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Saturday, November 30, 2019

Yes, Hallmark Christmas movies are cheesy. Here’s why we still love them.


Yes, Hallmark Christmas movies are cheesy. Here’s why we still love them.


https://www.americamagazine.org/arts-culture/2018/12/14/yes-hallmark-christmas-movies-are-cheesy-heres-why-we-still-love-them?utm_source=Newsletters&utm_campaign=80f6bed2c8-DAILY_CAMPAIGN_2019_11_28_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_0fe8ed70be-80f6bed2c8-58861785

Trump's trade war cost Republicans congressional seats in the 2018 midterm elections | PIIE

Trump's trade war cost Republicans congressional seats in the 2018 midterm elections | PIIE: Just over a year ago, congressional Democrats took majority control of the US House of Representatives, flipping 40 previously Republican seats.[1] New evidence suggests that President Donald Trump’s trade policy played a role.

Bitter Cold Stops Coal, While Nuclear Power Excels

Bitter Cold Stops Coal, While Nuclear Power Excels: Through thick and thin, extreme hot or extreme cold, Bomb Cyclones and Polar Vortexes, this nuclear plant never seems to stop producing over 9 billion kWhs of energy every year, enough to power Seattle. The same with all other nuclear plants in America. Not so much with coal and gas.

The ShakeOut Scenario

The ShakeOut Scenario

Bishop Barron's Gospel Reflection November 30, 2019 - "Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men."

Saturday, November 30, 2019
Feast of Saint Andrew
Matthew 4:18-22
Friends, today’s Gospel reports the Lord’s calling of his first disciples. What is it about this scene that is so peaceful and right? Somehow it gets at the very heart of Jesus’ life and work, revealing what he is about. He comes into the world as the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity, a representative from the community that is God—and thus his basic purpose is to draw the world into community around him.

"He said to them, ‘Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.’" There is so much packed into that simple line. Notice the way that God acts. He is direct, in your face; he does the choosing. Jesus is not offering a doctrine, a theology, or a set of beliefs. He is offering himself: become my disciple, apprentice to me.

"And I will make you fishers of men." This is one of the best one-liners in Scripture. God is the Creator, the one who makes us from nothing. And what he makes us is always a reflection of himself: a fisher of men.

Feast of Saint Andrew, Apostle
Lectionary: 684

Reading 1 Rom 10:9-18

Brothers and sisters:
If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord
and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead,
you will be saved.
For one believes with the heart and so is justified,
and one confesses with the mouth and so is saved.
The Scripture says,
No one who believes in him will be put to shame.
There is no distinction between Jew and Greek;
the same Lord is Lord of all,
enriching all who call upon him.
For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

But how can they call on him in whom they have not believed?
And how can they believe in him of whom they have not heard?
And how can they hear without someone to preach?
And how can people preach unless they are sent?
As it is written,
How beautiful are the feet of those who bring the good news!
But not everyone has heeded the good news;
for Isaiah says, Lord, who has believed what was heard from us?
Thus faith comes from what is heard,
and what is heard comes through the word of Christ.
But I ask, did they not hear?
Certainly they did; for

Their voice has gone forth to all the earth,
and their words to the ends of the world.

Gospel Mt 4:18-22

As Jesus was walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers,
Simon who is called Peter, and his brother Andrew,
casting a net into the sea; they were fishermen.
He said to them,
"Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men."
At once they left their nets and followed him.
He walked along from there and saw two other brothers,
James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John.
They were in a boat, with their father Zebedee, mending their nets.
He called them, and immediately they left their boat and their father
and followed him.
 
 

Joe and Jorge’s Excellent Adventure: “The Two Popes” - The Catholic Thing

Joe and Jorge’s Excellent Adventure: “The Two Popes” - The Catholic Thing: Brad Miner reviews the new film about an imagined meeting between Pope Ratzinger and the future Pope Bergoglio. It’s fun – if you’re not Catholic.

The energy executive and the homeless — sleeping on concrete | Wire Commentary | heraldandnews.com

The energy executive and the homeless — sleeping on concrete | Wire Commentary | heraldandnews.com: The British call it sleeping rough. We call it for what it is: homelessness.

