The Queue

Dig the Well Before You Get Thirsty is a companion workbook to I Heard God Laugh. Many sources, including my spiritual director, urge me & indeed all of us to "pray" rather than just "say prayers." Reading the book & now working through the workbook is meant to help build a habit of prayer to compliment my established routine of saying prayers.

I've heard & watched several interviews of Ralph Martin discussing A Church in Crisis. I'm looking forward to reading the book, which features a photograph of Notre Dame aflame as a poetic image of the crises in the Church.

Recently
David Hobbs with Andrew Marriot, Hobbo: Motor Racer, Motor Mouth—The Autobiography of David Hobbs
John O'Neill, The Fisherman's Tomb: The True Story of the Vatican's Secret Search
Matthew Kelly, I Heard God Laugh: A Practical Guide to Life's Essential Daily Habit

Currently
Ralph Martin, A Church in Crisis: Pathways Forward
Matthew Kelly, Dig the Well Before You Get Thirsty: The Ultimate Prayer Journal to Prepare for the Inevitable and Explore the Possible—A Practical Guide to Life's Essential Daily Habit

Presently
Fulton J. Sheen, Life of Christ
Flannery O'Connor, Flannery O'Connor Collection
Michael Gorn, N.A.S.A.: The Complete Illustrated History
Brandon Vogt, What to Say and How to Say It: Discuss Your Catholic Faith with Clarity and Confidence

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the Day: SKApril XI

The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, "The Final Parade" from the The Final Parade single (Rude Boy Mike Papa Whiskey)

Skammentary: "The Final Parade" is the eight-minute long lead single from The Mighty Mighty Bosstones' forthcoming album, When God Was Great, due out on Friday, 7 May (Album-link). As Maxwell Smart would say, the new album missed SKApril "by that much." I, of course, find the title When God Was Great disquieting, but I'm trying to reserve judgment & give the album a fair hearing. "The Final Parade" is a collaboration with many, many of The Bosstones' friends, a celebration of ska around the world, across time & space (Single-link).

"We play around with a punk rock/reggae sound,
'Cause sometimes dancin' is all you got.

"We were crankin',
We were skankin',
We were crankin', we were skankin',
All over the world…"

As soon as I heard "The Final Parade," I knew it was the perfect way to close SKApril XI, the first SKApril of SKApril's second decade. I hope you've enjoyed this SKApril as much as I have. Stay tuned for the SKAfter Party & SKAugust, or come back to see us next year, when April 2022 will host SKApril XII. Don't stop skankin'!

Saints + Scripture: Pascha

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

The Popish Plot
"Pope's Prayer Intentions for April 2021"

'Tis the Thursday of the Fourth Week of Easter (Latin: Pascha, meaning "Passover"): Pascha-link & Wikipedia-link Paschaltide.

Scripture of the Day
Mass Readings—Thursday of the Fourth Week of Easter
The Acts of the Apostles, chapter thirteen, verses thirteen thru twenty-five;
Psalm Eighty-nine (R/. two; or, "Alleluia"), verses two & three, twenty-one & twenty-two, & twenty-five & twenty-seven;
The Gospel according to John, chapter thirteen, verses sixteen thru twenty.

Commentary: Easter Gospel reflection by Bishop Robert Barron (Word on Fire):

Friends, in today’s Gospel, Jesus pointedly calls us to humble behavior. “Amen, amen, I say to you, no slave is greater than his master nor any messenger greater than the one who sent him. If you understand this, blessed are you if you do it.”

St. Catherine of Siena once heard the Lord say to her, “Remember that I AM and you are not.” And St. Paul said, “What do you possess that you have not received? But if you have received it, why are you boasting?”

To believe in God is to know these truths. To live them out is to live in the attitude of humility. Thomas Aquinas said that humility is truth. It is living out the deepest truth of things: God is God, and we are not.

