Through a dark glass - musings on the Catholic Church from an outsider on the inside

What do You Say?

2007-07-03T15:23:00.001-05:00

Hello:

Well, hmmm. This is awkward. What do you say when it has been so long since you've said anything at all? You think about posting. Occasionally you even start to type, but the idea for that post seems forced. Or worse yet it seems like a normal post and you've been away far too long for a normal post to work. Your last post? February 16th. Today? July 3rd. Ouch!

I have to be honest, I've missed you Dark Glass. Looking back, it couldn't have been any different than it was - but I regret the time lost none the less. Please don't say anything now. I know we can't go back, but just maybe we can go forward.

Think about it.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Dangerous Faith

2007-02-16T09:46:00.000-06:00

Hello:

A couple of years ago I was contacted by a good friend that I hadn't spoken to in a long long time. "Joanie", not her real name, and her family were going though a horrible experience and she needed to talk. I was stunned as she told me that her daughter had been sexually abused. I was crushed when she told me by whom.

Last year, Liguori Publications released Catie the Caterpillar written by Tracy M. Schamburg, LPC and illustrated by Melanie Riley. Catie is a colorful children's book intended to "help break the silence of sexual abuse". After the numerous Priest sexual scandals in the Catholic Church, Liguori had been looking to provide a product that would help empower victims of any age to come forward. I was working on a project to send samples of the book to counselors and child service organizations, so I called Joanie to get some ideas of people to contact. As we talked, we wondered how others might benefit from her tragedy. It was a big request, but I asked if she would consider doing a guest post on my BLOG. She said she'd think about it.

I don't know that time has healed these wounds, but it has lent enough distance that Joanie has been able to share some of her ordeal here at Dark Glass. Comments to this post are encouraged and will be read by Joanie. I will forward any email as well.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

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I’ve read yet another story in the news today about Shawn Hornbeck, the oldest of the 2 boys recently rescued from their kidnapper. It is very upsetting to see how the media so callously reports every little detail.

When my daughter was 6 she told me that her father (my husband of over 20 years) was having her perform an unspeakable act. My first reaction was to assume there was something wrong with her – perhaps the beginning of a mental illness or a hallucination caused by some weird reaction to a daily medication. Lucky for her, I realized in very short order that her descriptions of what was happening could not have come from adult magazines or movies – she knew things that cannot be known except by being a participant.

Pedophiles don’t wear signs or have tatoo’s that identify them. In fact, if they weren’t so good at blending in there would never be any victims. They are also very good at keeping their victims quiet and even close friends and family often have no idea that they have such dark secrets.

In that very short time between disbelief and realization that she was telling the truth, my now ex-husband tried to persuade her to recant. He told her that he was dying – she was killing him by telling me. He told her that she was “breaking up the family”, and that I would send her away to live alone or with strangers. The things he said included her dying a horrible death, being kidnapped, the rest of the family turning our backs on her, etc. She believed every word he said. He’d kept her quiet with physical and emotional abuse and I now know she was able to come forward only because she thought he was going to kill her. And some things, like “breaking up the family” did happen. I’m careful to talk about the divorce in ways that convey Daddy is responsible for breaking up the family but she feels guilty anyway.

Four years after the abuse ended, she still sees a therapist. Charges have not yet been filed because she’s not emotionally able to testify against him. Thankfully, we aren’t famous so the media isn’t standing on my porch demanding details of her abuse. We are proceeding at a pace that is comfortable for her, not on newspaper deadlines. And because my ex-husband isn’t newsworthy, the media isn’t destroying our case by revealing sensitive details. We might have a chance of getting a conviction if & when she’s strong enough to face him in court.

Vacation in La Cocina?

2007-01-22T09:20:00.000-06:00

Hello:

Despite my best intentions, I have fallen WAY behind on the proper care and feeding of my BLOG. Not only have I not made any new posts, I haven't even responded to all the great comments I've gotten in the last couple of weeks. I'm tempted to blame it on the wisdom tooth I had pulled last week, but the truth is I just haven't had the power surges that ocassionally come along and allow me to take on the world. So today, I'm going to recognize my current limitations. I'm going to distract you all with a virtual tour of my kitchen and work in a couple of long overdue "shout-outs".

A good friend of mine spent several hours yesterday mapping every detail of the design into these scale images. Apparently the new kitchen will be haunted. I've hardly started knocking walls and the budget for this project has all ready exploded. I suspect that this year I'll be vacationing in La Cocina.

Something about these images keeps reminding me of Second Life, the new 'virtual' existence that seems to be taking both the personal and business world by storm. When I think of what a challenge it is for me to maintain a BLOG, I can't imagine spending the energy to live a parallel life.

My first shout-out today goes to my good friend Kathy Sheldon. Kathy is a reporter and editor at The Sporting News here in St. Louis. I recently gave Kathy a copy of And God Said, "Play Ball!": Amusing and Thought-provoking Parallels Between the Bible and Baseball and she was kind enough to publish a review of it on her Sporting News BLOG! Is she a great friend or what? If you've read Dark Glass very often, you've probably seen me talk about And God Said, "Play Ball!". I hit that one a lot. Next to our cookbooks, "Play Ball" probably has the broadest appeal of the Liguori Publications' line. Later this Fall, author Gary Graf will be treating us to "It's Good!" a football themed title designed to help the sports fan to get in touch with their spiritual side.

My second shout-out goes to Chandira, the Hope Fiend. Chandira is a fellow spiritual pilgram walking the BLOGosphere and encouraging the flames of enlightenment she encounters. I don't pretend that much wisdom resides here at Dark Glass, but she is a comfort to me none the less. She is also a favorite of Br. Secundo over at Mystic Alchemy and that is a BLOG with wisdom in residence.

Last but not least, a big shout out to Kiwi Nomad. Kiwi is another of those of BLOG friends who always lend their support and encouragement - even if she did recently say that I am still an absentee landlord! Kiwi is actually up to 3 BLOGs now (and I can't find the time to keep this one). I suggest starting with Kiwi Nomad's Wanderings and branching out from there.

WOW - for a quickee this has turned into a long-winded post! I have a lot of ideas for where I want to take Dark Glass in 2007. Most are concepts that will take a little more care and attention than what I can spare to publish several times a week. Until I get that going I'm going to try to catch up on my shout-outs and ramble about my kitchen.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Shout, Shout, Let it all out

2007-01-07T18:56:00.000-06:00

Hello:

Well it's been another crazy week. I thought I could at least handle a post of shout-outs and say hello to the folks that were kind enough to leave comments. Apparently even that was a challenge. So before we cue Tears for Fears singing "Shout", take a look at the picture to the right. That was taken after the ceremonial first blow of the Kitchen Demolition 2007 project. Nothing else has happened since this photo was taken but symbolically it was huge. As soon as approve plans from the kitchen designer, the dust will fly!

This week's renter:

To your upper left you'll notice this image -

If you click on that image (and you know that you want to), you'll be magically transported to the New York Nitty-Gritty. Truly a favorite site of mine that I repeatedly vote for on the BLOGExplosion challenges. Apparently I'm not the only one since the site HAS THE NUMBER ONE RANKING! Anyway it's a photoblog that posts images of everyday New York City scenes. The scenes may be ordinary but somehow the images give an impression of communing with other realms.

Ok, well this is a big cop out, BUT I have to run. It's driving me crazy that I haven't had a post up in so long so I'm going to hit Publish and we'll shout some more another time.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Kitchen Demolition 2007

2007-01-07T09:29:00.000-06:00

Hello:

Here we are just a few days into the new year and a few days into the 'Renaisance' of Dark Glass. Work was pretty crazy last week and I just couldn't find the time and energy to tap out a new post. I had quite a bit of low hanging fruit I could have chosen too. I've been really lucky and had lots of comments in the past couple of weeks. I always like to do a shout-out to anyone that leaves a comment and that doesn't really take a lot of focus. Somehow I felt I needed another 'real' post before I did that. Result? - Nothing posted. Sooo, today you get to hear about the thing most pressing on my mind. Drumroll please, Kitchen Demolition 2007 (said with the echo of a Monster Truck announcer).

If you've read Dark Glass even occasionally, you'll know that I bought a beautiful but 'as-is' old house just about a year ago. There have been some pretty massive projects since then; replastering the walls, refinishing the floors, installing 200 amp electrical service, and putting in a high velocity air conditioning system (August in St. Louis is liquid) just to name a few. As a result, we've become pretty happy with every room on the first floor. Every room that is but the kitchen. The filthy, nasty, grease caked, worn out kitchen. For a entire year year now, I haven't even had a stove! The counter tops (which were cheap and ugly new) have deep cuts and BURN marks all over them. The plywood cabinets are literally coated in a thick film of grease. Yet somehow I'd managed to get used to living with this.

A combination of exhaustion from all of the other do it yourself (DIY) projects and fear of the cost of remodelling the kitchen created an unspoken "it's not THAT bad" attitude. Oh sure, most of my dishes were still packed and in the basement because there was no way I was going to let them touch those filthy cabinets. True, there was only a hot plate, roaster oven and microwave to cook with (and in nicer weather the bbq grill). Still, I obviously wasn't missing any meals (I've gained significant weight this year).

Anyway, yesterday morning I met with a kitchen designer. Not because I wanted to, but because I needed to. Usually I pride myself on being able to make these types of decision. I love researching every little choice and learning how to install or repair whatever it is. I found I just couldn't do it with this kitchen project. Too many choices. Way, way too many choices. Hundreds of kitchen cabinets, hundreds of countertop options. Thousands of blacksplash and floor possibilities. Millions of combinations. None of it cheap and none of it easy to replace if I didn't like what I chose. So anywho, Sam (the kitch guy) is drawing up some plans and I'm getting ready to migrate the what there is of a kitchen to the basement. It's probably worth mentioning that the only area of the house that's scarier than the kitchen (and I'm including the attic) is the basement. I suspect I'll be eating out a lot.

Once everything (including the fridge) is moved out my full scale assult on the kitchen will begin. Walls will come down, cabinets will be hacked into pieces and floors will be pulled up. Finally a project that doesn't require subtlty or finese! To paraphrase Michael Caine, What's the point in owning a sledge hammer if you're not going to use it?

Obviously, this little project will be on my mind quite a bit for the next several months. Expect lots of pictures and a healthy dose of cursing. I'll try to catch up on those shout-outs in the next couple of days. Until then, I'll leave with a few titles Liguori Publications titles. What type you ask? What else? Cookbooks!

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Thanks For the Comments!

2007-01-01T11:28:00.000-06:00

Click on the images to see more detail.

Hello:

I'm like most BLOGgers when it comes to an obsessive love of comments. Whether the remarks are positive or negative - I love the feedback. So as a result, I try to richly acknowledge every comment that I get in the BLOG 'currency of the realm'. That's right - a permanent link back to the commenter's site! So please don't be shy, drop me a line.

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Many thanks to Reid for leaving a message. I was building points at BLOGExplosion the other day when I saw photos of the Chihuly glass exhibit at Missouri Botanical Garden. It caught my eye instantly because 1. It's a breath taking exhibit and 2. It's right across the street from my house. I left a message at the site and got a reply pretty quickly. It turns out that Reid, of Reid's Random Remarks, is a St. Louis native attending school at Stanford. He must be a pretty bright guy, Stanford is a pretty picky institution (and birth place of the all knowing Google). I've included a few of my own night shots from the exhibit. It sort of looks like the Gardens have been attacked by a family of Flying Spaghetti Monsters. You should check out Reid's as well. His were taken during the day and I suspect he actually knows how to use camera.

I hope that everyone has had a good start to 2007. I'm heading into work tomorrow for the first time in a week and half. Somehow I'm guessing that none of my co-workers cleaned up my office while I was out. I'm going to make a serious attempt to keep up with my BLOGging this week. I have some commenters to acknowledge and quite a backlog of stories to tell from 2006. As always most of my posts will involve Liguori Publications in some way or another.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Absentee Landlord No More

2006-12-30T09:18:00.000-06:00

Hello:

It really wasn't that long ago that I was completely immersed in the whole BLOG 'thing'. I started Dark Glass for several reasons but chiefly to promote my company, Liguori Publications, and to train myself to become a little freer with my writing (as you can see, I now easily settle for less than perfection). For most of 2006, I didn't have the time, energy or focus to keep up with my own BLOG. It wasn't long after I started neglecting Dark Glass, that the other BLOGs in the Liguori family began to look run down as well. Feel sorry for the Simple Brother at Saintly Sinner, pity Br. Secundo Pio at Mystic Alchemy - I'll be snapping the whip in 2007! I'm also working with two new writers (that is cajolling, whining and stalking) to expand the Liguori BLOG community with a Liguorian Magazine themed BLOG and a Libros Liguori BLOG focused on Hispanic Ministry. I'll keep you posted on those.

So this marks my third post since my return to BLOGville and have settled back into the old habits pretty quickly. I close my eyes and see BLOGexplosion. When I dream, I dream of BLOGmad. Despite the new found enthusiasm, I have deferred a lot of maintenance and am now playing catch-up. I should probably have waited to build my traffic up again but with the super low rent of only 10 BLOGexplosion credits - I went ahead and advertised for a new border. That said, please welcome (and by 'welcome' I mean click the billboard) Gaby, the forever 17 Glamour Girl! This lovely Senorita hails from Mexico (a country which has corrupted me with its beautiful beaches, fattening cuisine and tequila). Her BLOG really stands out to me. Her typical posts are quite short and usually involve everyday life. At first I rolled my eyes about reading the everyday life of a 17 year girl, but somehow her writing style carrys it off. One of her posts, Perfume De Violetas, is disturbing and stuck with me.

Well, I need to get my day started. I'm having a few friends drop by tomorrow night to help me usher in the 2007 and surprisingly, my house isn't clean. The soundtrack in my mind is playing "17 Again" by Annie Lennox - take that as another hint to visit Gaby.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

El Presidente Nuevo

2006-12-28T16:48:00.000-06:00

Hello:

Well two posts in three days ought to count for something. Granted I've taken the entire week off from work and re-energizing Dark Glass while I sip a glass of 1800 Reposado Tequila is better than a lot of ways I could be NOT cleaning the basement, NOT writing my novel, or NOT studying for the GMAT (more on that in a future post).

In my last post, Time for Revival, I mentioned that 2006 has been a strange year. By 'strange' I mean to say 'full of change'. By 'full' I mean 'filled to the brim and running down the side full of change'. I'll resist the urge to type out a huge list of all the things that have been going on and dole them out one per post. Until I get back in the saddle on this BLOGging habit - I need all the topics I can get my hands on.

Among the more important changes that have occured at Liguori Publications, is that we have a new President (at Liguori, the President is also the Publisher). After more than seven years it was time for Fr. Harry Grile to serve in a new appointment. Despite our affections for Fr. Harry, it was not a time for tears. As one old friend was leaving, another also found himself in a new appointment. Our new President (or El Presidente Nuevo as I like to call him) was to be none other than Fr. Mathew Kessler, CSsR. Fr Mat had been Editor of the Libros Liguori Spanish language imprint for the past five years (Fr. Mat press release). The St. Louis Review recently did a very nice interview with Fr. Mat that actually reveals some of the complexity of our physicist / linguist / theologian (hunter, pipe organ repairer, etc.).

Fr. Kessler (who has appeared previously at Dark Glass) takes the helm at a precarious time for the publishing industry as a whole and for Catholic publishers in particular. With his roll up the sleeves and get it done attitude, and close familiarity with the people who buy our materials; he has a stronger chance than most to strengthen the company. At only 44, he's the 'young whipper snapper' of the Redemptorist order and emits a certain vitality that has become rare. He's the fun and quirky type of person that some crazed BLOGger might have thought would appreciate a neti pot as a Christmas gift. ; - }

Following Fr. Mathew Kessler in the role of Libros Liguori Editor is Jose Antonio Medina. Antonio is an established figure in Hispanic Minstries and has been published many times by Liguori and other houses. Antonio will be the subject of future BLOG posts so for now I will only refer you to the press release.

I'll leave you with a bi-lingual title today, written by none other Jose Antonio Medina. It's focus is on Advent, so my timing is a little off but the title fit so well with the topic of today's post that I couldn't pick another. Living in the Present, Imagining the Future / Vivir el presente, imaginar el futuro: Advent Prayer Services for Young Adults/ Servicios de oración en Adviento para jóvenes - putting the title in both languages makes it a bit long winded but still appropriate.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Time for Revival

2006-12-27T21:10:00.000-06:00

Hello:

It's been a long time since I have consistently posted to Dark Glass. In fact, I wouldn't count any post that I've made since May (either of them) as 'real'. 2006 has been a strange year, both for myself and Liguori Publications. It is easy to see the signs and portents which demand a hiatus from the things we love, but so much more difficult to sense the mundanities that signal the time to revive our passions. I'll argue vehemently that the imminent arrival of 2007 in 4 short days has nothing to do with my new found motivation. Then again, I'd also argue that I don't use large words when small ones would do.

When you have been away from something for a significant length of time, it's easy to see what you've given up. I stopped going to the gym about the same time that I stopped BLOGging. I went this morning and it kicked my ass. It was good though. It was good to be back there and it is good to be back here. My workout was harder this morning and I find that I'm not so free and easy as I write this post. I'll try to limber myself up by working at each more regularily.

I'm certain I'm not the only person who's been a little introspective as the year comes to an end. Before I sign off, I'll feature a Liguori title which can add some needed perspective to our introspection. Where There's Hope, There's Life: Women's Stories of Homelessness and Survival by Fr. Anthony J. Gittins, CSSp. This is an extremely moving book based on Fr. Gittins' experiences working with the homeless of Chicago. He paints a large canvas with a pallet of 12 twelve real life women who live (and in one case die) on the streets. In several cases, the women know one another and their stories intersect in ways that draw the reader in and submerge him. It's a harsh book, but that harshness reveals hope and love in the most desparate of circumstances and makes it simple for us to embrace the blessings in our midst.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Have to Pace Myself

2006-09-05T19:41:00.000-05:00

Hello:

OK - so my last post announced my return to BLOGging and is all ready a week old. I haven't even responded to the 2 comments I got on it. I think that the more you want to do something, the more you have to be certain to pace yourself. Don't you? ; - }

I could push on and put up a post that wouldn't satisfy me to write or you to read. Let's just stop here and I'll be back soon. Part of the problem is that I have too many topics I want to discuss. When I'm writing frequently, the ideas seem to queue up very nicely and wait their turn. When I don't write and then start again, it's pure chaos. Maybe if I commit to a topic for my next post now, my thoughts will be better constrained when I write it? Hmm, let's try. I'll write about our recent system upgrades at Liguori Publications and an unexpected assignment I ended up with. Tune in next time for .... "Where in the Warehouse is P. Del Ricci?"

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

S-T-R-E-T-C-H

2006-08-29T18:41:00.000-05:00

Hello:

I'm back. I've been away far longer than I intended, but it's been a necessary concession. My years seem to pass increasingly quickly, but 2006 seems to be the year that just melted away.

I don't really intend for tonight's post to set any new records for BLOGging excellence. The important thing (to me) is that it's here. So many things in life are symbolic, so is this. There are too many stories to tell at this moment. Too many to tell in one sitting anyway. The progress that I had been making as a writer had shown me that less is more. For now I'll try to return to my hard won routines and muse about system upgrades, warehousing, broken toes and bicycles.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Outer Reaches

2006-05-22T13:18:00.000-05:00

Hello:

Please help me welcome this week's BLOGExplosion Billboard renter, "...In the Outer...". And of course by "welcome", I mean click his link right this instant. ...In the Outer... has bid twice previously and is a great site. I didn't hesitate to accept my first bidder when I saw who it was. Also know as "Not Your Moma's Religion and Spirituality Blog", ...In the Outer... is written by "The Bloke" for an audience I would describe as the thinking Christian. It really is well worth a visit (better than hanging out here lately).

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Reaching Out To/ Bias Toward Spanish Speakers

2006-05-19T11:46:00.000-05:00

Hello:

I'm very hopeful that life is on the upswing right now. Actually, I hope that life continues to be as good to me as it has been - but that I'm ready to step out of this dark place that prevents me from appreciating how good I have it. When I get like this, I experience this sort of weird abstract way of viewing my situation from the outside. No matter how loudly 'outside' me shouts 'Stop your bitching, look how good things are.' inside me likes to sit around in the dungeon of self imposed despair. Oh well, on to something else.

One of the things my department does at Liguori Publications is produce a monthly electronic newsletter. It isn't as full of a 'newsletter' yet as what I hope it evolves into but we have about 24,000 subscribers that seem to get some value out of it. Normally it's a brief letter from one of our Redemptorist priests that reflects on the season and suggests some of our titles that are relevent to the topic. [You can sign up by going to www.Liguori.org and entering your email address under 'mailing list' on the right hand side]

We asked Fr. Matt Kessler, CSsR, the editor of our Libros Liguori imprint, to write a bilingual edition of our May newsletter. May is traditionally the month of Mary and many hispanics have a special devotion to her. I should have caught it before it went out the virtual door, BUT we sent the newsletter out with the Spanish text at the top of the email and the English below. I didn't think it would be that big of a deal, but within an hour we received an extremely angry email from a reader who was 'fed up' with her 'forced inundation with hispanic 'culture'. I stop short of describing it as "hate filled" or "vitrolic", but only just. [I paraphrased the quotes so that I don't need to interact with her to print them here].

