Reading Catholic

Reading Catholic and catholic

Saints

Meet a Reader: John Donnelly { @TheCatholicPost }

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Following is the “Meet a Reader” feature that appears on the book page of the current print issue of The Catholic Post.

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How you know me: I teach religion and Spanish at Peoria Notre Dame High School, and also bartend at Donnelly’s Irish Pub most Saturday nights.

Why I love reading: Reading is my absolute favorite thing to do. One of my favorite writers, David Foster Wallace, once said in an interview that reading makes him less alone intellectually, emotionally, and spiritually. I love it as a form of communicating with others. You never know exactly what someone else is thinking, but sometimes reading brings us close to achieving that. The really great books let us know that others may have felt what we feel, thought what we’ve thought. The hundreds or thousands of years between author and reader can just fall away. My favorite books speak to Faulkner’s verities and truths of the heart. Another writer I came across recently talks about finding out what matters in the world and what it means to be human – I think the best books do that too.

What I’m reading now:

I’m currently reading (re-reading in fact, but it’s been over 10 years now) Marquez’s One Hundred Years of Solitude along with some other teachers from school. I spent a couple of years in Latin America after college – it’s astonishing how much history he weaves in and out of the story. I’m also halfway through Ta-Nehisi Coates’s Between the World and Me after seeing it on so many “best of” lists last year. It’s amazing – he does a really fantastic job of interrogating himself and the world around him.

My favorite book: As much as I could talk about Flannery O’Connor, or David Foster Wallace, or Andre Dubus, or Raymond Carver (especially “A Small, Good Thing”), I’d still choose J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings. I’ve never gotten as lost in a book as I have that one. John Le Carre’s Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy would be a close second. They have a similar tone – I’d like to imagine the conversation those two might have had together. I think they were both at Oxford together at the same time – maybe they did.

“The Prodigal You Love” Offers Hope {My April column @TheCatholicPost}

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Following is my April column that appears in this week’s print edition of The Catholic Post. 

When Mother Angelica died on Easter Sunday this year, there were myriad tributes to her life and influence. Many quoted her pithy, tongue-in-cheek, but often pretty true, zingers. One of my favorites was shared on Facebook by Catholic Memes. It’s a laughing photo of Mother with the caption, “If it wasn’t for people, we could all be holy.”

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Isn’t that the truth? It’s easy to be a “good Catholic” in theory. It’s when reality sets in—that of our own weaknesses and flaws, combined with the weaknesses and flaws of others— that our best intentions and desires to “be good” are often thwarted.

So how do we try to live holy and inspire others to live the Catholic faith? That’s the premise of an appealing new book on attracting people to (or back to) the faith.

It’s The Prodigal You Love: Inviting Loved Ones Back to the Church by Sister Theresa Alethia Noble, FSP.


Sister Theresa, once an atheist but now a Daughter or St. Paul, has written an incisive and spiritually rich book both about her own experience. She grew up Catholic, left the faith (and any faith) for many years, and then not only returned to the Catholic Church, but discerned a vocation to the religious life. She writes about how people can approach those who have left the faith, not just to convert them back, but to model a healthy, wholesome faith.

Sister Theresa weaves the story of the Prodigal Son parable throughout the book, showing how we ourselves are prodigals, along with those who may have left the faith behind. The Prodigal You Love  explores how Scripture, the saints, and our own struggles, offer us the way to inspire others in ways we may never understand fully in this life.

For instance, in a chapter on doubt, Sister Theresa points out that how we encounter our own questions and uncertainty can help others:

“We can learn to model a healthy relationship with doubt by living our doubts honestly, while at the same time holding them lightly.”

 Sister Theresa also shows how while our ultimate goal may be having those we know in the fullness of the Catholic faith, we have to respect the free will of others to choose, as she did for a time, a different expression of faith, or even no faith, all the while praying for conversion and for Christ to reach each person in a different way. She quotes Saint John Paul II’s statement, “It is necessary to keep those two truths together, namely, the real possibility of salvation in Christ for all mankind and the necessity of the Church for salvation.”

Several months ago, a young woman I know posted her disgust and frustration on Facebook about her college alma mater supporting something dreadful. A priest friend commented: “Be a saint. All the outrage in the world goes nowhere. Saints change hearts.”

