Articles by Deacon Patrick Moynihan
Beauty, Truth and Opposites
May 1, 2009 / 00:00 amMuch has already been written and said about the recent controversy surrounding Miss California Carrie Prejean’s confrontation with gossip blogger and pageant judge, Perez Hilton—maybe too much. However, as over-televised as it has been, the fact that this year’s Miss USA competition ended up like an episode of "The Apprentice" without the business attire is an uncomfortable reminder that common decency is just not that common. While Mr. Hilton’s post-competition web soliloquy was the most notable display of vulgarity, the pageant itself raises a lot of questions about our collective morality. Forget marriage, I am not sure that we are ready for un-chaperoned dating.
One Man’s Ransom is Another Man’s Bondage
Apr 24, 2009 / 00:00 amWhile at Brown University in the mid-eighties, I heard G. Gordon Liddy speak. It was a set up: an unbending conservative against a frothing crowd of liberals. But given Mr. Liddy’s resolve, it was still a fair fight. Afterall, who can hold a candle to a man who can actually hold a candle to his hand and not cry out? During the Q&A, the topic turned to dealing with kidnappers and terrorists. Mr. Liddy stated that he would never pay a ransom or negotiate with kidnappers even if they were holding his son. He was adamant that not paying was the only real deterrent. His selfless declaration came to mind when I heard the news about the Somali pirates taking a U.S. captain hostage.
Manners and Civility
Apr 17, 2009 / 00:00 amI know that my mother is going to ask for equal time in response to my venturing onto this topic. However, just as reformed smokers are often the most virulent advocates for "no smoking" laws, I am an earnest advocate for teaching social manners in school. I will not lie. Like the song says, I have seen life from both sides on this issue. But, if previous sin were an obstacle to preaching, there would be a lot of silence in church—and far less words on the editorial page.
Water, Water
Apr 10, 2009 / 00:00 amThe other day I caught myself telling my twelve-year old son not to pray for a sunny Saturday. Droughts bring on bizarre behavior. Fortunately for us, the local lack of water is not only temporary, it has only really impacted recreational activities and landscaping. For the world, the lack of access to clean water is a far greater and more menacing issue. It takes lives: four children a minute and 100,000 people a year in China alone.
Obama and ND: Yes and No Thank You
Apr 3, 2009 / 00:00 amWater will just have to wait again. Why? Because blood is thicker than water, and there is a family matter that needs to be addressed: Should President Obama speak at the commencement of our nation’s most loved and prestigious Catholic university and be given an honorary degree in law?
I love my Job!
Mar 27, 2009 / 00:00 amI really intended to leave the whole money, debt and politics scene alone this week. I was all set to write about water. That was until I ran across Barbara Kiviat’s article titled "Jobs Are the New Assets" in the TIME [March 23] magazine I picked up at the airport on my way to Haiti. I’ll cover water next week. I am sure a few days in the hot sun will only intensify my commitment to the subject.
Greed is Only One of Seven
Mar 20, 2009 / 00:00 amThis week CNN ran the headline “Is Greed Good” as the controversy over AIG bonuses waged in Washington and on Wall Street. For the record, greed is not good, nor is gluttony, wrath, sloth, envy, lust or pride. Arguably, all these but gluttony, unless we count gluttony for punishment on our part, have been displayed this week in the discussion of the AIG bonuses.
It’s Just Not a Practical Question
Mar 12, 2009 / 00:00 amThe candidate who told Rick Warren that life issues were “above his pay grade” has given himself another raise. On March 9th, President Obama reversed President Bush’s executive order that limited federal funding for embryonic stem cell research to cell lines existing before August 9th, 2001. This is Mr. Obama’s second executive order removing a rampart erected by his predecessor to protect life. Mr. Obama must be feeling more comfortable with making big decisions—especially decisions that mean humans, albeit at the earliest stages of life, are more likely to end up in the lab or aborted in distant lands.
Why We Give!
Mar 6, 2009 / 00:00 amI have admit that I was loaded for bear when I first heard the news that President Obama’s proposed budget plan called for changes in how charitable deductions are handled. I headed a non-profit for nearly a dozen years and have been a deacon in the Church for eight—both organizations are able to survive and serve thanks to charitable support. It is only natural that House Republican leader John Boehner’s warning that the new measure would deliver a “sharp blow to charities at a time when they are hurting during the economic downturn” struck a chord with me. I saw red knowing many non-profits were already deep in the red themselves.
Happiness is the Correct Choice
Feb 27, 2009 / 00:00 amSince reading "No Choice," an article defending the right to single-sex marriage by a local physician named Dr. Bill Griffith, I have reflected quite often on his claim that a person "cannot override a biologic drive with a conscious decision and be truly happy." I disagree with this claim theologically, philosophically and practically. My faith, intellect and experience tell me exactly the opposite. I believe that we cannot be happy unless we are able to control our biologic urges and direct them toward good. To be a slave to our "biologic drives" means just that—to be a slave. And, freedom is an essential element in happiness.
In Pursuit of Life
Feb 20, 2009 / 00:00 amThe pursuit of life has captured a lot of headlines lately. We have been shocked by the details of the artificially assisted birth of octuplets to a mother of six. Just before Christmas, parents of teenage IVF twins expressed lament for the twin’s nine embryonic siblings still in cryostasis. This past week’s Time [2/9] featured a story on advances in stem cell research while the New York Times [2/17] warned this week of the mounting concerns over the possible connection between IVF and rare genetic diseases. At the center of these stories for many is the morally questionable practice of producing human life outside of the body in petri dishes for later implantation and/or experimentation.
We are all what now?
Feb 13, 2009 / 00:00 amI am sure it was mostly for shock value that this week’s Newsweek [2/16/09] sported the cover proclaiming "WE ARE ALL SOCIALISTS NOW." Since I bought my copy of the magazine just after leaving a Starbucks, it would seem a bit premature to make that call. Yet, turn-of-the-past-century vocabulary and Depression era vitriol are surely making a comeback. The article argues that we are "moving to a modern European state."
Out of the Mouth of Babes and Popes, a Vision of One America
Feb 6, 2009 / 00:00 amOne of the many benefits of having school-aged children is that they keep my own education fresh. It was my children who first explained to me why Pluto is no longer a planet. Recently, the dinner table topic turned to geography. The big question: How many continents are there? A debate ensued. The traditional answer of seven was put to question. My son Timothy suggested that some say there are only six.
"Senator Kerry, what are you saying?"
Jan 30, 2009 / 00:00 amSenator John Kerry, what are you saying? Mr. Obama reverses the ban on funding and promoting abortion in the world with our tax dollars and your response is to proclaim the order "a very powerful signal to our neighbors around the world that the United States is again back in the business of good public policy, and ideology no longer blunts our ability to save lives around the globe." John, would you kiss your mom with that mouth? How can you twist the promotion of abortion in the world into an improvement in the "ability to save lives"?