I understand that this was one woman out of 24,000 readers. I also understand that she is not alone in her opinions. None-the-less it disappointed (and depressed) me that she took the time and energy to lash out at a newsletter from a religious publisher. I'm including the text of the newsletter below (English first) and would be interested in feedback from my readers. I'll be posting about my personal views on illegal immigrants in the next few days and I think it would be interesting if we could begin a thread of discussion.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

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May Is The Month Of Mary

What better way to acknowledge God’s presence than to see how Catholics in other countries express their faith in their own language and music? Latinos honor God through their veneration to the saints and the Blessed Virgin. In the month of May, Catholics turn their focus to the salvation brought to the world through Mary. Jesus’ Good News of salvation has been preached throughout Latin America, and his mother is never far from the hearts and minds of Latinos. Liguori invites you to deepen your own Marian spirituality devotion with this beautiful devotional. Mary Throughout Latin America tells the stories as well as gives a full color image of the Blessed Virgin as she is known in every Latin American country. A specially composed prayer for each image adds a soft touch.

The Catholic faith can make sense to young people if it’s communicated with the right language and examples, so that’s why we’re including Spanish editions of Jim Auer titles for teens and young adults. Liguori’s commitment to Spanish-reading Catholics extends to the Church’s youngest and fastest growing group. We hope these titles quickly find their way into the hands of our youth. Click on any of the images for more information.

In Christ Our Redeemer,

Fr. Matthew Kessler, C.Ss.R.
Liguori Publications

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¿Qué mejor manera existe para reconocer la presencia de Dios sino la de ver cómo los católicos en otros países expresan su fe en su propio idioma y su música? Los latinos honran a Dios a través de su veneración a los santos y a la Santísima Virgen. En el mes de mayo los católicos cambian su enfoque hacia la salvación que vino al mundo a través de María. La Buena Nueva de la salvación de Jesús ha sido predicada por toda América Latina, y su madre nunca está alejada de los corazones y las mentes de los latinos. Ligorio lo invita a profundizar su propia devoción espiritual mariana con este bello librito de devociones. María en Latinoamérica relata las historias al igual que da una imagen a todo color de la Santísima Virgen tal como se conoce en cada país latinoamericano. Una oración compuesta especialmente para este libro añade una suave ternura.

La fe católica puede tener sentido para la gente joven si se comunica con el lenguaje y los ejemplos correctos. Es por eso que incluimos ediciones en español de los títulos de Jim Auer para adolescentes y jóvenes adultos. El compromiso de Ligorio para con los católicos que leen en español se extiende a su grupo más joven y de más rápido crecimiento. Esperamos que estos libros lleguen rápidamente a las manos de nuestra juventud. Haga clic en cualquiera de las imágenes para hallar más información.

Spotlight On Spanish Resources

Hello, my name is Rebecca and I work as the bilingual sales representative for Liguori Publications. Please feel free to contact me by phone or email if I can help you in any way. I'll be happy to answer your questions whether you are looking for a single title to further your personal spirituality or resources for your entire parish. If you are English-speaking and need materials for the Hispanic Ministry at your church, I can make your life much less stressful. I can be reached by phone at 800.325.9521 (press one for English and two for Spanish) or by email ventasliguori@liguori.org

Hola, me llamo Rebecca y trabajo en el departamento de ventas en Liguori Publications. Favor de contactarme por teléfono o correo electrónico si puedo ayudar en cualquiera manera. Me alegraré contestar sus preguntas si busca un título en particular para enriquecer su espiritualidad personal o recursos para toda su parroquia. Si usted habla inglés y necesita materiales para el ministerio hispano en su iglesia, puedo aliviar su estrés. Nuestro número de teléfono es 800.325.9521 (marque uno para inglés y dos para español) o por correo electrónico ventasliguori@liguori.org.

Tilting at Windmills

2006-05-11T15:36:00.000-05:00

Hello:

Today's post is really more for me than for my readers. I've felt myself slipping out of the hard won habit of writing and I'm stealing a few minutes from my job at Liguori Publications to write something, anything.

I'm still surviving, but I'm far from having turned the corner. I understand that I have a great life. The problems that plague me are the kind you can only encounter when a lot of other things have gone well. None-the-less, I feel like the door of my anxiety closet has blown right off its hinges.

I've been staying at the new house, but my PC (TV and telephone) are at the old one.
There have been indications that the contract for the sale of my 'old' house may fall through.
I've been to the gym exactly once in 2006.
I've been on my bike exactly nonce (?) in 2006.
Surprise! I've gained a few pounds.
Not 1, but 2 weedeaters have given their lives attempting to tame the jungle of my new backyard! (I'll BLOG about this more later)
My ~~crusty~~ trusty friend Dave is staying for a little while at the new house.
I still LOVE the new house and don't regret buying it.
I have my budget for fiscal 2007 submitted on time and haven't gotten any cuts yet!
The chili plants I ordered from Cross Country Nurseries arrived yesterday! Fresh Salsa this summer!!! Hot chili this Winter.
I've decided to put a pavered Labyrinth in the back yard.

Did you notice that I sort of transitioned from negatives to positives? Did you notice that I didn't draw a line between which were which? I wonder where that puts Dave????hmmmmm.

I really need to get some exercise. It's my best method for burning off enough frustration to get that anxiety closet closed again.

If I were someone of strong faith - I would probably make an observation about needing to leave the details up to God. My faith isn't that strong, but I have spent a lot of time thinking of St Francis of Assisi. He's credited with having said "Lord grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference." That "wisdom to know the difference" part really resonates. I'll leave you with a suggestion for Affirmations from the Heart of God: New & Expanded Edition by Bridget Mary Meehan and Regina Madonna Oliver.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Moving on

2006-04-28T08:38:00.000-05:00

Hello:

I'm still not able to return my attention to this BLOG, but it is encouraging that the desire remains so strong. I'm hoping to hit the ground running on my writing projects when I get settled. For the moment, I am WAY BEHIND on email and responding to comments. I will catch up as soon as time allows. I have a number of meetings today for my work at Liguori Publications and I am of course behind at work as well. I'll leave you with these photos of the house I'm selling ($134,900 if you're interested in moving to St. Louis).

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Still Here

2006-04-21T15:46:00.000-05:00

Hello:

The rumors of my death are slightly (but only slightly) exaggerated. I hadn't really intended to be off the air for so long but the demands of getting the old house on the market, the new house ready to move into and several projects at work have just about buckled me. I'm through the worst (the old house should go on the market tomorrow) and I should start BLOGging again next week.

In the mean time - I wanted to share this little tid-bit. I was boxing up papers in my office at home to move them to the new house. For some reason my agent didn't see stacks of papers, books and magazines as much of a selling point. (Some people lack perspective.) Anyway, I started reading some of the pages of my novel that I had actually written. Most were just over a year old (I was literally blowing dust off some of them). The amazing thing was, I liked what I read. I couldn't believe it. It was an incredibly positive experience and I'm looking forward to being able to dive back in.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

A Four Letter, Three Day Weekend

2006-04-10T14:48:00.000-05:00

Hello:

I took last Friday off from work and spent my three day weekend cursing. I suppose that some time was spent preparing the old house to be sold, but it seemed like each project was just a precursor to more cursing. I did so creatively. I did so with vim, vigor and zeal. When I exhausted the old standards I resorted to inventing my own 4, 5 and even 6 letter explicatives.

Did you know that electrical boxes used in the 1920's were smaller in width and depth than the current standard? I did, but it's normally nothing but a mild inconvenience. Did you know that modern GFI outlets are larger than normal outlets and that that small small difference translates into a MAJOR pain in the ?!!!! What would normally take a screwdriver, a pair of plyers and 10 minutes; took a dremmel, a hammer and 2 HOURS! Oh and cursing, it took a steady torrent of language that threatened to peel off the fresh paint.

Most of Saturday and Sunday was spent in some variation of

Pull fuse in basement
Wire something in bathroom
Duck walk through attic and shimmey under eave to check connections to fixture
Hit head on attic roof
Curse
Return to basement, restore fuse
Check operation in bathroom
Curse

Change the order around as you will, but repeat those steps ad nauseum and you get the picture. To top it all off, my attic has vermiculite insulation. It's very effective, fire retardant, common in St Louis and .... oh yea was sometimes shipped in from Libby, Montana and can contain asbestos. The chances that it does are almost infinitesimally small but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little creeped out. All last week, I kept reading about how mesothelioma (a cancer caused by exposure to asbestos) is the most expensive Google adword .

For the most part, it's done and the house is ready to put on the market. I have to really question my laziness though. In the past few weeks I finished projects that I had been slowly creeping up on for the last 6 years. For 6 years, I'd been showering in the basement from a shower head hanging off an I-beam! Now there is a real shower in the bathroom that matches the period style of the house. For about the last 3 years, my hallway had a mechanic's drop light hanging from the ceiling and wired into the switch.

Now that it's over, I'm proud of my work. It all looks great. I might even, just a little bit, regret that I won't be living in the house long and have the chance to enjoy them. I wonder if I should advertise that someone with OCD did all the updates? My work is better than that of some contractors I've seen.

Earlier today they put the last coat of polyurethene on the refinished floors at the new house. I should be able to start living there in 36 hours! Hopefully, I've learned my lesson and won't put projects off at the new place. We'll see.

I'll leave you with a recommendation for a Liguori Publications title that's a little more positive than tales of my cursing talents. The Christ-Centered Heart: Peaceful Living in Difficult Times by Rick Mathis, Ph.D. Maybe it's time that I go back to yoga class?

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

A Few Things I Forgot to Mention

2006-04-07T07:23:00.000-05:00

Hello:

I recently decided to do a collection of more serious and in-depth posts (that's right folks, for your cutting edge news stay tuned to Dark Glass). I started with Terri Schiavo and planned to follow with Pro Life vs Pro Birth, immigration, child sexual abuse and the stance of the Catholic Church on homosexuality. Unfortunately, life has hit me like a freight train recently and I haven't even posted the immigration article that is all ready mostly written. I still plan to write this series, but it may be a few weeks. Certainly after Easter.

My work at Liguori Publications has been intense. We are implementing a completely new enterprise computer system. This would normally be a tremendous project in its own right, but for us is merely a staging project to prepare for creating an entirely new and fully integrated e-commerce, digital content and web platform.

I still haven't moved into the new house that I've owned since December. They started refinishing the floors earlier this week and I should be able to move things onto them next Thursday. I'd like to put the old house on the market next week, but everything I work on seems to take 4 times longer than I expect. I took today off work and have spent the entire time installing a shower in the upstairs bathroom. Sometime I'll have to share a picture of the primative shower I've been using for the past 6 years......

I've put a lot of care and effort into this house over the years. I hope the new owners both enjoy and appreciate it. You won't find many finishing here that came from Home Depot if you know what I mean.

In the odd moment (and trust me, most of my moments have been odd lately), I've rented billboard space from several BLOGExplosion members. All of whom have been splendid hosts.

Imago Dei - A relatively new Christian BLOG and an interesting read. I'm glad to be renting from it and glad to have found it.

Footsteps of Love - Another Christian which is new to me and that I'm glad I've found. Check out the pics of the Lego Church.

The Dramedy of Life - for more than you probably wanted to know about this site read my recent review.

In other news, I registered Dark Glass at the LSBlog.Com list directory.

And finally, I signed up at BLOGmad - the new BLOG exchange that's shaking BLOGExplosion's world. I'll let you know which I like better in a few weeks.

Whew - I'm out of breath and I don't think that new light in the bathroom is going to wire itself.....

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

The Dramedy of Life

2006-04-05T15:05:00.000-05:00

Hello:

Today I'd like to talk about this week's BLOGExplosion Billboard Renter. WAIT, STOP!!! Don't go away! This week's renter is very special and I want you to hear about her. This week's renter is none other than the lovely Miz Savannah, aka Shelly, of The Dramedy of Life.

Shelly has been special to me ever since we first crossed paths. She was one of the very first people to leave a comment at Dark Glass, she was THE first person to link to Dark Glass from her BLOG and she has been a valuable source of encouragement and support.

The Dramedy of Life, is a VERY professional looking site (she had a custom template created a little while back). Between the professional look of the site and her well written reviews of current television programming, you'd think she was a network shill. As far I can tell, she's just a Lady who tells it as she sees it. Hey, I saw that. Stop rolling your eyes! Believe it or not, her writing style makes these reviews actually interesting.

She is also an avid reader (yes, Shelly I still owe you that list) who shares my love for vampire thrillers. How cool is that? Whereas I ALMOST participated in last year's NaNoWriMo contest, Shelly actually did it (or started it anyway). You know about NaNoWriMo right? It's the annual contest where thousands of lemmings try to write an entire novel in a month. Most find it easier to jump off a cliff.

I know it sounds like I'm endorsing her political candidacy, but The Dramedy of Life really is worth reading. Sure I feel a little guilty that I didn't get this welcome post up several days ago, but a project at work (that would be Liguori Publications) kicked into high gear and I just haven't had the time. Speaking of me being late with this post, Shelly will only be here for a few more days - PLEASE VISIT HER SITE.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Peer Pressure

2006-04-01T06:19:00.000-06:00

Hello:

Last night I received some feedback from Dave of What Will I Know Tomorrow? (not to be confused with Dave of Saintly Sinner). Dave had a really valid point and I'm going to try and be better about having fresh content up if I'm going to constantly be ib the BLOGExplosion Battle of the BLOGs. Ironically, his latest post is a cartoon that deals with Peer Pressure. Coincidence? I think not! My newspaper is late again this morning so I should be able to get some BLOG work done.

Here's Dave's comment:

Hey there,
I like your blog much more than most of it's theme, but I just wanted to say that if you're going to put yourself up on BOB multiple times a day than maybe ONE new post a day would be good.... Just sayin'

Here's my response at his site:

Gee Dave - I think I am succumbing to your peer pressure and getting ready to add a new post to my BLOG!

Seriously though, what can I say? You're right. If I'm going to be in the BOB 24/7, I should have some fresh material now and then. The last few days, I just haven't had the spare minutes to put something up. I EVEN have a piece written out on paper, but haven't gotten it keyed in.

Well, thank you for the feedback and the kind words. I'll try to rotate the produce a little more often.

In the spirit of constructive criticism, I am featuring My Hope for the Church: Critical Encouragement for the Twenty-First Century by Bernard Häring, C.Ss.R. (one of our world-class authors).

So you see, I listen to my readers! In fact, we might end up with more than one post today. I had actually written out a schedule of topics for each day of the week. The Terri Schiavo piece put me in a mind to do some more serious writing than usual. Immigration, pro-birth vs pro-life and child sexual abuse are in the line up (it's the immigration piece I've all ready written). Serious, socially relevant topics. Topics that I can easily pull material for from Liguori Publications titles. Those titles of course support official Catholic teaching, but with my humble opinions thrown in the mix the posts just might be interesting (or not)! For those of you who prefer the lighter side, I will be returning to talking about my trip to the Olympics and the progress on my new house (oh, the joys of 2 mortgage payments!).

Before I can get to any of that though; I need to welcome this week's Billboard renter, Shelly of the Dramedy of Life. Shelly will be getting her own exclusive welcome post in just a little bit [see how well I treat my tenants?]. In the mean time.......

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Quality of Life

2006-03-28T09:55:00.000-06:00

Hello:

Yesterday, I got into quite a ramble about this week's BLOGExplosion billboard renter, Crystal Clear. [See Crystal Clear and Dark Glass] Crystal writes on socially relevant and current topics like right to life (specifically Terri Schiavo) and illegal immigration, in general she seems to have a strong conservative stance. I didn't get much further than setting up Crystal's position and highlighting some of Liguori Publications' related products before I realized that I needed to break this into several posts. Today, I would like to touch on some of the right to life / pro-life issues. My post won't be anywhere near exhaustive (at least no more exhausting than my readers usually find my writing) but I'm hoping it form a point for discussion. SO PLEASE LEAVE COMMENTS, I really want to hear what my readers have to say. Also, please remember that I am not Catholic and my opinions / beliefs are my own. They may or may not coincide with the views of Liguori on any given topic and at any given time. Liguori is a Catholic publishing house and remains true to the teachings of the Catholic Church and the Redemptorist Charism.

In regard to Terri Schiavo, I feel for her, I feel for her family, but I think it is a blessing that she has passed on. When I think of Terri, I can't help but think of the millions throughout the world who will perish from easily remedied medical conditions.

What if Terri had been a single African American mother of 4? What if she had lived in East St. Louis and worked 3 mininum wage jobs that didn't provide benefits? What if she had died from an infection that the free clinic missed? Would we even know her name? Would her children find nurturing environments in the foster care system?

How many people, how many families, how many communities; would have benefited from the medical, political and financial resources which were brought to bear on the case of Terri Schiavo? In the most optimistic of outcomes, what would Terri's quality of life have been? Is it a tradeoff she would have been willing to make?

My training and background is in Economics, which I have always thought of as more philosophy than science. It can be thought of as the study of the allocation of limited resources when there are infinite wants. When one life can be preserved poorly with the resources that could preserve 100 well it becomes a classic Economic issue. While the world was focused on the ethics of one poor soul and a feeding tube, did anyone see the counter balancing outcome that may have just as surely killed several nameless others?

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Pursuing Pablo

2006-03-28T02:46:00.000-06:00

Hello:

I've been remiss in mentioning that I took out a BLOGExplosion Billboard at Sophia (Greek for Wisdom). Sophia is one of several BLOGs guided by the intellectual hand of Pablo P. Thought provoking at the very least and always worth reading.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Crystal Clear and Dark Glass

2006-03-27T09:49:00.000-06:00

Hello:

Today I would like to introduce a new BLOGExplosion Billboard tenant that I hope will generate some discussion on both of our sites. Please welcome Crystal Clear. When Crystal bid on my BLOG, I accepted her application without waiting for any additional offers. Crystal writes about strong positions on topics such as right to life (ex. Terri Schiavo) and illegal immigration. Liguori Publications has some titles out on both topics that I can draw on to present the official Catholic stance. For variety we may even touch on some of my personal viewpoints which (*gasp*) don't agree with Cyrstal OR Liguori on all counts. So PLEASE FEEL FREE TO LEAVE COMMENTS, all that I ask is that you keep your remarks civil.

Liguori just released a new Catholic Health Care Ethics Series which was developed in conjunction with DIALearning and faculty at the St. Louis University's Cen ter for Health Care Ethics. There are five programs currently available. Each one is made up of several CD's and DVD's with facilitation guides available for download from the web. At $149.95 per program, they are outside the means of the typical individual but make a great resource for schools, parishes or other groups that are concerned about these issues. The series is currently made up of: Program 1 Persistent Vegetative State To Live…or Let Die , which specifically examines the Terri Schiavo case; Program 2 A National Emergency Patient Safety; Program 3 Dying Well Assisted Suicide & End-of-Life Care?; Program 4 Stem Cell Research Frontier of Hope & Concern and Program 5 Born Too Soon Neonatal Care in the 21st Century.

In regard to the immigration issues, Liguori publishes Catholic Tradition and Immigration: Toward a Communion of Cultures and Peoples which is also available in Spanish under our Libros Liguori imprint as La Tradición Católica e Inmigración Hacia la comunión entre culturas y pueblas. Especially relevent this Lent and Easter season is the bilingual The Way of the Cross of the Migrant Jesus: El Vía Crucis de Jesús Migrante by Gioacchino Campese, CS.

Gesh - I'm 4 paragraphs and 5 images into this post and I'm not anywhere near a point. To restate and then wrap up, here's what we have.

1. Welcome my tenant Crystal Clear.

2. She writes about some controversial topics that I think can spur some interesting interaction on both our sites.

3. Liguori Publications produces material on at least two of the topics Crystal covers.

4. PLEASE LEAVE COMMENTS, both here and at Crystal Clear. We'd love to hear your thoughts.

5. I will try to follow this post with some that are more concise.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Late Newspaper

2006-03-27T05:14:00.000-06:00

Hello:

My newspaper (The ST. Louis Post Dispatch) has been late for the last 2 days. My paper is a fundamental part of my day and I am developing IPS (Irritiable Paper Syndrome) an as yet medically unrecognized but serious condition which afflicts tens of people each day throughout the world. When I call, a voice automated response system patiently explains that "technically your route doesn't finish until 7 AM. If you still don't have your paper at that time, please call back." Then it hangs up on me. Grrrrrrrrrr.

Add to that that I have been in a passive aggressive stand off with my Mother for the last few weeks (it's complicated but stems from the funeral) and I'm a tad bit cranky.

