Easter in Ordinary

As 2015 draws to a close, I am filled with gratitude for the opportunity to share books and articles from others that have prompted reflections and thoughts, as well as sharing experiences from the my own journey here. While my weekly collection of "Four Articles and a Poem" draws a certain readership, I have excluded them from this list. Hence, many posts in this list are commentaries and reviews of books. I am especially grateful for the ways that readers have interacted with what I have posted here. Conversation is at the heart of he time that I put into this blog. So, I share a series of my ten favorite posts from the year, posts that help engage us in what I believe to be significant conversations. 50 Ideas for Making Laudato Si' part of Parish Life . My top post of the year is my most viewed and a post that has been subsequently published elsewhere. Pope Francis' Laudato Si' was such a landmark work, I enjoyed writing these  ideas on how to live the ...

A recent article from the Associated Press bears the headline: " Minority of US Catholics Know Pope's Climate Views ." Frankly, I am disturbed by the articles contents. After the initial tide of articles and comments and news reports, I am alarmed that so many Catholics, especially American Catholics, remain uninformed, unmoved, and uncommitted. Also alarming is how only 23% of Catholics said that they heard about it at mass. In other words, many of our priests are neither preaching about it nor lifting it up in one way or another. The Associated Press explains that the encyclical Laudato Si' "had a rollout unlike any other." Pope Francis has done the heavy lifting. The rollout was unprecedented. He speaks of the encyclical at home (at the Vatican) and abroad (his visit to Latin America and, no doubt, during his upcoming visit to the U.S.), but, so far, few hearts and minds have been changed. We need to do our part . It is not enough to leave it in th...

Mature, public conversation about issues that matter is foundational for democratic society. I am delighted that Mark Zuckerberg's " A Year of Books " offers such an opportunity. To contribute to that dialog, I will offer commentary on each of the readings proposed by Zuckerberg. Let me begin with a confession: in the Spring of 1989, I took "Introduction to Biotechnology" as a first-year student at the University of Notre Dame. I vaguely recalled that I may have taken the course, but only examination of my transcript confirmed it for me. I recall none of the readings. My transcript also alerts me to the fact that I did not put the necessary effort into the class. My only consolation may be to see how far human knowledge has advanced from 1989 via Matt Ridley 's excellent 2000 book: Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters , although I would love to see how Ridley might update the book to reflect our learnings in the past 15 years. Oxford e...

As customary, I post four articles that I found significant and a poem. Our lives are enriched by seeing better. Each week, one article comes from the world of photography, a discipline that is about seeing. Another article comes from the world of technology, hence seeing something of the future. Another article takes up an aspect of our life together, seeing more clearly the other. Another article refers to faith, seeing the unseen. Finally, the weekly post concludes with a poem, because poetry is about seeing words whose arrangement allows us to see anew. Today is the Feast of St. James the Great, Apostle. I was privileged to be able to walk the Camino de Santiago twice with my father, in 2010 and 2014. It was just over a year ago that we completed our second pilgrimage . Santiago, Apóstol, ruega por nosotros. This week, I recommend the following articles: The best camera is the one you have with you . Mike Moats daily provides insights into the world of macro photog...

Mature, public conversation about issues that matter is foundational for democratic society. I am delighted that Mark Zuckerberg's " A Year of Books " offers such an opportunity. To contribute to that dialog, I will offer commentary on each of the readings proposed by Zuckerberg. It was Bill Gates who initially exposed me to the work of Vaclav Smil. In Gates' recommendations for " Beach Reading (and More) ," Microsoft's founder suggested Smil's latest work while also noting his long affection for Smil's writing in his review of the book: I can’t think of anyone better equipped to present a clear-eyed analysis of this subject than Vaclav Smil. I have written several times before about how much I admire Smil’s work. When he tackles a subject, he doesn’t look at just one piece of it. He examines every angle. Even if I don’t agree with all of his conclusions, I always learn a lot from reading him. When Mark Zuckerberg made Smil's Energy: ...

For Pope Francis, "mission" is a critical word. Evangelii Gaudium was all about mission. Laudato Si' may well be understood as an incarnation of a Christian's mission in this life. We are to care for our common home. In their 1992 pastoral letter, Stewardship: A Disciple's Response , the U.S. Bishops explained: An oikonomos or steward is one to whom the owner of a household turns over responsibility for caring for the property, managing affairs, making resources yield as much as possible, and sharing the resources with others. The position involves trust and accountability.(19) This understanding of a steward is keenly aware of its groundedness in the care of creation, calling Christian disciples to be "collaborators in creation" (26). In other words, Laudato Si' is a reflection on our discipleship as stewards. Stewardship is a spirituality that aims for a growth in holiness. We cannot be good Christian stewards without taking care...

Laudato Si' is a remarkable piece of papal teaching. It breaks new ground not so much in content as in style. If we do not talk about it, if we do not live it, in our parishes, it nonetheless will be destined to the ash heap of history. Here are some ideas about what you can do in your parish to make Laudato Si' a living part of who we are as Catholics. We Catholics talk about: "Think globally; act locally." Act locally. Act in your parish. Ask your priest to preach about it. The encyclical is not directed toward just governments and presidential candidates. Pope Francis has said that care for creation is an important part of personal holiness. When the priest does preach it, give him feedback . Be specific. Say more than "nice homily." When I preached, I often had the suspicion that "Nice homily," while it may be like similar to saying "Have a nice day," may only be the absence of having something better to say about the homily...

Weekly, I will post four articles that I found significant, meaningful and a poem. Our lives are enriched by seeing better. One article likely will come from the world of photography, a discipline that is about seeing. Another article will come from the world of technology, hence seeing something of the future. Another article will take up some aspect of our life together, seeing more clearly the other. Another article will be directed to faith, seeing the unseen. Finally, the weekly post will conclude with a poem, because poetry is about seeing words whose arrangement allows us to see anew. Laudato Si' . Rather than read a commentary or excerpts, read the whole thing. It may take a few hours, but it is worth it. Read it on the Vatican website, or download the .pdf from the linked page. The U.S. Catholic Conference of Bishops has additional resources here . Don't read it with an eye for Red/Blue, agree/disagree. Read it with an eye for: What does the Pope say that I know t...

First things first: read the document. I saw someone suggest parents reading it to children.The full document can be found on the Vatican web page here: http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/encyclicals/documents/papa-francesco_20150524_enciclica-laudato-si.html What is Laudato Si' about? Perhaps a wordcloud, courtesy of Catholic News Service' twitter feed shows some of the document's points of emphasis. Another helpful window to see something of it is this video prepared by the Vatican in English, Italian, and Spanish: The Vatican press conference that presented the document can be seen here (long video: 2 hrs): A handful of helpful summaries: CNS published " Five eco-lifestyle changes Pope Francis wants you to make ." The Washington Post published "What you need to know about Laudato Si' ." Rolling Stone composed a list of the Thirteen Most Radical Lines from Laudato Si' . America Magaine offers Eight Ingredients of the ...