Beauty In The Weathered-- The Common Year Theme for April

 Yeah, yeah, I know. April is almost over. But better late than never, right?

The Common Year presents the April theme of Beauty in the Weathered.

I especially like David Rausch's contribution. It has a universal message for us all. Don't judge!

From David Rausch's essay.... 

"It's one thing to judge a person's actions but most of us usually take it a big step farther-- we put ourselves in the position of God. We cast judgment on the person. We look down on them. We judge their heart and question their character. But we do so without the ability to see what God sees-- that people are more than just a collection of their worst moments."

Read the entire contribution HERE.

The message of Jesus to not judge is commonly misunderstood today. The important warning to not accuse in our thoughts and to not put ourselves above others, has morphed in the minds of many to mean we should not acknowledge a right and wrong. This is absurd and must be the subject of another post.

David Rausch has reminded us that the most disagreeable of people, those engaging in the most unbecoming of behavior, are all still loved by God to an infinite degree. Who are we to look down on anyone? We can, of course, object to a person's behavior, but that is entirely different from identifying the behavior with the person, who is a unique and treasured child of God. He has beautiful qualities even if they are not evident. If we can't see the beauty in an individual, it is because we do not know him well enough. We must acknowledge that fact if we are to truly love our neighbor.

It might help to recall in our own lives the stupid, thoughtless things we have said or done. Would we want those times to identify who we are? As Christians we are called to give others the benefit of the doubt. Yes, just as we would like others to give us.

The poor are all around us. Some of them are even wealthy. And the Lord, Jesus, is present in each one. May we never fail to recognize him and give to him the dignity he deserves. Because Jesus is always there in what Mother Theresa has described as "the distressing disguise of the poor."

I love Peggy Noonan's writing. She always hits the nail right on the head.
Her recent opinion piece, "That Moment When 2016 Hits You" is one such example.
Hopefully, you can read the entire essay HERE. If not, I suggest you subscribe to WSJ.com. :-)
Here is a snippet:

I was offended that those curiously quick to write essays about who broke the party were usually those who’d backed the policies that broke it. Lately conservative thinkers and journalists had taken to making clear their disdain for the white working class. I had actually not known they looked down on them. I deeply resented it and it pained me. If you’re a writer lucky enough to have thoughts and be paid to express them and there are Americans on the ground struggling, suffering—some of them making mistakes, some unlucky—you don’t owe them your airy, well-put contempt, you owe them your loyalty. They too have given a portion of their love to this great project, and they are in trouble.

Yes, there is an ugliness in the current election cycle.  There is the boorishness of Donal Trump. The foolishness of Bernie Sanders. The smugness of Ted Cruz. And the barking dishonesty of Hilary Clinton. I am appalled at the insensitivity to persecuted Christian refugees in the Middle East and the contempt directed at immigrants, legal and illegal.

Noonan describes her friends' reactions to what is going on. And then how she herself came to end up in tears. "Because too much is being lost. Because the great choice in a nation of 320 million may come down to Crazy Man versus Criminal."

Marco Rubio, Rick Santorum, and Carly Fiorina had the potential to be great statesmen. But the voters have rejected them in favor of louder candidates. Yes, there is Ted Cruz. Yes, Ted. He loves the Constitution. He loves this country. But he lacks the skills of great oratory and the masses are preferring the circus act over real ideas.

Is moral relativism to blame? If there is no truth, are there no ideas to reference? No principles to invoke? Is it all about what's-in-it-for me? Or has the average politician become so materialist, so lustful for power, so slimy that the transparency of Donald Trump trumps everything else one might want in a candidate. 

Were I not a Christian I could look at this election cycle with despair. But my God reigns and I know he has a plan.  Perhaps we are being given the candidates we deserve. A case could certainly be made for that.

But it is with not a little consternation that I realize I may indeed need to decide to vote for either the Liar or the Lunatic.

The Glory of God Is All Over Everything!!

Is it here, really? Is it Spring????

For the life of me, I cannot understand how one could regard this kind of natural beauty and remain an atheist. Seriously? This was an accidental arranging of molecules? And they all happened to arrange themselves, each organism independently, to all form living things of such exquisite beauty, all at the same time??

