Thumbs up Mr.Pope!

Now the kids know Benedict understands their lingo, it won't be long before he teaches them some Latin - the universal language of the ages - we'll be hearing joyful, hope-filled, rap in Latin with the charitable message of Tupac from beyond the grave...

Already Benedict's words are coming true:

“I am convinced that music really is the universal language of beauty which can bring together all people of good will on earth” - Pope Benedict XVI

And already many thousands of young people are responding to the Pope - the Myspace playlist info is spreading like wildfire:

e.g. see just one of the thousands of links

Comment 41. ceron - Sat 5 Dec 2009 5:15PM NZDT

It's seem appropriate that the Pope would listen to TUPAC..
afterall he was a good poet who always seem to struggle between who he thought he was and who he thought he should become... his lyrics are profound.

The catholic church also seem to be struggling... I think, the fact that the pope is open to listen to the words of a rapper is in itself profound. Plus, it shows he has good taste... : )

Thumbs up Mr.Pope...

Pope Benedict knows there is so much more to our young people as the above bears testimony to!

"Changes" lyrics by Tupac

Come on come on
I see no changes. Wake up in the morning and I ask myself,
"Is life worth living? Should I blast myself?"
I'm tired of bein' poor and even worse I'm black.
My stomach hurts, so I'm lookin' for a purse to snatch.
Cops give a damn about a negro? Pull the trigger, kill a nigga, he's a hero.
Give the crack to the kids who the hell cares? One less hungry mouth on the welfare.
First ship 'em dope & let 'em deal the brothers.
Give 'em guns, step back, and watch 'em kill each other.
"It's time to fight back", that's what Huey said.
2 shots in the dark now Huey's dead.
I got love for my brother, but we can never go nowhere
unless we share with each other. We gotta start makin' changes.
Learn to see me as a brother 'stead of 2 distant strangers.
And that's how it's supposed to be.
How can the Devil take a brother if he's close to me?
I'd love to go back to when we played as kids,
but things change, and that's the way it is.

[Bridge w/ changing ad libs]

(Come on, come on) That's just the way it is. Things'll never be the same.
That's just the way it is. aww yeah...
[Repeat]

I see no changes. All I see is racist faces.
Misplaced hate makes disgrace for races we under.
I wonder what it takes to make this one better place...
let's erase the wasted.
Take the evil out the people, they'll be acting right.
'Cause mo' black than white is smokin' crack tonight.
And only time we chill is when we kill each other.
It takes skill to be real, time to heal each other.
And although it seems heaven sent,
we ain't ready to see a black President, uhh.
It ain't a secret don't conceal the fact...
the penitentiary's packed, and it's filled with blacks.
But some things will never change.
Try to show another way, but they stayin' in the dope game.
Now tell me what's a mother to do?
Bein' real don't appeal to the brother in you.
You gotta operate the easy way.
"I made a G today" But you made it in a sleazy way.
Sellin' crack to the kids. "I gotta get paid,"
Well hey, well that's the way it is.

[Bridge]
[Talking:]

We gotta make a change...
It's time for us as a people to start makin' some changes.
Let's change the way we eat, let's change the way we live
and let's change the way we treat each other.
You see the old way wasn't working so it's on us to do
what we gotta do, to survive.

And still I see no changes. Can't a brother get a little peace?
There's war on the streets & the war in the Middle East.
Instead of war on poverty,
they got a war on drugs so the police can bother me.
And I ain't never did a crime I ain't have to do.
But now I'm back with the facts givin' 'em back to you.
Don't let 'em jack you up, back you up, crack you up and pimp smack you up.
You gotta learn to hold ya own.
They get jealous when they see ya with ya mobile phone.
But tell the cops they can't touch this.
I don't trust this, when they try to rush I bust this.
That's the sound of my tune. You say it ain't cool, but mama didn't raise no fool.
And as long as I stay black, I gotta stay strapped & I never get to lay back.
'Cause I always got to worry 'bout the pay backs.
Some buck that I roughed up way back... comin' back after all these years.
Rat-a-tat-tat-tat-tat. That's the way it is. Uhh

The Vatican's MySpace Playlist - Music From The Vatican

Link to: The Vatican's MySpace Playlist - waytagoB16!