Ultimately, that is the message of The Prodigal You Love. When we seek holiness and live a life of prayer amidst our daily responsibilities, desires, and faults, we will change hearts, starting with our own, as well as those dear to us, and even those we may not know well or at all. As Sister Theresa writes, “Precisely because it is difficult and requires holiness, the evangelization of our loved ones in an intense path to sanctity.”

Brace Yourselves: The Year of Mercy is Underway {My February column @TheCatholicPost }

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Following is my February column that appears in this week’s print edition of The Catholic Post. I realize that the reference to internet culture may be a bit strange to read online, but keep in mind that my column appears in print, and many of the print readers may not understand about memes.  So I created one to appear in the paper, and it’s republished here. Brace yourselves! 🙂

Those with a bit of internet culture knowledge are doubtless aware of some of the most popular memes—those humorous text boxes overlaid on a photo or GIF (a short photo/video loop) of something goofy, and the Catholic ones can be genuinely funny. If you’re not aware, Google “Catholic Ryan Gosling,” or “Victory Baby”, or “Grumpy Cat,” and you’ll know what I mean. I’ll wait.

One enduring meme is what always thought was Boromir (from The Lord of the Rings), but is actually called “Imminent Ned.” Now imagine that with the text “Brace Yourselves: I’ll be Writing About ‘Year of Mercy’ Books All Year Long.” That’s the visual that jumped into my mind when I realized how much I plan to write about books related to the Year of Mercy during this year.

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This is partially because like many people, I’ve been especially drawn to the messages and the beauty of the Year of Mercy.

It’s also because there are just such a good collection of books that have been released, or are yet to be released, with mercy as the theme.

No doubt many were released (or at least named) specifically for the Jubilee Year of Mercy, but enough have such promise for being spiritually edifying and well-written that I plan to share a number of these with readers of The Catholic Post in coming months.

The start of Lent offers an excellent time to consider some form of spiritual reading and reflection.

A trip to your local Catholic bookstore or online resource offers myriad choices and resources for the Year of Mercy, but let me offer a few stand-outs.

One idea is to explore one or more of an Of Mercy series written by the  Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelization.

But don’t let the official-sounding author name discourage you from picking up one or more of these eight excellent titles. These are all short (less than 100 pages) of accessible writing about the topic (the sacrament of confession, the parables, etc.) as they relate to mercy. So, for instance, in “The Psalms of Mercy” reflects on the Psalms that relate to mercy, and “Celebrating the Year of Mercy” lists some of the special dates in the year, as well as the rich liturgical life of the Church that helps Christians live mercy through prayer.

For a more visual exploration of the Year of Mercy, there is the Disciple of Mercy Journal, published by the Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist. (Local connection: several of this order’s sisters are at Peoria Notre Dame High School and St. Jude Parish in Peoria).

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The Disciple of Mercy Journal was designed for use by junior high students and older, but it’s too good for the young to keep to themselves. It’s a substantial resource for all ages to reflect on what mercy means in Scripture, as well as how people can practice it in daily life.

The journal provides 12 weeks of study, each with a focus on a Scripture passage, with guided questions, artwork, lectio divina, and suggestions or challenges for living out mercy in one’s life. The journal can be written in, or not—there are spaces to answer questions and respond to the Scripture and artwork.

Even though the journal follows a weekly structure, there’s no need to rush through it. A reader could spend the entire Year of Mercy working through this journal and benefitting from its many-faceted approach.

Finally, if you’re a fan of fiction, or can find spiritual thoughts in one novel for something completely different, if you like fiction as much as I do.

I just finished Fr. James Martin’s first (fiction) novel, The Abbey: A Story of Discovery. While I’ve been impressed with every book I have ever read of Fr. Martin, especially his moving memoir, Jesus: A Pilgrimage, I confess I was a little skeptical of his foray into fiction. Fiction is so hard to get right-especially religious fiction. Mea culpa for that thought.

But  The Abbey is well worth reading, both for enjoyment and for a look at the spiritual life. The book is a poignant, simple story about grief, spiritual growth, and how God reaches out to each individual in myriad ways.

The novel is told through the stories of several people with little or no religious belief, and their connection with an abbey of monks; the story quietly explores how both the laypeople and monks affect each other. The Abbey presents the concept of spiritual direction in a natural way, as well as showing how God meets us in our everyday lives, our imaginations, and the people around us. It’s a good read.