The glory of God is all over everything!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Vatican Invitation to Bernie Sanders

Much has been made of Bernie Sander’s visit to the Vatican to speak at a conference of the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences. Members of both sides of the political spectrum fretted over the question of exactly from where the invitation originated.

Those on the left reveled in the speculation that perhaps Pope Francis approves of Sanders’ candidacy for president, and perhaps the invitation originated with him. Conservatives, especially pro-lifers, refused to believe that the Holy Father would extend an invitation to the radically pro-abortion Sanders.

Where did the invitation come from? Margaret Archer, president of the Pontifical Academy of the Social Sciences, denied that the invitation had originated with the Academy.  She told Bloomberg News that, “Sanders made the first move for obvious reasons.”  She even said specifically that Sanders “made the first move two or three days ago.”  And that “she did not know whom he or his representatives contacted.” She considered the invitation a “breach of protocol.”

Monsignor Marcelo Sanchez Sorondo, Chancellor of the Pontifical Academy of the Social Sciences, replied, “This is not true and she knows it. I invited him with her consensus.” Sorondo later added that the invitation, “…does not signify any support of the campaign.”

When asked who initiated the contact, Monsignor Sorondo repeatedly declined to answer. This is the key question. Sanders definitely received an invitation and he is not being dishonest in saying so. But did someone in his campaign contact the Pontifical Academy first? Why would Monsignor Sorondo not answer that question directly when asked more than once?  Adding to the confusion, the Daily Beast reported that Sorondo volunteered “…Perhaps the others [candidates] would have been interested but they did not request to come.”

Bloomberg.com said of the controversy, “The office of the Pope moved to distance the pontiff from the visit. Father Frederico Lombardi, the Pope’s spokesman, said Sanders had been invited ‘not by the pope but by the Pontifical Academy of the Social Sciences.’”

Did the Sanders campaign ask for an invitation? That would explain why Monsignor Sorondo declined to answer the question of who initiated the contact. Is this a conflict between Margaret Archer, the president of the Pontifical Academy, and the chancellor, Monsignor Sorondo? Perhaps Monsignor Sorondo chose to invite him without consulting Margaret Archer and does not want to admit it?

We will probably never know, although Monsignor’s comment that the other candidates “did not request to come, “ raises some questions.

We do know that the invitation did not come from Pope Francis.

Contrary to earlier reports, Senator Sanders was able to meet the Pope.  The New York Times reported that a personal secretary of the Holy Father told Sanders that if he were in the foyer of the Casa Santa Marta, where the pope resides and where Senator Sanders was staying, at 6:00 AM, when the pope would be heading to the airport, he could speak briefly with him.

The Holy Father said of the meeting, “This morning when I was leaving, Senator Sanders was there…He knew I was leaving at that time, and he had the courtesy to greet me.”

No photos were permitted at the meeting.

The Times reported that the Holy Father said, “I shook his hand and nothing more. If someone thinks that greeting someone means getting involved in politics,” (laughing), “I recommend that he find a psychiatrist.”

Blaise Meets His Great-Grandma!!

We recently traveled to Florida to introduce Blaise to his Great-Grandma. Mom (my mother-in-law) could not keep her eyes off him.

Mom could talk of nothing else. How adorable he is! How intelligent he looks! How strong he is. Truly exceptional. :-) Of course, she got no argument from us.

Blaise was the star of the dining room. Not only did he absorb all of Mom's attention, everyone there wanted to watch Blaise. Come over here, they would gesture to my daughter. Bring him to see us. And, on the rare occasion that he was crying a little, they would all holler advice, You need a rocking chair, Honey!

There is something so very special about having four generations of family all in one place. The parent child bond is very powerful, as is the grandparent-grandchild bond. When the great grandparent is added, the generational ties feel all the more precious. I guess it is because quite often the great-grandparents are not around when a baby is born and that connection is felt only in pictures and stories.
                                            

Since Great-Grandma lives in Florida, there was the mandatory trip to the beach....Blaise's first glimpse of the ocean.

All covered up! Of course!

Then back to Grandma's at dinnertime. She could scarcely take her eyes off him. It was adorable.

Blaise will not remember this trip. But one day he will see this picture of his great-grandmother, his grandfather, his mother, and himself as an infant. 