Maybe it's a plot from Liguori Publications? Without my paper, I've been working for the last hour. Hmmmmmm, maybe I'll go steal my boss's.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Liguori Vacation Bible School Program

2006-03-24T11:15:00.000-06:00

Hello:

I'm not quite back in the swing of things since the funeral. Various configurations of family dysfunction and tension keep parading about like it's Mardi Gras. Despite my best efforts to ignore it all, it's a distraction. Fortunately, that's as far into that mess as I intend to delve today. Instead, I'm going to chat about this year's Liguori Publications Vacation Bible School Program. Despite having just gotten back from the Winter Olympics, "I need a vacation" keeps floating through my head and the whole company is buzzing about our VBS program. It's a natural for today's topic.

Apparently the idea of a Catholic Vacation Bible School is relatively new. Maybe because the Church had the infrastructure of the parochial school system? That might make sense. Interest seems to grow as that infrastructure weakens and disappears.

I was raised as a Southern Baptist in a rural area of Southern Illinois. Vacation Bible School always seemed like such a big event and I was so eager to go. I'm not sure if it was a lack of product or a lack of funds, but my church never had a commercially produced VBS 'program' that they followed. What they did have were hundreds of Mrs. Gent's homemade cookies. Mrs. Gent (I just realized I have no idea what her first name was) was the Pastor's wife whose life's work was to fatten up any child she could get her hands on. Hmmm, I'm sitting here remembering what a wonderful person she was. She was always making baked goods, key chains, and little porcelin figures that she would give away with accompanying hugs.

Sorry for the digression, but I hadn't thought about her in a very long time. ANYWAY; today's Vacation Bible Schools have gone big time and publishers spend big bucks to develop and produce them. They usually have cool themes like an Amazon adventure, or the Wild West. This year's theme for us is SonTreasure Island (I'll have to check if it teaches kids how to talk like a pirate).

Protestant publisher's have been honing these products for a long time and the concept is still pretty new to Catholics, so we partner with another company called Gospel Light. They develop each year's theme and the majority of the program materials. They sell it with the same name and theme into their own markets. Then we take what they produce and change some of the content as well as add our own pieces to produce a truly Catholic version. Some of the differences can be very subtle and are beyond me. We work closely with Church authorities (including Bishops) and don't release the program until we have secured an Imprimatur. I like to think of the Imprimatur as the GoodHouseKeeping Seal of approval but what it really means is that the material has been thoroughly reviewed by a Bishop and found to be consistent with Church teachings.

[Listen to sample music clips: Clip3, Clip5, Clip8]

Depending on the year's theme, we can get pretty silly with the anciliary products. These little "Fish Squirt" water pistols have almost gotten me fired. I just can't help myself...... I was going to put an inflatable palm tree in my office, but that would lead to drinking, drink umbrellas and hammocks. I figured I was close enough to being fired as it was and let that temptation slide by.

Through the end of April, we're offering Free Ground Shipping in the US (the $2.50 handling charge does apply) on all Vacation Bible School products that are ordered from our web site. We normally do a lot of VBS sales on the web anyway (I think people like to look at all the little toys and trinkets) but with this special sales have been really brisk.

I'd be really interested to hear from anyone (of any faith) who organizes or works with the Vacation Bible School program for their own church. Especially if you've used our product. What do you like? What do you not like? Could we do something new, better or differently that would help you have a better experience? Let me know! Liguori Publications loves to hear from customers and we try our best to make our customer's lives better. Your comments will be read and appreciated.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Today at Liguori

2006-03-21T11:22:00.000-06:00

Hello:

I'm hoping this will be a short and sweet post about a new free service we've added at the Liguori Publications website. Things have been known to get away from me - so we'll see where we end up. We're calling the new service Today at Liguori. For the moment it consists of two daily readings / reflections; Saint of the Day and Daily Strength. As the name implies, the readings change each day.

"Today at Liguori" is deceptively simple in its appearance. The functionality is fairly advanced and points the way to the future of publishing. Yep, seriously - this little daily reading applet is a proof of concept project for a much larger effort. The two titles the content is drawn from have been manipulated into an XML format and each day's reading is automatically displayed on the site. We're working on a number of nifty little tricks to take advantage of this approach. A pet project of mine is to be able to offer automated daily feeds of our content that could be plugged into BLOGs. I'll keep you posted on how that turns out. Feel free to drop me a line if you have a suggestion for future offerings.

In case you were wondering (or even if you weren't), the Saint of the Day is taken from Be Mindful of Us: Prayers to the Saints by Anthony F. Chiffolo. The Daily Strength reading is taken from Daily Strength: One Year of Experiencing the Psalms by Victor M. Parachin.

Well, I seem to have kept this post to a reasonable length. For good or bad, my next posts should be back to my typical ramble. Until then...

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Looking for Feedback on Liguori Free Shipping Offer

2006-03-20T11:06:00.000-06:00

Hello:

This will be brief and completely related to Liguori Publications. I just had a conversation (disagreement) with a lady in our Order Processing group and I'm hoping to get some feedback from my Dark Glass readers. We just started a web special that gives Free US Ground Shipping on any order of $20 or more (good through the end of the month).

The disagreement revolves around customers who placed orders prior to the sale. The lady calls and asks me what the cutoff should be for modifying orders? "Modify?", I ask. "You know for the people who placed orders before the sale but call in for the offer." I'll keep the "he said, she said" short and just say that I made an ultimatum. You either get the sale offer or you don't. You don't go the department store and ask for the sale they're having tomorrow. I don't think we should adjust orders that have all ready been placed.

To me - the nature of a sale is that the pricing or offer is special. In this case, we started the offer because we noticed a lot of abandoned shopping carts with totals less than $20. At that price point shipping is prohibitively expensive. Someone can end up paying $8.00 to get a $1.00 pamphlet. With this special; customers can stock up on small things like prayer cards, pamphlets, and devotional items without spending more on shipping than they do for the product. It's also a great time to buy gift items like cookbooks or travel books, but it is the small items I really have in mind. The offer is timely too. Anyone who orders by March 31st, should have no problem receiving their package by Good Friday. It's a good chance for someone to order our Lent and Easter titles at a good value.

Liguori Publications is a not-for-profit charged with furthering the Gospel of Jesus Christ and supporting the work of the Redemptorist Fathers and the Catholic Church in general. Because of that, a lot of people (both inside and outside of the company) think we should give our product away. That would do a lot to promote our mission - for the short period of time until we were forced to close our doors and send away our employees.

So anyway - I am genuinely interested in feedback from my readers. Am I being too strict? Are some customers too pushy? How do you feel these situations should be handled?

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Small World Followup

2006-03-13T13:05:00.000-06:00

Hello:

I recently mentioned Joyce Smith in The World Keeps Getting Smaller. Joyce sent a 'Thank You' note to the employees of Liguori Publications for our participation in the Letters to Santa project. The project was an enjoyable way for us to help the children of the Cheyenne River Reservation have a better Christmas. In addition to the card, Joyce sent several photos of the kids and volunteers. I know that Santa isn't a topic normally discussed during the sorrowful season of Lent, but I had to share.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Strange Place

2006-03-09T09:07:00.000-06:00

Hello:

This post will be more personal than the topics I usually write about. I'm in a weird space and feel the need to write about it. My Grandmother passed away yesterday morning and I'm not certain how I feel about it. More to the point, I feel guilty that I don't feel much at all. Obviously, we weren't close.

My parents went through a rather tumultuous (a word I think should be used more often) divorce when I was about nine. It hadn't been a good marriage. It wasn't a good divorce. It was for the best.

I remember my Father's Mother as being distant and cold. During her rare visits she would sit and read plays or do crosswords while chainsmoking. As far as I can recall, she dealt with everyone equally, which is to say not at all.

I do have one warm memory of her. My parents owned a small lake in the country. She (I called her Peg) loved to fish. I remember getting an actual hug when I caught a large bass. It's the only one I can think of.

I last spoke to her five years ago when my Father was visiting. She called my house. When I answered, she asked for my Father. I handed him the phone.

I last saw her when I was sixteen. I am now thirty four.

My Father asked me to attend the service next Thursday (services will be held in Florida first, then she will be buried in Illinois). I said that I will go.

What will I think during the 4 hour drive? Will I feel anything at all for the person or will she become merely a symbol of frustration, resentment and rejection?

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

The World Keeps Getting Smaller

2006-03-07T09:11:00.000-06:00

Hello:

I know it's been a few days since I posted. Working on the new house has soaked up most of the time I would normally spend working on my BLOG. The sad thing is that I have so many things that I want to share about my trip to the Olympics. Today, I'll continue on the theme of how small our world really is. You may remember that last December, Liguori Publications participated in a Letters to Santa project for the Lakota children of the Cheyenne River Reservation. In a bit of cosmic irony, three things happened while I was in Europe that were directly related to these children in South Dakota.

1. My second night in Italy, I was waiting to have dinner at Conca y Toro in Savigliano with some new friends. The waiting area was getting pretty crowded and I backed into a picture frame on the wall. I couldn't read most of it, but it appeared to be of a Lakota Indian Chief who was a Wounded Knee survivor. My camera had a bad memory chip in it and this was the best (only) picture that survived.

2. Several days later, I was having dinner in a Mexican restaurant in Zurich (picture Mexican food made with marinara sauce and swiss cheese, can't say that I'm in a hurry to have it again). My cell phone rang (I was surprised, I got better reception there than I do here). It was Joyce Smith, the Letters to Santa coordinator in St. Louis. She was calling to confirm the address for Liguori before she mailed us a thank you card.

3. I got this great comment from Euphoria while I was still away.

Hi I would just like to say that I have been on several occassions one of the volunteers who in the past has unloaded the van from St Louis when it arrived on the Rez, I am a UK female who volunteers at The Main (as it's known locally) over Christmas......it's wonderful experience and great fun.....please keep those presents coming....especially books and clothes, blanketts....and more than ever BABY clothes!

Many thanks

Please take a moment to visit her BLOG, also named Euphoria. It's well worth the visit.

Further proof that the world continues to shrink.

Be kind to your neighbor,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Where does the time go?

2006-03-02T17:14:00.000-06:00

Hello:

Sad to think about, but it's all ready time to say goodbye to last week's BLOGExplosion renter - Beautiful Life. It's not too late to stop by Antony's BLOG and I still recommend it. Wow, it's great to have such quality renters.

The last time around we had SEVEN bidders. Which, while very flattering, makes choosing difficult and takes awhile to write reviews for. This time, I upped the price to 40 credits (I usually charge 30) and I'm making my choice from among 3 quality bids. I mean that by the way - tough choices. Three quality sites, each with an artistic flair. Two of which have bid before. Hmmmmmmm.

This week's candidates are:

Full Metal Photographer: Let's see. Owned by Kelly, a male Law Student who is not only a great (and I mean that) photographer but has enough breadth of interests (Heavy metal to Paradise Lost) that he's probably an interesting person. Oh sure, some people may not care for the photo of the Gummy Bear Crucifixation - but I've always been a firm believer that art should challenge, provoke or inspire. That shot does all three (my own opinion, you may not agree).

My Waisted Life: A stylish little BLOG written by Madbull, the Belgian bartender. Madbull bid on my site back in December. The writing is edgy, the feel is trendy. It makes me want to pull up a stool and order the signature cocktail. WARNING: The writing is edgy, which means adult themes and language are used / discussed.

Winsome Gunning Art. Interesting, beautiful and thought provoking. This site features original art work as well as poems and more traditional BLOG posts. Winsome bid last week, and I've been happily purusing her site ever since.

As always, tough choices. I think that's a good problem to have. This is probably a good time to remind everyone that though this BLOG deals mostly with Catholic themes and my work at Liguori Publications; THIS IS MY PERSONAL BLOG and DOES NOT REFLECT THE VIEWS OR OPINIONS OF LIGUORI PUBLICATIONS.

Anyway, who to pick? Well Madbull has bid before and the longest time ago. I'm sitting at home drinking a Tequila Sunrise and wondering if he can help me reconstruct this fantastic cocktail I had in Torino at the AB + club. Yea - you guessed it. Please welcome my newest tenant - My Waisted Life.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

These are the people in your neighborhood

2006-03-01T09:50:00.000-06:00

Hello:

This should be a short post today ("Sure it will", you think). I was just thinking again about how small the world has become. When I travel, I use my business cards as an easy way to let people that I meet know how to stay in touch with me. Very seldom does anyone recognize the Liguori Publications name. When I was in Torino (trying to figure out what bus would take me to the Olympic Opening Ceremony), I met Sue and Sandra. Two lovely ladies, who knew how to get the stadium (FYI - take the X4 from Porto Nuovo). We all hit it off pretty quickly and were exchanging contact information before we split up to go to our seats. Sue, immediately said "You work for Liguori!" when I handed her my card. "You've heard of us?" Turns out that she and her sister have been long time subscribers to Liguorian magazine and frequently give out gift subscriptions. It was a very pleasant experience for me.

She doesn't know it yet, but I'm going to send her one of our Travel books, Catholic Shrines of Western Europe: A Pilgrim's Travel Guide by Kevin J. Wright. Speaking of things Sue doesn't know, I didn't ask her permission to post this picture. I'll have to email her right away.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

The Olympic Ideal

2006-02-28T11:13:00.000-06:00

Hello:

The quality of my writing lately (always?) has been a little questionable, however; there are several themes that struck a chord with me during my recent travels. I'll do my best to share those themes in the form that I experienced them, but my writing will at best be an imperfect lense (or perhaps a dark glass). Today, I'd like to talk about the "Olympic Ideal".

Let me start by saying that the Olympics are humbling. VERY, very humbling. To be involved in any way, even as a spectator, is to be some small part of a gestalt of humanity. Part of the official goal of the Olympic movement is "to contribute to building a peaceful and better world by educating youth through sport practised without discrimination or any kind, in a spirit of friendship, solidarity and fair play." It may sound overly idealistic, but it works and it is powerful. In these troubled times, the experience restored my hope for world peace.

I've gotten goosebumps a couple of times as I have tried to write this and relived various moments of my trip. I encountered people from around the world and was repeatedly struck by the friendliness, the curiousity and warmth of everyone I met.

I went into the Russian Team Store hoping to buy some Team Russia Olympic pins (pins are a huge phenomenon that I'll explain in more detail later). They didn't have any pins, but were eager to chat with the Americans who had wandered in.

During the Opening Ceremony, they have a parade of atheletes in which the Olympians of each nation are presented along with their flag. The only country I didn't clap for was Iran. Instead of clapping, I sat there pondering world politics and wondering if I was I was being petty. Several days later when I was skiing in Zermatt, I had a great conversation with an older man riding up in a ski lift. It turns out that he was an Iranian national who had been a US citizen for the last 30 years. He felt no more comfortable with Iran's current politics than I did, but it still made me feel very small.

I don't mean to sound sappy - but the world is smaller than we know and we must realize that we are each Brother and Sister to one another. I'll wrap this up by mentioning a couple of Liguori Publications products. Blessed Are the Peacemakers: Ten Steps to Peace by Mary E. Latela is a great book that shows that we can individually contribute to that which is greater than ourselves. The Cross and the Beatitudes: Lessons on Love and Forgiveness by Fulton J. Sheen is a classic that reinforces the themes of love, forgiveness and compassion. Necessary keys to unlock peace.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Shrouded in Mystery

2006-02-26T20:53:00.000-06:00

Hello:

An insidious mixture of returning to the real world, jet lag and laziness has prevented me from posting to this BLOG in the past few days. It's even odder than it sounds, since I wrote several posts worth of material while I was on the road. The last post I made before leaving on my trip was Did I Mention my new House had Bird Flu?, in which I implied that there might be some serious partying with Apollo Ohno and Bode Miller at the Olympics. I might have also implied a certain intent to execute a heist of the Shroud of Turin. Well, now that I'm back (and perhaps on the advice of council) I can only say "No comment". I'm not saying that I did party with Bode and Apollo. I'm also not saying that I didn't. Let's just say that it doesn't take a very careful examination of the official record to see that our boys weren't performing at their peak while I was in town. What can I say? Some people (perhaps from St. Louis) can hold their absinthe better than others. When La Fee Verte (the Green Fairy) enters an event, anyone can find themselves sitting on the ice. As to the Shroud? I think it is best if we all just assume that it is still safely in it's vault at the shrine. When they next display it in 2025, I'll be as surprised as anyone if there is a Liguori Publications sweatshirt in it's place. Note to self - write BLOG post about things that seemed like a good idea at the time that might be regretted later...

In all seriousness - I did make it down to the Shrine of the Shroud. Let me be upfront and say that I have no reason to believe that the Shroud is actually the grave linen of Christ. Whether 'only' a focus of faith to millions or 'merely' an incredibly sophisticated photographic ruse constructed from the most primitive of resources or similarly complex method; it has been many things to many people and regardless of what it is, it is still fascinating.

It was interesting how easy it was to see the Shrine of the Shroud. No lines, no security, no admission. Waltz right in, take as many pictures as you like. No flash photography - gratzi. The church is beautiful in a sort of unremarkable way. By which I mean that there is so much fantastic architecture in Torino, that sometimes something less than grand becomes magnificent.

I'm not happy with the way this post has evolved. I've been writing it throughout the course of the day and the tenor of it has changed several times. I suppose that I should just be happy that I'm getting some of this material posted. I have so many stories that I'm dying
to share. So many photos too. I think I am going to have to sign up with FLICKR or some other service. I have too many that I want to share. Time for me to head off to bed, but I'm going to shift to a more serious tone before I go by suggesting Into Your Hands: Meditations and Prayers on the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of Jesus Christ Edited by Norman J. Muckerman, C.Ss.R. As we move closer to the Lenten season and with talk about the Shroud, this title practically suggested itsself.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Back from the Olympics

2006-02-23T13:07:00.000-06:00

Hello!

WOW! I had the best trip of my life. It was interesting to me though that the only thing I missed about internet access was this BLOG. I was tempted to use a hotel connection or internet cafe' a couple of times just to drop a quick note, but I know myself too well and realized that I would get buried in work email. I'm still getting my legs back under me here at work, so I won't jump into writing about my trip just yet. Let's welcome my newest BLOGExplosion renter and I'll try to write a fuller post tomorrow.

This week 7 people bid to advertise their BLOG on Dark Glass. I love it that that many people are interested. I'm also happy that several of them have rented from me before and so must have found it worth-while. In no particular order, the bidders were:

Haunted House Dressing. This is a pretty immersive experience created by author Jeremy Shipp. The format is a little dense, but well worth exploring. I've been a fan of this site for quite some time. Despite the author being an unrepentant nun-tickler, it is worth a visit. Jeremy has been a previous renter.

...in the outer. Also known as "Not Your Moma's Religion and Spirituality Blog". I like this BLOG a lot and visit regularily. The site is written by 'The Bloke' - who I would describe as a thinking Christian. His BLOG is thought provoking and worth the visit. He is a previous bidder.

Winsome Gunning Art. Interesting, beautiful and thought provoking. This site features original art work as well as poems and more traditional BLOG posts. This is the first time I had seen the site, but it won't be the last.

My Corner of the Web. The up and coming BLOG of a 35 year old Bassoon player named Suzanne. I bet that's tough to get through airport security.

Dorene Lorenz. Dorene's site is another one that's new to me. It was giving me some trouble to view properly in my browser, but the writing seems witty and worthwhile. Dorene serves on the City Council of the city of Seward, Alaska (a beautiful city I was briefly in 6 years ago). I'll make a point to visit her again.

Beautiful Life. Tough to describe really but I like it. Antony Manjooran has struck up an interesting dynamic with a repeat anonymous poster that just sort of draws you in. There's something about the simple design that is also intriguing. I just placed a bid to try and rent his billboard (at 42 credits, it seems a little pricey to me - but I do like the BLOG).

Real Thought. These are the thoughts of Doug, a self described "conservative native Californian". Doug is strongly interested in a variety of topics including politics. He seems firmly committed to his viewpoints, but doesn't try to bash anyone else into acceptance. I found some interesting reading here.

Whew! It takes a while to do that for 7 sites. So who did I pick? What can I say? It's a Beautiful Life. Please do stop by my renter and leave a comment (after you leave one here of course). I had several really great sites to choose from and I hope that they will all try again next week. Tomorrow, I hope to start sharing some pictures from my Olympics trip and talk up some product from Liguori Publications.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Did I Mention my new House had Bird Flu?

2006-02-07T09:49:00.000-06:00

Ciao:

I have to be honest that I'm having trouble focusing enough to write a decent post. I'm leaving tomorrow for my trip to the 2006 Olympics in Turin, Italy and I think it is affecting my concentration (just a little bit). Any day now I'll probably be drinking with Bode Miller and tearing up the town with Apollo Ohno. Partying with those 2 may lead to our purloining the Shroud of Turin (seems like my mental vacation has all ready started). I'm 'mostly' packed but I'm still getting a little anxious.