Now, all of this sounds very clear when it’s stated in this abstract manner, but we know how hard it is to live out! In our fallen world, we forget so readily that we are creatures, that we have been made from nothing. Then our egos begin to inflate: “I am. I want. I expect. I demand.” The ego becomes a massive monkey on our backs, and it has to be fed and pampered constantly.

That’s why today’s Gospel is so important. We are only messengers, not greater than the Master.

Video reflection by Deacon Clarence McDavid (U.S. Conf. of Catholic Bishops): Easter Reflection.

Video reflection by Curtis Mitch (St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology): Easter Reflection.

Video reflection by Doctor Tim Gray (Augustine Institute/Formed.org): Easter Reflection.

Scripture Study—Day 91: Severed Spine, Day 11
The Second Book of Kings, chapter four, verses one thru seven.

Commentary: Elisha & the Widow's Jar of Oil (2 Kings, 4:1-7).

Papal Quote o' the Day

"With Catherine of Siena & so many other 'Saints of the Cross' let us hold on tightly to our most sweet & merciful Redeemer, Whom Catherine called Christ-Love. In His pierced Heart is our hope."
—Pope St. John Paul II the Great (1920-2005, r. 1978-2005; feast: 22 October)

Mother Teresa Quote o' the Day

"To know the problem of poverty intellectually is not to understand it. It is not by reading, taking a walk through the slums, that we come to understand it. We have to dive into it, live it, & share it."
—St. Teresa of Calcutta, M.C. (1910-1997, feast: 5 September)

Saint Quote o' the Day

"True fasting lies in rejecting evil, holding one's tongue, suppressing one's hatred, & banishing one's lust, evil words, lying, & betrayal of vows."
—St. Basil (330-379, feast: 2 January)

Archbishop Sheen Quote o' the Day

"We hardly think about reparation any more. We seem to have dropped it in the Church. We have reparation in the human body. When I had my open-heart surgery, I was bleeding to death. I depended upon eighty people who gave me eighty pints of blood. The human body has only eight pints. Volunteers had to supply eighty pints to keep me alive. They were filling up the quota of my life. And just as we have a kidney transplant, even a heart transplant, so we have the transplanting of merits, of prayers, & sacrifices from one member of the Church to the other, to cure those members of their anemic condition. We're living in a decade that needs reparation more than any other decade in the past one hundred years. But we're failing to find it."
—Ven. Fulton Sheen (1895-1979)

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the Day: SKApril XI

Reel Big Fish, "Thank You for Not Moshing" from Why Do They Rock So Hard? (Rude Boy Mike Papa Whiskey)

Skammentary: I'm too old for the mosh pit. I've been too old for the mosh pit for many years now. Even when I was young, full of piss & vinegar, I always preferred dancing to the rough & tumble of the pit. I was big enough & strong enough to hold my own in the pit, but it was never my preferred way to spend a show. I'm one of the old farts who stands well back from the stage, pretty much in one spot, but I'm not yet old enough that I retreat to the balconey, at least not generally. All that said, sweet fancy Moses, I miss live music! I cannot wait to get back to live shows, to the noise & the dark & the lights & the scents, to the chaos & the ecstacy.

"When I'm in the pit,
I'm gonna punch and kick,
When I'm in the pit, don't you know,
I'm gonna fuck up shit!…

Bonus! Song o' the Day: SKApril

The Loose Ties, "Let's Go Out Drinking" from Champ of the Week (Rude Boy Mike Papa Whiskey)

Skammentary: "It's beer! Hooray beer!"

Saints + Scripture: Pascha

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

'Tis the Wednesday of the Fourth Week of Easter (Latin: Pascha, meaning "Passover"): Pascha-link & Wikipedia-link Paschaltide.

Scripture of the Day
Mass Readings—Wednesday of the Fourth Week of Easter
The Acts of the Apostles, chapter twelve, verse twenty-four thru chapter thirteen, verse five(a);
Psalm Sixty-seven (R/. four; or, "Alleluia"), verses two & three, five, & six & eight;
The Gospel according to John, chapter twelve, verses forty-four thru fifty.