Four generations in one photo. Heirloom material. We all agreed it was a trip well taken.

Cursive Writing-- Is It Valuable?

Should cursive writing no longer be taught in the schools? I have read with alarm this suggestion. There are so many important uses for cursive writing. There are lists and notes to write. What would constitute a signature if we no longer used cursive?

Handwritten notes and letters have a unique role to play in human communication. A handwritten thank you note is more meaningful than an email or a text. Emails and texts are, by their very nature, abbreviated and to the point. Such messaging is convenient, efficient, and very useful. 

But a letter written in cursive serves a much broader purpose. The handwriting itself is personal. We still recognize the handwriting of those close to us. Because a letter is not intended to communicate quick information, its content is also considerably different from electronic communication. When I write a letter to one of my children, I talk about incidental events of the day: what I've done, what I will be doing, activities of other family members, the weather, random thoughts, etc. It's a kind of snapshot of what is on my mind on that particular day. A letter is very personal, very warm, and very reflective of the writer's thoughts and even of the writer's feelings toward the reader.

Today's Wall Street Journal contains a fascinating piece by Robert Lee Hotz entitled "The Power of Handwriting." The article discusses the results of studies comparing the effectiveness of notes taken by college students using a laptop and notes taken by hand. Those typing their notes record about 33 words per minutes, while those handwriting them only get about 22. But those using the longhand notes remember more of the material, even a week later. Part of the reason may be that those typing tend to record what they are hearing verbatim, while those using longhand do not.

For me, I think typing notes would be difficult and less effective for another reason. My notes always take on a kind of outline form. A main topic starts at the left margin and subtopics are indented. That kind of form is time consuming, if you're typing. You have to use tabs and hyphens and who knows what the laptop might think you're trying to do and thus mess up the format you're trying to use. (I find computers are the most aggravating when they are trying to be "helpful.")

Anyway, so note taking is another useful way to use cursive handwriting that just may be more helpful than tapping those full sentences out on your laptop.

Succinct Summary of the Case for the Little Sisters of the Poor-- Great Read in WSJ

John Garvey, president of Catholic University of America, has written an excellent opinion piece in today's Wall Street Journal.

An illustrious attorney himself, President Garvey boils the legal arguments down in a way that anyone can understand. Succinct and to the point, this essay is a brilliant summary of why the HHS mandate violates religious freedom.

I confess I did not know who John Garvey was before today. But on reading this piece my first thought was that the author must be an attorney. My second thought was I hope that the Little Sisters of the Poor, Catholic University of America, and all the other plaintiffs have an attorney who can explain things as well as Garvey can.

Here is a snippet:

The Affordable Care Act requires employers like Catholic University to carry health insurance. The problem we are trying to solve arises because HHS has imposed a further obligation to cover “preventive services,” and insisted that either we or our agent (the insurance company) pay for them. A more tolerant solution would be for the federal government to fund “preventive services.” But President Obama had to promise not to do that to get the law passed. A still more tolerant solution would be to exempt religious organizations like ours from a duty to pay for services that go against the fundamental tenets of our faith.

Read the entire piece "ObamaCare vs. Little Sisters of the Poor" at this link.

Marco Rubio has suspended his campaign.

I voted for him. I voted for him because he was conservative, (Yes, conservative despite his attempts to arrive at a bipartisan solution for immigration. He approached the immigration issue with common sense and compassion), intelligent, articulate, and principled. Sadly, I see none of those qualities in the current front runner.

I voted for him because he seemed a man of strong faith. Before one of the debates he got down on his knees and wrote a cross on his nameplate.

He defended the family and the unborn. I believed he had a clear sense of right and wrong.

In short, I believed, and still believe, that Marco Rubio is a man of integrity.

Had I not been convinced of all these things, his speech last night would have done so. I hope you will listen to it, if the above link works. :-) Sometimes, it doesn't.

Here is the text of the conclusion (from the LA Times.)

