tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-198781402012-02-02T10:59:20.099-05:00Hello everyone! I am a Catholic, from Southern California, studying as a Postulant with the Oblates of the Virgin Mary since August 2010. Feel free to post questions or comments dealing with the faith, or morals in general, and I'll be happy to respond to you. Remember, in the end, three things will remain, faith, hope, and love, but the greatest is Love, Verus Amor!Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.comBlogger721100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-58847485791043152882012-02-02T10:59:00.000-05:002012-02-02T10:59:20.107-05:00

Yesterday, we learned that the Susan G.  Komen Foundation (SGK) withdrew financial support it has customarily given to Planned Parenthood (PP), not for abortions, but for breast exams and other diagnostic procedures that PP has provided or otherwise procured for many women over the past decades. Via some comments on my Facebook posts commending SGK's action, I make the following response: One

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-24651751158159307702012-02-01T20:54:00.002-05:002012-02-01T20:54:35.885-05:00

My impression was that it has been a while (at least two weeks) since my last post, but, in fact, it has been just seven days! These seven days, however, have been absolutely jam-packed with activities and functions as many of our visitors arrived last Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, and they joined us for common prayer and meals as well as classes and walks around town. Fr. Timothy Gallagher's

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-1455834267277758682012-01-25T15:23:00.004-05:002012-01-25T15:23:34.125-05:00

We were so happy to celebrate the final profession of religious vows  of Br. John Luong, OMV this past Friday, and attend his diaconate ordination on Saturday! Both were deep and incredibly beautiful celebrations in the life of the Church and that of our community. We also got to spend good time with some of his immediate family and meet other USA Oblates who traveled in to be with us during this

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-71830922511439942302012-01-09T14:56:00.002-05:002012-01-09T14:56:42.302-05:00

...and it's cold again! Having had to scrape frozen dew off of the car back in Long Beach, and then endure the blistering 90ºF of Christmas and the New Year this time around, Boston has its usual chill, but is still unusually mild. I had a great time at home with family and friends, and carry those memories with me as I begin this new semester. We all arrived without travel–weather anomalies,

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-55414485760340570342012-01-01T14:21:00.002-05:002012-01-01T14:22:51.229-05:00

Happy New Year! I welcome 2012, seemingly following 2010 directly. What happened to 2011?? It seems like so much has transpired, that I've been so many places and met so many people, yet the time has flown by! They tell me it only gets worse... Today is also the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God (in Latin: Solemnitās Mariae Mater Deī). We celebrate this great feast, introduced following the

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-30213195387870459402011-12-25T23:21:00.005-05:002011-12-25T23:21:54.251-05:00

What a year! Just when I get used to being at home, the hustle and bustle of Christmas festivities kicks in! I've been told, however, that I wouldn't have it any other way. Please head over to my main website for my Christmas greetings for this year. This semester was challenging in new ways. Beginning a new year with new formation staff in the seminary, with new postulants (congratulations

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-31555166897000422802011-12-19T16:29:00.001-05:002011-12-19T16:29:10.550-05:00

Well, I am on the verge of completing another semester here in Boston. It has certainly been a wild ride, and it's not over yet! I still have Modern Philosophy to study for, which is going to be a difficult exam because the subject matter consists of philosophical errors. It is more like literature than philosophy, remembering what each thinker said (though it was wrong) and how they influenced

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-88636486347352486922011-12-10T10:03:00.001-05:002011-12-10T10:37:48.763-05:00

So here we are, the last two weeks of the semester! Actually it's just a week and 3 days. I still have all of my end-of-the-semester coursework due, beginning with a paper and final quiz in Film on Monday. Things are moving along well, but there is still plenty of work to do. We also have our Lessons & Carols service this Tuesday evening (see the St. Clement Shrine website for more information

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-72832855996581579642011-12-03T22:15:00.001-05:002011-12-03T22:44:16.246-05:00

I can't believe it's been another two weeks since I last posted! What began as a fairly faithful weekly endeavor has now become bi-weekly, de facto, anyway. I was going to title this post "Thanksgiving and Communion" but, alas, that's what I called my last post! We had a great time visiting with our Oblate brothers in Montreal last weekend. We got to see many beautiful churches and get a feel

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-42603575296345591592011-11-24T09:38:00.001-05:002011-12-26T23:59:32.562-05:00

