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Kayla
Member
| Joined: | Mon Jul 30th, 2007 |
| Location: | Emmitsburg, Maryland USA |
| Posts: | 364 |
| First Name: | Kayla | | Gender: | Female | | Faith History: | Atheist, kind-of Mormon, Catholic |
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Posted: Tue May 13th, 2008 11:01 pm |
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Alrighty folks, I need your help again. 
It's only two days into summer vacation and I already feel restless. Granted, I'm still in the midst of a job hunt (I've applied at a few places, so now I wait a few days and then follow up) and I know that I'll be busier when I do find employment... Regardless, I feel like I ought to be doing something academically. I've been reading, yes. I just finished a biography of Edith Stein which I started on my way home. I'm currently reading a compilation of some of her works as well.
Buuut, I feel the need to do some research, to work on a project of somesort. It doesn't have to be huge; just something. Unfortunately, I'm one of those kiddlets who needs a "prompt" of sorts to get working. I need someone to give me a thesis or a project or a theme or a topic or something. Otherwise I have no idea where to start or where to go.
Any thoughts or ideas? I need to research and write something, lol. 
I don't know what I'm going to do when I'm out of school forever! Yikes!
____________________
I believe, Lord, help my unbelief.
Jesus, I trust in You!
There's not a lot of job security for us after death. I suppose that's one advantage of being a philosopher. - Peter Kreeft
http://kayla23mount.blogspot.com/
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BD
Member
| Joined: | Wed Mar 26th, 2008 |
| Location: | |
| Posts: | 46 |
| First Name: | Brett | | Gender: | Male | | Faith History: | Non-denominational evangelical, Mennonite (Anabaptist), now Evangelical-Anabapti-catholic |
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Posted: Tue May 13th, 2008 11:34 pm |
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Well, I would encourage you to read some of Flannery O'Connor's fiction, especially her short stories. If you want a project, read the short story "Parker's Back" (in the collection "Everything Rises Must Converge") and then assess the nature and significance of the disagreement over who Jesus Christ is between the story's two main characters. If you are not familiar with FO, then do some internet research and get captivated!
If fiction isn't your thing, read some Dorothy Day. Anything. Orbis Press has a nice compilation of her various works. Then ask how does Dorothy Day balance the practice of radical Catholic social teaching and obedience to the Magisterium.
Heck, Augustine's Confessions is worth a first, second, or hundredth read.
I would advocate some rest, however. Make sure you don't burn out!
____________________
Non abbiate paura!
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Steven Barrett
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| Joined: | Tue Nov 14th, 2006 |
| Location: | Hadley, Massachusetts USA |
| Posts: | 812 |
| First Name: | Steven | | Gender: | Male | | Faith History: | Catholic, Episcopal communicant, Baptist, Catholic |
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Posted: Wed May 14th, 2008 12:01 am |
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 Kayla, to balance Brett's list out some, you might find it worthwhile looking into any of Michael Novak's writings on war, peace, money, and dealing with the world's problems from a very real and grounded viewpoint.
But do yourself a real favor: don't burn yourself out.  Enjoy your summer and be thankful knowing God's looking out for you and you have big family looking out for you -- even rooting for you to relax and kick up your heels for a change. Believe me, after working retail ... you won't be wanting to get back into the serious stuff, even Novak's. Heck, I'd bet he'd tell you to relax!    Well, don't smack down too much on that stuff, but enjoy yourself!!!!
And keep that bowl of hot water and green tea on hand for your feet!
 Steven
____________________
For anybody interested in reading commentary from a Catholic's socially conservative/fiscally liberal viewpoint, go to my new blog at http://www.politicsramble.com/ .
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CajunRick
Network Helper
| Joined: | Fri Sep 29th, 2006 |
| Location: | Houma, Louisiana USA |
| Posts: | 5157 |
| First Name: | Rick (& Kermie) | | Gender: | Male | | Faith History: | Lifetime Catholic, Latin Rite |
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Posted: Wed May 14th, 2008 12:53 am |
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OK, here's my challenge to you: Anne Rice's Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt and Christ the Lord: The Road to Cana. They are novels but absolutely plausible in their presentation of Jesus as both Divine and human, tempted and sinless.
