Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Mother's Day

Although I spend most of my life in an oblivious daze, every now & then something catches my attention & I think, "Huh? That doesn't sound quite right?"

Plus, I've adopted "Find the'Find your Inner Goddess'" as a hobby, which sadly, is pretty easy these days, as many people have set aside sound doctrine to follow various New Age schemes. The U.S. Bishops just sent out a warning that Catholics must avoid Reiki (click here). Obviously, they wouldn't bother to comment if it hadn't already become a problem.

To wit: an article in our church bulletin talks about the background & meanings to be found in the verses of our Lenten entrance hymn. The last verse goes, "Strangers we by sin disperes. God our mother, quench our thirst. Thus is justice here rehearsed."
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So when it goes on to say, "Images of God as a mother to us come often in the scriptures...", I declared, "FYIG!" Maybe a bit harsh, but let's move on...
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You see, a quick check (yes, maybe too quick & too shallow for real scholarly work) of the Vatican's online concordance to the NAB reveals 395 uses of the word "Mother", both in the scriptural text itself & in the NAB footnotes. Only 3 of them even touch on this connection (if you know of more, please post a comment & let me know!), & only 1 of them use the metaphor - strictly speaking - of God "as" a mother. None of them can be constued as God "is" a mother.

Sirach 4:10; Isaiah 49:15; Isaiah 66:13. I leave them to you to look up & ponder.

The plentious reasons why God is properly called "Father", & conversely, is not called "Mother" are way to deep for this space. The best reason is easiest one: because Jesus did.

Monday, March 30, 2009

Deep Thoughts

None here. Just pictures of a lovely sunrise.






Friday, March 27, 2009

Just for Jill...

Whilst exiting the local Tractor Supply - making a bird seed run - I was taken hostage by a gorgeous sunset with layer on layer of multi-hued clouds. The crimson tinge on their undersides of the nebulae closer to the sunset itself reminded me a little of the photo at the top of the blog. I thought it worth making a dash to car to get the camera. It's important to notice these things - it's God reminding us that he's still with us.
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In order to correct the commonly-held misconception that I enjoy catching fish & then painting them red, I thought it erstwhile to show you all the unique steel latice frame of my Ducati bearing a coat of fresh red paint.
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Or maybe it's a lobster trap...

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Lots going on in the Catholic news world recently: the Pope's trip to Africa (beautiful speeches & homilies to be found at the EWTN news page. Also, of course, the Notre Dame scandal. If you haven't yet heard of or signed the petition sponsored by the N-D Cardinal Newman Society, click here. Catholics have a confimational obligation to make their voices heard, especially in the face of grave injustice & scandal! I can't think of too many things that qualify more.

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Angelus Domini nuntiavit Mariae

... et concepit de Spiritu Sancto.
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The liturgical year finds itself wonderously crossed-up today, as we trudge along in our Lenten pennance & suddenly come across the celebration of the glorious announcement of our salvation, of God's doing a new thing in the world.

Obviously, this day is celebrated about 9 months from Christmas, about the time of the vernal equinox, just as Christmas is situated near the winter solstice - surely planted there to supplant a Roman pagan winter festival. With no references to the time of year recorded in the Gospels or preserved in Tradition, the Church felt free to assign the day of the celebration of Lord's Nativity for pastoral or catechetical reasons, rather than historical ones. All we can know is that it was during the census, which is a matter of great debate amongst scholars, & that it was at least warm enough for the shepherds to still be spending the nights outdoors. It appears that the important point that the Church wanted to make crystal clear is that Jesus, the Son of God, was born as a human child of the virgin Mary.

The fact of the Incarnation took precedence over all other subordinate facts, especially in the face of new heretical spiritualities popping up all around that denied that God did, would, or even could become a man. Others would say that just an ordinary birth of a good man by a decent woman took place, & the Church later divinized the poor guy & even semi-divinized his mother! Well, these were all hot topics back in the day, & persistently remain around today in various forms. Seems like Chesterton once commented that there are no new heresies; just old one in new packaging.

Today, the Church affirms with clarity that with Mary's "Let it be", the stranglehold of sin & its attendant consequence of death - neither of which were ever part of the God's plan for man - are no longer in control of man's destiny. Mary, the new Eve, by her trust & obedience to the word & will of God, paves the way for Jesus, the new Adam, to offer his sacrifice of perfect obedience that reconciles man back to God. With Mary's cooperation, the key begins to turn in the lock of our prison doors. If only by our obedience we would step out.

