David Ancell / Sunday, November 27, 2011 / Comments(0)
We made it through our first Sunday Mass with the new translation. I haven’t been so excited about going to Mass since the Easter Vigil Mass on which I was baptized. If you search for “language” or “translation” on this blog, you’ll find that I have written several posts about it, the earliest one being in May 2004. Yes, that’s right, we have been waiting for years for this translation!
Naysayers may want to call the new translation “stilted” or some similar less-than-flattering word, but I am convinced that our former translation was just too casual. We are doing the most important thing we will do all week when we worship God, and the one we are addressing in our worship is the one to whom we owe everything. For more on the reason I’m convinced that a kind of elevated language is needed, go here.
In my parish, everything went very well. I did have one occasion where I responded “And also . . . and with your Spirit” as my wife cracked a smile. That one will be the hardest habit to break. There was no detectable rebellion. Our pastor made a great effort to prepare himself, and he did an excellent job. I followed along using my Daily Roman Missal. The translation does flow nicely for one who is prepared. I only found one passage that seemed a bit awkward.
I am so grateful that we are now using the new Roman Missal. I’m even more thankful that Simon will grow up with this being the way he will worship God. I’m looking forward to using this text for years to come.
David Ancell / Friday, November 25, 2011 / Comment(1)
Here’s a topic that I needed to revisit months ago. The main reason that I was reluctant to give up my Palm Treo for a more an iPhone or Android was Pocket Quicken. I was disappointed when Intuit pulled the license from Landware, and I mentioned I was thinking about switching to something else. I looked for a substitute on my Android phone and found none, and I have no desire to use a cloud service like Mint. Well, for almost a year now, I have been happily using iBank.
iBank isn’t perfect, but it does have some features that are a great help to me and my growing family. Although it needs some polish, the envelope budgeting feature is very helpful. If too much is spent in one category, we have to find the money somewhere. Oh, and it has an iPhone version that will sync with the Mac. It is great for keeping up with transactions on the go and then putting them into the computer when I get home. I still have the ability to download transactions, and the import window is easier to use than Quicken’s.
I am hoping that they will add iCloud support, though. I would love to be able to enter stuff on the iPhone and have it just show up on the computer. I would also like to be able to see my budget on the iPhone app. Currently, the app shows me what I’ve spent that month but not what’s left in the budget.
While some may prefer cloud solutions, I still like having the ability to keep my own record and check it against the bank statement. So, I will always want to have an app like iBank that can also be used on a mobile device. I am glad that iBank picks up what Intuit abandoned with Quicken.
Category: Technology
David Ancell / Thursday, November 24, 2011 / Comments(0)
Today is Thanksgiving Day. It is Simon’s first Thanksgiving. He is currently asleep on my chest as I reach over him to type this on my iPhone using the WordPress app.
I have so much to be thankful for now. God has given me what I have desired for a long time. He has made me the father of a family. I may have started at a later age than most, but I have a beautiful wife and son. It has been especially nice to see the little guy smile and hear him coo lately.
Happy Thanksgiving to all my readers!
Category: News on My Life
David Ancell / Wednesday, November 23, 2011 / Comments(0)
Ok, I admit it. Sometimes when I’m online, I read the National Catholic Reporter. Am I expecting something uplifting that will boost my faith? No. I’ve known for years that that won’t happen there. It’s mostly bitterness. One thing about my time in North Carolina is that I was able to learn the underlying current of thought that drives the thinking of these people. I went to programs that used their resources and knew people who thought like these people do.
It was very apparent in this article. The author, one of the “young voices,” is “longing for a new, unbroken church.” She describes the Eucharist as a time when they “listened to one another’s stories” and “shared our brokenness.” The people in this church want to “be a part of a community that is relevant” and share with “those we break bread with” and “want our experience of others to be affirmed.” In her church, she is “looking for meaning and authenticity from ourselves, our friends and family, and our institutions.” I could go on as there’s a lot more of this in the article.
Indeed, it’s what is left out that is telling. All of the phrases of what the author longs for are about the people with whom she is present. She even says they went to “uncover the wholeness found in ‘we’.” There is no mention of having an encounter with the living God.
After all, God will “meet us where we are,” but he loves us too much to leave us there. Far more than “sharing our brokenness,” God wants to give us life to the full. There, we can find healing for our “brokenness,” which ultimately has its root in sin. The article seems to imply that the people at this church are content to remain in their “brokenness” and possibly also in their sin. Naturally, they will keep longing for happiness because they will never find it that way.
The Mass gives us our greatest opportunity to encounter Christ and be transformed. It gets better; he is wanting to give us eternal life with him in Heaven where there will be no more “brokenness.” We don’t need to make it “relevant” or “meaningful,” it must change us and make us “relevant” and “meaningful” to it.
We need not simply share our story. We need to know Christ’s. Let him transform our story into something beautiful and joyful for him.