Ruff

Remo Savisaar, Ruff

Kagurazaka Street after a Night Rain

Yoshida Hiroshi, Kagurazaka Street after a Night Rain

Flotsam on the Surface, Deep Currents Beneath

This is about Harriet Beecher Stowe and her husband.

In all they were separated a total of three years and more, and their letters back and forth speak of strong, troubled feelings. The hulking, clumsy Stowe, bearded, nearsighted, complained that she never folded the newspaper properly and that her letters of late were too uninteresting for him to read aloud to his friends. She in turn would run on about her own miseries. The house depressed her, she worried about money, she hated the climate in Cincinnati. She thought too much about death.

But she also told him, "There are a thousand favorite subjects on which I could talk with you better than anyone else. If you were not already my dearly loved husband I should certainly fall in love with you."

And Calvin would write to her when she was visiting her sister in Huntford, And now my dear wife, I want you to come home as quick as you can. The fact is I cannot live without you and if we were not so prodigious poor I would come for you at once. There is no woman like you in this wide world."

David McCullough, Brave Companions

I love the way this illustrates how couples can drive each other crazy about wrongly folded newspapers or complaining about weather, while at the same time beneath everything there runs a strong current of love and affection.

Thank you, Bishop Paprocki

This week, Illinois passed the most extreme pro-abortion state legislation in America — with some Catholic lawmakers taking the lead in pushing forward this anti-life bill.

In response, Bishop Thomas Paprocki of Springfield, Illinois, today issued a public decree communicating to his priests that all Illinois Catholic lawmakers who voted for the state’s new Reproductive Health Act, or for an earlier 2017 bill that legalized taxpayer funding of abortions, should not present themselves to receive Holy Communion in the Diocese of Springfield “without first being reconciled to Christ and the Church.” The decree, and an accompanying letter, were mailed earlier in the week to all of the Catholic lawmakers who voted in favor of the bills.

Read the whole story here along with an indepth interview.

There will surely be public outrage over this decision but there should be public outrage over the actions of these Catholics who are leading so many into un-Catholic actions. Not only innocent lives are at stake but these politicians' souls. The Bishop is on the watchtower and it's his job to warn of danger. Good job!

What I'm Reading — Scalawags, History Changers, Philosophy, and Knights

THE EIGHTH ARROW: Odysseus in the Underworld
by J. Augustine Wetta O.S.B.

Condemned to burn in the eighth circle of Dante’'s Hell, Odysseus, legendary thief and liar of Homer’'s Odyssey and Iliad, decides he is going to break out. His adventure begins with a prayer to Athena Parthenos, who appears to him bearing gifts: his armor, his famous bow, a mysterious leather pouch, and seven unusual arrows. She then sends him on a quest through the Underworld along with Diomedes, his friend from the Trojan War who had been sharing in his eternal punishment. To complete their escape, the goddess warns them, they must recover their squandered honor and learn to use “the eighth arrow”.

I can't recall who recommended this book to me (it may have been the author, actually) but the Kindle sample was good enough to get it onto my wish list whereby it found its way into my birthday gifts. I'm enjoying it a lot so far. A determined scalawag (that's Odysseus) and his loyal friend tackle their task with bravado ... and sometimes they actually make progress! Having read a fair number of mashups with characters working their way through Dante's Inferno, this is measuring up very well.

BRAVE COMPANIONS: Portraits in History
by David McCullough

Profiles of exceptional men and women past and present who have not only shaped the course of history or changed how we see the world but whose stories express much that is timeless about the human condition.

Different as they are from each other, McCullough’s subjects have in common a rare vitality and sense of purpose.

Another birthday gift, from my mother who saw McCullough's latest (Pioneers) on my wish list and, like the subjects of this book, went her own way. Tom's been recommending this one for a long time and now that I've begun I don't know why I didn't read it earlier. These really are fascinating people and McCullough presents them so well. Including Harriet Beecher Stowe, author of my beloved Uncle Tom's Cabin!

