“Crowdsourcing: the practice of obtaining needed services, ideas or content by soliciting contributions from a large group of people and especially from the online community rather than from traditional employees or suppliers.” – Merriam-Webster.com Made from the contributions of hundreds of people around the world, this version of Star Wars: A New Hope is a crowdsourced wonder:
Though National Vocation Awareness Week has ended for this year, the working out or living out of our vocations goes on. Jeffrey Langan, Associate Professor at Notre Dame, delivers a fascinating lecture in which he uses Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings to illustrate the dynamic of vocation. Though he seems to be speaking mostly about the ordained or religious life, many of his remarks could also be applied to marriage and other vocations.
National Vocation Awareness Week ends this weekend, and today’s gospel meditation on John 1:35-42 by Rachel Subras in Give Us This Day fits the occasion well: You are called like Simon to leave aside your plans and go when summoned, to be beheld and known by God’s own, and be renamed. You do have a choice. You can retreat, take comfort in the familiar, and risk missing your calling. Or you can set out, take on the discomforts of the strange and the stranger, and live into, live up...
Today is J.R.R. Tolkien’s 120th birthday. Known, of course, mainly for The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings, one of his most under appreciated works is a gem of a short story called “Leaf by Niggle.” This simple story is a beautiful allegory for the creative life and for the transition into eternal life. Similar to C.S. Lewis’ The Great Divorce, “Leaf by Niggle” is much more subtle. It is also deeply spiritual and rooted in a solid Catholic theology of art and afterlife. “Leaf by Niggle” complements...
One of the great things about being my age (which I will not say, but should not be hard to guess), is that many of the things I got teased about when I was geeky kid are cool now that I am a geeky adult. TV shows like Psych and Chuck make their money by appealing to lifelong geeks like me. Geeks are so cool now, you’d think everyone in my generation grew up reading Tolkien, programming TRS-80s, and playing Dungeons and Dragons. But I know better. There...
How wonderful to open up the January issue of Give Us This Day and discover that the very first meditation of the new year is by my diocese’s very own Bishop Blase Cupich. Here is the conclusion of his meditation on this Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God: This blessed virgin agreed not only to give birth to the Son of the Most High God. She also consented to enter into a unique relationship with God, a relationship that is so intimate that only the bond between a...
2011 was a record year for me in terms of number of books read. I use Goodreads.com to keep track of my reading, and about this time last year Goodreads opened up the 2011 Reading Challenge. My goal for the year was 36 books, which was a slight increase over the past few years. I had read 31 books in both 2009 and 2010, and my previous high was 34 books in 2006. I felt fairly confident that I could read three books a month. Much to my...
Today’s Office of Readings provides a beautiful meditation from Pope Paul VI on this feast of the Holy Family. As Paul VI reflects, he recalls three things we can learn from Jesus’ upbringing: Silence First, we learn from its silence. If only we could once again appreciate its great value. We need this wonderful state of mind, beset as we are by the cacophony of strident protests and conflicting claims so characteristic of these turbulent times. The silence of Nazareth should teach us how to meditate in peace...
What does it mean to be thankful? Being thankful begins with community. It means knowing we cannot do it alone, and that as much as we Americans worship freedom and doing things our way, we cannot do everything ourselves. There is no thanksgiving for those who need no one. Second, being thankful requires awareness. It means looking closely at our lives and noticing how much we have been given. It means recognizing that Someone loves us enough to hold us in the tender hands of the universe and...
To the Field of Stars: A Pilgrim’s Journey to Santiago De Compostela by Kevin A. Codd My rating: 5 of 5 stars I enjoyed every word of this gorgeous, honest, life-giving journey with Fr. Kevin Codd as he made his pilgrimage across Spain to Santiago De Compostela. Fr. Codd not only recounts the physical aspects of his journey, but–more signifcantly–he lets us in on the psychological and spiritual journey he went through as he trekked over 500 miles on foot. To the Field of Stars is a concrete...
With Fire and Sword An Historical Novel of Poland and Russia. by Henryk Sienkiewicz My rating: 4 of 5 stars With Fire and Sword must be one of the greatest historical epics you’ve never heard of. Set in the 17th century, and told from the Polish point of view, it recounts a Cossack uprising against the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. The historical backdrop serves as a grand canvas for the portraits of courage, love, and spiritual devotion that form the heart of the story. In print, With Fire and Sword...
We had a great time seeing Weird Al at the Spokane County Fair last night. Best seats I’ve ever had at a concert–four seats from the front. The video shows some of the great costumes Al wears and features clips from “Party in the CIA,” “Wanna Be Ur Lovr,” “Eat It,” and “The Saga Begins.” Here’s the complete set list: Polka Face TMZ Smells Like Nirvana Skipper Dan Party in the CIA CNR Canadian Idiot Wanna B Ur Lovr Medley: Money for Nothing/Beverly Hillbillies Whatever You Like Another...
Aubrey/Maturin Read-along 2021-2024
Classics Club #32: Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevesky
January 20, 2020
Classics Club #21: Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
December 28, 2018
Classics Club #20: She by H. Rider Haggard
May 17, 2018
Notes from the Upside Down by Guy Adams
April 4, 2018
Cries from the Earth by Terry C. Johnston
March 20, 2018
Books and Reading / Chapter-a-Day Read-Along
A New Home for the Chapter-a-Day Read-Along
November 28, 2024
Books and Reading / Chapter-a-Day Read-Along
Announcing the 2019 Chapter-a-Day Read-Along
December 26, 2018
