And in brief tribute to that other madness of March...

...a very blessed Saint Patrick's Day to one and All ~ and a reasonably ;> Enjoyable one as well.

:}

Comments

[4-7]

St. Patrick's day was Saturday. thx k bai.

[Brendan Loy]

First of all, 4-7, I believe the correct lolcat/l33tspeak expression is k thx bai, not thx k bai. :)

Secondly, what are you talking about? Is St. Patrick's Day supposed to be on the 15th for some reason? Or are you just saying Saturday was the "real" St. Patrick's Day because it was the day everyone went out and got plastered?

[KG2V]

No - He's saying that by Church rules, St Patrick's was Saturday - you see, being that it's Holy Week, you can't have a St's fest this week - so they move it up to the day before Palm Sunday...

[Brendan Loy]

Church rules? Wait, you're saying there's a religious element to Saint Patrick's Day? Hehe. And here I thought it was all about green beer... :)

[4-7]

Yes. My post is equal parts rigid formalism to the liturgical calendar that defines the day all purport to celebrate with drunkenness and complementary critique of those who would celebrate, not only in derogation of the liturgical calendar, but in celebration during the week set out for solemnity. I also criticize people who get crunk on Fat Tuesday then could care less about lent.

People celebrating today should either give a reason why they should celebrate St. Patrick's Day when the ecclesial calendar set the day on Saturday or celebrate Ireland Day or Patraig of Eire Day and give some sort of historical context for celebrating Irish Day on March 17.

[Brendan Loy]

I suppose I shouldn't mention that, when I realized last week that a) I have Good Friday off from work and b) it's this Friday, I was super-excited because it means I'll be able to sit at home and watch basketball all day?

I thought not.

To each his or her own, I say. But I take your point. Of course, the fight against secularization and vulgarization of, well, everything, is a losing battle. But you know that. And we all have our losing battles that we fight anyway. Like my bloggy crusades against the unfair treatment of mid-majors, for instance. And indeed, if there's ever a day for glorying in the worthiness of a lost cause fought well, it's a day when we celebrate Irish heritage...

At Vinegar Hill, o'er the pleasant Slaney,
Our heroes vainly stood back to back,
And the Yeos at Tullow took Father Murphy
And burned his body upon the rack.
God grant you glory, brave Father Murphy
And open heaven to all your men;
The cause that called you may call tomorrow
In another fight for the Green again.

...

There's never a one of all your dead more bravely died in fray
Than he who marches to his fate on the Bridge of Toome today;
True to the last! True to the last! He treads the upwards way,
And young Roddy McCorley goes to die on the Bridge of Toome today.

...

The Minstrel fell! But the foeman's chain
Could not bring that proud soul under;
The harp he lov'd ne'er spoke again,
For he tore its chords asunder;
And said "No chains shall sully thee,
Thou soul of love and brav'ry!
Thy songs were made for the pure and free
They shall never sound in slavery!

etc., etc. :)

How's Barack?

[Brendan Loy]

P.S. crunk? ;)

[4-7]

I am glad you asked. I actually thought of updating the conspiracy theory. I am feeling more and more like Clinton has lost a lot of the potential for reaping the RFK/MLK/JFK whirlwind of pregnant goodwill surrounding Obama in the event of his messianic removal from the stage. At the same time this is occurring, Obama is losing some of his all star status, appearing more like the everyday (albeit as yet unsullied) politician. Therefore, you have both a need for Clinton to win hearts fair and square (and not as an inheritor) because a Machiavellian removal of Obama would likely lead to despair and mistrust of all things politics, and an increase in Clinton's belief that she can ultimately do so by slow attrition with 3 months of Rev. Wright moments etc. to slow Obama. So I think the chances of a Machiavellian coup are decreasing. You asked.

[4-7]

my Desk Calendar says it is Canberra Day in Australia. Top o the Barbie to Ya ! Keep Celebrating.

[Leanna Loomer]

I actually have for years had a much better line than "True to the last! True to the last!" To wit:

"To Toome, alas! To Toome, alas!"

Life is so much more interesting when a person is hard of hearing.

[Alasdair]

Leanna - what ?

(grin)

[Alasdair]

4-7 - I can see a series of ads from Senator Clinton already ... entitled "Obama - the Wright Candidate for President" ...

[David K.]

