Oscars 2011 and a nun

Dolores Hart OSB.jpgNot surprising that many people are interested in sensational stories like “Mother Dolores Hart: The Nun Who Kissed Elvis Presley.” I guess kissing Elvis is akin to winning the jackpot. Each to his or her own! Thom Geier’s story is exactly titled such on EW.com. I have to admit, however, I am fascinated –to a degree– by this woman’s gesture of following a vocation that had in mind her eternal destiny and not just money, fame and power. Hart’s life and enduring witness to Christ at the Abbey of Regina Laudis, Bethlehem, CT, is inspiring. Who wouldn’t be inspired by a beautiful woman giving her life to God through monastic consecration!


The following gives a flavor of Geier’s article: “Over the course of nearly half a century as a Roman
Catholic nun, Mother Dolores has had many jobs: choir member, baker, and coffin
maker. She’s served as prioress, the convent’s second in command, for nine
years. But for the past two decades, she has spent a good deal of time each
winter on another assignment that harks back to her earlier, pre-monastic life:
Oscar voter.”

Mother Dolores’ autobiography ought to be out soon.

Beatification ceremonies for John Paul II are FREE

The Prefecture of the Papal Household, having been
informed of the existence of unauthorised offers by some Tour Operators,
especially on internet, of assistance in procuring tickets, with a service
charge, for General Audiences and Papal ceremonies, particularly for the
Beatification of the Servant of God John Paul II on Sunday, May 1, wishes to
make it clear that:


1) For the Beatification Mass of Pope John Paul II, as made
clear from the outset
, no tickets are required.

2) The tickets provided by the
Prefecture of the Papal Household for General Audiences and Papal ceremonies
are always issued FREE of charge and no person or organization can request any
kind of payment.

The Thought of Henri Bremond


henri bremond.jpg

In the current
issue of La Civiltà Cattolica, Jesuit Father Antonio Spadaro wrote an
interesting essay, “The Thought of Henri Bremond.” Matters pertaining to faith
and reason, faith and culture interest me perhaps you. At least that’s what I
hope if you are a frequent reader of the Communio blog. Henri Bremond
(1865-1933) is a former a Jesuit priest, literary scholar and was in the middle
of the Modernist crisis. His literary output was terrific. Bremond was a member
of the illustrious Académie Française succeedingm(elected in 1923 holding seat
number 36). France also awarded the Lé d’honneur. The summary:

An attempt to
overcome the gap between faith and culture – In the years that saw the rise of
surrealism, of Freudian thought and of the modernist crisis, Henri Bremond
captured the separation that was growing between theology and culture
sanctioned by the Enlightenment. Bremond suffered in trying to find a
compromise in terms of language, seeking to show to a cultured audience the
best results of a religious sensibility and sought to show to his Catholic
readers the religious value of «profane» literature. Seeing the similarities
between a mystical and a poetic inspiration, he concluded that “it is up to the
mystic to explain the poet,” reversing a common axiom. The article, on the
occasion of the reissue of his Prayer and poetry, absent from Italian
bookstores for three decades, presents the main insights of the priest,
academician of France.

Witches face jail time if spells fail

Romanian witches are soon to be licensed. Why, you
ask. So when their spells fail to provide the desired results, the government
can jail them. There’s a bill on parliament’s desk. On January 1, Romania
changed its laws witchcraft requiring receipts and prohibiting them from
exercising their craft near churches and schools.

Reno new editor of First Things

RR Reno.jpgThe Chairman of the Board of First Things, Robert Louis Wilken, announced that Russell R. Reno is the new editor of First Things.

RR Reno is the sometime professor of theological ethics at Creighton University. He earned a doctorate from Yale University.
Reno recently published Fighting the Noonday Devil and Other Essays Personal and Theological (Eerdmans, 2011).

The appointment is effective April 1. 

RR Reno’s the second successor to Father Richard John Neuhaus. Jody Bottum left the editorship a few months ago.

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Snow and Ice

bird feeder February 1 2011.jpg“The Snow-Storm” comes to mind today. There’s a certain end-times (should we say a 19th century apocalypticism?) quality to Ralph Waldo Emerson’s poem that life and death are confronted, forward motion is reduced-if-not-halted the boundaries are indistinct. Looking out my window I see the barrenness of the landscape with only the evergreens providing color save for the woodpecker, the bluejay and the cardinals collecting their food at the feeder. The property lines aren’t present and movement is difficult either by foot, car, or train, and forget the airplane. The vivid white of the snow and ice is blinding. 

So, I think it’s time for a change in weather. Don’t you?

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Continue reading Snow and Ice

51 days till Spring

snow displacement Jan 27 2011.JPG

So, Spring can’t come soon enough. I have a new appreciation for Daniel 3:69a-70:
Frost and chill, bless the Lord; praise and exalt him above all forever.
Ice and snow, bless the Lord; praise and exalt him above all forever.

NOT right now; perhaps in July! My poor back.
I think is better in the Bahamas!

The Siena Forum for Faith and Culture announced in NYC

Announcing the formation of The Siena Forum for Faith and Culture at The Church of Saint Catherine of Siena (411 East 68th Street, NYC). The Forum’s existence is the result of the leadership of Father Jordan Kelly, OP and myself, who feel deeply that The Siena Forum’s place in the life of the parish and NYC will offer opportunities for the serious engagement of faith and culture, and hopefully and God-willing, in the greater Church. The work of the Forum is rooted in the thinking of Pope Benedict XVI and the soon-to-be beatified Pope John Paul II, along with the intellectual tradition of Catholicism in general and the Order of Friars Preachers (the Dominican Order).
The Forum’s mission

The mission of The Siena Forum for Faith and Culture
seeks to critically examine and promote the rich diversity of the Catholic
faith and its practices that advance authentic human flourishing and its common
good. Our goal is to bridge the gap between faith and reason. The work of the
Forum is rooted in relationships among theology, art, culture, since,
education; the activities of the Forum include pastoral practice, leadership
development, talks, debates courses, seminars, publications, cultural events,
and exhibitions to help people integrate their faith in Jesus Christ as a
dynamic lived experience.


In the coming months and among others, Patrick Madrid and Mike Aquilina will be speaking at the Forum. Currently, the weekly gathering Communion and Liberation’s School of Community meet and organize periodic presentations.

Christian Courtship in an Oversexed World: A Guide for Catholics

The Catholic Fellowship of NYC is sponsoring a
Theology on Tap Event this Thursday… January 20, 2011 starting at 7:30pm
discussing the topic of


“Christian Courtship in an Oversexed World: A Guide for
Catholics.”

Location: At Cathedral Basilica of St. James Lower Church, Corner of Jay
Street & Cathedral Place, Brooklyn, NY 11201.


Father
Thomas G. Morrow is the featured speaker. Father Morrow is a priest of the
Archdiocese of Washington, DC; he earned the STD in moral theology from Pope
John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family in 1999, the
co-founder of the St. Catherine Society and the St. Lawrence Society,
respectively for women and men seeking spiritual growth. Morrow is an assistant
priest at the Church of Saint Catherine Labouré, Wheaton, MD.