Catholic Land Movement

Living this Life

2012-02-17T13:42:00.003-06:00

Two days, a beehive, a hoophouse, and several......dozen splinters later, I finally have time to post again. Spring is coming, but on this little piece of earth it seems as though it never left. Now admittedly we did get a couple inches of snow this week (it's already melted), but we've been averaging 50 with some days in the 60's. Under these weather conditions I could have grown cold-hardy vegetables all winter long without covers! I just might try it next year....it will probably be cold next winter, and of course March and April blizzards are not uncommon in southern Kansas. I have been giddy lately with the numerous blessings God has bestowed on us. We received 5 inches of rain in one day, and that ended the drought in this part of Kansas. We have many, many people contacting us about the CSA thanks to some unpaid advertisement on the part of friends. One woman has sent 3 people our way and said she has another 3. I love this life. It is not all sparkles and sunshine. In fact it is mostlydirt and hard work, but I wouldn't trade it for anything. This is family-oriented farming, and it is the reason I threw all caution to the wind to pursue this pearl of great price.

I don't know how many people out there are able to throw everything to the wind and pursue their dream. I have been particularly blessed to be in a position to pursue this life. How many days I sat staring out my office window as a teacher wishing, hoping, and praying that I might escape. I loved my students, and my fellow teachers. Teaching was a beautiful and dignified profession, but I wanted to farm. There are many others out there who would like to do this, and I'd like to encourage you to pursue it. Do what you can where you are, and if God opens a window, jump! I admit that I am starting to get some gray hairs, and I might be thinning up top. At times my ignorance seemed insurmountable, but once passing through the fire and being hardened in the fires of experience, I came out stronger. I desire to train others in this way of life. I'm not yet sure how I will go about this. I also desire Catholic community to support one another, but yet again, where do I start? I guess I start with my own family. i start with my own children. I hope that raising them close to the earth on "good ground" I might give them a chance to bear "30, 60, 100fold." I believe that is the dream and the hope of the Catholic Land Movement. It's not just about getting back to the land, but rather it is about getting back to the land for the sake of the family, community, society, and the Church. It is not the individualistic abandonment of society seen in the 60's, but rather a way to make our culture stronger by building real culture around the hearth in our homes. My oldest daughter is delighted because Daddy has a greenhouse again. She remembers playing in my greenhouse last year. She remembers planting watermelons and sunflowers. These memories will form her, and, God-willing, maker her into a virtuous young lady. I love living this life and I will be perfectly happy being a peasant farmer so long as I can be a peasant farmer at home where I belong.

Pax,
Kevin

In Thanksgiving

2012-02-07T20:18:00.001-06:00

As the days have begun to pass on our new farm we have been busy preparing taxes, tilling seed beds, and of course worrying about how we would make it to the growing season. We have been so busy with paper work that I have had little time or energy to post here. I'd like to share my experience over the last week or so because it is important for people to hear about the realities of having your own small-scale farm. Yet, really this is a post in thanksgiving for all the ways God provides for me and my family daily.

About a week ago my wife and I went into the local tax store to do our taxes. This is the same thing we have done for the last four years, but this year was different. This year we had our own business, a very modest income, and several other problematic tax situations. We sat down......3 hours later we left frustrated. The tax professional seemed to know less than we did, and worst of all she was telling us that we would probably end up owing rather than getting a return. That was problematic for a family as poor as we are. We were depending on that return to cover several items, without which, we could not farm this year. We went home and began one of the most difficult financial and paperwork oriented weeks in our marriage. As we drove home I pondered what I was going to do, and as has happened so often in my life, I heard that quiet voice inside saying: "Prepare to be tremendously blessed."

Today we finally finished our taxes. It was a heroic hurdle in a difficult week. However, today was a day of "tremendous blessings." I've sat the last week pondering what I could sell so that I could purchase supplies to farm with this year. We even made a list of what we could sell, and posted a few things on Craigslist. Both my wife and I were prepared to part with things we really loved to keep our dream alive. Today began cold, rainy, and dreary. We were up half the night because the neighbors separated a cow and calf and the cow was so noisy we couldn't sleep. Then our youngest woke up at 5:40 this morning and let us know that the day had begun. However, a bad start doesn't always mean a bad end.

Today was a day of blessings because today both my wife and I realized just how well God's plan for us always works out. Tonight I look back on the day and can hardly believe what God has done. We are receiving a modest refund that will get us through. However, God used our difficulties with our taxes to open me up to doing some searching. Today I went into the FSA (Farm Service Agency) and talked to a very kind woman about a beginning farmer loan. (very small loan with very very low interest) It will provide some equipment for the farm that will make farming much better for me. I then walked across the hall and went to the NRCS office and talked about a high tunnel grant that the state is offering. It looks like we qualify for a 2000sq ft. greenhouse for nothing.... I couldn't believe it. We also might qualify for a grant for an irrigation well that we desperately need, and could not afford. This is all on top of the fact that our CSA has been suddenly rapidly filling with members because a kind local Raw Milk Farmer sent our information out to his customers. It has been truly a day of tremendous blessings. We have everything we need to continue what we feel God wants us to do. Now all I have to do is learn to trust more.

Kevin

A Reflection on Life and Death

2012-02-02T21:44:00.000-06:00

Every moment holds within it the chance of greatness. Every moment we are given possesses the possibility of a total self-surrender to God's will. It is here in the present that we live. Here we sit upon the precipice we know as life. A mere dot on the great cosmos, we exist for a moment then we are gone. No more than a breathe is the distance between the time of our creation and that moment we stand upon the brink of eternity. I've been given alot to reflect on the last week or so. I was given the news that one of my aunts, who is one of my favorite relatives, has only a short time to live. She was diagnosed with a very aggressive form of pancreatic cancer. I spent a day this week assisting my brother and some other men in building a ramp so that my aunt will be able to get into her home in a wheel chair. A simple work of mercy for someone who suddenly has found herself at that last crossroads before she crosses a misty sea to the white shores of a final hope. All of life is a preparation for death. Too few of us prepare well for it. As my wife and I prepare taxes for our first year of farming, it is easy to get caught up in all the noise and obligations of this moment. I know how easily my own frail trust in God's infinite love and mercy are shaken. When you jump out of the boat and do what I've done in leading a charge back onto the land, it is easy to take your eyes off the Lord and begin to sink in the waves.

My discernment in becoming an oblate at Clear Creek Abbey has helped me stay focused in the midst of the turmoil of the present darkness. "Ut in omnibus glorificetur Deus." That in all things God may be glorified. This is an important theme in the Rule of St. Benedict. Really it is the central them in the life of a Christian. Whether life or death, may God be glorified. The Rule has helped me to ground my daily life in a rhythm of prayer. No, I can't pray the whole traditional Benedictine Office. I wasn't called to be a monk, I was called to be a husband and father. Yet, I can pray throughout the day at specific times and places. I can make my life into a rhythm that follows the rhythm of life in Christ. I know someday I will sit upon the precipice of death. I pray that I will be given the sight to see the world beyond. It is easy to worry about our present day to day life, but we must not forget that the things of this world are passing away. In the end this world will perish in fire, and the New Jerusalem shall come down from Heaven. A new heaven and a new earth await. What a glorious day it will be! Until then we live here in this present darkness. We live in the last age of the world, and it is the Christian age. We have been blessed beyond measure with a few moments of life upon this earth, may we all be open to the grace to live them with full faith in Christ. I have chosen to live a simple life for Christ. It is a life where life and death meet on a daily basis. "For unless a grain of wheat die it remaineth but a single grain." I marvel at the tiniest seed that produces a livelihood from the land. This life is a good life. It is a reminder daily of where I've come from, and where I will go, and it offers hope that though the seed is buried it bear much fruit. This is the life God has chosen for me. Here on the land he speaks to me. When I scoop up the freshly worked dirt and smell the humus I know that I am man, and that I am dust, and that unto dust I shall return. Yet in the dust lies the seed of life, and hope of eternal life.

Kevin

A Beautiful Life

2012-01-24T20:53:00.000-06:00

I didn't know what I was missing at home until I came home to see it myself. The last two days have been exhausting. I have tilled a new market garden plot with a tiller I nicknamed "The Beast." It usually gets the better of me, but it gets the job done. I chopped down a row of "runner" trees springing up where some stumps sit along the driveway. I didn't use power tools, just an ax, hatchet, bowsaw, and hand pruners. The ole' drive is looking a whole lot better. Though I'm a bit sore, I'm content. That was one of the things missing when I was teaching....soreness. I couldn't have imagined life would be this good. I never thought it would be possible for me to make a go at it as an organic farmer, but it is truly sweet to taste the fruit of your labor. How I love to scoop up that freshly worked dirt and smell its goodness. The work is good, but what makes it most beautiful is the reason for doing what I am doing. How wonderful it is to hear "Dada" echoing out through the windows when I walk by and our youngest catches a glimpse of her Daddy. She is the outgoing type. She also wants to confront her fears. Her grandma brought her out while I was tilling yesterday. She wanted to go see the tiller. Amazing for a 14 mo. old. Our oldest is sweet and dreamy. She loves her paper dolls and books. She also loves to help daddy in the garden. I am seeing these two little flowers bloom before my eyes. Most of this blooming would have happened in my absence had I not made the choice to come home. So much I would have missed. What a joy it is to lead my family in the Angelus at our noon meal, and to be there when they arise in the morning. Our home is a safe home, and a home where Mommy and the girls know that Daddy is here and there is nothing to be afraid of. We live, work, laugh, and pray together. Many a noon Angelus is interrupted by the scratching sound of a cat hanging from the screen of the window by the dining room. Many an evening is filled with music from the piano, and the giggling screeches of little girls doing "laps" through the house. This is our life, and it is a beautiful life.

Kevin

CLM Donation Link

2012-01-20T14:32:00.003-06:00

I have posted a new CLM donation link to the sidebar. It is a donation to the IHS Press Groups campaign, which will include the establishment of an official CLM. This will include a new fully functional website along with other important things. It will provide the context for a much wider CLM.

Pax,
Kevin

An Authentic Agriculture

2012-01-19T09:12:00.000-06:00

Today we refer to what the giant monoculture farmers do as agriculture. This is actually a misnomer. What the vast majority of farmers do today is in actuality agribusiness. This is an important and essential distinction. This is the dividing line between those who support the work of the Catholic Land Movement and the Distributist ideal, and those who support the modern Capitalist/Socialist system and the industrialized farming model. We have to go to the roots of these two words to understand their distinction.

"Agri" - means in its original context, the cultivation of the soil. It gives no hint as to how or why this is done, but tells us that it is done.

"Culture" - All of those activities, customs and traditions, religious, political, social, aesthetic, and otherwise that make up the life of a civilization.

"Business" - The buying and/or selling of goods for the purpose of making a profit.

It is here that we see the essential difference between agriculture and agribusiness. Agriculture is a way of cultivating the soil that builds up the life of the family and thus society. This rural existence provides "the ideal nursery for family life." as Pope Piux XII once stated. Thus this building up of strong families builds up strong societies. Agribusiness is the cultivation of the soil for the purpose of making a profit. This way of working the land often destroys culture and even the land cultivated. The purpose is to make as much money as possible so that any possible means are used in the production of goods. In our own day this has led to genetic manipulation of crops, wide-scale destruction of productive farmland, the use of an abundance of poisons on fields, and an over reliance on petroleum-based fertilizers. Not the least is the fact that along with this constant seeking after profit has come the astounding decrease in family farms. Diversification has ceased, because it is more "profitable" to mono-crop. This tendency towards the monopolization of farmland for the sake of profit can only be stopped by those families willing to build up an authentic agriculture.

The agriculture that every great civilization is built upon is an agriculture that supports the life of the family. The constant contact with nature provides the natural revelation upon which can be built the divine revelation of Jesus Christ. The work of the homestead provides real meaning and purpose to parents and children. Women have an authentic economic role in the life of the family as they fulfill their roles on the farm. Children are given meaningful tasks with real consequences. When Johnny drops the basket of eggs, the family has none for breakfast. The constant rhythm of the seasons builds on the constant rhythm of the liturgical year. The family, being free from constraints of a "city job" are free to truly celebrate the feasts of Holy Mother Church. This is agriculture in its authentic understanding. This is a way of cultivating the soil that cultivates the soul as well. When business is a sort of accident rather than the purpose of farming, then we will begin to build upon an authentic agrarianism. At that point strong families will be built up into strong communities, and these in turn will be the building blocks for a restoration of Christendom.

Pax,
Kevin

Where the Wild Wind Blows (An Ode to Home)

2012-01-15T15:41:00.000-06:00

I sometimes wonder if the real reason that Western Kansas was once know as the Wild West was because of the wind! Those who have never been to this part of the world on one of our windy days simply won't understand. Chicago is known as the windy city, but its average wind speed is significantly less that that of Dodge City, KS. Not only is our wind stronger, but it is unobstructed. For that matter the sunsets are hard to beat too...

This is just an ode, a tribute to out here where the wild wind blows. Where once the prairie stood and now the endless sea of wheat. A place where a piece of my heart will always be even if my body is gone. It is a place that has formed me and now forms me again. Not by chance do things such as this happen, but by the hand of Providence and the benevolence of Almighty God.

As I took a walk this Sunday afternoon I felt the wild wind blow about my face and through my soul.
A touch of heaven reminding me of the sound of a rushing wind and indwelling of the Spirit of God.
That peace is found where we walk with God, and a rememberance of a Garden long ago.
We find him in the frosted starry sky, the wild wind, and the glowing horizon.
There He is, for we can know Him.

Romans 1:20
For the invisible things of him, from the creation of the world, are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made; his eternal power also, and divinity: so that they are inexcusable.

Pax,
Kevin

CLM Networking

2012-01-14T08:48:00.000-06:00

Week after week I get emails coming in from people across the globe asking questions about the Catholic Land Movement (CLM), and week after week I must tell them that there is no formal organization. We are in need of something more. There are literally thousands of Catholics of all stripes out there who would like a way to be connected and to bring some organization to the desire of the families and individuals who want a return to an agrarian/distributist Catholic life. I would like to set forth a couple of possible proposals. This blog has long been the endeavour of one layman, but the original CLM was much more. It was both organized and each group while connected was quite autonomous. With modern technology we have the possibility of having much more communication between various groups and organizations. I have two proposals I will now put forward. Please let me know your thoughts and if you are interested in either or both.

1. Catholic Land Newsletter: Most movements begin their organizational stage through the dissemination of ideas. The letter could become the basis for this. Its format could be either electronic or written. We need writers for this endeavour! If I can get half a dozen interested in writing then I will put this together. I would probably then upgrade everything I am doing to a better site online so as to keep everything up to date, but I am a technological ignoramus and would need assistance in creating a site. I have access to approximately two hundred emails that could be sent the first newsletter.

2. Catholic Land Conference: This idea has been floating around in my head for some time. We would need a location that could house us. We also would need funds for advertisement, etc. Clear Creek might host us as they did the Dr. Senior Colloquium, but many would have to stay in local hotels, etc. We would need a few speakers, but I think the first conference would simply be a get together to organize the movement.

These are my two ideas for a start. They are not grand, but a simple beginning. All great things begin simply. The life of our Lord is just such an example. I need to hear from those of you who have expressed interest in organizing this movement. We need to be reminded that the enemy never sleeps. We can undoubtedly be assured that the enemies of the Church are highly organized and carry out their plans with ferocity. We too must be equally organized, and realizing our weakness, allow our Lord to carry out in us all of His plans.

Pax Christi sit semper vobiscum,
Kevin

The Rule of St. Benedict and Family Life

2012-01-11T12:06:00.000-06:00

I am currently discerning becoming an oblate at Clear Creek Abbey. I have been praying about this and reading the rule of St. Benedict (again) to aid in discernment. As I read through the chapters and meditate on the wisdom of the Holy Father of Western Monasicism I am struck by the uniqueness of the Rule. St. Hildegard of Bingen referred to St. Benedict as a second Moses because like Moses he gave a rule of life. The monastery is meant to be the ideal place and environment in which to strive for Christian perfection. However, I am not a monk, nor are the majority of the readers of this blog. Most of us are fathers and mothers of children, or single people still discerning their vocations. Thus as I read the Rule I am struck most acutely by how well it pertains to the rule and order of family life. The wisdom pertained therein isn't only for those in religious life, but provides a basis for the restoration of Catholic Culture in the home as well.

As I read the Rule I begin to understand that the secret to the success of monasteries is really all in order. St. Benedict set up a life for his monks that flowed from one thing to another. Idleness, the great enemy of the soul, has no place in a monastery faithful to the Rule. Ora et Labora provide a constant rhythm of life, which when followed carefully, guides the soul to a more perfect union with Christ. Undoubtedly, at times the good Saint is quite strict, and yet his Rule is known for being quite moderate and therein lies its secret of success. As Abbot Phillip Anderson of Clear Creek once pointed out: (paraphrased the early monks tried to pray all day and simply went crazy, they couldn't do. St. Benedict gave an approach to life that was balanced and fulfilled man's nature. St. Benedict warns of the pleasures of the world. This morning I read how the road of pleasures leads to the gates of hell, and recently that the brothers ought not to pamper themselves. He recognizes the slippery slope that the world offers and instead offers the high road to perfection.

It is not reasonable that a family could do everything that the rule offers, suggests, or demands. Rather that family can adapt it to their own needs and desires. A family could not be expected to pray the 8 times a day required in the Rule, but they could pray part of the Divine Office together, or at least have set prayer times. The Rule has much to say for families today in their brokenness. I hope that some of you will take some time to read the Rule and see what it has to offer.

Pax,
Kevin

On Going it Alone

2012-01-08T13:10:00.001-06:00

After several posts about community, I'd like to post now on the reality of the current situation with regard to those trying to live an authentically Catholic agrarian life. With the exception of those who happen to find themselves in a rural bastion of Catholicism, most of us are out here on the land....alone. Yes, we have our families, and some even have another family within an hour or so who somewhat share their convictions, but the life on the land can be lonely at the current time. Chesterton pointed out in the "Outline of Sanity" that those who would initially make the leap into this life would have to endure many extreme hardships and sacrifices. I suppose it is not so dire as I (a true blue melancholic) make it out to be, but it sure would be nice to have at least one family up the road to have over for supper at times and to share work, prayer, and life with. However, this always leaves us with a dilemma, which I pointed out in the previous post. If another family comes to live near you, and that is the sole purpose of them moving, what then happens if you and your family have to move away or choose to move away. If you were the reason they moved, rather than a center of Catholic life being the reason, then great pressure is exerted upon both families to stay, even if it against their better judgment.

So it is that we are out here on the prairies of southern Kansas on the outskirts of a town with a half-dozen empty houses, an empty school, and a nearly empty Church. Yet, unless by some miracle we had a priest from a traditional order take over, we will remain alone out here, and it is likely that this Church, which still has a Sunday Mass, and where we can visit the Blessed Sacrament, will also be empty. I ask myself often why we are out here, and I certainly ask it of God in prayer quite often. Our boxes are not yet fully unpacked, the ground is not yet worked, and winter sits on this quiet plot of ground. This is my time to sit, to ponder, to wonder at what in the world God is doing with me and with my family. To what purpose is this little farmstead going to be used. I cannot tell the future, and I do not know how many months, years, or decades will pass for us out here. It is a piercingly beautiful place to live. We have a cozy home with West facing windows that show both the ending of the day in brilliant array, and the gathering storms that you only find here in the heartland. I sit and I ponder wondering if some day our house will sit on the edge of a truly Catholic village, or if someday the town will be empty. I know not the plans of providence, but I hope that someday, somehow I will see my family in the midst of a Catholic village.

Pax,
Kevin

Towards Community

2012-01-06T21:48:00.000-06:00

I just finished Aidan Nichol's O.P. book "Looking at the Liturgy." It was a great read and I gleaned some inspiration for a post regarding community from a comment he made about the liturgical movement and in particular Dom Gueranger O.S.B. He notes that Dom Gueranger recognized that: "Like happiness, community is not produced by aiming at it directly; rather, it is a vital, indirect consequence of immersion in other things." (p. 42) Oddly, in a book about the liturgy I finally found put into words the sentiments I had been trying to put forth for quite some time. Community is not an end in itself, but rather a means to an end. Also, this community is not something one can create, but rather something that is created through other things. Eric Brende in his book "Better Off" recognized this reality amongst the Old Order Amish with whom he lived and worked for two years. He noted that gatherings were never an end in themselves, but there was always a purpose for gathering (i.e. work, etc.) Thus, the pressure to be social (i.e. build community) was negated because the goal was not socialization, but the building of a barn or the canning of vegetables. It was in these other things that the community took shape and authentic bonds were formed.

The idea of a Catholic Agrarian Community is destined to remain just an idea so long as we are seeking to form a community for the sake of forming a community. There must be something beyond the community, another "something" that is the bond for those who would seek such a life. Fleeing the world will never be sufficient cement to hold together such a group. Nor could such a community hope to flourish if those in it were there based on some nostalgia for a simpler way of life or a love of the land. Such endeavours are ill-fated because the unity is too fragile. Again Eric Brende contests to this in his failed attempt with several other families to mimic the Old Order Amish along Catholic lines. The glue for community life must be something beyond the community itself. I believe that too often the community becomes the end in and of itself and the fragility of human nature is destined to break such unity.

I look for the model of unity in the institution that has served the Church for more than 1500 years: monastic life. The unity of monasteries is very strong so long as their focus on living a life for and only for the Glory of God is central. "Ut in omnibus glorificetur Deus" (That in all things God may be glorified.) Dom Gueranger put forth an idea of "social prayer." This is a far cry from the idea that we must create liturgies that have the creation of community as their natural end. Rather Dom Gueranger says that the quest for community is tied to mystery. Fr. Nichols states about Gueranger's litrugical theology: " Community is to be found in the rites as an emergent property of their disciplined form." (p. 43) Again he writes: " It is by acceptance through faith of our composition into a supernatural unity through a preexisting rite that community is engendered, not by the devising of new or adapted rites that have the creation of community as their immediate end." (p. 42) Liturgically speaking, when the liturgy becomes centered on the people, and the focus on the true worship of God is weakened, then the community, rather than being built up is damaged or even destroyed. It is by the removal of the focus on the self and together Conversi ad Dominum (Turn toward the Lord) that we become one... a true community.

This all relates to the idea of Catholic agrarian community because without the center of Catholic life (orthodox Catholic parish, monastery, etc.) then the community becomes an end in itself. There must be something beyond community to create community. That is our hope for a renewal of Catholic life and Catholic agrarian life. Small communities centered around the worship of the One True God.

Pax,

Kevin

The Move and Christmas

2011-12-24T07:55:00.001-06:00

In just a few days I will be moving with my family to our new farm. We have a semi trailer full of our farm equipment and most of our household goods. I ask your prayers, for this will be a big change in our lives. I will probably be away from this blog for a little while, but I promise to return. I may be able to slip in a post or two from borrowed internet until we get our up and running at the new homestead... now on to another thought.

The world is noisy as I alluded to in my last post, but tonight we prepare for the silent coming of a little baby. Tonight as a world sleeps from its wearied wanderings, a stable becomes the house of God, and a manger His bed. To those of us in the agrarian life or leaning that way, this is a marvelous and real occurrence. We who have filled the manger with hay for the feeding of the animals can better marvel that the Christ Child would humble himself to be laid in a feeding trough. The Advent hymn has harkened "Rorate caeli" - Come down ye heavens. Tonight, is the night of the revelation of Him who was made incarnate in the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Tonight, the countryside is silent and the shepherds are well prepared to receive "good tidings of great joy." I believe the country life prepares us well to receive Him who chose Nazareth as His home and Bethlehem for His birth. May your hears be prepared well this night to receive well the Christ Child in the poor mangers of our hearts. Merry and Blessed Christmas to all of the readers of this blog. Thank you for sharing this journey with me, and may you be abundantly blessed as I have been.

Pax et Bonum,

Kevin

In Search of Silence

2011-12-13T08:11:00.003-06:00

Noise...it is everywhere. Find a refuge where I can sit in silence and encounter my dear Sweet Jesus and I shall never part from it. It comes to me early in the morning as my wife and children are still in bed and I sit in silence saying my morning prayers that the need for silence is one of the greatest in the spiritual life. It has been on silent retreats to country churches that my wife and I have been able to discern some of the most momentous changes in our lives. In the silence of those boxy churches we have often discerned realities and desires of our Lord contrary to what we had previously thought. I suppose this is why when I visit Clear Creek Abbey I don't want to leave, and I pine to return to the rhythm of a life centered on prayer, work, and silence. Yet, such is not my lot in life. I happily rise early before the sun to steal from the remaining night hours a bit of that silence where I may see my Lord and hear His voice in the depths of my heart. It is the country life too that assist me in living with Christ day by day. It is here, hour after hour planting tomatoes or beans or anything else that I can walk towards Emmaus and the greater revelation of our Lord "in the breaking of the bread." I suppose this way of life naturally leads one to a desire for the Extraordinary Form. When one spends day after day in the silence of created splendor, he desires no the noise of the modern mass. To sit in silence and encounter our Lord is the foretaste of Heaven, and to receive Him body, blood, soul, and divinity is the desire of our hearts. Fr. Chad Ripperger FSSP says the following about silence:

"We have already mentioned the silence that is necessary to ascend the heights of prayer. While it is not required for vocal prayer, it is required for mental prayer and the other seven levels of prayer. St. Augustine said that no person can save his soul if he does not pray. Now it is a fact that mental prayer and prayer in general have collapsed among the laity (and the clergy, for that matter) in the past thirty years. It is my own impression that this development actually has to do with the ritual of the Mass. Now in the new rite, everything centers around vocal prayer, and the communal aspects of the prayer are heavily emphasized. This has led people to believe that only those forms of prayer that are vocal and communal have any real value."

