July 2003 Archives

Ever on the Move

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Ever on the Move

The incomparable Mr. Luse has found yet a new haven. Following him around should earn the intrepid blogger pilgrimage points.

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More on Private Revelations

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More on Private Revelations

I find this strain of Catholicism detailed below disturbing.



The Seven Our Fathers
and Hail Marys

In a private revelation to Saint Bridget, Our Lord revealed a devotion to honour His Holy Wounds and Precious Blood. It was a daily recital of seven Our Fathers and seven Hail Marys for twelve years:

"Know that I will grant the following five graces to those who recite every day for twelve years (or until their death, should they die before):

1. They will avoid Purgatory.

2. They will be numbered amongst the martyrs, as though they had shed their blood for the faith.

3. I will maintain the souls of three of their children (or relatives) in a state of sanctifying grace.

4. The souls of their relatives, up to four generations, will avoid Hell.

5. They will know the date of their death one month in advance."

This revelation was confirmed by Pope Innocent X who added that a soul will be released from Purgatory on Good Fridays through this devotion.

There are so many disturbing things about this that I don't know where to begin. Let's start with, I miss a day in year seven--do I start all over again, is everything undone? Next, it sounds too much like sympathetic magic. Say these words under these conditions for so many days/months/years and these events will transpire. Would anyone know if they did not?

This is the kind of thing that sends our Protestant brethren shrieking out of the room, and I have to say rightfully so. It may be true, but why would the souls of my relatives be kept from Hell? Do I violate their free will by my recitation of these prayers? Let's just say that it makes no sense to me. I think the habit of saying seven Our Fathers and seven Hail Marys may be a very good thing indeed to cultivate, so long as they are said reverently and with attention to what one is doing. So, for those who are following this rubric, I'm not faulting the praying of these prayers, but I just have to wonder about some of these oddities that crop up.

On the same site is the following:

An efficacious means of obtaining favors from Heaven is to assist at Holy Mass and pray the Stations of the Cross for the Holy Souls in Purgatory, by Susan Tassone, daily for 33 consecutive days for the poor souls in honor of Our Lord's 33 years He spent on earth. What a marvelous Summer Devotion for the Holy Souls.

Now, I have nothing against the Stations of the Cross or praying them for thirty-three days. But what about reading scripture for at least one-half hour every day (under the usual conditions) with is the grant of a plenary indulgence. I understand the same holds true for the public recitation of the Rosary (under the usual conditions). There are a great many very efficacious prayers that don't involve some arcane set of repetitions or extravagant promises. I really don't know what to make of this strain of Catholic thinking. I guess it is a place where I have remained mostly resolutely protestant. I believe in purgatory and I believe int he efficacy of those prayers outlines in the Enchiridion of Ingulgences (1967--I think). And I try to observe these practices, most particularly for individuals who I know who have lost family members. I need to make a more universal practice of them as well, but . . .


Oh well, let's just say that this strain of thinking doesn't compute in my very faulty circuits. I'd love to hear from those who either are more attached to these devotions or who have a better understanding that I do of what all of this means.

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Private Revelations I found this

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Private Revelations

I found this article at the revived TCR very helpful and food for much thought. Many have recently made much of the vision of Anne Catherine Emmerich and having read some of these myself, I don't quite know what to make of them. They strike me in turn as appalling, wonderful, hideous, and dangerous. There is much there to foster faith, but much also that could prove difficult to one whose faith is not mature. So as always, I urge caution when dipping into the works of even the very highest most recommended visionary, but utter abandon in imitating their deep devotion to Christ.

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There Are Spirits In the Material World. . .

Father Jim proposes a most interesting discussion starter concerning the presence of spirits, neither angels or demons, in the world. What a curious thing to consider, and how interesting!

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Catholic Analysis

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Catholic Analysis

I found this commentary on biblical commentaries very helpful and enlightening. I have found commentaries largely lacking what I really want in a commentary and that is practical action and strong ethical and moral teaching. Obviously, that isn't what a commentary is for; however, why not? Why should I have to search through a mountain of abstruse comment on the use of aorist greek verb tenses to derive some small kernel of useful information about how to conduct my life?

This is why I find projects like the Catena Aurea and the modern version issued by IVP (the name of which slips my mind at the moment) very useful. Also useful, to me, is the study bible issued by the Opus Dei group--I believe it is called the Navarre. The commentary there isn't so much about how to interpret this or that obscure verse or phrase, but about how to live a life built upon biblical prinicples and the magisterium of the Church. These are the things that make a commentary or guide or gloss useful. Tell me in very practical terms exactly how to implement a given teaching. Give me step-by-step instructions because sometimes I am a complete idiot and I need them Admittedly, one must use caution when choosing a guide like this, but I get far more out of my study if I can figure out exactly what I'm supposed to be doing than when I sit and ponder the overall effect of fine distinctions of words. These things are necessary and useful to the scholar, and from them much of what I desire in a commentary flows; however, for the most part they do not lead me any closer to God, they lead me closer to philology and related fields. And for a person who looks for any excuse to diverge from the prayerful path, these commentaries are certainly tempting.

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Learning Humility through Blogging

One of the very best things I have gained through blogging is a better appreciate of the virtue of humility.

Let's face it--most of us have blogs because we think we have something to say that will be of interest to others. When I started, I thought that I was, perhaps, above average on both the writing curve and on the level-of-interest curve. Well, blogging has cut me down to size. There are a great many better writers--or perhaps writers who take more time with the material they place of the blogs--, a great many better thinkers, and a great many better Catholics than me. I learn from them all and am grateful. I am also grateful for the perspective.

I make my living in a writing-related field. I have always written--so much so that I have lit(t)erally reams of paper tied up in journals, drafts, sketches, and abortive attempts at various forms of writing. I had never disciplined myself to consider lengthy nonfiction writing. And as the results here show, I still have not disciplined myself to good lengthy nonfiction writing.

I am grateful to others who have shown me both different methods of reasoning and better ways to convey what needs to be said. But each day is an exercise in humility as I consider that a great many in the blog world are earning their livings in the field I would rather be in, but never figured out how to break into. Frankly, I can't do Catholic Journalism--I don't have the interest in the passing things of this world to devote energy to describing, exploiting, or announcing them. I could, with some additional work, do Catholic Cultural news--books, music, art. Things that matter in longer terms than the current events. And with some additional work I could do poetry (talk about your lucrative fields!) and fiction.

All of this I have learned from blogging. I have also learned that just about everyone I read could conceivably do the same. One is led to the overwhelming question--"oh do not ask what is it"--what really do I offer the writing community.

And for any of you who are asking the same question the answer is the same--a unique voice, a unique viewpoint. There is no other me (for which many breathe a great sigh of relief) and thus no one who sees as I see or who has been blessed in the way I have been blessed. I cannot tell you about the spiritual experiences of others except as they have been documented, but I can tell you about how I meet God and He meets me. I can tell you about what the view looks like from my perch.

So, if blogging gets you down ocassionally and you wonder what's the point--there are so many better, more talented, more polished, more intelligent, more (whatever) voices out there saying things that people really need to hear, remember that your voice is yours uniquely. Your trials are yours uniquely, and how you meet them, handle them, and share them is something no one else can really tell us about. We grow through this sharing.

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Ascent Study VIII--An Excursion into Dark Night of the Soul

Last month's reading leads very naturally into the brief sojourn we will take into Dark Night of the Soul. Please read Dark Night of the Soul chapters 1-3 (pp. 361-367)

Chapter 1

1. What does Saint John of the Cross intend to discuss in the next seven chapters?

What does Saint John say distinguishes beginners from proficients?

2. How does Saint John liken the beginner to a little child? What part does God play in the beginner's prayer?

3. Why are beginners in such need of consolations from God? Why is the work of beginners so feeble?

Chapter 2

1. What are some results of the secret pride beginners take in their prayer?

2. What part does the Devil play in this? What are the results of this?

3. Why is it important to listen to and obey the guidance of your spiritual director? What is disobedience a sign of?

4. Why do beginners become envious? What do they do as a result?

5. What is the wrong motivation for asking God to remove our faults?

6. How does one advance and avoid the worst of the imperfections of pride?

7. What do beginners advancing in perfection desire and require?

8. Where are these souls perfected?

Chapter 3

1. What is spiritual avarice? What are its signs and results?

2. How does the well-disposed soul, with the grace of God, avoid these imperfections?

3. What is the only source of purification from these faults?

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The Blog Moves On, but Discussion Continues

The difficulty of a blog is that posts keep moving down the line, but sometimes discussion is not over. Forgiveness and its conditions continues to be a source of reflection and thought--at least in the comments box.

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Speaking of Quite

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Speaking of Quite

We all know that there are some profound differences between English as spoken in the U.S. and English as spoken in the Commonwealth (if that term holds any meaning--The Queen's English, if it does not). Yesterday we received a short lecture about a difference I was unaware of, and which for a time caused some fairly sore feelings in one citizen of Britain. He was working over here in the states and was told that some of his ideas and work were "quite good." In the U.S. "quite good" is seen as a complement, meaning precisely that the work was very good. Apparently the phraseology in the U.K. is used only in an ironic sense as though begging the question, "This is the best you could do?" So the modifier "quite" may be "quite" a no-no when speaking with those who hold to the Queen's English.

Just so's you know.

