Intro to Opus Dei founded in Spain in 1928 by Josemaría Escrivá: A Snapshot from the late 1980s.

Posted on July 28, 2024 by portfoliolongo.com

It seems like suddenly Opus Dei is in the news. When I was in the seminary back in the mid-1980s studying to become an ordained Benedictine monk, I came across an article that caught my attention: “The Holy Mafia, Opus Dei: For God, for Country, or for Profit?,” (Atlas August 1966, pp. 28-32). I decided to write a term paper on this organization and its founder, Josemaría Escrivá for a history class assignment. My professor, one of my favorites, suggested that I polish it up and submit it for publication. Eventually, after several rounds of revisions, it was accepted. Click on this link to see a PDF copy from the American Benedictine Review: Escriva’s Opus Dei. You’ll see that my critique was subtler and more indirect than it should’ve been; however, I did manage to raise some questions at the end of the piece that are still unanswered and relevant in my view.

Much has change since this piece was published in 1989:

I left the monastery and priesthood in 1990 and got married in 1993;
the founder of Opus Dei, Rev. Josemaría Escrivá de Balaguer y Albás was canonized in 2002 and subsequently became the Patron Saint of Diabetics among other things; and,
Christian Nationalism has become enmeshed in the political, social, and economic fabric of the US and elsewhere.

My suggestions:

Put your “faith” to work accepting the complexities, ambiguities, and paradoxes of Life;
Embrace the Mystery rather than fearing it or, worse yet, trying futilely to dominate it; and
Use the expression, “one among several” rather than “the one and only.” It’s almost always applicable. The Catholic Church, like all organizations and institutions, is not a monolith. You might be surprised to learn how heterodoxical and dynamic it is; but, that can be said about everything! Don’t fear pluralism or lifelong learning. As another seminary professor once said, “Heaven is reserved for people who like surprises.” Click here for additional assistance.

Josemaria Escriva, a freehand, digital iPad art painting done in the Sketch Club app using an Apple Pencil

In-between Space: Piedmont Revelers Revisited

Posted on June 4, 2022 by portfoliolongo.com

An old piece of mine, the “Piedmont Revelers,” was selected back in early May (2022) for
“The Space Between” Digital Art Online Exhibit – at the Cape Cod Art Center. The emphasis on “in-between space” intrigued me: “The challenge we were asking you to think about is the space in between. Some may have interpreted it literally as the space between objects. Where the space is implied within the context of an image, for example a cityscape, in between buildings. Perhaps a landscape or seascape that represents a meditative space. Or the image may describe a very personal journey where you enter a transitional space, abandoning the familiar in search of new ways of being. All interpretations were considered.” See my Art Shows page.

Piedmont Revelers

The Bible: Crystal Ball or Mirror?

Posted on June 16, 2018 by portfoliolongo.com

I know a little bit about the bible. I have an M.Div. for Christ’s sake; it’s one of three graduate degrees for Pete’s sake! I may no longer be an ordained Benedictine monk, but I sure as Hell sat through my share of biblical studies, theology, even some Greek and Latin courses. Most of them were interesting, some even fascinating. I had a brilliant seminary professor, one of several like that, in fact, who approached the study of sacred scriptures from a literary-criticism perspective, steeped in critical hermeneutics, semiology, and philology…right up my alley. He planted the following image in my mind. I’ll let you draw your own conclusions; but, I find it interesting that the image conjures up a ton of contrasting and startling questions about how religion is used by some to predict and control (i.e. dominate) on one hand, and how, on the other hand, it’s used by others simply to deepen one’s appreciation of the Mystery of Life and come to terms with the ethical implications of that universally-applicable and humbling factor.

Check out Smoke and Mirrors here on this illustroblog, please.

click on image to enlarge

Reddin’ Up for Pete’s Sake

Posted on November 4, 2016 by portfoliolongo.com

I grew up with that gem of an expression, to red up, most likely related to the word “ready.” It means to lightly clean i.e., to make ready. Yep, I’m reddin’ up by posting these four drawings done somewhere between California’s Central Valley and Kauai so I can move on for Pete’s sake.