Brief emergence from hiatus...

Just a few things that caught my attention.

1. This post of Seraphic's is gold. Young Catholic women, please take note:

Nobody should waste their youth dreaming of men who have no interest in them. Thus, we Catholic girls should hear "I'm discerning a vocation to the priesthood" and translate it into "I'm just not that into you." And at this point, we should drop the discerner like a hot potato. After all, he is thinking of foreswearing the greatest sweets of human love, so we should give him a hint of that loss pronto. Once he's actually in the seminary, we can be nice to him again. But not too nice. And if he doesn't go into the seminary (for so few of them do) we should cold-shoulder him until he shows up, weeping, with flowers, at our door. (Incidentally, make sure a discerner really is discerning before shunning him. There are a lot of mums and priests out there who hint to pretty girls of their darlings' precious vocations when these vocations exist only in the minds of the mums and the priests.)

2. The Roving Medievalist has changed address.

3. Amy Welborn is part of the NY Times team which is 'blogging the Pope's visit to the States. It's great to see one of the top Catholic 'bloggers getting a little extra exposure in the secular sphere.

4. The Cranky Professor tells us of a major archaeological discovery near the Colosseum. He also 'blogs about his visit to the Museum of Purgatory:

And in the Sacristy, the Museum of the Souls in Purgatory! They have a number of things like prayer books and night caps showing scorch marks from fingers of souls returning from the fires of Purgatory to ask for Masses to be said - or reproaching relatives for not having the Masses said that the suffering soul provided for in his or her will!.

5. Over at the Shrine, it's been Disturbing Relics Week. Scroll down and learn all about Cloister Work. (Not for the squeamish!)

6. Since they've recently celebrated their 200th Episode, it seems apt to plug one of my favourite podcasts. Probably the best description of Jawbone Radio is that it's like eavesdropping on Len and Nora as they discuss anything and everything about raising a family, computer games, the annoyances of everyday life and... well, pretty much everything.

7. RIP Fr Servais Pinckaers, O.P.: 1925-2008

8. I must admit to a certain delight at the manner in which the Olympic Torch relay is backfiring on the Chinese Government. Of course, we know that there are many other reasons apart from Tibet that the Chinese Government should be treated as pariahs by the international community.