Write In Between: June 2009

Among Women Podcast, episode #14

The latest Among Women podcast features discussion on the new movie, The Stoning of Soraya M, and a reflection on the adulterous woman in John 8.

Our guest is Catholic professor Ann Orlando of St. John's Seminary in Brighton MA. Dr. Orlando's field of study is patristics theology -- the study of the Church Fathers. Join us for a discussion on the relevancy of the Church Fathers for our life and times today!

Back from Texas!

I've been off-line for a few days, enjoying the Catholic New Media Celebration down in San Antonio. Standing on my left in the photo is my husband's delightful cousin, Irene Chard, who, together with her charming husband Randy (the photographer), hosted me and chauffeured me around for the weekend. We are pictured at the famous Riverwalk in downtown San Antonio, a few steps from the Alamo... we are en route to margeritas and a Tex-Mex supper! (And you can barely tell it was over 100 degrees out!)

For video of the talks and events that I experienced in person, go here. I'll be talking about it on the next Among Women podcast, episode 14. You can also find more pics at the Among Women Podcast Friends group on Facebook.

The Catholic New Media celebration was great day to meet with Catholic bloggers and podcaster from around the globe!

I just got back last night, thanks to hours of flight delays due to storms in the Dallas-Fort Worth area... but glad to be back in the saddle here in rainy New England, where we continue to have a very damp June!

Watch the Catholic New Media Celebration in San Antonio

As this posts, I'm packing my bag to get ready to fly down to San Antonio, Texas to take part of the Catholic New Media Celebration... looking forward to meeting Catholic bloggers and podcasters from around the USA and the world.

Use this link to see the UStream version of the Celebration on Friday and Saturday!

Writer's Wednesday - Hadewijch

No matter how sad the season and silent the birds,

brave hearts enduring pain willingly --

for Love -- have no need of sadness.

They know and understand all things instead --

sweetness and cruelty, joy and sorrow --

they know everything must be lived through for Love's sake.

Patience.

--- Hadewijch, a Christian mystic. (1150-1200 ad.)

[Photo Credit.]

Among Women Podcast, episode #12

This week's episode features the life and writing of Christian mystic, St. Gertrude the Great. Our guest is Joy Davis. Together, Pat and Joy discuss Joy's life of faith and her journey from the Baptist Church into the Catholic Church, where she now serves as a Director of Religious Education and a Youth Minister.

Find Among Women podcast links in the sidebar, or search iTunes!

Visit CatholicMom.com today....

...the creators of The Meal Box are talking it up on how we can have better exchanges over the family meal times!

Ask questions! Make comments! Get over there!

Recent articles on Today's Catholic Woman

My recent articles answer these questions:

What Does our Faith Imply?

What does it mean in practice for a person to believe in God?

Get the RSS feed for my weekly column here.

