The Arrow's Path

     All Souls Day, celebrated on November 2nd, is a day dedicated to remembering and praying for the souls of the deceased,     particularly those who are in purgatory. This observance has deep roots in the Christian tradition, emphasizing the belief in the communion of saints and the hope for eternal life. Today’s Mass readings speak to the significance of this day by offering insights into the nature of life, death, and the promise of resurrection.      Wisdom 3:1-9 discusses the fate of the righteous after death. The passage reassures us that although the dead may seem to have perished, their souls are in the hands of God and are at peace. This scripture highlights the belief that death is not the end, but rather a transition into a new existence with God. The faithful departed are described as being “in the sight of the Lord,” which emphasizes the hope that they are embraced by divine love and mercy. This reading serves as a foundation ...

 I had I question posed:  I’m in OCIA right now and was assigned a sponsor. I guess I don’t understand the purpose of the sponsor. Is this a requirement and a normal part of OCIA? (Author's note for Non-Catholics: OCIA used to be called RCIA. It stands for the Order of Christian Initiation of Adults. It got rebranded and retooled a few years back . It is the process in which adults are brought into the Catholic Church. Usually it follows the pattern of an adult catechism class for a school year, with the goal of bringing in someone to join the Church at Easter through baptism or reception. Exceptions can be made, and local churches have quite a bit of discretion in altering the process to fit the needs of the would-be convert. )     My response to the question:   Think of the role of sponsor or godparent as a form of lay apostolic succession. We often think of this as only for clergy and bishops being ordained by people who were ordained by clerg...

  I don't say "Amen!" out loud to Youtube videos too often, but I did to this video.    

 

So, a little preface on the game Roll Player Adventures . It was a bigger box campaign style game that fleshes out the delightful game Roll Player from 2016. Roll Player (the original) was a delightful game where you build a roll player character through dice rolling, drafting, and upgrades over several rounds. You don't really do anything with the player other than build one up with unique powers and skills to get the best score (either against yourself or other players.) Now, if you build a character, you can import it to Roll Player Adventures , but there are plenty of stock Roll Player characters you can use that Adventures comes with. So, you don't need to buy Roll Player before getting Roll Player Adventures. While I have all the Roll Player base games and expansions, I have never felt the need to import a player. You can just jump right into    Roll Player Adventures .  As I have already said, Roll Player Adventures is a stand alone campaign game that covers s...

     Christians often claim that God is just. In a world that can often seem unjust, how can we make that claim? Today’s readings tackle that question by looking at different dimensions of God’s justice. Each passage illustrates how God’s justice is intertwined with His mercy, faithfulness, and the call for humility.      In Sirach 35:12-14, 16-18, we see a clear affirmation of God’s justice through His attentive care for the oppressed and the marginalized. Sirach highlights that God does not overlook the cries of those who suffer injustice; instead, He hears them and responds. This understanding of justice is rooted in compassion. It shows us that God’s justice is not merely about enforcing laws or punishing wrongdoing, but is deeply connected to His love for humanity. When we say that God is just, we acknowledge that He actively seeks to right wrongs and uphold the dignity of every person. His justice is a reflection of His character, which is fundamental...

 

  A picture I took on my drive home from Salina, Kansas.

 I have to admit that I have never heretofore gone to a trade show before last week. I had been to a ComicCon or Baseball Card type vendors show when I was a kid, but that was more of a convention of fans. I have also been to a few academic Historical Society state conventions, but I was away at an International Federation of Leathercrafter Guilds convention in Salina, Kansas. It was for people who do leathercraft like myself. There were some professionals, some vendors, and a lot of amateurs wanting to learn new skills.  There were several classes and seminars you could take on all sorts of leathercraft skills from leather braiding to knife sharpening to leather carving. Most conventions are just two or three days, but this one was pretty much all week from Tuesday to Saturday. Kudos to the Wheat State Leather Guild for putting that all together and hosting the event. They were all volunteers, and it is not an easy task to organize a convention at a major convention center s...

October is now upon us. Here in the United States and increasingly around the world, we pole vault into Halloween, or as it is sometimes called "Spooky Season." People go all out decorating their houses with ghosts and spiders and, as is becoming more common, even exterior orange Christmas-like lights.  This is also the beginning of what I call "Echo Chamber Season." It comes around every year, and, much like accusations against Christmas, there is a plethora of historically false information and articles aplenty about how Halloween is pagan. I always find it both hilarious and yet tiresome because so many people get sucked into believing accusations that have virtually no historical evidence to back them up. Even otherwise reputable websites studying historical topics like history.com or historyhit.com get sucked into this ahistorical nonsense that Halloween is the modern incarnation of a supposed Pagan festival called Samhain.  I say this grows tiresome for two ma...