Archbishop Chaput's New E-book.

Anyone thinking that Archbishop Charles Chaput would bite his tongue in his new e-book A Heart on Fire: Catholic Witness and the Next America would be quickly disabused of that notion from the very beginning where Chaput has this quote from Herman Melville's The Confidence-Man;

Truth is like a thrashing-machine; tender sensibilities must keep out of the way.

If I have anything negative to say about the e-book it would be that the book is far too short. Archbishop Chaput recognizes the problems we face in this country today - as quoted by in this review of the book, Chaput writes,

“Our national leadership in 2012 seems deaf to matters of religious freedom abroad and unreceptive, or frankly hostile, to religious engagement in public affairs here at home.”

I first learned of the Archbishop's e-book from this review by the Catholic League. After reading the book, I was wondering why it wasn't just released as an essay - and published on any number of Catholic websites - It wasn't until I saw this on National Catholic Register that I learned that the e-book was written to be the forward to a new edition of Chaput's 2008 book Render Unto Caesar: Serving the Nation by Living Our Catholic Beliefs in Political Life which is scheduled for release this summer (the e-book includes an excerpt from the earlier work).

If you've already read Render Unto Caesar as I have, downloading the e-book for your Kindle or Nook is well worth the 0.99. If you haven't read the earlier book and plan on reading the 2012 edition, I'd save my dollar and wait until the new edition comes out.

Books.

Being basically out of commission due to recent surgery, I've been spending more time reading than would be normal for me if I were working regularly. After reading the first two of ER Burroughs Tarzan books, I downloaded the five in his Barsoom series that are out of copyright and thereby free at Project Gutenberg.

The first in the series - A Princess of Mars - was interesting enough, I guess, but it's been really a struggle to get thru the second - The Gods of Mars - I was disappointed in Burrough's method of getting John Carter to and from Mars; also, it doesn't take long before the constant fighting between Carter and a weird assortment of Barsoomians wears thin.

Honestly, the only way I could finish it was to tell myself that I could go on to something better (like Charles Chaput's A Heart on Fire: Catholic Witness and the Next America) once it was done.

Three and one half Time Outs Tuesday redux.

It's Tuesday once again and it's time for another 3 1/2 Time Outs Tuesday.



1)
After reading E.R Burroughs' A Princess of Mars , I downloaded the next four from Project Gutenberg (the ones out of copyright).
I've read 75% of the second, The Gods of Mars. My appreciation of Burroughs has worn a bit thin. If I work at it, I can fight my way thru this book, but it doesn't encourage me to go further into the series.

2)
I posted a video earlier this morning .....I'm posting a link to it here for my 2.

3)
Thanks to a link at CMR, I discovered thelookingspoon.com/ where I was able to snatch the following gif.



1/2
As you can see from the photo below, the bearded iris' have started to bloom. Also, you can see that sans weeds, we'd have no lawn.

Romney Alarmed by Obama open mic Gaffe.

Our Closest and Strongest Allies.

Danish Youtube video with English subtitles.