The Journeyman Carpenter

Joke of the Day

2011-07-15T15:36:00.001-04:00

I think having a son named Jack made me giggle all the more at this joke:

Jack's mother ran into the bedroom when she heard him scream and found his two-year old sister pulling his hair. She gently released the little girl's grip and said comfortingly to Jack, "There, there. She didn't mean it. She doesn't know that hurts."

She was barely out of the room when the little girl screamed. Rushing back in, she asked, "What happened?"

"She knows now," Jack replied.

Joke of the Day

2011-06-29T14:00:00.002-04:00

Thanks to the Happy Catholic, I came across this site with a few gems, including this one:

A miser had three sons, one of whom became a Dominican, one of whom became a Franciscan, and one of whom became a Jesuit. On his deathbed he called them in and told them that he wanted each of them to place a thousand dollars in his casket to be buried with him.

At the service, the three went up and the Dominican said, "This is a waste of money, Dad, but since you are my father and I owe you your last wishes, I've gotten permission from my Order to fulfill them." And he place a thousand dollars in hundred-dollar bills in the casket.

The Franciscan said, "Dad, it eats me up inside, but there is so much good that could be done with that thousand for people who need it more that I just can't do it: I will not waste it on something so frivolous."

The Jesuit behind him clapped him on the back. "Don't worry, brother, I have you covered." Then he took the Dominican's thousand out of the casket, pocketed it, and replaced it with a check for three thousand dollars.

Prayer of the Week

2011-04-27T10:00:00.004-04:00

MY LORD GOD,

I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so.

But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road, though I may know nothing about it.

Therefore I will trust you always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.

- Thomas Merton, "Thoughts in Solitude"

The Annunciation

2011-03-25T09:00:00.058-04:00

Today, is the Solemnity of the Annunciation. It is nine months to the day before Christmas. If retailers had any clue about this feast's significance, I am quite certain we would be hearing Christmas carols on the radio and the window displays would be up already!!

Last year, Deacon Greg shared this depiction of The Visitation, painted by John Collier. I think the expression on "Mary's" face is priceless. You can almost hear her say, "Ummm....excuse me?!?!"

I am taking time this lent to read some of my favorite Jesuit authors. This morning, as providence would have it, I came across the following poem by Denise Levertov in A Friendship Like No Other by William Barry, S.J.

-----------------------------------------------

Annunciation
We know the scene: the room, variously furnished,
almost always a lectern, a book; always
the tall lily.
Arrived on solemn grandeur of great wings,
the angelic ambassador, standing or hovering,
whom she acknowledges, a guest.

But we are told of meek obedience. No one
mentions
courage.
The engendering Spirit
did not enter her without consent.
God waited.

She was free
to accept or to refuse, choice
integral to humanness.

Aren't there annunciations
of one sort or another
in most lives?
Some unwillingly
undertake great destinies,
enact them in sullen pride,
uncomprehending.
More often
those moments
when roads of light and storm
open from darkness in a man or woman,
are turned away from
in dread, in a wave of weakness, in despair
and with relief.
Ordinary lives continue.
God does not smite them.
But the gates close, the pathway vanishes.

She had been a child who played, ate, slept
like any other child—but unlike others,
wept only for pity, laughed
in joy not triumph.
Compassion and intelligence
fused in her, indivisible.

Called to a destiny more momentous
than any in all of Time,
she did not quail,
only asked
a simple, 'How can this be?'
and gravely, courteously,
took to heart the angel's reply,
perceiving instantly
the astounding ministry she was offered:

to bear in her womb
Infinite weight and lightness; to carry
in hidden, finite inwardness,
nine months of Eternity; to contain
in slender vase of being,
the sum of power—
in narrow flesh,
the sum of light.
Then bring to birth,
push out into air, a Man-child
needing, like any other,
milk and love—

but who was God.

------------------------------------------
And don't forget Canon 1251:

"Abstinence from meat, or from some other food as determined by the Episcopal Conference, is to be observed on all Fridays, unless a solemnity should fall on a Friday. Abstinence and fasting are to be observed on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday."

Have a blessed weekend!!

Buon Onomastico!