.......And I want to leave with an expression of gratitude to God in whose hands all things lie. He has a plan for every one of our lives. Everything that comes from God is good. God is perfect. God makes no mistakes. And he has things planned for all of us. And we await eagerly to see what lies ahead. And so I leave tonight with one final prayer, and I use the words of King David because I remain grateful to God:
    “Yours O Lord is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, indeed everything that is in the heavens and the earth. Yours is the dominion, O Lord, and you exalt yourself as head overall. Both riches and honor come from you and you rule over all. And in your hand is power and might and it lies in your hand to make great and to strengthen everyone.”
     May God strengthen our people. May God strengthen our nation. May God strengthen the conservative movement. May God strengthen the Republican Party. May God strengthen our eventual nominee. And may God always bless and strengthen this great nation, the United States of America. Thank you and God bless you all. Thank you very much.

These are the words of a good and decent man. Marco Rubio is young. I hope he will run again.

Daniel Henninger has written an insightful opinion piece in today's Wall Street Journal  "Trump Is Killing Cruz: Ted Cruz had  plausible election strategy until Donald Trump stole it."
You might be able to link to the entire article HERE, but it could require an online subscription. If so, I highly recommend getting one. I read the Wall Street Journal, at least the Opinion Page every day. Well thought out, well reasoned articles, not the usual mud slinging, scarcely nuanced hysteria of some other publications.
Henninger made this excellent point that many people don't really understand:

Donald Trump is properly understood as running an independent candidacy from inside the formal structure of the Republican Party, as Mike Bloomberg did to run for mayor of New York City. Nothing remotely resembling a political party is associated with Mr. Trump. 

That's it. Trump is not a republican. He is not a conservative. He is NOT supported by the party. Who his supporters are is a mystery. But I think we can say with certainty that they are not individuals who truly understand or embrace conservatism. There may also be a number of people who really don't pay much attention to politics or political ideas, but are just taken in by the hoopla. And then there are some conservatives in the media...I don't know. Are they infatuated with him? Does his antipathy toward immigrants fuel a certain ugly animosity within them. I don't know. But what I do know is that he does not, in any way, shape, or form, represent republicanism.

Another good point:

The Cruz camp might argue that it has as much chance as Marco Rubio in a one-on-one contest against the Trump 33%. It’s far from clear, though, that the Rubio-Bush-Kasich vote would default to Sen. Cruz. The Cruz media-support operation for years has ridiculed vast swaths of the Republican Party, including lifelong Reagan conservatives, as the abhorrent “mainstream” or the “donor class.”

The media (and especially Trump supporters) keep saying that other candidates' dropping out of the race will be split among those remaining. I agree with Henninger. They are more likely to go to Rubio or, and this is scary, to Trump. Bush and Kasich are very different candidates than Cruz. 

This is the strangest election I can remember. (Sorry about the inconsistent line spacing. Couldn't get it to work.)

A Few Random Political Thoughts..

So...Trump has handily won Nevada, but since it is not a winner take all state, Cruz and Rubio also received some delegates.

What's going to happen from here? If Kasich and Carson do not drop out, there will have to be a major event to stop Trump from getting the nomination.

Even if Kasich and Carson do drop out, all or nearly all of their support would have to go to only Cruz or only Rubio.

It doesn't look like Kasich and Carson will drop out anytime soon. Course, it never looks that way until they actually do it. We can hope.

The Trump phenomenon  has me completely baffled. Otherwise intelligent people are all transfixed by him. I'll grant you that there is something appealing about a politician with no filters.

But Trump not only has no filters, he also has no policy. No one knows what a Trump presidency would look like. Is he conservative? We don't know, but what we do know is that he appears to not be.

Is Trump for fiscal responsibility? I have not heard him talk about balancing the budget, reducing the debt or reducing the size of government. You think he can do that because he's a successful businessman? Well, sure, he probably has the ability, but does he have the desire? We really don't know.

Is he conservative on the social/moral issues? I don't know. He has flip flopped a great deal on abortion, even supporting partial birth abortion at one time. When someone has changed to that degree, I like to hear an explanation of the conversion.

What kind of Supreme Court justices would he appoint? We don't know. We don't even know if he understands the role of the Supreme Court, do we?

What kind of commander-in-chief would he be? Well, he has blamed 9/11 on George W. Bush, in a rant that seemed completely unhinged. He also blamed Bush for the current state of the Middle East. That sounds more like a democrat to me.

