On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there; and both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding. John 2:1-2 Marriage is difficult. Even if you love the other person to the rooftop, there are so many pitfalls as two individuals try to build a life together. How one could possibly make it work without God, I can’t imagine. That’s why it’s good to know that at least... Read more
Things were going just too well. I’d had a fairly productive day in the office. My new haircut was perky, with just the right attitude. My most recent blog post had been picked up by the New Advent supersite, and I was watching the stats climb—hundreds of readers, over a thousand, still more…. So I needed a reality check. I popped into Mass this evening, chatted with a few parishioners, then took my seat in the fourth row. It wasn’t... Read more
In honor of the Marian feast this week, I thought I’d take a peek inside the Virgin Mary’s closet. Sometimes you’d think, from looking at pious representations of the Mother of God, that she was a real fashionista. Actually, when you think about it, living in such a warm climate, Mary must have had at least a few tunics. But haven’t the artists taken her style just over the top? Why Did Mary Wear Blue? First, there’s that closet full... Read more
Only a gentle snowfall could have improved the evening. On Friday, Jennifer and I stepped into a Christmas card from the past at “Holiday Nights” in Dearborn’s Greenfield Village. On eight nights during the holiday season, the Village comes alive with the sounds and smells of Christmas from days gone by. Families of robust children in woolen mittens, young lovers enjoying the romance of winter fireworks, and older folks reminiscing about their own distant childhoods mingle along the candle-lit walks. ... Read more
I worked in downtown Detroit many years ago, and one of my pleasant discoveries as I wandered the streets during my lunch hour was the unique and vibrant liturgy at St. Aloysius Catholic Church. St. Aloysius is located on Washington Boulevard, pressed into the space between the historic Book Cadillac Hotel and the Chancery offices. Modeled after the great Duomo in Milan with its lower-level crypt chapel, St. Al’s was the only church I’d seen with both an upper and... Read more
Oh, no. I was chuckling about the article that’s gone viral these past few days, featuring the “27 Worst Nativity Sets.” Yep, they’re pretty bad– I admit! But then I saw our White House. The People’s House. And this year, the Obama family has decorated the White House with (choose one): (a) Nativity sets from around the world (b) Flags of the nations (c) Ornaments representing each of the 57, er, 50 states. Nope. This year, the White House is... Read more
Poor Steve Frye. Mr. Frye paid $1,000 to be admitted to the “Leather Meets Lace” party at the Playboy Mansion, only to find—oh, I’m shocked!—that sexy ladies were admitted for free. That is just not fair, Mr. Frye thinks; it should not be only lecherous conventioneers who are subjected to entrance fees. Such a policy, he alleges, contributes to “harmful, negative stereotypes.” (Wait—Hasn’t he noticed that the whole Playboy culture fosters harmful, negative stereotypes?) And so he has filed suit... Read more
You’ve gotta hand it to CNN: If nothing else, they’re consistent. Readers on my Facebook page got into a discussion one day recently about the CNN “Belief Blog.” The general consensus was that it’s actually more of an “UN-Belief Blog”: The point of the feature seems to be to identify a particular teaching or practice of the Catholic Church that is unpopular this week, then pontificate [an ironic word!] about why it should be changed. This week’s column by Roland... Read more
Watch out, Detroit! There’s a sassy new kid on the Catholic block! This Sunday, the First Sunday of Advent, the Archdiocese of Detroit will switch its network affiliation and will begin carrying the programming of CatholicTV out of Boston. The oldest Catholic television channel in the world, CatholicTV offers faith-filled, family-friendly programming 24 hours a day. Since 1987, CTND (the Catholic Television Network of Detroit) has carried programming from the Eternal Word Broadcasting Network. And while Detroit-area Catholics have certainly... Read more
Normally, I wouldn’t have much to say about a Presidential turkey pardon. I mean…. Who really cares? But this morning, I happened to see a video of President George W. Bush pardoning the Thanksgiving turkeys during his final year in the White House. Then, a counterpoint: I heard President Obama’s turkey pardon on the car radio. The difference in these two pardons was a metaphor for the stark difference in their presidencies. One is self-absorbed, clownish, mocking of faith, jokes... Read more
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