I went to another TEC retreat this past weekend, and if anything it was even more astonishing than what I wrote about here! I can't encourage everyone to go to TEC enough. I feel like I made some life-long friends this weekend, I will be reaching out to you via email very soon!

One of those new friends, Sam, has inspired me to pick up Frank Sheed's "Theology and Sanity" again, after having stopped reading it maybe a year ago. He and I are also going to work on a project to digitize a massive book list which he's obtained through a connection of his-- we will post that book list online once it's ready.

On another Faith-related note, I'd seen this in my news feeds before I left. TEC-- "Together Encountering Christ"-- has a prison ministry parallel program called REC-- "Residents Encountering Christ." I think part of my ministry as a deacon, starting way before ordination but continuing after, will be heavy participation in both TEC and REC.

As many of you doubtless know, my dad was incarcerated at some point in his past, and God's grace has been moving him to such an astonishing degree that he is now buying groceries for homeless people and having random strangers in public giving him hugs for being so kind.

I was reading one of Paul's letters the other day-- I'd need to check my notes to remember which one-- and Paul, of his own spiritual transformation, explains that God chose him to make an example for others: "If God convert Saul, the worst dude you can possibly imagine with so much blood on his hands, then imagine what He can do for you?"

As Christians and indeed Catholics we are a people of hope, and that hope extends to all of us, no matter what is in our past.

Unfortunately I'm feeling a bit under the weather and am going to lay down for a bit-- I think something other than just the Holy Spirit may have been circulating this past weekend. God bless you all.