May 1, 2006 (Monday)
Today actually turned out to be a nice day, but May Day was announced to be cancelled last night. They say Wednesday might rain, so its rumered that things will be moved over to Friday. Liturgical Music gave me a bit of a suprise with the news of a final, but not to worry seeing all I have to do is pick the songs I would like for a liturgy. SBS was cancelled today, so I had some time to myself before Mass started. Today's Western Civ quiz marked the end of that class for me and some volleyball for Team Sports marked the end of Team Sports forever. Tonight I will take things easy, but I do have to read a bit for my last New Testament Quiz which I will take tommorrow. I will not draw attention to the great quote from Pope John Paul the Great on confession: "To those who have been far away from the Sacrament of Reconciliation and forgiving love I make this appeal: come back to this source of grace; Do not be afraid! Christ himself is waiting for you. He will heal you, and you will be at peace with God!" This quote tells the truth about the Sacrament, so reflect upon how great it would be to return to the Sacrament and not be afraid because it is Christ who is showing his love for you.
May 2, 2006 (Tuesday)
I had a meeting today to view my final evaluation and I will be coming back to Conception next year. There was one point in my evaluation that I do not agree with and I do plan on talking to my Vocation's Director over the summer over the issue. I figured my meeting with Father Samuel would of been the end of the "God Squad" bull, but of course they threw it in. I have been made out to be very negative when I would much rather see the word be coined traditional seeing how that is the point of these acusations. Other then this dumb issue things look very positive for next year, so the count down of life here at Conception turns into two more years and twelve days.
May 3, 2006 (Wednesday)
I woke this morning in hopes of a shower, but the water was out. Liturgical Music has ended for the year with an easy final of listing the music for a liturgy that we would like to do. After Mass a few of us went to Joe's in hope of some fried chicken, but they were out of the special so we ended up with burgers. When I got back to school I sent my email to Brother Thomas saying I will not attend class today. I also skipped out on Team Sports because I have enough absences left to where I do not have to go again this year. My plans for tonight look to be relax and take it easy. I will get to work this weekend by writing my philosophy paper and doing some work on my SBS presentation that I have to give on Monday.
May 4, 2006 (Thursday)
May Day will happen tommorrow. I was hoping for the study day, but instead I will get to do sport events for the whole day. The events I will take part in are Ultimate, bean bag toss, and horseshoes. Tonight all the pranks will go down, but I plan to just stay in my room and not get involved in all the maddness. Tommorrow morning I will have to get up an hour earlier so I can be at the flag pole for roll call. Being the last one there is a bad thing because they will get thrown in the lake. This is also dumb! Then after the roll call we will be off to Mass and then all the events will fill the day.
May 5, 2006 (Friday)
May Day was finally underway today. Our tv lounge was pranked with wood chips covering everything. The last person to the flag pole was Craig who was later in the day thrown into the lake. After the flag raising we headed up for Mass which to my suprise was held outside. The Mass was very rushed and during communion a dog came up and started to beg for communion. Beyond this we had a table for an altar and of course once Mass ended we had no time for prayer instead it was back into the rush of things. It seems to me that Mass should be the main part of our day and not an event which is rushed threw just because it is something that we have to do. At the end of May Day the White Team ended up with a five point victory over the Blue Team, which I was on. Lorenzo ended up saying the Blue Team sucks after all was said and done, so he also ended up in the lake. After getting done with Lorenzo Andy Hayes joined him in the lake after much fight. I was also really looking forward to Holy Hour today, but it ended up being canceled. Yet again why have time for prayer when you are at the seminary that is just a dumb idea. I have just uploaded nine pictures from May Day so check them out in the folder called "May Day 06."
May 6, 2006 (Saturday)
Today was my last day for apostolics. It was great to see everyone at the psych-ward for one last time. I will miss those that I met with during this year and hopefully my presence will help bring Christ into the lives of all that I got to talk with. Going back to yesterday's May Day I forgot to mention that the Sophomore Class won the volleyball tournament with a record of 4-0. The Seniors came in last at 0-4. Tonight I really need to get started on my last philosophy paper of the year. It will be hard to force myself to do so, but I know that I must start early if I want a half way decent grade.