Happy Thanksgiving to you all! What great privilege we have to be aware of God's gifts to us that take many forms, in our own existence and the possibility of salvation that we have in Christ Jesus, and in our talents and family and friends. After a cold and rainy day yesterday, the icy winds that picked up in the evening blew the storminess away and we have perfectly clear skies in Boston today

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-21434942003285071892011-11-12T13:12:00.001-05:002011-11-12T13:34:21.655-05:00

The Third Typical Edition of the Roman Missal, promulgated by John Paul II in 2002, has been translated into English (finally) and will replace its predecessor in just two short weeks with the beginning of the new liturgical year. This translation restores many older liturgical texts in a translation that is more literarily faithful to the Latin original and that carries greater theological

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-68978431334507842732011-10-30T18:11:00.000-04:002011-10-30T18:13:12.512-04:00

I went for a walk with Br. Jerry this afternoon; it was brisk out but very picturesque! Here are a few shots to give you an idea... This week was quite busy with studying for a Modern Philosophy midterm examination and reading up on John Rawls' Political Liberalism for Contemporary Philosophy. Greek demands more and more time as we go along, to keep all of the grammar and vocabulary fresh, but

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-33209493497069405812011-10-10T21:51:00.000-04:002011-10-15T14:21:33.815-04:00

I took a few pictures on our Mt. Wachusett hike for Columbus Day. The Fall colors are just starting to come in. After the hike, we had dinner with Josh's parents, who live just a few miles from there. Back to studying for another busy week of classes! Love the Immaculata! Mariam cogita, Mariam invoca

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-47668149282987072622011-10-09T10:34:00.000-04:002011-10-09T14:29:34.058-04:00

What do René Descartes and the Holy Rosary have in common? Not too much, actually. They just coincided for me this week! In Modern Philosophy, we completed our study of those thinkers who made the transition from the Medieval period into the Modern period in Philosophy. Prior to Descartes, we had studied the Italian Renaissance philosophers Giordano Bruno and Pico della Mirandola, Galileo

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-80278881529601236772011-10-01T21:59:00.003-04:002011-10-01T21:59:45.222-04:00

Today was a nice break from the not-quite-fast-paced-yet-full schedule of the seminary. We had a day of recollection with two conferences from Fr. Chris O'Connor, Vice-Rector of St. John's Seminary. It was good to have another of the faculty join us here at St. Clement's to get a more personal sense of who the Oblates are. He spoke on various themes surrounding priestly formation, primarily the

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-68071291909871923272011-09-25T13:53:00.001-04:002011-09-25T13:53:55.442-04:00

Boston has been a bit wet this week. It's rained almost every day, and the intervening days were hot and humid - 70 ºF at 6am and rising from there with 60-80% humidity - the rain was a relief! Greek has really been picking up - we have covered about 50 words, the grammatical structure for the first and second declensions of nouns, the present and future tense (indicative active) of verbs, the

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-34106269450508037662011-09-11T20:22:00.002-04:002011-09-11T20:22:31.848-04:00

It is always refreshing to start a new year. New year's resolutions, a new room, some new guys, changes in leadership - all sorts of changes, but still a great deal of continuity. And this is a harmonious analogue to the Church as a whole - as her missionaries encountered new peoples with different languages and cultures, she incorporated their traditions in the local expression of her own

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-2745196852987774732011-09-06T11:42:00.000-04:002011-09-06T11:42:42.200-04:00

Since I arrived in Boston on Friday, it has been one grand introduction and orientation for the new year. Fr. Tom, the Assistant to the Postulants and our primary contact for formation, rightly pointed out this morning that today is the last of the "first" days that we will have for a while. Our four new postulants are excited and enthusiastic beginning their first year of formation with us,

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-21688822787509387072011-08-14T17:32:00.000-04:002011-08-14T17:32:30.143-04:00

This is a topic that human nature makes uncomfortable and that modern media distorts in so many ways. With the recent news of the State of New York's legalization of marriage-like unions between two people of the same sex, and a photo I saw of two TV drama characters at their lesbian wedding, coupled with President Obama's promotion of the "It Gets Better" campaign, people today need an

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-85662271081214367852011-07-13T12:55:00.000-04:002011-07-13T12:55:54.650-04:00

