Psalm 29 — The Lord Blesses His People with Peace

If in a spirit of gratitude you wish to teach how one should make a spiritual offering to the Lord, sing Psalm 29.

Athanasius, On the Interpretation of the Psalms

The first line of this psalm says, depending on your translation, "Ascribe to the Lord, O mighty ones..." (or O Heavenly beings or "sons of gods"). The literal translation of the word is 'elim which is the plural of the word for "god." However you slice it (and there are a lot of ways to slice depending on which experts you are reading) it is undeniable that the original reference was to pagan gods. 

We can look at this short psalm as proclaiming the glory of God and his power over creation but that understanding of speaking to the pagan gods in the beginning gives the whole thing a real "in your face, you pagan gods!" 

I like it. I like it a lot.

Lebanon Cedar

It is clear, however, that Israel employed terms like this—'elim ("gods"), bene 'elim ("children of the gods"), and related uses of 'elohim ("gods") and bene 'elohim ("children of God/the gods, heavenly beings, cf. Job 1:6, 2:1)— because she was immersed in a culture dominated by polytheistic belief systems and often struggled with pressure to conform. We know that Israel struggled with the temptation to worship gods other than Yahweh down to the exilic period, at which time (and only then) did absolute monotheistic belief in the existence of Yahweh alone take root firmly in the exilic community.

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The pinnacle and climax of the theophany comes at the height of the storm's power, as all those gathered in the temple worship Yahweh with a loud acclamation of "Glory!" With this shout the worshipers fulfill the call of the opening verses: "Ascribe to the Lord ... glory and strength ... due his name." This cry of acknowledgement is wrested from them almost against their will as the blasting, crashing, flashing display of divine power cannot be denied. All tremble! All worship! All know the glory of Yahweh!

Psalms vol. 1 (The NIV Application Commentary)

Seeing the psalm as a declaration against the pressure to conform to other beliefs makes me think of my own struggle to keep secular society from getting a good hold on the way I think. I have to shake off certain modern attitudes repeatedly to keep the right attitude toward God.

Maybe that's why I love what the comment above says about the "blasting, crashing, flashing display of divine power" which is the glory of God. Reread the psalm with those two ideas in mind and you might become as fond of this psalm as I have.

Sources are here and an index of psalm posts is here.

A Movie You Might Have Missed #53 : Meet the Patels

It's been 11 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.

Mom: She lives in India. She’s a bit heavy but has a Master’s in engineering. 

Ravi: So she’s overweight and an engineer and an Indian. That’s not the best pitch, Mom.

Ravi Patel is a first generation Indian-American. After a failed relationship he realizes that his ideal bride would be an Indian raised in the U.S. since he was too. But he has trouble finding such women. His mother is overjoyed to help since she's a famous matchmaker who has been frustrated because her own children won't accept her help. Filmed by his sister, Geeta, Ravi spends a year trying to find love in traditional Indian style.

A lot of reviewers have called this predictable and in one sense it is. We have a feeling that we know who Ravi will wind up with the entire time.

However, there are a lot of other threads combined in the year of matchmaking Indian style. It is those threads that provide more depth than simply who Ravi will like enough to marry.

Vignettes give context for cultural views of marriage, whether of older Indian couples talking about how their marriages were arranged or of young married couples containing either one or both Indian spouses. The comments that both Geeta and their parents drop throughout the filming combine to become a reflection on the importance family and attachment to culture plays, especially in immigrant families.

It was fascinating watching everyone struggle to adapt their native culture to that of their adopted American homeland. For instance one wonders how the Patel parents felt as they adapted the standard Indian matchmaking process in an effort to meet their American son halfway. We also see how this struggle makes Ravi look more deeply at his own life.

This is an amusing, light piece, but one that is also heartwarming and genuine, with insights to share beyond what you might expect.

NOTE: this is NOT a Bollywood movie but does reflect many basics of Indian cultural norms, especially in their respect for parents.

