Gospel of Matthew: A Lamp in the Hand of God and Stained Glass

Matthew 5:15

Out of order again, but this is worth backing up for. At least I think so ...

In the Lord's saying, "when a lamp is lit, it is not put under the bushel basket...," the word for "lamp" used (Greek word) actually means "portable lamp," and this makes the saying all the more poignant. It makes us, in fact, to be a lamp in the hand of God, a light that must allow itself to be moved about by Christ as he sees fit. The house is not lit up all at once but according to the need of the moment: now the kitchen, now the dining room, now the study or the bedroom requires light. Because it is Christ who has kindled his light, the Christian will also allow his Lord to choose the particular lampstand where he will shine, and when.

[...]

It would be a great mistake, however, for us to look too avidly for the proofs of the effect of our presence in the world. Inevitably, we would lose heart, because in the end we lack the means of measuring and judging things as God sees them. Who knows the true meaning and import of what transpires in a human heart, our own or another's? How can we know whether a negative sign, such as sadness and conflict, is not in fact the middle phase of a process that will culminate in much good? Our real business is to allow God to shed his light through us, and, since the light belongs to him, he will know where to focus it and to what effect. Our endeavor should be to make ourselves transparent so as not to eclipse his brilliance.

Fire of Mercy, Heart of the Word by Erasmo Leiva-Merikakis

The idea of being a lamp in Christ's hand doesn't get anywhere near the intimacy implied if we just think of a modern idea of a lamp. Reading Nelson's New Illustrated Bible Manners and Customs I was fascinated to see that lamps of the time were palm sized and would have shed light only where the person directed it. This is the lamp Christ would have been speaking of. Think of Him directing our light in the palm of his hand.

Reflecting upon this, I came across Thomas Merton's quote about transparency and God shining through.

Life is this simple: we are living in a world that is absolutely transparent and the divine is shining through it all the time. This is not just a nice story or a fable, it is true.

And at about this time I was slowly working my way through Lumen Fidei, Pope Francis' encyclical on the Light of Faith. This passage about the give and take of God's deeds and life stories shone a light on my own mind.

Israel’s confession of faith takes shape as an account of God’s deeds in setting his people free and acting as their guide (cf. Dt 26:5-11), an account passed down from one generation to the next. God’s light shines for Israel through the remembrance of the Lord’s mighty deeds, recalled and celebrated in worship, and passed down from parents to children. Here we see how the light of faith is linked to concrete life-stories, to the grateful remembrance of God’s mighty deeds and the progressive fulfilment of his promises. Gothic architecture gave clear expression to this: in the great cathedrals light comes down from heaven by passing through windows depicting the history of salvation. God’s light comes to us through the account of his self-revelation, and thus becomes capable of illuminating our passage through time by recalling his gifts and demonstrating how he fulfils his promises.

It all came together for me at that moment. Is it original? Unlikely. But it was a moment of blinding reality when I realized that my life is the stained glass window that God shines through to show others His existence, to show them some facet of His face that they need at that moment.

It was part of an opening of my own mind in answer to that question of our lives being lived in the light of God's will and of our own free will. How much is God and how much is us? The stained glass does not turn on the light which illuminates it to others, but it does paint a story that may inspire others in some way.

I can't express this well but the image shines often in my mind's eye. It is a guide for me as I make my way through the day, hoping that God will shine through the stained glass of my life in a way that others will see.

This series first ran in 2008. I'm refreshing it as I go.

H-E-B - Prepared to handle any emergency, including Covid-19

Craig Boyan: Starting in January, we’ve been in close contact with several retailers and suppliers around the world. As this has started to emerge, we’ve been in close contact with retailers in China, starting with what happened in Wuhan in the early couple of months, and what kind of lessons they learned. Over the last couple of months, [we’ve been] in close contact with some of our Italian retailers and suppliers, understanding how things have evolved in Italy and now in Spain, talking to those countries that are ahead of us in the curve. We’ve been in daily contact, understanding the pace and the change and the need for product, and how things have progressed in each of those countries.

Justen Noakes: We modeled what had been taking place in China from a transmission perspective, as well as impact. As the number of illnesses and the number of deaths were increasing, obviously the Chinese government was taking some steps to protect their citizens, so we basically mirrored what that might look like. We also took an approach to what we saw during H1N1 in 2009, and later got on top of it. Our example was if we were to get an outbreak, specifically in the Houston area, how would we manage that, and how would we respond with our current resources, as well as what resource opportunities would we have.

Texas Monthly

I've mentioned before how much I love the Central Market and their parent grocery H-E-B. This (free) story shows why. They were planning, they were ready, they are considerate of their employees. And they kept my store stocked. Outstanding.

Mother and Son

Mother and Son, Remo Savisaar

I've been seeing lots of photos of fledgling owls emerging from the nest on the North Central Texas Wildlife page on Facebook. Remo Savisaar is in Estonia so it must be the season everywhere.

Christopher Closeup interview about Thus Sayeth the Lord

I had the great pleasure of being interviewed by Tony Rossi of The Christopher Closeup.

Our interview will air this Sunday, March 29th, on Sirius-XM's The Catholic Channel (129) at 7:00am and 11:30am Eastern - and on Relevant Radio at 7:00am Eastern.


It will be released as a podcast during Holy Week.

The Church is Never Closed

Some of the initial statements I read from parishes and dioceses were all “WE’RE CLOSED.”

Which is not the message of the Gospel. We are not closed. We are never closed. Even if, God forbid, the physical church building has to be closed, the Church is not closed.

Amy Welborn

Day One - "Shelter at Home" in Dallas and the Grocery Store

Dallas County is now under a "shelter at home" order, which I suppose you could say is a gentle form of lockdown.

We'd already been planning on going to the store on Monday to avoid crowds. When they scheduled the order to begin on Tuesday, we thought we'd try to avoid what we thought might be big crowds on the last day before the order began. So instead we went on the first day of the stay at home order — this morning.

I'd heard from Hannah in line at the Central Market yesterday that entrance was being judiciously spaced out by the store so there was a line — but a fairly quick one. And that's what we experienced also. They made sure that everyone had a chance to get inside, get a freshly disinfected cart, and to disperse in the store before letting the next person in.

No one inside the store practiced the 6-foot rule in general, but no one was talking to each other and everyone did keep a "cone of distance" around them.

