I'm not really blogging right now (in fact, I'll be far from the internet in a couple of hours) but I just HAD to point this out. It's seems Knee Hill Stand Off not only is pedantic, he isn't very clever. In this post, he accuses me of a broken link. Now, while I freely admit the link he refers to (in this post) is broken. But, it was no accident. and he appears not to have noticed. Heh heh. (Once again, typos in this post are deliberate.)

UPDATE: Ok, nihil obstat actually does have a sense of humor. That's actually pretty funny. However, my lawyers will be contacting him for identity theft. Now, if only he weren't so friendless that he had nothing better to do over the holidays. Unlike those of us who were with family and friends, and left the computer off for a while. (And, lest all of you worry, one of my new years' resolutions will be to ignore him and drop all this. So I have to get a few things in under the wire.)

I said no more blogging, then I went back on it. A conversation between me and the very hip, very discriminating EveTushnet about telling the kids about Santa. We disagree, but she gives me the last word. Which reminds me that the last time she came to Boston I had to welsh (I'm Irish; don't like the slander, sue me!) on my promise to buy her a beer, because Mrs. Kairos Guy had already made plans, then canceled them, by getting into the Emergency Room. So I still owe her a beer.

The five year old, watching tv with his Mom, just said "Sears is always bragging about its heaters and air conditioners!" Merry Christmas, and see you after the holidays.

Meanwhile, check out the "St. Blog's Cookbook." We have 5 or 6 team mebers, and the recipes are appearing daily. My own personal additions will be up soon.

All topys are, again, here to make nhiil obtast annoyed. Consider it the blog euqivalent of coal in the stokcing.

I will be on my way to said nuptial day tomorrow, and do not expect to post much, asdie fromm a fwe tpoys to amuse nihil obstat. Merry Christmas, you pedant.

Late Intention

Please pray for the repose of the soul of Gary Spiering. Also, please keep Cheryl M in your prayers: Saturday is her nuptial day.

Only 190 of you have taken my Quiz. Get with it already. I am a little chargrined that "Zorak" of "E-Pression," whose taste in quizzes is notably promiscuous, either hasn't taken it, or did and doesn't care to announce the results.

Satire gets harder and harder

Proving once more that "Catholic" and "taste" have been mutually exclusive since the Reformation:



Not surprisingly, the football and baseball ones are sold out. But that weenie European sport "Futboll" is still available. Don't rush, though. I'm sure there will be plenty on the clearance rack round about Dec. 26th. available in the "figurines" section of Your Catholic Store.com.

Every parish has, at one time or another, published a cookbook. If you are a frequenter of Used Book Fairs or fleamarkets, you've probably run across several dozens of them. But (until now) St. Blog's has lacked one. So, I am therefore pleased to announce:

The St. Blog's Parish Cookbook.

I will be posting things I find in cooking magazines and the like there. But I would be very pleased to include your recipes, or to set you up to be able to post them yourself. If you are a St. Blog's blogger, commenter, or just plain frequent reader, and want to be able to post your favorites over there, drop me a line.

Snatching defeat from the jaws of victory since 1865

Among the many, many reasons I have never actually joined the Republican party, is this inestimable tendency of theirs to bring about their own destruction in stupid and creative ways. It long predates the present situation. (Think: Bull Moose Party.) The Reagan presidency may have fooled some into thinking it was a thing of the past, but those years can now best be seen as an anomaly. The 1994 Congressional election effectively re-elected Bill Clinton, by forcing Clinton to get serious about the deficit, and then allowing Clinton to take credit for it while Newt Gingrich fumed about having to sit in coach on Air Force One. And now we see it again. There are some cliches that are worth using, and "snatching defeat from the jaws of victory since 1865" could be the motto of the GOP.

Is it my imagination, or is the entire internet becoming one big, single site, owned entirely by Amazon.com?

Twice today I've heard the term "attachment parenting," which I had never, ever heard before. (Weird the way that often happens: something not only pops up in front of you, but screams at you.) Since I only think I know what it means, I can't comment. But if you know, and it's for you, then you might find this site interesting: And Then There Were Babies: baby slings, cloth diapers, nursing clothes, and more!

I mentioned a week or two ago that the Feds were pulling the funding on the Iranian version of "Radio Free Europe." OxBlog has an excellent critique of that asinine decision. I'm not surprised to learn it was a Clinton holdover who made it, but it happened on W's watch, and it is to his shame.

If there is a seem-head out there who can explain in 75 words or less the "Rule 5" draft, I'd appreciate it.

Here we go again

Please keep me and Mrs. Kairos Guy in your prayers, as the little stick had two stripes on it last night. Last time, we asked for prayers, but we were too general, and tried to keep things quiet. This time, though our non-praying friends aren't likely to hear any time soon, we're asking for help early from those who can offer it.

Why is it that, first, I keep getting pop-up ads that show nothing but bare midriff, and, second, that none of the women in the ads have "outies"? Is there some rule that only an "innie" is sexy? I'm pretty darn sure I didn't get that memo.

Be sure to visit Dappled Things over the next few days. First, you'll get less bile than you're finding here right now (and bile is never a good thing, especially in advent) but second, Fr. Jim is presenting "the Greater Ferias," the liturgical prayers specific to the last week of the Advent season. As I haven't been a regular attendee at daily Mass since Bishop Lennon was Fr. Lennon and I an altar boy, I'm not very familiar with them.

I have this theory that the Lee Ann Womack song "I hope you dance" is not actually a kind "farewell" to a lost love, but a Baptist curse. I fully admit, it's not a very good theory.

Thursday Intentions

Please email me with other intentions.

For the Kairos Guy family. For Ben, his wife, his mother's recovery, and the repose of his father-in-law's soul. For Victor Lams and his family. For Jack's father-in-law. For Bishop Richard Lennon. For 5th grade Mary, who is recovering. For R. A.'s son. For the children of Lawrence, MA. For Rev. Steve W. For my cousin who just had surgery. For Roger, Randy, Deb and the ones whose names I did not know. For Charles L. For the people of Afghanistan, and those who would help them. For Michelle. For me, a sinner. For Emily's friend Katie. For Monica M. For Mrs. Kairos Guy and her grandfather, grandmother, and sister. For Alicia and her sister. For Mairen and Tiernan. For victims of terrorism in so many places. For Karen and Dale. For the President, the Pope and all who are laboring to ensure a lasting and just peace.

Jerusalem, Lift Up Thy Voice

Jerusalem, lift up thy voice!
Daughter of Zion, now rejoice!
Thy King is come, Whose mighty hand
Henceforth shall reign o’er every land.

He comes to every tribe and race,
A Messenger of truth and grace:
With peace He comes from heaven above
On earth to found His realm of love.

In God’s eternal covenant,
He comes for our salvation sent.
The star of hope moves on before,
And hosts assemble to adore.

Let all the world with one accord
Now hail the coming of the Lord:
Praise to the Prince of heavenly birth
Who bringeth peace to all the earth.

