It's been a year and a half since Café Holy Tony was last were able to meet. Today Café Holy Tony returns. The topic for this first café evening of the year is: My favorite mistakes, or, How God works in moments of transition.

Mary Troxell, a philosophy professor at Boston College, once wrote,

"My first mistake was becoming Catholic. ... Then in college I became a Marxist atheist. ... Then the worst mistake of all - I got a job! ... They say that God draws straight with crooked lines."

To get us started, I've attached Prof. Troxell's essay, plus an essay by Fr. William Leahy SJ. If you have time, I recommend them! But whether you get them read or not, please do come to our café evening. Be ready to share some of the best mistakes in your life, and how God drew good things even out of your bad decisions.

In 1956, Pope Pius XII described the position of the Roman Catholic Church in Palestine during the Israeli-Arab "Long War" of 1948 as "totally caught in the liminal tribulations of the times". The Church as a community tried to be neither for nor against the nation of Israel, neither for nor against the Palestinians, neither for nor against the British, the French, the Egyptians, the Jordanians, the United Nations, the Americans. The Catholic authorities and the Catholic people sought neither to convert Jews, Muslims, Orthodox Christians or Protestants - but at the same time to proclaim that our mission is to convert the whole world. "In the liminal spaces of Palestinian Catholicism, God reveals His simplicity and His complexity" wrote the Italian historian Maria Chiara Rioli (a footnote).

The power and the mercy of God are revealed at the margins, at the spaces in between, in the hard to define or classify.

Theologians call this idea "liminal theology". Josef Ratzinger (Pope Benedict XVI) often spoke of this "liminal condition" in connection with purgatory. For example, in the encyclical Spe salvi (2007), he wrote, 

"Very few people experience pure goodness or pure evil, but always something in between. ... Our experience of life, and our experience of judgement, is always at the intersection of God's justice and God's mercy. But no one lives alone, no one sins alone, no one is saved alone. The lives of others continually spill over into mine: in what I think, say, do and achieve. And conversely, my life spills over into that of others: for better and for worse. ... So where does my purgatory end and the next person's begin?" (Spe salvi, par. 47-48)
 

 
St. Francis of Assisi (13th cent.) said it with a picture: he called this transition between God's mercy and God's judgement "the seraphic confusion - the confusion of the angels". Only when I admit that I am totally confused and cannot figure my own life out, said the saint of Assisi, do I give the Holy Spirit room to work. We have to leave our comfort zones and embrace the confusion. (here is an essay)

Already in the 10th century, St. Symeon the New Theologian - called "the Last Father of the Church" - said that the human being inhabited a world of in between, where weakness leads to strength and our crookedness becomes Gods directness. For in the beginning, God breathed out the Universe, and now He inhales the Universe back into Himself, and human life takes place at the turning of God's breath. He wrote:
 

 
O Christ, behold my affliction,
behold my faintheartedness,
behold my powerlessness,
behold my beggary,
behold my feebleness,
and have pity on me, O Logos! ...

And God said:
“Why do you expect to constrain Me with words, O children of the humans?
And why do you senselessly say that I hide my face from you?
And why do you suspect that I shut the doors and gates?
And why do you suspect that I ever separate myself from you?
And why did you say that I burn you,
and ignite you,
and beat you to a pulp?
Your words are not straight, 
your understanding is all crooked.
But rather listen to the words that I am going to say to you,
and I will make straight lines with your crooked fears. ...


Understand what I teach you!
And so I have said:
by my power I blew a soul into you,
a soul both logical and rational,
which was united to your body
and the one being appeared out of the two.

You are a rational, bodily, living being, 
a human who is double from two natures inexpressibly;
from a visible body that is without senses and irrational,
and from an invisible soul according to my image both logical and rational.
What a strange marvel!

You, o human, are between all things, between creatures.
Your existence is in essence in between.

Between what? 
Between the material and the immaterial.
 

 
St Symeon the New Theologian. Hymns of Divine Love no. 53
From: St. Symeon the New Theologian. Divine Eros (Popular Patristics Series Book 40) Yonkers NY, St Vladimir's Seminary Press, 2010. Pages 340-343


Well met at Café Holy Tony!
~Friar Bob Showers OFM Conv.


Café Holy Tony
Wednesday, November 3, 2021 at 7:00 p.m.
Caruso's Restaurant, Angola
Café Holy Tony is an open discussion forum for young Catholics. Friends are welcome!

Do you know this blog? Check it out! Most of the articles are by "guest moms" from all across North America - just ordinary moms trying to be Catholic in a fast and exciting world, raising children in love. CATHOLIC MOMS GROUP INTERNATIONAL BLOG

Our parish Catholic Moms Group meets every Thursday at 9:30 a.m. in the Parish Center. Children are very welcome! Come share your experiences with other Catholic mothers and be inspired! For more information, contact our Youth & Young Adult Minister, Cara Molyet, at cara@stanthonyangola.com, 260-316-9636.