Everything was stocked and in select places like the butcher or deli counters there were green mats on the floor indicating six foot distances to maintain. And about 2/3 of us did it.

I have to say I felt a real gratitude for the friendly hospitality and thoughtfulness of how HEB (Central Market's owner) planned things out. You felt welcome, but it was clear they took everything seriously.

I took a picture of the social distancing in place at the checkout so Mom could see how it was. And I share it here with you!

Mapping the COVID-19 outbreak in the US

Remember USA Facts? The Nonpartisan government data site that uses easy to understand graphics to break down the facts as they are reported by government agencies?

Yeah. I'd kind of forgotten about them too. Until my husband told me about a fascinating map that breaks down the outbreak numbers by state ... and by county.

Here's the latest data.

Upcoming - Live Streaming Annunciation Mass and More

On Wednesday, St. Thomas Aquinas will live stream a Mass for the Feast of the Annunciation at 10:00 am.

And, of course it can be watched any time on the Facebook feed.

They have also decided to record weekday daily reflections. More on that later as it develops.

Pray the "Our Father" at noon on the Annunciation

Pope Francis has invited us “to invoke the Almighty, the omnipotent God, to recite at the same time the prayer that Jesus, our Lord, taught us” – the Our Father.

We're invited to join in this prayer at noon on the Annunciation, Wednesday, March 25.

Type Z and Not Freaking Out

At the same time, I want to say: if you're not freaking out right now, it's okay! This is a time that plays to the strengths of us Type-Z people in other ways than it plays to the strengths of the Type-A planners and organizers. The world, the neighborhood, the family needs people who can be cheerful, unafraid, easy-going, roll-with-the-punches. I'm not talking about risk-takers, but about having a balanced outlook even in unprecedented circumstances. We love our families, we take precautions, and then we know: what's going to happen is going to happen.

All shall be well, said Julian of Norwich, and all shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well. May all manner of thing be well with you, my friends.

Mrs. Darwin, DarwinCatholic

We are type-A in our household and yet have managed to hold fairly well to the attitude Mrs. Darwin mentions above. In our case, a wide contrarian streak helps a lot.

Occasionally one of us has to stop and ask for a family member to talk us down from becoming anxious. And that works since big doses of common sense and contrariness are liberally and willingly applied by other household members.

We're as prepared as possible and we know "what's going to happen is going to happen."

The End of the Journey

Hugh Thomson, The End of the Journey
via Old Book Illustrations

An early positive comment on Thus Sayeth the Lord

We've been reading this out loud as a family and just finished the Deborah chapter. The kids love it, and everyone has been paying good attention and asking intelligent questions. Thanks for writing such a fun book on a complex topic!

Mrs. Darwin (from DarwinCatholic blog) commented after I announced the e-book is now for sale on Amazon.

I couldn't be more pleased. Will be very interested to hear how they handle Hosea, which I say right up front is not a family friendly prophet!

Pick up your e-book today! You might be surprised how the prophets can help you handle our hard times today!

Suffering and Deeper Realities

It is well to remember that so long as a soul has not suffered, it lives only on the surface; the deeper realities escape its grasp. In the mystery of Christ lie hidden depths of divine reality which only those can reach and penetrate who, like Christ, have each in his own way been crucified. Authentic holiness is always consummated on a cross.

Father M.M. Philipon, O.P.

Louise Hollandine of the Palatinate

Louise Hollandine of the Palatinate, self portrait

I picked this up from J.R.'s Art Place where he had the following information, which is fascinating. For myself, I simply love that hat!

Louise Hollandine of the Palatinate was the daughter of Frederick V of the Palatinate and King of Bohemia, and Elizabeth Stuart. Raised in a Protestant household in the Netherlands, she showed great artistic talent. Her family arranged for her to study under one of the greatest artists of the time, Gerard van Honthorst.

The painting shown here is a self-portrait by her circa 1650. It was in 1657 that she, for unknown reasons, fled the Netherlands with the aid of her aunt Henrietta Marie de Bourbon, the widow of Charles I of England. In France she converted to Roman Catholicism and entered the Cistercian Abbey of Maubuisson. In retaliation, she was left out of her mother's will.

In 1664 she became Abbess of Maubuisson. She continued painting after entering the Abbey, mostly of religious subjects.

Shah Rukh Khan on the war against coronavirus

Bollywood megastar Shah Rukh Khan does a coronavirus public service announcement using scenes from his movies.

I'm very proud to say that I recognized a lot of the scenes — yes, I'm a SRK fan. I don't know if people who don't know his movies will find this as amusing as we did.

Though no matter who you are, I'm sure you agree that the hat and sunglasses are tragic. Just ignore them.



For those who don't know, here's how SRK really looks. Now you can see what I meant about the hat and glasses.

Chef Yia Medina on Lessons Learned From Hurricanes, Earthquakes and Cleaned-Out Grocery Stores

I found this story inspiring especially since I haven't been through the disasters that Yia Medina has.

STA-Live: Streaming Mass, Faith, and Community

Our priest live streamed the Mass on Facebook this morning. It really won't be a big deal to people who aren't parish members, but his homily was wonderful (as always) and you might like it. It is about 22 minutes in. His closing comments at about 54 minutes are also good.

I found my husband's comments equally inspiring when he shared it on Facebook. He doesn't talk about his faith much (make that "ever") so you know he was moved by watching the Mass and our community:

While I consider myself a faithful Catholic I am certainly no zealot. Watching a Mass online does nothing for me. But this Mass from our parish of 30 years proved how much I see community as my connection to God. It shows me how community is inherently local. Most of you will not get the same feeling from this Mass from our parish. But it is what "church" is to me. I could easily find a Mass online with better production values (multi-camera, mic'd to the hilt) but this is my community.

For me, community is where faith is put into action. You will rarely see most of the acts of support and mercy that are happening. But they are out there. Yesterday, Julie and I raced through two grocery stores to get supplies for a sick friend (and fellow parishioner) who should not be going out into the world right now. To the others in the stores we looked like everyone else getting ready for our "social separation". But I am sure many of the other shoppers were like us.

Here's the Mass video. 22 minutes into this video is a beautiful homily from Father Libone and at 54 minutes he gives an eloquent blessing for the times.

Thus Sayeth the Lord E-book Released TODAY!

Thus Sayeth the Lord had a March 31 release date but right now, as you can imagine, Amazon isn’t sending out orders on anything other than essential items.

