Along with just a handful of other people at the earliest showing this afternoon.
I really liked it. It's not your typical plot-driven story, more of a slice-of-life with some explorations of ideas about relationships between people, cultures, etc.
Ria saw it last night and liked it too.
More later, I think. John just got back from Taiwan and so it's family time.
Saturday, November 10, 2007
Issues of Charity
I've seen a number of troubling offenses against charity by Christians against Christians around the Internet lately (I'm thinking of at least three particular instances I've seen quite recently, completely unrelated to each other). Rather than pointing these out and adding to the chaos, I thought it would be a good time to consider what the Church teaches about charity, judgment and protecting the reputation of others:
From the Catechism of the Catholic Church (2477-2478):
2477 Respect for the reputation of persons forbids every attitude and word likely to cause them unjust injury. He becomes guilty:
-of rash judgment who, even tacitly, assumes as true, without sufficient foundation, the moral fault of a neighbor;
-of detraction who, without objectively valid reason, discloses another's faults and failings to persons who did not know them,
-of calumny who, by remarks contrary to the truth, harms the reputation of others and gives occasion for false judgments concerning them.
2478 To avoid rash judgment, everyone should be careful to interpret insofar as possible his neighbor's thoughts, words, and deeds in a favorable way:
From the Catechism of the Catholic Church (2477-2478):
2477 Respect for the reputation of persons forbids every attitude and word likely to cause them unjust injury. He becomes guilty:
-of rash judgment who, even tacitly, assumes as true, without sufficient foundation, the moral fault of a neighbor;
-of detraction who, without objectively valid reason, discloses another's faults and failings to persons who did not know them,
-of calumny who, by remarks contrary to the truth, harms the reputation of others and gives occasion for false judgments concerning them.
2478 To avoid rash judgment, everyone should be careful to interpret insofar as possible his neighbor's thoughts, words, and deeds in a favorable way:
Every good Christian ought to be more ready to give a favorable interpretation to another's statement than to condemn it. But if he cannot do so, let him ask how the other understands it. And if the latter understands it badly, let the former correct him with love. If that does not suffice, let the Christian try all suitable ways to bring the other to a correct interpretation so that he may be saved. (St. Ignatius Loyola - Spiritual Exercises)Making a moral judgment about someone based on whether they like or don't like a particular book or movie or style of educating their children can be really dangerous territory. There are certainly reasonable cases where someone's tastes in movies and books might make you cautious about them influencing your children, but what I'm talking about is more along the lines of publicly accusing people of being bad Christians or Catholics based on such things.
Friday, November 09, 2007
Sweet!
Bella is now showing at our local, local theater! I think we're gonna see a movie this weekend!
Wednesday, November 07, 2007
Gus comments on The Father Brown Reader
Gus missed the first night of Fr. Brown reading (mentioned two posts ago) because he was sick, but was in on the fun last night. I wanted to give him a chance to comment:
"I really liked the story of the Blue Cross (the story Ria read last night)."
"I really liked the story of the Blue Cross (the story Ria read last night)."
For the Love of Literature by Maureen Wittmann
I'm so excited about my friend Maureen's new book that is now available for pre-order from Ecce Homo Press. Maureen is a kindred spirit in the "living books" department and I already know that this book will be a favorite on my shelf and have even recommended it to friends who are interested in the way our family homeschools.
I have a pre-publication copy in my hands and it is fantastic. I had a chance to read through it this summer.
For the Love of Literature is a project Maureen has been working on for years and it's designed especially for Catholic homeschool parents. It's a well-organized guide to using real books - biographies, historical fiction, beautiful picture books, etc. to study any subject area of interest. The book lists are extensive and up-to-date (meaning that she only included books that are currently in print) which means, among other things, that this could be an extremely useful resource for using your library well. As a matter of fact, since we're slated to pick the books for our local library's "Holiday Tree" again this year (and the emphasis is, once again, on Popular Non-Fiction and Junior Non-Fiction), I will definitely be using Maureen's book to sift through for ideas.
For the Love of Literature is a project Maureen has been working on for years and it's designed especially for Catholic homeschool parents. It's a well-organized guide to using real books - biographies, historical fiction, beautiful picture books, etc. to study any subject area of interest. The book lists are extensive and up-to-date (meaning that she only included books that are currently in print) which means, among other things, that this could be an extremely useful resource for using your library well. As a matter of fact, since we're slated to pick the books for our local library's "Holiday Tree" again this year (and the emphasis is, once again, on Popular Non-Fiction and Junior Non-Fiction), I will definitely be using Maureen's book to sift through for ideas.