May 7, 2006 (Sunday)
Following Mass today I finally got around to starting my philosophy paper and even ended up getting it done. After finishing the paper I took off with Anton to head to Saint Joes to get something to eat. Before eating we stopped by Best Buy and I bought a new John Lennon CD called "Walls and Bridges" and also three DVDs for twenty dollars. I picked up the new Willie Wonka and the Choclate Factory, Batman Returns, and the Phantom of the Opera. After Best Buy we got some food at a place called 54 Stakehouse, or something along those lines. After eating it was back to Conception where I plan to take it easy for the rest of the night.
May 8, 2006 (Monday)
Breaking news from the world of Blogs. The Cafeteria is Closed has taken notice of CSC and had this to say about our outdoor Mass: "I was at Conception Seminary "college" and last week they decided due to "May Day" (an annual outdoor sports day) that they would have Mass outside (I guess because they would not fit in the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception, the aps of which is in the background). Just thought that you might find the story interesting.
Just another example of secular events dictating the church's actions. But at least everyone was dressed nicely(consult pictures), Note: you cannot see the handful of seminarians that were kneeling (but when there are no kneelers why would that be appropriate, I mean they are just 20-something college students and we all know how prone to knee problems that demographic is). Also note: the "Altar" normally houses a microwave in the cafeteria, and "lectern" is from a classroom. All and all it was a respectful Mass if you call the resident dog coming up and sniffing at the ciborium during communion respectful, but they were all dressed for the occasion, that is "the holy and unrepeatable sacrifice of our lord Jesus Christ" (again consult pictures).
But please do not take this as a reflection on the holy men studying for the Roman Catholic Priesthood at Conception Seminary. These men believed that they were going to Mass in the chapel, but then found that Mass was to be celebrated on the steps leading to the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception. Most if not all of the men were disappointed to say the least, but as I was once told , sometimes your example of how to be a good priest has to be "I will never do that in my entire life", as much as "this is a great". Maybe, but the best advice is usually the hardest.
Now, it's not a huge deal, but just another example of what in German is called lieblos - loveless. Like tossing food on a plate with a *splat* and say "there, now move on." The link to this site can be found in my links page and if you go there try to find me in the pictures because I am in two of them. I do wash my hands clean of this because I had nothing to do with it; I heard of the news this morning. Today is also was my last day of having SBS with my group presentation which went for most of the period. I am also on the schedule to be waitor for the week which is good because I do not have to do it on Thursday and Sunday.
May 9, 2006 (Tuesday)
Only five days to go and I will be out of here for the summer. This is coming more and more true espically with the 5 minute lab which signaled the end of science lab forever. Also, instead of going out to eat today I stayed behind to finish typing my Thomism paper which is now printed and sitting in my backback ready to turn in. Last night we were talked to from Father Benedict and Father Samuel about the Blog that hit the net yesterday. Things with this have upset them a lot, but all still looks good for the students in this last stretch till the end. Tommorrow will be a big day here because it is the anniversary of the dedication of the bacilica and it is also the ordination of Brother Frowin to be a Deacon. For those who do not know Brother Frowin is originally from the great diocese of Knoxville and I will for sure have a lot to report from this occasion.
May 10, 2006 (Wednesday)
Well all is going well here at Conception espically thanks to the fact that my Thomism paper is now in the hands of Father Issiac. I feel good about the paper and hope to pull off a good grade on it once I get it back. After class was over that was it for Monday, Wednesday, and Friday classes never again will I have them. Brother Frowin's ordination started at 11am, and Bishop Finn and the Diocese of Kansas City-Saint Joseph celebrated. After the ordination I got some time to talk with Brother Frowin's family and we talked a bit about life back in Knoxville. To bad Bishop Kurtz was unable to make it down, but he did send a letter to Brother Frowin promising his prayers to him. Being a waitor this week is not as bad as I thought it would be because we only had to wait on Monday and will also have to wait on Saturday. Today I got to set up the line with Ian, so I was excussed from prayer which allowed me to set up and head back up to my room. Tonight their will be a pizza party in the Alumni Union, so we can get a small break from our studies. Tommorrow will be my last day of classes and with it I have two tests. The first one will be in New Testament and the second one will be in Physical Science. Hopefully this last science test will be fair unlike the last two tests we have had in that class.
