It's About Honesty: American Gangster

The movie is also able to traffic in a large quantity of moral ambiguity but never lose sight of the human costs of what its characters do for a living. Frank Lucas is successful, intelligent and sympathetic, but the film takes pains to show the end result of people using his product. On the other hand, in many ways Frank is preferable to the corrupt narcotics detectives who attempt to shake him down. At least he is not betraying the same kind of trust that they are. He is exactly who he says he is and providing a product that people have always been willing to buy. Franks treats his own people, at least the ones he perceives as loyal, far better than Richie Roberts’ people treat him for the crime of being a good cop.

Celluloid Heroes has a very accurate review of this movie.

I can say that because Tom, Rose and I went to see this excellent movie yesterday. (Hannah was sleeping off the 5:00 a.m. sale at Best Buy and passed on the annual Friday-after-Thanksgiving-movie.) I knew it would be gritty. I knew it would be violent. I knew it was about a crime lord who was unsuspected for most of his career. Not my usual sort of movie, to be truthful. (I was pulling for Lars and the Real Girl.) However, Rose won and I am happy that she did.

Certainly I also knew that we would be seeing two actors at the top of their form, Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe. What I didn't know was that it is directed by Ridley Scott and stars a gaggle of high talent "hey, it's that guy ... the one whose name I never remember" starting with Chiwetel Ejiofor, known to our family as "The Operative" from Serenity.

Outwardly respectable gangster, Frank Lucas (Washington), makes an excellent living by selling low-priced, high quality heroin on the streets, and surrounding himself with family members who he can trust. He and his entire organization are largely anonymous to the law. Meanwhile, the parallel story of Richie Roberts (Crowe) shows someone who is basically a loser, right down to the point that his extreme honesty has made him anathema to all the other cops. Assigned as the head of the local arm of a federal effort to stop the drug trade at its source, Richie eventually stumbles across Frank Lucas.

This is a very complicated story but the viewer has no trouble following it, which says a lot for the skill and talent of the director, editor, and screenwriters. There is not a big moral to slap us in the face in large part because this is based on a real story and real stories don't always have an easily seen message. However, in thinking the movie over, it seemed to me that at the base it came down to honesty. Frank Lucas never lies to himself about what he does. He insulates himself and those he loves from it but that isolation is different from lying. This is seen in subtle things such as his stillness for a moment when his nephew tells him that he is giving up his lifelong dream of becoming a professional baseball player because, "I want to be like you, Uncle Frank." It is subtle, but it is there. Frank knows that is not a worthy goal. Another telling point about honesty is made when Richie's ex-wife confronts him with an unpalatable bit of truth about him. His reaction is quite telling. Similarly, the end of the movie (which I will not mention for fear of spoiling it) is only possible because Frank at last comes up against a completely honest man in Richie Roberts and that is the one quality that they can appreciate about each other.

Highly recommended.

Columbia College Here She Comes!

Rose got her admittance letter from Columbia College yesterday! Woohoo! (We had gotten a hint since the letter to parents arrived two days ago, telling about all the ways that they work to make sure students leave school employed ... no fools they.)

Not only is she excited about that, but she's also very happy not to also have to do the admissions essays to UT as a backup school. She'll be majoring in film editing.

And I'll finally get to visit Chicago.

This has so many upsides to it.

We're not gonna borrow trouble and think about how far away from home Rose will be. Yet. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.

Making Christmas Shopping Easy

For the patristically-minded, Mike Aquilina has a list of books that surely cover most anything you ever wanted to know. I highly recommend the ones that say "by Mike Aquilina" for full satisfaction.

The history of the Christmas Card is set out for us by Ian.

Actually, if you look carefully at the card you will see some unhappy figures on the edges. Sir Cole was very concerned about the poor in England and wanted to remind his friends to do something charitable during the Christmas season so he had these cards sent instead of handwriting individual letters. (This is true).

As for the shopping aspect, check out Ian's online Catholic store, Aquinas and More. Not only will you avoid the crowds, but you will be supporting a family run business, and that is always close to my heart.

Update: Can't believe I forgot to mention this, but Ian reminds me that everything is 15% off through Monday evening. Let your fingers do the shopping, cheaply!

Speaking of family run businesses, if you want to see an example of Tom's design work and my layout production, then get the latest edition of Letter & Spirit. Scott Hahn is the editor, David Scott is the managing editor (and a nicer guy you'll never meet) and this is full of essays that dig deeper theologically than you are wont to find in Hahn's regular books (you know, the ones that I read ...). They've scored thought provoking writing about "The Hermeneutic of Continuity: Christ, Kingdom, and Creation" by Pope Benedict XVI, Cardinal Dulles, and Cardinal Christoph Schonborn, to name just a few among the erudite authors. Some of the topics are the biblical basis of indulgences, feminine and maternal images of the Holy Spirit in early Christianity, and the "image of God" doctrine in St. Thomas Aquinas’ writings. (We also worked on the second edition ... always the insides not the outside ... but as y'all know it's what it says, not how it looks that is important. Check out all three editions.)

All I Want for Christmas Is ...

... a really great calendar. (Though, truth be told, I'm a calendar junkie ...) Order this one, and see more photos of it, at Confessions of a Pioneer Woman.

And, now, if you'll excuse me ...

A Glass of Rioja by Edward B. Gordon

I'm off to do some Thanksgiving cooking and celebrating all the many things that I am so thankful for, including every single person who stops by here.

I Leave Footprints. How About You?

Mama T asks:

How many of us write notes in our books? Are you a Footprint Leaver or a Preservationist?

She is a Preservationist but, luckily for me, Smock Mama takes notes in books so I'm not alone. I used to feel terrible about writing in books but got over it. This is usually marking paragraphs or sections of interest, especially in any theology books I have on hand. Otherwise I'd never find anything again.

Praying for the Souls in Purgatory

During November the Church especially prays for all who are in the purifying fires of Purgatory, waiting for the day when they will join the company of the saints in heaven. We are getting toward the end of the month but I wanted to direct everyone to The Lion and the Cardinal where Daniel Mitsui has been unearthing some truly amazing art to help us keep that prayer goal in mind by focusing as he says "on the appropriately morbid." Above is one of the more eerie and striking examples but there is also the very beautiful to be found as seen below. Do go look around through his November posts.

Joe's Old Clothes

Joe had not been a sight. When Admiral Twiss took Kissy to him, he was lying peacefuly in the grass. Kizzy held the Admiral's hand.

Nat came out, took Kizzy's other hand, and together the three of them stood looking at the big still body, at Joe's head with the white blaze on his nose, his eyelashes -- Nat had closed his eyes -- his great legs and mighty hooves that were split and grey -- it was a long while since he had worn shoes. His bay coat still shone. Nat had given it many a rubbing. Joe seemed as if he were asleep, but a deep, deep sleep.

Kizzy went nearer. "Careful," said Nat. "He's getting stiff."

"Will -- will the knacker, the hounds, get him now?"

"They can't," said Admiral Twiss.

"Can't?" Kizzy's head came up.

"Joe's safe," said the Admiral, "because this isn't Joe. He's not here."

Kizzy broke from him and put her hand to Joe's nose, not touching. "He doesn't huff," she said.

"Of course not. He isn't there."

Kizzy looked at the Admiral as if weighing what he had said and put her hand again to Joe. "The warm is gone."

"Yes." Admiral Twiss came to her and gently touched Joe's body. "This is just his old clothes, Kiz. He doesn't need them any more."

"Where is he?"

Mrs. Blount might have said, "In the horse's heaven," but Admiral Twiss was plainer. "We don't know. Nobody knows, but I believe we shall find out."

"When we're dead?"

"Perhaps. It seems to make sense, doesn't it?" said the Admiral. "If Joe isn't here, he must be somewhere. Come. We'll leave his body to Nat."

Rumer Godden, The Diddakoi

What do you think people are?

