Summer Reading

Back when I was a student -- and that's way back -- each spring I would prepare a list of books I intended to read during the summer months. Naturally, in those youthful days the summer held other attractions besides reading, so I usually considered it a success when I completed maybe half the books on my list. Oddly enough, once my schooling was behind me I continued to make my summer reading list, even though free time was just as scarce in the summer as it was in any other season. That's one thing about work: it has a way of homogenizing the seasons so that summer can sometimes come and go almost unnoticed. Maybe that was why I continued to make my list, as a way of acknowledging that summer had arrived and forcing myself to make good use of what leisure time I managed to squeeze out of the warm months. Of course, now that I'm retired and living in Florida, the seasons are even less distinct...but I still make my list.

Usually, and this year is no exception, I begin my list-making in the fall and continue adding books to it throughout the year. Once I pick up a copy of a reading-list book I set it aside, placing it on a separate bookshelf. Sometimes I cheat and read a book ahead of time, and so must remove it from the list. I suppose I kept my cheating to a minimum this year, because my summer reading list seems much more ambitious than those of recent years, almost half-again as long. Perhaps it's because I've included more fiction than usual. Something I noticed on previous lists is that I've usually read most of the included authors before, with only a few being new to me. I do tend to feed my prejudices when it comes to reading. I find an author I enjoy, and then want to read everything he's written. This year is really no different, although the list contains a few new authors and Ive tried to ensure no author has more than two books on the list. Perhaps this will force me to broaden my reading a bit. Finally, I've included several books I've read before, but with one exception I read them years ago and decided it was time to reread them. Maybe my older and, I hope, wiser self will develop a new and different appreciation of these works.

And so, here is this year's list:

V. S. Naipaul, Among the Believers: An Islamic Journey (1981 -- out of print). Naipaul, an ethnic Indian originally from Trinidad, is a Nobel Prize-winning author who has written extensively on the aftermath of the colonialism of the British Empire. I have read many of his novels and several of his non-fiction works and enjoyed them all, but just never got around to reading this detailed description of his journey through four Islamic nations: Iran, Pakistan, Malaysia and Indonesia. Naipaul is a keen observer of people and culture, and since his journey took place over 30 years ago, I look forward to reading his observations and comparing them to today's reality. (Although out of print, used copies are available online at very reasonable prices. Click on the title link above.)

Sigrid Undset, Kristin Lavransdatter (1920). Sigrid Undset was a remarkable woman, a Norwegian author who won a Nobel Prize for this three-volume novel, Kristin Lavransdatter, a book that chronicled life in medieval Scandinavia.

Brought up in an atheistic household, Undset converted to Catholicism in her early forties and became a lay Dominican. When the Nazis occupied Norway in 1940 she was forced to flee to neutral Sweden and ultimately to the United States. Because her books were banned in Germany and she had openly criticized Hitler, she would no doubt have been imprisoned or executed. While in the US during the war she worked tirelessly on behalf of her native Norway and for Europe's Jews. She returned to Norway after the war and died in 1949. Over the years I've read a number of her other books and enjoyed them all. I first read this particular novel over 40 years ago and believe it's time to read it again.

Anthony Esolen, The Politically Incorrect Guide to Western Civilization (2008). Dr. Esolen, a professor of English at Providence College, is a true man of letters and one of those remarkable people whose works have a civilizing effect on those who read them. He is also a translator of Dante's Divine Comedy which in itself is a remarkable accomplishment, especially since his translation is so wonderfully readable. I got to know Dr. Esolen slightly during the few years I was employed at Providence College, and thoroughly enjoyed our occasional conversations. I expect this book to be equally rewarding.

Although it's not on my list, because I read it just last year, I highly recommend another of Dr. Esolen's books, Ironies of Faith: The Laughter at the Heart of Christian Literature, published by the Intercollegiate Studies Institute (ISI). Read it and you will come to a whole new appreciation of Christian literature.

E. C. Bentley, Trent's Last Case (1913). Edmund Clerihew Bentley was an English novelist, journalist, and humorist, as well as the inventor of the Clerihew, the light, humorous verse-form named after him. Two volumes, filled with Bentley's Clerihews, sit on my bookshelves and never fail to bring me a little joy when I open them. They are strange little verses, for example;

St. Francis of Assisi
Was all nasty and greasy;
But in spite of that
He wore a halo round his hat.

