Category: Spirituality

On the Cover of the Rolling Stone

Pope Francis waves to crowds as he arrives to his inauguration mass on 19 March 2013.A friend of mine who is rather skeptical of the Roman Catholic Church and Christianity in general, recently asked me what I think about Pope Francis I appearing on the cover of Rolling Stone.

I replied, “I don’t.”

Not satisfied with that answer, she said that she thought it was kind of neat to see him there. To her, he projects—and I’m paraphrasing here—a hip, modern flair. Surely that is what the Church needs right now, no? After all, he wants to bring people back right?

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Brother Can You Spare A Dime?

american-hobos-hobo1Actually, can you make it a quarter? Inflation and all.

Apart from being cold—I’ve beat that horse to a bloody pulp already—this is also the time of the year when everybody has their hands out.

Taxes, insurance renewals, taxes, homeowners’ association, taxes, and so on.

My wallet’s gotten so light that I’m down to one package of ramen noodles a day, and only run the van’s motor for 20 minutes each night to stay warm!

To quote my old college roommate, “I’m po! So poor I can’t afford the o and the r.”

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Merry Christmas!

I’d like to write something profound, or witty, or profound and witty to wish you a Merry Christmas, but I can’t touch this.

Here is Fr. Lawrence Farley, pastor of St. Herman Orthodox Church in Langley, B.C. with a commentary entitled, In Fairness to Herod.

Take a moment and listen…

h/t Ancient Faith Radio

The Poetry Corner

dryleaves

Dry Leaves

Look at all the leaves in my garage!
Blown here by a persistent northwest wind,
They swirl in little eddies when I open the door,
As if rushing about to find a hiding place,
Unsure of where to go.

Broom in hand, I push them to the door,
To freedom!
Crossing the threshold, they catch the breeze,
And scurry away like so many little animals suddenly released from captivity,
To find their way in the snowy landscape outside.

With each sweep, I urge them on,
But strangely, they do not wish to go.
Carried ecstatically by the wind at first, they hesitate then turn back.
They rustle in tiny waves under my car, cowering from the cold,
And my broom.

How much like my thoughts are these dry leaves.
They gather in profusion, and then flutter in confusion,
When I try to bring them to order.
I push them out, to clear a space for You,
But they come fluttering back.

Refusing to be swept away.

A Thought for Your Day

star-of-bethlehemFrom one of my favorite poets, Ranier Maria Rilke,

If your daily life seems poor, do not blame it; blame yourself that you are not poet enough to call forth its riches; for the Creator, there is no poverty.

As we embark on Advent, let us all take a moment to disengage from the petty, sordid materialism surrounding us, to contemplate the great riches that were given to us in the Child born in Bethlehem.

May we all reach out to possess Him.

Amen.

Happy Thanksgiving?

golgothaOne year ago, on Thanksgiving Day in fact, my father had carotid surgery which led to a stroke. For him it was the last straw. He spent the next year in and out of the hospital, rehabilitation, and finally home with hospice care, where he slowly succumbed to the congestive heart failure that took his life.

This past Monday was my father’s birthday. He would have been 89. Because his birthday normally falls so close to Thanksgiving, our family has always celebrated the two together. The crowning event of the feast is when Dad has his birthday mincemeat pie. I’ve written about this before.

This Thanksgiving we won’t have our father with us at the table, not in person anyway, and I’ve been struggling not to feel sad about it. After all, this is a day specially set aside for counting our blessings.

Well, there is one thing that I’m especially thankful for this year…

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Happy All Hallows Eve!

catbat-230x300No, not this.

Not the Americanized festival of costume parties and children dressed as monsters mooching candy door-to-door.

I mean the day before All Saints Day!

Now, I’m not against a little harmless fun, I just wanted to remind us all of the more edifying aspects of this day in the calendar.

As usual, we humans have lost touch with those things that are meant to build up our souls, the things that make us think. Instead, we prefer a brief moment of blissful forgetfulness that life is hard.

Damn the future! Pass the cider!

So what’s up with the Feast of All Saints?

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