When many of us come to Malachi’s from the near West Side suburbs, we come down the Shoreway, wait awhile at the light, pull into the parking lot, say hi to Kenny, and go into church. When we leave Coffee Hour we just reverse the process. I’m sure it is much the same for people from other parts of town. We seldom take the time to look around the neighborhood.

Now this isn’t one of those let’s–look–around–and–be–more–aware–of–the poor lectures. It’s quite the opposite because, as Frank Schiros points out in an article in this issue, the neighborhood is changing in ways many of us never envisioned. Condos are going up. Storefronts are being renovated. Meanwhile, the city is making big plans to revitalize the areas along the river and the lake. Since Malachi’s is close to both the river and the lake, this will probably mean more development in the traditional parish area in the years to come.

The word for what is happening here is ‘gentrification.’ According to Merriam–Webster Collegiate Dictionary, this means, "the process of renewal and rebuilding accompanying the influx of middle–class or affluent people into deteriorating areas that often displaces earlier usually poorer residents."

But what will this mean to Malachi’s traditional ministries, which have been focused on the poor in the neighborhood? That’s a million–dollar question, and my guess is, Regis doesn’t have the answer.

My guess is, however, that this will have a deeper impact on the Community than on the Parish. The Parish’s role, it seems to me, is obvious: serve the needs of the parishioners and the neighborhood whatever they happen to be. The Community’s existence is rooted in service to the poor – the reason many of us came to Malachi’s, aside from the superior liturgies and sense of Christian Community, was to have some connection to it’s ministry to the poor. So some serious thought has to be given to what we do next.

Frank proposes one idea in his article. I’m sure there are many others. Perhaps we can do more outreach to other areas. Perhaps we can become more involved in other nearby ministries. Some might want to get more politically active, while others might be content to sit back and take what comes. A more immediate concern is to see about the needs of those who are being forced out of the neighborhood. Yet another possibility: because the Community of St. Malachi is a non–territorial parish, there exists the potential for moving to another church with needs similar to St. Malachi’s 25–30 years ago – if they would have us.

This hasn’t happened overnight and it will be many more years before these neighborhood changes start to become more obvious. But it isn’t too early to start considering their meaning to us.

Correction: Back on Nov. 12, 2000, we ran an item titled, "The Smile," that was attributed to an unknown author. This was something we had received as an e–mail forward. Well, it turns out that the author is not unknown, and he wrote us recently to request a correction on the web page where it now resides (see our web site: www.stmalachi.org.) "The Smile" was written and copyrighted in 1992 by Hanoch McCarty and reprinted in Chicken Soup for the Soul in 1993. Dr. McCarty can be contacted at www.bestspeaker.com. He has graciously given us permission to continue to use it, and I note that the copyright was renewed in 2001.

We try to take matters of copyright very seriously in Communio, especially because the publication lives on in our internet archive, where it potentially reaches an audience far beyond the congregation of the 11 a.m. liturgy at St. Malachi’s. But we also are very dependent on the forwards we receive from our various contributors to put out a varied and interesting publication. Working late at night most times, we can’t police everything we receive, so we ask that the people who send us forwards without attribution to try and find out who wrote it, and if possible, ask permission for us to reprint it. See "Online Primer" later in this issue for more on this.

Thanks to Frank Schiros and family (Ginny, Rachel, Sarah, and Leah.), Joe Pulizzi, Hal Place, Ron DeMarco, Anita Fox, Mike May and Kim Langley for sending in material for this issue. The next Communio is scheduled for Feb. 10, with a Jan. 27 deadline

If members of St Malachi have taken a good look at the surrounding area, they will have noticed significant changes are taking place. In the viaduct area, condominiums and apartments are going up. I’m told that rentals will be in the vicinity of $2000 per month and condos will probably sell for $250,000 minimum. New building is happening all around the church on the West Bank. Even an extensive portion of low–income housing appears set aside for high rise construction. As one of the construction workers commented, "There go all the poor people."

The subtle effect will be that more people in the high–income category will be visible and fewer low–income and homeless will come to Monday night meals. Fewer people will be using Malachi Center and Malachi Mart. If you go to Christmas Eve night mass you may perceive, as my wife and I did, more full length mink coats than have ever been seen at Sunday Community mass.

The real impact may come from the need to reconsider our mission statement or the possibility of moving the Community to another church such as the Hispanic church on 78th and Detroit. My hopes are that the Community will have to do neither and find a way to interface the probable new wave of money with St Malachi’s social justice concerns.