Ecce, ancilla Domini; Fiat mihi secundum verbum tuum.

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Seeing Red

I’m back to civilization, but that also means back to work.

My folks live down in Georgia by the sandy shores of Clarke Hill Lake. The nearest settlement that would properly be called a “town” is Washington, which is about a half-hour away. It’s almost entirely farmland throughout that region, & beautifully restored plantation houses abound (No, that's not my folk's house below). There are absolutely no commercial or industrial lights to pollute the night sky. The effect, though, is not that the stars are so much brighter, but that the sky is that much blacker; so much so that the blackness seems to drown out the star light.


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On the painting of motorbikes:

CleanCleanCleanCleanClean
WaitWaitWaitWaitWaitWait
SandSandSandSandSand
WaitWaitWaitWaitWaitWait
CleanCleanCleanCleanClean
WaitWaitWaitWaitWaitWait
SandSandSandSandSand
WaitWaitWaitWaitWaitWait
PrepPrepPrepPrepPrepPrep
WaitWaitWaitWaitWaitWait
Paint

One may speak of seeing the world with rose-colored lenses, but in my case, they’re Rosa Corsa. It may take a few weeks before I start seeing other colors clearly.

Thursday, March 19, 2009

Out of Pocket

Bishop Stika's ordination & installation was amazing! My voicebox is completely destroyed. I hope to share some reflections on the Mass soon.

For now, I'm leaving for the weekend & will be away from internet contact.

St. Joseph, guardian & protector of the Lord Jesus & the Blessed Virgin Mary, pray for us & Bishop Stika.

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

"I am Patrick, a sinner..."

"...the most unsophisticated & unworthy among all the faithful of God. Indeed, to many I am the most despised…

"It was here in Ireland that God first opened my heart, so that, even though it was a late start, I became aware of my failings & began to turn with my whole heart to the Lord my God (converterem toto corde ad Dominum meum). For he looked down on my miserable condition & had compassion for me, young & foolilsh as I was. He cared for me before I even knew who he was, before I could tell the difference between right & wrong. He protected me & loved me even as a father does his own child.

"Because of this I cannot – I will not – be silent. I will tell of the great blessings God has granted to me & the grace he has shown to me in this land of slavery. Because this is the way we should behave toward God, when he has shown us why we were wrong & have admitted our sins, we should praise him & proclaim his kindness to everyone in the world.

"There is no other God; there never was & there never will be. God our father was not born nor did he have any beginning. God himself is the beginning of all things, the very one who holds all things together, as we have been taught.

"And we proclaim that Jesus Christ is his son, who has been with God in spirit always, from the beginning of time & before the creation of the world, though in a way we cannot put into words. Through him everything in the universe was created, both what we can see & what is invisible. He was born as a human being & he conquered death, rising into the heavens to be with God. And God gave him power greater than any creature of the heavens or earth or under the earth, so that someday everyone will declare that Jesus Christ is Lord & God. We believe in him & we wait for him to return very soon. He will be the judge of the living & the dead, rewarding every person according to their actions.

"And God has generously poured out on us his Holy Spirit as a gift & a token of immortality. This Spirit makes all faithful believers into children of God & brothers & sisters of Christ. This we proclaim. We worship one God in three parts, by the sacred name of the Trinity.

"…So listen to me well, all of you, great & small, everyone who has any fear of God – especially you landowners so proud of your education – listen & consider this carefully: God… picked ignorant Patrick ahead of all of you, even though I am not worthy, he picked me to go forth with fear & reverence... to serve the Irish faithfully. The love of Christ carried me here to be a help to these people for the rest of my life, if I may be worthy, & to work for them with humility & in sincerity.

"Because of my faith in the Trinity, I must not worry about the consequences of this letter, I choose to proclaim the gift of God & his everlasting help confidently & without fear to make his name known everywhere so that even after I die it might be a kind of spiritual legacy left behind for my brothers & sons, so many thousands I baptized for God…"

An Excerpt from St. Patrick’s Confessions, a letter written by Patrick to answer charges laid against him by the British heirarchy. Excerpt taken from St. Patrick of Ireland by Philip Freeman. EWTN has an alternative translation of the entire text & more (see here). Top photo taken in Dublin in 2005 at ChristChurch Cathedral, lower photos taken at White Friar's Church.