Commentary: Easter Gospel reflection by Bishop Robert Barron (Word on Fire):

Friends, in today’s Gospel, Jesus makes it clear once again that he and the Father are one. God is not a force or an energy or a spiritual presence occupying the deep background of your life; he’s not something that you can tap into when you feel like it. Nor is God a distant supreme being who organized the universe long ago and now leaves it to its own devices.

Rather, God is the Lord. He is the commander, the ruler, the governor, the one who makes a demand and who then involves himself intimately in the affairs of the world.

More to it, this Lord is one. This is, as argued by Joseph Ratzinger (Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI), a subversive statement, for it undermines anyone or anything else’s claim to be absolute. No country, no president, no prime minister, no culture, no book, no person or political party is absolute—only God. The unity of God, for Jews and Christians, is not simply a theoretical claim; it is an enormously important existential claim. Jesus and the Father are one God, who is the Lord of all creation.

Video reflection by Jem Sullivan, Ph.D. (U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops): Easter Reflection.

Video reflection by Doctor John Bergsma (St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology): Easter Reflection.

Video reflection by Doctor Tim Gray (Augustine Institute/Formed.org): Easter Reflection.

Papal Quote o' the Day

"‘Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also’ (Mt 6:21). To know a man’s heart, to see what state he is in, necessarily involves finding out the treasure with which the heart is concerned, the treasure that liberates & fulfills it or the treasure that destroys & enslaves it…"
—Pope Francis, S.J. (b. 1936, r. 2013-present)

Bonus! Papal Quote o' the Day

"Here is a model image of what the sentiments of the evangelizer should be: A person who suffers with those who suffer, rejoices with those who rejoice, & gives self to all so that others may share an immense joy."
—Pope St. John Paul II the Great (1920-2005, r. 1978-2005; feast: 22 October)

Mother Teresa Quote o' the Day

"I am often asked, 'After Mother Teresa, who?' That will be no trouble. God will find someone who is more humble, more obedient, more faithful, somewith a deeper faith, & He will do still greater things through her."
—St. Teresa of Calcutta, M.C. (1910-1997, feast: 5 September)

Saint Quote o' the Day

"You wish to reform the world? Reform yourself, otherwise your efforts will be in vain."
—St. Ignatius of Loyola, S.J. (1491-1556, feast: 31 July)

Archbishop Sheen Quote o' the Day

"There is a spiritual thirst, as we read in one of the psalms: 'I thirst for the living God, when will I appear before Him?' As He says 'I thirst,' our Lord is thirsting for return to His Father. The night before, at the Last Supper, He prayed to His Father & asked for the glory that was His before the foundations of the world were laid. He told His disciples that He was going to prepare a place for them. Now He has this thirst, to return again to His Father. Applying that spiritual thirst of our Lord to ourselves, what is it that we have if we love the Lord? We have a thirst for holiness. We want to be saints. We want to be happy, to be at peace on the inside, to be one with the Father. What is sanctity? Sanctity is Christ living in me so that His mind possesses my mind & I am governed by His truth. That's sanctity. He's in my will, & all things that are pleasing to Him I do. He's in my body, so that my body becomes a tabernacle. Sanctity is not only Christ in me, it's making Christ known to others. It's being loveable. It's making Christ loveable. When others see us, they see Christ."
—Ven. Fulton Sheen (1895-1979)

Operation ÖSTERREICH: Easter Feaster Edition

Weekly Wednesday Weigh-in
Last weigh-in: 337.6 lbs
This weigh-in: 340.2 lbs.
Difference: +2.6 lbs.

