"I would like to insist on this idea ..."

I would like to insist on this idea. Refusing to let God enter into all aspects of human life amounts to condemning man to solitude. He is no longer anything but an isolated individual, without origin or destiny. He finds himself condemned to wander through the world like a nomadic barbarian, without knowing that he is the son and heir of a Father who created him through love and calls him to share his eternal happiness. It is a profound error to think that God came to limit and frustrate our freedom. On the contrary, God comes to free us from solitude and to give meaning to our freedom. Modern man has made himself the prisoner of reason that is so autonomous that it has become solitary and autistic.

Cardinal Robert Sarah, The Day is Now Far Spent

Again, here is a view of human freedom that would surprise many who mistakenly believe that God wants to keep us under his thumb. Not so. He gives meaning to our lives and opens them to true freedom.

Arkady Rylov: Self-Portrait (with a squirrel!)

Arkady Rylov (1870–1939), Self-Portrait

San Jacinto Day! Remember Goliad! Remember the Alamo!

Veterans of the Battle of San Jacinto at a meeting of the Texas Veterans' Association in Galveston circa 1880. Center row, third from left: Valentine Ignatius Burch of Tyler County, Texas. Center row, second from left: Valentine Burch. Front row, second from right: George Petty of Washington County.

Courtesy the Star of the Republic Museum via the Portal to Texas History.

Via Traces of Texas.

My friend Don never forgets this ... he's the one always reminding me it is San Jacinto Day He has told me many a time:

I try to remember all of these good Texas holidays. They really bring home how unique the state –and future Republic?—truly is. This one is a real holiday, not like Cinco de Mayo. I mean, if you have a holiday to celebrate beating the French, then every day would be a holiday!

Ha! No kidding!

Let's all lift a margarita high to the Texian heroes of the decisive battle of the Texas revolution!

Paul Claude-Michel Carpentier: Self-Portrait with Family in the Artist’s Studio

Self-Portrait with Family in the Artist’s Studio, Paul Claude-Michel Carpentier
Dallas Museum of Art

I look for this painting whenever I visit the DMA. This loving portrait shows a man's love of his family, especially in that his wife isn't particularly beautiful but she has a warm, loving expression.

Reassurance That the Drink Isn't Poisoned

What do you do to reassure someone that the drink you're offering contains no poison? You drink it yourself first, in their presence. This is what God did for humanity. God drank from the bitter cup of suffering in the Passion. If, before our eyes, God himself chose to drink it, human suffering cannot be a cup of poison; it must be more than just negativity, loss, and absurdity. At the bottom of the cup, there must be a pearl. We know the name of that pearl: resurrection!

Raniero Cantalamessa, The Power of the Cross

This is an interesting answer to the question of human suffering.

Claude Monet: Self-Portrait with a Beret

Self-Portrait with a Beret, Claude Monet, 1886
via Wikipaintings

And here I thought I liked his nature paintings best. I like the rather startled gaze. Or perhaps it's a gaze of fierce intensity. Odd how I can't decide which it is. I'd never have thought of them being interchangeable until this moment.

Death, Solitude, and Euthanasia

 Perhaps the most frightening aspect of death is the solitude with which we must face it. We face it alone. Martin Luther said, "No man can die in another's place; each must personally fight his own battle against death. No matter how hard we cry out to those around us, each one of us must face it alone." But this is no longer entirely true. "If we have died with him, we will also live with him" (2 Tim 2:11). It is possible to die with someone!

This demonstrates the gravity of the problem euthanasia presents from the Christian point of view. Euthanasia deprives human death of its link to Christ's death. It strips it of its paschal nature, changing it back to what it was befor eChrist. Death is deprived of its majectic awesomeness and becomes a human determination, a decision of finite freesom. It is literally "profaned"—that is, deprived of its sacredness.

Raniero Cantalamessa, The Power of the Cross

This brings euthanasia into a sharp focus for me, reveals its "wrongness" afresh.

Anthony van Dyck: Self Portrait with a Sunflower

Anthony van Dyck (1599–1641), Self Portrait With a Sunflower, Private collection

I always enjoy seeing the personal touches that artists put into self-portraits, especially in the more flamboyant pieces, such as the one above.

Which. I. Love.

