Ellicott City

May 18, 2025 Peace and Good, This has been a busy week with helping out at the Shrine and a couple of outside ministry calls. I finished editing the children's book on Carlo Acutis that I have been writing, and we are now waiting for art work to come in. That usually takes a couple of months. They used to use an artist in Italy, and I don't know if that is still the case. The season has changed to summer here. Everything on the property is blooming and beautiful. Of course, that means plenty of pollin, which means my hay feaver activated, which means I ended up with a sinus infection. This is pretty normal for me. Thank goodness for Minute Clinics - it makes things so much easier. I have a request. Could you please keep my sister Marge in your prayers. She passed away on Friday. She had a lot of difficulties during her life, and I really hope she is experiencing peace right now. I finished some books; “J” by Ed McBain A rabbi is killed, and a group of antisemites are suspected. This is especially because the letter J had been painted on the wall of the alley where the murder occurred. The police assume that it stands for “Jew”, and therefore was a calling card of the murderer. The story, though, twists and turns until the truth is discovered. The Secret History of World War II by Various Authors This is a long compilation of accounts of various sky efforts by the allies in order to obtain information about the war plans of Nazi Germany and Japan. The book comes across as a collection of short Wikipedia articles. Storm by Ed McBain This is a standard 50’s and 60’s detective story in which a detective takes a vacation weekend with a new girlfriend, and they get involved with the murder one of the sky instructors. The dialog is not profound in any way, but the telling of the story is entertaining. Hegel in 90 Minutes by Paul Strathern Strathern is a brilliant presenter of history topics. This is part of a series of short introductions to philosophers and other thinkers. He gives an outline of the life and the teachings of this figure from the late 18th and early 19th century Germany. Strathern is not really all that sympathetic in his presentation, basically accusing Hegel of spouting an unintelligible mass of theories that few really understood. One of Hegel’s pupils turned out to be Karl Marx (who twisted Hegel’s teaching from a Platonic approach to one that was very material and economic). Plague: A Very Short Introduction by Paul Slack This is part of the very short introduction presentation. They are 3 to 5 hours long, and they present various dimension of a particular topic. In this case, it deals mostly with the Black Death plague, but also covers some other relevant topics. It speaks of the pathology, of the cultural consequences, of the preventative measures, etc. This particular presentation is well done. How to Read the Gospel of Matthew by Ian Boxall This is a Learn25 course on the Gospel of Matthew. Its 12 lectures present a good overview of the Gospel and some of the particular emphasis that this evangelist had in his presentation. The professor is quite balanced, and one can hear his deep learning and his deep faith in the lectures. The Worst President Ever by Robert Strauss Who would one say was the worst president ever? Strauss presents Buchanan as his candidate. He was the president right before President Lincoln. He took the side of the south in the simmering argument on slavery and his inaction throughout his presidency and especially in the lame duck period between Lincoln’s election and his inauguration (which in those days occurred in early March) allowed the rebellion in the south to reach a point of no return. This does not even deal with some of the other controversies during his presidency (e.g. war against the Mormons in Utah, bleeding Kansas, etc.). Discovering West Africa: Ghana, Senegal, Cameroon by Nathan Fluellen I thought that this was going to be a studied approach to these West African countries, but it really comes across as more of an infomercial presented by a travel influencer. Fluellen does a good job of presenting some of the history and culture of these three countries, but this should not be mistaken with an academic presentation. The Empty Hours by Ed McBain This is a novella about a murder that is filled with twists and turns. From the start, there is confusion. The police mistake the race of the person killed. Then, there is a question of why anyone would want to kill this somewhat mysterious person. The police are only able to solve the mystery by investigating a series of checks that she had written in the previous weeks. The Vietnam War by John McManus This is a Great Courses presentation done my a Vietnam war vet who portrays a very balanced view of the war in Vietnam from the days under the French til the present. The course is very informative and well presented. I would highly recommend this course to anyone interested in the period. Richard III: Brother and Protector King by Chris Skidmore King Richard III is often portrayed as a hunchback villain (e.g. in Shakespeare). This book gives a more balanced view of the man. He had his positive dimension, but he also did some horrible things (e.g. the disinheriting and murder of his nephews and his seizure of the throne). Skidmore is able to tell the story and give a balanced viewpoint of what went on. The book is well done. The First Congress by Fergus Bordewich We like to think of the founding of the nation as something that went smoothly and that all of our legislators were like Greek philosophers. That just was not the case. There were conflicts and confusion right from the start. There were questions on the power of the central government, taxes, tariffs, paying of states’ debts, where the capitol should be, financial systems, etc. Yet, somehow, they got through it. This book gives a good account of those early days of the Senate and House and how they learned their roles. The Cuban Revolution by Hourly History This is a short history of Cuba. It especially deals with the time before the Cuban revolution (under Battista) and how Castro was able to overthrow the government with a force that never numbered all that many. It also deals with the whole America/Soviet Union question. The author basically blames the US for pushing Castro into the hands of the communists (which I think is a gross oversimplification of the story). God bless, fr. Jude

