Milo Yiannopoulos meets the Church Militant, and a love-in follows

It’s the damnedest thing. Yiannopoulos gets invited on to Michael Voris’s reactionary Catholic show, and he accepted. I guess that tells you how desperate for attention he has become.

I tangled with Voris a few times 8 or 9 years ago — he had a YouTube channel called The Vortex (it’s now been shuffled around to the “ChurchMilitant Archives”) in which he railed against atheists, Catholics who weren’t Catholic enough, and gays, and demanded that America become a Catholic monarchy…so kind of a squirrely Bill Donohue on meth. The pairing of Voris and Yiannopoulos was unexpected, but they really hit it off and had a little lovefest online. It’s a bit like those old commercials for Reese’s — “You got peanut butter on my chocolate! No, you got chocolate on my peanut butter! Yum, it’s delicious” — only substitute shit and snot for peanut butter and chocolate, and no, I’m not going to try it to see if the combination suddenly acquires a delightful flavor.

Here, you can suffer as I did.

It begins with Yiannopoulos whining about his ‘tragic’ fall from grace. His explanation is that he got too big and too powerful, so a leftist conspiracy was mobilized to tear him down with lies.

But who cares about Milo Yiannopoulos, anyway? The bulk of the conversation — if we can call it that, Voris only gets an occasional word in edgewise — is Milo rambling on and on about how he despises Pope Francis, but reveres the institution of the papacy, which is where he and Voris are clearly copacetic. Both think the the church is full of deviants and perverts, and that the way to fix the Catholic church is to clear out all the gay priests, although, Milo is quick to add, Leftists make way too much noise about priestly rapists, it wasn’t that bad, he got over it, the real problem is social justice warriors getting all up in arms about it. Blah blah blah. Talking fast to bury all the lies and inconsistencies.

He also comes down strongly on the nature vs nurture debate (I say there is no debate, it’s both, and you can’t untangle all the influences.) Milo strangely argues that it’s all nurture, that you can shape a child any ol’ way you want, making him the only blank-slater I’ve ever heard from.

There’s also a prolonged eruption of misogyny. Did you know that lesbians ruined everything, that they’re all bitter divorcees and spinsters, and that If you take god away from a woman and she’s 35 and doesn’t have a man by her side, bad things happen, and that he’s certain that Generation Z will change everything back. He wants to see women burning their briefcases and marching in defense of motherhood, which roused Voris to interject that that is authentic feminism, as represented by the Blessed Mother.

The last bit of the video is the two of them going back and forth, piously declaring that they’ll pray for each other, and Milo suggesting that he might come back to the way of purity and light and Catholicism, but he needs 5 or 10 years more to have fun indulging in his degeneracy. Voris is cool with that.

Only watch on an empty stomach. Anthony Barcellos, you are a wicked man for sending me that — I’m pretty sure it was a mortal sin.

In the proud tradition of Expelled

Gosh, where do the kooks get their money? Watch this slick trailer for a fancy new “science” documentary called The Principle. There’s Michio Kaku…oh, wait, he’s always getting cheerfully dragged into woo…and Lawrence Krauss? Krauss is one of those hard-headed rational types who wouldn’t be a knowing part of any nonsense. But just watch, and the subject of this movie will gradually emerge.

It’s a pseudo-documentary about geocentrism. Zeno tells me he heard about on that weird Catholic zealot Michael Voris’s show. It’s being made by weird uber-kook Rick Delano, who’s sole claim to fame seems to be advocating geocentrism, and showing up in the comments of every blog that ever laughs at the subject (so don’t be surprised if he appears here).

What isn’t at all surprising is that Lawrence Krauss has already repudiated the movie.

The beginning of the collapse of Catholic morality!

Hooray! You promise? Can I help?

The ever-demented Michael Voris, Real Catholic™ has a new video out in which he identifies unambiguously the first domino that will cause the collapse of Catholic morality: masturbation.

He does look like a world-class expert in wanking, and he must enjoy the subject since he promises to talk about it for hours, but I think that rather than just babbling about it, action is more important. I want you all to make some time this week to “destroy Catholicism”, my new favorite euphemism for jacking/jilling off.