THE LIGHT OF CHRIST: An Introduction to Catholicism
by Thomas Joseph White

The Light of Christ provides an accessible presentation of Catholicism that is grounded in traditional theology and engaged with a host of contemporary questions and objections. Inspired by the theologies of Irenaeus, Thomas Aquinas, and John Henry Newman, and rooted in a post-Vatican II context, Fr. Thomas Joseph White presents major doctrines of the Christian faith in a way that is comprehensible for non-specialists.

Not for beginners, despite the title. If you want a good dose of philosophy with your Catholic faith then this is for you. Our parish is doing a five-week class on Edward Feser's Five Proofs of the Existence of God. Looking for something lighter than that, but still with intellectual depth, I noticed this title continually popping up in my searches.

It is exactly what I wanted. I even made it through the proofs for God with a fairly clear head ... though the discussion of the Trinity caused my brain to have to shut down for a little while. It's been a long time since I've had to think in such a different way. All this is without ignoring the questions that Catholicism raise in modern life. Truly this is a great book so far ...

ADVENTURE CAPITAL (Black Ocean #9)
by J.S. Morin

You may recall I mentioned buying the 85-hour long, 16 book series Galaxy Outlaws from Audible when it was on sale. Space opera and scalawags. With heists and adventure everywhere you look. What's not to like? Just letting you know in case they piqued your interest too!

LE MORTE D'ARTHUR: The New Retelling by Gerald J. Davis
by Thomas Malory, Gerald Davis (Translator)

The perfect read along to go with Mythgard Academy's free class, at least if you don't want to read it in a very old translation. By the time I finish listening to the classes, I'll have about 70 hours invested. That's just how entertaining I find the Mythgard classes.

My book club read this in a different translation long ago. And I wasn't hardy enough to make it through. But reading along with the Mythgard classes is, as usual, a much more enlightening experience. And this translation makes it much easier to get through the text. (It doesn't hurt that it is just $2.99 on Kindle.)

Cup and Chocolate

Cup and Chocolate, Duane Keiser

Peasant girl knitting while waiting for laundry to dry

Frans Pieter Lodewyk van Kuyck, 
Peasant girl knitting while waiting for the laundry to dry in the sun

The past after all is only another name for someone else's present.

In writing history, to catch the feeling as well as the "truth" of other times, it is of utmost importance, I believe, to convey the sense that things need not have happened as they did. Life in other times past was never on a track, any more than it is now or ever will be. The past after all is only another name for someone else's present. How would things turn out? They knew no better than we know how things will turn out for us.

David McCullough, Brave Companions

Dawning - the 'Queen of the Clippers'

Montague Dawson, Dawning - the 'Queen of the Clippers'

Around the House — Robins, Cowgirls, Cake, Tu Meri!

Source

FLOWN THE NEST

The baby robins have flown into the bushes where their parents were calling them, one per day. So all three are on their big adventure of learning to be grown-up robins. With no help from us! (Whew!) Nature — so great that way at knowing how to do stuff like raise their own kids. The parents will keep feeding them for a couple of weeks until they've gotten oriented.

I've got my fingers crossed that the parents will come back in a couple of weeks to lay some more eggs. It was so much fun to watch the whole thing and we miss them.

FORT WORTH — DEEP CUTS TOUR

For our anniversary Tom planned a weekend away to our near neighbor, Fort Worth! It couldn't have been more fun. We began with lunch Saturday at the Bird Cafe where it was raining cats and dogs but I had the most perfect Cobb Salad I've ever tasted.

We hit the Cowgirl Museum which was fascinating. I loved the cowgirls' stories and the Wild West Show section. Those ladies were tough performers. I especially liked the woman whose career included 600 jumps with her horse from a tall platform into a water tank. I also loved the architectural features with details like door handles fashioned like horse heads with manes streaming to form the main push bar. Really nice touches.

The Usual made our favorite old-fashioned cocktails as well as dandy new-fangled ones of their own devising. (Did you know that Rose Liqueur tastes exactly like a rose smells? You get used to it.) This part of the evening was so much fun. It felt like a date from the days when we were newly in love.