Here's a sample blog: How to manage your toddler at Mass, from December of 2017.

by friar Bob

Blogs, podcasts, print-on-demand books, webcasts - there are so many ways for small operations to get their product out to the public today. And millions do just that. Just under the category "Catholic blogs", there are thousands and countless thousands (you're reading one now). Many - perhaps most - are of little interest to most people. But some blogs are really worth reading regularly, even some produced by individuals or small groups.

Besides the ones I read myself, I looked at lists of popular blogs at various North American web aggregators. It is no surprise that the most popular Catholic blogs are all produced by big Catholic magazines and news agencies. According to Freshy Sites, among the most popular are:

CNA - Catholic News Agency - owned by the National Catholic Register (which also owns EWTN), this is a "mainstream conservative" Catholic news agency, which does a lot of interviews with bishops.

CNS - Catholic News Service - this is the official news service of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. It is, therefore, quite authoritative but is sometimes thought of us less independent.

Besides the big sites, here are three interesting small blogs:

25 and Catholic, by Mary Kate Knorr - part of the website Patheos' stable of blogs, Mary Kate's blog explores expressions of Catholicism by a young, single, politically active adult. Well written, often exploring topics other blogs shy away from.

Carrots for Michaelmas, by Haley Stewart - Haley is a wife and mother in Texas, living and working on a sustenance farm. I like this blog because Haley is so well read, and keeps on reading. Haley herself says that she writes "about motherhood, faith, culture, and literature (with a healthy dose of miscellany and fashion)." For a good idea of her writing, see her blog about Halloween.

Peanut Butter and Grace, by Gracewatch Media (Jerry Windley-Daoust, ed.) - I let this one sneak in because it can be so interesting. Gracewatch Media is a small Catholic publishing house in Winona, Minnesota, whose staff publishes this blog "to help other Catholic parents raise their kids in the faith." They go on to say: >>Our primary audience is “middle pew Catholics”—parents who attend Mass regularly and want to do more to integrate the faith into their family life, but don’t know where to begin. They might even say, “I can’t teach my children about the faith because I don’t know how.” These parents are probably both working to support their family, living the crazy-busy lifestyle of the typical working- and middle-class American family.<<  -- Please note that this is a commercial site selling products, but I like it anyway!

What are some of your favorite Catholic blogs? Please comment below.

NOTA BENE: I'm trying to get someone to write about good Catholic podcasts. Any takers?

Peace and all good,
friar Bob Showers OFM Conv.

On the 5th Sunday of Lent - March 18, 2018 - the Parish of St. Anthony of Padua held a "Whole Parish / Whole Family Workshop & Retreat Day in Preparation for Easter". The inspiration was taken from the challenge given by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops for the parishes to celebrate multi-generational catechism days "that make Easter and Christmas come alive".

Professor Kate Mahon from the University of Notre Dame's Liturgical Theology Department came and helped us along the way. Prof. Mahon provided theological guidance as well as holding a talk for the whole parish and workshops for small groups.

The theme of the day was the liturgies of Holy Week and Easter. The different groups of liturgical ministers - from extraordinary communion ministers to ushers and greeters - held different workshops to prepare themselves to help at the many liturgies of Holy Week and Easter. Other workshops dealt with different aspects of Catholic life in the contemporary world.

A special part of the day was the children's program, organized by Cathy Bryan and our catechists. There were also workshops in Spanish, and different workshops for youth and young adults.

After the workshops, we watched the animated movie "Prince of Egypt." The day ended with a celebration of the Solemn Vespers of the Fifth Sunday of Advent.

Fr. Bob and the parish staff thank everyone who made the day a wonderful experience, "making Easter come alive for the whole family".

This fall, about 150 participants continued their journey in the Why Catholic? program. This section is called Celebrate: The Sacraments.

Why Catholic is one of the offerings from Renew International for adult Catholic faith development. It is used throughout the diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend.

Like previous years, the program is built around small faith sharing communities. Our parish had twelve groups, and St. Paul's Chapel had one larger group. There are two groups meeting in Spanish, using the Arise program, (Levantete), also from Renew International. The faith sharing groups gathered in the mornings, or afternoons, or evenings; they met at parishioners' homes or in parish classrooms or in the daily Mass chapel or in the old church - wherever and whenever convenient to accomodate working parents, retired people, and many part-time residents (our beloved "snowbirds"!). Some groups were newly formed, some have been meeting as a group for five years now.

This year we asked each small group to choose a name for themselves.

• There were St. Anthony's Angels, because as a group they coordinate the parish Angel Tree each year at Christmastime.
• Why Catholic? Why NOT? decided one group, and that became their name.
• The Faithful Spirits support and pray for each other during jooy and sadness.
• Jesus' 13 Rebels took their name because they see Jesus as a rebel.
• The Faithful Hearts enjoy a weekly social hour together and a prayer session as well as thier faith sharing sessions.

