A moral dilemma (and a cat is involved)

As a Catholic am I entitled to kill a neighbour's cat because it is stalking my bantams? What would St Thomas Aquinas have to say on the matter I wonder?

This is the moral dilemma facing me (the topical one at any rate).

If I shot this marauding moggy it would equate with breaking the 'Thou shalt not steal' commandment but what other options do I have?

I know that if I approach my neighbour and make a case for restricting the cat in some way it will be met with a point blank refusal; a cat is, after all, a free agent able to roam the fields and hedgerows as it will. Fences will not contain it. The only solution would be for the neighbour to make the cat a 'house cat', never to see the great outdoors again - that seems a bit harsh.



Bantams may safely graze......how to avoid a cat-astrophe!



Meanwhile, as pastor of a flock I have a duty of protection towards them. It's not as though my bantams are pets precisely; they have essential functions like laying eggs and eating all the things that creep under the earth and providing my garden with enrichment (if you get my drift).

And I cannot keep them penned up either. My bantams are all either pure blood Old English Game or second generation thereof and that means they are, basically, as wild as the Jungle Fowl that they are descended from. They would pine and fall sick if confined, even in a roomy pen.

Now, in the context of global warming, economic meltdown, war, famine etc., this problem is pretty paltry (oops! sorry) but I find it refreshing to have such parochial issues to worry about from time to time; it takes my mind off the four horsemen of the Apocalypse (and Bishops) and boots me back into being some sort of sane(er) person.

So, after some internet research I have come up with the answer which I am happy to share with Mulier Fortis and other cat lovers...I shall commence a novena to St Gertrude...who she?

Patron Saint of cats of course......but hold on...shouldn't I be looking for a patron saint of chickens?

Well, after another web search I find that I should be praying to St Brigid of Ireland, patron saint of poultry keepers.......I shall do both!

Confessions of a Catholic blogger

This week has seen the announcement, by his friends, that Fr Tim of THOC has just topped 3 million hits on his blog. 3 million! I had to go and lie down in a dark room after reading that.
It goes without saying that all kudos and congratulations are due to Fr T. It is a massive achievement and all done, apparently, so effortlessly.

Now I am fully aware that a Catholic blogger should not let 'hits' rule his or her life but, dammit, I am an ex marketing man and for 40 plus years have lived and breathed on statistics and figures and I cannot do without a daily fix of sitemeter! Fr Tim, I know, is not influenced by such mundane things but to us lesser mortals it is one way of determining whether what you write has any resonance, whether it is relevant or just a private rant.

Also, this week, following close on the heels of THOC's success, comes a treatise by that great but shadowy blogger figure, Mundabor

 The post is called 'Catholic Blogging in 17.5 Easy Steps'. It is a sound piece of advice and well worth reading if not actually following.
It makes clear the trap of self approval and personal gratification; so easy to fall into. The post also calls for anonymity as part of the process of "seeking wisdom, not martyrdom". I am not so sure about that element but it's too late for me anyway.

What did strike a chord with me was Mundabor's exhortation to be true to oneself, to write what you believe without fluffing around worrying what folk might think. I think that I have been guilty of that (although some might not agree).

So from now on you will get posts straight from the shoulder or should I say, heart? No more pussyfooting around, all will be black and white.

So many Catholic bloggers feature cats
is this the secret to a high strike rate?

But why do we blog anyway? I have tried to analyse what and why I do what I do and come always to the same conclusion; I do it because it is a wonderful means of expressing all one's pent up emotions and views regarding the Catholic Faith and its rights and wrongs. I also want the Catholic world to understand my standpoint - not necessarily agree with me, just to understand where I am coming from is fine. I also want people to comprehend what the faith was like fifty years ago, the good and the bad parts; we are in grave danger of losing our sense of 20th Century Catholic knowledge and culture and that would be sad.

The other part of my concern regarding blogging does involve a need for my blog to be read, not by milions but, equally, not by one or two Traddies locked in a garret somewhere. I see nothing wrong in that desire. If I thought that only one or two individuals read my blog I think I would chuck it in. I have only been at this lark for six months so I am still in my salad bowl as they say but hits do matter to me (although I have accepted M's advice and removed the counter, this exercise should not be about public triumphalism).

So how to achieve more hits? According to Mundabor it is back to being true to oneself, fine but I have to do more than that, surely?

I did  consider featuring a cat or two (sorry MF) but that would not be being true to my inner self. I have very little to do with cats although I have eaten a few in my time (not by selecting one off the menu I hasten to add, but by being served cat by my Chinese hosts at various banquets....sort of sweet and sourpussy) - aaaagh! - more profuse apologies, I think I will be losing readers by the score at this rate.
What other images are likely to strike a sympathetic note? Flowers? Hmmm.....more a female blogger thing I think.......birds?.......not really relevant......Blessed Titus Brandsma?......Yes, precisely.
I must say that I am enjoying being part of this growing Guild of bloggers....I appreciate the daily prayer, it binds you more closely to to your blog and it embraces others who, hitherto, have been just names. It gives one a sense of belonging and, believe me, if you have lived in a spirtual wilderness for 25 years, you do appreciate the company of fellow souls! 

           Blessed Titus Brandsma - Pray for all Catholic Bloggers!