Forty years ago today, I asked this beautiful woman to be my Valentine, and she said yes. A few months later, I asked her to marry me and she said yes once again—making me the luckiest and happiest man in the world! 

Four decades later, I love her more than ever. She is my friend and counselor, my steady support, my inspiration and my love. 

Ash Wednesday reminds us that in the last decades of our life, many physical things will age, weaken and ultimately fail. But I know without any doubt that our love will grow stronger and ultimately prevail. 

Love is stronger than death, and hope springs eternal. 

Happy Valentine’s Day, Sharon. I love you—forever. 

 Did you ever meet Father Noah Casey? It’s a silly question. Everyone knew Father Noah. If you met him once in passing, he was your lifelong friend. 

Noah and I were roommates in graduate school. The first day we moved into Eigemann Hall, a high rise graduate dorm at Indiana University in Bloomington, IN, Noah introduced himself to everyone in the building. Everyone knew him—and loved him—from the first. (I was an introvert and therefore more of an acquired taste.)

I had a similar experience years before during our first year at Saint Meinrad College. It seemed like we no sooner said hello and I was immediately part of his very large extended family. (He was Joe in those days—before taking the name Noah when he entered the Benedictine community at Saint Meinrad.) His Mother, Marie Casey, died when he was very young leaving young Joe in the care of his father (Joe, Sr.), his grandparents and scores of aunts, uncles and cousins. The more family, the better, Noah believed his whole life.

Father Noah was an Irish storyteller and an Irish tenor. I used to laugh until my sides ached when he would tell his funny stories. And I cried like a baby when he sang those heartbreaking Irish songs.

“Earthy” is a good word for Noah. He loved to eat, to celebrate, to be with ordinary folks. But “spiritual” is an even better word. Noah had a rich, full spiritual life centered in prayer and in his personal relationship to Jesus, His mother, Mary, and of course St. Joseph, Joe Casey’s patron saint.

The combination of earthiness and spirituality made him a good confessor and a wise counselor. I didn’t always follow his advice, but I sure appreciated it!

His homilies were inspired by the same down-to-earth yet otherworldly quality. Sometimes he would burst into song—in the middle of the homily! What better way to get our attention! What better way to lift our spirits and to raise our minds and hearts to God!

Noah’s mother and her sister both succumbed to cancer. Noah never got over their loss. That’s why it was something of a blessing (in one of God’s mysterious ways) when Noah joined them as a cancer victim. He was not as young as they were, but he was still too young (in his mid 60s).

He left behind a very large family—folks related to by blood, by friendship and by faith.

May the road rise to meet him. And may all the angels and saints welcome Father Noah to their humble but heavenly home.

The Church is beautiful but compromised. 

During the most intense time of the media’s coverage of the clergy sex abuse scandal, a very wise Franciscan observed,

“If you find a perfect church, join it. But remember that as soon as you join it, that church will no longer be perfect. No church is perfect whose members are imperfect, sinful people like all of us.”

Bishop Robert Barron makes a similar point by quoting from an address by Pope Benedict XVI to members of the papal household in 2010 at the end of a particularly difficult and painful year.

“The face of the Church is stained with dust, and this is how we have seen it. Her garment is torn—by the sins of priests”  (Pope Benedict XVI).

According to Bishop Barron in Vibrant Paradoxes: The Both/And of Catholicism, “Wise Words from the Bishop of Rome Concerning the Clergy Sex Abuse Scandal,” the pope was using an image of the Church proposed by the twelfth century mystic Hildegard of Bingen who had a vision.

“She saw an incomparably beautiful woman stretching from earth to heaven, clothed in luminous vestments. But the woman’s radiant face was covered in dust, her vesture was ripped on one side, and her shoes were blackened. Then the mystic heard a voice from heaven announcing that this was a vision of the Church, beautiful but compromised.”

Beautiful but compromised is the mystic’s vision of the Church. It is also an apt image of all forms of sexual abuse—taking something that is pure and beautiful in itself and corrupting it, making it ugly and torn, “covered in dust.”

The Church is not the only place where sex abuse occurs (in fact it’s everywhere that you care to look) but in clergy sex abuse the ugliness is magnified in direct proportion to the expectations of purity and trustworthiness that we have for priests and bishops who were ordained to take the place of Jesus among us.