The bottom line is that we don't know what Trump would do as president. Yes, he would build a wall. Is that so important that all the other issues don't matter? And is his mass deportation plan perhaps just a bit lacking in Christian charity? Not to mention his derogatory remarks about Hispanics.

And while on the topic of Hispanics, why the heck does he keep questioning Cruz and Rubio's eligibility to run? It looks suspiciously as though his own race and ethnicity are those traits he most associates with being an American. The Let's stick it to our trade partners who are ripping us off theme is along the same lines, not to mention the wall, the mass deportations, and the anti-immigrant rhetoric.

I think the guy is a loose cannon, and I can't believe there is a large number of voters (ostensibly republicans) who are actually voting for him.

Father Paul Scalia's Homily at His Father's Funeral

On February 20th, the day of Justice Scalia's funeral, USA Today published a transcript of Father Paul Scalia's homily which he delivered with great courage and grace at his own father's funeral. Read the entire transcript here.

Father Scalia began by graciously thanking many people. One line particularly struck me.

In particular I thank Cardinal Wuerl, first for reaching out so quickly and so graciously to console our mother. It was a consolation to her and therefore to us as well. 

It consoled her and therefore the rest of the family. Here is a man who cares deeply for his mother. Impressive. He went on:

Thank you also for allowing us to have this parish funeral Mass here in this basilica dedicated to Our Lady. What a great privilege and consolation that we were able to bring our father through the holy doors and for him gain the indulgence promised to those who enter in faith.

So VERY Catholic. A plenary indulgence. Indeed. Such a consolation.

Then Father Scalia went into the heart of his homily:

We are gathered here because of one man. A man known personally to many of us, known only by reputation to even more. A man loved by many, scorned by others. A man known for great controversy, and for great compassion. That man, of course, is Jesus of Nazareth.

It is He whom we proclaim. Jesus Christ, son of the father, born of the Virgin Mary, crucified, buried, risen, seated at the right hand of the Father. It is because of him. because of his life, death and resurrection that we do not mourn as those who have no hope, but in confidence we commend Antonin Scalia to the mercy of God.

Wow. I imagine not a single person thought he was not talking about his father as a man loved and scorned, known for great controversy and compassion. It was not a joke. Father Scalia had beautifully pivoted our attention from his great father to Our Lord and Savior, the reason for our hope.

The entire homily was very focused on Jesus Christ, interspersed with personal elements and humor.

But more important to us — and to him — is that he was Dad. He was the father that God gave us for the great adventure of family life. Sure he forgot our names at times, or mixed them up, but there are nine of us.

So sweet.

He was a practicing Catholic, "practicing" in the sense that he hadn't perfected it yet. Or rather, Christ was not yet perfected in him. And only those in whom Christ is brought to perfection can enter heaven. We are here, then, to lend our prayers to that perfecting, to that final work of God's grace, in freeing Dad from every encumbrance of sin.

How well Father Scalia evangelized in this homily. How proud his father must have been.

Rest in peace, Justice Scalia. You raised some fine children You served your country well. You were the father of a fine priest. Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord, and let the perpetual light shine upon him. May his soul and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.

Tired of Politics....Hoping This Video Will Load... Blaise!!!!

This is my grandson, Blaise! I have to acknowledge that I might be a bit biased (do ya think?), but is he not adorable??? Since it's not clear that the above video will actually load, here are some still shots..

 Yes, Captain Cutie!

 Blaise with his Auntie Esther!

Blaise with Grandpa!

I'm completely smitten with this little guy!

Donald Trump Is Not Suited to the Presidency

While his bluntness can be a refreshing change from politically correct speech, Donald Trump is unqualified to be president and clearly not a conservative. I wish his supporters would wake up and see that his nomination would be a disaster for the Republican Party.

William Galston in today's Wall Street Journal writes "Trump's Hostile GOP Takeover" subtitled, How can evangelicals support a candidate with such deep-seated flaws? (I have been unable to link to the article. You could try going to www.wsj.com

Indeed, that is the question. Galston writes, "It is hard to decide which is a greater threat to the republic-- Donald Trump's pervasive ignorance or his deep-seated character flaws."

He's not a conservative. In fact, it's difficult to say what he is. He parrots some conservative platitudes, but he also contradicts himself on key issues. He said he would defund Planned Parenthood. Then he said he would fund only non-abortion services of Planned Parenthood because he "cherishes women." Please.