Bonus! Lied von ÖSTERREICH
"Weird Al" Yankovic, "Grapefruit Diet" from Running with Scissors (Mike Papa Waffle)

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the Day: SKApril XI

Bombskare, "See What You See" from A Million Ways to Die (Rude Boy Mike Papa Whiskey)

Skammentary:

"This life is a hell of a thing
To happen to me, to happen to you,
The edge of a knife is no place for a life,
Not even for me, not even for you,
Your mind is gone but the pulse is strong,
Your dreams come true, but it's not what you want,
When I decide to revive my surprise,
Don't dig it from me, I'll dig it from you.

"Forgive my sins, look the other way,
Live to lie another day.

"You see what you see, what you want to see,
'Cause it's easy,
Believe what you see, what you want to see,
'Cause it's easy…"

Saints + Scripture: Pascha

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

'Tis the Tuesday of the Fourth Week of Easter (Latin: Pascha, meaning "Passover"): Pascha-link & Wikipedia-link Paschaltide.

Scripture of the Day
Mass Readings—Tuesday of the Fourth Week of Easter
The Acts of the Apostles, chapter eleven, verses nineteen thru twenty-six;
Psalm Eighty-seven, verses one(b), two, & three; four & five; & six & seven
(R/. Psalm One Hundred Seventeen, verse one[a]);
The Gospel according to John, chapter ten, verses twenty-two thru thirty.

Commentary: Gospel reflection by Bishop Robert Barron (Word on Fire):

Friends, in today’s Gospel, Jesus explains why his sheep listen to him and follow him. They do so because he is leading them to eternal life.

He says, “I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish.” The life of heaven, where we “shall never perish,” is that place where death and sickness have no power over us, where we see God face-to-face.

Heaven and earth are always connected in the biblical imagination; that’s true. But heaven should never be reduced to earth, as though religion is just about this-worldly ethics, social justice, or psychological well-being. No; the Christian faith is about a journey beyond this world to the heavenly Jerusalem.

Everything in the Christian life—from our ethical behavior, to prayer, to the liturgy, to works of justice—all of it is meant to conduce to that end. So listen to the voice of the shepherd and follow him wherever he goes.

Video reflection by Father John M. McKenzie (U.S. Conf. of Catholic Bishops): Easter Reflection.

Video reflection by Doctor Tim Gray (Augustine Institute, Formed.org): Easter Reflection.

Scripture Study—Day 91: Severed Spine, Day 9
The Second Book of Kings, chapter two, verses thirteen & fourteen.

Commentary: Elisha Succeeds Elijah (cont'd; 2 Kings, 2:13-14). Today's reflection tried to have it both ways, urging us to avoid unreasonable skepticism while also stating there is "some evidence" the Apollo Moon landings were fake. I've demanded an explanation & if I do not receive satisfaction, & toot sweet, I'm done with Exodus 90 forever & will curse—actively pray against—the program every day for the rest of my life.

Papal Quote o' the Day

"Those who have fallen into the habit of being suspicious about everything, little by little lose the peace of mind that comes from trusting confidence in God."
—Pope Francis (b. 1936, r. 2013-present)

Bonus! Papal Quote o' the Day

"Do not be afraid of the demands of the love of Christ. On the contrary, be afraid of being fainthearted, of taking things lightly, of seeking your comfort, of being selfish. Be afraid of everything that seeks to silence the voice of Christ Who addresses each person."
—Pope St. John Paul II the Great (1920-2005, r. 1978-2005; feast: 22 October)

Mother Teresa Quote o' the Day

"I can't bear being photographed, but I make use of everything for the glory of God. When I allow a person to take a photograph, I tell Jesus to take one soul out of Purgatory & into Heaven."
—St. Teresa of Calcutta, M.C. (1910-1997, feast: 5 September)

Saint Quote o' the Day

"Renounce youself in order to follow Christ; discipline your body; do not pamper yourself, but love fasting."
—St. Benedict (480-547, feast: 11 July)

