[Magdalen] What are we reading?

[Judy Fleener]

A young friend is studying epidemiology at Columbia after being in the
peace corps first in Niger and then in Kenya.  He gave me two books to
read:  Another Day of Life by Ryszard Kapusciski about the Angolan civil
war.  I am nearly finished with that. He also gave me The Reluctant
Fundamentalist by Moshin Hamid, next up.

Then I'm doing  much lighter reading while I participate in my library's
winter bingo, reading a book for each of 25 boxes.   Body Count by William
Kienzle is for the Michigan author box.  I loved reading Brown Girl
Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson (a book with a color in the title) a free
verse book about the growing up of a young African American.

  I watched Grantchester last night after Downton Abbey.  The author of the
books on which this Masterpice Mystery is based is James Runcie, son of the
former ABC.  His books feature Sidney Chambers a C of E priest. I just
bought a book by that  author and thought it was in the series, but it is
about the history of chocolate.  Oh, well,, I love chocolate.
Judy


On Mon, Feb 2, 2015 at 3:01 PM, Cantor03--- via Magdalen <
magdalen at herberthouse.org> wrote:

>
>
> In a message dated 2/2/2015 2:42:32 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,
> gracecan at gmail.com writes:
>
> Merton  was schooled in France or Switzerland, IIRC. While I
> admire his later work,  I will never be a fan.>>>>
>
> When I cleared out my office at the VA a year ago, the missing
>  b&w photo given me by a former Gethsemani monk turned up.
> Wouldn't you know, now I can't find it again.
>
> It shows Solemn High Mass at the Abbey Church in the glory days
> for monastic Orders, just after the end of WW-2.  The Abbey is
> a long, high, and narrow building, and at the time had an elaborate
> quadripartite gothic pseudovaulting.
>
> The picture shows the dramatic moment of an Elevation, with incense
> galore floating up to the high vaults.
>
> Among the 100+ monks bowing low in their stalls is Merton.
>
> After Vatican-2, the monks tore out all the pseudovaulting, and left  the
> building with the spare and stark steel beams actually supporting the  roof
> exposed.
>
> The interior is extremely white, and overwhelmingly austere.   You'd think
> the
> place had been attacked by radical Protestant reformers.
>
> The monks sure make good cheese, however.
>
>
>
> David Strang.
>
>
>


-- 
Judy Fleener, ObJN
Western Michigan