Bravest Thing (He Ever Did)

  What I read in 2020, part two. If you missed it, part one is here .  Peter Kwasniewski - Reclaiming Our Roman Catholic Birthright:  The Genius & Timeliness of the Traditional Latin Mass Possibly the best book I read all year. Kwasniewski makes a masterful case for the traditional Latin Mass, but he does so with his usual charity and understanding. In particular, his chapters on children at Mass are invaluable. Peter Kwasniewski - Holy Bread of Eternal Life:  Restoring Eucharistic Reverence in an Age of Impiety Or, maybe this one was the best. I was extremely excited to be asked to review this book for OnePeterFive. Check out the review here . Of note, this book is very approachable for not just traditional Catholics, but ALL who seek Christ in the Eucharist. Shadows on the Rock - Willa Cather My dad rescued some old books a couple of years ago. One day my wife picked one of them up and read it. "You need to read this... you'd like it," she said to me. That turn...

  Let's just skip the idea that we might have a book-buying problem. Ok?  Seeing as more time was spent at home this year, it was possible to get more reading done. And so, I will split my yearly reading-recap into two pieces. I begin by announcing a failure. I made it through about half of A Tale of Two Cities  by Charles Dickens. I gave up. My wife told me it would get better, and "come together" at the end. I couldn't take it anymore. Sorry Dickens! It's not you, it's me. I'll try again some other time, I hope. Phoenix from the Ashes - Henry Sire I read most of this book last year, finished it earlier this year, and then consistently pulled it out for references throughout the remainder of the year. It really helps with understanding why the Church is in such a troubled state.   Spiritual Warfare and the Discernment of Spirits - Dan Burke Dan Burke, the former news editor at EWTN, seems like a first-rate man. He now spends his time passing on the spir...

 The so-called second wave of the pandemic is set to come down on us this fall/winter. The first hit of Covid-19 was terrifying. I don't mean the actual virus was terrifying, but rather the meltdown of society. Work, church, recreation, logic... all were more or less thrown out the door. It did allow for more reading, however. And time to think and pray. With that in mind, here are a some books I highly recommend as we move past summer and into more craziness. Reclaiming Our Roman Catholic Birthright - Dr. Peter Kwasniewski Dr. K's latest book came at a perfect time. I've had so many questions about the Mass, particularly in regards to the worth of attending Masses that are gong shows. Add in the question of raising children in this environment, and it has been downright perplexing. Dr. K not only explains the worth of the traditional Latin Mass, but he delves into the very purpose of the Mass, and the guiding principles for how we are to approach each Mass. His work provid...

GK Chesterton's cause for sainthood has met a major stumbling block. According to the Bishop of Northhampton, Most Reverend Peter Doyle: “That conclusion is that I am unable to promote the cause of GK Chesterton for three reasons. Firstly, and most importantly, there is no local cult. Secondly, I have been unable to tease out a pattern of personal spirituality. And, thirdly, even allowing for the context of G K Chesterton’s time, the issue of anti-Semitism is a real obstacle particularly at this time in the United Kingdom.” Ouch.  Now if you have ever been to a Catholic college (as in non-Jesuit, but rather truly Catholic), you will be familiar with the Chesterton crowd. They will smoke cigars, quote pithy from GK, and meet at pubs to discuss intellectual topics (while smoking more cigars). “In Catholicism, the pint , the pipe and the cross can all fit..." they will add, as a smoke ring rises to the rafters.   I'm not sure if these Chestertonians ever discus...

Seeing as I wrote a "What I Read in 2017" post one year ago, it now must be a tradition to give an annual list. Though I told myself last year that I would write down what books I read so that I wouldn't forget, this inner voice of reason was disregarded. Hence, the list is probably absent of some literary selections. Years ago I came to the conclusion that a book takes a long time to read, so what I do read had better be good. Having kids suck up most of my time has only strengthened this belief. I expect the books I read to be of a high standard. Occasionally they are not, but not too often. So sorry, you will not see any Chicken Soup for the Soul , or New York Times best sellers here. Alas, lest I suck up any more of your time, let us begin... The Picture of Dorian Gray - Oscar Wilde I wasn't sure how to approach this novel. You hear... stories... about Oscar Wilde. The book is dark. It gets into the heart of fallen humanity. Dorian Gray's situatio...

You will often hear from people who lived through the "great" 1960s reform of the Mass that, despite the loss of reverence and sharp drop in attendance, it was good to have the Mass in the vernacular. Surely understanding what goes on in the Mass is important. Surprisingly, this is not the actual point of the Mass, but rather is a protestant revolt ideal. Worship is directed to God, not man. Why has the vernacular been seen as monumentally important to the Mass, even when attendance numbers have so sharply declined? The answer can, in large part, be answered by the loss of culture in our society. We do not have a true culture. We have worship of sports and celebrities, horrendous "music", scandalous movies, illiteracy in all things classic, smartphones for porn and games, and overall insanity. The loss of culture was gradual. John Dewey's educational theory was the beginning of the end of education. Communism the beginning of the end of the polis. Patriar...

“In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit.” Thus begins J.R.R. Tolkien’s magnificent, prophetic, adventurous and unsurpassed entry into the world of hobbits, elves, orcs and even men. It starts humbly. Bilbo Don’t-Bother-Me Baggins lives a quiet life. He lives a good life, at least according to his somewhat self-centred whims and principles. Tea. Jam and butter. Bacon and ale. The world is out there, I am here, and the two should never meet. That is until Gandalf involves, rather forces, Bilbo in an adventure of recovering treasure for a collection of dwarves. As if Bilbo cares about dwarves. Or money. Or anything outside of his immediate area of existence. There is a side of Bilbo in all of us. We want the good life. The don't-bother-me life. Ironically, or perhaps not, the word Bilbo literally means sword . God, or in this case a wizard (Christ as Prophet), beckons. One's wants may not equate to one's calling in life. All that Gandalf can promise Bilbo is that h...