ZENIT - Pope to Parents: Take the Kids OutdoorsOur German shepherd, Pope Benedict XVI encourages parents to take advantage of the fair weather and lack of school commitments common in many families for the rest of the year by showing their children the splendor and beauty of the great outdoors. This is something I always enjoyed as I was growing up; we began taking annual camping trips to

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-31995465318294279652011-07-04T14:28:00.000-04:002011-07-04T14:28:39.682-04:00

Happy Independence Day! As we prayed yesterday, while we recognize our achievement of political independence from England, we must further recognize our essential dependence on our Creator, the giver of life. Freedom, in the deepest sense, is the capacity to choose from good alternatives, as well as bad ones, ready for the consequences of each. It is also the ability to choose the good, not

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-17824976501544721222011-06-11T14:32:00.000-04:002011-06-11T14:32:26.617-04:00

Veni Sancte Spiritus! Come, Holy Spirit! Pentecost, traditionally 50 days after Easter (10 days after Ascension, which is 40 days after Easter), marks the birth of the Church, as Fr. Ed Broom, OMV (www.youtube.com/fredbroomomv) noted in his homily on the Thursday after Ascension. The account of the coming of the Holy Spirit, the second Person of the Blessed Trinity, upon the Apostles, in the

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-65479233676760307202011-05-13T21:52:00.000-04:002011-05-13T21:52:57.827-04:00

Final exams are over, and I feel very confident in high marks across the board. Some classes are already determined and the grades published and the last ones I should hear about in the next few days. We studied long and hard until the end here, also preparing for the Seminarian Scholarship Dinner, to be held tomorrow night here at St. Clement's in Boston. I also concluded my meetings with the

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-82782385285306994282011-05-08T19:51:00.000-04:002011-05-08T19:51:03.670-04:00

I would like to open this post with the alternative prayer for today, the third Sunday of Easter: Father in heaven, author of all truth, a people once in darkness has listened to your Word and followed your Son as he rose from the tomb. Hear the prayer of this newborn people and strengthen your Church to answer your call. May we rise and come forth into the light of day to stand in your presence

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-66905381571056805522011-05-01T17:55:00.001-04:002011-05-01T17:56:48.608-04:00

Enjoy these photos of the beautiful flowers and new growth around Boston - just last week things were still pretty gray and dead-looking... what a change! Springtime in Boston (2011) Love the Immaculata! Mariam cogita, Mariam invoca

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-16743633670834546132011-04-20T20:31:00.000-04:002011-04-20T20:31:18.363-04:00

Mid-way through this Holy Week approaching the Paschal mystery, we pause to reflect on what it all means. Yesterday, we attended the Chrism Mass for the Archdiocese of Boston with many other seminarians, a handful of bishops, and about 250 priests, including 4 Oblates and the Greek Orthodox Metropolitan Methodius and an accompanying priest from that church. At the Chrism Mass, the oils of

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-37728628854226457192011-04-09T22:22:00.000-04:002011-04-09T22:22:13.025-04:00

Time is flying by; I will be home in 6 weeks! We are approaching the deepest part of Lent with this final week before Passion Sunday and Holy Week before the glorious octave of Easter and the Beatification of John Paul II on May 1, Divine Mercy Sunday, which begins our final week of instruction. After a week of final exams and another week of cleaning house, I will come home for the summer. It

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-56253400917765372812011-03-21T09:25:00.000-04:002011-03-21T09:25:17.778-04:00

Our modern times are saturated with media: print media, broadcast media on radio, TV and on-demand media via the Internet and mail-order video services like Netflix. We have video billboards and ads running on monitors in grocery stores and banks. Go to any drug store and find the drug store's generic brand product styled just like the name brand one, taking deceptive advantage of the visual

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-54324081006568220382011-03-08T15:51:00.000-05:002011-03-08T15:51:32.250-05:00

We all fall. To temptation, that is. Sometimes seriously, sometimes less seriously, we all fall. Ashes are a reminder of this reality, of our generative inheritance of Original Sin. It is somewhat harsh to speak of our "fallen nature" and disregard the capacity remaining in our nature to receive grace and the mercy of God. Nonetheless, our weakness that makes us susceptible to falling into sin

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-43730440464332935232011-03-05T22:47:00.000-05:002011-03-05T22:47:02.217-05:00

Perfect. This little word has come up quite frequently lately. When I first heard its meaning questioned, in our Father Provincial's homily at Deacon Tom's final profession of vows, I quickly ran through what I knew of various languages, searching for its etymological derivation. I soon arrived at the Latin composition of "per", a preposition meaning "through" and "factus", the past participle

