And also with you, pilgrim.

Saturno? That's Italian for "cowboy hat" ... right?

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

Dashing Through the Movies

NIGHT WATCH
The much vaunted "Russian vampire movie" that broke all the Russian box office records and that generated a lot of buzz among movie reviewers. I don't think I have ever watched another Russian movie and know very little about the culture. I have a feeling that there were some contextual things that totally got by us although you didn't really need much context. Quick summary ... "a la Matrix" but with more blood and scissors (euwww). A bit more description: long ago the forces of dark and light forged a truce to keep the balance between good and evil so that all would not perish in the fight. This resulted in the Night Watch (the light keeping watch) and the Day Watch (the dark keeping watch). Each is policing the other side to make sure the truce is kept. Into this, legend tells us (of course), that there will come one who will be greater than the others and who will choose the dark. And off we go, quite stylishly, with lots of driving rock soundtrack, and an apocalyptic fight between good and evil. Rose liked it better than we did (did I mention the blood? and the scissors?). Not the best of the genre but far from being the worst.

(HC rating: *** Good despite lack of flubber)

GOOD NIGHT AND GOOD LUCK
Edward R. Murrow and his producer take on Joseph McCarthy at the height of the witch hunts to stand up for truth, justice, and the American Way. George Clooney writes, directs, and acts. *yawn* This was beautifully acted, photographed, etc. Now, if only there had been the slightest bit of dramatic tension to engage us in the story it would have been a four star movie. All three of us felt as if we had been watching a documentary, except then we'd possibly have been given more information. We watched without ever feeling the slightest doubt that Murrow would get his way and that justice would prevail. This was without us having any idea of how Murrow fit into the actual story of McCarthy's witch hunt so we couldn't even blame foreknowledge as a spoiler.

(HC rating: ** More boring than church. All you did was yak, yak, yak)

SHOPGIRL
A lonely, depressed girl who sells gloves at Saks Fifth Avenue must choose in love between the rich Steve Martin and the loser alternative met in the laundromat. Although we felt sure that she'd wind up with laundromat loser (can you tell I can't remember his name? We saw this a while back.) we couldn't see how that would happen. Steve Martin's character was so much more desirable seeming. As it turns out this movie was exactly what I read in one critic's summary ... predictable overall but darned if you can predict the little twists along the way.

It wasn't the romantic comedy that the trailers would lead you to believe but I found it quite realistic in the ways that lonely people make choices, both good and bad, and in the lies that they tell themselves along the way. This put me strongly in mind of Lost in Translation in it's understated quality. We also appreciated the fact that it illustrates what Tom often tells the girls, "You can't manage love."

Let me forestall any objections in the comments ... yes, these people all hop into bed quickly and often and without being married. Not desirable to be sure, but also definitely the way that many people live these days. It also serves as its own cautionary tale in terms of the complications that ensue due to the intimacy that comes too soon and for the wrong reasons.

WARNING: as is so often lamentably the case, the PG-13 rating is not adequate. Rose watched this with us and we felt slightly squeamish a couple of times. She's 16. I wouldn't want my 13-year-old to see this.

(HC rating: Nine thumbs up!)

Serving Christ in the Ordinary

Imagine that Christ came to you one day and said, "I need you and you are the only person in the whole world who can do this. Will you help me?" Who could refuse? Who wouldn't want to be an agent sent by Christ himself? But then imagine that Christ said, "I need you to be a friend to the old woman who lives next door to you." What would you do? There is a certain glamour in having a life purpose, imagining that everything one does in life is oriented toward some great ideal. But it's very different if one's life purpose is to carry out a very mundane task. It is much easier to imagine following Christ as a knight sent on brave errands than as an ordinary person befriending a widow. For most of us, Christ's call will look much more like the second option. It will not be glamorous or exciting; in fact, much of the time it might be pretty ordinary. But if we are following Christ, then even the ordinary becomes part of the fabric of a holy life.

There is no escape from the ordinary. No matter who we are, no matter what we do, there are going to be parts of our lives that are repetitious and boring. What makes these periods tolerable is the knowledge that they contribute to something greater. ...