Tupac and Muse will definitely give Benedict plenty of street cred! And Shirley Bassey - her of 'the minute you walked in the door'!! what can I say...

the only thing though is that there's no button against the Alma Mater tracks for playing on the MySpace page:(

Outside of reaching the masses with his *Latin* B16 is also being consistent with the catholic message - no matter how bad your life - even prison record - your heart can turn before you die - the Tupac lyrics are very precious to millions of young people!


CNN 4th December 2009

Music from late rapper Tupac Shakur has been included as part of the Vatican's official MySpace Music playlist.

The seat of the Catholic Church released a list of 12 songs onto the social networking Web site's streaming music service this week when the site launched in the United Kingdom.

Among selections from Mozart, Muse and Dame Shirley Bassey is the slain rapper's song "Changes," which was released two years after his shooting death on a greatest hits album in 1998.

"The genres are very different from each other, but all these artists share the aim to reach the heart of good minded people," the Vatican wrote on its official MySpace Music page.

As of Thursday night, "Changes" had been played more than 4.6 million times on the Web site.

The list was compiled by Father Giulio Neroni, artistic director of church publisher St Paul's Multimedia. He was also responsible for compiling the Vatican's recent Alma Mater album, which combined Gregorian chants and prayers with classical music and the voice of Pope Benedict XVI speaking in five languages.

Shakur, who spent time in prison for sexual assault, was gunned down in a drive-by shooting in Nevada in 1996.

The lyrics of "Changes" describe Shakur's desire to change a grim life of drugs, crime and violence on the streets.

Lyrics of the song, which is labeled as "explicit," include 'Is life worth living, should I blast myself?" "Give the crack to the kids, who the hell cares, one less hungry mouth on the welfare," and "My stomach hurts, so I'm looking for a purse to snatch."

At another point, Tupac sings: "Cause both black and white are smokin' crack tonight."

In contrast, the playlist also contains selections from the album "Music of the Vatican" such as "Advocata Nostra" and "Causa Nostrae Laetitiae."

Other contemporary tracks on the mix include Muse's "Uprising" from their new album "The Resistance" and "He Doesn't Know Why" by the folk group Fleet Foxes.

Daily Mail 3rd December 2009:
Pontiff's playlist: Is Pope Benedict XVI a secret rap lover?

If his playlist is any indication, the Pope has the most catholic of musical tastes.

A selection posted on the Myspace website in the name of the Vatican features tracks from artists ranging from Shirley Bassey to rapper Tupac Shakur.

The list is one of several offered in a new music service from Myspace in which celebrities are asked to name their favourite songs...

The 12-strong Vatican list was put together by Father Giulio Neroni, artistic director of St Paul's Multimedia, a church publisher.

He was the man behind the recent Alma Mater album, which combined Gregorian chants and prayers with classical music and the voice of Pope Benedict speaking in five languages.

Another song on the list is a Shirley Bassey track, After The Rain, taken from her recent album.

British band Muse and U.S. folk group Fleet Foxes also feature in the Vatican selection.

The Times
November 27, 2009

Take one singing Pope, add a dash of Gregorian chant and the producers of Take That
Alma Mater, an album of sacred liturgical music from the Vatican, including prayers sung by Pope Benedict XVI, is launched...

Who's up for an early morning of prayer in solidarity with the Americas - it could be INTERnational?

Info / background / programme of prayers

It would mean praying for a four-hour span anytime between 2am and 9am GMT Wednesday, 9th December 2009. This would mean the unity-hour of 5-6am GMT would have people across time zones to the West coast of America joining in prayer for the 20th anniversary of the PrayerForLife initiative.

Message for Jackie

CMO10Militant has sent out a plea:

Anyone want to know how Jackie's feeling?