2011-03-19T15:26:00.008-04:00

Growing up, unlike my sister, I never received a St. Patrick's Day card from my Irish grandmother. No, the card I received in the middle of March every year wished me a "Happy St. Joseph's Day". I always thought that was the coolest thing. I had a feast day all to myself! I guess since Jesus' foster-father is actually the patron of the entire Church, that isn't entirely accurate, but a boy can dream, can't he? (Joseph certainly did!)

From the first time I saw it, I have always enjoyed Barocci's painting of the Holy Family. It is called "Rest on the Flight to Egypt" and, although it depicts Joseph taking the Son of God away from Herod's slaughter of the innocents, there is such a serene joy to be found. The smile on his face says it all. Joseph is HAPPY to be a dad!

Here is a little video clip from one of my favorite authors, James Martin, S.J. I have been reading some of his works this Lenten season, and I think he does a great job of painting a portrait of my patron!

Prayer to Saint Joseph for Fathers

Saint Joseph, guardian of Jesus and chaste husband of Mary,
you passed your life in loving fulfillment of duty.
You supported the holy family of Nazareth with the work of your hands.

Kindly protect those who trustingly come to you.
You know their aspirations, their hardships, their hopes.
They look to you because they know you will understand and protect them.

You too knew trial, labor and weariness.
But amid the worries of material life, your soul was full of deep peace and sang out in true joy through intimacy with God's Son entrusted to you and with Mary, his tender Mother.

Assure those you protect that they do not labor alone.

Teach them to find Jesus near them and to watch over Him faithfully as you have done.

Amen.

-Pope John XXIII

Tolle ... Lege!

2011-03-12T21:44:00.004-05:00

A few years ago I wrote about a young woman named Maggie Doyne. She grew up in the same small, wealthy suburb in Northern New Jersey as I. (Albeit nearly a decade later!) When she graduated from high school, she took a different path than the rest of her classmates (nearly all of whom were embarking on four years of parent-funded college education). Instead of studying, she went to Nepal and built an orphanage... using money she earned babysitting to purchase the land! Robert Frost would certainly describe her path as the “one less travelled.” “And that” I am quite certain, “has made all the difference.”

Now, I have never met Maggie, and all I know about her and her work has been gleaned from a couple of newspaper articles and her website (which, by the way, I encourage you to visit). Here is a little snippet:

Kopila Valley Children's Home from maggie doyne on Vimeo.

The lives she and “her” children lead are far from easy, but there is a profound joy is quite evident in their faces.

As I look at the Scripture readings from today and yesterday, a few things strike me.

As we enter into Lent, we ask ourselves, “What will I give up this year?” Isaiah points out, however, that we have to move past the “I.” Instead, we need to look outward: to the oppressed, the hungry, the naked and the homeless. Instead of simply heading off to college, Maggie placed her own education aside and instead devoted her life to the anawim of Nepal. In doing so she has become, in the words of Isaiah, a “Restorer of ruined homesteads.”

Today’s Gospel tells the story of Levi the tax collector. Christ commanded him to “Follow me.” “And leaving all behind, he got up and followed him.” He left one way of life behind, and embarked on a completely different one. Just last week, we heard that after Jesus healed the blind Bartimaeus “he followed [Jesus] on the way.” Unlike Levi, however, Jesus did not order Bartimaeus to follow him; instead he said, “Go your way.” However, after his encounter with Jesus, Bartimaeus’ way was Christ’s way.

Contrast these two stories, for a moment, with a similar one with a very different ending. Not long ago, we heard the story of Jesus and the Rich Young Man. (Luke 18:18-25) This official had done ‘all the right things’: he followed the commandments to the letter and felt quite justified in his life. He wanted to know what he needed to do to earn eternal life. Jesus’ answer was simple: “follow me”. However, in order for the officials’ “way” to be Jesus’ “Way” he first had to “sell all that [he had] and distribute it to the poor.” Well, that was just too much for the man. He was too attached to his old way of life. It was one where he was in control, and he simply had to do the right things.

Letting go. Detaching. Turning away. Once we do that, we are able to start to follow God’s plan, and become one with Christ. Only then will His Way be our way. That’s what Lent is all about. When we focus our efforts on helping others, we naturally turn it away from ourselves. Maggie did, and her life is the richer for it. She is an Icon of the selfless service Christ calls us to offer. In fact, I am quite sure her story is a sacrament of the life offered totally to others.