So what's that got to do with Bird Flu? Nothing. Weren't you paying attention? I'm having trouble focusing. Anyway - I think I may have mentioned that the chimney in my house was blocked. The inspector found crumbling mortar and leaves and wasn't able to open the flu. In a very Cassandra like fashion, he preceeded to predict doom and misery for any who would dare to use the fireplace. In my ADHD manner - I took a break from plaster work and crawled into the fireplace (a perfectly natural thing to do). It turns out that the flu was just jammed in it's rails. When I got it open, a few leaves AND A DEAD BLACKBIRD fell on my face! The firebox of this fireplace is very large - but not large enough to share with a mummified bird. After removing Edgar Allen Poe's little buddy - I was able to see straight up to the sky. This chimney is so large, I could probably climb up it if I were being chased by click crazed paparazzi (or is it poparatzi?). Fortunately, neither is likely to happen.

Well, this has certainly not been my best post. I had wanted to leave off with something really special before I left for my trip - but well, this is what you're getting. Speaking of paparazzi, I'm taking a lot of photographic fire power with me on this trip. Brace yourself for months of vacation photos. I'd love to leave you with a suggestion for a Lenten titlefrom Liguori Publications, but I just can't tie one back to today's post. Instead I'll suggest something from our Travel series. Perhaps I can use Catholic Shrines of Western Europe: A Pilgrim's Travel Guide by Kevin J. Wright to help me plot my Shroud caper?

Arrivederci,

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

New Tenant

2006-02-07T03:51:00.000-06:00

Hello:

The management of this BLOG is starting to get really shoddy! I've had a new tenant since last weekend and I haven't mentioned it. Please welcome (and visit) Annette and her site Blogging Days and Blogging Nights. This is a warm little family centric Christian site, written and maintained by Annette. Happily married for 5 years, 2 daughters and 2 pups - she has a lot of positive energy to share.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

An Experience of Spirit - Book Review

2006-02-02T09:00:00.000-06:00

Hello:

I really enjoy the many facets of BLOGging. Writing is becoming a habit. People are reading what I write. My company, Liguori Publications, is benefiting from the referring links and reader feedback. It wouldn't take me long to make a list, but I'd prefer to dwell on the many other sites I've been exposed to. I've enjoyed discovering the wealth of opinions, information and experiences that people are willing to share. Whether it is a Muslim site like my current renter, My Quraan, or the writings of an Evangelical Christian, like Another Man's Meat, I've found many thought provoking viewpoints.

Recently, Phil Dillon of Another Man's Meat agreed to review a Liguori title. I've been impressed by Phil's writing style for some time now and was interested to see how he would handle my request. The result is a beautifully engaging review of An Experience of Spirit: Spirituality and Storytelling by John Shea.

What I particularily enjoy about Phil's approach , was that he made the review very personal and reflected deeply about the book's impact. To quote him briefly, "After reading the first two chapters I saw that this was a book that needed a pilgrim, not a critic, to open its riches." Phil did a very nice job in identifying themes within the book that can resonanate within the spiritual life of both the Catholic and Evangelical. To quote him more fully:

One of Shea’s important lessons for Evangelicals like me is that there is a great mystery passed from generation to generation through the practice of rituals like Communion (Eucharist). I’ve felt for some time that one of the things missing in my life was the ability to connect, to have communion with God in the same way my Roman Catholic brethren are through the Eucharist. I’ve believed since my days in seminary that taking the Communion elements is more than just a symbol. There’s something far more powerful to it all. There is, or should be, more than just a symbolic transaction that takes place when a Christian partakes of the communion elements. He or she should connect deeply with the Christ of the elements, feel God’s cleansing power through them, and come from the experience viewing God, themselves, and their fellows in the light of that experience. Then, something wonderful follows. What we’ve been given, we want to communicate to others:

I encourage you to read the full review at Mystic Sweet Communion - A Review of "An Experience of Spirit". I'll wrap up today's post with a big 'THANK YOU' to Phil for this well written review.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Scraping by

2006-01-30T06:11:00.000-06:00

Hello:

I miss writing in (to?) this BLOG as frequently as I had. Ideas for posts come and go when I lack access to a keyboard, a pad and pen or even time. Apparently one of my personal goals for this BLOG (developing a habit for writing - we'll worry about skill later) has been achieved. Today's post was spawned by what I was doing LAST weekend (or is that weekend before last?), but I didn't want it to slip away. The title "Scraping by" stuck with me and I thought the pictures were interesting.

I've mentioned a few times now that I've bought a new house (The Speed of Life,Swept Away With Cleaning and OMPH). Well, new to me - but definitely a 'fixer-upper'. My best friend and I put in about 36 hours EACH scraping loose plaster off the walls. At first, it's a strangely satisfying task. Despite the obvious destruction, you can see your progress - which resembles some sort of crazy globe etched into the walls. It doesn't take long though before you are ready for the plaster to STOP coming down. At least the weather has been pleasant (completely unlike the normal 10 below St. Louis January - it's been in the 40's and 50's for weeks). I hate wearing a respirator in hot weather. No telling what this mix of lead paint and plaster dust does to your skin, much less your eyes.

By the time we got done - I had a headache, my ears were ringing, my wrist hurt and I had a tingling sensation radiating out of my shoulder. Fortunately, the condition was easily treated with Mexican Gatorade (aka margaritas) a magical potion I self prescribe frequently during cycling season. I really don't think I'm exaggerating if I say we probably hauled 200 pounds of broken plaster out to the dumpster. We actually wore away the tips of the scraper blades.

On the plus side, I have been so focused on house projects that I have had no time to fret about my upcoming trip to the Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy. I leave on February 8th, so I have planty of time to freak out. Right?

Well, I'll leave you with a focus on two Liguori Publications' titles. Daily Prayers for Busy People by William J. O'Malley, S.J. even if you don't have time to read it, you may find it comforting to see sitting on your shelf (which is the benfit I am getting from it at the moment). I'd also like to suggest Lenten Prayers for Busy People by Donna Schaper.

Maybe I can use how busy I've been as an excuse for the inaccuracies in my post about Lent? Of course, I would probably have been just as ignorant if I was lounging around all day.... Fortunately, Dave the Saintly Sinner has been giving me a crash course on Lent during our morning commute.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Exciting New Tenant

2006-01-28T05:18:00.000-06:00

Hello:

This week's selection for tenant was made in about 2 seconds. No offense to the other 4 bidders, but this one HAD to be my choice. Please welcome My Quraan, a well maintained BLOG by a Quraan student who posts excerpts from and reflections on the writings of the Quraan. In these times of darkness and ignorance I think it is critical that we each communicate with one another. With knowledge, we possess the opportunity to recognize the good in each of us. Hmmm, that's getting pretty heavy. Just go read his BLOG!

The choice of Liguori Publication's product to feature today was equally easy. I recommend What Catholics Should Know About Islam by Father Vincent Heier. This is a $1.00 pamphlet that I think a lot of people should read. I'm including the description here.

Here is a simple, straightforward explanation of the primary tenets of Islam for the average Catholic. The pamphlet includes a brief history of Islam, and information on the Koran, the "five pillars" of Islam, and the meaning of Jihad. It offers thoughts for reflection on how Islam is lived in America and throughout the world today. Opportunities for dialogue are suggested. The author heads the Office for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs for the Archdiocese of St. Louis. An easy way to inform your parish or any group about the Islamic faith.

The runners up this week were (I'm really crunched for time - I'll write descriptions later):

Haunted House Dressing. I don't even know where to start. This is a pretty immersive experience created by author Jeremy Shipp. Jeremy participates in NaNoWriMo and has a book out which actually reviewed by Piers Anthony (you either know who he is or it isn't your genre). The format is a little dense, but well worth exploring. I've been reading this site for months now.

Life In Paradise - from the beach in Juan Dolio! Life on the beach where an umbrella in your drink is more pressing than a roof over your head.

In the Outer (Not Your Moma's Religion and Spirituality Blog) - This thought provoking BLOG is written for and by the 'thinking Christian'. Worth the time to visit.

3 is the Charm - This is the family BLOG of a couple who notice a few significant "3's" in their lives. Third marriage which counting Christ is made up of 3 persons. One of things that I like about this BLOG is that it is extremely positive and makes for enjoyable reading. Among other things, they like to write about Bed and Breakfasts they have visited.

Please try again next week guys. I'm really pleased there is this much interest. Well, I have to run. More plaster work in the new house today.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

PS - I was going to try and rent from My Quraan this week, but at 120 credits it is way to rich for my blood. Maybe I'm just under pricing Dark Glass?

Yes - but not During Lent

2006-01-25T13:44:00.000-06:00

Hello:

As you know, I'm not Catholic but I work for one of the largest Catholic publishing houses in the world - Liguori Publications. Over the years that I have worked here (coming up on eight now), I've learned a lot about the Catholic Church, it's people and traditions. Usually I enjoy getting caught up in the intricacies of the infrequent or obscure (Papal succession for instance), but sometimes I end up learning about something much more basic - like Lent.

01/28/06: Please note - apparently there are some serious inaccuracies in this post. Rather than correct them, I refer you to the comments section. While you are there you might *gasp* leave a remark of your own. Thanks for visiting!

Yes, it's true - I had no real concept of Lent before I started working at Liguori. Easter I knew. But Lent? I come from an area that celebrates "Mardi Gras" in October and I associated it with Halloween.

Several years before I started at Liguori, I was talking to a lady on a Wednesday morning. I said "Denise, you have something on your forehead." "Oh, it's Ash Wednesday", she replied. Between not hearing her clearly and lacking any comprehension of what she said, I waited a few minutes and then said "Denise, I think you have some dirt on your face." "It's ASH Wednesday." She repeated - slightly annoyed. "Uh, hmmm - ash Wednesday?"......

Lent is one of our two big selling seasons (the other being Advent of course) so it's hard not to learn about it here. In addition to Ash Wednesday, I learned that all of Holy Week has names. Maudy Monday, Fat Tuesday, Holy Thursday, Good Friday. Speaking of Fat Tuesday, the Fat Tuesday celebration traditionally renders everyone unable to move throughout the remainder of the week. St. Louis hosts the 3rd largest Mardi Gras celebration in the world so it isn't difficult to get beads.

The title of this post, "Yes - but not During Lent" refers to a catch line I developed. Being a Catholic publisher, it isn't unusual for people to call in with questions about their faith. If the caller isn't careful when they key in someone's extension, they can be mis-directed and not realize it. My lunch group and I were chuckling over some of the awkward situations that this can cause, when someone suggested it would be impossible for me to field calls because I'm not Catholic. "Not really," I replied. "Whatever the question is, I just respond 'Yes, but not during Lent.'"

This posted turned out to be a little disjointed. I started with the title which may have been the problem. I hope not, because my next posts will be "Scraping by" and "Miracle - Getting Plastered Cures Household Leprosy". Both of which will deal with my adventures in repairing the plaster walls of my new house. In the mean time, I would like to suggest The Essential Lenten Handbook: A Daily Companion which is a Redemptorist Pastoral Publication and also Day By Day Through Lent: Reflections, Prayers, Practices by Daniel L. Lowery, C.Ss.R.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Comment on the Catholic Charismatic Movement

2006-01-19T09:25:00.000-06:00

Hello:

I was really pleased that my recent post Keep Talking pulled so many comments. Oh sure, at a lot of BLOGs 4 comments isn't a huge number. Here at Dark Glass, it's note worthy. Even better, one of the comments forced me to do a little research. After I looked into it, I thought the topic was interesting enough to become the focus of today's post. If I recall correctly, that's only happened once before (Variety in Observance of Catholic Mass). I really hope that it becomes a trend. This BLOG is much more interesting when it is interactive. Anyway - on to the quote that launched this post......

A Christian Prophet said...
What ever happened to the Catholic charismatic movement? Is it still around. I've read messages from the Holy Spirit on The Holy Inheritance blog and it seems that very strong faith, even certainty, comes from these experiences.

My first reaction was "The Catholic 'what' movement?" Fortunately, working at Liguori Publications, I have access to a variety of knowledgeable people and Catholic reference materials. Dave the Saintly Sinner provided me the following information...

Charismatic renewal grew in popularity after Vatican II. It was something very new for Catholics with speaking in tongues, healings, prophecies, etc. It was seen as part of the continuing work of the Holy Spirit after the council. A priest from the University of Notre Dame (Fr.MacNutt) was one of its greatest promoters. They even held annual world-wide conventions, and probably still do. I think most people realized, however, it was not a spirituality for everyone.

I attended seminars and Masses while in college introducing the Charismatic Renewal and they always seemed very cutting-edge. We would all stand around the altar with the priest, we would hold hands during the Lord’s Prayer, we would clap and sway back-and-forth with the music. As renewal of the liturgy progressed in the late 60’s and 70’s, amazingly their style of liturgy became more common, even for non-Charismatics, so that today it would not seem so unusual (except for the “tongues” part and healings afterward.)

Thus, the popularity died down, although it is still practiced and recognized throughout the Church. A few times I attended Charismatic Masses on Saturday evenings with a student in the early 1990s at St. Anthony of Padua Church on Meramec Street here in St. Louis. Pope John Paul II gave an address to Catholic Charismatics in 1996. Here is a good article by Archbishop Leveda (former archbishop of San Francisco, who now has taken over Cdl. Ratzinger’s job in Rome) on the history of the movement:

I suggest he do a search for “Catholic Charismatic Renewal.” Lots of good articles came up there. In particular, here is a message of Pope John Paul II written in 1996:

I got some additional feedback from Tom (who I haven't been able to convince to start a BLOG).

I cannot add much to what Dave has already said, but I do think that many people have come to view the Charismatic movement at the phenomenal level (i.e. – what is most easily observable; speaking in tongues, liturgical practices, changes in music, etc.). But what is all too often ignored is the existential aspect of the movement. Charismatics are called by the spirit to a closeness with God that should be marked by greater charity, deeper spirituality, solidarity with all people and with all of creation. The phenomenal aspects of the movement are only the empirical marks of what they have become – a new creation in the Lord.

The feedback that I received from Dave and Tom reminded me of the recent series of posts at Mystic Alchemy on the Fools for Christ's Sake. I'll ask my good friend Br. Secundo Pia to add to this discussion. He is full of interesting insights (among other things).

Much to my frustration - I don't have a Liguori title that fits tightly with this topic. I do think that A Presence that Disturbs: A Call to Radical Discipleship by Anthony J. Gittins, C.Ss.P. would at the very least be of interest to anyone researching the Catholic Charismatic (or Pentecostal) Movement. We carry several titles (6 and counting) from Fr. Gittins that seem pretty interesting. I'm adding two to my reading list and have made a note to feature them in upcoming posts.

PLEASE feel free to leave comments. I would be thrilled if a discussion began to grow out of this post.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

St. Louis - Love that Town

2006-01-18T15:31:00.000-06:00

Hello:

I thought I'd share a few pictures I took on my way to the US Figure Skating Championships this past weekend. One of my many interests is being an active civic booster for St. Louis. Too many people think of the mid-west as that place between the coasts. Here in the St. Louis area we have great architecture, fantastic restaurants, local wineries (Yes - there really are national award winning wineries in Missouri) easy air travel and a low cost of living. A friend of mine lives in Manhattan. When I told her what I paid for my new house she said "You couldn't buy a closet here for that".

My next post should be back to regular Liguori Publications centric style of posting.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Keep Talking

2006-01-15T20:10:00.000-06:00

Hello:

It's been a crazy week or so. Cheesy expressions like "I'm drowning in a sea of blessings" or "Too much of a good thing" keep coming to mind, but I'll spare us all and not use them. In brief, life has been very good to me. I have a new house, I'm taking my first trip to Europe next month, I got free tickets to several events at the 2006 State Farm U.S. Figure Skating Championships and sales have been increasing on the Liguori Publications web site. As far as problems go, sign me up for more of these.

In other good news. I have finally been able to rent my BLOG to Scooter McGavin. This is the 4th time Scooter has bid for the BLOGExplosion billboard on Dark Glass and circumstances have always caused me to pick another renter. Scooter was my first bid and I closed the auction as soon as I saw his submission. Please take a moment to visit our guest where you can read some well written media reviews.

I need to go hang some blinds at the new house before I go to the exhibitions at the Figure Skating Championships this afternoon (I am starting to get really jazzed for my trip to the Turin Olympics). My friend Liane's house was broken into last week and I am a little more conscious about my house sitting empty while I creep along on getting moved in.

I picked an odd product from Liguori to feature today. I was inspired to pick Keep Talking: Daily Conversation Starters for the Family Meal because I been thinking alot about the importance of keeping a BLOG active. It's true that I've been helping Br. Secundo Pia keep Mystic Alchemy up to date, but I still need to find more time to work on Dark Glass. Keep Talking was written by Maureen Treacy Lahr and Julie Pfitzinger to help families communicate more easily. I was originally put off by the cartoon on the front but the conversational topics are real world and interesting. It does not have a heavy religious feel to it and should sell well in secular bookstores as well as our normal channels. I think this potential for strengthening any relationships not just those between parents and children.

I'll leave you with this thought. If there is any single thing we can each do to make the world a better place. It is to communicate more often and more clearly with one another. Communication on it's own cannot always form acceptance but it frequently serves as the seed for understanding.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

"Catholicism in Motion" Press Coverage

2006-01-11T13:32:00.000-06:00

Hello:

I've actually started a couple of posts recently and didn't like where they were headed. They're still parked in 'Draft' mode and have done nothing to cure the dusty look my BLOG has developed. Fortunately, I can cheat a little today and get something up quickly. Liguori Publications' author and Purdue professor James Davidson was recently the topic of an article in the LaFayette, Indiana Journal and Courier Newspaper. The article is well written and focuses on his new book Catholicism in Motion: The Church in American Society. The reporter, Bob Scott, has graciously given permission for the article and credits to be reproduced on the web - which gives me a great content feed for the day.

I've been reading this book for a little while now and find it fascinating. The author is a Sociologist who writes in a style that is both approachable and understandable. It's been a timely book for myself as I have been trying to learn more about what defines the Catholic Faith Community as well as my recent work with the Liguori Publications' focus group studies. I'm including the text of the article below or you can click Book focuses on issues of Catholicism.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

************************************************************************************

Professor James Davidson's book, Catholicism in Motion: The Church in American Society, has been reviewed by Bob Scott of the Lafayette Journal and Courier.

Book focuses on issues of Catholicism
Story by Bob Scott
bscott@journalandcourier.com
Photo by Frank Oliver

Since 1999, Purdue professor James Davidson has written columns for a dozen Roman Catholic diocesan newspapers.

His new book, Catholicism in Motion: The Church in American Society, is a collection of 98 columns that explore a wide variety of Catholic issues, trends and changes.

"The core teachings of the church do not change much, but in other respects, the church is always changing," said Davidson, a member of St. Thomas Aquinas Church in West Lafayette.

Although he is a national expert on the sociology of religion, Davidson hopes his research helps Catholics understand who they are and where they are heading.

"I believe research is a resource for churches in general, and the Catholic Church is no exception," he said. "Research provides data that church leaders otherwise would not have.

"It offers theories that explain why conditions are changing as they are. And it points to ways in which church leaders can respond to these changes and plan for the future."

Bill Whalen, retired director of publications at Purdue, has written 12 books and was a co-author with Davidson on The Search for Common Ground: What Unites and Divides Catholic Americans.

"I've known Jim a long time. He is a very articulate religious sociologist," Whalen said.

Whalen, who attends St. Mary Cathedral, said he reads Davidson's columns in The Catholic Moment, which serves the Diocese of Lafayette-in-Indiana.

"I have his book and am reading it now," he said last week. "I'm skipping around, but I want to start from the beginning and go straight through."

Davidson said each essay in the book "stands on its own." They are grouped in three parts: "Catholicism in America," "Organization Issues in the Church," and "The Beliefs and Practices of American Catholics."

Chapters include "Religion, the Economy, and Politics," "Challenges With Authority, Sexual Abuse and Other Problems," and "Parishes, Schools, and Other Catholic Institutions."

"The books also shows that religion continues to be an important institution in our society," Davidson said. "Its impact is not limited to individual church members and their families."

One essay gives the economic impact of the Catholic Church in Tippecanoe County. The survey was done in the late '90s. It examined 23 Catholic organizations, including six parishes, five parochial schools and a hospital (St. Elizabeth).

On Page 37, Davidson writes, "The Church's direct economic impact was $82,500,000. With the multiplier effect, the total impact was $191,500,000."

He said essays identify the problems that lay people consider most important, including the sexual abuse scandal and the shortage of priests.

"People interested in issues of church leadership, church finances, and the problems of passing faith on to future generations will find lots of interesting findings in this book," Davidson said.

Reprinted with permission.
Read the full-length article at the Journal and Courier website.

Baseball update

2006-01-04T15:25:00.000-06:00

Hello:

I know it seems that I've been ignoring my BLOG a lot lately (and truthfully that's because I have), but I did just go back through and update some links. We have sold out of the hardback version of And God Said, Play Ball! Amusing and Thought-Provoking Parallels Between the Bible and Baseball by Gary Graf and replaced it with a paperback version. I wish we had this problem more often. Feel free to read a sample chapter.

