2009 in Review

With the coming of 2010, I thought I would pause and look over the major events of 2009 to see where I’ve been and what I’ve been up to.

2009 began on kind of a rocky note, as far as vocation discernment goes. On the 2nd of January, I visited Gethsemani, the Trappist monastery in central Kentucky. Because of the need to decide whether or not I wanted to renew my simple vows, I felt like I had to decide once and for all whether or not I had a calling to be a Dominican friar, or some kind of monk. I visited the monastery with a good friend of mine who is now a priest for the Diocese of Covington. The visit to the monastery was wonderful, of course. But, as it turns out, the Holy Spirit had different plans for me, and I ended up applying for a renewal of vows later that month.

On January 23rd, I flew to Albuquerque, New Mexico on a vocations preaching mission with Br. Cassian. The friars and the faith community there were so generous to Cassian and me that later in the year, when I was asked where I would like to spend my pastor year, I listed Albuquerque as one of the possibilities. I preached on conversion that weekend, since it was the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul—namely, about the connection between conversion and vocation. A true conversion of heart results, I believe, in a total surrendering of one’s heart to God. In such a state, it’s much easier to then say to God, “Here I am Lord, I come to do you will,” and then go off on the craziest adventures for the sake of the Gospel. At the very end of the month, on Jan. 31st, I went ice-skating for the first time. The amazing thing was, I didn’t fall down once.

In February, the St. Luke Book Club met to discuss Flannery O’Connor’s novel Wise Blood, the third book in our four book study for that school year (the first two books being The Picture of Dorian Gray 10-18-08 and The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie 12-14-08). This was the first time that I had read a novel by O’Connor, and I was quite impressed by her style. I did start to wonder, however, whether the book club was ever going to read a novel about semi-normal people. (Needless to say, all the characters in Wise Blood had major social/emotional/spiritual dysfunctions.) We had ten people at the meeting that month, and it was only going to grow from there. Also in February (the 20th-22nd) was the Spring Semester “Come and See” vocation weekend. We had a large group of men, around twenty, come and check out the Central Province Dominicans. I gave the talk on the Cooperator Brotherhood. A number of the men who attended that Come and See are either now in the novitiate or applying for the class of 2010.

On the first of March, I preached at evening prayer about the Church’s teaching on baptism and connected it to Lent as the season of Mercy. At the end of the month I met again with the St. Luke Book Club to discuss G. K. Chesteron’s The Man Who was Thursday. Of all the meetings, this one had the most people. Unfortunately, of the novels, I liked this one the least.

April was a busy month for school work and ministry. As a member of the RCIA team, I was getting excited about the up and coming Easter Vigil during which the men and women I had been walking with on the faith journey would take the final steps toward full communion/initiation into the Holy Catholic Church, just as I did Easter, 2000.

May and December are typically not “pretty months” for students. For the Spring Semester of 2009 I was enrolled in five courses: Justice and Catholic Social Teaching, Summa III, The Gospel of Luke, Foundations of Spirituality, and Christian Initiation. For Justice and Catholic Social Teaching, I had to work the two other students and present on the issues related to scientific technology/medicine as they relate to human dignity and the right to life. In Summa III, I did a paper on the topic of Jesus’ knowledge, that is, the question Did Jesus Learn? In the Gospel of Luke I did a paper on Luke 4:16-30—the story of Jesus’ first preaching at Nazareth and his subsequent rejection by the people. This paper was my favorite assignment of the whole semester. In Foundations of Spirituality I had to design a retreat schedule, and for Christian Initiation, I wrote a paper on the topic of infant baptism.

The highlight of May was, of course, the graduation ceremony for a number of my friends (both fellow friars and other Aquinas Institute friends) and the Ordination on Mother’s Day. On the 15th of May, I spent the day with Allia, a friend from my undergrad days and then at the end of the month, I went to Kentucky for two weeks with my family. While visiting with my folks, I completed the first draft of a novel. (I am currently revising this novel draft). In fact, the year was full of creative writing projects—this novel being the major project. I also began writing a Regency period novel early in the year, and am now incorporating that novel idea into the other story.

June was a major month, because on the 1st, I travelled to Florida to meet my father for the first time in over 25 years. I also met my paternal grandparents and my nephew Christian. I had a wonderful time visiting, but had to return to St. Louis for part one of my summer work. I was working for Father David doing data entry for the provincial archives. In my spare time, I did genealogical research and studied French. It was on the 8th of June that I discovered I was related to Jane Austen through my maternal grandmother.

June 29th-August 17th, I was in Cairo, Egypt. For the first three weeks, I was attending a conference on Islam, along with 17 other English speaking friars from around the world. We visited all the major sites of Egypt, Pagan, Christian, Muslim, Jewish, you name it. The second half of the visit, Br. Luke and I stayed to teach ESL at a local Catholic Church community during a Sudanese refugee summer camp for adults and children. Also, while in Egypt, I turned 28 years old, and I renewed my simple vows for two years.

I returned to St. Louis with Br. Luke on the 17th of August, and stayed long enough to enjoy the Dittmer student brother days away with the student master. It was great to get to know the newly professed brothers from both the Central and Southern provinces and to hear about the ministry of the older student brothers.
On August 24th, I packed my bags and moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico to begin my pastoral year. It would take another week for my body to fully recover from Cairo.
September bloomed with many activities. On Sept. 11th, I lead my first ever communion service. I preached on the kind of spiritual blindness that can come when we think that we the students are greater than our teacher the Church. I continued my new ministries in Bible study, Divine Mercy Chaplet, and confirmation class. I was also being oriented to New Mexico by attending events like the Balloon Fiesta and the New Mexico state fair. I also enjoyed a stay at the Norbertine Priory for the Albuquerque community’s days away retreat.

October 9th-11th I returned to St. Louis to attend the first meeting of cooperator brother students and the interprovincial student meeting on contemplation. Both meetings were excellent, and I thoroughly enjoyed seeing several classmates of mine from the other provinces, not to mention, meeting a student brother from Canada. At the end of the month, I gave a presentation on the Communion of Saints for the religious education program, and enjoyed a visitation by the provincial. On the 26th, I did my first ever radio interview with Mary Woods of Catholic radio. It was pretty awesome!