"I never know how to place Olivia Brooke," Mrs. Cuthbert had to admit. It was annoying as usually, given half an hour, she had people clearly and properly labelled, "As if we were all tidy glass jars," said Miss Brooke.

"Glass jars? I never said that." Mrs. Cuthbert was nettled. "And what do you think people are?"

"More like caves to explore," said Miss Brooke. "Mysterious caves. One never gets to the end of them."

The Diddakoi by Rumer Godden

Even in a children's book, she just hits that nail on the head.

Rose and Friends Give Beowulf Six Thumbs Down ... Way Down

Overall, I found Beowulf to be like the product of multiple personality disorder. Sometimes it wants to be taken seriously; sometimes it seems to aspire to be little more than a cartoon. I guess I’d describe it as uneven. There are scenes, like the dragon fight near the end, that are visually spectacular. Other scenes, like the fight with Grendel (in which a running gag is the number of ways a nude Beowulf’s privates are obscured by foreground objects), seem pointlessly contrived.

Past the Popcorn review

This sounds like a synopsis of Roses diatribe of faults for this movie.

It also probably doesn't help that her Literature class just finished reading the book. They said that they managed to wait until the end credits before bursting out laughing. A favorite mocking point was turning the sea hag (Grendel's mother) into a luscious babe (Angelina Jolie).

This is the same girl who, after seeing The Count of Monte Cristo starring Jim Caviezel, stretched and said, "The book, the sandwich, the movie ... all completely different and yet I love them all." So we know it isn't the lack of accuracy she's objecting to (at least not wholly ...).

Getting better with age

Age is a strictly limited reference in terms of the current television season, of course. Moonlight and Journeyman, however, have been quite rewarding in terms of beginning character development and complications that form a larger story arc than a simple story that lasts one show. (Please keep in mind that we're running a week or so behind on everything, due to our extreme work schedule and Rose's plethora of special projects for school.)

Moonlight remains largely a romance (which is just fine with Rose and me, natch!) but suddenly has a much needed layer of depth and interest with the addition of his former wife who somehow has become human after he thought he had killed her (when she was a vampire ... oh, it's complicated folks!).

Journeyman has not only the complications of simply disappearing into the past and trying to figure out what he's supposed to do, but that of constantly running into the sweetheart he thought long dead, and of a brother who has an understandable lack of faith in him (due to a heavy duty previous gambling problem). Oh, and then there's the mysterious think-tank professor who keeps showing up with comments about tachyons and quartz (both supposedly good for time travel) and shows no surprise at all when Dan suddenly disappears into time practically in front of his eyes.

If they begin running reruns due to the writers strike, give them a try (not that Moonlight would be that difficult to pick up now ... Journeyman, on the other hand, is getting to the point where you are having to factor in past hints to keep up with current developments).

A Beautiful Tribute Framed Around the Hail Mary

This has some of my favorite art of Mary and Jesus highlighted. From Love to Be Catholic.

"God's the ultimate scientist ..."

Via First Things' good article about Stephen Colbert comes this classic moment of truth.

... bioethicist Lee Silver from Princeton visited the show. Colbert told him he believed that science and spirituality could go hand in hand and that all people, embryos included, have souls. Silver begged to differ. He told Colbert that, in the shower, we scrub off thousands of skin cells every day, and that the cells on his arm are human life in the same way that embryos are. To which Colbert responded: “If I let my arm go for a while and didn’t wash it, you’re saying I’d have babies on my arm.”

Click on the link in the quote to see the 5 minute clip from the show. Colbert doesn't give an inch and sets a good example. There's a Simpsons ad first but its short.

"Some men just want to watch the world burn."

The Dark Knight

Click through above for the first trailer for the sequel to Batman Begins. I have a feeling we're going to see a whole new side of Heath Ledger as The Joker.

Courtesy and Respect

Rose and I were talking this weekend about something that Hannah has mentioned before as well ... the fact that Tom's father was a true gentleman. Both have brought this up more than once and it is a true tribute to a man who was a gentleman no matter how he felt on a subject. You could not doubt it if he disagreed with you but he did it with such politeness.

Good manners depended on paying moral attention to others; it required one to treat them with complete moral seriousness, to understand their feelings and their needs.

... How utterly shortsighted we had been to listen to those who thought that manners were a bourgeois affectation, an irrelevance, which need no longer be valued. A moral disaster had ensued, because manners were the basic building block of a civil society. They were the method of transmitting the messege of moral consideration.

In this way an entire generation had lost a vital piece of the moral jigsaw and now we saw the results: a society in which nobody would help, nobody would feel for others; a society in which aggressive language and insensitivity were the norm.

The Sunday Philosophy Club by Alexander McCall Smith

This goes hand in hand with respect, actually for both sexes, but what Hannah and Rose have gone on to discuss after good manners is that Grandpa respected women and showed it by treating them with courtesy. They both long for and admire guys who treat them in this way. Certainly, that is usually mentioned when they talk about qualities they want in the man they will marry.

John C. Wright wrote about this just last week. Go read it all but here is a bit for you.

I am the only person I know who stands up when a woman enters the room, the only one who offers women my chair when the room is full. I am not bragging, I am complaining. It is so wrong that it should be this way. Courtesy should be unnoticed; it should be a background detail; it should be subliminal.

Courtesy should be like an aura: an invisible field surrounding every man, so that when she steps near, she turns into a lady in his eyes. Why? You put a woman in a culture where every man gives off unconscious and unselfconscious signs of respect for womanhood, your young women will naturally absorb an impression that their femininity is worthy of respect. You put a woman in a culture were every man gives off the unconscious signs of hostility all men feel for rivals and the contempt for eunuchs, your young women will absorb an impression that their pseudo-masculinity is worthy of disrespect. Women of low self esteem and weak willpower are easier for ruthless Lotharios to victimize. It is merely a matter of economics: what men hold at low esteem, they value lightly. That is true for self-esteem as for other estimations of value.

Grandpa had that aura and my girls picked up on it without anyone ever mentioning it. It is too bad that they noticed it because it is such a rare commodity. However, at least they have had his example and know what to look for.

Of course, the flip side of this is that women should show men the respect and courtesy they deserve, first and foremost by stopping showing men in ads, movies and television as "fat, sloppy, stupid, lazy, sex-obsessed and unable to function without the help of the fit, very together, stylish, driven, educated and sex-sensible woman." That quote is from The Anchoress' son Buster and for more on that subject do go read her wise post on the subject.

But no matter how stupid young men are in these ads, or sitcoms, their fathers are always stupider, and in some commercials, both parents are completely vapid and need to be set straight by their lecturing, Superior Lifeforce Children.

“Don’t buy stuff from those advertisers,” Buster would tell me. “Don’t patronize businesses that make men look like bums and idiots. I’m all for women and girls being portrayed respectfully, but I’m tired of it being at the expense of men. And don’t buy stuff that uses kids to lecture at you.”

This is a trend we have followed with dismay in our household. As Hannah and Rose will tell you, they need not take classes in evaluating media or advertising. We've always been the sort who are interested in the "subtle messages" of all media and they have absorbed that as they grew up. So for those guys out there who understand about treating women with respect and courtesy, we're sending a couple of girls who understand about treating respectfully in return.

Thank You to Our Veterans

In great appreciation of your suffering and sacrifices on our behalf, thank you to veterans as well as to those who are serving now.

Coming Soon ...

Mark Windsor is turning the raft around to chart a new course in a different current of the Tiber. (Wow, that confused even me. He's changing direction slightly on his blog.)

Over time, I’ve come to see the Bible itself as the raft. What other raft could there possibly be? The Bible is our common language and common heritage, the God-breathed gift that all should know and love. To that end, this site will be rededicated to a bible-based understanding of Catholicism. I certainly am not the first to do this, and I’ll likely not be the last, but I hope that visitors will find something unique here anyway.