Ellicott City

May 12, 2025 Peace and Good, These past couple of weeks have been quite busy with serving at the Shrine, at the Nursing Home, writing, and spiritual direction. Having finished my book on Carlo Acutis, I have a bit more time to devote to the daily podcast reflections on Scripture and I am a little ahead, but I have to be careful to keep working on them. The weather has turned very nice in these days. It is already Spring with the first hints of Summer. I will be here at Ellicott City for the rest of the month, with a few talks for various groups here at the Shrine. I also have to prepare for a few retreats that I will be giving over the next couple of months. I have learned how to use Libby, an app used by the local library, so I can now listen to some books for free. I always like free. I often buy book online because I am somewhat interested in topic, but especially because they are very, very cheap. I have finished some reading and listening: Epic Engineering Failures and the Lessons They Teach by Stephen Ressler This is quite a long (26 lessons) presentation on various bridges, dikes, buildings, airplanes, etc. which failed through engineering or maintenance errors. The thesis of the professor is that even failures can lead to new insights and further safety in the future. Ressler is clear in his presentations, and I learned about forces and other elements in the design of projects. He makes listening to his lectures a joy. The History of Sugar by Kelley Deetz This is a Great Courses presentation on the history of the growth and use of sugar. A large part of the book deals with the tragedy of the slave trade which was largely fueled by the need for cheap labor on the sugar plantations. The professor also speaks of the cultural significance of sugar (e.g. birthday cakes, Halloween candy, etc.). It is only a short presentation, but it is well prepared and presented. The Face of Fear by Dean Koontz Two men decide to become supermen (in the sense of Nietzsche) by killing a series of people in a horrible way, thus creating chaos through which they can gain control. Because of circumstances, a man who is psychic and his wife are being hunted by the killers. Much of the action takes place on the top floors of a modern skyscraper where the pair must try to escape the killer using mountain climbing techniques. The Khmer Kill by Barry Eisler This is a short novel about a professional assassin who is invited to Cambodia to kill someone. While he is there, he discovers that his mission is not what he expected it to be. There is a good sense of sympathy to the poverty of the people living in Phnom Pen, and even of some of the sex workers in the city. Ancient Rome by Simon Baker This is a quite long treatment of the history of Rome from its foundation to the days of Constantine. This is the second time I have listened to this book (the last time around 10 years ago). Both times I thoroughly enjoyed the material and the style of the book. Dragon Sea by Frank Pope This is the story of the recovery effort for a shipwreck off the coast of Vietnam. It contains a very large quantity of fine porcelain which was considered unusual for the best and most porcelain was being produced in China. The book goes into questions of politics, archaeology, diving, etc. The men working on the project are not presented as great heroes but rather as quite fallible and at times venal. The Shepherd of Hermas translated by J.B. Lightfoot This is one of the books written in the early Church which did not make it into the New Testament (although some editions of it did include the book at the end). I always wanted to read it because of this. I have to admit that it is a bit tedious. It is a series of allegories and homilies all calling Christians to conversion. It is filled with dire predictions for those who are not faithful to the Gospel. It is like the Book of Revelation at its worst. Alaric the Goth by Douglas Boin This is a book I well appreciated. When we were small, we heard that the barbarians conquered the civilized Roman empire. The story of Alaric presents the other side of the story. Alaric’s greatest wish was to be welcomed into the Empire and that he and his people be treated with respect. The opposite happened, and it lead to the sacking of Rome because of the outrages the Romans had committed against the Goths. The Stuart Restoration by Charles River Editors This is a short study of the period between the death of King Charles I (killed by the rebellion led by Cronwell) and the restoration of the monarchy under King James II. It is a complicated period with political and religious differences leading to absolute chaos for quite a bit of time. Breakfast with Buddha by Roland Menullo This is a novel of a book editor who is travelling to the Midwest to sell the farm of his parents who recently died in an accident. He is tricked by his sister into carrying a Buddhist sage to whom she intended to give part of the farm. At first the man is furious, but slowly he learns life lessons from the sage. The book is well written. Agent Sonya by Ben Macintyre This is the true story of an English housewife who turns out to be a soviet army agent who forwarded many of the secrets of the atom bomb to Moscow. She was a German Jew who joined the soviet service in China, then served in Poland, Germany and Switzerland, before finally ending up in England during the Second World War. The story, if it were not true, would be rejected as too unbelievable to be true. Macintyre is an excellent author of spy stories including Dreyfus, allied spies against the Nazi’s, Soviet spies against the west, etc. Picking Popes: Conclaves, the Papacy and the Catholic Church by Christopher Bellitto I bought this short course from Learn25 a while ago, and the death of Pope Francis and the election of Pope Leo seemed like a good time to listen to it. It is only a few lectures long, but it gives a good overview to what happens when one pope dies and another is elected. A Murder of Crows by Tom Lowe A Seminole is arrested for supposedly killing a grave robber and scalping him. A couple of people, one a retired detective from Miami and the other a former agent for the FBI, investigate the case for they are absolutely sure of the innocence of the man arrested. There are a good number of twists and turns, and the novel is well written. Have a good week. Shalom fr. Jude