Discussing the character of others

Considering how much we are all given to discuss the character of others, and discuss them often not in the strictest spirit of charity, it is singular how little we are inclined to think that others can speak ill-naturedly of us and how angry and hurt we are when proof reaches us that they have done so.

Anthony Trollope, Barchester Towers

From one of my favorite books I read this year. Trollope is so funny and so accurate! Ouch!

Maple Leaf

Maple Leaf from
Calligraphy in the Landscape

Finally fall color has come to Dallas, along with the sunny weather which lights up the leaves and reminds us that "God made the world beautiful because he loves us." It makes our morning walks pure delight as shafts of sunlight pick out different trees. When I drove my mother around the neighborhood yesterday, we got that same pleasure from different angles in the car.

 No culture observes the seasons more than the Japanese. And no maple is more beautiful than Japanese maples, in my opinion. That makes Calligraphy in the Landscape the perfect place to go right now while fall is in the air. Gorgeous photography, haiku, and calligraphy combine for a lovely opportunity for meditation. Or simply for celebrating autumn.

A Movie You Might Have Missed #77 — My Neighbor Totoro

It's been 11 years since I began this series highlighting movies I wished more people knew about. I'm rerunning it from the beginning because I still think these are movies you might have missed. 

As a fun update for this movie, I will soon be showing pieces of it to my 2-year-old grandson. Way back in 2004 when I first reviewed this film, he was so far in the future that I never could have imagined the joy and fun he brings. Hopefully, he'll love this movie as much as his mother did. 

 

Way back in 2004 I reviewed this film. That was before I had an entire series about movies you might have missed so I thought I'd be sure this was brought to mind. These days you might have heard of the film because filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki is now known more outside of Japan than he used to be. Specializing in animated films for children, Miyazaki is a masterful storyteller whose talent transcends national culture. 

Also, the people who were young enough to be babysitters in 2004 are now adults with kids of their own. And the kids they were showing this to are also grown. So anime isn't such a foreign concept now as it was then.

Here is my original review which captures a bit of our family's film culture.

Ok, your kids might have seen this but chances are if they have it is because you know my kids. Thanks to Sailor Moon and Dragon Ball Z my girls got attached to Japanese animation (anime) when they were little. Then they moved on to kids' manga (Japanese graphic novels) which is where Sailor Moon, etc. actually began.

Anime usually doesn't have much of a U.S. following, except among true movie lovers, because they don't follow the expected pattern. For one thing, they are animated but aren't produced by Disney (or Dreamworks or Pixar). For another, they tend to show in art houses which also are unfamiliar to a lot of folks.

We heard of My Neighbor Totoro and were surprised to find it available for rental. Eventually we had to buy our own copy, which my daughters now take with them when baby sitting. This delights the kids and annoys the parents because then their children start pestering them to buy the movie.

My Neighbor Totoro is a charming, original story by a famous Japanese filmmaker. It is the story of two young girls and their father moving to a new home in the forest. The girls go exploring and come across Totoro, a giant forest spirit.

Check out the reviews at Amazon for the full story.

I've seen some cultural warnings about possible misunderstandings also which never occurred to us when we originally watched it, such as:

... there are a couple of scenes that are perfectly innocent in Japanese culture -- like the dad sitting in the bathtub with both little girls-- that may raise some eyebrows/questions in American culture. Please be assured there's nothing sexual about the scene, it is 100% innocent and acceptable in Japan for adults to bath with their younger children (the girls in this movie are 9 and 4 I believe), but American culture is a little different so I thought I'd put a heads up here.

There are other differences but we found that part of the charm as a window into another world. We've enjoyed many of Miyazaki's films but this is a real delight.

Dewy Spider Web

Dewy Spider Web
via Wikipedia

The Man Who Died Twice by Richard Osman

Elizabeth has received a letter from an old colleague, a man with whom she has a long history. He's made a big mistake, and he needs her help. His story involves stolen diamonds, a violent mobster, and a very real threat to his life.