In addition, I really hope that this new format will be of serious interests to Catholics as well as potential converts. Why? Well, the simple fact is that many Catholics really are biblically illiterate. This is through no fault of their own – modern Catholic catechesis is pretty miserable in general, and particularly when we talk about the Bible. But I’ve recently noticed a real hunger amongst Catholics that want to understand the Bible more deeply.

Read more here. It will be a couple of weeks before he's got it up and running but I look forward to this direction. There are plenty of people out there who have questions about Catholicism that would be interested in seeing where the scriptural base is. While listening to the Understanding the Scriptures podcast I have been blown away time after time seeing various Church teachings threaded throughout the Old Testament. (I'm still working my way through, being on episode 17.) I can't wait to see what Mark writes (but then, I'm a fan).

Theme for the Day: Guilt

Lois: For crying out loud, that's no monster, that's your conscience. Be thankful God gave you one. It's a gift. And you know what most people do with theirs? They keep 'em in the closet all year, and only bring it out when they think he's coming to visit. You're not like that. Good for you.

Malcolm in the Middle

Over neglecting a dear daughter

Over not reading a review book

Ah, guilt. The Catholic's friend ...

Pet moments ...

This morning, I was letting Daffy (our boxer) eat the oatmeal off the serving spoon. Of course, it is stuck onto the bowl of the spoon in such a way that she can't lick it off and she doesn't have long enough teeth to really bit it off. Though she's trying. After a while I started laughing. She stopped for a second, looked up at me and began wagging, then went back to her attempts still wagging. Yes, we were laughing together at the absurdity of it all.

So I am calling the other dog to help with this oatmeal treat. He never hears me. The cat, however, sits down ready for her share. I tell her, "You will hate this." She looks calmly at me, "I will love it." So I am going to prove it by giving her a bit off my finger. She sniffs, delicately tastes, then yanks off a bit and takes it away to savor. And came back for seconds. Dang. She was right.

(And yes this post is for Hannah ... and any other random pet lovers out there...)

Ok, you know what I really hate?

When I am so lost in thought but also determined to push ahead with my routine so that I get to work.

And then I wash my hair (in the kitchen sink as is my wont ... really short hair, y'all) ... but never brought my towel into the kitchen.

I am telling you, my hair may be short but there is no way a kitchen towel wraps around my head!

Reading Right Now ...

All are highly recommended.

Sucker Punch by Marc Strange
This book grabbed me right from the beginning. A hardboiled detective novel, it is told by Joe Grundy, a former prize fighter, who is the head of hotel security for the Lord Douglas Hotel in Vancouver. A hippie inherits billions of dollars and his plans to give the money away to anyone who asks, a hundred dollars at a time, is a threat to the people running the trust which used to receive the money. Naturally, he stays at the hotel and is killed. Grundy must track down the killer to clear one of his security men of murder charges. I am a sucker for these hard boiled detectives as y'all know and Strange writes characters just enough out of the ordinary without being annoyingly quirky. I'm about halfway through and it is a page turner.

The Jennifer Morgue by Charles Stross
This is the sequel to Stross' The Atrocity Archives. The premise puts me in mind of Poul Anderson's Operation Chaos stories about an alternate reality where werewolves and witches are the norm. In this scenario there are numerous parallel universes, some of which contain extremely hostile alien entities who would like to reach through any open portals and wreak havoc. They often reach our world through the inadvertent use of complex math, which we know as "magic." Bob Howard is a computer nerd assigned by the Laundry (secret British agency) to contain these incidents. Along the way he encounters exotic women and situations while saving the world. Call it "Chuck" meets "Operation Chaos." Entertaining and often highly humorous. I'm also about halfway through this one.

The Case for the Real Jesus: A Journalist Investigates Current Attacks on the Identity of Christ by Lee Strobel
My current "serious" book. Lee Strobel visits various scholars and experts in order to take a closer look at six modern challenges to traditional Christianity's understanding of Jesus. The Amazon summary of the challenges:

• A different Jesus is seen in ancient documents that seem as credible as the four canonical gospels
  
• Tampering by the church has damaged the Bible's portrayal of Jesus
• New explanations refute Jesus' resurrection
• Christianity copied pagan religions regarding Jesus
• Jesus didn't fulfill messianic prophecies
• Contemporary people should be able to choose what to believe about Jesus

As always, Strobel approaches this from the angle of an investigative reporter, though I, for one, could do without his sudden seeming doubt in his faith. He seems to begin every book this way and if he hasn't come to a personal relationship with Jesus then the guy has a bigger problem than The Gospel of Thomas. However, that is a small quibble and it comes from one who is a fan of his other books (my review of Case for a Creator).

Strobel always provides a good overview of any topic with plenty of references so that the reader can do their own digging in the direction that intrigues them most. This book is no exception and I was particularly interested in the look at pagan religions versus Christianity since that is an argument I had never heard refuted. This book would be an excellent gift to that person who is always bringing up the current day objections to Christianity. (Yes, I have a couple in mind.) I'm about two-thirds of the way through this one.

I Think Baby Gabriel Has a Very Special Destiny

Mrs Jones learned she was expecting twins when she was ten weeks pregnant. She said: "When they told us we were over the moon."

But at her 20-week scan, doctors had some devastating news. One of the boys was half the size of his brother.

They didn't know what was causing it, but somehow he wasn't getting enough nutrients.

Then doctors said his heart was three times normal size and it was likely he would have a heart attack or a stroke in the womb.

Mrs Jones said: "They told us that if he died, it could be life threatening for his brother.

"We had to decide whether to end his life and let his brother live, or risk them both."

They said it would be impossible to keep him alive afterwards as he was so poorly.

It would be kinder to let him die in the womb with his brother by his side than to die alone after being born.

"That made my mind up for me. I wanted the best thing for him."

Ironically, it looks as if the doctors' attempts to kill Gabriel were what contributed toward saving his life. Read the whole story here. (This story has been all over the place but I just got time to post it ...)

The Really Good, Really Long, Really Exhausting Weekend ...

The wedding is over. It was wonderful, the bride was gorgeous (she'd look gorgeous in a potato sack so in all her finery she was a real knock out), the groom quietly beaming (think a young Kyle Chandler look alike). And we all partied like there was no tomorrow. Well, most people did. We were Grandma's hosts (Tom's mom) and she doesn't stay out until 3:00 in the morning like everyone else (can we all say Thank You Lord here?).

The best news of all was that there was a final family gathering at our place Sunday afternoon at the end of which Grandma decided that she was going to move to Dallas (she and Steve and Dan had earlier toured Caruth Haven's assisted living). When pressed for a deadline, she thought that before Christmas would be nice. WOOHOO!

This is what everyone has been working toward. The family nucleus has moved to Dallas. She was practically alone in Houston except for her sister and one brother who has his own young family and can't devote himself to checking on her all the time. Grandma is already planning what to keep and what to give away.

Although that only gives us a month to get her packed up and moved ... but we have champion organizers in this family and I believe this will happen by December 15. What great good news (I just had to say that again!).

More later, I'm sure...

Latin Bleg

I know, I know ... this is not the place you'd expect to see someone asking for help with Latin.

However, I am beginning to read China Court for the podcast and it follows the "Day Hours," beginning each section with a description of the page of the book. Naturally, that includes some Latin as the "Day Hours" book is old.

So the first section is for "Lauds" and I need a pronunciation guide to this sentence:

"Nox praecessit, dies autem appropinquavit. ..."

Please keep in mind that I know next to nothing about Latin. In case it helps, the translation is:

The night is far on its course; day draws near.

Anyone?

The perfect dress ...

As I mentioned before, it's the big wedding tonight. Lots of family gatherings at various times of day began on Thursday and will go on through tomorrow (the wedding is tonight at 7:30).

Also work is busy (but it's a good kind of busy) ... and I need to begin recording for the podcast as well as doing some of the work I brought home.

