Author: Tom Faranda

This is written by a Jesuit Polish-American priest, the late Walter J. Ciszek, and I have been meaning to read it for quite a number of years. Father was imprisoned by the Soviet Union while carrying on a priestly mission ministry in Russia. They claimed he was a spy.  Fr. Ciszek spent 23 years (1940-1963)…

Here is a feature article in the Washington Post that some might find fiddly and boring, but I found fascinating. It gives a great insight into Mennonite and Amish thinking. These groups continue to prosper as they stick with their traditional ways. Still Called by Faith To the Phone Booth It used to be that…

My friend John Lally sent me the following email, which I have slightly edited. Anyone  interested, note the phone number and email address at the end. UPDATE: Things are not looking good in Darfur! Shaky Darfur Peace at Risk as New Fighting Looms – New York Times John ***************************************************************************************************************** September 17th – Rally to "SAVE…

Here’s a really interesting study of neural activity in Carmelite sisters. Very intereesting, even if it doesn’t prove much. Telegraph | News | Nuns prove God is not figment of the mind In other words, mystical experiences are mediated by several brain regions and systems normally implicated in functions such as self-consciousness, emotion and body…

Here’s an interesting online Catholic Church bulletin I came across It wsa linked to on Amy Welborn’s website. The Church is out in Minnesota.  St. Joan of Arc Catholic Church, Mpls., MN., USA "The Pastors 2 cents…" column has what I would consider a "colorfully" worded column. Along with lots of other eccentric stuff.

My friend Theresa Bonopartis has a son, Mike, in the marines. Very sadly, a marine friend of his, Mike Glover, was recently killed by a sniper in Iraq. As was Glover’s unit commanding officer, Capt. John McKenna IV, shot when he went to his aid. They are both New Yorkers. Here is the story from…

The NYT had a somewhat odd article this morning. For 56 Years, Battling Evils of Hollywood With Prayer – New York Times As is often the case with these sort of articles in the Times, the writer feels required to offer his opinion on Catholic theology and practice: The sisterhood is a dying way of…

In a recent discussion I was having with a small email group (NOTE – we were discussing the USA Today article two weeks ago about Al Gore, and the fact that for all his gloom and doom about the pending ecological cataclysm, his main house is 10,000 square feet, has 20 rooms and eight bathrooms.…

The Washington Post has an editorial this morning: Genocide, Continued The resolution is said to have the support of most members of the Security Council. It was developed in consultation with France, which initially tried to minimize the proposed number of troops but then accepted the Anglo-American position. China, which bends over backward not to…