Category: Lectures

By now, most of us have been “Christmased out.”  But I would like to read to you one of two articles that are almost totally unconnected except they both deal […]

I grew up in what we referred to as “Upstate New York,” more properly western New York. From my earliest years, I was taught that we were “Irish, with a […]

Veterans Day The motorcade made it way down the unfamiliar streets of the city. It was an open vehicle, and the riders waved as was expected to the crowd lining […]

A few weeks ago, I was on a tour of Ireland. Now, I’m not going to take up your time telling you all about the tour. I’ll save that for […]

For almost 30 years, whenever the reader began, “A reading from the Book of Jeremiah,” I would look to the lady sitting next to me in choir and whisper, “Jeremiah […]

I have heard tell that we can all thank Vice President and presidential candidate Al Gore for the Internet. I used to look forward to the arrival of the postman. […]

I was recently reminded that I have another birthday approaching. They seem to come around quicker than they used to when I was much younger. Not that I have any regrets. When […]

I am convinced that who we are, what we believe, our likes and dislikes, even how we make decisions, is all based on our previous life experiences. I grew up in western […]

It was the evening of St. Patrick’s Day, And after arriving home from that night’s fish fry, I settled back into my easy chair to partake of a little frozen […]

They met in a grove of oak trees near the middle of their island and after hours of fasting and prayer one of their number rose. The soft breeze stirred his white […]

(Note: The following lecture wasn’t delivered at the Feb. 7 meeting because of the length of the meeting.) In 1977, Alex Haley’s “Roots” was broadcast and probably set off the current […]

My high school biology teacher was a bachelor and fresh out of Boston College. It was his first year as a teacher. Biology was our sophomore science subject. My class was pretty […]

On the Advent season Unlike possibly most of you, I did not have the advantage of a Catholic school education. Instead, I had an hour a week of what was titled “Religious […]

On Our Constitution and Election Day I know that a few of you are patiently waiting for this meeting to be over so you can go home and catch the latest […]

Prayer is an important part of our lives. As Catholics, we are taught to pray specific prayers. It starts almost at the cradle, with, “Now I lay me down to sleep. I […]

First, let me preface this presentation with the comment that it was first written two months ago. Due to the length of our past few meetings, I have not had […]

Over the years, I have come to believe that there are a few basic truths that we all share. Many years ago, I learned that “history is written by the […]

It was about 4 a.m. one morning about six weeks ago that I woke up and discovered there was a question just penetrating there – what is a Knight? I […]

At the end of his homily last Saturday evening, Father Eugene gave the congregation a homework assignment. We were asked to learn the Works of Mercy and to see how we apply […]

You can thank our worthy Chancellor for tonight’s lecture. He loaned me two books from his vast library, both of which deal with the first 50 years or so of […]

Jubilee Year of Mercy [dropcaps] O [/dropcaps] n March 13, 2015, the Holy Father, Pope Francis, announced the coming Jubilee Year of Mercy. The next month, he restated the coming year in […]

Christmas Tree Tinsel [dropcaps] S [/dropcaps] everal years ago, my wife started her career as an elementary school music teacher. One of her first hurtles was to prepare a program for the school […]

On Bible’s Letter of St. James [dropcaps] I [/dropcaps] don’t usually delve into theology, preferring to leave that to those better educated in the subject. But I could not pass up this […]

Little known tales of the Civil War [dropcaps] T [/dropcaps]his year marks the 150th anniversary of the end of our Civil War. The month of April 1865 saw the surrender of Gen. […]

Of Patriotic Protocol [dropcaps] E [/dropcaps]ach year, I am reminded of my duties and obligations as your Lecturer – to educate and entertain. So tonight, we shall begin with education. One of my […]

Knights and Chivalry [dropcaps] I [/dropcaps] grew up along the shore of Lake Ontario. The weather there was not always conducive to outdoor play and, therefore, I, as an only child, had to […]

Our Flag [dropcaps] E [/dropcaps]ach weekday morning at our household, the TV gets turned on, lately to check the weather so my wife can decide what to wear since she’s still […]