Monday, March 16, 2009

The Words & the Music

At choir practice, it never fails that someone - including me - will pipe up & say, "I'm having trouble with the words & the music." I giggle to myself & think, "That's exactly right!" Obviously, the words & the music are the whole enchillada.

There are clear & immediate spiritual parallels here. What are the "words" & "music" that you are struggling to get right? Have you discussed this with the Conductor?

Saturday, March 14, 2009

The Didache

In a recent catechism study group, I made reference to the Didache, or The Teachings (of the Apostles), a 1st-century catechism & liturgical guide that was apparently in wide-spread use throughout churches of the Near-East. It provides an amazing insight into the earliest Christian faith & practice - all of which we still hold today - even though this document was lost apparently from the early Middle Ages until 1873.

The whole document is found here, but here are some interesting highlights:

On Baptism: "Immerse in running water 'In the name of the Father, & of the Son, & of the Holy Ghost...' If [not] practicible, then pour water three times on the head 'In the name of...' Both baptizer & baptized ought to fast before the baptism... the candidate himself should be told to keep a fast for a day or two beforehand."

On Fasting & Prayer: "Do not keep the same fast-days as the hypocrites. Mondays & Thursdays are their days for fasting, so yours should be Wednesdays & Fridays. Your prayers, too, should be different from theirs. Pray as the Lord enjoined in His Gospel, thus: Our Father, who art in heaven..." Say this prayer three times every day."

On Worship: "Assemble on the Lord's Day, & break bread & offer the Eucharist; but first make confession of your faults, so that your sacrifice may be a pure one. Anyone who has a difference with his fellow is not to take part with you until they have been reconciled, so as to avoid any profanation of your sacrifice."

On Reception of the Eucharist: "No one is to eat or drink of your Eucharist but those who have been baptized in the Name of the Lord; for the Lord's own saying applies here, 'Give not that which is holy unto dogs.' Whoever is holy, let him approach. Whoso is not, let him repent."

On Life: "In your prayers, your almsgiving, & everything you do, be guided by what you read in the Gospel of our Lord."

Interesting stuff, no?

As a commentary, I would add that the Didache is wonderfully edifying, as we catch a glimpse of the intense faith of the early Church, how they lived a new life in Christ, & how they joyfully & expectantly awaited the parousia. I suppose it is not much mentioned these days, because, 1) we have a tendency today to find something neat, figure out its secret, then file it away, & 2) this document holds a unique temptation that, used wrongly, could effect great harm on the Church & the faithful.

What is that temptation? I would call it the temptation to crawl back into the Apostolic womb.

What is that? Well, here's an example: I have a friend who doesn't go to church on Sunday, because the New Testament doesn't specifically tell him to do so, but rather says that followers of the Way met in their homes. Well, that's clearly not the Old Testament (or NT) view of the people of the God of the hosts of the armies of Israel (or maybe that was the origin of the phrase, Army of One).

Other examples: the Didache also mentions the laos, the people, choosing their own bishops & deacons, the cleros; much as many liberal dissident "Catholic" groups demand now (they can't claim their support for abortion or infanticide on those grounds, because the Didache specifically mentions & forbids those common Roman practices). It mentions celebration of the Eucharist, not as a re-enactment of the Last Supper, nor as the representation of the sacrifice of Christ Jesus on the Cross for man's sins, but simply as a meal of bread & wine with many thanks given to God, both before & after. The temptation, then, is to strip Catholicism of all its "Medieval accretions" - even the Vatican II documents use language similiar to this - by which some take to mean things like a male-only ordained priesthood, an infallible pope, Transubstantiation, & so on. Generally, it seems to me that those who deny such things attempt to seize power for themselves or their interest group, or simply to reassert individual primacy over the Church's Teaching while claiming the authority of "That's the way it was in the early Church." Maybe a better way of saying it is, "And you shall be like gods."

