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Wednesday, March 30, 2011
More poetry from Gregory Petrov for Lent.
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
There is so much in this painting!
Christ's light shines from both Himself and from the altar. The painting is dark except for these 2 light sources. Jesus is the Source of all our Light, in repentance, in prayer, and in the sacraments of the Church .
The woman is dressed all in black, as if in mourning and Christ appears to comfort her in her sorrow. Perhaps she is mourning the fact that she is not part of the community and can not yet participate fully. Perhaps she has stayed behind because she is conscious of a grave sin. Christ does not ignore her sorrow--He comes to show her His love--he notices her discomfort.
The style of this piece is very like Rembrandt. He was well known for his ability to show light as if it were coming directly from a subject.
Monday, March 28, 2011
This Lenten meditation is a deceptively simple one, focusing on the power of prayer and the presence of Christ in the gathered church.
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Sunday Snippets is brought to you each week by RAnn at This, That and the Other Thing.
This week began with The Prayer of St. Ephram the Syrian, set to beautiful eastern chant and the chiming of a single bell.
We looked at Claude Monet's Water Lilies 11--a departure from the cool blues and greens we usually see in
his water lily paintings.
Poetry Wednesday continued our reading of the beautiful poem written by Protopresbyter Petrov during his imprisonment in 1940.
On Friday we looked at a breathtaking slide show on the Holy Eucharist set to Pange Lingua. We also listened to Gabriel's Message in honor of the feast of the Annunciation.
Today I wrote a piece on The Jesus Prayer and Living Water.
I pray you all have a peaceful and productive week!
I was saying the Jesus Prayer today and realized that both it and today's Gospel use the word "living".
Living Water
Today's Gospel from John tells the story of the Samaritan woman at the well. Jesus tells her that if she knew who He was and knew "the Gift of God" He would give her "Living Water."
Living water is water that is not stagnant--it is flowing and moving; it sustains life. The early Church used to baptize in "living water".
The Jesus Prayer
Many Orthodox and other Christians pray The Jesus Prayer daily:
If we meditate on that image, we discover that our troubled, stagnant lives are but a drop in the ocean of God's merciful love. When we have stopped feeling, stopped caring and stopped moving forward, if we allow ourselves to become a drop in the deep ocean of God's caring love He will dissolve all our temporal shortcomings and cares and we will become one with Our Lord who cares for us so deeply.
Say the Jesus Prayer slowly, meditating on each word, and ask God to allow you to become one with Him.
Friday, March 25, 2011
Today is 9 months before the Feast of the Nativity and we celebrate the Annunciation of the Angel Gabriel to Mary.
This is one of my favorite songs of the Christmas Season--Gabriel's Message--a Basque Carol. The lyrics are below.
The angel Gabriel from heaven came
His wings as drifted snow his eyes as flame
"All hail," said he, "thou lowly maiden Mary,
Most highly favored lady." Gloria!
"For lo, a blessed mother thou shalt be,
All generations laud and honor thee,
Thy Son shall be Emanuel, by seers foretold
Most highly favored lady," Gloria!
Then gentle Mary meekly bowed her head
"To me be as it pleaseth God," she said,
"My soul shall laud and magnify his holy name."
Most highly favored lady. Gloria!
Of her, Emanuel, the Christ was born
In Bethlehem, all on a Christmas morn
And Christian folk throughout the world will ever say:
"Most highly favored lady," Gloria!
This video is a fascinating rendition of Saint Thomas Aquinas' Pange Lingua with beautiful visuals to help us meditate on Our Lord's gift of Himself in the Eucharist on this Lenten Friday.
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
I know The King's Speech has been out there a while, but I finally found a clip from the original movie showing the *perfect* blending of music and acting that beautifully depicts the unbearable tension felt by both the King and the British people on the eve of the Second World War. The citizens of Great Britain endured a great deal during that war--something most of us in the United States can not even imagine.
I think Geoffrey Rush's acting equals that of Collin Firth in this extremely well-done movie.
Todays poem is another installment from Protopresbyter Gregory Petrov, written in a prison camp in 1940.
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
The reflection of the sun on the water makes it look as though it is not water at all, but an exploding volcano--quite a juxtaposition of images.
It makes you think, as all good art does.
Monday, March 21, 2011
This is the Great Lenten Prayer of St. Ephram from the Eastern Church. It focuses on asking God for the grace to embody the virtues and take away sinfulness.
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Sunday Snippets is brought to you each week by RAnn at This, That and the Other Thing.
This week we began our Lenten Music Mondays with a beautiful Lenten meditation. Poetry Wednesday also had a Lenten theme with the Akathist of Thanksgiving by Protopresbyter Gregory Petrov. Art and Beauty Tuesday featured a beautifully bright pastel painting by Lou Heiser called Daybreak. St. Patrick's Day featured an informative talk on the effect of Christianity on Ireland. I featured a Lenten Friday video this week on Our Catholic Faith. Scripture Saturday talked about the source of our power.
Have a fruitful week, everyone!
