Cardinal Ratzinger - Pope Benedict XVI

The Roman Catholic Church has elected a new Pope, elevating conservative theologian Cardinal Ratzinger, who becomes Pope Benedict XVI. It's interesting to watch this bit of history unfold, and it tells us some things about the times we live in.

First, the selection took only a couple of days, which indicates that whatever dissent there was, it was limited to 1/3 or fewer of the voting members of the College of Cardinals. Considering that Ratzinger is a notorious conservative force, a Catholic Fundamentalist, we can take this to mean that at least 2/3rds of the Church's most influential leaders want the keep the Church at least as conservative as it was under Pope John Paul II.

Second, we can assume that the Church is largely writing off the United States, Canada and Western Europe, where it has lost members for many years now. Ratzinger is not the type of person to appeal to educated westerners to return to the Church. He is the kind of person who will appeal to the elements in the Church that favor rules and order, strict adherence to Roman tradition, and choose the false certainty of doctrine to the potential discoveries of debate.

How does this impact those of us that are not Roman Catholic?

If you are in a western, "first world" country, you can expect to see more church interference in domestic politcs like we saw in the last US election. In that case, conservative Catholic elements called for actions such as denying communion to pro-life candidates, and elevating some issues of conscience, such as abortion, over others, such as opposition to war. Ratzinger has made it clear that the only time religion and politics should cross are when the politicians are in a position to forward the conservative Catholic agenda. In that case, he's not at all above trying to influence voters based on a narrow set of issues, to the exclusion of others. Ratzinger has warned us all of the dangers of "moral relativism," which is Ratz-speak for "progressive values." Don't expect to see him loosen up the church's hard line against female clergy, married priests, or acceptance of gays, let alone abortion and euthanasia.

Which leads us to the implications for our fellow human beings that are not in wealthy western nations, or are at least not wealthy persons themselves. Ratzinger was one of the Church's leaders in the fight against liberation theology (tying politics and religion together to fight for the poor, mainly popular in Latin America). So while he and those like him have had no problem trying to tip the scales in a US election to favor the candidates of the wealthy elite, he has consistently opposed the Church entering the political arena on the side of third world peasants who are abused by landholders and corrupt regimes. His views on the place of women in the world, homosexuality and birth control will play well in the less devloped countries where church doctrine can easily be substituted for, or work with, primitive systems of governance.

While I don't expect any one political or religious leader to make all the changes to the world I hope to see, I do think it's fair to expect each one to make progress in some areas. John Paul II was a bold man, who opposed the "principalities and powers" of his day - the Nazis then the Soviets. He took bold stands against at least some forms of injustice, even if he failed to address some others. It was measured progress, but progress none the less. I'm not sure I think we can hope to see the same from Pope Benedict XVI. The evils of corporatism are more subtle than under Sovietism, and the evils of a world-wide rise in religious fundametalism probably does not seem as threatening to someone who is a conservative theologian.

Still, the new Pope has said he wishes to build bridges to other faiths, to unite Christianity, to be a humble servant in the Lord's vinyard. So for now, I wish him well, pray that God gives him good judgement, and wait with great curiosity to see what he will do.

The Sauce - part II

Ok, Got wine in hand? Good. Here's your list of stuff:

1. Tomato product of choice - for this recipe, I prefer tomato sauce, no seeds. If you wanna get nuts, cook tomatos down and make your own sauce, but it's not necessary. What is necessary is that it be plain tomato, no pre-spiced crap. I use organic, no-salt sauce and/or chopped tomatos, depending on what texture I want. Also note, there is one benefit to canned tomoatos; they are much more consistent than fresh tomatos are. Try a few different things, though; self expression through texture is a good thing. I like a loose and chunky sauce (diced or chopped tomoatos) in hot weather, and a real thick one based on canned sauce in cold weather.
2. Tomato paste, or other thickening agent. I prefer organic paste, with as little salt as possible. Other great thickeners I've used include flour, corn starch, and cheese (parmesan or romano, finely grated or ground into a powdery consistency). Cheeses should be used sparingly though, so I mainly rely on paste most of the time. Again, fast, easy, and an acceptable place to save some time in my mind.
3. Spices: Oregano, Parsley, Basil, and dry red pepper flakes. I think red pepper is one of the great secrets to good sauces. It can give a little nudge, or can be used to push your sauce towards an Arrabiata (hot and spicey) sauce. I like it closer to the latter, but again, self expression is ok, and you might want to make sure that your diners like it hot before you add too much red pepper flake. You should have a little glass spice jar worth of each. If I catch you using a "seasoning mix" or that stuff that says "Italian seasoning" on the side, I'll send Mario to your house to tap dance on your skull with his orange clogs.
4. Meat. Lots of meat. I go with about 1.5 pounds of ground round or sirloin per 2 large cans of tomato sauce. I like sirloin because it has just enough fat (I use a dash of olive oil with sirloin but not with round). Beef has some flavor without taking over everything. Ground buffalo will work too. I think pork tastes too much like... well, pork, and I don't do veal. Turkey has too little fat, and well, I just don't like the taste.
5. Garlic and onions. Garlic rules; it's tasty, it's good for you, it just rocks. Onions too. Choose nice large, firm bulbs of garlic. Make sure you keep it nice and dry, and if you have limited knife skills (hey, no shame there, you ain't cookin' on tv, right?), invest in a nice garlic press to make life easy. Onions, you want large, firm, and sweet. Remember that no wine rule? Here's why: a good sweet onion kicks the ass of wine at sweetening the sauce, taking the sting out of tomato acids, and it adds lots of texture too. Again, you need to get a good chop (not as fine as the garlic), so if you're not a great dicer, invest in a small manual chopper. Or, you can do what I do: bribe your wife, who has better knife skills, with wine and a good Santuko knife and get her to help do the chopping. Just, uh, make sure you give her the wine after the knife weilding part is done so she doesn't end up nicknamed "lefty."
6. Olive oil. Just a little. I also recomend it for dipping bread, and think it added just a nice subtle hint of flavor to the sauce. As mentioned above, if you use a fattier meat, you may want to skip this part, or plan on browning the meat and draining extra fat before adding the meat to the sauce pan.