Relaxing

Relaxing, Remo Savisaar

Ashes and Fire

Tradition is not the worship of ashes but the preservation of fire.

Gustav Mahler

I'm with Mahler, as any good Catholic should be.

The Obsolete Science Behind Roe v. Wade

Grazie Pozo Christie's editorial for the Wall Street Journal brought up a point that I'd never thought about — ultrasound technology in the 1970s was a dinosaur compared to what we have today. The question of a 15-week-old fetus's humanity is very apparent today compared to when Roe v. Wade was originally considered. 

Here's the part that inspired me in case you don't have a WSJ subscription (they have a firewall) but do go read the whole thing if you are a subscriber and missed it.

Nestled within their mothers, these fetuses on average are 6.4 inches long and weigh 4.1 ounces. They have the proportions of a newborn—seemingly all head and rounded belly. The major organs are formed and functioning, and although the child receives nutrients and oxygen through the mother’s umbilical cord, the fetal digestive, urinary and respiratory systems are practicing for life outside the womb. The sex of the child is easy to discern by this point. The baby swallows and even breathes, filling the lungs with amniotic fluid and expelling it. The heart is fully formed, its four chambers working hard, with the delicate valves opening and closing.

A healthy baby at 15 weeks is an active baby. Unless the child is asleep, kicking and arm-waving are commonly seen during ultrasound evaluations. The fetal spine is a marvel of intricacy, and it is most often gently curved as the fetus rests against the mother’s uterine wall. Often, I watch as babies plant their feet against the uterine wall and stretch vigorously. Sometimes a delicate hand—with all five fingers—approaches the face and appears to scratch an itch. Fingernails aren’t visible, but they are present. We can see how the bones of the leg meet the tiny ankles and the many-boned feet.

At 15 weeks, the brain’s frontal lobes, ventricles, and thalamus fill the oval-shaped skull. The baby’s profile is endearing in its petite perfection: gently sloping nose, distinct upper and lower lips, eyes that open and close. With the advent of 3D ultrasound, we can now see the fetal face in all its detail.

These are the patients I encounter daily in my work as a radiologist. Clearly human, clearly alive, no longer mysteriously hidden from the eyes and knowledge of man, they ask us to consider them not disposable nonhumans but valuable members of our human family.

Pizza

A pizza delivery boy learns the hard way that it's better to stay on the porch and wait for payment than to enter ... a haunted house!

This was our last scary movie for Halloween viewing and it did a better job than I thought it would. I expected a humorous ghost story. This was anything but that. It was a full-on a horror movie and well done. As with most Indian films, it was too long. A few sections of the second half were fairly redundant but I don't want to say more because part of the pleasure is watching the plot unfold.

Vijay Sethupathi stars as the delivery boy. I've enjoyed his performances in Vikram Vedha as a clever criminal and Kadhalum Kadanthu Pogum as a tender-hearted thug helping a naive girl who lives in the apartment next door. This is an earlier movie that helped catapult him into his fame as the People's Treasure of Kollywood films. Let's just say I've become a fan and am looking forward to seeing more of his movies.

This is available streaming on Amazon Prime.

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

Psalm 28 — Plea for Divine Assistance

If you suffer from the weakness of nature as the plots against you grow more shameless so that you have scarcely any rest, then cry out to the Lord, in Psalm 28.

Athanasius, On the Interpretation of the Psalms

The things the psalmist complains about are things we understand well, showing once again that human nature never changes. The thing that can change is adding God to the equation, in whom we trust and whose promises we can believe.

David Composing the Psalms, Paris Psalter, 10th century

 This commentary considers the implications of this plea against the wicked from the psalm:

Repay them for their deeds
and for their evil work,
repay them for what their hands have done
and bring back upon them what they deserve.

Retribution

In our psalm, it is interesting to note the kinds of "work" for which the psalmist's enemies are condemned. It is not that these are murderers or thieves—there is no indication of physical assault or robbery. Instead they are described as "two-faced" or deceptive in their relations with others. They "speak peace" to their neighbors—expressing a concern for others' well-being—while actually harboring resentments and "malice" toward those they address. This is an interior attitude of self-focus and self-concern that is not visible to those around about. Yet lack of integrity in inner thought and outer expression is one of the sinful attitudes commonly addressed in the psalms.