The Ignatian Workout: Daily Spiritual Exercises for a Healthy Faith

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

Knitting Addiction

We will never know whether knitters are addicted to yarn or to the act of knitting. To find out, we'd need to take someone's yarn away and see how she feels. I can't do that to another knitter. The ethical questions are too tricky.

Knitting Rules!: The Yarn Harlot's Bag of Knitting Tricks

I don't have a stash like truly dedicated knitters, although I do have a few balls of sock yarn tucked away for upcoming projects. Even with that small supply, the thought of someone taking it away ... well, let's just not go there.

In the Future, When "Catholic" Has Become "catholic"

CATHOLICS by Brian Moore

Short and easy to read. In fact I read it in one day. Written in 1972, this book could be put in under science fiction without any problem. In the future, after Vatican IV, the Church is working toward convergence with Buddhism, the Mass is symbolic, and there is no such thing as private confession. The only place on the planet practicing the Latin Mass, a small island off of Ireland, has been heretofore unknown but thanks to the hordes of pilgrims it attracts, not to mention, television specials, the Church is now sending out a priest to set things straight. His confrontation with the Irish priest is not quite what we'd expect. We discover that, contrary to expectations, it is not passion for the Mass that led this priest to defy the Vatican. Quite the opposite, it is a lack of faith, not wanting to rock the boat, that led him to hang onto the old ways.

I was riveted to see what the conclusion would be to the old priest's confrontation with the "Vatican's man" who believes in the new Catholic ways. I will not spoil it here for other readers. Suffice it to say, that I have had this book in mind quite a lot in the last few days, especially during Mass yesterday. I am going to recommend this book for our book club.

(Read as part of my Autumn Reading Challenge.)

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

How to Succeed in Evil

How to Succeed in Evil is not a self-help page for the maladjusted. It it is the story of Edwin Windsor, Evil Efficiency Consultant. He's like Arthur Anderson for Supervillains.

Just because a person can melt walls by winking at them or build a device to threaten the very fabric of our reality doesn't mean that they know how to manage investments or squeeze money out of a scheme. Just look at M.C. Hammer. (Not that he's evil or super -- just that he's exquisitely bad with money.)

But the problem with supervillains is that they are all too egomaniacal to listen to good advice. (They always pay, but they never listen.) So Edwin gets so fed up with this state of affairs and decides to go into business for himself. This results in an efficient, ruthless (and often very funny) brand of evil.

Edwin quickly becomes something more than a villain and less than a hero. He takes out villains because they are "incompetent and inefficient" and heroes because they are "ineffectual and in the way." He often does the right thing for the wrong reason. Which, as fans can tell you, is very entertaining.

If you listen to no other podcast, please do try this one (I'm beggin' ya here!).

An original, entertaining, cleverly written series about Edwin, this is also available as a comic book although I haven't seen it.

How to Succeed in Evil (episode archives are here and here).

Quick Review: Terry Gilliam's Best Movie!

THE BROTHERS GRIMM

Of course I haven't seen them all but between us we've seen a pretty fair representation of them. Basically, the Grimm brothers are tricksters trading upon old fairy tales to go from town to town "inventing" witches and trolls and then ridding the town of them. They are arrested and taken to a place where the authorities are convinced that other con artists are pulling the same stunt, except in this town ten girls have disappeared in the nearby, sinister woods. Suffice it to say that the place is cursed and an inventive mixture of common European fairy tales is shown in thoroughly creepy style in the process. The brothers must solve the curse or they will die, either through the curse itself or through execution as punishment by the authorities.

This reminded me strongly of Tim Burton's Legend of Sleepy Hollow except that we all felt it was much better. Gilliam, as always, takes risks. Sometimes they work and sometimes they don't but I can always appreciate the effort being made. That is the element that makes this less than perfect movie a much better use of time than something like Nacho Libre for example.

That said, I really appreciated Matt Damon's and Heath Ledger's acting. They turned in solid performances in roles that were much different from their usual star turns. I especially came away with an appreciation of Ledger's abilities, when taken in conjunction with his role in Lords of Dogtown. In both cases, he was virtually unrecognizable (except for his voice) and turned in very good performances in less than attractive roles. He may be someone who we will be watching with appreciation in many years to come as he matures as an actor.