I desire the silence where I can adore our Lord with the hosts of Angels and Saints. This world and its passing shadows left behind me at the threshold of the Church, I go forward in silence to behold Him in His Holy Tabernacle. A rural life is a silent life. It leads to greater meditation and contemplation of the higher things. It predisposes us to desire the greatest union with God possible. I desire silence that I might know Him who can be best known in silence.

Pax Christ,
Kevin

Ancient Sounds

2011-12-12T07:43:00.002-06:00

The midnight hour cometh
Yet slumber does the Church
Shall she wake to face dragon foe
or be devoured while yet on her couch

Ancient defense most holy and reverent
Sound of silence and chant mysterious
Revive your bride lest she be lost
Teach her again such ancient form

Call O Lord to her this night
Recall her mem'ry to rite almost forgotten
Awaken in her the mystery and truth
Of worship in her native tongue

For all hope is not yet lost
Sleeper slumber no more
Send out from steeple and loft
Beauties from the ancient treasury

Let your ancient song be sung
Again in your own voice be heard
And upon your altar your Holy Sacrifice
Beheld in silent adoration

Let your people come again
To Calvary made present
And renew again with You
A bloodless Covenant of Love

(Composed on a retreat at Clear Creek Monastery in 2009)
Pax,
Kevin

Traditional Catholicism and Rural Life

2011-12-08T21:14:00.001-06:00

Today, those of us who desire to be a part of a Traditional Catholic Community are often forced to travel long distance to attend Mass in the usus antiquior. This is even more true for those of us who believe that a Catholic rural life is essential for healthy family life. The likelihood of finding a traditional parish in a rural setting is very small. There are those communities forming in places like Clear Creek abbey or St. Mary's Ridge near Cashton, Wisconsin, but most of us are left with an hour or two or three drive. Yet, I think there might be reason for hope in this regard. As so many dioceses struggle with vocations, it may be possible for some of the traditional orders to "pick up the slack." There seems to be an excess of seminarians in all of the traditional orders, and yet the number of apostolates that they minister in is rather small. Possibly as some of these small parishes are suppressed, it might be possible for some of these priests to take over. Everywhere that this has happened strong communities of faithful Catholics have formed. People have been willing to move across the country to be down the road from a Latin Mass. Maybe this is just wishful thinking, but I know many diocese are on the verge of vocation catastrophes. One diocese I know of has an average priestly age of over 65. It takes 8 years to train a new priest. I hope someday this will be a way of restoring Catholic Rural life, but I guess we will have to wait and see.

Pax,
Kevin

Amongst the Heathens

2011-11-25T21:35:00.001-06:00

In ages past there existed strong Catholic identity held in common by groups and communities of people. The expression of this Catholic faith differed from region to region, but the content remained the same. Certain immoral activities were shunned, and to speak ill of our holy Faith was unacceptable. Such is not our present situation, unless by some miracle of God's grace you have found your way or been born into one of those little pockets of fervent Catholicism not dampened by the influx of modernism and materialism. The question comes to me often as the father of two young girls, how much interaction with the world do we need/allow? Certainly, as Catholics we don't go running to hide the light under the bushel basket, but also we must realize that one candle stands little chance to remain lit in our modern ocean of sin. The world today is very different from that of 50, 100, or 500 years ago. The trappings and temptation of the world have always been present, but in past times Catholics found themselves with the community necessary to hold back the waves and the battering winds. Today, not only are the trappings of the world present, but they have seemingly become approved through a sort of democratization of evil by popular consent. Enough lies have been told that we have grown accustomed to them, and in the mean time the evils of the world have crept unnoticed into our homes, communities, and churches. Now, as much as ever before we are in need of fellow true believers to bear the light of Christ together with us. Too many of us no longer even have family to fall back on in matters of faith and morals. Our Lord warned us in Holy Scripture:

Do not think that I came to send peace upon earth: I came not to send peace, but the sword. For I came to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. And a man's enemies shall be they of his own household. He that loveth father or mother more than me, is not worthy of me; and he that loveth son or daughter more than me, is not worthy of me. (Matthew 10: 34-38)

These words of our Blessed Lord have only hit home as I have grown in my own faith and seen the responsibility I bear in raising my children up to be righteous. As our culture heads further down the road of a complete rejection of Christian morals, I can't but meditate upon these words of our Blessed Lord Jesus. They are hard words, but they are words that are real, for the "The Word was made Flesh and dwelt among us." In thinking along these lines I came across the following words of Fr. Faber with regards to Catholics living amongst a large number of non-Catholics and especially heathens as is now the case for many of us.

“Holy Scripture describes life very touchingly as a weary land…. So it is in religion. We cannot live among unbelievers, and enjoy that bright life of the spirit which belongs to those who dwell in ages and regions of faith. They, who lingering in domestic Edens they are loath to leave, consort much with those who are not children of the Church, soon become evidently the worse for it, the moment they live at peace with them and cease trying to convert them. Faith, like holiness, suffers a sort of enervation from such society, and languishes in an uncongenial atmosphere. Hence people get strange views about the easiness of the salvability of heretics, and at last sink to making the kindliness of a doctrine the measure of its truth, and that not kindliness to our dearest Lord or to His one Church, but to those who are not His or hers.”

So it is for us, just as Tolkien says of Frodo, that it is not ours to choose the time in which we live, but rather ours to choose what we will do with the time we have been given. Now for all of us who are leading a family by the light in a dark world, I pray you find other lights amongst your brethren. I pray you find that faithful priest to lead you into the beauty of the liturgy and out of the darkness of modernity. I pray for all of you my friends. You are not alone.

Pax Christi,
Kevin

An Ode to Softball Fields and Life

2011-11-19T08:27:00.001-06:00

I suppose this is an odd post for an agrarian blog, but keep reading and you will understand. I grew up in very rural SC Kansas. During the late summer months, and in fact throughout the summer, there is much work to be done. When I was young, almost everyone I knew was a farmer or a farmer's kid. Recreational time during the busy season was often limited, but one thing I remember throughout my childhood is the softball tournaments that went on in the various small towns near our home. There was one in Zenda, Willowdale, and in my hometown of St. Leo. These names are strange and unfamiliar to most all of you, but to me they are near to my heart. I remember how everyone seemed to stop what they were doing during those hot summer afternoons and evenings to come watch a softball game and to have what basically amounted to one big social event. The children could often be seen playing a game of football just at the edge of the lights beyond the outfield fence.

These memories bring joy and sadness to me now. The fields which once were a center for community life are now overgrown with weeds. Willowdale and Zenda's fields have been given completely over to overgrowth. This summer for the first time in my 27 years of life, a softball tournament was not played in St. Leo. This trend has continued throughout my years of a lessening of real rural life and also rural faith. Too often in my later years the tournament went from a social occasion to an occasion of very real mortal sin with the indulgence of the flesh in various forms prevailing as the softball lights were dimmed. So with the loss of the tournament in St. Leo, I lose a bit of my heart and youthfulness. Our new farm is a mere 1/8 of a mile from that big softball field. Seldom a day will pass without me driving past its mowed outfield. I suppose this is an ode to softball fields and to life because it is a lack of respect for life that has caused the overgrowth to win the day on those old playing fields. Contraception has been embraced even by most Catholics as a "godsend." There are few children to be raised up out in these rural places today. Many have been lured to the cities by its bright lights and promises of earthly delight. I was on the last Tee Ball team to play for the St. Leo Cardinals. After my time, there were no longer enough families with children to put together a team. I was in St. Leo school in 6th grade when the priest announced that the school would be closing its doors permanently. I have experienced in my own being many small deaths of rural life in my short span of years. I hope that someday it may return in some way. Maybe this is an ode, or maybe it is a prayer. My Jesus, Mercy!

Pax Christi,
Kevin

"Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and his Justice, and all these things will be given you besides."

St. Benedict

2011-11-14T08:19:00.001-06:00

(Moved from my now deleted "Restoration of Christian Culture Blog)

1500 years ago a young man fled the streets of Rome and went to live as a hermit. Dismayed with the state of "civilized" culture, this young man went out into the wilderness to pray and to work. He did not seek out disciples. He had no great plan to change the world. Yet, that single solitary soul burning with love for the one who first loved him set the world on fire. St. Benedict was to write a rule, and upon that rule monasteries throughout the world would be formed, and around these monasteries would spring up Christendom. The rule is simple enough to be followed by even the most intellectually deficient brother. Eight hours of prayer, eight hours of work, and eight hours of rest make man holy. One did not need to be a great scholar or orator to follow the maxim that would change the world: Ora et Labora. Today we are in desperate need of a new St. Benedict, or maybe we are in desperate need of a few good men willing to live by that same rule, a rule that endured through the ages. The hope is that, around the monasteries, a few courageous fathers can lead their families to begin again as our own "civilized" culture devours itself in self-indulgence of all sorts.

Today we again need a recommitment to our Catholic cultural heritage. Christendom has collapsed, but hope is not lost if only we are willing to seek first the Kingdom. We must look back at those ideals that formed Christendom and bring them to the forefront in our own times. The novelties of humanistic Enlightenment thinking must be put aside so that the glory of God can again be at the center of a renewal of Christendom. The Mass, from which springs Christendom, must be again the center of our lives. The great chants composed and sung by those great monasteries should be chanted in ever parish Church from the plains of Kansas to the cathedrals of Europe. Priests must learn to be priests, religious to be religious, men to be men, women to be women, and families to be families. We only discover this reality within the traditions of the Holy Catholic faith.

We must find a way of bringing forth Christendom again in our modern times. The challenges that face our modern world are different, but also remarkably the same as those of the past. Sin both public and private has become more and more accepted. This is ultimately what is wrong with the world. It is the original problem, and it must be fought. Yet, also we must look at the traditions of our faith and find ways to make Catholicism more than merely a Sunday visit to the Church. The Liturgy must again become the food of our spiritual lives. The Latin Mass must make a return to every parish everywhere. The Novus Ordo, if it is to remain, needs to be reformed in the light of Tradition, so as to feed the people on the fullness of the faith. Economic systems must be reformed to protect the family first, and to prevent the use and abuse of workers. Distributism as it is often called needs to be practiced wherever groups of orthodox Catholics are found in any reasonable number. Families must live lives centered around the Church, and anything that smacks of modernism or draws the family away from the Church must be discarded and disdained. All of these things and so much more must happen, but the foundation of the Social Reign of Jesus Christ is simple: Ora et Labora.

Pax Christi,
Kevin

Christians and Society

2011-11-13T18:42:00.001-06:00

As I sat today with my family enjoying our Sunday rest, I pondered the appropriate place of Christians in society. I was especially considering our place in modern society with its modern manifestations of evil. In a culture so saturated with sensuality, materialism, and relativism, I am forced to consider to what extent I should participate in our own milieu, and to what extent I must withdraw in order to preserve the innocence of my young children. Certainly, we are called to participate in the building up of a just social order, better named the Social Reign of Christ the King, but the question is: how will this be brought about? Indeed it won't be through government or social reforms. It will ultimately come through the Church and through individuals and families who strive through their own personal and familial holiness to bring this about. I can protest the injustice of laws allowing abortion, contraception, and whatever else is unjust in our society, but ultimately my own personal holiness and the guidance I can give to my family will make a real difference.

I think today too many Catholic families have, in a sense, mainstreamed with the modern culture. Many seemingly good and devout Catholic families are as materialistic and concerned with mammon as the modern pagans. In fact, so many have streamlined their lives to "fit in" with the modern culture, that their is little besides their Sunday Mass attendance that sets them apart from the larger society. Surely we are called to more than this, aren't we? I can see the creeping influence of the culture all around my own family. I strive to fight it off by instilling virtues in my children, and by living a life that is radically different than that of most of our modern world. As Catholics, we live a sacramental life. Too often we tend to think merely in terms of the seven Sacraments of Holy Mother Church, but this is not the only thing I mean when I say "Sacramental Life." Certainly, the seven Sacraments, and especially the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass give us life, but we must also recognize that creation itself is sacramental. Our scientific coldness toward God's immense universe has permeated all aspects of our lives. However, we as Catholics proclaim that outward things have interior spiritual meaning, power, and grace. This is why we must be set apart. Throughout Salvation History God set apart a holy people, first through Israel, and then through the Holy Catholic Church. Through Baptism, we are marked and sealed for Him, and we are to live our lives wholely for Him. This pertains to all aspects of our daily lives. Too often our conformation to the ways of the world has real spiritual significance for us. How we dress, where we live, how we interact with others, all are sacramental in the sense that God can work through these outward signs. Maybe the best way in our broken world to lead others to Christ is to act as a sacrament to others. If our lives are radically oriented toward Christ, then we will certainly lead others to Him and to His Holy Church. This is the beginning of real change in our world.

I think that our modern times are marked with a sort of over-spiritualization of our faith. The individualism of Protestantism has led to a divorce, even in many Catholic lives, between faith and works. It can be seen in the near "canonization" of various people at their funerals. It can be seen in the saying used too often "he's in a better place..." Our faith has become very individualistic, and thus, so long as I love Jesus, it doesn't matter what I wear around. So long as I say my prayers, nothing outwardly matters. The Catholic faith has always been full of smells, bells, and whistles, because we are the faith of the Incarnation. When God was made incarnate of the Virgin Mary the whole universe changed. Now, we who are followers of the Word Incarnate must incarnate that same faith in our lives. Our faith is real; it is as real as the Creator of all things visible and invisible. To make our Catholic faith into a sort of spiritualism has had disastrous effects on the Church. We now have choices to make for our families in the time that we live. How can we incarnate our faith in the modern society?

Pax Christi,
Kevin

Vivat Christus Rex!

Distributist Review Article

2011-11-12T07:29:00.001-06:00

I recently became a Contributor on the Distributist Review Journal. Below is a link to my first article.

From Teacher to Farmer

Pax Christi,
Kevin

It's About Time

2011-11-06T13:46:00.000-06:00

My wife and I prefer to do things as naturally as possible. That includes breastfeeding. Well, our second child was born a year ago on the Feast of All Saints, and it was apparent that from the start that she might have trouble breastfeeding. She was a very sleepy little child, and would take a couple gulps of warm milk and promptly fall asleep. She wasn't able to get enough sustenance so we began tube feeding with a syringe as Mary expelled the milk with the use of an electric pump that we owned. Time went by and our little one got stronger, but couldn't seem to get the hang of breastfeeding. She found Mommy's warmth comforting and either fell asleep or just looked around. We ended up needing to use the pump, and we fed our daughter using a bottle. We had hoped that eventually she would catch on to the breast, but it wasn't meant to be. Now here we are a year later looking back at 365 days each divided into a certain number of pumpings. At first it was every 2 hours, and each pumping took 30-45 minutes. Then it spread to 4 hours and the length remained the same. This persisted throughout the entire growing season. It persisted day and night, and it was a constant strain on our family and our time. I'd like to reflect a bit on this, and upon the role of technology in the family.

Undoubtedly it was good for us to be able to give our daughter real milk rather than that manufactured junk. However, I will not underestimate the immense stress that this little gadged (the breast pump) put upon our family. This morning was the first time in over a year that we weren't running around trying to get everything done before Sunday Mass because of the time taken by pumping. In fact we were plenty early and had time to actually prepare fully for the Holy Sacrifice. This technology had real effects upon our family and our goings and comings. So often we had to pack the pump and the cooler, etc. as we went to town. We had to alot time for it each and every day. It was a great sacrifice for both me and my wife. Our daughters are of course oblivious to such things, thankfully. To me this has been proof of the demands of technology. This doesn't mean that technology is bad, but rather that we must acknowledge that it has demands for time and care. It has been a long hard year. The natural rhythm of family life has been constantly interrupted, but we survived and are so happy to be able to move to our farm and have a family schedule again. We need to recognize the restraints and demands of the technology that we use. It is easy to accept it because it is there, rather than examining it to see if it is truly beneficial. Sometimes the benefits outweight the drawbacks, but other times it is vice-versa.

Pax,
Kevin

Distributism: A Success Story

2011-11-02T13:33:00.003-05:00

What seems to be lacking in much Distributist literature today are examples of success. Well tonight it is going to snow here in our neck of the woods. The harvest is in, and I have time to sit down and reflect on our attempt to farm and sell locally. Typically, businesses have five year plans. This is a plan where the goal is to have a profitable business by the end of year five. Many times these businesses are large, have alot of overhead and start up costs, etc. The debt accumulated starting a business is often crippling to the success of a business. At the beginning of this year we started with a certain sum of money from the sale of our house that we could use to start our business. At the end of the year we had made about $800 more than this. Yes, in the eyes of the world we might not have made much money, but some things have to be taken into consideration. This year I purchased everything I needed to start a farming business. All the start up cost, advertising, etc were covered by that initial sum of money. At least 3/4 of the items purchased for the business will carry over to next year and will not have to be purchased in the near future if ever. This also is taking into consideration that we had the 3rd hottest and driest summer in Kansas history. We had the extreme burden of my ignorance and inexperience, yet we still profited. We had the burden of finding all of our initial customers, yet we still profited. We had the difficulty of an irrigation system hooked to a pond that was half dry by the summer's end, but we were still successful. Small is beautiful. If we had experienced an average summer we would have likely doubled our profit. I had almost no excess for our farmer's markets so I was stuck providing only for the CSA. I would also like to mention that I purchased with the original money most of the items necessary for a second business: a bakery, which did not pay for itself yet. At the end of the season we are still standing, albeit a bit weary and worn and in desperate need of a little R and R.

I would like to say something though that I have realized during this first year. we need a network of people to train the inexperienced and give them a hand up. We lived with in-laws our first year to avoid going deep in debt. We need farms and small businesses that can train apprentices so that they don't have to go through and pay for the mistakes the I went through this year. The CLM needs more organization and more assistance. That is all I will say for now, but keep praying.

Pax,
Kevin

Blog Updates

2011-11-02T07:47:00.001-05:00

I am in the process of updating the blog. I have posted some new articles and have begun a rearrangement of the books along with updating and increasing the list. I have alot to do so look for many changes coming (mostly in the way of additions. I may decide to dismantle my new blog and expand what I am blogging on here on this blog. It will allow me to better care for this blog.

Pax,
Kevin

The Value of Community

2011-11-02T07:13:00.002-05:00

Now that the growing season has come to an end (1-3" of snow tonight) I have some time again both for this blog and for personal reading. I've been working my way through the book Image of Christ: St. Francis of Assissi by Dietrich von Hildebrand. It is a wonderful work because it goes directly in the face of the modern sentimentalization of St. Francis. Today he is often seen merely as a jolly troubadour, but in reality was one of the most perfect images of Christ amongst the many saints of Holy Mother Church. In the most recent section it detailed the importance of community. This relates directly to the CLM because community is one of the major goals of the movement. The author concludes that community has value for two reasons. The first and most obvious is that community provides an environment in which a person may more easily be sanctified. "Iron sharpens iron" as scripture puts it. However, he makes a point that community is not only good for the purpose of personal sanctification, but also has a value in and of itself. For it is clear the the communion of persons is a good in itself. This is seen in the fact that Heaven itself is a great communion of saints, and that Christ Himself prayed "ut unum sint," that they would all be one. Community has an intrinsic value without regard to what it achieves. It manifests the victory of Christ and thus is valuable in itself.

Pax,
Kevin

Agrarian Dilemmas: The Community

2011-10-31T15:17:00.002-05:00

If the Catholic Land Movement (CLM) is to succeed, it is essential that we recognize that the smallest possible unit for success in such an endeavour is the community. The success of one family homesteading is limited by the capacity of work and skills that one family encompasses. The greater the number of families and individuals, the greater the number of skills and goods produced. Here also a greater possibility for an authentic Catholic culture is realized. One family can accomplish much, but their accomplishments will be limited to their family. They will never experience a wider Catholic culture except in their own parish life, and this will be dependent on the vigour and dynamic of that specific parish. It is in this light that we must examine the possibility of moving forward with the CLM.

I am in the preparation phase of moving my family to a farm in the middle of nowhere in southern Kansas. It was with hesitancy that we made this decision, but we eventually discerned this as the will of God for our family, at least for now. It will allow us to hone our farming skills that we already possess, and expand our repertoire of skills as well. Hopefully, it will be a farm where we can teach other Catholics some of these skills and act as a springboard into the farming lifestyle. Yet, I believe it is in the community that hope for the CLM can be realized. The difficulty lies in finding those with the courage, resilience, and skill to take on a task such as this. The question also remains with regard to location. A location with an established orthodox group of Catholic faithful seems a given. To start from scratch seems an almost impossible fantasy. So it remains my hope that my family and I will be able to train others in farming skills as well as introducing them to an authentically Catholic life. Hopefully, I can break down the idealistic fantasies in others that I began with myself. The grindstone of reality hit hard this summer as work in 113 degree heat often turned to drudgery. The reality of watching an entire planting of crops whither under the burden of an unrelenting drought was enough to shake me out of my fantasy and drop me squarely into reality. It is my hope, however, that I can offer a vision that is beautiful, as well as real, to others of like mind without using the same grindstone that at times nearly broke me.

Community is the smallest unit of an agrarian ideal. The family alone on the land still depends highly upon the structures of an industrialized society. Even the Amish are not truly self-sufficient, but rather purchase most all of the basic needs of life from the local Wal-Mart. Few are there that have the skills to work a loom or who use a mill for the grinding of their own grain. For the ideal of Distributism to work, there must exist a community in which it can function. This is a reality that we who seek this kind of a life must confront. We can either lead a mixed life with one foot in the world with our family on the land, or we can make the sacrifices with others to bring forth a society that is better not only for ourselves but for others as well.

Pax,
Kevin

New Blog: Restoring Christian Culture

2011-10-27T16:47:00.000-05:00

As my journey deeper into the faith has progressed, so has my understanding of the present situation and the problems in the Church and the world. I have made it my rule here to post only on agrarian(ish) topics, but have decided to increase the range of topics. My concern has become more and more the Restoration of Christian Culture. I hope I can contribute to this ongoing battle. I will continue to post regularly on this blog, but will be working to build and update the new blog. I am looking for fellow contributors so please contact me if you are interested in contributing to this project. It is just getting started, but I have posted a bit.

http://restoringchristianculture.blogspot.com/

Pax,
Kevin

Homesteading and the Village

2011-10-18T16:27:00.000-05:00

In a recent email conversation I had with someone, the topic of excellence and homesteading came up. Let me sum up the conversation first, and then move on to its relevance for myself and other homesteaders. One can only do a certain number of things well. The more things you do, the more you tend to do these things poorly. Thus homesteaders need other homesteaders so as to do what they do with excellence. That is the simple form of what we discussed. I myself find this to be very true in my own homesteading adventures. I am quite good at gardening and baking bread. I am fair at making cheese, and the number of things I do very poorly or lack the knowledge to do them at all is too long to list. How I do wish I could make wine and beer. I personally am a bit allergic to alcohol, but would love to treat friends to such a delight. However, I'm sure that to make good wine and beer takes quite a bit of time, talent, and practice. I am not willing to practice this so I will probably never learn it. However, if many homesteaders lived near one another certainly there would be a great diversity of skills due to necessity if nothing else. This allows for excellence in these trades rather than an unsatisfactoy mediocrity. John Seymour, one of the best known homesteaders of the past century thought one ought to do it oneself even if he did it poorly. These homesteader types were often rugged individulists bent on self-sufficiency at any cost. The Catholic acknowledges his need for others and that he cannot do it alone. Even though one can do many things well, that is not at all the same as doing all things well. Even a glance at the Amish shows a dependence on others for support. They buy their wood for building from lumberyards with a few rare exceptions. They almost never have a mill for their flour, etc. The list continues on. The purpose of a village in Medieval times was for the mutual help of the many people. This is not at all like the cities of today that exist more for vanity and pleasure than for mutual self help. A village of homesteaders represents a sustainable way of life. The principles of distributism offers an economically viable way for the future as well. Applying distributism even to the factory might offer man a more meaningful work environment. The possibilities are numerous, but first we must step out one family at a time and take the leap onto the homestead.

Kevin

Proximity

2011-10-06T07:09:00.000-05:00

This past weekend my family and I took a trip to St. Louis to be Godparents for a beautiful baby girl. We of course made the trip in our family van alongside thousands of other automobiles going here, there, and everywhere. Many people marvel at the wonders of the auto. I often scoff at its necessity because I feel its necessity was self-inflicted. Before the advent of the car, people lived in relative proximity to all the needs of life. Neighbors, Church, goods, etc. were all within a convenient walking distance. With the advent of the railroad goods could be shipped quickly from place to place in large quantities. The need the car filled was artificial. In a sense it filled a need for individual persons to travel long distances at quick speeds. This need at that time was rare, but with the advent of the car it multiplied greatly. This happened because of the ease of travel made possible with the car. A cross-state trip on horse was a several week journey filled with dangers and difficulties. A car cut this down to a morning drive with time for an afternoon nap on arrival, but once again I reiterate this need was very small. The close-knit fabric of an inherited Christian culture held bonds close together. Families often passed land on to their children, or the children bought a home nearby. As travel restrictions eased the family and community began to break down. The distance easily traveled became larger and larger and so the spread of the people increased as well. Unknowingly this four-wheeled invention broke down religious ties as well. On Sunday as we returned we crested the hill on which sits downtown Kansas City. Across the river valley I could see no fewer than ten Church steeples sitting on the opposite bluff spread over a distance of not more than two miles. The experience was the same in St. Louis as you see a Catholic Church seemingly in every little neighborhood. It is only out in the suburbs where you find the Churches spread far and wide. Church boundaries were once marked by the distance a bell could toll. The easy walk to Church lent itself to more frequent participation by the people in the liturgy. Too often now it is just too inconvenient to get all the kids in the car and drive all the way to the Church just for.....fill in the blank. I am not arguing that the car is in and of itself evil. I do not believe that it is. However, its effects on us as a peole have been dramatic. In a fallen world good things and neutral things will always be twisted by Satan to his own benefits. We must be wise in our discernment of what is truly good for our families.

