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Smoke in This Life and Not the Next
Sun, Apr 26 – Fourth Sunday of Easter / Good Shepherd Sunday
Virtue: Growth & Communion
Cigar: Balanced, resilient (Corojo)
Bourbon: Elijah Craig Small Batch – warm, steady
Reflection: “What fruit is ripening in me?”
The Descent Before the Shepherd Speaks
She began to cry aloud in lamentation:
“Mercy, my God, mercy! Descend, O Precious Blood, and deliver these souls from their prison. Poor souls! you suffer so cruelly, and yet you are content and cheerful. The dungeons of the martyrs in comparison with these were gardens of delight. Nevertheless there are others still deeper. How happy should I esteem myself were I not obliged to go down into them.”
This is the sound of a soul who has seen the depths—and still calls God good.
It is the cry of someone who knows that purification is not punishment but preparation.
It is the cry of someone who understands that growth is costly, and communion is forged in fire.
The Shepherd’s Counter‑Movement
Into that cry, the Good Shepherd steps—not as a rescuer who bypasses suffering, but as the One who walks into the depths and leads out what belongs to Him.
Growth is not self‑improvement.
Communion is not sentiment.
Both are the Shepherd’s work:
- He prunes what bears fruit.
- He carries what cannot walk.
- He calls by name what has forgotten its own.
- He leads upward what has lived too long underground.
The Corojo’s balanced resilience and Elijah Craig’s warm steadiness mirror the day’s virtue: strength without harshness, depth without despair, heat without destruction.
Your Work at the Table
You smoke today not as a man escaping the world but as a man consenting to be shaped by the Shepherd who knows every valley you’ve walked.
Ask the question slowly, honestly, without flinching:
What fruit is ripening in me—
and what pruning have I been resisting?
SUMMARY OF THE VIDEO
(Source: YouTube content retrieved above)
The video identifies seven types of women Scripture warns Christian men to avoid, drawing almost entirely from Proverbs and 2 Corinthians:
The Adulteress — Proverbs 5 and 7
- Her speech is sweet but leads to destruction.
- Her path is spiritual death, not companionship.
The Quarrelsome Woman — Proverbs 21:9, 21:19
- Constant strife corrodes a man’s peace and mission.
- Better to live in a desert than with perpetual conflict.
The Woman of Constant Conflict
- A life of drama and instability signals disorder, not virtue.
The Unbeliever — 2 Corinthians 6:14
- Being “unequally yoked” fractures a man’s spiritual direction.
The Seductress — Proverbs 5, 7
- Uses charm and sensuality to manipulate.
- Leads a man away from God’s purpose.
The Proud Woman — Proverbs 16:18
- Pride blinds her to correction and destroys unity.
The Foolish Woman — Proverbs 11:22
- Beauty without discretion is spiritually dangerous.
The video ends by contrasting these with God’s design for women: wisdom, kindness, reverence, and partnership in righteousness.
CCC TEACHING RELEVANT TO THIS VIDEO
1. Discernment and Moral Clarity (CCC 1783–1785)
The Catechism insists that Christians must form conscience with Scripture and truth. Avoiding relationships that lead into sin is not fear—it is prudence, a cardinal virtue.
2. Purity of Heart and Chastity (CCC 2517–2520)
The CCC teaches that seduction, lust, and manipulation are distortions of love. The “seductress” archetype is not about women—it is about disordered desire that pulls the heart away from God.
3. The Unequal Yoke (CCC 1633–1634)
Mixed-belief relationships create spiritual tension that can endanger faith. The Church recognizes this as a real pastoral challenge.
4. Peace as a Fruit of the Spirit (CCC 2304)
A quarrelsome or conflict-driven relationship violates the peace God intends for the Christian household.
5. Pride as the Root of Sin (CCC 1866)
Pride is the “queen of vices.” The CCC affirms that pride destroys communion and blinds the soul to grace.
ON CONFRONTING EVIL — DEVOTIONAL FRAME
Here is the distilled, forceful treatment you’ve been building across these Wednesday reflections:
1. Evil is confronted first by naming it.
The CCC is blunt: sin is not a mistake, not a personality quirk, not “just how people are.”