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Always Desiring to be of Service

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Always Desiring to be of Service

to the less irenic among us, Timothy McVeigh:Where is He Now? is guarenteed to produce apoplexy in some. But it is quite thought-provoking, and the site itself seems quite worthwhile.

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Seeking the Truth

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Seeking the Truth

Sometimes (or at least this morning) I wonder if there is any acitivity more rewarding, more invigorating, or more likely to assist in fostering a love of God than seeking the truth. I also wonder if there is any activity as potentially aggravating, blood-pressure raising, or alienating.

To seek the truth means striking a fine balance between being completely empty-headed and allowing every new thought to wash away an old one, and being a rigid defender of interior orthodoxies that may or may not bear any resemblance to the truth.

What is fascinating about seeking the truth is the enormous number of ways in which it can be done. One can study, relying upon the guidance of the Holy Spirit and previous Saints, and think one's way through a give question. One can pray, and largely ignore the presence of questions, waiting for God's will, his own Good Time, and a faithful Dominican or Jesuit (some would say that is an oxymoron) to advance the answer to a question you never knew existed. One can search the scripture with an open heart and look for the only Truth that matters. One can converse and commune with like or unlike-minded individuals and tease out points of agreement or disagreement. It is the points of disagreement that are more likely to be fruitful, as everyone might be mistaken in agreement. There's the potential in a disagreement that (1) either someone is correct or (2) using an Hegelian dialectic one might approach the truth more closely.

To my mind, no matter how it is pursued, there is little on Earth more rewarding that seeking the truth. If we do so, we will find it, or rather, for the faithful Christian, Him, and He will set us free from the burden of being correct, free from the burden of knowing better than anyone else, free from the burden of needing to be somehow superior. In short, He will give us His peace and understanding, which are sufficient and superabundant.

But receiving this gift does not mean that we should abandon the pursuit, for once we know Him, we seek to explore more fully the truth in all of its possible ramifications and meanings. Some are given the scholar's path, having minds hones to the winnowing of wheat and chaff when it comes to information. Others walk the path of prayer--not eschewing the richness of scholarship (just as scholar's do not neglect prayer) but prefering instead the gaze of love that so informs. Still others may walk any of a myriad of paths that the Lord has laid out for them. Each person tracing his own path shows all others the multiplicity of paths available to all. They become beacons and an invitation from the Lord to all the Earth. Each of the Saints walked in the way of truth and showed us how to do so. So now, our legacy, what we owe to the rest of humankind for all generations, is to follow those who came before us in walking the path Christ has laid out for us. We preach far better by what we are and what we do than by what we say.

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And Now for Something Completely Different. . .

No, not the man with three buttocks, but rather Optical Illusions and fascinating illusions of motion via Matthias at Credo ut Intelligam.

Also at Credo ut Intelligam, Matthias has been contributing to Mr. Serafin's list of converts and adds one that I had not known of--Gustav Mahler. He also includes the novelist Gertrud von le Fort, author of Song at the Scaffold which may have influenced Bernanos in his construction of the libretto for Poulenc's Dialogue of the Carmelites.

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Request for Prayers

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Request for Prayers

My good friend Franklin is once again in need of a job. This is very difficult for the whole family. Please pray that he can find a position that is more along the lines of what he has done/can do, and that he finds it quickly.

Also, please pray for Gordon and his family as they continue to search for work.

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On the Young Earth

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On the Young Earth

This started as a response to a comment, but grew too long and too interesting to confine to the comment box. I thank Mr. Culbreath for bringing it up. At the end of a comment below Mr. Culbreath comments, "No one has even said that the Bible tells us the age of the earth. Saying that the biblical record -- that which is recorded as history and was understood as history by Our Lord and the Apostles and the Fathers until the Age of Darwin -- is a reliable guide to the approximate age of the earth is not to concoct scientific theories. It is to give science a necessary starting point, that is all. Sedimentation rates, the fossil record and the rest of it are in fact more comprehensible in a young earth scenario and are not obstacles."

I appreciate your point of view and respectfully demur. Simply the fluid dynamics of what you suggest would entail catastrophic floods--and by this I mean floods that would cover continents every single year to a depth of about 10 meters or more. Unless one posits that the Lord chose to create rocks with fossils in them already--which, while possible, is suggestive in ways that I don't care to contemplate.

Take one example--the Permian sequence of the Glass Mountains of Texas, is on the order of 2 km thick. If we postulate an age of about 6000 years for the Earth (young earth) and say a modest 1,000 years for full incorporation of the sediment into rock, we have 2000 meters of rock deposited in 5,000 years. This yields about .4 meters of sediment per year, or about a foot and a half a year. This Permian sequence resembles modern reef formations. Reefs do not even grow at this rate. Moreover, reefs generally grow in areas with little or no sedimentation--they contain photosynthetic algae that require sunlight to survive. So sedimentation rates along reefs are very low, generally consisting of the disintegration of calciferous algae into constituent components.

The principle of uniformitarianism (by the way developed in large part by Niels Stensen, also known as Steno, Bishop of Münster and presently beatified) suggests that the processes we observe on earth today are a good guide to how these same processes occurred on the Earth in the past--both in terms of rate and activity.

I honestly do not see how a "young Earth" solves any of the difficulties I point out. Further, I do not read the principle of Inerrancy as setting any agenda for science.

I know we disagree on this matter and we will continue to do so. I do not really hope to convince you, and I feel no need to. As you very rightly pointed out in your own location--it isn't a matter of doctrine. If the field you work in does not require resolution of the seeming discrepancies, there is no reason not to hold a young earth theory. Speaking practically, it is may be faith enhancing, but its implications are meaningless of the rest of one's life. That is, other than concurrence with the Bible, it little matters how old the Earth is as one goes about one's daily activities. However, having worked in Palaeontology for quite some time, I know the full nature and extent of the problem and must admit to some aggravation when a person tells me about how much simpler the young Earth theory makes everything.

All of this said, I may misunderstand what you mean by "young Earth." On your blog you state categorically, "Corollary B: The biblical genealogies refer to real people and real events." One must assume that these genealogies also refer to "real durations." (It is a corollary to the inferred working definition of inerrancy.) On that basis one can give a very good approximation of the age of the Earth and the Bishop Ussher chronologies of the seventeenth century did precisely that. Using precisely this data Bishop Ussher estimated the age of the Earth at about 6,000 years. Even multiplying this a thousand times gives rise to the same difficulties outlines above.

I do not believe that the Bible sets an agenda for the faithful scientist. I DO believe the Bible to be absolutely inerrant in all that it teaches. Both of these positions may be held simultaneously with no inherent problem.

I also believe that we both seek the truth in the matter--a truth that will not be revealed in its fullness until we have "Crossed the Bar." I welcome the diversity of opinion under the banner of Charity. Sometimes I have to chill myself from cross-eyed apoplexy before charity can rule. It is an important exercise of a Christian vocation. Thank you for reminding me of that duty.

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Inerrancy and Accuracy

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Inerrancy and Accuracy

The better part of charity forbade me from responding on an individual blog, and particularly from responding before I had gathered the correct information. Having seen evidence for a young Earth cited at one place, I went on to look at other locations that supported a Catholic view of a young Earth. One of the principle supports for the view of a young earth was an understanding of Biblical inerrancy that I believe to be faulty. Just as understanding papal infallibility is facilitated by proper definition, I thought I would throw this open to all and sundry.

The explanation of inerrancy that I have read goes something like this: "The bible contains nothing that was known by the author at his time and in his place to be untrue (there are no deliberate untruths in it). However, there are things that appear to modern eyes and modern study as errors, they cannot be so adjudged because the authors at the time of the composition of the Bible did not have access to this information.

Here is one view of the matter from Fr. Matteo.

The Catholic Dictionary of Theology article on inerrancy says (vol. 3, p. 99): "Leo XIII, by citing the sentence of Augustine that the Holy Ghost did not intend to teach men the inner constitution of matter as it was in no way profitable to salvation, had marked out a line of solution which could be followed in questions of physical science. The inspired writers were not miraculously brought up to date with their science but spoke according to the knowledge available at the time."

In his encyclical Divino Afflante Spiritu, 42, Pius XII wrote: "In many cases in which the sacred authors are accused of some historical inaccuracy or of the inexact recording of some events ... a knowledge and careful appreciation of ancient modes of expression and literary forms and styles will provide a solution to many of the objections made against the truth and historical accuracy of Holy Scripture." In these words the Pope implied the necessity and validity of the work of textual criticism and the observance of literary genera.

In Letter 82:1, Augustine remarks: "If I come upon anything in the Scripture which seems contrary to the truth, I shall not hesitate to consider that it is no more than a faulty reading of the manuscript, or a failure of the translator to hit off what his text declared, or that I have not managed to understand the passage."

Pius XII (D.A.S., 47) is not afraid to suggest that some absurdities may remain forever. And Augustine (Letter 149:34) humorously remarks that God put these obscurities in the Bible to make the work of scholars meritorious!

Was there only one, or were there two cleansings of the Temple? There are weighty arguments on both sides--none of them can be called "crazy"--but a fairly sensible suggestion is made by W. Leonard: "(The cleansing of the Temple) did indeed occur ... where John places it. The reason why the synoptic gospels place it at the end may be that Mark and Luke in general follow the arrangement of Matthew which is logical rather than chronological, and which accordingly groups all incidents connected with Jerusalem under the last Jerusalem visit.