Al, as a devout follower of George W. Bush I think you would be a little more concerned about non-story religious connections given Dubya's connections with Bob Jones University among others

[4-7]

There's a lot of unexplored territory there Al. As some have noted, Hillary doesn't want to touch that can of worms because (1) she knows that if he is the candidate it is going to hurt his electability; and (2) the right, to their credit, is doing a fine job with pushing the story.

[4-7]

I know, David ! Cause we are electing George W. Bush again in Nov. eh ?

I heard Obama is announcing Wright as his running mate tomorrow.

[4-7]

Top of the morning to ya ! (Still trying to keep this thread on topic).

Obama decided to run on Judgment and Discretion to contrast himself from Clinton. Now he is shown to associate with a complete fool, idiot, and race-baiter as his spiritual advisor and family parson. This decidedly not a "nonstory" because it shows a weakness of judgment and discretion. If Obama was truly ignorant of Wright's crazy sermons, then he displays an absent mindedness and naivete that will not serve him well when dealing with hostile foreign leaders and groups.

[Joe Loy]

But you ARE staying on topic, 4-7. First you went after the apostates who commemorate St. Patrick on the wrong Day and/or in the wrong Way, and now you're taking a poke at ould Barry O'Bama. :} You're just trying to keep all us Irish Honest, here ;>. {Talk about a Gloriously lost cause... :}

"I also criticize people who get crunk on Fat Tuesday then could care less about lent." ~ 4-7

"P.S. crunk? ;)" ~ Brendan

"Ah, you're crunk,
you're crunk, you silly old fool
still you can not see:
That's a baby boy that me mother sent to me.
Well, it's many a day I've travelled a hundred miles or more
But a baby boy with his whiskers on sure I never saw before."
~ The Dubliners :}

4-7 and KG2V, your liturgical precision is very commendable, albeit as canon lawyers ;> you are Legislating for the Exceptions (emphases added):

Saint Patrick's Day (Irish: Lá ’le Pádraig or Lá Fhéile Pádraig), colloquially St. Paddy's Day or Paddy's Day, is an annual feast day which celebrates Saint Patrick (circa 385–461 AD), one of the patron saints of Ireland, and is generally celebrated on March 17.

The day is the national holiday of Ireland. It is a bank holiday in Northern Ireland and a public holiday in the Republic of Ireland, Montserrat, and the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. In the rest of Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, the United States and New Zealand, it is widely celebrated but is not an official holiday. [1]

[Montserrat? / ~the commentposter ;]

It became a feast day in the Roman Catholic Church due to the influence of the Waterford-born Franciscan scholar Luke Wadding [2] in the early part of the 17th century, and is a holy day of obligation for Roman Catholics in Ireland. The date of the feast is occasionally moved by church authorities when March 17 falls during Holy Week; this happened in 1940 when Saint Patrick's Day was observed on April 3 in order to avoid it coinciding with Palm Sunday, and happened again in 2008, having been observed on 15 March. [3] March 17 will not fall during Holy Week again until 2160. [4]...

Brendan, you'll want to add that last item to your Upcoming Events countdown calendar. / Well. Or not. :) Anyways, 4-7, it seems there Is "...some sort of historical context for celebrating Irish Day on March 17." (Yes, we take your point about the distinct Designation. I like your Lá ’le Padraig na hEireann option. :)

"Church rules? Wait, you're saying there's a religious element to Saint Patrick's Day? Hehe. " ~ Brendan, you're just a Lost Cause, is all ;]. Meself, I thought it was very nice of the Vatican to move this one to Shabbat. :}

[David K.]

Or it could be that over the hundreds of sermons he's given these are just a few examples where he got a little carried away? No, i'm sure the simpler answer is he's a raving lunatic and Obama is a closet Muslim who hates America.

[4-7]

So far the evidence is simply pointing to an avowed Christian who hates Western Capitalism, but I'll keep an open mind. :P

As for the holiday, I respectfully acknowledge that in many was I was totally P'wned by Mr. Loy, Sr. I still shall push for greater definition of whatsa bein celebrated on the holiday - Irish identity or the Evangelization of the emerald isle ? If the former, then let's go with Padraig's Day.

[4-7]

If I could see Barry O'Bama dressed up as a leprechaun and dancing down Michigan Avenue and doing his best Irish lilt, I would actually vote for him. It would be a pretend ballot, albeit, placed in a box covered in patriotic contact paper, but a vote nonetheless.