Out of Egypt is the story of his struggle to understand and blend his Divinity and humanity during the seventh year of his human life. The Road to Cana begins with his baptism by John, and ends with the wedding feast at Cana.
BTW, in case anyone doesn't know, Anne Rice is the author of the Vampire Chronicles, but she has embraced the Catholic faith of her youth once again and has completely recommitted to Christ. Her reconversion story appears at the end of the paperback edition of Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt.
Her Christ the Lord series does not pretend to be anything but fiction, but it fits well with the writings of Scripture and the early Fathers, and the teachings of the Catholic Church. Her speculation is in fleshing out the story with friends and family, and what she says are historically accurate portrayals of the times and conditions in which Jesus (called "Yeshua the Sinless" in the book).
Personally, I found that it did not challenge my faith in Jesus at all, but helped me to understand the world in which he lived, and "fleshed out" the man who is/was Jesus.
And then once you've read them, you can read the histories by Josephus and others and see just how accurate the portrayal is!
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Understanding is the reward of faith. Therefore seek not to understand that you may believe, but believe that you may understand. - Augustine
Rick Luquette
Luquette Lane
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Kayla
Member
| Joined: | Mon Jul 30th, 2007 |
| Location: | Emmitsburg, Maryland USA |
| Posts: | 364 |
| First Name: | Kayla | | Gender: | Female | | Faith History: | Atheist, kind-of Mormon, Catholic |
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Posted: Wed May 14th, 2008 02:01 am |
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Oh man, Rick, you are my new best friend! I love Anne Rice-- I started with her Vampire Chronicles back when I was in high school, before I converted. Then, being completely obsessed with her (I've read all of her Vampire books), I was completely excited to hear that she was coming out with the Christ the Lord. So, of course I had to go and get it right when it came out. I haven't read the new release yet, although Katelyn has, and she's letting me borrow once she gets back into town.
BD-- Flannery O'Conner, I believe she wrote "A Good Man is Hard to Find", right? We read that for an honors discussion dinner earlier this year. I enjoy her writings.
Steven-- Oh trust me, I'm resting! No worries on that one. Actually, reading for fun and enjoyment is resting for me. During school I hardly get the opportunity to read. I don't even have the time to read in full all of the assignments I'm given! So, any chance to really settle down and get some reading done is very relaxing for me. Besides, I'm one of those people that needs to always have something to be working on. A change of pace or material is usually good enough to give me a break. I haven't yet reached the point of boredom (actually, I don't remember the last time I was bored, which I think is a good thing), but I want to be sure that I am using my God-given time wisely. I'm no longer one for just lounging on the couch watching t.v. Seems like a waste of time, especially with the quality (or lack thereof) of television content nowadays.
Good suggestions folks, keep 'em coming!
____________________
I believe, Lord, help my unbelief.
Jesus, I trust in You!
There's not a lot of job security for us after death. I suppose that's one advantage of being a philosopher. - Peter Kreeft
http://kayla23mount.blogspot.com/
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BD
Member
| Joined: | Wed Mar 26th, 2008 |
| Location: | |
| Posts: | 46 |
| First Name: | Brett | | Gender: | Male | | Faith History: | Non-denominational evangelical, Mennonite (Anabaptist), now Evangelical-Anabapti-catholic |
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Posted: Wed May 14th, 2008 02:19 am |
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Just want to put my weight behind Rick's suggestion (and trust me, that's some weight!). I heard Anne Rice give her testimony in a gathering with NT Wright and she was astounding.
I myself want to read her post-reversion books when I get a breather from my own research (about a year from now!).
____________________
Non abbiate paura!