This was enjoyable, and very familiar, as a PWSE myself.

I have removed a post that was here, because I find that I regret having placed it. I wrote it in anger, then yielded to childishness in removing the worst parts but still letting it go up. It is not relevant that some will feel my anger justified. We are called to behave in keeping with the better angels of our natures, and I did not.

I went to ask.com and entered the question "How many people have been murdred by the government in Cuba?" The first response on the list? "
Cuba Travel with Havana Official Agency

We serve Americans! Official travel agency and tour operator for Cuba's Old Havana. Organize trips to Havana, Varadero, Trinidad and Santa Clara for individuals and groups

Cuba Travel with San Cristobal Travel Cuba - Travel to Cuba

Disgusting.

I got bitten by the baseball bug last year, and now I find myself reading the transactions section, discussing all these players I've never heard of. Only 115 days until Opening Day at Fenway, plus 160 games (more or less: ye shall not know the day or the hour) until another broken heart.

But, Tom, I'd much rather have a membership in this.

Tolkien expert Michael Regina takes questions on "The Two Towers."
.

But how does one get qualified as a "Tolkien Expert"? Does this mean I can get qualified as a "drunken stupor" expert?

Here are my abbreviated thoughts on the resignation of the Archbishop of Boston

I am, in essence, glad he is gone. Glad for him, glad for me, glad for the victims of priestly abuse, and glad for the whole Church in Boston. I do not know what to think of him, and fortunately need not resolve that question at all, for it is clearly, explicitly not my place. I can (and do) hope and pray that he finds peace and that his sins will be forgiven. Equally, I hope and pray that Boston will receive a new Bishop who is capable of healing the terrible wounds here. It ought to go without saying (but won't, since there are so many Pharisees running around these days) that the victims and their abusers equally continue to require my own and your prayers.

Now, here is what I expect of my fellow Catholics, within the Archdiocese:
1) If you followed the immoral and reprehensible advice of people who should know better and withheld your contributions, undo that practice immediately. If, as seems probable, you simply stuck the money back in your pocket, rather than giving it to some charity, you need to make up for money not given to someone. There are tired, poor, hungry and needy people who have gone unserved while you basked in self-righteousness. Make it up to them: it was never their fault.
2) Stop giving interviews to any chuckleheaded reporter who sticks a microphone in your face on Boston Common. It was never their business what you thought about the Cardinal. The selection of his replacement is not a horserace, nor yet an election, and "man on the street" interview merely demonstrate that you are as ignorant as most non-Catholics of these simple facts.
3) Pray. Right now. Pray at your computer, pray in your car, and stop at Church sometime soon to pray. And take advantage of the expanded schedule of Reconciliation that many parishes are offering during Advent. There is one every night this week in Medford: call any of the parishes there to find out where tonight's is.

Now here is what I expect of my fellow Catholics, without the Archdiocese:
1) Shut up.
2) Pray.
3) Attend to the planks in your own eyes for a while, and please leave us the hell alone. We have enough problems here, without all your whiny, snivelly, self-righteous blather. Really.
4) Never, ever again, under any circumstances, speak to me about the "cesspool" you think my Archdiocese is. The Archdiocese of Boston is my family, not yours. I doubt your family would look very much better under the same sort of scrutiny.

I did warn you last week it wouldn't do either of us very much good to speak about this, didn't I?

Wednesday Intentions

Please email me with other intentions.

For Ben, his wife, his mother's recovery, and the repose of his father-in-law's soul. For the repose of the soul of Sue Pasco. For Victor Lams and his family. For Jack's father-in-law. For Bishop Richard Lennon. For 5th grade Mary, who is recovering. For R. A.'s son. For the children of Lawrence, MA. For Rev. Steve W. For my cousin who just had surgery. For Roger, Randy, Deb and the ones whose names I did not know. For Charles L. For the people of Afghanistan, and those who would help them. For Michelle. For me, a sinner. For Emily's friend Katie. For Monica M. For Mrs. Kairos Guy and her grandfather, grandmother, and sister. For Alicia and her sister. For Mairen and Tiernan. For victims of terrorism in so many places. For Karen and Dale. For the President, the Pope and all who are laboring to ensure a lasting and just peace.

Hark, the Glad Sound!

Hark, the glad sound! the Savior comes,
The Savior promised long;
Let every heart prepare a throne,
And every voice a song.

On Him the Spirit, largely poured,
Exerts His sacred fire;
Wisdom and might, and zeal and love,
His holy breast inspire.

He comes the prisoners to release,
In Satan’s bondage held;
The gates of brass before Him burst,
The iron fetters yield.

He comes, from thickest films of vice
To clear the mental ray,
And on the eyes oppressed with night
To pour celestial day.

He comes the broken heart to bind,
The bleeding soul to cure;
And with the treasures of His grace
To enrich the humble poor.

His silver trumpets publish loud
The jub’lee of the Lord
Our debts are all remitted now
Our heritage restored.

Our glad hosannas, Prince of Peace,
Thy welcome shall proclaim;
And Heav’n’s eternal arches ring
With Thy belovèd Name.

Somebody blogged Our Lady of the Enneagram many moons ago. I post it again as a public service. (You're welcome, Mom.)

Teen Dies After Imitating Stunt From MTV Show

"[M]any of Rouen’s friends had to watch the teen succumb to his injuries."

Actually, many of his "friends" had to stop him from doing the stunt in the first place. Too bad they were too busy watching "Jackass" to learn that.

Am I becoming a codgy old bore? I feel like I am, and that's not a good thing. I want to be one, some day, but not yet. But I have absolutely no patience with Catholic celebrities right now, even the very minor ones. Does that make me a bore?

This is a very nicely done story.

But I can tell you this much: the pastor of my parish at that time was the delightfully-named Father Deacon.

I find that my impulse to silence on the changing of bishops here in Boston was a good thing. Our new Apostolic Administrator is Bishop Richard Lennon, who was a priest in my childhood parish. I was an altar boy at many of the services he presided over, and my opinion of him must necessarily remain private. (But, lest anyone get the wrong idea, nothing untoward or scandalous is even remotely implied by that last statement.)

Tuesday Intentions

Please email me with other intentions.

For the repose of the soul of Sue Pasco. For Victor Lams and his family. For Jack's father-in-law. For Bishop Richard Lennon. For 5th grade Mary, who is recovering. For R. A.'s son. For the children of Lawrence, MA. For Rev. Steve W. For my cousin who just had surgery. For Roger, Randy, Deb and the ones whose names I did not know. For Charles L. For the people of Afghanistan, and those who would help them. For Michelle. For me, a sinner. For Emily's friend Katie. For Monica M. For Mrs. Kairos Guy and her grandfather, grandmother, and sister. For Alicia and her sister. For Mairen and Tiernan. For victims of terrorism in so many places. For Karen and Dale. For the President, the Pope and all who are laboring to ensure a lasting and just peace.