... Even in the world of human relationships, hidden motivations and attitudes often are received through actions more than words. Malice in the heart will ultimately inform what the hands do.

Psalms vol. 1 (The NIV Application Commentary)

Sources are here and an index of psalm posts is here.

The Catholic All Year Compendium: Liturgical Living for Real Life by Kendra Tierney

When my social media feeds fill up with photos of donuts on the first Friday of June (National Donut Day), I can see that we as a society are hungry for community and shared experiences (and donuts, of course).

While I'm not here to tell you that you shouldn't observe Compliment Day on January 24 (I would never, and your hair looks great like that), I am here to tell you that, for Catholics, there is a whole world of days we could be celebrating together—days that have been marked by crazy community fun long before you could put a hashtag on it. We did it before. And there's no reason we can't do it again.

Kendra Tierney has written a supremely usable book of how to celebrate the liturgical year at home. It is informative, it is practical, and it is fun. You can see from the excerpt above that she has a good sense of humor and that comes to the fore here, in the best possible way.

If you've been wondering how to incorporate more than Easter and Christmas into your Catholic family life then this is the book for you. It includes plenty of activity, food, and decoration and idea stories. One of the most valuable parts is when Tierney tells the reader how she tells the stories of saint days or liturgical observances to her small children. This gives a real template that readers can make their own.

I bought it as a gift for my grandson, by way of giving it to his mother who is the person most likely to put it into action. I didn't have to read the whole thing because I could see that it was just what I was looking for. However, I did read it all just because I enjoyed it so much. This would make a great gift for any young family or even ones with older kids.

Psalm 27 — The Lord is My Light and My Help!

If you experience the harsh and vehement attacks of the enemy, and they crowd against you, despising you as one who is not anointed, and on this very account they fight against you, do not succumb to these attacks bu sing Psalm 27.

Athanasius, On the Interpretation of the Psalms

The opening words really set the theme of the entire psalm

The LORD is my light and my salvation;
whom shall I fear?
The LORD is the stronghold of my life;
of whom shall I be afraid?

With this deep trust, we should be able to get through anything. But still, being human, when we face evil and deep trouble face to face we get anxious and cry out to God. The psalmist does likewise, later turning to exhortations that God not does not forsake him and hears his pleas.

Coat of arms at Oxford University
showing first verse of Psalm 27

Pope John Paul II covered this psalm in two parts, as it has been divided for the Liturgy of the Hours. They may both be read here. It us just loaded with good insights. I especially like the Syrian prayer which applies this to temptation and the idea (below) that sometimes our tribulation comes from being utterly alone.  This psalm applies to every situation of life. Do go read it since I will just put a few bits here for easy reflection.

The Lord is my light and my help!

The faithful know that being consistent creates ostracism and even provokes contempt and hostility in a society that often chooses to live under the banner of personal prestige, ostentatious success, wealth, unbridled enjoyment. They are not alone, however, and preserve a surprising interior peace in their hearts because, as the marvelous “antiphon” that opens the Psalm says, “the Lord is light and salvation… the stronghold of life” (cf. Ps 27[26]: 1) of the just. He continuously repeats: “Whom shall I fear?”, “Of whom shall I be afraid?”, “My heart shall not fear”, “Yet I will trust” (cf. vv. 1, 3).

It almost seems as though we were hearing the voice of St Paul proclaiming: “If God is for us, who is against us?” (Rom 8: 31). But inner calm, strength of soul and peace are gifts obtained by seeking shelter in the temple, that is, by recourse to personal and communal prayer.

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Confidence in God in times of tribulation

Even in solitude and the loss of the closest ties of affection, the person of prayer is never completely alone since the merciful God is bending over him. Our thought goes to a well-known passage from the prophet Isaiah, who attributes to God sentiments of compassion and tenderness that are more than maternal: “Can a mother forget her infant, be without tenderness for the child of her womb? Even should she forget, I will never forget you” (Is 49: 15).

