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March 13, 2022
Best way to disempower evil: Look at it Bishop Robert Barron’s sermon for the first Sunday of Lent- Three Levels of Temptation– is on St. Luke’s account of the temptations of Christ in the desert. Within the first few minutes of his homily, he says, “The best way to disempower evil: to look at it, to see it.” The declaration is a simple one. We could even say it’s self-evident. And yet, the baldness of those six words sears, pierces, plunges. Hence impelling this piece because the corollary is also evident: we empower evil by refusing to look at it. […]
March 6, 2022
Sacrifice: Brought to the Citizens of the World in Real Time For the ten days, President Vlodomyr Zalensky has acted as David to the Goliath Russian President Putin. But this is not theatre. No, this is sacrifice: brought to the citizens of the world in real time. I must confess that prior to this week, I considered the seemingly endless conflict in the Ukraine just another of the tribal skirmishes we see all over the world: Sudan, Yemen, Syria, Nigeria, Chinese Christians, and here as well, if we bother to reduce the arguments to the fundamentals. And President Zalensky? I […]
February 27, 2022
No man can tame the tongue I should probably title this one “Part Two” because it’s inadvertently a continuation of the article that posted last Sunday on the epistle of James. The daily reading for Saturday February 19th’s Christian liturgy was again, St. James. The phrase, “No man can tame the tongue” shouted at me. And impelled this second article on the gospel book Fr. Alphonse calls the most readable and practical of all the books in the New Testament. …In the same way the tongue is a small memberand yet has great pretensions. Consider how small a fire can […]
February 13, 2022
Sin doesn’t come first- we get it backwards! This past Sunday’s Gospel was St. Luke’s account of Simon’s-he who would become Peter- first encounter with Christ. St. Luke provides many details. So many in fact, that it’s easy to place ourselves there. And because of that, to write about witnessing Peter’s catch. But there’s even more here! With his customary precision and clarity, Bishop Baron makes plain what I’d missed before: sin doesn’t come first-we get it backwards. Axiomatic to the spiritual life- to each of our spiritual lives- is “Invasion of Grace.” A wholly splendid phrase to decsribe that […]
February 6, 2022
Leave room for the wrath Bless those who persecute [you], bless and do notcurse them. If possible, on your part, live at peace withall. Beloved, do not look for revenge but leave room forthe wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I willrepay, says the Lord.” Rather, “if your enemy is hungry,feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals upon hishead.” Do not be conquered by evil but conquer evilwith good. The words are St. Paul’s from his Letter to the Roman Christian church. One that he […]
January 30, 2022
Depression and the new science of sprituality “I don’t believe depression exists- instead, it’s a loss of energy. If you’re depressed but hear a fire alarm, just like anyone else, your sympathetic system will kick in. You’ll find plenty of energy to run.” After twenty-five years of counseling ex-combat vets John had plenty of experience with PTSD and its oft associated partner, depression. Because of both personal and professional experiences, his observation rang radically true for me. Not long afterward, John introduced me to his clinical supervisor, Dr. Weiner, a staff psychologist at Clark University in Worcester Massachusetts. John had […]
January 16, 2022
You can’t wait until life isn’t hard anymore to decide to be happy Her name was Jane Marczewski (Nightbirde.) And she became known when she appeared on America’s Got Talent to sing her song, “It’s ok, it’s ok, it’s ok”. After performing a song which left the judges weepy and speechless, Cowell finally asked the thirty-year-old Jane how she could do this: make a song out of a disease which was killing her? Her reply? “You can’t wait until life isn’t hard anymore to decide to be happy.” Cowell, understandably, was dumbstruck. And then reacted by giving Jane the “Golden […]
January 9, 2022
Thinking, yet again, about the Rule of Benedict. The Prologue of the Rule of Benedict is some of the most lryical, lush and arresting prose ever written. These words from the 5th century summon, urge and admonish with utmost delicacy. L I S T E N carefully, my child,to your master’s precepts,and incline the ear of your heart (Prov. 4:20).Receive willingly and carry out effectivelyyour loving father’s advice,that by the labor of obedienceyou may return to Himfrom whom you had departed by the sloth of disobedience. To you, therefore, my words are now addressed,whoever you may be,who are renouncing your […]
