Fr. Z's Blog

I bring to your attention something I found which was uplifting: An American tale with an American pope It’ll take just a few seconds to read.

Next, Jesuits (who else) pray to … wait for it… the demon “Pachamama”.  HERE

On March 31, Jesuits in a region of Spain issued a brochure in celebration of ‘Mother Earth Day’ which featured a prayer to the pagan ‘god’ pachamama.

This is lunatic stuff, but it is dangerous lunacy, because it invokes a demon.

Next, there is a lunatic in Rome who says that the “Catholics of Rome” have to have a “conclave” to elect a legitimate Pope.  This fellow has been around for quite a while promoting for himself some seriously loony things.  If it weren’t so pathetic, it might have a funny side.  HERE (but if you have a lot to do, don’t bother).

Next, Raymond Arroyo and Robert Royal and Fr. Gerald Murray have coagulated for another video under the title of the “Prayerful” Posse (rather than “Papal”… I’m guess that there are copyright issues with EWTN).   They talk about Pope Leo XIV (pace the goofball in the post, above).  HERE.  This is worth some time.

I’m happy to report that the sun did rise over Rome at 5:41 and that it did set at 20:33. However I was in my bedroom for the first and in a restaurant for the later (where I ran into the “windy cardinal” in lay clothes with another cardinal in mufti). We were not far from the prosciutto carving rack with its severely sharp long knife, but there wasn’t time to chat.  He locked eyes for a moment and surely knew he’d been recognized, so they brushed by and slithered onto the rain dampened cobbles to vanish up the Via Pollarola.  Chickens.  Namely… the street name refers to the fact that chickens were once sold there.  My barber is also in that street, who has multiple sharp objects.  For cutting hair.

The Ave Maria Bell was to be rung at 21:00. Notice the change?

BTW… the prosciutto remark refers to the fact that the first really sweet melons are coming now and we are getting prosciutto e melone. It’s an anticipation of Heaven.   It helps to slice prosciutto very thin.

Speaking of instruments of work.

THAT knife is a clue that some water critter is about to arrive.

I met German friend, long time read and donor, tonight for supper.  We both agreed that lunch supper lunch supper lunch supper was getting to us, so we opted for elegant but low impact.

We both had the same thing.  The heavy part was the conversation.

And… at The Parish™, The Pastor™ doing what needs to be done before evening Mass.

And walking home.

For supper we had wine, but as I was eating I thought, “Wow, this would be great with BEER from Norcia!”

I’m too tired to write about chess.

Just buy some beer, please.

I begin to tear up as I realize I am in my last days…

Sunrise: 5:42

Sunset: 20:32

A… yeah yeah… 20:25

I slept a lot today. I think I finally understand this to be a relief from a kind of PTSD. Moral Injury.

Anyone else feeling that?

Before supper I visited the church around the corner (literally!) with the remains of St Pipo.

Maybe someone with a kind and warm heart will tackle this lovely epitaph.  You want to cry all over.

Supper with a highly visible and read and watched Catholic commentator:

Zucchini flowers.

The bitterest amaro on the planet:

Actually, now I think of it.. there are worse.  It was great but it was not.  It wasn’t one of those where they leave the bottle on the table.  When they do that, … well we need  whole post about that.

Lastly,….. BUY NORCIA BEER!

The just put out a new edition of the PRE-55 MISSALE ROMANUM.

This is important.

“Shut up, pray for the man, keep doing your thing and stay out of sight. Winter is not over. The wolves are not dead yet.” HERE

At 5:43 the sun rose upon Rome. It will set at 20:31.

Were the Ave Maria Bell to ring, it would do so for the Curia at 20:45.

Welcome registrant:

SPLisa

Today is the Feast of St Aurea of Ostia, martyr.

It is also the Feast of St. Bernardin of Siena (+1444), the most dynamic speaker of his era.  He was deeply devoted to the Most Holy Name.  Bernardin was a fierce preacher against the sin of sodomy.  For example:

“No sin in the world grips the soul as the accursed sodomy; this sin has always been detested by all those who live according to God.… Deviant passion is close to madness; this vice disturbs the intellect, destroys elevation and generosity of soul, brings the mind down from great thoughts to the lowliest, makes the person slothful, irascible, obstinate and obdurate, servile and soft and incapable of anything; furthermore, agitated by an insatiable craving for pleasure, the person follows not reason but frenzy.… They become blind and, when their thoughts should soar to high and great things, they are broken down and reduced to vile and useless and putrid things, which could never make them happy…. Just as people participate in the glory of God in different degrees, so also in hell some suffer more than others. He who lived with this vice of sodomy suffers more than another, for this is the greatest sin.”  (Prediche volgari s. 39)

A while back I mentioned the bar/cafe on the Campo de Fiori where I often meet people for a pre-prandial and the owner’s dog.  At a certain point fido goes into the piazza, turns and starts barking back the bar.  Then, out comes the pink flamingo toy which conveys this furry critter into paroxysms of joy.   Today, I was walking past the place just as the ecstasy had begun.

These are the tiny strawberries, fragoline, from Nemi south of Rome.  Here I’ve prepared them with lemon and sugar.  This is the best time of the season for fragoline.  The traditional pinnacle is the Feast of St. Phili Neri.

The classic ways of serving these little berries is with lemon or balsamic vinegar or white wine.

White to move and mate in 4. HERE

Yes, there is also a daily puzzle in addition to what is above.  The one above to too instructive not to share.