Christmas 2009

Do not be afraid. That seems to be the most urgent message given to earth by heaven. Happy Christmas and may 2010 be the year we find the way to peace.

Existentialist thought for the day....

"So, when all has become still around one, as solemn as a starlit night, when the soul is alone in the whole world, then there appears before one, not a distinguished man, but the eternal Power itself. The heavens part....Then has the soul beheld the loftiest sight that mortal eye can see...then the personality receives the accolade of knighthood which ennobles it for an eternity. He does not become another man than he was before, but becomes himself..."

Kierkegaard's description of the moment the individual stands before God.

The King Upon His Throne

May the Feast of Christ the King bring his peace to your heart.

Feast of Christ the King

This Sunday, Nov. 22, is the Feast of Christ the King. "My Kingdom is not of this world," he tells the nervous Pontius Pilate. Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, humble child of Bethlehem, have mercy on us.

Wanted: Postcards

If you stumble upon this blog, would you consider sending a postcard? I collect stamps. PO Box 748 Chickasha, Oklahoma USA 7302

Fall 2009

Years ago, I found myself in western New England exploring a Shaker village on a Fall day that may have boasted the finest colors I have ever witnessed. I stood in an open field and turned round and round; every distant hills was awash in red and gold. It was my favorite October moment ever. Today I found a handful of Oklahoma trees with such rich colors. It made me think of the Shakers and their simple lives, adorned with little but the colors God splashes on the earth. Happy Fall!

St. Meinrad Archabbey, cont.

A view of the Archabbey Church at St. Meinrad, Indiana.

St. Meinrad Archabbey Church

One of the most striking monasteries in the U.S., St. Meinrad Archabbey in southern Indiana boasts a beautiful church. This is where I studied to be a priest.

My dog........

This is Frasier, recently re-homed to me from Seattle. He is a very sweet creature.

Irving Penn, RIP

Here, his photo of Truman Capote. May favorite Penn is a photo of the Duchess of Windsor I saw at the Fred Jones Museum of Art (Univ. of Oklahoma) in Norman.

This way

Why do photographers find stairs an irresitable subject? My theory: transcendence.

Panic

My father suffers from dementia and now lives in a leafy, hilltop facility that was once dedicated to the treatment of TB patients. The health panics of one generation, even of one season, inevitably give way to the health panics of the next.

In the meantime, please do not sneeze on me.

Feast of Archangels

Today, Sept. 29, is Feast of the Archangels. In popular imagination, angels find us parking spaces or take the wheel while we are texting. In the Bible, they are tough messengers of God who exhibit limited patience with hardhearted men. Don't cross them!

"Where does the power come from, to see the race to the end? It comes from within. Jesus said, behold, the Kingdom of God is within you." Eric Liddell, Scottish runner and missonary to China.

The interior life

The interior life of man must be open to the mystery of that which is beyond him.

Are we still a First World nation?

Being reported today: Los Angeles is limiting households to just ONE rooster each.

What's next? Forced culling of our goat herds?

Are atheists bad for the planet?

Pope Benedict argues that a life lived only in material terms will, in the end, understand the earth as a material thing to be used (up). Yet, many atheists seem sincerely interested in 'saving' the environment.

Perhaps the modern Godlessness is actually pantheism recycled as environmentalism. Even atheists need to worship something.

Meanwhile, the earth and it's wonders are the treasure God has entrusted to us. We are called to be gardeners, not pourers of concrete.

If you knew...........

If you knew that lending $25 to a woman in Uganda would empower her to start a small business and change her life for the better, would you do it?

Well, now you know.

Kiva.org

St. Meinrad Archabbey and Seminary

Probably because it is cool today, with a light mist, I have been thinking about St. Meinrad Seminary. I did seminary there and miss it most come fall. Set in the lovely hills of southern Indiana, the campus is expansive and peaceful. Here, the stunning Archabbey Church, which towers over the adjacent valley.

Remember the victims

And the heros........

Eight years and the event's evil mastermind goes unpunished. Sigh.

It's the feast day of St. Peter Claver, 'slave to slaves'. He devoted his priesthood to the care of African slaves brought to South America. Reportedly, he baptized 300,000 souls. This photo is of a sculpture we placed in the garden of an African-American parish I pastored.

Recently, I traveled New Mexico for a few days. Beside the roads, beneath the mountains, sunflowers greeted us like crowds of excited onlookers. Sunflowers have a 'presence' about them; as if they are aware of our need for them.

Come this way

The path between my rectory and the Church....the Apple tree is a favorite of mine.

Labor Day 2009

Would that the close of summer 2009 also signal an end to the economic downturn; an end to war; and an end to the silly partisan bickering that has marked the last several months.

In the meantime, enjoy the last hurray of the season.

Their agony; our passive interest

Lance Cpl. Joshua Bernard's agony was captured on film and published by the American press. The nation, oddly disconnected from the wars in Iraq and Afganistan, was allowed unflitered access into the struggle in which our troops are engaged.

It was a passing, passive interest. Labor Day, after all, is upon us.

