Ruminations of an Amateur Monastic
Last weekend, we threw a surprise birthday party for Francine. She’s very clever, so we had to take some care in making sure she woudn’t find out. We figured the only way we could throw a surprise birthday party for Francine’s big 50 was to hold it seven weeks early and in another state. To get her to the appointed […]
» Read moreAs both of my long-time readers know, I am a fan of Fr. Robert Barron. His Catholicism Project is to religion what Carl Sagan’s Cosmos was to science. Therefore, I offer my heart-felt congratulations to Father Barron, who yesterday was appointed Rector of Mundelein Seminary in Chicago. From the press release: The Archbishop of Chicago, Francis Cardinal George, announced today Father […]
» Read more…to reform the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCRW). The Vatican Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) has called for reform of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) and named Archbishop Peter Sartain of Seattle as its Archbishop Delegate for the initiative. Bishop Leonard Blair and Bishop Thomas John Paprocki also were also named to assist in […]
» Read morePope Benedict XVI has proclaimed a “Year of Faith” to run from 11 October 2012 to 24 November 2013. Pastoral guidelines have been published that call for prayer, celebrations, pilgrimages, catechetical events, missions, and new forms of evangelization. The Pope calls us to profess the faith, celebrate the faith, and witness to the faith. Faith grows when it is lived […]
» Read moreYesterday, a gust of wind in downtown Seattle snapped my umbrella right in two. At this moment, I can hear the rain beating against my office windows with amazing force. Mostly here in Pugetopolis, we have drizzly, misty sort of rain. Not this week. Combined with the spiritual storms buffeting me of late, it’s making for a stormy Lent. In […]
» Read moreThere is something magical and compelling about a doorway, about a crossroads. It is a time and place in between the old and the new, between past and future; the liminal space where for a moment time stands still and new possibilities, undreamt of mere moments before, now come sharply into focus. Thus says the LORD: “Stand by the roads, […]
» Read moreYesterday, weird anti-Catholic slogans were spray-painted on Saint James Cathedral in Seattle and on O’Dea Catholic High School across the street. The photo was taken of the marble facing on the front of the Cathedral. You can seen the bronze cathedral doors in the background. Photos of the rest of the damage may be seen here. The phrases spray-painted on […]
» Read moreQueen Esther, seized with mortal anguish, had recourse to the LORD. She lay prostrate upon the ground, together with her handmaids, from morning until evening, and said: “God of Abraham, God of Isaac, and God of Jacob, blessed are you. Help me, who am alone and have no help but you, for I am taking my life in my hand.” […]
» Read moreFor the last several years, I’ve been attending Ash Wednesday Mass at Saint James Cathedral in Seattle in the morning before work. Today was no exception. Over the years, Mass attendance at the Cathedral has varied pretty wildly. I remember one year where there was nobody sitting in my pew, or in the pews in front of and behind me. […]
» Read moreSaint Benedict was the founder of western monasticism; to this day, most monks and nuns worldwide follow some variation of his “Little Rule for Beginners”. Benedict had a twin sister, Scholastica, whose feast day is today. Under her brother’s guidance, she founded the first female monastery in the west. I often think that their parents had a sense of humour, […]
» Read moreWow. Today we used the new translation of the Mass for the first time. There were the expected little confusions in the responses, but over all everybody dove right into it with enthusiasm. The most difficult bit was, as expected, the reflexive “and also with you”. Francine even messed this up once while she was looking directly at the worship […]
» Read moreThis morning is the calm before the whirlwind. It is the moment of silence in the morning before everyone else is awake and about their busy day. In many ways, this has always been my favourite part of the day. It’s when you can see the whole glorious day stretch out before you full of promise and possibility. I rarely […]
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The Roman Missal, Third Edition, will be implemented in the United States of America on the First Sunday of Advent, November 27, 2011. That’s less than a week away, now. The entire Church in the United States has been blessed with this opportunity to deepen its understanding of the Sacred Liturgy, and to appreciate its meaning and importance in our […]
» Read moreRev. Vincent Beuzer, S.J., my sometime spiritual advisor, died on Sunday 13 November 2011 in Spokane at the age of 84. Please pray for the repose of his soul. Lux æterna luceat eis, Domine, cum sanctis tuis in æternum, quia pius es. Requiem æternam dona eis, Domine; et lux perpetua luceat eis ; cum Sanctis tuis in æternum, quia pius es. […]
» Read moreI am tardy in offering congratulations on this venue to my friend, Fr. Bryan Dolejsi, for his appointment as Vocations Director for the Archdiocese of Seattle. This is apparently the first time in over 20 years that a priest has been appointed to this position. When I met Fr. Dolejsi, he was brand new out of the box; he had […]
» Read moreOn July 20, 1969, man first set foot upon the Moon. On July 20, 2011, the last flight of the last Space Shuttle is heading to a close. Perhaps appropriately, the (hopefully temporary) ending of the US manned space flight was aboard Shuttle Atlantis. It certainly gave me a sinking feeling. But the project that took us to the Moon […]
» Read moreIf I had to guess, I’d say you’ve never heard of Rev. John Corapi, SOLT. I first saw Fr. Corapi on EWTN, preaching a series of TV programs on the Catechism of the Catholic Church. He is a dynamic speaker and a gifted teacher. His talks helped me to understand some of the more impenetrable language and dense wording of […]
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