Tolle ... Lege!

2011-03-11T22:53:00.012-05:00

In an attempt to increase the "post tempo" on this blog, I am going to embark on a little project this Lent. In his Confessions, Saint Augustine recounts the story of his conversion to Christianity. He was particularly torn between his licentious life as a teacher of rhetoric and the yearnings he felt to be closer to God. One day, as he struggled to choose, he heard a child’s voice instructing him to “take up and read!” (tolle, lege! in Latin). Believing it was a message from God, he grabbed a nearby copy of Scripture and randomly selected a passage. His eye fell upon Romans 13:13-14:

let us conduct ourselves properly as in the day, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in promiscuity and licentiousness, not in rivalry and jealousy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the desires of the flesh.

Of course, as we know, the rest is history. As an aside, a professor of mine once commented on how different things might be if he randomly opened to the Song of Songs instead!

In an occasional series, I will attempt to apply this approach in a manner consistent with a quote often attributed to the theologian Karl Barth: “preach with the Bible in one hand and the newspaper in the other.” I will use the Lectionary Readings for a given day, along with randomly selected newswire sources as my inspiration. Here's hoping that a regular "feature" will encourage me to click "Publish Post" a bit more often.

And, we’ll see where it goes….

Be their rock when the earth refuses to stand still...

2011-03-02T12:38:00.007-05:00

In the wake of the Haiti Earthquake last January, Diana Macalintal - a colleague of mine from our work with the North American Forum on the Catechumenate, wrote a beautiful prayer. Like a master painter, she used scriptural allusions like so many brushstrokes upon a canvas. Little did she know that a year later, and half a world away, those words would be used to call upon God to comfort those affected by another tragedy.

According to ElesiProductions's (The producer of the video below) YouTube Channel, "The Arch Bishop of Wellington [New Zealand] had sent out a letter to be read out during the liturgy which included a prayer titled "A Prayer After The Earthquake" by Diana Macalintal."

Take a moment (or four) to join your voice in prayer with all those who continue to recover - be it in Haiti, New Zealand, or wherever the "earth refuses to stand still and ... homes no longer exist." Then, take a moment to join with me as I give thanks for people like Diana who give us the words to say when there are no words to say.

A Prayer After the Earthquake in Haiti

Lord, at times such as this,
when we realize that the ground beneath our feet
is not as solid as we had imagined,
we plead for your mercy.

As the things we have built crumble about us,
we know too well how small we truly are
on this ever-changing, ever-moving,
fragile planet we call home.
Yet you have promised never to forget us.

Do not forget us now.

Today, so many people are afraid.
They wait in fear of the next tremor.
They hear the cries of the injured amid the rubble.
They roam the streets in shock at what they see.
And they fill the dusty air with wails of grief
and the names of missing dead.

Comfort them, Lord, in this disaster.
Be their rock when the earth refuses to stand still,
and shelter them under your wings when homes no longer exist.

Embrace in your arms those who died so suddenly this day.
Console the hearts of those who mourn,
and ease the pain of bodies on the brink of death.

Pierce, too, our hearts with compassion,
we who watch from afar,
as the poorest on this side of the earth
find only misery upon misery.
Move us to act swiftly this day,
to give generously every day,
to work for justice always,
and to pray unceasingly for those without hope.

And once the shaking has ceased,
the images of destruction have stopped filling the news,
and our thoughts return to life’s daily rumblings,
let us not forget that we are all your children
and they, our brothers and sisters.
We are all the work of your hands.

For though the mountains leave their place
and the hills be tossed to the ground,
your love shall never leave us,
and your promise of peace will never be shaken.

Our help is in the name of the Lord,
who made heaven and earth.
Blessed be the name of the Lord,
now and forever. Amen.

Copyright © 2010, Diana Macalintal. Permission is given to reprint for non-commercial use.

A reading from the Holy Gospel According to Matthew...

