The Anchoress

Thank heavens for Peggy Noonan who so often manages, so elegantly, to articulate the meandering germs running through my brain but remaining unexpressed due to my lack of skill.

In appreciating William F. Buckley today she writes:

…When Jackie Onassis died, a friend of mine who knew her called me and said, with such woe, “Oh, we are losing her kind.” He meant the elegant, the cultivated, the refined. I thought of this with Bill’s passing, that we are losing his kind–people who were deeply, broadly educated in great universities when they taught deeply and broadly, who held deep views of life and the world and art and all the things that make life more delicious and more meaningful. We have work to do as a culture in bringing up future generations that are so well rounded, so full and so inspiring.

That’s precisely what I thought upon hearing of Buckley’s death. I wasn’t thinking of the political, but of the patrician. I too thought of Jackie Onassis and her elegance, because Buckley was all elegance, himself - in his writing, his bearing, his self-assurance and quickness. You might call it “old money” elegance, except that plenty of people from “old money” are crass and trashy, completely at-home with all that is vulgar in a very vulgar age.

The quality of elegance I’m talking about though, really has little to do with money. I might have argued, once, that it had to do with education, and perhaps - once - that was true. The people coming out of the great universities - back when they really were great institutions dedicated to the quest for understanding - would leave Yale or Oxford or the Sorbonne having been imbued with such a broadness of mind and scope of knowledge that he or she would be capable of drawing upon their exposure to art, great literature, philosophy and higher mathematics to hold forth on almost any subject, discussing even - as Ms. Noonan writes Buckley did - the subject of peanut butter, with intelligence, humor and humility.

I say humility, because that sort of education cannot help but enlighten a student as to how privileged he has been to receive it. The truly privileged, when educated rightly, understand that their good fortune in having been exposed to higher things obliges them not to insularity, but to openness. A William F. Buckley or a Jackie Kennedy may not often rub elbows with the hoi polloi, but when they did they used their best manners, because to do less would be disrespectful to the other, and demeaning to everything they had been taught by the great ones who came before. They had no difficulty engaging others outside their spheres because their security within themselves - part of which comes from that humility that recognizes the random vagaries of privilege - allowed that generosity of spirit.

But I don’t think education completely explains this quality which we see disappearing with the deaths of these sorts. Americans are - in terms of numbers, if not in real study - better educated now, than at anytime in our history, but we no longer see the graduates of Yale and Harvard emerging with thoughtful humility, having nourished on the fields of past greatness. Much of that is due to the politically correct curriculum which substitutes weak identity appreciation over strong reason, but part of it is due to our ever-fading sense of wonder and awe at anything but ourselves.

Chris Matthews, recalling that he started out as a Bill Buckley Conservative and said poignantly of Buckley:

He wrote once of a young man who stood alone in an empty church, juggling balls in the air: it was something he could do–throw balls into the air and catch them without dropping, in a swirly feat of personal mastery. As I said, it’s something he could do. It was the one thing he could offer up to God when they were, as best as he could arrange it, alone together. And all the books and columns he wrote, and all the editions of National Review he published, our great William F. Buckley, Jr. was offering up his prayer. This is what he could do.

It takes humility to juggle before God because it’s all you can do, and also takes self-knowledge and self-confidence. It also requires the security of knowing, with absolute certainty, that you were loved into being and for a purpose, which - no matter how privileged your birth or education - makes you just like everyone else.

William F. Buckley and Jackie Onassis seemed to know that, and it made them graceful and great.

It has been told that often when Buckley had a big dinner party, he’d invite a leading liberal to be a guest of honor; Buckley believed in giving attention to those with whom he disagreed. He believed he could learn from them.

Last night I posted a clip from the old Johnny Carson show. It begins with him appreciatively laughing with the post-1960 election Richard Nixon, then allowing his guests to shine in hijinks, and finally with him talking to a woman with a hen. I’ve been watching a lot of Carson lately, and marveling at him. Unlike Buckley, he was not from old money and he did not go to Yale; he was a Nebraskan boy with a quick wit and a curious mind who supplemented his U of N degree by educating himself throughout his life, reading great books and political tomes and studying astronomy, and - like Buckley -he was capable of fully engaging with his guests whether they were political thinkers, opera singers, poets, entertainers or American eccentrics. One had the sense that he knew what he knew, and was glad to discover what they knew, too, to add to his store, to enrich his own understanding. That’s the same gracefulness.

