Happy St. Patrick's Day

I hope you all enjoy the day and find strength in the example of St. Patrick. I know his humility, his prayer and his sacrifice have added much to my own journey.

St. Patrick's Day is Coming Up

We are less than a month away from St. Patrick's Day and I thought I would make a quick mention of the great Saint's prayer and tell you about a recent encounter. I have posted portions of the prayer here before.

I was visiting a Catholic store a few weeks ago and met up with a woman whose son had gone through school with one of my older kids. Her son had been a nice enough boy when I knew him, but I had heard from my son that he had gotten into some trouble with drugs. I knew next to nothing about what was going on, but you could see there was pain in this woman's face. The woman herself is a wonderful person and devoted mother and wife.

I asked her whether she had seen the St. Patrick holy cards and I pulled a few off one of the shelves. I mentioned that I had learned an appreciation of St. Patrick because of his prayer and his life. I liked the fact that there is a desperation in St. Patrick that comes out in the prayer. I think its message is especially strong for those who are in desperate need. In the prayer, St. Patrick asks for more than help, he asks to be surrounded by Christ from all sides.

Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me, Christ in me.
Christ below me, Christ above me.
Christ at my right, Christ at my left.
Christ in breadth, Christ in length, Christ in height.

I bought a few cards and she took one for herself as well to read after I left. I also showed her a St. Brigid card that I had bought there before, which has a prayer that asks for God's help in finding peace. She seemed interested in both cards and I hope the prayers would help her. Both prayers are wonderful.

I have been in situations like the one that she is going through where there seems to be no good answer and you have to just ask the Good Lord to hold you up and surround you with His love and protection. We parents are meant to be protectors of our children and often we are, but the one thing we cannot protect them from is their own self destruction. I think many of us who know this woman would view her as an especially devoted mother. May God protect her and her son.

One version of Saint Patrick's Prayer/BreastplateLorica.

David Kelly: Rest in Peace

I suppose here in the states we may see just a few bits of an Irish actor and come to love him. David Kelly was certainly someone who fit the bill for me.

I have a few Irish movies that I watch over and over again. I can't say they are the best Irish films. They might be flawed, stereotypical and cheesy, but I love them nonetheless.

My mother was born in Scotland of Irish parents. She lost both parents at an early age and ended up being raised by her brother over here. Her link to home was letters from her sisters and movies that gave her a sense of what her mother and father's people may have been like. One of her favorite movies was The Quiet Man and I suppose I started watching that on TV at a very young age. I still love it.

One of my favorite Irish films is The Commitments. I have watched The Commitments so many times in the last ten years that I am surprised I have not warn out the disc--although I have a VHS version in reserve as well.

I like the Boys and a Girl from County Clare although by film standards, it can hardly be rated among the great ones. But for me, the price of admission is in a few shots that I sometimes pause at just for the view. There is a scene where Bernard Hill comes out of his farmhouse in the morning with a cup of coffee and you see a breathtaking scene of the farm and sea. I hope it is Ireland! There is another scene where Hill drives into town on a damp foggy evening on his tractor. One of the boys in the first bit of film who is playing the violin resembles myself at that age--so of course I love that scene as well. I was not often barefoot in Chicago like the boy, but the rest of the outfit was pretty close to my wardrobe.

My Kelly Movies

The Matchmaker was recommended to me by a local librarian. In this movie, Kelly appears a few time as a souvenir shopkeeper who also does a bit of genealogy. His role adds a little extra humor to the film. In addition to Kelly, the film is carried by Milo O'Shea and David O'Hara --Janeane Garofala is the lead and does a nice job as well. Maria Doyle Kennedy helps to tie the story and the characters together in her roll as the woman who runs the Inn where most of the action takes place.

In Waking Ned Devine, Kelly has a key role as an Irish island inhabitant who is picked by his pal played by actor Ian Bannen to claim a lottery prize that was won by Ned Devine. Devine it turns out passed away in his home when the winning numbers were called. Bannen's character, his wife in the film-actress Fionnula Flanagan, and Kelly make quite a trio of long-time friends that spend half the film showing off their quirky humor and culture -- and the other half trying to carry out their plan to fool the lottery people and snag the money. In this role, Kelly is able to show a sweet and fun-loving character that surrenders nothing to age.

Many Americans would also remember Kelly as Grandpa Joe in Tim Burton's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. I am not a big fan of either Charlie movies, but it was interesting to see Kelly in it.