I have one suggestion that I’ve communicated and twice written to the Malachi Mart Board about without receiving a reply. If the idea seems feasible and other members are interested enough to form a committee, contact me at (216) 521–4195. Following is the letter suggesting a possible development compromise I’ve sent to the Malachi Mart Board.

I’m interested in your opinion whether Malachi Mart could be a possible employee owned business and could be upgraded and expanded with supermarket services to meet the future demands of new residents – particularly groceries and incidentals. A similar move was made by Brian Daw (another Malachi Community member) in Lakewood at The Bin. As I understand it, the "Bin" concept was to employ learning or physically disabled individuals and provide them with job skills. This concept could easily be adapted to an employee owned supermarket operation. The Bin successfully moved from a small storefront business on Madison Ave with foundation and city support to a large and thriving food market on the West Side of Lakewood.

So far there has been no reply

My son Joshua just turned three months old – and it’s been a wild and wonderful ride. Being a father is more amazing than I could have ever imagined. It’s the little things I cling to – watching him hold tight to his mother after a feeding, observing a peaceful sleep, the way his brow creases when he recognizes my voice. The list is endless. The most important impact on me is simple; I have grown up. Superficial aspects of life that used to seem so important are now replaced by a giggle, a yawn, or a simple turn of the head by my own flesh and blood.

I don’t have anything paramount to discuss about fatherhood. All I have to share are my own humble observations about helping to bring a life into the world. They are in no particular order, and they are adjusted daily.

• As a new father, I look on other parents with a whole new respect. Before Joshua was born, I remember analyzing the behavior of parents with newborns and how they handled certain situations. Now I’ve learned that a parent will do almost anything to get their kid to stop crying. God help us all.
• I now have a whole new love for my wife. After watching her go through 17 hours of hard labor, she is my hero. Whenever my wife and I have disagreements, I think of my son and what a wonderful thing she did. Before my son was born, I worried that bringing a child into our relationship would dampen the love we shared. I was shocked to realize that our son made our love even stronger. God works in mysterious ways.

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  I have a whole new wonder about our God. How did God sacrifice his Son for us? I don’t think I could do that.

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• I am learning that there is no such thing as quality time, only quantity time. I cannot tell Joshua, "Okay, daddy has an hour just for you." When I work it that way, he is usually sleeping. By spending as much time with him as possible, I don’t have to worry about schedules – I just enjoy the ride.
• I try to smile at my son as much as possible. Not only do infants first socialize through imitation, but they develop their self–concepts from their interactions with others. By smiling at Joshua, he knows he is loved.
• I have a whole new wonder about our God. How did God sacrifice his sSon for us? I don’t think I could do that.
• I have already accepted the fact that I will make thousands of mistakes being a parent. I resolve to learn from each experience, pray for wisdom, and love my son unconditionally.

I still find it hard to believe I am a parent. Even my parents find it hard to believe I am a parent. All I know is this – I need not search anymore for my great accomplishment in life. It has been found.

Unlike mainstream critics who strain to like films for all the wrong reasons, I’m going to buck the mainstream that’s presently gushing all over this picture. Probably the most important reason is that critics want to get paid for their writing jobs and all the perks that go with them. So I’m going to give readers a more honest review because I don’t need a job. (However, I do like the free preview tickets.)

Producers have become so enamored of special effects that they play with them like new Christmas toys. They’ve taken a genuine fantasy classic and turned it into a monster film that you wouldn’t take ten–year–olds to if you didn’t want them to have nightmares. A gigantic budget of $400,000,000 was spent on production for a trilogy of pictures in which the first is three plus hours. Keep in mind that the length of a film is no measure of its quality.

A gigantic budget of $400,000,000 was spent on production for a trilogy of pictures in which the first is three plus hours. Keep in mind that the length of a film is no measure of its quality.

The film technology and production design is dazzling with spectacular scenery, stupefying effects, epic scope, and a tactile sense of evil, but it goes on and on and on with battle overkill – more vistas, more forests, more visions, more monsters until we realize this could go on indefinitely like a video game. (Obviously there will be Toys–R–Us games, T–shirts, Burger King goblets, and anything else producers can foist on unsuspecting and gullible juveniles.)

The story is that in a world known as Middle Earth, a number of powerful rings were forged for various beings thousands of years ago with the dark lord Sauron forging one to control the others and all life. Osama bin Laden would have given his eyeteeth and all he owned for possession of such a ring. The ring is lost in battle but eventually comes into the possession of Bilbo Baggins (Ian Holmes), now an 111 year old hobbit.

