Conversing with God in Advent: Praying the Sunday Readings with Lectio Divina

Conversing with God in Advent: Praying the Sunday Readings with Lectio Divina by Stephen J. Binz

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Bible ends with the words of Christ, "Yes, I am coming soon," and with the ancient prayer of the Church, "Come, Lord Jesus!" (revelation 22:20). The word "Advent" is derived from the word adventus, which means "coming." In Advent we're reminded of how much we need a savior, and we look forward to our Savior's coming in majesty even as we prepare to remember his coming in humility at Bethlehem.

Stephen Binz is a passionate advocate of Lectio Divina, the ancient practice of studying and praying using Scripture. The point of lectio divina is to personally encounter God and that is something I can relate to very well since I can't count the number of times I have had "aha!" moments of connection when I'm reading. Now, lectio divina isn't precisely that sort of thing, so it is something that I work at. I want to read too fast, I don't want to stop and reflect, and so forth.

This is where Stephen Binz's books are so valuable. He has a love for this practice which shows in the way they are written. First he takes readers deep into the meaning of Advent with our ancestors in Israel longing for Messiah and early Christians longing for Christ's return, with our own expectant hope of Christ's coming which lends itself to valuing the present, with lighting candles against the darkness, and with the cycles of scripture which give us the great prophets messages of Messiah.

Next, with the Advent background in mind, Binz walks readers through the simple steps of lectio divina: lectio (reading), meditatio (reflection), oratio (praying), contemplatio (resting in God), and operatio (witness in daily life). There is much more to it than this simple list, obviously, and Binz does a wonderful job of taking you through each step.

The treasure for Advent and Christmas, however, are in the specific material Binz has prepared for each Sunday of those seasons. The Lectio does not simply contain the readings for that Sunday but also provides some background material to help readers understand both historical and personal context. Meditatio has some prompting questions to aid reflection on scripture until "they become a mirror in which we see our own reflection." And so forth.

I am especially appreciative that this book has the complete A, B, and C cycle readings thus illuminated. This book becomes a tool that can be used every year. I am really looking forward to going through Advent and Christmas with this book. Highly recommended.

How "the Pope Canceled Christmas" and Other Bad Media Reporting

You know media coverage on the Pope’s new book has spiraled out of control in misreporting when Reuters issues a corrective piece lambasting the bad reporting. The Reuters piece is actually quite good.

Jeff Miller, The Curt Jester, pointed the Reuters piece out. It is great to read the official media actually taking the time to do a corrective piece. As Jeff says, it is a good story.

Jeff actually commented on the bad media reporting in his review of Jesus of Nazareth: The Infancy Narratives. I recommend his review to anyone interested in the book. It sounds really wonderful and like a good Advent book.

Seven Glorious Days: A Scientist Retells the Genesis Creation Story

The watery planet that would bear the label "Earth" some five billion years later was nothing short of a creative miracle. The ten billion years that it took the universe to produce a habitable planet is about the shortest possible time for that gargantuan task. Skeptics who say humans must be irrelevant because they did not exist for most of the history of the universe don't know what they are talking about. It takes a few billion years to make the first stars and about five billion years for a newly minted first-generation star to fuse itself into a supernova. It then takes a few billion years for the cloud from that supernova to reassemble itself into a second-generation star like our sun, surrounded by rocky planets rich in organic molecules, and, in rare cases, water.

=============

The most awe-inspiring aspect of this long, strange trip is the constant presence of mathematical laws, guiding and controlling every aspect. When we examine the world at the "top level," so to speak, the mathematics is invisible. ... On the surface, nature is, to be sure, noisy in the sense of being cluttered, busy, and seemingly without patterns. Even beautiful scenery--picture a mountain lake with snowcapped mountains in the background--rarely seems "organized." But as we apply our scientific knowledge to the cluttered world we experience and drill down to the bedrock of our understanding--eliminate the noise--we find something quite wondrous. At the end of the great hallway that takes us from the social sciences to the natural sciences, through biology and chemistry and ultimately to physics, we find ourselves at last in the presence of a most beautiful and unexplained symphony of mathematics. Across the dark abyss, this mathematics comes clearly into view, out of nowhere, explaining the world around us while remaining unexplained itself. It is part of the Logos of creation.

I have a general interest in science but have only a layman's grasp of what happened between the Big Bang and now. As a Catholic convert coming from a completely secular mindset, I especially appreciate the hope and optimism that come from seeing science not simply as coldly rational facts, but in the context of a bigger plan.

Author Karl Giberson comes from an almost completely opposite background than mine. Raised to believe in the literal truth of the Bible, he was a young-earth creationist. College science classes convinced Giberson that Genesis was a story recounting faith rather than science. However, science was often reduced to coldly rational explanations that were not engaging people about their place in the scheme of things, which he found unsatisfactory as well.

Seven Glorious Days bridges the gap between science and faith so that Giberson and I find ourselves meeting in the middle, amazed at the mechanics of creation and awed at the sense of purpose that can be traced. Giberson communicates this by giving an overview of what scientists have discovered about creation, from the Big Bang to human evolution.

As I read about what has been discovered about the underlying structure following the creation of the universe, and how it led to our planet's eventual creation followed by the generation of life, I felt a sense of exhilaration and excitement. There is beauty accompanying the logic of the laws of physics. By the time Giberson reached the "symphony of mathematics" mentioned above, I was thrilled. Not only did I have a grasp, albeit simple, of the science, but I had a sense of why many scientists themselves believe there is more than cold, hard facts to the universe.

Reading Giberson's commentary about how life flourished just about as fast as conditions would permit, I was suddenly struck by the odd notion that perhaps we are not finding life in other star systems because we are the first. This never occurred to me before and, as a devoted science fiction fan, it turned my world upside down. Could it be that we are the much vaunted "Old Ones" which many science fiction novels show their protagonists tracking down? A humbling notion and also a fascinating one, showing that we do not really know where our place is in the universe.

At this point in the book, I was catching up on my daily Catechism reading and came across a passage that dovetailed precisely with Seven Glorious Days.

310 But why did God not create a world so perfect that no evil cold exist in it? With infinite power God could always create something better. But with infinite wisdom and goodness God freely willed to create a world "in a state of journeying" toward its ultimate perfection. In God's plan this process of becoming involves the appearance of certain beings and the disappearance of others, the eixtenceof the more perfect alongside the less perfect, both constructive and destructive forces of nature. With physical good there exists also physical evil as long as creation has not reached perfection.

That sense of "a state of journeying" perfectly expressed the sense I received from Seven Glorious Days. The next paragraph brings that "journeying" home to our own lives.

311 Angels and men, as intelligent and free creatures, have to journey toward their ultimate destinies by their free choice and preferential love. They can therefore go astray. Indeed, they have sinned. Thus has moral evil, incommensurably more harmful than physical evil, entered the world. God is in no way, directly or indirectly the cause of moral evil. He permits it, however, because he respects the freedom of his creatures and, mysteriously, knows how to derive good from it....

As much sense as this made to my Catholic sensibilities, I was quite surprised to see that it was a foretaste of the remainder of Seven Glorious Days. Speaking of evolution and man's unique characteristics, Giberson fills in the scientific gaps which lead to the above mentioned journey we humans take. I do not want to spoil it for anyone so I won't explain further. Indeed, I see that I have taken up quite a few pixels in my enthusiasm so far. Suffice it to say that Giberson's overview uses scientific facts to show where the whole glorious ride of creation has been headed since the beginning.

I have been remiss in not yet mentioning Giberson's framework, in which he rephrases God's seven days (or epochs) of creation in ways which encompass science. Here is a sample.

Day 2

Then God said, "Let matter emerge, with precisely defined properties that will empower the development of everything else in the universe, laying a secure foundation for changes that will eventually lead to living creatures, following the patterns laid down by the Logos.

And there was evening and morning, beginning and ending, of the second epoch of creation.

And God saw that it was Good.

As you can tell by now, I find Seven Glorious Days to be very good, very inspiring, and a "must read" for anyone who ever struggles to explain to nonbelievers that science and faith are not nonexclusive. Highly recommended.

