Sailing the Last Voyage with Newton and Pascal
In the midst of our family's recent sad event, we found closure on yet another family tragedy that came from World War II. As I noted in my 2011 Fourth of July piece: This year, however, I’ve picked something a little closer to home: the aviation service during World War II of my uncle, Don …
Continue reading "Closure for One World War II Tragedy, Hope for Another"
For the entire work and an interactive table of contents, click here. In the year 334 B.C. Alexander the Great, having subdued the Greek states, began his conquest of the Persian Empire. In less than eleven years he succeeded in doing just that he would have gone further into India if his weary army had …
Continue reading "Born to be Alive: Before the Second Chapter"
While passing through Holy Week and Easter, on Low Sunday our family had another passage: the death of my wife's mother, Ruby Foister. Â The photo/video presentation the funeral home put together is below. The other arrangements are here. "Saint" is a good term for my mother-in-law. The Scripture quotation in the title--taken from Psalm 116:15--is …
Continue reading "Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints…"
From time to time I've made many disparaging remarks about the Scots-Irish, some of whom I count as ancestors. These range from their inauspicious (but prophetic) arrival in this land to discussing Grady McWhiney's research, which I find priceless. I think that understanding this ethnic group is crucial to understanding these United States more than …
Continue reading "Messing With a Celtic Agenda Isn't a Good Idea"
A really nice Easter sermon. The sermon itself starts at about 50 minutes into the video.
From St. Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologiae, 3, a. 53, q. 1: It behooved Christ to rise again, for five reasons. First of all; for the commendation of Divine Justice, to which it belongs to exalt them who humble themselves for God's sake, according to Luke 1:52: "He hath put down the mighty from their seat, …
Holy Saturday is one of those holidays that for most seems to be only a gap. We see the re-enactments of Christ's passion on Good Friday and the celebrations of his resurrection on Easter. But what happened between the two? What took place is what used to be called the "harrowing of hell", i.e., when …
Continue reading "Holy Saturday: The Two Reactions to Proclamation"
From Thomas Aquinas' Summa Theologiae, 3 q.46 a. 3: Among means to an end, the more suitable is that whereby the various concurring means employed are themselves helpful to such end. But in this that man was delivered by Christ's Passion, many other things besides deliverance from sin came together for man's salvation. In the …
Continue reading "Why Christ's Passion was the Best Way: A Good Friday Reflection"
(KO 091113) 1973? The best way to describe this album's style is "eclectic." But that's not in a contemporary sense--even for the time it came out--but in a traditional sense. "The Companions of Paul" (the group's name in English) draw from a variety of folk styles, including French folk music (an ancestor of zydeco), bluegrass …
Continue reading "Les compagnons de Paul: Jésus va revenir est-tu prêt?"
(That's a barbecue grill under the casket spray.)
Positive Infinity 