SO, the publisher has released the e-book today and the print book will release when shipping loosens up some.

That means this very day you can have the prophets to help you get through hard times ... and everyday life.

Get it at Amazon now!

What I'm Reading: Mirabile by Janet Kagan

I've seen it reported that people are reading and watching movies about contagions.

This mystifies me. Real life isn't enough for them? As always, when faced with stressful circumstances in life I turn to light, entertaining books to get away from it all.

This book is one I'd forgotten I had until browsing through my Kindle library. It's just what the doctor ordered!

That year the Ribeiro's daffodils seeded early and they seeded cockroaches. Now, ecologically speaking, even a cockroach has its place -- but these suckers bit. That didn't sound Earth-authentic to me. Not that I care, mind you, all I ask is useful. I wasn't betting on that either.

A light, enjoyable collection of connected short stories told in a pleasing voice. These strike me as perfect juvenile stories though I can see how they'd be fun if encountered in sf magazines. There is little character development, what you see is what you get. Not that there's anything wrong with that for entertaining reading.

They are largely problem solving tales, wrapped in the intriguing environment of human colonists on Mirabile. Scientists who packed the colony ships with embryos also planned for emergency redundancy with some gene twisting so that each species contains the genes for other species. Which is super until your computer has a glitch that loses how to turn those genes off or on. When the Earth species react to the alien environment they reproduce with different species altogether, or sometimes with unexpected results of genes that mixed to produce monsters. My favorite — the Kangaroo Rex.

The fun is in watching Jason, the planet's genetic/environmental problem solver, evaluate and handle the various mutations along the way.

Hannah & Rose discuss the early 2000s metal scene, the loneliness of the long distance vampire ...

... and the respective merits of vampire versus human blood in bestowing superpowers as they watch Queen of the Damned (2002). Get it at More is More, a bad movie podcast.

Eggplant with Molten Mozzarella

A delicious Friday meatless meal ... the mozzarella is a variation so if you just see eggplant at the store and no mozzarella, we've got you covered! It's also perfect for using the vegetables that others might not be buying. Get it at Meanwhile, Back in the Kitchen.

Well Said: What did Jesus actually bring, if not world peace, universal prosperity, and a better world?

The great question that will be with us throughout this entire book: What did Jesus actually bring, if not world peace, universal prosperity, and a better world? What has he brought?

The answer is very simple: God.... He has brought God, and now we know his face, now we can call upon him. Now we know the path that we human beings have to take in this world. Jesus has brought God and with God the truth about our origin and destiny: faith, hope and love. It is only because of our hardness of heart that we think this is too little. Yes indeed, God's power works quietly in this world, but it is the true and the lasting power. Again and again, God's cause seems to be in its death throes. Yet over and over again it proves to be the thing that truly endures and saves.

-- Pope Benedict XVI, Jesus of Nazareth

Great Train Robbery

N.C. Wyeth, Great Train Robbery

All In Good Fun: Taskmaster

This is a British comedy show that you can see here on YouTube. It is ostensibly a game show but really is watched for the comedy.

Taskmaster Greg Davies set a series of simple and bizarre challenges to five comedians who are the contestants.  The tasks – usually performed alone, but sometimes in teams – are funny and challenging.

The first season included such things as doing something that will look impressive in reverse, cooking a meal using ingredients representing every letter of the alphabet (this one had us looking up what begins with X), making a huge block of ice disappear, and drawing a picture while riding on the back of a trotting horse.

Part of the fun comes in listening to the contestants justify their methods and results — they are comedians, after all, and can get hilariously creative as they think outside the box.

We just finished season one and I'm delighted to see that there are eight more seasons awaiting us.

Queen of the Court of Carnival Flowers

Helen Guenther, Queen of the Court of Carnival Flowers in San Antonio, 1911
via Traces of Texas

To the Victor Belong the Spoils!

My hero!

I was worried I was going to have to get to know the neighbors over more than a cup of sugar. Going door to door to borrow a roll of toilet paper is more of an ice breaker than I really want. But we'd been searching stores since last Friday without success.

Then Tom returned triumphant! He snagged one of the four packages at the store!

And there was great rejoicing!

Under lockdown to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, Italians break out in song from rooftops, balconies and windows.

ROME — It started with the national anthem. Then came the piano chords, trumpet blasts, violin serenades and even the clanging of pots and pans — all of it spilling from people’s homes, out of windows and from balconies, and rippling across rooftops.

Finally, on Saturday afternoon, a nationwide round of applause broke out for the doctors on the medical front lines fighting the spread of Europe’s worst coronavirus outbreak.

“It was from our hearts, to say thanks and show that we can get past this,” said Emma Santachiara, 73, who came out onto the terrace of her apartment in the Monteverde section of Rome to clap with her granddaughters.

Here's a lovely story from the New York Times, which is free (woohoo!) so go read it all. It will lift your spirits! (Thanks to Patsy for pointing it out.)

Inspiration – Daily Mass from Bishop Barron's Chapel

From Word on Fire:

Friends, in an effort to continue the practice of our faith in these trying times, when many parishes have closed due to restrictions around the coronavirus, we invite you to join us online for daily Mass from Bishop Barron's chapel, celebrated either by Bishop Barron himself or by Fr. Steve Grunow, CEO of Word on Fire.

The video will be posted below at 8:15am ET each day.

Finally, please continue to pray for all those affected by the coronavirus.

There's also a link to a virtual tour of the chapel. Get it all here.

We are merely here as pilgrims

We are now at the end of 1761. Today the New Year of 1762 had begun. How many saw the beginning of the year that has just gone but did not live to see its end! We should give thanks to God that we are allowed to see its conclusion. But do we know whether we shall see the end of this year? Certainly, many will not see it. Who knows if we shall not among this number? A year must dawn for us that will be our last.

We should awaken our faith and strive for the remainder of our lives to live according to the maxims of our faith. Why should we wait until death overtakes us and finds us living according to the maxims of the world? Let us awaken our faith to realize that this earth is not our true home but that we are merely here as pilgrims.

Our faith will give us confidence in our difficulties, teaching us that whoever prays will be saved. May our faith make us always live with the thought of eternity. Let's keep ever before our eyes this great thought - everything in this world comes to an end, whether it be prosperity or adversity. Eternity alone never ends.