January 2, 2022
Football as metaphor: American Underdog Before I get to my subject of football as metaphor: American Underdog, some background about football and me may be useful- especially if football isn’t comprehensible to you. So, if you’ll permit a rollback in time, the following is excerpted from an article called 9 Lessons Tom Brady has taught me: “It was late September 30, 2001, and my new husband insisted I watch the Playoffs between his beloved Patriots and Oakland. We were living in Connecticut, cold, snowy Connecticut. I’d decided to leave my career in academic medicine where I’d built a national reputation […]
December 26, 2021
The manger: Lessons from King Ahaz If the name of Ahaz rings a bell, it’s because we hear it twice at this time of year: In the daily liturgy of Friday, December 17th in the genealogy of Jesus Christ: “…Jotham the father of Ahaz, Ahaz the father of Hezekiah…” That so unbelievably colorful and earthy lineage of Abraham and King David: the Lord’s family tree. And then a more detailed reading about the Israeli King Ahaz this past Monday: The LORD spoke to Ahaz:Ask for a sign from the Lord, your God; let it be deep as the nether world, […]
December 19, 2021
“What should we do?” At last Sunday’s mass, we heard the cries of the people inflamed by the words of the Baptizer. On fire with the truth he had incited in their hearts, they cried, “What should we do?” John the Baptist said to them in reply,“Whoever has two cloaksshould share with the person who has none.And whoever has food should do likewise…. Now the people were filled with expectation,and all were asking in their heartswhether John might be the Christ.John answered them all, saying,“I am baptizing you with water,but one mightier than I is coming…” Discriminating among all the […]
December 12, 2021
Once Again: Reflections On George Bailey and It’s A Wonderful Life. This past Wednesday evening, John and I tuned into It’s A Wonderful Life . Although I wrote a piece on this film back in August, seeing it again impels another. Most of the film is composed of Clarence, George Bailey’s guardian angel, being schooled in George’s life. The film opens with a heavenly conversation among angels deliberatng about who shall be chosen to go to earth to save George Bailey: Senior Angel: [voice-over] Hello Joseph, trouble? Joseph – Angel: [voice-over] Looks like we’ll have to send someone down. There […]
December 5, 2021
Advent: Make It About The third coming. Advent, the season which begins each Sunday following the Feast of Christ, King of the Universe and the shortest of our liturgical seasons, is jam-packed with opportunites. Specifically a coming of the Lord not talked about. One that is personal and must be sought. Although I’ve read St. Bernard’s sermon countless times in the Divine Liturgy, until now, his words did not penetrate. But this week, this excerpt from one of the saint’s sermons called The Word of the Lord will come to us, phrases like “middle coming in spirit,” the “hidden coming” […]
November 28, 2021
Happy Thanksgiving: A Republic if you can keep it. It was exactly 400 years ago, in November of 1621, that something happened-some type of meal took place- between the English settlers and the Massasoit and others of the Wampanoag settlement of native Americans. The details of that shared meal in what would become Plymouth Massachusetts are fodder for contention and a variety of opinion. That fact has done little to unravel this uniquely American idea of annually giving thanks to our sovereign God-one that has persisted for four centuries. The pivotol role of the Indian Squanto or Tisquantum, in the […]
November 14, 2021
Holiness can’t be taught At a daily mass a few weeks ago, the celebrant spoke about a sentinal conversation while in the seminary. Fr. David recalled a conversation with a friend and seminarian who was two years ahead of him. The upperclassman had just returned from several months of pastoral formation with a pastor at a local church. “How was it?” Fr. David Allen asked his friend. “Interesting, I enjoyed it.” “Did anything happen that surprised you?” “Yes, the parishioners at the church kept asking me how I’d gotten to be so holy, so content with silence. “What did I […]
November 7, 2021