I still feel so very happy about my morning that I don't care, even if I did wake up at 8:10 (darned alarm clock) with an 8:30 appointment to get my hair done (nothing like that adrenaline rush, is there?).

Last night in post-rehearsal-dinner-conversation, around 10:30 Rose and I discovered that we had wildly different ideas about what she should be wearing to the wedding. We were both tired so that led to some teenage stomping ("Fine!") and my despairing thoughts of having to shop for four hours with both of us getting unhappier all the time. Which led to my wholehearted, brief prayer, "Lord, please let us see the perfect dress right away." (All the time wavering between thinking that the good Lord has more to do than find Rose a dress ... and then thinking that He cares about everything doesn't He? I have these conflicts every so often ...)

We got off the escalator at Dillard's today and glancing over at the nice dresses section I pointed at an elegantly simple, gauzy, black creation and said, "Like that dress. It would be good." We checked the price and moved toward Rose's age group clothing. After picking up a top and skirt that would be adequate but not elegant we realized that they would cost as much as that dress. That dress which, of course, fit Rose perfectly as if made just for her. The dress we saw at first glance. Which turned her from a blue-jeaned teenager into an elegant young woman who will wow anyone who sees her.

I'm still conflicted about asking God to find Rose a dress. But it looks as if He just might care enough to have had one ready for her.

"Preach the Gospel Always. If Necessary Use Words"

St. Francis of Assisi spoke those wise words and Jen at "Et tu" confirms them. However, in Jen's case, she went looking for words as her exploration of Christianity consisted of the blogosphere.

So, in typical me fashion, I turned to the internet. I had no idea how one would go about finding blogs by practicing Catholics, so I just Googled stuff like "Catholic mom blog", "Catholic blog", "Christian mom blogs", etc. It took me a while to find what I was looking for, but I finally found a few blogs written by Catholic and other Christian women. I added them to my bookmarks, sat back, and read. I almost never commented. I just quietly watched their lives unfold, like an anthropologist studying a new culture. Almost everything they did was so foreign to me -- they casually mentioned praying about this or that, wrote about the goings on at their churches, discussed how they turned to God in tough times and disappointment, etc. I had never known anyone who did things like this (at least not that they shared with me), so I was fascinated.

I didn't really realize it at the time, but as I would read these blogs, in the back of my mind I always though, "This is what it means to be a Christian" or, "This is what Catholic mothers are like." I didn't exactly intend to hold these authors up as the very definition of their religion, but since I didn't know any other people from their religion they were all I had to go by.

She then goes on in her thoughtful way (which is why her blog is one of my "must reads") to muse about Christian responsibility in blogging to give a good example. Which sets up a good conversation in her comments box about honesty in blogging and other issues.

It made me think of the fact that being a blogger makes me a better Christian. Funny sounding isn't it? But if I can't be honest on the blog then I'm not gonna do it. And I have to live my life in a way I can write about and share. Sadly, this means that when I miss the mark sometimes I do it right here with snarky posts or comments ... and then I've gotta live with that too. Oh, it's so good for my humility!

It also was a great compliment (and humbling) to find out at the end of the post that Happy Catholic was one of those blogs Jen was watching to see what Christians are like. So the other lesson is ... you never know who's watching or why! I read all but one of the other blogs she mentioned and agree that you can honestly see people living their faith there.

Good stuff. Thanks Jen!

A Little More Straight Talk About Mercy

Some more about the quality of mercy from Heaven in Our Hands (review is here). By the way, recently I brought up The Hiding Place by Corrie ten Boom to some friends and was shocked to hear that none of them had ever heard of this wonderful book. Somehow I thought that every teenager (or teenage girl anyway) went on to it after reading The Diary of Anne Frank. If you haven't read it then check your local library where they are sure to have several copies. It is a moving testimony to the power of God.

Mercy burns up the IOU's of life. It generously forgives debts, even emotional or psychological wounds. Rightly practiced, it never says, "I can forgive anything but that."

Pam Moran, who helped me with this book, provides the following account based on the experience of a Dutch Christian woman, Corrie ten Boom, During the Nazi occupation of Holland, this remarkable woman and her family were sent to Auschwitz because they had hidden Jews in their home. There Corrie soon came to hate the sneering guard who mocked their naked bodies whenever they were taken to the showers.

Corrie watched her sister die in the camp, but she survived and vowed never to return to Germany. Many years later, however, she did return for a speaking engagement. Her first talk centered on the topic of forgiveness: extending the mercy of God to those who have wronged us in some way. To her absolute horror, there, sitting in the audience, was the same guard who had so taunted them at Auschwitz.

This man could not possibly have remembered Corrie as one of his emaciated and shorn prisoners, but she would have recognized him anywhere. Yet on this occasion, he looked decidedly different; his face bore a radiant expression that suggested a dramatic transformation had taken place in his life. Nonetheless, Corrie had no desire to renew their acquaintance.

As it turned out, she had no choice. After her talk, the smiling man approached her and extended his hand. "A fine message, fraulein! How good it is to know that, as you say, all our sins are at the bottom of the sea!"

Feeling only intense hatred for this person who had inflicted such pain, Corrie ten Boom heard the Lord tell her to put out her hand. She described what happened:

And so woodenly, mechanically, I thrust my hand into the one stretched out to me. And as I did, an incredible thing took place. The current started in my shoulder, raced down my arm, sprang into our joined hands. And then this healing warmth seemed to flood my whole being, bringing tears to my eyes.

"I forgive you, brother!" I cried. "With all my heart!"

The stored-up hatred of years was melted away in a moment by the warm oil of God's mercy. Could you have endured such horrible abuse and been able to take the hand of your tormentor?

St. John Climacus: He's a Soul Man

Soul Provider by Edward L. Beck showed up at my front door this week. I looked at the the back cover and saw that the Dalai Lama praised it. This is not necessarily a good thing from my point of view, especially when weighing whether to add a book to my already high stack of religious reading. It's not a deal killer, mind you, but it does make me wary.

Then I opened the book and saw a black and white version of The Ladder of Ascent (shown above). Hmmm, intriguing.

Proceeding to the intro and first chapter, I got sucked in. Beck was at a monastery on retreat when he saw the above painting which was a long-time favorite of his. Looking into it further, he found his way to The Ladder of Divine Ascent by St. John Climacus from the 7th century. This book of the 30 steps toward God was so fruitful that Beck has reworked it for our modern imagination.

I haven't read any further yet although this book definitely has made the cut for my "to read" list. On the other hand, Steven Riddle is going full steam ahead, providing excerpts and reflections. Below is a taste and you can get started here.

Fr. Beck's book seems to be a very hard-headed, light-hearted, full-spirited survey of how to improve one's life with God. The advice given is solid, orthodox and complemented by insights from other religious traditions that both inform and help to bring out implicit aspects of each topic. Each chapter ends with a set of very hard, very pointed questions that allow the reader to reflect upon his or her own state with respect to the Ascent to God.

Straight Talk on the Beatitudes

Heaven in Our Hands: Receiving the Blessings We Long For
Benedict J. Groeschel, C.F.R.

My friend Susan lent me this book. As happens sometimes with those books that are given because "you'll really like it" this one languished in my book stack for some time. I would glance through it and always be pulled away by some newer book, something more "a la minute" than this seemingly simple take on the beatitudes. In fact, the very simplicity was not appealing. Hadn't I heard all this stuff before? Yes, but when will I ever learn not to take things at face value?

When I finally picked this up to "blast through" it so that I could return it, I discovered that the straightforward simplicity hid things I needed to hear. Things we all need to hear. Father Benedict Groeschel has a real talent for expounding on a subject with examples and angles that show us the subject from a new light. He also has a talent for tossing in little laughs here and there along the way that make this most readable as well. All in all, one winds up reexamining a subject that was thought to be well understood. No matter how simply written about, that is something to be valued.

