tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-81324103432357724182024-03-13T11:20:35.341-07:00GAY MYSTIC+ A PLACE OF INSPIRATION +Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger562125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132410343235772418.post-67023321436339071062020-10-10T03:44:00.005-07:002023-05-24T08:51:11.959-07:00A saint for the millenials: Carlo Acutis beatified today in Assisi.<p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uUpQcuHB2Z4/X4GTZoIk29I/AAAAAAAAKfQ/o_i76kM9_EwzM_cwR89LoTzbfyBrWo4BgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1490/CARLO%2B17.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1075" data-original-width="1490" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uUpQcuHB2Z4/X4GTZoIk29I/AAAAAAAAKfQ/o_i76kM9_EwzM_cwR89LoTzbfyBrWo4BgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/CARLO%2B17.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /> </div><br />A saint for the millenials: the young Italian teen, Carlo Acutis, who died in 2006 of galloping Leukemia, will be beatified today in Assisi by Pope Francis (last step before being officially declared a saint). I was Carlo's English teach for a year and his passing was a great shock to me. Carlo came from a luke warm Catholic family, but at the age of 7, when he received his first 'Holy Communion', he displayed an astonishing devotion to the Eucharist and remained a daily communicant until the end of his short life. He was cheerful, generous, fun to be with, devoted to the poor, but also a typical teen who loved computer games and ice cream and was a computer wiz as well. At the age of 11, he started reading college textbooks on computer programming and began designing a beautiful website displaying all of the '<a href="http://www.miracolieucaristici.org/" target="_blank">Eucharistic miracles</a>' in the history of the Catholic Church. He is already been touted as the Patron Saint of the Internet. <div><br /></div><div>This is the short version of his life. At a later date, I'll post my reflections about the impact and implications of this event for gay people of Spirit. For the moment, I'll just say that these kinds of phenomena in the Church, whether it be Eucharistic miracles, Marian apparitions, saintly teens who die young, tend to attract the most conservative and reactionary elements in the Church, who then view. these phenomena as somehow God's holy stamp upon all of their convictions and prejudices, including their antipathy towards gay relationships and marriage. Nonetheless, I consider this event, Carlo's beatification, to be a really significant spiritual event and the young man himself an extraordinary witness to the life of holiness. Amen<div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Pma-RATshPw/X4GPgOjPvyI/AAAAAAAAKe4/1crSBYWEXRob2Q0t3sq6TXlxWHjV8d3OgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1800/CARLO%2B6.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1350" data-original-width="1800" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Pma-RATshPw/X4GPgOjPvyI/AAAAAAAAKe4/1crSBYWEXRob2Q0t3sq6TXlxWHjV8d3OgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/CARLO%2B6.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9R8rhLNwPAQ/X4GQMqrFVqI/AAAAAAAAKfE/DfRNbtK_RQA06vXj3zbQ3DZci-2_2B8NQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1800/CARLO%2B10.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1350" data-original-width="1800" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9R8rhLNwPAQ/X4GQMqrFVqI/AAAAAAAAKfE/DfRNbtK_RQA06vXj3zbQ3DZci-2_2B8NQCLcBGAsYHQ/w320-h240/CARLO%2B10.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div><br /><p></p><p>Here is a link to <a href="https://carloacutis-en.org/" target="_blank">the official website</a>: </p><p>And Carlo's website devoted to <a href="http://www.miracolieucaristici.org/" target="_blank">Eucharistic Miracles</a></p><p>And his website devoted to <a href="http://www.apparizionimadonna.org/it/avm/" target="_blank">Marian apparitions</a></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kj-kS8eYzXY/X4GPIIiS4wI/AAAAAAAAKes/A_Juhy0wTKYpTBxuIjhgKtru7Wc9rVf5wCLcBGAsYHQ/s934/CARLO%2BTOMB.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="622" data-original-width="934" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kj-kS8eYzXY/X4GPIIiS4wI/AAAAAAAAKes/A_Juhy0wTKYpTBxuIjhgKtru7Wc9rVf5wCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/CARLO%2BTOMB.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WKhOBCvQMk4/X4GPUaSl-PI/AAAAAAAAKew/tomLKkIFf9Qk-Wus45Gp653MSuJtSFfmgCLcBGAsYHQ/s760/CARLO%2BIN%2BREPOSE.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="507" data-original-width="760" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WKhOBCvQMk4/X4GPUaSl-PI/AAAAAAAAKew/tomLKkIFf9Qk-Wus45Gp653MSuJtSFfmgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/CARLO%2BIN%2BREPOSE.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Carlo in his tomb in the Church of <span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-size: small; text-align: left;">Saint Mary Major in Assisi</span></div><br /><p>I will end this brief posting with a traditional 'holy card' depicting Carlo with a Eucharistic monstrance over his heart, rosary beads in his hand and a statue of Our Lady of Fatima behind him and a traditional picture of the Sacred Heart. All symbols dear to that element in the Church that most disapproves of gay people choosing whom they may love and how they may seal that love. Its a paradox and a conundrum, but there it is. Somehow a bridge needs to be buiilt between these conservative factions and those of us living on the fringes - some of whom, myself included, feel a genuine devotion to this holy teen, dressed in his coffin in Nike trainers, an Adidas track suit and a hoody.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-49p48Ztzrvc/X4GOjQlXKTI/AAAAAAAAKek/Y9fczqVS-Uk5ayUOTBUtJhh_2c2NBDN8wCLcBGAsYHQ/s1010/CARLO%2BHOLY%2BCARD_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1010" data-original-width="748" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-49p48Ztzrvc/X4GOjQlXKTI/AAAAAAAAKek/Y9fczqVS-Uk5ayUOTBUtJhh_2c2NBDN8wCLcBGAsYHQ/w296-h400/CARLO%2BHOLY%2BCARD_n.jpg" width="296" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132410343235772418.post-33733189693698398282019-10-28T04:24:00.001-07:002019-10-31T09:44:32.850-07:00Ronan Park and Jack Vidgen: The Travails of Gay Pop Stars<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">(Jack Vidgen)</td></tr>
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Quite by accident, through a comment from a performance arts colleague of mine, I stumbled across the recent bios of two boy teen singing sensations, both of whom made a big splash worldwide 8 years ago. The first, Jack Vidgen, won Australia's Got Talent Contest in 2011 at the age of 14, primarily for his powerful renditions of Whitney Huston and Adele songs. As one of the judges said to him, "|You've got a black woman inside of you." Jack was a cherubic blond teen at the time, a bit shy and self-effacing, but with a vocal instrument of unparalleled power, maturity and intensity. His audition for the show, singing Whitney Huston's <b><i>I Have Nothing,</i></b> reached over 9 million views on YouTube and earned for him considerable international interest from music industry execs. He was touted as the "next Justin Bieber", not in terms of his voice - which is far more powerful than Bieber's, but in terms of his potential earning power $$$.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ronan Park</td></tr>
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The second boy, a year younger, was Ronan Park, a smaller and even more cherubic 'choir boy', also equipped with a vocal instrument of extraordinary operatic depth and power. Ronan was even more of a shock than Jack Vidgen, because of his diminutive size. Where did all that gorgeous sound come from? Ronan was the runner-up in Britain's Got Talent contest that year, but in practical terms (record contracts, media attention) he was really the show's de facto winner. He also was touted as "the next Justin Bieber" teen sensation. Except that ...there was just something too obviously gay about him, whereas Jack gave off no such clues in voice and mannerisms.<br />
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Both boys were touted as 'the next Justin Bieber' teen sensation from different parts of the world and on different continents and there were numerous articles in the media comparing them. And then...within a few years of their respective 'wins', after albums and touring, both boys at the age of 16 disappeared from the limelight, gave up singing publicly and retired back into school boy normalcy, or so it seemed. And all that momentum built up by their wins and media attention - fizzled out.<br />
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And then, after a five year hiatus, both boys this year - quite independently of one another - made their comebacks. As of this writing, both young men, Jack Vidgen 22 and Ronan Parke 21, are struggling to make an impact, but they have nothing close to the following they had eight years ago. Yet both young men seem much stronger and more self-assured than their younger selves, and both have extraordinary voices and talent. They also have a special story to tell.<br />
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What happened?<br />
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Being gay is what happened.<br />
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Once in the limelight, both young boys were subjected to massive on-line bullying about their sexuality, Ronan Park especially. Both boys were scrutinized minutely, every gesture, every word, every action and subjected to viscous homophobic attacks. Both received death threats on social media and even sadder, both boys were subjected to intense pressure from their record company execs to 'mute' their sexuality or risk of sacrificing their careers. And both boys attempted to comply, with the result that they felt they were disconnecting from their authentic selves. As a result both boys felt a need to pull back, simply out of self preservation.<br />
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I'm not going to go into detail in this short blog post, because it's better to let the boys, now young men, speak for themselves. Of course, they attribute their withdrawal from public life to numerous reasons and influences, but as you listen to them, it becomes clear that being gay and the hatred that brought them on social media together with the pressure put upon them to hide their sexuality were the dominant factors that led to their withdrawal. Sad, terribly sad, on one level. On another level, however, both young men came to realize that these negative experiences were meant to be a learning experience for them, and as well known public figures they had a responsibility to witness to their experiences and speak out.<br />
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But it is at this point that their stories diverge somewhat. Ronan Park, in a wonderful article in the gay magazine <a href="https://www.attitude.co.uk/article/exclusive-ronan-parke-ive-always-identified-as-gay-and-ive-always-been-proud-to-say-it/20491/" target="_blank">Attitude</a>, is quoted as saying:<br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">'I’VE ALWAYS IDENTIFIED AS GAY - AND I’VE ALWAYS BEEN PROUD TO SAY IT'</span></blockquote>
Ronan claims he attempted to come out to his parents when he was 8 years old, but they told him, "Yea, yea, we know. You're gay." And went back to watching the tv. In other words, no big deal and he lived his childhood in that climate of acceptance and normalcy. As a result, he was genuinely shocked by the hateful comments he received on social media about his appearance, mannerisms, gestures, voice because his parents had done such a good job shielding him from this kind of hatred. It came as something new for him, but it also led him to take a pause in his music career and 'leave the stage'for five years. He is now all the better for it. Mature, poised, self-assured and confident, with a story to tell and a message to convey.<br />
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Jack Vidgen was in another place psychologically when he got hit with the homophobic hate unleashed on him through social media. As he explains, he was going through puberty at the time and very confused about his sexuality. What did being gay really mean? The hatred had an impact. At the age of 16, he went into a tail spin, left family, friends and Australia behind and went to live in Hollywood, California for a year on his own, attempting to launch his career in the US. He has spared us the details of that year, except to say that he was 'exposed' to certain influences and experiences that no 16 year old should have to face. One shudders to think what these experiences might have been for this blond cherubic teen - in Hollywood of all places! After a year, he just wanted to return home and be with his mom again. So he returned to 'schoolboy' normalcy for 5 years.<br />
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Of the two young men, Jack appears to have been the most wounded by the experience of homophobic hate , but he also comes across as a strong, reflective, self-aware young man who has found the means to heal himself. He is mature beyond his years.<br />
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Here is his YouTube interview in which he discusses the bullying he received and the effect it had on him personally and on his career.<br />
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Ronan, on the other hand, with that very special upbringing by tolerant parents, seems rock solid in his identity as a gay man and gay artist. There was no journey of discovery for him as a gay boy, he always knew.<br />
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Here is his YouTube video describing cyber bullying:<br />
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Prior to writing up this post, I did a google search of both of them together. While there are numerous articles comparing them in 2011, there is nothing out there I could find that compares their respective experiences of being bullied for their sexuality and the impact this had upon them and their careers. No one seems to have made the connection. But the parallels and timing are uncanny. Both boys 'win' their respective contests in 2011, both are touted as the next teen singing sensation, both find themselves bullied on social media and pressured because of their sexuality, both - at the same time - withdraw from singing publicly, both spend five years in seclusion, and both decide -in the same year - to return to public life as pop singers. Its almost as if they planned it together, but there is no evidence that they even know one another personally.<br />
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There's a lot more to say about these two openly gay pop stars, who have now become ambassadors to gay young teens, but I leave it to the interested reader to follow up. Ronan has numerous YouTube videos where you can hear his extraordinary voice in its mature form,<br />
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Here is Ronan singing "Never Enough" from The Greatest Showman. A sensational cover. As of this writing, Ronan is appearing all over the UK, but usually to small audiences. With a voice that would leave most pop stars in the dust, he is struggling to find an audience.<br />
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And here is Jack Vidgen's audition this year for Australia's The Voice. He chose to enter this contest as his way of returning to the stage. Yes, his appearance has changed dramatically, but I'm not going to comment on that here.<br />
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Amazing parallels and coincidences, almost as if these two extraordinary gay pop sensations were being led by the same compassionate, all-wise, all-loving Star. Blessings on them both.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132410343235772418.post-81673248356535529712019-02-22T14:06:00.000-08:002019-02-22T14:15:39.685-08:00In The Closet of the Vatican: New Investigative Study<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-N2xKrEAkUW4/XHBz27aXrpI/AAAAAAAAJ2E/e0WllkOOM6QHNiPgpKKdohPo60kPQv2tACLcBGAs/s1600/2VATICAN%2BCLOSET.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;"></a><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Closet-Vatican-Power-Homosexuality-Hypocrisy-ebook/dp/B07NJ9DQSK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1550872809&sr=8-1&keywords=in+the+closet+of+the+vatican" target="_blank">In the Closet of the Vatican: Power, Homosexuality, Hypocrisy</a> - just published today, February 22nd, 2019.</div>
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<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Closet-Vatican-Power-Homosexuality-Hypocrisy-ebook/dp/B07NJ9DQSK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1550872809&sr=8-1&keywords=in+the+closet+of+the+vatican" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="445" data-original-width="595" height="239" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-N2xKrEAkUW4/XHBz27aXrpI/AAAAAAAAJ2E/osYENuf5mrAaun6A6oRK_8ILWIEu8OYyQCEwYBhgL/s320/2VATICAN%2BCLOSET.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Thanks to Kittredge Cheery of the wonderful gay Christian blog, <a href="http://qspirit.net/blog/" target="_blank">QSpirit Blog</a>, for the heads up about the publication of this major new investigative study into the secret homosexual double lives of many priests (and bishops and cardinals) in the vatican - and the way this affects Church teaching. I just purchased my kindle edition today. A must read for those of us Gay/Lesbian folk who feel connected to the Christian tradition and a sense of vocation to witness to being spiritual and gay within the Christian community.<br />
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Here is Amazon's blurb:<br />
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<i style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">In the Closet of the Vatican</i><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"> exposes the rot at the heart of the Vatican and the Roman Catholic Church today. This brilliant piece of investigative writing is based on four years' authoritative research, including extensive interviews with those in power. </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">The celibacy of priests, the condemnation of the use of contraceptives, the cover up of countless cases of sexual abuse, the resignation of Benedict XVI, misogyny among the clergy, the dramatic fall in Europe of the number of vocations to the priesthood, the plotting against Pope Francis – all these issues are clouded in mystery and secrecy.</span><br />
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<i style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">In the Closet of the Vatican</i><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"> is a book that reveals these secrets and penetrates this enigma. It derives from a system founded on a clerical culture of secrecy which starts in junior seminaries and continues right up to the Vatican itself. It is based on the double lives of priests and on extreme homophobia. The resulting schizophrenia in the Church is hard to fathom. But the more a prelate is homophobic, the more likely it is that he is himself gay.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">'Behind rigidity there is always something hidden, in many cases a double life'. These are the words of Pope Francis himself and with them the Pope has unlocked the Closet.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">No one can claim to really understand the Catholic Church today until they have read this book. It reveals a truth that is extraordinary and disturbing.</span><br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132410343235772418.post-17845301230896331362019-02-11T13:50:00.000-08:002019-02-11T13:59:14.280-08:00Wanderer by Sarah Leon: Gay Debut Novel of the Year<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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A very young Sarah Leon published this heat-wrenching love story in French in 2016 when she was barely twenty years old. Three years later we are blessed to have this exquisite English translation of the work by John Cullen, a translator of note with many books to his name. It is one of the most affecting love stories you will ever read.<br />
