A few years ago I purchased a used Subaru Outback. Given my history of buying and keeping a car for long periods and the reputation of the Outback, it will probably be the last car I ever have. (Note: being a Franciscan friar, the Province actually owns the vehicle, but it is in my care and use). The previous car (Toyota Scion) I drove for 12 years. The average ownership of an Outback exceeds 10 years…. so…. I am guessing I will not participate in the move to all electric cars. Continue reading
Electric Cars
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Part of the blessing being a parish priest is that you are invited into some of the most intimate moments of a family’s life. There is perhaps none more intimate and intense than the moments when illness passes through uncertain diagnosis, to one which blurs into the final days of a life. It is part of a life of ministry to be into a family whose loved one’s days are numbered. It is a privilege to journey with the family are they prepare for the loss that surely and steadily this way comes. In those times, Hope can seem more tentative, more distant; perhaps hovering on the edge of disappointment. 
During the first 300 year of the Christian church, the people of God endured periods of peace, but also extended periods of persecution. Especially in the local churches, each generation remembered the martyrs and the leaders who exemplified the faith. By the fourth century these women and men were honored in liturgies that commemorated their passing into God’s bright glory. In time, churches were named to honor their memory, sometimes even built on their tombs. And in time relics were collected and honored. 
friarmusings 