Meet a Reader: Sister Aimee Dominique, Apostolic Sister of St. John {@TheCatholicPost}

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IMG_0965How you know me:

I’m a member of the Apostolic Sisters of St. John and part of the larger St. John Community located on Legion Hall Road in Princeville. So you may have seen me if you participated in a Sapientia Saturday, Family Faith Festival, or the Saint John Summer Conference out at the Community. Or you may have seen me at one of the other events we host at our monastery, like the summer Girls Camp or Handmaidens Retreats.

Why I love reading:

Reading is something that has always attracted me.  Funny story: when I was in pre-school I tried to convince my mom that I already knew how to read, by imitating how people move their eyes from one side of the page to the other and flipping the pages of a book.  I had her convinced for about 10 seconds!

I think the attraction to reading is a part of my temperament because I love to learn and I love children’s stories. One of my favorites times during elementary school were the yearly “Read-aThons.” Each student would bring favorite books and a sleeping bag, and read for hours in the school gymnasium. It was awesome!  Above all else, there is the Word of God! I mean, we can READ what God is trying to say to us. That’s great!

What I’m reading now:


I just started 33 Days to Morning Glory: A Do-It-Yourself Retreat In Preparation for Marian Consecration by Fr. Michael Gaitley in order to renew my consecration to Mary and to live Advent with her.


I’ve also been reading Diary of Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska: Divine Mercy in My Soul which is great for both the Year of Consecrated Life and the Year of Mercy. If anyone is unfamiliar with St. Faustina’s diary, I recommend for those starting to read the diary to read just the parts in bold, which are the words of Jesus to the saint.  Even though it is a private revelation to St. Faustina, I find it very valuable since the Church canonized her and instituted the Feast of Divine Mercy. With the Year of Mercy, I believe that God is really calling us to come to Him with great trust. This book certainly helps get that message across. And my favorite part is “the conversations of the Merciful God with the…” section, starting from #1485. Jesus has a message of mercy for the sinful soul, the despairing soul, the suffering soul, the soul striving after perfection, and the perfect soul. No one is left out!

My favorite book:


My favorite book, which I’ve re-read many times, is the Conversations of Marcel Van, a Redemptorist lay brother. He was a Vietnamese member of the congregation, and he had and wrote about a wonderful interior life close to Jesus, Mary, and St. Therese. I cannot write more… it’s too good. Brother Marcel Van is a servant of God who I hope one day will be canonized. This would be a great book to read for those who love St. Therese.

The #YearofMercy : Ideas, Links, and Modest, Merciful Goals

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My column that appears in this weekend’s print edition of The Catholic Post, and here in just a few days, essentially involves me admitting I haven’t made any plans for the Year of Mercy.

My column does offer books that relate to it, but for me, writing that column prompted me to take a minute to “get with it” and make some plans and modest goals for living out this tremendous year. And it’s well-known that writing plans down makes them more likely to be achieved.  In addition, I will be glad to have a place to capture all of my thoughts, important links, and other notes.  So here goes:

The Divine Mercy Chaplet: I’m not sure if this is ironic or something else, but one of my first thoughts was when I heard about the Year of Mercy, was “I’m going to pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet every single day of the year.”  That may seem like an ambitious plan, but really, I end up saying it more days that not.  Making it an explicit goal should help me be sure to do it every day, right?

Here’s the ironic/funny part: I’ve barely said it (maybe twice?) since the Year of Mercy started last week.   So I’m laughing at myself (in mercy? see how I did that?), and also resolving to find a regular time that I can pray the Chaplet.  I’ve loved this prayer for at least 18 years, I’m pretty sure since my oldest was a baby. Praying it as much as possible this year is doubtless a good idea.

As many people know, I am a big user of apps for prayers and novenas.  I find most of the Divine Mercy chaplet apps fairly annoying, including the “official” one. App developers, get rid of the sound effects, or give us the opportunity to in settings, already.  This is a very simple and effective one for iOs I’ve discovered recently.

 

Looking for Mercy:  Here is the Vatican document, called “Misericordiae Vultus,” which released on Divine Mercy Sunday (the Second Sunday of Easter) this year to announce and prepare for the Year of Mercy.  Just glancing at it, though, makes me want to read the entire thing, more slowly, to get a sense of what the year is meant to be for people and the Church.

