San Juan Bautista, CA - Rome

June 13, 2022 The Feast of St. Anthony of Padua Peace and Good, Our provincial chapter in California went very well. I flew back to Rome the Saturday after the chapter, flying from San Francisco to London and then on to Rome. The was the easiest transit that I have had in the past couple of years. There are no more forms to fill out, no more covid tests to take. Even passport control was remarkably easy. I hope it continues like this. This past week we held our definitory. There was quite a bit to do since we had not met since before Easter. As always, we dealt with topics from all over the world. One of the new items on the agenda is the fact that the Holy Father has given us a decree that allows us to elect Religious Brothers as major superiors (provincials, custodes and vicars). California did this, so we approved the election and sent it on to the Decastery of Religious for their final approval. It is very hot these days, and Rome is packed with tourists. After the past few years with very disappointing tourist seasons, this has to be a tremendous relief to those who own stores and restaurants here in Rome. This week we have a meeting with the Presidents of the various federations of the Order (there are seven). Then on Sunday I will be flying to Los Angeles for the second part of their provincial chapter. I finished some reading: Genesis by James McKeown This is one of the best commentaries on Genesis that I have ever read. The author is from an Evangelical background, but while not being fundamentalistic, he respects and addresses the concerns raised by them. He has a good way of linking what is being written in Genesis with what was occurring in Israel at the time that the book was written, probably around the time of the exile. He links the various allusions within the book and outside of it. He deals with the larger spirituality of the book. I thoroughly enjoyed it and learned a lot. The First Frontier: the Forgotten History of Struggle, Savagery, and Endurance in Early America by Scott Wiedensaul This is an account of the meeting of native Americans and colonial settlers in the era that ran from the first entrance of those colonists up to the time of the American Revolution. It is thorough, and speaks of the many wars and treaties made between the two groups. One of the things that is significant is that each of the groups really did not consider the other to be fully human, and they treated them that way. It gives a lot of information, but the writing style of the author is not all that good. The information is not engaging. Medieval Art: From Beginning to the end by T. Silva This is a very short overview of the art of the post-Roman era, the Carolingian era and the early Renaissance. It is very incomplete and sketchy at best, but it does give a little good information Lies Sleeping by Ben Aaronovitch Aaronovitch is one of my favorite authors. This series of books called the Rivers of London is based on the career of a young half black detective who has been singled out to be part of a squad that deals with violations of magic. In this volume, there is a plot to kill one of the ancient spirits of London to gain the power from that entity (but possibly also to create a totalitarian state ruled by the miscreant who is formulating the plot. The books in this series are fun, a bit cheeky. A Thief of Time by Tony Hillerman This is a novel about murders and possible kidnappings of those who are seeking ancient pottery in the Navaho reservation. There are two tribal policemen who are trying to solve a number of strange occurrences. The author seeks to bring the reader into the Navaho mindset, which I believe he does very well. I would recommend any of Hillerman’s books. The Red Prince: The Life of John of Gaunt, the Duke of Lancaster by Helen Carr This is the story of the founder of the house of Lancaster which was represented by a red rose and which would be one of two houses involved in the War of the Roses. Carr is a good historian, giving tons of information in a very pleasant presentation. I could easily recommend this book for someone interested in the pre-Tudor period of history in England. Easter Island by Charles River Editors This is a short outline of the island known as Easter Island but also by its original name, Rapa Nui. It is a lone island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. The most famous thing on the island is the statues that have been set up by the various groups of natives called Maoi. The island is also famous for the ecological disaster that occurred when the population grew without resources to supply for their needs, something that is noted in Jared Diamond’s books. Caravaggio by Delphi Art Classics This particular volume of the Delphi Art series gives an overview of Caravaggio’s most important works with some critical notes. It also gives a short biography. However, it is a bit scarce on information. Have a good week. Shalom fr. Jude

