St. Augustine of Hippo, a figure often remembered by young Catholics for his plea to God during his wild youth, "Give me chastity and continence, but not quite yet," Has left us with a wealth of wisdom. One such quote, which a friend recently shared with me, resonates particularly powerfully in our modern […]
Love and Do What You Will… Read More »
"Hail, heavenly ladder by which God came down; hail, bridge leading from earth to heaven." Agathistos Hymn, Greek –6th century. It is a challenge to be born on a day so charged with potential and even more so to me, who was the first baby of that year in my city when I was born.
A New Year, My Birthday, and the Solemnity of Mary Read More »
"This is the irrational seasonWhen love blooms bright and wild.Had Mary been filled with reasonThere’d have been no room for the child." —Madeline L'Engle Art: Mariotto Albertinelli, 1503: "Visitation of Mary and Elizabeth"
Madeleine L’Engle: After Annunciation Read More »
It is easy to forget that Easter so focused on the Son, is also about the Mother and in 20th century mystic and author Adrienne Von Speyr‘s brilliant work Handmaid of the Lord, Von Speyr examines the significance and importance of Mary’s life: “Her first Yes to the angel, her first joy at conception, her
Reading Adrienne Von Speyr on Easter Morning Read More »
The tricks and treating are over (well, except for that candy migraine hangover and the bag of little wrapped chocolates hidden in the kitchen pantry for later must-have-sweeties-emergencies) and now we honor the saints. As a Catholic, it’s true, I talk to the saints all the time. I ask for help, courage, prayers for friends
Adrienn von Speyer is a 20th century Swiss pediatrician and a remarkable mystic (she received the stigmata.) She had visions, particularly of the Triduum, and her spiritual writings are dense, complicated, and utterly breath-taking. Today is a celebration of the Annunciation in the Catholic liturgical year. And I return to read again from
The Light of Assent: The Annunciation Read More »
I seem to be pulled in too many different directions to get much done on the blog…but one thing I have to say, is how much amazing art I have been collecting to keep my thoughts cooking with the novel. Sometimes, that's the best I can do for a while, build up an interior vision
Sometimes the Best Part About Writing a Book is First Collecting All the Art Read More »
How stunning is this? The text reads "Ave Maria Gratia Plena" — "Hail Mary Full of Grace." But within the confines of each letter, the calligrapher depicts individual narratives creating tension between the two — the formality of the letters joined into sacred text and the liveliness of the people and animals engaged in very
Life in Letters: A Calligrapher’s Narrative Read More »
I enjoy these days, for they have their own stories, their own prayers, and their own hymns. For a little while, we stop our noisy routines and settle into a contemplation of the mysteries. It is the will of God that we should have nothing which has not passed through the hands of Mary. –
Holy Days of Obligation: The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Read More »