Let us remind all elderly persons, the sick, those neglected by everyone, to whom no one will ever show tenderness, of these words of the Psalmist and the prophet, so that they may feel the fatherly and motherly hand of the Lord silently and lovingly touch their suffering faces, perhaps furrowed with tears.

Pope John Paul II, General Audience April 21 and 28, 2004

Sources are here and an index of psalm posts is here.

Psalm 26 — I Have Led a Blameless Life

If [enemies] persist and, with hands red with blood, try to drag you down and kill you, remember that God is the proper judge (for he alone is righteous while that which is human is limited) and so say the words of [Psalm] 26.

Athanasius, On the Interpretation of the Psalms

This psalm begins with:

Judge me, LORD!
For I have walked in my integrity.
In the LORD I trust;
I do not falter.

It seems like a bold request, especially when reading through the rest of the psalm where the psalmist doesn't have a particular complaint or name an enemy. This is a straight up call for redemption based on personal innocence. God is called to take a close look and judge for himself.

I love the psalmist's straight forward, personal approach to God, honestly stating his case for having lived a humble, trusting life. This almost reads like a sequel to Psalm 25 where we're told that trust in Yahweh and following his instructions wil lead to a righteous life with divine deliverance. Psalm 26 describes the life where that has been done.

The Treasury. Gold- and silversmithery of Wrocław Archcatedral Exhibition.
Christian Mentzel the Elder (about 1675). Psalm 26:6–12
(psalm 25 in the Greek numbering), followed by the Gloria Patri. [So gorgeous!]

When considering humility it is always important to remember that being humble means knowing who you are — both the good and the bad. Only that way can we know who we are in relation to others and to God. If the psalmist says he is innocent, he may still be a humble man.

True Innocence and Honesty Before God

We may find it difficult at first to recognize humility in what may seem like a rather brash and prideful statement of complete innocence, but it is there. Especially the call for Yahweh's scrtiny is a moment of humble submission to divine authority. One does not lightly open the ark inner recesses of one's being to God's gaze, for the consequences of sin are real and God's mercy is very necessary, as the psalmist clearly recognizes in 26:9-11.

Psalms vol. 1 (The NIV Application Commentary)

Sources are here and an index of psalm posts is here.

Suburban Dicks by Fabian Nicieza

Once a budding FBI profiler, Andie Stern gave up her career to raise her four (soon to be five) children in West Windsor, New Jersey. But one day, between soccer games, recitals, and trips to the local pool, a very pregnant Andie pulls into a gas station--and stumbles across a murder scene. An attendant has been killed, and the bumbling local cops are in way over their heads. Suddenly, Andie is obsessed with the case, and back on the trail of a killer, this time with kids in tow.

She soon crosses paths with disgraced local journalist Kenneth Lee, who also has everything to prove in solving the case. Hilarious, insightful, and a killer whodunit, Suburban Dicks is the one-of-a-kind mystery that readers will not be able to stop talking about.

This is a book of contrasts. A light, humorous tone is counterpointed by the dark roots of the motive for the murder of a young, simple Indian gas station attendant.

Likewise it plays with a lot of mystery tropes like two losers who wind up solving a murder — only they are actually people with very successful backgrounds who have found themselves at low points of their lives. Andrea was a profiler who caught a serial killer but who now is a housewife with four kids and one on the way. Kenny won the Pulitzer Prize very young for journalism and has gone nowhere but down, now working on a surburban newspaper. The murder is not only a chance to reestablish their self worth but the investigation makes both feel alive again.

We could look at this as the suburban mystery where the housewives who are friends band together to gather clues. Yet, these women are not not really good friends and in some cases haven't met until the story begin. They are all motivated by different things, all of which tie into the murder or their own lives.