St. Aphonsus Liguori

This seems just as appropriate for right now as for the beginning of a new year. Faced with a pandemic, appropriately happening during Lent when we repent and turn again toward the Lord, we are nudged (or shoved) into self-reflection. We're not so different from the folks in 1762.

Receiving Line

Belinda Del Pesco, Receiving Line

UPDATED: Help in coping with corona virus — Homeschooling Help, Free school age audiobooks, free Magnificat online

Free audiobooks for those home from school

B.J. Harrison from The Classic Tales podcast has a great resource.

Do you have kids at home right now? I've decided to release a few titles for free through my website to help those who may be home from school. The titles are selected for those in grades K-12.

They will remain free for the duration of the COVID-19/Corona virus outbreak.

You can find the free selections by tapping this text link.

Please note: new customers will need to create an account and will be automatically subscribed to our newsletter. I'm sorry I don't have a way around this. Feel free to unsubscribe immediately.

Further note: One of my distributors has approached me, and we are issuing a longer list of free audiobooks to schools. If your school has access to digital audiobooks, they may have access to a longer list of free audiobooks from myself and other publishers.

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HOMESCHOOLING HELP

How to Homeschool Temporarily (in the Event of Quarantine)

I liked the original post from Darwin Catholic when it first came out. Now I see there are further explanations, which I myself would find valuable were I in the unfortunate situation of having to take on my children's schooling. As I have a friend who is now faced with that very thing — and who has the same exact feelings I would have in her place — I submit these pieces which seem very helpful.

• How to Homeschool Temporarily (in the Event of Quarantine)
• How to Homeschool Temporarily, Part 2 -- the Little Kids
• How to Homeschool Temporarily, Part 3 -- The Middle Grades

Bonus: I also really liked Darwin's post about breaking infection connections. So here's Social Networks and Pandemics.

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Free Online Magnificat

During this challenging time, many of the faithful may be unable to attend Mass.
Magnificat is honored to provide complimentary access to our online version to help people pray from home.

Get it here. Just click on the magazine page image to read it.

Just one more reason to love Whataburger ... and Texas

Photo: Anita Kay Duran / Facebook

Whataburger Delivers Food To H-E-B Workers Working Long Hours to Keep Shelves Stocked

Whataburger decided to help out their fellow Texans working at H-E-B in New Braunfels by bringing them food.

H-E-B has been dealing with a ton of customers panic buying as fears of coronavirus grow, which has led to a major shortage of supplies and tons of long hours for H-E-B workers trying to keep the shelves stocked for customers.

The long lines didn't stop Whataburger workers from helping, though. They brought tons of food to their fellow Texans in their time of need.

Texas Memes

Sunday in a Time of Canceled Mass

In Dallas all Masses are cancelled through March 29 and we were pondering how to keep the day holy in a special way.

We're going to:

• Read the Mass readings aloud (courtesy of Word Among Us which I have on my Kindle, but you can get them at the USCCB)
• Listen to Bishop Barron's Sunday homily (read or listen at Word on Fire)
• The Our Father and our own prayers of the faithful, ending with the Act of Spiritual Communion below.

I especially wanted to share this prayer with everyone, which is wonderfully appropriate for now ... but really is good for anytime. I came across it in A Year With the Eucharist and was struck by its beauty.

My Jesus, I believe that you are present in the Most Holy sacrament. I love you above all things: I desire to receive you into my soul. Since I cannot now receive you sacramentally, come at least spiritually into my heart. I embrace you, and I unite myself entirely to you, as if you had already come. Do not permit me to be ever separated from you.

Jesus, source of all my good, my sweet love, wound, inflame this heart of mine, that it may always burn for you.

Act of Spiritual Communion,

Alphonsus de Liguori

You are all in my prayers as we go through uncertain days together.

Panic in a Time of Corona Virus

I always thought I'd read so many apocalyptic scenario books that I'd be ready for quick decisions in a panic.

Then I went to pick up a prescription at the local grocery store and was bemused by how full the parking lot was. Was surprised at no carts. Was amused at every single line open and full. Aha. This is that panic I'd been hearing about.

Then Hannah called, saying that she was at our favorite store and all the bread and meat were flying off the shelves.

Which is how I found myself vaguely wandering the aisles with a bag of lemons, three onions, and four pork chops. Wondering, what do I buy now? (I mean - without a list how do I even do this?)

All that reading of World War Z, The Stand, etc. did me no good at all!

You want bonkers? Dabangg delivers.

This masala film delivers entertainment and action, though not always in a way that we can agree with. Hannah and Rose discuss the 2010 Salman Khan film Dabangg, about a corrupt cop who lives fearlessly. This is the end of their cop movie series.

Get it at An American's Guide to Bollywood.

Distant View of Niagara Falls

Distant View of Niagara Falls, Thomas Cole
public domain from the Art Institute of Chicago

Click here to see it larger and more glorious. I remember when an exhibit of the Hudson River School came to the Amon Carter Museum in Fort Worth. Tom and I went to see it. Simply magnificent. I loved all those paintings.

How are we to live in the age of corona virus?

C.S. Lewis has the answer and helps us anchor us in reality. Just substitute "corona virus" for "atomic bomb" (which had just been dropped during WWII three years before he wrote this).

In one way we think a great deal too much of the atomic bomb. "How are we to live in an atomic age?" I am tempted to reply: "Why, as you would have lived in the sixteenth century when the plague visited London almost every year, or as you would have lived in a Viking age when raiders from Scandinavia might land and cut your throat any night; or indeed, as you are already living in an age of cancer, an age of syphilis, an age of paralysis, an age of air raids, an age of railway accidents, an age of motor accidents."

In other words, do not let us begin by exaggerating the novelty of our situation. Believe me, dear sir or madam, you and all whom you love were already sentenced to death before the atomic bomb was invented: and quite a high percentage of us were going to die in unpleasant ways. We had, indeed, one very great advantage over our ancestors - anaesthetics; but we have that still. It is perfectly ridiculous to go about whimpering and drawing long faces because the scientists have added one more chance of painful and premature death to a world which already bristled with such chances and in which death itself was not a chance at all, but a certainty.

This is the first point to be made: and the first action to be taken is to pull ourselves together. If we are all going to be destroyed by an atomic bomb, let that bomb when it comes find us doing sensible and human things - praying, working, teaching, reading, listening to music, bathing the children, playing tennis, chatting to our friends over a pint and a game of darts - not huddled together like frightened sheep and thinking about bombs. They may break our bodies (a microbe can do that) but they need not dominate our minds.