Some small faith sharing communities have not taken on any special name, but they do have a special identity, every one of them. One small group descibes how they enjoy taking turns being the facilitator, while other groups have chosen one or two permanent facilitators. One group meets on Sunday morning between Masses while the children have catechism - this group especially enjoy's Friar Joe's regular presence and wisdom.

One community met six weeks in a row in the fall and will meet six times in the spring. Another group is meeting just once a month pretty much all year. Each group chooses a schedule that works for them!

The Why Catholic small communities show a lot of imagination in meeting each other's needs and supporting each other in the faith. The members become part of each other's lives, building up not only each other but the parish and the entire Catholic Church as well.

If you want to become part of next spring's Why Catholic program, you can always jump in! Contact Anne Furgeson at renew@stanthonyangola.com

Anne Ferguson is the parish coordinator of the Renew Inernational programs at St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church in Angola, IN. She has partipated in Renew, Arise and Why Catholic.

Me perdonas: Haz ofendido a alguien con tu actitud o con tus acciones? Le has pedido perdón? Quisieras pedirle perdón nuevamente o por primera vez a él o ella? Te comprometes a cambiar esa actitud o manera de ser que no te deja crecer como persona?

Te perdono: Te han pedido perdón? Cuál fue tu reacción? Perdonaste de verdad? Quieres perdonarlo de verdad? Estas dispuesto a decirle a él o ella que los perdonaste de corazón?
Padres, éstas tres maneras de trabajar el perdón, pueden ayudarnos a crear fuertes lazos de amistad en la comunidad y amor en la familia. Recuerden que el perdón no solamente se enseña sino que también se practica, y que mejor que desde el hogar.

Lo interesante del perdón es que es setenta veces siete, es decir: SIEMPRE; no siete veces como supuso Pedro o tres como creían los judíos. Todavía estamos a tiempo, comencemos ya!

William y Andrea

Texto original:
http://portumatrimonio.blogspot.com/2016/07/me-perdono-me-perdonas-y-te-perdono.html
Para mas informacio, visite: Iglesias Domesticas  
Publicado por @williamyandrea

Need a baptism certificate?

If you were baptized at St. Anthony of Padua Cathoic Church in Angola or at St. Paul's Catholic Chapel at Clear Lake, you can always request a baptism certificate or other sacramental certificate by contacting the parish office at office@stanthonyangola.com.

Read more about baptism preparation and celebration at
http://www.stanthonyangola.com/baptism.html

Dear parents, catechists and parishioners,

The series "Thirteen Reasons Why" has become the most watched show produced by Netflix - not without controversy. I take this opportunity to share with you some thoughts and reactions.

This series is based on a 2007 novel by Jay Asher. In the book, a young teenage girl named Hannah Baker is raped, then bullied. She commits suicide. But first, she makes 13 tapes giving 13 reasons why she is killing herself. More precisely, she singles out 13 individuals or groups whom she blames for her death.

My purpose here is neither to condemn nor to recommend the show. I simply want want to provide you with some resources to help you talk with our young people. If you follow our parish teenagers' Twitter feeds, Facebook pages or Instagram accounts at all, you know that they are already watching and discussing this! I have been impressed by many of their comments so far.

Both Catholic and secular groups have written warnings about the show. In short, the consensus is that for strong youth not in danger of suicide, this show can help them resolve to be better friends to people, to take the suffering of others seriously, and never to bully. For vulnerable youth - that is, those who already have suicidal thoughts - the show can lead them precisely to carry out the act. In any case, doctors and clergy alike strongly recommend that parents and teachers TALK about this show with their children.

The people who made the show are serious people. The executive producer is Selena Gomez, a serious artist - although her involvement might make some young people think that there is a certain "Walt Disney air of approval" over the series. Gomez herself has a passionate desire to PREVENT suicide by getting people to talk about things like school rape, school bullying, and the like. She has dealt with her own psychological problems and suicidal episodes. The problem is that the show "13 Reasons Why" never deals with psychological issues - it only blames other people. In the end, I believe that Gomez missed the mark. (But please do check out Project Semicolon.)

Our Sunday Visitor had an excellent review of the Netflix series. Read it here.

National Public Radio aired discussions of the original novel back in 2007, and has followed up with several good shows about the new Netflix adaptation. Here is the link to one of their better discussion, as a podcast, featuring several doctors. And here is their link to a summary article.

Over at catholicmom.com, Lisa Hendey has gathered some very good resources. I especially recommend the discussion by the cast and crew of the actual series (a half hour Youtube program), as well as the two medical articles. By the way, if you do not already know and read www.catholicmom.com, for Heaven's sakes take a look at it. It is an excellent resource!

As teachers, parents and religious, we will be expected to give some guidance. I hope that these resources can help.

Peace and all good,
friar Bob