Saturday, August 06, 2011

The moment I saw that dismissive response, the anger immediately started rising.. limited though my knowledge may be, I know - this is one potentially significant step we're taking towards reclaiming the beautiful traditions which we lost in the overliberalisation brought forth by the Second Vatican Council. But the ignorance and self-centredness of leaders and musicians actually put us in such a predicament? We're just going to throw away this opportunity "because it sounds weird"; "because it costs the parish money to purchase these booklets"; "because of 'pastoral considerations' and the preferences of our congregation"?

My heart really aches thinking of the struggle; the sheer resistance we need to overcome to implement such a Spirit-filled revision. O God, is this anything like how You feel when You're willing to give everything for our good and we refuse to take it, because of our human frailty, ignorance, and utter foolishness?

I really need the grace to respond in a charitable way without compromising the truth which I am determined to stand for.

@10.42pm


"One of the oddest things in life, as we all know, is the way that when you have heard a thing mentioned, within twenty-four hours you nearly always come across it again." Like Mark Easterbrook from The Pale Horse, I think I experienced an instance of that this morning too.

While sourcing for an activity to exhibit the power of groupthink for CG 1, I came across a paragraph on a webpage discussing the relative inefficiency of the conscious mind as opposed to the unconscious. And out of the mass of thoughts fighting to take center-stage in my mind on the return leg of my run, it clicked: that must be why practice makes perfect...! After the initial labour of constantly repeating a particular action (whether one is driving, sight reading, solving mathematical equations or practicing a basketball layup), one is able to commit the precise movements to memory and execute them almost flawlessly through the unconscious mind! Truly fascinating. It reawakens in a small way my interest in psychology.

@7.41pm