Sunday Homilies

from Father Kevin Laughery, Troy St. Jerome and St. Jacob St. James Parishes, Diocese of Springfield in Illinois. Note: Comments from this page do not reach me; instead, email: kl@kevinlaughery.com

The Podcasts

On the Fourth Sunday of Advent, I left the recording device behind, and when I remembered it, I said to myself that I would be mad to run home for it on this absolutely crazy weekend, with Christmas on Monday.  -- We'd like to see around the bend, beyond our capacities.  But we remember: "Lord, your words have been fulfilled."

Direct download: KML_2023-12-31_830am.mp3
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On the Second Sunday of Lent, the deacon preached.  -- We must be aware of our various thirsts.

Direct download: KML_2023-03-12_830am.mp3
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Last weekend, the deacon preached.  -- If we think about sin, we must also think about mercy, forgiveness, and healing.

Direct download: KML_2022-10-30_830am.mp3
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The homilist must have failed to record August 14, shortly after his mother's funeral.  -- Anyway, LIFE IS NOT A GAME and is, in fact, BETTER than a game.

Direct download: KML_2022-08-21_830am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:30pm CDT

At first I heard an echo in this recording.  I have, to my great relief, found that the recording was just playing twice on my computer.

Joy springs from within.

Direct download: KML_2020-12-13_830am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 1:49pm CDT

The word "talent" presents difficulties, since it seems to refer to performance.  Our God in fact wants us to go deeper than performance and recognize essential qualities which are not easily subject to observation.

Direct download: KML_2020-11-15_830am.mp3
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Every twelve years: "Caesar's Coin" just before a presidential election.

Direct download: KML_2020-10-18_830am.mp3
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"A church that looks like a church" vs. a church built upon martyrdom.

Direct download: KML_2019-11-17_830am.mp3
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The Berlin Wall and scaling the wall of mortality.

Direct download: KML_2019-11-10_830am.mp3
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I've never done this before.  I am giving you two versions of my homily, focusing on planning, with a specific reference to planning at St. Jerome.  I left some things out of one, and I left other things out of the other.

Direct download: KML_2019-09-08_830am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 1:26pm CDT

Instead of a coughing fit, a brief summary of my homily.

Direct download: KML_2019-02-24_summary.mp3
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This Christmas reflection focuses on the now-famous "Lady with the Duck."

Direct download: KML_2016-12-25_800am.mp3
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One of the strangest conversations imaginable comes from three men crucified together.  Christ the King rules from the instrument of his execution.

Direct download: KML_2016-11-20_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:59pm CDT

We are mortal.  We have no control over our dissolution.  We cast our lot with the Savior who reached out to us by taking mortality upon himself.

Direct download: KML_2016-11-13_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:56pm CDT

Does the promise of eternal life encourage us to suppose that the here and now does not matter?  No; for eternity is found in every passing moment.

Direct download: KML_2016-11-06_800am.mp3
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The charming story of Zacchaeus assures us that conversion can come to our household as well.  

Direct download: KML_2016-10-30_800am.mp3
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The homilist was away on October 9 and 16.  -- If we can offer the prayer "Be merciful to me, a sinner," and if we steel ourselves for the long haul of faithfulness, we will be properly oriented toward our God.

Direct download: KML_2016-10-23_800am.mp3
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The homilist was not supposed to be here today: explanation is on audio.  We must struggle to see that an honest day's work contributes to the entire vision.

Direct download: KML_2016-10-02_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:17pm CDT

The rich man with Lazarus at his door: was he unaware of him?  The rich man convicts himself, demonstrating his acquaintance with this poor man.  We likewise know that Lazarus and his fellows are at our door.

Direct download: KML_2016-09-25_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:09pm CDT

Initiative: it is applied for evil and for good.  If we are dedicated to the Kingdom of God, we will exercise initiative on its behalf.