Paco's was some of the best Mexican food I've ever had ... using recipes from the family's native Pachuca. We were the only ones there which didn't inspire confidence until the owner said that they do a big lunch and catering business and evenings are a work-in-progress. They're building a bar and I bet that brings in the evening customers. The music was coming from Mexican radio and was lively but, of course, in Spanish. Tom said how much he liked it and that you could tell what it was getting across even without knowing the language — and how comfortable he was with that now that ... wait for it ... we'd been watching so many Bollywood movies. And we were off and running in a really fun conversation about Indian movies and how much they had changed a lot of things for our worldview, family culture, etc. So just a really great evening overall.

The next morning after some of the best Corned Beef Hash I've ever had (Old Southern Pancake House), we zipped  over to St. Mary of the Assumption. What a gorgeous church — not on the outside where it is a basic brick building. But when you get inside there are floor to ceiling stained glass windows and lovely statues and stations. Built in 1924, it is a real treasure. It was a day for beauty because we followed it up with a leisurely walk through the Ft. Worth Botanical Gardens (free!) and the Japanese Garden (not free, but worth it).

The one imperfection was Woodshed Smokehouse where we went for lunch. Poor service, brisket sandwiches where the meat was minced to a pulp, etc. Talk about over-hyped. But it was adequate to our needs which were getting lunch and heading home. So, that is not a bad percentage of perfection to disappointment!

It was a dream mini-vacation and a really wonderful time together ... a perfect celebration of our 35th anniversary.

A favorite since my childhood — Chocolate Mint Cake.
And I don't even have to make it myself!
Rose is doing the honors.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!

I've been looking forward to this for a while, partly because Hannah and Rose and my friend Patsy are going to come over and watch Bang Bang. Nothing says fun birthday like watching this bit of Bollywood cotton candy with girlfriends ... and, of course, Hrithik Roshan's charm doesn't hurt either.

My birthday dinner will be at The Grape, which I haven't been to for a few years. Why did we drop it from the rotation? Can't recall but I'm looking forward to seeing what the new owners have done.

Now, so that we can all have a good day, here's my favorite dance number (and everyone else's) from Bang Bang.

Selfie: Jean Siméon Chardin

Jean Siméon Chardin, Self-Portrait with a Visor

555 ways to make a sandwich

Losing weight is not a cure for life.

Reality check: you can never, ever, use weight loss to solve problems that are not related to your weight. At your goal weight or not, you still have to live with yourself and deal with your problems. You will still have the same husband, the same job, the same kids, and the same life. Losing weight is not a cure for life.

Phillip C. McGraw, The Ultimate Weight Solution

And neither are any of those other diets for longer life or fixing genetic code or whatever other quick fixes are claimed. Though we are living in a time of fad diets that is probably greater than anything since Battle Creek.

Spring Evening by the River Emajõgi

Spring Evening by the River Emajõgi, Remo Savisaar

When Death knocks, surprise him.

When morning comes, think to yourself that night will never come. When night falls, dare not to promise yourself another dawn.

My point is—and I do have a point—hold yourself in readiness, as the Gospel of Luke urges (21:36), and don't miss a beat. Why? We all know people who've died before they said a prayer or changed their life.

When Death knocks, surprise him. Invite him in and ask what took him so long—the tea's been getting cold. ...

Now's the time for you to do something about it. Do provide for yourself, and do set aside a bit of good for the future.

Worry about yourself, yes, and do it now. Why? Who'll worry about you in the future?

The present moment is precious, as the apostle Paul said in his Second Letter to the Corinthians. Now is "the day of salvation; now is the perfect time" (6:2).

Oh, what an outrage it is! You live your life without a plan. You fill your day with indifferent acts. Don't you realize what's at stake? It's your eternal life!

The Imitation of Christ, Thomas a Kempis,
transl. William Griffin

Galilean Moons

Galilean Moons, Belinda Del Pesco

Humans have turned their vocation upside down

The diagnosis of the human plight is then not simply that humans have broken God’s moral law, offending and insulting the Creator, whose image they bear—though that is true as well. This lawbreaking is a symptom of a much more serious disease. Morality is important, but it isn’t the whole story. Called to responsibility and authority within and over the creation, humans have turned their vocation upside down, giving worship and allegiance to forces and powers within creation itself. The name for this is idolatry. The result is slavery and finally death.

