tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-90294395840689091872024-03-28T06:13:44.717-04:00Clinging to OnionsAnd God answered: ‘You take that onion then, hold it out to her in the lake, and let her take hold and be pulled out. And if you can pull her out of the lake, let her come to Paradise’ (Dostoevsky). Rick Beckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16505445273155568741noreply@blogger.comBlogger100125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9029439584068909187.post-9298578753501059102024-03-14T11:15:00.003-04:002024-03-14T15:42:09.882-04:00Nursing School, Prayer, and Avoiding Burnout<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://clingingtoonions.blogspot.com/2015/07/invocation-at-nursing-pinning.html" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="533" data-original-width="800" height="264" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZswJXCJlViFX9J3PmQOMdDDqSq7bg2u1BVG0W9Duomc9i2Q93DJrJZ9na6W7XTu1Ay-hBpLxV9qhsy3U7IYpD81G5G2X_pISmYoRpo-XXivZujdR8q-YLL-giA_QFxTsOfo7MCs7KSJwfrpTtAaSWgozxXkg57VNSdRd0RICdxw4u8XY-b52TQ6EPJuA/w397-h264/nurse%20praying.jpg" width="397" /></a></div><br /></div><div><i>I'm teaching a new Nursing 101 course at <a href="https://www.saintmarys.edu/" target="_blank">Saint Mary's College</a>. It's designed to help sophomores in their transition from classroom to clinical next year. Recently I solicited anonymous feedback from my students, which resulted in this (edited) online announcement.</i></div><div><i>____________________________</i></div><div style="font-weight: bold;"><b><br /></b></div><b>A few of you turned in notes</b> with comments and questions the other day, and I intend to follow up accordingly. However, two of the notes are worth addressing sooner rather than later, for they overlap and concern our theme for next week. <div><br /></div><div>The first concerns prayer. "I'm trying to be patient and respectful," one of you wrote, "but I don't understand why we are praying at the beginning of every class." That's a fair question, especially if you haven't yet encountered prayer in the classroom at Saint Mary's. </div><div><br /></div><div>But, as you know, SMC is a Catholic institution, and so one can expect that the culture on campus, both in and out of the classroom, will reflect Catholic values and practices to one degree or another. Obviously, there are many at SMC (students, faculty, staff) who aren't Catholic (or even Christian, or religious in any way), and it goes without saying that they are all valued members of the community. Be assured that there will never be pressure or incentive for <i>anyone </i>to become Catholic or adopt Catholic perspectives on anything, in my class or any SMC class.</div><div><br /></div><div>Nonetheless, a majority of SMC students <i>are</i> Catholic, and they've come to SMC, in part, <i>because </i>it's Catholic. They (and their parents) anticipated that an SMC education would <i>include </i>an integrated Catholic vision of various subjects of study among other, often competing visions, and that there would be <i>room </i>and even <i>encouragement </i>to experience growth in the Faith. The faculty who aren't Catholic might provide less of those things, but it's reasonable that your Catholic faculty would provide more. </div><div><br /></div><div>That's what Pope St. John Paul II meant when he wrote that while all professors at Catholic colleges are to be inspired "by the principles of an authentically human life," Catholic professors are called to a higher standard: "Christians among the teachers are called to be witnesses and educators of authentic Christian life, which evidences attained integration between faith and life, and between professional competence and Christian wisdom" (<a href="https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/apost_constitutions/documents/hf_jp-ii_apc_15081990_ex-corde-ecclesiae.html" target="_blank"><i>Ex Corde Ecclesia,</i> #22</a>).</div><div><br /></div><div>I know I don't do it perfectly, but that's what I'm striving to do, and prayer is at the heart of it.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Which brings me to the second note:</b> "What are some ways to prevent nurse burnout," somebody asked. "I am worried since this is always a topic of conversation in healthcare." True enough, which is why we'll be talking about "self-care" next week, strategizing for how to build up your emotional and mental reserves as you head into clinicals next year and your nursing career after that. Prayer can play a key role in that regard. In fact, for those who follow a faith tradition, I'd say it's absolutely vital.</div><div><br /></div><div>Indeed, I know our guest speaker next week will be talking about prayer along with meditation and other self-care practices, but it's also good to keep in mind that many of your patients may actually seek your prayerful support, which can be an important part of <i>spiritual </i>care. "Regardless of the faith tradition or practices of the patient, family, or nurse," suggest the authors of an article in <i><a href="https://rn-journal.com/journal-of-nursing/nurse-please-pray-with-me" target="_blank">RN Journal</a>, </i>"the moments taken to pray may provide comfort and renewal for all present."</div><div><br /></div><div>So, by all means, pray along with me when we pray in class if you wish, or else use it as an opportunity to learn about <a href="https://www.ncregister.com/blog/dressing-up-to-serve" target="_blank">SMC's Catholic heritage</a> and the ways in which Catholics express their faith. For further conversation about this matter (or anything else), please don't hesitate to make an appointment or come by during my office hours. I'd love to hear from you!</div><div>________________________________</div>Rick Beckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16505445273155568741noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9029439584068909187.post-64813111463106075652024-02-18T09:30:00.002-05:002024-02-18T09:30:34.593-05:00Tithing Pitch<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://godhauntedlunatic.wordpress.com/2018/10/14/a-radical-preference-for-heavenly-treasure/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="742" data-original-width="1320" height="301" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFmIF1MZ54sEyVcFGkiryVq_d69IqGHv85-Ph-1aOpmnMAABiWrrCPzDry5Pq6gOJjt3Lypzn3_zwRym5LghhUyIpw9PiMgOqYiRxufAugQh2tCJLWcMhM0jD2cy9Z4fBKzo_PFNXFOTIYYhb7wGBHkBjxnV9CUBShrs0Fd0eTgTWsgIsvK0sgr3qObqk/w535-h301/MW-GO582_Collec_ZG_20180820112554.jpg" width="535" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;">“</span>God loveth a cheerful giver<span style="text-align: left;">”</span> (<a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2+Corinthians+9%3A6-7&version=DRA" target="_blank">II Cor. 9.7</a>).</div><div><br /></div><div><i>A version of this exhortation was presented during Masses at <a href="https://stmatthewcathedral.org" target="_blank">St. Matthew Cathedral</a>, South Bend, Indiana, the weekend of February 10-11, 2024. </i></div><div><i>_______________________</i></div><div style="font-weight: bold;"><b><br /></b></div><b>When Nancy and I and our newborn son</b> became parishioners here at St. Matt's nearly 30 years ago, we automatically signed up for collection envelopes. Automatically. As in: No question. For us, to be parishioners – actually, to be Catholic – necessarily included financially supporting the church, our spiritual home. <div> </div><div>That’s not some quirk of the Beckers – or some holdover from my youthful upbringing as a Protestant Christian. It’s in fact the teaching of the Church. As a convert, I discovered that fact through a little red booklet from Liguori Publications, <i>Handbook for Today’s Catholic </i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">–</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> the <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/33790348-handbook-for-today-s-catholic" target="_blank">1978 version</a>. </span>You see, I joined the Church B.C. (Before the Catechism) and so handy references like my Liguori handbook were vital for navigating a new ecclesial universe. </div><div><br /></div><div>And what did I find in that booklet? Among other things, the Precepts of the Church – what the authors describe as “certain specific duties of Catholics” (cf. <a href="https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P75.HTM" target="_blank">CCC 2041</a>). Things like Sunday obligation and Easter duty – ideas certainly familiar to cradle Catholics. But there’s also a line about the duty to “strengthen and support the Church,” which naturally includes material support, usually in the form of money – our “tithes” in other words. </div><div> </div><div>Now, you might know that the idea of tithing is from the Old Testament requirement that God’s people set aside 10% of their income for the Temple and its upkeep. As Christians, we are dispensed from that specific figure, but the requirement to financially support the Church – both local and global – remains. Indeed, St. Paul tells the Corinthians that on “the first day of the week, each of you should set aside whatever one can afford” (<a href="https://bible.usccb.org/bible/1corinthians/16" target="_blank">I Cor. 16.2</a>). Maybe that’s 10%, maybe not. But Paul makes it clear that giving something is mandatory – it’s not an option. </div><div><br /></div><div>That just makes sense for a number of reasons. First, as I said, our parish is our home. Truly. Yes, we come here for Mass every week, but we also come here for nourishment and challenge, camaraderie and inspiration. We come here because our friends are here – some new, some old, some we met when we first got here decades ago. Our kids received their sacraments and their education here. We’ve celebrated births, deaths, and every in-between milestone imaginable here. So, it’s a place we are happy to support with our prayers, yes, and also our cash. </div><div><br /></div><div>In our case, we choose to do that through literal tithing – through setting aside at least 10% of our income, and then half of that goes to St. Matt’s, and the other half to the bishop, the missions, and other charitable works. And here’s the thing: We take that 10% off the top before we pay anything else. It’s a priority, you see, and it stays a priority even when we feel the pinch. </div><div><br /></div><div>Like a number of years ago <a href="https://www.ncregister.com/blog/i-have-multiple-sclerosis-here-s-what-it-has-taught-me-about-life" target="_blank">when I fell ill and couldn’t work</a> – and I didn’t know when I’d be able to return to work. We had a house full of kids and a mortgage on that house, and I was scared. I went to my pastor looking for advice, but mainly looking for consolation and sympathy, and I enumerated my woes. Father listened, nodded sagely, and then spoke – not words of consolation, not sympathy, but truth: He said, “First of all, don’t stop tithing.” </div><div><br /></div><div>Don’t stop tithing? Didn’t he hear what I said? Shouldn’t I circle the wagons financially? Can’t the church go without my puny tithe until I get back to work? </div><div><br /></div><div><b>But Father was right, </b>because our tithe, our commitment to support our parish isn’t just about the Church, but also about us and out trust in God. By tithing in good times and bad, sickness and health, we demonstrate our radical dependence on God as Father. </div><div><br /></div><div>It is said that God will not be outdone in generosity, and certainly that’s a common image in the Scriptures. Like in Luke, when Jesus says “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over” (<a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+6%3A37-38&version=NRSVCE" target="_blank">Lk 6.38</a>). Even so, it’s hard to see in the moment how God will get us through this crisis or that, and our habit of tithing no matter what is a concrete way of declaring and embracing our abandonment to the Lord: We’re not in control; <i>he</i> is. </div><div><br /></div><div>So, regular giving to the church – whether it’s 10% or more or less, it doesn’t matter – has a twofold purpose. You’ll see one of them on the Commitment Card in your pew: At the top on one side it says, “Radiating Christ in the World,” and that’s true. Our support of the church and her ministries helps underwrite the extension of Christ through time and space, making him present here and now and into the future. </div><div><br /></div><div>But it’s also about <i>receiving</i> that radiation of Christ: The very act of sacrificing and setting aside part of our material wealth for the church manifests our reliance on God and predisposes us to grow in faith, hope, charity, to be ever conformed to Christ. It's not that we're paying God for grace; instead, we’re positioning ourselves to receive it. </div><div><br /></div><div>The bottom line is this: Odd as it may sound, regular, even sacrificial, giving to the Church is a gift – <i>it’s a gift</i> that I get to write out checks every month to St. Matt’s, and I’m happy to do it. If it’s not your regular practice, I invite you to try it and see for yourself. I’m pretty confident you won’t regret it.