Saturday, March 19, 2011
O Lord, your strength gives joy to the king ~Psalm 21:2This verse from today's Office of Readings hit me this morning. How many of today's political "rulers" take joy in the strength of God rather than in their own political strength? How many people in positions of power of any type, do what is truly right by God's standards instead of what will keep them in power and help them save face?
How many of us who are not in power demand what is right from those who are? How many of us settle for the status quo?
Pray for those in power, in government, business and in the Church.
Friday, March 18, 2011
Just saw this beautiful video. Gorgeous music and visuals reminding us of the richness of Our Catholic Faith.
Have a blessed Lenten Friday, everyone.
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Here is an informative talk on St. Patrick by Gary Hicks. He discusses how Patrick brought Christianity to Ireland and transformed Celtic Civilization.
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Today's poem is a portion of Akathist of Thanksgiving by Protopresbyter Gregory Petrov shortly before his death in a prison camp in 1940.
I will try to feature further portions of this beautiful prayer/poem in subsequent Wednesdays during Lent.
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
I must confess that I love Heiser's painterly style and the soft but intense colors in this piece. It almost feels like you can get into the mind of God as He created the earth. The ability of art to capture a moment that may or may not have ever existed yet was certainly felt is truly an exalted calling.
This piece puts me in mind of the hope of Spring and of creation.
Mr. Heiser exhibits at the Saper Gallery in East Lansing, Michigan.
Monday, March 14, 2011
Our Music Mondays during Lent will consist of Lenten meditations from YouTube. I was pleasantly surprised how many good Lenten themed videos there were.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Sunday Snippets is brought to you each week by RAnn at This, That and the Other Thing.
This week's Music Monday was the hymn, All Creatures of Our God and King followed by Art and Beauty Tuesday's beautiful icon of The Creation of the Animals.
I posted about the history of Shrove Tuesday. Ash Wedneday was a beautiful video with some wonderful symbolism regarding burning your sins. Scripture Saturday talked about the wisdom of Lent and the importance of Confession.
Special Lenten Features at the Well
During Lent, I will feature special Lenten Music Mondays with different musical Lenten meditations, as well as Lenten Poetry Wednesdays featuring installments from the moving poem by Protopresbyter Gregory Petrov, written in a prison camp in 1940.
I pray we all have a fruitful Lent.
Friday, March 11, 2011
Facing our faults and making amends for them will cure us of the suppressed hatred that we often turn on ourselves in the form of depression, anger and mistreatment. Truly digging deep, truly going after our most entrenched sins takes time, but is well worth the freedom that results.
We cannot confess our sins, in whatever form that may take, without facing them squarely. This is often awkward and painful. But, Lent is not meant to make us hang on to our sins in an obsessive way. Once we face them, we confess them, make amends and move on.
A modern example of this is the 12 steps of Alcoholics Anonymous. In Step 4, we make a "searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves." That is what Lent calls us to do.
Step 5 asks us to "admit to God, ourselves and another human being, the exact nature of our wrongs." I'm amazed at how Catholic this is. Yes, God knows our sins. But, we need to say, out loud, to another human being "the exact nature of our wrongs." It is too easy otherwise, to make excuses and rationalize why we need this unhealthy behavior to continue.
In Step 6, we should be "entirely ready to have God remove these defects of character." It won't happen until we are ready. It won't happen until we swallow our pride and admit to God that we need His help.
Step 7 says that we should "humbly ask God to remove our shortcomings." This brings to mind the Act of Contrition that we are asked to say after confessing our sins. We talk directly to God and let Him know we are truly sorry and with His help, we won't put ourselves in sin-inducing situations again.
In Step 8, we "make a list of all persons we have harmed and become willing to make amends to them all." Notice we have not yet made amends to anyone. This is a process that is done little by little. Perhaps having a 40 day penitential season makes sense!
In Step 9, we make direct amends except where it would injure someone. This doesn't take place until the 9th step. Also, our spirituality is not so rule-based that we are required to injure another in order to "cure" ourselves. We are always other-focused because all are children of God.
Step 10 reminds us to continue to take inventory and to make amends. This is a journey. Lent is often compared to Christ's journey in the desert, which was also 40 days, where He was tempted by Satan. We are on a life-long journey to deification--becoming like God.
Becoming holy is a life time process. The wisdom of the Church's Lenten season has been recognized by the 12 step programs across the world and continues to change people's lives today.
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Remember that you are dust and unto dust you shall return.
~Imposition of Ashes
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Today is Shrove Tuesday, known by various names across the world.
The English Shrove Tuesday came from the word "shriven" which means to be forgiven, as in going to the Sacrament of Confessiom prior to Lent and Easter.
The idea of eating pancakes, which is traditional on this day, comes from the attempt to get rid of fats and sugars, which in the old days were forbidden during Lent.
Not all cultures eat pancakes on Shrove Tuesday, however. In Denmark, they eat Danish buns filled with jam or whipped cream. Their pre-Lenten sweet day is celebrated on the Sunday before Ash Wednesday and is called Fastelavn.