In fact, this is one of the more successful books that Tom and I have read together every evening. We have just begun but it has provided food for thought and conversation between the two of us that "deeper" thinkers such as C.S. Lewis and Peter Kreeft have failed to do. In short, this hits both Tom and me where we live spiritually and practically. Believe me when I say that we are very different in our approaches to our faith life and for a book to do that means it has a wide appeal.

Highly recommended.

Oh, and Susan? I'm going to be hanging onto this for a little longer.

[On the subject of mercy]

What if you suspect that someone might be abusing your charity? Decide once and for all not to let it bother you in the least, and then live by that conclusion. Better to take the chance of being cheated than to neglect mercy. Merciless people never have to worry about being cheated; they just don't help anybody. Foolish people, on the other hand, help everybody! Those who decide to be merciful in an intelligent way should probably expect about a 12 to 15 percent loss on their investment. This is the amount I figure will inevitably go to charlatans or crooks or people who could be helping themselves a bit more than they are. ...

I suspect that a great many people would like to be merciful but are unsure of how to begin and afraid of being cheated. My advice is: take stock of your limited resources -- time, money, mercy -- and decide what to do with them. Then just try it! And if you're afraid of being cheated, cheer up. You've already been cheated by lots of other people besides the poor: the federal government, many prominent corporations, most financial institutions, and perhaps even some religious organizations!

... Having been cheated regularl.y and repeatedly by these very respectable people, you've managed to live with it. And you've probably lost much more to the government than you're ever going to lose to somebody who needs mercy. In short, the fear of being cheated is not a legitimate reason to avoid practicing mercy.

The Dream Team: Whedon and Minear

... Whedon explains: Dollhouse is a suspense drama about a girl who can have any personality except her own." So it's part Alias and part Quantum Leap, "because Echo is literally changing who she is," he continues. "She gets into people's lives a little bit."

the rest of the story

Now, that's what I'm talking about. Tim Minear and Joss Whedon together again ... with a seven show contract. Now if Fox will only not cancel after three episodes have been shown, a la Firefly. Via Ain't It Cool.

Prayer and Priorities

Having recently returned to a forced schedule of prayer, I can testify that it is not a matter of "feeling" or "making time." It must be a priority and when we make it so then we shall find it is one richly rewarded.

... We must never be taken in by the fiction that prayer in order to be "heartfelt" must be "spontaneous, inward, informal and/or unregularised." Certainly prayer can be spontaneous, informal, and unregularised but that should always be in addition to the ongoing, sustained, purposeful, prayer we are already engaged in. Prayer is purposeful communication with our Creator. There are going to be days when we don't "feel" like it and it is on those days (or in those times) that the value of schedule and habit will carry us through.

Postscript from the Spitfire Grill

She has more to say and is short but to the point. So go read it all.

This was reinforced not only by my own experience but again with this recent reading from In Conversation with God by Francis Fernandez.

We may think that our struggle in prayer is not bearing fruit, while God himself is immensely happy at our progress. The Lord will always give us his peace and his strength so that we may accomplish his work. We should never abandon our prayer. St. Teresa of Avila has advised that to lose one's way is -- so it seems to me -- nothing else bu tthe giving up of prayer. Perhaps this is one of the more serious temptations which can afflict souls committed to the Lord's service: to abandon this daily conversation with God for apparent lack of fruit, for the sake of "more important" thinkg, even for apostolic activities ...

Nothing is more important than our daily appointment with Jesus. He is waiting for us. At all costs, the decision to persevere in devoting a set time to private prayr daily must be made and carried out inflexibly. It does not matter if on can do no more than remain on one's knees for the period and only battle with complete lack of success against distractions; one is not wasting time. (E. Boylan).

Yes, God's trying to get something through my thick head and he knows me so well that he is saying it over and over and over to make sure I remember and stick with that forced schedule. Because I'm a quick to fall away once I think something's fixed.

Tired of Reading About Christians Pushing Bella?

Here's a gathering of what the plain old regular movie reviewers say, courtesy of Carl Olson. Let's all remember this movie won The People's Choice Award in Toronto before anyone ever heard of it.

Which is to say that it has a theme which makes bishops and Christians push the movie (not that there's anything wrong with that), but in the end it is a good movie ... at least that's what I hear. I haven't seen it yet and won't have time to for a while so it will probably be the DVD for our house.

Are We Ready for the Week Ahead?

Next Saturday is the wedding of one of Tom's nieces. This, of course, will mean a big family gathering and much merriment and celebration. In this case, where the family has plenty of resources, it means the sort of celebration that puts me in mind of a week-long festival thrown by a medieval lord upon the wedding of his heir. Golf parties, Bride's luncheon, etcetera. Which is a wonderful thing to be able to do, I think, if one has the time and resources.

Let's add to that the fact that I, personally, have hit my busiest time of year at work, doing layout for the Worthington catalogs. I enjoy this work and working with the clients. (We've been working with them since Kevin began the company and if you need school or church furniture, I can honestly recommend them to you. You will not find more honorable or sincere people anywhere.) However, that doesn't change the fact that most of this work is done within about a 1-1/2 month period, and mostly by me as everyone else has their own projects. I bring work home on the weekends and during the height of the frenzy will be working every night at home on it. I began this last week and the weekend work began on Saturday.

Now, how about that phone call from a brother-in-law asking, "Did Mom tell you that she's staying with y'all for the wedding?"

No, no she didn't.

Not that it is a problem. I absolutely adore my mother-in-law. This is made very easy for me as the feeling is mutual.

However, the state of the guest bedroom ... hmmm, well, it needed to be cleaned up anyway as it had become that well-known repository for anything extra that people didn't want to bother with at the time. Stacks of books, school papers, old binders, and much, much more were cleared away this weekend.

And let's not even go into the state of my kitchen floor or the girls' shower ... those will be dealt with during the early part of this week.

So, I had all that on my mind and when the mass announcements included the reminder that All Saint's Day (THURSDAY) is a Holy Day of Obligation, I suddenly realized ...

• Wednesday: Halloween (note to self: pick up pumpkin before then, carve if time ... if not then wimp out with black Sharpie ... thank goodness I remembered candy already)
• Thursday: Holy Day of Obligation, pick up my MIL from airport, family dinner at the bride's family's house
• Friday: get my MIL to and from Bride's Luncheon, First Friday fast and fasting from meat and the rehearsal dinner (at a Mexican restaurant ... I also adore the groom's parents, did I mention that?)
• Saturday: wedding

Plus being around while my MIL is visiting ... that is not a chore but must be figured into the general mindset. Plus work. Plus Scripture study. Plus the podcast intro and proofing. Plus a couple of other things I promised to people before the insanity hit. Etcetera.

Thank goodness that I can go to the vigil mass on Wednesday for All Saint's Day.

So for the Catholics reading ... the one message to take away from this if nothing else is Thursday is a Holy Day of Obligation.

The second message to take away, for those participating in the First Friday fast ... that's this week, y'all.

Did I mention that I'm thankful for all this?

I definitely am and that is what I must remind myself of when the stress of the schedule starts getting to me.

• I'm thankful for the work
• I'm thankful for the loving family and community which we are part of and will definitely see in action this week
• I'm thankful for the sacrament of marriage and getting to see this couple wed, who seem to me to be meant for each other.
• I'm thankful for the groom's family's witness of their faith ... a blending of Irish (yes, from the Old World with a lovely accent) and Hispanic (again with a lovely accent) Catholics, with 8 children and a strong and abiding devotion to their faith.

Now if I can just remember that thankfulness and not get overwhelmed ... take it step by step. Lord, multiply my time and my focus! Amen.

Masque of the Red Death and The Judge's House

A classic each from Edgar Allen Poe and Bram Stoker await your listening pleasure in Forgotten Classic's Halloween Special 1. Listen, if you dare!

An Amazing Instance of a Miracle Recorded

Shamelessly lifted from Wittshire. First, read this story ...