Praying Through Advent: O Radiant Dawn by Lisa Hendey

O Radiant Dawn: 5-Minute Prayers Around the Advent Wreath by Lisa M. Hendey

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is a very handy book that I recommend to anyone who wants to get in the habit of regular reflection during Advent. Lisa Hendey has written a series of 5-minute prayers designed for daily use by individuals or families, even those with young children.

The family gathers round the Advent wreath, lighting the candle, a song is sung, and a scripture reading is provided to be read aloud for prayer and contemplation. There are reflection and conversation prompts, both for adults and for children. A closing prayer provides more food for thought as it sums up the daily readings.

It is a simple enough formula but Hendey has put it together with obvious care. It is nice to have something structured yet brief enough to include in busy daily schedules. This will also be a good opportunity to reflect upon the O Antiphons, which are included as part of the prayer reflections during the appropriate days immediately before Christmas.

This is a good book that I could see becoming a family tradition from year to year. I'm looking forward to using it myself beginning Sunday when Advent is finally here.

There is a bulk discount offer until December 15, 2012. You can order O Radiant Dawn for only $1 when you order 10 copies or more using the promo code catholicmom12 when placing an order at Ave Maria Press.

Skyfall

Q: Age is no guarantee of efficiency.

Bond: And youth is no guarantee of innovation.

Q: Well, I'll hazard I can do more damage on my laptop sitting in my pajamas before my first cup of Earl Grey than you can do in a year in the field.

Bond: Oh, so why do you need me?

Q: Every now and then a trigger has to be pulled.

Bond: Or not pulled. It's hard to know which in your pajamas.

We got a chance to see the new James Bond movie this weekend. Others have given more complete review, and I can recommend Roger Ebert's (though I skipped his paragraph on the opening action sequence and would advise you to do the same unless you enjoy spoilers).

As he said, "This is a brand-new Bond with love and respect for the old Bond. "

Exactly.

Skyfall is a brilliant, exhilarating combination of new and old which remakes the franchise while somehow coming full circle and putting Bond back where he began. All this while still moving definitely forward in time.

I thoroughly enjoyed the way Bond and M had to battle suggestions of both people and institutions being "too old" and "outdated." M's speech quoting Tennyson is nothing short of genius and it captures exactly the uncertainties of our age where we aren't sure who is a villain and who isn't. Also, as Rose mentioned in our conversation this weekend, if we were British there were times when we'd have been applauding. The movie is unashamedly positive about the necessity of defending and loving Britain, even if one doesn't go on and on about it. (So British, that.)

This is a Bond movie you must see, if you have even the slightest interest in the franchise. And, possibly, even if you don't.

Blogging Around: The "Leftovers Are Good" Edition

Some of these are things I've been meaning to mention, a few are new (after all the best way to eat leftovers is with a little something to make it all seem new, right?).

Joseph Susanka is Blogging
I'm pretty excited since I like his movie commentary.

Sceptre E-Books 
This is great news for anyone who loves the In Conversation with God devotional series the way that I do. You can find the e-books in the usual places.

Catholic Bookstores
Don't forget that your local (or online) Catholic bookstore are often run by local families. They are a great place to do your Christmas shopping.

For example, check out Aquinas and More's Cyber-Monday specials.

Sudden Monday - A Place for Flash Fiction
Ryan Charles Trusell, who many of us know from his Ora et Labora et Zombies project, has flash fiction on the brain.

Sudden Monday is a brand new weekly link-up, hosted by Labora Editions and devoted to sudden fiction, also known as flash fiction, or the short-short story (in this case, fewer than 500 words.) In the future, I will post a new short-short story every Monday with a link-up at the bottom for others to do likewise.

Sudden Monday submission guidelines are here.

Jesus of Nazareth: The Infancy Narratives by Pope Benedict XVI

Another thing that really struck me was when he was writing about passages in the Old Testament that seemed to have no context and meaning until the truth was revealed in the New Testament. I just love the term he used ”Word in waiting.” He wrote about how Mary’s yes really was the dividing line between the Old and New Testament. This seems to me to be kind of an ironic reversal. The Old Testament was pregnant with the Word until Mary’s Fiat and the Word was conceived. This is a clumsy analogy on my part, but what the Pope had to say about the “Word in waiting” really made me see some of these passages in the Old Testament in a new light.

Jeff Miller's review both smacks the media for wrong reporting and then tells us what is wonderful about this book. I can't wait to read this!

The Crimes of Galahad by Dr. Boli 
This is the memoir of Galahad Newman Boustead, a young man who decides to live his live scientifically, according to evil principles. Dr. Boli is a favorite stop of mine on the internet and this book sounds hilarious. Turns out, as Will Duquette's review tells us, it is much more.

Although the book made me laugh, it’s by no means a farce; in retrospect, it’s a serious meditation on the relationship between virtue, goodness, and grace, on the limitations of purely human virtue, and on human nature and the natural law. I suspect I’m going to be pondering it for some while.

Judge Upholds Part of Law On Birth-Control Coverage

A federal judge Monday rejected Hobby Lobby Stores Inc.'s request to block part of the federal health-care overhaul that requires the arts-and-craft-supplies company to provide insurance coverage for the morning-after and week-after birth control pills.

U.S. District Judge Joe Heaton denied a request by Hobby Lobby to prevent the government from enforcing portions of the health-care law mandating insurance coverage for contraceptives the company's Christian owners consider objectionable.

The Oklahoma City-based company and a sister company, Mardel Inc., sued the government in September, claiming the mandate violates the owners' religious beliefs.

In his ruling, Judge Heaton said that while churches and other religious organizations have been granted constitutional protection from the birth-control provisions, "Hobby Lobby and Mardel are not religious organizations."

Associated Press story via The Wall Street Journal

I read this last week but the point about the dangers of a nanny government are clear. Only "religious organizations" are allowed to express their religious beliefs. And employees couldn't possibly decide whether or not they want to work for Hobby Lobby based on their insurance coverage. We knew this was coming but it's another step down that slippery slope. Thank you so much President Obama for taking care of us whether we want it or not, whether we need it or not. Kudos to Hobby Lobby's owners for standing up for their religious rights.

Weekend Joke

Many thanks to xkcd for allowing me to share this.

In which a young girl goes in search of fire from a horrible witch!

The Sea Hag at Forgotten Classics. Many thanks to Joseph for this folk tale. I love hearing the stories he chooses and his insightful comments.

Life of Pi

The Writer: You're a Hindu Catholic?
Pi: We get to feel guilty before hundreds of gods.

When I entered the theater I knew virtually nothing about the movie, except that there was something about a boy on a raft with a tiger. As it turns out, that is all I needed to know for this astonishing, thought provoking movie.

Pi (Suraj Sharma) is a sixteen-year-old Indian boy, who survives a shipwreck only to find himself adrift on a lifeboat with a 450 pound, ferocious Bengal Tiger named Richard Parker. Pi's intelligence and ingenuity are stretched to the limit in surviving on the open seas while figuring out how to coexist with a tiger who is getting hungrier every day.

This story is told by the middle-aged Pi (Irrfan Khan) to an aspiring writer (Rafe Spall) who has been told that Pi's story is worthy of a book. He also has been told, "you had a story that would make me believe in God" which is not quite tossed out as a challenge, although he hastens to add that he does not believe in God. This framework provides a neat parallel to the story Pi tells, which begins with young Pi's constant search for God as he grows from a little boy to a teenager.

Obviously we know that Pi survives the shipwreck because he is telling the story. However that soon becomes forgotten as we are swept up in Pi's struggles. Wound around and through this are amazing images of the world all around him. Using 3-D technology, we are shown vertical views from the bottom of the ocean to the heavens above, with all the inhabitants in between. These views through ultra-clear water add to the wonder and mystical tone of the entire story, as Pi's despair and hope alternate while he surrenders himself to God's will.

Meanwhile, viewers wonder what in this tale will be compelling enough to convince the writer to suddenly believe in God. The answer to that question is one that kept us thinking and discussing the movie the rest of the evening and the day after.