Can Mike Bloomberg's Millions Convince Democrats to Pick A Moderate? – InsideSources

Can Mike Bloomberg's Millions Convince Democrats to Pick A Moderate? – InsideSources: Former New York City mayor and founder of Bloomberg News, Mike Bloomberg, announced his candidacy for president last week, pitching himself as a moderate

Iraq Protests Continue Unabated Despite PM’s Resignation Pledge | Asharq AL-awsat

Iraq Protests Continue Unabated Despite PM’s Resignation Pledge | Asharq AL-awsat: Middle-East Arab News and Opinion - Asharq Al-Awsat is the world’s premier pan-Arab daily newspaper, printed simultaneously each day on four continents in 14 cities

Science Warnings, US Retreat Add Urgency to UN Climate Talks | Asharq AL-awsat

Science Warnings, US Retreat Add Urgency to UN Climate Talks | Asharq AL-awsat: Middle-East Arab News and Opinion - Asharq Al-Awsat is the world’s premier pan-Arab daily newspaper, printed simultaneously each day on four continents in 14 cities

Amid Deteriorating Relations, Israeli President Requests Jordan Visit | Asharq AL-awsat

Amid Deteriorating Relations, Israeli President Requests Jordan Visit | Asharq AL-awsat: Middle-East Arab News and Opinion - Asharq Al-Awsat is the world’s premier pan-Arab daily newspaper, printed simultaneously each day on four continents in 14 cities

Hundreds March in Khartoum Seeking Justice for Dead Protesters | Asharq AL-awsat

Hundreds March in Khartoum Seeking Justice for Dead Protesters | Asharq AL-awsat: Middle-East Arab News and Opinion - Asharq Al-Awsat is the world’s premier pan-Arab daily newspaper, printed simultaneously each day on four continents in 14 cities

The Israeli army's excuses won't help. Only war criminals kill nine innocent civilians in their sleep - Israel News - Haaretz.com

The Israeli army's excuses won't help. Only war criminals kill nine innocent civilians in their sleep - Israel News - Haaretz.com

Vladimir Putin’s Russia Is Losing Power in the Middle East—and Around the World

Vladimir Putin’s Russia Is Losing Power in the Middle East—and Around the World: Putin’s apparent victories in spreading Russian influence are mirages, some of which have come at a great cost.

Priest denies communion to judge in same-sex marriage — UPDATED | Deacon Greg Kandra

Priest denies communion to judge in same-sex marriage — UPDATED | Deacon Greg Kandra: The video below from WOOD-TV in Grand Rapids tells the story:  Details: Judge Sara Smolenski, chief judge of the Kent County District Court, has been denied Communion at the church where she has been a parishioner for more than six decades because she is married to a woman. It is a move that for many was the final

Steubenville to ordain first married priest, a former Pentecostal minister from its first diaconate class | Deacon Greg Kandra

Steubenville to ordain first married priest, a former Pentecostal minister from its first diaconate class | Deacon Greg Kandra: Big news, via CNS: Deacon Drake McCalister, a former Pentecostal minister, has been given approval by the Vatican to be ordained to the priesthood for the Diocese of Steubenville. Steubenville Bishop Jeffrey M. Monforton received the letter of approval Nov. 6 and will ordain McCalister Dec. 19 at Holy Family Church

Plague: Untold Stories of AIDS and the Catholic Church | America Magazine

Plague: Untold Stories of AIDS and the Catholic Church | America Magazine: America Media presents a podcast on the untold stories of AIDS and the Catholic Church.

The real-life Philadelphia gangsters who inspired ‘The Irishman’ | America Magazine

The real-life Philadelphia gangsters who inspired ‘The Irishman’ | America Magazine: We love our movies about wiseguys. But what happens when you live and work down the street from them?

‘The Two Popes’: What’s fact and what’s fiction? | America Magazine

‘The Two Popes’: What’s fact and what’s fiction? | America Magazine: 'The Two Popes' tells a detailed story of the relationship between Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis. But does it have all the facts right?

