The Kitchen Daughter - Book Review

The Kitchen Daughter by Jael McHenry

This was an amazing book. I was just browsing in the library and happened upon it. McHenry captures the nuances of family, tragedy, cooking and loving, bringing them all together in a great read. If you love to cook, have a sister, live a life in which things are not always as they seem - read this book!



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Roman Missal Changes

Yesterday was a momentous day in the American Catholic Church.  We began using the third edition of the Roman Missal as we began our new liturgical year.  Many have argued that instead of focusing on what is really important we are focusing on words instead of issues.  What issues?  It depends on who you are which issues you think the Church is avoiding.  My point is not to go over all of those but rather to give a perspective that says Mass is what is really important.
Lex Orandi, Lex Credendi - We pray what we believe, therefore, what is said at Mass is not just a bunch of words randomly put together on a person's whim but truly what we, as Catholics, believe to be true.  Mass is the most important activity we do because we do it in praise and thanksgiving to God.  It is our taste of heaven on earth, when time is suspended and we join with everyone else on earth and in heaven to worship the One who has given us everything. 
Should these words not be different than what we say to our friends over coffee?  Injecting a bit more formality does not mean we cower, but rather that we acknowledge that God is God and we are not.  Remember, we are speaking of communal prayer and worship, not private.  In private, we can pray as we choose.  In community, we need to pray as one body.
And that is one reason why changes were made to the English translation.  We have been out of step with the rest of the world.  My favorite new translation is "Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed."  Years ago, when attending our parish's Spanish Mass I read that and was so moved; it is just what the centurion said to Jesus.  We said "receive you" for years, using an out of use definition of "receive" as in have a guest over to your house.  Who says "I will be receiving guests today at 2 pm." anymore?  Not anyone who invites me over to visit.
Mother Theresa reminded herself and her sisters always to focus on the "one thing."  Our one thing is Mass.  If we, as Catholics, were to spend more time praying together and do this one thing so well that it would truly be heaven meeting earth, we could solve so many issues.  Even if you do not agree that these changes are right or a good idea or necessary, can we agree to focus on the one thing that can unite us?  The Liturgy offered in praise and thanksgiving, for God has given us everything.

Project

So, I signed up for Pinterest and I am happy to say, it is coming in handy.  I've already done 2 projects I saw there.
1.  I made a dress

Thanksgiving Day, very windy by the beach

2.Decorated my wall!

Advent

Advent is fast approaching, so if you haven't thought about your plan for entering into the season allow me to offer you a few links:
Praying Advent, sponsored by Creighton University
Advent Resources at Loyola Press offers online retreats, prayers and more for all ages
Catholic Online - Advent pages
Catholic Mom has everything parent related

Don't forget your Advent wreath, to make or buy.

Better is One Day

Yesterday was the feast of Christ the King.  One of the songs we sang was "Better is One Day", sung here by Kutless.  So, I am singing with my eyes closed and imagining heaven, and one day I will get to be in his courts. It is amazing; I am moved and in God's presence. I open my eyes - BIG mistake!  Some folks are doing hand motions to the song, so for "one day" hold up a finger, and for "in your courts" pretend you are shooting a basketball.  So, we have now effectively reduced the courts of heaven of our King, to a basketball court.  I quickly closed my eyes.  am I being judgmental?  Do I need to lighten up?  It is after all, a worship song to lead us to think of heaven, not basketball.  Okay, my rant is over.

7 Quick Takes

1.  It is almost Thanksgiving, in case you were not aware.  So, what are you cooking?  My contribution to the feast is:  corn casserole, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, apple pie and chocolate chip biscotti.  My son (the chef)  is making the gravy and grilled artichokes with this unbelievable sauce. 

2.  My dear daughter turned 23 this week.  That's her over there, just a few weeks before she turned 1.  She celebrated by going out to dinner with the family she works for in Australia.  She also took the first step in applying to the Maryknoll Missionaries. 

3.  Tomorrow night we are attending a fundraiser dinner dance for Birthline/Lifeline, our local crisis pregnancy center.  I am looking forward to dancing, so I hope my husband's knee will cooperate.  I also bought a gorgeous new dress, 3 sizes smaller than the last time I bought a dress.  Yay!

4.  One of my favorite things to do at my new office is walk to the bank.  It's only a block but I think it is so cool to just walk over, take care of business, and come back.  I have to go today, but I'll wait until the rain stops.

5.  My friend who is an interior decorator came over last Friday and helped me move my furniture around.  Who am I kidding, I helped her move the furniture.  It looks very nice and now I have some projects to complete to finish up the look.

6.  Every morning I get a minute Meditation in my inbox.  They come from American Catholic.  Today was from Padre Pio:  "If, despite your vigilance and goodwill, you do not succeed in doing good either in part or altogether, humble yourself profoundly before God but without discouragement. Determine to be more careful in the future, ask for divine assistance, and move forward."  — from Padre Pio's Spiritual Reflection For Every Day
They are always thought provoking and I often put them on Facebook to share with others.

7.  If I were Queen, I would ban all talk of Christmas until after Thanksgiving. 

Hop over to Jenn for more Quick Takes!

