Debauchery. Bacchanalia. Floats, costumes, beads and masks, and lots of drinking and partying. That’s what we think of when we hear the term Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday.
There is a lot more behind it. Also called Shrove Tuesday, it marks the last day of the liturgical calendar before Lent begins. After Catholicism spread throughout Europe, many cultures celebrated the final day before Lent began in ways unique to that individual culture. eggs, and milk were finished off in one day, giving rise to the term Fat Tuesday. In Poland, such things as lard, sugar, eggs, and fruit were forbidden during Lent, and the beloved pączki became a special treat for Fat Tuesday, and in Detroit they still sell many thousands of them to long lines of people.
Many people, Catholic and non Catholic alike celebrate Mardi Gras. Have a great day, but spare a thought to tomorrow.
No matter what church you attend, Lent is a custom, an observance, that you can use to prepare you to meet Christ renewed on Easter Sunday, with a deeper and more tested faith. Perhaps a faith better prepared to go into the world and share, model, and live the teachings.
By the way, I am sure most of you have seen us Catholics sporting the cross on our foreheads, traced in ashes blessed on Palm Sunday of the preceding year. Every parish will have one or more services to distribute ashes, and you do not have to be Catholic to attend and receive the ashes, should you so choose.
Following the construct of the social movement as it originated (Hollywood) and continues to be rolled out (DC), it must be accepted the Democrat narrative engineers believe there’s a pot of ideological -and electoral- gold at the end of this rainbow.
That said, two women step forward today to accuse vulnerable Democrat Senator Al Franken of sexually inappropriate behavior and harassment. KABC host and personality Leeann Tweeden (here) and Media Equality Project Co-Founder, Melanie Morgan (here), both step forward today to accuse Senator Franken.
Leeann Tweeden tells her story here:
(Via ABC) A female radio host claims Al Franken, now Minnesota’s junior Democratic senator, groped her while she was sleeping aboard a military plane on her way home from a USO tour over a decade ago. She also claimed he forcibly kissed her when they were performing together for troops overseas.
“I felt disgusting and violated,” Leeann Tweeden wrote in a post this morning on KABC’s website.
Tweeden, who is a radio news anchor on Los Angeles station KABC (owned by Cumulus Media), described what she said took place between her and the comedian.
She claims that in 2006 Franken insisted on kissing her as part of a rehearsal for an act. He later groped her while she was asleep on a plane, she also claimed. Franken was elected senator in 2008. (read more)
“The first thing I want to do is apologize: to Leeann, to everyone else who was part of that tour, to everyone who has worked for me, to everyone I represent, and to everyone who counts on me to be an ally and supporter and champion of women. There’s more I want to say, but the first and most important thing—and if it’s the only thing you care to hear, that’s fine—is: I’m sorry.
“I respect women. I don’t respect men who don’t. And the fact that my own actions have given people a good reason to doubt that makes me feel ashamed.
“But I want to say something else, too. Over the last few months, all of us—including and especially men who respect women—have been forced to take a good, hard look at our own actions and think (perhaps, shamefully, for the first time) about how those actions have affected women.
“For instance, that picture. I don’t know what was in my head when I took that picture, and it doesn’t matter. There’s no excuse. I look at it now and I feel disgusted with myself. It isn’t funny. It’s completely inappropriate. It’s obvious how Leeann would feel violated by that picture. And, what’s more, I can see how millions of other women would feel violated by it—women who have had similar experiences in their own lives, women who fear having those experiences, women who look up to me, women who have counted on me.
“Coming from the world of comedy, I’ve told and written a lot of jokes that I once thought were funny but later came to realize were just plain offensive. But the intentions behind my actions aren’t the point at all. It’s the impact these jokes had on others that matters. And I’m sorry it’s taken me so long to come to terms with that.
“While I don’t remember the rehearsal for the skit as Leeann does, I understand why we need to listen to and believe women’s experiences.
“I am asking that an ethics investigation be undertaken, and I will gladly cooperate.
“And the truth is, what people think of me in light of this is far less important than what people think of women who continue to come forward to tell their stories. They deserve to be heard, and believed. And they deserve to know that I am their ally and supporter. I have let them down and am committed to making it up to them.” (link)
Senator Al Franken is up for re-election this year and was already vulnerable to losing his seat. Unlike the quisling republican wing within the UniParty their democrat counterparts will circle the wagons and look for the best political use of the issues.