2011-01-29T10:51:00.002-05:00

Quote of the Day

2010-09-23T21:22:00.003-04:00

"If we're serious about our responsibility to the church, we must take a restorative approach to help victims and offenders instead of a revenge approach that most always hurts everyone involved."

- Harmon Wray

Quote of the Day

2010-08-27T20:17:00.003-04:00

"We have come to know Man as he really is. After all, man is that being who invented the gas chambers of Auschwitz; however, he is also that being who entered those gas chambers upright, with the Lord's Prayer or the Shema Yisrael on his lips."
- Viktor E. Frankl

Lord, hear our prayer.

2010-01-12T22:00:00.000-05:00

A Prayer for Victims of the Earthquake

We mourn the death and destruction, O Lord,
And we pray for those who died in this recent disaster.
May their souls rest in peace.
May their families be comforted.

We pray for the living survivors.
Be with them, Lord, in this traumatic time.
May they experience Your healing,
In their spirits as well as their bodies.

We pray for the communities affected.
May they come together in solidarity
To rebuild and to affirm new life
Amid the ancient stones.

-by Jane Deren

The Feast of Christ the King

2009-11-22T13:09:00.003-05:00

Say what you will about liturgical dance, but this will always bring a smile to my face!!!

Although "King of Glory" has fallen out of favor as an Entrance Hymn at mass, I still have memories of many a childhood mass - in a school gymnasium - opening with this song!

M-I-C-K-E-Y .... M-O-U-S-E!

2009-10-27T04:12:00.004-04:00

It is four o'clock in the morning, and we are about to board a six o'clock flight to Orlando where we will celebrate the triplets' sixth birthday with our parents siblings Mickey, Goofy, Donald and Pluto!

Although I had been to the Happiest Place on Earth many times before, going with our kids for the first time was a emotional experience. So, as we make our final preparations, I leave you with this reflection from the last time we went:

As a child, my family made the trek to Florida about three or four times. Then, Katie and I made the trip a couple times before we had children. As wonderful, and memorable as all those trips were, they cannot compare with the experience we had when we brought all four children down for their first visit.

It did not even take fireworks to make me tear up! Since we were staying at one of the resorts, we took advantage of the Shuttle Bus service from the airport to the hotel. The bus had little tv's to keep the kids (of all ages)occupied during the trip. Then, as we approached the main gate, the bus driver turned off the monitors.

"Alright folks, here we go! Help me count down.

"Ten, nine, eight, seven..."

I looked over at my six year old son His nose was plastered to the window.

"six, five, four ..."

I thought, how cool to see the excitement in his face.

"three, two, one... WELCOME TO DISNEY WORLD!!!"

I was crying. The joy that I had remembered from my childhood. The magic of those days as a young couple, all the wonderful happy experiences that I associated with Disney World. We were going to be able to share with them as they made those experiences their own.

I could not help but wonder, "Is this how God feels? Is this the kind of joy that he feels when we are able to experience His Kingdom?"

I gave Christopher a huge hug. He looked at me, puzzled, and asked "Why are you crying?" I replied,

"Someday, you will know. Until then, promise me you will never forget this trip."

I know that I never will. I look forward to the day when, nose pressed up on the glass, I will ride into the Heavenly Kingdom and feel the embrace of God.

I just hope that the wait for Space Mountain won't be as long!

"Sometimes I forget to pray. But some days I pray extra if there's nothing good on television."

2009-10-03T13:02:00.002-04:00

I came across this interesting story at the Wall Street Journal website. The headline? "In This Picturesque Village, the Rent Hasn't Been Raised Since 1520"

The related article has some great quotes, including the title of this post.

Yeah, but could St. Peter sing "Piano Man"?

2009-10-03T10:36:00.008-04:00

Deacon Greg shared the following video from his new digs over at BeliefNet (be sure to change your bookmark!)

When you get a chance, check out Liturgy - a site out of New Zealand with all sorts of resources about Christian liturgy.