I was really surprised to find a movie with such emphasis on faith and God from such a famous director. I suppose that shows that it really is revolutionary these days to have faith. As I watched, I kept thinking of the stories of Job and Jonah from the Old Testament. This story is a modern version of those tales because it is an examination of modern attitudes to faith, free will, and our response to God. Kudos to Ang Lee for providing an incredible adventure story that didn't soft pedal the religious elements of the book from which it was derived.

PG rating on this movie and I'd say that as long as your kid is ok with animals acting like animals (nature red in tooth and claw), then you're good to go.

SPOILERS

The key to the movie, and especially to the puzzling dual story solution given at the end, is the family dinner when Pi's father talks about the need to be rational. Pi's mother says that he is right if one wants to know the truth about the outside world. However, she adds, faith is good for knowing the truth about what is inside you.

This duality is continued through elements like Pi's name. Piscine is named for the French swimming pool his uncle loved because it was full of such clear water. That name shows Pi's connection to the natural world and his ability to look through the depths for what is really there.

His shortened name, for the number Pi, shows a more rational side, but also Pi is an "irrational number" as the narrator told us ... which made me think that pi is actually a stunningly good way to refute people who want to solely believe in facts, without considering that "truth" comes in many ways. The idea that a number just keeps going and can't be "solved" is in itself a sort of refutation of those who want everything nailed down. Do you chop it off at a few decimal places or do you let the numbers keep spinning out and keep searching the bottomless well for truth?

This also demonstrates Pi's intelligence and that he understands how others think and how to influence them. As well, we are shown he is well versed in the natural world when we see his father teach him with the tiger and the goat.

These elements raise the possibility that Pi's "other story" told to the Japanese investigators is completely fabricated to tell them what makes sense to modern ears and will fit into a report.

In the end, we are left with a new version of "The Lady or the Tiger?"

Either story may be true or false. The interpretation we resonate with is an indicator of our own souls.

The Life of Pi is much like the Old Testament, full of stories of daring and danger which do not make sense to our modern souls which like to weigh everything against concrete, understandable scientific measures. We are ready to call such tales Myth, but does our interpretation see the whole story? We accept the Big Bang, measurable echoes of which still linger, if we know what to listen for. However, Genesis says that God spoke the universe into being.

Creation begins with sound in both cases; one is measurable by science, one by the human heart who looks deeper, is willing to be vulnerable, and who is willing to chance all on God's love. Neither negates the other although there are those who will choose one and call the other false.

As we are reminded, none of us knows why the ship sank (or how the universe began). All we know is what happened afterward from our own vantage point.

Such is the story of Pi. It is not about what you choose to believe, as much as it is about where one finds Truth. Much in the same way that Genesis is a story of faith and not about the Big Bang, we can hold that both stories are true or that only one is. Which one do you choose?

Odds and Ends

10 Sci-Fi Fantasy Shows That Were Canceled Too Soon

A fun list from Paste Magazine which counts down ... and ends up with a show that any frequent visitors here will recognize as a much mourned cancellation. I was pleased to see Better Off Ted, Angel and Wonderfalls included since I enjoyed them greatly in their day. And Carnivale is a show I've always meant to watch, even with the lack of resolution when it was canceled. I can take it.

LibriVox Saved My Sanity

A love letter to the free audiobook resource that volunteers (and love of books) built. Like Gaëtan L. Charlebois, I also love LibriVox as you may have gathered. His praise of Elizabeth Klett is well founded, but allow me to direct your attention to my own favorite LibriVox readers.

Adventhology

Ryan Trusell from Ora et Labora et Zombies doesn't rest upon his laurels. Adventhology is a new "micropublishing adventure that brings together four short pieces by four well-known Catholic bloggers, united by the common theme of the season of Advent and its culmination at Christmas. Each piece is published separately, as its own small booklet, of fine paper with a hand-printed softcover." Written by Dorian Speed, Brandon Vogt, Dan Lord, and Simcha Fisher. Read more at Adventhology.

By the way, Ryan has got a new look for his website and begun blogging. Check it out.

The Life of Pi and Movie End Cards

I can't give a review of this movie until Nov. 21, when it opens on the week of Thanksgiving, but I can highly recommend it.

Hard to imagine Ang Lee (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon; Brokeback Mountain) doing a movie that is so completely infused with faith and the search for God, but that is the crux of the movie.

It is PG and we were told at the screening that it is a "family movie."

Be aware that it is a family movie as done by Ang Lee, which is to say that it takes nature seriously and treats it realistically as much as can be done in this tale.

Think "The Yearling," "Old Yeller," or "Bambi" (remember that even Walt Disney killed off Bambi's mother; the book was much more realistic). I wouldn't advise taking small children to see this film.

Don't be afraid to see the 3D version. This movie is gorgeous.

Just wanted to give movie goers a chance to fit this into their schedule.

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On the way out we scored one of the above movie posters.

However, the image from the very end of the credits was one that we applauded. The Life of Pi's card had a plain black background, but you get the idea. We'd read about this initiative to show why movie piracy is important to stop and that the reason your movie ticket costs what it does. I like it.

Thing I Don't Understand #7*: Complaints About Small Type in Books

I hear nothing but praise for large type and damning of small type in books.

At the book club, I showed my Collectors Library edition of Jane Eyre,delighting in the small format, someone dismissed me with, "Oh you still can read small type."

As if I haven't heard this one before and she couldn't see the glasses on my face.

Then this morning I read someone who said, "I couldn't read the small type. Must be my aged eyes."

My question: is this not the modern age? Have we not got reading glasses? Why the complaints?

As someone who has worn glasses since the 4th grade for nearsightedness and whose eyes have aged in the expected manner so that I now have some farsightedness, I wear trifocals (smoothed over so y'all can't tell ... ha!)

Man up, get some reading glasses and stop forcing those of us who do to lug around gigantic books with monstrous type of the sort that used to be featured only in the Dick and Jane stories for tykes.

(I'm talking about the "average" here, not the unusual exception condition ... so we need not go there.)

* Numbered in no particular order except that I'm sure there are six other things I don't understand more often than this. Be glad I didn't drag you through those questions so early in the day! :-)

An Everlasting Feast by Tamar Adler

Tamar Adler was inspired by M.F.K. Fisher's How to Eat a Wolf. Is she a worthy successor to the legacy of eating well using simple ingredients?

My review is at Meanwhile, Back in the Kitchen.

Jane Eyre or Katniss?

What do our heroines say about our culture?

Heroines Past and Present is the topic of discussion at A Good Story is Hard to Find.

Joseph Susanka and two other guests (including my own daughter Rose) join Scott and me for our first "topic" discussion.

No one wants their first words of the day to be, "Damn it" ...

... when they hear the election results on the clock radio. (Yes, we still have one of those.)

But there were the results and there I was.

It took a while to regain perspective and recall that I am, in fact, a monarchist. As one of that family, my duty is to convey His Majesty's wishes as best I can in this minor principality to which I have been assigned.

I do my best. And sometimes it can get me down. But I answer to a higher power, a monarch who has all our best interests deep in his sacred heart.

For now, that is enough.

And I curse no more.


NOTE
If you don't click through on the "monarchist" link this post might not make sense. I count on HC readers to be thorough! :-)

An Election Day Prayer

From The Curt Jester.

Let nothing disturb you,
Let nothing frighten you,
All things are passing away:
God never changes.
Patience obtains all things
Whoever has God lacks nothing;
God alone suffices.

– St. Teresa of Avila

Reading Yours is the Church by Mike Aquilina last week, I was struck by a comment he made about not letting things like current events get you down. The Church has been here for 2,000 years. Before us, God guided the Hebrews for ... what ... 2,000 years before that. We do the best we can with what we've got in front of us and trust in God's providence.

So I'll go to vote at lunch and trust that we will all do our best ... in charity ... in love ... in wanting the best for each other, even if we disagree on how best to do it.

(I'm just glad I don't have to vote on some of the issues that Rose was reading to us from the L.A. County voters ballot info. Ugh.)

May God bless us and our country.

Now get out there and vote!

Suicide by Choice? Not So Fast

I received this link last week from a friend who said: "An interesting article in the New York Times by a man who suffers profound disabilities. The writer explains he is against the assisted-suicide bill pending in Massachusetts (I think) because of concerns that disabled patients might be coerced into death."

It was enlightening indeed.

