Ruminations of an Amateur Monastic
Released today and, weirdly, also dated today, Pope Francis has published some instructions pursuant to the upcoming Extraordinary Jubilee Year of Mercy. Some highlights: How Indulgences are to be Granted: I wish that the Jubilee Indulgence may reach each one as a genuine experience of God’s mercy, which comes to meet each person in the Face of the Father who […]
» Read moreFather Maurer’s last Sunday Masses at Holy Rosary and Saint Joseph were this past weekend. Following the Noon Mass, a tremendous celebration was held for him in the old convent building. The noon Mass was positively packed. The last time I saw so many folks crowded into Holy Rosary was when Archbishop Sartain celebrated Corpus Christi here in 2013. I […]
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Charles Dickens’ great classic, A Tale of Two Cities, begins with words that could apply to any tumultuous age, ours included. Perhaps especially ours. It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, […]
» Read moreYesterday, my step-daughter Michaela married Mr. Corey McKee in a lovely outdoor ceremony. Although she was raised a Reform Jew, it was a largely secular ceremony. There were some nice nods to the Jewish traditions, though. In particular, Michaela’s father gave one of the traditional blessings in Hebrew. He then blessed a glass of wine, which the couple drank before […]
» Read moreThis morning’s Mass at Holy Rosary was the last solemnity celebrated together by the parishes of Holy Rosary and Saint Joseph. Father Maurer celebrated the Mass to honor Our Lady and give glory to God, and it was beautiful, uplifting, and holy. Father chanted the prayers. We chanted the Ordinary of the Mass in English. Francine read from the Revelation […]
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On the 15th of August 2004, Francine and I walked into Saint Patrick’s Church in Tacoma. This was the Solemnity of the Assumption, and ever since we have counted this as our “Catholic anniversary”. On that day, I discovered in a moment that every doubt I ever had about the truth of Christianity had collapsed. God in His wisdom had […]
» Read moreToday is the feast of the deacon martyr, Saint Lawrence. There are so many stories about him, that it’s hard to sum him up briefly. In the confused days after the martyrdom of Pope Sixtus, the administration of the Roman churches fell to the Deacon, Lawrence. He was captured by the Imperial authorities, but he bargained for his release. The […]
» Read moreThe very clever amongst you no doubt noticed in my previous post that our new pastor was not named pastor of both of our parishes. Let me explain. The parishes of Holy Rosary and St. Joseph have been joined at the hip for something like twenty years. They were first consolidated under a single pastor during the last of our […]
» Read moreThe headline says it all. I cannot imagine better news on a Tuesday morning. I’m more than slightly stunned. He was only appointed Rector of Mundelein Seminary three years ago. At that time I wrote: As both of my long-time readers know, I am a fan of Fr. Robert Barron. His Catholicism Project is to religion what Carl Sagan’s Cosmos […]
» Read moreYesterday, Francine and I drove up to Sacred Heart church in Fairhaven, near Bellingham, to attend an informational session on the Diaconate. We put about 250 miles on the car. The talk was given by the director of the program, Rev. Frank Schuster. It was videotaped, so I’m sure it will be available on the Archdiocese’s web page presently. Francine […]
» Read moreToday is the memorial of one of my favourite saints, Saint Thomas More, who died at the hands of King Henry VIII (that villain). That is, it is his memorial in the modern Roman calendar. In the Benedictine calendar, it is no such thing – you’d have to wait for July 9 for that. Fortunately, I’ve become familiar enough with […]
» Read morePope Francis’ new encyclical on ecology and the environment was published this morning, and already my RSS feeds and inbox are filling up with those praising it, criticizing it, or just plain analyzing it. I will begin reading it at lunch, but I’ve no hope of finishing it for a while. You can download a copy from the Vatican web […]
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Years ago, when we were parishioners at St. Rita, our long-time pastor retired. At that time, I wrote what has oddly become one of the most Googled posts on this blog, Hopes and Prayers for a New Pastor. At that time, I said: Being a pastor is one of the most difficult jobs in the world, I think. The responsibility […]
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Several things crowd my mind this morning. Chiefly, I’m still processing the Corpus Christi Masses and procession we celebrated at our parish yesterday. But first, a slight digression. Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces On the calendar used in the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite, today is the feast of Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces. I wrote an article several […]
» Read moreThis coming Sunday my parish will participate in an outdoor Procession of the Blessed Sacrament following the Noon Mass. The Masses that day will be celebrated Ad Orientem. This will be the third year we’ve taken Jesus through the streets of Tacoma and amongst His people. If you are anywhere in the area, I hope you will consider joining us. […]
» Read moreOn 24 March 1980, Archbishop Óscar Romero of San Salvador was gunned down while celebrating Mass. While it is generally recognized (and admitted by the government) that the assassins were members of a death squad sent by the government of El Salvador, to this day no one has been prosecuted for the crime. And what had the archbishop done to […]
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Last year on this day, I was one frustrated oblate. Today is the (combined) feast of four great Abbots of the Benedictine Order: Saints Odo, Majolus, Odilo, and Hugh. They were all good and holy men, and during the course of their reigns over the Abbey of Cluny and its associated priories, they reformed western monasticism – indeed, it could […]
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