As bodies start piling up, Elizabeth enlists Joyce, Ibrahim and Ron in the hunt for a ruthless murderer. And if they find the diamonds too? Well, wouldn't that be a bonus?

But this time they are up against an enemy who wouldn't bat an eyelid at knocking off four septuagenarians. Can The Thursday Murder Club find the killer (and the diamonds) before the killer finds them?

This was the follow up to The Thursday Murder Club which introduced four unlikely friends who meet every Thursday to try to solve cold cases. When a real murder happens at the property, they decide to have fun with a case in progress. I liked it but found rather frenetic by the end. This second novel was better and very enjoyable.  

In fact, I went back and listened to the audiobook of the first book and liked it better the second time around. So I recommend both!

Well Said: What a book provides

A book provides more than what's between its covers. It's a relationship that stays with us for a lifetime. It is always faithful. And usually it is kind.

Stephen Tobolowsky

Yes. Yes. Yes.

Saints and Feasts of the Catholic Church by Father Michael Black

I don't know how I stumbled across this series. Sometimes browsing from one link to another does turn up just what you want, even when you don't know that's what you want. This is a very good book looking at the saints approved for the universal  Church's calendar and for the USA. It's one of a four volume series which cover the year.  It is a really good complement to my all-time favorite saint book Voices of the Saints by Bert Ghezzi as each shows the saints with emphasis on different parts of their lives.

The author does a podcast which is uses this series for the source material. I like the podcast description, which is from the introduction to one of the books.

"Catholic Saints & Feasts" offers a dramatic reflection on each saint and feast day of the General Calendar of the Catholic Church.

These reflections profile the theological bone breakers, the verbal flame throwers, the ocean crossers, the heart-melters, and the sweet-chanting virgin-martyrs who populate the liturgical calendar of the Catholic Church.

One of the things I especially like is that this covers what I think of as oddball feasts, such as for the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica (November 9), which isn't included in any books which only cover saints. Father Black's description made me truly appreciate this feast day for the first time. Here's just a tiny sample.

A church's walls do not make one a Christian, of course. But a church has walls nonetheless. Walls, borders, and lines delimit the sacred from the profane. A house makes a family feel like one, a sacred place where parents and children merge into a household. A church structurally embodies supernatural mysteries. A church is a sacred space where sacred actions make Christians unite as God's family. Walls matter. Churches matter. Sacred spaces matter. Today the Church commemorates a uniquely sacred space, the oldest of the four major basilicas in the city of Rome. The Lateran Basilica is the Cathedral of the Archdiocese of Rome and thus the seat of the Pope as Bishop of Rome.

A basilica is like a church which has been made a monsignor. Basilicas have certain spiritual, historical or architectural features by which they earn their special designation. ...

The Kindle version of each book is really cheap so you aren't risking much to give it a try.

Apricots on a Branch

 

Apricots on a branch by Carl Balsgaard, via J.R.'s Art Place

Daily Exercise

Daily Exercise
painted by Karin Jurick

You must stick by the work entrusted to you and the task you have undertaken

I am shocked that you are so upset by all these routine scandals that you prefer to spend your life in silence rather than to stay in the duties entrusted to you.

Where will your blessed perseverance be if your patience fails? Remember the apostle who said: “All who want to live piously in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution”. Endurance exists not only in confessing the name of Christ by sword and fire and various punishments. But differences in customs, insults of the disobedient and barbs of wicked tongues and various temptations are also included in this kind of persecution.

There is not a single occupation that is without its dangers. Who will guide the ship if the pilot quits his post? Who will guard against wolves if the shepherd does not watch? Or who will drive away the robber if the watchman sleeps? You must stick by the work entrusted to you and the task you have undertaken. You must hate the sins, not the people. Even though tribulation brings us more than we can endure, let us not be afraid as if we were resisting with our own strength. We must pray with the apostle that God give us “the way out with the temptation,” that we may be able to withstand, for Christ is both our courage and our counsel, "without him we can do nothing" and "with him we can do all things."

