Busy weekend: deadlines looming, more office work, Father's Day festivities (it ought to be "Father's Day Month," so I can work in all the events). If you're looking for Father's Day stuff, here are two links:
Catholic Men's Quarterly article about the Catholic origins of manliness. Link. Excerpt:
In some countries, Catholic life played a discernible role in shaping specific athletic tastes. My favorite example is Switzerland's popular schützenfeste. These shooting competitions began as training exercises for marksmen who were to protect the procession of the Blessed Sacrament on the Feast of Corpus Christi from violent Protestants! In the same feisty vein is the humble sport of bowling, believed by some to have begun as a religious ceremony held in the cloister of a church. As far back as the third or fourth century, peasants may have placed their clubs (which, like the Irish shillelagh, they carried with them at all times) at the end of a lane. The club was called a kegel in German and was said to represent the heathen, to be toppled, we conjecture, by the rolling stone of the Gospels. Over time the clubs developed into pins, but the association lingered: to this day, a bowler is sometimes referred to as a kegler.
By the way, if you still need a Father's Day present, give a subscription to CMQ. Just order it now, print out the homepage, and put it in an envelope.
A WSJ Father's Day opinion piece that was flying around the Catholic blogosphere yesterday. From the conclusion:
Father's Day is going to be exhausting. But it will be good, because in the midst of these trials and joys I find my answer to the essential question on Father's Day. What makes a good father? My sons.