The past matters a lot, both to the investigators and to the mystery but we aren't dragged through info dumps. In fact, often small facts are sprinkled through someone's thoughts which give us a clue as to personal relationships, Andrea's with her husband for example, but the big picture is left to unfold naturally. That's a relief because I don't really care about Andrea's and Kenny's pasts more than the author tells us.

Also there is the topic of racism, both systemic and personal, which would normally make me steer a mile away from this book. However, the touch is light without being glib. And because the story is so rooted in Andrea's and Kenny's personal stories, it is a factor without taking over the narrative.

As I said, this is a study in contradictions and perhaps that is what makes it work so well. It is a story with characters we like, a murder that is interesting, and a funny tone which pulls it all together. You'll know early if it is your kind of book. The introduction is what grabbed me and it will either do the same for you or turn you away. Highly recommended.

Reclaiming Vatican II: What It (Really) Said, What It Means, and How It Calls Us to Renew the Church by Fr. Blake Britton

During the past five decades, the Second Vatican Council has been alternately celebrated or maligned for its supposed break with tradition and embrace of the modern world. But what if we’ve gotten it all wrong? Have Catholics—both those who embrace the spirit of Vatican II and those who regard it with suspicion—misunderstood what the council was really about?

Short review: simply excellent. Inspirational as well as informative. All Catholics should read this book.

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Here's the full story.
 

I have enjoyed listening to Father Blake Britton on the Burrowshire podcast which he does with his friend Brandon Vogt. I was intrigued by the idea that he'd written a book and had it preordered but was lucky enough to get a review copy. It was everything I hoped for and a whole lot more.

This book does just what it says on the subtitle. With genuine understanding of what motivates both sides,  Britton clarifies why there are misconceptions (and misapplications) of Vatican II both by liberals  and conservatives. That is no small feat. By looking at why the council was so misunderstood, we see that both liberal and conservative groups are responding to "the paracouncil." 

The paracouncil resulted from theologians (who may not have even been at the council), the media and turbulent, secular influences. These combined to skew the intentions of the Vatican II council into something that is loosely referred to as "the spirit of Vatican II." I'd heard the phrase but never paid enough attention to wonder why it was used. After all, if someone said "the spirit of the Bible" we'd go  take a good long look at the Bible to see what it really said. No one was doing that with the Vatican II documents. I realized that's like saying "it's the vibe of the thing" which is always dangerous when dealing with the faith.  The paracouncil is the reason for the iffy implementation I've noticed in a lot of parishes.

Britton walks us through the reason for the council and the major documents. As he does, we get context from ancient and modern times, what was (and wasn't) included, and thoughtful ways to help implement the true teachings of Vatican II in parishes. Along the way, he shares personal experiences as a parish priest which bring it all to life.

I was left with a profound respect for the council who so skillfully balanced Catholic tradition with the need to renew the practices of the Church so that the people have passion and vigor in their faith. I was left inspired by the council's goals and the examples of instituting proper practice in modern parishes.  I'm lucky enough to worship in a beautiful church that has a profound respect for the liturgy, including the music. Here are some of the things that Vatican II added, some of which I knew and some of which I didn't. All of these are implemented in our parish and which I'm profoundly grateful for!

• Revised liturgical calendar which cycles through the gospels in a three year period on Sundays and two-years for daily Mass while including lots and lots of Old Testament scripture too.
• Encouraging Bible reading and study. This has led to a lot of great study programs which our parish uses as well as many books I use myself.
• We should all be saints. The idea that the laypeople are also called to saintly holiness.
• Making sure there is a homily with the Mass. (Who knew that wasn't always a thing? I didn't!)
• The four stages of RCIA (this is the program non-Catholics go through to enter the Church) . In our parish it is well developed. For me was a source of unexpected spiritual growth and that was 20 years ago. I thought it always was like that.
  
• The Divine Office (Liturgy of the Hours) prayed by the laity. Another thing that I didn't know. I have only recently begun dipping my toes in this practice but am grateful for it.

