Weekend

I had quite the weekend.  I spent most of Saturday at the Paulist Center (my church).  As it was the  Palm Sunday liturgy, the liturgical dancers were asked to dance (we only dance at certain liturgies).  I know that many Catholic's object to liturgical dance during liturgies.  I hate to knock liturgical dance ministries, but I think we often get a bad name because some ministries do very unliturgical things during the mass.  I have yet to hear a single negative thing about liturgical dance from people at the Paulist Center, and although I am sure that it bothers some people, I believe that the director of the liturgical dance ministry at the Paulist Center is very liturgically conscious.  She is constantly reminding us that liturgical dance should help people focus on the liturgy and not detract from it.  This is why during the liturgy, we processed in, presented the gifts, and processed out--no interpretive dance during the music at communion and no abducting the Bible during the Gospel.  The response I have heard from many in the congregation was that the dance added to the liturgy.

Something else happened this weekend at mass.  Every year the Paulist Center gives out the Isaac Hecker Award to a Catholic American who is working to promote social justice in the world (Isaac Hecker was the founder of the Paulist Fathers) .  In 2006 the award went to Martin Sheen, but he was unable to visit to receive the award until this Saturday.  If you were unaware, Martin Sheen is extremely involved in social justice and has gotten himself arrested because of it (apparently on more than one occasion).    Normally when the award is presented, the recipient of the award reflects on that days readings and Gospel , but because of the sacred importance of Palm Sunday, this  was not the case.   He did talk to us after communion about his connection to the Church, and his connection to the Catholic Worker (which started when he was receiving food from their breadline in NYC in 1959).  I was inspired that a man with Hollywood fame uses it to do what is good and right in the world.  Oh and just so you know Martin Sheen is his chosen not his given name.   I asked a priest if Martin Sheen was related to Fulton Sheen; I was not surprised when he said "no", but I was very happy to hear that he named himself after Fulton Sheen.  Oh, and for the record,  Martin Sheen apparently enjoys liturgical dance; at least, that is what he told me.

After mass, Meg and I went to Zoe's for turkey burgers.  They are the best turkey burgers I have ever had, and so it has become one of the two restaurants Meg and I frequent when together.  I am always glad for a chance to hang out with Meghan, and having turkey burgers surely didn't hurt the situation.

I pretty much spent my entire Sunday with Genevieve.  It was a wonderful break from my generally mundane social life.  We went and got crepes in Harvard Square, and then decided on our destinations for the rest of the day on whims and fancies.  Clearly, a bookstore was involved.   

  Now that the weekend is over, the next two days are focused on me getting ready to spend 8 days in DE.  I can't even start to express my excitement for this trip.