<br />_____________________________________</div>Rick Beckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16505445273155568741noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9029439584068909187.post-92070886574390415602023-04-22T12:48:00.000-04:002023-04-22T12:48:21.357-04:00Thanks, Riley Hospital! A Dance Marathon Testimonial<p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhugTkOYOaj3asR2oFSnuXVdiMXmHAS2uR399AYIhBVQUXAX0bpHprgOjhwo7tKsu_mUizXh12IF8SajeeDvNc-txE0vJN4cnc_fn3ABSQOaF9lZjBvKjGzlBX_8O1yPlXZCIGLOnj-kVzo61GwbAU1FSrRjHbYIvvcsLNQAeRo1HrHJYyvjnI4PQBx/s6000/DSC01784.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="6000" height="336" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhugTkOYOaj3asR2oFSnuXVdiMXmHAS2uR399AYIhBVQUXAX0bpHprgOjhwo7tKsu_mUizXh12IF8SajeeDvNc-txE0vJN4cnc_fn3ABSQOaF9lZjBvKjGzlBX_8O1yPlXZCIGLOnj-kVzo61GwbAU1FSrRjHbYIvvcsLNQAeRo1HrHJYyvjnI4PQBx/w504-h336/DSC01784.JPG" width="504" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><a href="https://www.youtube.com/@nickybeatbox4652" target="_blank">Nick lip-synching "You Can't Always Get What You Want" (with an assist from Dad) </a></i></td></tr></tbody></table></p><p><b>When I introduce myself to people, </b>I generally lead with my primary vocation, my main gig, which is being a husband and a father. Yes, I’m a nurse and a nursing instructor, and I love that career trajectory that I finally got to in life (after multiple false starts), especially now that I’m here at Saint Mary’s – go belles! Belle yeah! But even that takes a back seat to my being married to Nancy and being dad to our <a href="https://magazine.nd.edu/stories/the-basilicas-cloud-of-witnesses/" target="_blank">seven kids</a>.</p><p>Yes, seven kids! Does that sound like a lot? Maybe, but remember that for most families, most the time, kids come one at a time. With each addition to the family, there’s a surge of adjustment and scrambling and redeployments of energy and attention, but, as days and months go by, the craziness settles down, and the now bigger family gets used to a routine again…until the next baby arrives.</p><p>And that’s how it went with us, pretty much, until Nick’s arrival. Nick is my sixth child – my third son – and he has Down syndrome. As a nurse, I had a vague idea of what that would mean for him going forward in life – certain adjustments in developmental expectations and educational goals, for example – but not so much in terms of health.</p><p>That changed within hours after his birth. “Nick has Down syndrome,” <a href="https://onethousandwordsaweek.wordpress.com/2013/08/04/naming-our-prince/" target="_blank">our midwife told us</a>. “He’s at high risk for heart defects, and you’ll have to get him checked out today.” The echocardiogram did indeed identify some defects – four, in fact – but the doctors determined that it was safe to wait on surgery until Nick was a little older, a little bigger and stronger.</p><p><b>A little older, bigger, and stronger </b>turned out to be a couple months after Nick’s first birthday. He had become significantly lethargic, and no amount of sleep restored his usual pep and energy. When Nancy took him to the clinic for a checkup, little did we know that they’d end up heading down to Riley Children’s Hospital in an ambulance directly. The cardiologists there did a heart catheterization on my infant son, and the results led them to schedule <a href="https://www.ncregister.com/blog/of-bad-hearts-broken-hearts-and-holy-hearts" target="_blank">open heart surgery for Nick</a> right away.</p><p>After it was all done and Nicky was recovering in the pediatric ICU, the cardiothoracic surgeon gave us a rundown on everything he fixed: closing up this hole and that hole that shouldn’t been there, and re-routing Nick’s cardiac flow for optimal health. We thanked him profusely, of course – who wouldn’t? And Nancy still prays for him to this day, 18 years later.</p><p>Yes, 18 years later – and now here’s my Nick, 19 years old, and getting ready to move on from <a href="https://godhauntedlunatic.wordpress.com/2023/03/23/share-the-vision-a-school-choice-testimony/" target="_blank">Marian High School</a>. He’s living the dream, I tell you, and we’re all grateful to Riley Hospital and the great team there for preserving Nick’s life during those critical days of his youth.</p><p><b>As a dad, I have to say that I’m especially grateful. </b>One of the main jobs of a dad is to protect his wife and children – to be the firewall, either literally or figuratively, between his family and all that would harm them. But in Nick’s case, as his little one-year-old body struggled to thrive despite his broken heart, I couldn’t be that firewall: I didn’t have the knowledge or skills to save him; I needed help.</p><p>Riley Children’s Hospital was the help Nick needed, the answer to our prayers. Thanks, Riley, for being part of our family’s story, Nick’s story. And now, here’s Nick to tell you more of his story himself!<br />_______________________________</p><p><i>Nick was privileged to share his story at the 2023 <a href="https://www.saintmarys.edu" target="_blank">Saint Mary's College</a> Riley Dance Marathon on April 15. The annual event raises funds for Riley Hospital for Children, which treats children from our area and provides critical life-saving treatments and healthcare services for children and their families. For more information or to make a donation, follow this <a href="https://events.dancemarathon.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=donorDrive.event&eventID=5326" target="_blank">link</a>. </i></p>Rick Beckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16505445273155568741noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9029439584068909187.post-72536468252227910742023-03-25T06:16:00.003-04:002023-03-25T06:22:55.032-04:00Share the Vision: A School Choice Testimony<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://godhauntedlunatic.wordpress.com/2023/03/23/share-the-vision-a-school-choice-testimony/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="526" data-original-width="526" height="409" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTsoQ8ALMT-CrY6dOytlrSy6sT3sBro1Pe02nD_yIjQ3mp4t1naVmsOdAYaUJCycGwpoyhgYNLd0-ELmVCC9Jijh-Ebxp2dHIEPTSwhjk4A5E5EWc8gUCuJx08-DNGw4ymw_pjJGITR1GYA4m2FwpIR9MXRJX0GI33kbsr7_CkgSgWE_RhHlq5yCd9/w409-h409/318625485_473477308250114_3076746851872939918_n.jpg" width="409" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><blockquote>The Marian community has been an ideal place for Nick to grow into his purpose and be part of helping others grow into theirs.</blockquote></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><b><i><a href="https://godhauntedlunatic.wordpress.com/2023/03/23/share-the-vision-a-school-choice-testimony/" target="_blank">Read more...</a></i></b></div><div><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(122, 122, 122); color: #7a7a7a; font-family: Georgia, Times, serif; font-size: 14px;">_______________________</span></div>Rick Beckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16505445273155568741noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9029439584068909187.post-61186321087542576872023-02-18T06:52:00.007-05:002023-03-25T06:24:32.493-04:00Why I Had a Mass Offered for Janis Joplin<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.ncregister.com/blog/mass-for-janis-joplin" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="576" data-original-width="1024" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr-rkGrydUWvTw5HpwDjuqYFhMRbE2aBNTS_pCMGxrY4Ix-jx2Rz8iYtA2D4BW4YT14SxJ8spADl8XG6-akkbLYO4lkU2kmQ-wFMvwUR8DKcG6Lx6gyL_CcnkK13gx8lisF4BHW02OupfOGocDabg04HNzseMkd4zaqaxdIBNQbmpQIUnARvD89iQ-/w456-h256/733686915_230152857_1024x576.jpg.webp" width="456" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><blockquote><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">“It is therefore a holy and wholesome thought to pray for the dead,</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">that they may be loosed from sins” (<a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Maccabees%2012&version=DRA" target="_blank">2 Mc 12.46</a>).</div></blockquote><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: right;"><a href="https://www.ncregister.com/blog/mass-for-janis-joplin" target="_blank"><b> <i>Read more...</i></b></a></div><div style="text-align: left;">__________________________</div><p></p>Rick Beckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16505445273155568741noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9029439584068909187.post-36831921308446666702023-02-18T06:40:00.007-05:002023-02-18T06:57:36.358-05:00One Meal a Day: Not Just for Monks Anymore<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.ncregister.com/blog/intermittent-fasting" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="1200" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieXKxsV-V4p8rfqgyNxy6r7QVgceGibswb23SpCoeGaJ4ndZr53J1740F43Qyu0aXUKD9O6Fx1VDI5AMonVg4bg1xDe1ac1IKn__fZKLMwCViJW09eJvVNQ89MYd02Af0smQOXPiaKtmpdtCYA7vLaMKGPg7wdMoyx48T15CsPPYxFKbLd0laEgOBQ/w530-h265/web3-hands-monk-brother-monastery-dinner-meal-food-prayer-shutterstock.jpg.webp" width="530" /></a></div><p></p><blockquote><div style="text-align: center;">“Fasting is the helm of human life and governs the whole ship of our body.”</div><div style="text-align: center;">~ <a href="https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/audiences/1979/documents/hf_jp-ii_aud_19790321.html" target="_blank">St. Peter Chrysologus</a></div></blockquote><div><div style="text-align: right;"><i><b><a href="https://www.ncregister.com/blog/intermittent-fasting" target="_blank">Read more...