O virgo visionibus fulgens: A Chronogram for the Feast of St. Hildegard of Bingen

Humility; detail from the
Pillar of the Savior's Humanity,
Scivias 3.8
(Rupertsberg MS, fol. 178r)

o VIrgo VIsIonIbVs fVLgens,
qVIbVs VIrgo DeI genetrIX
et eCCLesIa sponsa eIVs
VIae sanCtItatIs reVeLantVr:
ora pro nobIs In ItInere nostra,
Vt VIrtVtes CaeLestes
qVasI tVrres CorVsCantes
In nobIs aeDIfICentVr.

O virgin, gleaming with visions,
in which the Virgin Mother of God
and the Church, His spouse,
are revealed as pathways of holiness:
pray for us on our journey,
that the heavenly virtues
like sparkling towers
might be built up within us.

An Act of Cowardice

An Open Letter to Every Senator who Voted Against Background Checks:

I write to you with a heart aggrieved by your shameful decision this week to vote against the implementation of universal background checks for firearms’ transactions. This was a bill designed to close loopholes exploited by criminals and the mentally ill to purchase firearms to which they have no legal right at gun shows and over the Internet. It was also a bill that, contrary to the claims made falsely against it, did not infringe upon the Second Amendment rights of American citizens; indeed, little more than a decade ago, its provisions were openly supported by the National Rifle Association. It was a bill with overwhelming popular support (not to mention the support of a majority of your fellow senators), which you callously ignored because you were cowed and frightened by the shameless voices of mendacious bullies. This week, you perverted democracy.