N.T. Wright, The Day the Revolution Began:
Reconsidering the Meaning of Jesus's Crucifixion

I'm listening to the audiobook but want to read it in print to let these ideas really sink in. It is early days but I really like it.

The Seven Deadly Sins and the Four Last Things

The Seven Deadly Sins and the Four Last Things, Hieronymus Bosch

The painting is oil on wooden panels and is presented in a series of circular images.

Four small circles, detailing the four last things — Death, Judgment, Heaven, and Hell — surround a larger circle in which the seven deadly sins are depicted: wrath at the bottom, then (proceeding clockwise) envy, greed, gluttony, sloth, extravagance (later replaced with lust), and pride, using scenes from life rather than allegorical representations of the sins.[4]

At the centre of the large circle, which is said to represent the eye of God, is a "pupil" in which Christ can be seen emerging from his tomb. Below this image is the Latin inscription Cave cave d[omi]n[u]s videt ("Beware, Beware, The Lord Sees").

Above and below the central image are inscription in Latin of Deuteronomy 32:28–29, containing the lines "For they are a nation void of counsel, neither is there any understanding in them", above, and "O that they were wise, that they understood this, that they would consider their latter end!" below. ...

Each panel in the outer circle depicts a different sin. Clockwise from top (Latin names in brackets):

• Gluttony (gula): A drunkard swigs from a bottle while a fat man eats greedily, not heeding the plea of his equally obese young son.
• Sloth (acedia): A lazy man dozes in front of the fireplace while Faith appears to him in a dream, in the guise of a nun, to remind him to say his prayers.
• Lust (luxuria): Two couples enjoy a picnic in a pink tent, with two clowns (right) to entertain them.
• Pride (superbia): With her back to the viewer, a woman looks at her reflection in a mirror held up by a demon.
• Wrath (ira): A woman attempts to break up a fight between two drunken peasants.
• Envy (invidia): A couple standing in their doorway cast envious looks at a rich man with a hawk on his wrist and a servant to carry his heavy load for him, while their daughter flirts with a man standing outside her window, with her eye on the well-filled purse at his waist. The dogs illustrate the Flemish saying, “Two dogs and only one bone, no agreement”.
• Greed (avaricia): A crooked judge pretends to listen sympathetically to the case presented by one party to a lawsuit, while slyly accepting a bribe from the other party.

The four small circles also have details. In Death of the Sinner, death is shown at the doorstep along with an angel and a demon while the priest says the sinner's last rites, In Glory, the saved are entering Heaven, with Jesus and the saints, at the gate of Heaven an Angel prevents a demon from ensnaring a woman. Saint Peter is shown as the gatekeeper. In Judgment, Christ is shown in glory while angels awake the dead, while in the Hell demons torment sinners according to their sins.

Wikipedia

I really do love Hieronymus Bosch. Maybe because I like intricate things with lots of details. Click the image for full size. Also, the Wikipedia article shows each of the details much larger.

Customized Temptations

Our temptations have been customized. No two are alike. That explains why each one fits perfectly. The Divine Designer, in association with Weights & Measures Supernatural, has seen to that. That explains also why we can shed each and every temptation that's laid upon us. The Designer fully expects us to. Another garment awaits the Elect.

Therefore, we shouldn't despair when we're tempted. We should pray more fervently to God. After all, He thinks us worthy of help in every tribulation. ...

In trials and tribulations, the perfection of Humankind is hammered out. I give you one example—Virtue. The better it's hidden, the more light it gives off, or so the common spiritual wisdom goes. But if the virtuous can't recognize a temptation when it kisses them on the cheek, what good is all the devotion and fervor? For these poor souls, though there's still hope. If they patiently sustain themselves in time of adversity, then they'll continue to inch along the great spiritual path.

The Imitation of Christ, Thomas a Kempis

transl. William Griffin

Orange Seller

Orange seller, Joaquín Sorolla

Sarfarosh

After his brother is killed and father severely injured by terrorists, a young med student quits his studies to join the Indian Police Service to wipe out the terrorists.

This one's hard to sum up without spoiling it. It managed to combine serious content with true thriller and romance entertainment.