St. Braulio (d. 650) in a letter
to his brother who wanted to resign being abbot,
via The Voices of the Saints: A Year of Readings by Bert Ghezzi

This quote was sprinkled with references to scriptural passages in parentheses which I assumed were added by Bert Ghezzi and not St. Braulio. If I got that wrong I apologize but it was insanely distracting when reading this powerful letter.

It could have been written to us today. We forget that we aren't the only ones who have felt buffeted by insults, misunderstandings, and temptations when trying to live our faith.

Voices of the Saints: A Year of Readings by Bert Ghezzi

I've been really negligent in not reviewing this book on the blog. I have loved it since the first edition came out. I now have it on my Kindle for ease in reading about whatever saint has come up in alphabetical order that day. Each is covered in about two pages, which include a sizable chunk of the saint's writing or something by a contemporary (if they weren't a "writing" saint) so we get a deeper look at them from the inside.

Here's a bit more from The Anchoress whose full review you can read here.

Bert Ghezzi’s Voices of the Saints; A Year of Readings is one of those books every Catholic household really should have. This is a meticulously researched and cross-referenced book of saints for grown-ups. No pictures, no frills – you get the information you are seeking, and a taste of their own writings, but the book is arranged with themes and calendar prompts. If you’re if you’re dealing with issues of, say, obedience, you look under “obedience” (if you’re feeling cranky look under “porcupine saints”) and you’re be referred to a helpful Christian whose one struggles or wisdom will help you out. This book gives you a real sense of the “communion” of saints.

Four O Four

Four O Four by Karin Jurick

Light

Light by Karin Jurick 

Psalm 36 — The Wicked and the Righteous

When you see transgressors of the law being so zealous in their evildoing, do not attribute this evil to nature—this is what the heretics teach—but in saying Psalm 36 know that they are the cause of their own sinful behavior.

Athanasius, On the Interpretation of the Psalms

I'm really struck by the statement above. To attribute one's evil to their nature instead of to their own choice to commit sin is just the way a lot of evil is spoken about today. Once again, human nature is the same now as it was thousands of years ago.

Waves in Stained Glass

There are two points that I like to think about in this psalm. The first is made by Saint Augustine about wickedness and a possible way out of it.

36:4 Plotting Evil

Our Inner Bedroom, Saint Augustine. Our bedroom is our heart, for there we toss and turn if we have a bad conscience, but there, if our conscience is easy, we find rest. .. But the person of whom our psalm is speaking retired there to hatch his evil plots, where no one would see him. And because such wickedness was the subject of his meditation, he could find no rest, even in his heart.

The Road to Evil, Saint Augustine. If we cannot be free from wickedness, at let us hate it. When you have begun to hate it, you are unlikely to be tricked into committing a wicked act by any stealthy temptation. ... Hate sin and iniquity, so that you may unite yourself to God, who will hate it with you. Homilies on the Psalms.

Psalms 1-50 (Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture)

I really was struck by this discussion of "living water" which is referred to in the psalm. I never looked specifically into the phrase. This really adds another level of meaning to both the psalm and every time Jesus brings it up.

The psalmist speaks in reverential tones of experiencing the hospitality of the divine house of Yahweh (36:8-9) and of sharing the refreshment offered by the host: restorative drink drawn from God's "river of delights" and the "fountain of life."...

First, "living water" (mayim hayyim) most often refers to flowing water taken from streams or rivers or to water drawn from spring-fed pools. This kind of living water was distinguished from standing water left in jars, gathered in cisterns, left standing by rainfall in stagnant pools, or even drawn from a well. The distinction was particularly important in the laws of ritual purity and cleansing. Only "living water" had the property of cleansing from uncleanness. For this reason ritual baths had to be provided with some access to living water in order to maintain their cleansing property and status. Often a channel of living water would be directed from a stream or spring to the site of the bath so that a small amount could be let into the chamber pool before each supplicant entered for cleansing. ...