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EMarshallBuckles
Member
| Joined: | Mon Nov 19th, 2007 |
| Location: | Rockville (Near Richmond), Virginia USA |
| Posts: | 584 |
| First Name: | Marshall | | Gender: | Male | | Faith History: | Christian Church,Episcopal Church,Baptist denomination,learning about RCC |
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Posted: Wed May 14th, 2008 04:28 am |
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CajunRick wrote: OK, here's my challenge to you: Anne Rice's Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt and Christ the Lord: The Road to Cana. They are novels but absolutely plausible in their presentation of Jesus as both Divine and human, tempted and sinless.
Out of Egypt is the story of his struggle to understand and blend his Divinity and humanity during the seventh year of his human life. The Road to Cana begins with his baptism by John, and ends with the wedding feast at Cana.
BTW, in case anyone doesn't know, Anne Rice is the author of the Vampire Chronicles, but she has embraced the Catholic faith of her youth once again and has completely recommitted to Christ. Her reconversion story appears at the end of the paperback edition of Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt.
Her Christ the Lord series does not pretend to be anything but fiction, but it fits well with the writings of Scripture and the early Fathers, and the teachings of the Catholic Church. Her speculation is in fleshing out the story with friends and family, and what she says are historically accurate portrayals of the times and conditions in which Jesus (called "Yeshua the Sinless" in the book).
Personally, I found that it did not challenge my faith in Jesus at all, but helped me to understand the world in which he lived, and "fleshed out" the man who is/was Jesus.
And then once you've read them, you can read the histories by Josephus and others and see just how accurate the portrayal is!
If I may suggest a possibly interesting angle to the good CajunRick's excellent suggestion, as I understand it Anne Rice went from being someone who strongly questioned the faith to someone of faith. I seem to recall that one reason why she started writing vampire novels was because one of her family members had developed and died of leukemia. Perhaps comparing Anne Rice, person of no or little faith to Anne Rice, person of faith writing novels with faith at their basis might be a good idea. Also, as part of that, perhaps you could try to contact Anne Rice and interview her. The, perhaps, your summer paper could be distilled into a great article for one of the Catholic magazines or a national Catholic newspaper like "Our Sunday Vistor" or some such. And, this could be a great preparation for what you do AFTER college - writing learned books and articles, of course!  And, whatever you do, please kindly share it with us here!
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Dave Armstrong
Network Apologist
| Joined: | Fri Nov 2nd, 2007 |
| Location: | Melvindale, Michigan USA |
| Posts: | 1509 |
| First Name: | Dave | | Gender: | Male | | Faith History: | Evangelical (1977): Diverse Protestant Influences / Catholic in 1990 |
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Posted: Wed May 14th, 2008 08:58 pm |
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| Anything by Peter Kreeft!
____________________
I'm happy to offer whatever theological & personal assistance I can. My blog, Biblical Evidence for Catholicism, contains 2000+ papers & web pages (absolutely free) & 16 apologetic books (for sale):
http://www.biblicalcatholic.com/
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Credo Catholic
Member
| Joined: | Sat May 5th, 2007 |
| Location: | Greenville, South Carolina USA |
| Posts: | 1313 |
| First Name: | Marsha | | Gender: | Female | | Faith History: | Baptist, Catholic |
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Posted: Wed May 14th, 2008 09:08 pm |
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| Kayla, have you ever tried to research your ancestry? I have thought I'd like to go back as far as I can just to find a catholic! I'm pretty sure my ancestors came from nothern Ireland, and would have been Scots Irish (protestant) but somewhere there had to be a catholic! That should be interesting and keep you busy for a long time!!
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Kayla
Member
| Joined: | Mon Jul 30th, 2007 |
| Location: | Emmitsburg, Maryland USA |
| Posts: | 364 |
| First Name: | Kayla | | Gender: | Female | | Faith History: | Atheist, kind-of Mormon, Catholic |
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Posted: Wed May 14th, 2008 11:43 pm |
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*swoons* Peter Kreeft is my idol! *cough* I mean, if I were ever to have a false idol, Peter Kreeft would be such.
