I have completed the move back home. For good. This past week has been busy with moving my things, celebrating the Solemn Mass at St. Martin's for my tenth anniversary, hosting my friend Fr. John from Minnesota, and reacquainting myself with my home city. It is slowly sinking in that I am back for good.
The Mass last Thursday for the anniversary was quite memorable. Many friends and family members were there, the Mass was very well done, the music (also very well done) added to it's beauty, and it was great to spend time at the reception afterwards with all my guests. I will remember it fondly for a long time to come. A great way to mark ten years!
Here's some pics:
A group of my soon-to-be parishioners at the reception after Mass:
Wrapping things up here in Washington. Graduation was yesterday, the family has been here for the past few days, and I am trying to pack my things for the drive back home on Tuesday (it's amazing how much junk one can accumulate in three years...). Here's a few shots of the weekend activities:
Many thanks to everyone for your prayers and encouragement. I took my comprehensive exam yesterday morning, and have now completed my studies. Believe it or not, the letters "JCL" now belong after my name. I pray that I will be able to use it for the good of the Church. As for the human side of things, the sense of relief is only beginning to set in. Comps and the thesis are two things that have loomed large over me for the past three years - sometimes seeming like insurmountable hurdles. Now it's time to reflect back on how wonderful the past three years have been, to enjoy this last week in Washington with my classmates before graduation on May 14, and get ready for the flurry of activities when I return home to Louisville.
Put in a good word for me, would you? 8:30am on Friday I will be taking my comprehensive exam. Three professors and me in a classroom for one hour and everything is fair game. Yikes...
For those interested in reviewing the legislation governing the process leading to canonization - Divinus perfectionis Magister - it may be found in the back of your 1983 Code or HERE.
Ultramontanism is a religious philosophy within the Catholic Church that places strong emphasis on the prerogatives and powers of the pope. In particular, ultramontanism asserts the superiority of Papal authority over the authority of local temporal power.
The term originates in ecclesiastical language from the Middle Ages and means literally "beyond the mountains" (referring to the Alps).
The word was revived after the Protestant Reformation in France. In France, the name "ultramontain" was applied to people who supported papal authority in French political affairs. "The man beyond the mountains" referred to the pope, located in Italy.
Those of an Ultramontanist philosophy take comfort in the retention of doctrinal and disciplinary supremacy by the Roman Pontiff and the Roman Curia which serves and represents him.
Liturgy of the Hours Online
Citta' Del Vaticano
Website for Vatican City State Including Many Interesting Webcams Scattered Around St. Peter's
Pope Benedict XVI
Archbishop Kurtz
TV Immacolata
Streaming TV from the Franciscans of the Immaculate
St. Raymond of Peñafort - Patron Saint of Canon Lawyers