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.