Friday, November 29, 2019

articles2.marketrealist.com/2019/11/pge-gets-no-respite-from-inverse-condemnation/

articles2.marketrealist.com/2019/11/pge-gets-no-respite-from-inverse-condemnation/

UPDATE 3-PG&E says its distribution lines caused no deadly fires in 2019 - Reuters

UPDATE 3-PG&E says its distribution lines caused no deadly fires in 2019 - Reuters: California utility PG&E Corp has determined there were no lives or structures lost in 2019 wildfires that may have been caused by its distribution lines, according to a Friday court filing.

PG&E Falls After Losing Legal Fight Over California Fire Policy

PG&E Falls After Losing Legal Fight Over California Fire Policy: (Bloomberg) -- Utility giant PG&E Corp. fell after its attempt at escaping a California policy that saddled it with billions of dollars in liabilities and pushed it into bankruptcy failed.U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Dennis Montali on Wednesday sided with wildfire victims, who said PG&E is subject to a legal

US law on Hong Kong rights protections means for China, HK and US

US law on Hong Kong rights protections means for China, HK and US: U.S. President Donald Trump signed into law the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act of 2019, meant to protect the city's autonomy from China.

Bishop Barron's Gospel Reflection November 29, 2019

Friday, November 29, 2019
Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time
Luke 21:29-33
Friends, in today’s Gospel passage Jesus speaks of the time when the plan of God will be fulfilled. Some philosophies defend a circular or cyclic understanding of time. They hold that time just continually circles back on itself, repeating like the cycles of the seasons. The modern philosopher Nietzsche spoke of the “eternal return of the same.” That’s a mythic consciousness, and it can be found all over the world.

But the Jews had a very different sense of time, what we might call “linear.” They felt that time was moving somewhere, that it had, under God’s direction, a purpose. The past was not simply there to be repeated endlessly; rather, the past was a preparation for a definitive future. It was an anticipation of what God would do, what God was going to accomplish.

The Lord assures us that the kingdom of God is near and that we must prepare for its coming.

Friday of the Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 507

Reading 1 Dn 7:2-14

In a vision I, Daniel, saw during the night,
the four winds of heaven stirred up the great sea,
from which emerged four immense beasts,
each different from the others.
The first was like a lion, but with eagle’s wings.
While I watched, the wings were plucked;
it was raised from the ground to stand on two feet
like a man, and given a human mind.
The second was like a bear; it was raised up on one side,
and among the teeth in its mouth were three tusks.
It was given the order, “Up, devour much flesh.”
After this I looked and saw another beast, like a leopard;
on its back were four wings like those of a bird,
and it had four heads.
To this beast dominion was given.
After this, in the visions of the night I saw the fourth beast,
different from all the others,
terrifying, horrible, and of extraordinary strength;
it had great iron teeth with which it devoured and crushed,
and what was left it trampled with its feet.
I was considering the ten horns it had,
when suddenly another, a little horn, sprang out of their midst,
and three of the previous horns were torn away to make room for it.
This horn had eyes like a man,
and a mouth that spoke arrogantly.
As I watched,

Thrones were set up
and the Ancient One took his throne.
His clothing was snow bright,
and the hair on his head as white as wool;
His throne was flames of fire,
with wheels of burning fire.
A surging stream of fire
flowed out from where he sat;
Thousands upon thousands were ministering to him,
and myriads upon myriads attended him.

The court was convened, and the books were opened.
I watched, then, from the first of the arrogant words
which the horn spoke, until the beast was slain
and its body thrown into the fire to be burnt up.
The other beasts, which also lost their dominion,
were granted a prolongation of life for a time and a season.
As the visions during the night continued, I saw

One like a son of man coming,
on the clouds of heaven;
When he reached the Ancient One
and was presented before him,
He received dominion, glory, and kingship;
nations and peoples of every language serve him.
His dominion is an everlasting dominion
that shall not be taken away,
his kingship shall not be destroyed.