May this Marine rest in peace. May his sacrifice not be in vain.

Moon Struck

As I write, a bright full moon reigns over the night sky. I've always thought of the moon as the earth's exclamation point.

Marsden Hartley, cont.

One of my favorite paintings. Yesterday was the anniversary of Hartley's death.

Marsden Hartley, American Treasure

His work remains so remarkedly modern and spiritual.

Afganistan makes no sense

Why are we still in Afganistan? With no clear goal, no measure by which we can mark 'victory', what are we doing there except expending the lives of young American heros?

Bring them home.

Tree of life

An image of a lone majestic tree continues to appear in my prayer life. Someone, I take him to be the Lord, sits beneath it. I am on a well worn path, making my way toward the tree. Ripe wheat lies on either side of the path. It is the most serene image I have ever found while praying.

It's going by too fast!

"Does all of life go by this fast?"

"No, just the summers."

--from Paul Monette's play, Just The Summers

Baby Boom

My parish is experiencing a baby boom. Even the usually sedate Saturday evening Mass is frequented by young families now. It's nosier of course but so much more joyful. For me, as a celibate turning 50, the sight of so many kids brings out what must be a grandfatherly type of love. Children do no wrong in my eyes and I feel happy just seeing them.

It's all too complicated

People of faith are sometimes accused of being smug and holier than thou. In truth, finding faith means you've accepted the complicated pattern of darkness and light within this world. It's the light, however, that interests us more.

I haven't all the answers and that's why I choose faith.

Thought For The Day

"When an oak is felled the whole forest echoes with its fall, but a hundred acorns are sown in silence by an unnoticed breeze."

Thomas Carlyle

The stained glass in the church is German designed; the Munich studio in Chicago.

My parish church: built in 1924 by a Spanish-American architect for a Beligan pastor and German-Czech-Irish congregation. It's a beautiful structure. The men of the parish dug the basement, hauled the bricks and painted the interior. The women sold 'subscriptions' to fund the project and, of course, kept the men fed.

This just in from the 'who cares?' desk.......

Michelle Obama photographed wearing shorts (in August)...........

Health Care: moral imperatives vs costs

The health care debate has taken a turn into the realm of 'moral imperative'. Does the country have a moral imperative to provide unverisal health care?

It's an interesting and legitimate question. Then again, so is the question, 'can this country afford universal health care?'

With our massive endebtedness and the chronic loss of quality jobs to the developing world, I wonder how long before it sinks in that we are an economic train wreck just waiting to happen.

Of course, the cost of fighting two wars complicates the health care debate. Maybe the question should be 'can we continue to afford imperial power if we offer universal health care?'

Health Care Reform I Support

1) Deduct money from everyone's paycheck and force workers to use THEIR money to buy (at least) catastrophic health insurance.

2) Reform immigraton so that even those working here illegally could be herded into a health care policy of some sort.

3) Increase the tax on cigarettes, booze and fast food; use the money to offer health insurance to the poor.

4) Decrease the tax on fresh fruits and vegtables.

5) Promote home health care and hospice programs (but, no "death panels" please).

Thought for the day

Life isn't about avoiding storms; it's about learning to dance in the rain.

Count The Cost

Islamic militants recently beheaded four Christian aid workers.

Are you a lawyer?

True Story

[phone rings]

Me: Holy Name Church

Caller: Mr. G____ please

Me: This is Father G______, may I help you?

Caller: This is Anna with the American Bar Association.

Me: Good morning.

Caller: Uh, are you a lawyer?

Me: Yes.

Caller: Oh, well when you said Father G_______ I uh.....

Me: I'm a priest and an attorney.

Caller: [laughs] Isn't that an oxymoron?


Even the ABA seems to hold a dim view of the lawyers (or priests, or both).

Why excercise if it doesn't make me thin?

And it doesn't. I was thinking about this problem while on the treadmill today. Why do I do it, excercise, even after it has dawned on me that excercise doesn't really impact my weight?

I think I continue to do it because it makes me feel better about life. Maybe excercise is actually most necessary for our brains.

OBAMA'S BEER SUMMIT

An ivy league professor, who happens to be a friend of the President of the United States, is arrested for disorderly conduct after an altercation with police. His arrest dominated the news cycle and, seemingly, the President's attention. President Obama went out of his way to insert the White House into the flap.

The President even made room in his (what I presume must be) busy week to host a "beer summit" with the professor and the policeman.

What's wrong with this picture?

Two wars, a failing economy, health care woes, crumbling infrastructure, massive national debt, alarming drop out rates among minority teenagers, packed prisons, foreclosure crisis, high unemployment...........

Focus, Mr. President, focus.

Weighting for Godot

I've long struggled with weight. For the past few years I have been a slave to my pedometer in hopes that the 10,000 steps a day program would be ' the event' to slove my problem.

When it became clear that 10,000 steps a day wasn't working and that my weight continued to drift upward, I began walking 12,000 steps. Then, 13,000. I'm currently at about 13,500.