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<b><i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Wanderer-Sarah-L%C3%A9on/dp/1590519256/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1549918340&sr=8-1-fkmrnull" target="_blank">Wanderer</a> </i></b>has already been nominated to <a href="https://www.lambdaliterary.org/award" target="_blank">Lambda </a>as the gay fiction novel of the year. It is a love story of such tender sorrow and grief that it tears the heart to read it. Words fail when it comes to reviewing a book of such extraordinary sensitivity to all the modulations and nuances of unrequited love. <br />
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<i><b>Wanderer</b></i> tells of the relationship between a boy of 15 (when the couple first meet), Lenny Weick, and a young music composition student of 25, Hermin Peyre. When Lenny walks into the piano store where Hermin is working to put himself through music school and asks to play one of the pianos, the young composer, <span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "pt" serif , "georgia" , "times" , serif;">Hermin Peyre, recognizes that the boy has a prodigious talent that needs nurturing. He provides him with the encouragement and guidance he needs, as well as directing him towards more accomplished piano tutors than himself. This guidance finally propels the boy into becoming in time one of the most renowned pianists of his generation. However, at the age of 17, on the edge of his spectacular career, Lenny disappears from Hemin's life without a word of explanation. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "pt" serif , "georgia" , "times" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><b style="font-style: italic;">Spoiler Alert: </b>The book opens ten years after Lenny's mysterious disappearance from Hermin's life. Hermin has retired to the </span></span><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "pt" serif , "georgia" , "times" , serif;">Bourbonnais Mountains in the center of France to live a hermit's existence and compose his music. He nurtures a profound grief over Lenny's disappearance - without fully understanding or acknowledging the nature of the love between them, <i>the love that dare not speak its name.</i> This is the heart of the tragedy between these two young men, fated to be together in love, but blocked by Hermin's inability to come to terms with his true sexual nature.</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "pt" serif , "georgia" , "times" , serif;">Now, quite unexpectedly, Lenny arrives at Hermin's door in the Bourbonnais after his ten year hiatus. Over the next several days, the two men explore the nature of their relationship and the reasons for their inability to come together and recognize the true nature of their love. Lenny announces that he is giving up the piano altogether. It takes several days before Hermin understands - and gets Lenny to admit - that one of the reasons for this is that Lenny is seriously, even fatally ill, with tuberculosis. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "pt" serif , "georgia" , "times" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">But it is not the only reason for his decision. The real reason, buried deep in Lenny's heart, is his profound grief over Hermin's inability to accept their love and to openly admit that he loves Lenny in the same passionate way the young man loves him. Lenny rebukes Hermin for never realizing that the only reason Lenny played the piano at all was to express his love for Hermin, and to play with him and be with him. Life and his beloved piano have no meaning for him without Hermin's love.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "pt" serif , "georgia" , "times" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">As I read these words of mine, they seem unbearably clumsy compared to the astonishing beauty and subtlety of Sarah Leon's prose, translated for us by John Cullen. At first, Lenny is tentative and cautious about the hints he gives out about his true motivations, afraid that he will frighten Hermin away. Hermin, for his part, picks up on the clues and they force him to face his true nature for the first time in his life. It is a painful process, with many doubts and hesitations on Hermin's part. He is threatened by the implications of what is happening because he had never thought of himself in 'that way', it is not part of his self-image.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "pt" serif , "georgia" , "times" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">Too much plot here, perhaps,for a book review. The tragic dimension of the story is revealed when we understand just how seriously ill Lenny really is - because he has refused medical treatment out of despair over his lost love for Hermin. Only now, in the mountains, he hopes that Hermin will acknowledge that he is 'like' Lenny in 'that way' and that he loves Lenny as Lenny passionately loves him. If this love is acknowledged, then Lenny will seek the medical treatment he needs. But alas, Hermin hesitates, prevaricates, retreats - </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "pt" serif , "georgia" , "times" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">Summarized in this fashion, the story might appear mawkish and sentimental, but I can assure you it is nothing of the kind, not as it is fleshed out by Sarah Leon. We believe every word of it and long for a healing and reconciliation between the two young men.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "pt" serif , "georgia" , "times" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">The story climaxes through an experience of union with nature at a waterfall in the forest, with the dying Lenny in Hermin's arms The whole experience feels to Hermin like a 'mystical marriage', a chaste consummation. But even then, after this moment of spiritual revelation, Hermin still hesitates.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "pt" serif , "georgia" , "times" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">The inspiration for the whole book is the music of Franz Schubert, whom both men love - especially his </span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "pt serif" , "georgia" , "times" , serif; font-size: 16px;"> the </span><em style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "PT Serif", Georgia, Times, serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Wanderer Fantasy</em><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "pt serif" , "georgia" , "times" , serif; font-size: 16px;"> and the </span><em style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "PT Serif", Georgia, Times, serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Winter Journey. </em><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "pt serif" , "georgia" , "times" , serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">I would recommend that the reader listen to Schubert's music while reading the book. It is what I did and it complements the story exquisitely, sorrowfully, poignantly. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "pt serif" , "georgia" , "times" , serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "pt serif" , "georgia" , "times" , serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Well to keep in mind that Schubert died at the very young age of 31 (of complications from syphilis). And Lenny - at the very young age of 27.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "pt serif" , "georgia" , "times" , serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "pt serif" , "georgia" , "times" , serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Nowhere in the book are the conventional terms or phrases used - <i style="font-weight: bold;">gay, coming out, out of the closet, repression. </i>Lenny is well aware of the difficulties Hermin is facing, but the references to these painful issues for many gay men is subtle and indirect. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "pt serif" , "georgia" , "times" , serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "pt serif" , "georgia" , "times" , serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Lenny - full aware of his true nature and his love for Hermin, but afraid of frightening Hermin away.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "pt serif" , "georgia" , "times" , serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Herman - slowly becoming aware of the true nature of the love between Lenny and himself - but hesitant, timid, fearful - a caution that has tragic consequences, which will remain with Hermin for the rest of his lonely days.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "pt serif" , "georgia" , "times" , serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><br /></span>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "pt" serif , "georgia" , "times" , serif;"><br /></span></span></span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132410343235772418.post-57631544280624614132019-01-18T09:32:00.001-08:002019-01-18T10:36:23.801-08:00Boy Erased and Gay-Conversion Therapy Films of 2018<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gkqn7aPNzbk/XEIP7GAToGI/AAAAAAAAJxc/-t6LMRQUBfYH9ZXNKi11lo3-5JkgKiOQwCLcBGAs/s1600/CAMERONK%2BPOST2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="359" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gkqn7aPNzbk/XEIP7GAToGI/AAAAAAAAJxc/-t6LMRQUBfYH9ZXNKi11lo3-5JkgKiOQwCLcBGAs/s320/CAMERONK%2BPOST2.jpg" width="320" /></a>We've been singularly blessed this past year to have two superb film treatments of the controversial 'gay-conversion' therapy, still legal, unfortunately, in 36 US states. The first, <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6257174/?ref_=nv_sr_1" target="_blank">The Miseducation of Cameron Post</a>, the story of a teenage girl forced into the therapy program by her conservative guardians, won the <a href="https://www.imdb.com/sundance/sundance-2018-award-winners/ls021644303/mediaviewer/rm3218038528" target="_blank">Grand Jury Prize at the 2018 Sundance film festival</a>. This win ensured the film some necessary and well deserved fame, because without it the movie would have been relegated to the small art film houses, as a gay gender film, interesting for its sensitive depiction of this unfortunatel situation, but not the most compelling drama. I still recommend the film highly, for any treatment of this subject from such a sympathetic, critical viewpoint is welcome. And I really loved the trio of young teens in the film who form a sympathetic, supportive bond with each other and their thrilling escape into freedom at the end. Soul inspiring.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RTzbgisPhLo/XEISZBJAXsI/AAAAAAAAJxo/-23BBRWnKUgJpaaltHGE1PpwnOoxO6KOwCLcBGAs/s1600/maxresdefault%2B%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="719" data-original-width="958" height="240" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RTzbgisPhLo/XEISZBJAXsI/AAAAAAAAJxo/-23BBRWnKUgJpaaltHGE1PpwnOoxO6KOwCLcBGAs/s320/maxresdefault%2B%25282%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
The second film, however, <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7008872/?ref_=nv_sr_1" target="_blank">Boy Erased</a>, of which I spoke in the previous posting, is a very compelling film that was catapulted into the mainstream by its powerhouse cast, veteran megastars (and graduates of the same acting school in Australia) Nicole Kidman and Russel Crowe, together with young and rising star, Lucas Hedges, who was nominated for a Golden Globe for best performance by an actor. And lest I forget, sizzling pop star and openly gay Troy Sevan has a cameo performance in the film and a very impressive acting debut it is. So with this kind of cast, the film's reputation was ensured and a wide audience appeal guaranteed.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-r9MCtv0j_vY/XEIWet2yasI/AAAAAAAAJx0/lvEMZi46ADI4Qmk8hjCw3mDah_HQo_HMwCLcBGAs/s1600/MV5BMTY4NGE4MzAtZGMzNS00OTExLWI0NzctM2VmN2EwNTllOGJkL2ltYWdlXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjI5MDI1Ng%2540%2540._V1_UY317_CR51%252C0%252C214%252C317_AL_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="317" data-original-width="214" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-r9MCtv0j_vY/XEIWet2yasI/AAAAAAAAJx0/lvEMZi46ADI4Qmk8hjCw3mDah_HQo_HMwCLcBGAs/s1600/MV5BMTY4NGE4MzAtZGMzNS00OTExLWI0NzctM2VmN2EwNTllOGJkL2ltYWdlXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjI5MDI1Ng%2540%2540._V1_UY317_CR51%252C0%252C214%252C317_AL_.jpg" /></a></div>
Based upon a true story (we see shots of the original boy and parents at the close) the film is anchored by the dynamic, very powerful lead performance from young <a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2348627/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1" target="_blank">Lucas Hedges</a> (nominated for too many awards and wins to mention). And while there are bigots aplenty to satisfy any righteous viewers, what most struck me about the film was it's compassionate and even-handed treatment of the conservative Christian community in America. We are shown a variety of good, decent, compassionate and well meaning conservative Christians who have been shaped by their religious (mis) education about gay people and who are struggling with the contradictions. This is especially true of Hedges Christian pastor father, played by Russell Crowe, a man struggling between his deep and genuine love for his son and his fundamental Christian beliefs. The film makers have wisely avoided the easy cliches and righteous judgmental-ism frequently meted out to this subject. The staff of the treatment center are blind and odious enough, but not so the parents - or the conservative Christian doctor, who tells Lucas she is both Christian believer and scientist, and the scientist in her tells her Lucas is a perfectly normal, healthy young man, his sexual inclinations included. Perhaps influenced by the intentions of the family, this is a film designed to build bridges between the conservative Christian churches and the world view of the social scientists today that 'gayness' is not a choice, nor is it a biological defect or an psychological abnormality. The film attempts to show the way. It's subtlety and nuance, and it's deep understanding of the complexities of this situation (no easy judgments here) places it far above most films we've seen about this subject, including the previous Mis-Education of Cameron Post.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YLyrgD_n3kY/XEIW_qgRBqI/AAAAAAAAJx8/CYqRdN4_OiEKH5WG_JNfFVf1QIIVW2FBwCLcBGAs/s1600/download%2B%25283%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="273" data-original-width="184" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YLyrgD_n3kY/XEIW_qgRBqI/AAAAAAAAJx8/CYqRdN4_OiEKH5WG_JNfFVf1QIIVW2FBwCLcBGAs/s1600/download%2B%25283%2529.jpg" /></a>One final comment - and a reference to my previous posting on this film. <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7008872/?ref_=nv_sr_1" target="_blank">Boy Erased</a> is in some key respects similar to the hit gay romance of last year, <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5726616/?ref_=nv_sr_1" target="_blank">Call Me by Your Name,</a> which raised the young <a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3154303/?ref_=nv_sr_1" target="_blank">Timothee Chalamet</a> to stardom and garnered him an Academy Award nomination for best actor. In both films, the powerhouse casts ensured an openness on the part of general audiences and a wide popularity. These are not art-house gay films, but classics that made it into the mainstream and did the gay/lesbian/transsexual community immense good.<br />
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Boy Erased, however, went one step further than Call Me By Your Name, because of the candor and honesty of it's young star, Lucas Hedges. Whereas the stars of Call Me By Your Name, Arrnie Hammer and Timothee Chalament, deflected any questions about the own sexuality and what the film process itself might have revealed to them about their own sexual natures, Lucas Hedges came out with a statement announcing himself as "not totally straight," but somewhere on the continuum of human sexuality between bisexual and straight. This is not so remarkable as a scientific observation as it is for breaking a taboo. Psychologists have been telling us for decades that human sexuality is spread out on a continuum, but it is still all too rare in 2019 for a noted Hollywood actor to admit this about himself. Lucas Hedges has 'outed' himself as a perfectly average young heterosexual male, not ashamed to admit his small portion of gayness, and we in the gay community are all the better for it!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-yav4pK5kPQQ/XEIXAyJzBLI/AAAAAAAAJyA/BdO3zNy1IJsyBQtXn4xRy_7WQhKEOnTyACLcBGAs/s1600/download%2B%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="246" data-original-width="205" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-yav4pK5kPQQ/XEIXAyJzBLI/AAAAAAAAJyA/BdO3zNy1IJsyBQtXn4xRy_7WQhKEOnTyACLcBGAs/s1600/download%2B%25282%2529.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Timothee Chalamet</td></tr>
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p.s. This reminds me of a comment made by Justin Timberlake on a talk show when asked how he felt about one of his former band mates in NSYNC who came out as gay. When asked if he was shocked by the revelation or found it hard to accept as a straight male performer, Timberlake snapped back, "I'm gay enough!" In other words, don't put my friend in one 'weird' category and me in the other so-called normal one, completely separate from him and his admission. Well done!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132410343235772418.post-32453696445621918072019-01-14T14:00:00.001-08:002019-01-18T09:40:11.705-08:00'Boy Erased' Star Lucas Hedges Comes Out as 'Not Totally Straight'<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Q3m_26yasig/XD0HKBxYGZI/AAAAAAAAJuQ/qQxqkGZYybwwxbWazR87eesevKE8Cn4IwCEwYBhgL/s1600/lucas_hedges_copyaa.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="422" data-original-width="561" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Q3m_26yasig/XD0HKBxYGZI/AAAAAAAAJuQ/qQxqkGZYybwwxbWazR87eesevKE8Cn4IwCEwYBhgL/s320/lucas_hedges_copyaa.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">This story is about four months old, so I'm a little late coming to it. But I feel it is quite significant. </span><span style="font-size: large;">I've borrowed the title straight from </span><a href="https://www.out.com/popnography/2018/9/05/boy-erased-star-lucas-hedges-comes-out-kind" style="font-size: x-large;" target="_blank">Out Magazine</a><span style="font-size: large;">. </span><span style="font-size: large;">A young up-and-coming American actor, Lucas Hedges, star of the 'gay conversion therapy' film, </span><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7008872/?ref_=nv_sr_1" style="font-size: x-large;" target="_blank">Boy Erased</a><span style="font-size: large;">, with Nicole Kidman, came 'out of the closet', according to reports, by admitting that he was not totally 100% straight. </span><span style="font-size: large;">He explained that during his high school years, he was primarily sexually attracted to his own male friends. Not till his early twenties, did he discover that he really preferred women. He further clarified that he was neither gay nor bisexual, but some where in between bisexual and straight. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">A health teacher in his high school had explained to his class that human sexuality exists on a continuum, with human beings spread out along the continuum, not simply placed in one of three boxes, gay, straight,, and bisexual. In other words, there are infinite variations in human sexuality, with groups of people clustered around the main poles of 'gay, straight and bi' with subtle differences in degree between one person and another. Well, this has been common knowledge among psychologists for years, so it's surprising it has taken so long for this common insight to reach the mainstream.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Lucas explained that since he had taken on the role of a young gay boy subjected to gay coversion by his fundamentalist Christian parents, it was important for him as an actor and a public figure to be as honest as possible about his human sexuality. I can't help thinking this is a reference to last year's 'gay hit', <a href="https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/call_me_by_your_name/" target="_blank">Call </a></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-k6i9l_I8Us4/XD2W06m3JFI/AAAAAAAAJuY/4C1ME6vA6OIMf0UhLV3JCghgnzPmUvRbACLcBGAs/s1600/CallMeByYourName2017.