Sabbatical
I started writing/sharing something here every day more than five years ago. I’m taking a sabbatical from writing here probably for the rest of the year, so that streak comes to an end today. When I started the habit of daily writing, it was as much a commitment to “put pen to paper” or “think … Continue reading Sabbatical
What we’re doing now and what we’ll do later
I went for what turned out to be a great run late this afternoon in an empty Washington; sharing a few scenes from the run and some quarantine thoughts. E. J. Hutchinson writes on “learning in quarantine,” reflecting on his post-September 11th experience and C.S. Lewis’s 1939 Learning in War-Time address: We are once again … Continue reading What we’re doing now and what we’ll do later
Palm Sunday during pandemic
Yesterday I walked to Saint Stephen Martyr for confession. Spring is emerging in its fullness in Georgetown, so the walk there was beautiful. I also saw my first Biden yard sign. It was the first time I’ve set foot in a church since the pandemic closures, since I got back from my Longlea retreat three … Continue reading Palm Sunday during pandemic
Into a perfect state
I spent today with Michael Pakaluk’s latest book, “The Memoirs of St. Peter: A New Translation of the Gospel According to Mark“. Perfect for Holy Week and Easter, and a rich and fresh way to encounter Christ through Peter. Like Romano Guardini’s “The Lord”, there’s a closeness and an immediacy with Christ through the book. There’s … Continue reading Into a perfect state
Rose Park in springtime
Washington feels largely emptied out since self-distancing and quarantine/lockdown really came into place in mid-March. And since Mayor Bowser’s formal stay-at-home order, the feeling of emptiness has increased somewhat. I still get out to go for runs, and public exercise is allowable along with other reasons to be out like heading for groceries, etc. Americans … Continue reading Rose Park in springtime
Potomac pandemic run
I’ve been letting too many of the days under quarantine go by from waking to sleeping without meaningfully getting outdoors. As our typical routines have evaporated, the simple interludes in our day that we end up taking for granted or complain about turn out to be key bookends that give structure to our days: our … Continue reading Potomac pandemic run
Spanish Flu and solidarity
A century ago the Spanish Flu tore through the United States and the world for three years, an influenza that infected one of every four people on earth and killed at least 17 million human beings, but probably millions more. As we debate the right prudential balance between the harms posed by the health crisis … Continue reading Spanish Flu and solidarity
‘What we set our eyes on’
It’s spring in Washington and flowers are starting to bloom. Though few are out to enjoy them in this season of quarantine. Karen Swallow Prior and Jen Pollock Michel dialogue on autonomy and true freedom in an eight minute conversation on “why freedom needs boundaries”. Worth watching/listening: Karen Swallow Prior begins the conversation by reminding … Continue reading ‘What we set our eyes on’
‘An aesthetic standard of the good life’
Alan Watts writes in his book, “In My Own Way: An Autobiography:” Two things amaze me. One is that American bureaucracies cannot tolerate those minor pockets of irregularity that are essential to a free people—little areas where building codes and bluenose laws do not apply, and where adventurous young men and women can try to … Continue reading ‘An aesthetic standard of the good life’
‘Whatever the place of death in you is’
In the Gospel today we hear of Jesus raising the dead man, Lazarus. Since churches remain closed due to the virus, this Mass was spiritual communion today: Bishop Barron’s homily is beautiful today, I think one of the best I’ve heard from him. It speaks of Christ’s power over death and the divisiveness of the … Continue reading ‘Whatever the place of death in you is’
Imagining a Spanish Flu-level pandemic
Catherine Glenn Foster, President & CEO of Americans United for Life, wrote yesterday on the need for a more proactive White House pandemic response: America has the best health-care system in the world, but as we brace for COVID-19’s ongoing effects, we’re faced with the stark reality that we almost certainly will need even more … Continue reading Imagining a Spanish Flu-level pandemic
Pope Francis’s Urbi et Orbi blessing
Today at 1pm Eastern I watched Pope Francis’s incredible Urbi et Orbi blessing, his public blessing of the whole world in this time of pandemic, suffering, and death. A few scenes below, along with Vatican Media’s YouTube stream. Here are Pope Francis’s blessing and remarks. And here is an excerpt from Pope Francis: Why are … Continue reading Pope Francis’s Urbi et Orbi blessing
Lessons from the exceptions
Unlike with Spanish Flu a century ago or Hong Kong Flu in the 1950s, today we’re receiving constant and more or less real time information about the pandemic we’re experiencing. But how much of the information we’re receiving is valuable? How much of it is true? One of the things that’s incredibly difficult, despite our … Continue reading Lessons from the exceptions
Tanner’s Annunciation
Today’s the Feast of the Annunciation. I’ve had a postcard-sized version of this depiction of the Annunciation in my kitchen for a year or so, since first picking it up at the University of Mary when I was finishing my bioethics coursework. Henry Ossawa Tanner (1859-1937) painted the original work. “A Prayer for Generosity” appears … Continue reading Tanner’s Annunciation
‘Really worth a new Great Depression?’
Ari Schulman asks something we’re all asking: “What’s the plan?”: How long is this going to last? As terrible as a pandemic would be, is averting it really worth a new Great Depression? What is the endgame? As a pandemic loomed, the country moved in remarkably short order from shrug to shutdown. Understandably, some are … Continue reading ‘Really worth a new Great Depression?’
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