I liked Tom's summary from Facebook:

This 1999 action drama checked all the Bollywood boxes. A hero on a mission, a romance, gun runners from Pakistan. But the story ramped up to be quite gripping with a fabulous confrontation of good and evil. (Good had the best monologue.)

Last Bollywood checkbox, 4 song and dance numbers. 3 choreographed by our favorite Farah Khan. (Yes... we have a favorite Bollywood choreographer.)

Of course we have a favorite Bollywood choreographer. What are we, barbarians?

This is a dance that shows what the romantic couple is thinking after about 30 seconds in. Yes, they're at a birthday party but check out the passion bubbling below the surface!




Rating — for viewers with medium Indian film experience. (It's not rocket science, but without any cultural background at all you might feel kind of lost. Just let the movie flow over you.)

ALSO
An American's Guide to Bollywood discusses Sarfarosh here.

The Mythology I Believe

If Christianity is only a mythology, then I find the mythology I believe in is not the one I like best. I like Greek mythology much better, Irish better still, Norse best of all.

C.S. Lewis, Is Theology Poetry?

Couturières

Eva Bonnier, Couturières

Forgotten Author: Edgar Wallace

Back in the 1920s there was an oft-repeated joke about the British thriller writer Edgar Wallace. A friend was said to have telephoned him one day, only to be told that Wallace was writing a new novel. “That’s okay,” the caller remarked, “I’ll wait.”

One of the most popular writers of the early 20th century, and certainly one of the most prolific, Edgar Wallace turned out an astonishing 130 novels (18 alone in 1926), 40 short story collections, 25 plays, some 15 nonfiction books, plus journalism, criticism, poetry, and columns, in a little over 30 years. During his peak it was claimed that one-quarter of all the books read in England were penned by Wallace, and he remains one of the most filmed authors of all time.

Mystery Scene Magazine

I've got a fondness for old mysteries as y'all know. It is fostered by public domain sites like Project Gutenberg, Librivox, and kind folks who put the Gutenberg files on Amazon for Kindle (free!).

And that's how I found Edgar Wallace. I've read quite a few of them but these are ones I love the most.

THE ANGEL OF TERROR
This is a riveting tale which sets out with a man being sentenced for murder and a beautiful, innocent woman having had to testify against him.

Except, what everyone thinks is exactly opposite to the truth, according to the condemned man's friend and attorney, Jack Glover. He claims that his friend was framed.

Meanwhile, poverty-stricken Lydia gets pulled into this scenario completely out of the blue and is put in the situation of having to decide who to trust. One person is telling the truth and the other is out to murder her. We are not really ever in the dark about it, but watching Lydia's thinking and also seeing the behind-the-scenes machinations makes this a real page-turner.

JACK O' JUDGMENT

Who was the mysterious avenger whose hooded form sent terror into the dark haunts of the underworld? Criminal mastermind Colonel Dan Boundary fights two enemies — Stafford King, a dedicated detective, and Jack O'Judgment, a mysterious figure bent on vigilante justice.

This was an excellent mystery that had me guessing at Jack O'Judgment's identity throughout the book. I love the way he's kind of like The Joker, but fighting for right. It was also interesting to see the interplay of various characters and the skill with which the author emphasized their personalities.

ROOM 13
Is there anything worse than getting released from prison only to find that your true love is getting married that day? Maybe just one thing — discovering that her new husband is secretly a sinister criminal wanted by the police. We can't help but like John Gray, even if he is an ex-con. We're rooting for him to expose his true love's husband and make good.

This novel introduced Mr. J.G. Reeder, a wonderful character who was in a whole series of books. Not a policeman, not a detective, we don't know exactly what he is except that when he is around mysteries are solved, wrongs are righted, secrets are uncovered — all in the service of good. And he does it with such a wilted, tired, disinterested manner that it can't help but be amusing to see the effect on the villains. Especially when the talk turns to raising chickens. This was a thoroughly enjoyable, plot twisting mystery.

Baby Robins

Not our nest. Ours is cleverly crafted in the Y between a waterspout and a wall.
Our robins aren't this big yet, but are getting there!
Source.

Today seems to be a personal day, what with birthday cake and all, so let's just talk about Davis Robin-watch-2019.