</a></b></i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i>__________________________</i></div></div>Rick Beckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16505445273155568741noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9029439584068909187.post-70669180787961897672023-02-15T07:16:00.003-05:002023-02-18T06:55:49.530-05:00Jim Eder (1940-2023): Conjurer of Community<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.chicagocatholic.com/chicagoland/-/article/2019/07/24/soup-kitchen-has-fed-hungry-in-uptown-for-over-40-yea-1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="357" data-original-width="511" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNqD_WqlSsMJk7lKKlsmWqFE9a4xHdPy4oUWrjDCL8SLC5jj2vVfauA8YBWvWfg28or-re2Bq36cFKZYB01Ui2vXfc024efve1thRl0Ha3JgqfH27JOqIGh_IBK_tMVJ0fBx_AFgtDE0FVdgYg3jK-yNSKHg4DCzJGuu2CUmJm85wgRzrTduFuM28v/w510-h358/soup%20kitchen%20director.jpg" width="510" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">“Heaven is a banquet and life is a banquet, too, even with a crust,</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">where there is companionship.”</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">~ <a href="https://clingingtoonions.blogspot.com/2016/04/one-book.html" target="_blank">Dorothy Day</a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><i><a href="https://godhauntedlunatic.wordpress.com/2023/02/11/jim-eder-1940-2023-conjurer-of-community/" target="_blank">Read more...</a></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">__________________________</div><p></p>Rick Beckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16505445273155568741noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9029439584068909187.post-48518323268359686842022-07-10T10:57:00.005-04:002022-10-05T20:29:07.397-04:00Father Stu: The Language of Love<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://magazine.franciscan.edu/articles/father-stu/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1333" data-original-width="2000" height="313" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk2A30xIdvhcLCqD3yOaOME-QWZ81CDw3489trW8Kij8kFis3IXsiSXcIAXItrPy2rIeaqevFnCf2gh6JQuXhViQLR-GSEPWrFkkyeP4ux8gCsj8QLseaIlXq8GhWnLic27aPm0S6iDKCg-wdOm5KJveSo0k2aVL1gVN6DCVA05H4p5_plD6Yv4FJe/w470-h313/father-stu-1.webp" width="470" /></a></div><p></p><div style="text-align: center;">“To boast in the Cross is an almost fierce gesture</div><div style="text-align: center;">when we confront all that would defeat us.”</div><div style="text-align: center;">~ <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=490oDwAAQBAJ">Fr. Benedict Groeschel, CFR</a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: right;"><b><i><a href="https://magazine.franciscan.edu/articles/father-stu/" target="_blank">Read more...</a></i></b></p><p style="text-align: left;"><b>_______________________________</b></p>Rick Beckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16505445273155568741noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9029439584068909187.post-7088037221699949532022-01-24T11:20:00.001-05:002023-02-15T07:18:00.738-05:00Ignoring Women's Health? A Pro-Life Response<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.womenscarecenter.org/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1436" data-original-width="1923" height="324" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhxBUS6rF0e75hEgTsIAAvkYL89GXO2ZICaYtQMwZqunhU_4uKZj8vR_DdocAXoez0c6VtqpWXbdH-phknDjlHnX8gAu6ajdfd_sHPBcW5E0ipTG2i_eQV3STX6FzRq8XwJb77E5y263qCSlwTXl9W-jRQyHMI5LoCCTQ34IJSBBVi_FsZyU8eLdtQq=w434-h324" width="434" /></a></div><p>The other day, I posted a <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/what-it-pro-life-means-march-for-pregnancy-centers-knights-of-columbus-abortion-roe-v-wade-11642712536" target="_blank">short piece</a> by Patrick Kelly from the Knights of Columbus that appeared in the <i>Wall Street Journal. </i>The piece was timed to coincide with weekend <a href="https://www.usccb.org/news/2022/us-bishops-pro-life-chairman-anniversary-roe-v-wade" target="_blank">Roe v. Wade commemorations</a>, and it celebrated the magnificent contributions pregnancy resource centers have made toward promoting life and supporting pregnant women over the years – a compassionate, charitable work that predates the 1973 Supreme Court decision. </p><p>In my public post, I included the following pull-quote from Kelly's article regarding the centers: </p><p></p><blockquote>The Guttmacher Institute...complains they are “typically staffed by volunteers and employees who lack medical training and licensure.” It’s a strange criticism from those for whom a “successful” medical procedure always ends in the death of a human being.</blockquote><p></p><p>In response, a friend of mine made this (public) comment:</p><blockquote>Of course, WSJ ignores the health of the women with that crack. I guess for them being pro life really does stop at birth - at which point they are pro chaos.</blockquote><p>Here's what I wrote in reply.<br />_____________________ </p>
Hey, friend. Normally I wouldn't respond to comments I find offensive, but this one, really, is beyond the pale. <div><br /></div><div>To begin with, the article is by Patrick Kelly from the Knights of Columbus, not the WSJ editorial board. That's important because the K of C are directly and extensively involved in supporting and underwriting the good efforts of crisis pregnancy centers across the country (and around the world, I think). I'm a proud member of the Knights and happy to be associated with their <a href="https://www.kofc.org/en/our-pro-life-efforts/index.html" target="_blank">charitable efforts</a>. </div><div><br /></div><div>Second, and more importantly, if you actually spoke with anyone who was thoroughly pro-life or familiarized yourself with their work, you'd know that it's frankly silly to accuse them of ignoring women's health. "The people who work at these centers serve the whole person—medically, financially, emotionally and spiritually," Kelly writes in his piece. "That’s something no abortion clinic can do, and it helps explain why their numbers are dwindling while the number of pregnancy resource centers grows." By working tirelessly to provide pregnant moms with what they need to continue their pregnancies and care for their babies after delivery, crisis pregnancy centers are most definitely committed to maternal health as well as defending preborn life. </div><div><div><br /></div><div>Still, I'm willing to grant you the benefit of the doubt, and I'm guessing your comment is related to the myth that abortion is sometimes required to preserve a woman's health. That's a false notion that's rooted in a shortsighted ethical perspective. Consider this <a href="https://aaplog.org/what-is-aaplogs-position-on-abortion-to-save-the-life-of-the-mother/" target="_blank">statement</a> from the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists:
<blockquote>When extreme medical emergencies that threaten the life of the mother arise..., AAPLOG believes in "treatment to save the mother’s life," including premature delivery if that is indicated — obviously with the patient’s informed consent. This is NOT "abortion to save the mother’s life." We are treating two patients, the mother and the baby, and every reasonable attempt to save the baby’s life would also be a part of our medical intervention. We acknowledge that, in some such instances, the baby would be too premature to survive.</blockquote>
Anyway, maybe that sounds like so much sophistry and ethical mumbo-jumbo, but you can hardly accuse those who embrace that stance of "ignoring" women's health. Pro-life people are just that: Pro-life. The baby's life. The mom's life. The life of the elderly, the infirm, the brain-injured. The poor, the marginalized, the incarcerated, the immigrant. "I have set before you life and death," God tells the Israelites, "therefore choose life" (<a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy+30%3A19&version=RSVCE" target="_blank">Deut. 30.19</a>). It's a command that pro-life folks (like me) try to embody and promote every day. Sometimes we do it well; sometimes not. Even so, we're always striving to foster a world in which <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/swashbucklingprolifeantiwarchristians" target="_blank">killing is never required</a> to solve problems. Never. <div><br /></div><div>So, please talk to some pro-life people. Hell, talk to me. I'll be happy to tell you how I see all this stuff. But, please, friend, don't accuse me and those who think like me of ignoring women's health just because we are opposed to killing babies in the womb. That's just foolishness.<br />____________________</div></div></div>Rick Beckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16505445273155568741noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9029439584068909187.post-76745840880379409382021-10-10T20:59:00.003-04:002023-02-18T06:56:38.053-05:00A Message to My Goddaughter on the Occasion of Her Confirmation<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://clingingtoonions.blogspot.com/2014/10/a-son-named-crispin.html" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="249" data-original-width="445" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8HIdNPje_dh5OwybEVkjkcoSTfbE4pzGg0DerUfq-3V6yQwTqfmXUdNTIALkXlnH15N9b0-9NOfMmu2-OUU2heddhjkX0n6xqYAJh7yOPXpehLJ8dfGYUDhyphenhyphenb2BRL3g5OHLfXpIOQsWE/w511-h286/henry-v.jpg" width="511" /></a></div><p></p><p><i></i></p><blockquote><p><i>To war! </i>To war! Once more into the breach!</p><p>I stand behind you, Mary, as you now take up arms in the battle for God's glory – <i>you</i> are a warrior now, grown to full sacramental stature and <a href="https://www.ncregister.com/blog/of-confirmation-avignon-and-holy-hindsight" target="_blank">equipped to <i>lay waste</i></a> all that stands in the way of God's reign. </p><p>Courage! </p><p>Honor!</p><p>No compromise – <i>victory alone! </i></p><p>I will continue to pray for you daily as you <i>launch into the company of warriors already engaged in this struggle. </i>I'm proud to have stood by you at the start. </p></blockquote><p>_________________________________</p>Rick Beckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16505445273155568741noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9029439584068909187.post-52367878224587168462021-06-27T14:03:00.005-04:002021-06-28T10:32:38.135-04:00Wedding Homily<i>
