Rome - Arroyo Grande, CA

July 28, 2020 Peace and Good, Yesterday I flew in from Europe to be at our novitiate in Arroyo Grande, California ( just outside of San Luis Obispo). There are six novices this year. I will be here until August 11th, presenting lessons on the Gospels and the Psalms and just sharing information about the Order. Travelling these days is no fun. There is a lot of paperwork and checkups along the way. I flew from Rome to Munich, there to Los Angeles, and Los Angeles to San Luis Obispo. I flew Lufthansa this time. The flight to Los Angeles was at most 1/6th full. Very few people are flying. The airports are all but empty. Everyone is wearing masks, although some are wearing them the wrong way and some take them off a lot in public. Arriving in the States was not bad. There was a form to fill out, they took our temperature, and gave us a brochure on self-isolation. The weather out here is perfect. The marine layer comes in at this time every year, so the temperature is about 70 during the day. It was much, much hotter in Rome. I finished some reading: Hangman by Faye Kellerman This is the first book I have read by Kellerman. She writes about a detective who is a practicing Jew (which enters often into the book). It is a good story. In this case, the story is about two mass murderers who are tracked down by the detective’s team. I intend to read other books by her. Ivan the Terrible by Captivating History This is the outline of the life and madness of Ivan. The title terrible is really a mistranslation of his title, for he was considered to be Ivan the Awesome, but he was also terrible, especially as he descended into murderous paranoia. The book speaks of the good he did, but also of the terrible massacres he committed with his accomplices. The author goes out of his way to excuse Ivan for this due to the murderous atmosphere in which he was raised. Wall Street Wars by Richard Farley This book deals with the attempt by the FDR administration to deal with the monetary difficulties during the depression. It included dealing with the stock market, the banks, and the gold standard. It deals with the various debates in the Congress and the lobby techniques of the moneyed class. The most interesting section deals with the work of Joseph Kennedy as the head of the Securities and Exchange Commission. This was the father of JFK, and the author is very complementary concerning his efforts. The Texas Revolution by Charles River Editors This is the story of the settlement of Anglos in Texas after the time of the American Revolutionary War which meant that they outnumbered the Hispanic settlers. It speaks of the tensions among them and the Native Americans. The Americans eventually broke away from Mexico which had gained its independence. The book speaks of the siege at the Alamo. It also speaks of the eventual annexation of Texas into the US. JFK’s Last Hundred Days: The Transformation of a Man and the Emergence of a Great President by Thurston Clarke This book deals with the last few months of JFK’s life before his assassination in Dallas. It has an enormous amount of inside information. The author is honest about what he knows and what he does not know. What is interesting is that Kennedy was doing an internal review of the US relations with the Soviet Union and Cuba, as well as rethinking our involvement in Vietnam. The book covers the assassination of the President of Vietnam in a coup approved by the US. The book also deals with the relationship between Jack and Jackie, which seems to have been improving in these months. The Darkest Summer: Pusan and Inchon in 1950 by Bill Sloan This is a long and good treatment of the first year of the Korean War from the invasion by the North Koreans to the entrance of the Chinese into the struggle to countermand the invasion of ally troops into the far north of North Korea (along the border with China). It necessarily deals with the various military leaders for the Americans, including the always temperamental and sometimes unhinged MacArthur. The book gives extensive remembrances from the troops who fought. It is well done. Dietrich Bonhoeffer by Hourly History This is a short biography of the heroic Lutheran Church pastor who opposed the Nazi’s in his homeland. It speaks about his insights, his attempts to influence policy during the time of the Nazi’s, his insistence that he belonged in Germany (and his refusal to flee to safety) and finally his execution in the closing days of the war. One would have wished for a bit more insight into his personal struggle with his decisions and the dynamics of his faith life. Keep Safe. Shalom fr. Jude