NEXT week, voters in Massachusetts will decide whether to adopt an assisted-suicide law. As a good pro-choice liberal, I ought to support the effort. But as a lifelong disabled person, I cannot.

There are solid arguments in favor. No one will be coerced into taking a poison pill, supporters insist. The “right to die” will apply only to those with six months to live or less. Doctors will take into account the possibility of depression. There is no slippery slope.

Fair enough, but I remain skeptical. There’s been scant evidence of abuse so far in Oregon, Washington and Montana, the three states where physician-assisted death is already legal, but abuse — whether spousal, child or elder — is notoriously underreported, and evidence is difficult to come by. What’s more, Massachusetts registered nearly 20,000 cases of elder abuse in 2010 alone.

My problem, ultimately, is this: I’ve lived so close to death for so long that I know how thin and porous the border between coercion and free choice is, how easy it is for someone to inadvertently influence you to feel devalued and hopeless — to pressure you ever so slightly but decidedly into being “reasonable,” to unburdening others, to “letting go.”

Perhaps, as advocates contend, you can’t understand why anyone would push for assisted-suicide legislation until you’ve seen a loved one suffer. But you also can’t truly conceive of the many subtle forces — invariably well meaning, kindhearted, even gentle, yet as persuasive as a tsunami — that emerge when your physical autonomy is hopelessly compromised.

Do go read the whole thing, especially if you live in an area where this is an issue to be voted upon tomorrow.

I Greet You, People of the Past

I will not turn my clock back. I will be living one hour in the future. I greet you, the People of the Past. Your ways are quaint.

Best Twitter Quote of the Day ... via Joseph Susanka.

Health-Care Law Spurs a Shift to Part-Time Workers

Some low-wage employers are moving toward hiring part-time workers instead of full-time ones to mitigate the health-care overhaul's requirement that large companies provide health insurance for full-time workers or pay a fee.

Several restaurants, hotels and retailers have started or are preparing to limit schedules of hourly workers to below 30 hours a week. That is the threshold at which large employers in 2014 would have to offer workers a minimum level of insurance or pay a penalty starting at $2,000 for each worker.

The Wall Street Journal's story Health-Care Law Spurs a Shift to Part-Time Workers discusses a change that never even occurred to me in considering the Affordable Care Act. When does health insurance hurt workers? When employers are squeezed so that they can't take any other measures.

Reading the article, I thought these employers were jerks. And then I got to the examples.

Pillar Hotels & Resorts this summer began to focus more on hiring part-time workers among its 5,500 employees, after the Supreme Court upheld the health-care overhaul, said Chief Executive Chris Russell. The company has 210 franchise hotels, under the Sheraton, Fairfield Inns, Hampton Inns and Holiday Inns brands.

"The tendency is to say, 'Let me fill this position with a 40-hour-a-week employee.' "Mr. Russell said. "I think we have to think differently."

Pillar offers health insurance to employees who work 32 hours a week or more, but only half take it, and Mr. Russell wants to limit his exposure to rising health-care costs. He said he planned to pursue new segments of the population, such as senior citizens, to find workers willing to accept part-time employment.

And I had to think differently. This employer is offering insurance in good faith. But the government's Affordable Care Act would penalize him for something that half of his employees are essentially turning down. They evidently don't need it.

And the employers are going to have to find ways around it to survive.

A bad situation forced upon all of them by the lack of thought that went into the Affordable Care Act.

If you have to ask, you're streets behind.

Pierce: Ay-bed, your social skills aren't exactly "streets ahead." Know what I mean?

Abed: [thinks] I don't.

Jeff: You're not alone in this case. Pierce, stop trying to coin the phrase "streets ahead."

Pierce: Trying? Coined and minted! Been there, coined that! "Streets ahead" is verbal... wildfire!

Annie: Does it just mean "cool," or is it supposed to be like, "miles ahead"?

Pierce: If you have to ask, you're streets behind.

Any Community watchers remember the episode where Pierce tried to coin "streets ahead" as slang. Which rapidly spread throughout the campus.

However, Rose was watching Help (that great old Beatles movie) lately and was stunned that one of the electricians used "streets ahead" as slang. Yes, way back in 1965 in England.

Turns out it is actual British slang.

In looking around, Tom found this great site, Not One Off Britishisms, which tells us all about it.

Who knew we were all streets behind on this? No one. That's who.

Yours is the Church: How Catholicism Shapes Our World - Mike Aquilina

Yours Is the Church: How Catholicism Shapes Our World by Mike Aquilina

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

What has the Catholic Church done for humanity?

If you listen to popular culture today, you might get the impression that the Church is the universal enemy. The Church stands inthe way of progress. It exploits the poor. It oppresses women and children. It condemns everything that's good in our culture. And above all, it stands opposed to science and reason.

You've heard it all so often that, even if you're Catholic, you might half-believe it. But it's all wrong, and this book is going to show you why.

There are lots of books about great Catholics who have also been scientists, musicians, artists, or leaders--people who have done some good inthe world, even though they're Catholic. This book isn't like that. This book makes a much bigger and more startling claim: Everything about our modern world we think is good is there because of the Church.

The only reason we care about the poor is because Christianity has won. The only reason the rights of women and children are important is because the Church has made them important. The only reason we have science is because the Church taught us how to think.

This book is full of unbelievable statements like that. My hope is that, by the end of the book, you'll believe them all.

Yours is the Church that built up the best in modern culture. And yours is the church that has constantly defended the best against the horrors that rise against it. It's an exciting story, roaming up and down through two thousand years of history.

This introduction to the book gives a better overview than I could.

Aquilina covers various ways our civilization has benefited overall, and continues to do, from Catholicism's 2,000 years of cultural influence. Topics include: respect for women, the dignity of children, art, literature, music, charity, and more. He makes the points clearly by showing what pagan culture was like before Christianity, the influence of Christians on that culture overall, and then shows how our Christianity-infused culture is still shaped by that influence.

One of the things I liked best about this book is that Aquilina comes from such a positive point of view. As our priest often says, teaching from a positive point of view gets much further than stressing the negative continually. I have read many a book that sets out to refute the myths of what "everyone knows" about the Catholic Church. They may be effective for a few but they are often negative in tone which makes them difficult to read or care about if you are not fascinated by that particular topic. Aquilina's positive stance is evenhanded and makes one interested to see just how he's going to pull off the next "fantastic" claim.

Another thing that I really liked is that Aquilina doesn't sugar coat it when there is blame to be taken by the Church. I have never really been able to swallow defenses I've read of the later Crusades. Aquilina makes sure everything is put in perspective, such as making sure the context of an "inquisition" and the court systems of the times are covered, and then point out where blame is to be had. He does not leave matters there, often putting our own times in proper context in ways that open our eyes further. One of the most surprising instances for me was this bit of insight about the sex abuse scandals.

So our natural horror at child abuse--which by the way, is a good sign that our culture, for all its faults, may still be reasonably healthy--didn't come from the Greeks or the Romans. It came from the Christians. It was the Church that taught us to acknowledge the sacred rights of children as human beings.

The world judges Catholics by Christian standards now; the Christian victory has been so complete that it's practically invisible. When the babbling bloggers blame us for being Christians, they're really blaming us for not being Christian enough. Christian principles seem like part of the order of nature, laws as immutable as gravity and magnetism. But that's only because the Church succeeded, against all odds, in replacing what everyone thought was an immutable law of nature with a strange Christian idea--such as the notion that children are people too.

Although author Mike Aquilina is Catholic, his claims have been echoed to me recently from an unexpected source. Helping out with RCIA (classes for those interested in converting to Catholicism), subjects arose which prompted me to speak apologetically of how the Church has handled things such as the sex scandal.

Each time, one potential convert has spoken up saying, "Historically speaking ..." and setting the record in a larger historical context which makes it clear that shortfalls very often are not so much due to the Catholic Church as they are due to lapses on individuals' parts or even those of particular institutions within the Church (yes, Torquemada, I'm lookin' at you).