November’s major event was definitely the Seeker’s Retreat (13th-15th). It was the first time that I had ever been involved in giving a retreat, and I must say doing so was the highlight of my semester of ministry. I felt like I had gone up to the mountain and experienced a transfiguration. At the end of the month, I returned to St. Louis for the mid-year theological reflection meeting. Five other students and I came together with our pastoral year advisers to do some serious reflection. I enjoyed the meeting much more than I thought I would, as well as, visiting with my fellow student brothers who were busy working on their end of the semester projects.
With December came the conclusion of a number of ministry projects. With all the free time I had, I decided a road trip was in order, and went (Dec. 17th-20th) to visit the novitiate in Denver with a friend who was discerning his vocation. December wasn’t all play, however; as one of the background assignments that I had to work on during the semester was applying to a CPE (Clinical Pastoral Education) program. On December 21st, I met with the supervisor of the CPE program for Presbyterian Hospital and was offered a position. This was a major relief to me, and a moment of surprising joy and excitement. The celebration of the Nativity of the Lord on Christmas Eve was truly a moving experience for me. I am always grateful to the Church for giving us the time of Advent to prepare for such an important celebration.

And then, on December 26th, I returned to the Holy Land—that is, the great Commonwealth of Kentucky—for a stay with my family. It is a great blessing to have such a home to come back to twice a year.
The year was full of great books. Besides Wise Blood and The Man Who was Thursday and the many books I read for my classes, I also read: Excellent Women, The Lonely Dove Died, Jane and Prudence, The Borstal Boy, The Watsons, Sanditon, Cranford, Middlemarch, The Portrait of a Lady, Vanity Fair, Miss Marjoribanks, Lady Susan and Cold Comfort Farm. I attempted to read The English Patient, but could not get into it.

The greatest part of the year, however, has to be the friendships that I have enjoyed, and the new ones that have just begun to form. Thanks to the conference in Cairo, I have friendships with friars and others from around the world. And thanks to my pastoral year ministry, I now have new friends in New Mexico. These are the gifts that I treasure the most.

The year, as I said, began sort of rocky, with a great deal of spiritual and emotional drama. I am grateful that the year is going out much more softly, and with a high level of serenity. I pray that the Holy Spirit would continue to guide me and us all as we begin this new year together.
God Bless!
Br. Paul, OP

The Fruit of my Advent Reflections

Yesterday, I received a 2010 calendar as a Christmas gift from a rather awesome friend of mine. Anyone who knows me well knows that calendars are special things to me, because they call us to remember the events of the past. On any given day I can recall one of my many anniversaries. Dec. 19th, for example, is the anniversary of when I received the application papers for the Province of St. Albert the Great. People laugh at my love of anniversaries, but for me, there's something so vitally important to keeping track of where you have been as a person. It's one of the ways that we can measure our lives and say: "Look at what God has done for me." This is, after all, the whole point to celebrations like Christmas. We as a Christian people are looking back and saying, "Look at what God has done for us!"

So, as I sat down last night to write the important dates on my new calendar, I took a trip down memory lane. I went and searched through my old emails from when I began seriously discerning my vocation to the Dominicans. I was a little amazed at what I found. Why amazed? Well, in this life, you have to tell your vocation story a lot. It gets to the point when you stop and ask: "Is this really how it was, or have I romanticized it?" By looking through my old emails I realized that the story I tell to others is true, and matches what the paper trail reveals.

This is what I wrote in my first email to the vocation director of the Central Province:

From: M. Byrd
To: vocations@dominicans.org
Sent: Mon, October 10, 2005 11:06:53 AM
Subject: Vocation

Fr Andrew:

I've known that I've had a vocation since I was a little child, but have never been very strong or constant about it, until now. On the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary I dedicated myself to Mary, and began, what I call, my year of discipline. I hope to grow in this year by attending mass faithfully, confessing and receiving communion, studying the Bible, praying the rosary, striving toward a healthy celibacy, and living a life of Christian charity. I knew that St. Dominic was involved in the devotion of the Rosary, but what attracted me even more to the order is that it's the Order of Preachers. A Preacher is what I want to be.

I just wanted someone in the order to know, in case there are opportunities to meet and information to read to further my year of discernment.

Thank you,
M. Byrd

This email was sent just three days after the Feast of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary, the day I dedicated myself to Mary and to my vocation. The other emails confirm that it was the Holy Spirit reminding me of Rose Hawthorne that led me to investigate the Dominicans, and that even in October of 2005 I suspected that my vocation was to the cooperator brotherhood and not to the priesthood(something that I wouldn't fully understand until after profession).

Recently, when I was reflecting on the past year, I had the amazing revelation that what God has done for me is to call me out of a life of confusion and into a life of grace. The religious life, if led well, can actually lead to a life of grace--that is, a life marked by a constant and fruitful relationship with God; a state of communion that sets the individual on stable ground. Sin is not out of the picture; but it no longer has the power it once had, namely, because it isn't nearly as persuasive as it once was. By learning to love God above all things, we learn to properly assess the hierarchy of the good of other things, and the goods of lesser things tied to sin no longer seem so attractive. Think of it this way: it would be like Eve and Adam being able to feel a desire for the good of the forbidden fruit on the tree, but having that desire trumped by the greater desire they have to be faithful to God, whose goodness they know far surpasses that of the fruit.

A life of grace is about having a relationship with God that leads to freedom. It's about maturing in one's human spirituality beyond the rule of an external law, to the internalization of that law as a way of life and part of one's self--or as the Holy Spirit says in scripture, a law written on the heart.It is fitting that it should be said to be "written on the heart", because in English language culture, the heart is the symbol of human emotion--namely, love. The Torah of God is rooted in love--that is, rightly ordered love.

A man on a radio show that I listened to recently was boasting about how when he was having a health scare and thought he might die his mind was at ease, because he had gone to confession. He felt he had done everything "required" of him to be ready for death. To a certain extent, he's correct. In another sense, however, I felt he was perhaps missing something in his understanding of the point of confession and our holy faith. We Christians are not called upon to seek a temporary communion with God; an understanding of relationship based on a fluctuating status of "in communion" or "out of communion" due to sin. We're called upon to be in a constant relationship with God. Such a relationship is defined by genuine love and faithfulness. A person in such a relationship would not, I imagine, think that all that was required of him or her was a confession--a sacramental act--but a life totally oriented toward God, a friendship with God. This is such a tricky subject, because I am, in no way, trying to undermine the importance of the sacraments. What I am saying is that the sacraments ought to lead to something greater than just relief. They ought to lead a person to hunger and thirst to be in union with God and to be like God, which is their divine purpose. Friendship with God, therefore, is key. And a longing for that friendship is the hallmark of the life of grace.

"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness," declared our Lord. Such a hunger and thirst leads to true conversion, and true conversion is the shedding of sin and the growth in virtue. This is what I have seen that God is working out in my life. I make no claims to perfection or sinlessness--but I have the amazing privilege of saying that the vocation of religious brother has truly led me closer to the joy of friendship with God and further from the frustrating disappointment of sin. Because of this I can sincerely pray, "Come Lord Jesus, do not delay," knowing that it would be preferable to have our Lord's return today than anything else I could imagine.

God is the greatest good--let us, as St. Benedict said, learn to prefer nothing whatever to him.

