YOU GET WHAT YOU PERMIT

By Tim Rohr

This post is about an issue outside the usual.

A few years ago, when struggling with a domestic matter, I joined a couple of Dad's groups on Facebook. I joined because I was seeking encouragement from other Dad's. I did get encouragement, but in a backwards sort of way. I'll explain in a minute.

It's commonly known that in domestic matters, specifically child custody cases, Dad's are usually on the losing end: the mother gets the kids and dad's are functionally forced to pay a ransom (child support) to see their kids. 

I call it a ransom because the court has no means in place to see that Dad's dollars go to the "support" of the children instead of the mother's. In other words, the mother is free to spend Dad's dollars on anything she wants, including lifestyle choices harmful to the children (e.g. other men). 

And given that nearly 80% of divorces (and therefore custody cases) are initiated by women, men are right to criticize the system as a female-favoring racket.

However, the old adage "you get what you permit," measures up here. Given my experience in these groups, I have to admit that most men lose because they would rather blame the system than learn to fight. And even when I've encouraged them to fight, the complaint is "we shouldn't have to."

And that's the "backwards encouragement." I was encouraged to learn to win in my own case because I was disgusted by the number of men in these groups who gave up and who chose to blame and complain rather than "fight like a man."

I think that's all I want to say about this...for now. Just remember, and this goes for everything in life: YOU GET WHAT YOU PERMIT.

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Immediately after posting this, I happened upon this story of a man who refused to die. That's what I'm talking about.

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He was mauled, crushed, and torn apart—his throat slashed, his ribs broken, his back flayed open by the claws of a grizzly. In 1823, Hugh Glass lay in the wilds of the Upper Missouri, a dying man. His comrades, certain no soul could endure such ruin, abandoned him to the earth. But Glass did not die. With nothing left but a stubborn will, he began to crawl—mile after mile, dragging his ruined body across two hundred miles of wilderness, alone and hunted, where even wolves and vultures seemed to circle, waiting for his last breath.

It was not a miracle. It was survival at its rawest. Glass clawed at roots and berries, gnawed the bones of dead beasts left by predators, and drank from mud-choked streams just to keep the fever from taking him. Each day was a battle, each night a torment, yet he pressed forward, inch by inch, his body broken but his resolve unyielding. He should have perished a dozen times over, yet something within him refused to surrender.

At last, skeletal and half-dead, he stumbled into Fort Kiowa—a man who had defied the grave. His story was not written in triumph or riches but in endurance, carved into legend by the sheer force of will. By the time his tale spread across the frontier, Glass had become more than a trapper—he was proof of how far a man could crawl when death demanded he stay down. And so the question lingers still: if abandoned, broken, and left for dead, would you rise and crawl on, as he did?

SOME THOUGHTS ON THE KIRK ASSASSINATION

By Tim Rohr

According to media reports, Charlie Kirk's 22 year old assassin was "...a brilliant, church-going kid," the recipient of "a prestigious academic scholarship to college," and "a 'very nice' Mormon (who) regularly went to church with his family." 

“He was a smart kid … I was shocked this was even him,” said a neighbor. In short, he was "the boy next door," a very smart, decent, family-loving, church-going boy. 

As the media reports progress, accounts of Tyler Robinson's radicalization begin to seep into the narrative:

Robinson had become increasingly political in recent years and ranted just before killing Kirk that he believed the activist was “full of hate,’’ officials said Friday.

The question quickly becomes: 

How did an otherwise smart, decent, family-loving, church going kid, turn political assassin in what must have been a very short period of time, the time between graduating from high school with a "college presidential scholarship" to Utah State University, the "highest academic scholarship the school offers," to pulling the trigger on September 10, 2025. 

According to some who knew him, Robinson became radicalized through "bad friends and social media." However, given the pictures of Robinson with his family, and also given that he is Mormon - meaning even closer family ties and support, it's hard to see how he could have gone from the Mormon boy next door to the first political assassin in this country since 1968 by just a very few years of exposure to "bad friends and social media."

Just as I was about to tell you what I think happened, I received a message that led me to this video, wherein the narrator says:

But something happened to Tyler at college that happens to a lot of students. Take a look at these people who went to college and came out worse.

The New York Post reported:

But the accused killer spent just one semester at the Logan school in fall 2021 before he took a leave of absence for reasons the school could not disclose, she said.

I red-flagged this when I first read it a few hours ago. Robinson had received "the highest academic scholarship the school offers," and he spent just one semester using that scholarship "before he took a leave of absence for reasons the school could not disclose." 

Given what he did on September 10, 2025, it's not hard to see how Robinson went from the "very nice" Mormon boy next door to political assassin. I've seen it happen first hand, in my own family. 

No, no one became an assassin, but I sadly witnessed one of my most beautiful, most intelligent, and most prayerful children, and a child who I felt exceptionally close to, become an absolutely different person after her college experience - and it was a highly touted Catholic college. 

And by "different," I mean in the worst way, and to the point where she publicly renounced her Catholic faith, or seemingly, any faith. Because she is my daughter and I love her, I won't say more. But the only variable between who she was and what she became was her college years. 

I wasn't surprised though. I too went to a "highly touted Catholic college," and came out "radicalized." I won't get into details, but college, particularly my theology classes, crippled me morally and  psychologically for years to come. In fact, I believe I'm still in recovery. 

It's interesting watching the raw emotion pouring out from every corner of the media over the Kirk assassination. There is a lot of finger pointing, and a lot of talk about "the left, the left, the left." But, at least in my experience, the real root of the demented hate that is saturating our culture today and has led to the first political assassination in this country since 1968, is hiding in plain sight, right in the classroom, especially a college classroom, and even a Catholic college classroom. 

WHO IS "THEY?"

