I'm currently with most of the other priests working in the Diocese of Saskatoon on a week of study days. It's been a great week so far! We've been hearing talks from the one and only Lino Rulli, host of The Catholic Guy Show on SiriusXM's The Catholic Channel. Lino has been presenting to us about communicating our hope to our parishes and the world around us, and he's given us a ton of great, practical tips. He's a very engaging presenter who's been sparking lots of discussion among the priests.
I've listened to his show for almost a couple of years. Lino presents his faith in a real, lived way that is both wildly entertaining and inspires us to keep on trying, relying on grace. Check out his website to listen to his podcasts, which are a weekly "best of" show. And if you have Sirius or XM satellite radio, he's on channel 129 Monday-Friday from 2-5pm CST (4-7pm Eastern).
(Oh, and before I forget: Definitely check out his fantastic new book, Sinner: The Catholic Guy's Funny, Feeble Attempts to Be a Faithful Catholic! It's available at Amazon.com or where ever fine books are sold, such as Universal Church Supplies.)
As many of you know, we are beginning to show the incredible Catholicism series in Watson. This is the 10 part miniseries that was created by Fr. Robert Barron, a priest in Chicago.
Well, it's now Lent, and so this other reflection by the same Fr. Barron somehow seemed appropriate. (Be sure to check out his many reflections on his Youtube page!) In this video, he looks at the Biblical readings behind Bob Dylan's famous "All Along the Watchtower." The lyrics are based on Isaiah -- and also on the human struggle for goodness and justice, especially as it's existed in the past decades. These are shown to ultimately find their redemption and fulfillment in the death and resurrection of Jesus.
Check it out!
(At least until Ash Wednesday. Then it turns to purple.)
There has been a lot of action off the field for the CFL in general and the Roughriders in particular the past few days! The free agency period opened up on Wednesday. In recent days the Riders have signed two talented Canadian offensive linemen, a Canadian DB, import running backs -- among others. The Canadian O-linemen in particular should help a lot!
On the downside, the Riders lost several players. Cary Koch was signed by Edmonton and star receiver Andy Fantuz went to play closer to home, in Hamilton. Finally, Gene Makowsky, one of the best O-linemen to ever play the game, retired. He is now a member of the Saskatchewan Legislature. Thanks for the memories, Geno!
(Makowsky is the big guy who inspired the name of this web site in the above clip...)
Since moving out to Watson, I have been using (and mostly enjoying) Bell TV over satellite. The PVR works great, the digital HD quality is superb (I'd say, even better than Shaw cable was in Saskatoon), and the channel choice has been great.
Until now.
I recently received this notice in the mail:
Effective April 19, 2012, the Salt and Light channel will no longer be part of the Bell TV channel lineup and you will no longer be charged the $2.50 monthly fee for this channel.
Salt and Light TV is a Canadian, Catholic channel which produces a lot of fantastic, original content and also broadcasts major Catholic events. For an example of what they do, check out the recently-released documentary, "Put Out Into The Deep". I'll certainly miss it from the lineup.
On Bell's part, I'm not sure what the thinking is. They have so many redundant channels that I cannot imagine that bandwidth is the issue. I have, by my count, at least 3-4 each of the major US networks (NBC, CBS, ABC, Fox) in high definition (HD). I have about the same number of each in standard definition (SD). I have two TSN HD feeds. Two each of the various regional Sportsnet feeds in HD. Discovery World HD appears twice, as does TLC HD and National Geographic HD. And, again, there are duplicates of almost all of this in SD. There is even a high definition channel that is dedicated to a freaking aquarium.
There is clearly ample bandwidth available on their satellite feed for a uniquely Canadian SD channel.
But if Catholics in Canada want a Canadian-produced network in SD that is loaded with Canadian content (hello, CRTC!), we can't get it on Bell (or Shaw satellite, for that matter).
What's up with that?
Bell, please do the right thing and restore Salt and Light TV!
A few years ago my alma mater - St. Joseph Seminary and Newman Theological College in Edmonton - were required to move and rebuild due to a massive highway project. The new seminary and college buildings are now on the grounds of the pastoral centre for the Archdiocese of Edmonton.
And they are beautiful! Salt and Light TV produced a documentary about the new seminary and its mission in the life of the church. You can now view this inspirational documentary online:
The incredible Fr. Robert Barron comments on evangelization and the need for joy, which springs forth from our friendship with Jesus Christ. Check it out!
I'm currently with most of the other priests working in the Diocese of Saskatoon on a week of study days. It's been a great week so far! We've been hearing talks from the one and only Lino Rulli, host of The Catholic Guy Show on SiriusXM's The Catholic Channel. Lino has been presenting to us about communicating our hope to our parishes and the world around us, and he's given us a ton of great, practical tips. He's a very engaging presenter who's been sparking lots of discussion among the priests.
I've listened to his show for almost a couple of years. Lino presents his faith in a real, lived way that is both wildly entertaining and inspires us to keep on trying, relying on grace. Check out his website to listen to his podcasts, which are a weekly "best of" show. And if you have Sirius or XM satellite radio, he's on channel 129 Monday-Friday from 2-5pm CST (4-7pm Eastern).
(Oh, and before I forget: Definitely check out his fantastic new book, Sinner: The Catholic Guy's Funny, Feeble Attempts to Be a Faithful Catholic! It's available at Amazon.com or where ever fine books are sold, such as Universal Church Supplies.)