Archbishop Sheen Quote o' the Day

"Someone gave me a canary to be my companion during a long sickness. If I told that bird, 'You are in this tiny, little cage & you have wings, but this is the right place for you,' I'm sure the bird would be depressed. If, however, the bird could understand, & I said to him, 'You're in the wrong place. You have a gift of song that should mount to the heavens, & you have wings that should fly' the bird would then be happier. So we are unhappy when we are locked in this little cosmos, which could be shattered by a bomb. But if we are told that there is another world, then life becomes a little bit happier."
—Ven. Fulton Sheen (1895-1979)

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the Day: SKApril XI

The Chinkees, "Noise Around" from Searching for a Brighter Future (Rude Boy Mike Papa Whiskey)

Skammentary: "Noise Around" begins with an audio clip from the Apollo 11 countdown to launch. Why? Because "Noise Around" is the opening song of Searching for a Brighter Future:

"Apollo 11, this is Houston. Less than one minute to ignition and everything is go."

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the Day: SKApril XI

The Hippos, "When Will I Learn?" from Forget the World (Rude Boy Mike Papa Whiskey)

Skammentary: The Hippos are SKApril All-Stars on the strength of their first two albums. I feared that SKApril X (2020) might have been the end o' the road for them, but I should have known that a gem like "When Will I Learn?" was still available. Silly rude boy, when will I learn?

"I bought you everything that you asked for,
Everything, but you wanted more,
I guess it wasn't quite enough.
I did everything that you asked me to,
Everything that I could do,
I guess it wasn't quite enough.

"I should have acted like a hopeless pessimist,
'Cause I know that you're a sucker for that type,
And if I told you I was gonna kill myself,
Maybe then you'd comfort me and hold me tight.

"When will I learn?

"I took you every place that you want to go,
Every single place that I know,
I guess it wasn't quite enough.
I told you everything that you want to hear,
I said, 'I love you' in your ear,
I guess it wasn't quite enough.

"I should have acted like a hopeless pessimist,
'Cause I know that you're a sucker for that type,
And if I told you I was gonna kill myself,
Maybe then you'd comfort me and hold me tight.

"No matter what I do,
I'll never be with you,
And if it is that way,
I guess I'll be O.K."

Bonus! Song o' the Day: SKApril

Melbourne Ska Orchestra, "Travellin' Light" from Read All about It! (Rude Boy Mike Papa Whiskey)

Countdown to Narwhal Day: Four Weeks

Four weeks 'til Narwhal Day XXI. Are you ready to feel the sympathy?

Saints + Scripture: IV Sunday of Easter — Stand By

Bonus! Song o' the IV Sunday o' Easter

Fourth Sunday of Easter (Good Shepherd Sunday)
Marty Haugen, "Shepherd Me, O God (Psalm 23)" from Shepherd Me, O God (Saint Mike Papa Whiskey)

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the Day: SKApril XI

We Are the Union, "I'm Working Retail for Christmas" from the I'm Working Retail for Christmas single (Rude Boy Mike Papa Whiskey)

Skammentary: Attention all consumer drones: Only eight more shopping months 'til Christmas!

"…I'm working retail for Christmas,
'Cause I play in this ska-punk band."

The Stars My Destination: Crew-2 Launch

Yesterday, for the third time inside eleven months, a Crew Dragon capsule launched from American soil, ferrying astronauts to the International Space Station. This is quickly becoming routine, which we here at The Secret Base find very exciting.

Commander Shane Kimbrough (N.A.S.A.), Pilot Megan MacArthur (N.A.S.A.), Mission Specialist Akihiko Hoshide (J.A.X.A.), & Mission Specialist Thomas Pesquet (E.S.A.) lifted off from Florida's Kennedy Space Center's LC-39A aboad the Crew Dragon Endeavour (C206) atop a Falcon 9 rocket. The Endeavour is the same capsule that ferried the Demo-2 astronauts last summer, & in a further bit of cost-saving reusability, the Falcon 9 first-stage is the same first-stage rocket that carried the Endeavour last summer. I suppose the use of the N.A.S.A. "worm" logo is appropriate in that SpaceX is helping to realize the Space Shuttle's goals of reusability leading to significant cost-saving.