[In his conversation with the Samaritan woman at the well] Jesus deepens the conversation by pointing to a spiritual meaning: "Everyone who drinks this [well] water will never be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life."

Living water has been transformed into a "spring of water ... [of] eternal life" (equivalent to maqor hayyim in Ps. 36). Jeremiah employs a similar phrase (meqor mayim hayyim ["spring of living water]) to speak of Yahweh as a "spring of living water" that Israel rejected in favor of cisterns dug by their own hands (Jer. 2:13, 7:13). The woman understands the allusions in Jesus' conversation and immediately asks to receive what Jesus is offering.

Psalms Volume 1 (The NIV Application Commentary)

An index of psalm posts is here.

TV You Might Have Missed 3 — The Brokenwood Mysteries

Set in the quiet New Zealand town of Brokenwood, this is a cozy mystery show that manages to avoid being too cozy. It is more of a Midsomer Murders than a Murder She Wrote, in other words. 

Detective Senior Sergeant Mike Shepherd is an experienced, big city cop with plenty of quirks like an inordinate love of country music (on cassette tapes), a "classic" car which is more of a beater,  too many ex-wives to keep track of, and a habit of talking to the deceased when he first meets them. Local partner, Detective Kristin Sims, does detective work by the book but they soon form a good working relationship. Soon they're joined by a subordinate and a medical examiner who both provide a bit of comic relief but never anything that is too over the top.

It's got a good amount of humor but always keeps the focus on solving the mysteries. The "kiwi" element is strong because the show was made for New Zealand audiences and that makes it just exotic enough. The murders always pull the detectives into a bit of local culture that is fun to see also, like the local Shakespearean troop or tours for the Lord of the Ringz filming locations. (That "z" in Ringz is important.) sometimes they just go for something everyone understands like playing Clue.

We've been really tired of edgy, melodramatic mystery shows and this fits just right. A procedural with a new case each week and slightly quirky detectives to watch do their thing — just what we like on a Sunday night.

Worth a Thousand Words

Impressionable by Karin Jurick

The Sentinel

The Sentinel
by the brilliant Karin Jurick

Karin Jurick passed away too young. I really loved her paintings and appreciated her generosity in giving me permission to share them with you. As I look back over the archives, I thought I'd share a few of my favorites this week.

The setting for a pearl

A jewel demands a setting of gold, and a pearl should only be placed in precious necklaces. Be, then, the finest sort of gold! Be a precious necklace, so that the spiritual pearl can be set in you! For Christ the Lord is the pearl that the rich merchant in the gospel hastened to buy.

St. Maximus of Turin
via Voices of the Saints by Bert Ghezzi

We can't leave all our passions behind

My dear Sister, you tell me that you have brought your pride with you. I assure you that I was quite aware of that! If you had left all your passions behind you and were just an unfeeling lump, how could you prove your love and faithfulness to God? Therefore don't worry about your feelings, but fight bravely, leaning on God.

St. Paola Frassinetti

via The Voices of the Saint by Bert Ghezzi

This is something that was pointed out to me recently when I was bemoaning a character trait that I repeatedly try to reform. It is that very character trait which makes me who I am. Perhaps the way I exhibit it might not always be the most pleasing, but I can't leave "me" behind or, as St. Paola says, I'd be a lump!

Waxwing

Waxwing, Remo Savisaar

The Red Horses

Franz Marc, The Red Horses, 1911

Jumping Dog Schlick

Jumping Dog Schlick, Franz Marc, 1908

Psalm 35 — Plea for Divine Assistance

If [enemies] persist, and, with hands red with blood, try to drag you down and kill you, remember that God is the proper judge (for he alone is righteous while that which is human is limited) and so say the words of [Psalm] 35.

