Since today is the day where kids will dress up and trick or treat-ye this isn’t also the day when the occult celebrate! Many non-Catholic Christians say that you cannot celebrate Halloween due to the fact that it is a “pagan” holiday. So many wonder if what the Catholic view of Halloween is.

See the whole post here!

I am happy to now say my new site(though the url is not artful frog, that still is the main title for my site)is now open to the public! Please update your bookmarks and RSS reader.

I look forward to seeing you there!

On Thursday I was contacted by Fr. Paolo Padrini(the Pope2You project manager)about writing about the Pope2You project, where they use social media to connect with people and the younger generations. So here is my post about this and of thoughts on why I support it.

Here is the info(or press release, if you will) that I got says-

Benedict XVI Speaks to the Net Generation through the World of Social Networks


The new media of Facebook, the iPhone, YouTube and Wikipedia are increasingly becoming the new forum where the Catholic Church dialogues with the world. As Pope Benedict XVI noted in his message for the 43rd annual World Communications Day, the Internet is a place where young people need to develop true friendships which spring from an encounter with the Risen Christ. With this awareness and the courage to enter into the world of social networks, the project Pope2You was started with the idea of helping these networks become authentic places of friendship and true dialogue.


Pope2You was created in collaboration with the Pontifical Council for Social Communications as an experiment in providing a new forum and channel of communication using the latest platforms. The Pope2You website provides a new way for Pope Benedict XVI to reach out to young people around the world. The site can be viewed in five languages and allows young people to learn more about the Church and Benedict XVI through his own writings, starting with the message for the 43rd World Communications Day. While the site aims to generate the interest of young people, it is also meant for people of all ages. It features news on the Catholic Church and details on the pastoral activities of Benedict XVI incorporating content from the Vatican’s YouTube channel. At the same time, a new application for the iPhone and iPod Touch has been created by the Catholic news agency H2Onews, with plans to add other mobile platforms later.


Pope2You also provides a gateway to a parallel world in Facebook with an application where you can create and send to your friends virtual postcards with the Pope’s own words, greetings and excerpts of his writings staring with this year’s World Communications Day message. Also, with the help of the Media Office of the Italian Bishops’ Conference, a special area has been created along the lines of a WIKI with suggestions on how to put into pastoral practice the Pope’s 2009 Message.

These new applications highlight the latest example of the Church reaching out in new ways in the world of social networks – a forum where the Church can meet new people, make new friends, dialogue and offer solidarity.

Personally I think this is great news. For once this is using social media for the good and not the bad-while I love the Internet, I do feel that too much has gone bad about it and by the Vatican using it-we might get something good out of it.

We all know that social media has gotten so big, even celebrities and the Governments use it as a tool. I think that might allow the Church to grow and connect with people they might not otherwise connect with.

Like for an example, before hearing about it I didn't think that Pope Benedict XVI even had a Youtube page-let alone a Facebook page?! So that is nice to know about that Pope Benedict XVI does and is trying to connect and stay connected to the Church.

Are you going to check out Pope2You? I am and I will likely keep it bookmarked as well.

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On a side note, since I am also moving my blog-this post will be also posted on new home(which I hope to have open to the public soon).

It's been over a month since I last wrote in this blog. First of all, let me say that I am truly sorry that it has been that long. Secondly, I have heard of people getting their blogs shut down because Google didn't agree with what they were saying. So I didn't want to risk it. I suppose I should just move my blog, which I will likely do soon. I am hoping to come back to updating this soon again.

xoxo,
artfulfrog

My name on twitter is speel00, so please feel free to follow me!

This post is long due, and please forgive me as it might be a long post.

I was thinking today as I was out and about in town, and I was looking at how bad things have gotten here in America. Last year, downtown would be booming, this year not so much. Hundreds are jobless and still counting. Companies are going out of business right left and center. Yet what lead us here? I mean, sure we hear capitol hill giving heat to CEO's(who gave these politicians money for them to run on!) who they blame for the crash of America. We hear the consumers whining to the politicians and to the public, though they are the ones who made the CEOS rich in the first place!

