MirrorI see mein the water whileI stand here.BurdenMy pack is heavy,The Lord's load is heavier;I should not complain.ThoughtMany minutes spentThinking. Swinging and swaying,thoughts race by the lots.
Number Three was lector at our country parish, and Number Four served at the Extraordinary form mass in town.
Archbishop Timothy DolanPassion of the LordMarch 28, 2010“May I ask your patience a couple of minutes longer in what has already been a lengthy — yet hopefully uplifting —Sunday Mass?The somberness of Holy Week is intensified for Catholics this year.The recent tidal wave of headlines about abuse of minors by some few priests, this time in Ireland, Germany, and a re-run of an old story from Wisconsin, has knocked us to our knees once again.Anytime this horror, vicious sin, and nauseating crime is reported, as it needs to be, victims and their families are wounded again, the vast majority of faithful priests bow their heads in shame anew, and sincere Catholics experience another dose of shock, sorrow, and even anger.What deepens the sadness now is the unrelenting insinuations against the Holy Father himself, as certain sources seem frenzied to implicate the man who, perhaps more than anyone else has been the leader in purification, reform, and renewal that the Church so needs.Sunday Mass is hardly the place to document the inaccuracy, bias, and hyperbole of such aspersions.But, Sunday Mass is indeed the time for Catholics to pray for “ . . . Benedict our Pope.”And Palm Sunday Mass is sure a fitting place for us to express our love and solidarity for our earthly shepherd now suffering some of the same unjust accusations, shouts of the mob, and scourging at the pillar, as did Jesus.No one has been more vigorous in cleansing the Church of the effects of this sickening sin than the man we now call Pope Benedict XVI. The dramatic progress that the Catholic Church in the United States has made — — documented again just last week by the report made by independent forensic auditors — — could never have happened without the insistence and support of the very man now being daily crowned with thorns by groundless innuendo.Does the Church and her Pastor, Pope Benedict XVI, need intense scrutiny and just criticism for tragic horrors long past?Yes! He himself has asked for it, encouraging complete honesty, at the same time expressing contrition, and urging a thorough cleansing.All we ask is that it be fair, and that the Catholic Church not be singled-out for a horror that has cursed every culture, religion, organization, institution, school, agency, and family in the world.Sorry to bring this up … but, then again, the Eucharist is the Sunday meal of the spiritual family we call the Church. At Sunday dinner we share both joys and sorrows. The father of our family, il papa, needs our love, support, and prayers.”
He received several compliments after our co-op mass, including the one from homeschool dad T. B. who said he would be a good books-on-tape reader! His voice reminds me of my oldest brother... who read so beautifully from the altar during Holy Week when I was little.
Hurry and subscribe if you haven't yet! This issue is on the vocation of the Catholic homeschooler, with many pieces penned by Margot Davidson.
Read it here. This one talks about living in South Dakota, winter, my father's wisdom, and building the Kingdom of God.
We just finished Saint Elizabeth and the Three Crowns by Blanche Jennings Thompson. We all loved the story of the greatest saint of the medieval era as the postscript says.
We just finished listening to the The Children of Green Knowe series... courtesy of good friend Caitilin!
Dearest friend and amateur photographer extraordinaire Jannell spent the afternoon with Number Three downtown taking these yesterday. She did agree that a Brazilian Flan would be nice when I offered. I said she has a lifetime supply. We all love the pictures--and there are many more!
This Friday, from 10AM - 3PM, email your address & book of choice to freebook@bethlehembooks.com. One book per address. Enjoy!
... go hand in hand at our house.
Number Five looking very grown up with dear friends H. A. and M. B. earlier tonight at her piano recital. The three of them delighted the audience!
My students showed incredible diversity in their Prismacolor backgrounds of the project started last week!
Number Four presented interesting facts about the great mind of Alberto Santos-Dumont in Mrs Daly's class, the man known in Brazil as the Father of Aviation.
Yesterday we worked at home on the upcoming completion of our co-op art project. Numbers Five and Six with friends H. and N. worked on the silhouettes and then added their own background. I love the way they were all so different! On Friday we will complete the ones my co-op students started last week, I will post.
...seems like happy graduate student life up in Aberdeen, Scotland! I love his smile! He is the one leaning on the car.
First Comes the Zebra is a story that takes the young reader to another world and culture, and yet reminds all readers of the universality of human relationships and the need for reconciliation.
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