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-75647585262871219862011-02-26T13:08:00.000-05:002011-02-26T13:08:56.345-05:00

At the Morning and Evening prayer hours of the Liturgy of the Hours, we have an opportunity as members of this community to voice specific prayers of intercession after the given prayers of intercession have been recited. Often Oblates will pray for intentions present in their lives; we pray for any Oblates who are traveling or for important meetings that are going on in the government or in the

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-13088593957738243572011-02-16T20:13:00.000-05:002011-02-16T20:13:20.414-05:00

Since I last wrote at the end of January, classes have picked up, we had a day of recollection, and Confirmation classes are more than halfway complete. The weather has begun to indicate that Spring is on the way with 50-degree days and the snow melting down, making lots of ice on the sidewalks and roads with freezing temperatures overnight despite the daytime highs. We are placing a greater

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-20169611825645075972011-02-05T16:22:00.000-05:002011-02-05T16:22:42.220-05:00

Our courtyard has two feet of snow in it - St. Joseph is buried up to his waist! And there are awesome icicles hanging from the fire escape next door. Love the Immaculata! Mariam cogita, Mariam invoca

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-863713747719755372011-01-29T15:00:00.000-05:002011-01-29T15:00:48.095-05:00

The Spring semester is full-swing ahead! Having just completed our third week of classes, things are really picking up. The reading is heavier this semester than last (Medieval Philosophy and Shakespeare constitute the majority); classes are just as engaging, though, and they fit together well, too. This past weekend we celebrated Br. Tom's profession of perpetual vows and his ordination to the

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-50782543194277844012011-01-15T22:28:00.000-05:002011-01-15T22:28:18.316-05:00

It's been a phenomenal week back! After returning from our retreat, we had a break until classes resumed on Wednesday. We began preparing for a busy week of visiting discerners and a weekend seminar by Fr. Timothy Gallagher, OMV on discerning the will of God, according to St. Ignatius of Loyola (of course). Monday morning we cleaned out 13 bedrooms and prepared them for our many guests, men

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-62880348720476281152011-01-09T22:36:00.000-05:002011-01-09T22:36:31.319-05:00

I came back from a relatively short retreat weekend this evening; the snow in Milton was amazing, and I have pictures to prove it! Don't worry, I didn't spend much time shooting the white stuff. Our retreat centered around St. Ignatius of Loyola's 14 Rules for the Discernment of Spirits (following the contemporary book of the same title by Fr. Timothy Gallagher, OMV - find it on Amazon). I had

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-80289641184445790662011-01-07T15:32:00.000-05:002011-01-07T15:32:23.966-05:00

My semester break proved to be quite enjoyable, and very eventful, including getting sick in the torrential downpour in sunny So-Cal, spending time with good friends and family, driving more than halfway back across the country to visit my sister, Sr. Teresa (with the Nashville Dominicans), and taking care of business at home before returning to Boston. I flew back to Boston yesterday, flying

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-63440227026555784512010-12-24T16:47:00.000-05:002010-12-24T16:47:25.110-05:00

I would like to take this opportunity to wish all my readers a Merry Christmas! The spirit of the celebration is in recognizing, as Mary did in her Magnificat, that God remembered His promise of mercy and sent His only-begotten Son to redeem the fallen human nature, drawing all people to Himself, to share in the life of the Trinity, which is essentially love. The birth of Jesus also gives us a

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-79495740154397512982010-12-18T10:42:00.000-05:002010-12-18T10:42:26.906-05:00

One semester down, 11 to go! (Plus the novitiate year and the pastoral year.) That gets an M.A. in Theology... Fr. Dave commented once that we should get a doctorate for 6 years of school... either way, we come out knowing a lot! This semester, my first in religious life, has been incredible. The community is very supportive, Boston is an exciting city to live in, I have enjoyed the cold weather

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-68177662538690874712010-12-05T13:53:00.000-05:002010-12-05T13:53:03.913-05:00

... or rather the close of my first semester of seminary studies. Final exams begin December 15, and I leave for home the following Saturday, to return on the feast of the Epiphany for a few days of retreat and to begin the new semester. This semester has flown by, and from my experience in the acceleration of time in college, it is a bit nerve-wracking that things are already moving so quickly.