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="326" data-original-width="220" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-k6i9l_I8Us4/XD2W06m3JFI/AAAAAAAAJuY/4C1ME6vA6OIMf0UhLV3JCghgnzPmUvRbACLcBGAs/s320/CallMeByYourName2017.png" width="215" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">Me By Your Name, in which the two 'straight' actors of the film, Arnie Hammer and the remarkable young actor, Timothee Chalament were continually asked about their own sexuality and whether working together on the film revealed anything to them about their own sexual natures. Given the nature of the film and it's cultural importance for gay people, I felt the quesiton was entirely fair. Yet, both actors -with immense charm - deflected the question every time. This highlights my point above. Culturally, we are still at that point where it is extremely difficult for public figures to admit they might have some small degree of bisexuality in their natures. Its either one or the other, gay or straight - with the bisexuality category sitting there designed to include everyone else. Lucas seems to be referencing the behavior of these two actors last year. He is acknowledging that there is a certain responsibility an actor should take on when assuming a role of this nature. Honesty and openness. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">Needless to say, the story of Lucas's admission caused a lot of comment, and I'm not sure why, except to say there are still a lot of cultural controls in place about what we may and may not say, and may and may not think in our culture about human sexuality. . I was a high school teacher for over thirty years, and for five of those years (in the 1990's), I was part of a sex education team and we also taught our students about the continuum of human sexuality. So there is really nothing novel about young Lucas' revelation. What is novel is that it is a public comment, because even now, in 2019, some people are shocked by the suggestion that straight males can have within them some element of same-sex attraction that doesn't </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">change their predominantly heterosexual nature. And now here we are - finally - with a young Hollywood movie star (nominated for two academy awards already in his young career) bringing the subject up and out into the open. What young Lucas has done here is out himself as a perfectly average, healthy young heterosexual male. The significance of this for young adolescents, especially gay teens, can't be exaggerated. A young 'straight' celebrity has admitted to having some element of gayness in his nature - thereby normalizing gay inclinations as powerfully as any gay celebrity 'coming out'. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Judging by the petty gay-bitchy comments under the article in <a href="https://www.out.com/popnography/2018/9/05/boy-erased-star-lucas-hedges-comes-out-kind" target="_blank">Out Magazine</a>, there are still people within the gay community who don't get the point. This is a victory for us, and Lesbian American talk show host, Ellen Degeneres, was quick to recognize this fact and invite young Lucas onto her show. Fortunately, the comments under the YouTube video were much more enlightened than those in Out Magazine. We should all be grateful for Lucas' candor and honesty. </span><br />
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</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132410343235772418.post-4462614926720888082018-02-21T16:12:00.001-08:002018-02-21T16:14:52.047-08:00Mystical Czech artist, Marie Brozova<h1 style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 1.2em; text-align: center;">
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About Life, Universe and All…</h1>
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The luminous Czech artist, <a href="http://www.mariemab.com/" target="_blank">Marie Brozova</a>, creator of the wonderful 'Forest Shaman' painting featured on my blog, lives with her husband and seven cats deep in a Czech forest - without electricity or running water. No computers, no cell phones, no TV. Only the silence and the sounds of nature and the spirits. </div>
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<a href="http://www.the-colored-pencils.com/about-life-universe" target="_blank">Artist Marie Brozova answers your most frequent questions…</a></div>
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<li style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: url("odrazka.gif"); background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px -6px; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: initial; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-top: 0.5em; padding: 0px 0px 0px 15px; position: relative;"><strong>What did you want to be, when you were a child?</strong>I wanted to become an astronomer. Even before I went to school, I was able to find the main constellations in the sky, I knew the names of the biggest stars and I memorized the names of all the satellites of planets in the Solar system. I read in ecstasy, difficult books on astronomy – not that I undestood much, but I intoxicated myself with the exotic terminology. I had long debates with my grandpa about the infinity of the universe and the big bang. But at last I had to go to school and enormous disappointments awaited me – I discovered that <em>I couldn’t think in numbers</em>. Years later, I even failed math in high school. But astronomy has been my passionate hobby. I can’t imagine anything more beautiful than spending the night on the roof with a telescope, watching the starlit sky – looking into the windows of the universe.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_COrIFuP7bs/Wo4JCA9UaBI/AAAAAAAAI6g/PwvxHhUxgFMBknS_8Y5yNk5CHZYXWAZqwCEwYBhgL/s1600/alchymie-promeny.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="550" data-original-width="389" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_COrIFuP7bs/Wo4JCA9UaBI/AAAAAAAAI6g/PwvxHhUxgFMBknS_8Y5yNk5CHZYXWAZqwCEwYBhgL/s320/alchymie-promeny.jpg" width="226" /></a></div>
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<li style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: url("odrazka.gif"); background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px -6px; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: initial; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-top: 0.5em; padding: 0px 0px 0px 15px; position: relative;"><strong>What influence did your childhood have on your work?</strong>The influence was deep and profound. I was raised in love and acceptance. No idea was impossible to carry out and, what is more, my family helped me whatever it might be. My childhood gave me absolute confidenc, that whatever I did was right. Without this confidence, it’s almost impossible to perform art in public.<br />
My childhood was full of imagination. I had many friends among various ghosts and pixies and, naturally, I felt very a close connection to nature. I saw a smal fairy behind every flower, a faun in every tree that I could talk to. My Mum helped me to discover the world and she taught me to perceive it sensitively and in colors. She managed not only to read fairy-tales from books to me, but she was able to make up a fairy-story about anything interesting I had seen, and she illustrated these stories very skilfully. The drawings we made together comprise my most beauiful childhood memories.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DAw0BMcLxgM/Wo4JCVg0u4I/AAAAAAAAI6g/luMEwKQtfJk6Ti0leuV694KqzB0ThWCEwCEwYBhgL/s1600/hrava-zahrada-playful-garden.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="550" data-original-width="389" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DAw0BMcLxgM/Wo4JCVg0u4I/AAAAAAAAI6g/luMEwKQtfJk6Ti0leuV694KqzB0ThWCEwCEwYBhgL/s320/hrava-zahrada-playful-garden.jpg" width="226" /></a></div>
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<li style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: url("odrazka.gif"); background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px -6px; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: initial; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-top: 0.5em; padding: 0px 0px 0px 15px; position: relative;"><strong>Are you human, or an elf?</strong>I get this question surprisingly often. People tell me, that I look like an Irish fairy. I admit that, even as a child, I often felt more like an unconcerned onlooker than like a participant among all the swarming and vanity-fair. Since early childhood, I easily plunged into the world of my imagination and completely lost all connection with reality – especially at school. Even now I feel much more comfortable among trees, flowers and stones than among people.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-KWIaRpNuyho/Wo4JCX4SV6I/AAAAAAAAI6g/9tPGouqQEqwJNO2--EIx4CiMNisY1S7gQCEwYBhgL/s1600/jaro-kocici-duse.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="550" data-original-width="389" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-KWIaRpNuyho/Wo4JCX4SV6I/AAAAAAAAI6g/9tPGouqQEqwJNO2--EIx4CiMNisY1S7gQCEwYBhgL/s320/jaro-kocici-duse.jpg" width="226" /></a></div>
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<li style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: url("odrazka.gif"); background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px -6px; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: initial; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-top: 0.5em; padding: 0px 0px 0px 15px; position: relative;"><strong>What is your zodiac sign?</strong>I was born on the the exact moment of the new moon, which means Sun and Moon in conjunction, in the sign of Taurus. That gives a true drawing of my character. I love to discover the beauty of the world with all my senses. I am creative, determined, a stubborn plodder and nothing can discourage me.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rnF5egiTIbg/Wo4JDXR5KBI/AAAAAAAAI6k/mnnpDzz1PNQ4SlW-QTbfZX3QKYGpAfKXQCEwYBhgL/s1600/jednorozec-ametyst.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="550" data-original-width="389" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rnF5egiTIbg/Wo4JDXR5KBI/AAAAAAAAI6k/mnnpDzz1PNQ4SlW-QTbfZX3QKYGpAfKXQCEwYBhgL/s320/jednorozec-ametyst.jpg" width="226" /></a></div>
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<li style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: url("odrazka.gif"); background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px -6px; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: initial; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-top: 0.5em; padding: 0px 0px 0px 15px; position: relative;"><strong>What do you do when you are not working on your drawings?</strong>I´m strollin in woods and across meadows, meeting my friends among trees and stones. I listen to the water in brooks. I fly a kites in strong wind, look into the flames in the camp-fire, cross snow fields, pass across the horizon. Every spring, before the fields and weeds grow, I wake up with my husband early in the morning and we set out on a journey before the sunrise. We follow the sun all day and we always find many beautiful hidden places. And, when it is ugly outside, I like to read books.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yMiLdbzNlXA/Wo4JDoLTNvI/AAAAAAAAI6c/L3AwKWWWSucML8c907ECeDNdgIoHtABLgCEwYBhgL/s1600/princezna-vecernice.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="550" data-original-width="389" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yMiLdbzNlXA/Wo4JDoLTNvI/AAAAAAAAI6c/L3AwKWWWSucML8c907ECeDNdgIoHtABLgCEwYBhgL/s320/princezna-vecernice.jpg" width="226" /></a></div>
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<li style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: url("odrazka.gif"); background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px -6px; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: initial; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-top: 0.5em; padding: 0px 0px 0px 15px; position: relative;"><strong>What books do you like?</strong>I prefer strong stories bringing wisdom, told in rich literary language. I love Russian classics, Turgenev, Gogol, Pasternak. And my favorite books? <em>Doctor Zhivago</em> by Pasternak, <em>A Hunter´s Sketches</em> by Turgenev, <em>Evenings on a Farm near Dikanka</em> by Gogol, but also <em>East of Eden</em> by John Steinbeck. In poetry I feel close to old Chinese Poetry, especially the painter-poet Wang Wei and the hermit Han Shan. But there are many other books. Recently I really enjoyed Peter Hoeg’s <em>Miss Smila’s Sense For Snow</em>, or <em>Angela’s Ashes</em> by Francis McCourt.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UKVwXC4Rxk8/Wo4JEHBVneI/AAAAAAAAI6o/8WKAzFazvaEnSsx0beq98bdc0G5aEwJSACEwYBhgL/s1600/rubin-bohatyr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="550" data-original-width="389" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UKVwXC4Rxk8/Wo4JEHBVneI/AAAAAAAAI6o/8WKAzFazvaEnSsx0beq98bdc0G5aEwJSACEwYBhgL/s320/rubin-bohatyr.jpg" width="226" /></a></div>
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<li style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: url("odrazka.gif"); background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px -6px; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: initial; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-top: 0.5em; padding: 0px 0px 0px 15px; position: relative;"><strong>And what music do you listen to?</strong>I prefer silence most of all. I never listen to music as a background, it must have some meaning or message. I prefer classical music (Borodin, Tschaikovski), but I also admire exceptional creative personalities, who never repeat themselves, like Paul Simon, Sting, Suzanne Vega. Among Czech musicians, Jaromir Nohavica, Jiri Pavlica, Iva Bittova, Jan Burian.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6TaOUn72b4Y/Wo4JIAMy6MI/AAAAAAAAI6c/y-B1A0FN4nMKqYuCvEkFGsP0xE-nTB-iwCEwYBhgL/s1600/tygr-a-mesic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="550" data-original-width="389" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6TaOUn72b4Y/Wo4JIAMy6MI/AAAAAAAAI6c/y-B1A0FN4nMKqYuCvEkFGsP0xE-nTB-iwCEwYBhgL/s320/tygr-a-mesic.jpg" width="226" /></a></div>
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<li style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: url("odrazka.gif"); background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px -6px; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: initial; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-top: 0.5em; padding: 0px 0px 0px 15px; position: relative;"><strong>For a number of years you lived with your husband, more or less like hermits in the forest. What has this experience brought to your life?</strong>First of all, it gave me the time to find myself. These days people hurry too much, the results of any activity are required too soon. Young people are forced to conform to these requirements before they have the chance to decid, what they would really like to do in their lives. I believe that the most important thing is to learn is to listen to the compass of your heart and then dream a lot about the best journey in your life. Only when you dream something in detail, can you make a dream come true. Following this path, all your activities are full of joy, no matter if the results come as soon as other people expect.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ihmB31MnPok/Wo4JIhueS2I/AAAAAAAAI6k/tHbEJFEcTFw1M0tgGK1a1n8bj1KQAYZ4QCEwYBhgL/s1600/vycaruj-noc.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="550" data-original-width="389" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ihmB31MnPok/Wo4JIhueS2I/AAAAAAAAI6k/tHbEJFEcTFw1M0tgGK1a1n8bj1KQAYZ4QCEwYBhgL/s320/vycaruj-noc.jpg" width="226" /></a></div>
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<li style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: url("odrazka.gif"); background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px -6px; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: initial; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-top: 0.5em; padding: 0px 0px 0px 15px; position: relative;"><strong>Ecology: What does it meant to you?</strong>Ecology and enviromentalism are frequently misused terms, because anything can be hidden in it, from militant fanaticism to advertising propaganda. For me, ecology means to live in harmony with nature, not waste, not polute – learn to enjoy a modest life style. When you are overeating and sated with information, you get sleepy and feel no need to create anything.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-b4AvJC-2-Mc/Wo4JQtZehKI/AAAAAAAAI6k/2HwXjee3yEUTClVKLSPQlEjtZHlDs0yGgCEwYBhgL/s1600/zirafi-perspektiva.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="550" data-original-width="389" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-b4AvJC-2-Mc/Wo4JQtZehKI/AAAAAAAAI6k/2HwXjee3yEUTClVKLSPQlEjtZHlDs0yGgCEwYBhgL/s320/zirafi-perspektiva.jpg" width="226" /></a></div>
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<li style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: url("odrazka.gif"); background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px -6px; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: initial; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-top: 0.5em; padding: 0px 0px 0px 15px; position: relative;"><strong>Do you still live without TV?</strong>We do and for ten years haven´t missed it. The thread that connects me with the world of my imagination is very thin and fragile. I don´t want to break it by deliberately consuming negative and destructive information about things I have no chance to alter. Awareness, being informed, is one of the great illusions worshipped by modern society.</li>
<li style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: url("odrazka.gif"); background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px -6px; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: initial; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-top: 0.5em; padding: 0px 0px 0px 15px; position: relative;"><strong>You look optimistic, are you worried sometimes?</strong>I am often worried about the arrogant attitudes towards nature taken by so many people. They destroy something which is more valuable and more important than their fleeting lives. I look with a certain amount of desperation at how beautiful countryside is ruined forever by tasteless suburban sprawl.</li>
<li style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: url("odrazka.gif"); background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px -6px; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: initial; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-top: 0.5em; padding: 0px 0px 0px 15px; position: relative;"><strong>Do you have any role-models in art?</strong>I don´t have any leader I would like to follow, but I admire the omnipotent creative talent of architect, ecologist and painter Friedensreich Hundertwasser; the honest love for wood of sculptor Martin Patricny, or drawingsque illustrations of Roberto Innocenti. My heart breaks at the sight of Egon Schiele’s drawings. And I remember from my childhood, ilustrations and animated films by Jiri Trnka. His films <em>The Old Czech Legends</em> and <em>The Midsummer Night</em> were the most wonderful artistic experience when I was small.</li>
<li style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: url("odrazka.gif"); background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px -6px; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: initial; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-top: 0.5em; padding: 0px 0px 0px 15px; position: relative;"><strong>What conditions do you need for creating your art?</strong>Silence, space and peace. And if possible the scenery of my childhood memories – the surroundings of Velke Popovice – where I feel the close connection of earth under my feet and the sky above my head, likean open window to the universe.</li>