It is a rupture in truth (CCC 1849).
The man who refuses to name evil becomes complicit in it.
2. Evil is confronted by refusing to negotiate with it.
Proverbs warns not because women are evil, but because evil uses people—their wounds, their vanity, their seduction, their pride—to derail a man’s mission.
The Christian confronts evil by refusing to be drawn into its orbit.
3. Evil is confronted by guarding the heart.
The CCC teaches that the heart is the battleground of purity (CCC 2517).
The enemy does not need to destroy a man—only to distract him.
4. Evil is confronted by choosing communion over chaos.
A quarrelsome or pride-driven relationship is not merely unpleasant; it is disorder, and disorder is the enemy’s native language.
Peace is not passive—it is the fruit of justice (CCC 2304).
5. Evil is confronted by aligning with God’s design.
The video ends here, and so does the CCC:
God’s design for man and woman is mutual help, shared mission, and holiness (CCC 1601–1605).
Anything that fractures that design must be resisted.
Scripture warns men not because women are dangerous, but because evil is opportunistic. The adulteress, the quarrelsome woman, the seductress, the unbeliever—these are not categories of women but patterns of disorder that pull a man away from his mission. The Catechism teaches that sin is a lie against truth (CCC 1849), that pride destroys communion (CCC 1866), and that peace is the fruit of ordered love (CCC 2304). To confront evil, a man must name what is disordered, refuse to negotiate with it, guard his heart, and choose the path of communion over chaos. God’s design is not fragility but strength—two lives aligned in righteousness. Anything that fractures that alignment must be resisted with clarity, courage, and obedience.
APRIL 26 Fourth
Sunday after Easter
Our Lady of Good Counsel
Psalm 23, verse 4:
Even though I walk
through the valley of the shadow of death, I will FEAR no evil, for you
are with me; your rod and your staff comfort me.
Saint Pope John
Paul II was an example of someone who walked through the valley of the shadow
of death and feared no evil. The Lord’s rod and staff sustained him through the
nightmare of the Nazis and the Communists. Both were evil empires devoted to
the destruction of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness for all except
for the few selected elite. These
empires systematically replaced God with the rule of the chosen ones of the
State. People from both the Fatherland and the Motherland sat by and watched
the evil grow without taking decisive action, making the adage ‘All that is necessary for the triumph of
evil is that good men (or women) do nothing.’ Remember to measure our
nation and our politics with Gods Rod
(Rods were often used in ancient times to measure) and not the political States
or the media nor the opinion of the rich and the powerful. Let us be ever ready
to speak up for what is righteous using Gods rod, which are His laws of justice
and mercy, working tirelessly and remember Saint Pope John Paul II words of
encouragement, “I plead with
you – never, ever give up on hope, never doubt, never tire, and never become
discouraged. Be not afraid.”
Let us also carry with us for the journey the Staff of God which is truth, not worldly truth but Gods truth. “The word of truth, publicly, indeed almost liturgically, proclaimed was the antidote the Rhapsodic Theater sought to apply to the violent lies of the Occupation. The tools for fighting evil included speaking truth to power.” [1]
Copilot’s Take
The Catechism teaches that humanity lives in a real
spiritual contest: “A dramatic situation of the whole world, which is in the
power of the evil one” (CCC 409). Yet this same paragraph insists that the
struggle is not hopeless—God has already acted, and grace is stronger than
fear. Psalm 23:4 is not poetic comfort; it is a battlefield promise. The rod
and staff are not decorative—they are instruments of guidance, correction, and
protection for those who refuse to bow to darkness.
The Church is clear that evil is confronted not by
mirroring its methods but by choosing the good with courage. CCC 1808 defines
fortitude as standing firm in the face of danger, persevering in the pursuit of
the good, and resisting fear. This is the virtue embodied by those who, like
Saint John Paul II, endured totalitarian regimes without surrendering truth or
charity. Their witness reflects CCC 2471: “The disciple of Christ consents
to live in the truth.” Truth spoken with integrity becomes a weapon that
evil cannot counterfeit.
Our Lady of Good Counsel reminds the Church that
discernment is not guesswork but obedience: “Do whatever He tells you.”
