Am I Racist? A Primer on Race, Racism, and White Privilege for My Fellow “White” Americans

Last updated on: July 23, 2016 at 2:14 pm By David Russell Mosley

David Russell Mosley Ordinary Time St Bridget’s Day The Edge of Elfland Hudson, New Hampshire Dear Readers, I want to have a hard and frank conversation with you today. I want to talk about race and racism. Some may, and somewhat correctly, assume that it is wrong for me to discuss the issues of race and racism. After all, I am a white man, and am often portrayed as the bogeyman. But here’s the thing, sometimes I am the bogeyman,... Read more

On Submitting the Manuscript of My Novel, On the Edges of Elfland

Last updated on: July 22, 2016 at 7:16 pm By David Russell Mosley

David Russell Mosley Ordinary Time Feast of St. Mary Magdalen The Edge of Elfland Hudson, New Hampshire Dear Readers, While a group of friends, colleagues, and acquaintances meets on a family farm to discuss the Radical Catholic Reimagination of Everything (a conference at which I wish I were in attendance), I can at least say that I am doing what I can to aid in this mission. Tonight, just a few moments ago, I finally submitted the manuscript for my... Read more

A Vision of Angels: Revisiting a Vision Given During My Son’s Cancer Treatment

Last updated on: July 6, 2016 at 10:03 am By David Russell Mosley

David Russell Mosley Ordinary Time 21 July 2016, On the Edge of Elfland Hudson, New Hampshire Dear Readers, A few weeks ago I reposted a blog post on its two year anniversary concerning my son, Edwyn, going through his first round of chemotherapy. I wanted to re-share this letter I wrote two weeks later (to the day) concerning something with which I was blessed as I attended a spoken Eucharist service at the parish church, St. John the Baptist,... Read more

The Dementor’s Kiss: What Is a Soul and Can You Lose It?

Last updated on: July 16, 2016 at 12:41 pm By David Russell Mosley

David Russell Mosley Ordinary Time 12 July 2016 The Edge of Elfland Hudson, New Hampshire Dear Readers, I normally do my annual re-read of Harry Potter during Christmastide (maybe this coming Christmas I’ll do a post surveying the place of Christmas in the Wizarding World), but I didn’t get to it this past Christmas, so I started it this summer. I’ve just finished re-reading Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban and thought I would do a short post about... Read more

On the Feast of St. Benedict: An Introduction John Cassian

Last updated on: July 11, 2016 at 4:16 pm By David Russell Mosley

David Russell Mosley Ordinary Time Feast of St. Benedict The Edge of Elfland Hudson, New Hampshire Dear Readers, As many of you will know today is the feast of St. Benedict, you know, the one from the Rule of St. Benedict, the one to whom people keep assigning an Option. But today, in this short post, I don’t want to write to you about the man, his Rule, or his Option. Rather, I want to write to you about one... Read more

Waking Up: Taking Solace in the Escape of Fairy-stories and Awaiting the Return of Christ with Joy

Last updated on: July 11, 2016 at 7:21 pm By David Russell Mosley

David Russell Mosley Ordinary Time 9 July 2016 The Edge of Elfland Hudson, New Hampshire Dear Readers, I’m tired. I’m exhausted. I don’t feel like I have the energy necessary to do just about anything. I started a post on sacramental ontology and I hope to finish it, but honestly, I was bored by it and its a subject in which I have both professional and personal interest. I’m tired, both literally and metaphorically. That is, I wish I could... Read more

But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.

Last updated on: July 8, 2016 at 12:06 pm By David Russell Mosley

David Russell Mosley Ordinary Time 8 July 2016 The Edge of Elfland Hudson, New Hampshire Dear Readers, I don’t really know what to say. What words can I add that haven’t been spoken by many others? What words can I add that haven’t been spoken more eloquently, more feelingly than I as a white man ever possibly could? There has been so much death. Systemic and personal racism have led to the unlawful and unnecessary deaths of so many black... Read more

Remembering My Son’s Cancer Treatment

Last updated on: July 6, 2016 at 10:03 am By David Russell Mosley

David Russell Mosley Ordinary Time 7 July 2016 The Edge of Elfland Hudson, New Hampshire Dear Readers, It has been two years since my younger son was diagnosed with cancer. Two years. I cannot describe to you how difficult that time in our lives was. We had it better than many. Edwyn survived and has been cancer free since at least October of 2014. Below is a post I wrote exactly two years ago today on our Caring Bridge... Read more

Longing for England, Longing for Home

Last updated on: July 6, 2016 at 11:06 am By David Russell Mosley

David Russell Mosley Ordinary Time 6 July 2016 The Edge of Elfland Hudson, New Hampshire Dear Readers, Several times a year I find myself longing to be back in England. It was easier last year because I knew I was going back for my Viva. Now, however, I have no idea when I’ll make my way back to the island of my ancestors. Different things trigger this longing. Sometimes it will be seeing pictures from our time there on my... Read more

What do We Mean by God? A Perennial Problem and the Start of an Answer

Last updated on: July 5, 2016 at 8:11 am By David Russell Mosley

David Russell Mosley Ordinary Time 5 July 2016 The Edge of Elfland Hudson, New Hampshire Dear Readers, I recently wrote a post responding to Hemant Mehta’s “Atheists Don’t Want God to Exist“. In my response, I noted that Mehta was making a few mistakes about how he understood God and his relationship to the universe. Now this made several readers feel the need to comment. Many of the atheists commenting felt that this was special pleading or at least wanting... Read more