The Didache does, however, refer to giving thanks to God for the gift of "spiritual meat & drink," what seems to me prima facia to be an expression of understanding of Transubstatiation (why else would you call bread "meat"?). And there's the rub: the early Church had not yet gone through the shredder of heresy & persecution that was soon to descend upon it & forced it to define what's what with some precision. Just because the first Christians didn't fill tomes with writings expounding their deepest theological understandings doesn't mean that they didn't believe it; it only means that they didn't write it, or that it hasn't come down to us. What some would deny, then, is the ablity for things to be pondered throughout the ages & better understood & expressed as time goes on. It would not take so long for the Church's writers to begin to explain what the Eucharist is, what the ordained priesthood is, what the Church is.

Ultimately, those who want to crawl back into the Apostolic womb deny that the Holy Spirit is at work in the Church & the Church itself as the sign & instrument of Christ's salvation for the whole world. Personally, I glory in all the "Medieval accretions", because without them, the whole thing is gutted of its meaning & power - which ultimately is the presence & power of God at work among his people. Perhaps the greatest witness the Didache offers us is a people filled with gratitude to God for everything without exception, with zeal for a new life in Christ, & burning with hope for the coming glory of heaven. Let us declare in unison with them, Marana tha!

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Lace, Velvet, & Gold

This very intriguing entry at McNamara's blog, sounds surprisingly like founding father John Adams may have walked into Mass at St. Therese in Clinton at 1:30pm on any weekend :

This afternoon, led by Curiosity and good Company I strolled away to… Mother Church, or rather Grandmother Church, I mean the Romish Chappell. Heard a good, short, moral Essay upon the Duty of Parents to their Children, founded in justice and Charity, to take care of their Interests temporal and spiritual. This Afternoons Entertainment was to me, most awfull and affecting. The poor Wretches, fingering their Beads, chanting Latin, not a Word of which they understood, their Pater Nosters and Ave Maria's. Their holy Water-their Crossing themselves perpetually-their Bowing to the Name of Jesus, their wherever they hear it-their Bowings, and Kneelings, and Genuflections before the Altar. The Dress of the Priest was rich with Lace-his Pulpit was Velvet and Gold. The Altar Piece was very rich-little Images and Crucifixes about-Wax Candles lighted up. But how shall I describe the Picture of our Saviour in a Frame of Marble over the Altar at full Length upon the Cross, in the Agonies, and the Blood dropping and streaming from his Wounds. The Musick consisting of an organ, and a Choir of singers, went all the Afternoon, excepting sermon Time, and the Assembly chanted-most sweetly and exquisitely. Here is every Thing which can lay hold of the Sight Eye, Ear, and Imagination. Every Thing which can charm and bewitch the simple and ignorant. I wonder how Luther ever broke the spell.

Luther didn't "break the spell", of course; he merely replaced the wonderful "spell" of Christ's Bride with the spell of man whose magic formula reads, "You shall be like gods."

One also has to note Adam's elitism, his disdain for the hoi poloi who understand not a word of what they pray(!). The Gospel is for everyone, including the simple & ignorant. Would that I had but a simple faith!

Would he have writen the same if he had walked into a Mass in the typical suburban parish today (or even some cathedrals!)? He was clearly moved by the lovely chanted hymns & the painting of Christ's Passion in the altar piece. Why was this art considered "true, good, & beautiful" then, but somehow undesirable now? Perhaps we've undervalued the power of litugical beauty & been too eager to jetison the external expressions of our faith in favor of some nebulous concepts of aesthetic "simplicity" or "purity" currently in vogue that are really foreign to the Faith. Often today, bare utiliarianism has become dogma in regard to the liturgy. However, Puritanism & Catholicism really can not be reconciled.

Thanks, Mr. Adams. All in all, it makes me proud to be a Papist!

Book Review: Lovely Like Jerusalem by Aidan Nichols, O.P.

If you cringe at some of the silly explanations commonly given about the parting of the Red Sea, the Manna in the desert, or the water from the rock at Meribah, or if you simply take Scripture study seriously, you will love this dense, well-written book, which provides an intelligent counter-viewpoint to the commonly accepted “historical-critical” methods of scripture research & the ubiquitous J, E, D, & P source theories. I, too, find these theories to be a bit too tedious & flaccid, as they oversimplify the complexities inherent in Sacred Scripture & make complex the things that should be quite simple.

Fr. Nichols provides a coherent & thorough analysis of what the story of the Bible is. That is, it’s plot & major themes. We often think of the Bible as a collection of individual books - which it is - each to be taken on its own. But, these books must tell a single narrative, otherwise, the compilers & editors would have not put them together, & the revelation of God to his man would certainly become confused & unintelligible.