Peace in Christ,
Kevin

Farm Family Video

2011-09-29T10:08:00.002-05:00

I was sent this video of a farming family I am familiar with up in Minnesota. They are faithful Catholics and are doing everything I hope to do with my family. I hope you enjoy it.
Farm Family Video

Kevin

I am a Farmer

2011-09-27T09:22:00.000-05:00

At the beginning of this year's growing season I was trying something new. For the first three years of my marriage I had been a teacher. This year was going to be different. I had quit my job in order to become a full time small scale organic farmer. I had never gardened anything more than 5,000sq ft. This year I was taking on 3 acres of organic produce, which is the equivalent of 130,000 sq ft. The leap was mind boggling, but I was certain I could do it. I am the inheritor of much country wisdom and know-how, but my father was a mechanic not a farmer. He had been raised on a farm, but declined to take on the family trade when my grandfather offered it to him. He had seen the difficulties that are associated with modern farming. I had inherited very little farming knowledge. I had gleaned a little growing up, but most of what I knew until this year was merely knowledge of the mind, not that of experience, which is most worthwhile in life and especially in farming. Thus this year became my year to learn by mistake after mistake after mistake. Now certainly we had many successes as a first year farm family, but the failures were legion. This experience only served to solidify my desire to both have community and to train young people in the art of farming. I would like to share some of my experiences from my first year of farming as it is drawing to a close. Some things are quite humorous, and others are quite heartbreaking. The journey has been enthralling, devastating, fulfilling, and beautiful. I offer it for those who might be so brash as myself, and think they should take up full time farming with only a little experience. It is the hard way to do it, but I am here standing on the other side saying it can be done.

I guess I should start logically at the beginning. I'll go back to February and March of this year, which was seed starting time. I had started seeds before so this was not a completely new experience. However, this year I would starting thousands upon thousands of seedlings. So here comes mistake number one. I won't be numbering the mistakes, but this was the first. I had read Eliot Coleman's book on Organic Gardening and decided to use his soil block approach. I asked for a four block maker for Christmas and was very excited to use it. This apprach allows for free standing blocks of soil rather than plastic trays. It would save money and minimize transplant shock. I was never one much for reading directions so I decided to make my own soil mix. My first attempt was too loose and need more stickiness so I added garden soil as recommended, but I added way too much. My blocks were heavy, wet, and cold, and 90% of the tomatoes and peppers I started from seed never germinated and those that did took an extremely long time thus putting transplanting farther and farther back. I did plant some other tomatoes in regular flats a couple weeks later and that was certainly God's providence as they ended up being more than 50% of the tomato plants in the garden. Not only that, but they ended up being heat resistant and put on tomatoes in our very very hot and dry summer.

This year was a year of severe extremes in KS. Early spring found over abundant rainfall that disallowed my planting in the garden. Weeding and planting became very difficult early on with waterlogged soil. I had built a beautiful greenhouse that had allowed me to put my seedlings out early. It had shown it weaknesses in some of the heavy snowfalls, but had maintained structural stability throughout the winter. However, it was no match for 80 mph winds and baseball sized hail. Thus came the demise of my greenhouse. A second attempt to put a new cover on it also ended when we had a very windy spring day. That was a very upsetting day for me, but it was the beginning of the realization of my need to give a fiat every day on the farm.

One day in late June, after several months of wet and cool weather, the weather suddenly changed. Suddenly the 10 day forecast showed dry and 100 for the foreseeable future. Days stretched to weeks and still no rain. A shovel in the ground showed no moisture for nearly 6 inches down. At the same time my pump that pumped water out of the adjacent pond quit working. The warranty required me to send it to the factory. What a disaster. I had purchased an expensive pump during the winter, but inmy ignorance I had not drained it after trying it out in early spring. A heavy freeze busted the casing and that was the end of the pump. Parts can't be found for it in this country..... The dry spell turned to a drought and soon I found myself extending my irrigation line to be able to reach water in the rapidly drying up pond. We received more than 25 hundred degree days during July and August and 1/4 the regular rainfall. I saw many of my hopes for a big fall garden fail. I saw even the hot weather crops just hanging by a thread. Everything would be wilted by 8 am and often the temperature never dropped below 90 at night. It was misery and it tested the very fabric of my soul. I questioned with Job whether this was all worth it. Should I just curse God and die, or in my case give up my dream and go back to the classroom. I remember sitting one morning in the dirt in the middle of my garden praying and hoping that we might get rain. It seemed to rain everywhere but here. Somehow, someway I made it through. We got a rain here and there, but most of the damage had been done. There were some highlights, but many failures too. Yet, I am a testament that this way of life is worth it all. It is worth seeing the good even in the face of great miseries and failures. I remember the day I discovered I would be able to offer watermelons to the CSA (vegetable subscription), and the day we brought cantaloupes. What satisfaction the next week when one of the members just glowed over the fact that their watermelon had yellow flesh and was absolutely heavenly. In the end we had to end the CSA season a little early. Yesterday was the last drop off. One of the members cried as we said goodbye. We had been witnesses of the goodness of rural life. We were witnesses to the goodness of our Christian faith. In the end we made it. There were times I wasn't sure we would, but we did. And in the end I am no longer a young man trying to be a farmer. Now, I am a farmer.

Kevin

The Papal Farm

2011-09-22T15:48:00.000-05:00

I found this and thought it quite interesting. It is an article on the farm at Casel Gandolfo.
http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/1103465.htm

Kevin

Tradition and Permanency

2011-09-21T21:59:00.000-05:00

Tradition helps us to know who we are and what we are supposed to do. It is tradition that passes on the very fabric of society. There are traditions for individuals, families, communities, parishes, regions, states, nations, and for the world. It is the tradition of the world that man and woman should join together in marriage and bring forth children for the continuation and propagation of humanity. In my family it is a tradition to sing a hymn when we are putting our children to bed. The hymn corresponds to the Church calendar. Today on the feast of St. Matthew we sang "For All the Saints" before putting our oldest daughter to bed. Traditions bring permanence to life and offer an constancy and rhythm without which we lose our balance an our focus. Traditions often develop over a period of time and continue to change, adjust, and even at times disappear in accord with the needs of certain times. However changes in tradition are always slow. When they are forcibly altered the result is always drastic and often tragic. We have seen such results in the Church, Society, and the Family over the past fifty years. Modes of doing and thinking were adjusted and the institutions that held these modes were drastically affected. Let me take a bit to look at the importance of tradition, and how changes do drastic harm if not organic and slow.

Prior to the twentieth century all denominations and the Catholic Church held contraception to be grave moral evil. In the 1930's the Anglicans gave consent to alter this longstanding tradition and gave permission to use contraception in certain cases. A tradition was radically altered, and it is a belief and tradition upon which marriage was founded. In this tradition was bound up the belief that marriage is a sacrament, that children are a gift from God, and that marriage is a lifetime commitment. When contraception is accepted the tradition is radically altered and marriage becomes a joke. Now few children are born, many of these that are born are born out of wedlock, and the divorce rate is phenomenally high. This has had devastating effects on family and society, not to mention the problems it has caused for the Church.

Looking at the Church we can see similar problems arising from the all to quick implementation of certain ideas in conjunction with the Second Vatican Council. It was the tradition of the Church that the Mass should be in Latin, with some permittence of the verncular for Scripture, sermons, and the like. The Second Vatican Council permitted a larger usage of the vernacular while insisting the tradition of Latin be retained. This would have been a natural and organic continuation and change of an already existing tradition, however instead we had a hast change to a Mass entirely in the vernacular, which was devastating in many ways to the liturgical understanding of the people. Suddenly the bulwark of Tradition, The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, was up for grabs. Do what you want with it. The tradition was undermined and the floodgates were opened. Now we are seeking to somehow regain some ground through better translations, which is a step in the right direction, but it shows how damaging large and sudden changes in tradition can be.

In our own lives we need traditions. We need ways of doing things that are always the same. We need a system of belief that is and always has been true. In my own family I am seeking ever more to create a family life firmly established in both Catholic and Agrarian thinking. Since much of Catholic Agrarian life is now lost I must start from scratch and pick up wherever the old traditions left off. The difficulty is that we are just one family out on the Plains of Kansas. I hope though that I will be able to pass on a way of thinking made permanent through family traditions to my own children, and that they in turn will continue in this way of life. We need tradition to help us know who we are, where we've come from, and where we are going. May we all live this reality.

Pax Christi,
Kevin

Our New Farm Blog

2011-09-17T20:21:00.000-05:00

I am in the process of building a new blog for our family farm, which we will be moving to in Nov/Dec. I wanted to share the link. If you click on the farm photos link on the blog you will be able to see a bit of what we've done and grown this year.
http://thefiatfarm.blogspot.com

Peace,
Kevin

In Conversation with God in the Garden

2011-09-16T08:03:00.001-05:00

Yesterday, as I was picking Cowpeas in the garden, I was struck by the immense realization of how I have been blessed to be doing what I am doing. Picking Cowpeas is a rather thoughtless labor that takes quite a long time. Since the motion is repetitive, this allows for freedom of the mind to think as it pleases without much focus on the task at hand. As I walked through that tangled patch pulling the long pods from the vines I was give a great vision of what God wants for humanity. It was a vision of a simple life far from the city lights and temptations. Yet, this stream of thougts and inspirations came in the form of apocalyptic poetry flowing through my mind verse after verse. I could see how the cities would fall and God would place His people back on the land. The thoughts were terrible, yet magnificent. I never could have had this stream of thoughts had I not been blessed to be a farmer. I have great freedom to pray and think in many of the tasks I have been given to do. How often my mind can think of the higher things that are yet to come as I do the simple manual labor so often required in farming. This country life is a true blessing for the family, and I realize it more and more as we make trips into the city. How often I see and feel the temptation to become more worldly when in the city limits. How easy it is for us to nix the plans for supper at home and to just stop at a fast food place to pick up something easy. I have argued in the past that the city is a proximate occasion of sin simply because it puts you in proximity to so many evils that are so easily accessible and often cleverly disguised. Pope Pius XII called the farm, "the ideal nursery for family life." The ancient distinction between rural and urban civilzation needs again to be recalled to the Christian mind. Rural life simply promotes religiosity. Some however argue that Christianity spread most quickly in the cities, and that it took many centuries to make inroads into the country. The word pagan actually comes from the latin "paganus," which means country-dweller. The country dwellers with their dependence on God or gods in this case were slow to change their customs. Those who live in close contact with nature realize their helplessness against it and their need for divine intervention. The pagans were often farmers and had developed many cults to pray for their many needs. Thus when Christianity came they were slower to accept this new faith. The city-dwellers typically have much less of a realization of their need for divine assistance. They are disconnected with the chain of life that holds them in being. Today their food comes from a package. All that went into that package is far disconnected from their daily lives. Much of what they do is done in isolation from other parts of their life. This disconnectedness leads to a realization of a need for some order and greater power. Thus Christianity spread through the cities like wildfire, but the pagans who already realized their need for divine assistance had to be converted in masse over long periods of time. Yet, this was accomplished and it was then those pagans who became Christian peasants and monks that passed on the faith age to age as cities came and went. Thus it will be in our times too. When all the dollars have been used to start fires to warm homes, and all the securities and pleasantries of this modern life have collapsed. It will again be the monasteries and the peasant farmers who pass the faith on as the hoardes flee the cities. How blessed I am to be a peasant farmer.

Apocalypse

In the silence of the morning

In my home upon the land

I rise to pray, the world scorning

Given all from God's good hand

For I know the day is coming

Swifter than the rising sun

Melting sin and sadness numbing

On the clouds the Holy One

Prepare the way. Prepare the Way.

I hear the call within my heart

If you would not fear the day

When the heavens and earth depart

He is coming as the lightning

He is riding on the wind

No sight has ever been more fright'ning

When in glory He'll descend

But for those who've long awaited

The dawn of everlasting day

Joy and rapture unabated

This day will bring them no dismay

Now I beg you heed this calling

For the day is close at hand

When the stars from heaven falling

with fire and water cleanse the land

by: Kevin Ford

I Hope

2011-09-09T11:16:00.000-05:00

I feel like I am supposed to write something here today, but I'm not sure what to write about. I'm sitting here with a terrible cramp in my neck from too thin of a pillow last night. I can't do much, but I'm sitting here thinking like always. I'm thinking alot about what my family has lacked over the past year without a home of our own. We have experienced so many frustrations on this journey that at times I admit that I wanted to give up. Home has taken on a whole new meaning for me. Of course I never dreamed that I would call my little hometown way out on the plains of Southern Kansas home again. When I packed my bags for college I was off to see the wide world. I had that track scholarship, public college, girlfriend that I needed to be happy. Yet, I found myself miserable. As I slowly went through my conversion I began to seek my true home in heaven, but now as a father and head of a family I seek also to build up the Kingdom here on earth as well. Too many lack courage to do what is right in our age. Too many whether in roman collars or business suits go about their days speaking of God, but living without him. Too many times have I had to sit in a pew and not look forward because right in front of me was a girld in a tube top. Where are the righteous men of this age? Where is the courage that made martyrs and brought the heathens and pagans under the sign of the Cross? I will take my stand for the Cross and for my family. I will lead them out onto the land to raise holy and righteous children. I may fail, but it won't be for lack of trying. Yet, it was the failure of the Cross that brought forth the victory of the Resurrection. This year as a farmer has been the most frustrating year of my life. Yet, I am persevering because I believe the ideal is worth the struggle. As I worked in 110 degree heat and saw hours of planting wither in an afternoon I would sometimes just sit in the middle of the garden and lift my difficulties and sorrows to God. Who else could bring me relief. Yes, some things are just worth doing. I hate failure, but it makes one stronger. I hope others will someday own fields next to my own. I hope someday my neighbor will have a patch of sweet corn within shouting distance. I hope someday others will have the courage to take the journey into the unknown, set out into the deep, and to be not afraid. I hope!

Peace,
Kevin

The Farm and the Ideal

2011-09-04T15:08:00.000-05:00

As I have already mentioned we are moving to our new farm this fall/winter after a year of borrowing land and living with my in-laws. Living here as given me alot of time to think about what it means to be a family, and what it takes to hold one together. Prior to living here we had our own little homestead in the country with 1.5 acres, goats, and a garden. We loved our cozy home, but I hated the 40 minute commute to school, and the fact that I was away teaching other people's children rather than my own. It was becoming a reality that I was going to have more of an influence on these other kids than on my own because of my almost constant absence from the home. The farming duties that I had added to my busy teaching schedule seemed to tear the family farther apart rather than working as a glue to hold it together. Now having shared another's home for over a year I have come to understand the invironment that best suits family life. A family needs its own home. It can survive when intermixed with other families for a time, but it needs a refuge. We have tended to do what we could to provide separation from the larger family here, but it is always difficult. We always most enjoyed the time sitting out back on the swing watching the chickens in the evenings. This provides a time alone with just the four of us, and we certainly at times needed this. I also have realized the farm life certainly is the ideal nursery for family life. Let me explain.

Our farming set up here has not been ideal. My garden in 1/4 mile from the house. It was often as if I had a job elsewhere. This was very problematic at times. I couldn't slip out back for 15 minutes to weed because it took 5 minutes to get to the garden. Our new house has a great set up with the garden right by the house. Everything is closely situated. With the garden accessible only by foot after rains, it was often difficult to get the produce where I needed it. I used a two wheel cart and pushed it through the mud back and forth 1/4 mile many days. Try pushing 400lbs of squash 1/4 mile through the mud. It certainly tested whether I really wanted to do this. God allowed me to face so many obstacles this year that I am surprised I persevered.

I believe though in this ideal form of life for the family. I believe that as my children grow and become helpers in the farm labor, that they too will love this life. The hardships help us to grow. Children that have meaningful labor will grow up to have meaningful lives. They will understand responsibilities as much as rights. They will understand that actions have consequences because they never forgot the story about the time dad put fresh manure on the garden and the weeds got so bad he lost a whole crop of carrots. (True story) They will have participated in a family life where all persons have necessary duties to perform. My wife will not only tend the house, but also be an economic partner. Her caring for the children and helping with the crops and putting things up for the winter are a necessary element of farm life. When men fled the country for city jobs it wasn't long before women, alienated in the economic helplessness, fled the home for the workplace as well. When men and women together again raise holy families on the land then family life will be well on its way to restoration.

Peace,

Kevin

The Farmer and Patriotism by Mary Ford

2011-08-23T14:40:00.000-05:00

Growing up in an extremely patriotic household in the time following the proud Reagan era, I had a strong love of my country at a young age. In school, the textbooks still largely hailed America as the ideal of freedom and democracy, really, as the savior of the world. We learned of the heroism of the pilots of the Enola Gay, and that the atom bomb was a necessary evil in order to "save American lives." This viewpoint was held even in my own Catholic school.

When I reached college (albeit, also a Catholic institution), history was taught in a broader fashion, and I learned about the Japanese internment camps here in America for the first time. Over time, I learned more and more about the sins of my fellow countrymen since its foundation, and my patriotism fell very low.

After college, marriage, a baby, and a definitive move to our first homestead, my understanding of patriotism took on a new light. Watching the sun rise every morning, feeling the rich, black soil between my fingers as a I helped my husband plant and weed the garden, laughing at the antics of some of our newborn goat kids, I fell in love with our plot of land. The land had gotten into my blood. It was then that I first grasped what love of country was really all about; I realized why this country is something worth dying for. God made this country great before a single person ever set foot upon it. He made it so great, in fact, that the land made good men into great men. Our founding fathers wanted America to be a country of landowners - of educated farmers and craftsmen; men and women that could hold their own and truly care for the great gift that this soil is.

To be our own masters under the Great Master, to be more like Him in self-sufficiency and care of creation, to answer the call "to keep and till the garden": these are the reasons to love one's country. The sins of our fathers and our current government leaders should not - do not - overshadow the greatness of this country. They can taint our reputation, but they cannot taint America the Beautiful.

Next time you look at America's past, do not first look at its many mistakes; look first at the heritage of stewardship that our country's founders wished for all of us to possess - that of the farmer, he who is truly free to love this land by the sweat of his brow. It is a joy to me to once again be an American patriot.

God bless you all.

Mary Ford

I am Homeward Bound

2011-08-18T23:04:00.000-05:00

This first year as a full time farmer has nearly killed me at times. Whether it was the July heatwave and drought, or the broccoli that just never headed up, or the machines that never work when I need them to, it was always something. I never imagined the stress I would feel as I attempted to fill 40 shares of our CSA every week, or how hard it would be to keep the weeds down on 3 acres by hand. Many people would have given up, given back the money, and went back to a "real job." That is not what I'm going to tell you. Even though this first growing season has been filled with agonies, it has also been filled with ecstasies. How can I describe the beauty of a sunrise over your own land as the squash flowers reflect the color of the sun and the dew wets your hands as you cut those beautiful lettuces? How can I begin to tell you how wonderful it is to always be within walking distance of my family? How could I put into words the absolute exhilarating joy I feel when someone tells me how delicious their produce was the week before? Yes, it is all worth it, and because it is all worth it I am going to be taking my family home.

Let me be more specific about what I mean. Home for me has always been St. Leo, KS. It is where I was born and raised and where I always wanted to be buried. However, I never imagined I might raise my children there too. Yet, God often has other plans for us. A farm has literally fallen into our laps for us to live on and farm. The price is very low, and there is even a house 1/4 mile down the road for some friends who are going to join us on this farming endeavour. I can hardly believe the ways God is working in our lives. For a long time I have been homeward bound without knowing where home was going to be. I was always moving forward to that farm of my own where life, work, and prayer would be integrated into a single whole. Now very soon I will simply be home. My heart wells up with joy as I think about it. I'm going home. We are starting Catholic rural community, and I will continue day after day to earn my bread by the sweat of my brow.

Peace in Christ,
Kevin

O Ye of Little Faith

2011-08-07T22:17:00.000-05:00

Today's readings for the 19th Sunday in Ordinary Time focus clearly on faith. The homilist for the Mass we attended this morning gave an excellent homily, and pointed out something about faith that I had not before perceived so clearly. He made the point that when we are praying for something we often get frustrated because we do not get the response we want or we hear only silence. It seems as if God is refusing to answer us. Yet, in reality we have already been answered. The answer lies in God's Word: The Word made Flesh. What more could God add to His revelation? Jesus has already given us the answers. Search the scriptures and you will find the answer to the prayer. God isn't going to give us a big flashing sign. He rather asks us to have faith.

I and my family and another family are at a decision point right now. We are asking the Lord to act in a great and amazing way for us in the founding of Catholic agrarian community. The homily this morning reminded me that the answer to my prayers for this have already been given. "Seek first His Kingdom and all these things will be given you besides." If I am seeking first His Kingdom then I can know that my prayers for all the other things in life will be aswered also. How beautiful a realization this is for us.

Peace,
Kevin

Homesteading, Motherhood, and Promoting the Culture of Life by Mary Ford

2011-08-05T14:51:00.000-05:00

As I sat in the dim of our darkened bedroom today, gently swinging to sleep the little, warm bundle that is our 9 month old baby daughter, the joys of the life that my husband and I are living with our two children filled my heart. It really is amazing how things have come together in such blessed ways for us, unexpectedly and undeservedly. This life to which Kevin has introduced me is more full of purpose than I ever could have imagined it to be.

Many mothers in today's society work, and less of them stay home with their children to raise them on their own. So many miss out on the daily miracle of watching their children grow and develop. That being said, most of those mothers who stay home with their children often miss out on the joys of raising their children in a homesteading environment, an environment in which the father is also present. The depth of the support system in a Catholic homesteading family is truly monumental. God gives graces to the family in all that they lack, in all that they need, and in turn the family gives back to Him in daily worship and service to one another in His name. Consequently, the father (who is also at home), who ought to be (and is in our little family) a strong spiritual leader as well as the main provider for the family, is able to support the mother in her daily prayer life and in all her daily tasks, much of which is, of course, spent in caring for her children.

The tasks of a homesteading mother, however, do not just include direct care of her children. Tasks include not just cooking and cleaning, but in aiding her husband in gardening, canning, and teaching their children to follow in their footsteps, including giving praise to God with their very lives. In short, the homesteading way of life is circular; everything supports the other. The Lord gives to us, we use what He has given, and we give back as best we can, the gift of which is often given to others outside of one's family (in our case, it is given to our CSA members and to those we meet at the Farmer's Market...and it will be given through our children when they go out and live according to the faith and principles we hope they will embrace in adulthood). This is, by the way, a direct antithesis to those that say that homesteading does not promote evangelization of those outside of one's immediate circle. I have seen no better way of living as a wife and mother than a self-sufficient lifestyle that puts God first and the whole family (father included) second and in conjunction with the first. Because the homesteading way of life is in and of itself a promotion of the culture of life, it is a direct example of how one can help to "spread the Good News."

As a mother whose very purpose--to give and nourish life within--is written into the very blueprint of my intellect and will, giving birth to and caring for my children is primary, but is also closely married to the tasks of a homesteading woman. The promotion of life on the homestead by proper care of the garden, of our animals, and of preparing our homegrown food for the table, are all an embrace of life in a way in which no self-sufficiency is present can never fully emulate. Perhaps I sound too sure and should make allowance for those who cannot live the homesteading way of life, but I cannot help but think that even those who live in the city can embrace Catholic self-sufficiency in some small way: promote a local economy of produce, cook less pre-packaged meals, grow a tomato plant in a pot if you have to, and teach your children to do something more meaningful than simply setting the table for supper and cleaning up their rooms (both of which are important, but aren't critical to the survival of the family--not in comparison with feeding one's animals who will die without your care).

My husband has often stated that the Catholic Land Movement will see its revival not necessarily at a large, governmental level, but rather at the "grassroots"; in each individual family, trying to raise good and holy children (and good and tasty crops and animals, teehee). You will see a growth in the population of good people if you start NOW, whether you are stuck in the city or are already enjoying the benefits of the country and a fully homesteading way of life, or somewhere in between (as we are). This is no longer just an idea, no longer just an abstraction to think about; it is something to be lived NOW. Understanding that not everyone is there yet, still: if you are a mother, take it from me, there is nothing more fulfilling than waking up to not just your children and your housework, but to your husband (and the joy of your children in having Daddy home) and to your life-giving fields, your animals, and the quiet of a country morning, all of which urge me on to prayer. There is nothing that promotes the culture of life more than the care of life itself at all levels.

God bless you all.

