Spring '08

Two months and Two weeks later...
Another semester here at Kenrick, and things are looking up in many ways. I think the overall spirit of the community is great, and this may be due in great part to such a long vacation. I was happy to get away for a while, but I also was very anxious to return.
Some things I am looking forward to:

1) Training for the Extraordinary Form - for me this includes helping Fr Keller train the new acolytes to serve the Low Mass, act as thurifer, candelbearer, and torchbearers for the Solemn High Mass. I am also interested to see if we will receive training in Gregorian Chant. We did have an opportunity to chant a couple of times over the break, once on retreat and twice at the Mass with the Archbishop in Washington DC.
2) The trip to New York to see the Holy Father. Lots of people are not happy about the location of the Mass at Yankee Stadium, but providence plays a hand! The long bus ride will be difficult, but at the same time, this is a great opportunity for us to be near the Pontiff.
3) Side work - although my MA work is not "side work", it will take up lots of extra time. I am happy to be working in liturgy, and please God, I will have a successful paper. Also, translating the Ceremonial written by Hegey from the original French to Engish, and also the Roman Pontifical from Trent to VCII from French/Latin to English, will also be exciting. I also plan to train myself on celebrating the Extraordinary Form.

I know these things are probably not very exciting to anyone, especially since my readership includes...pretty much no one. Oh well!

As usual, I hope to blo more frequently, but history would suggest otherwise. Keep your fingers crossed!

What's New

The fact is that nothing is new, and I mean that in two sense: first, that everything is continuing in my life in a normal fashion, and second, that I have neglected my blog in the normal fashion. I didn't realize how much time it would take to post every day, but there is really no excuse for letting a month go by between postings. Mea maxima culpa.
Today is my niece Teddy Belle's birthday. I tease her about being only seven years old, but today she turned nine. She has become a wonderful young lady, and I wish her continued growth in the knowledge of the faith and of herself. I had the opportunity to go out to Troy yesterday for lunch, and as usual, it was a pleasant time. I have heard a number of men in the seminary say that when they go home, they begin to entertain thoughts about what it would be like to be married with a family. Thanks be to God, I don't ever have those thoughts. I love my family dearly, but I am quite satisfied with being the uncle.
I will relate something that happened at St Cecilia's today. The director of Hispanic Ministry at the parish is going to have Aztec dancers during the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe and possibly at the Confirmation in the Spring. He knows that I do not approve of such things, but being that I am a part-time weekend warrior, my opinion matters not at all. In any case, after trying to convince me that liturgical dance is a legitimate expression of worship among Hispanics this director has rejected any idea of changing his mind. I suppose what I will have to do is email him the direct words of Cardinal Arinze, and, if necessary, I will email the Archbishop about this abuse. I will be a hated man, I suppose, but I feel I have to say something.
Does anyone out there have an opinion?

Amphibious Assault on Kenrick

It amazes me how much attention we have received on account of our video for Kenrick Alumni Day. We have run into "fans" at St Francis de Sales, at parishes, through emails, and on blogs from all over the world.

Well, today as we were filming our next movie for the October gaud, a lady drove by, rolled down her window, and shouted, "I saw you on YouTube." All the guys looked at each other and smiled, not knowing what to say. This lady parked her car and came by us on her way into the Rigali Center. She told us that her husband is in the group Una Voce, a movement that apparently promotes wider use of the Mass of 1962. He is leaving to Rome soon, where he will be running into a few friends of his at the Vatican, ALL of whom have seen the video and think it is excellent. The VATICAN! That's not to mention that Deacon Patrick Driscoll emailed a link to his friend at the CDF, who will likely share it with Cardinal Leveyda.

This is all very interesting, and a great deal of fun. For me, it is a reminder of the grace of God: with some little effort, God can make it into a great big success.

In the interim, this new film for the October Gaud is called Amphibious Assault on the Old Kenrick. We are all pretty much in agreement that this will never make it to YouTube, not only because it is not as wide a concept as the last one, but because it is too over the top. If you know how the old Kenrick building is being used right now, you might have an idea what I mean.

