Tag: Blithe Spirit

Dear Diary(!) Sunday in the park with Phoebe

Oak Park Chronicles

Man stops to let small white dog come up to Jim on bench, who is staked out, 7 a.m. of a Sunday, book at ready. Dog says nothing. Neither does Jim. Owner man says good morning, takes dog away. Good.

Moments later, “Good morning” from woman with another little white dog, also silent, she from a few yards away, not yet abreast of Jim. He looks up and nods with a half wave, looks back down again, she takes her dog away.

Two up, two down in the early-morning Grumpy Jim game. Third person moments later with little black dog. Jim looks up as they approach, sees smiling off-white face of short-haired friendly woman, smiles good morning. Her little black dog, a poodle with no personality, stops before Jim and stares.

“Phoebe, he doesnt want to play,” woman says but does not pull Phoebe away. Instead, she tells Phoebe again…

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A modest proposal for Sun-Times and Catholic preachers

I would like Sun-Times and Catholic preachers to join forces. Sun-Times would go lightly on its vigorous support for gay marriage and abortion, RC preachers would go heavy on political corruption in Chicago. Would make a great combination.

Going lightly on g.m. and a. would not require editorial policy changes and would not alienate readers. RC preachers could start slowly on corruption and build up, staying with generalities and naming no names.

Look. Even to mention bribery and bribe-taking would be revolutionary. And vote-stealing? Paddy would have to bar the door.

So go for it, you two, my near-daily partners in finding and living the good life without help from Miller Hi-Life beer, though I have to admit with an occasional boost therefrom.

Catholicism lite and confusing

From recent prayer meeting, what did speaker mean by things she has been told, as following:

* “Be the song, embody the song.” She commented, It was “pretty profound for me.”

* We want to find “not a path to God but in God.”

As to the second, the path to God would be something most people can understand. “In God” needs much more explaining than she offered and was not self-explanatory or inspiring, as she implied.

Same for being a song. Called for lots of explanation not given nor supplied by hearing that it was “pretty” profound for her, apart from modifying “profound” with the diminutive “pretty,” which was pretty confusing for me.

Woman has degrees from locally approved pastoral-helper training program attended by many Chicago-area pastoral helpers. Gives us Catholicism Lite, but worse, Catholicism confusing. Sorry.

This liberal Jesuit loves this pope

Rev. James Martin SJ pulls out the stops in thanksgiving for Pope Francis SJ.

And makes his point quite nicely.

Let us now pray that the pope’s concern for and identification with poor people is not taken as endorsement of socialistic practices. It shouldn’t be so taken. He’s too smart for that.

He’s a free man, Fr. Martin says several times. His own man, others would say. A wise man, knowing wheat from chaff. A tough guy, unbothered by mediocrities that inevitably surround the top man anywhere.

Too smart to be fooled by random acts of contempt for so-called materialism — of U.S. prosperity, for instance, of free market capitalism, which does more for poor people than any other system.

Let us pray he understands that.