His old friend, Gandalf (Ian McKellen), a powerful wizard, convinces him to give it up and pass it down to his heir Frodo Baggins (Elijah Wood). Possession of it puts Frodo in danger and Gandalf urges him to leave. He believes that its power can only be destroyed if it is returned to the fires of Mount Doom where it was first forged. So Frodo leaves with a band of friends on a perilous journey pursued by computerized, leaping hordes of ghouls and evil beings.

And that is where the story is left hanging.

The hype surrounding this film promises more than it delivers. Surface deep dialogue offers little to mature audiences and at the 2–hour mark it feels like it’s time to go to the restroom. The first book of the Lord of the Ring series serves as a teaser for the second and third sequels and it has no climax, conclusion or resolution. If the filmmakers had wanted it this way, it should have been presented as a TV miniseries. It will be a whole year before the next installment. By that time viewers will wonder what the fuss was all about.

Harry Potter And The Sorcerer’s Stone

My daughter, Leah, read all of the Harry Potter books and feels that the movie was a faithful adaptation. However, I offer the risky opinion that it was not quite as magical as the book. Having it presented to us on screen just isn’t the same as reading it on paper. What the movie couldn’t imitate was J.K. Rowling’s wonderful ability to stimulate her readers’ imagination through her writing. What also is not easily appreciated is that she did it while working at night in a coffee shop.

While this is certainly no reflection on her, there were times during the 2 hours and 22 minute movie that I tended to doze off. Although the conflict between good

and evil is evident there was some religious folk who objected to the book and the movie, quoting Deuteronomy 18: 10–12 i.e., "there shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits or a wizard, or a necromancer. For all that do these things are an abomination unto the Lord."

One of the interesting changes made by the American publisher and producers leads me to believe that they believe American readers and viewers are dumbed down. They changed the title from "Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone" to "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone."

The story has it that Harry’s parents were killed by an evil wizard who left little Harry with a lightening bolt scar on his forehead. For the first 11 years of his life, Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), is raised cruelly by a family of Muggles (non–magic folk). He’s forced to sleep in a cupboard under the staircase; never gets gifts on his birthday nor really is he ever considered a part of the family (reads like Cinderella). However, because of his wizard parents, and now that he’s old enough, Harry is invited to attend Hogwart’s School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and a friendly giant, Hagrid (Robbie Coltrane), whisks the boy off to the world’s most fascinating school. Harry, along with his friends, thrives on the wizard apprenticeship that consists of magic mirrors, flying broomsticks, dragon eggs, cloaks of invisibility, secret passages, forbidden zones, spirits, along with countless birds, cats, and toads.

"Harry" seems to bounce from one special effect to another, from one scene or character to another with seemingly little connection between them – but for kids and kids–at–heart, I guess the movie is okay. The best thing about the movie may be that it will lead many back to read – or re–read – the book.

Vanilla Sky

I came to the realization that although I usually liked Tom Cruise in previous roles, in a "made for Tom Cruise" movie, he’s not a very good actor. However the dazzling Cameron Diaz shows the kind of versatility that promises her some high

profile roles in the future.

"Vanilla Sky" is pure "Twilight Zone" with dreamlike sequences that seem to be the fashion these days – this movie is chock full of them. But like picking the last tasty bits off a turkey bone, you have to pick at the pieces in this movie that hint at a "Brave New World." It also deals with how the rich and famous may spend their fortunes and lifetimes searching for the Holy Grail of perpetual youth.

In some ways, "Vanilla Sky" is a cautionary morality play about living in a material world that ends up going kablooey with a 180–degree turnaround that has no moral basis to support it.

David (Cruise) lives the life that swingers dream of when his father passes away and he inherits 51% of the family business. David owns a Ferrari, a vintage Mustang, and an apartment overlooking Central Park. He beds beautiful women, has an utter disdain for 9–5 work (he blows off board meetings to play racquetball), and has a toothy grin that tells you he’s on top of the world.

His female attachments focus on two women: blond, free spirited Julie (Diaz) and dark haired, sweet Sofia (Penelope Cruz). David and Sofia spend one magical night

together that’s familiar only to those lucky in love. The next day David is confronted by Julie. David gets in Julie’s car in a patronizing attempt to placate her and he finds that the sunny blonde has a dark side. She’s upset and feels betrayed and accidentally drives off an embankment. The tragic result is that David gets his cosmic comeuppance.