Rome

July 21, 2020 Peace and Good, I hope you all are well. I finished my quarantine in Rome and am now free to go around. Most of the people do not wear masks on the street, but it is required in mass transit. I still like to put mine on whenever I go out. We have our definitory meeting this week. Every morning is our usual business, and then in the afternoon we have a Zoom meeting with the presidents of the various federations throughout the world (7 of them). This kept the presidents from having to travel to Rome in this uncertain times. The rules of various countries seem to change by the hour. Spain and France have now closed their borders due to a new outbreak. I am able to be in Italy because of our meeting. I will be leaving Italy on Monday, heading to our novitiate in California. On the one part, California is not doing that well with Covid, on the other I will be in the novitiate which is fairly isolated. The weather here has gotten hot, hot, hot. This is normal for the end of July and August. It is strange to see so few tourists in the city. The Europeans tend to come here in the late Spring and the early Fall, while the Americans come during the summer. There are no Americans around this year. I finished some reading: Influenza: A Case Study by OpenLearn This is one of those free university courses on an individual topic from OpenLearn. This one tends to be highly technical and really only serves someone who has studied the dynamics of disease transmission and control. World War II: D-Day by Hourly History This is a short account of the planning, execution and aftermath of the D Day invasion. The author gives a good amount of information in a very short format. The Eucharist in the West: History and Theology by Edward Kilmartin, SJ This is the study produced by Edward Kilmartin and edited after his death by another Jesuit. It is highly complicated and intense, but had a wealth of information. I had to read it slowly and carefully, but it gave me a series of insights into various topics about the Eucharist and the celebration of the Mass. Anglo-Saxons by Captivating History This is a short account of the settlement and kingdoms of the Angles and Saxons, Germanic settlers in England. It offers too much information about individual kings, leading to a confusing mix that is not all that helpful. The Abbey by James Martin, SJ This is a short but very nicely written book about a custodian of an abbey and his landlady and their relationship to a couple of the monks of the abbey near Philadelphia. It is not the best book I have read on a topic like this, but it is good. Especially good is the author’s attempt to recognize the need for a difficult and complicated faith journey in the characters. Werewolves by Charles River Editors This is a short book on the various traditions and myths concerning werewolves throughout Europe. Much of what we know from films and TV programs is a later development in the legends. Sometimes the legends have the werewolf an accomplice of the devil, other times not. Have a safe week. Shalom fr. Jude

Rome

July 14, 2020 Peace and Good, Today marks the 43rd anniversary of when I first set out for Europe to begin my studies there with my classmate, fr. Robert Twele. I have only a couple of days left in my quarantine. These days have been very productive. I have finished my daily reflections on scripture up to the end of August, and I have finished all of my articles for the Messenger of St. Anthony until the end of next year. Next week we have a meeting of our definitory, and after that I will head to California to spend some time with our novices. After that I will head to Ellicott City for some doctor's and dentist's visits, and then back here again. The way things are going in the States, I will most probably have another two week period of quarantine. Needless to say, I have gotten quite a bit of reading done in these days: Bunker Hill by Nathanael Philbrick All that Philbrick has written is well done, and that is especially true of this book. It deals with what preceded the battle, the battle itself, and its aftermath. It gives a good insight into some of the major characters involved, and provides ample background information on the whole period. This is a book that I can easily recommend. Trail of Tears by Captivating History This is an account of the ethnic cleansing decision by President Andrew Jackson to exile all of the native Americans in the Southeast US to Oklahoma. Although they signed a fraudulent treaty, the US authorities never kept the provisions of their own agreement. Thousands died along the way from North Carolina and its environs to Oklahoma. The author goes a little overboard in declaiming the blatant racism of this (which it was), but the story needs to be told. Halicarnassus by Charles River Editors This is a major city in Asia Minor that played a major role in various wars and advances and retreats of world empires. It was the birthplace of Herodotus, the famous Greek historian. It was also the site of the famous tomb of King Masalaus, which gave the name to the structure known as the Mausoleum. Gene Manipulation in Plants by OpenLearn This speaks about the techniques of gene manipulation in plants used for agriculture. It gives two major examples: to resist the effects of herbicides and antibiotics, and to add nutritive value to the crop. It also deals with some of the questions raised by those who are deeply suspicious of genetically altered crops. The Dark Ages by Captivating History This is a short account of the history of Europe from the fall of the Roman Empire in the West until the coming of the Renaissance. The author of this series tends to be anti-Catholic and anti-Church, but other than that, his information is interesting. The Battle of Kursk by Hourly History This is the story of a great tank battle that occurred in the Ukraine in the summer after the defeat of the Germans at Stalingrad. This was an attempt by Hitler to regain the initiative, but the Soviets knew about the coming battle and prepared well for it. The German loses during the battle meant that they were henceforth on the defensive until the end of the war. I, Ripper by Stephen Hunter This is a fictional account of the career of Jack the Ripper told from three perspectives: that of a diary written by Jack himself, that of the memoirs of a reporter who followed the story, and that of a series of letters written by a prostitute in this era. The book is not intended to be the official solution to the mystery, but simply a take on the story. It is well done. Ten Tea Parties: Patriotic Protests that History Forgot by Joseph Cummins We tend to know about the Boston Tea Party, but we often don’t realize that this was only one of the many forms of resistance involving the tea trade that took place in the colonies around the same time as the affair in Boston. This book goes through the various stories of other episodes, asking at times how historic the accounts are. Managing Coastal Environments by OpenLearn This is a very short course on the dynamics of dealing with estuary and marshland maintenance. It deals with human manipulation of the environment (for agriculture, for seaside houses, etc.) as well as the mega-effect of global warming and the rise in sea levels In precarious areas. It speaks of efforts to rehab some coastal environments as well. The short course is quite informative. Keep Safe. Shalom fr. Jude