Enjoy a few pictures on the set of Amphibious Assault!

Prayers for Rita Brown

I ask your prayers for Rita Brown of St Louis. She is a young lady who was sideswiped by a car and is now in a coma with serious injuries. Together with all the members of her family and her friends, I ask that you join us in praying for her recovery. May God's will be done.
Christus Vincit! Christus Regnat!

First Friday Devotion

We come upon another First Friday, on which we celebrate the devotion to the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus. Of course, I plan to head down to St Francis de Sales Oratory for a Solemn High Mass.

It seems sometimes that pious devotions have fallen off over the last forty yeas, and great devotions like this one have been neglected. The USCCB released a document in 2003 called Popular Devotional Practices: Basic Questions and Answers, in which they say: "Popular devotional practices play a crucial role in helping to foster this ceaseless prayer. The faithful have always used a variety of practices as a means of permeating everyday life with prayer to God. Examples include pilgrimages, novenas, processions and celebrations in honor of Mary and the other saints, the rosary, the Angelus, the Stations of the Cross, the veneration of relics, and the use of sacramentals." (Paragraph 2) And the Second Vatican Council adds that "Popular devotions are to be highly recommended." (SC 13) Yet despite these exhortations, we fail to see the great numbers of people streaming to churches and holy shrines as we once did. What is the problem?

Well, I think the problem is clear: insofar as devotions are meant to extend the liturgical life of the Church, drawing its inspiration from the Sacrifice of the Mass, since there is a deficiency in instruction on the True Presence and in solemnity in our parishes, devotionals will appear as antiquated, useless, pietistic customs meant for blue-haired old women. On the contrary, devotions, like the Sacred Heart Devotion that we celebrate today and every First Friday, can fill the hearts of the faithful with many graces. To neglect this aspect of our faith is to deny ourselves the opportunities to grow. Rather than allow these benefits to pass us by, why not accept the invitation of the Sacred Heart, sacrificing a little to gain so much through Christ?

Seminarians in the Third Millennium

We finally finished the video that we were making for Kenrick Alumni Day. The video is called Seminarians in the Third Millennium, and it features Evan Harkins as Billy O'Malley. I did the voice-over for it, Nick Winker was the devil on the computer, and Dylan Schrader brought all of us drinks and sandwiches as our gofer. Just Kidding! Schrader made a few appearances in the video, especially as the Robot Arm. It seemed to go over very well with the jubilarians and other priests, and even the Archbishop seemed to like it.
There may be a few things that are theologically unsound, but we were aiming at being so over-the-top as to make it completely unbelievable. In fact, if you actually believe anything from the video (except for the bit about the pride a seminarian should have in his cassock) then you probably need a vacation. I hope you enjoy it!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qxzbUAo-MSQ

Ma Petite Soeur Thérèse

Happy Feast Day, St Thérèse! There are a ton of guys here at the seminary and, I imagine, all over the world who have strong devotions to this little saint. It amazes everyone how this obscure cloistered nun from France has captivated the world in so short a time. Many will argue that she is not deserving of so much attention (especially her dignity as Dottoressa della Chiesa) because, compared to the likes of St Thomas and St Augustine, she is much more associated with pietistic affectivity, a.k.a., she's too squooshy. But any serious reading of her life and her spiritual doctrine will reveal the enormous depth of her little way and confirm the judgment rendered by Pope Pius XII.

St Therese said that she joined Carmel to pray for souls, especially for priests. She also said that she would create a whole army dedicated to the Merciful Love of Jesus, and I like to think of myself as some small part of that group. Her example of childlike confidence in the goodness of God, her insistence that we remain small and trusting of our Father in heaven, and reach out always after we fall is an inspiration for me and millions of others throughout the world.

I would like to say a special word of greeting to my niece Alexandria Janine Powell who, like me, carries a loving devotion to this little saint of Carmel; also to my sister, Andrea Teresa Murray, who bears the name of the Little Flower. May you both be blessed today, through the intercession of St Therese.