What is Femanemia?
Mary consoling Eve and with the God-man she conceived, gestated, birthed and nurtured crushing the forces of evil for ever and ever. Amen |
Mary consoling Eve and with the God-man she conceived, gestated, birthed and nurtured crushing the forces of evil for ever and ever. Amen |
In these months before the election there have been so many divisive issues polarizing groups of people and sorting them by political party or religious denominations. One term that seems to be thrown around a lot is "Morality Police"; where one group will accuse another group of trying to enforce their sense of the moral law onto the others. The favor is almost always returned.
This seems like an unhelpful approach to me. Almost without exception, both groups involved are asserting their understanding of what is good for humanity and the world we live in. They do this invariably out of love or their desire for everyone to flourish in an equitable fashion. Neither group seems to be asserting their view because they wish to harm humanity or our world.
As unlikely as it seems on the surface, I believe that all sides actually think they're trying to do the loving thing. The reason they are so passionate and assertive about their own particular moral view is because they think the people in the other groups are not being loving.
This unabashedly positive approach is echoed by one of my favorite songwriters, Bruce Cockburn:
"What will go wrong, will go wrongPart of the produce that is given away (and never for sale) at the farm comes in the form of books. These are selected based on Farmer Fred's experience for what has helped him flourish in his own faith journey.
Many of our incarcerated friends love to read! |
Egyptian Poet Mostofa Ibrahim |
I decided to move forward with the digital divorce... |
Today I monotasked. I walked into the store without any tech to buy an old fashioned object called an alarm clock.
Why?
So I can deliver the divorce papers to my phone tonight.
I no longer want to sleep with it or even be in the same room with it when I'm going to sleep, sleeping or waking up.
I want it to be a friendly divorce. I'll still visit digital land and I'll pay attention to our children (this website is one of them). But I'm not sleeping with it any more.
This is all part of a series of little experiments I'm trying in order to live life less attached to the digital realm and live more just as a human, interacting with his surroundings and the people in it.
It has been a long time coming. I remember the decision to leave my phone in the car when going to Mass about six months ago. So freeing. It became a permanent habit about one month into the experiment.
Excellent Ideas and Scholarship |
....
Ok, back in the saddle.
Dr. Song gave us an excellent presentation and then a fine Q & A afterwards. She is a brilliant scholar and yet delivers her findings with tact and kindness, you won't be shamed by her for participating in the alarming trends that she exposes. Rather, she gives you simple ways to set proper working boundaries in your use of technology.
Which is why I'm referring to my relationship with the digital realm as a friendly divorce.
No, I don't want to sleep with it anymore, but I still value the toolset it has to offer to help live my life. But not on its terms anymore, or not so much I hope. I hope to extract myself from the seemingly compulsive attention to it and perhaps focus more on my marriage to my wife, my relationship to my family, friends and God.
So as I continue to experiment in this new way of divorcing myself from the digital, I ask your patience. I may not check my phone as much. I may leave it behind more. I might not login as much.
Who knows, I might be able to learn to more consistently engage with the world around me full of trees and grass and people and rivers and well, just all things bright and beautiful. I hope you can forgive me and maybe even join me... there is strength in numbers.
Being a student of anthropology and phenomenology I found the movie fascinating. It poses so many excellent questions about what it means to be human in such rapid succession that I would have to watch the movie in slow motion to catch them all. One of the lead characters (a mom who had played with Barbie dolls as a child) posed several pointed and excellent questions out loud, while most of the questions (equally valid) were masked under sarcastic and often dark humor.
This movie kicked my inner Mr. Curious into gear and below are a few of the questions it triggered me to ask:
Passing through the Eastern door of the Church allowed me to be exposed to so much beauty. I'm eternally grateful for it and treasure it in my heart often. The many songs of Lent and Easter still haunt my soul years after I've moved into the western fold.
In the Eastern (Byzantine) Church this particular hymn gets 'busted out' impromptu after many of the extra lenten services and people joyfully join in, belting it out with gusto. I can't explain how moving it is to be immersed in that kind of joy, it brings tears to my eyes just writing about it.
Anyway, I made a little slide show with an excellent female choir (Eikona) singing it. I hope it brings joy to you this lent and always.
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For our Blessed Mother on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, the Year of Our Lord 2021.
Woodcut style icons: Virginia Broderick
Final icon of Theotokus of the Inexhaustible Cup: Ariane Trifunovic Montemuro (www.arianeart.com)
All other icons from the web, please inform me of the artists if you know them and I'll give them credit here.