It is horrible, inexcusable and unforgivable when a family member or coach or any trusted adult abuses a child, but when the predator is a priest, it is all those things intensified to the point of pure evil. Satan is at work here, violating two sacred things (the innocence of the child and the holiness of the priest). What God intends to be beautiful is stained by selfishness and sin.

What’s the answer? To forgive the unforgivable is the first step. Hatred and vengeance intensify the wounds allowing them to fester and making healing impossible. But forgiveness is not enough. There must also be vigilance—“zero tolerance” for behavior that cooperates with the devil’s efforts to corrupt the innocence and holiness of God’s children.

Never again should the sin of sexual abuse be hidden, minimized or excused no matter who the perpetrators are. Never again should the Church or society tolerate behavior that is intolerable.

We are all beautiful but compromised. We are all people intended by God to be perfect, but sadly, we are not. Let’s ask God to forgive us all the unforgivable things we have said and done. Let’s also forgive others—while refusing to tolerate others’ intolerable attitudes and behavior especially toward our children.

 A dark and dreary, cold and rainy night in Rome. All is quiet. The streets are relatively clear of both pedestrians and motor vehicles. A good time to enjoy a warm fire and a wonderful dish of pasta.

Italy is where I come to relax and do a little writing. This trip I’ve made great progress on a little book I’m writing tentatively titled Friends, Mentors and Spiritual Fathers. The book reflects on several men, now deceased, who greatly influenced me when I was young. I don’t do their stories justice. I’m not a biographer or historian. But I hope I can pay sincere tribute to these gifted men and the many treasures they shared with me over the years.

A rainy night in Rome is the perfect time to remember and give thanks for friends, mentors and spiritual parents—not just the ones I’m writing about but all the women and men who shared so much with me over the years.

Security at the Vatican was so intense yesterday that it was impossible to get anywhere near St. Peter’s Square.

Every access point was blocked by armed guards and trucks. Police were out in force on all the streets leading to Vatican City and there were even police boats cruising the Tiber River.

What’s going on? It’s impossible to say. Either some kind of credible threat was received or there was a gathering of dignitaries at the Vatican that required extra tight security.

What an age we live in! Violence and threats of violence have become so customary that we simply shrug our shoulders and continue with our daily business as best we can.

As Pope Francis said on Sunday:

Our heavenly Father always listens to his children who cry out to him in pain and anguish,” he said, and made a “heartfelt appeal” for each one of us to “hear this cry and, each one according to their own conscience, before God, ask ourselves: 'What can I do to make peace?'”

While prayer is always an effective resolution, more can be done, Francis said, explaining that each person “can concretely say no to violence to the extent that it depends on him or herself. Because victories obtained with violence are false victories, while working for peace does good for all!”

It’s easy to get frustrated, even angry, at the inconveniences caused by such intense security, but thank God for the men and women who risk their own lives protecting us. Because of Vatican security, no one drove a truck loaded with explosives into a crowd gathered in St. Peter’s Square yesterday. It’s a real shame that it has to be this way, but given the world we live in, it’s a blessing that yesterday at least we were safe and violence free.

Here’s an account from Rome Reports which may explain yesterday’s heavy security:

Pope Francis met in the Vatican with the president of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The meeting was proposed by the Turkish president, following Donald Trump announcing his intent to move the American Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, an act that would exacerbate religious tension in the city.

The Holy Father and his guest held a private encounter for nearly 50 minutes, while these meetings rarely exceed a half hour.

Pope Francis and Erdogan discussed bilateral relations between the two states, the humanitarian crisis in Syria, the Catholic community's current situation in Turkey and the conflict between Jerusalem and Palestine.

Relations between the Vatican and Turkey have had their ups and downs. Pope Francis' public condemnation of Turkey's genocide of Armenians in 1915 seemed to unsettle the current Turkish leader.

Benedict XVI's comments on Islam in his Ratisbona address in 2006 didn't sit well either.

Following an extended dialogue, Pope Francis met with the president's wife and his daughter, Ezra. Then, they exchanged gifts. The president presented the pope with a hand-made ceramic image containing Istanbul's landmarks as well as four books by Persian poet Rumi. 

“Beautiful, beautiful.”

Pope Francis gave the president a medal with an angel.

He also presented him with an etching of St. Peter's Basilica and a copy of his Laudato si' encyclical along with his message for the World Day of Peace.

