Thursday, December 10, 2009

Friday, December 11, 2009



The picture is of Thomas Merton's bed in his hermitage at Our Lady of Gethsemini Monastery in Kentucky.

Verse of the Day
The time is surely coming, says the Lord God, when I will send a famine on the land; not a famine of bread, or a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord. They shall wander from sea to sea, and from north to east; they shall run to and fro, seeking the word of the Lord, but they shall not find it. Amos 8: 11-12

Voice of the Day
Spirituality is not exhausted in the private prayer closet. We carry our experience of God into the places where we conduct our business, raise our families, enjoy our leisure, engage in social and political involvements, and refresh ourselves in friendships. John Indermark, The Prayer Paths of Jesus, p. 43

Prayer of the Day
Faithful God, we await the advent of your final glory when every tear shall be wiped away and hungry people shall have their fill. Grant us the Spirit of all hope that the darkness of war and oppression may give way to the fullness of the victory of Christ. We ask this through Christ our peace. Amen.





Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Wednesday, December 9, 2009


Verse of the Day
For waters shall break forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert; the burning sand shall become a pool, and the thirsty ground springs of water. Isaiah 35: 6-7

Voice of the Day
Since, for the Christian, God is always incarnate and present, there is no place on earth that is not a possible route to God. In nature's health and beauty, I see God; in nature's deterioration and destruction, I see that God is here also. In the first case a Yes and in the second a No. Sallie McFague

Prayer of the Day
Christ in all things
restore our senses
and give us again
that experience of joy
in all created things.

Christ in all things
in the waves breaking on the shore;
in the beauty of the sunset;
in the fragrant blossom of Spring;
in the music that makes our hearts dance;
in the kisses of embracing love;
in the cries of the innocent.

Monday, December 7, 2009

Tuesday, December 8, 2009


Verse of the Day
The Lord will make himself known to the Egyptians; and the Egyptians will know the Lord on that day, and will worship with sacrifice and burnt offering, and they will make vows to the Lord and perform them.
Isaiah 19: 21
Voice of the Day
The oldest Christmas tree to be decorated standing in a parlor is described in a fragment of a 1605 travel diary left by an unidentified visitor to Strasbourg. The writer tells of fir trees set up and hung with paper roses of many different colors and with apples, flat wafers, gilded candies, and sugar. In early Christian art the rose was a symbol for the Virgin Mary, and the flat wavers are obviously related to the "host," the communion symbol for Christ. By the seventeenth century, then, the age-old, winter-defying evergreen was a common sight in Christian homes honoring the Christ Child.
Phillip Snyder
Prayer of the Day
We rejoice with joy and singing, for the coming of the Lord is near.
For all who walk in God's Holy Way, those in the pews and in the pulpits, those at home and on the streets, for all who ponder God's promise in their, and all who carry the good news into the world; For all who are nearest to you, O God - the lonely, the out-of-work, the sick, the fearful, the cold, and the hungry. For the one who is sorry, and the one who is ashamed. It is you, our God of hope, who sets all prisoners free.
We are waiting, O God, with all the patience we can muster. Beloved of angels and archangels, Lover of saints and sinners, God our Savior, to you alone we pray, Amen.

Sunday, December 6, 2009

The Art History Reading Challenge: The Challenge

The Art History Reading Challenge: The Challenge
I am participating in the 2010 Art History Reading Challenge. There are a variety of such reading challenges on the web. This one requires reading 6 fiction or nonfiction books dealing with art history during 2010. I will soon post the list of books I have chosen. Find a challenge which matches or stretches your current reading, and enjoy!

Thursday, December 3, 2009

Friday, December 4,2009

The Japanese Bridge at Monet's Waterlily Pond


Verse of the Day
For to me, living is Christ and dying is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me, and I do not know which I prefer. I am hard pressed between the two: my desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better; but to remain in the flesh is more necessary for you. . . . I know that I will remain and continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith.
Philippians 1:21-25

Voice of the Day
Joy because we die not into dust, into nothingness; we die into life, life more complete, more intense, more satisfying than anything we now experience, life face to face with God. Life without end. Joy because we die into love.
Walter Burghardt, S. J. To Be Just Is to Love, p.49

Prayer of the Day
Stir up our hearts, O Lord, to prepare the way for your Son. By his coming give us strength in our conflicts and shed light on our path through the darkness of this world; in the name of Christ our Lord. Amen.

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Thursday, December 3, 2009


Verse of the Day
“This generation is an evil generation; it asks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah. For just as Jonah became a sign to the people of Nineveh, so the Son of Man will be to this generation."
Luke 11:29-30

Voice of the Day
People need to learn how to offer and accept forgiveness and how to serve and be served. As a school of love, the church becomes a congregation where people learn from one another how to love. People need to know that life is not having something to live on but something to live for, that life comes not from taking for oneself but by giving of oneself. People need a sustaining sense of purpose.
Robert Schnase, Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations, p. 18

Prayer of the Day
Father in heaven, the day draws near when the glory of your Son will make radiant the night of the waiting world. May the lure of greed not impede us from the joy which moves the hearts of those who seek him. May the darkness not blind us to the vision of wisdom which fills the minds of those who find him. Amen.