Wednesday, December 23, 2009
The structure of the Lord's Prayer [Revised]
What he points out is that of the seven petitions the first three reflect, in reverse temporal order, the purpose of the life of man and the last three represent, in reverse temporal order, those things that are detrimental to the fulfillment of a truly human life. The logic of the first three petitions goes from 1) doing God's will, which 2) accomplishes the coming of His kingdom, which then 3) gives glory, honor (hallows) His name. The three barriers to achieving this are 1) our sins (trespasses, debts), 2) temptations, and 3) the Evil One (which is how πονηροῦ is often translated). This moves from the Evil One to temptation to sin! Note that the first word in the prayer is "Father." The "our" comes after "father" in the Greek. The last word is "The Evil One." Also note, as Parsch did, the two "as" statements in the third and fifth petitions, enhance the sense of a diptych around the central, fourth, petition.
The middle petition, for daily bread, is clearly highlighted by this structure. It reflects our desire to have what we need now on earth to fulfill our humanity. Logically, this is grace, but in fact it is a prayer for bread. Parsch doesn't put a particularly Eucharistic spin on this petition, but that has been done in the tradition, especially those, such as St. Jerome, who have translated the petition as "Give us this day our supersubstantial bread." (See this article by Fr. Benjamin Reese for a linguistic justification of this translation; as it turns out the word appears nowhere else in Greek.) What is it that helps us 1) to fulfill our humanity, the first three petitions, and 2) to avoid those things which are barriers to that fulfillment, the last three petitions? The Eucharistic Bread of Life!
For the early Christians bread already had a significance beyond physical sustenance. First of all, it had a social significance in the ancient Mediterranean cultures. Witness, for instance, the word "companion," which helps us remember that sharing bread is a component of partaking of bread. "As this broken bread was scattered upon the mountains, but was brought together and became one, so let thy Church be gathered together from the ends of the earth into thy kingdom, for thine is the glory and the power through Jesus Christ for ever." (Didache 9:4). Further, of course, bread has a spiritual, Eucharistic significance.
The prayer clearly lays out the fundamental spiritual dynamic of human existence. We are stuck in the spiral of sin. The only way to get beyond that spiral to the movement of grace towards God is through the Word Incarnate become the Bread of Life. There is a movement down and a movement up. It is no mistake that the Lord's Prayer appears where it does in the Liturgy, right after the consecration and at the head of the Communion Rite.
This is not a fanciful, "spiritual" interpretation imposed upon the text from later reflection. It reflects the logic of the text itself. This prayer was clearly composed very carefully, which does not itself call into question its dominical origin . If John of the Cross can so carefully compose spiritual poetry in a dark prison, our Lord could certainly have composed this prayer while spending those hours at night in prayer. It would be a spiritual masterpiece, even if it weren't dominical.
I don't always agree with Parsch's interpretation of the liturgy. He falls victim to the archaistic dismissal of medieval developments that Cardinal Ratzinger criticized in The Spirit of the Liturgy. On the other hand, this book can be very insightful and spiritually upbuilding.
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Modern Saints
To quote my older children, "Saints are cool."
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Ralph McInerny's appreciative appraisal of Thomas Merton
I owe a great debt of gratitude to Merton (and to the grace of God first, of course) for the revitalization of my Catholicism my senior year in college. Although I understand McInerny's point about a Pharisaical interpretation of Merton's love affair, I'm not sure I can be quite as sanguine about it as McInerny is. As McInerny points out, he did remain faithful. The twentieth century seems to be populated with near-saints of this sort. The scourge of Satan has had its effect, I think.
On the other hand, after twenty-eight years of "trying," I'm not exactly St. Robert of Franklin.
McInterny's brother, Dennis, wrote a book about Merton. Thomas Merton: The Man and His Works. Spenser, Mass.: Cistercian Publications, 1974. He also wrote his doctoral dissertation at the University of Minnesota on Merton: "Thomas Merton and Society: A Study of the Man and His Thought against the Background of Contemporary American Culture." He also had an exchange of letters with Merton that is on file at the Thomas Merton Center.
Vulgate and Neovulgate
Compare:
Original vulgate:
verumtamen prope est his qui timent eum salutare eius ut habitet gloria in terra nostra
misericordia et veritas occurrerunt iustitia et pax deosculatae sunt
veritas de terra orta est et iustitia de caelo prospexit
sed et Dominus dabit bonum et terra nostra dabit germen suum
iustitia ante eum ibit et ponet in via gressus suos.
Neovulgate, with changes in bold:
Vere prope timentes eum salutare ipsius, ut inhabitet gloria in terra nostra.
Misericordia et veritas obviaverunt sibi, iustitia et pax osculatae sunt.
Veritas de terra orta est, et iustitia de caelo prospexit.
Etenim Dominus dabit benignitatem, et terra nostra dabit fructum suum.
Iustitia ante eum ambulabitet ponet in via gressus suos.
I presume the points were a) to make it somewhat more classical ("etenim" rather than "sed et"), and 2) to make it correspond more closely to the Hebrew. For instance, "fructum" must be a better translation of the Hebrew than "germen."
By the way, the version in the office inexplicably has "verumtamen" rather than "vere"!
This is a beautiful passage with Christological overtones. The English:
Surely his salvation is at hand for those who fear him, that glory may dwell in our land.
Steadfast love and faithfulness will meet; righteousness and peace will kiss each other.
Faithfulness will spring up from the ground, and righteousness will look down from the sky.
