The Bad Shepherd…
It’s pretty simple. Because everyone lost. [Read more...]
Because Thomas Merton Gave Lectures Like This On Love
January 2, 2013 By 1 Comment
Of the theological virtues Faith, Hope, and Love, St. Paul writes that the greatest of these is Love. Our Lord also said so when He was being questioned by the scholar of the law and gave us the Two Greatest Commandments, both of which are based on love; the love of God and the love of neighbor.
It sounds pretty easy, and in theory it is. But in practice? [Read more...]
Having Some Bubbly Later? Thank the Monks of the Abbey of St. Hilare
December 31, 2012 By Leave a Comment
The first sparkling wine was not from Champagne
Joe Six-Pack knows who to thank. Now before you get yourself all up in a lather, breaking out sources from Bon Appetit Magazine to refute this assertion, etc., let me just skip you straight to the Wikipedia citation for champagne, complete with footnotes for you to follow up on. [Read more...]
Because of Thomas Merton, OCSO (January 31, 1915 – December 10, 1968)
December 10, 2012 By 17 Comments
This is part VII of my conversion story, tagged as 2BFrank in the Tag Cloud. I run it every year on this day to commemorate the death of Thomas Merton, who was also known as Father Louis.
Yes, I am well aware that he is not a canonized saint, but the salient point about Fr. Louis’ life is not whether he was a good Catholic, or a bad Catholic. The main thing isn’t even that his writings helped bring me into the Church. [Read more...]
For All the Saints: The Martyrs of Douai College
November 14, 2012 By 4 Comments
A few days back, we learned about the Bond family and their recusant Catholic past. Also a few days ago, CARA released survey results saying Catholics really want to learn more about the saints, and such. So let’s put it to the test with this post, shall we? Because this post has got it all, from daring do, to fidelity to the faith. Sainthood and martyrdom.
It’s dangerous business being a Catholic. Dangerous, that is, if your idea of being thought well of is to be looked upon with favor by such worldly paragons as the New York Times, the Washington Post, and the San Francisco Chronicle. If by becoming a Catholic you hope to curry favor with the world, here is a little news flash: that ain’t a gonna happen. It never has, and never will.
Wisdom from Thomas Merton’s Letter to a Young Activist
November 7, 2012 By 9 Comments
Now that the presidential election is over, some of you may be feeling listless after the loss in the “biggest election of all time.” My advice? Don’t be.
Depending on where you stand politically, think about how you reacted to last nights election news.
Did you get caught up in the election cycle so much that you lost sight of the Kingdom of Heaven? A slippery slope lies between being a concerned citizen and morphing into a partisan political hack who sees everything through the lens of party and not through the lens of faith. [Read more...]
Drafted By God, The Story of Frater Matthew Desme
September 28, 2012 By 1 Comment
Image Credit: Rick Belcher/St. Michael’s Abbey
I said I’m gone readin’ and I am. In fact, I just read the best sports story I’ve seen in a while covered on Yahoo! Sports, and it’s so good, I have to share it with you. Naturally, as something related to God, Heaven, and our vocations as Christians, it’s wrapped up in baseball. Jeff Passen shares the story with us. Have a look, [Read more...]
Because of Catholics like Hubert of Aquitane (Saints for the Rest of Us)
August 13, 2012 By 3 Comments
Wait a second, isn’t that what is on the label of a bottle of Jägermeister liquer? What does that remotely have to do with being Catholic, you say? Is this some sort of joke, like something from Cracked? Well, let me introduce you to another Catholic saint, and all around swell guy, named Hubert of Aquitane. This is a rendition of the vision he saw while deer hunting. And yes, its on the label of a bottle of Jägermeister too.
Confessor, thirty-first Bishop of Maastricht, first Bishop of Liège, and Apostle of the Ardennes, born about 656; died at Fura (the modern Tervueren), Brabant, 30 May, 727 or 728.
Yawn, right? Yep, just another run-of-the-mill perfect saint story. Where do they come up with these guys, central casting? What happened to all the regular guy saints, like St. Peter and the rest of the crew? [Read more...]
General Patton’s Thoughts on the Power of Prayer
May 16, 2012 By 7 Comments
My youngest son has a Living Wax Museum assignment due for his 5th grade class tomorrow. He decided that he would be General George S. Patton, Jr. He’s been working on learning all he can about Patton, but what follows was in none of the books he checked out. I first shared it on the blog back on Jan 20, 2011. What did General Patton think when it came to the subject of prayer? Plenty. So here is the story again, from the archives… [Read more...]
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