Direct download: KML_2016-09-18_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:01pm CDT

"Enter through the narrow gate."  Jesus has gone through the narrowest gate of all: the death we all must face.  We therefore enter into the love which led him there.

Direct download: KML_2016-08-21_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 11:45am CDT

The homilist was away the past two Sundays.  -- Hospitality need not lead us to anxiety.  Paying attention to our guests in fact leads us to the peace of contemplating the goodness of God.  Our sufferings are united with those of Jesus.

Direct download: KML_2016-07-17_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:23pm CDT

Every Catholic Christian must become intimately familiar with the Scriptures.  David and Bathsheba are linked today with Jesus' proclamation of forgiveness for the woman who approaches him.

Direct download: KML_2016-06-12_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 11:59am CDT

Presenting Scriptural proof that Mary and Joseph drove a Dodge.

Direct download: KML_2015-12-27_800am.mp3
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Imagine the meeting of Mary and Elizabeth, and consider the awareness of God's favor which these women enjoyed.

Direct download: KML_2015-12-20_945am.mp3
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Joy is made of stern stuff.

Direct download: KML_2015-12-13_800am.mp3
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In the midst of further horror (San Bernardino), we join with the ancients who longed so deeply for a straight path to God.

Direct download: KML_2015-12-06_800am.mp3
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Embrace Advent -- the alternative to Black Friday.

Direct download: KML_2015-11-29_800am.mp3
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What is truth?  We refrain from the cynicism of Pontius Pilate and embrace the fullness of truth to be found in our suffering servant.

Direct download: KML_2015-11-22_800am.mp3
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The end of the world?  In light of the griefs of the past week (Paris massacres), perhaps God is giving us a chance to begin the world!

Direct download: KML_2015-11-15_800am.mp3
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"The widow's mite" and our concerns about being good "stewards" of the temporal affairs God has entrusted to us.

Direct download: KML_2015-11-08_800am.mp3
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The homilist was away from the ambo throughout October.  -- We consider our call to holiness as we remember Pope Francis and his evocation of Dorothy Day.

Direct download: KML_2015-11-01_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:55pm CDT

"Whoever is not against us is for us."  As we reflect on the visit of Pope Francis to the United States, we are to find every strength and advantage in a principle of inclusion.

Direct download: KML_2015-09-27_945am.mp3
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Peter professes his faith in Jesus, but also reveals that the concept of "suffering servant" eludes him

Direct download: KML_2015-09-13_800am.mp3
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Decision and commitment move us to stand with a spouse and with the God who promises his intimate presence.

Direct download: KML_2015-08-23_800am.mp3
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Ephesians touches upon singing as a fundamental Christian activity, while Proverbs gives us the image of the banquet as the preferred way to describe how God loves us.

Direct download: KML_2015-08-16_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 4:41pm CDT

A man named Donald Trump was in the news; this led to my comments about respect, as alluded to in the Ephesians passage.  

Direct download: KML_2015-08-09_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 4:37pm CDT

It is the most reasonable thing in the world to ask "What is it?" when presented with unfamiliar food.  "Manna" means "What is it?"  We are still asking "What is it?" when we are given the Bread of Life.

Direct download: KML_2015-08-02_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 4:24pm CDT

The homilist was away last week.  Today, in light of God's address to Job, we consider the encyclical of Pope Francis on the environment, and the murders in Charleston, S.C. 

Direct download: KML_2015-06-21_800am.mp3
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God, in his dynamism, demonstrated in the relationships of the Trinity, enters into human affairs, definitively so in Jesus.

Direct download: KML_2015-05-31_800am.mp3
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The homilist was away on May 10.  Let's be careful when interpreting the snakes and poison of the conclusion of Mark's Gospel.  The one who ascended did so because he had first descended to the depths of human misery.

Direct download: KML_2015-05-17_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 1:40pm CDT

God has given us all things.  We seek to express our thanks.

Direct download: KML_2015-03-15_800am.mp3
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We yearn for a straight path to the meaning of our life.