Buckley and Carson were two sides of an American coin forged when society was busily broadening its intellect and admitting all comers, when there was a sense of relishing the battle while respecting the foe, and of looking out for the little guy who might get caught between the thrusts and parries. We’re losing it. As the nation becomes more “privileged” in the superficials she is echoing empty at her depths.

The paradox of privilege is that it is meaningless when it only serves the self, when it thinks it has nothing to learn from anyone else. Buckley, I think, understood that; now he is gone. Who is left to teach it?

Obi’s Sister has a nice round-up.

Michelle Malkin’s round-up - unsurprisingly - is comprehensive

Brighter, funnier and somehow more authentic, too

My friend Deacon Greg, who has been feeling a little heartsore lately on the death of a deacon pal, has two uppers over at his site today.

The first is an introduction to Fr. Scott Seethaler, ofm Cap (that would be “Order of Franciscans, Minor” or, Capuchin Friar to the uninitiated) - a preacher full of hope and genuine joy in Christ.

Having heard Fr. Scott preach I can attest to his verve and energy and to the very Franciscan joyfulness that he exudes in his faith. I was happy to read Deacon Greg’s piece, and to find Fr. Scott’s website. He has a radio show, too. I wish more Catholic priests had his knack for preaching, but we all have our different gifts…lately my parish has been pushing these preaching CD’s from Catholic priests and lay preachers and they’re not bad, btw. They seem to be inspiring our own priests in the pulpit - praise God!

If you’re not interested in Catholic preachifyin’ then go over to Greg’s place anyway, and make the acquaintance of Maya and her dead fish, Lucky as she pronounces the solemnities before flushing him away. Adorable kid, and the bagpipes are great, too! You’ll smile. If you need to smile, you’ll smile!

(click here to view)

Joel Pett Lexington Herald-Leader Feb 20, 2008 EditorialCartoonists.com

The best read of the day may well be this Time Magazine piece by Bob Geldof, a report of Geldof’s time with President Bush during his recent, and mostly ignored, tour of Africa.

To start with, the reader gets a taste of just how powerfully America has been acting for good in the matter of AIDS in Africa. The numbers are just astonishing.

It was, for example, Bush who initiated the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) with cross-party support led by Senators John Kerry and Bill Frist. In 2003, only 50,000 Africans were on HIV antiretroviral drugs — and they had to pay for their own medicine. Today, 1.3 million are receiving medicines free of charge.
[…]
So why doesn’t America know about this? “I tried to tell them. But the press weren’t much interested,” says Bush. It’s half true. There are always a couple of lines in the State of the Union, but not enough so that anyone noticed, and the press really isn’t interested. For them, like America itself, Africa is a continent of which little is known save the odd horror.

There is some truth to that, but I suspect that the press would be more interested in all of this if only the president had a D after his name, too.

Read the whole article - it is quite enlightening. I was particularly interested in reading the president’s thoughts on the innovative idea of training African nations in conflict resolution:

People in Africa are worried about this new, seemingly military command. I thought it was an inappropriate and knee-jerk U.S. militaristic response to clumsy Chinese mercantilism that could only end in tears for everyone concerned. (And so did many Africans, if the local press was anything to go by.)

“That’s ridiculous,” says Bush. “We’re still working on it. We’re trying to build a humanitarian mission that would train up soldiers for peace and security so that African nations are more capable of dealing with Africa’s conflicts. You agree with that dontcha?” Indeed I do….Trouble is, it sounds to me a lot like what the U.S. did in the early Vietnam years with the advisers who became something else. Mission creep, I think it’s called.

“No, that won’t happen,” Bush insists. “We’re still working on what exactly it’ll be, but it will be a humanitarian mission, training in peace and security, conflict resolution … It’s a new concept and we want to get it right.” He muses for a while on the U.S. and China, and their policies on Africa — Africans are increasingly resentful that the Chinese bring their own labor force and supplies with them. Then, in what I took to be a reference to the supposed Chinese influence over the cynical Khartoum regime, Bush adds, “One thing I will say: Human suffering should preempt commercial interest.”

Geldof has a blind spot on Iraq and I think he should have just engaged the president on the question when he seemed to want to. But I also suspect that the press is so heavily invested in the Iraq narrative they’ve built that had Geldof engaged, TIME would not have printed it anyway.

But I do like that he gives the president serious credit not just for his humanitarian aid to Africa, but for his smarts in general. The press narrative since 1999, has been that Bush is “incurious and slow.” Geldof writes precisely the opposite, noting after a discussion of Africa and trade tariffs, “he’s curious and quick.”