 Reclaiming Vatican II is simply excellent. It is inspirational, informative, and easy to read and understand. All Catholics should read this book.

Also recommended: The Vatican II Collection by Bishop Robert Barron. The text of the four main council documents supplemented by explanatory commentary from Bishop Robert Barron and  Popes John Paul II, Benedict XVI, and Francis.

The main point of Christianity was this: that Nature is not our mother: Nature is our sister.

The essence of all pantheism, evolutionism, and modern cosmic religion is really in this proposition: that Nature is our mother. Unfortunately, if you regard Nature as a mother, you discover that she is a step-mother. The main point of Christianity was this: that Nature is not our mother: Nature is our sister. We can be proud of her beauty, since we have the same father; but she has no authority over us; we have to admire, but not to imitate. This gives to the typically Christian pleasure in this earth a strange touch of lightness that is almost frivolity. Nature was a solemn mother to the worshipers of Isis and Cybele. Nature was a solemn mother to Wordsworth or to Emerson. But Nature is not solemn to Francis of Assisi or to George Herbert. To St. Francis, Nature is a sister, and even a younger sister: a little, dancing sister, to be laughed at as well as loved.

G.K. Chesterton, Orthodoxy

Crane family in autumn

Crane family in autumn, Remo Savisaar

 

A “flying jumbo“ in royal regalia

The flying jumbo in royal regalia used to enthrall spectators
gathered at Rajpath in New Delhi

But this caparisoned jumbo was no ordinary pachyderm. It was a small helicopter, modified to resemble a “dancing elephant“ and flew over the Rajpath during the Republic Day parade.

Needless to say , its performance was the pièce de résistance of the fly past showcased by the Indian Air Force on Republic Day . Manoeuvering of the copter was no mean feat. It not only required extensive practice and high skill on part of the pilot but also a high level of technical expertise as external 'attachments' were fitted to the flying machine and any laxity meant disaster.

Isn't this wonderful? What imagination and skill this took. I wish I could see these jumbos in action but it happened 40 years ago. Read the whole story at Times of India.

A Movie You Might Have Missed #52: Sullivan's Travels

It's been 11 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.

"Nothing is going to stop me. I'm going to find out how it feels to be in trouble. Without friends, without credit, without checkbook, without name. Alone."

Oooo, la la!
How is this for a suggestive poster?

 Preston Sturgis' comedy is all about the need for humor in hard times.

A pampered movie director feels that the depression going on calls for serious, hard-hitting movies that explain the current social and economic problems to the public. His producers tell him, au contraire, hard times call for light-hearted movies to take your mind off your troubles.

To prove them wrong and experience those hard times, the director disguises himself as a hobo and takes to the road. After several botched attempts, during one of which he meets Veronica Lake as the romantic interest, he accomplishes his goal accidentally and better than he ever would have thought.

At this point the movie takes a darker turn but this is when it is most effective. Especially touching is the scene in the church where the poor black congregation and convicts from a local work farm are laughing at Pluto and Mickey Mouse.

Highly recommended although Preston Sturgis is no Frank Capra, however much he wants to be (which is cleverly mentioned early in the movie). Also it was fun to see where "Oh Brother, Where Art Thou" came from, which was used by the Coen Brothers in the movie of the same name.

Bread

Bread, Duane Keiser

God wrote not a poem but rather a play

According to most philosophers, God in making the world enslaved it. According to Christianity, in making it, He set it free. God had written, not so much a poem, but rather a play; a play he had planned as perfect, but which had necessarily been left to human actors and stage-managers, who had since made a great mess of it.

G.K. Chesterton, Orthodoxy

Gathering Dead Leaves

Gathering Dead Leaves by Ernest Biéler
Via J.R.'s Art Place

Sliding Standards and Job Hunting

My standards were sliding swiftly. At first I had insisted I would only work at a company with a mission I believed in. Then I thought maybe it would be fine as long as I was learning something new. After that I decided it just couldn’t be evil. Now I was carefully delineating my personal definition of evil.

Robin Sloan, Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore