The New Pope, other things too like oranges and tortillas.

Dear Readers,

The new Pope seems like a great guy.  I think the Catholic Cardinals picked a great leader.  Pope Francis is humble, smart, compassionate, faithful, prayerful, and socially conservative.  It's nice that the Catholics have such a great man as their spiritual and administrative leader.  Now I hope that the Catholics can live up to the high ideals that their new leader embodies and preaches.  

I've had a change in opinion recently about the Catholic Church.  Now and then I listen to Catholic Radio on my commute to work.  It has some nice programs, and it's very socially conservative, which I enjoy.  They have call-in programs where people debate the existence of God, moral relativism, all the heavy-hitting subjects that I'm prone to ponder.  I think listening to the radio station has made me change my perception about the Catholic Church.  And I work with a weekly mass-attending Catholic, and she's a great lady.

When I used to think about the things associated with the Catholic Church, I thought of child-molesting priests, the Spanish Inquisition, censorship of the Bible during the Middle Ages, the modern day debauchery of Mardi Gras in New Orleans, The Great Apostasy by James E. Talmage, 1 Nephi chapter 14 in the Book of Mormon, and indulgences. 

But now I tend to focus on Mother Theresa, Maria from the Sound of Music, their strong family values, their sincere faith and devotion to Jesus Christ, their endless charity work, their sophisticated history of thought and discovery, the scientific method (which was started by Catholic priests) Gregor Mendel, Galileo, Catholic schools, and Catholic hospitals. Now I think the history of Catholicism is overwhelmingly positive. 

Of course, I'm Mormon, so I suppose I should be listening more to the Mormon radio channel.  Well, I would, but the problem is it doesn't get broadcasted to AM or FM stations, and that's all I get in my car.

But when I do listen to the Mormon Channel, I'm struck by what positive programming it is.  This morning, for example, was a great program about Eliza R. Snow and her songs.  I really like her songs, especially "Oh My Father" and "In Our Lovely Deseret" and "Truth Reflects Upon Our Senses."  What beautiful poetry Eliza R. Snow wrote.  Now and then I sing those songs to my daughter before she goes to bed.   

I only wish the Catholics I grew up around were more like the Catholics I hear on the radio.  The Catholics I grew up with didn't take their religion very seriously.  Generally speaking, they sinned too much, and they  were too worldly and too permissive.  But my childhood Catholic friends and acquaintances still had a better sense of right and wrong than the irreligious did.  And they came from relatively stable homes.  They came from families with a mother and a father.    

Well, things are pretty peaceful in my suburban bubble.  Yesterday on my way to Wal-Mart I stopped by a roadside stand where a family was selling oranges and tortillas from the back of a pickup truck.  I ate one of the oranges as I wrote this blog post.  And the tortillas are really good.  I've eaten four or five burritos in the past 24 hours.

I hope you are doing well and I'll see you later.

Sincerely,
Telemoonfa