What? Another blog?

Dan Fitzpatrick and I created this blog for a couple reasons. The first is a way for us to stay connected with each other through the infinite space of Corvallis to Portland. As I sit here and listen to a combination of the composer Palestrina followed by the exceedingly excellent "Top Gun" soundtrack (I challenge anyone to listen to "Danger Zone" and not get fired up to go out with your best friend, call sign Goose, and fly a plane), I am thinking of my other reason for starting this blog with Dan. The other day I was reading a blog by a young member of a group named "Voice of the Faithful". This is a liberal, un-orthodox Catholic group which seems to have a median age of 130 years and whose essential position on every issue in the Church (abortion, the Liturgy, women priests, homosexuality, contraception, Church authority, feminism, the role of God) is the opposite of authoritative voice coming from Rome (which comes of course from the Holy Spirit). I was reading this "blog", short for "bunch'a-liberal-unorthodox-garbage" in my opinion, and was thinking about the role of the media in the life of the Church. 

The media, as everyone knows, can be a source of good or evil in the world. Often, it is a source of evil. The media, and specifically television and the internet, allows people access to a vision of the world starkly in contrast with that of the Gospel. I don't think I need to mention how the internet can be used as a source of evil in particular to make this point. Pornography is but one example. The misinformation available on that blog I refered to earlier is another. 

In contrast, the media can also be a source of enormous good if used by men and women of faith to promote Gospel values to a world increasingly closed off to traditional approaches of evangelization. In this regard, I think of the influence of EWTN television, Catholic radio and Catholic websites such as Catholics Answers and Catholics Come Home should be proof enough of the influence that Catholics can have using the media. 

I hope that Dan and I get the chance to discuss some things which are pertinent to the lives of Catholic students at a university. Often, these issues are not discussed in homilies or at youth group gatherings, or a variety of reasons. I think that as Catholic young adults, our primary responsibility is to "go deeper", both spiritually and intellectually with our faith. Only by doing so will our faith be credible and attractive to those outside the Flock of Christ. There is nothing on earth more appealing to an honest seeker than a Catholic fully alive in the grace of God with a strong intellectual and moral foundation. Feel free to leave comments and suggestions following our what I am sure will be random and politically-incorrect thoughts.