Viewpoints

On Jan. 14, I prayed for my newborn granddaughter in the chapel at Cardinal Glennon Children's Medical Center. I paused at the door to sign the guest register and write the name Eliana Noel in the prayer request space next to my name.

When Catholics hear about Masses celebrated in Latin, they usually assume this refers to what is now called the "extraordinary form" of the Roman rite: the ancient liturgy, completely in Latin, which was used with little variation for many centuries prior to the reforms of Vatican Council II.

Matthew Bearth was 17 when he set out on an Alaskan cruise that changed the course of his life and led him to the seminary. Today the 20-year-old college junior loves to recount that northern voyage.

Matthew didn't have a passport when his family decided to take an Alaska cruise the August before his senior year. It was a time when an onslaught of questions was beginning to come from every direction. What college are you going to attend? What kind of career are you planning?

He didn't know the answers.

In the Hebrew Scriptures, we are often invited to enter the natural rhythm of life. Leafing through the stories of Genesis and the prayers of the Psalms, we are quickly surrounded by a myriad of images that connect us directly to nature, ourselves and the basic elements of life.

Through these ancient and picturesque images, we are able to see more clearly how rooted our lives are in the elements of life. By praying with these images and evoking these metaphors, we recognize not only our interconnectedness but also come to value the bigger rhythm or movement of life.

In October, Father Don Wester granted me the honor of teaching for six hours in the advanced homiletics course at Kenrick-Glennon Seminary. Our focus was "The Homilist as Poet" and my time with these fine young men was incredibly rewarding for me and hopefully for them.

I recently took a trip to the nation's capitol. After arriving at the airport and looking at the Washington Monument in the distance, I was reminded of my life when I resided there before I became Father Art Cavitt. I recalled how compelling it felt to be present at a rally near the monument grounds in 1982 to support the passage into law of a federal holiday marking the birthday of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.