Beauty Incarnate: Flower of Jesse

O Flower of Jesse’s stem, you have been raised up as a sign for all peoples; kings stand silent in your presence; the nations bow down in worship before you. Come, let nothing keep you from coming to our aid. You are made for beauty. You are created to experience that thrill when you seeContinue reading “Beauty Incarnate: Flower of Jesse”

Our Lady and the Burning Bush: O Adonai

O sacred Lord of ancient Israel, who showed yourself to Moses in the burning bush, who gave him the holy law on Sinai mountain: come, stretch out your mighty hand to set us free. We worship a God who turns water to blood and sweeps sea from land. He is so close that He knowsContinue reading “Our Lady and the Burning Bush: O Adonai”

Merciful Wisdom: Introduction to the O Antiphons + O Wisdom

O Wisdom, O holy Word of God, you govern all creation with your strong yet gentle care. Come and show your people the way to salvation. A favorite Christmas memory in our house is when my younger sister was about four and we were opening gifts on Christmas Eve. Surrounded by fun cousins and fueledContinue reading “Merciful Wisdom: Introduction to the O Antiphons + O Wisdom”

Sunday Gospel Reflection: Rocking Eve to Sleep

I wonder what it was like for Jesus as His bleary eyes woke from sleep. He could feel the water lapping at his feet, hear the roar of the wind skidding over the sea. But the first thing He saw must have been the disciples’ faces, their wide eyes dimming with despair and confusion. BeforeContinue reading “Sunday Gospel Reflection: Rocking Eve to Sleep”

The Game is Never Over, John: BBC’s “Sherlock” and the Common Human Experience

If you sign into Netflix, you’ll see a sad sight. More accurately, there’s something that you won’t see. As of last weekend, BBC’s Sherlock has gone away. Netflix is no longer 221 B Baker Street. I’ll admit that I’m more Sherlocked than most. I don’t think many people were mourning its Reichenbach fall from NetflixContinue reading “The Game is Never Over, John: BBC’s “Sherlock” and the Common Human Experience”

That Last Paragraph, That First Death

I’ve been preparing for this post for months now. Thinking about possible ways to open it, staring at a blank screen and aggressively blinking cursor, saving drafts that I’ll never reopen. My favorite part of a book is always the end. It’s that final sentence or paragraph, the final goodbye from an author to hisContinue reading “That Last Paragraph, That First Death”

The Hidden Worker

They have barely reached the peak of Golgotha when His clothes are violently torn off, leaving only open shreds where skin should be. Jesus staggers right and left as his hunched form is prodded towards the cross by clubs. He kneels beside the cross as one last time, His Sacred Body touches the dust thatContinue reading “The Hidden Worker”

My Watered Garden

“Woman, why are you weeping?” Easter should be the feast most unclouded by grief and heartbreak. Even nature seems to break forth in an unmatched “Hallelujah” as the spring is gently unveiled through flowers, zephyr, and relentless birdsong. After all, this octave of Easter is “the day that the Lord has made (Psalm 118).” Today,Continue reading “My Watered Garden”