I was not yet two years-old when S.T.S.-1 flew in April 1981. The Space Shuttle, ferrying astronuats, satellites, & scientific experiments to & from Low Earth Orbit (L.E.O.) was routine throughout the first three decades of my life, until the retirement of the Shuttle fleet in 2011. I took the Space Shuttle, & the International Space Station (I.S.S.) it constructed, for granted—no ifs, ands, or buts. After an agonizing nine years (2011-2020) of watching the United States flounder without the ability to launch even a single astronaut into L.E.O., I am resolved not to take the Commerical Crew Program (Launch America—the SpaceX Crew Dragon &, eventually, the Boeing Starliner) & the I.S.S. for granted.

Kimbrough, MacArthur, Hoshide, & Pesquet are now on-board the I.S.S., completing the crew of Expedition 65. We are now three-fourths of the way through the month-long handoff from Expedition 64 to Expedition 65. The Crew-1 quartet of Hopkins, Glover, Noguchi, & Walker are scheduled to remain aboard for about a week before falling to Earth aboard the Crew Dragon Resilience.

Bonus! Song o' the Day: Crew-2 & the Endeavour
Guster, "Rocketship" from Goldfly (Space Cadet Mike Papa Whiskey)

Saints + Scripture: Pascha — Please Stand By

The Popish Plot
"Blessing of the 2x4 of Truth"

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the Day: SKApril XI

The Soulutions, "Do Right" from The Aquabats! and Horchata Records Present Rice Capades Music Sampler, Vol. 1 (Rude Boy Captain Thumbs Up!)

Skammentary: No snark, no sarcasm, "Do Right" is an earnest meditation on love & loss. "Do Right" has been the R.B.D.S.O.T.D. on several occasions, including September 2020 & January 2021, but this is, of course, it's SKApril debut.

"Be good,
Do right,
Be kind to that beautiful girl.
Hold her close,
Tell her why
You want to be a part of her world.
Don't be scared
To be fair,
Try to laugh about your worries and cares.
Give a laugh,
Give a smile,
Don't be cruel to that beautiful girl…

"And if things aren't right,
Don't hold on to her.
And if she loves some other guy,
Watch what you say to her,
Remember that you love her and—

"Be good,
Do right,
Be kind to that beautiful girl…

"Be good,
Do right,
Be kind to the most beautiful girl in the world."

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the Day!: SKApril XI!

The Aquabats!, "Aliens and Monsters!" from Kooky Spooky… In Stereo! (Rude Boy Captain Thumbs Up!)

Skammentary: In some ways, The Aquabats! are the unlikeliest SKApril All-Stars, not only because they stopped being a ska band a number of years ago, but also because they sometimes seem disdainful of ska. Then again, I suppose every subculture has its adherents who take the whole thing too seriously (see: The Skluttz, "Ska Police" from SKApril X in 2020), & maybe The Aquabats!' teasing is a necessary corrective. In any event, there is ska guitar throughout "Aliens and Monsters!," making it their most ska song in quite a while. As ever, we here at The Secret Base take a pretty liberal view of ska. Anyone who wishes to argue "Aliens and Monsters!" isn't a ska song is more than welcome to do so in the comments.

Saints + Scripture: Pascha — Please Stand By

The Explorers' Club, № DCCCXIII

Operation AXIOM: The Space Race—The 50th Anniversary of Soyuz 10
22-24 April 1971: Soyuz 10 lifted off from the Kazakh S.S.R.'s Baikonur Cosmodrome, carrying CDR Vladimir Shatalov, Flight Engineer Aleksei Yeliseyev, & Systems Engineer Nikolai Rukavishnikov aboard a Soyuz 7K-OKS capsule atop a Soyuz rocket; their attempt to dock with & board Salyut 1 failed; during reentry & landing, toxic fumes in the capsule overcame Rukavishnikov, but not fatally.