You know, suddenly Bill Donohue’s mad rantings sound extremely filthy.

Why not?

We’ve encountered Michael Voris before: the painfully dogmatic and fervent Catholic Dominionist kook. He has a ridiculous video in which he asserts that theology is the queen of all the sciences because everything reduces to god, ultimately — which does leave one wondering why theology never produces any ideas that are actually useful to all of those scientific disciplines. I mean, take math for example: mathematicians are constantly coming up with tools and ideas that chemists and physicists and biologists and geologists all find awesomely useful. But what has theology given us? Nothing.

Michael drones on, going through the motions — he really seems dead-eyed and robotic in this video, doesn’t he? — and you probably got bored 30 seconds into the 5 minute clip. So I want to focus on just one point that Voris made, and mentioned in the caption, and which actually isn’t unique to Catholic nutjobs at all.

The fields of science can offer all kinds of information in answer to the question how… through the observance of the human intellect. But when asking the question why, man MUST turn to the divinity of the Creator.

How many times have you heard that claim: science can answer “how” questions, but it can never answer “why” questions, therefore we have to leave those kinds of questions to a non-scientific domain, which must be religion, therefore god. And that’s wrong at every step!

There’s no reason the interpreter of “why” questions has to be religion…why not philosophy? That seems a more sensible objective source than a religion burdened with a dogma and a holy book and wedded to revelation rather than reason. Voris assumes there has to be a divine creator, but that’s one of the questions, and you don’t get to just let it go begging like that.

The more fundamental question, though, is this oft-repeated distinction that science can’t answer “why” questions. Of course it can, if there’s a “why” in the first place! We are perfectly capable of asking whether there is agency behind a phenomenon, and if there is, of exploring further and identifying purpose. Why should we think otherwise?

Imagine you came home, as I did the other day, and saw this on the edge of your yard.

You’d immediately assume it was artificial, as I did — the perfectly circular outline suggests that a machine came by, and someone lowered some auger-like device and drilled a large hole in the yard. You could also look up and down the street and see that the hole-driller had struck several other places, all in a line parallel to the road and exactly the same distance from the curb. They are almost certainly the product of intent.

Does that in any way imply that I’m now done, that asking why these holes were dug is beyond the scope of all rational inquiry? That I ought to drop to my knees and praise ineffable Jesus, who caused holes to manifest in the ground for reasons that I, as a mere mortal man, cannot possibly question? Oh, Lord, mine is not to question why, I must accept what is!

Of course not. I can speculate reasonably; it looks like a hole for planting something in. I can check into the city offices, and learn that there’s concern about emerald ash borers killing trees in our community. I can see the next day that a city crew came by and put new saplings in place all up and down the street. Even without actually talking to anyone directly, I can figure out from the evidence why there is a hole in my yard.

Similarly, if there was a god busily poofing the entirety of the cosmos into existence, that’s an awful lot of evidence that can be examined for motive…are we to instead believe it is so incoherent that we can discern no possible purpose behind all this data?

And what if instead, I’d come home and found one hole in the neighborhood, it was a rough-edged and asymmetrical crater, and in the center of it was a small rocky meteorite? Then I could ask how it came to be there (it fell out of the sky and smacked into my yard), and I could try to ask why, but the answer would be that there was no agency behind it, there was no purpose, and it was simply a chance event of a kind that happens all the time.

When people try to argue that science can’t answer “why” questions, what they’re actually saying is that they don’t like the answer they get — there is no why! There is no purpose or intent! — and are actually trying to say that the only valid answer they’ll accept is one that names an intelligence and gives it a motive. That is, they want an answer that names a god as an ultimate cause, and a description that doesn’t include agency doesn’t meet their presuppositions.

Oh noes! The Irish have abandoned Mother Church!

Y’all remember Michael Voris, the Catholic Dominionist who wants America to make the Pope King of the United States? He’s nuts, obviously, but now we get to see him make his sad face. He visited Ireland, at the invitation of some diocese to babble about “the sacred heart of Jesus”, and while he was there, he did some man-on-the-street interviews. He is horrified to discover…most of the Irish have left the Catholic church!