Happy Feast of Our Lord's Nativity, the Feast of Our Salvation,
Br. Paul, OP~

I've been busy!

Well, I certainly have been busy, although the semester work has officially been over for a week now. I went this past weekend to visit the Central Province novitiate in Denver, Colorado with a young man in discernment. It was the first time that I had been back to the "old place" since professing simple vows in August of 2007. We have six novice brothers currently, and it was a pleasure to get to spend time with them. We even got to hear one of them preach on Saturday during vespers. And, of course, it was great to see my novice master again, and all of the other friars who helped me grow during my own novitiate year. The picture to the left, by the way, is of the front of the novitiate building.

The trip went from Thursday through Sunday, and we might have stayed a day more if I hadn't of needed to get back to Albuquerque for my CPE interview. As I may have talked about earlier, part of the formation program for the Central Province is the Clincinal Pastoral Education Program (CPE). Most of the time, friars do their CPE at a hospital, learning how to be a hospital chaplain, in order to learn how to do pastoral care in that kind of setting in the future. We go through the program with ministry students from many different Christian communities, and even non-Christian groups, like the various Jewish denominations. The program is all about team work in the learning process of pastoral care.

I had my interview on Monday afternoon, and from the start, things went very well. Everyone seemed very kind, and I had a wonderful discussion with the summer internship supervisor. At the end of the discussion, she offered me a position in the program, which I happily accepted. That means I will be living in Albuquerque through the first few weeks of August. Yay! The program runs from May 24th-the first week of August, so it's a long program that will take up most of my summer. That's okay--I have a lot to learn. I don't know, part of me is certainly intimidated by the thought of this kind of work, but another part of me is getting excited to work in a hospital in this way.

On Monday night, I went to my first Las Posadas celebration at Prince of Peace Catholic Church. Las Posadas is a Latin American tradition of celebrating the trials and difficulties of Joseph and Mary's trip to Bethlehem, especially the rejection that greeted them when they reached Bethlehem. According to one of the hosts of the event, it was a way for people who lived in villages without a priest to celebrate Christmas by telling the story, and then having a large meal. The food was delicious, I must say, and the singing was fun. For me, the greatest treat had to be listening to several of the teenagers who came talk passionately about the books that they had read. There was a debate about Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, which flowed out into a broader discussion on other books that they liked to read. One young man mentioned the novels The Alchemist and Kite Runner, while a young lady talked about the novels of Nicholas Sparks. I was just so impressed by the young people's positive attitudes and enthusiasm, as well as their closeness to one another as Christians, not to mention their love of reading.

Now, the friars here at Newman are waiting with joyful expectation the coming of the Feast of Christ's Nativity. The quiet of the center will soon give way to much activity. I am well rested and ready for it.
Br. Paul, OP~

Happy Anniversary of the Confirmation of the Order of Preachers

Today is the 793rd anniversary of the confirmation of the Order of Preachers by Pope Honorius III. It is also the 70th anniversary of the founding of the Province of St. Albert the Great (Central Province). Below is the Papal Bull issued by Honorius III outlining various stipulations about the Dominican Order.

Honorius, bishop, servant of the servants of God, to the beloved sons Dominic, prior of St. Romanus in Toulouse, and his brethren, both present and future, professed in the regular life. In perpetuum.

It is fitting that apostolic protection should be extended to those choosing the religious life, lest temerarious attacks should possibly turn them away from their purpose or, God forbid, destroy the vigor of the sacred religious institute. Wherefore, beloved sons in the Lord, we benevolently assent to your just requests. We take theChurch of St. Romanus in Toulouse, where you have given yourselves to the service of God, under the protection of St. Peter and our own, and we secure it with the present written privilege.

In the first place, indeed, we decree that the canonical Order which is known to be established according to God and the Rule of St. Augustine in the said Church should be inviolably preserved forever.

Moreover, that whatever possessions and whatever goods the said church at present justly and canonically possesses or shall be able, the Lord granting, to acquire in the future through the concession of the popes, the liberality of kings or princes, the offerings of the faithful, or other just means, should belong firmly and inviolably to you and your successors. Among these goods, we have deemed it well to name the following: the place itself where the said church is situated, with its properties; the church of Prouille with its properties; the estate of Caussanel with its properties; the church of St. Mary of Lescure with its properties; the hospice in Toulouse, called "the Hospice of Arnold Bernard," with its properties; the church of the Holy Trinity in Loubens, with its properties; and the tithes which, in his good and provident liberality, our venerable brother Foulques, the bishop of Toulouse, with the consent of his chapter, has given you, as this is more explicitly contained in his letters.

Also let no one presume to exact or extort from you tithes from the fruits of the lands which you cultivate with your own hands or at your own expense, or from the produce of your animals.

Moreover, you may receive and keep, without opposition from anyone, members of the clergy or the laity who are free men and unencumbered by debt, who flee from the world to enter the religious life.

Furthermore, we prohibit any of your brethren, after they have made profession in your church to depart from it without the permission of their prior, except for the purpose of entering a stricter religious institute. If one should leave, let no one dare to receive him without the authorization of a letter from your community.

In the parochial churches which you hold, you may select priests and present them to the bishop of the diocese, to whom, if they are worthy, the bishop shall entrust the care of souls, so that they may be responsible to him in spiritual matters and to you in temporal matters.

We decree further that no one may impose new and unjust exactions on your church, or promulgate sentences of excommunication or interdict on you or your church without a manifest and just cause. When, however, a general interdict shall be laid on the whole territory, it will be permitted to you to celebrate the divine office behind closed doors, chanting in a low voice, not ringing the bells, and excluding those under excommunication and interdict.

The sacred Chrism, holy oils, the consecration of altars or basilicas, and the ordination of clerics who are to be promoted to holy orders, you shall obtain from the bishop of the diocese, so long as he is a Catholic and in grace and communion with the most holy Roman See and is willing to impart these to you without any irregularity. Otherwise, you may approach any Catholic bishop you may choose, provided he be in grace and communion with the Apostolic See; and armed with our authority, he may impart to you what you petition.

Moreover, we grant this place freedom of burial. Let no one, then, place an obstacle to the devotion and last will of those who choose to be buried there, provided they are not excommunicated or under interdict. However, the just rights of the churches from which the corpses are taken must be safeguarded.

When you, who are now the Prior of this place, or any of your successors shall go out of office, no one shall be appointed by secret craftiness or violence; but only he whom the brethren, by common agreement, or whom those brethren who are of more mature and sound judgment shall choose to elect according to God and the Rule of St. Augustine.

Furthermore, the liberties, ancient immunities, and reasonable customs granted to your church and observed up to this time, we ratify and command that they shall endure inviolably for all future time. We decree, therefore, that no one may rashly disturb the aforementioned church, take away its possessions or, having removed, keep them, diminish them, or harass them by any kind of molestation, but all these goods shall be preserved intact entirely for the control, sustenance, and use of those for whom they have been granted, saving the authority of the Apostolic See and the canonical rights of the diocesan bishop.