Before bidding farewell, the pope asked Erdogan's wife to pray for him.

I’ve been eating at a small ristorante pizzeria near the Vatican, Il Postiglione Roma, for nearly 20 years. The woman who waits on me always recognizes me with a heartfelt smile and the warmest of welcomes. Why would I go anywhere else? The food is good. The prices are reasonable. It’s in a great location. But it’s the hospitality that keeps me coming back! Viva il Postiglione Roma!

Isola Tiberina

Today I plan to visit the Basilica of St. Bartholomew which is located on an island in the Tiber River. This was Cardinal Francis George’s titular church. (Every cardinal has to have a relationship with a parish in the Diocese of Rome.) I try to visit whenever I’m in Rome to say a special prayer for Cardinal George who was a friend, mentor and spiritual father. 

From Wikipedia:

The Tiber Island (Italian: Isola Tiberina, Latin: Insula Tiberina) is the only island in the part of the Tiber river which runs through Rome. Tiber Island is located in the southern bend of the Tiber.

The island is boat-shaped, approximately 270 metres (890 feet) long and 67 metres (220 feet) wide, and has been connected with bridges to both sides of the river since antiquity. Being a seat of the ancient temple of Asclepius and later a hospital, the island is associated with medicine and healing. 

The Fatebenefratelli Hospital founded in the 16th century, and the Basilica of St. Bartholomew on the Island dating from the 10th century are located on the island.

I attended Sunday Mass at the Brick Makers’ Church (Santa Maria Della Gracie alle Fornaci) this morning. It was a children’s Mass complete with guitar accompaniment (my least favorite form of musical sacra because it is almost never done well). But it was nice to see all the children fully engaged in the liturgy.

Santa Maria delle Grazie alle Fornaci is an 18th century Baroque parish and titular church at Piazza di Santa Maria alle Fornaci 30, just south of Vatican City and north of the San Pietro train station in the Aurelio quarter.

The dedication is to the Blessed Virgin Mary under her title of Our Lady of Graces.

The church was originally founded in the 14th century, and served a small suburb which became important as a site for preparing materials for the building of the new St Peter’s. The name Fornaci refers to kilns used for making bricks for the work.

At the end of the 17th century it was rebuilt by Francesco Multò for the Discalced Trinitarians (a Spanish reform of the Trinitarian order), whose monastery was adjacent, and in 1720 Filippo Raguzzini added the façade.

In 1850 it took over parochial responsibilities for the area from Sant’Angelo alle Fornaci, which had just been destroyed in the suppression of the Roman Republic. In the process, it suffered a thorough restoration by Andrea Busiri Vici.

A campanile in Baroque style was added in the 1950’s.

Afterward I went to St Peter’s Square for the Angelus said by Pope Francis from the window of the Apostolic Palace high above the piazza. The sun is out today so the crowd was larger than might be expected on a cold day in February—stretching halfway to the Tiber River. A native group (I guessed from South America) was dancing in the street directly in front of the Hotel Columbus.

 The Holy Father was greeted with much enthusiasm and he responded warmly. Since I was not able to understand the pope’s remarks (my familiarity with the Italian language is limited to ordering items from a menu), I looked them up on the pope app. Here is a selection from the CNA report:

(CNA/EWTN News).- On Sunday Pope Francis announced that Friday the first full week of Lent would be a day of prayer and fasting for peace given the many ongoing conflicts throughout the world, particularly those in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and South Sudan.

 “Facing the tragic continuation of conflicts in different parts of the world, I invite all the faithful to a special day of prayer and fasting for peace Feb. 23, the Friday of the first week of Lent,” the Pope said Feb. 4.

 He asked that the day be offered specifically for the people of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and South Sudan and invited both non-Catholics and non-Christians to join “in the ways they deem most appropriate.”

 “Our heavenly Father always listens to his children who cry out to him in pain and anguish,” he said, and made a “heartfelt appeal” for each one of us to “hear this cry and, each one according to their own conscience, before God, ask ourselves: 'What can I do to make peace?'”

 While prayer is always an effective resolution, more can be done, Francis said, explaining that each person “can concretely say no to violence to the extent that it depends on him or herself. Because victories obtained with violence are false victories, while working for peace does good for all!”

 The Pope's appeal, which he made during his Sunday Angelus address, comes just two months after a Nov. 23 prayer vigil for peace in the two countries.