Yeah, about that name…

Names are important. Picking a name for a blog is no small thing. After all, people will read in these few words a complete summary of you – who you are & what makes you tick. Plus, there’s always the temptation to be a little too-cute with such a name. I wanted something eye-catching, a little up-beat sounding, & perhaps a little ambiguous – just enough so one might think, “What’s this guy about?” So, as you can see, I had pretty definitive criteria for starting out…

“Walkin' the Dog” was my first try, because as I was thinking about what to name the blog, I was – drum roll, please – walking the dog. Plus, I do a lot of thinking while Max and I are out walking. Turns out a whole bunch of other people do their thinking whilst walking their dogs, too. Back to the electronic drawing board…

As I was preparing myself for Mass in the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite one Sunday, I was reading “Prayer Before Mass” in the front of the little red missal book from Ecclesia Dei. One of the prayers is the Prayer of St. Ambrose, the 4th-century bishop of Milan who converted & baptized St. Augustine. Here is the beginning of the prayer:

O Loving Lord Jesus Christ, I, a sinner, presuming not on my own merits, but trusting in Thy mercy & goodness, with fear & trembling approach the table of Thy most sacred banquet. For I have defiled both my heart & my body with many sins, & have not kept strict guard over my mind & my tongue. Wherefore, O gracious God, O awful Majesty, I, a wretched creature, entangled in difficulties, have recourse to Thee, the font of mercy; to Thee do I fly that I may be healed, & take refuge under Thy protection. And I ardently desire to have Him as my Savior, Whom I am unable to withstand as my Judge.

I know that all that Fear of the Lord business is just soooo passé these days, but this sort of prayer really caught my eye. These early Catholics really expected you to be sorry for your sins & live an entirely different way of life. When this prayer was composed, the elder Christians still could remember when Christianity was illegal & many of their friends & families were tortured & executed for their faith. One could be expected to die for the faith. Their standards of moral behavior seem unbelievably high today. I’m sure I should fall out of my pew if I ever heard this kind of brazen conviction coming from a Catholic pulpit these days.

Nevertheless, I was particularly taken by the phrase, “entangled in difficulties” – which I am. However, despite being afflicted on a minute-to-minute basis by the world, the flesh, & the devil, I hold a joy deep in the chapel of my soul, the place where God is enthroned. This indwelling gives me a certain steadiness, conviction, & joy despite the circumstances of the day. Indeed, the Lord’s yoke is light. What a gift from God that allows us such freedom & peace!

I would also mention that although I am entangled by difficulties, I am also frequently entangled by his wonderful obligations. Like preparing for & teaching my 6th grade religious education class on Sunday mornings. Like the parish Bible & Catechism study groups. Like my classes at Franciscan University. Like practicing an over-ambitious program of chants & hymns just a few minutes before Mass begins. All these things are hectic on the surface, but are truly a source of great joy, because I know it is the Lord who called me to them & provides the graces to see the through. These entanglements, then, truly are happy ones.