Back in 2012 the professional Democrat apparatus decided to advance the gender side of politics for political benefit. It’s a broad strategy.
Edward Klein, the former foreign editor of Newsweek and former editor of The New York TimesMagazine, has written several books about the Clintons and Kennedys. Klein has now come out with All Out War: The Plot to Destroy Trump. An exposé on Hillary revealing the truth behind the facade. The fact that Hillary has really been a lesbian into women and this is why she has let Bill free reign all these years. Gennifer Flowers did an interview and confirmed all those stories that have circulated for years. Hillary bought the house next door so she would not have to live in the same building yet claimed it was for her staff when they would visit.
It turns out that Bill even warned her she would lose and she told he he was “delusional.” Bill told here to focus on the Rust Belt, and she would not listen. To her, this was a sexist revolution and women would now take control.
Bill tossed her book in the garbage bin. Klien writes: “He told her the book made her look bewildered, angry and confused, and that those were poor qualities in a person who aspired to be a world leader. He hated the title because calling it What Happened would only make people say, ‘You lost.’ … “He urged her to postpone the pub date and rewrite the book, but she yelled at him and said, ‘The book is finished and that’s how it’s going to be published’.”
Klein writes that they no longer talk and only communicate through lawyers and friends. “Bill’s criticism — and what Hillary sees as his lack of sympathy — has driven a wedge between them. Hillary used her book tour as a “poor me” parade.
Hillary has done nothing but blame everybody else but herself. She has focused her blame on Russian hackers, former FBI Director James Comey and women who didn’t vote for her. Many women I have spoken to were offended that her attitude was they should vote for her ONLY because she was a women and to hell with everything else.
Even Chuck Schumer turned against Hillary tell CNN: “When you lose to somebody who has 40% popularity, you don’t blame other things — Comey, Russia — you blame yourself.” This whole “poor me” parade has rubbed many people wrong and demonstrated she was by no means qualified to be a world leader.
What Hillary has left in her wake is a costly investigation into Russia, a renewed cold war, and a nation very divided. All this for personal gain and feminism. I have known woman world leaders. Nobody has ever seen this as a feminist victory. Merkel would never take any such position and neither did Margaret Thatcher. Hillary has just been way too bitter about being born a woman and can’t get past that.
The winner of a essay contest, N. A. Halkides, wrote a piece which is actually very on point. I have written before saying essentially the same position that those on the right seek liberty and justice for all because their greatest dream is to be free and left alone to pursue this gift of life. The left, is where revolutions emerge because they are never satisfied with the world and always want to be like the thief who breaks into you home to take what they want for themselves. Halkides explained like this:
The Progressive believes in precisely two things: his own magnificence and the constructive power of brute force. In combination, they lead him naturally from the role of pestiferous busybody to brutal dictator. Where the productive man dreams of the things he might create if only left alone by his fellows, the Progressive dreams of the world he could create if only the lives and property of his fellows were at his disposal. The roots of his pathology lie in that oldest and most destructive of all human vices, the desire for the power to rule over other men.
To give someone something to help them when they really need it actually makes you feel good inside. To be forced to turnover assets so someone else can claim to be charitable is not charity by any means – it is extortion. Even Hillary on the campaign trail remarked that Trump was worth several billions. “Think what we could do with that!” she exclaimed. It is always violating the Tenth Commandment – Thous shall not covert anything belonging to someone else. It seems God understood the totalitarian hiding inside every leftist and made it a violation of his 10 Commandments.
After the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb.
And behold, there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, approached, rolled back the stone, and sat upon it.
His appearance was like lightning and his clothing was white as snow.
The guards were shaken with fear of him and became like dead men.
Then the angel said to the women in reply, “Do not be afraid!
I know that you are seeking Jesus the crucified.
He is not here, for he has been raised just as he said.
Come and see the place where he lay.
Then go quickly and tell his disciples, ‘He has been raised from the dead,
and he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him.’
Behold, I have told you.”
Then they went away quickly from the tomb, fearful yet overjoyed, and ran to announce this to his disciples.
And behold, Jesus met them on their way and greeted them.