We've had a lot of fun watching a robin couple scout locations, thoughtfully build right where we can watch them from our back room, and hatch 3 nestlings, and chase birds away. Now the babies are starting to stretch their heads above the nest edge and fleetingly look around before sinking down again.

Our only problem is that robins spend a day on the ground practicing flying when they fledge. So the one thing these parents didn't consider is that we've got a dog door, a klutzy Boxer and a terrier type who has hunting bred into her bones apparently. That doesn't bode well for any babies on the ground.

So we've worked out the timing as well as we can for fledging time (Wikipedia don't fail me now). Early next week we're going to shut the dog door and go to leashed walkies in the yard for bathroom breaks. Fingers crossed we'll see those little guys on the ground and know when they're safe.

I've seen baby robins sitting on the sides of their nests,
contemplating the world. They look a lot like this. I love that giant bill.
Source.

Black Forest Cake

Rose has been interested in this recipe for a while and it turns out that the best time to make it was for her birthday! So it was an experiment and a celebration at the same times. Get the recipe and our comments at Meanwhile, Back in the Kitchen.

The USSR's Love Affair with Bollywood

Raj Kapoor on Stamp of India (2001)

From the 1950s right up to its collapse, people in the Soviet Union were completely infatuated with Indian cinema. India and The Soviet Union had completely different politics, languages, and cultures. But for a brief time, these two nations found they had much more in common than expected, and realized this through a love of movies.

Hear about it on From Bombay with Love from 99% Invisible.

For us this helped bring into focus a little more about why we love Bollywood movies so much. The Soviets had only social realism movies. Talk about depressing. Hollywood these days is not turning out entertainment in the way we think of it - something to enjoy. Except for superhero movies and we've got plenty of those. Bollywood's filling in what Hollywood's forgotten - how to have a good time.

Airlift

When Iraq invades Kuwait in August, 1990, a callous Indian businessman becomes the spokesperson for more than 170,000 stranded countrymen. The result was the largest evacuation in history.

None of us had ever heard of this event, which I suppose is natural considering that we were hearing about the U.S. side of the story. What an amazing feat.  I felt as if I were in war-torn Kuwait. I had tears of pride in my eyes at the end at seeing Mother India's flag aloft. Also I now love Air India.

This is a movie Hollywould be proud to have made ... good acting, excellent pacing. You don't have to like Indian films to enjoy this one. The husband-wife dynamic was interesting and they did a good job developing both characters as they matured while responding to the crisis. Akshay Kumar is an actor I've enjoyed in two other films and this one just adds to my good impression. His performance anchors the whole film.

Rating — Introduction to Bollywood (come on in, the water's fine!)

Scott and I discuss Airlift at A Good Story is Hard to Find.
Hannah and Rose discuss Airlift at An American's Guide to Bollywood.

The Most Beautiful Brasserie in Paris

The Most Beautiful Brasserie in Paris, taken by Paris Daily Photo

The School of the Family Table

The table was the place for family business and for family quarrels as much as a place for eating. but most important, it was where we shared stories and learned lessons. I remember one night when the subject of managing money came up. Daddy took ten dimes out of his pocket and laid them out on the tablecloth. He said, "You give the first dime to the church. The second dime goes in your savings account. And you live on the rest. That, he said, was called tithing, and is how we should manage our money and our lives.

At that small white table in our hot kitchen, we learned the values and traditions that I later tried to teach — to recommend to — my own children.

Robert Khayat, quoted in A Gracious Plenty

Amen.

Books and more books

He never went out without a book under his arm, and he often came back with two.

Victor Hugo, Les Misérables

It's like looking into a mirror!

Petit Chaperon Rouge

Le petit chaperon rouge (a.k.a. Little Red Riding Hood)
Albert Anker, 1883

Das Rapsfeld

Das Rapsfeld, Edward B. Gordon

Ninth-Century "Well Adjusted"

In recent years it has been remarked by two or three professors — and as something of a corrective to the general academic consensus — that we should not forget that Vikings were under no obligation to observe the Geneva Convention; that while Vikings were not mad, they were often bad and always dangerous to know; even that there was something "psychopathic" about Viking culture.