Responsorial Psalm Daniel 3:75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80, 81

R. Give glory and eternal praise to him!
“Mountains and hills, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt him above all forever.”
R. Give glory and eternal praise to him!
“Everything growing from the earth, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt him above all forever.
R. Give glory and eternal praise to him!”
“You springs, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt him above all forever.”
R. Give glory and eternal praise to him!
“Seas and rivers, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt him above all forever.”
R. Give glory and eternal praise to him!
“You dolphins and all water creatures, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt him above all forever.”
R. Give glory and eternal praise to him!
“All you birds of the air, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt him above all forever.”
R. Give glory and eternal praise to him!
“All you beasts, wild and tame, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt him above all forever.”
R. Give glory and eternal praise to him!

Gospel Lk 21:29-33

Jesus told his disciples a parable.
“Consider the fig tree and all the other trees.
When their buds burst open,
you see for yourselves and know that summer is now near;
in the same way, when you see these things happening,
know that the Kingdom of God is near.
Amen, I say to you, this generation will not pass away
until all these things have taken place.
Heaven and earth will pass away,
but my words will not pass away.” 

Advent: New Liturgical Year, New You - Ascension Press Media

Advent: New Liturgical Year, New You - Ascension Press Media: Advent starts a new Liturgical year and is a great time for renewal. Where is God calling you to restart? What do you need to stop putting off?

Giving God Your Hopes and Dreams - Ascension Press Media

Giving God Your Hopes and Dreams - Ascension Press Media: Mother Clare and Fr. Mark-Mary encourage you not to fear giving God your hopes and dreams. Joy in this life does not compare to God’s eternal promise.

The First Sunday of Advent - Ascension Press Media

The First Sunday of Advent - Ascension Press Media: In this first week of Advent, Jeff Cavins reminds us to prepare our souls for the coming of Christ.

How to Be a Steward - Fr. Mike on Ascension Presents

How to Be a Steward - Fr. Mike on Ascension Presents: Our homes, bodies, and our very lives are not our own. God gives these as gifts and entrusts us to be a faithful steward of them.

Thanksgiving with the Saints – Catholic World Report

Thanksgiving with the Saints – Catholic World Report

Death in the modern age – and how to prepare as a Catholic – Catholic World Report

Death in the modern age – and how to prepare as a Catholic – Catholic World Report

“All time belongs to him”: On Advent and the liturgical year – Catholic World Report

“All time belongs to him”: On Advent and the liturgical year – Catholic World Report

CA winter weather storms delay Thanksgiving traffic, travel | The Sacramento Bee

CA winter weather storms delay Thanksgiving traffic, travel | The Sacramento Bee: More winter storms and weather are going to hit California travelers heading home after the Thanksgiving holiday. Here’s where road closures, chain controls, rain and snow are forecast to be worst.

That Uplifting Tweet You Just Shared? A Russian Troll Sent It - Rolling Stone

That Uplifting Tweet You Just Shared? A Russian Troll Sent It - Rolling Stone

As Secret Pentagon Spending Rises, Defense Firms Cash in - Defense One

As Secret Pentagon Spending Rises, Defense Firms Cash in - Defense One: Classified spending has edged up faster than overall defense budget requests, and accounts for nearly 11 percent of the $716 billion proposed for 2020.

What the protests mean for Hong Kong homeowners

What the protests mean for Hong Kong homeowners


https://www.ft.com/content/2db5953a-0d2c-11ea-b2d6-9bf4d1957a67?shareType=nongift

High stakes in Hong Kong: Xi’s great challenge

High stakes in Hong Kong: Xi’s great challenge


https://www.ft.com/content/1c90562a-f9a7-11e9-98fd-4d6c20050229?shareType=nongift

Dr. Jim Denison's Daily Article: Some surprising Black Friday facts: How to be grateful for what we do not yet have

Some surprising Black Friday facts: How to be grateful for what we do not yet have

November 29, 2019  |  READ TIME: 5 minutes
In The Daily Article today:
  • Who regrets Black Friday purchases more: Men or women?
  • Two surprises in a familiar miracle
  • Trusting God to give us what we ask or what we need
Americans are expected to spend roughly $87 billion on Black Friday and Cyber Monday this year. Counter to stereotypes, 88 percent of men say they plan to shop on those two days versus 85 percent of women. Men will also spend more than women on average.
One more gender-related fact: men (56 percent) are more likely than women (49 percent) to regret a shopping purchase.
And so, our culture shifts its focus from gratitude for what we have to shopping for what we do not have. There’s a surprising spiritual lesson here for us.

