Boys in the kitchen

     The Milton Conquest Boys' Club recently concluded its second cooking class under the auspices of the Kids Culinary Community at The Loft at the Milton Longo's store.
     Under the adept guidance of Chef Mike and his team, the boys learned how to prepare nutritious, exciting food, present a creative meal, and clean up afterwards. And all this was accomplished with order, discipline and professionalism. In addition, the boys learned how to share, co-operate and give thanks for the food which they had magically transformed from bowls of ingredients into delicious meals.
     With society's emphasis on the disconnect, a class like this offers the boys a chance to spend three hours focusing on something as basic, and necessary as tasty, healthy food. The only technology involved was the microwave oven, and the bright led lights over the large mirror which reflected all the action taking place over the stove. There were no gadgets in sight.
     This was as simple and effective as it gets, with constant attention from a chef who is obviously dedicated to teaching young people the value of cooking. Boys need to get their hands off the video games and into the dough and onto the cutting board, and that is exactly what they did for nine hours total, over three weekend mornings.
     The kitchen became a place of serious work, yet enjoyable activity which produced delicious and attractive dishes. The result was beaming smiles, and the pride which comes from a job well done.
I am certain that these young boys will reap the benefits of these cooking sessions for years to come, and well into their adult lives, and that their future wives will be thanking the Kids Culinary Community and Conquest over and over again.
     Each session ended with a meal, and Marvin Duarte, the Conquest Club Director would say Grace as all the boys bowed their heads, and prayed in silence, and thanksgiving for the wonderful food and the opportunity to cook it under such talented direction.
    At the final cooking class, Julia Hanna, Director of the Kids Culinary Community, along with Chef Mike, handed out gift bags and diplomas, and the boys served a delicious meal with a Mexican flavour, to their parents and friends. Julia spoke of the importance of healthy eating, and the art of cooking, and thanked everyone present.
     I could not help but be impressed with the pride, dedication, hard work and commitment of the Kids Culinary Community, and the generosity of Longo's for providing the food and the Loft for our use.
     But in the end, the lasting impression I will treasure is the radiant expressions on the boys' faces as they got to serve the food they had prepared, and cooked to the people they love so dearly.  Conquest Boys Club is dedicated to teaching virtues to the boys, and the virtues which stood out for me were generosity and sharing and loving care.
     Healthy food, virtues, friends and loved ones...now that is a lot to give thanks for.

Two tragedies...One covered, One hidden

 
     The Newtown tragedy was covered by the press as it should have been. This horrible tragedy was examined on television, radio, the internet, and most obviously by the newspapers. No stone was left unturned.
     President Obama used its impact to try to sell his gun control legislation. He spoke of the children and how society owed it to them to protect them and make certain they would not be hurt again. He spoke to the nation surrounded by children who seemed to be pleading with the public with their eyes.
     At about the same time, the trial of an abortion doctor began in the United States. The list of atrocities committed in his abortion facility are too gruesome to list here. But some people believe that up to three hundred babies may have been murdered by this doctor and his assistants.
     These babies were post abortive in the sense that they had been delivered and then murdered. These are called late term abortions or partial birth abortions. As the details of the trail emerged, there was a vast silence in the media. Newspapers refused to cover it. Television was eerily silent. We heard nothing form the president or any of his cronies. The abortion industry ran for cover.
     What this tells me is that we live in a sick society. It is fine to poilticise and publicize tragedies which have been deemed politically acceptable to cover, but the deaths of so many babies in a scenario reminiscent of Hitler's ovens is untouchable.
     The hypocrisy is obvious. The sickness is evident. The killing goes on.

    

