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Post by Maolsheachlann on Apr 26, 2018 14:13:46 GMT
Before starting INSPIRATION FROM THE SAINTS,I, naturally, had a quick flick through the pages to see the outline of the book and it brought to my mind a book I'd been through the previous month, it having had a mutual photograph of St Elizabeth of the Trinity. The 1987 published LIGHT LOVE LIFE, published by the Order, is really a so-called coffee-table book. For those who haven't seen a copy, every known photo of the saint was included, as well as many of her family and friends (and a few coloured scenic photos for inspiration). The text mostly consisted of captions and excerpts from the Saint's letters and poems. The early photos are typical romantic, Renoir-like ,19th century family scenes. Of course, the photos taken in Carmel contrasted greatly. Unusually for the time, the nuns actually possessed a camera. Oddly, the two things that stuck me the most when reading it had little to do with holiness. The author explained that her widowed mother, Mrs Catez, was actually years younger than she looked- she had aged prematurely through a nasty snakebite. It's not a situation I'd associate with living in France or with contemplative Saints. The appearance of an extroverted young man in several photos stood out also. He was a Mr (Charles)Hallo, from a family close to the Catezes. In one photo he is performing in a play dressed as a woman- full Victorian-style dress and wig. It's said the last line Elizabeth ever wrote was directed at him- she told someone to tell him that she'd love him no less in Heaven. Would it be irreverent to suggest her as patron of helping those with cross-dressing inclinations? It's funny you should mention St. Elizabeth of the Trinity. She sort of elbowed her way into the book. She was the last saint to be canonised at the time of writing my first draft. I first heard of her when I saw a poster advertising some talk about her in the vestry of UCD's church. Not only that, but a woman saw me looking at it and urged me to go to it. Then, a few days after, I saw a copy of the journal "Carmel" dedicated to her on the book exchange shelf outside UCD library. Then I saw another special issue of a religious journal dedicated to her, on the Legion of Mary stand in my local church. These were both old journals, from the time of her beatification. So I felt I had to include her!
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Post by person01 on Apr 27, 2018 1:48:00 GMT
I just finished reading Target Africa by Obianuju Ekeochea
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Post by Séamus on Apr 27, 2018 5:23:37 GMT
[quote author="Séamus " timestamp="1524750478" source="/ inclinations? It's funny you should mention St. Elizabeth of the Trinity. She sort of elbowed her way into the book. She was the last saint to be canonised at the time of writing my first draft. I first heard of her when I saw a poster advertising some talk about her in the vestry of UCD's church. Not only that, but a woman saw me looking at it and urged me to go to it. Then, a few days after, I saw a copy of the journal "Carmel" dedicated to her on the book exchange shelf outside UCD library. Then I saw another special issue of a religious journal dedicated to her, on the Legion of Mary stand in my local church. These were both old journals, from the time of her beatification. So I felt I had to include her! [/quote] This book would have been a similar age to those magazines. I hadn't known, either, how musical she was. A few years ago a 'Blessed Elizabeth of the Trinity Choir' was founded. They've changed it to SAINT since the canonisation. I'm not sure what the repertoire or standard of singers is. I've only seen them advertised in relation to concerts, but assume they do liturgical ceremonies also. This Sunday, in fact, they're doing a much-advertised concert with a St George College Chamber Orchestra-that's the Anglican residential college of the main Uni. They've advertised Bach,Vivaldi and Tchaikovsky. Proceeds go to completing a Divine Mercy shrine,apparently.
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Post by Séamus on Apr 27, 2018 5:40:01 GMT
[quote author="Séamus " timestamp="1524750478" source="/ inclinations? It's funny you should mention St. Elizabeth of the Trinity. She sort of elbowed her way into the book. She was the last saint to be canonised at the time of writing my first draft. I first heard of her when I saw a poster advertising some talk about her in the vestry of UCD's church. Not only that, but a woman saw me looking at it and urged me to go to it. Then, a few days after, I saw a copy of the journal "Carmel" dedicated to her on the book exchange shelf outside UCD library. Then I saw another special issue of a religious journal dedicated to her, on the Legion of Mary stand in my local church. These were both old journals, from the time of her beatification. So I felt I had to include her! This book would have been a similar age to those magazines. I hadn't known, either, how musical she was. A few years ago a 'Blessed Elizabeth of the Trinity Choir' was founded. They've changed it to SAINT since the canonisation. I'm not sure what the repertoire or standard of singers is. I've only seen them advertised in relation to concerts, but assume they do liturgical ceremonies also. This Sunday, in fact, they're doing a much-advertised concert with a St George College Chamber Orchestra-that's the Anglican residential college of the main Uni. They've advertised Bach,Vivaldi and Tchaikovsky. Proceeds go to completing a Divine Mercy shrine,apparently.[/quote] Forgot to mention- founded in Perth diocese.
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Post by Tomas on Apr 28, 2018 12:13:47 GMT
Was is St. Elisabeth of the Trinity who wrote some stunning thing that in all baptised souls God Himself is "at prayer" (for His children i.e. every baptised soul) without end? This or some similar note came up a while ago and I cannot remember the right detail or context.
