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Another ex-blogger has had a relapse and has returned to the blogosphere this time as a member of Stblogs.org. So a hearty welcome back to Tom of GoodForm. Tom had originally started blogging about the same time I did and he kept my then newbie spirits up with his comments.

Tom like myself and many others are still waiting for an opening at the Betty Ford center for Blogging Addiction.

I almost gave up blogging soon after starting due due to blogspot fighting me tooth and nail and the fact that every waking moment was driven towards thinking of some intelligent commentary to write. Well I got through the blogger blockage and stopped worrying about writing intelligent commentary (as if you didn’t know) to change the world like Peter and Valentine Wiggin from Ender’s Game. Many bloggers within St. Blogs have struggled with the time involved in maintaining a blog and then balancing that with time devoted to family and other apostolates. I don’t blame anyone who has decided to stop blogging, though I do wish they would place a farewell post. It is quite annoying to go to a site that all of a sudden is no longer there or is no longer updated without a note of explanation. Sometimes blog’s closing down are like losing good friends.

I almost stopped blogging again just before my Mother died earlier last year. One of the things that has kept me blogging is that I have found that writing about the Catholic faith makes me spend more time learning it to avoid just being reactionary to news and condemning others willy-nilly. Not all posts that I start to write end up seeing the light of day. Just as when I post comments at other sites, probably only half of those end up with me pressing the post button. My family also thanks my readership since I can direct my sense of humor on them instead. Prophets aren’t appreciated in their home, and neither are wannabe comedians and political pundits.

Being part of the St. Blogs community is also pretty interesting. I often wondered what would happen if we were all actually in the same parish. Would we then be arguing over which Gregorian chant should be sung. Though I would love to be in a church that had the variety of priests and the talented musicians that St. Blog’s does. I have learned much from the writers and commenters of St. Blogs. St. Blogs is like a microcosm of the universal church. People from various countries, different charisms, and focus on spirituality, Eastern, Western; yet all holding to the Catholic faith. It constantly reminds me how large the church is with plenty of room for all of us.

Here are some additions to my blogroll.

Elena of My My Domestic Church

Bec of pencil in your hand

Douglas of Belief Seeking Understanding

Some other interesting blogs are:

Hugh Hewitt has become my favorite talk show host. I listen to Rush and Sean Hannity but I enjoy Hugh the most. Sean just annoys me whenever he ventures an ill-informed opinion on his Catholic Faith. Hugh is an Evangelical with an impressive conservative record who has excellent guests and had done whole shows on the works of Dickens and the great minds in the Western tradition. He maintains a blog and takes the blogospere seriously. He often has bloggers on his show and frequently has James Lileks and Mark Steyn on.

Evangelical Outpost

Classical Anglican Net News

Pundit:Filter

Terry Mattingly has an article on the history of caroling and the story behind Three Ships.

This site list times of Eucharistic Adoration in cities throughout the country.

Pete Vere has a good article at both Envoy Encore and Catholic Light on Islam in Canada.

I saw this very funny post last night. Now the SecretAgentMan has incorporated the pictures directly into the post for a better effect.

Dale Price and the Secret Agent Man both deliver some mighty fiskings today.

TS O’Rama of Video meliora, proboque; Deteriora sequor has a good post called The Sacramental System as Espoused by Frosty the Snowman.

He also said:

Next week – Frosty’s eschatology. Pre Trib, Pre Mil, Dispensationalist? Stayed tuned

I can hardly wait. These are important questions. Looking at the Book of Revelations the son of man is usually thought to be Jesus. But I draw your attention to Rev 1:14.

His head and his hair were white as white wool, white as snow; his eyes were like a flame of fire.

And from the Lyrics of Frosty the Snowman

and two eyes made of coal

Look at the parallels between Frosty and Jesus. Hair white as snow, could it be because it was snow? And could the eyes like flames of fire actually be coal that has been lit off? The average snowman is made up of three balls of snow stacked onto each other. This is an obvious reference to the Holy Trinity.

The end of the lyrics say:

For Frosty, the Snowman, had to hurry on his way, But he waved goodbye, saying’ “Don’t cry, I’ll be back again some day

Jesus also said “be of good cheer” and “No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come.“

Frosty and Jesus both told us not to worry and that they will be back again some day. What if Matthew 23:9 actually said “And call snow man your father on earth,” and from the Book of Acts “Greater love has snow man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” There is much to think about here and I thank Mr. O’Rama for bringing this much needed topic to light.

I would also call your attention to TS O’Rama’s weekly blog soup of notable posts, which is always interesting.

Microsoft has just now started there own free blogging service called “the spoke”, reportedly it wll have some more advanced features then blogger.com.

http://www.thespoke.net/

Chris Burgwald of Veritas wrote a letter to state representative Marlin Schneider (D-Stevens Point), a Lutheran, in response to a newspaper story about Bishops pressuring Catholic Politicians. His letter is well written and Mr. Scheider’s response can be briefly summarized as “No King but Caesar.” Read them for yourself.

TS O’Rama has some interesting thoughts on the diversity of what is known as St. Blogs

I’m surprised by the diversity within what’s known as “St. Blog’s”. You would think that the self-selective nature of blogs combined with the further grouping of hard-practicin’ Catlickers would lend a certain homogeneity. Sure, the blogs here are all friendly to orthodoxy. But variations within the terrarium are fascinating.

Those with the broadest appeal, Mark Shea and Amy Welborn, combine sound Catholic understanding with pleasing personalities. They avoid a knee-jerk conservatism or liberalism.

Other blogs explore the niches – amateur writers earnestly plying their trade, diarists, seekers of camaraderie or support, a half-dozen extremely bright people weighing in on the IOTD (issues o’ the day), a couple prigs (AWOL from St. Killjoy’s), converts and cradles and an uproariously funny ex-atheist, breast and bottle feeders, teetotalers and bingers, and Godly folk here or there whose blogs give off the perfume of saintliness.

Compared to the homogeneity I expected, St. Blog’s nearly has the biodiversity of a good bar.

I have noticed the same thing. As an atheist I thought that religion would be small and narrow, not knowing that I had imagined a world so small that I could place my head into it. St. Blog’s like the Catholic Church is wide and glorious.