C.S. Lewis, essay "On Living in an Atomic Age"

A Movie You Might Have Missed #5: A Perfect World

It's been 10 years since I began this series highlighting movies I wished more people knew about. I'm rerunning it from the beginning because I still think these are movies you might have missed.

5. A Perfect World

In Texas in the fall of 1963, Kevin Costner is one of a pair of recently escaped convicts who take an 8-year-old boy hostage on their journey, which soon becomes a journey with just Costner and the boy. The little boy has never known his father and his childish innocence sparks fatherly feelings in Costner.

Meanwhile, Clint Eastwood is the Texas Ranger tracking them down. Eastwood knows about Costner's troubled past and although he must capture him, Eastwood has a certain level of sympathy for him personally as well. Gradually we see that there is a constant contrast between the flight and the manhunt, the fatherless and those who could fill the fatherly roles. This is an understated movie but it is hard to match its examination of good versus evil, the consequences of the past on the present, and the strength of its statement against senseless violence. Also probably Kevin Costner's best performance.

Gospel of Matthew: Jesus Was Amazed

Matthew 8:5-13

There's a lot packed into this episode. Here are a few things that amazed me.

George Martin points out an important detail that I had noticed but not realized the significance of, namely the reason this episode is unique.

Jesus healing the servant of a Centurion, by the Venetian artist Paolo Veronese

10 When Jesus heard this, he was amazed--the only time in Matthew's gospel that Jesus is amazed or surprised. Jesus is so amazed that he comments on his amazement. He turns from the centurion and seys to those following him, "Amen, I say to you, in no one in Israel have I found such faith." Jesus notes the faith of the centurion--the centurion's confidence that Jesus has such authority over afflictions that he is able to heal with a simple word of command. This is the first mention of or praise of a person's faith in the Gospel of Matthew--and the faith-filled person is not a Jew but a Gentile companion. No one in Israel--that is, no Jew--has demonstrated such faith in Jesus as has this Gentile centurion. Jesus' disciples, whom he is now addressing, are included in the no ones; they have a "little faith" (6:30) but not such faith as has the centurion. Jesus is amazed that he has found such great faith in a Gentile.

Bringing the Gospel of Matthew to Life

William Barclay looks more closely at the centurion and finds there is more that is special than his faith in Jesus.

There was something very special about this centurion at Capernaum, and that was his attitude to his servant. This servant would be a slave, but the centurion was grieved that his servant was ill and was determined to do everything in his power to save him.

That was the reverse of the normal attitude of master to slave. In the Roman Empire slaves did not matter. It was of no importance to anyone if they suffered, and whether they lived or died. Aristotle, talking about the friendships which are possible in life, writes: "There can be no friendship nor justice toward inanimate things; indeed, not even towards a horse or an ox, nor yet towards a slave as a slave. For master and slave have nothing in common; a slave is a living tool, just as an inanimate tool is a slave." ...

It is quite clear that this centurion was an extraordinary man, for he loved his slave. ...

Daily Study Bible Series, The Gospel of Matthew

This is important to remember because we so often think of slavery in a modern way, with lots of chances for the slave and the master to be friends. The ancient reality was depressingly different a lot of the time.

Lastly, I really like this thought on how to apply this to our own lives.

The Roman centurion offers us a model for approaching Jesus in prayer. He does not rush in and tell Jesus how to solve his problem. Rather, he comes to Jesus in his dire situation and humbly states his need. "Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, suffering dreadfully" (8:6). He leaves to the Lord the way the problem will be solved.

Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture: Gospel of Matthew

This reminds me of Mary at the wedding feast at Cana. Having stated the couple's need for wine, she just turns to the servers and says, "Do whatever he tells you." I myself can be awfully bossy, telling God just how a certain problem should be solved. Yes, sometimes we know what our petition is and what we need, but so often God's got a surprising solution. We need to humbly present our need and trust.

This series first ran in 2008. I'm refreshing it as I go.

Two Sisters

Two Sisters, Pierre-Auguste Renoir

Music Lesson

David Bles - Music Lesson
via Gandalf's Gallery, some rights reserved

I love this! These days she'd be checking her smart phone, but the scenario is the same.

Arriving at Amen: Seven Catholic Prayers That Even I Can Offer by Leah Libresco

When I'm lucky, I live like the disciples in the boat in the storm—prone to fear and doubt but held safely. Frequently, though, I wind up like Peter, overextended and floundering. Once he is stuck, Peter doesn't try to take charge and undo his mistake; he keeps flailing his way toward Christ. My prayer life often feels like this kind of thrashing in Christ's general direction, waiting and trusting that he'll reach across the gap I can't close on my own.

Leah Libresco was a public atheist, blogging on Patheos. And then she converted to Catholicism. This book, though, isn't really the story of her conversion to faith, although that is briefly included.

It is a different sort of conversion story. It's the story of someone learning to live her faith, of Libresco's "what next" after taking that big step of belief.

And that involves prayer, seven types of prayer, to be specific. Ranging from Confession to the Divine Office to the Mass and beyond, we get a good look at the prayer type and her own struggles with it. I often found really helpful reminders that my responsibility is to show up and pray, not to provide the fireworks (which are up to God, Libresco tells us).

Picking up the beads and following the structure of the prayer puts me in the presence of Mary and Christ. And, really, that is the extent of my responsibility when I'm praying. It's not for me to compel their intercession or force myself to achieve an insight into their lives. I just have to keep the rhythm so that I can follow without stumbling if anyone takes my hand.

Part of the delight of this book — yes I liked it that much, it is a delight — is the way Libresco's mind connects all sorts of things that would never occur to me. Shakespeare (a lot of it), folk ballads like Tam Lin, mathematics and science, Javert from Les Mis - all are wound together to help her (and us) make sense of the way God calls us to him through prayer.

This came out in 2015 so I am coming to it late, but don't miss it. It is wonderful Lenten reading and would be good for any time of the liturgical year.

GIVEAWAY WINNER - Thus Sayeth the Lord!

The winner is MCA Hogarth!

Just email me your address and we'll get it headed your way - julie [at] glyphnet [dot] com.

Thank you to everyone who signed up. It did my heart good to see the comments box used that much. Kind of like those old blogging days before everyone took regular chatting to Facebook.