<li style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: url("odrazka.gif"); background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px -6px; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: initial; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-top: 0.5em; padding: 0px 0px 0px 15px; position: relative;"><strong>What is the most important thing for you?</strong>Staying sane in the middle of the madness of our times.</li>
<li style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: url("odrazka.gif"); background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px -6px; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: initial; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-top: 0.5em; padding: 0px 0px 0px 15px; position: relative;"><strong>Are you as patient in other aspects of your life as in your art?</strong>Not at all. I am an outrageousdisaster as a housekeeper. It makes me very angry when I cannot handle something, as easily as I do with my coloured pencils. In general I can make things up in my mind better than bring them into reality. But fortunately, my husband is very clever and practical.</li>
<li style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: url("odrazka.gif"); background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px -6px; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: initial; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-top: 0.5em; padding: 0px 0px 0px 15px; position: relative;"><strong>What is your husband´s attitude towards your artistic profession?</strong>He enjoys telling stories about how it is when I wake up in the morning with the idea of a new drawing in my head. He describes vividly how he must feed me and look after me, so I don´t forget to drink. Actually, he prevents me from total exhaustion caused by creative zeal. I am very glad that he helps me with the whole project and supports my creative work in all respects.</li>
<li style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: url("odrazka.gif"); background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px -6px; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: initial; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-top: 0.5em; padding: 0px 0px 0px 15px; position: relative;"><strong>Do you think that imagination is natural to all the children?</strong>Yes, but it must be cultivated from the very beginning. If parents regard imagination as something foolish or tiresome, it withers away and dies very soon. The gift of imagination has become very rare in this world. I often meet mothers who complain about their inability to imagine fairy stories for their children, when they are asked. They are very sad about it.</li>
<li style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: url("odrazka.gif"); background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px -6px; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: initial; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-top: 0.5em; padding: 0px 0px 0px 15px; position: relative;"><strong>What do you believe in?</strong>I am not a religious person. I view all kinds of religions as a symbol of human desire to overcome the fact of death. I can´t see any reasons why one religion should be better than the others. If I believe in anything, then it is the power of a nature that doesn´t need mankind, nor its notions about good and evil.</li>
<li style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: url("odrazka.gif"); background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px -6px; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: initial; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-top: 0.5em; padding: 0px 0px 0px 15px; position: relative;"><strong>If you met a fairy goldfish who would promise to make your three wishes true, what would they be?</strong><ol>
<li style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: none; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; list-style: decimal; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-top: 0.5em; padding: 0px; position: relative;">I wish that my beloved land was not destroyed by expanding Prague.</li>
<li style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: none; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; list-style: decimal; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-top: 0.5em; padding: 0px; position: relative;">I wish that all people could do what they really wanted to do, because in that case the world would be much more hospitable place for living.</li>
<li style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: none; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; list-style: decimal; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-top: 0.5em; padding: 0px; position: relative;">I wish me and my husband could stay sound in body and mind.</li>
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<li style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: url("odrazka.gif"); background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px -6px; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: initial; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-top: 0.5em; padding: 0px 0px 0px 15px; position: relative;"><strong>Do you think that people lack imagination these days?</strong>People are bombarded by an avalanche of unwanted information everyday. No wonder that the inner space of a human being is often overloaded and filled with debris. There is no empty room inside inviting the imagination or inspiration. This problem does not afflict only adult overworked people. I am very often visited by children alarmed by their own inability to dream or invent things. Sometimes they are not even able to read a book because they cannot imagine anything beyond the words. The world they are growing up is too perfect, their toys are perfect, and they do not have to dream anything up, to improve anything. They can also have whatever they wish, but stil,l they often feel some longing, they crave for something that was left denied to them. This void seems to be the miraculous gift of imagination that can change even the most ordinary life into an exciting original story.</li>
<li style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: url("odrazka.gif"); background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px -6px; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: initial; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-top: 0.5em; padding: 0px 0px 0px 15px; position: relative;"><strong>Why do you think the kitsch is so commercially successful?</strong>If people could find more harmony and beauty in modern art, they would not have to seek salvation in kitsch. Modern art is beyond grasp of ordinary people, qualities like harmony and beauty are viewed by art experts as something embarrassing and undesirable. Most people think that they do not understand modern art, and I am not surprised, when the art pretends to be a science. Our age is concentrated on technical and scientific progress. In spite of all that I think that viewing art is the matter of human soul, far from logic and reason. When somebody claims to be an art expert understanding everything modern, I cannot help feeling that he is a snob.</li>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cHwNRLaO07s/Wo4JIgd7orI/AAAAAAAAI6g/W0o5ttJzNJAMU0CPm7fpmdU-WJv4ZuVZACEwYBhgL/s1600/svaty-jiri-a-drak_max.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="550" data-original-width="809" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cHwNRLaO07s/Wo4JIgd7orI/AAAAAAAAI6g/W0o5ttJzNJAMU0CPm7fpmdU-WJv4ZuVZACEwYBhgL/s1600/svaty-jiri-a-drak_max.jpg" /></a></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132410343235772418.post-34923539186855804372018-02-14T02:03:00.000-08:002018-02-14T02:03:03.012-08:00SPICING UP THE CHURCH: <span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><br /></span>
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<a href="http://www.logoscr.cz/english" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="178" data-original-width="262" height="271" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-E30jLkrXnkg/WoQInXMsffI/AAAAAAAAI1Q/PhY152HU76wT262NDYjvUdltw-Sj9HBuwCLcBGAs/s400/g8159.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Here is the <a href="http://www.logoscr.cz/english" target="_blank">website </a>of the wonderful meeting group for gay Christians in the Czech republic, <a href="http://www.logoscr.cz/english" target="_blank">Logos</a>. And below is their position statement. Check them out. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">Logos – Gay Christians </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: medium;">in the Czech Republic</span></div>
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We are an ecumenical fellowship of gay and lesbian Christians and their friends, in which we share our faith in all its diverse manifestations, and try to support participation of our people in their home churches.<br /><h2>
<a href="https://draft.blogger.com/null" name="TOC-Our-stance-on-homosexuality" style="color: #336699;"></a><span style="font-weight: normal;">Our stance on homosexuality</span></h2>
We are not trying to “cure” sexual and emotional orientation of gays and lesbians. We believe that God accepts us as we are. In the spirit of the gospel of Christ we are trying to bridge the chasm that separates gay and lesbian people from God, and re-establish their severed relationship with Christian churches and religious communities.<br /><h3>
<a href="https://draft.blogger.com/null" name="TOC-We-have-no-ideology" style="color: #336699;"></a><span style="font-weight: normal;">We have no ideology</span></h3>
We do not have any binding ideology, nor do we blindly succumb to external ideological influences. In our fellowship, some believe in the legitimacy of homosexual partnership, while others are not convinced about it, and still others sincerely pray in their helplessness to find answers. Our fellowship remains open to all these groups. </div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132410343235772418.post-70811035144019602062018-01-18T15:32:00.003-08:002018-02-13T16:01:52.821-08:00Call Me By Your Name: Film of the Year<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Q7Zx6Ydrauc/WoN8Yvqk9EI/AAAAAAAAIyQ/pytmH2v8sJIavn1__lXsS23MXna1m7P7QCLcBGAs/s1600/images.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="489" data-original-width="576" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Q7Zx6Ydrauc/WoN8Yvqk9EI/AAAAAAAAIyQ/pytmH2v8sJIavn1__lXsS23MXna1m7P7QCLcBGAs/s1600/images.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">An exquisite love story that defies explanation and refuses to judge or label its characters. Why did they fall in love, why were these two men able to cross the gender lines and love another member of the same sex. The film doesn't answer that question and even challenges us not to ask it. Simply to accept the beautify and power of love where ever and how so ever it manifests itself between human beings. Love is a mystery and all the rest is silence. </span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132410343235772418.post-58131864258987371862016-12-29T11:50:00.001-08:002017-06-20T15:51:06.033-07:00Christmas at Litmanova<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-agT8A-PNJ9I/WGVo7uJnk9I/AAAAAAAAGsQ/cGmcdKQ8Mvw2Ow_LJfhj0A5KkhvsMnGgQCLcB/s1600/15741202_10154879239336952_3393672428587180505_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-agT8A-PNJ9I/WGVo7uJnk9I/AAAAAAAAGsQ/cGmcdKQ8Mvw2Ow_LJfhj0A5KkhvsMnGgQCLcB/s400/15741202_10154879239336952_3393672428587180505_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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The Marian Shrine of Litmanova, Slovakia.</div>
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Christmas 2017</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vGc2xluFf24/WGVoCi22AnI/AAAAAAAAGsI/Yc5WnWtF_oEH660o76u25vff9aG4K3LlACLcB/s1600/15727003_10154887768671952_6402853148557302493_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vGc2xluFf24/WGVoCi22AnI/AAAAAAAAGsI/Yc5WnWtF_oEH660o76u25vff9aG4K3LlACLcB/s640/15727003_10154887768671952_6402853148557302493_n.jpg" width="360" /></a></div>
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A forest chapel at the Slovakian Marian shrine of Litmanova.</div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7z0i89E4wwo/WGVoZe_RRPI/AAAAAAAAGsM/AHg66XZnGA49eDzqwbGChOs4LmDCNFt9QCLcB/s1600/15726413_10154887800941952_5047275167144249709_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7z0i89E4wwo/WGVoZe_RRPI/AAAAAAAAGsM/AHg66XZnGA49eDzqwbGChOs4LmDCNFt9QCLcB/s640/15726413_10154887800941952_5047275167144249709_n.jpg" width="360" /></a></div>
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Stunning painting of the Sacred Heart inside the forest chapel.</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132410343235772418.post-50634040321173143392016-11-05T08:11:00.001-07:002016-11-05T08:29:40.709-07:00Conclave by Robert Harris<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=Conclave" target="_blank"><img alt="" border="0" height="200" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bKf5QG-Lolo/WB3oHaN7IQI/AAAAAAAAGhg/i538YAifS4kJP7tgz_4rQd9hIno3iV6igCLcB/s400/Cb6DQS8W0AALwzZ.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=Conclave" target="_blank"><br /></a></td></tr>
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Capsule Review:</div>
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I've just finished reading Robert Harris' very stylish, sophisticated thriller, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Conclave-novel-Robert-Harris/dp/0451493443/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1478359744&sr=8-1&keywords=Conclave" target="_blank">Conclave</a>, the story of the struggle to elect the next pope in the post-Francis era. The time period is 2018. I have to say I was quite impressed on many levels. The author exhibits a superb understanding of internal Church politics, no simple matter, and the difficulty of juggling so many conflicting factions in the RMC. He actually succeeds in making this strange, secret world comprehensible. I've read quite a few of this author's previous works and didn't expect this level of expertise and insight. Nor did I expect such spiritual insight, though given the maturity of his work in such novels as <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Ghost-Writer-Novel-Robert-Harris/dp/1439190550/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1478356063&sr=8-1&keywords=Robert+Harris+the+ghost" target="_blank">The Ghost Writer,</a> perhaps I shouldn't have been completely surprised. Is Harris himself a Catholic, albeit a postmodern one?<br />
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<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Angels-Demons-Tom-Hanks/dp/B002VZ5RIC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1478355898&sr=8-1&keywords=angels+and+demons" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-cwrGkTctfzQ/WB3sVLLoJgI/AAAAAAAAGhs/85OZXHuXGyUGV1lCtA1xbfRxegXYEYXDACLcB/s400/angels_and_demons_poster.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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All the major issues are handled adroitly through carefully drawn characters (change versus tradition, gays, women, divorced, the preferential option for the poor), from the brilliant, liberal 'periti' Cardinal Berlini to the fiercely homophobic African Cardinal, Adeyemi, who believes that all 'homosexuals should be in jail on this earth and rot in hell for eternity.' Adeyemi is a major player in the politicking for the papacy, but he has a dark secret to hide. So do several other leading contenders for the papal throne and therein lies the suspense in this very balanced and mature thriller. There is none of the silliness and sensationalism of a Dan Brown here (think <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Angels-Demons-Tom-Hanks/dp/B002VZ5RIC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1478355898&sr=8-1&keywords=angels+and+demons" target="_blank">Angels and Demons</a> - which also deals with a papal conclave). The story is balanced, complex, and gripping and makes an arcane, peculiar, highly secretive world humanly comprehensible. Because looked at from the outside, the college of Cardinals - processing into the Vatican's Sistine Chapel to engage in a centuries old ritual of election - is bizarre in the extreme to any ordinary post-modern Christian.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7sMITGV0Vj0/WB32c2tS-OI/AAAAAAAAGh8/02Mi1TmMGToByI_LjAp58PcLuEGT3fSkwCLcB/s1600/12285_front.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7sMITGV0Vj0/WB32c2tS-OI/AAAAAAAAGh8/02Mi1TmMGToByI_LjAp58PcLuEGT3fSkwCLcB/s400/12285_front.jpg" width="316" /></a></div>
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Herein lies the benefit of Ron Howard's quite dazzling film adaptation of <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0808151/?ref_=fn_al_tt_4" target="_blank">Angels & Demons</a> - the sight of these elderly scarlet gentlemen processing in is beyond the weird. First of all because they are all male (and seem to think there is nothing peculiar about this), secondly those costumes, and thirdly all that color enveloping these tottering aged gentlemen. What is this all about a secularist observer wonders, and how could anyone take it seriously. And in what way could it possibly be relevant to the modern world. Harris has succeeded in humanizing the whole affair from an enlightened point of view, and that is much appreciated by this reader here. He makes us understand - particularly the dilemma - and the anguish - of open minded, mature clerics who love the Church and are struggling against such insurmountable odds to move it forward.<br />
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The first half of the book is taken up with a detailed description of the mechanics of any conclave and may prove daunting - if not boring - to any non-Catholic. However, Harris uses this mechanism to develop character, especially the character of the major players. Chief among them is the dean of the College of Cardinals, Cardinal Lomeli, who is a genuine man of prayer, and a person of unshakeable rectitude and conscience. This characterization is what stunned me. Robert Harris has succeeded in imaginatively expressing Lomeli's interior states of prayer, the darkness and the light, the surges of peace and interior conviction, followed by moments of doubt when "God" seems to be absent. The ebb and flow of the interior life. This is a poor depiction on my part of a very subtle and profound piece of characterization, and it led me to the question: is this Harris' own experience, is he also a man of genuine interior experience, knowledgeable in the ways of the spiritual life (whether Christian, Buddhist, Muslim or-) . Or - as I suspect - did he have help in writing this book from prayerful, spiritual consultants, because some very high up individuals offered their input.<br />
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This spiritual dimension is what sets this book off from every other thriller I have ever read about Vatican scandals, corruption and intrigue. Finally, an author with genuine insight into the life of the spirit, without which all of this ceremony and ritual make no sense. True, the prayerful individuals in this story seem to be in the minority - but they are there and they drive the narrative, and that is what makes all the difference.<br />
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Once past the half way mark, the thriller takes off with a number of interconnected plots and scandals, and the book becomes gripping and intense. . The ending is a slam-bang surprise that finally reveals the author's theological hand - exactly where he is situated on the left-liberal spectrum. Some readers have expressed their disbelief at the surprise shock of the ending, but it seemed plausible enough for me. This is partly because I have lived in Asia for some thirty years (no spoiler here) and am familiar with the ethnicity of the character who figures in the surprise ending. Keep that in mind, any readers who decide to take this on.<br />
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A class act all the way, the most mature Vatican thriller I have ever read, intriguing, informative and - a rarity - genuinely inspiring.<br />