This one change caused me to need to update four posts.

*Google Ads and Catholic Formation

*Left eye focused - right eye not

*Gary Graf Hits a Home Run at Liguori

*Ron Rolheiser and Gary Graf two Liguori Authors

I'll have to think of some slick solution to lend a hand when Liguori Publications converts to our integrated web site this Summer. Something for me to be thinking about for certain.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Swept Away With Cleaning and OMPH

2005-12-31T08:34:00.000-06:00

Hello:

I've really missed posting to this BLOG. Since I closed on the new house last Wednesday - life has been a blur. I haven't even though about moving over yet - I've just been cleaning, cleaning, cleaning. I only showed up for work at Liguori Publications one day this past week. I had plenty of vacation time left to cover it, but I had planned to use that time to catch up on things at the office. Oh well. Sometimes it is good to be swept away.

It's a fun experience in a lot of ways. It's one of those occasions when I can let my OCD run wild and it's a good thing. Any time you buy a house that the local hoarder lived in for 55 years - YOU NEED TO CLEAN THE BATHROOM WITH A TOOTHBRUSH! Trust me, do not cut corners on this.

Once I get moved in, I'll only be about 2 blocks down the street from Dave, the Saintly Sinner. That will make our car pooling even better. Dave has been a great neighbor (so far). He's dropped off cookies and brought a devotive candle of Our Mother of Perpetual Help (which we often abbreviate to OMPH) to place in niche of my fireplace. We've been joking that the niche was for a "bathtub Mary" (a strange little St. Louis tradition I'll talk about another time) which is why he brought the candle.

Speaking of neighbors, I've met several of my new ones and they all seem great. One couple has loaned me a small refrigerator (I won't be moving anything until I get the place cleaned up). It was a little emotional telling my current neighbors that I'm leaving. We've always gotten along so well. Pete and Pat are an elderly couple that watch the place better than any security system and refer to me as their son. Fortunately, the new place comes with a similar security system named Shirley.

I still have plenty to say (I hadn't realized how dependent I had become on BLOGging) but I need to wrap up and get to work. In an effort to fill the new house with life and positive energy, I'm having a very informal New Year's get together tonight. The nice thing is that no one will expect the place to be immaculate which really gets me off the hook.

I'll leave you with a recommendation for The Story of an Icon written by Fabriciano Ferrero, C.Ss.R. and is an in-depth exploration of the history and meaning of the Our Mother of Perpetual Help icon and it's significance to the Redemptorist order.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Dayz after Christmas

2005-12-27T10:43:00.000-06:00

Hello:

Despite the fact that I am closing on the new house tomorrow, I made certain to plan on working a couple of day this week. Like a lot of companies those lazy dayz after Christmas are a fantastic time to get things done at Liguori Publications. The parking lot is beautifully empty and I've been checking things off my list left and right.

The next thing on my list for today is taking care of my BLOGExplosion billboard rentals. I really appreciate my readers who click through and check out my renters. It makes it extremely easy for me to rent it out the next time. This week, I received 2 bids in less than an hour.

3 is the Charm - This is the family BLOG of a couple who notice a few significant "3's" in their lives. Third marriage which counting Christ is made up of 3 persons. One of things that I like about this BLOG is that it is extremely positive and makes for enjoyable reading. Among other things, they like to write about Bed and Breakfasts they have visited.

My Waisted Life - I've been reading this one anytime I encounter it on BLOGExplosion (since August) but I'm struggling a little to describe it. Mercurial? It seems to change and evolve but always remain interesting. Basically posts regarding whatever the author is thinking about that day. The author is a "Studio 54" style bartender living in the UK. Excellent design work on this one as well.

Scooter McGavin's 9th Green - Wow, I feel bad about not picking this BLOG of music reviews. It's a great site that I read regularily and Scooter has bid on my BLOG 3 times. The thing is that his bid arrived as I was clicking accept on 3 is the Charm. I think his patience deserves VIP treatment next week? Don't you?

Today's selection was pretty straight forward since I'm renting space myself at 3 is the Charm. I feel bad for Scooter but timing can be everything.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

St Stanislaus vs Archbishop Burke

2005-12-26T08:26:00.000-06:00

Hello:

Way back in August, I made a passing reference to the board of St. Stanislaus parish being threatened with excommunication by Archbishop Raymond Burke. About a week ago Burke pulled the trigger on the equivalent of an ecclesiastical nuclear strike and excommunicated the 6 person Board of directors and Reverend Marek Bozek, the Polish priests the parish has hired.

What a stir! For a non-Catholic like myself with a fascination with pagentry, hierarchy and history; this stuff makes me say "Pass the popcorn, what do we have to drink". I apologize that I haven't followed this more closely at Dark Glass - but I've been busy this season the same as all of you. Besides to actually add anything worth reading, I'd have to become a junior investigative reporter and who has time for that. Instead, I think I will just be gossipy. I'll mention a few choice tidbits and then point you to articles that have details.

What's this all about?

The St Stanislaus parish has had an older form of organization since it was founded. The arrangement is now unusual and may have been the last Church still held this way. In a nut shell, the Church and its resources were owned by the Board of Directors NOT the Bishop. Archbishop Raymond Burke, ordered them to relinguish control and conform to normal standards. The Board said "NO, You're closing parishes left and right while all over the country assets are being sold off to pay sexual abuse scandals. We're sitting on several million dollars and would like to keep it that way." [not an actual quote]

What does the Vatican have to say?

"He's your Bishop, you have to do what he says." [not an actual quote]

Then what happened?

Burke pulled the parish priests and forebid anyone from administering Sacraments there. He threatened to excommunicate the Board if the didn't comply.
The Board stuck their tongues out (figuratively speaking) and brought in anonymous priests with concealed identities (remember the Fox special with the masked magician?) to perform services.
Burke said "I mean it, I'll pull the trigger! You must respect mah a-thor-atee."[me paraphrasing]
Then the Board hired a Priest (Reverend Bozek) from Poland who was living in Springfield, MO.

And then? Burke screamed "Schism! You're all excommunicated." [yep, paraphrased]

How have the people of St. Louis responded? Well 2,000 people attended Rev. Bozek's first Mass at the parish (Christmas Eve). More than 600 stood in the parish hall and watched via simulcast.

Whew, anything else? Well, Bozek told the congregation in his second Mass Christmas Day that he left Poland because of unfounded allegations that he was a "promiscuous homosexual" [that's a real quote]. Calls to his old seminary in Olsztyn indicated that he had been ridden out on a rail. Bozek says he has a letter from Archbishop Piszcz that reccommends his character.

What happens if a Catholic receives the sacraments from Bozek? "To participate knowingly and willingly in the celebration of the Mass by a suspended priest is gravely sinful" [A real quote].

I think that the St. Louis Post Dispatch has done a great job of covering this. You can read their articles on St Stanislaus vs Archbishop Raymond Burke for yourself and get the details. The best thing I have to reccommend from Liguori Publications' titles is Power and the Papacy: The People and Politics Behind the Doctrine of Infallibility written by Robert McClory. Not exactly on topic but it touches on some of the more intense political issues within the Church and sheds some perspective on the St Stanislaus issue.

Well, I'll try to revisit this topic as things continue to develop. I hope that everyone had a wonderful Christmas with their loved ones.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Angels Working Overtime

2005-12-23T16:10:00.000-06:00

Hello:

I don't know that I have ever really believed in the idea of "Guardian Angels". I believe in the heavenly host all right, but I can't really picture these celestial extensions of God's will running around to keep me out of trouble. If however; I were going to start thinking that way, I would start today.

I mentioned a couple of days ago that I hadn't started my Christmas shopping yet. With everything going on with the house, I just couldn't make myself think along those lines. Speaking of the house, I may have mentioned that it is being sold "as-is" and though I've been able to have a private building inspector come look at it; I haven't been allowed to have the city or utilty inspectors in. Both things have been a source of stress the last few days (which might explain my slightly curmudgeonly post "Progress").

Well today everything went my way - even new problems that cropped up seemed to melt away. I learned that some of the inspections I was worried about scheduling aren't even required because the house is in a historic conservation district. The gas company said they don't care that the boiler was installed in 1950 or that it looks like a pizza oven. The city of St. Louis was extremely helpful and it looks like my occupancy permit will be issued the day I close (it seems that they mostly worry about smoke detectors). All in all, a big relief.

These things were resolved before lunch and I was walking on air. A quick bite and then on to do that shopping! But wait - I get an urgent email from the lender that they need a "satisfactory termite report" and they'll be ready to cut the check. I call my lender and the conversation goes something like this.

"I got your email". "Great, can you fax that report to me?" "Well I can,
but it's going to say that the termites in the garage are satisfactorily content
and looking forward to Christmas when they'll finish eating the back
wall." "Oh yea, hmmmmm."

Once again, the angels dove into action. A few phone calls (that were all miracously answered) later; the inspector is sending a modified report, and the termite guy has agreed to unleash weapons of mass destruction next Tuesday morning. Amazing!

Situation uncontrol, I head to the local mall and pull into a parking space that must have been reserved for me. In about an hour I finished all my shopping and had time to drink a cafe mocha! Everything I bought, I got on sale and I think will be appreciated by the people receiving them. Amazing!

I'm going to wrap up by featuring a Liguori Publications title and then I need to hit the road (I'm spending the weekend at my Mother's in Southern Illinois). For obvious reasons today's title is
Angels All Around UsThe Catholic Belief and Experience which is one of our videos. I hope the lives of everyone reading this are going as smoothly as mine this holiday season. Merry Christmas!

Peace on Earth and good will toward men,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Progress

2005-12-21T18:10:00.000-06:00

Hello:

Just what is progress anyway? I was asking myself this a few minutes ago while simultaneously riding my bike trainer, reading a magazine on internet marketing and fretting that a.) I haven't updated this BLOG properly in awhile, b.) I have done nothing on the writing project with my Grandfather and c.) I have not written anything for my novel in months. Never mind all that I have accomplished (buying a new house, helping Br. Secundo start his BLOG, ~~watching Law&Order~~ ). I only seem capable of focusing on what didn't happen.

This may be one of those posts where a little more of the maddness slips in (cue the "Mad Scene of Lucia di Lamermoor") but you have all been warned that there is a strong personal element to this BLOG. In a lot of ways, I use this BLOG to keep me in the habit of writing. It isn't necessary that the writing be on target or even good, just the act of writing on a regular basis helps me to break down some of the walls that I so skillfully build.

Hmmm, this moment seems to have passed and I think that I should let it. Perhaps tomorrow I'll discuss some of the things happening at Liguori Publications.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

PS - The most heartwrenching rendition I have ever heard of the Lucia's mad scene is from the soundtrack of The Fifth Element. Buy it!

The Only Shopping that I've Done

2005-12-19T07:00:00.000-06:00

Hello:

The only shopping that I've done this Christmas is for more BLOGExplosion billboards. Strangely, I don't seem to be concerned yet. I don't know if it is because I am so overwhelmed by the process of buying this new house or if I'm just stupid but the clock is ticking and at some point panic will set in. Oh well, I have days left to worry about that. In the mean time I have bought myself placement on 2 new billboards.

Please look for my ad on:

Let's Talk - This is the BLOG of an ex-Marine and current computer geek named Larry. Larry's posts mix faith and politics in a way that makes for interesting reading rather you agree with his positions or not.

Christianity and Things that may Soothe the Soul - Wow, I'm the first ever renter at this BLOG. I'll try to be a good tenent and not make Jon regret being a landlord. This is a nice BLOG. The title describes it well but I would add that it is a faith journal. Please let me know if you are dropping by from this BLOG (or any other for that matter).

I will try to get at least one 'real' post out this week and will put off any more billboard activity for awhile. There really is some interesting stuff going at Liguori Publications and that's what I really want to be writing about.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Dark Glass Billboard is Popular this Week

2005-12-17T16:34:00.000-06:00

Hello:

The BLOGExplosion billboard space on Dark Glass has proven surprisingly popular this week. At 30 credits it does consistently gets more clicks than those of BLOGs that cost several hundred credits (cue the infomercial music) perhaps people are sensing a good deal? Then again, maybe they've just had too much egg-nog.

Within an hour of posting this week's billboard, we had 6 bidders.

Scooter McGavin's 9th Green - Scooter has bid on Dark Glass before. I like this BLOG and have described it before as a 'true to its roots blog' that comments on whatever crosses the mind of the author which is frequently news, music, movies or politics. Tempting, tempting.

Life as Lou - This is a new BLOG to me. I've seen it on BLOGExplosion before but haven't honestly lingered to check it out. That was mistake on my part it is much more than another 'Mommy BLOG'. I particularily enjoy the tales of the husband that talks in his sleep and various other mishaps.

Served - I don't know if it has come up before but P. del Ricci likes to drink. I'm not satisified with cracking open a beer and swilling down. I prefer creating intricate fusions and fancy myself a pretty good 'mixologist'. Friends frequently ask me to act as bartender at parties and events. This rattling on about myself brings me to Mitch, a 21 year old bartender at an Applebees when not attending classes at Murray State University.

SirDirge - Hmmm, a little tough to describe. Commentary on technology issues with a little more. I like the author. We share a lot of the same tastes in music and literature. The author lives in Helsinki, Finland.

Fairytale Dreams - A genuine Fairy Princess, Luin has staked out an interesting corner of the web. Her homestead only changes on the weekends, because that is the only time she has internet access (it's a matter of principal). I have rented space from her in the past and she was a lovely hostess. You have to be careful about taking tea in an Elven hill though, you may end up staying longer than you mean too.

Eccentric Man - [caution some content is a little racy] The title alone is enough to make me love the site (the fact that the author has Dark Glass on his BLOGRoll is that much better). Mr. Eccentric is maintains a pretty 'general interest' sort of BLOG. Jokes, observations of current events and pop culture. He's an American of Scottish descent who absolutely will not wear a turtle neck or sweater. Kindly do not ask.

Wow - 6 bidders! All interesting choices. Romper, stomper, bomper boo - who shall I rent my BLOG too? Perhaps it is effect of those Keebler cookies or the enchanting music - but I feel compelled to pick Fairytale Dreams. Welcome Luin, I hope you will enjoy my hospitality for the coming week.

Please make a point to check out Luin's site but also the sites of the runners-up. I like that people are getting good click-through's from Dark Glass and want to make certain that everyone gets value for their time. Even better, leave a comment!

I need to sign off and get my day started. I haven't been to the gym in 'awhile'. Between Christmas getting ready to pounce (I haven't started shopping) and the new house, I have lots of nervous energy that need to be burned off (to say nothing of those holiday calories). There have been some interesting developments at Liguori Publications in the last few weeks. Hopefully I'll be able to write about them in the next few days.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

The Speed of Life

2005-12-17T11:08:00.000-06:00

Hello:

Any regular readers out there may have noticed that I've been unusually scarce lately. This time of year it isn't that odd to find the lairs of BLOG denizens empty but for myself I have an extra reason. I'm buying a new house! I think I mentioned a few weeks ago that I was thinking about it, but it looks like it is actually happening. It's been a real whirl wind to say the least.

The odd thing is that I have been perfectly happy in my 1920's bungalow in the Bevo district these past 6 years. In fact, if it weren't for Dave the Simple Brother over at Saintly Sinner; I wouldn't have even known the new house existed. He's been looking for a house in the same neighborhood as his apartment and sent me an email about this one. It was love at first sight and I got approved for a new mortgage without ever having seen the inside.

The sellers had one open house from 1 - 3 PM and I had the winning offer! Can't you just picture me in an office on the second floor drinking port and finishing my novel? This house actually looks out on to the Missouri Botanical Garden and Tower Grove Park. Two premier locations in St. Louis. How can I afford it you ask? One it needs A LOT of love (the furnace dates to 1950) and two I can't really but I'll make it work. The mortgage payment will be twice what I pay now. Oh well, it is only money. ;-}
Normally, I am very conservative (fiscally anyway) and would never make such a large jump. This type of opportunity doesn't come along very often though and I know that if I ever want a house like this I need to get it now - pre rehab and just commit myself to living poor for the next decade or so. After all, life is about opportunity and the ability to take advantage of the options we are given. Money is only a means to an end and of itself is useless.

How perfect is this place? Well it even has a little hermitage in back. A great little place for Brother Secundo to write about Mystical Alchemy when he's in town. I could go on and on about original cherry wood doors (bad drainage in the backyard) red oak floors (termites in the garage) stained glass windows (no air conditioning) but I think I will wind this up. For obvious reasons my posts will probably be erratic for the next few weeks (months?) but I'm sure that housing updates will feature prominently. For those that think I prattle too much about Liguori Publications, you'll have a new topic to think I prattle too much about.

Happy holidays!

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

PS - I'm not the least bit ashamed of Christmas but I don't think that wishing a joyous season to those of all faiths and creeds is a problem.

The World in Brief

2005-12-11T09:51:00.000-06:00

Hello:

I think I have mentioned on occasion my habit (addiction) to reading the newspaper on a daily basis (unless I'm traveling, I read the St. Louis Post Dispatch). I have a tendency to cut out articles that might interest friends, family or colleagues and have recently begun collecting articles that lend themselves to BLOG posts. The result has been a small mountain of articles that I lack the time to pursue as full posts.

To help get a couple of monkeys off my back, I'm going to start making small posts that link to the topics I thought were interesting. Some will relate directly to the Catholic Church and or Liguori Publications, others will not. If a given topic generates interest, we can expand it in later posts.

Today we have 3 mini topics.

Las Mananitas - The celebration of Our Lady of Guadalupe will be observed at the Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows in Belleville. I have mentioned the Shrine before (Liguori Limmerick and Two Liguori Authors) which is run by the Missionary Oblates. That's the same order that Liguori author Fr. Ron Rolheiser, OMI belongs to.
Dr. C. William Chignoli, founder of La Clinica has resigned to focus his efforts on Accion Social Communitaria. Both organizations work to provide health care and social services to the St. Louis immigrant community. Liguori Publications does not work directly with these organizations but also seeks to help the immigrant community through its Libros Liguori line and Redemptorist mission efforts like the St. Alphonsus Rock Church.
Catholic Animals pushes vegetarian holidays - The group Catholic Animals is looking promote a "cruelty free" holiday season. This made me smile. It was nice to see something that didn't invovle Bishops excommunicating politicians or Priests raping children.

Wow - I get take articles off the newspaper mountain and put them in the recycle bin. Hopefully the rest of the day will go so well, in a few hours I get to view that house I'm thinking of buying. I hope I get it and I hope there is something wrong with it in equal measure. Should be interesting.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

And the Envelope Please.....

2005-12-10T09:38:00.000-06:00

Hello:

I've been feeling some separation anxiety from my BLOG lately. That's a good sign though. One of my goals was to make writing a part of my daily routine. According to the counselor who helps me better direct my ADHD tendencies, writing anything at all on a regular base will help me write my novel. Anxiety or not, I wouldn't be posting today if it weren't time to announce my newest BLOGExplosion billboard tenant.

The candidates are:

Haunted House Dressing - I don't even know where to start. This is a pretty immersive experience created by author Jeremy Shipp. Jeremy participates in NaNoWriMo and has a book out which actually reviewed by Piers Anthony (you either know who he is or it isn't your genre). The format is a little dense, but well worth exploring. I been reading this site for months now.
Tor's Rants - Tor is a self described "Left-Libertarian Buddhist" who has a real talent for succinct writing. He can take a current topic (politics, religion, cats, cars, whatever) and in
a couple of short paragraphs make a well informed point. Whether you agree with his opinions or not, the BLOG is well written. I had not seen it before today, but I'll keep reading it now.

Today's pick might have been a tough choice if it weren't for the superior quality of one of our candidates that really made it a slam dunk. Please welcome a notorius promoter of Nun tickling (a sport banned throughout Latin America, Western Europe and 3 of the United States) a consorter of the Cranium Jig Gnomes and caretaker of the Stinky Old Well. Let's give it up for Jeremy Shipp and Haunted House Dressing!

PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE visit our sponsor and let him know where you came from. While you're at it, let me know you were here!

Well, I have to run. I'm chronically behind. I did get the donations over to the Salvation Army yesterday but there's so much more to do. Parties tonight and tomorrow, Christmas shopping. The house I'm thinking of bidding on is only available to view from 1 to 3 tomorrow. I have a mortgage approval in hand on the off chance that I might want this house that I've only seen from the outside. Did I mention that I love the house I'm in now? How crazy is that? Well, I really have to leave for the gym now. If I don't do something about this Winter weight, my bike frame will snap and Liguori will have to pull a wall out of my office so I can get in.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Letters to Santa Followup

2005-12-08T12:48:00.000-06:00

Hello:

Today has been a welcome change from the hectic pace of the rest of the month. Almost every Liguori Publications employee is at a sales conference today and the St. Louis metro area has been blanketed with about 3 inches of snow. The halls are unusually quiet and I'm actually getting some work done (all right maybe planning my snow fortress is not technically in my job description). Best of all, we are closing at 3 PM because of the weather. In spite of all that, I just wanted to update my readers on the Letters to Santa project we participated in for the children of the Cheyenne River Reservation.