If, therefore, in the future any ecclesiastical or secular person whosoever, having knowledge of this our document, shall rashly attempt to contravene it, and if, after a second or third admonition, he refuses to correct his fault by fitting satisfaction, let him forfeit the dignity of his power and honor; and let him know that he shall stand guilty of the perpetrated evil before God's judgment and shall be denied the most sacred Body and Blood of our God and Lord, our Saviour Jesus Christ, and shall, at the last judgment, be delivered to strict vengeance. Nevertheless, may all those who uphold the rights of the said place have the peace of Our Lord Jesus Christ, receive the fruit of good action here on earth, and, before the Just Judge, receive the rewards of eternal peace. Amen, amen, amen.

I, Honorius, Bishop of the Catholic Church.

Perfect my steps in your ways. Fare ye well!

[Then follow the signatures of eighteen cardinals.]

Given at Rome at St. Peter, by the hand of Ranerio, Prior of Santo Fridiano in Lucca, Vice-Chancellor of the holy Roman Church, on the eleventh of the kalends of January, the fifth indiction, the 1216th year of Our Lord's Incarnation, the first year of the Lord Pope, Honorius III.

This text and others may be found on the Central Province website at: http://www.domcentral.org/trad/domdocs/0009.htm

From the Book of Miss Marjoribanks

I thought I would share some of the more interesting ideas and quotes found in Margaret Oliphant's novel Miss Marjoribanks.

“It is the object of my life to be a comfort to dear papa.”

“For it was already known that the Doctor’s daughter was not a mild young lady, easy to be controlled; but, on the contrary, had all the energy and determination to have her own way, which naturally belonged to a girl who possessed a considerable chin, and a mouth which could shut, and tightly curling tawny tresses, which were still more determined than she was to be arranged only according to their inclination.”

“But Lucilla, for her part, had the calmest and most profound conviction that, when she discussed her own doings and plans and clevernesses, she was bringing forward the subject most interesting to her audience as well as to herself.”

“Besides, as is not uncommon with women who are clever women, and aware of the fact, Miss Marjoribanks preferred the society of men, and rather liked to say so.”

“As she stepped into the steamboat at Dover which was to convey her to scenes so new, Lucilla felt more and more that she who held the reorganization of society in Carlingford in her hands was a woman with a mission. She was going abroad as the heir-apparent went to America and the Holy Land, to complete her education, and fit herself, by an examination of the peculiarities of other nations, for an illustrious and glorious reign at home.”

“For, to be sure, she knew by instinct what sort of clay the people were made of by whom she had to work, and gave them their reward with that liberality and discrimination which is the glory of enlightened despotism.”

“She did not give any money to the beggar who at that period infested Grange Lane with her six children, for that was contrary to those principles of political economy which she had studied with such success at Mount Pleasant; but she stopped and asked her name, and where she lived, and promised to inquire into her case. ‘If you are honest and want to work, I will try to find you something to do,’ said Miss Marjoribanks; which, to be sure, was a threat appalling enough to keep her free from any further molestation on the part of that interesting family.”

“‘I never take anybody’s word for what is so plainly stated in the Holy Scriptures,’said Miss Bury; ‘I never heard any one utter such a terrible idea. I am sure I don’t want to defend a—a murderer,’ cried the Rector’s sister, with agitation; ‘but I have heard of persons in that unfortunate position coming to a heavenly frame of mind, and giving every evidence of being truly converted. The law may take their lives, but it is an awful thing—a truly dreadful thing,’ said Miss Bury, trembling all over, ‘to try to take away their soul.’”

“The Rector was a very good man, but was Evangelical, and had a large female circle who admired and swore by him; and, consequently, he felt it in a manner natural that he should take his seat first, and the place that belonged to him as the principal person present; and then, to be sure, his mission here was for Mrs. Mortimer’s as well as Miss Marjoribank’s ‘good.’”

“‘I wish you would not talk to me of happiness. I have always been brought up to believe that duty was happiness’…She gave a little sigh as she spoke, the sigh of a great soul, whose motives must always remain to some extent unappreciated.”

“To be sure the men did not even find out what it was that awoke the ladies’ attention; but then, in delicate matters of social politics, one never expects to be understood by them.”

“He was one of those men who are very strong for the masculine side of Christianity; and when he was with the ladies, he had a sense that he ought to be paid attention to, instead of taking that trouble in his own person.”

“It is frightfully hard for a woman to stand by and see a set of men making a mess of things, and not to dare to say a word till all is spoiled.”

“Notwithstanding all that people say to the contrary, there is a power in virtue which makes itself felt in such an emergency.”

“But, to be sure, it is only natural that goodness and self-control should have the best of it sometimes even in this uncertain world.”

“…the Archdeacon was quite ready to enter into the young people’s absurd theories, and discuss the very Bible itself, as if that were a book to be discussed.”

“What did it matter what other people might be doing or saying? Was not she still Lucilla Marjoribanks? And when one had said that, one had said all.”

“To be sure, he was a Broad-Churchman, and not the type of clergyman to which Lucilla in her heart inclined; but still a man may be Broad Church, and speak a little freely on religious matters, without being a basilisk.”

“He laughed until the tears ran down his cheeks—the unconscious simpleton; and all the time his wife could have liked to throw him down and trample on him, or put pins into him, or scratch his beaming, jovial countenance.”

“Rose thought no more of him than if he had been a piece of furniture…”

“And when a woman has an active mind, and still does not care for parish work, it is a little hard for her to find a ‘sphere.’ And Lucilla, though she said nothing about a sphere, was still more or less in that condition of mind which has been so often and so fully described to the British public—when the ripe female intelligence, not having the natural resource of a nursery and a husband to manage, turns inwards, and begins to ‘make a protest’ against the existing order of society, and to call the world to account for giving it no due occupation—and to consume itself. She was not the woman to make protests, nor claim for herself the doubtful honours of a false position; but she felt all the same that at her age she had outlived the occupations that were sufficient for her youth…Lucilla had become conscious that her capabilities were greater than her work. She was a Power in Carlingford, and she knew it; but still there is little good in the existence of a Power unless it can be made use of for some worthy end.”

Happy Solemnity of the Birth of Jane Austen!

