Metaphysics and Latin still reign my coursework as my favorites by far. Ancient Philosophy is becoming more substantial as we take an in-depth look at Plato and Aristotle for the remainder of the semester (the first third of the course was all the Greeks before Plato). In Literature, we read the Divine Comedy (principal passages) since I last posted.
We had members of NET Ministries visiting the Boston area this week; they stayed with us for two nights. They are a traveling team of young adults that give retreats and workshops for middle and high school-aged youth around the country. It was exciting to have modern missionaries in our midst.
Fr. Michael Gaitley was just ordained with the Marians of the Immaculate Conception last weekend. I had met him at St. Peter Chanel several years ago when he was studying with the Oblates. He came to St. Clement's to celebrate a first Mass here on Tuesday.
This week was also full of canceled classes (can't really be full if there's something missing...) due to teachers traveling and adjusting classes in order to give a long exam in one section. My schedule is so irregular anyway that such changes do not actually constitute much of a disruption.
Confirmation classes are going well; our second meeting was better organized and more comprehensive; we are getting the hang of it now, and I expect it will continue to improve, for the children's sake. Please continue to pray that their hearts may be opened to receive Our Lord and Our Lady and that they will begin to listen to and follow God's call for them each day for the rest of their lives.
Pope Benedict XVI wrote a letter to seminarians, released on Monday, the Feast of St. Luke, Evangelist. In it, he highlights the importance of having good priests and shows us how to pursue our formation, in all four pillars identified by his predecessor, Pope John Paul II: spiritual, intellectual, pastoral, and human. Pope Benedict is very conscious of the opposition and difficulties that priests and seminarians face today, as well as the potential for modern technology-based means of evangelization to make a profound difference in the near future. He closes with the following:
"Dear seminarians, with these few lines I have wanted to let you know how often I think of you, especially in these difficult times, and how close I am to you in prayer. Please pray for me, that I may exercise my ministry well, as long as the Lord may wish. I entrust your journey of preparation for priesthood to the maternal protection of Mary Most Holy, whose home was a school of goodness and of grace. May Almighty God bless you all, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit."
Until next time,
Love the Immaculata!
Mariam cogita, Mariam invoca
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