From Father Conway, 1929:

INERRANCY

Do Catholics regard the Bible as absolutely inerrant? Is not the Bible incorrect on scientific matters? Ares there not many errors and contradictions to be found is the text of both the Old and New Testaments?

Yes, it is an article of faith that the Bible is inerrant, i. e. it contains no formal error. As God is the Author of the Bible it must needs be true. "Inspiration," says Pope Leo, "not only is essentially incompatible with error, but excludes and rejects it as absolutely and necessarily, for it is impossible that God, thus Supreme Truth, can utter that which is not true. This is the ancient and unchanging faith of the Church" (Encyc. Providentissimus Deus).

1. We cannot restrict inspiration to certain parts only of this Bible, as Cardinal Newman held in his theory about the unimportance of "obiter dicta" (XIX Century, February, 1884).

2. We cannot restrict inspiration to faith and morals alone.

3. We do not look for precise scientific formulas in the Bible for it does not teach science ex professo. Nothing in its page: contradicts the teachings of natural science, because the same God is the author of natural and supernatural truth. But the sacred writers generally speak of scientific matters in more or less figurative language, or in terms which were commonly used at the time they wrote.

4. May Catholics hold the theory of "implicit quotations," i. e., may they set aside a certain passage on the supposition that the sacred writer is merely copying what he finds in some historical record, without thereby guaranteeing its veracity? Yes says the Biblical Commission (February 13, 1905), if solid reasons exist for believing that there really is a quotation, and that the sacred writer does not really intend to commit himself to what he quotes.

5. We must remember that the Bible on its material side is a human document handed down to us in a human way. Therefore we naturally expect to find in each succeeding copy or version material variations, additions, omissions and other errors with which critical scholarship has to grapple. St. Augustine mentions this in a letter to St. Jerome: "When in the pages of Sacred Writ I come upon anything that is contrary to the truth, I judge that the text is faulty, that the translator did not strike the right meaning, or simply that I do not understand it" (Letter to St. Jerome, lxxxii., 3).

6. The poetic imagery and symbolism in both the Old and New Testament, in the Prophets, the Psalms, the Apocalypse, is to be understood figuratively. But "this exuberant symbolism must not be conceived as supplanting reality, but as supporting it, as bringing out its full reality, not so much to our prosaic selves, as to the Orientals for whom so much of it was primarily written" (The Bible, Its History, 159).

It seems clear from these quotes that we are not to regard Holy Scripture as an astrophysics textbook, nor are we to look for complete, concise scientific theories of much of anything within it. Nevertheless, the bible is completely free from all error--so then what is one to make of Adam and Eve and the young Earth? It seems as though certain pockets of Catholicism have become contaminated with an unseemly literalism that has never been the fullness of the understanding of the Church. There is a legitimate debate as to what comprises figurative language. And it seems reasonable to talk about the multiple possible interpretations of Genesis. But even at the time of Leo XIII, it seemed fairly evident that the Church was well aware of seeming contradictions between science and faith. And they are only seeming contradictions. When Scripture is interpreted absolutely literally, you are stuck with contradictions that cannot be resolved--even in simple rhetorical matters. Look at the book of proverbs--"These three things are abomibable to God, yeah these four things earn His wrath." Read it literally, and you're stuck with contradiction.

The choice to believe a literal interpretation of Genesis is up to the individual; however, the attempt to construct a science from it is a serious error of judgment. To attempt to build a young-earth science involves so many contradictions in the scientific record that it calls into doubt the credibility of the persons arguments in favor of the Faith that they have which is true. It also raises very troubling questions of rates of sedimentation, the plethora of fossils and why they would be there, etc.

No, one can believe in absolute inerrancy--which until I understood it correctly I rejected--and in modern scientific method. They are not contradictory, nor do they teach the same things. Gould referred to nonoverlapping magisteria--I don't know that I buy his full argument, but I do side with St. Robert Bellarmine, or at least the quote attribute to him, "The Bible does not tell us how the heavens go, but how to go to Heaven."

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Prayer Request and Samuel Story

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Prayer Request and Samuel Story

The mother of a very good friend of mine, Gary, recently passed away. Please pray for her and for Gary as he goes a great distance to attend to all the matters that so unfortunately accompany becoming an orphan at our age.

I had to go out last night to spend some time with Gary. I explained to Samuel that Gary's mother had died and left. I came back to find Samuel bouncing off the walls because he was so tired. I took him into bed and we said our nighttime prayers. Unsolicited, Samuel prayed for Gary's mother. After prayers and "Pledge of Allegiances" he said to me, "I wish Gary's mother wasn't dead." I found that very moving, that so young a child has begun to develop a notion of sympathy and concern. But then, I would, wouldn't I?

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At Minute Particulars

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At Minute Particulars

"Praying for Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee" (I couldn't have said it better if I had tried.) An interesting new take on the question of what part prayer needs to play in our lives and our resistance to it in some cases. Beautifully articulated.

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Forgiveness and Repentence

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Forgiveness and Repentence

Elsewhere I have been engaged in a discussion regarding the necessity of repentence for forgiveness. My correspondent has insisted that it is a necessary prerequisite of even human forgiveness. I wonder. I will readily acknowledge that repentence is, as it were, a "condition" of Divine forgiveness (though I happen to believe that God will do everything possible to encourage and foster that repentence--so I imagine does my correspondent.) My correspondent very rightly points out that there are those who will choose not to receive this grace. And unless I am a Calvinist I cannot posit irresistable grace (isn't that the I in T.U.L.I.P.?). As a practical point I wonder how many do resist it, but I will leave that for the moment so as to not try the patience of my correspondent.

My question is, "Does human forgiveness require that the recipient express repentence?" Or perhaps, "Under Christian obligation does human forgiveness require repentence?" Now, my correspondent, Mr. D'Hippolito asserts:

Forgiveness is provisional upon repentance. I rest my case upon Luke 17: 3-4: "Be on your guard. If your brother sins, rebuke him and if he repents, forgive him. And if he sins against you seven times a day and returns to you seven times saying, 'I repent,' forgive him." (emphases mine)

And this is correct. And yet. . . I look to the rest of the "book" written by God--all of the subsequent history of His Saints, and we see there innumberable examples of Saints who have forgiven without the repentence of the sinner. St. Maria Goretti comes to mind, as do most of the Martyrs--St Thomas More, St. Edmund Campion. So it would seem that in practice it is possible to forgive without repentence--and in fact, this forgiveness is a supernatural grace presumably granted so that the offenders will realize their sin and seek unity with God. That is a lesser vessel speaks what God is offering in such a way as the recipient is moved to receive it.

So, perhaps in ordinary human relations the passage from Luke is the "normative" path of forgiveness. It certainly is in most of our ordinary practice. It takes an extraordinary person to overlook even a minor slight if the person giving it has not expressed regret. But the examples of the Saints may be the signs of greater grace working through a lesser vessel.

I am still thinking about these matters. However, there is something within that wrestles against the notion that I may only forgive those who repent. Perhaps it might be better to say that I have no standing to forgive those who have not harmed me directly. I cannot go to someone who murdered thousands and say to them that I forgive them, because while the damage is done to the whole, it is up to God to decide their fate. But, I must have some standing to forgive those who persecute me even if they don't repent. That is, if I am a vessel of the Holy Spirit, and it truly is God's will that none will be lost, then I must allow the spirit to work. If so, I might well forgive someone who has done wrong to me with no expression of contrition on their part.

There is much to consider here. And while I don't dislike "esoteric theology" nearly so much as Mr. d'Hippolito, those who know this place know that I have relatively little patience with abstruse doctrines and minute points of law. I rather like someone's notion--was it T.S. O'Rama who implied that perhaps we need both sides to have within the entire body a balance. That is a side that cries "Justice, justice," reminding us of the victims and those who have been harmed, and a side that cries "Mercy, mercy," reminding us that we all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. (Admittedly not is so great a way.) If I am to approach the Lord and my fate is determined by how I have wished others were treated, I know I would prefer mercy to justice. This is how I read Jesus's injunction to "Judge not lest ye be judged." On the other hand, there needs to be a voice that cries out to Heaven for the injustices done to the victims of such men. We need to be reminded that these are not trivialities--that such men may have deprived others of a chance of salvation through their depradation and torture. I respect the voice that refocuses attention. Still, for my own sake, and the sake of those I love, I will pray for Mercy, and trust God to do what is right and proper.

As Mr. D'Hippolito points out quoting a correspondent elsewhere--God does not send us to Hell, we go there ourselves, quite willingly. We embrace Hell with Satan, "Better to Reign in Hell than to serve in Heaven." God, in fact, provides sufficient and superabundant grace and Atonement to allow all to make it into heaven. We have no disagreement there whatsoever. And perhaps it is better to start at the point and work backwards to see where our disagreement lies. In such a way, all parties might come to a better image and understanding of God.

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The Gaffs of NPR--Hawthorne

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The Gaffs of NPR--Hawthorne

On All Things Considered this morning a report on Hawthorne via a discussion of the book Twenty Days with Julian and Little Bunny by Papa, there were at least two problems with their coverage. (And this has nothing to do with liberal bias or otherwise.) At one point the interviewer says, "Who would have known that Hawthorne could be funny?" Well, only anyone who had given his books and short stories a moment of consideration outside what they read in their tenth-grade English classes. There are uproarious passages in both The Scarlet Letter and The House of the Seven Gables. Admittedly they are dry, almost acerbic, but these passages are unremittingly funny.

