Since the chief weapon for virtue is humility, and the greatest hindrance to it is pride, the divine Fathers have set these three weeks before the Forty-day Fast as a preparation for the spiritual struggles of virtue. This present week they have called Harbinger, since it declares that the Fast is approaching; and they set humility as the foundation for all our spiritual labors by appointing that the parable of the Publican and the Pharisee be read today, even before the Fast begins, to teach, through the vaunting of the Pharisee, that the foul smoke of self-esteem and the stench of boasting drives away the grace of the Spirit, strips man of all his virtue, and casts him into the pits of Hades; and, through the repentance and contrite prayer of the Publican, that humility confers upon the sinner forgiveness of all his wicked deeds and raises him up to the greatest heights.
Paczki
Paczki is a Polish doughnut, I guess that’s what it is, is like a jelly doughnut on steroids. This is amazing and is filled with lemon or blueberry. I am not sure if they come in other flavors but those are the two I have.
I understand they are a traditional pre lent desert and once lent arrives it is bye bye Paczki. I will have to go into rehab after that.
Governor of Massachusetts Goes High Tech
Beacon Hill goes digital – LOL
Boston Globe
In the meeting rooms and corridors of the State House, he’s known as Mr. Governor or, when formal settings dictate, His Excellency. But to Governor Deval Patrick’s more than 9,000 Facebook friends he’s known alternately as D Pat, DP, or Uncle D.
Some state senators are so focused on tapping away on their BlackBerrys, even during debate, that the Senate is considering banning the practice. Senate Republicans recently launched their own blog.
But other state officials, including Senate president Therese Murray and Treasurer Timothy P. Cahill leave the high-tech stuff to their aides. A BlackBerry for the new House speaker, Robert A. DeLeo? Not anytime soon. His staff says he is “a habitual cellphone user,” but nothing more.
In an age when most middle-school students are conversant in Twitter, Flickr, and Flotzam, leaders in state government demonstrate widely varying degrees of technical proficiency, giving the most wired elected officials an edge in the new political dialogue.
“Technology is really revolutionizing the way we communicate with people and the way they communicate with us,” said Senate minority leader Richard Tisei, who last month issued a Republican response to the governor’s State of the State speech – via video on YouTube.
Medical Board Revokes License of Abortion Practitioner in Florida Born Alive Case
The medical board held a hearing Friday in the case and found abortion practitioner Pierre Jean-Jacque Renelique guilty of medical malpractice.
The panel also found him guilty of wrongly delegating a medical responsibility meant for physicians to unlicensed personnel.
Renelique’s attorney, Joseph Harrison, told AP before the hearing that he thinks the allegations are “misguided and incomplete” but did not provide more information to back his claims. He did not provide any comments following the board’s decision.
According to witnesses, a young woman went to the GYN Diagnostic Center abortion facility in Hialeah, outside Miami, for an abortion. Sycloria Williams, 18, paid $1,200 for the abortion
Police say the 18-year-old had an abortion and returned the next day complaining of severe stomach pains.
Holocaust Deniers
Is it better to challenge or ignore Holocaust deniers such as Catholic Bishop Richard Williamson and Iranian President Mahmoud Amadenijad? Why?
Michael Dubruiel – RIP
May his memory be eternal!
Public disapproves of Obama on abortion
“Obama’s decision to reverse the prohibition on funding for overseas family-planning providers may be the least popular thing he has done so far. This was an executive order that forbade federal government money from going to overseas family-planning groups that provide abortions or offer abortion counseling. Fifty-eight percent of Americans disapprove of Obama’s decision to lift this ban, while only 35% approve of it. The ban on federal funds to these groups was put in place by Ronald Reagan, but lifted by Bill Clinton. George W. Bush re-instituted the ban after taking office in 2001, but Obama has once again lifted it. The abortion and Guantanamo Bay prison decisions are especially unpopular among Republicans; only 8% approve of the former and 11% of the latter. But these are also the least popular decisions among independents and Democrats as well, though a majority of Democrats still approve of both.”
US bishops slam Holocaust denial
In the most pointed statement yet from a high-ranking Catholic official, Cardinal Francis E. George of Chicago, the president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, today is sharply criticizing the Holocaust denial by a traditionalist bishop whose excommunication was lifted last month by Pope Benedict XVI. George (above), clearly alarmed by the brewing controversy and the damage to Catholic-Jewish relations, called the statements by Bishop Richard Williamson “deeply offensive and utterly false” and called the outrage from Jews and Catholics “understandable.”
Signficantly, George also asserts that full reconciliation between the Vatican and the four un-excommunicated bishops of the Society of Saint Pius X, including Williamson, will require “their assent to all that the Church professes, including the teachings of the Second Vatican Council.” That is important because the Second Vatican Council resulted in the church’s renunciation of anti-Semitism and led to a historic warming of relations between Catholics and Jews.
2 February ~ The Presentation

The Apodosis of the Feast of the Meeting in the Temple is usually on the 9th of February. This, however, may vary if the Feast falls within the period of the Triodion. Should this occur, the Typicon should be consulted for specific information concerning the Apodosis of the Feast.
From www.goarch.org
February 1 ~ St. Bridgit of Kildare
ABBESS, AND PATRONESS OF IRELAND