Tea at Trianon: The Spirit of Hollywood Versus the Spirit of the Cross

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Wednesday, January 9, 2019

The Spirit of Hollywood Versus the Spirit of the Cross

From TFP:

Few institutions today inspire more contempt among God-fearing Americans than Hollywood. Just the name of “Hollywood” conjures up images of glitzy, degenerate celebrities in gaudy outfits who use their wealth and influence to wage war on what remains of Christian morality.

Much subtler than this sexual immorality, yet ultimately more damaging, is the spread of a revolutionary mentality that denies the Catholic Faith at its deepest level by denying the effects of the Original Sin of Adam. It considers the purpose of life on this Earth to be the pursuit of bodily and material happiness. Therefore, suffering in any form and in any degree is the worst of evils. According to this mentality, it must be eradicated as quickly and efficiently as medicine, science, and technology will allow.

We may call this mentality “The Spirit of Hollywood.” Like a drop of oil on a sheet of paper, it has penetrated into the very fibers of our culture. And it is one of the primary causes of our modern crisis, from family dysfunction to drug abuse and virtually every other social evil we see today. Some of its most bitter fruits are found, naturally, in Hollywood itself. A particularly salient example was the suicide of actor and comedian Robin Williams. Few in Hollywood personified success and carefree optimism like Robin Williams. He had a global fan base, universal recognition, prestige and wealth. In short, he was the paragon of worldly success. (Read more.)

julygirl said...: Their world of imagination and make believe where actors can transition into a new reality not only on the screen but in life is not lost on confused people who are convinced they can believe themselves into another gender.; January 9, 2019 at 1:24:00 PM EST