Yea, the LORD will give what is good, and our land will yield its increase.
Righteousness will go before him, and make his footsteps a way.
What better image of the fruitful marriage between heaven and earth that occurred in the Incarnation?
No more superstars
Now it seems there are no superstars dominating the headlines in local or international Catholicism. Maybe it is because I'm not watching. Benedict XVI, although certainly a wonderful pope, is too retiring and intellectual to be the kind of Catholic magnet that Mother Teresa, John Paul II, and Archbishop Dolan were.
We don't need them, of course, but it sure is inspiring to have them. There have occasionally been such superstars in the history of the Church, who shook the Church up. I'm thinking of, for instance, St. Francis of Assisi. Who else, though, was so big?
I suppose it was difficult to have the kind of influence in your own time that ecclesiastical figures can have now because of mass communication. St. Benedict was certainly influential, but not in his own time. St. Antony became influential because of the best seller by St. Athanasius. Perhaps St. Benedict became so influential because of the bestseller by Pope St. Gregory the Great.
Is there another superstar on the horizon? Any thoughts?
The revival of living Latin
Hat tip goes to Lisa Seeley, wife of Andrew Seeley of the Institute for Catholic Liberal Education.
Friday, December 11, 2009
Political conservative vs. liberal
25,000 and counting
I intend to keep this blog up, even though the genre is in its death throws.
Thursday, December 10, 2009
The Latin Hymns of the Office
I wanted to translate the Advent hymn for morning prayer, "Vox clara," so I did some poking around on the Internet and discovered the fascinating story of the "revision" of the Latin hymnody enacted by Pope Urban VIII in the 17th century. He was so imbued with the classicism of the Renaissance the considered it necessary to rewrite or have rewritten most of the hymns that had been part of the Catholic heritage for a thousand years, by such illustrious Churchmen as St. Ambrose and Prudentius! The defective translations stayed with the Church for over 300 years until the reforms of Vatican II restored, for the most part, the original versions of the hymns. Well, they got one thing right, anyway, eh? Here is an article at EWTN about Urban VIII's "reforms." Talking about imposing the spirit of the age on the life of the Church! HT preces-latinae.org.
I never did get around to translating the hymn.
Light and Darkness
I was imagining what it must have been like living before the advent of electric or gas lighting during the winter when there are more than 14 hours of darkness in a place with the latitude of Milwaukee. Outside it would be very dark unless the moon were shining. You would have starlight at best (which would be much brighter because there would be little interference from ground light). If it were cloudy the clouds would have little light to reflect from the ground, so it would be much darker than it is now in cloudy weather. No orange glow from the city street lights.
Inside it would simply be dark unless you had a candle or two lit, or a fireplace (which we don't have). For fourteen hours. You certainly would not be able to get much accomplished after dark, so you'd have to sit around and play the fiddle like Pa Ingalls, or knit or string onions or something. I'm sure people slept more in the winter than we do. And you would probably sleep more deeply and soundly, since it would be genuinely dark. There is now no discernible difference between sleeping patterns in summer and winter.
Just think how frightful it must have been to wander around in a medieval castle or village at night, not knowing who or what was lurking in the shadows that were deeper than anything we know about in our day.
I imagine there are places on the earth where one can experience this kind of darkness even now--away from cities in places where electricity is scarce.
In our house there is no place you can go to avoid the light that comes in from the outside. The street lights are bright. On cloudy days the bright orange lights from the cities make it even brighter. When there is snow on the ground it is brightest of all. Our neighbor keeps their outdoor lights on all night to keep away the burglar. Even if you put blinds up, they are translucent enough to let in significant amounts of light.
And in the house there are dozens of little light sources all over the house shining forth from the technology that we have surrounded ourselves with. The t.v., the computer, the printer, the digital alarm clocks, the CD player, the flash drive.
If you walk around our neighborhood, whether the moon is shining or not, whether it is cloudy or not you do not need a flashlight.
And we stay up until after 11:00 (six hours after dark) doing the normal, productive things. Not sitting around knitting or playing the fiddle.
It makes one tired just thinking about it. That rhythm between summer work and winter quasi-hibernation was probably quite healthy. I know that monastic schedules used to change between summer and winter. I wonder if they still do. I'm wondering if there is some way we can return to it.
I suppose at this point I should have some spiritual insight about this, but I don't. It is just an observation. Although I do believe that the chronic sense of fatigue that is so common in our day may find its source partly in the change in our culture that I am describing.
Sunday, December 06, 2009
One of the bad things about the new liturgical translation...
Friday, December 04, 2009
A good vision for a school...
A review of the novel forthcoming. Br. Bob, you'd like this one, I think.
Wednesday, December 02, 2009
Whether capitalism is capable of being a just system or not,....
3. Souls soon learn in this way; they perceive their faults very clearly, and sometimes the discovery of how quickly they are overcome by but slight earthly trials is more painful than the subtraction of God's sensible favours. I consider that God thus shows them great mercy, for though their behaviour may be faulty, yet they gain greatly in humility. Not so with the people of whom I first spoke; they believe their conduct is saintly, and wish others to agree with them. I will give you some examples which will help us to understand and to try ourselves, without waiting for God to try us, since it would be far better to have prepared and examined ourselves beforehand.
4. A rich man, without son or heir, loses part of his property, but still has more than enough to keep himself and his household. If this misfortune grieves and disquiets him as though he were left to beg his bread, how can our Lord ask him to give up all things for His sake? This man will tell you he regrets losing his money because he wished to bestow it on the poor.
