Two Saints Describe What It's Like Receiving Prophecies

Saints are notoriously humble people. They know that whatever gifts and graces they have come by the goodness of God, not by any merit of their own. They are extraordinarily fearful of their own pride, and consequently do not like to talk about their own mystical or miraculous experiences. Those who do write about them often do so only under obedience. It is thus very mysterious, from a layman's perspective, what it is really like experientially to receive these special charisms from God—what it is like "behind the veil" for those who truly receive prophetic revelations and visions.

So Long, Pater Familias

Welp, another Catholic blog from the golden age of blogging bit the dust this spring. On May 13, Rob Marco announced he was wrapping up his blog Pater Familias. Rob had been a fixture in the Catholic blogging world going back to 2006 and had two other blogs prior to Pater Familias. It took me awhile to discover Pater Familias; there were several years when I was far too busy to read any Catholic blogs and it was all I could do to just keep this one afloat. I think I met Rob through his own persistent efforts to get to know me through the combox of own blog, and we eventually started communicating. It has been a fruitful friendship for which I am grateful. I have always found Rob's insights into Catholic life pervaded with a nitty-gritty, on the ground realism that seeks to get behind cliches and platitudes to dig into the core of what the struggle for holiness actually entails. I know many other people found Rob's ruminations an anchor of spiritual stability in a tumultuous time as well.

My English Tour

From June 30 to July 17 I was on a tour of England. My visit was entirely recreational, taking me in a circuit around the country from London to Kent, then on to Dorset and Cornwall, then Somerset, Oxford, and the Midlands and then up to Northumbria and back down to Norfolk. Here are some of my reflections from the trip that you may find of interest.