On the way home from Church yesterday, the lad asked "Why did they crucify Jesus, Dad??" Try formulating an answer to that, suitable for a precocious 5 ("and three-quarters!!") year old while negotiating Massachusetts traffic and drivers on a Sunday afternoon. At least the Barely-Converted Heretic wasn't in the car, having gone to a funeral out-of-state.

Victor mused last week how much he likes the new Target commercials with Stevie Wonder in them. I didn't have the heart to tell him that I loathe the musical stylings of Stevie Wonder in his comments box, but more importantly, I have a question about his closing comment on them. He approved of the use of "Christmas" instead of "Holidays." (Though in such a PoMo fashion I can't tell how serious he was. The problem with PoMo fashions is, I'm not sure he knows either...)

I have spent the last several years getting irritated at the PC manner of replacing "Christmas" with "Holiday." It’s so stupid, because it’s perfectly obvious to all concerned that the only reason to have a “holiday” is “Christmas,” and I resent deliberate stupidity. (Last June, the Head of my Academy spoke warmly of lighting the “Non-denominational Winter Solstice Tree.” It’s pretty funny that she thinks a pagan ritual dating back at least to the Vikings and probably a lot older is “non-denominational,” especially with a few avowed pagans in attendance. And she’s a Harvard-trained anthropologist!) (And while we’re on the subject, why is it okay for my son to do “Hanukah” pictures at school, but not Christmas ones? Are American Jews so thoroughly secularized that there is no longer any but political significance to celebrating Hanukah? I’d like to introduce a few of my religious Jewish friends to anyone who answers “yes.”)

Anyway, as you can tell, I think Stupid People should pay large fines just for being Stupid. (As opposed to people not born so bright: they are usually very nice, or at least not willful.) But here, I wonder if I haven’t been backing the wrong horse.

12 years ago I wrote a story for my college Conservative paper titled “Merry Secular Holiday,” raising all the usual arguments decrying the crass commercialization of Christmas. (At last report 3 years ago, it was still on the fridge of a friend’s Catholic mother.) Upon reflection (not to mention at least a modest improvement in maturity) I think “Happy Holidays” a vast improvement over “Merry Christmas” in the mouths of people who do not comprehend, and do not care to comprehend, what Christmas actually means. If we are to commercialize “Christmas” out of all recognition, isn’t it better that we start calling it something else? Maybe then we can, by political correctness run amok, of all things, finally separate the orgy of spending and buying, and comparing outlays to receipts, from the day that is supposed to signify the liberation of us from all of that.

Ask yourself which is more offensive: that “the Gap” has told it’s employees to say “Happy Holidays” instead of “Merry Christmas,” or that “the Gap” ever connected what it does to the birth of the Savior in the first place?

Monday Intentions

Please email me with other intentions.

For the repose of the soul of Sue Pasco. For 5th grade Mary, who is recovering. For R. A.'s son. For the children of Lawrence, MA. For Rev. Steve W. For my cousin who just had surgery. For Roger, Randy, Deb and the ones whose names I did not know. For Charles L. For the people of Afghanistan, and those who would help them. For Michelle. For me, a sinner. For Emily's friend Katie. For Monica M. For Mrs. Kairos Guy and her grandfather, grandmother, and sister. For Alicia and her sister. For Mairen and Tiernan. For victims of terrorism in so many places. For Karen and Dale. For the President, the Pope and all who are laboring to ensure a lasting and just peace.

Watchman, Tell Us of the Night

Watchman, tell us of the night,
What its signs of promise are.
Traveler, o’er yon mountain’s height,
See that glory beaming star.
Watchman, does its beauteous ray
Aught of joy or hope foretell?
Traveler, yes—it brings the day,
Promised day of Israel.

Watchman, tell us of the night;
Higher yet that star ascends.
Traveler, blessedness and light,
Peace and truth its course portends.
Watchman, will its beams alone
Gild the spot that gave them birth?
Traveler, ages are its own;
See, it bursts o’er all the earth.

Watchman, tell us of the night,
For the morning seems to dawn.
Traveler, darkness takes its flight,
Doubt and terror are withdrawn.
Watchman, let thy wanderings cease;
Hie thee to thy quiet home.
Traveler, lo! the Prince of Peace,
Lo! the Son of God is come!

There is nothing I can say today that will do you or me any good whatsoever. So, the rest is silence.

Sartre is smartre

Jean Paul Sartre once wrote that "Hell is other people." While, ontologically speaking, Sartre was wrong about this, I certainly take his point.

Bush Appoints Postal Service Review Panel (washingtonpost.com) "Within that bound, we want them to explore all the ideas," Fisher said. "This is not a stealth project to privatize the Postal Service."

So the one thing we do know is this is a stealth project to privatize the Postal Service.

Looks like I got under nihil obstat's pelt. Heh heh.

(But that sure is a lot of typos. Looks like early retirement can't come soon enough...Although one of the alleged typos is actually correct. If nihil is going to be a pedant, he or she or it at least ought to be an accurate one.)

New Quiz Alert, brought to you by Kairos

I got tired of taking other people's quizzes, so I made my own. Good luck.


What store to loot when civilation crumbles?
brought to you by Quizilla

UPDATE: I have modified the graphics a couple of times. If you used the paste code before 4:00 EST, your images may not work.

Light of lights! All gloom dispelling,
Thou didst come to make thy dwelling
Here within our world of sight.
Lord, in pity and in power,
Thou didst in our darkest hour
Rend the clouds and show thy light.

Praise to thee in earth and heaven
Now and evermore be given,
Christ, who art our sun and shield.
Lord, for us thy life thou gavest,
Those who trust in thee thou savest,
All the mercy stands revealed.

--St. Thomas Aquinas

Public Service Announcement

nihil obstat makes another mistake. here.

The First Noel

The first Noel the angel did say
Was to certain poor shepherds in fields as they lay;
In fields where they lay tending their sheep,
On a cold winter’s night that was so deep.

Refrain

Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel,
Born is the King of Israel.

They lookèd up and saw a star
Shining in the east, beyond them far;
And to the earth it gave great light,
And so it continued both day and night.

Refrain

And by the light of that same star
Three Wise Men came from country far;
To seek for a King was their intent,
And to follow the star wherever it went.

Refrain

This star drew nigh to the northwest,
Over Bethlehem it took its rest;
And there it did both stop and stay,
Right over the place where Jesus lay.

Refrain

Then did they know assuredly
Within that house the King did lie;
One entered it them for to see,
And found the Babe in poverty.

Refrain

Then entered in those Wise Men three,
Full reverently upon the knee,
And offered there, in His presence,
Their gold and myrrh and frankincense.

Refrain

Between an ox stall and an ass,
This Child truly there He was;
For want of clothing they did Him lay
All in a manger, among the hay.