Athanasius, On the Interpretation of the Psalms

I love the imagery here. The Navarre Bible points out that "the military language used at the start of the psalm signals the kind of divine deliverance that the psalmist seeks..."

In response to the psalmist's cry, Yahweh runs through the fray, spear and shield in hand, to defend the psalmist's life. As he does so, Yahweh's ringing voice is herd above the din of battle, shouting "I am your salvation!" This encourages the beleaguered psalmist to hang on until deliverance arrives.

Psalms Volume 1 (The NIV Application Commentary)

Isn't this the best mental picture ever? It makes me think of the Battle of the Pelennor Fields in The Lord of the Rings when they think all is lost and then Aaragorn and his soldiers show up to fight side by side, eventually winning the day. That is an image of God I need to hold more present in my difficult moments.

In classical antiquity, bucklers on medals were either used to signify public vows rendered to the gods for the safety of a prince, or that he was esteemed the defender and protector of his people: these were called votive bucklers, and were hung at altars, etc. — Wikipedia

A key point of this psalm praises God not just for his might but for his holiness.

The Incomparability of Yahweh

The central part of Psalm 35 turns on a rhetorical question ("Who is like you?") that the psalmist utters in response to God's anticipated retribution against his enemies (35:10). The obvious answer is "No one!" which serves as the immediate foundation for the confidence that Yahweh is able to deliver. There is no other god like Yahweh, who can match his power or inhibit his action in the psalmist's behalf. ...

The psalmists and others draw great solace from their insight that Yahweh is not like the gods of the other nations, or even like human kings or sages. The venality and fickleness of the gods of Mesopotamia is well known. It is not just the matter that various gods and goddesses opposed and sought to undermine one another. The greatest difficulty lay in the fact that the individual deities were inconsistent in their dealings with humans. They could be tricked, misinformed, or emotionally manipulated so that they could swing in a moment from beneficent care to harsh punishment of their followers. All one's careful worship and supplication could be undone in a moment's pique.

Thus, it was a great comfort for Israel to know that Yahweh is not like the gods of the nations. Not only is he superior in power and might, but he is also consistent in his essential character of holiness, justice, and mercy. ... In the final analysis, God's trustworthiness is the result of his incomparable power used for the benefit of the powerless. God is so superior in all things that he has no need to use power for self-interest, but he is free to champion those who have no power at all.

Psalms Volume 1 (The NIV Application Commentary)

An index of psalm posts is here.

TV You Might Have Missed 2 — Extraordinary Attorney Woo

Woo Young-woo is a female rookie attorney with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) who is hired by a major law firm in Seoul. Being different from her neurotypical peers, her manner of communication is seen by them as odd, awkward, and blunt. With each legal case and through her intelligence and photographic memory, she becomes an increasingly competent attorney. Wikipedia

There isn't a good way to describe the show's premise that conveys the charm and delight of this show. A legal drama at its heart, each episode features an interesting  case that has to be won. Often we learn about Korean culture in surprising ways such as the case of the bride whose wedding dress dress fell down or the fact that a beautiful tree can be eligible for national treasure status. Woo Young-woo's different point of view often yields the key to resolving tricky details. At the same time we learn more about her life and see how her presence changes the people on the legal team that she's assigned to.

This all sounds like something we've seen before and yet this show is unique and quirky without being over the top. The need for others to understand Woo's way of thinking yields interesting results. Her passion for whales and way of seeing complex relationships through a whale-centric focus is startling, refreshing, and adorable. The show is funny and optimistic and has genuine depth.

Even more importantly it has excellent acting, superior writing, and sensitive directing that isn't afraid to let the camera linger on silence while the actors convey complex thoughts without words. It avoids standard romance tropes although there is indeed romance — K-dramas demand romance. It is truly an extraordinary show and every time I get done watching an episode I feel happy for the rest of the day. That is rare indeed.

This is showing on Netflix.

Cats on a Red Cloth

Franz Marc, Cats on a Red Cloth
via Arts Everyday Living

When I write of hunger...

