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 ...

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.  I'd love to hear about Mark Zuckerberg's process in selecting the works for his series. It feels like the syllabus of a class, mixed between academic and popular writing. I'd love to know from whom he received the various recommendations. As, I suppose he has not read them at the time of making the announcement, it would be difficult to imagine how he sees them building on one another, but I would love to hear him articulate how they interact in his heart and mind. Zuckerberg's seventh selection, Rational Ritual: Culture, Coordination, and Common Knowledge  by Michael Suk-Young Chwe, popularizes serious academic work in game theory. Steven Pinker (Zuckerberg's second bo...