Direct download: KML_2014-12-07_800am.mp3
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Break open the heavens and come down among us, that we might be roused from our dullness.

Direct download: KML_2014-11-30_800am.mp3
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The last judgment is carried out according to criteria which leave us absolutely depending on God's mercy.

Direct download: KML_2014-11-23_800am.mp3
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The notion of "industry" as a virtue must not obscure the simple fact that even our ability to work is the gift of God.

Direct download: KML_2014-11-16_800am.mp3
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It's the cathedral of Rome and therefore the mother church of the world!  Popes Innocent III and Leo XIII are buried there.  Father Augustus Tolton of our diocese, a candidate for sainthood, was ordained there in 1886.

Direct download: KML_2014-11-09_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:33pm CDT

The homilist was away throughout the month of October.

Bear with the idea of a school having a mausoleum.

Direct download: KML_2014-11-02_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:30pm CDT

"Being a Christian" is not a static condition.  It's all about changing and growing.

Direct download: KML_2014-09-28_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:28pm CDT

The parable that everyone hates.

Direct download: KML_2014-09-21_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:24pm CDT

Crucifixion as an act of terror, and Jesus' embrace of his crucifixion as the dispelling of terror for his faithful people.

Direct download: KML_2014-09-14_800am.mp3
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The often exhausting details of living in communion as God's people.

Direct download: KML_2014-09-07_800am.mp3
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The second of two parts on leadership and all that's implied.

Direct download: KML_2014-08-31_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:16pm CDT

The first of two parts on leadership.

Direct download: KML_2014-08-24_800am.mp3
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Humor is a form of communication.  We are challenged to hear the humorous banter between Jesus and this woman.

Direct download: KML_2014-08-17_800am.mp3
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Sitting in Fiumicino Airport, I discover that there's free wi-fi.  U.S. airports ought to take a hint.

Some may be wondering whether I got any closer to Pope Francis than St. Peter's Square with him up in the window.  The answer is NO.  Fr. Pedacchio never corresponded with me.To be quite honest, I am pleased that there was NOTHING in the three weeks which resembled work.  Being at a papal affair would certainly have felt like work.

Category:general -- posted at: 2:17am CDT

Today I traveled no further than around the block for a midday meal of prosciutto and melon, fettuccine with sausage and mushroom, roast lamb with potatoes, spinach in butter.  A farewell meal in a country where you can't get a bad meal.

We went off Daylight Saving Time last night.  So now I'm only six hours off from home. 

I have been resting up for tomorrow's trip and using Wikipedia to read up on 1950s and 1960s U.S. TV trivia.

The last three weeks have amounted to a wonderful rest.  Now it's back to work!

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Earlier today, I took a walk to the Pincio park.  The sky was cloudless and the temperature was hovering around 70.

This evening, Fr. Daren Zehnle, Fr. John Nolan (in Rome for the Institute for Continuing Theological Education), and seminarians Michael Friedel and Dominic Rankin got together for dinner.

Tomorrow is my last day in Rome before I fly back on Monday.

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Friday is my normal day off, so it's fitting that I didn't do much today.  I sat at the Quirinal Palace for a while, went into the "center" of town, had a leisurely lunch (rigatoni all'amatriciana, pollo alla romana), strolled into the area of Piazza di Spagna, and came back to the hotel.

For old times' sake, I bought an International New York Times.  I used to read its predecessor, the International Herald Tribune, when I lived here.  Of course I have the paper online.  I was interested in seeing its hard-copy format.  With the crossword, there's Jumble, sudoku, Doonesbury, Calvin and Hobbes. and Peanuts.

 

Category:general -- posted at: 10:18am CDT

Following yesterday's post, I did some shopping in the Vatican area.  I found a very nice restaurant near my hotel (rigatoni alla carbonara, saltimbocca alla romana, spinach in butter).