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-78131874005301723962010-12-02T11:42:00.000-05:002010-12-02T11:42:05.885-05:00

We headed up to Montreal on the afternoon of Thanksgiving Day to spend the weekend with our Oblate confreres in Canada. We made the trip into a pilgrimage of sorts, visiting several shrines and churches while we were there. It was pretty cold, and we had a good snow Friday night and Saturday. It was 26 ºF when we left Sunday morning, and 47 ºF in Boston that afternoon. The coldest point was 22 ºF

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-68316282936309045812010-11-24T20:23:00.000-05:002010-11-24T20:23:23.601-05:00

On this day, which was first celebrated almost 400 years ago very near to where I am now, those who discovered that by God's providence they could survive in a land so far from their home, enduring great trials and hardship, gave thanks for all they had received. Their sojourn in this strange land was brought on by the closed-mindedness of the political states from whence they came. By

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-30614287682364246282010-11-21T09:05:00.000-05:002010-11-21T09:05:42.586-05:00

Happy Solemnity of Christ the King! The past two weeks have been busy, yet again, with lots of school work and meetings. Yesterday was a day of recollection for us, though only two of us postulants were here for it; one went home to visit family and attend a wedding. Fr. Sean Morris, OMV came to give us a couple good conferences. He spoke about how to make a good day of recollection by

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-24776368536135563682010-11-18T16:34:00.000-05:002010-11-18T16:34:11.822-05:00

The following is a message from the US Computer Emergency Readiness Team regarding online safety and information privacy over the holidays. Holiday Season Phishing Scams and Malware Campaigns Original release date: November 18, 2010 at 2:17 pm Last revised: November 18, 2010 at 2:17 pm In the past, US-CERT has received reports of an increased number of phishing scams and malware campaigns that

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-59156098168952468492010-11-06T21:48:00.000-04:002010-11-06T21:48:06.440-04:00

Boy, if religious life was not exciting before, it is now! This week was full of tests, writing, studying, sports, and a day of outreach! I had a Metaphysics test, studied Catechism, Latin, and Literature, and assembled a paper summarizing our readings in Ancient Philosophy. I got to cantor the antiphon and verses for a hymn at Mass on All Souls' Day. Friday night, four of us played tennis for

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-20232947245192219852010-11-01T08:16:00.000-04:002010-11-01T08:16:41.435-04:00

Getting ready for class and taking a quick walk across the street to the mailbox... I noticed it was pretty cold outside. I would estimate no more than 40 ºF. Got back to my room, and the weather online says it's 35 out! Now we're talking! Happy Feast of All Saints Day! Love the Immaculata! Mariam cogita, Mariam invoca

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-32826162038044558662010-10-30T22:23:00.000-04:002010-10-30T22:23:43.983-04:00

We learned in Metaphysics this week, after reviewing our progress so far, on which we will be tested this coming week, that everything that exists is one (singular), true, and good, and that the combination of all of these is beauty. These are the transcendental characteristics of all things. This week has been filled with many blessings as I met with different people, grew in experience and

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-80610105719957831012010-10-29T20:43:00.000-04:002010-10-29T20:43:20.176-04:00

This is just a quick blurb promoting the Advent retreat at St. Peter Chanel Catholic Church in Hawaiian Gardens, CA. Love the Immaculata! Mariam cogita, Mariam invoca

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-43453535565303051262010-10-23T11:45:00.001-04:002010-10-23T11:50:35.010-04:00

Make that a crazy couple weeks; my last post was 12 days ago! Metaphysics and Latin still reign my coursework as my favorites by far. Ancient Philosophy is becoming more substantial as we take an in-depth look at Plato and Aristotle for the remainder of the semester (the first third of the course was all the Greeks before Plato). In Literature, we read the Divine Comedy (principal passages)

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-53670111350018301712010-10-11T17:50:00.001-04:002010-10-11T20:27:54.345-04:00

Seminarians got a day off for Columbus Day. So we went to Mount Monadnock, in Southern New Hampshire, about a 2-hour drive away. I'll let the pictures (and videos) do the rest of the talking. Love the Immaculata! Mariam cogita, Mariam invoca

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-73026555740403230522010-10-10T09:21:00.000-04:002010-10-10T09:21:34.331-04:00