(HC rating: Good despite lack of flubber)

Clouds and Elephants

According to ancient Hindu and Buddhist beliefs Cumulus clouds are the spiritual cousins of elephants, which is why the animals are worshipped, with a view to bringing rain after India;'s scorching summer heat. "Megha," meaning cloud in classical Hindi, is the name used to address elephants in these prayers. The Sanskrit creation myths describe how elephants created at the beginning of time were white, had wings to fly, could change their shape at will and had the power to bring rain. Although they have now lost these magical powers, the present-day descendants of those early Uber-elephants are still believed to have an affinity with the clouds -- especially the albino ones.

It is somewhat alarming to learn that eighty elephants weigh about as much as the water droplets in a medium-sized Cumulus -- a Cumulus mediocris -- would if you added them all together. (This is assuming the cloud occupies one cubic kilometre (about 0.24 cubic miles), which is not particularly large for a Cumulus. The droplets will commonly have a combined weight of 220 tons. The average Asian elephant weighs 3 tons.) for, although the droplets in a Cumulus cloud are extremely small, there are one hell of a lot of them. ...

The Cloudspotter's Guide by Gavin Pretor-Pinney

I was sent a review copy of this charming book, which I opened with a good amount of trepidation upon receipt. So far it is a real treasure in a typically eccentric British way, with the science of clouds interwoven with a true love of cloud watching and stories. The science is told in a very understandable way. After all, who can resist the image of a lava lamp to describe how heat acts upon water molecules to make Cumulus clouds? I know I can't.

In the Religion Section Today

The usual, annoying free registration is required for the complete stories from the Dallas Morning News.

Satan: Father's Little Helper?

"Christian tradition has laid a lot of blame on Satan for things they're causing themselves," said Dr. Kelly, 72, a former Jesuit exorcist and now a medieval scholar at the University of California, Los Angeles and author of three books about the devil. "I am pessimistic about human nature. I think we are totally capable of doing what we have done. You can blame it on psychosis if you want."

But you can't blame it on Satan, he said.

Ummm, yes. Yes, I can. No amount of spin is going to change the facts. There is an Evil One. Not that we don't create plenty of our own problems on our own. We definitely do. But let's not leave out that other component.

Turkish Kid Books Get Added Character: Allah

Book publishers in Turkey have reprinted several children's classics with Islamic elements inserted into the storylines. The move came in reaction to controversy over including such titles in the government's recommended reading list for students.

In "Pinocchio," when the wooden puppet arrives at the end of his quest, he exclaims to his maker, Geppetto, "Thanks be to Allah, I am a real boy!" Earlier in the book he says, "If Allah wills it, please give me some bread."

Read the Three Musketeers example. What adds to that revision is the knowledge that Aramis was in the company of religious men because he had decided to become a priest. Luckily, the Turkish Minister of Education feels about this the same way that I do. "'If you like Heidi, then write your own 'Heidi,' he said in the Turkish newspaper Radikal." (Scroll down in Briefs for this story which has other examples of changed books.)

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

What Does This Quote Make You Think Of?

... infinitesimal distinctions between man and man are too paltry for an Omnipotent Being. How these madmen give themselves away! The real God taketh heed lest a sparrow fall; but the God created from human vanity sees no difference between an eagle and a sparrow. . .

Hearing it this morning read from Librivox, this jumped out at me from the rest of the story. I thought of pro-abortion people, judging that a tiny baby (even if only a few cells big at the time) is less important than all their daily affairs.

I was quite surprised.

The reason being that I was listening to one of my all-time favorite books ... read aloud by Librivox.

Dracula by Bram Stoker.

That's Reveille, Ma'am to You!

Reveille, the first lady of Aggieland, is the official mascot of Texas A&M University. She is the highest ranking member of the Corps of Cadets, and she is a Five-Star General.

Hannah saw Reveille being walked yesterday. She was on the way to class or would have summoned the courage to ask if she could meet and pet the honored Aggie mascot. However, we all showed our distinct lack of appreciation for tradition and the corp by bursting into laughter when she told us that cadets must address Reveille as "ma'am."