5. I believe His Majesty would prefer me to conform to His will, and keep peace of soul while attending to my interests, to such charity as this. If this person cannot resign himself because God has not raised him so high in virtue, well and good: let him know that he is wanting in liberty of spirit; let him beg our Lord to grant it him, and be rightly disposed to receive it. Another person has more than sufficient means to live on, when an opportunity occurs for acquiring more property: if it is offered him, by all means let him accept it; but if he must go out of his way to obtain it and then continues working to gain more and more--however good his intention may be (and it must be good, for I am speaking of people who lead prayerful and good lives), he cannot possibly enter the mansions near the King.
Tuesday, December 01, 2009
The priest and the words of consecration
The instructions of the 1962 missal, says that the priest rests his elbows on the altar, inclines his head and speaks "over" the host and the chalice, elevating them slightly. You could interpret that as speaking into, but it certainly isn't a necessary interpretation.
I guess I'll have to read Parsch or Jungmann.
Friday, November 20, 2009
I love Journalists
Galileo, who died in 1642, was condemned by the Vatican for saying the Earth revolved around the Sun. Church teaching at the time held that the Earth was the center of the universe. In the early 1990s, Pope John Paul II rehabilitated him, saying the church had erred.
Episcopal Wall of Honor
- Most Rev. Charles J. Chaput Archbishop, Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Denver, CO
- Most Rev. Salvatore Joseph Cordileone Bishop, Roman Catholic Diocese of Oakland, CA
- Most Rev. Timothy Dolan Archbishop, Roman Catholic Diocese of New York, NY
- Most Rev. Joseph E. Kurtz Archbishop, Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Louisville, KY
- Most Rev. Richard J. Malone Bishop, Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland, ME
- Most Rev. John J. Myers Archbishop, Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Newark, NJ
- Most Rev. Joseph F. Naumann Archbishop, Roman Catholic Diocese of Kansas City, KS
- Most Rev. John Nienstedt Archbishop, Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, MN
- Most Rev. Thomas J. Olmsted Bishop, Roman Catholic Diocese of Phoenix, AZ
- Most Rev. Michael J. Sheridan Bishop, Roman Catholic Diocese of Colorado Springs, CO
- Most Rev. Donald W. Wuerl Archbishop, Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington, D.C.
- Most Rev. David A. Zubik Bishop, Roman Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh, PA
I'm going to assume that a couple of bishops who weren't on the list that I would expect to have been didn't get the memo in time.
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
St. Francis's comment on Twitter, Facebook, Blogger, etc.
Bravery and heroism
When Max is eight he has a conversation with his tutor about the events which precipitated World War I, which had just started. They were discussing the Serbian youth who had plotted to kill Archduke Ferdinand. In this conversation Dr. Mendel makes a very useful distinction between bravery and nobility.
"So are they good, like heroes are good? Or bad, like murderers are bad?"Then the possibility that they are martyrs is discussed.
"They are murderers, not heroes. They thought what they were doing was brave, which it was. They also thought it was noble, which it was not. Some Serbs may think them heroes for a while, but they will be wrong. The lives they have given up [because they will be executed] would have been more use to Serbia than their deaths will be."
"But they could still be heroes when they're dead? Like martyrs?"Terrorists, no matter what side they are on or how just their cause, have lost all understanding of these distinctions. Islamic terrorists may be brave, because they've overcome fear and danger, but they are not heroes. We need to be clear and direct about this, and about any contemporary or historical act of terrorism. Bravery and a just cause does not make you a hero if you engage in ignoble acts.
"A martyr is a witness to the truth. Whether Bosnia is part of Serbia or part of the Empire is not a matter of truth, but a matter of politics. Politics is about power, not about truth. And now nearly all of Europe is at war because of these foolish boys."
I think this also applies to those who would promote a totalitarian state. Terrorists and totalitarians are cut from the same cloth. The difference is that one has the reins of state in hand, and the other does not. Neither is consistent with the Catholic faith. That is why Guy Fawkes and his co-conspirators were not genuinely representative of the Catholic religion. Nor are those who commit acts of murder in the name of the pro life movement.
I think it interesting, by the way, that some of the earlier instances of both errors appeared in England--Fawkes and Cromwell.
I also think that burning figures of Fawkes in effigy doesn't rise much above the ignobility of Fawkes himself.
Thursday, November 12, 2009
John Paul II and the Pater Noster
Retaining one's innocence in a depraved world
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Collect of St. Martin of Tours
Latin:
Deus, qui in beato Martino episcopo sive per vitam sive per mortem magnificatus es, innova gratiae tuae mirabilia in cordibus nostris, ut neque mors neque vita separare nos possit a caritate tua. Per Dominum....This isn't difficult Latin. My literal translation:
[O] God, who has been exalted in blessed Martin, both though [his] life and through [his] death, renew in our hearts the wonders of your grace, that neither death nor life may separate us from your love. Through Our Lord....Now ICEL (with my parenthetical comments:
I just don't think the modification and paraphrasing helps us understand the prayer better.Father [I understand why they do this, but it irks me nonetheless], by his life and death
[blessed?] Martin of Tours offered you worship and praise [in switching to the active voice, the focus on God is somewhat mitigated. also, it really doesn't say anything in the Latin about worship or praise].
Renew in our hearts [so far so good] the power of your love [okay, so what is wrong with the word "grace," and where did "mirabilia" go, and why is love put here, since it clearly belongs later--this last move distances the prayer somewhat from Romans 8, which is the obvious reference],
so that neither death nor life [okay] may separate us from you.
