But I Digress...

Truth, Charity, and...Tourism?

2009-07-07T23:09:00.002-04:00

(Caritas in Veritate in 10 minutes or less)

Having finished Caritas in Veritate (setting a new personal record for encyclical-reading, thanks for asking), my first impression is that it covers a lot of ground. Under the umbrella of putting the Truth back in our Charity, Pope Benedict touches on environmentalism, terrorism, globalization, labor outsourcing, the Mexico City Policy (not by name, but pretty clearly, nonetheless), and even international tourism. Rather than consisting solely of general reflections and teaching on the balance of truth and charity (which is mainly what I expected to find), the encyclical jumps around to numerous specific social issues of our time, tracing them back to a lack of truth in our charity.

All of the issues mentioned are discussed in the light of "development", which is the name of the game here (the word is used 247 times in 43 pages). Some of the other often-used phrases include "globalization" (27 times), "(economic) crisis" (15 times), welfare (11 times), and the "dignity of persons/the individual/the worker/work" (10 times).

One of the themes of this writing is the need for the supernatural in human life. The "perspective of eternal life", as Benedict calls it, is what makes man aspire to something beyond material wealth. "Humanity," he writes, "thus loses the courage to be at the service of higher goods." (11) He assures us that "Man is not a lost atom in a random universe; he is God's creature, whom God chose to endow with an immortal soul and whom he has always loved." (29) He also expresses the need for God in public life, writing that "practical atheism", promoted by the State, "deprives its citizens of the moral and spiritual strength that is indispensible for attaining integral human development..." (29) Finally, he addresses the need for the supernatural in the realm of science, writing that when the scientist rules out the possibility of transcendence, he does not solve his problems. Rather, he finds himself only with more, deeper questions. (74) He encourages us not to attempt to explain everything based on reason, instead telling us, "In every truth there is something more than we would have expected, in the love that we receive there is always an element that surprises us. We should never cease to marvel at these things." (77 -emphasis mine)

Pope Benedict also mentions our old friends Faith and Reason, as well as mentioning the Church's relevance and place in the modern world. Rather than contributing to the scientific or political advances of the world, she rather is concerned with helping society through "examin[ing] the signs of the times and interpret[ing] them", and sharing the truth. (9, 18) Faith and reason, as has been written and said so many times before, enrich one another and are mutually necessary: "Reason always stands in need of being purified by faith: this also holds true for political reason, which must not consider itself omnipotent. For its part, religion always needs to be purified by reason in order to show its authentically human face." (56)

One of the Pope's favorite themes gets brief mention, too, when he mentions that there is not a rupture between the pre- and -postconciliar social teachings of the Church. "On the contrary," he writes, "there is a single teaching, consistent and at the the same time ever new....Coherence does not mean a closed system: on the contrary, it means dynamic faithfulness to a light received." (12)

And now, in case you're wondering what the Pope did in fact have to say about the social issues of our time, here's (quite) a few soundbites. I've tried mightily not to take them out of context.

Globalization: "The risk for our time is that the de facto interdependence of people and nations is not matched by ethical interaction of consciences and minds that would give rise to truly human development." (9)

False Messianism: "The 'types of messianism which give promises but create illusions' (PP, 11) always build their case on a denial of the transcendent dimension of development, in the conviction that it lies entirely at their disposal." (17) I don't know about you, but I definitely thought of this guy.

Outsourcing and Social Security: "The market has prompted new forms of competition between States as they seek to attract foreign businesses to set up production centres....These processes have led to a downsizing of social security systems as the price to be paid for seeking greater competitive advantage in the global market, with consequent grave danger for the rights of workers, for fundamental human rights and for the solidarity associated with the traditional forms of the social State." (25)

Unions: "Through the combination of social and economic change, trade union organizations experience greater difficulty in carrying out their task of representing the interests of workers, partly because Governments, for reasons of economic utility, often limit the freedom or the negotiating capacity of labour unions. Hence traditional networks of solidarity have more and more obstacles to overcome. The repeated calls issued within the Church's social doctrine, beginning with Rerum Novarum, for the promotion of workers' associations that can defend their rights must therefore be honoured today even more than in the past." (25)

Welfare: "Being out of work or dependent on public or private assistance for a prolonged period undermines the freedom and creativity of the person and his family and social relationships, causing great psychological and spiritual suffering. I would like to remind everyone, especially governments engaged in boosting the world's economic and social assets, that the primary capital to be safeguarded and valued is man, the human person in his or her integrity: “Man is the source, the focus and the aim of all economic and social life'." (25)

Abortion Policies/Promotion: "In economically developed countries, legislation contrary to life is very widespread, and it has already shaped moral attitudes and praxis, contributing to the spread of an anti-birth mentality; frequent attempts are made to export this mentality to other States as if it were a form of cultural progress.

Some non-governmental Organizations work actively to spread abortion, at times promoting the practice of sterilization in poor countries, in some cases not even informing the women concerned. Moreover, there is reason to suspect that development aid is sometimes linked to specific health-care policies which de facto involve the imposition of strong birth control measures. Further grounds for concern are laws permitting euthanasia as well as pressure from lobby groups, nationally and internationally, in favour of its juridical recognition." (28)

The Market: "Economy and finance, as instruments, can be used badly when those at the helm are motivated by purely selfish ends. Instruments that are good in themselves can thereby be transformed into harmful ones. But it is man's darkened reason that produces these consequences, not the instrument per se. Therefore it is not the instrument that must be called to account, but individuals, their moral conscience and their personal and social responsibility." (36)

Population Control: "To consider population increase as the primary cause of underdevelopment is mistaken, even from an economic point of view...nor can sex education be reduced to technical instruction aimed solely at protecting the interested parties from possible disease or the “risk” of procreation. This would be to impoverish and disregard the deeper meaning of sexuality, a meaning which needs to be acknowledged and responsibly appropriated not only by individuals but also by the community. It is irresponsible to view sexuality merely as a source of pleasure, and likewise to regulate it through strategies of mandatory birth control....Against such policies, there is a need to defend the primary competence of the family in the area of sexuality, as opposed to the State and its restrictive policies, and to ensure that parents are suitably prepared to undertake their responsibilities." (44)

The Environment: "When nature, including the human being, is viewed as the result of mere chance or evolutionary determinism, our sense of responsibility wanes. In nature, the believer recognizes the wonderful result of God's creative activity, which we may use responsibly to satisfy our legitimate needs, material or otherwise, while respecting the intrinsic balance of creation. If this vision is lost, we end up either considering nature an untouchable taboo or, on the contrary, abusing it." (48)

Alternative Energy: "The technologically advanced societies can and must lower their domestic energy consumption, either through an evolution in manufacturing methods or through greater ecological sensitivity among their citizens. It should be added that at present it is possible to achieve improved energy efficiency while at the same time encouraging research into alternative forms of energy. What is also needed, though, is a worldwide redistribution of energy resources, so that countries lacking those resources can have access to them." (49)

The Connection of "Life Issues" to Environmentalism: "If there is a lack of respect for the right to life and to a natural death, if human conception, gestation and birth are made artificial, if human embryos are sacrificed to research, the conscience of society ends up losing the concept of human ecology and, along with it, that of environmental ecology. It is contradictory to insist that future generations respect the natural environment when our educational systems and laws do not help them to respect themselves." (51)

Consumerism: "It is good for people to realize that purchasing is always a moral — and not simply economic — act." (66)

The U.N.: (I'm just including the whole paragraph, since I'm not sure I entirely grasp what he's getting at here. Someone who knows more is more than welcome to enlighten me.) "In the face of the unrelenting growth of global interdependence, there is a strongly felt need, even in the midst of a global recession, for a reform of the United Nations Organization, and likewise of economic institutions and international finance, so that the concept of the family of nations can acquire real teeth. One also senses the urgent need to find innovative ways of implementing the principle of the responsibility to protect and of giving poorer nations an effective voice in shared decision-making. This seems necessary in order to arrive at a political, juridical and economic order which can increase and give direction to international cooperation for the development of all peoples in solidarity. To manage the global economy; to revive economies hit by the crisis; to avoid any deterioration of the present crisis and the greater imbalances that would result; to bring about integral and timely disarmament, food security and peace; to guarantee the protection of the environment and to regulate migration: for all this, there is urgent need of a true world political authority, as my predecessor Blessed John XXIII indicated some years ago. Such an authority would need to be regulated by law, to observe consistently the principles of subsidiarity and solidarity, to seek to establish the common good, and to make a commitment to securing authentic integral human development inspired by the values of charity in truth. Furthermore, such an authority would need to be universally recognized and to be vested with the effective power to ensure security for all, regard for justice, and respect for rights. Obviously it would have to have the authority to ensure compliance with its decisions from all parties, and also with the coordinated measures adopted in various international forums. Without this, despite the great progress accomplished in various sectors, international law would risk being conditioned by the balance of power among the strongest nations. The integral development of peoples and international cooperation require the establishment of a greater degree of international ordering, marked by subsidiarity, for the management of globalization. They also require the construction of a social order that at last conforms to the moral order, to the interconnection between moral and social spheres, and to the link between politics and the economic and civil spheres, as envisaged by the Charter of the United Nations." (67)

The Media (sorta): "What is astonishing is the arbitrary and selective determination of what to put forward today as worthy of respect. Insignificant matters are considered shocking, yet unprecedented injustices seem to be widely tolerated." (75)

2009-07-01T23:54:00.005-04:00

Earlier this week, I had the privilege of attending the Ordination Mass of our newest bishop, Bp. Lee Piche. I'll admit that I've always had a particular affection for the Cathedral, but it was a beautiful Mass by any standards. By my count, there were 15 bishops there (representing 4 out of 6 MN dioceses, and several out-of-state), and enough Knights of Columbus to line both sides of the entire main aisle (side note: who knew that Knights came in so many colors? Red, white, yellow, green, purple...). Archbishop Nienstedt, as usual, started and ended his homily by singing the chorus of a hymn ("We Have Been Told" in this case), and in between, reminded Bishop Piche of the life of service on which he's embarking as he enters the fullness of his vocation. Clocking in at 2hr40min, this was definitely one of the longest Masses I've ever been to, and the Cathedral was so packed that it got a little stifling at times, but the time flew by...in a prayerful kind of way.

As usual, I was most interested in the music (it didn't hurt that we couldn't actually see anything...), and it didn't disappoint. Given how many pieces there were, I was fully expecting to grit my teeth through one or two pieces, but it didn't ever come to that. The Cathedral Choir was joined by choirs from the parishes Bp. Piche has served in the past, as well as the St. Agnes Schola Cantorum (which is directed by the brother of the Bishop of New Ulm...who knew? Well, probably everyone but me.). I'm critical to a fault about liturgical music, but the biggest point of complaint for me was the inclusive language in the psalm (which was otherwise a nice setting). It's also worth noting that the Te Deum sung as Bp. Piche blessed the congregation was the first setting of that text that hasn't irked me. (I have a whole theory on Te Deums, but that's a topic for another day.) In fact, it was downright beautiful!

The Book of Gospels is placed on the new bishop's head.

Not a great picture, thanks to our mediocre seat, but a pretty cool moment.

Mass for the Episcopal Ordination of Lee Piche

as Auxiliary Bishop of Saint Paul-Minneapolis

on the Solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul

Preludes:

Toccata, Adagio, and Fugue in C (Bach)

Cantate Domino (Hassler)

Laudate Pueri (Victoria) - instrumental

Ave Maria (Victoria)

Introit:

Plainchant

Processional:

Behold, a New Creation (Biery)

By All Your Saints Still Striving

Gloria from New Mass for Congregations (Andrews)

Rite of Ordination:

Veni Creator Spiritus (Chant, with choral verses)

Offertory:

Set Me As a Seal Upon Your Heart (Clausen)

Mass setting:

Mass for the City (Proulx)

Agnus Dei:

Choral setting (Blasius Amon)

Communion:

Antiphon: Tu es Petrus (Plainchant)

If Ye Love Me (Tallis)

Psalm 79 (Biery)

Ave Verum Corpus (Mozart)

Hymn of Thanksgiving/Blessing by Bp. Piche:

Te Deum (Victoria)

Recessional:

Father, We Thank Thee Who Hast Planted

Shrine, Shrine, Everywhere a Shrine

2009-06-30T12:53:00.013-04:00

(title dedicated to Jenni)

Last weekend, we took a little day trip down to La Crosse to finally see the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe (a trip that we've been meaning to take for quite a while, but the stars finally aligned this time). After an accidental detour on the Rural Route, we made it and spent a few hours walking around and enjoying the sights.

Our Lady of the Visitors' Center (er, Guadalupe)

The exterior of the Shrine (with 6'1" Dad to give a little scale)

The cornerstone of the Shrine itself. I have to admit that it inspired me with a strange desire to name one of my children "Raimundus".

We happened to arrive just in time for Benediction, which was lovely (and mostly in Latin!)

I'm still not sure what I think of the angels clothed in gold. From a distance, they looked sort of like they were emerging from their cocoons.

The beautiful dome, surrounded by a few Doctors of the Church.

Another of the dome.

One set of mysteries on the Rosary Walk. Some of the mysteries (the Wedding at Cana, Descent of the Holy Spirit, etc) were depicted as taking place in the Shrine.

The Annunciation.

From the Stations Walk

Proof that God loves me (part 12143432429432432)

2009-02-04T11:45:00.002-05:00

I didn't have my drawing homework done for today because I was sick yesterday (and it's really hard to manage a brush and bottle of ink when you're flat on your back). I got to the classroom only to find those sweet words of reprieve: "Prof. Brown's Figure Drawing class is cancelled today."

A little lesson on an important topic

2009-02-02T20:37:00.003-05:00

Who says that nothing good comes from sitting around in the dining hall for hours after Saturday Mass? Every once in a while, brunch discussion brings up a good idea, and even more rarely, we actually do something productive based on it. Last Saturday, PWE and I made this video. We hope you find it educational.

Thought for the Day

2009-01-31T16:44:00.001-05:00

The only way to truly discover one’s vocation is to act on it, as one understands it, in the present moment — to step out in faith.

St. Maximilian Kolbe wrote, “If you have the will to love, you already give proof that you love. What counts is the will to love.”

-Dawn Eden

2009-01-15T01:05:00.002-05:00

How did I miss the fact that this is National Vocations Awareness Week? Before you click on to the next post in your reader, or check your email, or whatever, please please please take a quick moment to say a prayer for all those discerning vocations.

The Church needs more priests, so pray that every man who is called to this will recognize the call, and especially for all those who have never considered a possible vocation. However, quality is more important than quantity: the Church needs good priests, so pray that those who are not best suited to this life will also realize that.

Trust me - your prayers will not be in vain. God knows who needs them.

Our Lady of Good Counsel, pray for us!

Another beginning

2009-01-15T00:26:00.003-05:00

Forget New Year's resolutions; I think New Semester's resolutions are far more common around here. Sure, I'm trying to eat more vegetables and blog more and whatnot, but everyone seems to have come back resolved to go to bed earlier, keep on top of homework, get club stuff done ahead of time, and on and on. So far so good - two days in and I'm not behind on stuff yet!

This semester is promising to be considerably better than last. At the very least, all of my professors seem sane and/or awesome, which is already an improvement. The biggest hurdle will be coping with my schedule. On Mondays and Wednesdays, I have 3 hours of Silkscreen, 3 hours of Figure Drawing, and an hour and a half of Art History, with no breaks in between (besides the standard 15 minutes between classes). I knew it was going to be rough, but today left me totally drained (not to mention how surprisingly hard it is to keep up on that whole vegetable thing when my main meal consists of whatever I can get from the Huddle during a 10-minute break).

As far as the classes themselves, I'm pretty optimistic. Silkscreen will probably be interesting, if freakishly expensive ($200 lab fee + paper = youch). I'll probably end up printing madly in an attempt to get my money's worth out of it.

Figure Drawing is promising to live up to my expectations: awkward and hard. It was one thing when we had professional models at SMC last year; I didn't know them and would never see them again. Having students do it, though, is just bad. It's so much more difficult to separate oneself from the subject when said subject is someone you see around campus fairly often. I'm trying to be charitable (since $20/hour is tempting to anyone who's facing $40,000 tuition), but as Johnny said, there's only so much benefit-of-the-doubt you can give someone who takes their clothes off for money.

History of Photography has a few things going against it. First, it's in the late afternoon, which is historically a sleepy time of day for me. Second, it's right after my 6-hour studio marathon. Third, it involves lots of slideshows in a dark room. Pretty much the only thing in its favor is that I really like looking at photos.

Music of the Catholic Rite looks totally awesome. We get to read about awesome stuff, listen to awesome music, go to an awesome conference...have I mentioned that it's going to be...awesome?

My college seminar class will be a bit of a shift. We're listening to and watching various stories - The Odyssey, Wagner's operas, Lord of the Rings, etc. This would be right up my alley, except that we're not reading them, and we're not allowed to bring notes or notebooks to class for discussions. For such a visual learner as I am, this emphasis on oral and listening skills is going to be challenging, to say the least.

Last but not least, there are my Friday classes, which would be....nothing. Probably sleeping late and not fully appreciating how this balances out my M/W schedule.

It would appear that I'm already failing at that "go to bed earlier" thing, but I just felt the need to give a little update. Besides, who knows - tomorrow may be a snow day!

Satisfaction Guaranteed

2008-12-17T19:32:00.002-05:00

I was skimming a Chicago Tribune article about a total-face transplant, when I hit a paragraph that stopped me dead in my tracks:

Arthur Caplan, a leading bioethicist who has expressed concerns in the past about such surgery, withheld judgment on the Cleveland case but said the woman's doctors should give her the option of assisted suicide if they make her life worse.
(article)

Seriously? I'm certainly not denying the trauma that would drive someone to this measure, but presenting someone with the option of suicide because a failed reconstructive surgery? Then again, I suppose we can already kill other people based on their appearance...

All that’s standing between me and break:

2008-12-15T20:58:00.001-05:00

Paint and assemble giant cardboard tube of lipstick (due at 10:30 tomorrow)
Repaint plaster self-portrait (also due at 10:30)
Dispose of giant tube of lipstick and (30 lb.) plaster self-portrait. The possibilities of what to do with the latter are endless…
Write Christmas/thank-you cards to five or six priests
Turn in creative writing final project; brush the dust of that class of my shoes on the way out the door. (4:15 tomorrow)
Finish printing photos for portfolio, decide that the chemical prints are better anyway
Philo test (Friday morning). Hume, Descartes, and Kant won't know what hit them. That would be me. With a copy of the Summa.
Throw away roughly 1700 pages of class handouts I'll never need again.
Clean room so I won't want to cry when I see my room again in January.

Gaudete!

2008-12-15T10:58:00.002-05:00

Altar servers: 4
Priests in choro: 1
Schola members: 6
Attendance: ~80
Hours spent ironing surplices/albs: 2 1/2
Height of candlesticks: really flipping tall

Getting to start finals week with a mindblowingly awesome Mass: Priceless

It’d be a good day to watch The Untouchables…

2008-12-10T13:00:00.001-05:00

"If it isn't the most corrupt state in the United States, it's certainly one hell of a competitor," said Robert Grant, special agent in charge of Chicago's FBI office. "Even the most cynical agents in our office were shocked." (source)

It takes so little to kill the mood...

2008-12-09T16:30:00.002-05:00

I've been having a pretty good week so far, despite the fact that I've got a ton to do in the next 10 days. Having finished my philo paper at midnight last night, I got 8 hours of sleep, and woke up in time to take a shower, blow-dry my hair, and still have time for a Starbucks run before class. Even the pouring rain made me feel more like Gene Kelly than a drowned cat. Then, I stepped into Starbucks, which has become the most Christmas-y locale on campus, after the Alumni Chapel (which looks like a Macy's). Among the early-morning chatter of baristas and students, what do I hear, but the one sound that could really kill my happiness.

Yoko Ono on the Christmas Muzak.

Quote for Finals Season

2008-12-08T01:25:00.001-05:00

Some men are graduated from college cum laude, some are graduated summa cum laude, and some are graduated mirabile dictu.

~William Taft

2008-08-28T00:12:00.002-04:00

Notre Dame's weekly Tridentine Mass will be starting up again this weekend (for more information, see the Campus Ministry website). Note the later Mass time which, while still far from ideal, will hopefully make it easier for both the die-hards and the curious to attend.
Why yes, that is my poster design. Thanks for noticing. (the image is, I believe, from the St. Andrew's Missal)

2008-08-27T08:51:00.000-04:00

Happy feast of Saint Monica! Call your mother!

2008-08-12T11:49:00.003-04:00

Here's a story that will probably go largely unnoticed due to the fact that it's summer: A man needed a kidney transplant; his uncle was a match. Meanwhile, a woman's son prepared to donate his kidney to her. It was then discovered that the son was a better match for the nephew, and coincidentally, the uncle happened to match the mother.

It would be a strange enough, Reader's Digest-worthy story in any case, but is all the more noteworthy because it involves a former president of Notre Dame.

Notre Dame’s president from 1987 to 2005, Father Malloy volunteered earlier this year to donate a kidney to Rorapaugh, 41. The son of Father Malloy’s sister Joanne, Rorapaugh learned two years ago that he has severe kidney dysfunction, and he has been on dialysis three times weekly ever since.

After no match was found among several of Rorapaugh’s immediate family members, Father Malloy – who goes by the nickname “Monk” – began to consider becoming a donor. He thought that at age 67 he would be considered too old, but after going through a wide array of tests, it was determined that he is in excellent health, and he learned on April 11 that he was approved to go forward as a donor for his nephew.

In recent weeks, however, the transplantation took on a new twist when doctors realized that a man who had hoped to donate a kidney to his mother was a better match for Rorapaugh, and, fortuitously, that Father Malloy was a match for the man’s mother.
(read the whole story here)

QB Messes With ND's Chances of Not Sucking

2008-08-06T18:41:00.002-04:00

Notre Dame will investigate possible school code violations after the Web site The Big Lead posted photos Monday that appear to depict Clausen, teammates Brian Smith and James Aldridge and one other individual attending what the site labeled “Beer Olympics.”

The pictures are not dated, and while there is beer on the table in front of the players, the photos do not show the players actively consuming alcohol.

No matter the date of the photos, at least two of the players would not be of legal drinking age: Clausen, who does not turn 21 until Sept. 21, and Smith, who does not reach 21 until 2010. Aldridge turned 21 on July 6.

(Article here)

Allow me to make a few comments about our football team. Compared to most programs, ours is pretty academically advanced (earning a GPA of 3.0 last semester). However, I just spent the last 6 weeks in class with a few dozen incoming freshman football and hockey players, and seriously, they're not the coldest beers in the fridge (oh. I suppose that's kind of an ironic comparison.). The first time we got math homework back, one of them said, "Um, professor? Mine says '10 over 10'; is that good?" Argh. One school/practice night, a bunch of them drove to Fort Wayne (2 hours) to go to a club, which apparently turned out to be attended mostly by 16-year-old girls. Don't see that ending well...

I'd hate to paint the whole team with a broad brush, but based on what I've seen first-hand, I have to say that much as I would like to be, I'm less than psyched about this season.

Summer Literature

2008-08-06T18:30:00.002-04:00

Believe it or not, this whole Vacation Bible School/500 kids/taking lots and lots of pictures/occasionally holding babies thing is a little tiring, so I may not be around a lot this week, but in the interest of maintaining the high cultural standards of this blog (stop laughing), I now present a couple modern adaptations of classic literature (both tragic tales of royals, incidentally):

And if you're looking for a slightly lengthier diversion (~40 minutes), I'd recommend Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog, which, now that I think about it, is also a tragedy (huh - I seem to be working on a theme here...). Quite hilarious all the same, though I should warn that it's decidedly PG-13 in places.

What I'm Doing This Week

2008-08-05T02:09:00.002-04:00

Did Anyone Else Know This?

2008-07-30T12:22:00.002-04:00

Because I certainly didn't.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) introduced sex testing in 1968 at the Olympic games in Mexico City, after the masculine appearance of some competitors, many pumped up by anabolic steroids, had started to raise questions about the gender of athletes in female events.

(The rest of the somewhat bizarre article is here)

Doe, a Deer...

2008-07-30T12:16:00.002-04:00

Someone recently asked, via email, for my unfortunate Car-Meets-Deer story, and while I was responding, it occurred to me that I may never have actually typed the whole thing up before. It also reminded me that it's really kind of a funny story, so I thought I'd share it. Apropos of nothing, but hey, it's my blog.

I was driving home from work on a fairly high-traffic highway, on the Thursday night after deer-hunting season started (which in Minnesota typically means that all the deer are running around in places they shouldn't be...like under my car). Anyway, the silly animal with which I was about to become acquainted ran out into the road and was hit by another car, which threw it – still very much alive – in front of me. What followed can only be described as a sickening thump. The car scraped to a stop, still half in the road (incidentally, one of the morals of the story is that you should always carry road flares in your car…).

Well, the car was still running and sounded fine, but wouldn’t move forward or backwards. I called my dad (who could totally be like one of those guys on the Car Talk radio shows or something) and told him what happened. There wasn’t much he could do besides tell me he’d be there as soon as he could, which wasn’t reassuring, because I was about 45 minutes from home.

The driver of the other car had wandered over and asked if I was alright. I told him that I was okay, but for some reason, I couldn’t get the car to move any further off the road. He responded, “Umm…you do know that the deer is still under the car, right?” I had in fact failed to notice that, but it did explain a few things. He then tried unsuccessfully to move my car, and then we just stood there and waited for the police.

There is nothing more awkward than trying to make small talk with someone when your only connection to them is a dead animal lying under your car, bleeding all over the pavement. “So….how’s your car?” I asked, finally. “Totalled,” was the pained reply, “It’s new; doesn’t even have plates yet. It’s okay, though – it’s my anniversary, so at least I already have flowers in the car.” It was at this point that I remembered my rather unfortunate reaction to an adrenaline let-down: finding everything *really* funny. Whoops.

It was quite a while later that the police finally showed up. The cop walked slowly around my car, critically surveying the situation. “Huh,” he finally said. “Huh. Never seen that before.” Being unable to free car or deer, we stood there for a while longer. We were chatting about something when he suddenly stopped, walked up to the car, crouched down, picked up the deer’s leg, and let it drop limply. “Just checkin’,” he explained. “Sometimes you think they’re dead, and they come back to life.”

The challenge of the situation was too much for the fine men of the Blaine City PD to resist, and soon this had become a 4-police-car spectacle. After trying out many creative strategies, they finally admitted defeat. There was a tow truck on the way for the other car, so when it arrived, they just had it lift up my car first, so they could disentangle the deer. When the car was lifted up, the grisliness of the situation was finally revealed.

Once the deer was finally out of the way, I discovered that the worst damage done to my car was the fact that my battery had died while I was waiting for the police to show up.

So yes. That’s the story. Slightly disgusting, but it still makes me smile, a year and a half later. ;-)

2008-07-29T15:18:00.003-04:00

I have a feeling that lots of young Catholics can relate to the following, from a recent piece by John Zmirak:

Apart from the occasional Latin Mass full of elderly anti-Masonic activists, we typically sit through our dismal local services with teeth clenched and earlids shut, and spot each other (if at all) by secret handshakes and coded phrases. See that blonde over there, a friend might nudge you with his elbow. She took Communion on the tongue. I wonder if she’s single…. Such thoughts don’t always help you to pray.

("Riding the Short Bus to Love" - H/T Mom)

Personally, it reminded me of some excited text messages I got earlier this summer regarding the "Unidentified Chapel Veil" at 5:15 Mass. Perhaps this can lead to a new marketing campaign for the scapular/chapel veil industry*:

*No, I am not actually suggesting that one should wear a scapular, chapel veil, or ashes for the sole purpose of advertising one's status as a good Catholic. However, if one's motives are well-ordered anyway, I see nothing wrong with the possibility of an additional benefit....

2008-07-29T02:55:00.002-04:00

Since everyone else seems to be talking about Humanae Vitae, here's a story about a family who just welcomed their 18th child:

Alexandru Ionce and his wife never planned to have 18 children in 23 years but when they welcomed little Abigail Ionce into the world, that's just what happened.

"We never planned how many children to have," he said. "We just let God guide our lives, you know, because we strongly believe life comes from God and that's the reason we did not stop the life.

"We let life come."

"We let life come." What a concept! May more people embrace this philosophy.

Blogging Breakfast

2008-07-27T10:29:00.003-04:00

Having been to Tridentine Mass, Mary Liz and I are now sitting at breakfast, listening to Dave Brubeck's Notre Dame concert, reading sketchy-nun blogs, talking about weddings (including a beautiful Croatian tradition that was done at the wedding she attended yesterday; it's described here). In short, a nearly perfect Sunday morning.

(Her post, with photo)

Without further ado...

2008-07-26T14:39:00.002-04:00

Now that Mary Liz has seen it, I now present the chapel, construction (apparently) done, though still missing the doors and furniture.

(this hallway is new. It's not really an interesting picture, but I'm including it so that I can mention what ML said when she saw it: "Oh, yay! Now the garbage doesn't have to roll past Jesus anymore!")

Well, so much for that business model...

2008-07-24T11:21:00.002-04:00

Complete list of closing Starbucks locations. Me? I'm fine as long as they don't touch the one I actually go to. Family? You might want to look at page 10...

2008-07-24T11:20:00.001-04:00

Exactly.

And then, through the silence, there came.....

2008-07-23T23:23:00.002-04:00

I'm going to post this, even at the risk of sounding curmudgeonly. You have been warned.

I appreciate music in church as much as the next person (maybe more, if the next person happens to be...never mind ;-P). However, I'm also very protective of some good old post-communion silence. When that's not possible, I at least like being able to tune out the music and pray in my "interior silence". Having grown up in a parish that's quite attached not only to the communion song, but also the post-communion (and sometimes post-post-communion), I've gotten pretty good at ignoring the music.

Every so often, however, even my mad skillz are put to the test. Today, for instance. There was a group at 5:15 Mass from some conference, and well, they were of the age that both loves to sing in church and yet is exceptionally bad at it. So there I was, praying, when suddenly, breaking through my carefully placed, nearly impenetrable mental barriers, there came:
"And I will RAAAAAAAISE you up on the last day!"

And so, instead of prayer and reflection, I must admit that I found myself instead bracing inwardly each time I knew it was coming from the woman behind us. (And don't even get me started on that song or any that uses first-person pronouns for God. Ugh...)

You've Got to Be Kidding...

2008-07-22T22:38:00.002-04:00

I have quite the pile of Ecology homework due in the next week: test tomorrow, paper Thursday, paper Friday, and 30-minute presentation on Monday. In the interest of *not* procrastinating, I've decided to lock myself in the library (no, not literally) until it's done. So far, the test is studied for and Thursday's paper is done. For Monday's presentation, each of the five presenting groups had to assign reading from the textbook, as well as an outside article on their topic. Friday's assignment is a synopsis of all of those readings. I didn't think it was going to take too long, until I was scanning the list of assignments and made a rather unpleasant discovery. All of the groups, knowing well that everyone - themselves included - was going to have to do all this reading by Friday, assigned a maximum of 10 pages from the textbook. All the groups, that is, except one. I don't know if they thought they'd get brownie points for overachieving, or if they just weren't paying attention to what they were doing, but one group has assigned pages 544-566, 574-597, and 607-623. Yes, 61 pages. I guess it's a good thing that the library is open until 2:00...

Chapel Update

2008-07-22T19:41:00.003-04:00

I have purposely refrained from putting up the latest chapel photos, solely because I want Mary Liz to be surprised when she comes out this weekend*. Well, the construction is done, and now all that's left is for the furniture to come in. It's actually a really remarkable transformation; the chapel is unrecognizable from the way it was. So, photos to come this weekend.

*As opposed to the surprise that she'll feel when she sees North Quad :-( .

More Knittery

2008-07-15T01:34:00.003-04:00

My latest finished knitting project:
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All in all, it was super-easy, and just needs clothes (I'm waiting for a crochet hook so I can improv a dress). I made it to be a baby gift, but right now it's proving to be really good for snuggling with and tempting me to hang onto it...

If you can't beat 'em...

2008-07-13T17:34:00.003-04:00

The conference checking in today is kind of a pain. And by "kind of", I mean every single person who comes in has some issue. To cope, we have developed the following strategies:

1) Brownies
2) IM conversations between the four of us. Yes, we're all sitting within 8 feet of each other. But somehow, it's very therapeutic to talk about the annoying people without them knowing it. Now we just have to keep straight faces...

2008-07-13T13:03:00.000-04:00

A quick but essential note on the song I had up on iTunes in the picture in the previous post: if you're not familiar with Ella Fitzgerald's live Berlin performance of "Mack the Knife", you're missing out on one of the greatest moments in music. Ever. Read more about it here or here.

The view from my Sunday morning

2008-07-13T12:27:00.009-04:00

(the post-Mass morning, that is, of course)

2008-07-12T07:43:00.003-04:00

Yay - wood flooring! Everything that's not already floored will have carpeting (of the nice, non-shag variety).

Wood paneling for the walls and pillars.

If this doesn't make you smile

2008-07-11T10:44:00.003-04:00

...you should probably get checked out for other signs of life.

(H/T Dawn Eden)

Chapel Update

2008-07-09T23:24:00.004-04:00

Well, the ceiling is back in, which IMHO makes the room seem a lot more finished. No vaulted ceiling for us, but ah well...

2008-07-07T22:59:00.006-04:00

Related to the recent discussion about "meditative needlework" over at the Pious Sodality, I just have to show off a gift I received over the weekend: a quilt from Mom (a belated high school graduation gift). The pictures don't really do it justice; I didn't have anyone to hold it for me, and the fluorescent lighting in my room makes the colors not quite accurate.

(For some reason, this photo keeps uploading 90 degrees sideways. Just tilt your head.)

The text around the edge is a favorite prayer of mine: "Subjects for Daily Meditation"

Remember, Christian soul, that thou hast this day, and every day of thy life:
God to glorify,
Jesus to imitate,
The Blessed Virgin and the Saints to venerate,
The Angels to invoke,
A soul to save,
A body to mortify,
Sins to expiate,
Virtues to acquire,
Hell to avoid,
Heaven to gain,
Eternity to prepare for,
Time to profit by,
Neighbors to edify,
The world to despise,
Devils to combat,
Passions to subdue,
Death perhaps to suffer,
And Judgment to undergo.

The blind leading the blind

2008-07-03T16:34:00.002-04:00

Overheard between two teenaged soccer-campers near the Basilica:

"...And then you tell him all the stuff you did bad and he tells you some special prayer to say to make God forgive you."

"(girlish horrified squeal) And you have to look at him while you tell him everything?"

"(as if recounting a campfire horror story) Yes, you have to, or it doesn't count."

Putting Women in Their Place

2008-07-02T23:21:00.003-04:00

Recently, I've been reading Life Is Worth Living, a collection of talks from Fulton Sheen's television show. A fair number of the chapters are devoted to the take-down of communism, but most are surprisingly relevant and/or shockingly prophetic. The whole book is fantastic, and I could devote posts upon posts to it (really, it's just one great quote after another), but a few sections really stuck out at me. Among them is a chapter entitled "Women Who Do Not Fail", in which Abp. Sheen describes the three types of women who "keep civilization at a high level" (for he has already explained that "the level of any civilization is the level of its womanhood.").

He states what is often said, that all women are called to motherhood, be it physical or spiritual. However, before he even addresses the more commonly thought-of vocations of women, he looks at one that is, in my experience, often overlooked: How exactly do women in the professional world fulfill their call to motherhood? Are not such women doomed to lives of hardness and cutthroat competition? Not so, says Sheen:

"A woman in professional life is happy when she has an occasion to be feminine....The woman who does not fail in the professional life is the woman, therefore, who manifests this feminine quality of 'equity'."

It follows, then, that the women who do become embittered by professional life are the ones who, for whatever reason, are not given or do not take the opportunity to express their feminine call to motherhood. In my experience, these opportunities often come in small ways - remembering coworkers' birthdays, sewing on someone's wayward button, bringing in a bouquet of flowers to liven up the office. It's these small things, these chances to give, and to "mother" someone, that can keep a woman from completely losing herself in her job.

The next type of women is the physical mothers, whose job it is not only to bear children, but also to teach obedience, for "mothers, more than politicians, are the preservers are freedom and democracy." In addition, the aforementioned feminine quality of equity, or mercy, complements the father's tendency toward justice. In this way, I suppose, the combined balance of justice and mercy between parents is an image to children of the justice and mercy of God, albeit in a much smaller and more imperfect way.

Finally, he addresses those who live out their vocation through spiritual motherhood. And their example is a lesson and an inspiration to the rest of society:

"When spoiled lovers seek to make a false infinite out of a succession of finite loves, it is helpful to civilization to know there are some whose first love is their last love, and their last love is the love of God."

Besides their example to the surrounding world, these women offer their lives and all their love for the sake of something greater, for the preservation of an ideal. Comparing them to soldiers who sacrifice everything for the sake of the patriotism and the love of their country, Sheen writes:

"Should there not be some women who will love God so deeply and so profoundly that they will sacrifice all lesser loves in order to preserve, for a week and sinful and possibly sex-minded world, the real understanding of love? They keep love pure."

Despite the fact that they are often scoffed at, questioned, or mocked, these women have found something so beautiful that they are willing to forsake the visible, tangible love of marriage. And yet, they're so very happy with it (side note: there are several Nashville Dominicans here on a seemingly longer-term basis - by which I mean a few weeks so far - and those women are always. smiling. Like, even in situations that are really too mundane to cause happiness in most people, they're smiling. Clearly they've found something good.).

The chapter concludes with a reflection on the women who followed Jesus through His ministry and Passion: Mary Magdalene, who inspired people in the sociopolitical sphere; Mary, the mother of James, who taught her son such that he was willing to follow the Lord; and finally, the Blessed Virgin, "who left the lights and glamour of the world for the shade and shadows of the Cross, where saints are made." It is these women, examples for all women, who as Sheen points out, were closest to the Cross, and first to the tomb.

Zero sum?

2008-07-02T23:12:00.002-04:00

Today at 5:15 Mass:

My favorite hymn, played by my least favorite organist. (what, you thought that was going to be a link too? I'm not that brutal)
Still trying to figure out what the net gain/loss was. Was it worth it, just to hear a good hymn? On the other hand, if she picked the hymn, then I guess she just went up in my estimation. Hmm...I'll have to ponder this.

Movie Review: Peter Pan

2008-06-29T13:37:00.004-04:00

"The timeless story as you've never seen it before", says the poster. That's the truth, and it's a good thing. This is a fairy tale, but definitely not in the same way as Disney's version, with its blundering Hook and comical croc. Instead, we have a villain who taunts a vanquished (and pre-teen) foe with the prospect of dying alone and unloved, and a veritable leviathan of a sea stalker.

As part of the more grown-up telling of this story, the filmmakers also play up the tension between Peter and Wendy. There's nothing more than a kiss or two, but there are lots of humorous references to the thumble/kiss confusion and a very sweet explanation of a girl's first kiss.

All in all, a very good movie. I wasn't expecting it, but I found myself entertained through the whole thing. Highly recommended for a little diversion.

Chapel Update

2008-06-28T18:20:00.006-04:00

There hasn't been a whole lot of progress on the chapel lately (they've been working on the electrical wiring and other less-visible aspects), but I found a photo that I thought I had posted a while ago, but apparently never did (mea culpa).

So, from June 5:

(apologies for the quality; I literally just stuck my arm through the plastic sheeting over the doorway and snapped a photo without looking)

The view from the lobby has changed somewhat; as you can see, the wall has been put up to divide the lounge and the chapel. No, the chapel walls aren't purple (it's just the sheetrock - see below for the real color).

And then, from today:

The same view as above, but now painted. Obviously, we're still waiting on the stained glass, but the mysterious packages may just contain the wood flooring...

I didn't realize this photo was so fuzzy until I got in onto the computer, but you can still tell what it is. Yes, that's right: a place where the altar should obviously and rightly stay! It's such a crazy idea, it might just work!

Ever Ancient, Ever New

2008-06-28T18:07:00.004-04:00

By popular request, here are some photos of what the Basilica looks like for the summer. In addition to replacing the spire that was blown off a year ago, they are reportedly doing other maintenance (though no one seems to know any details), which is probably a good idea, since it took a month to get all the scaffolding up in the first place. Of course, it makes a somewhat less-than-picturesque backdrop for summer wedding photos, and some of the older alumni who I've run into on campus seem paranoid that there's a secret plan to tear down the steeple altogether and "modernize" the building, but given that it's going to look like this until October (according to rumor), I'm guessing people will get used to it. It is kind of a glaring change to the familiar skyline, though.

(Props to Emily for suggesting the title for this post)

Fuzzy Science

2008-06-26T10:53:00.002-04:00

I wasn't too excited about taking Ecology and Environmental Issues in the first place, given my harrowing experience in Psych last semester, but I needed a science class, and I didn't want to take O-Chem, so this fit the bill. So far, it's actually been pretty interesting; more Ecology than Environmental Issues.

The textbook publisher provided a powerpoint presentation (say that 10 times fast!) to assist professors with their lectures. Well, the first chapter of the book is devoted teaching the scientific method, means of evaluating the science used in news stories, etc., with the goal of being able to check that claims are backed up with actual science.

Well, that was chapter one. Chapter two gets into some actual "environmental issues", and therein lies the problem. The provided powerpoint slips in slides that say in big, scary, italics "Pollution kills 40,000 people a year!" and "Overpopulation exacerbates every environmental issue". And where, exactly, is the science to back those up? Sorry, but they taught me to ask.

2008-06-25T20:04:00.005-04:00

Today's must-read article (via Dawn Eden) is this piece: "How to Discern the Elements of Your Personal Vocation".

St. Ignatius instructs us to consider the pros and cons of each option. It might even help to write these out. Sometimes proceeding in this way eliminates all but one option and leaves nothing to discern, but often enough two or more options remain. At this point, it is time for emotion to play its part. St. Ignatius suggests that we imagine how we would advise someone else in our exact situation, and follow the advice we would give to that other person. He also has us imagine what we would wish we had chosen if we were looking back on our choice, first from our deathbed and then from the perspective of judgment day. He says we should decide now what we would then wish we had decided.
...
The idea is that if we are upright, God speaks to us through the desires of our hearts. It makes no sense to tell an adulterer or a greedy person to follow his or her desires, but it makes perfect sense to tell someone who is interested in discovering and following God’s will to do so. This surely is what St. Augustine means in exhorting us to love and do what we will.

The second part especially jumped out at me. I think there's a tendency to think that we should go in the opposite direction of whatever we feel inclined toward because, after all, God must be calling us to a life of sacrifice. But the point of discernment is to align our will to the will of God, and isn't it *possible* that our wills are already aligned to the point that the option that is attractive and pleasing to us is also what's pleasing to God?

If we have eliminated the morally illegitimate options and sincerely strive to do God’s will, we can be confident that he will speak to us through the desires of our hearts. After some time of pondering the different options, one eventually will emerge as the more appealing, and we will be at peace with embracing it. When that happens, our discernment is over. Then we must accept the discernment by beginning to live it out.

Read the whole thing. Then print it, take it to Adoration, and read it again (highlighting as necessary). Yes, it's that good.

2008-06-22T23:17:00.003-04:00

Image Source

For some reason, it just strikes me that Latin wasn't meant to be used thusly. Maybe it's because "Yes, we can" is a lame slogan anyway, and putting it into Latin doesn't automatically make it better.

John and Mary Catholic, you've just been insulted

2008-06-13T16:31:00.002-04:00

I've seen in a few places today references to Bp. Trautman's objections about the proposed translations, this time to the Proper of Seasons. I thought these articles sounded familiar, and sure enough, he said the same things almost exactly a year ago.

Allow me to reprint what I wrote at the time (I even checked the links to make sure they still work):

John & Mary Catholic in the Spotlight

If you haven't already seen them, check out Amy Welborn's informative and highly amusing thread on Bishop Trautman's statement that the average Catholic will have trouble understanding the proposed translations of the Mass. For a succinct and witty response, do read George Weigel's article "We Are Not Morons"

" Are there clunkers in the new translations? Undoubtedly. But will ICEL’s attempt to restore the sacral vocabulary and linguistic rhythms of the Roman Rite to Catholic worship within the Anglosphere destroy our ability to pray as a community? Please; we’re not morons. I’d even venture the guess that prayers translated with far more fidelity to the Latin originals will be a step toward a deeper, more prayerful encounter with what Bishop Trautman rightly calls “the greatest gift of God, the Eucharist.”

Suppose for a minute that Catholics do come across unfamiliar words in the liturgy. Oddly enough, publishers seem to have anticipated such a dilemma by coming out with a book that - wait for it - provides the meaning of unfamiliar words. Even easier, if one were to Google, for example, "unsullied", and click on the first result, one would find the alternate meaning of "clean". The next time that word came up - in the liturgy or elsewhere - it would no longer be a mystery. More importantly, it would, I believe, lead to a higher level of engagement in said liturgy. Speaking at least for myself, I believe I would find myself more likely to pay attention if I had invested even a small amount of time into discovering the meaning of the prayers. Besides, having some level of mental engagement (hearing uncommon vocabulary) can only force listeners to pay closer attention, and I don't think anyone's arguing against that. A common tip in SAT prep for the Verbal section is to use context to determine or make an educated guess at the meaning of a word. Again, I think we would all be better off if we paid closer attention to what has sadly become all-too-familiar and zoned-out-upon words (I speak as much to myself here as to anyone).

Not only that, but the distinction between the language of the liturgy and the language of everyday conversation leads to a heightened sense of propriety. When one steps into a church, one is (hopefully) reminded visually that they are in a special place. The sights, smells, and music serve as a reminder that this is something set apart, and so too should the words spoken. When you receive a wedding invitation, it doesn't say "My parents and his parents want you to come to our wedding on June 7 - 1:30-ish. Let us know if you can make it." Rather, the words used denote the significance of the event taking place.

I mentioned SAT prep before. Most 11th & 12th grade students are required or strongly encouraged to take an SAT prep class. A bit part of that is studying vocabulary, including words like "abase", "abstruse", "onerous", and "obviate". If the average high-schooler can familiarize themselves with those words, which they'll rarely use, I think they can handle "sullied" and "unfeigned", which will - God willing - be used every Sunday in every Catholic church.

Celebrity sighting...(?)

2008-06-04T23:23:00.002-04:00

Spotted today at the Grotto, amidst the funeral cards and other remembrances of the deceased: a torn-off magazine cover featuring a large picture of Christian Bale. Why, you ask? Beats me.

2008-06-04T22:18:00.003-04:00

Through the chapel door

Summer Adoration started this evening. We were lucky enough to get it from 7-9 every Wednesday. While I wasn't able to stay for long, it was really great to have the opportunity to go again after a hiatus of several weeks, and there were several people there.

Kitchen Goodness

2008-06-03T20:08:00.002-04:00

A few recipes I've tried out lately:

Granola. Based on this recipe (with the following changes to the ingredient list).
6 cups rolled oats
~~1 cup sunflower seeds~~
1 cup chopped ~~almonds or~~ pecans (I used - I think - a 6 oz. bag; it came out to about 1 1/2 cups. I didn't have a knife handy, so I just broke them in half, which was perfect)
3/4 cup ~~coconut or~~ canola oil
1/2 cup real or maple syrup
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup (packed) brown sugar
~~½ cup flax seeds~~
~~1/2 cup sesame seeds~~
Up to 1 cup shredded unsweetened coconut (I couldn't find unsweetened, but regular worked just fine)
1 cup dried cranberries
3/4 banana chips, broken

Thanks to the dorm oven, one pan burned a little, but once it was mixed in with the rest, it actually gave it a nice flavor.

Oatmeal cookies. In search of a cookie recipe that only made a dozen or so, I came across this one, which uses instant oatmeal. I took advantage of the stockpile of oatmeal left over in the kitchen (unfortunately, the packaging was all in Spanish, but I managed to guess pretty accurately which flavor was in which package). I added vanilla extract and chocolate chips, and they turned out really well. Plus, it only took me about 20 minutes start-to-finish.

2008-06-03T18:33:00.002-04:00

FOR TODAY June 3...

Outside My Window... rain. It was painfully humid this morning, so I'm glad it finally "broke" and just started raining.

I am thinking... that it would be a good day just to go back to bed.

I am thankful for... come on, must you ask?

From the kitchen... feeling a little under the weather, so right now, I've got a cup of cocoa and an orange.

I am wearing... a skirt and t-shirt.

I am creating... a few different things, but mostly just the aforementioned socks, which are coming along nicely (although I haven't gotten to the hard part yet).

I am going... to bed early tonight.

I am reading... "Liberating Liturgies", the latest in the on-going parade of scary books found in the library and other various places. Credit for finding this one goes to Kim; I can't imagine why she thought of me when she saw it :-P

I am hoping... that I don't end up working on Thursday or Friday.

I am hearing... the rain. An added bonus: the weather made the masonry work stop early for the day, so they've been quiet for the last few hours. Also, I think I found the perfect soundtrack for a rainy afternoon.

Around the house... sorting the necessary stuff out from the unnecessary in hopes of getting it out of my way soon.

One of my favorite things... having nothing to do but curl up and read.

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week: Oh, you know, this and that; work, read, maybe a few other things coming up this weekend.

Here is picture thought I am sharing...

2008-06-03T16:19:00.002-04:00

From Dawn Eden comes this reflection by Fulton J. Sheen on love:

EVERY PERSON carries within his heart a blueprint of
the one he loves. What seems to be "love at first
sight" is actually the fulfillment of desire, the
realization of a dream. Plato, sensing this, said that
all knowledge is recollection from a previous
existence. This is not true as he states it, but it
true if one understands it to mean that we
already have an ideal in us—one which is made by our
thinking, our habits, our experiences, and our desire.
Otherwise how would we know immediately, on seeing
persons or things, that we loved them? Before meeting
certain people we already have a pattern and mold of
what we like and what we do not like, certain persons
fit into that pattern, others do not.

When we hear music for the first time, we either like
or dislike it. We judge it by the music we already
have heard in our own hearts. Jittery minds which
cannot long repose in one object of thought or in
continuity of an idea love music which is distracting,
excited, and jittery. Calm minds like calm music: the
heart has its own secret melody, and one day when the
score is played the heart answers, "This is it."

So it is with love. A tiny architect works inside the
human heart drawing sketches of the ideal love from
the people it sees, from the books it reads, from its
hopes and daydreams, in the fond hope that the eye may
one day see the ideal and the hand touch it. Life
becomes satisfying the moment the dream is seen
walking, and the person appears as the incarnation
of all that one loves. The liking is instantaneous—
because, actually, it has been there waiting for a
long time.

Do read the whole article. It's not terribly long, and well worth your time. His explanation of love at first sight is fascinating and raises the importance of proper formation. If, as Sheen writes, our concept of "the one" is formed by "our thinking, our habits, our experiences, and our desire", how important it is to ensure that those formative elements - including the example of parents, teachers, and friends - create a solid foundation!

He continues with a beautiful image of marriage as preparation for Heaven:

With marriage and its ripening with the fruit of love,
there will dawn a new understanding that everyone
carries with him a blueprint of the one he loves, and
that One is God. The other partner then is seen as the
Lord's John the Baptist, preparing the way and making
straight His paths.

So, not only should our interior concept lead us to one who fulfills the ideal, but ultimately, that idea should also lead us on to God. It's common to hear that spouses must lead one another to Heaven, but it is a bit different to hear them compared to the forerunner. Spouses are not the pinnacle of relationship, and so far from the perfection of God that they are not even worthy to "loosen the thongs of His sandals", but rather, it is their calling to prepare the other for God.

(Incidentally, I love the image of the "tiny architect" inside us; it brings to mind those old animated educational videos)

2008-06-02T17:55:00.002-04:00

Luckily, I think I've come down off Cloud Nine a little bit since Saturday. I was downright giddy yesterday, and the night before that I couldn't sleep at all. Why do I say "luckily"? Well, as I wrote to Mary Liz:

"My stream of consciousness ran something like: Oh man. I'm a Notre Dame student. I get a class ring. I get a meal plan. No more walking from Saint Mary's. I don't have to wake up ridiculously early to go to Mass. I'm going to be a Notre Dame alum. I get to take all my classes here. My parents get to come for JPW. They get football tickets, too. Ooh, this solves my Father's day gift dilemma; I'll just get him a ------------... Man, this just simplifies so many things. Who cares if I don't get housing? Oh man. I'm a Notre Dame student... and so on and so forth for the better part of an hour. Hopefully I'll get used to the concept soon, or I'll be one sleep-deprived Domer."

2008-06-02T17:29:00.002-04:00

Rejection/wait-list letters: 3
Candles lit at the Grotto: One virtually every day I've been here since August
Transcripts sent to Admissions Office: 6
Study abroad grant I won't be using anymore: $2514
Credits I'm taking this summer to fulfill ND FYS requirements: 6
Days until I can walk up the steps of Main Building: 1077

Being a Domer forever: Priceless.

2008-06-01T00:08:00.001-04:00

There are no words.

(but if there was a word, it would be ~reeeeeeeeeee!~)

2008-05-30T13:40:00.000-04:00

Wish I was there.

2008-05-30T13:25:00.002-04:00

Today is the World Day of Prayer for Priests. You should be praying for priests everyday, but make a special effort today.

Prayer for Priests (by St. Therese of Lisieux)

O Holy Father, may the torrents of love flowing from the sacred wounds of Thy Divine Son bring forth priests like unto the beloved disciple John who stood at the foot of the Cross; priests: who as a pledge of Thine own most tender love will lovingly give Thy Divine Son to the souls of men.

May Thy priests be faithful guardians of Thy Church, as John was of Mary, whom he received into his house. Taught by this loving Mother who suffered so much on Calvary, may they display a mother’s care and thoughtfulness towards Thy children. May they teach souls to enter into close union with Thee through Mary who, as the Gate of Heaven, is specially the guardian of the treasures of Thy Divine Heart.

Give us priests who are on fire, and who are true children of Mary, priests who will give Jesus to souls with the same tenderness and care with which Mary carried the Little Child of Bethlehem.

Mother of sorrows and of love, out of compassion for Thy beloved Son, open in our hearts deep wells of love, so that we may console Him and give Him a generation of priests formed in thy school and having all the tender thoughtfulness of thine own spotless love.

Also, I've been informed (by voicemail and text message and IM and email) that EWTN is broadcasting the FSSP ordinations, which are undoubtedly pretty sweet. Alas, I will be trapped at the front desk until around 9:00, but according to EWTN's website, the Mass will be rebroadcast at midnight tonight.

Random thoughts at 8:00 am

2008-05-30T08:10:00.002-04:00

I don't know who exactly thought it was a good idea to put the classes of '68 and '63 in PE & PW, but that really should be rethought. None of these buildings were here when these guys were, and they have absolutely no sense of direction.
Also, while I'm glad they're working on the chapel, I think I may be driven to desperate measures by the noise today. Did they have to choose today to knock down a wall (and for that matter, to start at 7:00)? I should have more pictures to put up in the next few days. I'm still trying to get a peek at the plans...
Random reslife trivia learned during staff training: during the last 3 weeks of classes, ResLife dealt with 85 cases of students who had been contacted by the recording industry re: illegal downloading.
Construction dust set off our fire alarms yesterday afternoon. There were two of us working the front desk at the time, and we followed the emergency protocol, which was to go to the alarm system display board, which supposedly would tell us where the alarm had been triggered (we were then supposed to go to that spot and determine whether there was an actual fire). Well, we went to the display, which gave us a nonsensical (to us, at least) string of numbers. So much for that.
My Ravelry invitation came through yesterday. What an addicting site! It's a good thing I just don't have that much spare time, or I'd spend all day looking at patterns and knitting. I'm about an inch and a half done with one sock, and as I mentioned, I think there'll be a lot of trial-and-error involved with this pattern, so it should keep me occupied for a while.

I think that's all I've got for now, but given that I'm on-duty at the desk until 1:00, I'm pretty sure my idleness will lead to more thoughts.

2008-05-29T22:14:00.005-04:00

I recently finished my first non-scarf knitting project: a teddy bear. All in all, it turned out to be really easy and I'm guessing it only took me a total of 4 or 5 hours to knit. I hit a snag when I got to the cassock (I'm adapting the sweater pattern that was with the bear, and I cannot figure it out). Luckily, the biretta was easy enough (18 rounds on size 2 dpns, and then pinched together and sewn at the top), so at least he's got that. Now he just needs a name...

2008-05-28T22:31:00.002-04:00

Finally saw Juno. I'm pretty sure I'm the last person in the world to see it, so I'm not going to bother giving a review of any kind, except to say that I thought it was tremendous. I just have one question that's been burning in my mind since I saw it: What is with that soundtrack?

I don't even really know what genre that is; kinda teenage-girl coffee shop music, I guess. The words don't rhyme, and some of it's not even that creative musically. It's completely unlike anything else I listen to, and yet...I have this strange urge to buy it. Does anyone else know what I'm talking about, or am I completely crazy in this case?

2008-05-27T22:46:00.004-04:00

O Holy Virgin, to whose feet we are lead by our anxious uncertainty
in our search for and attainment of what is true and good, invoking
Thee by the sweet title of Mother of Good Counsel. We beseech Thee
to come to our assistance, when, along the road of this life, the
darkness of error and of evil conspires towards our ruin by leading
our minds and our hearts astray.

Do Thou, O Seat of Wisdom and Star of the Sea, enlighten the doubtful
and the erring, that they be not seduced by the false appearances of
good; render them steadfast in the race of the hostile and corrupting
influences of passion and of sin.

O Mother of Good Counsel, obtain for us from Thy Divine Son a great
love of virtue,and, in the hour of uncertainty and trial, the strength to
embrace the way that leads to our salvation. If thy hand sustains us,
we shall walk unmolested along the path indicated to us by the life
and words of Jesus our redeemer, and having followed freely and
securely, even in the midst of this world's strife, the Sun of Truth
and Justice under they maternal star, we shall come to the enjoyment
of full and eternal peace with Thee in the haven of salvation.
Amen

~Prayer to Our Lady of Good Counsel,
Pius XII

Candle lit this evening for special intentions.

2008-05-27T22:23:00.004-04:00

FOR TODAY May 27...

Outside My Window... darkness. I did notice, though, that the accursed masonry work they're doing on this building seems to be making progress. For some reason, they have to replace a 3-brick-high section of the wall all around the building, and the concrete dust means that we have to shut our AC off from 9-5 and cover the vents with these cumbersome plastic shields.

I am thinking... that actually going out running on three consecutive days is a new personal record.

I am thankful for... ~~roommates with whom I get along well.~~ I'll use that one tomorrow; as I was writing, the hall director came in with a room/front door key for me.

From the kitchen... because we had staff training this evening, ORLH paid for us to eat in the dining hall. Well, the roommates and I are pretty sure that we built up a tolerance to DH food, and it's completely gone now.

I am wearing... sweats and a t-shirt, having just gone for a run.

I am creating... a pair of socks. It's a big experiment, and I'm sure I'll end up tearing it out more than once.

I am going... to spend tomorrow in staff training, learning that there's no "i" in "team".

I am reading... a book I found while browsing in the library over the weekend: "The Catholic Youth's Guide to Life and Love". Published in 1960, it's pretty interesting, actually; I'll probably end up writing a post on it later this week.

I am hoping... that Alumni Reunion weekend (which actually runs Thursday-Saturday) isn't as much of a headache as it sounds like it's going to be. 240 members of the class of '68 in our dorm. Between the three staff members, we need to cover the front desk from 8:00am-midnight every day.

I am hearing... the air coming out of the vents next to me. The clicking of my keyboard.

Around the house... I'm not expecting to be in my room a lot this week, so I'm going to have to try not to just toss stuff on the floor when I pop in and out.

One of my favorite things... free food.

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week: Staff training tomorrow, reunion weekend

Here is picture thought I am sharing...

A few pictures from the weekend...

2008-05-26T19:58:00.004-04:00

2008-05-26T13:09:00.003-04:00

FOR TODAY May 26...

Outside My Window... caution tape and the tires of a cherry picker (I'm in the kitchen, where the window is at ground level).

I am thinking... that I really need to get used to metal handles on saucepans, before I burn myself again.

I am thankful for... air conditioning.

From the kitchen... pasta boiling on the stove, ready to become tuna salad for dinner. I baked biscuits for breakfast yesterday and have some left over.

I am wearing... earth tones.

I am creating... hmm...I put a face on my teddy bear yesterday. Does that count?

I am going... to get some work done this afternoon.

I am reading... same old, same old.

I am hoping... that the pollen miraculously goes away.

I am hearing... water boiling. It's actually kind of a strange sound when you stop and listen to it.

Around the house... I'm very glad for AC.

One of my favorite things... a warm bed.

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week: Staff training tomorrow and Wednesday, and then it's alumni reunion weekend, so I'll probably be pretty busy.

Here is picture thought I am sharing...

2008-05-25T10:11:00.001-04:00

Props to whomever wrote the headline for this week's issue of Today's Catholic:

"In Genoa, pope fights battle for the soul of Italy, all of Europe".

2008-05-25T10:00:00.002-04:00

I am quite convinced that were it not for my guardian angel, I would sleep through far more things than I do now. This morning, I needed to pick Kim up at 6:30 so that we could make it to 7:00 Mass. Since I haven't exactly been an early bird this week, I decided to finally plug in my alarm clock last night (I had just been using my cell phone's alarm, but it's far too easy to push "off" rather than "snooze"). So, after stringing an extension cord halfway across the room (which has a sad lack of outlets), I set my alarm. I had a headache, and was having sort of a brain-disconnected-from-head-and-body evening, so I was very deliberate in setting it. I double-checked the time, and the fact that it was indeed set, and then, as an afterthought, checked to make sure that the alarm was set for AM. All was well. Why then, you ask, did I wake up at 6:27, in a panic? Well, in my careful checking of the alarm's setting, I forgot to make sure that the clock itself was on AM. Whoops. Needless to say, I attribute the fact that I woke up (more or less) on time to something besides myself.

(In case you're wondering, I am very proud to say that I got dressed, got to my car, and made it across campus in exactly 10 minutes. And we were still early for Mass.)

2008-05-24T21:43:00.002-04:00

FOR TODAY May 24...

Outside My Window... is the great unknown. My shades are drawn and I'm done with the outside world for the day.

I am thinking... that I accomplished something good today.

I am thankful for... a hot cup of tea.

From the kitchen... the aforementioned tea. Cinnamon stick, in this case.

I am wearing... my pajamas: flannel pants and a sweatshirt.

I am creating... the perfect environment for a good night's sleep.

I am going... to 7:00 Mass in the morning.

I am reading... the same book I've been working on.

I am hoping... that I get a room key soon so that I can come and go from the building with the knowledge that I'll be able to get back in.

I am hearing... the season finale of House. Thank you, Mom!

Around the house... I have a bit of a headache, which isn't helped by the fact that my roommate got bored and decided to dye her hair. Ach, that smell!

One of my favorite things... a warm bed.

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week: Work, work, lay outside in the sun and read a book.

Here is picture thought I am sharing...

2008-05-23T22:30:00.001-04:00

As I mentioned before, I've been working through season 1 of "The Muppet Show", and I just watched this little gem that I'd like to dedicate to...well, you all know who you are.

2008-05-23T21:58:00.003-04:00

FOR TODAY May 23...

Outside My Window... in the hallway, there's a line for the bathroom. A line! After a week of having it almost to myself, I'm going to have to adjust my shower schedule...

I am thinking... that I don't want to make a career out of desk clerking.

I am thankful for... a place to which I can escape at the end of a long day.

From the kitchen... I'm just finally eating dinner, even though it's 10:00 (I'm been working since noon). Just rice, milk, and cinnamon/sugar. Not much, but I'm tired, and it only took me 10 minutes.

I am wearing... a skirt, blouse, and nifty Staff ID badge.

I am creating... a reading list for the summer.

I am going... to wake up early and do something useful.

I am reading... David Copperfield, although I made significant progress today.

I am hoping... that I don't feel quite so brain-dead in the morning.

I am hearing... the canasta party out in the lounge.

Around the house... same old, same old

One of my favorite things... the chance to read a good book without interruption.

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week: I'd don't actually have any plans for tomorrow. At some point, I'd like to venture out to the Farmers' Market...

Here is picture thought I am sharing...

Friendship: It Can't Hurt

2008-05-23T17:25:00.002-04:00

One of my favorite things about being Catholic is being backed up by 2,000 years of traditions and Magisterium. I just love finding something that I struggled to articulate, put so perfectly by someone far wiser than myself. For example, I recently spent four hours in conversation trying to articulate why exactly, in complicated relationship situations, it's far better - even if not easier - to err on the side of friendship, which helps ensure one of two possibilities: 1) circumstances will change and eventually lead to marriage, in which case the time devoted to pursuing friendship will have built a strong foundation for the relationship, or 2) if it never leads to anything beyond friendship, then at least that will have been preserved. Anyway, this is a long build-up to something that I found in the Catechism while working on a research project yesterday. After spending so long trying to figure out how to articulate what seemed right, and getting frustrated with my inability to word it well, I found the following:
The virtue of chastity blooms in friendship. It shows the disciple how to follow and imitate him who has chosen us as his friends, who has given himself totally to us and allows us to participate in his divine estate. Chastity is a promise of immortality. Chastity is expressed notably in friendship with one's neighbor. Whether it develops between persons of the same or opposite sex, friendship represents a great good for all. It leads to spiritual communion. (CCC 2347)
Ha! "A great good for all"! I knew it! Thank you, Catechism!

2008-05-22T23:13:00.002-04:00

FOR TODAY May 22...

Outside My Window... is dark, except for lights on in a room on the other half of the building. Since we're the only occupied room right now, that's a little weird...

I am thinking... about what wonderfully useful things I'm going to do tomorrow.

I am thankful for... the Catechism, wherein I find things so clearly stated, that I spent hours trying to articulate (more on that later).

From the kitchen... pizza during a staff meeting. Really, though, I do cook! I made up something with rice, chicken, lemon juice, and basil yesterday, and it was quite edible.

I am wearing... jeans and a sweater. I can't wait until Monday, when it's supposed to get up to 75 degrees and stay there.

I am creating... a cassock for my teddy bear (pictures to come when he's finished).

I am going... to go crazy if I don't get a key soon. As it is, my ID doesn't work in the door, and I don't have a key for my room or the front door, so I take my chances every time I leave the building.

I am reading... David Copperfield (yes, still. It's a long book.)

I am hoping... that I can get back into a normal sleep pattern (by which I mean up by 7:30). Circumstances seem to be conspiring against me, though.

I am hearing... chatting with my roommate. From her accent, I would've guessed she was from Chicago, but it turns out she's from Southern Michigan.

Around the house... found my shoes today!

One of my favorite things... really cold grapefruit juice. Is it strange that that's one of my favorite drinks? It's part of my top-secret, stay-up-until-4:00, finals-week ritual.

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week: Actually start work tomorrow. Our first conference comes in at noon. It's the Medjugorie conference; the average attendee age is 80.

Here is picture thought I am sharing...

"Make this tabernacle and all its furnishings exactly like the pattern I will show you." (Exodus 25:9)

2008-05-21T23:04:00.005-04:00

When I found out that I'd be staying in PE for the summer, one of the things I was most excited about (besides the dorm's sentimental value and air conditioning) was the chance to witness firsthand the chapel renovation. This chapel was the unfortunate victim of '80's architecture and a pantsuit-nun rector, and featured such lovely furnishings as the "Birdcage Tabernacle" and lots of pillows (Mary Liz and Em - I don't have any pictures of the chapel at the height of it's sadness; do you?). According to the hall manager, this summer the chapel will see $800,000 of renovations, including stained glass, getting rid of the pillars, and knocking down walls. Below are pictures of the chapel as it is today, with the altar and everything else moved out and the "bulldozing" (the rector's word) having just begun. I'm planning to post updates as often as something significant happens. While I'm sure that the space won't turn into sometime magnificent, I'm hopeful that something good will happen.

2008-05-21T11:10:00.002-04:00

FOR TODAY May 21...

Outside My Window... is the ever-present florescent light in the hallway that never.turns.off. Given that we're in a converted study lounge, there are lots of windows facing the hallway, and they're covered by woefully inadequate curtains. We now understand why the previous occupants of the room had their wardrobes against the windows.

I am thinking... about doing something productive today.

I am thankful for... this website, plus left-over print quota, plus a nice color printer.

From the kitchen... I just figured out this morning that the fridge wasn't turned on. Whoops.

I am wearing... a blue flowered skirt and blue shirt.

I am creating... a homey little corner for myself.

I am going... to meet Kim at Mass soon, and then taking her grocery shopping. I really hope she doesn't need too much, because my car is quite full with my surplus stuff.

I am reading... David Copperfield (yes, still. It's a long book.)

I am hoping... that the next few weeks go by quickly.

I am hearing... The Muppet Show on my computer. Netflix rocks.

Around the house... things are beginning to get sorted out.

One of my favorite things... a good cup of coffee.

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week: Work tomorrow, getting some useful things done.

Here is picture thought I am sharing...

Home Sweet Crappy Dorm Room

2008-05-20T21:10:00.001-04:00

2008-05-20T20:19:00.002-04:00

50 Worst Album Covers. Slightly terrifying, yet hilarious.

(WARNING: Ventriloquist dummies. Forgot to warn *someone* about that.)

Move-in, Day 3

2008-05-20T14:40:00.002-04:00

Well, I think I've managed to find all the really important stuff. Now to find places for it... If this room weren't ridiculously small (or if they would've given us individual rooms like they said they would), I'd be fine, but as it is, I've got precisely one corner of the room in which to arrange my life. I really just want to go through all my stuff and get rid of 80% of it, but I don't know that that will happen anytime soon. Ah, to be a Carthusian...

2008-05-20T11:40:00.003-04:00

FOR TODAY May 20...
Outside My Window... it still looks like it's going to rain. Lovely view of Flanner and Grace, though.
I am thinking... about how on earth I'm going to make my stuff fit in this room.
I am thankful for... having my bed cleaned off and sheets on it last night.
From the kitchen... going out to lunch with the Hall Staff.
I am wearing... jeans and my Right to Life hoodie. It's cold out and I don't feel like putting a lot of effort into being cute today.
I am creating... a little bit of art.
I am going... to go on a (mostly unnecessary) tour of the building at noon, and then to lunch.
I am reading... only when I accomplish some unpacking today.
I am hoping... that I find a few things (my cardstock and allergy meds, mostly) soon.
I am hearing... one of my roommates un-pack. Probably what I should be doing.
Around the house... I can actually sit at my desk, so I suppose that's something.
One of my favorite things... having an orderly space in which to work.
A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week: more unpacking, more settling in.
Here is picture I'm sharing...

2008-05-19T18:42:00.003-04:00

FOR TODAY May 19...
Outside My Window... it looks like it might rain soon. The whole university is quiet.
I am thinking... that I didn't appreciate this past year enough while it was here.
I am thankful for... uncountable blessings that have made themselves manifest in the last little while.
From the kitchen... crackers and granola bars that happened to be on top of my bags of food.
I am wearing... the same clothes I wore yesterday. I haven't really had a chance to unpack all my clothes yet.
I am creating... a cozy little corner in my too-small dorm room.
I am going... to get as much unpacking done as possible before I collapse into bed.
I am reading... nothing too substantial today. I read a bit of "David Copperfield" when I woke up at 4:15 and couldn't get back to sleep.
I am hoping... that I'll be able to fit everything into the aforementioned tiny room.
I am hearing... birds outside, and whatever comes up randomly on iTunes. It keeps playing really melancholic songs. Not helping my general mood right now.
Around the house... too much stuff, not enough space.
One of my favorite things... a good night's sleep.
A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week: unpack, settle in
Here is picture I'm sharing...

Technical Difficulties

2008-05-18T23:50:00.002-04:00

Aaaahhhh! I went to edit my Current Reading list, and something terrible happened to my template; namely, all the cute is gone. I'm not exactly sure what happened, and I can't seem to fix it easily, so I'll have to screw around with it a bit and see if I can revive it.

How I propose to to do this...

2008-05-18T22:07:00.003-04:00

I'd like to get into the habit of posting more regularly, and I recently found a fun idea that I think will give me a little motivation/content for a daily post: The Simple Woman's Daybook. I think the concept itself is obvious enough that I don't need to explain it, so here goes:

FOR TODAY May 18...

Outside My Window... is dark, but I know that there's a large construction project going on.

I am thinking... about moving all my stuff into my new room tomorrow.

I am thankful for... an amazing friend who has made this the best year of my life.

From the kitchen... there isn't much, since I haven't started cooking for myself yet (that'll come tomorrow or Tuesday).

I am wearing... the clothes that I set out for myself when I went to bed at 5:15 after packing all night.

I am creating... a blog post. I'm too tired to do much else right now.

I am going... to miss Mary Liz.

I am reading... the last sentence I wrote. (In my spare time, David Copperfield).

I am hoping... that tomorrow's move goes off without a hitch.

I am hearing... the few other people who are using the library computers.

Around the house... my life is in boxes.

One of my favorite things... polyphony and other choral music. After an intense week of choir rehearsals and concerts, I can't get the music out of my head (which is okay).

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week: Tomorrow: move into my summer room; say goodbye to Mary Liz. Rest of the Week: Settle in, work on some random projects, start my real job.

Here is picture thought I am sharing...

Yeah, yeah...

2008-05-18T22:03:00.003-04:00

I realize it's been months and months since I've posted, and even my own mother doesn't read this anymore. However, given the prospect of facing a relatively quiet (read: boring) summer at school, taking classes and sitting behind the front desk of a dorm, I thought I'd revive this little ol' blog, if for no other reason than my own amusement. So, while I can't guarantee anything regular or substantial, I will be making an effort to post more often.

John & Mary Catholic in the Spotlight

2007-06-22T22:23:00.000-04:00

" Are there clunkers in the new translations? Undoubtedly. But will ICEL’s attempt to restore the sacral vocabulary and linguistic rhythms of the Roman Rite to Catholic worship within the Anglosphere destroy our ability to pray as a community? Please; we’re not morons. I’d even venture the guess that prayers translated with far more fidelity to the Latin originals will be a step toward a deeper, more prayerful encounter with what Bishop Trautman rightly calls “the greatest gift of God, the Eucharist.”

Adventures in Fondant (or: Maybe sometimes it's easier to just take a class)

2007-06-20T19:57:00.000-04:00

Mom and I have been meaning for a while to learn how to do a few different things, like fondant a cake and arrange flowers. We went to Joann's on Sunday with the intention of signing up for a Fondant class, and discovered that while the class itself is only $25, there's a supply list that adds up to $50+, and we just couldn't justify spending that much (especially for 2 of us). Undaunted, we thought, "How hard could it be to teach ourselves?" Four hours, 2 lbs. of powdered sugar, and one batch of tough-as-rubber fondant later, we knew. For a family that's notorious for not eating cake, it was not worth the effort.

(I didn't feel like taking the saran wrap off the cake before I took the picture)

Fortunately, our second round of experiments was far more successful. Guided only by a Martha Stewart DVD from the library, we bought 2 dozen roses and some odds and ends from Sam's Club and set to work. 15 minutes later, we had what we agreed was a pretty acceptable bouquet. Not to mention that for the same price as the batch of fondant, we got something far more attractive that won't get dry after a day, and probably tastes better.

I'd like to be there when they try to sell those...

2007-06-20T19:15:00.000-04:00

Monday morning, thieves made off with gutters from the Fort Wayne Cathedral.

According to a police report, a priest inside the cathedral at 1122 S. Calhoun St. heard a commotion outside around 3 a.m.

When he looked out his window, he saw three males taking the copper gutter off the back of the main church.

The priest made faces and waved his hands at the thieves, who ran off. He tried to awaken another priest, but couldn’t, so he went back to bed.

(Full story here)

Support Your Local Bloggers!

2007-06-19T22:54:00.000-04:00

June has turned out to be quite the month for meeting in person people who I have gotten to know through their blogs. I started out by meeting Danielle Bean and getting to babysit her adorable baby while she spoke at the MN Catholic Home Ed Conference . I also got to meet Margaret , who was every bit as sweet in person as she is on her blog.

Having nearly filled my quota of homeschool mom bloggers (now if I could only meet Melissa Wiley...), I made it a point to go to the Chesterton Conference last Friday to hear Dawn Eden's presentation The Girl Who Was Thirsty: How G. K. Chesterton Opened the Door to My Conversion. I brought my copy of her awesome book (yeah, I know I'm not the target audience; I very much enjoyed it anyway), in hopes that I could get her to sign it. Lo and behold, I walked in the doors of the conference building, and who should be sitting behind the registration table but the lady herself! She wasn't signing books at the time, but I asked anyway (I had to leave immediately afterward to help celebrate someone's 21st birthday), and she graciously obliged.

Having accomplished that, we sat down to enjoy her talk. Let me say this: if you enjoy her writing, you MUST see her in person! Dawn has a speaking style that is like her writing style, but intensified. Her wonderful sense of humor is all the more apparent in person, as is the intensely personal nature of her chosen subject. It already takes great courage to be so candid and earnest about something so personal; I can't even imagine being willing to share it again and again with crowds of complete strangers. Beyond all that, though, Dawn's joy was so obvious and contagious that one couldn't help but smile just to watch her share the gift she has been given. Hats off.

This evening, 2 or 3 things coincided and freed my schedule up so that I could go to Theology on Tap North. I wasn't at all expecting to know anyone there, and I was really surprised to meet ToT regular and tonight's featured speaker, Adoro, who talked about the occult. She shared this story and gave us some helpful definitions and information. I can see why she teaches RCIA - she's just as articulate in person as on her blog, and really has a gift for explaining things. For myself, I read this article when was first published, and it singlehandedly did a pretty good job of helping with temptation (the past that sticks in my head? "Try this: The next time you face a temptation, remind yourself that you’re cooperating with the malevolent will of a highly developed insect that hates you yet wants to be with you forever. You’ll find your old reliable sins lose a little of their allure.")

2007-01-31T21:35:00.000-05:00

You know the Bible 98%!

Wow! You are awesome! You are a true Biblical scholar, not just a hearer but a personal reader! The books, the characters, the events, the verses - you know it all! You are fantastic!

Ultimate Bible Quiz
Create MySpace Quizzes

Crunching Numbers

2007-01-30T00:11:00.000-05:00

Let's do a quick comparison of some numbers relating to last week's March for Life and yesterday's anti-war protest.

	March for Life	Anti-War Protest
Rally attendance	140,000*	“Tens of thousands”
Words in the AP story	267**	999

*I got this number from the National Catholic Register. The NY Times reduces that number to mere "thousands". Not having been there, it's hard for me to say which number is more accurate, but judging from the attendance of past years' marches, I'm inclined to believe that NCR's number is closer to the truth.

**The only AP article I could find that related to the March actually dealt more with the GOP Presidential candidates who were at the March. If someone knows of an article that deals more directly with the March itself, let me know. Otherwise, I'm sticking with my umbers.

Some Observations on Laws & Definitions

2007-01-29T23:22:00.000-05:00

Take a look at the following quote.

"Just because its in the womb its still vulnerable, in fact its most vulnerable, I think its appropriate to send a message and protect the unborn."

Given that last week saw the 33rd annual March for Life in Washington D.C., could it be from an article about the march or pro-life legislation? Sadly, no. It's from this news story about a domestic dispute that resulted in the death of an unborn baby. The story goes on to state that "34 states across the nation, including Minnesota and Wisconsin have some sort of homicide law that recognizes unborn victims." And yet, if the baby's mother had decided to have an abortion, we wouldn't be reading sentences like "The case stunned police" or seeing quotes like "I can't imagine what goes through a person's mind."
In my Philosophy of the Human Person course last semester, we discussed briefly when a person becomes a person. Clearly, we missed what seems to be the accepted view, that a person becomes a person only when they are wanted. How else could we have laws to punish those who murder unborn children, and also have laws that allow for the murder of unborn children? The only way to determine which laws we are governed by with regard to the treatment of unborn children is that the former laws protect wanted children, while the latter laws expose unwanted unborn children.

The following questions then present themselves:
~If a pregnant woman keeps changing her mind about whether she wants to keep her unborn child, does said child vacillate between personhood and non-personhood?
~If a mother gives birth to a child and then decides she doesn't want the baby, does it cease to be a person?

I'm okay with this...

2006-12-05T21:47:00.001-05:00

Your Christmas is Most Like: A Christmas Story

Loving, fun, and totally crazy.

Don't shoot your eye out!

What Movie Is Your Christmas Most Like?

Requiem æternam dona, Lord, to someone I'll never forget

2006-12-04T23:51:00.000-05:00

It’s funny, sometimes, the timing in life. Sometimes, it’s the timing of things that reveals most the existence of a higher power. A new opportunity that presents itself the same week as a lost job. A mysterious rebate check that shows up when bills are unpayable. Leaving work late, then realizing on your way home that you would have been at the site of an accident when it happened. The timing that I experienced today is neither so profound nor so obvious, but I noticed it none the less. The same day I finished a term paper discussing why God allows evil in the world, I found out that the son of last year’s beloved choir director died today.
Ellis was only 3 years old, but already he had been through so much that no adult should ever have to be, and that every parent hopes their child will never go through. Health problems throughout his short life, a heart transplant, a couple precious months at home, and landing back in the hospital for the last several weeks.
As evidenced by the tens of thousands of notes in the Guestbook of his CaringBridge site, Ellis was more loved, more supported, and more prayed-for than perhaps any child I’ve ever seen. He will no doubt also be one of the most grieved-for. Why does God allow such things?
The answer has been staring out at me for the last month, from Aquinas’ The Five Ways: “He would not allow any evil to exist in His works, unless His omnipotence and goodness were such as to bring good even out of evil.” Yes, there is great sadness and mourning. It is certainly true that Ellis will never be forgotten by anyone who ever met him and got his trademark grin and thumbs-up. But it is also true that no one who knew him has not learned a lesson about suffering, about loving unconditionally. Ellis' motto was "Slow and steady wins the race," and indeed he has won, he has beat us all to our ultimate goal.
Please pray for comfort for Ellis’ parents Sam and Melissa, who have devoted themselves tirelessly and with endless love to Ellis.

2006-11-14T22:56:00.001-05:00

create your own personalized map of the USA
or check out ourCalifornia travel guide

2006-11-14T22:56:00.000-05:00

create your own personalized map of the USA
or check out ourCalifornia travel guide

Get 'Em While They Last...

2006-11-04T18:38:00.000-05:00

Well, Viacom/Comedy Central has asked YouTube to remove Daily Show/Colbert Report clips. Sad, but hardly unexpected. I know that some of them still work, because I just watched a few this afternoon, but that will probably be short-lived. For people like me, who don't get Comedy Central and for whom the official Comedy Central video player doesn't work (and I know I'm not the only one), this may just mark the end of my Colbert-watching days. And while I certainly don't blame Comedy Central for protecting their copyrights..........*sniff*.

Sure, you can have my Social Security Number, but come on, some stuff is personal

2006-11-04T15:41:00.000-05:00

About a month ago, I signed up to take the ACT. When I registered, I had to go through 400+ questions about various aspects of myself. I had to cover my family background, educational record, and future plans. And then there was the "Interest Inventory." I read it aloud as I completed it, and all of us in the room were breathless with laughter. Some of these I can picture as having some bearing on career plans ("Study Chemistry", for example), but others just had such strange job options associated with them...
So now, for your reading pleasure, is the ACT Interest Inventory (with snarky comments interspersed because, after all, what else would you expect?)

Do you like to:

1. Learn about star formations

2. Sketch and draw pictures

3. Help someone make an important decision (‘You know, it’s only an extra $1.50 to get fries with that…’)

4. Conduct a meeting

5. Count and sort money

6. Build a picture frame

7. Learn how the brain works

8. Compose or arrange music

9. Give first aid to an injured person

10. Develop new rules or policies

11. Take inventory in a store

12. Fix a toy

13. Explore a science museum

14. Make creative photographs

15. Show children how to play a game or sport

16. Work in a political campaign

17. Write payroll checks

18. Run a lawn mower

19. Attend the lecture of a well-known scientist

20. Write short stories

21. Work on a community improvement project (Is that the same as Community Service?)

22. Present information before a group

23. Set up a bookkeeping system

24. Watch for forest fires (Ranger Gord, anyone?)

25. Study biology

26. Read about the writing style of modern authors

27. Help a newcomer meet people

28. Discuss a misleading advertisement with a salesperson

29. Prepare a budget for a club or group

30. Build furniture

31. Measure chemicals in a test tube (I always thought the mixing of the chemicals was more fun than the measuring, but that’s just me)

32. Prepare drawings to illustrate a magazine story

33. Take part in a small group discussion

34. Plan work for other people (This is the question with which they sort out the oldest children)

35. Balance a checkbook

36. Learn to cut and polish gemstones

37. Read about a new surgical procedure (“37.5: Perform a new surgical procedure”)

38. Write a movie script

39. Find out how others believe a problem can be solved

40. Explain legal rights to people

41. Sort, count, and store supplies

42. Repair damage to a tree after a storm (…And have a large bonfire that night)

43. Study plant diseases

44. Select music to play for a local radio station

45. Help rescue someone in danger

46. Demonstrate a new product (“Say, ma’am, this is a lovely home you have here. I’m here as a representative of the Acme Vacuum Cleaner Corporation. Do you mind if I come in for a moment?…”)

47. Plan a monthly budget

48. Design a bird feeder

49. Read books or magazines about new scientific findings

50. Play jazz in a combo

51. Help settle an argument between friends

52. Campaign for a political office

53. Find errors in a financial account

54. Engrave lettering or designs on a trophy or plaque (…And the natural follow-up: “Create license plates”)

55. Study chemistry

56. Draw cartoons

57. Give directions to visitors

58. Publicize a show or athletic event

59. Figure shipping costs for catalog orders

60. Assemble a cabinet from written instructions

61. Use a microscope or other lab equipment

62. Design a metal sculpture

63. Help friends with their problems

64. Conduct business by phone (“How happy are you with your current long-distance service?”)

65. Make charts or graphs

66. Pack things into boxes

67. Read about the origin of the earth, sun, and stars

68. Play in a band

69. Teach people a new hobby

70. Interview workers about company complaints

71. Calculate the interest on a loan (This has to lead to the financial aid section)

72. Watch a technician repair a television

73. Observe and classify butterflies

74. Write reviews of Broadway plays

75. Help people during emergencies

76. Hire a person for a job

77. Keep expense account records

78. Prune plants and shrubs

79. Study the effects of vitamins on animals (“One day I will work with animals/All the tests I’m gonna do/All my stuff’s completely natural/and when we’re done we’ll boil them down for glue”)

80. Design a poster for an event

81. Entertain others by telling jokes or stories

82. Manage a small business

83. Look for errors in the draft of a report

84. Shelve books in a library

85. Learn how birds migrate

86. Play a musical instrument

87. Give a tour of an exhibit

88. Conduct a door-to-door opinion poll

89. Operate office machines

90. Inspect products for defects

Oh, and if I wondered what kind of person's career path would be chosen by their love of box-packing, I found out when I actually took the test at a more inner-city high school than I'm used to (yes, I know I'm homeschooled, but I do have some experience in public high schools, if only from past test-taking experiences). Nothing against inner-city schools (or box-packers, for that matter), but it was the most stereotypical, Breakfast Club-esque, Saturday-Morning-Detention group of people you could imagine.

...Pray for Us

2006-11-01T19:33:00.000-05:00

I saw a really creative commemoration of All Saints' Day today at school. On all the sidewalks of one of the quads, someone had written the Litany of the Saints in sidewalk chalk. On one square was written a saint's name, on the next was "Pray for us," and so on. I wished I would've had a camera to take a picture, and it was snowing this afternoon, so it'll probably be gone tomorrow. Still, it was a nice devotion on the walk to class today.

The cool stuff you can find on the internet...

2006-10-27T00:11:00.000-04:00

While doing some research the other day (for philosophy, of all things), I came across one of the coolest things I've found on the Internet in quite a while. GUSH is a program that takes the headache out of scheduling classes (I'm guessing that I'm not the only person who finds that particular task annoying, at least). Just enter the names, days, times, and any times that you'd rather not have class, and the program will return all the possible permutations of your schedule. You can even enter multiple sections of the same class, and it will take those into account. Pretty sweet.

And yes, my philosophy studies did go well; thanks for asking.

Don't Look a Gift Horse in the Mouth?

2006-09-12T14:04:00.000-04:00

I got a package in the mail today from the University of St. Thomas. Inside was a UST t-shirt with a note that said: "Hi Holly- Congratulations on your wonderful ACT score! I hope to see your application soon!" That was a nice gesture, and I appreciate the recognition, except...I didn't take the ACT. Nor do I plan to.

I wonder if Notre Dame also received these "wonderful" scores?

Because no Christmas tree is complete without a stigmatist

2006-05-10T22:02:00.000-04:00

Perhaps the tackiest Christmas tree ornaments ever

But at least they all come with their own halos...