November 2003

Last Saturday I went out with my friend Gord for some Indian food (mmmm….curry), and we got to talking about the power of prayer. Gord was a bit skeptical, and speculated that intercessiory prayer was really a bit of a cop out. His argument (and I hope I am doing it justice here) was that since God already knows everything, and we don’t, our prayer is really about making ourselves feel better, but doesn’t have any real effects since God already knows everything anyway.

Those who know me know that I am a big fan of St. John of the Cross. A few years back I found myself in somewhat of a “dark night” experience, and it was only with St. John at my side that I was able to make sense of what was going on.

Well today was my last class for the term (for those who don’t know, I teach “Introduction to Theological Studies” at Concordia University in Montreal). At the end of the class, after everyone else had left, one student came up to me to offer her thanks for what was (for her) a positive learning experience (or, as she put it, “Thanks for an amazing course!”). This was very flattering, and is good news for our department.

While on a road trip with some buddies earlier today, one of them told the following joke:

A child is drawing a picture. The teacher asks, “What are you drawing?” The child replies, “I’m drawing a picture of God.” “But no one knows what God looks like!” the teacher objects. Unfazed, the child replies, “They will when I’m finished.”

To which my buddy Richard replies, “That summarizes a lot of modern Biblical scholarship.”

Today I returned to the offices of West Island Citizen Advocacy for a follow-up session to the one I attended two weeks ago entitled “Mental health and the system” (see blog post November 7). The topic was to be the categories of mental illness. What struck me about it was the amazing parallels between the treatment of mental illness, particularly personality disorders, and spiritual direction.

I had garden salad, lobster bisque, filet mignon with portobello mushrooms, red wine, cheese & fruit….but I had to leave before dessert, which I am sure would have been magnificent.

What a day this has been, full of excellent experiences. I ran into a friend from seminary that I haven’t seen in a couple of years now…he is now a priest for the diocese of Hearst, and it gave us a chance to catch up. I also taught my course on the “Theology of the Body”, all about body adornment (e.g.

For those of you who don’t know it, I am a huge amateur science buff. I believe in the approach Aristotle took to philosophy: you start by examining the real world and how it works. Ever notice how the highest degree you can get in science is a “Doctor of Philosophy” (Ph.D.) ? So we start with that kind of direct observation. And since there is an intimate link between philosophy and theology, even our vision of God is affected by our vision of how the world works.

I had a lovely chance to give a woman the Anointing of the Sick today. She is going in for surgery soon, and the Anointing can be received before such an event.

A lot of people think the Anointing is the same thing as the “Last Rites”. In fact, there is no such thing as the “Last Rites” in the Catholic Church, only in Hollywood movies. That being said, there are obviously some prayers and sacraments we offer people when they are sick or dying, but we shouldn’t confuse that with “Last Rites”.

Today we had a special memorial Mass at St. Patrick’s Basilica for all the deceased English-speaking priests of the Archdiocese of Montreal. Bishop Tony Mancini was the presider and preacher. The celebration was beautiful, and I am glad to have had the chance to gather together with my brother priests (it is always good to be with “the boys”) and to have prayed for and honoured the memory of our deceased brothers, particularly Dick Griffin, Ted Mooney, and Len Crowley (all of whom died in the past year).

Yes, I know you knew that. But He truly is. And full of surprises. If we let Him, he won’t cease to delight us.

Case in point: With the pastor, Fr. Gilles, away on an Alpha weekend, I had a heavy Saturday-Sunday lined up. 4 Masses to celebrate, a 50th anniversary renewal of wedding vows, and baptisms Sunday afternoon. But it was honest work. It needed to be done, and I was the guy around to do it. No muss, no fuss – just do it.