The possibility that a peace group might be established in Canada some time in the next year is a news story! Good news. It means if you are a peace-knick group the smallest event or non-event will be published in the country's largest Catholic newspaper, but if you are from a lay group like Focolare, Communion and Liberation, or those bastards from Opus Dei, even your most important events will never be newsworthy. That the newspaper ran the very same story--only a few months ago--is all the more reason to praise progress! Keep up the good work Michael Swan. Our friends are counting on you!

News story is really an advertisement for events that will happen next year! That is good news because it means that our vision of church has a firm hold on the country's largest Catholic newspaper. We are also encouraged to see that what "amazes" Catholic thinkers today is the prospect that our religion might change! Tell you what ... today we worship the Trinity, but tomorrow we might be worshipping the Quaternity. Praise for progress indeed. Screw those stories about conversion, grace and prayer. And why should a Catholic newspaper write stories about a pro-life activist and population expert who visited a local parish to talk about population trends, when it can publish stories about revolutionary old foggies like Gregory Baum? To thank the staff at the Catholic Register for using the newspaper as a publicity bulletin for Regis College and St. Jeromes, please send a note of appreciation to: editor@catholicregister.org.

It's all about us! Almighty God might be in the background, er, somewhere. This is the message we get from the mission statement of St. Mary's parish in Brampton.

"We, the members of St. Mary’s community, believe that we have been called through Baptism to live the Good News of Jesus Christ, under the patronage of Mary, our Mother. We accomplish this by proclaiming the Word, celebrating the Sacraments and reaching out to others. St. Mary is a vibrant parish. Many of our parishoners serve our parish community by sharing their gifts and talents through a variety of ministries."

Notice how many times our friends use a variable of the first person plural. Only about five times. The repetitive intonation of the word "we" sounds like music to our ears. It is likely the people in charge at St. Mary's are good, sincere people, who are trying to serve God and the Church in an honest way. Let's not hold it against them if their mission statement is not progressive enough. What can be more effective in making progress than teaching that the church is it's own source of being? Progress indeed.

Meet one of Canada's newest bishops. Praise of Progress sees great hope here for the emerging new church. When a reporter asked him about his plans for the diocese, bishop-elect Bergie talked about attending meetings, but he did not say a word about evangelization, vocations, holiness or prayer (. That is good news for the church in Canada, because it means our bishops are confident in their administrative model of church. We at Praise of Progress are especially pleased to see that Bergie was nominated because he is well-liked. That area clergy are not challenged or provoked by the bishop-elect is a good sign. It shows that the spirit of conformism is alive and well among our clergy. If being well-liked is a criterion of becoming a bishop, those bothersome priests will be kept out of the episcopate. Sounds like there are good days ahead for those who love progress.

Gay marriage is an emerging social trend. That is why it must be true. Praise of Progress likes to see this thinking as evidence we are building on a sure foundation. Consider this editorial letter in the Prairie Messenger, the official Catholic newspaper of Canada's prairie provinces. Some might think our happiness upon reading this letter is exaggerated, since the newspaper is a journal of 'Catholic opinion.' On the contary we are pleased to know this letter meets the standard for Catholic opinion in our church press.


"Galileo observed that the earth moved around the sun. When he suggested that this truth demanded a deeper reading of the Bible he was excommunicated and confined. A similar discovery of the ways of God confronts us today. Scientists have determined that a consistent proportion of the population in every culture is homosexual and lesbian. That means God created them that way. Their sexuality is as much a gift as the sexuality of a heterosexual. Their sexuality is vital to their sense of self-respect and capacity for intimacy. Faced with this basic truth, the church should respond with a careful study and revise its teaching on human sexuality ... Judges have determined that it accords with our Charter of Rights and Freedoms. What else can a conscientious politician do, but respond?" -- Joseph Labonte-Smith, Salmon Arm, B.C.

We think it is good news that the Prairie Messenger continues to allow for debate on issues of faith and morals that religious psychos say is definitively resolved by the deposit of faith.

Sixteen years to implement Vatican directives on education might seem too long, but we think that is not long enough. We think this sixteen year delay is good news. It means our leaders do not uncritically accept direction. It shows maturity and an adult approach to faith issues. That the country's largest Catholic newspaper did not see a reason to ask questions about the sixteen year delay--is another reason to believe that progress in our church is still in control. Confidential sources have informed Praise of Progress that some university presidents do not expect to live up to the adapted directives, but they have consented to the by-laws anyway. We think this is a healthy sign that our Catholic leaders still value creative arbitrariness over the rule of law.

To express gratitude for this sign of maturity and pastoral concern on the part of Canada's bishops, please send a message to Halifax Archbishop Terrence Prendergast (pictured above). He served as the CCCB liaison bishop with the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities in Canada. Prendergast may be reached at: chancery@catholichalifax.org

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