September 26, 2020
Good Morning, God and All! How did that quote end, anyway? The only thing we have to fear is who gets elected in five weeks? No, that’s not it…
By The Numbers:
It’s the 270th day of the year, with 96 days remaining.
Days 'til voting in the 2020 election ends: 38
Percent of the U.S. population that "remains susceptible" to the coronavirus, according to the giant throbbing head in a glass jar at the CDC: 90%
Minimum number of Americans who say they used marijuana in the past year: 37 million
Start Your Day With A Song:
God Is In Control (1993) Twila Paris (the GMA Dove Award winning “Song of the Year” in ‘95) In 2012, Paris released a patriotic-themed project that includes two new cuts ("God of Our Fathers" and "America the Beautiful") and ten cuts that Paris hand-picked from other projects. The purpose of the project is to inspire patriots with themes of God's protection and love, even in difficult times.
Saints Cosmas & Damian, Pray For Us!
Cosmas and Damian, said to have been brothers and physicians, were martyred during the persecutions of the Roman emperor Diocletian in the late 3rd and early 4th centuries. Since ancient times they have been widely venerated in both the Eastern and Western Churches. The magnificent murals of the church that Pope Felix VI dedicated to them are still to be seen in Rome. In Venice, the great early Renaissance artist Fra Angelico painted a series of murals featuring the saints in their traditional roles as doctors who provided for their patients free of charge, and as stalwart martyrs who withstood all manner of tortures for the love of Christ. (Source: Magnificat)
Breaking News: The Numbers Are In, And God Is Still In Control (the Message):
You’d think that, after the sobering reflections of the last few weeks, that the world is following Sir Elton John and lyricist Bernie Taupin off the edge of the proverbial cliff. Or at least, they’ve got a finger on our collective pulse in pronouncing that some of us are “falling apart at the seams” (Social Disease, 1972). Yeah, a rewrite has popped in and out of my thoughts. So I was surprised to see this headline across my screen on Monday: Latest Numbers On Coronavirus: 100% Of World Still Under God's Control.
The headline and article linked from it is from The Babylon Bee, a parody site. It’s about as real as Thomas Dewey defeating Harry Truman in 1948 (as the Chicago Tribune erroneously reported) or Hillary Clinton defeating Donald Trump four years ago (modern reporting and publishing technology managed to stop a printing error, while what really happened shocked the nation and the world).
One could easily believe that we’ve reached the prophetic ‘end times’. From the beginning it has been a year unlike most, and there are still just under one hundred days to go. Yet, believe it or not, God remains in control.
Saint Paul reminds us that when all seemed lost, and Jesus died on that cross, he fulfilled what was prophesied long before. God greatly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name; that at the name of Jesus, every knee should bend…and every tongue (proclaim) that JESUS CHRIST IS LORD, to the glory of God the Father (Philippians 2:9-11). It’s a passage central to the Christian faith. The Catholic Church proclaims this passage on Palm Sunday, again on this 26th Sunday in Cycle A of Ordinary Time, and in the weekday cycle of daily readings when the letter to the Philippians is read. It also appears every week in the Divine Office, at first vespers of the coming Sunday (a vigil, if you will, on Saturday evening). It was certainly one of the darkest times of souls everywhere. God was in control then. Why wouldn’t God be now? The evidence is undeniable at this point.
From the Bee’s article: Remarkably, this data is very similar to researchers' findings during the Fall of Rome, Black Plague, Holocaust, Spanish flu, swine flu, bird flu, and every other time of turmoil humanity has faced. No matter what the specific plague or time of suffering, research has always pointed to the fact that God is sovereign and bends the thread of history to His will for His glory. No natural disaster, not even war or the threat thereof, can change this. Change only comes if we allow it to take a place in our hearts which should be reserved for God alone.
A connection was also found between placing your faith in Christ and not having to worry about death by coronavirus or any other kind of death, as we are destined for another world. Maybe we’ve thought too much - or too little in the proper context - about what the politicians, the pundits, and the ‘experts’ say, or who the next justice of the SCOTUS will be or how quickly the appointment is announced and confirmed. After all, we know none of them are God. This does not mean throwing all caution aside. Rather, it means we should not panic. We’re now in the seventh month of coping with the pandemic. Some feel it will miraculously end in about 40 days. Some feel it will get worse, depending on the outcome in about 40 days or so. Jesus says, do not be afraid. We believe that God’s children will not be forsaken; let us choose to remember and never be shaken. There is no power above or beside Him; we know, oh we know, God is in control!
And seriously, stop over-buying the disinfectants, hand sanitizer, and toilet paper.
Memorable Moments:
1212 – The Golden Bull of Sicily is issued to confirm the hereditary royal title in Bohemia for the Přemyslid dynasty.
1493 – Pope Alexander VI (Rodrigo Borgia) issues the papal bull Dudum siquidem to the Spanish, extending the grant of new lands he made them in Inter caetera.
1688 – The city council of Amsterdam (“Amster! Amster!…) votes to support William of Orange's invasion of England, which became the Glorious Revolution.
1777 – American Revolution: British troops occupy Philadelphia.
1789 – George Washington appoints Thomas Jefferson the first United States Secretary of State.
1933 – As gangster (not the rapper) Machine Gun Kelly surrenders to the FBI, he shouts out, "Don't shoot, G-Men!", which becomes a nickname for FBI agents.
1934 – The ocean liner RMS Queen Mary is launched.
1953 – Rationing of sugar in the United Kingdom ends.
1960 – In Chicago, the first televised debate takes place between presidential candidates Richard M. Nixon and John F. Kennedy.
1969 – Abbey Road, the last recorded album by The Beatles, is released.
1973 – Concorde makes its first non-stop crossing of the Atlantic in record-breaking time.
1980 – At the Oktoberfest terror attack in Munich 13 people die and 211 are injured.
1981 – Nolan Ryan sets a Major League record by throwing his fifth no-hitter.
1997 – An earthquake strikes the Italian regions of Umbria and the Marche, causing part of the Basilica of St. Francis at Assisi to collapse.
2005 – The PBS Kids Channel is shut down and replaced by a joint network with Comcast called Sprout.
Happy Birthday!!!
1774 – Johnny Appleseed, American gardener and environmentalist (d. 1845)
1888 – T. S. Eliot, English poet, playwright, critic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1965)
1897 – Pope (Saint) Paul VI (d. 1978)
1898 – George Gershwin, American pianist and composer (d. 1937)
1914 – Jack LaLanne, American fitness expert (d. 2011)
1922 – Nicholas Romanov, Prince of Russia (d. 2014)
1932 – Donna Douglas, American actress (d. 2015)
1944 – Anne Robinson, English journalist and game show host (Weakest Link; a coming reboot will feature Jane Lynch as host)
1972 – Beto O'Rourke, American politician
1981 – Serena Williams, American tennis player
We Remember:
1820 – Daniel Boone, American hunter and explorer (b. 1734)
1902 – Levi Strauss, German-American businessman, founded Levi Strauss & Co. (b. 1829)
2000 – Richard Mulligan, American actor (b. 1932)
2007 – Bill Wirtz, American businessman (b. 1929)
2008 – Paul Newman, American actor, director, producer, and businessman (b. 1925)
Parting Words:
Oh, yeah… “The only thing we have to fear…is fear itself” (Franklin Delano Roosevelt, 1st Inaugural Address, March 4, 1933).
Until we meet again, may God be with you - and may God have mercy on us all…
+the Phoenix