Lord Jesus, you are here for we are gathered in your name, and we gather with
Belle and Dallas as they join their lives together in you. Bless them as they
commit themselves to each other – bless this moment of beginnings, this
launching of Belle and Dallas’s glorious adventure! And bless us all as we
support them in that adventure, both as it begins today and long, long into the
future. In Jesus’ name, AMEN!<a href="https://www.theknot.com/us/belle-beeson-and-dallas-schwartz-jun-2021" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;" target="_blank"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="1280" height="247" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzUJL0cMEU8nCVfMyRuMPkhCuGJvI_8LhL8X9mUYDsESapG5O-iqyIhnASEchaByxYM5bhQzQfVrTFfM7S9AWGUAdaqfVrvFNHeeXf6AzP5V1gz1O-L1OUXdtnb4cdX9KOUFYjXgyjxhc/w494-h247/14a8d0a4-0e39-46f5-b340-3d2020c74108_rt_auto-cr_0.390.3600.2190-rs_1280.jpg" width="494" /></a></i><div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><b>Belle, Dallas, you’ve been counting the days for
over a year</b> – and probably the hours the last few days – and now it’s here: Your
wedding day, the day in which your individual timelines – and those of your
families – will become forever intertwined. Indeed, today, June 26, 2021, you
will become one in Christ, and we are all here to share in your joy. So let’s
begin by putting everything in context by anchoring this moment in God’s word. </div></div><div></div><blockquote><div>“Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in
honoring each other” (<a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Romans+12&version=NLT" target="_blank">Romans 12.10</a>).</div><div><br /></div><div>“Love is patient and kind. Love is
not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is
not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice
about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. “Love never gives up,
never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.
Prophecy and speaking in unknown languages and special knowledge will become
useless. But love will last forever!” (<a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=i+corinthians+13&version=NLT" target="_blank">I Corinthians 13.4-8</a>).</div></blockquote><div></div><div>My dear friends – and I say that so deliberately – <i>my dear friends, </i>your choice
of Scripture readings is truly profound. Of course, it’s no surprise that both
readings touch on love, but they do so in subtly different ways. In the verse
from Romans, Paul reminds us – reminds you – to love honestly and thoroughly,
such that your loving – your honoring, serving, and deferring to one another –
becomes a source of pleasure, <i>delight </i>even. The verse previous to the one you
chose, verse 9, brings that out even more. “Don’t just pretend to love others,”
Paul writes. “Really love them.” </div><div><br /></div><div>How? Paul provides some ideas in Romans further
on, but he really nails the “how” in the reading you chose from I Corinthians 13
– the love chapter, as it’s known, and it’s in every wedding you’ve ever been to
probably. But you chose to have us zero in on one part of the love chapter in
particular, verses four to eight – the <i>guts </i>of the love chapter, the quick-start
instruction manual. There’s no theologizing there, nothing abstract. Paul
insists that love in action is longsuffering and benevolent; it’s not pigheaded
or vulgar or selfish. It’s not cranky either, or sarcastic, and it’s definitely
not wimpy. Rather love is loyal and persevering, <a href="https://churchlifejournal.nd.edu/articles/the-blessing-of-marital-monotony/" target="_blank">never giving up no matter what</a>. </div><div><br /></div><div><b>And here’s the kicker: </b><i>You can’t live up to all these lofty goals</i>…on your own!
You’ll need God’s grace, but even with grace, you’ll still fall short from time
to time. That’s why Paul throws in that line about not keeping a record of being
wronged. That’s absolutely key, because even when you’re bound and determined to
love each other perfectly – a good and noble goal to set on your wedding day, to
be sure! – nonetheless, you’ll still fail from time to time (ask anybody that’s
been married for longer than, say, a week), so you just have to get used to
saying “I’m sorry,” and “I forgive you,” and then keep going, keep getting
better at it. Keep getting better at loving each other.</div><div><br /></div><div>That’s <a href="https://www.ncregister.com/blog/getting-past-the-honeymoon-hype" target="_blank">how marriages last</a> 40, 50 years and longer, and it’s pretty
good prep for being parents as well – something I know you’re both looking
forward to. Back in Romans 12, Paul writes further on, “Be patient in trouble,
and keep on praying,” and then “When God’s people are in need, be ready to help
them.” If that’s not a formula for Christian parenthood, I don’t know what is –
and it’s a mission you’ll take on together in God’s time with great love. </div><div><br /></div><div>And
what a mission! Marriage and family intentionally rooted in Christ is a rich
life, full of love and laughter and lavish generosity. I see you both reveling
in that kind of rich life as the years unfold – as you welcome the children we
pray God sends you, as you build up with them your own little domestic kingdom
of love and life, and then as you two grow old together surrounded by a
<a href="https://catholicexchange.com/reckless-breeders" target="_blank">rollicking mob</a>. </div><div><br /></div><div><b>Oh, the smiles you’ll know then</b> – the sighs of contentment and
peace. “Love will last forever,” Paul tells us at the end of that Romans verse
you chose, because God is love and we become part of eternal love when we join
our loving to his. That’s what you begin today. That’s why we’re here.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/media/set?vanity=179466605426513&set=a.4269280773111722" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="356" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP25nGO1Jy0pZ9Nr19QFiDHm7Vdilnhlt1DC4ZcX-2IMDdhJJNXrtlb0EQb5SPohzMwkLRMxeDsYbryJljUYLqPQM3Lax8xYDjT1XBICEOFIThF1qV53sRVhlbUqFgF-fhfVYRp3V-I5I/w536-h356/mrandmrsschwartz.jpg" width="536" /></a></div><br /><div>_________________________________</div></div>Rick Beckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16505445273155568741noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9029439584068909187.post-91365761470103781022020-12-04T08:20:00.005-05:002020-12-04T08:23:18.303-05:00Servant of God Dorothy Day: A Personal Witness<p style="text-align: center;"> <iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="343" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ykCLFAe39To" width="413" youtube-src-id="ykCLFAe39To"></iframe></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">"Don't call me a saint, I don't want to be dismissed that easily." </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> ~ <a href="https://www.catholicworker.org/pages/ellsberg-called-saints.html" target="_blank">Dorothy Day</a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">"Once you get to know her, she's just like any other crabby old lady." </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> ~ <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=uazpBXeCaDcC&pg=PA72&lpg=PA72&dq#v=onepage&q&f=false" target="_blank">Stanley Vishnewski</a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: center;">Even so, many thanks, Dorothy. Pray for me. </div>________________________</div>Rick Beckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16505445273155568741noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9029439584068909187.post-50227353460421363972020-10-22T14:59:00.005-04:002020-12-04T08:23:42.407-05:00St. John Paul II, Pope: A Testimonial<p style="text-align: center;"> <iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="349" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/d84lbkRHrAw" width="420" youtube-src-id="d84lbkRHrAw"></iframe></p>John Paul II was an athlete and an artist. A scholar and a saint. But to me and countless others, the Polish Pontiff was simply Papa.<br />___________________________<p></p>Rick Beckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16505445273155568741noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9029439584068909187.post-84352415518899837772020-05-11T13:38:00.000-04:002020-05-12T11:14:11.220-04:00Bl. John of Cetina & Bl. Peter de Dueñas<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2W1J7RvjtM5mMpMcYq5Cpdk-qx2sowiOKs8-aNQcMzJi7BAgmcW8ltS9HuUi1P8Jif5vRHgqz_ZmJJrZzaw3t4NrwxS6gqSg6zlHfpcqi7Se8DBBjKoeyk9Zd-Pr3PWUDRU4k_zJ0eOs/s1600/Juan+de+Cetina+y+Pedro+Due%25C3%25B1as-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="319" data-original-width="293" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2W1J7RvjtM5mMpMcYq5Cpdk-qx2sowiOKs8-aNQcMzJi7BAgmcW8ltS9HuUi1P8Jif5vRHgqz_ZmJJrZzaw3t4NrwxS6gqSg6zlHfpcqi7Se8DBBjKoeyk9Zd-Pr3PWUDRU4k_zJ0eOs/s400/Juan+de+Cetina+y+Pedro+Due%25C3%25B1as-1.jpg" width="367" /></a></div>
<br />
