One Catholic Life Blog

St. Luke icon

Spirituality

Life without St. Luke?

As I was thinking about today’s Feast of St. Luke, I began noting all the events we wouldn’t know about if not for his writings. Imagine what would be missing from our understanding of the Faith if we didn’t have The Gospel of Luke and Acts of the Apostles: The Birth of John the Baptist The Annunciation and the Visitation The Magnifcat and the Canticle of Zechariah The Parable of the Good Samaritan The Parable of the Prodigal Son The Emmaus Encounter Pentecost The Martyrdom of St. Stephen...

Used Book Store

Books and Reading

Transform Your Life for Less Than the Cost of a Cup of Coffee

When I was younger I didn’t have a lot of money. But I always had enough to afford a book. I could always ride my bike to the used book store and find something interesting, something potentially life-changing, for a dollar or two. There are many ways to spend money on transformative experiences: travel, college, spiritual retreats. But for sheer cost-to-impact ratio, nothing beats a book. A good book is the best bargain in transforming one’s life. But don’t take my word for it. Check out how books...

Moses and Amalekites

Homily

C.S. Lewis, Joy, and Persistent Prayer: Homily for the 29th Sunday in Ordinary Time – Year C

The dramatic scene from the first reading, with Moses raising the staff of God during battle, and Joshua mowing down Amalek, almost feels like a scene from The Lord of the Rings. But it’s not Tolkien that I find most helpful in breaking open today’s scripture, but rather one of his best friends, C.S. Lewis. Lewis, as many of you know, was the author of the Narnia series, that wonderful set of books about Aslan, Prince Caspian, and the magical world on the other side of the wardrobe. Lewis...

Bob Dylan in Toronto

General / Music

The Spirituality of Bob Dylan, Nobel Laureate

Today Bob Dylan was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature for “having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition.” In honor of this recognition I’ve collected a few resources that explore the spirituality of his works. You’ll find articles from America Magazine, videos from Bishop Robert Barron of Word on Fire, and concert footage of Dylan himself singing one of his spiritual songs that always moves me. America Magazine Shortly after the announcement today, Fr. James Martin posted the following links from America Magazine on his...

Reading by the lake

Books and Reading

This Is Your Brain On Books

What happens to the brain one hour after opening a book? That’s what The University of Virginia Library set out to explain in the following infographic.  It describes reading’s effect on the brain after ten minutes, thirty minutes, sixty minutes, even hours and years later (click the image to make it larger): For a more thorough exploration of the effects of reading on the brain, check out these articles: What Reading Does To Your Brain Is Truly Fascinating Reading Fiction Improves Brain Connectivity and Function 10 Benefits of Reading:...

World Book Encyclopedia

Books and Reading

(Re)Discovering Book Blogs

Did you ever read the encyclopedia when you were younger? I don’t mean Wikipedia, I mean an honest-to-goodness set of World Books or Brittanicas. And I don’t mean for a school paper, I mean for the sheer pleasure of it, discovering wondrous things about the world and letting one article send you on to the next, until before you knew it, several hours had gone by? That’s what reading Dana Huff’s blogroll links have been like for me over the past few days. But I’m getting ahead of myself....

Beautiful Library

Books and Reading

In Praise of Libraries

Maria Popova has a wonderful new article at Brain Pickings titled “How Libraries Save Lives.” Libraries have always been important to me, and to be honest, if I would have grown up near a college that offered a Master of Library Science degree, then I may well have ended up a librarian instead of a teacher. In her article, Popova offers a fine collection of quotes and stories in praise of libraries, as well as links to reflections, essays, and art work. You’ll find tributes from Ursula LeGuin, Nikki...

Patrick O'Brian

Books and Reading

Patrick O’Brian Interview at The Mariner’s Museum

The following interview of author Patrick O’Brian showed up in my Facebook feed the other day and it’s a real gem. O’Brian was interviewed for almost an hour in 1995 at the Mariner’s Museum in Newport, VA. First he answers questions from the museum’s president and CEO, John Hightower, then he takes questions from the audience for about thirty minutes. The audio is a bit rough, but the content is worth it. And if you love the Aubrey/Maturin book series as much as I do, be sure to...

Reading in Autumn

Books and Reading

10 Catholic Book Recommendations for October

In a few days October will be upon us in all its splendor. October in the Pacific Northwest is a mystical month of auburn leaves, fog, and crisp morning air–the perfect atmosphere for reading. Imagine settling in to your favorite reading nook, sipping on a cup of pumpkin spice coffee, and getting lost in a book while the leaves fall around you. But what to read, you ask? Not to worry, I’ve got you covered. Here’s a roundup of what some Catholic book groups are reading next month, along...

Leftoverture by Kansas

Friends / Music

Carry On Wayward Son: K-Tel, Kansas, and a Story of Regret

It’s hard to believe that it’s been 40 years since “Carry On Wayward Son” first rocked the airwaves. But it’s true. Kansas released their breakthrough album Leftoverture in 1976, and “Carry On Wayward Son” hit number 11 on the charts in early 1977. That song was so important to me as a teenager that it was one of two song titles that I wrote in permanent marker on the front of the boom box I owned as a kid. But as much as I love that song, it...

Boy in Leaves

Writing

Jump Starting the Writing Habit Again

It’s about time to jump start my writing again. For the past several days I’ve been using the prompts from The Daily Post to help reestablish a daily habit of blogging, and it feels good to be writing regularly once more.   Today fall begins, and the days of autumn are begging to be written about. Soon there will be leaves to jump in and pumpkins to carve. And to my mind, we are entering one of the greatest stretches of feast days in the church year: St. Vincent de...

Sunset

Spirituality / Writing

Stylish Prayer

Some people are naturally stylish. Their clothes, their hair–their entire manner–exude style, a magical word that blends elegance, originality, and visual appeal. While I am most certainly not stylish, I appreciate my stylish family and friends. Whenever I try to be stylish, either in my appearance or in my writing, I come off artificial, stilted, and phony. The same thing happens when I try to be stylish in prayer. Oh, I don’t intentionally try to be stylish, but that’s what it is when I’m not myself in prayer, when...