And while in not engaging the president on Iraq is a bit unfair because does not allow rebuttal to Geldof’s own meme’d musings, the Irish rocker does allow Bush to make his case as to the steadiness of his interest in Africa, going back to his debates with Gore.

I suggest that his commitment to Africa has been revolutionary in its interest curve. “That’s not true,” he says. “In my second debate with Al Gore, I came out for debt cancellation and AIDS relief. I called AIDS a genocide. I felt and still do that it was unacceptable to stand by and let a generation be eradicated.”

All in all, yes, this is a very good piece for Bush. And for Geldof, who shows himself to be a passionate and smart fellow who is able to look beyond his ingrained ideologies to give props where due.

I thought his “who will read it to you, Mr. President” remark was so disrespectful - both to Bush and to his office - as to warrant a good smack upside the head, but I credit Geldof with including that passage as a means to juxtapose his own increased respect for Bush by article’s end.

Slightly O/T: Geldof notes in his piece that the rest of the world, while happy to bloviate on issues, rarely takes constructive action on urgent issues, and he writes:

At our hotel in Ghana, the porter carrying my bag said they had thrown out all the other guests because “the President of the World was coming.”

I think perhaps the Ghanese porter was correct. Bush is “the President of the World.” For all his mistakes and weaknesses, I don’t see anyone on the political horizon - here or abroad - who really is ready to step into his shoes internationally. I am seriously hopeful about Bobby Jindal down the road, though.

Welcome Hot Air readers - thanks, Ed Morrissey for the link!. Writing here has been rather Lent-heavy, recently, but today we’re also talking about The Clintonian Conundrum, we’re remembering George Gobel, Dean Martin and Bob Hope on the the Tonight Showand we’re having a little cartoon fun, too!

Does she stay in the race and face a mortifying loss next Tuesday or does she get out with some dignity and credibility still intact?

As analysts declare that Hillary Clinton needs to win, and win soundly, in Texas and Ohio in order to remain even remotely viable in the race for the Democrat nomination, Drudge is promising a “developing” story claiming Barack Obama has garnered a four percent lead over Hillary in Texas.

A drubbing next Tuesday would be the supreme mortification. To go from presumed-and-inevitable to castaway in a matter of months may forever weaken the Clinton brand, both here and abroad. It could impact both the Clinton’s powerbase and profits.

Hillary could back out of the race this weekend - “suspend” it - and take her chances that between now and the Democrat convention some of Obama’s sparkle will have faded with the public, some backlash to his charm will begin. She knows the nature of the game of politics: one flub, one bad photo, one unguarded moment and the rise and rise of Obama can come a swift descent. Pulling out now, saving her strength and garnering new resources while leaving Obama to take some licks from the experienced and hungry John McCain could be a good strategy. By convention time, the Democrats - currently as sick of the Clintons as the rest of us - might actually be happy to see her re-emerge, refreshed and “ready.”

And ducking out now would buy Hillary some time. The inquiries about her husband’s business ventures, the requests for her White House papers and - perhaps most importantly - the clamor to see her tax returns, will die down, giving Mr & Mrs Clinton and their staffs some time to study these documents and develop appropriate spin for each, should they ever be released to public and press scrutiny.

There could be many advantages to a “suspension” of the Clinton campaign, and no doubt those advantages are being discussed today, and being measured against the risk - the one overwhelming risk - that between tomorrow and this summer the nation will discover that it does not miss Mr. & Mrs. Clinton in the slightest, that it is content to keep him in his borrowed private jets and her in the senate, where wonks and scoundrels may safely graze, and their spouses skip serious scrutiny.

That will surely be a disappointment to Hillary’s personal ambitions, but it might - in the end - be a bit of a relief, after all. And besides…they’ll always have Yucaipa.

When Jesus went into the region of Caesarea Philippi he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”
They replied, “Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”
He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”
Simon Peter said in reply, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”
Jesus said to him in reply, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father.
And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.
I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” - Matthew 16:13-19

Continuing my slow read through Matthew this Lent, I was struck to realize that imperfect, imprudent Peter was the first to confess Jesus as Messiah to his face. That would be in keeping with Peter, who was emotional, responsive and quick to jump headlong into things, both for better and for worse.

I’m also struck by Jesus saying “upon this Rock I will build my church and he gates of (’the netherworld’) hell will not prevail against it.”

In that one statement are two very interesting ideas we tend to glide over. The first is the understanding that the “netherworld” - the supernatural realm - is to be engaged, and so we may infer that the church Jesus is forming is to be a church that is highly charged with the supernatural, itself. This will be no earthbound entity. Rather, this church, what Jesus called “my church” is to imbued with a supernatural holiness - Jesus’ own - the only sort of holiness that can withstand the assaults of “the netherworld.”