This particular "defender of the faith" comes from no particular religious background. His conversion began after visiting many of the cathedrals throughout Europe which then led him to begin reading history and noting the Church's place in it. I have to admit it has been refreshing to hear someone with no particular agenda comment on various contentious matters from a purely historical or statistical standpoint. Inadvertently, this person's casual remarks back up what Mike Aquilina states in this book. There is a lot of credit to be given to the Catholic Church that the world has become blind to ... and we can be proud of being part of this rich faith.

Novena for an Ordered Life

I picked this up from the Darwins some time ago. As I have mentioned and am going to mention regularly for at least a month, I'm very busy. This is an excellent novena for such times.

I myself haven't prayed it specifically as a novena, but have read it over slowly during prayer times as a meditative aid. And it has proven to be a wonderful reminder of what is really important. Which is a nice calming measure on its own as well as a connection to God's priorities rather than mine.

For Ordering a Life Wisely
St. Thomas Aquinas

O merciful God, grant that I may
desire ardently,
search prudently,
recognize truly,
and bring to perfect completion
whatever is pleasing to You
for the praise and glory of Your name.

Put my life in good order, O my God
Grant that I may know
what You require me to do.

Bestow upon me
the power to accomplish your will,
as is necessary and fitting
for the salvation of my soul.

Grant to me, O Lord my God,
that I may not falter in times
of prosperity or adversity,
so that I may not be exalted in the former,
nor dejected in the latter.

May I not rejoice in anything
unless it leads me to You;
may I not be saddened by anything
unless it turns me from You.

May I desire to please no one,
nor fear to displease anyone,
but You.

May all transitory things, O Lord,
be worthless to me
and may all things eternal
be ever cherished by me.

May any joy without You
be burdensome for me
and may I not desire anything else
besides You.

May all work, O Lord
delight me when done for Your sake.
and may all repose not centered in You
be ever wearisome for me.

Grant unto me, my God,
that I may direct my heart to You
and that in my failures
I may ever feel remorse for my sins
and never lose the resolve to change.

O Lord my God, make me
submissive without protest,
poor without discouragement,
chaste without regret,
patient without complaint,
humble without posturing,
cheerful without frivolity,
mature without gloom,
and quick-witted without flippancy.

O Lord my God, let me
fear You without losing hope,
be truthful without guile,
do good works without presumption,
rebuke my neighbor without haughtiness,
and -- without hypocrisy --
strengthen him by word and example.

Give to me, O Lord God,
a watchful heart,
which no capricious thought
can lure away from You.

Give to me,
a noble heart,
which no unworthy desire can debase.

Give to me
a resolute heart,
which no evil intention can divert.

Give to me
a stalwart heart,
which no tribulation can overcome.

Give to me
a temperate heart,
which no violent passion can enslave.

Give to me, O Lord my God,
understanding of You,
diligence in seeking You,
wisdom in finding You,
discourse ever pleasing to You,
perseverance in waiting for You,
and confidence in finally embracing You.

Grant
that with Your hardships
I may be burdened in reparation here,
that Your benefits
I may use in gratitude upon the way,
that in Your joys
I may delight by glorifying You
in the Kingdom of Heaven.

You Who live and reign,
God, world without end.
Amen.

Blogging Around: The Too-Busy-To-Post Edition

Luckily, these folks ain't too busy ...

• Terrapin: A Mystery - Jeff Miller has the review of a book I'd like to read.
• Darkship Thieves - Will Duquette has the review of another book I'd like to read.
• Light, Lovely Meringue Cake - The Anchoress has a recipe (and scrumptious looking photo) of a cake I'd like to eat.
• Monster Hunter International - another review by Will of a book I'd like to read ... it looks about the speed of what I can handle right now.

Sorry I've been gone so much. I should have a few goodies for you next week, just in time for Halloween!

I'm ready to tell you my secret now ...

... Scott and Julie both see dead people. M. Night Shyamalan's The Sixth Sense is the topic of discussion at A Good Story is Hard to Find.

A super-busy day again, so this will be my only posting today. Sorry, but go listen to Scott and me discuss the movie! There's plenty of Catholic goodness within!

The Wind in the Willows

The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


So you've begun to get really busy at work and you're feeling stressed out.

Then you watched The Sixth Sense (by yourself, after dark) so you can discuss it on a podcast.

And finally, you just know you're going to have nightmares and possibly be afraid of the dark if you wake up having to make that trip out of bed ... based on the last time you watched that darned movie.

What do you do?

What DO you do?

You pull out your trusty copy of The Wind in the Willows, that's what.

This gentle, imaginative tale of small animals who straddle both animal and human behavior in the most charming way will pull you in and have you thinking of Rat's splendid picnic basket, Badger's den beneath the Wild Woods, or Toad's way of being infuriating while his friends love him anyway. It pulled me into that fantasy world as a child and does so again when I read it as an adult.

Highly recommended (after all Teddy Roosevelt can't be wrong ... and this book has his letter to the author in the introduction).

The Knox Bible (updated)

I am beginning that giant annual project today which leaves me a bit discombobulated and somewhat ... ok, a lot ... freaked out. All will be well and all shall be well and I know this is so. But the beginning is still a monumental task and so I am updating my review of The Knox Bible. See the update below.

The Knox Bible by Msgr Ronald A. Knox

It is unquestioned that for the past 300 years the Authorized Version has been the greatest single formative influence in English prose style. But that time is over …. When the Bible ceases, as it is ceasing, to be accepted as a sacred text, it will not long survive for its fine writing. It seems to me probable that in a hundred years' time the only Englishmen who know their Bibles will be Catholics. And they will know it in Msgr. Knox's version.-- Evelyn Waugh

I have been trying to get my hands on a Knox Bible for some time, ever since I learned of the existence of such a thing. An English translation done between 1936-1945 that strove to keep beauty while making all clear to the average Englishman ... translated directly from Latin Vulgate of St. Jerome, but while consulting the texts in Greek and Hebrew where needed. It sounded fascinating and possibly too good to be true.

Alas, Knox Bibles were nowhere to be found. Until now when Baronius Press has reprinted it in a nice serviceable edition ... sturdy-seeming but with lovely touches like ribbons, gilt-edging, marble end papers and more.

I have just begun to read but already have seen a couple of instances where the translation brought tears to my eyes when I read it aloud ... it struck a chord within.

UPDATE
As I sit daily and open this Bible up, I am struck by how readable it is.

Some of that is the format. Instead of having subheads telling us what we'll read, verse numbers at the beginning of sentences, and the formats we're used to ... it is in chapters and paragraphs. Just like a real book.

The verses are in tiny numbers on the outside margin. This sounds difficult, but as I've been checking this translation against others, I have found it is very workable.

Best of all, it leaves the reader free to just sit and ... read. As one would a regular book. I feel as if I can let the text hit me however it happens to for that moment, which surely is a good thing when we are trying to hear the Word in the words.

My biggest comparison with other translations was when I received it and sat down to look over the first couple of chapters of Genesis ... verse by verse ... compared with the New American Bible, the Revised Standard Version, the Douay-Rheims, and Robert Alter's superb translation. I didn't realize I had so many translations in the house until that moment. Which made me laugh. Bible geek - book geek ... it's pretty much the same thing at that point.

Reading them aloud, I read Knox's chapter 1, verse 2:

Earth was still an empty waste, and darkness hung over the deep; but already, over its waters, stirred the breath of God.

What is there in that to make me cry? I don't know but it touched my soul and I did. Something about that "stirred by the breath of God" was just so lovely and evocative.

You can imagine how I laughed, then, when reading my New American Bible:

and the earth was without form or shape, with darkness over the abyss and a mighty wind was sweeping over the waters

A mighty wind? Hmmm ...

Of all the Bibles, Robert Alter's "won" the Genesis if I can call it winning. But the Knox Bible was a close second and it was often more beautifully put.

It also made me smile, when I read Genesis, chapter 2, verse 1:

Thus heaven and earth and all the furniture of them were completed.

There was something both amusing and also "right" about thinking of the animals, fish, plants, and people as "furnishing" the earth. It settled in my mind in a way that the other translations failed to do (array, hosts, etc.).