Fr. Aidan’s writing is thick, & you may likely have to read & re-read each page a few times (or maybe that’s just me). But stick with him, & you will indeed be rewarded with new insight into the writings of the people Israel, & how they strain forward toward fulfillment in Christ Jesus. This is a well-written, compelling, & enlightening book by a preacher & teacher with a great passion for God & his Word. And isn’t enlightenment the reason we read the Scriptures in the first place?

H.E. Rating: 4-1/2 Aspergillum shakes
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Monday, March 9, 2009

Te Deum, part II

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of attending the dicoesan choir practice at All Saint's church (yes, the one where someone made off with the altar support & replaced it with a bizarre modern sculpture meets alien-eyeball thingy) in preparation of the bishop-elect's ordination & installation (makes him sound like a new faucet, does it not?), even giving up my beloved afternoon Gregorian Rite Mass with Fr. Orr in Clinton to do so.

First inpression of the music? Well, since it's Lent, I will penitentially refrain from my usual full-of-piss-n-vinegar tone on the subject & accentuate the positive. The music is quite varied in period & style, & much of it comes close to meeting the requirements for liturgical music laid out by the Church. See, progress! It even includes some timeless classics that should be sung at Mass always & everywhere!
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And just what are those pieces? Well, among others, we will sing the Kyrie in Greek & the Sanctus & Agnus Dei in Latin; there's a hymn composed by St. Ambrose (but sadly, not in Ambrosian chant); the William byrd round Non Nobis Domine; the English-language translation of the Church's great hymn of praise Te Deum Laudamus, Holy God We Praise Thy Name; & a catchy little tune by a guy named Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart (click on the picture for example of what we hope it will sound like).
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I hope Bishop Stika & all present find the music pleasing, but ultimately it is for love of the Lord that we sing.
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Here's a translation of the great Eucharistic hymn Ave Verum Corpus:
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Hail, true Body, born of the Virgin Mary,
Who truly suffered, sacrificed on the Cross for man,
From whose pierced side flowed water & blood,
Be for us a foretaste (of heaven) in the test of death.

Friday, March 6, 2009

Perpetua & Felicity

Saturday is the feast day of Sts. Perpetua & Felicity (†200). Following is a short article on them from the bulletin:

In the Litany of Saints, we hear two unusual female names, but perhaps we’ve never learned who they were & why they have been continuously honored in the Church for over 1,800 years.

Perpetua was a beautiful young noble woman of Carthage & mother of an infant son. She would not renounce her faith in Christ despite the tearful pleading of her father & the threats of the civil authorities. She was imprisoned, along with Felicity, a slave & expectant mother, & three male catechumens. They were all baptized in prison & Felicity gave birth to a daughter immediately before the games (the children were raised by the Christian community). They died nobly in the arena, Perpetua taking care to ensure her hair was pinned up, “for it was not becoming for a martyr to suffer with disheveled hair, lest she should appear to be mourning” for her imminent return to the Lord.

Perpetua kept a journal the group’s arrest & imprisonment; an eyewitness completed the account of their martyrdom. This chronicle, & their incredible witness of faith, survives to this day.

The account of their martyrdom, thought to have been edited later by Tertulian, is extremely moving, but it’s spiritual value is priceless. Some historians felt that Perpetua may have belonged to the Montanist heresy, due to the emphasis on private revelation & visions, yet the Church in Rome has venerated these holy women & their companions at least as far back as the 4th century. Here are a couple of excerpts from the account.

After being arrested, found guilty, & awaiting execution in the coliseum by wild animals, Perpetua had a vision answering whether or not she & her companions would be freed:

I saw a golden ladder of marvellous height, reaching up even to heaven, & very narrow, so that persons could only ascend it one by one… And under the ladder itself was crouching a dragon of wonderful size, who lay in wait for those who ascended… I said, 'In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, he shall not hurt me.' And from under the ladder itself, as if in fear of me, he slowly lifted up his head; & as I trod upon the first step, I trod upon his head. And I went up, & I saw an immense extent of garden, & in the midst of the garden a white-haired man sitting in the dress of a shepherd, of a large stature, milking sheep; & standing around were many thousand white-robed ones. And he raised his head, & looked upon me, & said to me, 'You are welcome, daughter.'