Bentley was also a schoolmate (St. Paul's School, London) and lifelong friend of my favorite Englishman, G. K. Chesterton. Indeed, Chesterton, who was also a clever artist, illustrated Bentley's volumes of Clerihews.

This novel, Bentley's detective story written before the First World War, is often praised as the first modern detective mystery. Two of Bentley's more well-known contemporaries, Dorothy Sayers, who penned the Lord Peter Wimsey mysteries, and Chesterton, who wrote the Father Brown mysteries, both thought very highly of the book Some years ago a friend, knowing I enjoy a good mystery, gave me a copy, along with a copy of its sequel, Trent's Own Case, but I never got around to reading either. I think it's time I do so.

Charles Williams, Many Dimensions (1931). Charles Williams, novelist, poet and literary critic, was also a close friend of C. S. Lewis and a member of the famous Oxford literary group, the Inklings. Between 1930 and his untimely death in 1945, Williams wrote a series of seven novels that can best be described as -- in the words of T. S. Eliot -- "supernatural thrillers".Over the years I have purchased and read six of the seven Williams novels and while I certainly have my favorites -- All Hallows Eve, for example -- I enjoyed every last one of them. But for some reason I never got around to buying a copy of Many Dimensions, the second of Williams' novels. And then last month, when we were visiting family on Cape Cod, I found a hardcover copy in one of my favorite bookstores, Parnassus Books in Yarmouthport, MA. I can hardly wait to begin reading it.


Pope Benedict XVI, Jesus of Nazareth, Volume 2 (2011). I purchased this second volume of Pope Benedict's major work on Jesus Christ several months ago and began reading it immediately. I read it much too quickly, however, and have placed it on my summer reading list in the hope of reading it again, more slowly this time, with my Bible at my side as I do so. The first volume covers virtually all of Jesus' public ministry, from His Baptism by John in the Jordan to His Transfiguration on Mount Tabor. I had previously read many books by Pope Benedict, but this book made me realize how blessed we are to have a pope who is such a learned and deeply spiritual scriptural scholar. If you have not yet read the first volume, by all means do so. This second volume focuses on Holy Week, from Jesus' entrance into Jerusalem to His Resurrection. I enjoyed it the first time, and look forward to learning even more the second time around.

James Boswell. The Life of Samuel Johnson (First published, 1791). Like the plays of Shakespeare, or the novels of Jane Austen, Boswell's Johnson is one of those books that every English-speaking human being should read at least once in his life. As for myself, I did so back in 1962 when I was a freshman at Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service. It wasn't assigned reading for any course; I had simply read some excerpts during my senior year in high school and became fascinated by this man, Samuel Johnson. And when I came across a used copy of the unabridged edition, I parted with a few of my scarce dollars and bought it. I probably spent far too much study time reading Boswell when I should have been pouring over the uninspired readings assigned by my professors. But in hindsight I think I can honestly say that perhaps 80% of the courses I took during my seven years of college and graduate school have been absolutely useless to me. Certainly, they were nowhere near as useful as this one book. If you haven't read it, you should. Pick up a copy and read a bit every day. As you know if you've read it, it is a substantial book, and my current edition runs well over 1,200 pages.


Joseph M. Callewaert, The World of St. Paul (2011). This book was given to me recently by a friend and, after glancing through it and reading a few pages here and there, I decided to add it to my list.

I was completely unfamiliar with the author, but it seems he is quite the authority on St. Paul's life. Callewaert has based his interpretation of Paul's life on both Scripture and the apostolic tradition held by the Church over the ages.

A book like this might well perform a needed service by placing St. Paul in a real historical, cultural and religious context, helping us better understand both his writings and his missionary work. It should be a nice introduction to the Apostle to the Gentiles. I will see if it is.

Patrick O'Brien, The Far Side of the World (1984). This was, I believe, the 10th of Patrick O'Brien's swashbuckling novels of the Royal Navy during the time of Nelson and Napoleon. After one has read a few of these wonderfully written stories, O'Brien's main characters, Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin, become close friends of the reader. O'Brien died in 2000 at the age of 85.

The series consists of some 20 novels, but I have never actually read even one of them; and yet I know most of the stories and their characters well. You see, years ago, as I commuted 90 miles (one way) between my home on Cape Cod and Providence, RI, I would listen to O'Brien's books on tape. (Dear Diane worked in a public library and would regularly provide me with audio books.) I believe I listened to probably 15 of the novels in this series, and The Far Side of the World is one of the few I missed. When I spotted a copy on the "bargain table" in a bookstore not long ago, I grabbed it for all of $2.

Alice Thomas Ellis, Fairy Tale (1996) and Pillars of Gold (2000). Ellis (real name, Anna Haycraft) was an English novelist who died in 2005. Of Welsh and Finnish stock, she was raised in an actively atheistic home but converted to Catholicism when she was 19. She even spent some time in a convent, but had to leave due to health problems. She later married and she and her publisher husband had seven children. Despite her large family, she apparently found time to write, publishing her first novel in 1977. In addition to her novels, she also wrote several best-selling cookbooks and for years wrote a column in a Catholic newspaper.

I have already read a few of her novels, wonderful stories which are always touched slightly by the supernatural. I particularly enjoyed Unexplained Laughter and The 27th Kingdom. And then, late last year, while browsing in a used book store in St. Augustine, Florida, I found these two and bought them. I look forward to reading them.


Edward Crankshaw, The Fall of the House of Habsburg (1963 -- out of print). This is another book that caught my eye in a used book store some months ago. When I was a Midshipman at the Naval Academy back in the early sixties, I didn't get home too often. But during one of those brief visits with my parents, I remember sitting in their family room and asking my mother what she was reading with such obvious interest. She held up the book and said, "It's a marvelous book. You should read it. It's all about the last years of the Habsburgs", and then returned to her reading. Isn't memory a very strange thing? I can remember and picture this brief, seemingly inconsequential incident as if it happened only moments ago, and yet I can recall for certain nothing else that occurred during that long weekend visit. It would seem there's a reason I can remember this incident so clearly after 45 years; and so, when I spotted this book in that bookstore, I simply had to buy it...for all of $8.00. Although out of print you can find inexpensive copies of this book online -- click on the title link above. I hope to discover what my dear mother found so fascinating.

Milton Walsh, Second Friends: C. S. Lewis and Ronald Knox in Conversation (2008). As a fan of both C. S. Lewis and Ronald Knox, I couldn't resist buying this book. These two Christian apologists, one Protestant and the other Catholic, were neighbors in Oxford and yet knew each other only slightly. The author, however, looks deeply into their writings and beliefs shows how each man's work supports that of the other. It promises to be a good read.

Well...that's it! That's my complete summer reading list, unless another book or two or three come along and catch my fancy.
God's peace...

America Still Believes in God

If you listened to much of the mainstream media, you'd think the new atheists had taken hold of the minds and hearts of most Americans and led them into the paradise of a godless humanism. But apparently, most Americans, even though they spend more time watching reality shows than praying and worshiping, have managed to hold onto their belief in God. Check out the below table prepared by the pollsters at Gallup:

And here's Gallup's explanation of the poll's history:

"Despite the many changes that have rippled through American society over the last 6 ½ decades, belief in God as measured in this direct way has remained high and relatively stable. Gallup initially used this question wording in November 1944, when 96% said "yes." That percentage dropped to 94% in 1947, but increased to 98% in several Gallup surveys conducted in the 1950s and 1960s. Gallup stopped using this question format in the 1960s, before including it again in Gallup's May 5-8 survey this year."

It would be interesting to compare these poll results with similar data from Western Europe. Based on my personal experience, I suspect the numbers would be quite different.

For additional details, go directly to the Gallup site here.

Homily: Wednesday, 7th Week in Ordinary Time

Readings: Acts 20:28-38; Ps 68; Jn 17:11b-19

Let me tell you a few poorly kept secrets: First, it’s hard not being of the world while living in the world; it’s hard to be like Jesus Christ. Second, unity among Christians is no easier, because unity implies acceptance and obedience, two things we human beings really dislike. And third, few people, Christians included, want to hear the Truth, especially when it conflicts with what they want to do.

Indeed, all of these things -- being Christ-like, maintaining unity, and being consecrated in the truth – are not only hard, they’re flat-out impossible. Well, they’re humanly impossible. And yet, in today’s Gospel reading, Jesus prays for all three, because He knows it’s only through the active help of the Holy Spirit that we can turn these hopes of His into reality.

Let’s just look at one of these hopes: Jesus’ prayer for unity. He’s actually praying for a unity that transcends normal human relationships. Unity’s the main theme of His high priestly prayer at the Last Supper, a prayer that concludes with a petition for Christian unity among all who profess Jesus Christ as Lord. Jesus prays for all men and women who will follow Him as His disciples. And He prays, not just for the Apostles, but for all members of His Body the Church, that we’ll be one as He and the Father are one – in a unity of total love and obedience, a unity based on the strongest of personal relationships, the relationship that exists within the Trinity itself. And, of course, the prayer of Jesus bears fruit, for His prayer is always efficacious.

We see this throughout the Acts of the Apostles, how the disciples, despite divergent opinions, ultimately come together as one, united in their faith and their teaching. The Holy Spirit is the great consensus-maker. Indeed, the distinctive mark of Jesus’ disciples is their love and unity – a unity foretold in Psalm 133: “How good and pleasant it is when the brothers dwell in unity.”

Jesus’ prayer on the eve of His sacrifice shows the love and trust He extends to His friends. Although He knows they will abandon Him in His hour of greatest need, He still entrusts them with the seemingly impossible task of spreading his name throughout the world and to the end of time.  But He leaves His love to support them, and the Spirit to guide them.

Jesus loved us first. In Baptism we are united to Him and to each other; and so we are called to live in a unity of love. He wants no one to be lost. And so He entrust us with the same mission, to make Him known and loved by all. For it is only through unity in Him that the world knows Jesus was sent to redeem us all. This is why Christian disunity is such a scandal.

But Jesus' prayer is also a promise, a promise to be with us as we struggle to follow Him. He will not leave us alone. His gift of the Spirit is our constant help in times of sadness and suffering, of joy and triumph, and a reminder of the great love of Our Savior. Jesus’ prayer reminds us that we, too, must pray for unity, that we can love one another – a prayer as necessary today as it was then. Jesus knows unity is hard for us; it’s not easy to love each other as Christ loves us.

In His Sermon on the Mount He even tells us to love and pray for our enemies, something the world considers the height of folly. Can you imagine praying for the soul of Osama bin Laden? Well, yes, I can, because we’re asked to be different from the world. We’re asked to be like Jesus Himself. You see, the unity Jesus prays for is manifested by how we love and serve all of God's people, not just those who share our Catholic faith. When we exclude others from our lives and concerns, we work against Christian unity.

This doesn’t mean we must water down our Faith so that others, in their disbelief, might accept it. Not at all! Remember what I said earlier: achieving true unity is not humanly, but only divinely possible. And so we must pray and teach and preach God’s complete Word, and let the Holy Spirit bring others to Him and His one, holy, Catholic and apostolic Church. And we must do so in love.

Do we really love and accept all God’s people as our brothers and sisters in Christ? Do we treat everyone we encounter with the love that Christ extends to us? Or do we pick and choose? Today let’s pray that, like St Paul, God will give us the courage to speak the truth and to work for unity among all those whom the Father has given to his Son.

For it’s through us that His work will be done.

In Case You Havne't Seen It: Medieval Help Desk

In the event you're not one of the couple of million people who have checked out this video, you might as well join the crowd and enjoy a few laughs.

Be sure to put on your reading glasses because you have to read subtitles.

Maryland Episcopal Parish Joins Catholic Church

St. Luke's Church in Bladensburg, Maryland will become the first Episcopal parish to make the change to the Catholic Church since the Vatican promulgated the new guidelines for such transitions in October 2009. Although other parishes are involved in the same process, St. Luke's is the first to obtain approval. They will complete the process in a few months. The parish was able to negotiate a lease to buy agreement with Episcopal Bishop John Bryson Chane, enabling St. Luke's to continue using its current church property. Cardinal Donald Wuerl, the Archbishop of Washington, welcomed "the St. Luke community warmly into our family of faith."

Interior of St. Luke's Church in Bladensburg, MD

The parish voted in January to make the move to the Catholic Church, with only one family voting against it. As Rev. Mark Lewis, the rector of St. Luke's, stated "I am deeply grateful to Cardinal Wuerl and to Bishop Chane for their support throughout this discernment...We look forward to continuing to worship in the Anglican tradition, while at the same time being in full communion with the Holy See of Peter."


You can read more here, and view the parish's website here.

Ancient Codices, Real or Fake?

You might recall a post back in late March in which I mentioned an archaeological find that purported to be of early, perhaps first-century, Jewish and Christian origin. (See: Major Archaeological Find.) The find consists of 70 small books, each with five to fifteen leaves made of lead and copper, containing what appears to be ancient Hebrew writing, possibly some coded text, as well as Jewish and Christian images.

One of the lead codices

If the codices are authentic, they represent a significant find. Their provenance, however, seems a bit shaky. I don't think most archaeologists like "accidental" finds, and would prefer such artifacts to be uncovered during well-planned, scientifically conducted digs. And there was nothing scientific about this find. One version claims the codices were discovered in a cave by a Jordanian Bedouin, finally ending up in the possession of his great-grandson, an Israeli Bedouin, who says they have been in his family for a century or more. Another story suggests the codices were found in Jordan only five years ago when they surfaced after a flash flood. They then made their way to the antiquities black market and were sold to an Israeli dealer. Like most things in the Middle East, it's all very strange. Whatever the truth, these revelations have led the Jordanian government to claim ownership since the codices were supposedly found originally in Jordanian territory.

The more important issue, however, is the authenticity of the codices. If they turn out to be fakes, ownership becomes unimportant; but it they are authentic, resolving the ownership issue could take quite a while. I suppose if these items had been discovered 200 years ago there would have been little doubt as to their authenticity. But in recent years things have changed drastically in the archaeology "business". As both the legitimate and the underground markets for ancient artifacts has expanded, the value of such items has skyrocketed, leading to the development of a whole new industry: the manufacture of fake antiquities. Some of these fakes are apparently quite good and have regularly fooled the experts and even ended up in museums. In this particular case, the Israeli Antiquities Authority doubts the authenticity of the codices, claiming that they display a "mixture of incompatible periods and styles without any connection or logic. Such forged motifs can be found in their thousands in the antiquities markets of Jordan and elsewhere in the Middle East." The IAA is not alone in believing the codices are fake.

Others, however, disagree and a number of archaeologists, researchers and academics believe the items are authentic. Ziad Saad. head of the Jordanian Department of Antiquities appears to be waiting before passing judgment. He recently told The Jordan Times, “There has been a debate all over the net - some think they are fakes, some think they are very genuine - but we have yet to have a definitive conclusion based on a scientific approach.” In the meantime, the "debate" as he calls it can get pretty nasty, as archaeologists, metallurgists, historians, biblical scholars and other academics all make their claims, in most instances, without having examined the items. I suppose, given time, the experts will eventually arrive at a consensus. Until then, I must confess, I enjoy watching the archaeological soap opera as it plays out.

Of course, some elements of the soap opera are a bit odd. One YouTube video claims -- without any discussion or supporting evidence whatsoever -- that the find verifies the prophesies of Joseph Smith found in the Book of Mormon. And then, of course, Art Bell on his weird, conspiracy-theory radio show, Coast to Coast AM, has predictably given the find some airtime. Yes, it's all very strange.

If you are truly interested in this story and would enjoy reading a lively overview of how it has been distorted by a mainstream media that loves to sensationalize (and also by bloggers...oops!), then check out Thomas Verenna's review of the entire story: Artifacts and the Media.

I find archaeology interesting simply because it opens a different sort of window to the past. It is also remarkable that so many recent finds strongly support the historical accuracy of Sacred Scripture. But my faith is a wonderful gift from God and certainly doesn't need archaeological support.

...to know the mind of God?

Over the past few months I've been studying and reading and rereading the Book of Genesis, along with a number of excellent commentaries addressing the book's remarkable first three chapters. Genesis has always intrigued me, ever since I opened our family Bible for the first time as a child and encountered the dramatic illustrations by Gustave Doré, illustrations that brought the creation story to life. I no longer have that particular Bible, but I can still remember several of the illustrations: God creating light; the creation of Eve; and the eviction from the Garden of Eden. Such images are extremely powerful, for even today, almost 60 years later, when I read those passages from Genesis, these images instantly appear in my mind's eye. 

Gustave Doré: Adam and Eve driven out of Eden

This recent study of Genesis has on occasion generated peripheral thoughts that lead me away, sometimes far away, from the book itself. For example, in Genesis we find Adam and Eve enjoying a preternatural existence that apparently included a close personal relationship with God Himself, who from the first couple's perspective must have been the true and perfect Father. While their relationship with God could not even begin to approach the level of intimacy that exists within the Trinity, it was certainly far closer than that which exists between God and man after the fall.

Now this has led me to think about the different ways we humans have tried to reclaim this close relationship with God. For me prayer, Scripture, meditation, and the sacraments -- especially the Eucharist -- have been the most rewarding means. But for some people it seems these disciplines are too demanding. Instead of coming to God in prayer, humbly opening themselves to Him, they come to God demanding that He open Himself to them. They want an Eden kind of relationship with God. No, that's not correct. They want a relationship with a god who will do their bidding.They are searching for a god who isn't there. They want a god created in their image, or in an image they have imagined. They really want themselves wrapped in a false cloak of divinity, a god they can fully comprehend, a god who is like them, one they can grasp and understand. 

The theoretical physicist, Stephen Hawking, in his best-selling book, A Brief History of Time, typified this attitude when he concluded the book with these words (p. 193):

"However, if we discover a complete theory, it should in time be understandable by everyone, not just by a few scientists. Then we shall all, philosophers, scientists and just ordinary people, be able to take part in the discussion of the question of why it is that we and the universe exist. If we find the answer to that, it would be the ultimate triumph of human reason -- for then we should know the mind of God."

"...we should know the mind of God." This is the great temptation to which so many succumb. To know the mind of God is to be like Him, to be a god. Do you hear the echo of the serpent's words in Eden? "...your eyes will be opened and you will be like gods" [Gen 3:5].

This is a temptation that follows God's people throughout salvation history. It appears again at the foot of Mount Sinai when the Chosen People decided the God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Moses was too unapproachable, to "other", and had Aaron construct the golden calf, a god they could see, and touch, and understand because they had created it themselves. And as we can see by Dr. Hawking's comment above, it's a temptation that remains with us today.

But the Father, who knows the human heart so well, disrupts Satan's plans through the remarkable gift of the Incarnation. He sends His Son, God Himself, to take on our nature, to become one of us, to save us from our sinfulness and folly. And so for the first time God becomes truly approachable. Jesus Christ in His humanity is one with us and in His divinity one with the Father. Our Redeemer, our Intercessor pleads for us at the right hand of the Father, for He is like us in all things except sin.

This isn't all though. For Christ doesn't leave us orphans, but promises to be with us always until the end of time. To fulfill this promise He gives us His Word, especially the Gospel. But He also offers us the gift of Himself in the Eucharist; and through this gift we are united with Him, Body, Blood Soul and Divinity. 

You and I don't need to search for a comprehensible God, one we can fully grasp within our finite minds, or try to mold God by transforming Him into something He isn't. All we have to do is accept God just as He is, turn to Him who became one like us, and let the love and mercy and forgiveness of Jesus transform us.

Blessings...

Life and Death, Good and Evil

Gustave Dore: Paradise Lost - Satan

A few days ago, while driving to the dealership to get some service done on my car, I hit the wrong button on the steering wheel and found myself listening to what I guess was a local preacher here in central Florida. I had hoped to select one of the satellite radio stations but obviously didn't. (This happens a lot. The radio in this new car is more complicated than all the combined systems of the first car I owned back in the 1960s.) But instead of trying again, I found myself captivated by this preacher's voice, until he said something that took me by surprise. This is what I heard, at least as near as I can recall:

The world is evil, brothers and sisters, every bit of it. Satan rules the world and God made the devil to tempt us, and He made the evil world to challenge us. But most people have failed the challenge. They have succumbed. Because just like the world, people are evil, through and through. Evil is a part of our very human nature. And we can't overcome it, not without God's help. The only way to salvation is to accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. Once you do that, Jesus becomes your shield and protects you from all the evil of the world. And those who don't accept Jesus will spend eternity in the fires of hell.  Salvation is as simple as that.

Wow! Now this was certainly a simple although rather grim solution to the issues of life and death and salvation. I didn't listen to any more but simply changed the station. I know neither the preacher's name nor his denomination, and the above isn't a word-for-word transcript -- my aging memory isn't that good -- but I believe it's pretty accurate and certainly captures the intent and meaning of what he had to say. I also know that his beliefs are certainly not held by the vast majority of Christian denominations with which I am familiar. And yet I couldn't help but wonder how many people believe what this preacher apparently believes.

Afterwards, as I made my way through traffic listening to some Vivaldi, I thought about what I had heard and considered how most errant thought usually contains some snippets of truth, but buried in a mound of false teachings. My next thought was how joyless such a distorted version of Christianity must be. How could someone who holds such beliefs ever be moved by a Beethoven symphony, or a Bach fugue or prelude, or a good, down-home country-western song? How could one appreciate the artistry of Michelangelo, or Monet, or even Picasso or Dali? How could he take in and appreciate the beauty of a tropical sunset, or the grandeur of the Grand Canyon, or the incredible vastness of the universe? How could such a person enjoy even life's simple things, like a good  home-cooked meal? What kind of life must it be for someone who sees the world and everything in it as evil?

Of course, such false teachings have been around a long time. They appeared as a form of gnosticism early in the Church's history and actually made serious inroads among Christians. Because of that problem with Jesus taking on our human nature, gnostics followed their logic and ended up rejecting His divinity, or the Incarnation, or His humanity, or all three. Some gnostics believed that the God of the Old Testament, the God of the Jews, was not the same as the God of Jesus Christ. This Old Testament God, they believed, was an evil God, the creator of matter. As you can see, such beliefs are in sharp contrast with those taught by the Church. In fact, John the Apostle quite likely wrote his first letter to counter these beliefs in the early Church. And as our preacher proved, gnosticism in some form is still around today.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church: A Guide to Truth

This is why I find it so comforting to be a believing and practicing Catholic. Jesus promised He would be with His Church until the "end of the age" [Mt 28:20] just as He promised the Holy Spirit would guide the Church "to all truth" [Jn 16:12]. And guided by that Spirit, the Church, for 2,000 years, has been constant and consistent in its teachings on faith and morals. And so through its teaching authority it provides the faithful with the truth as revealed by the Holy Spirit. This doesn't mean that all of us in the Church aren't sinners, for indeed we are. We can and do commit sin. Like St. Peter, we can even deny the Lord, and like St. Peter we, too, can repent and go on to live a life of courage and humility in complete obedience to the will of the Father. But despite the sinfulness of its members, the Church itself, the Bride of Christ, remains as the bulwark of truth, or as St. Paul described it, "the Church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of truth" [1 Tim 3:15].

For example, the Church has always taught that God does not create evil. Indeed, this is the one thing that God cannot do, because God is goodness itself and evil cannot come from good. Doing so would be contrary to God's nature. Remember, even Satan and his fellow demons were once angels, spiritual creatures created for good. Created with an intellect and a will, they could know and they could choose. God didn't make them turn to evil; this was a decision made by each of them.

The Church has also always taught that material creation itself is certainly not evil. Indeed, in Genesis we are constantly reminded how God looked upon His creation "and saw how good is was" [Gn 1]. We are called to use the things of this world in good ways, in ways that do not promote evil, in ways that do not create obstacles to our salvation or the salvation of others. And just like the fallen angels, men and women can choose evil. Evil isn't some "thing" in the world that attacks us and turns us from God. No evil is something you and I can choose instead of the good. How did Jesus put it?

"But what comes out of a person, that is what defiles. From within people, from their hearts, come evil thoughts, unchastity, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, licentiousness, envy, blasphemy, arrogance, folly. All these evils come from within and they defile" [Mk 7:20-23].

This doesn't mean that our nature is inherently evil; it simply means that our intellect and will enable us to know and to choose, and that the choices we make are ours. And so the Church has always defended the goodness of our human nature. For how could it be inherently evil if God Himself -- He who is all goodness -- created us in His image: "God created man in his image; in the divine image he created him; male and female he created them" [Gn 1:27]? And would the Son, the eternal and creative Word of God, become like one of us and take on our human nature if our nature was evil?

Michelangelo's Creation of Adam - Sistine Chapel ceiling - Rome

Yes, God's creation  is good. Although every day we spend in it presents us with risks, God also promises that the end will be greater than anything we can imagine: "What eye has not seen, and ear has not heard, and what has not entered the human heart, what God has prepared for those who love him" [1 Cor 2:9]. 

We should rejoice in it and be glad.

Pax et bonum...

Fulton Sheen's Cause for Sainthood & Louis Budenz

A few days ago I read an article by CNA (Catholic News Agency) on the prospects of the canonization of Archbishop Fulton Sheen (1895-1979). If you're over 60 you probably remember the archbishop's TV show, Life is Worth Living, which was quit the hit -- it actually won an Emmy -- during the 1950s, first on the old DuMont Network and later on ABC. A lot of folks, not just Catholics, watched his show. I certainly remember watching it every week with my family and being almost mesmerized by the Archbishop's words which were delivered in a powerful voice and in dramatic style. As I recall, a later syndicated version of the show aired during the 1960s in color. And for those of you who long ago passed your sixtieth birthday, you might remember listening to the archbishop's radio show, The Catholic Hour, from 1928 to 1952. (DVDs of many of his shows and talks are available online; for example, on Amazon.)

Anyway, according to the CNA article, Pope Benedict was presented with a Positio on the archbishop's cause. The Positio, which can be quite extensive, is an outline of the cause of canonization and includes a summary of the life and holiness of the person being proposed for sainthood. Along with the Positio the pope was given many letters from bishops across the globe who support the cause. And Pope Benedict himself stated that he had fond memories of Archbishop Sheen since they had worked together on various commissions and in support of missionary work. The Positio is an initial but major step in Archbishop Sheen's cause which now moves to a group of theologians and cardinals who will further examine his life for "heroic virtue" and this is just the beginning. The Church's approach to canonization is no simple process, but is carried out with great deliberation and care.

Here's a short (2-minute) video addressing Archbishop Sheen and the cause for canonization.

On the website devoted to Archbishop Sheen's cause, Father Andrew Apostoli, a Franciscan and the vice postulator for the cause, stated that “America is in need of a Saint like Archbishop Sheen. He brought so many people closer to Christ during his life here on earth and continues to do so even today through his many writings, television and radio shows.” I know this certainly applies to me. I have hours and hours of tapes and videos of the archbishop's shows and other talks and still enjoy listening to and watching them. And I must have a half-dozen of his books, all filled with good, common-sense Christian teaching. If you never watched his show, here's a brief (about 8 minutes long) video excerpt from one of his shows from the 1950s. The subject was "The Three Greatest Confessions of History":

If you would like to view parts two and three of the show, go to these links:


Confessions Part 2

Confessions Part 3

 

I actually met Archbishop Sheen back in the mid-1970s, just a few years before he died. At the time I was teaching at the U. S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD. Diane and I read in our church bulletin that the archbishop was coming to preach at the Naval Academy Chapel. He would preach first at the Sunday Catholic Mass and then at the later non-denominational Protestant service. He was absolutely wonderful. A friend who attended the Protestant service told me that an elderly woman, a retired admiral's wife seated neat to him, remarked, "My! One certainly doesn't hear preaching like that anymore!"

After the two services we had the chance to meet the archbishop at a reception hosted by the Naval Academy's Catholic Chaplain, a Navy Captain named Father John O'Connor, who later became Cardinal John O'Connor, Archbishop of New York. (That's a whole other story.) Upon meeting Archbishop Sheen I must admit I was surprised that he was so short. I suppose TV distorts and I had just assumed he was taller. Meeting him, one could not help but be drawn to his eyes, probably the most intense I had ever encountered. We shook hands, he asked about my Navy career and where I was from, we chatted about New York for a minute or two and shared thoughts about a couple of mutual acquaintances. He then gave me his blessing. It was a brief meeting, maybe five or six minutes.

Louis Budenz testifying before a Senate Sub-committee

One of those mutual acquaintances, someone I met many years earlier, was a gentleman named Louis Budenz (1891-1972). I actually met him in our living room in Larchmont, NY in the late 1950s when I was still in my early teens. Budenz was an acquaintance of my father who had invited him to dine with our family. He was a rather remarkable man. Born in Indiana and radicalized early in life, he became a communist, and eventually rose to membership on the National Committee of the Communist Party USA and editorship of the party's newspaper, The Daily Worker. But that wasn't all. Budenz also became a spy, an agent of the Soviet Union. Indeed, he was the head of the notorious Buben group of spies.

But in 1945 Budenz came to reject communism, had a conversion experience, and returned to his Catholic roots, re-entering the Church under the tutelage of, you guessed it, Bishop Fulton Sheen. Louis Budenz then became a strong anti-communist and prolific author, eventually taking a position as a professor at the Jesuit's Fordham University.

I still remember his visit to our home, largely because my father allowed me to stay up late and listen in and even take part in the conversation. I was captivated by Budenz' life story and how he came to reject communism and accept Jesus Christ and His Church. His autobiography, This Is My Story, is out of print now but well worth reading, if you can find a copy. (The link I've included is to a rather expensive used copy.) My evening with Louis Budenz was another of those memorable experiences that influenced my own thinking and continues to do so.

Blessings...