Music performed by Eikona on their album "Sacred Hymns of the Divine Liturgy"
Lyrics in English and Greek:
" O Pure Virgin"
by St. Nectarios of Aegina
Tone 5
(A, B, and C refer to the three distinct melodies within the hymn.)
(A)
O pure and virgin Lady,
O spotless Theotokos:
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride!
O Virgin Queen and Mother
O dewy fleece most sacred:
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride!
(B)
O height transcending heaven above
O beam of light most radiant:
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride!
O joy of chaste and virgin maids
surpassing all the angels:
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride!
(C)
O brilliant light of heaven above
most clear and most radiant:
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride!
Commanding chief of heaven above
O holiest of holies
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride!
(A)
O ever-virgin Mary
O Mistress of creation:
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride!
O Bride all-pure and spotless
O Lady all-holy:
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride!
(B)
O holy Mary, Bride and Queen
O cause of our rejoicing
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride!
O Maiden Queen most hon'rable
O Mother most holy
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride!
(C)
More precious than the cherubim
more glorious than the seraphim:
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride!
Surpassing principalities
dominions, thrones and powers:
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride!
(A)
Rejoice, song of the cherubim
Rejoice, hymn of the angels:
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride!
Rejoice, ode of the seraphim
and joy of the archangels:
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride!
(B)
Rejoice, o peace; Rejoice, o joy
and haven of salvation:
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride!
O bridal chamber of the Word
unfading, fragrant blossom:
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride!
(C)
Rejoice, delight of paradise
Rejoice, life everlasting:
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride!
Rejoice, o holy tree of life
and fount of immortality:
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride!
(A)
I supplicate thee, Lady,
I humbly call upon thee:
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride!
O queen of all, I beg thee
To grant me Thy favor:
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride!
(B)
O spotless and most honored Maid,
O Lady all holy:
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride!
I call upon thee fervently,
Thou temple most holy:
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride!
(C)
O thou my help, deliver me
From harm and all adversity:
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride!
And by thy prayers show me to be
An heir of immortality:
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride!
[Phonetic Greek]
Agní Parthéne
(A)
Agní Parthéne Déspina,
Áhrante Theotóke,
Hére Nímfi Anímfefte.
Parthéne Mítir Ánassa,
Panéndrose te póke.
Hére Nímfi Anímfefte.
(B)
Ipsilotéra Uranón,
aktínon lamprotéra,
Hére Nímfi Anímfefte.
Hará parthenikón horón,
angélon ipertéra,
Hére Nímfi Anímfefte.
(C)
Eklamprotéra uranón
fotós katharotéra,
Hére Nímfi Anímfefte.
Ton Uraníon stratión
pasón agiotéra.
Hére Nímfi Anímfefte.
(A)
María Aipárthene
kósmu pantós Kiría,
Hére Nímfi Anímfefte.
Áhrante Nímfi Pánagne,
Déspina Panagía
Hére Nímfi Anímfefte.
(B)
María Nímfi Ánassa,
harás imón etía,
Hére Nímfi Anímfefte.
Korí semní Vasílissa,
Mítir iperagía,
Hére Nímfi Anímfefte.
(C)
Timiotéra Heruvím,
iperendoxotéra,
Hére Nímfi Anímfefte.
Ton asomáton Serafím,
ton Thrónon ipertéra.
Hére Nímfi Anímfefte.
(A)
Hére to ásma Heruvím,
hére ímnos angélon,
Hére Nímfi Anímfefte.
Hére odí ton Serafím,
hará tón Arhangélon,
Hére Nímfi Anímfefte.
(B)
Hére iríni ke hará,
limín tis sotirías,
Hére Nímfi Anímfefte.
Pastás tu Lógu ierá,
ánthos tis aftharsías,
Hére Nímfi Anímfefte.
(C)
Hére Parádise trifís,
zoís te eonías,
Hére Nímfi Anímfefte.
Hére to xílon tis zoís,
pigí athanasías.
Hére Nímfi Anímfefte.
(A)
Se iketévo Déspina,
Se, nin, epikalúme,
Hére Nímfi Anímfefte.
Se disopó Pantánassa,
Sin hárin exetúme.
Hére Nímfi Anímfefte.
(B)
Korí semní ke áspile,
Déspina Panagía,
Hére Nímfi Anímfefte.
Thermós epikalúme Se,
Naé igiasméne,
Hére Nímfi Anímfefte.
(C)
Antilavú mu, ríse
me apó tu polemíu,
Hére Nímfi Anímfefte.
Ke klironómon díxon
me zoís tis eoníu.
Hére Nímfi Anímfefte.