Friday Links
May 30, 2025
The Arrest of Joan of Arc by Adèle Martin
Christopher Honey reviews Fret Not by Michael Shindler
Fr. Herman Majkrzak: Recovering a Full Theological Vision of the Ascension
Catholic Culture Podcast and Fr. John Nepil: The Theology of Hiking
Ascending to the Seven Virtues of J.R.R. Tolkien
Margaret Noodin reviews Matthew Brennan’s The Sea-Crossing of Saint Brendan
Cardinal Dolan on NY’s Assisted Suicide Bill
Christopher Honey reviews Fret Not by Michael Shindler
My friend and fellow DTer, Christopher Honey, reviews Fret Not by Michael Shindler. I think Christopher’s point about this collection—essentially that is could use a little more grit and tension and drama—could be said about a lot of contemporary literature. Yes, some contemporary literature is nonsensical, some is too ugly and gritty, some is too partisan and ideological, but some of it is too sweet and nice and tied up with a bow. I haven’t read Fret Not, but I appreciate Christopher’s concerns:
Honestly, I wish the poet had made me fret a little more. Many of the poems in Michael Shindler’s first collection, Fret Not, are pleasantly pastoral in the vein of John Clare’s early works, none are offensive, and some readers will take comfort in the mere existence of a new collection of rhyming verse in the midst of a churning sea of contemporary free verse. They are diligently crafted, but they tend to come to a gentle halt where I would prefer them to continue.
Fr. Herman Majkrzak: Recovering a Full Theological Vision of the Ascension
Fr. Herman, one of my favorite priests, offers a wonderful commentary on the Ascension:
It is no exaggeration to say that the feasts of Annunciation and Christmas have their exact counterpart and, indeed, their fulfillment in the Ascension. Christ united himself to our nature in order to raise us up to God. The Word became flesh and made his home among men, but through the Ascension, “the head of our human race is at home, where only God is at home.”1 And he ascended, not to abandon the earth—much less his flesh—but to fill all things with himself.
Catholic Culture Podcast and Fr. John Nepil: The Theology of Hiking
Fr. John Nepil, priest and mountaineer, joins the podcast to discuss his book To Heights and Unto Depths: Letters from the Colorado Trail. Topics discussed include:
The modern view of “nature” vs. God’s creation
A morally responsible approach to risk-taking
The modern origins of hiking as a secular activity
“Wilderness” vs. “garden”—Catholic attitudes toward the wild places
Ascending to the Seven Virtues of J.R.R. Tolkien
Bradley Birzer addresses the Ascent Classical Academy of Northern Colorado graduating class of 2025 on Tolkien and the virtues:
I first encountered Professor Tolkien—through his writings—in 1977, right after my tenth birthday. Though four years after his death in 1973, the fall of 1977 saw the release of Tolkien’s masterpiece, The Silmarillion, edited and finished by his son, Christopher. Though I was too young to understand it in all its brilliant complexity, I recognized greatness in it, and I tried to read it something like 15 times, failing each time.
Margaret Noodin reviews Matthew Brennan’s The Sea-Crossing of Saint Brendan
Matthew Brennan’s version of Saint Brendan’s story is, as the last section declares, “a tale about breaking the bold world’s boundaries” (p. 59) and well worth the journey back to the late sixth century when he sailed the Atlantic in an ox-hide boat. Although the details about Naomh Breandán, the abbot from Cluain Fearta, Ireland, was first recorded in the Latin Navigatio Sancti Brendani Abbatis, it was told many times over as a global epic, by people of many nations. It is this tradition of vernacular lyric entertainment that Brennan takes as his inspiration.
Cardinal Dolan on NY’s Assisted Suicide Bill
Cardinal Dolan begins this essay with an anecdote that, I think, exemplifies the schizophrenic attitude modernity has towards suffering of any sort: We abort babies by the millions, but we also spend millions of dollars on intensive care for premature babies; we spend millions of dollars on helping addicts recover from addiction while also spending similar amounts on “safe” injection sites; we spend millions of dollars trying to come up with new ways to treat depression and mental illness, but we also pass bills legalizing assisted-suicide—and those bills always get amended to include depression and mental illness as acceptable diagnosis. All of this seems evidence of how spiritually sick our society is.
Crossing the George Washington Bridge during rush hour, I came to a complete stop just before midspan. Horns blared, and people started getting out of their cars. Word started to spread—there was a man on the side of the bridge, threatening to jump. Everyone’s mood changed in an instant. Instead of being impatient, angry, in a rush, we prayed for that man and the rescue workers trying to coax him back to safety. We all rallied on behalf of a troubled man intent on suicide.