I was very proud of my cohorts. As you can see from the pictures, we brought in quite a haul. It actually took a van and my Honda Civic to deliver it all to the drop point. 32 children's letters were adopted and the youth center also received some donations. Our Telephone Sales joined together and bought their child a bike and some other goodies!

Don't worry that the pictures don't look festive enough, the youth center asked that the gifts not be wrapped.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

12-20-05 {I found this post on another BLOG and wanted to share it. Please read Heart Bursting}

What was my Point?

2005-12-04T14:31:00.000-06:00

Hello:

Yesterday's post rambled quite a bit and was so full of links that it wasn't clear what I was trying to say. Let's try again without all the excess backage.

Please visit this new BLOG, Mystic Alchemy. It's worth the trip.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Mystical Alchemist?

2005-12-03T10:33:00.000-06:00

Hello:

I'm really happy to finally be writing this post. Every now and then I have looked up from writing about BLOGExplosion billboards long enough to allude to the actual role I hope that BLOGs begin to play for Liguori Publications. That master plan goes well beyond pimping books and seeding links for search engine optimization (though those things are very important to me too). The master plan works toward a day when Liguori creates and supports a network of web resources that will form a Faith Based Community, primarily Catholic in nature but welcoming and supportive of all. The work of Dave the Simple Brother at Saintly Sinner was our first step in this direction. A proof of concept if you will. It also acted as bait. Bait to draw Brother Secundo Pia Columbanus D'Silva out of hiding from the Holy Hill retreat center in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin.

I had the great pleasure of working with Brother Secundo for a few years when he was assigned to Liguori Publications. He is the author of several of our titles (which I won't reveal now since Secundo is an alias) and a Brother of the Redemptorist order.

I have tried not to dwell on it and have perhaps even shied away from the fact that not only am I not Catholic, but I take serious exception to the Church's stance on a number of topics. In fact there have been times over the past 7 and half years that I have considered finding other work rather than further the goals of an institution I do not fully support. Fortunately for me, getting to know some of the people from Liguori (especially Dave and Secundo) has revealed the richness, the warmth and love of the Catholic community.

Secundo (who has begun to bear an uncanny resemblence to Saint Padre Pio) in particular has always been able to show me all that is good about the Catholic Church. When we worked together, we talked for hours about Saints and miracles; the history of the Redemptorist order and the Catholic Church in general. To me he is the living memory of the Redemptorists. Especially intriguing to me are his descriptions of Catholic mysticism and Saints who were known as Mystics (such as Gerard Majella a Redemptorist Saint). "Mysticism" may conjure up thoughts of the occult and magical practices but really refers to things and practices which are able to move a person into a deeply spiritual state or plane.

After much cajoling on my part, Br. Secundo has agreed to write his own BLOG. Expanding on the discussions that I treasured so much when we worked together, he is placing an emphasis on the mystic nature of faith in a fashion he once described as "alchemy". Thus I am now able to invite you to visit Mystic Alchemy. Despite all of the variety BLOGs that exist, I truly believe that this one will prove to unique.

For once, I look back across a rambling post and don't regret being verbose one bit. I only wish that I could better describe what Secundo has in store for us and how thrilled I am to welcome him to the BLOGosphere. I'm going to sign off by featuring two titles that are based on the work of Padre Pio. Advent and Christmas Wisdom from Padre Pio: Daily Scripture and Prayers Together With Saint Pio of Pietrelcina's Own Words and Padre Pio: In My Own Words both of which are compiled by Anthony Chiffolo.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

ADHD Billboard Rental

2005-12-02T14:40:00.000-06:00

Hello:

I've actually tried to not rent as many BLOGExplosion billboards lately. It isn't that I don't like doing it, but because I like to post about each one I rent; my BLOG can start looking pretty cluttered. I went ahead and rented space on The ADHD Podcaster though, because, well, because I've been firmly in the grip of an ADHD episode for the last week. I think the combination of a lot of work projects, the holidays and that I suddenly decided to try and buy a different house has been enough to flip that silicon switch inside my head. Fortunately a trip to the gym this morning was enough to dampen the effect today.

Oddly, I'm actually writing this on Sunday the 4th but I've back dated it to the 2nd. I'm wanting my more recent posts to get more prominent placement.

Well, I'm going to wrap up with a Liguori Publications title that seems fitting and go see the new Aeon Flux movie. Today's title is Centered Living: The Way of Centering Prayer by M. Basil Pennington, O.C.S.O. with foreword by Rabbi Lawrence Kushner. I've given some background on the late Basil Pennington a couple of times in the past. You can read that here and here.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Pope John Paul II - More Than Ready for His Closeup

2005-12-01T10:11:00.000-06:00

Hello:

Way back in August (August 15th, 2005 to be specific) I was prompted to begin this BLOG because the Hallmark Channel was getting ready to broadcast a movie about the life of Pope John Paul II ("Karol: A Man Who Became Pope"). Sooner or later Dark Glass would have started anyway, I was convinced that Liguori Publications needed to pursue better search engine optimization, but Karol's was the particular face that launched this ship. Today we set off on another Papal cinematic voyage inspired by the upcoming broadcasts of Have No Fear on ABC and Pope John Paul II on CBS.

As you know, my role at Liguori is to promote our electronic efforts. It's a role that acts as a catch all for everything from traditional sales of books over the web to developing products that can reutilize our existing content. When I first heard about the upcoming Pope movies, I began scheming about how I could piggy back on all that national media coverage the networks were providing. You may remember that back in August, we completely missed the boat on being able to capitalize on a movie that was inspired by one of our own titles, Stories of Karol: The Unknown Life of John Paul II by Gian Franco Svidercoschi.

This time, we were able to plan ahead and devised a multi-pronged approach to take advantage of the situation. We're experimenting with a mixture of traditional things like 10% off all Pope John Paul II books through December coupled with free shipping on any order over $20. We're also doing some things that are new to us like running a full slate of Google Adwords text and banner ads. [I'm learning that Google ads only seem cheap, the costs can rise pretty quickly] Most exciting though, was a coordinated effort to generate buzz through our BLOG postings.

Dark Glass, as I've mentioned before is easily the least spiritual of the Liguori related BLOGs. I'm the guy that's just trying to promote his company while also making progress on some personal projects (writing a novel, a writing project with my Grandfather, controlling my ADD). Much more interesting material can be found over at Saintly Sinner, where Dave the Simple Brother has written a very nice post about The Memory of Pope John Paul II. Very exciting to me, is the post The Alchemistic Practice of Lectio Divina by Brother Secundo Pia Columbanus D'Silva - Mystic Alchemy. Brother Secundo has just embarked on what I am convinced will be an absolutely unique BLOG experience (I don't say that lightly either). I won't say anymore about that right now - Brother Secundo and Mystic Alchemy deserve an exclusive post that will have to wait until later.

Dave and Secundo are the types of writers that will fulfill my vision of using BLOGs and the internet to create a Catholic Faith Community. I'm actively recruiting some additional writers and expect this effort to start gaining traction in the next few months.

It's been so long since I've posted that my head is swimming with things to say and desk is awash in post-it notes, but I think it's time to cut and run. If you have any interest at all in Pope John Paul II, I do encourage you to check out our web site. We have a nice selection of titles that make thoughtful gifts for someone else or yourself. Order before December 12th to receive by Christmas.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Pinoy Reader Billboard

2005-11-28T11:34:00.000-06:00

Hello:

It's been a crazy, crazy day at Liguori Publications but I wanted to put up a quick post about my latest BLOGExplosion Billboard rental. My latest ad went up at Pinoy Reader which is written by the lovely Ria of Davao City in the Philippines. Her format is straightforward enough - thorough but succinct book reviews. The most recent is a timely review of "The Magician's Nephew" by C.S. Lewis, which is timely because the motion picture release of the Chronicles of Narnia is coming up.

Hopefully, I'll get off my duff and write that novel soon. Maybe one day my book will be reviewed on Ria's BLOG. In the meantime, I'll have to see if I can sweet talk her into writing a welcome post (*hint**hint*).

Well, I have to go. I mentioned yesterday that I had big plans for my BLOG this week and that's true. Throughout the week, we'll be talking about Pope John Paul II and Brother Secundo Pia Columbanus D'Silva one of whom now has his own BLOG.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Fairytale Dreams

2005-11-27T14:50:00.000-06:00

Hello:

I won the bid for a BLOGExplosion billboard rental at Fairytale Dreams today. Not only is it a great looking site with a neat name, BUT it is also interesting to read. Fairytale Dreams is written by Luin who identifies herself as a "non-traditional Catholic", avid reader of obscure books and writer of things that go bump in the night (the compressor on my fridge kicks when it shuts off, I wonder if there if that counts?). She was kind enough to write a very nice welcome post for Dark Glass and she gets bonus points for spelling Liguori Publications correctly.

Please take a moment to visit Fairytale Dreams, leave a comment and let Luin know that Philip sent you. While you are there, be certain to read the post about her Brother who is "living on a mountain in Honduras helping a small village to thrive." We all work for different things and have different visions for what we want to do when we retire or win the lottery. Mine is to go South of the border and teach job skills. I'm going to stop that train of thought right there - it is easily it's own post.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

PS - I did buy a trainer for my bike. Now I can spend money (I mean extend my season) on cycling all year long!

Welcome Renter!

2005-11-27T14:09:00.000-06:00

Hello:

I hope that everyone had a great holiday and were able to spend time with the people that matter in their lives. Like most of the world (or the US anyway), I haven't posted in the last few days. I would really rather put off posting today but I have some BLOG 'business' that has built up and want to address today. It's important to write about this today, because I have some really great stuff planned for the next few days. I'm hoping that this week my plan for Liguori Publications' use of BLOGs will really begin to take shape. As soon as this post is done though, I'm out the door to going shopping for a cycling trainer. I picked up WAY too much weight in the past week.

First, I must sadly bid farewell to BLOGExplosion billboard renter The Anti - Sean Hannity Blog. I feel a little bad that for 30 BE Credits, he only received 12 unique clicks (22 total). This isstill better than a lot of sites I've seen (some of which charge more than 100 credits) but I just feel you should get at least 1 unique click for every credit spent. The holiday had an impact I'm sure - but I did lower this week's rental to 25 credits.

Now that we've said good bye, it is time to say hello. This week's candidates are:

Scooter McGavin's 9th Green - This is what I would describe as a true to it's roots BLOG, no particular agenda - just whatever the author cares to discuss. The self description is interesting "Your one-stop place for music, TV, sports, politics and anything else I deem worthy. So make sure you come back everyday or you'll pay, listen to what I say."
Don's Thoughts II - We've actually discussed Don before. Not only have I rented from him, but HE HAS LEFT COMMENTS HERE AT DARK GLASS!

It was a tough call this week, but I picked Don's Thoughts II. The prior relationship with Don and the fact THAT HE LEFT COMMENTS counted for a huge number of points. Hopefully Scooter will still be interested in bidding next week.

Well I need to go buy that trainer, but is that leftover turkey I hear calling my name from the kitchen?

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Gary Graf Hits a Home Run at Liguori

2005-11-22T11:54:00.000-06:00

Hello:

This is actually a continuation of an earlier post called Ron Rolheiser and Gary Graf, two Liguori Authors - this post can stand alone, but it would be nice if you started at the other. The basic theme of the first post was to discuss two Liguori authors who have done very well. I discussed Fr. Ron Rolheiser at such great length, that I thought it would be unfair to discuss Gary Graf as well and decided to give him his own post.

Gary Graf is the author of And God Said, Play Ball! Amusing and Thought-Provoking Parallels Between the Bible and Baseball a title that I have mentioned in two previous posts (post 1, post 2). "Play Ball" has been a bit of a sleeper hit. This is Gary's first title with Liguori Publications (I think it might be his first title) and has proven itself as a popular gift book. A real rarity that sells well for Father's Day. We did an initial print run of 5,000 copies back in the Spring with an attractive hardback cover and a price point of $19.95. We don't do a lot of hardbacks here and $19.95 is an expensive price for us. Particularily with a new author this was rare. Well, I'm happy to say that we have less than 200 in stock and expect to sell out before Christmas. We have a reprint on order (which I think will be a paperback) and we expect it to continue selling strongly well into next year. Be sure to check out the sample chapter.

Well I think that I will wrap up by saying that I am thankful for the many things that keep Liguori Publications humming along. Great employees, fantastic employees and the best customers. Please enjoy your holiday!

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

[01/04/06 - We have sold out of the hardback version of And God Said, Play Ball! Amusing and Thought-Provoking Parallels Between the Bible and Baseball by Gary Graf. We have replaced it with a paperback version. I wish we had this problem more often. Feel free to read a sample chapter P. Del Ricci ]

Ron Rolheiser and Gary Graf two Liguori Authors

2005-11-21T09:55:00.000-06:00

Hello:

I sometimes discuss (or at least allude to) the difficulties of the publishing industry in general and religious publishing more specifically (see Difficult Decisions for Liguorian Magazine). Today, I am thrilled to discuss Fr. Ron Rolheiser, OMI and Gary Graf; two authors who represent bright spots here at Liguori Publications.

Fr Ron is a member of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate and the President of the Oblate School of Theology in San Antonio. The Oblates are the same order which maintain the Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows in Illinois and that I spoke briefly about in an earlier post. He is considered to be an author of international authority who is beginning to cross over into secular markets. He writes a weekly column that is carried by more than 50 newspapers throughout the world and has authored several best selling books. He is truly a world class author.

Liguori has just begun working with Fr. Ron to publish additional material. I would love to show you a link to the Advent Daybreaks product he wrote for us this year, but I can't - we have all ready sold out the entire print run of 128,000! Daybreaks are small $1.00 products sold in bulk but still, this is huge for us. I guess in the scheme of things, these are the types of problems to have. Fr. Ron has just begun a podcast of daily reflections pulled from his Advent Daybreaks that even I find interesting to listen to. You can see the 2006 Lent and Easter Daybreaks by Fr. John F. Kavanaugh, SJ. He is also a world class author, but we'll talk about him another time.

We expect to be working closely with Fr. Ron in the future, but for the moment we are only carrying En Busca De Espiritualidad: Lineamientos para una Espiritualidad Cristiana del Siglo XXI which was printed by another publisher called Lumen. Obviously an author of this caliber who can write in Spanish is a natural tie-in for our Libros Liguori line.

Wow - this post really got away from me (big surprise). In order to do justice to Gary Graf and his book And God Said, Play Ball! Amusing and Thought-Provoking Parallels Between the Bible and Baseball, I'm going to give him a separate post.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

[01/04/06 - We have sold out of the hardback version of And God Said, Play Ball! Amusing and Thought-Provoking Parallels Between the Bible and Baseball by Gary Graf. We have replaced it with a paperback version. I wish we had this problem more often. Feel free to read a sample chapter P. Del Ricci ]

Somber Topic - Funerals

2005-11-20T17:29:00.000-06:00

Hello:

The world is full of things that I don't understand and quite frankly I'm ok with that. I'm the type guy who is naturally inquisitive and wants to understand everything - but has been far enough along the journey of life to accept that he won't. Ocasionally I encounter something though, that seems like it should have an obvious explanation. One of the many things I tend to hyperfocus about are my company's web sales (considering that I am responsible for all our electronic efforts including web sales - this is not a bad thing). I love to watch orders flicker by (when there isn't enough volume the flicker becomes a glub) and try to discern patterns from what people are buying (or not buying). The pattern I've picked up on this weekend is a little disturbing - funerals.

All of our funeral titles are flying off the shelves. Is the entire Catholic faith planning some lemming like rite in the next few weeks? Will I come in to work at Liguori Publications and the only sound will the echo of my footsteps as I walk to my office? I really don't mean to sound flip about this, it just seems so strange. Here I am preparing to talk about holiday gift suggestions and instead I am writing about funerals. It is true that death rates peak near the holidays, but I would expect that type of response to be parishes buying in bulk. The majority of the sales I have seen have been single copies to individuals. Usually, I would call a couple of customers and see what was going on - but that doesn't seem appropriate in this case.

I fervently hope that none of my readers have a need for this material, but I am going to feature two of our better titles on the subject. Your Guide to a Catholic Funeral which is a 'pastoral' publication and doesn't credit an author as well as A Catholic Funeral by Patricia Rice. I haven't read either of these titles, I can only tell you that they are selling well. I'm going to show one more that I gave to my Grandfather after we lost my Grandmother. My Grandfather isn't Catholic, but he said that it gave him some comfort - Coping When Your Spouse Dies by Medard Laz.

I'm sure some people will consider this post to be in poor taste - it really isn't intended that way. If anyone has any insight into this, please leave a comment. Hopefully the rest of my posts this season will involve happier topics, like the basketballs and other sports equipment I bought for the children of the Cheyenne River Reservation.

Peace,

P. del Ricci - Dark Glass

Welcome to my Second Renter

2005-11-20T08:33:00.000-06:00

Hello:

Well the time has come to say goodbye to T3 over at A Nuerotic Closet Bitch. She was a model tenant and one of her fans was even kind enough to leave a comment (*hint* *hint*). I'm proud to say that for her 15 BLOGExplosion credits, T3 received 17 visits (15 unique) from this site as well as 3 posts with permanent links to her site which will continue to help her search engine rankings. I've seen what other sites have to offer and Dark Glass is an advertising steal!

Based on the results of my first renter, I decided to up the fee a bit. Many sites charge 200, 300 or even 500 credits and deliever worse results (I'm not making that up) so I felt more than comfortable charging 30 credits (it isn't real money, but it does represent time and effort). At the price of 15 BE credits I had 4 bidders, at 30 credits only 2 (hmm, do you see a pattern?). So anywho, the candidates this week are:

I gave my decision a lot of thought (you can read about my renter guidelines) and ultimately decided on The Anti - Sean Hannity Blog. This is obviously a political BLOG and I prefer not to get into the realm of the political here at Dark Glass, BUT I appreciate people who are passionate about their beliefs and work to change the world. The BLOG's owner had also bid last week with a different BLOG so he also got points for persistence. EccentricMan is not a bad BLOG in anyway, ironically his new renter is T3 of A Nuerotic Closet Bitch, but ultimately I didn't pick him. Maybe next week.

So please visit this week's sponsor regardless of your political views. If you support his beliefs be sure and leave a comment to tell him that you came from Dark Glass. If you don't support his beliefs, be sure and leave a comment to tell him that you came from Dark Glass. Regardless of what you believe, please be civil.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Letters to Santa from the children of the Cheyenne River Reservation

2005-11-19T13:57:00.000-06:00

Hello:

In the post Billboard Shopping Madness I made reference to a "Letters to Santa" project that I was hoping Liguori Publications would get behind. As I expected, the project was immediately approved and this coming Monday we will begin collecting Christmas gifts for the children of the Cheyenne River Reservation. I thought my BLOG readers would like to see the email we are sending out to our employees Monday.

The tie-in to The ABC's of Christmas by Francine M. O'Connor and Illustrated by Bartholomew seems straight forward enough. I'll just add that it is a very attractive hardcover book that makes a great gift.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

**************************************************************************************
Dear Liguori:

The past year has been a time of need for many people. Whether it is supporting our soldiers in foreign lands, donating our time and our money to help those suffering from Multiple Sclerosis, or collecting goods to aid the victims of the hurricanes - the employees of Liguori Publications have consistently shown the strength of their compassion. In spite of all those calls to action, there have been a few inquiries about ways we could help underprivileged families this Christmas season. Just as people began asking that question the St. Louis Post Dispatch ran an article about the Cheyenne River Youth Project and their annual Letters to Santa effort.

Participating in Letters to Santa is a great way for us to share the joy and spirit of Christmas with children who would otherwise have very little. Please take a few minutes during your lunch or break to stop by the Mission Sponsorship table or the table outside the Copy Area. We'll have actual letters to Santa written by boys and girls like Nakai Charging Eagle who would love some CD's but needs new shoes and Pheobe White Magpie who wants a Barbie doll but would also love to have a pillow and a warm blanket. When you find a letter you want to shop for, just take it out of the stack and mark that letter off on the log sheet. It is important to mark it on the log sheet, because the Youth Project will need to find homes for any letters we do not adopt.

All gifts need to dropped off at Liguori by Friday, December 2nd to allow time for shipping.

Each year the St. Louis area helps the Cheyenne River Youth Project to make Christmas a little brighter for more than 400 children. We are hoping that Liguori can help to make a few Christmas dreams come true for 30 kids. As you read the letters you'll see requests for big things and little things. Buy whatever you feel comfortable with but try to buy at least one item the child asked for. The children may really need socks and underwear but Christmas will be much more special if there is a toy sitting along side them. Think of your own Christmas memories and you'll know what to do!

Keep reading below to learn a little more about the Cheyenne River Youth Project and the children they help. These children will be forever grateful that you shared the warmth of your family's Christmas with theirs.