I read Knox's "The Englishing of the Bible" which is a collection of essays he wrote explaining his translation choices. He wanted language that would be accessible, beautiful, and timeless. He kept "thee" and "thou" because, as he put it, there were times when the "thou" would mean God and times when that same "thou" might mean man ... he didn't want his choices between "thou" and "you" to influence the reader. He wanted to leave that for the moment and the Spirit to decide. I do find "thou" awkward sometimes, but it always makes me think about Knox's choice and I think that is a good reason for the older language in it.

This morning I looked at Psalm 19 (18 in Knox's numbering):

SEE how the skies proclaim God's glory, how the vault of heaven betrays his craftsmanship! Each day echoes its secret to the next, each night passes on to the next its revelation of knowledge; no word, no accent of theirs that does not make itself heard, till their utterance fills every land, till their message reaches the ends of the world.

There is a dynamic quality in the day echoing to the night, to the night passing on its revelation, that makes me think of nature itself as crying aloud, "Cannot you see God? We are showing Him to you." (So much less eloquent than the psalmist or Knox, of course.) But I can feel it in the birds singing outside my window, in the wind blowing the puffy cloud along.

I continue to compare the translations and there is no perfect one. I love the RSV. Sometimes Knox's old fashioned verbs slow me down or the meaning is not as clear as another Bible. But that is not often so far.

It speaks to me. As does much of this splendid translation. I will be reading it every day.

Other readers' reactions:
The Anchoress: The Knox Bible is a Treasure ... who has some great excerpts.
The Hermeneutic of Continuity ... sharing memories of taking Knox's translation to class.

The Holy Family, Zombies, and Midrash: Unholy Night by Seth Grahame-Smith

“Joseph? Mary? My name is Balthazar. This is Gaspar . . . this is Melchyor. We don’t want to hurt you . . . we’re just looking for a place to rest. But, Joseph? if you don’t put that pitchfork down, I’m going to take it from you and stab you to death in front of your wife and child. Do you understand?”

Wanted thieves Balthazar, Melchyor, and Gaspar, disguised as wise men, show up at a little manger in Bethlehem with a huge star blazing overhead, looking for a hideout from the law. But when Herod's soldiers begin slaughtering the babies in Bethlehem, Balthazar (a.k.a. The Antioch Ghost) takes the safety of the Holy Family into his own hands. As fugitives on the run to Egypt, they must escape not only Roman soldiers but creatures of mythology and the occult. Everyone's either gunning for the Antioch Ghost with a price on his head or the innocent newborn who has such an unearthly effect on those around him.

Seth Grahame-Smith (Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter) finally stops inserting his words into other people's writing and writes a book in his own words. And a fine job he does of it too. For a violent, gore-filled, action-thriller there are a surprising number of very human characters, many of whom we are meant to recognize.

Pontius Pilate appears as an ambitious young officer ambivalent about truth. Mary and Joseph struggle with how to reconcile the truth of Jesus as God with the reality of a baby who must be fed, loved, and parented. Above all, this is Balthazar's story, who has a complex story-line driving his actions and attitudes. We learn how he became the cynical Antioch Ghost and we wonder if he will find a more worthy goal than vengeance.

Above all, I was surprised to find myself eventually thinking of Unholy Night as modern midrash. Midrash is a traditional Jewish way of trying to understand the underlying spirit of scripture, sometimes connecting it to modern life, by creating parables. This allows for some imaginative storytelling as rabbis look for interpretations that are not immediately obvious but are nevertheless held within the original text.

Grahame-Smith lives up to the midrash ideal by both being respectful to his source material and also using his vivid imagination on a Biblical event that is wide-open to interpretation: Mary and Joseph's flight to Egypt with the Christ child. Among other things, the author is very good at opening new views on familiar subjects, such as just how horrible King Herod was. It brings to life the terrible things he did very much as I have read them in history books. One also gets a deeper understanding of the locals' simmering, resentful hatred of the Roman empire.

Narrator Peter Berkrot is a reader I haven't come across before but will be seeking out in the future. He conveys just the right amount of cynicism as Balthazar, menace and insanity as Herod, and innocence as Mary. I am not sure how this book comes across in print but I'd listen to it again in a heartbeat thanks to Berkrot's narration.

Grahame-Smith has delivered a story of Biblical proportions in Unholy Night: zombies, swarms of locusts, epic sword fights, outlaws, obsessed rulers, vengeance, redemption, and more are in this entertaining action tale. That he did it all while staying true to original material that can be unpopular reading these days makes him a writer I am going to seek out in the future. Highly recommended.

This review first appeared at SFFaudio.

The Ladies of Grace Adieu by Susanna Clarke

This is a collection of eight short stories that return readers to the world of Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell. As I enjoyed Simon Prebble's narration of Strange & Norrell, I returned to that format to hear these stories. Prebble shares narration duty with Davina Porter whose undeniable skill I enjoyed even more than Mr. Prebble's and that is saying quite a lot.

Since all but one of these stories were previously published elsewhere, they vary from mere fragments (The Duke of Wellington Misplaces His Horse) to retold fairy tales (Lickerish Hill). These are almost like some of the longer footnotes from Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell, which often meander away to tell fully imagined stories before returning to the main narrative.

The one constant is Clarke's skill at conveying readers to a magical England in the style of well known 19th-century writers such as Jane Austen and Charles Dickens. Clarke has a dry wit which enlivens many of the tales and a good imagination for weaving attention holding yarns. I enjoyed all these stories quite a lot. If you are wondering whether to take the plunge into Strange & Norrell, these stories might be a good test of the waters.

Originally reviewed for SFFaudio.

Troy and Abed Airing Someday ...

I believe in October 19 ... I believe, I believe ...

In One God: Professing the Creed for the Year of Faith

The Wine Dark Sea's series continues considering the creed phrase-by-phrase with "In one God" ... which is my contribution to the series as it turns out. Check it out at Wine Dark Sea.

In Which Virgilia's prevision comes in handy ... or does it?

More of The Unforeseen at Forgotten Classics.

The Good Cook Series

Every cook should have a set of The Good cook series. To find out why, read my review at Meanwhile, Back in the Kitchen.

Baldur's Gate: The Greatest Role Playing Game of All Time.

I concur.

Although my true love is the second game, Shadows of Amn, it hasn't been easy to find for Mac's updated systems. The thing that impresses me is that there are enough Baldur's Gate fans to make doing an updated version financially viable. It's been around for a long time.

Why dwell on this now?

Because there is an enhanced version of the original Baldur's Gate and the Tales of the Sword Coast expansion pack (which I never had) coming out very soon. With more characters and extra quests.

AND (because that's not enough ... it never is) there will be a remake of Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn and the expansion, Baldur's Gate II: Throne of Bhaal.

AND (because even that is not enough) there is a plan to make Baldur's Gate 3 after both enhanced editions are done. Of course this depends on how well these other remakes do.

I am willing to do my part. Just get that Mac OS X version out there and I will buy it.

Frankenweenie: "I went to see this hoping that this would be Tim Burton's return to his former glory."

The concept is simple and should be charming. When Victor's dog and best friend Sparky is hit by a car, Victor uses the town's frequent lightening storms to bring him back to life. But when his fellow classmates discover his secret, they all begin to bring their pets back to life with disastrous results. So part of the problem lies in the fact that what starts out as a Frankenstein spoof suddenly turns into a monster movie during the climax only to abruptly return to the Frankenstein plot.

But the problems are greater than that. ...

Double Exposure (Rose) weighs in on Frankenweenie. I also was crossing my fingers for this one but dubious. Read it all at Double Exposure.

On the other hand, I still am excited about Looper and Argo which have gotten top notch reviews ... we might even go to the movies to see one or the other (is seeing both a dream that could come true? We shall see...)

A Dog's Purpose by W. Bruce Cameron

A Dog's Purpose by W. Bruce Cameron

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

IN THE BEGINNING
A bit of birthday book-a-liciousness that I had no idea what to think of. As a kid I reread Beautiful Joe and Black Beauty with no problems, though as an adult I cringe from revisiting those tough stories. As an adult I love Watership Down, but my overall experience with animal POV stories is that they tend to be sadder than is my preference. Reading Alice Walker's comment on the cover somewhere that she cried like a baby (ok, I'm paraphrasing) made me wary. However, I trusted my mother, who gave me this, so I figured I'd dip a toe into this doggy tale.

