San Antonio - Chicago - Rockford - Milwaukee - Detroit - Peoria

January 17, 2022 Peace and Good, These have been busy days as I travel from friary to friary to conduct a canonical visitation. We have two friars in Milwaukee at our basilica, two at a parish in Rockford from which the province is retiring, three in the friary in the cemetary in Dearborn Heights (Detroit) and a number in our parish in Chicago and our house of studies there. The weather has cooperated so far. My flight from San Antonio to Chicago was unusual for Southwest changed my flight, giving me one an hour earlier, during the night. Thank God I checked my email first thing in the morning. I had a pleasant surprise when I received an apology and a $100 voucher. I really like Southwest. I attended an ordination to the diaconate this past Saturday in Peoria. It went well, but the bishop tested positive for covid that evening, so I am doing some quaranteening. I have been negative with the covid tests up to now. Let's hope all goes well. I have finished some reading: The Battle of Issus by Charles River Editors This was one of the critical battles of Alexander the Great and the Macedonian army against the forces of Persia. This short book (as all of the books are by this publisher) also gives a good amount of information before and after the battle. Chernobyl by Andrew Leatherbarrow This is a book on the nuclear disaster that occurred in the Ukraine at the end of the Soviet Union. The coverage of the disaster is well done, but the book is also a travel log of the author’s trip to the reactor and city sites. That part of the book is a bit tedious. I found Midnight at Chernobyl much better written and more informative. The Life and Operas of Verdi by Robert Greenberg This is a 32 lecture Teaching Company course on the life and writings of Giuseppe Verdi. The presenter is a music scholar with a great sense of humor. I listened to this course to try to better understand opera. While I get the sense behind operas, I really cannot say that I appreciate it. Greenberg is good at explaining the movements in both the action and the music. Rise and Fall of the Borgias by William London This is a short Great Courses presentation on the Borgia family (the Pope, Cesare Borgia and Lucrecia Borgia in particular. The professor finds the middle road in his presentation. While he admits that the various family members, especially Cesare, did terrible things, he also argues that some of the worst things with which they are accused were really fabrications made up by their enemies. Top Secret Tales of World War II by William Breuer This is an interesting, amusing, and fascinating account of various events during World War II, especially associated with spy craft. It is a light read, but once in a while that is exactly what one sometimes needs. Modern Latvia by Charles River Editors This is an account of the Baltic state of Latvia which lies between Lithuania and Estonia. So much of its history was controlled by the local powers, including Russia, Poland, Sweden and Germany. While Latvia won independence after World War I, it was lost during the Second World War. It regained its independence with the fall of the Soviet Empire. The Great Famine by Hourly History This is the story of the great potato famine in Ireland in the 1840’s. The potato blight caused the failure of the crop upon which most of the Irish population depended. The British government did the minimum to help the starving population, leading to the death of at least one million people and the emigration of at least twice that number. 1941 by Andrew Nagorski This is an account of what Nagorski calls the year in which the Nazi plan to conquer the world was damaged by Hitler to the point that the rest of the war was simply the consequences of the disasters that Hitler had caused (e.g. the invasion of Russia, the failure to aim at Moscow with his most powerful forces, the declaration of war on the United States, etc.). I have read other books by Nagorski (e.g. the battle of Moscow). He was an editor at Newsweek magazine. His accounts are filled with information presented in a very pleasing manner. Keep safe. fr. Jude