<b>The dramatic saga of John of Cetina and Peter de Dueñas</b> can be summarized in a single line: “Franciscans of Spain,” writes hagiographer <a href="https://books.google.com/books/about/The_Book_of_Saints.html?id=OjuOCgAAQBAJ" target="_blank">Basil Watkins</a>, “they were sent to the Muslim kingdom of Granada in order to try and evangelize the inhabitants and were predictably killed.”<br />
<br />
As you’d expect, there’s more to this story.<br />
<br />
Born in 1340, John had a privileged childhood, but he gravitated to obscurity and penitence. In time he made his way to the Franciscans of Aragon, where he made his profession and was ordained. Although a popular preacher, John longed for solitude, and he retired to a cave in Valencia to take up an eremitical life.<br />
<br />
Word of heroic Franciscan martyrdoms in the Holy Land reached Father John, and he committed himself to missionary work among the Moors, despite his solitary inclinations and the risks. John received permission to visit the Muslims of southern Spain in 1396, and he prepared for his journey.<br />
<br />
At the time, Franciscan missionaries always traveled in pairs, and Father John chose Brother Peter to be his companion. Peter was around 19 years old and just starting out in his religious vocation. Nonetheless, he was eager to join Father John, and he rebuffed objections to his participation in such a dangerous undertaking.<br />
<br />
<b>It wasn’t long after the two arrived in Granada</b> before they were arrested and hauled before the Sultan. Offered the choice between conversion to Islam and death, the two readily accepted the latter. The Sultan promptly complied, beheading them both by his own hand.<br />
<br />
Pope Clement XII beatified the pair in 1731. The promulgation of their exploits likely spurred the missionary aspirations of another Spanish Franciscan, young <a href="http://www.usccb.org/about/leadership/holy-see/francis/papal-visit-2015/junipero-serra-biography.cfm" target="_blank">Junípero Serra</a>, who would eventually become the Apostle of California.<br />
<br />
The memorial of John of Cetina and Peter de Dueñas is observed on May 19, the day of their martyrdom in 1397.<br />
_____________________________<br />
<i><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></i>
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>A shorter version of this reflection originally appeared in </i>Franciscan Magazine, <i><a href="https://franciscan.edu/" target="_blank">Franciscan University of Steubenville.</a></i></span>Rick Beckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16505445273155568741noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9029439584068909187.post-464607282204949912019-08-13T15:58:00.002-04:002019-08-13T15:58:31.214-04:00Of Moses’ Horns, St. Jerome, and the Last Judgment<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/wkAgZJebzVs/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/wkAgZJebzVs?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<i><br />
</i></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<i>“Since we have such a hope, we are very bold, not like Moses, who put a veil over his face so that the Israelites might not see the end of the fading splendor”</i> (<a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2+Corinthians+3&version=RSVCE" target="_blank">2 Cor 3.12-13</a>).</blockquote>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<b><i><a href="http://www.ncregister.com/blog/becker/glorious-exposure-of-moses-horns-st.-jerome-and-the-last-judgment" target="_blank">Read more...</a></i></b></div>
_________________________________Rick Beckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16505445273155568741noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9029439584068909187.post-63515982523749350742019-07-01T14:59:00.001-04:002019-07-01T14:59:13.720-04:00Note to Amber: The Stuff of Nursing<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVUO_f7cQcMPtDnmJcRd5FMuFgyqRtAJ25Xm4oLBQQZpzsWCwUiVV3nqTN3pVNle9XoI61SDPDU6JJE9wgcMTfUu6hZYpFFwTAQ75PFmaOO__E8_fLN2YnAUNJf0PvTTWq2A15yJpvxT8/s1600/hands+article.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="553" data-original-width="900" height="245" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVUO_f7cQcMPtDnmJcRd5FMuFgyqRtAJ25Xm4oLBQQZpzsWCwUiVV3nqTN3pVNle9XoI61SDPDU6JJE9wgcMTfUu6hZYpFFwTAQ75PFmaOO__E8_fLN2YnAUNJf0PvTTWq2A15yJpvxT8/s400/hands+article.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div>
<i><br /></i></div>
<div>
<i>When I started teaching nursing 15 years ago, I was still a pretty new nurse myself. What's more, in the middle of my first year as a nursing instructor, my infant son required emergency surgery, and I had to scramble to keep everything together. </i></div>
<div>
<i><br /></i></div>
<div>
<i>Somehow, despite my inexperience and stressful life circumstances, the first cohort of students I taught that year made it through, and they went on to become successful nurses. Some of them—wonder of wonders!</i><i>—are still friendly with me and keep in touch. </i></div>
<div>
<i><br /></i></div>
<div>
<i>One of them is Amber. Recently I stumbled across a note I wrote Amber soon after she graduated and started her nursing career. With Amber's permission, I'm posting it here unedited. Maybe it'll be an encouragement to nursing students and new nursing faculty alike.</i></div>
<div>
__________________________</div>
<br />
I threw you and your colleagues to the wolves, Amber, but still you all survived. <br />
<br />
Fundamentals of nursing was a whole new world for both of us that year—for you as a student, for me as an instructor. When we got to clinicals at Elkhart General, we all learned some significant things the hard way! <br />
<br />
Still, with God’s help, you persevered, only to be shell-shocked by med-surg the following spring, as <a href="https://onethousandwordsaweek.wordpress.com/2013/11/17/what-we-teach-them-in-nursing-school/" target="_blank">taught</a> by a very green instructor. The course content was challenging enough, but you had the additional challenge of trying to follow someone teaching it for the very first time. Space helmets, whoopee cushions, and rubber chickens helped some, but they couldn’t make up completely for all the chaos. <br />
<br />
And, still, you survived. <br />
<br />
Clearly, if God brought you through the wildness of that first year of nursing school, He really wants you to do this! <br />
<br />
I’ll never forget, Amber, how you and your colleagues cared for my family that fall semester—how you gave up your time (and money!) to spend an evening with the kids so that Nancy and I could go out; how you tidied up the house and did the laundry that same night; how you worried and prayed and were patient with me when Nicholas required <a href="http://www.ncregister.com/blog/becker/of-eugenics-down-syndrome-and-defects-of-the-heart" target="_blank">emergency heart surgery</a>. <br />
<br />
And that’s the real nursing stuff, the true nursing stuff. Sure, you’ve learned all that other stuff you need to be an RN—all the chemistry and pathophysiology and skills—no question! To me, however, what really makes you a nurse is what you demonstrated from the very beginning: A love for Jesus that spills over and splashes everybody around you. <br />
<br />
Dorothy Day <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=FbxP993BHqkC&pg=PA124&lpg=PA124&dq=#v=onepage&q&f=false" target="_blank">wrote</a>, “When you love people, you see all the good in them, all the Christ in them. God sees Christ, His Son, in us and loves us. And so we should see Christ in others, <i>and nothing else, </i>and love them. There can never be enough of it.” You were doing that before you were a nurse, and now you can do it as a nurse. May God richly bless you as you move forward with your profession, Amber, and may He continue to bless others through your vocation of love.<br />__________________________Rick Beckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16505445273155568741noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9029439584068909187.post-2259381532843161632019-06-01T22:53:00.001-04:002019-07-09T08:34:40.057-04:00A Saint for Pirate-y Things: St. Symeon of Syracuse<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIAxr0DpR220nH8zLEmU167mNdZyF3XilqsyzhVy3KluwSMpQC2S65F1vuQkSGKAkVAtFLYk8-q20I9eFfWMhJgVPwEuypZJ3FyP4_BkkPnxzWdzMjp8qwbS8pvdYQtmMAzMNOVnLpdfY/s1600/Simeon_Trier_3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="566" data-original-width="777" height="291" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIAxr0DpR220nH8zLEmU167mNdZyF3XilqsyzhVy3KluwSMpQC2S65F1vuQkSGKAkVAtFLYk8-q20I9eFfWMhJgVPwEuypZJ3FyP4_BkkPnxzWdzMjp8qwbS8pvdYQtmMAzMNOVnLpdfY/s400/Simeon_Trier_3.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<b>Real pirates, both past and present, aren’t amiable.</b> They rape and pillage and kill. They’re nothing to laugh about. <br />
<br />
Nevertheless, growing up, I thought of pirates as chummy and amusing when I thought about them at all. And I pretty much only thought about them when my family made its annual summer trek to Southern California for sun, swim, and Disneyland. <br />
<br />
“Pirates of the Caribbean” was merely a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pirates_of_the_Caribbean_(attraction)" target="_blank">ride</a> back then (this was <i>way</i> before Johnny Depp), and the buccaneers who populated that ride were all smiles and joviality and “Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate’s life for me.” I imagine it’s the same jokey image of pirates that younger generations adopted after repeated exposure to the VeggieTales Silly Song starring Larry the Cucumber and friends. “Well, I've never plucked a rooster and I'm not too good at ping-pong,” <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jrMmy3jHoVY" target="_blank">sings Larry</a> the slothful swashbuckler. Heh-heh, pirates for kids – you gotta’ love ‘em!<br />