BY THE END OF THE BOOK
This is a simply told tale from the dog's point of view. I am loathe to say much about it because that would spoil the story. It is a very quick read, because of the simplicity, and yet it grabbed me in a way that is difficult to describe. I found myself thinking about it when I put it down. Part of the appeal is the various situations the dog finds itself in which are intriguing in the details of the experience. More than that I dare not say except to reiterate that it is much, much better than you might think.

Year of Faith: Professing the Creed

In his Apostolic Letter announcing the Year of Faith, Pope Benedict exhorts us to find a way to publicly profess the creed: “Religious communities as well as parish communities, and all ecclesial bodies old and new, are to find a way, during this Year, to make a public profession of the Credo.”

Melanie Bettanelli has begun a series meditating upon the creed. She's divided it into 47 pieces and invited a flock of bloggers to help. I myself will be chiming in very soon. Just click the pieces of the creed at The Wine Dark Sea to go to each post through the year.

Celebrate the Year of Faith by Reading the Documents of Vatican II ... or the Catechism

Jeff Miller at Happy Catholic Bookshelf says:

The start of ”The Year of Faith” coincides purposely with the start of the Second Vatican Council 50 years ago. Much has been said about the false “Spirit of Vatican II” which was a purposeful misdirection to the texts of Vatican II. While I have read some of the documents and parts of others I haven’t read through all of them. So I figured this was an opportune time to correct that.

So I have put together an ebook containing all the Councilar Documents which I will read this year and make available for others.

I too have read a few of those documents, enough anyway to show me that they were grossly misinterpreted by some people. I always meant to get around to reading all the documents. This is a great reminder to do just that ... and Jeff's ebook formats make it easy. Download them at the link above.

========

For this Year of Faith, Pope Benedict has encouraged you to study and reflect on the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

Well, here’s an easy way to do it.

Simply enter your email address and – starting October 11, 2012 – you’ll start getting a little bit of the Catechism emailed to you every morning.

Read that little bit every day and you’ll read the whole catechism in a year. Cool, right?

Sign up here. Via The Curt Jester who always knows what's going on.

Educating the women who didn't learn cooking from their mothers ...

My review of The Kitchen Counter Cooking School is up at Meanwhile, Back in the Kitchen.

Julie's exploring a tomb. Scott's lost contact but he's sure she's fine, just fine ...

It's October. Time for the scary stuff!

Scott and I discuss four H. P. Lovecraft stories: Dagon, The Statement of Randolph Carter, The Color Out of Space, and The Dunwich Horror. All at A Good Story is Hard to Find podcast.

Pope Benedict's Homily Opening the Year of Faith

Watch it right here.

If you have a PC, that is. It seems to want Microsoft Silverlight before showing the video.

I am lucky enough to have a pal who saved the audio of the homily and sent it to me.

Whispers in the Loggia has the homily for readers.

Three Items of Interest (Plus One)

ITEM 1: Catholicism Pure and Simple

It's no secret that I love Father Longenecker's writing. Catholicism Pure and Simple is no exception. I'll be doing a full review soon, but wanted to mention that it is out now ... and it's good. Really good. Here's the description which is really accurate ... and, now that I think of it, doesn't leave me with much to add. Never fear, I'll find more to tell you:

The Catholic faith doesn't have to be complicated. Fr. Dwight Longenecker shows how it can be Pure and Simple. Starting with arguments for the existence of God, this book takes the reader step by step through the basics of the Catholic faith. Without using churchy language, difficult theological concepts or confusing arguments Dwight Longenecker explains not only the truths of the faith, but how to embark on the adventure of living the Catholic faith today. He uses plain illustrations from ordinary life, and explains the faith without complex footnotes or intimidating references. Catholicism Pure & Simple is perfect for high school students, confirmation candidates, members of RCIA classes and anyone seriously seeking God in the modern world.

Item 2: FaithWorks!

This is a short, punchy weekly newsletter with articles on prayer, relationships, family, spirituality and service. Father Longenecker is writing this for the Year of Faith. It's just right for help with the practical practice of our faith.

Check out the latest issue and sign up here.

Item 3: One More Soul

One More Soul has created and published a very comprehensive challenge to the HHS mandate--"Obey Mandate or Scripture?" In this 24 page newspaper, over twenty authors explain why you should be very concerned about the Health & Human Services mandate and its requirement that virtually all health insurance plans cover the intrinsic evils of contraception, sterilization and abortion.

 These writers--including bishops, priests and a seminarian, doctors, lawyers, and economists--provide very readable and common sense explanations for why this mandate is evil in seven different ways. It is a must read for anyone who values their religious freedom, and the conscience rights of employers, medical personnel, and all Americans.

Cincinnati Archbishop Dennis Schnurr has granted "Obey Mandate or Scripture?" his Imprimatur, assuring that the newspaper is free of doctrinal or moral error.
We sell the publication in newspaper format, the entire piece is viewable for free on our website. We really just want to get the information out.

One More Soul is a non-profit dedicated to educating people on God's design for love, chastity, and marriage, with a focus on the blessings of children, Natural Family Planning, and the harms of contraception.

Read One More Soul here.

Plus One More Item: One Body, Many Blogs

When T.J. Burdick launched his blog back in 2010, he was puzzled by one question: how do you become an effective Catholic blogger?

Two years and many blog posts later, T.J. had few answers. So he began searching for help. He emailed a number of blogging friends and asked, "in your opinion, what are the 'ten commandments' that Christian bloggers should keep in mind?"

Ten Catholic bloggers responded with a diversity of answers. Some were deep, some pithy; some were practical, some spiritual. But together they provided T.J. a solid foundation for Catholic blogging.

Wanting to help others, T.J. decided to package all of this wisdom into a short, $1.99 eBook titled One Body, Many Blogs: A Guide for Christian Bloggers (eBook, 52 pages).

Brandon Vogt has a great review that includes much more information about this interesting sounding ebook with a solid list of trust-worthy contributors. Here is author T.J. Burdick's blog.

Tandoori Pizza

Marinated chicken, mango chutney, green onions ... an amazing pizza. Get it at Meanwhile, Back in the Kitchen.

"Everything that I can remember, I have told with perfect candor.

... if anything remains vague, it is only because of the dark cloud which has come over my mind—that cloud and the nebulous nature of the horrors which brought it upon me."

The Statement of Randolph Carter by H.P. Lovecraft ... read for us at Forgotten Classics by Will Duquette.

The Beckoning Fair One and Real Life Ghost Stories

Get 'em now at SFFaudio where my unabridged reading of the story is followed by Jesse Willis, Scott Danielson, and me discussing it ... and each telling about our own brushes with ghosts!

Weekend Joke

This one is in honor of the baseball playoffs. It never fails to make me laugh.

A man walks into a bar with a dog. The bartender says, "You can't bring that dog in here."

"You don't understand," says the man. "This is no regular dog, he can talk."

"Listen, pal," says the bartender. "If that dog can talk, I'll give you a hundred bucks."

The man puts the dog on a stool, and asks him, "What's on top of a house?"

"Roof!"

"Right. And what's on the outside of a tree?"

"Bark!"

"And who's the greatest baseball player of all time?"

"Ruth!"

"I guess you've heard enough," says the man. "I'll take the hundred in twenties."

The bartender is furious. "Listen, pal," he says, "get out of here before I belt you."

As soon as they're on the street, the dog turns to the man and says, "Do you think I should have said 'DiMaggio'?"

Why You Should Be Reading a Little Bit o' Lovecraft This Weekend

Because Scott and I will be discussing four of his short stories next week at A Good Story is Hard to Find.

And you know you want to find out why two good Catholics would love the lurking horror that is in these tales:

• Dagon
• The Statement of Randolph Carter
• The Colors Out of Space
• The Dunwich Horror

I recommend reading them in this order as the ethos and worldview build nicely that way.

Although I must warn you that I have had a nightmare about Dagon ... and he was invisible. So, there is that to consider.

Nonetheless, it is quite good fun and I'm excited that I was able to listen to the stories. Lovecraft's prose just rolls into your ear so beautifully.