Montreal - San Antonio

October 11, 2021 Peace and Good, I finished the extraordinary chapter in Canada where things went very, very well. Then on Saturday I went to visit a summer camp which the friars run about 200 km outside of Ottawa. They open it up for Polish people, and it is well used. It is about four hours each from Montreal and Toronto. Yesterday I flew into San Antonio. Travel is tough, but I was very glad I was not flying Southwest this time due to all of the cancellations. I went from 60 to 90 degrees. The center at which we are meeting this week is beautiful, about a 20 minute walk from our friary. After this meeting I will head back to Rome. That will be this coming Tuesday. I finished some books: Lexington and Concord by Hourly History This is a short account of the battles of Lexington and Concord. It gives a sufficient amount of background information about what led to this battles. There is not a lot of depth in the account, but that is not the intend of books by this publisher. Heart of a Dog by Mikail Bulgakov This is a strange account of two doctors in 1924 in Moscow, which had only shortly before become Communist, who are working with animal parts transplanted into human beings to treat various illnesses. They are considered to be brilliant. One day they find a stray dog whom they take home, and shortly afterward transplant the testes and adrenal glands of a criminal who died shortly before into the dog. It becomes more and more human, but it also shares in many of the tendencies toward dishonesty and criminality of the human donor. To save matters, they eventually take out the human parts and transplant the dogs original organs back in it. It returns to a state of happiness as it lives a contented life in their house. The story is almost a cross between The Island of Doctor Moreau and Young Frankenstein. Trade in the Ancient World by Charles River Editors This short book deals with the growth and extent of trade in the ancient world (especially the Mediterranean world). It speaks of trade in copper and tin, oil and wine, wheat, precious metals, spices and amber. It deals with shifts in the currents of trade due to political circumstances. It is not an exhaustive treatment, but a good first look at the topic. The Miami by Charles River Editors The Miami were a tribe of native Americans living in the Ohio and Kentucky area. They were caught up in the various Anglo wars (French and Indian War, the Revolutionary War) and suffered as a result. Most of them were deported to reservations to the west of the Mississippi during the presidency of Andrew Jackson. The Slave Ship: A Human History by Marcus Rediker This is a rending account of the slave trade as seen from the slave ship itself. It speaks of the misery of the slave trade as well as the time that slaves spent on what was called the middle passage. Many of them died of disease and mistreatment. All of them were horrified at their dislocation and dehumanization. The author also treats of the horrible treatment of the crews of those ships. The end of the book also speaks of the campaign to end the slave trade in Great Britain (which then served as a bastion to effect an end to the trade in the Atlantic). The Cold Ground by Adrian McKinty This is an interesting novel set in Northern Ireland during the days of the hunger strikers (Catholics in prison who starved themselves to death to fight for the right to be treated as combatants and not as criminals). There has been a couple of murders of homosexual men by what appears to be a serial murderer. A Catholic constable in the province’s police force investigates the crimes and others, eventually discovering a rather unpleasant surprise. Drunken Fireworks by Stephen King This is a very comical novella on a dissolute family who live their summers at a resort lake in Maine. Their cottage is across the lake from a wealthy Italian family from Providence, Rhode Island. Almost by accident, they start a contest as to who can explode the better fireworks for the celebration of the Fourth of July. Have a good week. Shalom fr. Jude

Mesilla Park - Rome

July 5, 2021 Peace and Good, I returned to Rome last Monday. I was originally supposed to return the previous Saturday, but my flight was cancelled at the last minute (American Airlines). Travelling is beginning to get easier. I still had to fill out a long form to get back into Italy, but once that was done, there were no difficulties. It was the check in agent who gave me the heads up about the form, and I am grateful that she mentioned it (for otherwise I would not have been allowed to board the plane). The weather here in Rome is quite hot (although not as hot as parts of the States in these days). We began our definitory on Thursday, and will continue to at least this coming Thursday. Part of our time in these days is a meeting (in person for some, by zoom for others) with the presidents of the federations. That will take place each afternoon this week. I will be here in Rome until Sunday when I fly back to the States. This trip will involve Chicago, Los Angeles, Baltimore, and London. I finished some reading: White House Connection by Jack Higgins This is part of a long series on a group of anti-terrorist experts under the direct authority of the Prime Minister of Great Britain who work in collaboration with a similar unit under the authority of the president of the US. In this episode, they are investigating the assassination of a group of pro-IRA activists in the US and London by an unknown figure. The Repute and Reality of Being a Roman Emperor by OpenLearn This short course deals with some of the symbols and activities of the Roman Emperors to be respected and honored throughout the Roman empire. Ironically, the signs of homage to the emperor were often more elaborate in the provinces than in Rome itself. This includes the deification of the emperor during his own lifetime. The Battle on the Ice by Charles River Editors This is the story of the successful defense of some of the Russian city states against the invasion of troops from Germany and the Baltic area during the 13th century. The leader of the troops of Novgorod was the famous Alexander Nevsky. The Winter War by Captivating History This is the story of the invasion of Finland by the Soviet Union at the beginning of the Second World War. Although they were massively outnumbered, the Finns put up an incredible defense. The poor showing of the Soviet troops was one of the things that convinced Hitler to invade the Soviet Union in 1940. The Murmur of Bees by Sofia Segovia This is easily one of the best books that I have read in a long time. It is the story of a family in Mexico around the time of World War I (with the pandemic of influenza at that time and the revolutionary governments). They adopt a child with a cleft pallet who has a miraculous union with nature, especially the bees. This is a translation into English from a Mexican author. I highly, highly recommend it. Duel with the Devil by Paul Collins and Mark Peckham This is the story of a murder trial in Manhattan around 1800. It is a true story, and what makes it fascinating are that two of the defense attorneys are Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton. A young woman is found dead in a well which was dug by the Manhattan water company (run by Burr). A fellow boarder in her boarding house is accused. There are many twists and turns, along with a lot of background information. It is well presented. American Spring by Walter Borneman This is a book on the first months of the Revolutionary War, including especially the Lexington and Concord battle and the battle of Bunker Hill, along with the story of the Continental Congress held in Philadelphia. The characters are well presented, and there is a wealth of information. The Secret Life of J. Edgar Hoover by Anthony Summers This is a tell it all book on the life and career of J. Edgar Hoover. It goes into his hidden gay life style, his very questionable financial dealings, even with mobsters, his possible involvement with the assassination of JFK, his gathering of information on politicians to blackmail them, etc. I am not sure if it is all true, but if even a quarter of it is accurate, then this man was one of the most dangerous in the history of our country. Have a good week. Shalom fr. Jude