Mr. P.'s Classroom

Monday, April 1, 2013

Happy Easter! Christ is risen! Alleluia!

There is a tradition in the East:

When someone says, "Christ is risen!" your response should be, "Indeed He is risen!"

Friday, March 29, 2013

Counter-Revolutionary Monarchism & the Sacred Heart of Jesus

The Beloved Disciple rested his head on the Heart of Christ during the Last Supper.

With a liberal capitalist representative democracy mutating into a Culture of Death and Dictatorship of Relativism in the 21st Century, there are days when I want to be a counter-revolutionary monarchist (through legal and peaceful means of course).

This picture says it all.

The Smell of the Sheep & Sound Doctrine

Today is Good Friday.

Yesterday, there was something in the Holy Father's homily during the Chrism Mass that struck me when he referred to the "smell of the sheep". Click HERE to watch a clip.

That's right! Sheep smell. In addition to being not so bright and susceptible to attack by wolves, sheep just down right smell.

It appealed to me because Peter's task is to feed the sheep. I never really thought much about the dynamics of feeding sheep. But the Pope's point is to know the sheep and be with the sheep in the outskirts.

Here's a cute picture of a lamb that made me chuckle. For credit, it's called "Irish Lamb" by moonjazz, and I found it from this link HERE.

There's something attractive about the task of the shepherd feeding the sheep...spiritually speaking.

So how does one learn the smell of the sheep? Simple. By being with them. We smell the sheep so that we know them and can feed them.

Spiritually speaking, those of us charged with the task of handing on the Deposit of Faith as it has been handed on from the time of the Apostles feed the sheep with the food of the Good Shepherd.

Yes, we need to "be" with the sheep, especially in the "outskirts", and we need to know what the sheep smell like, and it's with the end goal of feeding them with sound doctrine. This means that teaching sound doctrine is what smelly sheep need.

The Pope spoke of "shepherds living with 'the smell of the sheep', shepherds in the midst of their flock, fishers of men."

The postmodern age in which the Church finds herself, the sheep in the outskirts are right in our own backyard. In the West, the outskirts are just about everywhere. A postmodern sheep in a culture of death needs healthy doctrine, a teaching that is heavenly and nourishes the soul.

If we have the teachings of the Church to feed smelly sheep, then it is our task to faithfully hand those teachings on to them. We go to the outskirts, to places untouched by the Gospel, to places where even priests are not welcomed let alone any Catholic.

Feed my sheep, Jesus commands Peter. Tend my sheep. Three times He commands Peter for this task. Three times shows its importance.

We must feed the sheep with sound doctrine.

AMDG

Thursday, March 28, 2013

Holy Thursday 2013: Jesus Washes Peter's Feet & Pope Francis in a Deacon Stole

Jesus Washing Peter's Feet 1852-6 Ford Madox Brown 1821-1893 (http://www.tate.org.uk/art/work/N0139)

The servant Pope Francis, Successor of St. Peter, washes the feet of 12 jailed minors.

Pope Francis wore a deacon stole.

Friday, March 22, 2013

Child Jesus Teaching in the Temple & Prayer to Engage Postmodernism

I picked up some non-Catholic intellectual books today and eventually later made a remark to my wife that I constantly needed to find refuge in the thought of St. Thomas Aquinas to address pressing modern day issues, particularly postmodernism.

I plan to read Foucault on power/knowledge in the next few months. A prayer surged from my lips to Our Lord, "Lord, this is hard." I turned to Him for help.

During my drive home later, I prayed joyful mysteries of the rosary (in addition to the family rosary). When I got to the Finding of the Child Jesus in the Temple, I experienced peace as I turned my meditation to the Child Jesus teaching the doctors of the Temple.

I thought of how the Incarnate Wisdom of God was present in the Temple among the doctors of the law and how He taught them and amazed them.

I thought of how all wisdom and learning was in this Little Child. It gave me much peace.

HERE, btw, is a good article on post-modernity with pastoral consideration.

Child Jesus, have mercy on us!

Bl. Anne Catherine's Visions of the Passion of Christ

Bl. Anne Catherine Emmerich (1774-1824)