A couple months ago, to celebrate one of God's biblical Holy Days, some very good friends mailed me a small gift – a little tin of chocolate covered espresso beans.  They are delicious, so to make them last I have only a couple every few days.  When I eat a few of these tasty little treats, I remember my good friends – and their friendship.

It is too easy to be overwhelmed by the statistics and not consider the agony.  It is too easy to dismiss the headlines as something happening "far away."  But today, men, women and children just like you are suffering and dying in Zimbabwe in a hopeless, hellish nightmare. 

The scandal involving Governor Rod Blagojevich of Illinois has all eyes on the corrupt political environment that has traditionally surrounded the Chicago area. The FBI's wiretap recorded Governor Blagojevich's profanity-filled bid for personal gain – allegedly attempting to sell President-Elect Barack Obama's vacant Senate seat to the highest bidder. 

The day after Thanksgiving has traditionally been the biggest shopping day of the year and the "kickoff" to the holiday shopping frenzy.  "Black Friday," as retailers and businesses alike have dubbed it, is a day that economists predict most companies move from the "red" to the "black," and begin to realize a profit for the year.

Your Bible and the Catholic church do not often agree.  However, on the issues of human harvesting and human embryonic cloning, the rest of us should be just as appalled as are many Catholic leaders.