Catholics and Bonhoeffer’s cheap grace Because I am outspoken about being Catholic, in the early years following my conversion, I frequently entered into conversation with those who no longer attend Mass. Almost always, the first few reasons were ideologic: “I disagree with the Church on abortion, birth control, homosexuality, and the church’s refusal to ordain women as priests” tended to head the list. Anne Rice enthusiastically and publically returned to Catholicism and then left again because of the same list. But things changed in 2016. And even more in 2020. Suddenly, Anne Rice’s objections to Catholicism were legitimized. Including even […]
October 31, 2021
The cities of sin: the gates of Hell? A most peculiar title, isn’t it? It’s language is disquieting, even frightening, more terrfying even than Covid19 and its endless vaccines and most assuredly anti-woke. Sin… Hell… The Christian liturgical reading for last Sunday, October 24th was about the blind beggar Bartimeus. It’s one that always reaches out and grabs me. Bartimeus is the blind man sitting by the Jericho gate who annoys everyone with his increasingly loud cries begging “Jesus, have pity on me.” Bartimeus ignores all the voices who try to silence him and calls out even louder, “Jesus, have […]
October 24, 2021
For such a time as this (Esther’s Song) Until I met and became friends with Linda Hardy, I’d never heard of Marty Goetz. But once she told me about his music- the psalms put to the music in his head, I listened to many of them, often more than a few times. One day, while discussing our mutual vocations, I told Linda that I was working on the story of Esther. Later that day she texted me this glorious song by Marty and his daughter Misha. Scroll back up and listen to Marty and Misha sing, For Such a Time […]
October 17, 2021
Never forget our friends in heaven Upon conversion to Catholic Christianity, it was if I’d landed in another universe, one filled with women I did not recognize and could not relate to. I met joyous moms with five, seven, ten kids who seemed filled with light, life and children. Women who continued their pregnancy through to the birth of a child she knew would live only hours or days. In a word, saints. Or so they seemed to me. Too far away for friendship-even conversation…unreachable. But after I read about a “conversation” between St. Teresa of Avila and Christ about the […]
September 4, 2014
St. Peter’s Catch They’d been out all night and caught nothing. In fact, when Jesus tells him to ‘put out your boat into deep water and lower your nets for a catch,’ St. Peter replies that they’ have worked hard all night and caught nothing.’ Why does he then go back out? Why the immediacy of Peter’s added, “But at your command, I will lower the nets.” Most of us can recall how we feel after we’ve worked all night. Whether it was the work of taking care of a sick child, working the night shift due to the requirements […]
September 20, 2014
Only rarely do I get the gift of true understanding- that sense of YES, that is right…that nails it perfectly…this morning it was the phrase God as mystery used by a man I had never heard of in a pod cast I seldom take the time to listen to. In reply to what you may be thinking, let me quickly ask that you suspend the Duh that is hovering in your mind and ask that you walk with me for a few brief moments while I explain. I took time this morning after praying the Office to check out Krista […]
September 23, 2014
In these days of wars on three fronts, headlines of missiles raining down on Syria, ninety minutes of a story based upon a dedicated group of people with the single, pure and loving goal of rescue, rehabilitate and release of Dolphins and other marine animals was just what we needed yesterday. Dolphin Tale 2 is the sequel to a movie telling the true story of a group of people in Clearwater Florida who rescued a dolphin they named Winter pictured here with the prosthetic device devised to function for the amputated lower part of her body and her tail. The […]
September 28, 2014
The phrase ‘divine symphony’ was coined by a naturalist, whose name I cannot recall, who studies the effects of clearing the forest in order to diminish the danger of fires. This unnamed researcher audio-taped the sounds before the clearing and after. The effects were both stunning and upsetting: what was a cacophony of sound prior to the removal of every other tree became nearly silence following the actions of the Forest Service. His point? So much of the time, what seems reasonable and ‘natural’ to us can have inimical effects upon the very world we here trying to protect; hence […]