6 Month Economic Forecast

I've done the accounting for our small firm for nigh on these twenty-three years. One of the interesting things is that we seem to reflect economic trends about four to six months ahead of the big business reports that show up in the newspaper.

If we're rolling in business and have built up a good cash reserve, months later the government is reporting a banner year for business and employment. If we're scraping for business, then about six months later we read a doom-and-gloom report from the Wall Street Journal.  I am not accounting minded and so even noticing this trend means it has to have been borne out repeatedly.

Suddenly, and I mean within the past month, almost none of our regular clients are paying their bills on time. There are always some people who pay late and some who pay on time. Like every business, we count on the "on time" customers to cover the ones who are slow. But now ...practically everyone is running into the 60-90 day overdue slot on all their bills. And my statements are being ignored ... I have  to call and put people on the spot to get those 60 days bills paid, which is also not usual. I've never experienced anything so sudden from so many at once.

Tom began checking around and found out we're not the only ones. There's a big slow down from everyone.

I'm don't keep up with any political economic plans or forecasts. We just keep working to pay the bills. But I'll tell you this from a purely practical standpoint ... whatever's being done now -- it ain't workin'.

Making the Mass More Personal: Reviewing "The Beauty of the Word" by Anthony Esolen

The Beauty of the Word: A Running Commentary on the Roman Missal by Anthony Esolen

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Guided by Anthony Esolen, a master translator and professor of literature, you'll go deep into the meaning of each part of the liturgy. Esolen explains the importance of this new translation, and provides context, scriptural references, notes which reference the original Latin text, and more. This is a must-have guide for unlocking the riches of the newly implemented and newly translated Roman Missal. The Beauty of the Word gives a comprehensive, step-by-step commentary to the changes in the Order of Mass (including Prefaces), the Proper of Time, and the Proper of Saints. The unique insights found in this book give the reader a full understanding of the scriptural, liturgical, linguistic, and pastoral rationale of the revised Missal.

I am not sure exactly what I expected however I suspect that, once I have had a chance to reflect upon it, this book is going to deliver more than I realized. Anyone who has the Magnificat Roman Missal Companion published for the change in the liturgy, has an abbreviated version of this larger book.

Anthony Esolen breaks open the prayers of the Mass throughout the year, using the changes in the translation as a starting point. However, he goes beyond simply discussing word choices as he draws the reader's attention to connections with scripture, the Mass readings, and Christ in our lives. The first half of the book is devoted to the Collect, Prayer over the Offerings, Preface, and Prayer after Communion for every Mass through the year. Special times like the Triduum, of course, have commentary for many other prayers used only then. Thus we are given a rich source of reflection to add to the Mass readings themselves

Twenty-Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Prayer over the Offerings

Grant us, O merciful God,
that this our offering may find acceptance with you
and that through it the wellspring of all blessing
may be laid open before us.
Through Christ our Lord.

...the wellspring of all blessing: Echoing the words of Jesus to the Samaritan woman at the well: "The water I shall give will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life" (Jn 4:14). The bridegroom in the Song of Songs, whom Christians interpret as Christ, says of his bride, the Church: "You are an enclosed garden,my sister,my bride, / an enclosed garden, a fountain sealed" (Song 4:12). We pray that the fountain may be opened to us, like the opened side of our Savior on the Cross.

The next section covers the Order of the Mass in detail, commenting not simply upon prayers but upon all the spoken liturgical elements. This book, unlike the aforementioned Missal Companion, contains comments for Mass elements arising only at special times, such as various Prefaces for Lent and Easter or Blessings at the end of Mass for Weddings.

The last section comments upon the Collects, Prayers over the Offerings and Prayers after Communion for the Proper of Saints. As Esolen says, there is not room to comment upon those for each of the saints in the year, which is a real shame. He makes general remarks that apply to all these prayers and then discusses the specific prayers for special feast days. Included among those we might expect, such as for the Annunciation and special feasts for Mary, we find commentary for interesting extras like the Chair of Saint Peter the Apostle, Saint Lawrence, and Saint Bartholomew. Certainly it is enough to make me wish for a book of commentary on the saints throughout the year.

This is an extraordinary resource and it is fascinating to see the riches contained in even the smallest prayers read during the Mass. They often catch my ear with personal meaning but this book will help draw me closer to Christ to consider the underlying beauty and depth in every portion of the holy Mass. I will be using this book for daily contemplation and as a prompt to look up the scripture to which the prayers refer. It will be a different sort of Bible study but one that should have immediate application every Sunday at Mass.

Highly recommended.

Indepth Investigation of Jesus' Death: Reviewing "Who Moved the Stone" by Frank Morison

This review first saw the light of day way back in 2004. I was reminded of it when I saw a new book with a similar premise mentioned by someone on GoodReads. I was really pleased to see that it is now reprinted and easily available. It is a terrific read and I highly recommend it.


Who Moved the Stone? by Frank Morison

In attempting to unravel the tangled skein of passions, prejudices, and political intrigues with which the last days of Jesus are interwoven, it has always seemed to me a sound principle to go straight to the heart of the mystery by studying closely the nature of the charge brought against Him.

I remember this aspect of the question coming home to me one morning with new and unexpected force. I tried to picture to myself what would happen if some two thousand years hence a great controversy should arise about one who was the center of a criminal trial, say in 1922. By that time most of the essential documents would have passed into oblivion. An old faded cutting of The Times or Telegraph, or perhaps some tattered fragment of a legal book describing the case, might have survived to reach the collection of an antiquary. From these and other fragments the necessary conclusions would have to be drawn. Is it not certain that people living in that far-off day, and desiring to get at the real truth about the man concerned, would go first to the crucial question of the charge on which arraigned? They would say: "What was all the trouble about? What did his accusers say and bring against him?" If, as in the present instance, several charges appear to have been preferred, they would ask what was the real case against the prisoner.

Strongly influenced by late 19th century skeptics, Frank Morison decided to discover Jesus' true nature by looking critically at the facts surrounding his death and resurrection. He wound up being convinced of Jesus' divinity but it is a fascinating read even if you had no doubt of that fact. I have never read anything quite like this book which still holds up even though it is over 70 years old. Morison evaluates things that I never thought to question such as why Judas chose that particular night to turn Jesus over to the Pharisees, whether the Pharisees and Pontius Pilate worked hand in hand in Jesus' case, and where the apostles hid out (and why) during the trial and subsequent events. In some ways this reads like a "true life" murder mystery as the author reconstructs events and traces people's actions.

I didn't agree with every conclusion Morison made such as the identity of the young man at the tomb. Nor did I approve of every reference that was used, such as the Gospel of Peter and Gospel of Hebrews, although he did use many reliable sources such as the works of Josephus, the Jewish Historian and the few historical writings on the character of Pontius Pilate. However, those quibbles aside, this is a classic apologetics work and one well worth seeking out. You definitely will examine the facts surrounding Jesus' death with a more analytical eye.

[UPDATED] Classic Tales Audiobook Sale: Buy One, Get One Free

For a limited time, buy one of our most popular titles priced at $9.99, and get another absolutely free! This includes not only favorites like She, A History of Adventure, Captain Blood and The Phantom of the Opera, but also many new titles like Hamlet, The 39 Steps and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. This offer is available for a limited time only, so click the text link below and start saving!

Buy One, Get One Free!

If you aren't downloading The Classic Tales podcast already then you need to begin doing so. B.J. Harrison is a superb narrator. He doesn't leave his recordings up forever though. At some point, they get moved to his store and sold as audiobooks.

Harrison also sells audiobooks that he's recorded aside from the podcast, though a few of these sale items have appeared on Classic Tales.

At a price of $10 per book they are a good deal. A two-for-one sale is real value. Be sure to check it out.

UPDATED
I was asked what I recommend. Some of it, naturally, depends upon my own preferences. For example, I'm never going to buy A Room With a View by E.M. Forster.

Never. Ever.

I can't state that strongly enough.

That said, I have heard and can recommend highly:

• Captain Blood
• Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
• Kidnapped
• Tarzan of the Apes
• The 39 Steps
• The Insidious Dr. Fu Manchu
• The Mark of Zorro

So you can see I trend toward the adventure story and the horror story. No surprises there, I'm sure!