Still no sign of deliverance. In fact, I think I could argue that the excercise is fueling hunger. Not good.

So, I joined Weight Watchers and have decided to also begin tracking every calorie I take in each day.

We shall see.

Count the cost

North Korea has executed a 33 year old mother of 3 for distributing a Bible.

Out of the mouths of babes.......

My parish recently held our annual Vacation Bible School. Making the rounds, I came upon a group of kids on the lawn enjoying a bit of play time. I wasn't in collar and quickly realized that the kids didn't recognize me.

I'm Father Jim, I said. I'm your priest.

One little boy looked at me intently and asked, Are you the man who holds up the big circle?

At first I was confused, then it struck me: on Sunday morning, I stand at the altar and hold up the bread and wine. The host is rather large and, yes, round. A big circle!

`

Can you 'un-do' your baptism?

USA Today is reporting this morning on atheists who are 'un-doing' their Christian baptisms in mock ceremonies involving hair dryers. They intend the ritual to show the (alleged) victory of reason over religion.

Two thoughts:

First, I find it interesting that modern atheists are so intensely, well, religious about their unbelief. Their evangelical zeal of late knows no bounds; they seem determined to make as many converts as possible. Now they are developing their own liturgical practices.

Second, baptism can't be 'un-done'. It's an indelible mark on the soul. If you don't believe in the soul, why bother to try and erase the mark?

Kiva, micro lending and the death of charity

I am deeply conflicted about the value of charity. While I see tremendous need in the world around me, I don't see charity as the answer.

Too often, charity inflates the ego of the one who gives and demeans the one who recieves. I also wonder if charity fosters a sense of dependence. Perhaps our vast system of charity will have to die and rise again if we are ever to (finally!) overcome poverty.

Micro lending has been a blessing to me. When I extend an interest free loan to a striver in the developing world, I feel I meet that man or woman as an equal partner in their hopes and aspirations.

Check out Kiva.org for more information about the power of mirco lending.

FICTION

CAN YOU STILL HEAR ME?

The drive to the Veteran's Home is a four hour ordeal of twists and turns along back roads and into forgettable little towns, speed traps, crawling with swag bellied cops and lank faced meth addicts.

How he ended up down here is a tale too long and sad to tell you. It was the best option available at the time. Or so we tell ourselves.

The complex is an old TB hospital, a crumbling reminder that the health panics of one age inevitably give way to the panics of the next. The red brick buildings sit atop a densely wooded hill; the view stretches for miles across a vast National Forest.

There are a number of benches on the lawn where a man could sit and enjoy the landscape but I've rarely seen anyone in them. The patients are mostly too far gone to notice the scenery. They remain in their sparesly furnished rooms or in front of the TVs that never go quiet.

What surpised me most was the absence of photos in the patient's rooms. Families just quit trying, I guess. I know we did.

His room is dimly lit. He sleeps most of the day and even when awake his hair has that matted, bed head look to it. There is an odor of unwashed feet to the room, ironic given his fastidiousness about such matters. As a boy, I would watch him sink his pale feet into a basin of indigo water to cure some eternal itch he caught during basic training.

Today, I do not bother to wake him. Instead I sit next to his bed and soak in unadorned grief. I want to believe that in his dreams there remain grainy images of me, perhaps some with crackly sound. Somewhere in his heart a skinny kid in cut offs zig zags bare foot over a summer lawn yelling, Hey, Dad, look at this, watch........Dad!

Can you still hear me?

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Integrity is what we do when we think no one knows what we're doing.......

Majority Catholic SCOTUS = so what?

There is no more dramatic evidence of the decline of Catholicism as a moral force than the prospect of an "extreme" majority of Catholic justices on the Supreme Court of the US.

Despite the majority, legal trends will not change. Protection for life in the womb does not appear forthcoming. In fact, abortion rights will probably expand.

US Catholics are the new WASPs; more of a social class than a faith community.

Good news for country clubs but bad news for unborn babies.

Sotomayor and the issue that won't go away

At this writing, Judge Sotomayor is undergoing the process to be confirmed as a Supreme Court Justice. Her hearings have twice been interupted by anti-abortion protestors.

Sotomayor, a Catholic (cultural, not religious) told the assembled senators that Roe v. Wade is "settled law".

Hmmm. Settled law, perhaps, but not a settled moral issue. Consider that one of the arrested protestors was the very woman whose quest for an abortion gave us Roe v. Wade. It seems she had an unsettled heart.

Sunday, July 12th

I tinkered with my homily all weekend. Following the last mass of the day, I went back to the rectory and fell into a deep sleep. In my dreams, I was still preaching the darn thing; still trying to get it right.

Here's what my subconscious wanted added to the homily: if we are being called into something new, it means we are being pulled away from something old. A calling is the second act of "chosenness"--we have been chosen to carry the presence of Christ into the world. But, this means we have also been called to leave the past behind. For the early Christians, leaving their old pagan ways behind proved easier said than done. For the modern church, leaving behind ego is difficult. But, go we must. We are being pulled away.