The following is a March 10, 2010 email report from International Transformation Network Founder and CEO Ed Silvoso, concerning his recent trip to the Philippines.

The dominionists are starting to show their true colors, and the backwards and provincial attitude of Polk County, Florida is becoming more obvious.

Some regular columnists here on Talk to Action have complained about difficulties in getting the mass media to notice the existence of a new but rapidly growing - and already highly influential - religious movement with theocratic ambitions, the New Apostolic Reformation.

I have some suggestions on publicity. For all I know, the regulars here may have pursued all these avenues already, but I figured I should mention them anyway, just in case at least one or two of my ideas have not yet been pursued.

I also have some thoughts of my own on why it has been so difficult to get the mass media to take the NAR seriously.

Now both the Polk County School Board and the state of Florida are trying to push prayers in the schools!

The city of Lakeland, Florida has been challenged by Atheists of Florida and the local synagogue for having sectarian prayers before public meetings.

The hit movie, The Blind Side, is all about the Christian values of being your "brother's keeper." Or is it?

Just thought readers might be interested in linking to this article at The Yurica Report:

I think people should read this article- and realize that the dominionists are becoming more and more violent.  If something isn't done to counter their hate, this country is in deep trouble!

Referring to recent political skirmishes over the rights of gays and lesbians to marry, Cardinal Francis George called five rocks thrown at empty buildings and the theft of a few lawn signs "quasi-fascism."  He charged that rejection of his bigotry was an infringement on his "right to influence the public square" and in "the tradition of the Soviet Union." These remarks were recorded in the "public square" of the vast media coverage afforded all U.S. hierarchs during an address George gave titled "Catholics and Latter-day Saints: Partners in the Defense of Religious Freedom" before a crowd of 12,000 at Brigham Young University on February 23, 2010.

When Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger was elected Pope Benedict XVI in 2005, it was widely reported that he preferred a smaller, more obedient flock in his Church. Once again, he is proving those reports to be true and providing further cause for Catholics around the world to jump ship.

I've just received the following American Family Association email, which claims that the Obama administration has a nefarious plan to force gays and straights in the US military to shower together !

Donald Wildmon and the AFA appear bizarrely unaware that gays and straights in the military have been showering together throughout the administrations of George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George Bush Sr., Ronald Reagan, Jimmy Carter... (need I go on ?). Point being; gays have always served in the US military because they are a substantial part of the US population base.

We are pleased to once again welcome theologian William Lindsey as a guest front pager. This piece is crossposted from the new progressive Catholic group blog, The Open Tabernacle: Here Comes Everybody. -- FC

Following the recent revelations that Pope John Paul II engaged in penitential practices including self-flagellation and sleeping on the floor with his arms outstretched, I posted a reflection at the Open Tabernacle blog site about the implications of these revelations for Catholic spirituality today.  The report about these penitential practices appears in a recently published book prepared to support the canonization of John Paul.  The book notes that its information depends on eyewitness testimony by over 100 people who knew John Paul.

As a supplement to what I posted about Pope John Paul II's penitential practices, I subsequently posted a piece about connections between these practices and a powerful secretive right-wing Catholic organization called Opus Dei.  The following is an edited version of that Open Tabernacle article.

Since not all readers may be aware that there is at least one group in the contemporary Catholic church which encourages its members to whip themselves, to wear cilices, and to sleep on the floor or on boards, I'd like to draw attention to the important body of literature that has developed to study and critique Opus Dei's penitential practices in recent years.  It's also significant that John Paul II was closely connected to Opus Dei and actively promoted and protected this controversial religious group--about which more below.