To which one need only add that twenty-first-century "psychopathic" could be ninth-century "well adjusted."

Tom Shippey, Laughing Shall I Die

European Beaver

European Beaver, Remo Savisaar

No one benefits from staying inside their comfort zone, not even academics.

Academics have laboured to create a comfort-zone in which Vikings can be massaged into respectability. But the Vikings and the Viking mindset deserve respect and understanding in their own terms — while no one benefits from staying inside their comfort zone, not even academics. This book accordingly offers a guiding hand into a somewhat, but in the end not-so-very, alien world.

Disturbing though it may be.

Tom Shippey, Laughing Shall I Die

FREE 6-Day Pass To The Online Screening of CATHOLICISM: The Pivotal Players, Vol. I...

I got this in email and they're asking us to share it with everyone, so here you go! I'm looking forward it - a lot!

Friends, Over the course of Catholic history, there have lived people who were so influential,  so pioneering, that it's hard to imagine what the Church would look like without them. In 2016, I began filming CATHOLICISM: The Pivotal Players to trace the  steps and explore the lives of some of these remarkable historical figures. To celebrate the impact of these pivotal players, I'd like to invite you to  a free online screening event. From May 10-15th, my Word on Fire team will be screening all six episodes  of CATHOLICISM: The Pivotal Players, Vol. I at PivotalPlayers.com/free-screening. I hope you'll join me on this global adventure to live the stories of   some of the Church's greatest men and women, and to discover the  beauty of Catholicism that they exemplify. Peace,

Grapevines, White and Red

Grapevines, White and Grapevines, Red; William Hughes

via Lines and Colors

If I'm humble, I do without my pride.

All fasting, poverty, obedience, humility — all of the virtues have everything to do with doing without. If I'm humble, I do without my pride. If I'm obedient, I do without my will. If I'm poor, I do without things. Doing without suddenly makes you possess all of those virtues: obedience, humility, poverty and freedom.

Mother Angelica's Private and Pithy Lessons from the Scriptures

A Bouquet of Poppies By the Window

Olga Wisinger Florian, A Bouquet of Poppies By the Window
via Arts Everyday Living

Being Obedient

Some of us think we have to like what we're doing to be obedient. You're not being obedient until you do what you don't like to do.

Mother Angelica's Private and Pithy Lessons from the Scriptures

Woman Reading

Fernand Toussaint, Woman Reading
via Gandalf's Gallery

The power of evil arises from our refusal to love God.

If we really wanted to summarize very briefly the content of the Faith as laid down in the Bible, we might do so by saying that the Lord has initiated a narrative of love with us and wants to subsume all creation in it. The counterforce against evil, which threatens us and the whole world, can ultimately only consist in our entering into this love. It is the real counterforce against evil. The power of evil arises from our refusal to love God. He who entrusts himself to the love of God is redeemed. Our being not redeemed is a consequence of our inability to love God. Learning to love God is therefore the path of human redemption.

Benedict XVI, The Church and the scandal of sexual abuse

Sharing Your Catholic Faith Story by Nancy Ward

“Each of us is an unrepeatable expression of God’s presence in the world, with a unique story.”

With those words echoing in her heart, Nancy Ward began thinking of conversion stories as an evangelization tool. The culmination is this book. The first part has tools and tips for sharing your own story in a way that isn't weird or stilted. That's we all worry about, right? I've shared my story a zillion times and yet always have that bit of uncertainty at the beginning of yet another time. Nancy shares her own story here as an example.

The second part has over thirty faith stories from all sorts of Catholics — converts, reverts, clergy, etc. — who tell how God got their attention and drew them close. My own story is in that section.

I haven't read the book yet, so this isn't a review, but it is a recommendation to check this book out. If you love a good conversion (or reversion) story ... and who doesn't ... and would like to know how to be able to talk about your own faith experiences more confidently, then this is for you.

Find it on Amazon Kindle or paperback.

Here's Nancy's blog: Joy Alive

From the Archives: Boxer Report

This was originally posted in October of 2009. I did it to update the girls, both of whom were living too, too far away.