May 11, 2006 (Thursday)
Classes have finally come to a close. The New Testament Test went well and I have emailed the teacher for my grade, so hopefully I will know it soon. I cannot even complain about the Physical Science Test because I pulled off a 100 on it. That must come as a shock to you, but the real reason for the grade was because it was open book and all the questions corresponded to the end of the chapter questions which have all the answers in the back of the book. Hopefully with this grade I will be able to pull off a B. Today was the last Gambinos run into next year. O how much I will miss this wonderfull gathering spot and the wonderfull pizza which they serve. After getting back I finished up getting things signed for my departure and started to pack up a bit. I already have a few items in the Saint Joseph attic and as the days pass I will get more stuff up there. At 6pm the students had a end of the year party. The main course was steak and wow was it cooked to perfection. Only two days left on the countdown and then I will be on my way back to Tennessee.
May 12, 2006 (Friday)
Today was a great day seeing how it was a Friday with nothing to worry about. I woke up at 10am, took my shower, and then headed over to Mass. After Mass was over my class had a little going away bash at Applebees. It looks like everyone in the class will be coming back, but John Blaine. After getting back from Applebees I am officially broke, so there will not be anymore going out until my family gets in. The rest of my day was filled with sleep until the 8pm Holy Hour which was lead by newly ordained Brother Frowin.
May 13, 2006 (Saturday)
Praise the Lord that today is finally over. Being a waitor for this banquet was crazy. It a little over 3 hourse to set up, wait, and take things down. This would of went faster if the community would have stayed behind to lift a hand, but most students ran off once the meal was over. My family got here at 9am and we worked for most of the day on getting things packed up and loaded into the truck. For lunch we went out and had some pizza at Gambinos. This will be my last entry until I get home Monday night, so take care everyone.
May 14, 2006 (Sunday)
Got everything packed into the truck before the start of Mass. Mass was very crowded today due to the graduation, so they had to stick people in every place possible. As soon as Mass was over I was out the door and up in my room getting changed and then telling Alejandro to come on so we could get out of Conception. On the way we stopped at Chipotle, so that I could have one last huge burrito before I have to take three months off from them. After eating we dropped Alejandro off at the Kansas City airport and then onward we went until stopping in Evansville, Indiana.
May 15, 2006 (Monday)
On the way home we made two stops. The first one was to Saint Meinrade Archabbey and the second one was to a Catholic Supply store in Louisville. At Saint Meindrade's I picked up a copy of the great book "A Story of a Soul" and a medal of the little flower. At the next stop I finally placed my order for a cassock which should be here in about three to four weeks. I hope it will get to me before Deacon Tony's ordination, but that looks doubtfull. Got back home at around 8pm and then watched "Batman Begins" with my family before heading to bed for the night.
May 16, 2006 (Tuesday)
I started my day off with 8:30am Daily Mass. We had a rather nice sized crowd of people and after Mass I stuck around the church until lunch time. At lunch the Notre Dame staff headed off to Lenny's and I had a meatball sub. After eating I returned home where I took a long nap to catch we up on all of my lost sleep. Once my mother got back from the parish council meeting we watched "The Phantom of the Opera." The movie is a great piece of work, but if you do not like singing you will not like this movie. I also spent today reading "A Story of a Soul" and got to the part where Therese travels to Rome to urge Pope Leo XIII to allow her to join Carmel at such a young age. Here the pope replied "Come, Come...you will enter if God wills." This reminds me a lot of my urging vocations on others. No matter how much I see this possiblity in someone or how much they see it in themselves the whole matter is up to God. My vocation to the priesthood is from God and if he wills for me to be one of his holy priests I will, but if not I must follow wherever he leads me. Tommorrow I get to teach High School CCD and I will be going over the topic of mortal and venial sin, so hopefully I will go well as I try to teach others about the faith that we share.