He gets things done? Well, he has developed a lot of real estate. The presidency of the United States requires another whole skill set.

He's boorish, immature, thin-skinned, and bullyish.

That he has the polls numbers he has is just incomprehensible to me.

Donald Trump? Seriously?

As I look at the poll numbers of voters who are supporting Donald Trump, I remain completely baffled. Yes, the man is, in some ways, refreshingly politically incorrect and bold. I say refreshingly only because most politicians weigh their words so carefully that you have to be a detective to find out what they truly think. Donald Trump seems to have no filters whatsoever.

The problem with Trump is that no one seems to really know what is policy positions are. He wants to make American great again? OK. How? How would a great America look to Donald Trump? He would have a strong military, he says, and he would take care of veterans. OK. But he also says that he and Putin would be friends, and that it's fine with him if Putin wants to bomb ISIS in Syria. He has the most simplistic view of the situation in the Middle East and the threat of ISIS. Personally, especially at this point in time, I want a president who thoroughly understands all the issues and dynamics of the Middle East. Not one that wants to be friends with Putin.

Trump has threatened to sue Ted Cruz for saying that he would appoint liberal Supreme Court justices. Trump's sister, Maryanne Trump Barry, is on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in Philadelphia. Those who are pro-life might want to know that she ruled in favor of partial birth abortion. Trump has said publicly that his sister would make a "phenomenal" Supreme Court judge. If Maryanne Trump Barry is someone he thinks would be a great justice, why should we not conclude that Trump would nominate liberal justices? Just asking.

Trump says his administration would be "special." I want to know how it would be special. What is Trump's vision of special?

He says he wants to be unpredictable as president. Really? Unpredictable? I want a president whose policies are very predictable, because he ran on them. I don't want a surprise president.

He's a bully around his challengers. He's boorish. He uses objectionable language. He's childish and thin-skinned. He couldn't even handle criticism from Megyn Kelly.

He'll get things done? He probably would. But WHAT would he get done? Shouldn't we know before casting a vote for him?

Last Saturday I found myself at Costco in the middle of the afternoon. It was the only time I could get there. It seemed to be the worst time to go.

It was crowded. The aisles were packed, some so full you couldn't get though them. Three people at the meat counter seemed to be having some kind of committee meeting about what to buy, right in front of the section I needed to reach. I couldn't find the one item I needed to get for dinner that night. And the cart was heavy. I was tired. My arms were hurting from working out the day before...

Let's just say I had a bad attitude.

Then it occurred to me. Here I was in Costco with a full cart of grocery items, many of which I did not even need. I live in a country where the vast majority of people do not suffer from hunger. (And many of them were right there in Costco.) :-) And instead of thanking God for his countless blessings, I was complaining. Instead of realizing that having enough food is a gift from God, I was griping about the heaviness of the cart, the extra time it took to shop with so many other blessed people, and the fact that I couldn't get the one item I had wanted.

Wow. I had to repent.

Lord, may I never overlook (or complain!) about the numerous ways you have blessed my life. Help me not to be that spoiled child who must have everything her way. Help me to see the truth about my life. And please forgive me, Lord, for the pride that says I must not be inconvenienced.

The Common Year: A year of music, writing, art, stories, and much more.....

The plaque on my wall says, "There Is Always, Always, Always Something To Be Thankful For." When I saw it for sale at the Dixboro General Store, I knew I needed to have that where it would be frequently seen.

 Every day is full of beauty, love, and the Presence of God. It really is.

OK. I'll grant you that not every day feels like a good day. In fact, on some days it can even feel that nearly everything has gone wrong. Yet, indeed, there is always something to be thankful for.

There are loved ones. There is the sunshine (sometimes) or a beautiful sunrise or sunset. Every season has it's beauty. And there are the things that the exceptionally blessed people (myself included) regularly overlook. Food on the table, a roof over our head, the warmth and comfort of home and beds, family, friends,...

How often do we just overlook the Beauty in the Common.

There is the darling child who just walked by, the smile returned to you by a cashier, the understanding of a friend, the joke that makes you laugh, that magnificent tree that you rarely look at, the lovely photo on Facebook.... The beauty is everywhere in the simple common things that are the stuff of life.