<br />
It's an association that's in keeping with this hagiographic curiosity: St. Nicholas (as in Santa Claus) is not only a patron saint of children, but also the <a href="https://www.stnicholascenter.org/pages/people/" target="_blank">patron saint of pirates</a> – yet only <i>repentant </i>pirates I’d think. You’d hope that saints wouldn’t be patronizing <i>practicing </i>pirates, right?<br />
<br />
<b>Right, although that raises a question: </b>What if you’re dealing with one of the practicing kind? What if you’re sailing the Seven Seas and you get attacked – and it’s not VeggieTale attackers? Since St. Nick is busy with his pirates in rehab, who’s your go-to intercessor going to be?<br />
<br />
Some might suggest <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albinus_of_Angers" target="_blank">St. Albinus of Angers</a>, the 6th-century French abbot and bishop who used to ransom members of his flock who’d been snatched by pirates trawling the Loire River. However, prayers to St. Albinus would only make sense if you’d been taken by surprise and were already in fetters. What about a saintly somebody to plead your cause if pirates are just <i>about </i>to board your vessel – <i>yikes! </i>– and you’re hoping to escape unscathed?<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCISYPKRmYSEIB2Sj67-iHscNWhIFdLCtCDa73hfz0yXdFCrCQfMW_N7xXhR1bxCz6vSwjS3ZkEUYlSZV50A-TCZ8ZKjJdJ3hsiR8lz96mNrDVcQtlhpy_jPqkNL0m7Q7uMsqsFNOctxY/s1600/Simeon_web.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="478" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCISYPKRmYSEIB2Sj67-iHscNWhIFdLCtCDa73hfz0yXdFCrCQfMW_N7xXhR1bxCz6vSwjS3ZkEUYlSZV50A-TCZ8ZKjJdJ3hsiR8lz96mNrDVcQtlhpy_jPqkNL0m7Q7uMsqsFNOctxY/s200/Simeon_web.jpg" width="158" /></a></div>
That, my friend, is the purview of a saint whose feast is observed today (June 1): Symeon of Syracuse (also known as <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Symeon_of_Trier" target="_blank">Symeon of Trier</a> and Symeon of Mt. Sinai). Born in Syracuse, Sicily, around 970, Symeon’s mother was Calabrian, but his father was a Greek military officer, and so the lad was sent to Constantinople for his education. Eventually, Symeon decided upon a life in religion, was ordained a deacon in the Holy Land, and entered the ancient monastery of St. Catherine on Mt. Sinai. <br />
<br />
In 1027, Symeon was charged by his abbot to travel to France to collect alms promised by a nobleman, but he was waylaid on the Nile near Alexandria by vicious (that is, decidedly not Disneyland) pirates. Despite the fact that the brigands wiped out the ship’s crew, Symeon somehow managed to escape – <i>pfft! </i>just like that – and he landed in Antioch where he received aid. After that, Symeon made a return trip to the Holy Land and visited Rome, and by the time he finally reached France, the nobleman was dead and the alms were never collected.<br />
<br />
<b>All that adventuring took its toll on Symeon, </b>and he decided to skip the return trip to Egypt. Instead, in 1030, the settled as a recluse hermit in Trier, Germany, at the invitation of the archbishop there. Symeon was enclosed in a tower where he lived a life of prayer and fasting until his natural death on June 1, 1035. <br />
<br />
By all means, then, if you’re setting out for a leisurely cruise or a Gilligan-esque “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cfR7qxtgCgY" target="_blank">three hour tour</a>,” keep St. Symeon in mind and be ready to enlist his prayers in case you spy a Jolly Roger on the horizon.<br />
<br />
Landlubbers can invoke him as well, of course, although the pirates we face today tend to be less bloodthirsty and more given to subtler forms of plunder. “Aargh, me hearties! Your credit card interest is 18% and payment is past due!”<br />
<br />
St. Symeon, pray for us. <i>Ahoy!</i><br />
_____________________________<br /><br /><i style="font-size: small;">A version of this meditation appeared on </i><a href="https://catholicexchange.com/" style="font-size: small;" target="_blank">Catholic Exchange</a><span style="font-size: x-small;">.</span>Rick Beckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16505445273155568741noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9029439584068909187.post-3369042688894806342019-05-12T16:03:00.000-04:002019-08-13T15:59:44.706-04:00Four Last Things: Death, Judgment, Heaven, Hell<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/lXIs76ksM2o/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/lXIs76ksM2o?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
Being a Christian means embracing the Cross. <br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<b><i><a href="http://www.ncregister.com/blog/becker/10-things-to-know-about-death-judgment-heaven-and-hell" target="_blank">Read more...</a></i></b></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
__________________________</div>
Rick Beckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16505445273155568741noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9029439584068909187.post-64372116640008612322019-04-06T23:10:00.001-04:002019-04-10T08:46:05.012-04:00King St. Brychan of Wales (5th century)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzO9Y2xq7gRqbAymWIDbUViY-riLs_lkadOnZGlXM__2bD8RuQ54hdIwkYzKwqlhKk8MyIcU5qU4QBAztNUcAaPsNX9kD1GO9tdOCvWbAjlXegc8xTVRd5jwGvtaJ9Zr-DkhHCctlo8DU/s1600/Saint-Brychan-of-Brycheiniog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="303" data-original-width="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzO9Y2xq7gRqbAymWIDbUViY-riLs_lkadOnZGlXM__2bD8RuQ54hdIwkYzKwqlhKk8MyIcU5qU4QBAztNUcAaPsNX9kD1GO9tdOCvWbAjlXegc8xTVRd5jwGvtaJ9Zr-DkhHCctlo8DU/s1600/Saint-Brychan-of-Brycheiniog.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
If you check <a href="https://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=1849" target="_blank">Catholic Online</a> for the saints of April, you’ll find this curious entry for today: “St. Brychan. King of Wales, undocumented but popular saint. Brychan is credited with having twenty-four children, all saints.”<br />
<br />
So, we have a holy royal with no official pedigree, but an ostensible following – both in terms of fans as well as blessed progeny. It's a tantalizing hagiographic tidbit that invites further investigation. <br />
<br />
The cloud that obscures the true biography of this acclaimed Celtic figure is virtually impenetrable, but his name sure is linked to all kinds of history and piety. The <a href="http://www.earlybritishkingdoms.com/bios/brychbbg.html" target="_blank">story goes</a> that Brychan was an Irish prince that landed in South Wales as a youth after his family took charge of the kingdom of Garthmadrun – now known as Brycheiniog in honor of the saint. After his father’s death, Brychan inherited the mantle of leadership and was said to have developed into a godly and just ruler, as well as a firm supporter of the Church. <br />
<br />
He was also a fierce opponent when threatened and tenacious in combat. It is said that a rival, King Gwynllyw, sought to wed Brychan’s beloved daughter, Gwladys, but that Brychan turned him down. After Princess Gwynllyw was kidnapped, a tremendous battle between the two monarchs ensued which required the intervention of <a href="https://www.ncronline.org/blogs/ncr-today/day-st-gwladys-and-st-gwynllyw" target="_blank">King Arthur himself</a> to produce a peace. St. Gwladys did go on to marry King Gwynllyw (also a saint), and, according to a 11th-century chronicle, their children included yet another holy personage, the abbot <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadoc" target="_blank">St. Cadoc</a>.<br />
<br />
And that’s the thing about Brychan’s legacy: It’s brimming with saints. They’re practically strewn about in Brychan’s story like plush occasional pillows in a redecorated living room – here, there, so many that you no longer notice them. It’s mainly his <a href="http://catholicsaints.info/saint-brychan-of-brycheiniog/" target="_blank">many saintly children</a>, borne of his three (or four) successive marriages, not to mention his saintly grandchildren and on down the luminous line. There’s Ss. Adwen and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keyne" target="_blank">Keyne</a>, Wenna and Menefrida. Even his childhood tutor, Drichian, was known to have been a saint. <br />
<br />
On the other hand, it’s also likely that some folks in the Middle Ages were inclined to <a href="http://blackoliver.com/getperson.php?personID=I811&tree=fullmain" target="_blank">associate their lineage</a> with Brychan’s as a shortcut to pious respectability. So many, in fact, that although the number 24 (as quoted by Catholic Online) is the most commonly mentioned, there’s really no way of telling how many kids were sired by the king – 50? 60? Who knows?<br />
<br />
Yet even that fudging of family trees is a backhanded compliment to the Brychan narrative, regardless of how accurate it is. It’s been said that “<a href="https://knowyourphrase.com/apple-does-not-fall-far-from-tree" target="_blank">the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree</a>,” and it appears that such was assumed to be the case with King Brychan – or at least his name. Why else would so many want to be in on his heritage? He might not be a canonized – or official – Saint, but Brychan certainly has left his mark of sanctity on the British Isles and beyond. <br />
<br />