Look at this way, we the consumers did not whine when we lived in hundred thousand dollar houses, we did not complain when we could get loans up to our ears! We only started to complain when the consumers could no longer live the rich lives they once did live. They started calling these CEO's who have become millionaires thanks to them, as greedy guts. They begged the Government to help bail them out, when they are the ones who gotten themselves in debt.

Why should our tax dollars help bail out these dumb people who knew they couldn't afford these loans? Why should the CEO's pay, when you are the ones who made them rich?

Here's food for thought, don't you think that once these companies started this bad business and you didn't buy into it at all, they would have had to change their policies if they wanted to stay in business? Then perhaps we wouldn't be in this place from the get go?

Enough said for one post!

I know its been a week sense I last written a post, but I lost the post I was gonna used, so I will have to rewrite it.

Sorry for the lack of updates.

And I almost missed this because yahoo had this in its news section in very small print! You can read it here.

More debt being made by Obama, and we had no warning prior. Very sneaky Mr. Obama, but don't think that you won't get a back lash. I am 100% sure that people in the bloggy world will spread this news wide and large and that is one more thing for people to stop supporting you!

That's one thing he is damn good with, giving people reasons to not like him!

Really, as time goes on I think Obama is losing supporters everyday.

And you know what? I am going to start a series on here about debt in America. More fuel for my blog-thanks!

You can read about ithere.

I suppose Pakistan won't take much more of this. Another war in the middle east is brewing no doubt. So one more way for Americas debt to grow! And the fact that Pakistan won't allow US Military in, is likely the exact reason why the taliban is hiding there!

I do believe that Pakistan has nukes, so Obama better keep an eye out if he keeps attacking Pakistan. Obama will ever learn? I suppose not, but he really is playing with fire. I even believe they have a online petition to kick Obama out of office. He's losing support all the time.

I guess now he's learning you can't please everybody!

Hahaha, sorry, but I cannot help but laugh. People always said that Bush had such low ratings and look at Obama-he's only been in official for a little over a month and they are already dropping. I know I said that I bet he will have even lower ratings than Bush, though they are not lower than Bush's(yet), they are pretty early on dropping. So I cannot help but wonder if I was on to something...

Do you think that this will only be one term or do you think it will be more than one term?

I hope it's only one term, I don't think America could survive more than one term!

So we all have heard that the US had drones flying over Pakistan and we haven't heard any offical Government member say anything about it, right?

Well Google Maps showed a US Base in Pakistan that had been there since 2006. Now off Google Maps, you can view the map at UK Times Online.

No wonder Obama or his camp hasn't said anything about this. I wonder if we're planning a war?!

I am so sick of hearing people and the news media bashing Nadya Suleman-the mother of the octuplets. So what if she choose to keep all 8 babies, plus the 6 she already has? It is her body, now isn't?(After all, that is the what the pro-aborts say) It is her life, isn't it? So she made a bad choice by not being married and having test tube babies?! At least she didn't want them destroyed! I don't hear anyone else saying that, shouldn't we at least give her credit there?

Who are we to judge her and her choices? We are not God, therefor it's not our job to say if she or her doctors needs to be punished. I think that instead of focusing on her, perhaps we should be focusing on what is more important-our issues as a country.

So my dear readers, how do you see this in your opinion?

Kind of like when Hitler took over Germany.

Now Hugo Chavez is calling for a life time of being their leader and though their are less people who support him than don't, the world is getting scarier.

We all know that Chavez doesn't like America or other countries like America. In fact, he's friends with Iran. So by him winning this, it allows him to be a dictator.

Will this cause the non-Chavez fans to revolt and lead to war? It sounds like it could.

Read more here

Personally I think it does make the world less safe.

Do you think that this makes the world a little less safe? And will rest of the world feel about this? Do you think that Obama will do the same thing?

I'm sure we all have heard of the plans Obama wants to make to ban all talk radio, ect right? Well, China is creating a blacklist of local journalist that they don't like. So I cannot help but wonder if Obama will follow suit.

Anyone else's thoughts on this?