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

Blog Design By ...

... the oh so fabulous, generous and talented Laura! Give her a hand folks ... isn't she fantastic?

Although the color changes showing up now are due to my tinkering and not Laura's design ... all shall be resolved in due time.

Also, as always when I change templates, Haloscan code is giving me fits ... comments will be back on eventually but for now I must run. Cheers, y'all!

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

Memoirs and the Family Tree

I mentioned my great-grandfather the other day.

A recap which probably only family members will care about: Charles J. Finger was famous in his own day, although that fame hasn't extended to the present day. My grandmother worshipped his memory and I heard countless stories about author Charles J. Finger. My grandmother told me that he was a regular correspondent with Jules Verne (or was it H.G. Wells?) and would write letters at a big table which my mother inherited and that stands in her living room today.

Looking around I was surprised to see that he has a mention in Wikipedia and the Encyclopedia Britannica (though I didn't subscribe to read the whole article). There's even a park named after him though that photo makes it look more like a field. Well, knock me over with a feather. Grandmama would be so proud.

This prompted my mother to reminisce about her days with her grandfather. I loved these memories of a little girl for her grandfather and of time spent in the country back then.

In reference to your entry about Charles J. Finger; I had no idea that he was so interestingly involved both in the literary and the down to earth business of making a living.

He was my grandfather, and I remember him as delightfully indulgent of a little girl. There was one afternoon when he encouraged me to look for a four leaf clover, and after finally inding one we went into the house and found another surprise: books! I can remember stealing up the lane to his separate office, which also included a pool table room where I played with the balls. I wasn't supposed to go up there and interrupt him, but of course I did. He died when I was seven years old, but his personal impact must have been immense because I remember him vividly (I'm 72), he was definitely a Leo personality although born in December.

The house was surrounded on two sides by what were known as sleeping porches, screened, and comfortable in Arkansas's hot summers. I remember having an outhouse to go to, and a freestanding "shower house" with cold sulpher water. There was also a wash house, which had its own walled yard (filled with cornflowers) for drying clothes. Neighboring ladies did the wash, and I seem to remember It having a hot water boiler. Lockers on the front screened porch of the house held wood for the cookstove on which water was heated, and I suppose for winter warmth. There was a stove in the middle of the house which heated some rooms; don't remember what the heat source was.

As long as I have started, I might tell more ... just because it's a bygone era. Cows were milked and the milk left to stand in wide pans on another screened porch, after which cream was skimmed for butter. My first food memory is of oatmeal, in an island of cream and topped with sugar.
My grandmother made wonderful plum jelly, quite tart, from wild plums that grew on the farm.

I never fell down a well, although often warned to stay away; they were just irresistable open holes in the ground, often with unfortunate rabbits floating there in.

There was a creek to wander along, always accompanied by one of the family Airdales. Along one side were shale banks where you could sit at the top and slither down on the seat of your pants for an exciting ride.

There were lots of freestanding stone buildings: my grandfather's office, my uncle Charlie's chicken house, the wash house, the shower, and my artist aunt Helen's studio with its two rooms, one of which was for serious drawing and the other of props for her Ozark themes( stone fireplace, milk churn, etc. )The studio and the house both looked west for beautiful sunsets. Apparently there was lots of cheap labor, and of course lots of stone. And speaking of milk churns, we did ours in a glass job where you could see the tiny flecks of butter emerging from the milk until it got too hard to crank.

A small flock of sheep were nutured here; I can still remember the way they smelled (hello... wet wool) as well as the bran they were fed. Once the ram butted me, and my grandfather bapped him on the head with a long pruning tool. And once I took Beverly, a small child, into the sheep lot, where everyone said she could have been trampled and killed. Also, speaking of Beverly, this was the farm where we were walking down the lane and she had to go to the bathroom, so I told her to go home. Unfortunately she walked by the entrance ... no one could find her ... a party was dispatched to see if she had fallen into the outhouse. Eventually an old gent who lived up the hill brought her home, and I hope he was very liberally tipped. The road was suspect, because at the top was a slaughterhouse, so trucks seemed to roar up and down.