The second faux pas from the editor of the work who says, "Julian Hawthorne became a writer. Nobody remembers that these days." Implying that this knowledge was confined to the rarified world of Hawthorne Scholars. Given that I had only begun to appreciate Hawthorne five or six years ago (apart from isolated pieces like "Young Goodman Brown" and "Rapacinni's Daughter"), I hardly qualify as a scholar, and yet I knew this "rarified" piece of knowledge. In addition I suppose that few know that his daughter founded a Catholic Religious group dedicated to tending to those with cancer and that his son-in-law was a reprobate rouè who made his money from chronicling the details of his illustrious stepfather's life.

Anyway, I think it is the perpetuation of the stereotype of a unapproachable and humorless writer that bothers me so. Hawthorne is neither. A true appreciation of his prose and a careful reading of the stories and novels shows a delightful, wry, shimmering humor always there just beneath the surface. People need to stop perpetuating myths--so here is my small contribution toward controlling the rampant proliferation of misinformation about Hawthorne's writing.

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Two Places to Visit

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Two Places to Visit

If you haven't been reading the many fascinating thoughts and arguments at Disputations you have missed out on some really good material. John Da Fiesole has presented a great many thoughts and wrestled with some big, big, big questions and arrived at some interesting places. Thank God for it.

For those who read Spanish better than I do, Mr. Gonzalez at fotos de apocalipsis has a most interesting commentary on some of the materials at Disputations.

I know I have learned a tremendous amount and been enormously edified by all of the comments at Disputations. Sometimes words are simply inadequate to express the things we feel. But I hope Tom knows how grateful and how edified I am. What a marvelous way of following his mentor and guide and honoring and glorifying Our Lord and God!

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Intriguing Questions

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Intriguing Questions

John da Fiesole always brings up the most intriguing questions. Witness Praying for the Past.

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Discussion and Argumentation

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Discussion and Argumentation

Sometimes I wonder what people think the purpose of discussion and argumentation is. Some seem to think that the sole purpose is to win someone to a point, or perhaps to make points by showing up someone's errors. If that is the case. such a person will love talking to me because I'm just a walking mass of errors ready to spill out for all to see. My thinking isn't so much sloppy as it isn't particularly linear. I've described it elsewhere as recursive--think the surf at the beach. One wave of thought rolls in, breaks on the shore, recedes. A subsequent wave of thought follows in, sometimes rising further up on the shore, sometimes not making it so far as the first. It isn't neat, but it gets the job done eventually. I think it is why I like blogdom so well--I have a chance to rethink and clarify all sorts of muddy, sediment-filled half-thoughts. And that is how I see argumentation or discussion. I'm not interested in "winning" an argument--there is no purpose to that if by winning I have failed to arrive at the truth.

As I see it, the purpose of any discussion is to come to the truth of the matter. This is why I find it admirable when people in public life can admit that they have changed their minds. (Unfortunately, too often, the change is away from the truth, persuaded by causes other than sheer argumentation.) But it would seem a natural progression that at some point someone's mind might change about matters. Thus when I hear the Strom Thurmond was a segregationist Dixiecrat (or whatever one calls them) and now he is not, I think that someone has considered the issues--possibly politically, but in such a case also possibly morally and arrived at a different conclusion because of the persuasiveness of reasoned argumentation. Sometimes I become too involved in argumentation or discussion and take offense at was not meant to give offense--I'll recover, and I'll probably apologize.

There is no point to continued discussion if, for whatever reason, one is not willing to change one's mind in the face of the evidence. There are a great many reasons why this may be so. Perhaps the value challenged performs a present "protective" service. Perhaps the notion has become a habit of thought and will require a great many years of reflection and slow microscopic change to finally arrive at the truth. Whatever the case, once one has reached a point at which it is clear the discussion has devolved to the sophisticated equivalent of "No it isn't"/"Yes it is"--it is time to desist.

All discussion should be directed to the truth so one shouldn't be shocked to read from me some idiotic opinion or reason-challenging assertion today, to discover that tomorrow it has been modified. It's what I count on the generous members of the blogworld for. In many ways I have been brought much closer to the truth by courageous members of blogdom who risk my wrath to challenge my assertions. Here are some examples of how blogdom has changed my opinions:

*I now have a better comprehension of the place of St. Thomas Aquinas (although I must say it will be a while before I feel any warm fuzzies for him--I'm not so suspicious of him as once I was)

*I have a more profound understanding for St. Francis of Assisi--though I'm still put off by SOME of his followers. (Don't worry--I love St. Thérèse and am put off by the vast majority of her admirers.)

*I have clarified notions about prayer and its purposes--and such notions have much improved my prayer life.

*I have a greater love for the diversity of opinion--even opinions that I consider suspect or countermanded by the magisterium.

*I have learned the value of not judging.

*I have learned that the rumor and scandal too often promulgated by the media and bandied about is not the fullness of the truth. A specific instance is that one brave blogger challenged directly my opinion of a certain Bishop based largely on ignorance and hearsay and informed me that while he may have had some notions contrary to my own, he served well as a pastoral leader.

*I've learned that Orthodoxy isn't necessarily everything I believe. By that I mean that I used to judge people's opinions by the standard of rigid orthodoxy I felt I maintained. Well, my "orthodoxy" was neither complete, nor probably completely orthodox. Talking with Catholic people has shown me the wideness of opinion possible among those who are striving to be faithful to the magisterium.

So, only a few things I have gained from listening to others. I have changed countless opinions, modified countless statements, in some cases completely contradicted myself. Like the sea and the shore my island of opinion and idea is constantly changing and reforming. I hold fast to the central truths of the faith--the skeleton and structure of the entire island--and the rest can wash where it will--it little matters and it provides a refreshing change of vista--a salubrious change of air.

So bring on the discussion, the argumentation, the notions, and the ideas--so long as you seek after the truth and don't merely wish to make points (come on--it's like shooting fish in a barrel) you are welcome. Even if you only wish to make points I may well benefit from the challenge.

Thank you all for all that you have done for me. God bless you.

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Gratitude

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Gratitude

My heart is so full of gratitude and a strong sense of the presence of God. The generosity of people discussing seemingly mundane and minor issues at Disputations has been so profound and moving. Each person actively seeking the truth, actively offering others the fruits of prayer and reflection--this is the very best of blogdom. The richness of charity has been monumental, and I have been blessed over and over again with insights, revelations, and clarity. Thanks to all who are so magnimous and kind in their sharing.

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Possibility and Probability

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Possibility and Probability

More considerations on prayer--I truly believe "With God all things are possible" (in contingent being--to sidestep an extra-axiomatic problem). When I pray am I required to consider the probability of the event before I pray. That is to say, if there is a desired result on my heart that is very, very unlikely do I need necessarily consider the odds before presenting the need to God? I would say no. And yet there are legitimate arguments to suggest that it would be valid to do so. I leave others to trace them (classic math text ploy--the rest of the proof is obvious and left to the reader). However, as long as one is willing to accept God's will at the end, it would seem valid to pray for ANYTHING, no matter how unlikely. As long as we are willing to accept that miracles are at God's discretion, we can pray for healing for someone on their deathbed.

Is the prayer efficacious if the person dies? It depends upon frame of reference. Obviously, it wasn't efficacious in obtaining the desired end of the pray-er. But from God's point of view, it was imminently efficacious--the pray-er opened up lines of communication and shared with God the deepest needs of his or her heart.

So it would seem that consideration of probability is not necessary before engaging in prayer. The question comes down to do we honestly believe "With God ALL things are possible." (Remember the blanket caveat--so we don't need to engage in the metaphysics of ontology). It has been revealed to us and demonstrated time and time throughout history in the lives of the Saints and in the nature of history itself.

God is the God of possibilities--there is nothing He cannot do. There may be things He WILL not do, but nothing is beyond Him. Do I need to ask about the probability of God's choosing to do one thing or another. I don't think so. I think I must merely revel in the God of possibilities who blesses me beyond all blessing.

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More on Prayer

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More on Prayer

Also from a response on Mr. da Fiesole's Blog. I wrote there much of what is presently on my heart and in my mind about prayer in general.

What I do believe and stand on is "With God all things are possible." IF they are possible, then it is not impermissable to consider them. And IF they are possible and someone is in desperate need of assistance to make them plausible, it would be remiss of me to deny that to them. But it doesn't mean they are saved by my prayers or even that it is likely that they will be. Nevertheless, what does the phrase mean if some things are patently impossible?

Does the possibility require one to pray as though it were a probability? No. Does it require one to pray for this particular intention at all? No. Some are moved to pray in this way, some in that. We needn't force all into the same mode of prayer--"we are many parts but all one body." If one is not strongly moved to pray, or the prayer is something one is indifferent about but can be folded into a larger intention--why should one pray as another is led?

Prayer is conversation with God and communion with Him. If I should be led to tell Him about my sorrow concerning the state of the world that results in such a miserable end to such truly terrible people--that is what God wants me to work on. Perhaps it is something He wishes me to think about because I am so hard and difficult a person myself--prideful, self-centered, quick to take offense and slow to forgive. Perhaps this subject of conversation allows Him to say things to me that He does not need to say to others who have other sharp corners to smooth.

So, while I say it is right and permissable to pray for the possibility of salvation for these people, I cannot see it as a responsibility.

What I DO see necessarily as a Christian responsibility is not to rejoice in their deaths. It is fine to be relieved, to acknowledge that the world is not the less for their loss, and that many people will be better off. But rejoicing and dancing about at the letting of blood is certainly not a Christian spectacle--and it was for that reason I first started my thread regarding the personal responsibility I felt for prayer.

God has given each freedom and in that freedom is included the freedom about what to pray about. God has an ongoing conversation with each person who will listen to Him. The subject matter of that conversation is unique to the individual.

Prayer is a gift of communication and it should be used as the Holy Spirit leads. If one is led to prayer it should be on God's terms, not on any other.

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A Reminder from a Friend

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A Reminder from a Friend

In the course of conversation, a salient point was raised regarding the post yesterday about Saddam Hussein's sons. I think the point quite important and one that help to cast all of the discussion into perspective. While my post focused on these two more as a reaction to some of the schadenfreude that seemed to permeate certain sectors of the blogworld (mercifully not so much in St. Blog's) and the world at large, it did overlook a vast populace far more deserving of our prayers. In mentioning and commending Hussein's sons to God's mercy, we should never forget their victims, living and dead, and the brave men and women of the American Armed forces who presently lead lives of incredibly hardship and emotional difficulty in the hopes that the people of Iraq may see a better future and the world will become a better and more settled place. Those who are oppressed by evil are certainly in need of our prayers. Those who oppose evil need our support (regardless of where we stand of the morality of the action taken) because they still stand in harm's way to demonstrate a principle in which the American people as a whole believe--the right and necessity of a people to rule themselves and to be able to live in freedom without fear of what oppressors might do. So consider this my codicil to the previous post. While I will for a time commend Hussein's sons to God's mercy, I will keep in my heart always those who suffer oppression and those who oppose it, either by prayer or by the dictates of their government.

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Courteous Conversation and Conversion

Wonderful insights from Kathy the Carmelite. I would have done well to read this earlier in the day--oh well, live and learn.

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At Disputations Again

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At Disputations Again

The usual coherent, reasonable, and charitable response to maunderings herein under scripted. I wish I could think in this way before I leap to some lamentable conclusions. I make a feeble effort at an apologia--but I fear it lacks any real fire or power. My thanks for the rejoinder and the reminder.

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Reaction to the Death of Saddam's Sons

This will not be welcome in many blog-circles, but I feel I must do it and say it for my own sake and the sake of those who might otherwise be led astray. I pray for the repose of the souls of these two men. The world is a better place without them. But I know that God does not desire that He should lose even one of His beloved children. I praise and thank Him for His justice and I ask Him in obedience to His commandment to have mercy on the souls of these men and comfort the family that mourns for them. "Bless those that curse you." As I said, it is a matter of discipline and something that is actually much harder to say and mean than I thought it would be. But I do pray it, and I do mean it. These men do not deserve such mercy and lovingkindness, but then, neither do I. And I hope at my death that there are a great many waiting to pray me out of purgatory and into His embrace.

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An Ardent Request for Continued Prayers

Please, please remember Dylan in your prayers. He has received some very discouraging news regarding his condition and he needs our thoughts and prayers to buoy him up. I assured him of the continued interest and prayers of the community here at St. Blog's and I thank all of you who have taken the time and effort to send messages through me or through other to Dylan. Each message helps him remember that people do care and are willing to help.

Please remember Dylan in daily prayers.

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More on Just War

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More on Just War

John da Fiesole at Disputations has a remarkable and helpful post on Just War Theory. I posted what appear below in response to his discussion. I repeat it here in the interest of full disclosure and making it possible for other responses. Reasoned answers help me find the way through this dark abyss.


(copy of the response to Mr. da Fiesole)

Thank you for the clarity of this exposition. Believe it or not, my aim is to think with the Church, but I have incredible difficulty wrestling with this for a whole panoply of reasons. More important than my subjective opinion is to strive to speak in conformity with Church teaching. I accept that JWT seems to be written into the Catechism and therefore should be received as part of the deposit of faith--but I also suppose how one interprets it, and the weight one gives to the issues must shape one's view. I think you ask or suggest a very important question in your post. Can a preemptive strike ever be truly moral? Can we truly have exhausted all possible solutions to a problem to avoid such an action? Can only defensive wars be regarded as just? I don't know the answer to these things. But I keep butting up against the incredible hardness of heart that makes this doctrine necessary. And it isn't the hardness of "their" hearts, but my own hardness of heart that I must face when I face this teaching. Perhaps that is what makes it particularly difficult.

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Request for Info

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Request for Info

I have a marvelous recording of a song by Gustav Holst, the melody of which I believe is taken from one of the "The Planets." One question--the title under which I have the song is, "I Vow to Thee My Country," But I'm fairly certain that the melody is used for a hymn that may or may not have those words in it? Is anyone familiar with this piece of music and if so, do you know if it has multiple sets of words to go with it (as does the Ode to Joy)?

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In Order that the Conversation May Continue

I have been much edified by the comments on the post below. Please read Thomas's comment et seq. and continue the conversation if you desire. I find myself much in agreement with Thomas on nearly everything he has articulated, and I would be most interested in responses regarding Just War Theory and precisely what we are to make of it in the world today. Is it dogmatic, does it have the weight of doctrine? Or is it something taught by theologians with long and venerable history, but not necessarily with the might of the magisterium behind it. This makes a large difference in how one is to appreciate and analyze the doctrine. Even if taught by the magisterium, how do Vatican comments regarding the justness of the war weigh into the calculation? Or do they? Is there an objective standard possible, or is everything subjective--if so, on what basis can one reliably determine the justness of a war. And even if those in the government determine that a war is just, is it necessarily? If Hitler decides that the Sudetenland has historically been a province of Germany and poses a threat to German security, do we have a just war? That is, once a government has decided a war is just is it licit for every individual or is it possible that an individual could find that the war is not just and thus not participate or support it (Render unto Caesar, etc.) Or are all of my questions simply the result of a very muddled notion of what Just War doctrine is?

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Please See the Prayer Requests

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Please See the Prayer Requests of Recent Vintage at the Chapel

Many needs at the Carmelite Prayer Chapel. Thank you.

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Tolstoy and Dostoievski and Joyce

I am reading Paul Elie's book The Life You Save May Be Your Own and Philip Yancey's Soul Survivor and so am suffering from a convergence of the twain. In both places, I am bombarded with Tolstoy and Dostoievski and their great contributions toward understanding and incorporating religion into one's life. In Elie's book, Dorothy Day is typified as a person caught between the two Russian visions; Walker Percy is discussed as a person who read Dostoievski and discussed it with good friend Shelby Foote throughout his lifetime. In Yancey's book the two are credited in some part with helping him come to a reasonable vision of faith.

I don't understand. I have enjoyed what I have read of Tolstoy--War and Peace and selected short stories and shorter novels. I have not enjoyed anything I have read of Dostoievski--his novels read more like ponderous treatises of dubious philosophical and theological points to me. Crime and Punishment reads likes proto-anti-Neitzsheism and the less said of The Brothers Karamazov the better. Now, I know these belong to the western canon, and I know that they are considered important works (speaking of Dostoievski) and were I still inclined to the theory that there are certain things I "should" read, I would try to work my way through these ponderous tomes. But thankfully, I have of recent date been relieved of the anxiety of having to read what I do not enjoy and what does not speak to me. I no longer buy the argument that one must read certain things to be either educated or "in-the-know." I've also come to the realization that life is too short to indulge those who do not retain my interest for long.

However, I am curious as to what exactly anyone gets out of these. I welcome comments from those who enjoy Dostoevski (Tolstoy to a lesser extent, as I'm already favorably disposed toward his work--rather unfavorably disposed toward his life and treatment of family). I'm sure many will tell me all the wonders I am missing, and perhaps I will be persuaded to take a look.

On the other hand, I tend to think I'm more like Merton whose formative influence was James Joyce. James Joyce, despite his life and his difficulties with the Church, is possibly my very favorite writer. I often am puzzled by those who don't "get" Ulysses. It is no more difficult than a great many other books the same people read, and yet the magic I perceive eludes them entirely. I have reread Ulysses and Finnegan's Wake countless times with endless enjoyment at the sly humor and the inventiveness of the writer, and strangely, it was Joyce (and my professor Coilin Owens), in part, who led me into the Catholic Church--perhaps more about that later.

I could wax rhapsodic about the virtues and wonders of the prose of Joyce, but I suspect that I would hear a gallery of yawns or sharp cries and reminders that his masterwork was once on the Index of Forbidden Books (as silly a notion as ever crossed a narrow mind.)

Anyway, I've stirred up enough fuss with this little note, I'm certain. Please let me know what you think. I'd love to hear more about ostensibly non-spiritual writers who have lead people to a greater appreciation of the value of faith. (These include novelists such as Graham Greene, Shusaku Endo, Frederick Buechner, Flannery O'Connor--you get the idea.)

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Trying and Failing

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Trying and Failing

Six or seven times this morning I have tried to convey my thoughts about sin and triumph over sin. I have failed miserably each time. This leads me to two possible conclusions--either the thoughts have not yet been brought into sufficient focus to be written down, or I am not sufficient to the task the topic presents. I am rather inclined to the latter conclusion as I think that only those who have seriously faced down their sins (with the help of grace) stand in a position to say anything that would be likely to help others regarding the topic. So, I will leave it alone for the time being and come back when and if the spirit leads, knowing that all that is good starts, consists in, and ends with Jesus Christ. To my mind that is the meaning of Alpha and Omega in our daily human lives. If Jesus is not the capital and the period, there is no point whatsoever in the action.

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Second-Guessing

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Second-Guessing

In the news and on many blogs, people are questioning the reasons for entering the war with Iraq. Many are calling into question the "justness" of the war (at best, to my mind, a dubious concept). But to what point? What is done is done. Either it was just, or it was not. To spend time and energy fretting over why and when and where and what the reasoning might have been seems indulging in a futile endeavor. Worse, such hand-wringing tends to indict those who in conscience prosecuted the war. All of this is simply judging ex post facto what is really beyond the ability of any of us to judge while here on Earth.

Rather than rehash and rewarm and reargue the entire event or chain of events, it would seem better to learn from the experience, and perhaps to explore how one might achieve the famous Kollwitz Nie Weider Kreig. Now seems more a time of prayer and acts of reparation, because even if the war were just, innocent people died (admittedly fewer than had been expected, but nevertheless. . .), and injustices were committed. In prayer, we remand all of these things to God's care and we trust in His providence to make good what may have been less than good. We trust Him to protect and care for all of those away from home and still facing danger and we trust Him to protect the people of Iraq from future oppressors and from those who continue to struggle, perhaps only to rise again once a suppressing presence has left.

I suspect that the main cause of all the hand-wringing is the mercifcul absence of most other news of import. And thus, I suppose I am better off with the hand-wringing that with the news that is likely to drive this out of the headlines. Unfortunately, I know that if nothing else happens (God forbid), we will have to listen to this through the next election. Still and all, it gives us pause for deliberate and well-considered prayer.

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Sin and Freedom

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Sin and Freedom

We stand at a greater or lesser approach to a vast anoxic mudflat, the stench of which is an assault on Heaven itself. Some stand at the very edge of this flat, constantly deciding not to step onto it. Others have already taken the first steps and are discovering the difficulty of a mud flat--once you step out into, the mud itself works to keep you there. Still others, through habitual sin have waded far out into the mudflat and discovered the unstable thixotropic center. (A brief digression--a thixotropic fluid is thick like a solid but flows when a lateral pressure is applied. These solids also have the property of liquefying when a sudden shock such as an earth tremor is applied. The most famous natural example is quicksand, but quickmud while less common is even more dead.)

Once we are entangled in that center, through habitual sin, we find ourselves gradually drawn down until we struggle to move even a little from the pattern. We find that the habit takes over and the motion of the will is at best feeble and weak--deprived of any intensity of purpose. We don't really want to leave the center of sin. It has grown comfortable and familiar.

Sin is paralyzing. This is one of the reasons, I suppose, that so much mention is made of Jesus healing those lame and paralyzed. Sometimes the physical paralysis was seen as punishment for personal or inherited sin. But the paralysis is also a metaphor for what sin does to us in a spiritual way. When Jesus heals a paralytic the injunction is to "go and sin no more." The paralysis has been lifted--it is possible to choose once again.

Many of us need this radical power of Jesus in our lives. Many of us are paralyzed by our sins. Worse, many do not even see that they sin, habitually, frequently, and in defiance of clear injunctions that tell us what we are doing is wrong. We are paralyzed and blind.

The amazing thing is that one simple turning to Jesus, one motion, one indication that we have come to realize our plight, and we can be healed. Admittedly, it is difficult, sin has so dulled our senses and so balked our motion that any turning, any recognition is a trial--but it is a trial that can be endured. More--looking at the face of Jesus, adoring Christ in the Eucharist, being present to Christ in the Scripture, taking one moment to serve Christ in the persons of our oppressed brothers and sisters, can burst all bonds asunder, can drive away all darkness, and can clear the way to making a good confession and being transformed from a paralytic to a functional member of the Kingdom of Heaven.

If you cannot pray, know that the Holy Spirit prays within you, and choose to act in a way that recognizes that God is sovereign and present. Then prayer can start. Look at Jesus, reach out to Him and say, "Lord, if thou willest, I shall be healed." And then be prepared to accept the healing and the joyful mission that comes with it. The Kingdom of Heaven is ever active--never passive. It strides forcefully, joyfully, powerfully out in to the world of men and transforms that world forever. It leaves in its wake powerful eddies and currents that draw many invisibly closer to God. They may not be aware of His presence, but they are subtly transformed and prepared to accept His existence and His glory as a reality. When we are freed from sin and declare that triumph to the world, the world responds joyfully. We may fall back--it is always possible, but we gradually learn through practice how to avoid those places that lead most directly into the center of sin. In each of us one of the seven capital sins tends to predominate, and provides the most direct path to the center of the mire. When Jesus frees us, we proclaim freedom to the world, we transcend the powers of this world and draw some part of it with us into redemption. This is part of what St. Paul meant when he talked of the fallen world groaning for release--when Jesus frees us, He frees us with the purpose of freeing all. We are to proclaim release to the captives with full knowledge that we once were one of them, and we know the shape and the smell of captivity. We also know that it is not our destiny, nor the destiny of any of God's people.

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Another Carmelite Celebration

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Another Carmelite Celebration

And a particularly important one for the times. Today is the commemoration (memorial) and Feast of the Carmelite Martyrs of Compiègne whose sacrifice is attributed with bringing to an end the French Revolution.

Their sacrifice is particularly relevant for those of us today because they lost their lives for simply existing and being members of a relgiious order. This is the fierce power that secular society can and does turn on those who accuse it simply by their way of living. These martyrs are glorious witnesses to God's truth, and I pray that if I am faced with the same decision these noble women faced, through their intercession and the intercession of the Holy Mother of God, I may have the strength to choose the difficult crown rather than the easy way.

For more about the Martyrs of Compiègne, see William Bush's magnificent study To Quell the Terror, or listen to François Poulenc's Dialogue of the Carmelites based on a libretto by Georges Bernanos. Also related, Gertrud von Le Fort's ficitionalized account Song at the Scaffold. The lives of these great martyrs is food for thought for this day and for many more.

Later this week--the Feast of St. Elijah--Father of Carmel.

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Feast Day: Our Lady of Mount Carmel

Mother of Contemplatives, pray for us.
Mother of all who seek your Son, pray for us.
Gracious Lady, Mother of Our Order, Light and Guide, pray for us Carmelites, and all who seek a more profound union with your Son that we might find it.

A blessed day to you all. And to all Carmelites, a wonderful feastday, may it serve to bring us ever closer to living out our vocations in such a way as to draw people to Our Lord and Savior.

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Sanibel Trip

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Sanibel Trip

As you can tell from the post below, the Sanibel trip was a wonderful and unexpected success. I have been blessed beyond words by it. I am also blessed by the realization that it was well that I was not brought up in such a place because I could not possibly be doing what I do now. The extraordinary beauty, charm, and peace of such a place is so strong a magnet that I honestly do not think I could ever voluntarily leave.

St. Isabel's church on Sanibel was a small but lovely building. I always evaluate a congregation by the prayers of the faithful. I listen for some reference to our leader and "respect for life." By this standard, I'm afraid St. Isabel's didn't pass muster--no mention whatsoever, which doesn't mean anyting for certain, but at least sets up the radar.

The beach is a magnificent place to experience God in all of His wonder and beauty. I am thankful for the momentary opportunity afforded by this break.

I hope all is well at St. Blog's and in my absence nothing self-destructed. Being one of the mainstays, I know that the equilibrium must have been threatened and thrown off--so even if everyone remains silent, i will be assured that everything has been restored to the way it should have been. (:D)

By the way, in mere days, I celebrate my first full year here. It has been a fantastic growing experience and I thank everyone of you who have made it so fulfilling a time. May we all continue in being blessings to one another.

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Two Parables of Grace from Sanibel

My trip to Sanibel brought some much needed relaxation and peace (much to my surprise). It also gave rise to some magnificent parables of human reaction to God's grace. So I offer a couple of them here.

I.

To what shall we liken man's reaction to divine grace. We are like the coquina, snugly secure beneath the dome of a beautiful orange-and-white cockle. A beachcomber removes the cockle exposing us to sunlight and we, with all our strength and speed burrow under the sand.

Or we are like the coquina in the shorebreak. The waves come and wash away the sand and we are exposed momentarily in the light. Realizing our danger, we burrow back into the sand. Only because we are so small, we cannot burrow far because we could not live, so the next wave exposes us once again. We exhaust ourselves in escaping from the light.

II

We are like the white crabs caught in the back tidal channel. We scurry about contentedly until one searching for shells walks through the channel. Then we raise our claws and wave them threateningly and back away or scurry away to the side.

III

We are like the great blue heron on the beach, waiting patiently for the fisherman to catch a fish and throw it to us. However, should that fisherman turn and approach us too closely, we back away. If he continues, we fly away entirely.

Thus, it seems to me, too often our approach to grace. We have a momentary experience of it and realize that the call may be too challenging, too "dangerous" to our integrity of the moment, so we flee it. Not in every case, and not entirely. We are probably more like the heron than the other examples, but we are wary of the fisherman who would offer us a meal for who knows what he might do if he were to turn his attention upon us--who know what he might ask of us?

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A Treasure!

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A Treasure!

Look at what I stumbled across in my searches: The Paradoxes of Catholicism, a collection of Sermons by Robert Hugh Benson. (I was actually looking for Come Rack, Come Rope which I know has been reprinted, but my book budget for such things is, shall we say, abstemious in the extreme.) Following an excerpt from a Sermons preached on Easter Day:

from Paradoxes of Catholicism--"Life and Death" Preached on Easter Day Robert Hugh Benson

It is easy, then, to see why it is that the Church dies daily, why it is that she is content to be stripped of all that makes her life effective, why she too permits her hands to be bound and her feet fettered and her beauty marred and her voice silenced so far as men can do those things. She is human? Yes; she dwells in a body that is prepared for her, but prepared chiefly that she may suffer in it. Her far-reaching hands are not hers merely that she may bind up with them the brokenhearted, nor her swift feet hers merely that she may run on them to succour the perishing, nor her head and heart hers merely that she may ponder and love. But all this sensitive human organism is hers that at last she may agonize in it, bleed from it from a thousand wounds, be lifted up in it to draw all men to her cross.

She does not desire, then, in this world, the throne of her Father David, nor the kind of triumph which is the only kind that the world understands to be so. She desires one life and one triumph only -- the Risen Life of her Saviour. And this, at last, is the transfiguration of her Humanity by the power of her Divinity and the vindication of them both.

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Harry Potter (redux)

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Harry Potter (redux)

I have just recently finished the fifth book in the series and have no real insights or helps for anyone. However, I do think I would recommend that everyone interested in working with children acquaint themselves with the series. It is astounding to me that thirteen year-olds would take enough time away from their busy gameboy filled lives to read a book approaching nine-hundred pages long. As with the fourth, I have some reservations about allowing children to read this without some discussion/supervision. But I also don't have a teenager, so it may not be as possible as I am thinking. My reservations stem from some very sophisticated topics and handling thereof that might be disconcerting to some younger children. I still stand directly in opposition to the opinion of Michael O'Brien who exhibits a slender knowledge of the uses of enchantment. More about this somewhat later at Catholic Bookshelf.

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Pleased to Announce

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Pleased to Announce

That the home machine has been fixed, and I once again have access. Praise God!

On the downside, I opted to install a new operating system (actually, it will be two operating systems once I put Linux in the separate partition created for it.) So I'm having some system maladjustments as I get used to the new OS.

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Sanctificarnos

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Sanctificarnos

Please be sure to visit Sanctificarnos, a website dedicated to giving a Catholic Perspective on Marriage and Divorce. What you learn there may well help someone you know who is struggling with these issues. Moreover, it may also help us all understand better essential Catholic teachings and the real necessity of preparing for marriage.

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Thanks to Mary

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Thanks to Mary

A Wonderful and touching story that goes to show that you never know who is listening nor what it is that will touch them. Thanks, Mary.

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Too Interesting to Ignore

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Too Interesting to Ignore

Minute Particulars says in a coherent, succinct way much that I would have liked to say on the abortion debate. How one does something is as important as what one chooses to do. When any means are used, the end, however good is sullied and diminished in the eyes of surrounding observers.

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A Message from Sir Walter Raleigh

A short letter upon his death. Touching, tender, and practical. "To Day a Man, To Morrow none."

from "To Day a Man, To Morrow none," a Letter of Sir Walter Raleigh awaiting Death in the Tower   As for me I am no more yours, nor you mine, death hath cut us asunder, and God hath divided me from the world, and you from me: Remember your poore childe for his fathers sake that comforted you, and loved you in his happiest times,     I sued for my life (But God knowes) it was for you and yours that I desired it: for know it (deare wife) that your sonne is the childe of a true man, and who in his owne heart despiseth death, and his mishapen and ugly forms.     I cannot write much: God knoweth how hardly I stole this time when all were asleep, and it is now time to separate my thoughts from the world. Beg my dead body which living was denyed you, and either lay it in Sherborne or in Exeter Church by my father and mother. I can say no more, time and death call me away. The everlasting God, infinite, powerfull, and inscrutable God, That Almighty God which is goodnesse it selfe, mercy it selfe, the true light and life, keep you and yours, and have mercy upon me.     Teach me to forgive my persecuters and false accusers, and send me to meet him in his glorious Kingdome.     My true wife farewell, God blesse my poore boy, pray for me, my true God hold you both in His Armes.
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Presumption

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Presumption

Looking over the things I have written in the past couple of weeks, I realize that I might legitmately be accused of the grave character flaw of presumption. That is, who am I to be doling out advice or recommending a course of action. I know these things less well than many of my co-bloggers. And yet, even if I am not perfect (or even very good) in practicing most of what I recommend, I'm certain the advice is good, because it is not my own.

So when reading my posts, often addressed to "you" please recall that I am within that collective "you" and part of the purpose of writing is to continually reinforce what I know to be true and what I have experienced to be effective (when I was actually doing it). And please forgive me any presumption you may see here. It isn't intentional--it is an artifact of language and a tracing of personality.

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The Mechanics of Trusting God--Part I--Start By Listening

Trusting God must be one of the great hurdles many people have in progressing in holiness. This makes a certain sense. If you cannot believe what you see around you each day, how do you learn to believe what you cannot see. This isn't about faith, most people reading this blog already have faith, some in abundance. It is about trust.

In a sense, trusting God must become like trusting chemical bonds. Most people don't give a moment's thought to the fact that we are held together (literally) by the most tenuous connections between particles far too small to see. We trust electrons, ionic bonds, van der Waal's bonds, covalent bonds, all manner of other chemical theories to hold our bodies and our world together. We trust reality.

We need to learn to trust God in the same way. After all, it is His constant attention and love that make possible all that we see and are. He supports each of those chemical bonds by His omnipresent attention. Without it, there would be nothing that exists.

How do we learn to trust? One way is to trust our experiences. God speaks to us every day. He speaks to us in the events of the day. We often do not listen. We do not train ourselves to hear the message of everyday; we take it for granted. But a careful perusal of past events would show us clear examples of places along the path where God has walked closely with us and supported us.

Here I suggest another useful technique garnered from the Ignatian Long Retreat--examen. In this particular form of the examen, you are not looking for places where you have failed in the course of the day. Rather, you are looking for places where God spoke to you. You are training yourself to become aware of the opportunities God makes for you each day. By examining the events of the day and recognizing where God was present, you become more sensitive to His presence.

Many people, myself included, go through daily life under the influence of spiritual novacaine. We're aware that the spirit is present, but we don't really sense anything other than the ringing, tingling, numbness that marks our own absence. We need to turn our attention to that void and become aware that it is not a void, but it is the door to the kingdom of heaven. Jesus said repeatedly, "The Kingdom of God is at hand." By this, I don't think He meant, it is coming soon. I interpret what He said to mean that it is nearby, it is close. It is so close that we are completely unaware of its proximity. The Kingdom of Heaven is within us, and we need merely open the door and walk through. But we cannot open a door we do not recognize as a door, and we cannot walk through a portal until the door is opened. It is up to us to open it. God can hammer down the door and barge through--but it is unlikely that He will do so. So we need to exert ourselves to be aware of the presence of God in our lives and to become aware of His kingdom within. Only in such a way of complete submission will we find peace, love, and the crucial ability to trust.

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Back After a Weekend Hiatus

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Back After a Weekend Hiatus

Yes, and still have no computer at home. Will not have at least until Thursday when I shall have to quickly bring it up to speed and attempt to get online before a brief sojourn to Sanibel.

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A Message from a Correspondent--On Detachment

The following message comes from a correspondent who may choose to reveal identity within the comments box, but who otherwise remains anonymous. This voice speaks for a great many, i think, of the problems of becoming truly detached. I felt so strongly about how beautifully it was expressed, I asked permission to use it. I hope you all will be as edified as I was.


I have also been thinking more about your posts on detachment. I think the biggest obstacle to a healthy detachment is taking that very frightening step of forming a true attachment, or love, for God. To set our own illusions, desires, prides, and prejudices aside and truly love Him requires a great confidence that He is there to be loved. We know our selves and the material world around us is there but we can't (or won't) be sure of Him in the same way. Attaching to Him requires tremendous dedication, commitment, and sacrifice. It is not a complacent thing. Attaching to Him means ultimately detaching from your self. Your self is a pretty concrete, tangible thing. God isn't. You can't get a hold of Him like you can of your self. To detach from your self to attach to God means letting go of something you can hold onto in favor of letting God hold onto you.

When I was little, my siblings and I used to play Jumping Day with Daddy. When he came home from work, we would stand on a step and jump into his arms. We would jump off the stairs and he would catch us. Well, detaching from your self to attach to God is like jumping off the stair of Man. There is always a little voice in your head, whether the Devil or just your own fallen nature, telling you that maybe there's nobody there to catch you. Not many people have enough trust in God to believe He will absolutely be there.