I wish everyone could win, but luckily we've got preordering at Amazon (which I know you're tired of hearing about — but I like to think this book will make the end of Lent go a little easier).

Meatless Friday — Tuna Noodles

We make this year round and although it seems like an American innovation, check the credentials. Italians use canned tuna and this is from a great Italian cookbook.

It's easy, delicious, and is making my mouth water thinking about them. I ran this recipe way back in 2004 and it is still as popular in our home as it was then. Get the recipe here!

Living With Deborah: Privileged to Collaborate

For the final bit of the Deborah chapter in my new book, Thus Sayeth the Lord — let's look at the man in this equation — the general Barak.

Previously in the chapter: part 1, part 2, part 3

LIVING WITH DEBORAH
Privileged to Collaborate

We’ve focused on woman-power, but let’s look at Barak, the other major player in this story. He is respected enough to rally ten thousand warriors and lead them to a blowout victory. That’s not the kind of guy who usually comes running when a woman orders, even if she is a judge and prophetess. But Barak respects Deborah’s authority enough to respond to her summons.

Deborah is literally using God’s words, saying, “I will draw Sisera, the general of Jabin’s army, to meet you by the river Kishon with his chariots and his troops; and I will give him into your hand.”

But Barak hesitates, saying, “If you will go with me.” That “if” changed the ultimate hero of the battle, with Jael getting the glory of Sisera’s death. Why does Barak put conditions on his obedience? Is he afraid? Does he or do his troops need a tangible “talisman” of God’s favor? Does he doubt God’s power? We simply don’t know. Again, this story is about God’s victory, not individuals’ internal journeys.

I get Barak. “Yes, but … ” seems to be one of my favorite phrases when God’s desires come to me. No one’s asking me to face down nine hundred weapons of mass destruction, but taking dinner to an ill neighbor down the street can feel just as daunting when I don’t know her.

Sometimes, I’m afraid; sometimes, I’m doubting; and sometimes, I want control. “Sure thing, God, great idea — let me just add a wrinkle. If that doesn’t work, then we’ll go with your plan.” God keeps shoving us out of our comfort zones in the hopes that someday we’ll say yes and then shut up. Just so we can see, like Deborah and Jael, how amazing it can be when things get messy and God works them out.

Barak is included in a list of heroes of the faith in Hebrews 11 where Saint Paul says, “out of weakness they were made powerful, became strong in battle, and turned back foreign invaders.” I take solace in the fact that God used Barak despite his weakness, whatever it was.

This is what I’ve got to remember. Every time I answer God’s commands, I am rewarded with overflowing generosity. My life becomes richer, I become stronger in faith, and I know God a little more personally.

Also, Barak doesn’t hold a grudge or blame people for his shortcomings. He’s right there with Deborah singing that celebration hymn. That also encourages me to keep the right perspective and rejoice in God’s victory no matter how imperfect my collaboration might be.

I still haven’t gotten that victory party with roasted sheep and Bollywood dancing, but a girl can always hope!

If you liked what you've been reading, don't wait. Thus Sayeth the Lord comes out on March 31. Preorder your copy now!

Insightful review of Five for Sorrow, Ten for Joy

An insightful review of a book I love — Five for Sorrow, Ten for Joy — from Melanie Bettinelli. Here's a bit, but go read it all.

This time through, near the beginning of the novel I had an unexpected moment of recognition, or maybe not recognition so much as making a new connection between two things. I’m pretty sure that when I last read this book I hadn’t read much on the subject of human trafficking. But now I have. ...

In it’s way it has many of the same elements I loved in her earlier novel about religious life. In This House of Brede. But here the brokenness and healing comes to the fore. Lise is a mystic, in Bethanie she finds her true home. And yet her past won’t leave her alone. She must find ways to redeem it.

Living With Deborah: Crushing It For God

From my new book, Thus Sayeth the Lord — let's take a look at how the ladies get it done it when it comes to the prophet business.

Previously in the chapter: part 1, part 2

LIVING WITH DEBORAH
Crushing It For God

Deborah’s the whole package: legal counselor, prophetess, military commander, wife, and singer. But these only tell us the things she does, not who she is. Some of the prophets just will not shut up about how they’re feeling or what’s being done to them. Jeremiah wishes he’d never been born and is known as the weeping prophet. Elijah has to have an angel coax him back into action with a catered meal after he lies down under a tree saying, “I’m done. Take me now, Lord.”

Deborah? She’s kicking butt and taking names. We don’t know — or, frankly, care — how she restores order when bandits roam freely, what it does to her marriage to become a prophetess and judge, or what it’s like to be a battlefield commander with Barak. She serves God without hesitation, without doubt, and with her whole heart.

Jael too, though not a prophet or judge, didn’t mess around. We don’t know why she breaks nearly every taboo in the book to get Sisera in a position where she can kill him. Women never invited men into their tents and — do we have to say it — it’s terrible hospitality to kill guests. Especially don’t kill the guest if he’s an ally, because now we’re in covenant-breaking territory. But Jael is all in.

Whatever God ordered up, these ladies got it done.

I love that the storytellers didn’t try to clean things up. Women prophesying, leading armies, executing enemies — it’s all on the table when you’re telling God’s story. If he gets messy, that’s how we’re gonna tell it. From their point of view, these unlikely heroes are just one more proof that only God could maneuver this whole crazy plan into working.

You can’t lock God in a box. His ways are mysterious. God reads hearts, not genders or job descriptions. He knows who we are and what we can do. Our job is to cooperate by stepping out in faith and doing what he asks of us. Just wear your boots, because it might get messy.

Tomorrow in part 4 we'll take a look at the guy in this story — the general Barak.

Don't forget the book giveaway! Sign up here!

If you liked what you've been reading, don't wait. Thus Sayeth the Lord comes out on March 31. Preorder your copy now!

First Colors

First Colors, Finnish Lapland/Northern Finland, Remo Savisaar

Remo's photos of Lapland are so gorgeous and yet also so alien looking. I begin to understand why their folk tales have so many creatures like gnomes, brownies, and trolls.

Living with Deborah: Both Sides Now

Part 2 of the Deborah chapter from my new book, Thus Sayeth the Lord — let's take a look at how two versions of the same story help us have a nuanced view.

Part 1 is here.

LIVING WITH DEBORAH
Both Sides Now

There are only two chapters about Deborah, and the second one retells the first, but in poetry.