May 17, 2006 (Wednesday)
I woke up late in the day thanks to staying up most of last night watching the double overtime game between the Clippers and the Suns. The NBA playoffs is something I have yet to mention, but I must make a note of LeBron James pushing the Cavs past the Pistons today to take the series lead 3-2. After finally getting up I worked a bit on my lesson for high school CCD. The class started at 6:30pm and it was great to see all those familiar faces again. The topic that I went over was Moral Theology which covered mortal and venial sin and the closing was an Examination of Conscience. Abby was here today and I must say she has come along way since I first met her. I really had faith that she would become a great leader of the youth group, and she has finally came along to being a very strong young woman. After everything was over I went up to the parish hall and I took notice to a statue that I have seen many times, but never paid any attention to before. I noticed the nun was holding a cross which contained many flowers. From seeing this it hit home that this was my beloved saint, Saint Therese of Lisieux. My love for this saint ever grows as she continues to come into my life and mold my heart into that of love.
May 18, 2006 (Thursday)
Started my day off with receiving Christ in the Blessed Sacrament at Daily Mass. After Mass I stuck around the church until lunch time when the whole parish staff went out to a local deli. After eating lunch I headed back home and I have finally finished "A Story of a Soul." If you have not read this book I must repeat read it! This is the greatest spiritual book that I have ever picked up in my life and I know it will change you heart in some way. I have only been back since Monday night and I think I have seen enough tv to last the rest of my life. Everything on the tv is just a waste of time. A good 80 percent of shows on it go against everything that is taught inside the gospels. A soul must become simple and separate from these worldly things in order to grow closer to Christ and the heaven which he wishes us all to enter. I just pray that all souls will in time grow closer to God and will no longer have to rely on the false gods of this earth, but on Christ alone. For tommorrow I get to lead a Communion Service becasue Father Jim has docter appointment throughout the day.
May 19, 2006 (Friday)
Actually the reason for me doing a Communion Service is because Father Jim is going out of town for the weekend. Father Casey will be here to celebrate Mass this weekend. All went well with the Communion Service and I had a good sized crowd. That is one thing that always gets me about Notre Dame. For such a small church we always have a huge Daily Mass crowd which usually rivals that of larger parishes on the Diocese. After the Communion Service I stayed around the church and helped to set up for the Mexican Food Night which we be held tommorrow. All the money that is made from this dinner will go into the GIFT campagne. While setting up I was visited by Dr. William Nagy who brought me a book that he has just gotten published. The title of the book is "The Fools of God and the Art of Simple Living." So far this book has been good and I find one quote to be very funny: "He took thirty lashes with the Roman whip, flagrum that would have killed most people. He did not cry, did not whine, and did not beg for his life. I would have given the finger to that crowd with both hands but He died with dignity and honor. Even the Roman officer was impressed, This was truly the Son of God. Man cannot endure or die with such dignity." My plans for tommorrow are the Relay for Life Roadblock in the morning, followed by Mass, and then the Mexican Dinner which I hope the twins will join me at.
May 20, 2006 (Saturday)
My started off by helping the American Cancer Society by doing a road black and the intersection near Notre Dame. The next thing on my list was setting up for the 5pm Mass and serving it with the twins. After the Mass was the Mexican dinner and the twins were unable to attend due to having a birthday party to attend. The meal went well and the food was very good. At one part of the night we had some Mexican dancers come out and put on a show. After it was over I helped set up a bit and then returned home.
May 21, 2006 (Sunday)
I was really tired this morning, so I did not attend the 8am Mass. I did attend the 11am and was the only server for the Mass. After the Mass was over I saw Father annointing a woman who I seen enter the church with a daughter about my age a bit after Mass started. When she came in I saw tears in her eyes and I wondered what was wrong with her, and I also seen them come up a receive a blessing from Father during communion still with the tears in their eyes. It turns out the woman had cancer in the breast and then things took a turn for the worse, but somehow she started to pray the Rosary. Soon after starting the cancer disappered, so she owes her cure to the intercession of the Blessed Virgin. She is not Catholic yet, but she says she must enter the church and that she will go through the RCIA process. After finally getting out of the church I went out to eat at the Brick Oven with my family. Once getting back home we watched X-Men and X-Men 2 in order to get ready for X-Men 3 which will be out this Friday.