Jackie I tried to respond but had difficulty so please take some comfort from Julian of Norwich:

'And all shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well in the end'

'He did not say: You will not be assailed, you will not be belabored, you will not be disquieted, but he did said: You will not be overcome.'


picture credit

May God always keep you in the palm of his hand

Pope Benedict and the masses

Who is really supporting Pope Benedict to bring back Latin to the masses?

Is it the trads who like to talk shop but when it comes to it look down on the Holy Father's latest effort to bring beauty and music as well as Latin to the masses in the form of a CD which includes his voice? Not if you read their condescending blogs over the last couple of weeks.

It's obviously not the English hierarchy, who have let the 'experts' organise a concert for the Vatican Choir (for the first time in the UK) to sing along with non-catholics in praise of Alma Mater, to several empty seats.

If either of these were taking on board what Pope Benedict had to say last week to artists, they would see and understand the timeliness of this CD.

The Pope urged artists to "enter into dialogue with believers". He said that faith "takes nothing from your genius or your art. On the contrary, it exalts them and nourishes them".

Catholic Herald link


A couple of weeks ago through CMO10Militant I discovered we could apply to win tickets for the Alma Mater debut at Westminster Cathedral

It was obviously all geared to make it available only to those 'in the know'.

Classic FM say:

Thanks to Geffen Records, Classic FM is offering 20 pairs of lucky listeners the chance to attend this historic concert at Westminster Cathedral on Wednesday the 2nd of December.

This special evening will feature the very first live UK performance of music from ‘Music From The Vatican – Alma Mater’, the album featuring the voice of Pope Benedict XVI (released on Sunday 29th November).

This special one-off concert is presented by Geffen UK and Multimedia San Paolo and features performances by The Chamber Choir of the Philharmonic Academy of Rome (aka ‘The Vatican Choir ’); it is the first time this historic choir has performed in the UK.

The Chamber Choir of the Philharmonic Academy of Rome, conducted by Monsignor Pablo Colino , Emeritus Chapel Master for St Peter’s Basilica, will perform Gregorian music from the album ‘Music From The Vatican – Alma Mater’ . The choir (from ancient origins) dates back to before the 12th Century and this is a rare opportunity for British audiences to see and hear the leading exponents of Gregorian music alongside the world-renowned Royal Philharmonic Orchestra , together they will perform music from their inspirational work on the ‘Alma Mater’ album.

For your chance to win a pair of tickets to this money-can't-buy event, simply answer the question...

It wasn't because people are feeling the pinch that those seats were empty last night. It wasn't because people aren't interested in hearing beautiful, live music.

Who would want to miss out on the chance to see and hear a:

choir (from ancient origins) dates back to before the 12th Century and this is a rare opportunity for British audiences to see and hear the leading exponents of Gregorian music alongside the world-renowned Royal Philharmonic Orchestra

?

Who would arrange things so that there was not anything like a 'full house' for such an historic money-can't-buy event, when normally Westminster Cathedral is packed?

Who would put lovers of Gregorian Chant sung in Latin off such an event?

For all those who claim to support Benedict XVI, a reminder:

If our Pope is urging artists (of any faith and none) to enter into a dialogue with believers - what does that expect of us believers?

Bringing a little sunshine into Patrick Street on a November Saturday

Good old Cork - Pana on Saturday, 14th November 2009!

International laws being broken - what do we care?

YouTube link



As a result of pressure up and down the country including from local PSC groups such as on this clip from Sheffield last Saturday:

The Coop and M&S have stopped selling settlement goods from Israel

Sainsbury’s and Tesco’s customer services are at least reviewing their practices

To date, Waitrose / John Lewis - the only major UK supermarket not prepared to discuss their sale of goods grown on illegally settled land in Palestine

If you care, call Waitrose Customer Services on 0800 188 884
or write to Alastair McKay, Deputy Chairman and Director of Corporate Responsibility
e-mail: CSR@johnlewis.co.uk for Waitrose and John Lewis

Benedict is our Pope - listen to him!

