Papal pets

I am out of the loop I guess because I just saw this article. 

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8219384/

Vatican Air

  The Curt Jester has  a funny post about the kind of service one might get if the Vatican had its own airline.  Frequent Friar Miles ha!   http://www.splendoroftruth.com/curtjester/archives/008303.php

Pope gets Kimono

Found this on American Papists blog

http://www.americanpapist.com/blog.html

Pope Benedict XVI meets members of a Japanese kimono culture association after his weekly general audience at the Vatican August 22, 2007.  I cant wait to see the photos if he meets with a club such as the Katana Cultural Association (if it exists) :D 

A Day in the life of the Pope

It is in German, I think, but an intersting glimpse nonetheless into some of the Pope’s private life.  I’m pretty sure his flat panel tv at the end is Japanese, and check out the dinnerware with his insignia.

Sacred Heart Cathedral Yamate Yokohama

Another church in another port city this time Yokohama. I don’t travel that much I’m just digging through past photos. Yamate is where many of the foreigners who came to Yokohama after the port opened in 1859 lived. For a bit more on Yamate http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yamate

and for more on the history of Yokohama the first few paragraphs at least are worth the time

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yokohama

since many of Japan’s modern firsts happened there.

More photos from the church here on their website http://homepage3.nifty.com/catholic-yamate/SEIDOU01.html and their main site is http://homepage3.nifty.com/catholic-yamate/index.html

The Brother of the Pope

Came across this http://news.yahoo.com/photo/070816/481/937993656f354abd89613187183bd904  B16’s older brother Msgr. Georg Ratzinger has penned a book titled The Brother of the Pope.  Unfortunately the link above is all I can seem to find about the book but it sounds like an interesting read.  I know that while he was still a Cardinal B16 wrote his memoirs however it doesn’t seem that compelling to me since only goes up to 1977 and misses all the fun after.  see http://www.amazon.com/Milestones-1927-1977-Joseph-Cardinal-Ratzinger/dp/0898707021/ref=sr_1_5/103-6999317-2098228?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1187367619&sr=1-5

Brother Zeno

When I was reading about St. Maximillian Kolbe I came across a Franciscan named Brother Zenon Zebrowski and was amazed by his life.  He arrived with St Kolbe and worked in Japan through the war and well on after until his death.  His efforts even earned him a medal presented to him by the Emperor, this really impressed my Japanese friend I mentioned this to as it is no small honor, and even a visit from Pope John Paul II when he came to Japan.

This is a wonderful article about Brother Zeno, as he was affectionately called, that is well worth the read.  It isn’t too long plus it has pictures.  http://www.franciszkanie.pl/news.php?id=5278

And if you want more along the same lines with the basic history of Franciscans in Japan (and of course photos) see http://www.franciszkanie.pl/news.php?id=4804

Franciscans you guys are amazing. 

Happy VJ/P Day Allies!

On August 15 1945 Japan FINALLY  surrendered putting an end to WWII.  Of course its not a happy day of celebrations or anything like that here.  There is a somber ceremony held by the government mainly attented by government officials and the Emperor that’s aired on the national tv station NHK at noon.  Their idea is to commemorate and pray for the war dead and peace.  The news also covers similar smaller ceremonies around Japan to pray for the war dead. 

Im from an allied country and I like history so Im very happy and not that sad.  I think I’ll have an allied beer.

Feast day of St Maximilian Kolbe

August 14

 

I have never been to Nagasaki but if I do make it there one day I will have on my list of places to see the monastery St. Maximilian Kolbe founded and that survived the atomic bomb.  Basic info incase you have never heard of this saint.   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maximilian_Kolbe

I have a small special bottle of sake Ive been saving which I think I will have tonight  in honor of St.  Max and his time here.  Also his birthday is reported to be either January 7 or 8th but I’ll just say its January 7 since that’s my birthday too

John Paul II in Japan

In 1981 from February 23 to 26 Pope John Paul II visited Japan.  To find any information on this visit in English was difficult but I did manage to find one article http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,921027-2,00.html

What impressed me was JPII’s visit with then Emperor Hirohito, tow people I never thought would meet, and after being unable to find any photos by searching in English I finally manged to find a photo in Japanese.  It is here http://www.cbcj.catholic.jp/jpn/feature/jp2_25th/index.htm

Skip the top set of five photos and go to the second group second photo from the top.  Click on it to make it bigger and there you have it.