Following several days & more visions:

I awoke, & perceived that I was not to fight with beasts, but against the devil. Still I knew that the victory was awaiting me. This, so far, I have completed several days before the exhibition; but what passed at the exhibition itself let who will write.

Thursday, March 5, 2009

Codex Sinaiticus

While the Internet can & is certainly used for evil, it can also be used for amazing & delightful good.

Thus we have the Codex Project. From a July 2008 article in the Knoxville News Sentinel: "The oldest surviving copy of the New Testament, a 4th-century version that had its Gospels and epistles spread across the world, is being made whole again - online..." It is a project coordinated by the British Library.

And here it is (click on image for a larger view) . . .
















The site is: http://www.codexsinaiticus.org/en/

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Book Review - An Exorcist Tells His Story

by Fr. Gabriella Amorth

By now, everyone knows this encounter Abp. Sheen had on an airplane: Declining the in-flight meal as a fast, the woman seated next to him also declined. Asking, “Oh, are you Catholic, too?” She said, “No, I’m a witch, & I’m fasting for abortions.”

This fascinating & startling book by the chief exorcist of the diocese of Rome is not only an accounting of a priest’s battle with demonic forces, but also a plea to the Church to take seriously the ability of demons to wreck havoc on people, who are often dismissed as just psychologically disturbed. Often turned away by their local pastors, these desperate folks often turn to mediums & witches for help. Of course, asking the enemy to help dispel the enemy doesn’t work, & the situation always worsens. Trouble also comes when lay people take on this task of confronting demons by themselves, which should never, ever be done – this is a field reserved exclusively for those with Orders. However, Fr. Amorth has found that many, even most, clergy, even if they intellectually or theologically accept the dogma of demons, do not really “believe” in the reality of demonic influence & thusly implement exorcism as part of their pastoral ministry. He charges bishops, who he has also found to not take demonic activity seriously, to fulfill their role as chief exorcist in their diocese as successor of the Apostles. Fr. Amorth also recommends prayer & the prayerful use of sacramentals as effective weapons against the enemy. His writing style is not so polished, but Father speaks from the heart & the stories are riveting, in any case. The cover shows a painting of St. Francis casting out demons from a city ~ exorcism in his case being a special gift. Fr. Amorth also has a follow-up book, which I hope to read & review some time, as well as a book of Marian meditations, called The Gospel of Mary.

I find it curious that the Leonine prayers after Mass, including the prayer to St. Michael the Archangel, have been suppressed in the new rite, though I always try to say them anyway. We are engaged in a spiritual war; to dismiss, diminish, or be unaware of the presence & activity of the enemy is essentially to be neutralized in the fight.

H.E. Rating: 4 aspergelum shakes

Maria: Patrona Boiariae

Sorry to my faithful reader(s); I've had almost no time to blog lately. However, just to keep from dropping out altogether, I offer these Mama's Boy photos from Munich (click for a larger image):





How incredibly lovely it is to see be walking down the street & come across an image of the Blessed Mother, usually carrying the infant Lord in her arms, over the doorway or in a nook built into the corner of a building. In fact, they were everywhere. I sort of began a hunt for them, so I'll share more later. The creativity & artistic excellence of the images was amazing. So imagine what's inside the churches! This is simply unimaginable here in the States. Wonderful!

Monday, March 2, 2009

February 3 is the feast day of St. Katharine Drexel.

Could you do it? Could you walk away from millions? That’s exactly what St. Katharine did.

Born and educated into a wealthy Philadelphia family in 1858, she could have settled into the easy life a socialite. However, God stirred her heart towards her true vocation: the education and care of black & Native Americans. She founded the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament in 1891 & opened their first school in Santa Fe in 1894. Fighting violent racism, she opened dozens of schools throughout the U.S., including Xavier University in New Orleans in 1915.

At age 77, Katharine suffered a severe heart attack. She accepted this new challenge from the Lord with equal vigor, living the next twenty years in contemplation & prayer in her room overlooking the sanctuary of St. Elizabeth’s Convent in Bensalem Township, PA. She died in 1955 at the age of 96. She was canonized by John Paul II in 2000 as only the second American-born saint. The Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament carry on her mission today (www.katharinedrexel.org).

“If we live the Gospel, we will be people of justice; our lives will bring the Good News to the poor.” - St. Katharine