The prose chapter is a well-constructed, complete story. We get the religious and historical setting, Deborah’s and Barak’s roles, God’s instructions, battle strategy, and Sisera’s death. It’s a nice, tidy package.

The poetic chapter is dramatic and fun because it’s a celebration song. This is when it gets personal, immediate, and full of interesting details. Deborah stops bandits plaguing travelers, tribes are shamed for skipping battle, and “the onrushing torrent, the torrent Kishon” washed away the enemy.

What I find most poignant in Deborah’s song is a bit imagining Sisera’s mother when he never comes home.

Out of the window she peered,
the mother of Sisera gazed through the lattice:
“Why is his chariot so long in coming?
Why do the hoofbeats of his chariots tarry?” (Jgs 5:26)

Deborah clearly sings this triumphantly, especially since the next lines are from the mother’s maids saying that Sisera’s probably just picking out the best slave girls and loot to bring home. For me it brings home the fact that Sisera is someone’s son, just like all those other warriors. It makes all those people feel vividly alive for me. It’s a touch, however chilling, that we don’t often get.

These two versions are like reading the book and seeing the movie. Each has a slightly different attitude, while both communicate the truth. Scripture does this all the time. That’s why Genesis has two versions of Adam’s creation, and four Gospels tell Jesus’ life story.

What can’t be ignored in either version of this story is that it is God’s story, first and foremost. Deborah, Barak, and Jael are important, but the storytellers are really talking about God’s protection of his beloved people. In case we don’t get it, right after Jael nails Sisera with that tent peg, we’re told, “So on that day God subdued Jabin the king of Canaan before the sons of Israel.” Bam. The victory is God’s.

As much as I love looking at Deborah’s story from several angles, I tend to resist this sort of view in my own life. The big picture of my own story is so often told from different points of view by my husband and children, family and friends. If I’m not too wedded to my own version, I can learn more about myself, good or bad. My life is enriched when I open myself up to community and allow myself to be known more fully.

Tomorrow in part 3 we'll take a closer look at the two ladies who crush it for God - and what that means in our own lives.

Don't forget the book giveaway! Sign up here!

If you liked what you've been reading, don't wait. Thus Sayeth the Lord comes out on March 31. Preorder your copy now!

What I'm Humming: Guys and Dolls

Here's what I've been humming for about a week. Mom hadn't seen this before and so we watched it and have been singing bits of different songs to each other ever since.

Not too classy, but what're you gonna do? Here's the one that keeps coming back ... I love the guy with the poodle.

Look, what's playing at the Roxy?

I'll tell you what's playing at the Roxy.

It's a picture about a Minnesota man so in love with a Mississippi girl that he sacrifices everything and moves all the way to Biloxi.

That's what's playing at the Roxy.

The Odd Volume

The Odd Volume (1894). Henry Stacy Marks.
Via Books and Art

We All Loved This One: Kumbalangi Nights

I'd read a good review of this Malayalam language Indian film and knew only that it was about four brothers in a tiny fishing town. And that it is a comedy-drama, a confusing yet common Indian description.

So none of us had any idea what to expect. It quickly became apparent that this was a movie you had to be prepared to let just wash over you in a state of confusion for the first 20 or 30 minutes. Luckily we were all willing to do that. After that it all came into focus and turned into a great movie with some twists that put us on the edge of our seats.

As my mother said:

The movie was beautiful to watch. Lovely, almost dreamlike landscapes instead of the usual crowded streets and scenes of many Indian movies. Good twist to the plot. This one is eye candy that relaxes and charms, making the story even more realistic.

I grew to love the four brothers from the wrong side of the tracks and the way they were dealing with their various dilemmas. I also was fascinated by their contrast with the family of one brother's girlfriend who seemed so perfect in every way and yet felt "off" from the beginning.

As the story goes on it is clear the director is telling us about families, how they are formed, and how they grow. The movie's twists were truly unexpected and there is a clear religious element that interested us as Kumbalangi is about 40% Christian.

All four of us kept talking about it the next day, so it did a great job of capturing our imaginations and hearts.

I feel lucky that it is streaming on Amazon so we were able to see it. I see that this director's first film is also streaming there and I want to watch that soon.

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.) 

Hannah and Rose discuss Kumbalangi Nights at An American's Guide to Bollywood.

Deborah — Kicking Ass and Taking Names

From my new book, Thus Sayeth the Lord — we looked last week at Jonah. Now, let's take a look at how the ladies can crush it when it comes to the prophet business.

We're going to read about Deborah. She's going to change your mind about ancient Jews and gender roles.

DEBORAH

Kicking Ass and Taking Names

Now Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lappidoth, was judging Israel at that time.

Judges 4:4

What to Read

• Judges 4–5

Deborah’s story is two short chapters that turn popular ideas about ancient Jews and gender roles upside down.

You know how you have bad habits, vow to reform, and then fall back into the same things over and over? Once Joshua (the leader after Moses) dies, that’s the Israelites’s main problem. With no single leader to keep them on the straight and narrow, the tribes fall into a recognizable cycle. They idolize pagan gods, and God lets them reap what they sow. Nearby nations invade, and God doesn’t stop them. Eventually, the Israelites get the point and repent, wailing for help. God raises a hero (a.k.a. judge) to restore his people.

Although every sin-oppression-repentance spiral is depressingly the same, the heroes God raises each time are startlingly different. Trust God to handle each problem with creative flair. And he’s willing to keep on doing it as long as they need. The Book of Judges is one long, action-packed look at God and his heroes.

Deborah is one of the lesser known judges and prophets, but her short story is one of the most unusual. Among other things, the only other person in the entire Bible to be both a judge and a prophet is Samuel, so she’s a rarely gifted individual.

Quick Take on Deborah

With Deborah, God is at his most surprising because, first of all, he gives the Jews an unconventional female leader. Not a man. Not someone like Miriam, who’s always mentioned alongside her brothers. Deborah’s a married woman, but her husband is just mentioned in passing. Her personal life isn’t the point here. She sits under her palm tree in the mountains, judging Israel and laying down some of the most immediately provable prophecies in the entire Bible.

For twenty years, Israel has been in the power of the Canaanites. Their general, Sisera, is oppressing the heck out of everyone with his nine hundred iron chariots, the newest thing in military tech.

Deborah summons Israel’s top general, Barak, giving him God’s command to take ten thousand men and march to the Kishon River, where Sisera will be delivered into his power. Barak says, “OK, but only if you come, too.” Without missing a beat, Deb replies, “No prob. But now a woman is going to kill their general. Coulda been your gig, but … there you go!”