Today marks the 234th anniversary of the birth of Jane Austen. On my personal calendar, it is a solemnity of celebration of the highest order. On the cards that I sent out to commemorate today's celebration with friends I quoted a passage from Proverbs that goes: "She is clothed with strength and dignity, and she laughs at the days to come. She opens her mouth in wisdom, and on her tongue is kindly counsel." I chose this passage, because it comes from the office for Holy Women, and because I think it characterizes Blessed Jane very well. She was a woman of the keenest intellect--the perfect marriage of reason and emotion. She was an artist who painted the human condition with remarkable clarity and humor--but also a Christian writer, who pointed the way to a virtuous life very persuasively--that is, by showing the benefits of being virtuous. Being virtuous, after all, makes you more lovable, as well as more loving.

I can remember the first time I encountered Jane Austen. I was still a rather young man, I suppose in middle school, and I had stayed up late one night. While I was flipping through the channels of the television in my room, I came across a very curious show. It was about a very pretty, but very nosy young lady who wanted to order the lives of everyone around her. The second I began watching Kate Beckinsale as Emma Watson, I was hooked. I went the very next day to the public library to find a copy of the novel Emma. The library did not have the novel in at the time, so I read Joan Aiken's novel Highbury. Eventually, I did get Emma, and from there, I began to devour all of the Austen canon.

My love for Jane Austen's works grew over time. By the time I finished high school, I had read all of the major works. I have since read all of the novels at least three times, and have begun to get more familiar with the minor works, like Lady Susan, the letters, and the unfinished works like The Watsons and Sanditon.

My fondest memory of an encounter with an Austen work is of a younger me sitting on the front porch swing reading Pride and Prejudice. I had been tormented by the seperation of Darcy and Elizabeth based on a misunderstanding, and the moment the truth all came out, and the two confessed that they were in love with each other, tears came to my eyes. It was then that I learned what a true love relationship ought to look like--indeed, what a good Christian friendship should be like.

There are several reasons why I love Jane Austen to the extent that I do. First and foremost, I think she was a genius. There are few writers that I have come across that know how to craft a story the way that she did. She, I think, saved the novel from becoming an absurdity, by writing novels that were realistic and readable--not to mention, of a decent length. I love her focus on the psychology of the human person, while not twisting that focus into abnormal dimensions just for the sake of drama or novelty. She was interested in morality and virtue ethic, and argued for Christian values without being overt. Some, especially men, may discount her due to the orientation of her novels toward marriage, but I would argue that this orientation makes perfect sense to a mind who knows that the human life is all about relationships, and not about rugged individualism. Indeed, the greatest drama need not be that of science fiction and its fascination with the unknown, or with mystery fiction and its focus on crime and punishment--the greatest drama can reside in the human heart and mind of a perfectly sane and rational person who is confronted with a decision to make. This is what I think Jane Austen shows so brilliantly.

I give thanks, therefore, to God for the gift he has given to me in the life and writings of Jane Austen, one of the brighter stars shining in the canon of the English Tradition and Culture.

Br. Paul, OP

It's Hanukkah!

Last night at sundown, the Festival of Lights, also known as Hanukkah, began. I wish all our Jewish brothers and sisters a very happy festival.

The festival of Hanukkah reminded me of a wish that I had a month or so ago, which was to establish a relationship with a Jewish community here in Albuquerque. As a Christian, I naturally have an interest in and love for most things Jewish. Primary among the things to love is Holy Scripture, of course, and so what better way to establish a connection than to attend a Torah study? Accordingly, I went online last night and visited the website for Congregation Albert, a synagogue of Reform Judaism. Sure enough, they had a Torah study scheduled for this morning (Saturday) at nine, which was very convenient for me, as Saturday is my day off.

I have visited a few synagogues before, but not too many. I attended a Torah study once, when I was staying with the Jewish relatives of a friend of mine in a suburb of Chicago, but that was the last time, until today.

Above is a picture of the interior of Congregation Albert's worship space. It's a very pretty space. The Torah study was held in a conference room/ball room next door. There were lots of people in attendance. I would guess anywhere from 25 to 35 people. The topic of discussion was Genesis chapters 37 & 38, namely, the story of Joseph's betrayal by his brothers and his ending up in Egypt. We also looked at the story of Judah's relations with his daughter-in-law Tamar. The two stories were our jumping point into a discussion on Providence, free will, and a biblical understanding of participating in God's plan. I only wish the discussion could have been a little longer--like two hours more! I also wish the synagogue offered classes on Talmud, but it doesn't. (Ever since I saw the movie Yentl, I've had a fascination with the Talmud. Thank you, Barbra Streisand!)

By the way...Hanukkah is mentioned in the Christian scriptures. In the Gospel of John is says: "At that time the festival of the Dedication took place in Jerusalem. It was winter, and Jesus was walking in the temple in the portico of Solomon..." (John 10:22-23). I believe this is the only mention of Hanukkah in the New Testament. No doubt, Jesus celebrated the Festival of Lights along with the rest of the people in Jerusalem as he observed the other Jewish feasts of his day. The story about the origins of Hanukkah is recorded in 1 Maccabees chapter 4.

I look forward to many more visits to Congregation Albert and breaking open the Word with them. The people were, by the way, happy to have a Christian among them, and seemed not to mind when I related what I had to say to Christian tradition...like the fact that the children begotten by Tamar and Judah, although through an illicit union, would go on to become the ancestors of none other than King David and, therefore, King Jesus. See...knowing that genealogical tree they sometimes read at Christmas, can be useful.
Br. Paul, OP~

Oh Susanna! & The Other Additions to the Book of Daniel

Tonight, to finish off this semester's study of some of the deutero-canonical works of the Catholic biblical canon, the group will be discussing the "additions to Daniel" found in the ancient Greek version of that book. There are basically five additions to the book of Daniel. In Daniel chapter three there is the addition of "The Prayer of Azariah", which is basically 3:24-50. Then there is the "Song of the Three Young Men, aka Hananniah, Azariah, and Mishael", which is 3:51-90. This last one, and portions of the Prayer of Azaraiah should be very familiar to anyone who prays the Divine Office. In fact, the "Song of the Three Young Men" (the song that Azariah, Hananniah, and Mishael sing whilst in the fiery furnace) is featured every Sunday during Morning Prayer. (It's the canticle that lists like every natural force and creature and commands that they praise God.)The main focus on the meeting, I suspect, will be the wonderful detective stories found in Daniel 13 & 14, which are the other three additions.

Chapter 13 in Catholic Bibles is the Story of Susanna. (The picture above is of the painting by Artemisia Gentileschi called "Susanna and the Elders.)Susanna joins Queen Esther, Judith, and Sarah from the Book of Tobit as one of those women who are blessed with both beauty and virtue. She is the daughter of Hilkiah and an unnamed wife (let's call her Fanny), and is the wife of a wealthy Jewish man living in Babylon named Joachim. Joachim is so wealthy that his estate has a walled garden.

Unfortunately, Susanna's beauty attracts the attention of two hypocritical and luscivious elders. Each plots to catch Susanna off guard and pressure her to sleep with him. Ironically, they catch each other in the attempt. Does that wake them up to the evil of their intention? No! They band together to rape Susanna.

