General Hospital Actor and the Monks of Mt. Athos – UPDATED

I have had more than one email asking me to follow up yesterdays “Nun News Roundup” with a similar post for the men. I am working on it, I promise, but for today, let’s content ourselves with this very interesting piece by Tony Rossi:

It’s not that unusual for an actor to thank God when winning an award. It was a first, however, when Jonathan Jackson thanked “the monks of Mount Athos for ceaselessly praying for the life of the world” while accepting his fifth Daytime Emmy for his role as Lucky Spencer on “General Hospital.”

What was even more unusual was the fact that Jonathan, whose nondenominational Christian background had taught him that “organized religion was oppressive and evil,” had recently joined the Eastern Orthodox Church with his wife and three children.
[...]
Another area in which Jonathan’s faith has evolved is his perception of Mary, the mother of Jesus, and the difference between worshiping her and venerating her. He says, “It took me years of reading and talking to Catholics and Orthodox people and exposing myself to a different perspective… I consistently went back to the Scriptures [like] Luke: ‘Rejoice O Mary, full of grace. Blessed art thou among women.’ And then, she herself said that ‘all generations will call me blessed.’ I noticed that in Protestantism, they’re not doing that…It’s like a loud silence surrounding Mary…. This is the woman who was chosen to give birth to the Son of God. If you just spend five minutes contemplating that reality, there’s no way you’re not going to venerate her and say ‘Blessed are you among women.’ And I will join that chorus of all generations.”

Read the whole thing Tony also has a podcasted interview with Jackson that touches on theology in surprising ways — worth listening to.

60 Minutes offers a look at the Monks of Mt. Athos that is really excellent. Part 1 can be seen here. Part II here

Also, I mentioned yesterday that the Dominican nuns at Summit were preparing to clothe their new novice today, and so they have — meet Sr. Mary Augustine:

I once asked a novice-mistress how long it takes newly-received sisters to adjust to their names-in-religion and she said it’s a surprisingly fast process — both newbie and community seem fully used to the new moniker within two weeks. God bless Sister Mary Augustine as she begins this next step in her journey. She has a great patron!

And let us give thanks for all of the monastic men and women who answer the call to spend their days joining their voices to the constant praise offered by the angels in heaven, while also praying for the life of the whole world, here on earth. If you think the world is a hard place, just imagine living in one without them and their prayers.

UPDATE: The Summit Dominicans have posted pictures of Sr. Mary Augustine’s clothing in the habit