Mary Ford

Rich but Poor

2011-07-31T15:27:00.000-05:00

For the past half a century America has been the richest and most affluent country in the history of the world. Homes, conveniences, travel, technology, etc. have reached levels unheard of prior to this age of history. As we all sang the tune of "God Bless America" we imagined God was blessing this country as the long awaited city on a hill. Our material prosperity grew beyond reckoning, and almost unknown and hidden a spiritual poverty began to creep in. The first rumblings happened in the 30's with contraception's acceptance by some mainline Protestant Churches. Soon only the Catholic Church would uphold the traditional understanding of contraception as a grave moral evil. After this came the logical step: a sexual revolt that trampled on the human person's dignity as love was replaced by pleasure and use. Of course evil begets evil and thus came abortion as contraception was not always effective in preventing pregnancy. The sad story of our country continues today. Our prosperity has become crippling debt. Our sexual liscense has produced millions of abortions and millions of fatherless homes. The crime rate has increased and Christianity has become a sideshow to be mocked at will. America! America! The beautiful??????

All these evils I mentioned before have left us with cities where we are surrounded by people with no one to talk to. Thousands upon thousands of people within walking distance, but no one to visit. It is in these sad times that a return to Catholic agrarian life becomes more and more appealing. As we face the prospect of 50% of this country's famers retiring in the next decade we are set up with a choice. Either we see and even greater consolidation of agricultural farm lands in the hands of a corrupt agribusiness sector, or we see a return to the peasant farmers. We may return to the peasant farmer whether me mean to or not. The debt crisis may necessitate the growing of food wherever it can be grown. Hopefully, the CLM will be one step ahead of our civilization's crash. Hope is not lost. It is in small communities based in Catholic tradition and agrarian life that the family will return to its roots. Slowly a civilization of life will emerge from the rubble of what surely will one day be a collapsed kingdom the likes of Greece, Rome, Babylon, etc. Christianity grew and flourished as the cities of the Roman empire became corrupt, depraved, and eventually despoiled. It is time for a renewal of Catholic agrarian community and family life. Who amongst us has the courage to take the leap of faith into unknowing? I am ready. Are you? This is your invitation. If you are waiting for a sign this is it. If you want to walk on water you have to get out of the boat.

Peace,

Kevin

To Become a Farmer

2011-07-24T21:18:00.000-05:00

I have been contemplating my own vocation as a farmer. I was raised in a farming community and inherited a lot of rural knowledge, yet my father was not a farmer. We raised a garden when I was young, but that was twenty years ago now. I am convinced as I struggle through my first year as a full time farmer that making farmers will be the most difficult task for the Catholic Land Movement. I heard it said once that it only takes a year for a country boy to be changed into a city boy, but it takes a lifetime to make a city boy into a country boy. The immense amount of knowledge needed to become a farmer is beyond even what I imagined. The learning curve is steeper than I ever could have imagined. Yet, I wouldn't give up farming for anything now.

The difficulty truly lies in the diversity of knowledge needed to perform the many, many routine tasks involved in farming. Many careers today follow the Ford model for efficiency. The person is used like a machine to perform one task over and over day after day. Thus the man who is subjected to such inhumane conditions becomes desperate for a vacation, a weekend, a five o'clock whistle, etc. The farmer's tasks never end, but they are only seasonally repetitive. Thus perfecting a task takes not a few days training, but rather years of perseverence through many difficulties and inevitable failures. Farming is true test of fortitude for any man who is up to it. Yet, once you have pushed a seed into the ground and seen it grow into a life sustaining plant, you will be hard pressed to ever leave the farm. The mix of soil and suffering go right into your blood. I am convinced that if we can train a young core group of farming couples we will be well on the way to re-establishing an authentic Catholic agrarian life. This will be a difficult step. Competent farmers in the ancient farming traditions are few and far between. Catholic farmers who practice true stewardship of Creation, and who live out their rural Catholic life in an appealing and living way may be almost extinct. The time is now to revive this dying breed. Once I have my own farm established I will be ready to take apprentices. I would love to pass on my very hard earned knowledge to another couple or young person. The slope to farming well is steep, but the bounty is well worth the effort.

Peace in Christ,

Kevin

The Abandonment of Hope

2011-07-12T09:04:00.001-05:00

In Dante's "Inferno" we find written above the gates of hell : "Abandon all hope ye who enter here." Hell is truly the loss of hope of anything better to come. Once you have entered there is no returning. No one escapes who goes in. Only Christ ever did otherwise, and therein lies our hope. I believe it is one of the greatest temptations of our time to lose hope. When we look at our crumbling society, the moral depravity surrounding us, the breakdown of the family, the loss of Catholic culture and identity we are often tempted to read the writing above those gates and think hell has come to our own world. Yet, in hope we are saved as St. Paul writes. Hope is a singularly Christian virtue. All our hope rests in the reality of Christ's salvation offered to us. No other religion has this hope. Yet, the temptation in our own times is to despair. Too easy it would be to throw in the societal towel, build a cabin in the mountains, and get a front row seat to the destruction of our modern day Sodom and Gomorrah. Aren't we called to more? We must not lose hope, for if we do what will remain? I believe great things are at work throughout the Church and the world. The tranformation of the modern depraved social order will not happen in Congress or by the institution of laws. It will not happen in big revivals and conferences. It will not happen in the the noise and din of our modern times. It will happen in the home. It will happen in the faithful handing on from parent to child of that which they themselves received. It will happen in the Churches where faithful priests give their life in offering to God as a worthy sacrifice. It will happen where the people live together a truly Christian life. It will happen in quiet corners of cities and in the countryside. The Holy Spirit is at work in all of our chaos. The difficulty is finding a place away from the noise where we can hear Him. Hope still remains. The time for true Christian community may be close at hand. A time when we need each other more than we have up to this point. When all of our false securities are stripped away and we are left naked and exposed then we will see that we are our brother's keeper. The Lord is preparing my family and yours for something great. Don't lose hope. "The gates of hell shall not triumph..."

Peace,
Kevin

The Feasibility of Catholic Community

2011-07-08T13:13:00.000-05:00

I have been putting together in my mind a list of potential roadblocks to forming a Catholic Village or Community. Here is what I have come up with so far.

1. Location: I think this is pivotal and there are a lot of aspects to this. When you think of location you have to take into consideration numerous aspects. Is this a good food growing area? Are there (several) properties for sale in the area at reasonable cost? Is there a good Catholic Church in the area? All of these are true factors. I have mentioned my hometown several times as a potential place for community, but I will admit there are many difficult and limiting factors to such a place as it. There is a orthodox Catholic Church 25 miles away, but that is a long drive for some. There is a Catholic Church in the town, but it is quite lackse in its practice. Maybe an order priest could be invited? Who knows. If we moved back we would take the commute. Also for those who prefer the usus antiquior often referred to as the Latin Mass, the commute would be 1hr 15 min and the mass is at 8am on Sundays. Just my first analysis on location. Often there is a good parish, but expensive property. Or there is lots of land, but no parish within an hour's drive. Often it is difficult to find several properties for sale in the same place. Just my initial thoughts.

2. People - How do you get several families to move to one location supposing there are properties available? This is a real difficulty. Several families would have to be convinced of the mission of the CLM and be willing to make great sacrifices. However, if a core group were begun then the potential is much greater than just having ideas starting a community. After a location were found then the next most difficult step would be to get people there. I don't think building a community from scratch would ever work. Moving into an existing town or community to revive it is very natural and organic.

3. Economics - Eventually a Catholic village would hope to be mostly self-sufficient. However, the reality is that we live in a modern world that requires money. How would this be come by? I farm and could take it up almost anywhere. I could probably have one or two men help me and provide for all of our families if we lived frugally. Many of us have student loans and other debt that is problematic. I mentioned KS has a program now to pay down student loans for those who move to one of the most rural counties. This type of program might be available in other places as well. It definitely makes a move to a rural area more feasible and seems to follow along the lines of what the CLM founders wanted to happen in Britain.

I am sure there are plenty of other things to consider, but thought I would throw this out there to think about.

Kevin

It's in My Blood.

2011-07-07T14:46:00.000-05:00

We recently returned from a trip to my home place, and my wife and I were discussing how much where we grow up forms us into the people we are. St. Leo, KS is a long way from anywhere. It sits on a short rise in SouthCentral Kansas overlooking miles upon miles of waves of golden wheat in the summer, and waves of green wheat in the winter. Yes, I know that seems backwards, but if you know anything about winter wheat then you understand. It was here in this tiny town of about a dozen houses and a Catholic Church that I spent most of the first twenty years of my life. There is something about the peace of the place that gets to you. I have never been anywhere that you can see more of the sky. The ground is for the most part flat and dotted with lines of trees. It was here under this immense sky that I learned to see the stars. If you have never been far, far from the city on a clear moonless night, then you have never really seen the stars. When I am away I long for them. These lights in the darkness are so thick out there that it looks as if someone has thrown a fluorescent starlight fog into the middle of our solar system. In reality it is the Milky Way Galaxy slowly swirling about us. Some things we can never really erase, nor would we want to. The gyp and clay of my home has mixed with my blood. I think it must have absorbed through my bare feet and dirty fingernails as a child. Maybe it was the water of the creek where my brother and I spent almost every day during the summer. Maybe it was the light of the stars or the immensity of a real Kansas thunderstorm. There is something about the place that will always make it "Home." I don't live there any longer. In fact I only make it back a couple times a year. Many of the things I knew of it as a child are gone, but it doesn't change the fact that I wish somehow to revive this little town. All things according to God's plan. I know that wherever I end up I will have some of the plains of Southern Kansas in my blood. I will pass this onto my children in the way I view and live my life. The Catholic faith that filled the souls of the German immigrants who formed the town and built the Church fills this soul of mine. Yes, some things change, but some things always remain the same. St. Leo is home. It will always be home. The 100 foot steeple will always be a lighthouse for me from miles and miles away. The silver cross on the top will always be a reminder that God looks over this insignificant corner in the middle of nowhere. Christ is present in the tabernacle of the Church there, and hope remains.

Peace in Christ,
Kevin

Catholic Community: The dream and the difficulties.

2011-07-04T08:33:00.000-05:00

I believe the lack of true Catholic community is something that many of us today as Catholics feel very acutely. Often even in our own parishes we feel very isolated and surrounded by others that practice their faith only in a skin-deep way. Around us we find immodesty, materialism, and modernism in all its guises. In all these things we feel a sense of isolation, and wish for a few good neighbors in walking distance with whom to live the Christian life and build up the faith in our children. Even good parishes often are a conglomeration of people with many differences and are often commuter parishes where people gather for Mass on Sundays and an occasional get-together. A true sense of community is many times lacking for the clear reason of isolation of location. The parishioners seldom live right next door to one another. However, our great question is how to remedy this situation. It seems the idea of an intentional community built from scratch is an impossibility and maybe a bad idea. Are there any other ideas, well I have been thinking of some.

Across the U.S. and many other countries there are now many empty houses in small towns and villages. In my own hometown (13 houses and a Catholic Church) there are currently 5 empty houses. Two belong to the Church and the other 3 are individually owned. One of those houses has 10 acres, one has a full acre, and another just a city lot. There is a blacksmith shop with all the equipment from yesteryear on the 10 acre farm. I am sure there are other examples of this sort if we would only look. I think the revitalization of an already existing community is a much more promising endeavour than building something from scratch. If there is a good parish in the vicinity as is the case in my hometown, then the possibility of doing something like this is even better.

A community with several possible homes available makes it possible for several families to move to a location simultaneously. Thus, a community is formed immediately. The mutual help of moving and preparing homes would begin to mould and solidify community life immediately. I think this is something to seriously consider. If I could find a couple of other families to come live in my hometown then I think maybe, just maybe we could begin real Catholic community life, and share that life with the larger already existing community. I think this smaller nucleus would be just what is needed for the transforming of a larger rural community. Truly, this would be a missionary endevour because many in these communities are poorly catechized and no less worldly than their city counter parts. Those who desire community and missionary life might find this kind of an endeavour just what they are looking for. Any takers?

Peace,
Kevin

Mechanization, Farming, and Community

2011-06-26T22:28:00.000-05:00

My wife and I are reading "Better Off" by Eric Brende again. We are at a point in our own journey where we felt we better review his principles on technology as we search for our own farm. Reading the first chapters has made me reflect on machinery and its impact on rural community. Mr. Brende makes the point that these Amish in the group still bring in the sheaves on wagons, and they still put up loose hay. The community needed each person to play a role. No farmer was an island. In fact each individual was an integral part of a cohesive whole. When machinery comes into focus farming becomes a very lonely affair and community is broken down. A combine can do the work of a thousand men, yet if you pay attention to this statement you realize something awful. This combine just put 999 farmers out of a job. Farmer John down the road used to have ten neighbors on his section of ground, but now it is just him and his big machines. He doesn't need anybody's help because his machines can get it done. Thus we have destroyed human community in favor of a mechanical world. A friend mentioned to me the other day that they knew a man who owned a new $250,000 combine. She acknowledged to me that this man would go bankrupt if that machine quit working. So it is that at the top of the farming ladder of command and importance is not the farmer, but rather the machine.

We also will notice that machines meant the end of the small farm. A farmer with a huge expensive machine cannot afford to farm a small acreage. The more and larger machines the farmer owns, the more and larger acreage he must farm. Thus the network of interdependent farmers is broken down in favor of a few huge farmers. Thus ends traditional rural life as it was known. However, things might be changing. Small farmers on average are making more profit than these giant farms. They don't have all the debt and rising fuel costs to deal with. Ultimately the right technology for a farm can be determined by using the individual farmers and the community as the measuring rod. If a technology harms the community then it ought not be used. One farmer may benefit from a huge combine, but if it puts 10 others out of farming then it ought not be used. Chesterton put it well when he said: "What we offer is not perfection, but proportion." When technology is judged according to the human person and the human community then we will be back on the right track for authentic Catholic rural life.

Kevin

Modernism, Relativism, and Materialism

2011-06-19T15:24:00.000-05:00

I read part of an article earlier this week that asked whether we have all become Cafeteria Catholics. I think this is a pertinent question to ask in our families. How often do even devout Catholic families give in to materialism. How often do we give into relativism and all that it encompasses. I thinkt today Modernism is expressed most clearly in Relativism and Materialism. The one threatens our souls and the other threatens both body and soul. I look at my own family and wonder how to dig ourselves out of the mire of materialsm. It has become common for your child to have not a couple of toys, but rather a roomful of every new contraption. We have been fighting this, but it seems that they keep adding up. It doesn't help that we live with grandparents who want our children to have everything. They aren't necessarily materialistic in nature, but it is easy to spoil children. I look forward to having my own home again. How frustrating it is to stuff an entire farm into someone else's home. I pray and pray for the day of freedom on my own front porch.

This tendency has been creeping more and more into our society and our Church. I think that the breakdown of Catholicism and the culture associated with it has had more to do with relativism and materialism than any changes in the liturgy or ways of catechizing or failing to catechize. Relativism came first during the first half of the twentieth century. Slowly ways of thinking in absolutes were given away to "sometimes" and "in certain instances." Contraception, which previously was rejected by all Christians was accepted in certain cases. Now it is everywhere and it is destroying family life. As life became meaningless through relativism we found ourselves searching for new ways to worship and new ways to find fulfillment. In came the materialism and consumerism that now controls all the modern world. Now we are reaching a crescendo. Man has turned to all sorts of banality and evil, the likes of which haven't been seen since the fall of Rome. We fill our homes with things because our souls are empty of meaning. How do we free ourselves from these traps? Ultimately a return to Catholic Tradition and a refusal to cooperate in the twin evils of relativism and materialism. We must separate from the modern culture of death in order to bring forth life for a renewal of society when the collapse finally comes. This isn't as easy as it sounds. One step at a time, day after day, choosing the good and rejecting the evil, especially the veiled evils found in materialism and relativism.

A mere return to a pre-conciliar Church is not what is needed either. Many that I know who were raised in that time period later became very lackse in their faith. It was a time where the faith wasn't so much passed on, but rather carried along by the force of societal norms and expectations. Many weren't devout, but more in a habit of doing what they had always done. Often holiness was replaced with religiousness. This led to the almost complete cultural breakdown of Catholicism when the societal bonds were severed in the revolt of the 60's and 70's. Now a new young generation is being raised up who wants Catholic Tradition. We claim it as our own and recognize that to claim it now may in the future cost us more than mockery. We are preparing our children for holding onto the faith in the midst of persecution. The faith is ours, it is real, it is present. We must fight the tendency to materialism and relativism and form our children to hold onto the faith in an age of disbelief.

Kevin

When I Came Home

2011-06-11T07:44:00.000-05:00

It has been just over a year since I made the big decision to come home. A year of blessings, and a year of trials. It has been a year of learning and re-learning what family life is. The way we were living has changed dramatically. We have little money, although our market gardening has been abundantly blessed, although not without many frustrations and mistakes. So in this year I have had much time to think and pray about what we are doing as a family, and where God is leading us. So I guess the question I must ask myself often is: Why did I come home?

The reasons for my decision were simple, although I came to this decision over a long 3 year period of reading, praying, and learning about rural and family life. What I came to realize is that the modern family is often not a family at all. It is too often merely a grouping of people related by blood that happen to sleep under the same roof. The modern family has not vision, no purpose, no goal. It has been compartmentalized, re-defined, and broken down by divorce and contraception. The fathers and often the mothers have left the children in the care of the state as they go out to the all important job where they "provide for the family." It was in view of all of this that I came home. I forsook my Theology teaching job, and fled to the fields. However, our vision for family life has not been lived out completely as of yet. We live in a borrowed shared home with in-laws. We are scraping by day by day. Much of the order we want is disordered because this place is not our own. The longing for our own place has been creeping up in us over the past couple of months as the difficulties of not having our own place have mounted. We looked at 12 acres of beautiful rolling pasture land last night. It was quiet, peaceful, and refreshing to be out beyond the din of the city. I don't know that it is "the place" yet, but at least I could hear the birds.

Coming home has definitely presented its own challenges. Living in constant contact with my wife and two little girls has brought out virtues and vices I didn't know I had. The change of environment has done many things to me, and I am still adjusting. Prior to coming home, work was often a type of fairyland for me where I put on a certain "teacher" mask so as to be something I often had difficulty being. Teaching and family life were completely separated and often had little or nothing to do with one another. It was a means of gettting money for the family. That was the relationship. No doubt it brought animosity in my heart towards the teaching. Yet, it was a blessing to share Christ with my students, and I am happy to have done it, but now my life is changed. Today, work and living are the same thing. There is no separation in my life. Farming and Family and Faith have become more and more interwoven to become a quilt of life that is simple yet beautiful. I am waiting for the day when these three aspects will find themselves together on a farm. The day is coming. I am quite certain. The Farm waits for the family. May God hear our prayers and yours.

Peace in Christ,
Kevin

Ideals and Ideologies

2011-06-08T22:34:00.000-05:00

To place an ideal too high in the rank of things is to change it into an ideology. Ideals are something beautiful, life-giving, and joyful. We reach for them just as we strive for perfection, but ideologies are joyless, dead, and held onto with clenched fist. Reading Chesterton the other day I began to think about how easy it is to replace ideals with ideologies. How quickly when this happens we lose our joy, and we begin to cling to these ideologies. We fear that we might be wrong or that we will lose these things. In a sense we lose our freedom because we have been bound to the chains of a certain way of thinking. We then begin to view everything through this lens. How hard too it is to break out of this way of thinking, and to stay out of the rut once we have escaped. With regards to the Catholic Land Movement, I think we must regard it as one element in the restoration of Catholic Culture, but not the only element. Yet, it is essential and it is seemingly where God has place me and my family. This is what I have been given to do. If I place the movement too high in the scheme of things I begin to lose focus on the larger goal of the resoration of Christendom and begin to focus on less important issues.

I have been taking some time off from the blog. Partly this has been by my own choice, and part of this has been my own efforts to live out Distributism and the ideals of the Catholic Land Movement in a more concrete way. We have a 40 member CSA now and have had a tremendous amount of support from others who want to see us succeed in our own family endeavours. It has been a real blessing and at times I have lived out much of what I have written about over the past 3 years. My writings on the problems of machinery have played themselves out with my own limited machines and their problems. Yet, I have to have some way to work the ground and I know nothing about draft animals. So, I am doing something that Chesterton thought was a good idea: using machines to destroy the modern mechanical milieu. He saw nothing wrong with using an automobile to find a farm whereon the auto had no place. I think he would have had no problem with someone using a tractor so as to be in a position to live without one and begin using more sustainable power. I have written much over the last few years, but none of it compares to living it out. How many joys and frustrations I have experienced, and the growing season lasts until almost November here.

I think that if the Catholic Land Movement is to succeed we will need others who are willing to take immense leaps of faith. Last year I quit my job without a plan to become an organic farmer. Now we are doing it and God is blessing us. However, I must admit it has been the hardest thing I have EVER done. At times I've wanted to break down and give up, and other times I want to weap with joy at God's blessings. For those out there who are like I was, staring out the window wishing to have your hands in the dirt, have faith. Wait for the door to open, but keep knocking. You won't be able to see what's on the other side until you jump through. Let us each look at why we are doing what we are doing. Let us examine our ideals and put everything in correct order, and let us follow God's will wherever he leads us.

In Christ's Love,
Kevin

There was a Garden in Eden

2011-05-25T23:22:00.000-05:00

We have completed week one and are halfway through week two of our first year of being full time organic farmers, but that is not what I want to write about. My experiences as a farmer are beginning to have and effect on me. They are changing me and moulding me into a man who sees things differently, albeit more clearly than I did before. Let me give you an example of what I mean. Last night and today we received over 3 inches of rain. The ponds are filled to overflowing. My garden sits right next to a modern no-till field of corn. No-till proposes that it is the best way to farm to prevent erosion. I always thought this to be true, but my own experiences as a farmer are changing this. As I walked through this no-till field today to get to my garden, I noticed an immsense number of small washouts in the field and that much of the plan matter from the previous year simply washes away. When I reached my freshly tilled garden I noticed only one small washout that washed into an area I planted heavily with buckwheat in anticipation of this to catch the soil. What I noticed is that the no-till field had alot of water run off, but my tilled field absorbed most of the 3 inches. Admittedly I couldn't walk in the muck, but that water is in there. I actually rode a bike across the other field. It seems certain methods are made simply for big machinery. I hear farmers who use no-till complain about how wet there tilled areas are and that they can't get their tractors in there. I will be in my garden tomorrow planting, weeding, and harvesting with little trouble. I don't weigh much and have big feet so walking on the wet soil isn't too much trouble. I can't help but remember that God put the man in the garden to keep it and till it. Pouring poisons on the soil is now our modern equivalent of "tilling." Somehow we have convinced ourselves that this is good stewardship of creation. How has this happened? It is claimed that a modern field that is tilled loses 6 tons of topsoil per acre each year while a no-till field loses 2 tons. This is thought to be the answer to our soil erosion problem. However, subtracting less is still subtraction. To take and take and never give is not the answer. I can haul in 30 tons of compost and grow another 15 tons of green manure on my garden. Even if 6 tons washes away, so be it. I will still be way ahead and have built up my soil to be better than it was before. Meanwhile the chemical farmer will continue to pour poisons on his field to kill the weeds thinking all the time that he is practicing good stewardship. Ludicrous! I guess I am changing. It makes me want to cry when I see the fields dead after being sprayed with Roundup. Something isn't right about it. As I sink my roots deep into the soil I begin to long for a sustainable way of farming. I want a way of doing things that can be passed on for generations to come. My worry is that the soil will be so poisoned that only many years of healing practices will undo the damage. There was a garden in Eden and God planted a man there to keep it and till it. He formed the man out of the dirt, which man would then till. Farming is meant to be simple. Keep it and till it. Water it and increase its fertility. Bless it and be Thankful. I am a simple farmer. I love the land and it is becoming a part of who I am and who I desire to be. I long for a place of my own. A place of permanence where I can begin to keep and till the garden as the first man was meant to do and as I am now meant to do.

In Christ,
Kevin

Keep it and Till it

2011-05-17T23:09:00.000-05:00

Well, it has been ten days since I last wrote a blog post. I don't know if anyone missed it, but I've stolen a few minutes this late evening to post a little something, as well as an explanation. The explanation is quite simple, harvesting season has begun on our 3 acre market garden. Yesterday was our first CSA drop off and tomorrow morning is our first farmer's market. I was in the garden at about 6am this morning and I just walked in the door at about 10:30 tonight. I harvested produce for about 4 hours and then spen the rest of the day preparing it. Washing leaf lettuces, mesclun mix, pak choy, etc. takes quite a bit of time. My wife is run ragged getting our market stand ready as well. It was really quite a day, but now we are ready. I have ten of the fourteen gallon plastic tubs full of produce as well as a thirty gallon cooler full. It was a long day, and I am worn out. I have had to put the blog by the wayside in order to try to live out all the stuff I've been writing about. If we fail in our farming endeavours this year, I will have to look for some kind of additional employment beyond the farm. Say some prayers that all works out for us. We'd love to get a Catholic Land Movement farm established.

So I've told you about the long days, and the seemingly endless work. Is it all worth it? Is it worth early rising and late going to bed through the spring and summer months? Yes it is. Truly and assuredly it is worth every weary blink and every sore muscle. It is worth the successes and disappointments. One day I will be sitting in my own home, on my own land, eating my own food, and saying yes, it was really all worth it. I'm sorry I don't have much inspirational to say tonight. I'm just a worn out young farmer who really just wants to go to bed. To all those who share the Catholic Agrarian vision with me, I pray one day you may all work on your own land as hard as I worked today. Today, I have earned my bread by the sweat of my brow. It is simple, it is wholesome, it is the Catholic Land Movement put into practice in my own life. One step at a time, day after day, may God always give me the grace to persevere.