Quote of the Day

2009-09-03T09:07:00.006-04:00

From Sean Cardinal O'Malley's blog:

“If God were to take away all His blessings, health, physical fitness, wealth, intelligence, and leave me but one gift, I would ask for faith – for with faith in Him and His goodness, mercy, love for me, and belief in everlasting life, I believe I could suffer the loss of my other gifts and still be happy – trustful, leaving all to His inscrutable Providence.”
- Rose Kennedy

Cooperating in a Miracle

2009-08-15T11:15:00.002-04:00

Image via Wikipedia

In today's Wall Street Journal, Father Jonathan Morris, LC, provides a poignant piece on his past week. He has been ministering to the family of the pilot involved in last week's mid-air crash over the Hudson River. A selection:

Capt. Clarke's loved ones—and all the families, for that matter—are cooperating in a miracle. In my opinion, they are giving evidence to the Judeo-Christian belief about how God responds to humankind's suffering. We believe that God's response to our pain is a promise that he will bring forth a greater good out of every instance of evil and suffering in this world, if we let him. These families are bringing into the world and into our lives love and blessings that would never have been there had this tragedy not occurred.

Capt. Clarke believed in just such a promise of God's enduring love. In fact, he believed it so much that just recently he decided to come back to his Catholic faith through the sacrament of confirmation. He described this adult decision in a "letter to God" that his fiancée shared with me.

To find out what he wrote, as well as the responses of all the families involved to this tragedy, go take a read.

Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time - Cycle B

2009-08-14T14:15:00.007-04:00

1 Kings 19:4-8

Ephesians 4:30 - 5:2

John 6:41-51

Walking through the airport the other day, my eye was caught by a photograph on the front page of the Washington Post. The image depicted a woman lying down – the expression upon her face was a study in desolation. Her gaze stopped me in my tracks and I was compelled to read the story – I wanted to understand what could cause such a look of despair. The headline was, “For Many Americans, Nowhere to Go but Down.” This is what I learned:

Scott Nichols sinks into the couch, foot jiggling, his gaze traveling from his wife to the television to the darkness outside, broken now and then by the distant glow of passing headlights.

Then, the 39-year-old husband and father of two thinks of the words he doesn't want to say, what for him, is the option he has hoped to avoid since being laid off nine months earlier.

They already took free food from a church pantry, cardboard boxes filled with Corn Flakes and bologna and saltines, his wife, Kelly, walking in, head down, while he stayed in the car, ashen. They pawned his wedding ring, sold part of her Silver Eagle coin collection and had help from the Salvation Army paying their electric bill.

Now another cliff approaches: the loss of the home they rent.

"Looks like we'll have to go to your mom's," Scott Nichols says to his wife, Kelly.

Moving to her mother's would mean returning to the rundown industrial town where they grew up, a place that makes him feel dirty, inside and out. They would sleep in her basement jammed with forgotten furniture, a few steps from a pair of cat litter boxes and below three narrow windows blocked by insulation.

I could not help thinking what must be going through Scott and Kelly’s hearts and minds, and how close it must be to the sentiments expressed by Elijah when he exclaimed: “This is enough, O LORD!”

The original audience for today’s First Reading was in exile. Most had been evicted by the Babylonians, and those that remained were surrounded by pagan worship. Remember that for the Jewish People, The granting of the Promised Land was central to their understanding of God’s commitment to the people of Israel. The community was struggling to answer the question, “What went wrong?” The editor of the Book of Kings was attempting to answer that very question. Therefore, we read a history that attempts to understand – if not fully explain – why God’s Chosen people had lost the land given to them by God. The editor clearly lays that blame at the infidelity of the People to the Covenant. The pagan worship that infiltrated their land caused them to turn away from worship of the one True God.

The current economic crisis has created massive job loss, and today, many people face an exile of sorts – one of foreclosure and eviction – brought about by the economic crisis that has swept across this country. The economic successes of the past several decades created an ill-placed confidence, an “irrational exuberance.” When many in our country began to presume what tomorrow would bring, instead of simply giving thanks for the bounty of the present day, their subsequent actions came awfully close to desiring to become like gods. Instead of only spending their earnings, many made purchases – financed with debt - based upon what they hoped to earn in the future.

Therefore, an idolatry of a different sorts infiltrated society; this time the calf was made of plastic, rather than gold. Decisions were made economically and politically in order to feed the ‘plastic calf’. Inevitably, when the bubble burst, and the collapse took place, everyone felt the blow. People who saved their entire lives in order to prepare for a comfortable retirement saw their savings evaporate. College graduates – who had invested years of their lives studying, were unable to find employment. Middle class families – like the Nichols family – sit at kitchen tables and struggle to explain why they must leave the only home their children have ever known to live in a basement. Each in their own way, the refrain repeats: “This is enough, O LORD.”

