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Recent posts by christopher2:
By christopher2 on September 20th, 2009 | Category: Miscellaneous September 29th is the Feast of Saint Michael, the Archangel – Michaelmas. Today begins the novena of prayer to our most powerful defender against the snares of the devil:
Glorious Saint Michael,
guardian and defender
of the Church of Jesus Christ,
come to the assistance of His followers,
against whom the powers of hell are unchained.
Guard with special care our Holy Father,
the Pope, and our bishops, priests,
all our religious and lay people,
and especially the children.
Saint Michael,
watch over us during life,
defend us against the assaults of the demon,
and assist us especially at the hour of death.
Help us achieve the happiness
of beholding God face to face
for all eternity. Amen.
Saint Michael,
intercede for me with God
in all my necessities,
especially (intention).
Obtain for me a favorable outcome
in the matter I recommend to you.
Mighty prince of the heavenly host,
and victor over rebellious spirits,
remember me for I am weak and sinful
and so prone to pride and ambition.
Be for me, I pray,
my powerful aid in temptation and difficulty,
and above all do not forsake me
in my last struggle with the powers of evil.
Amen.
* to be followed each day by the Lord’s Prayer (Our Father), Angelic Salutation (Hail Mary), and Gloria (Glory Be).
 It’s been quite a while since I posted anything here but I’ve been wanting to get back in the swing. Some of you might know about the little pilgrimage that I made with Cecilia (2 1/2 years), my youngest. From October to March, we made a visit each week to every one of the Catholic Churches located within the city limits of Austin.
Sometimes we attended Mass, sometimes we just said a quick prayer or gave Mary a kiss, and a few times we were locked out. We regularly posted the pictures of our trips on my blog.
A lot of people have told me they wish that they had thought of it – but that’s no reason not to do it anyway. For those of you who live in larger towns, I’ve got to really reccomend that you give it a try. You wouldn’t believe how excited Cecilia would get when the day would come each week to find a new one. We learned quite a bit not only about churches in Austin, but about the Faith itself. It was a big letdown when we were done.
Now we’re starting it up again, visiting all the surrounding towns. This Part II may take a bit longer…
Here’s a video compilation of the pilgrimage here.
By christopher2 on June 21st, 2009 | Category: Parenting A man’s children and his garden both reflect the amount of weeding done during the growing season.
By christopher2 on May 24th, 2009 | Category: Miscellaneous There are a few stories that, no matter how often I read them, always bring tears to my eyes. I included my version of one of them on my blog before, of the fire at Our Lady of the Angels school in Chicago. This is another one – the Four Chaplains and the sinking of the USAT Dorchester. Both stories are tragic, but both contain elements and acts of pure selflessness worthy of John 15:13, “Greater love than this no man hath, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”
It was the evening of Feb. 2, 1943, and the U.S.A.T. Dorchester was crowded to capacity, carrying 902 service men, merchant seamen and civilian workers.
Once a luxury coastal liner, the 5,649-ton vessel had been converted into an Army transport ship. The Dorchester, one of three ships in the SG-19 convoy, was moving steadily across the icy waters from Newfoundland toward an American base in Greenland. SG-19 was escorted by Coast Guard Cutters Tampa, Escanaba and Comanche.
Hans J. Danielsen, the ship’s captain, was concerned and cautious. Earlier the Tampa had detected a submarine with its sonar. Danielsen knew he was in dangerous waters even before he got the alarming information. German U-boats were constantly prowling these vital sea lanes, and several ships had already been blasted and sunk.
The Dorchester was now only 150 miles from its destination, but the captain ordered the men to sleep in their clothing and keep life jackets on. Many soldiers sleeping deep in the ship’s hold disregarded the order because of the engine’s heat. Others ignored it because the life jackets were uncomfortable.
On Feb. 3, at 12:55 a.m., a periscope broke the chilly Atlantic
By christopher2 on May 17th, 2009 | Category: Faith & Spirituality By Dom Eugene Moylan, O.C.S.O.
This was recommended to me by a priest shortly after my “reversion” back to Catholicism. I had asked him what the best Catholic book was that could approach what C. S. Lewis did in Mere Christianity. He’s passed away now, and I don’t think I ever thanked him for pointing this out to me. Just in case you don’t know it already Father C – thank you.
On Membership in Christ and on Christian Charity:
“… No matter what we do, unless we do it in the love of God, it profits us nothing. God wants our love, He will be satisfied with nothing else. That is what He principally looks for in our works. The things we do or achieve are not of primary value to God, for he can create them by a mere thought; or with just as much ease He can raise up other free agents to do what we do. But the love of our hearts is something unique, something no one else can give Him. True, He could create other hearts to love Him, but once He has created us and given us free will, the love of our particular heart is something unique and in a way irreplaceable. In any case, it is not for His own sake that He wants our love, but because He desires to make us happy with Him forever, and He can only do that if we are in love with Him ……
There is only one source of true happiness in this life or in the next, and that is to love and to be loved. Knowledge that does not lead to love is worse than
By christopher2 on May 11th, 2009 | Category: Parenting I wrote this last summer but I thought “Catholic Dads” would be a good place to post it again. It’s about family and having a dad and being a dad; hope it’s not too long…
I’ve been thinking a lot about my family lately. I’ve been blessed with a large one. My wife and I only have two daughters but I have four much older brothers and sisters, which by today’s standards would be considered a lot. “Breeders” my parents might be called now, but it wasn’t so long ago that 5 children was fairly normal, especially if you were Catholic. My parents had 23 brothers and sisters between them. And including their spouses and the children they produced, the population stretches into the hundreds just counting from my grandparents.
Such a large group naturally produces a wide array of differing personalities, careers, and interests. There have been engineers, artists, firemen, coal miners, bus drivers, airmen, soldiers, and merchant mariners. Nurses, bankers, writers, world-record holders, a nun. Drinkers, smokers, and gamblers. Intellectuals, world-travelers. Heroes and rascals. Poets. Singers, musicians, great cooks, and bad drivers. Republicans, Democrats, socialists and conservatives. Roman Catholics. I had an uncle who was Joe DiMaggio’s accountant and sat on the groom’s side for his wedding to Marilyn Monroe. One survived the Battle of the Bulge. Another (may God forgive him) helped develop the precursor to the bar-code. The accomplishments are never-ending.Family.
And whenever two or three or 20 of them got together, life became much, much more interesting. Fireworks usually, but often too enlightenment. It was truly a privilege to have grown up around these larger than life peoples. My adulthood has been brushed and polished by their stories, experiences, mistakes, and successes. By their love – for life and for
By christopher2 on May 6th, 2009 | Category: Faith & Spirituality I heard a radio interview a few weeks ago with Mike Kryzewski, the head coach of Duke University basketball. In it, he talked about the great athletes of our times and how they got that way. Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, Muhammad Ali (although he of course also became famous for other things), these were men who were specialized in doing one thing – playing a game. They became great at what they did and reached the pinnacle of success. But these men transcended the niche market to which they were initially confined. From New York to Beijing to the tiniest atoll in the South Pacific, it’s a task to find someone who hasn’t at least heard their names.
But how did they get to this pinnacle?
The natural inclination is to assume that they were given gifts that others just don’t possess. Maybe in a sense, but not necessarily, because there have been many, many others whose physical skills and abilities were far superior and yet they didn’t meet the full potential of their gifts. The great ones don’t take their gifts for granted.
The great ones rise to the top, as Coach Kryzewski pointed out, by embracing the “process” of greatness.
This isn’t a significantly original thought but it is one that is often and easily neglected. The reminder of it is important.
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