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<span style="color: purple;"><i><b>Cross-posted at my crime novel book review blog:</b></i></span> <b><span style="color: red;">CRIME SCENE REVIEWS.</span></b><br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132410343235772418.post-15587819874906474122016-10-28T09:55:00.001-07:002016-11-05T07:06:13.937-07:00New Look for Gay Mystic<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wg6qS-OCuJI/WBOExLHu43I/AAAAAAAAGek/TjtMoYCCYy4xHB8MBO2d0FC0T-N1usOHACLcB/s1600/santa-maria-de-mar-barcelona-slider-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wg6qS-OCuJI/WBOExLHu43I/AAAAAAAAGek/TjtMoYCCYy4xHB8MBO2d0FC0T-N1usOHACLcB/s400/santa-maria-de-mar-barcelona-slider-2.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">(Cathedral of Maria del Mar)<br />
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I Just downloaded this new template for Gay Mystic = from <a href="http://newbloggerthemes.com/" target="_blank">New Blogger Themes</a>, and I haven't had time to adjust the menus yet....which I hope to do tonight.<br />
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I intend to get back to blogging in a serious fashion at this blog, particularly book reviews of pertinent gay literature I've read recently.<br />
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Peace Joy<br />
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p.s. the background photo is one I took myself of Park Guell in Barcelona = a very gay city if ever there was one - and a staunchly Catholic one as well, at least in terms of a visible presence. The great basilica of Maria del Mar is one of my favorites churches in the world, Church of the poor - fishermen in particular.<br />
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(ooops since writing this, I changed the background image to a sunset over the sea. )<br />
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Ildefonso Falcones wrote his bestseller, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Cathedral-Sea-Novel-Ildefonso-Falcones/dp/0451225996/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1477673984&sr=8-1&keywords=cathedral+of+the+sea" target="_blank">Cathedral of the Sea</a>, about the history and construction of this great church.<br />
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<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Cathedral-Sea-Novel-Ildefonso-Falcones/dp/0451225996/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1477673984&sr=8-1&keywords=cathedral+of+the+sea" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UAJPn6SpTKU/WBOEHm-Nn8I/AAAAAAAAGeg/HYpXdzeKJKwLXDOJH3Pq7ORpttBdZdJMACLcB/s400/51-OPB5tAgL._SX319_BO1%252C204%252C203%252C200_.jpg" width="256" /></a></div>
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2Prague, Czech Republic50.0755381 14.4378004999999849.749331100000006 13.79235349999998 50.4017451 15.083247499999981tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132410343235772418.post-38509224216220561232016-05-15T12:04:00.001-07:002016-05-15T12:04:19.712-07:00Pentecost in Prague<div style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px; margin-bottom: 6px;">
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Attended Pentecost services today at the beautiful Catholic Church of St. Thomas in Mala Strana (something I rarely do). Surprised to see that the papal nuncio, Bishop Giuseppe Leanza was presiding - over a confirmation ceremony of 4 young teens, two boys and two girls, and one adult male. Bishop Leanza has just recently been elevated to the red hat, Cardinal Leanza now.</div>
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Why was this of interest? Well, the holy, much loved and open minded pastor of St. Thomas, Fr. William, <span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;">was presiding with the Bishop over the ceremony. So??? Father William is accustomed to ending all Sunday masses with this warm announcement: "All Catholics are welcomed here in the family of St. Thomas, regardless of marital status or sexual orientation". And occasionally he will add, "All are welcomed to the banquet table of the Lord, no one is judging you here at St. Thomas".</span></div>
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Wow. For those not familiar with the arcane, murky and very dark world of Roman Catholicism at this point in history, these announcements could not be more contrary to directives from the Holy See. And if any irate conservative Catholics were to complain, to whom would they voice their ire? To the Papal Nuncio - a very warm, unassuming and amiable man whom I met at the coffee klatch in the sanctuary afterwards, together with Father William. Both men seemed on very good terms.</div>
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How long has Father William been getting away with this "outrageous" behavior without being silenced (behavior that should seem perfectly normal in a healthy religious community)? For the past eight years I've been in Prague at least. A truly good and admirable priest, Father William recently suffered a stroke and now walks with a cane.</div>
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Signs of Grace and the workings of the Spirit on this feast of Pentecost. In dark times, even small rays of light are like water in the desert. (Something of interest for <a class="profileLink" data-hovercard="/ajax/hovercard/user.php?id=1015078167" href="https://www.facebook.com/wdlindsy" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;">William D. Lindsey</a>).</div>
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Of course, there's more here than meets the eye. Bishop (now Cardinal) Leanza was the apostolic nuncio in Ireland at the time of the publication of the damning <a href="http://www.rte.ie/news/2011/0713/303635-cloynetracker/" target="_blank">Cloyne Report,</a> examining the child abuse crisis in within the Catholic Church - which prompted a searing indictment from Prime Minister Enda Kenny, who had spoken harsh words at the Vatican, holding that "the rape and torture of children were found to be understated and managed with the aim of protecting the Church". Shortly thereafter, in 2011, Bishop Leanza was recalled to Rome for 'consultations', and shortly after that he was reassigned to the Czech Republic. </div>
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<span style="color: #1d2129; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px;">(Photo header is of Father William giving marriage instructions. </span><span style="color: #1d2129; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px;">Photo below. Father William and Cardinal Leanza.)</span></span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132410343235772418.post-54491388698230972402016-05-09T13:54:00.000-07:002016-10-28T09:56:11.519-07:00RISEN: Film Review<br />
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Yet again - I've been neglecting this blog, despite my best intentions. I had hoped to comment on the Easter visit to Catholic Slovakia and the Marian shrine of Litmanova. A deeply moving event for me - going from secular, cynical Czechia (Czech Republic's new nickname) to staunchly, vibrantly Catholic Slovakia (with its dark history of collusion with the Nazi's in the deportation of Slovakia's Jews), but that will have to wait for a later time.<br />
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Then Francis the Papa of the Roman Christian Communion released his 'exhortation' on the family, with it's warm accommodating language of primacy of conscience - for everyone except Gay folks. I followed that closely for a while, mainly at William Lindsey's wonderful blog, <a href="http://bilgrimage./">Bilgrimage.</a> Where would we be without Bill's brilliant, incisive coverage of these events = and his staggering number of links for us to follow, aided by his own summations. Francis' exhortation was a blessing (in disguise?) in that the exact sentiments of this pope towards LGBT people have finally been laid bare - with no room for ambiguity, no more guessing. The only harsh language in this document - reserved for us. No room for us in this Innkeeper's hostel, and no mercy either. But there is a light shining in the stable amongst the simple creatures of the earth where we can find refuge in the night. It is up to us to gravitate towards that light. For some gay Catholics, light still shines within chosen alcoves within the institutional structure, but for most of us post LGBT Catholics, the light only shines outside the door. I have long left active participation in Catholic affairs, though the mystical connection remains strong and I continue to feel an interior calling to reflect and witness to the faith.<br />
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What prompted me to return to this blog today was my viewing of the recently released biblical film <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3231054/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1" target="_blank">Risen</a> - the first time the resurrection story of Jeshua and his post mortem appearances has been treated in a mainstream film, at least to my knowledge.<br />
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The film was surprisingly revelatory and new, in my opinion, despite a very rocky beginning. It's technique (CGI and soldiers with jerky overly masculinized body movements and bulging, unrealistic muscles) mirrored that of such cheap macho war epics as 300 Spartans. In other words, a technique geared to the psychological level of 13 year old boys - and other older immature males. I was actually bitterly disappointed with the opening scenes, but managed to stick with the film - and was very glad I did. By the end, I thought, well, why not imitate cheap macho historical war epics if you want to draw in a bigger audience and maintain their interest in what is a very esoteric and subtle story.<br />
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What I found so new and surprising = and for which I'm very grateful:<br />
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For the first time, a film has succeeded in conveying graphically and viscerally the horror of the whole practice of crucifixion. I was shocked by the fact that Jerusalemites had to accustomed themselves to viewing dying criminals hanging from these instruments of torture <i style="font-weight: bold;">every day</i> and in plain view. It was a part of everyday life - particularly when traveling the roads into and out of the city. Death and torture and psychological warfare techniques of the most harrowing kind - visible always. Imagine walking outside your door every morning on the way to school or work and seeing bleeding agonized bodies hanging against the skyline. This was the reality of Roman occupation, the horror of the times into which Jesus was born. Secondly, the open pits - which biblical scholars have told us was the common practice for disposing of the bodies of the crucified. Again, right out in the open, mases of putrefying corpses in full view of the general public. The horror, the horror. This was the chaotic world into which Jeshua was born. As the film makes clear, Jesus was just one of many, and in the days after his own crucifixion, other criminals were suspended from these racks of torture on the skyline of the city - in full view of the population going about their business. An atmosphere of violence, cruelty and blood for all to see.<br />
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Secondly (in no particular order), finally an Aramaic looking Jesus ( played with wonderful simplicity and a total lack of pretension by Maori New Zealand actor Cliff Curtis). And a number of the disciples also succeeded in looking reasonably Middle Eastern and Jewish.<br />
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A rock solid performance from British actor, Joseph Fiennes ( brother of the more famous Ralph Fiennes) as the Roman Centurion/official Clavius, who's stolid world-weariness and disbelief cracks with the full force of the event he witnessed. When Fiennes doubts, this man of hardened practicality and cynicism, he carries us all with him. Through his eyes we see the impact of the Resurrection upon a decent man at heart who never thought himself religious. And when he puts down his sword and embraces the ethic of the Christians (no more killing on this day) we put down our swords with him - precisely because even when doing so, Fiennes has not yet 'become' a Christian. Through the attitude of Pilot (played by another distinguished British actor, Peter Firth), we see the hardened cynic's attitude. "He's alive again? Well then, I'll kill him again."<br />
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A note for the young, Tom Felton of Harry Potter fame plays the young Roman soldier Flavius in a strong supporting role.<br />
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The genuine confusion of the disciples - not simply immediately after the crucifixion itself, but also after the 'resurrection appearances', themselves - however these are to be understood. They were in a state of stupefaction and joy - and confusion. Astounded by the events and not knowing quite what to make of them and what to do next. Simply following the signs given them each day. The film does a superb job conveying the painstaking process of spiritual discernment the disciples underwent. For the first time, far beyond the sentimental piety of the 1950-60's biblical epics, we really experience the confused state of the early Christians - and the bleak, harrowing backdrop of their conversion experience - in a land under brutal occupation. For the first time in a film, I caught the mystery and the fear and the confusion and the joy of this infinitely small band of men and women called to witness to all nations. Such a tiny, fragile beginning - founded on such an inexplicable event with no clear explanations as to what and how and why. Only an overwhelming sense of spiritual profundity and peace. So weak and obscure and fragile a beginning. The film really conveyed to me the terrible threat these very insignificant people were under, the terrible risks, the fear, set over against their newly found courage and inexplicalbe joy.<br />
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The Resurrection Appearances themselves - the film opts for a realistic portrayal, as if Jesus were actually among the disciples eating fish, drinking wine - though most biblical scholars think these are creative fictional metaphors for an essentially ethereal spiritual encounter of great power. The most that can be said with confidence is that the early Christians themselves believed something very strange had happened to the body. And the manifestations of the Risen Lord - whatever the manner of these appearances - it was not the corporal body of their crucified Master. According to the stories, every time he 'appears' they at first do not recognize him. Again, something very strange and mysterious about the body.<br />
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Finally, through the words of one of the Roman guards, the film offers quite a 'plausible' account of the Resurrection event itself -at least as witnessed by someone outside the tomb. It is very moving and - quite possibly - near to the 'truth,' though I don't think we are supposed to have anything like certitude in this matter. And finally again, through one camera shot of Roman Centurian Joseph Fiennes holding the burial cloths, we see a reverent acknowledgement of the Shroud of Turin - pointing so eloquently to the depths of this great mystery that is the Resurrection.<br />
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Though I feel the 3 out of 5 star rating the film is receiving is fair - I also feel it should be highly recommended to thoughtful Christians. Look beyond the ' macho shit' of the early scenes and you will be uplifted and inspired. I was deeply moved.<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132410343235772418.post-5956660234649143102016-05-01T04:29:00.001-07:002018-02-13T16:04:27.126-08:00Daniel Berrigan dead at 94<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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A day for prayers, a day for mourning and remembering, and a day for rejoicing that for a time - so brief - we were graced with the presence of such a gifted prophet. Not without his human flaws, but then aren't we all, yet how few of us have his courage. The great Daniel Berrigan - who helped to awaken and forge the consciences of so many of my generation -has passed over the River of Life into the Great Beyond.<br />
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Tributes are already pouring in from far and wide - from the New York Times to Huffington Post - to conservative/progressive Catholic blog sites to social justice sites.<br />
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Here is <a href="http://www.commondreams.org/news/2016/04/30/daniel-berrigan-dead-94" target="_blank">Common Dreams initial report. </a><br />
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I need time to absorb the impact of this news, an event as moving for us old Catholics as the death of Thomas Merton, who was also a great friend of Berrigan's - but I'm reminded of one of his books I found most moving - his dialogue with Vietnamese Buddhist Zen Master Thich Nhat Hahn,<br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Raft-Not-Shore-Conversations-Buddhist-Christian/dp/157075344X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1462102098&sr=8-1&keywords=the+raft+is+not+the+shore" target="_blank">The Raft is Not the Shore. </a><br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132410343235772418.post-41856760879830432442016-04-30T03:53:00.002-07:002018-02-13T16:06:20.084-08:00Two LGBT activists marytred in Bangladesh<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Photo taken from <a href="http://jesusinlove.blogspot.com/2016/04/rip-bangladesh-lgbt-martyrs-xulhaz.html" target="_blank">Jesus in Love Blog</a></span></div>
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A very sad story just posted at Kittredge Cherry's <a href="http://jesusinlove.blogspot.com/2016/04/rip-bangladesh-lgbt-martyrs-xulhaz.html" target="_blank">Jesus in Love Blog</a>:<br />
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Two outstanding gay activists, seen above, were hacked to death for<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "times new roman" , "times" , "freeserif" , serif; font-size: 15.4px; line-height: 21.56px;">"being pioneers of practicing and promoting homosexuality in Bangladesh" on April 25 in Dhaka, Bangladesh. That was just five days ago!</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "times new roman" , "times" , "freeserif" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 15.4px; line-height: 21.56px;">Read the full account at <a href="http://jesusinlove.blogspot.com/2016/04/rip-bangladesh-lgbt-martyrs-xulhaz.html" target="_blank">Jesus in Love Blog. </a>I'm familiar with both men, having seen their photos before - but I can't remember where, unless it was also in a previous posting at Jesus in Love. Not sure.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "times new roman" , "times" , "freeserif" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 15.4px; line-height: 21.56px;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "times new roman" , "times" , "freeserif" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 15.4px; line-height: 21.56px;">Yet another sad story of LGBT oppression in the name of 'religion,' and another two saints added to the Communion of Saints interceding for us struggling gay folks here on Planet Earth. Saints Xulhaz and Tanay pray for us. </span></span></span><br />
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132410343235772418.post-54198109289917861322016-04-08T08:09:00.000-07:002018-02-13T16:09:10.529-08:00Quote of the Day re: Pope Francis' 'exhortation' on the family, released today. <span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px;">Couldn't have said it better. </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px;"><i>Very mixed feelings about the Pope's latest pronouncement this morning. </i></span><br />
<i><br style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px;">It is so very little. There is no real doctrinal change anywhere in Roman Catholic dogma about family life. What has changed is the tone, and it is worth noting that even that tiny little crumb met with fierce opposition from much of the Roman hierarchy. It is very little, but it is something, an incremental shift away from the rigid legalism that dominated Roman Catholic teaching on family life for </span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #141823; display: inline; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px;">decades, at least since Paul VI. The current Pope seems less willing to force the complicated mess of individual relationships into an iron template of dogmatic idea.</span></i><br />
