A journal of byzantine digressionS
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No King but Jesus – Part 1 of 2
In December, 1925, Pope Pius the Eleventh made a new feast for the Roman Catholic Church: that of Christ the King. That this is a new feast is evident. No such thing existed prior to 1925. The back-story of the feast is one that reaches only 200 years back from 1925, so it’s clearly post-schism. That…
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Why bother?
A presidential election always brings out the worst in my internet: partisanship, not the least. There is also rancor, name-calling, anger, hatred, false witness, calling evil good, and murmuring. We can add in the rest of the list from Galatians 5, if we include the politicians themselves: “adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance,…
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Tolkien on the Eucharist
Out of the darkness of my life, so much frustrated, I put before you the one great thing to love on earth: the Blessed Sacrament. . . . There you will find romance, glory, honour, fidelity, and the true way of all your loves on earth, and more than that: Death. By the divine paradox,…
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Epiclesis
One day, Fr T said unto me “I have solved the problem with the Epiclesis!” For those not in the know, the Roman Canon is lacking an epiclesis (invocation of the Holy Ghost over the gifts). This is because the Roman Canon is older than the Constantinopolitan idea of the need for such things. When…
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Just a Few Pics
Some cool road names here. With the “Prosecution” sign next to it, this is “Grumpy Grandma Gulch”. Bear Trax?? Faint hints of green are showing up. #springtime I love this stand of trees in the middle of the wash. Here they are again with better light. Even these towers look pretty to me. Sebastian, the…
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Newsletter #2
NB: the Text of my newsletter with pictures… PAX! With the help of your prayers, I’ve been trying to do this stuff for four weeks, now (if not the whole of my life, already) it seemed good to let let you know what “this stuff” all is. First, thank you for all the continued texts,…
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Wild West Hero
There are about 12 miles of dirt road between us and the highway. I took a walk about three and half miles up Cabin Creek Road and came back. It was the longest walk I’ve yet taken since getting here: I’m still getting used to the elevation (7,500 ft) and exercise is a bit of…
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A few photos
Greetings! Matushka Robin at Holy Trinity Cathedral wanted photos of the mountains! Pikes’ Peak from Pueblo Monastery grounds under the full moon. Snow at the Monastery Snow at the Monastery Snow at the Monastery Snow at the Monastery Snow at the Monastery Along Colorado 50 Along Colorado 50 Along Colorado 50 Along I70 in Utah…
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Faith: the Map is the Territory.
In social sciences, the words “Emic” and “Etic” have very specific meanings. I’m not sure of them because I wasn’t introduced to these words in the context of social sciences and I certainly never heard them in school (we didn’t use them back in the Dark Ages of the Late 20th Century, although I would…
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O Virgin – 8th Advent Meditation
O Virgo virginum, quomodo fiet istud? Quia nec primam similem visa es nec habere sequentem. Filiae Ierusalem, quid me admiramini? Divinum est mysterium hoc quod cernitis.O Virgin of virgins, how shall this be? For neither before was any like thee, nor shall there be after. Daughters of Jerusalem, why marvel ye at me? That which…
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O Emmanuel – 7th Advent Meditation
O Emmanuel, Rex et legifer noster, exspectatio gentium, et Salvator earum: veni ad salvandum nos Domine Deus noster. O Emmanuel, God with us, our King and lawgiver, the expected of the nations and their Savior: come to save us, O Lord our God.Emmanuel means “God with us.” In the Eastern Rite, at Great Compline on…
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O King – 6th Advent Meditation
O Rex gentium, et desideratus earum, lapisque angularis, qui facis utraque unum: veni, et salva hominem, quem de limo formasti. O King of the gentiles and their desired One, the cornerstone that makes both one: come, and deliver man, whom you formed out of the dust of the earth. It seems there is a silence…
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That Poor Holy Family
I’m tired of people (Christians and not) hijacking Christmas for their politcal ends. The “poverty” of the Holy Family was not a thing at all until Francis of Assisi got obsessed with proving Jesus owned nothing. This was a serious theological debate in the 12th and 13th centuries and it has come down to us…
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O Key – 4th Advent Meditation
O Clavis David, et sceptrum domus Israel, qui aperis, et nemo claudit, claudis, et nemo aperuit: veni, et educ vinctum de domo carceris, sedentem in tenebris, et umbra mortis.O Key of David, and sceptre of the house of Israel, you open, and no one shuts, you shut, and no one opens: come, and lead the…
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O Root – 3rd Advent Meditation
O Radix Jesse, qui stas in signum populorum, super quem continebunt reges os suum, quem gentes deprecabuntur: veni ad liberandum nos, iam noli tardare.O Root of Jesse, that stands for an ensign of the people, before whom the kings keep silence and unto whom the Gentiles shall make supplication: come, to deliver us, and tarry…
Orthoparadoxy 