Author Archives: Friar Musings

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About Friar Musings

Franciscan friar and Catholic priest at St. Francis of Assisi in Triangle, VA

Praying as we ought

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“…the Spirit too comes to the aid of our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit itself intercedes with inexpressible groanings. And the one who searches hearts knows what is the intention of the Spirit, because it intercedes for the holy ones according to God’s will” (Roman 8:26-27)

And how are we to pray? One response is that as Jesus taught us: the Our Father. St. Paul knew that, so I suspect he had more in mind – after all the Holy Spirit had been given to the Church. St. Paul reminds us that, just as Jesus promised, we are not alone. We have a divine prayer partner. Let me suggest at least six ways the Holy Spirit intercedes for us. Continue reading →

All in

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This coming Sunday is the 31st Sunday in Year B. Our gospel is taken from the Gospel of Mark in which Jesus is asked which of the commandments is the first and greatest. Jesus has responded: 29 …“The first is this: ‘Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is Lord alone! 30 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these. Continue reading →

The Future of Money

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Beyond the ironic quality of a Franciscan friar writing about the future of money, it really is a fascinating topic. A recent issue of Time Magazine carried a series of articles under the unifying moniker “The Future of Money.”  The coverage included a short history of currency and the means of exchange, an explanation of the world of NFTs, and the movement of El Salvador to establish crypto-currency as nationally legal tender. This articles are free to Time subscribers but available under Time’s limited access program. Both are well worth the read. Continue reading →

Priestly Care for Creation

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“For creation awaits with eager expectation the revelation of the children of God; for creation was made subject to futility, not of its own accord but because of the one who subjected it, in hope that creation itself would be set free from slavery to corruption and share in the glorious freedom of the children of God.” (Roman 8:19-21)

Did you know that the world was fashioned as a Temple and the Garden of Eden was depicted as the sanctuary of the Temple – the holy place where God dwells with his people? Well, you can’t have a temple without a priest to keep it and to offer sacrifices. And that’s the task that God gives to Adam. It’s a “priestly” task. But you need to know a little Hebrew to understand it. Continue reading →

The First of the Commandments

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This coming Sunday is the 31st Sunday in Year B. Our gospel is taken from the Gospel of Mark in which Jesus is asked which of the commandments is the first and greatest.

28 One of the scribes…asked him, “Which is the first of all the commandments?” The response is very familiar to Christians: 29 Jesus replied, “The first is this: ‘Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is Lord alone! 30 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these. 32 The scribe said to him, “Well said, teacher. You are right in saying, ‘He is One and there is no other than he.’ Continue reading →

According to the flesh

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The first reading for today is from St. Paul’s Letter to the Romans. The verses that caught my attention were: “…we are not debtors to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh, you will die, but if by the spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live” (Rom 8:12-13). As you read it, the natural question that arises is “what does it mean to live according to the flesh?” Continue reading →

Context and More Questions

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This coming Sunday is the 31st Sunday in Year B. Our gospel is taken from the Gospel of Mark in which Jesus is asked which of the commandments is the first and greatest: 28 One of the scribes…asked him, “Which is the first of all the commandments?” The response is very familiar to Christians: 29 Jesus replied, “The first is this: ‘Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is Lord alone! 30 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.  Continue reading →

Celano’s First Life of St. Francis

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The earliest written account of Francis and the Leper occurs in Thomas of Celano’s The First Life (1C) written c.1229. The work was commissioned by Pope Gregory IX who asked Celano to write a vita of the newly canonized saint. Francis died in 1226, was declared a saint in rapid order and by April 1228, Gregory called for a burial church to be built for Francis. The commission to Celano was complementary to the architectural celebration. The vita was written in short order and declared official by Gregory in February 1229. Continue reading →

Bartimaeus: another thought

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This coming Sunday is the 30th Sunday in lectionary cycle B. The gospel is the story of Bartimaeus, a blind man, who cries out to Jesus for pity – or as pointed out in a recent post – for compassion or mercy. This is the last of the miracles recorded in the Gospel of Mark. It is a bookend to Mark 8 healing of the man born blind. It stands in contrast to the rich man who asks Jesus what he must do to inherit the kingdom. It stands in contrast to Peter and the disciples who are having their own problems. The commentaries of this week only began to plum the riches of this gospel. Here is an interesting bit of background come from Dan Clendenin at Journey with Jesus

Continue reading →

Logjam

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Early in the pandemic there was an expectation of reduced demand while at the same time factories in the Pacific Rim region were shut down because of Covid-19 quarantines and infections. In response, shipping companies cut their schedules in anticipation of a drop in demand for moving goods around the world.

Meanwhile in western countries, especially the United States, the timing and quantity of consumer purchases swamped the supply chain system. Factories whose production tends to be fairly predictable ramped up to satisfy a surge of orders. But the problem is the ability to obtain needed materials and the timing as the delivery system tattered on the edge of disaster. Shortages beget more shortages. A paint manufacturer that needs 27 chemicals to make its products may be able to buy all but one, but that one — perhaps stuck on a container ship off Southern California — may be enough to halt production. Continue reading →