This morning as I checked the weather, it was 41F in daylight here, while it was 43F in New Berlin in the dark.  I am reminded of the Italian expression "Fa freddo" which literally means "it makes cold" or "it does cold."  Thursday was a day off for me when I was at the university here.  We'd have classes Monday through Wednesday, then Thursday off, then classes Friday and Saturday, then Sunday off.  No weekends, therefore.  Today was like a typical Thursday in seminary days.  Often I would take a long walk.  Today I had a very nice walk in the Villa Borghese, a big park on the north side of Rome.  Tonight I went back to the same restaurant as yesterday, since I liked it so much (penne all'arrabbiata, steak in pepper sauce).

Category:general -- posted at: 1:51pm CDT

You may be wondering whether I did a gondola ride.  The answer is no, although I did take a water taxi (motorboat) from St. Mark's Square to get to the train station, thus sparing myself a lot of trudging through the city with luggage as on my arrival.

After a night train ride from Venice, with transfer in Verona, I arrived in Rome today at 6  am.  I walked to my hotel (the same one where I had stayed during my first week here), and I was amazed to discover that my room was ready.  At 8 am I took my laundry to the fellow around the block, and at 10 am I had it back.

I'm doing a lot of reading.  I am a fan of Tom Wolfe, and last night I finished I Am Charlotte Simmons -- an uplifting story, if you can stomach the cruelty inflicted on the title character, and the language.  I've started another Sinclair Lewis novel, Cass Timberlane.

Today I am going to see whether I can at least find our two seminarians, Michael Friedel and Dominic Rankin.  Lunchtime at the North American College would be the most likely point of intersection.

Category:general -- posted at: 4:45am CDT

The line for St. Mark's Basilica begins to form well before the 9:45 am opening time.  This being my last full day in Venice, I knew I had to hustle, and I did.  There is in New Berlin an establishment called "Capone's Hideout," with a very eclectic decor, including a poster of "The Horses of San Marco."  These ancient bronzes were on the facade of St. Mark's -- reproductions stand there now -- and the original horses are now in the museum within the walls of the basilica.  To say they are beautiful is a great understatement.  Their beauty is in a way heightened by the awareness of how old they are -- perhaps as many as 1800 years old.

I feel a bit of sadness at departing from Venice, which I look upon as a place of great beauty and mystery.  I will perhaps return, but only with maps of the greatest intricacy.

As I report on yet another evening with spaghetti alla carbonara, this time followed by a pork chop, French fries, and tomato salad, I have been wondering whether my travel-blog is similar to what people do on Twitter, which has never made sense to me, because if you are telling everyone what you are doing, how do you get anything done?  It does seem to make sense to me that the readers of this blog are simply enjoying with me a moment of leisure in surroundings I enjoy very much.  I know you wish for me a good rest before going back to the work which will always be there.  And I thank you.

Tomorrow night, a night train from Venice to Rome (by way of Verona).  I don't anticipate being able to post anything on Tuesday.  Look for the next post Wednesday.

Category:general -- posted at: 1:32pm CDT

My shoes hit the pavement about 10:30 am, and I have been out walking around all day.

This afternoon I visited the original "ghetto," that is, the Jewish quarter of Venice.  I took part in a tour which included the German, French, and Sephardic (or "Levantine") synagogues.  Can I help it that the soundtrack in my mind is playing the Elvis song "In the Ghetto"?  

This Sunday is sunny.  I am finding more straight streets and direct routes.  I walked along the lagoon again -- this time with a view of an obviously artificial square island which serves as the city's cemetery.

I did not have the greatest luck with dinner.  Again I had spaghetti alle vongole, which I love, and then fried shrimp and squid.  At this particular restaurant, they were serving something I found unappetizing -- I think it was the heads of the squid.  Whatever it was, everything that looked similar I pushed to the edge of the plate.  Their artichokes were strange, too -- my serving was two discs.  I think of artichokes as being made up of many leaves.  Whatever.