I am an anti abortionist

     Perhaps it is time to change the "Pro-Life" label to "Anti-Abortion." At least then we might have a chance at getting the abortion lobby to change its name to "Pro-Abortion." That would be a giant step in the right direction, and would separate the abortion movement from its phony euphemisms.
     Ever since the Supreme Court ruled in favour of a woman's right to choose, the abortion movement has veered away from even using the term "abortion" anywhere near its base. It's all about choice, and choice rings true with a lot of people these days. In fact. we live for choice. Instead of surviving, we spend most of our time choosing what we want from a universe of choices. Even shopping for supper has become a monumental chore.
     So choice is seen as good, and a right. Abortion, on the other hand, is not so pretty. In fact, young people are beginning to balk at the notion of snipping spinal cords and vacuuming fetuses. Even the notion of choice may not be as appealing as it used to be. And so the abortion industry is seeking a new title.
     There is only one which applies: "Pro-Abortion". Forget the misleading talk of rights. The notion of abortion precludes any talk of rights because it denies the fetuses' right to survival from the very beginning. So, delete the word "rights." It does not apply.
     Perhaps the debate will have more meaning if we separate the camps into Pro-Abortion and Anti-Abortion. Anything is worth a try.
     And this way, maybe, just maybe, we will know what we are really arguing about, and the feminists can forget their rhetoric about women's rights, and begin to focus on the killing fields, and their bloody survival.
     And we can all see abortion for what it really is: the cruel, immoral and selfish solution of a society which is obsessed with sex, and which refuses to face the natural consequences of its actions.
    
    

Pregnancy as a disease

A large shock went through society this week when it was confirmed that there was a chance that some birth control pills might be placebos. This was a major catastrophe, especially for the leftist press.

The headlines were striking. They seemed to be saying that an unwanted pregnancy was akin to a death in the family. How could people go on living if they did not know that the pill might not come across? This was a ticking time bomb.

As I read these reports, I was struck by the attitude which has developed since the first birth control pills were introduced way back in the sixties. We now have Hillary Clinton pushing for womens' health throughout the third world and probably the number one ailment on her list is pregnancy. Since when has pregnancy been classified as a disease? Where will this kind of thinking get us?

How would Blessed Pope John Paul II have reacted to this? What would Jesus have thought?

It seems to me that pregnancy is a gift from God, and as such should be treated with the utmost respect. Why have people become so fearful of this gift? What has changed in society to make us regard the miracle of birth as unwanted and the occasion for grief, hand-wringing and abortion?

If Hillary Clinton wants women to enjoy equality and freedom, she should advocate abstinence and forget about her war on birth. She should push for the natural methods of birth control which have nothing to do with polluting, harmful chemicals which debase the sexual act and lead to promiscuity, and broken marriages as well as a general distaste for the miracle of life.

People think they can control everything, including birth. The extension of this kind of thinking is sex selection and abortion of problematic fetuses.

Another extension of this type of thinking is the objectification of sexuality and the debasing of the sacrament of marriage. Hillary Clinton is not worried about this. She sees far into the future when an ideal population will be controlled chemically and surgically, especially in the third world.

This her solution.

This is our problem

Two Domes on the day of election

Two Domes

While I was working out at the gym, I noticed that the panel on CNN had the Capitol dome as their background, while another station had placed St. Peter's dome in Rome as its backdrop.

I couldn't help marveling at the vast difference between these two domes, not necessarily physically, but more so in the messages coming out out each venue.

Washington is now the major player in the culture of death, seemingly using abortion as its solution to all the world's problems. Obama and Clinton make no secret about their desire to push abortion on all the third world countries, while at home they continue to finance Planned Parenthood whose main function is to provide abortions.

The Vatican on the other hand is diametrically opposed to anything which does not support life from conception to death. It also refuses to acknowledge same sex marriage because it is unnatural and does not lead to progeny. Washington is now pushing same sex marriage so hard that President Obama is trying to influence individual states to change their laws even though this will contradict the Defense of Marriage Act. Obama has said that our notion of marriage is basically out of date and has to be changed.

The dome in Washington is supposed to represent freedom of religion, but Obama has introduced legislation to force Catholic employers to provide their employees with contraceptive drugs and abortion pills.

The dome of St. Peter's is supposed to represent a culture of life as realized through 200 years of tradition and scripture and the guidance of the Magisterium. And it does.

                                        Did Jesus ever laugh?