Also, there are gays!

I think he should have also asked all those people if they believe in leprechauns. I think he would have been even more disillusioned.

Here’s a hilarious addendum: Michael Voris is banned from speaking at his home diocese. He’s too crazy even for the Catholic church.

Most Catholics aren’t this crazy. I hope.

Michael Voris and his Vortex (of Insanity) have been mentioned here before, but now he’s profiled on AP News. He really is nuts: he runs a YouTube channel and makes these strange videos where he demands that America become a Catholic dictatorship, all with a straight face.

Last time I mentioned him he got pricked by all our incredulous disgust with the Catholic Taliban, so he even made a clip all about us angry atheists, taking care not to link to any of our sites.

I hope this is representative of a tiny minority in the church, but I don’t know…last time I crossed Catholicism I was exposed to all the madness within it, so I’m not so confident that the fascist Voris doesn’t have more support than we expect.

Democracy leads us into a vortex of self-destruction!

We’ve been doing politics all wrong. Michael Voris has the answers. The problem with democracy is all these voters with different views on things like abortion and homosexuality, where people who vote for such things are just rotten parasites who want to destroy civilization. So he has two solutions: 1) only allow good Catholics to vote, and 2) ideally, get rid of democracy altogether and instead install a Catholic dictatorship.

Really. He says that. I’m not making it up!

By the way, If you want to know more about life in a Catholic dictatorship, read this letter from Jim Walsh. He’s being completely non-judgmental!

I want to be perfectly clear. The contents of this letter are not to be construed as judgmental but rather observations of Catholics as it pertains to Mass attendance and conduct.

From early childhood Catholics are taught of the true physical presence of Christ in the holy sacrifice of the Mass,

This letter is not a catechism lesson. As a Catholic enters the church they are expected to display the utmost respect of Christ’s presence in the tabernacle at all times not just during the Mass. The Catholic church is not just an ordinary building, it is holy ground.

The respect for the Mass, etc., has been deteriorating at a rapid pace. Disrespectful making the sign of the cross. Do not know if they are making the sign of the cross or swatting a fly.

Irreverent genuflecting or bowing before entering the pew. Using the church bulletin as a substitute for pre-Mass spiritual meditation as though they were reading the Sunday paper or at the reading room of the library.

Loud verbal socializing with their neighbor. Dress more appropriate for the beach or working in the yard, garden or I personally wouldn’t be seen taking the garbage like some dress.

Does God care? Probably not if that’s all you have to wear. Be mindful what you wear can advertise your attitude.

Remember before receiving Holy Communion a Catholic must have made his confession and fasted one hour from food products, juices, sodas, gum, mints, etc., before he may receive communion. Drinking water is permissible. If violated, one should not receive the Eucharist.

Approach to receive the Eucharist with utmost respect and reverence and with hands held in a respectful position, not in your pockets or down by your side. You’re not standing in the communion line to receive a piece of candy. If received by hand, they be sure they’re clean.

After receiving the Eucharist, return to your pew reverently, not chewing the Eucharist like a piece of candy. Kneel and reflect prayerfully on what has just taken place. Thank Him for allowing Him to come into your body.

Recite all prayers of the Mass and sing all the hymns which are prayers put to music.

Bless yourself and bow reverently at the appropriate times of Mass. If you are a cantor, lector or choir member dress appropriately. Don’t be a distraction. Many altar servers are not trained properly or in cases I’ve seen not at all. Ushers should be properly dressed and when passing the collection basket do it with respect, not like passing the hat at a sporting event.

Priests, refrain from using the pulpit for humor. If you want to be a stand-up comic go on Saturday Night Life. I don’t think Christ began his sermon on the mount with a joke.

Finally, let’s cut out the applauding. You have not just attended a rock concert or state show.

Yours for improvement and the proper respect for the Catholic Mass. Less than that is not expected, I am not judgmental but rather observant concerned practicing Catholic.

Jim Walsh

Wilkes-Barre

His message is incomplete, though. I could help him out with suggestions on how to reverentially and appropriately desecrate Jebus crackers.