Commentary: In typical Communist fashion, after Soyuz 10 failed to dock with the Salyut station, Soviet officials claimed the Soyuz 10 cosmonauts had never been intended to board the Salyut, merely to rendezvous as a "dress rehearsal" for Soyuz 11. Had the docking been successful, it would have allowed for the Soviets' first internal crew transfer, like American astronauts did between the Apollo Command & Lunar Modules. All previous Soviet crew transfers had involved spacewalks.

Bonus! Space Race Song o' the Day: Soyuz 10
The Hold Steady, "Stuck Between Stations" from Boys and Girls in America (Space Cadet Mike Papa Whiskey)

Semper exploro.

Saints + Scripture: Pascha — Please Stand By

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the Day: SKApril XI

Mustard Plug, "Brain on Ska" from Skapocalypse Now! (Rude Boy Mike Papa Whiskey)

Skammentary: After three full weeks of SKApril, with more than a full week left to go, every Secret Base reader's brain ought to look like the above.

Saints + Scripture: Pascha — Please Stand By

Operation ÖSTERREICH: Easter Feaster Edition

Weekly Wednesday Weigh-in
Last weigh-in: 342.4 lbs
This weigh-in: 337.6 lbs.
Difference: -4.8 lbs.

Bonus! Lied von ÖSTERREICH
Slow Gherkin, "Meat Dance" from Double Happiness (Mike Papa Watercress)

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the Day: SKApril XI

Pain, "Bottle Rocket War" from Pounded: The Official Comic Book Soundtrack (Rude Boy Mike Papa Whiskey)

Skammentary: Pain denied that they were a ever a ska band. Sorry, chaps, you may not have been influenced by roots ska or the 2-Tone revival, but being a punk band with a horn section in the 1990s pretty much makes you a ska-punk band. Their song for Cartoon Network, "Jabberjaw (Running Underwater)"—featured in the second SKApril in 2012—is every bit as much a ska-punk song as "Sell Out" by Reel Big Fish or "Danny Says" by Less Than Jake.

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the Day: SKApril XI

Taco Tuesday
Slow Gherkin, "Salsa III" from Double Happiness (Rude Boy Mike Papa Whiskey)

Skammentary: I was chagrined when I checked my records & found that Slow Gherkin, who provided a song in four of the first five SKAprils, hadn't been featured since 2015. Yes, Slow Gherkin were never "All-Stars," that elite & ever-shrinking cadre of bands who have furnished a song for every SKApril, & I want to showcase a wide variety of bands, highlighting the breadth of ska across time & space, but I nevertheless found this a shocking oversight on my part. Welcome back, Slow Gherkin!

Saints + Scripture: Pascha

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

The Popish Plot
"Saint Margaret Clitherow: The Pearl of York"

Scripture of the Day
Mass Readings—Tuesday of the Third Week of Easter
The Acts of the Apostles, chapter seven, verse fifty-one thru chapter eight, verse one(a);
Psalm Thirty-one (R/. six[a]; or "Alleluia"), verses three(c/d) & four; six, seven(b), & eight(a); & seventeen & twenty-one(a/b);
The Gospel according to John, chapter six, verses thirty thru thirty-five.

Commentary: Gospel reflection by Bishop Robert Barron (Word on Fire):

Friends, today’s Gospel is from the bread of life discourse: “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst.” What God has wanted from the beginning is to sit down with his creatures in a fellowship banquet, sharing life and laughter, giving, receiving, and giving back again.

This is the loop of grace. The more we receive the divine life, the more we should give it away and thereby get more of it.

Throughout the Old Testament, we find images of the holy banquet. On God’s holy mountain, Isaiah says there will be good meats and pure choice wines. And throughout his ministry, Jesus hosts meals to which all are invited. God wants to share his life with us.

This comes to fullest expression at the Eucharist, where Jesus changes the bread and the wine into his Body and Blood, and then invites all of us around this table to feast and share life, to give and to receive and to give again.