Her counsel is not sentimental—it is strategic. CCC 2847 teaches that God
provides the grace to discern and resist evil, and Mary’s role is to lead the
faithful toward that grace. In a world where lies are loud and fear is
fashionable, the Christian confronts evil by anchoring in truth, practicing
justice and mercy, and refusing despair. Hope is not naïve; it is an act of
defiance.
ON KEEPING THE LORD'S DAY HOLY[2]
CHAPTER III
DIES ECCLESIAE
The Eucharistic Assembly:
Heart of Sunday
The
day of the Church
35. Therefore, the dies Domini is also the dies Ecclesiae. This is why on the pastoral level the community aspect of the Sunday celebration should be particularly stressed. As I have noted elsewhere, among the many activities of a parish, "none is as vital or as community-forming as the Sunday celebration of the Lord's Day and his Eucharist". Mindful of this, the Second Vatican Council recalled that efforts must be made to ensure that there is "within the parish, a lively sense of community, in the first place through the community celebration of Sunday Mass". Subsequent liturgical directives made the same point, asking that on Sundays and holy days the Eucharistic celebrations held normally in other churches and chapels be coordinated with the celebration in the parish church, in order "to foster the sense of the Church community, which is nourished and expressed in a particular way by the community celebration on Sunday, whether around the Bishop, especially in the Cathedral, or in the parish assembly, in which the pastor represents the Bishop".
Fourth
Sunday after Easter[3]
A description of the meekness
and patience of Christ's flock and an explanation of the necessity of the
Ascension.
THE Introit of the Mass of to-day
is a song of praise and thanksgiving.
Sing ye to the Lord a new canticle,
alleluia, for the Lord hath done wonderful things, alleluia. He hath revealed
His justice in the sight of the gentiles, alleluia, alleluia. His right hand
hath wrought for Him salvation, and His arm is holy.
Prayer.
O God, Who dost unite the hearts of
the faithful in one will, grant to Thy people to love what Thou commandest, and
to desire what Thou dost promise, that among the changes of this world our
hearts may be fixed on that place where true joys reside.
EPISTLE. James i. 17-21.
Dearly Beloved: Every best gift,
and every perfect gift, is from above, coming down from the Father of lights,
with Whom there is no change, nor shadow of alteration. For of His own will
hath He begotten us by the word of truth, that we might be some beginning of
His creatures. You know, my dearest brethren. And let every man be swift to
hear but slow to speak, and slow to anger. For the anger of man worketh not the
justice of God. Wherefore casting away all uncleanness, and abundance of
naughtiness, with meekness receive the engrafted word, which is able to save
your souls.
Practice.
In this epistle the Church teaches us that every good gift comes from God. But the most precious gift is, that He of His grace through the doctrines and institutions of Christianity, has made us new men, children of God, and heirs of the kingdom of heaven. The Church admonishes us, further, to walk worthy of this grace; to love God as our Father, to listen to His word willingly, without complaining when He chastises us, and to shun all impurity, anger, and multiplicity of words, in which “there shall not want sin” (Prov. x. 19).
Aspiration.
Help me, O God, to preserve the
grace received in baptism; give me, therefore, a great love for Thy word.
Deliver me from all inordinate passions, that I may walk worthy of Thee, purely
and with patience.
GOSPEL. John xvi. 5-14.
At that time Jesus said to His
disciples: I go to Him that sent Me; and none of you asketh Me: Whither goest
Thou? But because I have spoken these things to you, sorrow hath filled your
heart. But I tell you the truth: it is expedient to you that I go: for if I go
not, the Paraclete will not come to you: but if I go, I will send Him to you.
And when He is come, He will convince the world of sin, and of justice, and of
judgment; of sin: because they believed not in Me. And of justice: because I go
to the Father: and you shall see Me no longer. And of judgment: because the
prince of this world is already judged. I have yet many things to say to you:
but you cannot bear them now. But when He the Spirit of truth is come, He will
teach you all truth; for He shall not speak of Himself; but what things soever
He shall hear, He shall speak, and the things that are to come He shall show
you. He shall glorify Me because He shall receive of Mine and shall show it to
you.