With that intro, we all think it’s going to be Deborah dealing the final blow, but surprise! It’s a new player, Jael, with her handy tent peg and hammer!

It goes down like this: God sends rain, which floods right down the Kishon River and washes away those awesome chariots. All the Canaanites are slaughtered on the field of battle, except Sisera, who runs away on foot. Smart or coward? You decide.

He winds up at a tent where his ally’s wife, Jael, is home alone. She offers him a jug of milk, and when he’s off guard, she takes a tent peg and drives it through Sisera’s temple with a big mallet.

One translation says the peg went through his skull into the dirt beneath his head. That is graphic. And impressive. Barak shows up too late, but he can’t say God didn’t warn him. He leads the warriors, but the special glory goes to Deborah and Jael.

Then Deborah and Barak sing a victory hymn that poetically retells the story. This is the high point of a huge celebration party with lots of roasted sheep, wine, and Bollywood-style dancing. OK, the party isn’t described in the Bible, but that’s how it goes in my head. You can just feel the joy and triumph coming through.

And there was peace for forty years.

Tomorrow in part 2 we'll compare the prose and poetic versions of the story and see what why two versions are better than one.

Don't forget the book giveaway! Sign up here!

If you liked what you've been reading, don't wait. Thus Sayeth the Lord comes out on March 31. Preorder your copy now!

Night Show

Night Show, Finnish Lapland/Northern Finland, Remo Savisaar

GIVEAWAY! For my new book — Thus Sayeth the Lord

I ran the Jonah chapter last week to give you a taste of the book. And for the rest of the week, I'll excerpt the Deborah chapter.

But there's nothing like the whole book in your very own hands!

So we're giving away a copy here on the blog! 

And I just discovered, checking the copyright page of my own copy, that it scored an Imprimatur and Nihil Obstat. All of which are official declarations that it is free from doctrinal or moral error.

Of course, if you've been reading the excerpts you know that doesn't mean they are agreeing with all of my takeaways and opinions — but we're totally starting from the right place in looking at these prophets.

It's just one more reason for you to want to read the whole thing!

Leave your name in the comments box and I'll do a random drawing on Friday. Or send me an email if the comments box is giving you grief - julie [at] glyphnet [dot] com

Note: Continental U.S. only

Mandarins with Vase

Mandarins with Vase, Duane Keiser

Love Drama or Power Drama?

We tend to think of Shakespeare's plays as being tragedies or comedies but this opens things up a bit.

If the distinction is not held too rigidly nor pressed too far, it is interesting to think of Shakespeare's chief works as either love dramas or power dramas, or a combination of the two. In his Histories, the poet handles the power problem primarily, the love interest being decidedly incidental. In the Comedies, it is the other way around, overwhelmingly in the lighter ones, distinctly in the graver ones, except in Troilus and Cressida--hardly comedy at all--where without full integration something like a balance is maintained. In the Tragedies both interests are important, but Othello is decidedly a love drama and Macbeth as clearly a power drama, while in Hamlet and King Lear the two interests often alternate rather than blend.”

Harold Clarke Goddard, The Meaning of Shakespeare, Volume 2

I never thought of it this way but Goddard is right. This is a very interesting way to look at the Bard's work. I just can't praise Goddard's books highly enough, by the way, for anyone who is interested in digging deeper into Shakespeare. Insightful, illuminating, and stimulating literary criticism which always respects Shakespeare's text.

Living with Jonah: Which Hand is Which and Running from God

From my new book, Thus Sayeth the Lord — the final part of the sample chapter we've been reading this week. (Previously:  part 1, part 2, part 3.)

Let's dig into Jonah's story and see what else it can tell us about our own lives, here and now.

Living with Jonah

Which Hand is Which?

Any time that someone tells you the “Old Testament God” is cruel and vengeful, remember the Book of Jonah. Absolutely not. God is God, no matter which Testament we’re reading. The mercy he shows the Ninevites is the same mercy we see Jesus praying for from the cross, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.”

When I’m embarrassed over things I’ve done in the past, I remember God’s understanding words about the Ninevites, which I think are some of the most loving and hopeful in the entire Bible.

God knows that the Ninevites are ignorant, that they never had an opportunity to learn another way, and that they haven’t been given a real chance to be anyone other than who they are. And he knows that about me. As an agnostic, I made fun of people who remained chaste before marriage; called the Eucharist “that cracker”; and rolled my eyes over the pro-life movement. It has taken a lot of time, a lot of reading, and much internal prompting from God for me to be able to see things from his point of view. I appreciate now how ignorant I was and how obnoxious I must have seemed to Christians around me.

It’s why I also appreciate his gentle correction as I try — sometimes enthusiastically, sometimes halfheartedly — to live my life as a faithful Catholic, in Jesus’ footsteps.

Running from God

I’m like Jonah in more ways than one. I can be pretty quick off the mark in the wrong direction when God calls with something I don’t want to do.

What’s worse, a lot of the time I’m pretending to myself that I’m not turning my back on God. For all Jonah’s faults, he never pretended he wasn’t defying God. He even understood his own motivations. I’m not that honest a lot of the time. My problems are all pretty small compared with having to go declare God’s word to a hostile nation: the acquaintance that I don’t want to invite to a party because she is awkward to be around. The evenings I don’t want to give up to volunteer. The sick person I don’t want to visit because he can be pretty critical.

These petty problems can loom large, and I know I sound exactly like a sulky teenager when I’m coming up with excuses. And, come to think of it, so does Jonah, when he’s on the hill overlooking the city. Just as Jonah only cared that the plant was dying because he  lost the shade, not for the plant’s sake, we often think of everything (including people) according to how it affects us, not for another’s sake. That is where God’s thought-provoking question to Jonah comes in at the end.

We’re not given an answer to God’s question. Instead we, like Jonah, are left to ponder God’s ways and our own. Do I want to be like Jonah? Or just go ahead and try it God’s way? Because the only one I’m fooling is myself.

Next week, I'll share another chapter so you can see how a different prophet might show us something about our lives today.

If you liked what you've been reading, don't wait. Thus Sayeth the Lord comes out on March 31. Preorder your copy now!

St. Peter's Basilica at Night

St. Peter's Basilica at Night, Scott Danielson