FOCUS

No, I am not suggesting you have ADD or need to pay more attention.  I am talking about Fellowship of Catholic University Students.  This is a wonderful organization that has embraced the New Evangelization and reaches out to what is often a misunderstood and under-served population - college students!
I first learned about FOCUS when my daughter was at the University of Florida.  UF has approximately 50,000 students among all their programs and schools.  It actually has more people then my town.  So, finding your niche can be difficult.  Thankfully, Elisa attended St. Augustine and participated in the Catholic Gator programs.  That's where we learned about FOCUS.  This group sends young adults onto college campuses, two by two, to reach out to all students on campus.  They do this through many different activities including bible study, retreats, game nights, dinners and more. 
A close friend of Elisa has become a FOCUS missionary.  Her name is Mirna and she serving at Northern Arizona University.  We support her in this endeavor with a monetary contribution each month and prayer.  She is leading four different women's bible studies.  Together with the other members of her team, she distributed Curtis Martin's book, Made for More and put on numerous events. 
If you would like to find out more about Mirna and her work, go here or learn more about FOCUS and its' mission. 

Confirmation

In Another's Words

God has created me to do Him some definite service;
He has committed some work to me
which He has not committed to another.
I have my mission—
I may never know it in this life, but I shall be told it in the next.
…I am a link in a chain,
a bond of connection between persons.
He has not created me for naught.
I shall do good;
I shall do His work;
I shall be an angel of peace,
a preacher of truth in my own place, while not intending it,
if I do but keep his Commandments.
…Therefore I will trust Him.
Whatever, wherever I am.
I can never be thrown away.
If I am in sickness, my sickness may serve Him;
in perplexity, my perplexity may serve Him;
in sorrow, my sorrow may serve Him.
…He does nothing in vain.
…He knows what He is about.
                                              John Henry Newman

Twenty-eight Years

Today is our wedding anniversary.  Two years ago I wrote a post giving 26 things about our life together that made be happy.  Those reasons still stand today, but I will add two more to the list.

27.  I think we may be getting the hang of this 'empty-nest' thing.

28.  You were my strength all through Diane's dying and death.  A man's true character is shown in trials.  When I say I cannot imagine having gone through all that without you I mean more than any words could ever express.

Happy Anniversary to my one and only!

One Month Anniversary

Today is one month since I moved back to the world of faith formation and religious education from stewardship and communication.  So, what have we accomplished in that time?  We have implemented children's liturgy of the word at one Sunday Mass, began our on-line religious education program, had a parent meeting, set shcedules for all classes, set dates for sacrament meetings, planned our Confirmation program, and have begun our adult study on the Mass.  We are in the process of updating our parish bulletin. We will have a Faith Formation page every week and double in size, from 4 to 8 pages.
Next on the agenda is to revamp our website, so I will be tapping into my vast skills at website development previous position skill set a bit.  We also need to plan our parish mission for Lent.
I am also working on re-learning about all the resources available online.
At times I want to move faster, but I keep reminding myself that it takes time to get the personality of parish and so going slowly is a good idea.  I think, pray, wait, plan, and then move forward.  I think it works well.

Just So Often

Remembrance

Diane Noelle LoGrasso

Diane, a faith filled wife, mother, and friend, died before anyone wanted her to die.  She passed from this life into the next after being here barely forty-three years.  Diane was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in October of 2007, after months of doctor visits and tests led to the conclusion that all she needed was a routine hysterectomy and her problems would be solved. Three different health care professionals agreed.  Imagine for a minute, waking up after that surgery, and seeing the face of the doctor who said you did not have ovarian cancer and finding out that said doctor was called into the surgery because you have Stage III ovarian cancer. 

 Treatment began after she recovered from her surgery. She sought expert advice from M. D. Anderson in Houston, Moffitt in Tampa, and doctors in Jupiter. Her husband, a scientist, spoke to colleagues trying to find the best treatment plan so ovarian cancer would not take Diane.  It was a roller coaster ride of chemo, remission, testing – each time the pattern repeated the highs seemed higher and the lows lower. 

 Diane faced cancer as she did life.  On her own terms.  Her rules.  She wanted to leave a legacy to the world.  She did.  She wanted to be remembered.  She is.  She wanted her  suffering and death to mean something.  It can.  How?  By working to educate health care professionals and women.  By teaching women to take charge of their health care and to speak up to their doctors until they are heard.  By making information about ovarian and all reproductive cancers easily accessible and understood. 

We can question Diane’s cancer forever.  Questioning will not change the fact that she is gone or make a difference in someone else's life. We can, as Diane said, “educate and act, to save women and their loved ones from this agony.  This will make my suffering and death mean something.”

The Church and New Media

The Church and New Media by Brandon Vogt is full of the possibilities we have literally at our fingertips to engage the people of God.  The chapters ranged from what one blogger can do to what can be accomplished by an archdiocese and beyond.  I of course love to entertain what 'could be.'  In my past position I was in charge of communication for the parish and so I really enjoyed learning about using media and technology to reach our parishioners and others.  Fr. Robert's Barron quote,"It would be unwise in the extreme for the Church to absent itself from the virtual Areopagus for fear of rejection or contradiction.  We should enter it with courage, intelligence and sheer panache of St. Paul" echoes my belief that we must learn how to reach out using all means possible.   John Roberto tells us that "We haven't yet wrapped our heads around the idea that we can reach people 24/7, anytime, anywhere. " 
The authors do not shy away from discussing what is good and bad about New Media.  But all have unapologetically embraced it with eyes open.  In the conclusion Vogt points out that the anonymity of the Internet allows for a very non-threatening form of pre-evangilzation.  The Internet cannot and should not take the place of personal witness and interaction, but it can certainly help people learn about our faith. 
This book should be put in the hands of every diocesan communication director, parish administrator, faith formation director, and youth minister.  Actually, everyone who works in a parish office should read it and decide how to use New Media to reach out and draw in. 
This review was written as part of the Catholic book reviewer program from The Catholic Company. Visit The Catholic Company to find more information on The Church and New Media. They are also a great source for a Catechism of the Catholic Church or a Catholic Bible.