What follows is a psychological descent into madness portrayed with dreamlike sequences. The solution is vaguely hinted at with a few early clues during the dream sequences, but if you can stay with the movie all is made clear at the end by the cruel ending. Tom Cruise may have chosen this movie to imagine what it feels like to have his good looks, easy grace, wealth, stardom – and then losing it.

Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

Seldom do all the critics line up on one side of the movie, while Padre Franco and I agree on the other side. That is the case with part one of the "Lord of the Rings" epic. From all the glowing reviews, I went in expecting a great movie, but I saw a mediocre popcorn flick. And a very long one at that.

All I found was an arcade-like video game of a movie with the characters bouncing from one action scene to the next.

I am one of those who only has a passing acquaintance with the books. I bought them for my collection long ago, started reading them, but never got very far. I had heard that the movie–makers had done a good job adapting the books, but all I found was an arcade–like video game of a movie with the characters bouncing from one action scene to the next.

The Hobbits – I got far enough in the books to know about the Hobbits and envisioned them as slightly otherworldly creatures – looked like ordinary teenage boys surrounded by much taller actors. Elijah Wood, who plays Frodo, told Jay Leno the other night that he is 21, and that during filming, he and the other "Hobbits" spent their off–days in New Zealand surfing. That clicked for me: they were surfer Hobbits. All that was missing was the Beach Boys from the soundtrack.

Besides the non–stop action and substandard characterizations – not to mention substandard character development – I was mightily disappointed when the movie stopped after three hours without an ending. Of course, as people explained to me, this is only part one of an ambitious trilogy. Brother Lou, a fan of the film, told me when the trilogy is complete, it will be one of the greatest set of movies of all time. I look at it another way. I paid seven–and–a–half bucks for an achingly long movie that didn’t end. And if I want to see the conclusion, I have to wait two years. Bzzzzzz! Wrong! Unacceptable!

But stepping back from these criticisms, and forgiving the ending that never was, I do acknowledge that "Lord of the Rings" was a pretty good popcorn flick. Enjoyable enough. I’d even say it’s important to see on the big screen because of the magnificent scenery and marvelous special effects. However, wait for the Tuesday bargain night at General Cinema.

A Beautiful Mind

While the producers of "Lord of the Rings" were struggling to film a book, the people who made "A Beautiful Mind" set out to make a movie. There’s a difference. When film–makers strive too hard to make the book–readers happy, they often end up compromising their own art form. "A Beautiful Mind" has been criticized by many writers for not presenting a complete picture of the troubled mathematical genius John Nash, played with an Oscar–worthy performance by Russell Crowe.

While the producers of "Lord of the Rings" were struggling to film a book, the people who made "A Beautiful Mind" set out to make a movie.

After paying my seven–and–a–half bucks, I didn’t care much about who else Nash might have slept with. I had just seen a great movie – one with an ending, by the way. Did it make a hero out of an unworthy person? So what. This one was worth the price of admission and I suspect we’ll be hearing about it come Oscar night.

The movie opens with Nash arriving at Princeton for graduate studies in mathematics. It is clear from the outset that he is deeply troubled person and is later revealed that he suffered from schizophrenia. The film portrays his struggles, successes and fantasies, and ultimately his triumph over the disease. There are also some surprise plot twists I won’t reveal here.

In short, "A Beautiful Mind" is a highly satisfying cinematic experience. Go and enjoy.

Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring  
Dear Readers, I write this in response to the qualified reviews given this wonderful movie by my brethren, the good Padre and Brother Daniel. I urge you to listen to them not and see "The Fellowship" before it leaves the theaters. You will not be sorry you did. It is as engrossing a movie as I’ve seen in several years, brimming with enchantment and terror, and featuring wonderful performances by a large ensemble of terrific actors.

A close reading of their reviews reveals, irrefutably, the toll their advanced years has had on them. I say this with reverence and respect for them both. While age has given them great wisdom in matters of spirit it has made it nigh impossible for them to sit through a movie longer than 2 hours without them then finding something to complain about.

Both of them seem to have a big problem with the fact that the hero’s journey has no pat ending in this the first of 3 movies based on Tolkien’s trilogy. I suspect that they’re both worried about being around for parts 2 and 3. I pray to God that they are so that they then will have the opportunity to reconsider their opinions about some of the best moviemaking I’ve seen in quite some time.