This week has been incredible. I had two major assignments: a paper (25% of my grade) for Ancient Philosophy and a quiz (10% of my grade) in Latin. The paper was just a selection of quotes from a chapter of one of our texts, indicating the most important points, but those 30 pages of reading turned into 11 pages of quotes, almost 7,000 words, and took over 3 hours to type up, even with my quick

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-12785023015582279802010-10-03T20:12:00.000-04:002010-10-03T20:12:09.983-04:00

My first Confirmation class! Our students are 7th graders from South Boston - the boys are separated from the girls, and team-taught. The boys get 5 of us seminarians (three from the Oblates and two from St. John Seminary); the girls get 4 women from the parish. It was a good first class, in which we were able to meet the students, introduce the first lesson, and attend Sunday Mass with them. We

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-52685386671655553232010-09-28T22:19:00.000-04:002010-09-28T22:19:18.658-04:00

These are pictures from last Saturday's walking tour of Boston with Dr. Philip Crotty, my Latin instructor at St. John Seminary. Enjoy!Love the Immaculata!Mariam cogita, Mariam invoca

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-3153903693975785802010-09-26T21:08:00.000-04:002010-09-26T21:08:16.909-04:00

My dearest friends, this post could take you months to explore. You have been warned. An email from a good friend back home prompted me to make this brief post. It concerns the collection of articles and publications found at http://www.mostholyfamilymonastery.com/EWTN.php As you may know, EWTN is the Eternal Word Television Network, a popular cable subscription for many Catholic families. The

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-51755046057713739052010-09-25T21:50:00.000-04:002010-09-25T21:50:25.599-04:00

I was reminded last weekend that I did not post anything... such are the demands on a postulant's discretionary time! It has been a substantial two weeks academically - we finished Homer's Odyssey and Aeschylus' Agamemnon, tore through the Pre-Socratic philosophers up through the Atomists, explored the first few chapters of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, discovered "Potency and Act"

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-88208773851740430922010-09-12T14:24:00.000-04:002010-09-12T14:24:08.064-04:00

Today, Sunday, September 12, 2010, marks the 184th commemoration of the Titular Feast of the Congregation of the Oblates of the Virgin Mary. It is celebrated as a Proper Solemnity by the Congregation. At Morning Prayer, Br. John and Br. Tom renewed their temporary vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the spirit of Fr. Lanteri, a solemn and joyous occasion for the entire congregation. My

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-71107016192272114302010-09-04T22:39:00.000-04:002010-09-04T22:39:59.639-04:00

This week began with a meeting concerning the house rules, which are to be expected in a community that is preparing some of its members (the seminarians) for a life of discipline with the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. The rules are fairly standard for a professional setting, but they were presented along with a reflection comparing seminary growth to being raised in the home of the

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-64479327548008511802010-08-28T10:02:00.000-04:002010-08-28T10:02:20.746-04:00

It has been a quiet week since my arrival; the other students arrive later today. The first few days, it rained all day long, so I did not get out except to buy shampoo and deodorant. I had lots of time for prayerful reflection on my vocation and my new life, something that I realize a little more, in a tangible way, every day. I have also had lots of time to read, about the life of our founder,

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-37161100135604127482010-08-24T17:02:00.000-04:002010-08-24T17:02:18.693-04:00

I put up a few pictures I took last night after getting settled in.It is very quiet here right now, even when there are people around! Things will pick up when the other students arrive later this week... and then we'll be on retreat, pretty quiet again, lol. Of course.Love the Immaculata!

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-45215158776026070842010-08-23T14:50:00.000-04:002010-08-23T14:50:37.945-04:00

I have arrived in Boston! Fr. Jeremy and Br. Jerry came to pick me up from the airport. My flight left at 9:20pm from Long Beach, arrived in Washington, D.C. just after 5am local time, and my flight was already scheduled an hour later due to a late departure of the inbound plane from Oakland, CA. We finally departed around 10:30am, arriving in Boston at 11:55am. I am just getting all my stuff

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-64207332616222155762010-08-15T21:54:00.000-04:002010-08-15T21:54:31.635-04:00

The Oblates released their new website for the US Province - check it out at http://www.omvusa.org. The new design brings out brighter tones than the old site, encouraging a more pleasant visit to our niche on the web. The new site runs on the WordPress engine, allowing it to dynamically incorporate rich content from other websites, and enabling multiple webmasters to update the website

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-18939501393720565612010-08-12T22:13:00.000-04:002010-08-12T22:13:56.309-04:00