- The Employee Activity Committee

She Blinded me with Science

2005-11-18T18:48:00.000-06:00

Hello:

I just won the bid on a BLOGExplosion billboard (yes, another one - the others are expiring off). This one has the potential to start some interesting conversational threads, which is something that I had really hoped that there would be more of (*clears throat* *LEAVE a COMMENT*). Anyway, my most recent billboard rental is Modern Science, written and moderated by ZandPerl a professor in New England who is a self described atheist. If you have paid close attention while reading Dark Glass, you might remember a constructive comment she left in the past.

ZandPerl was kind enough to leave a nicely worded introduction to Dark Glass....

This week's blog is Through a Dark Glass by Philip Del
Ricci. Mr. Del Ricci writes about religious topics, mostly inspired
by and about various documents for Catholics and people interested in
Catholocism, I suspect because he works for a company that publishes them. His
posts are about the role of Christianity in the life of someone who is already
religious and are not at all antagonistic to atheists such as myself - not that
that would stop me from linking to someone. :) So surf on over to Dark Glass
(preferably through the link/screenshot on the left) and say "hi"! Be a nice
visitor and always follow the Boy Scout rule: leave the place cleaner than when
you got there. (I.e., no flame wars unless he asks politely.)

I don't believe that I have brought it up before but I do hold degrees in Engineering and Economics (with a minor in Math). I'm comfortable in the realms of science and believe that religion is not incompatible with the educated and modern man. Having said that - I don't automatically believe something as a matter of faith either.

Please take a moment to read Modern Science - it's a nicely written BLOG which is not so densely academic as to prevent a casual reading but still manages to stimulate the mind. Please let ZandPerl know that you dropped by and that you came from Dark Glass [if you are reading this because you dropped in from Modern Science, please say hello]. Regardless of your opinions, please be civil.

I would have loved to have wrapped this up with a reference to a Liguori Publications title, but I can't think of a good fit. I'll update this post if I think of something later. (I just finished checking, nothing really appropriate right now. We will have a title in the Spring discussing the Church and evolution. I don't mean to spoil it for anyone, but the Catholic Church sees no conflict with evolution.)

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

The title of this post is of course a reference to the 1983 Thomas Dolby classic "She Blinded Me With Science".

Charles de Foucauld beatified

2005-11-18T09:30:00.000-06:00

Hello:

I'd like to draw attention to an excellent post my buddy SimpleBrother wrote yesterday at Saintly Sinner. His post,Holy Eccentric, is a compelling piece that was inspired by the recent beatification of Charles de Foucauld. Foucauld was a French priest who was martyred in 1916 while living the life of a simple hermit in Algeria. Dave (Simple Brother) does a beautiful job of doing more than just featuring a Liguori Publications title. He actually reflects on readings from 15 Days of Prayer With Charles de Foucauld by Michel Lafon and discusses how those thoughts resonate within his own life.

I actually find myself a little envious of Dave's ability to write in this style. By sharing himself in this fashion, he makes the spirituality of Foucauld personal and accessible. This is a perfect example of the type of writing I envision in Liguori BLOGs to create Faith Based Community.

I'm tempted now to continue this post by discussing My Fascination with Saints and referencing two additional titles, but sometimes less is more.

Peace,
P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

[added 11/22/05] I found this amusing article with a reference to Sisters from the order of The Little Sisters of Jesus. The amusing thing is that they do their work through "Circus Ministry". The Little Brothers of Jesus and the Little Sisters of Jesus weren't exactly founded by Charles de Foucauld, but his death was the inspiration for their formation.

Wise Words Billboard

2005-11-17T09:52:00.000-06:00

Hello:

I have to confess that I bought another BLOGExplosion billboard. I wonder if I have a problem? The first step always seems to be admitting it. Actually, this time was a deliberate purchase. Since the rentals only last a week, renting a new one (or two) every couple of days should ensure continous coverage.

Today's acquisition is Wise Words written by Stephen in the exotic (to someone living in St. Louis) locale of Malaysia. I actually tried to rent this site last week but lost out. This week IT IS MINE. I really like this site because it reminds me of my office walls. Whenever I encounter a particularily meaningful quote - I type it up and post it in my office. Stephen wrote a very nice introduction to my site and took the time to understand what I am trying to accomplish.

As posted on Wise Words:

With coarse rice to eat, with water to drink, and my bended arm for a pillow...I
still have joy in the midst of these things.Riches and honors acquired by
unrighteousness are to me as a floating cloud....Confucius, Chinese philosopher
(551 BC - 479 BC)

I don't think I need to explain the connection to this title from Liguori Publications and the topic of this post. Wit and Wisdom of the Saints: A Year of Saintly Humor by Victoria Hébert and Judy Bauer. I am going to steal the description again because this title has a little more humorous slant than what I've seen on Wise Words, but I still find a lot of bite-sized wisdom in this title.

We all like to spend time with people who make us laugh. Those who always have a
good word, a smile, and a happy perspective naturally draw us into their
friendship. But what about the holy men and women we have been taught to revere
for their closeness to God? Did they laugh and joke?
Wit and Wisdom of the Saints introduces us to our blessed heroes in a new way. A collection of witticisms from a full spectrum of saints, we are presented with sayings from the early martyrs to contemporary saints. From Bernard of Clairvaux to
Bernadette of Lourdes, from John Bosco to Blessed Pope John XXIII - this book
paints a warm and very human portrait of holy people who were also very happy.
A joyful presentation of the humorous side of sanctity, Wit and Wisdom of
the Saints reminds the reader that God wants His saints to be happy. Get ready
for a litany of laughter.

Peace,
P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Billboard Shopping Madness

2005-11-16T22:25:00.000-06:00

Hello:

This past weekend, I got a little carried away with buying billboard space on BLOGExplosion. I've built up quite a war chest of credits and I started spending them like crazy. I was pushed on by the fact that I usually lose these bids and have to try for several before I find any takers. More than likely I just get turned down because someone else is a better fit or was just the first bidder. It might even be the semi-religious nature of this site but surely it isn't an unvoiced commentary on the quality of material here on Dark Glass..... Anyway, I ended up winning not 1 but 4 bids! That will teach me. As a small reward for the BLOGs that are willing to rent to me, I'll list them here.

In Susan's Words - Susan gets extra mention because she joined the Liguori Focus Group AND left a comment. Way to go Susan! Please visit her site, she is very generous with sharing her thoughts, emotions and life experiences. Many of her posts focus on her divorce and life as a single mom. (She also cycles).
Don's Thoughts II - Don is a great host and left a very nice welcome post for me when I rented from him. I can't imagine where he found the time - he's working on his dissertation, runs his BLOG and finds time to read. He also has an interest in Native American spiritual beliefs. Which is a nice segue into... I hope to post tomorrow about a charity that I just discovered that fulfills "Santa" letters for children on the Great Sioux Reservation.
Your Last Meal - This is a decidedly unusual BLOG which chronicals the last known meals of a variety of famous and notorious people. What can I say? P. Del Ricci likes to eat - which reminds me that I should go stir that big pot of chili in the kitchen.
It Doesn't Have 2 Rain all the Time - Difficult for me to summarize, but the author seems to have a great deal of social consciousness.

Feel free to check them out and if you leave them a comment - tell them that you came from Dark Glass. More importantly, if you leave them a comment - LEAVE ME A COMMENT. I know people are reading the site, I can see the stats. Speaking of stats here are a few for this site.

We (I?) get more than 600 visits a week.
Less than half of that comes from BLOGExplosion.
The average visit is just over 1 minute. Considering that most referrals from BLOGExplosion stay exactly 30 seconds, a 1 minute is pretty good.
I get very few visitors from search engines but many that come in that way are searching for cookbooks.
I'm proud to say that A Nuerotic Closet Bitch (my first billboard renter) has all ready gotten more clicks from this site than I have ever gotten from renting another site. THANK YOU for supporting her.

Tomorrow I intend to discuss the Cheyenne River Youth Project - hopefully I can avoid meetings long enough to write it. Of course, I have several thoughts about how this effort relates to Liguori Publications. I'll keep you posted. I would write more but fortunately for you, I think my chilli is ready.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Liguori BLOGs to create Faith Based Community

2005-11-15T15:05:00.000-06:00

Hello:

I am currently in the midst of 3 different posts, but I switched to this one because I thought I could get it up in a hurry (hah). One of the reasons I have been too busy to post my own material lately is that I have been busy wooing others to help expand the family of Liguori Publications BLOGS. Though I have fun writing Dark Glass and I think that it does accomplish its purpose, I am convinced that the charism of the Redemptorists can only be expressed through the addition of writers who live it every day. I think it will be particularily interesting to see the unique and personal perspectives that will become apparent as new BLOGs are brought on-line.

I have grand plans for this BLOG strategy and envision contributing writers from all slices of life. In the not too distant future, we should have at least one Spanish language writer, a couple of semi-retired priests, an author and a few members of the laity contributing this scheme. My hope is to create a Faith Based Community where anyone of any faith or ideal can question, learn and interact.

As in most things, to build large - you must start small. We began with the Liguori Press Release BLOG, which may be the dryest BLOG on the entire web. Then we added Dark Glass. Dark Glass lacks theological perspective, but demonstrates how a BLOG can interact with the outside world. Next came Saintly Sinner that comes closest to being an extension of the Redemptorist's work. TBS Bookviews was our last addition, but again is pretty dry and doesn't make for very engaging reading.

The next phase of the project is almost here. Some time after Thanksgiving, I expect to bring a warm and personal BLOG on-line that will be written by the same lady who administers the TBS Bookviews site. [Name withheld] has worked with the Redemptorists in varying capacities for more than a decade and is close to our editorial process here. She has a rich family life and adorable grandchildren. She will be able to relate to readers in a way that I cannot.

In early January we should open the doors on a unique mystical experience as Br. Secundo Pia Colobanus D'Silva is lured from hiding in his Oconomowoc retreat center to share himself with the wider world. Trust me, this one will be a trip that absolutely anyone is sure to enjoy and learn from. [11-22-05 For once, we are ahead of schedule. Please take a look at Mystic Alchemy]

I'm working on others and hope to have some more announcements soon. I really think the quality of the upcoming writers will be top notch and worth reading. Today I'm going to close by featuring A Presence that Disturbs: A Call to Radical Discipleship by Anthony J. Gittins, C.Ss.P. I don't usually copy the description text for a book but I thought this dovetailed nicely with today's topic and resonants with the themes that have been emerging from our focus group.

This powerful, moving and "disturbing" book looks at the contemporary issues
that block the attainment of a revitalized Church--a Church united rather than
fragmented, a Church tuned to justice for all rather than to provincial myopia.
A Presence That Disturbs will engage the general reader and the specialist alike
with a fresh perspective on what it means to follow Christ.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Welcome to my first renter

2005-11-12T08:53:00.000-06:00

Hello:

I mentioned yesterday that I had decided to host a BlogExplosion billboard here on Dark Glass. I also mentioned that I might pick a controversial renter if I thought it would spur conversation here. The way this works is that other people respond to an ad on BlogExplosion and ask to rent your space for a preset 'price' of BE credits. You can accept or deny whoever you want, but they have to approach you. I was a little nervous about who might come knocking. So now let's see who the nominees were. In order of application:

Please keep in mind that just because someone rents from me, it DOES NOT mean that I or Liguori Publications endorse their view point. In fact, they might have been selected for contrast. So without any further daudling - the winner is............ A Nuerotic Closet Bitch.

It's nice to help a fellow nuerotic, but I just don't think she is a bitch at all. Written by "3rd Times a Charm" this is a really cute BLOG giving insight into the life of a 41 yr old Mother of 3. Most of her posts deal with her adventures in family, her loving children and charming husband. I encourage everyone to visit. And please be sure to tell her that Dark Glass sent you.

Well, I have to run. I'm hosting a Kung Fu Hustle party tomorrow night, my house is a wreck and I haven't gone to the gym yet.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

This space for rent

2005-11-11T15:20:00.000-06:00

Hello:

You've heard me talk about my renting "Billboards" (Divine Perspective, Mormon Meanders, and ChristWeb ) from BlogExplosion before. Well I just finished plugging in the code to host a Billboard here on Dark Glass. You'll see the spot in the upper left, just below my profile. Right now, it just says "Rent My Blog". Hopefully when you look at it, it will be displaying the banner of some happy tenant. Renters won't have to be Catholic or even religious in nature. I might pick someone controversial if I think it will lead to some interesting conversation here. We'll just have to see where it goes. What do you know? No featured Liguori Publications product today!

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Liguorian: A Report Card on the Church

2005-11-09T16:39:00.000-06:00

Hello:

I usually start these posts with something of a more personal nature. I actually began writing that kind of post about 4:15 AM this morning, but then the newspaper arrived.... If I finish that post, the last comment will make sense - or at least have context. ANYWAY - Today I'd like to share an article from the current issue of Liguorian magazine. A Report Card on the Church: Forty Years After Vatican II by Richard R. Gaillardetz, Ph.D. is a strong article that addresses a variety of current issues from the efficacy of the Church to implement "Vatican II" reforms to the failure of the Church to respond to sexual abuse scandals. I think this article offers something of interest to anyone who is interested in the modern Church, whether they are Catholic or not. By now, everyone should be tired of hearing that I am a non-Catholic working at a leading Catholic publisher (Liguori Publications), but I like to point it out when material has a greater appeal.

Not to keep harping on this article, but it does a nice job helping me to further understand "what is a Catholic?". In "Role of Community in Catholic Life" and "More on What Defines Catholic Community" I discuss some of these issues and my motivations for better understanding.

If you like the featured article, you may also be interested in some of our titles by Dr. Richard R. Gaillardetz (a few of which are available in Spanish). In particular Becoming Word for One A nother: A Spirituality for Lectors and the Lay Ministry in the Catholic Church: Visioning Church Ministry Through the Wisdom of the Past 'collection' that includes everything but a ball cap.

I hope that you'll check out the article, I really do think it is well written and has broad appeal. I would REALLY appreciate it if you would leave a comment with your thoughts after reading it. Hopefully tomorrow I'll be able to provide a post with a little broader interest and that isn't such a blatant tie-in to my company. I (almost) feel gulity using this article and author in this stand-alone fashion, because it (unlike this) is good material.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

ChristWeb Billboard

2005-11-08T10:57:00.000-06:00

Hello:

I'm a little shy on anything to write about today, but I did want to point out that I have a new BlogExplosion "Billboard" running over at ChristWeb. ChristWeb is written by Stephen. At first glance the site seems to consist mostly of news articles with accompanying commentary, a little poking around reveals a much more complex site. You can easily find a large list of sites he enjoys (such as Another Man's Meat which I visit regularily), drag race photos (wheels not heels) and his current reading list. There aren't any titles from Liguori Publications on that list (yet) but I'll do what I can to change that. In the mean time, I'll just be glad that Stephen has been kind enough to rent me space on his BLOG. If you're dropping in from ChristWeb, please leave a comment and let me know.

I am aware that Halloween is over, and I'll try to change the image attached to my profile later today. A grinning jack-o-lantern looks a little funny next to some of the comments I leave.

Peace,
P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Profile picture?

2005-11-08T10:46:00.000-06:00

Maybe I have LAZY not ADHD?

2005-11-05T16:06:00.000-06:00

Wouldn't you know it? I have a few minutes to post and BLOGGER is down for maintenance. The nerve! Especially when you think of how efficiently I use my every waking moment. I took Thursday and Friday off this week and got very little done. I did a little, but only a little. I should have been writing, I should have been cleaning and putting away Halloween decorations. I should NOT have been playing round after round of Gazillionaire or watching TV programming that bored me (as much as I love Law and Order, how many times should I watch the same episodes?).

I did manage to escort this year's army of pumpkins to the dumpster (to the appropriate lawn waste dumpster, unlike certain neighbors), to oil the patio furniture and to go jogging; but I'd didn't set the world on fire. Thursday night I went to a happy hour at the Contemporary Art Museum of St Louis and had an awesome time. Thought provoking art, $1
drinks, a DJ and a cross section of interesting people. Despite my constant whining that I should do more, I have a pretty fulfilling life.

Last night we rented Kingdom of Heaven. AWESOME, I highly recommend it. This reasonably historically accurate movie about the crusades made the Lord of the Rings seem pedestrian (ok - maybe not, but close). The first time I ever saw a movie that mentioned the Knights Templar and didn't start questing for the Holy Grail (ala The DaVinci Code).

The Templars are frequently associated with crazies and conspiracy theorists, so I'll use that into a quick segue regarding my trip to the gym this morning. I go to a gym in St Louis Chase Park Plaza at the Central West End. It's a very colorful and eclectic area next to Forest Park, home of the 1904 World's Fair. Anyway, I'm crossing the street from where I parked to get to the gym when I notice someone cross the street further down from the other direction. He was nicely dressed, about 35, respectable looking. The moment I saw him every alarm went off inside my head. "CRAZY PERSON, CRAZY PERSON, He's going to talk to you - RUN!" {I have a lot of experience with this - for some reason crazy people LOVE ME}. I turned as casually as possible heading parallel to the gym but putting more distance between me and the man I was sure was crazy. In less than a minute, he closed a gap of 30 feet and started talking to me. "Are you going to the gym? I go to that gym. I went there this morning and hit my head." Maybe the reason that crazy people like me is that I hate to be rude to them. I just kept nodding and making "Oh really?" remarks and wishing that the traffic would clear so that I could cross the street. I started crossing sooner than was safe, but I wasn't convinced that it was safe to stay where I was. Crazy Person (CP) was right in my space yelling into my year. "I was doing gymnastics in the gym and I guess I had too much tomato juice this morning cause I hit my head." He said spinning in huge circles like a dervish and pacing me across the street. "When I was in the Marines they said that pain was just weakness escaping the body. I eschew that line of reasoning now." Yes - the type of crazies that approach me say things like "I eschew that line of reasoning now." FINALLY, I was near the gym door. Still trying to be polite, I was moving at top speed. As I bolted through the door he said something that sounded like, "If you see that Asian guy Mark - tell him Evan said Hello". I really should think about getting my psycho magnet removed.

You might find it interesting to read about Baton Bob, another Central West End character.

Well, I feel like I've written a lot about very little, but hopefully it is more interesting than my constantly going on about Liguori Publications (you didn't think you'd get away without any reference did you?). I wonder how long it will be before (if it hasn't happened all ready) that I'm described as a local character giving an area flavor?

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Liguori Limmerick

2005-11-04T09:03:00.000-06:00

Hello:

I thought I would share a funny incident from the web marketing seminar I went to last week. There were four of us there from Liguori Publications. Coincidentally, we sat at a table with two people from The Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows and across the room were two people from a business in my home town in rural Illinois about 100 miles away. The world is a small place. Anyway, the seminar managed to hold our attention for most of the two days but one segment seemed to drag on forever. While keeping boredom at bay, Dan started writing haikus which he enthusiasticly shared over lunch. I made the remark that I would need to be true to my heritage and would write a limmerick (my mix contains a lot of Irish). I was just joking when I said it, but my group kept ribbing me and eventually I wrote this.

There were four folks from Liguori,

who are the point of this story.

They turned on their teacher,

who looked like a preacher.

The rest of the story was gory.

I know "don't give up my day job".

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Catholics, Fundamentalists and Islam Oh My

2005-11-02T15:03:00.000-06:00

Hello:

Well my Halloween party (last Saturday) appears to have been a success. I didn't get home until 4 AM (it isn't unusual for me to be getting up at 4 so that was VERY late for me). All but a handful of guests wore costumes and most everybody took a turn at the scare-e-okee. Once again I seem to have made the drinks A.) Too strong and B.) Too plentiful, I ended up driving a friend home. I think I am going to hold off on posting pictures from this year's party so that I'll have something to post next year. I will go ahead and post a few from last year.

During the party, there were several people dressed as Catholic clergy (which led to the phrase "The Monk is Drunk and needs you to drive him home"). Surprisingly, this led to a number of serious conversations that usually started with the sexual abuse scandals and then branched out to the Church in general. I off-handedly mentioned the BlogExplosion billboard I am running over at Mormon Meanders and the conversation turned to contrasting the Catholic faith and a variety of others. PLEASE NOTE - this was a very fun party and these conversations were not typical. Anyway, when I got in Monday morning - I pulled out my trusty Liguori Publications catalog and found a number of titles that deal with Catholicism and other religions. We carry five titles (ok I'm counting one in English and in Spanish) dealing with Catholicism and Fundamentalists and two dealing with Catholicism and Islam. I haven't come close to reading all of these, but present them as an FYI. We have titles that discuss a variety of other faiths and philosophies, but I will save them for another time.