Category:general -- posted at: 2:02pm CDT

I have referred already to the difficult task of navigating the streets of Venice.  I had another experience of this, this afternoon.  

One thing to be said for the streets of Venice is that there are NO CARS.  In fact it's quite a rare thing for any of us these days to have such an experience.

This evening, after penne with four cheeses, roast chicken and fries, and sorbetto al limone, I walked down to St. Mark's Square and discovered that I could walk freely, seeing where I was going, to a great length along the shore of the lagoon.  

Category:general -- posted at: 2:30pm CDT

I am in my hotel's lobby, reading the local papers.  There was an accident yesterday, a vaporetto (floating city bus) colliding with a barge, and seven people were hurt.  I was not there.

Category:general -- posted at: 5:14am CDT

Thursday evening was seafood night.  I had spaghetti alle vongole -- the signature pasta around here, with clams in garlic and oil.  I loved it.  Then, fried shrimp and squid, which was likewise very tasty.  I learned that sorbetto al limone is to be drunk, not spooned out.

Not much to report regarding Friday.  This hotel room has the comfort I found lacking in Rome.  I ended up sleeping a lot.  Friday's dining: prosciutto and melon, spaghetti alla carbonara, salad, and an Averna amaro.

It's Saturday morning (I was up in time to partake of the hotel's breakfast, served on very nice china) and my task was to find a laundry.  I found one close by, but it is closed Saturday and Sunday.  In 1997 I forgot to pack any socks, and so I was washing my socks in my room every night.  I may have to resort to similar arrangements until I get back to Rome and the friendly neighborhood laundry.

My hotel is very close to St. Mark's.  I must confess that I have little ambition to sightsee beyond this area.  I do want to get to the original ghetto, but today is not the day, since it's the Sabbath. 

Category:general -- posted at: 4:32am CDT

As it turned out, the packaging is shinier but the product is the same.  Wednesday-Thursday was my night train ride to Venice.  No internet; no electrical outlet.  I had enough power, however, to finish reading Sinclair Lewis's 1935 novel It Can't Happen Here.  Entertaining, but gruesome.  In the "trains-running-on-time" department, we arrived in Venice just one minute late.

Get ready to laugh.  It took me nearly three hours to get to my hotel.  Take a look at a map and you can appreciate how baffling the job of navigating Venice is.

The Blue Guide says that the best time to observe Venice is early in the morning.  I arrived at 5:30 am and at that hour I had the city to myself.  After finding my hotel, I wandered for a while since I had to wait for my room to be ready.  The view of the Grand Canal from the Rialto bridge is stunning.  And then there's St. Mark's Square, which has to be one of the great public spaces in the world.  

With every passing hour, the streets of Venice become ever more crowded.  I have been taking it easy this afternoon, and when I'm good and hungry I will find a place to eat.  Besides the numerous restaurants, Venice is sort of an endless shopping mall.

Category:general -- posted at: 9:50am CDT

... but was not in a position to upload it until now.

Believe it or not, I have been spending a number of very pleasant hours in the Rome train station!

 

There has been a big change here from my younger days.  Back then, you entered this vast building and saw nothing but the interminable windows (some of them with bureaucrats inside) where you stood in line interminably, waiting to be told of various complications.  

 

By contrast: today there is scarcely a window of this sort to be found.  Everything is done with self-service computers.  Before I left for this trip, I paid my fare for Rome-Venice-Rome on the RailEurope website.  All that remained for me to do at the station was to use one of the computers to retrieve my ticket for Venice!  Nothing to it!

 

The space the bureaucrats used to take up is now filled with cafes, restaurants and shops where I have enjoyed myself.  Even the passenger waiting area is less grim.  Besides having a breakfast pastry and a couple of cappuccinos, I am now at the end of my meal at the "Roadhouse" where I had a ribeye and a baked potato, Italian draft beer, fruit salad with vanilla ice cream, and espresso.  

