Sunday in ordinary time

it was an ordianry Sunday, not much unlike any other Sunday, but just a little different from other Sundays. it is a free weekend and i decided not to go anywhere, but to stay put and enjoy a low key weekend and maybe get some reading done. after getting a good nights sleep after the beloved "fall-back" time change, i woke up, got ready, and went for a cornetto in the refectory. i wanted to take my prayer time at St. Peter's this morning so i brought my stuff to break my fast. one of the guys suggested going to Mass with him at St. Peter's at 10am, and since i wanted to go anyway i said sure- and thus we went.

leaving at 30 tics after the stroke of 7 we strode toward the collonade. there was a line. we waited in that line. the line began to slowly sway and eventually started trickling forward, we entered through the collonades and made our way through the square and found us some seats in prime position. my friends, we attended the beatification Mass of 498 martyrs from the Spanish civil war last century. these priests, bishops, nuns, mothers, fathers, and children were all sought out and killed not because of a partisan or organizational affiliation, but solely because they were Catholic. they did not recant their faith. they died. now they receive their reward. after the Mass with the cardinal, the Pope blessed us all at the angelus. its now 1pm. it is a good day. for just and Sunday in ordinary time, there sure are lots of special graces that i get to share in. one of these days i hope to be able to realize what is going on around me, rather than live life as though it were only ordinary.

pictures:

1 - some of the people at the Mass

2 - a beautiful sky i saw the other morning (the pic does not do justice to the colors there were)

3 - part of the choir at the deacon ordination Mass at the beginning of the month

generalities

for those of you who like to know more of the facts of the environment here, here are a few of the general specifics of my days here.

weather - it is starting to get cooler. in the morning it is good to have on more than a fleece, but after walking to school i am usually sufficiently warm. i suppose its in the low 60's/high 50's right now, they use centigrade so i am not sure. it rains about once a week. this isn't so bad (thanks to the handy umbrella i bought in Norcia!) but the streets get flooded with water and also really slippery, walking in dress shoes is asking for it.

classes - from anywhere from 2-4 hrs a week i study 1) introduction to Theology and Theological method 2) pentateuch and historical books 3) church history 4) patristics (the early church fathers) 5) fundamental Theology 6) introduction to Scripture and 7) mystery of the Living God (a class on the Trinity). its pretty much all lecture, not many "assigned" readings, and no papers so far. they "recommend" certain readings which are enough to keep my hands from being idle. in all, i spend about 40hrs/week attending classes and studying. at the end of the semester there will be a 10 minute oral exam covering all the material of the whole semester which is the sole measure of my grade. they give you a number from 1-10 for your grade, if you get below 6.0 you fail, if higher, you pass. no pressure. my teachers are mostly Dominican priests from all over the world, they have funny mannerisms

house life - as you might guess, living with 170 some other seminarians there are a fair amount of jokes and puns on the idiosyncracies of liturgical matters. as you also might guess, i don't get most of them. we had our "safe environment training" the last two days by a organization called VIRTUS. now we all know the regulations and how to spot and prevent sexual predators in the Church. it is difficult sometimes to hear the stories (of the victims and the perpatrators) but hopefully it will help us to better serve and protect our children. we get "free weekends" once a month where we can travel if we want to. guys go all over. this time, i think i will go to Assisi. i like it there.

question - "faith" has been the word for reflection as of late. if you get a minute, would you send me a short reflection on what faith means to you? especially if you have children, i am interested to hear what they have to say. well, its feeding time and i don't want to get left out-as if there wasn't going to be enough. take care for another week

pictures:

1) a model of what the NAC campus looks like

2) our little courtyard with orange grove (50, one for each state)

3) the chapel

4) the doors to the chapel - inscribed: "enter into the temple of God lovingly, devotedly, and with attention"

first week of classes

i have just finished my first week of classes. i have waited 9 years to study theology, and now i am immersed in it with 7 different classes a week for 20hrs. what is it like you may wonder? well, it is like going to 4 spiritual conferences a day, then going back home to engage in spiritual reading, to be crowned with a holy hour before the Blessed Sacrament. plus you are surrounded by 170 some other guys who are all better than you at what they do but desire to run with you in this race. God is overwhelmingly Good and i am thankful for this time.

our schedule looks like this: 6:15am morning prayer and Mass followed by breakfast. its about a 40min walk to school which starts at 8:30am. classes go until 12:15 (we stay in the same classroom and the teachers come to us) and then we walk home at a brisk pace to pray the rosary at 12:55. pranzo (lunch) is at 1:15 and then our afternoon is free for appointments, study, errands, and Lord willing a little riposa (nap). at 5:45 our holy hour commences and ends with benediction and evening prayer starting at 6:45. cena (dinner) is at 7pm, then we ususally have formation meetings at 8pm for an hour. depending on the night we might hit the lounge for a magnum bar (icecream) and relaxing conversation. by that point i am crying for my bed and some sleep to be well enough to start again the next day. this week i also got my first run in with italian dental work. lets just say my mouth hurts right now.

thank you for your prayers, know that you are in mine. here are some pictures from my little pilgrimage to Norcia.

pictures:

1) St. Benedict (this is his brithplace)

2) Norcia at dusk (this is pretty much the whole town)

3) the monks' church (built over the place where Benedict and Scholastica were born)

4) the crew (us guys that went, Jeff took the pic)

quick update

today the 4th year men were ordained as deacons in St. Peter's Basilica at the altar of the chair of St. Peter. i was in the choir, and yes there was lots of very hard music (most of it 4 part harmonies), and yes i was off key probably more often than not. it was a grand occasion. tomorrow i go to the little town of Norcia-birthplace of St. Benedict-for the weekend with a few friends. school starts on monday. i have no idea what my classes are (everyone assures me that is the mode of operations here in the italian way of doing things). after 1 week of class i will start seeing a private tutor for italian (thank goodness i don't have to take greek and latin at the same time like some of the other guys).

everything is going so fast, not that i've done that much yet, but it is just so easy forget who i am with, where i am at, and all the blessings that i have. instead, i often find myself sitting at the table thinking, "man, this guy is gonna eat all the pasta and i'm gonna have to take only a moderate size serving or have to take the bowl back to get more, what a jerk"-i am so petty. no, there is quite a bit to be thankful for, there is always enough time to spend time with Jesus and recognize Him in those around me if i'd just stop for a second and take a look around.

pictures:

1) my family at Jill's wedding (mom, kate, Jill & Bryan & Katura, Lindsey & Kyle, dad)

2) looking down Concilation ave. from St. Peter's