elisi's humble abode

I... was not expecting a pope from Chicago. Although apparently he spent years in Peru.

It would appear that he is likely to carry on Francis' work. 🙏 Leo XIII (1878 - 1903) was known for his social justice work.

I love The Daily Star:



At the other end of the scale:

BBC: 'My daughter's bones were scattered on the ground' - the harrowing search for the missing of Gaza

Al Jazeera: What is ‘Dreams on a Pillow’, the Palestinian game about the Nakba?
The game is inspired by the events of the 1948 Nakba or ‘catastrophe’, referring to the ethnic cleansing of 750,000 Palestinians from what is now Israel.

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38 Degrees Petition: Don't sell off our NHS for a trade deal with Trump

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And a gift-link:

The New York Times: Now Will We Believe What Is Happening Right in Front of Us?

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And in case there is anyone out there who hasn't seen it:

Episcopal bishop Right Rev. Mariann Budde preached a message of unity and urged President Donald Trump to show “mercy” during a Jan. 21, interfaith prayer service.


And Tumblr (of course) did its thing:

Brilliant thread (direct link here):

It’s fine if you don’t believe in God. Do you!

But don’t assume that people who do all mindlessly worship an Angry Sky Daddy just because that’s as far as your own theological understanding has gone. There are rooms & rooms of other things happening, friends.

Here’s a thread. https://t.co/IrQo8k8Pc1

— Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg (@TheRaDR) April 11, 2021

Lent reflections from America’s editors and writers

And from the same magazine: On Ash Wednesday, remember ashes are a symbol. The goal is transformation. by James Martin, S.J.

Plus, this one caught my eye: Catholics and Muslims: Who is really better at fasting and prayer? (Amusing, informative and doesn't take sides.)

(x)

Why the only future worth building includes everyone

Worth reading. Especially now.

SLATE: The Lawyers Showed Up
And because we still live in a country where the law matters, they won.
(Not completely, of course, but they're fighting back.)

VOX: Thousands of people are protesting Trump’s immigration order at airports across America

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And here is the Pope, speaking in October:

Pope Francis: You can’t defend Christianity by being ‘against refugees and other religions’

I also found it especially apt that today's gospel was the Beatitudes. (Full readings here)

I want to quote everything, so go read...

OK, just the psalm:

The LORD keeps faith forever,
secures justice for the oppressed,
gives food to the hungry.
The LORD sets captives free.

The LORD gives sight to the blind;
the LORD raises up those who were bowed down.
The LORD loves the just;
the LORD protects strangers.

The fatherless and the widow the LORD sustains,
but the way of the wicked he thwarts.
The LORD shall reign forever;
your God, O Zion, through all generations. Alleluia.
Ps 146, 6-10

Someone in the crowd said to Jesus,
“Teacher, tell my brother to share the inheritance with me.”
He replied to him,
“Friend, who appointed me as your judge and arbitrator?”
Then he said to the crowd,
“Take care to guard against all greed,
for though one may be rich,
one’s life does not consist of possessions.”

Then he told them a parable.
“There was a rich man whose land produced a bountiful harvest.
He asked himself, ‘What shall I do,
for I do not have space to store my harvest?’
And he said, ‘This is what I shall do:
I shall tear down my barns and build larger ones.
There I shall store all my grain and other goods
and I shall say to myself, “Now as for you,
you have so many good things stored up for many years,
rest, eat, drink, be merry!”’
But God said to him,
‘You fool, this night your life will be demanded of you;
and the things you have prepared, to whom will they belong?’
Thus will it be for all who store up treasure for themselves
but are not rich in what matters to God.”
Luke 12:13-21

This is one of my favourite pieces of music, and I look forward to it every year.

From the description:

Published on Mar 29, 2015
Rehearsal video of a version of the Good Friday Reproaches (No251 in the Laudate Hymnal).
This was recorded as part of my practice after mass so the microphone is off. I just like the sound of the church to practice in.