Monsoon Days in Guadalajara

Buenas tardes! My first day in Guadalajara was very humid – it is their monsoon season, and it still rains heavily most afternoons, but octubre brings drier days and the month-long Fiesta de Octubre, which the city celebrates with music, dance, food and sporting events.

Today I visited two churches (I know…what a nerd…) very near to where I am staying. The first is the beautiful Templo de San Francisco de Asis, built between 1668 and 1692 by the Franciscan Fathers. They established a church on this site in 1552(!) The façade has columns that are described as ‘Solomnic’ because they seemingly spiral upward.

And, of course, I visited and attended Mass at the Catedral de Guadalajara, which is under the patronage of St. Mary of the Assumption (the same patron as the cathedral in San Francisco, USA.) Guadalajara’s cathedral was begun in 1561, and completed about 30 years later. It is a combination of many different architectural styles including Moorish (something we will see a lot of in Spain), Gothic, Renaissance and Classical. There are beautiful plazas surrounding the cathedral where people gather throughout the day, and they are decorated with the colors and flags of Mexico in celebration of Independence Day, which was just a week ago on September 16th. The cathedral has bright yellow steeples atop its towers, but these were only added in 1854 and a major earthquake demolished the original steeples in 1818.

The Mass today was celebrated with the Archbishop of Guadalajara and a choir of men and a few women accompanied by organ. The men had the typical wonderful deep resonant sound so common of Mexican singers. They did both a sung Kyrie, Gloria and Agnus Dei in Latin, and other literature. Not enough women for a very balanced sound, and there were intonation problems caused by the distance from the organ. It was great to hear the choir. Just as Mass started, the monsoon started pouring outside!

Well, tomorrow is the first day of school, and I have those typical ‘first day of school’ jitters which all of you experienced only a few weeks ago. I wonder what my teacher will be like? Other students? I wonder if my teacher will give lots of notes? Just kidding…Adios y hasta luego!

In Your Kindness Remember +Francisco

Dear Friends,

I have just arrived in Mexico City and got word that Francisco Moreno, the young man we have been keeping in our prayers for these many months has died. Francisco suffered greatly in his last weeks. Pray that God will command him to be taken up with the angels and saints to that place where there will be no more pain or suffering, but only health, wholeness and life. Remember Francisco's family, especially his mother and father who worked so hard to bring him to health and now grieve his loss terribly. Francisco's Funeral Mass will be in the Cathedral on Monday at 7:00 PM.

Eternal rest grant unto +Francisco, Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him.

May his soul and all the souls of the faithful departed through the mercy of God rest in peace.

Getting Ready for Guadalajara

I am packing and making final preparations for my departure to Guadalajara on Saturday morning. I am enthusiastic, but a little apprehensive about being on the other side of the classroom -- I will be a student again!

Guadalajara was founded in 1531, and is one of the three largest cities in Mexico. It boasts a beautiful cathedral (where I hope to make connections with our cathedral!)and serves as the capital city of the state of Jalisco. It is also home to the popular soccer (football) team Chivas - when you see Fr. Omar next be sure to tell him that you are a Chivas fan!

I'll begin posting in Mexico when I get settled. Please know that I will keep you all in my thoughts and prayers. When you say your prayers, please remember Francisco Moreno, a young man in our church who is very sick.

DO THE PUYALLUP!!

OK, today was an incredible day here in the northwest, and I did something with my parents that I have not done for over 25 years -- today we went to the Puyallup Fair! Here in Western Washington, this is THE fair to attend, and everyone describes it as "Doing the Puyallup." For those of you unfamiliar with this city, it bears one of the Native American tribe names and it is pronounced "pew - al - up." There is even a song that everyone sings which you can listen to and learn here.

There are so many memories here.. As kids we came to the fair every year and had remarkable fun. What's at the fair?

Well, when you arrive you go immediately to the Scone stand for a hot raspberry scone (or two.)




After this, you plunge immediately into the barns to begin reviewing the animals. They are amazing. Cows, Sheep, Goats...







Big horses - what can one say??



BREAKFAST!!!



After the animals you head for the carnival. The Puyallup Fair has a very only Wooden Roller Coaster that is still in operation.





