That Catholic Show

Check out the awesome (free!) resource that we talked about at our Sundaes on Thursday event: That Catholic Show.  All the episodes and some information about the group can be found at their website: http://www.rosaryarmy.com/thatcatholicshow/ and the episodes can also be viewed on youtube.

School of Spiritual Growth

Course 271

Women’s Day of Reflection

The Spiritual Journey of Empowered Women

Virginia Karem Brown, MA

You are invited to slow down after the hustle and bustle of the holidays.  Join with other women for our annual Women’s Day of Reflection.  We will listen to the first person voices of women in Church History, and then we will share our stories of women in our own lives who have been a powerful influence on us and women in Scripture whom we identify as powerful. Then we will share our own stories of recognizing our journeys to become empowered in our daily lives, relationships, and our spiritual and emotional selves.

Offered:     Saturday, January 29, 2011

                    9:30 AM - 4:00 PM in the Undercroft

                    $25 fee includes lunch & is due with   registration.                                 

                    Registration is due by January 20, 2011.

                    Cathedral of the Assumption 502-582-2971

Course 272

Thomas Merton Celebration

Thomas Merton on 'the Prayer of the Heart'

Rev. George Kilcourse

                                                                                                               

The Cathedral is honored to host the seventeenth annual Thomas Merton Celebration.  This annual event, held in January close to Merton’s birthday, acknowledges and celebrates the life and works of this great contemporary monk.  Each year Fr. Kilcourse writes original material using many quotes from Merton.  Please join us for this enjoyable evening, which ends in singing and sharing birthday cake in honor of Merton. 

Fr. George Kilcourse is a scholar in the fields of Thomas Merton studies, ecumenism, and religion and literature. His latest book is Flannery O’Connor’s Religious Imagination (Paulist Press, 2001), and previous books are Ace of Freedoms: Thomas Merton’s Christ and Double Belonging: Interchurch Families and Christian Unity (1993). He is the former editor of and frequent contributor to The Merton Annual and has written dozens of scholarly articles. Fr. Kilcourse is on the faculty of Bellarmine University.

Offered:                 Monday, January 31, 2011               

                                7-9 PM in the Undercroft 

                                No registration required.

                                Cathedral of the Assumption 502-582-2971

Recommendation: Ryan's Well

Ryan's Well is about a young boy who raises money to send to Africa for a well.  He and his family are sent there to see it.  The experience of their welcome in the village  and what  he learns from the school principal about the best way to help others help themselves plus the conditions of getting water before the well is built  mirror this book.  It is 30 minutes  long.... suitable for all ages,  a wonderful social justice piece.

I received this from the Spiritual Cinema Circle,  which puts out one DVD monthly with about 4 four films on each.

I know you can purchse one single DVD.  This DVD is 2005, Vol. 1 - Ryan's Well .

Spiritual Cinema Circle  1-800-280-8290     www.SpiritualCinemaCircle.com

If you need further info,  please let me know.  Blessings,  Ginny Brown

The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind Discussion Questions

The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind

Creating Currents of Electricity and Hope

By William Kamkwamba and Bryan Mealer

1.        Let’s start with the title, Harnessing the Wind is generally considered impossible, what do you think of this as a title for the story?  Appropriate?  Did it pull you in?  Notice the subtitle:  Creating Currents of Electricity and Hope…thoughts?

2.      P35 the story of William’s father’s conversion.  How did this impact you?  Why was it important to include this background to William’s family?  How does this information shape the rest of the story?

3.       P41 the story of Mangolomera – super strength.  How does this sit so close to the story of Christian conversion?  Interesting as an example of the competing cultures in the village and the life of William.

4.       P86-185 The telling of the famine continues for nearly 100 pages!  For me, this made it much more real, I could feel the time dragging on, not believing it could get worse or that they could survive on less.  Also the evidence of their faith helping them through it and driving them to help others when it seemed they had not nearly enough themselves 

5.       P185 one of my favorite lines of the book:  “We all laughed about it [the famine] now, because it was only during the better times that we truly acknowledged the bad ones.”  Isn’t this so true in our lives as well?  When have you experienced this and does your faith help you during those bad times?

6.       Finally, we get to the building of the windmill!  Gilbert is obviously very influential in making William’s dream come true.  Who else helped make it a reality?  How much was dependent on just the ingenuity of a young boy and how much from his supporters (angels)?  Do we ever accomplish anything on our own?

7.       The windmill makes a huge change in the way William’s family lives and survives – in their actual quality of life.  Can you think of anything in your life that has had such an impact?

8.      What was your favorite part?

9.       What do you like least?

10.   Would you recommend this book to others?  Why and to whom or why not?

1. Could you imagine living without electricity? What would your life be like? Describe William's life and compare it to American teenagers and even your own.

2. How did the villagers compensate for not having electricity, telephones, or most of the modern conveniences we take for granted?

3. What is the role of magic in the story? What about education? Contrast the two. Is there room for both in a culture? What about education and religion? How do the two impact each other? How did William's religion influence his outlook?

4. What did electricity and the creation of the windmill mean for William, his family, and his village? What might his accomplishment mean for the world?

5. What motivates people like William to attempt the unthinkable? How would you describe him to someone who's never heard of his achievement?

6. Compare William to his father and to his mother. How are they alike? How did his parents shape William's outlook?

7. Imagine what a handful of Williams with some encouragement and financial backing from government and private sources might accomplish. Offer some ideas.

8. Malawi is an extremely poor nation. What are the causes of this poverty and what exacerbates it? How might these causes and influences be overcome? How has the West—think of organizations like the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, run by Americans and Europeans—helped to contribute to nations like Malawi's troubles? 

9. William writes of the corruption, greed, nonexistent services, and lack of empathy that turned the drought into a disaster for average people like him and his family. Can you see any similarities with our own culture, both past and present? Think about the American Depression. How did that compare to Malawi's drought?

10. William was desperate to stay in school but could not because of money. Think about American students. Why do you think with all the opportunities for schooling, students are disinterested in learning? In your opinion, what accounts for the differences between William and his American counterparts? 

11. Many Americans criticize public schools and some even question the need for them. Others argue that money doesn't matter when it comes to education. How does William's experience address our own debates on the subject? Think about his school, and compare it to American schools. Might William's life be different if he had access to education without having to pay? How so?

12. What lessons did you take away from William's story?

CEU/Graduate Credit

Did you know you can get continuing education or even graduate credit from the University of Dayton just by reading Catechist magazine (ok, and answering some questions too)?  It seems like a great opportunity, especially for people as busy as we are!

http://www.catechist.com/catform.html

The Senate is now online!

Hopefully we can use this website to share resources and information with each other.