Notes on Mark: The Synagogue

Ancient synagogue in Magdala, Israel.

MARK 1:21, 22
I read this and realized that I have a tendency to think of the synagogue as just the local version of a church with the Temple being the big "headquarters" in Jerusalem. Not so at all as William Barclay points out.

There are certain basic differences between the synagogue and the church as we know it today.

(a) The synagogue was primarily a teaching institution. The synagogue service consisted of only three things -- prayer, the reading of God's word, and the exposition of it. There was no music, no singing and no sacrifice. It may be said that the Temple was the place of worship and sacrifice; the synagogue was the place of teaching and instruction. The synagogue was by far the more influential, for there was only one Temple. But the law laid it down that wherever there were ten Jewish families there must be a synagogue, and, therefore, wherever there was a colony of Jews, there was a synagogue. If a man had a new message to preach, the synagogue was the obvious place in which to preach it.

(b) The synagogue provided an opportunity to deliver such a message. The synagogue had certain officials.

• There was the Ruler of the synagogue. He was responsible for the administration of the affairs of the synagogue and for the arrangements for its services.
  
  
• There were the distributors of alms. Daily a collection was taken in cash and in kind from those who could afford to give. It was then distributed to the poor; the very poorest were given food for fourteen meals per week.
  
  
• There was the Chazzan... He was responsible for the taking out and storing away of the sacred rolls on which scripture was written; for the cleaning of the synagogue; for the blowing of the blasts on the silver trumpet which told people that the Sabbath had come; for the elementary education of the children of the community.

One thing the synagogue had not and that was a permanent preacher or teacher. When the people met at the synagogue service it was open to the Ruler to call on any competent person to give the address and the exposition. There was no professional ministry whatsoever. That is why Jesus was able to open his campaign in the synagogues. The opposition had not yet stiffened into hostility. He was known to be a man with a message; and for that very reason the synagogue of every community provided him with a pulpit from which to instruct and to appeal to men.

All excerpts in this post are from: The Gospel of Mark (The Daily Bible Series*, rev. ed.) by William Barclay


* Not a Catholic source and one which can have a wonky theology at times, but Barclay was renowned for his authority on life in ancient times and that information is sound.

 ===== 

Sources and Notes Index 

Rose-Adélaïde Ducreux: Self-portrait with a Harp

Rose-Adélaïde Ducreux (1761–1802, Self-portrait with a Harp
Source. Seen first at Lines and Colors.

Polite Society

"I am the fury!"

Martial artist-in-training Ria Khan believes she must save her older sister Lena from her impending marriage. After enlisting the help of her friends, Ria attempts to pull off the most ambitious of all wedding heists in the name of independence and sisterhood.

Really enjoyable, with a fresh, fun feel that made me think of Scott Pilgrim vs. the World and The Man Who Feels No Pain. With a touch of a Get Out vibe. 

Coming-of-age stories usually bore me to death but this lively movie leaves regular expectations far behind. I especially enjoyed Ria's two friends as a sort of Greek chorus who predicted both Lena's and Ria's plotline through the film. The fight sequences entertained me in a way they usually wouldn't since they allowed me to gauge Ria's real ability to do the stunts she's been practicing. And the fights that were during the wedding became truly beautiful as the gorgeous saris swirled during kicks and jumps.

 Finally, I defy anyone to watch Ria's "spa day" with her sister's mother-in-law-to-be and not laugh. It's a whole new kind of torture. 

I look forward to more from this director.

Reincarnation is an Enormous Misunderstanding

... reincarnation as presented in Western countries, is simply the result of an enormous misunderstanding. Originally, as in all religions professing it, reincarnation was not intended to be an extra installment of life but of suffering. It was not a cause for consolation but for fear. It was as if to say, "Be careful, if you do evil, you will be born again to atone for it!" ... In modern times, everything has been adapted to our materialistic and secularized Western mentality. Reincarnation, conceived before Christ's Resurrection, has become an alibi for people to elude the seriousness of both life and death.

Raniero Cantalamessa, The Power of the Cross

You know I never did understand why people would talk about reincarnation as something good — and they do. 

Throne of King Tut

Throne of King Tut (detail), 1350 B.C.

This is via Illustrated History, a fascinating site, where it is featured in their piece, Early Civilization.