While the question of rape is not clearly at the forefront of this story, it is one of the story's concerns. It joins a long list of references to rape that are mentioned in the Bible--both of men and women. Recall: The attempted rape of the Angels sent to Sodom (Gen 19); The rape of Lot by his daughters (Gen 19); The rape of Dinah (Gen 34); the attempted rape of Joseph by Potiphar’s wife (Gen 39:7etc); the seduction or rape of Bathsheba by David (2 Sam 11); and the rape of Tamar by her half brother Amnon (2 Sam 13).

The laws about rape are found Deut. 22:22-29. Unfortunately, this cluster of ancient laws does not reflect as strong a sympathy for rape victims as a modern law might. Note, it does not take into account the possibility of men being raped, although several biblical stories describe such a possibility.

One interesting point to bring up is the fact that the stories listed above respect the fact that rape may not just be "forced" physically (as was Tamar by Amnon), but may be an act of coersion due to an inequality in power. For example, the elders threatened to destroy Susanna's reputation if she did not sleep with them. Such an act, as the story shows, could have led to Susanna's death. Joseph in the book of Genesis, likewise, is threatened by Potiphar's wife and does, in fact, end up in prison (which easy could have led to Joseph's death one way or the other). No doubt King David used the power of his office to pursuade, if not coerse, Bathseba to sleep with him, although she was already married.

Fortunately for Susanna, one of the central elements of the story's plot is an exploration of Jewish law. Thanks to the presence of the child Daniel, who knows proper Jewish legal procedure, a second trial is held, and the two elders are forced to offer their testimony apart from one another. This is a standard of witness examination today, of course, but it must have been a legal breakthrough in biblical times. It is this that leads to Susanna's vidication.

So some of the central Themes & Key Concepts in Susanna include:
Virtue Tested (Susanna has to choose between her virtue or her reputation)
Hypocrisy in Leadership (Two elders are presumed to be telling the truth, but they are liars.)
Women vs. Men –Why is it that the although Susanna has a perfect reputation, that she is not believed regardless of the identity of her accusers?
God answers the prayers of the holy (Susanna’s prayer is heard)
Jewish law regarding rape, adultery, and court procedure
The deadly sin of Lust & its power to corrupt. Lust & the eyes. Lust & the conscience
God’s special favor on Daniel—the prophetic calling to Defend the Innocent

As my mother pointed out to me, the Story of Susanna is a dramatic rendition of what is said in Wisdom 1:1-9.

The other two additions are found in Daniel 14. The first one I like to call "Daniel and Inter-religious Dialogue". The second is "Daniel Slays the Dragon-god". Together, they are more commonly known as "Bel and the Dragon". Although lumped together in this way, scholars think that they are basically independent stories. Both address a common theme in Jewish literature: The superiority of Jewish monotheism over pagan belief. In both stories, Daniel "defeats" two of King Cyrus's pagan gods, thus showing the superiority of the Jewish God, and the ignorance of pagan worship of idols and animals.

The story about the dragon-god actually has a retelling of Daniel's time in the lions' den with one very awesome elaboration:
"Now, the prophet Habakkuk was in Judaea: he had been making a stew and breaking up bread into a basket. He was on his way to the fields, taking this to the harvesters, when the angel of the Lord spoke to him, 'Take the meal you are carrying to Babylong, and give it to Daniel in the lion pit.' 'Lord,' replied Habakkuk, 'I have not even seen Babylon and known nothing about this pit.' The angel of the Lord took hold of his head and carried him off by the hair to Babylong where, with a great blast of his breath, he set Habakkuk down on the edge of the pit. 'Daniel, Daniel,' Habakkuk shouted, 'take the meal that God has sent for you.'..." Now, that's good story telling.

Next semester, I hope to dive into the riches of the Book of the Wisdom of Jesus, son of Sirach (Sirach or Ecclesiasticus), the Book of Judith, and the First and Second Books of Maccabees. (2 Macc 7 is one of my favorites.)

*To learn more, read commentaries like the Anchor Bible Commentary, vol. 44 on the additions to Daniel, Esther, and Jeremiah in the Greek versions of these ancient books.

A Twelve Hour Work Day

So the past few days have been crazy, because I haven't slept past six all week long, which is kind of normal, since I try to get up at five every day, but still, I'm starting to feel it.

Today, I got up at five so I could get to work by six. In order to raise money for the Spring Break service trip to New Orleans, members of the mission team gathered to cook breakfast burritos. I suppose these are big out here in the South West, but where I come from breakfast pizza is a bigger deal--okay, maybe breakfast pizza is only my own great love. Anyway, so I arrived at 6am and was promptly given the job of breaking open dozens of eggs and mixing them to make the scrambled egg part of the burrito filling. During the next four hours, however, I did a number of things. Everything from washing dishes, to folding and wrapping burritos, to opening up can after little can of green chile.

My next "job" was to go get cleaned up so that I could be the second lector at the 11 o'clock mass. I always love proclaiming the Word, so it's never a problem for me to do this ministry. I will just say one little thing about the readings for this Sunday--I have a new appreciation for the Messianic promise that mountains and hills will be made level. Generally, this idea does not appeal to me, since I grew up surrounded by the awesome hills of Northern Kentucky. But after having to climb to the top of Mount Sinai this summer, I can appreciate why those lines about mountains and hills being made level would be a welcome idea to our ancestors in faith.

After a short break, I went to choir practice, which ran for two hours. Some of these songs were too complicated for me, and my voice wasn't really behaving, but I did it, and had a blast while I was at it. I even got to announce the songs during the liturgy. I learned something about myself during practice today--I love microphones. I could totally see myself doing a TV show or radio show. (John Paul, that will come as no surprise to you.)

After mass, I attended the student meal and ended up answering that oh so familiar question: "So why did you become a Dominican?" I've learn to ask clarifying questions: 1) Do you mean, why did I become a religious, in general? 2) Or specifically a Dominican? Both, the student said, and so I proceeded to give my story. I don't mind this, since it gives me yet another chance to echo the words of the Responsorial Psalm: "The Lord has done great things for [me]. I am filled with gladness and joy." It was another chance to make it very clear that my vocation is an act of love. I wanted to give my whole life over to God--and as a result of doing that, I believe God has healed me in many ways, helped me to grow up a little, and has saved me.

And finally, I rounded off the day by watching the movie The Nativity with two students I know pretty well. I absolutely love that movie--especially the way it meditates on the relationship between Joseph and Mary. I agreed with one of the students when he said that he wished the company that had produced the movie had gone on to cover the entire life of Christ.

