In every human being there is a curious trait. Have you ever made, directed or organized something? You know, not necessarily a great work of literature or Fortune 500 Company or a breathtaking work of art. Anything: a finger painting,…
Creation in Me
Fire Water
Of the vast palette of human emotion, there is one visceral reaction that is completely uncontrollable and often times unexplainable: tears. Not the tears borne of physical pain or direct personal attack, but those tears that come out of nowhere…
Holy Geometry: Reading Scripture Isn’t Optional
“In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God” (I Jn:1). For years I have been touting the value of reading the scriptures daily as a spiritual practice. I believe that “casting…
Clarity
You hear it a lot. You hear it in contract negotiation, in teaching, in foreign policy, in the writing of treaties and agreements. Clarity. People speak about “clarity” all of the time. We aim for it, we wish for it…
Curiosity and Human Nature
When we look at the celebrations of the Church we need to remember that there is logic to everything. When and how we celebrate things is not simply random. The last Feast of the Christmas octave is an ending, but…
Your Unspeakable Kin
Who’s yours? You know, the relative, distant or near, who is an unending source of embarrassment or shame for “the family”? Everybody’s got one, maybe two. The great, great, great uncle who was a horse thief, the cousin twice removed…
Running the Race
One of the most consistent characteristics of our towns and cities is their identification with and loyalty to sport. Sometimes the sport is different but the passion seems to be the same. Fans can almost become rabid for their basketball,…
Living Beyond the “I”
As a retired person I have the opportunity to listen to a lot of talk radio. I have abandoned the public display of human misery that appears with regularity on daytime TV; it gives me a headache! There is one…
Scandal
I must admit with some degree of embarrassment that I am uncontrollably drawn to one of the newest “hot series” on network TV: Scandal. It’s a show that portrays what are supposed to be some of our noblest leaders in…
Perseverance: A Lesson from Monica and Augustine
One of the best loved traditions in the Church is the practice of venerating and admiring saints. This ancient tradition dates back to the first century when worshipers experienced and told of miracles that occurred at the graves of martyrs…