By Tim Rohr 

A June 1, 2025 story in the Pacific Daily News about Fr. Cody Merfalen notes: 

“Merfalen’s ordination marks a rare and significant moment for Guam’s Catholic community because he completed his priestly formation entirely in Rome.”

It’s not unexpected that we in Guam would gush as if this is some sort of honor for Guam. Unfortunately, because we are such a small place, it's easy to blush with juvenile pride at the mere mention of our little island by “anyone” bigger than us. 

That Merfalen moved to Rome, attended a seminary, and was ordained for the diocese he had relocated to is nothing exceptional. In fact, many others have done the same. Bishop Randolph Calvo (born in Agana in 1950) comes to mind.

Now, had Merfalen been selected by our own bishop to attend a seminary in Rome for some special service to Guam, successfully completed his studies, and had been ordained to serve in Guam...well then maybe we could get behind that. 

But just moving to another place, Rome or otherwise, and getting ordained, by the pope or otherwise, notwithstanding that priestly ordination is something of its own to "usually" celebrate, Merfalen's ordination is far from something to celebrate as "rare and significant." 

I say "usually" because since Merfalen is a Neocat, and as we in Guam know, the Neocat "presbyters" have brought us nothing but heresy, hardship, and ultimately, bankruptcy - if you understand the connection between the Neocats and the Apuron scandal that brought this archdiocese to its financial knees. 

But back to "rare and significant." Is it "rare of significant" for a seminarian to be ordained by the bishop of the diocese in which he is to be incardinated?  Umm, no. In fact, (unless otherwise delegated) it is only the diocesan bishop who can ordain and incardinate a priest into that bishop's diocese. And who is the Bishop of Rome? The pope. 

The pope wasn't acting as "pope" when he ordained Merfalen and several other seminarians. He was acting as Bishop of Rome. He was acting as any other bishop. So, in this matter, being ordained by the pope was no more "significant" than any man being ordained in any diocese and by the bishop of that diocese.

Now, and as already mentioned, had Merfalen been especially selected by our own bishop for advanced studies in Rome or something like that, and for ultimate service in Guam, then, well, yes, that might be "rare and significant." But he wasn't. 

I don't know how he ended up in Rome, but the Neocats are always looking for trophy's, so good chance that Merfalen was selected by the Neocat Brass - the priest-makers - to go to Rome for their own political purposes. 

Merfalen notes in his homily that he was in the seminary for 16 years (twice as long as normal, by the way). So that places the beginning of his seminary journey at around 2009 while Apuron was not only still in power, but the Neocats were beginning to assume power of their own. 

It's quite possible that Merfalen was sent to Rome only for a Neocat formation (at Rome's RMS) and not for the purpose of being incardinated there, but was in Rome when Apuron's Neocat house of cards came tumbling down circa 2015-2018, and was advised by the Neocat Brass just to stay in Rome. 

Of course for the Neocats, it doesn't matter where one is incardinated. As we have seen here in Guam, they pretty much go wherever their Brass tells them to go, with no allegiance to the diocese for which they were incardinated - not to mention the diocese which probably paid for his education and training. 

In fact, Mefalen says so in the PDN story: 

"Father Cody Merfalen’s assignment may soon take him to the outer islands in Micronesia, though he hopes to return to serve on Guam one day..."

Interesting. So he's incardinated in the Diocese of Rome, but his "assignment may soon take him to the outer islands of Micronesia..." Assignment by who? 

As a priest ordained and incardinated in the Diocese of Rome, his bishop, his boss, is Pope Leo XIV. Why would Pope Leo assign a Rome-incardinated priest, a diocesan priest, a priest ordained and incardinated to serve in the Diocese of Rome, to the "outer islands of Micronesia?" 

He wouldn't. But the Neocat Brass would, and they will. They call the shots. Not the bishop. We saw, and still see, this first hand in Guam. EXHIBIT A: Fr. Krzysztof Szafarski. 

Per his little pre-Mass speech, Krzysztof is going to Rome to "study." Really? Was he selected by his bishop, Ryan Jimenez, to do this? If so, then Jimenez owes us, the people whom Krzysztof was ordained to serve (not to mention the same people who paid for his formation for so many years), an explanation. But there is no explanation from Jimenez. The only "explanation" was his Aviso stating, effective Sept. 14, 2025, Krzysztof is on "study leave." 

The fact is that Jimenez can't give us an explanation because Jimenez did NOT select Krzysztof for "study leave." The Neocat Brass did. Make no mistake. They still run things, and Jimenez will do what he's told. Why he will do what he's told is a matter for speculation, but knowing these guys, the Neocat Brass, I'm sure Jimenez owes them something.

Functionally, the Neocats (and I don't mean the average "members") are parasitic. They come in, suck up the resources of a diocese, including regular church members, and not only give nothing back, but do whatever they want, go wherever they want, and functionally give us the finger if we don't like it. (Listen to Krzysztof's little pre-Mass speech. He could hardly contain a nasty word about those who didn't like the idea of his "gift.")

At least Merfalen doesn't think an assignment in Guam, the same Guam who is celebrating him as "rare and significant," would be all that bad:

“He said he wouldn’t mind coming here, and it would be nice." 

Merfalen continues:

But he said it’s wherever they need him,” Paul Merfalen said.

Who is "they?" 

It ain't the pope.

FRS. KRZYSTOF AND CODY

By Tim Rohr

On August 30, 2025, at Immaculate Heart of Mary parish in Toto, Fr. Krzysztof Szafarski, the current Parochial Administrator, tells us that his going to study in Rome is a "gift," and infers that if you don't like it then... 

Fr. Cody Merfalen, recently ordained and incardinated in Rome, is the celebrant. Here is his homily. 

The full video of the Mass was posted on Facebook here. No further comment at this time.