“You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail over it.” I know there is some argument in apologetics circles (we do not do apologetics here, so don’t even bother engaging me in it) over whether Jesus was calling Peter a “rock” or a “pebble” and whether he was calling Peter or Himself the Foundation. To me getting hung up on that point tends to overlook the greater point, which is that Jesus did not say this line to Andrew or James or John. He said it to Peter, the First Bishop of Rome. Since nothing in scripture is there by accident, we make take that to be significant.

But what is most particularly interesting to me is the last part of Jesus’ proclamation: “the gates of hell shall not prevail against,” implying nothing less than a constant battle. Note, he did not say, “the gates of hell will never get near it…” instead what we may infer is that there will always be the constant clang and push of evil working in opposition, trying to prevail, and not succeeding, and we see that in the history of the church even up to its present times and the shameful scandals which have come to light in the last decade.

Where there is holiness, evil always exists on the periphery or nearby. Jesus in the desert, tempted by Satan who stood right alongside him. Jesus on the cross, thieves on either side. Where there is great light, darkness is nearby - darkness, in fact, emphasizes the light. Peter, whom Jesus constantly favors among the twelve, (even to paying Peter’s temple taxes) contradicting the Lord when he says he will suffer - and testing the Lord on the waters - is a study in the whole premise of the co-existence of dark and light. He embodies it when he sits outside the preatorium, worrying for Jesus one minute and then denying him the next.

The church of Rome is as faulty and imperfect as its first bishop. The human element will always deliver disappointment and yes, darkness. But in this daily tug-of-war, the constant attempt on one side to push through and overtake, and the constant defense (and counterpush) by the other side, we already know the outcome. The gates of hell shall not prevail.

I wrote earlier that the church would be no “earthbound entity” but that was not completely right. She is earthbounded by man, by the imperfect humanity which must necessarily run the thing in order to bring the truth and reality and Person of Christ to all of us. We would like the church to be perfect, but it never can be because the church, in the end, is us.

If we look at ourselves as microcosms of dark and light - little versions of this big battle - we see it within ourselves. Where there is holiness, evil is always right there, on the periphery, pushing, and too often prevailing. But conversely, if we are decrying our own hearts- of-darkness and the ways that glamorous evil has enticed us, it is urgently necessary to remember that it goes both ways, that the light - and holiness - are also right there, on the periphery, being offered. We need only grab hold of the Rock of Faith and then let ourselves be formed and trained with the weapons of holiness - prayer, contemplation, humility and openness - that the gates of hell may not prevail.

Big church (institution), little church (each of us) the struggle is the same.

Responding to this piece not once, but twice, Siggy demonstrates that he has been drinking the deep waters and he writes:

A House of Worship does not exist for God. A House of Worship exists to facilitate our potential. In the effort to regain Holiness after the ‘darkness’ of our mundane existence, a House of Worship offers us a place to remind us of God’s words and to reconnect with His commandments that serve as guideposts on the path that will elevate us.

Deacon Greg has thoughts on what creates ex-Catholics, following up on this report. And too, Amy Welborn has some thoughtful analysis.

How is your Lenten training going? Fortunately, another powerhouse of prayer will be created, soon. More light.

Rod Dreher has a really nice appreciation of William F. Buckley.

Brian at Inside Catholic has uncovered a Bill Buckley clip I’ve never seen before - Buckley going at it with Gore Vidal (Al Gore’s cousin) over Vietnam during the ‘68 Democrat convention. Great stuff - go watch! (But come back when you’re done!)

I can understand why someone might get lost over there at Inside Catholic; they’ve got a lot of good discussions going on, including talk about Idgit voters, this Michael Gerson column on the transitioning of Evangelical stereotypes, and on this rebuttal by Sr. Mary Ann Walsh to a nasty bit of Anti-Catholicism, Tim Russert’s treatment of Hillary in last night’s debate, the slow erosion of our rights, why Catholics leave the church and more. I almost hate sending you over there for fear you won’t come back!

Speaking of leaving, my dear blogfather, Ed Morrissey is tearing down sail and leaving Captains Quarters Blog to work with Michelle Malkin, over at Hot Air, which is a very smart site. I think it’s a good move for both of them, but I will miss my daily stops over at CQ. Hot Air runs at a very fast pace, so I hope I don’t find myself “missing” any of Ed’s posts - (he is so prolific one could barely keep up before!). FAQ’s about his move are here and he’s already started posting at Michelle’s establishment!