In addition to the book lists are numerous possible ways to make a living-books curriculum work for your family.
Tuesday, November 06, 2007
The Fr. Brown Reader by Nancy C. Brown
From our resident Chestertonian (and Fr. Brown afficionado), Ria. To give you a little sense of her interest in Fr. Brown, I should note that she and her friend gilbertgirl seem to come up with a Fr. Brown story (that illustrates some of the truths we're talking about) for each of our catechism discussions.
Anyway, here are her comments on the book:
"Although I'm not generally a huge fan of adaptations, thus far I am enjoying the Father Brown reader. Mrs. Brown, rather then just writing a simple summary of the story, has wisely used Chesterton's own wonderful wording, and omitted only passages which are a little difficult to follow and might bog down some readers. There are however a few minor instances where her retelling changes some part of the story.
When I first announced my intention to read the stories to my 5, 7 and 9 year old sisters last night, the seven year old was rather reluctant to listen. She was more interested in listening to Narnia which my dad has been reading aloud, but Father Brown soon had her hooked. (Terri, the 9 year old, was perhaps even more reluctant - in fact at first she was reading Narnia to herself, but she too was quickly drawn into the story.)"
Terri says (with a big grin on her face): "Fr. Brown is really funny and interesting."
Bernie says: "I really like Fr. Brown!"
Kate says: "I really like it!"
I haven't read it myself yet, but it sounds like Nancy and her illustrator Ted Schluenderfritz and her publisher Margot Davidson all did a fantastic job!
The kids tell me that they will be working on a photo somehow relating to this book some time soon.
Anyway, here are her comments on the book:
"Although I'm not generally a huge fan of adaptations, thus far I am enjoying the Father Brown reader. Mrs. Brown, rather then just writing a simple summary of the story, has wisely used Chesterton's own wonderful wording, and omitted only passages which are a little difficult to follow and might bog down some readers. There are however a few minor instances where her retelling changes some part of the story.
When I first announced my intention to read the stories to my 5, 7 and 9 year old sisters last night, the seven year old was rather reluctant to listen. She was more interested in listening to Narnia which my dad has been reading aloud, but Father Brown soon had her hooked. (Terri, the 9 year old, was perhaps even more reluctant - in fact at first she was reading Narnia to herself, but she too was quickly drawn into the story.)"
Terri says (with a big grin on her face): "Fr. Brown is really funny and interesting."
Bernie says: "I really like Fr. Brown!"
Kate says: "I really like it!"
I haven't read it myself yet, but it sounds like Nancy and her illustrator Ted Schluenderfritz and her publisher Margot Davidson all did a fantastic job!
The kids tell me that they will be working on a photo somehow relating to this book some time soon.
Monday, November 05, 2007
New "Book List" Feature
I'm trying to keep better track of new titles being published that might be of interest to Catholic Homeschoolers (and, as always, others who love to learn), particularly since our review process at Love2learn isn't particularly fast. Now, if you click on the "Book Lists" button in the top menu bar, you'll find a list of links with information regarding these new titles (right at the top of the list). This information will be mirrored in the sidebar of the Love2learn Blog. Enjoy!
Christians in China
John and I are really excited about the new Ignatius Press title: Christians in China: A.D. 600-2000 by Jean-Pierre Charbonnier, which just arrived in the mail today. My brother-in-law typeset the book (sounds like it was a lot of work!) and highly recommends it. We have a special interest in China because of all of John's business dealings with (and travels to) Taiwan.
I have a feeling that he'll get around to reading it before I do as I have a large stack of books I'm in the middle of.
I have a feeling that he'll get around to reading it before I do as I have a large stack of books I'm in the middle of.
Sunday, November 04, 2007
How the Time Change Helped Us Sell Our House
I can never remember if the fall time change is the beginning or the end of daylight savings time and would prefer to skip it altogether, but one year it ended up playing an interesting part in our lives.
Four years ago we were attempting to sell our house. It was an old farmhouse (circa 1890) and it was definitely a handyman special when we had bought it. Over the six or so years we lived there, we gutted the entire upstairs, one room at a time, and put in new wiring, insulation, wallboard, fixtures, etc. We put in a brand new bathroom upstairs. We pulled out ugly carpeting and refinished gorgeous maple floors underneath. We gutted the living room in a similar fashion to the upstairs. We remodeled the downstairs bathroom (which was in horribly desperate need - picture plastic yellow tiles all coming loose around the bathtub and a lot more). We had put in a dishwasher and disposal where there was none and turned a pantry into a nice little laundry room. It was a LOT of work!