But there is hope. If Scripture has anything to say, it is that God is with us, and will continue to nourish us as we journey through this period of exile. By turning to a more thankful way of life – one that appreciates “Our daily bread” – the Covenant is restored and we step back from the presumption to “be like gods” (Genesis 3:5). A credit card purchase of the newest game for the Wii does not happen. Instead, the old dusty board games are pulled out of a closet and placed on the kitchen table. An exotic trip to a Caribbean beach – financed with a draw on a home equity line is replaced with a tent pitched in the backyard, under a starry sky. Simplicity descends – one that protects that which is truly valuable and discards that which is unnecessary. God has – and always will – provide what is truly needed along the path of life. The challenge we each face is to “[g]et up and eat, else the journey will be too long” (v. 7).

That does not mean that it won’t be painful, or even a bit scary along the way. And that’s OK. Fear is a natural reaction to a difficult challenge. Thomas Aquinas once observed that “fear is the beginning of courage.” But God tells us to move beyond the threshold of fear and live life with courage – courage, after all, I was once told, "is the virtue of living beyond our comfort." I have not done an exact count, but the phrase “Do not be afraid!” appears in scripture over 200 times. It is clearly a message God wanted us to get!

“The fear of any failure is rooted in the fear of death.” It is mixed up with emotions of abandonment and isolation.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus reminds us that he is the Bread of Life. We are a resurrection people. Through the power of the paschal mystery, Death – in any form – has no power over us. “Get up and eat, else the journey will be too long for you” “Get up and eat” “the living bread that came down from heaven.” “Get up and eat.” and “make disciples of all nations.”

If we live the paschal mystery, if we allow the valleys and depressions of our lives to become opportunities to hope in God and demonstrate God’s love, we then are beacons of hope for the world. We allow courage to be our reaction to fear, confident that nothing can ultimately separate us from life. There is nothing that is truly “life threatening!” The only thing that threatens our lives is our choice not to believe and live that Truth.

What a blessing!

2009-08-06T22:35:00.017-04:00

So we have reached the mid-way point in the Beginnings Plus Institute here in Grand Rapids, Michigan. It has been such a grace-filled week; God is busy within the community gathered and I have been so blessed to be a part of it! I apologize for not posting sooner, but there simply has not been time. Between revising my reflection for this morning's Celebration of the Word, and putting the finishing touches on my presentation on Evangelization the evening before, I have just barely had time to slip in a few winks.

However, there is a sense of getting over the hump this evening. Tomorrow I am on tap for a brief overview of the period of Purification and Enlightenment, and then my 'official' duties are over! So, I have had some time this evening to look back and put into words some of the wonderful things that have been happening.

This particular institute has a focus on the initiation of children within the context of the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults. In order to demostrate some of the ways this can be done, a group of local children are invited to take part in part of the institute to model how catechist teams could celebrate the Rites in their own parish. At several points over the past few days, these children (aged eight to 15) were asked to contribute in front of the group. Speaking up in front of a group of over eighty adults is pretty intimidating for a child to begin with; when the subject matter is about something as personal as your faith, that is something else! But children have an honesty from which we can all learn, don't they? Some examples:

On the topic of forgiveness:

Why is forgiveness important?

"Because we all need second chances."

What does Jesus mean when he tells Peter that he must forgive "not seven times but seventy-seven times"?

"That we have to forgive each other all the time."

"To always forgive"

What does that tell us about God?

"That no matter what, God will always forgive you?"

Later that evening, we celebrated an adapted Rite of Acceptance into the Order of the Catechmenate. It was a powerful liturgy, and each of the children again spoke up, asking the Church to strengthen them with knowledge, support, courage, and love. As part of the ritual, they were surrounded by the community, asked to embrace the processional cross as a sign of their embracing the Cross of Christ, and to touch the Book of the Gospels signifying their reception of the Word of God.