Grant this...
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Wow!
Interview on Drew Marianin on Capital Punishment
New Tractarians
Not everyone has given up on Notre Dame!
Wednesday, October 07, 2009
Our Lady of the Holy Rosary
Friday, September 25, 2009
The Divine Office
Thursday, September 24, 2009
The Neighbours
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Lilles blog correction
Ouch!
He also must want my blood pressure to go up.
Thursday, September 03, 2009
Anthony Lilles' Blog
Most people look at prayer as principally a psychological and therapeutic exercise. They do not normally see prayer as something that actually changes time. But prayer is not simply psychological or therapeutic. It is interpersonal, in the Body of Christ for the glory of the Father and the salvation of the world.
Because the prayer of Christ is always effective, Christian prayer is effective to the degree it is in union with Him and the desires of his heart. It is his desire that all things, including time itself, should be offered in thanksgiving to the Father for the salvation of the world. The reality is, Christians, as members of the Body of Christ, make time pregnant with grace whenever they pray. When we pray, this grace-filled time becomes part of our offering to the Father in Christ. [Emphasis mine]
Friday, August 28, 2009
Online course discount
The coupon code is k2w3sc
It's good until September 1st.
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Land o'Lakes?
Rejecting the infamous 1967 “Land O’ Lakes Statement” by which Catholic college leaders declared independence from the Church, Bishop D’Arcy declares firmly, “There is no Catholic identity apart from the affiliation with the Church.”
Tuesday, August 04, 2009
Silver Lining department
One thing I avoid is going anywhere near the Internet. It is a bad habit to get into to hang out on the Internet when you could be reading Aquinas (or, Br. Bob, Bonaventure).
* we divide the kids into the "littles" and the "bigs." The littles go to bed early, the bigs, being teenagers and beyond, stay up.
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Ancient Christian Faith web page
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
The labyrinth. Is it traditional?
Is the labyrinth a Catholic tradition? Even the founder of modern labyrinth movement, Lauren Artress, doesn't claim this. See this article. Not all articles are as critical. See, for instance, this article, which points out that the labyrinth was originally a symbol of Hell and the need for redemption, but then claims that in the Middle Ages the labyrinths were later used as substitute pilgrimages to Jerusalem. Neither article is well documented, although the first one says, "Doreen Prydes, a professor of medieval history at the University of Notre Dame, says there is absolutely no evidence of labyrinth walking in the Middle Ages. She believes that Christians of that era saw the labyrinth as a symbol of redemption, not pilgrimage." The second article also warns about a false, pagan/new age use of labyrinths, but says they can be used properly as substitutes for a holy land pilgrimage.
So, should the high school have equated the labyrinth with the rosary? What do you think?
Friday, July 24, 2009
Fall online courses for high schoolers
Literature: Tolkien & Fairy Stories
Theology: The Mass Explained
Theology: Catholic Spiritual Writers
Homeschool Connections has several other online courses this fall.
Theology: Moral Theology with Monica Ashour
Theology: Christian Anthropology with Monica Ashour
Literature: Gawain and the Green Knight -- Chivalry, Courtesy and Chastity with Henry Russell, Ph.D.
Literature: Christ and King Arthur -- Heroism and Holiness with Henry Russell, Ph.D.
Literature: The Orthodox Canterbury Tales of Geoffrey Chaucer -- Trust God and Tradition with Henry Russell, Ph.D.
Science: Blood in Sickness and In Health with Kris Corriera
What Do Philosophers Do and How Do They Do It with Jean Rioux, Ph.D.
Democracy, Government, and Citizenship with Ed Rivet
Principles of Economics and Catholic Perspectives with David Harris, Ph.D.
All courses are four to eight weeks long. To find out more just go the the Homeschool Connections web page.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Gates' Arrest
Monday, July 13, 2009
Milwaukee NFP Conference
Archdiocesan Conference on Natural Family Planning
Saturday, August 29, 2009
St. Joseph Center, 1501 S Layton Blvd, Milwaukee
Cost: $15.00 per person
The Nazareth Project of the John Paul II Center is hosting an Archdiocesan Conference on Natural Family Planning on August 29, 2009. Natural family planning, or NFP, is a method of achieving or postponing pregnancy by observing the changes in a woman’s body that naturally indicate her fertility. Everyone is welcome and invited to attend this conference, which will begin with a mass celebrated by Bishop Callahan. No prior knowledge of NFP is needed! This day is especially for those wishing to learn more about Natural Family Planning, as well as those who work with engaged or married couples in parishes, such as FOCCUS couples. For more information and registration form, please visit our website:http://www.johnpaul2center.org/images/NFP_Flyer.pdf. If you are interested in being trained as an NFP instructor, call Lydia LoCoco at 414 758-2214.
Friday, July 10, 2009
In what sense has the Church's position hardened?
In no sense at all. There was no change, nor was there ever any doubt about where the Church stood.
Tuesday, July 07, 2009
Another Moral Theologian weighs in on West
Friday, July 03, 2009
My thoughts on the culture, esp. the 60s
Interestingly, it is reading Out of the Silent Planet and Perelandra that has made me more aware of the spiritual warfare that underlies our contemporary culture.
Thursday, July 02, 2009
The Shelf
Wednesday, July 01, 2009
My books
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
I would be interested in any teaching, writing, editing, speaking or administrative opportunities in the following areas:
- Family life
- Lay spirituality
- Catholic Education (liberal education, higher education, homeschooling)
- Dogmatic theology
- Moral theology (life issues, sexuality, social teachings)
- Latin, philosophy, religion, or literature
Thursday, June 04, 2009
Only in this weird 21st century...