When I was nine years old, I went on a special ride called "The Old Mill" which you floated on water through a huge dark complex on a boat with surprises along the way (they used to be called "Tunnels of Love" but that was hardly appropriate in Puyallup!) This old memorable ride burned down in 1970. Aw Shucks!





Not having the stomach or the equilibrium for riding the big coaster, Mr. Glenn prefers to stick to...





Mom, Dad and I had a great day at the Fair!

Coming in March...A Neume Specialist...

Sorry for the lack of posts - I have been with my aunt and uncle who live on remote Hammersleigh Inlet and have not had internet access.

In March, we will have a special visitor who will help us with our singing of the chant. He is a Benedictine Monk from the same abbey in Minnesota that began the Abbey I wrote about in the previous post. He will expand our understanding of this important element of our music-making. More to come!

Benedict: From Sixth Century Italy to the Pacific Northwest

One great blessing about being home with my parents is that they live very near to a Benedictine monastery – I know…”What a NERD! I’d rather they live near a mall or megaplex theaters…” – No, I am glad they live near this monastery. St. Martin’s Abbey was founded in 1891, the year Salt Lake became a Diocese and roughly the days when our own Bishop Scanlan was raising the money and drawing up the plans to build his new cathedral – The Cathedral of the Madeleine. St. Martin’s Abbey was established by a larger monastery located in Minnesota. They sent a group of monks to start the new monastery in the west as greater numbers of people began to immigrate to the western United States.

The monks set themselves up in temporary quarters and immediately began an ‘apostolate’ – a 50-cent (or is it fiddy-cent?) word that means their ‘mission’, or the work they would specifically do in order to advance the Kingdom of God. In this new monastery under the patronage of St. Martin of Tours (you all remember the day that Mrs. Malinka drags around one of the younger classes singing a song about a goose or something? That is St. Martin’s Day – big in Germany even though Martin settled in what is today France!) the apostolate would be education, and they opened what would become St. Martin’s University.

St. Martin’s Abbey has over 35 monks who live by the Rule of St. Benedict, a guide for living often summed up with the motto Ora et Labora, or pray and work. Now all of you who have had my Church History Class know that I practically hyperventilate when it comes to teaching about the Rule of St. Benedict. Why? Well, I find it fascinating that this simple manual for Christian people seeking God’s kingdom and living together in community was written in the fifth century it continues to be a wildly successful guide today. There are thousands of monasteries scattered throughout the world where this rule is still used as their guide for living together.


The rule begins with the word Obsculta or Listen and continues “…carefully, my son, to the master’s instruction and attend to them with the ear of your heart.” Now I may know very little about biology and human physiology, but I do know that the heart does not have an ear! Benedict, in this strange expression is getting at one of the challenges we face throughout life – we really do not listen very well. We tend to tune out our parents, our teachers,

[I KNOW some of you think my classes sound like this..."> ]

our coaches, our friends and others. We are masters at filling up our heads and our hearts so that we don’t listen, especially the listening required for hearing the one who is closer to us than we are to our selves – God. Benedict starts with listening, because he knows that no progress will be made if people are not willing to open their hearts, examine themselves and truly listen.

How do monasteries, with a group of people locked up behind walls, serve the church today? How can they possibly fulfill their responsibility to be ‘evangelical’ or spreading the good news – news that happiness is not truly found in lives lived for consumption, greed, personal satisfaction and material possessions? These monasteries aren’t exactly media powerhouses, getting the word out in attractive, glitzy and star-powered ways? No, they quietly and steadily do their ‘ora et labora’ or prayer and work. They are like the deep roots planted to allow the vine to grow in a healthy and steady way, bearing fruit for God’s kingdom.

Hope's Temporary Paradise

One of the great side benefits of Hope's visit with my parents while I am in Mexico will be here new position as chief of security for my parent's back yard and garden.






Hope is already fully engaged in her new position, ridding my mother's yard of various pest and intruders, including Leporidae (aka bunny rabbits), Sciuridae (squirrels), Fringillidae (sparrows), Cyanocitta Strickland 1845 (blue jays) and more. It is a big job, but she is totally committed to a fine performance.


We have already had one slip however -- these two Anas platyrhynchos Linnaeus 1758 (aka Ducks) slipped into the fringe of the garden. I am sure a prompt response occurred upon their discovery...