The profound truth of this really knocked me over. It is rare that someone will state straight out that there is darkness and there is doubt. I think many have difficulty letting go of what they know for a leap into the unknown. And yet, we have seen throughout the ages, a great many who survived that leap and told the tale. The story of all the saints is the story of those who somehow managed to conquer self to make that leap into the Father's arms.

My great thanks to the correspondent who gave me, and I hope all of you so much to think about in this small reflection.

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A Poem by St. Edith Stein

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A Poem by St. Edith Stein

I really must get a copy of the Science of the Cross ASAP. Unfortunately, as those who have families and small children know, there is little left over for such indulgences.

from Drink of the Stream Compiled by Penny Hickey, O.C.D.S.

To God, the Father
St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross--Edith Stein

Bless the mind deeply troubled
Of the sufferers,
The heavy loneliness of profound souls,
The restlessness of human beings,
The sorrow which no soul ever confides
To a sister soul.

And bless the passage of moths at night,
Who do not shun spectres on paths unknown.
Bless the distress of men
Who die within the hour,
Grant them, loving God, a peaceful and blessed end.

Bless all the hearts, the clouded ones, Lord, above all,
Bring healing to the sick.
To those in torture, peace.
Teach those who had to carry their beloved to the grave, to forget.
Leave none in agony of guilt on all the earth.

Bless the joyous ones, O Lord, and keep them under Your Wing.--
My mourning clothes You never yet removed.
At times my tired shoulders bear a heavy burden.
But give me strength, and I'll bear it
In penitence to the grave.

Then bless my sleep, the sleep of all the dead.
Remember what Your Son suffered for me in agony of death.
You great mercy for all human needs
Give rest to all the dead in Your eternal peace.

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Notice

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Notice

Due to a tragic and ill-timed hard disk crash, my computer at home is inoperable, so there will be no posting for the next several days and I will be effectively out of communication for computer contact. My apologies.

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Yes, so quickly that time has rolled around again. After this little lesson, I'll probably ask my group to take a look at the first portion of Dark Night of the Soul because it very effectively lists the traps and pitfalls of beginners in prayer.

Ascent of Mount Carmel VII The Pane of Glass and the Light

Read Book II Chapters 5-6 (pgs. 162-168)

Chapter 5

1-2. What does John of the Cross imply about the state of Union with God?
Read the footnote carefully. What are the chief distinctions of Union? (If you wish to understand this better, read pages 576-577, 641-642, and 713-715; however, it is not necessary to do so.)

3. What is substantial union? Why is it important? What is the Union of Likeness? How does one achieve it?


4. What is the importance of ridding oneself of creatures?

6. Explain what St. John of the Cross means by the Light and the pane of glass.


What does it imply about the necessity for detachment and purification?

7. How do we best describe the transformation of the soul in union with God?

8-9. What is the necessary preparation for union? What does St. John mean by his example of the painting?

10-11. Are all states of union the same? On what is any degree of union based? What happens to those who do not reach the purity the are capable of?

Chapter 6
1-4 How are the three faculties related to the theological virtues? What does each virtue do to each faculty?

6-8. What must we do to each of the faculties? Why?

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Brief Reflection on a Line from a Hymn

At morning prayer a line from the suggested hymn stuck out in my mind and caused some rumination with respect to where we stand with Godl.

The particular line is:

"God's way is my way..."

I think all too often we think this line the other way round. "My way is God's way." That is certainly more convenient, as we do not have to alter our current orbits to adjust to such annoyances as the dictates of charity, the Great Commission, or other such things as might get in the way of leading a "normal" life in Millsian Materialist America.

But the truth is, regardless of what is convenient, we should be able to speak the line as written. We should be able to say very humbly, "God's way is my way, by His grace and through His power." Otherwise Christianity is meaningless and Christ's sacrifice is moot. Our center needs to be outside ourselves. We are not self-contained solar systems but rather planets that orbit around a glorious Son.

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An Interesting Paradox

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Reflecting this morning on God and His mysterious ways, I stumbled upon what is probably an ancient paradox, but I state it here again because it is so valuable. God wants us to be not in a place of comfort but in a place of peace. We are often willing to make very large concessions to remain in an oasis of physical, intellectual, and emotional comfort. We are creatures of entropy--we like things to run smoothly as they have always run.

But God does not want this for us. I'm sure that He has nothing against comfort, but comfort is not the highest good and the name of comfort is often used to mask a serious malady, a deep spiritual malaise. There is nothing wrong with having money, but a great deal wrong with betraying tens or hundreds of people to get that money. And money alone may buy comfort, but it does not buy true peace.

Soren Kierkegaard is quoted in a number of sources as saying that if you are comfortable around Jesus, then you don't know Him. Jesus is a constant challenge to our integrity, our image of self, and our complacency about our situation. If we think that we're really good pals with Jesus, then we are more likely to be Judas than John.

Jesus challenges us constantly to attack the unjust status quo. We are to fight for the oppressed and be a voice to the voiceless. Thus, I have seen an inclination in Christian circles to attack those who go out to save baby seals and rain forests; however, the real edge of that attack should not be the concern thereby expressed for the proper stewardship of Earth's resources, but the practical hypocrisy of those groups that then march in favor of abortion. There is absolutely nothing wrong with having a strong sense of the sacredness and wonder of Nature, a strong affinity for what St. Francis and St. John of the Cross both loved. But if that comes uncoupled from an even stronger love for God and His Word, then it strays from the true.

Jesus challenges us to reevaluate our preconceptions, misconceptions, and viewpoints at all times. He forces us to examine motives, actions, and thoughts. And yet in all of this, while there may be no comfort, there can be great peace.

His Peace transcends words--even for St. Paul--and it doesn't come in complacency and comfort. His Peace comes when we truly love Him. It cannot come otherwise. It is rather like a married couple truly in love--where the spouse is, peace may be, even though the world all around them is in turmoil. There may be challenges to comfort, obstacles to resting in His peace, but in Love with Him, there is always peace. This is one of the great witnesses of the Martyrs. Truly they showed magnificent love of Jesus Christ, but equally they show amazing peace with all things around them.

So, part of our prayer time could profitably be spent examining whether we are resting in His peace, or relying upon creature comforts. If the latter, we might need to spend a bit of time discerning where God wants us to be and what He wants us to be doing because , "our hearts are restless until they rest in thee, O Lord."

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For a Lengthy Discussion of

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For a Lengthy Discussion of Harry Potter

and the current controversy surrounding him, please see The Catholic Bookshelf. As a former children's librarian, a present parent and worker in the field of children's education, I finally felt the need to say something. And as that something is a bit more contentious than I would like to feature here, I set it over there so others can come and comment (assuming e-netation ever resurrects itself.)

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The Magnificat Monthly Litany

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The Magnificat Monthly Litany

I loved the Litany featured for the month of June. They called it "Blessing for the Wisdom of the Doctors of the Church" and each part of the litany featured a small quote from a Church Doctor and an appropriate response. Below I feature those for the Carmelite Doctors:

St. Teresa of Jesus (Avila) (1582) "The Lord does not care so much for the importance of our works as for the love with which they are done." --For absolute purity of intention and unfailing love, St. Teresa of Avila, --Pray for us.

St. John of the Cross (1591)"When once the will is touched by God himself, it cannot be satisfied except by God."
--For a conversion that orders all my longings, St. John of the Cross
--Pray for us.

St. Thérèse of Lisieux (1897) "What pleases Jesus is that he sees me loving my littleness and my poverty, the blind hope I have in his mercy."
--For the grace of spiritual childhood, St. Thérèse of Lisieux
--Pray for us.

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Good Blogging It occurs to

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Good Blogging

It occurs to me that the best blogging, that which I most enjoy reading in the Catholic realm, is not distilled from the news of the day. Nor is comments on that same news. Nor is it in the form of scandals and hijinks and alarums and exuent omnes. No, rather that which I most like to read is the fruit of prayer, meditation, or at least thought about the Greater Things.

If what I have to say does not glorify God, it is better not to say it. If what I speak tears down creation and puts everyone in doubt, better that I have no voice. If I cast aspersions and wonder about motives, I move everyone to suspicion. If I ruminate over injustices and hurt without suggesting the Solution to all of these problems, I do no service.

One of the things about St. Blog's is that you can find blogs to suit every taste. I do enjoy reading some blogs that dip into controversy from time to time. In those places I comment sparingly and am thus relieved of the obligation to make a point of them here. But very little of that goes a long way. Better to stir about in the realms of those who are thinking--even of the news events, but thinking with the church, with the long line of magisterial teaching, and thus instructing me in my ignorance about how one approaches such a problem. I have learned a great deal from here, and I am deeply thankful for everyone I meet online. I can discuss books, prayer, and great philosophical problems in a forum that allows me to ask questions without feeling particularly threatened (although I do at times feel woefully inadequate to the task even of asking a question.) God has blessed us with a great good thing in St. Blogs, and we would do well to appreciate the gift for what it is, embrace it and thank Him in His goodness for this mercy.

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This Morning's Refrain

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I have nothing to offer this morning except the following refrain from one of the psalms:

Give thanks to the Lord for He is Good, His love endures forever.

And there is our hope--His Love, which endures forever. Praised be Jesus Christ, love incarnate, our brother, our teacher, our Lord. Give thanks to the Lord for He is Good, His love endures forever.

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This page is an archive of entries from July 2003 listed from newest to oldest.

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