<span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #141823; display: inline; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px;"><i><br />The Pope's perceived shift on homosexual relations would have more credibility with me if the Roman Catholic Church dropped their opposition to all civil rights legislation for LGBTQs and stopped their resistance to local and international efforts to decriminalize same sexuality. Rome would have more credibility with me if they publicly opposed the violence and persecution directed at gays and lesbians in Africa, Eastern Europe, and the Muslim world. To do so would cost them nothing. They would not have to change any of their doctrines on marriage or family. The Roman Church might even gain a little of the credibility that it lost after decades of crime and scandal, that it might once again look like a moral authority and less like an international pedophile protection ring.</i></span><br />
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<span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #141823; display: inline; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px;">Douglas Blanchard - artist of <a href="http://www.passionofchristbook.com/" target="_blank">The Passion of Christ: A Gay Vision</a></span><br />
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Douglas' depiction of the encounter at Emmaus - or an alternative vision of Christian family.</div>
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132410343235772418.post-14517216556588754792016-03-26T10:50:00.001-07:002018-02-13T16:12:13.147-08:00Litmanova, Hora Zvir - the sacred mountain. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132410343235772418.post-38658386898237526842016-03-23T14:50:00.001-07:002016-03-23T15:18:02.499-07:00Easter blessings in Litmanova<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EGzmBwo9G84/VvMQ_BTTmAI/AAAAAAAAF78/FBuiF_9pGcMl3TkktcE612AJqr56aKspQ/s1600/LITMANOVA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EGzmBwo9G84/VvMQ_BTTmAI/AAAAAAAAF78/FBuiF_9pGcMl3TkktcE612AJqr56aKspQ/s400/LITMANOVA.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Tomorrow I leave for the little mountain village of Litmanova in Slovakia on the Polish border, site of the 1990-95 Marian apparitions to two village girls. A very peaceful, quiet place without tourists or fanfare - or souvenir stands or Italian style bistro's. In fact, there isn't a single restaurant in the entire village, though there are several small pensions and one small village store.<br />
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I've always loved this minor, little known apparition because the Blessed Lady in white came down from her heavenly cloud, walked across the small storeroom where she had appeared to the two shocked young girls of 12 and sat down on a little wooden bench and spoke with them. The bench is still there, covered in plastic, and pilgrims can kiss it. The utter simplicity of the place is so beautiful, and the peace is lasting and profound. There is even a sacred spring with crystal clear water. I've been here a number of times and became friends with the local Greek Orthodox priest who administers the site, a kindly, good man without complications or pretensions. I even contributed the English translation to the official site, which interested readers can access here: <a href="http://litmanova.net/" target="_blank">Litmanova-Zvir</a> and here at <a href="http://www.byzcath.org/forums/ubbthreads.php/topics/377002/Shrine_of_Our_Lady_of_Litmanov" target="_blank">The Byzantine Forum</a>. No fanaticism here at Litmanova, only simple faith in 'the Lady,' and pious devotion of the old school. Remarkable and inspiring.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8WBTByvTllg/VvMOvweC7-I/AAAAAAAAF7o/hIk7_IhTVXUEJ8sjzouVJn1BKx0MpFvBQ/s1600/popes%2Bwar.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8WBTByvTllg/VvMOvweC7-I/AAAAAAAAF7o/hIk7_IhTVXUEJ8sjzouVJn1BKx0MpFvBQ/s320/popes%2Bwar.jpeg" width="212" /></a>In preparation for this triduum of Easter at Litmanova, I started reading Matthew Fox's most recent book, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Letters-Pope-Francis-Rebuilding-Compassion/dp/1490372970/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1458768733&sr=8-2&keywords=Letters+to+Pope+Francis" target="_blank">Letters to Pope Francis</a>. It is a book imbued with hope and the promise of a new dawn, as Fox was responding - as we all were - to Pope Francis's warmly human, humble and accessible side in those early days of the springtime of his papacy. The book is well worth reading for its deep, prophetic insights into the possibility of a new Christianity and it offers healing for any of Fox's readers who also read his searing indictment of the Pope John Paul II and Benedict XVI years, the powerful, brilliant, indispensable, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Popes-War-Ratzingers-Crusade-Imperiled/dp/1454900016/ref=la_B000AQ1M5Q_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1458769158&sr=1-4&refinements=p_82%3AB000AQ1M5Q" target="_blank">The Pope's War. </a><br />
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Sadly, we have all learned since the early days of Francis' tenure as Pope that hope does not reside in the figure of a Pope or in the institution itself. Matthew Fox's dissillusion with Pope Francis, which is profound, has been most eloquently expressed in his articles on the canonization of Junipero Serra, which can be accessed here at his blog: <a href="http://matthewfox.org/about-matthew-fox/a-new-reformation/a-patron-saint-for-colonizers-and-racists/" target="_blank">Matthew Fox. </a><br />
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I<i>t is sad that a reforming pope who has actively sought the perspectives of the faithful would be so blind to the history of indigenous peoples on two continents, and deaf to the protests of indigenous and non-indigenous Christians alike. And it is sad that, as many nations and peoples await Pope Francis’ encyclical on Eco-theology and Climate Change, he would follow his predecessors’ example in favoring the perpetrators of colonization and genocide over the indigenous peoples of this hemisphere and their living legacy of respect for nature…a legacy that is vital to the survival of the life on Earth as we know it today.</i></div>
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<i>This is a severe blow to the hopes of people looking to a reformed papacy. Granted, Pope Francis is only human like the rest of us and humans err—as he says, he himself is a sinner. And this decision is a grave sin indeed.</i></div>
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Powerful words for this Easter as we prepare to celebrate the Paschal Mystery of the Crucified and Risen One and as all of us connected to the Resurrected Savior await a new dawn. </div>
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But to end these random thoughts on a note of rebirth, here is a beautiful image sent me by a student today, witnessing to the profound interconnectedness of life and all living things, bound by compassion:</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132410343235772418.post-80107827725886230572016-03-17T16:15:00.001-07:002018-02-13T16:30:26.764-08:00Padre Pio: Miracles and Politics in a Secular Age<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Bedridden with a touch of the flu, at the moment, but thought I would post this brief book review of Italian historian Sergio Luzzatto, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Padre-Pio-Miracles-Politics-Secular/dp/B0099QV9GK" target="_blank">Padre Pio: Miracles and Politics in a Secular Age. </a> This is actually a very short, incomplete review I posted at Amazon and Goodnreads. In fact, I have much more to say about this fascinating study and all of the controversy swirling about it - at least when it was first published.<br />
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Fascinating anthropological study of the development of the cult surrounding Padre Pio, with most of the focus not on the holy friar himself but on the many cultural currents swirling around him, including and especially the rise of Fascism in pre WWII Italy. At one point two ''miraculous' bodies" dominated Italy's cultural scene: Il Duce's and 'the Saint's'. This study is not for the faint of heart or the overly pious, since it includes the suggestion of many scandals involving the cult and even (possibly) some deviltry on the part of Padre Pio himself. (I've been a devotee of Padre Pio for over 50 years and this book did little to change my attitude to the man himself) At first reading, it seemed to me that Luzzatto was fairly balanced and professional and true to his word that his intent was not to pass judgement on the authenticity of the wounds of this famous 20th century Catholic stigmatist, but simply to take a more critical and objective look at the cult surrounding him, without rose colored glasses. And at first reading, I found the book to be a blast of very fresh air, with many invaluable pieces of information not found in the hagiographical studies. However, one of his fiercest Italian critics, Andrea Tornielli,had this to say about his methodology:<br />
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<a href="https://zenit.org/articles/the-polemics-of-padre-pio/" target="_blank">(Taken from Zenit: The World Seen From Rome - The Polemics of Padre Pio)</a><br />
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"Luzzatto raised suspicions without getting to the bottom of any of them. He cast the stone and then hid his hand. He read only parts of documents; he made huge mistakes and errors. He cited documents in which it is inferred that Padre Pio asked a pharmacist for carbolic acid and veratrine but he did not explain that on the basis of other documents, it is quite clear what Padre Pio used these things for."<br />
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Just for the record, Ms. Tornielli is a little too traditional for my taste - or perspective. I would have more faith in her judgements if she wasn't referenced so often in neo fascist, Catholic websites like <a href="http://www.tfp.org/" target="_blank">Tradition, Family, Property.</a><br />
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Since I don't wish to make this review too lengthy, suffice it to say this wasn't my take on Luzzatto, casting stones and hiding his hand (he does recount Padre Pio's own explanations for the use of the carbolic acid), but then I'm not a professional scholar and don't have access to the documentation. However, towards the very end of the book, the author devotes some pages to the most salacious accusations of all - the alleged evidence of secret microphones planted in various places, which 'seemed' to suggest some impropriety on Pio's part with his female followers. The content of these tapes apparently shocked Pope John XXIII (who didn't actually listen to them) and resulted in the final Vatican investigation, headed by Monsignor Carlo Maccari, who would later suggest that Pio may have been enjoying carnal relations with some of his female devotees as much as twice a week. Now the Maccari affair (grotesque and repellent, in my opinion- letting my own biases show) is something I know a little about, having researched it some years ago. And here is where I can certainly fault Luzzatto and my suspicious began to tilt in Tornelli's direction. Luzzatto does not clarify that the microphones were not planted in Padre Pio's bedroom or the women's confessional, but only in the men's confessional and various visitors rooms where Padre Pio would converse with pilgrims. So in other words, we are not dealing with tapes that actually record intimate private moments between Padre Poi and women but only public conversations and bits of gossip from visitors in the rooms awaiting his arrival. Now that is a vital omission in a historical work purporting to be objective. It is the one detail that changes everything. Instead, Luzzatto drops the general insinuation of 'secret tapes' and leaves it hanging, dripping with innuendo. Furthermore, 'news' (from official Capuchin sources) stated that Msgr Maccari had recanted his accusations on his deathbed and asked for Padre Pio's forgiveness and blessing. And that would be a major story, in itself a deathbed recantation from Padre Pio's most recent official examiner. Is this an apocryphal story or can it be objectively verified? At the very least, if Luzzatto was as 'objective' as he claimed to be, then this incident should have been reported and explored - at least as to its plausibility. But not a word from Luzzatto (unless I missed it in the footnotes). Unfortunately, these key omissions cast doubts on the reliability of the rest of the book, much of which does seem to me to be of great value. This leads me to believe that Tornelli may be right as to Luzzatto's ultimate intentions. So while the book did little to affect my own estimation of the great sanctity of Padre Pio, it did help me to understand the complexities of the human context within which he lived and worked - and it left me with some serious doubts as to Luzzatto's ultimate fairness and objectivity as a scholar.<br />
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Unfortunately, Tornelli's main book in rebuttal to Luzzatto's "accusations", Padre Pio l’ultimo sospetto (Padre Pio: The Last Suspect), has not yet been translated into English, which would be a necessary read in reaching a balanced view of Luzzatto's book.<br />
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Final judgement: Really enjoyed Luzzatto's historical/anthropological study, fascinating material, a good deal of which I think is indisputable. But a significant amount of it is open to question and doubt, as well as Luzzatto's own motives. So I'm agnostic on that for the moment.<br />
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In any case, this is not the first book to recommend to any who are interested in the life of this remarkable Catholic saint. Bernard Ruffin's hagiographical work:<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Padre-Pio-C-Bernard-Ruffin/dp/0879736739/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1458256581&sr=8-1&keywords=PADRE+PIO+THE+TRUE+STORY" target="_blank">Padre Pio: The True Story</a> would be a more suitable choice, though it does gloss over many of the pertinent topics of Luzzatto's more historical/anthropological study.<br />
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Coming up soon: A book review of a fascinating gay priestly coming out story:<br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/That-Undeniable-Longing-Road-Priesthood-ebook/dp/B00K4JX0YU/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1458256300&sr=1-1&keywords=that+undeniable+longing" target="_blank">That Undeniable Longing. </a></div>
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That Undeniable Longing.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132410343235772418.post-77520504157621517832016-03-12T16:10:00.000-08:002018-02-13T16:17:06.364-08:00Hans Kung and Brother Francis, and other bits of this and that<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The National Catholic Reporter published an open letter from renowned theologian, Hans Kung, to Pope Francis three days ago (<a href="http://ncronline.org/news/theology/infallibility-hans-k-ng-appeals-pope-francis" target="_blank">read it here</a>), and it's a lovely letter, full of wisdom, courtesy and restraint - besides restating Kung's long held views on infallibility, the terrible harm the 'dogma' has caused the church, clogging up the process of reform. and the need to completely rethink it. What struck me was the warm, sympathetic tone with which Kung addressed the Pope, whom he says has always responded to his letters as a brother. And that is the evidently good side of Francis that so impressed so many of us early on in his career as 'the Bishop of Rome.' Kung also reminded us of the enormous opposition Francis faces at almost every turn, no matter what decisions he might make. I found that comment helpful to me, as a timely reminder, in light of my own questions regarding some of his behavior and decisions, most recently the procession of Padre Pio's remains into St. Peters and his 'refusal' to meet the Australian abuse survivors. Two comments at NCR also were a help to me, and I paraphrase: "The poor man, if he makes any radical change the whole structure will come tumbling down like a house of cards" - and - "the curial forces have him right where they want him, to ensure he makes no decisions that disturb the peace of the family." And so, I felt it was good to be reminded of this reality, even though it does not completely excuse being silent in Uganda or vigorously interfering in the public, political marriage debates in various countries. But it did leave me wondering what mechanisms of control might be in place constraining this man.</div>
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Truth to tell, I'm not really a pope watcher or church watcher, nor do I feel called by vocation to be part of efforts 'to reform the Catholic Church'. I'm situated - by grace, by providence, by choice - too far outside the boundaries of the institution for such actions. Yet I still feel connected on a mystical level to Holy Mother Church, with a felt sense of vocation to make a contribution in the areas of spirituality and mystical theology. So...when some things strike a chord, I take notice. Such was the case with the relics of Padre Pio, which stirred something very deep within and the event is still reverberating. </div>
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I just started Italian Jewish scholar, Sergio Luzzatto's 2007 book, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0099QV9GK/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pd_S_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=2H17M34NE3W6V&coliid=I1NXOM4DNMBASJ" target="_blank">Padre Pio: Miracles and Politics in a Secular Age,</a> and its really fascinating reading, and seems so far to be fairly well balanced. I mention his Jewish heritage because it's just what is needed in Pio studies, a detached, critical, scholarly look from someone outside the circle of faith, both Christianity in general and Roman Catholicism in particular. Luzzatto takes a close look at social, cultural and political currents surrounding Southern Italy at the time which facilitated the Padre Pio culte. The book caused something of an uproar in Italy when first published - for revealing secret Vatican files from the Holy Office detailing allegations from two chemists that Padre Pio secretly requested small portions of carbolic acid. This turned out to be something of a tempest in a teapot. Be that as it may, the really fascinating side of the book is it's detailed accounting of the relationship between the Padre Pio cult and the local fascists of San Giovanni Rotondo. Sensational stuff there and I'm really enjoying it like a breath of fresh air - without in any way detracting from my own personal devotion to the holy friar.</div>
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But staunch Catholic traditionalists and Padre Pio supporters were up in arms over the book, publishing some rather nasty rants on the subject. I only glanced through a few of them and found them quite unfair - but then I haven't yet finished the book, so who knows. So far, Luzzatto doesn't seem to have an agenda and I take his word - stated at the beginning - that he was not intent on reaching a conclusion about the true origins of Padre Pio's wounds. However, it seems that just by mentioning certain suspicious 'facts' and examining them in a scholarly way puts one on the side of the opposition. Luzzatto has been accused of 'dropping scurrilous gossip' and then not following it up, as a way of tarnishing Padre Pio's reputation without actually engaging head on with the evidence. No, I don't think so. He's simply asking the hard questions. </div>