A text from a Kempis apropos the Christopher West Flap
"Nullus Sanctus fuit tam alte raptus, vel illuminatus, qui prius vel postea non fuerit tentatus" (Bk. 2, Ch. 9.7).
"Non dormit diabolus, nec caro adhuc mortua est. Ideo non cesses te præparare ad certamen, quia a dextris et a sinistris sunt hostes qui nunquam quiescunt" (Bk. 2, Ch. 9.8).
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Biblical Scholars
Ignorant and proud men of science were blind notwithstanding this light, because their pride and the cloud of self-love had covered up and put out the light. Wherefore they understood the Holy Scripture rather literally than with understanding, and taste only the letter of it, still desiring many other books; and they get not to the marrow of it, because they have deprived themselves of the light, with which is found and expounded the Scripture; and they are annoyed and murmur, because they find much in it that appears to them gross and idiotic. And, nevertheless, they appear to be much illuminated in their knowledge of Scripture, as if they had studied it for long; and this is not remarkable, because they have of course the natural light from whence proceeds science. But because they have lost the supernatural light, infused by grace, they neither see nor know My Goodness, nor the grace of My servants.
Friday, May 22, 2009
A quandry
Monday, May 18, 2009
Summer online courses for high school students
Here are the links to the classes. (They're not so lofty as they sound -- I'' be gearing the classes to your average high school student.)
- The Space Trilogy and C. S. Lewis.http://tinyurl.com/spacetrilogy
- Catholic Living for Young People http://tinyurl.com/catholicliving
- Writing for College Preparatory http://tinyurl.com/collegewriting
- Short Stories by J. R. R. Tolkienhttp://tinyurl.com/tolkienfairystories
- The Mass Explained for Young People http://tinyurl.com/massexplained
- Beowulf and Christ with Henry Russell, Ph.D.http://tinyurl.com/beowulfchrist
- The Catholic Shakespeare: MacBeth with Henry Russell, Ph.D.http://tinyurl.com/catholicmacbeth
Faith and Science
It's relatively easy for people to see that a lot of the great art of the Western World -- music, painting, sculpture, literat ure, architecture -- is the product of a Christian culture, often inspired by the faith or even funded by the Church. That seems obvious. But what people don't realize is that something similar is true of the sciences.
Think about it. Universities are an invention of the Church. Copernicus was a Roman Catholic cleric, and he dedicated his book on the heliocentric universe to the Pope. The calendar we use today is the Gregorian Calendar, because it was promulgated by Pope Gregory XIII, who was working with the best astronomers and mathematicians of his time. Galileo himself always remained a Catholic, and his two daughters were nuns. One of the greatest Italian astronomers of the 19th century was a Jesuit priest, Angelo Secchi. The father of modern genetics, Gregor Mendel, was a Catholic monk. The creator of the "Big Bang" theory was a Belgian priest, Georges Lemaitre.
In short, the idea that there is some natural tension between science and the Church, between reason and faith, is utter nonsense. Nowadays, when people hear the words "science" and "the Church," they immediately think of Galileo's trial in the 1600s. But, in the larger scheme of things, that complex case -- which is frequently distorted by anti-Catholic propagandists -- was a glaring exception. There's a reason why critics of the Church are always bringing it up: It's the only example they've got. So, when we hear the words "science" and "the Church," we should think Copernicus, Secchi, Mendel and Lemaitre. They're representative. Galileo's trial is not.
Wednesday, May 06, 2009
The Great Divorce on stage
My Baby Needs a Shepherd
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
The importance of Orthodoxy
Here, from Orthodoxwiki, are a couple of sayings of the desert fathers in this regard:
It was said concerning Abba Agathon that some monks came to find him having heard tell of his great discernment. Wanting to see if he would lose his temper they said to him 'Aren't you that Agathon who is said to be a fornicator and a proud man?' 'Yes, it is very true,' he answered. They resumed, 'Aren't you that Agothon who is always talking nonsense?' 'I am." Again they said 'Aren't you Agothon the heretic?' But at that he replied 'I am not a heretic.' So they asked him, 'Tell us why you accepted everything we cast you, but repudiated this last insult.' He replied 'The first accusations I take to myself for that is good for my soul. But heresy is separation from God. Now I have no wish to be separated from God.' At this saying they were astonished at his discernment and returned, edified.