Is England Lost? It’s starting to worrisomely like England is very nearly reaching a tipping point.

Ann Althouse has a really excellent analysis of key moments in last night’s debate.

My Li’l Bro Thom asked me if I thought Hillary was “done.” I say never count her out. Obama has not been looked at closely and sooner or later he’s going to screw something up. If she hangs on to her delegates and sees any sign of weakness or backlash against him she can still take it to a floor fight at the convention. I say never say never.

Rocket was never my favorite guy, but does congress really have nothing better to do?

This is the problem with writing while emotional: when I write angry I invariably say things I regret and end up having to own it - but when I write contrite and humbled, I get people worried.

After writing this I got an flurry of emails wondering if I was okay, especially since I haven’t written much since then.

I fine. I thank you for the wondering (and the prayers - that I always need and will greedily take) and I’m okay. Really, that post was kind of a continuation of this one, since this Lent seems to have stuck me somewhere between the Incarnation and Original Sin. You find me sitting here typing away with synapses fried - it’s a wonder I ever make sense to anyone.

You’d be amazed if I told you how often I have no idea what I’m writing. So much of it is simply “where I am of a moment” that I’ll write something and two days later barely recollect it. I’ve had people quote myself back to me and I’ve thought…”wow…that’s not bad, who said that?” Sometimes I’ll be looking thru the sitemeter and see someone reading something and go read it for myself, because I’ve totally spaced writing it to begin with.

You might call me detached. Both in good and bad ways.

In any case, if you are are wondering if I am in a depressed mood, please know I’m really not. It’s just that in prayer we learn things we don’t always like and when we encounter ourselves laid bare, it’s rarely pretty. That day I felt like my prayer was bringing me to the cusp of gleaning something that was bigger than my own brain could comprehend. I’m still working on it. But I’m not depressed. I’m just trying to figure out how to be what God calls me to be, and do the work I’m supposed to do, and also put some money in the rent jar and manage to get my worn out kitchen floor clean all at the same time.

It turns out I can’t multitask, anymore. Maybe that ability leaves when the children leave; suddenly it all seems like such a challenge to do a few things at a time!

But really - I’m okay - a bit confused and heartsore, but that’s not really a bad way to be.

From the crucible, Requiescat in pacem

My son Buster sang this piece, Omnia Sol (Let Your Heart Be Staid), by Z. Randall Stroope, with the All State Mixed Choir a few years ago.

Somewhere far from nowhere, I grew both strong and tall…
Longing to become, but knowing not the path at all!
But the footprints of the winter melted to fields of spring;
One last embrace before I cross the threshold: To life we sing!

(Unfortunately, I can’t make an mp3 of that excellent recording, but this video is not too bad, and the words and melody are lovely.)

O stay your soul and leave my heart its song!
O stay your hand; the journey may be long!
And when we part, and sorrow can’t be sway’d….
Remember when, and let your heart be staid.

Omnia sol temperat,
Absens in remota.
Ama me fideliter,
Fidem mean noto.

Weave the dance and raise the chorus; grieve no more…
Through the strength of Orion, find refuge from the shore!
Let courage be your oar, let passion be your sail;
Wisdom and truth will guide your deep heart’s yearning, though all travail!

O stay your soul and leave my heart its song!
O stay your hand; the journey may be long!
And when we part, and sorrow can’t be sway’d…
Remember when, and let your heart be staid.

Omnia sol temperat,
Absens in remota.
Ama me fideliter,
Fidem mean noto.

Omnia sol temperat, (Ah ah ah ah ah ma)
And when we part, and sorrow can’t be sway’d…
Remember when…
Remember when…
And let your heart be staid… Be staid.

Translation from The Latin:
The sun warms everything,
even while I am far away.
Love me faithfully,
and know that I am faithful.

Deacon Greg has more.

While searching through youtube for the Johnny Cash video “Hurt,” which I used in yesterday’s post, I came across another song by the Man in Black, paired very well with scenes from the moody (and great) anime series, Cowboy Bebop. I was surprised and impressed.

God’s Gonna Cut You Down

Spike - one of the great tragic and sympathetic tough guys.

I sent the video to my sons, and Elder Son responded by sending along another Cowboy Bebop AMV, this one, really oustanding:

Woolongs for Nuthin’

For those unfamiliar with Cowboy Bebop, well…you really have to see it. Watching it often feels like peering into the psyche (and inspiration) of Quentin Tarantino. Like this:

From Cowboy Bebop, “Battle of Fallen Angels,” the song is “Green Bird”