Ambulance drivers don't wear Roman collars

In the news - No mercy for priest with parking ticket, after he parked in an ambulance-only zone to tend a patient in need. Speaking as a former EMT/ambulance driver, I have to say that I'm a bit torn - I mean, it doesn't say if the patient was literally on death's door or not, and I must say that if I came in my bus and some priest had parked in my spot to talk to Granny (yes, I realize that is a good and honorable thing), I'd be a bit mad too. I mean, you can park legally and walk to talk to Granny Padre. Of course, Padre rushing to hear someone's confession who's dying, now I would be much more sympathetic to that. I hope there was valid cause for Fr. to be there, but in any case, Romans 8:28 shows us again how true it is -

The silver lining is that readers who learned about the ticket from the Daily News, where the story first appeared, and from an Associated Press story mailed cards, letters and nearly $1,500.

"I was very surprised," Monsignor Guy Massie, pastor of St. Andrew's, said Wednesday. "People are responding to their own frustration with the Bureau of Traffic Violations."

Massie said he would donate the money to charity.

Gotta love it. It never ceases to amaze me how much "loose money" must be floating around in our homes and checking accounts, ready for donation to causes that catch our eye. Ponder that the next time you throw a measley buck in the collection basket at church. Then again, maybe we should learn from it - as a culture, we seem to be far more inclined to help with a lot of little specific things than to just throw our money into a big pot. Maybe we shouldn't be afraid to let people know the details of our church's needs, maybe all it takes to refurbish the Adoration chapel is to say, "hey folks, does anyone want to donate money towards a new statue/tabernacle/icon/altar/you-name-it?" People like giving a little personally, instead of giving a lot vaguely.