Oro Valley Catholic

The Way through A Desacralized Culture

Mark 8-10 is a teaching about discipleship bracketed by the healings of two blind men, that last of whom, Bartimaeus follows Jesus on the way to Jerusalem. Surrounded by enemies who would kill him, Jesus leads his disciples through a world where God is marginalized. Want to read the scriptures?
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/102421.cfm
Music, Traveling Riverside Blues by Don Bikoff is licensed under a Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

For all, for the many and the servant leader

For the 29th Sunday of Ordinary Time the Lord instructs the disciples on servant leadership rooted in his example of leadership on the cross. He came to give his life for many as prophesied in Isaiah 53 - "Because of his affliction he shall see the light in fullness of days; through his suffering, my servant shall justify many, and their guilt he shall bear."
The Sunday Readings are here: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/101721.cfm
Music from Arthur's Dream by Nutmeg is licensed under a Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike License.

Romance, Marriage and Parenting

These three features of parenting—providing, guiding, and protecting—are essential for the flourishing of children. Christian parents, especially fathers, bring transcendence to the natural beauty of marriage. How children think about God, love and family is rooted in their experience of loving committed Catholic parents.
Readings for the 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/100321.cfm
The music is this podcast, by Ricard Wagner: Bridal Chorus from the opera Lohengrin is performed by Kevin MacLeod and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License.

The Valley Of The Shadow Of Death

Dante's Divine Comedy is celebrating it 700th anniversary. Dante' unforgettable take on Gehena, sin and redemption has formed Catholic imaginations about for centuries. Learn more about Our Lord's teaching of Gehenna, child sacrifice and Dante's imagination of Oro Valley Catholic.
The image is from a tomb at the site of the Tophet in the Gei Ben Hinnom Valley in Jerusalem. Read Edwin Black’s perspective on the Gei Ben Hinnom Valley - https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1999/08/29/-on-earth/a2777d75-cfa6-4325-814a-0a26c83086c5/
Here are the readings for the 26th Sunday of Ordinary Time
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/092621.cfm
To read Dante's Commedia, I recommend Mark Musa's translation at Amazon.com.
The music tract, "Unhallowed chant" is used pursuant to license from Free Music Archives.

Demons, Obsessions and Disciples

In the Gospel, Jesus describes the attitude of his disciples - like children, trusting and following. Obsessions are thoughts that constantly trouble us. The disciples are constantly nagged by their envy, pretensions to greatness and desire to control Jesus. Interestingly, the stories preceding and following this Gospel in Mark 9 are all about how demons operate. What does this have to do with Symphonie Fantastique? Learn more on Oro Valley Catholic. The image is of Harriet Smithson in Othello. Harriet was idée fixe, that is obsession, of Hector Berlioz. Listen and consider the way that the demonic enters human life.
Readings for the 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/091921.cfm
Berlioz, Symphonie Fantastique 4th Mvt by Bruno Walter is licensed under a Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0

The Demons Believe And Tremble

"You believe that God is one. You do well. Even the demons believe that and tremble." James 2:19. God is unconditional love. Even the demons believe that. Discipleship, however, has conditions. Both the Gospel of Mark and the Letter of James witness to the cost of discipleship.
The Readings for the 24th Sunday in Ordinary Time
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/091221.cfm
The music Attende Domine is sung by Ms. Gina Mcann and accompanied by Mr. Russell Ronnebaum under One License # A-726294

Are we made in the image of God or the machine?

Political Science professor Dr. Jason Blakely, Ph.D wrote "We Built Reality: How Social Science Infiltrated Culture, Politics, and Power", published in 2020. A great read. It asks the question, in whose image are we made? Computers, machines, or I would add, in the image of God. This pandemic has brought into sharp focus the great benefits of science and the dangers of scientism, a materialist philosophy of the human person. The Letter of James has something important to say in this regard.
Music provided courtesy of Beethoven, Symphony No.9, 2nd Mvt by Felix Weingartner is licensed under a Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License.

Nietszche, Grammar and God

Frederick Nietszche was a 19th Century philospher that was much more popular after his death than he was in his lifetime. His legacy appears to be the denial of God and the utter meaningless of existence. Jesus of Nazareth disagrees. We can assume that the Lord and Nietszche are sorting it out right now.
The music was provided from Free Music Archives, Life and Times by Derek Clegg, licensed under a Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License.

Romeo and Juliet - Love and Virtue

Romeo and Juliet, the classic Shakespearean play, has been retold as the essential romance. Franco Zefferelli's 1968 film told the story in a modern romantic sense. Shakespeare's play is much more critical of this "star crossed" pair. What does love have to do with virtue? Why is marriage like the Eucharist?
Music is provided by the MIT Symphony The songs in this album are licensed under: Attribution-NonCommercial Romeo et Juliette, Juliette Waltz (Gounod)  MIT Symphony Orchestra

The Not-So-Lost Ark of the Covenant - The Assumption

The Ark of the Covenant, thought to be lost at the time of the Babylonian Conquest, is as it turns out, not so lost. Read Revelation 11:19 and following. Learn about the scriptural basis for the dogma of the Assumption.
199. In what way is the Blessed Virgin Mary the eschatological icon of the Church? Looking upon Mary, who is completely holy and already glorified in body and soul, the Church contemplates in her what she herself is called to be on earth and what she will be in the homeland of heaven.
Music "Ave Maria" performed by Gina McCann and Russ Ronnebaum pursuant to One License A-726294.