They approached, embraced his feet, and did him homage.
Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid.
Go tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me.”
Today we observe Good Friday, the day of the death of Jesus. Many Christian Churches have different ways of observation, to prepare us for the coming resurrection of the Lord on Easter Sunday. Today, the sacrifices we have made during Lent culminate in our internalization of the great offering of Christ’s life. If we have been diligent in our Lenten preparations, Good Friday hits us with a power and force that brings us, literally and figuratively, to our knees with the grasp of what Jesus poured out for us. It becomes personal, a tiny sliver of the cross is buried in our heart. And so each year, we find that we give ourselves over to Christ just a little more through this time of penance and reflection.
The Easter Triduum, the marking of the days of Jesus’ passion and resurrection, the most important time of the church year, begins with the evening Mass of Holy Thursday, reaches its high point in the Easter Vigil, and closes on Easter Sunday evening. After preparing during the days of Lent, we celebrate these holiest of days in the Church year.
From John, Chapter 19:
Then Pilate tried to release him, but the Jewish leaders told him, “If you release this man, you are no friend of Caesar’s. Anyone who declares himself a king is a rebel against Caesar.
At these words Pilate brought Jesus out to them again and sat down at the judgement bench on the stone paved platform. It was now about noon of the day before Passover.
And Pilate said to the Jews, “Here is your King!”
“What? Crucify your king?” Pilate asked. “We have no King but Caesar,” the chief priests shouted back.
So they had him at last, and he was taken out of the city, carrying his cross to the place known as “The Skull,” in Hebrew, “Golgotha.” There they crucified him and two others with him, one on either side, with Jesus between them. And Pilate posted a sign over him reading “Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.” The place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and the signboard was written in Hebrew, Latin, and Greek, so that many people read it.
Then the chief priests said to Pilate, “Change it from ‘The King of the Jews’ to ‘He said, I am King of the Jews.’ ”
Pilate replied, “What I have written, I have written. It stays exactly as it is.”
When the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they put his garments into four piles, one for each of them. But they said, “Let’s not tear up his robe,” for it was seamless. “Lets throw dice to see who gets it.” This fulfilled the scripture that says, “They divided my clothes among them, and cast lots for my robe.” So that is what they did.
Standing near the cross were Jesus’ mother, Mary, his aunt, the wife of Cleopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother standing there beside me, his close friend, he said to her, “He is your son.”
And to me he said, “She is your mother.” And from then on, I took her into my home.
Jesus knew that everything was now finished, and to fulfill the scriptures said, “I’m thirsty.” A jar of sour wine was sitting there, so a sponge was soaked in it and put on a hyssop branch and help up to his lips.
When Jesus had tasted it, he said, “It is finished,” and bowed his head and dismissed his spirit.
Today we would like to invite you to share with us your reflections, your thoughts, your favorite readings on Good Friday. We sincerely hope that you will join in this conversation as a sharing of our common faith, an active searching, united in asking in this small way for God’s blessing upon His world this Easter Triduum. So many of us see change as something that is all or nothing. We postpone the changes we need to make in our lives to improve our relationship with God because we aren’t mentally “ready” to make that leap. In reality, our path to God is made in tiny steps, small differences, the little things that take us one step closer in faith.
We ask you to join us, help us, take that step. Together and seperately, may we aid each other through our words and prayers, to make this Good Friday an opening for the light that is Christ to penetrate our darkness.
I would also like to share a paragraph from The Catechism of the Catholic Church.
In Her Magisterial teaching of the faith and in the witness of her saints, the Church has never forgotten that “sinners were the authors and the ministers of all the sufferings the Divine Redeemer endured.” Taking into account the fact that our sins affect Christ himself, the Church does not hesitate to impute to Christians the gravest responsibility for the torment inflicted upon Jesus, a responsiblity with which they have all too often burdened the Jews alone.
I have created this site to help people have fun in the kitchen. I write about enjoying life both in and out of my kitchen. Life is short! Make the most of it and enjoy!
This is a library of News Events not reported by the Main Stream Media documenting & connecting the dots on How the Obama Marxist Liberal agenda is destroying America
Debauchery. Bacchanalia. Floats, costumes, beads and masks, and lots of drinking and partying. That’s what we think of when we hear the term Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday.
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