Peace,
Kevin

The Amish: What Catholics Can Learn From Them

2011-05-07T09:00:00.000-05:00

Is our way of life destroying our faith and our families? I don't think most of us ask this question often enough. Certainly the way we live has a direct effect upon us and those near and dear to us. I don't know what the current statistics are with regards to handing on the faith in Catholic Families, but the percentage of Catholic children who keep the faith is rather small. Compare this with the Old Order Amish who have a 90% retention rate. I suppose amongst traditional Catholics the rate of faith retention is much higher also. Yet, I want to look at the Amish way of life with Catholic eyes. What can we learn from them? Ought we to imitate their way of life in some ways?

Our modern way of life is one of busyness, disorder, materialism, and individualism. The Amish way of life is one of order, simplicity, family, and community. The values they hold as important, we as Catholics should also hold as important, but too often our way of life obstructs and even destroys these values. Our addiction to technology in all its guises often leads to an individualism that is not interested in anything but the ego. Does this lack of technology aid in the maintenance of the Amish community? I think it certainly does. The Amish have purposely and wisely chosen to forego certain technologies that inherently, but often hiddenly serve the destruction of family and community life. Without telephones (and internet) they are forced to go see one another face to face. This facilitates neighborliness and authentic community. Without the automobile they have an attachment and devotion to their home. They are not free to wander about the backroads in an automobile, or go to town for any paltry thing. They have chosen to forego the tractor (in Old Order Communities) thus preventing the rapid growth of farms and keeping their farming in tune with creation and order. The byproduct of horses is fertility, not noxious fumes and waste oil. Another important and maybe the most important factor to them keeping order in their homes is the lack of electricity. Without electricity they can avoid the thousands of electronic gadgets that now crowd almost every modern home. The children are forced, in a good way, to find entertainment in simple games and other fun things. They don't need hundreds of dollars worth of gaming systems to have fun, and likely seldom experience any boredom. It is we who are addicted to such technologies that find ourselves in a perpetual state of boredom.

Maybe we as Catholics need to look more closely at the Amish way of life. It is funny that those who were the most radical at the time of the Reformation, have become the group that we have the most in common with today. Their understanding of Gelassenheit as a spiritual maxim is very similar to the teaching of uniformity or conformity to the will of God preached my so many saints. The Amish, because of their simple way of life, understand that actions have consequences. In a sense, because of their way of life, they have reunited faith and works without preaching it. We as Catholics must learn to simplify. It is those things we are most attached to that are doing the most harm to our culture and our families. It is ironic that I say this on a blog! Someday the time of this blog will come to an end. I have always known that, but I never have set a date for it. I suppose through this I practice Gelassenheit. In my own family I must seek out a way of life where we can build true Catholic community. We must seek to place our faith in the center of our lives, and let it permeate all aspects of our lives, especially how we live as individuals and families. We have much to learn from the Amish, if only we have the humility to admit it.

Peace in Christ,
Kevin

True Stewardship of Creation

2011-05-06T21:43:00.000-05:00

Killdeer eggs

This morning as I was preparing one of my garden beds for my sweet potato slips that will be arriving any day, I noticed a killdeer (a bird native to KS) acting as if one of its wings was broken. I was using my gravely 2 wheel tractor to till the bed before I haul manure and compost onto it. The bird caught my eye immediately, especially since it was only a few feet from my rather loud tractor. I put it in neutral and went to see if this seemingly injured bird was alright. As I went toward the bird it immediately took flight. I have seen many killdeer growing up in southern Kansas, and I am familiar with their rather odd nesting habits. Many birds nest high in the trees, far beyond the reach of most predators. Killdeer make their nests in the most open places they can find. How they are not extinct is behond my understanding. I immediately began looking, but didn't see anything, so I started the Gravely back up and went on tilling. Soon I saw the bird hunkered down smack dab in the middle of my future sweet potato plot. The killdeer mother will feign injury as a way to lead predators away from the nest. If I were a conventional farmer this bird and her nest of four eggs would have been tilled under and forgotten. However, I did what any good steward would do: I tilled around her nest. There is a two foot by two foot plot of untilled ground in the middle of my sweet potato patch. There the mother Killdeer will hopefully hatch her little clutch of chicks, even as I plant sweet potatoes around her. It was a beautiful moment for me as I saw the mother fly back to her nest when I was done.

I read once about how the Amish wouldn't mow their hay until a certain time in the summer because they didn't want to disturb a particular species of bird that nested at that time. I feel honored to be able to imitate such worthy stewardship on my own plot of land. It is my hope that whatever land I farm I will be able to improve through proper farming methods. To me stewardship is more than just recycling plastic bags. It is a way of life that not only maintains, but improves the earth. What a blessing to be a Catholic Farmer.

In Christ,

Kevin

The Importance of Catholic Fathers

2011-05-05T08:13:00.000-05:00

Here is a quote from the book "The Soul of the Apostolate," which was St. Pius X's bedside book.
"And yet so long as we have not made the fathers of families not only into Christians but also into apostles, the influence of Christian mothers, great as it is, will be obstructed or short-lived, and we will never set the Social Kingdom of Christ on a firm basis."

If Fathers are not true apostles of Christ then any hope for the family fails us. They must not merely be devout, but must seek to imitate Christ in all things and become holy. The Father is the spiritual leader and guide for the family. If he is a poor captain of the ship then there will certainly be mutiny, and the ship will be lost to one of the many great perils in the sea of this world.

Peace in Christ,
Kevin

The Simple Things

2011-05-04T22:05:00.000-05:00

Today, I unloaded approximately 2-3 tons of composted manure with a shovel and a pitchfork. The work was hard, but not unbearable. My hands suffered quite a bit, but I am happy to have the compost for the garden. Doing such a simple task gives me great joy and satisfaction. It enables me to improve the soil and to be a good steward. It also provided the opportunity to earn my bread by the sweat of my brow. It was in this context that I got to thinking about how complicated life has become. Nothing is simple anymore. Going somewhere used to mean a leisurely walk down the road or a jolly jaunt in a horse and buggy. Now it means finding the keys and the wallet, getting buckled in and starting the car, driving in and out of traffic, finding a parking spot, etc, etc, etc. Nothing about a trip anywhere is simple. While it is true that many of our modern gadgets and gizmos offer us some amount of comfort and pleasure, it is also true they have greatly complicated our lives. There is something wholesome about a shovelful of compost. In fact there is almost something human about it. Humus-human "God formed a man from the dust of the Earth." Man's connection to the Earth has been obscured by our technology saturated culture. What have we lost because of it?

Kevin

A False Habit of Mind

2011-05-02T21:51:00.001-05:00

The founders of the original Catholic Land Movement were fond of using the term: "A false habit of mind." This term simply means a habitual way of thinking based on one or many falsehoods. For example, a Protestant has the false habit of mind of thinking in terms of sola fide and sola scriptura. The true habit of mind includes tradition alongside faith and scripture. This false habit of mind narrows the way the person looks at everything, and most certainly shapes the way he views certain ideas. This false habit of mind does not allow him to accept other truths that otherwise would be clear to him. Now, moving beyond this example let us look at our own modern world.

Many of the ways of thinking that our popular culture advocates advance a false habit of mind. There are so many false ideas, that to put them all down would take more books that any one person could write. Let's look at a couple. First, is the idea of following your heart. This often today means do whatever feels good to you. This way of thinking is false because the heart often wants to do things that are not really good for the person. The true habit of mind would be one in which we seek to always do right, rather than do whatever feels good. Sin often feels good, but it is not good. Now I want to apply this principle of a false habit of mind to the way we live today.

It is very hard to escape the false mindset thrown upon us here in the West that becoming rich is the main goal of our lives. In fact it is even acceptable to be moderately well off. However, I must think about the words of the Gospel and how they measure up against this mindset. "Blessed are the poor." and "It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven." It is with this in mind that we must wonder why it has been so difficult for the faith to be passed down in our modern era. Maybe another scripture quote fits here. "You cannot serve both God and mammon." I think too often we "spiritualize" these scripture passages and try to explain them away. While it is true that it is not evil to be rich, it is also most certainly true that it is better to be poor for Christ has pronounced them blessed. Voluntary poverty is a truly blessed state, but must not be confused with destitution, which no human ought to ever experience. It is the constant seeking of riches that causes destitution. There are many false habits of mind that we must fight daily to overcome. I see them in myself and in those around me. There is a constant temptation to separate our faith from our daily lives. Fighting this tendency is really what the Catholic Land Movement is all about. The life of the peasant is one where faith and life are united. Here a true habit of mind is cultivated and poverty is embraced. On the land praying and working together, the family becomes free and whole. They are free to worship and live together without the separation that is caused by our modern industrialized workdays. When the family again is whole, then the culture's slow disintegration will begin to be stopped. Then again Christendom will begin to be rebuilt one family at a time.

In Christ,
Kevin

Some Blog Updates

2011-04-30T12:47:00.001-05:00

Hello Catholic Land Movement followers,

I want to say thank you to all of you who have followed my blog faithfully for the past couple of years. I am doing some updating of the blog, and I have purchased a custom domain name that can be more easily searched. I also will be adding some new features to the site. I am hoping that this site will eventually become a virtual hub for the Catholic Land Movement.

I attended a small meeting yesterday at Conception Abbey in Missouri with a couple of the priests to discuss the Catholic Land Movement. We are discerning the possible creation of a conference on the Catholic Land Movement. Please let me know if you would be interested in attending. The monks have invited us to use the Abbey, which has facilities for people to stay, a place for the celebration of the Liturgy, and it is in a very rural location. We are searching for grants to help cover the cost of such a conference, and hopefully soon will begin searching for a few speakers. Any recommendations are welcome.

Kevin

A Place to Call Home

2011-04-28T22:38:00.000-05:00

I grew up on the plains of Southern KS. The area is flat and telephone poles are the native tree. The area is green in winter and brown in summer. No, I didn't make a typo. Winter wheat is basically the only crop grown in the area, and winter wheat is green all winter long before turning golden brown for harvest in summer. This place will always have a piece of my heart. It is where I spent all of my first 19 years of life. In the summer I practically lived in the creek, and winters meant football in the snow after 10am Sunday Mass. However, now that place that I once called home no longer exists. The kids I grew up with have all moved away, and almost all have fallen away from the Faith. The Catholic School I attended closed in my 6th grade year, and now a priest splits 4 parishes between the Saturday Vigil and Sunday morning so 10am Mass is a rarity. What happened to the place I called home. In a sense it will always be home, but my roots have been severed and I have been sent out to find a place to call home for my children.

What I desire most is to create a community in which my children find a home and set down roots. I want them to have an attachment to the place that they grew up, and I want that place to have the stability to hold their roots. Today, no one has any roots. Who among us lives in the area where they grew up. I'm sure there are a few, but they are the exception to the rule. As a whole families no longer belong to a community, and thus they have become semi-nomadic. This lack of stability means that the children often feel as if they don't belong, and thus they feel that they don't have a responsibility toward community and society.

Family life needs stability. I can see this already in my two very young daughters. They thrive on routine. They want things to be done the same way over and over again. Today, families often move from place to place, and there is no community for them to belong to so they have no sense that they owe something to those with whom they grew up. It is in this context that I think families need other like-minded families to form some stability. However, also Fathers need to find a way to provide a living for their families in a place, and in such a way that allows their children to remain in that place when they marry and raise their own families. In generations past, the children of the farmer often bought land right up or down the road. Now, farmers seldom beget farmers. Too often the children flee to the city where they will certainly squander away their lives and often lose their very souls. Our modern fast-paced society is one in which we move too fast to be attached to anything. We have also become so separated that it is hard to be truly attached to a certain place. We found this to be the case when we had our homestead, before moving to farm full time. We had milk goats that needed to be milked twice a day every day. This meant no long trips to family and friends. We were literally tied down to the farm. Nowadays our family and friends are often so scattered that being attached to a certain place is very difficult and entails immense personal sacrifice, but the stability is what forms strong families, which are needed if Christian Culture is to be rebuilt. I ponder all this as we look to eventually move back onto our own land. I want a place to call home. I want my children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren to call that place home. The question is, where is that place?

In Christ Our Risen Lord,
Kevin

Distributism and the Moral Social Order

2011-04-25T09:10:00.001-05:00

Prior to the Reformation the worldview in the West was one based on morality. The post-Reformation world was one in which the worldview was based on economics. Here we find one of the great conflicts of our modern times. We now live in a world no longer enlightened by the principles of the Gospel, but rather a world darkened with the stains of greed, lust, and power. It is here again that we must re-examine and seek again the ideal found in the West before the great breaks in Christendom. The Church has never ceased calling for a world based on the Gospel. In her great social encyclicals we see time and time again, the call for a Christ-centered social order. Yet, most of us have turned up our noses, closed our ears, and continued to bury ourselves in the poisons of materialism and relativism. We have continued to seek what I want, rather than what is best for my family and for the common good. I liken it to a person who is addicted to drugs or to watching television. It is one thing to get a person to cease the activity to which they are addicted, but that is not all that is required. Now we must discover something to replace the previous activity. Before, hours were spent in front of the television, now what will that person do? The same goes for our current economically-centered social order. When our current order comes crashing down around us, as it is beginning to do, what will replace it? Capitalism has shown its hand, and we are seeing that the system is failing. Socialism has already been tried and found wanting. I'm sure some will clamour for the original design of free-market capitalism, but this is not the answer. The answer is found in the Church's social teaching. Listen to what Blessed John XXIII says in Mater et Magistra:

115. Now, if ever, is the time to insist on a more widespread distribution of property, in view of the rapid economic development of an increasing number of States. It will not be difficult for the body politic, by the adoption of various techniques of proved efficiency, to pursue an economic and social policy which facilitates the widest possible distribution of private property in terms of durable consumer goods, houses, land, tools and equipment (in the case of craftsmen and owners of family farms), and shares in medium and large business concerns.

Now if ever is the time to return to a social order where the desire is to become holy, not rich, and if one should become rich then the goal of his riches ought to be to glorify God. Indeed the social order of the middle ages was one built on the maxim in the Rule of St. Benedict: "Ut in omnibus glorificetur Deus." -"That in all things God would be glorified." It is unlikely that we will be able to accomplish such a social order through policies and laws. Popular opinion certainly will not be in our favor. Our hope is in small groups willing to make immense sacrifices to live out the ideals of Christianity in a social context. They must have a single-mindedness bent on living out the Social Reign of Christ in their lives, and be content with sacrifices and the bare minimum needed. "Blessed are the Poor." must be their daily meditation. If we are to build a bulwark against the current decaying social model, then we must find a way for groups to live out the ideals of distributism as laid out in Catholic Social Teaching. This then would create a model that could be copied, imitated, and adapted to other needs. Here would be a small piece of Christendom reborn in the midst of our modern jungle. No, it is not a Utopia, but rather it is a piece of heaven here on earth as we are called to bring about. "Thy Kingdom come." This was the vision of the original Catholic Land Movement. That movement failed, but did provide a foundation for us today. We live in a world that is much more broken than that which they lived in. Our hope is not in vain. May Christ bless all of our endeavours to further his light in our society. "O God, I have called to You and You have heard me..." Let us call on Him for He hears us.

In Christ,

Kevin

The Spiritual Life of the Peasant

2011-04-22T09:37:00.000-05:00

Today, I pray, but I do not work. This is a profound truth for myself as I discover the beauty of a spiritual and liturgical life unfettered by the demands of a job outside the home. I am not obligated to go into some job today as my Lord and Savior hangs on a Cross for me. Today, I can stand at the foot of the Cross with St. John and the Holy Women and be present at the Crucifixion. What freedom the peasant had to live out the liturgical cycle. He was not bound by a job that gave you "President's Day" off, but stayed "Open on Christmas." What a sham our modern way of life is. How greatly it has destroyed our own spiritual foundations as feasts have been replaced by holidays.

The peasant has and has always had a freedom all his own. He was not rich, and in this was his freedom. He did not seek riches, but was content with a simple life of obedience to God's will. He was a simple tiller of the soil, and here in the soil he found our origin and our Creator. The great feasts were days of celebration and worship, not merely holy days of obligation. The whole social order was indeed ordered. Today we have a social disorder that threatens to destroy western civilization. A return to the land allows for a freedom to pray and work in a way that is in keeping with God's original design. If we are to live the fullness of the Catholic Faith then we must find ways to break the fetters our modern society puts on us. I have chosen to flee to the fields, and by God's grace I will be able to stay here. Yet, I realize that we need to break more fetters if we are to be truly free. We must simplify more so as to not be so dependent on money. Our very routines today are so based on cheap gasoline, that the higher prices are forcing changes. I would like to live within walking distance of a parish. In fact I would like a village full of other Catholic Peasants with the Church in the center. Here then again we would see the Spiritual Life of the Peasant in its fullness. Here a simple life would become a holy life. This is my hope. Jesus, by the merits of your suffering and death, grant us we humbly beg you, to answer our petitions we offer you this day.

In our Crucified Lord,
Kevin

Who is my neighbor?

2011-04-21T08:40:00.000-05:00

Who is my neighbor? This is a pertinent question for all of us to ask, but maybe not in its original context. Originally it was meant to ask whom we are required to love. Christ's answer is that we must love both our friend and enemy. However, I think today it might mean, how are we to love our neighbor if we do not know them. In our age of technology we have been separated from our fellow men. Too often we do not even know the person next door. Modern apartments allow thousands of people to live within seconds of each other, yet often the apartment dwellers have never once spoken to any other person in those apartments. This was our experience during our brief stint in an apartment complex. Too often the chance meeting on the sidewalks or along the road are now stunted because of the constant use of cellphones, texting, and ipods. The chance to love our neighbor is drowned out in the noise of our modern materialism. Do we know our neighbors? Do we know those in the pew next to us at Sunday Mass? We can only love that which we know, and if we do not know our neighbor how are we to love him?

The noise of our modern way of life is often so loud that all real community is prevented. It is the same problem of trying to have a quiet deep conversation in the midst of the banter of a raucous party. An intimate conversation can only be held between a small group of people in the right setting. If all the participants have earphones in then most certainly all conversation will die, all mutual growth of knowledge will fail, and in the end Charity will find no entrance. Our modern way of living has set us up to never know our neighbors. Everything we do is too often about self, and not about giving ourselves. Even our parishes are no longer intimate communities where people who know and love one another come together to worship God. Now our parishes are vast meeting places that are used as often for craft fairs and concerts as for the building up of the one Body of Christ. Our homes are places where we sleep, and that is about it. Where is the singing, the cooking, the reading on which authentic Catholic Culture is built? If our homes are not the beginning of Charity for our neighbor in the love for one another then indeed we will fail to love those that are not of our own flesh and blood. Our cities are not cities, but rather they are jungles as Chesterton once put it. They are full of selfishness, ambition, greed, lust, and atrocities too terrible to write here. If we are to know our neighbor then we must flee to the fields. It will be there free from the surging materialism of our times that we will again rediscover our neighbor and come out of the cave where we have worshipped the shadows. We must not drag the city to the country with us however. We must simplify and get back to the basics of Catholic Life. Work and Prayer together daily as a family is necessary. Life imbued with the goodness of Christ will only come if we individually grow in holiness. We must gather again around the heart in our own home and sing, read, pray, and love one another. This is the hope for the restoration of Christian Culture. In the restoration of the Catholic Family will come the revival of Christian Culture we need so badly. The time has come. He is calling out to you. Do you hear Him?

In Jesus' Love,
Kevin

Waiting and Longing

2011-04-19T09:39:00.000-05:00

I think the most difficult part about doing the Lord's will is the waiting period. I often feel that if He would just tell me what He wants then I could do it, even if it meant moving halfway around the world. Yet, in this I can sense the temptation to always want to be doing something else, or wishing God's will was something other than it is. "If only" can easily turn into despair or hopelessness as we wait for the next Word from God. In all this there is more than enough grace if only we persevere on the path we are on. I feel this deeply with my own family as we seek out God's will for us. We sit waiting for the answer to our prayers day by day. We are sharing a home, which really means we don't actually have a home to call our own. It is in all this though that I have seen God work marvelously in my own soul, and in that of my wife. Through the suffering and time of waiting God has opened us to new possibilities and realities that before we might not have been open to. Suddenly, what we initially perceived to be the path we ought to follow closed before us without leaving another clear path to take. So we turned to prayer and are beginning again to see possibly what God desires us to do. In our first 4 years of marriage we have had something significant happen near Lent/Easter. Each year has brought a new beginning and been marked off by a different type of marital and spritual growth. Year one of marriage was a year of joy. Marked by the joy of conceiving our first child and living out our marriage vows for the first time Year two was a year of great suffering. My wife became very ill with an ulcer and we had a baby that had terrible colic. The change between the two years had come right after Easter when we decided to move from our city home to the country after a discernment retreat at a rural Church. However, we didn't end up in the country, rather our home sold very quickly and we ended up in a very small apartment for most of that year two. It was a year of growth, but the kind that only the Cross can bring. In February of year two we found our future home and moved during Lent. Year three was our year of growth. After the frost of suffering came the spring of growth. We had our homestead for the first time and learned much. We began to become a family and had much joy in living out Christian culture in our own home. Whether learning to milk goats or make cheese, it was a year of growth of knowledge and spiritual growth. Year four, which is quickly coming to an end for us was a year of faith. It was marked near Easter of last year when I made the decision to come home, and chose not to sign my teaching contract. It has been a year of immense growth in faith for our family as we learned to trust God and depend on Him rather than ourselves. Well, Easter is almost here again and we are waiting and longing for God to give us a year of miracles. I was thinking that Christ always did miracles in the presence of great faith. I hope some way or another that this is the year I am able to establish our Catholic Land Movement Farm. I pray that we will have our own home where others can come and experience true Catholic culture. I pray and I believe.

In Christ,
Kevin

Wouldn't we be "Better Off"?

2011-04-15T23:04:00.000-05:00

I have been giving more thought to my theories of technology as of late. Various occurrences in my own life have given me reason to ponder technology and its appropriate place in our lives, especially as Catholics. One such incident was due to my forgetfulness. I forgot to drain my rather expensive gas-powered irrigation pump I use for my garden. It reached 25 degrees fahrenheit and cracked the pump. Thus far I have not found a way to repair it as it is made in China by a French company.....!!!! So I have been considering whether I really need irrigation. Is there a better way to farm that is less technological? I'm not sure, but I have been considering the benefits of mulching and cover crops. This was just one of several incidents that have made me feel all the more strongly that we are in a technological shipwreck, and that only those willing to throw away their gadgets will be able to get into the life boats.

I'd like to focus on technology and its effects on individuals, families, and society as a whole. First, I would like to make the point that the family (not the individual) is the basic unit of society. With this as our starting point we can then assume that if something is good for an individual, or even a number of inividuals, but overall is bad for families then it is unacceptable. Cars are an example of such a technology that was primarily good for individuals, but terrible for family and society as a whole. Automobiles were created primarily as a way to get over long distances quickly, something that could not be done with animal power. This need was relatively small, and could have been solved with a few well placed train tracks. However, man in his adoration of technology worshipped the auto and made it into another mechanical god. Look at the effects of automobiles on families. First, the strain of the cost and upkeep of a vehicle come into play. Money that otherwise could have been used for a better or more noble purpose. Secondly, we must look at the piece mealing of life caused by vehicles. Families came under terrible temptation to run here and there to do this or get that. Thus the quiet serenity and constancy of the home came under terrible attach. Thirdly, home and work were severed and a commute became common. This lead to the need for more and larger roads as autos multiplied. This in turn led to the unprecedented expansion of urban centers to sizes previously unheard of. We could also consider the number of people killed in car accidents each year: approx. 42,000 in the U.S. alone. I'm not certain, but I'm rather sure that the number of people killed in horse drawn buggy accidents in years past was less than this..... Automobiles have become a staple of modern life, but they serve little purpose beyond the destruction of the family, its habits, customs, and life. They only serve a purpose in modern life because they have created their own artificial needs. They are needed because we have created a modern world where it is miles to anywhere from where we are. There is no local market in our neighborhood, we live 25 miles from work, and Johnny has a baseball game in the next county. We have drastically overestimated the usefulness of certain technologies, while often ignoring the terrible effects they have had on our families. Might we have been better off if the car had never been invented. I say that the answer is found in the breakdown of the modern family.

We also could look at other technologies. What about the telephone. It was the precursor to many other devices now used to "keep in contact with others," which has become ever more necessary as the car has spread our families and friends to the forewinds. The telephone was meant to make it easier to contact people who lived a great distance away. This was certainly a good thing to be able to do. Once again though this could be done through letters. In fact the telegraph would have sufficed for those urgent messages that needed to get there now. The telephone quickly became a way to talk to the neighbor next door, without actually having to see him. Thus certain civilities went by the wayside as did many ways of socializing. It is easier to talk to someone on the phone than in person, so it was inevitable that human nature would follow this way of thinking to the modern text messaging age. I have seen students who only felt themselves when they were texting rather than talking. What this means is that they are losing the abilitiy to socialize and to be social, which man is by nature. These messaging technologies, while not evil in themselves, needed to be used for the purposes they were meant. Instead they have become another dainty for our pockets, another gadget to distract us from our spiritual side, and another step towards the nihilism that is destroying our world. I am not advocating throwing out all technology, but a more sane use of it. Well, it is late and I must put away this piece of technology and get some much needed rest, that is if I can stop thinking about whether the use of a computer to break down technology is justifiable.