Probably the key moment during the whole day was this short moment of awareness that I had during the burrito preparations. I was just very conscious of the fact that God had brought me to that moment--the result of his amazing saving grace. It was an ordinary moment, of course; just me breaking eggs in the kitchen, etc.; but was also a miraculous moment, in the sense that I was there only because of a whole string of events had to have happened before to make it so. More and more Providence is becoming part of my meditation--part of that is because it's such an important concept in the novel I'm reading. I wonder what God will do with me next?

Time for bed!
Br. Paul, OP~

To Barnes & Noble's for a little Theological Reflection and Book Browsing

Since today was Saturday, I figured it was time to get away from the house and Newman Center for my bi-weekly Theological Reflection time. Instead of going to my usual haunt--Winnings Coffee--I decided to visit another place--Barnes and Noble Bookstore. I had no intention on buying any books, but it doesn't hurt to have something to look at when one is done with reflection.

It was lunch time, so I had some iced-tea and a delicious turkey chipotle sandwich. I regret that today's reflection was not as prayerful as the past reflections have been. I don't know if the atmosphere had anything to do with it, or if it was just my inner state, but either way, I didn't enter into the silence as I ought to have. That said, I was able to identify a central question, and to reflect on it. This was only in preparation for what I will write up for my theological reflection team. We meet next Friday.

After I finished with reflection, I read another chapter of Miss Marjoribanks and then got up to look around at the books in the fiction section. It never ceases to amaze me the number of books that are written based on the characters and plots of Jane Austen novels. Just check out the number of titles that I was able to spot just from a casual walk through the aisles:

The Other Mr. Darcy by Monica Fairview

My Cousin Caroline & Postscript from Pemberly (among others) by Rebecca Ann Collins

Mr. Darcy takes a Wife & Darcy and Elizabeth by Linda Berdoll

The Plight of the Darcy Brothers & The Darcys and the Bingleys by Marsha Altman

Vampire Darcy's Desire by Regina Jeffers

Mr. Darcy Vampyre by Amanda Grange

A Match for Mary Bennet by Eucharista Ward, OSF

Loving Mr. Darcy by Sharon Lathan

Searching for Pemberley by Mary Simonsen

The Lost Years of Jane Austen by Barbara Ker Wilson

The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen by Syrie James

To be honest, most of the time such stories just make me want to roll my eyes or worse. One of the books actually had a blurb on the back that has Mr. Bingley or Mr. Darcy finding a copy of the Kama Sutra. I think these kinds of novels annoy me most, because they seem to miss the very heart and point of Austen's novels--the importance of living a virtuous life within the context of every day relationships. Instead of continuing to delve into the psychological and spiritual/moral worlds of the characters, these writers try to romanticize or sexualize Austen's novels, filling them with absurd plot twists--some of the worst including vampires, zombies, and sea monsters. I don't want to be a snob here, but I think Austen deserves better.

Then again, the very fact that Austen has inspired so much fan fiction says a lot about her general popularity. There was only one novel that I saw that was a spin off of another famous author's work: Jane Eyre's Daughter by Elizabeth Newark.

Of these books that I saw, there were only two that I would have liked to have had. The first is pictured above. It's a leather bound book of all seven of Jane Austen's novels. The front is so ornately decorated, it looks like a copy of the Gospels. I already have this kind of anthology, however; so I could hardly justify buying it.

The other is the novel A Match for Mary Bennet by Eucharista Ward, OSF. I'm intrigued, of course, by the fact that this novel was written by a Franciscan sister. Even more than that, I love the idea of someone finally writing the story of Mary Bennet. Mary, of all the Bennet sisters, is probably the least likeable. She's religious in just that sort of way that made even Austen look down upon her. Perhaps her high theology would save her from Evangelicalism, but not, as I sometimes imagined, from jumping ship and becoming a Catholic so that she could help herself and everyone who knew her by becoming a nun. This novel, however, doesn't go that far, even though the author is a religious sister herself. Instead, Mary has to choose between a flashy dandy type or the sensible clergyman. Wonder whom she chooses? I confess, I actually do want to read this book (not to mention meet Sister Eucharista). What's a poor friar to do? (Go to a library.)

Br. Paul, OP~

My Website

Well, I've been working all day, pretty much, on repairing and editing the website I have about the Dominican Cooperator Brotherhood. Click to check it out.
Thanks,
Br. Paul, OP

Advent Wisdom from St. Maria Faustina

At around five pm yesterday, I sat down to find a passage from St. Faustina's diary to read for the Divine Mercy Chaplet prayer group. The first few passages I came too seemed too down-beat for me. I wanted some positive energy from St. Faustina. I came to a passage about silence, which really struck me, but I moved on, because it, too, seemed a little negative. Eventually, I found a paragraph that seemed to fit with what I wanted to say, and I went about fixing dinner and preparing for vespers.

I went into the chapel for vespers a little early so I could have some quiet time with God. As I sat there and prayed, it came to me that the passage about silence was precisely the message that I needed to hear. Although busy with good things, I have allowed myself to become too noisy and too busy. I realized that part of my Advent preparation for Christmas ought to be a return to silence. Not the kind of silence that is for show, and which I could try to impose on others, but an interior silence which I could cultivate within my own heart. The kind of silence that invites God to speak to us.

So, even though I wanted to read another passage, I ended up returning to the passage on silence. Here's what our sister, Saint Faustina, had to say:

"The tongue is a small member, but it does big things. A religious who does not keep silence will never attain holiness; that is, she will never become a saint. Let her not delude herself--unless it is the Spirit of God who is speaking through her, for then she must not keep silent. But, in order to hear the voice of God, one has to have silence in one's soul and to keep silence; not a gloomy silence, but an interior silence; that is to say, recollection in God. One can speak a great deal without breaking silence and, on the contrary, one can speak little and be constantly breaking silence. Oh, what irreparable damage is done by the breach of silence! We cause a lot of harm to our neighbor, but even more to our own selves.

"In my opinion, and according to my experience, the rule concerning silence should stand in the very first place. God does not give himself to a chattering soul which, like a drone in a beehive, buzzes around but gathers no honey. A talkative soul is empty inside. It lacks both the essential virtues and intimacy with God. A deeper interior life, one of gentle peace and that of silence where the Lord dwells, is quite out of the question. A soul that has never tasted the sweetness of inner silence is a restless spirit which disturbs the silence of others. I have seen many souls in the depths of hell for not having kept their silence; they told me so themselves when I asked them what was the cause of their undoing. They were souls of religious. My God, what an agony it is to think that not only might they have been in heaven, but they might even have become saints! O Jesus, have mercy!"

