Cry 'Woof'
Music, landscape gardening, architecture—there was no start to his talents. — Terry Pratchett, Hogfather, speaking of Bloody Stupid Johnson. Read more
Music, landscape gardening, architecture—there was no start to his talents. — Terry Pratchett, Hogfather, speaking of Bloody Stupid Johnson. Read more
The Conventional Friars are a Catholic novelty band started by six sophomores from the Franciscan College of Sts. Bonaventure and Gussie in Coeur D’Alene, Idaho in the fall of 1992. The ensemble first came together for a school talent show, to a strong response from the assembled students. Despite this, they continued to appear at campus events, wearing their signature chicken suits and performing songs like “Make Me An Omelette of Your Peace” and “They’ll Know We Are Chickens By... Read more
Rebecca Frech has a beautiful story to tell, and tells it beautifully: what a truly loving parish is like. Left me in tears, it did. Read more
So a week or so ago I complained about a fellow who left an awful note in lieu of a tip. This week, this bit of nonsense is floating about: every bit as unjust, and not at all helpful in terms of evangelism. Tom McDonald has the takedown, and he’s both more blunt and more colorful than I would have been. Maybe this works on some people, but it certainly isn’t going to work on your average unchurched post-modern. And... Read more
In Three Parts Dead, Max Gladstone paints a picture of a fascinating world where gods are a commodity to be bought and sold, where “soulstuff” is the coin of the realm, and where knowledge of the Craft can be a key to immortality…of a sort. The city of Alt Coulumb came out of the God Wars with one of its gods intact, Kos the Everburning. In return for the worship of his people, Kos provides heat and steam power to... Read more
Now, with the relevant link. Leah Libresco discusses an article that asks, why is it that there are so many Mormons in genre fiction? Certainly there are, and they include some of my favorites, including Orson Scott Card and Brandon Sanderson. (L.E. Modesitt is also a favorite, but although he lives in Utah and has written a couple of books that riff on Mormonism, I don’t know whether he’s a Mormon or not.) And then of course there’s Stephenie Meyers’... Read more
Last July there was an article in the Atlantic that stated that Monogamy kills Eros, as though this was an undeniable and invariable truth. Now me, I knew that this was wrong on the face of it; I’ve been married for over a quarter of a century, and my experience is quite the contrary. Still, it’s not enough to stand athwart the writer’s prose shouting “No!” and so I had to spend some time thinking about it. And it seems... Read more
I’ve had an iPad 2 since they were first released, and I love it. It’s sturdy, reliable, pleasant to use, and goes everywhere with me. For a case, I use the original Apple “Smart Cover”: a leather lid with a magnetic hinge that pops on and off easily. The lid has four sections, and folds into a triangular tube, which you can use as a base. In landscape mode, the iPad stands up at a convenient angle; and in portrait... Read more
When you embark on the interior life, you’ll find that feelings come with it. Sometimes you’ll feel that God is so close you can practically touch him. Sometimes (alas) you’ll feel so bored you’d rather do anything else—almost. Sometimes even more than almost. The thing is, the interior life isn’t about feelings; it’s about an objective relationship with Jesus Christ. It’s about knowing Christ and loving Christ, which is to say it’s a matter of the intellect and of the... Read more
I’ve added a new page to the menu at the top of the page: the Bookshelf, which is a list of my recommended books on matters of faith. As I talk about books about religion, theology, the spiritual life, and so forth, I’ll add the ones I like to the Bookshelf so folks can find them easily. It’s a little sparse at the moment, but it will grow. Read more
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