This week someone thanked me for my service because Memorial Day was coming up. I appreciated the thought but mentally noted so many people are a little unclear about the different holidays. Here is a handy reminder that I saw recently posted:
To all we owe a debt of gratitude, especially those we honor on Memorial Day.
Several weeks ago we described Francis’ love of the Eucharist. For Francis the Eucharist is the primary way in which he sees Christ’s continuing Incarnation in the world. It is the sign of the presence of Christ with the Church in his continuing salvific role. That presence was respected by Francis and was shown by the directions he gave to his own brothers regarding Eucharistic reverence, and that he even directed his missionary brothers to carry pyxes, so if they encountered the Eucharist not properly cared for, they would be able to provide a suitable means to reserve the consecrated hosts.
Certainly the past 18 months or so have made us all aware of the complexity of disease outbreak called epidemiology, “the study and analysis of the distribution, patterns and determinants of health and disease conditions in defined populations.” Back in 1976 there was another outbreak of limited scope, but one that became well know as Legionnaires’ Disease. If you would like to read a longish article on the event,the complexity and perplexity of identifying the disease, its cause, and its propagation – long but fascinating – have a look here.
When one hears the story of Jesus and the fig tree in today’s gospel, it has to strike you as one of the strangest in the Gospels. It seems completely out of character for Jesus to curse anything much less a fig tree. When the text goes on to include the detail that “it was not the time for figs” (v. 13), Jesus appears even more unreasonable, and the incident becomes more difficult to understand – and so most people do the “holy nod” – Jesus said it so there must be something there – and move on.
The Book of Proverbs is an anthology of collections of sayings and instructions. The individual sayings and instructions are old, but collecting them together and adding an introduction (Chapters 1-9) is something that happened, most likely, in the early period after the return to Palestine from the Babylonian Exile (late 6th century BCE). The primary purpose of the book is to teach wisdom, not only to the young and inexperienced (1:2–4) but also to the advanced (1:5–6). Wisdom in the ancient Near East was not theoretical knowledge but rather practical expertise. Tradesmen using their skills were wise; Artists, too. Leaders, Judges and Kings who contributed to peace and prosperity in the land were wise. One could be wise in daily life, too, in knowing how to live successfully and without trouble in God’s universe. Ultimately wisdom, or “sound guidance” (1:5), aims at the formation of character.
I recently celebrated a birthday. There were plenty of years I did not celebrate it – not because of any reason other than I was not with a group of people for whom it wasn’t on “their radar.” As best I can remember all the birthdays between high school graduation and leaving the service of the US Navy passed by. A lot of the time I was at sea and spent my birthday on watch. I know the date was in my personnel file. But I only remember celebrating the Commanding Officer’s birthday and that was because his wife had bribed the Supply Officer to make it happen. Upon returning to dry land, there was always a stack of birthday cards and well wishes waiting for me. From family and close friends, people for whom my birthday was important. Every year they remembered
We are coming up on Memorial Day weekend – a traditional start of summer – and the advent of backyard grilling, baseball games, picnics, and all manner of gatherings…. and another season in which to perfect your preparation of the hot dog. So… for your reading enjoyment: The Absolute Best Way to Cook a Hot Dog, According to So Many Tests
Photo credit: Julia Gartland
Francis finished his military adventures and time as a prisoner of war in early 1205. It was during the latter part of 1205 into 1206 that Francis chose to “leave the world.” In subsequent years , Francis’ model of following Christ began to attract other men to join him in the emerging way of life – even as the “way of life” was being discovered by Francis himself. Francis modeled the life, prayed with the brothers, exhorted them from time to time, and slowly the life began to take shape.
The basic shape of the movement was not all that unique in Francis’ day. There were many other penitential and mendicant movements in the beginning of the 13th century in western Europe. – some scholars tallying 130 others. Interestingly, only one of them exists today: the Franciscan. Why? Most scholars hold that it was because of Francis’ insistence on being “Catholic” and formally part of the Catholic Church. There are several theories as to the reason for that insistence. Like most things it is a complex reason, but likely primary among the reasons is Francis’ love of the Eucharist. But whatever the reasons, it is no surprise that in 1209 Francis and some of his brothers journeyed to Rome to seek an audience in a consistory with Pope Innocent III in order to receive formal recognition of his proposed way of life. Continue reading
I have been thinking about manners and the cultural norms of what is considered polite and orderly. The topic has come to the fore of thought as I recall stories and events from Kenya. I found the norms of Kenya very familiar to the ones I knew growing up. I knew many missionaries in Kenya that were surprised that they were thought to be rude – something that was foreign to everything they perceived about themself. But then cross-cultural living often had that effect.
In our Pentecost Sunday gospel, as noted in this week’s post, to the disciples gathered in the Upper Room on that first Easter evening Jesus first words were: “Peace be with you.” His second words were: “As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” His thirds words were “Receive the Holy Spirit.” His fourth words were: “Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.” (John 20:23)