According to press reports, Kelly was best known in Ireland for his role in a miniseries "Strumpet City" and for his stage work in Dublin in the 1950s and 1960s. He's kept busy for the past 50 years having dozens of TV/movie roles in Ireland and British TV--some lasting through series runs.

Like so many people in our lives, in films, music and stage, David Kelly will be missed and never replaced. A man who was skinny beyond skinny, he was a man who made the heart beat and the soul sing.

Image: David Kelly says "goodbye Kitty" and goodbye to all of us in Waking Ned Devine.
My company: http://www.sportingchancepress.com/

Looking for God in All My Places

I have wandering mind. Sometimes it just takes off and heads out to sea or up in the clouds. It usually comes back to me, but it can be aggravating when you really want to focus and you just can't.

I am not a poster boy for Christianity. I do my best, but I often miss the mark by a wide margin. This isn't just false modesty, it's true. Somehow being a Catholic, you are reminded often about how far off the mark you are.

I feel a bit out of place at times when I go to weekday mass and sit with the church ladies. These people are really amazing. They are not the type of people who look down their noses at you -- they are just wonderful people who care deeply about each other and their faith. They take comfort in meeting in the chapel for the rosary every morning and attending mass in the church--and then having a word with each other before they head out to their worldly responsibilities. If I was a Priest, I think the first thing I'd have to admit to myself, is no matter how hard I might try to be holy, there would always be a number of church ladies who would someday sit a few rows ahead in heaven's arena. I think I'd stay away from lecturing them on holiness--it would be like telling Aaron Rodgers how to throw a football.

Along the same lines, like the church ladies, I always had the impression that the nuns were a few rungs up the spiritual ladder than the Priests. The Sisters were not just trying to be good, they were often trying to be perfect--in EVERYTHING--not just their spiritual lives. I know, I had many Sisters as teachers. I even had KP duty with the Sisters of the 1960s a few times--they could spot a spot on a glass from 20 yards. We miss the Sisters, there is no doubt about that. They were special and there are so few of them now it's like they are invisible.

Anyway, getting back to my attention span. When I have the privilege of attending daily mass, my mind can wander. I try all kinds of things to keep it on track, but it still wanders. And if it wanders too much, I feel like I am getting out of touch with the Boss. I mean after all, if you can't connect at church, where can you, right? Sometimes on the odd day, a few hours after the morning mass, I will be close to church in the afternoon on an errand. If so, I will stop in for a prayer. I remember my dad doing that at times. "Let's stop in for a Hail Mary," he would say. Kneeling with my dad in an old quiet church is a very fond memory for me. I wish he were here to still do it with me to this day, even if he would be 100 years old.

I am one of those people who needs to be in touch in God on a regular basis--I need that attachment and that sense of love that I feel when the Boss and I click.

Often when I feel out of touch, life has gotten the best of me and I just haven't put out the effort. I haven't phoned "home." At these times, I just have to step back and remind myself to talk to God in the quiet times. As I curl up in bed and turn off the light, I close my eyes and pray and there we meet again--and everything is all right.

A New Song

I woke up yesterday a bit early with a line in my head--it was nothing remarkable in itself:

"At my best, I come to You with eyes that are open."

A little later in the morning I added a second line:

"Morning has called me up and Your will has spoken."

I have a young high school daughter with the voice of an angel who is a developing musician. She has written a couple of songs and recently joined the adult choir at church. I thought right away that I should write the line down and expand it into a full set of lyrics to which my daughter can write music.

I wrote three stanzas yesterday and although it is still very rough, I gave it to my daughter and she is working on the music already. We'll see what we come up with.

I got this morning's Bible verse email a short time ago. (you know you can sign up with a number of organizations that send you a daily verse -- kind of nice use of technology!). The verse I received was this:


"I keep my eyes always on the LORD. With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken."
Psalm 16:8

The beauty of these scripture messages is that many times they seem relevant and so helpful with what you are doing or going through. The Bible is like that regardless, it is so rich and so encouraging.

Feeling a Little Blue in the Pew

I was in church a while back just saying a few Hail Marys before Mass. I was feeling like I sometimes do, a little sad and out of place at weekday Mass with all the saintly people who attend. I feel a little unworthy at times.

