...where I am writing this from Sydney. Lecture tour begins tomorrow. Info here: Aussie readers...if you are in Sydney, Melbourne, Wagga Wagga or Perth, check the relevant dates and come and meet Auntie!
Main topic of talks: Pius XII, WWII, rescue of Jews, the story of an heroic British nun in Rome...
On the long flight from the USA, I read a selection of books, borrowed from EWTN. Hugely recommended is Cardinal Francis George's The Difference God Makes: A Catholic vision of faith, communion and culture. This is a challenging, informative and readable book with a message of hope for the Church in the USA and much/most of what he says applies to Britain too. The Cardinal is realistic about the current state of things, both in the Church and in society. What he offers is a practical handbook from which Catholics can draw useful material and ideas for the way ahead. The book was published in 2009 and the message has been reinforced by the events of the past couple of years.
I was inspired and hugely moved by a biography of Fr Emil Kapaun, hero of the Korean War. I had read about the ghastly conditions endured by American and British soldiers in the prisoner-of-war camps in that war, but reading about Fr Kapaun brought it all home very powerfully...this is a story that our young men in seminaries need to read.
And in a quite different way Fr Donald Calloway's book No Turning Back giving an account of his conversion from a lifestyle of heavy metal/sexndrugs/lounging around/theft/vandalism is a truly moving story with a deep, haunting message. It's very much a book that speaks to, for, and on behalf of a generation. This is the generation that JPII and BXVI sought to reach, and his conversion story owes a great deal to them...and the work must go on...
A lecture tour intersperses much busy activity with sudden long gulps of spare time ( away from home, no housework, etc). I have brought a big piece of cross-stitch to tackle: a hassock for church, my first attempt at such a project. It is simple and satisfying stitchery. One annoyance is that it is impossible to do this work on an aeroplane: post 9/11 a needle and wool is regarded as equipment suited to terrorists and banned.
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2 comments:
Hi Joanna!
I was wondering if you would PLEASE add the RSS FEED and Twitter features to your blog so people can better follow you.
Since Blogger dumped their Reader option, many of us are looking for new ways to follow our favorite blogs and your blog is one of them!
Thanks and God bless!
Interesting about the tapestry and its needles and bits. I do a little cross stitch,,,, OK very small headed scissors and the needle. Absolutely fine at more than one international airport,,, great for the plane. Then at next departure,,,, oh no and just time to slip things into the case. Should be the same all the world over. Alas Sydney was one where scissors were taken. Liz.
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