If that isn't a warning cry, I don't know what is!
Br. Paul, OP~

Holy Wisdom

Tonight's Bible Study was devoted to exploring the mysterious figure of Lady Wisdom found in several of the Wisdom Books of the Hebrew Scriptures. In particular, we wanted to hear from scripture, and ask the question: so who is she? Is she: 1) just the personification of an "aspect" of God? 2)Is she the foreshadowing of Christ--that is, a pre-Incarnational representation of Christ? 3) Is she the personification of the Holy Spirit? 4) Is she the feminine image of God in scripture? Who is Lady Wisdom?

Key to exploring these questions, we looked at several passages from the Bible that refer to Lady Wisdom. The following list is incomplete, but is a good place to begin, for those who also want to look into these questions:

Wisdom 6:12 through 8:9; 9, 10
Sirach (Ecclesiasticus) 1:1-10; 4:11-19; 6:18-37; 24:1-22; 51:13-30
Proverbs 1:20-33; 3:13-20; 4:1-9; 8, 9:1-6
Job 28:12-28
Matthew 11:19
Luke 7:35
Also related: Isaiah 11:2; Jeremiah 10:12; Matthew 11:28-30; 1 Corinthians 1:24; John 1:1-14; Colossians 1:12-20

Lady Wisdom intrigues me, but remains a mystery. There's no doubt in my mind that we're dealing with God by another name here. Just read the list of Wisdom's attributes in Wisdom chapter seven, and you'll know what I mean. You can't be all-knowing, all-powerful, eternal, the imagine and the breath of God, without being God--and yet, she isn't God the Creator. It's here in Wisdom that we're getting a beginning notion of a One God, more than one person in God theology. At least,that's how this Christian reads these passages.

So, Lady Wisdom can simply be the Shekinah--the presence of God with us (Emmanuel). She is God who lives among the people (particularly in the Temple of Jerusalem. She is also Chokhmah-Shekinah--the presence of God's Spirit of Wisdom who seeks to live among humanity and teach them. She is the Divine Logos, through whom God the Creator creates the world. She is the Spirit of God who is responsible for creating saints out of sinners. You can see why she's so mysterious. She doesn't seem to fit only one of the persons of the Holy Trinity. Her roles apply to both the Word and to the Spirit.

It is my belief that we have multiple things happening with Lady Wisdom. The human authors of these wisdom books had been influenced by Greek and Roman culture. In many cultures, in fact, Wisdom was personified. The picture above is of the Greek goddess Pallas Athena, the virgin goddess of Wisdom. During the time when the wisdom books of the Bible were written, Greek culture was having a major impact on Jewish culture and thought. It is natural that as the Jewish writers began to see their love of Torah in light of Greek love for Wisdom (philosophy), that they would begin to try to incorporate this kind of devotion into their theology. This is one level. On another level, the Holy Spirit is revealing yet another mystery about the nature of God, that is, that you can have multiple persons in one God, and that these persons are coworkers, and take delight in one another. Lady Wisdom, although praised highly, is only a foreshadowing of Jesus the Word Incarnate and/or the Holy Spirit. In other words, I don't see these passages working as revelatory declarations of the Trinity, but as preparatory seeds of this revelation, which was only to come clearly with the advent of Jesus himself.

Still, if I wanted to use these passages to meditate on Jesus, they would be helpful in getting me to think about the Word's pre-Incarnational life--recalling that the Divine Logos was very active in the time before his coming to earth as the man named Yeshua, and that, as Wisdom 10 testifies, was already working to bring about the salvation of God's people, beginning with Adam and working right on through.

We are called upon to love Lady Wisdom--but not in a Greek way, which was theoretical, and really a love for ideas and learning--but in our Christian way. Wisdom is a person to love, and that person's name is Jesus.

Let us pray in the words of the Advent hymn:
O come O Wisdom from on high,
who orders all things mightily.
To us the path of knowledge show,
and teach us in her ways to go.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to you, O Israel.
Amen.

Catholic Chat on the Supernatural & The Advent Reading

Well, the five of us who gathered in the hangout at the Newman Center to discuss the supernatural and paranormal certainly had interesting views and stories to share. Basically, we were looking to share our beliefs about the existence of ghosts, angels & demons, and aliens.

I jumped right in with a story from my childhood about an encounter I believe I had with a demon. I was in the fourth or fifth grade and I had just moved into my grandparent's house, along with my mother and brother. My brother and I had a room to share, but we did not yet have bunk beds, so we slept on covers laid out on the floor. Well, one night, I had lain down on my stomach and was about to fall asleep when I heard someone say my name in the most evil sounding voice I had ever heard. I had been taught by my mother not to answer demons or ghosts, so I said nothing, nor did I turn around. I didn't want to give this demon any impression that I was inviting him into my space. As I lay there, I felt the presence of the demon come and float over me. Every hair stood on end, but I knew not to turn around. Soon enough, the presence left me. As soon as it did, I woke up my brother, who had slept through it all. I asked him if he had heard anything, and he said no. When he ignored me, I ran downstairs to my mother and began to cry.

This event in my life taught me to believe in the actual reality of beings without bodies, including beings who are evil. If I were to doubt what happened then, I would have to doubt the most ordinary of events.

I found it interesting that several of the students had stories to share that were similar. One young man told us about his encounter with a woman who was possessed, and a young lady told stories about friends who had said that their house is haunted. The most impressive story was told by a young lady who said that she had a friend who was visiting New York City. This young lady got lost, and ended up going down a dead end alley way. Just when she realized her mistake, she saw a strange man come walking toward her. She quickly said the prayer to St. Michael, and sure enough, the man stopped dead in his tracks, turned around, and ran away. That Sunday, the young lady was at mass and noticed the man who had followed her sitting in a pew not too far away. After mass, she approached him and asked him what had made him turn around. He said that he had seen a figure holding a sword and enveloped in flames standing before her. He was converted then and there.

We all agreed that we shouldn't use the ideas of ghosts, demons, angels, and aliens to explain things we don't understand. This doesn't really help us to come to appreciate the reality of non-human, incorporeal beings. That means, then, that we have to use our "Catholic filters" when we read books or watch shows that present non-Christian, non-authoritative theories on these subjects. That includes stories like Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol or J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter Series.

My conclusion was, I may not understand what or how my guardian angel exists, but I trust that he or she does, and I ask for his or her help every day, along with Ss. Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael.

In other news...Advent has begun! Along with Margaret Oliphant's novel Miss Marjoribanks, I've decided to use Andrew Carl Wisdom's book Advent and Christmas Wisdom from Saint Thomas Aquinas : Daily Scripture and Prayers Together with Saint Thomas Aquinas's Own Words as my Advent spiritual reading (other than scripture, itself, of course). You can buy the book on Barnes and Noble's website at: http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/results.asp?WRD=Andrew+Carl+Wisdom&box=Andrew%20Carl%20Wisdom&pos=-1

*If you have any true stories of encounters that you have had with ghosts, angels, or demons, share them on this blog.

Happy reading!
Br. Paul, OP