Duane Miller was a lifelong preacher with a big problem: his voice was gone. After a bad bout of flu, he couldn't speak above a strained whisper. Over the course of the next five months his doctor and several specialists agreed: the flu had permanently damaged his vocal cords. Just in case they were wrong, they recommended a six-month hiatus from speaking.

So Duane stayed home and stayed quiet. After six more months he had not improved--indeed, the specialists now told him that even his painful whisper was doomed. He was producing sound using the fatty tissue known as "false cords," and they would soon wear away.

Doctors photographed and studied every step in the progression of Duane's muteness. In Switzerland, specialists from all over the world examined photographs of his badly scarred throat.

Meanwhile, Duane found a job doing paperwork and wondered why God had taken away the tool he needed to do the job he'd always thought he'd been called to do.

This went on for several years. Occasionally Duane's friends at the large church he attended in Houston persuaded him to "scream" his whisper into a microphone and teach class. He had mixed feelings about this--it was painful to do, and painful to hear--but every now and then he did teach a short class.

Three years after he'd lost his voice, Duane agreed to be the last-minute substitute teacher for an adult Sunday school class. He was supposed to teach Psalm 103.

Praise the LORD, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits--

Who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion,who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.

Great. How was he going to have any credibility teaching that God "forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases," and "redeems my life from the pit"? He was in the pit. God had not healed him. In fact, the doctors said he was nearing the time when he'd be completely mute. Moreover, Duane had just lost his job, and a manuscript he'd hoped to get published had been rejected--not because of the text itself, but because he would be unable to promote the book on radio shows and so forth.

But Duane taught. He said that God could do whatever God wanted to do. He said that God wasn't a genie who always performed at our command, but neither was he indifferent to our struggles. He was God.

Teaching hurt. Duane's throat ached from "screaming," and he wasn't sure anyone could really hear him anyway. He was about to cut the lesson short when he got to the "God heals all my diseases" part.

"I have had, and you have had in times past, pit experiences--"

And on the word "pit," his throat opened. People looked up. He sounded different.

Duane kept talking. "We've all had times when our lives seem to be in the pit... in the grave--"His voice was stronger! His wife got up from her seat and ran up to the podium. Duane began to cry.

That was in 1993. When doctors examined his throat, they found it smooth and healthy, completely free of scar tissue.

Today Duane Miller's voice is still fine. And his healing, which took place in a room full of several hundred people, was recorded. You can listen to it here (click on "the moment" at the bottom left).

So praise Him in the light, but praise Him in the dark as well. He has not forgotten you. He knows what he's doing.

... then go to Duane's website and click on "The Moment" at the bottom left-hand side of the page. It is simply amazing. And, of course, I cried.

The facts were these ...

Is anyone else out there enjoying Pushing Daisies as much as we are? The style is "a la Tim Burton" ... that is if Tim Burton sweetened up some. It is truly delightful and our favorite new show of the season.

Pushing Daisies is a "forensic fairy tale" that focuses on Ned, a piemaker with the mysterious ability to make the dead live again. The gift is not without its complications -- if he touches someone that he's revived a second time, they die permanently; and if a person is revived for more than 60 seconds, somebody else nearby dies. According to Ned, "it's a random proximity thing," although it affects beings that are similar in nature to the revived -- leaving an insect alive will kill another insect, while leaving a person alive will kill another person.

Wikipedia

The musical number from Grease in episode 3 was a hilarious surprise ... the dandelion costumes for the "spores" car in episode 2 were fantastic ... and how Chuck and

The kicker, of course, was in the second episode when it was revealed that Emerson Cod (Chi McBride) knits when he is upset. He had knit himself a sweater vest (which we also see him wearing in episode 3) and two gun cosies thanks to the worries of that episode. AND a knitting needle concealed on his person saved the day ... just too much fun.

Open Yourself to Grace

How easy it is to believe that Christianity is a life of giving—of striving to be good enough and selfless enough to merit God’s favor. But just the opposite is true! The grace that God wants to shower on us each day comes as we learn to receive. Only then, with the help of grace, can we give in return by being good or laying down our lives for those around us.

Will you be facing some difficult situation today? A trying incident at work, maybe, or a harried time at home? If you do, try to pause in the midst of it to invite the Lord into that situation. Surrender to him and ask for a fresh outpouring of grace. Then watch as he makes you into an overcomer—loving the unlovable, denying selfish desires, saying “no” to the world’s allurements, and receiving the guidance and strength you need.

Ain't that the truth? I start forgetting just whose strength I should be depending on. Should we strive to our utmost? Yes. But we need to remember what the basis is for us being able to reflect God's goodness in those tough times. From Saturday's meditation at Word Among Us..

An Interesting Faith Story

The View from the Foothills has long been a favorite a favorite blog of mine. I really love his book reviews.

Turns out, he's more than just a book reviewer ... he is telling his faith story. He hasn't gotten to the end yet but I am finding it a very interesting read as I think it reflects many of the influences and stresses on our faith in modern times. As I would have expected, he isn't passive but actively considering and contemplating faith throughout all this.

Even more interesting to Catholics, he's calling it: Watching the Tiber Go By

• Part 1
• Part 2
• Part 3

It's Not Often You Open the Church Bulletin and See A Gorgeous Guy

I've been interested in this movie since it won the People's Choice Award at the Toronto Film Festival. I'm really looking forward to seeing it ... and not simply because of that gorgeous face on the poster.

Here's the synopsis from imdb.

An international soccer star (Eduardo Verástegui) is on his way to sign a multi-million dollar contract when something happens that brings his career to an abrupt end. A waitress (Tammy Blanchard), struggling to make it in New York City, discovers something about herself that she's unprepared for. In one irreversible moment, their lives are turned upside down...until an impetuous action brings them together and turns an ordinary day into an unforgettable experience. Once a famous athlete, and now a cook at his brother's Mexican restaurant, José has retreated from the world but he recognizes something in Nina, a young waitress, and reaches out to her. In the course of a single day, he not only confronts his past but shows her how the healing power of a family can help her embrace the future.

This movie has been promoted heavily among Christians because of the pro-life message. To me, it's strongest hope for reaching the regular, secular audience would be that it also is a very good movie, which is what gets people in the door in the first place (not to mention gorgeous faces on posters ... ahem).

The poster in our bulletin was accompanied by a good letter from our bishop and info about three theaters reserved locally. It is all here for those who are interested.

Special Prayer Request

4-year-old Lori Subialdea suffers from Irritable Bowel Syndrome. She is being hospitalized again and is on a morphine drip. My heart goes out to this little one and her family. Nothing is harder than watching your child suffer. Please pray for this family and for Lori's doctors.

All the Things I Didn't Know About Mother Teresa

Updated: scroll to the bottom for final remarks upon finishing the book.

Mother Teresa: Come Be My Light
by Mother Teresa, Brian Kolodiejchuk

I am about two-thirds of the way through this book and have been surprised by how it has not matched my preconceptions. I put off beginning it because I expected it to be dreary and full of misery because of Mother Teresa's now well known "dark night of the soul." However, although the first half of the book alludes to that, most of it is about her early life as a nun, her struggles to set up the Missionaries of Charity, and her early days in Calcutta. Most stories I have read about her tend to gloss over those days in order to get to the flowering of her mission in Calcutta so this was a revelation. Also a revelation was the "inner Teresa" that is shown to us in her early letters.

I had no idea that from very early in her days as a nun Mother Teresa was known for her humility, joy, and for extraordinary sacrifice, even when it included going alone into the streets after religious rioting killed over 5,000 in order to find food for the school's students who had nothing to eat. What becomes obvious is her great love and devotion to Jesus and that she is being formed to be a great example to everyone.

I had no idea that her messages from Jesus to go serve the poor of India took the form of her actually being able to hear his voice. She had many recurring and various visions of Jesus, Mary, and the massed poor of India pleading with her to bring them to our Lord. It was the view of her confessor that she was in a state of "near ecstasy" during those times, which brings inevitably to mind St. Teresa of Avila.