Ian Simkins is a pastor, a writer, a kind and generous man, and truly something of a philosopher. (He also just happens to be the brother of my son-in-law.) He has put together the project, Beauty in the Common, and the fascinating multidimensional offshoot, The Common Year.

The Common Year is divided into twelve themes, one for each month, describing various dimensions of beauty in the common rhythms of daily life. The theme for February is Beauty in the Stillness and I had the privilege of contributing a piece for the first week. It starts:

There had been a heavy snowfall. As is my habit, I set out, shovel in hand, to clear the snow from the sidewalk and driveway. I knew it was good exercise and somehow I thought that was the reason I enjoyed it. 

 The night was quiet, all sound muted by the heavy accumulation of snow. I scraped my shovel along the concrete. In the distance there were faint sounds of other shovels scraping. A dog barked far off in the distance. Somehow, with no other people in sight, I felt the unity of myself with others. Here we all were, trying to survive in a climate that would be barely habitable were it not for modernity. 

 I chuckled as my breath froze with each exhaled exertion, and I realized it was not the exercise that made this somehow pleasant.  I don’t even like to exercise.  It was the silence. The relentless cacophony of everyday life had been paused....

To read the entire piece go to this link.

Many thanks to Pastor Ian for this invitation to slow down, to see the beauty all around us, to be still, and to know the Presence of God.

I'm A Grandmother!

Some of you may remember how last Mother's Day my daughter and son-in-law surprised us with the news that we were going to be grandparents. Yes, I fell completely apart with joy. I was presented with a little onesie that says "Grandma's Favorite, December 2015

And sure enough, this December, my little grandson, Blaise, entered the world. And he IS my favorite!

Words cannot describe how in love we are with him!

I mean, seriously, look at this face!

My daughter and her husband live in what I call the Manhattan of downtown Ypsilanti. It's a loft apartment right in the center of everything. (Unfortunately. it's too small for a family, so they will be moving soon from this historic and fascinating neighborhood)

I have had the distinct privilege of being able to help my daughter Anne as she recovers from childbirth. We have had so much fun.

Grandpa with the Little Man.

The delight on this little face mirrors the utter delight in my heart to have this new tiny (for the moment) person to cherish.

I'm in heaven. I don't know what else to say.

My daughter is a wonderful mother. So happy that my grandson has been gifted with two parents who love him to the ends of the Earth, four grandparents who cherish him to the depths of our hearts, and many aunts and uncles who could not be happier with this new member of the family.

He is one happy baby, as well he should be.

God is good. All the time!!!

Suddenly. It's winter here in Michigan. Last week we had days that felt like the coolness of summer. I was riding my bike!

Then, out of nowhere, came six inches of snow!!

The above maple tree seemed to have missed the memo. I don't know that it dropped a single leaf before the snowfall. I can't blame it. I scarcely knew how late we were in the season myself. Now our sidewalk looks like this.

Do we shovel snow? Rake leaves? In the end, we did neither, following the tree's example. I guess all of nature has its procrastinators.

The Good Samaritan Keeps Coming to Mind....

Recent discussions of Syrians seeking refugee status in the United States raise serious questions for the Christian. We are called to welcome the stranger in our midst.

The levite and the priest who passed by the injured man were identified by Christ as examples of not loving one's neighbor. Were they callous people, uncaring, lacking in compassion? Perhaps. They may also have thought that they did not have the resources to care for him. Might they have been scared that he would harm them, that his lying there was a trap? Perhaps. We don't know what was happening in the minds and hearts of those who passed the man by.

We do know that the Samaritan was held up as the example of Christian charity.

Yes, we are also called to use good judgement and to protect ourselves and our families. And nations have the right to protect their borders.

But let's consider the plight of the Syrian refugees. The Christians, in particular, have been horribly persecuted. More than 400 of their churches have been destroyed. The St. Eliane Monastery, over 1500 years old, was completely destroyed by ISIS. Hundreds of thousands of Christians have been kidnapped. Seventy-four children were executed by ISIS. Children. Two of them were crucified for not fasting during Ramadan and their bodies were put on display.