Benedict XVI received in audience the new ambassador from Iran to the Holy See, Ali Akbar Naseri. "Iran is a great nation that has eminent spiritual traditions and its people have a profound religious sensibility," the Pontiff said, and he underlined the "urgent need" to establish harmonious relations between believers of different religions. This, he said, will serve to "build a more human world, more conformed to the plan of God on creation."
To this end, the Pontiff praised the meetings held jointed by the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue and the Organization for Islamic Culture and Relations: "Contributing to seeking together what is just and correct, those meetings allow all to progress in reciprocal knowledge and to cooperate in the reflection of great questions that affect the life of humanity." VATICAN CITY, OCT. 29, 2009

link: the Holy Father's week

A prayer for the Holy Father
Christ Jesus, King and Lord of the Church, in your presence I renew my unconditional loyalty to your Vicar on earth, the Pope. In him you have chosen to show us the safe and sure path that we must follow in the midst of confusion, uneasiness, and unrest. I firmly believe that through him you govern, teach, and sanctify us; with him as our shepherd, we form the true Church: one, holy, catholic, and apostolic. Grant me the grace to love, live, and spread faithfully our Holy Father’s teachings. Watch over his life, enlighten his mind, strengthen his spirit, defend him from calumny and evil. Calm the erosive winds of infidelity and disobedience. Hear our prayer and keep your Church united around him, firm in its belief and action, that it may truly be the instrument of your redemption. Amen.

Bishops of England and Wales - take note!

When are you going to follow the example of Pope Benedict XVI and start
SPEAKING The Truth?

No we don't need you to start recording music - JUST SPEAKING THE TRUTH ON FAITH AND

M O R A L S

and stop letting the CES and such quangos be the mouthpiece to the media.

The crap being dished up to our kids under our very noses and we still can't smell the coffee

James Preece at Catholic and Loving It is highlighting once again how those who are supposed to be The Catholic Voice in England and Wales are once again either mute or acting like mindless puppets of the secularist government - he reminded me of my recent experiences as I commented on his blog:

Yesterday I had to teach fertilisation and conception in all living organisms, including humans, on a cover lesson in science to a year 7 class (in a state school). The sheet for labelling parts was filled in towards the end of the lesson. The textbook was factual and the children responded to it sensibly. I didn't feel I was wrong by following instructions from the head of science who presented it to me at the beginning of the lesson.

What I did see as wrong was when I had to cover repeat GCSE English a few weeks ago to 6th formers (aged 16+) who were wearing pink underpants (just given to them in school time) and dangling luminous plastic green sperm keyrings, laughing their way through the lesson about chlamydia and its causes, but couldn't string a decent sentence together to describe how an advertisement in front of them was structured to manipulate the reader.

Hopefully, they took on board some of what I said about a system that exposes them to a lifestyle they should know nothing about but has failed to instill into them basic skills in their own language. I also told them quite categorically that abortion was wrong. One of them wanted to know if I was a christian. As they say, it's important to keep up the dialogue with young people - they do actually recognise the difference between genuineness and the crap that gets dished up all around them.

How much are we funding the NHS with our tax money so the NHS can sell sex to our kids and HIDE IT from us – the top left button says it all here!!




The postal kit link doesn’t work (they realise the postal strike would only highlight their stinking practices...), but hey it's sexy anyway so just in case you think you're not living, have a look at where it's at for all our kids








And if you need an abortion just go to
GET IT ON.NHS.UK/unplanned-pregnancy


I must go out now and buy the Times to see what my Union leader is arguing with James!

Noam Chomsky and The Pope

"The Catholic Bishops Conference in the United States comes out with statements that are so progressive that the press won't report them. The Pope's new year messages are often not reported because they would be considered so far 'to the left' (whatever that means in the US spectrum)."

link


the link to this radio broadcast of 25th October 2009 no longer works

the Belfast lecture is not yet available

but one of his lectures in London 29th October 2009 is here

Chomsky: Palestine and the region in the Obama era: the emerging framework. from ICU Political Philosophy Society on Vimeo.