 

The Italian passenger rails used to be known as FS of "Ferrovie dello Stato" (Ironroads of the State).  This name has been abandoned in favor of the breezier "Trenitalia."

 

They tell me that there is wi-fi on the train.  I hope this is true.  I hope there are also electrical outlets, so I can use my iPad all through the nighttime trip.  I chose night trips so I can save a couple of nights of hotel rooms.  

 

I have, of course, been reading up on Venice in my Blue Guide.  They say that Venice can be compared only to itself.  I've been studying the maps so as to figure out how to get from the train station to my hotel.  This should be tricky.

Category:general -- posted at: 9:36am CDT

Quickly: I have arrived in Venice.  I will write more once I have resolved a keyboard problem.

Category:general -- posted at: 9:04am CDT

Today was quite a full day.  I spent a good bit of time at St. John Lateran, which is the cathedral church of Rome (St. Peter's ISN'T).  They have done some wonderful restoration to the facade, and the Latin inscriptions declaring this to be the "mother and head" of all Christian churches really jumps out at you now.  I kept in mind Fr. Augustus Tolton, whose priesthood ordination was here, and two popes buried here: Innocent III, who approved the establishment of the Franciscans, and Leo XIII, who engaged the modern world with his teachings on the rights of workers.

I found a great place for lunch, between the Lateran and the Colosseum, and then inspected the Colosseum area.  It is undergoing restoration and the restored stone is noticeably cleaner.  

This evening I met Fr. Daren Zehnle for dinner.  He is in the second year of a three-year canon-law program at my alma mater, the Gregorian University.

There was a little rain this evening.  My main recollection of this day is that I seem to do nothing but sweat.

Category:general -- posted at: 4:19pm CDT

Today was a time for taking it easy.  Yesterday I developed a blister on my left foot.  Tomorrow promises a good bit of running around.  I stayed within a couple of blocks of the hotel all day.  I dined on pizza and salad.  

The climate of this hotel room is curious.  There is an air-conditioning unit above the door, and it does keep the room cool, but it seems that the air stays humid.  Rome has had 100% relative humidity the last couple of days, although no rain.  I decided that the thing needed was a fan, in accord with my dictum in the title of this post.  I bought a small fan (some assembly was required), and the air in motion will make for better sleeping.

I downloaded a Sinclair Lewis novel, It Can't Happen Here, and have been enjoying it.  There's always a connection!  Sinclair Lewis died in Rome.  This is a 1930s novel about prospects for fascism in the U.S.A.

Category:general -- posted at: 1:28pm CDT

Today's main object was to get to St. Peter's Square (actually, it's an oval) for the 12 noon Angelus appearance of Pope Francis at the traditional window of the Apostolic Palace -- a tradition which continues despite the fact that Francis doesn't actually live in the Apostolic Palace.  It was cloudy in the morning, but the clouds soon gave way to the typical sunny weather of these parts.  The high was supposed to be 80, and I believe we reached it.  Francis's appearance lasted about 14 minutes.  The crowds in the Square were pretty big, but orderly!  Currently in the Square they have a couple of giant TVs, which are a help because, from the Square, the figure in the window is tiny.  I should also note that the famous colonnade of St. Peter's Square has been restored to a shade of white which I thought was not natural.  Most of the travertine stone of Rome has a brownish cast to it.

After the Angelus, I peeled away from the crowds and had ravioli "alla gorgonzola" (with blue cheese), chicken breast with mushrooms, zucchini, and peppers, and a big salad which I ordered specifically because it contained fennel.  This vegetable resembles celery , but the short description of it is that it "tastes like licorice."  For dessert: pineapple.

Once one acclimates to the concentrated urban environment of Rome, one cannot help but develop a survival/comfort strategy: figuring out routes for avoiding the crowds.  Today I came up with a pretty good route for getting from my hotel to the Vatican: it involved the piazza (square) of the Quirinal Palace.  It worked on my way to the Vatican, but coming back there was a restriction of movement because Army and Navy marching bands were doing what marching bands do.