***
This is what Abba Daniel, the Pharanite, said, 'Our Father Abba Arsenius told us of an inhabitant of Scetis, of notable life and of simple faith; through his naïveté he was deceived and said, "The bread which we receive is not really the body of Christ, but a symbol. Two old men having learnt that he had uttered this saying, knowing that he was outstanding in his way of life, knew that he had not spoken through malice, but through simplicity. So they came to find him and said, "Father, we have heard a proposition contrary to the faith on the part of someone who says that the bread which we receive is not really the body of Christ, but a symbol." The old man said, "it is I who have said that." Then the old men exhorted him saying, "Do not hold this position, Father, but hold one in conformity with that which the catholic Church has given us. We believe, for our part, that the bread itself is the body of Christ as in the beginning, God formed man in his image, taking the dust of the earth, without anyone being able to say that it is not the image of God, even though it is not seen to be so; thus it is with the bread of which he said that it is his body; and so we believe that it is really the body of Christ." The old man said to them, "As long as I have not been persuaded by the thing itself, I shall not be fully convinced." So they said, "Let us pray God about this mystery throughout the whole of this week and we believe that God will reveal it to us." The old man received this saying with joy and he prayed in these words, "Lord, you know that it is not through malice that I do not believe and so that I may not err through ignorance, reveal this mystery to me, Lord Jesus Christ." The old men returned to their cells and they also prayed God, saying, "Lord Jesus Christ, reveal this mystery to the old man, that he may believe and not lose his reward." God heard both the prayers. At the end of the week they came to church on Sunday and sat all three on the same mat, the old man in the middle. Then their eyes were opened and when the bread was placed on the holy table, there appeared as it were a little child to these three alone. And when the priest put out his hand to break the bread, behold an angel descended from heaven with a sword and poured the child's blood into the chalice. When the priest cut the bread into small pieces, the angel also cut the child in pieces. When they drew near to receive the sacred elements the old man alone received a morsel of bloody flesh. Seeing this he was afraid and cried out, "Lord, I believe that this bread is your flesh and this chalice your blood." Immediately the flesh which he held in his hand became bread, according to the mystery and he took it, giving thanks to God. Then the old men said to him, "God knows human nature and that man cannot eat raw flesh and that is why he has changed his body into bread and his blood into wine, for those who receive it in faith." Then they gave thanks to God for the old man, because he had allowed him not to lose the reward of his labour. So all three returned with joy to their own cells.'
***
(Abba Theodore) said 'If you are friendly with someone who happens to fall into the temptation of fornication, offer him your hand, if you can, and deliver him from it. But if he falls into heresy and you cannot persuade him to turn from it, separate yourself quickly from him, in case, if you delay, you too may be dragged down with him into the pit.
Friday, April 24, 2009
Reading program
Right now here is my list:
- Christian spirituality: The Writings of St. Therese of the Andes
- technical theology: Not yet chosen
- philosophy: Whose Justice, Which Rationality?
- literature: Kristin Lavransdatter
- a book of the Bible: Sirach
My plan is to always keep them in my bag.
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
When is God Gonna Show Up?
When’s God Gonna Show Up?
Daily Discoveries of the DivineWritten in a warm conversational tone, the stories and refl ections in When’s God Gonna Show Up? draw on the everyday experiences of Marge Fenelon as wife, mother, and Catholic. Entertaining and thought-provoking, her stories lead the reader to discover God’s presence in the small events in our daily lives.
Short, poignant refl ections walk the reader through the liturgical year (beginning with Advent), off ering Scripture passages and questions for individual contemplation or group discussion. With humor and grace, these stories will not only entertain you, but will bring you to a new awareness of how God is working in your life.
Note who wrote the forward!
Friday, April 17, 2009
ND Center for Ethics and Culture call for papers
We welcome the submission of abstracts drawing on a wide range of moral and religious perspectives and academic specialties. Special consideration will be given to submissions of ideas for panel discussions that would bring together several people to discuss a focused theme. Possible issues to be explored are:
- the natural law and American democratic government
- analogous senses of the common good
- special demands on courage in contemporary culture
- the multiple threats of individualism
- philosophical and theological inquiries into the virtues
- the riches of Catholic social teaching
- the global economic crisis and the situation of late modern capitalism
- the secularization of contemporary culture
- imagining the common good: what the arts contribute
- the fate of Europe
- stewardship over nature: what does it entail?
- Catholic approaches to the common good: Maritain, McInerny, and
MacIntyre- “Whose common good?”: the unborn, the barely born, the disabled,
and the elderly- freedom and its relation to truth
- Pope Benedict on charity and hope
- the Christian Democratic movement in 20th Century politics
- Elizabeth Anscombe and the virtue revolution in ethics
- the sacrifices of family life
Classic Liberal Arts Academy
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Terrrible News!
Monday, April 13, 2009
The Classics of Catholic Spirituality
Each of the chapters, though brief, is insightful about the distinctive contribution of these works has made to western Catholic spirituality. I am particularly impressed by the Conclusion, which lists the seven common characteristics of Catholic Spirituality and goes into some detail about what each one means. Here they are
- Belief in God's Love
- God's mercy, sin, and the mode of the Soul [The is about the role that knowledge of our own sinfulness and knowledge of the mercy of God plays in the transformation and purification of our souls].
- The instrumentality of the the Church and the Communion of Saints
- The Importance of prayer and the struggle with aridity
- The dynamic of detachment and holy indifference
- The redemptive role of suffering
- Devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary
Saturday, April 04, 2009
Thursday, April 02, 2009
Good, beautiful, tears
It took this lively young Chilean girl a long time to overcome her inclination to anger and to gain dominion over these disorderly forces in her life. And it was not easy. After describing the depths of her struggle, she expressed her discovery that "the good and the beautiful always cost tears."
The last line become especially poignent for us who are beginning to age and are still fighting many of the same demons that plagued us as youth, some of which we have only recently become aware of. The depths of our depravity keep revealing themselves. We can only hope that in some way the beauty and truth are beginning to shine through in our lives more.
Monday, March 30, 2009
The Institute for Catholic Liberal Education
Invites You to its 2009
Academic Retreat for Teachers
“Truth and Joy in the Catholic School”
IMAGINE a week of uninterrupted time to:
- Explore the foundations of Catholic education with colleagues from around the country
- Discuss the history and integration of Western education, the Trivium, Mathematics, Science,
- Literature, Theology and Music
- Read and discuss authors such as Newman, Dawson, Shakespeare, Euclid, John Paul II and more
- Discuss these writings with an intimate group of peers
- Refresh and revitalize your sense of wonder and joy of learning!