Pope Francis’ Prayer for the Year of Mercy: Pope Francis composed a prayer for the Year of Mercy.  Our family will try to pray this prayer, perhaps in advance of saying night prayer.  I’ve already formatted it nicely in a document–perhaps I will try to put it in an edit. Another modest goal.

Pinterest Board: It occurred to me that a good way to capture articles and ideas for the Year of Mercy is to create a board on Pinterest. I’ve begun that  (and will pin much of what I’m gathering here), but what I really need to do is just keep coming back to the Year of Mercy board created by local blogger Katie Bogner.  Here is just one of her blog posts about celebrating the Year of Mercy, but her board includes resources from all over the Web.

Visiting Pilgrimage Churches and Chapels: The Diocese of Peoria website has a “mercy” page with Bishop Jenky’s Festival Letter, as well as a list and photos of all the churches and chapels designated as “pilgrimage” sites.  I thought it would be a great way to celebrate the year as a family to try to get to all those sites sometime during the year, and walk through the doors of mercy in all those locations. Wouldn’t it be great to get to Rome to go through the Jubilee Door in the Vatican?  In lieu of that, visiting the local sites ( or looking into ones places we travel this year) would be a great way to keep mercy in mind.

Living the Year of Mercy in the Family:  Marcia, another local blogger and dear friend, has compiled a list of ideas for living the Year of Mercy in the family. I love the idea here of “virtually” visiting the Divine Mercy Shrine in Poland, and many other ideas here.

Confession: Confession seems to me the most important sacrament this year. So perhaps working on not just going to Confession more often, but trying to make better confessions.  Related here would be trying to be more merciful and forgiving to others and myself.

I know I will come up with many more ways to celebrate and mark this Year of Mercy.   You’ll notice that I’m not listing a lot of books.  I read so much as it is, and I want to be sure to try things that can  involve more than just me, or allow me to reflect on the year. What I will do is create a shelf on my GoodReads for the Year of Mercy, and add books to it as time goes on. Suggestions welcome!

What are some of your ideas for the Year of Mercy? What do you have planned?

I will update this post with any other ideas I have, and I’d love to hear (and perhaps add!) yours.   If you’d like to be added as a collaborator on the “Year of Mercy” Pinterest board, please let me know, or send me a message on Pinterest.  I’d love for it to be a group board with lots of ideas.

Meet a Reader: Teresa Oltman {@TheCatholicPost}

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How you know me: I am a homeschooling mother of five children, ages 15 years to 10 months old. My husband Joel and I live the country life just outside of Geneseo. We are members of St. John the Baptist parish in Rapids City, where Joel and I teach 2nd-year confirmation class. I am a hairstylist by trade and worked in the salon for eight years before having our fourth child. I come from a family of Carmelites on my mother’s side. I’m the oldest child of Kyle and Paula Hernstrom, and I have lived in the Quad Cities Area my whole life.

Why I love reading: In all honesty, it is a chore for me to read. Unlike my 11-year-old son, who doesn’t know what to do with himself if he doesn’t have a book in hand, I never read outside of what was necessary until I was about 20 years old. Oddly enough, it was reading that brought me back to the Faith. We did not have the Internet for the first few years of our married life, so books became my way to learn more about the Catholic Faith. I started with Sacred Scriptures, chiefly the Gospels. From then on, I have always had a desire to read about the history of our faith and any reading that might aid in spiritual growth. I now enjoy reading now but only if it is spiritually edifying.

What I’m reading now: Outside of the kids’ school history lessons and stories, I do not have much time for reading outside of the Daily Mass Readings, devotionals, articles, and emails.



But now that it is October (the month of my namesake, Teresa of Avila), I have pulled out my copy of Interior Castle by St. Teresa of Avila, along with Mornings with Saint Thérèse by Patricia Treece, and Therese’s Story of a Soul.

My favorite book: St. Augustine’s Confessions was one of the first spiritual books that I dove into, and it remains one of my favorites.

I love anything written by C.S. Lewis, G. K. Chesterton, Dietrich (or Alice) Von Hildebrand, our dear St. John Paul II, or the Early Church Fathers. But I’d have to say that the book I’ve read most often and therefore my favorite would have to be The Imitation of Christ by Thomas a Kempis.