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One does grow wearied by all the controversy and wading into the pools of thought of the religiously fundamental (to coin a phrase) is depressing in the extreme. The most succinct rebuttal to Sergio Luzzatto, apparently, comes from <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Saverio Gaeta and Andrea Torniell's book, not yet published in English</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">, </span><span style="background-color: white;"><i style="font-family: arial, sans-serif;">Padre Pio l’ultimo sospetto (Padre Pio: The Last Suspect</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> .</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Here is an interview with Andrea Tornielli, in which he takes Luzzatto to task for his many 'errors, distortions and omissions.' </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://zenit.org/articles/the-polemics-of-padre-pio/" target="_blank">The Polemics of Padre Pio.</a> </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">And the New Oxford Review's coverage of the book, which I found truly nasty and distorted in itself. </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.newoxfordreview.org/reviews.jsp?did=0112-baruch" target="_blank">Will the Real Padre Pio Please Stand up. </a></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;">The New Oxford Review's review mentions a second, recently published book, which most critics of Luzzatto's book are also referencing: Padre Pio Under Investigation: The Secret Vatican Files, published by St. Ignatius Press. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;">Here is a selection from the introduction, written by </span><b>Vittorio Messori, </b>which features a very pointed critique of Luzzatto's work<b> :</b></div>
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<b><a href="http://www.ignatiusinsight.com/features2011/print2011/messori_padrepio_mar2011.html" target="_blank">He Invited Me to Partake of His Sorrows</a></b></div>
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I suppose (sigh) there is much in Messori's position about the mystical tradition of the Roman Catholic Church that I might find myself in agreement with, it only it weren't accompanied by such unctuousness and tribal superiority, which mars the whole thing. </div>
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To tell the truth, I'd be much more comfortable sharing a glass of wine with <span style="text-align: justify;">Sergio Luzzatto and discussing the case of Padre Pio than I would with Vittorio Messori, whose brand of Catholicism gives me the creeps. And yet - and yet - I see no contradiction in this attitude and my own heartfelt devotion to the stigmatized friar of San Giovanni Rotondo. It's all a question of balance and detachment. </span></div>
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<span style="text-align: justify;">But it's precisely because phenomena like Padre Pio and Marian apparitions and bilocating saints attract such unctuous fundamentalists and weirdos and cranks that most well educated progressive thinking Catholics are turned off - and quickly flee the scene. I see their point.</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: justify;">Here, however, is a moving account of the scientific experiments conducted on Padre Pio's wounds to attempt to 'heal them'. </span></div>
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<span style="text-align: justify;"><a href="http://www.sanpadrepio.com/StigmataTruth.htm" target="_blank">The Truth about Padre Pio's Stigmata</a></span></div>
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<span style="text-align: justify;">And just to prove this point in a chilling way, while researching all of this I came across the blog of a New Hampshire priest, serving a 33 year prison sentence for molesting seven boys, Gordon MacRae. HIs blog site claims he was falsely accused, even though he pleaded guilty to molesting three of the boys ( a plea deal of dubious character). Apparently he balked at admitting he had molested one particular boy, and he says - refused a plea bargain that would have gotten him out in several years. What is shocking about this is that Gordon MacRae is also a passionate devotee of Padre Pio and identifies with his victimhood. Chilling. I glanced through the blog posts and read some of the comments from 'devout' Catholics praying for Father and hoping for his eventual vindication and also comparing him to a Christ Victim figure like Padre Pio. Don't know what to make of all this, but the Padre Pio connection is disturbing. There were a number of Wall Street Journal articles by Dorothy Rabinowitz:</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: justify;"><a href="http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424127887324482504578453363318730182#articleTabs%3Dvideo" target="_blank">The Trials of Father MacRae</a></span></div>
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OK, I glanced through some of this stuff and it looks fascinating in a highly disturbing way, and there may be something of substance here, though I'm dubious? I'm just noting - with dismay - the Padre Pio connection, linked with a child abuse case = and a great deal of vitriol aimed at SNAP. No wonder 'rational' Catholics flee the scene when bilocating stigmatists are the subject of conversation. </div>
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And here is Thomas Doyle's statement about Father Gordon MacRae:</div>
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<i><b>Fr. Gordon McRae exemplifies this continuing policy at Via Coeli of
giving power to former sexual perpetrators. He held an administrative post at
the center in 1990. I was a teacher in his seminary in 1978 when he
demonstrated psychological problems. In spite of early indications of
problems he was ordained in 1982; he may have abused a boy already in
1983, but no action was taken. But he pleaded guilty in 1988 to paying a boy
for sex and received a deferred jail term and instead was sent Via Coeli for
treatment. In 1993 he was charged with eleven counts of molestation of at
least 4 boys. He is now in a New Hampshire prison for 33 ½ to 67 years
convicted in 1994 on the assault of one boy. This tradition of Via Coeli to
hide and support abusers was repeated when Father Rudy Kos was
“secreted” at Via Coeli for a time in 1995 before his extradition from San
Diego and trial, conviction and imprisonment in Texas.</b></i></div>
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Finally, by a weird twist of fate - or providence - I was contacted by a former gay priests asking if I would be interested in reviewing his memoir. Mark Tedesco and the book is entitled, That Undeniable Longing, which refers to both the longing for the transcendent, for an infinite source of meaning in one's life as well as the very human longing for love, affection and connection. What is uncanny about this request/connection is that Mark Tedesco began his seminary training at San Vittorino outside Rome (in the 1970's) which was the residence of the once renowned, but since disgraced, "stigmatist', Father Gino Buresi. Father Buresi was forcibly retired by Pope Benedict amidst accusations of religious/mystical fraud and the sexual molestation of seminarians. He was also touted in his day as a Padre Pio wannabe. I've since finished the book and it's a fine 'gay coming-out' memoir which I hope to review within the week. </div>
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So in a way, everything comes full circle - Papa Francis brings the relics of Padre Pio to Rome and St. Peters and all sorts of reverberations occur. There does seem to be something mysteriously fortuitous about this event, perhaps for reasons beyond the conscious understanding and control of Pope Francis or any of the handlers of the event. Who knows. God works through many means, some of which we may not approve of at first. Something, it seems, was 'intended' and something was set in motion by the mysterious, paradoxical, confounding ceremony of bringing the relics of Padre Pio into St. Peter's. Despite my many reservations, I suspect we are being given a message here, though probably not the one explicitly intended by the organizers of this event. </div>
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I'm reminded of a remark by the spiritual writer China Gallard (<a href="http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_2?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=china+galland&rh=n%3A283155%2Ck%3Achina+galland" target="_blank">Longing for Darkness: Tara and the Black Madonna</a>), when she visited the great monastery of Jasna Gora in Poland, which houses the renowned icon of the Black Madonna of Czestochowa (beloved of John Paul II). </div>
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I paraphrase:</div>
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The many priests running about in their glistening black cassocks think they are controlling Her, when in fact, she is controlling them and using them to work Her own subversive purposes.</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132410343235772418.post-28358748597355406932016-03-06T12:46:00.001-08:002016-03-06T13:05:38.125-08:00Padre Pio, the Lemon Sellers of Buenos Aires and Saints of a Sexually Embodied Spirituality: Part 2<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Battling a touch of the flu, so it's taken me a while to finish the reflections I started in the last posting about the solemn 'transportation' of Padre Pio's relics into St. Peter's some weeks ago. Not sure how far I will get today. Not an earth shattering event, worthy of endless comment, but it touched me deeply for a variety reasons, so...just trying to sort my thoughts out in my own head.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">At the end of the last post, I had assembled a panoply of distinguished Catholic women to balance out against the full weight of Padre Pio's formidable reputation: Dorothy Day and the five martyred Maryknoll nuns of El Salvador (and perhaps the housekeeper of the Jesuits, murdered by similar forces). But then the obvious occurred: five consecrated women to balance out one celibate, ordained male, however holy. That didn't seem fair. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I was helped out of this dilemma by the seminal work, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Indecent-Theology-Marcella-Althaus-Reid/dp/0415236045/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1457289507&sr=1-1-fkmr0&keywords=Inde3cent+theology+reid" target="_blank">Indecent Theology,</a> by the feminist, queer theologian, <span style="background-color: white; color: #555555; line-height: 15px;">Marcella Althaus-Reid. Thanks to Kittredge Cherry of <a href="http://jesusinlove.blogspot.cz/search?q=Indecent+theology" target="_blank">Jesus in Love Blog</a>, for recommending it. In Kit's posting on Marcella's death five years agp (written by scholar, </span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "times new roman" , "times" , "freeserif" , serif; font-size: 15.4px; line-height: 21.56px; text-align: center;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; line-height: 21.56px; text-align: center;">Hugo Córdova Quero,</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #555555; line-height: 15px;"> she is referred to as: </span></span><br />
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<b style="background-color: white; color: #222222; line-height: 21.56px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> Marcella Althaus-Reid : Saint of a sexually embodied spirituality</span></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The post begins with this provocative paragraph:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-size: 15.4px; line-height: 21.56px;"><i><b>It is difficult to speak of someone who has recently passed away as a “saint.” Commonly, the popular belief is that someone who is considered a “saint” lived many centuries in the past. There is a need to “normalize” and “sanitize” the saint’s life in order to make it almost “perfect.” The temporal distance achieves this effect. If this is the rule through which the life and work of Marcella Althaus-Reid should be measured, then we are faced with someone who can hardly be placed inside this closet. If there is anything that Marcella did in her life, it was to come out of the closets that both culture and society as well as religion and theology have imposed on us through centuries of Christian history.</b></i></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-F1ub2qAOPjg/Vtx-zNwqIRI/AAAAAAAAF28/Bq-vA5AzZe4/s1600/Padre%2BPio.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-F1ub2qAOPjg/Vtx-zNwqIRI/AAAAAAAAF28/Bq-vA5AzZe4/s200/Padre%2BPio.gif" width="195" /></a><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-size: 15.4px; line-height: 21.56px;">Kit's posting and Quero's article, together with the first opening chapters of Marcella's I<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Indecent-Theology-Marcella-Althaus-Reid/dp/0415236045/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1457289507&sr=1-1-fkmr0&keywords=Inde3cent+theology+reid" target="_blank">ndecent Theology </a>finally gave me the candidate most suitable to place alongside the bier of Padre Pio, as a counterweight to the formidable tradition of Catholic piety he represents. A queer, radical, lesbian, feminist 'saint' who is anything but perfect and who embodies anything but denial of the sensual self. And a Christian lesbian woman who, through her groundbreaking writings, has extended God's mercy to those categories of human beings most marginalized and despised <b><i>by the official institution of Roman Catholicism itself</i></b>. This is exactly what was needed in St. Peter's during this pious show, a representative of the very people the official church refuses to extend mercy to. Now, clearly, the counterbalance feels 'just right'. Padre Pio and Marcella Althaus-Reid, the radical and despised example of holiness counterbalanced to the most traditional and revered. Alas, this reference has to be all too short. For those interested in learning more about this remarkable woman, please read the posting at J<a href="http://jesusinlove.blogspot.cz/search?q=Indecent+theology" target="_blank">esus in Love Blog.</a> </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-size: 15.4px; line-height: 21.56px;">But here's the kicker to this comparison that makes it all the more perfect: Marcella Reid was born in Argentina, the locale of </span></span></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #545454; line-height: 20.2222px;">Jorge Mario </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #6a6a6a; line-height: 20.2222px;">Bergoglio, our present Pope Francis, for most of his life. What could be more appropriate than a radical lesbian saint from Argentina? </span><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #6a6a6a;"><span style="line-height: 20.2222px;">Someone needs to say to Francis, fair is fair, 'Your Holiness." If you are going to impose a particular brand of spirituality on the face of the universal church - both the practice of revering relics and the particular choice of Padre Pio, then 'we the people' should be allowed our counter choice, someone who exemplifies a different kind of mercy, one more representative of the needs of the modern world. </span></span></span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #6a6a6a; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; line-height: 20.2222px;">Of course, I'm being somewhat flippant here in suggesting that any of these women would be suitable candidates for this particular kind of ceremony. One gags to think of it.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #6a6a6a; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20.2222px;">I take no issue with singling out Padre Pio for veneration and I appreciate the ancient Catholic tradition of reverencing the relics of the saints - provided it is kept in balance. But transporting dead saints up the central avenue into St. Peter's square - with fanfare, pomp and ceremony - , and dead saints carefully chosen for their 'suitability' (celibate, male, ordained) does not seem balanced at all. Quite the contrary. It is, in a word, unfair and unbalanced. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #6a6a6a; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20.2222px;">I can also understand that Padre Pio is not a saint for everybody. Contemporary educated Catholics, a fair percentage of them, might be turned off by, not to say suspicious of, the stories of his paranormal powers, from the stigmata to bilocation to the reading of souls. Here is one of the leading skeptical sites on the internet scrutinizing such claims, <a href="http://www.csicop.org/si/show/padre_pio_wonderworker_or_charlatan/notes" target="_blank">Center for Skeptical Inquiry, </a>for any who are interested. They have their own agenda and are far from balanced and unbiased, in my opinion, but a little iconoclasm is always a healthy thing. Again, much too big a subject for me to go into in a 'brief' blog post. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #6a6a6a; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20.2222px;">For myself, I have little doubt as to his towering sanctity or the authenticity of his gifts. I experienced a profound encounter with him in San Giovanni Rotondo in 1964 when I was but a lad of 21 and it changed my life forever. I've been devoted to him ever since (and read and studied everything I could about him). He was the last of the greats of the old time Catholic tradition and he deserves his place of respect in the panoply of great Catholic saints. But he is not a fit symbol for a forward moving Church, <b><i>at least not alone and by himself </i></b>(together with his gentle, unknown companion, Saint, Leopold {who?}). I'm sorry, Pope Francis, this is certainly not right. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #6a6a6a;"><span style="line-height: 20.2222px;">But there is something strangely 'providential' and 'mystical' about this choice, all the same, which makes it all the more strange. As Hugo Quero says in his article on Marcella Reid, </span></span></span><b style="color: #222222; font-size: 15.4px; font-style: italic; line-height: 21.56px;">There is a need to “normalize” and “sanitize” the saint’s life in order to make it almost “perfect. </b><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: 15.4px; line-height: 21.56px;">And this is exactly what has been done here. Padre Pio during his lifetime was renowned (or notorious, take your pick) for turning people away from the confessional whom he suspected (through the 'reading of souls' or an uncanny instinct) of approaching him with insincere motives of repentance and with no intention of making amends to those they might have harmed. The greater the sinner the more resounding the treatment from this prophet of true repentance. The confessional door might come clamming down in their faces, conjoined with the thunderous admonition, "Come back to me only when you are truly willing and able to repent and amend your ways."</span></span> He was famous for this treatment and in this he is not unlike some of the great Zen Masters - in using shock treatment to awaken people to their own levels of denial. You could not approach the confessional of Padre Pio and expect to walk away with your middle class respectability and pious religiosity intact. He would shatter both. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">How ironic, then, to bring this great prophet of true repentance, metanoia and amendment into the very heart of the most dishonest system of denial in the Church today, Vatican City and Saint Peter's. I don't know. I strikes me as a kind of blind stupidity not to notice the supreme irony. Set up an abuse commission dealing with child abuse in the church - with little or no intention of effecting any real reform or making any real amends to victims, only empty protestations of regret and repentance, that ring hollow in the absence of any real change? This is exactly the kind of behavior that would arouse the ire of this great saint and bring the confessional door slamming down in one's face. One can just feel the pillars of St. Peter's tremble and shake. And the complete denial of any wrongdoing, any sinfulness, in the church's treatment of gay people?