Refrain

Then let us all with one accord
Sing praises to our heavenly Lord;
That hath made heaven and earth of naught,
And with His blood mankind hath bought.

Refrain

If we in our time shall do well,
We shall be free from death and hell;
For God hath prepared for us all
A resting place in general.

Refrain

Wednesday Intentions

Please email me with other intentions.

For the repose of the soul of Sue Pasco. For 5th grade Mary, who should be recovering. For R. A.'s son. For Mr. and Mrs. Riddle. For the people of St. Stnaislaus parish in Cleveland. For Rev. Steve W. For my cousin who just had surgery. For Roger, Randy, Deb and the ones whose names I did not know. For Charles L. For the people of Afghanistan, and those who would help them. For Michelle. For me, a sinner. For Emily's friend Katie. For Monica M. For Mrs. Kairos Guy and her grandfather, grandmother, and sister. For Alicia and her sister. For Mairen and Tiernan. For victims of terrorism in so many places. For Karen and Dale. For the President, the Pope and all who are laboring to ensure a lasting and just peace.

I had a letter published in one once. Both my friends noticed.

Requiescat in Pacem

Sue Pasco, my wife's cousin.

I don't know why this should be, though I have some theories I'm not planning on sharing. But I have noticed that almost all the people I know who are rigorous, follow-the-law-to-the-tiniest-letter-even-in-a-footnote Catholics are "reverts." A few are outright converts, but most are Catholics who fell away from Catholicism, spent a good deal of time in another Christian denomination, and had a struggle to find their way "home to Rome" (as my college chaplain put it.)

This is commendable. And I admire you for it. But it is not the way I understand the Church. And badgering me about it is rather more likely to make me to think you and the Church a collection of Pharisees than a group which can teach me very much about God and my broken nature. It is a perfectly valid approach to God--indeed, I will even go so far as to say it is the best approach to God. But it is not the only one. Your prayers are sometimes more welcome than your speeches.

"Intentionality" once again rears its seven heads

58 priests send a letter urging cardinal to resign Boutin said he believes that his promise of obedience is less important than his duty to obey his own conscience, and he said that he views the clergy sexual abuse crisis as a turning point in church history.

He might have asked himself if a conscience which told him to disobey a solemn vow was really properly formed enough to be trusted.

"JB believed his promise of marital fidelity was less important than his duty to obey his own conscience, and he said he views his wife's debilitating disease as a turning point in his marriage."

"JB believed his promise to protect and defend the constitution from all enemies foreign and domestic was less important than his duty to obey his conscience, and he believed turning over the nuclear codes to Castro was a turning point in history."

It sounds a whole lot less impressive, now, doesn't it?

[The letter is here. The one priest I know on the list is someone I have vaguely distrusted for a while. The vagueness is gone.]

O Lord, please help me find a Church worthy of my personal holiness. Until the day you lead me there, Lord, please do your best to make the one I have a little more up to my standards.

Living here in Boston, seeing each morning new shocks and new scandals on the frontpage of the Globe, listening, as last night, to yet another homily by a good priest as horrified as the rest of us, I can see one reason, and one reason only, to leave Law in place.

Law is undergoing a penance. Until the last "revelation" has been set forth in the newspaper; Until the last lawsuit has been filed; until the last priest has been removed: Why would you remove Law? To bring in a new bishop while still more information lurks in the files of the Archdiocese will only serve to undercut the new man, and it would remove the millstone Law selected for his own neck many years ago.

I do not wish to speak disrespectfully of him. God send that my own weaknesses, failings and evildoings may never receive the public scrutiny that his have. I presume that his continued presence serves a purpose, and am content in that. I do not attend Mass or receive the sacraments because of my bishop, however flawed, however holy. With the Blessing, others who have bishops who appear holier will focus on their own, and less on mine.

Addenda: I say I can see only one reason. But I don't have the whole universe and all of time in my field of vision. the person in charge does. My personal desires are neither here nor there.

Why I am an "Advent person"....

“The Shaking Reality of Advent”
Alfred Delp, SJ, d. Feb 2, 1945

There is perhaps nothing we modern people need more than to be genuinely shaken up. Where life is firm we need to sense its firmness; and where it is unstable and uncertain and has no basis, no foundation, we need to know this too and endure it.

We may ask why God has sent us into this time, why he has sent this whirlwind over the earth, why he keeps us in this chaos where all appears hopeless and dark and why there seems to be no end to this in sight. The answer to this question is perhaps that we were living on earth in an utterly false and counterfelt security. And now God strikes the earth ‘til it resounds, now he shakes and shatters; not to pound us with fear, but to teach us one thing—the spirit’s innermost moving and being moved.

Many of the things that are happening today would never have happened if we had been living in that movement and disquiet of heart which results when we are faced with God, the Lord, and when we look clearly at things as they really are. If we had done this, God would have withheld his hand from many things that have stirred up and shaken and crushed our lives. We would have seen and judged the limits of our own competence.

But we have stood on this earth is false pathos, in false security; in our spiritual insanity we really believed we could, with the power of our own hand and arm, bring the stars down from heaven and kindle flames of eternity in the world. We believed that with our own forces we could avert the dangers and banish night, switch off and halt the internal quaking of the universe. We believed we could harness everything and fit it into a final order that would stand.

Here is the message of Advent: faced with him who is the Last, the world will begin to shake. Only when we do not cling to false securities will our eyes be able to see this Last One and get to the bottom of things. Only then will we be able to guard our life from the frights and terrors into which God the Lord has let the world sink to teach us, so that we may awaken from sleep, as Paul says, and see that it is time to repent, time to change things. It is time to say, “All right, it was night; but let that be over and let us be ready for the day.” We must do this with a decision that comes out of these very horrors we have experienced, and all that is connected with them; and because of this our decision will be unshakable even in uncertainty.

If we want to transform life again, if Advent is truly to come again—the Advent of home and of hearts, the Advent of the people and the nations, a coming of the Lord in all this—the great Advent question for us is whether we come out of these convulsion with this determination: yes, arise! It is time to awaken from sleep. It is time for a waking up to begin somewhere. It is time to put things back where God the Lord put them. It is time for each of us to go to work, with the same unshakable sureness that the Lord will come, to set our life in God’s order wherever we can. Where God’s word is heard, he will not cheat our life of the message; where our life rebels before our own eyes he will reprimand it.

The world today needs people who have been shaken by ultimate calamities and emerged from them with the knowledge and awareness that those who look to the Lord will still be preserved by him, even if they are hounded from the earth.

The Advent message comes out of an encounter of man with the absolute, the final, the gospel. It is thus the message that shakes—so that in the end the world shall be shaken. The fact that then the Son of man shall come is more than a historic prophecy; it is also a decree, that God’s coming and the shaking up of humanity are somehow connected. If we are inwardly unshaken, inwardly incapable of being genuinely shaken, if we become obstinate and hard and superficial and cheap, then God will himself intervene in world events and teach us what it means to be placed in this agitation and be stirred inwardly. Then the great question to us is whether we are still capable of being truly shocked or whether it is to remain so that we see thousands of things and know that they should not be and must not be, and that we get hardened to them. How many things have we become used to in the course of the years, of the weeks and months, so that we stand unshocked, unstirred, inwardly unmoved.

Advent is time when we ought to be shaken and brought to a realization of ourselves. The necessary condition for the fulfillment of Advent is the renunciation of the presumptuous attitudes and alluring dreams in which and by means of which we always build ourselves imaginary worlds. In this way we force reality to take us to itself by force—by force, in much pain and suffering.

The shocked awakening is definitely part of experiencing Advent. But at the same time there is much more that belongs to it. Advent is blessed with God’s promises, which constitute the hidden happiness of this time. These promises kindle the inner light in our hearts. Being shattered, being awakened—only with these is life made capable of Advent. In the bitterness of awakening, in the helplessness of “coming to,” in the wretchedness of realizing our limitations, the golden threads that pass between heaven and earth in the times reach us. These golden threads give the world a taste of the abundance it can have.

We must not shy away from Advent thoughts of this kind. We must let our inner eye see and let our hearts range far. We will encounter the earnestness of Advent and the blessing of Advent in a different way. We will see characters, completed and whole personalities, that belong to these days and to all days—characters in whom the Advent message and the Advent blessing simply exist and live, calling out to us and touching us to cheer and shake us, to console and to uplift us.

I am referring to characters that live in these days and all days. The types I mean are these three: the Angel of Annunciation, the Blessed Woman, and the Crier in the Wilderness.

[This excerpt, and the remainder of the essay, appear as the December 5 reading in “Watch for the Light: Readings for Advent and Christmas”, © 2001, The Plough Publishing, Farmington, PA. Father Delp wrote this in a Nazi prison, two months before he was hanged.]

For the Feast of the Immaculate Conception

Ave Maria

Ave Maria, gratia plena
Dominus tecum, benedicta tu
In mulieribus et benedictus
Fructus ventris tui Jesus.
Sancta Maria, Sancta Maria,
Maria ora pro nobis,
Nobis peccatoribus,
Nunc et in hora mortis nostrae

Monday Intentions

Please email me with other intentions.

For 5th grade Mary, to undergo surgery tomorrow, and her surgeons. For R. A.'s son. For Mr. and Mrs. Riddle. For my wife's cousin, who is in the final stages of cancer. For Rev. Steve W. For my cousin who just had surgery. For Roger, Randy, Deb and the ones whose names I did not know. For Charles L. For the people of Afghanistan, and those who would help them. For Michelle. For me, a sinner. For Emily's friend Katie. For Monica M. For Mrs. Kairos Guy and her grandfather, grandmother, and sister. For Alicia and her sister. For Mairen and Tiernan. For victims of terrorism in so many places. For Karen and Dale. For the President, the Pope and all who are laboring to ensure a lasting and just peace.

A plea, that might help lead to civility

The Catholic use of language can be a real problem. We obscure great and beautiful things in pompous tones and unclear words. We use the word "church" to mean an event, a building, a group of people we spend an hour with, an insitution, a collection of hundreds of millions of people, a collection of several billion people, and an invisible but real thing spread out across history, encompassing billions and billions of people, spirits, angels and ministers of grace. (sorry to go all Carl Sagan at the end.) Sometimes it's clear from context which is which, but I suspect a lot of arguments would be less heated if those in dispute would just define their terms, like in history class.

Perma-link

I have added a perma-link in the right-hand column to the Principles of Ignatian Spirituality, for those who wish to review them from time to time, without having to search around. I had gotten into the habit of the Examen for a time, and have fallen off the wagon. I also have forgotten to do somethign that Father Confessor suggested during Lent, when my confession was so filled with the small sins of vanity that make up so much of my daily life. "Start each day," he told me, "saying, 'Okay Lord. It's just you and me today. Help me, and help me remember that, the rest of the day.'" Good advice, that Pride pushes aside as soon as I'm not looking.

Another late intention

Kathy S. writes: "Please pray for 5th-grade Mary, who will undergo a 7-hour back surgery on Tuesday."

I will also pray for the surgical team.

Please keep my friend from Flos Carmeli and his wife in your prayers. She is sick and they are far from home.

Friday Intentions

Please email me with other intentions.

For the repose of the soul of Sam Gale, and for his family. For Rev. Steve W. For my cousin who just had surgery. For the repose of the soul of Elizabeth Faxon. For Roger, Randy, Deb and the ones whose names I did not know. For Charles L. For the people of Afghanistan, and those who would help them. For Michelle. For me, a sinner. For Emily's friend Katie. For Monica M. For Mrs. Kairos Guy, her cousin and her grandfather, grandmother, and sister. For Alicia and her sister. For Mairen and Tiernan. For victims of terrorism in so many places. For Karen and Dale. For the President, the Pope and all who are laboring to ensure a lasting and just peace.

Today's Hymn

Today's Hymn comes via Kairos Musical Advisor, Dave Pawlak.

"People, Look East is one of my favorite modern Advent hymns. The tune is Besancon (not in CyberHymnal, but found
elsewhere)."

People look East. The time is near
Of the crowning of the year.
Make your house fair as you are able,
Trim the hearth and set the table.
People look East, today:
Love the Guest is on the way.

Furrows, be glad. Though earth is bare,
One more seed is planted there:
Give up your strength the seed to nourish,
That in course the flower may flourish.
People look East, today:
Love the Rose is on the way.

Stars, keep the watch. When night is dim
One more light the bowl shall brim,
Shining beyond the frosty weather,
Bright as sun and moon together.
People look East, today:
Love the Star is on the way.

Angels announce to man and beast
Him who cometh from the East.
Set every peak and valley humming
With the Word, the Lord is coming.
People look East, today:
Love the Lord is on the way.

"What Would Jesus Eat?"

Let's see if I can stir up a new controversy.

"Self-help" Jesus books that can't be far away:

"What Would Jesus Shoot? A Christian Hunter's Guide to Firearms"
"What Would Jesus Boot? Computers that will make you Rapturous"
"What Would Jesus Invest In? 12 Can't-Miss Investments for the Christian Trader, Plus a bonus investment for the one that does go wrong."
"What Would Jesus Bake? A Recipe-filled Follow-up to the Best-Selling 'What Would Jesus Eat?'"
"What Would Jesus Abort? Planned Parenthood's New Translation of the New Testament, with a forward by Rev. Mark Bigalow"
"What Would Jesus Pay? A Christian's Guide to Negotiating Your Best Deal"
"What Would Jesus Sue? A Legal Guide to Christian Guerrilla Judicial Activism"
"What Would Jesus Design? Furniture and Interior Recommendations from the World's Most Famous Carpenter"
"What Would Jesus Cellar? Top Wine Recommendations from the Nation's Top Christian Oenophiles"
"What Would Jesus Sell? Amway's Biggest Catalog EVER!"
"What Would Jesus Use to Survive an Attack by a Weapon of Mass Destruction? Survival Gear for the Christian Who Already Has a Year's Supply of Food Stashed Away in a Plywood Structure The FBI Doesn't Know About"

Please note I hold the copyright to all these titles, and will gratefully sue the pants off anyone who actually publishes a book under these names.

UPDATE: A few more. (Send your own, and I'll list the best ones.)
"What Would Jesus Pave? A Conservative Christian's Guide to Protecting Our Wilderness While Opening Up New Areas to Development"
"What Would Jesus Use? A Deeper Understanding of Christ Through a Deeper Understanding of Cannabis"
"What Would Jesus Join? Clubs and Associations That Won't 'Raise Eyebrows'"
"What Would Jesus Ski? A Vacation Guide for the Saved"

This is kind of cool. Music that will please both me AND my wife, which is very hard to do.

Seven Principle Elements of Ignatian Spirituality

This is reproduced from the pages of a Jesuit High School I know. It is meant to give a little balance to the esoteric ruminations of Dominicans and Carmelites found elsewhere.

1.God in All Things. God is present in all of human existence. The world and all it contains reveals God to us. It was out of this conviction that Ignatius became known as an “incarnational mystic,” a “contemplative in action.”

2. The Consciousness Examen. If God indeed can be found in all things, then human beings can discern God’s presence in the world. The examen is a prayerful reflection on one’s day in order to notice where God was present in one’s behavior, thoughts, feelings, actions, relationships, work, play, etc, so that one may respond with grateful generosity.

3. Two Standards: The Standard of Christ and the standard of Satan. We ought not to be naïve about the presence of evil in the world. We are called to discern and reject what is evil and to do battle against evil, serving Christ under the standard of the cross.

4. AMDG, Ad Maiorem Dei Gloriam. For the Greater Glory of God; and Magis, more. For most people decisions involve a choice from among various goods. AMDG reminds us that we are called to seek that which will give greater glory, i.e. what is most especially conducive to the praise, worship, and service of God?

5. The magis is not a question of doing more, but of carefully discerning what is especially fitting in the service of God.

6. Ignatian Discernment. God’s voice can be discerned most clearly by a careful examination of one’s deepest, most authentic desires. God’s voice can also be discerned in a group setting: prayerful consideration of the movements of the Spirit in the groups ongoing work, conversation, prayer, etc.

7.Cura Personalis. This term can be paraphrased with: “ The person in front of me is the most important person in the world.” Cura Personalis is the attentive concern given to each individual, taking into consideration that person’s whole self: body, mind, and soul. No aspect of what it means to be human ought to be neglected. This principle also implies that a human being must never be treated as a means to an end, but is always to be treated with respect as an individual man or woman, made in God’s image and likeness.

I have been slow to update my links on the right, and therefore have neglected until now to add a fine blog, Ut Unum Sint. In the unlikely chance you haven't seen it, go visit. It's not filled with exactly the same views as a hundred other blogs, including this one.

I want to be clear that my post yesterday about going back to confession recounts as exactly as possible just what happened. If anyone reading this is a materialist, let me assure him that all the natural forces at work in me were trying desparately to remove me from proximity to the confessional. Something like CS Lewis' experience of "compelle intrare" was at work. Had it not been, you may consider yourself guaranteed that I would have been scarfing a sandwich at Cosi and marvelling at the weird tricks the mind can play when you are tired.

I stumbled across the book Watch for the Light: Readings for Advent and Christmas on the shelves at the local library a couple of days ago, and peaked into it last night. I can't recommend it enough. In particular, the December 2 essay by Karl Rahn was excellent.

Thursday Intentions

Please email me with other intentions.

For the repose of the soul of Sam Gale, and for his family. For Rev. Steve W. For my cousin who just had surgery. For the repose of the soul of Elizabeth Faxon. For Roger, Randy, Deb and the ones whose names I did not know. For Charles L. For the people of Afghanistan, and those who would help them. For Michelle. For me, a sinner. For Emily's friend Katie. For Monica M. For Mrs. Kairos Guy, her cousin and her grandfather, grandmother, and sister. For Alicia and her sister. For Mairen and Tiernan. For victims of terrorism in so many places. For Karen and Dale. For the President, the Pope and all who are laboring to ensure a lasting and just peace.

A Child This Day Is Born

[There are a dozen more verses to this hymn. Click the link
if you want to see the whole thing.]

A Child this day is born,
A Child of high renown.
Most worthy of a scepter,
A scepter and a crown.

Refrain

Noëls, noëls, noëls,
Noëls sing all we may,
Because the King of all kings
Was born this blessèd day.

The which the holy prophets
Spoke of long time before,
That from the fall of Adam
He should us all restore.

Refrain

This Child both God and Man
From Heaven down to us came,
He is the King of all Kings,
And Jesus is His Name.

Refrain

These tidings Shepherds heard
In their field watching their fold,
Was by an angel unto them
That night revealed and told.

Refrain

Requiescat in pacem

I apparently missed the news that Ned Beach, USN, veteran the Pacific War and author of, among many other excellent works, "Run Silent, Run Deep," died on Sunday. I met him once at the US Naval Institute's annual meeting, and had the pleasure of sitting with him for lunch. He was a fine gentleman and a true patriot.

White House Looks at Smallpox Vaccine -- Will the Bishops?

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Bush administration plans to make the smallpox vaccine available to all Americans eventually, but officials will recommend that only those who are at greatest risk of encountering a patient get the shots.

The Bishops have spoken a lot about a prospective war, admitting as they do that their opinions are formed by incomplete information. And whatever their opinions, they are principally meant to guide the leaders of the country--who are not, by and large, Roman Catholic, and who are therefore unlikely to feel bound by those opinions. This is all well and good, and part of the natural order of things.

But I would like to hear from the Bishops on smallpox (and other bioweapon) vaccinations. There are significant ethical and moral considerations to examine before a "voluntary" program is undertaken, and well in advance of any mandatory mass vaccination.

In 1 million vaccinations, the statistical probability is that two or three people will die. Several dozen others may get seriously ill. All this assumes 1 million people of reasonable health, with normal immune systems. If all 270 million of us get a shot, that amounts to hundreds of dead citizens, and thousands of seriously ill people, without a terrorist raising a finger. On the other hand, even 20 or 30 million new vaccinations will have the effect of slowing the spread of smallpox among the uninoculated. This could save tens of thousands of lives in an attack.

Does this then place a moral obligation on those of us who are otherwise in good health to get a voluntary shot? In addition to building up what epidemiologists call "community immunity" (cutting down on the number of possible transmitters of an infection), several 10s of millions of already-immunized people could relieve what is sure to be a very significant strain on an already-taxed healthcare system. Finally, a pre-immunized population would be able to keep essential economic and political infrastructure operating (beyond just the "emergency responders" in police and fire departments), offsetting and somewhat mitigating the devastating economic consequences of what would otherwise be a national quarantine.

There are therefore compelling reasons to think that a "voluntary" inoculation is not far from an imperative, but there are countervailing imperatives as well, particularly for parents with small children. This is something that is unquestionably within the competency of the bishops' authority, and most if not all the relevant factors of risk and benefit are well known and in the public domain.

Please, your eminences, speak now while discussion can still be fruitful.

He leadeth me beside the still waters

I promised my story of how I came back to the Confessional after a long absence. Here it is.

In November 2001, I had to go to New York City on business. Never having loved New York--indeed, having loathed it the two times I had been before taking this job--I was, as you might suppose, unhappy about going so soon after September 11. (A brief trip in October had been far worse in that regard.) I didn't especially know my way around then, and so it was quite by accident that I found myself outside St. Patrick's Cathedral in mid-town. Churches often invite me in, for some reason (and not just Catholic ones: St. Paul's Episcopal Church on Boston Common and I are old friends), and so I entered.

It would be pointless to pretend that the still-smoking pile a couple of miles away had no influence on my wandering inside, but that was not the only thing. My two-years-long apostasy had ended in Summer 2000, but I was still working out what the end really implied. An hour and a half until my next meeting only three blocks away meant there was time for real prayer and contemplation, and so the Spirit carried me in.

St. Patrick's is an enormous Gothic structure, just the sort of thing one associated automatically with the word "cathedral". With chapels and memorial altars up and down the sides of the Church, its European ancestry is obvious even to an architectural ignoramus such as me. My own tastes run more towards simple stone churches, but St. Pat's was for me on that day quite literally breathtaking. I have no notion that "Heaven" is anything like a church, but I fully understand why an architect who wanted to capture it in a building would design St. Patrick's.

After quietly examining the altars along the side, I sat in front of one that I particularly liked for a little silent prayer. My mind is sadly undisciplined, however, and I kept peaking out from under my closed lids, looking for distractions. Eventually they fell on a sign just to my left that told me confession would start in about 20 minutes and run for perhaps an hour.

I did not actually hear the still, small voice saying "take and read!" but something very like that did happen. I shut my eyes again but soon enough found them fixed on that sign. Again, I shut my eyes. A third time I realized I was reading the sign, this time while calculating the odds of making it into and out of the confessional, conducting a penance for a decade's worth of sin, and still fulfilling my duty to my employer, to make it to the next meeting. Anxiety seized me as the numbers revealed that it was not only possible but indeed probable that it would work out, but only if I got in the quickly-growing line right away.

Now my wandering eyes were alternating between my watch and the door. "You can't be late to this meeting!" "The people in front are taking too long." "You'll never get it all done, you need to go NOW!" "Get out! Get out! It's not too late!" "Leave, before you kill me!" Finally, my turn came. The door to the confessional opened, and no one else moved.

More reluctant feet have hardly ever walked such a short distance in all of human history. Again my breath was taken, not this time by awe and majesty, but instead by fear and trembling. Adrenaline turned the tiny click of the doorlatch into the clanging seal of the gas chamber door. And, why not? My fear was real, and it was also perceptive: the only reason to go into the booth was to kill myself, or at least that part of myself that was afraid, the part that had to die forever so that the rest can live.

The same thing that kept drawing my eyes to the sign on the wall outside mastered my shaking legs enough to help me kneel. No more delay, now. No escape. Now comes the time to find the courage to admit what a coward I am, and have too often been.

"Bless me, father, for I have sinned." Exhale carefully. "I really don't know how long it has been since my last Confession." Deep, forced breath. "Nine, ten years at least."

"Welcome back," he said.

Wednesday Intentions

Please email me with other intentions.

It is again abnormally cold here in Boston today, with temperatures in the teens and wind chills taking it below zero. Please pray for those without proper shelter.

For my cousin who just had surgery. For the repose of the soul of Elizabeth Faxon. For Sam G and his family. For Roger, Randy, Deb and the ones whose names I did not know. For Charles L. For the people of Afghanistan, and those who would help them. For Michelle. For me, a sinner. For Emily's friend Katie. For Monica M. For Dave's sister. For Mrs. Kairos Guy, her cousin and her grandfather, grandmother, and sister. For Alicia and her sister. For Mairen and Tiernan. For victims of terrorism in so many places. For Karen and Dale. For the President, the Pope and all who are laboring to ensure a lasting and just peace.

While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks

[note: there are several tunes for this hymn, and the Cyberhymnal has not chosen the best known one as their background music. The one you are familiar with is "Winchester's Old."]

While shepherds watched their flocks by night,
All seated on the ground,
The angel of the Lord came down,
And glory shone around,
And glory shone around.

“Fear not!” said he, for mighty dread
Had seized their troubled mind.
“Glad tidings of great joy I bring
To you and all mankind
To you and all mankind.

“To you, in David’s town, this day
Is born of David’s line
A Savior, who is Christ the Lord,
And this shall be the sign,
And this shall be the sign.

“The heavenly Babe you there shall find
To human view displayed,
All meanly wrapped in swathing bands,
And in a manger laid,
And in a manger laid.”

Thus spake the seraph and forthwith
Appeared a shining throng
Of angels praising God on high,
Who thus addressed their song,
Who thus addressed their song:

“All glory be to God on high,
And to the Earth be peace;
Good will henceforth from heaven to men
Begin and never cease,
Begin and never cease!”

Have you participated in Operation Uplink yet?

Kerry Steps Up Attacks on Bush Policies (washingtonpost.com)

"This administration is willing to do terrorism insurance for big industry, but they weren't willing to do unemployment compensation for people who are out of work," the senator from Massachusetts said a day after announcing he would form a presidential exploratory committee. "That's the big difference in how we approach the economy."

Funny, but I would swear that that bill got caught up in the still-Daschle-led Senate, not the White House. Maybe it was the White House where decorated veterans dump cheap imitations of their medals over the fence but pretend the medals are real even though they secretly treasure the originals like ambitious Gollums who wants to have it both ways.

Confession Rant, part the second

Last week I vented about my Archdiocese's apparent lack of interest in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Who knew that I would find the solution to my problem where all American problems get solved: the Mall! Yes, that's right, ladies and gentlemen. I went to worship Mammon on Friday and found God instead (actually, I went to get new tires at Sears, but that isn't much of a rhetorical flourish, is it?). With apologies to my Dominican friend Tom, I note that the Carmelites have reversed the Gospel story, and set up a temple amidst the money changers.

Can you believe this schedule?

Masses: Mon-Fri, 8:30, Noon, & 3:00pm. Sat, 8:30am, Noon, 4:00pm and 5:30pm. Holy Days, Vigil 4:00pm, Day, 4:00pm and 5:30pm.

Confession: Mon-Fri one half hour before every Mass. Sat, 8:00-8:30am, 10:45-11:45am, 2:45-3:45pm, and by appointment.

Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament: Mon-Fri, 9:00am - 7:30pm. Sat. 9:00am-Noon.

Solemn Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament: Wed., 7:45pm.

Would that a few parishes around here had such a schedule. Although perhaps we should acknowledge the reality of the situation and rename the North Shore Mall "Our Lady of Good Bargains" and declare it the largest parish in the Eastern US. In any case, though the Mall is no longer especially conveient to where I live, I can make my way there when 3:00-3:45 Saturday is taken over with family obligations. (Since they pay their rent with donations and purchases in the gift shop, I encourage my Boston-area readers to visit and drop a few bucks.)

[By the way. I solved my own problem--having missed the Chapel confessions by about an hour--by ducking out of holiday leftovers at the in-laws for a little while on Saturday. I was most amazed--amazed!--when I arrived 20 minutes early to find Father Confessor sitting at the altar himself preparing quietly to hear the confessions. A far cry from the last place I went, where the priest came rushing in 20 minutes late and gave me the most absurdly light penance I've ever had. St. Bernard's was the most encouraging experience I have had with the Sacrament since I rediscovered it a year ago. But the rediscovery is another story, and I'm running out of tangent space here.]

I pretty much gave up FM radio a while ago, though I occasionally flip back to it. Lately, however, I have been listening to WCRB a lot ("Classical Radio Boston"). There is a very funny, understated kind of humor they possess, that often gets lost in the mellow, comforting and sometimes pompous tones common to most classical radio stations (think Frasier Crane on Quaaludes if you have never listened). This morning, for instance, during the half-hour news break I was informed that "Last night the Celitcs beat the Orlando Magic 102-97. Tonight, the Bruins play St. Louis at the Fleet Center, and the Symphony plays 'Hansel and Gretel' at Symphony Hall."

Interesting. But if I had to guess, I'd say it's more likely related to those ridiculous shorts they wear.

Tuesday Intentions

Please email me with other intentions.

It is abnormally cold here in Boston today, with temperatures in the teens and wind chills taking it below zero. Please pray for those without proper shelter.

For my cousin who just had surgery. For the repose of the soul of Elizabeth Faxon. For Sam G and his family. For Roger, Randy, Deb and the ones whose names I did not know. For Charles L. For the people of Afghanistan, and those who would help them. For Michelle. For me, a sinner. For Emily's friend Katie. For Monica M. For Dave's sister. For Mrs. Kairos Guy, her cousin and her grandfather, grandmother, and sister. For Alicia and her sister. For Mairen and Tiernan. For victims of terrorism in so many places. For Karen and Dale. With Thanksgiving for Karin's and Elizabeth's recoveries. For the President, the Pope and all who are laboring to ensure a lasting and just peace.

O Come, O Come, Emmanuel

O come, O come, Emmanuel,
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear.

Refrain

Rejoice! Rejoice!
Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, Thou Wisdom from on high,
Who orderest all things mightily;
To us the path of knowledge show,
And teach us in her ways to go.

Refrain

O come, Thou Rod of Jesse, free
Thine own from Satan’s tyranny;
From depths of hell Thy people save,
And give them victory over the grave.

Refrain

O come, Thou Day-spring, come and cheer
Our spirits by Thine advent here;
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night,
And death’s dark shadows put to flight.

Refrain

O come, Thou Key of David, come,
And open wide our heavenly home;
Make safe the way that leads on high,
And close the path to misery.

Refrain

O come, O come, great Lord of might,
Who to Thy tribes on Sinai’s height
In ancient times once gave the law
In cloud and majesty and awe.

Refrain

O come, Thou Root of Jesse’s tree,
An ensign of Thy people be;
Before Thee rulers silent fall;
All peoples on Thy mercy call.

Refrain

O come, Desire of nations, bind
In one the hearts of all mankind;
Bid Thou our sad divisions cease,
And be Thyself our King of Peace.

Refrain

The Snooze of Complacency

In the missalette my Parish uses, there is a little paragraph at the beginning of each Sunday's section, sort of summarizing and sort of drawing out the themes of the readings. Usually they are quite simple, well done though plain. Once in a while, they stand out, as yesterday's did. After pulling out the relevant Advent themes, it concluded with the point of the Gospel, in convenient metaphor-form. (I like a good metaphor as much as the next guy, and have been known to stretch one to the breaking point and beyond. But some metaphors are best left in the junior high English classroom, however apt they may be.) The paragraph called on us "to let today's readings be an alarm, waking us from the snooze of complacency."

It ain't exactly the King James Version, is it?

On the other hand, I do like the image: not indeed of a person sound asleep, in heavy REM mode, but rather, a groggy, I-don't-wanna-go-to-school-today-Mom kind of way. Maybe its not a sign of the author's banality, as much as our own time's.

Monday Intentions

Please email me with other intentions.

For my cousin who just had surgery. For the repose of the soul of Elizabeth Faxon. For Sam G and his family. For Roger, Randy, Deb and the ones whose names I did not know. For Charles L. For the people of Afghanistan, and those who would help them. For Michelle. For me, a sinner. For Emily's friend Katie. For Monica M. For Dave's sister. For Mrs. Kairos Guy, her cousin and her grandfather, grandmother, and sister. For Alicia and her sister. For Mairen and Tiernan. For victims of terrorism in so many places. For Karen and Dale. With Thanksgiving for Karin's and Elizabeth's recoveries. For the President, the Pope and all who are laboring to ensure a lasting and just peace.

HARK! THE HERALD ANGELS SING

Hark! The herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King;
Peace on earth, and mercy mild,
God and sinners reconciled!”
Joyful, all ye nations rise,
Join the triumph of the skies;
With th’angelic host proclaim,
“Christ is born in Bethlehem!”


Refrain

Hark! the herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King!”

Christ, by highest heav’n adored;
Christ the everlasting Lord;
Late in time, behold Him come,
Offspring of a virgin’s womb.
Veiled in flesh the Godhead see;
Hail th’incarnate Deity,
Pleased with us in flesh to dwell,
Jesus our Emmanuel.

Refrain

Hail the heav’nly Prince of Peace!
Hail the Sun of Righteousness!
Light and life to all He brings,
Ris’n with healing in His wings.
Mild He lays His glory by,
Born that man no more may die.
Born to raise the sons of earth,
Born to give them second birth.

Refrain

Come, Desire of nations, come,
Fix in us Thy humble home;
Rise, the woman’s conqu’ring Seed,
Bruise in us the serpent’s head.
Now display Thy saving power,
Ruined nature now restore;
Now in mystic union join
Thine to ours, and ours to Thine.

Refrain

Adam’s likeness, Lord, efface,
Stamp Thine image in its place:
Second Adam from above,
Reinstate us in Thy love.
Let us Thee, though lost, regain,
Thee, the Life, the inner man:
O, to all Thyself impart,
Formed in each believing heart.

Refrain