Giving thanks in the future tense

This Thanksgiving week, we’ve been discussing the biblical commands to “give thanks in all circumstances” (1 Thessalonians 5:18) and to “always give thanks to God the Father for everything” (Ephesians 5:20 NCV). We have noted that God calls us to give thanks “in” and “for” all that we experience.
The harder our circumstances, the harder such gratitude can be. So, we learned on Tuesday to trust God to redeem all he allows. On Wednesday, we focused on the power of public gratitude in times of hardship. Yesterday, we learned that when we thank God for his material provisions, we position ourselves to experience even greater spiritual grace.
Each of these days, we focused on gratitude in the present tense. Let’s close our Thanksgiving week by thinking about what we do not yet have. As we will discover, when we thank God for the future in the present, we experience his providence in transforming ways.

Two surprises in a familiar miracle

John 6 tells the story of Jesus’ feeding of the five thousand. We are familiar with the boy who had “five barley loaves and two fish” (v. 9) and the fact that Jesus “distributed them to those who were seated. So also the fish, as much as they wanted” (v. 11).
Two elements of this miracle are often overlooked.
One is the gracious gift our Lord offered the crowd, providing them “as much as they wanted.” This was a rare feast for impoverished people, one they would long remember.
The other is what our Lord did before he distributed this feast: “Jesus then took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them” (v. 11). He gave thanks to God for what he had not yet received from God.
Jesus would have used the traditional Jewish invocation, “Blessed are You, O Lord, who causes to come forth bread from the earth.” Such an attitude of gratitude is appropriate whenever we eat: “Everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving” (1 Timothy 4:4).
After Jesus thanked God for what he did not yet have, he was then able to receive what his Father chose to give.

When we work, God works

We find a similar pattern throughout Scripture:
  • After Moses extended his staff over the battle with the Amalekites, “Israel prevailed” (Exodus 17:11).
  • After the priests stepped into the flooded Jordan River, God stopped the river’s flood (Joshua 3:14–17).
  • After the Jews marched seven times around the walled city of Jericho, God destroyed Jericho’s walls (Joshua 6:15–20).
  • After Peter preached his courageous Pentecost sermon, the people “were cut to the heart” (Acts 2:37) and came to Christ in repentant faith (vv. 38–41).
  • After “earnest prayer for [Peter in prison] was made to God by the church” (Acts 12:5), God sent his angel to rescue Peter from prison (vv. 6–11).
  • After the exiled John chose to be “in the Spirit on the Lord’s day” (Revelation 1:10), he met the risen Christ (vv. 10–17).
Like the massive crowd in John 6, you and I are facing hunger as well. Yours may be physical, emotional, relational, or spiritual. If you will thank God for what he has not yet done, you will position yourself to receive what he intends to do.
His gift may come in that moment. It may come in years to come. It may come in ways you recognize and in ways you do not. But it will come (cf. Matthew 7:7–8).

“Sometimes God lets the storm rage”

Novelist Leslie Gould observed, “Sometimes God calms the storm, but sometimes God lets the storm rage and calms his child.”
As we have seen, one way God answers present prayers for future blessings is by giving us what we ask. Another way is by giving us something better than what we ask.
In Keeping Hope: Favourite Prayers for Modern Living, Michel Quoist writes: “Your limitations are not simply obstacles to your success—they are also indications from God of the path your life is to take.”
Tim Keller would agree. In Prayer: Experiencing Awe and Intimacy with God, he notes: “God will either give us what we ask or give us what we would have asked if we knew everything he knows.”
To make Thanksgiving not just a holiday but a lifestyle, let’s follow the example of our Lord. Let’s thank him for what we have and for what we do not yet have. And let’s trust him for his best, whatever it is.
What “loaves” are in your hands today?