That's not a typo. I kept saying,
don’t worry, I know I’m falling behind, but I have my retreat coming up. I think I did a bit of reading this
week. I’ll just throw it in one big
update.
18. I finished
this just before the beginning of my retreat, so need to start with this. I stayed with science fiction, but went back
to a classic that I have never read (again, this year I’m trying to read some
classics that I’ve missed). And so, I
read H.G. Wells’ The War of the Worlds.
I’ve never seen the 1953 movie, but of course I’ve seen Speilberg’s
movie from 2005, so I had a little idea of what to expect. It’s very different, however, being set when
it was written (1897). The technology is
wildly primitive (to what we have today).
I can appreciate it for being important, “ground-breaking,” etc. That being said, I still think the finale,
with the martians just…dying, no big climactic battle, is a bit
underwhelming. Plus, the narrator is
pretty weak, just always reacting (sometimes poorly) and not be proactive in
any way.
19. Next, this
is a book that I have been reading for a bit, a few pages at a time, and
finally completed. John Rosengren’s Hank
Greenberg: The Hero of Heroes. The
baseball stuff is pretty good, he’s an incredibly interesting character. As is his involvement in WWII. The unfortunate thing is that his personal
life was something to be desired (a “playboy,” married twice). I also thought the author spent too much time
on the social/cultural topics of the time, though I understand why he did it,
just that it was rather tiresome. It was
a big “meh” for me.
20. I may have
said this before, but much of my WWII interest before I visited Pearl Harbor
was in the European theatre. That isn’t
completely true, however, because in grad school I wrote a number of papers on
the nuclear bomb, so I am fairly familiar with that side of it. One story that I was not very familiar with,
however, was the sinking of the Indianapolis. I knew it, like most people, mostly from Jaws. So, I had to read Lynn Vincent and Sara
Vladic’s Indianapolis. This was a
fascinating history, tragic, maddening at times. It was heartbreaking, and at times I got a
bit emotional. I also have to say that
at first I was disappointed that so much of the book was focused on the
after-effects, the court martial and exoneration of Captain McVay, but in the
end I that it was worthwhile. A thoroughly
interesting, page-turning historical work.
21. Yes, I also
did some religious reading on my retreat.
I’ll start with James F. Day’s book Saint Michael the Archangel. It’s short, but a good overview of the
importance of St. Michael, devotion to him, and why he is loved. It also made me want to make a pilgrimage of “The
Sword of St. Michael.”
22. Next up was
Jeremiah Johnston’s
Body of Proof: The 7 Best Reasons to Believe in the
Resurrection of Jesus-and Why It Matters Today.
During Holy Week I watched an interview with
Dr. Johnston about the Shroud of Turin, and it was so good I wanted to read
this to get more information.
Unfortunately, it was a bit of a bait-and-switch.
The Shroud is not even mentioned in this
book!
Yep, it’s not one of the “7 Best
Reasons to Believe in the Resurrection.”
He’s Baptist, so it’s more of a Biblical “proof” of the
Resurrection.
The problem is that, while
of course I believe in the Resurrection, I felt that a number of his reasons
were quite flimsy, even bad.
Just as an
example, he claims that Christianity changed society all over the world.
First of all, yes it did, but is that proof?
Second, he claims that Christianity led to
amazing technological developments.
As a
(former) historian of technology, this claim is a stretch at best, blatantly
wrong at worst.
I guess he didn’t
realize that much of the technological advancements (even some that he
mentions) actually came from China, India, or other points East?
I give this book a “hard pass.”
One of the more disappointing books I’ve read
recently.
23. The main “theme”
of my retreat was St. Peter. I felt God
was calling me to get to know him a bit better.
So, I’ll start with Scripture. I
read two commentaries on Peter’s letters, but since they are part of larger
compilations, I will say they add up to one book for me. The more substantial was the volume on Peter’s
letters and Jude from the Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture series (this
by Daniel Keating). I also read through
St. Bede’s commentaries on the letters (it’s his feast day tomorrow, after
all). These commentaries were incredible
(as to be expected), and really helped me to enter into St. Peter’s
letters. Excellent!
24. I also read
a fairly short but deep work by Georges Chevrot, originally published in French
in 1937, Simon Peter: Lessons from the First Pope. Unfortunately, I found out this is abridged,
but I don’t know of another version in English.
It’s basically 24 chapters based around each time Jesus speaks to Peter
in the Gospels, with a reflection on what it tells us about Jesus, Peter, and
us. I loved this, especially on retreat
as an entry into contemplation. Highly
recommended.
25. Finally, I
also read Tim Gray’s
Peter: Keys to Following Jesus.
Again, this was great for more contemplation
on Peter in Scripture, but beyond the Gospels to the Acts and even Sacred Tradition.
I have to say that, between all of these, I
have a better appreciation for our first pope, and what it means to be a shepherd
for the Church.
I also think I have some
great homily material, especially for Lent and Holy Week.
Just one example that really stood out to
me.
Jesus renames Simon as “Peter
Bar-Jonah” (son of Jonah), but we already know his father was John.
So Jesus not only gives him a new “first”
name, but a new heritage as well.
And
who is Jonah?
Jesus is the new
Jonah!
So Jesus is calling him His
son!
Excellent insight to reflect on.
So there you
go, 8 books, and another on the way (about a third through).
.jpg)
.jpg)
_hires.jpg)