I've read quite a few of his works. "Catholic Christianity", "Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Heaven", "The God Who Loves You", "Love is Stronger than Death", "Philosophy 101 by Socrates", "Prayer for Beginners", aaand... I think that's it. I should probably look into reading another...
Dave Armstrong wrote: Anything by Peter Kreeft!
Marsha-- You know, I think one of my aunts tried before... we ran into problems because my grandfather on my dad's side was quite the scoundral. Apparentally he had two families at once, and he left my grandma when my dad was 4, and he gave a false name. So we can't go any further back on his side. And then with my great-grandmother's maiden name, we only know the shortened version, not what they originally came back as. It would be interesting to try to dig farther, though.
____________________
I believe, Lord, help my unbelief.
Jesus, I trust in You!
There's not a lot of job security for us after death. I suppose that's one advantage of being a philosopher. - Peter Kreeft
http://kayla23mount.blogspot.com/
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mg57
Member
| Joined: | Mon Oct 9th, 2006 |
| Location: | Tolland County, Connecticut USA |
| Posts: | 170 |
| First Name: | mg57 | | Gender: | Male | | Faith History: | Infant Baptised Catholic |
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Posted: Thu May 15th, 2008 01:42 am |
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Kayla -
For me, I always "research" according to what the compelling circumstances / people show me / present to me in my daily life. After several such "projects" you'll start to see a convergence in subject matter / topics, thereby getting a progressively clearer sense / big picture of your apostolate.
God bless.
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UpinAK
Member
| Joined: | Mon Dec 17th, 2007 |
| Location: | SE, Alaska USA |
| Posts: | 13 |
| First Name: | Robert | | Gender: | Male | | Faith History: | LDS in youth, Pagan, Converted Catholic |
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Posted: Tue May 27th, 2008 04:26 pm |
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Kayla,
Have you given thought to CS Lewis "Mere Chirtianity" or any Chesterton? "The Everlasting Man" would be a good intro.
With Grace For Us All,
Robert
Last edited on Tue May 27th, 2008 04:30 pm by UpinAK
____________________
"Ab adversario mota quaestio discendi existit occasio" Cf. St. Augustine, De civ. Dei 2,I
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Dave Armstrong
Network Apologist
| Joined: | Fri Nov 2nd, 2007 |
| Location: | Melvindale, Michigan USA |
| Posts: | 1509 |
| First Name: | Dave | | Gender: | Male | | Faith History: | Evangelical (1977): Diverse Protestant Influences / Catholic in 1990 |
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Posted: Tue May 27th, 2008 04:45 pm |
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| Just a "FYI" for everyone: all of Chesterton's and Cardinal Newman's works are online (free) if anyone wants to read those. I collect them on my two web pages devoted to them (linked in the previous sentence).
____________________
I'm happy to offer whatever theological & personal assistance I can. My blog, Biblical Evidence for Catholicism, contains 2000+ papers & web pages (absolutely free) & 16 apologetic books (for sale):
http://www.biblicalcatholic.com/
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Dave Armstrong
Network Apologist
| Joined: | Fri Nov 2nd, 2007 |
| Location: | Melvindale, Michigan USA |
| Posts: | 1509 |
| First Name: | Dave | | Gender: | Male | | Faith History: | Evangelical (1977): Diverse Protestant Influences / Catholic in 1990 |
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Posted: Tue May 27th, 2008 04:46 pm |
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*swoons* Peter Kreeft is my idol! *cough* I mean, if I were ever to have a false idol, Peter Kreeft would be such.
I knew there was a reason I liked ya, Kayla!
____________________
I'm happy to offer whatever theological & personal assistance I can. My blog, Biblical Evidence for Catholicism, contains 2000+ papers & web pages (absolutely free) & 16 apologetic books (for sale):
http://www.biblicalcatholic.com/
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