It never occurred to me that Teresa would have been taken aback by this call to serve the poor. Perhaps because her mission has always been presented to me as a thing accomplished, I never knew or considered how much she loved her current life and thought she already was where God wanted her to be. This put me forcibly in mind of a conversation I recently had with a friend who passionately proclaimed that she felt herself being led to a place that was not what she had in mind for how her life "should go." The next day I read this passage and thought how real it made Mother Teresa to me, how she thought she knew God's call, and how shocked she was to find out what he really wanted ... which wasn't in her conception of God's will at all. Just as my friend was expressing. Just as many of us have doubtless experienced.

A moving exchange of great beauty went on between Christ and Mother Teresa. With utmost tenderness, He addressed her as "My own spouse" or "My own little one," "My Jesus" or "My own Jesus," replied Mother Teresa, longing to return love for love. In this sacred dialogue, Jesus was revealing His Heart to her: His pain, His love, His compassion, His thirst for those who suffer most. He also revealed His plan to send her to them as a carrier of His love. This revelation had a deep echo in her soul. Many years earlier, writing back home, she had expressed her desire "to bring joy to the lives" of those to whom she had been sent. She had prayed for "the strength to always be the light of their lives and so lead them to You!" However, he call to leave Loreto and be a sign of Christ's presence, a carrier of His love and compassion to the poorest of the poor in the slums, was not the kind of answer she expected in response to her prayer. Yet the "Voice" kept pleading, "Come, come, carry Me into the holes of the poor. Come, be My light." Jesus' invitation was imbued with trust; He counted on her response.

I never realized how Mother Teresa pestered and pestered ... and pestered her Archbishop to try to move things along quickly in being allowed to leave her current vocation and begin her new mission in India. I felt a real sympathy for Archbishop Perier who kept responding with measured requests for her not to be so "hasty" and to allow him time to evaluate, pray, and consider her calling. Of course, with Jesus himself speaking in your ear it is easy to see that one might keep up the pressure so we can easily see Teresa's side of things too. Her persistence, however, was one of the things that impressed him with Teresa's zeal and sincerity so that served its purpose also.

I never thought of Mother Teresa as a young novice, off on her mission to serve God. There is a delight for me in that 18-year-old girl whose openness and joy in beginning her vocation overflow from her letters home. She is so very like Hannah, Rose, and their friends whose enthusiasm and energy abound as they set off on their own missions and vocations to college and beyond. In hindsight, there is even more joy because her request to her family, "Pray much for us that we may be good and courageous missionaries" was answered so far beyond anything that she could have dreamed at the time.

I never realized that Mother Teresa was simply a person. Her letters are usually very simple and served to make me understand that "under her skin" was a person just like you or me. The big difference was that she was in love with Jesus had made a vow to give him "all." For an Albanian that vow, quite simply, was invested with cultural cement that would not break, as well as with all her considerable stubbornness and will. In reading this book, Mother Teresa has gone from an iconic figure to someone whose struggles I can relate to, albeit on a very simple level through my own understanding. She has become someone who I can attempt to emulate in her determination to give Jesus her "all."

I now can see that part of her "dark night of the soul," torture though it was to Teresa, also helped to insulate her against the adulation of the secular world as it became more aware of her mission. I am just beginning this part of the book so will undoubtedly learn more about Mother Teresa, this person who is now real to me, and who has many lessons to teach me about loving and following Jesus.

It also occurs to me that those critics, like the famous Christopher Hitchens, cannot have really read this book (or perhaps did not read it honestly without their own preconceptions) before accusing Mother Teresa of discovering that there is no God and not wanting to admit it to the world. Clearly through her letters, side by side with darkness and abandonment, goes a true love and longing for Christ to return to her. She did not doubt his existence in the depths of her soul, though surely she felt that way sometimes. However, she was too wise to succumb to acting on her feelings.

This also answers some of the comments I've heard from people who remark that they have never felt close to God and that must be a similar experience, albeit admittedly lesser than Teresa's. It makes me think of how facilely many of us leap to self comparisons with St. Jerome when we have a sharp retort simply because of his famous temper, without stopping to think of his many sacrifices, his accomplishments and his love for Jesus ... which I note none of us claim to match. Similarly, none of us have had the actual presence of Jesus as our company for months on end as Teresa did. Surely we would feel that darkness to be bottomless once we were bereft of it, just as she did. Just as surely we would look for answers from any spiritual advisers we had. Hopefully we would be able to do it with her "yes and a big smile," though in my own case ... I am doubtful I could achieve it.

By the way, this is a fairly quick read. I began it Monday night. Obviously it is highly recommended.

UPDATE:
I finished the book last night and was very surprised to find myself in tears through the last two chapters. Reading of Mother Teresa's ability to embrace and even find joy in her "darkness" as God's will and as a reparatory suffering offered for the souls of the poor ... well, it was a beautiful thing is all I can say. To read of her continual widening of her ministry to the poor in her final years was equally beautiful and also reminded me of the personal nature of salvation and the necessity of our ministry to those within our own circles, beginning with our own family and friends.

Do not think that reading the TIME magazine article is adequate for your understanding. Do yourself a favor and read the book itself. Accept no substitutes!

But Shadow Puppets Can't Stand Up to the Real Thing

What a smile ...

That's Amazing

About Those Seeds: Part 2

Much belated, but continuing the examination begun last week of the well known parable from Luke 8:4-15 of the sower and the seeds that fall on various sorts of ground. I especially appreciate this point about prayer because so often it is presented as something that is easy, whereas I struggle with myself every single day just to take the time for individual prayer.

And some fell on the rock; and as it grew up, it withered away, because it had no moisture. At "the moment of truth" they succumb because their allegince to Christ has been rooted solely in feeling and not in prayer. They have therefore been unabel to endure difficult moments unscathed, or take in their stride the trials of life and periods of spiritual dryness. Many people are pleased by what they hear, and sincerely resolve to pursue the good. Yet when adversity and suffering come, they soon abandon their good works (St. Gregory the Great). How many good resolutions have come to nought when the spiritual life has become a struggle! These souls were seeking themselves rather than God. As St. Augustine pointed out, Some act for one reason. Others act for another. The fact is that few look to Jesus for the sake of Jesus. To look for Jesus is to follow his footsteps wherever they may lead, no matter if the trail is smooth and easy or uphill and arduous. The key thing is to have the firm desire to reach Christ, to look for Jesus for the sake of Jesus. We can accomplish this only if we are faithful to our daily prayer, whether it comes to us easily or is more of a sacrifice.

In Conversation with God (vol. 5, ordinary time weeks 24-34) by Francis Fernandez

2007 Weblog Awards

Just found out that nominations are open ... but only through today. Usually there's more buzz. Guess I'm not hanging out at the right places to hear about such things. I always like seeing who is nominated, whether it is a popularity contest or not, simply because I find good new blogs that way.

One thing that they do that I particularly like is to have categories of blogs based on TTLB ecosystem ranking so everyone has a chance. They also have podcast and video categories which should lead to some good links.

Take a look at the categories in case you're interested in nominating someone, including yourself if you qualify!

For a Minute, I Though I Was Reading Disputations ...

... because Tom loves nothing more than a good chart or graph to illustrate a point.

But no, I was reading The Grail Code about why we should read great books. He illustrates his point with something from Plato's dialogues where "Socrates asks an ignorant slave boy how he would double the area of a square."

Go read it all.

The Black Moth Finale ...

... yes, we've finally reached the end of The Black Moth, as well as noting the fact that Halloween is the podosphere's favorite holiday with a few links to spots putting on special story-fests ... get it here and enjoy.

Just Because They're Monkeys ...

... and therefore adorable.

From The Inklings, via Brandywine Books.

Because October is Rosary Month ...