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">And so, the remarkable Oscar win of the Hollywood film, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1895587/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1" target="_blank">Spotlight</a>, (chronicling the efforts of the Boston Globe to expose the child abuse crisis in the Church of Boston) fell like a bomb into the midst of all these pious ceremonies inaugurating the "Holy Year of Mercy", even though the win came some days later. In light of<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1895587/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1" target="_blank"> Spotlight</a>, all the pious gestures of officialdom are suddenly relativized and put in perspective, as little more than empty show. Mercy for whom, we must ask, at the start of this holy year? And this is <i><b>without disparaging </b></i> the numerous graces that were undoubtedly bestowed (almost despite the contradictions) on the many people filing past the corpses of Pio and Leopold. Truly, Grace works in mysterious ways. I'm sure some of the pilgrims, at least, could hear the rumblings of the great prophet of the confessional, protesting the hypocrisy of using him in this way. To me, it seemed profoundly disrespectful.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Likewise, I respect Francis' personal piety, it seems deep and genuine. It would be too easy to take the cynical route and accuse him of being a theatrical hypocrite, simply acting for show. He comes across as a genuine man of deep prayer. And therein lies the paradox, painful to comprehend, how such an evidently good man could have such blind spots. For it is difficult to accept the piety of someone who sits with the dignitaries and leaders of Uganda and says not one word about the draconian laws persecuting gay people, who intervenes in the legal processes of Estonia, Latvia and Slovakia regarding gay marriage and who is capable of giving someone of the ilk of Cardinal Pell his "100% support" - if Cardinal Pell is to be believed, and who then ignores the Australian abuse survivors who traveled to Rome to attend the commission. Praying with a holy card at the bier of Padre Pio? But then, of course, he is 'only' the Pope, and in a more balanced church, other voices would receive equal attention and respect. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Having come to the end of this long post, what has happened to the lemon sellers of Buenos Aires? Well, in the first chapter of <a href="http://jesusinlove.blogspot.cz/search?q=Indecent+theology" target="_blank">Marcella Reid's</a> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Indecent-Theology-Marcella-Althaus-Reid/dp/0415236045/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1457289507&sr=1-1-fkmr0&keywords=Inde3cent+theology+reid" target="_blank">Indecent Theology</a>, she devotes a substantial part of her reflections to these poor, indigenous women of the streets, who sell their wares out in the open. Because public toilets are denied to these marginalized women, they must choose not to wear underwear under their long black skirts - so that they can modestly relieve themselves at the curbside without raising their skirts. This practice - of going without underwear for practical reasons - arouses the ire of the guardians of patriarchy in the police force, who harass these women, insult them, sometimes arrest them - for crimes 'against female modesty'. And Marcella tells us these women are a fit subject or model for doing a renewed liberation theology of the poor and marginalized - since that traditional Liberation Theology, focused on the countryside, had trouble 'seeing' them as fit subjects for theological reflections. Here are the real, most deserving recipients of God's mercy, poor indigenous women without underwear on the streets of Buenos Aires. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">And in searching around for suitable companions for Padre Pio in St. Peters, I thought of these women of Buenos Aires. Let's bring one (or more) of them up the central aisle, in a glass enclosed coffin, possibly a prostitute, maybe a lesbian, dressed in their long black skirts and without wearing underwear - as a sign of contradiction and a message to us all that God's mercy is extended to those we are most blind to recognizing in our midst. But also, God's mercy undoubtedly flows onto all of us from the wounded hearts of such marginalized, rejected figures. Padre Pio and Saint Marcella pray for us.</span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132410343235772418.post-74057475469142236262016-03-04T09:40:00.001-08:002016-03-05T03:03:10.929-08:00Padre Pio, Spotlight and the Lemon Sellers of Buenos Aires<br />
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Padre Pio in Rome, Spotlight and the Lemon Sellers of Buenos Aires</div>
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What do Padre Pio, the Hollywood film, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1895587/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1" target="_blank">Spotlight</a> (recipient of this year's Oscar for best picture) and the lemon sellers of Buenos Aires have in common? Very little, I would think, except that they represent certain connections I've been making over the past several weeks from events that have made distinct impressions on me. These are my disjointed ruminations, apologies if they are not coherent.<br />
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It was something of a shock to me to hear the news several weeks ago that Pope Francis, as part of the ceremonies inaugurating his Holy Year of Mercy, had arranged for the remains of <a href="https://www.ewtn.com/padrepio/man/index.htm" target="_blank">Padre Pio</a>, the renowned 20th century stigmatist, to be transported to Rome and laid in state in the heart of St. Peter's - together with the remains of another holy Capuchin friar, St. Leopold Mandic of Croatia, both of them renowned as confessors who spent many tireless hours in the confessional box. Both of these figures - white, male, celibate ordained priests - may be holy men (I happen to think they are and have no trouble accepting the testimonies of Padre Pio's paranormal gifts), but they represent an extreme wing of the Roman Catholic tradition, the pious, "supernatural", "redemptive suffering", wonder-working wing so dear to traditionalists. In other words, Pope Francis' gesture, bizarre as it may be (and it seems bizarre to me) is also heavily weighted on one side of the Church, to the detriment of that part of the church (not well represented by the hierarchy) that has moved on into another post Vatican II age. Is Francis giving us a sign here of his priorities or simply indulging his own personal piety (he is profoundly devoted to Pio).<br />
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In this I am reminded of a remark made by the scripture scholar, Edward Malatesta, S.J., at the University of San Francisco, long, long ago in 1966, to whit, "The Pope must be put in his place." This was considered 'radical' talk in those days, the opinion that one man, the Pope, wields too much power and attracts too much attention and has too much influence over the shape of popular Catholic culture, when he should merely be a figurehead and symbol of unity and little more. I mention Father Malatesta, because he was a deeply holy man and a profound mystic, who - when he heard the news of Pope Paul VI's encyclical, Humanae Vitae, forbidding Catholics the use of artificial birth control - went for a walk along the skyline of San Francisco and rejoiced in his heart. We all looked at one another when he said that to us, and said, "Huh?" What could there possibly be to rejoice about? And Fr. Malatesta said, "I rejoiced because I knew the Church is born in suffering." It was a profound remark that only a great mystic could make, and it helps to ground his more 'liberal' critiques of the whole system of the papacy,.Well, here we have a perfect example. One man, Pope Francis, however well intentioned, has imposed a particular, very traditional figurehead of Roman Catholicism at the start of the Holy Year of Mercy, without fairly representing other aspects of the contemporary church. And it isn't just the figurehead, it's the whole idea of venerating relics in such a spectacular fashion.<br />
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However, despite my 'progressive' grumblings and dismay over the spectacle of transporting dead saints into St. Peter's, I have to admit being quite moved by the video depicting Francis at prayer before Padre Pio's remains, deep in contemplation and clutching a holy card of the saint. Francis' devotion seems genuine and profound. These two holy Capuchin confessors dispensed mercy from the confessional box and Francis is beginning his Holy Year of Mercy, so they seem fit representatives to him, it seems. Except that the whole weight of the 'spectacle' is profoundly out of balance, in my view, not simply on the side of male, celibate, ordained ministers of the Church (does anyone else count?) but also on the side of that very traditional, pious supernatural element of the tradition, which as of the start of Vatican II, was itself profoundly out of balance and in dire need of deep purification. Weeping statues, and bleeding corpses and levitating, bilocating saints. Too big a subject for me to go into here. But someone needs to take direct issue with Francis and say, "Well and good, you are devoted to Padre Pio, but what about the rest of us? Where are our more fitting representatives? And of course, it also needs to be stated, in the words of a parishioner of San Giovanni Rotondo, "Padre Pio should have been left in his place. Saints don't go on pilgrimages, ordinary people do."<br />
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But if you are the Pope, are you the only one to decide if this ceremony of dead saints is fitting - and if it is (???) - do you alone decide who gets to be transported up the grand boulevard leading into St. Peter's? Where is the rest of the Church represented as symbols of God's mercy? And so I tried to think of alternatives, other saints whose bodies we could exhume, transport (even on airplanes), encase in glass coffins and parade into St. Peter's. The first figure that came to mind, of course, was Oscar Romero, not yet canonized, but so what. (God forbid, however, that we should subject his remains to such a public display in St. Peters. He would turn over in his grave. But - if you know anything about the man - so would Padre Pio!). But no, that would be just yet another male, celibate ordained figure. Then I thought of Mother Teresa, a woman from the Third World. But no, too much a part of the old spirituality of redemptive suffering (which, if properly balanced, has its place in the panoply of Catholic spirituality). Too much old school. Then I felt myself getting closer. The five martyred Maryknoll nuns of El Salvador, let's bring them up and place them next to Padre Pio as another example of God's mercy - extended to the very poorest of the poor. These heroic nuns both ministered to them as well as witnessed against the very systems of injustice that have oppressed the poor in the first place. In other words, mercy is not just extended to the private sinner in the confessional box, but to all those suffering oppression at the hands of unjust systems we ourselves perpetuate. We have moved so far beyond this mentality - that sin is private and mercy is extended to the poor only as charity, we - meaning most sensible people of faith. The hierarchy as a whole has refused to get off the old bus and join the rest of us on the march to Selma. Francis by privileging Padre Pio (a great saint in my opinion, no disagreement there) has tilted the see saw of history back about fifty years, to the private sin in the confessional and the miracle working, levitating, bilocating saint who does not challenge history! But Padre Pio next to the five martyred nuns of El Salvador, well, that would certainly send out a far more balanced message. And while we're at it, let's bring out Dorothy Day, cover her 'face' with a silicone mask (since she would certainly - out of mere stubbornness - refuse to remain incorrupt!), and place her in St. Peters (God forbid). She hasn't even been declared venerable, yet alone blessed, but so what. Now we're talking.<br />
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(To be continued shortly, then back to Spotlight and the lemon sellers of Buenos Aires who wear no underwear and who outrage the patriarchal guardians of the police force.)<br />
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<script src="http://player.ooyala.com/player.js?embedCode=B1OGNxMDE60QW5YbjE-gQJDygQqee0tf&width=620&height=349&deepLinkEmbedCode=B1OGNxMDE60QW5YbjE-gQJDygQqee0tf&video_pcode=RvbGU6Z74XE_a3bj4QwRGByhq9h2&playerBrandingId=ZTIxYmJjZDM2NWYzZDViZGRiOWJjYzc5&thruParam_tmgui[relatedVideo]=http%3A%2F%2Fcdn.api.ooyala.com%2Fv2%2Fassets%3Fwhere%3Dembed_code%2Bin%2B%2528%2527swNDd2MDE6-8onSQPBeNPzrMRbgPq8b9%2527%252C%2527QzNWJleTpTtDnIEXxhTMuRsv5DHFahYr%2527%252C%25275rcGV1dzqKJ003g8nn8iqsTOUxIQtV9W%2527%252C%252795YTFxeTqPIkqJTanRsscj5s1X0meR4h%2527%2529%26api_key%3DRvbGU6Z74XE_a3bj4QwRGByhq9h2.WFFAb%26expires%3D1640995199%26signature%3DuEGiKU%252BHnYJUEqpS%252BSNoDxPZZA%252Bt0%252BJhqOWyOlEkoCs"></script>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132410343235772418.post-14086580434397144122016-02-24T14:00:00.000-08:002016-02-24T14:00:03.460-08:00The Passion of Christ: A Gay Vision - at the Advocate<br />
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The leading US gay magazine, t<a href="http://www.advocate.com/art/2016/2/24/passion-christ-gay-vision?team=social" target="_blank">he Advocate,</a> is running an article on Kittredge Cherry and Doug Blanchard's striking book, <a href="http://www.passionofchristbook.com/" target="_blank">The Passion of Christ: A Gay Vision</a>, which I've featured before here at Gay Mystic. If you wish to join in the discussion, please follow the link. Kittredge and Doug could use some support. While there have been many shares, warmly appreciated, I'm sure, the comments sections (of the magazine and Facebook) are - as usual - littered with the detritus of some truly hateful, disturbed people.<br />
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In response to one commentator on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/TheAdvocate/posts/10153687884903855?hc_location=ufi" target="_blank">Facebook,</a> taunting and defying Kit and Doug to depict Mohammed as a gay man (and thereby entirely missing the point), I offered these reflections.<br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span data-offset-key="b9740-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #141823; line-height: 16px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span data-text="true">Actually, given the rise of anti Muslim feeling in the US and elsewhere in Western culture, it would be just as appropriate to depict Mohammad as a 'crucified figure', despised and rejected for his ethnicity and his faith. Jesus identified particularly with the outcast and the despised, extending to them God's love and acceptance, and, hanging from his tree of torture, he well represents all the outcasts of this earth . For centuries in Western Europe, ironically, the most despised figure in the culture was 'the Jew,' despised and rejected by the very Western institution bearing witness to the life of Jeshu, or Jesus of Nazareth. In our own day, the gay woman or man together with the Muslim, have now been put - unjustly - on the cross of rejection and persecution in much of the world (most heinously in parts of Africa for gays). Why is it so difficult for some people to see the obvious analogy? </span></span><span class="_5u8u" data-offset-key="b9740-1-0" spellcheck="false" style="background-color: #dce6f8; color: #141823; line-height: 16px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span data-offset-key="b9740-1-0"><span data-text="true">Kittredge Cherry</span></span></span><span data-offset-key="b9740-2-0" style="background-color: white; color: #141823; line-height: 16px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span data-text="true"> and </span></span><span class="_5u8u" data-offset-key="b9740-3-0" spellcheck="false" style="background-color: #dce6f8; color: #141823; line-height: 16px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span data-offset-key="b9740-3-0"><span data-text="true">Doug Blanchard</span></span></span><span data-offset-key="b9740-4-0" style="background-color: white; color: #141823; line-height: 16px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span data-text="true">'s book is not mocking the Christian faith, it is witnessing to its deepest, most authentic core. Only someone who does not understand what Jesus really represents would find offense in this striking work of art. This suggests nothing about Jesus' own personal sexuality, it simply points to the ultimate significance of his living witness, still among us, still identified with those we most despise and reject, still offering comfort and redemption, still shocking us into recognizing how easily we single out vulnerable minority groups as the victims of our own vitriol and hate.</span></span></span><br />
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132410343235772418.post-33080643486416020002015-12-21T06:08:00.001-08:002015-12-21T06:08:26.852-08:00Top 25 LGBTQ Christian books of 2015 - from Jesus in Love Blog<br />
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In my haste to run through a list of best gay fiction of the year in the previous posting (and Tennessee's biography), I should have clarified that I was looking primarily at 'secular' gay fiction, but with an eye wide open for any religious themes that might surface. The most Catholic of my offerings, Tom Spanbauer's <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Now-Hour-Tom-Spanbauer-ebook/dp/B0031RS308/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1450045008&sr=1-1&keywords=Now+is+the+hour" target="_blank">Now is the Hour</a>, took a rather dim view of the harmful effects of a traditional Catholic upbringing. Michael Nava's <a href="http://www.amazon.com/City-Palaces-Novel-Michael-Nava/dp/0299299104/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1450046444&sr=8-1&keywords=City+of+Palaces" target="_blank">City of Palaces</a> also deals with Christian gay themes in Mexico.<br />
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However, Kittredge Cherry at Jesus in Love Blog has compiled a superb list of the best 25 LGBTQ books of the year, a very rich offering indeed - from theology to art/culture to biography to gay fiction. Check it out <a href="http://jesusinlove.blogspot.cz/2015/11/top-25-lgbtq-christian-books-of-2015.html" target="_blank">here at Jesus in Love. </a><br />
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As an aspiring YA gay christian novelist myself (working on a crime novel set in Prague with gay teen protagonists) I was especially interested in Mia Kerrick's <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Inclination-Mia-Kerick-ebook/dp/B00T9UTRFQ/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=" target="_blank">Inclination</a>, from Kittredge's list. I've just added this book to my 'must read' list!<br />
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Here's the blurb from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Inclination-Mia-Kerick-ebook/dp/B00T9UTRFQ/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=" target="_blank">Amazon:</a><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.4px;">Sixteen-year-old Anthony Duck-Young Del Vecchio is a nice Catholic boy with a very big problem. It’s not the challenge of fitting in as the lone adopted South Korean in a close-knit family of Italian-Americans. Nor is it being the one introverted son in a family jam-packed with gregarious daughters. Anthony’s problem is far more serious—he is the only gay kid in Our Way, his church’s youth group. As a high school junior, Anthony has finally come to accept his sexual orientation, but he struggles to determine if a gay man can live as a faithful Christian. And as he faces his dilemma, there are complications. After confiding his gayness to his intolerant adult youth group leader, he’s asked to find a new organization with which to worship. He’s beaten up in the church parking lot by a fanatical teen. His former best pal bullies him in the locker room. His Catholic friends even stage an intervention to lead him back to the “right path.” Meanwhile, Anthony develops romantic feelings for David Gandy, an emo, out and proud junior at his high school, who seems to have all the answers about how someone can be gay and Christian, too. Will Anthony be able to balance his family, friends and new feelings for David with his changing beliefs about his faith so he can live a satisfying life and not risk his soul in the process?</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1