Rome - Chicago

July 13, 2021 Peace and Good, We finished out very long definitory last Friday. We had to examine two important documents in the course of the meeting, and it went quite well. On Sunday I flew to Chicago. I will be here until Saturday when I head out to Los Angeles. I am here just to be with the friars, and to meet the new novices. I am playing these days by ear. Fortunately, Thursday, which is the day of the patron saint of this province, St. Bonaventure, there will be a friars' day at Marytown so I will get to see a number of the friars. I have also had the opportunity to speak with a number of friars one on one in these days, which is always good. Sometimes, my most important work is just done listening to what friars have to say. The weather here is very, very humid and overcast. It is not all that hot, but the humidity is very uncomfortable. Our house is located at the northern part of the city, right near the lake and Loyolla University. The flight here was long. May flights have been cancelled, so you have to take a round about route. I flew from Rome to Dallas, and from Dallas to Chicago. The trip is a bit better than before, and a little of the paperwork has disappeared. I finished some reading: The New World by Edward John Payne This is an essay that deals with the explorations in the New World and the predominant attitudes toward this universe. There are those who saw the new world as a paradise not yet destroyed by civilization (Montaigne), and those who thought that it would take great effort to make the new world a place where a decent person could live (Francis Bacon). As is true of all of these essays from the Cambridge series, it is very anglophilic. Dance Hall of the Dead by Tony Hillerman I have read many, many of Tony Hillerman’s books, and this is one of the better ones. Joe Leaphorn, an officer in the Navaho Tribal Police, must investigate the murder of one young boy and the disappearance of another. The case involves Leaphorn learning more about the Zuni traditions, especially the Cochina figures which seem to be involved in this case. There are a number of twists and turns in the story which, while unusual, prove to be very believable. The Monster of Florence by Douglas Preston This is the story of a mass murderer in the city of Florence, Italy, and the investigation performed by a newspaper reporter and the crime/thriller author, Douglas Preston. The murderer is killing couples in their cars after their trysts, and mutilating the young women. While the reporter and author seem to favor one solution, the local prosecutors choose a whole different path of inquiry and begin to prosecute the reporter and Preston for their beliefs. This book speaks about the diversity of Italian cultures, and also of the mess that their legal system has become. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley I had often heard of this book, and since Audible was offering it for free, I thought this might be a good time to listen to it. It tells of a dystopian future in which the only value is happiness, even if it is drug induced. A young man who seeks more in life is destroyed by the system. The book, published in 1932, still offers a good warning to an overly technological and overly systematized world. The Battle of Antietam by Captivating History This battle produced the bloodiest day of the Civil War. It was the clashing of the forces of the South led by Robert E. Lee, and those of the North led by the brilliant but reticent General McClennan. Neither of them fought all that well that particular day. That is especially true of the forces of the north which could have easily cut off and eliminated the southern army if they had only pursued it after the battle. Imitation of Christ by Tomas A Kempis This is a meditation book written in the 1400’s representing a spiritual movement in the Netherlands. Some of its insights are brilliant, but it also proves to be a bit Manichean (the belief that only the spiritual is good and the material is corrupt and evil). It was worth reading, but I am not sure that I would recommend to anyone in spiritual direction with me without warning that person of its one sided view of life. Artemis by Andrew Scott and Charles River Editors This is a short overview of the legends and liturgical hymns that honored Artemis, the Greek goddess of the hunt, the wild and chastity. The author includes many long passages from original sources which, while interesting at first, bog one down with much unnecessary information. It is not as well done as many of the other editions of the Charles River productions. Have a good week. Shalom fr. Jude

Assisi - Rome

February 18, 2013 Peace and Good, Well, our General Chapter has come to an end. We had the closing Mass yesterday and travelled back to Rome. Today we have a definitory meeting to try to set up the full team for the next six years. Then tomorrow I head off to Baltimore. I will be there and in California for a few weeks. In Baltimore, I will be taking care of annual check ups with various doctors. Furthermore, I must visit the doctor for a problem with my rotator cuff. In California, I will be visiting a minister provincial who was ill and could not attend the General Chapter. I will be coming back to Rome on the 7th of March, so I should be back in town when the conclave begins, unless they move it forward. The first two weeks of the General Chapter involved an evaluation of where the order is now and what we have done the past six years. Then we had the elections for the Minister General and his definitory. After that, we began to look at proposals for the next six year mandate. There are not a lot of changes. Some provinces are joining together such as five provinces in central Italy and two provinces on the east coast of the US. There is a new province: Mexico. There is an old province that will be downgraded: Holland. The liturgical celebrations in Assisi were magnificent, but it will also be good to get a few celebrations in these days that are not huge musical presentations. The basicila choir was incredible. They must have practiced for months and months. Here are some books I have finished: He Who Hesitates by Ed McBain This is another of the detective novels written by Evan Hunter under the pseudonym Ed McBain. It is quite different from the other volumes that I have read so far. While those center on the action of a group of detectives in a police station in a big city, this volume deals with one individual and the people he meets. He feels that he should report something which he did (probably a crime), but he continues to hesitate all throughout the story. It is well done, leaving one wondering exactly what happened right up to the very end. Sacred Clowns by Tony Hillerman This is another of Hillerman’s books on two Navaho policeman, Lt. Joseph Leaphorn and Jim Chee, and their investigations on and near their reservation. The title comes from a native American custom to have a group of clowns perform during sacred ceremonies. These clowns mimic certain activities and serve as a kind of examination of conscience for the tribe as to whether they are maintaining or abandoning tribal customs. There is a major theme in this book about the difficulty of understanding other’s cultures. This is applied both to a question of tribal laws concerning marriage and how Chee’s girlfriend who is half Navaho but was raised off reservation cannot fully understand Chee’s difficulties, and also how one tribe finds it difficult to understand all the nuances of certain activities within another tribe. The whole series is well done. The characters are well developed, and they provide a good insight to another world of thought and custom. Devil and the White City by Erik Larson This is actually a double story. On the one side, it is the story of a mass murderer who killed many, many people in Chicago at the end of the 19th century. Chicago was growing rapidly, and any number of young women travelled there from their small villages to find a new life. They were often lonely and naive. This murderer played upon this and murdered them, at times even using their bones to form medical skeletons. He was not caught until much later when he was convicted for insurance fraud for murdering his partner and then collecting his insurance policy. The other part of the book is the story of the 1892 world’s fair in Chicago to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the discovery of Christopher Columbus. It was called the “white city.” It was a magnificent presentation that marked the moment when Chicago, then the second largest city in the country, came to central stage. The architect and landscape designer, famous even in those days, created a masterpiece. The architect was Daniel Burnham who designed some of the most famous buildings in Chicago. The landscape designer was Frederick Law Olmsted who designed Central Park. This was where a number of new inventions were first presented: cracker jacks, cream of wheat, juicy fruit gum, Pabst Blue Ribbon, shredded wheat, Quaker Oats, and electricity with alternating current, etc. There was a tremendous challenge to be more beautiful, larger, etc. than the Paris exposition. The Ferris, in fact, was the attempt to make something more grand than the Eiffel Tower. The book is very good. The only critique is that the author has the tendency to tell one what people were thinking when he in fact has no way of knowing it. Have a good week. Shalom fr. Jude