When I write of hunger, I am really writing about love and the hunger for it, and warmth and the love of it and it is all one.

M. F. K. Fisher

Horse in a Landscape

Franz Marc, 1910, Horse in a Landscape
via WikiPaintings

There is something mesmerizing in this painting. Is this how the horse sees? Is it viewing a painting? The playful tone seems to invite mental hijinks. And yet, I love the painting simply as a work of art. I could look at this all day.

Checking his WikiPaintings entry I see that he painted a lot of animals and that his painting style and my taste part ways about 1912, right after his Girl With a Cat. But nothing grabs me the way this horse does.

The Feast by Margaret Kennedy

Cornwall, Midsummer 1947. Pendizack Manor Hotel is buried in the rubble of a collapsed cliff. Seven guests have perished, but what brought this strange assembly together for a moonlit feast before this Act of God -- or Man? Over the week before the landslide, we meet the hotel guests in all their eccentric glory: and as friendships form and romances blossom, sins are revealed, and the cracks widen.

This book starts out with a clergyman at a loss for how to write a eulogy for seven people who died in a hotel when a cliff fell on it and crushed it. We're then taken back to life in the hotel a week before the disaster. We get to know everyone and watch how their interactions change them (or don't). It's only natural that the reader soon begins to worry about who will die at the hotel and who will be safely away. It hit me with a start when I was reading about children traveling to spend their vacation there and I thought, "Children! No!" This tension continued through the book as I grew fond of characters and worried they would be among the fatalities.

There was equal tension as some characters changed in ways that allowed for growth and redemption of the trajectories their lives had been on. This book is not just about the mystery of who will live and who will die. It is also about spiritual realities by which these people live their lives. It is a rare find and I highly recommend it.

November

November, Theo van Hoytema

Psalm 34 — Praise for Deliverance

If you have chanced upon enemies and yet have prudently fled from them and their schemes, call together people of gentle disposition and give thanks in the words of Psalm 34

Athanasius, On the Interpretation of the Psalms

The inscription of this psalm certainly makes me sit up and pay attention:

Of David. When he pretended to be insane before Abimelech, who drove him away, and he left.

I didn't remember this incident at all but it happened when David was on the run from Saul and had to go into enemy territory to escape. When he's recognized by the Philistine king, David feigns insanity and is sent away. Whew! Read it in 1 Samuel, chapter 21.

You would certainly thank the Lord for all his favors when that insanity idea worked out the way it did for David. Surely it seemed like a long shot at the time.

Psalm 34 by Ephraim Moses Lilien.
The musical instruments are drawn after the rich archaeological material;
also the way of holding and playing them is reproduced from the sources.

I like the way that St. Augustine tied it to modern, everyday life in his day. Our days are no different in the way that we think we have it worse than anyone ever did. After all, even God's favored one, David, had a lot to put up.

34:12 Who Desires Life?

Good Days. Augustine. Do you not grumble every day, "How long do we have to put up with this? Things get worse and worse by the day. Our parents had happier days, things were better in their time." Oh, come on! If you questioned those parents of yours, they would moan to you about their days in just the same way. ... So you are looking for good days. Let us all look for them together, but not here. ... There are always evil days in this world, but always good days in God. Abraham enjoyed good days, but only within his own heart; he had bad days when a famine forced him to migrate in search of food. But everyone else had to search, too. What about Paul: did he have good days, he who had "often gone without food, and endured cold and exposure?" (2 Cor. 11:27). But the servants have no right to be discontented; even the Lord did not have good days in this world. He endured insults, injuries, the cross and many a hardship.  Expositions of the Psalms.

Psalms 1-50 (Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture)

An index of psalm posts is here.

November

November, Les Très Riches Heures du duc de Berry

The autumn acorn harvest, with a peasant knocking down throwing sticks to knock down the acorns on which his pigs are feeding.

University of Chicago