In Germany, Shrove Tuesday is called Fasnacht and donuts are eaten. The deep fried sweet treats are a great way to get rid of both oil and sugar in the house. My own grandmother used to fry donuts on this day.
In France, the day before Ash Wednesday is known as Mardi Gras, which literally means "Fat Tuesday"--the feast before the long fast of Lent. Carnival was a Christianized form of the ancient Roman celebration of Bacchanalia, a "let it all hang out" celebration of Bacchus, the Roman god of wine. The Church decided to keep the popular feast before the 40 day long Lenten fast, which was much stricter than it is today.
The Eastern Church has a less extreme way of ridding your home of forbidden Lenten foods. The second Sunday before their Great Lent is the Sunday of the Last Judgment also known as Meatfare Sunday, when all the meat in your house is to be eaten in preparation for Lent, when no meat is eaten at all.
The next Sunday is Forgiveness Sunday, also called Cheesefare Sunday. On this day, Orthodox Christians consume dairy products, which are forbidden during Lent. Forgiveness Vespers on this day focuses on fasting and forgiveness.
Today's Art and Beauty Tuesday is the icon of the Creation of the Animals. I have this icon in my icon corner and it is stunning and unusual as icons go.
From an artistic standpoint, the first thing you notice is the profusion of blue--unusual because icons usually have gold as their background to indicate the subject being in Heaven. In this case, though, God has come down to earth, to create the earth and the animals.
In the upper half of the icon, you see all the wonderful birds and plant life, as well as a divided stream (the Tigris and Euphrates, perhaps) that indicates the Garden of Eden. (Genesis 2:4)
On the bottom half of the icon, we see the water with the abundant fish rising up in an almost Franciscan way to greet their Creator. I like the large green eel in the upper middle, the angel fish on the right side and the whale on the left.
The plant life here changes too. Notice the piece of coral-colored water plant on the bottom left.
I love the idea that God came down to earth Himself to create and interact with the creatures of the Earth.
Monday, March 7, 2011
Today's Music Monday starts a week of praise to God our Creator. Take a moment this week to praise God.
Saturday, March 5, 2011
Sunday Snippets is brought to you each week by RAnn at This, That and the Other Thing.
This week's theme was poverty. We heard John Foley's Cry of the Poor, looked at The Beggar by French painter Jules Bastien-Lepage, and read Living in the Mountains by Japanese poet Jakushitsu Genko. We also commemorated the 50th anniversary of the Peace Corps, looked at St. Katharine Drexel's response to suffering, and explored the parable of the fig tree.
Friday, March 4, 2011
In Friday's Gospel, Jesus and His disciples were traveling from Bethany to Jerusalem and see a fig tree "in leaf". The tree looks healthy, and, being hungry, Jesus walks up to it to see if there were figs there. When none are found, Jesus curses the fig tree, which the disciples later notice, withers away "to the roots".
Are we like the fig tree--showy and in full leaf so that at a distance we look the part, but upon closer inspection, just as "fruitless" as those persons whom we despise as being evil and "less than"? Do we make sure to have all the outward trappings of virtue and faith, only to treat others as badly as we ourselves feel that we are treated by them?
In reply to the disciples' amazement at the withering of the fig tree, Jesus does not give them a list of things to do in order to be fruitful. Instead, he tells them to forgive whatever you have against anyone. *That* is what it is to begin to bear fruit.
Love as Jesus loved.
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
In the 1920's 2 American women saw poverty and suffering. Each took a different course to try to end it.
The first, Margaret Sanger, said that "The most merciful thing a family does to one of its infant members is to kill it." She founded the American Birth Control League. Her solution to poverty and suffering was to separate out certain classes and races of people and to kill them. Her organization later became Planned Parenthood. In 2007, it killed more than 305,000 children in the name of women's "health".
Katharine Drexel was born to a wealthy banker who instilled in his daughter the idea that her privileged position was given to her by God. She founded The Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament for Black and Native American Peoples, giving both her wealth and her life to those who lived on the margins of society.
She was canonized in 1988 and is the second saint born in America. Her feast is today, March 3.
The inspiration for this post was an excellent article by Joshua Mercer.
nor grieving my poverty
I hide deep in the mountain
far from worldly dust.
Year ending
cold sky
who will befriend me?
Plum blossom on a new branch
wrapped in moonlight
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Today is the 50th anniversary of the Peace Corps, founded by President John F. Kennedy on March 1, 1961. The Peace Corps is still serving today in Europe, Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and Central and South America.
In it, we see the old man, although, perhaps he is not as old as he looks, leaving the young girl in his care at home while he goes to beg for food. His clothes are drab and ill-fitting. His shoes look like they have been repaired with cloth wrapped around them, and look too big for his feet.
The paint around the door is peeling and the potted plant to the left, is alive, although it has probably seen better days. Perhaps it is a metaphor for the man and his family.
The little girl looks wistfully at him as if she is wishing he did not have to go beg for their supper.