I can remember Sunday afternoons when people would just show up at friends' houses and yell "Yoo-hoo". Then they would have to produce iced tea and chat. Oh, and what a yummy memory is the church fest where we had chocolate cake and ate it sitting on a swinging bridge over a creek.

Is this sounding just too Laura Ingalls Wilder? Well, maybe this was a step between her culture and and the time when you were born.

What a lot of memories! Maybe boring to you, but something you might like to know about my childhood years in Arkansas. Just think, I actually lived with these years ... no computers ... no hot water heaters ... and absolutely no air conditioning anywhere. There was running water.

The property was actually called "Gayeta Lodge", which I was always told meant "old soldiers' home".

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

What I Have "Failed to Do"

Idleness is a constant temptation to our human nature. Hitting the snooze button one more time, skipping or shortening our prayer, sitting back and letting others wait on us, not noticing what needs to be done, being content with a shoddy job, finishing what we prefer to do rather than being on time for a commitment, saying no to another’s pressing need—we all face temptations like this every day.

Read more at Word Among Us

This is the kind of thing that is my besetting sin ... literally! I struggle with it all day long. Which makes it rather frustrating if I go to confession and get a priest who tells me, "It's simple. Just set a schedule for yourself and stick to it." Well duh! Problem being that I have trouble with it!

However, even if I feel less than satisfied with the priest's advice, I still receive grace to give me extra strength to fight off these and other temptations and shortcomings, and absolution for all the times that I have failed and did not do what I should have.

Can y'all tell I'm working up toward going to confession soon?

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

Terrorists Are Getting Pretty Smart!

We're doomed!
Thanks to my brother for this one!
(Somehow I knew I should have put this caveat before receiving protests ... my brother is a retired soldier who has served in many areas including several assignments to Iraq and Afghanistan. It was making the rounds of his buddies who ... and this is only a guess ... I'd bet are in the military also.)

Novena to St. Michael, The Archangel: Day One

I am saying this for a friend's special intention.

Saint Michael the Archangel, loyal champion of God and His people,
I turn to you with confidence and seek your powerful intercession.
For the love of God, Who made you so glorious in grace and power,
and for the love of the Mother of Jesus, the Queen of the Angels,
be pleased to hear my prayer.

You know the value of my soul in the eyes of God.
May no stain of evil ever disfigure its beauty.
Help me to conquer the evil spirit who tempts me.
I desire to imitate your loyalty to God and Holy Mother Church
and your great love for God and people.
And since you are God’s messenger for the care of His people,
I entrust to you this special request:

(Mention your request).

Saint Michael, since you are, by the Will of the Creator,
the powerful intercessor of Christians,
I have great confidence in your prayers.
I earnestly trust that if it is God’s holy will my petition will be greated.

Pray for me, Saint Michael, and also for those I love.
Protect us in all dangers of body and soul.
Help us in our daily needs.
Through your powerful intercession,
may we live a holy life,
die a happy death, and reach heaven
where we may praise and love God with you forever.
Amen.

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

I don't even like Family Guy ...

... but this cracked me up.

Edge of the Sea ... a Russian Mission

I still lament the loss of Mary Herboth's wonderful blog and count myself lucky to be on her email list. She sends this request which I, in turn, present to you for consideration. Here is the blog for the mission she writes about.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I'm writing to you today to share a simple story of a missionary priest in Russia and to ask for your help. I need the help of fellow Catholics that may be willing to help out a friend in need. I have a friend, Fr. John Gibbons, who is a Franciscan missionary priest in Russia who needs our generosity.

Fr. John is living east of Siberia and is the only priest within a hundred miles. In fact, He is one of only a few Catholic priests in Russia at all. His work is not glamorous. He does not work with orphans or any other group that would invoke our deepest sympathies. He is a humble parish priest doing what parish priests are doing all around the world every day: he says Mass, hears confession, and shares in the life of those he pastors. The only difference is that he is doing it in place where priests were forbidden for so long that the Catholic faith was almost destroyed. Now he is starting again to answer the call of the Lord to preach and to baptize to the ends of the earth.