Why
did Jesus say, “I go to My Father”?
To reprove
His disciples for giving way to excessive sorrow over His departure, which was
to be the means of purifying and strengthening their virtue, and of perfecting
the work of redemption, for them and for all the world. Learn from this, not to
give way to too much sorrow in adversity.
How
has the Holy Ghost convinced the world of sin, of justice, and of judgment?
He has
convinced the world:
1. of sin, by making the Jews know and lament the monstrous crime which they committed against Christ, and this He effected particularly at Pentecost.
2.
Of
justice, by teaching the innocence and holiness of Jesus, on account of which
God gave Him a kingdom, and required men to worship Him as the true God.
3.
Of
judgment, by everywhere overcoming the prince of darkness, destroying his
kingdom, casting down the temples of idolatry, and in their place, by seemingly
weak means, establishing the kingdom of truth and virtue.
How
does the Holy Ghost teach all truths?
By
preserving the pastors and teachers of the Church from all errors, in their
teaching of faith and morals, and by instructing each member of the Church in
the truths of salvation.
Aspiration.
Whither am I going? Will my life
bring me to God? O my God and my Lord direct my feet in the way of Thy
commandments, and keep my heart free from sin, that the Holy Ghost, finding
nothing in me worthy of punishment, may teach me all truth, and bring me safely
to Thee, Who art the eternal truth. Amen.
Our Lady of Good
Counsel[4]
On the Feast of Saint
Mark, April 25, 1467, the people of Genazzano, Italy witnessed a marvelous
sight. A cloud descended upon an ancient church dedicated to Our Lady of Good
Counsel. When the cloud disappeared, an image of Our Lady and the Child Jesus
was revealed which had not been there before. The image, on a paper-thin sheet,
was suspended miraculously. Soon after the image's appearance many miracles
were attributed to the intercession of Our Lady of Good Counsel. Because of
this, Pope Paul II ordered an investigation, and the results have been
preserved. It was later discovered that the very same image had been seen in a
church dedicated to the Annunciation in Scutari, Albania. The image in this
church was said to have arrived there in a miraculous manner. Now, the image
had been transported from Albania miraculously to avoid sacrilege from Moslem
invasion. A commission of enquiry determined that a portrait from the church
was indeed missing. An empty space the same size as the portrait was displayed
for all to see. Many miracles continue to be attributed to Our Lady of Good
Counsel. Pope Saint Pius V, for example, credited victory in the Battle of
Lepanto to Her intercession. Several Popes have approved the miraculous image.
In 1682 Pope Innocent XI had the portrait crowned with gold. On July 2, 1753,
Pope Benedict XIV approved the Scapular of Our Lady of Good Counsel and was the
first to wear it.
Bible in a
year Day 296 Know
Your Heart
As we begin to wrap up 1 Maccabees, Fr. Mike directs our attention
to how 2 Maccabees will tell the same story in a different way. In Sirach, we
are encouraged to know our own hearts, so that we can know our strengths,
weaknesses, and where we might need healing. The readings are 1 Maccabees 15,
Sirach 36-37, and Proverbs 23:26-28.
PRAYERS AND TEACHINGS OF THE CATHOLIC
CHURCH
Examination of
Conscience
What sins
have I committed of thought, word, deed and omission, against God, neighbor,
and self?
Around the Corner
Try Prime Rib
·
Bucket Item trip: Mayer Cafe in the Heart of Bratislava
·
King’s
Day in Amsterdam--April 27--Enjoy a ride
along Amsterdam’s canals, and
don your brightest orange, for the Netherlands’ annual King’s Day. The national
holiday celebrates the Dutch royal house (and current King Willem-Alexander)
with plenty of “orange madness,” in keeping with the Dutch national colors.
·
Shenandoah Apple Blossom Festival—April
23 thru May 3-- Take in the small-town charm of
Winchester, VA, in this 6-day celebration of spring. First held in 1924, the
annual festival packs a wallop of more than 30 events into its lineup: band
competitions, dances, parades, carnival, a 10K race, the coronation of Queen
Shenandoah and so much more, attracting crowds in excess of 250,000.