Ok, must have kitchen stuff: your wooden spoon, knife/chopping implements, and a really heavy sauce pan with a lid. I can't emphasize this enough: heavy pan, heavy lid. You need enough pan to hold on to the heat for a while so that your sauce can cook nice and slow. Slow gets more flavor out, and it works best when you can let the mass of the pan work for you.

Ok. Time to cook.

DEATH OF A HERO

Pope John Paul II was a person that alternately caused me great consternation, great amusement, and sometimes, great admiration. He was, without a doubt, one of the great figures of the 20th century, as he both held the line on Catholic traditions, and instituted changes that over turned centuries of Vatican policy. Now that he has left us, I find myself wondering where the Roman Catholic Church will go without him, and whether or not we Christians will take the most positive of his messages to heart.

Two things about Pope John Paul II stand out to me. First, he was a Pope to and for Poland. He became a Catholic priest in spite of the Nazis, a Catholic leader in spite of the Soviets. He played a pivotal role in the anti-communist movement in his home nation, using it as a spring board to launch a global anti-communist campaign. A lot of us will remember him as the Polish Pope, working to free his homeland from Soviet dominance. After years of being knocked about between Germany and Russia, Poland emerged as a world leader in opposing the Soviets, and it was in large part because of John Paul II. The Pope managed to draw the attention of the world's Catholics and non-Catholics, to a nation that few people paid much regard to. In my youth, we mostly knew of Poland and the Poles as the punch line to tasteless jokes, the place from which good sausage originated, the place Hitler, then the Soviets, over ran. John Paul II made us aware of Poland as a home of heroes and leaders, and a place where Poles fought bravely on the front lines of the Cold War. Even as Pope John Paul II, Karol Wojtyla was the hero of Poland, a man who represented the best of his people.

The other interesting thing about this Pope was that he became a leader to the whole world, in ways that no other Pope, maybe no other leader, ever has. He spoke many languages, including having learned Spanish after becoming Pope, so that he could better connect with people around the world. He was a tireless traveler until his health absolutely prevented it. The stress of all that travel had to be profound, but he seemed to feel some great urgency for seeing people, and being seen by them. He recognized and embraced Catholic leaders from all over the world and spoke to issues that concerned people from many nations, and began to move away from the Catholic Church as an Italian or European institution. Just as he was not afraid to oppose the Soviets, he was also not afraid to later oppose the United States when he felt it necessary. He was one of the few leaders of his era to consistently make a case for the poor who were marginalized by corporatism and the rise of capitalist governments. He was no bigger of a fan of capitalism than he had been of communism. While western political leaders crowed over winning the Cold War, John Paul II moved on, turning his focus from the tyranny of communism to the perils of materialism. He accused the west, the US in particular, of fostering a culture of death, challenging people to use their success to uplift the world instead of simply enriching themselves.

The Pope had one issue that seemed to consume him toward the end of his time on earth: life. Whether it was abortion, euthanasia, execution, or war, the Pope was obsessed with the right to life. He and I would have disagreed on a few points, such as rights for gays, women in the church, and birth control, but what eventually won my admiration was that John Paul II consistently opposed those things in the world that took away life. I found it ironic and sadly pandering that US President George Bush praised the Pope as a champion of life, since it was the Pope's refusal to endorse Bush's pet war in Iraq that recently impressed me so much, and it is Bush and his party, particularly his home state of Texas, that keep the US one of the world's leaders in executing our citizens. The Pope drew a very clear line: those of us who aspire to the ministry of Christ must not emulate the powers we oppose, no matter how we think practicality and politics justifies us. He argued, I think convincingly, that it didn't matter if the hand pulling the trigger was that of a criminal, a doctor, a judge and jury, or a soldier, it was still a human hand, taking human life, and that it was wrong.