They were probably headed for the recently ripened blueberry bush, or maybe the corn...

133 Years Ago Today!

No, I was not born. It was a great day for the Catholic Church in Utah. The first Catholic School opened for classes on September 6, 1875. St. Mary's Academy was begun by two Sisters of the Holy Cross. Located where the Salt Palace Convention Center currently stands, this school for girls eventually moved to become St. Mary's of the Wasatch in 1926. Eventually this school was merged with our current Judge Memorial High School.

It is amazing that two sisters arrived in June of 1875, and worked over the summer with no school building, no desks, no books, and a very small Catholic population, but they were able to begin classes by this date after only a few months.

Thousands of Utah Catholics have benefited from the legacy of this first school (a boys school opened on the same site the following year.) Photos feature Mother Augusta, one of the first two sisters to arrive in 1875, and the building which served as St. Mary's until 1926.

Let's remember to say thank you to God for all who have gone before us, working on behalf of the Church in Utah, and let's be thoughtful about how we can preserve and maintain that legacy, so that these places of education and formation remain open for service to the generations to come.

Life in the Fat Free Zone

My parents are amazing people. My dad is 71 and my mom is 69, and they are in very excellent health. They really put me to shame. (Not too long ago, Bishop Niederauer reminded me that I had entered my cardiac years!)


Being a typical son, one of the first places I visited was the refrigerator. Opening the refrigerator was a revelation! It became clear that visiting them these few weeks before going to Guadalajara means a few lifestyle changes! I should come back a new person, and in better health because of my weeks in the fat free zone.

Following the Lewis and Clark Trail

As I journeyed home the latter half of my trip to Olympia, Washington involved traveling along the Columbia River Gorge, and in fact tracing the final steps of the Lewis and Clark expedition of 1804 through 1806. Knowing that the Eighth Grade will be studying this important event in the early history of the United States, I offer a few photos, links and reflections.

Growing up in Washington State means growing up with the Columbia River. The Columbia loomed large in our state history, with stories of salmon runs so large that you could walk across the huge river and massive shipwrecks because the mouth of the river where it pours into the Pacific Ocean was so treacherous.

The River Gorge is incredibly beautiful, and was the topic of many entries in the journals of Lewis and Clark. With the Louisiana Purchase of 1803 a whole new world was to open up for the young United States. The expedition was the beginning of the expansion west, an expansion that took place with no little difficulty and with many physical and moral dilemmas. As you get ready to study this in class, here find links to the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center and the Lewis and Clark National Park

One can only marvel at the bravery and courage exhibited by these early pioneers venturing into the unknown of the West. You and I are the beneficiaries of this expansion, and the adventurous spirit of people like Lewis and Clark.

What are the great adventures of our generation that will demand courage? We do not seem to have much land on our planet that has not been explored. The Solar System and beyond lies before us, but may a different adventure needs to begin, a journey inward. We have often reflected on the amazing developments of the last centuries in science, technology and communications. While we as humans have rapidly developed our intellects, physical prowess and our understanding and control of the forces of nature, it seems we continue to rather childish and undeveloped in our spiritual lives. Sadly, we often find ourselves spiritual infants, even while surrounded with vast amounts of information, knowledge and other advances.

Pope Benedict XVI recently called us all to duc in altum or to go deeper. The arts, humanities and our faith are great resources for exploring the depths of the human spirit. Poetry, music, the visual arts, and much more set out before us many opportunities to go deeper. The great spiritual authors of the Catholic faith -- St. Benedict, St. Francis of Assisi, Theresa of Avila, St. John of the Cross, St. Therese of Lisieux and many others have written of their journeys on the trail of the spiritual life.

Maybe you are called to lead the first expedition to Mars, but most of us have a great adventure set before which is the life of the spirit - a life of friendship with Jesus Christ, who sets before what it means to be truly human, and leads us in the greatest adventure of all. How do you get started? Take one step - say your prayers tonight.

Only Seven Miles Outside of Ogden...

Only seven miles outside of Ogden, approximately 40 minutes into our 14 hour travel, I got the first "Are we there yet?" involving a shiver, a slight wimper and a long stare...it was going to be a long trip...