Jonathan Ryan's Blog, page 32

Approaching Mystery: Marybeth Bishop Haunts the Dead

States of Matter * I don’t know why the idea of dead bodies didn’t bother me. They never did. Maybe it was because I believed the resident was no longer home, had somewhere better to be, and what was left was delightfully quiet. We could respect each other and go about our business unbothered, theirs […]

How to Take a Spooky Pilgrimage

Ever since I discovered her (or perhaps, she discovered me) a few years ago, I’ve developed a special connection to St. Kateri. She is the patron saint of Native Americans, ecology and the environment; people and concerns that have played formative roles my life. But, in the past few months, she’s laid a serious claim […]

Dark Devotional: Saint Paul Say WHAT?

I love to pray. I love to spend time with God, in silence, in community, in Word and in liturgy. Sometimes, though, at the most inopportune times, I’m called upon to lead prayer and I just want to laugh in despair (Who, me? Lead you in something vulnerable and heart-opening? When I feel like THIS?!) At […]

Welcome to Spooky Pilgrim Month: Looking for Places of the Uncanny and Strange

The Nicene Creed tells us that God is the Creator of all things “Seen and Unseen” or “Visible and Invisible.” Sick Pilgrim owes its existence to the blurry lines between the two, places that are not quite “night” and not quite the “day,” places of the the uncanny where Mystery, not certainty, rules. A few […]

Things Keeping Us Alive, September 2017

Maybe this is contradictory to what is expected from a somber sick pilgrim in a post reminding us of the small joys right now, but September has been great to me. Maybe the blusteriness and deathly season of autumn and the approaching of THE BEST HOLIDAY- HALLOWEEN stirs something within us unwell sojourners. The Great […]

Approaching Mystery: Joanna Penn Cooper Talks to the Dead

Last week, my brother was visiting from out of state, and one night he told me that he wanted to watch a “campy” movie, something light and fun.  I suggested Practical Magic, the witch movie from the ‘90s with Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman based on an Alice Hoffman novel.  Very soon after starting it, I […]

Pest’s Letters: This Son-of-a-bitch Doesn’t Stand for the National Anthem Either

Dear Patriot, I’ll set the stage for you. Smells of sweat and cheap beer hastily drunk and the cacophony of of over 90k fans envelop me as the loudspeaker begins to play “Livin’ On A Prayer” – the Bon Jovi anthem that has strangely become dear to most LSU fans, who shout the words. Even […]

The Greatest Fault of Fr. James Martin’s Book? It’s Boring. Here’s Why.

  Some Catholics are ferociously angry at James Martin, SJ’s recent book, Building a Bridge: How the Catholic Church and the LGBT Community Can Enter Into a Relationship of Respect, Compassion, and Sensitivity. “Father James Martin is one of the most vocal advocates for the Catholic Church’s acceptance of active homosexuality,” sensationalist LifeSite News railed. […]

How Blogs Hurt (and Help) the Catholic Church–especially Catholic Women

  I’m a voracious reader of religion journalism and theology, but I’m not a journalist or a trained theologian. I’m an essayist, a writer, and, yes, I’m a blogger. But I think making a clear distinction between writing journalism and theology and the writing I do is crucial to understanding the environment of “fake news” […]

Dark Devotional: Remain in the Flesh

  Recently I attended a mental health conference at a local non-denominational church. It was encouraging and reviving. I’m in a masters program for marriage and family therapy, but after my last two hospitalizations, I became very discouraged. Who am I, I thought, to hold the title therapist? With a mind and moods as unstable […]