Peace,
Kevin

Weary but Complete

2011-04-09T22:04:00.000-05:00

I sit here tonight still rather filthy from a long day of work. It was 93 here today, with a strong southerly wind and high humidity. I guess you could say Spring is really here. Today I was building a new chicken coop. I am doing it with basically no cost by using some boards that were going to a burn pile. I use the simplest tools possible, and only use power tools for things that are almost impossible by hand, such as ripping plywood. I have but plywood to size using a handsaw many times, but today I opted to use a skihl saw. Today was a day of hard manual labor. It started early with coffee and prayer, and will end shortly with prayer again without the coffee. Today I pulled nails, hammered nails, cut wood, built walls and doors, cut plywood, drug a half constructed chicken coop from one end of the yard to its permanent resting place, and the list goes on and on. Some things today went very well, especially this afternoon's work, but this mornings work was one headache after another. This is just the way life is on the farm. You work hard, you pray hard, and you trust everything else into God's almight hands. Tonight as I sit here dirty, sore, and weary, I have a deep sense of completeness. I can feel the rightness of what I have done today, and though weary I am complete. This is something beautiful to contemplate. When I have done the work God has for me to do, and I am worn down, then in my weariness I find peace of soul and satisfaction for the body. This is Catholic Farm Life. Here the father can work just out back, and can be called in at any moment to assist his wife. Here the family is complete as they work and pray together on the land. My prayer for all of you is that one day you will be as weary and complete as I feel right now.

In Jesus' Love,
Kevin

On Order

2011-04-09T07:55:00.000-05:00

When we moved into our in-law's home last year, I don't think we realized the difficulty with which we maintain order in our own family. Many of activities we were accustomed to doing as a family were now either shared or absent. Meals together now are seldom of our own choosing. We eat what we are given and occasionally get a meal together just as our family and without grandma and grandpa eating with us. I still have my garden, which is wonderful and huge, but it is a 1/4 mile from the house, which means long walks to and from. Mary can't just ring our large yard bell anymore to call me in. In fact the bell is in a box somewhere in the basement, and it will likely not be seen until it hangs at our future farm. This time without a home of my own has brought me to appreciate much more deeply the rural life we shared as a family before moving here. Many of the things we once had and loved are absent, and we long to have those things present in their proper place again. It is with all this in mind that I think of the importance of an ordered home. Today, most families lack any order whatsoever. Specifically they lack family order, which is not to say that their own individual lives aren't ordered, but rather that the family no longer acts as a family. Each individual unit is like a lego that should be with the other legos but isn't. Their is no contribution for the greater good of the family, but rather contibution for the individual good. It is with this in mind that I am going to work toward establishing a weekly schedule for our family to be folllowed as much as possible. I know when I don't plan things in my farming edeavours, they just simply never get done. We have discussed in the future planning out our weekly meals in advance so as to not have to sit their and decide what to have right beforehand. This often leads to microwaving and poor preparation. I'd like to institute more of a set schedule of prayers both for myself individually, which I have been working on, and for my family as a whole, which is somewhat difficult when our oldest child is 2.5 years old. Nonetheless, setting up this order gives meaning and purpose to activities. There is a great sense of accomplishment as each day comes to a close and one has accomplished what one has planned to accomplish. In this way we make our family lives beautiful because beauty is order. It is the visible form of what is true and good. May we all seek to make our lives more beautiful. May our ordered families be a quiet witness in a disordered world. May the light of Jesus' love shine so forth in our families that others will find it irresistible, and find themselves saying yes, this is what family life is meant to be.

In Christ Jesus,
Kevin

Important Rural Life Virtues

2011-04-06T08:02:00.000-05:00

I have been pondering lately a set of virtues that would be foundational for the Catholic Land Movement. Ultimately, if any movement is to succeed it must be based on a spiritual foundation, and not be merely active. This spiritual foundation centered in the heart of Jesus brings forth a life of virtue in the soul immersed in Christ. I have thought the following virtues as central for the movement, and I do not necessarily think this is a complete list, but just my first thoughts.

Humility - This virtue counteracts pride, which is the great vice which so often leads us out of God's grace and way of thinking and into our own. To do God's will one must be humble. Families living on the land trusting in God's Providence for their daily bread must have no spark of pride. They must give their daily fiat as I realized a couple days ago when we received golf ball sized hail and 80mph straight line winds that pretty much destroyed my greenhouse I was so proud of. When all is God's there is no loss.

Charity - The mark of the true Christian is Charity. It is the foundational virtue that must every family and individual must have. A love that is centered in a deep prayer life and focused on the love that flows from the wounds of Jesus is irresistible to others. The Catholic Land Movement is not about escaping, but rather demonstrating a life that is sane to a world that is insane. Our farms and homesteads must "Welcome all guests as Christ," as St. Benedict instructed his monks to do. This charity is what will attract others to our way of life.

Simplicity - A home that is cluttered with modern conveniences and distractions is often a home that has members who only sleep there. The little time spent together as a family is based on mindless entertainment. The home must be simplified and purged. All unnecessary technologies should be made into a sacrificial holocaust to our Almighty Father. Our homes must be well-ordered to give a authentic Catholic Family Witness (Martyria) to a world that has gone insane and is full of chaos. We must be the Word that gives form to the Chaos of our modern world as once the Father spoke the Word and out of the chaos came the order of Creation.

Joy - This is a virtue that belongs most to the Christian, and I think especially to the Christian Family who has opened itself to the love of life and of Christ and His Church. "The Joy of the Lord is our Strength." St. Teresa of Avila once said: "Lord deliver me from so many sour-faced saints." She was poking fun at all those "holy" souls who thought that to be holy one must be somber. There is only one source of Joy and that is Jesus Christ. A family who has devoted all its energies to doing the Will of God will indeed be full of Joy.

Hope- "In hope we are saved." Our current Holy Father reminded us of this in one of his encyclicals. When families are weighed down by all the baggage of modern life and when they look at the dire state of the world they lose focus on Christ and lose hope. A family living a well ordered life on the Land cannot help but be hopeful that after the storm will come the Earth refreshed. We must be true witnesses to hope or Ambassadors of hope as some might say. The family who is raising their children to be holy is living out the virtue of hope by bringing these witnesses of hope into the dark world.

In Christ,
Kevin

Nazareth

2011-04-03T07:49:00.000-05:00

How is it that God chooses a specific location to start his great work? How is it that He chose Nazareth as the home for the Holy Family? Are these not questions that we should ask ourselves as we discern where God is leading us. Certainly the Pharisees and indeed some of the Apostles had bias against this little country town. "Can anything good come from Nazareth?" The answer to that question is definitively answered in Our Lord. So as I contemplate where God is leading my family I have to keep in mind that God does many of his greatest works in the most out of the way and unexpected places. Often it is in the ghettos, the backcountry towns, and the out of the way places that God does the most amazing works. Who would have thought that Nazareth would be the place that for 30 years our Blessed Lord would work, pray, and prepare for His rather short 3 year ministry? Yet, it was God's perfect will that this be so. Certainly this is something we need to think about. God did not have his Son raised amongst the great men of His time. Jesus was not raised in the shadow of the Temple visiting daily the center of His faith. In fact even in His ministry He stays often in the byways and back roads of Israel. We do not always know why God calls us to this place or that. His will is often manifested only in retrospect. I say all this because it may not be God's will that we move our families to that "perfect" Catholic community here or there. Maybe it is His will that we work towards making His Kingdom present on Earth in our own way in our own Nazareth.

Peace be with your Spirit,
Kevin

P.S. - I probably won't be blogging for a couple of days as I am presenting on Organic Farming at a Catholic High School and won't be home. However, I expect it to give me more to write about. "Laetare Jerusalem"

Deus Ibi Est

2011-04-01T17:48:00.000-05:00

After much prayer I have decided to delete my post regarding our choice to not currently attend the Extraordinary Form of the Latin Rite. If I said anything uncharitable in it that was not my intention. It was meant to tell merely of my own journey and of the deepening of my understanding of what it means to be Catholic. If I have offended any, I ask forgiveness. If I have judged wrongly, I ask pardon. It is my choice not that on this blog I will stick strictly to the Catholic Land Movement and its goals as well as how I am implementing them in my own family. "Ubi Caritas. Deus Ibi Est."

Kevin

Mary's Journey Home: Confessions of a Former City Girl

2011-04-01T00:19:00.000-05:00

Kevin has been wanting me to post on my own journey to rural life--or Catholic rural life, really--for quite some time now. After some prayer, I've decided to post on it now, so thanks to those of you who have asked for the story and have waited patiently for so long for it to appear.

I was born in the mid-80s in the small city of Topeka, KS; I was raised in the country outside of the city. That being said, I never considered myself to be "country", and was rather proud of my city-girl status. Growing up, I knew the latest in fashion trends, pop stars, music, computers/Internet, TV shows, movies, and gossip around my Catholic high school (a good school that nonetheless struggled with being as Catholic as it ought to have been). What was important to me was being accepted among my peers. It was my purpose in life. I had (and still have) very devout, Catholic parents with an active faith life and joy in Christ and His Church. They did absolutely everything they could to raise holy children; they took us to Mass on a regular basis (including daily Mass), we prayed together every day, we were involved in our parish, etc. Despite all their best efforts, they still failed me; or, rather, "civilization" failed me.

The depth of society's failure with my life went much deeper than the average person could have perceived, just taking a brief glance at me. I was a straight-A student, I didn't smoke, didn't do drugs, didn't drink (although I might have if I had been as "accepted" as I wished to be at the time). However, the shallowness of the "pop" life I was living was devouring my soul little by little. I was searching for love, for purpose, for happiness in all the wrong places, and by sophomore year, I was almost suicidal. This slow spin towards the nihilism of our culture was checked suddenly in my junior year of high school. After getting a swift kick in the hind quarters from a beloved priest, I found myself following his advice and seeking out a new set of friends who would eventually pull me out of the gutter into the light of day. Long story short, these friends (some with whom I still maintain a close friendship) put me on the fast track to appreciating my Catholic faith (and it truly became MY faith, instead of just my parents' faith). They led me to Benedictine College in Atchison, KS, one of the best truly Catholic colleges in the nation. It was there that I met Kevin.

When I met Kevin, he was fresh from one year of seminary in which he had discerned that his calling was to marriage, not to the priesthood. He wasn't sure of anything else as far as what he felt the Lord calling him to do with a college education. In the course of our relationship at the college, Kevin changed his major no less than four times. He wanted to do something with history, because he liked history; he wanted to coach track someday, because he liked track, and he was good at it; he wanted to become a college professor of some sort, because it made better money than a regular teacher; he wanted to get into youth ministry, because he loved kids. He just didn't know which way the Lord wanted him to go. Eventually, he settled with a religious studies degree, and that's what he graduated with. Meanwhile, as we became friends, then began to court one another, then became engaged and began to discuss life-long plans, I obtained a double degree in English and Secondary Education, the idea being to teach for the rest of my life (something I'd wanted to do since I was six years old). I remember, somewhere in our discussions about our future life together, Kevin mentioning that he'd like to own a milk cow someday. It was a whimsical remark, and I laughed at it, thinking nothing of it (I've since learned not take anything Kevin says as a "whimsy."). After our graduation in May 2007 and marriage in July 2007, we ended up with teaching jobs in Wichita, KS. We were happy.

And, yet....something was missing.

I watched on a day to day basis as my husband's dissatisfaction with his job only lessened enough to keep him sane; he remained more restless than I had ever seen him before. Looking back on this time, I can clearly remember the feelings associated with that first year. We were happy...definitely happy. It was our first year of marriage, after all, and we had a good house, great jobs with great coworkers making good money, a vibrant parish, etc. But even city girl Mary was not fully satisfied with life. I missed my husband when I was at work, and I was not fond of living in the noisy, not-always-the-safest-of-places city, having lived all my life in the country, something I had totally taken for granted.

It was in this home that we discovered that we were going to have a baby; in this home that we shared our sorrows and joys in teaching young people, in hoping for them to attain greatness; in this home that Kevin first read "The Family Milk Cow"; it was in this home that Kevin discovered a deep-seeded desire to be a small farmer and to have a Catholic, self-sufficient homestead; it was in this home that I learned not to laugh at his desire to "have a milk cow someday"; and in this home that we first discerned that our move towards the country would not be in five years as we had originally discussed, but in less than a year. Fast-forwarding a little, we found ourselves in a small, one bedroom apartment after a fruitless search for a country home with enough acreage to begin a farm, and a small "patio" garden of a few tomato plants and grape vines. We had our first child, and named her Rose Philomena, and she was as beautiful as her name...and as thorny. She was colicky, it was a small apartment after having had a large house, and I had post-partum depression. Kevin needed an outlet, and began to write essays, which eventually became his book (yet to be published) on the Catholic Land Movement and homesteading. Being depressed (and thus too introspective to notice), I simply tried to make it to the next day. My desire to farm (or to do anything but sleep, for that matter) was at its lowest. However, I was more than eager to get out of the apartment and into a home with space. Six or seven months after moving into the apartment, Kevin's parents found the perfect home for us to get started, and we moved in shortly after.

The Ford Family Homestead, as we dubbed it, was a beautiful little place with one and a half acres, a shed, and a perfect setup for having a large garden and some animals. Kevin got right to work. I was on the tail-end of my depression by this point, but I remained a kind of reluctant accomplice to my husband's enthusiastic approach to our new life. I went along with what he was doing, knowing that it was God's will that we be there doing what we were doing, but my heart wasn't in it...until one night a few months after we moved there.

We had bought dairy goats soon after moving to the homestead, and two of the three were pregnant. We had never done anything with goats before, but Kevin had read himself silly on the subject, and we were as prepared as could have been expected to be (or so we thought). One night, after a trip to town, we came home, and, Kevin being tired, I offered to do his barn chores for him. I went out into the pasture when I heard one of our goats maaa-ing piteously and saw a little white fluff-ball crouching under the legs of its mother, who was as confused as could be (she was a first time dam). I rushed in and fetched my husband, and we went back out to get mother and baby into the warmth of the barn. The kid was a well-formed buckling, but he was cold and weak. A feeling I didn't at first understand welled up in my heart, and I held the little kid, who couldn't get on his feet no matter how hard he tried, up to his mother's teats so he could nurse. He nursed voraciously for a while, and then I set him down to rest. He still couldn't stand when we left the pair that night to go to bed. I couldn't get the helpless little goat off my mind, and I went out twice in the middle of the night to help the kid nurse.

By morning, he was on his wobbly little legs. By morning, my world had changed.

After that instance, I entered into the homesteading life with my husband with enthusiasm. I understood what my husband had been trying to explain to me for so long: that when you leave the city, and embrace a rural life in which you are an intricate part of God's plan for creation, your purpose goes beyond putting money in the bank, as in Kevin's case, or putting food on the table and keeping the house clean and your child from drawing all over the walls, as in my case. I found that stewardship of God's creation extends outside of your family and your home into the outside world and back in again with an enriching effect, instead of a detrimental one, as it might in a city of materialism and pop culture. My own immensely important role in that circular journey became crystal clear, and I was hooked.

I can't explain all the little details of my journey home, so to speak, but I will say this: I've come to realize that God's plans our much, much bigger than me, something our modern culture fails miserably to understand. This realization is actually rather liberating, because God's plans are so much more interesting than my puny mind could ever come up with. It's amazing to me how something that seems so small--a little Catholic farm with four people, a garden, and a few animals--could actually be something so huge in my efforts to help get my family to Heaven. And now we have begun to touch many, many other lives with ours. And I'm grateful. Terribly, awfully grateful. God is good.

In Him,
Mary Ford

The Right to Private Property

2011-03-31T22:29:00.000-05:00

Man has a right to own private property. This is a principle found within Catholic Social Teaching and one we must take very seriously. It is one of the reasons why communism is unacceptable as it denies man's right to private property, but what of the other extreme. With regards to the owning of private property does one then have the right to own unlimited private property? There are those such as Ted Turner that own millions of acres of land and their bying continues endlessly while some will never be able to break free of the bonds of an apartment. Whereas Socialism states man has no right to private property, Capitalism seems to state that man has a right to own as much property as he wants. Both systems are flawed and harm individuals, families, and society. Thus we should look at a third way: Distributism. It has been a long time since I posted on this topic and it is long overdue. Let us put private property in this system and see the benefits. Distributism says that man indeed has a right to private property, but justice demands that no man own too much property. Thus property should be equitably distributed and limited to what is necessary. This does not mean everyone will have the same amount of wealth, but rather that greed will be checked and thus extraordinary wealth and terrible destitution will be done away with as everyone has some means of making a living. There will still be the wealthy and still be the poor, but the distance between them will be bridged, but without the artificial destruction of the classes as we see in Communism. Distributism is built on the family and making sure it can provide for itself. It limits greed and social overthrow by distributing the means of production to as many as possible. We are a long way from this, but maybe one family at a time we can make a difference. By leaving the rat race and doing our best to provide for our own families we will be one step closer to a society that is based truly on the common good.

In Christ,
Kevin

To Raise a Family

2011-03-30T22:35:00.000-05:00

I have been thinking alot lately about how to raise holy children. I have long advocated the good of living on the land with your family. It is almost impossible to stay in the rat race and raise holy children. We are constantly under attack from every side and I am becoming more and more convinced that the best way to defeat materialism is simply to withdraw from it. I seek the quiet life with God in the country. I seek a peace that can be felt clearly when one enters our farm. I want to raise children that are holy and God-fearing, not selfish and materialistic. I would like to put forth a few principles that might help all of us raise holy Children.

1. Work and Responsibility - I believe that children need to work. Yet, I don't mean that children merely need to take out the trash or wash the dishes. These might be necessary, but most often aren't connected with the overall well-being of the family. Children need work that gives them true responsibility. For example a 12 year old who milks the cow and provides the family's milk, cream, butter, buttermilk, yogurt, and cheese has an enormous responsibility on him, but this child will be happy because he has a purpose unlike the 12 year suburbanite child who spends his day playing video games. This child is perpetually unhappy because is life is literally pointless. Yet, it is difficult to have children take true responsibility when most chores in the suburban home have no real consequences and don't tangibly benefit the family. This is the opposite of an authentic Catholic rural life where the family provides for itself from the bounty of the land. All work then has great consequences and thus great dignity and responsibility. In fact the children don't need "play" time as such because work becomes play. Play was meant as a way to teach children to adult things. Why not have them do jobs with consequences to teach them responsibility. The children will sense they are needed and important and the strife we find in many families would cease.

2. The Heresy of Technology
I think much technology is killing our families. We have gotten rid of all the jobs that had any responsibility attached to them. We don't produce anything for ourselves. We are merely moneymakers and consumers. No consequences for anything we do. If you want to raise children to be holy this is what I recommend. First, destroy your television. Put it to a fiery death. It destroys family time. No, watching the TV together is not family time. It is mindless time spend without human interaction. Next, replace the TV with singing, reading, and conversation. Center life around the table and the hearth rather than the latest TV show. Next, do everything by hand in the simplest way possible. Use the least technological means to do things that you can. For example use the stove rather than the microwave. In fact get rid of the microwave. Microwaves make it easy for us to be irresponsible and poorly planned.... it makes it easy for us to not plan supper and then just throw something in the microwave. Most technology takes the place of man's work and his responsibility. Use the least technology possible and you will be well on the way to a noble simplicity in your family life that satisfies all members.

3. The Land
Families thrive on the land, but they must not haul the city with them. After learning to work and simplifying our lives we need to have a family life centered on the land. Thus our days that were full of technology are replaced with a life of simple work, prayer, and family life. The land provides an environment where the first two ideals can actually be lived out. One would be horribly bored in an apartmen if he had nothing to do. i.e.-technology is really entertainment for those whose lives are a perpetual bore. Life on the land takes much work and here the family working and praying together restores some sanity to an insane world.

Pax,
Kevin

Around the Hearth

2011-03-29T20:42:00.000-05:00

If Catholic Culture is to be revived it will happen around the hearth with the reading of a thousand good books, the singing of a hundred good Christian hymns, and prayers and devotions that have maintained the faith through the Church's whole history. When we still had our own home the playing of the piano was a nightly feature seldom missed. Now, the piano is in an unheated room, and we have had a long cold winter particularly lacking the sung verse. Now, spring is appearing and the room is warming, the baby is gaining independence, and the song is again heard on some evenings. If Catholic Culture is to be revived it won't be as a result of some great movement, nor as a result of a thousand retreats, or any other thing like this. The revival of Catholic Culture will come through individuals as it always has. It will be as a result of individuals seeking to grow in holiness that the world will slowly but certainly change for the better. It was a scandalized layman by the name of Benedict that became the impetus for what would later be know as Christendom. Yet, he sought not to bring about some great spiritual renewal. His desire was simply to grow in holiness. It was this holiness that others then sought out and thus the Benedictine tradition took root and spread through the whole of the West.

Yet, today we must look at our own lives and I am speaking specifically of families and how we live out our Catholic faith in the modern world. Too often I think the family cannot thrive because it is choked by the materialistic drive all around it. The father cannot be the spiritual leader because he is absent. His true role as spiritual leader has been usurped and he has been given the inferior title of moneymaker. What a scandal! I once heard it said that we learn alot from Lot in the Old Testament when he parts ways with Abraham and goes to the cities of the Plain: Sodom and Gomorrah. Abraham on the other hand went to the fertile countryside. We learn from Lot that you can lead your family into Sodom and Gomorrah, but you can't get them all back out. Abraham on the other hand became our own father in Faith. We must take this lesson to heart because we ourselves live in a time where every city is a very real semblance of Sodom. How are we to lead our familie through the mire of our modern times if we are absent most of the daylight hours? This is a challenging statement, and I realize that many are simply not able to get out of the rat race, but we must do everything we can to spend as much time around the hearth with our family as we can. We need to embrace simplicity so as to prepare our families to be used in whatever way God desires. He has a plan for all of us both individually, and a plan for our family. I say let the songs be sung, the books be read, the prayers be prayed as often as possible. We need to go out too and work as a family. Dig in the dirt, plant some vegetables, buy a milk goat and experience Creation which tells of the Glory of God. Do whatever you can where you are to restore Christian Culture. I am doing my part day by day and I challenge all of you to do the same in whatever measure you can. May God bless you all on this journey. May one day we find ourselves on the land, praying and working, welcoming all guests as Christ in the midst of holy Catholic families seeking only that God would be glorified in all things.

Peace in Christ,
Kevin

Making Heaven Present

2011-03-24T09:36:00.000-05:00

"Thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven." As I was driving along some beautiful bluffs last night I came upon a little farmstead for sale sitting along the side of quiet gravel road.. The words I put about from the Lord's Prayer came into my house along with a scene of rural life as God intended it. How my heart longed to live out this dream on such a small farm. I can imagine the quiet sunrise as I sit in the barn milking the cow or feeding the chickens. The serenity of such a place makes me desire to make Heaven present here on earth. I once heard it said that wherever God's will is done perfectly there is Heaven on Earth. Is this not what we all long for. How I wish to be filled with joy as the sun rises and be truly tired from a day's work on the land as the sun sets. I experience this somewhat in our present situation, but it is mixed as we are not in our own home. I will seek to make my own small farm as close to Heaven as I can. Yet, this is a work of grace that the hands of man alone cannot accomplish. As I think of my future pasture being blown by a Kansas breeze on a warm and sunny Spring morning, and I can't help but think of the prairies of the New Earth when all that is old has perished in fire and water. This longing for a world where the only great City is the City of the Great King. My desire is to create a place where other families can visit and find peace and hope in a hopeless world. On a simple farm where the simples work is done and the traditional prayers are prayed and hope springs eternal I will do my part to make Heaven present here on Earth.

Peace be with you Spirit,
Kevin

From Teacher to Farmer: A Journey of Faith

2011-03-20T14:25:00.000-05:00

Most of my life I never really knew what I "wanted to be when I grew up." For a while I dreamed of being an archaeologist and digging dinosaur bones from the earth. There was the era where I discovered football and was convinced that I would one day play in the NFL. There was also my time in High School where I wanted to become a professional Track athlete and then coach Track at the college level. In the end my best laid plans came to nothing. After high school I spent one semester at a state college pursuing my "Track and Field Career, and what I discovered is that all the gloss and glitter of such a life had worn off and suddenly I had no idea what I would do with my life. It was at this time that I rediscovered the Church. I had been raised Catholic, but I didn't really love the Church. I at this time discovered daily Mass, regular Confession, and a real active prayer life. It was at the end of this one semester that I found myself in the seminary. It was unexpected and I only stayed a year. It was here that I realized that whatever I was going to do it had to be done for God's glory. "Ut in Omnibus Glorificetur Deus" -That in all things God may be glorified. I left seminary afte one year and entered a Catholic College still not knowing what I would do with my life. I decided to study Theology and eventually earned my degree in it. I had no plans to do anything with the degree, but I studied the one thing that I truly loved: The Catholic Faith. As Providence would have it I found myself teaching at a Catholic High School. I had no experience teaching and it had never been my plan to teach. Rather, teaching just kind of happened to me. I didn't have any other route to take and the opportunity presented itself to me. Three long years passed as day after day I drove to school dreading what I was going to do that day. It was not that I wasn't a good teacher, in fact God used me as his instrument to change many young souls. Nonetheless, this did not change the constant longing in my heart to have my hands covered with dirt rather than chalk. I desired to work for God in a different way, but I also knew that though God had planted this desire in my heart, it could only bloom when the right time came upon it. Sometimes God plants a desire in our hearts and lets it sit there for a long time. Buried deep in the soul these desires change, mature, and develop and eventually bloom. Yet, if we try to make them bloom too early they will wither like a pepper plant on a frosty morning. Through our patience and perseverence the seed germinates and we grow in virtue. Then when God places his hand up it, the seed springs forth and we are filled with joy. I had waited for what seemed like an eternal 3 years to be able to just be a farmer. Yet, it was during this time that my ideas about farming, family, and the faith matured and I was prepared to do God's will. My degree in Theology led me to a place I never expected when I was studying: the fields. What I once heard from my professors regarding the Creation being "very good" I now experience on a daily basis. No one who plants a seed and sees it spring forth and bear fruit 30 or 60 or 100 fold can cease to wonder. Indeed the journey into the fields for me has been one of much waiting and persevering. If the seed springs up and there is not rain to water it then surely it will wither. I never expected those long years ago when I was dreaming of digging dinosaur bones that one day I would provide for my family by digging potatoes. It has been a beautiful journey and I wouldn't change it for anything.

