I would like you to think back and recall the scene in Peter Jackson’s “Fellowship of the Ring” to the moment when Bilbo was setting off for Rivendale. As he was opening the door to leave, Gandolf calls out to him, “the Ring Bilbo!”. Bilbo was to leave the Ring for Frodo on the mantel…
A Longing
The other day while I was receiving acupuncture treatment and as I laid there listening to traditional Chinese folk music playing in the background, I was overwhelmed with a profound sadness. It was strange for there was no reason for me to be sad. I wasn’t sad when I woke up that morning or when…
Upon the Walls of the Eternal City, the Prophet Shouts
Upon the walls of the Eternal City, the prophet shouts; “today is judgement, today is salvation.” He looks down upon the city, upon the people gathered and, he weeps. He weeps because of what he sees, a people who are indifferent. A people who sees him as a madman. He sees a people who are…
The Jedi and the Traditional Catholic
This morning I was contemplating the situation of the Traditional Catholic in the current climate of Pope Francis and the Vatican hierarchy. It is no secret that Pope Francis despises anything the hints at being traditional and refers to us in terms or insinuations as “rigid”, “backwards”, “antiquarian”, “nonprogressive” and even as “terrorists” whose aim…
Desiderata
Go placidly amid the noise and the haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all persons. Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even to the dull and the ignorant; they too have their story. Avoid loud and…
Seeing Beyond Boundaries
There have been periods in my life when I was very narrowminded. Those were periods when I didn’t grow spiritually or intellectually. It actually isolated myself from others because I would argue and condescend with those who didn’t agree with me. Being narrowminded causes depression, loneliness and hatred. We don’t have to agree with everyone…
To Know God, To See Him, We Must Look At Jesus Christ
This is a follow up to my previous article, “Knowing That We do Not Know.” God is a great mystery and He is unknowable, so how could we ever think that we could comprehend who God is? Our minds are limited and our reasoning faculties can only go so far. There is a threshold we…
Knowing That We Do Not Know *
Those who know do not talk. Those who talk do not know. Tao Teh Ching Chap. 56 Anthony De Mello in his book “Awareness” which is a transcript of his last lecture says this about the silence of St. Thomas Aquinas: “In the prologue of his Summa Theologica, which is the summary of all his…
How Has The Country Changed In My Lifetime?
A few days ago, I was asked this question; “how has the country (the U.S.) changed in my lifetime?” It took me a while to answer this question and to find the words to express my feelings because the country and the world has changed dramatically in my lifetime. When I was a child there…
The Past
No man is an island, so the poem goes, but I feel like an island surrounded by a sea of craziness. In my solitude, I at times feel as though I am losing my mind. The past is unsure and memory seems to fail and the young men and women have no clue of what…
A Finger Pointing to the Moon 