The problem was that there was a lot yet to be done. The roof would need replacing in the next few years. The (detached) garage was a horror and the plaster walls in the kitchen were a bit of a mess. Finding the right buyer in a short period of time wasn't going to be easy.
Selling it was a lot of work, but we managed pretty well with one of the new "do-it-yourself" packages. We basically acted as our own agent, but buyers would generally come with a realtor to check it out. We packed up everything we could in our venerable old chicken shed (one realtor left a note saying that "That's the most impressive collection of Rubbermaid tubs I've ever seen.") We worked our tails off making things absolutely beautiful for each showing (not an easy task when you're six months pregnant and have children ages 10, 8, 6, 4 and 2 to help). Schooling became simplified with those Comprehensive Curriculum workbooks from Sam's Club.
We had put the house on the market in August and had several months of perhaps 2 or 3 showings a week when we got to the weekend of the time change and had a showing scheduled for Sunday morning. Somehow it occured to us that there was a remote possibility of the potential buyers and realtor showing up an hour early. So we decided to have things ready then just in case. Sure enough, we peeked out the window and saw a couple in a car parked across the street that had the earmarks of the ones we were waiting for. We hemmed and hawed for a few minutes, but decided to invite them inside and it turned out to be a great opportunity. We were able to tell them all about the renovations that had been done and answer all the questions they had. When the realtor arrived at the right time, they already had a lot of information to go on.
And of course, they were the ones who finally bought the house! Because of some financial complications, it took another six weeks or so before we were able to move (and just in time as Frank was born three weeks after that!), but I've always been amused at how the time change played a role the whole ordeal.
Four years ago we were attempting to sell our house. It was an old farmhouse (circa 1890) and it was definitely a handyman special when we had bought it. Over the six or so years we lived there, we gutted the entire upstairs, one room at a time, and put in new wiring, insulation, wallboard, fixtures, etc. We put in a brand new bathroom upstairs. We pulled out ugly carpeting and refinished gorgeous maple floors underneath. We gutted the living room in a similar fashion to the upstairs. We remodeled the downstairs bathroom (which was in horribly desperate need - picture plastic yellow tiles all coming loose around the bathtub and a lot more). We had put in a dishwasher and disposal where there was none and turned a pantry into a nice little laundry room. It was a LOT of work!
The problem was that there was a lot yet to be done. The roof would need replacing in the next few years. The (detached) garage was a horror and the plaster walls in the kitchen were a bit of a mess. Finding the right buyer in a short period of time wasn't going to be easy.
Selling it was a lot of work, but we managed pretty well with one of the new "do-it-yourself" packages. We basically acted as our own agent, but buyers would generally come with a realtor to check it out. We packed up everything we could in our venerable old chicken shed (one realtor left a note saying that "That's the most impressive collection of Rubbermaid tubs I've ever seen.") We worked our tails off making things absolutely beautiful for each showing (not an easy task when you're six months pregnant and have children ages 10, 8, 6, 4 and 2 to help). Schooling became simplified with those Comprehensive Curriculum workbooks from Sam's Club.
We had put the house on the market in August and had several months of perhaps 2 or 3 showings a week when we got to the weekend of the time change and had a showing scheduled for Sunday morning. Somehow it occured to us that there was a remote possibility of the potential buyers and realtor showing up an hour early. So we decided to have things ready then just in case. Sure enough, we peeked out the window and saw a couple in a car parked across the street that had the earmarks of the ones we were waiting for. We hemmed and hawed for a few minutes, but decided to invite them inside and it turned out to be a great opportunity. We were able to tell them all about the renovations that had been done and answer all the questions they had. When the realtor arrived at the right time, they already had a lot of information to go on.
And of course, they were the ones who finally bought the house! Because of some financial complications, it took another six weeks or so before we were able to move (and just in time as Frank was born three weeks after that!), but I've always been amused at how the time change played a role the whole ordeal.
Thursday, November 01, 2007
All Saints Day Party
Ria had to stay home with a few sick kids, but the rest of us enjoyed a nice mass and All Saints' Day party with the homeschool group. Here are just a few of the saints in the party. I like how the two little St. Gabriels are both looking away at the same time. :)
Happy Feast Day!
Happy Feast Day!
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