Tag: featured

Blessed are the Gifts

One comment

A couple of days ago on Facebook, my friend Rachel referred to the “seven gifts of the Spirit”. These are the gifts mentioned in the Prophet Isaiah:

And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him,
    the spirit of wisdom and understanding,
    the spirit of counsel [right judgement] and might [fortitude],
    the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.
And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord [piety]…

– Isaiah 11:2-3

I commented briefly on Rachel’s Facebook posting, saying that St. Augustine associated these seven gifts with Christ’s beatitudes in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:3-10). In today’s post I wanted to explain in a little more detail what St. Augustine taught about the relationship between these gifts and the beatitudes…

Sermon on the Mount Copenhagen Church Alter Painting
Read more

The Torah and Injil are for mankind!

Leave a comment

I’ve often been told that the Torah and the Injil were only for the Jews. However, two problems:

  1. The Qur’an never explicitly tells the Jews to follow the Injil, only the Christians
  2. The Qur’an actually describes both as “guidance for mankind”, even if the translations often try to obscure this:

The Pickthall translation doesn’t hide it:

He hath revealed unto thee (Muhammad) the Scripture with truth, confirming that which was (revealed) before it, even as He revealed the Torah and the Gospel. Aforetime, for a guidance to mankind; and hath revealed the Criterion (of right and wrong). Lo! those who disbelieve the revelations of Allah, theirs will be a heavy doom. Allah is Mighty, Able to Requite (the wrong). – Qur’an 3:3

The Sabbatical Plan

Leave a comment

SabbaticalA week ago I began my sabbatical. Following my spiritual director’s suggestion, I spent that first week away on retreat. I spent my time at a monastery, dedicating the next two months of discernment to the Lord.

The monastery I visited was a Benedictine monastery in Oregon. Having grown up around Benedictine monks, I felt very much at home. It was wonderful having the rhythm of my day guided by the monastic office, even if the (very loud) bell rang for Vigils at 5:30am each day!

It was really nice to have some time away and get a complete change of scenery. I got plenty of rest and spent most of my time reading and writing. It was so good to quiet the noise inside and to have an opportunity collect my thoughts.

I got back Sunday evening and yesterday I spent planning, working out the day-to-day routine of the months ahead…

The Plan

In the mornings I’ll be going to Matins and Divine Liturgy and then I’ll repair to a coffee shop to work on the book for a couple of hours. I’ll try and go to a different coffee shop each day and I’m planning on keeping track of them on this map:

I’ll then come home and cook lunch. I do love cooking but normally I’m too rushed/lazy/impatient to do it. Therefore, during this sabbatical, I’m going to endeavor to expand my usual repertoire of dishes by following a recipe each day.

The afternoons will begin with an hour of exploring new technologies which will then be followed by a long walk through one of Seattle’s many beautiful parks. I’ll listen to a lecture on my iPod, but I’ll always spend the last half an hour in peaceful silence. When I get back I’ll spend some time reading the mountain of books I’ve assembled.

The evenings will be spent relaxing, working out and the odd Holy Hour.

This Week…

This week, during my walks I will be listening to John – The Sacramental Gospel from St. Paul’s Center for Biblical Theology. The meals I will cook will include Spicy Salmon with Bok Choy, Chicken Curry, Salmon With Creamy Cucumber-Fennel Salad, Pasta With Turkey and Broccoli and Southwestern Beef Chili With Corn.

If you’re happy and you know it…

19 comments

Something has been bugging me for some time now. The vast majority of Masses I’ve attended in the States have ended with applause. Back in England I encountered this fairly often among non-Catholic congregations, but quite rarely in Catholic parishes.

guitar

Here in San Diego I play the guitar in at a LifeTeen Mass and there is applause every week as we finish the final song. Now, there was a time when I wasn’t fussed about the clapping, but now it really rather bothers me… 

Read more

One Minute Book Review: Crazy Love

Leave a comment

This weekend I finished Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God by Francis Chan.  It has been quite some time since I’ve read a book by a contemporary Protestant author which blew me away, but this is definitely one of those books.  Over the course of this short volume, Chan re-sensitizes us to the holiness of God, to demands of obedience and to the call of Jesus to give him EVERYTHING.

If you want your life to continue uninterrupted, don’t read this book. If you are satisfied with a happy, comfortable Christianity, don’t even think about cracking the cover… However, if you have a sneaking suspicion that you’ve grown lukewarm in your faith, order this book right away. Don’t be surprised if you are made to feel more than a little uncomfortable.

Sunday Lectionary: Going up?

Leave a comment

In addition to being the Seventh Sunday in Easter, this Sunday is also Ascension Sunday. This has been an insanely busy week – sorry I didn’t get this posted earlier.

Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord: 20th May, 2012

This Sunday we hear a glorious mystery! The Second Glorious Mystery to be precise! Yes, this Sunday we celebrate Jesus’ Ascension into Heaven.

In recent weeks, life among the Apostles had been, to put it mildly, a bit rocky (and not “rocky” in the good, “Peter” kind of way). In fact, things had been pretty awful. The Master had been betrayed, beaten and then killed on a cross. Dark times.

But then, something happened… He rose from the dead! For several weeks He had been appearing to His disciples! Life was good again! But then…what?…He left?

Huh? Things were finally starting to look up! Why did He leave? Did the Lord abandon His Church?

Read more

1 … 126 127 128 129 130 … 172