Coming across it, looking for a boxer picture to post for Tom's birthday today (his favorite kind of photo), I enjoyed it so much that I'm rerunning it. Oh those double-Boxer days ...

How our baby has grown!

Baby Wash and almost year-old Zoe.
This is probably from late June? Maybe early July?

I think this is from about when you both left to go to school.
Maybe a bit earlier than that.

So in answer to questions about how big Wash has gotten ...

He is now taller than Zoe. Though you can't tell it from this photo.
They were "watching" the game yesterday with us.

And as you may recall, though this is an old photo,
they both are usually much more active.
That hasn't changed a bit, no matter what the age!

Nobody Walks Slower Than You

"Who did you pass on the road?" the King went on, holding out his hand to the Messenger for some more hay.

"Nobody," said the Messenger.

"Quite right," said the King: "this young lady saw him too. So of course Nobody walks slower than you."

"I do my best," the Messenger said in a sulky tone. "I'm sure nobody walks much faster than I do!"

"He can't do that," said the King, "or else he'd have been here first. ..."

Lewis Carroll, Through the Looking Glass and What Alice Found There

Irises

Irises,Vincent van Gogh

You're not being obedient until ...

Some of us think we have to like what we're doing to be obedient. You're not being obedient until you do what you don't like to do.

Mother Angelica's Private and Pithy Lessons from the Scriptures

An easy way to help rebuild Notre Dame

The Catholic Company is supporting the restoration of the Notre Dame cathedral by donating 20% of their proceeds from select items to the Archdiocese of Paris.

Elk in Profile

Elk in Profile, Remo Savisaar

Roman Pilgrimage by George Weigel

There is a Lenten practice that I'd never heard of until reading this book. From Ash Wednesday through Divine Mercy Sunday, Catholics go to the Roman "station church" assigned for that day's Mass as a pilgrimage. Rome's got a lot of churches and this must be a lovely trip through history as well as a spiritual journey for those able to participate.

George Weigel uses this framework to provide a wonderful daily devotional for Lent, complete with photos and a page of information on each church. It is much more than a simple set of devotional reflections, however. The Mass readings and Office of Readings from the Liturgy of the hours are interwoven in an insightful commentary. Weigel doesn't stop there. He includes papal comments, saints' stories and quotes, and much more. I was taken on a Lenten journey which was rich in food for thought and meditation. Very highly recommended.

Note: as many other reviewers have noted, most of the photos are in black and white. Which is really dumb considering the churches are a key part of the book. I used my iPad for further church images.

Pigeons

Pigeons, José Ruiz Blasco (Pablo Picasso's father)

Kalank

"When someone else's loss seems like our victory, then there's no one in the world who's as lost as us."

Set in 1944 pre-partition Lahore. When a wife learns she is dying she asks a young woman to join the household to give her husband support after she's gone. The young woman not unreasonably insists on being married as a second wife so that she won't be cast off when the wife has died. (These being the days when you could have more than one wife.) This sets events into motion which will cause not just one but two love triangles to intersect. Intertwined with this is the story of general unrest over industrialization and possible partition.

Lush, well acted romantic piece set against the backdrop of pre-Partition unrest. In that sense, it made me think of Doctor Zhivago, which I've never seen but know the basics about.

Lavish sets, swirling fabric, and several large dance numbers with 500 performers made this a visual feast. The performances from everyone were wonderful, especially from Varun who I'd only seen as the younger brother in Dilwale (not my favorite movie specifically because of his subplot). Not to mention Madhuri Dixit's spectacular dance (she did have some other dancers swirling around her but it felt as if it were an amazing solo piece).

We were interested to see some of the conversations happening that argued different sides of the partition question. We've seen enough movies to show the results with Pakistan and India divided by barbed wire and steady hostility. But this early history was new to us and sent us to research the events of partition themselves.

The critics gave this so-so reviews overall. We didn't agree. Taken as love stories, taken as a look at people determined to control events (with results they never intended), taken as a movie-going experience - we liked it a lot. As did the six Indian teenage girls behind us at the theater who were sniffling and clapping as it ended.

Rating — for viewers with medium Indian film experience. (It's not rocket science, but without any cultural background at all you might feel kind of lost.)