• At lunchtime, sit in your parked car with sunglasses and point a hair dryer at passing cars. See if they slow down.
• Every time someone asks you to do something, ask if they want fries with that.
• Finish all your sentences with "in accordance with the prophecy."
• Specify that your drive–through order is "to go."
• Tell your children over dinner, "Due to the economy, we are going to have to let one of you go."

Forwarding e–mail is a favorite online activity of many people. It’s fun to share items we find interesting with friends and those of like minds. However, there are abuses to be considered. I’ve written about this topic before, but this month I’d like to address forwards of material without attributions, sometimes signed by "anonymous" or "author unknown", and a specific e–mail virus hoax that is making the rounds among Community members.

Dedicated readers of this issue of Communio know that we were called for running an article by an "unknown author" that we had received by e–mail awhile back. (See "The Malachi File" at the beginning.) The author was Hanoch McCarty and it was a piece that had appeared in the book, Chicken Soup for the Soul. Hardly unknown

Because Communio is also published on the Community of St. Malachi web site, it’s especially important that we be attentive to copyright issues.

.

Because Communio is also published on the Community of St. Malachi web site, it’s especially important that we be attentive to copyright issues.

Dr. McCarty, who devotes about two hours a week to tracking down unauthorized, unattributed quotes, poems, articles and other writings on the internet, offered some suggestions for finding the authors:

"1. Choose a ‘key phrase’ (one that is unique and unlikely to be in many publications by accident) and do a search on Google.com and at least two other search engines. Yahoo.com is good, too.

"2. If you come up ‘dry’, then try a different key phrase or two. You might try the ‘title’ but many web site owners strip the title and rename it. I’ve found lots of sites which took my stories from the Chicken Soup for the Soul books (where my authorship is crystal clear) and removed my name and put their OWN as authors! Ah, ethics, where are you now?"

Dr. McCarty further suggests that we use no unattributed material, especially with the abundance of items where the author can be verified. With the help of our trusted contributors, I think that this is one goal we can reach.

Of course, don’t just do this for the sake of Communio. By forwarding material with improper attributions and sourcing, you are doing a real disservice to the original writers, as well as to the copyright process itself.

Now shortly after I wrote a first draft of this column, I got a chance to put it into practice. I received a poem titled, "Heaven’s Grocery Store," and without thinking, immediately forwarded it on to Luis Gutierrez as I usually do with material like this. Then I took a closer look and noticed it didn’t have an attribution. So I did a simple search on the title using the search engine on the AT&T home page and quickly came up with the author’s name, Ron DeMarco. But there was a catch. The author specifically requested that all users request permission before reprinting the poem. I did another search on "Ron DeMarco" and came up with his e–mail address, then wrote him a brief note requesting permission to use it in Communio. He responded within 15 minutes and added that we could use another one of his poems, "Dreams," if we wanted to. Both appear in this issue. So the moral is, doing the right thing online is easy and sometimes even rewarding in unexpected ways.

People have all different concepts of God, but in mine, God hates e-mail chain letters and will not let anything bad happen to you if you break one.

On the subject of forwards, there is a virus hoax making the rounds among people close to Community members I’ve been asked to call to your attention. It starts out like this, "A friend sent me the following message, so I checked my computer and, sure enough, there it was! SCARY!!! But I got rid of it by following the procedure outlined below. – Lois Fox."

The message goes on to detail how to find and delete the file "sulfnbk.exe." Unfortunately, this is a real file that is essential to the operation of your computer. Don’t delete it. If you do, various sources online can tell you how to recover the file. Dolores Sullin tells me McAfee.com is one such web site.

As I’ve written before on this subject, ignore all dire virus warnings that are forwarded to you by e–mail. Pay attention to news reports from credible sources for real warnings, and never forward anything to everyone in your address book. Instructions to do that should be your first clue that you are dealing with a hoax.

Also, exercise care in opening attachments and when you see several e–mails in your inbox from different people with the same subject line and attachments, delete them immediately without opening, and then empty your deleted mail folder. The chances are very good they contain real e–mail viruses.

But in general, avoid any kind of chain letter activity in e–mail forwards. People have all different concepts of God, but in mine, God hates e–mail chain letters and will not let anything bad happen to you if you break one.

Finally here are some miscellaneous e–mail forwarding tips:

• Don’t forward things just because you think people might like it – be selective.
• Carefully consider the appropriateness of jokes.
• Don’t send huge picture files without checking with the recipients first – they may not have the connection, capacity or software to deal with them.
• Clean up all the various marks and spaces some e–mail programs add.
• And, especially for those of you on AOL, copy and paste the writing into the message box – don’t just forward, because when you do, people outside of AOL receive it as an attachment, and it’s hard to know if that attachment is innocuous or if it carries a virus.