... check out this good piece at Salve Regina about the Rosary and avoiding distractions.

Which means that you should stay far, far way from this. Via Ironic Catholic.

About Those Seeds: part 1

This is from a few weeks (?) ago but only now have I found the time to share it. Jesus tells the well known parable from Luke 8:4-15 of the sower and the seeds that fall on various sorts of ground. I found it worth some meditation and am going to share it in several parts.

And as he sowed, some seed fell along the path, and was trodden under foot, and the birds of the air devoured it. The seed was completely lost without having given any fruit. Later on, Jesus explained to his disciples the parable and the reason for this loss: hearts which have become hardened through a lack of contrition are incapable of receiving the divine word. This bad ground represents the heart which has become accustomed to unclean thoughts, so "parched" as it were that it cannot receive and sustain the seed (St. Gregory the Great). The devil finds in souls of this kind a source of resistance to God's saving Grace.

On the other hand, a soul which reacts to imperfections and transgressions by sincere repentance actually attracts divine mercy. True humility allows God to sow his seed and have it bear abundant fruit. This is why we should use this parable to examine our spirit of reparation for the falls of every day, even in the least serious things. Do we go to Confession frequently and with a sincere yearning for divine assistance?

In Conversation with God (vol. 5, ordinary time weeks 24-34) by Francis Fernandez

Enbrethiliel is back!

Woohoo!

Thank goodness she pays close attention to her Guardian Angel's comments.

I am just waiting for her next super hero/movie/Catholic connection post now ...

All's Well

Thanks so much to everyone for all the prayers!

Rose was a trooper and we had her home yesterday. Not without a few mishaps but all in all things went quite well. She is getting much better at the "log roll" or "barrel roll" method of getting up from a lying down position. I have become proficient as the nurse-assistant for this maneuver.

Just to add to the fun, she had to be wakened every two hours all night long to make sure she didn't have numbness or tingling in her legs. Since Tom was going to work today, I got those honors.

However, don't think that he got off easy.

When Pepper, our big Black Lab/Great Dane mix, began crying and walking in circles last night, seemingly unable to keep his legs under him. Tom is the one who took him to the vet (thank the Lord for vets open until 10 p.m.).

Turns out that he probably has ... yep ... a slipped disk in his neck!

Is that a contagious thing? Because we've got an epidemic around here seemingly!

So I now am giving him anti-inflammatories and muscle relaxers. As well as having to go fetch him when he becomes disoriented and winds up crying in the back yard unable to figure out how to get inside. Because we all tend to forget, the brain is a big muscle too!

Isn't life odd sometimes?

Update:
Pepper is on muscle relaxants. So now he is lying in the shade in the back yard looking boneless and sleeping. Maybe he's feeling bloopy. The Anchoress seems to be enjoying it ...

Apologies for missing posting about First Friday

Because of the tizzy we were thrown into by the doctor's pronouncement of a Monday morning surgery, as well as rushing around to get bloodwork, preadmission, and school issues settled on Friday, I completely forgot to mention the First Friday devotion.

I am, however, thankful for those who remembered ... you know who you are.

And so does God, which is more important. I'll do better next month, promise!

The Good, the Bad, and the Boring

That's good ...
My recent trip to Springfield confirmed that my father is indeed feeling much better and my parents are doing pretty well all round. What a relief! Much thanks goes to St. Jude and to all of you who held my father in your prayers. Thank you so much!

That's bad ...
I took Rose to the neurosurgeon on Thursday. He took one look at her MRI film and scheduled her for the earliest opening he had for surgery. Which is Monday morning. At 7:15 a.m.

Basically, she has a huge herniation that is pressing on all nerves in her spine and both legs. A very bad thing altogether. The good thing is that some of the more dire consequences that he would normally expect haven't developed in Rose. (Let's all say, thank you, Lord, AMEN, shall we?)

It will be a day surgery sort of thing unless something unexpected pops up. Then she'll be home for two weeks or so.

We're not worried, apart from the natural apprehension that lurks on thinking of what might happen (which is instantly thrust from one's mind with a accompanying prayer), and trust this surgeon because he was the one who did Tom's last back surgery. All along the way through preadmittance and bloodwork precedures at the hospital yesterday, we kept hearing the same thing. "Dr. Weiner? Oh, he's a biggie. He's a really good doctor."

That's boring ... (the details for the few who might care)
She had been experiencing some problems with sciatica for about a year which would come under control with anti-inflammatories under our regular doctor's direction. My own feeling is that with a father who's had three back surgeries, none of which were due to accidents, and my side of the family which tends to have one hip a bit higher than the other ... well, the poor kid had natural genetic weaknesses which were exacerbated by taking yoga and kung fu at the same time. A month or so ago a kung fu kick resulted in much greater pain in one knee, down her leg, and numbness in her foot and calf. None of which was reported instantly to parents ... you know how that goes.

Naturally Rose was quite upset about the idea of surgery and missing school for two weeks, although she is adjusting to the idea. I told her that now is the time to cash in on requests for those CDs and DVDs she's been wanting. This weekend will be devoted to some serious Rose pampering (Do I know how to take care of a sick kid? Of course I do!).

That's Good Too
One of the best things about this is reflecting on our community. We have so many more friends to call on than we did long ago during Tom's surgeries. That's what letting God into your life does.He is overflowing in his generosity and that certainly extends to the circle of people who you know and love. Between our various retreat teams, others we know through St. Thomas, and (certainly not least) this blog, we know that all we have to do is ask and generous, caring friends will cover us with prayer, meals, or anything else we need during this time of crisis. And we are thankful for the visible Body of Christ.

As you can imagine, prayers are much appreciated. I'll update on this again on Tuesday or when the opportunity presents itself.

A Match Made in ... Heaven?

Sweeney Todd, Tim Burton, Johnny Depp, Alan Rickman, Helena Bonham Carter ... it doesn't get much better than this ...

Via Jeffrey Overstreet

Feast of the Guardian Angels

Reposted from last year ... I don't think I can top it. I also was gone during the Feast of the Archangels so here is last year's post about them.

Also be sure to check out what Mike Aquilina has to say on the subject.

Devotion to the Guardian Angels goes back to the beginnings of Christianity. Pope Clement X proclaimed the feast a universal celebration in the seventeenth century. The Guardian Angels serve as the messengers of God. The Almighty has allocated a Guardian Angel to each one of us for our protection and for the good of our apostolate...

We have to deal with our Guardian Angels in a familiar way, while at the same time recognizing their superior nature and grace. Though less palpable in their presence than human friends are, their efficacy for our benefit is far greater. Their counsel and suggestions come from God, and penetrate more deeply than any human voice. To reiterate, their capacity for hearing and understanding us is much superior even to that of our most faithful human friend, since their attendance at our side is continuous; they can enter more deeply into our intentions, desires and petitions than can any human being, since angels can reach our imagination directly without recourse to the comprehension of words. They are able to incite images, provoke memories, and make impressions in order to give us direction.

In Conversation With God : Feast Days July - December

As devoted as I am to the Archangels, I am especially fond of my Guardian Angel. He is always there when I need him and has a wicked sense of humor. Perhaps wicked is not the right word. He must, therefore, have an angelic sense of humor! This is one of my favorite feast days.

For my personal angel stories, as well as some general information, you can read more here, here, and here.

Prayer to One's Guardian Angel

Dear Angel,
in his goodness God gave you to me to
guide, protect and enlighten me,
and to being me back to the right way when I go astray.
Encourage me when I am disheartened,
and instruct me when I err in my judgment.
Help me to become more Christlike,
and so some day to be accepted into
the company of Angels and Saints in heaven.
Amen.

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

Thank You ... I Think ...

Anathema comes ever to mind when thinking of you.

Courtesy of The Surrealist Compliment Generator. Via Scott D. Danielson.

Gone 'Til Monday ...

... to a place with limited email and computer availability. See you next week!