I found a laundry very close to my hotel, and I will pick up clean clothes tomorrow around noon, alleluia, alleluia!

I am quite pleased with my use of Italian.  I seem to make myself understood, and, just as important, I understand what people are saying to me!   Not bad after 17 years of non-use!

I have come to a conclusion which began to be clear to me in Israel last year.  The traveler's cheque is DEAD.  (Come to think of it, Karl Malden is dead, too.)  I exchanged some on my arrival.  There are limited opportunities to change these, and the commissions are pretty hefty.  It's far more convenient to go to a "Bancomat" and, with a debit card, cause euros galore to emerge!

Category:general -- posted at: 12:59pm CDT

Today in Rome, I spent some time in the Campidoglio or Capitoline Hill, then walked to Trastevere (the old neighborhood "across the Tiber") for lunch.  I had a backpack with laundry (the place I wanted to take it to was not open) and a couple of books.  With time, the backpack, which was not especially heavy, began to weigh on me.  On my way  back to my hotel, I visited an area of Rome especially familiar to me, as I had various paths for walking from the North American College to the Gregorian University.  The "northern," "central," and "southern" routes all cross Piazza Navona, where I lingered briefly, and only briefly, since the crowds were so great.  Once again, the weather was 70s and sunny.

You can't beat Italy for bread.  I buy so-called "Italian" loaves at Schnucks, but they don't compare to the real thing here.  There is something about the slightly burnt quality of the crust here.  I had an LOL moment at lunch today.  The bread I was given was the hollow panino which we always had at breakfast at the College and which we always called "moon rocks."   

I woke up at 9:30 am, so I am making progress in getting synchronized.  It will have to be early to bed for me tonight.  I have yet to make it to breakfast here at the hotel, and I have plenty of time for it, as it runs from 7 to 10 am!

Category:general -- posted at: 10:57am CDT

As I reported yesterday, I did resist the temptation to go immediately to sleep.  That did not keep me from sleeping till noon today.  (A tribute to how quiet this hotel is!)  Upon getting my feet in gear, I walked up to the Via Vittorio Veneto for a big lunch outdoors; then I walked in some areas which I particularly enjoyed so many years ago: the Pincio park, the Spanish Steps, and Piazza del Popolo.  The temperature is 77 degrees and it's sunny.  There was supposed to be a big demonstration here at 3:00 pm in Piazza Venezia, but I avoided that area.

Category:general -- posted at: 11:26am CDT

I arrived in Rome today and had to face down a big temptation.  I had to resist the urge to go right to bed as soon as I entered my hotel room.  The only way to adjust to the seven-hour shift is by staying on schedule with everybody else.  I did successfully get myself out of the room and into the streets.  From my hotel near the train station, I walked to my old university, the Gregorian.  I was pleased to see that the lecture halls have been updated.  It appears that they have everything for computer audio-visual stuff.  Even so, an overhead projector was very prominent.  The old coffee bar is now called "Greg Cafe."  I wandered over to the Trevi fountain (in process of restoration) and stepped briefly into the Pantheon, which is my favorite thing in Rome.  No matter how many times you've been there, you can't help but be awed by the vast space under the dome with the hole in the top.  Rome is heavy with tourists; the weather happens to be ideal.  This evening I dined outside.  

Rome is as I remember it: people and traffic and celebration of itself.  These characteristics may well have intensified since the last time I was here, seventeen years ago.

Category:general -- posted at: 12:49pm CDT

We get rattled.  Elijah and Peter are our kinsmen in this sense that life is asking too much of us.  Our God offers us the way to peace.

Direct download: KML_2014-08-10_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:51pm CDT

The mystery of the Eucharist, foreshadowed in the multiplication of the loaves and fishes, was cherished by Flannery O'Connor, who died fifty years ago today.