As befits a man associated with so much godliness, the annals tell that he eventually surrendered his crown to one of his sons and lived out his remaining years as a hermit. Although his April 6 commemoration might be unofficial, he can hardly be overlooked on all the feast days of his saintly descendants, both real and imagined.<br />
__________________________<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>A version of this reflection appeared on </i><a href="https://catholicexchange.com/" target="_blank">Catholic Exchange</a>.</span>Rick Beckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16505445273155568741noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9029439584068909187.post-87046825439535279162019-03-10T22:57:00.004-04:002019-03-10T23:15:28.980-04:00St. John Ogilvie (1579-1615)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOGnxcjX0MNan9PR9hf5TiO2hPsMGak2y0q0m4LSQfhFBRlfrOLFnGzqL35g5FLgT64Iy-o7cxrnDFVuG9qZXoNa74Wg3dKeUTKQFFITA6HNW__wNGR9ZqrbjHv7CJn7w7tpQ8WYZmvKk/s1600/OgilvieSalamanca.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1254" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOGnxcjX0MNan9PR9hf5TiO2hPsMGak2y0q0m4LSQfhFBRlfrOLFnGzqL35g5FLgT64Iy-o7cxrnDFVuG9qZXoNa74Wg3dKeUTKQFFITA6HNW__wNGR9ZqrbjHv7CJn7w7tpQ8WYZmvKk/s400/OgilvieSalamanca.JPG" width="312" /></a></div>
<br />
You gotta’ love a sense of humor on the scaffold.<br />
<br />
Take St. Thomas More, for instance, who famously jested with his executioner. “My neck is very short,” said More from the chopping block. “Take heed, therefore, thou not strike awry for saving thine honesty.” <a href="https://www.famous-trials.com/thomasmore/997-moretrialreport" target="_blank">Court records</a> also note that “he bid the Executioner stay till he had put his Beard aside, for that had committed no Treason.” <br />
<br />
Today is the memorial of another such saintly joker <i>in extremis: </i>St. John Ogilvie, S.J.<br />
<br />
Born in Scotland, Ogilvie grew up in a devout Calvinist home. His education in continental Benedictine and Jesuit institutions afforded him broad exposure to the glories of the ancient Church, and he eventually was persuaded that Protestant critiques of Catholicism weren’t sound. <br />
<br />
At age seventeen, Ogilvie became a Catholic, and he joined the Jesuits a few years later. He was ordained in 1610, and, after serving in various capacities on the continent for a few years, Ogilvie finally received permission to return to his homeland and surreptitiously minister to the persecuted Catholic minority there.<br />
<br />
Fr. Ogilvie, disguised as a horse trader, arrived back in Scotland in 1613. He immediately began his underground service to the tiny Catholic flock around Glasgow, secretly saying Mass and administering the sacraments despite the threat of imprisonment and death. Just a year later, an informer, posing as a would-be convert, betrayed the Jesuit to the authorities. Ogilvie was arrested, tried, tortured, and sentenced to hang. <br />
<br />
There’s a hint in the <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=BQIFAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA346&lpg=PA346&dq=#v=onepage&q&f=false" target="_blank">trial proceedings</a> that Ogilvie held his precarious predicament lightly. When interrogated about his loyalty to King James as head of the English church, the Jesuit retorted that he’d no more acknowledge a king who played “runagate from God” than he would “this old hat.” Then, just before mounting the gallows, a clergyman asked him if he was afraid to die, Ogilvie shot back, “I fear death as much as you do your dinner.” <br />
<br />
G.K. Chesterton <a href="http://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/130/pg130-images.html" target="_blank">observed</a> that the “the martyr is noble, exactly because…he sets his heart outside himself.” Maybe it’s that selflessness, borne of a martyr’s total surrender of self to God, which also makes possible his mirth. <br />
<br />
Fr. John Ogilvie, S.J., was executed by hanging at Glasgow Cross on March 10, 1615. Pope St. Paul VI canonized him in 1976. <br />
____________________________Rick Beckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16505445273155568741noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9029439584068909187.post-85854179270155096862019-02-03T18:40:00.001-05:002019-02-04T10:00:18.065-05:00Blessed Tommaso da Olera (1563-1631)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUsaUddywkqk1ktJyGlCA05V6M3AXJv7bzHzPQ3S7GEQXVZMDIA4DxIDPdO5CwLJL_323wPElvYowCasPUJQ1eHmWXlMOtWuWOKPOPqEliOwzs1cGqyDsIaQn6xqEuiSWEdc6x9rx1r8A/s1600/fra-tommaso-da-olera-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="428" height="280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUsaUddywkqk1ktJyGlCA05V6M3AXJv7bzHzPQ3S7GEQXVZMDIA4DxIDPdO5CwLJL_323wPElvYowCasPUJQ1eHmWXlMOtWuWOKPOPqEliOwzs1cGqyDsIaQn6xqEuiSWEdc6x9rx1r8A/s400/fra-tommaso-da-olera-1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
Sometimes holy people are declared saints right after they die. Take <a href="http://clingingtoonions.blogspot.com/2014/12/st-benedict-josephy-labre-1748-1783.html" target="_blank">Benedict Joseph Labre</a> for instance. Within minutes of his death, the youth of Rome were running through the streets shouting, “The saint is dead! The saint is dead!” – an assessment later affirmed by unanimous acclaim. <br />
<br />
On the other hand, sometimes canonizations grind on and on...and on. Like Joan of Arc, whose sainthood wasn’t recognized until 500 years after her death.<br />
<br />
Brother Tommaso da Olera’s cause falls into the latter class, which is in line with other delays that pepper his life story.<br />
<br />
Born in 1563 in northern Italy, Tommaso labored as shepherd in his youth to help support his family. With no resources and no schools nearby, he missed out on an education, but eventually he did acquire a rudimentary literacy after joining the Capuchins at age 17. <br />
<br />
Tommaso flourished in his vocation and advanced quickly in the spiritual life. A collection of his mystical writings, <i>Fuoco d’amore </i>(“Fire of Love”), was published 50 years after his death, and it reveals a sublime grasp of ascetical theology. It was among Pope St. John XXIII’s favorite spiritual works, and the Pontiff had portions of it read to him on his death bed. <br />
<br />
The humble friar’s daily tasks included washing pots, collecting alms, and visiting the sick, but he also joyfully shared the Gospel with everyone he met. His reputation for holiness spread, and in 1619 Archduke Leopold V of Austria requested Tommaso’s assistance in confronting the spread of Lutheranism. Barely literate, Tommaso avoided disputation. Instead, with great success, he simply witnessed to Christ’s impassioned love for his Church. <br />
<br />
Br. Tommaso died in Innsbruck in 1631, and it took another 356 years before Pope John Paul II proclaimed the friar Venerable in 1987. Pope Benedict XVI authorized Tommaso's beatification in 2012, and the beatification Mass was finally celebrated by a representative of Pope Francis in 2013.<br />
<br />
Franciscans observe Bl. Tommaso's feast on May 4.<br />
_____________________________<br />
<i><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;">A shorter version of this reflection originally appeared in </span></i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Franciscan Magazine, <i><a href="https://www.franciscan.edu/" target="_blank">Franciscan University of Steubenville</a>. </i></span>Rick Beckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16505445273155568741noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9029439584068909187.post-14752719759984523902019-01-05T12:05:00.001-05:002019-03-28T21:50:50.254-04:00Eucharistic Living: Daily Mass<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/jsX5q_YmrUs/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/jsX5q_YmrUs?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></div>
<br />
I go to Mass every day because I want to be with him – to be there where he is, to talk to him and to listen (although, to tell the truth, I do more talking than listening, but I’m working on that). That is, I want to commune with him whether or not I can receive communion. It’s like being at home with him, even when I, out of respect, have to forego inviting him to take up residence in me.<br />
<br />
That doesn’t happen often, but when it does, I’ll find my way to my usual spot on Mary’s side, between <a href="https://clingingtoonions.blogspot.com/2016/10/daily-mass.html" target="_blank">Simon of Cyrene and St. Veronica</a>, throw my arms across the back of the pew, and bask in the liturgy. Such days are unanticipated little gifts that hearken back to my youthful Romance of Eucharistic fasting. I get to briefly relive the anticipation of my eager Catholic-wannabe days and I’ll leave all the more eager to properly anticipate actual communion with my Lord the next day.<br />
______________________Rick Beckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16505445273155568741noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9029439584068909187.post-19477334984776349562018-12-01T10:32:00.002-05:002018-12-03T10:01:32.160-05:00St. Edmund Campion and the Advent of Advent<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkI3hT7P3xdclFRofwr4AQUHxhKzqBdUIuOiND2Y8phcruoinU67RGdiQahe6LjscYI4b9youOkYJLrqiY89CdJFUnwrvMkJzRW2EV7HHEsxyi7jlXsqqD2Nm2G2PG5cjrufa08OA464I/s1600/Edmund-Campion-NPG.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="515" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkI3hT7P3xdclFRofwr4AQUHxhKzqBdUIuOiND2Y8phcruoinU67RGdiQahe6LjscYI4b9youOkYJLrqiY89CdJFUnwrvMkJzRW2EV7HHEsxyi7jlXsqqD2Nm2G2PG5cjrufa08OA464I/s400/Edmund-Campion-NPG.jpg" width="257" /></a></div>
<b>It’s the First Sunday of Advent </b>– it’s finally here! But, in truth, it actually started late on Saturday.<br />
