Blog

"...it is also possible to nourish one's spirit through radio, television and Internet."

Pope John Paul II, upon returning from the hospital, had Archbishop Leonardo Sandri read this text on behalf of him in St. Peter's Square, followed by a blessing in the Pope's name (Source):

"Dear Brothers and Sisters!

1. In these days of hospitalization here at the Gemelli, I notice in a particular way the presence and attention of so many agents of the mass media. Today I wish to address a word of gratitude to them, because I know that they carry out -- not without sacrifice -- their appreciated service, thanks to which the faithful, in all parts of the world, can feel me closer and support me with affection and prayer.

I'm back from my Spring Break, and I thought I'd offer a few thoughts.

Tonight I noticed some click-throughs on the PROLIFE Wristband website from 'ThankEvann's Homeschool Goodies.' Not only did I think it appropriate to give a reciprocal link to this wonderful resource for homeschooling families, but I also thought it important to let people know a little about homeschooling.

Many people say that homeschooling is a bad thing for children: they say 'children find it more difficult later in life to become socially accepted with the rest of their peer group' and that 'kids just don't become prepared for the real world'. While there may be a small percentage of cases where a homeschooled child becomes a recluse, this rarely happens, for a variety of reasons.

In this week's copy of Our Sunday Visitor, I noticed a very good article by Msgr. Richard Antall, titled "A Mystery of Heavenly Union." This article speaks about how we can more closely unite ourselves with Christ this Lenten season through greater devotion to the Eucharist. After all, it is the year of the Eucharist, and what better time than Lent to come to a deeper understanding of Jesus' sacrifice on the cross?

"We need to savor the presence of Jesus within us. That is why a thanksgiving after Communion is so important, and ideally this should extend to after Mass.

Some of our Communions are too much like a visit to a fast-food restaurant and ordering God 'to go.' The expericence merits more consideration and a certain etiquette. We are accustomed to flying out of church or to carry on conversations with others. Habit will make it easier to kneel down after Mass and to say 'thank you.' You will give good example."

Sorry I haven't been here in a while - I've had quite a bit going on (getting through my 20-item to do list takes a while...).

A couple of cool things:

• Google News has added a feature enabling you to rearrange the layout of the page, and even add custom news watch channels (i.e. add a 'Catholic' or 'Pro-Life' section to watch for news with those keywords). Pretty cool, by my standards!
  
  
• Linus Trovalds (the creator of Linux, a free operating system) now uses a Mac as his main machine. If it's good enough for him, it must be good enough for home users ;-)

Cool stuff, eh? Please continue to pray for my mother, the Pope, and Terri Schiavo.

I have posted a new monthly featured prayer on my seminary website, entitled "The Divine Office". It outlines and explains the Church's traditional prayer performed by clergy and the laity throughout the day. Read it here.