THIS is truly an Academic Retreatlike none other...
REGISTER AND PAY ONLINE NOW!!!Register and Pay by Check Now!
DATE: July 12-17
LOCATION: University of St. Francis - Fort Wayne, Indiana
Questions? Call 805/625-1817
COST:EARLY BIRD (by June 1): Registration Only $450
AFTER June 1: $495
Includes room, board and materials—
What made this experience unique was that we did more than simply talk about the merits of a classical curriculum, we experienced them for ourselves, first hand.... I am writing to thank you for putting together a wonderful and carefully thoughtout conference. It provided a much-needed respite from the stress and chaos of becoming assistant principal at a new high school.—Peter Fletcher, Assistant Principal,St. Michael the Archangel, Baton Rouge, LA
To sign register online, click here, or write to:
Summer Academic Retreats
Institute for Catholic Liberal Education
PO Box 4638
Ventura, CA 93007
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Modern minimalism
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Man, woman and history
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
My comment on Notre Dame's decision to invite Obama
Monday, March 23, 2009
Dragons
Friday, March 20, 2009
On Pride, Pt. 3
Corrige mentes nostras rebelles, nosque magnanimos effice.In English: "Correct our rebellious minds, and make us magnanimous" or, as it is in the ICEL tranlation: "Discipline our rebellious minds: make us great in spirit."
ICEL sometimes does a pretty good job.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
On Pride, Pt. 2, as promised
I might add that superbia isn't the most egregious sin only in the middle ages, but in our day as well.Sigrid Undset later explained that Kristin's greatest sin is not the fact that she succumbs to her sexual desires and yields to the amorous demands of her impetuous suitor before they are properly married. Of much greater import is Kristin's decision to thwart her father's wishes, to deny the traditions of her ancestors, and to defy the Church; her worst sin is that of pride. The scholar Marlene Ciklamini notes that 'in medieval times the most egregious sin was superbia, or pride, setting oneself up as the arbiter of things human and divine, or, to express it another way, loving oneself more than God.' Kristin's constant struggle to integrate a sense of spiritual humility into her strong and passionate nature underlies much of the dramatic tension in all three volumes of the novel.
Litany of St. Joseph
Litany of St. JosephHere is a sound recording of it from EWTN.
Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
Lord, have
mercy.
Christ, hear us.
Christ, graciously hear us.
God, the Father
of Heaven, have mercy on us.
God the Son, Redeemer of the world, have mercy
on us.
God the Holy Spirit, have mercy on us.
Holy Trinity, One God,
have mercy on us..
Holy Mary, pray for us.
St. Joseph, pray for us.
Renowned offspring of David, pray for us.
Light of Patriarchs, pray for
us.
Spouse of the Mother of God, pray for us.
Chaste guardian of the
Virgin, pray for us.
Foster father of the Son of God, pray for us.
Diligent protector of Christ, pray for us.
Head of the Holy Family, pray
for us.
Joseph most just, pray for us.
Joseph most chaste, pray for us.
Joseph most prudent, pray for us.
Joseph most strong, pray for us.
Joseph most obedient, pray for us.
Joseph most faithful, pray for us.
Mirror of patience, pray for us.
Lover of poverty, pray for us.
Model of artisans, pray for us.
Glory of home life, pray for us.
Guardian of virgins, pray for us.
Pillar of families, pray for us.
Solace of the wretched, pray for us.
Hope of the sick, pray for us.
Patron of the dying, pray for us.
Terror of demons, pray for us.
Protector of Holy Church, pray for us.
Lamb of God, who take away the
sins of the world, spare us, O Lord!.
Lamb of God, who take away the sins of
the world, graciously hear us, O Lord!.
Lamb of God, who take away the sins
of the world, have mercy on us. .
V. He made him the lord of his household.
R. And prince over all his possessions.
Let us pray. O God, in your
ineffable providence you were pleased to choose Blessed Joseph to be the spouse of your most holy Mother; grant, we beg you, that we may be worthy to have him for our intercessor in heaven whom on earth we venerate as our Protector: You who live and reign forever and ever. R. Amen.
Here it is in Latin from saint-joseph-detroit.org:
LITANIAE SANCTI IOSEPH
Kyrie, eleison.
R. Kyrie, eleison.
Christe, eleison.
R. Christe, eleison.
Kyrie, eleison.
R. Kyrie, eleison.
Christe, audi nos.
R. Christe, audi nos.
Christe, exaudi nos.
