Carla Mae's Blog

On November 17, 2023, the Preaching Contact Persons from the USA Dominican Communities shared pointers they suggest make preaching events memorable…! We thought you would like to know what they said:      ·        Connect with history as appropriate; help us understand whatever is being celebrated (i.e. Translation of remains of Dominic, Triumph of the Cross). ·        Share just enough appropriate historical background. ·        Know your audience and remember that holidays are times of joy and sorrow; speak to both realities…!   ·        Know context: What is happening in the world? ·        Use a line from Scripture and repeat it appropriately for emphsis. ·        Just the right length - not too long and not too short…! ·        Never ram...

 We have experienced the shortest day of the year, and the light is growing stronger each day. Liturgically, we have just celebrated the season of lights. But as we listen to the evening news, we often feel anything but lightsome. What are we to make of this contrast? Often we sense that the Church lives in its own faith-world, while I live in the real world. But after a bit of thought, maybe what we really all live in, is the tension between light and darkness. There is a tug-of-war, and I have to decide daily what side I’m on…!  Interestingly, this is exactly what the Dominican shield captures. Whether viewed from the bottom up or the top down, the light is piercing the darkness. Maybe that is just the point: we live in the tension between light and darkness, between truth and lies, between peace and war, between the now and the not-yet.  The scriptures for this time right after Christmas assure us of one thing: the Light has come, and the darkness is not going to o...