Video reflection by Deacon Arthur L. Miller (U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops): Easter Reflection.

Scripture Study—Day 91: Severed Spine, Day 2
The Second Book of Kings, chapter one, verses three & four.

Commentary: Elijah Denounces Ahaziah (cont'd; 2 Kings, 1:3-4).

Papal Quote o' the Day

"How essential it is for the life of society that people not lose faith in their own work. How essential it is that they not suffer disillusionment because of this work."
—Pope St. John Paul II the Great (1920-2005, r. 1978-2005; feast: 22 October)

Mother Teresa Quote o' the Day

"Poverty doesn't only consist of being hungry for bread, but rather it is a tremendous hunger for human dignity. We need to love & to be somebody for somebody else. This is where we make our mistake & shove people aside. Not only have we denied the poor a piece of bread, but by thinking that they have no worth & leaving them abandoned in the streets, we have denied them the human dignity that is rightfully theirs as children of God."
—St. Teresa of Calcutta, M.C. (1910-1997, feast: 5 September)

Saint Quote o' the Day

"Lay all your cares about the future trustingly into God's hands, & let yourself be guided by the Lord just like a little child."
—St. Theresa Benedicta of the Cross, O.C.D. (1891-1942, feast: 9 August)

Archbishop Sheen Quote o' the Day

"It is common for a creature in one stage of its existence to have a capacity for passing into a higher stage. But it is unusual for a creature to have a capacity which can be developed only by some agency outside of it & adapted to it. It is in this condition that man is born of his human parents. He is born with the capacity for life higher than that which he lives as an animal in this world. There is in him a capacity for becoming something different & higher. That capacity lies dormant & dead until the Holy Spirit comes & quickens it. The influence has to come from without. There must be the efficient touch of the Holy Spirit, the impartation of His life. The capacity to be a child of God is man's, but the development of this lies with God. We have to be quickened from without. We cannot give physical birth to ourselves, & we cannot give divine birth to ourselves."
—Ven. Fulton Sheen (1895-1979)

The Explorers' Club, № DCCCXII

Operation AXIOM: The Space Race—The 50th Anniversary of Salyut 1, Part I
19 April 1971: Salyut 1 ("Salute 1") lifted off from the Kazakh S.S.R.'s Baikonur Cosmodrome atop a Proton-K rocket; the world's first space station carried the Orion 1 ultraviolet space telescope & was a modification of the Soviet military's secret Almaz ("Diamond") spy stations then under development; the Salyut lineage continues to this day with the International Space Station's Zvezda ("Star") module.

Bonus! Space Race Song o' the Day: Salyut 1
The Phenomenauts, "Navitron" from For All Mankind (Space Cadet Mike Papa Whiskey)

Semper exploro.

Saints + Scripture: Pascha — Please Stand By

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the Day: SKApril XI

The Interrupters, "Rumors and Gossip" from Fight the Good Fight (Rude Boy Mike Papa Whiskey)

Skammentary:

"Rumors and gossip,
So sick and toxic,
Lies and accusations,
In heavy rotation,
And I don't know what you want from me
In your alternate reality
Of rumors and gossip,
You're too sick and toxic for me…"

Saints + Scripture: III Sunday of Easter — Stand By

'Tis the Third Sunday of Easter (Pascha).

Bonus! Song o' the III Sunday of Easter

Third Sunday of Easter
O.C.P. Session Choir, "O God Beyond All Praising" from Glory & Praise: Third Edition, Volume 27 (Saint Mike Papa Whiskey)

Commentary:

"O God beyond all praising,
We worship You today
And sing the love amazing,
That songs cannot repay…"

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the Day: SKApril XI

Hepcat, "Hooligans" from Out of Nowhere (Rude Boy Bravo Charlie)

Skammentary: "Hooligans" is classic ska, a plea for peace, for rude boys (in the original sense of hooligans, street toughs—criminals) to be less rude.