest is not only a priest, but he also has to be a fundraiser, an administrator, and a counselor. Many of them end up as mere bureaucrats who don't date, as social workers who can't get married. This is not to say they don't work hard; priests are some of the hardest working men you'll ever meet. The problem is they end up having to do a lot of work that could just as easily be trusted to a lay person. If priests could spend more time on those specifically priestly things such as improving the liturgy, improving their preaching, praying more, and spending more time hearing confessions, the life of the Church would be immensely improved. I don't think we need to belabor just how God awful so many priests are about their preaching: "Jesus was a nice guy so let's all be nice guys too." When it comes time for communion, the smiling old priest is surrounded by a bevy of clip haired old ladies in pant suits who distribute communion and offer "blessings" to people who come up with their arms crossed. Why should a healthy young man give up a wife and family when he can just be a lay minister or whatever?

Contrary to what the heretics say, priests are essential. No priests, no Eucharist. No Eucharist, no Church. If you read the linked article, you'll find that Mr. Cahill said his priest friend defined his priesthood as "all about the people, all about relationships, all about service, all about Jesus' message of love and inclusiveness." That sounds all well and good but... why do I need to be a priest to be all about people, relationships, and service? Why do I need to give up a wife and family to be all about love and inclusiveness? Emphasize those specifically priestly duties, and the men will come. Stop blurring the ontological distinction between states of life. Stop clericalizing the laity and laicizing the clergy and they will come.

H/T: Michael Liccione

The madness will never die, yeah

Randy Savage passed away two years ago today:

It wasn’t as funny as it seemed. Randy and other ICW performers began showing up at opposition shows, threatening to disrupt matches and frightening their adversaries to the point that some began arming themselves. During a confrontation outside a diner, Memphis Wrestling’s Superstar Bill Dundee pulled a gun on the Macho Man. Savage grappled it away and pistol-whipped him.

Jake "The Snake" Roberts's cobra died a few days after biting the Macho Man. It couldn't handle the madness! RIP to one of the greatest.

"All at once a sound came from heaven like that of a strong wind blowing"

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Today we contemplate and re-live in the liturgy the outpouring of the Holy Spirit sent by the risen Christ upon his Church; an event of grace which filled the Upper Room in Jerusalem and then spread throughout the world.

But what happened on that day, so distant from us and yet so close as to touch the very depths of our hearts? Luke gives us the answer in the passage of the Acts of the Apostles which we have heard (2:1-11). The evangelist brings us back to Jerusalem, to the Upper Room where the apostles were gathered. The first element which draws our attention is the sound which suddenly came from heaven “like the rush of a violent wind”, and filled the house; then the “tongues as of fire” which divided and came to rest on each of the apostles. Sound and tongues of fire: these are clear, concrete signs which touch the apostles not only from without but also within: deep in their minds and hearts. As a result, “all of them were filled with the Holy Spirit”, who unleashed his irresistible power with amazing consequences: they all “began to speak in different languages, as the Spirit gave them ability”. A completely unexpected scene opens up before our eyes: a great crowd gathers, astonished because each one heard the apostles speaking in his own language. They all experience something new, something which had never happened before: “We hear them, each of us, speaking our own language”. And what is it that they are they speaking about? “God’s deeds of power”.

In the light of this passage from Acts, I would like to reflect on three words linked to the working of the Holy Spirit: newness, harmony and mission.