·
Tucson's tropical
escape Kon Tiki hits 63 years old
The midtown tiki bar is the fifth-oldest working tiki bar
in America.
·
Kentucky
Derby Arizona? May 2 coming up fast
Daily Devotions
·
Unite in the work of the Porters of St. Joseph by joining them
in fasting: Today's Fast: Protection
of Life from Conception until natural death.
·
Litany of the Most Precious
Blood of Jesus
·
Offering to
the sacred heart of Jesus
·
Make
reparations to the Holy Face
YOU AND ME (1938)
George Raft, Sylvia Sidney
A crime‑romance where loyalty, shame, and the possibility of redemption collide—and where two wounded people discover that love requires truth, not performance.
1. Production & Historical Setting
Released in 1938 by Paramount and directed by Fritz Lang, You and Me is one of the most unusual crime films of the late ’30s—part noir prototype, part social parable, part romantic drama. Lang, fresh from Germany’s expressionist tradition, brings sharp lighting, moral tension, and a restless sense of fate to what could have been a simple studio picture.
The film sits in the era’s fascination with:
- rehabilitation and recidivism
- the Depression‑era struggle to “go straight”
- the tension between mercy and suspicion in American society
George Raft plays Joe Dennis, an ex‑convict trying to rebuild his life; Sylvia Sidney plays Helen, a fellow parolee hiding her past. Their employer runs a department store staffed by ex‑cons—a quietly radical idea for 1938.
The world of the film is a blend of realism and stylization: warehouses, back rooms, parole offices, and the shadowed corners where old loyalties tug at new beginnings.
2. Story Summary
Joe Dennis (George Raft) is determined to stay out of trouble. He works hard, keeps his head down, and falls for Helen (Sylvia Sidney), unaware she is also on parole. They marry in secret, each carrying wounds they don’t know how to name.
But Joe’s past keeps circling him. Old criminal associates pressure him to join a planned robbery of the department store. Helen, desperate to keep Joe from falling back into crime, hides her own history—creating the very misunderstanding that drives him toward the gang.
What follows is a collision of truth and illusion:
- Joe’s pride meets Helen’s hidden shame.
- His fear of being deceived meets her fear of being rejected.
- His old loyalties meet her fragile hope for a clean life.
The film’s turning point is Helen’s bold intervention: she confronts the gang and exposes the heist as bad math, bad odds, and bad faith. The robbery collapses, the truth comes out, and Joe must decide whether he will cling to pride or choose the harder path of love and responsibility.
The resolution is not sentimental: redemption is offered, but only if the characters choose it.
3. Spiritual & Moral Resonances
A. Love Cannot Grow in the Dark
Joe and Helen hide their pasts from each other, believing secrecy will protect love. Instead, it weakens it. The film insists that communion requires truth.
B. The Gravity of Old Sin
The gang represents the gravitational pull of former habits. Lang shows how sin is not just an act but a community—a world that wants you back.
C. Mercy as a Radical Act
The store owner’s willingness to hire ex‑cons is a quiet parable of grace:
mercy is not softness; it is disciplined hope.
D. Pride as the Enemy of Redemption
Joe’s downfall is not crime but pride. He would rather be wrong than be humbled. The film exposes how masculine pride can sabotage the very life a man longs for.
E. Redemption Through Honest Work
The film’s moral center is simple:
A man becomes new not by wishing but by working.
The job, the marriage, the daily discipline—these are the sacraments of rehabilitation.
4. Hospitality Pairing — The Ex‑Con’s Table
Black coffee — the drink of men rebuilding their lives one shift at a time.
A slice of rye bread — plain, sturdy, honest.
A metal key on the table — symbol of the doors that open only when a man chooses truth.
A sprig of rosemary — remembrance, the courage to face one’s past without being defined by it.
A setting for evenings when you need to remember that second chances are real—but they demand courage, humility, and work.
5. Reflection Prompts
Where am I hiding parts of my story from the people who love me?
What old loyalties or habits still pull at me when I’m tired or afraid?
Where is pride keeping me from receiving mercy?
Who in my life believes in my redemption more than I do?
What small act of honesty or responsibility would move me toward the man I’m meant to be?
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