May 22, 2006 (Monday)
Nothing to say for today. I spent the whole day at home and did not leave the house once. I am really looking forward to summer camp which will be starting up soon cause it will give me something to do. Tommorrow I am going to meet Paul and the twins at Daily Mass and from there we will go to Johnson City to pick up needed items for our time at camp. After getting back our new pastor will be moving a few items in, so I should get a chance to meet him.
May 23, 2006 (Tuesday)
Started the day off with Daily Mass which included the twins and Paul. After Mass we headed off to Johnson City to get our scout uniforms for camp. I don't think the girls were to happy with the shorts, but they said they were going to do some work to them. When I got back to Greeneville our new pastor, Father John, was in and I got to talk to him for awhile. After getting back home I did much of nothing.
May 24, 2006 (Wednesday)
Got to sleep in today and then spent the rest of the day making an attempt at cleaning my room. I did not get very far in the endeavor until I ended up taking a nap. At 6:30 I had the first thing to do of the day which was high school CCD. This week we met at a local chinese restaurnat. We had a very good sized group which included all the usuals of Paul, the twins, Meredith, and Kelly along with some others. My fortune I found to be very fitting. It said I would have a happy life with my wife. I guess if the church is what it is refering to as my wife that sounds like a good deal. After things were over I gave my uniform to the twins so they would have something to go by when they put their patches on theirs. Right now tommorrow holds a rage into Johnson City, so that I can go see a movie with some old friends from my high school days.
May 25, 2006 (Thursday)
Daily Mass was the start of my day like usual. After Mass I had to look into my service for summer camp. I finally have something typed up and ready to be printed off. After Mass I retured home and waited for my ride from Brandi, Cody, and Brandon. We ate at Rocky's in Jonesborough and then watched the movie starring WWE's Kane "See No Evil." The movie was good and had some good kill scences, but I would have to say rent it not buy it. Tommorrow Father Jim will be out of town, so I will yet again get to lead a Communion Service.
May 26, 2006 (Friday)
I held a Communion Service this morning and I had a good sized crowd. Even my dad was able to attend because he was off work today. After the Communion Service I went out to eat some breakfast with my family. After getting back home I did much of nothing until 2pm when we left to go see X-Men 3 at the movies. This movie was very good and is by far the best of the X-Men movies.
May 27, 2006 (Saturday)
My day was filled with trips to Wal-Mart and Food City in order to buy items for Father Jim's going away/10th Anniversary party. I arrived at the church around 4pm in order to get things set up for Mass and then served the 5pm Mass with the twins. After Mass was the party and I set with my family and then I later set with the twins and there family. I am really looking forward to summer camp which will be starting up in a few days. Once things get going I am sure I will be ready to leave, but I think this was the direction God was wanting me to take for my summer. This job will give me experince in teaching along with all that I will do as Chaplain. It will also be a lot of fun because I will get to hang out with Blaine, Paul, and the twins every day of the summer.
May 28, 2006 (Sunday)
I am dead tired after all that went on today. We had three receptions to say farwell to Father Jim, so it was a bit crazy helping with all of those. At the 8am Mass I was lector and at the 11am I got to be the server. Once I got back home it was time to colapse on my bed and take a long nap. I did find the Masses to be empty of some usual faces. I guess its a holiday, so getting ready for Monday comes before going to Mass. When I was at Food City I seen a few Catholics out shopping, but stuff like that comes before attending the Mass.
May 29, 2006 (Monday)
Last in file transfer.
May 30, 2006 (Tuesday)
Attended Daily Mass today and got to serve because we went into the church thanks to such great attendance. This will be my last Mass with Father Jim at Notre Dame because I will not get to attend on Thursday due to Scout Camp. After Mass I ended up doing some last minute shopping and also ended up in Johnson City picking up the socks that the twins ordered last week. Once getting back into town we ran by the girls house and dropped off the items that I picked up for them. We will be leaving tommorrow from Notre Dame at 9am, so I will be unable to update my journal for the next week and a half. Once I get to update again I will give you the run down on staff week.
May 31, 2006 (Wednesday)
Today was the first day of my new job at scout camp. I met up with the twins and Blaine at the church and then we traved to camp and had a few hours to move in before having to do anything. The day was filled with a lot of meetings and they ended up being a bore. The day barely moved on and I really feel that a day here is equal to a week time wise.