So in conclusion, let me simply advise: Forward with care.

Pastor’s Report: The pastor reminded us to continue praying for RCIA journey of faith participants. He noted that the enrollment of unbaptized persons as well as welcoming of those baptized and now desiring full communion with the Catholic Church has just taken place. Fr. Tony said that Malachi House has completed and moved into the new addition of its building. The original section of the house is undergoing renovation. They hope to complete the work and be fully operational by late May or early June.

St. Malachi Looks to the Future: Rejoice and Renew: Activities Completed: Established an Outreach Coordinator. Activities Underway: Collaboration with Parish to consider development of a picture directory, investigating ways to streamline the recommitment process, outreach to new members, mentoring. Activities Planned: prospective member cards; support Hospitality committee to place greeters at Coffee Hour; inviting a wider range of membership participation; development of a plan to reach out for new, more diverse members; Name Tag Sunday; encourage support of Malachi Ministries. Still needed is approval for development of the "Picture Directory."

Liturgy Committee: Jeanette Shemo of the Liturgy Committee reviewed this year’s events. She noted that the bereavement workshop was a success and will become an annual event, and that baptismal garments are being made for each child. A Mass of Remembrance and subsequent reception to honor all those who passed away this past year was held on All Souls Day, November 2nd at 7:00 p.m. Over 75 people were in attendance. Since this was very successful, we plan to make this an annual event. An Evening of Remembrance is in the planning for liturgical ministers. The Eucharistic prayer is in the process of review and the wedding brochure is being revised. Pam Pulizzi has volunteered to co–chair the CSM Liturgy Committee with Jeanette Shemo.
Leadership Development: Rosemarie DeJohn spoke on leadership development, and said that a leadership development event is being planned for Jan. 26 and April 13th or 27th.

Spiritual Development: Sunday, Jan. 13, 2002 starts Vocation Awareness Week (Jan. 13-19). All are encouraged to discuss vocation opportunities with their families.

Now that we are finally in the cold, grip of winter here, it isn’t too soon for families to begin thinking about a summer trip to the ocean. Our family has gone on such a vacation/family retreat for many years in a row now. We would like to share that experience with other families in order to give you a taste of the Marianist version of a Christian Family Living (CFL) vacation and to encourage you to plan such a trip for yourself this coming summer.

Imagine a place by the ocean where families come to together to share meals, laughter, Eucharist, and dreams...where dads bond together over breakfast preparations and moms sit on the huge front porch to plan meals for the week (but only have to help cook one!)...where the squeals of three year olds are welcomed and teens feel comfortable at mass...where no talent is required for the weekly talent show and the rosary is prayed daily at five...where laughter is the hourly norm and angry words are healed...where your soul is nourished by shared exposition of the Blessed Sacrament and your body is invigorated by the waves of the sea...where you experience your marriage as a vocation and your family as a vital part of the Body of Christ...This is what CFL family retreat weeks have been like for us.

With these memories in mind, on Sunday, January 27, 2001 from 2 to 4 p.m., our family will provide an afternoon retreat for other families in the St. Malachi Center Hall. We can’t bring the ocean to you but we will try to share just some of our CFL spirit during that afternoon. We will focus on the theme of "Communication in the Family," using scripture, a skit, crafts, and peer group sharing, followed by family sharing and prayer.

The afternoon can be experienced simply for itself but it will also give participants an idea of what a CFL family week might be like for a vacation. At the conclusion of the program we will take a few moments to answer any questions you may have about the Marianist retreat program for families. Applications will be available for those wishing to get more information. Please call us at (216) 521–4195 if you think you would like to join us for the afternoon on January 27 from 2 to 4 p.m. It is our gift to you.

Are you a starving artist? Julia Cameron, best–selling author of "The Artist’s Way" thinks that most of us are.
You are invited on a journey of self–discovery, one that might just result in recovering that freely creative self that most of us left behind with our childhood.

Through reading the book, sharing experiences and receiving encouragement, you can choose to put more joy into your life while exploring blocks to productivity such as limiting beliefs, fear, self–sabotage and guilt.

The guiding principle of "The Artist’s Way" is that creativity and spirituality are inseparable.

Isn’t this a journey of personal integration that we all should take?

Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss you will land among the stars.