In Christ,
Kevin

Love of the Land

2011-03-15T22:58:00.000-05:00

Today our nation said farewell to Frank Buckles, the last surviving veteran of WW I. Frank died at his farm in WV at the age of 110. Frank went to numerous army recruiters before he convinced one that he was old enough to join the war effort. In actuality he was only 16, but he went to war anyway. This gives me cause to think about what drove this young man to want to defend his country so valiantly. How much he must have loved this land where he was raised. Frank was a farmer and was raised near rural Bethany, MO. I am sure he was from hearty folk and had a love for this great land. I must pause and think to myself what I love enough to be willing to fight for. Really it is comes down to three F's - Faith, Family, and Farm. These are the things I love and would be willing to fight for. These drive me daily and send me up in the mornings to provide for my family from the fat of the land. Mr. Buckles lived in an era that is now gone. It was a time where people were proud of where they came from and this land where they were raised was in their blood. Maybe today it is just that we too often lack real contact with the land. Maybe it is because the skyscrapers have blocked the horizon, and the concrete has covered the fields that we have lost love for this land. I don't know exactly what it is, but I know I want to love the land so much I would be willing to fight and die to keep it for myself and my family. Mr. Buckles may you rest in peace. Thank you for your service defending this land that I love. May I in my own small way defend her too by raising a holy family on the land.

Kevin

Ubi Caritas

2011-03-14T22:47:00.000-05:00

Ubi Caritas. Deus ibi est. Where there is love, there God is. Do we think about this often enough. I would like to put it in the context of authentic Catholic Community. Where do we find authentic Catholic Community founded on love for Jesus Christ? I have been thinking often of this subject and I will probably anger a few, bring joy to a few, and everyone else will be given alot to think about. We are reminded that where there is true Charity, there God is present, and indeed any authentic Catholic Community must have its foundation in the foundational virtue of Charity. I think too often communities form around certain ideals. for example traditionalists form traditionalist communities often based on a love for tradition. Too often Charity is lacking in the conversations that go on before and after Holy Mass. If a community is to call itself Catholic and be filled with joy then love must be present. No community based on a love for anything less than Jesus Christ Himself will succeed. He is what it is all about. At the end of the day it will not be about what Mass we attended. When we stand at those pearly gates we will not be handed a Latin quiz or be questioned on whether we have ever received communion in the hand while standing. Ultimately we will be judged on Charity. "For when I was hungry you gave me food. When I was thirsty you gave me drink. When I was naked you clothed me..." It is easy for us to get too caught up on the ins and outs of things and forget about what our Faith is really about. Our faith is about a person: Jesus Christ. We must not let our ideals get in the way of our Charity. In the end an authentic Catholic community will succeed only insomuch as charity reigns in the hearts of its members. It will not matter in the end whether its member attend the Novus Ordo or the Latin Mass. In the end "Ubi Caritas. Deus ibi est. "

Authentic Catholic community is a deep deep longing in my heart. Over the past month I have discerned more and more how to find such a community. There are places where love reigns in the hearts of the people and Christ is King of their world. Where then can we find these places? I wish I had all the answers to this. I wish there were rural Catholic villages all over the world where the love for Christ dwelt in the hearts of the villagers, but this is just a fantasy. I think if we are to build Catholic community we must begin in our own families. Charity must reign first in our home before we can share it with our neighbors. We must be imbued with a deep love for Christ and His Holy Church if we are to live our Christian lives in communion with others. It is important to steer away from divisions, because things that cause divisions in the Church are almost always from the Evil One. I remember my experience in college at Benedictine College. There I met many young people filled with a love for Christ. Here I experienced for the first time real Catholic community founded on charity. This is the first and foundational pillar for community. Any community where it does not exist is just a shadow and it will eventually fade and be exposed as such. Let us seek to love one another. Let us seek ways to build up community wherever God has placed us. Let us move forward toward the establishment of a rural Catholic Community based first on Charity so that we can live out an authentic Catholic Rural Life.

In Christ,
Kevin

Coming Home: What I Discovered

2011-03-10T18:26:00.000-06:00

My blog is mostly philosophical in nature, but on occasion I do like to add a bit about my own life and journey. As many of you know I quit my teaching job last May to become a full-time farmer and support my family on the land. My motivation for coming home was quite simple; I wanted to be home with my family to experience the joy of working and praying with them. I missed them when I was away in my classes teaching. I missed the land and I missed everything that it had come to mean. Now I am not looking down on anyone who doesn't or can't work from home. There are often many circumstances that have to be considered in any individual's life. I am just speaking of my own desire and what I felt God was calling me to do. I have written before of my fear and apprehension so now I will write of my joy and share it with all of you.

This journey has not been an easy one. We gave up our old farm and really everything we had worked on there and came to live with my in-laws for an unknown amount of time. This being said we have experienced great joy and peace in seeking God's will. I would like to share what I have discovered. The other day I discovered that our four month old can roll over. If I had been teaching I never would have witnessed this the first time. I have discovered that our oldest daughter loves the dirt and just my be a farmer's wife in the making. I have discovered that our family just runs more smoothly when Dad can come in and assist at any time or step in and make lunch or watch the daughters for an extra hour in the morning som Mom can get a little extra sleep. There are so many joys that I would never have known first-hand if I had not chosen to come home. It has been a blessing beyond words I can write. Today I uncovered Garlic that had been covered with a thick winter mulch and discovered over 400 three to four inch galic shoots coming up. I was never able to put together a fall planting of garlic before this year. I also discovered how many rows of peas you get when you have over a pound to plant, 10 one hundred fifty foot rows and some were double planted. These are all new joys and I discover more every day what a blessing it was to come home to work and pray with my family. We are working daily on integrating a more Catholic Family Life into our own and working hard to have a schedule not only of work but also of prayer. We can fully celebrate the Liturgical Seasons of the Church Year and can set aside work to honor our holy patrons. (Traditional Feast of St. Isidore the Farmer is March 23) It has not been an easy choice, but it is one that I don't regret in any way. What joy I have in being here with my family every day and experiencing in its fullness our family's life. The Father was never meant to be separated from the family. It is only as a result of our own disoriented world that has made money into a god that this has happened. Families did not start to fall apart when mother's left the home for the workplace, but rather when Father's left the land for the workplace. Family unity was lost and its head was torn off. A Catholic worldview must include the necessity of the Family staying together and working towards a common mission. Most people today won't be able to do this. Most men can't just leave their job and not be evicted or worse from their homes. However, we can instill in our children this goal and help them to keep out of the dead ends of our modern society. If we do this then we will have made some huge strides towards the restoration of authentic Catolic Culture.

Pax Vobiscum,
Kevin

Disconnected and Disoriented

2011-03-07T22:18:00.000-06:00

I received word this afternoon that a man I knew took his own life this morning. He was in his 50's and the father of 4 now grown children. Unfortunately, this is the second suicide of someone who I knew in the last six months. I can't help but wonder why? Suicide rates I'm sure are going up across the board as our culture slumps deeper and deeper into materialism and relativism. These two isms destroy love in the soul and without love there can be no happiness. Ultimately materialism and relativism lead to a type of nothingness of existence, an existence without meaning, purpose, or love. Thus the only thing that remains is the destruction of self because you have no purpose. Everything the world has offered you has proven to be false and led only deeper into unhappiness. Now more than ever I believe the light of the Gospel needs to be shown onto the Society we live in. Christ must reign not only in our souls, but in our members as well. We cannot have a type of dualism where Christ saves my soul, but my body I can do what I please with. It is too easy for us to separate our actions on a daily basis from the faith we profess with our lips. Our society is so disoriented that we spend millions on the making of entertainment in all sorts of venues while often not far from the stadium, studio, theatre, etc we find the poor, the lonely, the afflicted who seek to know the love of Christ. We spend billions of dollars as a society every year trying to distract ourselves from our own unhappiness. We go on vacations to relieve ourselves of the stress of working hard to make money so that we can spend it on worthless junk that we can't take with us when we die. We drain away our brains in front of the television so that we don't have to think about how meaningless modern existence has become. We run from gadget to gadget always seeking for that thing that will bring us lasting happiness, but our Lord says: "There is need of only one thing..." Yet, all is not lost. More and more are waking up to the reality that life in the modern city isn't what it's cracked up to be. Pope Pius XII also spoke eloquently of the contrast between the city and the country: “This, then, is the deep-seated cause of the modern conflict between city and country; each viewpoint produces altogether different men.”[1] Again he states: “The city usually holds nothing for him but disillusionment; often he loses his health, his strength, his happiness, his honor, and his very soul there.” I think that Catholic Social Teaching offers cures for the sicknesses that afflict modern society. Subsidiarity, Solidarity, etc... Do these words ring bells or are they foreign to us? We cannot administer the cure if we do not know what it is. I think today we need a place for families to get away from it all and get back to the basics of Catholic Family life. We need a place where the family and not work or play comes first. We need a place where we come into intimate contact with natural revelation, that is Creation. The most attacked unit in our modern world has been the family. We must start at the level of the family and work our way up. The world is a trap full of snares and poisons, but the Church's perennial The wisdom will live on past the rise and fall of many nations. Today we are called to live out this hope we have been given and offer hope to those who have become hopeless. We must reorient ourselves back to the primacy of Faith and Family. I would include in this the primacy of a simple life on the land for many people. I read a story recently about a man in Africa who has started a training garden and has been training local men to grown gardens and sell produce. The instances of drinking and depression have decreased dramatically in the areas where the men now have a purpose by growing vegetables. Sometimes the simplest remedies are the best.

Kevin

[1] Pius XII, Speech delivered by His Holiness, Pope Pius XII, to the delegates at the Convention of the National Confederation of Farm Owner-Operators (11), Rome. November 15, 1946.

Link to my Radio Interview

2011-03-07T10:20:00.000-06:00

Interview on the Catholic Land Movement

It begins with a couple minutes of music then goes into the interview. It has alot of Italian in it. If you speak Italian then it won't be too bothersome, if not then you you can fast forward. It is rather long. I am contemplating editing this to make it all English for my readers, but I will leave the original as well since I might have some Italian readers now.

Kevin

The Higher Things

2011-03-05T17:40:00.000-06:00

I have been pondering what motives we often have for what we do and whether those correspond to the Truth. What I am getting at here is something along the lines of the "structures of sin" that Pope John Paul II spoke of in his writings. Many of us have been formed by these very structures and while we reject them we are still often stuck thinking with the wrong motives. Materialism is one of these structures of sin. It comes today in Capitalism and Industrialism and the need to always be buying, getting, consuming. Let us look at our motive for getting anything. Our first consideration should be spiritual in nature. What effect will this "thing" have on my spiritual life. Too often, I believe we deny that physical realities have any spiritual effect. This is another effect of our being raised in a modern society devoid of God and left only with remnants of a broken Protestantism. Let me explain what I mean. To deny that a physical thing can have a spiritual effect is very Protestantesque. It is a denial of Sacraments and Sacramentals. Since we have been raised in a society based on the philosophical principles of materialism that says only the sensible is real, we as Catholics have aa more difficult time living out our Sacramental lives. Also though this Materialism means that too often we deny that a physical things such as a Television, Music, or Jobs have a spiritual effect when in reality they do. It is easy to generalize and say that it doesn't make that big of a difference, but in reality things and too much of anything can destroy us spiritually. Too often our motivation for having a job is simply to earn money rather than to do God's will. Does the job I have correspond to God's will? Is he pleased not only with how I do my job, but with what my job is? Does my job fulfill me spiritually? Do we ever ask ourselves these questions? I know that as a teacher there was some spiritual fulfillment as I saw God work through me, but all too often I was just doing it to bring home a paycheck. I was miserable because I wanted to be on the land, not in a concrete cage. Now I look at a day such as today and think about the dirt and the seedlings and the planting and am overjoyed. To me farming is an end in and of itself. My goal is no longer to make money (although this today is necessary, but in an authentic agrarian community with many skills it might not be), but rather my goal is to raise holy children and be obedient to God's will on the land. I no longer have the task of looking after someone else's things or children, etc. Now I have what today is seen as strange: the taking care of my own property and guiding my family towards holiness. I am not absent physically for the good part of the day any longer. Now I am present physically and spiritually. Hopefully, my physical presence will have a spiritual effect that is long lasting and will help my wife and children to get to Heaven.

In Christ,
Kevin

The Peasant and Modern Man

2011-03-04T11:29:00.001-06:00

Like Kevin I desire to have the hardened, soiled hands of a peasant. After reading his reflection I couldn't help but consider the contrasts between the peasant and modern man. The peasant washes after his work whereas modern man washes before his work. The peasant labors on his own land near his family whereas modern man sells his labor and is far from his family. The work of the peasant is real and toilsome whereas the work of modern man is artificial and lethargic. The peasant partakes in the fruit of his labors whereas modern man partakes in the fruit of others' labors. The peasant can live the liturgical life of the Church to the fullest, setting aside his labor at his own discretion for feasts and solemnities, whereas modern man is limited in his festivity by the constraints of his employer. As a society of modern men we have uprooted ourselves from the land, fled from its joys and travails and authentic freedoms, all in exchange for sophisticated servility and artificiality. For this reason and many more the need for a true peasantry has never been greater. Let us place our trust in the Lord, shed our hesitancy and uncertainty and endeavor to become once again men with the hands of peasants.

Eugene

The Peasant's Hands

2011-03-03T22:08:00.001-06:00

The last two days I have been working alot in the garden. I've dug under my mulch and found the first garlic coming up after planting last Fall. Also it has given me plenty of fodder for thought. Each night I have come in with my fingernails rather black and my hands stained from constant contact with the good earth. I have been thinking how our Lord was not afraid to get his hands dirty. Was it not He who bent over and drew on the ground when the woman was caught in adultery, and was it not he who spat on the ground to make mud to heal the blind man. The peasant too imitates our Lord as he works on his land slowly obeying and submitting to God's Holy Will. The peasant's hands are the hands of Christ in a way that often we don't think of. Christ indeed was a worker for 30 years before He began His public ministry. Indeed He was doing the Father's Will perfectly every moment He worked during those 30 years. There is great dignity in a pair of dirty hands. Indeed much more dignity in that pair of dirty hands than is found in many pairs of clean hands. My desires in life are rather simple. I want a Catholic Life centered around land and family. I do not desire riches, but do desire some independence on my own land. I am satisfied being a Catholic peasant if that is what God allows me to be. I am happy having a pair of peasant's hands.

Kevin

Correction for time of Interview

2011-03-03T16:21:00.003-06:00

My interview time has been changed from Saturday at 3pm CST to Sunday 3 pm CST. Sorry for any inconvenience.

Kevin

An Internet Radio Inteview on the Catholic Land Movement

2011-03-03T11:19:00.000-06:00

This Saturday March 5, 2011 I will be doing an interview for an Italian Internet Radio Apostolate on the Catholic Land Movement. It will begin at 2pm CST. If you would like to listen you can go to http://www.catholicprayersmedia.com/ Google can translate the page from Italian for you. I am looking forward to getting the word out to a larger number of people about the Movement.

In Christ,
Kevin

Our Modern Cave

2011-02-28T16:07:00.000-06:00

For those unfamiliar with Plato's Cave analogy this should be a learning experience, and for those who are familiar this should be an enjoyable read. Plato was a Greek Philosopher who live before the time of Christ. He is well know for his dialogues in which he speaks mostly of Socrates who was his teacher. This is all just a little background. Plato's cave analogy goes something like this. There is a group of prisoners who are chained up facing a blank wall in a cave. The prisoners have never seen anything except the shadows on the wall of the cave which are made by objects passing in front of a fire located behind the prisoners. The prisoners give names to the shadows and believe them to be the real thing when in fact they are just an image of the thing. Now suppose that a prisoner were set free. Being unaccustomed to looking at the light he might be struck blind by the fire and thus would want to turn away from it and back toward the shadows. Or suppose that he sees the things that make the shadows. Would he be able to recognize those things that are real? Would he believe the shadows to be the real things? Suppose he is drug all the way out of the cave and made to see the fulless of reality. What would happen when he returns and tries to tell the others of this wonderful truth. Socrates asks the questions: "Won't they try to kill him?" It is here now that I will use Plato's analogy for today. Maybe instead of shadows on the wall, the people are chained looking at a Television. Will they be able to distinguish reality from virtual reality? What if one escapes from this self-inflicted torture and runs out into the woods and discovers the beauty of Creation and tries to bring others away from their own little cave? What kind of a reaction will they have when you tell them to smash the television? Won't they be filled with hatred and call you a fool? Won't they say you are sheltering your chidren? Won't they say that you are missing out on so much? But, what are we missing, aren't we just missing the shadows that aren't the real thing? Our whole modern world is in the cave and they have been made prisoners by their own passions. They have desired to keep looking at the shadows because reality is too painful. My friends, we must stay out of the cave and help as many others escape from it as possible. God bless, and I hope you enjoyed.

In Christ,
Kevin

The Catholic Farmer

2011-02-24T14:00:00.000-06:00

I think often of my decision to come home to live, work, and pray with my family. I don't believe I have ever taken a more difficult step. I left a well-paying (as far as theology teachers go) job, with great coworkers at a great Catholic High School to be a farmer. "Pater Meus Agricola Est." Dr. John Senior translates this phrase form the Vulgate quite literally saying: "My Father is a Farmer." Indeed our Heavenly Father is a farmer who planted man himself in a garden. It is something that gives me fodder for meditation to think that we are made in God's image and likenes and that by farming I can imitate Him. I remember my days growing up on the Plains of SC Kansas where telephone poles and cows both outnumber humans. I remember also that my own father worked two jobs to support his family of 5 kids. My memories of meaningful times with my Dad are few and far between. There are scattered in the memories of days gone by fishing trips, and baseballs thrown, and trips to see me do Track in those far off Western KS towns. I have no doubt my Father loved me, but I've never been able to shake the wish that He had been home more. He left before I got up in the morning, and he returned around my bedtime 6 days a week. Sunday he was home but it was his day to take an afternoon nap, however summer often brought fishing trips, and snowy days brought hunts for pheasant in the Winter. I want my children to have a different memory of their father. I want them to have memories filled with my presence rather than memories of wishing Dad could be home for this or that. As our Heavenly Father enters into our lives totally so also we as Fathers are called to be intimately involved in the lives of our Children. Of course today we have to "make a living." However, I want to live on the land rather than make a living by carting things off of it. To live as a worthy steward of Creation and inspire a love for the slow life filled with the Catholic Faith is what I most desire. I want to be home to lead our children in prayer, to work in the dirt, to kiss my kids goodnight. I want to be a Catholic Farmer. A Catholic Farmer is not interested in profit and gain by explotation of the Land. He wants to preserve and build up the Land to pass it on to his children. He wants to plant a grove of trees to be harvested by his great great great grandchildren. The Catholic Farmer does not want to be rich, he wants to be holy. Most of all the Catholic Farmer wants to raise his children in a life that is in but not of the world. On the land without the distractions of modern technology and media a family grows and puts down roots. A sense of love for God discovered in the dirt is aroused in the heart of the child that sees the seed sown last month bring food for the family today. I love my father and am forever grateful for providing for my growing up. Now in my own very different way I want to give my children what I most wanted growing up: My Father's presence.

In Christ,
The Catholic Farmer

The Industrial Revolution: What Might've Been

2011-02-16T10:35:00.000-06:00

I have been thinking alot lately about the industrial revolution and what might've happened had the Reformation and Enlightenment not been at the helm during this stage of history. Some might argue that we would not have had a Ind. Revolution at all, but I would argue that the underlayment for this age were laid during the middle ages. Much of what was needed for metalworking and such was known by the monks. Also it is now known that the mechanics of modern machinery was known to both the ancient Greeks and Chinese, however they in their love for family rejected this knowledge because of the harm they saw it doing to society as a whole. Imagine, rejecting an idea because it harms society and the human family, especially an idea that would bring great "progress" and "profit" for their lands. So what would have happened without Protestantism, Enlightenment, and Capitalism running things. I could foresee that there would have been no revolution at all, for a revolt always entails the bloody overthrow of a previous order, which in our case was a Catholic Rural Social Order. Instead we might have entered an age of invention where each invention was measured for its effects upon the common good, and especially upon its effects on the family. Let me use one example: the Radio. The Radio was the precursor to many other modern modes of media. What effect did the Radio have on the Common Good. I would argue that it largely brought about the death of the fine arts in most of the world. Previously, each town had its own modes of entertainment. There were traveling troupes of actors, local singers, local acting clubs. The music and acting varied greatly both in content and of course in quality, but it was local, and it was on the level of the human person. The Radio came along and the death of all this local talent followed with haste. Now the owners of the Radio transmitters could force a certain kind of music, and a certain kind of news, and a certain kind of show on mass numbers of people. The heterogeneous local talent was replaced by a very poor quality homogeneous mass produced media. We were then obliged to like Country, Rock, Classical, etc. Everything became labeled and the labels became few. This is just one instance where the Catholic Worldview might have seen the harm in this technology and either eliminated it or limited it greatly. With Capitalism both Radios and all media became one of the biggest businesses and a great way to pass on a certain ideology to the whole of the world. Might Catholicism have done things differently? An age of inventions could have ensued that made things better for the peasant, but kept the peasant on the land. Electricity might still have been invented, but rather than giant corporation charging whatever they please, you might have had local electric production guarded within some technological guild thus preventing the rise and fall of prices we see with any type of energy today be it gasoline or electricity. The principal of subsidiary states that the smallest body that can do something ought to be the one to do it. (My definition not the official one) Therefore if electricity is too big for the local town then maybe the county could handle it. Maybe we might be better off without it at all because it brings so many time sucking inventions that strip man's work of dignity because it strips him of the actual work. I think that a Catholic re-evaluation of technology would be very worth the time for the world. Progress does not mean always moving forward, that is foolishness. Rather true progress is that which makes life better for the family and for the common good. An Industrial Revolution ensued upon a revolution of faith: The Reformation, and a Revolution of Reason: The Enlightenment. It was only sensible that a revolution of society should follow. Unfortunately most Catholics in the West have grown up in this milieu. Therefore, it will take the courage of Saints to step out of this way of thinking and into one more in tune with the nature of man.

In Christ,
Kevin

Pope Benedict: On Agricultural Work

2011-02-13T18:03:00.000-06:00

Thank you to Antonio Rosa for pointing me toward our Holy Father's recent address on Agricultural Work on Novemeber 14, 2010.

Angelus

On Agricultural Work

"This is the Moment for the Re-evaluation of Agriculture"

H.H. Benedict XVI

November 14, 2010

www.zenit.org

Dear brothers and sisters!

In the second reading in today's liturgy the Apostle Paul stresses the importance of work in a person's life. This aspect is also recalled by the "Day of Thanksgiving," which is traditionally celebrated in Italy on this second Sunday of November as a day of giving thanks to God at the end of the harvest season. Even if the in other geographical areas the times of cultivation are naturally different, today I would like to follow the lead of the words of St. Paul for some reflections, especially on agricultural work.

The current economic crisis, which has also been addressed recently in the meeting of the so-called Group of 20, must be taken in all its seriousness: It has numerous causes and sends a powerful message about the need for a profound revision of the model of global economic development (cf. "Caritas in Veritate," No. 21). It's an acute symptom that is added to other more grave and already well-known ones, such as the continued imbalance between wealth and poverty, the scandal of hunger, the ecological emergency and the problem of unemployment, which has now become general. In this context a strategic re-launching of agriculture appears decisive. In fact, the process of industrialization has often overshadowed the agricultural sector, which, while also drawing benefit from modern technologies, has nevertheless lost importance, with notable consequences, even at the cultural level. I believe that this is the moment for the reevaluation of agriculture, not in a nostalgic sense, but as an indispensable resource for the future.

In the current economic situation, the temptation for the more dynamic economies is that of chasing after advantageous alliances that, nevertheless, can have harmful effects for poorer states, prolonging situations of extreme mass poverty of men and women and using up the earth's natural resources, entrusted to man by God the Creator -- as Genesis says -- that he might cultivate and protect it (cf. 2:15). Moreover, despite the crisis, in countries that have long been industrialized, lifestyles marked by unsustainable consumption -- which have damaging effects for the environment and the poor -- still continue. It is necessary, then, to point in a truly unified way to a new balance between agriculture, industry and services, so that development be sustainable, and no one go without bread and work, and so that air and water and the other primary resources be preserved as universal goods (cf. "Caritas in Veritate," No. 27).