1. Newness always makes us a bit fearful, because we feel more secure if we have everything under control, if we are the ones who build, programme and plan our lives in accordance with our own ideas, our own comfort, our own preferences. This is also the case when it comes to God. Often we follow him, we accept him, but only up to a certain point. It is hard to abandon ourselves to him with complete trust, allowing the Holy Spirit to be the soul and guide of our lives in our every decision. We fear that God may force us to strike out on new paths and leave behind our all too narrow, closed and selfish horizons in order to become open to his own. Yet throughout the history of salvation, whenever God reveals himself, he brings newness and change, and demands our complete trust: Noah, mocked by all, builds an ark and is saved; Abram leaves his land with only a promise in hand; Moses stands up to the might of Pharaoh and leads his people to freedom; the apostles, huddled fearfully in the Upper Room, go forth with courage to proclaim the Gospel. This is not a question of novelty for novelty’s sake, the search for something new to relieve our boredom, as is so often the case in our own day. The newness which God brings into our life is something that actually brings fulfilment, that gives true joy, true serenity, because God loves us and desires only our good. Let us ask ourselves: Are we open to “God’s surprises”? Or are we closed and fearful before the newness of the Holy Spirit? Do we have the courage to strike out along the new paths which God’s newness sets before us, or do we resist, barricaded in transient structures which have lost their capacity for openness to what is new?

2. A second thought: the Holy Spirit would appear to create disorder in the Church, since he brings the diversity of charisms and gifts; yet all this, by his working, is a great source of wealth, for the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of unity, which does not mean uniformity, but which leads everything back to harmony. In the Church, it is the Holy Spirit who creates harmony. One of Fathers of the Church has an expression which I love: the Holy Spirit himself is harmony – “Ipse harmonia est”. Only the Spirit can awaken diversity, plurality and multiplicity, while at the same time building unity. Here too, when we are the ones who try to create diversity and close ourselves up in what makes us different and other, we bring division. When we are the ones who want to build unity in accordance with our human plans, we end up creating uniformity, standardization. But if instead we let ourselve be guided by the Spirit, richness, variety and diversity never become a source of conflict, because he impels us to experience variety within the communion of the Church. Journeying together in the Church, under the guidance of her pastors who possess a special charism and ministry, is a sign of the working of the Holy Spirit. Having a sense of the Church is something fundamental for every Christian, every community and every movement. It is the Church which brings Christ to me, and me to Christ; parallel journeys are dangerous! When we venture beyond (proagon) the Church’s teaching and community, and do not remain in them, we are not one with the God of Jesus Christ (cf. 2 Jn 9). So let us ask ourselves: Am I open to the harmony of the Holy Spirit, overcoming every form of exclusivity? Do I let myself be guided by him, living in the Church and with the Church?

3. A final point. The older theologians used to say that the soul is a kind of sailboat, the Holy Spirit is the wind which fills its sails and drives it forward, and the gusts of wind are the gifts of the Spirit. Lacking his impulse and his grace, we do not go forward. The Holy Spirit draws us into the mystery of the living God and saves us from the threat of a Church which is gnostic and self-referential, closed in on herself; he impels us to open the doors and go forth to proclaim and bear witness to the good news of the Gospel, to communicate the joy of faith, the encounter with Christ. The Holy Spirit is the soul of mission. The events that took place in Jerusalem almost two thousand years ago are not something far removed from us; they are events which affect us and become a lived experience in each of us. The Pentecost of the Upper Room in Jerusalem is the beginning, a beginning which endures. The Holy Spirit is the supreme gift of the risen Christ to his apostles, yet he wants that gift to reach everyone. As we heard in the Gospel, Jesus says: “I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate to remain with you forever” (Jn 14:16). It is the Paraclete Spirit, the “Comforter”, who grants us the courage to take to the streets of the world, bringing the Gospel! The Holy Spirit makes us look to the horizon and drive us to the very outskirts of existence in order to proclaim life in Jesus Christ. Let us ask ourselves: do we tend to stay closed in on ourselves, on our group, or do we let the Holy Spirit open us to mission?

Today’s liturgy is a great prayer which the Church, in union with Jesus, raises up to the Father, asking him to renew the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. May each of us, and every group and movement, in the harmony of the Church, cry out to the Father and implore this gift. Today too, as at her origins, the Church, in union with Mary, cries out:“Veni, Sancte Spiritus! Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful, and kindle in them the fire of your love!” Amen.

- Pope Francis, homily for Pentecost Sunday, 5/19/13


Text from page http://en.radiovaticana.va/articolo.asp?c=693563
of the Vatican Radio website