     I may be wrong, but I have yet to find a place in the Bible where Jesus is actually laughing. In fact, the only time I can recall Jesus actually smiling is when he is surrounded by little children, and this may well be artistic interpretation.
     We know that Jesus wept, and we know that he got very angry in the temple, and justifiably so. He was not angry at something the people had done to him, rather at something they were doing to His Father's house. But when it comes to Jesus laughing, I am at a loss.
     Perhaps he produced a smile of derision, as when he noted the hypocrisy of the Pharisees, but did he ever laugh along with the apostles over something some one of them may have done. It is very conceivable that Peter would have been the object of mirth because of his naivety, but did Jesus really laugh? When he did, it must have been a good laugh, a kind laugh, and a laugh which would injure nobody.
     One thing is for certain. He did not laugh a lot during his ministry. And this seems to fly in the face of contemporary society's fixation with stand-up comedy, and television sitcoms. Are they really that funny, or do they simply use other peoples' misfortunes and imperfections as a means of put downs and derision? Would Jesus laugh at people?
     If laughter must be so selective, then where are we to find it as good Christians. What we simply have to do is follow Jesus' lead. Never laugh at people. Use wit and humour by all means, but keep it clean and innocuous.
Do not hurt other people in order to 'feel good' about yourself, because the shoe may well be on the other foot sooner than you might think.
     Bishop Fulton J. Sheen used to make thousands of people laugh with the simplest and most wholesome stories, well told and well thought out. He was never nasty and always kind, but he was very, very funny.
     Contemporay talk show hosts would do well to watch some of his video tapes. But then, if they cut out all the satire and sarcasm and off colour jokes, they wouldn't have any material for their shows.
     If we follow Jesus, we laugh with good nature, kindness and appropriateness for all. We say things which would be appropriate in any circumstance or milieu. Without these elements, laughter has no place in a Christian life.

Rod McDonald
    
    

Cooking for God

The Milton Conquest Boys' Club has just completed its first ever cooking school, and from all reports, the culinary skills of the twelve boys involved have undergone a major transformation.

Under the guidance of Conquest leader Marvin Duarte, and a professional team from Longo's Stores Ltd., the boys attended three classes of three hours each, on consecutive Saturday mornings at the Milton Longo's Store. The aim of the Kids Culinary Community is to teach children the importance of food, in that it provides nourishment, strength, and a way to connect to one another.

Another thing a cooking class does for the Conquest boys is teach them the importance of a family meal, and the hard work and dedication which are the foundation of such family traditions. With the proliferation of gadgetry, young boys are spending way too much time staring at the electronic screen, and way too little time watching their parents cook. How are they to learn the basics if they are not even in the kitchen?

Chef Mike, Chef Kim and Chef Maria teamed up to provide top notch culinary guidance as the boys made home-made pasta from scratch, tasty meatballs and two kinds of pasta sauce, freshly cooked garlic bread and home-made brownies. And that was just one class. In addition to sitting down at the tables and enjoying the fruits of their labours after the class, the boys also got to take any leftovers home so that their parents and siblings could taste their fare.

On the last day, the boys were given an authentic diploma at the graduation ceremony, and the invited guests got to sit down to a delicious lunch which had been prepared and cooked by the boys that very morning.

One might ask, “What does a cooking class have to do with the Milton Boys' Club?”

The answer is, “Plenty.” First of all, the Conquest activities which involve eating always begin with the saying of Grace, and this ritual begins to have its effect over time. The boys are asked to settle down and listen to the words. They are asked to show appreciation for the food which they are about to enjoy, and most importantly, they take the time to thank God for his limitless generosity.

But at the cooking classes, this activity took on very special meaning for the boys because they were the ones who did the preparation and cooking for a change. What they were thanking God for was their own cooking, and so Grace seemed to take on a special importance for them.

The boys also got to see the hard work which goes into a clean-up after a great deal of food has been prepared. This too, gave the boys a deeper appreciation of what goes on in their own homes day after day, week after week and month after month. As if to illustrate this lesson, little Noah could be found kneeling under a table picking up individual crumbs after the kids had made an apple crumble.

In the movie, Babette's Feast, a professional chef cooks up a masterpiece for a group of elderly people who have never been served a fancy banquet. She puts her heart and soul into the meal, and she does all the work out of her love for this group of elderly residents. This indeed, is an example of cooking for God.

In many ways, what the Conquest boys did at the cooking classes was basically the same idea.. They cooked for each other, and for their guests on the final day. They had to concentrate on producing food which would be presentable and tasty, and of which they would be proud.

In effect, what they did was cook for God, because when we put love and generosity into our cooking, that is what we are doing. Perhaps the next time they can go one step further and donate some of their cooking to a soup kitchen.

Now that would really be cooking for God.

Rod McDonald