He arrived in Russia three years ago but has been in his parish for one year. His rectory is very small and very poor - so poor, in fact, that I feel that it is a shame to see our priests - or any human being - living in such conditions. He has no indoor plumbing, he uses an outhouse, gets water a block away, and he chops wood for heat. This is especially a sacrifice in a place where the temperature is below zero six months of the year. He lives like this to be "in solidarity" with the people who live in the same impoverished conditions. Our donations are not likely to change these things. What we give will help to bring Christ to them.

Fr. John is there to bring the Gospel to a people who were denied the Goodnews for many years. He is there to build a church - following the call of St. Francis - he is the prime example of "the missionary" that John Paul II spoke about in his letter on the Missionary life, "The special vocation of missionaries "for life"...is the model of the Church's missionary commitment, which always stands in need of radical and total self-giving, of new and bold endeavors."

Hearing about Fr. John is a grace for us too. It gives us a concrete way to contribute to the missionary Church, "...individual believers extend the reach of their charity and show concern for those both far and near. They pray for the missions and missionary vocations. They help missionaries and follow their work with interest."(JPII, RM)

Fr. John is in the United States right now to renew his visa and to raise awareness of the mission Church in Russia. He is here "to beg", as he says, "like a good Franciscan." When I heard the story of my long-time friend and saw the photos of his life I was moved to help. I made a decision to do two things 1) to share his story and 2) to simple ask every Catholic that I know to offer $10 for this mission.

$10 is not much. We spend that much at Starbucks or McDonalds or without even thinking about it. However, $10 for Fr. John's Mission would be much better spent. If enough people respond we can offer Fr. John a gift that will make a difference to his 50 parishioners. Just think, if we raise $5000 that will be $100 per person. With that Fr. John can buy bibles, catechisms, books, food, medicine or anything that his mission needs. Furthermore, I know that he can count on a few prayers to go with the donation. He says that the prayers are far more important because through prayer all his needs are met.

What About American Folk Songs?

About a week or so ago, I misheard Hannah. I can't remember what she really said, but what I thought she said was "goober peas." Which almost worked because we were talking about the Civil War but not quite.

After the gales of laugher died down, Rose asked why goober peas would make me think of the Civil War. Because of the song, of course. What song? Huh?

Here we go again.

Many times either Tom or I has hummed a few bars or sung a line or two of a classic American folk song (She'll Be Comin' 'Round the Mountain, Sweet Betsy of Pike, This Land is Your Land) only to draw a complete blank from both girls.

Both he and I remember all too well singing those songs in the bi-weekly music class in the fourth or fifth grades. If you lived in Kansas as I did back then you also learned some special Kansas folk songs which your class could perform for the monthly PTA meeting ("She's My Sunflower," *clap, clap, clap*).

Not these days. These days, Rose and Hannah explained, these days you learn folk songs from other countries. Rose giggled and said, "Mom, Mom, Mom, American folk songs aren't good enough! You've got to learn something from South Africa, even if you don't ever remember what those words mean!"

She broke into a lilting little song and Hannah dumbfounded me by joining in perfectly.

Now I don't particularly mind if they know South African folk songs. I, myself, learned Frere Jacque at a tender age as part of that age's multiculturalism effort.

However, is it too much to ask that all that multiculturalism include our own country? I know the politically correct answer but my own answer is a typically American, "Hell no!"

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

148 Left ...

2,996 is a tribute to the victims of 9/11.

On September 11, 2006,
2,996 volunteer bloggers
will join together for a tribute to the victims of 9/11.
Each person will pay tribute to a single victim.

We will honor them by remembering their lives,
and not by remembering their murderers.

There are only 148 victims left to be assigned to bloggers and the organizer is trying not to assign more than one victim per blogger unless absolutely necessary to reach the goal.

I am proud to say that I will be honoring the life of Captain Daniel O'Callaghan, age 42, a firefighter who died heroically and was found with his set of Knights of Columbus rosary beads in hand.

If you'd like to sign up or just read more about this project, go to here.

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity