Gotta get to church on Sunday…
I guess it was pretty inevitable that this was going to happen…
( Make sure you watch the rap bit 😉 )
Month: April 2011
"Who shall ascend the mountain of the Lord?"
I now have several posts in draft which I will be posting next week once I have had a chance to proof-read them.
However, today I wanted to draw your attention to a really interesting documentary which was recently aired on television and which is now available online.
CBS was granted the extremely rare privilege of being allowed onto Mt. Athos and interview some of the monks there. It is an extremely ancient site of Christian monasticism and has changed little over the course of Christian history and is commonly regarded as the spiritual capital of Orthodoxy.
Friday Frivolity: William & Kate
Apparently some secret footage of the wedding rehearsal has snuck out from Westminster…
Happy 100th post 🙂
Favourite People: Fr. Robert Barron
In a previous post I spoke about one of my favourite people, Archbishop Fulton Sheen. I spoke about how I came to discover him, his sermons and writings, as well as try and describe something of the impact he had upon me.
I think it is appropriate therefore, that in this next entry, I’ve chosen to talk about someone whom I’ve often heard referred to by other people as “The Next Fulton Sheen”.
This person is Fr. Robert Barron.
If Sheen Had YouTube…
Fr. Robert is a priest who lives near Chicago in the United States. I first came across him on YouTube while I was still living in England. He is a published author (I finished his book “The Eucharist” this week), but he has also embraced the new media and is using it to extend the reach of his ministry. It is in this sense that he is like Fulton Sheen – he’s a superb communicator and uses all means available to proclaim the faith, although in terms of style he and Archbishop Sheen are very different.
Byzantine Back and Forth
This week is Holy Week and as the LifeTeen band isn’t playing this weekend, it means I can spend Easter at my favourite church, an Eastern Rite (Byzantine) Catholic parish near to where I live. Alleluia!…well, almost 😉
One of the things I love about the Byzantine Rite is the standard set of greetings and responses which take place during the year. For example, when I first attended the parish I got there very early on in the morning and heard the priest greet a parishioner with the exclamation: “Glory to Jesus Christ!”, to which the parishioner responded “Glory forever!”. This seems to me like a wonderful way to begin any conversation! 🙂
These responses change throughout the liturgical year. At “Nativity” (Christmas) it becomes:
“Christ is born!”
“Glorify Him!”
We will shortly be entering the “Pascha” (Easter) season when it will change to:
“Christ is Risen!”
“Indeed He is Risen!”
And at certain blessings, such as at the end of Great Vespers or at the Kiss of Peace:
“Christ is among us!”
“He is and will be!”
These all seem wonderful ways of proclaiming the faith! Glory to Jesus Christ…
Symbolism: What is the significance of "IHS"?
As I mentioned a while ago, I’ve started teaching myself New Testament Greek. This endeavor has already started bearing some rather fruity tidbits. In the first few lessons I learnt the Greek alphabet and, even with this basic information, certain things which had previously mystified me, started to make sense. Today I would like to share with you one of my first “aaahhhh…” moments 🙂
For those Catholics reading this, it’s time for a pop quiz! Often in churches, you will see the letters “IHS” (it’s even used on the Reformation Wall in Geneva). You see these letters on books, altars, baptismal fonts, communion hosts etc, but what does it mean?
Read more30% Checkup
Are we really already a third of the way through the year? Yikes… Time for a New Year’s Resolution check up!
1. Spend 30 minutes every day in Scripture: Although my prayer life has been nice and regular, I still haven’t found time to sit down regularly and just pray with Scripture.
2. More dancing: Still not good, but my time in England with my former ballroom posse gave my the kick I needed to start fixing this. Also, Swing Diego is next month!
3. No more rushing: Despite a very packed timetable while back in England, I think I still resisted the urge to rush about.
4. No chocolate: Still abstaining…still missing it 🙁
5. Get into the best shape of my life: The diet still remains modest, but the regular exercise has yet to materialize. Having said that, I’m going running with John tomorrow at 5:30am… :-/
6. At least five minutes of guitar practice every day: Still going great. I now regularly play as part of Evening Prayer and Night Prayer.
7. Keep proper track of finances: Still going well. I’m back into the habit of regularly checking my bank accounts and keeping to a budget.
8. Get back to England for a couple of weeks: I did this last month and it was great 🙂