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Post by Maolsheachlann on Apr 28, 2018 14:45:15 GMT
Was is St. Elisabeth of the Trinity who wrote some stunning thing that in all baptised souls God Himself is "at prayer" (for His children i.e. every baptised soul) without end? This or some similar note came up a while ago and I cannot remember the right detail or context. In all honesty, I don't know.
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Post by Séamus on Apr 28, 2018 23:09:05 GMT
Was is St. Elisabeth of the Trinity who wrote some stunning thing that in all baptised souls God Himself is "at prayer" (for His children i.e. every baptised soul) without end? This or some similar note came up a while ago and I cannot remember the right detail or context. I've only ever read one collection of her writings. Didn't see that bit, but it SOUNDS like her
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Post by cato on May 18, 2018 22:37:33 GMT
The American writer Tom Wolf who died this week has been described as an American Evelyn Waugh and someone sympathetic to a conservative world view. Has anyone here read him? I know very little about him.
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Post by Maolsheachlann on May 18, 2018 23:12:10 GMT
No, I have never read him.
But he was fan of the Book of Ecclesiastes, and so am I.
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Post by assisi on May 19, 2018 11:30:29 GMT
The American writer Tom Wolf who died this week has been described as an American Evelyn Waugh and someone sympathetic to a conservative world view. Has anyone here read him? I know very little about him. I read Bonfire of the Vanities many years ago. It is enjoyable and a well observed take on New York of the 80s where the Masters of the Universe, the financial whizz kids, were flourishing; but their lives, and those of New Yorkers in general are shown to be as mixed up, hypocritical and decadent as ever. At 700 pages it is a big sprawling novel, but worth the read. He believed that the old class distinctions were replaced by 'status' distinctions and that these distinctions were strong: he had a good eye for pretentiousness. The current reviews of Wolfe talk a lot about his humour, but Bonfire is more about narrative and story, an attempt to sum up the values of that time. Maybe some of his earlier factual books would be easier to read, for example 'The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test' followed some famous hippies and documented their mad lifestyle.
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Post by Séamus on Jun 6, 2018 11:59:18 GMT
With the exception of Faulkner, I'm not usually one for American novels but I came across James Fenimore Cooper's DEERSLAYER recently (curiously, it was marked as once belonging to a SSPX priest). (I do recall having MOHICANS when I was young, maybe too young as I'm sure I did read it, but can't remember any of it.) It's one period I've rarely thought about- an era when Americans had their own accents and identity but still referred to 'the King'. At least twice 'King George' is mentioned by name. The main characters of the tale (that weren't killed through the story) were finally rescued by red coats,at least twice mention was made of the fact that the higher ranked army men came from Britain. It may have been the author's own taste, he prefaces each chapter with a few lines from a famous poem - these are predominantly by British writers. And yet, the short 1990s introduction, which incidentally castigated Cooper as a racist who had never met native Americans anyway, actually made mention that James' father had done quite handsomely out of the American Independence Wars and subsequent governments. Modern readers may find some condescending attitudes towards native Americans,I would have thought him ahead of his time, if anything, myself. A part where a bible-clutching young lady, having been asked by the Indians why the Great spirit would give whites a holy book and not them, replies that God knew that they couldn't read...is definitely unforgettable.
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Post by Maolsheachlann on Jun 6, 2018 12:24:29 GMT
Modern readers may find some condescending attitudes towards native Americans,I would have thought him ahead of his time, if anything, myself. We'll have none of that sort of talk here!
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Post by Deleted on Jun 7, 2018 1:23:49 GMT
His portrayal of Indians as heroes was ground breaking -- he starts the noble savage myth. Whatever his personal views; his fiction was groundbreaking for his admiration of Indians . The deep respect he portrayed between a white man and his adopted Indian father and his sympathy for the romantic love between an Indian and a white woman are themes not equaled on the American literary scene for many years.
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Post by Séamus on Jun 7, 2018 12:00:14 GMT
His portrayal of Indians as heroes was ground breaking -- he starts the noble savage myth. Whatever his personal views; his fiction was groundbreaking for his admiration of Indians . The deep respect he portrayed between a white man and his adopted Indian father and his sympathy for the romantic love between an Indian and a white woman are themes not equaled on the American literary scene for many years. I would have imagined so myself. And the Indians' tortures,although described here and there, were probably downplayed, if anything; the only white character to be scalped is almost portrayed as deserving it anyway. The factual accounts of St John de Brebeuf and his fellow Jesuits are a bit more stark. According to the author, the Europeans were happy to use some of this savagery to their own advantage. And admittedly, the amazing factual story of Mary Jamison/ Dehgewänis, often called 'the Irish squaw', as one example, confirms this. We see the French involved with the Seneca Indians in her own later account of her capture and the scalping of her parents.
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Post by Maolsheachlann on Jun 7, 2018 12:46:13 GMT
I started reading "The Deerslayer", or rather listening to it as an audiobook, about ten years ago. Someone recommended it to me. I found it unbearably tedious. He's like an American Walter Scott. That is, unbearably tedious. I can't stand adventure stories.
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