A Word from the Road and a Book to Read

As I write this entry I am at the friary of our Franciscan parish in Woodridge, NJ where I am preaching my first mission of this season. We had a wonderful celebration of Eucharist this morning and I'm looking forward to the first evenin session tonight.

About a week ago I received the gift of the book True Compass, 2009 Twelve Publishers, a memoir by Ted Kennedy. I highly recommend this book to all, Democrat or Republican, those who liked and those who disliked Ted Kennedy. It offers great insight into the heart and soul of this man and into the dynamics of his family. Political opponents are criticized (some of them Democrat as well) but no one's character is attacked. It also offers an excellent review of the great events of the last half of the twentieth century as seen through his eyes. He is very honest about his own failings and shortcomings and delivers a compelling message of hope and persistance in pursuing one's goals. He pertrays his family as loving and he strove to be a loving father not only to his own children but to the children of his deceased sister and brothers and to all of his nieces and nephews. Above all he was a man of deep faith. Some may find this hard to accept because of his pro-choice position and because of the sins and failings which were very much in the public eye. Nonetheless the point of this blog entry and my primary reason for recommending the book is that it gives us an understanding of a wonderful and complex man who though not perfect, though struggling at times with his Church, had a deep and abiding trust in God that he turned to in difficult times and that helped him to see his many blessings even in the face of tragedy. Like most of us he was not perfect and does not present himself as such, but he knew there was a God of immense love, whose most awesome characteristic is "the width of His embrace.(p. 480)