<br />
That’s because, liturgically, Sunday always begins late on Saturday. It’s a ritual reckoning of the Sabbath – sunset to sunset – that we inherited from Judaism, and it’s why we celebrate Sunday Mass as early as Saturday afternoon.<br />
<br />
It’s also why Sundays have two celebrations of Evening Prayer in the Liturgy of the Hours: First Vespers is prayed on Saturday in the p.m., and Second Vespers on Sunday itself. Thus, even when we don’t attend the Vigil Mass, our corporate Sunday observances are initiated by priests and religious (and laity) who intone Evening Prayer I the night before.<br />
<br />
And here’s how Evening Prayer I kicks off the First Sunday of Advent every year: “Proclaim the good news among the nations: Our God will come to save us.” It’s the antiphon that heralds the first psalm of First Vespers for the First Sunday of Advent. In a sense, it’s the <a href="https://godhauntedlunatic.wordpress.com/2014/11/30/it-ends-it-begins-the-first-sunday-of-advent/" target="_blank">advent of Advent</a>, the first little liturgical hint that something big is on its way.<br />
<br />
<b>It’s also an appropriate bridge this year</b> between Advent Sunday #1 and the day that precedes it – Saturday, December 1 – which marked the feast of the English Jesuit martyr, <a href="https://www.ignatianspirituality.com/ignatian-voices/16th-and-17th-century-ignatian-voices/st-edmund-campion-sj" target="_blank">St. Edmund Campion</a> (1540-1581), a true proclaimer to the nations.<br />
<br />
Campion came of age during the English Reformation and his studies at Oxford led him to question the Crown’s usurpation of papal authority. At great risk, he threw away a career in the Church of England and traveled to Rome to pursue a Catholic vocation in the Society of Jesus.<br />
<br />
After ordination, Campion taught for a time, but in 1580 he returned to his homeland to surreptitiously serve the persecuted Catholic minority. As a priest-outlaw, St. Edmund was always on the lam, and he regularly made use of <a href="https://catholicexchange.com/st-edmund-campion-and-our-vocation-to-holy-artifice" target="_blank">disguises</a> so that he could better minister to the faithful.<br />
<br />
Betrayed by a spy and convicted of treason in 1581, Fr. Campion suffered a brutal martyrdom on Dec. 1. Yet that wasn’t the end of the story. Campion’s heroic efforts and courageous example helped the English Catholic Church survive its period of persecution, and it emerged intact and vibrant in the modern era.<br />
<br />
<b>St. Edmund’s life was an advent of proclamation.</b> May his prayers aid us in imitating his resolve to proclaim the Good News.<br />
___________________________________<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>A version of this meditation appeared on </i><a href="https://catholicexchange.com/st-edmund-campion-and-the-advent-of-advent" target="_blank">Catholic Exchange</a>.<i> It originally appeared in the Sunday bulletin of <a href="https://stjoemish.com/" target="_blank">St. Joseph Catholic Church</a>, Mishawaka, Indiana. </i></span>Rick Beckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16505445273155568741noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9029439584068909187.post-52357144293180465762018-11-11T23:35:00.000-05:002018-11-12T15:59:53.245-05:00Veterans Day 2018<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6InTteuqXLeo1VKyIXaUYyQ5LemxAVhX8yZcC7R5ioenHzB1jwnW5bqz14CiSsXenWe8cveq4dXlpo67DxTcaVpls7LjA_iF60W-d4JgU42qtFXw-I60iJ1dsupRljNsUInt-onVG7vo/s1600/P6M5LBPGSQ35DLTJ5CXP5UIJN4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="894" data-original-width="960" height="372" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6InTteuqXLeo1VKyIXaUYyQ5LemxAVhX8yZcC7R5ioenHzB1jwnW5bqz14CiSsXenWe8cveq4dXlpo67DxTcaVpls7LjA_iF60W-d4JgU42qtFXw-I60iJ1dsupRljNsUInt-onVG7vo/s400/P6M5LBPGSQ35DLTJ5CXP5UIJN4.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<b><br /></b>
<b>Although I get (and distribute) the New York Catholic Worker newspaper, </b>I rarely read it all the way through – as I used to do when I was hanging around Chicago’s <a href="http://sites.nd.edu/oblation/2014/03/26/love-lessons-in-uptown/" target="_blank">St. Francis CW House</a>. But I’m older and cranky and tired most the time now. When the CW bundle arrives in our mailbox every month or two, I’ll usually lay the pile out flat, scan the headlines for names I recognize, and then distribute them in our church’s vestibule the next time I’m there for Mass. “I’m sure somebody will benefit from these,” I’ll mutter. <br />
<br />
Last week, however, for some reason, some providential reason, I leafed through a copy of the latest issue, page by page. That’s when I came across Dan Jackson’s moving testimonial, “Dorothy Was Right All Along.” He’s referring to CW founder Dorothy Day’s pacifism, which was unequivocal. Like Jackson, I found <a href="http://clingingtoonions.blogspot.com/2018/07/in-gratitude-for-fresh-glimpse-at.html" target="_blank">Day’s Christianity</a> inspiring in my youth, but I held back from her call to total nonviolence. “I might get married and have children someday,” I argued (with anyone who’d listen), “and I’d have responsibility for protecting them, even if it required returning violence for violence.” And I am married, and I do have children today, and I would do whatever was necessary to protect them. <br />
<br />
But war is another matter altogether. It seems impossible to reconcile modern, total war with the relative niceties of <a href="https://www.catholic.com/just-war" target="_blank">just war criteria</a>. The aims of today’s wars are especially elusive and fungible, yet the costs are always incalculable. Jackson’s poignant reflection was a stark reminder of the latter. He describes an epiphany he had while working at a Catholic cemetery one summer. He’d witnessed numerous military burials, but one in particular jarred his soul.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
No one spoke. No one coughed. The twenty-one gun salute reverberated under the arches of the nearby Whitestone Bridge. The only sound at the gravesite was the uncontrolled sobbing of this boy’s father. As they never had before, my eyes filled with tears. That was the day I stopped doubting Dorothy. That was the day I became sure that she was right all along.</blockquote>
<b>I had Jackson’s testimonial in mind as Veterans Day arrived this year</b> – the hundredth anniversary of the end of World War I. A friend of mine posted a <a href="https://metro.co.uk/2018/11/07/eerie-recording-reveals-moment-the-guns-fell-silent-at-the-end-of-ww1-8114109/" target="_blank">recording</a> from that day in 1918 when the guns went silent along the front. It’s surreal: one moment Europeans bent on slaughtering each other across stretches of land, the next moment there was calm. You can even hear the birds begin singing after the pause.<br />
<br />
But it was a calm arranged by the very parties who’d initiated the conflict in the first place, and it prompted me to track down a movie that depicts a different, more organic ceasefire that preceded the Armistice by several years. The movie is <i><a href="https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/joyeux_noel/" target="_blank">Joyeux Noël</a> </i>(2006), and it tells the tale of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas_truce" target="_blank">Christmas Truce</a> that spontaneously occurred along the French battle lines in 1914. German, French, and British soldiers put down their arms and fraternized across enemy lines. They ate and drank; they shared photos and played soccer. <br />
<br />
We watched it tonight, and I couldn’t help thinking that <i>this</i> silencing of guns was accomplished by those who were most directly affected. The men who were killing and being killed <i>themselves </i>decided to stop the slaughter. In time, their superiors compelled them to take up arms again against each other, but the men had chosen, even for a brief period, to choose against killing as a way of solving problems. It didn’t make sense to them. The cost was too high. <br />
<br />
It’s still too high.<br />
<br />
<b>Veterans Day is the day we honor the living, </b>and I do thank vets for their service and sacrifice. I’m also committed to praying for peace so that fewer of those who follow them in service will have to be commemorated on Memorial Day. <br />
____________________________________Rick Beckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16505445273155568741noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9029439584068909187.post-45985437849949271502018-10-11T10:52:00.002-04:002018-10-11T10:52:56.145-04:00A Musical Tribute to Bill W.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
My dad was an alcoholic. I loved him very much, and I know he loved me – and my brother and my sister and my mom. He was sober off and on the latter half of his life, and when he was sober, it was largely due to <a href="https://catholicexchange.com/godchildren-detox-rcia" target="_blank">A.A.</a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
Here's El Ten Eleven's tribute to Bill W., A.A.'s founder. Alcoholism is war, and I believe my dad <a href="https://catholicexchange.com/inebriate-me" target="_blank">fought valiantly</a> with the weapons at his disposal. A.A. was one of them. Thanks, Bill, indeed. Rest in peace, Dad.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/slAgMrjXcHs/0.jpg" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/slAgMrjXcHs?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>
____________________Rick Beckerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16505445273155568741noreply@blogger.com0