Sister update: Teresa made it safely to Nashville Wednesday afternoon, after a 3-hour delay of her flight from Memphis to Nashville. My update: I received my formal letter of acceptance and welcome to the Seminary in Boston. It outlines what to bring and what to expect upon entrance. I am to bring clothing (business casual dress is expected for all public activities; a uniform formal look is

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-26370243358436927952010-08-08T17:11:00.000-04:002010-08-08T17:47:28.254-04:00

The decision to join the Oblates of the Virgin Mary comes after almost 7 years of discernment, carefully praying, asking what God desires that I do with my life and the many gifts I have been given. I considered pursuing graduate school in the area of Computer Science, and was even accepted to a doctoral program with full tuition paid at the University of Virginia; however, during a visit to

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-27618999536321519442010-08-07T19:04:00.000-04:002010-08-07T19:04:01.558-04:00

This past Thursday, while I was enjoying the sweet mountain air in Oak Creek Canyon, Arizona (just north of Sedona), I received a phone call from the Congregation of the Oblates of the Virgin Mary (Congregazione degli Oblati di Maria Vergine in Italian; Congregatio Oblatorum Beatae Mariae Virginis in Latin), the religious congregation to which I applied earlier this year. I retrieved the message

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-77531742558728968122010-07-10T22:47:00.000-04:002010-07-10T22:48:23.435-04:00

I have been reading Pope Benedict XVI's encyclical Caritas in Veritate (Charity in Truth) and just completed the second chapter during my day of recollection. It is about human development and the ease with which the unguided secular public has misled itself completely. This reading was followed by an essay by C.S. Lewis on Dogma and the Universe. In this essay, he exposes the philosophical

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-48109889033857235002010-06-11T00:10:00.000-04:002010-06-11T00:16:06.668-04:00

Hello, world!I am back; looks like I completely skipped college as far as this blog is concerned. I ran a blog for my Swiss summer study abroad experience in 2008 (Paul en Suisse) and continue to post on my Open Source software and Linux blog, Penguins 'R' Us.I am returning to post here as part of my continuing quest for holiness and for direction in my own life. I hope to post fairly regularly

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-1150659525866783822006-06-18T15:33:00.000-04:002006-10-13T16:32:35.498-04:00

I cannot omit the great Sacrament of Love. Today is the feast of Corpus Cristi, the solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Jesus. The feast is a celebration of the priesthood, through which the Body of Christ is made physically available to the people of God. It is also a commemoration of the great gift of His Body and Blood to strengthen the Mystical Body of Christ, the Church on Earth.

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-1149283200724621382006-06-02T17:20:00.000-04:002006-10-13T16:32:35.373-04:00

Wow, it has been awhile since I last posted here!  June is the month of the Sacred Heart, a time to make reparation for the many sins committed against it, and also a time to grow in devotion to the Sacred Heart, the source of all graces.  This month, as many students finish their terms, we pray that they will fly to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, enflamed with love for all of humanity, to receive

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-1139359732936243692006-02-07T19:48:00.000-05:002006-10-13T16:32:35.250-04:00

So, Spring is on its way! Love's in the air ... or is it? What islove? How do we express love? Where can love be found?Love is the ultimate giving of oneself to another. It is infinitecompassion. It is total dedication. It is, in the terms of theCatholic Church, the bond between the Father, the Son, and the HolySpirit. It is the force that brought Jesus to Earth, the force thatcaused the

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-1137640337271423332006-01-18T21:58:00.000-05:002006-10-13T16:32:35.186-04:00

This month, we acknowledge the anniversary of the 1973 Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision that legalized abortions for any reason. This is an immense crime against life, and it directly opposes the true love that we should have for each individual. Abortion takes the life of a human being, as it has been proven by scientists, even before an investigative committee in the federal government!

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-1135443659710697882005-12-24T11:59:00.000-05:002006-10-13T16:32:35.125-04:00

Does anyone have an idea of how LOVE pertains to Christmas? And what about true love, VERUS AMOR? I'd love to hear from you!Love the Immaculata!

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19878140.post-1134606072806407142005-12-14T19:19:00.000-05:002006-10-13T16:32:35.060-04:00

Paul's blog is up and running!Love the Immaculata!

Paul Nguyenhttps://profiles.google.com/105942850161704375038noreply@blogger.com1