The U.N. Committee on the Rights of the Child has reported that children have been tortured, buried alive, used as suicide bombers, and sold as sex slaves.

The people of Syria and Iraq are enduring unspeakable horrors. Is our concern for the possibility of admitting members of ISIS pretending to be Christians or moderate Muslims justified? Somewhat. There is the risk of that happening. We certainly have a right to insist that our government very seriously vet these refugees and to explain in detail what the vetting process is. Is the risk great enough to warrant a refusal to accept any refugees from Syria?

Of all foreign travelers to the U.S. the refugee is given the highest level of scrutiny. The application can take as long as 18-24 months. There are much easier and faster ways to gain admittance to the United States. Let's not forget that the recent attacks in Paris included nationals of Belgium and France, both countries that are visa waiver countries. You don't even need a visa to enter the United States from visa waiver countries. Jihadi John of the infamous beheading video was from the United Kingdom, another visa waiver country. The Tsarnaev brothers from Chechnya came here on tourist visas with their family and their father later sought asylum here. The 9/11 hijackers were here mostly on tourist visas. One had a student visa.

Clearly, not admitting Syrian refugees to this country is not going to prevent jihadists from coming here. They are in numerous countries throughout the world, including this one, and there are other simpler methods available for entering the United States that do not include the scrutiny given the refugee.

The president has proposed that we admit some 85,000 refugees in fiscal year 2016, of which 10,000 would be Syrian. By the end of 2014, Lebanon, Turkey, and Jordan had taken in over 3 million refugees. We are talking about 10,000 coming here from Syria.

It's a complicated question that involves very passionate opinions on all sides. It seems to me that we have a responsibility to take in refugees. In the case of Syria, where our Christian brothers and sisters have suffered so horribly, we have a particular obligation.

Is there a risk? Yes. Does our responsibility to be the Samaritan outweigh the danger? I think it does.

Momnipotent Book and Study by Danielle Bean

Author and editor Danielle Bean, herself a mother of eight, offers in her book Momnipotent a heartfelt encouragement to all mothers. Momnipotence, she explains, is “the kind of strength and power that belongs uniquely to women. When we deny our call to motherhood and fail to recognize its intrinsic dignity and worth, we deny the very gifts that make us uniquely female.”

Danielle Bean knows that she is expressing an idea profoundly countercultural and addresses the issue head-on.  “One of the fundamental tenets of modern popular thought is the rejection of traditional marriage and motherhood as cultural clichés that enslave women and rob them of their identities.” Indeed, this tenet underlies much of current discussion on the status of women and, sadly, it is rarely challenged openly. 

But Danielle Bean does just that.  She writes, “Betraying authentic femininity and squashing our true nature as women does not sound very empowering to me.”  Nor does it to me.  She goes on, “Motherhood is seen in some circles today, and those circles seem to be expanding, as demeaning to women because it removes them to such an extent from what is valued as really important, which is to say, the conspicuous achievements in society.”  Those who hold such views, of course, deny the very essence of what it means to be a woman. Bean continues, “If we ridicule and belittle the role of motherhood, the very place where women exercise their greatest strengths and find meaning and purpose for their greatest gifts, how can we expect happy and fulfilled individuals to result?

Rich with quotes from Pope Saint John Paul II’s Mulieris Dignitatum (On the Dignity and Vocation of Women)  Momnipotence offers an honest look at our uniquely feminine gifts and how they lead us to true happiness in our motherhood, a gift from God.  And Bean makes clear that all women are called to be mothers, not only biological mothers. She is including religious sisters, single women, and women unable to have children. All women are called to motherhood in the spiritual sense. To be a woman is to be maternal.

This book is about the gifts and importance of motherhood and about achieving balance in our everyday lives. Each chapter discusses a strength of motherhood and how its misuse can become a weakness. Simple five question quizzes at the end of each chapter help us to see where and how we can become more balanced and thus more conformed to God’s image of motherhood.

An eight week study can also be purchased with Momnipotent, including a DVD set entitled Momnipotent: Finding Peace, Balance, and Joy in Your Vocation as Mother.

With all of the negative propaganda about mothering in our culture today, this book and study will offer real encouragement to women. Motherhood is indeed a great gift from God, and Danielle Bean has helped women to truly appreciate it.