I believe that there has been a real deterioration in the quality of the posts I have been submitting to this BLOG (which considering what I thought of them when I started is saying something). As a result, I am planning on cutting way back on my update frequency. Most of them will still feature links to Liguori products and issues, I am trying to benefit my company afterall, but it is important to me that the posts be at least moderately interesting to a few people. There are plenty of sites out there that are just commercials or billboards and that itsn't what I want this to be. I'm taking tomorrow and Friday off. I hope to work on some writing projects but we'll see where the weekend takes me.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

Prayers for our Armed Forces

2005-11-01T16:51:00.000-06:00

Hello:

I've been extremely strapped for time today, I'm still trying to write a short post about my Halloween party last Saturday. I always hate mentioning when I've been working on a post for more than a day because it always seems to disappoint (me if no one else). Anyway, our sales group here at Liguori Publications has been working with my department (Publishing Technology) and sent out an email promoting our Prayers for our Armed Forces pamphlet (compiled by our own Paul Pennick and Joseph Nonnenkamp). I thought it was a goodlooking piece and any content I can steal, I mean syndicate, is a post I don't have to write. Catholic or not and regardless of political idealogy, I am certain that we all hope and pray for the safety of our troops.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

***********************************************************************************
Dear Liguori Customer,

Liguori Publications is pleased to present Prayers for Our Armed Forces. This collection of heartfelt Catholic prayers - both traditional and contemporary - has been prepared especially for those serving in the military. The convenient weight and size (4 1/8 x 5 7/8) of this 64-page spiritual companion make it easy for military personnel to carry it everywhere they go - especially at times when they may be placed in harm’s way.

Family and friends of those serving our country will also cherish using this comforting collection of prayers as they remember their loved ones in daily prayer.

Prayers for Our Armed Forces is only $1.95, and discounts for quantity purchases are available. Call a Liguori sales representative at 1-800-325-9521 for information on special pricing. You may also purchase individual copies on our website, Liguori Publications.

Harry A. Grile, C.Ss.R.
President/Publisher

Memorial to Brother William

2005-10-31T14:16:00.000-06:00

I regret to say that Brother William Roberts, C.Ss.R. passed away this morning after a long struggle with cancer. He will be missed and Liguori will be a little less bright for his passing.

PS: I know it is unusual, but Hermano Guillermo (Brother William) would have liked the disco ball.

Halloween 2004 - Monkey Bartender

2005-10-31T07:52:00.000-06:00

I'm not so pale now! White Pumpkin 2004

2005-10-28T16:11:00.000-05:00

Be sure to scroll down and see more of last year's pumpkins!

Mormon Meanders

2005-10-28T07:18:00.000-05:00

Hello:

I'll be in my internet marketing seminar again today, so this will be a super short post. Life has become VERY hectic prepping for Halloween. I'm still carving pumpkins and hauling decorations across town to the house where we host our annual Hallowtini Bash (Necropolitan Martinis are the order of the day). I'll post plenty of pictures next week. To my great shame, I had to rent a costume this year. There just wasn't time to make one, and I have a reputation for good costumes to live up to.

You've heard me mention BLOGExplosion (commonly called BE) before, this week I took out a BE "billboard" at another site. Please take a moment to visit Nephi over at Mormon Meanders. Nephi has treated me really well, with prominent placement and a write-up about Dark Glass. I have always had an interest in the Mormon faith. Interestingly, I have twice missed chances to tour a Mormon temple. I was out of town the entire time the St. Louis temple was open and couldn't get away when the Nauvoo temple was open. One of these days I'll see one. Nephi's site is mostly a news aggragator site with articles concerning the Mormon faith collected from a variety of sources.

Well, I'd better get to my seminar. Next week, I hope to write about what new things Liguori Publications will be doing to market itself on the web (I have to justify the cost of the conference somehow you know!). Be sure and scroll down through the site (and maybe even read a post), I've been posting pictures of last year's jack-o-lanterns.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

White as a sheet Halloween 2004

2005-10-26T16:51:00.000-05:00

Did I mention that I have won the Liguori Publications pumpkin carving contest several times?

Shattered Vows and Celibacy

2005-10-26T09:01:00.000-05:00

Hello:

When I started this BLOG I was extremely concerned that readers might take my views for those of my company, Liguori Publications. I was very careful to announce frequently and in a variety of ways that I am not Catholic and that my views are my own. That is in fact the premise of this BLOG, the observations of an outsider with an inside track. A more abstract viewpoint if you will. After all that lead-in, I don't know that I have actually touched on any controversial topics or at the very least - the readership hasn't indicated it if I have. It isn't that I am intentionally trying to aggravate people, but I'm critical of myself when I hesitate to use the word "bastard" or find myself subtlely steering a post in a particular direction.

I started thinking about this self censorship while I was reading Sunday's St. Louis Post Dispatch. I had just read the article "Catholic Bishops continue to back tradition of celibacy" and within 10 seconds had decided to use it as the core of a post, rejected the idea as too extreme and then determined that it would be the core. (My mind can become a pretty conflicted place at times.)

A quick summary of the article is that in spite of the critical shortage of priests, the first Synod of Bishops under the current Pope decided not to consider the issue of allowing priests to marry. I would like to respect this adherence to tradition. I would like to see a certain nobility in an immutable Church remaining steady within a chaotic and ever-changing world. I would even prefer to see the Church as something that stepped fully formed into the world and has been unchanged since that time. But... I can't.

If you read the article more closely, you'll see a quote from Cardinal George Pell, archbishop of Sydney, Australia that states "There has been a massive restatement of the importance of the tradition in the Latin church of mandatory celibacy,". Latin Church? When most people think of the Catholic Church, they think of the Latin Church and may not even realize that other aspects exist. There is also the Eastern Catholic Church which though closely related to the Orthodox Church is in full communion with Rome and recognizes the authority of the Pope. Eastern Catholic priests are allowed to marry but have the same privileges and obligations as a Latin rite priest. Also interesting is that celibacy was not always the rule of the Church (FutureChurch) . These are the sorts of things that erode my acceptance of the immutable Church concept. It very definitely evolves and changes over time.

I have no interest in tearing this topic apart in an academic fashion (I lack the background to do so if I wanted to). Truthfully, this post is more about my self-imposed boundaries than celibate priests. I find myself questioning the institution of the Church over it's stance on the ordination of women, the role of homosexuals, and the sexual abuse scandals among other things. To not reflect that questioning here does this BLOG, myself and my readers a disservice. One of the things I enjoy most about my work at Liguori is the discussion and debate which goes on so frequently. I believe that a sign of learned men (and women) is the ability to disagree with civility.

This post has wandered hopelessly, but I think I have more or less made the points I intended. I'll wrap up by providing some resources related to the topic.

I was going to feature an excellent book called "Shattered Vows: Priests Who Leave" by David Rice but unfortunately it is out of print. You may still be able to find it on-line second hand.
Instead I'll feature 2 books by A.W. Richard Sipe. Celibacy: A Way of Loving, Living, and Serving as well as Living the Celibate Life: A Search for Models and Meaning. Dr Sipe has an interesting perspective having been a monk, a priest and now a happily married man. He has also served as an expert witness in more than 200 cases of the sexual abuse of minors.
I'll also feature Priesthood Imperiled: A Critical Examination of Ministry in the Catholic Church by Bernard Haring, C.Ss.R.
And last but not least Understanding Chastity: The Mystery of Human Sexuality by Ann Nerbun & Mary Ann Fey.
If you are interested in learning more about the Eastern Catholic Church - Theological Book Services provides fulfillment for God With Us, a consortium of Eastern Catholic Publishers and you can find a variety of titles there.

Well, that should more than do it. I'll be attending a conference on internet marketing for the rest of the week, so you'll probably be spared any more posts for the next few days. Any spare time I have will be spent carving pumpkins and getting ready for my party this weekend.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

2005-10-25T22:30:00.000-05:00

Another buddy from 2004

2005-10-25T22:23:00.000-05:00

Pumpkins aren't the only ones that need to fear me!

St. Stanislaus Hurricane Damage and Random Bits

2005-10-25T11:17:00.000-05:00

Hello:

I'm still working on that monster post I mentioned yesterday (I should stop mentioning it, you might start expecting it to be good). It's slowing me down that people are expecting me to do my job rather than just sit and BLOG all day. I'll be attending a web seminar Thursday and Friday so I'm trying to get on top of things today.

In the mean time, I thought I would mention that 137 people are participating in our Focus Group and are eligible to win the $50 gift certificate good for Liguori Publications product. There is still time to sign up, so check it out if you are interested.

Simple Brother from Saintly Sinner sent me this link to pictures of the damage at St. Stanislaus College in Bay St. Louis, Missisippi. WOW!

I'll try to have a 'real' post out later today.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

2005-10-24T21:11:00.000-05:00

A little friend from Halloween 2004

This one won the 2004 Liguori Publications pumpkin carving contest.

Bias in the Liguorian Book Reviews?

2005-10-24T19:00:00.000-05:00

Hello:

I've spent more time than I care to admit today working on a post that will probably fail to achieve anything that I intend it to. Since it isn't quite ready for the limelight (and any resulting tomatoes) I'd like to distract you with (I mean turn your attention to) an excellent post by my friend and co-worker, Simple Brother (or Dave as I call him). I've mentioned Dave a time or two before. He writes Saintly Sinner, another Liguori related BLOG. Though I would never admit it to him, Dave is an extremely well educated and intelligent person. His combination of intelligence, compassion and mirth make him a strong asset to Liguori Publications (and to the group of miscreants I eat lunch with every day). This particular post of his deals with a recent frustration he has experienced administering the monthly book reviews in Liguorian Magazine. Without any further rambling from me, please check out You're not biased in any way, are you?.
Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

PS - I'm trying to make the titles of my posts more search engine friendly, which sometimes makes them seem odd to me.

Difficult Decisions for Liguorian Magazine

2005-10-20T07:51:00.000-05:00

Hello:

When I first joined Liguori Publications seven and half years ago, we had about 150 employees. If you didn't make it in early you couldn't find a parking space and we were frequently talking about the best way to expand our warehouse. Liguorian Magazine, the flagship of Liguori and a veritable cash cow, was just beginning to fall from an all time high of 500,000+ subscriptions. Flash forward to today. Through three rounds of layoffs and attrition, we are now fewer than 100. Liguorian subscriptions are less than 300,000 and needless to say, parking isn't a problem. Even so, the warehouse is tighter than ever.

Liguori is one of those places where it isn't uncommon for someone to work 40 years or more. The salaries aren't the highest in the metro region but the benefits are extremely good and there is a real sense of family that I've never experienced anywhere else. Many of the employees work at Liguori as an expression of their Catholic spirituality. Not being Catholic myself, I don't experience that particular reward - but it is refreshing to see it in your co-workers.

Obviously, layoffs were not something we chose to do lightly. Most importantly, they were not just cost saving maneuvers. In each case the functions we shed and the resulting reorganizations made us a stronger and more viable company. Unfortunately, the efficiencies we gained were almost always offset by further weakness in our market niche.

Secular publishers began to venture into spiritual publishing using their economies of scale and established channels to draw the best authors and get shelf space in more bookstores.
The terrorist attacks on September 11th sent the economy into a tail spin.
The sexual scandals within the Church left parishes with diminishing donations and large settlement payouts.
The declining number of clergy transitioned buying decisions into the hands of lay volunteers who did not have the same familiarity with our product lines.
In the past Redemptorists would fill in for vacationing and sick pastors throughout the US. After Mass they would distribute subscription cards. As the number of Redemptorists declines so do the number of "preached" subs.

Just recently we made the decision to outsource the fulfillment (that's the order taking and shipping) of the Liguorian Magazine to Palm Coast Data in Florida. They have a tremendous operation with several hundred employees and several million dollars worth of equipment allowing them to administer the magazine significantly cheaper, faster and better than we can. It was a tough call that resulted in the loss of 3 jobs here at the publishing house, but it was the right thing to do. As a result, we have been able to shift resources (corporate speak for people) to focusing on growing the magazine again.

Just in time for Christmas gift giving, we have markedly improved the process for giving Liguorian gift subscriptions on-line. In the past you had to complete a separate check out for each subscription. Last November one gentleman, obviously destined for Sainthood, completed 17 checkouts! We also now allow "Bill Me" orders to be placed on-line. In the next month we plan on rolling out enhanced customer service features; address change, account review, replacement issues, etc.

If you're curious, you can read a sample article by clicking on any of the images (all images take you to the same article). You can also go directly to the commerce site. I'm most excited that you can read this unpaid testimonial from Faira. Ok, ok I sent her a free cookbook and a magazine - but I didn't ask her to write the review!

Faira said...
Oh, and Philip, You sent along with my cook book a publication of Liguorian. It also was great reading and a publication to be proud of. I read it from cover to cover. I really liked the comparison stories of gardens and Spiritual living. And the memoriam of John Paul II 1920-2005 was very well done, it helped me see the Man behind the Pope (does that make sense?). Thank you for sending it to me, I enjoyed it very much!

Well, I think that's enough of this somber discussion. I hope you don't mind the change in tempo, but it's been on my mind a lot lately. Among other things, I think I feel some survivor's guilt. We're positioned for a better future but things certainly aren't guaranteed. I try my best to benefit the company in any way that I can, I feel I owe it to this weird little family of mine.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Da rk Glass

St. Mary's

2005-10-19T15:55:00.000-05:00

Damage around St. Mary´s Church.

The steeple of St. Mary's, weather-worn but standing proudly after the Hurricane.

Rev. Gregory Schmitt, C.SS.R., pastor of St. Mary´s Assumption, Shrine of Blessed Francis Xavier Seelos, New Orleans, directs National Guard soldiers in an inspection of the parish grounds.

Neighbor's House before and after

2005-10-19T15:50:00.001-05:00

Status of Redemptorists in New Orleans

2005-10-19T15:50:00.000-05:00

Hello:

Lately I've found myself arm wrestling with my BLOG template. It's played a few tricks on me in the few months that I've been BLOGging but recently it had started shoving my posts to the bottom of the page. To someone visiting for the first time, the BLOG had a decidely abandoned appearance. After much cursing, refreshing, tweaking and finagaling - I think it looks 'ok' now. The margins are still a little whacked looking, but I think it will hold until I get a chance to design my own layout or geta hired gun. So anyway - I'm sitting here wallowing in the great injustice of my BLOG not aligning nicely, when I get an email update about how the Redemptorists stationed in New Orleans are getting along. My perspective seemed to be restored pretty quickly.

Just a quick refresher. I work for Liguori Publications, a Catholic publishing house owned by the Redemptorist Fathers. The Redemptorists have a significant presence in New Orleans and we lost contact with several of our guys during Katrina. Several of them are still down there doing what they can to help the recovery and I've been sharing updates as they come through.

The orignal posts are:

Somber Affairs
Thursday Ramble (not as relevant)
Redemptorists in New Orleans - Update
Letter from a New Orleans Redemptorist
Update from Redemptorist in New Orleans

So I'll get out of the way now and let you read Fr. Greg's letter.

Peace,

P. Del Ricci - Dark Glass

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Dear Family, Friends, Confreres,

I'm having troubles with this computer in Baton Rouge right now, but I will attempt another Katrina/Rita report. I'm still in Baton Rouge, but I'm planning to return to New Orleans tomorrow (Oct 20) to stay. I know that when I get back to New Orleans I won't have e-mail access at least through our normal channel. Our broadband is still not functioning, and the company that supplies it is not telling us anything.

I've been very busy and on the move. I've been doing chaplaincy work at Our Lady of the Lake Hospital here in Baton Rouge 3 days a week (Wednesday - Friday 7:30 - 4:00) That includes being on call for emergencies all night. I was also up in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin for Rector's meetings. I left Baton Rouge on Saturday, Oct 8 and spent the 9th visiting my sister in Milwaukee. Our meetings ran from Monday night until Thursday noon. I returned to Baton Rouge on Thursday evening, the 13th. On Friday and Saturday I was on hospital duty. Sunday morning (Oct 16) I drove down to New Orleans to celebrate a 10:00 AM Mass in St Mary's Church. Fr. Scott, my associate celebrated a 5:30 PM Mass on Saturday at St. Mary Chapel. Attendance was surprisingly good. 50 at the chapel and 100 (or more) at the church. It was a beginning. It was good to be back and see familiar, faithful faces. Unfortunately t! he air conditioning and the sound system were not working in the Church. We did have lights, but there are some electrical problems that need to be addressed.

Anyway, my schedule the past few weeks has kept me out of the communication business. I want to thank all of you who have sent e-mails. I will try to answer the ones that need answering, and thank so many of you who have sent help. But I want to send this general message so I won't have to repeat all the details to each one individually.

When I drove into New Orleans on Sunday I drove through some sections that seem to be returning to life. The traffic and seeing people on the streets bespeaks life. There isn't much of either in our immediate section of the City. Except for the time surrounding our Mass, the streets are eerily empty. One of our parishioners, Judge Dennis Waldron did yeoman's work cleaning the streets around our Church for the Sunday service. The garbage is still there, but Dennis managed to seclude it for our return. He and I are also trying to salvage the ancient historical bricks from the fence wall that the hurricane demolished. Some sections of the City -not too far from us - still have the stench of decaying food. There are a lot of refrigerators wrapped in duct tape lining the streets. There are a few restaurants open on Magazine Street, but all the other business establishments on this once! bustiling street are still boarded up or closed. An A&P is open, and so are a few gas stations. Gas in New Orleans is $2.89. I can get it for $2.59 in Baton Rouge.

Fr. Scott, Deacon Dennis Ryan and I had an impromptu staff meeting after the Mass on Sunday. We divided up some duties. Fr. Scott is going to pursue the electical problems. Deacon Dennis is going to go after some new refrigeration units. And I am in charge of contacting insurance folks about damage to the church and rectory and school. Besides getting our parish community reassembled, there is going to be a lot of physical matters to attend to during the next few months. We will also be about the business of helping folks who have been devasted by Katrina. Some very generous folks have sent us donations - several thousand dollars - to assist persons in need. During the liturgy this past Sunday we observed that most of our poorest parishioners had not yet returned. The reasons could be many. They don't have a way to get back from their evacuation destinations. They don't have the wherewitha! ll to fix up the places they left behind or their housing units are not back in operation. They have no employment to return to at the present time. From things I've heard some folks may not return at all - especially if they can find employment in their new locale. We know that we will be able to use the funds that have been given us. Hope House (right next to our rectory) ministers daily to the poor in our area. We will work through them as well as giving direct aid to needy parishioners.

St. Alphonsus School is not open yet. It is on a list of schools that the Archdiocese wants to reopen. Fortunately it did not suffer flood damage - which is the real school killer. Though many windows were blown out and the roof was damaged, these are fixable. I don't think the school will reopen until January at the earliest.

I spoke with an insurance adjuster on Tuesday. We are authorized to proceed with window replacement in the church and rectory. Hopefully we'll be able to find contactors to do the work. I want to fix the large Church window with something more sturdy than the glass which was blown in (eg Lexan). The insurance will only pay for replacement value of the former window as it was. I also found out that the insurance will not pay for our refrigerators (or contents). The refrigeration problem was caused by the power outage, which the insurance company sees as independent of the hurricane.

The Church has suffered roof damage. In one corner near the tower there is an open hole - accounting for the water that has come through the tower all the way to the lowest level next to the sacristy. The insurance company is supposed to get this covered until contractors can come out and fix the roof. Also the roof tiles along peak of the roof have been lifted or blown off. I have been told that the roof was completely blown away during hurricane Betsy in 1965. At that time St. Mary's Church was closed for 19 years while a new roof was installed.

There's no doubt that the Hurricane experience is a life-changing experience. I don't think anything will be quite the same at least for a long time. On the positive side, this may also be an opportunity to re-evaluate what we have been doing and to effect some creative changes. We may be able to re-invent ourselves in some ways to carry out the mission of Christ and the Church in an even better way.

For me personally, the encounters I had at the hospital, especially with children and families in the pediatric units were the most moving and eye-opening. I can't tell you how much I admire the families who build their lives around their sick children while at the same time they are trying to cope with horrendous losses of homes and property. Thanks to the generosity of folks I gave anonymous donations to some of these families - and they were deeply appreciative. There is so much sadness surrounding children who will not get well, and so much inspiration around the families that won't do anything but love them - sacrificing everything else.

Like I mentioned, I will be returning to New Orleans tomorrow. I will revert to my New Orleans address: The mail service in New Orleans has restarted, but because of the huge backlog of mail we are only getting a little bit each day. I'm not sure if the Post Office is delivering old mail before new mail. Anyway, it may take a while to get mail.

I will continue to send these large e-mails to keep you updated from time to time. Please send this on to people you think would be interested. Thank you for all your interest, love, generosity.

Peace,

Greg

Biloxi community sitting in front of damaged residence after Hurricane Katrina

2005-10-19T15:42:00.000-05:00

1. Biloxi community sitting in front of damaged residence after Hurricane Katrina: From left to right: standing: Rev. Richard Luberti arrives to transport confreres to Baton Rouge. Sitting: Revs. Albert Babin, Earl Toups, Joseph Armshaw, Edward Cosgrove and Warren Drinkwater.

Community house before the Hurricane

2005-10-19T15:00:00.000-05:00

Community house before the Hurricane.