After a few prayers I sat down and looked around. The walls of the church had a line of construction paper sheets running on both sides of the church displaying the artwork of the kids who were receiving their First Communion. Much of it was very nice -- images of the host, chalices, bread, burst of light, and dozens of little phrases and prayers. Each of the renderings expressed the Sacrament or perhaps the Communicant's new relationship with God in some way. A small breeze was somehow running through our church--every few seconds. There are no windows--so it must have been either through the vestibule in back or perhaps an air conditioning vent. Any way, you could see the sheets moving ever so slightly as the breeze would come in and then die down. One sheet was flapping about quite vigorously however directly on my left, perhaps one of the closest sheets to my location in the pew.

Of course being Irish and always open to supernatural communications, I kept glancing over at the one sheet that was practically flying off the wall. I thought the good Lord, knowing that I am not a subtle person, was going to make sure that I got His message loud and clear. I inched over a bit so I could read the message on the sheet. In a child's handwriting, the message stated simply: "God Loves You."

As I got to my feet for the Priest's entrance, I stopped worrying about being out of place and just concerned myself with loving Him back.

Catholic America Today

This post sets out to make a point, which may be so self evident to many, folks may wonder why I bother, but here goes.

In the United States, many Catholics have expressed some concern about the church being too political. "Let the church stick to the sacred and stay out of politics they say."

Well, I am sure it can be annoying for people of faith to hear from their fellow church members espousing political ideas, especially when those ideas may not agree with their own politics, but let's take a look at things very briefly, very clearly.

Frankly, I am pretty well grounded in my own beliefs and convictions at my age. What goes on around me in the media and in society doesn't sway me so much--at least not without me checking sources. My views are based on my life, my faith and a good amount of solid Irish Catholic upbringing -- great parents and excellent teachers--mostly nuns. But my kids, well that's a different story.

In my opinion, many Catholics (including myself) are not very good at passing the faith onto their children. I hate to say it, but frankly, my generation of boomers were spoiled because we had so many wonderful nuns who spent several hours a day indoctrinating us in the faith. As we became parents ourselves, we had our parents example, and that may have been a great example of living, but perhaps not so great at teaching. While my father was devout, he spent little time at home because he worked several jobs. He believed we were in good hands with the Sisters. I don't think it's a stretch to say that the generations of Catholics who were educated by the Sisters were the best educated Catholics of all time--what we did with it is another matter. But when the Sisters numbers were decimated and Catholic schools declined--people moved to the suburbs etc., the burden of educating the faith quietly passed on to parents who just were not prepared for it if in fact they even recognize the responsibility. In reality, the burden of educating faithful Christians is always a parental responsibility, but let's just say when someone gives you a hand, you get used to not having to lift so much weight.

At the same time, often the hours that parents must put into their jobs is just as long as their parents did if not longer--and both parents are working. So just like latchkey kids have had the TV to keep them company in their parents absence, kids learn about morality, philosophy and God from the TV, movies, and other media. Our Public Schools often do a good job of teaching about diversity, prejudice and the like, but they certainly aren't going to touch on God much.

Everyday, TV and movies have a strong impact on our kids development. I don't think it takes a genius to understand that a moral or amoral message sent, in say a vampire movie, that might be watched by a kid a dozen times, may have a stronger influence on a kid than say an hour and half religious ed session twice a month. I think it's all about "touches' as they say in marketing circles. If our kids get more messages that sell them on selfish non-Christian behavior than they get Christian messages, they will be influenced accordingly.

In this way, I don't think we can have much confidence that somehow kids are not going to be swayed by negative false messages when they get so many of them compared to positive ones. As adults, many of us like to think that something like the Da Vinci Code should not be taken seriously because it is after all, a fictional movie. But unfortunately, for the uninitiated, it might have been the one most powerful message they have ever seen on Catholicism. How many more messages do kids get today about being sexy than say being chaste, about being rich than being kind, being fulfilled than being of service. In this way, it doesn't take a genius to figure out that we really do need to change society because society has a strong influence on our children if not ourselves. It's unrealistic to think that somehow we can teach our children one way all the while they are immersed in a society that is saying something completely different. Certainly, some have been very successful at it, but I don't think most of us are doing that well.

So I take the view that our general ethical principles based on our faith need to be promoted in society. We do not need to legislate the Christian religion, but there is a whole litany of things that need addressing. We need to vote our conscience and try to clean up the world in which we and our children live. We've let things go to far.