Looking back at the weekly messages of Father Paul Counce, first published in The Carpenter, our weekly Parish Bulletin
Published: June 14, 2015
Dear Parishioners and Friends,
From an official standpoint, “Ordinary Time” in the Church begins the day after Pentecost. That’s the day when we begin to use green as the default liturgical color, and here in the deep South the weather almost always has turned its sultry, summer self. Yet in reality, because of so many special activities that occur around this time, things didn’t become ordinary around the Cathedral for at least two weeks after Pentecost. This year we had the joy of ordaining three new priests here, with the First Mass of Father Reuben Dykes the next day, as well as the solemnities of the Most Holy Trinity and of Corpus Christi, with a Eucharistic procession and special Masses for protection from hurricanes and in memory of our deceased bishops to boot!
But FINALLY I think we can safely say the dog days of summer have arrived! With the exception of some ongoing landscaping and a few annoying plumbing issues, I hope that things around the Cathedral stay as quiet as the calendar predicts they will be. And I know that the Parish staff joins me in that prayer!
Summertime is an opportunity for us to take things a bit more easily, and to get to a few things that perhaps we’ve neglected. For me it’s always a time when I get a little bit more reading done. For the past six years I’ve used this space to share an annual glimpse at what I’ve been reading, or hope to get to in the next couple of months. As you begin to plan to bring some books to the beach, or to just spend some “iced tea time” on a shady back porch with a novel every other afternoon or so, perhaps you’ll find some inspiration in knowing that that’s what I’m doing too!
Much of my reading (surprise!) involves religious topics or themes. Earlier in the spring I read Sherry Weddell’s Forming Intentional Disciples, which since its publication a couple of years ago has become something of a touchstone for all of us in the Church who realize that Christians and especially Catholics are becoming more and more out-of-sync with modern culture. It’s excellent and thought-provoking. On my recent trip pilgrimage to the Holy Land, I read the most appropriate Jesus: A Pilgrimage by the well-known Jesuit priest James Martin; I recommend it most highly just as a good introduction to the Gospels! Now I’ve begun working my way through Peter Williamson’s Revelation, a new commentary on that hard-to-understand last book of the Bible.
But please don’t get the impression that all or even most of my reading is religious. I read for fun and learning too. Before I went to Israel, I enjoyed Sarah’s Key, by Tatiana de Rosnay, a moving story of suffering and redemption for a Jewish girl set during both World War II and modern times. I so enjoyed the movie of the same title that I bought and read the original Twelve Years a Slave by Solomon Northup, a powerful witness to some of our country’s history that most of us would rather not think about too often. My penchant for history has also led me to be halfway through John Meacham’s American Lion, his biography of President Andrew Jackson, as well as to have started A Battle Won, one of a series of nautical novels set in the 1790s, authored by Thomas Russell.
When I do hit the beach later in the summer I intend to read Malcolm Gladwell’s latest compilation of articles entitled David and Goliath. He writes for the New Yorker magazine, and in the past I’ve very much enjoyed his insightful explorations of humanity. I enjoy mystery stories, and so find there’s almost always enough time to get through a few of Agatha Christie’s short stories which feature her famous Belgian detective Hercule Poirot, or a few of Rex Stout’s who-dunnits starring the eccentric Nero Wolfe. And to feed my interest in food (pardon the pun!), I’ve picked up Michael Pollan’s Cooked; I’ve heard it’s a delightful account of his learning how to cook, but that his insights into – and advocating for – what he calls “a return to natural cooking” are fascinating. And yes, I invariably also make time to read and drool over the recipes in the latest issue of Bon Appétit magazine!
What are you reading these days? What do you recommend? In many respects, a full and balanced human life needs to be nourished by the insights of others, and I’m afraid that in the 21st century we limit ourselves too much to the visual, in movies and on television. Reading has a way of stimulating the imagination that I just don’t think videos can. So I certainly do urge you to consider doing more reading, whether in the old-fashioned way of curling up with a book or the more newfangled e-readers that are out there. Even if you do not specifically choose religious subjects, if your imagination and intellect are roused, I’m willing to bet your prayer life will also increase and improve! The best Christian believers are those who care profoundly, whether this is about other people, the environment, our society and its policies, and the lessons to be learned from these. I can’t think of any better way to become informed and sensitive – as well as entertained! – than reading.
Sincerely in the Lord,