Right out of the gate, when asked about what it felt like to touch the book, a young girl, about ten years old said,

"When I touched the book, I felt like I was touching God."

It was a goosebump moment for me. There was Truth in what she said!

"When surrounded by the assembly at the beginning of the rite, I felt loved by God." Asked to expand on that a bit, she said "I felt like God was in my heart."

"When I touched the cross I felt the Holy Spirit come into my heart."

Although these words may sound trite or cliche when spoken by an adult (again, I emphasize may), from the mouth of a child, they take on a new profundity and clarity! It is always important to remember that children have something to teach us.

And I'm off...

2009-08-04T10:07:00.004-04:00

... to begin the "working" phase of my internship with the North American Forum on the Catechumenate. Last year, I spent a wonderful four days observing an awesome team contuct a "Beginnings Plus" institute here in my home diocese of Richmond. This year, they are putting me to work. I will present one component each day and assist as needed.

I am typing this as I wait to board my flight to Grand Rapids, MI via Chicago-O'Hare. All flights appear to be on time, which means I will arrive just in time to attend the first Team meeting, look over the facility, enjoy a meal with a new group of friends and 'co-workers in the vineyard,' and then head back to the hotel to look over my notes and crash!

Anyone who has attended one of these institutes will tell you that there is a good blend on classroom time and reflection time. It has the feel of a retreat more than a workshop. However, things are a little different behind the scenes. Isn't that tre of so much of life? We can put up a great facade that all is under control, but just under the surface, things are not so good. We are always challenged to "take off the masks" and allow our ture selves - warts and all - to shine through. God made and loves us just as we are. We forget that at our own peril. The masks are always uglier!

Please pray for all those travelling today in order to be together for the rest of the week up in Grand Rapids. God will be hard at work, to be sure; let's hope that we all have our eyes and ears open! Pray especially for Katie and the kids, who will be greatly missed, but not far from heart or mind.

Quote of the Day

2009-07-29T13:59:00.003-04:00

I am pretty sure you could insert any of a number of Church roles for "bishop" and the quote continues to ring true!

"Believe me, brothers and sisters, if what I am for you frightens me, what I am with you reassures me. For you I am the bishop; with you I am a Christian."

- Saint Augustine

He has such a way with words, don't ya think?

"I am not sure that all disagreements are healthy"

2009-07-03T09:57:00.006-04:00

From a piece by Michael Sean Winters in America magazine:

President Obama had a sit-down yesterday with religious editors, including our own Father Drew, in anticipation of his meeting with Pope Benedict XVI next week. There was no verbal train wreck, according to the participants. But, when he discusses anything that touches on theology, he sounds very much like the liberal Protestant he is. He is, of course, entitled to his beliefs, but he should be more judicious in how he applies his own principles to his speaking about the Catholic Church.

For example, after citing the influence of Cardinal Joseph Bernardin on his own career and thinking, the President said, "And so I know the potential that the bishops have to speak out forcefully on issues of social justice. ...There are going to continue to be areas where we have profound agreements and there are going to be some areas where we disagree. That’s healthy." I am not sure that all disagreements are healthy. Certainly, democracy without debate is unhealthy. But, I do not think it is "healthy" that the President disagrees with the Church on abortion. I think he – and all Americans who support abortion – are wrong and that what would be "healthy" is for them to recognize that they are wrong.

Most politicians, and all successful ones, want their interlocutor to see that they are in agreement or close to it. But, here, the President skates very close to the kind of relativism that is Pope Benedict’s biggest worry. Nor is abortion an issue where we can simply "agree to disagree." I do not see that the President grasps how or why the issue is foundational to our social justice tradition he is so quick to applaud.

The rest of it can be found here.

The Paragraph Farmer: Prayer request

2009-06-17T11:08:00.000-04:00

The Paragraph Farmer: Prayer request

From the mouth of babes...

2009-06-16T23:23:00.005-04:00

The kids are enjoying a week at "Church Camp" (also known as Vacation Bible School).

Today, the theme centered on the story of Jesus Walking on the Water. Michael, youngest by a minute and always good for a bit of wisdom, summed the day's teaching up thusly:

"You gotta believe God or you'll sink like Peter."

Yep, that sounds about right!