Seoul, South Korea - Rome

July 5, 2020 Peace and Good, Well, I made it back to Italy. The trip was long, going from Korea to Doha, Qatar, and then from there to Rome. The first plane was almost empty, but the second was packed to the gills. There was absolutely no social distancing. We had to wear face masks and shields the whole way. I did not know if I would get into Italy because of Coronavirus restrictions. In Seoul, they had to call Italian immigration to make sure they would accept me. That took about an hour and a half to get an answer, and I was really starting to get nervous. Then the thumbs up came and I flew out. In Rome, there was absolutely no difficulty. I do have to make another two weeks of self-isolation, but that is in my own room in Santi Apostoli. Furthermore, I have a beautiful terraza outside my room, so I can do my daily walk there. It has gotten hot in Rome, much more so than in Korea. I will be here in Rome until the end of the month, and then head out again to California. All of my travel plans are tenuous, though, because of rules that change every other day. I have to admit that we Americans don't look that good around the world right now because of our poor response to Covid 19. Korea worked very hard at their infections, and they are down to 20 to 30 per day in the whole country. I have finished some reading: Madamn de Pompadour by Charles River Editors This is a short account of the famous mistress of King Louis XV of France. Although not glamorous nor of the nobility, she managed to become indispensable for the king for a long period of his life (even though he was also married). She used her power carefully, and also served as a procurer of younger and more beautiful women to amuse the king (without ever endangering her hold on his affections and attention). Loos 1915: the Unwanted Battle by George Carrigan This is one of the many pointless and hopelessly lethal battles of World War I. It has a lot of military detail, much more than the casual reader would be interested in considering. Yet, it is good as an example of how cheap life became when one’s goals were out of perspective during a time of crisis. The Fear Index by Robert Harris Robert Harris has become one of my favorite authors. He is the author of a trilogy upon Cicero, a novel about a Tony Blair like figure, of Alfred Dreyfus of the Dreyfus Affair. This novel is a bit different. A brilliant Artificial Intelligence scientist develops a plan to invest money in the stock market based on playing against the fears for some sort of turmoil that the market might be facing. Being an artificial intelligence, though, the machine begins to think and plan for itself. The book is very good. King Edward VI by Hourly History This is a short biography of the son of Henry VIII who took the throne after him. He died a very young man the throne passed to his half-sister Mary who tried to restore Catholicism to England, using considerable violence. The author is clearly prejudiced in his book, cheering every way that Edward worked to make England more Protestant. The Origin of the Wars of the Three Kingdoms by OpenLearn This is a short university course that speaks of the reign of Charles I and the origin of the wars that developed in Scotland, Ireland and England. Each of the rebellions had its own cause. Some of it was based on religion, while other aspects like Charles’ attitude toward his reign (believing in the divine right of kings) played a role, as did the party of Puritans who wanted to make England more clearly Protestant. Boudicca: Warrior Woman of Roman Britain by Caitlin Gillespie This was a warrior queen who rebelled against the power of Rome during the reign of Nero. She and her followers managed to burn three important Roman cities and they fought bravely against the legions of Rome. She died when she was defeated. Boudicca fought the Romans largely because her husband, the king, had left his inheritance to Nero in the hope that the Romans would protect and respect Boudicca and her daughters, but the Romans abused Boudicca and raped her daughters. Have a good and safe week. Shalom fr. Jude