Direct download: KML_2014-08-03_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:46pm CDT

We consider the gift of wisdom and the modern prayer about the interplay of serenity, courage, and wisdom.

Direct download: KML_2014-07-27_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:15pm CDT

Beware misinterpreting the parable of the weeds and the wheat!  If we see "good people" and "bad people," we do not allow for the fundamental experience of the Christian life: conversion.

Direct download: KML_2014-07-20_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:08pm CDT

The abundance of God's gifts assures us that we can never exhaust the gift of love.

Direct download: KML_2014-07-13_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 2:59pm CDT

Is life about "becoming somebody"?  No; from the very beginning, we are already "somebody," because we are loved by God.

Direct download: KML_2014-07-06_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 2:46pm CDT

The homilist did not preach on June 22, the Body and Blood of Christ.  I misspoke, saying "Peter" when I meant to say that Paul died by the sword.

Direct download: KML_2014-06-29_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 2:35pm CDT

When we experience love, we experience God the Trinity.

Direct download: KML_2014-06-15_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:44am CDT

Appreciating our diverse gifts as we are formed by the Holy Spirit into the Body of Christ.

Direct download: KML_2014-06-08_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:42am CDT

Heaven isn't physically "up."  We need to develop our ability to interpret Scripture so as to understand our kinship with and differences from the people from whose midst Scripture emerged.

Direct download: KML_2014-06-01_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:39am CDT

How do we witness to the truth of Christianity?  By being genuine, ourselves.

Direct download: KML_2014-05-25_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:35am CDT

The Way, the Truth, and the Life: We bring to our God our anxieties about going the right way.

Direct download: KML_2014-05-18_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:30am CDT

On Mother's Day we consider the parallels between shepherding and mothering.

Direct download: KML_2014-05-11_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:25am CDT

We can read into the "walk to Emmaus" our anxieties and confusion about ultimate meaning, and our discoveries about fulfillment "in the breaking of the bread."

Direct download: KML_2014-05-04_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:22am CDT

Be aware of the First Letter of St. Peter as it is proclaimed through the course of the Easter season.

Direct download: KML_2014-04-27_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 7:51pm CDT

Considering the burial cloths and what was sparked in Peter's mind and heart.

Direct download: KML_2014-04-20_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 7:48pm CDT

A reflection on the possibility that Barabbas' first name was Jesus, and on Jesus' "everyman" role.

Direct download: KML_2014-04-13_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 7:18pm CDT

If God is who we think he is, he wouldn't be much of a God if we could not praise him eternally.  Jesus, for the sake of mortals, saw fit to get close to death, and to succumb to death, for our sake.

Direct download: KML_2014-04-06_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 7:05pm CDT

We are dependent upon the sense of sight; sometimes, however, it gets in the way.  We are called to a deeper appreciation of insight.

Direct download: KML_2014-03-30_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:53pm CDT

The homilist did not preach last week.  This homily is on human thirst, and also on details of Christian initiation.

Direct download: KML_2014-03-23_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:40pm CDT

Hidden agendas, making the moment "about me," and other subtleties of temptation.

Direct download: KML_2014-03-09_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:27pm CDT

We reach an extremely important part of the Sermon on the Mount: Jesus' admonition against worry.

Direct download: KML_2014-03-02_945am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:13pm CDT

Jesus says a number of very provocative and memorable things in today's passage from the Sermon on the Mount.  We find freedom in understanding that Jesus is calling us to cultivate a healthy respect for our brothers and sisters.

Direct download: KML_2014-02-23_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:15pm CDT

We are set free when we understand that the people in our life are not objects to be manipulated but persons of inestimable worth in the sight of God.

Direct download: KML_2014-02-16_800am.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:06pm CDT

The Sermon on the Mount, over the Sundays leading up to Lent, will help us to attain a sense of freedom as Christians.  Are you ready to pep up the flavor of this world?

Category:general -- posted at: 3:02pm CDT