Rome - Toronto - Buffalo - Baltimore

December 31, 2012 This is my second post for the day because I messed up and never posted the December 24th one until this morning. Christmas Day was nice and peaceful in Rome. The meals were incredible. The Italians go all out for their Christmas meals, and this year was no exception. The day after Christmas, Boxing Day, I travelled from Rome to Toronto. (It is called Boxing Day because in England the servants could not celebrate Christmas on December 25th because they were on duty. They got the next day off to open their Christmas boxes.) My brother Tom and sister-in-law Nadine picked me up at the Toronto airport and drove me to their home in Buffalo. Of course, it was snowing. We got about 12 inches that evening. We also all came down with the flu. It seems as if I am very healthy with all the travelling I am doing, but then when I slow down I get a cold or a flu. There must be some psychologial basis to that. The 30th I flew down to Baltimore to visit some good friends and I will fly back to Buffalo later this evening. (Thank God for frequent flyer tickets - the trip cost $5.) It has been good to get a week away before the beginning of our General Chapter. When I get back, we have one more week of Definitory, then a week off, and then it is time to go to Assisi. I finished a few books. The Big Burn: Teddy Roosevelt and the Fire that Saved America by Timothy Egan This book is about the founding of the national forests and the opposition that Theodore Roosevelt received from the robber barons who wanted to be able to exploit its resources without any regulation. He created a huge forest system, but as soon as his chosen successor, President Taft, takes over, the system is systematically looted. This comes to an end with when there is an apocalyptic forest fire in 1910. An area the size of Connecticut burns and many, many people are killed. The fire was fanned by hurricane force winds. Town after town were burned to the ground. The fire became the clarion call to America to protect its resources. After this time, the forest service which was bound to protect the forests is taken more seriously. Unfortunately, the message which is learned is also flawed, for they adopt a zero tolerance policy on forest fires (which is not healthy to the forest for it allows the underbrush to accumulate instead of being periodically burned out). Up Country by Nelson Demille This was a truly excellent book. The hero is a retired army crimes investigator who is called back to investigate a possible murder that occurred over 30 years ago in Vietnam. The clues come from a letter from a North Vietnamese soldier to his brother in which he describes the murder by a US captain of a US lieutenant. The investigator must go to Vietnam and try to find this witness and find out what is happening. A woman helps him in the investigation and one wonders what are her motives. Likewise, everyone around the investigator is hiding something. There is plenty of action. The sex scenes are handled discretely (at least in the version I listened to). The picture of how Vietnam now runs is enlightening. I truly recommend this particular book. The Fallen Man by Tony Hillerman This is another of the stories about a police force on the Navaho reservation. The hero of the story is Lt. Chi, and the elder wise man is Joe Leaphorn. A body is discovered upon a high sacred peak. It turns out to be a man who has been lost for the past ten years. There are questions of an inheritance of a ranch. In the meantime, there is a sub-story of a love affair between Lt. Chi and a lawyer, but there are complications for he is fully Navaho (which looks down upon ambition) and she is half Navaho but very ambitious for herself and for him. Furthermore, there is a cattle thief in the neighborhood. This series gives a great insight into the cultural difference between an anglo culture and a native American one. It is very enjoyable. Shalom fr. Juude