Writer's Wednesday - Blessed Teresa of Calcutta

Prayer is not asking. Prayer is putting oneself in the hands of God, at his disposition, and listening to his voice in the depths of our hearts.

~~~~~~~~

We must improve our prayer and, flowing from that, our charity toward others. It can be difficult to pray when we don't know how, but we can help ourselves through the use of silence. Souls of prayer are souls of great silence. The silence takes a lot of sacrifice, but if we really want to pray, we must be ready to take that step now. Without this first step toward silence, we will not be able to reach our goal, which is union with God.

----Mother Teresa, Mother Teresa, Her Essential Wisdom, Edited by Carol Kelly-Gangi.

Among Women makes a headline at Catholic Exchange

Check out Cheryl Dickow's article about Among Women at the link above, and then pass me a hanky so I can wipe the tear from eye!

Cheryl-- I can feel the love! Thank you!

Also, my latest article over at Catholic Exchange is up today too!

Writer's Wednesday - Henri de Lubac

The development of dogma is an objective phenomenon which has unfolded down through the centuries. But it really does not lead us any farther than the Creed itself. All it ever does is to clarify it. Contrary to what the expression might suggest, it does not involve either any true growth or continued progress. It is much less a linear unfolding than a perpetual reaction to surrounding circumstances, as history endlessly changes them, in view of maintaining, protecting and making the faith relevant.

----Henri De Lubac, The Christian Faith.

Among Women Podcast, episode #11

This week's episode features the life and times of pro-life saint, mother, and physician, St. Gianna Beretta Molla. And our guest is the delightful writer and blogger, Sarah Reinhard.

Check it out here or at iTunes.

Don't forget, the Catholic New Media Awards await your vote for the best blogs and podcasts!

I've never been to Texas!

I'm happy to announce that I'm traveling to San Antonio for the June 27th Catholic New Media Celebration. I had a great time last year, and was inspired to produce Among Women, which is still a neophyte podcast after only 12 weeks in production. But I'm looking forward to learning more, and to meeting up with fans and friends in the ever-growing community within Catholic New Media!

Actually this is really an answered prayer... for a variety of reasons, our finances did permit such a luxury this summer, but some frequent flyer miles combined with the generosity of family members putting me up in their San Antonio home, and well, it all came together...

Not to mention Fr. Jay Finelli -- the iPadre -- told me he was going to pray for my financial situation, so I have him to thank as well!

I feel so blessed to take this trip -- I hope I might see you there, too!

If you were stranded on a desert island... what few books would you wish had with you?

I recently asked this question of fellow bibliophile Sarah Reinhard, a guest on episode 11 of Among Women, being published on June 9, 2009. While there are many more we could have added, (with the Bible being a 'given').... here are our wish lists:

From Sarah:

Theology of the Body by Christopher West

Man and Woman He Created Them by John Paul II, translation by Michael Waldstein

The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis

The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkein

From Pat:

Life of the Beloved by Henri Nouwen

The Return of the Prodigal Son by Henri Nouwen

Confessions by St. Augustine

Introduction to the Devout Life by St. Francis de Sales

and, Sarah and I both concur, that we'd both desire a copy of True Devotion to Mary by St. Louis de Montfort.

If you've never read any of these, you might check them out over the summer by clicking on the icon below!

Not Silent on the Subject, Just Been Praying

There have been a great many eloquent voices in the pro-life movement who have already weighed in on the the tragic death of George Tiller, the abortion provider, who was gunned down while he attended a church service this past week.

Allow me to add my voice to theirs: in NO WAY is the heinous murder of Dr. Tiller justified. Period. May we all pray for this man and for his family. We pray also for the gunman facing charges. By praying for these men, we do not justify their causes, we just commit them to God.

That being said, while I have been praying, and asking the Lord what I can do/say in the midst of this, I came to three things: for the moment, I can write, I can speak, and I can link. These are what I normally do.

And so I am writing. At least my random thoughts, such that they are.

At times like this, all I can offer is my own witness: I am a mother of three children. I believe in the sanctity of life from the womb to the tomb. I do not believe in contraception and I do not believe in abortion as an option to escape from an unwanted pregnancy. I have worked as a Birthright volunteer. I've met the heroic women of all ages who have decided to give birth to their babies. Some were raised by their mothers, some were adopted. Either decision requires heroic virtue on the part of the mother.

I have seen the witness of those who have gone before me. My mother gave birth to me despite a very tumultuous birth experience, and it is only by the grace of God that I survived it. Fortunately, in time, she also gave birth to my two sisters. I'm sure she cried bitter tears over the five miscarriages she and my father suffered through.

Finally, if you are reading this post, it is because your mother gave birth to you. I am typing this post because my mother gave birth to me. Neither one of us is a mistake. God had a plan for us to come into this world, and that plan exists still for all the babies who are in all the wombs of the women around the world. Yes, even the "unwanted" ones. Babies, and women, that is.

And I am "speaking"... the next Among Women podcast, episode 11, will have a few more thoughts on the subject, and I pray for the grace to do just that.

And finally, I can link...

To find Church Teaching regarding abortion, go here.

To answer pro-abortion rhetoric, go here.

Three simple things you can do are here.

If you have lost a child due to abortion, miscarriage, or still birth, go here.

Writer's Wednesday - Edward P. Sri

A young Protestant man... while flipping through the television stations, came across a strange sight on his TV screen: a Catholic priest talking about the Mass. Struck by the oddity of finding this on television, the young man decided to stop and listen to what the priest had to say. In those few moments his life began to change.

The next morning, he rushed into the office to find a coworker whom he knew to be Catholic. Awestruck by what the priest on TV had said about the Eucharist, the young Protestant needed to share his excitement with somebody who might understand. So with great enthusiasm he told his Catholic friend all he had learned about the Mass.

"I had no idea you Catholics believe Jesus is really present in the Eucharist!"

The Catholic responded, "Yeah, we do."

"That's amazing! So when there's a Mass, you Catholics believe God really becomes present on the altar, that the bread and wine really become Jesus' body and blood, and that you actually receive Him in Communion?"

"Yeah... I think that sounds right."

"So how often does this happen? Once a year? Easter? Christmas?"

The Catholic answered matter-of-factly, "Actually, I think there are Masses every day of the week at most churches, but we only have to go once a week, on Sunday."

"Have to go? What do you mean have to go? If I were Catholic, I'd want to go and receive as I often as I could!!!"

-----Edward P. Sri, "The Heart of the Home: Eucharist and the Bible, Catholic For a Reason