R. Christe, exaudi nos.
Pater de caelis, Deus,
R. miserere nobis.
Fili, Redemptor mundi, Deus,
R. miserere nobis.
Spiritus Sancte Deus,
R. miserere nobis.
Sancta Trinitas, unus Deus,
R. miserere nobis.(R. for ff.: ora pro nobis.)
Sancta Maria,
Sancte Ioseph,
Proles David inclyta,
Lumen Patriarcharum,
Dei Genetricis Sponse,
Custos pudice Virginis,
Filii Dei nutricie,
Christi defensor sedule,
Almae Familiae praeses,
Ioseph iustissime,
Ioseph castissime,
Ioseph prudentissime,
Ioseph fortissime,
Ioseph obedientissime,
Ioseph fidelissime,
Speculum patientiae,
Amator paupertatis,
Exemplar opificum,
Domesticae vitae decus,
Custos virginum,
Familiarum columen,
Solatium miserorum,
Spes aegrotantium,
Patrone morientium,
Terror daemonum,
Protector sanctae Ecclesiae,
Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi,
R. parce nobis, Domine.
Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi,
R. exaudi nobis, Domine.
Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi,
R. miserere nobis.
V. Constituit eum dominum domus suae.
R. Et principem omnis possessionis suae.
Oremus
Deus, qui in ineffabili providentia beatum Ioseph sanctissimae Genetricis tuae Sponsum eligere dignatus es, praesta, quaesumus, ut quem protectorem veneramur in terris, intercessorem habere mereamur in caelis: Qui vivis et regnas in saecula saeculorum. R. Amen.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
On Pride, Pt. 1
27. It is in the free action of God the Creator that we find the very meaning of creation, even if it has been distorted by the experience of sin. In fact, the narrative of the first sin (cf. Gen 3:1-24) describes the permanent temptation and the disordered situation in which humanity comes to find itself after the fall of its progenitors. Disobedience to God means hiding from his loving countenance and seeking to control one's life and action in the world. [Emphasis mine]. Breaking the relation of communion with God causes a rupture in the internal unity of the human person, in the relations of communion between man and woman and of the harmonious relations between mankind and other creatures[29]. It is in this original estrangement that are to be sought the deepest roots of all the evils that afflict social relations between people, of all the situations in economic and political life that attack the dignity of the person, that assail justice and solidarity.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Irish Music tonight in Milwaukee
Shinigans include two of my children, Therese on fiddle and vocals and Nate on guitar and keyboard.
The Shinigans
Date: Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Time: 7:00pm - 11:00pm
Location: Derry Hegarty's Pub
Street: 5328 W Bluemound Rd
City/Town: Milwaukee, WI
Here is a link to their CD. http://www.facebook.com/ext/share.php?sid=148338460496&h=u_TEP&u=cneVk. Their current music is more trad than the CD. I have no idea if you have to have Facebook to hear these.
Waugh vs. Undset
That is why I am such an admirer of Servant of God John Paul II. He was able to live a truly heroic, manly life in the very 20th century that Waugh was writing about. (I'm not canonizing his every decision or action, by the way. I am pretty disappointed about his apparent inability to confront the crisis in the Legionaries of Christ head on). Lavrans wasn't perfect, either. It does say in the intro of the new translation that Undset patterned Lavrans after her father.
St. Mary's in Port Washington
What I wonder is how church's choose which saints to have statues of. For instance, St. Mary's has St. Henry, St. Barbara, St. Dominic, St. Aloysius Gonzaga, among others. They also have, in the back in a corner, a small shrine to Our Lady of Consolation. Which consists of a very porcelain doll like St. Mary with a blue, Infant of Prague like dress, holding the baby Jesus, who is also dressed in a similar "dress," The funny thing is his little, chubby feet sticking out from under his skirt, just dangling there.
Friday, March 13, 2009
Homeschool conference in Milwaukee
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
St. Patrick ala Veggie Tales
Friday, March 06, 2009
Lying about books I've read
*1. 1984 - George Orwell (42 percent)As for the Bible, since I've never read it straight through I have no idea whether I've read it in its entirety. I know I've read the entire New Testament, historical books and the wisdom books, but I don't know if I'd read all the prophets.
?2. War and Peace - Leo Tolstoy (31)
*3. Ulysses - James Joyce (25)
?4. The Bible (24)
?5. Madame Bovary - Gustave Flaubert (16)
*6. A Brief History of Time - Stephen Hawking (15)
7. Midnight's Children - Salman Rushdie (14)
8. In Remembrance of Things Past - Marcel Proust (9)
9. Dreams from My Father - Barack Obama
(6)
10. The Selfish Gene - Richard Dawkins (6)
The one book that I've started to read three times but never got beyond page 700 or so was The Brothers Karamazov.
Thursday, March 05, 2009
Taking refuge as escapism
Psalm 57, for instance, says:
Have mercy on me, God, have mercy on me. In you I seek shelter. In theAnd, of course, as we are reminded in today's office of readings, Mt. 11:28 says:
shadow of your wings I seek shelter till harm pass by. (v. 2)
"Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest.
I'm reminded of the Buddhist discipline of taking refuge in the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sanga so that one can become a refuge for others. Of course, in Christianity we take refuge in a person and never completely escape our dependence on that person.
Wednesday, March 04, 2009
Garrigou-Lagrange and Rahner
The exclusive use of this descriptive method [for treating mystical theology] would lead one to forget that ascetical and mystical theology is a part of theology, and to consider it as part of experimental psychology. In other words, whoever neglects to have recourse to the light of theological principles, will have to be content with the principles furnished by psychology, as do so many psychologists who treat of mystical phenomena in the different religions. This procedure, however, does not take faith into consideration at all; it permits a supernatural cause to be assigned only to facts which are essentially and manifestly miraculous. Other mystical facts, which are deeper and hence less apparently supernatural, it declares inexplicable, or it tries to explain them by placing undue stress on the merely natural powers of the soul. The same remark applies to biographies of the saints, and to the history of religious orders and even of the Church. --Christian Perfection and Contemplation, p. 19.
St. Casimir and Holiness
When I die if I will be remembered for these, I will be happy.
Plus a devoted husband and father.
Tuesday, March 03, 2009
Garrigou-Lagrange
Admittedly, I haven't read his stuff on nature and grace in detail yet.