The Pope did not move the Roman church as much as I would like, but he did move the church. There was a time when the church was at best silent, at worst complicit, in undermining the dignity of human life. The church had often kept silent, or opposed in weak terms, governments that were unjust. John Paul II laid a foundation for Roman Catholicism to become a progressive force in the world, one that might pursue Christ's vision of freedom and justice more fully by opposing tyranny in the name of ideology, be it political or financial. Someday, the values John Paul II set forth may help take power from the hands of the elite, who serve their own purposes, and put it in the hands of people that will pursue God's purposes. If the Cardinals choose to honor this Pope's life and work fully, they will choose a new leader who will continue to make the church an advocate for the poor and a voice for mercy and kindness. If they have courage, they will elect someone that will move to include women fully in the church, will promote tolerance (if not full acceptance) of gays and their families, and will continue to press the wealthy nations to avoid the trap of materialism and corporatism. John Paul II could not realistically have been expected to make every modernizing change himself, and he didn't. He did lay out values that are compatible with progressive and loving Christianity, and led the church onto the beginnings of a road to change.

As a dedicated Christian, though no longer a Roman Catholic, I hope that the legacy he has left us will inspire us to work together to more fully realize Christ's vision for peace and justice. The Pope's vision of focusing on life over expedience and comfort could have profound implications for the good of the world, if we ever took it seriously.

And so, on behalf of a grateful world, we say goodbye, and thank you, Karol Wojtyla, the Polish hero who was Pope John Paul II, of the Roman Catholic Church.

The Sauce - part I

Every household has its sacred dishes. Those foods that are part of life, those things that are the go-to meals when people feel down, when people want to celebrate, when you want to make sure everyone is happy. In my house, the chief one of these is spaghetti. I once had a friend who grew up in Chicago's Little Italy (being more polite than how he refered to it sometimes), who said, after tasting my sauce, that he could tell I was Italian by my cooking. Best compliment I ever got re: food. I am not the least bit Italian, of course, and so was made an honorary one on the spot. I try my best to uphold the dignity of that honour, and to promote good sauce everywhere. I also buy enough Italian wine and pasta to have my own line item in their national budget.

Which leads us away from religion and politics, and on to Spaghetti sauce.

Let's start with some basics:
1. It must be strong - if it's not, you might as well pour tomato soup on pasta and eat that.

2. Garlic and onions must be fresh - if it came as a powder, it's just not worthy. The fresh stuff adds complexity of both flavor and texture. Garlic and onions are not spices, they are part of the foundation of the sauce, just like tomato products and meat.

3. There are 3 spices that matter, Oregano, Parsley and Basil - without them, you got tomato soup. If you want to seperate the soup from the sauce, it wouldn't hurt to have dried pepper flakes on hand too.

4. There is no such thing as too much... except when there is. You should be able to taste all the falvors, and if you add so much of anything (especially garlic) that you can only taste that one flavor, you went too far.

5. You must use a wooden spoon, and you must use the same one, all the time. Don't use your spoon for anything else, especially not anything that might clash, taste wise. If you can't dedicate one wooden spoon, you ain't got the love, and you might as well eat sauce from a jar.

6. Don't put wine in the freakin' sauce! Wine is for drinking, sauce is for pasta. (Unless it's that thing my wife does with white wine, garlic and shrimp over angel hair... then wine goes in the sauce.)

7. It's better to take Tums than bastardize your poor sauce. Tomato is acidic - get over it.

8. It's hard to have too much meat, it's easy to have too little. 'Sides, protein's good for you.

9. If you want to add some crumbled veggie-tofu whatever 'cause you don't do meat, that's cool... just don't ask me how to cook it. Also, be prepared to use a little extra oil to get your garlic and onions going.

10. Your pasta better be al dente. There are few crimes greater than what most Americans do to pasta. You want baby food, by some Gerber's. One of my biggest bitches with American Italian restaurants is the mush they try and pass off as pasta.

11. Patience, patience, patience. Some of the best sauce I ever made took a day and a half to make.

Ok. Let's start with step 1

Step 1. Pour some red wine. (in a glass, that is) I recomend Chianti, or a nice Valpolicella or Sangiovese. Whatever you do, make sure it's Italian and red. The only exception is if you are celebrating, in which case, it is acceptable to sip a nice cold Prosecco (in a champagne glass, please!). In hot weather, I would be willing to consider a chilled Frescati, but it better be at least 90 degrees out! For the love of Mario Batali, no French or California wine! The French and Californians (and hell, lots of other people), know their wine, and they can come up with great compliments to lots of things (Argentine wine with beef... mmmmm!), but they don't match with Italian food. The Italians have spent something like 100 million year developing their wine and food together, they know what they're doing. Just trust me. You can get good Italian table wine for under $10 a bottle, and great stuff from $13 on up. Got money totally burning a hole in your pocket? Try Barolo. A friend served me some at her house, and all I can say is, if Ferrari made wine to match its cars, it would be a Barolo.

OK, you've absorbed enough for now, go enjoy some wine!