To this end, it is essential to cultivate and spread a clear ethic that is up to the task of addressing current challenges: Everyone should educate themselves in more wise and responsible consumption; promote personal responsibility, along with the social dimension of rural activities, which are based on perennial values, such as hospitality, solidarity, and the sharing of the toil of labor. More than a few young people have already chosen this path; also many professionals are returning to dedicate themselves to the agricultural enterprise, feeling that they are responding not only to a personal and family need, but also to a "sign of the times," to a concrete sensibility for the "common good."

Let us pray to the Virgin Mary that these reflections can serve as a stimulus to the international community, while we give our thanks to God for the fruits of the earth and the work of man.

[Following the Angelus the Holy Father greeted those present in various languages. In Italian he said:]

Dear friends, in this moment, I would like to renew my nearness to the dear people of Haiti, who, because of last January's terrible earthquake, are now suffering from a grave cholera epidemic. I encourage everyone who is responding to this new emergency and, while I assure a special remembrance in my prayer, I call on the international community to generously assist these people.

On Saturday, Nov. 27, in St. Peter's Basilica, I will preside over the first vespers of the first Sunday of Advent and a prayer vigil for those in the early stages of life. This is a joint initiative with the local Churches throughout the world and I have recommended it to be observed in parishes, religious communities, associations and movements too. The time of preparation for Holy Christmas is a propitious moment to invoke divine protection for every human being called into existence, and also for a thanksgiving to God for the gift of life received from our parents.

[Translation by Joseph G. Trabbic]

[In English he said:]

I offer a warm welcome to the English-speaking visitors gathered for this Angelus prayer, particularly the parish groups from California in the United States. Today's Gospel reminds us that our lives and all history will be judged in the light of God's truth. In these final days of the Church's liturgical year, let us pray for the grace to remain always faithful to the Lord, as we look forward to Christ's coming in glory and the fulfillment of his promises. Upon you and your families I invoke God's gifts of wisdom, strength and peace!

A Rural Catholic Worldview

2011-02-12T08:48:00.000-06:00

The thought of being a peasant is repulsive to most people. I believe it is only repulsive because they do not understand what it means to be a peasant. Following the Reformation and then the Enlightenment we see a radical transformation in society as a whole. For hundreds of years man had lived relatively peacefully on the land with the occasional crusade to protect that land from Muslim invader and of course the skirmishes between rival lords. Then with the coming of the Protestant Revolt it was no longer God at the center of society, but rather man. The Family as the building block of culture and civilization was replaced by the individual with catastrophic consequences. A society whose rights and freedoms are based on the family will always be better than one whose rights and freedoms are based on the individual. This is especially true when considering the modern understanding of freedom, which is really liscense. The right to do whatever one wants is in acutality a slavery to one's vices and concupiscence. Man is not free as long as he is unable to do the good on a consistent basis. Thus with Luther's maxims of "Sola Fide" and "Sola Scriptura" the tradition of work on the land and the family as the center of society were swept away in preference to man's individual rights. The emphasis changed from individual responsibilities to individual rights. Now we live in a world centered on the individual where family life is seen almost as a scourge. Many see contraception as the greatest invention in the world's history even as Europe enters the death throws of a Demographic Winter. We are reaping the rewards of a world devoid of formation by the one true Catholic Faith. Faith alone led to liscense since works did not matter. It was thus that the Protestant acceptance of Contraception as a "gift from God" was a natural step in the evolution of individualistic Protestant thought. So seeing all the problems herein with the modern way of thinking, it is no wonder that Catholics living in the world find it so difficult to pass the faith on to their children and to maintain it themselves. We are constantly bombarded by the individualistic materialism that claims comfort as its God. Many Catholics certainly have fallen into this way of thinking. Our formation in the public schools (and often even in Catholic Schools) was very secular in nature. This formation effects how we view everything. It is only with a re-formation of our thoughts in line with Catholic Social teaching will we be able to regain a way of life healthy for families and Catholic Culture. It may take us opting out of the modern Capitalistic milieu and forming what Pope Benedict XVI in his book "God and the World" calls: "An alternate society." He explained that throughout the Middle Ages the Church and society were almost seen as once. Certainly the Church informed the thought of most of society at that time. Now however with militant atheism and nihilism encroaching ever deeper into our thoughts and the hearts of our children we must create a fortress against such aggression. We must in as sense create a fertile soil for our souls to grow in. There are places springing up where this is beginning to happen. In these places it is our challenge, however, to inform even orthodox and traditional Catholics of the woes of our modern way of life. When we reach a good number of people in the same area with this vision we will be well on our way to restoring Catholic Rural Life at least in one corner of God's Creation. A Catholic Worldview is needed before we can have an authentic return to Catholic Culture.

Peace in Christ,
Kevin

Wedded to the World

2011-02-10T09:01:00.001-06:00

Any observance of the daily lives of most Catholics in the West today shows a lack of separation from the world. The maxim: "In but not of the World," has been used as justification for almost every worldly pleasure. The misuse of this phrase is used to justify the use of every new gadget and invention. We justify the television and its allurements, we justify our clothing and our fashions, all too often we justify an increasingly evident marriage with the world that has nearly destroyed Catholic Culture. We need to understand what it means to be "In but not of the world" in order not to undermine the Faith life of our families. The old maxim has all too often been used to justify every novelty, when in reality it ought to be used to justify our lack of novelties. All these "things" weigh down and often take the place of an authentic Catholic Spirituality in the home. The Family Rosary is all too easily replaced by a television show. Catholic Modesty is easily replaced by what the world deems the fashions of the day. If ever there was place for an annulment, this unholy marriage is in need of it. We are in the world, but we are only in the world as sojourners moving ever closer to our eternal homeland. The world and its allurements we shun in favor of spiritual delights that bring true happiness. We would do well to seek a life of prayer and work as St. Benedict asks of his monks. It was this simple phrase that built Christendom and maintained it. It is in prayer and work that we find fulfillment and find God in our day to day lives. Prayer and work act as a bulwark against the novelties of the world and preserve for us a life that is simple and holy.

Kevin

The Social Reign of Christ

2011-02-03T14:12:00.000-06:00

The world that we now live in is a world that has not been formed by Catholic ideas and teachings. Everything from the order of our day, to the houses that we live in, to the stores where we shop have been highly formed by the ideas of the Protestant Reformation and its child which is the Enlightenment. It was during the Reformation that Faith and Works were separated. It was also during this time that Faith and Reason were separated, for as the Reformers were apt to say: "What has Athens to do with Jerusalem?" It was here that the dualism that we now live in had its birth. With the separation of Faith and Works we begin to see a type of dualistic view of man who is an embodied soul. The practical consequences of the Reformation were such that was seen as a body and a soul. As long as the soul had "faith" then our works made no difference. Thus the understanding of freedom was changed from one properly understood as "The ability to always do good" to "The ability to do whatever one pleases." Here we see also the separation of matter and spirit so that the Sacramental dimension of Creation was lost and it no longer mattered how one treated the Earth. The only thing that mattered was Faith Alone. It is in the context of this dualism that the modern world was made. Man, seemingly free from the "shackles" of Catholicism broke forth to create a New Order. Slowly but surely our world has been poisoned by these beliefs. Catholics and Protestants alike have fallen for these errors and it is now in a world where usury and exploitation are everyday occurances that we must raise our children. It is also now more than ever that the Church's wisdom in calling for the Social Reign of Jesus Christ is most needed.

The Catholic Church does not share the dualistic view of the man and the world that was put forth by the Reformers and brought to maturity by the enlightenment. In the Catholic Old Order the world was one vastly different than today. Although our history books teach us it was dark, uneducated, and of course superstitious, it takes only a little real learning to realize that our own world today is much closer to a Dark Age than what is referred to often as the Dark Ages. After all it was during the original Dark Ages that the Benedictines slowly but surely created Christendom. Christ has a right to reign not only in our faith lives, but in society as a whole. The right of the government to govern does not derive from the people, rather it derives from God. As such all laws must be in keeping with the measures of the Gospel and revealed truth. However, it is not my point to talk about governments, but rather I would like to focus on the economic lives of Catholics and what this dualism has done to our Catholic Homes.

The Church in here wisdom has written often of the folly of trade and interdependence of nations. It is clear our faith tells us that the more self-sufficient a thing is, the more perfect a thing is. Therefore, God is perfect because He lacks nothing. It should also be said that an economic order like Capitalism that places trade and profit at the center is contrary to the Gospel. Here in this system it is not man at the center, but rather money. A thing in this system is not good because it is aligned with man's nature, but rather because it is profitable. In the economic order found in the middle ages we find an order that upholds the dignity of man. Here the wealth and power of individuals was limited by man power. A Lord was only as powerful as the number of serfs. However, looking closely you see something lacking in our modern economic system. The serf was dependant on the Lord for the land to work, but however the Lord was dependant on the serf to work the land. The modern progress of man replaced man with a machine. Here then the Lord is not limited in his power by lesser men. The poor become destitute and the rich become rich beyond all imagining. Here of course is where Marx stepped into the mix claiming the class conflict socialist idea. That is for another time though, because today I want to talk about Capitalism, because without it socialism never would have existed. In Capitalism, real property which is land and craft, is replaced by "credit" and money. Also the means of production is concentrated into a few hands so that the now huge middle class is dependant on this upper elite class. Rather than an equality regulated by interdependence, you have instead a completely unequal distribution of the means of production. For all our talk of freedom and riches in the modern order we are actually quite slaves to the system. If you don't believe me, just make an attempt to get out of the system. It is almost impossible to leave the modern economic order because the Peasant who once provided all for himself, now is a suburbanite that can produce nothing for himself. His condition is considerably worse than he can ever imagine. The capitalist system is one that progresses ever closer to an order where one person has complete economic control. It is interesting though that the more we are "globally minded" in our economics, the more the slightest disturbance anywhere can disrupt or destroy the whole system. In the Old Order a war in one nation had little if any effect in other nations. Today, some riots in Egypt are disrupting and rocking the entire world market. Capitalism is a folly we Catholics must seek to remove ourselves from and return to a "Distributist" mindset. If the faith is to survive the coming times of upheaval, it will do so in the homes and at the hearths of the peasant as it has done since the foundation of the Church.

The Catholic Peasant is the ideal place for a family. Unlike the "farm" of today that actually grows nothing they can eat, the peasant's first goal is subsistence for his family. The lack of mechanization means that each child is beneficial rather than harmful to the success of the farm. Here we find the ideal environment for Catholic Family Life to flourish. Here culture is constantly renewed, because man is in constant contact with Creation from which he draws inspiration for his faith and his life. By the cultivation of the field man is not only increasing the life of the body, but also that of the soul. A distributist community where each man owns his own smallholding, and on which each family practices different crafts would be an enormous move in the direction of bringing forth the Social Reign of Christ. This small community could be a light of how life ought to be lived with a Catholic World view. It may take quite a bit of Capital to put this into effect, due to the restraints put on us by the modern system, but in the end it would create a bulwark against the effects of modern culture. The appropriate distribution of property gives man true freedom and the means to produce for himself. He is not effected by the whims and fancies of some New York businessman, or war making government. Here to man is truly free. This is the freedom to do what is good because his life is good and he is good.

In Christ,
Kevin

The Emasculation of the Catholic Man

2011-01-29T22:11:00.000-06:00

I have been considering how modern events in our world and in the Church over the past century have stripped Catholic Man of much of his masculinity. When a person has clearly perceived duties then it is clear what that person is. However, for Catholic men much of what was once clear has become blurred. It was once said and is still true that man is to be the provider and protector of the family. After WWII we saw women enter the workforce in droves. Soon it was said that the woman could just as well be the provider for the family. Woman had begun to encroach upon land previously inhabited only by the father. This was only the beginning of the encroachment on man's identity. The acceptance of contraception by our culture was even more destructive than the previous offense. Here was an attack on man's identity at its very core: Fatherhood. Man, made in God's image and likeness, was stripped of his fatherhood and told that he should not have children. Now he was effectively "freed" from the "burdens" of fatherhood. What a terrible offense to his masculinity. Here in our culture man's duties as provider and father were stripped from him, yet this was not the only damage done and it was not the culture alone that did the damage.

Possibly the greater offense was found in the Church with the emasculation of the Liturgy. One of the Cardinals told Paul VI that at that time he had many men, women, and children who assist at Holy Mass even on a daily basis, however, if the liturgical reforms of the Novus Ordo were put into place he was certain that it would be mostly women and children at daily Mass. The emphasis on the Unbloody Sacrifice at the Extraordinary Form ( Latin Mass) is attractive to men who are called to "Lay down your lives..." The emphasis on the community in the Novus Ordo is not attractive to men as it seems like just another social function they don't really want to attend. Statistics show that the Cardinal was indeed prophetic. Also the emasculation of the priest has been devastating for the Church now riddled with abuse cases. When the duties of the priest that had always been reserved solely for the priest were encroached upon by the laity, the priests identity became fuzzy. Now men and women were welcomed into the Holy Sanctuary. They came up around the altar "Eucharistic Ministers." Women lost their veils and found roles in many parts of the liturgy including parts that were previously reserved for boys as was the case of the altar servers. It is not that these things are inherently evil, but rather when men lose something that had previously been exclusively theirs, they tend to abandon the thing all together rather than share it. Tis the case with altar servers. I remember as a boy when it happened that we boys no longer wanted to do it because girls could do it instead. Man is weak and needs clearly dellineated functions and duties. The priest and the priest alone should touch the holy Body of our Lord Jesus Christ. He and he alone should approach the tabernacle that is the new Holy of Holies. It should be left to the boys to be altar servers because they need to know that it is something manly. The Women in turn ought to veil not because they aren't fit for Church, but because man needs to see them as set apart and reverence them. This is not to mention it draws attention away from the women, which can be a serious problem for men. St. Paul instructed that women ought to be keep silent in Church. I don't know that he said this because women are weak, etc., but rather because men need to know that the Faith is masculine. They need to see that Christ is the image of what man ought to be. They need to observe the Snow White Host raised in silence as the bell tinkles telling them that Jesus their Savior is there before them. Now they should fall to their knees and worship Him. This is the Faith of their fathers not some Kumbaya get together. If man is to regain his masculinity he must seek to restore what has been lost in his own life and in his own family. Herein lies hope for the future of Catholic Man.

Kevin

Agriculture vs. Agribusiness

2011-01-27T22:00:00.000-06:00

G.K. Chesterton once noted that all arguments against a man being a successful farmer were based on economics and not upon the practical. Let me explain what he meant. Everyone today says you can't be a farmer because you can't sell enough produce to make a living. The Catholic Agrarian Tradition, however, says something quite different from this. While I do not deny the difficulty of "making a living" off the land, I must say that living on the land and making a living by carting things off of it are quite different. This is exactly what we as Catholic must note. In our Capitalistic tradition we tend to make everything into a way of making money. The Cartesian mathematical tradition that tends to lump everything into quantitative rather than qualitative has had terrible effects on agriculture. This is now true to the point that in most places Agriculture ,which is the art of living on the land, no longer exists. In its place has come Agribusiness that seeks not to live off the land, but rather to make a profit off the land. The Catholic Tradition sees the beauty of the land and life on it, whereas agribusiness seeks to make profit from the land. While it is true that many of us need some sort of capital, it is also true that our first priority on the land ought to be to provide for our families. If our first priority is to make money then we really are no better off than an office clerk who just happens to make a wage outdoors. For Catholic Agrarian Culture to again take root we must separate ourselves from the business mentality of our modern economic system and seek the older ideal we find in the middle ages. Here we live on the land as stewards providing for our families and selling only the excess to provide what we can't produce ourselves. Here the family is involved in a way of life rather than a way of making money. This has to be a foundational pillar for any authentic Catholic Agrarian Community and for the renewal of Catholic Agrarian Life.

In Christ,
Kevin

Flee to the Fields

2011-01-25T10:36:00.000-06:00

Yesterday I was reading in the book "Flee to the Fields: The Faith and Works of the Catholic Land Movement." printed by IHS Press. I wanted to share a paragraph from the Chapter entitled: The Community, by Captain Reginald Jebb. It really shows the difference between Catholic Community and any other kind of community. I plan to post more on this theme over the next couple of weeks.

"In the community, we may note a characteristic, the family unit, living in a house that it owns and usually land that it owns. Hence a tendency to permanence in home life and to a minimum of migration. Secondly, a local life actively social, and having its roots, not primarily in the leisure, but in the work of the members of the community. Thirdly, common interests and common responsibilities exemplified by such institutions as village councils, guilds, local banks, schools, etc., which postulate the close acquaintance of men with their fellow men, both for the assistance of the unfortunate, the training of the young, and the administration of local justice. Further, the absence of large accumulations of wealth possessed by individuals. A minimum of transport both of men and goods, particularly transport over long distances. Again (what is notably absent in the present-day way of life) a territorial and social foundation upon which to build up the State. And, lastly, a mind habituated to think in terms of things and complete processes rather than of tokens and disconnected actions, and thus one in touch with the realities of life, and freed from constraints imposed from without."

p. 91, IHS Press, 2003, Norfolk, VA.

Peace,
Kevin

Rural Life and the Church

2011-01-22T15:56:00.001-06:00

I found this picture of this banner on the Sub Tuum blog of the Cistercians of Spring Bank in Sparta, WI. I have been contemplating the meaning of this banner and would like to add to it. This banner hangs in the back of St. Augustine's Church in Norwalk, Wisconsin and certainly demonstrates the connection between rural life and the Catholic faith. However, I have to ask if maybe the saying could be switched around and still be true: The Church finds strength in the rural life. Most certainly it is true that rural life in all its glory derives its strength from the riches of the liturgy. However, maybe we derive strength to live out our faith life by living in a rural setting. This is especially true when we truly live a simple rural life with many of the pleasures and conveniences of modern life absent. Here our children spend more time in the creek or the meadow than in front of a television or computer. Here the father finds authentic meaning in his work and sees that the Catholic Faith and this life on the land breath of the same Spirit. The rural life is beautiful and it is holy. Our Catholic Faith is beautiful and it is holy. The two go hand in hand.

Kevin

Catholic Books List

2011-01-22T10:05:00.000-06:00

Since I've decided to keep this blog going I will be doing some improving and updating. I have added a short list of essential books for the Restoration of Catholic Rural Life to the right. Click on the link and it will show the list. I will be adding articles with weblinks soon as well as more books. God bless.

Kevin

It was not good for Man to be alone

2011-01-20T19:24:00.000-06:00

Isolation seems to be one of the greatest problems that we find in our modern world. For all of our technology and travel conveniences we have become unable to connect to those around us. We live in a world where many people have never spoken to their neighbors. I remember this from a brief stint in an apartment when I never even saw any of our 4 closest neighbors. Isolation is something that we as Catholics cannot tolerate for we are the Body of Christ. We are all members of the same Mystical Body. To be isolated from our Brothers and Sisters has devastating effects on our faith. I have written several times on the need for authentic Catholic Community, and the difficulty we encounter when trying to form such a thing. We encounter critics, money problems, scandals, etc. Yet, we must always seek true Catholic Community as an ideal which must not be forgotten. There was a time when most of Western Civilization was Catholic Community, which was often formed around smaller faith centers (Benedictine Monasteries). Today if a Catholic Community is to be successful then this type of organic growth out of an already existing faith center will probably be the most successful community. This is beginning to happen in places like the Abbey at Clearcreek Oklahoma, the Latin Mass Community at Maple Hill, KS, St. Mary's at Cashton Wisconsin. Such places are hopes for future restoration of Catholic agrarian community. To build a community without a faith center seems a hopeless endeavour. Yet, even of these places mentioned above we have the problem of the agrarian aspect. Clearcreek has awful soils and is mostly forest in the direct vicinity. Maple Hill is surrounded by Flint Hills where often the soil is only a couple inches to several feet deep. The valleys there are fertile however. Cashton is a highly agrarian area, but has the problems that any industrialized agricultural area has. I have hopes for places where people are moving specifically for the participation in the Catholic Culture. It is my hope that one day my family will find its way to a Catholic Community of some sort. I feel currently the isolation of not belonging to a community. Here is hoping that one day in a simpler purer world we will all be members of the Body of Christ living in perfect community built on the Ancient Faith of our Fathers and filled with the Charity Christ calls us to.

Pax tecum,
Kevin

Industrialization and the Church

2011-01-18T22:48:00.000-06:00

One of the things I like to focus on in this blog is industrialization and it effects on Catholic Culture. Industrialization is something that occurs in every civilization, but ultimately modern industrialization is something completely and totally new. In our own time we have seen for the first time in history the movement of over half the world's population to urban centers. What we call a city actually does not resemble a city whatsoever. The word city comes from the Latin "civitate" which is also the root of the word civilization. Civilization comes forth out of barbarism or a nomadic type of life. It is the art of living together for mutual benefit. Here man learns to live and love his fellow man. The middle ages is often seen by Catholics as the high point of Western Civilization where the social life of man was informed almost completely by the faith of man, and that faith was the the one true Faith. When true civilization is present then this barbarism begins to disappear. However, what passes for civilization today are really a type of modern barbarism. While it is true man lives in close quarters in our modern cities they do not do so for the mutual benefit of others. Rather we find in modern cities that man lives there solely for his own benefit. He is interested in his own pleasures: Starbucks, Shopping Malls, Restaurants, etc...... Rather than a place where man can glorify God with His fellow man, we no have cities where Churches and for that matter most houses as well sit empty. A city devoid of children and faith. This is the fruit of our industrial age. Man became like a machine and a machine does not beget children. It is when we make the connection again with God's Creation that we are able to see again and connect with that original life God wants for us. We must ask ourselves if God would have made our modern world the way we men have made it. Indeed it is the CITIES of Sodom and Gomorrah that are so depraved they must be destroyed. It is the CITY of Nineveh that God threatens. It is never the countryside that has become depraved. It is not the humble tiller of the soil who seeks out the lowly sinful pleasures of the city.

So we must think about this industrialization in new ways. We must think of ways to live our lives in connection with Creation and step away from the smog filled cities. We are seeing the groans of a future industrial collapse even today. We are seeing the realization that trillions of dollars are not easily paid back. We are seeing the reality that when you don't have children then you can't support a social security system. The simple life on the land preserves the faith and it preservest the family which is the place where the faith is passed on day after day, year after year, generation after generation. It is here in the family that hope for the Church and for the world as a whole lies, but if we are going to offer our children on the altars of vanity, materialism, and modernism then certainly our families will not be ones where the faith is passed on. Industrialization brought huge cities, but it also brought destruction of Creation, destruction of families, and the breakdown of society as a whole. All hope is not lost. It is only those in Hell who must abandon all hope. We rather must be the ones who bring hope. We must be the ones who live our lives differently and in a way that is unashamedly Catholic. We can learn from others. We can learn simplicity and respect for creation from the Amish. We can learn about Catholic Tradition from the traditionalists. Let us daily step forward into a better tomorrow for our children.

Kevin

Looking Backward and Moving Forward

2011-01-16T22:45:00.000-06:00

When I discussed possibly quitting the blog with my wife I was told that I will not be quitting any time soon so I guess to those who like to hear what I have to say you are in luck. I was spending some time going back through my posts over the last couple of years and was watching them develop and change. Most of you don't know this, but I actually started this blog when as a school teacher I needed an outlet of hope that some day I would be out of that cold concrete block office and instead be weeding lettuces and milking goats. I needed hope so I wrote about the one thing that kept me going: homesteading and the Catholic Life. It has indeed been an interesting journey and since I filled in some of the details this last week I thought I would go ahead and share a little more about me and my journey. Maybe one of you through God's grace will somehow benefit from my journey.

The truth is that until College I never knew anything other than the rural life. I grew up in St. Leo, KS. Population 27: All Catholic. Yet, I saw a terrible tragedy occur while I was growing up. I saw a sense of despair and hopelessness come over this once vibrant faithful farming community. when I was very you the store and gas station closed in this little town. It had been owned by my grandfather and he simply was regulated out of business along with the consolidation of grocery stores in the small towns which he couldn't compete with. In 6th Grade I saw our Catholic School close and just before this I saw one priest given the four rural parishes in the locale. There would no longer be 2 masses at St. Leo on the weekends. I saw that St. Leo could no longer support its own baseball teams after my tee-ball years. This list of what I saw is long and sad, but it is a story that most anyone from a small community can tell you. Yet, it was from this experience of the loss of Catholic Culture that I now write an opposing view full of hope. My hometown failed primarily because Catholics have given in to materialism, money worship, and relativism. The Faith was not passed on and the farmers were not good stewards so the land is wasting away so that the kids don't want anything to do with it. When we as Catholics choose to live a simple and holy life on the land in pursuit of sanctity rather than profit then we will see the return of Catholic Culture and Catholic Family Life.

The argument is often made that we cannot go back and if we are referring to the temporal reality then that is true. I cannot go back to 1952 or 1852 for that matter. Yet I do not have to live like a modernistic pagan either. The only thing that holds us back from returning from a return to a simpler holier lifestyle is our own fear. After all what will others think if you don't have a microwave or air conditioning, etc, etc, etc. What will people think if you choose to truly live out the faith of our Fathers and not see it as something we do on Sundays. I think we need others to help us live out this reality. I have emphasized the necessity of Catholic Community of some sort over and over and I stick by this necessity. Yet, how will this happen? I don't know. Let us pray God shows the way. Let us pray that we have the courage to take the steps necessary to grow in holiness and to live the life on the land God intended us to live if He is calling us to this. I pray Jesus has mercy on us all as we seek this vision together.

Peace in Christ,
Kevin