Forty days?! Truly the hour of despair is now come upon us.

“In the interim, VFR readers could check out Jim Kalb’s weblog, Turnabout.”

And Mr. Kalb has put back up his old bulletin board, the one that allows notification on replies to posts:

http://jkalb.freeshell.org/posts/board/view.pl

Another site VFR readers may like (though it doesn’t allow posting of responses):

http://relapsedcatholic.blogspot.com/

A good and fruitful Lenten break to you! I will put you in my prayers if I may.

Glad to see Will S. publicizing Relapsed Catholic, Kathy Shaidle’s site. Shaidle’s book, God Rides A Yamaha, is also full of good things.

I send public well wishes to Mr. Auster and hope he enjoys his respite. I will miss his comments and advice and look forward to his return.

Good luck to Mr. Auster in his non-weblog endeavors. We will eagerly await your return.

May the Lord bless Mr. Auster in this season of repentance. Thanks to Mr. Auster for his hard work and invaluable contributions to our cause.

Thanks so much to everyone for the good wishes and prayers.

Lately I had been feeling more and more that I needed a complete break from running VFR for a while. That feeling came to a head around Ash Wednesday. I was not raised Christian and so I lack many aspects of a Christian formation. One of those is the giving up of things during Lent. But giving up VFR for Lent made sense.

Please, take as much tine as you suspect Jesus wants. Know that as a cradle Catholic, I am extatic with your choice.

Good luck Mr. Auster, and thank you for your generous expense of time and resources in maintaining VFR.

Participants may also enjoy http://mcj.bloghorn.com/
aka, the Midwestern Conservative Journal, largely devoted to riding herd on the ECUSA.

Too bad for SixFootPole—he apparently has trouble seeing past it.

Regarding “SixFootPole“‘s curse:
His attacks are self-righteous, hatefull, intolerant, malicous, sarcastic, and obscene. These prejudiced, vicious cursings seem to be increasing as a means of attack from the left. These vulgar tactics are facilitated by the anonymity of the internet.

I missed SixFootPole’s charming post this morning. He was previously closed out of VFR, but has stopped by to leave a deposit, which I’m now going to remove.

Does “SixFootPole” lack the capacity of vocabulary or the facility with English that would enable him to expess his delight at Mr. Auster’s break form VFR; his dislike of VFR; and his loathing for Mr. Auster without recourse to the ubiquitous F-word?

All good questions, Joshua; he’s just as irrational and inarticulate here:

http://jkalb.org/tab/archives/gays_and_merry_oldsters.php

Mr. Kalb is far too civil and polite in dealing with him; but then, Mr. Kalb is a true gentleman…

Mr. Auster,
I have been remiss in having failed to convey to you my appreciation of your weblog and my thanks for the effort and time you must give for contrabutions to and maintainence of it. I wish you success in your personal persuits and anticipate the resumption of new entries.

Just found your site from a search of “Pat Buchanan columns” ????

I’d like to recommend a movie, “Ararat,” by the director Atom Egoyan. (one nude sex scene that could have been left out) Ostensibly, its about the Armenian genocide but not really. There is an angle about the current castigation of opposition to homosexuality - kind of subtle but interesting.

With Mr. Auster having suspended his posting of new articles, I, as a pastime and out of a desire for intellectual stimulation, have taken the opportunity to read many archived aricles and the discusion threads thereof. Although many of the posts are short, mainly giving links to other articles and/or received few comments, there are many interesting, provocative articles and intellegent discussions. These aricles and threads are a very stimulating resource. I must thank Mr. Kalb and Mr. Auster for their articles and the many commenters, especially Messrs. Kalb and Auster; Messrs. Lefevre, Alan Levine, Davin Levin, Murgos, Jose, Cella, and Coleman; and Matt, Carl, and Unadorned, for their insightful and informative contributions.

Thank you, Joshua, for everyone you mentioned. I also think many of the discussion threads here have lasting value.

Messenger Joshua said it very well and to the point. I too cannot tell my fellow Messengers—and most especially, Mr. Auster—what a wonderful “ride” the past three months have been for me! I cannot believe that I have only been posting here for that short time. The hours I spent sifting through the many wonderful archives of topics relevant and important to traditionalist conservatives naturally only “touched the surface” of other, earlier archives of last year and beyond. Thus, I have many wonderful years of reading ahead of me! Thank you again, Mr. Auster, for bringing us all together.

To commemorate the Lord’s sacrifice on our behalf, I offer the following lines of verse from J.N. Darby:

The Maker of the universe
As Man, for man was made a curse.
The claims of Law which He had made,
Unto the uttermost He paid.

His holy fingers made the bough
Which grew the thorns that crowned His brow.
The nails that pierced His hands were mined
In secret places He designed.

He made the forest whence there sprung
The tree on which His body hung.
He died upon a cross of wood,
Yet made the hill on which it stood.

The sky that darkened o’er His head
By Him above the earth was spread.
The sun that hid from Him its face
By His decree was poised in space.

The spear which spilled His precious blood
Was tempered in the fires of God.
The grave in which His form was laid,
Was hewn in rocks His hands had made.

THE THRONE ON WHICH HE NOW APPEARS
WAS HIS FROM EVERLASTING YEARS,
BUT A NEW GLORY CROWNS HIS BROW,
AND EVERY KNEE TO HIM SHALL BOW!

A Happy Easter to all. -Joel

Correction: That poem was penned by F.W. Pitt. :-)