Holy Family & Gnomon Vaticano

The Lord delivers many graces on a Christmas Sunday.

But, alas, we do lose Holy Family Sunday in such years. If you yearn for a Holy Family sermon from the archive, you may click a link…

Fr. M.D.W. Holy Family homily 2008 and 2009.

…Speaking of talks from December ’08:

Did you know that the Vatican obelisk in St. Peter’s Square functions as the gnomon of an annual sundial?

At noon, the shadow of the obelisk falls on a granite meridian. Discs mark points along the stone line. The shadow falls on the disc farthest from the obelisk on the winter solstice; it falls on a disc near the base on the summer solstice. Discs in between mark the points at which the sun enters the various signs of the zodiac.

Happiness is a Sharp Pencil

We do not want to dwell on the painful loss suffered by the Georgetown Hoyas yesterday evening, as the snow swirled around McDonough Arena.

And most of us men on the Eastern Seaboard need something to take our minds off our sore snow-shoveling backs.

So let’s rejoice in this: On December 21, 1913, the New York World published the world’s first crossword puzzle!

Of all the wholesome amusements ever made available to mankind, the crossword puzzle is certainly the best.

Thank you for the wonderful early Christmas present, o merciful God!

…Also, our dearly beloved late Holy Father is now the Venerable Pope John Paul II! As is the Venerable Pope Pius XII.